Life and other mysteries

So,
Brief update...

I will probably be deciding what I am going to be doing with my life within the next week. I will soon let you know if I will become professional teacher, or a graduate student.

For those of you who forget what it is like to prepair for, apply for and interview for jobs, it is tedious, time consuming, and somewhat stressful.

Right now Chris is sitting next to me, writing a computer program for his senior project. He is murming like a black choir in church during the sermon when something in the program works. This is what happens when the strengths of the left brain and the right brain are equal and therefore combat each other for stomping grounds.

Sometimes I think that the verse about God, "Now we see in a mirror dimly, but soon we shall see face to face." also applies to humans about humans. I think I see who I am, but because I am changing and growing so much as a person, I don't think I realize who I am. (At least for probably 50% of the time.)

Warning: abrupt ending.......NOW.

Fun things

I don't want to gloss over spring break. So I thought I would summarize it (mostly for my own memory benefit) even though I am a couple of days into the following work week.

Fun (and some not fun like cleaning) things I did over Spring Break:

Weekend and Monday
1. Got my car back
2. Cleaned out my room
3. Played Computer Games with my sister
4. Went to Target with my mom and sister

Tuesday and Wednesday
5. Spent the afternoon with Amy and Doc. (watched movie, ate pizza)
6. Had a sleepover two nights in a row
#. Cleaned, Worked on Applications, Thought about the future
#. Ate Dinner with Mom and Ashley (had Pizza)
7. Hung out with Erin, Rachel, and Amy and watched Bond, James Bond

Thursday
8. Fried Pizza. Yes, The aforementioned ladies and I fried pizza. You can look up Fried Pizza on Wikipedia. Because we used batter to fry our pizza, ours would be dubbed the "Pizza Crunch." There are some photos on the Internet of batter fried pizza, but they used corn meal and we did not. It tasted like a cross between a pizza role and a cheese stick. The idea originated in Scotland. One Fried Pizza sight was boasting on how fried pizza is just one of the reasons why the hart attack rate in Scotland is one of the highest in the world.
9. Went and saw "Bridge To Terabithia" (good movie)
10. Ate Lobster
11. Had Coffee
12. Talked about nursing stuff
13. Watched "A Far Off Place" (Movie made by Disney before Disney got wussy)
14. Stood in the Middle of Main Street

Friday
15. Cleaned
16. Worked on Applications
17. Lounged

Saturday
18. Recycled
19. Cleaned
20. Hung out with Sister
21. Ate dinner with my family (Enchilada Bake)
22. Jumped on Trampoline with Kati and Lee
23. Came back to the burro and went to bed

Sunday
24. Church
25. Lunch with Pastor Randy and clan
26. Made Soup for Sick Elise
27. Welcomed Chris Home
28. Worked on applications and portfolio
29. Went to bed and said by to my first free spring break in four year.

In summary,
I realize that I ate a lot of pizza. Seriously...what is with that.
I had a great time with family and friends.
I would do it all again

Random Goal: I want to take up Rollerblading.

Short

Well, spring break is over. It was a good chance to see family, hang out with friends, and get practically nothing done.

I finished another application and sent it in. I also am going to another interview today. This one is in Salina.

I think I am going through Menopause. Last night I couldn't sleep because I had Hot Flashes all night long. I was a Furnace one moment and the next moment I felt normal. This is not supposed to be happening to someone who has only been on the earth less than 25 years. However it is confirming my theory about the legitimacy of the quarter life crisis. Amy and I are beginning to believe that some people experience quarter life crisis just as people do when they are at their midlife point. Is this true? I don't know. Is it possible? Most Likely.

On Saturday I was talking with my sister, and we were talking about how she used to run around with the neighborhood kids when she was younger. She said, "That was when I was in shape. You have to be in shape to run around with neighborhood kids because they never stop." I got to thinking about how true this statement is. When you are young and hanging around with the neighborhood gang, you have to be ready for anything at anytime. I think that this could become a theory about life, but it hasn't had the time to mull around in my brain long enough to actually become something.

Ahhhh

I spent the day with Amy and Andrew. It was good. We watched Rear Window. We talked, ate pizza, drank orange juliouses and then played around on the Internet. I like times like this. Amy and I told Andrew about our 8th grade trip and JJ's Jinko Jeans. It was great!

