Friday, October 31, 2008

Is there a Doctor in the house?

Why yes, I Do believe there is. :)

Hope you had a great Halloween!!!

"I'll stir it in my heavenly brew"

Happy Halloween Y'all! In honor of the day, I thought I'd share another story about how I've evolved from a really big dork to someone less-dorky.

Years ago, shortly after dinosaurs roamed the earth, but long before we had major advances in technology (see Cell Phones & Wifi), we used to have Halloween plays at school.

I know, it was a lifetime ago, but work with me here.

But, I also grew up at a time when there were alot of evangelists talking about back masking, how the Smurfs were really about the devil, and that if you listened to Rock 'n' Roll, then you were really selling your soul, one album at a time. To show what a massive dork I was (FYI, I had Smurfette glasses that were pink!), we used to learn songs for Halloween and perform them at PTO meetings. To further reiterate that I was somewhat of a zealot long before it was popular, my friend April and I decided that the lyrics were um, too devilish, and decided to change them.

The original song we learned is called "Witches Brew", and this is one of the verses.

Dead leaves, seaweed, rotten eggs, too.
Stir them in my witches' brew.
I got magic, Alakazamakazoo.
Spider web, moldy bread, mucky mud, too.
Stir them in my witches' brew.
I got magic, Alakazamakazoo.

'Cause my friend and I were such good girls (see WEIRDOS), we decided to change the title and lyrics for Jesus. We sat down in my bedroom and rewrote the entire song. We also, as I embarrassingly recollect, recorded it on a cassette tape. I do believe the cassette tape is in a bag at my mother's house. (Note to self: FIND THAT TAPE. And make copies.) The only line I currently remember is:

"Stir them in my Heavenly Brew.
I've got Saved. Hale-lu-Hale-lu-Jah."

(Please DO ask me to sing these to you the next time you see me. I promise you will crack up.)

And so every year at Halloween, I remember what a goober of a kid I was. And how I've actually come a long way despite a few pitfalls. But... I can still remember the tune to "Heavenly Brew".

Oh, and I'm dressing up as the "Love Doctor" tonight for a party. Along with my friend the Oompa-Loompa. We'll be quite the pair.

What are you dressing up as?


I decided to include a pic from the Halloween party I went to last year! This is my friend Kevin (who's getting married in a few months). I was 411 dressed up as a french maid (don't ask), and he was a gladiator. :)

Thursday, October 30, 2008

I have no shame. :)


I want this listed (by technicality) that I DID get my picture taken with all the guys. And In person. :)

Some other things to note:
  • I literally screamed for over two hours.
  • Natasha Bedingfield has some incredible vocals.
  • But, I totally want her raspy British accent. Lovely, Lovely.
  • Lady GaGa started off wearing a costume that I would have expected to wear as a villain on the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers but devolved (sans skirt) to wearing what looked like a weird beige granny panty. But she kept on her villainous stalagmite top. (I wikipedia'd that and actually got it right!)
  • I lost my voice three screams after New Kids took the stage.
  • Along with screaming, I stood almost the entire time.
  • There were two inebriated ladies in front of us. About the fourth or fifth song in, the one in front of me fell over backwards and dumped most of her beer in my shoe.
  • So, basically I smelled gross the rest of the evening.
  • Right during Cover Girl (a VERY upbeat song!), one of the girls starting bawling. It was hilarious and weird.
  • Donnie... HOT!!
  • Joe... he's still got it.
  • When Jordan ripped his shirt, I'm pretty sure someone somewhere fainted.
  • He's an outie, btw.
  • Jonathan... was very reserved.
  • I did not know that Danny could still break.
  • The back-up dancers were incredible. Mad props to those ladies.
  • I asked the guy at the t-shirt stand for a job.
  • Because I'd lost my voice, he looked at me like I was a freak.
  • I lost my car and it took me about ten minutes to find it.
  • I dropped big bucks to buy a Donnie & Joe pin. And two t-shirts.
  • I haven't quit smiling, and am still singing songs in my head.

I have so much stinkin' fun I can't stand it. It was worth every penny, every minute I wasn't in bed, and every weird comment or stare people gave that I was going. It definitely helps that I had friends who were there and love that I'm a little TOO excited when it comes to this kinda stuff.

And I would totally do it again IN A HEARTBEAT.

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

It's getting hot in here, so take off all your robes.

I can't find the embedding link, but I'm pretty sure these older folks just got punk'd.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ql-GxNCah4

The Name Game

Last week, I had written this really long post about names, but I deleted it because I thought it was a little weird. I'm uber-fascinated with names and mine definitely has an interesting story. But The Pioneer Woman is giving away a Canon camera (don't go get it... I want it bad!), and instead of asking about cameras, she asked you to leave a comment with your nicknames. Before I tell you mine... I want you to know the brief story behind my name.

I'm named after my mother's father's sister Virginia, who was called Ginny. She really loved my mother, but sadly took her own life when my mom was 9. My parents both believed I was a boy until the day I was born. The plan was to name me Stephen Lee. (I have no idea where that comes from.) At birth, my mom decided on Jenny Leigh. When my father went to fill out the birth certificate, he changed it to Jennifer because he thought Jenny sounded trashy. Leigh is a derivation of Lee -- after my mother's grandfather, Marcus Lee Leverette. (And my mom didn't find out about the change until she was discharged.) My brother is named after two grandfathers -- John Marcus comes from John Bell Calhoun and Marcus Lee Leverette.

I've been called a lot of things in my life. Surprisingly, Jenny is not one of them. I tried to change what people called me twice and nobody bought it, so I'm stuck with Jenn or Jennifer.

