I've been thinking

100 years is a long time

2009-08-27T20:45:00.002-05:00

Last weekend I made a trip back home to Chatom. I've been making a lot of those lately, and will make a lot more in the next 4 months. In the first few years of college I rarely made it back to Chatom. Going home usually meant going to the beach! I'm really glad that I've been able to spend so much time in my hometown recently, though. It's been so nice to soak up my last few months in Alabama while remembering growing up in that small town. I know I'll always be able to come back, but DC is much farther away than Auburn!

This time I went home to celebrate the 100th birthday of Chatom Baptist Church. Should it be anniversary? Either way, 100 years is a long time! It was so much fun to sit in that church and just listen to the history. It was especially neat because so much of the history includes my family. My great-great-grandparents were founding members of the church and set an example of faithfulness that has continued until today. I'm so thankful that the Lord continued to call the Schells/Hensons/Smiths/etc. to himself! I certainly hope and pray that he continues to do so for another 100 years!

6 months....

2009-08-03T10:35:00.002-05:00

... since I last posted here. I miss it. I'm going to try and start writing again. Granted, I don't think anyone will be as excited about my life in Auburn as they were about my life in Barcelona, but it will get me in the habit again. So, I'm going to use this space to write about my last 4 months and 29 days as a single lady, wedding planning, and all the tears I will shed about leaving Auburn. Maybe, just maybe, after January 1 there will be a new blog to go along with my new last name... :)

P.S. Jan. 1, 2010 is the big day... PTL!!!

Life since Spain...

2009-02-15T22:54:00.003-06:00

#1: This is mostly so I can look back and remember the last couple of months. It probably won't be entertaining.

#2: I already know that it will be horribly written.

I've been meaning to write this post for a while, but have only now taken the time to do so. Granted, it's 11 PM and I should be doing homework, so this should probably be classified as "procrastination tool." I've officially been home almost 2 months, but it has seemed so much longer!

I think I've gotten to the point that I can look back on Spain with fondness. It's not that I didn't enjoy my time there, but it was difficult. I have such a busy/fun life here in the States and many friends and family. I was harder to be away from them than I thought it would be. The last 4 weeks were really hard! It was not fun to watch my new fiance hop back on a plane to the States. I was definitely ready to be home after that! However, in the past week or so, I've been thinking back to specific days or trips with much fondness. I keep retracing my walk to school, the walk to the peanut butter aisle in El Corte Ingles, the walk down La Rambla... as much as possible. I can tell I'm losing the vividness of some of those sights. I know I have to get back there one day.

After I flew home, I was of course bombarded with, "How was Spain?" I really appreciate everyone's interest in the trip, but how to you answer that in the 3 sentences or less that they will listen to? "Um, it was different but good." "I enjoyed it." Those can't adequately describe the emotions and experiences that I had there. I don't really know if I had the wonderful experience I thought I would. It was fun and I would definitely recommend it to anyone (just not through KEI), but I don't think people want to hear, "It was alright."

Christmas break was excellent. I got to spend much needed time with my family, friends, as well as with Joel and his family. I think I was a little awkward around everyone at first, but it doesn't take long to relax when you are home. However, that doesn't mean that I wasn't busy. I came home and immediately launched into Christmas mode. After that made a trip to B'ham and brought Joel back to Chatom with me. We then spent a wonderful New Year's Eve with Kinzie, Adam, Virginia, Sarah, Shane, Brenna, and the star of the night, Savannah, before the Sasnetts came down for the weekend. Then it was back to Auburn to start a new semester!

Now I know why most people don't take 18 hours in a semester. It's hard! I am guaranteed at least 2 tests and an essay every week until May. On top of that I'm taking an 8 hr/week LSAT prep course. On top of that I'm also trying to plan a wedding. My anxiety issues have already started to kick in. I know they're getting bad when I wake up anxious. Worry/anxiety is something that is a huge struggle for me. It's a sin that I constantly battle. If you think about it, I could definitely use a prayer or two.

I'm really tired and I have no clue what to write about next. So, I'm going to go to bed. Maybe you should suggest a topic for me, and I'll use it for my next post.

A Domino effect.

2009-01-29T12:15:00.004-06:00

Well, my favorite magazine is closing its covers. I read People is the magazine that I read most often (maybe because it's weekly), but I'm always a sucker for Domino. I've read several stories of magazines having to stop their print because the economy sucks, but this one makes me really sad. I really like interior design. My mom definitely passed that on to me. Domino is one of those magazines that you can look through to see beautiful rooms, but they're accessible. It's like mixing Oscar de la Renta and Oscar's flea market. You think it would be bad, but it's oh so good!

If you've never experienced the wonder of Domino, click the link to check it out. I'm not positive, but I assume the website will live on.

I know that I'm pretty crappy at writing the blog entries that I say I will, but know that I have the best intentions. Soon, friends, soon.

Thank you, Joel, for pointing out my grammatically incorrect first sentence.

New year, new president

2009-01-20T11:18:00.002-06:00

As we all know, at 12:00 PM today Barack Obama was sworn in as the 44th president of the United States. At this point, it doesn't really matter if we agree with him or not. He is our president, and there are two things that we must acknowledge.

1) Today is truly a historical day. Tears came to my eyes as I watched the Obama family stand on the Capitol's west side. It really was only a generation ago that segregation was alive and strong. I am certain that God doesn't see race, and I don't think we should either.

2) As Christians, we have the privilege and duty to pray for our country's leaders. Southern Seminary president, Dr. Al Mohler, encourages us to pray, and shows us his prayer for President Obama here.

I encourage you to take a moment today to pray for Barack, Michelle, Malia, and Sasha Obama (by name:)), and for wisdom for our nation's leaders.

Toledo!

2009-01-14T16:37:00.008-06:00

So after stuffing our faces with tapas the night before, we arose pretty early Saturday morning and walked to the train station.

Our destination was Toledo. This little city is about a 30 minute train ride from Madrid. Like Granada, you instantly feel like you're seeing the real Spain when you're there. I don't really remember all of the history, and I would botch it if I tried... look it up on Wikipedia. Trust me, you might be amazed :)

It's one of those cities that you immediately feel cozy in. I think there are only about 80,000 citizens, and it has definitely maintained that village/small town vibe. Unfortunately, it was REALLY cold and windy that day, so parts of the tour weren't very enjoyable and I didn't "absorb" it like I should have. I really should have done this a long time ago because now I can't remember much! I'll just let the pictures do the talking :)

The next to last picture is most of the group at lunch in Toledo. It was in this restaurant that I discovered a hole in the crotch of my favorite pair of jeans. Awesome.

The trip was really fun though. Now I'll leave you with the view from the room Porschia and I were in.

That crazy lit up roof is the roof of a club in Madrid. We were told that it's "where all the pretty people go."

Madrid

2009-01-13T22:49:00.001-06:00

I'm trying to be enthusiastic as I write this post, but it's hard. I'm going to finally write this post because I know some people still want to see pictures from Madrid, and I don't think I can write my other posts until this one is done.

So, the morning after our Thanksgiving feast those of use in the KEI program boarded a train to Madrid. We got to ride the really fast train that my dad has been talking about since last Spring, but I was unaware of this until we arrived in Madrid. It was a little anti-climatic.

While in the city and the few days after I didn't think I liked Madrid. However, now that I think back on the trip, I think that it's a nice place. Maybe this is due to the fact that our group felt more like a group of friends than we had before. We finally got used to being around each other and could just hang out together.

We arrived in Madrid before lunch and had some free time to look around. Well, were were supposed to have quite a bit of time to look around, but it took some people a really long time at the bank, so Porschia, Chenell, Hunter and I left them. We only made it as far as KFC. It was gross and Chenell got sick, so I don't have especially fond memories of that lunch. After lunch we all headed to the famous Prado museum. I wasn't allowed to take pictures, but I did get some before we headed inside.
I have no clue which street this is, but I like the picture.
I'm pretty sure this is the front of the Prado. I don't really remember.
I got a few excellent pictures of Porschia, but I'll keep them under wraps... I think she would appreciate that.
I thought this church was pretty.
Juan-our tour guide at the Prado and in Toledo.

After the Prado, but before the tapas tour, a few of us stopped at a cafe for drinks. I was really cold that weekend, and we wanted heat! I'm not sure what happened to the rest of the group.
Caroline + cafe con leche = happy. Sorry for showing you a sideways picture.

Then, we met up with everyone for the tapas tour. Tapas are a much bigger deal in Madrid (and the rest of Spain) than they are in Barcelona. I didn't like them at all until this weekend. Genevieve took us to five different tapas bars so we could try all of their specialties. By the end of the night we were FULL! I didn't get many pictures of the food. It was almost gone by the time I could get my camera out.
Hunter and Jonathan getting ready for a night full of food.
According to the Guiness Book of World Records, this is the oldest established restaurant. In. The. World.
I was excited about my newfound love for tapas. Matthew wasn't putting up with any of my shenanigans.

This is the only picture I have of any food from that night. Patatas Bravas. Hunter was a happy man after eating in this bar.

Coming soon... Toledo!

Oh, motivation, where hast thou gone?

2009-01-13T14:15:00.002-06:00

So I've tried several times to write a blog post. I know I need to finish my Spain posts, and I have a few more I want to write. I've definitely become one of those people. You know the ones that are constantly thinking about which parts of the day are blog-worthy. That's ridiculous. I do like blogging though!

So, be on the lookout for many posts over the next few days. And if I don't write any, you should call me out on it. Hasta!

Happy New Year!

2008-12-29T10:10:00.003-06:00

We had a very quiet, but excellent Christmas. I've been in Pelham with Joel's family since Friday. We've had some good time with his family in Jasper, as well as with his sister and brother-in-law. I love getting to know his family more and spending time with them. I don't think I could have hand picked a better family to marry in to.

I know I haven't finished my Barcelona posts. I'm working on one about Madrid, as well as some that include random thoughts about Barcelona. Hopefully those will be posted soon, but probably not until 2009. :)

Speaking of, I am SO EXCITED about seeing everyone New Year's Eve!!!! It's going to be so good to see everyone again... and to meet Miss Savannah Grace!

Hasta...

Merry Sunday before Christmas!

2008-12-21T09:45:00.002-06:00

Well, I made it home from Barcelona! It feels so good to be back. Last night I spent the evening at some friend's farm in the woods. It was a throwback to high school. I don't miss high school, but I miss those trees, the thousands of stars, and the bonfire. I'll soon get around to updating on my last few days in Spain, but until then I'll leave you with this version of my favorite Christmas hymn. Enjoy!

Where are your manners?

2008-12-15T13:45:00.002-06:00

If you're out roaming the streets while it's raining, by all means you should have your over sized umbrella with you. I would use mine to.

However, if you are utilizing said umbrella you should not take up the small, dry space that building eaves so kindly provide.

Give the ill-prepared a little help, won't you?

Oh, Mr. Sandman...

2008-12-09T08:53:00.002-06:00

Just bring me some sleep!

Last night I turned my light off at almost 2 AM. At 4:03 I looked at the clock because my phone started going crazy (it's beside my clock). I had not slept a wink yet. I tossed and turned some more for a long while and then when I looked at the clock it was 7:47. I woke up at 8:48 to go to class.

This happened the other night as well.

I would really enjoy some sleep.

I think my body is getting tired of my Spanish bed.

New posts about Madrid coming tomorrow or Thursday!

Czech Me Out!

2008-12-06T09:55:00.000-06:00

So, it's the afternoon, and I need to be writing a very long paper about La Movida. What better time to write a blog post about Prague! This post will be very very long. Our internet is working well at the moment so I have to make the most of this opportunity.

Oh, and I'm listening to Christmas music. I don't like Christmas music unless it's a hymn. Something must be wrong.

By the way, did you know that you can listen to the radio on iTunes? I remember doing it once in high school before anyone really cared what iTunes was. I rediscovered it today. Oh, the things you overlook...

"Hang your stockings and say your prayers because Santa Claus comes tonight..."

My internet just started going in and out, so this post could take a llooooonnnnggg time to write.

In the beginning of November, Porschia and I took a trip to Prague. I had wanted to go to Prague for several years, so I knew this was one trip I had to take while I was living in Europe. Sure enough, Prague met and exceeded my expectations. I have to admit, I was initially a little nervous and scared I would be let down because it was already dark when I arrived. And it was 4 PM. I don't think it should ever be dark when you arrive in a city for the first time. Especially at 4 PM. However, everything is clearer in daylight and I fell in love the next morning. The city is beyond beautiful. It's so strange to walk into a building and then realize people have standing in the same spot since 1200. It's cool to observe history firsthand.

We hopped on the bus and then on the tram to get to our hostel. I observed 3 things during this first hour.
1. I don't think I have ever been as confused as I was in my first hour of hearing and seeing nothing but Czech. People talking, advertisements, announcements...
2. Czech people will STARE AT YOU ALL THE TIME NO MATTER IF YOU STARE BACK. I put that in caps because at the time, my thoughts were in caps too. It was odd to say the least.
3. There was no need for us to buy those tram tickets. No one pays anyway.

Then we arrived at our hostel, which I've already written about. I just want to emphasize again that this is the best hostel in the world.

We we to eat and walked around for a long time that night, but I chose not to take my camera. I wanted to kick myself about halfway through the night because I knew we were seeing things that I might not see again. And, when you're seeing it with fresh eyes, your pictures always come out better.

Friday morning we woke up and tried to make it to the free morning tour, but Oma (at the hostel) insisted that we have tea and toast. We were late. So, instead we decided to do a little sightseeing on our own and catch the afternoon tour.

Note: When you are in Prague (because you should go), take the Free Prague Walking Tours. Each one only a couple of hours long and you will get a good feel of the city and the places where you would like to spend more time. The guides work for tips, of which about 100-200 korunas is the norm. (That's still less than $10!)

And that's pretty much how our weekend was. We walked around A LOT, and we ate. Porschia and I found out that we travel really well together. We both will pretty much walk until our feet fall off to make sure we see everything, we don't like staying in dirty hostels, and we don't want to sacrifice good food in order to save a few bucks.

Now, what you've all been waiting for.... PICTURES!!! (I took 396, so it will be hard to pick just a few)

I had to have a picture with the astronomical clock. It really was a bit of a disappointment. Unless you're there at noon, it only chimes. At noon the two blue doors at the top open, and little puppet people pass by. I remember a show that used to come on the travel channel. It took 5-6 college aged kids and sent them around the world to just video their adventures. The first episode I saw was in Prague, and all I remember about it was the puppet people passing by the doors.

Walking towards the gateway to the Charles Bridge. All of the streets are tiny and cobblestoned (is that a word?)

One of many statues on the Charles Bridge.

This nice, wholesome work of art is by the Czech artist David Cerny. I'm just going to copy and paste the description from his website. The idea is disarmingly simple. Two bronze sculptures pee into their oddly-shaped enclosure. While they are peeing, the two figures move realistically. An electric mechanism driven by a couple of microproccesors swivels the upper part of the body, while the penis goes up and down. The stream of water writes quotes from famous Prague residents. Visitor can interupt them by sending SMS message from mobile phone to a number, displayed next to the sculptures. The living statue then ‘writes’ the text of the message, before carrying on as before. He has several other works in Prague including one with babies climbing up the building, a man hanging from a window, and this...

Moving along...

This is the world's smallest street. It really is an official street. At the bottom is a restaurant, and there is a traffic light to let you know when to walk. Apparently people get stuck in there a lot.

Lennon wall. The graffiti on this walls started when John Lennon was killed. The city repainted it several times before deciding to "Let It Be."

I'm pretty proud of that one...

The main courtyard to the BIGGEST CASTLE IN THE WORLD!!!

This is inside the castle. The whole castle is like a big city. I don't know why blogger stopped rotating my pictures for me.

The president lives in this part of the castle. When the flag is up it means he is home. It was up. We hung out for a few hours.

How beautiful is this city!

One night Porschia and I decided to go on a riverboat cruise. The website told us, "Do not compare it to riverboat cruises that you might find in London or Paris and you will have fun." The next two pictures were taken from the boat. Low light + moving boat = more than a few blurry pictures.

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The church in Old Town Square.

The old gunpowder tower... or something?

Caroline, Charles Bridge, Prague Castle

Watch out, Reuben! Porschia has a new man!

