no schnitzel with noodles here

i can't even tell you how much i love this time of year.
These are a few of my favorite things:

• Radio stations entirely dedicated to my favorite seasonal tunes.
• Smells of pine and cinnamon everywhere you go.
• Sparkling lights and trees (amongst the ugly yard ornaments people have so unfortunately put on display)
• Busy shoppers making their lists, checking them much more than twice, and finding the best deals they can to make everyone happy.
• My cozy living room in just candlelight.
• The hopefulness the season brings and the hope that baby Jesus brought that started it all.
• The feeling that the world gets that brings them to worship the King once again and reminds them of why they're here...even if only for the season.
• Christmas in the Chapel at LCC. It's not Christmas without it anymore.
• Memories of making Christmas cookies (of which there are only one good kind--my mom's) and green marshmallow-y Corn Flakes wreaths with my mom and sister while listening to Kenny Rogers Christmas albums among some other Christmas compilation records we used to have. I especially miss the scratchy sound of the records playing...
• decorating the tree
• Christmas parties and events and gift exchanges
• the coming of a New Year (and the very likelihood of me spending its Eve in NYC this year w/ my good friend Faith. YAY!!!)
• warm greetings and hearts
• the excitement of something that's coming...something to look forward to and hope for
• Christmas classics like Miracle on 34th Street, White Christmas, Home Alone, etc.
• Classic songs like good ol' Kenny Rogers Christmas stuff, all Amy Grant Christmas music (although the best songs are Sleigh Ride--Gloria and I have a long history w/ that one--and Tennessee Christmas), and lots more...

There's something so unique about this time of year that I just love.

I wish I could experience what the people of Israel went through 2000 years ago waiting on the birth of baby Jesus. I'm sure it didn't involve credit cards and special songs and pine tree smells. But, I know the excitement must be similar...

There's a stirring.

the first snow

have you seen it?
no, really, have you seen it?

little flakes of white...
fluttering
floating
flying
freezing

oh, the snow
and fireplaces aglow
makes you not want to go
anywhere

it's like magic dust
for a little while
until it piles up
and we sled
and we slide
and we ski
and we slip
and we build snowmen
but until then

it's just the first snow
have you seen it?
have you felt it?
the freezing
frozen
flying
falling
fleeing
flakes
are like little pieces of grace


i love the first snow.

Hotlanta!!!

Along with Toadie, I too am off to the National Missionary Convention. Hotlanta, here we come! It's actually not that hot there this time of year, which pretty much sucks. I won't lie. I was looking forward to getting out of this cold.

And like Toadie's most recent blog, I too have some great National Missionary Convention memories...like these:

--the time when Aubs and I about freaked out on Marc Gorsch riding in the van 10 hours to Tulsa. there had just been some previoius drama w/ Marc, so his extensive talking was a lot to handle. And I think for some reason by the end of the trip we all weren't getting along...i guess that's a 10-hour ride in a van for ya. (especially when you add a flat tire and being stuck in Joplin for an extra hour or two on the way back)

--Cincinnati 2 years ago--when Faith vulnerably gave $20 to this guy on the street who needed to get to work at Bar Cincinnati, had no money to get back to his apt where his roommate and girlfriend were fighting, proceeded to tell us how he would be downtown the next morning (to pay her back) b/c he went to Catholic mass w/ his mom since his brother, a doctor, was beheaded in an elevator accident previously that year. After some mind-boggling skepticism and internet research we found this story to be true, tried to call the cell # he gave us, it wasn't his voice, we drove around trying to find his work and surprisingly found him walking in that area, he assured us it was his dad's cell # and that he'd show up the next morning, and we never saw or heard from him again. To this day I am still confused. I assume you are too.

--lots of connections from old camp team friends and of course, the beloved BCG's.

--wishing I could receive a Restoration Award at the LCC Reception...JUST KIDDING! Haha.


Ahhh...and this year I will be driving down a minivan of 6 awesome students and staying at a camp w/ them, hopefully will get to hang out w my buddy Drew from Ozark, and hopefully see some more friends from the olden days. (when were those? i don't know. i'm just sayin'.)

Hotlanta, here I come. I'm going home to pack.

the world is so complex

That's what I decided today. The world is complex. I know, nothing new. But it's too complex. What happened to the old days?

