December 16

HAppy Birthday Jackie!! Hope it's a great day friend!
And remember...

Ooohhh nooo, you can't pass the clay!
meep meep ...lights on, lights off
next time you come, you stay two weeks, we catch lobsta! (pat pat)
you eat mo, you eat mo
We come in peace!
the big brown babe mobile
Are we in Nebraska?
Point-setttaaaa, point-settaaaa every Christmas you greet me....



On this your birthday, I wish you many more stupid things to laugh at.
with love, and a special birthday prayer for you.

ps. doo doo doo! doo doo doo doo doo doo dow! doo doo doo! doo doo doo doo doo doo dow! -Mariah Carey- (you know the rest of the song.)

Tagged

Ok here goes attempt number 3. I have started working on this 3 times and twice I've managed to erase it by accident.
So, the deal is, I have been "tagged" by my old friend Peg, (or shall I say, friend of long duration? ;) for 7 questions with 7 answers...so here goes....

Seven things to do before I die:

1. Write a children's book
2. Become a person with great depth of character.
3. Learn to love people more unconditionally.
4. Have a fireside chat with Oprah. There's something specific I'd like to discuss with her. (Ha, ha, I thought of this BEFORE reading Gavin's blog... )
5. Overcome my irrational fear of bears, sharks and airplanes.
6. Have kids
7. Learn photography, and to make videos. (uh, not like a Van Halen video, but just learn to use computer programs to do visual arts/multi- media kind of stuff. )


Seven things I can not do:
1. Watch golf on TV.
2. Win a wrestling match with my husband.
3. Make food that tastes just like my Mom's.
4. Hem a pair of pants.
5. Walk by a cute dog, cat or baby without raising my eyebrows and speaking to them in a high "Hello aren't you cute" voice.
6. Eat raw onions.
7. Sleep on my stomach (bad back)


Seven Books I love:

1. In the Eye of the Storm" - Max Lucado
2. The Giving Tree - Shel Silverstein
3. When God Speaks - Henry and Richard Blackaby
4. Any of the Far Side comics
5. Anne of Green Gables series
6. Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire - Jim Cymbabla
7. The Bible


Seven movies I could watch again and again:

1. While You Were Sleeping
2. My Big Fat Greek Wedding
3. How the Grinch Stole Christmas - original
4. 13 Going on 30
5. Emmet Otter's Jugband Christmas
6. Sabrina
7. Star Wars (the 3 oldest ones)


7 THings I love about my spouse: (or best friend if you aren't married)

1. He has a deep love for God.
2. He is kind.
3. He's playful and funny.
4. He often wears his heart on his sleeve.
5. He's terribly handsome.
6. He is committed to growing and changing.(in the good way)
7. He loves me.


7 things I often say:

1. We're outta here like a herd of turtles. (this due to Candi's influence)
2. NO- WAY!- G-ET OUT! (when I say this it is a term of surprise, not actually telling someone to leave.)
3. What do you feel like eating?
4. Know what I mean jelly bean?
5. How much does this cost? Too expensive!! Can you make it cheaper?
6. What did he/she/they just say? I didn't quite catch all of that.
7. Sorry, I can't understand you.


7 People I want to join in (if you want to of course...you can consider yourself tagged)

1. Tiffany
2. Amy
3. Kirsten A
I don't know that many bloggers, especially ones who haven't already posted this, so the next few are people, that if they so choose to participate, they can email me their 7 questions!
4. Karen D
5. Candi
6. Karyn and Al
7. Celeste
8. Cherise
9. Jackie
10. Anyone else reading this whom I didn't name by name but wants to participate, you can post in the comments section or send me an email!
Ok that's more than 7, so sue me.

A restful weekend

This weekend, my husband and I decided to have a little getaway, to rest and relax. We found a very good deal at a local hotel, and decided to have a weekend away from, phones, people, and all busyness. So, we are just goofing off, watching some movies, reading, and being together.

Interestingly enough, in our attempt to "getaway", we have met or "run into" a number of interesting people. Two very interesting people that I met were an American lady and her newly adopted 5 year old daughter from this country. (I guess international adoption is happening more and more in many countries, this one no exception.) They are staying at the same hotel as us. We first met them down at the hotel's main restaurant..... Anne came to get her new little daughter by herself.... speaking nothing beyond "hello" of the local language. Her little daughter speaks no english. So, Anne came, took care of some paper work, took her back to the hotel, and just like that, they are family.

Now, they do have to do a couple more things before leaving the country, but pretty soon they'll be back in the states, going on with their new life together. I had a bright idea that maybe I could help with things a little by giving Anne a list of some helpful words that she could use to communicate. Like, "tired?", "hungry?", "I love you", etc... so I did just that. It was so much fun to be helpful with the little language ability I have.

I think that Anne quite appreciated the list when I delivered it to her room. I also think that she was in need of some english speaking company after being with this new little person in a foreign country by herself for a good 4 or 5 days. We had a good visit and she told me all about how things had been for her in the whole adoption process. She was very thrilled about her new little one, but at the same time, it's a big decision to suddenly have a new child, and to go to a foreign land to get her. An adventure yes, but also an intense experience.

I found Anne to be a lovely person, even though I just met her. What I enjoyed the very most though was little Emma...her new little daughter. It was amazing that, though everything that was familiar to her was being taken away, she was so happy, and adjusting very quickly. You could tell that despite the language barrier, there was quite a bond formed already between mother and daughter, Emma was radiantly happy with her new mom.

It is a little sad that Emma will likely lose all of her native language, as I don't think her mom knows anyone right now who speaks her language who could speak it with her. It's a little sad to lose that, but at the same time, she is gaining a loving family, and that's more important.

