New blog...

Well, I should've known better. Don't steal pictures off the internet. One will be connected to a random website associated with travel (of course!) and then you'll get an annoying pop-up box everytime you go to that website. Argh. So, I'm moving blogs....if you'd like the address, just let me know. Or, if you're super savy, I'm sure you can find it on your own. :) See you on the other side!

For Cara

Well, I'm back from Alaska, and can I just say, it's beautiful up there! We had gorgeous weather and sunny skies. Aunt Sally swears it never snows up there, it's just a lie to keep everyone out. I think she may be right.

Anyway, I know, I know. I'm a horrible blogger when it comes to vacations. Nothing posted regarding the roadtrip, nothing from the cruise. Heck, I haven't even posted regarding Haiti last summer. Sigh. Okay, I'll work on it. So in the meantime, here's a little survey. Honestly, Cara's asked me to do about 3 of these and I never do. Sorry, Cara. This one's for you. :)

A is for Age: 26
B is for Burger of choice: Not a huge burger fan, but when I want one I go to Red Robin and get the one with lots of pepper and blue cheese. Yum.
C is for what kind of car you drive: 200 Ford Escort. Is that right? I just know it's silver.
C is also for your favorite past vehicle: My 89 Nova, Betsy Sue.
D is for your dogs name: I have no dog.
E is for essential item you use every day: Chapstick and lotion.
F is for favorite TV show at the moment: At the moment? Feasting on Asphault.
G is for favorite game: Scattegories.
H is for Home state: Good ole Cali.
I is for instruments you play:Fiddle, alto sax, clarinet, a bit of guitar, and vocal.
J is for favorite juice: I don't really like juice. But I do like grape juice, so there you go.
K is for whose butt you'd like to kick: Usually some character from a novel. But no one at the moment.
L is for last restaurant at which you ate: Mikado's. Yeah for crunch rolls!
M is for your favorite Muppet: I doubt I could name one.
N is for number of piercings: One in each ear. But I desperately want a nose piercing.
O is for overnight hospital stays: Probably close to 90. No joke. Broken leg=1 month in 5th grade. And then in 1st grade I missed 3/4 of the school year and was in the hospital a ton. 90 actually might be conservative.
P is for people you were with today: Jon a bit, but just Randy, Brad, and Mona at work. Jason stopped by really quick to talk with Randy.
Q is for what you do with your quiet time: Read.
R is for your biggest regret: Not walking out of choir one time. (Our teacher was pretty much a blasphmer, no joke.)
S is for status: Very happily married.
T is for time you woke up today: 9:20
U is for what you consider unique about yourself: I'm stuck with me 24/7 so nothing's really unique to me. Better to ask someone else looking from the outside in.
V is for vegetable you love: Ummm, bell peppers.
W is for worst habbit: Biting my nails .
X is for x-rays you've had: Again, way too many to count.
Y is for yummy food you ate today: Fruit leathers.
Z is for zodiac: Scorpio

Summer!

It's summer guys! Okay, not technically, but honestly, it's summer. Can't you just feel it in your soul? I know I can. It's beautiful weather, fresh fruit everywhere, and it's foggy in the morning. All sure signs that summer has come to our lovely corner of the world. Now usually, I'm a fall person, but for some reason, this year summer is just so appealing! I think it has something to do with 'The Journey '08'. It just seemed to start off the summer. And driving through the rolling hills of Missouri alongside the Mississippi while drinking sweet tea? Well, you don't get much more summer than that. Okay, so here are my goals for summer.

-Learn to make the perfect pie. My body is a tool for science, and I will gladly gorge myself in this attempt.

-Learn to make the perfect batch of sweet tea. Not achingly sweet, but just perfect.

-Eat dinner outside at least 3 times a week, with one of these preferably being a picnic. What says summer more than a picnic? Nothing. (Also need to search for the perfect picnic basket. Let me know if you find something amazing and wonderful.)

