every situation has a sunny side

i woke up this morning at 5am not feeling so good. but since i am on vacation all next week i had to go to work. so i dragged my self out of bed. however by the time i got to the shower i decided i could go back to sleep for 15 more minuets. so i headed back to bed. and awoke to parker's paw on my face. (when he wants to wake me up he lays he paw on my face, doesn't scratch me just lays it there) so i finally got up. which was a good thing because apparently i slept through my snooze alarm. so thanks puppy for waking me up. by the time i got in my car to go to work i was very crabby. it was dark, rainy, and cold, but as i headed to work i decided to turn my own day around. instead of complaining i was going to look for reasons to smile. heres how it is going so far.

there was no line at cafe ladro this morning
the gal there has my drink memorized (i like that, makes me miss uracco)
the gals at ladro got foam animals stickers and decorated my cup with them
i am listening to ingrid michelson at work
someone brought me chocolates
this is the last wednesday i have to work for 2 weeks
river (my fav. little boy who comes in the office) ran in to give me a high five, and after that he told me i needed we needed "pound it" he is two. how cute is that! and when he left he told me he loved me. that makes my heart smile.
it now has stopped raining

look for reasons to rejoice not reasons to complain. (this is what pastor mark has been emphasizing the last few weeks, and i like it)

***added side note: people are funny. this one patient went on our website and saw that i have curly hair. so came in and told me i look much better with curly hair, and how she would like to see it in person. so she told me to wear my hair curly on friday when she comes in next. i feel like i better do what she says. i just find it funny, sometimes people are just funny.

******second added side note: the crocodile cafe is closing. sad. i didn't even get a chance to see a show there. but i am sad. this situation does not have a sunny side.

the number pinned to her dress was 146...

In 2002, the co-founders of Love 146 traveled to South East Asia on an exploratory trip to determine how they could serve in the fight against child sex trafficking. In one experience, there was an invitation to change the world. to transform a reality that cannot stand. Our male co-founders were taken undercover with investigators to a brothel, where they witnessed children being sold for sex. This was their experience. This is the story that changed our lives.

---

"...standing shoulder to shoulder with predators in a small room. looking at little girls through a pane of glass. all of the girls wore matching red dresses. they stood, blankly watching cartoons on tv. they were vacant, shells. there was no light in their eyes, no life. to be missing this was shattering. this light has been stolen, this life has been stolen. she is raped each night. seven, ten, fifteen times each night. she is raped. she is thirteen, eleven, five-years-old. cigarette burns cover her back. scars we cannot see, cannot conceive of, cover her. everywhere. envelop her. there was one girl. one girl who wouldn’t watch the cartoons. number 146. she was looking beyond the glass. she was staring out at us. her piercing stare. there was still fight left in her eyes. there was still life left in her...

...all of these emotions begin to wreck you. break you. it is agony. it is aching. it is grief. it is sorrow. the reaction is intuitive, instinctive. it is visceral. it releases a wailing cry inside of you. it elicits gut-level indignation. it is unbearable.

…i remember wanting to break through the glass. to take her away from that place, to juggle as many of them as I could into my arms. to take all of them away. wanting to break through the glass. to tell her to keep fighting. to tell her that we were coming for her…"

To break through the glass would have been to react instead of respond. it would only have postponed their suffering. a temporary and immediate solution cannot address this crisis, this emergency. the reality is dark, it is global. the numbers overwhelming. the words of those who have survived, we cannot forget.

---

"I was in that brothel for 3 years and for 2 of them I never saw the sun. They never let me out. I was in a little room and there was no window.
I was only eight and my sister was four when we were sold into the brothel."

---

It was in Thailand, where our co-founders encountered child 146, that our work began. Our projects have since expanded to Cambodia, the Philippines, India and soon Sri Lanka. The countries within which we work are among the predominant centers of the child sex trafficking and slavery industry. The governments of these countries consistently fail to comply with minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking. Thailand is widely recognized as a hub of sex tourism; Cambodia is without a comprehensive anti-trafficking law, legislation has been in the drafting process for the last 7 years; The Philippines saw only one conviction of a trafficker in the past year; India is home to 2 million child sex workers between the ages of 5 and 15, it is estimated that an additional 500,000 children are forced into the sex industry each year.

The story of Love146 needs an end.

you said i must eat so many lemons, cause i am so bitter

well, well, well friday is upon us again. i love fridays, especially latley. i have my first week vacation next week in over a year and a half in two weeks! i am pretty darn excited! i am just going to spend a good solid week at home. i am stoked to be home for christmas! the last couple of years we have been in spokane, and waking up on christmas morning there isn't the same. it is always so rushed. my favorite christmas mornings are the ones where you get to stay in your new pajamas (you got on christmas eve) all day. maybe shelton will have snow...maybe. or you know what would be even better? snow in the mountains! i have my board waxed, edged and all ready to go. i actually know some people who snowboard. so it will be nice to have people to go up with. i bet i am pretty rusty considering the last two years i had only gone up 3 times.

my 21st birthday is 15 days away, and i am very excited about this. no more.."oh i can't go to that show because it is 21 and over" or "sorry guys i am only 20 can't go". i am going out with my mom, lisa hinkle (my mom wanted a friend), my sister carissa, kristen, and kelsey. pretty much going to be a blast. i can't even wait. we rented a hotel down town so the out of towner's can stay. and since my birthday is on a saturday i get to bring everyone to mars hill on sunday!!

this weekend is also going to be fun!
tonight i have wyld life then i am going to see "i am legend" with some friends. (not my kind of movie...but i'll give it a chance)

tomorrow a group of us are going to pike place to get some christmas shopping done.
then i am going to wesley and kat's wedding reception. after that some of us of us going to see the blakes. one of my newest music obsessions. i absolutely love them. should be a fun night.

sunday the day of rest. i will do just that. maybe a run around green lake, (i haven't taken parker in a while and when he doesn't get enough exercise he is uncontrollable) . followed by some coffee at peets and church. hum. sounds like a good sunday to me. anyone want to join me?


