Mixing of tastes

Eating is a pleasurable necessity. In times of financial hardship, food is viewed as a mandatory expense even if it is very primitive. Due to the enormous wealth most American's enjoy, food is no longer about sustenance but pleasure. Food is expected at celebrations of all sorts. To be truly admired, the selection must abound with different tastes and textures.

While all people enjoy some level of variety, how this variety is experienced in a single meal has two variations. We have the separatists and the mixers.

Separatists - People who prefer to eat all of one item on their plate then proceed to the next item. My brother and my fiancee are both separatists . Maybe they'll start with their meat, then the vegetable, then eat their bread and so on. The next item will not be started until the first one is completed. Separatists usually do a very good job of cleaning their plate. Some will only take each item from the serving dish as they are ready to consume it, reducing the likelihood they will dish up more than they can eat.

Mixers-Those who like to combine tastes and textures throughout the meal. I'm definitely a mixer. I'll take a bite of a hamburger then some baked beans followed by a bit of salad. The problem is my eyes are often bigger than my stomach and I take too much. Since consuming all my food does nothing to help the starving children in Uganda, I choose to waste some food before I'm willing to add it to waistline. I love the switching from sweet to salty then back again. I chase pretzels down with a can of Diet Pepsi. Usually having a bit of the pretzel still in my mouth when I fill it with that sweet flavor.

Now separatists can eat casseroles and other pre-combined foods, the foods are then just considered a single item. Mixers, like myself, may like casseroles less because it removes some of the personal creativity behind the combining of foods. I mean frozen pizza dipped in applesauce, who would have thought it could be so good.

However you experience the pleasure of food the only caution is to remember- there can be too much of a good thing!

luke warm pizza and chocolate

Due the craziness of my work life and some mild distractions coming from my personal life, I've decided this week to use my time efficiently and work through lunch. Doing this allows me to come into the office a bit later (because I'm up late on the phone with this amazing guy) and leave a bit earlier (so I can hit up the gym before I talk to aforementioned amazing guy).

We've had several people bring in food to the office. Nothing like spreading the unhealthy eating habits to those you work with. As I type this blog over my "lunch" break I'm snacking on luke warm pizza (I just didn't feel like getting up to warm it) and following it with a few chocolates from the S.B. chocolate factory that my secretary brought in. Now these things are fabulous...I wish I really didn't like them right now. Besides the fact the sugar wacks out my blood sugar and I get a bit lightheaded...it just doesn't sit well with me.

My boss also brought in cheese and crackers yesterday. I love crackers and the brie he had was fabulous. I really need to be stocking up on the fruits and veggies. I ate an apple at 2 out of shear remorse.

The only kudos I can give myself is that I'm not chasing this down with a can of Diet Pepsi for the caffeine boost. I know it is is vicious cycle. If I ate better, I'd feel better, etc...but I'll get there. Probably not for another 89 days but eventually.

Well I'm going to get some pretzels now...catch you later.

knock at my door

Last night while on the phone with Mark (a very common thing for me to be doing if not at work, I had an unexpected knock on my door. Since I wasn't really expecting company and didn't want to interrupt my conversation I quickly sushed and tip-toed over the peep hole.

I peered outside to see a above average height gentleman carrying a red pillow standing in front of my door. I didn't recognize him at all. As I had just come back from a run and wasn't particularly dressed for company, I quickly and quietly returned to my bedroom and spoke in hushed whispers till I was sure he was gone.

This is the most unfriendly I have ever been in my life. Mark wasn't very thrilled at the idea of me opening the door to a strange man (protective side of him coming out :)) so I refrained. I'm not confident that I did the right thing. I just hope he figured out where he was going.

If I wasn't his fiancee...

I'd probably be accused of being his stalker.

This was the comment my co-worker made to me regarding the recent explosion of pictures decorating my office. Mark and I may only have a few pictures together, but I do have most of them placed somewhere in my office. I'll admit this causes frequent distractions at work, yet I'm strangely comfortable with this.

I have included Mark and I's first picture together in the airport at Mo Bay. (Special thanks to Perry K. for this shot).

I'll admit my day hasn't been the most productive. Thankfully I was super productive at work yesterday which will compensate for my reduced output today.

