random

Got a letter from my cousin Ryan today in United Arab Emirates. Reminded me that one of the fun parts of having friends and family all over the place is getting mail with really cool postmarks from all over the place. Just looking at return addresses is an exercise for the imagination sometimes. Of course, this doesn't outweigh the non-funness of living far away from those same friends and family.

Watched the movie Shall We Dance tonight. It was good; a nice look at being yourself and being honest with yourself and with others; with not being afraid to want to change things about your life. I even liked Richard Gere, and I don't always like Richard Gere. :)

Happy weekend!

I'm searching...

...for a game (not a board game; an active game) that can be played in a large group and with adults and children both. Any suggestions???

Bill's Hot Dogs

This past weekend Jeremy and I and several friends from church (Glen, Camille, Jeanette, Matt, Nicole and Jenny) went to Elizabeth City, NC to sing at a Gospel Rally being held at Roanoke Bible College. They'd asked us to sing a few accapella songs as special music. It was a really, really fun and relaxing couple of days. As Nicole put it, we got to leave town, sleep late, eat junk food, watch sports (March Madness, anyone?), play cards, and sing....and do it all with friends. All in all, a great time. And we rode in the church van which gave us all flashbacks to high school and college.

Since then, I have managed to get some kind of mild stomach bug, but it appears to be the short-lived kind, thank goodness. I don't do well subsisting on nothing but applesauce and saltines.

Entertainment, etc.

Yay Amazing Race!!!!!! I have to say, for anyone watching this newest installment, that I really, really hope that Eric and Jeremy are the next to go because their disgusting comments toward the girls (and all women actually) are getting very, very old. Enough with the frat boy personnas.

Watched a couple of movies this week/weekend. Shaun of the Dead, and Flightplan. Yes, I realize how totally different these movies are. Flightplan was very suspenseful, I thought, and well-done. I like Jodi Foster as well as Sean Bean and neither dissapointed me.
Shaun of the Dead was.....hilarious in a bizarre, twisted kind of way. I wasn't planning on watching it, not being a fan of zombie movies at all, but this isn't your typical zombie movie. I would discribe it as a British movie about clueless, slacker, 20-something guys and their relationships with girls, their parents and each other. With zombies. Flesh-eating zombies.

Anyway. Tonight it's either Cinderella Man or Walk the Line (I know, I know...I'm terribly behind).

Later.

a good scrub

Up until maybe a month and a half ago, I'd never scrubbed a floor in my life. Oh, I've mopped plenty, but never a down-on-your-knees-Cinderella-type scrub. But about a month and a half ago I decided our kitchen floor needed that kind of scrub. Why? you ask. Because the white, grooved linoleum is a magnet for dirt. It's a gray floor, not white, and we mop regularly. So I thought, let's see if scrubbing works. Did it? well, it looked better, but not crystal clear. Was it worth it? not really. But I did get a good upper body workout! My second scrubbing experience happened today at work. Long story short: everyone has to scrub two tiles a day until the floor is better. This is a floor that somehow (depsite daily mopping) looks even worse than my kitchen floor. I've seen people scrub it and it never seemed to help. Apparently, our boss-boss thought differently and told us so in very condescending and demeaning terms. Needless to say, while I was scrubbing, I was mentally telling him exactly what I thought of his so-called "leadership style". Interestingly enough, when I was done (with visible improvements made on my section of the floor) I felt much better. Guess a little physical labor is good for the soul. And thankfully, God once again had my back, because this individual never showed up (as he occassionally and unexpectedly does) while I was working leading to words that probably should not have been said.

pictures

Here are some pictures of the new motorcycle....oh, and Jeremy's new "I'm giving up on the razor and scissors" look. :)

New things

Crash course on some of the new happenings in life:

My little brother is having a baby! Yay!!! Due October 20. Maybe he/she will be born 10 days early on my birthday. Wouldn't that be fun?

Jeremy bought a motorcycle. I've only ridden it around the neighborhood, but it's really cool. A 1982 Suzuki GS1100. He's been riding it too work, so it's also been nice to have my Honda back on a daily basis. I even vacuumed it out on Sunday! I'll post pictures of the bike as soon as we get some uploaded.

I bought fun things to organize with today! This may not seem like news, but for me this signifies an extra good day.

I have an ear infection for the first time since I was in grade school.

Jeremy and I are planning a weekend backpacking trip in the North Carolina mountains. Fun! Anybody been backpacking in the Appalachians? Any suggestions?

I finally finished reading Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. An excellent book. Very old-school British vibe with a fantastical twist (19th Century England plus magic).

I'm studying for the GRE which I am scheduled to take Feb. 28. Pray for me on that day! As things stand now (particularly with the quantitative, i.e. math, section) I'll need as much help as I can get.

So that's about it. The boring and the exciting (which, I realize, isn't even all that exciting).