***side note. i FINALLY saw across the universe! i fell in love. not only with the movie but with jude (the main guy). i almost missed it, because mapquest is dumb and the directions to the queen anne theater took me all over queen anne. (which i have a hard time finding my way around there anyway) anyway i am soooo going to go see it again. i bought the soundtrack and tried to play it at work, but it didn't fly. sad.


*****second side note. kate nash is coming to the states. but the closest she is coming is san francisco. anyone up for a rode trip?

i stand corrected

so i recently posted a blog stating that my community group leader was leaving mars hill because he felt God was leading him into a different direction. i also stated that he didn't have a problem with the church, that he was just feeling called to serve God elsewhere. well after having coffee with him on monday i stand corrected. he is leaving mars hill because he has a problem with the church. with the recent controversy at mars hill some members left the church, taylor being one of them. my meeting with him was interesting and i was quite distressed when i left. i have been thinking about what he told me, how to digest and come to a decision with the information. i have been praying on it and i am not sure i have come to a full conclusion, but i am getting there. i talked to my dad about it and he helped me understand some of issues i was confused with. i am finished with my gospel classes and will start my membership interview process soon.

free rice!

so there is this awesome website called freerice.com and you should go to it right now!

About FreeRice

FreeRice is a sister site of the world poverty site, Poverty.com.

FreeRice has two goals:

1. Provide English vocabulary to everyone for free.
2. Help end world hunger by providing rice to hungry people for free.

This is made possible by the sponsors who advertise on this site.

Whether you are CEO of a large corporation or a street child in a poor country, improving your vocabulary can improve your life. It is a great investment in yourself.

Perhaps even greater is the investment your donated rice makes in hungry human beings, enabling them to function and be productive. Somewhere in the world, a person is eating rice that you helped provide. Thank you.

nick-nameless

so tonight i went and hung out with this awesome group of guys, pretty much the funniest group of people i have been around in a long time. i have been having kind of a bummed out week, so colin decided i needed some cheering up. (which i did) and since all his high school friends are home for winter break we went to hang out with them, and played some pool (which i now realize i should practice more so not to humiliate myself again). at first i thought it would be awkward with me being the only girl, but nope i was treated just like one of the guys. and the guys decided to hang out in their "crew" i needed a nick name. apparently mandy just wasn't cutting it for them.

now the funny thing is people have never been able to give me a nick name. even in high school with my group of friends every one had a nick name except for me. there was alexis (alex), rossy (jessica), b-wizzle (brian), putty (david), spb or johnson (johnny). but i was just mandy. the three boys even tried really hard one evening to come up with one, and those boys are pretty creative so i thought if they can't give me a nickname no one can.

so tonight colin and his friends also tried to give me a nick name. they tried and tried, but nothin'. so here i am nick-nameless again. i find this funny. apparently they are going to work on a nick name and get back to me. i guess i will just have to wait see about that.

gracie lou turns one!

my niece grace turned one this weekend, so i headed over the mountains through the snow and wind to help her celebrate! she loved all her presents but mostly loved being the center of attention.

grandpa loves little grace

gracie loved her cake and thought i wanted to try some.

every time i see her i am amazed by how much she has changed. she is very into sharing right now. after she wakes up from her nap and you go to get her out of her crib she reaches into her crib and hands you every one of her stuffed animals. also one of her new discoveries is "touch-down". gracie loves to watch football with her daddy, and if you say touch-down she puts both her hands up like a touch-down. pretty much the cutest thing ever. i know next time i see her she will be walking and probably talking. i can't wait, i absolutely adore my gracie lou.

it's a wonderful life

this is parker after i scolded him for eating the tree

last night my room-mate and i decorated our christmas tree. i love this time of year now i know everyone says that, but honestly do. it is is the little things that makes this time of year special.

the way shelton smells like christmas trees, it isn't called christmas town usa for nothing
the bakery next to my work smells like ginger bread

egg nog and peppermint ice cream hit the shelves

the crowds at the mall

the bell ringers outside of all the stores

the hustle and bustle of traveling

watching it's a wonderful life, might be my all time favorite thing.

my dad still has my sister and i leave cookies for "santa", and writes a letter from "santa"

he then wakes us up at 6am because he can't wait any longer to watch us open presents, before we are even in the living room he has the video camera with the brightest light you have ever seen right in your face. this is what makes my christmas special.

and i am thankful

so lets see here. thanksgiving break was great. i talked my boss into taking two days off for the holiday. i am thankful for that. it gave me a chance to go home and really spend time with my family and shelton friends. on friday my dad decided to keep his office open so i thought it would be fun to go "work" for the morning (since i worked there for 4 years). while i was there, i was able to see some of my favorite patients which was such and blessings and i am thankful for them.
clyde and lynn- my second grandparents
greeta- my 97 year old favorite lady, who cried when she saw me, which in turn made me cry
bob- who was so excited to see "maggie". (aka me) he has called me that since he met me and still thinks that is my name. (if you knew bob you would understand)
i love my dads office and miss working there sometimes.