But I've had some funny (albeit embrassing) nicknames along the way that I think are worth sharing:

My Mom calls me JennLeigh.
My Dad call me Sis.
Both call me Jennifer when they're mad.
John Mark has called me a lot of things. Some are not okay to mention on the blog, but mostly he uses Jenn, Buddy, Monkey or (rarely) Sis.
Most people call me Jenn.
Nobody calls me Jenny/Jenni.
One guy at work calls me JennaLeigh.
In elementary school, they called me Medusa Callahan.
In middle and high school, Hammer.
At junior college, Slicker.
At Lee, I was Hump Dump.
I've also been called Jennibug, from a boy I used to babysit who couldn't pronounce anything with F's. He would also make up new words or change them to accomodate his speech impediment.
Most kids under 5 call me JennFer. The "if" gets 'em everytime.
Miranda and Aubre call me Ho.
My cousin Amanda calls me Jenn-Jenn-bo-Benn. She's 38 and has never called me anything different. She also calls my brother John Mark Smurf, and wrote a song about it.
My grandmother calls me every name in our family but my own -- Rita, Shirley, Keli, Sandra.

What about you? Do you have any nicknames?

It's looking like I'm going to have to breakdown and buy a laptop with a 2-mile radius WIFI card.

They're really cracking down at work about what we can and can't do. iTunes got banned over the weekend, and I'm sad because having somes tunes has really increased my productivity. But, I like my job more than music.

Unless something opens up with my brother, and then all I'm sayin' is Peace Out. :)

In other news, I'm currently reading a book entitled Somebody is Going to Die if Lilly Beth Doesn't Catch That Bouquet: The Official Southern Ladies' Guide to Hosting the Perfect Wedding. I have honestly NOT quit laughing. It's hilarious. Full of recipes and supersouthern anecdotes and stories. Coincidentally, the same authors wrote a book called Being Dead Is No Excuse: The Official Southern Ladies Guide To Hosting the Perfect Funeral. Forreal, I couldn't make up something that good if I tried.

Homecoming is around the corner, and I'm finally getting excited. :)

I've had one of those weekends where I'm reminded how grateful I am that God is in control. Nothing horrible happened, but I don't know how people live without Jesus.

Last week, it was 80 degrees. This morning, there was snow on the ground an hour from me. I mean, Holycanoli Weatherman. BUT, the trees around here are abso-stinkin'-lutely gorgeous. I love the bright orange ones!

I've been secretly working on a list of things I want to accomplish before turning 30, and I'm very excited to say that I'm checking stuff off the list. YAY!!!!

And finally... tomorrow night... I have been waiting for for five months.

NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK!!!!

Friday, October 24, 2008

Friday iPod.

You can check out #1 and #2 if you'd like.

  • All Around Me -- Flyleaf. -- Love this song.
  • Walk You Home -- Karmina -- Beautiful song. "Even the brave may depend on someone"
  • Come on get Higher -- Matt Nathanson -- I don't have a great reason why I like this song... I just like his voice.
  • Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays - *N'Sync -- We're on the Christmas countdown peeps.
  • Ramalama (Bang Bang) -- Roison Murphy -- Reminds me a bit of Halloween.
  • Right here, Right now -- HSM3 -- Y'all expected nothing less, right?
  • Breakaway -- Ronnie Freeman -- "Say Goodbye to yesterday". Get desperate, get hungry; Get tired of, Get angry, and Breakaway. I need to hear this now.
  • God Speaking -- Ronnie Freeman -- "What if it's God speaking?" "Who knows how He'll get a hold of us?". Words to absorb in our soul to remind how much we are loved.
  • The entire Hello Love album from Chris Tomlin -- Seriously REPEAT. REPEAT. REPEAT.

Randomness and Friday unload.

I know I should post something profound, but I'm not feeling it.

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This post made me laugh out loud at work. Hilarious.

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There's a really handsome auditor here. He's from Wisconsin. I could listen to him talk all day long, and I'd kinda like to tell him he's cute. Oh, and he's 22, but who cares? I might just. It's still early.

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I got to wear jeans and a sweatshirt to work. I should really write the president of my company and tell him that he rocks, but I'm sure using the phrase "You Rock" to the head of a company owned by BH is somewhat unprofessional. I'm jus' sayin'.

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Girls group was really good last night. Definitely felt like I blew it, but we had 9 people, and trust me... that's a good thing. We'll hopefully be moving GG to Sunday nights and incorporate dinner in the spring. If you know anyone in CleveVeg interested, hit me up. Oh, and I should probably make myself a note to email the person who updates the bulletins at church.

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Homecoming is coming up, and I'm 1) nervous, 2) excited, and 3) dreading it. I'm sure that 1, 2, and 3 give the impression that I'm slightly bi-polar but I'm not. There's still a huge part of me praying that "they'll" like me. And it's always a fashion show of sorts, so I have no idea what to wear. Trying to figure out how to a) be cute, b) be trendy, but c) be me - tends to be difficult when it comes to clothes. But, I'm also listening to "We're all in this Together" from HSM2 and am finding some strange comfort in it.

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It's Friday. It's raining. But like my t-shirt says -- "No Rain, No Rainbows".

Thursday, October 23, 2008

HSM3

I'm totally listening to the soundtrack for High School Musical 3 right now.

And I don't care if you're judging me. I'm going to see it tomorrow night.

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

I'm Single: A journey through modern day Leprosy

Do you realize it's easier to find someone who has cancer than a single guy with integrity over 5'9" who loves Jesus?

