25 random things about me

so someone "tagged" me in facebook and asked me to make a list of 25 random things about myself. i decided to post that list here too...so you can find out some of my quirks!

1. i strongly dislike pickles of any sort.
2. that goes for olives too.
3. i really think i was born to use my hands to create things to make a living. like building stuff. or making things out of wood. or painting.
4. my favorite flowers are daisies and (blue) hydrangeas.
5. the one book that has changed my life spiritually is "the ragamuffin gospel" by brennan manning. it is a Hard read, but so, so worth it!
6. my favorite color is blue. any shade.
7. i really like kid food! mac and cheese, tater tots, applesauce, grilled cheese sandwiches...
8. i hate flossing. it is overrated.
9. i want a sleep number bed. if i spend 1/3+ of my life sleeping or in bed, then it is worth spending money on!
10. my dream job would allow me to be a writer and photographer for a travel magazine.
11. i think i am a good writer.
12. i think road tripping with someone is a Very Good way to get to know them well, and find out things you otherwise would not likely come to know.
13. i have two tattoos and plans for at least two more.
14. i understand why they call it "the terrible twos." i am convinced that it applies to the threes as well. of course, this comes only from observations of "other people's kids" as i don't have any of my own.
15. i have no plans to birth babies. never have. never plan to.
16. i can see myself adopting an "older" child that's lost in the system...as young as maybe 6 and as old as maybe 12...cuz i think i'll make a great mom.
17. i drink my margaritas "rocks, no salt"
18. i love watching fires.
19. i'm not sure how i started out as such a messy, unorganized kid, and became a neat, highly organized adult.
20. i am a bedding snob. when i see great bedding, i HAVE to buy it. even though i have more bedding that one person could ever use in a lifetime.
21. i've always wanted to shave my head bald.
22. i cannot comprehend how to go about "lov[ing] the Lord my God with all my heart, mind, soul, and strength" but i Can "love my neighbor as myself" and somehow i think by doing this, it is helping me to come to love God more.
23. my parent's deaths were the most difficult things i've ever had to live through.
24. i'm truly greatful for the people who pray for me.
25. i have more close friends than any one person should be allowed. i am truly blessed!

raicy

that's how i describe today's weather. it's a combination of rainy and icy. but not freezing rain...that happened last night. no, this is "one-degree-above-freezing rain". which makes it Very cold outside. and Very wet. but the ice is starting to melt.

the question is, will all of the new wet rain and the newly melted ice dry out before the temperature plunges below zero again? i'm guessing the answer is no. either way, this means i am staying Inside today/tonight!

stay warm and dry! :)

hiccups

they're funny, kindof like laryngitis... funny sounding, funny to have, funny to say...

saturday started with hiccups. not the usual kind, but the "my friend lives far away and i can't seem to reach them by phone or email and i thought we were going to do something together today" kind. some people say hold your breath to get rid of the hiccups. some people say eat a spoonful of sugar to get rid of the hiccups. then there is drink ten sips of water quick without taking a breath. and drink water upside down (i never did figure out how to do this). and get scared by someone. it's kindof hard to get scared by someone when you have the hiccups because you know they are trying to scare you, which makes it Not Scary. but now i am rambling. welcome to my brain.

so the cure for "do i get to do something fun with my friend who i can't seem to reach" hiccups is wait. i Should be an expert at "wait". i've done it most of my life. i don't like waiting. but They say, good things come to those who wait. so i waited. and wondered. and then my phone rang!

see, while i was having emotional hiccups, my friend was having emotional suffocation, and i got all unfocused and was more concerned about my hiccups than his suffocation. and when i sat down and thought about it, and stopped being selfish, i realized that hiccups might be annoying, but they're still funny, and there is nothing funny about suffocating. it might even be life-threatening. so i started praying for my friend while i was waiting. and that is when he called.

as it turned out, i Did get to see my friend and do something fun!

