on St. Nick

Relevant did a piece in their 850 Words newsletter, and here's an excerpt:

The original Saint Nicholas was a Christian bishop in 4th-century Myra, geographically located in modern-day Turkey. As an adult, Nicholas gained a reputation as a generous man and the protector of innocents. These saintly traits largely arose from two horrific legends, both of which eventually led to his canonization.

The first is said to have occurred during a terrible famine. A local butcher, in need of something to sell, lured three unsuspecting boys into his shop. He killed the boys, chopped them into pieces, then stuffed their remains in a brine tub, hoping to cure them enough that he could sell the parts as ham. Nicholas was visiting the afflicted region at the time of the crime. Somehow Nicholas became aware of the butcher’s wicked deed. He visited the shop, uncovered the crime, and hastily reassembled the three boys. They came back to life, a bit salty but otherwise in good health. Despite the happy ending, it’s not exactly the kind of story that gets told at the Christmas Eve candlelight service.

In the second legend, a poor citizen of Myra had three daughters, but not enough money to afford a dowry for them. No dowry meant no marriage, and unmarried women in those days generally had one career choice: prostitution. The father was less than thrilled by this possibility, but too proud to ask for help. Nicholas discovered the family’s predicament the night before the first daughter came of age. Not wanting to embarrass anyone, he approached the family’s house late one night and tossed a bag of gold through an opened window. He did the same thing the night before the second daughter came of age. Both gifts were enough to cover the dowry, and both girls were spared the consequence of their poverty.

Before long, the third daughter was ready to marry, and the appreciative father wanted to find out who was behind the lavish gifts. When the time came, the father hid next to the window, hoping to catch their anonymous benefactor in the act. Nicholas learned of the father’s plan and improvised: Instead of lobbing it through the window, he dropped the third bag of gold down the chimney.

It wasn’t long before people began to suspect that the kindly bishop Nicholas, who had inherited money from his affluent parents, was behind these mysterious actions and a great many other secretive gifts to the poor. After he died of old age on December 6, 343 AD the people of Myra continued providing for those in need. In fact, they made a practice of giving gifts anonymously, always attributing them to the late Bishop Nicholas.

Before long, the bishop — who had worn liturgical robes of red and white — was canonized as a saint. Saint Nicholas became venerated as the protector of innocents, the patron saint of children, and a secret giver of gifts.

Of course, the traditional American idea of Santa Claus — along with his British/Canadian counterpart, Father Christmas — originates in the stories surrounding Nicholas of Myra. As far as saints go, St. Nick was especially venerated in the Netherlands, where he became known by the Dutch variant Sinterklaas. When the Dutch came to the New World and settled in New Amsterdam (today’s New York City), they brought with them the story of the now-anglicized “Santa Claus.”

hahahaha

ok, let me preface this by saying that I am a HUGE fan of sci-if & fantasy. I even enjoy some of the stuff that's not even that well written. that said, I hated the Golden Compass trilogy. I wasn't aware of Pullman's atheistic tendencies, or his pure hatred of all things Narnian & C.S. Lewis. whatever. the books were just horrible.

then comes the movie.

for months nothing but barrages of ads (and the awful pop-up floaters) for The Golden Compass. ugh. granted, it was the best of the three books, but that's still not saying much. AT ALL. this morning the news reports were listing weekend box office grosses, and while the GP was No. 1, it only grossed about $7k a theater. Juno, on the other hand, grossed about $60k per theater. that's hilarious.

Prince Caspian

the teaser/trailer is out.

see it here.

ok, I had to come back and edit this post. you know the weird Scifi Channel commercials where the things pop, turn into something else, etc.? well if I was one I'd turn into an explosion of happy little firework sprays that go dancing all over the place because I'm that happy/excited about the newest Narnia movie.

insert perma-grin & happy dance.

elf-ish

I would love to be blogging about some Christmas present projects right now, but unless you're on Ravelry . . . . you probably won't be hearing about them here. just on the off-chance that the person I'm making the thing for actually happen to read this blog. it could happen. must . . . keep . . . surprise! ugh. I really want to blog about it!

I think I might have figured out my dad's Christmas present this year. it's not easy - he just goes and gets exactly what he wants (computer, book, e-book, etc.) most of the time. but I think I figured out Christmas AND his birthday, which is Jan 1st. we've never done both together in the same gift for dad, which is tough. this year both should be great though. woo-hooooo!

oh, my friend Steve was interviewed for an article. you can read the article here.

