Chic Chaos

Sarah's Coming!

2008-01-10T15:45:00.000+02:00

Sarah is coming into town today! I am so excited. I leave for the airport in about an hour. It is going to be a wonderful nine days of traveling, sightseeing, and lots of laugh. There is a rumor that it might even involved Goldschläger!

The last month has been fairly slow in the sightseeing department. I was able to take a quick trip over to Ashkelon for a few hours with Svenja and Chelsea but my camera erased all my pictures. :( I will get some from friends and try to post them.

Christmas was wonderful! Chelsea and I had a pleasant surprise a couple days before the 25th - Svenja decided to come visit! She will be with us until the 22nd. It has been wonderful having another flatmate! For Christmas Eve, we joined the masses in Bethlehem, wandered around the Church of the Nativity for a couple hours, listened to a concert, and had dinner. One of the guys in our group entertained a minor horde by breakdancing to one of the bands. Christmas morning was more like Christmas afternoon, Chelsea, Svenja, and I opened presents (Svenja's first American-styled Christmas) and had a breakfast of pancakes, eggs, and eggnog (delicious eggnog!!). Alex joined us for breakfast. Nidhani invited us over to her place for Christmas dinner - a traditional Sri Lankan meal! It was wonderful. Tasted a little like Indian food, but not quite. :)

Svenja, Chelsea, and I celebrated New Year's Eve (there here it is called Sylvester) downtown, then went to classes the next day! It is still weird having to organize our festivities around classes.

Now the focus is just on getting through the rest of this semester! I have four finals over the the two weeks beginning a couple days after Sarah leaves, then it is off to Romania and Germany for three weeks! Let the games begin!!

I'm off to pick up Sarah! :D

He's the African Clark Gable, Jo-Jo, the Cannibal Kid

2007-12-06T19:05:00.000+02:00

Sightseeing and adventuring has come to a pretty abrupt stop for this semester. Chelsea and I have different schedules, and mine has been pretty demanding so far. November was a slow month. After classes, I was normally in the library. However, there was one weekend that was wonderful! This year we were actually able to have a full blown Thanksgiving dinner! One of the girls from my Akkadian class was able to find nearly all the ingredients. We had two huge turkeys (big by Israeli standards, they might have been a bit small for American - about half the size!), stuffing, mashed potatoes (courtesy of Jonah), sweet potatoes (though without the marshmallows. Israeli marshmallows are not very good, they make them without a key ingredient so they will be kosher), green bean casserole, carrots, more stuff I am probably forgetting now, and apple pies, and pumpkin pies! It was the highlight of the holidays! (So far... I am getting a box from home - that might take the cake!)

Lee is carving the turkey:
Our fabulous hostess, Sarah!
Everyone ready to eat:
Cutting the pies. Who's got room left?? :)

That was the last hurrah before both Chelsea and I got sick. I am not sure what Chelsea got, she has been coughing a lot. :( After two weeks of having a swollen and sore throat, I finally went to the doctor when my sinuses started hurting pretty bad. I came home with antibiotics for sinusitis. When my throat culture came back negative, the doctor informed me the likelihood of me having mono was very high. I have spent the last week in bed. Not exactly the best way to spend the holidays. Though a week off from classes... :) Hard to complain about that! I just wish I could have enjoyed it more! Though I did manage to make it through a season of House. Time well-spent. ;)

Love ya'll!

2007-10-28T03:04:00.000+02:00

Two amazing couples that made my week!

Go Rockies Go!!

2007-10-24T18:58:00.000+02:00

School has begun! I am enjoying having something to do everyday that gets me up and walking around outside. Though sometimes it is running around outside attempting to not be late for class and I might be singing a different tune when I have to go to school in the rain. However, right now, it's wonderful. All of my classes have great professors and I am really looking forward to the year!

Sunday night was a wonderful night. This week my pastor from CO has been leading a group from church on a Holy Land tour, they arrived in Jerusalem on Sunday! The best part being Joanna's parents are on this trip! I met them at church Sunday night, Pastor Stocker preached, then I joined them all for dinner at their hotel. It is such a fascinating thing, being able to combine my Colorado life with my Israel one. And seeing the Leases was awesome! I hugged them both so hard they probably thought I was never going to let go - the thought definitely did cross my mind! Pastor Stocker was very sweet and immediately jumped into "protective dad." He was asking how safe I was, etc, and even had some people take me home. I might live in this country, but who cares! He has a chance to take care of me so he's gonna do it!

Well, the one thing that goes hand in hand with classes - homework - is starting to call. Here is a little something I found online today that entertained me:

http://view.break.com/347555

Manuscripts

2007-10-18T02:31:00.001+02:00

I finally went to the Israel Museum! It was amazing. I have been there once before but only saw the model of the 2nd Temple period (I actually spent two hours there with a professor... I think he discussed every single house. And we were only supposed to be studying the 1st Temple period. Oh well, it was still incredibly interesting. ...For the first hour, then I might have zoned out.) This time, I went to the Shrine of the Book. The Dead Sea Scrolls found at Qumran are housed here. (The white dome... thing below is the roof.) Talk about amazing! The various scrolls have been dated between the 2nd cent BC and the 1st cent AD except the Isaiah scroll which is between the 3rd and 1st cent BC. Over 2000 years old. Wow. And in case that's not quite awesome enough, the Aleppo Codex is also here! This codex was the oldest complete manuscript of the Hebrew Bible until 1947 (written in 10th cent) when parts of it went missing. I think this manuscript has traveled more than I! If you have a copy of the Hebrew Bible, it is quite possible that this was the source!

Random fact (thank you, Wikipedia!): Because of the weird design of this dome, it has been used in the scenery for science fiction movies!

The white dome and this black wall are taken from one of the Dead Sea Scrolls which talks about the Sons of Light fighting against the Sons of Darkness. Chelsea is modeling the "Light" and I'm showing off the "Darkness."

And this is the model of what Jerusalem would have looked like in 66AD (right before the Jewish Revolt which led to the destruction of Jerusalem in 70AD).
Check out the people on the other side - it's big! The Temple is on the top of the big structure (built on the Temple Mount to expand the hill) on the right of the picture. You are standing at the southeast corner.

Beauty

2007-10-17T01:23:00.000+02:00

I said to all these things, "Tell me of my God who you are not, tell me something about him." And with a great voice they cried out: "He made us." My question was the attention I gave to them, and their response was their beauty. - Augustine

Explore the mystery of true beauty.

Come along with me, little girl, on a magic carpet ride

2007-10-10T19:39:00.000+02:00

And coming to you, direct from the Holy Land (that would be Israel, not Utah), is the latest in The Life of Lauren. (Not that creative, but the quickest I could come up with. Oh wait, let's add "adventures" in there. The Adventures in the Life of Lauren. Hmm… Got a nice ring, but a bit long. Okay, we'll keep working on the title. Moving on now to the actual context of my life.) Let's see… my story begins in the beginning of August 2007. I had just spent a wonderful month with my family and best friends (that would be ya'll) but was now back in Jerusalem getting ready for two intense months of Hebrew study. The two months went quicker than I thought they would (though felt as though they were dragging at the same time) and in no time I was sitting with a hundred other students waiting to begin the level exam that would determine if the careful balance between studying and partying had been maintained or tipped.

And we interrupt this broadcast to announce: I PASSED!!! Level Gimel here I come!!!

The following day, I joined two fellow students for our first excursion of the four week break before Autumn classes begin. We enjoyed the relaxing experience (and such an experience!) of the Dead Sea. Gorgeous sun, "majestic" landscapes (though to anyone from CO, it is hard to imagine using "majestic" to describe anything besides our mountains!), and mud that makes your skin and hair feel amazing but makes you feel about five years old again. I waiting for my mom to appear and tell me to stop! After the sea and mud, we sat in the sulfur pools. Yummy. The next day, my skin felt wonderful! (Though maybe a little smelly) …just in time to spend the rest of the week writing a paper.

Monday… Oh Monday… Now the real fun starts! (Pictures!) Chelsea and I left Monday morning on the bus to Eilat, we had to wait about half an hour or so at the border so security could deal with a bomb threat. After the robot thingy had carefully destroyed the poor innocent (thank God!) bag, we continued smoothly through the border.

On the Egypt side of the border, we attempted to find a decently priced mini-bus to take us the two hours to Dahab. However, since - apparently - it was tourist season and we were the only people going to Dahab (Nuwebah being the stop of choice - why would anyone want to go there??), the price was ridiculous. We told them that we had taken this trip too many times to be ripped off quite that much and offered a slightly smaller extreme price. When no one would accept it, we plopped down on the side of the road to wait for ... well, I have no idea. It worked though! Finally one of the guys came over, whispered to us that he had found a guy who would take us to Dahab for our price but we'd have to keep it on the DL. Weird... yes, I agree. However, it was cheap and I recognized the guy from last time I was down there and he checked in with the tourist police and everything, so meh! Why not? An hour and half later (and a 20 minute stop for our driver to eat the evening Ramadan meal), we were searching Dahab for our hotel (it is totally tucked back off the road, way hard to find!). After an amazing fish dinner, we headed to the room to watch a movie and sleep! (We had downloaded some movies, then brought our computers so we could be lazy on the beach and entertained! Yay for technology!) We were worn out. Sleeping on buses takes a lot out of you. (Oh, and I had stayed up all night the night before trying to write a paper.)

The next morning, I got up at the crack of dawn - well, 9am - for my first dive! Mohammad, the dive instructor who remembered me from last time, wanted to take me to a place called The Island (singular yet there are three coral formations that look like islands, don't ask). It was beautiful! (Remember that word... I'll probably use it a lot!) Then I joined Chelsea for some serious tanning, shopping, and eating. And, of course, a henna tattoo! After dinner, we joined Mohammad and Alessio for drinks at the local club. Alessio is a 32 year old Italian guy living in England. He is currently taking a year off, traveling around the world (Dahab, Thailand, then to Central America) and dive instructing. Definitely the life. Maybe I'll do that after graduating. It beats getting a 9-5!

The next morning, we grabbed breakfast, then *drumroll* Chelsea did her introduction dive! Since everyone is absolutely chill, I was able to convince them to let me go with her. My dive instructor, Joel, even worked it out so I could do one of the dives for the advanced diving course - the naturalist. So I swam around trying to identify fish, while Chelsea enjoyed the scenery for the first time! I am trying to remember what we did after that... I think it was back to the laying out! Oh! And then we went to THE perfume shop. The owner was great. Totally chill. And the perfumes... wow. The smells are basically the "essence" of the flowers or something. They do not mix them with alcohol or oil and they are really strong. Just a few drops is enough. All of the shopkeepers always serve you tea or coffee... but we were there long enough to have two teas, coffee, and a shisha (= hookah = nargila)! ...and spend a lot of money! After that, we raced through dinner and back to the hotel in time to meet the mini-bus at 11:00pm that was taking us to St. Catherine's Monastery and Mount Sinai! Woohoo!

We began hiking around 1:30am, reaching the top three hours later. At the top, however, was 750 steps. Doing the Old Testament version of the StairMaster at 4 am just not quite as much fun as you would think! It was finally over though and we made it! It was freezing and windy, the Bedouins were renting out blankets and mattresses but I was too tired to deal with it. Next time though - definitely getting a blanket. The sunrise was amazing. There were sooo many people up there - I mean, like Broadway on opening night! Some of them started singing. (I think they were singing How Great Thou Art in Korean. Though there was a group of Germans singing also but I didn't recognize any of their songs.) It was surreal. And at this time of year, the moon rises late at night, so it was still above us while the sun was rising in front of us. Beautiful! Since both Chelsea and I have issues with knees, for the trek down we opted for the camel option. Sit back (well, not too far back, they have this stupid saddle horn type thing that will jab into your back if you aren't careful!), and let the camel do the work! My guide taught me how to sit on the camel like the Bedouins do and it is much more comfortable. Now I look authentic! As authentic as you can look wearing jeans, CSU t-shirt, and - oh, being a girl! When we reached the bottom, we hung out for a while until the monastery opened at 9am. I went into this museum type thing and met this crazy priest. Really, he was crazy. I set my camera down to get money out to pay the entrance fee and he grabbed my camera, "How does this work?" I showed him how to turn it on but no, he wanted to see the pictures. I was thinking, "This is weird...." So I showed him how to view the previous pictures I had taken... not joking, he scrolled through them all. That is over 500 pictures of the last couple months of my life! I didn't know if I should take the camera away or not. I was just fascinated by this weird priest guy who was totally help himself to my life! After scrolling through all the pictures, he waited until there was no one else in the room, then told me - told me - to take pictures of the icons, which is strictly forbidden! Then as I was leaving, he grabbed my camera again, took me outside to poise for a picture. Another woman saw him taking the picture and hustled over asking him to take her picture as well. The priest, I'm not kidding, ran back into the museum area, shaking his head, saying, "No no no, I can't. I am not allowed." I left. That was too weird.

When we got back to the hotel, Chelsea and I staggered toward our beds in completely exhaustion. We slept until 4:30 when we got up for a lovely sunset horse ride along the beach! That was so beautiful. There was no one else out on the area of the beach where we went to. Just the three of us (we had a guide), with our horses clomping along. It was so magical. Now I just gotta find Prince Charming and dang! It would be perfect. When we got back, Chelsea and I got more henna tattoos. :) Those are so addicting! I love having my skin decorated! I don't know why... it's totally awesome. (Don't worry... not planning on getting anything permanent! Though the urge is definitely there.) After that, Chelsea went to bed and I went out with the guys from the dive center, had a chocolate shake, and smoked some shisha.

The next day, Friday, was intense! I got up at 8:30 for my first two dives. The first one was a deep dive (30 meters/100 ft) then we hung out - you have to wait between dives to let your body recover, played with the cutest kittens ever, then did a drift dive (float along in the current). It was amazing. Imagine looking down and not seeing the bottom, just blue stretching down until it turns to black, 100 feet above you, you can kind of see the surface; to your right, the coral cliff face, beautiful colors, amazing fish, and other fascinating life and off to your left, nothing. Just blue stretching as far as you can see. It felt like flying in slowing motion. Wow. I am still speechless. Could God be any more amazing??

We got back to the hotel around 2:30pm, I hung out with Chelsea for a couple hours, then back to the dive center for my last dive! This one was a navigation dive. However, it starts to get dark around 5pm... around the time I got in the water! And the water was really choppy. My instructor just kept laughing. I was supposed to swim in a line, triangle, and square using the compass to navigate with but my instructor had given his flashlight to another diver. It was pretty funny. There was enough light from the nearby restaurants, shops, and the moon to see the compass, thankfully! Apparently, I totally botched the triangle, but rocked the square! And that was it... I am now advanced open water certified! After a relaxing dinner, Chelsea and I joined Alessio for the final experience of our trip: Omar, the Master of Shisha. (Omar, however, ended up being in Cairo for the last week of Ramadan so we hung out with his brother.) He showed us the proper way to prepare a shisha and man, I have never been that light headed from a shisha. We just sat for while... and laughed... and told stories. Good times. Then we headed to the Funny Mummy (a Bedouin-styled restaurant that probably thought that was a clever name...;) ) until it was time for bed.

The next morning, up at 7:30, checked out and arrived in Jerusalem at about 9:00pm.

Now I have to write a 30 page paper before classes start on the 21st. Yay. :)

VIP cuz you know I gotta shine

2007-09-16T22:24:00.000+02:00

Last Sunday began like any other day. I woke up late and had to make the 25 minute walk to class in 20 minutes or less, do my best to stay awake and understand the lecture, find out that I have a listening comprehension exam that I thought was still a week away (freak out!), and finally make it to the break when I can finally get a cup of coffee... During this break, however, things became a little more interesting.

Melissa: "Hey Lauren, my boyfriend and I were planning on going to the concert tonight but we can't make it. Interested in the tickets?

Me: "What concert?"

Melissa: "The Black Eyed Peas!"

Me: "Hang on..." *Call Chelsea* "Hey Chels, want to go to the Black Eyed Peas concert tonight?"

Cheslea: "Yes. Oh yes."

So a listening comprehension exam (which, amazingly enough, I passed!) and two more hours of class later... I was getting punked out for the concert!! The concert actually started at 3:00 with about five opening bands before the BEP came on around 8:00. Chelsea and I got there about 6:00pm and spent the rest of the evening jumping up and down! It was an awesome concert, packed of course, and so much fun!

Getting set up: (check out the ancient wall of the Old City in the background! Nice view for a concert!)

The Black Eyed Peas!!!!!

Exhausted, sore, and completely pumped!!

Today

2007-08-27T10:54:00.000+03:00

July 28th. A Tuesday... But so much more as well!

First of all: Happy Birthday, Aunt Pat!! It has always been a blessing to have you a part of this family! Thank you for all the good memories and laughs through Montana, Texas, Alabama, Tennessee, Michigan, New Jersey, and many others!

Second: Today is also the birthday of Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit, who was abducted by Palestinian militants. This is his second birthday as a prisoner. Let's remember him and his family.

Third: I have my midterm today - it's oral. I'm scared! Any praying you want to do in my general direction would be so accepted!

And for anyone else who has something exciting/interesting going on today: Be Blessed!!

For You, Svenja!!

2007-08-25T18:20:00.000+03:00

Svenja, this is from Chelsea and I: We just want you to know that we love the German Bear... the next best thing to you!!!

A Hard Days Night

2007-08-22T23:20:00.000+03:00

In three weeks I have:

Covered seven chapters of Hebrew
Taken three exams and three or four quizzes
Toured the Ethiopian Church in downtown Jerusalem
Eaten Ethiopian food twice (I might have a slight addiction)
Wandered around the United Buddy Bears exhibit
Hung out with my roommate
Did an insane amount of studying
Woken up before 8:00 four days out of the week (that is more impressive than you'd think!)

It is hard to believe that I am already halfway through my summer Hebrew course. I knew it would go fast but, dang. I have hardly been able to breathe since I got back to the country. I just keep thinking, "I just have to make it through September 24th." Then I'm home free! Well, at least I have four weeks off. Chelsea and I are already planning on taking a short trip. We'll be spending the rest of the time writing papers but at least we'll get some R&R in there!

These are from the United Buddy Bears exhibit. They have artists from every country paint a bear to best represent their country:

Yay! This is my girl :) The land that I love!

Stealin a kiss from the Holy Land :D

Walk like an Egyptian... (been there, done that!)

Who says you can't go home?

2007-08-15T15:47:00.000+03:00

Well, I have been back in Israel now for two weeks. It seems like much longer! My Hebrew class started the day after I got back and has been going in full force since then. Everyday for 4 hours, I sit in a classroom and listen to people speak Hebrew at me. It is incredibly draining but my comprehension is improving and maybe I'll actually be able to carry on a normal conversation one day! :) And then I come home in the evening and, surprise, I do homework!

It is nice being back. Feels almost like home. Without family or a bathtub... so not quite as nice. :) Svenja, who'd been living in the apartment while Chelsea and I were gone, decorated it beautifully and we already had our things moved in, so adjustment was easy.

