A little teapot

I wanted a teapot for Christmas. I like tea and a pot for brewing it was definitely on my list of luxuries that I wanted to have. It's the only thing that I told my roommate that I wanted, so I was fairly certain that she would get me one. On Wednesday we had a "holiday" party at work that included a "secret Santa" gift exchange. I received a teapot and some tea from one of my co-workers. Nicole and I were going to give each other our gifts on Thursday since she left today to go home for Christmas. Because I thought there was a great chance that I would get a teapot from her I concealed the gift I got at work. I was right, she got me a teapot. So now I have two white teapots of slightly different size and shape and one with an infusing basket for loose leaf teas. Tea helps me to relax, so I did not wait long to use one of the pots. This evening I had a pot of tea with dinner, and I think it was therapeutic. It was mint flavored green tea, and I really only like green tea if it is brewed right - briefly and not too strong. It is better in its full leaf form and the mint gave it interesting flavor. I will deal with the effects of caffeine on my body for the evening and trust that I have not had enough caffeine lately for it to be much of a problem.

I house sit again this weekend and imagine that I will spend most of my time tonight and tomorrow by myself. I will stop by tonight to pick up what I need to get into the house tomorrow and will spend tomorrow doing laundry over there. I will stay there until sometime on Christmas, since the family is coming home on Sunday afternoon and I am going to spend Christmas Eve with them. My friend and I have already decided that we will have a crying party that night. We're both dealing with difficult situations right now, so when we have a night together we will make the most of it and commiserate. I am glad that God catches our tears in a bottle. He will be there with us to comfort us.

Christmas doesn't feel like Christmas

Christmas is in just a few days, but I do not feel much like Christmas. Yeah, we've got some decorations up, but there's no family for me. Even for my family back home it doesn't feel like Christmas. They'll be together, but there is so much junk they have to deal with that it makes it hard to get into the spirit. What I want most for Christmas is intangible, and I don't see much hope for getting it right now. Nebulous, yes, and something that I have now mentioned twice, but not something that I care to talk about. Overall it has been a rather rough year for me and looks like that will carry into next year as well. I know God is faithful to us, but sometimes I wonder what He's up to.

I have been pondering the negative effects of broken fellowship among believers of late.

"How good and pleasant it is
when brothers live together in unity!
It is like precious oil poured on the head,
running down on the beard,
running down on Aaron's beard,
down upon the collar of his robes.
It is as if the dew of Hermon
were falling on Mount Zion.
For there the LORD bestows his blessing,
even life forevermore." (Psalm 133)

"Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering." (Matthew 5:23, 24)

God's blessing is where unity is, and strife among believers can hinder our relationship with God. It hurts everyone involved. Blessed are the peacemakers.

Father knows his daughter

I received a package in the mail from my parents yesterday. It contained 11 cans of Stagg chili in several different varieties and three bags of dried California apricots. Dried apricots from California are different from the Mediterranean variety in both texture and flavor. I think they are richer and just taste better, but the stores here only carry the Mediterranean ones. Stagg chili is, in my opinion, the absolute best canned chili available. It's just good stuff! And it's also not available for purchase out here, so it is, like the California apricots, a taste of home. It also proves that my dad knows me and knows what I like. I knew when I opened it exactly whose idea it was to send it, no question about it. Thank you, Daddy!

It served as a good and timely reminder to me that my heavenly Father knows me and gives me what I need. His gifts are special and suit me perfectly. Right now, when the one thing I would really like to get for Christmas is something intangible, that reminder brings me great comfort.

Saying Thanks

My sister sent me this link. It is a site to allow you to send a printed postcard to a random American serviceman or servicewoman. All of the postcard designs are drawn by kids around the country.
http://www.letssaythanks.com/Home1280.html

Jane Austen action figure

I have taken the Jane Austen action figure to work and will have to take a picture of it at some point, since it seems to be a popular item among my guests. In the meantime, you can see it online here. ;)

If only in my dreams

I'll be home for Christmas,
You can count on me.
Please have snow and mistletoe
And presents under the tree.
Christmas Eve will find me,
Where the love light gleams.
I'll be home for Christmas,
If only in my dreams.

I heard that song no less than five times yesterday. It seems both appropriate and taunting at the same time. I think about what the song says and so much of it is true. I will be home for Christmas in my heart. I think the day will be hard for me, even with good friends to adopt me for the day. Nothing is like home and there is no holiday like Christmas. I LOVE Christmas because it means that there will be one day when my family will all be together (whether that one day happens to be on December 25 or another day close to it is rather insignificant to us). This year that won't happen, and I will be the one missing. I will much more likely see snow and mistletoe here than I would back home (please have sun and open toe shoes?). Christmas Eve will find me at work for most of the day. I did get enough time off of work to go to church for the 8:30 service and then come in to work as soon as the service ends. I'll end up working from around 10:00-5:00, then go to the evening service at church and stay with my friends for the night and spend Christmas with them as well. It's still not home, however. I'll be home for Christmas, if only in my dreams.

Christmas came in the mail today

I received an unexpected package in the mail today. One of my dear friends from college sent me a Christmas present. I was giddy as I tore it open to reveal what was inside. I was a good girl and read the enclosed card first. ;) Inside were two wrapped packages. I did not wait until Christmas. There was no way! The gifts were amazingly perfect for me. The first was a Jane Austen action figure. Yes, you read that right, a Jane Austen action figure. That is going on my desk tomorrow (I have a desk now at work as of this evening), for sure! The other item was "A Classic Chocolate Novel" - a box of truffles shaped like an old book. Very yummy, too, as I have just discovered. The gift showed knowledge of me and what I like, and that made something simple into something extremely meaningful. It really made my day!

Party dresses

We stopped by work after we left the party and had our picture taken by one of my friends there. Nicole also purchased her very first little black dress and wore it to the party. :)

This is kind of fun!

Tonight I decided to share a song with a co-worker. We have tentatively talked about actually singing together for special music for church, and I mentioned a song that he had never heard, so I decided to sing it for him. I was really nervous because I have horrible performance anxiety, so I didn't sound all that great to my own ears. He happens to be part of a small recording label and even through my nervousness thinks I've got talent worth pursuing, so he might actually recommend to the company that they consider me to record some stuff with them! Wow! That's pretty cool, and fun. Makes one feel rather good, too. We'll see if that pans out, but these last few days have been really good to me. It would certainly seem that God has me where He wants me, and that's always a good thing!

Little black dress

Today I bought a little black dress. Every woman needs one, and today I finally got mine. I bought it to wear to a Christmas party for the company I work for on Saturday night. I look forward to wearing it! I shall have to take a picture of myself all dressed up before Nicole and I go to the party. :)

Amazing

It is amazing to me how much one little sentence can mean so much, can make someone's day, can put them on cloud nine... I received one of those sentences today from a friend, and I can't stop smiling now.

Thankful: Reflections upon Christmas

I posted this last Christmas and thought that I would post it again on Thanksgiving this year because I am truly and deeply thankful for the amazing gift God has given to us in His Son!

There is a story of love stronger and deeper than any love recorded by the great novelists of the world. The sweetest romance pales in comparison to the love that God showed the world when He sent His Son. This love story is so often told that we lose sight of how truly amazing it is. The stage is set outside the church building, under a tree and on the front of a greeting card. We think of the angels and shepherds, the magi from the east and the loving young mother, all worshipping the newborn king. It is a quaint picture in our minds as we bustle to and fro in the midst of the holiday rush. As we purchase gifts in anticipation of the joy on the faces of our loved ones do we miss the joy on the face of the Father when He gave His Son to His loved ones? If all we see is the manger, we have missed the greatness of Christmas.

Let us step back to look at the scene in Heaven prior to that first Christmas. We enter a temple filled with smoke, and there in the temple we see the Lord Himself, Jesus Christ, seated on a throne and He is wearing a robe so grand that its train fills the whole temple. The ground beneath our feet trembles at the sound of the Seraphim calling out, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory.” We see that even the Seraphim, creatures made to worship at the throne of God, cover their eyes and their feet in the presence of the overwhelming glory and holiness of Christ Jesus. This picture was painted by Isaiah, and in it we see the rightful place of our Savior. He sat on the throne surrounded by praise and had every right to stay there, but love compelled Him to lay it aside for a time to become a servant.

Isaiah picks up the story of Christ several chapters later, and the man we see there is ordinary at best. “He has no stately form or majesty that we should look upon Him, nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him” (Isaiah 53:2). What about the throne? He left it to rest instead in a manger, yet that manger was only a stop on the road to the cross. Along the way He would meet with rejection, grief and hate. The Seraphim hid their faces at the sight of His glory, but now men will hide their faces at the sight of His affliction. How then do I say that there was joy of the face of His Father when He came to earth? “The Lord was pleased to crush Him, putting Him to grief” (Isaiah 53:10) because He knew that this was the only way to bring reconciliation with mankind. You and I mean so much to God that He would be pleased to send His own holy Son away from His rightful place on Heaven’s throne to become a despised man who suffered for sins He never committed. When you look at the manger, consider what Jesus left behind and what He chose to face on our behalf. The greatness of Christmas is not in the lights and bells of our decorations, rather the greatness of Christmas lies in the sacrifice of the King of the universe who traded His throne for a cross and the praises of the angels for the curses of men. Joy to the world! The Lord is come! Let earth receive her King!