The Charles Bridge and Prague Castle in daylight.

My next little story and photo montage concerns our Saturday lunch. We had been told to to to a beer house called U Fleku. The building has been there since the 1400s, and it is the place to go to experience Czech culture. The Czechs are especially proud of their beer. So, we went to U Fleku to have some traditional Czech food, and had to have the beer because they don't serve anything else... seriously. You don't even get to choose what kind you want because they just put it in front of you. Before we finished we saw at least 3 people either passed out or carried out the door... and it was NOON! I must say it was a good experience though. There were musicians playing Czech folk songs and everyone sang along, the food wasn't great but wasn't terrible, but it was the kind of loud boisterous environment that you only see in movies. I loved it.

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Wenceslas Square to one direction...

...and the other direction. It's large. The entire time I was trying to remember the song, but it was only after I came back that I did.

I think this is the national museum... or library...

And that's pretty much it! I'm tired from uploading all of those pictures, but I have one more. I woke up during the flight back to Barcelona, and this is what I saw from my window...

Isn't God good?

The BEST hostel in Prague!

2008-12-05T10:00:00.000-06:00

Before I write my post about Prague, I have to give a review of the hostel we stayed in.

Porschia and I found our hostel on HostelWorld (I told you I love it!) Once again, the most important criteria we had was its cleanliness rating. One we found Prague's Heaven and it's 99% cleanliness rating, we were sold! The price was pretty good too!

So, we arrived at Prague's Heaven at around 5 Thursday evening and were greeted by the nicest people. The hostel only has a few rooms but it's really cozy and has been updated. The bathrooms looked like they were remodeled recently. They showed us to our room (we got a private room) which was SPOTLESS! No kidding. I don't love staying in hotels anyway, but this room and bathroom were cleaner than many hotels that I've stayed in before. I've stayed in nice places before, but youth pastors and field trip organizers aren't the best at picking winners, you know. My mom would have been okay staying here... and that's saying something :)

The staff were really helpful in showing us where to go and places to see. In the mornings and afternoon Oma (one of the owner's mother) would greet us with breakfast or hot tea to knock off the chill. She didn't speak much English, but she was the cutest thing ever. If you have to be somewhere at a certain time, build in about 20-30 minutes for morning time with Oma :)

The only semi-negative thing I have to say about Prague's Heaven is it's location. It is not located in the middle of the tourist attractions (Charles Bridge, Old Town Square, etc.), but it's really not a problem. The tram system runs 24 hours a day and is really efficient. It took maybe 10-15 minutes to get to all of the action.

If you're making a trip to Prague, try to stay at Prague's Heaven. I promise you won't be disappointed!

Where to Stay: Granada Hostel edition

2008-12-04T08:00:00.000-06:00

After searching around on HostelWorld (which I highly recommend), Jonathan and I decided on Mochi Guesthouse. It combined the main two things we were looking for: a high cleanliness rating (me) and it was fairly cheap (Jonathan). So we booked two beds in the co-ed dorm and away we went! (By the way, the co-ed dorm thing was a little weird for me.)

I have since stayed at nicer places, but my time at Mochi Guesthouse made for a good first hostel experience. On the upside you could use their internet and kitchen as much as you wanted. The beds were very comfortable and clean and the people running it were wonderful! Takashi deals with all of the customers and is fluent in several languages. He was very helpful and easy to talk to. We hung out some while I was waiting on Jonathan. His mother owns and lives in the guesthouse. She only speaks Spanish so she didn't interact with guests much, but she did wake up at 5 AM to call a taxi for me!

On the downside, it is located in the heart of the Albaicin area and about a 10 minute walk to all of the action. If Jonathan had not been with me I would have felt very uncomfortable walking back and forth at night. There were some girls traveling alone that did it, but they must be braver than I. Also, Granada is in the mountains and it gets very cold once the sun starts going down. There was no heat, but the bedding was thick and I actually slept very well.

While I'm sure there are a lot more options (both better and worse) for staying in Granada, I would recommend at least looking at the Mochi Guesthouse. It worked for me!

Caroline and Jonathan in Granada

2008-12-04T06:23:00.006-06:00

In October (I think) my friend Jonathan and I decided to make a trip to Granada. We had heard it is beautiful, and you can get free tapas pretty much any bar you visit. Sold!

Oh, and to show that I learned something while there, Granada was the last city Isabel and Ferdinand captured from the Moors. They are buried here instead of in Madrid like so many other rulers.

These aren't tapas that you get in Barcelona. Barcelona is not a real tapas city. These are real tapas. Of substantial portions. And no let's-see-who-can-make-the-most-creative-but-smallest-tapas-in-the-world either.

So, being the ambitious world travelers that we are, hopped on our 5 AM flight. Oh, and the airport is an hour away. Oh, and we didn't sleep the night before because we had to hop on a greyhound at 3 AM anyway. Anyway... we finally made it. The first thing we did was take a nap. Actually, I napped and read and Jonathan slipped into a coma. After our room was ready and we freshened up a bit, we went in search of some tapas.

After walking around a bit without seeing anything appetizing we just decided that we would go into the next place we came upon. And did we ever stumble across a place. We walked in and took a seat. Jonathan went to the bar to get some drinks and came back with the weirdest look on his face.
Me: Trouble ordering?
Him: I think this is a gay bar.
Me: What? No, maybe there are just some gay people here.
Him: I saw rainbow flags, and look at the wall behind you.

I turned around and there was an entire wall covered in pictures and articles promoting homosexuality. Then we started noticing all of the people in there. Definitely a gay bar. We just laughed at ourselves and finished our drinks, but it was an interesting experience to say the least. And we didn't get tapas. After that we went to another place to eat, and it was good.

Then we ventured to the cathedral. I actually can't remember the name of it. I'm having a hard time remembering details to most of this trip (should have written this earlier). This is the most beautiful cathedral I have ever seen in my life. It's HUGE and amazing. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. They were tuning the organ though, and that was a little annoying. Jonathan and I sat in here for about 2 hours just talking about life and religion. Good times.

The next day our big stop was La Alhambra. This was a city built by the Moors when they occupied Spain. Washington Irving "re-discovered" it in 1829 and made it famous again. You could literally spend 6 hours here and never see all of it. Insane! We only spent about 4... we were getting hungry :).

That night, we met with a friend of Jonathan's and some of her friends for dinner and a flamenco show. Flamenco is really from this region of Spain, so it was cool to see it really performed.

Then I had to fly back the next morning. Sorry for the lack of pictures and enthusiasm. I took almost 400 pictures on this trip, and it's really hard to sift through them all. And I'm kind of forgetting all of the details :(

BUT...

To see more pictures click here.

Thanksgiving in Spain!

2008-12-03T15:39:00.012-06:00

Most of my time here in Spain is spent with non-Americans. So, when we would lament our missing out on Thanksgiving last week, we were met with lots of questions. I ended up getting 2-count them 2!- Thanksgiving meals from these questions. The first one was with my small group at the church I'm attending here. Really it was a Thanksgiving celebration/going away party. Our friend Tim left us for sunny south Spain. He brought Christmas pudding to our Thanksgiving meal... silly Brit.

A portion of our delicious meal!

The guest of honor and I. We're awkward.

This is Heather. We met through our blogs AND she helped us get engaged. She's alright I guess... JUST KIDDING!!! I'm not sure why this is sideways. Blogger usually flips it for you.

The whole group. My camera was the last one, and everyone was tired of taking pictures. You can't see everyone's face.

Then the next night, Porscia and I cooked a feast for my roommates and a few other people. Also, it was Chenell's birthday, so we celebrated that too.

It's not the best picture, but it shows everyone. L-R: Marina, Me, Chenell, Porschia, Jonathan, Hunter, Chris, Anna

This is part of our feast. Porschia made the meats, chicken and beef tenderloin. I made the sides, homemade mac & cheese, broccoli and cauliflower salad, dressing, and caramelized sweet potatoes. And Chenell made rice.

Porschia and I really tried to find normal cake mix so that we could make cupcakes for Chenell, but all we found was flan mix... GROSS! We ended up buying an ice cream cake from Consum (my grocery store of choice). Then she kept trying to make a speech... 2 or 14 times. We had to make her stop because the candles were melting her cake.

It wasn't Thanksgiving with the family, but it was about as good as it could get. I really enjoyed not only sharing some of my culture with people, but I really enjoyed the time we spent together. I really do have a little family here :)

Simply the best...

2008-11-25T09:25:00.010-06:00

...better than all the rest! You know you sang it as soon as you saw the title.

I bet you're asking yourself, "What is the best? What is she talking about?" Well, I'm talking about my weekend. This past weekend starting with last Thursday.

As of Thursday, November 20, 2009, I am officially off the market. That's right, I'M GETTING MARRIED!!!!

I'm that girl that started dreaming about being married and having a family as soon as I figured out what they were. I've tried very hard to have patience for this time in my life to come, and now it's here!

I guess you want to know how this happened since I'm in Spain and Joel is still in DC, right?

Thursday started like any other day. I got out of bed about 20 minutes later than I should have. I basically jogged to class so I wouldn't be too late. (Incidentally, I was the first person to arrive that day. First time all semester!) We had a lovely Spanish class, and we left the building discussing an emergency room bill and how insurance works in a foreign country. As we turned the corner beside our school, I turned around to tell one of my classmates something. Well, I never finished my sentence because Joel was walking along behind us waiting for me to turn around! He had flown in to surprise me! I, of course, didn't know what to think. I had no reason to think that he would fly to Spain to visit me.

We went back to my apartment to eat and just hung out for a while. At around 1 Joel decided to go back to his hotel to take a nap and I went for a run. We decided to meet up again at 5 to go to Palau Nacional at Montjuic. As far as I knew, we were just going there because I had talked about it so much. The view is A-MAZING, and it has been my favorite spot in Barcelona since I moved here. So, once arrived and walked up the many many steps to get to the top we sat down to talk and just see the city lights come on as the sun set. After a few minutes Joel wanted to go to the corner "to see a different view of the city." It was there that he talked about the last year and a half and got down on one knee. If I remember correctly, the last couple of sentences went something like this, "I'm tired of saying 'I like you' (taking a knee) Amzie Caroline Schell, will you marry me?"

Actually, I don't know if that was really what was said because I can't remember it all. Who actually remembers details in a moment like that?! I do know he said something about being tired of saying "I like you," though. (We decided at the beginning of our relationship to not kiss or say "I love you" until we were engaged. I don't say that to toot our own horn, but rather to explain that we've been stupid in relationships before.)

So, of course I said "YES!!!!"

Then, because of the time difference, and because everyone we wanted to call was at work/school, we got to hang out for a few hours and revel in our engaged-ness. And then we bought peanut butter. I kid you not. That's just how we roll.

That's our story! The rest of the best weekend yet was spent sightseeing and hanging out with my friends from ICB. It was really fun to show Joel what my life has been like here!

And now, what you've been waiting for. Pictures! Actually, these aren't from the night of the proposal. It completely slipped our minds to take pictures! But we went back the next night for a re-enactment. That's what you're seeing. :)

Yep, I got engaged on the terrace of this beauty...

...with this view!

On bended knee

Hanging out at La Sagrada Familia.

Parc Guell is cool.

The bling! Joel's grandmother's diamond and made by my Uncle Robby. Perfect!

Right now everything is roses and rainbows for us. It's yet to get difficult. I don't expect married life to be roses and rainbows. I expect it to be the most difficult thing I've ever done. But I know it's going to be more than worth it, and I consider it a joy to have the opportunity to work on such a relationship. That's infinitely better than roses and rainbows :)

I'm grateful to so many people for helping all of this work.

Thank you,Heather, for lying. :) Heather created a false trip to the Dali museum so that I wouldn't skip town for the weekend. And I really believed her. And I was really excited to see this museum that everyone keeps talking about. I like what happened more, though.

Thank you creator of Google maps for being so user-friendly and for adding street view for Barcelona. You're contribution to the proposal helped Joel find my school. Joel and I had looked at Barcelona on Google maps several times. I didn't think anything about it because it's not uncommon for him to make me look at a random map for hours at a time.

Thank you Tempest for flying in to see Porschia this weekend. If you had not been on the same flight, Porschia would have never recognized Joel in the currency exchange line. Therefore, Joel might not have ever made it through Estacio Sants.

Thank you Balmes Hotel for having reliable internet. There's no way we could have relied on the internet in my apartment to call and spread the news. (I added a link because it's a nice hotel in Barcelona. It's clean.)

Thank you Uncle Robby in being so generous in making my ring! I LOVE IT!!!!

Thank you Lucinda for reminding Joel that I would like a ring from my uncle. :) And more seriously, thank you for encouraging when I was impatient. You're the best best friend ever! (She got on the phone after having her wisdom teeth cut out just to talk to us. That's a good friend!)

Thank you everyone and their mother than knew about this and kept their mouth shut. :)

Many many thanks to our parents and grandparents for showing us such a wonderful example of marriage. We have conversations about you guys, and we have been blessed by your relationships. You have many years of practice... please pass along some wisdom.

Ditto for all of you recently married friends :) You can pass along some insight that the old pros have forgotten about!

Thank you Joel for choosing me :) You really are the most wonderful man I've ever met. Life is just beginning for us, and it's going to be exciting! I can't wait to be your wife!

Stay tuned!

Posts a plenty and a pickpocket.

2008-11-18T07:01:00.002-06:00

Since I'm SO behind on blogging, the forecast calls for a flood of posts over the next few days. Before I get back to the daunting task of trying to upload pictures with this crappy internet (have I mentioned once or a hundred times that I hate it?) I wanted to share a few stories with you guys.

#1: I have a stalker... maybe.
Last Monday, between my two classes, I rushed to the grocery store to find some lunch. As I was walking down Carrer d'Aribau someone called out to me. I didn't know if the person was actually talking to me, so I turned around to check. He was. The conversation that followed went something like this.
(In Spanish)
Guy: Hi, how are you?
Me: Um... I'm okay.
Guy: You're not from Spain are you?
Me: No. Is it obvious?
(Now in English)
Guy: My name is Dennis. I knew you weren't Spanish. I thought maybe you were Russian or German. I can tell now that you're from the United States. I just wanted to stop you and tell you that I think you are very beautiful.
Me: Er... Thanks, I guess.
Guy: I've see you walking down the street all the time, so I figured now was a good time to talk to you. You're going to Consum, right? (Consume is a grocery store, and by this point I was a little creeped out)
Me: Yeah, a girl's gotta eat sometime.
Guy: And when you go to Consum you walk through the little park as a shortcut, don't you? I see you walking through there a lot. (At this point I was really creeped out.) I live in an apartment beside the pharmacy. My window looks over the park.
Me: Um... okay. Well, I'm going to leave now. This is really awkward.
Guy: Don't be scared, I just want to talk to you. Can we go get coffee sometime? How can I get in touch with you again?
Me: I guess you're just going to have to rely on luck, but I don't think it's a good idea anyway. Goodbye...

Then I walked away very very quickly and took the back streets home. Since then I've been very aware when I go out. I'm not scared of the guy, I just want to avoid him as much as possible.

#2: My reflexes make Edward Cullen look like a slug.
Preface: Edward Cullen is a character in my latest book obsession Twilight (and the 3 following books). My reflexes in this situation aren't really any faster than anyone else's would have been in this situation.

This past weekend, a girl in my program and I went to Prague (more on that later). We flew back to Barcelona on Sunday morning, and it was a very hectic morning beginning with us almost missing our flight. Finally, we arrived at the Barcelona airport and could calm down a little. To get to and from the airport it's more economical to take a train from the city center. Well, we were some of the last passengers to get on the train to take us to the city center, so, needless to say, we didn't get seats. A group of guys jumped on the train at the last minute too. Because we didn't have seats, I just plopped my happy self down on my suitcase to ride home. They guys were standing a little too close to us, but I didn't think much about since the train was quite crowded, however, I did think to put my purse in my lap and I was holding on to it. After a little while I could feel my purse moving some. It was almost like something was tugging at it, but I figured that it was just because people's coats were rubbing against it. I looked down and saw that the zipper was halfway open. That's weird, I thought. Maybe I just forgot to zip it after exchanging my money. I just zipped it up and continued talking to Porschia. Then I felt the tug again. I looked down and the guy standing beside me was trying to unzip my purse!!! I quickly slapped his hand away before he could open it any and gave him my glare. The glare that only comes out when I'm really really mad. Only when I'm seething mad. He stared at me, and then kind of jumped at me to intimidate me! It was as if he was trying to make me feel ashamed that he got caught trying to steal my wallet! What an idiot! Well, I wasn't intimidated and the whole thing was over just as soon as it started. The train was stopping at that point and the guys jumped off as soon as they could. I have a feeling that if they had stayed on longer there would be more than one person getting mad, and it wouldn't have been pretty. (Porschia was just as mad as I was when I told her what happened.) If I had not been sitting down I would have kicked him in the shin or kneed him in the groin. Or even poked him in the eyeballs. As Dwight K. Schrute said, "The eyes are the groin of the head."