i love shelton also, urraco makes me smile and all the girls there too! i got to hang out with becky, elisabeth, and kristen while i was home. i am thankful for them! my mom, sister and i went to see enchanted while i was home. now this film isn't some great movie that will win tons of awards, and it won't win the heart of "indie movie folk" either, but who doesn't love a good princess movie every once in a while...i know sure do. it was also just nice to spend some time with my mom and sister. i was thankful for that. (my dad didn't want to go to the movie, but who could blame him?)

on sunday i went to fbc with my family. last time i went to church there the sermon was from nehemiah and mars hill was going through nehemiah at that time as well. this time the service was from philippians which is the book mars hill is going through right now. they both have completely different approaches to the book. which was really interesting to see. i honestly like that mars hill goes through the book completely and i feel like i understand that part of the bible so much more. i am thankful for that.

yesterday at community group i brought my friend matt. which made me realize that i now have too many big brothers (i am thankful for that, for the most part) and am never going to bring a guy (even though we are just friends) to group again. also last night at group our leader told us he is leaving mars hill so he won't be able to lead our group any more. but before any more rumors get spread about my church let me explain. taylor is leaving because he feels God is leading him to serve else where, not because he has any problems with the church. it is sad and i am really sad to see him leave. taylor has been such a great leader i am thankful for all he has done for our group and i will really miss him.

tonight i went out to sushi with my friend kelsey. who is just such a awesome person i love getting together with her. i am thankful for that friendship.

wyld life

this is the wyld life group i work with. this last friday we took the kids to the q-cafe to listen to mark wagner. who is awesome. such a nice guy, and i really loved his music. also playing there was elijah grindstaff. who played at rock for sudan benefit show in shelton. i was able to talk to him after he played and he remembered me as the "shirt girl" apparently i helped him make his "rock for sudan" shirt. he also says he wears it all the time....which is awesome! he works with my friend wesley, so we are all going to hang out soon. (after kat and wes are done getting married...which is this saturday by the way! and i am so happy for them)

i love all these kids and i am loving to get to know them more. i was able to hang out with 4 of the girls when i drove them home. there were pretty excited that they met a girl (aka me) who can drive a 5 speed. i told them they need to meet more girls. but we had fun rocking out to school yard heros new cd. the girls are only 12 and 13 but they have gone to like 3 of their shows, which really shocked me. (if you have ever been to their show or listened to their music, it is not a place i would recommend for a young girl) i like their music but would for sure never take caitlyn (my younger sister) there. i am hoping the girls i drove home join my small group. they were fun, and i think we would get along great.

peter parker

parker is one year old today.

parker when i first got him

i love my puppy.

even though he is only 10lbs he protects me on my late night runs around green lake (or tries)

this sunday colin and i will hopefully take parker to the dog park. he thinks he is tough, and enjoys running with the big dogs, and loves to swim at magnuson park.

who doesn't love some johnny cash?

i love johnny cash, i think mostly because he reminds me of my grandpa eddie. johnny cash reminds me of sitting on my grandpa's lap listening to all his crazy stories, and the smell of tobacco and cars. i miss that smell sometimes.

seriously who does that?

last night after work i went to caffe ladro with a friend. we were sitting and talking when a homeless man walked in, bought his coffee and sat down at the table next to us. he wasn't bothering anyone, just enjoying his coffee and the luxury of being in a warm place. ladro was really busy last night and a group of people walked in looking for a table to sit at. yet all the tables were full. so they walked up to the homeless man and told (not asked, which still would of been rude) him to move. the homeless man looked at them, and moved. leaving him standing to finish his coffee. sean looked around seeing if there were any chairs available for the man to sit in, but they were all full. so the man left, to bare another night in the cold, and rejected by our snobby society yet again.

i am disgusted with those people, but also with my self for not saying anything to them. why was i sheepish and afraid to confront those rude people. why not say "who are you? he isn't bothering you, you should wait for a table to be free. he bought coffee just like you, and has every right to be here." but no, i just sit there. (awesome).

the more i think about this situation the more is breaks my heart, and the more i want to go back in time, step up and say something. just some thought for the day. next time i will remember this moment and try to be a good person.

i can turn tables.

this weekend i met a guy named gary. he has a small recording studio, and records bands for free. basically his a hobby. my favorite thing about this was he has turn tables in his basement! they were awesome! he taught me a few things and said i made a "fatty beat" (ha) maybe i found my true calling?

my second favorite thing about gary is he works at a sushi bar, and made some tasty sushi.

when shelton comes to visit

we roll in the leaves

we throw leaves

becky seduces the leaves

we like our shoes in the leaves

then we go to ladro for coffee

this weekend was fun...some highlights include...

• wlyd life was a blast
  
• i got new shoes (as i was walking to my transfer bus, my heel broke. it was like in a movie, and since i was down town and was going to be all day, i needed to get new shoes)
• had dinner with alex and morgan...(it was so good to see her!)
  