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
Unknown, possibly 12th century, translated by John M. Neale

O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.

Refrain:
Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Wisdom from on high,
Who orderest all things mightily;
To us the path of knowledge show,
And teach us in her ways to go.

Refrain

O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free
Thine own from Satan’s tyranny;
From depths of hell Thy people save,
And give them victory over the grave.

Refrain

O come, Thou Day-spring, come and cheer
Our spirits by Thine advent here;
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night,
And death’s dark shadows put to flight.

Refrain

O come, Thou Key of David, come,
And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery.

Refrain

O come, O come, great Lord of might,
Who to Thy tribes on Sinai’s height
In ancient times once gave the law
In cloud and majesty and awe.

Refrain

O come, Thou Root of Jesse’s tree,
An ensign of Thy people be;
Before Thee rulers silent fall;
All peoples on Thy mercy call.

Refrain

O come, Desire of nations, bind
In one the hearts of all mankind;
Bid Thou our sad divisions cease,
And be Thyself our King of Peace.

Refrain

Day before Thanksgiving!

I'm in a great mood right now. Yesterday I found out that there is another Christian who works with me. We are few and far between, so it is encouraging to meet others. We've had some good chats in the past two days about some issues relating to godly living and church. That has been fun.

I'm house and pet sitting this week for friends from church. It requires getting up at 6:00 every morning to feed the animals and take the dog out. I then promptly go back to bed for a few more hours. :) The first night I forgot my pajamas and my shampoo and conditioner, so I had to make due with what I was wearing and what they had in their bathroom. I did not forget those things last night, which is good.

My dad's step-father died on Monday. His body was full of cancer and he actually lived longer than we expected. He was always such a cheerful person and will be missed.

Thanksgiving is tomorrow. I will be working from 1:30-6:00, completely by choice. I want the overtime. I will have more than ten hours of overtime in my next paycheck. I do so look forward to that! I don't like living paycheck to paycheck, but that is where I find myself right now. God is faithful to provide, however, and I find myself lacking nothing.

A bit early

Today we started to decorate for Christmas. I really love Christmas decorations. They are so cheerful. Generally I hold to the rule that Christmas season begins the day after Thanksgiving, but this year my roommate and I were both ready to start it a little bit early.

We have two trees, one small and one medium. They both belong to my roommate and they are both fake. I really do prefer real trees to the fake ones, but I can settle for fake ones when no tree is a realistic alternative. My roommate, you see, grew up with what I consider small fake trees and really doesn't know any different. I grew up with real trees. They both look and smell better and I protested loudly when my mother bought a fake tree a few years ago. That was out for a couple of years and then she bought a real tree again. She said that she was tired of vacuuming up needles for months. My parents no longer have any carpet in their house, so needle clean-up is easier. I was amused to see my roommate's fake tree leaving fake needles on our carpet. :) I think real trees are worth the needle clean-up, but for now I will settle for the evergreen scented candle that I have. I really dislike most of them but found one that I do like and think does smell like Christmas should. I forgot to burn it last year but have it out this year and am appreciating the scent.

One thing I dislike about fake trees is that they look really stupid if the bottom of the "trunk" is not covered with presents. We don't exactly have tons of money around here, so one of my projects will be to wrap boxes to put under the trees. Most boxes will be empty, but there are a few exceptions. Right now there is a bar of soap wrapped up and placed under the small tree, which we put out on our patio just for fun. Fake trees with fake presents underneath. All this for a little ambience!

The almanac said that we were supposed to get a colder than usual winter. I wonder when that is supposed to come. So far we haven't had anything like winter weather. This week we had another rain storm that caused more flooding. It wasn't anything close to what happened when the river flooded so badly in June, but it still caused a lot of damage. The river crested just barely below flood stage, which is a relief to many in this area. That stormy day brought us temperatures in the 60s. That's a bit warm for November in New York! Tomorrow we are supposed to get some snow flurries, but it won't be cold enough for the snow to stick. The overnight lows are supposed to drop below freezing for a few nights, but nothing that really says that winter has arrived for good. I guess we'll just have to wait for December. I'm really quite okay with waiting!

Work is going well. I am not nervous about answering the phone now. I can handle most situations, and if I don't know what to do I ask someone. I ask and I learn and then the next time something comes up I know what to do. I've already picked up a little more than 6 hours of overtime for this pay period and it is only halfway over. I will very likely pick up at least a little bit more and have permission to stay at work late whenever I want to (which really only applies to 3 days every week since I work until closing the other two) and started working Saturday mornings today. It's going to be a nice boost to my paycheck, for sure, and right now I need that!

Memo: From Me, To All Blog Visitors

I thought I would update with a few notes from work. This week I sat in three desks, since I still do not have one of my own. There is a woman out on maternity leave, so I finally asked today if I could just use her desk until they find me a permanent place. They said yes. My supervisor actually asked why I wasn't sitting there all along. The other supervisor for our group was giving me seat assignments prior to that, so it really wasn't my fault. I just don't like being homeless. It took me 30 minutes to get ready to take calls today, and then only half of my work day was actually spent on the phone. The rest of the time I was in meetings and training or following up with issues. I felt so unproductive and got about an hour and a half of overtime in the process. Speaking of which, I will likely start to work for four hours on Saturday morning because I am interested in getting overtime since money is tight and they are low on staff on Saturday morning. I also got permission to work for half of a day on Thanksgiving. Since it's a holiday I will be paid double time and a half for the hours I work. I get paid for the whole day whether or not I work, so it's really just extra money in my pocket. Since I don't have family out here and will be housesitting alone that week I think I will enjoy being at work more than I would taking that time off! Holidays are lightly staffed but fun days to work, since they do like to celebrate. They will provide good food for all of us, so I won't go hungry. There are rumors of pay raises and restructuring due to a recent merger with a larger division in the area. Those are rumors. So far they have mentioned some things that will change or have already changed because of it, but nothing about pay. I agreed to work for my current wage and will accept it if there is no change, but I certainly would not protest against a larger paycheck. I have bills to pay, and commission only goes so far!

Surviving, and I can do this

I have survived the first two days on my own at work. I have no desk and sit where there is an available desk for the day. I have made errors, but so far I think I have caught them on my own, which means that I know how to do things but am still new at actually doing those things. Last night I came across a situation that really confused me at first, until I realized that something was very, very wrong with a customer's accounts. It bothers me somewhat that I am not going to be at work until noon today because I want to make sure that we get right on that issue and I want to be part of the solution. I feel bad because my brain holds the most information about the problem and I won't be there to explain in detail what an e-mail at 11:00 pm cannot quite express. This situation did give me some confidence since this is an unusual and complicated problem and I was able to figure out what is wrong, although another department will have to fix it. I can do this job, but it may take me a little while to get a good grasp of all of those things that they told us in training that my brain is just not recalling right now!

It's snowing

It just started to snow outside. It has done it a few times overnight but this is the first time this season that I have seen it during the day. Beautiful, but a bit of a pain. I don't mind flurries, just keep the heavy snowfall away for as long as possible!

Some firsts

On Tuesday I voted for my favorite couples on Dancing with the Stars. I had only watched part of one show that included such a thing as viewer voting before and had never watched Dancing with the Stars. I'm not usually a huge fan of dancing, but that show is really fun to watch. I submitted my five votes by telephone. It was fun. :)

Today I made my first sale for commission at work. I have never worked for commission before, so this is a big thing for me. I sold a DVR to a customer. It isn't a huge commission, but it is still my very first, and I'll take it! :)

Sunday is going to be my first day on the phones with no trainer or "mentor". That's a big step, but I think I am ready for it. Because I start my Sunday-Thursday shift next week I have tomorrow and Saturday off. That will be nice. I am leaving work at the end of the day feeling positive and energized. I help people fix their problems, and that feels good. I love the fact that I leave work feeling so good. :)

Narf!

When I was in high school I would come home from school every day and turn on cartoons. I watched Animaniacs religiously. They were, along with their spin-off Pinky and the Brain, my favorite television. It was a sad day for me when those shows were taken off the air and replaced with the unimpressive stuff that is on now.

I recently acquired the first set of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection, which was something I have eyed for quite some time now. Last week I was at Target looking for a way to use a gift card that I had and I saw it there: Animaniacs Volume 1. I had to buy it. There were just no two ways about it. I have since been enjoying watching the first episodes, remembering the delight of my youth. It has been fun.

In other news, I have been very busy. My weekend was packed full of stuff, but it was fun and fulfilling. I went on a hay ride at the pastor's house and then played pool for a couple of hours after that. We (my roommate and another friend and I) had a surprise birthday party for a lady from church and put on a nice dinner for her. Last night we went to dinner, which was also quite nice. Work has been going well and I should be on my own and working evenings starting next week. I am sure other things have happened since my last update, but I really can't think of much!

