if you're looking for a nifty little time waster...

check this out! :)

reflections on 2006

as this year is still pretty new, i don't think it will mind if i pause for a moment to randomly reflect on the last 365 days. most of this won't make sense to most of you, but as this is a personal reflection, i guess you're just kinda along for the ride! ;)

• having nephews is fun!
• a year that starts out rough can still turn into a pretty good thing by the end
• Grey's Anatomy can have a tremendous influence on one's musical interests
• setting up the ipod is no guarantee that actual exercise will follow (...but that was my plan!!)
• you can have the best of intentions and still be a crumby friend
• camp is a lot of fun even when you're 30...and your camp friends are always the most exciting...and the most random
• traumatic events, while awful at the moment, don't always lead to death...sometimes they lead to life! (...or at least I hope so)
• roadtrips are always an adventure...i wish i'd have taken a few more
• i love the mountains!
• people can have high-flown ideals and godly callings...and still come off as manipulative and self-serving...experience and perspective are truly double-edged swords
• i got lots of compliments as a brunette...but i still prefer being a blond
• if your tv seems to be going out, be sure you check the $10 cable before shelling out the $$$ for a new one! (and making your poor brother-in-law haul it up to your second floor apartment for you!)
• knowing your way around New York City has it's ups and downs
• if you find something that you REALLY want, you should get it then instead of waiting and figuring that you'll be able to find it again later...because chances are, you won't and then you'll always think of it as the one that got away!
• Chinatown is a dangerous place! ;)
• film SLR cameras are lots of fun
• sometimes you only get one shot...and you have to be ready to take it when it comes
• good books make themselves known in the strangest of ways sometimes
• sometimes it's easier to know what you don't want, than to figure out what you do!
• you can have profiles on myspace and facebook and still feel disconnected
• feeling significant has little to do with how much the people around you seem to value you--knowing that God has placed you here--in these circumstances, with these quirks and foibles--for such a time as this (...whatever that might be) and knowing that HE sees you and that HE will sustain you is where you find true significance.
• executing a tyrannical leader does little to wipe out tyranny in the world
• consumer-driven philanthropy is a CROCK! (i'm gonna be blogging about this soon because it drives me absolutely nuts!!) if you want to give, then GIVE...it shouldn't be about what you get in exchange!
• those who find beauty in ugliness are truly blessed in this world. and we should learn to look beyond the seemingly repulsive surface to see the beauty of God's creation.

i'm sure there is more...2006 has been a full year! i'm excited to see what 2007 has in store!

Me...the budding photographer ;)

I took these pics for Erica and Damon the weekend after Thanksgiving, but she wouldn't let me post them because she was giving some of them for Christmas presents...so now i can finally post them!! (They're scanned from 4x6 prints.) I am having lots of fun with my Aunt Sussie's old Cannon AE-1 Film SLR camera! (I don't know what I'm doing, so I'm always excited when the pics turn out well!!)

Grayson actually looked AT the camera and said "cheeeeessssseeee"!!!

I believe it was THE only time he actually looked at the camera the whole time!

Grayson hasn't quite started walking on his own yet, but he loves to toddle around with help. I just thought this was a cute, candid pic.

Damon, Grayson, and Erica
Christmas 2006

He was always more interested in what was going on somewhere else, so this was a common occurance. We just thought it made for a neat shot.

I love the colors in the stones and columns in this shot.

And here Grayson looks like an old cajun man telling a story. He's a hand-talker, for sure!

just one more day...

yes, we ARE still in school! Crazy, i know! And we're all feeling it, but just one more day to go and then two glorious weeks (plus weekends)!!! i just felt like sharing that. i feel quite neglegent in my blogging and i'm sure i've lost my one dear reader, but perhaps i'll pick it back up over the break. tonight i'm getting together with my lovely friend Joni. Kyle, Katie and David are coming in on Friday night and we might hang out a little this weekend. ;) Grayson turned one this week (on the 20th). We had a birthday party for him Sunday. I'll post pics as soon as I have them on my computer...which will be whenever I figure out where I put my camera! ok, this is quite random and very boring, so I'll stop now.

