73 hours, five minutes and counting...

Hi folks! Hope you all had a nice and Merry Christmas! I did. I hope you were able to spend time with loved ones. It's a bit hard to believe that 2007 is almost over. Where did it go?? I hope it was good, yet challenging in ways, for you. We all go through trials and tribulations but it is so nice to have a God that will carry us through those hard times. It says in 1 Peter 1:6-8, "In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory,..."
Do praise Him for all the things He has blessed you with in 2007. May 2008 bring new joys and new challenges, which will bring us closer to Him who will, as I said, carry us through those hard times, as long as we trust in Him.
If you are wondering about the title, that is how much time is left of 2007. Oh, and one more thing...GO BLAZERS!!! We won again tonight, against the Minnesota Timberwolves 109-98. That makes 12 wins in a row!
TTFN until 2008!

The First Noel

"All returned to their own towns to register for this census. And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David's ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. He took with him Mary, his fiancee, who was obviously pregnant by this time. And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. She gave birth to her first child, a son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the village inn." Luke 2:3-7
The time has come this year...Love came into the world. That Love came from a baby who would be called Jesus, the Son of God. He was also known as Emmanuel, God with us. I pray that you would have a special time with your family this Christmas, and remember the First Noel, Christ's birth. I wish you a very Merry Christmas!!!

Count it, 10 in a row!!!

Yes indeed! The Blazers have done it! 10 wins in a row! They beat the Toronto Raptors, 101-96 with Brandon Roy playing a lead part in that win and also Lamarcus Aldridge came back from being out a week with an injury. They win again against those 'shiny' Nuggets, 99-96. It got close towards the end but they pulled it out to win. No I was not at that game but 'watched' the last part on the internet. My coworker was at the game with her sister so I am glad that she got to be at a game where the Blazers won, and even winning their 10th straight game. Go Blazers!!!

Joy and Anticipation

As anticipated, this weekend was quite lovely. Friday I had the day off work and did some Christmas shopping. I was looking forward to the weekend as it was the Christmas Choir / Orchestra celebration at church. I played my clarinet in the orchestra and did quite well, despite having put a chip in my reed first thing Sunday morning. So I had to switch to a new reed which came with a few low-key squeaks but tried to keep them under control. The music was all for God's glory, anyway. Oh, I just remembered from a previous post that I had said I was a 1/7th a viola. That is because one of the songs we played, my part said clarinet 2 (substitute for viola). I thought I sounded like a viola, too. All who participated did a great job giving Him glory as I am sure He enjoyed every minute of every service. The thing that sticks out to me is how we should keep Christ at the center of Christmas amidst all of the hustle and bustle. The pastor did a very nice message on the song of Simeon.
Oh and also on Saturday morning, I went to my niece's last basketball game of the season where they beat the other team 31-10. She scored a couple baskets and had a nice save so the ball would not go out of bounds.
I know this next couple sentences are off the subject but I must mention it. The blazers win, the blazers win again!!! On Sunday, they played in Denver against the Nuggets and beat them. I was at the game tonight and we beat the Hornets 88-76. Eight wins in a row...how do they do it?? I see that we play the Nuggets again this Friday at home. Wouldn't it be nice if we win on Wednesday night and Friday night...that would be 10 in a row! We'll just have to wait and see.

Playing together as a team

The Blazers do it again!!! They win 105-95 versus the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday night. I happened to be at that game and it was very exciting watching the Blazers play...they were playing as a team, not just relying on 1 or 2 key players to score. LaMarcus is out this week with his right foot, but it's good that he is healing and getting rest. This was a FUN game to watch. Even Joel scored the first seven points of the game and he ended up with a double-double (15 points and 10 rebounds)...way to go Joel!!! Martell only played about 8 minutes in the first quarter as he was having the flu bug...get better Martell! The fans really got into the game...I think that was part of what made it so exciting. Ahh, that win gives us a five-game winning streak. Now, we play the Utah Jazz tomorrow night and if we win that game...whoa! Look out!
Work has been busy this week with month end. I have tomorrow off with which I will do some Christmas shopping. I am looking forward to the weekend as it is Christmas Choir and Orchestra celebration at church. Have a great weekend!

Mary's Song

'Hark the Herald Angels Sing, glory to the newborn King.
Peace on earth and mercy mild, God and sinners reconciled..'

Hmm, I'd like to say that is my song, well, it is my favorite Christmas song!!! There you have it...my favorite Christmas carol. Hmm...I wonder why they are called carols...Anyways, Mary's song is written in Luke chapter 1 which I will quote some for you now...
'My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant; for behold, henceforth all generations shall call me blessed. For He who is mighty has done great things for me and holy is His name. And His mercy is on those who fear Him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm; He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He has put down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things and the rich He has sent away empty. He has helped his servant Israel as He spoketo our fathers to abraham and to his seed forever." Luke 1:46-55 NKJV
Okay so I gave you all of the song. One thing I learned from the message this weekend at church was that when Mary found out she would give birth to the Son of God, she went (sanely) crazy in worship to God. If you read and study about her in the Word, you will know that she was a true worshiper of God. I absolutely loved the message this weekend at church. I hope those that went, did also.