• went and saw band called brier rose with renzo
  
• my good sheltonian friends came to visit
• after church i went bowling with taylor, stephanie, rachel, and sean (i won! imagine that)

table for one please!

this is the first time i have been single since i have been a christian. and i just have to say it is amazing. i have never been able to be me and have a true relationship with Jesus until recently. nor have i ever understood why people would talk about being single as a blessing, but now i do. i feel like in a relationship you have to be strong. strong in your faith and with Jesus, so not to stumble. you have to have boundaries, which to be honest is hard. if you are not strong with these things you do stumble, and i stumbled, i also caused other people to stumble. for this i am sorry. and through all of it i was hurt. but i am stronger because of it, i have a better relationship with my dad, i have a stronger faith and relationship with Jesus, i learned a lot, and i have been able to find me. who i really am, and what i believe. i was talking about this with a couple friends, and they are feeling the same way. i have decided that i am going to use this time to get closer to Jesus, and find what He wants for me. i am still searching for who i am, but what a perfect time to do this. find who i am. so what that guy does come along i am strong and only bringing good things to the relationship. i am so glad that i did not jump right back a new relationship (i almost did). it would have just been another bad decision. plus i want someone who interests are first in Jesus and then in me, not the other way around. i have people around me who are willing to help me make the right life decisions. no one can do it alone. i tried to do it alone and failed. i have made so many mistakes, but i have salvation. obviously i will never be perfect, and i will continue to stumble. which is why it is so important to have people in your life to help keep you in line. it is nice to know that Jesus never loses a christian. this is the time in my life, where i get to decide my own future and what i (and Jesus) want. i don't think i have ever thought about what i want. this is exciting!

things the new year holds for me.

• getting my certification in nutrition and exercise
• being a crux leader
• new work schedule...never working later then 4pm (praise the lord no more 9 1/2 hour days)
• promotion at work, i will now be the rehab technician and financial advisor!
• maybe helping with worship for the middle school youth group(maybe)
• hopefully getting back into theater, which i miss so much!

in june i will be moving closer to the city...aka ballard, fremont, or queen ann with kristen...and maybe some other cool peeps. our newest idea is to rent a house boat on lake union. we would pretty much have the coolest pad to hang, and the best place to enjoy and nice glass of red wine. (which i am growing to like more then white)

"remember the time we lived on a house boat, yeah that was cool"

let the good times roll

this past weekend was full of good times.

saturday i went and got my tattoo, and i am so happy with how it turned out. it took about 3 hours. a lot longer then expected, and afterward it hurt a lot more to walk on then expected.

saturday was also kats wedding shower. it was fun to get together and play games. lisa had fun game for us to play. its hard to explain but i put up a couple pictures. after the shower kristen and i had a halloween party to go to. that was SO much fun. colin showed up as dweight, he is so funny, and was pretty much the entertainment for the night when he started cry dancing (most have not had the joy of seeing this great form of dancing, and to those i pity) then rob and bryce started cry dancing along with him. basically then funniest thing i have ever seen! although kristen and i did dance to "thriller" or at least we tried.

sunday i slept, and watched heroes most of the day. then went to church, though i had to leave early for a "wyld life" meeting. at the meeting we learned about how to get our small group started. looks like i will be meeting with three or four 6th or 7th grade girls twice a month. and hopefully continue meeting with them through high school.

this week will be just as busy as last...(hence the reason it took me almost a week to post a blog about my weekend)

the most amazing game ever played at a wedding shower

The devil tried to tempt me, however i was not so easily tempted

sailor mandy and one of charlie's angels

it says refine me, (kind of hard to see in a picture) it is exactly what i wanted.

State of the Pulpit - Theology of Suffering

oh here comes the weekend

things i get to look forward to this weekend

• tonight, dinner at the macaroni grill, then movies at my house
• tattoo tomorrow at 12 (a little nervous)
• kats wedding shower tomorrow
• halloween party tomorrow, i am going to be a sailor, colin will be dwight from the office, kristen will be one of the charlies angels
  
• sunday sleep
  
• church
• crux meeting
  

can we be the remedy for the suffering?

this weekend i went to david crowder with my family and kristen. it was tons'o fun! i hadn't heard much of their new album, but they did perform quite a bit from it. i really enjoyed their new songs. one that struck me was called remedy.

here is a tid-bit from the song..

You are the one
who has saved us
You are the one
Who forgave us
You are the one who has come
And is coming again
To make it alright
Oh, to make it alright
You’re the remedy
Oh, in us
You’re the remedy
Let us be the remedy
Let us bring the remedy

can we be the remedy? what can we do here and now to change the suffering going on around us, and how can we stop ignoring what is going on right in front of us. i know that there is so much more i can do to be the remedy. it is the small things that matter. here is a story.

a couple of months ago while in line at safe way, there was an elderly lady in front of me. she only had about 4 items. after the clerk rang her items up the total came to about $15. the lady looked in her wallet, and started asking the clerk to remove items, until she was only able to purchase a $1 thing of tuna. her eyes teared up and she handed the lady her one and only dollar. at this point the line was grower and people behind me were getting frustrated, because the lady was still trying to scrounge some change. it broke my heart. i stepped forward and bought the lady's groceries. but what i remember most about this was that she thought i was going to ask her for something in return, or ask her to pay me back. she was afraid. i told her i didn't want anything. she hugged and thanked me. and she was crying.

i am not telling you this to say how great i am, because i am far from great. but why don't i think about doing more things like this? why is it not something i do on a daily basis? why don't i buy the homeless man i see daily on my way to peets a coffee? he asks me everyday for change so he can get a coffee ( i am not so comfortable giving money. i did once and then saw the man buying beer with the money i gave him) but why not just buy him the coffee he wants? this is something i am going to work on. i want to be the remedy!!

lets be more like shane claiborne, i heard him speak a few months back. he is amazing, his mission is amazing.

then on sunday mark preached about suffering. it was the most solemn i have see him in a while. no jokes, no stories. he just pored his heart out to his church, and yelled at us a little. the sermon was intense for me, and made me cry. there is so much suffering going on in the world. but we can easily turn off the radio or television and ignore it. not Jesus though. his eyes are seeing the suffering day in and day out. that is what really hit hard. think about how hard it is for a loving Father to watch His children endure so much. we watched complied news clips video about two minuets long of suffering. (i tried to find the video to post it, but i couldn't, if i do find it i will definitely post it) i had a hard time taking it all in and it was only two minuets long. think about never being able to turn away from the suffering.

