Merry Christmas!

Wow...I haven't posted in almost two months. You'd think I was busy finishing up my scholarly paper, finishing two grad classes, singing Handel's "Messiah," working, having a "wedding" shower, writing "thank you" notes, going to pre-marital counseling, and graduating with a Master's degree in aerospace engineering or something.

Yeah...it's been a busy two months.

But that's all done. This week, my mom and I will make the majority of my wedding dress, and then I'll pack what's left of my stuff that's been in my brother's basement for three years into a U-haul and drive it all back to Maryland. The week after that, I'll address a _whole_ bunch of envelopes and mail out invitations (send me your address if I don't already have it - and maybe if I do....some have been inexplicably lost). In the three weeks after that, I'll make three bridesmaids dresses. What little sewing experience I have was back in the days of baby Links and Elianas...seeing how they're both college-aged now, you could say that it's been a while.

But it'll all get done and on February 11th, while Maryland beats Duke, VNB and I will get married!

So, I'm going to go back to spending time with my family. Y'all have a merry Christmas!

Wedding Info!

For those of you who have been dying of curiosity about VNB, you can stop now. Check out our wedding website for info about lots of stuff concerning our wedding.

If you don't see information that you need, or if you see a typo, let me know.

A Year and Counting

So yesterday marked one year since I landed back in the States. Today marks one year since I first heard VNB's name. On Monday, GI Joe got back to the States and on Saturday, he'll get back home. Don't worry about me though - he and Coupon Maven are graciously letting me keep staying at their house until VNB and I get married (well, after a week or so of privacy).

I don't really have much to say on the matter of one year back in the States. I've blathered on before about how much has changed, blah, blah, blah and am just not really in the mood for more mushy writing today. But at the same time, it's an important milestone that I didn't want to be neglected.

So....a year back in America. Woohoo!

Fall

So the weather people warned those of us in the mid-Atlantic that it would be a pretty colorless fall this year since it had been so dry during August and September.

In my yard, at the very least, they were very wrong.

Each morning these last few weeks I've woken up to a sight which has been increasingly beautiful - a maple tree. My drapes are open just a crack, but basically the first thing I've seen each morning is that sliver of the great outdoors. Each day it's seemed amazing...and each day is more amazing than the day before. Despite several cold, rainy, and dreary days, the view from my window has been brilliant.

And then the fun comes. My car, which parks below said maples, always collects a number of leaves on the windshield and hood over the course of the night. So when I leave in the mornings, it's like I'm driving through a big pile of leaves! I get to see them as they all go flying and as a few brave cling on during my travels, waving wildly in the wind.

Soon the leaves will all be gone, along with the colors, and next year I won't be in this little room with it's view...but soon winter with its many joys and beauties will come, followed by a spring like I've never known before - one shared completely with someone else. Life will never be exactly the same again, but one thing that I've found to be always true in my life is that what comes next is even better than what was before. It may not be apparent right away, and at times it may seem like life can't get any better or more beautiful...but it's always been true.

So in the words of the Arabic Children's Bible that I learned from a lifetime ago, I say thank you:

شكرأ يا الله لانك خلقت الاشجار

(Thank you God because You created the trees)

There and Back Again

Well, we got back from Mississippi at about 7:30 AM on Saturday morning. It's a mess down there, but we were able to help a few people and see what we're really up against. It's going to be a _long_ time before life gets back to "normal" for anyone down there. We spent most of our time working in Nicholson, MS. The MapQuest map that I linked to doesn't really show it, but it's right next to the MS/LA border (that's the Pearl River). We were staying about an hour away in Saucier (pronounced "sew-shure"). We stayed with a couple whose nephew's wife was on our team. They're caring for her 100-year-old mother, so they're not able to get out to help people much, but they saw this as their way of helping with the relief effort. Let me tell you, they fed us _well_. We all probably gained weight, even though we were doing hard work all week. And we each had beds to sleep in (most of us didn't even have to share!)!

We drove down (in the rain) Friday night and got there Saturday evening. Sunday morning we made our first trip to FBC, Nicholson in order to worship with them during their morning service. Afterwards we had lunch with the pastor and his family, unloaded the food we'd brough for their food bank, then had a planning meeting with some church members for our Thursday night block party.

On Monday, the pastor was driving all over creation to teach at a seminary, so we were on our own (with some direction from him). We helped an older couple pull all of the furniture out of their house. They'd evacuated to Baton Rouge or someplace during the storm and hadn't come home for a while, so they didn't realize that their roof had sustained some damage and was leaking into their house. By the time they came back, all of their furniture, rugs, drapes, etc. were ruined. We also re-tarped their roof.

Tha didn't take us nearly as long as we'd expected, so we went over to the local elementary school. The principal was a member of FBCN, so we knew before we came what some of their needs were. In their county, all students are required to wear school uniforms. However, many of the displaced students don't have uniforms, so we brought some extra uniforms from our church's school for some of their students to use. When we stopped by to drop them off, we noticed that the roof of one of their portable classrooms needed some help, so we offered to re-tarp it. While a few of us did that, the rest of the group went over to the Pastor's house to remove the debris from his yard.

The next day, we went to the home of another elderly couple. It had been their home for over 50 years. They hadn't sustained a lot of roof damage, but it had taken two weeks for them to be able to get to their door due to all of the downed trees, so their carpets had picked up a lot of moisture. Their insurance company told them to go ahead and remove the old carpet, but to hang onto their furniture for the time being. So we spent the first day moving furniture around and pulling up carpets. While we were there, we heard stories about how beautiful the yard was since the gentleman was a gardener/landscaper, so we took the next day to try to return their yard to some semblance of order.