A whole new journey has just begun for that little girl. Part of that journey will be learning english. It was kinda neat that I got her to say one of her first english words ... I taught her to say "Banana"!

It's pretty amazing also how much they communicated to each other without any common words. It seemed that the little girl could let her needs be known quite well. (she is smart) Her need to go to the bathroom, hunger, etc.... and it was very easy to read the delight in her. Although a quieter little girl, she was quite giddy when I was visiting them. Smiling, laughing and giggling. You could tell she was basking in all the one on one attention. She was very happy to be held by her mom. She also wanted to show me all kinds of things, pictures, and papers, a few new toys....etc... Her mom showed me a new outfit that she bought for her (as the little girl is very small for her age, all the clothes that Anne brought with her were way too big.) Emma pointed to the outfit and then pointed to herself. She was really cute.

So, that was kind of a fun part to the day today. Now we are just kicking back. Relaxing. It's nice. My husband is watching a movie that I've never heard of before. It's a Disney channel type movie.

That's all for now!

Another Pseudo - Psychology quiz

Your Personality Profile

You are dependable, popular, and observant. Deep and thoughtful, you are prone to moodiness. In fact, your emotions tend to influence everything you do. You are unique, creative, and expressive. You don't mind waving your freak flag every once and a while. And lucky for you, most people find your weird ways charming!

The World's Shortest Personality Test

Yes, "Lucky for me" ......

(all this from picking ONE picture)

What's up.

Just a quick post here. Things have turned cold! Dumbest thing I did today- went to school with wet hair and no hat. Won't do that again any time soon. I felt so gross... feel better now though.

Hilight of the day - I broke out a Soft Taco making kit that I brought over with us in the summer and we had taco night. Ahhhhh. Taaacccoooosss.

Still haven't put the Christmas tree up, that is on the to do list for this week.

As I am sitting here, I am all snuggled up in the fuzziest blanket we have (ie - extremely fuzzy soft goodness) and our extra little heater is on, so I'm feeling pretty cozy. Now to get down to business and study my lesson for tomorrow.....Guess I should get to it. Hopefully this fuzzy soft goodness won't be a distraction.

Ok, good night to all....or Good morning, depending on your hemisphere!

Thought for the day

Anywhere is walking distance if you have the time.
- quoted from a pamphlet on Betty's cubicle wall.

Quiz :Who were you in high school?

All American Kid

Popular but not plastic. Athletic but not a jock. Smart but not a brain. You were well rounded and well liked in high school.

Who Were You In High School?

ok, small correction yah. I'm not American, but hey that's ok, we get the general idea. Oh yeah, the other thing is it doesn't say anything about being the girl with the big honking glasses.

Hmmm, what to make of this?

You Should Learn Spanish

For you, learning a language is about career advancement and communication. Knowing Spanish will bring you tons of possiblities for jobs and travel. Bárbaro!

What Language Should You Learn?

Mrs. Moo's antics

That Mrs. Moo cracks me up. She is a character. I guessed that her age might be late 40's, or early 50's....apparently she is in her 60's. This is important information for being appropriately amazed at what I'm going to relate to you next.

Monday, headed back to class after a busy weekend. During a break, I was chatting with the person next to me, suddenly it became hard to focus on our conversation as Mrs. Moo had come into the room and was saying loudly that we foreigners need to be in better shape, get more exercise. She said that she gets up at 6 every morning and exercises. She said "See look at this!" And she whips her leg up on this tall desk to show how flexible she is. "See look how flexible I am !" This was all moderately distracting....then I went back to my conversation only to stop in mid sentance as I happened to glance over and see Mrs Moo doing nothing less than the splits on the floor. The cameras came out and she threw her arms out to the side for a nice pose, like a gymnast or something. It was quite a moment.

I think it was truly amazing for two reasons:

First of all, most floors around here are disgusting. That she was brave enough to get down on the floor, to me, shows a lot of committment to making her point.

Second of all, if we see a 6 year old do the splits, we aren't surprized, but we are impressed. To see a sixty+ year old do the splits, well there's no catagory for that because you never see it happen. So I was surprized and impressed. Yep, she's flexible. (I've never been able to get anywhere close to doing the splits, not at 6 nor 26 and not now)

She made her point.

What kind of candy are you??

Gummy Bears

You may be smooshie and taste unnatural, but you're so darn cute.

What Kind of Candy Are You?

Smooshie and unnatural? What on earth does that mean?? Stupid quiz.

Home again. Good to be back. When I got home the house was clean and laundry done. And my hubby was feeling great again. Oh so good to return.

Back to class too!! These days I think a lot about language learning. I am really not a good language learner. So, sometimes it's a bit of slogging for me, the grammar really bogs me down.

There are some funny little moments in the classroom though. Thought I'd post a few of mine below here- this is origionally from an email I sent last year...sorry if these sound familiar to you!!

Our teacher was a little giggly today too. I made up a sentence this morning saying that after breakfast I put on my clothes….(assuming I was in my pj’s for breakfast) and my teacher started laughing so hard I didn’t finish the sentence. Apparently people here get dressed before breakfast, not after. Of course maybe she thought I was saying I was naked eating breakfast. She was too polite to spell out why exactly she was laughing so hard.

Then I meant to tell her I was reading a book, and instead said I was writing a book. She looked surprised. This Russian guy in my class told me that he wanted the first copy. I told him he could have the first copy when it comes out in Russian.

OK, while we are on the topic, the other day we were amazed that our teacher could keep a straight face-( same teacher) we had this lesson about being sick and going to the doctor but it was about someone with dysentery … so there were words like diarrhea and poo. We could not figure out how the teacher could keep a straight face with 10 foreigners all saying “Poo” …..“Poo” over and over again. And also one time when she was quizzing me on the word list, I was supposed to say the one for poo, but instead I said "Big Bread. " (which sounds very similar) My friend informed me of my mistake later, as she was talking about things that made her laugh in class.