Jesus suffers with me. that is something i never thought about until sunday. i will never suffer alone. and i will never go through something that He hasn't already endured. that to me is love beyond my comprehension.

a verse i found this past week from romans 8 (esv)

35who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine. or nakedness, or danger, or sword? 36 as it is written,

"for your sake we are being killed all the day long;
we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered."

37 no, in all these things we are more then conquerors through him who loved us. 38 for i am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor depth, nor anything in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of go in Christ out lord.

beautiful.

iam puttin on my boxin gloves - the "don't mess" attitude is comin out.

in january pastor mark is preaching about anything we ask. basically ask anything, vote on your favorites and we choose the sermon. i think this is great, and am really excited. however when going the the "ask anything board" today i was quite disgusted with some of the questions people have come up with. some of the questions are just attacks on mark and the church. the attacks seem to be coming from people who don't come to the church and only hear bits and pieces of what marks preaches. if someone actually listens to the WHOLE sermon preached maybe they will see that they completely take his words out of context. i feel like i am always standing up for my church. which is fine. i love my church and will stand up for our doctrine. but honestly what does attacking a church you know nothing about do to help the mission of Jesus? it doesn't! in fact who are they to be attacking some one they don't know. doesn't 1 corinthians 4:5 (esv) state: therefore do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in the darkness and will disclose the purpose of th heart. then each one will receive the condemnation of god. so who are you to judge. it really infuriates me, that as a member (or as a soon to be) of mars hill that there are even people with in our church that stir up problems. why go to a church you have so much resentment towards? if the music is to loud for you, get over it or go somewhere else. if you can't handle the jokes that marks uses as REFERENCE, he doesn't say all things in literal term. then go somewhere else. and DO NOT take what he says out of context. if you want to throw fire on mars hill or mark then listen to the whole sermon. read our doctrine. then maybe, you can feel better about yourself.

is this the righteous anger? i feel like i am not only standing up for mars hill but for jesus. i believe mars hill is a church that is ALL about JESUS. so standing up and fighting for mars hill is fighting for jesus.

here are some commendable questions that i think would be interesting to hear about. thank you for the people who really care, and take this seriously.

• How far off can you be with your theology and still be saved? People believe in Jesus,and the resurrection but don't believe in exclusivity, hell, etc.etc.What doctrine is essential to be saved.

• it is hard to come to terms with the fact that God's will is not always clear to us. what is the best way to accurately determine God's will and our calling? why doesn't God make it more accessible?
  

• many men within the church struggle with "homosexuality". my bible study for instance, about half the men struggle with such desires. could you address this issue "homosexuality within the church?"
  

• how can we have free will if God is all powerful and knows our actions in advance?

• as a female who hasn't always been a Christian and has had sexual relations.how do i come to terms with the fact that in Jesus i am made clean & pure.when for the most part i don't feel pure.

because i can't sleep

i think i will copy my dear friend sara hansen and focus on the good things that happened today. it is always good to focus on the here and now...

i got to sleep in until 9, that was fantastic

i got to go for a walk with parker

i had lunch with my friend kristin (not to be confused with kris10)

we had lunch at paseo (best sandwich i have ever had)

i had time before work so i went to peets coffee

read my new bible (which is the new journaling bible, so i can take notes in the columns, i love it) for a good solid hour

i talked to my friend colin

it was a classic fall day, which i am loving these days

every one at work was nice to me, (trust me this is always a major plus)

i met up with my friend kelsey after work to go shopping, i found some great deals, and had a good shopping day

we went to red robbin for dinner

grey's anatomy was on tonight (my new guilty pleasure)

i think that sums all the goodness of the day. tomorrow is going to be hectic...i think i am anxious about tomorrow, which could be why i can't sleep.

sons of thunder

this past sunday mars hill introduced a new band called "sons of thunder" they were amazing! the harmonies and lyrics were beautiful. i can't wait until their music is available in itunes! my favorite song was "author and perfector".

as i have mentioned in my other posts i am taking the gospel classes at mars hill. the first class was last wednesday. I was able to find my friend lindsey who is also taking the class, and we sat together. (i am glad she was there, i was a little bit nervous) the first class was all about scripture and the importance it holds in your personal relationship with Jesus. even though i have heard this before, it is nice to be reassured i am apart of a church that holds the word of God as the final and last authority.

pastor mark preached on this a couple of weeks ago, how one needs to be careful that just because it is in the christian book store, on the christian radio station ect. does not mean it is right and from God.



also i was talking with mike johnson the crux leader at mars hill and he said this might be the last live gospel class, from here on out they might be on dvd. which i find interesting because just this past sunday mark did a sermon on how our sociality is lonely and doesn't have community. we sit alone, we don't know our neighbors, and most humans are lonely craving a relationship with someone. therefore i am not sure i like the idea of the gospel classes being on dvd. it takes away even more human contact, and isolates people even more then they already are. making it easy for them to again not put themselves out there to meet people.