That day was the most heartbreaking for me. That couple had spent over 50 years cultivating their yard and now that they should be able to just sit back and enjoy it, it's practically gone. Don't get me wrong, they still have a few bushes and flowers, etc., but even the lady of the house realizes that, while it _will_ grow back, it's not going to do it in their lifetimes.

They'll make it through, but....well....I just can't imagine working so hard all those years to have it taken away like that.

On Thursday, we mostly just got ready for our block party, but we did spend the morning vising down closer to the shore in Waveland, MS. We went all the way down Nicholson Ave. to the coast. For several blocks from the coast, the houses were just completely leveled. For a few blocks beyond that, they were destroyed, although still mostly there. We were told that the storm surge was approximately 50 ft deep there at the coast, so even the tall palms and pines that were there were completely underwater for a time. The water reached in about 10 miles from the coast. Understand though that, unlike New Orleans where the water was trapped, this water receeded almost immediately after the storm passed...taking much with it.

Not at all to belittle the people from Waveland's tragedy, but it seems to me that they'll have it easier in many ways than folks in places like Nicholson. See, their homes are gone. All of their belongings are gone. They just have to accept that, bulldoze the debris, and start over. The people in places like Nicholson are going to spend the next several years dealing with insurance to fix roofs and remove trees and replace furniture and belongings and remove mold. The task is so overwhelming.

So we did the only thing left for us to do. We spent Thursday evening providing a needed distraction. We rented a moonbounce with a slide and provided live music and free hot dogs for a couple of hours. The people were so appreciative, the parents especially. They got to watch their kids _play_ for a few hours without thinking about the storm or their monumental task to rebuild. They didn't have to think about being evicted due to their trailer park's sewage system backing up. They didn't have to think about the clean-up process.

With that done, we drove home after one last wonderful lunch with our hosts, arriving back at FBC Laurel (MD, not MS!) at about 7:30 AM on Saturday. We're all still tired and still sorting through our own thoughts and responses to what we saw.

I _can_ say that the team that came together at the last possible minute was definitely Providential in its planning. We got along together so well and just enjoyed each others' company. But we're all glad to be home.

Em-Eye-Ess-Ess-Eye-Ess-Ess-Eye-Pee-Pee-Eye

(That's spells Mississippi, btw).

As soon as our last team member gets here, we're leaving the church to head down to Nicholson, MS. Our church is partnering with FBC Nicholson to help them and their community get back on their feet after Hurricane Katrina. This trip is mostly for us to do some assessment to see what they need and how we can help over the next couple of years, but we know we'll be helping a couple of elderly families clean up mold (and possibly just see what of their stuff we can salvage, if the houses are too far gone), and pulling up some carpet (possibly at the church). The big thing we'll do, however is to have a big "block party" or carnival on Thursday night. The minister of music (who's the pastor leading this trip), another lady, and myself will be providing the evening's musical entertainment, we're hoping to rent a moonbounce, and we've got sno-cone and popcorn machines. Hopefully it'll give people a welcome and needed distraction from their current situations. In the future, we hope to bring down trained counselors since that's really what they need the most right now.

So y'all be thinking of us. It's a 24-hr drive each way with a week of work in the middle. Also be thinking of VNB since he's graciously doing without me for yet another week (he'd be there with us in a heartbeat if he had the leave, but he seems to think that having enough vacation for a honeymoon is important for some reason... ;p ).

I hope I'll have internet access at least for one hour this week as I've got a web-based quiz that's due before Thursday. We download it from a website, then have an hour before we have to upload it again, but we have until next Thursday to do it. But I can't make any promises that I'll blog while I'm there. I'll definitely let y'all know when I'm back though!

What a Difference a Year Makes

A year ago today I left Iraq. I distinctly remember as we were going through one of the many security checkpoints at the airport (the point at which we said goodbye to our drivers) thinking that I shouldn't leave. I should just go back home with the drivers.

But then "logic" or "reason" kicked in. "But you're going to a conference and you're actually interested in what they're going to teach you." "It's only a few days. You'll be back soon." And the real kicker: "You're going to get to go SCUBA diving in the Red Sea!"

Little did I know that I wouldn't get to go back. That those hurried goodbyes at the checkpoint would be the last words I got with our national staff. That those would be my last views of Baghdad.

Today, a year later, my fiance and I closed on a condo in Columbia, MD. A year ago, I almost didn't get on the plane that took me out of Iraq. Today I'm engaged, about to get my Master's degree, and have a new condo to paint and decorate in preparation for living there once VNB and I get married.

I still can't explain how much I miss Iraq. I really loved it there. There are times that it's almost a physical longing to go back. Even now, as wonderful as my life is, I wonder sometimes what life would have been like if I'd listened when that voice said "don't get on the plane." Would God have arranged something even more amazing so that VNB and I would have met at exactly the perfect time? Would I still be there? Would I be five months away from getting married?

What a difference a year makes!

Big Steps

So on Saturday, VNB and I took two of many "big steps." We realized that we could save some money if I was added to his cell phone plan and if I started using his gas card.