Thank you all so much for a wonderful vacation! It was a crazy and fun time. After a borderline insane trip home – three flights (all delayed) and 21 hours of layovers – I was hugging my family (albeit, somewhat deliriously). The rest of the time was filled with an Independence Day party, a wedding, dinner at Casa Bonita, house sitting, best friends finally in the same zip code, dancing, Friends in Low Places (for you, Sarah!), wonderful lunches and entertaining dinner parties – there was even a soup kitchen. :)

Now it is back to the grindstone: class, study, tour, class, study, tour. It's a rough life. :)

Here is a picture from outside my apartment.
My apartment is in the first building on the right past the round thing. :)
The security building through which you must past to get into the dorms.
Gotta love the double-decker tour buses! Showing off the Mount Scopus Campus.

THE corner store. Every student living in the Student Village passes this guy on their way to school and home again. He gets to know the students really well. :)

...and then on to Jordan!

2007-06-22T01:44:00.000+03:00

Salam! Keif Kalag? (Arabic for: Hello! How are you? ...Well, to a man, anyway. Feminine is a little different!)

Wednesday night began like every other night. We were on our way to some sort of dinner/party/outing thing (yeah, we tend to do something like this on Wednesdays). Svenja and I were telling Chelsea all about our trip to Dahab the weekend before: "It was awesome!"
"We did this and this and this."
"Blah blah blah and oh my gosh, blah blah blah!!"
"And oh yeah... let's do Petra tomorrow! What do you say?"

Chelsea decided she could not after only being back in the country for about 24 hours - she'd run back to the States for a wedding and had just gotten back the day before - but Svenja wanted to go so I said, "F* it! Let's go!" So we did.

Thursday was insane, classes all day. I got home around 8:00, then packed, then Svenja and I headed for the buses at 9:45pm. We arrived at the border to Aqaba at 6:00am. (Note: Managed to get around 3 hours of sleep during this time.) Our fabulous taxi driver had informed us that the border was open 24 hours and promptly dropped us off... Yeah, it actually didn't open until 8:00am. 30 shekels just to sleep on a bench for the next two hours!! We took advantage of the complete desolation to take some pictures - photographing is not allowed at the border controls - until a group of four soldiers came over. Yikes! We've caught it now: Hobo-ing it on the benches and taking illegal photos. Instead, the soldiers came over, plopped down on our benches, and made us coffee! It was a great way to spend the next hour and a half. We just chatted and drank coffee. By the time they were ready to go, a bunch of other people had showed up to wait for the border to open. As they loaded up, I told everyone to "smile." Vladimir (the coolest soldier), stopped me, "Wait, you need to be in the picture!" They gave me a gun and a seat in the Humvee! (That has to be some sort of National Security Risk!) The other people who were waiting for the border came over and took pictures of me - I was a tourist attraction! (I knew I should have done my hair!)

We then made it through the border - took forever - then waited for another thirty minutes for a taxi to show up to take us the hour and half to Petra. Jameel was our taxi driver. He was awesome - obviously loved his country. He stopped in a few places that overlooked the amazing scenery and once at a random tent on the side of the road that his brother (i think) owned for some tea.

We made it to Petra around 11:00am (I think). Can I just say, "WOW"? It was amazing. We rode horses from the front to the entry gate, then walked down the Wadi Musa (the deep canyon) to the Treasury (the Temple on Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade). As we first sighted the treasury, Svenja began to hum the Indiana Jones theme song - classic. :D Then we hiked up to the High Places - accurate name! Amazing views from up there. We saw a lot of the Bedouin villages. On the way down, we met up with Hillel ("Moon" in Arabic) and his donkey (Sky-juice - well, something like that!). He took us to the Spring (which was off the map!). It was beautiful. When we made it back into central Petra, he found one of his friends, Jesus, with an extra donkey, Michael Jordan, (Yeah, seriously) and they took us up to the top of the canyon where you can look down on the Treasury. Before going up there however, he gave me a ride on his camel over to a first century church - which was closed (until Hillel managed to unlock it...). It was a beautiful church - still under excavation. Then, back on the donkeys and up 800 steps!! These donkeys are the most impressive animals, the places they could go and not fall. Of course, the rider did not handle it quite so smoothly... :D I'm still trying to breath again!

We made it back down around 6:30 and went back through Petra. On the way out, we had a couple of guys on camels follow us trying to get us to ditch the "donkey guys" and join them. "Pay Jesus and ride my camel!" (Only in the Middle East is that NOT metaphorical for something else!) It was hilarious. Hillel and Jesus, the donkey guys, were getting really upset - they wanted us for themselves! I was laughing so hard at all of them. The guys on camels were just hilarious.

So - after riding a horse, donkey, and camel all in the same day... the verdict: Camels are best, then horses, then donkeys. Though it obviously depends on what you need to do/climb. :)

After leaving the donkeys and camels behind us, we joined up with our taxi driver. He took us back to a hostel in Aqaba. We left the next morning for Israel again.

And that is my crazy adventure in the lovely Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan (according to my passport). [Pictures as always! Now it's the last half of this group.]

Dahab sweet Dahab

2007-06-20T18:32:00.001+03:00

My last two weekends were some of the better ones I've had. :) The first weekend was to be a time to get refreshed for the coming finals. Though I am a bit more sore than a weekend of completely relaxation warrants.. I'll tell ya why! On Thursday night (the 7th), we (Svenja, Marshall - who had decided at about 3pm to come with us! - and I) left the student dorms at 9:45, met up with Courtney and Jen at the Central Bus Station at 10:00pm, arrived in Tel-Aviv an hour later. Our bus from Tel-Aviv to Eilat left at 12: 30am.We arrived in Eilat (the southern most point in Israel) at about 5am. This is where we crossed the border into Egypt. Thankfully, we had no problems and managed to acquire a mini-bus to Dahab. Two and a half hours later, we were lying on the beach!! This was the beginning of a completely sleep deprived weekend - wait, read "power-nap" (Good call Cass!). We swam a little and slept on the beach until lunchtime. After taking a three hour lunch, we headed back to our hostel.

I have to tell you about the restaurants in Dahab. They are right on the beach - a decent size wave comes and you get splashed! The cups come with foil covers. :) - and they are all Bedouin style with benches and cushions everywhere. It was a bit of a slower weekend so we were able to barter for our meals. Marshall did most of the barter for us. He is an incredibly likable guy and he was instantly popular because it was just him with four women. At one restaurant he got us free opening drinks, free starters, free dessert, free sheesha, and 30% off the meal! Granted, it was based on the condition that all four of the girls come and we all smiled... :D (I'm feeling a little used!) Everyone was so chill there, once they got you into their restaurants, they treated you like kings. They would bring you everything, let you stay as long as you wanted, they would sit down and chat with us for a while if we invited them, etc. It was so relaxing! One of the guys made sure he saved as a seat right next to the sea. Sip Hibiscus tea and listen to the waves. That's the life.

When we got back to our hostel after lunch, everyone from the dive center connected with the hostel came running out and grabbed Marshall. They carried him to a big tank of water used for cleaning diving equipment and threw him in. They had learned earlier that morning that he had never been diving before - and since he was open to the idea of trying, they decided to take him! (More like shanghaied him!!) They suited him up right then and there before he could think and get nervous. :) It was hilarious. And he loved the dive!

That evening at sunset, we rode horses along the beach. Marshall, Svenja, and I were allowed to let ours fly! Man, can they run. :) It was beautiful. Then a nice and very long dinner before heading to the "Free Bar" for some pool. (No idea how it got that name.) I think we finally fell asleep around 2am or so. We were exhausted!

The next morning, Courtney and I got up early - well earlier than the other three - and met at the diving center for some diving. :) We did two dives that morning with Gaffer, our guide. He was hilarious. We even had a thumb war underwater (I won!! Well... I cheated so that probably disqualifies me - but his hands were huge! How was my poor little thumb to compete??). It was beautiful and completely amazing! I feel so lucky! People travel from EVERYWHERE to dive in the Red Sea - some of the most beautiful diving anywhere in the world, and it's in my backyard! While we were diving, the other three slept on the beach I think. That afternoon, we got massages - oh man... that was awesome! Then Courtney and I met up with Mohamed for some night diving! I was sooo nervous. :) However, it ended up being phenomenal. There is so much marine life that only comes out at night - we saw needle fish, water snakes, rock fish, a star fish, and so much more. Everything looks so different at night when you can only see through your flashlight. Mohamed was a great guide also, I think I literally held his hand for about half the dive! Then when we had our safety stop (you always have to stop for three minutes at five meters), he danced with Courtney and I! I think it was a waltz. :) Then he kissed me! Well... as best you can with regulators in your mouths... It was so much fun! The craziest thing is when we turned off the flashlights under the water and moved our hands quickly, sparks would light up! It was so neat. :D If y'all ever get a chance - I'm tell you - diving is amazing!

The rest of the night was spent lying around and eating, then playing some pool. We were going to go dancing but there were hardly any girls dancing - just guys hanging out to watch... So, we weren't really into that idea. :) Courtney and Jen went to bed pretty soon after, then Marshall, Svenja, and I headed back around 2:30am. We got up the next morning at about 8:30 - I think. Marshall was up earlier and, holy cow!, talk about a frickin' morning person! He was singing, talking, telling stories, laughing, etc. I have never seen someone wake up that alert and happy. I could barely move or think I was so tired! Svenja and I were just lying in bed watching him - a little stunned I think. :-) After breakfast, we said goodbye to everyone at the hostel and diving center before we hit the road. It was an awesome weekend! Everyone was sooo much fun and easy-going! I am so going back as soon as possible! (And it's incredibly cheap!)

Here are some pictures of the weekend! (The first half of the album are from the above weekend and the second half are from the following weekend which I'll tell ya about in a minute...)

Have I ever mentioned how cool my siblings are??

2007-06-11T22:01:00.000+03:00

Publish Date: 6/9/2007

The Reporter-Herald All-Area girls tennis team, from left, are singles player of the year Annelise Jorgensen of Loveland High School and doubles players of the year Lexy Stevens and Tai Mayes from Thompson Valley. Reporter-Herald/Steve Stoner

Weather or not
Cold spring can’t deter area’s top tennis players

By Kyle Koso
The Daily Reporter-Herald

Tennis players are like farmers — how the weather unfolds has a lot to do with how successful the product will be on the other side.

The local prep girls tennis population had to confront nothing but disruption and delay this spring after a long, cold winter, which was great for the soil but lousy for someone trying to hone her forehand. Tryouts often found players landing in unexpected places, with junior Annelise Jorgensen ending up at No. 1 singles for Loveland, and Tai Mayes and Lexy Stevens falling back into doubles for Thompson Valley after playing singles in 2006.

Eventually, it came down to facing the competition. Jorgensen had a winning record in Class 5A at that most demanding position; Mayes and Stevens also won a bunch of matches, and that earned them the 2007 Reporter-Herald All-Area girls tennis singles and doubles players of the year award, respectively.

Jorgensen ended up 6-4 overall, taking third place at Loveland’s regional tournament to fall just short of a state berth. It proved to be a sturdy achievement after playing No. 1 doubles as a sophomore.

“It was a little bit (intimidating), but my coach (Kelly Blanks) would come and talk to me, and my teammates would come cheer,” Jorgensen said. “That helped a lot. I ended up doing a lot better than I thought I would.

“Playing for third (at regionals) was really close, and I thought I was going to lose, but I didn’t. At the end, I had some people cheering for me, and the other girls just lost it.”

Jorgensen also provided stability for an Indians team that took on some early blues as a few top players didn’t come out, and then eligibility issues dinged the lineup later.

For Mayes and Stevens, the No. 1 doubles slot had the early look of a consolation prize, but they learned the subtleties quickly and posted an 8-2 overall record. Only a tough setback in a challenge match at regionals kept them from the 4A state tournament.

“It was hard for me at first — I hadn’t played at all before tryouts. Doubles was fun, faster in a different way and more at the net,” said Mayes, a sophomore who also had last summer interrupted with a foot injury. “It took a couple of matches, because it was tough to communicate at first. But then we had that match against Greeley Central ... the best of the year. I’d like to play singles, but I wouldn’t mind playing doubles again.”

Stevens, who has a hearing impairment, worked with her partner to handle some strategy concerns and locked in to handle her share of the load.

“I was looking to get better at my net game, and I thought doubles might help me in how I play singles,” said the TVHS junior. “I was kind of amazed at how we worked together. I think we both have good baseline games, we got more comfortable at net, and together we had the overall game.

“We’ll see how it goes. I’d like to play singles, but if Tai and I were at No. 1 (doubles) again, maybe we could get to state, which is what I want to do.”

Publish Date: 6/9/2007

Climbers of Mount McKinley negotiate a ridge approaching the 17,000-foot camp. In front is Lygon Stevens; her brother, Nick Stevens, is behind her. Mount Foraker is visible in the background. Reporter-Herald/Jonathan Espers

Closer to God
Brother-sister duo summit North America’s highest peak

By Ann Depperschmidt
The Daily Reporter-Herald

For siblings Nick and Lygon Stevens, it was hard to comprehend what they had accomplished as they stood on top of North America’s highest peak.

“Your brain does not work very well at 20,000 feet,” said Nick, a 22-year-old Loveland resident.

On May 26, Nick and his 20-year-old sister, Lygon, reached the summit of Mount McKinley with a nonprofit organization called Climbing for Christ.

Their mission: To share God’s love with other climbers, learn about God from each other and practice good environmental stewardship.

And of course, to prove their climbing ability by reaching the summit — a goal eight of the 10 team members accomplished.

“It was a huge relief,” Lygon said. “I thought, ‘We can go down now. ... We don’t have to go up anymore.’”

Alaska’s 20,320-foot Mount McKinley, or Denali, as it is more traditionally known, is North America’s tallest peak.

Its proximity to the Arctic Circle makes the weather there cold and unpredictable. In 2006, 582 of the 1,154 climbers who attempted the mountain reached the summit, according to the National Park Service.

On average, about 52 percent of people who start out actually make it to the top.

But for the 10 people on the Climbing for Christ team, the goal wasn’t solely to summit.

They wanted to share their faith as Christians.

“It’s just so amazing and so spectacular,” Nick said. “You watch clouds roll in, and this tiny bird flies near this glacier. There’s that knowledge that there has to be something that built this. There has to be a God.”

Nick, a Colorado State University student studying economics, and sister Lygon, a music student at the University of Northern Colorado, both have extensive climbing experience. They have climbed Colorado Fourteeners and other peaks around the country. Nick works for Laramie-based Solid Rock Outdoor Ministries, and Lygon has climbed the tallest mountain in Ecuador.

But both said Denali was their toughest climb yet.

During the 18 days they spent on the mountain, the group befriended a group of South Korean climbers, met “tons and tons” of climbers from Colorado and pushed themselves to the physical limit.

They also handed out Bibles to people who wanted them and talked to others about their mission.

Although they were surprised by the reservations other climbers had when they told them they were climbing for Christ, the siblings said they felt they had succeeded in their mission.

“We just wanted people to see that we weren’t crazy Christians who were spreading tracts all over the mountain ... telling you you would go to hell if you didn’t get saved before you came off the summit,” Nick said. “We wanted to share the love of God for the people of the world.”

ON THE NET: For more information, visit www.climbingforchrist.org.

Mount McKinley/Facts

• Denali, which means ‘The High One,’ is the Athabaskan name for Mount McKinley. Mount McKinley is the mountain’s official name, but Denali is the name most Alaskans prefer.

• Mount McKinley’s South Peak is the tallest point in North America at 20,320 feet.

• The first recorded successful summit of the peak was in June 1913.

• On June 6, 1947, Barbara Polk Washburn was the first woman to reach the summit.

• On June 15, 2005, 74-year-old Sadao Hoshiko became the oldest person to summit.

• On June 17, 2001, 11-year-old Galen Johnston became the youngest person to reach the summit.

Source: National Park Service

I passed :)

2007-05-14T13:34:00.000+03:00

I passed it! Yay! I have finally successfully completed my first level of Hebrew. Whoop whoop! (Only five more to go...)

School has been ... well, school. Mostly good but some not so good. I have been rather lethargic lately and have not been keeping as much as I should. Since there is no homework or assignments really it takes a lot of disciple to keep working on everything. So... meh.

Travelling has come to a bit of standstill. The focus has been on actually trying to get some of that school work done. Plus, after Egypt and my Mom's visit, I was ready for a break. However, starting this weekend, we'll be getting in some last minute trips (Petra, Sinai, etc) before everyone goes home for the summer or permanently.

Last weekend was interesting. Chelsea and I met Courtney at the Ticho House for dinner. Svenja caught up with us as we were leaving. As we walked downtown we came upon the mildest protest I have ever seen (since all my protest experience comes from television, this is not really surprising). The Hebrew University students (not my department - the foreign students are separate) have been on strike for the last month and half. Something about the government not giving them enough money for their education. On Thursday night, they had a "gathering" in the middle of the main downtown street. We watched for a while. Nothing really happened. Even the police and IDF were sitting around smoking. It did get interesting once the law enforcement decided that they had been blocking traffic for long enough. (Apparently they had been there for most of the day - it was after midnight at this point.) A couple of people were picked up and tossed into the police vans. The occasionally pushing and shoving backed up with some chanting did led a little bit of interest. Everyone was disbursed by 1am though - I think the rain and the open bars might have had more to do with it than the police...

Back to the library! Woohoo! Aren't ya jealous?

Oops

2007-04-26T01:32:00.000+03:00

I have a level exam tomorrow in Hebrew. At least I found that out before the actual day. One day before but at least it was before.

Yay! Mom!

2007-04-22T01:27:00.000+03:00

Remember when you would get really really sick and your mom would smooth your hair out of your face, place a cool washcloth on your forehead, and bring you soup and crackers? Even though you felt like something from the night of the living dead, you still felt loved, comfortable, and safe? Remember the first time you got really really sick and your mom wasn't there? You felt miserable, alone, and, in some way, grown-up.

My mom came to visit me a couple weeks ago. The morning of the day she was getting in, I woke up with the flu. I threw up every hour at least. (Great weight loss program!) It was miserable. And then, mom walked in. I still felt miserable but now I also felt loved and safe. I could finally relax and not worry about being responsible. Mom was here. Anything that needed to happen could wait. Ah. :)

Despite that first night and morning that my mom was here, her visit was amazing! It was so great to see her! I didn't realize how much I missed having my family around. We had a wonderful time and got to see a lot of Jerusalem.

