Dancing with the King of the Ages!

cebu! (cebu!) cebu! (cebu!) ahcu moo moo achoo moo moo boo hoo moo moo ahcu moo moo achoo moo moo boo hoo moo moo cebu!

2010-10-17T06:46:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Cebu! I've been here for two and a half weeks now and I figure it's about time I showed off some pictures of things I've done. For the most part life consists of going from my hotel room to work and back. However, I'm trying to use my weekends well and get out to see the city.
Last weekend I went to the Ayala shopping center, twice. I went on my on on Saturday and then Sunday my coworkers wanted to go, so I joined them again. Other than being a shopping center, they're several yummy looking restaurants and a beautiful garden in the center.
Here's a self portrait showing off the garden.

This fountain is at the mall too. Just a fun water feature.

My favorite discovery so far... Gelatto! The first time I tried mango. It was SO good! I am absolutely loving the mangoes. They're fresh and taste so yummy! I have a mango shake or mango juice any chance I get :)

I've started "collecting" the Starbucks mugs that are specific to the region I'm in. Here's the one for Cebu. Guitars and making custom ones are very popular here. All the souvenir shops I've seen so far have guitars, some real and usable, others just for show.

There's a restaurant on top of our hotel called Blue. I ate there last weekend. It was an amazing meal and a spectacular view. My camera doesn't do the view justice, but the bar had a cool wall feature that I took a picture of :)

I miss my espresso machine at home, but when I was in Manila I found this coffee chain that I love. There's one right next to work, so I have my driver drop me off there before work every day :) I love this place. Not only do they make a really great latte, they have wifi and when I walk in I hear, "Hi Miss Howrey" and they're starting to remember my drink. There's just something about being known and recognized that I like. That, and being the only curly blond haired white person in the shop, I'm easily recognizable ;)

Today our group went out to Lapulapu and had lunch at a fresh seafood restaurant. It was so fresh I saw the crab crawling across the table before it was brought out 30 minutes later, ready for us to eat. Here's a shot of us looking at all the seafood options.

The fish were beautiful! The pink one is a lapu lapu fish, named for the native who killed Magellan after Magellan "discovered" the Philippines.

And here's what the clams looked like cooked. I had one, but admittedly it was a little difficult to enjoy. The squid was the best, since I'm more familiar with it. I did try everything but the seaweed. Crab, Shrimp, Calamari, Clams and clam soup.

And lastly, here's the shrine that we were next to that is supposedly built on the actual place where Magellan was killed.

All in all, it's been a fun trip. Next Saturday I work, but on Sunday we're planning on going to Manila for a day of shopping. Back to Greenhills! I'm excited since I've been there and I know what to expect. Not sure who all is coming with me, but it should be fun! I'll try to keep you posted on the goings on around here.

God is GOOD!

2010-10-01T04:15:00.000-07:00

Can I just say, I love my job! I was just struck today by how amazing God has been to me. I was just sitting poolside at a grill restaurant in the hotel I'm staying at, in Cebu Philippines, eating molassis and pecan crusted salmon as this great tropical breeze blows by and I just have to be amazed. All of this is being paid by work, and all I have to do is my job, which I love! Never would I have thought three years ago that I would be on my second oversease business trip with this company. I dind't think I'd be there longer than 6 months and this month marks 3 years!
I have been so blessed to be able to travel and do what I love. I've been to Asia 4 times in the last 4 years. A testiment to God's sense of humor since I never had any desire to go to Asia :) But if I'd gone to work anywhere else, my opportunities to travel probably woudln't have been available.
So, things that happened today to make me write this... I had jumbalaya and fresh, as in I could have watched them make it, mango juice. That was lunch. Dinner, molassis and pecan encrusted salmon, mashed potatoes and asparagus. Topped off with a pina colada! All on the company's bill! I may not be eating foods I've never had before, but I'm ordering things I've never been able to afford! Life is good.

And I'm off again!

2010-09-13T00:32:00.000-07:00

So, I didn't look to see how long it's been since I posted last time. Probably way too long! Yep, on my birthday was the last time. Wow! Life is moving quickly!
Well, I jumped on tonight to say that I'm going back to the Philippines! This time I'm going to be on the island of Cebu, and I'll be there for almost two months!!! Nope, not excited AT ALL :)
My class starts on October 1st, so I imagine I'll be leaving around the 27th or 28th to give me enough time to get there, get settled and start the class.
More news to come when I have it. But for now, Wahoo!!!

Randomness

2010-06-15T00:23:00.000-07:00

"We're kidnapping your bike... The lock's in the way though." Was the text I received from my roomies tonight when I got off of work around 11:30pm. They're so fun :) As I stepped into the lobby I saw them sitting in the dark, on the couch waiting for me to come out. They'd been out for dinner and thought to come pick me up from work. How sweet! We got home and as I went up the stairs I checked the time, 11:56pm. Brie disappeared into the kitchen and Eron blocked the entrance. "What time is it?" he asked. I told him. "Well, we'll go off of mountain time!" and he and Brie burst into song, singing Happy Birthday. Brie had made me homemade, Giradelli chocolate brownies with homemade caramel sauce on them! Mmmmm, they we're delicious!
I love my roomies!

Classroom Training Manager

2010-04-10T17:16:00.001-07:00

I got the job! Yesterday I was officially offered the CTM position and of course I accepted it :)
What does this mean? It means I'm going to be training non stop until probably December. It means I'll be training mostly for our new contract, I'm going to Seattle tomorrow for two weeks of training. I won't have my own team anymore but rather get the chance to see the new recruits as they come in and see how they move through the company. It's a small team of trainers, two current and two new. There's also a possibility for two more. I'm very excited about this! There's also the potential of travel which I don't have any issues with!
I'm not anticipating work changing much for quite some time now. I'm in the position I want. No, I'm not vying for a job as the head of our company. I'm happy where I'm at.
Funny how I decided in school that education wasn't where I'd be headed and here God has me set up as one of the main trainers for our site... He certainly has a sense of humor!

Seattle or bust

2010-04-09T06:59:00.000-07:00

I had an interview yesterday for the CTM position! If I get it, I'll be a classroom training manager, which just means I train agents as a job. So, even though I decided in college that I didn't want to teach, I'm teaching full time. Ha! God has a sense of humor!
My interview was good. Honestly I have the job it's just not official, so the interview was more of a formality than anything else! I expect an offer today and I'll head up to Seattle as a full time trainer!
Today's going to be exciting!!!

Is it April already!?

2010-04-04T22:00:00.001-07:00

It seems like I get the urge to blog about once a month :) Or maybe it just takes that long for things to change at work just enough for me to write about it. I'm not sure. Either way, it's been a while and things are on the move, again.
Not a whole lot has changed recently. At least not concerning work, but I'll get to that... Stess and I are thinking about living together again, but it probably won't happen until the end of summer, maybe. She's teaching out in Sandy as a temporary sub for the rest of the year. It's nice to know she's got a steady job, but that's causing her some stress since she now has to plan a lesson every day as well as get her school work done. We don't see each other as much anymore since we're on the opposite ends of town. We're making up for it during the weekends though.
Last weekend Mom, Dad, Stess, Crista and my Aunt and Uncle all came up to Portland to see Cat's the Broadway. I think we all agree that we didn't really like it. I'm glad I've seen it, but I won't pay to see it again. However, I'm really looking forward to seeing The Lion King in June!
Stess and I went over to Sisters three weeks ago as she started off her spring break. Mom and Dad took us on a bike ride, 30 miles later, we were a little tired :) We're planning our summer vacation and want to go down to San Francisco and then ride our bikes on the coast to San Louis Obisbo. I can't believe it, but they're turning me into a biker. I actually bought my first pair of bike shorts! Well, actually second, but these are the tight kind. Am I seriously going to wear those in public!? Yep, I guess I am. (Sigh)
Stess and I have decided that next June, for my 30th birthday, we are going to Hawaii! We'd both been thinking about doing something. I thought of a cruise, she thought of New York, and then on the way to Sisters I said, "What about Hawaii?" and it was settled. So, we're trying to decide where to go, where to stay, and what to do... Mom and Dad are thinking of joining us too since they'll be celebrating their 35th Wedding anniversary. That being the case, we are NOT sharing a hotel room between the 4 of us. Although, the snoring that all three of them do is enough of a diterant for me!
Work's been quite interesting lately as well. About a month ago I moved my team over from desktop support to notebook support. It's been a fun change and my team grew in size. The other two managers had too many agents and I was short some, so I got more. I'm still liking the work a lot, though I'll admit, letting people go is not fun :(
We've been working on a new contract in the building that would potentially give us 750 new employees! It's been in the works for a few months now. Last week one of my agents showed me a job posting on our internal website for a Classroom Training Manager position. This job would be what I used to do as an Associate Trainer, but permanently. It's something that I figured would be coming up some time soon but there weren't any postings when the management position came up in January. With internal transfers at work you have to be in your current position for at least 6 months to qualify. It was a concern when I applied for my current job, but I applied anyway.
Well, the CTM position closed on Wednesday of last week and I found out about it on Monday. I went in to speak with my manager about the job. I explained to her that I'm happy doing what I'm doing, but that I wanted to apply for the CTM job, but wasn't sure if the fact that I was in my current position for less than 6 months would immediately take me out of the running. She said she would be surprised if I DIDN'T apply for the job and that she would back me if I applied. I did :) We'll see how that goes. It's another situation where I'm at peace with either job. I like what I'm doing now, but I really liked the teaching aspect of the CTM position. That and there's travel potential...
On Wednesday we found out that we got the contract! It's a huge deal at work now. They'll need some 30 plus managers to support the agents. There's also now 1 CTM position for sure, but possibly 2 more that will open up!
That same day my boss' boss, the head of our site, asked me into his office. He came over by my desk and asked me to come with him. In the hallway was another agent, an associate trainer as well, who was apparently waiting for us. Corwin, the boss, asked me where another associate trainer as my boss, Jillene, came up. He sent the other AT and I to his office while they looked for Dan. I knew I wasn't in trouble, cause I hadn't done anything, but still very curious as I'd never been asked to his office before!
Well, all three of us associate trainers, as well as my boss and Corwin were in his office and he proceeded to tell us that they, Jillene and he, wanted to ask us if one, we'd applied for the CTM job, and two, were interested in going up to the Seattle area for training so we could come back here and train for the new contract! Of course all three of us immediately jumped on the opportunity! We basically came away from that meeting knowing that the head of our site is aware of us and that we have a good record of being hard workers and good trainers. On top of that, it seems like we're the top 3 picks for the potential CTM jobs! I talked to Stess on the way home that night, then called Mom and told her then told Dad. To say I'm excited is quite the understatement!
To top that off, I've heard from a source that if I'm successful up in Washington, I'm probably going to be the first choice for the CTM job! I just am amazed at how God has orchestrated this whole thing! He's amazing!
Okay, one last thing. Thursday was April Fools Day. I played a prank on my team and had such a blast doing it! For training everyone has to take a series of tests to show they know the material. Well, the tests aren't that good and some of them are terrible. I drafted an email to my newest agents, the ones who were in my last training class and the one that followed, telling them that one of the tests, the hardest one, had a snafoo and the scores weren't recorded. Unfortunately, since the scores weren't recorded, they had to retake the test. I had agents sending me screenshots of their scores and some asking if it was a joke. I was able to keep a straight face and tell them that their screenshots weren't enough. I then sent another email with the link to the material they needed to go over before taking the test. The link opened up a page that simply said, "April Fools!" in bright, bold, flashing letters!
It was fun! And I got a few of them really good...
That's all for this month ;) Thanks for reading.

How's the job going?

2010-03-04T21:03:00.000-08:00

I'd like to blame my lack of blogging on my job, but let's face it, I just haven't given this any thought. So, I figure now's a good time to update anyone who may be reading this. If no one is, it's good for me to go back and see what I wrote at a later point in time.
I got the job! I found out several weeks ago that I was selected, one of seventeen to be a temporary manager on my contract! Super excited and ready to go yet at the same time completely overwhelmed because I had NO IDEA what I was doing!
First things first, my team. Who was I going to be responsible for? Well, we decided to put me with a group of agents who had just come out of training. There's a process that we try to follow, keeping the newer agents with the same manager for their first 90 days. Well, this would not have been possible but since I had been a trainer for one class and worked as a senior for the second class, there were really only a few people who I hadn't had a lot of contact with. We, myself and two other managers, split the three classes up based on schedule. I was so excited to see that half my team was from my last training class, the one that I absolutely loved and had built great rapport with. The other quarter of my team was made up of those who I'd worked with as a senior, and only about 4 or 5 agents were completely new to me.
My team is awesome! They like me, I like them, they work well together and with me and overall are doing fantastic!
What do I like about my new job? I like having more responsibility. I like being able to work closer with the agents, finding out why they're here, what they want to accomplish and help them get there. I like seeing them make progress with their stats and hear how they deal with the crazy customers we have.
I don't like writing people up for attendance or not doing their job.
All of my team has 90 day reviews coming up and I've had the "joy" of putting those together. Let's put it this way, when a coworker and I had lunch he asked how many reviews I had to write. I answered with 18 and he swore...Then proceeded to tell me it wouldn't be that bad :) I didn't believe him.
It's not been awful. I actually have all but two written and they're due next week. My boss has to review them and had high praise for my work! I've heard from other Managers that I'm doing really well. Overall it's been a really fulfilling and exciting job.
I found out today that my position has been extended, basically I'm not temporary any more! I'm honestly not surprised but it's nice to know with certainty.
God's really blessed me at work. I pray that I'm a light in a dark place and that He shines through me each day.

Guess What...

2010-01-15T16:41:00.000-08:00

I GOT THE JOB!!!!!!!!!!!!

I start on Monday :)

Moving

2010-01-14T22:17:00.000-08:00

I enjoy my job. I like working with the agents I work with. I like the other Seniors I work with. I really like training new classes. I currently have a good schedule and for the most part, I'm happy with my job. I would however, like to have more responsibility.
When I'm training I'm in charge of 20-25 agents, making sure they understand what is going to be expected of them. I get the opportunity to work with them for four weeks and by the end of that time, I've developed pretty good rapport with them. Lately, when I'm not training, I've found myself a bit bored at work. When I'm working as a Senior, I'm wandering the floor helping agents, and I like it, but I'm ready for more.
That's why, when about three weeks ago and email came out saying they were hiring three new managers, I figured I'd apply.
At first I just thought about it. But soon I had a few managers ask me if I was going to apply. And not the managers that I necessarily thought would ask. Well, I applied and figure if I get it, great! If not, okay, I still like my job. I heard of other's who were applying, all very qualified, and figured it was worth a shot.
Last week, on Tuesday I believe, I got an email saying I was scheduled for an interview on Friday. So, I told one of my co-workers this and he helped me with some pre-interview questions. I went into the interview on Friday feeling prepared. It was with the head of HR and I looked at it as a good opportunity to get interview practice.
The interview went well. I had a chance to ask, and found out that for the 3 jobs, 17 people applied! Of those three jobs, one was no longer available, and of the two remaining, one has pretty much been given away, which is fine with me. So that left sixteen candidates for one position... Hmm, again thinking, I want the experience...
This week I was speaking with one other candidate and he said that in his interview he had named ME as one person he would pick for the job! I was kinda shocked and amazed. Pleased that he did that, but still just waiting.
I have a "source" at work who tries to keep me informed as much as they are able to. They told me Tuesday that they couldn't tell me how, but that they knew that I was the number one pick to have a second interview! That was very exciting, but still, no news yet. Wednesday, the last day for the interviews, came and went. No news.
Today I spoke with my "source" and they said that I should expect an offer today! I couldn't believe it! Apparently during a management meeting my name was mentioned and everyone there was nodding their head in agreement... I was speaking with my manager and the Senior manager asked me to come into her office. I got there and she admitted that this was a bit informal, but proceeded to give me a second interview. Of course, on the day that I woke up late, threw water into my hair, had no makeup on, didn't brush my teeth, and generally feel gross, I get a second interview for a management position! Good grief, God has a sense of humor!
Well, that interview went well. I don't have the job, yet. My source says the head of HR had high recommendations for me and they believe I'm going to get it. Apparently there are still three positions, one which I still believe is pretty much taken. The job also is "temporary" meaning it would start out as only about 45 days, but most of them turn into permanent within that time.
Either way, if I get the job it's going to be great experience. If not, it's been good experience. I've let the powers that be know that I'm ready and willing to take on more responsibility. I've found out that those same powers have been observing me and are very pleased with how I've been doing, and either way, I still like my job!
If all works out, I may be starting a new job on Monday... I'll let you know!

The Best Christmas Ever!

