I'm in art history. I had a midterm at 8:00 this morning (8:00 on a Saturday? deadly!), so Tyler picked me up at camp in Sundre at around 7 pm yesterday evening, and when this class is over (noon), it's back to camp for me. Camp has been going well so far.
I am currently sitting at a 97% in Art History - a miracle of God. We'll see after my midterm what I'm down to. I wrote a 4.5 page essay for the last question, worth 45 marks. Hopefully it will do. I'd be surprised if I got less than 40 on it - it was pretty solid.
I'm now going to try to sign up for the triathlon with Christine - she's probably getting impatient with me (sorry Christine! ... if you read this!!!)
You lurkers should leave me comments. :)
Mmmmm, Iranian art....
RK
Saturday, June 02, 2007
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
update
Well, I made it through my video analysis and the other assignment I had due today, despite the fact that we slept in later than we anticipated - we figured we'd wake up around 7 but we didn't wake up til 8, so that sort of put me behind schedule but not too badly. Guess we should've set an alarm.
I'm at the U in classes until 8 tonight, then I think I'll just hang around here until the library closes. I don't like being at home by myself at night too much, and I have lots of work to do anyway. Ty should get home by 12:30 or 1 am at the latest, then it's sleeping in and leftover waffles tomorrow! Yay!!!
Off to camp tomorrow evening...
RK
I'm at the U in classes until 8 tonight, then I think I'll just hang around here until the library closes. I don't like being at home by myself at night too much, and I have lots of work to do anyway. Ty should get home by 12:30 or 1 am at the latest, then it's sleeping in and leftover waffles tomorrow! Yay!!!
Off to camp tomorrow evening...
RK
Monday, May 28, 2007
Snapshot
What you are about to read is a completely random amalgamation of my thoughts. Enjoy.
I'm recycling now. In fact, I am the recycling queen. I recycle: newspapers, magazines, normal paper, mixed paper, tin cans, bottles/cans, bags of all varieties, and cardboard. I am also going to start vermicomposting, once my friend Christine gets me half a pound of worms. Go team environment! It's all about knowing HOW to recycle - once I noticed that there were big green recycling bins at the nearby Safeway (which I walk to, instead of drive to, and carry my groceries home from to save gas and to keep from polluting!) , and after a gentle nudge from Christine after Earth Day, I went hard on the ol' recycling. Tyler is proud of my recycling ways and frequently gets (nicely) chastised when I rummage through the garbage and recycle stuff that he's thrown out. (The most oft-asked question in our place of late is "Tyler, did you ask 'can this be recycled?' before throwing this out?") :D He's quickly getting the hang of it.
I'm a little nervous about the vermicomposting though. If anyone has the propensity to accidentally kill living things, it's me. That's why I don't garden or keep plants of any kind, or have pets. I had some goldfish that lived for a couple of months once. That was my longest stint. So I'm hoping not to kill the worms.
Amber posted this link to these new earth-friendly diapers on her & Jon's blog: www.gdiapers.com, so when we eventually have kids (no, we're not pregnant; no we're not trying; yes we are preventing), we will use those. The worms can eat the wet diapers and the poo diapers can be flushed. Yay!
In the land of running, it's been 3 days since I've run so today will be painful. Boo.
In the land of home improvements, we finally got the knobs changed on our doors downstairs - our door to the exterior of the house of course has a lock that works, but ever since we've moved in we haven't been able to lock the interior doors to our place because the landlord didn't have keys for the doors. So, we replaced those last night. Ooooh, and put a new rack on the back of our bedroom door so now I can hang my housecoat there. Yay! Small improvements, but happy improvements.
In the land of "general fitness", Christine and I are hoping to do a triathlon sometime this summer. She's going to give me a bike! Yay!
On the school front, I *very* enjoy Dr. Anne White. I'm writing a research paper for her on Christian environmentalists. She sent me a long list of books to read, including one titled "God is Green". I'll post the titles that I think are particularly worth reading.
I'm also writing a research paper for my art history class contrasting early- and late-Byzantine depictions of Christ. We'll see how that goes.
I'm off to Sundre with my Focus 3-ers for our year end retreat on Wednesday - more time away from my husband. Boooo!!!!! He's working evenings starting tomorrow though so we'll get Tuesday and Wednesday mornings together. Go team sleep-in and waffles!
I'm recycling now. In fact, I am the recycling queen. I recycle: newspapers, magazines, normal paper, mixed paper, tin cans, bottles/cans, bags of all varieties, and cardboard. I am also going to start vermicomposting, once my friend Christine gets me half a pound of worms. Go team environment! It's all about knowing HOW to recycle - once I noticed that there were big green recycling bins at the nearby Safeway (which I walk to, instead of drive to, and carry my groceries home from to save gas and to keep from polluting!) , and after a gentle nudge from Christine after Earth Day, I went hard on the ol' recycling. Tyler is proud of my recycling ways and frequently gets (nicely) chastised when I rummage through the garbage and recycle stuff that he's thrown out. (The most oft-asked question in our place of late is "Tyler, did you ask 'can this be recycled?' before throwing this out?") :D He's quickly getting the hang of it.
I'm a little nervous about the vermicomposting though. If anyone has the propensity to accidentally kill living things, it's me. That's why I don't garden or keep plants of any kind, or have pets. I had some goldfish that lived for a couple of months once. That was my longest stint. So I'm hoping not to kill the worms.
Amber posted this link to these new earth-friendly diapers on her & Jon's blog: www.gdiapers.com, so when we eventually have kids (no, we're not pregnant; no we're not trying; yes we are preventing), we will use those. The worms can eat the wet diapers and the poo diapers can be flushed. Yay!
In the land of running, it's been 3 days since I've run so today will be painful. Boo.
In the land of home improvements, we finally got the knobs changed on our doors downstairs - our door to the exterior of the house of course has a lock that works, but ever since we've moved in we haven't been able to lock the interior doors to our place because the landlord didn't have keys for the doors. So, we replaced those last night. Ooooh, and put a new rack on the back of our bedroom door so now I can hang my housecoat there. Yay! Small improvements, but happy improvements.
In the land of "general fitness", Christine and I are hoping to do a triathlon sometime this summer. She's going to give me a bike! Yay!
On the school front, I *very* enjoy Dr. Anne White. I'm writing a research paper for her on Christian environmentalists. She sent me a long list of books to read, including one titled "God is Green". I'll post the titles that I think are particularly worth reading.
I'm also writing a research paper for my art history class contrasting early- and late-Byzantine depictions of Christ. We'll see how that goes.
I'm off to Sundre with my Focus 3-ers for our year end retreat on Wednesday - more time away from my husband. Boooo!!!!! He's working evenings starting tomorrow though so we'll get Tuesday and Wednesday mornings together. Go team sleep-in and waffles!
Monday, May 14, 2007
My name's in the paper!
That's right, D-10 of the Calgary Herald. 4th column on this page of the Forzani's Mother's Day 5K run. Krohn, Rachel: 34:10.