We went to the Garden Tomb for sunrise service on Easter Sunday, then we walked into the Old City for breakfast before going to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Monday, we walked the ramparts of the Old City and did some shopping. The next day, we rented a car and drove up to the Galilee. I didn't realize how much I miss driving! It was so relaxing (well - except when I was in cities...that was just nerve-racking!) and Chelsea was an amazing navigator. We drove up Mt. Tabor and then had dinner at a Bedouin styled restaurant before going to our hostel in Nazareth. The next morning, we visited the Church of the Annunciation in Nazareth before going to Tiberius, Capernaum, Bethsaida, and a few other places and churches. We walked to the Mt. Arbel cliff where we had an amazing view of the Galilee area and where we watched the sunset. Back in Jerusalem on Thursday morning, we toured the Mount of Olives and saw Mary's Tomb, Church of All Nations with the Garden of Gethsemane, Dominus Flevit and it's beautiful view of the Old City, the slightly ominous Tomb of the Prophets, as well as the Pater Noster Church. We were also able to go into the Russian Church of Mary Magdalene where I got yelled at. As the nun insisted on yelling at me in Russian, we have no idea what it was about. She wouldn't even use hand signals. Oh well, the church was beautiful! That afternoon, I took Mom over to see my campus. We wandered around it for a while before going back downtown for some last minute shopping. Some of my friends came over that evening for dinner. Mom and I cooked them all tacos! They were a huge hit. :) The fried tortillas are definitely the key. The shuttle then picked Mom up at 3am.
Crazy fast trip but so much fun! Mom, I miss you already and love you so much!!

Travels through the Black Lands

2007-04-18T00:00:00.000+03:00

Oh yeah, baby!
After a bus ride that made one think of plucking one's arm hair for fun, I made it to the City of a 1000 Spires! Chelsea and I got on the bus around 8:30 Thursday morning and made it to the Eilat/Taba border about five/six hours later. It took the whole bus group around 3 hours to make it through. We sat in lines to get the border pass, then sat/stood in line for security, then stood in line for the actual visa, then sat around waiting for our tour guide to ... well, we're not really sure what he was doing. Then we all loaded onto the new bus and headed off across the Sinai! We were stopped occasionally at checks - had to show the passport. I am sure everyone west of the Red Sea has seen my smiling face! (Why, oh why does the passport photo always have to be SOO stunning?? <-- hint of sarcasm.) Dinner was around 10pm at a random restaurant in the desert. (Great intro to Egypt... the toilets were holes in the ground! A flashback to my NOT favorite part of Mexico!) Pretty good food though. Then we finally arrived in Cairo around 2am. The bus took us straight to a hotel where we immediately went upstairs, showered, and laid down... then it took another hour or so for me to fall asleep. I was way too excited!

Friday morning we took our time getting up and eating breakfast. We left around 10:30ish. Our taxi driver dropped us by the Papyrus Museum where they showed us how the ancient Egyptians made the stuff (it apparently takes 12 days - 6 for soaking, 6 for pressing). Then we continued onto the pyramids!! I was in shock ... I cannot believe I was there (along with enough people to fill Texas....). It was awesome! We took camels around the groupings. The guide even let us steer. We did pretty good so he let us do it the whole time. We tried to make them go fast... "Yalla yalla!!" but camels don't really seem inclined to "feel their oats." Much more at the 'laid back' end of the quadrupeds. However, Chelsea's camel did manage to get a reaction from mine... Hers bit mine! Mine then did this little crab-hop thing. Not really the best feeling when you're precariously perched 30ft in the air! (Slight exaggeration...)

We were a bit overwhelmed by the whole thing - being there, the amounts of people, etc. but it was awesome! We ended up taking over a hundred pictures (never thought you could get so many pictures of sand colored triangles, huh?). We also have a couple pictures of us kissing the Sphinx!! We had a little 8 yr old girl help us with our picture-taking (and managed to sucker me into buying little souvenir things from her!).

Our taxi driver then took us to the train station where we booked our train to Luxor, and then he dropped us off in the Khan al-Khalil Bazaar in Islamic Cairo. It was awesome! Like the Old City of Jerusalem but MUCH bigger and even more people (and much more marriage proposals). I must add a little note in here about the driver/pedestrian relationship. For one, the road seems to belong to both equally. Pedestrians just start heading across the road whenever they feel the need to reach the other side and the drivers managed to avoid them without actually appearing to move around them. Honking, while less than in Israel (thank heavens!), seems to just announce one's on coming presence to pedestrians - who don't seem to care. Also, lines in the road appear to be there simply for aesthetic pleasure... they provide no restraint for the vehicles! There can be about four lanes painted onto the road yet six lanes of cars, with motorcyclists tearing between! I have never seen a more crowded, road blocked, traffic jammed, functioning city. :)

We had Koushery (or something like that) for lunch. It was a layered dish of rice, noodles, fried onions, lentils, and ... I think that's it, then it came with an onion-y soup type thing that you added to it. Simple but really good!

Saturday, our taxi driver picked us up around 9:30 and took us to Coptic Cairo. We wandered around a complex that had a few churches (including the Church of Mari Girgis) and the Ben-Ezra Synagogue. Then we went to the Coptic Museum where we saw a lot of the best preserved Coptic works, we even saw some of the Nag Hammadi library! Next, we stopped by a "government" Bazaar where we were supposed to get inexpensive jewelry and perfume but it turned out to be just as expensive as the States. So we headed to the Citadel which has the Muhammad 'Ali Mosque and a palace and some other mosques. We became the attraction at this place. A group of local girls were very fascinated with us and even got their picture taken. Numerous others also came up asking for pictures. The mosque was beautiful.

Next, we drove through the City of the Dead - where, apparently, people are living in order to protect the bodies from grave robbers! Slightly disturbing.

Pretty crazy, huh?? I wish y'all were here to experience this! The sights (sites), sounds, smells (well, maybe not those so much) - all overwhelming and amazing!

We left that night for Luxor on the overnight train. We got in around 8:00. After a quick breakfast and nap at our hostel (which turned out to be a shrine to Bob Marley), we took a kalish (a horse-drawn carriage) to Karnak Temple. This is the largest ancient religious site and was built over hundreds of years by over thirty pharaohs! I have never said "wow" so much in my life. I must have been an Egyptian in my past life! I had such a feeling of nostalgia and an overwhelming desire to see what it would have looked like in it's prime. Hehe, it was definitely amazing.

After that, we went to the Mummification Museum. Smaller than I thought it would be but still learned a lot. I didn't realize the ancient Egyptians even mummified their pets.

Then next morning, we hooked up with a tour guide and went to the West Bank (of the Nile, not the other one). We visited the Colossi of Memnon, two tombs in the Valley of the Queens, three tombs in the Valley of the Kings (we stood in front of King Tutankhamen's tomb but didn't go in as it was really expensive and there is nothing to see!), and the Temple of Hatshepsut. All of which were amazing and, of course, a testimony to the largeness and beauty of the Egyptians' building abilities. I would definitely love to visit again if I have the chance! (Who's up for it!? I gotta break coming up in a few months!)

The following day was spent sailing up (south) the Nile in a falluca. It was the most relaxing day I have had in a long time. It was sunny, warm, beautiful water with gorgeous green fields on the banks. We passed camels, cows, egrets, kids swimming (who called out asking us to join them!), and a donkey or two.

That night things got a little interesting... we went with a few of the people from our hostel, including a few of the employees, to watch a belly dancer. Not quite what I expected but it was still fun! Until the police showed up! They searched most of the men in the room and detained six or seven. One of which was the owner of our hostel! His friends then asked Chelsea and I to go to the jail to convince the police to let him go. Supposedly our "tourist" status might help him be released - somehow. So after a lot of arguing and many stipulations, we agreed and headed off to the jail. (I know, I know - I said the one thing I was specifically going to avoid while in Egypt was their jails!!) They then sent us over to the Tourist Police, however, so we went there. I don't know if it helped or not but about thirty minutes of getting back to the hostel (I have never been so happy to see a Bob Marley hostel in my LIFE!), the owner arrived. The whole situation was a bit crazy but at least it worked out!

The next day was our last and we spent the whole day on the hostel roof talking to other travelers. Not the most "touristy" thing to do, but relaxing and the view was beautiful. We had one more piece of excitement before leaving. Apparently, Egypt has some trains for just locals and do not allow tourists on them. However, the two overnight trains which allowed tourists left too late for us to catch our bus which was leaving from Cairo at 7:30. We explained this to one of the men at the hostel and he said, "I can get you on a 7:00pm train from Luxor which will arrive in Cairo around 5:00am but it will cost a little more." We asked why and it was because he would have to buy the tickets off the black market and since it was on a locals only train, he'd have to pay off a guard! This was our best option so we went ahead and did it. We had an escort who waved us passed security into the train station then stayed with us until we got on the train. Once on, they told us not to tell anyone we were from America - say Australia instead! Thankfully, no one asked and the ride went smoothly! We got to our bus with plenty of time to spare then finally arrived back in Jerusalem around midnight.

It was a completely crazy and amazing trip! Chelsea was an awesome traveling companion! If anyone wants to hit up Egypt in the next couple years... let me know!! I can show you a great belly dancing place. ;) (Just kidding!) Here are some more pictures if you want. Check 'em out and let me know what you think!

My travels up the Mount of Olives

2007-02-25T19:16:00.000+02:00

I promised a blog a couple weeks ago about my tour up the Mount of Olives. Here it is!

The morning started off... well, actually... for me it started the evening before. I had taken one of my notorious naps (fell asleep around 2:00 and slept until 7pm) and thus stayed up all night. I did some translating work so I was at least a bit productive. I decided around 4:00am that instead of hanging around the apartment, I was going to take advantage of this wonderful thing called semester break and go out on the town! I planned out my course, took a shower, drew myself a little map so I wouldn't get lost, and about 9am I headed for the bus! I took the bus to the Jaffa Gate where my adventure started. :)

I took my time walking through the Old City, browsed a couple shops, and talked to a few shop owners (well, they talked to me as I tried to walk away - why can't I just say, "No"??). I got some amazing fresh squeezed pomegranate juice for breakfast. The starting at the Lions Gate, I worked my way up the Mount of Olives. First stop: Mary's Tomb. A beautiful cave in the Kidron Valley and cut into the side of the mountain, the supposed resting place of the mother of Christ. At the site is a church built by the Crusaders in the 11th century, sort of in the cave. Right beside this is the "Grotto of Gethsemane." Not really sure the significance. I remember reading something about it and laughing, then leaving. :) I did go to the Garden of Gethsemane next. This was my favorite stop. The olive trees are amazing. They are over 2,000 years old. These are one of the first things that I have seen in Jerusalem that actually would have had something to with Christ. The All Nations Church is the keeper of these trees. Also beautiful and built in the early 20th cent.

It began to rain while I was here. Not to be deterred, I continued up the steep road (built on the original road that passed between Bethany and Jerusalem) toward the Church of the Dominus Flevit, watching the other tourists scurry for their buses with various tour guide books held over their heads. The entire hill on the north side of this road is covered with the Jewish Cemetery. It is the longest in-use cemetery - over 5,000 years of burials. A lot of history is found on this mountain. Dominus Flevit means "the Lord wept" and is built where Jesus wept for Jerusalem. It has an amazing view of the City of David. (It's even better when it's not rainy and overcast.)

Continuing up the road, on the right, is a non-descript gate leading to a driveway with a few houses, gardens, even a "Beware of Dog" sign (I am using deduction, the sign was in Hebrew but the menacing dog on the sign followed by the appearance of the dog in question helped with translation). The dog, however, appeared to have no desire copy it's counterpart on the sign and simply watched me enter the courtyards of the houses. In the very center of this overgrown, pebble covered area were steps surrounded by a fence held up by the weeds tangled in it. A hand-painted sign indicated that this the "Tomb of the Prophets" and hence, the next stop on my explorations. Tentatively, I stepped into the darkness. As I reached the last step, with the darkness encroaching around me, I did what any good tourist would do: I raised my camera. Looking through the LCD screen, I started aiming for the best shot to capture this large, ominous tomb I had walked into. I looked away from the screen to adjust a couple settings and I caught a movement out of the corner of my eye from farther inside the tomb. I quickly turned to see if one of its inhabitants had decided to try out life again. Instead, a priest from the Russian Church walked out of the darkness. Upon learning that I knew a little Greek, he spent the next hour showing me inscriptions, touring me around the cave (much less threatening with the aid of candles - he even had a flashlight!), and sharing his tea. The rain had decided to release with fury so I hung out with the creepy priest until it lessened.

I grabbed a Turkish coffee at the Seven Arches Hotel. An amazing view of Jerusalem and surrounding areas. In front of this hotel is "the Camel." (Definitely deserving of the capital letter.) I am sure that any picture you see of anyone sitting on a camel with Jerusalem in the background was taken from this spot, with this camel:

Continuing my travels of the western slope: The Church of the Pater Noster. This is definitely a stop I would recommend to travelers in the Holy Land. The church has the Lord's Prayer written in over 80 languages on plagues in the wall. Very impressive I felt.

The last stop was the Chapel of the Ascension. Right next to it is a Muslim mosque. This is where Christians and Muslims believe Christ ascended to heaven. His footprint is even here to prove it!

I again set my foot on the steep road between Bethany and Jerusalem. This time, returning to the city. The view was amazing, the history unbelievable, and the day unforgettable.

Ah... Break finally. :)

2007-02-11T17:28:00.000+02:00

Finals are out of the way - more or less. So now it is that wonderful period between semesters where everyone sleeps in, stays in pj's all day, and generally does not know what to do with themselves. Occasionally, we'll hit up the library for some research or wander around downtown. Today I went to the shuk (shook? shuq? However it's transliterated!), the outdoor market. I got some amazing oranges and a rug. It was a beautiful day, perfect for browsing the stalls, eating falafel, chatting with Jen. I have been able to do some sightseeing this break though I have spent most of my time hanging out with friends. I even *drumroll* cooked dinner! I introduced them to the joys of Friday night (even though it was Wednesday or something) Taco night. Dad, your fried shells were the hit of the party! I never found cheddar or jack cheese and all the avocados in the store were hard so it wasn't quite the same (Lygon, your queso was missed!) but still delicious!

A couple weeks ago, I walked the ramparts of the Old City. Though you cannot walk the whole loop, you can still go most of the way around. Starting at Jaffa Gate, first you take the short walk south to the Zion Gate, then walk back to Jaffa Gate (cut through the Armenian Quarter or walk along the outside of the wall) and go up the other side and walk along the northern wall all the way to the Lion Gate. The whole walk takes a couple hours (we walked slow though!) and you get to see Jerusalem from a whole new perspective.

I spent the next afternoon in Tel-Aviv. I went with a friend who was picking someone up from the airport so we went early and wandered around Old Jaffa. It and the water were beautiful. The tourist parts of the city were well-kept and clean, elsewhere was a different story. I did not see much of Tel-Aviv though.

And of course, you have to stop at the Wishing Bridge!

The next bit of "touring" was to following the Franciscan monks along the Via Dolorosa to the fourteen stations of the cross. The walk was very interesting, such a contrast of time periods. A group of tourists (cameras, Hawaiian t-shirts, bad sun visors, and all) following sixteenth century dressed monks along a narrow two thousand year old route surrounded by Arab-owned stalls of food and trinkets. Though rehearsed and probably very humdrum for the monks, it was still powerful and moving. Between the stations, the monks did some sort of prayers or chanting in Latin. Then at each station, first in Latin, then Hebrew, then English, the monks would recite a passage and the significance of each place. The windy walk ended in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

It's beginning to look like finals

2007-01-25T02:20:00.000+02:00

Homework O homework
I hate you, you stink
I wish I could wash you away in the sink
If only a bomb would explode you to bits
Homework O homework
I hate you, you stink*

Joys of Hebrew

(*All I remember from a poem I had to learn in 2nd grade - there was also something about a shark - but still appropriate today! I don't remember who it's by...)

Chelsea's birthday

2007-01-13T14:50:00.000+02:00

"A picture is worth a thousand words."

Here's the story of Chelsea's birthday:

The Birthday Girl

My day today

2007-01-09T22:33:00.000+02:00

So much for best laid plans! I had intended to spend a good bit of time doing schoolwork. And I did! I got caught up a little. And now I'm sick again. What's with that? I tried going to school this morning. Dad always told me to at least get out of bed, get dressed, and try to start your day. 9 times out of 10 you feel better than you think you do. Well, this must of been the 1 time. I managed to get to my 8:30 class, managed to live through it. Met up with a couple friends afterwards in the cafeteria. We talked for a few minutes and I felt like I was going to pass out. I figured I really should go home when a random guy walked by, looked at me weird, and said, "Are you sick?" (No, neither the girls I was with or I knew who he was.) If it is that obvious, then I can justify skipping a couple classes.

Having to blow one's nose a lot and having a nose stud is not a good combo. :(
But worth it! :)

Oh guess what!? Chelsea and I bought jump ropes! Cruel and unusual punishment for our neighbors downstairs but hours of entertainment for us.

Here's a picture from the strike. Wednesday of last week, all the Israeli students went on strike. Something about the government not helping out with funding or something. I was not totally clear. They had all the main entrances chained closed and people posted at the car gates and smaller entrances to deter people from going in. Chelsea and I got stopped but were quickly shooed through after one of the strikers asked me a question and I responded in my strong American accent, "Uh... What?" He switched to English and said, "Oh, nevermind." And waved us through. :D

Oh the excitement of living in Israel!

Okay, I'm done rambling. I'm going back to bed. Peace, y'all!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year (I got to celebrate it before you!)

2007-01-02T15:11:00.000+02:00

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!! Now is the time when things slow down, one takes a look back and assess the joys and trials of a year gone by and looks ahead with renewed hope and peace for what the new season of life will bring.

Unless you're in Israel... No time off, finals approaching in a month, classes at the crack of dawn on January 1st. Dang country would have to have it's own calendar! The last couple weeks have been very difficult to concentrate on classes. Fewer and fewer students are showing up - there were a grand total of four in my Hebrew class on Christmas day and only six on New Year's Day. I have never had to think about school during the holiday season. It is weird to just keep on trucking - having to study around planning Christmas parties and trips, etc.

On Christmas Eve, Jenny, Chelsea, Matt (Chelsea's boyfriend who was visiting), Alana, and I skipped Hebrew and took off for Bethlehem! (It seemed rather appropriate.) It took a while to get all the way to the city (about 20 miles away) due to traffic and the checkpoint. The checkpoint was interesting. We decided it is there purely for psychological value. Alana forgot her passport but was able to get through on her Hebrew University ID. We wandered through gates and metal detectors, watched closely by the military (those that weren't chatting on their phones). We made it though without incident and then were swarmed by taxi drivers more than willing to take us the rest of the way to Manger Square (imagine a hundred yellow and black bumblebees closing in on you). We had dinner in a bedouin-style restaurant where everyone was male and smoking a nargila. Afterwards, we headed to Manger Square (the cab driver didn't get us quite far enough. *rolls eyes* Never trust a cab driver!) and the Church of the Nativity. Everything was closing down by the time we got there but the Church was beautiful and the crowd was ... well, crowded. We saw a few other Rothberg students (apparently they thought it was the thing to do also). The Christmas lights were gorgeous if a little haphazardly strung. We browsed the area for a while and then headed back home.