Well over a year ago, my family really began pressuring me to "get online" and meet somebody. They'd heard various success stories and really believed it was something I should do. I mean no disrespect to my friends who have found success online, but I never really believed it was for me. Most of my reservation comes because, for me, it's a total conflict of faith, that out of one breath I could tell God "I trust you, that you have a husband for me", but in turn give Neil Clark Warren $129 to match me up with somebody. Early this year, my mom and I had a nasty fight on the phone which left me in tears, and so, reluctantly angry, I signed up for Eharmony.com. From the very onset, I was disgusted with how much cost, and how you couldn't just sing up for one thing without pressuring popups to get you to sign up for every single stinkin' feature. After a few days, I started getting "matched". There was nothing wrong with these guys except that the first five I was matched with lived beyond Texas. I sensed that would put a slight glitch in getting together for coffee, no? So, I reset all my "preferences" to get matched to guys closer to my own zip code.

Let me interject that choosing my "preferences" made me feel like I was picking what I wanted on a sandwich, the Subway version of Dating, not something I would like to find in a mate.

I am not one of those girls who sat down and made a list of what I did and did not want in a spouse. (No offense to you chicas that did.) I have only a few solid things I'm looking for:

1) MUST LOVE JESUS. I've always felt like this umbrellas a large number of topics under dating.
2) High preference to a guy over 5'9". I have been tall since the 10th grade. I have too many short friends. It would be nice to have someone taller than me!

As you can see, my list is short! This should be relatively easy, right? Ha ha, WRONG. I was constantly matched up with guys who are 5' 7". Just as a general physics lessons, I wear heels that are 3" tall. So, on a good Sunday, I'm 6'. That means me and Mr. 5'7" would not even be breathing the same oxygen, you know? So, I reset my preferences again.

And after a while, Eharmony decides to reset my preferences for me. (I can only assume they thought they knew better.) So... I had to change it all again. Oh, and all the while, they're sending me almost daily emails as to why I've not bagged Mr. Perfect yet. I'm not aggressive enough, I'm too aggressive, I don't communicate, I communicate too much, I'm too picky, I'm not picky enough, but nonetheless,... all my fault. It was a joy as you can imagine.

I'll be the first to tell you, I met some pretty interesting cats. One of my personal favs was a born again Christian in the south who tithed 10% of his time. He let me know right up front that I could not speak to/email/text/call/contact him from 4:30am - 6:00am and again from 9:30pm - 11:00pm. This was his tithe time, and if I could not respect that, then I'd best be looking somewhere else. (I did.)

And after six months, I left Eharmony.com. But the ironic thing that I discovered is that they match you up with the profiles they have, not necessarily the people. If you filled out a profile five years ago and never paid a dime, but I'm a good match, then I'll get an email that I've been matched with you. And in the five months I've been off E., I've been matched over 300 times. (I checked again last night.)

After some stuff that happened this summer, I was determined that I should give it another try. So, I decided to pursue another avenue, and hit up Yahoo! personals. I actually had some luck! I wound up going on a really nice date with a guy named Joe who made it clear within the first five minutes that our date was kaput. We had a nice time though. Around the same time, another guy started looking at my profile everyday or every other day. I wasn't a paying customer, so I waited for him to contact me. He never did, but kept looking, so I finally decided to bite the bullet and pay. After several days, he emailed me. Fast forward three weeks, I had to point blank ask him if he had time to pursue something and he informed me that right now, he was super-focused on his career.

Wait, what?

I'm not writing all the details out of preserving my own dignity and not telling this guy how I really feel. But it's time to finally say that online dating is NOT for me. (And hey Dude-- if you're too busy, stop looking!!!) Like I said, I do have friends who met their husbands online, and have good marriages, so I do know that it works. Maybe just not for me.

So, I am back at square one, putting it all back in God's hands, knowing that the last thing I need to do is worry about it or focus on it. I'm confident that God doesn't need my help, or Neil Clark Warren's.

P.S. Because I'm not too proud to say... if you know of anybody who meets my "preferences" ... lemme know!!

I'm choosing...

I received a questionaire email this morning and was asked -- "How do you vent anger?". My response -- I cry or blog. Please know that I'm superfrustrated about something, but blogging about it right now isn't helpful, so I'm sticking with something I found on another blog. :)

I choose......

Tom Hanks over Tom Cruise -- really I choose Tom Cavanaugh over both!
Confrontation over avoidance -- for the most part
Chinese food over Mexican food
late nights over early mornings
CBS over NBC
salty over sweet
beach over mountain
vanilla over chocolate
dogs over cats
mistakes made over missed chances
lipgloss over lipstick
J.R.R. Tolkien over J.K Rowling
milk chocolate over dark chocolate
football over hockey
pie over cake
half full over half empty
sense of humor over sense of style
Jeopardy! over Wheel of Fortune
pro-life over pro-choice
sweet tea over carbonated drinks
Dirty Dancing over The Breakfast Club
french fries over french toast
Belle over Cinderella
big city over small town
The Olympics over The Oscars
too cold over too hot -- it's easier to warm up than it is to cool down.
honey mustard over ketchup
house salad over caesar salad --
books over movies
pedicures over manicures
John Cusack over John Malkovich
apples over oranges
big trucks over fast cars
treadmill over elliptical
summer over winter
time with girlfriends over time alone
vacuuming floors over mopping floors

Play along...what do you prefer?

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Ummm... this makes me feel creepy.

Somebody found my blog searching for "Patent Leather Underwear"


Clearly, I'm going to need to really work on non-suggestive titles.