2009-12-27T20:04:00.000-08:00

When I was 8 my parents started looking into foster care and the possibility of adopting. I don't remember much about the process, just lots of paperwork and strangers coming over to our house to make sure it was livable. I'm sure they asked Stess and I questions about our parents to make sure we weren't being abused, but for the most part nothing really changed until I was 9 when we went to pick up this kid, a 5 year old boy who's father had abused him. His name was Troy.
Troy was with us for a year and a half before he went back to his dad. We had some great memories, along with the inevitable sibling moments :) The three of us got along great, for the most part. Stess was a little closer to him than I was, partly because of age and partly because they had much more in common, preferring sports to books.
Troy went back to his dad for about 6 months before there was more abuse. I still remember Mom picking me up from school and asking what I would think if Troy came back. Of course I was fine with that and she told me that Dad was on his way to pick him up. We were told not to ask him anything about what had happened, but being the young kids we were, that was the first thing we asked. Troy apparently came "home" with dad, put down his backpack, said, "hi mom. hi dad. where are the girls? can I go play?" before he ran across the street to play with the neighbors...
All told, Troy was with us for about 3 years and left when he was 9. There were a few foster homes where we still had contact with him, but at some point we lost touch. Mom remembers trying to find him but having Social Services refuse to give out any information.
There have been a few times where our friends have mentioned seeing him, but we've never been able to follow up on that. With the invention of Facebook and MySpace, I've tried to find him, but still with no luck.
Well, all that changed this summer, when my mom's Aunt, who was a foster parent of Troy's as well, said that Troy had come to the house where he'd lived with them! Stess and I couldn't really believe it. Apparently he's a manager at a restaurant in Portland and was asked to visit the one in Albany. On his way he decided to try and find their family. Well, mom's Aunt told him that they were going to be getting together with the family the day after Christmas and he was welcome to come. He said he'd be there.
All this we heard, but honestly, I didn't want to get my hopes up. I knew that I MIGHT see Troy this past Saturday, but...
Well, he came! I didn't believe it until someone mentioned him calling their cell, lost and wanting directions! Stess and I both looked at each other with a bit of disbelief and admitted that neither of us had really held out hope.
When he showed up, Stess and I were outside and it wasn't as uncomfortable as I thought it might be. In fact, it was great. We both went up and gave him huge hugs and it was like we really were back together with our brother.
It's funny how things that I take for granted either have been forgotten by him or are vague memories. We were staying at my Dad's family's home, so Troy got to reconnect with both sides of the family. We walked in and my Aunt Susanne gave him a big hug and my Uncle Phil shook his hand. Uncle Tim was in Italy the entire time Troy was with us, so they had never met. I about cried when my dad gave him a hug. When we went out to see Mom's side of the family Troy admitted to not realizing that we were related to them. He said when asked if he could make it or not that he wasn't sure. When he was told that we, Mom, Dad, Stess and I, were going to be there, he said he'd quit work if he had to.
It was a fantastic day! After Mom's family took off, Troy stayed for the evening with Dad's side of the family. We all had dinner together and got to spend some more time with him.
No, his life hasn't been great. He's made some bad choices, but more recently said he's trying to make better ones. Dad, Stess, Troy and my Uncle went on a bike ride and Troy got soaked so ended up wearing Dad's clothes. It was fitting.
He's living in Portland, and now that we have his number, we're not going to let him go. Stess and I both had a terrible time sleeping last night as we kept thinking about him. I got a call from him this afternoon, and it's still weird to know that I'm talking with my brother on the other line :)
To top all this off, Troy became a Christian when he was with us but I don't think he's had much of a chance to grow in his faith at all. He mentioned church a few times and Stess and I have invited him to join us at our Home group. He's planning on coming this week! And, he gets New Years day off, so I think we're planning on spending some time together...
So, my Christmas was Amazing!!! Not because I had the best gifts, though they were pretty nice ;) and not because I had a three day weekend, though I did, but because after fifteen years, I got to see my brother again!

Community

2009-10-27T22:32:00.000-07:00

I've been attending my church, Mosaic, now for just under two years. I've tried to get involved several times, wanting to join a home group and/or be on the worship team. Unfortunately I've always had something conflict. I tried out a home group last fall and then my schedule at work changed so I couldn't make it. When I did have a schedule that worked, my car died. Usually the home groups start at either 6:30 or 7, which is very tough when you get off work at 7. Finally though, I've succeeded in not only finding a home group, but getting my schedule changed so that I can attend such home group, and I have a sister living in Portland so there is transportation to get to said home group. Now we just have to find one!
A little over a month ago, Stess notice a lady sitting next to me in the service. She told me that the lady looked familiar, so after the service Stess went over and started talking to her. Turns out, Stess knew Alisha (this lady) from her days when she was at Concordia working on her bachelors. Well, somehow the topic of home groups came up and Alisha mentioned that she's a part of one that meets on Tuesday nights (good because Stess doesn't have class that night) and meets at 7pm (great cause I'm off at 5 most nights)! So, Alisha invited us to her home group and then proceeded to introduce us to Amanda, part one of the duo that leads said home group. Amanda was fun and quirky and told us that we were more than welcome to come and that the group tended to be a bit sarcastic (something I'm so NOT) and that if we didn't like the group, no hard feelings and we wouldn't need to avoid them if we see them on Sunday. Well, i was pretty much hooked!
So we showed up the next Tuesday and had a great time. Just like any time you are new, there was some awkwardness, however I really liked the group. We've been going ever since.
About two or three weeks into going , Zach, part two of the duo, was leading us through a portion of John and pulled out play dough. We each had a plate, to keep the play dough off the carpet, and our own color of play dough. We got through the exercise he had planned and at the end of our time, he proceeded to chuck his ball of dough at Stess and messed up the creation she was making on her plate. In the car that night I told Stess that I think we were in. :)
It's been a blast to get to know these people and we have a really great time and wonderful Bible discussion. Sadly, for the next four weeks I'll be training and wont' be able to make it. I'm really bummed. So much so that I even volunteered to come in at 5am for work! Those who know me know that I am NOT a morning person!
So, I'll miss out on a month, but I'm so glad to feel a part of this group and glad to get connected to community.

Eww

2009-09-09T17:23:00.000-07:00

I am SO excited! And honestly it's just about this tinney little thing, but it makes me happy, so I'm sharing :)
My whole life I've bit my nails. Never to the point where they bleed and are half way down your finger, but short none the less. My sister has always had beautiful nails and I've always been jealous. I love the look of long nails. I've spent much money on the fake nails, as a kid I got the sticky ones with fancy colors like these...

but never actually the Hello Kitty kind. As I got older I started doing my own and got pretty good. I could make my fake nails look like the expensive kind you can get done at salons. I did splurge a few times on the acrylics, but they never last long on my nails, usually about a week or less. Every time I was done with paying for the nails I was determined 1. to not spend the money on them again, and 2. to stop biting my nails! Of course, it lasted for about a week if that before I was back to biting.

When I went to the Philippines I immediately noticed one of the other trainers had beautiful nails! I must confess, I envied her :) Anyway, she and I went to get manicures at the mall because they were so cheep! I decided to do acrylics, because it was so cheep, but after 2 hours of work and knowing after about 20 that I wan't going to like them, I again was determined to stop bitting. Well, the nails lasted 2 days. They weren't done well at all and my hand slipped opening the door...

Since my nails now looked aweful, I headed to the store to see what I could find to cover them up until they grew out. Well, I found this product

It works! It tastes really bitter and I'm amazed and kind of grosed out at how many times my hands were in my mouth! Eww! Well, it's been about a month now since I started and my nails are longer than they ever have been! Yep, I'm excited. Thanks for letting me share :)

Turbulence and Jet lag

2009-07-31T06:30:00.000-07:00

Well, after a long flight to Japan, a few hours in the airport, a 4 hour flight and an hour getting to the hotel, I'm finally here! I arrived at my hotel this morning, Friday, around 1 am. The flight to Japan was uneventful. I flew on Northwest airlines, and honestly, not that impressed. The last two times, going to Mongolia, have spoiled me. Then we had our own screens and multiple movie/tv choices. On this flight there were small screens in the aisle that all showed the same movie. At first I thought the flight was going to be pretty empty and that I would have my own row, but alas, I did have to share. My neighbor wasn't an issue, but the idea of having your own row on a ten hour flight, was really encouraging! The flight from Japan to Manila was shorter by far, and I did have two seats. I was so tired I slept through dinner, but really, dinner at 10pm wasn't very apetizing.
Arriving at the airport I knew what to look for, thanks to Bonnie and our Mongolia trips. I had everything I needed and made it through customes with no problems. Both my suitcases made it through without issue and I was headed out the door to find my driver. When I got to the area where drivers were waiting for passangers and family was meeting their guests I got a bit overwhelmed. It was raining, dark and humid and there were hundreds of people! I stopped on a ramp and looked out over the croud scanning for anything familiar. Finally I saw my company logo on a sign and knew I'd found my driver, Gani.
After loading up my luggage into the air conditioned van, Gani and I took off. Driving here is not like the US, that's for certain. Lanes were a guideline, lights a suggestion, and blinkers are an annoying noise your car makes when you turn hard in one direction and accidentally push down on that lever on the side :p And yet, just like in Mongolia, I have yet to see a car accident!
My hotel suite is just that, a suite. It's great! I have a kitchenett, a dining room, living room, huge bedroom, large bathroom, great closet space, and even a little vanity area! Best of all, it's air conditioned!
I'll take pictures and post them later. Right now it's almost 10 and I've been fighting sleep for a few hours now. I'll try to keep this updated more often then I have in the past :)

Up, up and away!

2009-07-28T15:29:00.000-07:00

23 hours and counting! For the last two weeks I've had a little white board at work counting down the days until I leave. Yesterday it switched to hours :) No my coworkers have taken to adding little comments on my countdown.
Stess is up here, waiting to take me to the airport. I fly out tomorrow at 2:15 for a ten hour flight to Tokyo and then another four hour flight to Manila. I'll get there at 11pm on Thursday.
So, I'll try really hard to keep this updated. I'm borrowing a camera so I can add pictures. In the meantime, have a great month!

T minus 8 Days!

2009-07-21T13:17:00.000-07:00

Well, my trip to the Philippines is still a go! No, I'm not excited... Not even a little ;p

I fly out around 2pm on Wednesday, July 29th. It's quite a long flight, but I honestly don't mind. I love flying! In fact, I was at the airport on Friday night, to catch a shuttle to go to Corvallis, and got excited seeing the planes as they land!

I've always been that way though. I remember when I was growing up, my family lived near the airport and we knew all sorts of missionaries, so it was quite common for us to go to the airport to pick up people. This was all in the days of guests actually being able to wait at the gate and see the plain coming in. We have pictures of my sister and I standing at the big windows watching eagerly as the plains are taxing in. So, as long as I can remember, driving up Airport Way in Portland, headed to the airport gets me excited. There are so many possibilities! Anyway, I'm getting off track...

I haven't written much lately, so I'll update you on what's been going on. Contrary to how it may seem, I've not just been stuck on the Philippines. Over the 4th, Mom, Dad, Stess and I headed to Victoria BC for the Northwest Tandem Rally. We drove up to the river, parked and then took our bikes on the ferry. It was a lot of fun! We were there from Thursday through Monday morning. Victoria is beautiful, if not a bit hilly :) It got to the point where I dreaded a down hill, because I knew that another up hill would follow, but over all, had a great time and I'd do it again.

Dad, Stess, Mom and I on Victoria bay

Dad and I at breakfast

Stess and I entering Butchart Gardens

Just before the rally starts

Just look at all those bikes behind us!

Following Victoria we headed across the state of Washington and landed in Sandpoint Idaho for several days. Dad's Aunt and Uncle celebrated 50 years of marriage, so the rest of the family was already there, we just joined them. It's been a while since I'd been to Idaho (Mongolia tends to get in the way of that :) and it was nice to be back. We were there earlier in the year, so it was a bit cooler, but all in all, had a wonderful time!

Last weekend was busy as I went down to Corvallis for Kate and Howard's wedding! I had such a great time celebrating with them and I got to catch up with a lot of long lost friends. It went by too fast...

Now that I'm back, yes, I'm constantly thinking of the Philippines. I do have a count down at work where I can change the number when I come in. I know, kinda cheesy, but I'm excited! There are two guys leaving this Friday and I'll follow them over on Wednesday. I've got my visa, in my passport, and have started accumulating all those little things that you need when traveling. While there I'll have a computer, so I'm hoping to update this often, and Stess is loaning me her camera, so there may even be pictures! In the meantime, for those of you on Facebook, I'll be updating that often and of course email is always a good way to get a hold of me.

For now I'm set to be there for a month, but they have asked if anyone is willing to stay longer and my response... no surprise here, I jumped up and down and said, "Heck yeah!"

Oh, one other exciting thing... I know, so much going on! Stess has been accepted to Concordia's master's program and is moving to Portland! So, when I get back, I'll be moving. You can pray that we find a great place to stay, at a great price since I'm the only one making money!

Until later, have a fantastic week!

Home Sick

2009-06-17T22:06:00.000-07:00

Right about now I get a little bit "home" sick. No, it's not for my childhood home or where my parents live, though I miss that home too. But today I miss my Mongolian home. For the past two years I've either been there now or headed there soon. Unfortunately, this year, I'm not going and that's sad. I'll readily admit I can see why and I see God's hands in this (especially since I'm going to the Philippines!!!) but still, I miss my Mongolian home.
I've been looking at my pictures tonight and thought it'd be appropriate to post some. So, though you may have never been, I hope you enjoy them even half as much as I do!

Ulzi and Moogi and their family. They're in the Philippines right now!

Our breakfast table...

Having fun in the river

I'm pretty sure one of the kids was taking this picture... :)

Turtle Rock in the background

goofing off while playing cards... again, I think the kids were taking this picture.

Ruthie's nickname was "Chainsaw"

Batsingle, Burnee and Sandra

I love this girl!

On the road again Update

2009-06-10T21:15:00.000-07:00

About two months ago, an email went out at work. It went something like this on a Friday afternoon,

"I (being my boss' boss...) am looking for a list of volunteers who would go to the Philippines for three months. There would be no time to come home for a break during this time. I need an answer to give to the Company by Monday."

Being the somewhat reluctant traveler that I am (NOT!) my response was "something" like this...

"I'LL GO!!! When is it?"

Unknown to be was the fact I had accidentally hit respond to all, so every manager and every senior, saw how "un"willing I was to go...
That was Easter weekend. I told my family, got all excited about the possibility, and moved on. Again, being the "reluctant" traveler that I am, I didn't get online and look at flights to the Philippines and I didn't try to find where I would be located. Of course I didn't look up World Venture Missionaries in the off chance that I'd go and get to see them, and I didn't get really excited about my Mongolian friends who are in the Philippines studying at a seminary. Oh, and of course, I didn't go looking for blogs on the Philippines so I could get some idea what the culture was like. Nope, not me!
Anyhoo, Monday came around and I didn't hear anything, accept for one co-worker coming around asking if we had valid passports. Seeing as mine was renewed last year, I double checked. Is an expiration date of 2018 a problem? No? Okay, I'm set...
Tuesday rolled around and nothing...
Wednesday came around and the training manger comes by my desk. Now, the email and the rumors going around indicated that we weren't going to send trainers overseas, so I'm thinking nothing of the fact that he's standing at my desk. Probably something coming up, like new product or something... He leans over my desk and quietly asks me,
-Is your passport up to date?
Yes (see above)
-Do you have any plans for June through August?
No! (Well, technically, yes, I was going to go on vacation with my family, but I'd already told them, "I love you, but... Philippines or a bike trip? Hmm, guess what? I can bike next year right?") so, No!
-So, unofficially (you can't tell anyone yet) I'm going to send you to the Philippines for two to three months... followed by some details that aren't important....
YES!!! (just a tad excited with a HUGE grin on my face)

Fast forward two weeks and a few conversations later, I'm jazzed and I'm gone! It's still unofficial, however I've got the list of shots I'd need, the list of passport photos that I'll need, a few details on the classes I'd be training, enough to really be gone already and I get this message from my boss...

-you're not going to the Philippines. Sorry.

Oh, man, totally destroy my day!

Life's gone one. I still occasionally read the blog, but I took all the markers off my google earth, and I don't remember the missionaries any more and I told my Mongolian friends I'm not coming. And I'm excited about that bike trip with my family... Until Saturday when a car decided to hit me (but I'm still going), and then Monday not much happened. I was in lot's of pain (to be expected) but glad to find a doctor across the street (literally) and then Tuesday when I went to work, just cause I was bored (well, kinda). I ran into my training boss and was telling him about what happened. He looks at me and says,

-do you think you'd be okay to take a 15 hour flight in July?

Yeah!

So, once again, I'm supposedly going to the Philippines! Not as long this time, only for a month!!! In theory I'm leaving the end of July and will be there through August. It feels a bit more official this time as he's emailing me the visa applications this week and he was telling me this in front of other people. So, yeah, seeing as I'm not so keen on travel, I'm NOT AT ALL EXCITED!!!!!!

***UPDATE***
I have an itinerary!!! Leaving July 29th. Returning August 29th!

Well done "Captain Obvious"

2009-06-06T17:05:00.000-07:00

Getting hit by a car while riding your bike, hurts. Yep, there it is, I know, quite a shocker to all of you. As you have now probably deduced, using exceptionally good deductive skills I must say, I got hit today. I okay, as I'm able to write this post, but in lots of pain. One of my very first posts was about Stess getting hit by a car while riding a bike. I didn't expect to ever write one of my own, however, today marks the day of my first official bike accident.
I was crossing the street today and the car didn't see me and turned left. She hit me just about in the middle of the road. I saw it coming but couldn't do anything to stop it. As I was flying in the air I saw my bike in front of me and other cars coming up, however they all saw it coming too, so no other accidents were caused.
The paramedics came right away but I declined to go to the hospital. My Uncle was able to come and pick me up; my bike is not working right now. I did go to immediate care, however the doctor basically said that since I can sit, nothing is broken, which I figured from Stess' experience.
So, I'm okay, in lot's of pain, and have the next two days off of work. If you drive a car, please watch out for bikers, and if you bike, make eye contact with drivers!

What!?

2009-05-11T13:22:00.000-07:00

I love my hair. I know, odd way to start a blog, but I'm sitting here at work eating lunch and a comment made about my hair made me laugh. I'm going to tell you about it, but have to preface it first...
My hair is naturally curly, and I love it, but I got it cut a while ago and it looks really good straight too. So, on any given day, it will be curly or straight. No big deal right?
So back to my lunch. This guy leans over my cube wall and asks, "Is that a wig?"

WHAT!!!???

He proceeded to say that my hair is always changing, he thought it was brown last week, and that he was just curious...

It made me laugh... "Is that a wig?" I give him props for asking...