Christmas day I spent in my room doing a paper and then went to class... we'll skip that day. Tuesday, J, C, Matt, and I went to the American Colony hotel for Christmas dinner. It was delicious! I had venison. None of this kosher meat stuff. :) Afterwards, we went to Dublin Pub for some live Irish music and met up with a few more friends.

The next couple days were more dinners and studying, then New Year's Eve. We went to dinner at Beit Ticho again, counted down with the Americans and British and a few random Israelis, who just like a reason to party, then went to The Colony to dance the night away! Jenny and I got back to the apartment around 4:00am. It was a good evening. :)

Today it is back to the grindstone and I am really going to try to actually focus on schoolwork and learn lots in the next couple weeks. :)
But... Before everything gets too boring...

Shout out to my brother!

Shh... I just got older!

2006-12-22T21:21:00.000+02:00

4:00am Lauren falls into bed
5:30am Lauren is asleep
5:45am Lauren is still snoozing
5:50am Lauren wakes up, rolls over, peers at the clock, freaks out.
5:51am Lauren wakes up Courtney then jumps in the shower
5:57am Lauren flies out of the shower and into clothes
5:59am Lauren starts her makeup
6:02am Lauren is still doing makeup
6:04am Okay, this is getting ridiculous. The make up looks fine.
6:05am Lauren blow dries her hair
6:10am Lauren flips her hair back, touches on the lip gloss, grabs her bags and heads for the stairs!

6:12am Lauren and Courtney climb on the bus. Eilat, here we come!!
6:35am Lauren runs back up to her dorm room for a book
7:14am The bus is moving! Oh, just getting out of the way...
7:26am Ah..... We're off. For real.

And that was just the first 3 hours of what was going to be a wonderful weekend!

After a 3 hour drive, we reached the Shehoret canyon (just north of Eilat). Over a hundred students, divided into three groups, made like the Israelites and struck off through the desert! It was an amazing experience even though our hike was relatively short and relatively easy. (Thanks to Lygon, I have a rather skewed perspective of what counts as a morning stroll: "Hey Lauren, let's run up Estes Cone to see the sunrise!") While hiking through the desert, we stopped periodically for our guide (an amazing woman! She frequently backpacks across the various deserts of Israel) to tell us about the canyon as well as a little about the other deserts. She related everything back to the Bible. It was so beautiful. I can see how someone could fall in love with it. We walked, talked, and ate lunch for three hours. (Our gourmet lunches consisted of a roll of bread with a couple slices of cheese in it - unless you wanted tuna, then you got a small glob of tuna in the middle.) Yummy. We made it to Eilat by 3pm. Since that evening was the beginning of Chanuka as well as Shabbat, a joint service was held around 4:30. It was quite the experience. Svenja and I were "honorary Jews" for the weekend. After a late dinner, Courtney, Svenja, Jen, and I went exploring. We walked along the beach and did some shopping on the beachside shops. Since my birthday was at midnight, we found a fun place - apparently the place in Eilat - to hang out. A band from South Africa was playing. I danced the night away! We ran into a few others on our trip and they helped celebrate.

The next morning was spent enjoying the beautiful water. Though a little cold for those used to Eilat temperatures (this is the middle of December after all), for the average warm-blooded non-beach bum, it was warm enough to swim in the Red Sea! It was a bit weirder than the lakes of Colorado: rather easy to float and rather difficult to dive. We had a mandatory lunch, then the four girls hit up the mall! Eilat has a rather large mall with a lot of popular European shops. I was introduced to Mango and a few others. Shopping could not compete with the draw of the beach though. We were back outside for a couple more hours before finding a place for dinner. We ate the Underground, a local pub that was playing a soccer game. Inside, we met three of the most random guys. One from South Africa, one from London, and another from New York. We ate dinner with them and just listened to their banter. They had gone fishing that day - with bread as bait. The amazing part is that they'd actually caught something! Decided it was poisonous though so they threw it back.

After an entertaining dinner, we hooked up with our group, loaded back onto the busses, and struck out for Timna. Up until about a thousand years ago, Timna had been a prolific copper mine (active for approximately 5000 years). It is also well-known for its natural rock formations due to water and wind. Solomon's Pillars are the most famous. It was kind of random to take a gander at nature after dark but the formations are lit with huge spotlights. It creates an amazing sense of beauty and mystery. Again we were divided by busses. Our group was ahead of the other so our guide had us all sit in a circle and - this was harder than it sounds - be quiet. Even though we could faintly hear our other group singing some obnoxious songs, it was so beautiful to be embraced by the pure stillness of the desert. Not such a stretch to understand why one would go to the desert to talk with God.

Just to add to the randomness of the desert evening trip, we walked to a little museam with a small amphitheater that already had a large assortment of students from all over Israel - including a group of Ethiopians who were making ali-al. After lighting the second Chanuka candle, we were treated to a disco. The DJ played popular music from America, Israel, and some Ethiopia. Again, we spent the evening dancing. I could go on and on about these few hours to try and convey the completely randomness of it all but I am not that proficient of a writer. Just trust me. It was weird.

The next morning, we were to have bags packed, keys turned in, and be eating breakfast by 7:30. After rolling out of bed around 7:45, grabbing a quick bite, and again loading onto the busses (only an hour off schedule I think! Who is their right mind thinks they can get 100 college students up and out by 7:30??), we drove to the underwater observatory. There is not really much to say about this place. We looked at fish. A lot of fish. It was amazingly beautiful. I think God enjoyed making fish. The shapes and colors are mind-boggling. I want to pursue scuba-diving. Under the water, we have a completely different and stunning world.

After the Observatory, we went back home with a quick stop at the place that has the most amazing ice cream I have had in Israel (reminded me of ColdStone/Marble Slab). My roommates had decorated the apartment in honor of my birthday and we ordered pizza and had cake.

Now isn't that just a great way to spend your birthday? Amazing friends, beautiful scenery, and enough randomness to keep you on your toes!

Put on your yamikah, it's time for chanukah!

2006-12-19T20:34:00.001+02:00

Since I have a fairly intimidating midterm hanging over my head that is due relatively soon... I decided to take this opportunity to catch ya'll up on the happenings in Jerusalem!

First off:

Hag Semach! (Happy Holiday!)

I hope everyone had an amazingly full and delicious Thanksgiving. I actually had classes. For some reason, Israel is not to keen on giving days off for each country's holidays. :( After I got out of class - around 8:00pm - I met up with two of my roommates, Jenny (who is a British Jew) and Chelsea. We were planning on going to the mall where there was a cinema, watch a movie, then head downtown. When we got to the mall, we discovered our movie wasn't playing. (We have not been able to find an online schedule and none of us have been able to navigate through the Hebrew voicemail system yet.) So we opted for shawarma and shopping - TURKEY shawarma, of course. When the mall closed, we headed downtown to the well-known American pub. Mike's Place. (Not the one that's been bombed - that's in Tel-Aviv.) They had the TV tuned to the football game - Rock on Cowboys! We spent the rest of the evening watching football and talking to some guys that live on a kibbutz. So not exactly a traditional Thanksgiving but we had the all important turkey (and I had mashed potatos for lunch) and American football.

The next day, as a Thanksgiving "treat," Chelsea and I hit the town with one goal in mind. Find a tattoo parlor! We found one and both got new "bling." I got my nose pierced (thank you everyone for the input! Ken - I went with your suggestion and got a little diamond, it is purplish.) and Chelsea got her belly button pierced.

Other than that, I have been on various outings with my roommates and friends: late night burgers at the "I Love Burgers Bar," a quick coffee at an obscure coffee house/bookstore between classes, exploring as many bookshops as possible, finding a pharmacy that had Listerine! (Still no rubbing alcohol or Peroxide though.) Ect.

(This is Jenny, Alana, Chelsea, and Courtney when we all went to dinner at one of our favorite places: the Focaccia Bar. I do not know why everything is called "bar" when it has nothing to do with a bar.)
That is about the extent of my "fun." Classes take up a large portion of each day. I always have one mid-morning class, then an evening class. Since my dorm is too far away to conveniently walk back for a nap, I usually hit up the library. It is nice and warm with lots of good books and the gentle snores of numerous other diligent students. Classes are still very interesting. Though the more and more that I dig into these subjects and start to understand what is going on, I realize more and more how much I do not know! When I came, I wanted to learn a little more Greek, learn Biblical Hebrew, and maybe a little Akkadian since it was required... but now it just keeps multiplying! Ugraritic is what Akkadian is based on so that would give a deeper understanding to Akkadian (which I am loving and what to know even more) and then all Semitic languages are developed from Akkadian so now I want to go on and learn a little Aramaic since I am already getting a taste of it... and that doesn't even start in on learning the Romance languages which are the best way to enhance Egyptian and etc etc!! Everything is connected. And that is simply for languages! I wish I could just know it ALL - and NOW. :D Oh well, I will just keep my nose to the grindstone and see where life leads me and how much I can learn on the way!

And I think that catches ya'll up to December 13th.

December 14th was Dad's birthday!

I miss you and wish I could have been there to celebrate with you! (Or that you could have come here and celebrated with me!)

December 15th and on will have to wait until the next post so this one won't get too long. Thankfully for ya'll, I have another midterm that I'll want to put off so I'll post soon. There will be beaches!

Oh yeah... I'm here. :)

2006-12-14T16:58:00.000+02:00

I am still alive! And so is my computer. I have midterms this week and aparently I do not get inspired to write descriptive blogs about my rather mundane life when I've only had 4 hours of sleep for four nights in a row. So I apologize for not keeping ya'll informed! I have pictures and a few stories to share so I will get ya'll caught up soon! Now I am off to class. :)

Ack! I gotta virus!!

2006-12-02T12:32:00.000+02:00

Hey ya'll! I do apologize for the long silence. I will update everyone soon (with a picture of my newest addition)! In my pursuit of new and varied foreign aquisitions, I have managed to aquire a virus for both me and my computer! My poor computer is sleeping on off its flu right now. Once it is better I will again be posting pictures and stories. Oh... and in the spirit of the holiday season... I MISS YOU!!!

Rock on

2006-11-19T02:59:00.000+02:00

"What are you doing today?"

"No plans since class was cancelled."

"Want to explore?"

"Heck yeah!"

Side streets that held an air of mystery, stairs that might have untold riches at the end, doors leading to magical rooms - none were left unexplored.

Downtown Jerusalem is no longer a closed book. If only I'd had a map I'd be able to figure out the page order...
I spent all afternoon wandering the streets of Jerusalem, through nooks and crannies, around the "shook" - an outdoor market. We also went into an amazing used bookshop. This was the kind of bookshop that inspired Terry Pratchett's view "that even big collections of ordinary books distort space, as can readily be proved by anyone who has been around a really old-fashioned secondhand bookshop, one of those that look as though they were designed by M. Escher on a bad day and has more staircases than storys and those rows of shelves which end in little doors that are surely too small for a full-sized human to enter...a good bookshop is just a genteel Black Hole that knows how to read."

After dinner, we met up with some more people (the ones who actually had class) and hit up the Old City again. This time we explored more than shopped. This picture shows us enjoying a break somewhere. Oh yeah.... we have fun.

Jesus Loves Me

2006-11-17T16:14:00.000+02:00

Proof that God will provide even in the little things:

I need advice

2006-11-14T00:42:00.000+02:00

Okay... I am taking a poll. I have been debating this for quite some time. I have always thought the little nose piercings were cute. My parents, not so much. And since I have had jobs that frown upon facial piercings, I have refrained. However, I am now in a culture that is quite accepting, plus no job to worry about. Should I get my nose pierced? Now, I want you to know it won't be one of those large ungainly things or a ring. Just a little silver dot. (And I think I have a good nose for it. I have been analyzing my nose for the past couple weeks.) And if I should, which side??
Thank you.

Amusement Ride or Tourist Trap?

2006-11-12T21:58:00.000+02:00

Soaring stone walls, vivid colors splashed across every available service, vendors promoting their wares and looking for a "target", tourists packed thick looking for a "deal", voices from every nation can be heard.

Welcome to the Old City:

This picture is taken looking into the Christian Quarter. Chelsea and I took advantage of our weekend to do a little shopping. Granted, no matter how good you think you bargain or how reluctant the vendors seem to give into your price, you never get a good deal. Yet the whole experience is fun. It can be treated kind of like a game. The vendors will use whatever they can get you in their shop, do whatever they need to to keep you there, and keep showing you bright, sparkly, gorgeous things until you cannot refuse any longer. All you need to do is keep walking or if interested in something go on in, check it out for a while, try it on - even it's a tapestry:

...then walk out laughing. The vendors are generally amiable and fun. Don't take them too seriously or they'll pull your heart strings! The goal is to not be taken for too much of a ride. No way are you getting a good deal, but hey! The experience is worth it. Here is one of me in a store - most vendors just have random little nooks but this guy actually had a building thingy. He served us tea and offered us a free belly dancing lesson if we bought a CD. We went ahead and got the CD but declined the lesson.

(That tea is amazing!! And yes, I did buy the necklaces in my hand. They have such fun, crazy jewelry.)

On the way out of the Old City, a vendor selling bread starting talking to us. He was funny so we stopped. He was trying to get us to buy this bread. I wasn't really sure exactly what the bread was so he showed me how you tear a piece of bread off then dip into this green powder spice concoction. (A powder substance that you buy in a paper roll...hmmm...) I tried it and it was really good but since I wanted to make sure I'd have enough money for the cab back, I declined. He still bagged one up for us saying we were "too much beautiful." Hey, if it gets me free green powder!

It was a crazy fun day. I am looking forward to going back and doing more "touristy" things. We walked past the Church of the Holy Sepulcher but did not go in. We were focused on shopping. Next time though, bring on the churches, mosques, and wailing walls!

We have reached normality. Therefore, anything you still cannot deal with is your own problem.

2006-11-10T02:37:00.000+02:00

The last three weeks of classes have been good. Life is starting to fall into a bit of a routine. I have Hebrew Ulpan in the "morning" (noon!), then a three to four hour break until my evening class. Since my dorm is too far away to want to go home between classes, I hang out in the library. This is proving to be a very handy study time. Two of my courses, Archaeology and Jeremiah, are simply lecture courses so I mostly have no homework. It is a very different style from undergrad work. Yet, I feel as though I cannot keep up with them nearly as well as my language courses because the only instructions are to "read as much about Jerusalem Archaeology as you can." So there are all these articles that I want to read and now I feel like I'm supposed to! The wealth of knowledge that my professors are holding out to me show me how little I really know. I am trying to absorb as much as possible. I know I am missing so much though! There is just so much! My favorite class is Jerusalem Archaeology. The professor takes us out in the morning before class for a tour. The first time he took us to the East Talpiyot Promenade which is on one of the southern hills overlooking all of Ancient Jerusalem to the north. Looking to the south you can see down towards Bethlehem and the Judean Desert. He spent a couple hours describing what the topography looks like now and what it would have looked like then. Amazing. Next tour took us to the eastern slope of the Western Hill. Again we looked over the topography and walked along the Old City Wall for a bit. It is so easy to see how King David come up with his imagery. "As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds his people both now and forevermore." (Ps 125:2) "You are beautiful, my darling, as Tirzah, as Jerusalem, majestic as troops with banners." (So 6:4)

Sunday nights I have been going to a church called King of Kings. My home church has had a lot of connections with it, supported it for years, so it does not feel too weird. My pastor from CO even stopped in for a bit last Sunday while he was on tour through Israel. So far I am enjoying it. It is so good to be surrounded by people with whom I can relate! Joel Rosenberg even showed up last week. There is another church that meets early Saturday morning and so far I have not gotten up early enough to go but I think I'd like to try it out. It is a bit more conservative.
Here's us heading to church:

I was finally able to get a cell phone last week. It took way too long to actually get the stupid sim card, then I found that I could not unlock my US cell phone, so I hopped a bus for downtown. My roommate and I rode it until we saw a cellphone shop. I bought a cute, little, silver flip-phone! (I know! I said I'd never own a flip-phone! But it still wasn't a razor!) I had it for a few days, then I went out Friday night and lost it in a cab. Figures!! The worst part about is that when we'd call it, a guy would answer but hang up when I started talking! How blatant is that!?! It was not that fancy of a phone. Common decency - just give it back. Grrrrr. So about the time I was feeling like things were under control, that happens. Oh well. It's all part and parcel of this thing called "adventure." I got another cell phone a couple days later so once again, I am connected to the world! This one is actually kinda nice because all incoming calls are free! (*hint hint*)

I have been downtown a few times, but I have still not been to the Old City! Very annoying!! I cannot wait to go! My roommate and I are going this weekend. I think we're going to go on Saturday. We were going to go downtown tomorrow to watch the Gay Pride Parade but since it's been cancelled, I think we're going to take it easy.

Today was awesome! In between Hebrew and Akkadian, I have about a three hour break, so Sarah, Alana, Chelsea, and I decided to hit up this burger joint that Sarah knew about. She told me about this place last week and I have been dying for a good, American hamburger! It was a cute little hole-in-the-wall place. And *drumroll* not only did they have cheeseburgers, they even had bacon and bbq. Probably the most un-kosher place in the whole city. And it was amazing. I never realized how wonderful it could be to simply have meat and cheese together. Oh yum. Then we walked over to Ben Yahuda Street for some ice cream cones. Could the day get any better?? I was so full. I think we are going to make it a tradition.

I could keep going but this is definitely getting long enough! I'll ramble more latas.
Here's a picture from when Alana and I went downtown one evening.

Let the Classes Begin

2006-11-07T01:16:00.000+02:00

The Beginning of an Adventure:

Sunday was the first day of classes. My schedule:

Modern Hebrew: level Aleph (which means I’ll probably have to be here for three years)

o Meets Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday

Akkadian: first year

o Meets Monday and Thursday evenings

Readings in the Book of Jeremiah

o Meets Tuesday afternoon

Chapters in the Archaeology of Jerusalem in Biblical Times

o Meets Wednesday evenings but has a tour in the morning!

Languages of Ancient Egypt over Four Millennia

o Meets Tuesday evening

A Bibliography: A tutorial (not sure what this is exactly)

o Meets every other Tuesday morning.

I’m excited about these courses. They should be very interesting. I am allowed to audit one course each semester for free. I think I might do that. It would be awesome to take advantage of the time I am here. I just have to decide which one. I am supposed to have a year of Biblical Hebrew under my belt before taking the Jeremiah class. I talked to my advisor since I actually have none and she said to give it a try.

All of my teachers are great. My two Hebrew teachers are hilarious. They use minimal English – none if possible – and are wonderfully animated. They use enthusiasm and hand motions to teach new words. It’s a lot of fun. All of the professors are so knowledgeable. They just chill in their chairs talking a mile a minute. I am going to have to get back into the swing of writing non-stop for hours on end! My right hand was ready for the weekend. I am a little worried about my Languages of Egypt professor though. He would kind of trail off in the middle of a thought (or even a sentence!) then pick up somewhere else.