I was quite pleased with that time, in fact it was a personal best. So that was a lot of fun. I ran 4K on Friday in 29 minutes and was super tired - maybe it was the hills, maybe it was the heat, or the sun. I'm not sure. But the race on Saturday had none of the above, and so my time was pretty good. Now for the 10K in July! My goal is 70 minutes.
I ran the race with Chantelle and Lyden. Chantelle was feeling under the weather, and she encouraged us to run ahead since she was feeling so sick. I didn't want to leave her behind, but she insisted. She still did well, coming in at about the same time as our last race. She's been working hard, and I'm proud of her.
Running with Lyden was a lot of fun, and he was inspiring. He was NOT going to walk. So we didn't. A great running partner! He said he'd be open to doing another race and I think that'd be lots of fun.
I'm still picking things off of the pesky to-do list. Today I called Alberta Health Care and got my name changed - apparently my number stays the same and they're sending me a card. My new debit card for Tyler's and my shared account works (it was supposed to work Friday but didn't until today). I also called and booked our hotel for the half marathon weekend in August. Yay, weekend away!!! We're staying at the Chateau Lacombe Crowne Plaza in Edmonton - I've stayed there a few times when going to BreakForth Canada, so I know it's good. We got a reasonable rate. We're going to head up on Friday night, and stay til Sunday after the race. The race starts at 8, so hopefully all will be well in running it, getting back to the hotel, showering, and checking out by noon. If worse comes to worse we can just ask to check out a little later. The hotel is just blocks away from the Shaw Conference Center, where the race starts and finishes, so we shouldn't have to drive too much. Since we're checking in Friday night and all that is planned for Saturday is picking up my race package, we'll check around online for fun things to do in Edmonton. I'd prefer to do a museum or something rather than the mall. Does anyone have any ideas?
Now I just have to look over our AB Blue Cross forms, and walk to the mailbox to mail them. Sweet! Things are coming together. Once I get confirmation from them, I'm going to book us dentist appointments (boo!). I haven't been for over a year, and suffice it to say it's been a bit longer for Tyler. The coverage for the dental doesn't kick in for 3 months, but we don't really need to wait because we have coverage through Tyler's work as well (just not a lot).
Oh, and I finally got back to our photographer on which pictures we want. We get an 8x10 and a couple of 5x7s with our package, so that's done. Thus ends the work associated with the wedding.
If you're not impressed, well, I am. So there. :)
My Tuesday/Thursday religious studies class starts tomorrow. I hope it'll be good. I've had mixed reports on this prof. My Art History prof is pretty good, and the class isn't near as boring as I feared.
Well, off to the mailbox.
RK
I was quite pleased with that time, in fact it was a personal best. So that was a lot of fun. I ran 4K on Friday in 29 minutes and was super tired - maybe it was the hills, maybe it was the heat, or the sun. I'm not sure. But the race on Saturday had none of the above, and so my time was pretty good. Now for the 10K in July! My goal is 70 minutes.
I ran the race with Chantelle and Lyden. Chantelle was feeling under the weather, and she encouraged us to run ahead since she was feeling so sick. I didn't want to leave her behind, but she insisted. She still did well, coming in at about the same time as our last race. She's been working hard, and I'm proud of her.
Running with Lyden was a lot of fun, and he was inspiring. He was NOT going to walk. So we didn't. A great running partner! He said he'd be open to doing another race and I think that'd be lots of fun.
I'm still picking things off of the pesky to-do list. Today I called Alberta Health Care and got my name changed - apparently my number stays the same and they're sending me a card. My new debit card for Tyler's and my shared account works (it was supposed to work Friday but didn't until today). I also called and booked our hotel for the half marathon weekend in August. Yay, weekend away!!! We're staying at the Chateau Lacombe Crowne Plaza in Edmonton - I've stayed there a few times when going to BreakForth Canada, so I know it's good. We got a reasonable rate. We're going to head up on Friday night, and stay til Sunday after the race. The race starts at 8, so hopefully all will be well in running it, getting back to the hotel, showering, and checking out by noon. If worse comes to worse we can just ask to check out a little later. The hotel is just blocks away from the Shaw Conference Center, where the race starts and finishes, so we shouldn't have to drive too much. Since we're checking in Friday night and all that is planned for Saturday is picking up my race package, we'll check around online for fun things to do in Edmonton. I'd prefer to do a museum or something rather than the mall. Does anyone have any ideas?
Now I just have to look over our AB Blue Cross forms, and walk to the mailbox to mail them. Sweet! Things are coming together. Once I get confirmation from them, I'm going to book us dentist appointments (boo!). I haven't been for over a year, and suffice it to say it's been a bit longer for Tyler. The coverage for the dental doesn't kick in for 3 months, but we don't really need to wait because we have coverage through Tyler's work as well (just not a lot).
Oh, and I finally got back to our photographer on which pictures we want. We get an 8x10 and a couple of 5x7s with our package, so that's done. Thus ends the work associated with the wedding.
If you're not impressed, well, I am. So there. :)
My Tuesday/Thursday religious studies class starts tomorrow. I hope it'll be good. I've had mixed reports on this prof. My Art History prof is pretty good, and the class isn't near as boring as I feared.
Well, off to the mailbox.
RK
Friday, May 11, 2007
Those Nitpicky Things
Today we finally got some of those nitpicky things out of the way. Tyler and I met at the bank at 11:30 to get his account converted into our account. I've already sent in the void cheque to the church's accountant, so my next paycheque will be in that account. Yay!
Furthermore, we got my name added to his mastercard.
Furthermore, I finally got my name changed with my mastercard.
And if that's not enough, I cancelled my other mastercard which has had a balance of zero for several months. They keep sending stupid cheques to my parent's house. I'm sure they'll be glad to stop receiving those.
The next thing is getting my name changed with Alberta Health Care and getting a new card, then we can send in our Blue Cross stuff.
Oh the administrative joys of marriage...
Furthermore, we got my name added to his mastercard.
Furthermore, I finally got my name changed with my mastercard.
And if that's not enough, I cancelled my other mastercard which has had a balance of zero for several months. They keep sending stupid cheques to my parent's house. I'm sure they'll be glad to stop receiving those.
The next thing is getting my name changed with Alberta Health Care and getting a new card, then we can send in our Blue Cross stuff.
Oh the administrative joys of marriage...
Wednesday, May 09, 2007
Quick Post!
The three days in Radium were good. We didn't get to Radium until late on Monday afternoon, as we spent the morning shopping for groceries since there was a kitchen at the condo. I don't remember a time I've ever been to Radium, and so I was pretty shocked at how small and quaint it was! There wasn't too much to do, but of course we weren't looking for much to do. We saw a LOT of goats, and lots of baby deer on the way home. As for other wildlife, all we saw were gophers. :p A real treat.
On Monday night we made dinner and then watched A Bug's Life. I LOVE A Bug's Life! What a great leadership movie. I also went for a run that night - it was pretty brutal as I had just eaten a bunch of junk food on the car trip there.
