Just Wanted to Say, Hi!

I feel like I should be making a blog post but I don't think I have anything that significant to say. Let's see...

• Lost and Smallville are both back on TV and neither is all that great. The former for losing touch with what made the show special (the people) and the latter for really poor editing and story-writing (what the heck is going on? I can't even begin to follow).
• I sat in the sun as I was doing some school reading yesterday and my knees got burned.
• Two weeks left of school!!! Actually, only one week for one class.
• I made some yummy Mexican rice-a-roni with bell peppers and corn so I can live off of quesadillas for the next week or so.
• Today is Ben and Jerry's Free Ice Cream Cone Day. Make sure you get some. My current fav flavor is pumpkin cheesecake, but bananas on the rum is a close second.
• Still lifting weights once a week, even moved up to 50 lbs on some of the weight device thingies.

All that's all she wrote.

To Eat Meat or Not To Eat Meat

So this is a tough issue for me for several reasons, which I just don't feel like going into right now. Nonetheless, I think it is important to take a serious look at this issue. My dad sent me an article from the NY Times that I think provides some insight into the current meat situation in the U.S. and the world. I encourage you to read it.

AT&T Disconnect

So moving into Day 5 of no Internet or phone line, I'm still surviving. Fortunately, we get somebody's wireless at my parents house (must be comcast; thus, making it comcastic for me). I hope I am able to keep up with people's emails and my schoolwork so that no one has really noticed that the Internet is not at my finger tips. Hopefully, AT&T will finally fix the problem tomorrow, and I will be back to using my own computer.

I Failed and then Grace Came

I had failed, missed an important deadline that could affect the rest of my life (and I do not say this to be over-dramatic). As I read that nothing could be done, an overwhelming sense of loss hit me. I sat there trying to rejoice in God (Philippians 4:4), to praise Him, to love Him, and to know that He is good, regardless of my circumstances. I began to prepare a prayer request email, tears beginning to well. In that moment, when it seemed so hopeless, I heard the chime of a new email. In the background, I listening to a new CD given to me by Kevin: "Thy Mercy, My God" by Sandra McCracken.

Hallelujah
Hallelujah

Thy mercy my God is the theme of my song,
The joy of my heart and the boast of my tongue.
Thy free grace alone, from the first to the last,
Hath won my affection and bound my soul fast.

Without Thy sweet mercy, I could not live here.
Sin would reduce me to utter despair,
But through Thy free goodness, my spirit’s revived
And He that first made me still keeps me alive.

Thy mercy is more than a match for my heart,
Which wonders to feel its own hardness depart.
Dissolved by Thy goodness, I fall to the ground
And weep to the praise of the mercy I’ve found.

Hallelujah
Hallelujah

Great Father of mercies, Thy goodness I own
In the covenant love of Thy crucified Son.
All praise to the Spirit, whose whisper divine
Seals mercy and pardon and righteousness mine.

All praise to the Spirit, whose whisper divine
Seals mercy and pardon and righteousness mine.

Hallelujah
Hallelujah

Those words were filling my ears as I read the email that informed me that even though I was late, I was being slipped in, just in time. My heart swelled and my tears flooded as my lips moved to match the words of the song above. I did not deserve this little bit of grace and I certainly do not deserve the Grace that comes to me through the blood of Jesus Christ. Thank you, Father God, for loving me when I fail and when I fall. Hallelujah!

Black Ring Be Gone

Just a quick anecdote:
If you find that your rings or other pieces of silver have become tarnished, never fear, a quick solution is near (at least if you have a Trader Joe's nearby).
One evening as I was heading to take a shower, in the process I glanced at my hands and saw with great horror that my silver rings had turned black!!! The next morning I borrowed some of my mom's silver polish and while it did clean off the black, the rings still seemed brownish-hued. As I was leaving the house, my mom mentioned to me that I might try some toothpaste (really??? I said). So several days later, when I just couldn't stand the brownish-hue any longer, I tested out this theory of toothpaste as a silver polish using Trader Joe's peppermint toothpaste. Low and behold, it worked better! Now my rings are shiny silver => Yay!