Oh, and what do you know, the very last song we sang in service was...Hark the Herald Angels Sing. Creepy cool, I say!!

The Blazers blaze by the Heat

Perseverance. Drive. Ambition. Teamwork. Control. That's what the Blazers had and felt at their game last night versus the Miami Heat. My dad, sister, and I attended the game which was also on TNT which was after the Denver Nuggets / Dallas Mavericks game. The Nuggets beat the Mavericks. I heard that Iverson had a great game and scored like 36 points to lead the Nuggets. Wait...why am I talking about the Nuggets? I am a TrailBlazers fan!!! Back to the important game. Okay, I'm not just a Trail Blazer fan but an NBA fan. Brandon Roy had 26 points, LaMarcus Aldridge had a good game as well. Travis Outlaw...my oh my! He had 20 points ( a couple of those were dunks). And Martell Webster...this was not a great game for him. The second quarter we went on a 8-0 or 12-0 run and were up by 14 at halftime, 56-42. 49 seconds into the game Shaq went towards the basket and Pryzbilla was guarding him and Shaq got off, elbowed Joel in his nose, and to keep from falling on Pryzbilla, he threw the ball down which hit Pryzbilla's face and he was down for a couple minutes. I was so hoping he would get back up and he did. He went out of the game and came back out to the floor right before halftime. The second half, the Heat caught up to within 1 point but we went on another run and held our lead. We were in control the whole game. Final score was 112-106...yea! Way to go Blazers!!!
On another basketball note (smile), I get to go see my niece play, with her teammates, at a basketball game tomorrow morning. I hear that she has been doing well, scoring, dribbling, rebounding, and some defense as well. Yea!
Hope you all have a nice weekend. TTFN

Happy December!

Can you believe it is the last month of 2007?!!! Where has the year gone?? I hope you all have a month of December. Tonight was another rehearsal for our Christmas choir/orchestra services at church. It went fine and I learned two things, at least. One, to not always listen to my cohort playing clarinet as we may not always have the same part to a song. Second, I learned that I am 1/7 a viola-ist for this service. More to come later??
The message this weekend at church was really good. MacMurray spoke on the Hope of Israel which is Jesus. I loved the part where he was talking about how little kids are on Christmas morning in anticipation of seeing what Santa Claus may have left for them under the tree and in their stockings. He was saying that we should have that same anticipation for Jesus on Christmas, and not only on Christmas Day, but also in anticipation of when He will be coming back.
Oh, and during 1.3 we talked about what drives our lives? I thought that was a very good thing to think about. It is good when we answer questions briefly and are asked to go into more depth. It gets us thinking deeper more on the subject.
Well, I am having a good start of December as...my Blazers won, on the road at Memphis! Final score 106-105...go Blazers!!!
Oh, and one more thing...I hope you all were safe the last couple days as it has been QUITE stormy here! It is interesting to hear and see all the flooding water on the roadways. Pray for those who have their houses flooded and for all the animals.
TTFN

Soprano or Bass clarinet???

I had orchestra rehearsal last night for our Christmas services at church. I was on the slate, so to speak, to play bass clarinet as there were two clarinet players joining us. Last night was our second rehearsal and I was asked if I would play (soprano) clarinet instead as the orchestra leader just found out that one of the clarinetists cannot be with us. I, of course, willingly said yes, even though I do very much enjoy playing my bass clarinet (love that low sound). So I had the choice that night to play clarinet parts or my bass clarinet parts. I chose to play my bass clarinet parts. I thought it would be weird to play clarinet parts on bass clarinet considering the ranges and sounds of both instruments. As it was, I could hear most of my bass clarinet parts being covered by the low brass players. I got my clarinet parts today so I am going to enjoy practicing them this week for our next rehearsal.
Hope you all are having a good week so far. TTFN

Turkey and Halibut

First of all, I hope you all had a nice thanksgiving. I did...we were supposed to have my aunt, cousin, brother and sister-in-law over but my aunt was sick so she didn't come. We did have turkey, potatoes, sweet potatoes (YUMMM!), rolls, and other good stuff to eat.
This weekend I went with my family to the coast. I was looking forward to it since I had not been there since Labor Day weekend. Okay, I went there late September with some friends too, for a day. The weather was nice...we left Friday morning (got Friday off work) and came back Sunday afternoon/early evening. Saturday my sister and I spent some time on the beach looking for rocks and agates and found some nice ones. There was no wind at all which was nice. Sunday was sunny as we spent a little time shopping and ate lunch at Mo's. Here comes the halibut...oh, but unfortunately I decided not to have the halibut and had fish and chips instead. Oh, and we got to see the sea lions which had come back to their 'get-out-of-the-cold-water-and-sleep-in-the-sun-place-on-the-docks'. Some were not sleeping at all and had a conversation...I'm surprised they did not wake up all the sleeping ones. All in all it was a nice weekend to have gotten away for a couple days.

