What I learned at Joni and Friends Summit

Denis and I had the privilege of attending a Joni and Friends training summit in Pasadena, CA along with 6 other folks from our church this past weekend. We went to learn from people in other churches who already have more mature disability ministry programs up and running. The days were full of different workshops with a variety of topics, so we took a "divide and conquer" strategy. These are some of the take home points for me:

• People with disabilities need the church - they need to be told that God loves them, Jesus understands their pain and that hope is only found in Him.
• The church needs people with disabilities - people who have been to the end of themselves, looked suffering and self-pity in the face and learned the long-suffering patience of putting their faith in God have a powerful testimony that we all need to be exposed to. Not only that, but we need the opportunity to give without being repaid. I don't think I really had a vision of this until one of the workshops about ministering to adults with disabilities. Sometimes, it may not be as much about the people we serve getting so much out of it from our perspective, but that we can put ourselves aside without earthly reward.
• We are VERY blessed that our pastor is the one who initiated our disability ministry. Most of the attendees were struggling to get their church's attention on the need for a disability focus. They were very envious of our position. Our church is already leaps and bounds ahead of some because our pastor is enthusiastically promoting it from the pulpit.
• It's not necessary to have all the answers or programs in place to get started - most of the mature programs started with just meeting a couple of needs as they arose, then growing from there.
• "Disability Ministry" doesn't have to be hard and intimidating. It's good to provide low-commitment opportunities for people to get involved. It's contagious and the desire to be involved will spread.

The icing on the cake was getting to hear Joni Eareckson-Tada speak in the closing session. I've admired her for many years. What a blessing!

Did she say chickens?

Yes, I did say chickens. Denis and I have several friends with chickens and love getting to eat very fresh eggs from healthy hens. We have been thinking very seriously of getting some of our own. In fact, we've pretty much decided that we will do it... eventually.

Here are the steps involved:
1. visit your friends who have chickens

• ask them lots of questions
• examine their coop design
• ask about the breeds they like and why

We have done this step. We've picked the brains of my former next-door neighbors, my friend AMG, a family from our church and one of my coworkers who all have chickens.

2. research chicken coop designs
basic?
or fancy?

Knowing Denis, this phase will take quite a while... He is looking at all kind of designs online. I particularly like the AMG's advice to build the nesting part up at shoulder height so that egg collection and clean up are streamlined. Once Denis has figured out the precise design and how much material is needed we can move on to step 3

3. build coop in the area between our house and my mom's
Again, this is Denis' realm. Once he gets to it, I've no doubt it will be perfect. Part of the yard will also have to be penned in so that we can let them out to roam a bit.

4. decide what breed of chickens to get. Should we get adult hens? or chicks? AMG swears by getting adult hens. My coworker has an organic farm and gets chicks each year of all different breeds. They are so funny!

5. buy supplies and chickens.

6. collect and eat eggs!

Are you surprised by my thoughts about chickens?

More flowers

Is anyone getting bored with flower pictures from me? Above are our roses in bloom.

Below is our rhododendron that we planted last year. This is the first year that it's bloomed for us.
Here's a close up of the flower. I like it.

I'm getting some suggestions for a new post. Here are the options:

1. more about our plans for Australia
2. something about the cats
3. something that I've read lately
4. a movie that I've seen
5. a project that I'm working on
6. a friend coming to visit
7. my thoughts about chickens

So, what's your vote? What shall I write about next?

A very good sign

Our renters decided to plant a garden! They asked our permission first and we said, "go for it". They have plans to make some changes in the front yard as well. They've been mowing, watering and even offering to do some of the yard work that is not really their responsibility at all. They seem to be "putting down roots" so to speak. Ha! Pardon the pun.

Below you can see some more of their handiwork. The deck badly needed new stain. Denis was planning to just do some minimal prep work, so he purposely bought stain the same color so that it wouldn't be obvious. Well, then we thought, why not ask if they would like to do the work in exchange for a reduction in the rent for one month? They did, and boy a job they did. They sanded the entire deck and really did a good job. We're hoping they stay for a while.