Seat 29E

2009-04-30T14:01:00.000-07:00

I have recently discovered the joy of podcasts. Seeing as I have an hour plus commute, both ways, to work each morning these free downloads are a life saver. One of the podscasts I've been listening to is sermons from Rob Bell's church in Minnesota. This morning I listened to one that was from several weeks back. It was very good and I'm sure had some spirityal application that I'm not going to discuss here because there was something else that totally struck me. No, it's not a spiritual insight, unless you listen to his sermon and get the application. In this case I'm just sharing a letter (possibly two) that he read aloud. It had me laughing all the way to work, and I'm sure I got some weird looks from other people. You may have heard this before, if so, enjoy it again. There is a pdf that is available online that has the pictures that go with this, but I'm just going to give you the text version.
So what is it you ask? Here is a letter from a customer of Continental airlines. They wrote this letter after a very, long, flight...

"Dear Continental Airlines,
I am disgusted as I write this note to you about the miserable experience I am having sitting in seat 29E on one of your aircrafts. As you may know, this seat is situated directly across from the lavatory, so close that I can reach out my left arm and touch the door.
All my senses are being tortured simultaneously. It's difficult to say what the worst part about sitting in 29E really is? Is it the stench of the sanitation fluid that's blown all over my body every 60 seconds when the door opens? Is it the wooosh of the constant flushing? Or is it the passengers asses that seem to fit into my personal space like a pornographic jig-saw puzzel?
I constructed a stink-shield by shoving one end of a blanket into the overhead compartment - while effective in blocking at least some of the smell, and offering a small bit of pricacy, the ass-on-my-body factor has increased, as withough my evil glare, passengers feel free to lean up against what they think is some kind of blanketed wall. The next ass that touches my shoulder will be the last!
I am picturing a board room full of executives giving props to the young promising engineer that figured out how to squeeze an additional row of seats onto this plane by putting them next to the LAV. I would like to flush his head in the toilet that I am close enough to touch, and taste, from my seat.
Putting a seat here was a very bad idea. I just heard a man groan in there! This sucks!
Worse yet, is I've paid over $400.00 for the honor of sitting in this seat!
Does your company give refunds? I'd like to go back to where I came from and start over. Seat 29E could only be worse if it was located inside the bathroom.
I wonder if my clothing will retain the sanitizing odor...what about my hair! I feel like I'm bathing in a toilet bowl of blue liquid, and there is no man in a little boat to save me.
I am filled with a deep hatred for your plane designer and a general disease that may last for hours.
We are finally decending, and soon I will be able to dear down teh stink-shield, but the scars will remain.
I suggest that you initiate immediate removal of this seat from all of your crafts. Just remove it, and leave the smouldering brown hole empty, a good place for sturdy/non-absorbing luggage maybe, but not human cargo."

A.A.A.D.D.

2009-04-29T14:09:00.000-07:00

This came to me in email form and we had a blast laughing through it. Hope it brightens your day!

KNOW THE SYMPTOMS
Thank goodness there's a name for this disorder.
Somehow I feel better even though I have it!!

Recently, I was diagnosed with A.A.A.D.D. -
Age Activated Attention Deficit Disorder.

This is how it manifests:

I decide to water my garden.

As I turn on the hose in the driveway,
I look over at my car and decide it needs washing.

As I start toward the garage,
I notice mail on the porch table that
I brought up from the mail box earlier.

I decide to go through the mail before I wash the car.

I lay my car keys on the table,
put the junk mail in the garbage can under the table,
and notice that the can is full.

So, I decide to put the bills back
on the table and take out the garbage first.

But then I think,
since I'm going to be near the mailbox
when I take out the garbage anyway,
I may as well pay the bills first.

I take my check book off the table,
and see that there is only one check left.

My extra checks are in my desk in the study,
so I go inside the house to my desk where
I find the can of Pepsi I'd been drinking.

I'm going to look for my checks,
but first I need to push the Pepsi aside
so that I don't accidentally knock it over.

The Pepsi is getting warm,
and I decide to put it in the refrigerator to keep it cold.

As I head toward the kitchen with the Pepsi,
a vase of flowers on the counter
catches my eye--they need water.

I put the Pepsi on the counter and
discover my reading glasses that
I've been searching for all morning.

I decide I better put them back on my desk,
but first I'm going to water the flowers.

I set the glasses back down on the counter,
fill a container with water and suddenly spot the TV remote.
Someone left it on the kitchen table.

I realize that tonight when we go to watch TV,
I'll be looking for the remote,
but I won't remember that it's on the kitchen table,
so I decide to put it back in the den where it belongs,
but first I'll water the flowers.

I pour some water in the flowers,
but quite a bit of it spills on the floor.

So, I set the remote back on the table,
get some towels and wipe up the spill.

Then, I head down the hall trying to
remember what I was planning to do.

At the end of the day:
the car isn't washed
the bills aren't paid
there is a warm can of Pepsi sitting on the counter
the flowers don't have enough water,
there is still only 1 check in my check book,
I can't find the remote,
I can't find my glasses,
and I don't remember what I did with the car keys.
Then, when I try to figure out why nothing got done today,
I'm really baffled because I know I was busy all day,
and I'm really tired.

I realize this is a serious problem,
and I'll try to get some help for it,
but first I'll check my e-mail....

Do me a favor.
Forward this message to everyone you know,
because I don't remember who I've sent it to.

Don't laugh -- if this isn't you yet, your day is coming!!

Screaming Green Bacchetta

2009-04-16T09:19:00.000-07:00

For several years now my parents have really gotten into riding bikes. We've always had bikes, mountain bikes to be exact, and made much use of them when we went camping throughout the summer. I even remember one winter in Portland where we pulled them out and rode in the snow!
My mom's sister and husband got a tandem bike and Mom and Dad took to the idea and bought their own. They loved it so much they started doing tandem rallies and riding all the time. Dad's on the front and Mom on the back. Well, apparently dad got tired of looking at the white line on the road while mom pointed out all the deer and about two years ago they bought a recumbent tandem.
Since they've gotten into riding my sister has and, to some degree, I have as well. Stess is much more into it and two years ago Mom and Dad got her a street bike, an upright one. Last summer Stess and I joined Mom and Dad on a tandem rally and it was really fun. I rode with Dad and Stess with Mom. The only thing I didn't like was when Dad and I had to ride the upright...
This year Dad found two recumbent singles. Here's a picture...
No, I don't know who the guy is.
Well, they got a great deal on both bikes so bought them both. Stess got one, cause she rides all the time, and Dad took the other to use to commute to work. However, since his office is moving to his home, and because they took pitty on me, last weekend they gave me the other one! Excited is an understatement. I'm constantly checking on the weather to see when it's not supposed to rain, and have been frustrated at times when I didn't ride because of expected rain, only to not have any rain come. Oh well, the "joys" of the North West in Spring.
I've had quite a few comments at work about the bike and yesterday I was told it was, "the talk of the smoking section." At least word is spreading so they know who's bike it is, so if anyone tries to mess with it, it's known.
I've also started looking at how to get home, riding some way on the bike and the rest on the max. I've been riding about 8 minutes to another transit center and then yesterday I wrode about 30 to the next one. It was fun. I got tired at the end as the finish line is up two large (to my perception) hills which had me chanting to myself the whole way. BUT I made it and it was fun. Much more fun this morning though when I got to ride DOWN the same hills to work...

Negligence

2009-04-09T14:33:00.000-07:00

Yeah, I've not been that consistent with this blog. What can I say, life's been busy. I worked over 7 hours over time last week. Needless to say, I was a little tired. I did make that up on the weekend though and went to see Wicked again! I showed up two and a half hours early and put my name in a lottery for a $25 ticket. And I got one! It was a ton of fun and I'd do it again but alas, Wicked has left Portland...
This weekend Mom, Dad and my Sister are headed up here for Easter! They're coming to my church and I'm "hosting" dinner! Oh the responsibility! We're having ham. We've had it before so there's not much I can screw up.
My roommate is out of work and has been since December. She's an accountant and is looking hard but no luck yet. Her brother moved out here from Boston a few weeks ago. He's living with us for now. He's also unemployed... Last night I think he applied for a job where I work. I don't think he's planning on it long term, he's an architect, but it's work so we'll see.
So, that's my life for now. Stacy has abandoned me to Corvallis... But I'm glad she's glad. :)

A Wicked Weekend

2009-03-30T14:52:00.000-07:00

Stess came up on Thursday night as last week was spring break. On Friday we went and saw Wicked on Broadway. It was SO MUCH FUN!!! I didn't know much about the show, other than it was a Broadway and a take off on The Wizard of Oz.
We had good seats bought about two weeks ago. We ended up being on the second balcony but on an aisle and right in front, so the view was pretty good. Madre and Bonnie were there too, different location but there none the less.
So, I have to tell this story on Stess, cause it was funny! We sat down and were looking at the program. We're looking at the song list and she turns to me and says, "This is a musical?" I looked at her and said, "Yes!" I didn't realize she didn't know it was a musical. She enjoyed it though, so that didn't matter much, and she knows now...
All in all, Wicked was so much fun! I'd go again if given the chance.
After the show we joined Madre and Bonnie for desert at Pappa Hayden's. Mmm, it was very good.
On Saturday we celebrated Stephanie's birthday, which is this Wednesday. We went out for dinner at the Spaghetti Factory. We ended up going there after McMinnemans had a two hour wait! The service wasn't wonderful, but I've been there enough times to know that it's not normal. The food was great and the company even better.
And lastly, Sunday was the last Sunday for Evangel, the church I grew up in. Stess and I went to my church but we were told that there would be some people at a restaurant we used to go to all the time. So, Stess and I showed up around 12:30 and went in at 1. When we got there we saw 3 people. Apparently someone had called in a group of about 15-20 people. We sat down and waited for people to show up. They kept coming and at the last count I made there were about 30 to 35 people! The restaurant kept adding tables. It was really great to see people that I grew up with. Many generations and lots of fun. It's sad to see the end of my childhood church, however it was great to see all those people.
All in all, it was a fun weekend! Hope yours was as fun.

Over the mountains and through the woods

2009-03-22T16:37:00.000-07:00

My roommate flew out to the East coast last week to meet her brother and drive back to Portland with him. She left her car and told me to feel free to use it! Seeing as I don't have a car anymore, this was really nice. I got to thinking on Wednesday or Thursday that it would be really fun to go to the beach. Then I though, why not get a hotel room and stay a night? So, I got online and found a cute hotel in Cannon Beach, cannonbeachhotel.com. I noticed they had this deal for last minute bookings, half off! So on Thursday I called and booked a room for Saturday night. I ended up splurging a bit and got a "Premier" room. It was that or the "Basic" and though they both looked nice, the Basic was missing a tub and fireplace.
So, I headed over on Saturday and I am SO glad I went! It was gorgeous on Saturday and the drive over was very nice. My room was amazing! A great four poster bed, a gas fireplace, an awesome tub... It was wonderful.
I'm thinking this is going to become a yearly, if not bi-yearly event... I bought a disposable camera on my way over, so once I get those developed, or rather onto a cd, I'll consider posting some pictures.
In the meantime, I highly recommend the Cannon Beach Hotel. It was very cute and with the half of deal, worth every penny!

Chris Tomlin

2009-03-08T22:33:00.000-07:00

Saturday was AMAZING!!! Stess came up to Portland and we went to see Chris Tomlin in concert. I’ve been to one of his concerts before and told Stess that I wanted to go because the previous time had been an evening of worship. Last night didn’t disappoint.
We were talking on the way to the concert about how it must be for someone like CT to be on tour. Stess said she couldn’t do it, it’d be too exhausting. I told her I don’t think it is. Yes, it’s tiring, but I think it must be amazing to be able to lead hundreds of people to worship night after night. I imagine the best worship services on Sunday morning, the ones where you just want to keep going and you forget about lunch and what time it is. I think it’s got to be that way for someone like CT. Yes, I’m sure there are times when you are tired, and I know it’s not all fun and games.
It was interesting to compare last night’s concert to the one I went to the previous Friday.
Two weeks ago I saw Brad Paisley at the Rose Garden. It was fun! I would go again and was thrilled to have the opportunity to go. However, comparing the two, BP’s was all about the songs that he’s written and how good he is. He’s good, and his songs are fun, but not many of the pointed to something of substance, at least not substance that will last. Sure he has the songs about “Waitin’ on a Woman” and ones that remind us of people who have moved on, but all the music and all the videos played spoke mostly of the here and now and getting the most out of your life and what you are going to do.
In contrast CT’s songs all point to someone else. The videos he had playing were all directed towards worship of God, not himself. I didn’t feel like he was on display or performing so much as he was directing our thoughts and worship and praise to One who is worthy of it.
Again, I had a great time and I know each of these had a different purpose, but it was very interesting to be able to go to two concerts in a short span and be able to compare them. BP was a blast, but CT had a lasting impact on me.

Marley and Me

2009-03-08T22:29:00.000-07:00

Stess, Stacy and I went to Bagdad theater to see “Marley and Me” yesterday. It was a good movie! For anyone who has ever loved a dog, it’s a tear jerker. One of the things I really liked about the movie though was the whole concept of family. The movie starts with the couple getting married, and throughout the whole movie they stay married and faithful to each other. Yes, they have hard times and they fight and life is tough, but they never even consider separation or divorce.

So, if you’re looking for a good movie that shows a family that stays whole and is healthy, I recommend this one. Bring Kleenex though…

Country, Basket Ball and Tomlin!

2009-03-05T15:19:00.000-08:00

Wow it's been a while since I updated this! Sorry!
Life is rolling along and I'm doing good. Last Friday Stacy and I, along with Madre, Bonnie, George and Cindy, went to see Brad Paisley in concert at the Rose Garden! It was tons of fun! Stacy has pictures on her blog...
A coworker asked me to go to teh Blazer game on Sunday afternoon. They won and scored over 100 points, so everone got cupons for free chalupas at Taco Bell! It was a good game too, so lots of fun there.
This Saturday Stess is coming up to Portland! We're going to see Chris Tomlin!!!!!!!!!! Yep, I'm excited! I saw him several years ago and loved it, so I'm really looking forward to that this weekend. And seeing Stess is always wonderful.
I'm still without a car, but have been getting around on the public transportation pretty well. Once it gets sunnier, or less rainy, I'm going to try and ride more often.
Work is going well. I was in training for the past week and a half and learned a TON. It's been great to put that all into practice this week. Next week I may be training, which I love!
I moved rooms as one of my roomates moved out. I'm sad she left, but really love my new room. We're still looking for a roomate though, so keep praying.

Stolen

2009-02-14T23:47:00.001-08:00

Yep, I stole this from Carrie, but it looked fun!

NAME FUN

1. YOUR REAL NAME:
Carina Marie Howrey

2. WITNESS PROTECTION NAME:(mother and fathers middle names)
Gail Paul

3. NASCAR NAME:(first name of your mother's dad, father's dad)
Eldon William

4. STAR WARS NAME:(the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first name)
Howca

5. DETECTIVE NAME:(favorite color, favorite animal)
Purple Monkey

6. SOAP OPERA NAME:(middle name, town where you were born)
Marie Bend

7. SUPERHERO NAME: (2nd fav color, fav drink, add "THE" to the beginning)
The Blue Mojito

8. FLY NAME:(first 2 letters of 1st name, last 2 letters of your last name)
caho

9. STREET NAME:(fav ice cream flavor, fav cookie)
chocolate peanut butter chip

10. WAITRESS NAME: (1st pet's name, street you grew up on)
Munchkin Freemont

11. GANGSTA NAME:(first 3 letters of last name plus 'izzle')
Howizzle

13. YOUR IRAQI NAME:(2nd letter of your first name, 3rd letter of your last name, first two letters of your middle name, last two letters of your first name then last three letters of your last name)

Awmanarey

14. YOUR GOTH NAME:(black, and the name of one of your pets)

Black Ginger

15. DANCER NAME: (name of your fav perfume/cologne, fav candy)

Jadore Heath

Goodbye...

2009-02-02T19:53:00.000-08:00

I had to say goodbye to my car today. On my way home from Stess', on my way to work, it died. No resurrection for this car, it's dead. Uncle Phil was great and came and picked me up. He called in a favor and a junkyard towed my car without charging me. When they heard what type of car I had they said there's no resale value to it, so I didn't get anything for it. So, I'm very glad I live in Portland at this time and so close to public transportation.

Blazers

2009-01-28T22:18:00.000-08:00

Tonight I went to the Blazer's game. It was a lot of fun, they won and I got to go for free. Can't go wrong with that! Interesting observation though. For the half time show they brought out all these girls from probably age 3 to high school age. The girls had gone to some type of camp that the dancer's for the Blazers put on. The final then was getting to perform at the game.
It was very interesting to see the girls and how they danced. There was an adorable little girl, probably 3 or 4, who just looked cute and was out to have fun time. You could tell she was the kind who just liked to dance for the fun of it. Then you had the slightly older girls who were divided between wanting to dance cause it was fun, and wanting to dance because they wanted to look and act beautiful. Those who wanted to just had fun didn't really have all the moves down and didn't particularly look great, but you could tell this was a highlight for them, simply being able to be out there. The older girls, like those in high school had a more "sexiness" to them. Some were trying to have it with no success and others you could tell were trying to work it.
To top it off, the actual dancers were in really tight clothing, and were dancing very provocatively, no matter the intent or song. All in all, it left a kinda bitter taste in my mouth. I loved watching the girls who were just out there to have fun. Where's the balance then? If I have a daughter who want's to dance, and loves it because that's how God made her, where will the balance be between doing it for fun and doing it for attention? Just thoughts I'm pondering...

Wii

2009-01-20T19:10:00.000-08:00

Around Christmas my Aunt and Uncle borrowed a friends Wii just for fun. Our family liked it so much, especially my parents who have NEVER owned any type of gaming system, that they decided they wanted to buy one. So, about two weeks ago my mom calls me and asks me if I'll call Toys R Us to see if they have any Wii's because Best Buy and all the stores in Bend and Redmond were out of them. I didn't find any but they were still looking. In fact, they'd bought the Wii fit because it was available but couldn't play it without the Wii.
This weekend Stess and I went down there to visit and Dad and I were going up to the mountain to snowmobile (Stess was on a DATE!), and Mom calls saying Best Buy has 10 Wiis and should she go in to town and get one. She did so Sunday evening we all set up our own little characters and played tennis. Then on Monday, while they were at work, Stess and I played more.
Today my right arm is so sore!