I probably spelled Julious and Jinko wrong. Sorry

Back from home

I had a lovely few days at home. It was raining this morning when I woke up. It was nice to lay in bed from 8:00 ish to 9:00 ish and dose in and out listening to the rain. It continued to rain the rest of the morning. I packed up my stuff, stuffed the pooch in her bed, and hit the road. I stopped at W-Mart to get a key (I finally remembered!) and drove the rest of the way back to the burro.

I just want to say that after this weekend Akon's song that goes like: "Nobody wanna see us together, but that don matter, cuz I love you." will always be amusing to me. If you know my sister and her boyfriend, you may get a kick out of this as well. Just imagine Lee falling asleep on the couch, and my little Asian sister sneaking up on him and singing the first line of the song complete with the Akon accent (Kind of Jamaican or Island-ish). Keep in mind that she is singing into his ear at a somewhat loud volume. Lee wants to be mad, but he is laughing too hard because she sounds so Great as an Akon impersonator. HA!

I found this brightly colored, Bob Marley reminiscent hat this weekend and I wore it to Wal-Mart today. Just want to let you know that people treat you like you are younger if you wear a weird hat.

Random Thought flying by: Did you know that Target carries fashion clothes for dogs, but only for dogs in small weight categories.... Will this encourage more dieting among dogs? Only time will tell.

Garage Sale

So, For about 3 years, my sister has been bugging me to have a garage sale with her. The problem is that we always think of it way into garage sale season, and therefore are never ready in time. Well this spring all that is changing. I am biting the bullet and cleaning my room out. My room at home was never the same after high school graduation. It became full of beautiful things that I had received as gifts, I never got rid of my old stuff, because it fit fine when I took college things to college, and left home stuff at home. Over the years things accumulated as things do. I have already gathered 5 boxes of things to sell. I have spent the last couple of days going through, not even half of my room. GRRRRRR....I need a new system. It is good to purge. I am finding things that I had lost and was actually glad to find such as:

1 Khaki skirt purchased at the GAP and worn 1 time.
2 Pink Koosh ball from 1989 lost somewhere in the late 90's
3 Hoop earrings purchased to match a shirt that I frequently wear Lost sometime in 2005
4 Two amazing headbands which have recently come back into style Purchased in the early 80's and lost in the mid 90's

So you can see that the spree has been beneficial for me already. Who knows what is yet to unsurfaced itself.

P.S. Becky, If you read this I found some stuff for your science classroom. (1 Turtle habitat, 1 Can of turtle food, 1 outdoor light simulating light bulb, 1 Bottle water de-chlorinator)

God is in Control

Today I am going to audition for a position as Graduate TA at WSU. I am nervous, I just need to get in there and start. My audition is at 1:50. I would love to get the job. If I don't get it, I will teach next year and make money for a change.

I really want my Masters. I really want to be an amazing conductor. I am not yet, but this would help get me there.

God is in control. He knows where He wants me. He will get me there as long as I follow Him.

That's all...

Sad Strange Little Car

I took my car (affectionately known as Little Timmy) to Irv Schroeder's for maintenance on Tuesday night. I needed to get it checked out before Amy and I went to Saint Louis. I was thinking yah, probably about a hundred bucks for belt/hose type stuff. Little did I know that the Boots had come off of my power steering column and had caused foreign debris to get lodged in my column gears. (Who the hay knows that a steering column has boots. THESE ARE NOT MY BOOTS!!! WHOSE BOOTS ARE THESE???? I HAVE NO MORE BOOTS!!!) So, the grand total to fix my little purple friend was rocking somewhere around the "I don't have that kind of money" dollar value. This put a kibosh on the Saint Louis trip, and now I have to stop singing the "Meet me in Saint Louis Louis" song.

I am trying to find the good in this fiasco. Perhaps I am supposed to be stuck destitute in Kansas for the rest of the school year. Maybe this is God's way of telling me to stick around and rest and do maintenance on my life. In the end the answer is, "Who Knows?"

Well, Back to work. Off I go to save the world of Alumni Records and Spring Gold Outings.

I resolve

I don't normally resolve to do things very often. (I do not pronounce the t in often, but you can if you would like.) But I would like to resolve to write in my Blog more.

I went back and read most of my postings, and it made me sad when there were only a few a month, or in some months there were no posts at all. I like looking back at what I was doing a year ago and trying to measure how much has changed. Since I don't keep a journal, this is the best way for me to record things. I am putting this resolution on the blog so that I actually do it. I am not disciplined enough to work on things that I resolve only in my heart.
......