It is weird taking classes from professors with strong accents. Nicklis, I finally understand your pain! It is going to be interesting. Also, before a student is allowed to graduate from the Rothberg International School with their master’s, he has to pass Hebrew level Vav. That’s the sixth level. So, most students take at least a year before even coming to the school. This adds another level to the teaching process.

Example: Akkadian. (Which I found out is the language of Babylonia began during the time of King Sargon and was derived from the Sumerians.) While the classes are actually taught in English, transliterations can be written in either English or Hebrew and (because apparently knowing a million languages is common) examples will be English, Hebrew (modern or Biblical), or Arabic words. It gets confusing trying to translate the Akkadian use of a Sumerian word through the medium of Hebrew transliteration with Arabic examples!

My Jeremiah professor through me for a bit of a loop during class. She was giving a quick overview of Jeremiah, who he was, what he did, etc. She was talking about how lonely Jeremiah was – even his family had disowned him. Here she points out the window and interposes, “You know they live in Anata, just northeast of Harhazophim here.” (That’s the street that passes in front of the school.) Wow. This is gonna be awesome.

(I have also spent a retarded amount of time this week trying to get stuff done. Going from one place to another to find something, trying to talk to the librarian who kept shushing me, sitting for over two hours at the Cellcom booth trying to get a sim card – only to find out my phone is locked and won’t unlock, trying to get my internet connected in my room only to have each party tell me it is the party’s fault. On and on! These people do not understand the concept of “customer service.”)

Week One

2006-11-06T01:09:00.000+02:00

I slept until noon the next day. (At this point I had no idea what day it was! It seems like I'd been in New York a lifetime ago.) After I got up and took a shower, it dawned on me what I'd done the day before. I had taken two busses - against which I'd been told to avoid if possible - and two taxis - of which I'd been told to never ride by myself. And the taxis even charged me honestly! I tried the walking idea again and actually found the campus this time: about 20 minute walk away. Figures. J I spent the next couple days finishing up some "new student" things. I decorated my room a bit. I even ate some food. A bagel thingy with something red on it. That night, one of my roommates made me share her dinner. She kept asking if/what I'd eaten. She judged it wasn't enough. (She also gave me a granola bar for breakfast the next morning.) She's amazing!

I found out that two of my roommates are strong bible-believing Christians: I-li, from Taiwan (above), and Jisong, from Korea. Both are in the Middle Eastern Studies degree. I-li took me to King of Kings on Sunday. A much needed dose of praise, worship, and American accents. I attempted my first supermarket trip on Friday before 3pm. (Everything shuts down around 3:00 on Friday for Shabbat.) I found peanut butter and jelly, cereal, and milk! I even got OJ.

It is actually easier than you'd think. J They have a lot of American products, so after you find what you want in English, then you look around the vicinity for the Israeli brand. It's cheaper and the same thing! (More or less...) Jisong made us all dinner on Saturday: a spicy Korean chicken dish. We got the hook up! :-P I got a huge portion. She figures since I am so tall I must eat a lot. (My slightly above average height has become more apparent since moving here. Though there are quite a few tall Israelis, the average is maybe an inch shorter than me and most women are much shorter.)

It is so obvious that God has been watching me and protecting me. I do not think I could have made it through that first week without God's strength. He is so amazing. Lord, I regret that it has taken me moving halfway around the globe for me to completely rely on You again but thank You for being there.

No details will accurately capture the extent of the feelings. I keep going between overwhelming feelings to a calm on the other side. Too much! Sensory/emotional overload! So I just focus on small bits, block out the big picture. God has done so much with keeping my sanity in sight. He has kept me functioning and just prioritizing and working through the steps of everything that needs to be done. Looking back I have no idea how I made it without constant calling to Mom and Dad! Mom I think I've come to the conclusion that when/if I settle down, it's gonna be right down the road from wherever you are living, okay? (Or at least where they speak my language!) This completely independent thing is not all it's cracked up to be!

Home Sweet Home

2006-11-03T22:03:00.000+02:00

The flight from New York to London was very easy, fast, and smooth once it actually got off the ground – an hour late. There was one moment of panic when I asked the flight attendant for Dr. Pepper and he politely laughed at me. It was then I realized that I was going to a land completely devoid of the most important tonic. Whose idea was this!?! Maybe I can have some shipped in. No wonder God’s people have such trouble following Him; there is no nectar of the gods in the Promised Land.

I realized this was not going to be such an easy trip when we landed. First of all, the flight was already delayed an hour and my layover was only an hour and a half, then the tower sent my airplane to a non-existent gate so we stopped in the boondock equivalent of the tarmac and took shuttles back to the terminals. Then I was stopped because flights to Tel-Aviv are only allowed one carry-on (something that was failed to be mentioned online anywhere.). I had to check my other bag but there a little lady in front of me who was also having her carry-on checked. She did not speak a word of English though and could not figure out why these crazy people were taking her bag. Once it was finally my turn, I had been bumped. My flight left without me! The next flight I could get on did not leave until 10:30pm (it was currently about 9am). BA checked me into a day hotel and gave me free meals. I was able to get about 4 hours of sleep and a shower before meeting Sonia for dinner. She had also gotten bumped and we became friends in the passport line. We went back through security, waited a few hours, loaded up. This is me waiting:

I got upgraded to business class! That was cool. I’ve never been in anything besides coach. Again, the actual flight was smooth, easy, and good food. I watched a couple movies and chatted with a couple flight attendants (British accents are awesome).

When I landed it dawned on me that I was all on my own. It was also 4:30am. I’d never done this before. Wheee! I got a SmartCart, then got my bags (that order is important), got an international calling card, got some Shekels, and found a vending machine. Now the plan was to have arrived the day before, whereupon I would call Linda at the University and she’d tell me what to do. Since it was 5am and she’d gone home, I winged it! I found a shuttle that would take me and my bags to Jerusalem, Mt. Scopus, Harazaphim. The sunrise drive was beautiful. The early morning mist softened the landscape and gave it a hint of mystery. I met a French gentleman who was taking a quick visit around Israel before going to S. America to teach small children how to read and write Spanish.

The shuttle dropped me at the entrance to the dorms so I had no idea where I was or what I was supposed to and no way of communicating. Thank God that another student, Lee, had gotten off the shuttle also. She was able to speak decent Hebrew and English (she was Korean) so she helped get everything sorted. We then cajoled the guards into watching our bags while she showed me around the campus. We had to wait until 8:30 for the offices to open. Lee took me around the main campus for the next hour and half. I was overwhelmed and quickly lost, but it was apparent right away that the campus is beautiful! And built on a hill so there were soooo many stairs. By 8:30, I was sufficiently worn out but I was able to get registered, get my bags to my dorm (took a cab because the dorms I am staying in are about a 15 minute walk from campus – too far for me to manhandle those heavy bags!), and got moved in. I was supposed to be back on campus before 1pm to speak with someone who would explain my insurance. I decided to walk. After walking around for about an hour, I gave up and decided to take the bus. I had asked for directions a few times and kept getting the same answer, “uhh…straight, yeah yeah.” None of the roads even go straight! Once I found my way back to my dorm, I hopped a bus. I rode it for a while until I saw something that said Hebrew University. I exited and spent the next half hour-ish wandering around what ended up being the wrong campus. The people on this campus had never even heard of Rothberg! So, I gave up, got a taxi to Café Aroma which I knew to be located right near the entrance of the main campus. The taxi then takes me to the “Center” (between the Old City and New I guess) and drops me off at the Café Aroma there. Ugh. All I wanted to do was get back to campus so I could call Mom and Dad and let them know I was alive! Grrr! I then wondered around asking all the bus drivers if they went to “Harazaphim.” I wasn’t sure exactly what that was but I knew it would take me back to the general area of my school. Finally, I found one that did. I was falling asleep on the bus. Instead of taking me to campus, it took me back to my dorms. Three hours of trying and I never found the right spot. At least I made it back to my dorms and didn't end up in Haifa or something. I finally begged the office in the dorms to let me use their phone, called Mom and Dad. They said I sounded drunk. I was slurring my words and thought process was glacial. I honestly do not remember many other details of the day. It is such a fog. I had only slept 4 hours in the last 48 and I don’t think I ate anything until the next day. But I made it.

Home Sweet Home.

The Beginning of an Adventure: A Reflection

2006-11-03T07:59:00.000+02:00

I am on the plane. Jerusalem bound. It is weird to think that only seven years ago, I was on this same flight with my family, moving to

England

. That was the first time I'd ever written in a journal. The first time I'd left everything I knew and simply relied on trust. Who would have imagined I'd be at this same place but with so many different prospects and adventures ahead of me. A tremor of uncertain and, could it be, fear? underly the excitement and anticipation. A solid bank of rolling white clouds under me makes me feel as though I am looking over a snow covered valley. Untouched, just waiting for the rest of my life to be detailed upon its surface. The sun is now rising. A new chapter has begun.

The Beginning of an Adventure: Part 2

2006-11-02T01:29:00.000+02:00

Saturday was an awesome day. We got up early and made it out to the airport before Carrie’s first student. She is a flight instructor so she took Nicole and me for a quick sunrise flight. I got to take-off! We flew over the ocean to little Fisher Island where we enjoyed bagels and coffee on the beach. The sunrise was amazing! It was my first time flying with Carrie and definitely worth the wait! Check out the pics:

On the way back we flew over the 2^nd largest house in America, belongs to the guy who stole the plans for the Hummer.

Nicole and I grabbed some roasted corn then wine tasted that afternoon at the Duck Walk Winery in the Hamptons. We got a bottle of Boysenberry fruit wine and another one called “Gadsby Red.” We met up with Carrie for dinner at World Pie. Initially it was good, then *drumroll* we found … THE bug. Not the small gross-but-understandably-around-food type but the upside-down-legs-splayed beetle type. They bought us a round of wine to pacify. “Get ‘em drunk, maybe they won’t tell everyone else!” After finishing the wine, we strolled the West(?) Hampton area to sober up a bit before driving home. And, in good ol’ New York fashion, we stopped at the Starbucks for coffee.

Impromptu photo shoot!

Nicole and Jackie took me to the airport on Sunday.

Thank you, girls, for a positively awesome weekend/pause before continuing my trip to Israel. It was much needed.

You also have to see a picture of Carrie’s adorable little pet:

Lots more pictures here!

The Beginning of an Adventure: Part 1

2006-10-31T23:24:00.000+02:00

The bags are out, the clothes spread across the bed, various other essentials covering every available surfaces, shoes looming in the corner. The hallway is stacked with boxes containing everything else. My life, as represented by acquisitions, now divided by importance and soon to be weeded through by necessity.

It did not take a rocket scientist or even a Bible major to realize that the stack of “diva requirements” was much heavier than the allotted 50lbs per checked bag and there are only so many shoes that can fit in a carry-on. And now that only hi-jackers and bad guys are able to bring their toothpaste on board the plane, all liquids (which add up in the poundage department) had to be checked. I sorted through clothes, shoes, and liquids hundreds of times before finally slimming enough to fit into the appropriate weight class. Dad, Mom, Nick, Lygon, and Lexy – there is no way this would have happened without you! (Special thanks to Nick for packing my carry-on so efficiently that it nearly took a crowbar to get everything out. That was the most amazing stuffing I have ever seen. Not a single atom – and yes, I know how big an atom is – of space was not used. Dad and Mom, thank you for the wonderful suitcases. The pink bag was a huge hit and very easy to spot; rolled wonderfully too.

The night before I left, my family had a going away Taco party for me. The Leases, Cudmores, Larsons, Schulzes, Mike, Sarah, and the James’ all came to show their support and pray for me. What an amazing group of friends. I ate so much – had to get my fill for the year!

Thursday morning came in a rush. I had managed to finish nearly everything the night before despite all the stress – which included a five minute retreat under the covers to recoup. I might have shed a few tears of frustration and stress but I’m not admitting! After sleeping for a couple hours, I grabbed some last minute things, like my laptop (had to keep that out until the last minute, I needed a few “sanity” talks via AIM before going to bed) then headed out the door. Found out later that I should have grabbed my power cord too. *rolls eyes* Thankfully, saying good bye to the family happened in stages so I never broke down. Mom and Dad drove me to the airport. Security was easy, got through without a hitch. While waiting for the plane, I called Carrie to make sure she loved me lots. Lots and lots and would remember that when helping to haul my bags around!

She remembered and Carrie, Nicole, and I – through great fortitude and strength of spirit – managed to drag, pull, shove, cajole, and manipulate my absurdly heavy (but not over the limit!) bogs through terminal 6, over the air-train, through terminal 4, around a group of obviously-not-busy-enough airport workers, and out the curb where Carrie ran ahead to get the car. We then sat in the car, blatantly obstructing traffic, and enjoyed a much deserved homemade pumpkin muffin with homemade apple butter (courtesy of Nicole). After getting shooed by a security guard, we gladly left the airport and drove to Connecticut.

Let me say something about Nicole here. I had met her a couple times before and had liked her but had never had a chance to really hang out or talk with her much. So here is a girl who I’m not really sure likes me, I’m a bit intimidated, and now she’s helped haul my bags halfway around the airport, during which one of my bags decides to attack her! I felt so bad. Thankfully, it turns out; Nicole is one of the most fun, nicest, caring, neatest, etc people I have ever met! If you ever get a chance to meet her – you are lucky! And she’s an awesome cook!

2006-10-25T12:13:00.000+02:00

First off - I'm alive! Some close calls but I am now in Jerusalem, Israel. Beautiful country, very different culture, and insane driving. I will post a more detailed blog soon. I am still trying to get internet set up in my room, right now I only have a few minutes until my next class. I felt I should at least give ya'll a quick update though.

I have a room, I have classes, I have a few friends, I have pictures (that will be posted soon), and I have awesome roommates. I can hardly believe I am actually here! I've wanted this for so long but now I am actually LIVING in Jerusalem. It has been interesting trying to get around. You just kinda start walking and hope you recognize something... (I should just get a map...)

For those of you who didn't know... I am now studying my MA in Israel at the Hebrew University. It is a two year degree but since I have gotten here and talked to advisors, professors, and students, it looks like I will probably have to be here three years to complete all my language requirements. I might be able to speed it up by taking winter and summer break programs.

I have to get to class now ... but please - send me updates on what you are doing, your life, everything! I feel so secluded out here!

Love you long time and miss you lots!

2006-10-14T07:18:00.000+02:00

I'm in New York. Just spent the afternoon in "The City." (What the locals call Manhattan.) Had an awesome time and definitely walked off every guilty thing I have eaten or will eat for the next week! I have to get off the computer, but wanted to let you know I've made it this far and in less than 48 hours I will be on a plane bound for London! Missing ya'll already!

2006-10-04T18:44:00.000+02:00

Well, the countdown has begun. Along with that, the insane amount of things that need to be done. But, of course, it is impossible to go to Walmart just ONCE. I have kept up a consistent circular pace with money flowing out the pockets! Why did I want to do this again? Oh yeah. It's gonna be awesome. :)

I have 7 more days in Colorado, Thursday I fly to New York, Sunday I fly to London, Monday I fly to Tel-Aviv. Then the fun really starts.

2006-09-22T21:40:00.000+03:00

A month from today classes start.

2006-09-20T18:54:00.000+03:00

Why?

I know on scientific, spiritual, ecomonic even! levels why death happens... but why? I hate it.

Moving on...

I bought my ticket to Israel. The most money I have spent in one place I think. (Obviously not counting school and such which technically I still haven't completely bought.) It was more than my computer, more than my car...

Wow... It's happening. Really happening.

2006-09-05T21:13:00.000+03:00

Since I am a member of the mass mob we call society and I, as any good minion should, feel the need to fit in and be a part of this mass: I'm gonna post pictures of "kids I take care of" just like Lesbo!

I volunteer in my church's nursery every other Saturday night. Due to the fact this church rides the border between simply huge and obese, the nurseries are divided into six month increments. I am assigned to the children that are from 3.5 years to 4 years. This is a pretty fun age I think. Kids develop so fast that it is always interesting to see the 3 1/2 years old compared to the 4 years old. This weekend I only had 2 girls. I guess everyone had somewhere else to be besides church. It was nice though because 2 kids is WAY easier to watch than the normal 6-8. We went outside (where I nearly lost them! I stopped to say hi to my brother who was mackin' on this girl in the hallway and when I look around... the girls were gone. I told my brother and his hit that I'd better jet. I caught up to the girls half way across the lawn! That's a pretty far distance - those legs were too short to get them there that fast!) and played on the swings and other climbing stuff that would probably be illegal at a public school. Everyone managed to stay alive.
Krystyna ("two 'y's and a 'k'") is notorious. She is only just turned 3 1/2 but everyone in the nursery knows her. She's tiny, cute, spaced-out, takes whatever she wants, then wonders why the other kids aren't as happy about it as she is. When you tell her to give back whatever she's taken (like Courtney's flip flops), she gives them back as if she's being so sweet and helping out this poor girl who's crying because some jerk stole her flip flops. She's gonna be one to watch - girls from a long ways away and boys with full protective gear.

I taught her to "Rock on." (She's already got the stoned look down.)

That was the highlight of my weekend. Other things that happened:

My brother moved out. That's two down, two to go. My mom is already considering buying four dogs to make up for her four children. Not sure how I feel about the thought that a dog could replace me. I'll have to find out what kind of dog.
I went to Six Flags with Nick, Jess, Jonathan, Nate, and Nasser. We had a ton of fun. Definitely not as young as we used to be! We were more excited about hitting up Panda Express on the way down then getting to ride the Minderaser. We all agreed that Sidewinder was much cooler than it looked. And that Twister II is proof that someone must die before a rollercoaster gets taken out of commission.
I got sick.

2006-08-30T01:08:00.000+03:00

Here's a blog that I thought I'd posted earlier but apparently it never made it:

Isn't life interesting? It's so crazy how little life seems to change until you look back and see where you came from. At my last post:

I was working at Mimis. No longer there - I quit about 3 weeks ago. (Now it's been about 1.5 months.) I am now an admin (not a secretary <-- evil word) at a local real estate office. More hours, less work, more consistent pay, less weird people. (Every job has it's pros and cons.)
I was single and loving it. I am again single and mostly okay with it. I did manage to have 2 boyfriends and a few non-committal make-out sessions in the meantime. (I have come to the conclusion that I am not really the kind of person who can date someone to get to know them - I have to know them first otherwise I won't invest.)
I am drinking more (kinda what happens when you date a bartender). Well, drinking more consistently, getting drunk way less (said bartender also keeps tabs on how much you drink). Due to which:
I am now charged with a misdemeanor... public display/consumption of alcohol in public (throw in an illegal immigrant and upset parents for a fabulous evening of absolutely no sleep). Court date is Wednesday. Been to court: $25 fine plus $25 court fees. Expensive bottle of beer. But thankfully that was it.