Moral of the story: Pickpockets are sneaky. I was paying attention and being careful, and the perp still got his grimy paws on my purse zipper. Luckily I have super sensitive senses and stopped the crime before it could even start.

Coming soon...
Granada
Prague
Maybe I'll think of something else

Valencia numero dos

2008-10-28T07:43:00.017-05:00

As promised, this is the conclusion to the Valencia post... just a few weeks later than promised... I really have tried, but our internet gets worse as time goes on. I just get frustrated and have to remove myself from the situation for a while.

Where did I leave off?

After we finished looking around Mikalet...

Genevieve, our on-site coordinator and tour guide extraordinaire, took us to try orxata (or horchata). Orxata is a traditional drink of Valencia made from tiger nuts. I will now pause for you to laugh at the inappropriate jokes that could be made now.

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This is what it looks like.

I have to say, I didn't like it at all. At all! I tried a few sips, but it's very VERY sweet and kind of chalky. There was just too much flavor for me. Looks like a milkshake, smells like a milkshake, tastes NOTHING like a milkshake.

Our trek through Valencia continued with a tour of the old stock exchange building. I've seen a lot of buildings in my 21 years of life, but this was one of the most impressive. It wasn't very ornate or big, but everything just looked like quality handiwork. It seemed like every detail was carefully planned not to overwhelm, but to give form and function equal value.

I didn't get many pictures, but only because there weren't many rooms to photograph in the first place.

Next, we walked across the street to the market. I love going into markets like this one. There are always so many different kinds of people there... not to mention the many different kinds of food and trinkets. I walked away with a cute little ceramic dish. I think Valencia's market is much brighter and cleaner than Barcelona's La Boqueria.

Here's a random picture of the flags of Spain and Catalunya (I think. Heather, you should correct me on this.)

The last stop on the tour of Valencia was the ceramics museum.
That lady wouldn't get out of the way.

Valencia can claim their fame with two things: paella* and ceramics. Have I told you that already? The museum was interesting for a while, but it showcased lots of things that weren't ceramic at all. Like fans. With pictures of people on them.
Creepy.

There was also a kitchen made entirely of ceramic pieces. It's not for little people. It was a sunken room, and I was standing on the top step.

That's all I have of Valencia. It was a nice trip. I hear that the beach is beautiful, but because of time constraints and the weather we didn't get to experience that. Maybe another day!

*Valencian paella, the original paella, is made with chicken and rabbit meat. Typically you see paella made with seafood, but it's not the original recipe.

Valencia!!!

2008-10-27T10:33:00.014-05:00

Our internet seems to be working tonight, so I can finally catch up a little bit.

All of the KEI students headed to Valencia for our first overnight excursion on October 10 (I think...). I thought I would be getting out of Catalunya for a while, but I was sadly mistaken. It's not that I don't like Catalunyans, but I was ready to see a different "culture." I was really excited because I had heard so many great things about Valencia (mainly about the beach and how beautiful everything is). However, I was just a tad let down. The trip was was still good and the city is beautiful, but it was rainy and cold the whole time. Plus, we never made it to the beach. I would recommend visiting though. It's quite a bit smaller, and much less busy than Barcelona. I think it's perfect for a relaxing weekend getaway for people in Barcelona. It's only a few hours away by train, and there are lots of little shops, cafes, and restaurants to visit.

This used to be a river bed. The river kept flooding the city, so in 1957 the city officials decided to reroute it. Now there's a beautiful park there. You can definitely tell it's a river bed though. It had been raining, and it smelled like nasty river mud. If you've ever smelled that before, and I think it's safe to say that most of the readers here have, then you know it's a really gross smell.

The next few pictures are from our time at the City of Arts and Sciences designed by Santiago Calatrava. He's also designed the telecommunications tower in Barcelona and is currently working on a few projects in the States (like the future train station at Ground Zero).

This is the performing arts building. Can you guess what it's modeled after?
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If you guessed a gladiator's helmet you are correct! That's all I have to say about that.

These are a few more buildings that make up the complex. The first one resembles an eye. It's very hard to see in this picture, but it's very cool in person. Inside there's a domed theater (IMAX), so when you look through the windows from the outside it really does look like the iris of an eye. So clever! We got to watch a movie at the IMAX. It was about the ocean. I fell asleep. I really didn't want to fall asleep though because Johnny Depp narrated it. I'll watch anything that includes Johnny Depp. I even sat through Sweeny Todd for him! Granted, I had my eyes covered 85% of the time, but I was listening even then. I'm getting off track. :) The second building houses a science museum, but we didn't make it farther than the bathrooms there. Our time was just too short.

This is just a garden to the side. I don't think it serves much of a purpose, but what do I know?

Then we had a photo shoot.

Katherine doesn't care, I chose the sorority pose, and Chenell is cold.

Then it was time for a new location.

That darn wind wouldn't leave us alone!

Finally! All of the girls get a picture together!

See, it really was rainy and nasty!

This is the best view I had of Mikalet, the famous church of Valencia. Actually, Mikalet is just the tower, but the whole church is referred to as that. Did you know that the perimeter of the tower's base and its height are the same? Well, now you do.

A view from the top! There were over 200 steps to climb. And they were winding steps with uneven risers that were never less than a foot and a half. Our thighs and butts were definitely burning by the time we got to the top!

So, the internet has decided to stop working like it should. I've been trying to upload pictures for 2 hours now... and there aren't even that many. I think this is a good start though! Too bad it's a few weeks late and I now have another trip to tell you guys about. I'll finish this tomorrow... pinky promise :)

Adoption Spotlight

2008-10-26T09:25:00.002-05:00

I can't say that I'll ever like the Georgia Bulldogs, but I really admire their coach, Mark Richt. This isn't the first time I've seen him "featured" for his faith. It's so encouraging to see another family apply and extend their understanding of adoption through Christ to orphans.

Comida

2008-10-20T14:48:00.004-05:00

This might come as a surprise to you, but.....I like to cook and I really like vegetables. Take a gander at what I ate tonight :)

Pasta with sauteed zucchini, asparagus, and tomatoes in a lemon and light garlic sauce. Yum!

**I really am working on the Valencia post, but it takes forever to upload pictures with this internet. I'm doing it in phases.

Prayer Request

2008-10-19T13:27:00.003-05:00

Hello all! I just found out that my roommate, Alex, has meningitis. Right now she is recovering well, but is still in ICU just so they can monitor her constantly. They say she should be out in a few days. My other roommate and I have already been to the hospital and taken some medication to kill any of the bacteria that we might have. If you think about it, please pray for a quick recovery for Alex and that Anna, I, and the rest of the students at ESEI won't get sick also.

**UPDATE: We just got news from Alex's boyfriend. She woke up today and spoke, which is a good sign. There's still a bit of recovery, but he said today was much better than yesterday.

Here's the deal....

2008-10-18T15:39:00.002-05:00

I know there's some speculation about the whole divorce and remarry thing.

I know she was a little before my time.

I just really wish I could be her friend.

I just really like Amy Grant.

Time is running out...

2008-10-17T19:46:00.002-05:00

62. My countdown widget says that's how many days I have until I pack up all of my belongings in Barcelona and head back to the States.

Until then I'm going to try to see as much as possible.

In Barcelona (yet to be planned): FC Barcelona game, Tibidabo, as many museums as possible, La Pedrera, El Poble Espanyol (again)...

Outside of Barcelona (mostly planned): Madrid, Granada, Prague, Venice... and I would like to make it back to Switzerland before I leave. I may have one or two more free weekends... any suggestions?

La Merce continued...

2008-10-17T09:42:00.007-05:00

I was about to post some pictures from last weekend's trip to Valencia, but I realized that I never finished posting pictures from La Merce. These pictures are from Gigantes, the giants parade, and the popular pyromusical at Placa Espanya.

These are the giants. They represent the kings and queens of Spain's past, and they are huge! People are standing under the skirts carrying them. I imagine they were very tired by the end of the parade...

There are some little giants too! Little giants? Is that possible?

A high school band... does this bring back any memories? I saw on Facebook that my high school's marching band is headed to competition this weekend. I threw this in there for them.

These are the only ones I'm going to add of the pyromusical. It was basically a glorified fireworks show timed to music. I didn't get very good pictures because we were stuck behind a metro stop covering. The tall guy with us took these for me.

Love from Spain!

2008-10-13T18:38:00.004-05:00

Hola!

Today I got a little "Love from USA" in the mail!

This is me saying "Hi" back :)

Thanks Kinzie and Adam for the card! Our sweet little doorlady gave it to me first thing this morning. It was an excellent and encouraging start to my day. I often neglect to recognize how almighty he really is in daily life, but with a few things happening in the past few days I've really failed to remember his sovereignty and power. How quickly I forget "I Am." Amos 4:13 was an excellent reminder of the great God that we serve!

*I had my first trip outside of Barcelona this past weekend. We went to Valencia for an overnight trip. As soon as I can get a converter to charge my camera I'll post some pictures. (I blew my converter trying to straighten my hair. A flame popped out and it smoked for at least 30 minutes. I just threw it on the balcony... it's still there.)

It's not from The Knot, but...

2008-10-09T07:19:00.005-05:00

Angela and Andy have a wedding website!

I haven't been able to watch my beloved show this season (who knew that NBC won't allow their full episodes to be viewed overseas?), but this made me giggle. I actually have NO CLUE what is happening, so don't tell me. I hate having the end of movies/books/shows/etc. ruined.

Too bad the website isn't for JAM (that's Jim and Pam, if you didn't know).

**If you know a way for me to watch episodes while I'm here, please share.

Laundry Tips for Living Abroad

2008-10-08T12:09:00.002-05:00

I just finished two large loads of laundry, and I started thinking, "I wish I had known ____ about doing laundry before I got here." I actually did search the internet a lot to find lists and helpful hints, but I guess nothing replaces old fashioned experience.

So, I'm going to share with you what I've learned so far. Lucky you :)

1. Check the tags of your clothes before you leave your country, and only bring clothes that you can wash. I brought one of my favorite sweaters with me, but I had not worn in in a year and failed to remember that it is supposed to be dry cleaned. I would wear it a few times before retiring it, but I somehow came home smelling like a cigarette that night.

2. Bring clothes that are easy to wash. My washing machine (like every other appliance in the house) does not have any word labels. Instead, there are just a bunch of random pictures that don't really make much sense. Thus, I still haven't conquered the gentle/hand-wash cycle.

3. Learn how to hand-wash clothes. I've been using the washing machine for towels, t-shirts, pjs, etc., but I've noticed that things have started to come out a little misshapen. (I obviously haven't figured out how to change the spin speed either.) I now hand-wash if there is the slightest doubt as to how it will hold up in the washer.

4. Pack clothes that dry quickly! There is no dryer in our apartment, as is the case in most apartments in Spain (and probably most of Europe). Everything must be hung up to dry, and this just isn't always easy when you have 3 girls living together. As you can probably imagine, there are clothes hanging out 85% of the time.

5. Invest in a drying rack... well, if you will be there for an extended amount of time. A lot of clotheslines are on a balcony, but ours is in a dark alley. You never know, this could be the case with you as well. I just don't like the idea of my clothes hanging to dry in a dark damp alley. Honestly, it seems germy to me. When I can, I put my drying rack and wet clothes on the balcony (the sun is good for killing germs). However, most of the time it's just sitting in our hallway. It's really funny when people just stop by and the first thing they see is our underwear hanging in front of them.

6. Wear clothes more than once before washing! It may seem obvious, but so many people just won't do this. A lot of times your clothes don't really get dirty after one wear. For instance, wear your jeans at least 5 or 6 times before you wash them. I actually wash my jeans maybe maybe twice a month, and I wear them almost every day. Some people (ahem, Lucinda) think this is dirty, but you're probably not going to be rolling around in mud. And really, noone notices. Plus, the more you wash your jeans, the quicker they get thin, frayed, and just plain worn-out.

That's all I can think of right now. This is kind of a lame post, but let's just say it's part of my "helpful hints" series.

Snot, Vanity, and a big CONGRATS!!!

2008-10-06T13:45:00.007-05:00

Hello friends! I hope everything is going well with all of you. I know we're all mourning Saturday's loss, but you're not dealing with a fair-weather fan here. Yes, I'm quite disappointed (after all, it was just Vandy), but I'm no less loyal.

First, I'm just going to cut to the chase: I'm sick again. Luckily, this isn't the same kind of sick. So far it just seems like a head cold, and I think I'll be fine in a few days. This next bit of information is a little gross. I don't want to gross you out, but I kind of do. Skip a few sentences if you wish. I had projectile snot today when I sneezed. I don't remember that ever happening to me. Spit, yes, but not snot. Usually, I only get sick when the seasons change from Winter to Spring (and that's just sinus problems), but it seems like I've been sick the entire time I've been in Barcelona. Luckily, the girl at the pharmacy next door (literally) speaks English and was able to give me some meds that I still haven't taken. Let's hope this one doesn't lead to a 9:30 PM, 70 euro, retired navy doctor visit. So far I think my self-made remedy of ice cream, lots of tea, orange juice, water, and soup is working. Emphasis on the ice cream and tea. But not together. That's gross.

Second, you may or may not know, but I like to keep up with the celebrity gossip. I can't find an English People here, so I've been visiting the website almost every day (if you didn't know Brangelina and kids are in New York for the first time as a family since Knox and Viv were born). And it kills me that I'm not getting all of the articles. I LOVE People magazine and look forward to every week's issue. Typically I read the news and then forget about it until something jogs my memory. However, there's one story that's been bothering me for several weeks. I'm SO aggravated with Eva Longoria's comment, "I'm not pregnant, I'm just fat." First of all, there's nothing fat about Eva Longoria. Apparently she's gained some weight for her role on Desperate Housewives, but I don't hesitate to say that she's probably still a size 0! Those things do bother me, but the thing that bothers me the most is that so many young girls are reading/hearing that comment. Those same young girls are comparing themselves to her and believing the lies that Hollywood tells. I'm definitely not immune to these lies, but I do try to guard my thoughts and not believe them. I'm not too far removed from the pre-teen/teenage years, and I have definitely struggled with my image. There have been more days than not that I would not link my identity to Christ. There were many days (and still are) that I completely disregarded that favored passage, Psalm 139. I think that it is even harder for young girls to find their identity in Christ than it was a few years ago. I'm amazed at what the media bombards young teenage girls with. I hope that I not only dedicate myself to praying for these girls more, but that I would be open with and an example for the young girls I encounter in my life.

Third... well, the third actually has two parts. #3, part 1 is: Only a few more weeks for Shane and Brenna! This isn't new news necessarily, but they FINALLY updated their blog. Shane and Brenna, I am excited for this new phase in your life. I think you two will do an excellent job!

#3, part 2: CONGRATULATIONS TO ADAM AND LESLIE!!!! My friends Adam and Leslie were engaged Friday, and I'm so SO excited for them! I truly believe the Lord has brought these two together and that they will serve the Kingdom well as one.

Give me a break poultry farmers!

2008-10-02T05:02:00.002-05:00

You may remember when this happened. It was disgusting and I had hoped it would never happen again. Yesterday I decided to make some scrambled eggs. I cracked the second egg and out popped a solid yolk. I still don't know what the rules are for throwing out things like that, so I just flushed the eggs down the toilet.