His company gives him 15% off of his cell phone bill, plus calling each other would be free, and with the "family" plans, we can share like 800 minutes. PLUS, they were running a special on that particular plan, so we get it for $30/month instead of $80/month for the first two months (not including his discount). Add that to the fact that we no longer have to pay my monthly bill, and we're saving a boatload of money.

Then with his gas card, he gets like 5% back on gas purchases at Shell stations as long as he goes to at least 5 in a year or something. So especially with gas prices the way they are right now, we're gonna save a lot of money there too.

So basically, the moral of the story here is this: marriage saves you money. :)

Article

This is an article that will never make "Headline" news, but shows one of the many improvements that have been made to Iraq since the fall of Saddam.

I'm Ba-aaaack!!

Well, I'm still in a general state of wooziness, but we all made it back safely. It was a fun trip, but I'm really glad to be back home! More later when my brain feels less "fluffy."

Oh, BTW

Oh, BTW, I get married six months, an hour, and five minutes from now!!

I'm OK!!

I'm still in Nigeria. We'll be here for a few more days. A few of us took a few minutes at an internet cafe, so, since I had some time, I thought I'd drop a line here to let y'all know that I'm ok.

So, I'm ok! :) I'll write more when I get back and have more time.

Nigeria!!

So I leave today for Nigeria. I'm going with a group from my church to visit in Lagos and Ayetoro (a "village" a couple of hours north-east-ish of Lagos). I'm really looking forward to the trip, although it'll be really hard to be away from VNB for most of 17 days. But, God worked everything out so that he could see me off and pick me up, which means a whole lot to me. Since we started dating, there's never been a day that we haven't talked to each other, even if it was just on the phone. That's a record that I didn't really want to have broken.

But I'm writing, not just to sing the praises of my betrothed (although I'm sure I'll do some more of that too), but also to say that I'm not sure I'll get email/internet access while there, so if I don't post before the 18th, you'll know why. :)

In some ways, we have every minute planned out, but in a lot of ways, we have no idea what we're going to be doing while we're there. This trip is something of a practice in flexibility and patience for all of us.

The biggest part of "not knowing" for me is that I have no idea why I'm going on this trip. I was kind of intrigued by the idea of going to Africa, but didn't have the funds to go. The pastor said that I "needed to go," and funds appeared, so I'm going.........but I don't really know why. I guess I'll see that while I'm there. Maybe it's to prove to me that I don't want to do any more international trips without VNB (a thought I already was fostering).

I don't know. I guess I'll see when I'm there, or possibly in the months and years to come afterwards (in sha'allah).

Talk to y'all on the 18th, if not before!

By Popular Demand

You asked for it, you got it. Here's me and my Sweetie!

RA 6h 3m 17.14s, D 17deg 15m 17.79s

If you go to this website and put in the above coordinates, the output will be several "plates" from which you can extract the image of a star. The picture shown here is a sample of one of those images. This star (I _think_ it's the one in the center of the picture), formerly known as #02131700154 is now known as "The Marry Me Star."

On Saturday, July 9th, at roughly 3PM, VNB changed from "Very Nice Boyfriend" to "Very Nice Betrothed" when he asked me to marry him and I said, "YES!!!!"

VNB and I will be married (in sha'allah) on February 11, 2006 at First Baptist Laurel - 7 months from today!!! So mark your calendars now!

As a friend of mine at church said yesterday, I went from Iraq to "a rock" when he put this ring on my finger.


I'm getting married!!!

I Remembered!

So I remembered two more books I've thought of writing:

"Medicine Head" of the Soul

I don't know about the rest of you, but there has been at least one time in my life when I just felt disconnected, spiritually. It was similar to when I take cold/sinus medicine, except without the sniffles and coughs. My brain was still there with all of its knowledge, but the rest of me felt far away. I think this one was supposed to be auto-biographical, following my journey back. I even started it once, but I think that was lost with the great hard drive crash of '04. It's still a great name, but I'm not sure I could write this one anymore.

The Theology/Philosophy of C.S. Lewis' "Space Trilogy"

I've been a fan of C.S. Lewis' writing ever since I first read The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe when I was a child. Sometime during my early teens, I read his "Space Trilogy" (Out of the Silent Planet, Perelandra, and That Hideous Strength). At that time, I enjoyed the story in the first, followed the story in the second, and was completely lost in the third. I read it again sometime in high school and still enjoyed the story in the first, enjoyed the story in the second, and started to follow the third. Sometime in college, I noticed that the second book had a _lot_ of philosophical discussions in it. I'm not sure if I glossed over those parts before, or what, but I honestly didn't remember them being there. I read them again after college and noticed that the first wasn't just a story - there was a lot more to it too. And the third is completely different from the first two, but at the same time completely inter-related. If for no other reason than my own curiosity, I'd like to do something of a scholarly look at the philosophy and theology espoused by the books.

It'll be at least a few weeks before I start on that one though because I need to write my "scholarly paper" for school. In fact, I'm avoiding that as I type, so I should get to it.

Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore Art Thou Romeo?

So my little brother, Link, got the lead part in some play that "maybe" you've heard about. It's Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliette." Hopefully it comes as no shock to anyone that the lead role he got was of Romeo, not Juliette. Anyway, if you happen to be passing through Cookeville, TN over the next few days, you might want to try to catch him. Info, and a picture of Link looking very higlighted, can be found here.

Changes to Common Sense (the blog, that is)

Because of my previous location and job, my blog wasn't publicly available (i.e., it wasn't advertised by blogspot.com, nor did I have my blogspot profile publicly available). Basically, the only way you'd know about it was if I (or someone I'd told) told you about it.