There has been a few really good things... I have officially been accepted to the Hebrew University. Yet, I got accepted very late in the large scheme of things and am having a very difficult time finding a way to fund this crazy adventure I'm trying to go on. I've missed the deadlines. Plus now that Israel decides that war sounds like a fun game, there are many people trying to dissuade me from this course. I have decided to tell those "people" to just shuddup. I am also simply taking out a loan to pay for it all. Woohoo! Bring on the culture shock!

That about sums it up.

2006-08-12T02:01:00.000+03:00

I have half an hour before I can leave work. I need something to entertain me. So look what I made!

<-- Cool huh? I did it myself (borrowed the dollar though - I win). Yay for Stumble. C4 - you rock.

I'm going hiking this weekend. A fourteener. (For you non-coloradoans, that means the mountain is over 14,000 ft.) The group is doing 2 but I think I'm gonna be doing good to get one done. It should be fun at least - there are about 10 girls between the ages of 17-23. Bring on the giggling! I'll post pictures.

2006-08-08T17:51:00.000+03:00

I ran today. I now hurt. That is my story.

Heather says Hi. She's working with us today! She's the youngest daughter of the Office Manager. I am now trying to corrupt her. We're comparing friends on myspace. Her's look a little more sane than mine. Not fair. (Mine prolly have more fun though.)

These are the shoes I'm wearing today. Fun huh? Heather took the picture. Gotta love cell phones!

2006-08-07T22:17:00.000+03:00

Well, it's pretty much official: Come hell or high water (or bombs from Lebanon) I'm going to Israel. I got accepted (whew!), then said I wasn't going to go unless I got funding. So I took out another loan. Not exactly what I wanted to happen but I think the opportunity is worth it. October 30th will find me chillin (or having a complete nervous breakdown) in Jerusalem! It's still pretty surreal but I'm excited. I've been taking Hebrew classes for the past couple months so hopefully I'll be able to pass my entrance exam. I have to have the equivalent of a year of modern Hebrew and a year of ancient. Ack. I'm pretty nervous about jumping back into the school scene after being out for 2 years... but hey, I did it for 15 years of my life. It can't be that hard to remember how! Just stay up all night and be nice to the professors, right? And make friends with people who take good notes. :)

Yes, I know there is a war that direction. I'm pretty sure I heard a reliable rumor about that. I also have it on pretty good authority (from someone who lives there) that Jerusalem is physically untouched. The fighting is much farther north. In fact, people are coming to Jerusalem to relax and get away. Plus, Israel's wars tend to be on the shorter side so I am going to cross my fingers and pray that the war will be over in the next two months.

It is nice to finally have something in the works. I am so tired of living in this state of limbo. I keep thinking, "I'll go back to school in the fall." "I'll go back to school in the Spring." etc. I've been driving a P.O.S. car for the last couple years because I keep thinking it only has to get me through a couple more months. Now I've been driving it around without a cooling fan for the last month (the hottest one on record in CO). But my car is another story. :) Now it is time to get back to work.

2005-09-23T09:21:00.000+03:00

Oh. My. God. Would you look at her butt? It's like out there. It's like one of those rapper girlfriend butts.

My manager says this a lot... and he knows all the words to the song...

I like big butts ...

Scary.

Oh, the point of this post is not to talk about butts. Thankfully. That was just something I realized earlier today. That my manager sings that a lot. Anyway, the point of the post is to tell you to check this out! Lauren is moving up in the world and getting much fancier. Okay... mainly, I got bored with this site so I decided to make another one that I can get bored with later. Cool, huh? Oh. Wait. Here's the link: the awesomeness that is me. Guess you need that. Leave me a comment! But there is a catch with the whole "comment" thing. You have to be a member. So. Easy solution. Become members. Maybe that way everyone will start posting a lot again. Because then I will post a lot too. Yay. Except for C4. He's still an awesome-post-a-lot person.

2005-05-30T05:46:00.000+03:00

I worked my first double tonight... 14 hours on my feet. (Well, 2 half-hour breaks were thrown in there somewhere.) I did not know feet could hurt this badly. Ouch.

2005-05-22T08:45:00.000+03:00

My sister graduated last night. I was going to write a longish blog about how this makes me feel, how time flies, and how this sort of thing really makes one reassess one's life, past and future... but I cannot seem to get any of it into words. So I'm just going to say this:

Congratulations Lygon. I am more proud of you than you will ever know. You have shaped my life in more ways than you will know. You have already done so much with the life God has given you, I look forward with anticipation to what will develop for you in the future. I love you.
Please do not follow in my footsteps.

2005-05-06T01:14:00.000+03:00

Warning label for guys:

RTM: BOYS
"Warning: Frequent (or not so frequent) exposure may cause dizziness, lightness of breath, queasiness, lack of appetite, insomnia, possible irritability, headaches, heartaches, and in rare cases, mental instability (from trying and trying to figure them out), etc....Surgeon General's warning included: has not been tested on animals (wouldn't wish it on any animal or the world for that matter), and proven environmentally unfriendly.

-- Courtesy of Carrie
(One of my friends with an awesome sense of humor.)

2005-05-03T03:42:00.000+03:00

Life plods on...

Majority of the past week has been lacking. On Saturday, I interviewed for the scholarship I was hoping to use to pay for my master's degree. Though they were "very impressed with my interview" (like that is original), they chose someone else. Disappointing but I am still glad I went through the whole process of applying. I finally had to focus on my future... Something I have always avoided doing. I guess I felt that if I develop to firm of a plan, I might miss out on something else that could be more exciting. I hate to miss out on anything! The rest of the week was spent trying to prepare for the interview or working or sleeping. The work isn't so great. At least the girls I work with are great. It is nice to be surrounded by people who's biggest concerns are who is dating who, who asked who to the prom, and if they can wait until their paycheck comes to buy this "oh-so-cute" pair of shoes. Makes me laugh. It helps me keep a light-hearted perspective on life. One more thing that made this week rather depressing. Two of my best friends have had wonderful opportunities presented to them... out of state. One is heading back to New York in a week and the other is off to California in a couple weeks. (Of course, they could not at least head out of state in the same direction so I could visit them more easily!) It is hard to see friends who have become a part of the everyday life move away. It is like college graduation all over again. Everyone moves on to bigger and better things. However, this time, I'm still stuck here.

This week was not a complete loss though (I mean, besides all the life lessons I am sure I am learning somehow though all this depressing stuff). Carrie and I went to Denver Saturday night. We checked out a totally sweet jazz place that Carrie had discovered. Sambuca was eclectic, classy, and chic. Granted, we were probably the youngest there... but it was awesome! Though I have never enjoyed listening to jazz on the radio... dancing to a live band is completely different. One of the most novelty aspects about the place was the surprise lack of grinding and humping. Finally, guys who can ACTUALLY DANCE! Definitely hitting that place up a few more times this summer. After the live music was over around 12:45am, we headed over to the new "it" club in Denver to check it out. The amount of people made it a bit hard to dance... the term "sardines" comes to mind. Imagine a huge can of sardines, now imagine that they are alive and trying to mate, now throw in a beat - yeah. That was the Bash Nightclub. Had fun though... :D

I have the next two days off. Yay! I am so looking for another job! ;)

2005-04-28T01:58:00.000+03:00

Quick update as I am running out the door:

Finally had the "official" date with D. Had a good time. He was impressed at my appearance. (Remember, the only time he has seen me before this was at the gym - not my most stellar moments.) We ate at Bennigan's. It was kind of weird because there was another guy there, a friend of D. They were there to watch the Eagle's game - or something like that. We did not watch a lick of hockey so I did not really understand. He did most of the talking so I still do not know D very well. After dinner, we went back to his hotel (he lives in my town but is taking some classes in Denver this week and last) so he could "grab something" then we were going to go somewhere else. The "something" that he had to grab was actually a few hits. Do I have a frickin' sign on my forehead that attracts potheads??? We smoked a bowl. Well, I had a couple hits, he smoked the rest of it. Then we went to Chili's for drinks. I had a Dr. Pepper - you know me, going for the hard stuff! ;) Then I gave him a hug and drove home. No hearts skipping their beats and no feet being swept off the ground. Oh well. He's hilarious so I am sure we will still have fun working out together and maybe the occasional drink... but nothing more. It was interesting using the LU nerdiness that rubbed off on me to talk about Linux with him though.

2005-04-20T06:19:00.000+03:00

Gorbachev was great! I enjoyed his lecture. It was weird at first getting used to the nearly simultaneous translation but after I finally figured out how to watch him but hear the English then I was golden. (Trust me... it was harder than it sounds! I kept watching him and only hearing the Russian, but if I completely ignored him and just stared into space, then I'd catch the English. It also helped when they turned down Gorbachev's mike so the English wasn't quieter than the Russian. Gotta love college sound techs!)

While I was at the Gorbachev lecture, Dave (the red-head from the gym) called. "Hey Lauren, just wanted to hear your voice.... *Rolls eyes* It is sweet though. He wanted to get together around 8 on Sunday morning to play raquetball. (Ha! Yeah right! You guys know me know... have I EVER been up at 8 AM on a weekend? Staying up until 8am doesn't count.) I was out of minutes so I was going to wait until Saturday to call him back. Well, apparently patience is not his strong suite. He calls me at 8:45 am Saturday morning. Thanks alot. I went to bed like, what, five hours ago??? Not a great way to win brownie points. Again, I roll my eyes and go back to sleep. Two and half hours later, I finally wake up (I know I don't need it... but a girl's gotta have her beauty rest). I figure I'll call him back on my way over to J's house around 1pm. No such luck... He calls again at 12:30. I finally answer (nice of me, huh?). I inform him that raquetball would be great... but if he actually thinks I'm dragging my ass out of bed at 8 frickin' AM to run around a court after a stupid little green ball, he can keep dreaming. He agreed that 10am would be fine as well. (What an agreeable guy.) :D Raquetball was fun... I mostly lost - won one game out of, I think, four. But I hit him really hard with the ball so I figure we're even. We're supposed to have an official date some time this week or next. I'll let you know.

And now... *drumroll* I have a job. Today was my first day. I had fun and felt like I figured out really quickly... since it was REALLY simple. Now I will go hide between the couch and the window curtain in embarrasement while my evil twin, who likes to tell embarrasing stuff about me, will tell you what I am doing.... I am a hostess. Okay, it's not that bad. I just feel really retarded working as a hostess when I have a college degree. Granted, it is paying the bills so I am not too against it. I'd like to move up to server here pretty soon but I doubt it is going to happen. The restaurant I am at - Mimi's Cafe - is constantly busy so they need experienced staff. Especially since they just openned and want to make an awesome impression on everyone. Maybe I can get a server job at a different restaurant and learn there. Oh... good idea. The worst thing about the hostessing though... I am the only one there over 20. The rest of the girls are just out of highschool. I guess God will use this opportunity to teach me to swallow the oh, so bitter pill of humility.

Oh... and btw... one of my best friends might be moving out to California! Pray for her please as she makes her decision.

Now good night. My feet are killing me.

2005-04-14T23:37:00.000+03:00

I woke up this morning, stretched, yawned, then snuggled back under my covers for a couple more minutes of rest content in my knowledge that today was Friday. I had to work a few hours - no problem - then bring on the weekend! Then I woke up a couple minutes later with the depressing realization that today was, in fact, only Thursday. :( Oh well. Tomorrow's Friday. That's cool.

I am going to hear Gorbachev speak tonight. For those of you who do not remember your history lessons: Gorbachev was active in Russian Communist politics his whole life and became president of the Soviet Union for a few years. Always a big wig though, met with President Reagan for the summit talks. Apparently, he also was a Nobel Peace Prize Laureate. Remember him? Come on guys! It's history here! Okay yeah, confession... I just had to google him so I knew who in the world I was going to be listening to tonight! Sounds interesting though. Hopefully it will be good.

I worked out again last night. Yay me. I am soooo sore. Those two guys were there again. [Quick update for those who don't know - I met these two guys on Tuesday at the club where I work out. We talked for a while on the bikes and agreed to look for each other the next night. Cool guys... a lot of fun.] One was leaving right as I got there but I ended up working out with the other one (the red-head, Dave). We did cardio together. I had a shocking realization, I am soooooo out of shape (well, not so much a realization since I already knew it). Talk about embarrassing. The club was the one place I could go and completely not give a rat's fart in space to how I looked and what anyone else thought of me. I was totally fine with just doing my own thing and letting everyone else go the way of the tumbleweeds. I'd go, concentrate on beating ever ounce of frustration, annoyance, and anything bad about the day out of my body then put on my headphones and watch tv or listen to music while doing cardio. It was nice, it worked. Now, enter red-head from stage left. We had a good time though. He's great, we laughed, talked, shot the bull, etc. After cardio (which he kept laughing at me because I was DYING - he was only doing a flat program, my program actually went uphill! Give me a break!), we stretched for a little while then he told me he'd walk me to my car if I'd let him grab his stuff. I agreed, he grabbed his stuff, I grabbed mine, we walked out to my car. We talked for a little longer then he said, "Well hey, I'd like to take you out some time." I wittily replied, "Oh yeah?" (Why can't I ever think of something INTELLIGENT to say? Or, at least, semi-smart?) He laughed at me then said, "Yeah." Then looked his question. So I had to actually give him an answer... "Hmm... I would probably be okay with that." (The last guy to ask me out was a 40 year old creepy guy so hey, not gorgeous, but DEFINITELY an improvement! Plus... you forget... this is right after working out - hard - for an hour and half. My hair is probably not ready for a glamour, my face is a very ungraceful shade of RED, and I'm wearing a big ol' t-shirt, my brother's b-ball shorts, and I believe I have shaved at some point this month. If he can ask me out looking like that, heck yeah, I'll say yes!) So I gave him my number but told him that I wouldn't answer my phone until Saturday. "I'm out of minutes." I explained. He said he'd leave me a couple dirty messages in that case. Then we split ways until the next workout session.

Oh... I also had a dream last night. I am not sure what it was about. I only remember parts of it. I was in a truck with some guy (not sure who) and we "accidentally" (i think the guy did it on purpose) ran over a brand new, white, convertable VW Bug. Though we totally ran over the front of it (it was a BIG truck), it only left a few scratches. Still, I felt HORRIBLE and got out to talk to the guys in the bug. They were the two guys from the gym. They kept saying, "Oh, don't worry about it. It happens all the time." Then we were inside a bank or some building like that trying to steal something. There was another group in there also trying to steal the same thing (not sure what). My group had one girl (me) and the other group had one girl also. So, naturally, the two girls started fighting. I am not sure what started it but she swung first (for some reason that was important to me). I proceeded to kick her ass. Royally. Then I got her in this really weird hold. I crossed my legs then got her neck in between my calves, or something like that, and then squeezed. I guess I was walking on my hands or floating or something because she was still standing up. I held her there for quite a while - she was kicking, punching, and cussing but not getting anywhere - then a security guard showed up. He told me to "let the poor dumb blonde go" and then asked why we were all there. I told him that I was sorry to disturb him and that we were planning to steal whatever. He said he was sorry but he was not able to let me do that. We shook hands and everyone left.

2005-04-05T19:08:00.000+03:00

Early Morning Drama

I got up this morning, got dressed, had breakfast... you know the whole deal. It was great. I was not running late at all. When I left I knew that I had PLENTY of time to get out to work. I am tooling along the back roads, enjoying the sunshine, and trying to use the force of my will to keep the clouds away from the sun (regretfully my will was not strong enough). When, lo and behold!a road closed sign. After catching my breath and frantically looking around, I realized that, whew, I was okay. I was supposed to turn right before the closed road anyway. No problem. Oh wait... problem... While these roads are still considered "back" they are well-traveled. The majority of people go straight instead of turning where I do (which is why I turn - less traffic, less people, faster speeds - woohoo!). So, the road people decided to simply make everyone else turn also. This worked alright until we drive up to the light. Well, I say "drive up to the light" but it was more like "drive within sight of the light" and that's looking across from the top of a hill. I had to wait for EIGHT MINUTES (yeah... I counted) to get through that stupid light!And now I was late for work.

2005-03-26T22:19:00.000+02:00

So... who had a green beer on St. Patrick's Day?? I did. Neener-neener.

2005-03-26T08:06:00.000+02:00

It's so great when life gives you lemons so you make lemonade, then go to take a refreshing swig and realize you forgot the sugar. *rolls eyes* Grrr.

2005-03-11T02:09:00.000+02:00

"The Answer to the Great Question ..." "Yes ...!" "Of Life, the Universe and Everything ..." said Deep Thought. "Yes ...!" "Is ..." said Deep Thought, and paused. "Yes ...!" "Is ..." "Yes ...!!!...?" "Forty-two," said Deep Thought, with infinite majesty and calm.

Hi.

Welcome to the mysterious life of me. Mysterious simply because I have not talked to ya'll in forever so you have no idea what is up with me. I will try to dispel some of the mystery. Life has been progressing as life generally does: poking along at the speed of light with a lot of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I am still on the market. You can take that however you want and you'd probably be right. I have been constantly looking for a job - except when I get sick of it or so depressed that I quit - while doing some part-time work at a funding office. I have come to the conclusion that part-time work is not desirable. No one ever trains you, they expect you to do a little of everything, look at you like your incompetent when it takes over 30 seconds to clean out 10 years worth of files, and when you ask "how do I...?" They say, "Oh, it's easy, you can figure it out."

One cool thing that has happened since I last posted is that a friend has moved back into town. Yay! Now I have someone to go clubbing with! Plus, it's just good to have her back. She is also current unemployed - well, her job starts in April - so we have been able to hang out during the day.

I am going to New Mexico this weekend. Mostly for the heck of it, primarily ... okay, for the heck of it! A lot of my extended family is down there so it is going to be a fun weekend. Joanna is going with me. I love road trips! Of course... it would help if I could get ahold of my aunt to see if we would have a place to sleep.... oh well.Well, that's about it. Boring, huh? By the way... Does anyone have a few thousand bucks they want to give me?

2005-02-02T05:01:00.000+02:00

Colorado has a hearing problem. God is trying to tell her what the weather should do and she says, "eh? What? Snow?? Okay! No problem!" And immediately dumps snow all of the Front Range. Then God says, "No, silly! I said, 'Sun!' Warm it up a bit!" Colorado, being the quick state that she is, immediately pops the thermometer up to 70 degrees.

My other theory - she's bi-polar.

This morning I was late to work because I had to spend an extra five minutes dethawing and scraping my frost-covered car. Then the drive was slow because the back roads were still iced over in places. Nothing odd for the first day of February. Then I came home around noon (lack of stuff to do at the office) and hung out with my sisters.... Get this: We sat on the back porch tanning. Granted, we were in rolled-up jeans and t-shirts but still! It is the middle of winter - in COLORADO. People come here from all over to ski. Ski means snow. Snow means COLD. Colorado is one of the top winter vacation places for goodness sake! And it is warm enough to tan. I even kind of got burned....

Colorado is weird.