My winter coat

Yesterday I wore my winter coat for the first time this season. The temperature when I left for work was just barely above freezing. The northern part of the state got hit with the same storm that went through the Midwest, but we had beautiful white, puffy clouds in our skies. All we got was lower temperatures. The almanac says that we are supposed to have a colder than normal winter with average snowfall and an early and warm spring. It will be interesting to see whether or not the almanac is correct.

I was glad that I wore the coat because it was rather chilly out and we ended up walking from the building I work in up the street to one of our other buildings where the cable system "headend" is. The headend is the starting and ending point for the Time Warner Cable signals, so it is where the television information is processed from the satellites and sent out to customers and where internet and phone signals are received and sent out as well. It was cool to see that. The walk was short, but long enough to make me appreciate warm clothing. I resist pulling out the coat for as long as possible, but the time had come. I think I probably won't need it much more for the next few weeks, but it's there for when I do.

We also got to do some hands-on training on how to properly set up cable equipment. I worked with two other ladies and we set up an HD DVR (this is a high definition cable box with a digital video recorder build into it), since the HDTVs have the most complicated set of cables of any. We set up a regular TV to work with digital cable and a DVD player, too. It's just one more set of cords to plug in. We then set up a digital phone modem and a high speed internet modem, both of which worked. It was a fun day, over all.

There is a phenomenon with cable television that happens twice every year. It is called a sun outage. Most satellites are in orbit around the earth's equator, so when the equinox comes around in spring and fall, the satellite passes directly between the sun and the earth. That causes problems with the satellite signal. It will cause bad pictures on cable channels for about 5-15 minutes per channel for about two days depending on the exact location of the channel's satellite. It sounds like something out of a science fiction novel, but it is completely true. The things you learn when you work for the cable company...

As an American I just can't...

I was perusing some of my classical music and was struck by one name: Arcangelo Corelli. He was a Baroque composer, which means I should probably pay more attention to him since I particularly enjoy Baroque music. While I am listening to and enjoying a piece that he wrote, it's not the music that stands out. His name is Arcangelo. How cool is that? His parents named him Archangel. I couldn't do it as an American. It would be a little bit too weird, but more power to the Italians for that one!

In other news, work continues to go well for me. Training is going way too slowly for me, so I spent part of my abundant down time making worksheets to be used in future training classes. They were unsolicited, but I have some ideas for how the class could be conducted differently in the future (we are the guinea pigs, since they haven't taught the class in this way before) to help people understand the concepts better. They younger ones among us have caught on quickly, but some of the older trainees are taking a little bit longer and I was observing where the difficulties seem to lie for them and made the worksheets with those difficulties in mind. The trainer is going to use them later on in the training and use them from the beginning with the next group, so that's exciting. She wants a second person to do the stuff she's doing, and I think she would like to have me fill that role. I would love it, but I can't get my hopes up at this time. Perhaps those doors will open in due time.

How Can I Keep From Singing

How Can I Keep From Singing
From See the Morning, Chris Tomlin

There is an endless song
Echoes in my soul
I hear the music ring

And though the storms may come
I am holding on
To the rock I cling

How can I keep from singing Your praise
How can I ever say enough
How amazing is Your love
How can I keep from shouting Your name
I know I am loved by the King
And it makes my heart want to sing

I will lift my eyes
In the darkest night
For I know my Savior lives

And I will walk with You
Knowing You'll see me through
And sing the songs You give

I can sing the troubled times
Sing when I win
I can sing when I lose my step
And fall down again
I can sing 'cause You pick me up
Sing 'cause You're there
I can sing 'cause You hear me, Lord
When I call to You in prayer
I can sing with my last breath
Sing for I know
That I'll sing with the angels
And the saints around the throne

Am I ashamed?

Romans 1:16 ~ For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.

The gospel is the power of God - the power that made the universe, the power that raised men from the dead, the power that calmed the storm with a word, the power that raised up men and nations and destroyed others, the power that brought me into being - that's the most powerful power that ever has or ever will exist. This is not something of which I ought to be ashamed. Am I? I think there have been times when I have been very much ashamed. Now it seems that I cannot speak to someone for very long without making it known that I am a Christian. Do I tell them the gospel? Not yet. I should, which tells me that in some ways I am still ashamed of it. I will claim it but not explain it. I need to tell what I believe, not just that I believe. I am being selfish with God's power when He would like to use it liberally to save more lost souls.

Time is flying by!

They say that time flies when you're having fun. I must be having fun these days because time is flying by! Was it really Tuesday when I last posted? It has been a long absence, but it certainly didn't feel like it. Wednesday I sat with someone on the phones for most of the day and had a little bit of classroom training. We had a worship night at church that evening for the the youth and the college and career groups. Thursday I listened to phone calls all day. Thursday evening I went to dinner and a movie with my roommate and one of our friends from church. We saw The Devil Wears Prada at the "Cinema Saver" (the cheap theater that only charges $3). Yesterday I rode with a tech all day and observed what he did to fix people's problems and install new service. At one house there were two girls, a 4th grader and a 3 year old. Both children were anything but shy with me. The older one is homeschooled and thought it was the coolest thing that I was homeschooled when I was her age. She then drew pictures for me of a ballerina and an octopus after I asked her if she colored the VeggieTales stuff that was up on the refrigerator. That was cute. Meanwhile the younger one was stuffing her little plush panda in my back pocket. VeggieTales and homeschool? My kind of place! The day was interesting overall and I did enjoy myself. Last night Nicole and I were looking at clothes online and decided that we needed to go shopping, so that was on the agenda for the day. I made breakfast after I had been up for a while and then cleaned the kitchen and vacuumed the common rooms of the apartment. In the middle of cleaning my mom called to go through the clothes I left back in California piece by piece so I could tell her what to send me and what to get rid of. I own a lot of clothes. So I bought more today. I also returned all of my library books to the university library. Some were coming due and I just decided that they would all go back regardless of due dates. I would like to leave graduate school far behind me!

The heat came on in our apartment last night. It was near freezing overnight. The trees are really starting to change color and it looks like winter will be here soon. If it passes as quickly as summer did, spring will be here in no time at all!

Earmarked?

Yesterday it became quite obvious that the young lady who is in charge of training the call center people trusts my ability to handle technical tasks. That's nice. I was also called out specifically to listen to the higher level tech support group's calls while everyone else sat with people who are doing the same thing that they will be doing. I think I've made an impression and that I have been earmarked for performing a cut above the average person hired into my position. That feels nice! I also offered my services to help with the online training course review process. I love to proof read and edit things and have some experience with developing (and teaching) course material for Microsoft Office training. They have some demand for Office training, so they may have me help with that. I would enjoy that a lot and it would probably be a good thing for me to do since I love the idea of getting into training at some point in the future. I think that I managed to make an impression in just a few days at work, and that feels good. It looks like a place where I could make a career until God calls me elsewhere.

I am attempting to adjust to my new schedule, so I am a little bit tired. My body clock is slowly aligning itself with my new hours, which is good. As soon as my laundry is done tonight I will be going to bed! My sleepy state is partly responsible for my lack of blogging of late, as is my generally busier schedule. I must say that I greatly prefer working full time to being in school full time. It just works better for me and I feel so much more productive and responsible.

I went to an event at church last night. It was a tea for the ladies with a special guest speaker as part of my church's month of missions. It was very encouraging and challenging. It reminded me of my commitment to going wherever God wants me whenever He wants me to go to do whatever He wants me to do. Sometimes I need a reminder. Right now I am certain that this is where I am supposed to be, although the what part is still a little bit hazy. I think He has good works prepared in advance for me to do that I have not yet begun.

A new name

I have to come up with a new name to use at work. I can't use my given name because there are already people with my first name (both Angela and Angie) and my middle name (one of those names that really cannot be shortened), so I must find something else to go by on the phone with customers. I'm thinking I might use Lizzie. I use that name online as it is...

Gas sale

Every Saturday the gas station nearest my apartment has a gas sale. My roommate and I both plan to fill our cars up on Saturdays. The only reason I left my apartment today was to go get gas. I probably saved 37 cents. Hah! Was it worth it? Psychologically, yes, but I am not sure what its fiscal impact will be in the long run. I think it is a smart thing for the gas station owners to do. They probably lose less than a dollar per customer but gain quite a few customers and I would imagine that in the end they come out ahead. They get my loyalty by saving me 37 cents when I fill my tank about once every three weeks or so. In the course of one year if I put in 9 gallons of gas every two weeks I will save less than $10. I could buy myself dinner once with what I saved by purchasing gas there. In that light the whole thing seems silly, but I will keep going there for my gas. It's a smart business move, for sure.

Going to bed early

I am going to bed early tonight. Perhaps as early as 8:00. I came home from work and put on a pair of fleece pants and a long sleeved t-shirt and put a movie on the TV. It's raining outside (the drive home tonight took much longer than it usually would because the visibility was horrible - typical Binghamton area thunderstorm with pouring rain) and I am sick with a nice little cold, so I think there is no better time to get comfortable and go to sleep.

Picture time!