my ride with the bus driver

so today as i am leaving for work, i get in my car, and try head out of the garage. however as i proceed to push the open button nothing happens. our garage door was broken. so i take the bus to work. thankfully the 28 line runs right to fremont, and i can catch it right outside my apartment. so i walk to the bus stop just as the driver was just getting off his break, meaning i was the first stop and the only one on the bus. here is how our conversation goes.

driver; you look like you are dressed for work, where you going?
me; (i remove my head phones) yep, i am on my way to work, in fremont
driver; do you go to school too, i bet you go to the UW.
me; (again removing my head phones) nope, i work full time
driver; you know you should really go to school, i mean even if you don't know what you want to do, the first two years are all math, and english anyway. what year did you graduate anyway?
me; '05.
driver; you are just a baby, i couldn't even take you out for a drink.

i pretend i didn't hear that comment, put my head phones back on, and pull out my book. keep in mind i am toward the back of the bus, so he is yelling the whole time.

driver; well what do you do? i bet you work at getty, everyone who works in fremont works at getty.
me; nope, actually i work for a chiropractor
driver; oh! how much for a crackin' (a crackin'? really? chiropractors didn't go to school for 6 years to give people a good crackin'. that word drives me crazy)

i don't really want to get into the specifics with him so i give him the simple answer

me; $45
driver; oh, how much you make down there, don't give me the exact number just an average.
me; $15

so that ends the converstation for a few min. i put my head phones back on and continue reading my book. then...

driver; what'cha listening' to?
me; derek webb
driver; who is that, whats he like?
me; a bit mellow. but good (i don't know how to explain music)
driver; i took you for a heavy medal type.

(ok? seriously? how did he come to that conclusion?)

luckily at this time more people start to get on the bus, and our conversation comes to an end. as we get closer to fremont i notice the driver yell "FREMONT" and look in his rear view mirror and point to me..(yes dear bus driver i know i have to get off soon, but thank you for that) so i pull the stop line. and as i get off the bus he puts out his hand as if wanting my hand. this caught me off guard so not thinking i give him my hand. (idiot me) he grabs my hand says "thanks sweetie", (thanks for what?) and squeezes it.

in conclusion i am not sure if this is just some friendly bus driver who just wants some conversation, or if i should be leery of ever riding the 28 line again. i decided not to take the bus back. thanks kristen for the ride home!

i went rock climbing

this past weekend my friend colin and i were supposed to go hiking to these water falls with a couple other friends, however we got rained out. so we did the next best thing. rock climbing (inside)

colin was telling me the other day about how he likes to rock climb. and i thought to myself "how fun, and why have i not tried something like that?" and so sunday afternoon i did.

we went to vertical world in ballard, and i learned a few things.

1) i am not so good
2) i am not as afraid of heights as i thought i was
3) it is A LOT harder then it looks
4) i am not as in shape as i thought i was
5) it is fun and i will do it again

i think a couple times i scared colin. he said i was a bit to daring and he was sure i was going to fall and break something. all in all it was a great time, and i am glad i tried something new. maybe next time i will try rock climbing outside....maybe.

after rock climbing, i went to starbucks (sin i know, but the pumpkin spice latte has me hooked) and read for a few hours. then me and kristen and colin went to the 630 service at mars hill. when we got there we ran in to everyone from our community group, so we took up two rows. that was fun.

during the series of phillipians, mars hill is going to give back ground history of the people who wrote different hymns. this sunday they did a piece on come thou fount written by robert robinson. it was interesting to hear about his life and how he came to love jesus. learn more, and see the video here. i hope they do a piece on come ye sinners .

one year in the books

as of today i have lived in seattle for one year.

the past year has been filled with ups and downs, as any year in life does. but i am so excited for what my second year in seattle will hold...

i love my emerald city (it took me a while) but i can't see myself living any where else at this point in my life. i am glad the couple times i almost gave up and moved back, people talked me out of it.

i love about seattle, here are some reasons why

gas works
greenlake
fremont
capital hill (i have spent a lot more time up there latley)
mars hill
community group
thai toms
sushi
cafe belle
peetes coffee
trader joes
the metro (who knew?)
the bike trails
fremont outdoor movies
SAM sculpture park
golden gardens
the crazy street fairs
off leash dog parks
trabant chai

i love sushi

i tried sushi with a few friends about a month ago after a seahawk game in belltown at wasabi, and it has been my new obsession ever since.

not sure how i lived in seattle for a year with sushi restaurants all around me with out trying.. i even have seattle's best chiso right next to my work.

tonight while out with friends, we had a smorgisborg of sushi, it was very good.

here are some of my favorites

spicy crab
spider roll
spicy tuna
edamame
albacore tataki

sushi is actually very healthy for you. you are eating the "good" fish of the sea. (expect if you have the crab, which i did) and by eating it raw you are keeping all the good nutrients inside. it has a concentrate of fresh fish, rice, and vegetables. also is a great way to get your fish oils.

fish oils are one of the many supplements i take, the benefits are almost endless...here are a few i can think of off the top of my head...

lower cholesterol
helps with pain and inflammation
better brain function and intelligence
reduces the risk of brain, breast and colon cancer
helps clear skin and keeps hair healthy and strong

(just make sure you get "good" fish oils if you are going to buy a vitamin form. some fish oils can be contracted from fish from the bottom of the ocean which is full of mercury, and completely cancels out any good benefits you would get from the oils)

autumn thoughts

it's fall and i love it! i forgot how much i love this season. all the pretty colors and the crisp morning air...it's love!