Earth-quaking missions with a passion

It was a hit!!! My niece was in the school play that was performed this last weekend called The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. If you haven't seen it or read the book, I recommend you do so. I went to the play Thursday night and saw half of it Friday night as I had worked late on Friday. All the kids did a great job and I thought the lady who cast the play did a great job. I enjoyed the costumes the kids wore as they were from the 1970's. One question: do you (a wise man) like ham? Okay, so that wasn't the main point of the play but ham had a part in the play believe it or not. It took the place of frankincense as one of the gifts the three wise men brought to Joseph, Mary and Baby Jesus. I don't think that ham was the wise man's pure and holy passion (see last post). It was nice though that he did bring the ham so J, M, and BJ would have something to eat.
The service was good this weekend in church as it was our annual global outreach weekend. It is very good for us as a church to remember all our brothers and sisters that are out there doing His will by being disciples. It makes me think of a few friends that I know that are out there serving and it gave me that continuing hunger to go on another mission trip next summer. I had already been thinking about it since I went on one three summers ago. It was really neat to hear some stories from a few of our own on how they ended up where they are and what is happening over there.
Here is an odd thing that does not go with the rest of what I just said...there was an earthquake earlier today (?) off the coast, 6 miles deep under the water measuring 5.8 on the scale. Oh, and I just recently read about the cyclone that hit Bangladesh last Thursday and the last number I heard, over 2300 people have been lost. I read that a few countries, including the US, are sending money and supplies over that way to help the ones in need. My heart goes out to them.

Pure and Holy Passion

Who / what is your pure and holy passion? Well, for me, it would be halibut! No, just kidding!!! To be serious, though, it is Christ the King. Last Tuesday night at Bible study, one of our songs we worshipped to was Pure and Holy Passion. That was one of the weeks I got to play my clarinet with the worship team. I immediately fell in love with the song the first time we sung it in church. Saturday night I was on my way to church, listening to the radio in the car, singing along with what song was playing. I switched stations to find another song that I liked but didn't so I turned off the radio and started singing what came into my head. You guessed it...it was Pure and Holy Passion! I must have sung that the rest of the way to church. During the worship part of the service, the second song we sang, after I had got seated was...Pure and Holy Passion! Isn't it cool how He puts songs in your head for a reason?!!
The message was great as it so reminded me of when I was in Mexico! It was on the passage in Matthew chapter six, a section of the sermon on the mount and this part is on laying your treasures up in heaven and seeking first the kingdom of heaven. While I was in Mexico on my mission trip a couple years ago, we did devotions every morning after breakfast. Those of us that wanted to could volunteer to lead one. Our theme was the sermon on the mount. I chose to do the part on...treasures in heaven and that very same passage. So I was listening close to what Stu was saying about seeking Him and His kingdom over the earthly kingdom.
After we had 1.3 and dinner, I was on the way home and I heard Steven Curtis Chapman's song Magnificent Obsession. Okay, I get it. I love that song, too of course. I will leave you this moment with one verse:
"Whom have I in heaven but you? and earth has nothing I desire besides you." Psalm 73:25
I know that if I desire Him and His kingdom, He will give me what I need. Hmm...that just reminded me of another verse...
"Delight in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart" Psalm 37:4
May He be the desire of your heart.

Colorado Rockies

Yeah, so the Boston Red Sox won the World Series....again! (sarcastically) They had won it in 2004 also. Hope I am not spoiling the news for anyone that has not heard yet. Yes, I am not much of a baseball fan but I guess I think the world series is somewhat exciting. As you might could tell, I was rooting for the Colorado Rockies...go Rocks!!! This is weird because a few years ago, I was liking the Red Sox (because of their team name), but I think I was rooting for the Rockies, in part, because I didn't want them to be swept away by the Sox and I didn't want them losing on home plate, so to speak. I only got to watch from about the 5th inning on and I did get excited when the Rocks scored or when they had that sweet double play to get two Sox players out in one play in the 7th inning. I really wanted them to win that game last night so it would go to a game 5 so they would have at least won one game in the series. I should be happy, though, that the Rocks made it to the Word Series, and that Jacoby Ellsbury (from Madras) got a championship in his first year in major leagues.
My weekend was good. I went to a recital with my dad on Friday night to hear a friend (she plays the oboe) that I know from church plus another lady that plays the horn. Saturday, I went to Sean and Amy's wedding which I thought was very nicely done. Then I did a little shopping and went to church afterwards. We had 1.3 at Carrie's house...that was a good time. Sunday I enjoyed as I stayed home and did laundry, etc.
TTFN

Just how many Mona Lisa's are there???

