sometimes, I think lack of punctuation and short words make things much more effective. Case in point:

STOP.

It's clear, it's direct, and it's one of the first words that you learn to understand the meaning.

then again, maybe it's capitalization (or the lack thereof) that makes things more or less effective.

punctuation = IMPORTANT.

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(I hope you caught that because I just cracked myself up.)

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My friend Holly's nephew A.J. was burned badly this weekend. I say this (without Holly's permission), but A.J. should probably be her first child. I have not seen many (okay... I can't name anyone other than my Aunt) who's loved a neice or nephew as much as Holly has loved A.J. If you think about it, would you say a special prayer for him? If you'd like more information, send me an email, and I'll share more of the request with you.

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And this whole last week (including Thanksgiving) was INTERESTING to say the least.

Happy Thanksgiving Y'all!

I'm thankful for my family, and friends, the blessings I don't deserve,... but on here...

I'm thankful for you! For all the times you read my blog and comment! Thank you for the love!!!

Hope you had a wonderful day -- however you spent it!

Love,
Jenn

To-Do-List

Today

• Get feelings hurt. Check.
• Have dinner with friends. Check.
• Pitch a silent temper tantrum, make unwritten lists of irrational things to do. Check.
• Do none of those 'cause they're stupid. and immature. Check.
• Still wish you could do one of them because of aforementioned hurt feelings? Check.
• Wonder if people are judging you? Check.
• Get over wondering if people are judging you. Trying. Check for effort.
• Remember that that boy is a tool. Check.
• And those girls are just as insecure as you. They're just a team. No checks. Acknowledgement.
• Blog. Check. Twice! Double Check.
• Run. Crap... I did good 'til then. :)
• Pack. Oops... dropped the ball again.
• Go to bed at reasonable hour. Yeah, I'm 3 for 3 here. (it's currently 12:31AM)
• Remember that friends are hurting and pray for them. Check.
• Repent over bad attitude. Repeatedly. Check.
• Go to bed and remember how blessed you are. I'm going. Check.

Good Night!!

Wha.. What?

No catchy titles here folks. I'm out. I've been horrible about blogging the last few days worried that I would spill some secret I'm not supposed to tell you.

Instead, I give you: RANDOMNESS.

• I went and got a manicure today and my nails (which are real) look abnormally fake. I like it, but it kinda freaks me out.
• My snapfish books came yesterday, but UPS won't leave them at my door. BOO!
• A recap of my weekend -- Friday night -- flaming lipstick, Saturday -- leaky pipe, and Sunday -- flat tire.
• But my pastor reminded us of being thankful even when things are bad, so I AM THANKFUL, because Friday could have caught my purse (or worse, my car) on fire, Saturday -- I was actually home this weekend to catch it, and Sunday -- if my water wasn't turned off forcing me to shower at a friends' house prompting them to leave me a voicemail about my tire, I would have found out when it was too late.
• I sent an email to a family member that included the phrase "before we go all Jerry Springer on _____"
• I can say with confidence that I have never done that. EVER.
• I watched two grown women flirt with two different boys last night. Hilarious... and yes you know who you are!
• In a much deserved shoutout -- Leslie Ruth (and her husband) have moved to TN. Yay!
• And would you say a special prayer for Amy Beth today?
• My roomie may be coming home in the next week or so... FOR GOOD!
• Although I'm still sad about not being in NYC this week (tomorrow will be the first Wednesday before thanksgiving that I've worked in 5 years), I'm thankful that I get to go in two weeks, and get to see my brother three weeks out of five!
• I'm thankful that I started a Christmas club this year. PTL for money put back that I forgot about!
• I've been reading about Obama's ideas (do you call them that?) for our economic situation. I'm reiterating that we pray for our leaders to surround themselves with wise counsel. I don't know anything about the appointments he is making, but I trust that God is in control and will give Obama wisdom.
• I'm also praying that Obama is praying for Godly wisdom.
• I've been at work ON TIME (8:00am) for the last six days.
• For those of you keeping score at home -- I've never done that.
• Praise The Lord!
• And ROLL TIDE!

Simplicity

SCC

I've been a fan of Steven Curtis Chapman for at least 20 years. He's such a great musician and incredible song writer.

But he's a blogger too... and a rather hilarious one at that.

Go visit this blog... because you can bet that on the flight I'm taking on my birthday... I'll be doing THIS.

:(

So, I do believe that all my blogs as of late should start with a :(.

Today... something UBER-INTERESTING did happen... but I can't, under penalty of law, tell you anything about it.

oi.