I have to publicly apologized to all of my previously engaged friends who I thought were unnecessarily ditzy during this chaotic time. I'm worse than anyone I've ever interacted with and I hope that they'll find it in their hearts to forgive me.

Stories of a 9-year old drama queen

I have a good friend "Jenny*" who has a 9-year old daughter "Carrie*" who is the epitome of a drama queen. She has the big eyes, pouty lips, and lungs to blow the 3 little pigs house down. Carrie is rather opinionated (which she certainly has inherited from Jenny), yet her positions on issues don't always follow the soundest logic. This may be partially a factor of being 9 and the other part for her to be right you must be wrong. Hence she has to pick something completely outlandish.

Recently at soccer practice, the coach instructed the players to find partners for passing practice. Carrie of course is the coolest kid, so patiently waited for her partner to find her. When her intimidating stance failed to draw anyone, she pranced over to Jenny with a sincere pout.

"I can't practice, I don't have a partner". Jenny noted that there were several little boys still left that also didn't have a partner. She less than gently pointed this out to Carrie. "Go ask him over there."

"MOM!!" Carrie whispered loudly. "The only people left are boys and they are all ugly."

Well now how does one even begin to combat that. The coach did so rather swiftly with the "You don't find a partner and practice quickly, you won't be playing." But that really didn't address the crux of the argument. Then again, I'm not sure what would.

Carrie decided she could practice with her eyes "half open" and it wouldn't be that big of a deal.

Oh well. Another issue solved in the life of a 9-year old drama queen.

*names are changed because some things are best identified only in person

Pride goeth before the fall

Whenever I'm going to be gone for an extended period of time, my office colleagues fish-sit my beta Russ. I align the experience of leaving children at Grandma's house. Russ of course can do no wrong and he is the most interesting thing there ever was. "Do I feed him enough?" they ask.

When it was time to take him home after my trip to Chicago in March, most of the office was quite sad and protested his leave. After many promises to be good to him, they finally allowed him to come home. To fill the void, Molly purchased her own beta, Willy.

Now Russ was 2 years older than Willy. He was not a spry but certainly had great fish wisdom. Molly wanted to test out the "fighting fish" idea behind the beta. She placed their two tanks right next to each other. Willy being the energized youngster flared his fins and prepared for battle. Russ being well seasoned did little to raise a flipper. Willy continued to circle and attempted to attack Russ. Molly decided that while this live "animal planet" was interesting, it may not be the best way to care for my fish. She then returned Russ to the other office, out of Willy's view.

Willy was very annoyed at this as his hot pursuit was interrupted. Molly comes back 2 hours later to find Willy had disappeared, fish bowl still on her bookcase. Now fish don't typically "wonder off" so she assumed one of our office mates had played a practical joke. After hounding everyone and being met with sincere denials, she began the search of the floor around the book case.

There she found poor Willy flopping on the floor. Apparently in his pursuit of Russ, he forgot he was a fish that needed water. He jumped out of his bowl only fall behind the book case. He was still flopping when Molly returned him to the bowl but his injuries were too substantial. He died a few hours later.

Russ on the other hand is still calmly swimming in his bowl enjoying a great deal of admiration and affection. He is completely oblivious to his predator's demise. Had Willy humbled himself and swam away from the fight, he may still be with us today.

Rest in Peace Willy.

Love of my Life

It gives me great pleasure to introduce to you the love of my life Mark :). Believing God has called us together, we are anxiously anticipating a September wedding. I want to praise God for his direction in bringing us together. Mark is a wonderful godly man. I could type pages on all the things that make him amazing but I wouldn't want to embarass him.


Hope you all have a wonderful week!
Best wishes
~ Laura

FOUND: BLACK DRESS

On my recent trip home, lo and behold I opened my closet and there hung my dress. I'm confident that it was really hiding from me. It was just waiting till I publicly pleaded for assistance before coming home. It is now safely back where it belongs.

:)

MISSING: Black Dress-Reward offered

DESCRIPTION: One sleeveless polyester/spandex/rayon blend black dress. Typically worn with a bell sleeve light blue rayon shirt. Reward: I'll come up with something, most likely related to food as a sincere thank you.