Finding Balance?

I've really been struggling with balance in my life lately. I find that I can totally fritter an entire day away being absolutely lazy - games on the computer, TV shows, etc. I've been feeling really convicted about that for quite a while. I know that leisure time is an idol for me and I can let my games petty entertainments totally eclipse God right out of the picture.

But the last two days have been the opposite. I've had two extremely busy days, running between errands with hardly any time to breathe. Well, I can breathe, but I quite literally have not eaten well the last two days because I had no time. This is certainly not laziness, but my attitude on these days has not been great. I get to feeling really put out that I can't catch a break between the phone calls and demands on my time. I forget in those days that God is orchestrating my life, that He never promised me comfort all the time and that my attitude is just as important as my actions.

How do I find a balance? How do I fit in harmless entertainment and avoid slothfulness? How do I fulfill my responsibilities with a good attitude? I seem to feel guilty for something that I'm doing or not doing much of the time...

I don't necessarily need answers or suggestions for these questions. I know they are just the perpetual struggles of life. I know that one of the key factors is prioritized time spent reading God's word and praying. But this is how I've been feeling lately.

What's in a name?

Is Flossie a serious enough name for a hurricaine? See here.

Don't you hate?

Squeeze bottles that won't dispense any product until you squeeze them so hard that you get more than you need? I have a bottle of Soft Scrub that is like that. It makes me mad because I use too much of it on the counter, it bubbles up more and it is harder to rinse. It takes much longer. I have noticed the same trend in ketchup and mustard bottles lately. I think it is a plot to get us to use more product so we have to buy it again sooner. What do you think?