I can tell you that as I was leaving my house early this afternoon, I noticed that the patch of ground around my mailbox was submerged in water. I panicked because I've never seen it like that, and suddenly realized that's where my sewer line box is. So, I called the landlord and five hours later, he turned my water off to prevent me from having Wolman rink on my driveway seeing as the expected low for tonight is 25 and water freezes.

But, now I can't flush the toilet.

I did go buy water jugs so I could brush my teeth (which coincidentally should be a prerequisite like always putting on clean underwear for an unlikely-but-anticipated car wreck), and wash my hands and stuff.

The water will hopefully be fixed by tomorrow, or at worst case by Monday.

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Oh, and should mention that I carry my camera in my purse, and therefore have to carry extra batteries sometimes.

Well, one of the batteries apparently sparked and melted my lipstick. I went to dig something out last night, and realized my hand was HOT and knew immediately that there was a problem. Since my purse does not come with hand warmers and is not equipped like heated seats. (But wouldn't that be something for purse manufacturers to think about in really cold climates? Like a clutch that doubles to keep your hands warm on your excursion to Antarctica and also comes in 11 colors to match every ensemble you may be packing? It's just a thought.) Clearly, I'm just thankful that my purse (full of COMBUSTIBLE PRODUCTS) didn't also combust. Thank you Jesus.

So, I also had to run to Belk's today to pick up a tube of lipstick.

And then of course I had to pick up three of my favorite sweaters in three colors I didn't already have.

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on second thought.

:)

My life is NEVER boring.

And in other Less Important news...

I was growing a science project in my fridge. By accident of course. It was A-W-F-U-L.

(a Corporate EWWWWW would be wonderful)

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P. Diddy (or Puffy, or Puff Daddy, or Sean Combs, or Sean Jean, or Santa Claus) will be making an appearance on CSI: Miami. Um... WHAT? The CSI writers just lost cool points. But... wonder what Diddy will try to promote on the show?

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Today turned into a fiasco in three hours when I was:

1) Blamed for a failed Christmas Party (anybody catch that it's NOVEMBER 19TH???)
2) Blamed for losing someone's 15-year old son who they left at the Salvation Army
3) Told I was going to be the "face" of my company for a spot on the news.

Seriously... I was so ready for 5:00 today, I almost didn't know what to do with myself!

Tune in tonight at 6:00pm on Channel 10.

I'm gonna be on tv.

and yes, it's as scary as it sounds!!

It's cold baby!

BRRR BRRR!! It's cold down here!!!

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I don't check my phone during the day (Hello... I have to be professional), but when I did today... all I can say is D-R-A-M-A!

And thankfully... not mine!

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I totally have Beyonce's "Single" in my head. Somebody sent me a link to a video (if you'd like it.... email me privately or leave a comment) and it CRACKS ME UP. Seriously hilarious.

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I wish I had something "interesting" to blog about... but life is slow now. Thank you Jesus. :)

:(

Work = Rough.

1 phone = temporarily disabled b/c some genius at Sprint decided to give me someone else's charges to the tune of $350.00.

Back = in serious pain.

I'll be blogging' normal (as it were) again soon.

Love,
Jenn

Altar Boyz

If you haven't seen the show... you should go!

It's hilarious!

National Donor Sabbath

Totally forgot to mention this a few days ago, but starting today... is National Donor Sabbath. If you don't know much about being a donor (other than the obvious), then you can go here to read about it.

I know a lot of people who aren't organ donors, but I highly encourage you to read more about it, and find out what it's really about. And... just to point out -- it's not always that someone has to die to pass an organ.

Statistics:

More than 28,000 organ transplants were performed in 2007 thanks to the gifts of more than 14,000 donors, yet more than 99,000 people were on the organ transplant waiting list in June 2008.

If your church is not getting involved... let your pastor/administrator know today!

friday download.

I have a good friend who has been seriously lying to me (both in person and in texts) over the last few weeks. It breaks my heart to know that she is so torn over what she's doing that she feels like she has to lie.

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I have failed to mention that my friend Michael has lost 108 pounds. Way to go!!!

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For those of you following along about Nathan, I got to see him last night. I've already been to his parents' home once this week, but he was already out for the night. Thank You Thank You Thank you for praying! He is showing some signs of improvement and is definitely stronger. I took him a present last night and accidentally made him cry. I know, BAD friend, right? But, he knows my heart, and I got to remind him how much I loved him. It was nice to see him, see him smile, and laugh. And per his family, his sense of humor has not faded in the slightest. He's still the joker! I know he and his family appreciate and covet your continued prayers, and as a friend, I do too! God is still God... and God is ALWAYS good.

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I've somehow managed to mess up my back and had a lovely visit with the chiropractor this week.

