...that I'm going to Atlanta for the Habitat for Humanity International Conference! My plane leaves the Pasco airport at 6AM on Tuesday and I get back into town at 11PM on Friday. Then Saturday I will be busy working and visiting Sharefest groups (do you know what Sharefest is?)
I'm excited to go to Georgia since I've never been down South. I'll take lots of pictures to share with you all and I'll give a recap next Sunday to detail the adventure. Ugh...I'm tired just thinking about it all. I hope I can stay healthy!
Monday, March 21, 2011
Monday, March 14, 2011
Lent--Everyone's favorite season
Well maybe not everybody gets all hot and bothered about sacrifice and self improvement but I absolutely love the challenge. As Ash Wednesday approached last week I was brainstorming things that I could give up, devising ways to get closer to God, and asking my family what they were doing to celebrate the season. Then I realized that I was probably approaching Lent with the wrong attitude. When your plans to get spiritually in tune via Reese's abstinence coincide with daydreams of looking awesome in a bikini, you have to question your motives.
So I decided to scrap my anti-chocolate sentiment in exchange for morning quiet time. I've been sick since Thursday so that time has grown exponentially over the past week. A killer sore throat kept me away from work for two and a half days so I've been reading my Isabel Allende book, watching Modern Family, and hanging out with the family.
I went to Crossview (the church started by a Whitworth grad) again on Saturday. I still don't feel a real desire to set roots there. Does that mean that I need to put more effort in and get involved or do I keep looking for something that clicks right away? All I know is that I need to find a group of people that share the same values as me. Otherwise I'll end up spending too much time with the promiscous engineeers at the sports bar without any other social anchor...a recipe for bad news.
So I decided to scrap my anti-chocolate sentiment in exchange for morning quiet time. I've been sick since Thursday so that time has grown exponentially over the past week. A killer sore throat kept me away from work for two and a half days so I've been reading my Isabel Allende book, watching Modern Family, and hanging out with the family.
I went to Crossview (the church started by a Whitworth grad) again on Saturday. I still don't feel a real desire to set roots there. Does that mean that I need to put more effort in and get involved or do I keep looking for something that clicks right away? All I know is that I need to find a group of people that share the same values as me. Otherwise I'll end up spending too much time with the promiscous engineeers at the sports bar without any other social anchor...a recipe for bad news.
Monday, March 7, 2011
Here's to Friends!
Ever since I got done with Almost Maine my social life has exploded. I'm getting together with three girls from high school (Dana, Shiv and Holly) on a weekly basis, making trips to see friends in Spokane, Portland and Seattle (that trip is coming in April), hanging out with coworkers after work (we're making pesto tonight), and meeting new friends in the T.C. Last week I went to trivia night at a bar in Richland and met four guys that were about my age--all of them smart, funny, nice, pretty cute. Where have they been hiding for the past six months?! I'm very happy these days and soaking up the good vibes that the people in my social circle emanate.
Right now I'm in Portland and it's 8:30 AM on a Monday. I came to see my longtime friend Sean and he doesn't do mornings. So I'm taking the opportunity to catch up a bit on the ol' blog, practice guitar, organize my iTunes, maybe walk to Starbucks...I'll head back to the Tri after Sean goes to work and perhaps hike Multnomah Falls on the way. I feel a little sluggish after Saturday night's boozy karaoke escapade, a visit to Voodoo Doughnuts (GET THE MAPLE BACON DOUGHNUT!), and a weekend of eating meals in a house void of vegetables. It was nice to catch up with Sean though and I wish I could stay here a bit longer.
I'm looking forward to Lent starting on Wednesday. I don't know what I'm going to do. There are so many aspects of my life in which I could impose a little discipline, so many better uses of my time and money. I need to pick one of them this month and work through sacrifice a bit. Do any of you have plans for Lent?