I've come to the conclusion I'm either losing my mind or at least my clothes. I have this black dress that I wear with a blue top. I was wanting to wear that outfit to church the other day. I found the blue top, but no dress. What complicates this is I only wear the blue top with the dress. The two pieces are never worn independently. I can't even begin to fathom what has happened to the dress. The last time I remember wearing it was the beginning of February. I know I wore home from church that day. I don't believe I've traveled with it anywhere nor left at my mom and dad's.

If you have seen my black dress let me know. It floors me that I've lost this thing. Potentially it is just hiding in my closet somewhere.

Holiday decorations

As the seasons change, we have the opportunity to celebrate holidays. I enjoy celebrations as they are often excuses to spend time with those I love. I struggle though with this "decorating for the holidays" thing. It isn't the putting up of decorations or even taking them down that troubles me. Rather is what to do with the pointless dust catchers during the rest of the year.

Currently in my office I have star ornaments hanging from my ceiling, an Easter egg in a pail on my desk, and a nativity scene by my computer. I could put them in one of my desk drawers along with the Christmas stacking boxes and some packing tape but the drawer doesn't shut without a firm push. So I opt for the eclectic look in my office decorations.

When I took my Christmas decorations down in my apartment in February this year, I then shipped them back to Mom and Dad's house for storage. I don't want to waste what little storage space I have on a fake Christmas tree.

Thankfully with the upcoming spring holidays (Mother's Day, my birthday, etc...) we appreciate the handiwork of God as he revives the earth and avoid tarnishing it with flashing lights. I'm thinking about taking the minimalist approach when it comes to holiday decorating. While Christmas towels may make me appear more domestic, I think using a basic kitchen towel to dry my dishes really is.

As if money could buy happiness

Last night at the gym, I was looking for a decent magazine to read while using the stair-stepper. Due to my aversion to the trash available in typical "female" magazines such as Cosmo or Glamour, I opted for Money magazine. Everyone is at least completely dressed.

Yet as I turned through the pages, I recognized that a lot of the material was just as evil as that which appears in the fashion magazines. Every article discussed ways to increase cash flow, maximize your portfolio, avoid paying extra taxes etc... Now individually each of these is not inherently evil. It is the focus on the gain which corrupts us. For money is not the root of all evil but the love there of. I find myself in my own inner war after reading this material. "Am I saving enough?" "Should I be pursuing a better job?"

Every time God quietly whispers in my heart "What more do you need? Aren't I enough? When have I failed you?" I'm instantly humbled at my selfishness and lack of trust. God has more than supplied my need. To much is given, much is required. I'm responsible for using whatever I have to his glory.

As Christians it is easy to caught up on the "more is better" mind set that is so prevalent in America. Pay raises are celebrated. Promotions lauded as one climbs the corporate ladder. Those the most admired in society come not from those of strong moral character but those who have the greatest material wealth. We take time away from the ones we love to provide "for their needs." While work is necessary and God warns us not to be slothful or lazy. We can take this charge to a great extreme. Last I checked most children would prefer mom or dad spent that extra hour reading them a story then buying them the computer program that could read it to them.

Success is related to the size of your portfolio. While I will always advocate financial responsibility, I don't want to fall in the trap of constantly looking for more. It is sometimes more difficult to be content when you have more than enough. We forget to be thankful that our needs are met and hence think that happiness will only come at the acquisition of more.

I challenge the idea that America's material wealth is a truly a blessing. Blessings are gifts of God that draw us closer to him and bring glory to his name. God's provision to meet our most basic needs is the blessing. I think all that is above that can easily become our greatest curse.

Back in the office

2 weeks...I've decided that I need to make all business trips at least 2 weeks long. I just returned from Indianapolis with a huge stack of paper and an inbox crowded with e-mails. The trip was only 3 days long. I knew I was busy most days and I'm beginning to understand why...all I do is return e-mail and answer questions.

When I'm out of the office for a week or longer, most people find out the answers to their questions through another source. Only 3 days...Especially the last 3 days of the week, people are willing to wait until I return. I should tell people I'm coming back a day later than I am. It may give me a chance at catching up.

To help me see...

As long as I can remember, I've had poor vision. I got my first pair of glasses at four years old. They were horrible large plastic things that made me look anything but cute. I'd post a picture but looking at them may scar your impression of me. Ever since those awful childhood days, I've been very paranoid about choosing the right pair of glasses. It took me about 6 months to purchase the new pair I picked up yesterday. It took me a long time to wear glasses in public. But graduate school and lack of sleep, makes putting the contacts in a daunting task. Vanity quickly takes a back seat.