I guess it's all part of acquiring the language, if you try to perfect it before you speak you will never speak well.

It’s the same for those learning english.

One of my friends- her english is excellent. She is at the point where she is adding idioms into her daily speech.

Just before Christmas a friend explained to her what it meant to “nurse a grudge” in your marriage. This really impacted her, and so once in awhile she will ask me, “Oh! Are you nursing a grouchy baby?” ( I think she thinks this is the idiom “to nurse a grudge”) She makes me laugh every time, she laughs too.

She is quite inspiring because she has learned english so well, and I think it is partly because she isn’t afraid to try things,and make mistakes.
She also got the idiom “Quit cold turkey” down just recently.

She went through
"Quit cold turkeys”
“Quit a turkey”
and I’m sure I heard her say “Kick a turkey”

That email exerpt was from last spring I think.

Actually today a friend of mine about one of his language follies. A few years ago he took a trip to a foreign country. He was shopping around for a pair of jeans, and many of the vendors were after him to buy from them in the market place. So, after awhile he became frustrated and tried to say something to the equivalent of "Forget it!" which he said making the appropriate arm crossing motion in the front for extra emphasis. Apparently what he actually said was "I have a rash on my butt." But he didn't know that at the time. Who knew two phrases with such different meanings could sound so similar?

Not going to that restaurant again

My husband has salmonella poisoning. We thought it was the stomach flu but he went and got checked out yesterday and it seems that it is salmonella or something like it. It hasn't been a "violent" case of salmonella, but it definately hasn't been a picnic for him either. He should be getting better now though, he has some medication that should help. Today we are both supposed to travel to another city for the weekend, looks like he won't go, but I will. I would love to spend the weekend at home with him, but no can do. Too bad.

A funny little moment I had yesterday...I and a friend went to go visit some of her friends at one of the dorms. It was fun, they were a lively bunch. I was asking them what they do for fun, and the topic of hip hop dancing came up. I asked one girl if she was into hip hop dancing, and she said, "Oh I like it, but you should picture me dancing! I'm not very good!" Then another girl said "Yes...she...dance...like...a...bear!" To which we all burst into laughter....including the girl who dances like a bear. Cute.

Circumstances: Explained by God

From "When God Speaks" - by Henry and Richard Blackaby p 73


"Jesus is the truth in the midst of life's circumstances (I am the way, the truth and the life!-John 14:6) I have always applied this not merely to doctrine but to life. The disciples saw the storm on the Sea of Galilee as a moment when they might "perish" (Matt 8:25) Jesus saw that they were perfectly safe because Jesus was safe, under the watchcare of His Heavenly Father. As a result, Jesus stilled the storm and then rebuked the disciples for their lack of faith. Jesus often said, "With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." (Matt 19:26) For Jesus, God's prescence always determined the truth of any situation.

Are you in a situation where God's presence is making a difference?


Are you afraid because you do not believe God's presence can make a difference?"

Another Saturday Night

Today was a full Saturday. One hilight was a date with my husband. We went out for supper- Pizza. It was a good treat, and nice to spend the time together. Afterward we came home and had a little movie night. I was quite proud of him....it was totally a girl movie....we watched "The Notebook." It's not his favourite thing in the world to watch anything girly, he likes guy movies! Really he likes a lot of different kinds of movies but top of the list is anything with action, in fact a few weeks ago he found an old copy of "Rambo: First Blood" and he was soo thrilled. He was telling everyone about it, and inviting them to watch it. There was a sparkle in his eye as he told them about what a masterpiece it was and that it is a truly "iconic" film. Most of the movies I like are nothing like "Rambo: First Blood" but sometimes we do happen upon something that we both like. (Like Mr. Bean.) Generally though we have a different taste in movies, so I really appreciate it so much when he watches something with me that I know isn't exactly his first choice (or second choice, or third choice...)
Tonight I was especially appreciative of him.....not only did he watch a very girly movie with me, but also with 4 of my other female friends as well!!! He was the only guy watching a tear jerking romance in a room with 5, count them 5 sniffing, dewy eyed women!
And he only left the room for an extended period once!

I wouldn't have blamed him if he had scooted off to do something else, but I did appreciate the fact that he stuck around with us and watched together, somehow it made it more fun to have him there too.
I'm so thankful for that guy! (He's braver than Rambo!)

My Book Corner

I do a lot more reading now than I used to. It used to (generally) take me a long long time to finish one book... now although not a voracious reader, I do go through a number of books per year. I really enjoy reading and it helps keep me a thinking person. And an encouraged person. (Yes language learning does stimulate the brain but its in the same way over and over again...and it gets exhausting sometimes..so it's nice to read and learn something in my own language.)

I was thinking about my favourite books..... over the years, ones that made a difference in the way I see the world, ones that I keep going back to, ones that were fun.... ones that I should recommend more to others.... I decided to list some of them ....in categories.... here they are....