Peace

a couple of movies

On Monday, I went with some girl friends to see Junebug (there's an old theater in town that has an independent movie series every week or two). I really enjoyed it. Jason told me I'd like it, and again, he was correct. It's a very realistic movie, but without that depressing "life totally sucks" attitude that a lot of "realistic" dramas take on. Yeah, the relationships between most everyone in the film could have stood an overhall, but there was a little bit of hope at the end. And as far as the characters went, there were times when I loved each character, and times when I couldn't stand them...kind of like a lot of real people out there! Amy Adams' character was the one exception -- I liked her all the time. Well, and maybe the dad too. I also appreciated that they portrayed the South without making fun of it.

Second movie I've seen recently: Elizabethtown. I made the mistake of reading too many reviews on it....and most critics didn't really like this movie at all. So I was distracted by their voices in my head. But overall I enjoyed the movie. It had a kind of disjointed, mismatched feel during the first half, but I think it kind of worked because it's a disjointed time in this guy's life. If I had to sum up the movie it would be sweet and quirky with a kickin' soundtrack. It's one I think I could watch again and enjoy more.

Happy Friday!

Fudge

(as part of remembering friends series)

My Granny Blair always made fudge at Christmas -- with everyone's favorite recipe off of the marshmellow fluff jar. So now, whenever I make fudge at Christmas (because of course I have to carry on the tradition), I think of my cousin Ryan Sundlie and how when we were little we would eat fudge and play Barbies in my Granny's bedroom. Ryan is the coolest -- he's an artist, a lover of literature, an outdoorsman, now a teacher in the United Arab Emirates, and one of the best "sneaker and hider" around. He's open, friendly, adventurous, down-to-earth and lots of fun. And even better...he's family!

List-time

I am, if nothing else, a copy-cat. Imitation is still the sincerest form of flattery, right? :)

Four jobs you have had in your life:
1. babysitter
2. restaraunt hostess
3. newspaper reporter
4. barrista

Four movies you would watch over and over:
1. Sense and Senisbility
2. Waiting for Guffman
3. Lord of the Rings trilogy
4. White Christmas

Four books you could read over and over:
1. Anne of Green Gables series
2. The Last Silk Dress
3. Harry Potter series
4. Zion Covenant series

Five places you have lived:
1. Portland, Oregon
2. Independence, Missouri
3. Searcy, Arkansas
4. Houston, Texas
5. Wilmington, North Carolina

Four t.v. shows you watch:
1. The Amazing Race
2. Lost
3. The O.C. (I know, I know... guilty pleasure)
4. Bones

Four places you have vacationed:
1. Spain
2. England
3. Chicago
4. San Antonio

Four web sites you visit (nearly) daily:
1. Yahoo mail
2. various friends' blogs
3. televisionwithoutpity.com
4.

Four favorite foods:
1. Anything Italian
2. Peaches and strawberries
3. Mexican...especially if it involves homemade tortillas
4. My mom's chicken noodle soup

Four places you would rather be (if I had to...I like here just fine right now):
1. Laying on the beach
2. Hiking in the mountains (or sitting in my mountain cabin)
3. With family
4. Hanging out with friends I haven't seen in months

Morning and Night

When someone asks me "Are you a morning perons or a night person?" I generally say night. Mainly because on most days I'm in a semi-comatose state for about an hour after I wake up. But I've recently begun to question whether or not that's changing...by necessity. Being a shift worker my schedule changes weekly, but 98 percent of the time I either have to be at work at 5:30 a.m., 5:45 a.m. or 6:30 a.m. Occassionally, I get to sleep in and arrive by 7 a.m. Fortunately, I live about 8 minutes from work. But still. At first I naturally balked at having to set my alarm clock for 4:45 a.m. That's the middle of the night!! But in the past year I have grown to love the perks of early rising: being off work by 2 p.m., sometimes noon or 1:30, thereby having afternoons free to get things done or even nap and then get things done. I've grown to enjoy the silence and freshness of the time just before dawn, and I like to watch the sunrise, to watch the world wake up.

Of course, on my days off, I sleep late. And I'm tired a lot because I usually don't go to bed early enough.

Am I turning into a morning person? Is morning person/night person a strange and irrelevant concept? Just rambling.

Blue Converse All-Stars

Next in my series on remembering friends....(and I promise they won't all involve a pair of shoes).

I have a pair of classic low-top Converse shoes. "Chuck Taylors" as my friend Curt used to call them; and I'll admit something to you all: these shoes are an out-and-out copycat purchase. My first college roommate Sonya Sawyer wore a maroon pair almost every day our freshman year, and, well, in this case immitation is, in fact, the most sincere form of flattery. Naturally, when I wear them now (much less frequently than I did then, but often enough to justify their existence) I think of Sonya. Many things make me think of Sonya, and in different ways; but in relation to my Chuck's, I think of getting to know Sonya. Of finding a friend who grew up in California -- quite a bit removed from my home of Missouri -- but who almost instantly became a soul friend. Sonya knew more about music and liturature than I did, but we had very similar tastes. She was a bit more of a free spirit than I was at the time, but just by being herself she encouraged me to let loose a little. And she always -- and I mean ALWAYS -- understood what I meant, no matter how convoluted it sounded; even if I didn't understand myself.