this past weekend my sister, brother in law and niece came to visit...she is growing up so fast i can't believe it...she is crawling, gives kisses, and is staring to talk. if you ask her what a puppy says she goes "ruff" pretty smart for being 10 months! she loved peter parker...every time he came around she laughed and flirted with him...he wasn't to sure about her though...i think she scared him.

monday night our community group went to the new mars hill campus in wedgewood to serve. (it isn't open quite yet, but soon) we put books on the book shelf, cleaned the rooms for the fire marshall, washed windows, and my favorite thing...we got to spray paint! kristen came, and finally go to meet some of the people i talk about so much...i am glad i have another sheltonion in seattle!

i really love my community group, we are all so close, like a family and i love it! one of the guys that goes colin, we actually went to elementary school together! what a small world! he is hilarious i really get along with him. a couple of the girls i have gotten to know are kelsey and rachel, both are just awesome girls and it is such a blessing to have good friends.

i start the gospel classes to become a mars hill member next week. i am very excited...this will make it so i am not limited to what i can do to serve in the church. also i believe next friday will be my first time serving with wyld life at whitman middle school...i am not completely sure what it will look like. but i know i will be witnessing to kids, telling them about jesus, how cool mars hill is, and how they need to come to crux, (the junior high youth group). i am really excited for this..it has been a couple months in the making...but it feels like finally after all the paper work, counseling, meeting...it is going to pay off!

tonight i get to go see the sketch for my tattoo at super genius, then hopefully set up my appointment for early october...it was a bit more expensive then i thought, so i have been saving. which also gave me more time to make sure i really wanted it...i am getting the words "refine me" (also the name of my blog) which means refining myself to the lord, and purifying my heart. david gave me a whole new way to look at the words and it's meaning, now i am even more excited...i liked his explanation better then mine actually. but i am sure my tattoo experience will be a whole blog in itself.

jane the healer from hawaii

So this week at community group, one of the guys richard brought his wife and a friend...

before i go on let me give you some back ground on richard...he has cancer and is only in seattle to get treatment, and lives in southern oregon. he didn't know that our community group was a 20 something age group. he is 50 or so. but after he came he loved us and continues to come back. (or something like that, i may have some of the facts wrong there) but this week richards wife was visiting him with a friend. the friend is from hawaii named jane a healer...

and this is where my story beings,
before we start reading the word, we do and "ice breaker" where everyone goes around the room and shares a piece of scripture that spoke to them that week. so we begin going around the room when it becomes jane's turn...

she doesn't start sharing scripture oh no, she starts explaining how she is a healer, i think this is cool (at first)...i am all about all natural healing remedies. However she then starts explaining how she is sent from God as a energy. she says that she has a strong energy with the light of God, and sometimes electronics don't work around her. (interesting i think, getting a little concerned at this point) so we continue to listen start glancing around the room to what everyone else is thinking. after explaining her energy flow, she starts telling us how she can see 50 billion years into the past and into the future. (how does she believe she is sent from God then...i have no clue) she then begins to tell us she had a dream about seattle and needs to share it with us. by this time taylor our community group leader, i was sitting next to him, and i could sense he was getting a little uncomfortable...how was he going to get the conversation back to god, with our offending this women?

jane continues to tell us how she dreamt a turtle was on her head and how the turtle was scared and caught in a net...(or something like that i was a little distracted so i don't quite remember the whole story). she then explains what all this means. basically what i got from it is that she thinks seattle is going to be destroyed along with everyone who lives here and very soon she adds. jane went on talking for about a half hour...no one quite knew what to do. then she started to tell us how the rapture is going to happen in 2012. finally taylor told her that was enough and we come to her worship god. (thank goodness)

but that isn't then end...

we start discussing Philippians 2, where paul talks about respecting leaders because they are all sent from God. jane seemed very interested in this, and she asked us who our leader is. taylor answers Jesus. (plain and simple right? no.) she then re-phrases her question and asks who preaches to us...we say mark. somehow from that she thinks that we worship him now and not jesus...(what a cliché most people who don’t know mars hill think we worship mark too) finally richard told jane that she either needed to just listen and be quite or step out side...

after we are done discussing we get into our prayer groups (the girls like to pray together and we send the boys down stairs) so jane stayed upstairs with us. before we started praying she tells us she has a son whose wife just left him with their two kids and how he needs a new mate. she then asked all of the girls if we have a male mate..(ha) as she gets to me i say “no”. and she asks "why are you a lesbian?" (fantastic)

this was the one of the strangest things i have ever encountered. i was talking with david, who lives in hawaii, and he said that the island jane is from (moliki?) are a lot of people like her. after i was talking to my friend colin and he said she might be back next week, and how we should try to witness to her. and that is what richard is trying to do. but honestly i am not sure if i want her back. she brought a bad vibe and i didn't really feel gods presence with her around...nor did i feel comfortable around her. i know we as “christians” are supposed to love people especially people like jane...and i do. but does that mean we invite her into our homes and let her talk falsely to us? it is hard to witness to someone like that. right?

so this is my life

rock for sudan, i think, went very well. it was different from last year for sure. but the crowd it drew to the church was quite interesting. and what a great door opener to this years YOUth church...i am happy to say that the t-shirt making went very well! we made at least 25-30. lots of people brought their own from home, so we had left overs. and like wes said, it is funny to see how excited people get about making their own shirts (i am one of them). speaking of wes, him and kat are officially engaged! i am so happy for the both of them! Congrats!