Various and unsundry part 12.

I'm suddenly realizing that I stumbled on a series of these and should probably put them on a sidebar. I refuse to use the "labels" option because (to me) it clutters up my dashboard.

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Thank you to each of you who commented about internet dating. I'm working on a really good post about it. I'll try to get it up soon.

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The Dalton bomber is going to be buried tomorrow. I don't think I've been in a position where someone who did something so reckless was buried near me. He was estranged from a lot of his family and it makes me sad to know that this will be how he'll be remembered.

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Where have all the single men gone????

Southern Astrology.

OKRA (Dec 22 - Jan 20)Are tough on the outside but tender on the inside. Okras have tremendous influence. An older Okra can look back over his life and see the seeds of his influence everywhere. You can do something good each day if you try.

CHITLIN (Jan 21 - Feb 19)Chitlins come from humble backgrounds. A Chitlin, however, will make something of himself if he is motivated and has lots of seasoning. In dealing with Chitlins, be careful they may surprise you. They can erupt like Vesuvius. Chitlins are best with Catfish and Okra.

BOLL WEEVIL (Feb 20 - March 20)You have an overwhelming curiosity. You're unsatisfied with the surface of things, and you feel the need to bore deep into the interior of everything. Needless to say, you are very intense and driven as if you had some inner hunger. You love to stay busy and tend to work too much. Nobody in their right mind is going to marry you, so don't worry about it.

MOON PIE (March 21 - April 20)You're the type that spends a lot of time on the front porch. A cinch to recognize the physical appearance of Moon Pies. Big and round are the key words here. You should marry anybody who you can get remotely interested in the idea. It's not going to be easy. You always have a big smile and are happy. This might be the year to think about aerobics. Maybe not.

POSSUM (April 21 - May 21)When confronted with life's difficulties, possums have a marked tendency to withdraw and develop a don't-bother-me-about-it attitude. Sometimes you become so withdrawn, people actually think you're dead. This strategy is probably not psychologically healthy but seems to work for you. You are a rare breed. Most folks love to watch you work and play. You are a night person and mind your own business.

CRAWFISH (May 22 - June 21) Crawfish is a water sign. If you work in an office, you're hanging around the water cooler. Crawfish prefer the beach to the mountains, the pool to the golf course, and the bathtub to the living room. You tend not to be particularly attractive physically, but you have very, very good heads.

COLLARDS (June 22 - July 23)Collards have a genius for communication. They love to get in "the melting pot" of life and share their essence with the essence of those around them. Collards make good social workers, psychologists, and baseball managers. As far as your personal life goes, if you are Collards, stay away from Crawfish. It just won't work. Save yourself a lot of heartache.

CATFISH (July 24 - Aug 23)Catfish are traditionalists in matters of the heart, although one's whiskers may cause problems for loved ones. You Catfish are never easy people to understand. You run fast. You work and play hard. Even though you prefer the muddy bottoms to the clear surface of life, you are liked by most. Above all else, Catfish should stay away from Moon Pies.

GRITS (Aug 24 - Sept 23)Your highest aim is to be with others like yourself. You like to huddle together with a big crowd of other Grits. You love to travel though, so maybe you should think about joining a club. Where do you like to go? Anywhere they have cheese, gravy, bacon, butter, or eggs and a good time. If you can go somewhere where they have all these things, that serves you well. You are pure in heart.

BOILED PEANUTS (Sept 24 - Oct 23)You have a passionate desire to help your fellow man. Unfortunately, those who know you best, your friends and loved ones, may find that your personality is much too salty, and their criticism will affect you deeply because you are really much softer than you appear. You should go right ahead and marry anybody you want to because in a certain way, yours is a charmed life. On the road of life, you can be sure that people will always pull over and stop for you.

BUTTER BEAN (Oct 24 - Nov 22)Always invite a Butter Bean to a party because Butter Beans get along well with everybody. You, as a Butter Bean, should be proud. You've grown on the vine of life, and you feel at home no matter what the setting. You can sit next to anybody. However, you, too, shouldn't have anything to do with Moon Pies...and Never take YES for an answer.

ARMADILLO (Nov 23 - Dec 21)You have a tendency to develop a tough exterior, but you are actually quite gentle and kind inside. A good evening for you? Old friends, a fire, some roots, fruit, worms, and insects. You are a throwback. You're not concerned with today's fashions and trends. You're not concerned with anything about today. You're almost prehistoric in your interests and behavior patterns. You probably want to marry another Armadillo, but a Possum is another somewhat kinky mating possibility.

Monday, October 20, 2008

Sunday, October 19, 2008

And these are the times I want to be 5 again... with my whole life ahead of me.

I had a conversation with my friend tonight that essentially skirted around discussing his own mortality.

and it makes me sick at my stomach.

I want my friend to get married, and have kids, and grow old, and I know he's being robbed of precious opportunities by a disease he never asked for.

And frankly ... it sucks.

But, I want my friend to be the exception to the rule. All the rules, not just the obvious ones.

I want him to be completely healed tonight so that he can have a fresh start tomorrow. And you know what? That's what I pray for. Or for him to be the first patient to live 50 years with donated organs. Not the 5. And you know what? I pray for that too.

And being around him, reminds me how much I take for granted. And how I get wrapped up in junk that it foolish. Oh, how I need the perspective. God, I think that's enough justification to keep him around forever. And it may seem silly and naive for me to say it like that. But I don't care. It is not some strange disease that is affecting some guy a million miles away. It affects someone I value. A LOT. And I'm ready for it to be stopped.