Merry Christmas to all!

2008-12-25T09:01:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas to all my friends and family who read this, and to anyone else who happens along! While I'm stuck at work, for a short shift, and wishing I were with family I thought I'd post something, since I have the time and this list seems to be making it's way throughout bloggland. Yes, I borrowed this from Stacy who borrowed it from...

My Favorites of the Christmas Season:

Smell - Baking (pumpkin bread, nutmeg, cinamon, bananna bread, fudge...)

Song - Angels we have herd on high

Food - Mom's swedish bread

Symbol - christmas lights

Tradition - Chinese food on Christmas Eve followed by opening up one gift, usually pajamas if they were under the tree

Movie - White Christmas

Sweet - fudge

Gift Received - Last year mom got be a book I didn't think she'd actually buy and I've loved having it! There's a link to it here.

Gift Given - I was pretty excited about my Dad's gift several years back. Compiling his music into one big 3 ring binder.

Meal - Ham dinner

I hope you are all enjoying this Christmas!

Dear Mrs. Clause,

2008-12-18T21:16:00.000-08:00

It has come to my attention that Santa Clause is not very technically savvy. Every time my sister and I call him, he says hello and then promptly, sometimes not so promptly, hands us over to Mrs. Clause. Santa also does not email very often. In fact, I don't think I've ever had an email from Santa Clause. And then there's blogs. Apparently one of Santa's elves told him I had a blog, but would you believe it, he doesn't read it! Instead Mrs. Clause dutifully gets online and puts in my blog address to read to Mr. Clause what is going on in the day to day life of me. None of this do I mind, however I got the most astonishing email from Mrs. Clause this evening.
Apparently Mrs. Clause has forgotten the directions to this wonderful blog, of which I should write much more often than I do, and is in desperate need of the directions. Never you fear, I would NOT want to deprive Mr. and Mrs. Clause of the joyous ramblings of my day to day life, so I've sent the directions directly. And, as Mrs. Clause informed me that she also has lost directions to my dear sister's blog, I'll add that note as well.
All of this is of course to say....
WELCOME TO MY BLOG MRS. CLAUSE (and Santa too...)

Beautiful Tuya

2008-12-05T20:53:00.000-08:00

In Mongolia this year I really connected with a beautiful girl named Tuya. Two years ago she and her sister were more quiet around our team, but this year I really felt a connection with her. She wrote me a letter before we left, which I still have and will probably always keep.
Bonnie got back from Mongolia a few weeks ago, and with her came letters for our team written by some of the kids. Today I got an envelope from "Far Far Away". When I opened it I had a letter from this dear girl. It's times like these when I don't know how I can't go back.
Here's a picture of this lady.

She asked me to come back next year, but this time I need to bring my boyfriend. I guess I should get cracking on that...

Just for fun

2008-12-05T20:31:00.001-08:00

I'm looking through my pictures, trying to find a specific one, but I've run across these four pictures that I just want to post. No big reason other than it was a fun weekend. A while ago Stess came up to Ptown and we got to hang out with our "Brothers" Ryan and Kyle. Kyle didn't look at the camera, Ryan made a face, my camera didn't focus on Stess and I, and then the sky was just cool. So, for no real reason, enjoy!

1st Christmas gift

2008-12-03T22:49:00.000-08:00

I was over at Stacy's tonight watching a show, but before we watched it she was showing me a youtube video of Il Divo, a group that she really likes. That got me thinking about a group I heard about last year called "Straight No Chaser". They're an acapella music group that performed back in 1996. Well they have a great video that Stacy has posted on her site. Check it out. They're amazing.
Since Stacy posted the Christmas video I thought I'd post another favorite we watched a few times tonight...

After watching those a few times we saw that the group is back together and has put out a Christmas cd! I love it! Stacy bought me a copy for Christmas so I can enjoy it for years to come.

It's so much fun! It reminds me of all the choirs that I was in growing up. All the Christmas concerts we performed. The acapella songs sung and the fun times.

Thanks Stacy!

99

2008-11-24T20:38:00.000-08:00

I stole this from Stay who stole it from Mikaila who stole it from Carrie. In bold are all the things I have done and I've put stars next to the things I want to do.

1. Started my own blog

2. Slept under the stars

3. Played in a band

4. Visited Hawaii***

5. Watched a meteor shower

6. Given more than I can afford to charity

7. Been to Disneyland/world

8. Climbed a mountain

9. Held a praying mantis

10. Sung a solo

11. Bungee jumped

12. Visited Paris***

13. Watched a lightning storm at sea ***

14. Taught myself an art from scratch

15. Adopted a child***

16. Had food poisoning

17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty***

18. Grown my own vegetables

19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France***

20. Slept on an overnight train

21. Had a pillow fight

22. Hitchhiked

23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill

24. Built a snow fort

25. Held a lamb

26. Gone skinny dipping

27. Run a Marathon

28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice*** (I've been to Venice, but have not ridden a gondola)

29. Seen a total eclipse

30. Watched a sunrise or sunset

31. Hit a home run

32. Been on a cruise***

33. Seen Niagara Falls in person

34. Visited the birthplace of my ancestors

35. Seen an Amish community

36. Taught myself a new language***

37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied

38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person*** (My dad did. And I think he spit loogies off the top...)

39. Gone rock climbing

40. Seen Michelangelo’s David (Yep, I've seen it!)

41. Sung karaoke (Man, I feel like a woman)

42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt

43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant***

44. Visited Africa***

45. Walked on a beach by moonlight

46. Been transported in an ambulance

47. Had my portrait painted

48. Gone deep sea fishing

49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person***

50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris***

51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling***

52. Kissed in the rain***

53. Played in the mud

54. Gone to a drive-in theater

55. Been in a movie

56. Visited the Great Wall of China

57. Started a business

58. Taken a martial arts class

59. Visited Russia*** (I've been close, Latvia)

60. Served at a soup kitchen

61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies

62. Gone whale watching

63. Got flowers for no reason

64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma

65. Gone sky diving

66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp ***

67. Bounced a check

68. Flown in a helicopter***

69. Saved a favorite childhood toy

70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial

71. Eaten Caviar

72. Pieced a quilt

73. Stood in Times Square***

74. Toured the Everglades

75. Been fired from a job

76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London***

77. Broken a bone

78. Been on a speeding motorcycle

79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person

80. Published a book

81. Visited the Vatican***

82. Bought a brand new car

83. Walked in Jerusalem***

84. Had my picture in the newspaper

85. Read the entire Bible***

86. Visited the White House

87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating

88. Had chickenpox

89. Saved someone’s life***

90. Sat on a jury

91. Met someone famous

92. Joined a book club

93. Lost a loved one

94. Had a baby***

95. Seen the Alamo in person

96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake

97. Been involved in a law suit

98. Owned a cell phone

99. Been stung by a bee

Mr. Sniffles

2008-11-18T21:06:00.001-08:00

I've been training a new hire class for going on three weeks now and I thought I'd share a bit about my class. I am teaching 20 men about how to be a technician on my contract. That in itself is a feat. Me, someone with very little technical experience (that's a step up from none), teaching 20 guys with varying degrees of technical ability, most of which probably have much more experience than I do. However, even with this being the case, the class is going really well!
On the first day I did have one woman, but she bailed and never came back. I can only assume she was intimidated by the daunting task ahead of us. So, now I've got these guys in a classroom for 40 hours a week, three weeks long. It's been fun.
I've got the older gentlemen who vary from not knowing anything about "modern" computers to knowing more than their fair share of information. I have the guys who transfered from other contracts and those who are new to my workplace all together. I have the young guy who doesn't know much about computers, but is willing to learn, and the guys who have built many a pc and will have no problem with fixing the computers.
And then... I have "Mr. Sniffles." Mr. Sniffles is probably about 20, sits right next to me, constantly has a comment about something, an experience to relate or a story to tell (valid or not) and yes, you guessed it, sniffles constantly! It's really quite funny, and yet so annoying at the same time! To top that off, he's also kinda socially inept (no really?!) and the rest of the class has a bit of a difficult time with him. We're trying to keep it in check, but I must admit, occasionally I do catch an eye roll, sometimes from myself to another agent.
All in all though, the class is going great and I'm having a blast!

Promotion

2008-11-04T21:22:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago I saw a notice at work for a position opening up on my contract. It's a position that I've been kinda doing for a while. I'd applied about 3 months after I got hired, didn't get the job, but have been training for it since then. I decided to apply for the job again. I'm very happy doing what I'm doing now, but figured why not get paid more and have it look good on a resume?
So, Friday I had my interview. Before then, I spoke with my manager and he encouraged me, with no intention of discouraging me, to not give up if I didn't get the job. I went into the interview confident that I was qualified to do the job and do it well, but aware that other very qualified applicants had also applied.
My interview went well and I was told that out of20 who applied, I was 1 of 6 to be interviewed! I was told that I'd probably know by Monday if I got the job or not. Well, Monday came and went and I figured I hadn't gotten the job. Today, just before my training class ended, one of the interviewers came in and asked me to come by his office before I left for the night. I went into the office thinking I'd be told that I was qualified but so and so was more qualified... Better luck next time.
Instead I heard them offer me the job! Now on the outside I was very grateful and appreciative. However on the outside... I was yelling for joy!!! I got the job!!! (now for those of you from work, don't say anything yet until the email comes out please)
God is so good!

One Year

2008-10-15T16:58:00.001-07:00

One year ago today, I walked into a classroom, sat down with about 20 other people and felt really overwhelmed. I was one of three women in the class. My instructor asked the class how many of us had built our own computer. I was one of three who didn't raise their hand. My instructor then went on to explain the process the others went through to research the parts needed, search for the best price, wait for them to arrive, then set up the pc. All this was to convince the others in the class that buying a pc, for the average person, was actually a really good deal. After eight hours of this stuff I went back to my Uncles thinking, "What have you gotten me into God?"

Well, today, is my one year anniversary! I can't believe I made it this long. I honestly didn't think I'd be good at my job. I didn't think I'd like it, and wasn't very confident in my ability to assure the customer that I knew what I was doing because I didn't. I also didn't expect to advance much in this job.

Well, God had other plans for me! Six months after being here, after a great review from my manager, I was asked to be a SIT (Senior in Training), one who gives approvals and generally knows more about issues so can answer general "how to" questions from the FLAs (Floor Level Agents.) Again, didn't think I could do much, but okay, I'll try.

A few months later... I get an email saying I have training for the next three days. I go to training, having no idea what it was for, and find out my manager has decided I'd make a good trainer. Yeah right! I can train people to do my job? I didn't think I was that good. However, God had other plans yet again.

Just before Mongolia I was put into a class and asked to train new hires. I had a blast! Don't get me wrong, it was tough and not always fun, but I really enjoyed it. Since that class I've trained two other classes and will be training from now until the first of the year, all new hire classes! I'm very excited about it.

So, looking back on a year, I can't believe it's been that long, I can truly see God's hand in all this. He really does know a lot more than me and has much higher expectations of what I'm capable of than I do!

Stuff and Nonsense

2008-10-09T14:11:00.000-07:00

I know, it's been a while since I last posted anything. I've been trying to come up with something really great to write about, but nothing's coming to mind. So, instead of some wonderful pearls of wisdom, you get the mundane. Well, maybe not mundane, but my life as it pertains to:

...Living quarters. I'm pretty settled in to my place now. Last Sunday I got home from church and shortly after both roomates did. We had a chance to sit down for lunch together, not planned, it just happened. It was a fun, non-stressful time. We actually had a neighbor come by and give us a welcome gift! Later we went to the park and threw a ball for Brandi, our friendly dog, and played on the swings. All in all, a very relaxing time just hanging out. Later Jamie and I went to Target, with 2 stories! Jamie was really funny, being from a small town, Target with an escalator that you can put your cart down was quite an adventure.

...Church. I'm still trying to find a home group but no luck yet. With my schedule as it currently is, I can't do anything in the evenings unless it starts after 8. That doesn't happen often. But, I'm still looking and I'll probably find a home group on Sunday evenings. Last Sunday was a blast from the past as I ran into my old neighbors and three different people/groups from the church I used to attend up here. And last night I ran into my old pastor's son, John, on the max. It's always weird to run into people who I know from the past. I never expect to see someone I know on the max, but it happens.

...Food. Dad called this week and was in town. His work paid for us to go to the Cheesecake Factory! I've never been before and it was really good! I had a great time being on a "date". I sent Stess a message saying I was on a date with a married man. She had the reaction I was looking for... :)

...Work. Work is good. I'm training this week and next. There's also a possibility that I'll be training a lot more in the future, which I think is good, cause I like it!

Well, that's all for now. Lunch is over here soon...

100%

2008-09-12T21:16:00.000-07:00

This week has been very interesting, and today was great! I've been training again at work, however not one class with the same people. Instead, I've been training everyone on my contract during the day in groups of 5 or 6. This past week I was trying to catch up on those who've been gone or for one reason or another weren't able to be in class the first two weeks. I've also been going around and having those who didn't pass the first time re-take the test and try to pass it the second time. A few highlights:

Being told by an agent that she wasn't confident in what she was being tested on, proceeding to pass (100%) the test and then tell me at lunch she was very grateful to me for taking the time to make sure she understood what was going on. Very encouraging!
Having another agent tell me in a similar way that he appreciated the time I was willing to take to make sure he passed and understood the information.

On top of training, this week I've been trying to get certified to be a "Quality Associate" or someone who listens to agents calls and then coaches them on how great they're doing or how they can improve. I took the class before Mongolia, but just now got certified. This has been something that I've been wanting to do since I started, Uncle Tim used to be quality for his contract, so I've kinda been pushing it. This week I got an email saying I was responsible for 1 coaching for the week. Kinda tough to do when you aren't certified. So, on top of training I've been getting my certification done so I can make that one goal for coaching. Yesterday I got certified and today I made my goal! I also "graduated" today and got a certificate and a "u" rock.

Lastly, each agent is supposed to receive one coaching a week from quality. These are usually calls that got recorded from customers calling in. Going one week without is okay. Two gets a bit harry and at three weeks with no coachings the quality team really starts to look for calls to feedback. Well, since I've been 1) training and 2) getting certified for quality, I haven't been on the phones at all this week. And, I've been hearing about it from quality and managers alike, all vying for the "opportunity" to coach a call I make. So, today my manager told me he was going to coach a call of mine. He wanted me to make a callback to a customer and he'd listen in on his phone. Around 6:15 I finally finished my training (yay!) and got a call to take.
It was a great call. Not to brag, but I'm good at my job (and I actually do need to remember that.) I did everything right on this call. The guy was happy with the service, I offered him products, I used all the tools required, and I proved we fixed his problem. All this with my manager a cube away, listening in on my call, throwing darts at me, and turning on annoying singing ducks and screeching monkeys, not to mention the little bit of stress that's there when you know someone is listening to you. But I did it, and the customer was very satisfied.
After the call I told myself to not get cocky and listen to the feedback he was going to give me. My manager isn't always the nicest guy, kinda hard to read at times. He was a bit elusive and handed me my sheet and told me to read what he said as he finished some paperwork. I'm reading this and he's got good stuff to say about the call. So I looked at the last page that tells me the score, and I got 100%! That's a BIG deal! If I meet all expectations I'll get a score around 80-90. In order to get 100 I had to exceed all expectations and I did on this call!
My manager went on to tell me this was one of the best calls he's coached and how I did a great job. He wasn't sure how the customer didn't say I was "extremely..." which would have given me an ECE "Exceptional Customer Experience" award, but my manager was thrilled. He went on to praise me and tell me that this is why I'm getting so many opportunities and how he and others have noticed my good performance and just went on and on.
I can't tell you how much this made my week! It's been a great week, but this topped it. To be given the opportunities to do all sorts if different projects, then to come back to the basics, helping customers, and get such a great score and praise from someone was absolutely wonderful.
I love my job and I have to give God the credit, because I never would have expected it to happen.

Crybabies!

2008-09-09T10:59:00.000-07:00

Some adults are such crybabies! I've been teaching a new product training class these past few weeks and it's amazing how some people are flat out crybabies when it comes to doing their job. This class has a test at the end, 12 questions. True, some of the questions aren't that great, and there are a few that are wrong, but for the most part, the test is fine.
This week I'm working on having those people who didn't pass the first time. They are a bunch of babies! Now granted, there are some great people who know it's a test, know there's not a lot they can do about it and know that I'm just the messenger. However, it's the people who come in griping and grumbling about how they're just stupid tests and they've never passed one before so why worry now that really frustrate me!
It's not my decision to test you. I didn't write the test. I didn't decide to make the product work, or not work, the way it's designed. Just take the stupid test! They don't have to take calls from customers and worry about other stuff. Just take the test, enjoy not being on the phones and STOP COMPLAINING!

Mongolia Part 2

2008-09-03T21:04:00.000-07:00

I spent quite a bit of time last night trying to upload some more pictures for all of you, so here they are!

The first four is an attempt to show you the view as we saw it from our ger. The fourth picture shows you Lotta and Doljin's ger and the house he's building. Also in that picture are the goat and sheep stalls.

This is our shower. May is peeking her head out of the stall.

Bimba and the kids loved to help us. Here Bimba is bringing us wood for the fence we built. Isn't he cool in his sunglasses?

Kate "The Arm" checking the depth of our post hole. Dani is standing by ready to keep digging with a piece of rebar.

Stess and Howard using the posthole diggers we brought. They were a great help until we got to the large rocks a few inches down.

It got hot during the day so we worked at night on the fence until it was done. This was probably one of my favorite projects because we were all working on the same thing at once.

Bada, one of our translators, worked alongside us for a week before he had to go back to work. I believe he has or is getting his pilot license so he and John had a great time talking planes.

I'm not sure what I'm laughing at... Once we got the fence up, we cut it down to size.