100 things

1. I am right-handed.
2. I have 20/20 vision in each eye still.
3. I can see 20/15 with both eyes together.
4. I was the only person in my family who didn't need glasses.
5. I really wanted glasses when I was younger.
6. I have heard that most people need glasses soon after turning 40.
7. I look pretty good in glass frames when I try them on.
8. I tend to lose my sunglasses so I'm afraid that I will lose real glasses once I need them.
9. I have very sensitive eyes and wear sunglasses most of the time when I drive during the day.
10. My eyes are green (or hazel, cause they change depending on what I'm wearing).
11. My hair is getting very gray. (it's shocking)
12. I started coloring my hair regularly just before my wedding.
13. I once swore I would never permanently color my hair.
14. I didn't want to suddenly go gray with a severe root grow out line.
15. I color my hair partly because Denis prefers it colored.
16. I prefer to live in either a major city or in a small town.
17. Medford is an in-between size. Kind of like living in the suburbs of a city.
18. I moved here because my mom was here and my brother was moving away.
19. I built my house before I was planning to marry Denis.
20. I found my floor plan in one of those books that you can buy in the store.
21. I had it modified so that I could have a real pantry and laundry room.
22. The master bedroom is smaller than average because of that.
23. Denis and I love our little house.
24. My parents were divorced when I was 11 years old.
25. My father was an alcoholic.
26. I didn't know he was until after the divorce.
27. He tended to drink away all our money, leading to the divorce.
28. My mom protected my brother and I by taking us to a friend's house when my dad came home drunk.
29. My dad was a happy drunk as far as I can remember (he would joke around and wasn't mean).
30. I attended some Alanon meetings with my mom after the divorce.
31. I still remember some of the Alanon principles from those meetings.
32. My dad quit drinking 2 years too late.
33. He was court ordered to take Anatabuse after a DUI conviction. (it makes you sick if you drink)
34. My mom had custody of my brother and I.
35. I'm really glad that she did.
36. I'm really grateful to my mom for the way that she parented me.
37. My dad lived on the other side of Portland.
38. It was a 45 minute drive to his house.
39. We only saw him about 2 times a year.
40. I felt kind of guilty about that until I was in college.
41. Then I realized that it was his fault that we didn't see him since he was the dad.
42. My father died when I was in college during spring break.
43. It was really awkward to go back to school after spring break.
44. People would ask me how my vacation was without realizing what the answer was going to be.
45. I became a Christian at a church camp at about age 10.
46. I went with my best friend.
47. They gave an invitation to pray with a counselor and Lisa got up and walked away.
48. I hadn't been paying attention much, so I didn't know where Lisa had gone and followed her.
49. I prayed with a counselor to accept Jesus into my heart.
50. God's love was very real and important to me in the years following my parents divorce.
51. I was considered a goody-two-shoes in school.
52. I have never done any recreational drugs.
53. But I have been drunk.
54. But I've never had a hang-over.
55. I learned a lot more about the Bible and my faith while I was in college.
56. The main thing that changed in my faith in college was that I realized the Bible was more than just a nice ideology, but was supposed to be lived out.
57. I also realized that Jesus didn't just die for the sins of the whole world, but He died for my sins.
58. These were really surprising things to me at the time.
59. I graduated from nursing school in 4 years.
60. That is hard to do because you need to get a lot of credits.
61. I got 15 credits that I needed by going on a geography field trip around the US and some of Canada the summer before my senior year.
62. The US seemed much smaller to me after the trip. (Not in a bad way but in a sense that it is accessible. You really can just hop in a car and drive across the country!)
63. I love to travel!
64. I wish I could take a month off work and travel around Europe, or just about anywhere, really.
65. I have been to Canada, Mexico, Bolivia, Peru, Argentina (only for 3 hours), Brazil (1 hour), Paraguay, India, and England (1 day layover in London).
66. I save coins from countries that I have visited.
67. I'm really bummed I didn't make it to Europe before they implemented the Euro.
68. I have a bunch of frequent flyer miles, but haven't gotten around to using them yet.
69. I am a pretty open person.
70. I will give an honest answer to just about any question someone asks me.
71. I don't always offer up my opinion or my personal experiences unless I am asked.
72. I like to think and talk about social and/or political issues.
73. I don't generally feel like I have enough information to form a solid opinion about social issues or politics.
74. I think that's why I really enjoy documentaries.
75. I value learning from other people's experience.
76. I am taking an online defensive driving course because of my speeding ticket last month.
77. I am learning that I am not as safe a driver as I thought I was.
78. I still think some of the defensive driving suggestions are unrealistic.
79. I am a slob.
80. I have stacks of papers on the floor of my side of our office.
81. I have a system for putting very important papers and items in specific places so that they will not get lost.
82. I am pretty disciplined about following through with that.
83. It's the semi-important stuff that stacks up and gets forgotten about.
84. I am amazed at Denis' patience with my mess.
85. I had a Siamese cat before i got Phoebe and Monica
86. Ginger was a stray from the apartment complex I was living in at the time.
87. I let her come in during a snow storm.
88. She was definitely a stray cat!
89. She bit me 5 times during the first month I had her.
90. Each time was less intentional, or I would have taken her to the humane society.
91. It was an amazing feeling to realize that I had won her over.
92. She died only a year later of kidney failure.
93. I was terribly sad when she died.
94. I'm so glad that I got two cats together the next time.
95. I asked for a "bonded pair" so that they wouldn't be alone while I was at work or away overnight.
96. Denis is not really a cat person. (oops, this is supposed to be about me...)
97. Denis loves ME, so he accepted my cats. (he is quite fond of Phoebe and puts up with Monica)
98. My clothing is always covered in cat hair.
99. Denis sometimes lint-rollers me before we go out in public.
100. I hope you enjoyed my list.

Keith Green

Well, thinking about Randy Stonehill last week gave me a hankering for listening to classic Christian rock. On a recent road trip I popped Keith into my CD player. He was so passionate about his love for God. Here are some sample lyrics.