Nicole and I did some decorating around the apartment. We put up some photographs in the living room (Nicole's doing), rearranged a little bit in the living room and put up a sconce on the living room wall across from the couch (joint effort) and put some Renoir in the dining room (my doing). Here are some photographs of that stuff:

I also finished the afghan I have been working on for the past few weeks. It's a baby blanket that I made for my sister. Here's the finished product:

The first day

I had day one of orientation at work today and I am very excited about the new job! They really take care of their employees and encourage growth and upward movement. The benefits are really very good and there are a lot of perks to working there. They said today that each one of us in orientation probably represented about 100 resumes, so it is apparently not an easy company to get into. I am counting myself as extremely blessed today! God is so amazingly good!

All Creatures of Our God and King

All Creatures of Our God and King
Francis of Assisi, cir­ca 1225

All creatures of our God and King
Lift up your voice and with us sing,
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Thou burning sun with golden beam,
Thou silver moon with softer gleam!
O praise Him! O praise Him!
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

Thou rushing wind that art so strong
Ye clouds that sail in Heaven along,
O praise Him! Alleluia!
Thou rising moon, in praise rejoice,
Ye lights of evening, find a voice!
O praise Him! O praise Him!
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

Thou flowing water, pure and clear,
Make music for thy Lord to hear,
O praise Him! Alleluia!
Thou fire so masterful and bright,
That givest man both warmth and light.
O praise Him! O praise Him!
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

Dear mother earth, who day by day
Unfoldest blessings on our way,
O praise Him! Alleluia!
The flowers and fruits that in thee grow,
Let them His glory also show.
O praise Him! O praise Him!
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

And all ye men of tender heart,
Forgiving others, take your part,
O sing ye! Alleluia!
Ye who long pain and sorrow bear,
Praise God and on Him cast your care!
O praise Him! O praise Him!
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

And thou most kind and gentle Death,
Waiting to hush our latest breath,
O praise Him! Alleluia!
Thou leadest home the child of God,
And Christ our Lord the way hath trod.
O praise Him! O praise Him!
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

Let all things their Creator bless,
And worship Him in humbleness,
O praise Him! Alleluia!
Praise, praise the Father, praise the Son,
And praise the Spirit, Three in One!
O praise Him! O praise Him!
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

Extra hours and apples

I got a phone call at 7:30 am yesterday. It woke me up. It was a plea for help. They needed someone to fill in for the morning program at the school I work(ed) at in the afternoon. I was there on site within 20 minutes of the call, unshowered and barely awake. I decided to get my drug test for the new job while I was out, so I did that and picked up my paycheck for the first two weeks at the school and then came back home and went to bed for a few more hours. I am glad I was able to help out. It gave me one more hour with the kids and one more hour of pay, too. When I am done with my training I think I will let them know when I can work as a substitute, provided that my new employers don't have any problem with that.

Today Nicole and I went to the Endicott Apple Fest. It is basically a little craft fair in the three blocks that make up downtown Endicott. I found some jalapeño jelly in a candle store that was having a sale (probably to make the most of the increased number of people out today). It's the kind of jelly that makes good dip, especially when served with cream cheese and raspberry jelly. I thought it was fun to actually find something like that out here, so I bought it. I also bought a small jar of someone's homemade pear jelly. I love pears, so I thought I might try this stuff. Since it is homemade I am sure it is good, too. Since there was an apple theme, I got some apple fritters at one place (battered and fried apple rings with cinnamon and sugar - yum!) and Nicole bought some apple cider. I also picked up a few pounds of freshly picked apples and made apple sauce with them this evening. It would have been nice to have an apple corer/slicer/peeler, but I decided to go ahead and make it even without such a contraption. I did all the peeling and cutting by hand, figuring that if they did such things by hand for years, I can certainly do it now. The apple sauce is really good, so I am happy about that.

Happy Birthday, Lizzie!

Today, from what I can tell, is Lizziebennet's first birthday! I have been playing Puzzle Pirates for a whole year now. Where did the time go?

Issue: RESOLVED

Who?
Me

What?
Work - customer service, first line troubleshooting ("Repair")

When?
Sunday 2:30-11:00 pm
Monday 2:30-11:00 pm
Tuesday 12:00-9:00 pm
Wednesday 12:00-9:00 pm
Thursday 12:00-9:00 pm
(There are 3 days of orientation starting on Monday and 5 weeks of training, during which time I will work 8-5 M-F.)

Where?
Time Warner Cable, Vestal, NY (it's about a 15 minute commute)

Why?
They need people, I need work

How?
By the grace of God

Speaking of the grace of God, I spoke to my father this morning and he told me about two people who were recently brought to faith in Christ Jesus through the ministry of my church in California. He taught the baptism class that they give a few weeks before each baptism for those interested in being baptized (class was two weeks ago) and then did baptism interviews on Sunday. There was one woman who put her daughter into a Christian school and then decided to go to church to find out more about what kind of school her daughter attended (she heard about "our" church through one of her daughter's friends who happens to be the younger sister of one of my best friends growing up). Apparently she was "mesmerized" by the service the first time she came to church in May and is now a believer and excited about growing and learning more. She is able to go to work on Monday and talk to one of her coworkers about what she learned at church. This coworker had been praying for her salvation and is now able to talk to her about the things that she is learning about God! There was also a young man in the baptism class who apparently before the class thought that baptism was necessary for salvation. My dad emphasized over and over again in the class that baptism is a command for those who believe and is not a vehicle of salvation. The young man met with a man from the church on Thursday night and he was led to the Lord, so now his baptism will be in response to his salvation and not in search of it. God is at work in people's lives, and He still actively saves souls when His people are faithful. How great is our God!

Anyway, about the perks of the job (perquisites, for those of you interested in expanding your vocabulary - good GRE word), since I think I promised more information at some point. They have very good benefits, which is something that I really appreciate. They have medical, dental and vision insurance for a very low (to the employee) price. They have a 401(k) program (retirement account for those of you unfamiliar with the finer points of US tax law). They also give their employees complimentary internet and cable television access in their homes. Darn. I'll have to get my internet for free. The bummer is that they do not allow you to use any vacation time for the first 6 months, but they do give you 2 weeks of paid vacation, 5 paid "personal days", and something like 3 hours of sick time every two weeks. Vacation and personal time has to be used within the calendar year or you lose it (you can accrue sick time, however), so I'll be "forced" to take vacations (anyone care to guess which state I'll visit first?) every year. They are open every day except Christmas, but do give employees holidays off with pay, asking that everyone work one holiday per year and only for part of the day (unless you want to work all day, in which case they'll let you). The holidays you work pay holiday pay plus overtime for the hours you work, so you get 2.5 times the normal pay rate for any hours you work on a holiday. That's nice. I think I'll volunteer to work some holidays! That's it in a nutshell. The pay is not spectacular, but it's a lot better than minimum wage and will be sufficient for my needs. I'm just glad that I have a job to go to on Monday, but once again I am forced to leave my children at work behind. I will miss that!

Still no word

This is starting to feel like one more thing that is dangled in front of me but not given to me. It could still happen, but time is running out. How many things that seem like they are going to happen have to not happen? Have I not learned what God is trying to teach me yet? I want the right job, and if this is not it, then I don't want it. It isn't perfect. Maybe God has something better for me. If that is the case, I will keep waiting, but how long?

Apropos

This is the verse that was on my blog's "daily snippet" (just added this week in the sidebar) today, which I found rather appropriate and comforting to me in this time:

But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:19)

Waiting

I am still waiting to hear back from the company regarding my job interview. I am getting a little bit anxious for my phone to ring!

Psalm 104
The LORD'S Care over All His Works.

1 Bless the LORD, O my soul!
O LORD my God, You are very great;
You are clothed with splendor and majesty,
2 Covering Yourself with light as with a cloak,
Stretching out heaven like a tent curtain.
3 He lays the beams of His upper chambers in the waters;
He makes the clouds His chariot;
He walks upon the wings of the wind;
4 He makes the winds His messengers,
Flaming fire His ministers.
5 He established the earth upon its foundations,
So that it will not totter forever and ever.
6 You covered it with the deep as with a garment;
The waters were standing above the mountains.
7 At Your rebuke they fled,
At the sound of Your thunder they hurried away.
8 The mountains rose; the valleys sank down
To the place which You established for them.
9 You set a boundary that they may not pass over,
So that they will not return to cover the earth.
10 He sends forth springs in the valleys;
They flow between the mountains;
11 They give drink to every beast of the field;
The wild donkeys quench their thirst.
12 Beside them the birds of the heavens dwell;
They lift up their voices among the branches.
13 He waters the mountains from His upper chambers;
The earth is satisfied with the fruit of His works.
14 He causes the grass to grow for the cattle,
And vegetation for the labor of man,
So that he may bring forth food from the earth,
15 And wine which makes man's heart glad,
So that he may make his face glisten with oil,
And food which sustains man's heart.
16 The trees of the LORD drink their fill,
The cedars of Lebanon which He planted,
17 Where the birds build their nests,
And the stork, whose home is the fir trees.
18 The high mountains are for the wild goats;
The cliffs are a refuge for the shephanim.
19 He made the moon for the seasons;
The sun knows the place of its setting.
20 You appoint darkness and it becomes night,
In which all the beasts of the forest prowl about.
21 The young lions roar after their prey
And seek their food from God.
22 When the sun rises they withdraw
And lie down in their dens.
23 Man goes forth to his work
And to his labor until evening.
24 O LORD, how many are Your works!
In wisdom You have made them all;
The earth is full of Your possessions.
25 There is the sea, great and broad,
In which are swarms without number,
Animals both small and great.
26 There the ships move along,
And Leviathan, which You have formed to sport in it.
27 They all wait for You
To give them their food in due season.
28 You give to them, they gather it up;
You open Your hand, they are satisfied with good.
29 You hide Your face, they are dismayed;
You take away their spirit, they expire
And return to their dust.
30 You send forth Your Spirit, they are created;
And You renew the face of the ground.
31 Let the glory of the LORD endure forever;
Let the LORD be glad in His works;
32 He looks at the earth, and it trembles;
He touches the mountains, and they smoke.
33 I will sing to the LORD as long as I live;
I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.
34 Let my meditation be pleasing to Him;
As for me, I shall be glad in the LORD.
35 Let sinners be consumed from the earth
And let the wicked be no more
Bless the LORD, O my soul
Praise the LORD!