WARNING:

MAY CAUSE INVOLUNTARY OUTBURSTS OF LAUGHTER . . .

click here to proceed . . .

Christmas trees!!!

I love Christmas. it's my absolute, hands down favorite of the holidays. yesterday was a tree hunt that turned into a comedy of errors, but all ended well. mom and I went and found the "family" tree at Lowe's (GREAT deal, btw!), and that went surprisingly smoothly. I think it took us all of ten minutes to find our perfect tree. I finished getting the lights and ornaments this evening, and we'll add the star once the pruning shears are tracked down. here's a night shot:




Now MY tree on the other hand . . .

first of all, I've been collecting ornaments of various shades of blue for years now. the big white trees that are everywhere would look great with the collection, and be perfect for my bedroom. however . . . the 7 or 8 foot pre-lit white trees are way too big for my space. so I started hunting for a 4 or 5 footer. well, Target seemed to have a white, pre-lit tree in-store when I checked online . . . perfect! so when mom and I went shopping friday I looked around. all I could find at the moment though was one (the only one left) 2 foot potted one. so I bought just in case. well, we got home and it was just too small. so, I headed back out to return it and check Hobby Lobby. no 4 foot white, but there was a 4.5 foot silver, un-lit. so I bought the silver Hobby Lobby tree. well, back to Target to return the 2 foot white, and grab a couple of things I had forgotten on the first visit. as I looked through the holiday section what did I find? the 4 foot pre-lit white trees! maybe some group was huddled in front of them the first time, who knows. so then it was BACK to Hobby Lobby to return the silver tree that I had just bought. after that a very tired me headed home to start decorating. here's the result:

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hop everyone is enjoying a drowsy turkey coma . . . I know I have been! my mom and I made dinner for everyone this year (especially after the last Columbus turkey-spam debacle . . . shudder.), and it was great. my grandfather was there (dad's side), my grandmother and her husband (mom's side), and a family from Kenya. it was a lovely meal.

tomorrow is the first Black Friday in YEARS that I have not had to work. THIS IS VERY VERY EXCITING FOR ME! I plan to sleep in, and then go see what sales are still going on. I also plan to be exceptionally nice to all the salespeople . . . no sane person likes working that day. be nice to your salespeople - having to be at work at 3am (at least!) to face screaming lunatics (because a lack of sleep can do that to you at 4am) fighting for "deals" at 4am isn't fun.

Toya posted another blog entry over at blackgirlslikeus, and I feel the same way about her post as I did about Tia's. one of my best friends used to be a stripper/dancer, and we share very different values when it comes to sex. HOWEVER, we both respect each other, and value the other's opinion. just sayin' . . .

well said

I was checking out my friend's blog today, and it pretty much sums up how I feel about this issue, so I'm posting it for you here:

Can I just say...- Tia

that I am constantly floored by how lackadaisical people are about sex. I'm sure I'm opening up a whole can of worms here but right now I just don't care.

I just don't see how another person being up in your body or you being up in another person's body can NOT be a big deal. I'm sure I'm coming off as sanctimonious and self-righteous. But if you really think about it, I mean truly take a moment to think about it, sex is a big deal. And just doing it with anyone just doesn't seem right. Making that HUGE of an emotional commitment to someone is so serious. And I'm astonished that people seem to think that because I don't want to just have any ol' body up inside my body that I'm uptight or old fashioned or that I need to "live a little." Eff that. I know how attached I can get from just kissing someone I'm in a relationship with. Don't let me fool around and sleep with someone and then they leave. I would be gutted. I would be an emotional mess for a long time.

Forget what you heard. If you want that level of commitment from me then you damn sure better be willing to wait for me. And I mean wait until we have the same last name. If you just want to get laid, stroll the eff on. I know me. And I know that I'm worth waiting for. And if you can't wait for me, then you don't want me. There's no love loss. We just aren't supposed to be together. And I'd be full of bullshishery if I said that waiting was easy. But there aren't really any alternatives for me. You do what you have to do and hard as it is, I'll do what I have to do...which is wait. But I'm not just going to let you up in my body because you want to be there. Child, PLEASE.....