Tuesday was also low key - oh we had the MOST delicious crepes. It was a new recipe - chocolate crepes with berry compote. I was responsible for the berry compote. It was a delicious time. Eventually we got inspired enough to walk into town and get a coffee at a cute little place called On Higher Ground. I got my usual americano, Tyler got some weird rolo mocha thing as he typically does when having a coffee treat. Then we went to this really gross little video store. It was grungy to the the max. Ew. They had the porn section in the back in one room, and then a tanning bed in a room next to that. Who tans at the video store?! Oh well. We rented An Inconvenient Truth to finally see what the hoopla was about, and put The Queen on hold. We headed back to our place, oh and we did a 500 piece puzzle that day. I affectionately named it "the crazy cat puzzle". It was a puzzle that was just at the condo - they had some games and puzzles and stuff in a closet so that was pretty good. Puzzlemania! After doing that awful 1000 french impressionist puzzle over our honeymoon the crazy cat puzzle was no problem.
Tuesday evening was Inconvenient Truth evening, and let me say, I was no more convinced to be green after watching it than I was before - but I'm already pretty much as green as I can get. Oh, and I went for a run that evening while Tyler made dinner (good deal for me).
Wednesday ... we hit On Higher Ground again for more coffee, this time I had a cappuccino and Tyler had a mocha. Don't you love knowing what drinks we ordered? I thought so.
We returned the Goreacle and rented The Queen - that was really good. I liked it a lot. Helen Mirren, you are brilliant. Enjoy your Oscar.
After that we just cleaned/packed up and headed home. Pretty low key.
On Friday night we were out to Camp Caroline for a Focus 3 retreat. It was just my group and I led the whole thing. I think it was a "success" (hate using that word for ministry). I did some running out there too, it was good. I spent my summers at Camp Caroline as a child and it was great to be out there again - although it's a LOT smaller than I remember! Funny how that is. They have a beautiful little chapel out there now too - it looked pretty new to me, but keep in mind I haven't been out there for years. Nice hardwood floors, a little organ, and wooden pews. Coulda/shoulda? got married out there! Can you imagine driving all that way though on your wedding day? Disastrous. No matter, our wedding was perfect just the way it was. :)
Saturday evening we left Caroline and headed back home. Sunday we went to church then saw Spiderman 3, enjoyed that, and then the usual Sunday dinner at the 'rents, and then witnessed the perilous loss of my girls (the 'beauty queens') on Amazing Race. Boo!
Monday Tyler worked really late, he was out in Edmonton. He left at 7:30 am and got home at 10:30 pm. Boo! I spent the time cleaning and getting back into our place - it felt like we had been gone for months.
Tuesday was Tuesday, and then came Tuesday night - DATE NIGHT!!! WOOO! Ty decided we should go to Lics - an ice cream place down on 16th, and then for a walk by the river. It was most excellent. On our way back I saw my friend Shahiza (I think I spelled that right) - she was my friend in junior high. We got off at the same bus stop and she lived just up the hill from me. I LOVE Shahiza! Anyway, it was awesome to see her and she told me to get on Facebook. I'm not sure I can bring myself to it though.
This morning Tyler decided not to go into work until 11 because it was another Edmonton day, so we got to sleep in most leisurely and then make waffles. My man makes good waffles! We had whole wheat cranberry-walnut waffles. Mm mm! The (dis)advantage of being only 2 people though is that you always have lots left over. We'll freeze them and then have them like Eggos. :)
So off to work he went, and off to lunch I went. Kristen and I went to Moxie's in Westhills. It was good to catch up.
And then I came to work! Are you impressed? I think I'll head home and do some more cleaning/work there - too much office time makes Rachel crazy, plus everyone else has gone home.
That was update-tastic! Maybe if I'm really bored at home waiting for Tyler to return from Edmonton I'll post a pic of the crazy cat puzzle.
On Monday night we made dinner and then watched A Bug's Life. I LOVE A Bug's Life! What a great leadership movie. I also went for a run that night - it was pretty brutal as I had just eaten a bunch of junk food on the car trip there.
Tuesday was also low key - oh we had the MOST delicious crepes. It was a new recipe - chocolate crepes with berry compote. I was responsible for the berry compote. It was a delicious time. Eventually we got inspired enough to walk into town and get a coffee at a cute little place called On Higher Ground. I got my usual americano, Tyler got some weird rolo mocha thing as he typically does when having a coffee treat. Then we went to this really gross little video store. It was grungy to the the max. Ew. They had the porn section in the back in one room, and then a tanning bed in a room next to that. Who tans at the video store?! Oh well. We rented An Inconvenient Truth to finally see what the hoopla was about, and put The Queen on hold. We headed back to our place, oh and we did a 500 piece puzzle that day. I affectionately named it "the crazy cat puzzle". It was a puzzle that was just at the condo - they had some games and puzzles and stuff in a closet so that was pretty good. Puzzlemania! After doing that awful 1000 french impressionist puzzle over our honeymoon the crazy cat puzzle was no problem.
Tuesday evening was Inconvenient Truth evening, and let me say, I was no more convinced to be green after watching it than I was before - but I'm already pretty much as green as I can get. Oh, and I went for a run that evening while Tyler made dinner (good deal for me).
Wednesday ... we hit On Higher Ground again for more coffee, this time I had a cappuccino and Tyler had a mocha. Don't you love knowing what drinks we ordered? I thought so.
We returned the Goreacle and rented The Queen - that was really good. I liked it a lot. Helen Mirren, you are brilliant. Enjoy your Oscar.
After that we just cleaned/packed up and headed home. Pretty low key.
On Friday night we were out to Camp Caroline for a Focus 3 retreat. It was just my group and I led the whole thing. I think it was a "success" (hate using that word for ministry). I did some running out there too, it was good. I spent my summers at Camp Caroline as a child and it was great to be out there again - although it's a LOT smaller than I remember! Funny how that is. They have a beautiful little chapel out there now too - it looked pretty new to me, but keep in mind I haven't been out there for years. Nice hardwood floors, a little organ, and wooden pews. Coulda/shoulda? got married out there! Can you imagine driving all that way though on your wedding day? Disastrous. No matter, our wedding was perfect just the way it was. :)
Saturday evening we left Caroline and headed back home. Sunday we went to church then saw Spiderman 3, enjoyed that, and then the usual Sunday dinner at the 'rents, and then witnessed the perilous loss of my girls (the 'beauty queens') on Amazing Race. Boo!
Monday Tyler worked really late, he was out in Edmonton. He left at 7:30 am and got home at 10:30 pm. Boo! I spent the time cleaning and getting back into our place - it felt like we had been gone for months.
Tuesday was Tuesday, and then came Tuesday night - DATE NIGHT!!! WOOO! Ty decided we should go to Lics - an ice cream place down on 16th, and then for a walk by the river. It was most excellent. On our way back I saw my friend Shahiza (I think I spelled that right) - she was my friend in junior high. We got off at the same bus stop and she lived just up the hill from me. I LOVE Shahiza! Anyway, it was awesome to see her and she told me to get on Facebook. I'm not sure I can bring myself to it though.