If you don't know anything about cystic fibrosis, then go read about it -- here and here.

and help me PRAY.

Saturday, October 18, 2008

family

I just wanted to write and say that my grandparents are visiting me, and for the first time ever, my granddaddy opened up and shared with me about the fun memories he had in the Navy.

So cute.

I want to keep him in my pocket and hear his stories.

ForEVah.

Love,
Jenn

Friday, October 17, 2008

BOMB.

Well, I've enjoyed working in small town America, that is, until today. From my office, I can still see smoke billowing from the attorneys' office where a local man decided to take matters into his own hands and light the place up like the fourth of July.

This is crazy.

How does Dalton wind up with a bomber?

There has already been on fatality, and one of the attorneys was badly burned.

Various and unsundry part... Y. (Get it Part-Y?)

A few links I'm lovin' this week:

http://www.leslieruthpetree.blogspot.com/ -- Diary of a Southern Drama Queen. I just wanna go to Texas and be BFF with this woman.

http://simplelovely.blogspot.com/ -- This woman keeps posting stuff on her blog that I'm coveting. I know I shouldn't confess that, but I figure I'm among friends, right? She has some beautiful stuff and is giving me a LOT of ideas to make some changes for my room/office/future house!

http://thewordsthatcarrythehope.blogspot.com/ -- I'm still not sure how I found this blog, but I like it. A LOT. (And I'm pretty sure she's friends with my next link...)

http://www.lulledbythetrain.com/ -- I steal songs from her really cool playlist, download them from iTunes and share them with you.

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Had an interesting conversation with friends at my house last night. That's all I'm gonna say about that.

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There was a bomb in Dalton this morning. It was thrown into a law office, and it actually blew one guy's clothes off. He's listed in critical condition passed away. You can read about it here.

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My grandparents and one of my aunts are on their way to see me. We're going to the Elijay Apple Festival this weekend, and then just spending some quality time together. My grandmother also informed me that she's making me my favorite meal for Sunday lunch. In my own home. It's this cube steak that gets fried and then put in the oven in gravy, and we'll be having fresh corn, and green beans, and rolls, and sweet tea, and buttermilk pie, and are you hungry yet?????? (I may not let her leave.)

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Yesterday, it was 80 degrees.

Today it's 60 degrees.

Oi! Yay Fall!

Thursday, October 16, 2008

I'm out of material, but I'm writing today anyway.

I try, very hard to stay away from criticizing celebrities, if for no other reason but that they are real people, and no matter what "celebrity" they receive, at the end of the day, they're still just somebody sucking oxygen off the planet. I do enjoy catching up on my celebrity goss... but I also enjoy reading the blogs/myspaces/facebooks/Hi5s of my friends, so I just consider them the friends who never facebook/myspace/call/text me. And I'm okay with that.

Come to think of it, I actually think I did blog about Britney Spears after she shaved her head... but oh well, who's counting.

Anywhoo... since I'm clearly living a boring life (well, not really, but I can't tell you all my BIZZNESS over the world wide web), I thought I'd go for some celeb related.

And then this picture came across my blogroll, and I thought, "Oh my word".



Y'all.

Y'ALL.

Can somebody contact Christina's people and tell them that 1)I've thought she was great since the MMC (and I have the videos to prove it), 2) she can sing the heck out of some songs, but 3) this is so bad that it requires an intervention? I have friends who think pink lipstick looks cute on them, but I don't have the heart to tell them it makes their teeth look dingy. It does, I'm sorry. And while I may have owned a sweater that was alarmingly similar, I wore it with stirrup pants and KEDS and it was the 80's and we all looked stupid. Collectively. So, I'm forgiven.

but Yikes!

And in case you were wondering, today at lunch, a lady came out of the restroom and had toilet paper on her shoe, and I asked our server to tell her so she wouldn't walk around all day like that. Sometimes, you just need to tell folks. Oh, and when they have stuff in their teeth and nose. It's just courteous!

Love,
Jenn

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Reading through the lines.

Dear Books,

I... haven't read you in a while. We used to be BFF, and then I got all jaded and bitter and put you away. I stopped enjoying your words, your word pictures, your story, and focused more on the black box that actually talked to me.

But I've missed you.

And daughter Fiction, were it not for those John Grisham novels where I dreamed about having GPS devices in my shoes, I would not have walked away from you three years ago. But you seriously have to be careful scaring me like that. Dreaming that I'm in a chateau in Rome and waking up in my own bed is a cruel CRUEL joke.

So, I'm giving you a second chance. Books, you and Fiction teamed up with my beloved MGG to bring me not one, but TWO bound beauts to read. I'm trusting that you won't disappoint me. Me and Cousin Self-Help parted ways a while ago and I don't want to go down that road again. For a LONG time. Or never again.

Love,
Jenn

Hump Day Music

(I love Hump day... for more reasons than the obvious!)

I'm never going to be a blogger than does a "regular" post. I've tried with WFMW, and Thursday Thirteen, but I am loving music, so I thought it would be fun to share a few more songs! And in case you were wondering, YES, these are all on my iPod.

Here's Volume 1 if you're interested.