Apparently, the world no longer lay in sin and error pining

Il Divo was on Oprah the other day performing the song, "O Holy Night." I wasn't paying much attention but I was following the song in my head and I thought something sounded off, so I backed it up on my handy ole' DVR and watched a little more carefully. I was right. Something WAS missing! They jumped from the dear Savior's birth straight to a thrill of hope with nary a pause! I was prepared to rip Il Divo a new one as I googled their lyrics to the song but I found this:

"O Holy Night"

[Urs:]

O holy night! The stars are brightly shining,

It is the night of the dear Saviour's birth.

[David:]

Long lay the world in sin and error pining.

Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth.

[Carlos:]

A thrill of hope, the weary soul rejoices,

For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.

[Sebastien:]

Fall on your knees! Oh, hear the angel voices!

O night divine, oh night when Christ was born; etc.

So apprently it's Oprah who doesn't like the idea of recognizing that the world lay in sin and error pining, till He appeared and the soul felt its worth. Hmmmmm...how interesting!

our own little pot-o'-gold

i just thought it looked neat!

This pic is from a little covert op that I was a part of last night...What might that be? you may be asking! ha! you'll just have to wait and see!! I'm sorry, but we're working on a need-to-know basis and you just don't need to know! ;) more details coming soon...

 

Yeah, but you should see the OTHER guy!

Actually, it was a set of stairs and they're just fine. Grayson just got a better look than he'd (and we'd) have liked. Thankfully, the injuries were minor and Grayson was soon charming the socks off of everyone around. He's such a cute kid! I felt it necessary to document the injuries so I thought I'd post a few here.

This is his fight club pose.

Awhhhh, I'm ok!

By Thanksgiving, Grayson is all but mended...and looking for the next adventure!

evidence of a week off

I think this picture says a few things about me...
1. I don't do the dishes as often as I should
2. I like coffee
3. I stayed in alot this week

I cannot begin to describe how much I have appreciated the Thanksgiving break...and how I'm just not ready for it to be over! oh well, back to the grindstone we go!! ...but just four short weeks until the Christmas break!! :)

I'm a good girl, I am!

My life is rated PG!



Your life is rated PG!

What is your life rated? (MPAA Scale)

Take Other Caffeine Nebula Quizzesoh, and Phillip, this is NOT an official indication of anything...it's just for fun!

I knew it!

People always tell me I don't sound like I'm from South Louisiana...some say I sound like I'm from the South, but I definitely don't have a Cajun accent. So there ya have it!

What American accent do you have? Your Result: The Midland "You have a Midland accent" is just another way of saying "you don't have an accent." You probably are from the Midland (Pennsylvania, southern Ohio, southern Indiana, southern Illinois, and Missouri) but then for all we know you could be from Florida or Charleston or one of those big southern cities like Atlanta or Dallas. You have a good voice for TV and radio.
The South
Philadelphia
The Inland North
The Northeast
The West
Boston
North Central
What American accent do you have? Take More Quizzes

Thanks for the survey Damon! :)

neglect

Wow, it's been a while since my last post...and then that was just a bunch of pics! no updates on my life. no random rants. no bizarre-o observations. just silence. it's been a challenging season of life. nothing dramatic. i just feel as if i were being nibbled to death by minnows. feeling over-extended and under appreciated at times. lots of deep thoughts. many decisions that need to be made NOW and a few that are looming ever nearer.[*] i will share decisions as they become final and hopefully, there will be new options on the horizon. in the mean time, i'll try to do a little better about dropping a line from time to time.

i am excited about the upcoming thanksgiving break!! believe me, we ALL need it! i firmly believe that these school holidays are not so much for the students as they are for the teachers...because we may very well do permanent damage if we were forced to go without!! ;) erica, grayson, and i will be embarking on a little roadtrip to visit some of the extended family. looking forward to that!!

...and then there is that little matter of my BIRTHDAY coming up in just 6 short days!! but i'll save that post for when i have a little more energy...i am getting old, ya know, and the bedtime just keeps getting earlier and earlier!

well...i think that does it for my i must write something post. i plan to do better!! ...so see ya next month! haha!!