This morning Tyler decided not to go into work until 11 because it was another Edmonton day, so we got to sleep in most leisurely and then make waffles. My man makes good waffles! We had whole wheat cranberry-walnut waffles. Mm mm! The (dis)advantage of being only 2 people though is that you always have lots left over. We'll freeze them and then have them like Eggos. :)
So off to work he went, and off to lunch I went. Kristen and I went to Moxie's in Westhills. It was good to catch up.
And then I came to work! Are you impressed? I think I'll head home and do some more cleaning/work there - too much office time makes Rachel crazy, plus everyone else has gone home.
That was update-tastic! Maybe if I'm really bored at home waiting for Tyler to return from Edmonton I'll post a pic of the crazy cat puzzle.
Monday, April 30, 2007
hair cut adventure
So Tyler has needed to get his hair cut for way too long, but it just seems there's never time to get to the hairdresser. Finally yesterday evening we decided it needed to be done, so I would do it. Have I ever cut hair before? No. Tyler walked me through how the hairdresser does it though, and here are the results. Before:
After:
Wasn't he brave? :)
I am well aware that all these pics are sideways, I don't know how to fix that. If you do, leave me a comment! Thanks.
Friday, April 27, 2007
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
dream or reality?
Yesterday I decided to go for a run. I knew I had about 90 minutes until Tyler would be returning home (he's working in Drumheller this week but decided to come into town for "date night"), so I decided to run for an hour.
I have a couple of loops that I've created for myself around Ogden/Lynnwood - I have a 4K loop and a 2.5K loop. I did 2 laps of my 4K loop, each in exactly 30 minutes, so at least I'm consistent. At that point I figured that since I had run 8K already, I may as well do the extra 2.5 and set a time for myself to beat. I wanted to do that 2.5 in less than 20 minutes, and I did - 17 minutes.
So my best time for 10.5K is 1:17.
I was pretty satisfied with that, and I got some good thinking done out there ... mostly problem solving, thinking through some decisions that have to be made in the distant (and not-so-distant) future. Whilst running I enjoyed my 2 new cds - Matt Redman's latest, Beautiful News & Tim Hughes' new release, Holding Nothing Back. It was good times.
My left knee is pretty sore today though. I would've taken the day off, but of course MWF are work out days with Chantelle so I can't miss that. I did my normal core/ab workout and weights, just upped my reps, and then stretched everything out real good. I'm hoping this knee clears up tomorrow so I can go out for another run, even if it's just 4 or 6.5 kilometers.
I'm pretty happy with my time, at that rate my July 10K should be at most 1:15, but hopefully a little shorter, and I should be able to get a decent half marathon time, 2:30 was my goal so maybe I'll be able to get it down to 2:15. We'll see.
Tyler and I had a good evening, it seemed short though. He got in at 7 pm, we were in bed by 10 pm, and he left at 12:30 am, due to a bit of a family emergency - Ty's brother Sean and their lifelong friend Chris went 4X4-ing that afternoon, and were supposed to be back by 7 pm. Lisa (Chris' wife) called at midnight saying that they hadn't come home and she'd called the RCMP. Well after conversations with the RCMP, Tyler left to try and find them. The problem was that no one knew exactly what the name of the site they were 4x4ing on was, but Tyler knew how to get there. The RCMP ended up being less than useful, as they just drove around for a little while and then gave up. Tyler ended up finding them at 4:30 am. They had lost control down an embankment and ended up on their side in the mud in a ditch somewhere. They crashed at 5 pm and couldn't get out of the vehicle until around 1 am, when they tried to get on a main road with some reception so they could call someone. Tyler eventually found them, took them to the RCMP to file a "found person" report, and then drove them home in Calgary, then promptly left at around 6 am for Drumheller to go to work. What a man! I am always proud of his loyalty and his concern for his family and friends. I knew that there wasn't even a question whether or not he'd go out there and do all he could to find them. I'm praying for him to make it through another long day of work on only 2 hours of sleep.
It all felt like a really strange dream actually, and since I've been having strange dreams, I wasn't sure what had in reality taken place when I woke up until I talked to him. I'm just glad everyone's alright. I was most concerned for Lisa, as she has 2 girls under 2 years old. I'm thankful that Sean and Chris have decided to give up 4x4ing (keeps my husband safe too!)
So that's all the excitement my life can take for a while. Tyler and I are heading out to Radium next week to stay at a condo from Monday through Wednesday. It should be good... maybe I can get some leisurely runs done out there, and we'll for sure be hitting the hot springs - maybe that will limber my knee up a bit. I've been really blessed not to have any injuries really so I'm not sure what to do with this one! I think it's in part because I ran a lot of rather steep hills (up and down) yesterday. Oh well. My heart and lungs feel better even if my knee doesn't. Apart from my morning runs, I'm sure Ty and I will do some hiking and walking, and we'll probably do a puzzle. If it's anything like our honeymoon, we'll probably spend a lot of time just relaxing inside playing cribwars and working on a puzzle.
RK
I have a couple of loops that I've created for myself around Ogden/Lynnwood - I have a 4K loop and a 2.5K loop. I did 2 laps of my 4K loop, each in exactly 30 minutes, so at least I'm consistent. At that point I figured that since I had run 8K already, I may as well do the extra 2.5 and set a time for myself to beat. I wanted to do that 2.5 in less than 20 minutes, and I did - 17 minutes.
So my best time for 10.5K is 1:17.
I was pretty satisfied with that, and I got some good thinking done out there ... mostly problem solving, thinking through some decisions that have to be made in the distant (and not-so-distant) future. Whilst running I enjoyed my 2 new cds - Matt Redman's latest, Beautiful News & Tim Hughes' new release, Holding Nothing Back. It was good times.
My left knee is pretty sore today though. I would've taken the day off, but of course MWF are work out days with Chantelle so I can't miss that. I did my normal core/ab workout and weights, just upped my reps, and then stretched everything out real good. I'm hoping this knee clears up tomorrow so I can go out for another run, even if it's just 4 or 6.5 kilometers.
I'm pretty happy with my time, at that rate my July 10K should be at most 1:15, but hopefully a little shorter, and I should be able to get a decent half marathon time, 2:30 was my goal so maybe I'll be able to get it down to 2:15. We'll see.
Tyler and I had a good evening, it seemed short though. He got in at 7 pm, we were in bed by 10 pm, and he left at 12:30 am, due to a bit of a family emergency - Ty's brother Sean and their lifelong friend Chris went 4X4-ing that afternoon, and were supposed to be back by 7 pm. Lisa (Chris' wife) called at midnight saying that they hadn't come home and she'd called the RCMP. Well after conversations with the RCMP, Tyler left to try and find them. The problem was that no one knew exactly what the name of the site they were 4x4ing on was, but Tyler knew how to get there. The RCMP ended up being less than useful, as they just drove around for a little while and then gave up. Tyler ended up finding them at 4:30 am. They had lost control down an embankment and ended up on their side in the mud in a ditch somewhere. They crashed at 5 pm and couldn't get out of the vehicle until around 1 am, when they tried to get on a main road with some reception so they could call someone. Tyler eventually found them, took them to the RCMP to file a "found person" report, and then drove them home in Calgary, then promptly left at around 6 am for Drumheller to go to work. What a man! I am always proud of his loyalty and his concern for his family and friends. I knew that there wasn't even a question whether or not he'd go out there and do all he could to find them. I'm praying for him to make it through another long day of work on only 2 hours of sleep.