lately i have been wanting to get a long board, just for the heck of it. and friday while having dinner with wes and kat, i noticed that wes had one sitting in his corner. so i was casually talking about how i think it would be a fun, taking the long board around green lake just sounds like fun. apparently they found the long board in a parking lot a couple of weeks ago and were looking for someone to give it to...aka ME! i am pretty excited...now kristen you need to get one maybe we will find one in a parking lot for you. i will make sure to keep my eyes open! that way i don't look like a complete fool by myself. either that or my friend david said he could help me.

last night i went back to the community group brian and i used to attend in ballard. it was nice to be welcomed back by everyone, and meet the new people who have joined. right now we are reading through philippians (right now mars hill is just finishing up nehemiah and after that they will be going through philippians, so i think all the community groups are getting acquainted with it?) i haven't spent much time in philippians, but what i read so far has really hit home. last night we read philippians 2: 1-18 and discussed humility and how we are all called to be humble. but how the world sees being humble as weak, and not confident. we also talked about how we as "Christians" can be humble in our work and in everything we do. but what was interesting to me was that if i try to explain humbleness to a non-Christian it is to some point, pointless. isn't it something that they wouldn't understand? why should they be humble? i should be humble because Jesus called me to be, but if a person doesn't know Jesus then to them it would seems pointless. right?

i met a couple of new girls at the group and tomorrow we are all going to go help kat pick out her wedding dress, it shall be fun!

i finally ordered my invisible children bracelet last week, i will be getting the black sunday one, i think everyone should have one...support the cause, and get a sweet bracelet!

also the action design's cd came out today...however NO record store in seattle carries it or ever heard of them, sad. the sonic boom guy is going to try to order it for me, but he said it was a long shot? however because i work in fremont if they can order it i get a 10% discount! sweet!

no tomatoes please, rock for sudan

friday after work i met kristin, becky, and a couple of their friends, we went to dinner at "red mill burgers" (yum) in ballard, and then we went to the "q cafe" to watch lower lights burning, a guy named shane, and one of the singers from pale pacific. i had never been to this cafe before. it reminded me of the old veristas cafe shop in oly. i really never heard any music from the pale before until friday. now it is the only thing that has played on my ipod since. then kristin and i drove back to shelton....it was nice to talk to her, and i am glad god brought her into my life when he did.

it was so nice to be home for a wee bit, to see everyone, and hang out with new and old friends. my family and i went out to our property on the canal and sat on our dock. i really just enjoyed sitting out there doing nothing. after we went to dinner at robin hood, my all time favorite restaurant in shelton! the chef who used to work at steven's now works out at red robbin, and to make a long story short my mom and me would have lunch every friday at steven's and order the "salmon salad" it comes with tomatoes...i hate tomatoes. i would always ask for "no tomatoes" and every time kern (the chef) would come out giving me crap for changing his recipe. one time when i was getting close to moving to seattle kern hid a HUGE tomato under my salmon. it was pretty funny. so this weekend when we were at "robbin hood" i told the waitress to tell kern that "no tomatoes was here" he said it took him about 10 seconds to realize it was me. he came out and said hello, it was fun. my halibut with a ginger crusted sauce was amazing! if you live in shelton or are passing by go there!

on sunday i decided to have kristin, becky, elisabeth, alex, and molly over for a girls night. it was lots of fun. many things happen when you get that many girls together at one time. but i must say my dad was a trooper. he even bbq for us and didn't complain about the noise once. even though he had to wake up at 5.

i enjoyed spending time with people i love this weekend. but mostly my dad. it was nice to see how much he cares. though i know his heart is hurting for me, and i wish it didn't. he prayed with me, helped my with my budget, and we did a bible study. it was just nice. i am lucky to have a dad who cares too much.

this weekend is the second "rock for sudan" my friend sara puts it on to help raise money for a missionary named charity in sudan, read more here. i am pretty excited for this year! you should go! my friend wes is going to come down with me saturday and help with t-shirt making. if you attended this summers art night, then you should be familiar with this. if not come and found out more!! there will be blank t-shirts for guys and girls along with stencils from the invisible children web site. people will also have a chance to design their own stencils. also come listen to some great music and support a local missionary!

09.08.07


The Mary Celeste

Truce

Slowly We Survive

Elijah Grindstaff

band wagon

so yes i have joined the band wagon on "blogging" only because i have some really exciting things happening my life. i believe god is doing some amazing work right now and i am excited to share it. first off i had my interview with mars hill for the proxy ministry. i met with dustin who seemed very excited about my involvement with the junior high students. he said he was very inspired by my testimony. which made me feel very inspired that this is where i am supposed to be serving. the next step is to get counseling to make sure i am prepared to be a "girl leader" and after i pass that and my back ground check i will be starting the training process. they also said they are in need of girls to help out with worship. this really makes my heart happy. i have such a desire to sing and when he mentioned this to me i couldn't believe it. i have been asking god for a opportunity to sing. but this makes me very nervous at the same time. really i haven't sang in front of people in a long time. however i know right now is a perfect time to start.

this past week i went and saw mr. matisyahu, he is amazing i must say. every time i see him, he gets better. he was on tour with 311, who i must say are awful, some may agree. they sound a bit white trash punk/reggae...bad mix. but the crowd that they brought in was quite entertaining. and the pot smoke cloud that lingered over the crowd was a site to see.

tonight kristin me and a couple of her friends are going to watch graydon, lower lights burning play up here in seattle. i am pretty excited, i haven't seen him play since last year. it shall be fun. then i will make the journey to shelton for a nice long weekend filled with girls nights, chocolates, hard core shows, and family.... =)