UPDATE: I won a $50 gas card this morning!

I’m offically playing McDonald’s monopoly! I’m on a roll and I’m so close to winning, I can taste it (literally). I forgot how good the fries are and how the quarter pounder fits perfectly in my hand. Oh pure joy! I have been sucked in and it feels good.

If you would like to help me play, give me your tokens!!!! Here’s to sweet victory…

Monopoly MADNESS!

I can design, but I’m not a designer

I can write, but I’m not a writer

I can sing, but I’m not a singer

I can dance, but I’m not a dancer

I can speak, but I’m not a speaker

These are things I love to do, but I don’t do them for a living.

Do you have one of these “ER” things?

Totally random…I was just writing a very serious blog post and “I’m Too Sexy” by Right Said Fred came up on my iTunes Shuffle…why do I even own this song!?!?!!  I’m so embarrassed.

I totally lost my will and concentration to finish writing my serious blog post and decided to ask this very important question:

What song is on your iTunes that you are embarrassed of?

Oh my goodness…”Another Night” by The Real McCoy just came on my shuffle. What is happening in my life right now!?!

OK, so Josh found this really funny site and I’m definitely participating.

This is ME in 1992:

My Yearbook Photo

Go there and make yourself a picture for your blog!!!! (then link to me and Josh so we know you did it…ha!)

If you are looking for me tonight, I’ll be eating pickle juice sno-cones  courtesy of my recent Amazon purchase and enjoying some women’s gymnastics. GO USA!!!!

My New Sno-Cone Maker

Then I realized at work this morning. I have a clutter problem. I have stuff everywhere….

STUFF PILED ON STUFF! I have a thousand pens and highlighters in my drawer. A thousand papers in my inbox. Six post it pads stacked on top of each other – WHO NEEDS THAT MANY!?!?!

I need to purge some stuff. Not just at my desk at work and not just in my dungeon of a bedroom, but I need to purge stuff that has been bugging me lately. Stuff like my job issues, my parent issues, my baby making issues, my weight issues. I could go on and on. Is my desk and bedroom just a reflection of the condition of my heart??

Let the purging begin starting with my desk:

Last night I had a very unexpected pleasant surprise. My folks came to town to visit a day early. They had been calling me all night, but I was in the Catalyst leadership meeting. They were lost in Denver…

My mom and dad are notorious for being spontaneous – sometimes in the worse way. Last night I let myself get so annoyed that they were here early that I couldn’t even enjoy seeing my beautiful parents last night. I had a violet “spontaneous combustion” of emotions and annoyance last night. I prayed for grace and mercy as I woke up this morning.

I can’t help but think that my rigid schedule might be hurting my emotions. Here’s the sort of things I put on my calendar:

8:30 – 8:45 am: Breakfast
10:00 am: Email Mark about song lists
12 – 1 pm: Lunch
6:15 – 6:40 pm: Drive to Leadership meeting
7:00 – 9:30 pm: Leadership meeting
9:30 – 10:30 pm: Read book and go to bed

I’m to the point of scheduling every last detail in my life just to “fit it all in”. When things don’t follow my schedule…I don’t usually respond well.

I take pride in being organized, but am I going overboard?!?!?!

Josh was making fun of something he saw online…people writing silly letters to carbs. I’m sure it was some goofy comedian wanting to make fun of low-carbers, BUT…as a low-carber myself, I feel an urging desire for those taseful and tempting nutritional values called carbs.

Oh carbs, how I miss and love you. You smell so good. You are so sweet and yet savory. When no one is watching I sneak you in – if even for a moment. Why do you hurt me so bad? Why must you look so good all of the time? There is a carb shaped hole in my gullet and I can’t fill it…

Oh carbs…oh carbs.

As my upcoming 5-year anniversary vacation is looming over me (just 3 weeks away) – I will banish carbs like sin from my life. Keep me accountable…please

It’s FRIDAY & the Sex and the City movie comes out today!!! I already have my ticket and can hardly sit still in my seat. Tiffany even made me an awesome Carrie-like flower to wear to the premier! I’m going in style baby.

Unfortunately, this little HBO series from which I derive so much entertainment is somewhat controversial in church. Many call it “Smut in the City” and so I’m left with this dilemma…to watch or not to watch??

The characters are highly entertaining, the script is witty, the storyline is captivating, and the nudity is more comical than anything else. Maybe I am just trying to justify my little guilty pleasure – maybe you’re judging me right now! Who knows, but let’s just say, I’m going to see it and I’m sure I’m going to love it.

Okay…we are really reaching a new low…

My point on my blog post about how Christians will find anything to boycott goes to a new level…did you know that we are now boycotting Starbucks?!?!?!