Tortured!

I am torturing myself right now. I have a roast in the oven and the smell is so amazingly wonderful, but it won't be ready to eat until I come home from work this evening. I love pot roast. The tender beef and onions and potatoes and carrots... My mouth is watering and I want to eat it now!!!

Voice of Truth

This song spoke to me a lot when I first considered moving far away from home by myself. I did not want to go, but I knew that God was telling me to go, and to go in faith. His voice said to step out of my comfort zone because He had work for me to do that I could not do there. I chose to listen to His voice, and I am glad I did. I still don't know what it is exactly that I am supposed to be doing, but I know that I am in the right place!

Voice of Truth
Casting Crowns

Oh what I would do to have
The kind of faith it takes
To climb out of this boat I'm in
Onto the crashing waves

To step out of my comfort zone
Into the realm of the unknown where Jesus is
And He's holding out His hand

But the waves are calling out my name
And they laugh at me
Reminding me of all the times I've tried before and failed
The waves they keep on telling me
Time and time again. "Boy, you'll never win!"
"You'll never win!"

Chorus:
But the voice of truth tells me a different story
The voice of truth says, "Do not be afraid!"
The voice of truth says, "This is for My glory"
Out of all the voices calling out to me
I will choose to listen and believe the voice of truth

Oh what I would do to have
The kind of strength it takes to stand before a giant
With just a sling and a stone
Surrounded by the sound of a thousand warriors
Shaking in their armor
Wishing they'd have had the strength to stand

But the giant's calling out my name
And he laughs at me
Reminding me of all the times I've tried before and failed
The giant keeps on telling me
Time and time again. "Boy you'll never win!"
"You'll never win!"

(Chorus)

But the stone was just the right size
To put the giant on the ground
And the waves they don't seem so high
From on top of them lookin' down
I will soar with the wings of eagles
When I stop and listen to the sound of Jesus
Singing over me

(Chorus)

I will choose to listen and believe the voice of truth

I want to, but I can't right now

I want to travel, but I can't do it right now. I had plans to, but they were changed. Now I suppose I'll just have to wait until some time in the future! I love seeing new places and doing new things. I think that life ought to be lived, and travel is one way that I like to live mine. It adds something that I enjoy and broadens my understanding of the world.

I can say that my plans to travel went awry, as the best laid plans of mice and men often do.* I prefer to say that the mind of man plans his way, but the LORD directs his steps.**

I have made any number of plans in my mind about what my life will look like and what I will do. Somehow my plans don't really unfold the way I thought they would. One thing remains the same whether the plans succeed or fail (and they often go awry!): God is faithful. If there is one thing that I have learned over the course of the past year and a half, it is that we serve a trustworthy God. God has me where I am for a reason. He will direct my steps. I can trust Him when I cannot see the path ahead of me. I can trust Him when nothing makes sense. I can trust Him when my heart is disappointed. I can even trust Him when my heart is broken. He is doing what is best for me, and if that requires pain, I will seek joy in my trials because I know that God is at work in me.

* See Robert Burns, "To A Mouse, On Turning Her Up In Her Nest With The Plough"
** See Proverbs 16:9

Job update

No job offer yet, but I found out this evening that they are doing reference checks on me. That's one of the things that they said they did if they decided they wanted to hire someone. I like the sound of that! (It pays to work for friends who can tell you if someone calls them for a professional reference.)

General notes on life

Babysitting was a really good experience for me. I had the baby all day for two days, so I was able to see what it is like to have a child all day. I was tired! We went through really bad diaper rash, an upset tummy, multiple feedings (bottle and spoon both), and just getting through the day. She's a good baby, really, but even then there are moments that cause frustration. I enjoyed it thoroughly.

I have not yet heard back from the company that interviewed me yet, so that's why I haven't posted any news about that. Even while not really employed as I would like to be, I was able to deposit $300 into my checking account today. That was all money that I earned, too. God provides for me faithfully.

I am beginning to deal with the reality that I may not be able to go home for Christmas. I can handle Thanksgiving away from my family. I did that last year, and it wasn't so bad. Christmas will be harder, though. I hope that three months will be enough to get me used to the idea. I know that I cannot always go home for Christmas, but the first time isn't easy. I have a hard time admitting just how much the thought hurts right now. Perhaps I'll have my first white Christmas. There's something to be said for that, I am sure, but the brown Christmases of California have suited me just fine for 25 years. I miss my family, and I think that the expectation of spending Christmas with them was something that has helped me avoid becoming too homesick. There are days when I ask myself why I ever moved so far from home, but the answer is always the same: I am convinced that this is where God wants me. There is real comfort in that and in knowing that He is catching my tears in a bottle.

The best of Divine Vinyl

I love Divine Vinyl, and this collection that Mark put together is awesome. Yet another gem from Purgatorio!
(Click on the picture)

Interview update

The interview went well, at least from my perspective. I will know sometime within the next week or so how well it really went. Thank you all for your prayers!

I also wish to apologize to my visitors whose blogs I have been ignoring for the past several days now. I will try to catch up at some point!

Mothers are underpaid

I arrived at my babysitting job just after 7:00 this morning and was there for over 11 hours before her mom came home. It was a rather long day. The baby was good for me, but she's learning to crawl very quickly. I had the option of giving her a bath or not today, depending on how brave I was feeling. We had a little incident involving diaper changing and what can happen after one diaper is removed and before the clean one is put on. That made the bath necessary, although I couldn't find the clean towels, so it had to wait until later and we made do with a sponge bath until I found out where the towels were kept. While I was cleaning up the baby and the bassinet, I discovered that one of the cats had caught and eaten a mouse while outside and then thrown the mouse back up on a white lace table runner. That was disgusting, but I had to clean that up, too. Bath time was fine. I had never done such a thing as bathing a baby, but these things are all good experience for me. I chose to view things in a philosophical light and decided that today was just a taste of life as a mother. Mothers are underpaid and underappreciated, but taking care of the baby has confirmed that it's a job I want some day!

11:00 am tomorrow

I have a job interview at 11:00 am tomorrow. The lady who called last Thursday called me about 20 minutes after the baby went down for her nap, which was perfect timing since she conducted a brief interview over the phone. I will be sure to post an update sometime tomorrow. Right now I have a baby on my lap and she would like very much to help me type, so anything else will have to wait at least until I get home this evening.

The open window

I was using the computer in the office this evening when I noticed some noise coming from outside. It sounded like a small animal walking around in the grassy area between two apartment buildings. The windows in the back of the apartment are about two inches from the ground, opening to the aforementioned grassy area. The window was open, as it usually is, so I really thought nothing of the sound of an animal. There are squirrels out there all the time. I don't recall seeing too many squirrels out around 11:00 pm, however. I caught something out of the corner of my eye and saw that I really was hearing an animal and that the animal I heard was within an inch of the window. I saw fur and immediately thought of a squirrel's tail, but the fur was too long for that. The color looked at first like it could be an oposum, a creature for which I have a great abhorrence. That thought made me shudder. I looked more closely, however, and really hoped that I was not seeing what I thought I was seeing. An oposum would be preferable to what I saw. The fur was way too long to be an oposum, and I was seeing white fur on a tail. I saw black on the body and a white stripe down the back. I had a skunk directly outside my open window in such a position that if it got scared it would be spraying into the apartment. I wanted to close the window, but didn't want to startle the skunk. Fortunately it walked away and I quickly closed the window and made sure the other windows in the back of the apartment were also closed. I don't ever want to be that close to a skunk again!