Here is John testing out his "dentist's chair" on Carol, one of his assistants. I was making sure she didn't fall backwards.
I love this shot! Howard took it of Dani as she's digging out the dirt left in the root cellar. The key around her neck is for our ger.We built a shed over the root cellar as a temporary entrance. Kate faced a few fears to saw the roof even.

Marv, James and Justin working on the flooring as Stess and Altai look on. James is holding Marv's belt to make sure he doesn't fall into the root cellar.

This is what the floor looks like finished. It's all the way across the cabin now and nailed down.
This man, Kate's Dad, was an amazing man. He worked so hard for us and while we were there, he got baptized!

Joseph was an orphan found in a dumpster. He is def. The pastor and his wife have adopted him so he was out at the home often, playing with the kids and helping us work. Doesn't he have amazing eyes?

We had several trips to the river this year. Here Stess is chasing Eric. Not sure why, but I'm sure he deserved it!

Mongolia Part 1

2008-09-03T18:14:00.000-07:00

I've been asked by several people at work to see more pictures of my trip. I also know some of you would like to see some, and I'd like to have some pictures at work for backgrounds, so I'm going to start posting several pictures at a time. My pc is pretty slow in the uploading process, so it will take a while, but in the meantime, enjoy!

Our team at the Portland Airport before taking off.

Our "home", two gers that were put up for us.

This is the inside of a ger

Don't you love the wallpaper? These are the beds we slept on for three weeks!

Ah, the bathroom. Girls on one side, boys on the other.

Yep, we have a picture of the toilet (if it can be called that)! Be careful how you sit! Too far forward and you get splatter, too far back and...yep, splatter. Oh, and don't scoot unless you want slivers! After three weeks we were pretty used to it, and it leaned a bit more to the side than in this picture...

Here's the cabin we worked on. The roof came off and the floor was added. On the side here is where the root cellar entrance was.

And the "finished" project! This is as far as we got on our trip, but still amazing.

Here's the root cellar. The support beam for the roof of the cabin was on this dirt. It started to dry and crumble so we had to take it out and put in new support.

Here's the team pulling out the two ton chunk of cement. You can't see but our team is on the left pulling. No engines here, just braw rute strength!

Lastly, for today, one of my favorite pictures!

Welcome Miss Stess!

2008-09-02T19:14:00.000-07:00

Stess (my lil sis) and I are constantly talking at least once a day. Every day she has little stories about her kids at school or about a new bulletin board she put up, or some great idea she had about teaching this subject. Well today I suggested she create a blog to record all that on. I'm trying to get her as addicted to this thing as I am.
Anyway, while I was talking to her this evening I finally said that I'd just set one up for her so all she has to do is post stuff. So, I came home, much more excited now that I had a mission, and started a blog for my sister. I'm hoping she'll customize it a bit to her liking, but in the meantime I tried to make it reflect her personality.
So here it is, my lil sis has a blog now. Feel free to visit and say hi!

www.missstess.blogspot.com

Love you sis!

Technical Support

2008-08-28T08:53:00.001-07:00

Since I got back from Mongolia life has been pretty hectic so I appologize for not posting more pictures (still to come) or telling you more about my trip (also, still to come.) When I got back I realized I had 2 weeks to find a place (Praise the Lord, He provided!) and move (this weekend). On top of that, last weekend was a big family gathering, and stuff at work is changing along with my schedule. But, in an effort to at least give you something, I thought I'd tell you about one story from Mongolia that wouldn't have happened last year.
Stess, Kate and I went evangelizing in the countryside with Pugi (the pastor) and Oyuna (our translator.) We ended up at a home with three generations all living together. They were all there and invited us into their home.
Pugi spoke with them first, telling them what he did and why we, the Americans, were there. They asked what we did for work in the states. Kate works as a manager in a hotel and Stess is a teacher. Both those seem to translate well, but how do you describe tech support to someone living in a country where technology isn't like it is here and everyone doesn't own three computers? So, instead of tech support I said I fix computers.
**On a side note, I'm still not convinced I'm all that good at fixing computers even though my coworkers and manager seem to believe elswise. I guess I should say I'm not comfortable saying I'm a technician, but I am... Either way, I'm not very confidant in that ability.**
When I said I fix computers, and once it was translated, their eyes kinda got big and they looked a little bit excited. I'm sitting there thinking, "No! I don't fix computers! I'm not good at that, please don't have a computer that doesn't work. Please don't ask..." They didn't say anything about a computer, so we went on.
We were there for about an hour and a half. Pugi gave his testimony, they asked for ours, Oyuna gave hers and Pugi shared the gospel. Stess, Kate and I were just sitting there, as Oyuna was speaking we didn't know what was going on. Finally, towards the end of the time I heard "computer".
"Oh man..." Was my immediate reaction. Sure enough, Oyuna looks to me and says they have a computer that isn't working and would I be willing to take a look at it? Immediately I start thinking, "I don't have my computer in front of me and I don't have the list I can go through for troubleshooting. What if I can't fix it? What if it's some really complicated thing.......?" I looked at Kate and she's nodding her head at me saying "Go for it!" So, I told Oyuna I'd try.
I went back to the room where they had their computer at and was told that their monitor wasn't working. "Few, at least that's something that is pretty easy! I won't have to open up the inside of the pc!" So I looked at it and the power cable from the monitor showed some exposed wires. "Hmm, that could be the problem" I thought. Well, that's easy to test. I took the power cord for the pc and plugged it into the monitor. It turned on! "Yes! An easy fix!" Oyuna came in and I told them they just needed a new cable, no problem, no new monitor, just a cable.
We went back to the Home and I told Bonnie about it. I asked her what the possibility would be in finding them this cable and taking in back. Bonnie knew where the computer store was and thought we could find it if I drew her a picture. So I did and a few days later she came back from town with a cable that cost all of $2!
Since I knew what the problem was and now had a fix, I wanted to go back to the family and give it to them so Stess and I, along with a different translator, Altai, walked back to the house to give them the cord. They took me back to the room and asked me to fix it. I plugged the cable in and got everything set up, pressed the power button and nothing happened! I'm thinking, "Shoot! What did I miss? Oh, the power for the pc." Turned on the pc and the monitor came to life!
They were very happy and thought since I could fix a computer maybe I could fix their dvd player? I couldn't. But I did show them how to play some of the games on their pc and they made us fresh doughnuts!
Last year I would never had said anything that would have given me the opportunity to look at their computer. This year, I very clearly saw how God had prepaired me to do something very simple but that related to how my life has changed here in the states. It was a great feeling and I got to bless these people as well!

A New Home

2008-08-26T11:44:00.000-07:00

Praise the Lord! I found a place to live as of last night! I've been looking hard for a week, just after I got back from Mongolia and realized I only had two weeks to find a place. I didn't really want to move to Beaverton, cause I love Portland! And I didn't want to move any further east because the commute would be aweful. The place I found is closer to 205 and even better, about 3 blocks away from the Max station. Now I'll really have no excuse other than pure laziness, to not rid the Max to work. I'll be living with two christian women and a chocolate lab that is just sweet. The house is owned by one of the ladies and it's really cute!
So, thanks for your prayers. They've been answered!

Bienvenidos

2008-08-20T08:42:00.000-07:00

I'm back! Yep, I'm back from Mongolia. We got into Portland Friday night. Thank you Stacy for coming to meet us! It was fun seeing you and getting to have dinner at McMinneman's. And Lani, I'm glad you stopped by too! For now, I'll just tell you what I'm sure you already know, the trip was amazing and I wish I was still there! I'm headed off to work, but I'll tide you over with some pictures from the trip. Enjoy for now!

"Super" the tickle monster

A beautiful Mongolian sunset

Azaa, Batraa and their beautiful son "Everlasting Joy"

Munktsetsig and Khurley, looking at our photos

Old Mongolian dress

We took down that fence and built a new one, like the one on the far left

Kate, Jack and Joseph, lot's of hot days

Eric was the new favorite

This is where we lived, in 2 gers!

Stuff n junk

2008-07-22T10:54:00.000-07:00

I know... it's been a while. Sorry! I've been a little busy so let me let you in on what my life has been like for the past 3 weeks...

Like I said in my last post, I got pulled into a new hire training class the last week of June. It was so much fun! I loved it! No, it wasn't easy and my class was probably the worst type of class to have. One third of the class were transfering from another contract and the rest were newbies. With the transferes there I wasn't always sure if the newbies got it or not. To top that off, all my resources were gone, either in India or on vacation. But even with all that, I really enjoyed it! Everyone graduated and though we've lost a few since then, mostly attendance, I think they're getting it and doing a pretty good job.

Aside from work, I've been getting ready for Mongolia! I'm leaving tomorrow for 3 weeks! Nope, not at all excited... Stacy is going to take me to the airport tomorrow morning. We get the joy of being there at 6:30 am! Our team has grown from last year. 9 last year and 8 of us are returning. Adding to that we're going to have about 20 people going this year. I can't wait to see the kids again and see who meets us at the airport!

When I'm not working or thinking about Mongolia I've been hanging out with Stacy. This week we went out for a movie and saw "Mama Mia". I LOVED it! We laughed a lot. So much so that if I were Stess, I would have SNORTED, but I didn't. I'll be seeing it again when I get back.

When I do get back, I'll head off to work. Not sure what they'll have me do, but I'm going to be off the Friday after and get to go spend time with famly. I'm looking forward to that too!

So yeah, life has been a bit busy and will only get more so. Obviously I won't be writing much, so this will have to tide you over. But I'll take lots of pictures while I'm there and I'll post lots of them. In the meantime, have a great couple of weeks!

Training

2008-06-30T13:23:00.000-07:00

Wow it's been a busy week! Life has changed quickly and a bit dramatically this past week. I'm now an actual trainer at work. On Tuesday (at 11:30) I found out that I'd be training a new hire class (at 12:30). A few months ago I was in the associate trainer training class, but since then I hadn't actually trained anything! So, I got thrown into the job.
To top it off, the guy I'm training with is going to India this Thursday. My trainer left last week for India. The one other person for my contract is leaving for vacation this week and also gave his 2 weeks notice. So, all my experienced support is leaving.
The class is a mix of those who've been here before and newbies. I've been trying to get those who've been here to help the others, yet at the same time, want them to know that the process is different than the ones they knew. The training schedule is 8-5, mine is 10:30-7:30, so last week starting Wednesday, I was working from 7:45ish AM to 7:30ish PM! Long days to say the least.
Even with all that though, I'm enjoying the class. They're a good group of people. I'm a bit lost at times and need to work on my classroom management, but I'm enjoying it. A great benefit of this is the overtime pay and the raise I get when I'm training. All this is going to come right before I go to Mongolia! God is so Awesome!

Crazy Eights!

2008-06-24T19:22:00.000-07:00

Lani tagged me!

Eight things I am passionate about:

Family

Friends

My relationship with my Savior

Coffee

Brownies

Traveling

Music

Books

Eight things I say a lot:

Thank you for calling HP Total Care

I'd like a tall, double shot, vanilla latte

I like the part in "Firefly" when...

Hi Stacy!

Jell-o

Yes Sir, Captain' Tight Pants

I can't wait to go to Mongolia!

Amen

Eight things I'd like to do before I die (no particular order):

Get my nose pierced

Go to Spain

Go on a cruise

Revisit Uruguay

Own a home

Be debt free

Get married

Be the Maid of Honor in my Sister's wedding

Eight books I've read recently:

Velvet Elvis

Blue Like Jazz

Irresistable Revolution

3 books by Steven Lawhead

1 book by Gilbert Morris

1 book by Beth Moore

Eight Movies I have seen eight times:

Pride and Prejudice

French Kiss

You've Got Mail

White Christmas

Shrek

Pirates (if you count all three multiple times)

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Gilmore Girls

Frog Loan

2008-06-21T18:17:00.000-07:00

I was reading through some old documents I've had saved for a while. Over a the next couple weeks I'll share them, but here's one just for fun. Enjoy!

A frog goes into a bank and approaches the teller. He can see from her nameplate that her name is Patricia Whack.

"Miss Whack, I'd like to get a $30,000 loan to take a holiday."

Patty looks at the frog in disbelief and asks his name. The frog says his name is Kermit Jagger, his dad is Mick Jagger, and that it's okay, he knows the bank manager.

Patty explains that he will need to secure the loan with some collateral.

The frog says, "Sure. I have this," and produces a tiny porcelain elephant, about an inch tall, bright pink and perfectly formed. Very confused, Patty explains that she'll have to consult with the bank manager and disappears into a back office. She finds the manager and says, "There's a frog called Kermit Jagger out there who claims to know you and wants to borrow $30,000, and he wants to use this as collateral."

She holds up the tiny pink elephant. "I mean, what in the world is this?"

The bank manager looks back at her and says...

"It's a knickknack, Patty Whack. Give the frog a loan. His old man's a Rolling Stone."

(You're singing it, aren't you? Yeah, I know you are........)

Texas?

2008-06-20T17:24:00.000-07:00

I had a customer today who when she was getting to her desktop and the hour glass was turning, told me "the thinker's on"
Tell me Carrie, is this a Texas thing?

Margaritaville

2008-06-20T15:53:00.000-07:00

My birthday was Sunda. It was also Father's day. My roomate, Hannah, asked me to go out on Monday for Margarita's as a local restaurant had them half price! So, I was looking forward to Monday since I'd never had a traditional margarita, only the really fruity kind and not very many.
Monday came aroud and work was surprisingly slow, so on a whim I signed up for VTO (voluntary time off). Low and behold, I got it! I was free from work about an hour and a half earlier than planned! Per the usual, I calles Stess when I got off. All excited that I had the rest of the night off, I told her I'd been vto'd and was on my way home. She was surprised and we talked for a bit before she had to go since she and her roomies were in the car and we don't like talking on the phone in the car with other people.
I called Hannah then and she had just started cooking dinner so I told her I'd call when I got off the max and we'd go from there. I got off max, decided to do some grocery shopping at Freddy's then headed to Taco Bell since I hadn't had dinner yet. Sitting in the Taco Bell parking lot Hannah called to say she was on her way.
I beat her to the restaurant but didn't go in as Sandra called me. We talked until Hannah showed up then went in. Sitting in the dining area was Stess, Crista and their roomate Shelly! They'd planned a surprise party for me and I almost blew their plans!
When I called Stess she signaled to her roomies that I was already off so they all jumped into the car and headed up here. Stess called Hannah right after I hung up to warn her I was coming home. Hannah tried to delay me a bit. I decided to go shopping and eat dinner. And, when I was there already Sandra called to wish me happy birthday. (I don't think she knew about that...)
Anyway, it was very fun! I had a "real" margarita, on the rocks with salt around the edge. I'll admit, it wasn't my favorite. I enjoyed it, but not my favorite. I also had flan which I haven't had in a very long time, and it wasn't that bad. Stess even liked it!
THANKS LADIES!

25 & 27

2008-06-16T14:12:00.001-07:00

I have some pictures but not my camera, so I'll post pictures of my weekend tonight, but I thought I'd post something since it's been a while...
This weekend I went to Albany for several reasons. On Saturday Mom, Dad, Stess, Nicole and I all rode our bikes in the Strawberry Festival Centenial Ride. No, we didn't ride 100 miles, but we did half that. Okay, some of us did half that. Since we had a beautiful little girl and a cute dog who couldn't join us on the ride Nicole and I switched off. She started with Mom, Dad and Stess and they rode the first 25 miles, from Lebanon High School to the other end of Foster Resivore in Sweet Home. I followed with the baby and the dog.
Mom and Dad have two tandem bikes, one is an upright and the other is a recumbant. I prefer the recumbant by far! They all did great on the way to Foster. I met them at one stop and was very glad to have mom nearby as the little one had a blow out and didn't want to drink the formula I'd made. Good timing I must say. Then it was off to the half way point. Once there I switched with Nicole and Dad and I rode the recumbant. That's a fun bike! It's amazing how much easier it is to ride with someone than on your own bike! We made it all the way back to Lebanon High School where they had strawberry short cake waiting for us. All told, they did just over 50 miles and Nicole and I did 25.
After the ride we went home for showers and rest. Since Sunday was Father's Day, and my birthday, and since no one wanted to cook dinner, we joined my Aunt and Uncle for dinner and then saw the new "Indiana Jones" movie. I'm not going to give anything away for those of you who haven't seen it, but I'll tell you that I liked it. Now, I'd heard mixed reviews so I didn't have high hopes for the movie, but hey, it's Indiana Jones on the big screen. That was worth it for me.
Sunday was my 27th birthday and Father's Day! Church was great, lots of friends and a good sermon. Mom and Dad joined us at Faith. It was good to see friends. Dani Warren's birthday was yesterday too, so I got to bless her as well as be blessed. Thanks for all your birthday wishes!
Stess and I had lunch with Mom and Dad, got to take a nap, cleaned Stess' kitchen, Dad mowed the lawn and got to watch golf, and I got free coffee at Dutch Bros. Stess gave me a Sisters book and a cool plate and Mom and Dad fixed up my bike so I have nice road tires. Now I won't kill myself so easily when I try to ride to wrok.
So, it was a good weekend! I'm glad Stacy's back in Portland. Hannah and I are going out for Margarita's tonight and it's sunny!

LIFE

2008-05-29T18:06:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted anything in a bit, so I thought I'd go ahead and give an update. Life has been busy, what with getting ready for Mongolia, going to Albany, Lebanon, Sisters, preparing for my cousin's wedding, going to wedding showers and weddings, and just living life!

Two weeks ago I was blessed to see Lydia get married! That was a great weekend. Last weekend Stess, Nicole, Ahryanna and I all went to Sisters. Didn't do much, just shopped and spent time oohing and ahing over an adorable little GIRL. I've decided I'm going to look for those plastic stick on earings for her. Purple isn't cutting it.

This weekend I'm going to Albany/Corvallis/Lebanon for a Mongolia fundraiser (An Evening for the Orphans), my Aunt's 50th birthday party, another Mongolia meeting, and another friends wedding on Sunday.