He'll Take Care of the Rest

You know it ain't no use, banging your head, up against that cold stone wall,
Cause nobody's perfect, except for the Lord, and even the best is bound to fall,
Remember He is de vine, and you are de branch,
He'd love to get you through it if you'd give Him a chance,
Just keep doing your best,
And pray that it's blessed,
And Jesus takes care of the rest.

Yes the Lord said that He'd take care of the rest, He's gonna do it,
He'll take care of the rest, He'll see you through it, yeah.
He'll take care of the rest, the devil blew it,
He'll take care of the, He'll take care of the rest.

Just think about Moses, in front of the burning bush, barefoot on the Holy ground,
You know, he must have been thinking, "hey, what`s an old dude like me,
Gonna tell em all when I go down", go down Moses,
The Lord said, "hey Moe, don`t you worry about your going down south,
I'll be saying every word that comes out of your mouth,
Just keep doing your best, and pray that it's blessed,
Hey Moe, I'll take care of the rest."

Yes the Lord said that He'd take care of the rest, he's gonna do it,
He'll take care of the rest, He'll see you through it, yeah.
He'll take care of the rest, oh, Pharaoh blew it,
He'll take care of the, He'll take care of the rest.

Just believe, and you'll receive, that comfort you need,
You just think about all those lonely people you know,
They've got everything they want, but they have empty souls,
Well, He'll take care of the, He'll take care of the, He'll take care of the,
care of the rest.

You just think about Noah, toting his umbrella, when there wasn't a cloud in the sky,
All his neighbors would laugh at his catchy raft, and would snicker as he
passed by,
But the Lord said, hey Noah, be cool, just keep building that boat,
It's just a matter of time till they see who's gonna float,
You just keep doing your best, and pray that it's blessed,
Hey Noah, I'll take care of the rest, I'm the weatherman.

The Lord said that he'll take care of the rest, He's gonna do it,
He'll take care of the rest, He'll see you through it, yeah.
He'll take care of the rest, his neighbors blew it,
He'll take care of the rest, Hallelujah.
He'll take care of the rest, only Jesus can see you through it,
He'll take care of the rest, yes, yes, yes,
He'll take care of the, He'll take care of the rest­.

At first glance, this song might appear to be promoting a "God helps those who help themselves" kind of philosophy. But, actually, it is providing an illustration of one of my favorite topics lately: real faith is seen best in obedience. We tend to think of faith as some kind of emotion that we have to generate in order to somehow make God work. Hebrews 11:1 states "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." If we read on, we see all of the examples of great people of faith listed. The common theme among them is that they obeyed what God told them to do. The conviction of things not seen had to do with faith that God knew what He was doing. Heb 11:6 "And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him."
It was NOT that they anticipated the outcome and felt sure that some miracle would happen. In fact, many of them did not see the good outcome that they hoped for. Heb 11:39 "And all these, having gained approval through their faith, did not receive what was promised"

I have several friends who are going through hard times right now. And they are displaying this kind of faith when they continue to do what they know God wants of them, even when it is hard. Even when it seems like there may be an easier way out. And God is so pleased with that kind of faith. It is a faith in who God is, His character, wisdom and sovereignty (power). This kind of faith is not always dramatic, but it is real.

Where does the time go?

I can't believe that it is already January 11th!! It's a bit late to write a post about the new year, but oh well. Did you make any New Year's resolutions? I don't really make any. I once made a resolution to read through the Bible in a year when I was in college. And I actually was keeping it all the way till June. I was using the One Year Bible, which was kind of new at the time. Now it is available in so many different translations and they even have a really small version that is amazing. Anyway, when I went home for the summer, I misplaced my One Year Bible and couldn't find it. When I found it in September again, I was so far behind that I couldn't stay on track. It's very hard to stay motivated when you are reading the wrong date's reading. So I just waited until the following June and picked up where I left off. So I kept my resolution in a matter of two years' time...