Kelli – if you’re reading, I’m very sorry. You now need to give up that delicious and addicting Starbucks beverage. Read on…

Group finds Starbucks logo too hot to handle

By PAUL WALSH, Star Tribune

May 15, 2008

Seems that one person’s smut is another person’s morning latte.

A Christian group based in San Diego found grounds for outrage over the new retro-style logo for Starbucks Coffee.

The Resistance says the new image “has a naked woman on it with her legs spread like a prostitute,” Mark Dice, founder of the group, said in a news release. “Need I say more? It’s extremely poor taste, and the company might as well call themselves Slutbucks.”

The group, which claims more than 3,000 members nationwide and has found a place on the fringe advancing various conspiracy theories, is calling for a national boycott of the coffee-selling giant.

Read the rest of the story…

 

It’s FRIDAY!!!!, and I have a confession to make.

Confession: I have strange, secret behaviors in my car that I would die if others saw me do these things. To name just a few:

1. I tape record my thoughts in my car (I don’t have a radio so I get bored). It’s so geeky, and if anyone heard these recordings they would make so much fun of me!
2. I eat quarter lb. double stacks from Wendy’s with no bread (just the meat and cheese goodness). It’s so messy and gross, I would never subject another human to this beastly feast.
3. I watch TV shows on my iPod Touch while I drive. Yep, it fits so nicely on the speedometer and I only swerve once in a while.  Some times my headphones get wrapped around my steering wheel though which causes panic.
4. I listen to “How He Loves” in headphones EVERY TIME I am driving to church and sing it at the top of my lungs. This song warms up my voice perfectly, and I cry every single time I hear it. I refuse to listen to this song any other time for fear of it losing it’s luster.

What is your secret behavior!?!?!

PS: I’m still alive with no TV for 2 days. (going through serious withdrawals though)

I had a scary thought last night…when I become a mom, I will not be able to lay on the couch and watch TV all night, every night that I’m home.

Last night, as soon as I got home, I put on my PJs, jumped on the couch and started my great journey of TV watching. The line up included:

The Family Guy, Deadliest Catch, American Idol, Hell’s Kitchen, and
Law & Order: SVU – ahhhh, perfection.

It was a wonderful evening spent with Mark by my side (although he was on his Mac the entire time). I’m so ashamed of myself for not wanting to give up these silly shows for the sake of being a mom (or even for the sake of getting more done). 

How much more time would I have to do great things if I just didn’t watch so much darn TV? As I laid my head on my pillow at precisely 10:00 pm, I thought of everything I have left to do this week. The list is so overwhelming, but my thoughts kept coming back to how excited I am to see The Office & 30 Rock on Thursday. I think I might have a problem….

And so it begins – the great experiment – I will not watch TV at all for one week. I will let you know of all of the things I did instead of watch TV. Maybe I will do something great this week. Maybe I will read my bible  or design some things for my church and the people I love. Maybe I will do that laundry that’s sitting in the corner of my room or start an exercise regimine - maybe, just maybe.

People (Christians) joke about how TV is a cop out for fasting. For me, it is a daggar in my side.

What could you not live without for one week??

I love technology. I really, really do. But I hate when people wear their bluetooth headsets all day long. I really don’t care how important you are…a bluetooth headset is NOT a statement of importance.

In the car = OK
In the airport = OK

In a restaurant = Not OK
In the bathroom = Not OK

I have had so many awkward moments where I think someone is talking to me (or talking to themselves) and then they point to their ear as they keep talking. Not just talking about business, but their Mom’s rash and their dog’s bathroom behavior – come on people! They talk LOUDER with the headset too.

No matter how technologically advanced we get, these bluetooth headset issues will remain the same. We will have flying cars and people will still think you are talking to yourself!

I am officially embracing my messiness. My bedroom is messy, my office space is messy, and my car is messy. I do not apologize. I do not stress out about it. I do not look for more time to organize them.

I recently cleaned my desk and now I cannot remember where I put some very important papers. They are filed neatly somewhere, BUT I don’t have a clue. These lost little papers are haunting me. Everytime I “clean” out these three places – I lose something because I think of very creative places to put everything.

I’m done. No more cleaning out. No more straightening out. No more beating myself up about my messiness. This is who I am and I love it.

My messy desk:

Lately, I have found so much inspiration and creativity by reading other blogs.

Not just any old blogs, but blogs with authenticity and a willingness to be raw in front of their readers. Two of my new favorites are:

Ragamuffin Soul & FlowerDust.net

When I read how these people are changing lives by being real with people – I find myself emulating the desire to be real and creating so many new original ideas for myself. It forces me to reflect on my own life and authenticity – am I real with people, do I show my heart, do I care, do I love, etc.

It was while I was reading these blogs that I was inspired to write a song (see yesterday’s post) about how we are young and free to change this world and an entire generation. The proof is that there are people out there who are already doing it. What’s holding me back….just me I guess…

Keep blogging – I need it!