Bonjour! Je suis parlez en francais...I am speaking in French...I will have to do some refreshing of the memory. I only wanted to speak in French as the subject in my title is about the Mona Lisa. How many of you have seen the real one? I have, in person, really I have. I have actually seen some prints of her picture, so there are obviously more than one. To answer my question, it may not be answered easily. One may never know how many lovely Mona Lisa paintings there are out there. There should only be the one, in my opinion. This came up very briefly on Saturday night as I was talking with a friend. She started laughing when I remarked, 'which one?'.
Work last week was actually kinda slow since we had a few days to get payroll done which is a few days too long. We are used to getting it done and having only a couple days to go thru it.
Friday night I went to a friend's dinner party and then the bachelorette party. We had a good time although I was a little more quiet than I should have been. All in all, it was a good night.
Saturday night was cool as we were a quite small group in 1.3 and yes, I actually learned something (not that I don't learn anything). It was really cool how we all interacted in the discussion. Then we went out to dinner at a good Chinese restaurant close by.
Hmm, I will leave you with the thought of wondering just how many Mona Lisa's there are in the world. Good thinking!
A tout a'leure (see you later)

Whatnots

I must mention, from my last post, that I do like football (if you couldn't tell already). I am one of those few gals that like football. I like watching pro more than college but I still watch the college games some. I have watched football since I was a kid, many times with my dad, and still do. Oh, since I am on football, my Chicago Bears lost to the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday. It was tied up at 31 and Minnesota went for a field goal right at the end and won 34-31. So close!!!
Well, last week was month-end at work for me which I thought went pretty well, at least on my end of things. This week is payroll time. Today was a slow day at work which was nice...it is nice to have slow days every once in a while.
I went to my friend's Bridal shower on Sunday and had a good time. I know she had a good time too. It's getting close to their wedding day, believe it or not!
Tomorrow night is Bible Study which I look forward to, seeing all the ladies again and checking to see how they are doing and getting to know them better. I am going to try and be more open this year, although last year I did pretty well at growing in that area.
Have a great day tomorrow! Oh, and a happy birthday to my nephew!!!!!!!!
TTFN

Where the Buffalo Roam

The majestic buffalo...well in their own way. And don't forget the bears! Where do they roam? on the home football field in New York, in the city of Buffalo. Population of 279,745 people, according to the 2005 census which I have not been to. Buffalo, the Queen city, lies at the eastern end of Lake Erie, which happens to be one of the Great Lakes. No, really...I am talking about the football team, the Buffalo Bills. I wonder where they came up with that name...may have to do some research on it. To cut to the chase, the reason I am talking about Buffalo is that they were playing against the Dallas Cowboys last night. I happened to watch the last six minutes of the game. Dallas had a total of five interceptions which may have been a record for them. Anyway, the last 30-60 seconds of the game was the most exciting. To make it a not so long 'story, I will just say that Dallas scored a touchdown after being down 24 - 16, went for the 2-pt conversion...did not get that, then went for a 53-yard field goal attempt by a rookie kicker, and won with 2 seconds left 25-24. I feel so bad for the buffalo bills. I think they have become one of my favorite teams. As you might could tell, I am not a fan of the cowboys, the Dallas Cowboys that is.
Oh, I am NOT forgetting about the bears. They 'live' in Chicago...population of 2,833,321 in 2006. So-called the Windy city, which I have been to when I was a young girl. They were playing the Green Bay packers on Sunday night...guess what??!!! the bears won, the bears won!!! 27-20 was the final score and they won it at the very end as the score was tied at 20. The bears have been my favorite team (football) since since I was young.
Ok, there ya have it. I don't think the buffalo will be trapsing around Dallas anytime soon. I do think that maybe bears like cheese. Hmmm...I wonder if buffalo, bears...be it black bears, brown bears, grizzly bears or polar bears, deer, and the antelope play all together? TTFN

Better is One Day

"For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness" - Psalm 84:10

I think what that verse is saying is that it is better to be up where He is or wherever we are, He is with us. Just spending one day with / in His courts is better than a thousand in our courts, so to speak. One day is enough to spend with God, as one day seems like a thousand years (see 2 Pet 3:8) and vice versa. Wonder how long a day is up in heaven...??? That is FAR better than being in a place where we could not be with God.

I am bringing this verse up Today because as I was on my way to the hospital to see my grandma last week, the song, Better is One Day, was the first one I heard when I turned on the radio. I got to thinking about this everlasting life that we, as believers, have in Christ. His dwelling place must really be lovely and I think we should be excited about what is awaiting us up in heaven. Yes, that lovely inheritance in the midst of Heaven.

TTFN

4-3-2-1--Halibut!