-Make the perfect summer quilt/blanket (most likely to be used for the afore-mentioned picnics). I've been scheming this up in my head often, and have some fun ideas. Am very excited to dive into this one. Am also excited because this involves scouring the thrift stores for the perfect, vintage fabrics with which to make said quilt.

-Read summery books. I looked through my goodreads, and have found 8 books that are perfect summer reading, and they're all books I haven't read, and most of them are books I own. Most. Included in this is my goal to read all the 'Anne of Green Gables' series. I own the first one, and know I read it as a child, but cannot remember if I read the others. I do remember watching the movies, but that hardley counts. (If anyone is interested in a summer-y book club, let me know. Books are always more fun when you can discuss them with others.)

- Go to the beach. Okay, since I've moved here, I've been to the beach, like, twice to go swimming. Sure, I go there every once in awhile to hang out, but I want to actually enjoy the beach this summer and experience it.

-Home projects, but those are boring to discuss. But, keep an eye out at our place for exciting new changes. (In other related news, we need a hip name for our pad. Please submit your ideas to myself or Jon. Thank you.)

-Knit. I have some unfinished projects that are begging for completion.

-Finish the Old Testament.

I'm sure there's more, but that's what I'm remembering at the moment. So, what are your goals for summer?

PS. Sorry for no Journey postings yet. I haven't gone through my photos yet, and it was a crazy week.

PPS. Britt's in Japan. So excited for her, and a little jealous. She's pretty much the reason I had a crazy week because I hung out with her everyday in preperation for our 3 week seperation. Therefore, all anger can be directed at her, which should be no problem because she's out of the country.

PPPS. 'In the Heights' won best Musical at the Tony's last night. Super excited.

The Journey '08 - Introduction

"The Survivor Tree. This is my favorite tree in the world.

And I like trees." -Claire from "Elizabethtown"

Hello everyone! Well, I'm back from my 6,000 plus mile journey to and back from Minnesota. To start off, let me just say one thing. AMERICA IS BEAUTIFUL. Seriously guys, you have no idea what a cool country we live in until you actually get out there and experience it. Smell it, taste it, feel it, swim it. Man oh man. This truly was the trip of a lifetime. We encountered every type of weather you can imagine from sub-freezing snow at the Grand Canyon, to tornado warnings in St. Paul, to 105 heat in the desert. We ate some of the best food I've ever tasted (including the best peach cobbler in Adrian, TX), met the nicest, funniest, sassiest people, and saw more beautiful sights than can be imagined. Moral of the story? Get out of the house and on the two-lane highways and biways that stitch up this crazy quilt of a country. So, over the next few weeks, I'll be showering this blog with photos of the journey. So stayed tuned, we got good stuff coming up.

My reading habits...

In a previous post, I declared to the world there were 50 books I owned that I have not read. That, in itself, is scary enough. However, I know that since that time I have purchased more books, which therefore increases the total. I went on goodreads today and checked to see how many books I've actually read in 2008. Are you ready for this? 18. Huzzah! I'm on my way, right?

WRONG!

Out of those 18 books, take a guess as to how many were books I actually owned and had therefore included in my previous count of 50. Come on, guess? 10? Surely, 8. No.

3.

Three?!?!? Oh come on! No wonder I have 50 books at home I haven't read. I'm apparently too busy borrowing books from the library, Ruth, or mom to read the ones I own. It's an embarrassing fact.

Also embarrassing? In that same post, I declared to be reading through the Bible this year. Where am I you ask? Well, considering it's May, I must be somewhere in the history of the kings, right? Maybe even struggling through Psalms? No. Joshua. what.the.crap. So, let's get this straight. I've read 18 books this year, and only 5.5 books of the Bible. (To make myself feel better I'd like to state I actually read Genesis twice, once for the Master's.) Oh jeez. My life is truly sad.

But, just to help you people out, here's a list of the best and worst of 2008. So far.

In the Bible Category: Genesis! (Noh having a picture of the origin of the universe, I figured a picture of the band claiming that name would do nicely. Sweet hair.)