Currently, I have a lot of resolutions, but they are year-round resolutions. Not really anything new for the New Year. I would like to be more consistent in reading my Bible and praying, keep up with the reading that I should do to stay up to date with my job, make more effort to develop meaningful relationships with people around me. I think those are the biggest three. How about you?

Downright Balmy

Last night at 6 PM I went outside into the darkness with some garbage for the dumpster expecting to be shivering cold out there. To my surprise it was so comfortable. It was 56 degrees! Today it is beautiful weather out again - 55 right now. Just a couple of days ago we had a cold snap, with freezing temperatures overnight. I went out each morning to find frost on my car window and shivered as I waited for it to defrost so I could drive to work. I'm not complaining about the change!

I have been quite slow getting started with Christmas preparation this year. Now I'm starting to realize that I had better get cracking or there won't be much under our Christmas tree this year. That reminds me, gotta go buy a tree. :o)

I hope you are enjoying the Christmas season and anticipating the celebration of our Savior's earthly arrival.

T

Here I am with my friend T. I saw her this weekend when I was in Portland. I think it had been almost a year since we last saw each other. Lately, we have been keeping in touch through blogging and instant messaging. Isn't the internet great?

We go way back, us two. We met one fateful day in sophomore health class in 1982. I don't think we knew many people in the class and we just happened to be sitting next to each other. We kept each other entertained in that class and later when we took typing together. We became best friends through the next year - shared a locker and decorated it in various themes, stayed overnight at each other's houses. T introduced me to the concept of cold pizza for breakfast. We sang Eurythmics tunes at the top of our voices and generally made a nuisance of ourselves. That all ended at the end of our junior year when we broke off our friendship due to parental pressures. Ahem... Our mothers did not approve of each other. We were so different, really. She was kind of wild and dangerous to me. I was considered a goody-two-shoes, and not just by T, but others in my class. I must admit, we were an unusual match. So from that second fateful day, we hardly even spoke until our graduation day when we acknowledged each other with a brief good-bye, good luck, etc.

I went off to college and that was that. But, up popped T a few years later. She contacted me through my mom who had not moved. We had some casual contact a couple of times, but then came back into each other's lives in a big way in 1990. She had been living out of the state and was looking for a place to live so she could move back to Portland. So we became roommates for the first time. Since then, we have shared an apartment three times, attended the same church and home group, prayed together, studied together, told each other all our secrets and made a commitment to always stand by each other. As we've gone through different stages in our lives, we've been in close contact and out of contact. But, with the exception of Denis, there is no one who knows me quite as well as T. (Well, probably my mom does too, but not quite in the same way.) Our personalities are still very different, but we do have a bond that we are convinced will not be broken.

Poplar Tree

Isn't that a beautiful tree? So calm and serene, with the fluttering leaves and the filtered light... This is our neighbor's large poplar tree which extends its branches over our back yard. It is a large, mature tree and it had several offspring - 7 small poplar saplings - that were on our property when we moved here. We had them taken out so that we wouldn't wind up in a poplar forest.



Well, here is the result of having a big poplar tree in our neighbor's yard. That tree drops leaves and twigs into our backyard year round! It is the bane of Denis' existence. This photo was taken one day after he had raked the yard. The fall is of course, the worst part of the year for the leaves. Well, at least we don't have any lack of composting material. :o)

Halloween

We live on a flag lot - quite a bit off the street. Last year we had no trick-or-treaters for Halloween. So, I did not bother to buy any candy this year. About 4 PM, Denis and I had a little discussion about the evening plans.

"We have no candy?"
"no, no one came last year."
"What if someone does come?"
"Well, we just won't turn on our light."
"Then what will we do for the evening in the dark? You know, I was a boy scout and our motto was 'Be prepared'."

I went to the store and got some candy. Have you tried that new-ish candy bar called Take 5? It has caramel, peanuts, pretzels, peanut butter and chocolate! Really good.

We had no trick-or-treaters this year, so we will enjoy the candy ourselves... :o)
Incidentally, when Denis was a child in Iowa, they went from door to door on Oct 30 - called Beggar's Day. On Halloween they just stayed home and ate their candy! Strange.