Books that really encouraged me:
-In the Eye of the Storm- Max Lucado (Karyn H gave me this book as a birthday gift! THANKS! Good for anyone who is tired, busy or going through something difficult)
-Sacred Romance- John Eldredge and Brent ____(sorry his name escapes me just now)
-The Fragrance of Beauty -Joyce Landorf (my mom gave me this book when I was a teenager and I read it multiple times.... )
-Seeing and Savoring Jesus Christ- John Piper (I think I should read this again, when I read part of it the first time I was deathly ill (fever, cough, blah's..) so I think I would enjoy it even more if I read it again.
-The Power of a Praying Woman- Stormie Omartian... Looks at prayer but also looks at having a right heart before God as well.
-My Heart Christ's Home- Robert Munger...a very little book, but huge message about letting God transform our hearts and lives and enjoying His friendship and Lordship!
-Becoming a Woman of Excellence- Cynthia Heald, It's a Bible study that I've done multiple times, sooo good! It's safe to say that I am a Cynthia Heald fan, I love the way she comes at topics!
Know Why You Believe- Paul E. Little. Good intellectual reaons to believe. Quick read.
More Than A Carpenter- Josh MacDowell - Also about why it's reasonable intellectually to believe in Jesus. Also a quick read.
Evidence That Demands A Verdict- Josh MacDowell- I've only read part of it, but is also along that same theme, but more indepth.

Must reads for every Christian (In my humble opinion):

-Victory Over the Darkness-Neil Anderson (good words for knowing who you are and how to walk victoriously as a Christian!)

-Bondage Breaker- Neil Anderson (Breaking free of spiritual strongholds)

-The Master Plan of Evangelism- Robert Coleman(How Jesus went about fulfilling His purpose while walking here on earth....)

-When God Speaks - Henry and Richard Blackaby

-Faith is Not a Feeling- Ney Bailey (Principals and stories from her life about walking in faith...)

- The Case for Faith - Lee Strobel- Excellent book looking at intellectual questions about belief, questions like - "If God is good why it there evil and suffering"etc.... He sought out leading theologians and philosophers to answer these questions. Highly recommend this book.

Current Reads:
Captivating- John and Stasi Eldredge (good book about how God sees and values women- a question that has been on my heart for a few years..)
When God Speaks- Henry and Richard Blackaby- good principals about how to discern the voice of God in our lives...it's hitting home with me right now, I think I would put it on the must read list too....
Lineage of Grace -Francine Rivers - wow, this is the first Christian fiction book I've read in years, and I must say I was caught off guard at how drawn into it I've been. It looks at different women from the Bible and tells the story from what might have been their point of view.... really thought provoking and gives cultural insights which really help understand the stories)
That I May Know Him- Kay Arthur and David Lawson- A guide to study Philippians and Colossians Inductively, (I'm just doing Philippians for now) finding it helpful, it's walking me step by step through the Inductive Bible Study method, which helps keep me doing it...and it has some of their insights as well.

I LOVE biographies.... some good ones I've read:
Lords of the Earth- Don Richardson..(this one was recommended to me by the Cain children..they were reading it with their parents!)
The Hiding Place: The Corrie TenBoom story....I don't know who wrote it, but it's a classic. Corrie Ten Boom was a Dutch Christian who along with her dad and sister hid Jewish people in their house to keep them safe during WW2.....they got caught and she and multiple family members went to prison. She and her sister later ended up in a concentration camp. It's her story of trusting God through it all.
The Five Silent Years of Corrie Ten Boom- Looks at the end years of her life as she suffered a number of strokes....and trusting God through that too.
Dream Big (Bio about Henrietta Miers)- (author?) Although she died in the 60's her influence is still being felt all over the world. An amazing woman!
Mission Possible - Marilyn Laszlo ....cool story of God working! She's a pretty cool woman too!
Eternity in Their Hearts- Don Richardson - I've only read parts of it, but it puts a cool informative spin on the way God has been working in the world over the years

Very Practical:
Organized Living- Sandra Felton...a great book for disorganized people, written by someone else who is disorganized.....

Favourite Children's Book:
The Giving Tree- Shel Silverstein- (Introduced to me by my friend Nancy McHenry, it took me awhile before I could read it without getting all choked up, or totally disolving into a sobbing mess)
You are Special- Max Lucado- A great children's book for adults too.

Other Popular Books that others recommend that I would like to read at some point:
The Purpose Driven Life- Rick Warren- nope I've never read it. But it is on the shelf.
What's So Amazing about Grace- Philip Yancy - heard very good reviews on it, but haven't read it yet....
The Case for Christ- Lee Strobel -similar idea to Case for Faith but specifically about answering the tough questions about who Christ really was.
How People Grow by Henry Cloud

Currently On the Upcoming Roster:
Humility- Andrew Murray - self explanatory

I know I've missed some significant books- I just couldn't think of them all and I've intentionally left a few off here. I've also read some great secular novels in recent years too. But I've listed a lot above already....

But I'd be interested to know if you have any Recommendations? What are you reading??

Mrs. Moo

There's this one teacher that I have.... I'll call her Mrs. Moo. She is really cute, and maybe all of about 4foot 10. I really have no idea how old she is....maybe in her fifties. She's one of those people who can insult you and totally get away with it. She's fiesty, with a smile. Most of the time.

Anyway, two days ago in her class, she asked these two guys to make up a dialogue. They were supposed to follow the topic that was suggested in the book which was that one of them was supposed to be sick and it had some other details with it ... what followed went something like this....

Tall guy: "Hello, I heard that you were sick."
Mrs. Moo: "NO! YOU are the one who is sick, not him! Start over!"
Tall guy: "Hello!"
Short guy: "Hello! I heard you were sick."
Tall guy: "Yes, last night I ate this meat that..."
Mrs. Moo: "NO! You have the FLU! It has nothing to do with meat that you ate! Start over!"
Tall guy:" Hello!"
Short guy:"Hello!..."
Mrs. Moo: "NO! Don't say Hello! Hello!.... you are roomates! You are in the same room with each other! You don't have to say Hello! Hello!....!

And, well, you get the picture....such is life for the confused foreigner.

School Update

Today I learned to say "unearthed historical relics".... now to figure out how to work it into a sentance....I'm so glad that I learned to say "unearthed historical relics"...now I will never be at a loss for words when the topic of "unearthed historical relics" comes up.

Snivel

I learned how to say "snot" today..... although in my text book it was translated into english as "snivel."

A little saturday something

Saw this on someone else's blog, kinda liked the questions....so here it is on mine!

Appetizer Did you sleep good last night? Yes, but we went to bed too late and woke up too early to really feel rested.

Soup What is your current computer desktop image? A gorgeous picture of some lilacs, which I "borrowed" from Randall Friesen's blog site...I think it's a picture he took himself.... maybe I should have asked before I copied it, is that bad blogger etiquette?? woops.... busted!!

Salad When was the last time you planted something, what was it and where did it go? The last actual "planting" of something was when we were in N. America, in our first year of marriage (two years ago) we were renting the greatest little house.... we planted some annuals in the yard, and I planted one perrenial (Daisies)....we moved out mid growing season, and the things died or grew without our knowlege....however during our trip back this summer, we swung by to check for mail...and I noticed the daisies that I planted had come up again this year. It made me happy. I miss that place.

Main Course What's your favorite condiment? All condiments, any condiment....mayonaise, honey mustard, ketchup, mustard etc.. not wasabi though- I got the flu once a few hours after eating some sushi rolls..... but I am getting to the place where I think I could stand to eat it again. Also, I don't think you could call it a "condiment" per say, but I'm currently really into oyster sauce, and I use it like a condiment sometimes....YUM!

Dessert Share a quote that you like, for whatever reason. I'll share two...
"The power is not in the prayer; it's in the One who hears it." -Max Lucado

and "If you are not careful, you can leave your place of prayer and never make the connection between your prayer and the events of the day. " - Henry Blackaby

weekend activities

Today has been a relaxing around day. My biggest endevor of the day was attempting to make pea soup. Didn't work out too well. It didn't flop so badly as to be inedible, unfortunately. We still have to eat it.
Next time I will let the peas soak overnight instead of trying the quick soften method. That's all I'm going to say about that. Except that cooking on a gas stove is more difficult than electric.

Yesterday was a full day, the most interesting part was that we experienced one of the "firsts" that I talked about in my earlier post. My husband and I went to a wedding yesterday. We've been to them before but this one was unlike anything that either of us have ever been to.

We didn't know the family, or the bride and groom...I won't get into why we were invited but we were. And it was HUGE. Our guess is that there were about 500 people there.

It was kind of a cross between the culture here and a western wedding. It was a wedding banquet, crossed with a reception program, crossed with a western wedding ceremony. To start, the lights went out, and the spotlight came on the big arch at the back of the room, and the bride came in on her father's arm and did a walk down the red carpet under a huge arch.... there were professional video crews there with huge spotlights and what not, as the bride and her dad came down the "aisle" the smoke machines started and music swelled, people threw rose petals and metalic confetti. She was wearing a big white dress with a long train being carried by four little children. Then the groom took her arm and they walked the rest of the way to the stage.(This was in a banquest hall)... and then they went through various things that were shades of what we do in the west....but with a unique spin..... usually there would just be a banquet and speeches, toasts, and maybe someone would sing a song....but at this one, they exchanged rings, shared wine together, poured champagne into a huge champagne glass pyramid...
Whenever something significant or moving was being said or done....the background music would swell, and sometimes a bubble machine would pour out bubbles(like Lawrence Welk) , and the smoke machine would make it all misty.... one interesting part was that they had this little girl dressed as an angel come down the aisle... she was cute, with a little crown and wings....she had a little candle and she went up to the couple and they lit their candle stick (stick with dendrobium orchids on it) and then lit a whole candlabra....

It was all so unlike anything we've seen done here.... but interesting. It was really neat to get invited.

Oh yeah, then as we were feasting the couple had to come around and toast at each table, during this time, they had a couple dancers go up on stage and do a rhumba .... it was called "The Honeymoon" ... they did a good job, (and kept it PG!) Thank you.

I think that the bride's father was trying to make the day as special as possible for his daughter. I hope it was a good day for the couple. I also hope and pray that their marriage will be solid, and focused on what really matters.... I'll pray a special little prayer for them tonight before I hit the hay.

Care can be expressed in many ways.

I had a few firsts over this last week. Well, the one wasn't a first for me but a first for some people here.
Last saturday evening I found myself manning the curling iron station at a girls beauty night that we invited a few friends to. It was really fun because I so enjoy doing people's hair. It was also fun because the people whose hair I was curling, had never had a curling iron used on them before. And they were quite thrilled to be getting a curly haired make over.

I think that I only did maybe 4 people's hair in that time, but it was so worth the two hours and multiple times of accidentally touching the scorching hot barrel. (Actually the one was a straightening and the other 3 were curling.) This one girl, she had soooo much LONG hair, it took me a very long time to do hers, even with half of it swept up into a bun. But she was sooo happy afterward, it definately had the princess effect. She was beaming.

This other girl was quite funny, she was the last person of the night, and i didn't have much time..so I gave her this cute little flip on the end of her shoulder length hair...it looked really cute. But then after a few minutes of looking at herself in the mirror she asked if I would curl the whole thing.....ok....so I curled the whole thing, and frankly she looked stunning if I do say so myself. Really, it looked great. But then for some reason she took a brush to it right afterward....I guess it just looked too different, or she wanted to tone down the curls a little or something...but the effect of the brushing made her hair look a little bouffant with the flipped outward curl on the end- she looked like an American Bandstand dancer from the 60's.