So I am glad that last week is done. It had been a busy couple weeks at work, with month-end and payroll. I was looking forward to Saturday when I would be going to the beach with some friends from 1.3. I was one of three drivers going which was fine because I like to drive. It was a very good time of fellowship in the car on the way there and on the way back late that night.
One of the main things I was SO excited about was getting to eat my halibut! Of course, I had none to bring with me but I was expecting us to eat at Mo's for dinner and there I would get my halibut! Of course, I had to wait until dinner time to enjoy it. We ended up spending our time at one town on the coast. Scripture was read and we got our eyes fixed on Jesus. How cool it is that He is the creator of the ocean that I love to stand in awe of and just watch for a bit. The weather was beautiful as I was a bit shocked as I had heard there was a chance of showers for the morning. Raining halibut....hmmm...that would be interesting to see.
Anyway, a couple of the guys played a game with another couple of guys that were on the beach and it turns out they were also Christians! I wonder if they like halibut?? Carrie and I went in a little bookstore and looked at the books (I'm sure there was at least one book that mentioned halibut). As time went by, it was close for dinner. YEAH! Time for that halibut! Of course you know what I ordered...halibut fish & chips. Out came a plate with four pieces of halibut and some fries. Before that, I had had some clam chowder which was pretty dang good. I think we all enjoyed our meals and then we walked down to the beach and played catch with a football. Good thing it was a football we were catching and not halibut!
After we watched the pretty sunset over the ocean, we decided it was time to head home. People in my car, including myself, came to the conclusion it would be 'cool' to go eat some Tillamook ice cream. So on the way we stopped at a little store that had some and I ordered caramel butter pecan and it was good. We made it home safely which was very good and I think we all had a very good day.
Yes, I am admitting I have a halibut fetish and yes, I am proud that I shared it with you. So, next time you eat halibut, you now know that there is someone else who loves it just as much as you! TTFN

Not as busy as last week

Hello! I am glad that last week is over. I worked 11 hour days just about everyday last week because it was month-end and I was doing some of the things my coworker does while she is out sick. This week is not as busy as it was last week but still it is busy. It's payroll time and is going rather well so far. I hope it stays that way for the rest of the week. For those that don't know, I work in payroll at the company I work for. I like numbers a LOT! Don't be surprised to find a lot of numbers in my posts!! I'm sure I can find at least one number about something for every post.
Tonight was the first night of Bible study! I am glad it is starting up again. Time for those Word Studies again!!! Okay we don't do an actual lesson for another week yet, but I am already ecstatic!!! Yes, I love doing those word studies...who knows...I might actually put one on my blog, or more! Anyway, I hope you all have a good rest of the week! TTFN

Shorthanded & Today

This week has been busy so far as it is month-end (for August) at work. As I mentioned in my last post, I had said I would be working more hours this week. My coworker has been at home trying to get over this sickness she has. I received an email from her, telling me that she has bronchitis too. She will be home for another week, requested by her doctor. I have been working until around 7:30 the last couple days and the rest of the week will probably be the same or close to it. A temp will be coming in, starting tomorrow to help with the filing that I will show her.
Happy Patriot Day. Today is 9/11...it's been six years since the attack. I can believe it's been that long...I still remember the morning. I watched the movie, Flight 93, on tv on Sunday. I just heard on the news that they are doing construction on ground zero and the space should be filled by this time next year. I really like the tribute to the WTC towers with the two lights they have where the towers stood.
Well, I think that does it for now. Hope you have a good week. TTFN

Stars (in the sky)

Happy September! This month will be a great month for looking in the sky at all the different constellations / stars at night. I just read an article in the paper yesterday about it. I'll have to find it again and let you know of some of the 'highlights'. I am also calling my post this as today's 'thousand dollar thursday' fish money song was the song Stars by the group, Switchfoot. It reminds me of a night when I was at the coast and it was the 4th of July and the stars were so 'vibrant' in the clear sky.
Speaking of the coast, I did have a good time with my family there this last weekend. We did not do a whole lot but did take a walk on the beach on Sunday and went out for a short boat ride on Monday. The weather was very nice! I hope you all had a safe and happy Labor Day weekend. It is nice to get an extra day in the weekend.

Today was an interesting day at work. If you could keep it in prayer, we are just starting month-end and I may be working more hours next week. Please pray for a co-worker of mine as she is trying to get over sickness.
I know I have mentioned to pray for my grandma also, in a previous post. If you could continue to do so, that would be great. She is still lonely and is in the hospital again but should be out and back home in a couple days.

If you have any prayer requests or anything else you would like to say, just mention it! I think that is it for now. TTFN

PS I have not heard that song (in last post) for about a week so I am still working on that verse. I'll let you know when I have it.

Song of the day

Isn't it cool (creepy cool, by some) how a song gets in your head and you are singing it all day, and then you get in your car, turn on the radio, and THAT song is just starting to play??? Well, that happened to me today. I was singing a song by the group Disciple (they're a new group) called 'After the World' at work. Just as I was leaving work, I turned on the radio and what do you know, THAT song is starting to play!!! So I crank up the radio and sing along! I can't remember all the words right now but there is a line in there that goes like 'I had my eyes on you, since (before?) you were born'. The next time I hear it, I am going to carefully listen to the words and look up Scripture that may tie in with what the song is saying. I think it is so cool how He puts songs in your head for a reason, and it's always at the right time, too! I'll let you know what I find.

Work is slower this week which is nice since the last couple weeks...month...have been very busy with the new HR/Payroll system. It's a nice change of pace. But then, the pace picks up again as next week we lose a day (Monday being Labor Day) of getting thru payroll so please pray that Tuesday would go smooth. It's also the start of month-end too next week.