i've been hesitant to write on my blog about this friend, because he has become my *boyfriend* now. and he's been in my life longer than the other couple of boys i've mentioned here, who both happened to go Out of my life as soon as i talked about them here. so robert, please don't go. i want you to stay. even though i'm writing about you on my blog.

so i got a whole, wonderful weekend with robert, visiting debbie and dave and em and catie in virginia beach. i so enjoy road tripping, and i was tickled that he wanted to go with me and meet my friends!

can i tell you some of the things i like about this man? for starters, he brought me daisies when he first met me. bright yellow ones. and they have lasted a Very Long Time! he also taught me how to make biscuits (to go with my apple butter). he is thoughtful and courteous, not just in "trying to impress you" kinds of things like opening doors and such, but also in taking out the trash because he sees that the trash can is full. or washing my dishes. or washing my friend's dishes even! he loves Jesus. and coffee. he admits his faults and doesn't blame other people. he relys on God and seeks after Him. he's not too proud to be vulnerable. AND he cooks!

i hope we are not simply hiccups - little annoying funny blips - in each other's lives. i'm pretty sure this is already deeper than that.

with God in both of our lives, and as the foundation of our relationship, i'm certain that we can handle the hiccups along the way. here's to you robert... and here's to *us*!

thoughts

so there is this house, about a mile from mine, that has been on and off the market for the past two years. it is back on again and they've dropped the price considerably. i briefly considered that house, when i was looking to buy, but found mine which i just love and suits me to a tee. the other house has remained in the back of my mind, primarily because it is an Old House, with lots of character and charm and stories to tell. from the outside, you can tell that it is going to need some work. from the inside, you can tell that it is going to need even More work. but i still love those houses, and the potential i can see in in them to become a lovely home, even when they have been empty and neglected and are tired and old.

it's all about seeing the potential. then there is work to be done, for them to live up to their potential. it doesn't just happen. someone has to make an effort. i've got a rough analogy tumbling around in my head about me being empty and tired and old and God seeing enough potential in me to buy me anyway...

so after seeing the inside of this house (with danelis and nabin), all five of us (with kids in tow) went to walmart. that was an exercise in patience for me. i'm not used to shopping with other people. the few times i do it, i am usually with other grown-ups. we had one of those Big carts with an additional space for kids to ride and i was pushing. the kids, however, did not Want auntie cali to push. and they wanted a balloon. and a spiderman cake. and chicken nuggets (which they got, because it Was lunchtime). and then they wanted Out of the cart. and there was poking. and crying. and (very slow) i'm sorrys. and auntie cali was tired of listening.

and i wonder how often God gets tired of me with my "i wants" and my discontentedness with exactly where i am and wanting to "get out". and he is immensely patient with me. and i offer to him an "i'm sorry" and i know that i am forgiven.

we are all works in progress. and abba God loves us all enough to redeem us, and then Wants to be with us even when we are acting like little children.

his mercies are new every morning. great is his faithfulness...

*sigh*

i have things i want to say.
but i'm having trouble getting them out.
they seem important
(to me, at least).

sarayu

"can you not go far away?" my friend's daughter asks her often at bedtime. i was thinking about that, in light of having just finished reading the shack by wm. paul young.

in the book, without giving away the plot, a guy gets to just hang out for a weekend in the presence of God. i'm not even going to try to explain anything else but the book left my head and heart turned inside out and upside down in so many amazingly good ways that i will be processing it for months to come...

i have a renewed sense that even when i can't feel him, he is always right here with me, and he will never go far away. also, that he likes me. that he is fond of me. that more than anything in the world, the only thing he asks from me is to be...just be...with him.

none of us wants to be alone. sometimes being alone is overwhelming. it is painful. i know in my head that God never leaves me alone, but there are times i cannot feel his presence. i am so glad that from time to time, he chooses to put other people in my life, possibly simply to remind me, that he does not want me to ever have to feel alone. because He loves me. more than i will ever be able to comprehend...