Well, I don't live there anymore, and I don't do that job anymore, so I've just made some changes. They won't affect anyone that I know of, but now, maybe some bored person will stumble onto my blog and find it interesting.

So if that's you, then welcome and I hope you enjoy it! :)

Also, if you're interested, my little sister has a blog now too. To prevent anyone from Googling her name and finding out all about her, I'll name her Eliana...since that's her elf name anyway. I may add a "cast of characters" to the sidebar here soon just so you'll know who I'm talking about. (Heh...and so I'll remember too!) Anyway, Eliana's site is on xanga.com and here's the link. Expect much talk of Tolkien, Lord of the Rings, and Elves (although probably not the Santa or Keebler kind - you know...the _real_ ones).

Books I Hope to Write Someday

I've had some of these titles in the back of my head for years and years now (although some are a "little" more recent). I've even started writing some of them from time to time...but my biggest problem is that, while I seem to be great with titles, what I really have to say seems to only take up a few pages. But here they are. If you're a writer and you steal one...well...dedicate it to me or something. That is, unless I've got a book deal and my version is like two weeks away from coming out. Then I might be mad.

"The Other Brother"

This was mainly a book of encouragement for people like me - people who, while they did their share of "sinning," didn't do the "big" stuff. That is, stuff that would be a scandal at church like leave the church, have a child out of wedlock, sleep around, get arrested for something, be gay, etc. That's not to say that we're any less in need of salvation since all sins are equally bad in God's eyes...but we've never done anything "really bad" in the eyes of people - just like the "other brother" in the parable Jesus told about the "Prodigal Son." In that story, a rich man has two sons. The younger one decides that he's not going to wait for his father to die - he wants his inheritance _now_! So his dad gives it to him, and he goes off and spends wildly and loses it all in a short amount of time. He becomes destitute and decides that he'd rather be a servant in his father's household than live on the streets, so he goes back. His father sees him coming and instead of making him a servant (as he deserves), he runs out to meet him, cleans him up, and throws him a big party. Needless to say, the "other brother" is kinda upset. Here he was, doing his job the whole time, being "good," while his brother ran off to get into who-knows-what, but _HE_ never got a party.

And we hear sermon after sermon about the Prodigal Son that we just can't relate to since we've never run away to a life of debauchery - we've always stayed "home" and been "good." Our only part in the story is a gruff reminder from the Father that all that is remaining in His household is ours and we can have a party any time we want to, but we should rejoice that the Prodigal Son has returned.

In my own life, this happened when friends who _did_ sleep around always seemed to have boyfriends, while I was always single. And especially when those same friends had babies when I wanted them, while I waited...and waited...and waited...(and still wait!). Here I was, doing things "right," while they "messed up" and got "everything" I wanted.

Now, clearly, my feelings were an exaggeration because a) I was far from "right" most of the time, b) they were just "messing up" in _different_ and more public ways than I was - I was still messing up, and c) they _weren't_ getting "everything" I wanted because, deep down, I "wanted" those things in the "right" way (and, of course, it wasn't truely "everything").

So, the book would be geared towards people who, like me, haven't done anything "majorly wrong," and who take some pride in that, but are kinda irked when they see people who _do_ do "big" stuff wrong get things they want. And it would have three main points, maybe four:
1) We're not as perfect as we think we are.
2) All sins are equal in God's eyes, we're just better at hiding ours maybe (which could be considered worse in some respects than letting our sins be known).
3) As in the story, we're _going_ to get those things we want - we just have to wait until the right time (the Other Brother _did_ get his inheritance too, and in fact, everything his Father still owned belonged to him - he just had to wait).
4) Our focus, instead of being on the "things" that the other people are getting (as the Father in the story points out to the Other Brother), should be on the Father's business. Psalm 34:5 says that if we "delight ourselves in the Lord, He will give us the desires of our heart" (that's the "Melissa Standard Version, btw - i.e., not a "real" translation of the Bible...just the general gist of the verse however I remember it). While that verse is something of a Catch-22 (if the Lord is our "delight," then our desires will be whatever He wants), He is also our creater and knows us and our desires better than we know ourselves. He knows when that perfect person is going to come along, or that perfect job, or babies, or a house, or whatever it is that you're dreaming of, and He knows exactly how long you're going to need to wait before it all happens. So in the meantime, He prepares us for His Business and so that we'll be ready when we actually _do_ get those "desires of our heart."

Obviously, there's not too much to say about points 1 and 2...and I've basically said a lot of what I want to say for points 3 and 4. Hence the not writing of this book. But it's still a great idea!

"'Twitterpated' with God"

In the movie "Bambi," after he and Thumper have survived the winter together, the springtime comes and the boys find themselves "twitterpated" (in the words of the Owl). Everyone's felt that way (you know, "in love") from time to time - when all you want is to be near the other person, to say their name, to do things that will make them happy, all you can talk about is them and how wonderful they are.

Well, what I just described is what the Christian life really ought to be, except that we'd be "twitterpated" with God rather than another person (although both can happen at once).

The thing is, in a "real" relationship, the feeling "in love" comes and goes - especially after you've been together for a while. Some days you'll see your significant other in ways that are decidedly _not_ "twitterpating." Which is why I think marriage shouldn't be based on being "in love" (but that's a different book :) ). But all of the things we're commanded to as believers really seem to fit this description of being "in love" with God. So what do we need to do to restore the "romance" in our relationship with Him?