  • Lost - Anouk. Just a beautiful song.
  • Walk Away - Ben Harper. This was a dedication of sorts to me, and I like it.
  • Hiphip Chinchin (feat. Brenda Boykin) - Club Des Belugas. I first heard this on SYTYCD, but it was featured on DWTS last week. Get the version with Brenda. Makes me wanna go salsa dancing!
  • Technologic - Daft Punk. I actually love the beats -- get to :31 seconds and it's contagious! and then 1:11. :)
  • Crush - David Archuleta. I don't care if he is 16. Judge me if you want. I still really like it.
  • Autumn in New York - Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong. Love Love Love this song.
  • Defying Gravity - Idina Menzel & Kristen Chenoweth. Beautiful vocals.
  • Good Day - Greg Street presents Nappy Roots. I saw this video in American Eagle (I know, I KNOW), but I still like it. The kids are awesome!
  • Goodnight Goodnight - Maroon 5. It's just a great song.
  • Disturbia - Rihanna. I just really like his song!!!!!!
  • I wanna dance with Somebody - The Side Project. This is a beautiful remake of the original. I STILL wanna dance with somebody.
  • Though I'm not Worthy - Kari Jobe. Kari Jobe has one of the most beautiful voices. This song was for the a project -- Common Heart - Dallas. "In your grace I long to stand". Beautiful.

So... what are you listening to?

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

30 Things to do before you turn 30

On the radio the other day, I heard someone talking about the 30 things you should be able to do before you turn 30. Seeing as how that's in 9 WEEKS (!!!), I thought I should see what I can and can't do!

30 must-have life skills every capable adult should perfect before turning 30.

1. wrap a present -- I love wrapping presents! My preference -- don't put tape on the actual present and folding symmetrical corners.
2. start a successful fire in a fireplace, at a campsite, and in a barbecue -- I haven't done this in a long time, but I actually can. Please don't make me practice.
3. finish a piece of furniture -- I recovered my dining room chairs a few years ago, plus, I'm helping my grandfather build toyboxes that I'm giving away as Christmas presents this year.
4. get a raise -- Thank You Jesus.
5. order wine at a restaurant without getting stiffed -- I'm not exactly sure what this means, but a) I don't like wine, and b) I've never ordered it. On THE WORST DATE EVER, I went to a wine tasting and discovered that Me + Wine = massive unforgivable headache.
6. parallel park in three breathtakingly beautiful movements -- HAHA Not in this lifetime.
7. dance a “slow dance” without looking like an idiot -- Umm... Only in the 8th grade. His name was Matthew and it was a pity dance, but still good. :)
8. use a full place setting properly, including chopsticks and Asian soup spoons -- I can do all but the chopsticks. Unless chopsticks are properly used as skewers in which case, I'm good.
9. clean your place in under 45 minutes, when friends, relatives, or prospective lovers are coming by unexpectedly, and soon -- My aunt and uncle were in G'Burg a few years ago and called me to tell me they were stopping by. I managed to clean up (and vacuum) in 30 minutes. Oh, but there were some dishes in the microwave. Fortunately, this wasn't a white glove inspection!
10. hold your liquor -- I've never been drunk... in my entire life. If I never accomplish this one, I'm okay with that.
11. cure a hangover -- I know the magic potion though! Thanks to the WORST DATE EVER.
12. do the Heimlich Maneuver -- Can do -- BLS training a few years back.
13. use a compass -- Done.
14. change a flat -- I can, but please don't ask me to. I get sweaty and gross. Eww.
15. jump start a car -- Strangely enough, I had to jump a car just a few months ago. Scary but achievable.
16. open a champagne bottle -- Champagne is nasty to me, but I can open the bottle.
17. send a drink to someone’s table -- He was so handsome! I'll save that story for later!!
18. cook one “signature meal” -- Chicken Parm. I make a MEAN chicken parm.
19. whistle with your fingers -- I can't do this. I don't think I'll ever be able too.
20. take good pictures -- Yes!
21. fold a fitted sheet -- I love love love folding warm sheets. My Mom taught me how to fold a fitted with perfect corners. She's brilliant!
22. remove common stains -- Yep! Baking soda is a miracle!
23. sew a button -- Can do.
24. carve turkey, lasagna, and birthday cake -- Can do... and can make all three!
25. hold a baby -- Can I just say that I love the way babies smell! And yes!
26. change a diaper -- Not my favorite thing to do (clearly), but definitely can do!
27. keep a plant alive for more than a year -- This one makes me laugh because after six years, I accidentally killed an aloe plant. For the record, it takes ALOT to kill an aloe plant!
28. make dogs and cats love you -- I'm not worried about them loving me, I'm not crazy about them! I do really love my roommate's dog! And Harley will love anyone with treats!
29. help someone (an older or ill person, a guy you’re trying to impress, your grandmother) out of a car -- More than once
30. write superior thank you notes -- With my mad love for stationary and finding "The Perfect Card", I think I do this pretty well!

Bloglines, ugh.

My bloglines has been acting wacky for a few weeks... is anybody having this problem? I use Bloglines and Google Reader to track the many blogs I read (insert: you know you're a geek when you have more than one blog reading service), but Bloglines is still not working correctly!

So... is anybody else having this problem? Is there a fix?

HELP HELP?!?

Monday, October 13, 2008

"Friends are Friends Forever" should totally be playing as background music.

(There's a reason for the song. Oh YES there is.)

I had the most wonderful weekend!!! As I mentioned in this post, I was so blessed in college to have a core group of friends! It is truly amazing to see how deep our bond was and is as friends. We watched hilarious videos (filmed 8 years ago), visited the Biltmore (B-E-A-U-tiful), went to the movies, ribbed each other alot, ate together, took 200+ pictures, and laughed. It makes me wish we all lived closer!!! It's probably a good thing we don't though... I think the distance makes us appreciate each other more. I would love to, at this point, blog and tell you how wonderful my friends are individually, but out of respect (and frankly because I want you to be uber-jealous you weren't there), I'm not going too. You just need to know they're mad cool. And they love Jesus. They are dynamic, incredible, hilarious extroverts who blew into my life life a tornado. Fortunately, we poured "friendship concrete" that has endured our very different lives. Two of the people left out of the original picture from the fountain are two of the wives -- Ashlee and Jessica. These women... I seriously do not have enough adjectives to tell you how wonderful they are. Both are full of beauty and personality, and exude a grace that is truly divine. They are truly incredible, and after this weekend, it feels like they've been a part of my life all these years. I say, with certainty, that Adam and Matt married "UP". :)

Here are a few more pictures of our weekend!