It all felt like a really strange dream actually, and since I've been having strange dreams, I wasn't sure what had in reality taken place when I woke up until I talked to him. I'm just glad everyone's alright. I was most concerned for Lisa, as she has 2 girls under 2 years old. I'm thankful that Sean and Chris have decided to give up 4x4ing (keeps my husband safe too!)
So that's all the excitement my life can take for a while. Tyler and I are heading out to Radium next week to stay at a condo from Monday through Wednesday. It should be good... maybe I can get some leisurely runs done out there, and we'll for sure be hitting the hot springs - maybe that will limber my knee up a bit. I've been really blessed not to have any injuries really so I'm not sure what to do with this one! I think it's in part because I ran a lot of rather steep hills (up and down) yesterday. Oh well. My heart and lungs feel better even if my knee doesn't. Apart from my morning runs, I'm sure Ty and I will do some hiking and walking, and we'll probably do a puzzle. If it's anything like our honeymoon, we'll probably spend a lot of time just relaxing inside playing cribwars and working on a puzzle.
RK
Friday, April 20, 2007
Perfectionism Rant!
I am reading The Way of Jesus, by Eugene Peterson. His chapter on David is possibly the best chapter I've read anywhere in several years. I hope to finish this book before Wednesday of next week and start on Eat This Book, another book recently published by Peterson.
Some choice quotes (emphasis and exclamation marks mine) from Eugene H. Peterson, The Jesus Way: A Conversation on the Ways that Jesus is the Way, (William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company):
"Perfectionism is a disorder that occurs frequently in the Christian community...this sort of dividing up the community of Jesus into graded classes ... has a way of surfacing century after century under a variety of banners... movements that, inventive with numerous variations, try to convince the Christian community that the way of Jesus is a way of perfection. Since we are commanded to follow Jesus and Jesus is perfect, the way of Jesus is a way of perfection. It is not only desirable but required that we live or at least aspire to live perfect lives if we are serious about the Christian faith. " 78, 79.
"Perfectionism: a most ruinous deviation from the way, a detour from the way of Jesus. It is unlikely that it will plunge us headlong into damnation, but it certainly makes us most undesirable company with other son the pilgrim way. Perfectionism is a perversion of the Christian way. It is responsible for disabling countless sincere and devout Christians for common usefulness in the company of their neighbors on pilgrimage to Jerusalem." 79
"There is no us and them in matters of sin. Which means, of course, that I cannot deal with sin by dealing exclusively with my inner life. Neither can I hope to deal with sin by converting or eliminating those who are against me. So what is left? God is left." 93
"This way of imperfection manages to get challenged in every generation, and a way of perfection offered as a replacement. But perfection is not an option. [!!!!!!!] It is a seduction. It is the devil's offer to avoid dealing with sin by various sleight-of-hand verbal and behavioural strategies." 100
"The Holy Spirit is not out recruiting an elite, all-star holiness team for the Jesus way." 100
Take that, Peacock.
But seriously. When are we going to get this, church at large? It reminds me of an interview I heard on Adler Online today. He was interviewing a man (sorry, can't remember his name and it wasn't on Adler's blog) who goes into schools to teach strategies to school teachers and children on how to deal with gunmen like Cho if that situation arises (God forbid). He says that the resource that the innocent children and teachers have that the gunman does not is numbers - so he recommends that the whole class run and scream haphazardly and charge the gunman. When a gunman enters a classroom to kill, he expects people to be paralyzed and scared, not courageous and loud. Adler asked what this man would say to parents who would rather have their kids jump out the window or hide, the parents who would say that this man is teaching their kids to go into harm's way instead of running from it. His answer was interesting: they ARE in harm's way, this way, they're fighting for survival.
It's the same thing with the perfectionism/imperfectionism debate (if you even want to honor it with that title - clearly Eugene and I are right). We ARE imperfect, we ARE harm's way. WE CAN'T FIX THAT, and pretending we are good or trying REAL HARD to be good is not going to help us. We don't deal with sin, God does. Any other strategy is only going to do us harm.
I shall close with my good friend Merton:
"It is not the will of God that we should obey Him while at the same time telling Him lies about our interior dispositions. If our dispositions are bad, let us ask Him to make them better, but let us not tell Him that they are really very good." - Thomas Merton, No Man is an Island, (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1955), 67
Some choice quotes (emphasis and exclamation marks mine) from Eugene H. Peterson, The Jesus Way: A Conversation on the Ways that Jesus is the Way, (William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company):
"Perfectionism is a disorder that occurs frequently in the Christian community...this sort of dividing up the community of Jesus into graded classes ... has a way of surfacing century after century under a variety of banners... movements that, inventive with numerous variations, try to convince the Christian community that the way of Jesus is a way of perfection. Since we are commanded to follow Jesus and Jesus is perfect, the way of Jesus is a way of perfection. It is not only desirable but required that we live or at least aspire to live perfect lives if we are serious about the Christian faith. " 78, 79.
"Perfectionism: a most ruinous deviation from the way, a detour from the way of Jesus. It is unlikely that it will plunge us headlong into damnation, but it certainly makes us most undesirable company with other son the pilgrim way. Perfectionism is a perversion of the Christian way. It is responsible for disabling countless sincere and devout Christians for common usefulness in the company of their neighbors on pilgrimage to Jerusalem." 79
"There is no us and them in matters of sin. Which means, of course, that I cannot deal with sin by dealing exclusively with my inner life. Neither can I hope to deal with sin by converting or eliminating those who are against me. So what is left? God is left." 93
"This way of imperfection manages to get challenged in every generation, and a way of perfection offered as a replacement. But perfection is not an option. [!!!!!!!] It is a seduction. It is the devil's offer to avoid dealing with sin by various sleight-of-hand verbal and behavioural strategies." 100
"The Holy Spirit is not out recruiting an elite, all-star holiness team for the Jesus way." 100
Take that, Peacock.
But seriously. When are we going to get this, church at large? It reminds me of an interview I heard on Adler Online today. He was interviewing a man (sorry, can't remember his name and it wasn't on Adler's blog) who goes into schools to teach strategies to school teachers and children on how to deal with gunmen like Cho if that situation arises (God forbid). He says that the resource that the innocent children and teachers have that the gunman does not is numbers - so he recommends that the whole class run and scream haphazardly and charge the gunman. When a gunman enters a classroom to kill, he expects people to be paralyzed and scared, not courageous and loud. Adler asked what this man would say to parents who would rather have their kids jump out the window or hide, the parents who would say that this man is teaching their kids to go into harm's way instead of running from it. His answer was interesting: they ARE in harm's way, this way, they're fighting for survival.
It's the same thing with the perfectionism/imperfectionism debate (if you even want to honor it with that title - clearly Eugene and I are right). We ARE imperfect, we ARE harm's way. WE CAN'T FIX THAT, and pretending we are good or trying REAL HARD to be good is not going to help us. We don't deal with sin, God does. Any other strategy is only going to do us harm.