And what would Christendom look like if we all felt that way?

Crud....there was at least one more that I can't think of right now. Oh well, I'll post it later. I hope you enjoyed my book ideas!

Happy Birthday, Iraq (and me too)!!!

So today, the Iraqi democracy turned one year old, and I turned 29. I didn't hear of any celebrations in Iraq, but I know that I was celebrating for them in my heart today. I've found myself in recent days "plagued" by something akin to homesickness. I've heard that there was a second wave of "culture shock" around six months out, and I think I'm beginning to experience it.

While my roommate's husand has been home on leave, I've been staying with some friends from church who have cable and have caught a couple of episodes of Discovery's "Operation Homecoming." In one, a soldier who had been writing to some school children surprised them when he came home. When he began giving each child a "Saddam" (250 Iraqi dinars in the old Iraqi currency - it had a huge picture of Saddam on it and was the base unit of currency there, like the $1 bill is here), I burst into tears, completely unexpectedly.

I literally spent two hours yesterday going to all of the supermarkets in Laurel looking for pomegranates. I've been craving them because they'd be starting to show up in all the markets in Iraq right now.

But I was ok today. VNB made me leave work early today so that we could go on a picnic. After the picnic, he gave me my birthday present - a print of Van Gogh's "Starry Night," which is my favorite painting. After that, we had some time to kill, so we watched a movie. Then I got all "dolled up" and we saw "The Lion King" (the musical version, not the movie) at a theater in Baltimore.

Not only that, but the Orioles beat the Yankees in extra innings, so it's a good day all around! :)

So happy birthday, Iraq! May many more come to you, and may each be a little safer and more secure!

And happy birthday to me! And thank You to my Other Boyfriend for all the wonderful things He gives to me, especially VNB!

Posting

It's been _waaaay_ too long, I know. But there are books to read and people to hang out with (yes, yes, including "VeryNiceBoyfriend," henceforth VNB) and restaurants to visit (and Star Wars toys to buy at Burger King - curse, you Burger King, with your 31 toys that are all cute or fun!) and TV to watch and games to play!

But I'm going to commit to at least one post per week. Fridays are my usual day off, so they're the most likely candidate for posting day.

I'm not even sure that anyone other than my mother and maybe my friend Chris read this anymore, but I like to write, and I really feel that this is a good way to work through the thoughts that run through my head occasionally. I'm not _forcing_ anyone to read, so I won't feel guilty about writing whatever I feel like. :)

So, read if you want. I'm more writing for me than for anyone else (well, other than Him). I commit to _not_ adding a counter to my site since I'm not trying to make this about my own popularity.

I'm pretty sure I need to update the sidebar, so I'll try to remember to do that today. It probably won't include quite so much stuff.

So, thanks for reading. I'll try to be more regular in my posts. Enjoy!

O-R-I-O-L-E-S!!!

So I've figured out why the Orioles are kicking butt and taking names this season. You see, all the _other_ teams in Major League Baseball are finally off of steroids. The Os aren't playing any better or worse than they have in recent years, the other teams just aren't hopped up on the "juice" anymore!

:)

Mommy says....

I got an email from my mom today saying that I needed to post something new. She's right, like usual. Sorry it's been so long! These last few weeks have been filled with lots of stuff happening, so here's another "update on my life" post.

School: As of March 25, 2005, I owe the University of Maryland $6747.50. This means that I am a fully re-accepted and registered graduate student again! Yay! Now I just have to figure out how to get student loans. I've never done that before. I'm still loving my classes and am having a great time remembering, learning, and relearning this semester.

Work: I'm working part-time at my church as the Assistant to the Minister of Worship and Music. That's probably the longest title I've ever had (well..."Engineering Projects Coordinator for Baghdad" was long too). I work Monday through Thursday, 9AM - 1PM. I got my first paycheck last week. :) That money should support my habits of eating and having a place to live. But more importantly, last week I was handed the form to fill out for insurance and told that the effective date was the day I started working - March 7th - not April 1st or May 1st as had been discussed previously due to the money needing to be put into the church budget and voted on by the congregation. So, many thanks to our office manager Bob and our Finance Committee for helping me out with that. But talk of insurance leads me to...

Evan: I was handed the form on Tuesday I think and given my numbers on Thursday, so Friday I went to my new "Primary Care Physician" which I had essentially chosen at random from their book and got a referral to a gynecologist about Evan. For some reason it never occurred to me with my previous two lumps to 1) go to a _female_ doctor (my doc was male, as was the surgeon he sent me to - both great guys, but they just don't understand), and 2) go to a doc who specializes in that system of the body. I didn't have the info with for the GYN I wanted to go to (the Women to Women Clinic which had been highly recommended) so they gave me a referral to someone else and told me to just call and it could be changed easily. Since it was supposed to be so easy, I went ahead and made the appointment with WtW. I called the doc when I got home to get the referral changed, but got sent to voicemail, so on Monday I stopped by again and they took care of it for me. Then I had to call some referral service for the chain (Patient First), and then I was officially referred to WtW. So....my appointment is at 10:45 tomorrow morning. I'm not so much concerned about what the doc will say, but I'm ready for this appointment to be done with. This week has gone by _really_ slowly as I've waited for Friday to come. It's always been the "not knowing" that was the issue for me, so waiting for the appointment (especially after all of the drama surrounding getting the insurance) has been difficult. I'll update you all on the "results" as soon as I'm ready.