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I get to go see Altar Boyz once more with friends this weekend! (And Josh Rhett Noble with whom I'm fast becoming friends with! And we get to go to Lenox! And to R. Thomas Deluxe Grill!

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And my birthday ticket to New York City has been purchased... I'll get to see this, and do this, and hopefully go here! And spend time with my family!!! Yay! T-28 days!! Whoo-Hoo!!!

Snapfish Photo Books

I'm not a huge fan of Oprah, but thanks to Veryll, I saw that Oprah viewers could get a free snapfish book. I LOVE LOVE LOVE Snapfish books, and have ordered several over the last two years. I also just ordered my first mug (with 15 photos on it), so I'll let you know how that goes!

In order to claim your free custom photo book, you can either go through Oprah's site here, or you can go directly to the Snapfish site here. These books are SO EASY to put together, and when you check out, make sure you put FREEBOOK2008 in the coupon box. You must register (or login) to Snapfish today, and purchase your free book by Sunday!

Thanks V!

And go get your book!!

800

Today marks my 800th post. Crazy, right? In honor of my 800th post, I'm going to tell you 800 things about myself.

yeah, right. I'd lose you by #5.

Well, regardless, I am going to share some things about me... but only in 8's, and I want to hear about you too. In essence, I'm tagging you all.

8 Things I love
God
My family
Matthew Gray Gubler
My big blue bible
Kleenex
New York City
Coca Cola
New pens

8 Things that give me the Heebie-Jeebies
roadkill
scary movies
New Jersey
roaches
serial killers
tapeworms
mushrooms
Vans... down by the river

8 places I've been to
New York City
Chicago
Panama City
Gatlinburg
Asheville
Savannah
Jamaica
Miami

8 random facts
I feel naked without my ring or a watch
I hate "fixing" my hair
I don't apply make-up until 10:00 during the week and do so at my desk (better light)
I've tried to change my name twice
I prayed for boobs and fingernails (used to bite them in the quick) and got both, but realize now that I should have prayed for flat abs. (Sorry TMI)
I screen my phone calls sometimes
I had to eat goat when I was in Jamaica ... ew...
I wet the bed until I was 8

8 fav TV shows
The Biggest Loser
Criminal Minds
CSI: Miami
NCIS
So You Think You Can Dance
Degrassi: Next Generation
Jon & Kate Plus 8
House

Happy 800th Post to MEEEeeeee!!!!

Click here to read The Miles Adventures' Answers
Click here to read What's Bloggin' Bits Answers
Click here to read Screaming Mimi's Answers

Television.

Amidst all the junk and bad news that is life, I like escape. I like Television.

Please spare me comments or sermons about the evils of television. I'm not an exerciser so I get my break from reality on my couch. Thankyouverymuch.

If you've read my blog at all, then you know of my celebrity crush on Matthew Gray Gubler, or my unfettered love for all-things-over-the-top David Caruso. But before both of those blossomed, was The Biggest Loser. As an aside, if I ever meet Bob Harper in real life I may 1) pass out, 2) beg him to give me a last chance work-out, 3) ask him to marry me, or 4) all of the above.

This season, I've been very torn. On one side, ALL of the contestants who've been voted off have managed to lose weight (and look Great!) at home. On the flip side, Heba reminds me of someone I can't stand and I have found myself week after week screaming at the television praying for her to break her leg or something. She really grates on me, y'all. Then again, Bob Harper on my t.v. for two hours a week is enough for anyone to celebrate. But the real downside -- Vicky. She is AWFUL. And last night, she finally got played! It was wonderful, and yes I was celebrating and I don't care if you judge me or not. And in the previews, the rest of America (and now her team) get to see how terrible she really is. You can lose weight, but you can't lose Nasty like that.

And then, there's a beacon of hope in NCIS.

And Cody Linley will get to dance again with Julianne Hough on Dancing with the Stars.

Beautiful. :)

stretch. shake. breathe.

Leslie Ruth mentioned NaBloPoMo this morning, and so... for the record, I totally wrote a post yesterday (and posted it), but with my former prayer request, I decided it was best to take it down and get an attitude check. I'll make up for it somehow.

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Last night, we stayed at Nathan's parents house until almost 10:15. If you are praying -- A BIG THANK YOU -- and please keep praying!

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Off the Sub... Vanilla Ice has a new album out today. Including three new remixes of Ice Ice Baby.

wait... you read that right. Rob Van Winkle is droppin' the beats again. Too Cool. Too Cool.

All I'm sayin' is that if the Go-Go's and The Bangles get back together too, I'm FOR SURE getting a perm.