*edited

Fun in a Pumpkin Patch

We did the whole pumpkin patch photo shoot with Grayson a couple of weeks ago. Lots of fun...lots of pictures...a few that turned out pretty cute if I do say so myself.









There are a few more that I wanted to post, but Blogger is being fussy, so we'll try it again later...

I don't even know what to title this!

I turned on the tv this evening so that I could listen to something while I was putting my groceries away, and the channel happened to be on abc, so I caught the first hour of the season premiere of The Bachelor. I would not typically watch, but it's kinda like a train wreck. As much as I wanted, I just couldn't look away! This year the gimmick seems is that the guy is actually a prince and the whole shin-dig is happening in Rome. All I have to say is: What in the world?! These people cannot be real! Those girls have to be the most obnoxious group of people I've ever seen...and I've been around a group of people or two in my day! The guy is cute and seems normal enough...as normal as one can be who would try to find love in a group of stategically placed Barbies! I watched the initial introductions and I can't figure out why he'd be interested in 90% of them! And if THAT is how one must act in order to snag herself a man?!...well, bring on the cats and the tacky teacher sweaters because I am OUT! It was all quite interesting...I wonder who the lucky Barbie will be?!

Who the heck is Chester Bennington?!

the blog, she is a changin'

i am completely bored with all of the blogger.com templates...but i'm also completely html illiterate! so this is as good as it gets for the moment. bonus points for identifying the quote! (i realize that it's a piece of cake for some of you.) feel free to impart any html wisdom you might have lying around!

Oh Willie!

Willie Nelson and four others were arrested in St. Martin parish earlier today on misdemeanor drug charges. Police seized marijuana and mushrooms. Nice...

I don't get it

Perhaps it's because I was an English ed. major and as such, was subjected to a wide range of literary genres, but I've always had an appreciation for styles and techniques that I may not personally enjoy. With a few notable exceptions, (The Grapes of Wrath and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn topping that list) I like--or I should say that I can appreciate--most everything I read. That tends to extend into my movie-viewing as well. I love solid writing and a well-developed plot, but I feel like I am intelligent and educated enough to enjoy other cinematic aspects as well...clever camera angles, quality editing, good lighting...even a quirky storyline. But I am afraid that my appreciation seems to have found its limits. I recently watched The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou and I must admit...I don't get it! I don't understand under what circumstances this movie might be considered entertaining! I will say that there were a few humorous moments, but overall, it was not an overwhelming success in my book. I have even searched my beloved imdb.com in search of message boarding that might shine some light on this movie, but alas, I still don't have a clue as to it's appeal. Now, I know some people LOVE this film and one such person has recently tried to explain its appeal...but to no avail. I believe that I will continue to 'not get' this film, no matter what the explanation. I hate it when I can't figure something out!

I love Hanna Elise!!

I just wanted to make sure she knew that!

Now...here are a bunch of pics of her and some other fine people I know!

can't you tell I'm getting SO much done on my day off?!

this is a little slide show of some of my pics from the summer...isn't it fun?!

wasn't it only yesterday?

Andre Agassi retired from professional tennis yesterday after losing in the third round of the US Open. He played professionally for 21 years. If you knew me very well when I was in high school, you'd know why I care. I became a little obsessed with Agassi while studying a unit on tennis in PE my sophomore year. Of course, he was not the sedate, 30-something you see here now...no, he had hair any 80's metal band guy would envy and an attitude to go with it! He was--in his day--the bad boy of tennis...and I loved to watch him play! I checked tv guide every week and recorded any televised match I could find. I am not normally given to extravagant expressions of affection, but I was willing to suffer a little embarrassment in my dedication to this particular athlete. I'm sure I still have dog-eared magazine pics floating around somewhere in my high school memorabilia. I never bought one of those crazy Nike tennis shirts that he wore at the time...but I definitely considered it! I was a dedicated fan, to say the least. I followed him religiously for a few years, and then kinda lost interest in the whole tennis scene, but Agassi has always had a place in my heart. Even now, when I ran across a Agassi v. somebody match, I'd pause to watch for a moment--sorta like checking in on an old friend. I felt it only right and proper that I acknowledge his retirement. He had a long and varied career and I suffered through it with him for a few short years. Funny, it doesn't seem all that long ago!