VeryNiceBoy: On a _far_ more pleasant note, on Friday, March 18th, "VeryNiceBoy" (forevermore "VNB") officially became my boyfriend! :) He's very nice. :) Have I mentioned that? :) But please be thinking about us as we get to know each other better and learn how to interact with each other. It's been 6.5 years since I've had a serious, long-term boyfriend, so I'm a "little" out of practice (although some old habits have come back to me far too quickly). But he's a very nice, Godly man. So nice, in fact, that I keep wondering when he's gonna wake up and realize that it's time for him to fall off the face of the planet, never to be heard from again, like so many other guys have done. Fortunately, _he_ keeps wondering when _I'm_ gonna wake up and realize that I'm "too good for him," so maybe neither of us will take the other for granted. My parents and sister came up to visit last week and seemed to like him. I'll go to meet his parents and sister in a couple of weeks, but apparently I've already gotten some major "brownie points" with his mom by asking for help on his favorite recipes. :)

Speaking: I'm being offered more and more opportunities to speak about my experiences overseas. A few weeks ago, VNB and I had lunch with a married couple from our church because they wanted to hear about my time there (they're also a newer couple, so they just wanted to get to know folks). A few months ago, I got to speak to some folks from our Hispanic congregation and will get to speak to their youth group this Friday night. On Sunday, I've got another lunch date with a family from church (they're inviting the pastor and his family and some others too - which reminds me...I need to tell them about VNB and make sure he's invited too :), and then we've got a group that's going to France over the summer (which has a very large Muslim population) and they want to hear methods for talking to Muslims. Eventually, I'll also set up a time to talk to my church about things. I'm almost ready for it emotionally, but the service hasn't really come together in my mind yet so it might be a few more weeks. I'll definitely let y'all know when that's happening just in case some of you want to make the trek here for it. But, for all of my issues with "the Company," I'm really excited about telling folks about living and working in Iraq and working with Muslims.

Devotions: I need to update the sidebar, but I've recently started a new devotion. Oswald and the Names of God book just weren't "doing it" for me. It annoyed me that except on very rare occasions, I didn't need the Bible at all for either of them. So, for a while I just wasn't doing anything. But now I've got a plan and I'm starting to stick to it. In the mornings after my alarm goes off when I'd usually just doze until I had to get up, I'm going to start reading through "The Message" translation of the Bible. That particular translation is a "modern day" language translation, and the translator didn't put in verse numbers (although there are chapter numbers and each page has a header stating the verses on that page) or many "topical" headers, so it reads much more like a regular book. I'm just going to read as much as time allows each morning. I'll be on Genesis 9 tomorrow. I think this'll give me a new perspective on Scriptures, many of which I know well and have heard to the point that I don't listen anymore.

That's all I can think of right now, but I'll definitely let you know the outcome of my appointment tomorrow when I'm ready to share.

Updates

I've apparently not been in much of a writing mood lately. I'm pretty sure it's because 1) so much is happening right now, and 2) some of it isn't for public consumption yet (nothing too much that's bad, in fact it's mostly very, very good...I'm just not ready to share with everyone on the web yet).

But in the "so much is happening" department, I started my new job officially today. I am no longer unemployed (although I'm still uninsured until the first of April)! I'm now the Assistant to the Minister of Worship and Music at my church. So far it's been _really_ exciting. Especially since this week the youth are in charge of the services. :) But it'll be a good job for me - mostly low stress - as I focus on school.

School's still going great (although I'm _still_ not officially registered...any day now, they keep telling me). I really love the classes I'm taking, even though they're a lot of work.

I've had a cold for the past three weeks. For the first time in my life, I literally lost my voice. It's mostly back now, although I still have a really sore throat, especially at night. I went to the doctor a week and a half ago (despite my uninsured condition) and they said it wasn't strep. I'd rather not have to go back, so I'm really hoping this'll go away soon. I've made improvements though - I finally didn't need Nyquil last night and today was the first pain-killer-free (and more importantly, pain-free) day (for the last week or so, someone has been stabbing an ice pick into my right sinus...pretty much 24/7). Now I just have to get to the point where my throat doesn't hurt so much that I can't sleep. But drugs are my friend. :)

I've also helped start a new Sunday School class at my church. It's for "older" singles. The church has a great group of folks who are in college or are college-aged, but it hasn't had anything specific for folks who are post-college in a long time. I finally got fed up with it and started my own class. We only had three people on Sunday (including myself), but that'll change as people transition out of other classes and once I actually call people and invite them to come. :) It was my first time teaching adults though. Apparently, for someone who knows me relatively well, it was obvious that I was nervous, but I did alright. We're studying "The Gospel of Jesus Christ According to Mark." I'm going from notes that I took as we studied Mark in Amman...so hopefully the whole "discussion" idea will catch on by the time we get to the point where I came back to the States and my notes end (chapter 8). :)

But between a new job and another new massive time-sink, I'm struggling a little bit with keeping up on my course work. It's mostly just that I'm not having the time to do all of the extra things I was doing before, so I feel like I'm falling behind. I'm also not getting to watch as much Buck Rogers or play as much CivIII which leaves a big hole in my life. ;p

But...ok....I can't keep it a complete secret...the new massive time-sink is a VeryNiceBoy. :) That's his name. And he's nice. And I like him. And, wonder of wonders, he likes me too! At the same time! And he's willing to admit it! (And no, he's not "Mystery Date.") He even lives nearby!