English Bookstore in Barcelona

2008-09-29T15:11:00.004-05:00

I figured that while I'm here I should probably post a few tips, places, etc. that I've figured out. Then, when people are searching Google for things to do in Barcelona they might benefit from this tourist's thoughts.

Because I was packing for a 117 day trip, I needed to only take the basics. That meant that several books didn't make the cut and I was left with my Bible and two "Christian living" type books. Now, these are definitely good reads, but sometimes I want to read but not really have to think about what I'm reading. The books I brought definitely require an active mind to read. So, after searching Google and an English magazine here, I found the used English bookstore Hiberian books. There are a few others, but I chose this one based on its proximity to my apartment.

Hiberian, located at Carrer de Montseny 17, looks small but, aren't looks usually deceiving? A lot of the books are very old (I had never heard of most of the classics), but I was able to find a few newer fictions that suited my needs. Overall, I think the newer books outnumber the obscure classics. The subject matters range from cooking to politics to sci-fi to feminism and the prices are EXCELLENT!!! Also, all of the books are in very good condition. I bought a paperback and a large hardback for the grand total of 9.85 euros! A few weeks ago I looked at the small selection of English books in a large chain here and all of the prices exceeded 17 euros... paperback too. And considering I found the UK edition several magazines today (finally!) that all cost 8 euros or more, I think Hiberian will definitely be getting my business again.

Forever.

2008-09-28T23:00:00.002-05:00

Friends, I am happy to say that the sickness has passed! The doctor gave me a few meds, an anti-stringent diet (?), and told me that my body reacts to fevers in strange ways. This achy pain that I get every few months is my body's way of fighting off fever, but sometimes it reacts more strongly than other times... hence the anti-stringent diet. Sadly, I got sick during the week of La Merce and only got to see 3 of the big events. I wish I could have seen more, but it was much better that I stayed close to my bed, which is close to the bathroom if you get my drift. Sorry, but I just like to keep it real.

There's a lot to update you guys on.

For organizational purposes, this post will be bulleted.

* Last Friday kicked of La Merce. If you forgot (or if I forgot to tell you), La Merce is the festival that celebrates Barcelona and the Roman Catholic feast day of Our Lady of Mercy. Each city has a patron saint, and Barcelona's is Mare de Deu de la Merce. Friday's festivities included a parade of sorts. I say "of sorts" because I'm not really sure it can be categorized as a parade. The name Correfoc, literally "fire run," should give you an example of what we experienced. Community groups dress up as devils and demons and run through the streets wielding fireworks, flame throwers, and even dragon-like contraptions that blow fire. I really don't know how to explain it, but that's probably because I don't even know the purpose of it.
This is in the middle of an explosion. As you can tell from that girl's face, people weren't that concerned about being burned.

I think something crazy happened behind me right when this picture was taken...

* The next day I woke up and headed to Placa Sant Jaume to see the Castellers de Barcelona. This is the most traditionally "Spanish" part of the festival. Essentially teams from different community groups create towers of people and a small child climbs to the top. Unfortunately I was feeling quite sickly by this point, and I only stayed long enough to see one tower completed. I wish I could have stayed longer. It was really cool! If only I were a little taller... I had to take all of these with the camera held above my head, so I'm sorry that they're not very good... or straight.

This team didn't make it. They started climbing down after this.

These guys were the first to build a complete tower. You can kind of see the child on top in the last picture. The little bugger was so fast I couldn't get her holding her arm up in victory.

*I went to the International Church of Barcelona again this past Sunday. This time I chose to go to the later service, and it proved to be an excellent decision as there were many more people my age attending. The 20s/30s group had a cookout after church and I got to go and be a part of that. It was held in Les Planes which is more than gorgeous! It's an area in Barcelona, but outside of the hustle and bustle of the city. The church owns a house there where people are constantly meeting for church/prayer/gatherings/etc. It also has several rooms for people to stay in when they are visiting. The pastor of ICB and his wife live in the little apartment upstairs.
The large building in front is the Les Planes metro stop building. The whiteish/yellowish (it's yellow in real life) house to the left is the house ICB owns.

It was good to be able to meet and spend time with other Christians my age. I've definitely missed that since I've been here. Hopefully, I'll get to know them more as the semester goes on. I've decided to join a small group with them, and that starts Wednesday night. I pray that it will be a good time of growth and fellowship.

*I've written this post over the course of a few days because the internet here is less than stellar. Less than stellar internet = hard to upload photos. So, I've kind of forgotten all that I wanted to share. I have a few more pictures from a parade, and will share them when I get them on my computer. Here are a few random pictures for you.

El Corte Ingles- my one-stop peanut butter shop! Seriously, it's the only place I've found in this city that has peanut butter.

**The title of this post has nothing to do with the content. It's just my current favorite song by Ben Harper. If you want to make me happy "forever" you could send me some Ben Harper music :) Please enjoy this youtube video.

Send Me Mail!!!

2008-09-28T16:52:00.005-05:00

Okay, here's the deal. I want mail, and I'm not even going to try to be nice about it.

Caroline Schell
Carrer d'Aribau, 322 1-1
08006 Barcelona
Spain

My nice little door lady will hand it to me when I walk through the front door :)

**New post coming as soon as Blogger starts uploading pictures again...

I want my mommy!

2008-09-22T13:36:00.003-05:00

I really did want to load some pictures on my computer today, but I haven't even gotten out of my pajamas. Yesterday I mentioned that I felt a little sick. Well, things progressed last night and it's safe to say that I feel like crap. Joel and I tried to diagnose everything last night, but we had no luck. I have an appointment with a doctor at 9:30 tonight. Yes, that is very late. No, I couldn't care less at this point. I just want to feel better.

I'm not going to lie, I really want my mom right now. I rarely get sick, but when I do I want her with me. Anna is being sweet tonight and accompanying me to the doctor.

I've never been sick in a foreign country before! Please pray that this doctor can give me some excellent meds tonight.

I'm still here...

2008-09-21T13:35:00.002-05:00

Hi loved ones. Sorry for the lack of entertaining updates lately. Until last night nothing very exciting has happened. The Merce festival started yesterday, and I've attended 2 of the events. They were fun and I will write more about them later (with pictures!) However, Spain has caught up with me and I think my body is rejecting itself. When I get more energy I'll load the pictures from my camera. Until then, I'll leave you with some that other people have taken... it's much easier :)

(L-R) Marina, Christina, Aleksandra, Severina, Cheng, Chenell, Porschia, and I at a "back-to-school" barbecue at the school.

Ok, so I got talked into going to a club. I say "talked into" because 1) this white girl can't dance and 2) I like to go to bed earlier than 6 AM. We left around 3, but here people don't even start going out until 2. I'm too old for this. What happened to dinner and a movie? Anyway, this is Anna (roommate), Porschia, and I at _______. I cared so little that I don't actually remember the name of it. I do know it was on Lincoln though.

I'm going to go drink some tea and coax my joints into working properly again. Hasta luego!

That American education...

2008-09-16T14:21:00.004-05:00

There are a lot of ways that the U.S. trumps the rest of the world in their education system. There are a few ways that it falls short. For example, keeping students informed about world events.

Nothing makes you feel smarter than eating dinner with a Moldavian, a Russian, and a Bulgarian (or maybe a Ukrianian--not sure) that know more about your country's current events than you do.

P.S. All the Europeans I've met so far love Obama. However, they aren't learning about the candidates by themselves. They may know what is going on, but it's only surface level stuff. European media is much MUCH less objective than America media... and that's saying something. So, they take the good and the bad things being said without giving it much thought. That, friends, is not good.

***I found out she is Ukranian. And I thoroughly enjoyed my discussion with them over salad. It was nice. And I finally got some feta cheese.

A little alone time.

2008-09-14T07:49:00.005-05:00

There are very few people that I can be around 24-7 and not get tired of easily. Basically I can count them on one hand. This is not me trying to be mean or trying to say that I hate people. I just have to have my alone time every once in a while. Lu and I have become masters at learning how to pick up on when the other person needs alone time. Usually after it we end up talking in the hall until 2 AM :) I think it's part of my introverted-ness coming out in me. That's a trait that has been developing more and more as the years go by, and I'm starting to embrace it.

It's been really hard to have alone time since I arrived in Spain. First it was vacation with the family, then I moved in and had orientation/getting to know the roomie stuff, and now everyone is starting to get comfortable with each other and hanging out more. I realized Saturday that I was long overdue for some time to just sit.

After IKEA, I needed to pick up a few things from some stores in La Placa Catalunya. Anna wanted to go home, and it was like the skies opened up. I'm very grateful that Anna is my roommate. She's really sweet and a lot of fun, but like I said before, the alone time was necessary. We haven't mastered the art as well as Lu and I have. We probably won't. So, Anna and I parted ways and I got to spend two excellent hours alone.

I browsed El Corte Ingles (it's like the Wal-Mart of Barcelona, but with high end goods... think Carolina Herrera and Burberry mixed with a little Home Depot mixed with Best Buy. The most excellent one-stop shop!), I went to a book store, and then I decided I wanted a little coffee. Lucky for me there's a Starbucks about a quarter of a mile from the book store (past Sephora, Godiva, Camper... there's some seriously good shopping here!) So, I got my coffee (grande latte, a little cinnamon, a little chocolate, and a lot of sugar) and headed out the door to sit on the patio.

The I remembered that I don't sit in eating/drinking places alone.

It actually terrifies me.

It was then that I second guessed my decision for some alone time. I thought about calling someone, but I realized that both of my phones were dead. I looked for a book in my purse, but I realized that I had taken it out. I had come to Starbucks to enjoy my wonderful latte and time by myself and I would have to sit outside alone and look like a loser. What's a girl to do?

Well, I prayed.

I prayed that while I sat there the Lord would increase my appreciation for the opportunity to be in Spain. I prayed that I would be observant of the people around me. I prayed that for at least 30 minutes I would be aware of my dependence on other people's company and overcome it. I have to say that after those 30 minutes alone I felt better than I had the entire time in Barcelona up to that point. A family sat beside me and their small son blew kisses at me the whole time. I realized that I'm more drawn to "nerdy" people. The "cool" ones aren't interesting. I realized that I really can be more independent. I also realized that I'm not quite as independent as I want to think I am. I realized that there are a lot of things that I'm still learning about myself and the world around me.

So, I've decided to go somewhere alone, outside of my apartment, at least 2 times a week. I think it would be beneficial to me, my roommates (another one is coming at the beginning of October), and all of you back home. You can hold me to it.

Now I'm going to have my alone time for the day :)

International Church of Barcelona

2008-09-14T07:49:00.003-05:00

From the time I found out that I would be spending a semester in Barcelona I knew that I wanted to attend a church while here. This past sunday I visited the International Church of Barcelona. I want to be honest and say that I've been a little skeptical about this church. I learned of it a few months ago, but didn't really want to try it out. Basically, I'm a snob about church a lot of the time (I'm working on that!) However, this is the only church I have found in Barcelona with services in English.

My roommate decided to go with me (praise and prayer are requested! :)), so we got up and attended the 10 AM service. We walked in to smiles and warm welcomes... so far so good! After talking to a few people, the service started. (Mom, we had to stand up and introduce ourselves like in the Swiss church.) It was SO good to be in the company of believers again! Because it was the early service (and the Spanish don't do many things early... or on time, for that matter) there were only about 30-35 people there. Everyone seemed very sincere, and I think they have a fairly active college/career group.

I'm going to visit another church (with services in Catalan/Spanish), but I think that I will end up attending this church. I know that it would be excellent to attend a church that is more "solid," but that isn't beneficial if I can't even speak the language. Also, there's no guarantee that the people attending the church will speak English. At least this way there will be some other students like me, and I'll be able to have a little "English" haven here in Barcelona. Please join me in praying that I will be used for service in this church and that I will find Christian fellowship here.

My first real weekend in Barcelona.

2008-09-14T07:30:00.002-05:00

This weekend was my first one in Barcelona without my parents. We didn't have class Thursday or Friday (never on Friday!), so it was a very very long weekend. Like I said before, nothing was open Thursday due to the holiday. We tried to get to IKEA again on Friday, but several things happened and I ended up spending the afternoon with a fellow exchange student in La Placa Catalunya. Friday was also the day that I discovered the restaurant across the street. I honestly had never even seen it until Friday, but they have THE BEST chicken and tomato paste sandwich. I don't even like tomatoes, but I could eat this stuff at every meal. From what I hear you grate tomoatoes, throw in some olive oil, add salt, and you're done! Seems easy enough. I will be eating at this place more often.

Yesterday, we finally got to IKEA, and it was glorious! There were about 29,384,302,975 people there, so that stole a little of my joy. We found almost everything we were looking for for only $45! I don't know if that sounds like a lot or a little to you, but these were our purchses:
2 rugs
1 skillet
3pc. pot set
17pc. (!) tupperware set (I guess it's not technically tupperware since it's IKEA brand. You may ask, "Why 17 pieces?" Well, it was the cheapest, duh.)
1 fitted sheet
1 toilet brush
4 dish towels
1 casserole dish
2 paper bags to carry it all home in

I think that's pretty good!

Oh the joy of IKEA. I hope that you all can experience it in your lifetime.

This is un-American.

2008-09-14T05:57:00.003-05:00

Yesterday I had to pay 20 cents to use the bathroom. I was told that was cheap. Seriously?!

***I realize that the paper is backwards. Even with the backwards writing paying to pee is ridiculous.

You must watch this one too!

2008-09-11T20:58:00.000-05:00

This one is really funny too. :)

Please, do this for me!

2008-09-11T19:55:00.001-05:00

If you love me at all, please watch this video. I just saw it and had to share. It gets really good around the 1:55 mark. Oh my.

Oh, Spain...

2008-09-11T17:56:00.003-05:00

...why must you celebrate holidays when it's inconvenient for me?!

Anna and I need to go to IKEA. Actually, I really need to get to IKEA, and Anna just wants to tag along.

Our trip to IKEA was all for naught. I know that the Spanish take their holidays and rest very seriously, but I never thought that an establishment as large as IKEA would be affected by this. I was wrong. VERY wrong. We even called to make sure! After switching trains in Placa Catalunya and then riding to the next to last stop on the L1, we talked to several unknowledgable (word or not?) people to find the location of this beloved store. How could anyone miss that they have an IKEA in their neighborhood. Are they blind? We finally figured out that bus 79 would take us there. I never saw the parking lot, but both the driver and Anna confirmed that the store we all know and love was closed.

So, maybe tomorrow I will be able to replace the pot with the handle that hangs down at a 45 degree angle. Maybe tomorrow I can get a mirror for my room so that Anna doesn't have to wait on me to get ready. Maybe tomorrow I will get my rug and start feeling comfortable walking around my room without shoes. Maybe tomorrow I'll have plastic containers so we can start keeping leftovers. Maybe, just maybe...

Just a little addition...

2008-09-11T06:19:00.002-05:00

So, I asked you to comment in the last post, but I realize that not everyone knows how to do that. Here are your detailed instructions.

1. At the bottom of each post there is a place that says "0 comments" or "1 comment"... you get the picture. Click there.
2. There's a huge box on the right. Type there.
3. All done!

:)

Forgive me.

2008-09-10T17:40:00.007-05:00

I keep apologizing to the 7 of you that read my blog. I really am sorry that I'm not updating daily, but I really don't think it's something that I should keep apologizing for. Moving to a foreign country is pretty time consuming, and I think you all understand.

My situation has changed a little in the past few days. I've moved into the apartment that I will be living in for this semester. My roommate is Anna from Romania. She's very nice and we get along well. Right now it's just the two of us, but we know that we'll have at least one more roommate. She will move in at the end of September. Just picture the apartment that Mom, Dad, Grandmomma, and I stayed in. It's not like that AT ALL. It's quite old, a little run down, and only students have been living in it for the past several years. My room has one small window that looks into a dark alley. Needless to say, I don't open it. I have a pretty good bit of storage for clothes, but other than the armoire, only a bed and a very small shelf fit in the room. It's very tiny! However, we have a good sized kitchen, living room, and dining room. Anna scrubbed and disinfected the whole apartment from top to bottom before I arrived and it's very clean. She even cleaned the outside shutters!