(The Biltmore)
(View from the rooftop -- out of the Observatory)
(Throwing leaves.)
(I'm lovin' the angle/light & shadow/comp of this picture.)
(All dressed up (and coordinated) for church.)


Thursday, October 9, 2008

Clearly my medication is messing with me.

I just discovered the Samuel L. Jackson grew up in Chattanooga.

What?

There's a local blog here trying to fill the Chatt version of Gothamist, and they posted a rather funny blog er article er post about it here.

This weekend!!

I was so blessed during college to have a core group of friends. There were 8 of us, and in spite of all the changes we all went through, we have over the course of now 9 years remained friends, able to catch up in one another's life (or continue to be truly active) at a moment's notice.

This weekend, we're having a mini-reunion, with 5 of the 8. The remaining three (one's wife is preggers with twins, one has two girls, and the other has a scheduling conflict of sorts) aren't able to attend, but will be there in spirit.

The first picture was what I asked for as my graduation present. The 8 of us, looking half-decent (okay, some look better than others!), gathered around the eternal fountain at the seminary. Words cannot express how much these people mean to me. They are incredible, extraordinary individuals who helped shape my life in more ways than they will ever know, than I can ever articulate. As it also turns out, this was one of the worst fights we had as a group -- it was ugly the night we took this picture. But... relationships that are built on more than sand can endure the test of any good fight, and ours has.

This weekend, we'll be staying with Matt and his wife who live in Asheville, and we'll be visiting The Biltmore. Michele and I were on the phone the other day, and I reminded her that, even if there is torrential downpour, we're going to have a good time!

It's amazing to look back at seasons of your life and realize HOW in control God really was. Just too cool.

Love,
Jenn
(Michele, Adam, Kristen, Brock, Matt, Carrie, Mike, Me)




Tuesday, October 7, 2008

Weekend wrap.

My weekend involved me slightly morphing into a redneck (I didn't even listen to country music until I was out of high school!), and included me running through corn mazes, being in close proximity of animals, and shooting corn.

I was a pair of Carhartts away from owning a gun.

:)





conTEXTual

My friend sent me a text several weeks ago and I thought it was worth sharing.

In view of so many Christians perspective/beliefs on the lottery, should those same people let their kids recieve HOPE scholarships?

Monday, October 6, 2008

I'm so thankful.

That I have a friend who recognizes when I'm being a 'tard and need some quality time. Time to talk and make no sense, time to unload, unwind, and vent all the junk in my head.

Without fear.

Without shame.

Even if I've told her 5,000 times that I'm going to move away and may eventually do so one day.

Or if I'm still angry at that stupid person who she told me would hurt me.

Or if a friend keeps hurting me.

Or if another friend of ours is just insensetive and seemingly unaware.

I'm so thankful that she stopped by tonight to tell me I'm being a brat.

And to listen.

Sunday, October 5, 2008

I keep wanting to write this, but then I erase it.

My hope is that I'll keep this post up for more than a few minutes.

I watched this video again today, and can't help but be moved.

Can I just say that I'm getting real sick of the "christianese" lately? I'm so over Christian friends sitting and talking about stuff and using "the language". Are we really at a place where we can't be more real than that? Where even in the safest of havens we put our guards up for fear that our "Christian" friends will see through our facades? Our smoke and mirrors?

Can we just BE REAL? I mean, REALLY real? Can we go five minutes without using scripture as some sort of litmus test for our friends? So that we can witness to people where it counts? In WalMart? In the mall? In the park? At work?

Can we stop wasting time trying to FEEL PEACE and actually find some?

One of the things I've loved about my friend Jenn is that she's not a cookie cutter Christian. I'm sure she'll tell you that she's had some moments in her life where she may have been, but the woman that I've known has constantly been out of the box. We don't agree on everything... maybe even a lot of things. But what's more important... she has fruit in her spiritual life. Life is not a glossy 8X10 of how things are supposed to work out. Even and especially as a Christian, life is complicated. And confusing. And just weird sometimes.

And I'm not even addressing the whole being a pentacostal thing.

But, the thing I respect about Jenn is her willingness to always be out doing the work. Clay's heart is so hungry for the multiple cultures in his city. He longs for Louisville to see God. Josh (and his wife) long for the kids in Carrollton to be real. To be real with God. So do Justin, and Julie, Jeremy, and Sarah and her husband Brent. There are so many other people I know who are doing the work.

I'm just sick of "The talk".

The talk that's not matching The Walk.

Can we just stop manufacturing the talk and let the walk speak for itself? For REAL? It's time for us to write out own cardboard testimonies that are REAL.

Friday, October 3, 2008

iPod Friday.