Today is beautiful. I am glad that the weather is so nice, because it helps me keep my stress level under control. I audition at WSU on Friday, and I am trying to keep my nerves under control. It should go well, unless my brains drain out my ears on Thursday night. (Which might happen because I have asked God to let me bomb my audition if I am not supposed to be at grad school next year.)

I think that I will spend some quality time in the library studying music and filling out applications. Someday I will read this statement and remember this transition in life. I hope that it will be a fond memory.

As the old song goes...
Que Sera Sera, Whatever will be will be, the future's not ours you see, que sera sera...

Tuesday feels like Monday

I am back at work. (my normal every day job) Yesterday I subbed for Lynn at the Junior High/High School. It went alright. It was an early morning. SNC starts at 7:30, and I have to be there before everyone so it means I need to be there at 7:10 ish. I know that the real world will soon make this a routine in my life, but I am trying not to think about it.

I was running an audition in the practice room, and I came out of the room to find 7 guys crowded around an I-book creating their very own R&B music. It wouldn't have been so bad, but they had hooked the computer up to the sound system in the room, and were blasting their creation for the world to hear out the open choir room door. They tell me all the time that they are too white to move while they sing in choir, but they write their own R&B (Ok it wasn't that good). (These guys need to stick to Frank, Barry, Michael, and the such. Strangers in the Night just works too well for them.)

This morning (Tuesday) feels like Monday. I gave a voice lesson at 7:30 (not easy to do). It is hard to change 15 years of breathing habits. After the lesson I came to work.

I am excited about Sharon's senior recital this evening. It should be amazing. I have said it before and I will say it again... That woman is the best accompanist I have ever had and will ever have!

That's all for now

The Approach of Spring Break

I am shocked that next week is Spring Break. I don't know what to do with myself. I am going to miss going on Choir tour. I do not believe that a person has truly experienced life without the experience of traveling with 35-50 people in your age range on a buss for endless hours of I don't know what. There are key experiences that I remember about each of the trips' buss rides.

Freshmen year I remember Spying and recording observations of "Best Friends" and other upper classmen choir members.
I remember leaving traditional seat partner Becky, and she had to sit with Chris H. She has never let me forget this.

Sophomore year I remember the Mad Libs that Jodi and Laura did in a Chinese accent.
I am not positive, but I think that sophomore year was the year that EVERYONE brought a Guitar on choir tour. And EVERYONE played theirs on the buss. All at the same time. All different songs.
Sophomore year was also the year that Becky and I tried to sit with different people every time we stopped. People kept getting mad at us for moving around and taking their seats. (This statement is written with furrowed brow and protruding lower lip.)

Junior year I remember what it feels like to spend two 19 hour periods on a buss in two shots. This time is including but not limited to one very uncomfortable night on two buss seats and one more comfortable, but more interrupted night on the buss floor.
I also remember watching the Wal-Mart Baby movie with what's her face Judd. (This was not a good selection of film for choir tour)
I also remember Becky and I getting stuck in the seat with lights that did not work, and documenting our feelings about this with one of the worst pictures that I have ever taken.

Senior year I remember making Chris watch Napoleon Dynamite in its entirety while he just wanted to sleep. (This was not me being mean, this was me being....well....being me. At least I didn't make him watch anything else.)
I also remember the 30 lbs of puppy chow that Elise made for the trip.
I also remember getting back on the buss after going to the Mall of America and seeing Roman's face at a Green state after realizing that he just dropped a chunk of cash on a Nice leather coat.

There are plenty of other things that happened on the buss on choir tour. Some of which I would rather not talk about. All of this to say. It was real, It was fun, I don't know if it was Real Fun though.

To those of you departing on Saturday,
Love your neighbor, and make sure the vents and lights work in your seat.

In general news:
I walked to work this morning. It was one of the most beautiful mornings that we have had this year. I wore a skirt and sandals, and the temperature was perfect. I am going to try to spend some quality time outside.

This week I am working for Brad (Tabor Choir) as his substitute while he listens to choirs in Miami or some place even warmer than here. (He tole me that it is raining there, and that makes me feel a little bit better. I hope he gets some sun shine, but that man is as happy as a lark as long as he is listening to good music.) I am so ready for spring. I love the feel of spring. Something about it just makes me feel like I can breathe easier. Like there is less pressure in life, and there is time to spend time with God, friends, and nature.