On the work front, I was in an associate trainer training class for two weeks. I just got my test back today and I got 100%! So now all I need to do is actually start training a class so someone can observe me and I can be a full fledged trainer. And to top it off, I can submit this now because they've put me on the senior line for the night!

All in all, life's good. (though Stacy is abandoning me for a whole week!)

Bikes

2008-05-20T00:04:00.001-07:00

My sister, Stephanie, was in a triathlon this weekend. She did the biking portion of the race. This was her first race and I'm very pleased to announce that she won!!!
Congratulations Lil'Sis!

La Vida Dulce

2008-05-19T23:11:00.000-07:00

I've been remiss in my posting of certain events. I finally had my computer running and my camera handy. Now I can actually post some pictures!
A Few weeks ago there was a wedding shower for Lydia. Here are some of the pictures and gifts she got...

Little Miss Eva showing everyone her mom's new robe.

Some Great new dishes

Sisters, Sisters...

A pink Bunny

The rehearsal bouquet

Mom and Daughter

New "clothes"!

Lydia's Mom

All in all, it was a great time. This pas weekend Lydia and Aaron got married! I don't have any good pictures, but I'm sure friends of mine have some very good ones.
Congratulations to Lydia and Aaron!

Four

2008-05-14T16:29:00.000-07:00

I read this on Mikaila's blog and thougth I'd do it too. Just 'cause.

Four jobs I have had:

1.Babysitter

2.Camp Counselor

3.Technician

4.Missionary

Four movies I would watch over and over:

1.PS I Love You

2.French Kiss

3.Les Miserables

4.Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Four places I have lived:

1.Uruguay

2.Portland

3.Sisters

4.Corvallis

Four TV shows I watch:

1.Grey's Anatomy

2.Brother's and Sisters

3.Firefly

4.Lost

Four places I have been:

1.Sorrento

2.Riga

3.Minas

4.Ulaanbaatar

Four people who e-mail me (somewhat regularly):

1.Crista

2.Bonnie

3.Stephanie

4.Spam

Four of my favorite foods:

1.Coffee

2.Brownies

3.Broccoli

4.Steak

Four places I'd rather be right now:

1.In Mongolia

2.A Spanish speaking country

3.Ireland

4.A Josh Groban concert

Four things I'm looking forward to this year:

1.Weddings!

2.Stess moving to Portland! (I'm keeping my fingers crossed)

3.Mongolia and Azaa's baby

4.Spending time with my family

Four things I've never done but would like to:

1.Go on a cruise

2.Get married

3.Travel to Israel

4.Go to France

Four books I would read over and over:

1.Pride and Prejudice

2.Dee Henderson books

3.John

4.Velvet Elvis

Four smells I love:

1.After it rains hard when there's been a long dry smell

2.Lilacs

3.Jadore' perfume

4.Dill

Four sounds I love:

1.Worship

2.The waves at the ocean

3.The violin

4.Thunder

Oregon stereotypes

2008-05-09T20:38:00.000-07:00

Okay, so my friend Nicole sent me this email and I loved it. Enjoy!

"Lake Oswego Barbie"
This princess Barbie is sold only at the Pioneer Square Mall. She comes with an assortment of Kate Spade Handbags, a Lexus SUV, a long-haired foreign dog named Honey and a cookie-cutter house. Available with or without tummy tuck and face lift. Workaholic Ken sold only in conjunction with the augmented version.

"Beaverton Barbie"
The modern day homemaker Barbie is available with Ford Windstar Minivan and matching gym outfit. She gets lost easily and has no full-time occupation. Traffic jamming cell phone sold separately.

"Woodburn Barbie"
This recently paroled Bilingual Barbie comes with a 9mm handgun, a Ray Lewis knife, a Chevy with dark tinted windows, and a Meth Lab Kit. This model is only available after dark and must be paid for in cash (preferably small, untraceable bills) unless you are a cop, then we don't know what you are talking about.

"Bend Barbie"
This yuppie Barbie comes with your choice of BMW convertible or Hummer H2. Included are her own Starbucks cup, credit card and country club membership. Also available for this set are Shallow Ken and Private School Skipper. You won't be able to afford any of them.

"Philomath Barbie"
This pale model comes dressed in her own Wrangler jeans two sizes too small, a NASCAR t-shirt and tweety bird tattoo on her shoulder. She has a six-pack of Bud light and a Hank Williams Jr. CD set. She can spit over 5 feet and kick mullet-haired Ken's butt when she is drunk. Purchase her pickup truck separately and get a confederate flag bumper sticker absolutely free.

"Lebanon Barbie"
This tobacco-chewing, brassy-haired Barbie has a pair of her own high-heeled sandals with one broken heel from the time she chased beer-gutted Ken out of Sweet Home Barbie's house. Her ensemble includes low-rise acid-washed jeans, fake fingernails, and a see-through halter-top. Also available with a mobile home.

"North Portland Barbie"
This Barbie now comes with a stroller and infant dolls from two different races. Optional accessories include a GED and bus pass. Gangsta Ken and his 1979 Caddy were available, but are now very difficult to find since the addition of the second infant.

"Eugene Barbie"
This doll is made of actual tofu. She has long straight brown hair, arch-less feet, hairy armpits, no makeup and Birkenstock's with white socks. She prefers that you call her Willow. She does not want or need a Ken doll, but if you purchase two Eugene Barbies and the optional Subaru wagon, you get a rainbow flag bumper sticker for free.

Long time no see!

2008-04-30T19:14:00.000-07:00

I know, it's bee a while since I last wrote anything, so I figure I'll catch you up, as much as I can while at work. My computer isn't working so that's my excuse for not writing lately. If you send me an email, sorry I haven't responded. I can only check it at work on my break so it doesn't happen much.
Life is pretty much the same. I'm still liking my job. Currently I'm trying to get promoted to the senior position. Starting tomorrow (Thursday) I'll be coming in to work for training at 7am! Yuck! But, the upside of that is getting off at 4pm, so okay, I'll take it.
Mongolia plans are heating up. I'm getting more excited about going. My "Aunt" Sandra is joining us this year so that's going to be great! I got my passport renewed and all I need now is shots :( I'm going down to Corvallis a lot, which I enjoy when I'm there but don't enjoy the thought of all that gas money!
Church is great, when I get to go. Stacy and I are hanging out often which is a saving grace for me. A few weekends ago we had a great time roaming around Portland. She wrote about it and I have pictures, but not at work.
So, all in all, life's good. Summer is on it's way, Mongolia is coming up, Birthdays are around the corner and I know of at least three weddings I'll be at or in during the next few months! Hope you are all doing just as well!

Mongolitis

2008-04-08T15:49:00.000-07:00

It's that time again! I went to my first Mongolia meeting on Sunday! It was supposed to be the whole team, those who've gone before and those who haven't. We weren't all there, but it was fun anyway! Already the memories are coming back and the laughter is contageous. Here are some highlights from this meeting...
We were asked to introduce ourselves and give something about us that the others can use to remember who we are. We went around and no big deal, until Dani told us she was married to "the black guy" and thus James is "the black guy". Marv and Kate came late so they were asked the same question. James told Marv his example, the black guy, and so Marv is "the old white guy". Well Kate said she is the "beautiful young woman" and then I piped up. (I can always tell when I'm getting comfortable in a situation because I get sarcastic...) I told Kate that they were going to get us confused. Everyone started laughing and it was the start of "bonding".
And the last thing I will share relates to last years trip. You may know the story, you may not, but I was told I need to become a professional football player. We took the kids to the river and after playing in the water they wanted us to play American football. It turned into a throw the ball-and run without getting stopped game. At one point I had the ball and didn't see anyone to throw it to so I decided to run. Sugi, the driver who is a tall and strong guy, along with 3 other guys tried to stop me. I kept going and I guess it was quite a site. Anyway, James said if we play football this year I'm on his team!
So, there you go. My intro to probably several rememberances and plans for going back to Mongolia.

15 Sirens

2008-04-07T12:57:00.000-07:00

I was driving back up to Portland from a Mongolia meeting yesterday and had an interesting experience on I-5. Being Sunday afternoon and the end of spring break for Washingtonians, the traffic was heavy. Not stop and go, but crowded. I was in the far right lane just south of Camas, by the rest stop, when I saw a car coming up behind me a few cars back. I noticed him because he was passing us on the right! He came flying past me, on the right using the emergency lane to pass. I honked at him but couldn't do much. I did notice he had a California licens plate.
I was getting out my phone to try and call someone when I saw a Sheriff race by with his lights flashing in the left lane. A minute later four more came flying by. By now I'm thinking it's got to be related. As I went through Wilsonville there were two police cars on the on ramp, apparently waiting to join the chace because a minute later about 6 more cars came flying past us!
I saw the sirens ahead as I passed the I-205 ramp so I know he made it that far. I also saw anther officer going south on I-5 and then saw four more much further north. They looked like they were waiting to see if this guy came their way. It was all very interesting and I wish I had tv so I could have watched the news to see what happened. All told I saw fourteen cars chasing that guy.
Then on the way home from church Stacy and I saw another officer! Busy day for those guys...

I found an article on the chase... http://blog.oregonlive.com/breakingnews/2008/04/high_speed_chase_from_salem_to.html

Gunz

2008-04-02T22:39:00.000-07:00

Isn't my nephew cute?!

Happy Birthday Lil Sis!

2008-04-01T11:22:00.001-07:00

Today my sister is 25! No, really. She was born on April Fool's Day. I had lots of fun with that as a kid, but that wore off rather quickly. You can only give so many rocks before it starts to loose it's purpose.

Today she's actually in Portland for a job fair. I'm praying hard she'll get an amazing offer up here and move this summer. I'd love to live with her again. She was bummed the fair was today as she's waited 3 years to celebrate her birthday with her students. She's got all sorts of tricks planned. Lucky for her she'll be back tomorrow and the kids are all planning to celebrate with her then.
Last night we went out for dinner with a bunch of friends. We had a great time! I'll add pictures later.
So my sister is 25. A quarter of a century old. She's amazing.
Love you Stess!

Addicted

2008-03-28T18:19:00.001-07:00

Four days off from work and snow outside. What am I going to do?

Watch Alias of course!

Oh my goodness! Did you see that!?

Look out! There's someone behind you!

Hmm, is Sloan really telling the truth this time?

You'll have to watch it to find out!

Da Couch

2008-03-28T15:32:00.000-07:00

I've been looking for a couch for my room. More specifically I wanted a futon so Stess and guests have a place to sleep. I've been searching Craigslist and there's a lot available, but my biggest challange was having a rig that will get the futon here. Well, last weekend Dad solved that problem. I drove them to the airport which left me with their big truck for the week. So off to Craiglsit I searched. I found a futon for under $100 that was all wood and looked like it was in good condition. Here's what the fabric looks like.

Not the most beautiful fabric, but I didn't mind. It was in my price range and I could pick it up right away. When I got to the gal's house I was looking at the mattress to see how thick it is. When we unvelcroed the cover there was another color underneath. I happen to like this color a bit more than the cover already on the mattess so when I got it home I took it off and vaccumed the new color from all teh fuz balls and this is what it looks like now.

I like my futon, it's purple! And it's comfortable. I haven't slept on it yet, but I'll leave that honor to Stess when she comes up this next weekend. Yay I have furniture!

Thursday top ten

2008-03-27T17:15:00.001-07:00

So I know this is early but I have reason to write it today and not friday. Ten reasons I'm glad it's Thursday...
1. I have Friday and Monday off, so it's a 4 day weekend!
2. I got a couch this past weekend, so there's room to come visit me.
3. Stess' birthday is on Tuesday
4. I'll see my parents and Stess on Saturday when I pick them up from the airport
5. I get to go to the airport
6. I get to drive a big red diesel truck
7. I may go to the beach this weekend
8. Finally I'm reading "The Shack" and it's really good
9. I have peanut butter chocolate skinny cows at home
10. Thanks to Lani, I have "Alias" at home!

Peanut butter eggs and jell-o

2008-03-25T19:30:00.000-07:00

Once again I find myself reading all my favorite blogs and bummed that there isn't anything new. And once again I figure the best way to get you all to write is to write something of my own. That and life is going on and there are a few random things I want to write about. Not of particular importance, but life I guess.
This past weekend was very busy and crazy and wonderful! It started with getting off work early on Friday! I love it! Stacy picked me up and we went down south to Corvallis. We made it just in time for the Good Friday service at Faith. It was a good service, but I'll be honest, I got more out of just being with friends and family than anything else. (This wasn't due to any defficiency on anyone's part, just my lack of a spiritual focus...) Stess and I stayed in Lebanon Friday night as she and my parents were leaving for Denver on Saturday.
Saturday I drove back up to Portland with my family and took them to the airport. They're headed to Denver to spend Spring Break with some of my family. Lucky them, they get to spend the week in the mountains. Snow, sunshine, not working, and family. On the plus side, I got to use my parents truck to get a futon! I'll ad pictures later. It's a very nice futon and will work as an extra bed for Stess when she comes to visit. (Or anyone else who wants to...)
I drove back down to Corvallis Saturday night and spent the night at Stacy's. We went to Faith on Sunday and stayed for an amazing worship time. Afterwards we headed back to her parent's for a great dinner and fun playing Apples to Apples.
Lastly but not the least, Monday was an aweful day at work. I was on the senior line and it felt like every other call was a supervisor call! My first one of the day, had a guy screaming, litteraly screaming, at me because I wasn't going to refund him his money for support that we gave. Left me feeling like jello, you know the feeling after you work out really hard and your muscles are just mush. Yep, that's what it felt like. Honestly that call was more fun than anything. I wasn't going to budge and he gave me reason to hang up on him but he hung up on me fist. However, after that call came others. I'd guess about a third or my calls were supe calls with upset people. I don't mind a few a day, but every other call? I gave myself permission to cry after work. And Tuesday was a better day and today's going pretty good.
So all in all, had a great weekend, the weeks going good and I'm off this Friday and next Monday so I'm happy!

Computer Bugs

2008-03-20T13:47:00.000-07:00

Several weeks ago Stacy and I watched "Enchanted". It was a fun movie that was great for us sarcastic people. The princess sings and all the cute animals come running to help her. Well, this princess gets stuck in New York City. When she sings for some cleaning help she doesn't get what she expected. Sewer rats, Pigeons, Flys and Cockroaches come swarming to "help" her. It's one of my favorite scenes cause it's SO WRONG!
Well, I just had a call from a customer who had her pc sent in for repair. However, before she sent it to us she put the pc in her shed to store until we sent her a shipping label. Apparently she has cockroaches in her shed because when the service center opened up the pc to fix it, the pc's bugs came swarming out! Gross!

Friday Top 10

2008-03-14T11:17:00.000-07:00

It's FRIDAY!!! So, in honor of that day and because I have the time, I figured I'd see if I can come up with 10 things that were good about this week.

1. I found a church! I know where I'm going to attend this weekend and I'm looking forward to it very much.

2. I've been on the senior line several times this week at work and I like it a lot!

3. Stess is coming tomorrow.

4. Stess and I get to have dinner with our "brothers" Ryan and Kyle... If they remember.

5. I was asked to consider becoming a Senior on my account at work. I said no because of the schedule, but I'm thrilled to know that they're considering me.

6. Stacy and I watched "August Rush" this week!

7. My cousin is engaged and I'm going to be a brides maid.

8. If I can find one, I'm getting a couch this weekend.

9. I got to ride my bike on Sunday. It was fun but man I was sore!

10. It's Friday!

Pearl Mosaic

2008-03-10T18:52:00.000-07:00

WARNING: Long post ahead!
I don't mind change, and in general moving isn't all that bad. What I don't like besides the obvous friends and family left behind, is having to find a new church. I hate church shopping. That being said, God has really blessed me in my church shopping experiences. When I was looking in Bend I attended one service at 1stB and walked out feeling like I had found a home. I had no desire to leave there, but I moved to Corvallis and so the search was on once again. Crista went to FCF, so it was logical that I try there. After one Sunday I didn't want to be at home there but felt like God was going to direct me there anyway. I'm SO glad He did! Now I find myself searching yet again for a "home".
Portland has been extra tough for me because I grew up here and had an easy fall back church. That coupled with going to Corvallis every weekend for several months, holidays where I was with family, and just not knowing where to start has dragged out the search for a while. But, now that Stacy's back up here, I'm moved into my place, and I'm a bit more settled, I have to begin the search in ernest.
Stacy had been going to Imago Dei and I'd heard a lot about it, so I went there for a few weeks. It's a great church and I realy enjoyed the preaching, but it's huge! They have three services and meet in a high school auditorium, and they're all full. I get the feeling that you have to be really intentional if you want to get involved, and I don't like being able to walk into and out of a church without being greeted by anyone. I want to know I missed my friends at church because they weren't there and not because I just couldn't see them or they were in another service. So the search continued...
Two weekends ago a friend spoke at my home church and Stess was in town, so we along with Stacy went there. It was nice to be back, but I haven't felt the need or desire to go back there and have been assured by many that I don't need to feel obligated to return. So, though I enjoyed the time, the search continued...
This last weekend I looked up two churches that I'd heard of, the Pearl (http://pearlchurch.org) and Mosaic (http://www.mosaicportland.org). The Pearl is in the Pearl district, shocking, I know, and close to Stacy. I know the worship intern from Tadmor as well as Evangel, so I was interested in going. Their web site said they followed some of the liturgy which I figured would be interesting. Mosaic was suggested by Sandra and I'm not sure how she heard about it.
They both have am services on Sunday and Mosaic has a 5:30pm service. This week they also happened to have a young adults/college worship service following their evening service. So, Stacy and I figured we'd go to the Pearl in the am and Mosaic in the evening. We left the additional worship service up in the air. I wasn't sure I wanted to commit to something if I didn't like the church. And, since it was daylight savings, we opted for the later service at the Pearl.
The Pearl meets in the upstairs of a cool building downtown. We took the street car there. It's a small setting, probably just over 100 people in a smaller room. They do have two services which keeps it that way. I saw my old pastor's son in the hallway, but he was talking to someone else, so I didn't say hi. That was positive for me though, someone I knew. The worship intern wasn't there, but the worship was good. There was a guest speaker who did a good job, but I'd like to go back when the pastor is preaching. There were a lot of young people there, several young families, and a few grey hairs as well. All in all I enjoyed the service and though the community readings reminded me of reading from the Hymnal in elementary school, it was overal a good experience. Stess is coming next week and we're going to go again.
So, having gone to the Pearl and feeling pretty good about it, we went to Mosaic last night. I wasn't too hopeful. I kinda felt that Pearl would be an interesting adventure but I went anyway. Mosaic had a lot of younger people, partly due to the following service, but that was nice anyway. There were several young ladies seated behind us. The worship was great! It was upbeat and though I didn't know all the songs, I really enjoyed it. The pastor spoke and he did a good job. He made all his points and didn't go off on tangents very often. At some point during the service, I'm not sure when, I had that sense. The sense that I'd found my "home." What a relief!
After the service I told Stacy I wanted to stay for the later service. She did too! We both agreed that we felt at home and had found a happy middle between overwhelmingly large, and obviously small. Between the two services we enjoyed coffee and looked at the different small groups they have. There's a Bible study that meets at 8pm and is on the west side, so for me, who works until at least 7:30, that's awesome! We also found ourselves greeted by several people and I felt very welcome. It wasn't just the welcome committee who wanted to say hello and welcome, but people our own age who wanted to get to know us.
The second service was great with worship songs that I knew! All in all, it was a great day, both morning and evening. I'm thinking I may go to both churches and make Sunday's a great day! For Stacy's imput check out "My Addictions"
(Looking back, I should have known by the location. It shares the parking lot with a great steak place!)

