Thunder Snow!

Well, I'm sitting here waiting for the blizzard to hit... as promised. Seriously... Tulsa is under a BLIZZARD WARNING. I didn't know there WAS such a thing. Apparently it's only the second blizzard warning in Tulsa's history. There's some rumbley thunder right now... which is totally awesome. I'm almost tempted to turn off the TV just to listen to the thunder snow (thunder sleet right now, actually).

I just hope it's not another ice storm where I'm without electricity for twelve days. But, I'm more than ready to work from home for a day or two and enjoy some of the hunker-down community of those days.
Lightning, too! This blizzard is awesome! :) It's going to be difficult to go to sleep tonight. Way too excited.

Nail-Biting Fear

I can think of all kinds of whitty things to blog about... until I sit down to blog, that is.  :)

My new favorite breakfast... two small slices of multi-grain bread, toasted under the broiler for a few minutes, topped with Nutella and eaten with banana slices and a cup of coffee.  Yummers!

I got up early enough to attend an early service at LifeChurch. I have a few friends there, which makes it a nice alternative at the moment, even though I ended up sitting by myself. "Chrissy" and her kids/entourage came and sat right by me, which I thought was funny given all the vast amounts of open space in that service. But, I didn't mind. It was nice having someone to sit with... even if it was a total stranger. For one of the first times since I've visited, they actually gave us a moment to greet those around us. It was loud, so I didn't get any names (except for Chrissy's), but it did make for a more friendly feel.

The music was fine... way too loud, crazy flashing lights, smoke machine (bleh). I remember visiting a LC in Owasso and realizing that my criticisms of it were all indictments of my own church at the time (the one I worked for and had invested years of my life). I found it funny this morning that I was sitting there, through all of the fuss, waiting for a video sermon from Craig Groeschel. It made me wonder if I had made those worship-related things too big of an issue or if I had just grown calloused and no longer cared. Or, maybe I can tolerate it differently given I have no current responsibility or involvement in it... other than as a casual observer. It's something to think about anyway. It made me wonder if I could sing on a praise time like that. It's gotta be even louder up on that stage!

Regardless, the message was great, as per normal. I really do enjoy listening to Craig's sermons. I've never been too excited to listen to sermons online, but I will occasionally pull up one of his sermons randomly at home... especially if I want to hear something on a particular topic. He's covered the gambit. He seems really transparent to me, which is funny given I've never met or even seen the man in real life.

This morning he talked about fear. He said that our fears reveal the things that are most important to us... as well as the things in which we trust God the least. (Ouch!) But, it's true. I came home and journaled about some of my fears. I would include those here, but I think I'll keep the details of those to myself. Oh, and for those of you wondering, no... I didn't journal about my fear of sharks.  ;)

Better Than Ice Cream

Went to a birthday party for two friends of mine tonight, a husband and wife who have birthdays on two consecutive days in January. I was happy to go, as I've been friends with them both for a number of years now, and I've built an even closer friendship with the woman over the past year or two. I was one of two single adults there. The rest of the party was made up of their married couple friends. They used to all be part of the same small group called "Matrimony."  There was a lot of laughing, and I didn't feel like too much of an interloper.

Valentine's Day is right around the corner, and I'm doing my best to keep a good attitude about it. In fact, my roommate and I are taking the opportunity to host a party for all of our single girlfriends. Should be a fun night, assuming anyone comes. (I think we have four so far.) Understanding the nature of the day, we've asked for RSVPs but have given everyone a graceful "bow out clause" in the case something more enticing comes alone. (We're not idiots.)

In preparation, we've prepared some itunes mix lists of various love songs. I'm critiquing my own list as I write this. One song in my mix is Sarah McLaughlan's "Ice Cream." LOVE IT! I think I first heard it in the movie "Bed of Roses" with Christian Slater and Mary Stuart Masterson. For some unexplainable reason, it's the movie I most enjoy watching on or around Valentine's Day. I can't think of any reason it should tie in with Valentine's Day. Maybe it's because Christian Slater's character owns a flower shop and enjoys delivering flowers to people. Other than that, it's just another predictable love story. But, I need to get it in my Netflix queue. It's been several years since I've watched it.

I guess that's all I had to say. My head hurts, and I have some difficult heart decisions to make.

Sweet Thang

So, there are three primary artificial sweeteners. You have your Sweet & Low, your Equal and your Splenda. You can easily identify them by their distinctive colors - pink, blue and yellow, respectively. What I've noticed is that every restaurant and office seems to have Splenda, and some of them have Equal. But very often, the Sweet & Low has been surreptitiously replaced with another pink packet of sweetener called "Sweet Thing." Do they think no one will notice? Do they think these two sweeteners are really interchangeable?

Maybe it's true. For some reason, I'm drawn toward the comfort of the pink packet. I know it's not Sweet & Low, but it's pink. I guess that's all that matters.

More so, I wonder if the manufacturer of Sweet Thing realizes all of their sales come straight from Sweet & Low's bottom line? Hrmmm...

Productivity

Today I'm thankful for productivity. I've had a lot of things hanging over my head at work. Today, I feel like I put several projects to rest, which means I can re-focus on collections.

I'm thankful that Kari was at Starbucks when I got there. (I was expecting two friends to meet my for bible study. I was unclear in my text, which resulted in them showing up at 8:30 instead of 7:00.)

I'm thankful for the banana I just ate. It's ZERO (WW) points, and it was the perfect ripeness! Mmmmmm.

Speaking of bananas... I really enjoyed the conversation with some friends about banana slugs. I have it on good authority that if you lick one (on it's underbelly), your tongue will go numb. What?!?!  ;)

I'm thankful for a good run with Bobbi. It's been at least a couple of weeks, so it was good to get back out there. And, I'm thankful to have survived it.

I'm thankful for my bed... where I'll be headed shortly. :) G'night... to anyone who may happen to be reading.

Thankfulness

No, it's not Thanksgiving. Our small group talked about JOY last week. Fitting... because it's something I struggle with. We've been reading some of Henri Nouwen's "Here and Now," and he pointed out the interconnection between gratitude and joy. He encourages us to take a few moments to reflect back at the end of every day to all the things we have to be thankful for. In our group, we each took turns sharing one thing we were thankful for from that day. After we all shared, there was a nearly tangible difference in our moods. What was it? I dare say... JOY!!!

So, here's what I have to be thankful for today:
I had a productive day at work. I got to wear the new scarf I made. I lost two more pounds (a total of 7.7 since Jan 1)! I did Zumba and feel physically refreshed. It's 8:30, and I'm already settled down for the evening. I have a nice cup of coffee sitting close.

And then lately... I feel like my house has been transformed. I pulled out an old rug for the living room. A friend brought over a new TV, which is UH-MAZ-ING. I have two balls of yarn in a glass jar on my table, which makes me very happy. Becky and I finished invitations for a party we're throwing for all the lovely single ladies we know. Oh, and I nearly forgot... I get to go on a cruise, basically for free, in a couple of weeks. :)

So life is good. Thank you, Papa, for all the rich blessings you've provided.

Restaurants

Some of my favorites in Tulsa:

Charlestons - great service, key lime pie, atmosphere
Red Rock Canyon Grill - ribs
Garlic Rose - intimate
Palace Cafe - creme brulee
Thai Village - green curry
Desi Wok - chicken tika masala (duh!)
Cosi - artwork, fire place
Blue Moon Cafe - European feel
Ri Le - Sesame soy, the owner is also awesome!
Lanna Thai - Thai tea, pad thai
Senor Tequila's - fajitas, mariachi band
Tucci's - intimate, lemon caesar salad

I'm sure there are more, but that's the short list.

The Things I Most Want in Life

I've been thinking lately. If you were to ask me what I most want in life, I really do think it would be that I would seek after God all the days of my life and be fully surrendered to and satisfied in Him. That being said, in my oft human moments, I would say that I also really want to be married and have a family. But, is that enough? I mean... I could have a husband who despises me or children who curse me and cause me tremendous pain. Is THAT what I want? Is that what anybody really wants?

So, that causes me to reconsider. Maybe it's not really the husband or the children I want. Isn't my truest desire to be surrounded by the people I love and by the people who also love me? From that standpoint, I'm already a very, very rich woman. I don't expect my desire for a deeper, more intimate marriage relationship to dry up any time soon. And I imagine I would be disappointed never being surrounded by my children. But I do suppose I can have everything (or nearly everything) I want and everything I need regardless of my last name, the ring I wear or the children I bear.   

Another 2010 Adendum

How could I forget?! One tremendous blessing this year... a new roommate. Becky moved in in July. She's been an unexpected blessing. I've had some great roommates the past five or six years... no complaints. I've always told myself that one reason they've worked so well is because I haven't known them incredibly well, and we run in different social circles. To be honest, I thought I was stepping into the same situation with Becky. This Fall, I got a little bit nervous when our friendship circles began to overlap a bit. She went camping with me and some friends, and I started to freak out a bit. Funny thing is... I learned something about myself in the process. I realized that I find it incredibly easy to share my house, my food, my pots & pans, etc., but I find it much more difficult to share friends. Somehow all these years, the thing I thought was my "secret" to healthy roommate relations was really just me being selfish. It's been a lot easier to simply stay selfish and avoid the personal growth of learning to share my friends. In reality, that's been very freeing. It's also allowed me to get over the roommate hump. Becky and I are surprisingly similar (more on that later). For the first time, I really enjoy having someone around just to watch TV with, chat about life and laugh. In fact, I'm looking forward to growing that friendship even more in 2011!