While I am talking about spring, I just want to give a shout out (I have never given a "Shout Out" before so bear with me) to daylight savings time. Mind you, I don't like falling back, but springing forward is awesome! I know that people loose an hour of sleep, but we gain another hour of light in the evening and that is wonderful!

In other news:
I am interviewing with WSU (grad school) and Salina Public Schools
I am also in the process of Applying at a couple of other places.


In shocking news:
My Kitchingroom is clean! It has not been clean since the beginning of the Tabor Phonathon which took most of my free evenings durring the week. And seriously, who wants to clean on Saturday morning. Not me!

In Good News:
I just finished reading the Chronicles of Narnia. They were just as good as when I read them when I was little. I am going to read The Hobbit next. I haven't read it yet, and I am excited to do so.

Update on the Random Rescue of Vegetation

Oh yah, The plant that I stole accounted in the blog "The Random Rescue of Vegetation" Died this year.
Take a moment of silence and then read about how Jill Fisher and I robbed Max Terman of a peace plant.

home again

Well I am back at home for an evening. I seriously think that I only get a chance to write when I am here. Something about not having internet at my home in the burro….

Well, I graduated. It is official. I just started working my first post college job. I am the Administrative Secretary to the Director of Alumni Relations. (Basically this means that I get to enter computer data and help plan events at Tabor. I like it, and hey, it kind of pays the bills)

I am taking the Praxis test tomorrow. It shouldn’t be a big deal, but I have been cursed with Test Anxiety for as long as I can remember. Hence I have been nauseated for the past three or more days.

On a lighter note, I am a certified substitute teacher. I have worked three days in the past two weeks. The first two days were in a choir classroom, and the third day I subbed in a band classroom. One thing that student teaching and substitute teaching has taught me is how to perfect “The Look.” This “Look” must have the sheer power to stop human thought, action, and emotion within a second. It must have the strength to incinerate ego in one pointed glance. And it must not be influenced by the utter ridiculousness of the typical classroom.

Finally, I will leave you with this…
I was leaving the school on Thursday afternoon (after teaching band) and one of my high school students ran up to me and gave me a huge hug. She brightened my day to a blazing gleam. The look on her face was radiant. I asked her and the choir director why she was so happy. It pretty much amounted to the fact that about five senior guys (who are very nice looking) had complimented her on her voice.
I say this because of my awareness of the effect that words have on people. I am trying to constantly remind myself not to just be careful not to say the wrong thing, but to strive to always be encouraging.

Christmas Eve

Christmas is here.

Yes, I know that it is truly Christmas Eve, but in my house, it may as well be Christmas. I just came back from Church. Pastor Tim talked about the wise men and how they came to find Jesus. He asked the question, “Who found Jesus, and who didn’t find Him?” It was posed to remind people what qualities it takes to find Jesus and realize him for all that he is.

And now for something completely different…

This holiday, as well as other holidays… I am surrounded with trays. I don’t have anything against trays, but where did the “holiday tray” idea come from. Who had the first holiday tray? Did it begin with an entire meal on a tray and then evolve to the traditional snack tray?

And now for something completely different…

This is the first Christmas with Eight people at my house. We often stay here in Kansas for Christmas and the rest of my extended family, except for my Grand Parents, stay in Indiana. This year is the first peak of what Christmas may become with my parents being the patriarchs of the family. Lee is coming with Kati, and Christopher is spending his first Christmas Eve with me. Tomorrow I will go to be with his family. Not many people get to be the inventors of holiday traditions. Many people just inherit their traditions, but in the case that we are 800 miles from other family we get to come up with our own. Although I miss all of my extended family, it will be good to find new ways to celebrate the wonderful gift of Jesus.