In the the Children's category: The Penderwicks

In the YA category: Eclipse (Okay, okay. This picture is from Twilight, not Eclipse, but since they involve the same characters, I figured it's okay. Plus, any excuse to have this picture on my blog makes me happy.)

In the 'magic' category: A Swiftly Tilting Planet

In the fiction Category: Pride and Prejudice (Yes, again I realize, not a picture of the book, but the movie. But come on, who actually reads Mr. Darcy without picturing the ever wonderful Colin Firth?)

In the Christian Category: The Shack (Warning, read with tissues.)

And the worst book this year? Tie. Snow Flower and the Secret Fan. Not actually bad, but the very in depth, detailed description of foot binding was almost enough to do me in, and certainly enough to cause me to stop reading. Stardust. Ugh. Horrible. Not sure why I actually finished it.

So, what have you guys read this year? Anything good? Can I borrow it? :)

Oh man....

I was having a pretty bad day. Way too much to do, too much on my plate in general, a very high stress level regarding my Master's program, and massive computer problems at work. I got home and grabbed the mail. I saw an envelope with the words 'tickets' on them and assumed they were for John Mayer.

Oh no. Not John Mayer. My amazing husband surprised me and got us tickets to go see 'The Drowsy Chaperone' in L.A. I didn't even know it was going to be there! I'm so excited! That definitely cheered me up...thanks so much babe!

Jim and Pam....

My heart can't take much more of this! The ring! I'm way too emotionally wrapped up in those two. SERIOUSLY.LOVE.THEM.SO.MUCH.

This Day In History...

April 8, 2008. Bound to be a memorable day, don't you think? It's been awhile since the last update, so, in my attempt to be a faithful blogger...here I am, on this aspicious day. What's been going on? Well, thanks for asking...

-I've start my Master's Degree. It's really amazing, a lot of work, and, well, mind-boggling. We start at the very beginning (a very good place to start) which means creation and all the current scientific theories that surround it. Yes, lots and lots of science and big bang theory and evolution and attempts to understand scientifically what happened oh-so long ago. Let's just say, it's all a bit over my head, but I am enjoying it.-Today, the second book in the Penderwick series hits bookshelves across the nation. SO.EXCITED.ABOUT.THIS.BOOK. After joining goodreads and having all these bookshelves to organize what I've read, I realize I read A LOT of children's/ya books. Not that I care, I just noticed it. I recommend this book for anyone wanting to relive their childhood...-Thirdly, the Ways leave for China. Today. So wonderful. I wish you all fare-thee-well and 'Bu De Bu Ai'.-Fourthly, Ruth and Eric leave for China tomorrow. Coincidence? I think not. What are the odds of two of my favorite families being in China at the same time? Let's just say, I'll be watching the nightly news a little more closely with them over there to see what international incident they create.

-Fifthly, I am not leaving for China. Today or tomorrow. Let's move on...

-Sixthly, Cara tagged me on her blog to show my purse and it's contents. Cara, I haven't done it yet, but I will. I have no excuse other than the fact that it seems like a lot of work to me to take a picture, download it, and post it. No, not kidding.

I think that's all here. I'm going to enjoy a wonderful lunch with my hubby and the Ways, Boba date with Brittany and the thrift store, and then lots of evolution and Hebrew. Peace out ya'll.

Patrick's Rune

"At Tara in this fateful hour,
I place all Heaven with its power,
And the sun with its brightness,
And the snow with its whiteness,
And the fire with all the strength it hath,
And the lightning with its rapid wrath,
And the winds with their swiftness along their path,
And the sea with its deepness,
And the rocks with their steepness,
And the earth with its starkness,
All these I place by God's almightly help and grace
Between myself and the powers of darkness!"

Adapted from St. Patrick's original Lorica and used in 'A Swiftly Tiliting Planet" by Madeline L'Engle. (By the way, this book is wonderful and you should go read it. Now.)

Ummm, how amazing is this? Why don't we pray like this anymore? This is a battle cry! This is something I expect Aragorn to shout as he rushes the gates at Mordor, or King Peter as he and Prince Caspian descend on evil King Miraz. Heck, even Harry could shout this as he faces Voldemort.

But no, this is no clever script written for the latest Hollywood blockbuster. It is the prayer of one Saint.

A prayer in the midst of our battle.

Happy Birthday Baby!

27 years ago today, a very important person was born...MY JON! Hip hip, hooray!

Isn't he cute?

Jon and I have had quite the adventure, and we've only known each other for about 4 years! Together, we've traveled through, lived in, and wandered over 10 countries. We've eaten goat and ridden in the back of dump trucks in Haiti, climbed Mayan ruins in Guatemala, bargianed for goods in Turkey's bazaars, cheered our Olympic team to victory in Athens, and had more adventures than one can remember or recount. He's always been there to love me, support me, laugh with me (or at me!), and simply be there for me when I needed it most.

Jon is an amazing photographer, a wonderful and creative architect, an almost ridiculously hard worker, a generous and faithful believer in Christ, and one of the most adventurous spirits I know. He's enriched my life in so many ways, and I'm completely blessed by him daily. He constantly surprises me.

I hope you have a wonderful day babe! Thanks for always making my days wonderful. I love you!

Springtime, yellow, and vampires...

When in the world did it become March? March of 2008 no less. Man, this year is just flying by. Whenever I hear a year somewhere in the late 90's (i.e. 1997) I think, "Oh, not too bad, just a few years ago." A few? Ahem. 11 years! What in the world. I just wanted to get that off my chest.

Besides the fact that this year is flying by, can I say how psyched I am it's spring? Okay, not officialy spring, but spring enough in spirit. Seriously, this is great. I'm even in spring mode in the house, winter-proofing it from anything dark, heavy, or too warm. Let's let the sun shine in. And in honor of this early springness, I'm currently way into yellow. Have you driven around lately? It's so GREEN! And with yellow flowers, EVERYWHERE! Oh man, this is my kind of life. Know what else is green that's amazing? Go check this out. So good.

Okay, enough rambling. Onto a point. Have you checked out www.goodreads.com? Um, it's amazing. It's like myspace for book worms, and it's completly wonderful. I think everyone needs to sign up. So go check it out. And for fun, let's do a bit of a blog poll. Favorite 5 Books...go! (In no particular order...)
1. The Kite Runner
2. Mark of the Lion Series
3. The Poisonwood Bible
4. The Alchemist
5. So tough...ummm. Ummmm. Wow. Okay, I'm going with the Twilight Series. But I do feel bad for leaving out... oh what the heck, top 6.
6. The Chronicles of Narnia. Wow, HP not anywhere on that list. Am I feeling okay?

Meet the Cullens...

There are no words for how excited I am...

The Way I See It #270

Taste is subjective. Taste is democratic. Taste is powerful. Taste -- the combination of texture, aroma, temperature, aesthetic and environment-- is also a window into someone else's life or culture. Be confident in your taste, but remain curious and expose yourself to new tastes. Allow your taste to constantly evolve and grow -- while keeping and cherishing the memories that taste creates.
--Marcus Samuelsson, Chef, co-owner of Restaurant Aquavit and author of The Soul of a New Cuisine.

In other exciting news, I finished Exodus (and Galatians...) and am on to Leviticus.

In OTHER exciting news...I GOT INTO GRAD SCHOOL! Woo hoo! I'll be starting in April with my Master of the Arts in International Development. SO.EXCITED.

All you need is...

L.O.V.E.

Well, Happy Valentines Day to you all. As the most commercialized of all holidays (in my opinion), let's go the heart of the matter, shall we?

Love. It's pretty stinkin' good. And I'm not just talking about the lovey-dovey, grow old together, his and her matching towels, kind of love. I mean all kinds of love. The ancient Greeks had 4 words for love, that's how important it was to them. (For a good explanation on these, read The Four Loves by C.S. Lewis. Brilliant.) Anyway, love.