The best part? Even though we naturally kept growing and changing, exploring different paths, and moving half-way across the country, Sonya is still a soul friend. Guess that's kind of part of the definition, huh?

Do you ever feel....

....like you're just on the edge of crazy?

;)

Red shoes

So I'm starting a new blog series: posts about how certain things remind me of certain friends; I think it'll be a fun way to ponder the impression different people have left on my life, even in small ways. So today...red shoes and Lani Dalzell.

I have a pair of red leather shoes, I think you'd call them mules (they have no back, but a very flat sole so they're not really clogs). They have a tiny bow on the toe, which is rounded. They make my feet look small, they're really comfortable, and every time I wear them I think of Lani Dalzell. Why? you might ask. On a basic level, I think it's because Lani had a pair of really fabulous red loafers; she was one of the first people i'd ever met who wore a pair of red shoes on a regular basis and looked great and natural in them. But on a deeper level, it's also because red shoes remind me of Lani's personality -- her creative and free spirit, her love of life, her sense of adventure, her love, her warmth and her hospitible and welcoming nature. When Jeremy and I first moved to Houston and began attending church at the Tomball church of Christ, we decided to attend Dan and Lani's small group Bible Study (on the recomendation of Curt and Rachel Grubb). We both immediately felt comfortable and welcomed. For me, it was like being at home; like Lani was my big sister and Jeremy and I were just part of the family. That feeling and relationship continued for the next three years. It filled up a piece of my heart, and I miss the Dalzell's a lot.

And that's what I think about every time I wear my red shoes.

New Year's Resolutions

Love 'em? Avoid them? Make them? Break them?

A new year is a nice, well-defined, fresh start and fresh perspective. A natural place to make and re-evaluate goals. For the last few years I've avoided writing down any hard and fast resolutions....my resolution has been to try and set goals throughout the year. But maybe I'd see more success if I made some defined resolutions. Or maybe I'd just dissapoint myself. I'm generally a hard and fast person -- by that I mean I like structure, closure, defined boundaries, etc. But somehow I shy away from that when it comes to goal setting (or resolution making). Maybe I'm just lazy. Maybe I should stop analyzing things so much. :)

So seriously, what about you? To resolve or not to resolve, that is the question.

back to earth

So, Christmas was fabulous, and seeing my family was fabulous. Naturally, the day I get back I get sick and lay around in bed for three days with a fever and a cough and congestion. Let's hear it for sinus infections! But thankfully anti-biotics, rest, and vitamin C work, and now things are back to full form. I hate being sick! Sure, having an excuse to lay around and not do anything is nice in theory, and sometimes in practice, but not when there are so many other things you want to be doing. And I really hate having a cough and I really hate producing so much snot. (gross, I know, but true).

Okay, enough of the H-word. I'm thankful for a return to good health, that's all. :)

Fa, la, la, la, la

Hanging out at the Rush homestead since Tuesday night. It's been a wonderful, relaxing, fun several days. Jeremy's parents joined us for about a day and a half, and the house was warm and full -- just how it should be. Today was our family Christmas. Jeremy and dad then headed off to the Chiefs game, hopefully the rain won't dampen their spirits too much (pun only sort of intended ;) Seven minutes into the second quarter we're up by 7....go Chiefs!!!

May God bless you with joy, peace and comfort.

Merry Christmas!

in case...

...anyone was worried (note the heavy sarcasm in my tone), i have finally done some Christmas shopping and am actually almost done. Now comes one of my favorite parts of Christmas...anticipating the (hopefully) excited looks on the faces of my friends and family when they open their gifts.

Christmas shopping

I feel behind on my Christmas shopping, but am working to get over that. By shopping, obviously, but also on not feeling behind. I think the feeling stems from my housemate having all of her Christmas shopping done. But as Jeremy reminded me...there is no behind or ahead, simply a deadline. My deadline happens to be a little early than some (we're celebrating with our Wilmington family on Dec. 19 and leaving to be with our biological families on Dec. 20) but doable. At least, that's what I tell myself! I enjoy the change of pace during the holidays -- regular activities are replaced by shopping, wrapping, writing Christmas cards, partying, caroling, decorating, and sometimes cooking or baking. Problem is, some of those regular day-to-day activities can't be ignored forever. Finding balance, that's the key. Finding time to enjoy those unique holiday activities while still making sure day-to-day life doesn't get ignored. And all this while remembering to relax and avoid the frenectic pace that can accompany December. Okay, just rambling now.

in other news, we went to see Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe last night. In my opinion...fabulous! Of course, I love the books, so I'm a little biased, but I still think it's a good movie. Courage, adventure, sacrifice, second chances...great stuff.

you would think....

...that since a Christmas station on satellite radio would play quite the variety of Christmas music. I like Christmas music, cheesy, non-cheesy...doesn't matter. I can even put up with listening to it all day at work but I really start getting grumpy when I hear "The Twelve Days of Christmas" for literally then tenth time in a nine-hour period of time. 10 times people! Please, XM Radio. No more "12 Days." No more.