Ramblingsssss

This is the second to last day of my career as a student teacher. It is an interesting feeling. The semester has gone by so fast, that I didn’t even get a chance to notice how fast it was going. The weeks fly to the weekends, which are wonderful, but as equally short as the weeks.
The entire experience (student teaching that is) is summed up in a concert next Monday evening at in the high school gym. (the perfect, not so much, venue for a choir and band concert)
Over break (CHRISTMAS BREAK!!!) I will be working on studying for my PLT Praxis exam. Yuck!
I also want to begin working on a post which has a wonderful title. If it is good enough I will submit it to the paper for printing. It will have to be some decent writing. Better than this. I just want to join my gradually growing group of friends who write for the Free Press. (Notice the quality of alliteration in the last sentence) (Oh yah, Little A. my high school English teacher would be proud.)
So…..
I love Christmas, but I have a beef to settle with it.
What happens when I come up with a great idea for a gift, and I want to get it with another person (aka: Go halfzies) and the other person decides to up and want to get it all by themselves. It was my idea!!!!! My good idea is stolen!!!! I have to come up with a good idea, and my creative juices are not flowing as they should!!!!!
(All of the exclamation points may be annoying to read, but they truly convey my feelings on the matter)

Anyway, I am done with that rant.
Perhaps I will sing a different tune soon.
This was disjointed and somewhat un readable, but hey, so am I.

A breath

It is 11:44, I am sitting in the Vocal office, and I am taking a breath. This week has been full of ups and downs. I began the week with trepidation and depression. I did not want to leave my family and friends after Thanksgiving. I think that Thanksgiving had given me enough time to become discouraged with the general non-committal poor work ethic of students around the holidays, and I didn’t want to deal with it.
After a week back at school, I realize that all I can do is take life one day at a time. (A fact that I have been reminding myself for quite some time now, like my ENTIRE LIFE!!!)
This weekend looks like it will be a good time to do some relaxing and also a time to get some serious amounts of homework done. I won’t have to say that for much longer now.
So, for future reminder to myself, and others if you would like:
1. Don’t panic!
2. Pray a lot
3. Read Job
4. Know that friends will support you
5. Take time to laugh every day
6. Pull one Small practical joke monthly

"I have seen the others, And I will no other to follow me where I'm going"

Life is flying by.
Today has been one of ups and downs.
Let me start with yesterday. It was much more pleasant than today.
I got to go to Wichita yesterday and hang out with some wonderful friends. We ate out, and then went back to a home to watch a video creation. It was good to laugh with those people. I miss my friends who have graduated. I will become one of them in les than a month, and it is a bit frightening. I am so ready though. No More Homework! (for a short while at least)
This morning I was extremely discouraged during my concert choir. I just couldn’t conduct the song that we were working on. AHHH. I picked it because I knew it would be a challenge, but something with my brain and my arms was not connected today, because I couldn’t do what I normally can. I think exhaustion has made its way to my central nervous system.
Anyway…at least the 8th grade went well today. Let me tell you, those kids can get me going like no other class can. I feel like the general preparing for battle. I want to tell myself…..
“I have seen the others, and I will no other, to follow me where I’m going” (if you haven’t heard that song, you need to.”
Well, I have to gear up for one more class.
Tally ho!

a pause for a moment

Well, the semester is drawing to a close, as is my career as a student at Tabor College. I won’t get a chance to look back upon it until February some time, but I can wait until then.
Other than the fact that I don’t know whether I will make it through all that I need to get done in the next few weeks, life is going well.
I spent some of this last weekend in Wichita with Chris’ family. It was good to feel at home with them. I watched Katie’s half time show, picked on Clinton, and tried yet again to make friends with the dog.
I am so ready for thanksgiving. I miss my sister a lot. We are planning some serious bonding time together. It will be terrible if we don’t get to do everything that we want to do. It is kind of funny, our favorite thing to do together it rent a movie that one or the other of us swears that we will hate and cram together on the couch to watch it. We normally devour about 8 to 12 chocolate cookies then moan for ten minutes before eating another dozen.
Shenandoah is going well. We start our last performance in a little over two hours from now. It is a good show, and one that I will definitely consider doing again some day. I will have to have the good voices that we have in the men’s section in order to do it though.
That’s all for now….
I know that it is scattered, but hey those are my thoughts….

Ache

Yesterday I got my first flue shot ever.
Last night my joints began to ache.
This morning my joints ache and my stomach is upset.
Is this a benefit of the flue shot?
All that I can say is, I better get exposed to the flue a lot this year,
And I had better not get it,
Because right now I am not so much a big fan of it at all.

The high school opens Shenandoah today for the junior high.
We are going to do the first act for them as a teaser.
Rehearsal went well last night.
There were only a few flubbed lines, and some weird costume issues.
Note to cast members:
One may not wear plaid flannel under a white dress shirt.