God's love is so amazing. I know that's so cliche to say, but really think about it. He's constantly been reminding me of his love and forgiveness lately, that even though I'm wreched, he still loves me. Really loves me. Died for me because He loves me. And even though I'm aware of this fact, I forget it, or don't act on it, or ignore it. And guess what? He still loves me! I know, so wierd. But quite wonderful. I think we should focus on this kind of love most of all.

But he's given us other kinds of love, so here's my shout out to them.
-Jon. You really do make me smile everyday. I'm continually blessed by you as you grow, encourage, challenge, and even make fun of me. Although you could let up on that last one...I wouldn't mind. :) I love you, babe.
-My friends. Sigh. I truly do have the best friends in the world. I can't shout out to all of you, but you know who you are. You each challenge a different part of me, and continually strive to make me a better person. You really are the best people around.
(Okay, here's where the list gets less series...)
-My love for reading. Silly, yes. But oh so series. My latest obesession? The Twilight Series. I'm so in love with them it's almost embaressing. Almost.
-Milk Tea. Don't judge. You know you love it, too.
-Hairspray. I had no idea a movie could make me laugh more each time I watch it.
-Sun. I'm a fall, rainy, weather type of girl. But living in So. Cal for so long apparently made me like the sun a bit. It's nice having it around now.
-Green, what a great color.

I'm sure there's more, but that's enough for now. Instead of talking about those things, I should experience them...so, in honor of love, do something you love today. Get Starbucks, go to the beach, eat Thai food (or peanut butter and jelly in Michael's case...), read Harry Potter. Just do something. Have a great, LOVELY, day.

Kids...

Jon and I taught Sunday School yesterday for Children's Church. We taught about Haiti, and the kids were totally into it. At the end, we had a question and answer time. This was filled with typical kid answers/comments, such as "What language do they speak?", "Do they like soccer?", or "I make really good cookies". We were having fun answering all of them, and then I see cute lil' JoJo's hand up ever so patiently. I call on her, and in a completly serious voice she says, "You can't give Haitian people money, because if you do, they'll buy drugs."

Ha!

The way of the world...

Last Sunday, January 26th, American Aid Worker Cyd Mizell was kidnapped in Kandahar, Afghanistan. An English teacher at the local university, and an embroidery teacher at a girls school, Cyd worked with the Asian Rural Development Foundation in an attempt to better Afghanistan. A Christian, she was known as a "ministering angel" to many women in the region. As of today, there are no leads as to who kidnapped her and her driver, and there has been no contact with the kidnappers. I urge you all to pray for her safe return, and for a bold witness as she has a chance to minister to those that might not otherwise hear the gospel.

And of course, this is super depressing. I mean, no one's heard anything in 5 days? That's horrible. But here's the amazing thing. Yesterday, 500 women came out and protested her kidnapping and urged the government to find her captors. And that wasn't in the US, that was in Afghanistan. Isn't that amazing??? Can you imagine 500 burqa-clad women in the streets protesting for, esentially, their rights? What an impact Cyd had on these women.

I only hope that by the time I'm gone, my life will have counted for something. That I'll have left a legacy and been an active shower and do-er of my faith, and love.

So keep her in your prayers...and let her challenge you to really live out your faith!

And the winner is...

January is the offical Month of Marathon Movies in the Coulter household. Apparently. So, in honor of all the movie watching that has been happening in the midst of all this lovely rainy weather, here are my favorites from each set.

Pirates of the Carribean.
Pirates, Curse of the Black Purl. For anyone that knows me, this is obvious. I almost don't even consider the other two worthy of being counted.

Spider-Man
Spider-Man II. Oh man, this one moved me. So brilliant, not overdone, and without the millions of villians the 3rd movie possessed. There were even Christian overtones, a brilliant addition in my book.

X-Men
X-Men the original. The 3rd one was just sad (not in the teary way, but in the pathetic way), the 2nd one has the scary boy/girl, but the 1st one? Golden.