As I was curling one of the girl's hair, she asked me "You've learned how to do this right?" and I replied that i have had a lot of experience using a curling iron.... and that any woman in North America over 25 has had a lot of experience using a curling iron. (ie- the 80's.) In that moment I was quite thankful for lo those many hours as a teenager sat in front of a mirror obsessing about getting my hair curled up or feathered just right. It finally paid off. The helmet hair and the semi-mall bangs finally paid off.

Purple Paisley Pajamas

The other day we were tidying up the house(please refer to post below...ha ha) and I realized that we needed more dish soap. As I've mentioned before there is a little store about 10 steps from our door, so I decided to pop out to pick some up. Before going out, I took stock of what I was wearing, and thought- hmmm, the blue in my jogging pants doesn't quite match the blue in my top. Should I change? Do I look too casual? I think I might have even asked my husband if what I was wearing was ok to wear out. I decided I was passable, and ventured forth.

Upon stepping out I saw a group of men sitting around outside right by the store. This is common, people often gather there and play cards or other games. As I got closer I noticed one of the men was sitting there dressed in purple paisley pajamas. (white pajamas, with purple paisley design) He looked like he was having a good time, and no one seemed to mind the fact that he was in his pj's. It would have completed the picture for me if he had had a teddy bear clutched to his chest too. (Actually, I have seen others walking around in their pajamas from time to time too- You know the kind of pajamas I'm talking about, the long sleeve button up, long pant leg, with some design......I kind of think it's a cool part of the culture..... ) Needless to say, all question about the appropriateness of my jogging outfit evapourated.

It's a fine line

OK, one of my pet peeves.... the compliment which is actually an insult. Most people who give it are genuinely trying to be nice but I have noticed that some people have less of a filter to realize that the compliment they are giving is actually not very nice.

For example: " You house looks so clean!" (sure it sounds like a nice compliment but said with a certain tone of wonderment, it really means "Hey, I'm surprized... your house is usually a pit!")

First of all, obviously not every compliment about a house looking clean is discouraging.....just some said with a certain tone by certain people.

Second of all, for those of us who struggle to keep our space clean, and who are not all that organized, when we do get the house looking ship shape we know it's an accomplishment. We do not need Mr. or Mrs. Clean House to come over and croon about how great it looks. When we get the space looking good, we like to think "Yeah, this is who I am, I'm Ms. Clean space person." But then when Ms Clean actually does come over and oooh's and aaaahhhhs , it reminds us that we are usually Ms. Not So Clean and it has not gone unnoticed.

But in the end, you can't say anything...oh yes you may want to make some comment dripping with sarcasm....but you can't because that would make you a jerk. And really, generally as I said above people are usually trying to say something nice when they make these kinds of comments, they are out of touch with how the ultra chipper, extra stress on the "so" in "so clean" really makes you feel. They think they are complimenting you. Encouraging you on a job well done. A pat on the back for their friend.

This year and last year I've decided to live more like an imperfect person. (Yes, I know some of you are thinking I do very well at this already) What I mean is, being ok with the fact that I have flaws and weaknesses. I'm trying to let it be OK with me that I am not always good at everything. And not trying to hide the fact.

We all know we have flaws, but for some reason there's something in us that wants to hide the fact from others. But, isn't that an insult to the grace of God? And don't they know it anyway?

So, yes, ok, I'm not that organized, and my house has a tendancy toward randomness, I am incessantly doing "the big clean." So what? I'm working on it. Why? because it will make life much more simple, and efficient and entertaining more of a joy. But, if God accepts me and in fact delights in me just the way I am, why do I want to hide it from other people? Why do I cringe when it feels like one of my weaknesses has been exposed? I hate that.

I want to live a new way.

When Ms. Clean comes over, and their comment makes me feel like they are parading my weakness for the world to see, or at least letting me know that they've seen it, I want to sincerely say with my mouth(ie with no clenched jaw) "Thank you!" and in my heart "Yes, I am flawed ...and I rejoice in it and thank God because He will show His power through my weakness. Yeah!"

"Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. 2 Cor 12: 9b,10

Ten things about current life here

1.We bought a plastic raspberry phone. I'm not speaking symbolically here, it is indeed a plastic elongated raspberry. It would cost just under $3 in North America.
2. Today is sunny with blue sky... which is a change ...2 days ago It is was very very smoggy - I hope some of it was fog, I really do.
3.I learned the word for "photocopy" this week. I felt so triumphant, except I forget it now.
4. In class I also learned how to insult someone by calling them a fat pig, a something dog, or a skinny monkey. ( although I wasn't clear if "skinny monkey" was actually an insult or a term of endearment..)
5. Our friend's mom who is visiting from N. America gave me a jar of apple-crab jelly made from fruit from her yard. Yum. I cracked it open this morning.
6. I met a lovely french woman yesterday who is teaching french and english at our school- we had to march next to each other in the sports meet parade.
7. I started exercising again.
8. We and some of our friends here started watching the 1st season of the show "Lost"....very scary...it's amazing how fast an addiction can be formed!
9. I made the some of the best cookies I've ever made the other day. And then I threw out the recipe by accident.
10. My husband started exercising again too...I worked out to a pilates DVD with one of the girls....he started by going to the gym with a couple of the guys... I think he dove into it whole heartedly....he's so sore that he got me to massage his biceps this morning before leaving the house.

Even the egg cart lady has a card

So, a few weeks ago I was on my way to meet a friend at the grocery store, and I was running a little behind (yeah, very unlike me - I know ...heh heh.) As I'm hoofing it along, this lady rides up to me on her bike...offering me a ride on the back! It took me a moment but I realized she was one of the Egg cart ladies. I didn't recognize her right away, out of the egg cart context, but it was her. (The other egg cart lady doesn't really care when I go by but this lady always greets me... unfortunately most of the time I can't understand what she's saying. She has a strong accent when she speaks and lets face it, my language ability is still fairly low... I usually guess at what she's saying by how she's gesturing, and respond accordingly.)