This past week was pretty easy. Okay, it was VERY easy! We don't have classes on Fridays and today is a national holiday. So, we had a 3 day orientation. Anna and I celebrated yesterday by doing a little shopping... but mostly window shopping. I did have a finance class on Monday. The professor is really nice, and he knows the subject very well. I think it will be a good class. Our classes only meet once a week, but they meet for 2 hours at a time with no break. I know that doesn't seem very long, but I get SO antsy! I was alternating between fidgeting and dozing off by the time 45 minutes had passed. Yesterday, all of the new students and exchange students met on the school's patio for tango and tapas. Instructors will be at the school every Friday for anyone that wants to learn how to tango. It was fun to watch! :)

I'm still getting to know people, but it's hard. This week I've just been with the 1BBA (same as our freshmen) students, and while I've gotten to know a few of them, it's hard to share in their enthusiasm. I've already been through the "I'm living on my own for the first time and can stay out all night" phase. I rarely even stay awake into the wee hours of the morning to study. Maybe I'm just an abnormal college student, but I'm okay with just going out to eat and then going home. I don't want to go out to clubs that don't even open until midnight or 1. I want to be wearing my pajamas by that time. I really have loved college, but I'm getting to the point where I'm very okay with moving on to another phase. I don't plan to include long nights of drunkenness in that phase. So, while the people in the school are all very nice (and I really hope that I will make friends), I'll probably start reaching out to other parts of the community for companionship too.

I still haven't been able to visit a church. I'm torn between a solid church that conducts services in Catalan/Spanish or a not-so-solid church that conducts services in English. Both have their benefits. I would like to know your opinion.

Anna and I are about to make a visit to Ikea, but I'm going to leave you with a few pictures!
The Schells after the dinner and Flamenco show.

The musicians and a dancer. Mom bought a dress exactly like that the very next day. :)

These guys play in random places around the city center, and they are SO GOOD! It's a treat to stumble upon them.

Some sailboats and Reverie. I considered buying this one, but I decided that it probably wasn't big enough for all of my needs...

Please (please!) comment so I know who is reading! I hope you all are doing well! Off to Ikea...

I have no title.

2008-09-06T17:56:00.002-05:00

I know it has been quite some time since I updated everyone on life in Spain. It has be fairly busy and exciting over the past few days! I'm now in my apartment, have met my roommate and some fellow students, and I'm in the middle of orientation! I can't remember where I left off last, so I'll just start at Thursday :) Prepare yourself for another disconnected post.

Thursday was a very very good day. Mom, Dad, and I spent some QT together around Barcelona. We didn't have any plans except to just hang out. We didn't know if it would be our last last time to hang out as our little family of 3. So, we spent a lot of time walking around the 5th Ave. of Barcelona. We went into shop after shop, and then we walked out of shop after shop. Passeig de Gracia is where Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Carolina Herrera, etc. are all located. Thus, our trips were just in and out :) Then, we headed back to the apartment to get ready for the flamenco show. Flamenco dancing is not really part of the culture in this part of Spain, but there is a restaurant that does shows for tourists like us. It was so much fun! We had a 4 course meal and a show and the food was actually really good! I expected it to be less than spectacular considering it was a touristy place. I was surprised. The stars of the night were definitely the dancers and musicians. The dance looks like just a bunch of stomping, but every move has a meaning and it's all very choreographed. And it's HARD WORK! I think I have found my calling. It doesn't matter that the rhythm in my head doesn't translate to my limbs.

Friday (yesterday) I met the KEI people at my school to start a little orientation. I've found out that orientation according to KEI/ESEI means, "we'll just kind of get together and loosely stick to the schedule and you don't really have to be here if you don't want to be." We had lunch together and moved our luggage into our apartments. That. was. it. But it was good because I got to spend the evening with my parents again! We bought a few more things for my room before they left me for the night.
Today we signed some papers and had a little tour before having another afternoon off, so I got to see my parents and grandmother a lot again today! It really has been a blessing that I've been able to spend these last couple of days with them before they leave (tomorrow).

I still think I'm better at vacationing in Europe than I am living in Europe. We'll see in a couple of weeks.

Here are some of my observations for the day:
1. All showers should come equipped with a fixed shower head. Last night I had my first experience with a shower using only a handheld shower head. There is a clip to hang it above your head, but it doesn't work. I figured out that I can hold the thing between my knees while I'm washing my hair and it won't spray everything in the bathroom. I figured this out only after I had tried many other things and sprayed everything in the bathroom.
2. Clothing labels are wrong. In most of the stores they list sizing for several countries on the tag. Either we have a big problem with vanity sizing in the U.S. or the Europeans have no clue what they're talking about.
3. Flamenco dancing is really cool. Really.

I have another list to add today. If you would, please pray for these things for me:
1. That my actions, speech, and treatment of relationships here would be glorifying to the Lord and an example to believers and non-believers alike.
2. That I would not be so guarded as to not build real relationships.
3. That I find a church SOON. I won't be able to visit any tomorrow, but I've been in contact with someone here that has pointed me towards a few churches.
4. The services in the aforementioned churches are in Catalan. Yikes! I want to go to these churches anyway because of their reputation for preaching the Gospel. Pray with me that the language barrier would 1) be overcome quickly 2) be a help in forming a relationships with the people there.

I hope everything is going well in Alabama and beyond! I pray for you!

Oh, and, WAR EAGLE!!!!

2008-09-04T11:04:00.004-05:00

Today my mom, Lyna', is going to be a guest blogger. Please welcome her!

Well, I must begin by informing all who read this that I am definitely a novice blogger - actually, I haven't reached novice level yet since this is a first for me. As you can tell from Caroline's blog, our family is in Spain and we are having a wonderful time. We've been here almost two weeks and I do believe our confused American faces are becoming a little less conspicuous. The city is very large and spread out, but we've pretty well mastered the major areas, the metro, and yes, even grocery shopping.

Since Caroline has titled her blog "I've been thinking", and since I am her "guest blogger", I will go with that theme...

I've been thinking:

1) I will add living in a foreign country for a few months (only) to my bucket list.
2) God has created an amazing world - we are so fortunate to get to see this part of it.
3) Making family vacation memories like these are priceless.
4) I love America - even more from across the Atlantic.
5) I will miss Caroline while she is studying abroad, but I am very thankful for her to have this opportunity.

Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we travel as we are doing for all of you at home. Also, please keep in touch with Caroline over the next few months so she will have a little bit of home here with her in Spain.

Adios!
Lyna'

Sorry for the delay.

2008-09-03T15:52:00.015-05:00

Hello family and friends! I'm sorry that I haven't posted anything lately. I've thought about it, but we've been busy and that means that I've been to lazy to write anything at night. I have a feeling that this might be heavy on the pictures, but that's okay. I think you'll enjoy that more anyway :) We've visited Montjuic, Sitges, Montserrat, the Torres winery, and various other places since you last heard from us. Everything is still as beautiful and exciting as it was when arrived.
Now to some pictures...

We saw this on our bus tour... there's no escape!!!

This is part of one facade of La Sagrada Familia. It's the minimalist side, and the newer side.

This is only part of the inside of the temple. Apparently the design is supposed to mimic the bones of an animal carcass. You can only walk through about half of it, because they are still building. There's so much scaffolding on the other side that you couldn't see through it!

This is the older facade of La Sagrada Familia. I don't have a good picture of it in daylight, but I think I would still like this one more. It is so so detailed! And it reminds Dad and I of those drippy sandcastles that you make at the beach.

Yesterday we visited Montserrat and the monastery there. I know this doesn't show much, but I don't think it would be possible to capture the whole thing unless I was in a helicopter. It covers the entire mountain and has many different areas. We had the chance to listen to the choir boys sing, and I'm pretty sure it was as close as you can get to what heaven will sound like! I really want to upload the video tomorrow. Please chastise me if I don't get this done.

It was tough, but someone had to do it!

(INTERJECTION: I'm watching the beginning of the Republican National Convention. Am I the only one that is not enjoying this rendition of "America the Beautiful?" Does that make me un-American, Joel?)

That's all I have for photos right now. I put this off and now it's after 1 AM! I promise I will try to do better tomorrow :)

Now for my observations (As you can probably tell, this will become a regular thing):
1. I will never get used to people of Asian descent speaking Catalan as their first language. It's just weird to me!
2. Spanish people are very affectionate. Overly affectionate. So far it hasn't bothered me, but today when I was packed in the hot metro with a migraine and surrounded by couples making out I wanted to kick them all in the pancreas. PDA like that is just gross. Is it too hard to just hold hands?
3. Even the English channels on Spanish TV stink. I've watched more CNN this week than I have all year.
4. Travel guides are WRONG about Spanish attire. They all say that the women dress smartly and modestly. They are all full of lies. Especially about the modesty thing. The 4 Bs are not hidden here!
5. I know already that I'm really going to miss Alabama. I think about it often.

I'm not going to stay up for 3 more hours to hear Sarah Palin's speech. I'm very interested in what she has to say though. I think we can all agree that McCain trumped Obama by picking her! If you watch, please let me know how it goes! I love you all !

Another day, another dollar... I mean euro.

2008-08-30T16:08:00.003-05:00

We had another long and tiring day in Barcelona, but I'm liking this city more and more!

We started the day trying to figure out the metro system. I think it's going to be easy to figure out, but we had to walk a LONG way underground to find the platform we needed. Not only was it really strange being underground, it. was. so. hot. We definitely started the day with the stench of body funk. But it seems clean enough, so I'll probably use it over the next few months.

After figuring out the metro system, we climbed the stairway to heaven.

Ok, it was only the stairs to the Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya, but after climbing that many stairs I was ready for a stairway to heaven.

The museum was beautiful and amazing! They hold many cultural events there, so hopefully I'll be back often. Plus, the view of the city is beyond wonderful. This museum isn't one of the biggest, and the main draw is the old gorgeous building that it's housed in. It held works mostly from the lesser known local artists, but there were several Picasso pieces. We only had time for a few exhibits, so I'll try to spend a Saturday there soon to finish up the rest.

After the museum we headed to El Poble Espanyol. This was built in 1929 for the International Exhibition (maybe the World's Fair?). Within this walled village you can find all kinds of handcrafted items and restaurants. Ceramics, textiles, food, guitars, leather goods... you name it and you may can find it. Plus it's got tons of neat cobbled streets and architectural details. We came away with some embroidered items, a few ceramic items, and gelato. Yum!

Then, we made our way back to the harbor to find paella. This was my first real experience with paella, and I LOVED IT! Mom and I shared paella with lobster and I stuffed myself full. Very very full. After a long walk down La Ramblas we ended up back at the apartment and have been sitting on the couch since then.

I'm really tired, and I'm very sorry about the lack of details and pictures. But I will leave you with a few more observations.

1. Spanish men are more attractive than Spanish women, but Spanish women are very graceful.
2. However, Spanish women are not very modest... at all.
3. The longer I stay in this city, the more germophobic I will become. I went through a bottle of Purell today.
4. Public toilets have more "sucking power" than private toilets.
5. It didn't take me long to learn how to crack a lobster claw.
6. You can spot an American from a mile away. We're awkward in foreign cultures.

A picture is worth a thousand words...

2008-08-29T15:51:00.006-05:00

...and I've taken almost a thousand pictures. That's a LOT of words. The words will definitely outweigh the pictures in this post because it's too late and it takes too long to upload pictures on here. I'll try to upload more when I get little breaks during the day.

I guess I should start describing this trip from the beginning.

Our flight was scheduled to leave Mobile at 5 PM Monday afternoon. However, Fay had other plans and we were put on another plane for the next day. We were a little bummed out, but everything turned okay. We arrived in Barcelona around lunchtime on Wednesday. The flight was very very long. Very. And I had to use an airplane bathroom for the first time. It was horrific. I thought that I or my shirt might get sucked into the deep innards of the plane. This is gross, but I was so scared that I didn't even wash my hands. I ran out and then bathed in Purell. Silly, but it really had an effect on me. However, I sat beside a family with 3 young children (3,2, and 9 months-brave souls!) and before we got off the mom had given me her telephone number in case I needed anything and lots of tips about living in Barcelona. She was so so nice and gave me a very good first impression about the Spanish citizens.

Honestly, I'm not very sure what we did on Wednesday afternoon. I know we checked into our apartment and ate some tapas, but I can't remember much else. I would ask, but everyone else is asleep. Speaking of our apartment, it is awesome! I really hope that my next apartment here in Barcelona will be half as good. Here are a few pics for your viewing pleasure.
This is our super sweet back porch/terrace/patio thing. You can't see it in this picture, but their are tall apartment buildings on each side of it. Thus, when we look up we see lots of underwear hanging out to dry. If we look to our right we can see the famous "Johnny Cash flipping off Folsom" picture.

This is the picture of the living room leading to the kitchen. And Grandmomma organizing her purse, or something.

I like the apartment a lot. And it's about 2 blocks from the busiest part of the city, Plaça Catalunya. It really would be okay if KEI called and said, "Surprise! You get to stay here until December!"

We (Mom, Dad, and I) slept until 11:30 yesterday morning! None of us really slept on the plane, and we were all worn out! We did a little of the tour (picture of map below) and just ate. That was it!

Today we got up and did more of the tour. Our first stop was La Sagrada Familia. WHOA!!! It's so crazy that Gaudí worked on that for the 40 years leading up to his death in 1927, and it won't be finished in our lifetime. That's intense. (There's a picture from the front facade below- it's Jesus). Then we spent some time at Gaudí's Park Güell (the picture of the city).

Before leaving you with a little more eye candy, I'm going to give you a few of my first impressions.
1. The city is very very clean. The population is abundant (especially around the harbor and Plaça Catalunya) but the trash is not. Once you get out of the main areas, the streets are filled with quaint shops and cafes and lined with trees. It's very picturesque. There's not even any noise pollution! People don't yell, honk their horns, or drive super loud cars here. I'm not sure why, but I like it!
2. The food is good, y'all! I have to admit that I haven't had much of an appetite since we've been here, but the little I've eaten was soooo good. I had the best sandwich today. Bread, tomato, bacon, and cheese. And it was unlike any bread, tomato, bacon, and cheese sandwich you will ever eat... unless you visit the Alaska Restaurant in Barcelona. We're still not sure why it's named "Alaska Restaurant." Isn't that an Indian word?
3. Barcelona Bus Turístic is awesome! There is an abundance of hop on/hop off bus tours in cities, but this one is worth remembering. The buses (busses?) are so clean and there is one at each stop every 5 minutes if not sooner. With 3 different lines for 3 different parts of the city, I would recommend this for anyone wanting to be quickly acclimated to Barcelona. And, it uses headphones with recorded information in at least 8 languages.
4. People like to show their panties. Maybe I'm just behind the times, but girls like to wear very thin dresses and panties in a contrasting color. If they're not wearing that, they're wearing pants that reveal the elastic on their panties. I'm fairly certain this look should be left to male rap stars.
5. Toilets in Europe are intense. I didn't remember the vortex-like suction that these things have until my first flush! I now push the button and back up against the wall. It's almost as bad as the airplane toilet.

I think that's enough for right now... and I'm ready to get some sleep. Have fun with these pictures! I'm sorry I haven't edited them yet... The ones I haven't mentioned are Dad in front of La Pedrera and a picture of the Mediterranean. Yes, it really is that beautiful!

This time I'm really leaving.

2008-08-24T23:23:00.003-05:00

Tonight is my last night in Alabama until December 19! The process to make this study abroad trip happen took so long, and it seems like we've been planning for years. I wondered if the day would ever come, but it's only a few minutes away. I can't write a long post (international travelers need their rest), but I just wanted to mention again a few matters for prayer.

1. My new roomies- I'll be living with these people for almost 4 months. Please pray that we would build friendships and become like a family while we're in Spain. At least for a while, each other is all we'll have!

2. A church- I've been in contact with some missionaries that live in Barcelona, and they have started a church outside the city. I'm supposed to meet with them once I get settled in. They say that there aren't many good evangelical churches in Barcelona to start with, much less English-speaking ones. While it would be awesome to find a good English-speaking church, I'm thinking that I might be attending a church with services in Catalan. Basically that means I'll be learning very quickly, or I'll just be talking to a lot of people after services to figure out what was going on. I say it's a win-win situation no matter what! Finding a church (and hopefully friends there) is very important to me, so please pray for that.