My prescription hasn't changed much in the past 20+years. I am slightly near-sighted and when my eyes cross I see two of everything. It's this double-vision that causes the most troubles. The two objects move a bit and it gives me a headache. It will drain me of my energy real quick. With a great deal of effort, I usually can force my eyes to refocus. The movement though of my right eye sometimes freaks people out, so I just tend to keep my glasses on/contacts in.

I have had many incidents with my glasses and contacts. When I was 7 or so, I was riding my bike and due to the bounciness of our gravel lane the glasses fell off my face. Imagine my surprise. Since I no longer could see very well and wasn't overally balanced on the bike in the first place, I promptly ran over them destroying my glasses.

When my baby sister was born, we stayed with my Aunt. In effort to help clean my large ugly plastic glasses, she accidentally broke the rim on the right side. My lens would then periodically fall out. This was rather embarrassing as a 6th grader to have the entire class here this light clamor as my lens would hit the floor. With a new baby in the house, it was over a month before my mom took me to get new glasses. I went with wire frames after that.

My baby sister also was the first one to poke my contact out of my eye. I had only had them for 2 days when she deftly reached up with that chubby arm and pushed it out. We were able to recover it from her carseat. After many other similar incidences I'm confident her pointer finger has a magnetic connection with my eyeball.

I'm ever thankfully that we have the technology to correct my poor vision. Otherwise...(sigh) never mind, it gives me nightmares just to think about it so I'm not going to.

Never know how much you own till you move

I'm not moving but my sister is. In order to be a helpful loving sister, I'm aiding her in this task next weekend. As I was home for the Easter holiday, I allowed my car to be filled with random items to take to her new apartment. I get to drive around with the stuff for the rest of the week till I head out there.

My sister has been living at home since last August. Before that she lived in a dorm, sorority house, and small apartment (which she did not supply any of the big furniture). Despite this, she has unbelievable amounts of stuff to move out. You'd think it just be a few things. No, my CRV is very full and it didn't put a dent in the pile of stuff. At times it blows my mind away at how much stuff we "need" to function.

I know when it comes time for me to move it will only be worse. I've had time to accumulate a large variety of things to fill my small 1 bedroom apartment. It almost frightens me. I'm going to strive to be a minimalist but if we look back to my packing issues, I doubt my chances for success.

I highly recommend moving every couple of years. It forces you to get rid of things you don't really need or for that matter even use.

Parasailing and coconut trees

I've never been parasailing. Given my irrational fear of heights this probably shouldn't surprise me. It is not beyond all imagination that I would enjoy it, but I haven't had the opportunity yet. In a recent work discussion about risk and thrill seeking, my co-worker Molly admitted that parasailing was not the experience she thought it would be.

Being slightly directionally challenged, she would frequently lean the wrong direction, pull the wrong cord etc...during her parasailing experience. Usually there was enough space and time that she could correct herself. Usually...

One fateful wrong pull of the cord, sent her spiraling downward right into a coconut tree. Fortunately the parasail caught in the branches to prevent her from crashing to the ground. She had to "hang out" in the tree for a little while, till they could come cut her down.

She walked away with a few scratches and a thoroughly bruised ego. Parasailing sounds fun but the thought of being suspended in a coconut tree diminishes it's appeal.

Sandals...not a good idea even if it is April

I love wearing sandals. My toes find them incredibly freeing. They also look very nice with a skirt. As a tall primarily skirt wearer, I find that sandals provide the flexibility necessary to appear fashionably competent.

I typically wear sandals majority of the time from April-October. It is always a sad day when I pack them up for the winter. I should also comment that I get cold very easily. My finger nails and toes frequently turn a disturbing shade of blue when I get cold.

As it is now the beginning of April I felt that it was time to break out the sandals. This weekend wasn't so bad but I was indoors most of the time. My apartment was warm last night so I figured despite the cloudy day I could wear my sandals again. HUGE mistake. It is rainy, cloudy and blowing. My feet are wet and freezing. This feeling has spread throughout my body due to the draftiness of my skirt. Sometimes I begin to shake just enough to make typing difficult.

Oh well, I'll know better tomorrow. I just hope the space heater in my office doesn't blow the circuit breaker again.

Conserving energy

As energy costs continue to rise, businesses are looking for ways to reduce the use of these resources. Hotels with in-room temperature controls face a great inefficiency with the use of energy. Patrons often check into their room, turn on the system and leave for hours at a time. This allows the room to be set at a comfortable temperature while no one is there to enjoy it.

I'm currently in Chicago at the Sheraton. To conserve energy they have attached the activation of heating/cooling system to the deadbolt on the door. This requires that we are in the room before the system can be activated.

I actually appreciate the ingenuity of the system. They have it well marked on both the deadbolt and the heating/cooling unit. A on/off system may make it uncomfortable for the hotel guest during they stay. Yet complete access the system creates a lot of waste.

The only problem with the system is when not all the parties are in the room at the same time. My sisters and mom joined me for part of this trip. My sister often would go out later in the evening with friends living downtown. We couldn't lock the deadbolt lest she not be able to enter when she returned. Yet sitting in the hot room proved to be very uncomfortable.

We were able to resolve these issues with the use of cell phones but it proves that even the most ingenious of systems have their flaws.

Feeding the VCR

Pregnancy comes with a host of physical side-effects (so I've heard). To maintain any level of sanity, expectant mothers need time to rest. Unfortantely if this is child number 2, 3 or 11 the other children in the house make this a daunting task. When Julie was pregnant with her second child, she would shut lock the door of her living room from the inside to rest on the couch while Adam played. With a locked baby-proof living room, she was confident she'd awake if disaster struck.

Julie is a rather sound sleeper and wanted to be assured her 3-year old boy would be entertained while she rested. She covered the entire east wall with paper and posterboard. Markers and crayons created the ideal graffiti experience for this creative 3-year old.

Adam also was a constant snacker. A sippy cup of water, bowl of cheerieos and small PBJ sandwiches sustained him during this time of rest.

Julie would pop a video in the VCR, lay down on the couch to "rest her eyes" for a few moments while Adam contentedly played. As aforementioned, Adam snacked quite a bit. The ever caring child he was concerned the the TV would get hungry. He quietly wandered over the VCR, stuck in a cheerio and ba-da-bing! it disappeared. Assuming the TV had swallowed it and was still hungry he continued to feed the TV his PJB sandwiches.

Julie awoke to Adam asking the TV if it was "full yet." The VCR is no longer hungry as none of us are once we die :).

Perms and highlights...are they different?

In my early twenties I decided I wanted to add some zip to my life, by this I mean changing my hair. I'm not an overly high-maintenance chick when it comes to my looks. I appreciate appearing well groomed and enjoy picking out clothes but I don't tend to spend a lot of time on this endeavor.

I decided that a few blonde highlights would be a lot of fun. As time progressed and I kept re-highlighting my hair, it becomes more and more blonde. If you look at my family picture in the HOME post below you'll see I'm definitely brunette.

I never intended for it to get as blonde as it did. It wasn't till this past October that I finally was sick of spending the money and time. My fabulous hairstylist Melissa was able to accurately match my natural color with a dye to return it to a presentable state.

The Bible says the "Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the LORD, she shall be praised." Proverbs 31:30. Many dear friends (often more jokingly than serious) said that my highlights were not Godly as they promoted vanity and changed the way God made me. Yet this same standard did not apply to the perm. When questioned about this discrepancy few had a good answer.

Perms it seems are considered less "out there" than anything associated with dye. Even though the same to criteria for why the highlights were "bad" applied, many did not possess the same strong feelings towards a perm. Illustrating the dislike of the highlights probably had more to do with personal preference than sound argument.

I do not feel that either is really a problem. It probably goes under the category of not "unlawful but not necessarily expedient." Not horrible to do but probably my time and money could be used better elsewhere.

just lost my post

Alright I just wrote this beautiful post on spring and the beauty of a spring storm. But my computer did something odd and I lost it. I'm feeling a sudden lost of inspiration so I'll just go with.

"Change comes a surely as the seasons and twice as quick."

Just as the spring storm cleanses the staleness of winter. I long for this change of seasons to renew my tired heart.