2.08.2006

The new week is half way over.

It seems that every Wednesday I get this strange feeling when I realize that the new week is half way over. It is 4:30am and I was on my way out the door to work when I realized that I may not have too much more time to squeeze in a post before our weekend trip to Syracuse. Syracuse, here we come! We will be leaving early Friday morning and coming back Monday night. I am so excited to catch up with Shawn's family. They always spoil us when we visit. It has been a mild winter this year, so we were worried that their would only be slushballs to be thrown. But, I heard that they got a refill on the white powder. I'm hoping that I'll make it to Labrador for some snowboarding action. It's gonna be tight, here's hoping that I can fit it in. I miss the solitude and excitement of the mountains.
We made it to the starting line of the Wendy Chioji 5K on Saturday, despite the pouring rain. Then we made it to the 1-mile marker in 7.5 minutes, not bad! Then, well... things slowed down. My running buddy had been slightly limping the week before and with much admonishment still insisted on running the race. Like I said the first mile was smooth but somewhere between 1.1 & 1.4 we slowed down. The last 1.9 miles took us 44.5 minutes. 3.1 miles in 52 minutes in the rain. Now, that is a record. By the time we made it to the nearest building we had to call security to wheel him to the car. He has been on crutches at work since then. The official diagnosis is "lower leg pain." What is our healthcare system coming to? Moral of the story, pain is there for a reason, don't push it. The good part is, despite the crutches and the lengthy explanation, there are at least two other people at work that want to run the next 5K with us. Go figure! It was definately an experience for the books. When things go like that, I might as well finish with style. So, I grabbed a king size snickers for the road.
I'm turning 22 tomorrow. Old age is creeping up on me. 22 is a strange number, I haven't liked birthdays since I turned 17. Ok, maybe I like the birthday just not the increasing number. It's a homerun weekend with my birthday, our trip to NY, then Valentines day. If only every weekend were this good. I am so spoiled. Until next time...

1.31.2006

A time machine, please..

Weekly rambling. Have you ever felt like you need a good solid week of focus to get caught up? Well, right now I am feeling more like I could use a month. A day at the beach just relaxing sounds incredibly tempting but is far from happening. Life is slightly a blur lately. As most of my close friends and family know.. I've been putting in some long work weeks. I have some great opportunity's at work and love my job, but I can't go for too long of a streak without stopping to catch a breath. Tonight I'm taking a small breath. Maya reminded me to jump back in the blog world and that's a darn good idea. I feel like I got alot accomplished tonight. I forgot how relaxing doing laundry & emptying the dishwasher can be. When everything else is a whirlwind it is nice to take a few minutes and put things back in there place. What else is going on?
Shawn and I have been going to Summit Church for a couple of months and every week we know that is where we belong. Every week we are challenged to do more, to reevaluate, to lengthen our stride in our spiritual walk. I certainly make my share of poor choices and Summit is just what I need on a weekly basis as a reminder of what Christ's death and life really meant and why my choices matter.
My brother and sister-in-law are expecting a little boy in just a few weeks. I am so excited! He is going to be ridiculously spoiled and the damage caused will take decades to undo. I can't wait!
I am testing out some new hobbies, one of which is running. It's not really a new habit since I've been running on & off for about five years. Lately, I have been running much more consistently and I am running a 5k at Disney this upcoming weekend. It's so great to live in this country, there is so much to do. Freedom is taken far too much for granted! I love it here!
I think that is enough rambling to get me back into the blogging world. I hope that I can be a little more consistent with this whole endeavor over the next month. I'm turning 22, ahh!!! I better shape up fast!

12.24.2005

CHRIST+MAS

It's Christmas Eve! I'm still in bed, with the laptop, at my sisters house, on the air mattress, in the sunroom...and I'm blog hopping. It is so easy for me to get sucked into work & busyness. It's Christmas and a great time for joy, reflection & reevaluation of priorities. I will remain a workaholic, I love my job and don't foresee that changing anytime soon. But, I can make more time to get to know the people around me. I know of them, I know of their faith, I know of their struggles, I know of their interests, I know of their accomplishments & I know of their fears. Yet, with all that is going on, I have remained a little distant, there is never enough time. So, to all of my acquaintances that I consider so dear.. hear is to a New Year, a time to get to know our Savior better, to acknowledge blessing, and hopefully to bless each other. Whether you are in New York, New Jersey, Ohio, or Indonesia; Merry Christ+mas. I hope to talk soon. Onward bloggers.

12.23.2005

Sisters


IMG_4568.JPG
Originally uploaded by Callihander.
Has anyone seen "White Christmas"? Of course you have. Well, I'm just now coming to the realization that Christmas is 2 days away. This picture reminded me of that movie...strange. Actually, it's not that strange. The whole sister thing...I have the best sister in the world. That's all. This is me & Bekah, we were at Margaritaville chilling with the whole fam.

PS "Lord help the mister, who comes between me & my sister..." ha!

11.16.2005

My thoughts, tonight.

Today was a good day. God is alive and working daily in my life & the lives of people around me, even some that don't know it. The weather is getting cooler. The hurricanes seem to have dissipated for the year. The music playing (Kate Earl) is very awakening. I have a wonderful husband working diligently on his computer about six feet away from me. The holidays are coming. My first nephew is on the way. My job is about as fabulous as a job can be. My puppy (Serif) is upside down on the floor by my feet enjoying his rope. I had a great time talking with a friend over coffee about two hours ago. All these things to be grateful for. In perspective, tomorrow may or may not be as good as today was. No matter which way tomorrow goes.. God will still be as good. "It is a cosmic impossibility that God will be any less good tomorrow than He is today" Tomorrow, it may seem that I don't have as much to be grateful for. But, happiness doesn't rest on these things. The wonderful things I mentioned are just that.. wonderful. Yet, none are guaranteed and in the scope of eternity, they may or may not be consequential. Thus, if I rely solely on those things to carry my happiness I will end up lost.

"God designed the human machine to run on Himself. He Himself is the fuel our spirits were designed to burn, or the food our spirits were designed to feed on. There is no other. That is why it is just no good asking God to make us happy in our own way without bothering aboout religion. God cannot give us happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing." C.S. Lewis on Happiness

11.13.2005

The Architecture Part


I am inspired by Architecture. Instant gratification is leaving a dent(crater sized) on our cultural & geographical landscape. The impact of lackluster, mediocre, cookie cutter residences along with the urban sprawl of our beloved cities will hit us eventually. I hope it's sooner than later. The capitalist in me cheers for the developers while the dreamer in me yearns for individuality, comfort & completeness in the design of every home. Eventually, my home may be the antithesis of the monotony I drive past daily. I wonder if it is possible to start with the standard template then add on the luster that is missing? Can luster be applied? Or is it buried into the design? I don't have the answer. All that to say this.. David Solnick Architects does amazing work. I suppose I could move to Palo Alto.

An Attempt

The experiment begins. As time continues on without my permission, I am faced with the dilemma of prioritizing the things that consume my time. I don't always prioritize in the best fashion and lately I have realized that connecting with family & friends should be a high priority. I also have many interests and find inspiration from a variety of venues so I suppose this site will serve the purpose of converging information into a single location. I'm not interested in plastering my life on a wall or a blog for all to see. But, I do want to keep in touch.. with faith, friends, family and the world around me. So here goes an attempt.