3. Homesickness- Today Lu called and I cried. I'm already getting really sad about leaving my family and friends here. It's weird because I'm usually not one to get homesick unless I am physically sick. I know I'll gain so much by being in Spain, but I just wish I could take everyone with me! I know that this is what I'm supposed to be doing, and I'm praying that I will be reminded that lasting peace/comfort/etc. can only be given by the Lord.

I hope all is well with everyone. The next post really will be from Barcelona!

P.S. Please leave me comments to help out with #3 a little. :)

Forgiveness

2008-08-20T13:12:00.005-05:00

I heard Don Henley in my head as I typed that title. "I've been trying to get down to the heart of the matter, but my flesh gets weak. My thoughts seem to scatter, but I think it's about forgiveness, forgiveness..."

Sometimes it is easy for me to forgive. There are people in my life that I sincerely love (and like) and want to maintain a close loving relationship with, and it is easy for me to forgive those people. I usually realize very quickly that their presence in my life is much too important for me to push them away by not forgiving them. Then there are people that, honestly, are hard to even like...people that I don't get along with. Typically I just think these people are ridiculous. I don't understand them, and they probably don't understand me. My bad attitude takes over 89% of the time, and it shows when something happens.

When someone hurts me, my family, or any of the previously sincerely loved people I get mad. Very mad. Then like Don Henley says "my flesh gets weak. My thoughts seem to scatter..." I'm definitely not trying to take a lesson from Don Henley, but that song is now in my head. I overthink many situations, and it leads to worry and anxiety. Before I know it, I will have created a scenario in my head that may or may not happen, but I'm already reacting as if it will. That's been a struggle of mine for quite a while, and if I'm not careful I'll go off on a tangent and completely forget the point of this post.

Ok. Forgiveness.

The Bible speaks a lot about forgiveness.

Following the Lord's Prayer in Matthew 6:14-15 "For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."

In Matthew 18 Jesus uses the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant to explain forgiveness and tell us to forgive "seventy times seven."

Luke 6:37 “Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven"

The list goes on and on and on.

Maybe it's just me, but forgiveness is easy to understand in theory, but in certain situations with certain people, it is nothing but... a pain. Forgiving someone can be such a blessing. Forgiving someone creates the opportunity for us to become more like our creator and learn more about him. However, because of our very sinful nature forgiveness is counterintuitive. I think we can all agree that it's easier to just hold a grudge, at least in the short term. I also think my personality lends itself to grudge holding.

So, I have a few questions that I would really like answered. I'm not necessarily looking for the right answer. I just want to know what people think about this. How do others react? What can I learn from them? Here are my questions:

-What are practical things to do in order to forgive someone? (It's always good to have a reminder of the basics!)
-How do you forgive someone while still dealing with the hurt of the offense?
-While dealing with the hurt and trying to forgive, how do you take thoughts captive and lay them down before the Lord in order to forgive someone?
-Is it okay to forgive someone and then separate yourself from them? What if it is someone who repeatedly offends you?

I'm anxious to hear others' thoughts.

I'm going to Spain!

2008-08-14T10:50:00.002-05:00

...well, not yet.

In 11 days I will pack up several very large suitcases, pay extra fees for weight to have them put on the plane, and start my 117 days journey in Europe. I don't know if I'm really prepared to spend 4 months in Europe. I am terrified. I've never done anything like this on my own. I feel like working at Pine Cove last summer helped me prepare for this in some ways. I started that not knowing anyone there and not having a clue as to what I was supposed to be doing. Horses + Caroline = VERY scary. But I lived through it and actually had an excellent time. God provided so much during those 7 weeks. However, even going into that was a little familiar. At least I was familiar with the culture. I knew that I would be working with Christians in a Christian environment. Spain will be so different. Luckily my parents, grandmother, and I will be there 10 days before the program starts, and I'll have some time to get used to Barcelona. I have to keep telling myself that God will provide everything I need just like he did for me in Texas.

If you feel so inclined, I ask that you join me in praying for a few things:
1) Church. I've been looking around on the internet with little luck for a church to attend while I'm there. It's my hope that I can find one and have some sort of Christian community in Spain. Barcelona is a very large city, so hopefully I will have some luck when I get there.
2) Roommates. I haven't spoken to anyone that I will be studying with. Spain has a reputation for being the country to study abroad in for the purpose of partying. I'm not strictly against it, but I don't necessarily want to be surrounded by it all the time. That would be a LOT easier if I lived with at least one person with the same mindset as me.
3) Attitude. As the time to leave draws closer, I keep getting more and more sad. I know it's going to be such a good experience, but I am so sad about what I will miss here. Just know that I will probably check the internet all day long on the first gameday (and 2nd, 3rd, 4th...), I will be looking at old pictures of Hayride Hoedown in October, and will definitely cry anytime someone puts up pictures of something fun on Facebook. And there's a certain person that I will miss constantly. I really don't want my attitude to ruin the experience I could have in Barcelona.

That's all for now. My next post may or may not be from Spain!!!

I should be studying...

2008-08-03T22:08:00.002-05:00

...but instead I wanted to share this with you. You'll probably recognize this ditty as made popular by Chris Tomlin.

How cool is it that a group of young people in Romania is worshipping the same God that we worship, and with a song that we use so often?! Often I get so caught up in myself and (un)intentionally have the mindset that all Christians are like me and should respond to God in the same way that I do. This video was a great reminder that God is much bigger than me, more concerned about places other than America, and his kingdom is much bigger than anything we can hope or imagine. I'm so thankful for unity in diversity.

Now for a familiar passage from Romans 12.
"(3) For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. (4) For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, (5) so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another."

Oh the fun...

2008-07-15T16:48:00.002-05:00

After Friday's classes, Lucinda and I headed down to Mobile for a bachelorette party. The bride, Krista, is a longtime friend, and we, along with another longtime friend, are bridesmaids in the wedding. We reserved a room at the recently renovated Riverview Hotel (formerly the Adam's Mark), and prepared for an evening in downtown Mobile. I don't think I need to say this, but I don't spend much of my time in bars, much less the ones in downtown Mobile. I think it's okay to say that neither Lu nor I participate in the same activities as the other two. I didn't really know what I was in for, but it really ended up being kind of fun. I really just wanted to share some of our conversations with you, but I have to set the scene for each one.

I must interject: The Riverview is fantastic now! If you ever stayed in the Adam's Mark and witnessed the grossness of that, you will be completely surprised. I'm not sure why I ever stayed in the Adam's Mark considering I grew up about an hour away, but I did... and it was disgusting. Back to the story.

We started of the night opening up the basket another bridesmaid's mom made for Krista. I think details would be inappropriate for this blog. After dinner we hit the streets in our matching red and white bridesmaid's tank tops, and Krista in her veil and sash :) It was cute, let me tell you. Our first stop was Grand Central. This is only the 2nd bar that I had visited and I'm pretty sure it was Lu's first.

After they got their drinks and we all sat down we were immediately approached by Steve Alexander. He's a newanchor/weatherman/i have no clue for WKRG. Apparently Krista and Steve know each other from being at several other bars together. I'm pretty sure he's homosexual because there were a lot of meow sounds and clawing motions. He would do that with everything that he thought was so fantastic. For example:
Steve: Krista, what are you doing here?
Krista: We're here for my bachelorette party.
Steve: Oh, Krista, you're going to be a beautiful bride! Meow!!! (add clawing motion)

It really was hilarious.

Then two guys came over which prompted 2 different conversations. I give them to you now...
Conversation 1
Mexican guy: What do your shirts say?
Me: Bridesmaid
Mexican: Oh wow! That's cool. (Looking at all of the bridesmaids) Bridesmaid! Bridesmaid! Bridesmaid! (Now looking at Krista who is wearing a veil and a sash that reads "bride to be") Is it your birthday today?!?!

Conversation 2
Pink shirt guy: Richmond. Is that, like, the school y'all go to, or something?
Lu: It says "bridesmaid"
Pink shirt guy: Oh... haha. (Then he starts staring at the wall for several minutes)

After that we went to another bar where Ashton (the other bridesmaid) promptly got into a fight with some guy.

Then to bar #3 with some people Krista knows. Please keep in mind that it was about 1:30 at this time. Poor Lu had some guy trying to woo her all night long. And he was NASTY! I try to keep an open mind, but this guy needed a bath.
Nasty guy: Why aren't you dancing?
Lu: I just don't like to dance with strange men.
Nasty: You could just dance with me.
Lu: That's what I meant by the previous statement.
Nasty: Just dance. At the end of the night, I'll go to my house, and you'll go to yours. No worries.
Lu: Don't worry, I don't know where you'll end up but it won't be with me.
Nasty: How old are you?
Lu: 17. She (pointing to me) is the same. You might want to leave us alone if you don't want a record.

The next conversation occured at about 4 AM.

(Guy looking at Lu's red shirt with white writing)
Guy: Budweiser. Wow! Are you sponsored by them?
Lu: Can't you read? It says bridesmaid.
Guy: Too bad. That would be really cool if you were.

Finally about 5 AM we left the bars and headed back to the hotel room. Krista, Ashton, and friends were all sufficiently drunk. Lu and I were exhausted. I really dislike being around sloppy drunks, but I must say that Krista (who was not sloppy drunk, but drunk) is the most hilarious drunk person I have ever been around. And I've been around my fair share. I think the best moment of the night was when Krista decided to do an interpretive dance to the last song at the bar. If I had a better memory, or if it hadn't been 5AM, I would have had to include the entire conversation that we had on our way back to the hotel.

The morals of the story:
-Friends are friends, drunk or sober. You've got to love them even when you have to hold their hair back.
-I would have never gone to those places on my own, but I am thankful for the little bit of time that I had to hang out with Krista before she gets married. Even though it's not really my scene or crowd, she's my friend and I love her.
-If you have to stay in Mobile, the Riverview is a good place to stay.
-Fabaucher's is not a good bar to try to be inconspicuous in.

Muy Cansada

2008-07-14T12:33:00.002-05:00

I've been way too busy lately.

After a weekend home, a weekend in DC, and a trip to Mobile and back (in less than 24 hours) this past weekend I have sufficiently worn myself out. These things have been so much fun though, so I can only complain about a few things :)

Spending the 4th in DC was pretty much amazing. I can't get over how much fun it was! We did a lot of walking and sightseeing, but it was so much fun just to hang out and laugh. I think it was the best group ever- and I would have never spent it with them if it weren't for Joel. Crazy.

On the 4th we stumbled upon a demonstration of sorts that I can't stop thinking about. At first, all we heard was something about pot. Maybe to legalize it? I'm not sure. Then, a Rage Against the Machine cover band took the stage and it turned into a huge anti-government scream-fest. Now, this part doesn't surprise me. It's something that I would expect from a crowd like that. The fact that it was happening on the 4th was a little upsetting, but freedom of speech is one of the great gifts of our country. They had every right to be there. However, what made me so upset was the passion in their voices and actions. It broke my heart to know that this, bashing the government and smoking pot, was their life. On that day, the most important thing in the world was to be heard. As a Christian, with a group of Christians, it was so evident that they've completely missed the point. All their energy was going into supporting an ungodly, fleeting worldview, and one day none of it will matter anymore. I desperately wanted them to know that there was more. That their political views wouldn't really matter because one day we will all die and either go to a very real heaven or a very real hell. And I want to be able to see them in heaven one day. I really REALLY want them to be there. As we left and walked along the Vietnam Memorial (I was also upset that the veterans working there had to hear the ruckus) I held back tears as I prayed and prayed for God to reveal himself to them. I hope that one day He will.

I wonder all the time what is in the works for America. What is God's plan for the seeming fall of morality all over the world? The only comforting thing about it is that one day it will be over, and he is using it to glorify himself.

This past Friday Lu and I went to Mobile for a bachelorette party. We definitely stuck out like sore thumbs at the bars they drug us to. I might post some of the conversations we had later...

I'm so excited, and I just can't hide it!

2008-07-02T12:17:00.002-05:00

The 4th of July has been my favorite holiday for a few years, and I'm SUPER excited to be able to pass the weekend in DC with A-MAZING people. So, Kinzie, Adam, Joel, Adam, Virginia, Leslie, Brenna, and Shane, it's going to be a good weekend. I'm thankful I that I will be able to spend it with all of you.

Book Review

2008-07-01T17:53:00.003-05:00

It has been a while since I've taken the time to read a book for no good reason. I'm in the middle of a few books that aren't related to classes, and while they are very beneficial to my life and learning, I wouldn't necessarily say they are "fun" to read. So, when I was home after my finals, I raided my mom's book stash and found "Eat, Pray, Love" by Elizabeth Gilbert. I had heard a little buzz about this book, but didn't really have a clue what it was about. However, it did have Oprah's approval, and she has pretty good taste in books. I figured it was worth a shot...

The book is somewhat of an autobiography chronicling Gilbert's path of self-discovery. After a very bitter divorce, bouts with depression, and an unhealthy affair, she decides to take a year pursuing pleasure in Italy, prayer in India, and a mix of the two in Bali. Gilbert's writing style is the number one draw for this book, in my opinion. Her stories are good, but would be, well, lame if she wasn't such a good writer. However, the further I got into the book, the sadder I got.

The book starts with Gilbert hearing a voice from "God." I put that in quotations, because I'm certain that she is not referring to the one true God. Throughout the book she keeps hearing this voice, but recognizes it as herself... or rather, the god within herself. Her four months in India only serve to urge her in this line of thinking. I certainly don't know this woman, but it saddens me to think that she spends a whole year learning different chants, meditations, and learning from all kinds of "gurus" only to decide that she is her own god. The story is very inspiring, and Gilbert does end up a more stable person than she started, but after spending a year and thousands upon thousands of dollars, she misses God. She never comes to a knowledge of what she was searching for.

It saddens me that people like Elizabeth Gilbert are inspiration for the world today, but the majority of the press that the Gospel gets is Joel Osteen... not a great representative. Praise God that we serve a God that is mightier than any book, media, or even the seas.

Exodus 15:10-12 (English Standard Version)
10 You blew with your wind; the sea covered them;
they sank like lead in the mighty waters.
11 "Who is like you, O LORD, among the gods?
Who is like you, majestic in holiness,
awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders?
12You stretched out your right hand;
the earth swallowed them.

Parents these days...

2008-06-18T17:08:00.004-05:00

I spent the first week in June as the 4 year old coordinator for Parkway's VBS, and it was so much fun! I hadn't been a part of a VBS since I was in high school, and I didn't realize how much I missed it. I really haven't worked with kids very much at all since I moved to Auburn (with the exception of Pine Cove, but that still didn't involve much QT with the kids). When I was in high school I babysat at least 3 days a week and served in the children's ministry as much as possible. Maybe it's just because I don't have that frequent interaction anymore, but I'm very surprised by the things I observe when I'm around kids now. It seems like they're never entertained enough, and they're growing up way to fast.

For instance, the teachers at VBS were constantly trying to make up games and attention grabbers because the children didn't know how to sit and listen or even how to just play together. I realize that they are 4 and their attention span isn't very long, but it was a little ridiculous. It's not too much for a 4 year old to sit and listen to a story. And they all expected to watch a movie in the classes. Really?! 4 year olds shouldn't be so media minded that they expect all information to come out of a television. It makes me wonder how much time and effort is put into some of these kids. I think that technology can be a very good and important tool for development and teaching children. But when it becomes the main source of learning and entertainment it honestly seems a little lazy on the parents part. Is that too big of a statement to make? All I'm wondering is why so many kids (very young children) have all of these games/movies/etc. to entertain them? What happened to playing outside and finger painting? And what happened to the social skills that kids developed when they took part in "normal" kids' activities? It's just weird to me. I saw these on this website. I know statistics are relative, but it is something to think about.

In the United States -

19% of children aged 1 and under have a TV in their bedroom.
29% of children aged 2-3 have a TV in their bedroom.
43% of children aged 4-6 years have a TV in their bedroom.
And this:

“I watch CSI…[S]he sits down and watches with me. I don’t know how harmful it is to her. It’s something gory, but it doesn’t seem to bother her. She hasn’t had any nightmares from it.”

-Mother of a 1-3 year old, Irvine, California

Why in the world would an infant need a TV in their bedroom?!?!