At the fair

We went to the Conklin Fair last night with a group from church. It was a rather small fair compared to what I am used to, but it had funnel cake. I really like funnel cake, so I was determined to have some. I was not disappointed. We found a table where a little old man was selling fudge. It was only $1 for a bag of 5 pieces. My roommate and I each got two bags and ended up with chocolate peanut butter swirl, chocolate marshmallow, cookies and cream, and orange creamsicle flavors. It was all really good! They had a lot of other flavors there, too. They had a nice fireworks display. The pyrotechnics were not the best I had ever seen, but fireworks are always fun. We went back to the house where we all met (it was very close to the fair) and had a small bonfire and some of the guys tried to kill themselves with fireworks. Some of the things they do are just stupid! I am really surprised that at least one of them has not lost a finger by now. The night really impressed upon me how much of a divide there is in the group. There is a very large difference in maturity between some of the kids in their late teens and the rest of the group, and the older among us found ourselves trying to escape from the more obnoxious of the young. I had a good time. It was interesting for a people watcher like me. :)

Signs of hope

I had a rather late start to my day today. Once again I slept until after 12:30. I don't know how I manage to do these things, but that's the second time in not very many days. I went to the kitchen to make myself some breakfast/lunch and when I came back to my bedroom to get something my phone was beeping at me. I had a voicemail message from someone regarding my job application and resume, so I returned that call, but the woman who called was away from her desk and I left her a voicemail message. Unfortunately I was not going to be where I could have any sort of conversation for the rest of the day, so hopefully I will have a chance to talk to her tomorrow. This is a positive sign, and I do hope that it means that I will not be unemployed for a very long time. The money in my checking account will only last so long!

My roommate and I did a little bit of work on our living room this evening. She hung some framed photographs on the wall and we both did a little bit of rearranging to make the room look nicer. I moved the unit that holds all of my CDs and DVDs, so I put the DVDs back on it nicely (they were already alphabetized but had a few that needed to be put in their proper place) and finally organized my CDs (they were not organized at all). The room is really starting to look nice and homey now. We still have a few things left to do, but it is much better than it was.

How to make a large group of college students laugh

My last year of college I had a very kind and very gentle-mannered Bible professor. He taught my Christian Theology II class. Although he was nice, his class was rather dull. My friend and I would sometimes take other things with us to do during class (I wrote some thank you notes one day, for instance). Taking notes meant nothing more than filling in the blanks in the packets we got at the beginning of the semester. Our quizzes were done as homework on the honor system and we graded them ourselves in class.

This professor spoke in chapel one day and opened his message by saying, "Today we are going to talk about marriage." Seems like a reasonable thing to say, right? The professor happens to be from China and has a definite accent. What came out of his mouth was, "Today we are going to talk about mawwiage." The first sentence was barely out when a smothered laugh spread through the whole chapel. We did not laugh because his English is not perfect. I know very well that I was not the only one who was thinking, "Mawwiage is what bwings us together today." I think that exact quote is what most of the students were laughing about. I hate to admit it, but I think that is one of the few things that I actually remember from three years of chapel messages.

Stung to death?

So Steve Irwin, the Crocodile Hunter himself, died on Monday. It was death by stingray for him - he got stung right in the heart. I suppose if one makes an occupation out of getting really close to dangerous animals one does run the risk of being killed by them. It is a sad loss for the zoo for which he worked, however. He really was good at caring for animals and was really nowhere near retirement age. I do wonder how long they will continue to run his television program. Animal Planet does not seem to be afraid of re-runs, so I am sure he'll still be on for a while. I guess this news seemed more interesting to me since I just saw him on TV on Friday as I was flipping through the channels when I was babysitting.

In other news, today was laundry day. I did 4 loads, which is more than I would typically do. The last load was primarily for the purpose of washing my winter coat. It's a very light color, so it was showing some dirt and I wanted to do it now while I had the time instead of waiting until I need to wear it. After laundry I started cleaning my room. That's newsworthy, which is just sad. Inevitably I did laundry on a weeknight for most of the summer and usually had to go somewhere that evening and had enough time to get the clothes washed and dried but not folded or hung up. I ended up with a large pile of clean laundry on my bedroom floor. That pile is much smaller now, and I am ironing things before I hang them up so that I can just pull them out of the closet to wear. So far I ironed 17 shirts. Unfortunately there's more to do still, but I'm down to just pants and skirts now. Once I finish that I'll start going through the clutter that's everywhere in the room. I really hate doing this, but I honestly do not like having a mess around me. Right now my bedroom looks worse than it did before, but it seems that sometimes it is necessary to make what looks like a bigger mess to get everything put away properly.

I'm going to say no?

I just got a phone call from the Boys & Girls Club. They need someone to help out from 3-6 every afternoon at one of the local elementary schools starting tomorrow. That means 15 hours per week of work, which isn't much, but is still better than not working at all! One of them wondered if I would want to do it since it is so part time, but every little bit of money helps right now. I have no job at all, so why would I say no to this? I get to be around kids again, too, although it will not be the same without the ones from my group this summer. I'm glad for even this job. Aren't you all glad that I am putting all of my education to such good use? ;)

Pleasant Surprise

I went grocery shopping at Wal-Mart last night and was meaning to buy tortillas. Tortilla selection out here is usually a bit anemic, and your best bet is often to buy the kind they keep refrigerated. Such a thing as refrigerated tortillas in a grocery store is unheard of back home. The tortilla brands out here are fine, but nothing spectacular. Wal-Mart's tortilla brands are usually nothing beyond ordinary (and a little bit hard to find, too - they don't ever seem to be in a logical place) and sometimes I will go without and just wait until it is time to shop elsewhere to buy tortillas. Last night, however, I was heading out of an aisle when I saw a small section of tortillas. They actually had Mission tortillas! I know this brand! I used to buy their tortillas in California! It was a pleasant surprise for someone like me who would be hard pressed to live without my tortillas!

So soon?

Last night I went outside around 10:00 to take out the trash and was greeted at the door by the night air. Though not cold, there was a chill on the air - an unmistakable chill that laughingly said that summer is ending and soon it will be time to add blankets to the beds and pull out those winter clothes. Fall is a lovely but very brief season here. The leaves will change next month. There will be apples everywhere. People will head to the local tire businesses to have their snow tires put on. The first snow last year was in October. It was early, but not unheard of. The winter was mild, however. I dare not hope that this winter will be as mild. Last year at this time everything was still new to me and I had never experienced the seasons. I managed to survive each of them in turn and was overwhelmed by none. I watched the leaves change to yellows and reds and then fall to the ground. Naked trees standing in the midst of snow marked the winter landscape. Spring came and trees budded in the warmer air. Spring is a much more gradual season than fall and it took a couple of months for the hills to be fully covered in green again. Summer came, bringing heat, humidity and rain, and I enjoyed dressing for warm weather. It is much more natural for me to dress to stay cool rather than to stay warm. Now I will have to prepare to stay warm for a few months. I know that soon the thermostats will all be adjusted in order to maintain a comfortable indoor temperature - the chill in the air told me so. I am just not ready for it to happen so soon.

Theme and variation

I made my "special recipe" chicken (as I will call it now because I think it's going to be one of those things that will have my signature on it, and since the recipe is my own creation, I think I have the right to call it that!) tonight for a friend, and made some slight modifications to it. This time I prepared more of the orange juice mixture so that I could marinate the chicken. I marinated the chicken for about three hours. I put the chicken in a baking dish and poured about 2/3 of the orange juice mixture into the dish with the chicken and put it in the oven to bake. I took the remaining marinade and put it in a pan on the stove, bringing it to a boil and boiling it for at least a minute to make sure the meat juices that mixed in it cooked well enough to kill anything nasty that might be in there. I added more lemon juice and more Mexican Seasoning to it and a little bit of brown sugar, then cooked it down until I had a nice sauce. Here's the recipe as it stands now, in my terms (sorry, still didn't really measure anything):

Ingredients
Chicken breasts (or other chicken pieces)
Orange juice
Lemon juice
Olive oil
Mexican Seasoning
Brown sugar

Directions
Begin with the orange juice (1-2 cups or more, depending on the amount of chicken and size of baking dish you are using), adding to it lemon juice and olive oil (1 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon of each, to taste). Add Mexican Seasoning to taste, but do not be afraid of it (I recommend shaking some in, stirring and sniffing to get an idea of strength and adding more if necessary - you should be able to smell it without being overpowered by it). Pour the mixture over the chicken pieces and refrigerate for a couple of hours (I put mine in a gallon size freezer bag). Preheat the oven to 375. Place the marinated chicken in a baking dish and pour 1/2-2/3 of the marinade over the chicken. Bake for 30-35 minutes, turning halfway through cooking if desired (time given is for halved boneless, skinless chicken breasts). While the chicken is baking, put the remaining 1/3-1/2 of the marinade in a pan and bring it to a boil on the stove. Allow it to boil at a full boil for at least a minute. Lower the heat and add more lemon juice, Mexican Seasoning and a bit of brown sugar. Cook until reduced to a sauce, stirring often. If it cooks down to a sauce that is thicker than you prefer, simply add water to thin it. Spoon the sauce over the baked chicken when serving. May be served on a bed of rice (add chicken bullion to the rice for additional flavor).

Because He Lives

This song was sung at my grandfather's funeral 15 years ago. I can't hear it without thinking of him and I think that I have liked it so well because it reminds me of him. Now it means more to me because I understand uncertain days and the necessity of the assurance that He holds the future. (On a side note, is there anything Biblical about saying that we cross the river when we die? Sounds like Styx to me...)

