the earth is filled with his glory
i just want to be home.
sometimes i think i eat too much cheese & that i'd be feeling pretty darn good to go without it from now on.
then i realize that once i stop eating cheese, all i want is more cheese.
moral of the story: my tinted glasses show that the grass is ALWAYS greener on the other side.
conclusion: sucks :(
I'm not very well-read. Sometimes when I say that I enjoy reading or that I am an English major, people like to ask me if I've read such-and-such or that one by so-and-so. More than 90% of the time, the answer is no. The good thing about this is that I get recommendations for lots of engaging new reads; the downside is that quite frankly, I just don't always pick popular reads, or good reads. I admit, i judge a book a lot by the cover. The last book I bought because of the attractive cover was about a fourteen year old girl's affair with her parents' best friend, and how that impacted their lives as the years rolled on (spoiler: the old guy commits suicide). It was actually not very juicy at all and basically was a depressing look at marriage, fidelity, and so called romance.
BUT. This is how I know I have been blessed with a good book - in addition to making me want to inhale every word and phrase and absorb even every punctuation, good books have a somewhat quenching effect. i get a strange sensation, like an itch of some kind, and through some figurative hacking and coughing, i seem to gather a refreshing sense for my own feeble voice that attempts to wobble steadily.
I read a couple of books by Anne Lamott this summer (thanks brian for the recommendations. the recommendations came about through the paragraph one scenario), and I like her a lot. She's not pretentious to say the least, and she's quirky. Her voice comes through as quirky and strange and eccentric, and the nice part is that she's learned to grapple with it and has become okay with her own voice despite all of its inconsistencies. that must be nice. i still spend a good amount of time trying to fidget around with my inconsistencies & wondering why i don't try harder for things to harmonize.
Lots of times I think photographers have it easier than writers. Photographers can capture someone else's nakedness, figuratively or literally, on camera, but writers, most of the time, are throwing themselves out there, the full monty & vulnerability & all. Ok, maybe it's not necessarily easier, but I think it's less frightful of a task to do, though both are incredibly & comparably difficult. A class I'm taking this semester suggests that most students come in with several decently drafted, if not polished, pieces on hand. I have this many. In case you can't tell, that's a space, meaning, zero. So i've tried to sit myself down this summer in attempt to crank something out, but quite frankly, i can't get the ball rolling unless I feel like I'm writing something very honest and plain and out in the open. Unfortunately, i am terrified of people reading my words, about myself ,that are very out in the open.
Now i've lost the original point.
Which was...
I like good books.
Any recommendations?
OH. almost forgot.
Steph had requested my next post on here to be a Houston/Dallas comparsion, complete w/ pictures and all...this is my very lame attempt to do so...IN HAIKU FORMAT (inspired by my once one-haiku-a-day friend ali kwong)!
Both cities have perks
Eats, driving, weather, and such
Still Mavs fan for life
i know. i know. i do usually try to stay away from poetry as much as possible.
gain wisdom. embrace grace. show mercy. practice discipline.
[belated] Friday Favorites:
but really. it's so good. watch it. go watch it. then i bet we'd be funnier friends and be able to exchange hilarious quotable dialog.
CNN/WSJ. Because Facebook & Gmail are both blocked from my work internet, I end up reading CNN.com and the Wall Street Journal when I am bored. After a year-long but futile effort to keep up more with the news by making CNN.com my homepage (which I never stayed on for more than a few brief seconds), I finally have learned to appreciate CNN! Yes. This favorite is probably not very exciting, but it is a current favorite anyway. Please do not try to quiz me on current events, however, seeing that i still only pick obscure titles and articles to read.
Crocs. Yes, a handful of entries ago, I professed my utter disdain (no, that's not too heavy of a term) for Crocs...and now I'm part of the cult :-[ i ordered a pair of the ballet prima crocs online last week, and now they are here. i can't help it. i mean, i heard from someone that they're even EDIBLE when [you are] desperate & [the crocs are] boiled.
i've been in the 281/713 area for a little over a week now. here is an update in response to the popular question "how is houston/work"
*skip to pictures here
Housing: A+
Originally, my landlord agreed to let me move into my lease a week early (last week of May) in order for me to have a place as soon as work started; however, she decided to let me know two days before I moved in that the previous agreement was no longer possible. Of course, I a) freak out, b) send angry vibes to my landlord, c)remembers that she's still pretty nice, try to withdraw mean thoughts, d)desperately try to reach stephanie ip, who was at rec week & was w/o phone service for the most part. thankfully, things worked out, and i got to stay w/ the Ips for a week in sugarland for my first week of work. since i went in so early, i beat the traffic, and the driving wasn't bad at all. plus, her mom cooks well & her dad is SO. SO. SO. funny. oh, plus stephanie is a good room-neighbor too. THANKS, IPS!