I'm such a music thief. When (really) cool people tell me what they're listening to, the need-for-acceptance-in-me feels compelled to listen too.

currently listening to:

Free Fallin' (Live) - John Mayer. I still love John. This song is smooth.
Beautiful Disaster - Jon McLaughlin. WOOH-Wooh.
The Funeral - Band of Horses. Just a mad cool song.
After Tonight - Justin Nozuka. This makes me wish I'd pursued dancing. Contemporary.
Close to You - New Kids on the Block. Judge me if you want... but I LIKE it. Plus, I'll be singing along with them in three-and-a-half weeks. You'll be jealous!
Los Angeles - Counting Crows. The very end of this song is hilarious. I mean, TEARS, hilarious. Tacos, skinny girls, streetwalking. Wow.
Rock your soul - Elisa. Just listen.
Britney - Bebo Norman. He actually wrote it to Britney Spears. I hope she listens to it. You should listen to it.
Ruins - Bebo Norman. To know that he was in Columbus -- 45 minutes away from me -- and I didn't discover him until he went label still makes me frustrated. This is a great song.
God of this City - Chris Tomlin. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat.
Goodbye - Audio Adrenaline. Getting ready to say goodbye to my 20's. Seem apropos.

Upon further examination, I thought it might be fun to share some facts.

I took a moment to look over blog stuff this morning, and after looking (and relooking several times) at this picture, I thought it might to be fun to share some facts about this photo and the surrounding circumstances.

  1. This was taken in May of 1988. My parents divorce had just become final (literally by days).
  2. I went through a phase where I would not show my teeth when I smiled. I didn't like my teeth at all. I wanted braces because everyone else had them.
  3. (I also went through a phase where I wouldn't let anyone sit on my bed because it would mess up my bedspread. My BFF Laura still won't let me live that one down.)
  4. I actually have a TAN in this picture. You can see the difference on my arms. And that's about as tan as I get.
  5. That is my natural hair color. Ha ha ha ha.
  6. My mom lost 80 pounds when she and my Dad separated. I don't remember her being overweight, but this was the smallest she'd been since her wedding.
  7. She's sporting some AWESOME 80's church hair. That stuff took a whole can of Rave. And a little thing we like to call "The White Brush" which helps achieve that poof.
  8. My pose is a little bit cheerleader-ish. Ironically enough, I was a cheerleader. Go figure.
  9. Nobody knows where the 8X10 version of this photo is. This is the wallet sized copy that I scanned.
  10. I was 4'6" in this picture. I have a picture taken around the same time that tells me how tall I am.
  11. Between my brother and I (and the next 7 years), we grew a total of 3 1/2 feet.
  12. I'm wearing a necklace that was adjustable. I still have the necklace too. I found it at my mom's a few weeks ago.
  13. Anybody notice that I'm sporting SHOULDER PADS? HELLO??? I was 9. What in the world?
  14. Looking at my hands make me cringe. I used to bite my nails something awful. I prayed a few years later and told God I wanted wedding hands, and needed strength to quit biting my nails. He answered my prayer.
  15. My hair is being held with a banana clip.
  16. Those glasses were from Lens Crafters (remember -- "in an hour"?). Well, as it turns out, they took 4, and the lenses were accidentally tinted pink. I literally owned rose colored lenses.

Hilariousness. Love it.

Thursday, October 2, 2008

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!!!!!

Okay, not me. My mom! Today is my mother's 55th birthday, and it's so weird for me to type that she's roughly 10 years from some sort of retirement because, in my head, she's still in her 30's.

My mom is by far the coolest person I know. I've blogged about her birthday two years ago here. Last year, I was on some sort of tangent (that includes a blog I may repost later), so I apparently skipped posting something about it.

I was joking with my mom that in some places (Shoney's) she's eligible for the seniors' discount. With our economy, I told her to consider this a blessing!

This morning, she called me at 6:00 a.m. and said (in a very loud, very high pitched voice) "HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MEEEEEE!!!!!".She's really is hilarious. So, Happy Birthday to you Mom!!!!!!

Thank you for:
  • being the person who taught me how to tap into phones
  • teaching me how to pray
  • being the only other person in my life who has blond eyebrows and doesn't care
  • always being young at heart
  • being a mom who enjoyed her "babies" -- and still does
  • constantly making me laugh
  • teaching me common sense!
  • always being available for questions about medical issues!
  • teaching me how to drive. Ha ha ha ha ha. (I'll have to blog about that one day!)
  • for all the letters on the back of bank envelopes
  • for staying awake all those nights when I've needed you or been scared of the dark
  • praying for my husband (KEEP PRAYING!!)
  • being my greatest inspiration and best friend!

There are a thousand other things I'm forgetting... but those are definitely worth remembering!

Happy Birthday! I love you!!! Bunches and Bunches!!!!!





Wednesday, October 1, 2008

What would you relearn?????

When my brother was home a few weeks ago, we were talking about how the Georgia State Superintendent was the first winner of "Are you smarter than a Fifth Grader?". During the course of that conversation, I reminded my brother that while I knew a good number, I didn't know all the state capitals anymore. As sad/weird/funny as it sounds, the rest of the ride home, my brother used his iPhone as I relearned all the state capitals. We had the best time laughing (and drilling each other) to the "home bases" of the fifty states. Thanks to that experience, I will never look at Richmond, Virginia the same EVAH again. (I'll be happy to share that story privately.)

This morning on The Pioneer Woman, Ree A.K.A. P-Dub is giving away some gift certificate for learning tools and asked the question:

"If you could relearn some subject from school (without shame of course), what would it be?"

My response was: ESPANOL.

I took two years of high school spanish and semester in college. If I were taken hostage in a spanish speaking country I could:

1. Count to 100
2. Ask where the bathroom is.
3. Ask where the library is.
4. Sing my white-girl karaoke version of La Cucaracha and Cielito.
5. Identify crazy chickens.
6. Muerto.

So... what would you relearn?