There's probably a place that's typically very warm which is enduring a cold spell at the words mentioned above.

Snow Flutt'ring Down

Well...it's snowing again in the DC area. The Weather Channel (.com) is calling for 4-7" today with a possible 2-4" more overnight. But watching it come down....and a lot of other things....has put me in a thoughtful mood.

I think God has called my bluff. I've talked some big words about some things, and I think He's saying, "Ok, here's what you said you wanted...pretty much exactly...do you have the guts to go through with it?"

It's scary to think about...but not at all scary at the same time...which may be the scariest thing of all.

Heh...I just re-read the title of my blog...and I have my answer.

Jesus is my Boyfriend

I'm sure you're all wondering what a single girl (whose most recent foray into the world of dating ended with the guy taking yet another leap off the face of the earth) did for Valentine's Day, especially since V-Day was the anniversary of the best puppy in the world's untimely death.

Well, first off, for the first time, probably ever (except possibly for the years I was dating JM), I wasn't dreading V-Day for V-Day reasons. Its approach made me think of Mara and that made me sad, but I didn't dread V-Day. Several years ago my two "adopted" aunts began the tradition of celebrating the man in their lives for V-Day. Both being single believers, that man was Jesus. When JM and I broke up, I started joining them, as did various other strays from time to time.

While I'd always enjoy the food (we'd eat crabs!) and the company, I always hated the evening because it was a glaring reminder that I wasn't feeling how I knew I ought to feel (ok with who I am, content with being single, etc.). I knew I ought to be ok, but I just didn't feel that way so the feelings of desire for a flesh and blood guy to do something romantic for me were combined with the feelings of guilt that I _had_ those feelings since I knew I should be "content whatever state I was in."

Last year, the guy mentioned above and I had only just met a month or so before, so I sorta just ignored it and so did he. I still kinda _hoped_ that he'd do something, but I didn't make a big deal of it since it was so soon since we'd met. And then when I actually saw him the next day, Mara dominated the conversation, so it just never came up.

But this year...I dunno how to explain it other than that when I'd think of V-Day, I just wouldn't care that I didn't "have anybody." Life is great! I didn't feel unworthy of love due to the fact that no guy had made his interest known. I know that I'm unworthy of love, but it has nothing to do with what guys think (or don't think) of me, and God loves me anyway. :) I don't _have_ to wait for His call after we spend time together because He never leaves (in a good way).

Anyway, apparently all of this is just an unexpected (but welcome) side effect of all I've learned recently.

But we continued our tradition of our V-Day dinner and this year opened it up to the other single women at the church. We didn't have a huge crowd, but we had a good group. We ate well and enjoyed great company, even though most of us didn't know everyone else. One lady came that no one knew. She actually came to the church door looking for assistance right as we were getting started. She'd been given the number to our deacon hotline previously during another crisis, but had lost the number and was in another situation which required help. I didn't know who she should call, so we invited her to join the party while I found out. Then, when we found out what she needed to do, we invited her to stay and eat dinner, which she agreed to do. When we went around the room to introduce ourselves, she was one of the last ones to talk, which was really good because that gave several others the opportunity to say how they were single moms and for me to say how I am unemployed, so it wasn't a big deaal when she said those same things. We sent her home with lots of leftovers and party favors for her kids and she said that the evening had really touched her, so she and her kids would be at church on Sunday morning. Al hamdoo lillah! :)

It was a great evening! Plus, I got to play delivery girl to bring a card designed by Dawn's husband Joe and some flowers to Dawn. So it was fun to make the day extra-special for her too.

_AND_ (as if all of that wasn't enough), when I woke up, there was snow on the ground! All some guy would do is maybe bring me flowers. Who made the flowers? Jesus. And who knew exactly what I wanted for V-Day (i.e., snow)? Jesus. And who's the only Guy able to give me exactly what I wanted? Jesus! So forget all you other guys - _Jesus_ is MY boyfriend.....unless of course He's willing to share me because that would be nice too. ;p

Engineering Fun

I've been spending a great deal of time these past few days playing wtih orbits for the s/c we're designing in my satellite design class. It's been a whole lot of fun. I've missed this stuff soooooooo much! I've recently been appointed the systems engineer for our group (mostly because I'm the one with the most time) and am just having a blast putting together budgets and stuff. I know it sounds boring, but the systems people get to have their fingers in a bit of everything, and I _love_ that! ;p

The other thing that's been taking a great deal of time has been my piano!!!! I had it delivered on Tuesday and, as a Valentine's Day gift to one of my great loves, will get it tuned on Monday. :) It's a "little" worse for wear due to life with little kids, followed by life at church, but it still sounds great and isn't really that far out of tune.

I've still got some irons in the fire in terms of "real" jobs, but I may end up just getting a part-time clerical-ish job that'll give me access to benefits. I'll have to get student loans for the first time in my life...but it's almost gonna be worth it if I get to keep my current lifestyle of living mostly in my pjs. :)

I've also just heard from my friend Khulood. I've been a terrible correspondent due to connectivity issues and just my own issues with living out of a suitcase, but she and her family are doing well. It's so good to hear from her!