This concludes my soapbox rant for the day.

you can visit the original here.

signs

when you can't find the other Netflix dvd AND your current knitting project . . . it's probably time to re-organize. they're there . . . somewhere. I know because I JUST HAD THEM, but this morning they were not in sight. bah. time for more storage containers and trips to Goodwill.

I started a blog for my Etsy shop. I had considered just blogging about projects and such here, but then things would get mixed up in the posts. and since I've started blogging about my knitting projects, I don't want to confuse customers. knitting has become a hobby for me - there's no way I could do it for profit, but I still love doing it.

I finally got to see Amazing Grace this weekend, and it's excellent. in fact, it will be added to my dvd library very soon.

bunny love

here's the little sweetheart . . .

maybe this is it

I visited Athens Church this morning (they meet at the Classic Center theater but they are NOT Athens Church of Christ). it was great. definitely one of those, "wow. this fits . . ." moments. the small group intros start again in January, which is perfect. it gives me a few more weeks to check them out some more. this morning they were talking about clean water in Africa, which I think is something we as Christians should be at the very least aware of. it's great to send out missionaries, but if people are dying from the water they have to walk miles to get, then how are they supposed to learn the gospel? it was refreshing to hear a pastor in my town talking about something I've been caring about for a while now.

they're taking next Sunday off for the holiday, but I'll definitely be there again in two weeks.

and now I'm a little scared

(from overheardinathens.com)

• Sorostitute: On the way from school I popped both of my tires. This like might be a stupid question...
  
• Guy: Shoot
  
• Sorostitute: Do tires like, cost money?

really, what is going to happen to some people if they're suddenly actually cut off from their daddy's money? and who did they pay off to get into college??

men in black

for all of last week the buzz around campus was that Coach Richt had made a call to all UGA fans to wear black to the Georgia-Auburn game on Saturday. that was fine by me. the "blackout" sounded like a fine idea.

then came Saturday.

the stands were black, with the exception of a few red dots (a few didn't get the memo?). the cheerleaders were in black, and even UGA VI had himself a little black jersey on. the team was warming up in usual red. then they all went inside and the captains came out for the coin toss. nothing unusual so far, right? then it happened . . . a team in black came streaming out of the Bulldog's tunnel onto the field. the red-clad captains pealed back there jerseys to reveal the new black jerseys. and meanwhile the fans were going nuts . . . everywhere. cool would be an understatement. the team had no idea that they were finally getting the jersey's they had been asking for for years now until after the pre-game prayer in the locker room.

they went on to beat Auburn 45-20 on Saturday, and the campus is still electric.

vampires beware . . .

the butternut squash soup at Five Star is tasty, but they did NOT skimp on the garlic. it was obviously fresh too, because the soup had that slightly-sweet squash flavor that powdered garlic does not enhance. mmmmmm . . . autumn . . .

the first pair of socks are DONE! I used a different cast-off than I had first planned on, and I think I like it better. we'll see how it wears though. (link to the other way here) I've already started on a striped pair. yes, my name is Meredith, and I'm a sock knitting addict. :-)

new project!!!

ok, so I almost did a cheezy title involving socks . . . but it's early and there's no need for that.

I am almost done with my first pair of hand-knitted socks! toe up, short row heel, and I'm hooked!



the picture is a bit blurry, but it was late last night when I took it. I did manage to get one of my moon-face stitch markers in there though. the toe was done with the Magic Cast On, and Wendy Johnson's Generic Sock Pattern. Cosmispluto's short-row heel illustrations were also very helpful. it IS possible to do a whole sock start to finish on one pair of circulars, but I moved mine to double points so that I could do two socks at once.

turning a short row heel wasn't bad, and I ripped out enough stitches so that now I can get them back on the needles pretty easily. a few more inches on the cuff, and a little ribbing, and then the socks are DONE.

To cast off, I'm planning on using a binding method I found here.

'tis a whirlwind of emotions at times, it is . . . .

I rode over to Atlanta with my parents (slightly scary and nerve-shredding) on Saturday to attend my great-uncle's memorial service on Saturday. it was small and sweet, and shed more light on a man whom I rarely saw growing up. he was an editor in New York City for many, many years. my dad's side of the family is interesting, and almost always full of surprises. there are a lot of very accomplished individuals, but the funny thing is - no one talks about it that much. which is kinda nice too. I knew my grandmother as a grandmother, not the political powerhouse that she was to Atlanta. family was a big deal, education was a big deal, but celebrity wasn't.

anyway, it was all another thing to get me thinking about what I want to do. I just got an offer at UGA, so now I'm back in a full-time job (this time with great benefits!) and I can save up for a big move. Nashville to be exact. and while I'm in this job I can take classes, learn more programming languages, and maybe even take that painting class I missed during Art school. so it's good, as long as I don't lose my mind living in the same town as my family. I'm looking for a new church though. it's not that I hate the one that I grew up in, or was hurt by it, or anything like that. it's a great church, but the people that are my age are rapidly disappearing, and attempts at a ministry group hasn't worked . . . so I'm going to check out some other places. I hope it's not too hard. when you've been in the same church for almost 15 years, it's a little scary to think about starting over at a new one.

weekend racap

first of all, I forgot to take a camera, and therefore have no pictures from this weekend . . . again. I'm bad about that. snapping pictures is usually the absolutely last thing on my mind.

the Fall Festival was great! and while we wish that we had been able to sell more, we all made it out with what we needed, and had a great time doing it. the weather was perfect, and I even managed a (mild, very mild) sunburn in October. the Eggroll Lady lived up to the hype, but I'm wondering if she uses MSG because it's monday, I've been drinking water like a fish, and I still feel weird. those were some fine fried meat delights though . . . yum.

so now back to recovery . . .

counting down

the earrings are on cards and in their little baggies . . . happy dance! things have been going really smoothly, which is great considering that I've been working on this since like April. the smoothness also freaks me out a little because it kinda makes me wonder if I've forgotten something . . . something crucial. but the little earrings are looking fab on the dark gray cardstock, and I think the necklaces and bracelets are all getting little hang tags . . . so . . . cool.

eep!

that's it . . . a mirror . . . I need to go find a mirror for the tables.

well, it's almost here . . . the festival is this saturday (eeep!). actually, I'm doing really well. I have over 95% of the jewelry that I'm going to have there finished, everything is inventoried, the cardstock is the house, the rest of the displays are on their way . . . . looking really good. of course I'm going to have some last-minute additions, but that's fine. at this point it just down to tagging and organizing everything so that set-up early saturday morning is a breeze.

so Logical is trying to assure Emotional that everything is cool. Emotional is still freaking out a little. ;-)

working at a University is great - I'm always picking up new things. occasionally though, I do hear the "our grads make 50k a year starting out" and I start to question why I took the route I did. but only for a second. if there's anything that time & experience have taught me, it's that being where you belong is much more fulfilling than doing something for the wrong reasons. I could be good at those higher paying things, but I'd be miserable in the long run. now, I'm not planning on this current track forever, and even a moderately successful career in the Fine Arts can take a while, but to me it's worth the time and sacrifice. those other things just aren't for me.

how NOT to make me want to hear your band

so I get these ads, or msgs, or whatever saying "if you like ____(artist)____, then you'll LOVE ________. they sound so much like them!" (or some message-ish equivalent thereof).

well . . .

the reason I like these people to begin with, is that some of them ARE ACTUALLY MY FRIENDS or I like their music. and I don't want to hear someone who sounds like them. go be yourself - that's much more interesting.

ok, so I got a lot done this weekend, although the purging part turned out to be more shreading credit card offers and old (useless) receipts than getting rid of stuff. there's a half-full (huge)box of clothes and books, but not alot else. but I was only working on upstairs - downstairs (studio/storage room) will not be approached until after the festival booth.


last week I decided to check out the new "Pushing Daisies" on abc. the previews weren't really exciting me, but I came across a couple of reviews that caught my interest. and seeing as there isn't usually anything I'd want to watch at 8 on Wednesday night anyway . . . so I checked it out.

wow.

seriously.

I LOVED it!

I sat there curled up on my sofa just delighted . . . it's this wonderful blend of wit and humor and artistry and fairytale (fairytale in the classical sense, not so much the Disney) that was just fantastic. rich use of color, great writing, wonderfully acted . . . I've watched the dvd I recorded from the re-air on friday several times over now. it's really that good.

