The Start of Springy-Dingy

It's been a while since I've just reflected on my life and how grand it is. So that's why I'm here... to reflect.

This week is finals week over here at Oregon State University. For a lot of people, these days are the bane of their existences. Studying, taking tests and studying s'mo! But not me! Most definitely not me. I'm fortunate enough to only have one final coming up tomorrow that is easy and the rest of the time to just... be a dweller of Corvallis.

Corvallis: a small town of about 55,000. Actually, allow me to rephrase. During the fall, winter and spring seasons, it is a town of around 55,000. During summer, when all those obnoxious college kids go home for break and a season at "home", the town loses half of it's tenants (somewhere around 20,000-ish). It's a town built on agricultural roots, but I would by no means call it a hick town because most of the people that live here all year-around are more on the hippie side. Which is just great!

I've recently been noticing the beauty of this town. As spring is well on it's way, the trees are starting to blossom and the streets are lined with pinks of every shade. It's really quite breath-taking. The many, many coffee shops have been packed the last few weeks- full of students who are preparing themselves for their deaths... I mean, finals and/or final projects. Yet, the atmosphere of all these quaint little cafes is more on the cheery side then miserable side.

Anyway, back to me being unshaken by this concept of finals week, I just wanted to share some of the fun times I've been lucky enough to have during the past few weeks. It amazes me the way that God has placed me in a place surrounded by such beautiful friends. Praise God.

We have the merriest of times right when we don't realize it.

The End.

"You and I" by Ingrid Michaelson

don't you worry, there my honey
we might not have any money
but we've got our love to pay the bills

maybe I think you're cute and funny,
maybe I wanna do what bunnies do with you,
if you know what I mean

Oh, let's get rich and buy our parents homes in the South of France
let's get rich and give everybody nice sweaters
and teach them how to dance
let's get rich and build our house on a mountain
making everybody look like ants
from way up there, you and I, you and I


well you might be a bit confused
and you might be a little bit bruised
but baby how we spoon like no one else
so I will help you read those books
if you will soothe my worried looks
and we will put the lonesome on the shelf

oh let’s get rich and buy our parents homes in the South of France
let's get rich and give everybody nice sweaters
and teach them how to dance
let's get rich and build our house on a mountain
making everybody look like ants
from way up there you and I, you and I

oh, let’s get rich and buy our parents homes in the south of France
let's get rich and give everybody nice sweaters
and teach them how to dance
let's get rich and build our house on a mountain
making everybody look like ants
from way up there you and I, you and I

(picture from pastemagazine.com)

Kristopher.

What I am listening to: Hello Seattle by Owl City... for the 5th time in a row.

There's this guy, Kristopher, who walks around the concepts of McNary. As an employee myself in one of those concepts, I see Kris a lot. In fact I think he works clean-up crew 20+ hours a week, which is unheard of for McNary employees. Really unheard of. The thing about this guy is that he's very quiet. Probably shy as well, but definitely quiet. He has really droopy eyes, poor posture and a frown to go with his solemn (and of course quiet) voice. But something about him gave me the green light, so now I consider us friends. Not the type of friends that gab all day and go everywhere together, but the type of friends who seem to have an unspoken understanding that each would stand up for each other if such a need ever arose.

I think other people see him as "slow" but I know better.

Once I heard Kris have a conversation with no one in-particular (broom in hand) about the components of a computer. At least that's what I think I heard out of his mumbles. That... and that he built one himself. Ladies and Gents, "slow" is not the right description for my friend Kristopher.

It always feels good when Kris nods a hello in my direction in the early mornings as I work the cash register at Boardwalk. It's kind of like I'm one of the few who he lets into his own space in the universe from time to time.

In my opinion, God spent a little more time on my friend Kristopher.

A weekend AWAY.

Sometimes I forget to thank God for the amazing people he's placed in my life. Among those are three girls who within the last few months have honestly become my best friends. And if it were mathematically correct to say this, I would suggest they are my better halves... but it's not mathematically correct. In fact, I'm not mathematically correct.

Selah, Rach, T and I went to Lincoln City for a weekend away. We left on Friday afternoon and spent two nights in Selah's grandmother's beach house (she goes by Dabi, and don't any of you forget it.) It was beautiful. We spent the first night doing what a lot of TV-deprived girls do best: claimed spots on the living room couches and watched movies and TV shows into the wee hours of the night. We didn't fall asleep however until we had all gotten some reading in- we are all very studious after all. The next morning we woke up at what felt like the crack of dawn to Jack Johnson's "Better Together".

At times, all it takes is someone else's words for you to realize something. Yes, Jack. You had it right when you said, "It's always better when we're together." With these girls and the direction my life has seemed to take, those words could not be truer.