Driving: C-
someone cut me off on the highway (45) 10 minutes after entering the houston vicinity; no joke. then he proceeded to glare at ME in his left side mirror; at ME! after he cut me off!
apparently, no one ever clued me in on the fact that when you signal in Houston, it actually is a sign for the people in the adjacent lane to speed up and pass you in oblivion, paying no attention to your traffic signal. also, the highways loop. the plus side is even fi you get lost, stay w/ it and you'll eventaully end up there; the downside, hard to make a judgment call how far you've gone on the loop and if you should turn and try the other direction.
I've also gotten lost a good handful of times trying to navigate back to my apartment (located amidst a puzzle of one-way/downtownish streets).
Work: A-
i actually like it. unlimited office supplies (and post-it's), break rooms, lunches, and newness all kept me going for the first week with great energy and enthusiasm. Come this second week, it's a bit harder to get out of bed in the morning at 6:10am, and still slowly feeling my way through this monstrous project gets a bit repetitive. plus, i have a big gray cubicle, but nothing to put up except a few polaroids i remembered to snag out of my austin apartment. the people are all really great though, all really warm & smart & friendly & helpful, the whole nice sha-bang.
however, my sleeping schedule has gone from sleep-at-4am-up-by-noon to sleep-at-midnight-up-by-six. i also get pretty wiped out by 10:30. If we do hang out this summer, please arrange all activities to end before 11 or else i will surely be asleep.
through work, i also realized that a) business casual clothes are boring, b) hotchocolate+black coffee = moccachino, c) tea+creamer = milktea, d) although wearing heels downtown is suicidal for the feet AND the heels, wearing heels to work is a-ok b/c of CARPET. i love walking in heels on carpet. plus i sit for a good 90% of the day.
Eating: A/F
i dont know why i ever thought it would be possible to diet/be healthy in houston, the fattest city in america. seems like for every meal, there is a "oh! you must try this place!" i eat out about two large meals a day. oof. i've learned also that it takes me a long time to get sick of chinese food (still not quite sick yet, but i have been to every block in chinatown now, and juicebox...4 times... :-[ )
All pictures are here. i am too sleepy (it's 11:48 right now, i'm cutting it real close) to integrate pictures into this entry. perhaps at a later time.
OH. favorites!
so far, my favorite area in houston is rice village, which is a convenient 10min drive away from my apt (if i dont get lost..like i did today). ...ok, i've run out of favorites for now. sorry, that was a misleading intro.
i've been watching some sappy movies lately. i saw music&lyrics and actually really liked it, and i've been thinking about neverbeenkissed. what the heck is wrong with me.
i am also reading traveling mercies (thanks brian) & the book of nehemiah right now. i also have been listening to a lot of jamie cullum & various repetitive rap songs i find on youtube. i also am watching more tv than i have in the past semester combined. oh yea, i'd also like to make the statement that while spelling may seem overrated in pop songs, remember how great that classic L-O-V-E song was? and at least these are correctly spelled, decently lengthy words, for kids to learn. that is my defense for fergie for the night. and a quick flash of my life.
i will end this lengthy entry with something cheesy & something classic.
drew barrymore: A melody is like seeing someone for the first time. The physical attraction. Sex.
hugh grant: I so get that.
drew barrymore: But then, as you get to know the person, that's the lyrics. Their
story. Who they are underneath. It's the combination of the two that
makes it magic.
[from music&lyrics]
&
1 Peter 4:7-13
The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.
and in case you missed the first 2 links.
things i don't understand:
- animals that wear clothes, or rather, owners who dress their animals in clothes
- why brad paisley couldn't think of a better way to sing his song than to incorporate "ticks" into it
- there is no answer to "this is why we're hot"
- how to use this qsr n6 program...
- where the time went so quickly this year.
"stop complaining about the church we've experienced and start living the church we've dreamed."
+ shane claiborne
ten days.
