The Four-Way Stop.

In my short, seven-ish years of driving, I have managed to master something not many are able to accomplish in a lifetime of driving: showing proper four-way stop etiquette. I understand, it can be very tricky, so I've decided to list a few helpful hints in overcoming the trickery of the four-way stop. Now, I'm not so naive to think that more people that just my close friends and family read this blog, but my hope is that someone, somewhere might benefit from the following tips:

1. Never, ever look another driver in the eye...trust me, it will only lead to more confusion.

2. After you break tip #1, don't start with the "taking turns waving each other on" game. Quickly break eye contact and just go.

3. Honestly...blinkers are helpful in this situation. It would be good to use them.

4. Hesitating is a bad idea. Don't do the whole stop and stutter thing. If you are gonna go, just go. If someone hits you, I hope you (but mostly they) have (good) insurance.

5. When all else fails, just go clockwise around the circle, letting everyone have a turn. I know, this is the step in which most people are tricked, but it really is just that simple. Really, it is.

Happy New Year

I pretty much don't believe in New Year's Resolutions. They might as well be called "a list of things I have good intentions of doing but never will" or "a list of good ideas of what to do with my life this year." In fact, I'm pretty sure that by writing them down, I automatically decrease my chances of succeeding by 50%. Maybe I'm just speaking for myself, but every year when I look back at my "resolutions" I just laugh because I'm either 1. even further from accomplishing the goal or 2. don't even care about it by the time the new year rings in.

So this year I'm implementing a new strategy. I'm going to be really vague, set goals with no specific measurements, and then hopefully succeed. So here is my list of good ideas:

1. Be healthy.
2. Be happy.
3. Read some books. (I wanted to put more, but then that would make it measurable...some is good.)


I'm feeling pretty good about 2009! I can't wait...

Accomplishments.

Today was one of those days where it was the little things that mattered the most...

1. I managed to find this place for my friends and I to live: http://toledo.craigslist.org/apa/965548978.html

2. I laughed pretty hard at this:
http://www.craigslist.org/about/best/atl/917410616.html

3. I got a few more frames done on the website I need to have done by Jan. 1. (Sorry, no link until the construction is complete!)

4. I successfully used my Christmas Starbucks gift card to order my favorite drink: peppermint mocha w.skim milk, hold the whip please.

5. I unsuccessfully tried to find boots on sale and in my size. (Why, oh why are 9.5s so popular?)

6. I daydreamed about my (hopefully near) future vacation plans and how to spend my free flight to anywhere in the U.S.

7. Spent an ample amount of time on facebook.

8. Answered approx. 4 e-mails that have been sitting in my inbox for a good 3 weeks and deleted approx. 400 e-mails by cleaning out my inbox/folders.

9. Scheduled a visit with a student for next week aka planned to work next week.

10. Watched 3 of my all-time favorite Office episodes (Season 2: Casino Night, Season 3: Beach Games and The Job).

11. Slept in!

12. Paid my billz.

13. Got to the halfway point of the book I got for Christmas because the library wouldn't let me borrow it any longer (Three Cups of Tea).

14. Completely avoided preparing my lesson for the kiddies tomorrow until now.

Oh, the joys of being on Christmas break...

I'm Dreaming Of...

Most of my life I have dreamt crazy dreams. If I could go back, I would write every single one of them down in a notebook somewhere and pull them out on a gloomy, rainy day for a good laugh. But, since I can't, here is a small start at least. A couple weeks ago I received this e-mail:

"Subject: Dreaming of You
Message: roommate, i'm glad you're online right now because i've been dying to tell you this story all morning. i had a dream about you last night. you were giving the sermon at your church, which was this GIANT old wooden church with huge vaulted ceilings. and luke and i drove up there to surprise you to hear it, and we got there, and you were so surprised, and then your speech was only 5 minutes and we were pissed. but we still loved you :)"

I'm still trying to find meaning behind that one. Here are a couple I remember from this week:

A good friend of mine came to sing at my church for some reason, and I remember telling people "oh yeah, my friend from college...you guys are gonna love him, etc." So, he comes in and I introduce him, and then the first song he sings is like a country/western song, and I start getting all these weird looks from my friends like "abby...really?" and I was like "I don't even know why he's singing that song...he hates country!" And so then slowly he starts getting better and starts singing more appropriate songs and then everybody likes him...and then I woke up!