I shall close with my good friend Merton:
"It is not the will of God that we should obey Him while at the same time telling Him lies about our interior dispositions. If our dispositions are bad, let us ask Him to make them better, but let us not tell Him that they are really very good." - Thomas Merton, No Man is an Island, (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1955), 67
Am I the only one?
I'm wondering if I'm the only one who is really sad about the recent news events. 32 people killed at Virginia Tech by one very ill individual. Another ill individual kills a hostage today at NASA... and it just seems to go unnoticed. Am I the only one praying? Am I the only one who cares?
I don't know exactly what I'm expecting ... just ... more I guess.
Beauty of Your Peace
Tim Hughes
Your voice has stilled the raging storms
the wind and waves bow down before
Your still small voice brings hope to all
who wait on You
we'll wait for You
To lead us to the place where You'll restore our souls
and all our earthly strivings come to cease...
Take from our souls the strain and stress
and let our ordered lives confess
the beauty of Your peace
the beauty of Your peace
Bright skies will soon be overhead
we'll enter in to heaven's rest
there'll be no death, there'll be no pain
the things of old will pass away
You'll lead us to the place where You'll restore our souls
and all our earthly strivings come to cease...
Take from our souls the strain and stress
and let our ordered lives confess
the beauty of Your peace
the beauty of Your peace
You'll lead us to the place where You'll restore our souls
and all our earthly strivings come to cease...
Take from our souls the strain and stress
and let our ordered lives confess
the beauty of Your peace
the beauty of Your peace
the beauty of Your peace
the beauty of Your peace
Tim Hughes, When Silence Falls
I don't know exactly what I'm expecting ... just ... more I guess.
Beauty of Your Peace
Tim Hughes
Your voice has stilled the raging storms
the wind and waves bow down before
Your still small voice brings hope to all
who wait on You
we'll wait for You
To lead us to the place where You'll restore our souls
and all our earthly strivings come to cease...
Take from our souls the strain and stress
and let our ordered lives confess
the beauty of Your peace
the beauty of Your peace
Bright skies will soon be overhead
we'll enter in to heaven's rest
there'll be no death, there'll be no pain
the things of old will pass away
You'll lead us to the place where You'll restore our souls
and all our earthly strivings come to cease...
Take from our souls the strain and stress
and let our ordered lives confess
the beauty of Your peace
the beauty of Your peace
You'll lead us to the place where You'll restore our souls
and all our earthly strivings come to cease...
Take from our souls the strain and stress
and let our ordered lives confess
the beauty of Your peace
the beauty of Your peace
the beauty of Your peace
the beauty of Your peace
Tim Hughes, When Silence Falls
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Terrible Blogger
Clearly, I am one of the more terrible bloggers. I can't seem to post even monthly, but pretty much no one reads this so I suppose I'm not offending anybody.
It seems all I post about is running as well...
Chantelle and I ran our 5K on St Patrick's Day long weekend - I was proud of her, we finished at 43 minutes (and change). Of course there is a pic on my mom's blog but not mine. :)
Next up is the Mother's Day 5K (May 13). We're hoping for a 35 minute time. We'll see. Today I also registered for the HSBC 10K (July 8) and the Capital Energy 21.1K in Edmonton (August 12). I couldn't find any half marathons in Calgary in August/September so Edmonton it is. Tyler and I will make a weekend getaway of it. Should be good. I have to say, the half marathon is quite motivating. People always say that goals motivate, but for me no little goal will do - I need something as big as a half marathon (but not as ridiculous as a full marathon) to get me going. But every day at the gym I work as hard as I can now because I want to be able to say I did my very best. I'm shooting for a 60 minute 10K time and a 2:30 21 k time. We'll see.
After the half marathon, I transition to triathlon training. I think my last race will be that silly Santa's one they do in December. I may get one more race in before then but I'm not sure. Maybe something Thanksgiving-ish before we get the inevitable Halloween snowfall. I'm not going to do any major distance running then, probably max around 10K because in most tri's that I've been looking at they do around that much running. The sprint triathlons are as small as a 200 yard swim, 5-10 mile (8-16 km) bike, 3 mile (about 5k) run. I think that would be manageable Olympic distance is 1 mile swim (1.5 km), 24.8 mile bike (40 km), and a 6.2 mile run (10 km). Ironman: 2.4 mile swim (about 4 km), 112 mile bike (about 180 km) and 26.2 mile run (42 km - marathon distance). I don't think I'll ever do an Ironman.
That of course means I'll need a road bike, bathing suit for training, and a wet suit for the tri next summer...I'll worry about the wet suit and the bike later. Uggg, biking. Hate it! I'm hoping though that if I get a good bike (I'm going to have to do some reading on that) it won't be so dreadful. I'm not worried about the swimming, I'll just have to add a couple of days of swimming a week to my normal regime to get that up.
Back to "real life", Tyler and I are heading to Radium, Monday-Wednesday April 30-May 2. We're looking forward to it! Yay, time with my hubby. I'm foreseeing a new puzzle in our future.
Also in the real life category, my final exam is on Thursday of next week then I get a glorious 3 weeks off. What will I do with all that free time, you ask? Probably just work. There's a few ministry things that I'd like to get cleaned up before the spring semester begins (3rd week of May). 4 more semesters left: spring, summer, fall 2007, and winter 2008. Glorious.
Speaking of glorious, I have a paper to finish before Friday.
~RK
It seems all I post about is running as well...
Chantelle and I ran our 5K on St Patrick's Day long weekend - I was proud of her, we finished at 43 minutes (and change). Of course there is a pic on my mom's blog but not mine. :)
Next up is the Mother's Day 5K (May 13). We're hoping for a 35 minute time. We'll see. Today I also registered for the HSBC 10K (July 8) and the Capital Energy 21.1K in Edmonton (August 12). I couldn't find any half marathons in Calgary in August/September so Edmonton it is. Tyler and I will make a weekend getaway of it. Should be good. I have to say, the half marathon is quite motivating. People always say that goals motivate, but for me no little goal will do - I need something as big as a half marathon (but not as ridiculous as a full marathon) to get me going. But every day at the gym I work as hard as I can now because I want to be able to say I did my very best. I'm shooting for a 60 minute 10K time and a 2:30 21 k time. We'll see.
After the half marathon, I transition to triathlon training. I think my last race will be that silly Santa's one they do in December. I may get one more race in before then but I'm not sure. Maybe something Thanksgiving-ish before we get the inevitable Halloween snowfall. I'm not going to do any major distance running then, probably max around 10K because in most tri's that I've been looking at they do around that much running. The sprint triathlons are as small as a 200 yard swim, 5-10 mile (8-16 km) bike, 3 mile (about 5k) run. I think that would be manageable Olympic distance is 1 mile swim (1.5 km), 24.8 mile bike (40 km), and a 6.2 mile run (10 km). Ironman: 2.4 mile swim (about 4 km), 112 mile bike (about 180 km) and 26.2 mile run (42 km - marathon distance). I don't think I'll ever do an Ironman.