2-0-1-1

Well, it's twenty-eleven folks! No true "resolutions," but here are some thoughts...

I have some friends doing a "Biggest Loser" competition. Good reason to take off the 10-15 lbs I've put on over the last three years. Should have most of it off by 3/31.

I want some new hobbies. I've been crocheting up a storm lately. It's fairly addictive. I'm trying to teach myself a new scarf pattern. It's not easy without my sister here to spoon-feed me the instructions. I'm going to join some ladies in a week or two to learn the basics of knitting.

I want to play in a tennis tournament. I was planning to be in a tournament mid-December, but there wasn't enough interest, so they "postponed" it. Regardless... I want to put my new skillz to the test! 

I'd like to find a church to settle down into this year and begin to discover the next adventure God has for me.

I'd like to get a new laptop and dining room set, but mainly, I want to be financially responsible and incredibly generous.  :)

Booyah. Bring it on, 2011!

More of 2010

A few more things I've thought of related to 2010...

I think I've grown up a bit. I'm finally letting go of someone I should have let go of a long time ago.

I'm learning to trust God more and more. A friend helped me complete this phrase recently. I said, "If I spent half the time praying that I spent worrying..." She finished, "... mountains would move." True. True. It's amazing the amount of stress we carry around with us, when all the time, God is right there wanting to carry those burdens for us... if we'll only let him.

I just lost the rest of this post, but I think I talked about how I 1) got a job, 2) made a budget and 3) paid off my car. I'm also trying to do a better job of respecting my employer and friends. I still have to be cautious of my facial expressions and tone, but I've made some improvement. To some extent it's easy with a new employer. With friends - I try not to correct my friends (especially boys) as much, especially in front of others. I'm also working harder to not "pester" people to do what they (obviously) don't want to do. And, I'm trying to keep more of my feelings to myself... not in an unhealthy way, but in such a way that I don't guilt by friends when they do something that disappoints me.

Okay... I'm ready to talk about 2011 now. How about you?

Speaking of Sensitivity Issues...

I realized this week that I had received "Merry Christmas" greetings from people of Jewish and Hindu backgrounds. I find it fairly ironic that I (a person who actually celebrates the holiday) feel like I'm walking on eggshells sometimes when I extend the greeting. Interesting world we're living in today.

2010... Lots to Celebrate!

I was talking with a friend this evening... sharing our "highlights" of the year. It helped remind me of how truly blessed I am. Here are some of the highlights:

Girlfriends... Kayla, Jessica, Bobbi, Faith, Laura
Great new roomie - Becky
God's provisions - new job, financial provision during the transition
New washer & dryer
Peace when I could be worried
TENNIS!! - lessons early in the year and then lessons with James & Bobbi & occasional special guests!
"New" boy friends - Jeff, Jay, James, Siva
Blind dates (or blind date, at least)... there ARE people I don't know in Tulsa!!
My house - refinanced, cutting nine years off my loan! :)

Then there are the things I've been thankful for for years now:

My wonderful family - loving parents, sibs, sibs-in-law, four lovely nieces
Age-old friends - Matt, John, Jessica... so many more
God, my Father, who blesses me with so much more than I could ever ask for or imagine

Cool thing is... I'm just scratching the surface. So many more dear friends and things to be thankful for. All-in-all, it's been a good year. Looking forward to see what 2011 holds!

Lunar Eclipse

I should be in bed. Instead, I'm half waiting for the lunar eclipse. It should begin shortly, though I'm not sure why I'm waiting up for it. It's not supposed to finish until 4:01am. I figure maybe I can catch certain pieces of it... the first "bite," the total eclipse, the orange color of the moon. I guess we'll see if I feel like crawling out of bed for each of those phases.

On a separate and wholly-unrelated note, I think I moved to Tulsa twelve years ago today. It's funny when I think about it. I thought this would be a short stop on my way to somewhere more exciting. Instead, I rather like Tulsa, though there are days I suppose I would enjoy shaking its dust from my feet and moving on. Which reminds me, I should post a 2010 recap before long. Hopefully it won't be as depressing as last years.  ;)

But, for now, I have an eclipse to observe... and a bed to attend.