I'm blogging cause I'm cracked out on coffee??

pretty much. the pot I made this morning was really good, even HOURS later, and I made a lot of it . . . so I'm still really really awake.

the cleaning went well, and I'd probably still be running the vacuum again right now except for the fact that it would really bother the sleeping birds. cranky pets are no fun. but I did get quite a bit done, which is another step towards getting ready to move. I hate moving, so anything to make it easier is good.

ok, synapses going fuzzy . . . off to bed . . .

monumental purge . . .

the house is actually going to be empty this weekend, so I'm going to take advantage of the time & space and CLEAN OUT! there's a huge box sitting here next to me just waiting to be filled with things to free-cycle/donate away, and plenty of trash bags for the rest.

time to make some coffee . . .

I'm really familiar with migraines - I've been having them off and on since I was kid. for a long time they were an all day build up thing, with me in bathroom doing everything I could to get to the point where I could finally sleep off the pain. I'd have the hyper-sensitivity to all things sensory, and what felt like an ice pick trying to shoot out of my skull. today was a first though, because I discovered something that got me through the time before the pain medication kicked in. it's something I've only been able to do recently. I sat at the piano and just played. I didn't try to compose, or use a certain key, I just let go. can't really explain it except that it was like doing it without thinking and completely on instinct - which is big for me when it comes to music. I was trained to sightread since I was about five, and there's the oldest-child/daughter-responsibility-control-perfectionist issue. something about the music let me forget that my head felt like it was going to split open, and that hours before I could barely
see straight. it was effortless and yet it was totally engulfing.

a few months ago I was writing songs in my dreams because I wasn't in my waking life. now I'm doing both.

fall fall fall

I love it! the weather here is fab, and I tend to get this creative rush. who wouldn't love that? and THIS year I have a booth at the Fall Festival to look forward to! I'm sharing it with a couple of friends who are also jewelry artists, and I swear it looks like this thing is going to turn into one big party. so much fun!

progress on the work to sell is also going nicely. I have spreadsheets set up to price, number, and track my stock, most of the pieces are done, or waiting for clasps or earwires, and I only have one or two more supply orders before it's time. well . . . unless I decide to make more, but even if I didn't there's still plenty for the festival. so one nice saturday between now and I'll shoot pictures of most of it, and whatever doesn't sell goes directly onto Etsy the day after.

Ravelry is really growing on me. it's nice to have another motivation for my fiber projects, and it'll be great to have all of my needles and yarns indexed. in fact, that's had me thinking a little differently about how I have my jewelry supplies inventoried. Jen had some similar observations on her blog.

Ravelry

today there was an invite to join Ravelry in my inbox, so I joined . . . apparently I don't have enough projects already . . . teehee.

maybe I'm obsessed.

all I can think about is jewelry designs and music. which is a good thing - the Fall Festival is coming up, so I need to have plenty of jewelry to sell, and I want to get some songs recorded soon. it's just fast. a couple of weeks ago I was still wondering what I wanted to do, where I wanted to live, should I do this or that? I think I've written at least a dozen songs in the last week. less than that have made it to paper, but it's all a process.

nine years ago I was sitting in a coffee shop talking to a guy from Brooklyn about life and music. somewhere in there something clicked and I started writing songs. that path eventually lead me to Nashville for a while, although I didn't go there to become a star. most of my friends there didn't even know I could sing, or had played the piano since I was five. I was just me. if they knew me for anything it was that I was an artist. not a musician (because that's what "artist" meant there), but the other kind - the kind who could draw and paint and tell you which color was a bad idea. I watched friends give up on dreams, and it broke my heart. some have found their way back, and one is even becoming increasing successful at it. I miss it. I miss them.

I asked a friend of mine if he'd help me record a couple of rough-cut demos. nothing fancy, just something to put out there. he said he would, so unless something comes up here, that'll probably happen on my next trip up to Nashville.

well, back to work . . .

(quick note)

I turned on my heater (on very low, but still) in my car on the way to work this morning. I love autumn!!!! (happy dance)

what is it about bunnies? seriously - I think I might spontaneously melt here.

another fun way to kill some time . . . (click here)

it is day two on my lovely new job. yes, lovely. I'm working on campus at UGA, and there's still several weeks to settle in before the students descend in the campus and everyone gets a little crazy and stressed for a few weeks. seriously though, this is great! I can go for a walk around campus if I need it, Downtown is right there (I'm in Brooks Hall), but far enough away that I don't have to smell it (on the bad days) if I don't want to. lovely. the ladies in the office are wonderful, to the point, and easy to get along with as long as the work gets done.

I saw Transformers & Harry Potter 5 recently, and both were awesome. Transformers was better than I expected, and I really want to go see it again while it's in the theater. HP5 was really well adapted from the book.

well, I thought I was tired yesterday, but it seems that was nothing compared to today. why is that? well there was a wedding on saturday. my baby brother is a married man now, and on his way to Hawaii with his new bride as I'm writing this. well . . . I think. I don't know what time their flight was supposed to leave today.

yesterday, after stumbling into church, I suddenly realized how exhausted I actually was. maybe it was divine providence that the service ran a bit shorter than usual. then it was off to a restaurant (none of the family really felt like cooking), and home for a nap . . . followed by four loads of laundry!!! it was a loooooonnnnggggg weekend.

I'm looking at the calendar on my desk and realizing that tomorrow is the first day of summer (and the longest day of the year). it's also sixteen days until my little brother's wedding (Sam, not David), and so we're probably about to get slammed. starting monday, we have David's birthday, mom's birthday, July 4th, my birthday, and then the wedding. oh, and a trip down to Ft. Walton for my great-aunt's memorial service. can we say "whirlwind"? :-) it'll be great though, and the water down at Ft. Walton beach was beautiful last year when we were there. I might even be coming back with a little friend for Bitty . . . maybe.

I am sooooo thankful for my gym membership right now. there's the part about feeling great, which is awesome. however, it's that I don't have to work out in THE GEORGIA HEAT that is fabulous right now. while it has been unusually dry lately, it's still too hot to be doing the 7-8 miles that I've been doing almost every day after work OUTSIDE.

bring in the soap!

I'm on my second Gerbera daisy this year at work. the first one fell prey to aphids, and I'm seeing spots again on the new one as well. I'm going to try the insecticidal soap, but the poor little plant is NOT looking happy. now the orchids in my bedroom are thriving, and some are even putting out new shoots. however, I have reservations about bringing any into the office - the air tends to be pretty dry.

the new Transformers movie looks like it could be a pretty decent summer flick. fine. cool. I might have gone to see it anyway. but now I know that MUTE MATH recorded the theme, I'm definitely going to have to see it. why? this particular band ups the geek-chic exponentially. because out of all the concerts I have EVER been to, they do the best. but hey, when the drummer is amazing AND he has to gaffer-tape his headphones on . . . really, go see them live. anyway, the movie might end up being overdone and annoying, but let's hope not. I plan on seeing it. maybe not opening weekend though . . . and I still find it interesting that this band hails from New Orleans.

last week was NUTS, so it's taken a minute to slow down and write . . . .

POTC 3 was awesome . . . and every other woman I spoken to about it agrees that Orlando at the end was something else. in the best possible way. and if I can find a screencap or still or whatnot I will be posting it.

while Athens will always be my birth-home, Nashville/Franklin is my heart-home. which doesn't even make sense to me all the time (no beach, colder winter than here, no local UK accents . . . ), it is. and I miss it dearly.

I have lost ten, TEN pounds . . . and not by any crazy, shock-your-system, crazy-fad diets. cardio, weights, less sugar and lots of water.

now I have to find something to wear to my little brother's wedding . . .

I'm spending the evening with some pirates.

counterpoint

WARNING: spoiler alert!

Pat is trashing the finale on his blog, so here's mine . . .

I love HEROES. HEROES is awesome. it's fun sci-fi. and while it may borrow from a lot of comic book lore (because what haven't they done in the comic book world?), it's still great. and I for one enjoyed the season finale. I wish Hiro had taken Sylar's head (a la Highlander), but oh well . . . I guess they wanted another option for next season. maybe he's dead, maybe he dragged himself into that sewer. the heroes finally figured out that they could beat him, even if they weren't totally in control of their powers. Nikki with the parking meter? nice. Claire bellyfloping out of the window - cool. Peter pummeling Sylar? YES!

the dvd set is coming out in August, and I already have it on my Amazon list.

Peter's the bomb in more ways than one . . . ;-)

oh, and I'm so very very happy that Stargate: Atlantis is back. very happy indeed.

workaholics?

ok, so call my crazy, but isn't it the point of a VACATION that you DON'T come in to work? I think someone here missed the memo . . .