I've also finally started watching my Buck Rogers DVDs. They are funk-o-licious! And did you know that in the originial movie/mini-series thing that there are _words_ to the theme song?!! I had no idea!! But my favorite part during the credits which are _very_ late-70s chic is when Erin Grey (Col. Wilma Deering) "seductively" tosses her very fluffy mane. It is hi-larious! As is the end when she tells Buck "I know I've been cold in the past, but I'm going to show you every day that I'm all woman." That is _so_ out of character for Wilma (and just such a stupid, cliche thing to say) that I was rolling, I was laughing so hard.

But I can definitely see why I was in love with Buck (yes, even at 3 and 4). He's the man. There are just no two ways about it. The actor's gotten old and fat, but Buck is still the coolest 500-year-old man ever to fly an Earth Defense Force ship.

Anyway, I should get back to my engineering fun. It's interface diagrams for me today! Woohoo!!

Resumes

Ok....so I'm an Alias fan. There are no two ways about it. I have been since about the middle of the first season when I visited my friends Phil and Lori (and Andrew and Katy) and Phil turned me on to it. It's just a cool show. Somewhat vulnerable girl kicks baddie spy butt! And there are hot guys too! And a geeky guy!! And enough soap-opera-esque backstory to keep you watching and re-watching old seasons for signs of what eventually became.

So what does that have to do with resumes, you might ask? Well, just for the record, yesterday I submitted an on-line application for a couple of positions at APL (in addition to having friends there distribute my resume since that really works better at APL). But because of Alias, I have just completed the on-line resume submission for the CIA.

Get this...as I finished the submission, the modem started making dailing noises again. It hadn't disconnected at all. It just decided that right as I was submitting a resume to the CIA (for various jobs which actually looked really cool and could be an interesting blend of my aerospace and overseas experiences) to made dailing noises again.

I am convinced that some Marshall-like person is now sitting in a cubicle at the CIA watching me. So, um, "Hi, Marshall-like person! He's my favorite geeky character on the show, although I did think it was cool when Carrie showed up and he got a girlfriend!"

What's funny is that they got my address from the form. Now they're just watching me, even though they already know where I live. I'm being surveiled. Heehee...

Occupation

OK...so my schtick since I've been back is to tell people that, while the media is not lying to them about what's happening in Iraq (as in, this isn't "Wag the Dog" with actors making up a war), they're not telling the _whole_ story - i.e., people _live_ there, go to school, go to work, go shopping, have babies, get married, etc.

The thing is, lately I've noticed that the media _is_ lying about one thing. They keep talking about the "occupation" of Iraq by US and Coalition forces. From Dictionary.com, here are the definitions of the word "occupation:"

oc·cu·pa·tion ( P ) Pronunciation Key (ky-pshn)
n.

1. a. An activity that serves as one's regular source of livelihood; a vocation.
b. An activity engaged in especially as a means of passing time; an avocation.

2. a. The act or process of holding or possessing a place.
b. The state of being held or possessed.

3. a. Invasion, conquest, and control of a nation or territory by foreign armed forces.
b. The military government exercising control over an occupied nation or territory.

(Source: The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.)

Clearly, definition 1 does not apply in this case. Definition 2 could be applicable, but definition 3 is by far the most applicable.

Now, the Coalition forces _did_ "occupy" Iraq from roughly April 2003 until June 28, 2004. But, on June 28, 2004 (my birthday, btw...have I mentioned that before? Have I mentioned how cool I think that is? Because it's _way_ cool!), the Coalition Provisional Authority (the occupying power) transferred their authority to an interim Iraqi government. So, at that point they stopped exercising control (note in definition 3a the three things required for an "occupation" - invasion, conquest, and _control_) over the sovereign nation of Iraq.

The Interim Iraqi Government promply then _asked_ the Coalition forces to remain in Iraq indefinitely.

Let me tell you a little secret. When a government _asks_ you to be there, you're not an "occupying power," no matter what you may have been in the past.

So write/call in to every news source you hear use the term "occupation" in reference to the current situation in Iraq and tell them that they're wrong. Because they are and it's (purposely) misleading to those in the American/world populus who don't take the time to look up terms like that in the dictionary.

Volleyball and Snow!!!!

God is definitely good. Al hamdoo lillah! The year before I left, the DC area got one of its biggest snowfalls in like 20 years. Since I've been here (like two weeks), it's snowed three times. And it's accumulated some each time. And then stayed for a while afterwards. I've missed the snow. Yesterday as Dawn and I stayed home due to cancelled church services, we ate snow cream (with an added twist, thanks to Dawn - powdered strawberry Qwik!!) and watched Alias all day while doing a puzzle. It was a wonderful Sabbath!

And to make it even better, I spent the previous evening playing my first volleyball match since April of 2003. And it felt _GOOD_. I'm still feeling it, but I don't care and can't wait for next week! I have missed volleyball _so_ much.

So, although I miss the daily group dinners, discussions of deep-ish things, and evenings of Alias-watching with our group, there are _definite_ advantages to being back in America.

And after three months, I've even put my hair in a pony-tail a couple of times without wincing. Mostly though...I just _really_ prefer it to be completely free. But still....there were two months in Amman where it was down a lot of the time, and three months here now. It was weird though. I spoke to part of our Hispanic congregation on Friday night and showed them how I'd do my hair and cover...and that felt...safe too. But it still felt good to let my hair back down. :)

But also al hamdoo lillah for the success of the elections yesterday!! I'm praying that I'll run across someone with a marked finger around here so that my Arabic can stop being a parlor trick. :)