Irresistible Revolution

2008-03-07T15:38:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago I asked Stacy if she'd be interested in doing a study together. She enthusiastically agreed. Last week we went to my old home church, Evangel, and Stacy foudn this book, "The Irresistible Revolution: living as an ordinary radical." It sounded pretty interesting so we bought it and decided we'd go through a chapter a week. Stacy sent me a message later and said she was done with the first chapter and didn't want to stop! I picked it up and busted up on the Max reading the first paragraph. Let's just say I've never read about Jesus having poop that smelled.
So far it's a very good book. Stacy and I keep texting eachother about different parts. I'm looking forward to getting together with her. It IS VERY stretching. He's talking about poverty and working with the poor. Now that I'm livng in Portland and taking public transportation to work, I've much more aware of the poor and homeless. It'll be interesting to see what the impact of this book will be on me. My friend Ryan said it "wrecked" him. I don't want to just read it and then move on, however I'll admit, it's a bit scarry to think about. I don't have much "experience" working with the homeless.

Bride's maid

2008-03-06T13:09:00.000-08:00

My cousin is engaged and asked me to be a bride's maid! I'm excited... Stess is going to be the Maid of Honor. Should be fun!

Photobucket Fun!

2008-03-05T21:41:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Stacy for this fun little bit of procrastination. If you want to join in, go to photobucket.com, put in the answer to your question under the search option and pick the picture that you like best or thinks represents your answer best. Save it then repost it. Try to stay on the first page if you can bear to. Have fun!

1. What is your first name?

2. What is your relationship status?

3. What is your favorite color?

4. Who is your celebrity "crush"?

5. What band are you listening to right now?

6. What is your favorite movie? (one of my favorites)

7. Who is your favorite Disney princess?

8. Where is your dream vacation?

9. What is your favorite dessert?

10. What do you want to be when you grow up?

11. What do you love most in life?

12. One word to describe yourself? (not what you think...)

13. I was born in:

14. My phone is:

15. My eye color is:

16. Last book you read:

17. Blonde or Brunette?

18. Day or Night?

19. What do you miss the most?

Max

2008-03-04T18:20:00.001-08:00

So I've been riding the Max to and from work. Let me tell you, there are some interesting people on board! I've shared a few things with Stacy and she suggested I keep a "quote book". I thought instead I'd blog about it. So, occasionally I'll just post random things here. Some I'll explain, others are better when left to the readers imagination. Ejoy!

Today three angels got on Max and one was wearing stilts.

Friday Top 10

2008-02-29T12:26:00.000-08:00

I haven't done this in a while so here goes. Hopefully I'll find 10.

1. It's Friday!
2. Stess is coming this weekend
3. I was at FCF on Sunday
4. Mongolia plans are in the works
5. It only takes me about 30 minutes to drive my car to work.
6. Eva's birthday was on Thursday. She's 4!
7. I have a friend who's engaged!
8. Via a friend I get a great deal on Max tickets!
9. It's been sunny this week.
10. I will possibly get to see Madre this weekend.

Mongolia

2008-02-29T10:25:00.000-08:00

You know you've been to Mongolia if...
*You see brick work and check to see if it's all straight and even
*Jello is more than a tasty desert
*You are thrilled when the squatty pottie is more than just a hole in the ground.
*You point with four fingers instead of one
*...

Feel free to add your own. I'm sure there are several more but those came to mind this morning on my way to work...

Becoming Jane

2008-02-28T11:11:00.001-08:00

I love "Pride and Prejudice". I watched the BBC version of the movie while in Junior High and then shortly after read the book for the first time. Since then I've fallen in love with Jane Austin's books and several of the movies that have been made based off of them. Last night I rented "Becoming Jane" with Anne Hathaway. It's a loose version of Jane Austin's young life. It's not based on any factual information, but rather someones impressions of what could have been her inspiration for her novels like P&P. There are definitely liberties taken, but if you like period pieces and like Jane Austin, you'll probably like it. I did! Just know that it's not based in reality!

More randomness...

2008-02-21T19:29:00.000-08:00

Four things about me that you may or may not have known:

Four jobs I have had in my life:
1. Burger King Cashier
2. Receptionist
3. Lift Opperator at Hoodo
4. Tech support for Amazon.com

Four movies I have watched more than once:
1. French Kiss
2. Pride and Prejudice (BBC Edition)
3. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
4. You've Got Mail

Four things that scare me:
1. Dark Corners
2. Scarry movies
3. Snakes
4. ugly bugs

Four Websites I visit religiously:
1. Yahoo.com
2. comics.com
3. Facebook
4. Many Blogs

Four places I have visited:
1. Italy
2. Uruguay
3. Mongolia
4. Sweden

Four Places I would like to visit:
1. France
2. Mongolia (I'm with Laini, yes, again)
3. Hawaii
4. Ireland

Four Bad Habits I have:
1. Biting my nails
2. Not putting my laundry away after washing it. It sits folded in the basket until I need to do it again.
3. Reading a book late into the night so that I'm exausted in the morning.
4. Hitting the snooze button.

Four things I am looking forward to in the coming year:
1. Sunshine
2. Camping with family
3. Going to Mongolia???
4. Possible weddings of friends

Four Foods I don't like or won't eat:
1. Fresh Tomatoes
2. Sushi (I've tried it and nope, don't like it)
3. Really spicey food
4. (a random food I do like... raw potatoes)

Four Books I enjoy:
1. Captivating
2. Danger in the Shadows
3. Black, Red and White
4. Pride and Prejudice

Four Songs that speak to my soul:
1. Dance with Me by Evan Earwicker
2. Waterfall by Salvador
3. Welcome Song by Pocket Full of Rocks
4. Beautiful You by Pocket Full of Rocks

Four things I would like to do, but probably never will:
1. Learn to fly
2. Get a tattoo
3. Go on a cruise
4. Go to Israel

Four things I can't stand:
1. Bad breath
2. dirty jokes
3. foul language
4. kids with no respect

Four Things that Aren't Funny:
1. Missing persons
2. Jokes that injur people
3. Making fun of people
4. Kids who've been abandoned

Four Things that are funny:
1. Inside jokes
2. Sarcasm
3. Nicknames
4. My Grandpa

6 Quirky/Random Things (Baahh)

2008-02-21T18:26:00.000-08:00

Since I can check blogs at work, and I do so several times a day, I thought I'd add my quirks to the list...

1 - I like to sleep under a lot of weight, so I have several blankets on my bed. It may be warm in the room but I can't fall asleep unless I feel the weight of the blankets on me, no matter the temperature of the room.

2 - I like tomatoes, when they're cooked or stewed or prepared any way but fresh. I think it's the smell.

3 - I'm not a fan of cheese. Ever since having an interesting experience in Italy that involved mozarella cheese, being sick, and a dream about a platter of different cheeses, I'm not to excited about it. Over time I've slowly gotten better, but still, I don't normally crave it.

4 - I'm a big snooze button pusher. I have to set the alarm about an hour earlier than the time that I need to get up because I'll push it that many times. I've tried to break this habit, but it doesn't usually work too well. It probably doesn't help that my alarm isn't heard by anyone else so I don't annoy anyone else...

5 - When wrapping presents I fold down the rough edges so all the edges are smooth and nicely folded. It's all my Nona's fault. She made me re-wrap my Christmas gifts one year after I did an aweful job. Since then, I'm particular.

6 - I wear size 12 shoes. It's a pain to go shoe shopping, especially since I love shoes!

Tidbits

2008-02-19T14:16:00.001-08:00

So, seeing as it's been a little while and some of you rely on my blog to know what's going on (Uncle Tim :) ) I'll attempt to write a blog with enough interesting things as to keep you entertained.
Life basically consists of getting up, catching the max, going to work, catching max again, and going to sleep. That's Monday through Friday. Last week I did have a break from that and visited Stacy on Thursday. I really don't mind too much. Riding max I don't have to worry about traffic and don't pay much for gas. And I'm hoping that over time it will save me money on car repairs. I also get time to read, knitt, and crochet. So, though it's a long commutte, I like it.
I still haven't found a church. Stacy and I went to Imago Dei on Sunday. I liked it, but the church is big. Much bigger than what I'm used to. We'll see how it goes. Saturday Stacy and I had a great time hanging out. We saw to great movies and only paid $4! Can't beat that!
I'm still loving living with Tim and Hannah. They were gone this last week so it was pretty quiet.
I think that's about it for now. Hope you are all doing great!

All That Jazz

2008-02-04T23:26:00.000-08:00

Sandra asked me what I blogged about... I honestly don't know. Life? Just whatever suits my fancy I guess. Hope none of you mind...
This weekend was a bit busy and a tad hectic. I moved from Beaverton to SE Portland. No, not a very far move, nor a difficult one, but a move none the less. My Uncle was great and let me load his rig with my bed and dresser so on Saturday night I had a nice bed to sleep in. My things are still scattered from here to Timbucktu, but that'll eventually even out.
***Side note... Stess and Crista found a roomate!***
I'm getting settled in my new place. I have two rooms and a bathroom all to myself, which is very cool. I'm on the hunt for furniture to fill the rooms now, but that's going to be a bit difficult since I don't have a rig that will allow me to transport furniture very easily. Hopefully I'll soon have a television and some chairs so I can invite some friends over. I know I'm welcome to have guests over, but why not fill a room when it's available!? I've never had the need or space to put some of my own furniture, so now's my chance!
Today was my first time commutting to work on the Max (for those of you who don't know, no, Max isn't a boyfriend. It's the Portland train transportation system...) It took me a while, but it was good. I enjoyed not having to worry about driving or gas or where to park. I just bought a ticket and went. I'm going to do that tomorrow too. I'll possibly be looking into getting a monthly pass. It took a while getting back home, but I have a feeling that will happen either way, so I'm going to try and get used to it.
Lastly, before I get to sleep, my roomates have posted a blog. They're going to be going to Africa with Mercy Ships, hopefully in December of this year. If you're interested, or just want to see a picture of the cool people I'm living with, check out My Addictions.
Pardon the weirdness...I'm not sure what I ate tonight!

Friday top 10

2008-02-01T00:05:00.000-08:00

I was looking through past posts and since I'm keep checking on your blogs to see if you've posted soon, I figured I'd post something. So, here's my Friday top 10...

1. I finished crocheting my baby blanket this week. It's been fun to make and I'm hoping Ahryanna will enjoy it. (I hope it fits her!)

2. It snowed! Not too much and I personally didn't get to enjoy it, but my friends did.

3. I'm moving... maybe this weekend if I can get a truck.

4. I didn't get the promotion at work. This may seem like a bad thing, but I'm actually not too upset. I haven't been here long and the promotion requires a bit more knowledge about policies and such, so I'm glad to have the opportunity to have more training and then move up.

5. My Uncle has been very gracious to let me stay with him for the past several months. Without his generocity, I'm not sure where'd I'd be right now.

6. Stacy's coming back to Portland in 11 days!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!

7. I have training and get off early on a Friday.

8. It's Super Bowl Sunday, one of two games I watch each year, mostly for the commercials and the people who get so into the game.

9. I love my hair! I dyed it a few weeks ago and I'm loving it!

10. Stess may help me move

Just for fun

2008-01-31T13:08:00.000-08:00

From a random blog I found...
here are the rules... 1. You must post the rules before you give your answers. 2. You must list one fact about yourself for each beginning letter of your middle name. (If you don't have a middle name, just use your maiden name.) 3. After you're tagged, you need to update your blog with your middle name and answers. 4. At the end of your post, you need to tag one person for each letter of your middle name. (Be sure to leave them a comment telling them they've been tagged & need to read your blog for the details.)
Lets start...my middle name is MARIE. I've spent time in Mongolia and I Adored the kids there. I'm not currently Reading anything Intersting which is Extremely unusual for me.
There, if you're reading this, consider yourself taged.

Crafty

2008-01-30T23:45:00.000-08:00

I've been working on a couple of craft projects from my new books. I'll post pictures of the actual products eventually, but for now I've knitted a hat that looks similar to this one.

And here's my finished product.

And then I had to model it...

I'm also working on crocheting a baby blanket from my book that is this pattern but not the same colors.

And I made a scarf for a coworker but I forgot to get a picture. When I have my pictures handy I'll show you what they really look like. Until then...

I'm Moving!

2008-01-30T23:29:00.000-08:00

I spent this past weekend with some friends in South East Portland. Tim and Hannah have been married for 3+ years now. Hannah and I worked at Camp Tadmor together and we've kept in touch. She and her sister, Naomi, are the kind of people who you can always count on, the relationship always seems to pick up where you left off no matter how long it's been since you were last able to spend time together.
Hannah and I have been trying to do things together since I've been back in Portland, not always successful, but we try. Anyway... we had coffee a few weeks ago and she invited me to go to church with them. That turned into an invitation to spend the night on Saturday and watch a movie Saturday afternoon. So, this last weekend I went over there.
They bought a home a year ago and have decorated it beautifully! Well, after the movie in Salem and dinner with Stess, Hannah and I went back to their place and Tim came upstairs. Hannah then told me that she and Tim had a question for me and proceeded to extend the offer for me to live with them in their home! I couldn't believe it. She showed me the TWO rooms that will be mine as well as a bathroom that I'll have on my own. Their house is set up in a way that I'm upstairs but that's actually on the ground floor. Their room and bathroom as well as the tv/office space is downstairs.
Their offer is amazing for me. I'll have a longer commute, I'll be taking the Max, but that's okay as I was considering doing that anyway and hadn' thad the "push" to actually do that. I'll also be living in an area that I know a bit more. I'm excited to run into people I know. I'm going to be about 5 minutes from my "In town Aunt" as Stess so aptly named Sandra. I'll also be living with a great Christian couple that is my age and hopefully will be able to interact with them more often.
All that to say, I'm really excited! Now I just have to figure out how to get my stuff there... It's amazing how much stuff you can accumulate with a car load at a time.

Dear Customer

2008-01-24T17:44:00.000-08:00

You don't have a surge protector for your computer. You haven't backed up any information on your computer. You didn't follow our instructions when you got your computer to create a set of disks that would immediately help you get your computer back up and running. You waited until the end of the day to call and get help. And now your upset because the disks you need are going to take a few days before they get to you. And I'm supposed to feel sorry for you???

Thanks for letting me vent

Dos

2008-01-22T16:27:00.000-08:00

Thanks Stacy...

Two names you go by:

1. Carina
2. Applejuice (or AJ for those who are too "grown up" to call me Applejuice...)

Two things you are wearing right now:

1. shoes
2. a new shirt

Two of your favorite things to do:

1. read
2. spend time with friends

Two favorite pets you have had or have now

1. Suzie Q Milady
2. Jed

Two things you did last night:

1. Snow mobiled
2. Held Gunner

Two things you ate today

1. chicken nuggets
2. Jamba Juice

Two people you last talked to:

1. a customer
2. Stess

Two things you're doing tomorrow:

1. Working
2. Sleeping

The longest car rides:

1. Sisters to Wyoming
2. Naples to Insbruck

Two favorite holidays:

1. Christmas
2. My Birthday!

Two favorite vacations:

1. Going to Idaho with my family
2. Going to Italy

Two favorite beverages:

1. Vanilla Latte
2. Mojito

Christmas Gifts

2008-01-06T22:25:00.000-08:00

For Christmas this year my sister and I decided we didn't want "big" gifts, unless mom and dad had something in mind that they were set on. Instead, we hinted at smaller things.
I was in Borders with Stacy and Madre and this book caught my eye. The title grabbed me and then when I looked in it I liked the patterns, so with a little hesitation I told my mom about this book that I would like. The book was, "Stitch and Bitch, the Happy Hooker". I didn't really think my mom would actually get it for me, but I was hoping. Mom taught me the basics of knitting and crocheting when I was growing up. I made Barbie clothes and have knitted several scarves, but never done anything from a pattern and don't know how to read one if I wanted to. So, I put the idea out there for my mom and figured if I didn't get it, I'd buy it later.
Well, I opened up one of my gifts this year and guess what...

I got it!
So now, I have to actually make something from the book, so I bought yarn and proceeded to make my first piece. I finished it on Saturday.