So anyhow, we woke up early so Selah could catch the tide at this one spot in Newport so she could spend a few hours surfing and we could spend a few hours bonding underneath a blanket in the rain... because of course when it comes to surfing the rest of us are plain ignorant fools. We got then returned home for some leftovers and a sad movie, dinner at Moe's and yet another movie. What can I say... we had a craving and we needed to fulfill it.

What came next is something I probably shouldn't share with the whole world, but here goes: An hour of dancing and random work-outs that resulted in every one of us being sore today.. sad? You decide.

So we were homeward bound this morning after we woke up to the beautiful Oregon coastal weather ever. So beautiful in fact, we decided to make our ways down to the beach to bask in God's magnicence, and read his word. This life-changing session was interrupted by the realization that we had locked the house keys in... and there was no way to enter. So the four of us spent 40 minutes digging through dirt around the house for the spare key. We found it, needless to say. (Those 40 minutes were greatly needed, mind you, so that we would all stop to realize that NOTHING ever works out the way we want it to.)

I may have learned a few things over this past weekend (i.e. how you should always pay attention when writing in the beach sand with a stick to avoid wet sneaker) but the most monumental of them all is that I should never forget to thank God for these wonderful girls that have been so strategically placed in my life. I love them so much.



OH.. and PS. Today, Sunday January 31st, 2010, is a ground-breaking day because I finished my first Spanish novel for my 315 class. May that book be set on fire so that I never have to deal with it again. Seriously, my life is back.

Haiti. Haiti.

Yet another disastrous situation has hit our tiny little world and it has seem to come out on top... but they always do at first.

I was at the gym this morning when I heard the news about the devastating earthquake that happened in Haiti. Yes, Haiti. As in the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere? Yes. That Haiti. The country that just underwent one of the most horrifying natural disasters in human history.

My room mates and I sat in front of the laptop screen listening to CNN's report on how the death toll has hit more than 100,000 and is not stopping there.

Selah, one of my three room mates has an adopted Haitian brother, so one can only imagine the hysterics taking place in our room as we watched- powerlessly- as the number of those affected gradually got bigger.

It's amazing how small I feel in times like these. As four girls with willing hearts, we felt unable to do A THING. Sure, we donated money. And we prayed. We prayed for God to hear the words of four college girls who have compassion for this poor country because there was nothing else we could to.

Rachel and Tiara talked about how there must be something good coming from all this because God wouldn't turn on the world like that. He has a plan. How his plan involves 100,000+ deaths in a country that already had nothing is far beyond the capacity of my brain. But he's got it.

Haiti, God's got you. You're in our hearts.

Off.

It's a really strange feeling to be one of the last people left in a house of 55 girls. Everyone's gone for the holidays it seems besides me and my beautiful room mate. It's kinda depressing, but in a way we're enjoying the solitude.

T minus 15 hours until I'm off to the airport for China. I get to see my family after a 15 hour plane ride- well worth it I'll add. I always look forward to the part where I'm getting out of customs and walking to the end of the terminal and I see them all there. It's a heartwarming feeling. Whoever said "absence makes the heart grow fonder" was a very right person. I wonder if his family lived in China?

Well it's time to reflect on the past few months with Rachel. We have much to discuss :)

Jesus bless everyone's travels.

unsettled

haveyouevertriedtotypeanditjustseemscompletelypointlessbecauseallyourwordsarejjumbledtoget

hersoyoucan'tgetasinglethoughtoutofyourheadandontothecomputerscreen?Itssofrustrating.

It's so frustrating.

I've suddenly felt convicted to pray for patience because all of mine disappeared a week ago. Why am I getting so easily annoyed recently? It actually makes me feel guilty how internally annoyed I get with the girls that live in the house and the people I have class with. It's not good... and it's not healthy. So from this very point on, I'm going to be more tolerant with people, understand that they were brought up differently than I was, grew up in different places than I did and obviously don't look at a situation the same way I would.

Get over it, Joce. Everyone's different. Stop thinking you want to punch people in the face, stop scheming of ways to get back at people for the rude things they said to you, and you really gotta stop caring so much. Just let it go.

On a lighter note, I go home in one week. Actually, by this time next Saturday, I'm going to be on a plane to China. Awaiting me on the other side of the terminal are the people who i haven't seen in more than four months. These people can never annoy me... well maybe sometimes, but in a different way. Mom, Dad and Braden. I only consider it home because they will be there. The only home I have is where they're at. 7 more days :) :) :)

So I don't really have much to talk about. I have a room to move into and 3 finals to study for, but life's good. The weather outside is frightful! The fire is so.... yah too much Christmas music I think. The term is coming to a steady end and I will be left standing, not sitting on my butt, not laying down to sleep, but standing proudly!!! Life's good.

Just some pictures I'm fond of: