JUST ANOTHER DAY AT WORK

In case you ever wondered what I would look like as a sculpture made out of chewed chewing-gum, then wonder no more. . .

Please note the attention to details [it WAS a curly/wavy hair day for me and I WAS wearing a green vest, I can assure you that I was NOT, however, wearing green lipstick]. Perhaps my middle school friends have a future in gum-sculpting. . .

Gotta love this job!

WALKING WITH GOD

Earlier this month I spent two whole weeks in the mountains for some work training -- for being a requirement of the job, I think I may have lucked out. . .just a little.

While I was there, I somehow managed to pick up the habit of going on walks. I just started walking aimlessly one day when I couldn't think of anything better to do, ended up enjoying it (and the scenery), and thus, started working it in to almost any free time that we had, spicing it up with music. . .and the occasional walking partner(s) as well.

What made these walks the most meaningful for me though was the undeniable presence of God in them -- in the handiwork of His creation that was laid out before me, in the sweet stillness around me that allowed for me to focus on what He would have me hear, and in the sunshine and/or moonlight that kissed my face and reminded me that I had a Companion with me on my walk. It was indescribable. 

Being back at home now, amidst the hustle and bustle of everyday life, part of me yearns for that escape to simplicity, where God seems most accessible. And yet, I find myself being reminded that God is ever present regardless of where I am, or what's going on, and if I seek Him I will in fact find Him. Not only am I capable of walking with God, and He with me, in the beautiful calm of the mountains, but also in the hidden beauty of "the everyday." All I have to do is make the effort to walk with Him wherever I am, and He will show up. 

Thank goodness.

 

PROVERBIAL END OF THE YEAR REFLECTIONS

Oh 2010, you were an interesting year. Little did I know this time a year ago all that you would hold in store for me. . .

You helped me reacquaint myself with patience and faith while I lived in my parents' house [yet again], jobless and frustrated. You reminded me of the joys of adventure when I "visited" my brother and sister-in-law in southern California for five weeks. You allowed me to relax and enjoy the company of loved ones while traveling through Florida and the Caribbean. You showed me that God's timing is not my own when I finally landed a job with an organization that's near and dear to my heart, in a location that I've loved before, Colorado. You blessed me with a new stage in life, a new home, a new community that is challenging me, amazing me, growing me, and exciting me as I continue to see/experience all that it entails.

2010, while parts of you might not have necessarily been enjoyable, all of you was elemental in shaping and molding me, and for that I am grateful. Thanks for a good run!

. . . 2011, what do you have up your sleeve?

COME AND KNOCK ON MY DOOR. . .

Thanksgiving has come and gone so it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas around here. Now all we need is the snow!

STILL NEEDS SOME WORK . . .

In spite of the temperature being in the high 70s today, a fall-like meal was sounding awfully nice come dinner time. Enter cheesy vegetable soup, my recipe for the month of September. 

Unfortunately, I had a wee bit of a problem in successfully completing the recipe and ended up with some huge (and I mean huge) chunks of melted cheese. It looks like I'll be going back to the drawing board (a.k.a. stove) with this one. . .However, it was still pretty darn tasty as it was. If anyone knows how to melt cheese properly in order to get it to a liquidy consistency though, help a girl out! Please, and thank you.

Until next time, goodbye from the kitchen!

OKTOBERFEST

My friend Jen is traveling through Europe at the moment. She was lucky enough to get to go to the actual Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany; I had to settle for Denver's version of it. And while I'm sure that what I took part in paled in comparison to the real deal, it still was fun in its own rite and even made me feel a little more connected to my own heritage.



Hopefully someday I'll have the chance to get decked out in a dirndl, eat authentic Bratwursts, and
Prost (toast) with German beer, but for now, I'll have to make due with drinking strawberry lemonade whilst watching an Asian man do a Bavarian dance in the streets of Denver.

Guten Tag meine Freunde!