2.5 more work days and then I will be driving to Nashville . . . (happy dance!)

frosty

I had a minor personal victory last night - I successfully recharged my car's A/C. this is especially nice as I'm going to be driving through Atlanta next Friday afternoon on my way to Nashville.

I finally got the dates posted for the Radiant summer book club. I think it was harder cutting books than finding them. there's a good variety, a novel, a biography, a really great book on prayer, and a few others. There's also a women's Craft Fix coming up June 3rd. lots to do this summer . . .

minor rant

Outlook keeps "eating" dates that I've entered into the calendar at work . . . so not cool!

smell of burning wood

we woke up this morning to a thin blanket of smoke this morning. apparently winds have pushed the smoke from the wildfires in south Georgia all the way up to Atlanta, and even a little further northeast here in Watkinsville (and Athens).

we need rain in all of Georgia.

and we're back

now that the Radiant blog is up and running, it's just going to be easier to run things off of one account (yay, Google!). I'll be moving posts over soon. I hope. :-)

Gilmore Girls is ending for good tonight, and I'm not sure how I feel about that yet. maybe too many television relationships have taken their toll . . .

I'm heading up to Nashville for a long weekend next friday, and I just wish it was sooner. I need to get out of town and chill. (no drama this time . . . please!?)

six months

it’s astounding how much or little can change in six months. for me, there’s been alot of change. so much so in fact, that sometimes I don’t recognize myself. it’s only for a moment of course, but it’s true. I was so afraid, so anxious all the time. not so much now. after my grandmother died I finally forgave myself for some things. I’d asked God for forgiveness, asked other people for their forgiveness, but never considered forgiving myself. then one night I finally did. and then I changed a little bit. just a shift, which wouldn’t seem like much, but sometimes that half-step changes the entire piece.

(thud)

is the sound of my bag hitting the floor.

it’s been busy this week! busy is good . . . busy means that time goes quickly . . . busy also means that I have a list of people I need to call back in my free time.

it’s funny to think that this time last year I was working on my Exit show, trying NOT to have a nervous breakdown. that weekend was insane.

I’m trying to get little things ready for the Craft Fix this weekend at COTN . . . hopefully it will be the start of some new things for the women at the church. if enough people are interested, we can start offering some topical Art classes or workshops. this summer I want to try out a more open study format for Radiant Women. one of the books that I would love to offer doesn’t seem like it would work as well for a weekly study as it would for a monthly or three-week study. but it’s a great book, and I think it would be really helpful for some of the younger women. plus, it’s summer . . . who wants to have your weeks booked solid in the summer?? summer in Georgia usually leaves me inclined to find the coolest cave possible and stay there until it’s over . . .

tired

yesterday was the funeral for someone I used to know. she was this wonderful, beautiful woman named Kari who was married to a friend who I’ve know for about as long as I can remember. her death was sudden, and during sleep. she took with her their unborn child as well. as sad and horrible as this might seem to some, she is Home. Kari had these awful seizures, and it was one of those that sent her spirit to Heaven last week. we were all together at the Women’s conference the night before, and it wasn’t until noon the following day that most of us found out. not everyone took it well, or at least at first. I’m not going to go into some of what happened later that day . . . I’m still trying to understand it myself. the leadership of the conference dedicated the last service to her. it was beautiful, full of dancing and worship, just like her.

life keeps going. we said goodbye to two women over the last seven days . . . my aunt and my friend are with the Father.

it’s been a long week, and I’m so tired . . .

the conference

last thursday I left my house a little before 5am (yeah) to head up to Fort Mill, SC for the MorningStar “Women in the Kingdom” conference. it was wonderful. truly awesome. and, as I found out later, it was put together by women who “don’t really like women’s ministries and don’t even really like women.” which makes total sense to me. until recently, most of my friends were guys. I didn’t grow up with any sisters, so I just don’t get that whole thing. and the “typical” female behaviors used to drive me up the wall. all this makes it seem strange I guess that I volunteered to lead a women’s group, right? yeah, I wasn’t asked, I asked them. but I guess maybe that’s why it works, because some of us are tired of the cute (nothing wrong with cute), and want something that’s different. something where we can dig in and say “that snake is MINE, hand me my hoe” and hack the thing to pieces.

anyway, it was a great conference and I feel like I learned alot. not to mention faced some things that I had allowed to stop me from go after things in my life. still it makes me wonder . . . why havn’t some of the others who have been going up there for other conferences brought back the knowledge and skills to pour back into the church here. that baffles me.

trying it out

I'm moving the blog (maybe temporarily, maybe not) here.