But, anyway, on with the story... so she rides up to me and offers me a lift. Who can turn that up? So this dear lady doubled me on her bike for about a block! I could not believe it- who would do that in North America beyond Junior High school age? (Also probably not so legal in N. America) I thought it was quite nice of her.

At the corner intersection we parted as she was heading in a different direction, but before she biked off she pulled out her card and gave it to me! The Egg Cart Lady has a card! Of course I couldn't read it, so I don't know what it was for really.... probably not a card for making eggy things. It just goes to show, you never know what people have on the go.

There are a lot of people here who live in poverty. And many of them have jobs, like working an egg cart. But you know..... when the Egg Cart lady pulls out a card and gives it to you, times are changing that's for sure.

Home Again

Just got back from a few days away. It was a busy time and an 8 hour trip to get back, but it was a good 5 days. We were away for very practical reasons but also managed a visit with a good friend and his mother. Our friend is living around these parts too (in a different city), but his mom is just visiting. It was really fun to meet her.
Actually we weren't supposed to meet her until Thursday but on Monday as we were travelling out to our destination, our bus was about an hour and a half away from the city...and I really had to go to the bathroom. We stopped to pick some people up and my hubby asked the bus driver if I could hop off and run to the restroom. So, ok, the whole bus is waiting for me...I run in to the washroom, and am coming back out, I look around and can't figure out which bus is mine.....(my one bus morphed into 8 that all looked alike) As I am scanning the lot, I hear this voice say my name- it's some of our friends! And then also our good friend and his mother! We were just at some random reststop in the middle of nowhere. It was quite something, they were on their way back from a wedding that they had attended. And it was nice for me, our friend helped me find the right bus! I was thankful. I was also thankful that the view of the people waiting for me on our bus was obscured so they couldn't see me stop to hug people in the parking lot while they were waiting! (I didn't make them wait too long though!)

Was that difficult to follow? Well, the rest of this will be short, as my computer is very slow tonight, so it's gotten quite late...

On the way back today I started reading the book In the Eye of the Storm by Max Lucado- I've read it before a long time ago, but I'd forgotten how good it is. I highly recommend it, especially if you are going through anything difficult. A great read wherever you're at though.

Lately I've also been reading Captivated by Stasi and John Eldridge..... has some very good food for thought, I read half way and then got stalled, but I plan to finish it soon. More about it later perhaps.....

Well, I'm a little tired, so it's off to beddy bye, after I hang up the laundry!
God's peace to you!

And another thing

Oh yeah, just to prove my point below...this morning I was walking along with a couple friends who were visiting from out of town....we see these kind of birds that can talk sitting in a cage (Perhaps they are minah birds?)... so we walk up to them to see if they would talk to us. I asked the owner what the birds could say and the conversation went like this....
ME:Hi there... what can your birds say?
bird owner: Hello
My friend to bird: Hello! Hello!
Bird: caw caw
bird owner: He can't understand foreigners
Me: ha ha
Bird owner: where are you from?
so I tell him...
Bird owner: How old are you?
(see, no seguay or anything....)

Now, quite pleasingly for me, the bird owner way underestimated my age..... I could get used to this age asking thing after all!

Sock Day

Well, it happened. Today I finally put some socks on. My husband said this would happen. A couple days ago he said that around here it often seems like October 1st is the turning date when it suddenly starts getting cold. The day that he said that was a warm muggy day, so I thought, "well, maybe in the past, but not this year.." Turns out I married a pretty smart guy. Today is October 2nd, and this morning I went cruising out the door in my T-shirt only to turn around before the door closed behind me. It was actually cool outside, too cool for just a T-shirt. It wasn't cold by any stretch but it was a change from days previous. So, tonight I found myself rummaging around for socks to wear ( I had to think for a moment about where I even stash my socks.) which is always a bit of a sad moment as you realize that warm summer days are behind you.

Fall is quite pretty here though, and it stretches out a lot longer than at home. The temperature is generally milder. So, I really don't have anything to complain about.



Speaking of my husband....here he is!
Ok, so it's not the most recent picture.....(I did ask him first before I posted it.) This is the picture that is currently on my computer desktop screen.
The thing that I find really interesting about this picture is that in most of the childhood photos that I've seen of my hubby, you can totally tell that it's him. His childhood photos bear a strong resemblance to the way he looks today....but not this picture.. I guess he's a little too young. When I look at this picture I can't see any resemblance to him now whatsoever. Except for one thing....can you see what it is?

Why do I do this to myself?

Next two days will be full. I have officially overbooked myself once again. Too many irons in the fire, bit off more than I could chew, a flock of birds and only one stone. The birds are laughing at the stone. Ah well, it isn't too late to recruit some help, I think....

Well, I'm off to bed...I have too many details from my "to do" list swirling around in my head to concentrate very well. I'll go get a good sleep, and wake up early and set to work again.

I wish a peaceful night to all.

(Oh yeah, quiet outside our apartment this morning- rainy day! It was glorious!)

Who are the People in your Neighbourhood?

Well, the flowers were sure no buffer. 6 am this morning, loud talking, yelling, dog's fighting...the flowers did not make one iota of difference. The voices are too loud and piercing, I guess the voices don't need to be standing right by our door to cut through the wall and wake us up.

One of the voices is (I guess) this lady that makes take out breakfast from a little cart, on the corner....other voices are some of the retired ladies who sit around outside our house at various times of the day and gab and say to us when we walk by "Going out?" and we nod or say "Going out."