Right now I'm in Portland and it's 8:30 AM on a Monday. I came to see my longtime friend Sean and he doesn't do mornings. So I'm taking the opportunity to catch up a bit on the ol' blog, practice guitar, organize my iTunes, maybe walk to Starbucks...I'll head back to the Tri after Sean goes to work and perhaps hike Multnomah Falls on the way. I feel a little sluggish after Saturday night's boozy karaoke escapade, a visit to Voodoo Doughnuts (GET THE MAPLE BACON DOUGHNUT!), and a weekend of eating meals in a house void of vegetables. It was nice to catch up with Sean though and I wish I could stay here a bit longer.
I'm looking forward to Lent starting on Wednesday. I don't know what I'm going to do. There are so many aspects of my life in which I could impose a little discipline, so many better uses of my time and money. I need to pick one of them this month and work through sacrifice a bit. Do any of you have plans for Lent?
Monday, February 14, 2011
Thanks A Lot (that's a Raffi Song)
Oh the blogs are getting scarcer and scarcer.
Here is my list of things to be thankful for:
1. Whitworth: I'm constantly reminded of the excellent education I received during my four years in college. I got to spend my freshman year in the Best Place on Earth, my sophomore year with the greatest leadership team of all time, my junior year preparing for and experiencing Chile, and my final year with the 7 most wonderful young women I know.
2. Spring: I've never been a fan of this season until last weekend. The sun came out and the highs were in the 60s. I went running by the river, hiked up Badger Mountain, and played "Here Comes the Sun" on my back porch.
3. Friends: The past three weeks have brought more social interaction into my world than I can believe. A visit from 5 of the Corner House girls in Kennewick, spending Thursday nights watching 30 Rock with my girlfriends from high school (Shivyon, Holly, and Dana), and a trip to Spokane to look forward to this coming weekend.
4. God: I thought about rearranging this and putting God first but that's just not how I did it originally. Sorry. I've had a lot of God-you-are-so-awesome-can-you-just-rapture-us-already? moments lately. I'm so thankful to be spiritually fulfilled right now and aware of His presence and I'm so excited for the day when I feel like this forever!
5. Time: Oh how sweet these moments are! Hours and hours to spend without an impending rehearsal. Friday and Saturday nights to watch movies with my family. This season in my life is so carefree. I'm young and unanchored and free to create and work and play. Hallelujah!
Here is my list of things to be thankful for:
1. Whitworth: I'm constantly reminded of the excellent education I received during my four years in college. I got to spend my freshman year in the Best Place on Earth, my sophomore year with the greatest leadership team of all time, my junior year preparing for and experiencing Chile, and my final year with the 7 most wonderful young women I know.
2. Spring: I've never been a fan of this season until last weekend. The sun came out and the highs were in the 60s. I went running by the river, hiked up Badger Mountain, and played "Here Comes the Sun" on my back porch.
3. Friends: The past three weeks have brought more social interaction into my world than I can believe. A visit from 5 of the Corner House girls in Kennewick, spending Thursday nights watching 30 Rock with my girlfriends from high school (Shivyon, Holly, and Dana), and a trip to Spokane to look forward to this coming weekend.
4. God: I thought about rearranging this and putting God first but that's just not how I did it originally. Sorry. I've had a lot of God-you-are-so-awesome-can-you-just-rapture-us-already? moments lately. I'm so thankful to be spiritually fulfilled right now and aware of His presence and I'm so excited for the day when I feel like this forever!
5. Time: Oh how sweet these moments are! Hours and hours to spend without an impending rehearsal. Friday and Saturday nights to watch movies with my family. This season in my life is so carefree. I'm young and unanchored and free to create and work and play. Hallelujah!
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
On Stage
At 6 o'clock on Friday I headed up the narrow staircase of the Richland Players Theater toward the old green room. It was the opening night of Almost Maine and all of the cast was milling about mumbling lines under their breath and getting out their makeup cases. We had two hours before the show started and everybody was on edge. After two months of memorizing lines, stage decorating, and rehearsals in the ancient theater, we were as ready as we'd ever be.
We put on makeup, did hair, and made sure our costumes were laid out for changes between scenes as we listened to the audio feed from the theater. As the clock approached 8, the crowd got louder and louder and the whole crew gathered in the green room for one last "Hurrah!" before the show.