Last night I had a dream that I was in this game, sort of like the amazing race I suppose, and it was this scavenger hunt in which my partner was...well, let's just say someone I no longer talk to (hence I have no clue how he was in the dream, but it was funny!). So anyways, I'm trying to get over that throughout the entire dream, and I have no clue why we are paired up, and we are barely talking, but then I'm kinda glad because he's pretty good at the game. So then it gets to the end of the game, and everyone who played is sitting at this huge, long table in a conference room, and then they start telling us all the crazy things we were judged on...like how long we talked to each person at each stop...and that's what decided who won the game rather then the number of items we found! So everyone was really mad and some crazy couple won who were horrible at finding things.

Do you have crazy dreams? Or better yet, reoccurring dreams? I want to hear them!

I hate chick flicks.

Okay, I lied, I really don't hate chick flicks, but I do hate a certain element of them! Out of all the movies I own, about 80% of them are what you would call "a chick flick." I know, I know...but I'm a girl, what can I say? However, there is one element that a large number of them include that gets me more emotional than any sappy, perfect-love-story, happy ending:

Miscommunication. In case you have no clue what I'm talking about, I'll give some examples:

How to Lose A Guy in Ten Days- the scene where Kate Hudson walks out of the ball after she just realizes she also was just a bet at first, and they fight on the stairs, and it's just so obvious that they are in love but they just think it's all a lie for the other person to win a bet!

27 Dresses- when Katherine Heigl finds the article and thinks he just used her for a good story, but she doesn't know he never wanted it to go to print after he got to know her and fell in love with her!

Win A Date with Tad Hamilton- when she thinks Tad is saying all these sweet things to her, and it was really the cute little hometown boy who knew all of those things about her and Tad was saying them to her to make her think he deserved her!

I could go on with other examples from movies like The Holiday, Hitch, and probably the best example ever, Pride and Prejudice, but I think you get the point. Since I own these movies, I know you won't believe me if I tell you I don't like them, but I think my heart and blood pressure would probably be a lot better off if this certain element was eliminated! However, would I still like the movies as much as I do if this element was missing or do you think this element is what makes the movie exciting and unpredictable (although most of us know 99% of chick flicks are predictable...)? Any thoughts?? :)

the LIVING Word and the Holy Spirit

I sat in shock at the lunch table last Thursday. I already knew what they were telling me, I know I did, but it was as if I was hearing it for the first time. My Turkish friends were telling me that because the original text of the Qur'an is in Arabic, they read it because they are required to as part of their Muslim faith in Arabic, but they don't understand it. This group of women meet every Wednesday night so someone can read a portion aloud, and then one woman interprets it so the women can discuss it.

About a month ago, I gave one of my friends a Bible in Turkish as a gift. She told me how special the gift was to her, that she would save it forever. I never realized what it might mean to her to have what she views as "a holy book" in her own language.

How often do I take the Bible, the Word of God, for granted? How many times in my life have I gone at least a week without even picking it up?


I have so much to be thankful for:

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." John 1:1

"For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart." Hebrews 4:12

"The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth." John 1:14

"I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life." John 5:24

"But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid." John 14:26-27

Consequences

Ew, what an ugly word. Most people don't really like to think about it for an extended period of time. It's so ugly it's hard to even think of a positive connotation for it. It's defined as "something that logically or naturally follows from an action or condition."

Over 30 years ago, before my parents had any of us kids, they were hit head on by a drunk driver who crossed the center median. My dad broke his leg, my mom broke her back, and the drunk driver walked away injury free. Twenty-three years ago my dad suffered from osteomyelitis, an infection in the place where his femur bone broke years before and had to have surgery in order for the infection to be cleared out of the cavity.

Today, 32 years later, my dad went into surgery for another infection. There are a lot of things about this situation that are unbelievable to me. However, the greatest thing is the forgiveness my parents showed and continue to show towards the driver. For my dad to continue to suffer, 32 years later, from the consequences of this one man's choice, and for him to continue to extend grace and mercy to the man is not a simple thing. In fact, it's impossible by human strength alone. I have great respect for my dad, but I have an even greater respect for my God, who continues to extend His grace and mercy to me when I am so undeserving of it.

Please continue to pray for my dad this week. They may have to go into the area again on Thursday to make sure they didn't miss anything.