Shrek
Shrek 2. This movie is so funny. I remember watching it with Michael and Farah and just laughing and laughing and laughing...

Indiana Jones.
Indian Jones and the Last Crusade. Possibly one of my favorite movies. I grew up on this movie, and it probably was my reason for always wanting to be an archaeologist. I actually never even saw the 1st two films until college. And the 2nd one still scares me. Seriously, someones heart should never be pulled out of their chest.

Harry Potter
Ah, Harry Potter. I actually love all these films, and each one holds a special place in my heart. But, it seems the last one always ups the ones before it. So, at the moment it is the Order of the Phoenix. The relationship between Harry and Sirius is so beautiful, and the movie as a whole really set the stage for the rest of the books.

Back to the Future
Now, I always loved the 2nd one. But everyone else always hated this. Why is this? I still can't see why, and it remains my favorite to this day.

The Oceans Trilogy
Oceans 11 is golden. And to my surprise, I actually didn't like Oceans 13. I probably watched Oceans 11 with Drana about 20 times because it was her favorite movie to just "have on".

The Borne Movies
After each one of these movies I say, "I can't believe it, it's better than the last one." They are so wonderful. But, the first one was so new, so original. As wonderful as the other ones are, this one easily takes the cake.

Mission: Impossible
MI III wins by miles and miles. It took the series to such a completely different level. An easy win.

Star Wars
Having never grown up on these films, I'm not obsessed. However, in recent days I have developed a taste for them. That being said, Star Wars I The Phantom Menace is really wonderful. I love Ewan McGregor, and Liam is just wonderful as Qui Gon (really no clue how to spell that...). And it was even before Anikan's horrible acting. An all-around win.

Lord of the Rings
Ah, my college obsession. I do love all these movies but the 1st movie is so amazing. It probably has nothing to do with the fact that I probably watched it, oh, I don't know, 20 times senior year with Angela as we fawned over our loves (mine Aragorn, hers Legolas...) and stayed awake all night with Almond Roca Mochas. And just so you know, you all are missing out if you haven't seen Angela's Gandalf impression. "YOU SHALL NOT PASS!"

Amazing Race
The hardest of all to declare winner. So many golden seasons, teams, and moments. But, I think my heart is always with Season 5. With such wonderful backgrounds such as Russia and Egypt, the eating of sooo much food (3 pounds of caviar, anyone?) Colin and Christie (the most intense team to ever play), and well, Charla and Mirna (harump), this season wins. That being said, since TAR 12 is done, this Sunday begins re-runs with TAR 5. Yes Michael, that means you guys can come. Charla will once again grace our television.

Okay everyone, what are your favorites of those movies posted above, and those I didn't mention.

PS. Genesis finished. Exodus beginning.

Oh, so much really...

Well, it seems that quite a bit has happened and I'm going to now attempt to catch everyone up. First things first...-Congratulations to my hips, TK and Rachael, for winning The Amazing Race 12! I'll be honest, I didn't think you guys could pull it off at the beginning of the season. But I rooted for you the whole time and am happy to see that once again, hippies take the cake.
-Although yesterday evening television provided wins I appreciated, the afternoon did not. Tears go out to my San Diego Chargers who lost gallantly (well...) to the Patriots. I love you guys, but next time, get a touchdown. Also, the Packers were defeated by the Giants which now means I have no interest in the Super Bowl this year whatsoever. Boo.
-Congrats to Brent and Crisha who had a super cute baby boy earlier this week. Ezekiel, it's so nice to finally have you here!
- Hannah gets to go to Nepal this summer to work in an orphanage. Enough said.
-50. That's the number of books I own that I haven't read. Seriously? And that was being nice. I didn't count books that I've read part of, or that Jon owned, or travel guides/books from all the foreign cities we've visited. Yikes. So, going along with this year of simplicity, my goal is to read them and then re-organize. My guess is that I won't want to keep all of them. Simplicity. Wish me luck.
-I am bad at resolutions, especially when I attempt to read through the Bible in a year. I always get to somewhere around Ezekiel, and lose it. So this year, I am trying again, but in a quite leisurely manner. No set number of chapters a day, just reading and trying to get the meat out of it. But I need your help. Keep me accountable. I'm in Genesis, so in a week or so, make sure I'm out of Genesis and on to Exodus.
-I'm going to watch Newsies. Ah, Newsies...have a great Monday everyone!