This conversation came up b/c we were talking about those special saddle shoes some of us used to have to wear. I remember having them when I was really little because my feet both wanted to curve inward when I walked. My mom would take me to some special shoes store in downtown Streator to get them. I didn't like them, I know that much. And I think I remember them being expensive, so neither did my parents I'm sure. I remembered that said "special shoes store" was just where you went to get those. Today I wondered where people go to get those, because most likely those stores don't exist anymore. Now you probably have to search online to find the nearest shoestore that carries saddle shoes. I miss the small-town-feeling of just "knowing where to go."

And then last night, while watching the very disappointing episode of Gilmore Girls that my great roommate taped for me, I saw a commercial for some made-for-TV American Girl movie called Felicity. My initial reaction was "Is that like a reunion show for the old TV show Felicity?" Nope. It's about the American Girl character Felicity. And then I remembered how when I was little I loved those books, because they had just come out when I was in grade school. They were special. The pages had this scent of new paper that no other brand new books carried. I was so excited when they came in from my weekly Scholastic order or from a Christmas present. And now? complexity. There are like 100 American Girl characters. (Actually, 8 to be exact...I looked it up online out of curiosity.) But there were only a few when I used to get those books. Man, I miss the smell of those pages.

And I've always wondered when we went into all different lengths of clothing...a decade ago no one ever wore capris (in style, anyways...) and 3/4 length sleeved shirts. Or maybe I'm crazy. But I feel like even clothing is so complex now. What length of pants or sleeves do I want to wear today? How many layers will I wear? (because, you know, layers are the way to go...) or maybe I'm just making this all too complex.

We could carry on about options with kinds of toothpaste, shampoo & conditioner, candy bars (even look at all the different types of M&M's now!!!), etc. It just seems like decisions we have to make are more complex today, even those of the simplest kind. Don't get me wrong, I like my options. I like choosing my flavor of coffee and from several lengths of shirt sleeves and kinds of toothpaste. But, still...

I miss the old days.
I miss simple.

what career suits me?

Your Career Type: Artistic

You are expressive, original, and independent.Your talents lie in your artistic abilities: creative writing, drama, crafts, music, or art. You would make an excellent: Actor - Art Teacher - Book Editor Clothes Designer - Comedian - Composer Dancer - DJ - Graphic DesignerIllustrator - Musician - Sculptor The worst career options for your are conventional careers, like bank teller or secretary.

What's" Your Ideal Career?

I'd totally love to hear what other people think I should do w/ my life. I have many ideas, but it feels like very few. I'm considering starting a journal of them...

Here's what I'd include so far...:
-wedding planner
-assistant to a photographer
-open a coffeeshop
-open a fun kitchen store (mostly b/c i just went to a cool one in downtown napes...loved it.)
-take Rachael Ray's job at $40 a Day on the Food Network and eat at cool places in different cities
-be the girl on the Travel Channel who visits all the best hotels
-marry a guy who can sing and play guitar and just sing harmony w/ him
-open a fun little gift shop like Pour La Maison in downtown Naperville (can you tell I enjoyed some time to chill in napes on thursday and friday?)

that's what i've got off the top of my head.
don't think i'm seeking affirmation here, i'm just wanting ideas.

feedback?

step into Christmas

I know that Halloween has just passed, but I've already christened the next season by beginning to listen to my holiday collection of music.

It's Christmas time, my friends. It may still be warm outside, but the feeling is in the air.
I'm making my holiday CD's and I'm considering making a compilation of what I consider to be the Christmas Classics. If anyone's interested, let me know.

I'm in between high schools right now...went to my alma mater of Streator High School this morning. It's a whole new place! They've torn down half of it, rebuilt some new stuff, and it makes me sad that people there don't remember me at first. Or at all. I'm on my way to Woodland High School in about 5 minutes.

And by the way, since no one showed up at SHS this morning to talk to me I had like tons of extra time this morning, so I made my way to this little cafe we have in Streator called The Downtowner. Talk about a freaking cool place! I felt like I was in the city and not in Streator. But the poor owners--Streator isn't ready for such a place, so hopefully they can make it! If you're ever in Streator check it out. It's a pretty cute little place! I got to read quite a bit this morning out of my current read: Flashbang by Mark Steele. If you haven't read it, check it out. It's quite hilarious. Since the Downtowner was empty I was literally holding my hand over my mouth to stop myself from laughing out loud.

Well, good day. I'm off to the school of the children of the corn. Sorry Amanda. Sorry mom. Sorry other friends who may have gone there.