Priscilla's Challenge

1. I can play the guitar moderately well.
2. I can play the piano rather poorly.
3. I learned how to ski when I was a child. I don't remember a time that I did not know how to ski.
4. My father worked at Mt. Hood Meadows ski resort and we got free season's passes.
5. I can ski on intermediate slopes, but I prefer beginner's slopes because I'm a chicken.
6. I have been a nurse for 17 years.
7. I worked most of my years on the night shift at a hospital.
8. My first job was as a "feeder" in a nursing home. It was the best job ever because everyone was glad to see me and I had very little real responsibility.
9. I took Spanish each year in school from grades 7-11 and a year in college.
10. I didn't dare speak Spanish to Spanish-speakers until after I had lived in Bolivia, South America in my late 20's.
11. I was a missionary in Bolivia for 2 years and discovered why I had studied Spanish all those years.
12. While I was in South America I visited Machu Picchu, Peru and Iguazu Falls, Brazil/Argentina.
13. While I was in Bolivia, I taught a class about germs to a group who had never heard of them before. It was an amazing and wonderful experience!
14. I am a rather accomplished crocheter.
15. I cannot sew or knit.
16. I especially like foreign movies and documentaries.
17. I used to read a lot, but I don't as much anymore.
18. In Jr. High and High School I used to read while walking down the hallways between classes.
19. I read War and Peace just to be able to say that I read it.
20. I found it surprisingly interesting and boring at the same time.
21. I like a variety of musical styles.
22. I don't like classical or country music (especially the twangy kind).
23. I love Alison Krauss and she can sing as twangily as she wants.
24. I was married on Dec. 31, 2003 at age 36.
25. I had only ever had 3 boyfriends before I was married and each dating relationship lasted about one month.
26. I had a "crush" on a different boy each year through grade school.
27. My name in Spanish is Teresa.
28. My friends in Bolivia called me "Techi" which is a nickname for Teresa (it is pronounced just like it is spelled with a ch as in church.)
29. I didn't like it when people called me "Trrray-cy" with a Spanish accent.
30. The most unusual nickname I have ever had was "John".
31. I attended church camp the summers of grades 6-8 at Camp Magruder on the Oregon Coast.
32. I was a camp counselor at Camp Magruder for 1-2 weeks each summer for 4 years after college.
33. I used to lead silly camp songs like "The Little Green Frog song" and "All the Little Fishies".
34. My favorite age group for camp counseling was grades 5-6.
35. I never wanted to be the camp nurse because I was afraid that an emergency would come up.
36. I'm a caffeine addict - if I don't have my two shots of espresso a day I get a headache.
37. I go to Starbucks before work each day.
38. I especially like the pumpkin spice latte, toffee nut latte or iced caramel macchiato.
39. I usually get a grande sugarfree hazelnut non-fat latte.
40. Before I go to Starbucks, I go to McDonald's to get a sausage mcmuffin with egg.
41. I like dark chocolate.
42. I don't think that white chocolate should be considered chocolate.
43. I like rich, creamy desserts.
44. I'm not a big fan of pies, cakes or cheesecake.
45. I don't like carbonated beverages very much.
46. I especially don't like brown carbonated beverages. (that includes root beer)
47. I like adventurous eating as long as I'm in the mood.
48. I tend to order habitually in my favorite restaurants.
49. I don't like it when the food that I order does not taste the way I expect it to.
50. I can still sit cross-legged.
51. I learned how to ride my bike when I was 8. My dad took off my training wheels and I fell. So I had him replace one training wheel and rode like that for a day before going solo again.

Check out Priscilla's list here.