The other voice is the lady at the corner store (literally 10 steps from our door).... I can always pick out her voice.... she spends most of the day outside her store visiting with people and serving the customers that come and go. She has a habit of making her daughter come speak english with me when I go in there. I don't mind the idea of speaking english with her teenage daughter....but the fact is, her daughter doesn't want to speak english to ME. So I have to stand there while the mom and daughter argue about her speaking english to me......"Speak!" ....no reply.... "speak" ... no reply....mother swats daughter on the arm "speak english!" ...whining..... it goes nowhere.... One time she even tried to get her daughter to talk to me by calling me a teacher, "Speak english to the teacher!" To which I replied, "I'm not a teacher, I'm a student" She replied by giving me that tilt of the head and look out of the corner of her eye that says " Shhhhhhh! " I actually wish I could speak fluently with the store lady, I think she'd be a fun friend. She seems like a character......But I do wish she wouldn't be such a character outside our apartment at 6 am.

Oh! You shouldn't have!!

I am almost ready to hit the sack! I didn't fall asleep until late last night, and then was awakened early by what sounded like a whole bunch of women outside our apartment talking, and yelling to each other (and dogs barking) ....that and the light coming through the thin curtains.

Things are looking up though....we got a blind today!!! So our room will be dark...er... it still lets some light in but on the whole it should keep it darker longer....

Something funny yet a little annoying. When I came home from school today I noticed that there were potted flowers all over the place to decorate the neighbourhood. Very pretty! Just sitting in various configurations. AND, there were 20-30 pots sitting in a lovely configuration right in front of OUR door! We have 2 doors, and we seldom use that one..... but really, did it need to go right in front of our door so we can't open it?
It was kind of funny but annoying too. However, an epiphany that I had....maybe just maybe, it will give us some buffer tomorrow morning from the 6am party of loud talking women!

Good night!

The Tale of the Evil Worm

The Evil Worm
So a few weeks ago we were away. Gone for about a week. No problem. When we got home, everything seemed in fine order around here....except for this funny little pile of yellowish dust on one of our dining room chairs, how strange. Upon closer inspection we realized that the yellow pile was sawdust (or wormdust!), a worm had burrowed into our chair and was eating it from the inside out. The worm had been small when it ate it's way into the chair, the entry hole was very small. But inside the worm (though still relatively small) had grown to many times the size it was when it first started it's meal.Now the chair has a big chunk of wood missing because we had to extract the stupid worm. How annoying!

I did realize something though... the saga of the worm bears a resemblance to what happens when we are offended by someone and let it brew in our hearts. It may start out as something small that we let ourselves dwell on, and pretty soon it gets bigger and bigger and can become a root of bitterness if we aren't careful. Unforgiveness eats at us, from the inside.Interestingling, from the outside of the chair you couldn't tell there was anything going on inside it! It looked normal. (you couldn't even really notice the tiny little hole) But inside, there was this worm getting fatter and fatter, destroying our good chair.

Unforgiveness is like that too, you often can't notice it right away in someone's life. But it could very well be there, getting fatter and fatter. Destroying the heart.There is a tell tale sign on the outside though... the worm was spewing behind it the pile of saw dust- his refuse, his garbage..... he couldn't hide it.....(he probably wished he could have hid it because we squished him when we found him.)

I think it's similar with us when we have a grudge brewing, an offense we are unwilling to forgive.... there is stuff that comes out of our heart that is a byproduct.... critical words, a cynical attitude, a lack of grace. And it's garbage really.

"Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful." Col 3:12-15

So, yeah, I need to take these things to heart. Now to find some chair cushions to cover up the worm's carnage!

People ask the bluntest questions around here. I'm not sure if it's because the questions are culturally ok to ask anyone here, or if they think it's ok to ask me because I'm a foreigner. Not sure. Most common questions that I get asked are

1- how old are you? (EV-eryone from the little boy down the street to the guy who delivers the water may ask this question.... I don't really mind, but it still takes me by surprise...we seldom ask that in N. America)
2) When are you going to have a baby? People ask me this at home too....it's the question you get after you get married, but it's taken to a whole new level here. I also don't mind the question, the answer is, we really don't know. Not trying to be vague. We just don't know.

There's a guy in my class from Great Britian. Yesterday he was telling me that he often gets asked why he's so fat. Someone asked him the other day if he was fat before he came here. Now, being larger than most of the women in this country, (not hard to do!) I am so thankful that thus far I have NOT been asked that question....(although one lady at the market last week made a comment that I'm still pretending I didn't understand.) If and when I am asked the fat question, I think it will be hard for me to feign good humour. But, it would also be hard for me to be mad at someone here for asking that question. Really here, a little extra weight is not as big a deal as it is to us North Americans. A couple weeks ago I met a girl who is soon to be married. She told me that my husband and I are very suitable for one another because we look alike. (ok, I knew the matchy matchy two for one glasses were a mistake!) She said that she and her fiance are also suitable for one another because they also look alike ...in her words ...they "are both a little fat." She was laughing as she said it. and I think that here, that's generally the feel about extra weigh. "So? You're a little fat? So what?" Therefore, the question pops out.... But still in the end, when the question comes.....I will probably come home, curl up and cry.

The first post

Ok, after all the hoohaw to set this up, I don't really have that much to say. Boy do I wish I had something to say now...the pressure is on.... I guess I think the whole "blog" thing quite novel. I've had a number of friends invite me to look at their blogs recently, and I've really enjoyed reading their thoughts, seeing pictures and hearing stories. Being overseas, I also kind of think this is a fun way to share little snippets of daily life, things I'm thinking about etc... so if you are interested, feel free to check in here whenever you like.