I crept down the old rickety stairs that led down to the stage before my first scene. Two other actors and I sat in darkness backstage listening to our friends deliver lines that we all knew by heart. As I sat behind the curtain, listening to the crowd laugh and sigh, I thanked God for the excitement I felt. I prayed that I wouldn't blank out on stage but conceded that if I did, life would go on and the world wouldn't end.
As it turned out, we had a hell of a show. There weren't any huge mishaps to speak of, and nobody drowned in that foreboding pool of stagefright. My two scenes were in the first Act, and so I got to relax until the final bow. After the show, the cast, crew and directors went out for drinks and appetizers at Applebees. We smeared our lipstick on glasses of beer and shared deep fried everything in celebration of a fabulous opening night.
We put on makeup, did hair, and made sure our costumes were laid out for changes between scenes as we listened to the audio feed from the theater. As the clock approached 8, the crowd got louder and louder and the whole crew gathered in the green room for one last "Hurrah!" before the show.
I crept down the old rickety stairs that led down to the stage before my first scene. Two other actors and I sat in darkness backstage listening to our friends deliver lines that we all knew by heart. As I sat behind the curtain, listening to the crowd laugh and sigh, I thanked God for the excitement I felt. I prayed that I wouldn't blank out on stage but conceded that if I did, life would go on and the world wouldn't end.
As it turned out, we had a hell of a show. There weren't any huge mishaps to speak of, and nobody drowned in that foreboding pool of stagefright. My two scenes were in the first Act, and so I got to relax until the final bow. After the show, the cast, crew and directors went out for drinks and appetizers at Applebees. We smeared our lipstick on glasses of beer and shared deep fried everything in celebration of a fabulous opening night.
 |
| Putting on make up. |
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| Sexy sexy...before make up and costume. |
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| All done up as Villian the waitress. |
Monday, January 10, 2011
Someone's got a case of the Mondays
Okay, so I started this post Monday morning and finished after my guitar lesson in the afternoon. Please observe how fickle my outlook on life can be!
Monday morning:
Ugh...what a day. I don't know what my deal is but every fiber or my being is anti-today. It's my day off and I should be relaxing and enjoying the free time but I get anxious almost every Monday. I worry about my guitar lesson and not being prepared, I dread going to rehearsal at 5:30, and even the little things that should be enjoyable--like going to lunch with my cousins--seem like chores. The good news is that even though my Monday mornings usually start off funkified, after the guitar lesson the day looks a little brighter.
I'm thinking of tutoring in the ESL classroom starting next week. Somebody keep me accountable for that okay? Just ask how it went, cause I'm sure if I just get out of the house in the morning things will look up.
Monday afternoon (Reflection on Saturday):
On Saturday, Shivyon and I decided to be spontaneous and drive to Walla Walla after work for some wine tasting. The drive was beautiful and we arrived in the cute little downtown district around 4:30. Sadly, most of the tasting rooms closed right about that time and reopened for music at 8. After about half an hour of walking around we finally found a little tasting room that was open. The "Sleight of Hand" wine was abysmal but the girl with dreads (dreds?) serving us was nice and said we didn't need to pay the usual $5 tasting fee. We walked to the Millhouse Brewery for a well balanced meal of spiced wine, buttered rum, and pot stickers. We finished dinner and were ready for some good music but when we looked at the clock it wasn't even 6.
After that we headed to a beautiful cafe/restaurant/wine bar called Olive and got huge glasses of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. We setttled down in comfy leather chairs and chatted for over an hour as we waited for the band to start at Sapolil. Pleasantly tipsy, we paid the $3 cover charge and sang along with the 3 man band as middle-aged couples awkwardly danced and made me happy that older people could still hold on to that can't-take-my-eyes-off-of-you romance.
I sobered up and we drove home to the T.C. I was exhausted from the week and wine but glad to have done something out of hum-drum Kennewick routine. Next trip planned: Spokane!
Monday morning:
Ugh...what a day. I don't know what my deal is but every fiber or my being is anti-today. It's my day off and I should be relaxing and enjoying the free time but I get anxious almost every Monday. I worry about my guitar lesson and not being prepared, I dread going to rehearsal at 5:30, and even the little things that should be enjoyable--like going to lunch with my cousins--seem like chores. The good news is that even though my Monday mornings usually start off funkified, after the guitar lesson the day looks a little brighter.