Goodbye Andre

I just finished watching Andre Agassi's final match at the US Open with my mom. He is 36 years old and has played at the US Open for 21 consecutive years. That means he started at just 15! He has had an amazing career. I remember having a crush on him when he was first playing, with his wild hair and rebellious clothing. It's funny to notice that this year, he wore traditional white tennis garb. Even playing with a badly injured back, he managed to last through two matches before losing his third. You could tell that he was gingerly protecting his back as much as possible, coming up with creative ways to reach the ball as easily as possible. Yet he still zinged that ball with power and precision landing a lot of "winners".

I like tennis. My favorite sports are the ones that I learned to love from my mother: gymnastics, figure skating and tennis. I have been told that makes me "such a chick". (guilty as charged). My favorite mainstream sport is basketball. This is probably partly because in Portland, Oregon we had the marvelous Trailblazers to rally behind. I like the fast action of basketball. The other mainstream sports, football, soccer, hockey, etc. just seem to take a long time to get to a point won. It's hard for me to stay interested.

I have also noticed that I am more impressed with individual sports than team ones. I can't imagine where athletes can come up with the drive and determination to pull out a win all on their own. All my top favorites are like that. The gymnast has to fight to not cave under the pressure of only having one chance to get it right. The figure skater has to come up with the artistry and athleticism to go on even after a fall. And the top of the heap in my opinion is the tennis player who plays point after point of a long grueling match with no coach to turn to for advice. They have to come up with their own strategy, grit and determination to win each point. I don't think I have what it takes. But I'm happy to admire those who do.

Myers Briggs

Have you ever taken a Myers Briggs personality test? That is the one which categorizes you with four letters which stand for a personality trait. They are:

Extrovert vs. Introvert
Sensing vs. iNtuitive
Thinking vs. Feeling
Judging vs. Perceiving

I am an ESTP. I never thought that the description that the MB gives really fit me all that well. I wasn't sure what use all this might be until the dean of women at my seminary gave us an little overview. She explained what each of these contrasting personality traits means.

E vs. T has to do with how you get energized. When you are mentally fatigued, do you prefer to be alone or with people? Does going to a party wear you out or make you feel refreshed?
S vs. N has to do with how you gather information. Do you like to gather a lot of facts and value the sources or do you get an over all sense of something?
T vs. F has to do with decision making. Do you think things through carefully or tend to make decsions with your gut feeling?
J vs. P has to do with planning. Js plan things out and like a schedule, Ps prefer to be spontaneous.

So what do you think you are? Do you think knowing this is valuable? How could it be used in your daily life?

Laundry Woes

When I got my new job about one year ago, I had to hang up my scrubs and buy some real work clothes. The dress code is business casual - wrinkle free, hosiery, etc. I'm still working on building up my wardrobe, but I have about 7 days' worth of outfits appropriate to wear to work.

It is such a hassle to maintain this kind of wardrobe. Most of the items require the gentle cycle on the washing machine. About half of them are supposed to "line dry". Since I don't have a clothes line, this means hanging them over the shower curtain rod or on a hanger and finding enough door knobs to hang them from. The other half are supposed to "dry flat" which is an even greater challenge. I don't have many flat surfaces which are not super inviting to small furry animals. So they all wind up sharing the crowded lids of the washer and dryer. Once they are there, doing the rest of the laundry is thwarted.

And then there is the ironing. I have been considering lately that I should do all the ironing on one day of the week and be done with it. This would speed up my morning routine significantly and allow me to iron Denis' shirts as well. I tried this out at the conference that I recently attended. On our arrival, before I hung up my clothes for the week, I ironed them all. All it served to do was get me into a very foul mood. Really, can they make clothes any more difficult to iron? The pants aren't too bad, but the shirts really won't stay put on the ironing board! Very exasperating... So, I'm afraid I will sacrifice speed in the morning for sanity. :o)

Flylady

I am a Side-Tracked Home Executive (SHE for short). I tend to procrastinate projects that seem too big to me and when I start the project, I feel overwhelmed and stop. I am not naturally organized and clutter always seems to accumulate on unmonitored surfaces. Poor Denis, he is much neater than I am and is always trying to manage my clutter. Shoes magically find their way back into our closet, the coffee table surface gets magically cleared from time to time. He puts up with me and is so kind to do it without complaining (much).