Now I'm going to have to find something else to work on and I can keep it all in my nice new bag. It didn't turn out "exactly" like the pattern, but for a first try, I'm pretty happy with it.

I also got a Borders Gift card for Christmas, so I went and bought two more books...

And...

Now all I have to do is get yarn!

Happy New Year!!!

2008-01-01T15:32:00.000-08:00

1. What did you do in 2007 that you'd never done before?

Went to Pittock Mansion

2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year?

Didn't make any, probably won't make any this year either.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?

Yep! Gunner, Ahryanna, & Allie

4. Did anyone close to you die?

No

5. What countries did you visit?

Canada, China & Mongolia

6. What would you like to have in 2008 that you lacked in 2007?

A car that runs well

7. What date from 2007 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?

June 17th - July 3rd because I was in MONGOLIA

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?

Getting a job

9. What was your biggest failure?

I agree with Carrie, depressing question

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?

Nope!

11. What was the best thing you bought?

Christmas presents

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?

Azza's

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?

The paparazzi's

14. Where did most of your money go?

coffee

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?

MONGOLIA

16. What song will always remind you of 2007?

Umm, probably none of them

17. Compared to this time last year, are you: happier or sadder?

about the same

18. What do you wish you'd done more of?

traveling

19. What do you wish you'd done less of?

looking for work

20. How did you spend Christmas?

at work

21. How will you be spending New Years?

at work

24. What was your favorite TV program?

Heroes

25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?

no

26. What was the best book you read?

Velvet Elvis

27. What was your greatest musical discovery?

Josh Groban's concert

28. What did you want and get?

a book

30. What was your favorite film of this year?

August Rush

31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?

I don't remember and I am 26

32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?

Mongolian hugs

33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2007?

Comfortable

34. What kept you sane?

Stephanie

35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?

Josh Groban

36. What political issue stirred you the most?

none

37. Who did you miss?

Natalia

38. Who was the best new person you met?

hmm, not sure

39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2007:

work is good

Straight No Chaser...

2007-12-22T14:31:00.000-08:00

Bonnie sent me this link today, and being a former choir gal, I really like it. Have fun and Merry Christmas!

Porque no?

2007-12-11T21:50:00.000-08:00

ONE HUNDRED THINGS YOU DIDN"T KNOW ABOUT ME (Cause I'm not tired enough to sleep and don't want to start a movie...)

1. ONE OF YOUR SCARS, HOW DID YOU GET IT?
On my knee. I was picking up glass from a broken door and it slipped and cut me.

2. WHAT DOES YOUR CELL PHONE LOOK LIKE?
PINK! I'll admit, I bought it for the color and have regretted in ever since. Not because of the color but because it gets terrible reception!

3. WHAT MUSIC DO YOU LIKE TO LISTEN TO
Right now, Christmas!

4. DO YOU KNOW WHAT TIME YOU WERE BORN?
No, in the morning is my guess. I was 2 months early if that counts?

5. WHAT DO YOU WANT MORE THAN ANYTHING RIGHT NOW?
For Nathan to know the Lord

6. WHAT DO YOU MISS THE MOST?
My childhood friends.

7. WHAT IS YOUR MOST PRIZED POSSESSION?
I don't have just one, but my most prized possessions all come from another country and have some memory attatched to them.

8. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SMELL?
Rain after it's been dry for a long time.

9. DO YOU GET CLAUSTROPHOBIC?
Sometimes

10. DO YOU GET SCARED IN THE DARK?
Occasionally, if I'm in a big house with lots of windows, by myself.

11. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE COLOGNE / PERFUME TO WEAR?
Jador by Christian Dior

12. WHAT KIND OF HAIR DO YOU LIKE ON THE OPPOSITE SEX?
Clean

13. WHERE CAN YOU SEE YOURSELF BEING PROPOSED TO AT?
Somewhere private, none of the in front of everyone stuff!

14. COFFEE OR ENERGY DRINKS?
Coffee, duh!

15. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PIZZA TOPPING?
pineapple

16. IF YOU COULD EAT ANYTHING RIGHT NOW, WHAT WOULD IT BE?
boots, from Mongolia

17. WHO IS THE LAST PERSON YOU MADE MAD?
myself

18. DO YOU SPEAK A DIFFERENT LANGUAGE?
un poco

19. WHAT WAS THE FIRST GIFT SOMEONE EVER GAVE YOU (OF THE OPPOSITE SEX)?
probably something from my Dad... I got a Care Bear from him for my birthday once...

20. WOULD YOU FALL IN LOVE KNOWING THAT THE PERSON IS LEAVING?
Depends on the kind of leaving... just because, no way. If it was a terminal illness, maybe.

21. WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO TELL SOMEONE HOW MUCH THEY MEAN TO YOU?
Depends on the person. I'd probably find a gift.

22. SAY A NUMBER FROM ONE TO A HUNDRED.
67

23. BLONDES OR BRUNETTES?
Blondes!

24. WHAT IS THE ONE NUMBER YOU CALL OFTEN?
Stacy (HELP!!!)

25. WHAT ANNOYS YOU MOST?
grammar

26. HAS ANYONE EVER SPIT ON YOU?
intentionally? no

27. YOUR WEAKNESSES?
Chocolate

28. WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST JOB?
not counting baby sitting... Tadmor. Actually paid, Burger King

29. EVER DONE A PRANK CALL?
Have you ever NOT done a prank call?

30. WHAT WERE YOU DOING BEFORE YOU FILLED OUT THIS SURVEY?
Watching the newest "Bourne" movie

31. IF YOU COULD GET PLASTIC SURGERY WHAT WOULD IT BE?
Lasic surgery on my eyes is more realistic...

32. WHY DID YOU FILL OUT THIS SURVEY?
I'm bored...

33. WHAT DO YOU GET COMPLIMENTED ABOUT MOST?
mis ojos

34. WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF ALCOHOL BECAME ILLEGAL?
Not drink...

35. WHAT DO YOU WANT FOR YOUR BIRTHDAY
I'm still working on Christmas, but probably money for Mongolia

36. HOW MANY KIDS DO YOU WANT?
4

37. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE?
Carina is what the Italian land lady called my mom, Karen, when she and my dad lived in Italy. My middle name is after my mom's sister

38. DO YOU WISH ON STARS?
Occasionally, when I'm in the mood.

39. WHICH FINGER[S] IS YOUR FAVORITE?
Pinkey, it's the one the rings fit on...

40. WHEN DID YOU LAST CRY?
Sunday night

41. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING?
sometimes

42. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT?
roast beef

43. ANY BAD HABITS?
yep

44. WHAT IS YOUR MOST EMBARRASSING CD YOU OWN?
I don't have it anymore but I purchased a Back Street Boys cd in college. "Cause I want it that way", Crista knows...

45. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON, WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU?
Yeah!

46. DO LOOKS MATTER?
Yes, but not necissarily in the worldy way.

47. HOW DO YOU RELEASE ANGER?
journaling and/or venting

48. WHERE IS YOUR SECOND HOME?
Sisters

49. DO YOU TRUST OTHERS EASILY?
with certain things

50. WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE TOY AS A CHILD?
my Cabbage Patch Kid

51. DO YOU USE SARCASM?
Me? Never!

52. HAVE YOU EVER BEEN IN A MOSH PIT?
Yes

53. WHAT DO YOU LOOK FOR IN A GUY/GIRL?
Male, Christian, single, umm... No, not seriously to that point yet! (but getting there)

54. WHAT ARE YOUR NICKNAMES?
Big sis, applejuice, aj, bookworm, & chip

55. DO YOU UN-TIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF?
Un-tie what? All mine have zippers (boots) or are slip on!

56. WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM FLAVOR?
Peppermint.

57. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE COLOR?
Purple

58. HOW MANY WISDOM TEETH DO YOU HAVE?
0

59. WHO/WHAT DO YOU MISS MOST RIGHT NOW?
Madre

60. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS?
Sure

61. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW?
the dryer

62. LAST THING YOU ATE?
chicken and rice

63. LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE?
I left a message for Ryan, does that count?

64. THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE IN THE OPPOSITE SEX?
ring?

65. WHERE WERE YOU BORN?
Bend, Oregon

66. SCARIEST THING THAT HAS EVER HAPPENED TO YOU?
Brooke Wilburger

67. FAVORITE DRINK?
coffee

68. FAVORITE QUOTE?
at the moment, anything from Music from another room

69. FAVORITE SPORT?
Baseball

70. YOUR HAIR COLOR?
Blonde

71. YOUR EYE COLOR?
Blue

72. DO YOU WEAR GLASSES?
Yes

73. SIBLINGS?
Stess!

74. FAVORITE MONTH?
September

75. YOU LIKE SUSHI
No

76. LAST THING YOU WATCHED?
Bourne

77. FAVORITE DAY OF THE YEAR?
June 15th!

78. ARE YOU TOO SHY TO ASK SOMEONE OUT?
Probably

79.SUMMER OR WINTER?
Winter

80. IF THERE WAS A QUESTION HERE YOU DIDN'T APPROVE OF, WOULD YOU CHANGE IT?
Yep

81. WHO DO YOU SECRETLY LOVE?
What kind of question is that? It wouldn't be a secret then!

82. FAVORITE SONG AT THE MOMENT?
Angels we have heard get high

83. LAKE OR OCEAN?
depends, ocean at sunset, lake for vacation

84. BIGGEST TURNOFF?
swearing/smoking

85. LAST TIME YOU SAW YOUR BEST FRIEND
Sunday Night

86. LAST KISS:
what's that?

87. LAST TEXT YOU RECEIVED:
From Natalia

88. DO YOU HAVE A CRUSH?
Nope

89. DO YOU WISH YOU CAN SEE ANYONE PARTICULAR RIGHT NOW?
Yes.

90. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE NAME?
Demetri

91. HIGH SCHOOL YOU ATTENTED/ ARE ATTENDING:
PC and SHS

92. WHERE ARE YOU NOW:
sitting in a chair

93. ARE YOU SMILING:
Now I am.

94. WHAT ARE YOU WEARING:
clothing

96. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE MOVIE?
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, at the moment

97. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SONG?
Don't have one

98. WHEN WAS YOUR LAST RELATIONSHIP?
Never

99. EVER BEEN DRUNK?
No

100. PLAN ON GETTING DRUNK SOON:
No

Plains, Trains & Automobiles

2007-12-09T22:43:00.000-08:00

This week has been the week from Hell when it comes to cars! I think I've been cursed with the ability to have cars stop working simply by my having driven them.
On Wednesday my car was towed from the lot at work. The parking there is crazy, three deep, and I couldn't find a "legal" spot before work, so I parked in a non-legal spot. Well my car got towed. $180 later I had my car back. It's ridiculous how much they charge for a tow!
After having the car towed I decided to go visit Stacy. Well my car was low on gas, but the light hadn't come on so I figured I had about 20 miles or so left. After a great dinner and fun watching television I headed home. Just after turning onto Hwy 217, about ten minutes away from Stacy and home, my car ran out of gas! My phone battery was going dead, it was past 11pm and I was stranded on the side of the freeway. Seeing as my Uncle works at 6am and was already asleep, I called Stacy. She was such a God send! She came with another friend and a gas can. She was able to put gas in the car. Unfortunately, in the meantime, my battery had died. No problem right? Stacy said she had jumper cables in her trunk. No such luck! So, another chunk of money and the tow truck came and jumped my car. Stacy was a blessing and made sure I made it home safely. THANK YOU STACY!!!
Sadly, that wasn't the end of my car troubles for the week. I drove my Uncle's car on Friday and the battery died. We went back that night to try to jump it with a battery but that didn't work. So, Saturday morning we went back to work with jumper cables and tried to jump it. Didn't work. SO, another call to the tow company to try to jump his car and we had to have it towed back to his home.
And lastly but not least, my Uncle and I drove to Salem and met my Aunts for some Christmas shopping. Uncle Tim was in his truck, driving down town Salem, and his car suddenly stopped. Several hours later his brother was able to go get him and tow his car back to their home in Lebanon. After several hours working on the truck today it started.
My week at least as far as cars are concerned has been awful! I'm praying my car starts fin on Monday and that we'll be able to get around this week without any difficulty.
Hope your week was better than mine!

Christmas Survey

2007-12-06T23:25:00.000-08:00

Stacy posted it, I read and enjoyed it, so here is mine...

1. Wrapping Paper or Gift Bags? Paper, very nicely wrapped, no edges.
2. Real tree or artificial? Real and big. You've got to have the smell.
3. When do you put up the tree? After Thanksgiving
4. When do you take the tree down? Sometime after Christmas or New Years.
5. Do you like egg nog? I agree with Stacy, only around Christmas and in small amounts. (mixed with milk)
6. Favorite gift received as a child? Little Miss Makeup. I remember really wanting her, making comments at church and at school.
7. Do you have a nativity scene? Not yet. My mom made one that's at their house.
8. Hardest person to buy for? Mom or Dad, depends on the year
9. Easiest person to buy for? Usually Stess
10. Worst Christmas gift ever received? I had many pairs of shoes from Italy that didn't fit. I have big feet...
11. Mail or E-mail Christmas card? Mail
12. Favorite Christmas Movie? White Christmas
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? Starting in Fall, depends on if I find something for them early or not.
14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? No
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? fudge
16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? white
17. Favorite Christmas song? Angels we have heard get high, no probably the Hallelujah chorus
18. Travel at Christmas or Stay home? either way as long as I'm with famly.
19. Can you name Santa's reindeer? yes
20. Do you have an Angel on top or a star? Me, neither, Mom and Dad have an angel that moves it's arm, the girls have a star. I'm picky about my decorations, so I don't have one yet but I'd go for a star.
21. Open the presents Christmas eve or Morning? one on Christmas eve, the rest on Christmas Morning
22. Most annoying thing about this time of year? either not having enough money to buy the gifts I want to give, or not knowing what to get.

Yada, yada, yada...blah, blah, blah

2007-12-04T21:41:00.000-08:00

Well it's been a while, so I thought I'd say hello! A few things to comment on...
Beavers won!!!!!!! I really only watch two football games a year, the Civil War and the Superbowl. Of those two games, I really only care who wins at one of them. And of the games to win, this year I was very excited to watch the Beavers beat the Ducks on their turf! It was great and amazing and of course the food and friends/family that I hung with while watching the game (or texted as the case may be) made it all the better. That coupled with the fact that several of my co-workers are duck fans and I got to brag on Monday, made it well worth the several hours watching!
It's weird living with my uncle. I think he's still trying to figure out what his role is... is he my uncle or my roomate or a co-worker? Last night I decided to take advantage of the overtime available and I worked for a few more hours. I didn't call UT (Ask stess...) and when I got off work I had a message from him wondering where I was. He's also commented a few times wondering what I do after work. The nature of the job being what it is, I'm not always off when I'm scheduled to be, and I don't call him when I decide to hang out a Powell's or go visit Stacy. On the positive side, I can actually hold a conversation with him and feel like I know what I'm talking about when it comes to computers! We actually stayed up late one night talking shop, and I enjoyed it! I'm scaring myself. On Sunday I overheard James talking about Vista and how he's having difficutly with programs running. I voluntarily went over and suggested he download drivers then proceeded to debate the merits of Vista verses XP! AHH I'm turning into one of them!!!
As for the apartment hunt, I'm still looking. Last week I went to see a place that's actually really close to work and right along the bus line. The gal who owns the place is a Chrsitian and seems really nice. I'd have my own bathroom and bedroom, and the rent's nice. The only downside I'm struggling with is the size of the room. That and the possibility of having a friend from Corvallis move up to Portland and how I'd absolutely LOVE to live with her. On a very positive note, Stess and Crista found out from our rental company that they'll reduce the rate for three months so they can continue to live there and look for another roomate! That's awesome because now they don't have to move!
Mary Kay... I placed an order last week and Stess said it arrived today! That means I can wash my face again when I get home! Yeah for clean faces.
And the last random note for tonight, Crista has a new car! She just bought, today, a Hyunda Elantra that she's been humming and hawing over for a couple of months. Now it's over and she's got it. yeah!

Just cause

2007-12-04T09:19:00.000-08:00

Take the 100 Acre Personality Quiz!
I saw it on Carrie's blog and thought it'd be fun

Dancing with the King of the Ages!

cebu! (cebu!) cebu! (cebu!) ahcu moo moo achoo moo moo boo hoo moo moo ahcu moo moo achoo moo moo boo hoo moo moo cebu!

God is GOOD!

And I'm off again!

Randomness

Classroom Training Manager

Seattle or bust

Is it April already!?

How's the job going?

Guess What...

Moving

The Best Christmas Ever!

Community

Eww

Turbulence and Jet lag

Up, up and away!

T minus 8 Days!

Home Sick

On the road again **Update**

Well done "Captain Obvious"

What!?

Seat 29E

A.A.A.D.D.

Screaming Green Bacchetta

Negligence

A Wicked Weekend

Over the mountains and through the woods

Chris Tomlin

Marley and Me

Country, Basket Ball and Tomlin!

Stolen

Goodbye...

Blazers

Wii

Merry Christmas to all!

Dear Mrs. Clause,

Beautiful Tuya

Just for fun

1st Christmas gift

99

Mr. Sniffles

Promotion

One Year

Stuff and Nonsense

100%

Crybabies!

Mongolia Part 2

Mongolia Part 1

Welcome Miss Stess!

Technical Support

A New Home

Bienvenidos

Stuff n junk

Training

Crazy Eights!

Frog Loan

Texas?

Margaritaville

25 & 27

LIFE

Bikes

La Vida Dulce

Four

Oregon stereotypes

Long time no see!

Mongolitis

15 Sirens

Gunz

Happy Birthday Lil Sis!

Addicted

Da Couch

Thursday top ten

Peanut butter eggs and jell-o

Computer Bugs

Friday Top 10

Pearl Mosaic

Irresistible Revolution

Bride's maid

Photobucket Fun!

Max

On the road again Update