2005-01-06T20:34:00.000+02:00

Yay! Alias is back! Jennifer Garner is my hero. When I grow up, I want to be like her.

2005-01-06T00:04:00.000+02:00

I never cease to amaze myself with my mood swings. I can go from being blissfully happy and charged up for life one day to discouraged and depressed the next. This is not cool. Except the highs are so much higher because of the lows so I guess it works out. Somehow.

2005-01-03T20:30:00.000+02:00

Whoa. It has been a while since I only got three hours of sleep and then had to compently operate for a full eight hours! I cannot wait for lunch break...

2004-12-31T02:11:00.000+02:00

"Guess who's back...
Back again.
Shady's back....
Tell a friend."

Every time in the past few weeks that I have considered blogging that phrase comes to mind. I guess I've been silent for awhile! Christmas was awesome. One of the best ever. I guess when money's a little tight more thought goes into the presents. I can honestly say that this is the first Christmas I have both laughed until I cried and simply cried while opening presents (the presents were pj bottoms and a teddy bear - you figure out which was which). The rest of the season has been fun. A couple of friends came into town, it was good to see them again. Been playing a ton of games with my family (settlers of Catan, Lord of the Rings Risk, Rail Baron, plus a lot of card games just to list a few)...

Hmm... See? This is why I have not been blogging much. I have nothing to say! Other than Christmas being fun, I am working for my dad for a week or two so at least I have a small income while job searching. And... that's all folks! Maybe I'll come up with something interesting in the next few days.

2004-12-04T22:15:00.000+02:00

I wanted a baked potato. Checking the fridge I was relieved to discover that there was one still left over from last night's dinner. Throwing it into the microwave, I headed over to the silverware drawer to grab a knife and fork. My sister had just finished putting away the clean dishes and had planted herself against the very drawer I was aiming for. I told her to move: "Move." She stepped back just enough (aren't sisters great?) to let me slip a hand into the silverware to grab what I needed. However, to my utmost shock, the silverware was not in their little divided compartments as was the custom but rather in a COMPLETE AND TOTAL MESS! I was horrified! No longer could I reach into the drawer and pull out the utensil I needed! I turned on my sister, "What in the heck did you do??" Very calmly she replied that this haphazard way was better. It added an element of surprise. I was speechless. Never before had my sister done something this... this... INSANE! I simply stood there and stared at her in disbelief.

Then I woke up. Praise Jesus.

2004-11-29T10:43:00.001+02:00

Christmas is in the air! *Happy Christmas jingle* The lights strung on houses and trees, hot cocoa in front of crackling fireplaces, commercialism going through the roof, Christmas carols on the radio, sleeping in a tent in the backyard .... *music stops abruptly* "Um... did she just say what I think she just said?" "Nah, no one's that stupid."

This weekend the front range area of Colorado has been in a "winter storm." Basically this means freezing weather and lots of snow. LOTS. OF. SNOW. Natives of Colorado take this forecast to mean a lovely evening (or two or three) in front of the fireplace (or more likely, the TV), only going outside to shovel the walk occasionally. My sister, however, marches to her own beat (of a totally different instrument). She took the forecast to mean camp out! Unfortunately, I'm not very good at saying "no." So, on the worst night of the whole year so far (six inches of snow on the ground and still coming fast), she and I set up our tent in our backyard.

I will have you know that I actually slept in the tent throughout the whole night. It was pretty comfortable too. A mattress of snow is rather soft. It kept snowing all night so when we got up the snow was about six inches up the sides of the tent. For any of you out there with this opportunity, I would definitely recommend taking advantage it. The frostbite eventual goes away (or its cut off...no problem).

2004-11-29T10:43:00.000+02:00

2004-11-21T12:40:00.000+02:00

I have always had the "big sister" mentality (that's generally what happens when you're the big sister). The "I can beat my brother up but if you touch him, I'll kill you" attitude (that did kind of changed when he got bigger then me though...). As for my younger sisters, guys beware. However, in the past few months I have noticed these feelings getting a little stronger. Maybe that is because I have been developing closer ties with my siblings or maybe because they are getting older. The second my brother starts talking about some girl - "*insert girl's name* gave me a ride home" - I begin my inquistion: "Who's that?" "What's she like?" "Do you like her?" "Is she a devil worshipper?" You know, the important things. And right then and there I decide I need to keep my eye open for this girl. I am even worse when some girl comes running up to my brother to give him a hug (and at my church - girls tend to be huggy). I look at that girl like, "Oh no you didn'!" Then my bro introduces her and I have to be all polite. Blah. The same goes for my sisters and their guy friends - but thankfully, I can be a little more openly hostile to the guys and everything is okay.

However, those kind of girls (and guys for my sisters) are everyday troubles. I can handle those. The worst thing is the other kind of girls. Not the ones my brother drags in but the ones who come tripping into the house arm in arm with my sisters. Their "friends." I have never had the best of luck with girl friends. Not really sure why but it just not seem to work out very well. I, of course, of tons of theories but that can be for a different post if I ever open up that much on this blog. While I have been able to live (I wouldn't say "deal") with my friends making a fool of me and using me, I cannot stand to see my sisters' friends doing that to them. Unbeknownst to most of you, patience is actually not my middle name. My brother's favorite song to sing to me is actually "Patience is a virtue, virtue is a grace..." I have no patience for girls who think they can push my sisters around. Maybe they do not realize they are doing it or maybe my sisters are not aware it is happening, but there is no way in hell those girls are going to get away with it. However, this can present a problem: it generally embarrases my sisters.

Let me give an example. Tonight, L had one of her good friends come over. She has been trying to put forth an effort to continue hanging out with H since H got a boyfriend and pretty much dropped all her friends. So H comes over, the two of them hang out for a while and everything is honky dory, however, when I get home (around midnight) H is on the phone with her boyfriend! And has been for the past 15 minutes. They continue talking for another 15 minutes while my sister sits there and listens. How rude is that?? I nearly flipped. Finally my dad walked over and told her to get off the phone. That set me off on this chain of thinking. What really bothered me is when we (my dad and I) tried to show my sister how H was just using her to talk to her boyfriend (who, btw, had come over to our house with H for a while anyway), L just defended her. I guess that is what a good friend should do... but grrr! From personal experience I know what it feels like to be the good friend in a relationship and have the other "good" friend simply take advantage of that.

Maybe I am just being over protective and do not want to see my siblings get hurt. I know that a lot of life is learned through pain but I would hope that there was some way for me to be the one who got hurt and for them to learn from it.

2004-11-10T20:30:00.000+02:00

Proof that I miss school:

LeTourneau is well-known for its "nerd" population. Those (girls and guys) who will stay up three days and nights to beat their own best score. Those who will use up ALL THE BANDWIDTH just so they can miss classes, fail courses, and beat Fable. World of Warcraft has caused more than just one or two students to miss meals and sleep. For three years I was surrounded by friends and acquaintances who have, at least in some part, an obsession with computer and video games. I have always prided myself on my ability to rise above the siren call of these games, to focus on more important things like partying, hanging out with friends, or actually doing homework. I have never lost sleep due to an overwhelming urge to "get to the next level." When I graduated, I thought I had gotten away from that whole "scene"...

Halo 2 was released last night at midnight.

Monday was a very normal day. Worked on my car (#$%^ car), ran errands, looked for a job, watched a movie, ate - totally average. At 10pm I was talking with a couple of my sister's friends. At 11pm, I was firmly planted in a growing line in the middle of the Ft. Collins mall with a few friends and EVERY SINGLE NERD in the Front Range area. What happened to me? I went from being rather normal somewhat quirky but hardly nerdy to standing in line (a rather long one I might add) waiting for the early release of Halo 2 surrounded by guys who had asked for the next three days off from work just to play the game! One guy even threatened to break up with his girlfriend if she would not leave him completely alone for the week. (Thankfully, she was okay with it so they are still together.)

Of course, there was no WAY I was going to stand in line for two hours (yeah, it took us an hour to get through the line after they started handing them out - and we were in the front third of the fast lane) and then just go home. I headed over to J. J.'s. After four more hours of Halo 2, pizza, pop, and coffee laced with SoCo, I finally headed home to sleep.

Tuesday has been a very normal day. Maybe last night was just a fluke.

2004-11-03T20:02:00.000+02:00

I wish I were a glow worm,
A glow worm's never glum...

'Cuz how can you be grumpy,

When the sun shines out your bum??

2004-10-28T19:08:00.000+02:00

"It is not the message. It is our obedience to it. This is the Father's will."
"Emotion is chaos."
"The disease that is human emotion." -Equilibrium

The desire for absolute control by the abolishment of chaos (aka emotion). Blind obedience. "How do you feel?" used as a trap phrase, a trick question. The only right answer being "I do not." Control by lowering everyone to the point of robots - and convincing them this is the best for them. What a contradiction from God. God already has completely control. Yet he asks for our obedience, but not inspite of the message. Rather because of it, because of emotion, because of chaos. A God who can control and rule the apparent chaos we live in is greater than someone that can only control mindless drones. I can trust God and know that he appreciates my chaos - my emotions that so often seem completely crazy. He does not require blind obedience from me. He only asks that I trust him and give him all of me. He can use me - insane emotions and all. Too long have I tried to shut down my emotions. Tried not to feel. I knew that I could not handle them and I did not trust God to accept them. Yet that is not a solution. It's time to start trusting. How do I feel? I feel. I'll let God deal with the rest.

2004-10-18T21:34:00.000+02:00

HI! I'm back!

So a little over four weeks ago, I decided that I should visit people in Texas before I make my life changing move to New York. Since I had put in my two weeks at my job, I figured I was free. I could do what I want. (I love that feeling.) So a week later, I headed south. Little did I know my week long trip would stick me in Texas for the next three. When I reached Longview, I got a call from my friends in NY who informed me that they did not feel it work for me to come up. Frustrating but hey! Now I was completely without a schedule. :) I hung out in Longview for a few more days. If anyone fails classes because of lack of studying - please tell me it's not my fault! Then I literally drove around Texas visiting family: Longview to Houston, to Austin, to a ranch in west Texas for a family reunion, then straight north to New Mexico, then finally Colorado bound! Of course, in good ol' Lauren style, my car had to give me issues so from Houston to Austin to west Texas my brakes were getting gradually worse until I had to drive all the way to New Mexico without brakes. Downshift, e-brake, downshift, e-brake. Grrr. However, I am now an expert at managing my transmission. :D In New Mexico, I took my car in and they replaced the master cylinder. So yay! Finally I could stop! But not to be put off, the car then does weird stuff on the way to Colorado. I'd explain it but it's just too weird. But whatever. I had an awesome few weeks, a few first time experiences, and drove for over 50 hours (mostly listening to Eminem).

Okay, that's just a quick random overview of my trip. Hopefully soon I'll get to make another trip but head east - like towards Ohio and surrounding area. Oh by the way... I need a job. And congrats to Knep for getting one!

2004-09-30T09:09:00.000+02:00

What if?

What if we could no longer rely on electricity? What if the radio was not working? What would it mean if your tv and x-box was inoperable? How would you handle it if all of your computers only output "error error"? Would you be able to entertain yourself? Would it mean using - heaven forbid - your brain? Thinking might be a necessity. I suppose you could just go down to the nearest bar and drink yourself into a stupor every night. But if you didn't... Imagine what could actually be discussed! What could actually be thought! You would not be able to rely on what is fed to you but what you think. True, it would be possible to still find people who could tell you what to think but it would not be fed so readily. People would no longer be concerned about what is going to happen on next week's Gilmore Girls. What about really discovering the answers? No wait. Before we can even look for the answers we need to learn the questions. Do we even know what questions need to be answered? Our lives have been so overrun by the media - music, reality tv, dramatizations, entertaining tv shows with no real point, even the news that focuses only on the "entertaining" stories - that our brains have shut down. Now something as simple as "thinking for yourself" is intimidating and uncomfortable at best. Indoctrination is something we have heard about and is known by everyone. Have you ever watched someone who is watching tv? How can we just sit there and let ourselves be so indoctrinated? How often have you ever seen indoctrination to be a good thing? How can you just sit there and willingly let it happen to you? Is it just because it easier to be a mindless drone or is it the comfort that is found in being just one of many?

And yet the irony ... I am currently absorbing my dose of the X-Files while taking my music intravenously.

2004-09-13T22:46:00.000+03:00

Tonight I saw a shooting star,
Made me wonder where you are.
For years I have been dreaming of you,
And I wonder if you're thinking of me, too.

In this world of cheap romance
And love that only fades after the dance,
They say that I'm a fool to wait for something more.
How can I really love someone I've never seen before?

I have longed for true love every day that I have lived,
And I know real love is all about learning how to give.
So I pray that God will bring you to me,
I pray you'll fnd me waiting faithfully.

(chorus)
Faithfully, I am yours
From now until forever.
Faithfully I will write,
Write you a love song with my life.
'Cause this kind of love's worth waiting for
No matter how long it takes.
I am yours
Faithfully, faithfully

Tonight I saw two lovers kiss,
Reminded me of my own loneliness.
They say that I'm a fool to keep on praying for you.
How can I give up pleasure for a dream that won't come true?

But I will keep believing that God still has a plan.
And though I cannot see you now, I know that He can,
And someday I will give you all of me.
Until I find you, I'll be waiting faithfully.

"Faithfully" by Eric and Leslie Ludy

Bet ya did not konw I could be this sappy! ;)

2004-09-09T00:50:00.000+03:00

Hello?? Anyone out there?

2004-08-25T01:17:00.000+03:00

I know I'm a nerd but this is what happens when I get bored at work. :)

(X) been drunk
(_) kissed a member of the opposite sex (though they have tried) :D
(_) kissed a member of the same sex (no, but had a highschool kid ask me to kiss my friend – a girl)
(_) had sex
(_) been to Japan
(X) ridden in a taxi (through Times Square – they really are as crazy as the movies)
(_) been in love (not sure… I say no because I hope love is going to be a bigger deal)
(_) been dumped
(X) shoplifted (a package of that zebra gum when I was about seven and lip gloss a few years later)
(_) been fired
(X) been in a fist fight (with my brother and with my bed – my brother fought back)
(_) sneaked out of your parents house
(X) had feelings for someone who didn’t have them back
(_) been arrested
(_) made out with a stranger (no - just danced with ‘em)
(_) celebrated new years in times square (not yet but hopefully that will be remedied in a few months)
(_) gone on a blind date (haven’t really even gone on a eyes-open date)
(X) lied to a friend
(_) had a crush on a teacher (Umm.. no. My teacher was my mom…)
(_) celebrated mardi-gras in new orleans
(X) been to europe (France)
(X) skipped school (hehehe)
(X) cut yourself on purpose
(_) seen someone die
(_) been to africa
(_) had a crush on one of your blogging friends
(X) slapped someone you loved (my poor sister…)
(X) driven over 400 miles to attend a show/festival/fetish ball (Brother’s Eagle Ceremony?)
(X) been to canada
(X) been to mexico
(X) been on a plane
(_) been on a helicopter
(X) been to an opera
(X) smoked
(_) thrown up in a bar (thankful no!)
(X) purposely set a part of yourself on fire (generally just my hands but occasionally my hair)
(_) eaten sushi
(X) been snowboarding (ouch)
(_) been surfing (I was supposed to go last weekend though!)
(X) jumped off a cliff
(X) jumped off a bridge
(X) been scuba diving
(_) met someone in person from the internet
(X) been moshing at a concert
(X) been in a car accident
(_) had feelings for someone you knew only online
(X) had braces (how else do you think I have these gorgeous teeth?)
(_) had plastic surgery (not yet… hopefully soon)
(_) broken a bone
(_) been in an abusive relationship
(X) gone to college
(X) graduated college
(X) picked your nose (and then flicked the booger at you when you weren’t looking)
(_) tried killing yourself
(X) thought about trying to kill yourself
(X) taken painkillers
(X) miss someone right now

2004-08-24T18:19:00.000+03:00

The tattoo was a false alarm. J and I were going to get henna tattoos (I know, that's like cheating or something) right before we headed to NY. We wanted to freak out the friends we were visiting but it just did not work out. *shrug* Maybe some other time.

Today is my first day back at work. I may be physically planted in front of this stone age computer with stacks of mutilated trees in front of me but my mind is still running the streets of New York. Brooke, I totally know how you feel. I have spent the last five days just staring in awe at buildings... and not sleeping much!

Things I did in New York:
- Never slept at night (would sleep when the sun was starting to rise)
- Saw Times Square at 4am
- Went clubbing in the Meat Packing District
- Ate pizza in Times Square
- Saw Statue of Liberty, Ground Zero, Rockefeller Center, Grand Central Station, Wall Street, Central Park, Brooklyn Bridge, Chinatown, etc.
- Ate dinner in Little Italy (ordered calamari. I was unaware until this point that calamari could come un-fried ... with little baby squids... It is hard to eat food with more arms and legs than me)
- Danced with a couple hot guys
- Spit off the edge of the Empire State Building (the view is wow - like really wow)
- Survived a taxi ride
- Navigated my way through the New York underground
- Tasted various wines (including Strawberry Wine) at a vineyard.
- Had a beer in the Times Square Brewery
- Laid out by the Atlantic Ocean in Montauk ("The end of the world")
- Pretended I was rich and famous in Hamptons (made everyone else feel like they were retarded because they did not know who I was)
- Had Richard Gere say "Hi" to one of my best friends at the airport where she worked (OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!)
- Rode glass elevators in the W Hotel - 47 stories (the first elevator we entered contained two students in formals sitting on the floor discussing the deconstructionalism of a turkey - however, after quickly exiting that one, the other elevators were thankful free of Socratic club debates)
- Had a random lady teach us (group of six girls) how to through guys off track when they are using pick-up lines. She was kind of weird...

Overall, the experience was crazy, new, exciting, weird, and totally sweet. Words do not exist to express my feelings and reactions to the time I spent in the state of New York. However, I am planning on moving there in a month so just come visit and you can experience it yourself.

Shoot... work demands attention... later y'all

(and just because I'm slightly sadistic, I am not going to spell check or review it at all! Hahaha!)