Because He Lives
Gloria and William J Gaither

God sent His Son - they called Him Jesus;
He came to love, heal and forgive.
He lived and died to buy my pardon;
An empty grave is there to prove my Savior lives.

Because He lives I can face tomorrow;
Because He lives, all fear is gone.
Because I know He holds the future,
And life is worth the living just because He lives.

How sweet to hold a newborn baby,
And feel the pride and joy he gives;
But greater still the calm assurance:
This child can face uncertain days because He lives.

And then one day I'll cross the river;
I'll fight life's final war with pain.
And then, as death gives way to vict'ry,
I'll see the lights of glory and I'll know He reigns.

Preview of coming attractions

This is a baby. She is somewhere around 9 months old. She was the focus of my day yesterday. I took care of her from 2:00-9:30 pm. Yesterday my total number of diapers changed in my lifetime increased more than two-fold (so babysitting is not something I have done often). I got to give her a couple of bottles (which of course I did not let her drink anywhere other than on my lap - that really is a wonderful experience!), put her down for a two hour nap, fed her dinner (she liked her diced green beans better than her apple & chicken pureed food, so I held up two spoons to her mouth, knowing that she would open her mouth for the green beans and then put the other food in her mouth - I felt so mean), put up with the cranky-but-not-ready-for-bed stage, got her changed and ready for bed and finally put her to bed at 9:15. This was all good practice for me, since I have agreed to watch her from 7:15 am to 6:15 pm two days in a week and a half and then for one morning that same week (the "coming attractions" to which I referred in the title). Her mom came home at 9:30 and I stayed a chatted briefly with her, then mom's grandparents came home and her grandma came up and talked with us for a while. My friend (the mom) went to bed and I stayed and talked to Grandma until almost 12:45. I came home and went straight to bed. I woke up and checked my watch around 8:00 this morning and decided I could sleep a little bit longer, so I rolled over and went back to sleep. The next time I checked my watch it was 12:35. I was shocked! I had slept for just over 11 hours. I didn't realize that I was quite that tired. I got up and made a pot of Cajun bean soup according to the directions on the back of the bag of dried beans. It tastes good. It is supposed to serve 14-16 people. I'll be eating it for several days, I am sure. I don't think the ingredients I used in the soup cost me more than $5-6, so it's a cheap way to eat!

Today's culinary experiment

Sometimes I get bored eating the same stuff and decide that it's time to try something new. Today's culinary experiment was baked chicken. I took a boneless, skinless chicken breast and cut it in half. I mixed up 3/4 cup orange juice, a little bit of lemon juice, a touch of olive oil (no more than a tablespoon of each, if even that much) and some Mexican seasoning (the stuff I bought in the grocery store labeled "Mexican Seasoning" - no hidden ingredients here - I shook some in, stirred, then sniffed, then added more until it smelled tasty). I took a baking dish and put foil inside, folding the foil up to hold all of the liquid. I put the chicken on the foil and poured the orange juice mixture on it. I baked it at 375 for 15 minutes, turned it, then baked it for another 20 minutes or so (it was still partially frozen in the middle, so I am not sure how long fully thawed meat would have taken to bake). While the chicken was baking I cooked some white rice, adding a cube of chicken bullion for flavor. I also cooked some zucchini, adding butter at the end. I put some rice on the plate, put the chicken on the rice bed, spooned some of the orange juice mixture over the chicken and rice, and put the zucchini on the plate. What I had was a nice dinner of moist, tender chicken on a bed of rice with a side of zucchini. It turned out well. Perhaps if I make it again I will marinate the meat for a little while in the juice before baking it, but it was really a quick and easy meal (and relatively healthy, too) made with ingredients on hand. :)

Eureka!

Eureka - the motto of the state of California (what a wonderful place that is!) - it means "I have found it"

I found my Social Security card just a few minutes ago. The best part is that I wasn't even looking for it when I found it. One source of stress is eliminated!

I sent my resume in for three jobs this morning, all for the same company, and am almost ready to send in two more to other places. The job I really would like to apply for still has not posted. It is possible that the company I applied to this morning will like my combination of customer service and computer support background. We shall see about that.

Just a big softie

I am a dog person. That means that I am not generally fond of cats. Today, however, I visited a friend who has two 3 week old kittens at her house - one from a litter that a barn cat had (the mother cat was killed by a truck) and the other was the runt from a litter her sister's cat had. They are keeping one and their neighbors upstairs are taking the other one. I would have taken one home with me if I could have. I got to bottle feed one of them this evening. :) So maybe cats aren't so bad after all, at least not in their cute, 3 week old stage. So I'm just a big softie around baby animals!

At lunch today we had some buffalo calamari. They use the sauce that is typically put on buffalo wings and put it on fried calamari. I love the spicy taste of buffalo sauce and love calamari - it was great!

Today I called to cancel my reservation for the trip to England. I just cannot afford to go. The tickets are non-refundable, so I will have to use my credit with the airline to fly home for Christmas. I was hoping to get at least some kind of refund and pay for a ticket home later, since I could really use the cash now, but I guess this will have to do. Being strapped for cash is not fun!

Joy comes in the morning

My life has been relatively easy. The trials have been few and mostly small in nature. Right now I am tasting what a more difficult life is like. Shieryl sent an e-mail saying that she sensed that I was concerned about my job(less) situation. She is quite right. I really need work! I sent my resume to two places today, so I am not wholly slacking, but it does not make me less stressed out. Truth is that there is a job that has not yet been posted that I would really like and that makes me more reluctant to pursue other available jobs, but I need work, so I can't just sit and wait for it. That's rather frustrating and confusing.

Today I went to check on some stuff regarding getting a replacement driver's license since my New York license never got to me. My temporary one (it's just a piece of paper) expires next week. It takes about 4 weeks for them to be delivered. If I went to the DMV to request a duplicate license I could probably get another temporary one. There's just one slight problem. They require a Social Security card as part of the proof of identification, even just to request a replacement license. I looked for the card this afternoon and I cannot find it. It's a rather important little document that I will need soon, so that's rather stressful. I sincerely hope I took it out of my purse and put it somewhere in my room. I'm pretty sure I did, but I don't know where that might be. Tomorrow's task will be to find it! In the meantime I requested a duplicate license online. Hopefully I won't get pulled over between the time my temporary license expires and my "real" one arrives. A ticket for driving without a valid license is not what I need right now! Most officers would probably accept my receipt in request of the duplicate as acceptable, but there's no guarantee.

On top of all of this I got a phone call from my parents tonight telling me that my sister had a miscarriage. She had her eight week check-up yesterday. There had been some signs that things might not have been right, but other signs that things still were. There's always hope, too. I've been making a baby afghan and will probably continue to work on it and just have it ready in anticipation that it will be needed soon.

These things are not easy, but I am doing well. God is faithful and will use this time to teach me. Today, however, was not an encouraging day. Tomorrow will be better, I am sure. I will likely go to lunch with a friend from school and get caught up with her. We always have good conversations. Hopefully I can slip in some little tidbits about the comfort I have during this time and that peace that passes all understanding.

Pensive

I'm in a bit of a pensive mood today, as my posts might indicate. I suppose it may be due in part to the novel I finished reading this afternoon. It was a good book, but at the end, the young lady's lover goes on a long journey and the author implies, although she does not plainly say it, that the lover dies on his way home. I read 460 pages for a shipwreck? It was a good book otherwise, I must admit, and expresses a real romance between two imperfect people whose relationship is not all sunshine and flowers. It also had some interesting discussion about the differences between Protestantism and Catholicism, with Protestantism appearing in a much better light. Piety was praised. I do enjoy a good classic novel! (I won't say here which book I read, since I do not wish to spoil the ending for anyone who might stumble across it to read it.)

I found myself praying somewhat apologetically and doubtfully for someone's salvation recently. I prayed not expecting to see the prayer answered the way I wanted it to be. The prayer lacked faith in a mighty God who can change a life in an instant and can soften the hardest of hearts. God is great. My prayers are of a different tenor now. I will pray this friend into faith in Jesus Christ if I can!

Always

When the days and weeks pass by
And my heart feels so alone
You're still the God who's always there
My loving Father and my Friend

When the path on which I walk
Is dark and so uncertain
You're still the God who's always there
My faithful Counselor and Guide

When I dig a pit in sin
And cannot escape from it
You're still the God who's always there
My great Savior and Redeemer

Blessings ill used
Holiness forsaken
Unglorifying life
When this is how I thank You
You cleanse me and restore me
And make me more like You
For You're the God who's always there

Ground upon which I must tread lightly

For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon!'
The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!' Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.
~ Matthew 11:18-19

I have forsaken my church friends often of late to spend time with my friends from work. There are a few reasons for this. One is that I appreciate my friends made at work. I also enjoy team trivia, which is our primary activity that has required me to choose between two sets of friends. I like the fact that my friends from work are closer to my age or older than I am while most of the friends from church are at least a few years younger. I am much more accustomed to having older friends! This situation requires me to be on my guard, however.