“I Thought of You the Other Day”

“I Thought of You the Other Day”

by Krista

 I used to think you spoke those words

To mask the fact that you thought of me all the time.

But now I realize you spoke the truth,

That it was only a reflection of what I was doing –

Thinking of you at every moment –

Waiting for the calls that infrequently came,

Wondering what you were doing or thinking,

Hoping someday you would admit your true feelings.

But, I was the fool,

Reading something into those vacant lines,

Writing my own story where none existed.

Randomness

I don't have anything enlightening to share but was just missing my blog tonight. So, I'll make a couple of random comments.

I have a decorative hook that I bought sometime here awhile back from Hobby Lobby. It has kind of a weathered-looking picture on it, that I could have sworn was Paris. However, as I'm looking at it tonight, it's very clearly London/England. There's really no question about it... Big Ben, a map of the island and a sort of seal that says "Kensington Palace - London." Only problem with it is that it's a sort of blue-green color. I really like it, but it doesn't look all that great on my grey-blue walls. Instead, it sits about my house and gets moved from place-to-place to keep it out of the way.

I have a claim form related to a class action lawsuit on my desk. I believe it's due 11/15. Not sure if I'll make it. The best I can tell, I was in a class of individuals who may be due some money because I submitted a claim on my homeowners insurance policy and received a payment during a specified time frame.

I enjoy most songs I've heard by Will Smith. They're quite fun to sing along to.

Most importantly, I ran 3 miles today. I hadn't run a full three since running the Race for the Cure 5K about six weeks ago. It really annoys me how easy it is to backslide in running. Grrrrrr... and now winter is upon us, which will make it more difficult to maintain.

Sorry for the randomness. I'm going to bed now. G'night!

Schnabel

I have a friend, Schnabel the Woodpecker. "Schnabel" is the German word for "beak." I've had him about five or six year now. I found him in Germany, and I can say, hands down, he's my favorite of all my souvenirs. The sticker on the bottom documents the price - 5,90 euros. He lives on the pole you see, and (with a little help) he pecks his way down... his fiery, feathery red hair tossing wildly. His beak doesn't peck quite as close to the pole as in years past, mainly due to some rough play at the hands of my young nieces. But, he still puts on a good show. I can't help but laugh and smile when I watch him, and I about drove my friends crazy when I first got him. I thought you might like to see him...

Wuthering Heights

I tried coming to my blog this morning, and it had been temporarily shut down due to suspicious activity. I'm wondering if the "suspicious activity" was just the fact that I've actually been blogging.  ;)

I'm re-reading this classic book by Emily Bronte... for good or ill.  ;)  I really enjoyed this description:

"I used to draw a comparison between him [Edgar Linton] and Hindley Earnshaw, and perplex myself to explain satisfactorily why their conduct was so opposite in similar circumstances. They had both been fond husbands, and were both attached to their children; and I could not see how they shouldn't both have taken the same road, for good or evil. But, I thought in my mind, Hindley, with apparently the stronger head, has shown himself sadly the worse and the weaker man. When his ship struck, the captain abandoned his post; and the crew, instead of trying to save her, rushed into riot and confusion, leaving no hope for their luckless vessel. Linton, on the contrary, displayed the true courage of a loyal and faithful soul: he trusted God; and God comforted him. One hoped, and the other despaired: they chose their own lots, and were righteously doomed to endure them."

The Historian in Me (Birthdays II)

I know, I know... I should be in bed. I was reviewing my blog, though (lots of history here), and I thought I should update you on my birthday celebrations of the last five years:

2006 - Worlds of Fun in KC
2007 - Red Rock (my fav), then back to Matt's for cake and ice cream with add'l friends.
2008 - P.F. Chang's with friends after dealing with a lunatic all through the previous night
2009 - Joint party with Jubilee (roomie) & JPH, cooked out with 50 of our closest friends
2010 - In the Raw with the small group guys, semi-surprise coffee after, Garlic Rose & Catan with friends.

Germs

I've often said over the years that "I don't believe in germs." I say this because I have a(n untested) theory that my immune system is strong due to daily interaction with the world around me. I suppose I'm also too lazy to properly protect myself from all the things I'm told to protect myself. I also believe that children who are "too protected" from the elements don't build up any tolerance to otherwise minor irritants.

Jump to a couple weeks ago when I met my first micro-biologist. I told him he would probably refute my disbelief in germs. Although his first instinct was to correct me... (He spends every day looking at bacteria through a microscope.)... he actually ended up confirming it. He said that the word "germ" is thrown around by people who are more likely talking about bacteria, fungi, etc., but there's really no such thing as a "germ." 

See... I didn't need a degree in micro-biology to know that!  ;)