Tuesday night I got to spend with my good friend Carrie. We got some food to eat, watched Veggie Tales, played Bible game, and of course (I) took the dog for a walk. Thanks Carrie for a fun evening.
That's it for now. TTFN (P.S. THAT song is STILL in my head...:)

Grasshoppers

So....my sister and I are out taking the dog for a walk this afternoon in the neighborhood. On one of the streets, we start seeing these grasshoppers on the sidewalk every few feet. When we get close to them, they, of course, fly off to across the street. Oh, did I say fly? Do grasshoppers fly? We saw probably about five or six grasshoppers and they flew a pretty good height in the air to their next 'landing' spot. Not once did they land in the grass. One even flew right by my head... :) I just thought that was a bit interesting.
Speaking of grasshoppers, there is a kind of ice cream called grasshopper pie. I am not putting them down or anything, but it is one of my favorite ice creams. It's mint chocolate chip with mini mint chocolate pies...mmm, it is SO good!!! I wonder how they came up with that name anyway??
That's pretty much it for now, other than I went to a friend's open house last night, went to dinner with a few friends, went to church this morning, took my car in for an oil change, and of course, took the dog for a walk. TTFN!

Lots of Water

I don't know if you have heard the news this week or not but there has been a lot of flooding in the midwest lately. I heard this morning on KLOVE on my way to work. They mentioned Ohio and that it's the worst flooding in their state in the last 100 years. Fortunately, there have been only a few deaths...we would like to hear about no casualties but a few is a lot better than lots!
Also, I heard that Hurricane Dean has hit land a second time in Mexico. This time a category two (??) storm (it did get up to category 5 storm before) and the first time there was a lot of damage but no deaths. Please correct me if I am wrong. I am just fascinated when I hear about storms and different kinds of weather. Hmm...that reminds me of someone I know that may be living in...Wisconsin?!!! I hope there is no flooding there, or very little of it.
Anyway, if you think of it, say a prayer for all those people in the midwest and Mexico for that matter as well. TTFN

Blue OR Red???

That was the question as my friend Care and I went goodwill shopping this past Sunday afternoon. Every week they have a color tag that is on special and the first store we went into, the color was red. Red happens to be my favorite color! After looking around it, we went to another one. The color at that store was....red again! Apparently Care thinks I did that on purpose (her fave color is blue). Even though I may have admitted it so, it wasn't really me that made it red at both stores. We had gone to eat lunch at KFC before going to Goodwill which was after church. Anyway, Care got a neat set of small plates that look Victorian style...I think they are rather pretty! I got a couple of mugs with pears on them...yes, I got two of the same thing which constitutes a pair (pear) of mugs! :)
Work this week has been busy but not as busy as the last couple weeks. We are still trying to get ready to go 'live' on the new system. It's going to take a while to get used to doing things we've done a little differently.
An update on my great Uncle Jim...he had surgery on Friday of the same week as I had last mentioned. It had got postponed from Wednesday...the surgery went well and he only spent about three or four days at the hospital instead of six days.
Hope you all are having a great week so far! TTFN

'Save the queen'

You probably want to know what queen I am talking about. It happens to be a ship by the name of Queen Mary. Hmm...nice name! :) Well, I heard on the news this past Tuesday that the ship was put up for sale and it sold for a mesely $43 million dollars. It has been docked down in Long Beach, California for the last 40 years. I went on the web site, www.queenmary.com and the pictures of it looks really nice. They show some pics inside the ship. What better place to be docked than at a beach?!! I am glad that they have 'saved the queen'!
I hope you all survived this week. My week was quite a very busy and long one. We are getting a new system installed and this week we are working at going 'live' with it. I put in long days this week at work, but I am glad it is the weekend now. Hope you have a great weekend! TTFN

Green beans...are they all the same?

Cookie dough ice cream and chocolate fudge brownie ice cream...italian style green beans and french cut green beans...two seconds ahead and two seconds behind...these pairs all have something in common. They are the same thing. Okay here is my reasoning...cookie dough has chocolate chips in the chunks of cookie dough in the ice cream while chocolate fudge brownie is chunks of chocolate chip brownie pieces in the ice cream. Italian style green beans and french cut green beans are both cut but one is just 'split open' (mmmm...I love those french cut or any green bean for that matter!). I only bring up the green beans because I had a tv dinner today for lunch which included Italian green beans in it. Why is it that we do not have Italian green beans that often??? Okay and the last one (at least for now until I come up with more) is two seconds behind and two second ahead...they are both two seconds and it doesn't really matter what direction they're in.
Hey, I hope you had a good weekend. I enjoyed the church service on Saturday night as a whole. Plus I got to see some of my brothers and sisters in Christ as it had been about three weeks since I had seen or talked to them. Sunday night I got to go have some fun with Carrie as we got some dinner, talked, and did a bit of 'window shopping'.
That's it for now...until next time...ttfn!