There is a woman named Marla Cilley who wrote a book called Sink Reflections. It is intended to help people like me to bite off just small chunks of our to-do lists each day and not get overwhelmed and give up. She has a website that has lots of home organisation tips, but the scope of her advice really goes beyond just housekeeping. It is about taking little steps to improve yourself and your life and taking responsability for what you can control. Good stuff. I am trying to set just a couple of goals to do each day. Today I am going to clean my bathrooms and package up the meat that I bought yesterday for storage in the freezer.

On Internet Dating, Part 3

See Part 1, Part 2. Denis came to visit me in November of 2002. It didn't take long for me to receive an email from him after his return home. He wrote that he had a wonderful time, he thought I was a great person, it was lonely being back in his house alone. He gushed enough that I could tell that he was interested in seeing where this relationship would go. This was all very flattering to me and I started taking an inventory of what I knew about him. I reread all the emails from him that I still had access to and I noticed a few things. He had a good sense of humor - dry, just the way I like it. A couple of his email comments made me laugh out loud. He had similar taste in movies and music as I do. Beyond compatibility issues, he lived a life of integrity. He was a responsible person. He took his time to make decisions and sought advice. All these things earned my respect and I decided not to make a snap decision based on my first reactions. I would not rule him out because of his age or his height.

So began the "dating". Our emails became more familiar and frequent. Denis was contemplating moving to Oregon so that we could really pursue the relationship. He spoke with his pastor who advised him to wait until we spent more time together. (earned more points for seeking godly counsel.) This was kind of frustrating, though, because it was a bit of a catch 22. Can't spend more time together until we are together.... So I planned a trip to Minnesota as soon as was feasible, March. Four months of emails getting friendlier and friendlier. As my trip came closer, I started realizing that I didn't know anything about Denis that he hadn't told me. That made me a bit nervous. I had never been in the car with him driving (you can tell a lot about someone from the way they drive). He told me that he played the guitar, but I didn't know if he was any good or if he just thought he was good. I didn't know if his friends and coworkers respected him or if they thought he was a bit strange... So I had an agenda to accomplish when I visited him in March.

Here's another strange thing about email. People tend to say things in emails that they wouldn't say in person. You don't feel the normal boundaries when you are not looking someone in the face. So when March finally came, it was really strange. We had been writing as if we were dating. And it was really awkward to be face to face. I also had my agenda of fact-checking to do, so I was evaluating him as we went along... It took a couple of days to start to feel normal again. Also, it felt like there was a lot of pressure to decide if this was serious enough to have Denis move. Well, Denis passed the test with flying colors. All my apprehensions were unfounded. He is a safe driver - doesn't get road rage or speed. His coworkers and friends all think he is the best thing since sliced bread. I could tell they were really happy to meet me and they talked him up big time!

So after my week was over visiting him, we decided that it was a go for Denis to start looking for a job in Medford. He realized that since I was moving to be near my mom, but he didn't have anything significant tying him to Minnesota, that it was more reasonable for him to move. ( I think that was very sacrificial of him to do. Isn't there something in the Bible about that?) There were two more visits back and forth. My house was being built at the time and I started to consider making some changes with Denis in mind. (we were not engaged yet, mind you... we had yet only spent three solid weeks together). Hmmm... should I plan on a man being here??? So I started ask the contractors, what would you want in your garage, in your house, outdoors? and did things accordingly. Denis was in town when I picked out the lighting fixtures. I would pick two that I liked and I would go with the one that he liked best. It seemed like a good compromise.

So.... drumroll, please. We both moved to Medford in July of 2003. I flew out to drive back with him when he moved as I was between jobs at the time. Denis got a job at the same hospital as I did. He lived in an apt. about 3 blocks away. He proposed in September and we were married December 31, 2003. And they lived happily ever after. The End.