2004-08-18T18:27:00.000+03:00

I got my hair cut. I know this might seem like a small deal to you. It probably is. But that is because you do not understand. I have been planning/saying/anticipating to get my hair cut for a while now. I believe this saga* began ... approximately December 29th at 10:30. I was home on break and people were coming down off their various degrees of "Jolly Ol' Saint Nick" highs. My sister woke me up at this God-forsaken hour of the morning. "We should go get our hair cut together!" *Moan* "Umm... huh? Go away, then wake me up for lunch." She kept insisting until I finally told her that would perfectly acceptable with me, though I did not think I needed a trim (geeze, I'd just gotten it cut in like August), if she could wait until the next day (I was pretty sure I would be awake by then). Something was started that day that did not end until last night at 6:17. I guess it is clear that we did not go the next day... or the next... or the next... Then I went to Winter Park for a few days, then I went back to school, then I had to diligently put off papers and studying and various forms of homework, then I went to Turkey, then I was graduating, then I was back in Colorado. At least once a week (sometimes anywhere from seven to fourteen times a day) during those 7 months I declared that "I need to get my hair cut. I'll do it this weekend." Then this week happened. It began normally, "I need to get my hair cut. I'll do it this weekend." However, a thought dawned. Wait, I'll be in New York this weekend. I will not be able to do it this weekend. I have to do it NOW! So right after work, without passing go, I found myself outside Hair-tique. *Deep breath* Oh my gawd, it's finally happening! I walked inside, the lady asked how she could help me and in about 2.6 and a half seconds, I was GETTING MY HAIR CUT! I told her to simply take off as much as she needed to get all the split/dead ends off. At first she guestimated it would be about an inch to an inch and a half. However, when it came to actually looking at those spilt ends, she had to take THREE INCHES! (Granted, not that much to lose for my hair but that is like walking around with half your arm eaten away by some ugly skin disease!) Now my hair actually looks like HAIR instead of a badger that is trying to beat my ears out of control of my head. So yeah, apparently waiting over a year is a bit too long. That is my saga concerning my hair.

*Saga: a long somewhat boring and way too detailed account (italics my own )

*Disclaimer: My hair is still long and you would not even notice the missing three inches so no lynching please. (I guess that's not really a disclaimer as such but whatever, see if I care.) Oh, and now I look extra hot thanks to my sexy hair. Oh, I'm getting a tattoo over lunch break.

2004-08-12T01:45:00.000+03:00

Someone please remind me why I am still in this crazy place? Why am I still working for a company where people call in to yell at me all the time? I get chewed out by co-workers for accidentally telling the truth, I get chewed out by others for trying to help... Is there something wrong with this picture?? I keep wishing and hoping that life is going to change. However, I got a really encouraging/convicting email today. It's the cool kind because the guy did not even mean to do it. He was just talking about what was happening in his life. This sentence really stood out: "No hardship the Lithuanians can throw at me will ever make this experience a poor one." His attitude toward his situation is one that he chose. Just because life might be rough and he's going to be in many situations that will stretch him, he knows that he is there for God. If I can look at my various situations - even the ones where clients call in and rip me a new one - with a positive attitude, then at least I can come out of this situation a stronger person (well, alive anyway). It might not be one that I will ever want to do over or wish upon my worst enemy, but I will be more. Isn't that one of the main purpose of life? To honor God and grow through everything we do? It is not my place to look at my life and start cussing and wishing I was somewhere else, doing something else. God has me in this situation for a reason. (That does not mean that I am not going to dream and work to fulfill those dreams!) If I do not know that reason then the least I can do is live my life as a sacrifice to God. The reason will then most likely be fulfilled, whether or not I ever knew what it was. So for as long as I am in this situation: No hardship this company can throw at me will ever make this experience a poor one. (Lord, please help me actually live this out! Then once I get the right attitude down for this job - God can help me begin applying it to my whole life.) Until then... I get to go home and pray the next 15 hours will go slowly until I have to come back here again.
Peace out y'all.

2004-07-30T00:10:00.000+03:00

... and if you do not believe this story is true ... check out this sexy chick's site.

2004-07-29T21:23:00.000+03:00

I'm leaving on a jet plane! Don't know when I'll be back again.

Guess what I did! I bought myself a ticket to ... drumroll... Podunk, Nebraska!! Booyah! Neener neener. (Just kidding... actually it is NEW YORK!!!!) Joanna and I finally decided to head there. We knew we wanted to - and had every plan of actually moving over there some time in September. However, we started thinking... we should probably look for jobs beforehand, we should meet up with our friends there and try to find a house to rent, and we should figure out where the closest clubs are going to be. Oh, and of course, take a break from this messed up workplace. So Joanna comes over Sunday night. We spend approximately a decade looking up plane tickets, comparing one rate with another, trying to resurface from the onslaught of popups. Finally, we find THE ONE. The perfect ticket! Not too expensive (more than the 5 dollars we had budgeted though). Eventually, we hit "complete purchase" - the infamous button. After giggling and cartwheeling for a bit, my sister came in to find out what the whooplah was about. In my pride I showed her the itenerary. Leave DIA, arrive in LGA in time for dinner, party for a... What the...? LGA? That's supposed to be JFK. D'oh. After an inappropriate expletive (in front of my little sister... oops), we were able to establish the fact that yes, we were flying into LGA - the airport that happens to be on the complete opposite side of New York. Check: ticket nonrefundable. Check: cancellation fee of $100. GRRRRR. After majorly freaking out for a few minutes, we called a 1 800 number. It is nearly 1am in the morning... please let someone be there! After labyrinths of voice messaging systems we finally reached a real live person. This person gladly credited by card for the full amount of the tickets and only charged me a seven dollar service fee!!! Whew! So then we again went back to searching for the perfect ticket. This time the perfect ticket that would actually get us to the correct destination. So, we now have tickets to New York!
Imagine what's going to happen when the two of us try to tackle the actually city! WATCH OUT NEW YORK!

2004-07-21T01:00:00.000+03:00

I keep thinking that I should post again. Then I look at my last post and it is just so right. That is the thought that goes through my head for most of the day. "Make it a double." It works for all situations. Day sucks, make it a double so I can finally relax and quit thinking. Having a great time, make it a double and keeps the good times rolling - until I pass out. Maybe I should learn to just settle for the single. Take things in a good moderate amount. That way I will never be so completely smashed that I'll do something stupid. But is moderation really all that great? The old adage states, "Everything in moderation." I have heard that quoted so much in nearly all situations. But what about those of us that more than just "moderation"? I think that instead of just a moderate amount, I want everything. Everything. Yeah, that would do it...

2004-07-13T22:17:00.000+03:00

Make it a double, bartender.

2004-06-27T06:19:00.000+03:00

What do you think?

Aoccdrnig to rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a total mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.

2004-06-24T20:13:00.000+03:00

Ack! It has finally happened! I now have a FULL-TIME job!! I thought this would never happen. And I am still so young. :( I have successfully managed to avoid a full-time job my whole life - I have had multiple part-time jobs that add up to full-time hours but there was always variety. What is happening to me? I thought I would be much older before settling down and committing to just ONE job for 160 hours a month (give or take a few).

I have a weird job.
First day of work:
9:30 - show up for interview looking very professional
10:00 - clocked in and filling out work information
11:00 - sitting around hoping someone will get off the phone long enough to tell me what to do.
12:00 - break for lunch (two hours of "work" and I've barely done anything)
12:30 - begin working on the company's taxes (told just to "figure it out" because the IRS will only audit a company about once every ten years so it is going to be at least seven more years before I need to worry about anything)
2:00 - start assessing the company's accounts receivable, realize that the guy who worked before me was a retard.
4:00 - go home.
Second day of work:
6:30 - GOOD MORNING (holy crap, I did not know that it was possible to get up THIS FREAKIN' EARLY)
7:45 - pick up Joanna. Revelation: I am NOT a morning person
8:30 - Get to work (I'm going to have to reassess this 45 minute commute thing)
9:00 - start tackling the stacks of paper that encompass this company's A/R
12:45 - hit up Taco Bell with Joanna (I got a free drink because I have the secret weapons)
1:30 - Back to the grindstone, spend the rest of the day entering invoices and wishing a thousand painful deaths on the guy who worked before me.
5:00 - Finished. My first whole day of working 9-5 in a full-time job. Go me.

The job is fun, the people funny and relaxed, and the place is in chaos and is somewhat psycho. But it is a challenge and I get to do a variety of work. :) Plus, I totally feel needed because I am the only one who kind of understands taxes and money flow and such. Anyway, I'll keep you posted. Right now, it's time for work.

2004-06-21T04:46:00.000+03:00

GET. ME. OUT. OF. HERE.

2004-06-16T11:02:00.000+03:00

I have made it back to Colorado! It is as beautiful as ever and again the question arises, "How could I leave it for Texas??" (no offense) I am due to go hiking this weekend. My sister is a hiking fanatic and has decided to hike every 14,000 foot mountain in Colorado. She has a couple of easy ones picked out for this weekend so I get to join her. I just hope I can manage to breathe. This altitude thing is killing me! I also have been sort of looking for jobs. I am tossing around the idea of heading up to Alaska for a few months so the job search has not been too intense. I do have some options so we'll see what happens.

The trip home was interesting. After stuffing my car to the hilt with books, shoes, CD's, and everything else that I own, I headed to Austin to pick up my mom - four and a half hours, no air-conditioning. I had warned her to pack light since she would have to hold anything she brought on her lap unless she was really lucky. She did a wonderful job with packing - a tiny suitcase for a whole week. Impressive. Also impressive was the shopping spree she went on right before I picked her up. Hello? Did I not say to PACK LIGHT? I guess I should have been more specific about the amount of space that was available, it's only a Honda. However, we managed to get all her stuff in the car (no small feat let me tell you!) and even had room for her. Then we drive over to New Mexico - seven hours, no air-conditioning. Immediately upon arrival, we had to move my granddad from an assisted living home to a full blown nursing home because his alzheimer's had gotten to the violent stage and they could not take care of him. That was pretty rough. I have not seen my mom cry so much and my two aunts were no help at all so I had to be the moral support. :( Not a fun time. Another "feel sorry for me" aspect: my aunt has five dogs. Not just any dogs. Chihuahuas. Wow. We were only there for a couple days, then began the drive home - 11 hours, no air-conditioning. It was a really cool time to be able to spend with my mom. It was also really cool that I only filled up once all the way from New Mexico to Colorado. Yay. The rest of the ride was just really hot.

I have now just been chilling at home. My brother came down from Wyoming to see me on Sunday when we got in. And Monday night, we had a party of just a few family friends to say congrats on graduating. Oh, and I finally got to see Joanna again! So, yeah, that's about everything ... I'm starting to drool on the keyboard so I think I'm going to go find my bed. It is quite an ordeal considering I have everything that was shoved inside my car now spread out all over my bed, floor, desk, even the ceiling fan. Will I ever be organized? Oh oh oh, guess what? I am looking into phone plans and phones! I might actually have a cell phone that works! I know! Stop the presses! But I'll let you know more details about that later. Goodnight!

2004-06-09T12:13:00.000+03:00

If God called you, would you obey?

2004-06-07T02:26:00.000+03:00

"What are you doing for the summer?" "What are your long-term plans now that you are through with college?" "What jobs do you have lined up?" "Do you have any grad schools picked out yet?" "What was your major again? Oh, how are you going to do anything with that?"

WTF, mate! Am I doing something wrong because I do not have the rest of my life planned out at this very moment? I know I have a Bible major and no, I have no idea what I am going to do with it. I do not have a grad school picked out and applied for, and just what are long-term plans anyway? I do not want to commit my life to just one subject just yet. I want to live. Not just in the typical "wake up, eat, work, eat, work, eat, hang out too late, sleep, repeat" way. I want to live in the "I've been to here, here, and here and eaten this, this, and this and done this, this, and this" way. When I was young (like four years ago) I knew that I wanted a 9-5 job, doing the same thing everyday. I liked routine and familiarity. I guess I've changed. I still like routine as long as that routine has enough room for a lot of spontaneity.

Do you ever feel that something is missing from your life? I always feel like somehow there are two me's. One me is the one here at college, being responsible - sometimes, getting good enough grades, but floating rudderless while the other me is out there somewhere doing all the things that I want to do. Maybe I am just not aggressive enough in pursuing things that I desire. I keep waiting. I have no idea what for though. I am afraid to pour myself into something wholeheartedly because I do not want to miss anything else that might come along. I want to be apart of everything and therefore I'm not really apart of anything.

I need to figure out some sort of balance where I can still have fun and do various things but will actually be apart of something. That way I can have my routine and eat it too.

2004-06-03T22:49:00.000+03:00

I have finally done something else to this blog! It is just more links but still, that's exciting. I added Brooke's new blog. Since she is still using the old one a little I went ahead and kept them both. Isn't it so much fun trying to juggle two? I think she just wants to feel important. ;) I also added Trina. Perfect timing as you can see from her newest post. She will not be posting much for the next two months. Of course, compared to me, she might be posting a lot. Who knows. It is all relative. I also added Dooce because I feel selfish for keeping her to myself even though nearly everyone else in the whole blog sphere has her linked. Okay, honestly, this is just so I can feel that I fit in with everyone else. Right, I think that covers everything. Let me know if I need to add something else. (Of course, you generally do anyway!)
Cheerio Darlings!

2004-06-03T22:28:00.000+03:00

Disorder	Rating
Paranoid:	Moderate
Schizoid:	Low
Schizotypal:	Moderate
Antisocial:	Moderate
Borderline:	Very High
Histrionic:	Moderate
Narcissistic:	Moderate
Avoidant:	Low
Dependent:	Moderate
Obsessive-Compulsive:	Low
-- Personality Disorder Test - Take It! --

Hmm... Maybe this explains everything - or at least something.

2004-05-26T09:08:00.000+03:00

Grandma's in the cellar
And, lordy, can't you smell her
Cooking biscuits on the old dirty stove
And in her eye there is some matter
Dripping down into the batter
And she whistles while the snot runs down her nose!

Down her nose
Down her nose
And she whistles while the snot runs down her nose.

2004-05-03T23:23:00.000+03:00

Read this: THIS
That is not a request, more like a very nice command. This is probably the funniest thing I have read in a long time. It is about a wedding dress and a divorced man. (hmm... maybe he's bitter... but you'll have to read it so you can give your opinion.)

2004-05-03T00:56:00.000+03:00

*Caution: I am weird*
I fast because I'm hungry
I run because I'm thirsty
I die every day because I want to live
I lead because I follow
I give everything away to become rich
I am weak and broken so I will be strong
I see more when my eyes are closed
I'm in love with someone I haven't seen
I love the unlovely
I am honored when people mock me
I embrace these foolish things to become wise

I will also whole heartedly walk out on any limb He requires because even if He lets it break He can teach me to fly.

2004-04-28T10:24:00.000+03:00

It is said that Thomas Jefferson would tear out pages in the Bible that he did not agree with. I wonder why. I am sure that personality plays into this but I tend to be apathetic when I read something that I do not agree with. I shrug it off as something I am not going to worry about. I am confident in my salvation and I know that I am going to Heaven. God knows that I will not be able to get everything right and will continue to sin throughout my life on earth. I suppose I choose some of what I will get wrong. Of course, I could just go look for another interpretation. I have heard, "It is my impression that this passage is saying..." too many times (I have used it myself). It seems as if there is at least two interpretations for nearly every passage. I can just find one that does not make me feel uncomfortable or challenged. This reminds me of my Revelation class...

I have been in this class for a semester, nearly everything I have learned can be summed up in two sentences: Jesus is coming. Be ready. I have learned a ton of interesting facts about the first century and the early Christians, but not a whole lot that would apply to my life today. There are four main views for interpreting Revelation with a lot of smaller branches under that. The prof continues to say, I am not in any one group - do not put me in a box. I can totally understand that. I do not want to be put in a box. I am tired of people who are in one of the boxes getting mad at people in another box. How can they truly look at the others and say, "You are wrong. I have figured it out." I understand human pride but I would hope that common sense would come in there somewhere. But I am also frustrated with those of us who straddle all the boxes picking out bits and pieces that we want from each, knowing that we will only know the whole answer later. Why can there not be just straight forward answers?

I almost admire Jefferson for his ability to be decisive to actually know which parts of the Bible he disagreed with adamantly enough to actually tear them out.

2004-04-15T12:12:00.000+03:00

"LeTourneau?" The voice was quiet, confident, and somewhat raspy.
"Wh-? Oh. Yes."
"Senior?"
"Yes."
"Engineer?"
"Nope."
"Business?"
"Nope."
"?" The old cowboy standing beside my table looked his question.
"Actually, my degree is Biblical Studies."
He nodded his approval while looking over the books scattered in front of me.
"I am a priest - of sorts."
"Oh? What sort?"
"Episcopalian. What church are you connected with?"
"Basically non-denominational."
"That's Episcopalian."
I just smiled. I was still not sure what to make of this man. He had a gentle smile.
"My name is Papa. Yours?" He stuck out his hand to shake mine.
"Lauren."
"It was a pleasure to meet you, Lauren."

He turned and walked back to his table. His cowboy boots making a thumping sound while his long grey trench coat and well-worn cowboy hat brought up images of western saloons with gunslingers and their woman of choice for the evening. A sheriff walking down the street, eyes squinting against the sun but not missing the smallest detail. I could imagine dust from the trail on his faded jeans and boots. While he had been talking to me, I kept glancing at his hip expecting to see a six-shooter. I followed him with my eyes wondering who he was and where he was from. He was old - but had a vitality about him that belied the wrinkles and hearing aid.

I noticed him looking my way a couple times but turned my attention back to my homework. A short time later a napkin was dropped on my table, I looked up as Papa walked off.

"If your cell ok
free - *69 & call
me 903 *** ****
I wish to ask you a ? about 5th book of Old Testament."
Papa

I had no intention of giving my cell number to a man I had met at 2am at the Waffle Shoppe. I decided that since he was sitting across the restaurant from me, he could just walk over if he really wanted me to answer a question. He did.
"What are we allowed to eat according to the 5th book of the OT?"
"Well, God told the Jews not to eat anything that was considered unclean." (Good B.S. answer...)
"Do you eat beef?"
"Definitely."
"I don't. I only eat fish, chicken, fruits, vegetables. Beef is bad for you."
"Smoking bad for you too." I gestured to the cigarette he was holding.
"tobacco is a part of my religion." He gave a quirky smile, "I'm Indian." (I wish I could remember which kind.) Then he got serious.
"It is good you study. We need people to learn. Hear that? (Ironically, he was referring to a group of AO guys that were sitting near me and talking loudly.) It is just noise. Listen, only noise. We must tolerate them or teach them. I cannot teach everyone. I am getting old. See this hearing aid? I do not hear as well as I used to. I fired too many guns without protection. Now I use protection. I fight defense, not offense. Always defense. I fight crime, fight drugs, fight terrorism. You do not have runny eyes, you are steady, that is good. It has been a pleasure to meet you, Lauren. Continue to study."

With those last words of wisdom, he turned and walked out. The last of the old west, fading into legend.

2004-04-01T03:58:00.000+02:00

How can the world go from being such a fun and exciting place, full of opportunities and life to so not that? I had the best time in Turkey (in case you did not figure that out from the last blog) and now I having the worst week possible. I guess to experience and appreciate times of true fun and love and happiness, we need the pits of despair and intense frustration for comparison. It is the pendulum swing that Dr. Woodring is always talking about. You see it all the way through history. Something happens to an extreme in one direction so the other extreme happens to balance it. Eventually it reaches neutrality again. Have you tried living life in a neutral position? I have not found it to be possible. The gentle swings - good days then not so good days - are easy to handle and normal. When the pendulum starts swinging harder though, it's so insane trying to get it back under control. So, that's my week ... please tell me yours sucks too then we can gripe together.