The hot and humid South, part one

Well, hello to ya darlin's! I, including my family, have safely returned late Saturday night from my trip to there yonder south to the state of North Carolina. I would like to thank y'all for praying for our safety during the trip. I would love to take the time to tell you all about it but there it so much to tell, and without any pictures to put up yet, just words would not do justice. I will say that we did go see a plantation that was used in the mid 1700s to the mid 1800s, a Confederate fort, the Atlantic Ocean, and lots of churches! Okay, enough with that Southern accent...once I figure out how to put pics on my blog (with my pc), hopefully I will put a few on so you can see part of the South.
Okay, here is an update on my great uncle I received tonight. He is going to have surgery this Wednesday so please pray that it would go well and for a full recovery. He is getting a hip replacement, I think. He will most likely be spending a few days post-surgery in the hospital.
I think that is it for now. Til next time, see y'all later.
TTFN

N Carolina, here I come!

Hi all! Hope you have had a good week. Mine has been busy...I put in a lot of hours at work this week since my coworker was on vacation this week. So it was just my supervisor and I and she kept me busy. It has come time for my vacation...we leave for the airport in just a few hours and get on an airplane to North Carolina, with a stop in Texas...yeehaw! I like Texas...even though I have only been in the airport in Dallas. This time we will be stopping in Houston. I am excited about this trip! I had people ask me at work why I am going to North Carolina and they suggest that I have family over there. I do not have family over there but we are just going to see some of the sights. Anyway...please remember these prayer requests...

- Pray for my great uncle (who I mentioned in a recent post). He is having issues with insurance and needs to have surgery. Pray that God's will would be done.
- Pray for safe travels while on airplane and in the car (and everywhere in between) on our trip.

Thank you for praying, and I will be praying for all of you and hope that you will be blessed in some way during the next few days. I will post when I get back to let you know we made it safely back home. Ta ta for now! (TTFN)

Band camp and fun

I hope you all had a good weekend. Friday after work, I went to my niece's band concert. She had been going to a band camp all week long and there were three bands totaling about 160 kids. I got to hear about a third of the concert which was nice. It made me think of when I was at band camp and how fun it was to be there. You were also tired because of all the hard work that you put in to it each day. There were band directors there to help you learn more musical skills to be a better musician. Of course, the kids were middle school age so some are beginners in band and some are more experienced. My niece was in the first band since she has had just one year of band thus far on trumpet. She loves to play trumpet because she loves Jazz music and wants to be in jazz band.
Saturday I got to spend with my niece since her mom had to work. I like to spend time with my niece and do something fun just the two of us. We went out to Wendy's for lunch and then on to see grandma (her great-grandma) for a while. We had a very nice visit...grandma seems to be doing better if you are wondering. We were also going to go see Evan Almighty but changed our minds. We came home until it was time for church. She sat with me in service since her class was not meeting that night. The message was so AWESOME and the topic was so true...I will have to take another post and talk about it soon. I hung out afterwards with a couple friends and went out for ice cream.
Sunday I stayed home most of the day and did some house cleaning.
Well, this is my last week of work until I go on vacation. I will post again this week before I leave. 5 days until lift off...!!!!!
TTFN

New'er' and the Old'er'

Hi, people. Hope you are all doing well. Finally, after all this time, I get a 'new' computer at work today!!! It is new to me but not brand new. I had been working on Windows 98 at work and I had problems recently with it, like I could not get on the network drives. Now I have a new and better computer that will take some getting used to. I was working on the IT guys old computer for just over a week so I could get my month-end reports done, amongst other things.
I have a couple prayer requests...
1. Please pray for my grandma who is not feeling well.
2. Please pray also for my great uncle, who has been going to the doctor for tests within the last month and may have cancer. He is not doing too well right now.

I think that is about it for now. Oh, I will say that I did enjoy the message at church this last weekend. I also enjoy any fellowship I get with my brothers and sisters in 1.3. Playing catch with a football at the park was fun.

TTFN

An unexpected guest

It's Superman...it's a plane...it's....A BIRD????? Yes, that's correct! It all happened this past Sunday night. Just my sister and I were home and we had gone out to take the dog for a walk. When we came back, I watered the tomatoes and the other plants. We were both looking for strawberries to pick and eat then went back inside the house. We sat down to watch a little tv and practice on my niece's video games. My cat had meowed (much like a crying meow) and I wondered what she was 'crying' about. We did one game and my sister had heard a noise that sounded like flapping of a bird's wings. I didn't hear it at first, but I went over to where the cat was and didn't see anything. A few minutes later, my sister went over to the same spot I was at and there on the window sill was a small bird. We figured it had flown in when we had the door open when we were watering the plants. After trying to scare the bird outside, the bird flying across the family room, calling the folks, I finally got a small plastic bag and put it over the bird. It was sitting still on the floor by a door...I assumed as soon as I put the bag over it, it would start flapping its wings. It must have been more scared of me than I was of it. It took a couple seconds but it did and I picked up the bag and ran to the front door (which my sister had open) and let the bird go free. It was an unusual situation but I am glad that the bird (which I think was a small sparrow) was released back into the outdoors. My sis and I sat back down on the couch and played a couple more races on the video games to calm down and to get more practice.
I hope you all are surviving this very WARM...ok, HOT day outside. It will be another sweltering day tomorrow as well. Try to stay cool.
TTFN

What A Glorious Fourth!