My friends from work, with a few exceptions, are not saved. They live like those who do not know Christ. It is true that when we are together alcohol is almost always present, and often quite conspicuously so. I am not one to consider this an inherent evil. I have observed very little drunkenness, and my friends know that I will not have more than two drinks and often will stop at one. They do not try to force alcohol upon me and are respectful of my self-imposed limits. My alcohol consumption is not problematic in my estimation, though others may disagree.

What I think poses a greater danger is the conversation. These friends do not hold back from uttering all sorts of unseemly words. I have noticed that the Christians in the group will emit the occasional obscenity, those those cases are rarer than they are common. My own speech is not perfect, admittedly, and much to my own shame. It is vastly "cleaner" than most of my peers' speech, and I know what I can and cannot say based on who is around to avoid offending anyone, but I do not and should not operate on a standard of "better".

I think the challenge lies in striking a balance. On one hand, bad company corrupts good morals. Spending too much time with them may tempt me to embrace too much "liberty". On the other hand, one of the reasons I spend time with them is to develop relationships with them that will allow me to share my faith with them more openly and candidly without "preaching" at them. Jesus spent time eating and drinking with sinners, yet without sin. His detractors still accused Him of being a glutton and a drunkard. How important is my reputation among Christians of the Northeast who often consider consuming one drop of alcohol as an indicator of a debauched life? I desire to be like Christ. He did not shy away from spending time with sinners, yet did not sin.

How Great Is Our God

Breaking with tradition, I am posting a modern worship song instead of a hymn. This evening the pastor was preaching about the greatness of God from Job 26:5-14:

5 "The departed spirits tremble
Under the waters and their inhabitants.
6 "Naked is Sheol before Him,
And Abaddon has no covering.
7 "He stretches out the north over empty space
And hangs the earth on nothing.
8 "He wraps up the waters in His clouds,
And the cloud does not burst under them.
9 "He obscures the face of the full moon
And spreads His cloud over it.
10 "He has inscribed a circle on the surface of the waters
At the boundary of light and darkness.
11 "The pillars of heaven tremble
And are amazed at His rebuke.
12 "He quieted the sea with His power,
And by His understanding He shattered Rahab.
13 "By His breath the heavens are cleared;
His hand has pierced the fleeing serpent.
14 "Behold, these are the fringes of His ways;
And how faint a word we hear of Him!
But His mighty thunder, who can understand?"

This song is what came to mind as I listened to the sermon.

How Great Is Our God
Chris Tomlin

The splendor of a King
Clothed in majesty
Let all the earth rejoice
All the earth rejoice
He wraps Himself in light
And darkness tries to hide
And trembles at His voice
Trembles at His voice

How great is our God, sing with me
How great is our God, and all will see
How great, how great is our God

Age to age He stands
And time is in His hands
Beginning and the end
Beginning and the end
The Godhead Three in One
Father Spirit Son
The Lion and the Lamb
The Lion and the Lamb

How great is our God, sing with me
How great is our God, and all will see
How great, how great is our God

Name above all names
Worthy of all praise
My heart will sing
How great is our God

How great is our God, sing with me
How great is our God, and all will see
How great, how great is our God

I didn't drown

I did a lot of running around and physical activity today. It felt good, but it had a pricetag on it. While swimming with the kids this afternoon I got a leg cramp. Yes, I was in the middle of the deep end of the pool. No, I was not holding onto a wall when it happened. No, I did not drown. That's always a good thing. ;)

Tomorrow we go to a park all day. It's the last day. I'm going to miss those kids!

Woohoo!

We won team trivia tonight and have $50 to show for it. Because we have a rather large group we decided to use our winnings to pay for food & drink next week. The question that won it for us was "what year was Dumb and Dumber released?" I didn't know the answer, but others in my group did. 1994. I knew it was before 1997 because I was in my third year of high school when I saw it. I thought it was a dumb movie, personally. Trivia was still fun.

Today was interesting. Very interesting. Some of the stuff that kids do is beyond my scope of things I am willing to deal with or know how to deal with. Two more days, however, and then I'm done. I will miss it, issues and all!

A first time for everything

This evening I had a first time experience. Tonight for the first time I put air in one of the tires on my car. It has a slow leak that I've known about for some time now and probably waited far too long to refill, but I really do loathe doing any sort of maintenance on my car. I would much rather pay someone to do it for me. As the tire was really low and I am short on time during business hours, the tire really needed to be filled and just could not wait until next week when I have time to take it to the tire place to get it looked at (again). The tire was patched nearly three years ago after a puncture and I really think that the leak is due to the original puncture.

I feel much better about looking foolish in my own parking lot than I do at a gas station on a street corner, so I purchased a pump of my own this evening and made my roommate come out with me to pump up the tire. I figure that owning a tire pump can't hurt, and if I leave this tire on I may need to fill it up somewhat regularly. It seemed like a decent investment to me and now that I have used it once I may not feel so weird about doing it again sometime. It was cheaper than a new tire, anyway, and right now cheap is good! Cars. I love mine, but sometimes I wish it maintained itself!

The last week...

This is the last week of the summer program at work. That means that this is the last week that I have any kind of secure income (such as it is). It is the last time my Monday afternoon will be spent at the park, riding the carousel with the kids who aren't swimming. Today I met a lady who brought her grandchildren to the park. She had a bichon frise with her and I was reminded of my own dear bichon frise in California. They are such nice dogs! She mentioned at one point that she has a 23 year old grandson living with her right now who goes to a local church and just spent two years teaching English in China. I did not pursue it any further than that, although I was rather amused by the mention of him after she asked me where I went to church.

The last week at work also means that staffing is a bit difficult for us. We had both 10-12 groups combined today, as we had last week also, and tomorrow we will have to split them up. Today there was a fight between two of the boys and a bunch of the kids were referring to one of the girls as a player. Neither of these things is okay and I think neither of them would have happened (or at least to the degree that they did happen) if all of the kids had not been together. This is the kind of drama I could do without. There are a few really good kids in the group that I will miss after this week, but there are others that I just will not miss at all. The kids are not looking forward to returning to school in two weeks and the staff are all tired and starting to lose their patience, so it is time for a change of pace. I will not regret this summer experience. It has taught me a lot and I almost regret that I will most likely not be able to do it again!

What Wondrous Love Is This?

What Wondrous Love Is This?

What wondrous love is this, O my soul, O my soul!
What wondrous love is this, O my soul!
What wondrous love is this that caused the Lord of bliss
To bear the dreadful curse for my soul, for my soul,
To bear the dreadful curse for my soul.

When I was sinking down, sinking down, sinking down,
When I was sinking down, sinking down,
When I was sinking down beneath God’s righteous frown,
Christ laid aside His crown for my soul, for my soul,
Christ laid aside His crown for my soul.

To God and to the Lamb, I will sing, I will sing;
To God and to the Lamb, I will sing.
To God and to the Lamb Who is the great “I Am”;
While millions join the theme, I will sing, I will sing;
While millions join the theme, I will sing.

And when from death I’m free, I’ll sing on, I’ll sing on;
And when from death I’m free, I’ll sing on.
And when from death I’m free, I’ll sing and joyful be;
And through eternity, I’ll sing on, I’ll sing on;
And through eternity, I’ll sing on.

Anything but...

I forgot to mention that Wednesday was my one year anniversary here in New York. It has been an interesting year for me and I must confess that things turned out anything but the way I thought they would be. I did not anticipate most of what has happened and definitely did not anticipate being where I am now. I do not regret where I am, however, and am not sorry that I came out here to be in a completely different situation than I planned. God is good, and I am glad I listened when He said, "Go."

The highlight of my day

From time to time I like to do something a little bit different because I need occasional change or adventures. Today I decided to take one of my co-workers up on her offer to highlight my hair for me. I used to get my hair highlighted somewhat regularly but hadn't for 18 months or so and my old highlights had almost grown out completely. So I went to the drug store at lunch and bought the highlighting kit. It took me a little while to decide whether to buy the stuff for blonde to light brown hair or medium brown to dark brown. Can't they put on one of them that it works well for natural redheads? I opted for the blonde to light brown formula. It seemed to work rather nicely. Perhaps I'll take a picture and post it sometime soon so you can see the difference. ;)

Next to godliness

They say that cleanliness is next to godliness. We're moving one step closer to godliness in our apartment in that case. I borrowed a cleaning device from a friend to clean the couch we purchased. It was rather dirty from years of use and I would not sit on it without a blanket between it and me. The process involved another spontaneous trip to Wal*Mart to buy cleaning solution and the rest of the stuff that Nicole and I had on our shopping lists. I have gone over the whole couch once (the seat cushions had removable covers that I put in the washing machine twice to clean) and will see what it looks like in the morning. I may go over some spots again, but I know that it is much cleaner than it was - the extremely dirty water I removed from the cleaner was proof of that!

I also got around to calling customer support for Robby's illness. When I went to test him while I was on the phone with a representative he decided to work just fine, so it would appear that Robby is miraculously healed. Perhaps he just needed some time off of his wheels. I look forward to running him in the living room as soon as the couch is put back together!