That of course means I'll need a road bike, bathing suit for training, and a wet suit for the tri next summer...I'll worry about the wet suit and the bike later. Uggg, biking. Hate it! I'm hoping though that if I get a good bike (I'm going to have to do some reading on that) it won't be so dreadful. I'm not worried about the swimming, I'll just have to add a couple of days of swimming a week to my normal regime to get that up.
Back to "real life", Tyler and I are heading to Radium, Monday-Wednesday April 30-May 2. We're looking forward to it! Yay, time with my hubby. I'm foreseeing a new puzzle in our future.
Also in the real life category, my final exam is on Thursday of next week then I get a glorious 3 weeks off. What will I do with all that free time, you ask? Probably just work. There's a few ministry things that I'd like to get cleaned up before the spring semester begins (3rd week of May). 4 more semesters left: spring, summer, fall 2007, and winter 2008. Glorious.
Speaking of glorious, I have a paper to finish before Friday.
~RK
Monday, February 26, 2007
New Software = No Fun!
U of C changed their student service software from "infonet" to "PeopleSoft". Today was my first run in with "PeopleSoft" as I attempted to register for my spring and summer courses. It was a serious drag.
By the end of it I could see the advantages of PeopleSoft, but learning a new system with no initiation or introduction is frustrating. "They" say we "young people" have no problem learning new things like that - well, either I've become one of "them" or I'm not so young any more.
On a lighter note, one of the grad schools I'm looking into emailed me back today and it seems that perhaps an M.Div is not in the cards. An M.Div is all good if you want to be a pastor, but I'm increasingly skeptical about holding that official post. The MCS they're offering seems to cater much more to who I am as a person and an academic. We shall see! Shockingly, they want a GPA of 2.8 and up. That shouldn't be an issue (I couldn't believe how low it was!). The scholarship race is much more competitive though: 3.8 is the requirement. I'll have to get working for that to happen.
By the end of it I could see the advantages of PeopleSoft, but learning a new system with no initiation or introduction is frustrating. "They" say we "young people" have no problem learning new things like that - well, either I've become one of "them" or I'm not so young any more.
On a lighter note, one of the grad schools I'm looking into emailed me back today and it seems that perhaps an M.Div is not in the cards. An M.Div is all good if you want to be a pastor, but I'm increasingly skeptical about holding that official post. The MCS they're offering seems to cater much more to who I am as a person and an academic. We shall see! Shockingly, they want a GPA of 2.8 and up. That shouldn't be an issue (I couldn't believe how low it was!). The scholarship race is much more competitive though: 3.8 is the requirement. I'll have to get working for that to happen.
Friday, February 23, 2007
A Post!/Updates
Running
Today I registered for the St. Patrick's Day 5K race: http://www.events.runningroom.com/site/?raceId=2626I'm going to be running it with Chantelle. I'm looking forward to that. We're also planning ahead for the Mother's Day Run:
http://www.mdrunandwalk.com/default.aspx?lang=&city=calgary&page=map.html&col=2
I'm contemplating doing the 1o for that one. If I don't, I think I'll do 10 at the HSBC Calgary Marathon 2007:
http://www.events.runningroom.com/site/?raceId=2646
We'll see how that goes. Maybe next year I'll try a half-marathon.
I've never actually run a race before, so it'll be a bit of an adventure to be sure. I'm most stoked about the race t-shirt (lame, I know). I'll feel so proud wearing THAT at the gym!
Ministry & Music
I got an email from my friend JP this week about the Good Friday service at the Jubilee. He asked me to play saxophone at it. I've played the last few years, and it's always an enjoyable experience. JP gets musicians from Baptist churches in/around Calgary to be a part of the service - I don't know if he just asks people he's networked with or what, but if so, I'm glad I'm at least that networked. Hopefully we'll do an offertory again. :)I said I'd play, but with a good deal of consternation. I barely play any more, and so I'm decidedly uncomfortable doing it. I wanted to though, so I called up my old jazz saxophone teacher and hopefully we'll get some lessons set up. I'd like to see him weekly until Easter, and then every other week after that, alternating with jazz piano lessons, if I can get in with the teacher I'd like to study with. I don't know if he's taking students or what. It's funny, I called my old band teacher, M, to get my old sax teacher, R's number. Well today M called and let me know that he actually saw R yesterday and told him I'd be calling, and not only did R remember me but he was actually happy to hear of it! I didn't think I was that memorable.
School
So those are some developments. I've been looking at various degree programs for my master's - hoping to start in September 2008. We'll see what happens...The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord; he directs it like a watercourse wherever he pleases. Proverbs 21.1
Thursday, February 08, 2007
Couple of Honeymoon Pics
These pictures are from our honeymoon in Canmore! The native nativity scene on the Canoe is my favorite - it was just some person's nativity scene on their snow covered lawn. I especially like the turtle adoring Jesus. The other is a picture of me next to one of the lakes at Spray lakes - it was REALLY cold that day so we were pretty much babies and headed back to the condo before you knew it!
Saturday, February 03, 2007
Wedding Pics
These pics are from our friend Jana. We're still awaiting the professional photos.
Top Down:
Me;
Me & Lyden;
the Quintet;
Me & Mom, featuring the wedding cape that Erin and I made, and the purse Erin made for me and all the bridesmaids (mine was white and the bridesmaids had blue);
Mom, Grandma and Tyler;
Dad;
Christine & Chadley.
I'll post pics of Kristen and Erin when I find some good ones!
Friday, February 02, 2007
Domesticated & Other People's Incompetency
So, it turns out that when you don't wash the kitchen floor, it gets sticky. What's with that? I guess that's a weekend cleaning project.
My computer has been away for repairs for 3 weeks. It was brutal. This is how it went with our favorite electronics retailer:
Monday, January 8: Take computer in to said retailer.
Me: "My computer doesn't charge and my power cord is very finicky"
Computer Geek: "We'll send it to Gateway and get it fixed. We'll send it out today, and you'll have it back in a week!"
Me: *pleasantly placated*
Saturday, January 13: Message on my answering machine
Computer Geek: "I realized when I tried to send your computer out today that you have no warranty"
Me: *no longer pleasant*
Sunday, January 14: Visit to electronics retailer
Me: What's the deal?
CG: you have no warranty!
Me: Yes I do!
CG: let me get my manager
Me: *wait for 45 minutes, deal with general incompetence, then finally win the argument*
CG: We'll send it out tomorrow, and it'll be back by next Monday! [Jan 22]
Monday, January 22: call to electronics retailer
Me: I was wondering when I can come pick up my computer today
CG: I don't know anything about this, we'll call you later.
Monday, January 22: call from electronics retailer
CG: I'm sorry, I haven't sent it yet. You'll have it back in a week!
Me: *VERY ANGRY*
Monday, January 29: call to electronics retailer
Me: Where's my computer?
CG: Not here!
Me: *not surprised*
Wednesday, January 31: call from electronics retailer
CG: We have your computer back, come and get it!
Me: fine. *scowl*
So, I went to pick it up. It was free, but man, is good help ever hard to find... we'll never be buying anything from there again!