The Birthday Girl

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BRITTANY MAE!

Today is Britt's birthday. For those of you that don't know Britt, let me just say that you're missing out. Brittany is one of the kindest, most genuine souls I know. She never has a bad word to say about anyone, always encourages her friends onto greatness, is the best older sister I've ever seen, and is always up for a new adventure.

Britt and I first became friends during our Haiti training. Our friendship was securely anchored during that first week in Haiti between crab, sleeping in the hottest room in existance, playing in the rain and the Carribean, and attempting to be supportive to our staff. Since then, we've been a bit inseperable, and I'm just fine with that.

Britt loves to travel, the color pink, her boyfriend Mike, anything vintage, Milk Tea with Boba, "Hairspray", Harry Potter, yoga (don't lie Brittany!), and her friends. And I truly feel blessed to be counted among them. So, Brittany, on this very ospicious day, I hope all your dreams come true. You truly deserve it.

Home...

...is where the heart is?
...there's no place like it?
...sweet, home?

Lately, I've been thinking about what a 'home' means. Maybe it's because I've been away so long, maybe it's because I'm in 'organizing mode', or maybe it has something to do with SouleMama's '30 Days of the Everyday'. Whatever it may be, my mind has been churning. Different images conjured up, thoughts, sights, smells, concepts. All these and more embrace the concept of 'home'. And I'm trying to establish them firmly.

My goal for this year is to simplify. SIMPLIFY. Although I feel my home almost always contradicts this ideal, it is something I will strive for. I want to surround myself with love and those things that I love most. I think that's a good goal.

So I'll leave you with two thoughts. The first is a quote by Kaylynn Devene, a photographer.
I look, too, for domestic patterns and arrangements, practiced daily routines that make us feel at home or that confirm - or conform to - our ideas of what home should be.
The second is a question. Over the next week I'm going to be coming up with ideas, items, anything that exemplifies the concept of home. If you all were to make a list of what home means to you, what would be on it?

Lost in Translation

I honestly think this picture sums up my past two weeks. Me, delirious from no sleep and attempting to make myself alert with caffeine. Obviously, it's not working, but it somehow has made me look enchantingly stupid. Score one for me. I can't even begin to describe all that happened in the past two weeks; places visited, number of beds I slept in, gallons of coffee consumed, lessons learned about not only Turkish culture, but American culture, and well, culture in general. So, a list will have to suffice. Oh, and by the way. Happy New Year.
- A more appropriate name for America is Freedom World.
- $15 for a Starbucks is absurd. Not that that makes me happy about $5 for one.
- No one should ever attempt Christmas, San Francisco, Las Vegas, New Years, San Diego, Disneyland, and LA in a two week period. Ever.
- Gifts from the heart mean the most. Hand knit sweater? Sending girls in Afghanistan to school? Score two for me.
- 8 person Mario Kart may be one of the funnest things ever.
- 8 person Mario Kart at 3 am? Certainly one of the funnest things ever.
- All we know about vampires is wrong. Edward will teach you.
- Cupcakes with marshmallow in the middle rock.
- San Francisco has good hills.
- Las Vegas has Jersey Boys. Score one for Vegas.
- I think evangelism is one of my spiritual gifts.
- Driving a ridiculous amount of hours on no sleep is one of Jon's gift. Well, that and giving.
- Turks have a lot of assumptions about America, which is pretty funny because I think most Americans don't have any assumptions about Turkey.
- I am now, more than ever, confused by the Turkish culture.
- I am now, more than ever, intrigued by the Turkish culture.
- Individualism kinda annoys me. I never thought I'd say that.

As for this whole 2008 nonsense...make it a good one.