I'm thinking of tutoring in the ESL classroom starting next week. Somebody keep me accountable for that okay? Just ask how it went, cause I'm sure if I just get out of the house in the morning things will look up.
Monday afternoon (Reflection on Saturday):
On Saturday, Shivyon and I decided to be spontaneous and drive to Walla Walla after work for some wine tasting. The drive was beautiful and we arrived in the cute little downtown district around 4:30. Sadly, most of the tasting rooms closed right about that time and reopened for music at 8. After about half an hour of walking around we finally found a little tasting room that was open. The "Sleight of Hand" wine was abysmal but the girl with dreads (dreds?) serving us was nice and said we didn't need to pay the usual $5 tasting fee. We walked to the Millhouse Brewery for a well balanced meal of spiced wine, buttered rum, and pot stickers. We finished dinner and were ready for some good music but when we looked at the clock it wasn't even 6.
 |
| Me and my spiced wine at the Millhouse Brewery. |
After that we headed to a beautiful cafe/restaurant/wine bar called Olive and got huge glasses of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. We setttled down in comfy leather chairs and chatted for over an hour as we waited for the band to start at Sapolil. Pleasantly tipsy, we paid the $3 cover charge and sang along with the 3 man band as middle-aged couples awkwardly danced and made me happy that older people could still hold on to that can't-take-my-eyes-off-of-you romance.
I sobered up and we drove home to the T.C. I was exhausted from the week and wine but glad to have done something out of hum-drum Kennewick routine. Next trip planned: Spokane!
Monday, January 3, 2011
Hello 2011
Hooray for a new year! I always get excited about new beginnings but I shyed (shied?) away from making huge New Year's resolutions. As I told most of the Corner House during Sunday's conference call, I'm trying to do little things more regularly--wearing my retainers, putting my shoes away, making my bed in the morning etc. I should put up reminders to keep that up because it's really not hard and doesn't take a ton of time. It's just getting in the habit I guess.
I have good news about my heart! I think that I might be over Oscar (knock on wood). It took long enough, geez. Some of you know that over the past few weeks I've been desperately lonely--missing my Whitworth community and wanting a guy as well. In my miserableness, almost any guy that crossed my path became a possibility. Sure, boy craziness is not the most positive place to be but I realized that I'm not reverting to Oscar. I'm looking for someone new and that makes me so happy even if I have to be a little lonely until I find him.
My sister and I went to Crossview (the church whose pastor is a Whitworth grad) on Saturday and Pastor Josh came up to us afterward and introduced us to a whole slew of people. He invited me to his small group on Wednesday so I might check it out. It would be so nice to have a quality group of people to spend time with. However, the play is going to take over my life here pretty soon. Next week we'll have rehearsal every night in costume! I'll be glad when it's over. I have to keep reminding myself that I CHOSE to be part of this. I like it when I'm reahearsing, it's just so far away and inconvenient. Ok well enough about me. On to reading your blogs. Love.
I have good news about my heart! I think that I might be over Oscar (knock on wood). It took long enough, geez. Some of you know that over the past few weeks I've been desperately lonely--missing my Whitworth community and wanting a guy as well. In my miserableness, almost any guy that crossed my path became a possibility. Sure, boy craziness is not the most positive place to be but I realized that I'm not reverting to Oscar. I'm looking for someone new and that makes me so happy even if I have to be a little lonely until I find him.
My sister and I went to Crossview (the church whose pastor is a Whitworth grad) on Saturday and Pastor Josh came up to us afterward and introduced us to a whole slew of people. He invited me to his small group on Wednesday so I might check it out. It would be so nice to have a quality group of people to spend time with. However, the play is going to take over my life here pretty soon. Next week we'll have rehearsal every night in costume! I'll be glad when it's over. I have to keep reminding myself that I CHOSE to be part of this. I like it when I'm reahearsing, it's just so far away and inconvenient. Ok well enough about me. On to reading your blogs. Love.
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