Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Today is the day that our nation takes time to give thanks.  I love this holiday, I would even be willing to label it as my favorite holiday of the year.  Don't get me wrong, I love Christmas and I enjoy giving (and getting) gifts and celebrating the birth of my Savior.  But there is just something about thanksgiving that makes it sparkle in my life.  Maybe it was because we always tried to fit the entire family into my grandmothers house for so long.  Or just spending time with my family for no reason.  I treasure this time of year.  I love the laughter and smiles that go with card games after lunch.  The shopping the next day is so unproductive that it's laughable, but it is a tradition that carries on because it's an excuse for us to spend time together.  I love Thanksgiving because it's a time when my family can gather together and enjoy each other with the purpose of enjoying each other.  

A Sinner pretending to be a Saint.

Tonight I was given the opportunity to prove how much of a failure I am and I took it, with gusto.  I mean let's face it, when I do something I like to go all in and I did tonight.  It's not like it was a huge thing.  I just spoke with out thinking to one of the students as I was leaving after working an 11 hour day.  I was tired and moody because who wants to load groceries for 14 adults into their car in the pouring rain, not this kid.

Dead on my feet...

Today I feel like I've been dead on my feet for most of the last four days.  And now I'm just going to make a list of random things that I want to address in this post.

Odd times at the Banquet

So, at work this week we had our annual banquets.  These banquets are a huge deal because I work for a non-profit organization and this is how we get the money to cover the end of the year expenses in our budgets and hopefully get a nice nest egg to begin the next year on.  Tonight we had our second and smaller of the two banquets.  It was catered.  We were responsible for pouring the tea and lemonade into glasses for the guests to get as they went through the food line.  We expected 300 people to be at the one tonight, and 300 people showed up.  I would like to tell you that everything ran smoothly and went off with out a hitch but it didn't.

Why do we ladies feel that pain is necessary to be beautiful?

Tonight and tomorrow night are important nights for the house.  It's our annual banquet nights in two separate cities and it's kind of fancy.  As we were at a pre-function luncheon on of the ladies asked if she could pluck my eyebrows.  I personally have no issues with my eyebrows, she however really wants to shape them up.  Which I appreciate her wanting to "enhance my beauty" (her words, not mine) but I do not want to sit in a chair and let someone remove the hair above my eyes with tweezers.  I will gladly go to a trained professionally and let them rip all the excess hairs out with wax and cloth, but that whole tweezing thing is torture and should be used by spies.  "We'll see if you talk when I'm through ridding you of all your eyebrows.... mmmuuuuuuhhahahahahahah!"

When does serving stop?

I work in a para-church (that's a fancy word I've learned at seminary) organization where I spend my entire day serving and meeting the needs of the ten students we have here. So I present this question; at what point do I get to say enough is enough, I don't need to serve you?

Tonight at church we talked about serving and about what it takes in volunteer manpower to run our church.  The numbers were huge.  Technically speaking we have volunteer positions for everyone.  And everyone really should be serving to build up and support the church body as a whole.  I'm not saying that I don't want to serve at my church because I do.  I love serving at church and being a part of the family and I know that it is the quickest way to become comfortable with the people there but I'm lazy.  I work 40 plus hours a week at the house and then spend one of my two days off at school.  I 'll be honest I've been avoiding the topic with the people I know at the church because I didn't want to get involved.  Part of me wants to say "I've spent the last 7 years in ministry, don't I deserve a break?  Why shouldn't I get to stay home every now and again?" Then the singles minister started talking about how we should be serving in the church body.  And there is the issue of what Jesus says and the fact that I am trying to be like Jesus so that others will understand a little more about who he is (and isn't).

Things that keep me up at night.

Sometimes at night I can't sleep. (okay, so it's more like 3 out of 7 nights a week, but who's counting?)  The other night was one of those nights.  I was avoiding a lot of work and was really apprehensive about the amount of work I have to get done and so I couldn't sleep.  Most nights I will just clear my mind, make a mental list, and then go to sleep.  It didn't work.  So I tried stretching and relaxing my muscles into the bed, but that failed also.  So I gave up and let my mind run.  And my mind ran to one of the most unusual places you can imagine.  I've been reading my friend's blog about simplifying her life at http://southernsimplifying.blogspot.com/.  She is trying to cut back the number of items she personally has to 100 items.   She amazes me and I'm not sure how she is doing it, but she is.

That chain of thought led me to consider what are some of the strangest items that I own and would have a hard time parting with.  These are not things that I need everyday or even every year, but they are things I'm attached to.  I spent somewhere between 45 minutes and an hour trying to figure out what I would consider to be my most random possession.  I have decided to share some of the finalists (and the winner) here with you.

The Beginning...

I feel like those kids from "High School Musical" because I really want to sing the song about starting something new.  I really pumped to be starting a blog.  It's something I would have done weeks ago but I had a research paper to avoid, I mean write, and this blog is my reward for finishing my paper.  I really don't have much to say right now, except that it's election day and I need to go vote.  But I refuse to be the lady there in her pajamas, so first I have to shower.  

I guess I'll let you know a little bit about me.  I live in a house with 11 other women, it's as crazy as it sounds.  I work in an addiction recovery and discipleship program and spend most of my days trying to teach ladies how to become women of God.  I have just joined a new church (I moved here in May from my home of 8 or so years).  I love the space I live in.  I've been a Christian for a little more then 8 years and I have no idea where God is going to lead me next, but I'll super pumped that he has led me here.  Well, I've gotta' go get ready to vote.  Talk to you kids later!