If I think about this too long I get aggravated, so I'm going to stop now. However, I definitely have more to say about kids growing up too fast. This may come in a different post.

A few of my favorite things...

2008-06-17T15:34:00.000-05:00

I take a lot of things for granted. Recently, I've been thinking of the little things that I overlook in my day to day life. Some are HUGE blessings... some are just fun and make my heart happy. I thought you should know about these things.

#1- I LOVE storms!! I don't really know why, but they just calm me. In fact, there is a storm brewing in Auburn as I type. I think that my love for them started when I was younger. I began to see hurricanes as a common occurance at a young age, and I remember the excitement of preparing for them. Once everything was secured, I loved being able to settle in with my parents and spend real quality time together as we waited out the weather. For me, it felt as if the world stopped for a little while. No one could leave the house... the electricity was off... family came up from the coast to escape danger. It was fun to just hang out and play cards for a while.

In the spring of 2007, a terrible storm system came through Alabama. It included several tornadoes which destroyed parts of Enterprise, AL. I do hate that that had to happen. Really, I do have a heart. However, I remember spending the evening with my favorite Lucinda and my favorite Joel watching movies and laughing. That afternoon was one of my favorites from all my time in Auburn thus far.

#2- This, friends, is Auburn football. If you know me at all, then you'll know that I don't really get excited about the actual game. But I do love how for one day so many people can come together for one purpose. (This would be more beneficial in several other situations, but I'll take what I can get.) I love tailgating and hearing "War Eagle" as I walk across campus. Basically, I love the social aspect of it. And, sometime I even love how my neighbors celebrate... don't tell anyone though :)

#3-
and
I've become a hot tea fanatic. Especially Tazo tea. I think I'm up to 2-3 cups a day now... it's a problem. I've just recently added the black tea to my cabinet, and while it's not a favorite yet, I had to have something with a little more caffeine. It's a little ridiculous, but at this moment I have 3 boxes of this stuff in my cabinet.

#4- I didn't really realize how much I appreciated the common toilet until mine broke... 3 months after moving into this apartment. In 2005. All of the stuff on the inside keeps breaking, and I just keep "engineering" it all back together. Friends, the ASVAB said I'm mechanically inclined, but it lied. Safety pins and paper clips aren't really effective. Last week it broke again, but I'm waiting to fix it. I guess I'm just hoping it will fix itself. Until then, I have to stick my hand down the back to flush and hold the chain so it won't get sucked down the drain.

#5- This one is my favorite :)
FRIENDS!
As an only child, I get pretty attached to friends. They're like family. Unfortunately, a lot of times I keep few close friends and lots of acquaintances. I would like to be better at building close friendships. But no matter what kind of relationship it is, I love it! The people in this picture are in no way the only people I'm talking about. This just happened to be the first one I thought about. It's so great to have such a wide variety of friends, in so many places, with so many different strengths and characteristics. And I'm glad to say that the majority of the people I call my friend really are family... in a much more eternal way :) I thank God that He has called you to himself not only because it's good to know there's that support there, but also because I see the way that He is working in everyone's life and the way that people are serving him. It makes my heart happy.

Kids can be lame.

2008-06-10T12:08:00.003-05:00

One of the shows that I used to watch (I'm 90% sure it was Home Improvement) had a producer by the name of Pat Richardson. This also happens to be the name of one of my P.E. teachers at the time. I used to seriously think that this show was filmed in Mobile and that's why my P.E. teacher was able to have both jobs.

I also thought that roads moved underneath cars instead of cars traveling across the roads.

And I thought that outer-outer space was real.

What a loser.

Faux Pas Peeves

2008-05-29T17:17:00.002-05:00

I think that college students may be the worst dressed people in the world. Really. I include myself in this. I think it just makes sense that if I'm going to just sit in a classroom for several hours, I should be comfortable. But being in Auburn this summer has opened my eyes to a few styles that I would rather not see.. which brings me to faux pas numero 1.

#1. Why is it necessary to wear pajamas to class? I, along with 98% of college students, have woken up late for a class. In these cases, if the class is before 10 it might, might, be acceptable to wear what you woke up in. But after that, it's not acceptable. Because I registered late, my first class doesn't start until 1:15. You might be surprised at the number of people I see walking around in their flannels. 1 PM! Seriously! What have you been doing all day? And in flannel?! It's WAY too hot at 1:00 to be wearing that. Which brings me to point #2.

#2. I DON'T want to see your butt-crack! Trust me, I know it's hot. I know the humidity is suffocating. I understand the desire to cool yourself off. However, I don't understand why you feel the need to dress like a skank. Please, for the sake of our eyes and our stomachs keep your goods contained to the shower. Or at least to the pool. And now to something that doesn't make you cool...

(Actually I couldn't think of a good connection between #2 and #3...)

#3. Guys (and girls for that matter), it's really not cool to bleach your hair. I know it's summer and you want that sun-kissed look, but when you would disappear in front of a white wall you especially don't need bright yellow hair. It kind of reminds me of eggs...sunny side up. Today I saw a young lad who had fallen to the lies of this trend. He actually had a cap in his hand, but opted to carry it in order to strut his stuff with his new 'do. And I knew it was recent because his hair was a little dry and there was a distinct absence of anything natural. I don't think Auburn had seen that much pale + yellow since the real Slim Shady stood up.

Friends, it's really not that difficult. Please remember that you really don't dress just for yourself... which might result in you being mentioned in this blog.

I really like House Hunters.

2008-05-29T11:01:00.003-05:00

I really don't have much to share, but I feel like I neglect the blog too much. I'm taking classes in Auburn this summer, and they don't start until 1:15. Needless to say, my mornings are pretty lazy. I should run or something, but today I'm going to do this. I just finished 2 episodes of Jon & Kate plus 8 (LOVE), and now House Hunters is on... hence the title. I really like House Hunters, because I'm nosy and like to analyze people's decisions. But it's not really being nosy if they agree to hunt for a house on national television, is it? It's a bachelor today. He must be 35, and he's just moving out of his parent's house. Friends, there are only two ways for this one to go... really good or really bad.

Lu, Hannah, and I took our first road trip. Our parents (at least Lu's and mine) have always been too paranoid to let us do this before. Maybe our 21st year is the magical year of freedom for us. We drove to DC because 1) it was the cheapest option and 2) I'm ALWAYS trying to find an excuse to go to DC... I wonder why :) We spent our first stop with first time home owners, the Harvells. They graciously let us use a room in their sweet new condo. The next day we made it to DC, and I must say that I HATE driving in heavy traffic. We didn't even get there during really busy time, but I was so nervous. We had to turn off the radio, and I instructed Hannah and Lu not to talk anymore. It was serious. We spent the weekend doing touristy stuff, being goofy, and playing guitar hero. AND I got to use my new camera a lot. Se amo mucho. And, as usual, the highlight was spending Sunday morning at CHBC. I really love going there during my visits.

Joel and I were very lucky this month, because we got to spend Memorial Day weekend together too! We stayed in Orange Beach with my family, and I must say it was an excellent weekend. The overall consensus is that everyone had a perfect weekend. It's true. I asked.

Now I'm going to leave you with a picture from the trip.

P.S. I'm glad that David Cook won American Idol.

Hallelujah

2008-04-25T11:45:00.004-05:00

This is one of my all-time favorite songs. Ever. So, I thought I should share with you Phil Wickham's video on YouTube. I'm a big fan of Jason Castro's dreads, but I'm pretty sure his version that earned him so much praise doesn't stand up to this. However he gets a little excited in the end, and it gets a little iffy for a while...

Eggstra gross.

2008-04-23T12:53:00.002-05:00

I love eggs. I mean, I LOVE them. They may be my favorite food right after cheese, of course. One of my favorite things to eat for lunch is scrambled eggs, and I have it down to a science. It's important to have the perfect egg/milk/salt/pepper/Tony Cachere's ratio. Today as I was raiding the kitchen in hopes of finding something I could make into a meal, I found a brand new carton of eggs. So, I start mixing them up, and quickly pour them in the pan to cook... and then I saw it.

The yolk that was almost a baby chicken.

I'm not really sure if it was almost a baby, but it definitely had kept its formation despite all of my mixing. And, friends, that's just disgusting. It reminded me of the time that I cracked the egg open to find that the insides were all hard. Did you ever do that experiment in elementary school where you soak and egg in vinegar and the shell goes away? Then you have a translucent egg left? That's what it looked like. Not what you want to see when you're making your dinner.

Sadly, Lu wasn't here to do something with the mess while I gagged, so it took twice as long to clean up. Now I get to eat pasta for lunch. Though I love pasta, it's just not as tasty when craving something else... but I doubt I'll be craving eggs again for a while.

Christian Music Criteria.

2008-04-15T22:13:00.007-05:00

I came across this post tonight about the Christian music industry. It's something I've thought about a bit, and it was a pretty interesting read. It's short too.

Who Says What’s “Christian” Music?
Posted by Brent under Culture , Music

Who says what is and is not “Christian” music? The Christian Music Trade Association (CMTA), that’s who! Thanks to our friend Eldon for pointing us to a story from Reuters.

According to the CMTA, an artist such as Sufjan Stevens, whose beliefs are certainly not in question, does not qualify as a “Christian” artist. In other words, you will not be able to purchase his work at your local Christian bookstore. For many, this might not be anything to think twice about. Not many have heard Sufjan Stevens and he’s most likely not going to be a household name any time soon. However, one need listen to his music for only a short time before being squarely confronted with his beliefs. So much so that some reviewers make the point to state that they don’t like what he’s saying, but they like how he’s saying it (Pitchforkmedia for example).

Yet the CMTA’s decision poses larger questions about what really goes on in the “Christian” music industry. John Styll, president of the CMTA quips that Stevens “just doesn’t want to play the Christian music-market game, and that’s OK.” In other words, he has not sought distribution through the right channels, nor does he play the right venues. All of which makes one wonder how a group such as Phillips, Craig and Dean who deny the Trinity (see also) may be purchased at any Christian bookstore while Bob Dylan’s landmark Slow Train Coming may not. Apparently, good business means more than good theology in some circles, and God-glorifying content is not even on the radar.

What password are the gatekeepers looking for? According to the Reuters article, “Styll says albums must receive some national play on Christian radio, 25 percent of sales in the first week must be in Christian shops, and lyrics must have “Christian content.” Styll furthers that the lyrics in question must in line with Scripture, but acknowledges that these boundaries may be “a little loose.” That’s a problem. Who defines what is in the bounds of Scripture? Denial of the Trinity would certainly fall outside of my definition, but apparently not those set by the CMTA. Lyrical/theological content is obviously not deciding criteria.

It must be said, that to my knowledge, Sufjan Stevens has not sought CMTA certification. Indie artist Jeremy Casella notes that Sufjan is “not considered one of the CCMers or GMTA’ers because his music doesn’t run in CCM industry circles. No business connections or touring connections. No label connections. No affiliation really. No Nashville bloodline/money.” In other words, it’s a business decision, not a content question. Casella concludes “Its obvious as daylight that he’s a believer.”

Such discussions ought to make us apprehensive at best about what is and is not considered “Christian” music. Yet larger issues are also hinted at here; most notably the separationist tendencies of many Christians (which I am currently pondering more). Rather than be “in the world but not of the world,” many have chosen to withdraw all together, having a “Christian” version of everything the world might have to offer, both good and bad. We have our own musicians who play in our own venues that we buy in our own stores and labels are worth a thousand words; if it’s “Christian,” it’s alright by me.

All things considered, it seems as that you must be part of the club. If you don’t want to play the game (regardless of clearly Christian content), you will not be sold through us; and if you do play our game, denying the Trinity is just fine. One does not have to look at the issue very long to understand that it is not a question of belief or content, but of business decision.

We must understand that we have created our own sub-culture which runs by its own rules. Just because something may be purchased at a Christian bookstore does not mean it may be trusted. Conversely, just because something may not be purchased at the same store does not mean the people behind it are not glorifying God in what they do. These issues are not new to anyone involved in “Christian” music or books at any level. However, we must be sensitive to the fact that many well-meaning believers are sincerely swayed by labeling, and the lack of endorsement as a “Christian” artist is the death-bell as far as they’re concerned. We must gently teach Christian truth that not only affects the heart, but also the head. We must teach discernment, something sorely lacking in our day and age.

We are faced with a sacred/secular divide that permeates every level of life, forcing us to label everything, regardless of accuracy. Casella concludes, “The labeling is foolishness but that’s just the way it is here in town (Nashville). I think the whole thing is falling apart though. It happening right now and will continue to happen in the coming years.” Let’s hope he’s right but in the meantime, Christians must learn to look past the cover to judge the book.

Go here for the original.

The big 2-1 and fun.

2008-04-12T16:19:00.003-05:00

Today is my 21st birthday, and I've been surprised at my lack of enthusiasm. This doesn't mean that I'm not milking it for all it's worth, but I'm taking it down a notch. Last year was a 2 week celebration... Sorry to Joel and Lu about that one. Tonight I'm going to spend a nice quiet evening with my parents and bestie/roomie at the Yellowhammer in Waverly. I hear the food is pretty amazing, and Dr. Death plays piano on the weekends. I don't really know this Dr. Death guy, but apparently he's a really hard Chemistry professor... I tried to dodge that subject in every possible way.

Now for something real...

I've been thinking about a sermon I heard not too long ago. Actually, I'm not sure if it was a sermon, or just pre-sermon words of inspiration. Gag. This pastor went on for a while about Christians being "fun." That the reason people don't become Christians is because they don't know that we have fun. Therefore, we should have been clapping during a song. Everyone knows that's the epitome of fun, especially the tens that rushed to the altar.

I'm done being sarcastic.

These ideas have been bothering me for several days now. I'm not sure why a pastor would stand in front of a congregation and basically say that "fun" is what matters. I felt like they were promoting a gimmick... and gimmicks don't work. I'm also not sure where the idea that being a Christian is fun came from. Don't get me wrong I love to have fun, and I do on a daily basis, but is being a Christian really fun? Being ever reminded of my sinful nature = not fun. Constantly being refined = not fun. Trying to figure out how to be less selfish and worldly in a very selfish world = not fun. Crucifixion = NOT FUN.

Maybe I'm being too harsh. Maybe the pastor really wanted to talk about the joy mentioned in Psalm 16:11.
You make known to me the path of life;
in your presence there is fullness of joy;
at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Joy sounds like something I would rather people see in my life. Fun lasts for moments. Joy lasts through good times and bad. People that are looking for fun will find it anywhere. Fun can be had playing mini-golf. People that want joy, that are seriously seeking, will look to something else if the Church gives them "fun." So, are we correct in teaching other believers that we want others to see us having fun?

P.S. I'll let you know how the Yellowhammer is.

My life be like oohh, ahhh...

2008-04-08T14:46:00.002-05:00

So, if you haven't heard the always urban sounds of Grits yet, you probably won't sing that line in your head like I do.

You're really not missing out on much.

The past couple of days have been "ooh, ahh" days... or maybe "oh, crap" would be the best phrase to use. Yesterday morning I found out that it wouldn't be a good idea to go to Spain this summer. I could go, but only 1 out of the 4 classes could be transferred into my curriculum. That would mean an extra semester of school-graduation in December '09-not an option! As much as I want to study abroad, I want to graduate that much more. It really doesn't surprise me that things worked out like this, considering all of the trouble I've had with it in the past few weeks. So, this morning at about 10 I signed my parents up to pay for a full semester of school in Spain. During the Fall semester, there are many more classes available, which is a HUGE plus! However, this also means that I will have to take one more class and will be gone an extra month. Not to mention, I will miss my last football season as an Auburn student. BUT, this is a great opportunity, and I think it will provide much more valuable memories for the future.

Hopefully, it will work out. Your prayers are much desired. I'll know more in the next few days.

I can't type any longer. It's 2:58 and I haven't had lunch yet :(

Good.

2008-04-04T22:21:00.004-05:00

This was posted on the 9Marks blog today, and I would like to share it with you.

April 04, 2008

Gospel Counterfeits

by Jonathan Leeman

In their book How People Change, Tim Lane and Paul David Tripp lay out seven counterfeit gospels.

Formalism. “I participate in the regular meetings and ministries of the church, so I feel like my life is under control. I’m always in church, but it really has little impact on my heart or on how I live. I may become judgmental and impatient with those who do not have the same commitment as I do.”