Happy (Belated) Birthday, America! The US is now 231 years young this year. The 4th of July is one of my very favorite holidays! For one, I get to play in our patriotic services at my church, GSCC. Those services happen the 4th weekend of June. It is always so...patriotic and American...with the music and all the people that come up on stage that are or have been in the military, along with their children. I think it is so cool and deserving that we should honor those in the military at least once a year. After the services, I always have at least one song stuck in my head the whole entire week (or just about).
This week (which was a busy week), I was able to go with my family to the coast on Tuesday night after work. Part of the family was already there and we met up with them in town to see the fireworks display, along with a whole bunch of other people, on the bay. Again, I sit, watching the beautiful display, humming or singing to myself God Bless America or another song of the sort. It lasts about 20 minutes but is worth it and then head back to our place. When we got back, I was on the way inside, I looked up and saw a 'gazillion' stars, including the Big Dipper, twinkling in the clear blue sky. Of course, there are a 'gazillion' more stars up there that we cannot see, but, still, it is amazing. The word I was thinking about is, 'indescribable' because it was. Wednesday we spent at our place and I got to barbecue lunch...woohoo!!! Dad took my sister and I out for a boat ride on the river (and I got sunburned on my arms, I might add). I had to head back home that night so I could go to work Thursday. Once home, I got to see another fireworks display from our deck. I then watched the works from Fort Vancouver on tv which were nice.
So, with that said, another 4th of July has come and gone. But I am anxiously awaiting next year's holiday!
Have a great weekend! TTFN

A time for celebration

Hi again! My weekend went pretty well. Friday night I stayed home and didn't do a whole lot. Saturday I spent some time cleaning house, took the dog for a walk, and watched a movie on tv. Then I got ready for church. The sermon was very good, as the lesson was taught on the question, what is Truth? Good question for us to really think about. After service, my friend Carrie and I stopped at the store to get some food to take to Amy's parents' house as we were going to have a barbecue. The barbecue was nice...it was our official last 1.3 for the year (until fall). Only a few of us wanted to play croquet (aka crochet to some of us...hehe) and I did alright. The main thing though is that we all had a good time. Amy is getting ready to leave for Alaska for a month so we celebrated her having this awesome opportunity to go up there and be a witness to the kids again (she was up there last summer at Victory Bible Camp).
Before the night was over, we all shared what God has been teaching us lately. That is a very good thing to do because it helps us grow as a group and individually to see all that He has done/taught in each other's lives. I think we should do this more often. Sunday I stayed home and worked around the house and did laundry.
Today work was quite busy as it is payroll time again. We are 'short' a day this time because of Wednesday being the 4th of July. but we will get what we need done in time.
I will post again probably on the 4th. TTFN :)

It's a great day to be a Blazer fan!

What a day for the Trail Blazers!!! I cannot believe all the things they did today, on draft day!
First, they had the #1 pick...drum roll please...Greg Oden. I don't think that was too much of a surprise.
Close to the end of the first round, the Blazers made a deal with the Phoenix Suns who had the 24th pick and they chose Rudy Fernandez who was a Olympic All-Star on Spain's basketball team. In turn, we gave them cash.
In the second round, we got four picks (#37, 42, 52, and 53).
Plus, we made a trade with the New York Knicks. We traded Zach Randolph, Freddie Jones, and Dan Dickau to NY and in return are getting Channing Frye and Steve Francis. It's good to see Zach off but I will miss Freddie and Dan being on the team.
I heard there was a party at the Rose Garden today and a big hoop-la tomorrow downtown when Oden comes into town to join in the celebration with the fans.
Yes, this will be an exciting year for the Blazers, and if you couldn't tell already, I am quite a Blazers fan!!!
Let me know if you have any thoughts about them and what happened today.
TTFN

My car and lightning

Hello all! It is a very good thing to have my car back!!! For those who may not have known, Monday morning last week I got in my car to start it and it made this awful rattling sound. I decided to not take my car and took dad's car to work. I had been without my car for just over a week, after it was towed to a car repair shop. Evidently, the power steering pump had gone out and that's why it was making that noise. Plus the repairman mentioned that the AC was in need of repair and that it would cost me a lot of $$ to get fixed. I knew it needed fixing as it works about 1/2 the time anyway but I was not going to spend $$ to fix it unless they could get it done for a lot less. I came home from work on Tuesday and there, in the driveway was my car!! Yea!!! So, I have a new power steering pump, 'new' AC, and the car runs quiter than before. It's nice to have it back. :)
This week is Lightning Safety Awareness Week. We, in this region of the country, do not see as much lightning as in other regions of the country. When I do see it though, I think it is rather cool and it reminds me that God is our light!
TTFN (ta ta for now)

Mary's 1st.

Well, Here it is... My first Blog entry! Im still working on a Main title for the blog.

I know this is short but I am at Care's house who helped me set this up. So until next time TTFN!