-Meredith

(ouch)

it's monday and my head is throbbing . . . probably because of the 9.2 pollen count? I love spring around here, but we need a nice rain shower.

yesterday I went to a dirt bike race . . . it was awesome. this one was an endurance race, so it was about finishing, not finishing first. a couple of my friends' husbands race, so we girls would drive around and meet the guys at the fuel and reset stops. it was so much fun. it was also cool to see the guys being guys . . . reminded me of when I read Wild at Heart.

eeek!

Pastor Rick linked me on his blog . . . at least Jessi is sharing this boat . . .

ok, so I've never been one of those people who was excited about exercising. for one thing, it takes nothing for me to break a sweat. so who knew I'd be one of those people who gets hooked on the post-workout endorphin kick? I've started walking with a friend of mine after work. we're both not to the running point yet, so we go at least half an hour and then do other things on the days when we can't meet. it's GREAT! the mornings after the workouts I feel fantastic - all bright and shiny.

Radiant Women is also great. we're taking it easy in March, which has become the new June, if all of the weddings and baby showers are any indication. the events will kick back into gear in April after Easter. oh, and that reminds me . . . this whole (rather poorly done) "documentary" thing that James Cameron did . . . really. is that all he's got? if you're going to spend all of that time and money trying to debunk a faith then you should at least pick something that might actually possibly work. seriously.

at work we're reading A Celebration of Discipline right now. it's pretty good so far topically. there are some (mostly contemporary) authors that drive me a little crazy with their writing styles, and right now this author is one of them. it's a personal thing . . . I'm one of those oddballs who reads things like Mere Christianity as much for fun as study of the faith. his content is wonderful, it's just the written delivery that I'm trying to sort through. maybe the later chapters will be better . . .

RELEVANT has been having this HUGE moving sale, so I bought a bunch of books that I've been wanting to read. now that I've ordered it, I keep seeing references to G.K. Chesterfield's Orthodoxy everywhere! I really hope that order arrives soon . . .

fun with iPods . . .

this is the soundtrack of your life game:

Opening Credits: "Sin Ella"- The Gipsy Kings
Waking Up: "Time That Bald Sexton" - Danielson
First Day At School: "Beneath Still Waters" - Emmylou Harris
Falling In Love: "Out of the Woods" - Nickel Creek
First Kiss: "Chant" - The Katinas
Fight Song: "Cold" - The Cure
Breaking Up: "This Love" - Stavesacre
Prom: "In a Graveyard" - Rufus Wainwright
Life: "Jenny was a friend of mine" - The Killers
Mental Breakdown: "Butterflyz" - Alicia Keys
Driving: "Baby Sister" - Damien Rice
Flashback: "Fields Of Gold" - Sting
Getting Back Together: "Feeling Good" - Nina Simone
Wedding: "So Simple" - Alicia Keys
Birth of Child: "Ice Cream" - Sarah McLachlan
Final Battle: "Rivers Underneath" - Stavesacre
Death Scene: "It'll All Work Out" - Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers (Elizabethtown)
Funeral Song: "Oh! Sweet Nothin'" - The Velvet Underground (High Fidelity)
End Credits: "It Is Well With My Soul" - Jennifer Knapp

wow, it's been over a month since that last post . . . oops.

ok, so here go the updates . . . .

my new job? fabulous. I like them, they like me, and I get to be creative. (insert happy dance) and, OK, I figured working in a church office would be busy, but I didn't know it would be as busy as it is. crazy.

my social life is sorta on hold. not entirely mind you, but I've been working on all of the catch-up, fix-up, and straighten-up details in my life, and that takes a while. being an artist I tend to collect things, even when I don't have a place for them. so I've been making places and getting rid of the unnecessary, which is coming along great, although not in a weekend.

I'm leading/coordinating a women's ministry in my church for the 20s & 30s age ladies. I kept missing the community we used to have, and we needed one at COTN, so with the time I have now that I have this new job . . . voila. if you can't find it, make it. right?

anyway, I have more boxes to go through . . .