Legalism. “I live by the rules—rules I create for myself and rules I create for others. I feel good if I can keep my own rules, and I become arrogant and full of contempt when others don’t meet the standards I set for them. There is no joy in my life because there is no grace to be celebrated.”

Mysticism. “I am engaged in the incessant pursuit of an emotional experience with God. I live for the moments when I feel close to him, and I often struggle with discouragement when I don’t feel that way. I may change churches often, too, looking for one that will give me what I’m looking for.”

Activism. “I recognize the missional nature of Christianity and am passionately involved in fixing this broken world. But at the end of the day, my life is more of a defense of what’s right than a joyful pursuit of Christ.”

Biblicism. “I know my Bible inside and out, but I do not let it master me. I have reduced the gospel to a mastery of biblical content and theology, so I am intolerant and critical of those with lesser knowledge.”

Therapism. “I talk a lot about the hurting people in our congregation, and how Christ is the only answer for their hurt. Yet even without realizing it, I have made Christ more Therapist than Savior. I view hurt as a greater problem than sin—and I subtly shift my greatest need from my moral failure to my unmet needs."

“Social-ism.” “The deep fellowship and friendships I find at church have become their own idol. The body of Christ has replaced Christ himself, and the gospel is reduced to a network of fulfilling Christian relationships.”
How many of these do you recognize in your own heart? How can we help our congregations to recognize them in their hearts through preaching, discipling, and counseling?

I don't know about you, but I can definitely think of times where I followed these gospels instead of Jesus.

More creativity please...

2008-04-01T00:11:00.005-05:00

Why aren't Christians more creative?

This question was raised on a blog that I read occasionally, and I've been wondering about this since I read that post. It seems that Christian media, entertainment, etc. takes its cues straight from popular culture. I think the intent is to be "relevant," but the result is nothing less than cheesy. We serve the creator of creativity and this is what we come up with:

or this:

or my personal favorite, the musical stylings of Apologetix (Sorry, Joel, I know you like them):

However I did find this t-shirt:

I know that our purpose in life isn't to reach some special level of creativity, and I am certainly not trying to say that all Christians lack creativity. David Crowder is an excellent example of a creative Christian. And all of these mentioned things have their place and have served many people, I'm sure. I just wonder if we, as a whole, are resting on pop culture so much that we aren't using all that we have been given. Questions? Comments? Insults?

Reason #4

2008-03-05T11:49:00.002-06:00

Why I love Jon and Kate Gosselin #4:

They expose their children to life. I mean, did you watch Monday night's episode? It wouldn't have mattered if they had one babysitter for each child, flying 8 children from Pennsylvania to Utah for a ski trip is hard! Some parents in their situation would decide that it would just be easier to keep them home, in a familiar location, with a set schedule, for the sake of everyone's sanity. Jon and Kate see the importance of trying their best to let all 8 children experience life like it would have been if there had only been, say, 3 kids. That's pretty brave and incredible... not to mention, it takes an abundance of patience. My parents used every opportunity they had to expose me to other cultures and areas, and I wouldn't trade those experiences for the world. It helped me see so far beyond the Chatom bubble. The Gosselin's life is pretty brave and incredible... not to mention, it takes an abundance of patience that I can only wish to have when I become a mother... Lord willing. :)

Why I Love The Gosselins

2008-03-02T00:08:00.002-06:00

Please tell me that you have caught on to the entertainment that is "Jon & Kate Plus 8." It's pretty amazing. 8 kids! In 2 pregnancies! Crazy! Other than the fact that the kids are way too adorable and funny, I love this show for several reasons. All of which I will share with you right now. Feel free to stop reading.

1- They actually parent their children. They know each individual child's personality, and have a real relationship with each one. I've seen other families with many children that use what I like to call the "shirking" method. This means they shirk some responsibilities as a parent by putting each child in charge of the one born right after them. I get so sad when I see this. My cousin and his wife have 11(!) children, and he has made the comment before that he doesn't really know his younger kids. His relationship with the oldest 4 or 5 is great, but after that he couldn't, and didn't, share his time with all of them. Isn't that a shame? Granted, this would be almost impossible considering the Gosselin children are only 2 ages. But the principle still applies.

2- They aren't fake. I don't think they have the time or energy to be fake. They let people really see what their lives are like. Have you ever seen the Duggar family on TLC? These people have 16 children. I love kids, but I prayed that God would not want me to birth 16 children after watching this. Anyway... they're too dang happy to have 16 children. They also use the "shirking" method. Now that I write this, that might be why the mom is so rested and cheerful... she doesn't really do much with the children.

3- They love the Lord. Now that they have a weekly show, a lot of this area of their lives is edited out. But if you have seen the specials they had before the show started, it shows Jon and Kate praying together, them getting ready to go to church, etc. They truly to see their children as gifts from God. All 8 of them.

So, I'm stopping now because I'm pretty tired of typing... but you should love this family also. Go to to learn more.

Katherine

2008-02-27T23:42:00.004-06:00

This past weekend I had the opportunity to teach at a D-Now style retreat in Montgomery. It was at Vaughn Forest Baptist Church, which is one of the biggest churches in Montgomery. Um, HUGE. I know I don't always act like it, but I pretty much love these weekends. I participated in them every year while I was in youth group, and I remember learning so much from them and growing as a result. Also, the college students that led them had a distinct impact on my life. I had never before actually seen and interacted with college students that were living for the Lord. I'm not even sure I knew they existed. I was lucky enough to have some leaders several years in a row, so I was able to build a relationship with them. So, D-Now weekends have a special place in my heart. However, this one was a little different. This was for the children's ministry. Yep... I taught the 5th grade girls.

Forgive me while I digress a bit:
This is an age group that has always been, and will probably always be a little awkward for me. I think I almost get intimidated by kids of this age. Strange, I know. If I have known the child(ren) for a while, it's not awkward, and we can get along. If I DON'T know the kids I get really nervous. They're past the age where they think every older person is cool, but they're not quite to the age where it's a little easier to see past nerdiness. Does that make sense? I worry about my cool factor! I just have an irrational fear of 5th graders. I am fallen. Now back to the point of this post...

Friday night the children's minister informed me that we would have an extra girl in our group for the scavenger hunt the next day. He explained to me that Katherine is 16, but has Down Syndrome. So while she still participates in children's ministry activities, she can't participate in overnight events. Y'all, I started sweating. I don't know if I can explain the anxiety I had all night about this. I had to have church by myself in the bedroom that night. (P.S. Don't underestimate the amazingness of having your own bedroom during a D-Now. Thank you Jeremy!) But Katherine loves church, she loves being with people, and he really wanted her to be involved as much as possible. So, Saturday morning comes along. We walk into the church and basically go straight to the kitchen for lunch (hot dogs...yummy :). All of a sudden I feel someone grab my hand (and it wasn't gently!) I turned and looked down and Katherine's sweet face turned to me, gave me a HUGE smile, and she promptly introduced herself and started conversation. From then on I had a new best friend. She helped us in the scavenger hunt (that is, until her "stomach hurt"... I am told this is the key sign that she's tired of doing something :) Katherine sang her heart out during worship, and she giggled and played alongside the other girls. The time that we got to spend together was so sweet.

I went into the weekend with such pride in my heart. I never expected to learn anything from these girls, but they impacted me more than I can really explain on here. Katherine doesn't understand the ins and outs of being a Christian. She will never approach her relationship with Jesus through a theologian's eyes. She probably won't ever do much more than sing, but she will sing louder and with the sweetest heart than anyone else in the church. I think that she "gets" being a Christian more than I do most of the time. It's so amazing that her love and knowledge of Christ was never taught to her, but by the grace and sovereignty of God it is there. She was full of more joy than the majority of the Christians I am in contact with every day... and most definitely more than I fight to keep. I realized that I should no longer pity this girl, for she was made exactly this way for God's glory. I wish you could have seen her giving God his glory... Katherine is the lesson of a lifetime.

As for the other girls, they blew me away! If Katherine needed a hand, a friend, someone to talk to, they were there in a flash. They joked with her, talked with her, and included her in all they did. They even helped her smuggle 6 bags of Famous Amos cookies away in her pockets. I'm positive that I would not have been so selfless and loving as a 5th grader.

I hope that I don't easily forget Katherine's face as she sang to Jesus, or the other girls' faces as they started to think of scripture in a new way. It's so easy to get caught up in what we know... where we serve... which author we're reading. We often forget who we know, who we serve, and the original author of life. We could all learn a little something from Katherine.

The... Caroline Show?

2008-02-09T18:49:00.001-06:00

Do you ever have those times where you just feel very conspicuous? I definitely just had one of those in Kroger. It was like everyone in a two mile radius was taking note of my awkwardness. And grocery shopping at Kroger happens to be one of those errands where I just want to disappear into the cereal boxes. Unfortunately, I'm not the same shape or color as Lucky Charms, so I had to keep myself distracted, so I started thinking about The Truman Show. It's that movie where Jim Carrey finds out his whole life is a TV show. Several years ago I was quite obsessed with this movie, and have wondered if that was my life since. Strange. I know. By the time I checked out, I had quite the "Truman" story planned out in my head. Naturally, the people in Kroger noticed me from TV! However, once I left the "set" of Kroger I realized that my life really isn't interesting enough to be a TV show.

Do you think people would watch your show?

My resolution

2008-01-12T14:20:00.000-06:00

At least once a year I go through all of my clothes, bags, shoes, etc. and clean out my closets and drawers. Usually this bag goes to Goodwill or something like that, which is really awesome when you're trying to stuff a garbage bag as big as you are into an overflowing bin... oh yeah, the opening is usually over my head. That would be fine if I didn't have the strength of a 7 year old. Fun stuff. I digress.

This cleaning process made me think a little about the idea of cleaning up life. It's the beginning of the year, and almost everyone thinks they have to have a resolution. Apparently this leads to enlightenment or joy or something. I can bet that at least 75% of the lists include something about health, organization, and/or money. I can see the benefits in those things. There's nothing wrong with that if there aren't impure motives, I guess. We need to clean things out every once in a while.

As I was cleaning out my closet, I was thinking about how this relates to my life and my relationship with Jesus Christ. What would He clean out of my life? How does he clean things out? What one major thing haunts me and hinders my becoming more like Christ? It's so amazing that 2000 years ago the burden of sin was taken away from me. However, as you probably have figured out, that doesn't mean that all problems are gone. Nor is the act of sinning gone. One verse that kept coming to my mind was Philippians 3:13-14. I'll start with 13b. "forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." I have problems with letting go of past sin. Cleaning it out, if you will. I despair over it. I let it live inside me and breed doubt and complacency. In the face of these sins I tend to forget who saved me. I forget in whose image I am made. I forget that Christ has overcome death and sin. Joel and I recently talked about the effects of reminding others about the gospel. So, friends, my resolution is to clean things out. I will try to remind myself and others of the gospel. I will put my sins behind me, push away despair, and "press on toward the goal."

Maybe adding health to the list wouldn't be such a bad idea either :)

I'm not a good blogger :(

2007-10-16T12:13:00.000-05:00

It's been almost exactly two weeks since I wrote anything on here. Maybe it's because I'm too private... nope, not a problem of mine. Maybe it's because I've been too busy... again, not a problem of mine. Maybe it's because I'm just a slacker... um, I'll go with that one. Feel free to skip this post, for I am sure it won't be that entertaining.

Joel came down last weekend. It was pretty amazing to see him again. It was also proof that I worry about things for no reason. We went to the game on Saturday, but I got bored (imagine that) and hungry and wanted to leave. I am not upset about missing that blow-out, for sure. The rest of the time was pretty typical. Dinner. More football at Whitney's. Church. However, I must say this, I have an incredible boyfriend, and the weekend reminded me so much of how blessed I am.

This past weekend was the annual Parkway Baptist College Beach Retreat. It was fun, but it also made me see how I've changed over the past year. Maybe that's something for a different post. I'm happy to say that Kinzie, Adam, Adam, and Virginia got to come along. It was good to see them again. I'm sad to say that I didn't really participate in many activities. I got sick and chose my bed over the beach. Now several people are sick, and I'm afraid that it's because of me. I hate it when that happens.

In other news, I have officially decided that I really like The Office. It makes me laugh... a lot.

So, now I'm laying in bed trying my best not to swallow. I'm pretty sure my throat bursts into flames every time that I do. Feel free to send flowers or green tea.

Cloudy days and down time...

2007-10-03T15:09:00.000-05:00

I feel compelled to write something, however I have nothing important to say. The past week has been nonstop in school, and I think my brain is protesting thought right now. So, I'm going to be a couch potato for a little while. I'm going to curl up with my favorite blue and yellow blanket, and whip up a meal with the Take Home Chef.

The weather is wonderful today... cloudy and almost rainy. I love it.

OH!!! And I have the best gift coming to me this weekend. :)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Should the Church in politically or socially trying circumstances remain covert to avoid potential eradication by forces hostile to Christianity? Or would more open confrontation with prevailing spiritual ignorance and deprivation--even if it produced Christian martyrs--be more likely to lead to evangelistic breakthroughs? Islamic fundamentalists claim that their spiritual revolution is fueled by the blood of martyrs. Is it conceivable that Christianity's failure to thrive in the Muslim world is due to the notable absence of Christian martyrs? And can the Muslim community take seriously the claims of a Church in hiding?... The question is not whether it is wise at times to keep worship and witness discreet, but rather how long this may continue before we are guilty of 'hiding our light under a bushel... The record shows that from Jerusalem and Damascus to Ephesus and Rome, the apostles were beaten, stoned, conspired against and imprisoned for their witness. Invitations were rare, and never the basis for their missions."

I'm probably a bigger pansy than anyone...

Penny for your thoughts?

Oohhhh Auburn.

2007-09-29T11:06:00.001-05:00

This is a frivilous post...

I absolutely love away game weekends. I love being one of only a few people in my apartment complex. It's amazing.

Lucinda and I are keeping Ashley's dog, Tubby, this weekend. Now I want a dog... really. Tubby and I went on a nice walk this morning, and, I couldn't believe it, the weather was PERFECT! Every year as it starts to turn fall, I think to myself, "I don't remember what cool weather is like." I love the fall. I love when the breeze is almost cool, but not enough to give chills. I wish I could bottle it up.

I am what I am...

2007-09-25T12:43:00.000-05:00

"But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain..." ~1 Cor. 15:10a

Forgive me for using this as procrastination, and forgive me if my love of this verse is not really contextually correct.

I read this last night and it has been stuck in my head. You see, about every 5 days (or every 5 minutes) I have an identity crisis. I'm sure I'm not alone in this. I've come to terms with the fact that as a woman I want to be beautiful. I want to be accepted just as I am. I want to be loved perfectly. However, I've not merged my head and heart together with the truth that no human can love perfectly. No human is going to make me feel complete. I know this. I know this. I know this. I also know that I have been redeemed by the perfect Son. My life is no longer my own, no matter how many times I try to take control of it. I know that no matter how many times I put my worth in other things and people, it will never ever be found there. I know this. I know this. I know this. Why can't I live it?

"By the grace of God I am what I am..." What I am is what the Lord is making me. That's more than good enough for me.

ALSO! "Do not neglect the gift you have, which was given you by prophecy when the council of elders laid their hands on you. Practice these things, devote yourself to them, so that all may see your progress." ~1 Tim. 4:14-15
Aren't you glad that we don't arrive at anything?

numero uno

2007-09-23T00:07:00.000-05:00

It's my first post... I'm elated.

I've been reading C.S. Lewis's "The Four Loves," and I must say... I'm not quite sure that I'm intelligent enough to read his works. :) However, upon reading his words on Affection, I came across these few marvelous sentences. This is now my new favorite quote. You may not know, but I am very indecisive, therefore it's a big deal for me to make that statement. Enjoy, for you know the words are true...

"The truly wide taste in humanity will similarly find something to appreciate in the cross-section of humanity whom one has to meet every day. In my experience it is Affection that creates this taste, teaching us first to notice, then to endure, then to smile at, then to enjoy, and finally to appreciate, the people who 'happen to be there.' Made for us? Thank God, no. They are themselves, odder than you could have believed and worth far more than we guessed."