My computer has been away for repairs for 3 weeks. It was brutal. This is how it went with our favorite electronics retailer:
Monday, January 8: Take computer in to said retailer.
Me: "My computer doesn't charge and my power cord is very finicky"
Computer Geek: "We'll send it to Gateway and get it fixed. We'll send it out today, and you'll have it back in a week!"
Me: *pleasantly placated*
Saturday, January 13: Message on my answering machine
Computer Geek: "I realized when I tried to send your computer out today that you have no warranty"
Me: *no longer pleasant*
Sunday, January 14: Visit to electronics retailer
Me: What's the deal?
CG: you have no warranty!
Me: Yes I do!
CG: let me get my manager
Me: *wait for 45 minutes, deal with general incompetence, then finally win the argument*
CG: We'll send it out tomorrow, and it'll be back by next Monday! [Jan 22]
Monday, January 22: call to electronics retailer
Me: I was wondering when I can come pick up my computer today
CG: I don't know anything about this, we'll call you later.
Monday, January 22: call from electronics retailer
CG: I'm sorry, I haven't sent it yet. You'll have it back in a week!
Me: *VERY ANGRY*
Monday, January 29: call to electronics retailer
Me: Where's my computer?
CG: Not here!
Me: *not surprised*
Wednesday, January 31: call from electronics retailer
CG: We have your computer back, come and get it!
Me: fine. *scowl*
So, I went to pick it up. It was free, but man, is good help ever hard to find... we'll never be buying anything from there again!
Wednesday, December 20, 2006
Tuesday, December 19, 2006
11 more sleeps
Well, well, well. Finally I am posting again. Here we go:
House!
Tyler has been living in our place since Thanksgiving weekend. I have been moving my stuff over gradually, so my room at my parent's house is getting more and more empty. I can't believe the amount of JUNK I've kept all these years. Last night I started to go through my closet, and have begun a big pile of clothes that will go to the lovely Brenda at Grace Baptist Church, who will use them for the community clothing sales. Brenda sets up clothing sales a couple of times a year at our church, and people from the communit comey and fill bags of clothes for 1 or 2 dollars. The money she gets goes toward buying food packages for people who come into our church and ask if we have any food for them. Altogether, it's a great place to donate.
I've been thinking a lot about simplicity lately; this moving business has really brought home to me how much JUNK I keep just because I think I "may need it later". No, I will not need those pants I used to wear in high school later. I will never be that skinny again. It's time to give them to high school students who are.
My thoughts on simplicity go beyond junk gathering of course. My schedule has been way too crazy for years on end. I have been so concerned about developing every possible skill that I may possess that I've just become kind of ok at a whole bunch of stuff. I'm tired of that. Now I have a husband-to-be to think about as well, and he is priority. When he comes home, I want to eat dinner together and be able to spend time having fun, not ignoring him while doing homework. I realized at the end of this semester that I can continue to try to know and do everything, never really experiencing life, just passing time, or I can do a few things exceptionally well (b/c whether I like to admit it or not, I am relatively intelligent and talented), and enjoy life as it comes. I've had enough of enduring my life. It's time to enjoy it.
Gifts!
Tyler and I have been showered with gifts. We have been overwhelmed with people's kindness, and in one very special case, brought to tears, but that event shall remain anonymous. People have started us off well, and we are so grateful. Where we are coming across duplicates, we're putting them away, and saving them so that we can bless others when they're starting out or just need something. Did I mention that we're so thankful? B/c we are.
Honeymoon
We're going to Canmore for our honeymoon, and we're looking forward to that. After all this busy madness, we're looking forward to sleeping in, going for long walks, and getting lots of rest.
My Dress Fell Apart!
So, as many of you know, I'm wearing my mom's wedding dress on Dec 30th. Well, we took it in to get it drycleaned (after we finally got it to FIT), and all the lace came off. HA! It's been suggested to us that the lace was probably glued on with some sort of fabric glue when it was originally made, and that over the years and through the drycleaning, it just fell apart. So, my mom's been sewing that back on. (Thank you very much, mom.)
Bridesmaid's Gifts
I was very happy to get my bridesmaid gifts (as well as a gift for both my mom and Tyler's) while shopping with Tyler on Satuday night. It was a fun time. I hope they like them.
Well, that's pretty much it. Probably by the time I get around to posting again, it'll be after my wedding, so Merry Christmas & Happy New Year...
House!
Tyler has been living in our place since Thanksgiving weekend. I have been moving my stuff over gradually, so my room at my parent's house is getting more and more empty. I can't believe the amount of JUNK I've kept all these years. Last night I started to go through my closet, and have begun a big pile of clothes that will go to the lovely Brenda at Grace Baptist Church, who will use them for the community clothing sales. Brenda sets up clothing sales a couple of times a year at our church, and people from the communit comey and fill bags of clothes for 1 or 2 dollars. The money she gets goes toward buying food packages for people who come into our church and ask if we have any food for them. Altogether, it's a great place to donate.
I've been thinking a lot about simplicity lately; this moving business has really brought home to me how much JUNK I keep just because I think I "may need it later". No, I will not need those pants I used to wear in high school later. I will never be that skinny again. It's time to give them to high school students who are.
My thoughts on simplicity go beyond junk gathering of course. My schedule has been way too crazy for years on end. I have been so concerned about developing every possible skill that I may possess that I've just become kind of ok at a whole bunch of stuff. I'm tired of that. Now I have a husband-to-be to think about as well, and he is priority. When he comes home, I want to eat dinner together and be able to spend time having fun, not ignoring him while doing homework. I realized at the end of this semester that I can continue to try to know and do everything, never really experiencing life, just passing time, or I can do a few things exceptionally well (b/c whether I like to admit it or not, I am relatively intelligent and talented), and enjoy life as it comes. I've had enough of enduring my life. It's time to enjoy it.
Gifts!
Tyler and I have been showered with gifts. We have been overwhelmed with people's kindness, and in one very special case, brought to tears, but that event shall remain anonymous. People have started us off well, and we are so grateful. Where we are coming across duplicates, we're putting them away, and saving them so that we can bless others when they're starting out or just need something. Did I mention that we're so thankful? B/c we are.
Honeymoon
We're going to Canmore for our honeymoon, and we're looking forward to that. After all this busy madness, we're looking forward to sleeping in, going for long walks, and getting lots of rest.
My Dress Fell Apart!
So, as many of you know, I'm wearing my mom's wedding dress on Dec 30th. Well, we took it in to get it drycleaned (after we finally got it to FIT), and all the lace came off. HA! It's been suggested to us that the lace was probably glued on with some sort of fabric glue when it was originally made, and that over the years and through the drycleaning, it just fell apart. So, my mom's been sewing that back on. (Thank you very much, mom.)
Bridesmaid's Gifts
I was very happy to get my bridesmaid gifts (as well as a gift for both my mom and Tyler's) while shopping with Tyler on Satuday night. It was a fun time. I hope they like them.
Well, that's pretty much it. Probably by the time I get around to posting again, it'll be after my wedding, so Merry Christmas & Happy New Year...
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