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SEC fans don't play around. Whether or not you believe that a game is actually the cause of this nasty incident (I don't), either way... you should consider yourself warned.

And just know that there are entire families that haven't spoken because Super-Alabama-Fan Little Bobby married an Auburn gal. Or some cute Georgia girl married a GT boy -- Her Daddy's still probably mad about that one.

Prayer Request

I make a great effort to not use my blog as a podium for requesting things, but tonight, I am making an exception. My friend Nathan, whom I love more than he'll ever know, was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis as a little child. He has endured more than I have known in my life, and tonight he needs lots and lots and lots of prayer. Cystic Fibrosis is a terminal disease with an average life span of 22 years. Nathan is 27 and has exceeded all his doctors expectations, but the last few months, he's been fighting a lot, and tonight, he is weary.

And so I'm asking you to pray for him. To pray for God to heal him. To give Nathan strength. To touch his family and give them a double, or triple, or infinite portion of peace tonight.

It's urgent. Please help me pray if you can.

Why my friends Crack me up...

... voting in 2012...

Should come down to something like this!!!!! (I stole this from Noefool off of twitter.)

The Woes of being single.

I just got back from a funeral -- the funeral of a co-worker's father-in-law. The funeral was nice and reserved, except for the two baby boys who decided they wanted to play with each other from two pews away (but they were so cute!).

But prior to the service, I got served a slice of Humiliation Pie when my co-worker (it was her FIL) decided to INTRODUCE ME TO ONE OF THE PALL BEARERS!!

She started with:

"Oh! I've been wanting to introduce you two!"

and continued with these zingers:

"Jennifer is unattached!"

and

"Do you think Eric is handsome?"

and

"Eric, she just lives right up the road from you, in Cleveland, about 15 minutes from your house, I think!"

I wanted to crawl under the carpet (or in the casket) to downplay my embarassment.

And then when I got in the car, my boss asked me what I thought about him too.

Remember to check the local obits this weekend. I may ACTUALLY die of embarassment.

!!!!!!!!!!!

Passing it on...

"The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know. Pray especially for rulers and their governments to rule well so we can be quietly about our business of living simply, in humble contemplation. This is the way our Savior God wants us to live." I Timothy 2:1-2

We have a new president. Check. But our economy... y'all it's in BAD shape. I was reminded of this particular scripture by Stretch Marks this morning (she's hilarious... y'all should read!), and I'm reminding, encouraging, and admonishing you to pray for our Economy. I don't care if our president is green with three eyes, as long as I know I'm commanded to get on my knees and pray that he surrounds himself with the best and smartest advisors and counsel to do what needs to be done in our economy.

I will go a step further and say that Obama is one of many leaders. MANY. We need to pray for those other leaders too.

Various & UnSundry ... part 13!

I've failed to mention that November is NaBloPoMo - National Blog Posting Month - a challenge to blog everyday for 30 days. I think every blogger I know has an inconsistent blogging "season" in their writing -- either from lack of material or just being busy, but I really wanted to try and keep up with this one. Thanksgiving may be tough for me, but I'm going to try!

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I'm superstressed getting ready for this weekend. And the people in my life are not cooperating which is only making matters more frustrating. Hello People, let's work To-Geth-Er! I did come clean with a friend on the phone who's staying through Sunday night to tell her that I'm probably going to be a little ill (or a lot) by Sunday afternoon.

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I was able to make homemade rice krispies treats and spinach dip last night, as well as getting a few things organized in my room. I did however miss a really big thing on my To-Do list. :(

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My little escape is television. I absolutely LOVE Criminal Minds. If you've never watched an episode, you're missing out and I highly recommend it. Last night was FABULOUS! and just confirms that Matthew Gray Gubler is HOT!! (Dear Jesus, please send me a skinny hot guy who loves you and doesn't treat me like dirt. Thank you, and Amen!)
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And to top it all off, my internal schedule is totally thrown out of whack because of the time change. Boo.

Today.

I just needed a welcome distraction! Work is very somber this morning -- but that has more to do with our economy than anything else (trust me!). I have a fairly lengthy drive into work each day, but this morning, I was especially struck by the beauty of the trees, and how they reflect so much the diversity of our nation. The leaves are red, and orange, and yellow, and green, and some are already brown. The people of our nation are peach, and brown, and yellow, and tan, and pale peach( that would be Me!), and a whole bunch of other colors.

And when you put them together, you can see how beautiful they are, just like the trees. You also realize that each can highlight the beauty of the others -- highlighting their diversity, enhancing what God gave them!

After watching the news and seeing who our president elect was going to be, I changed my facebook status to say -- "There are officially no more excuses. If you don't achieve the American dream, it's because you are... WAIT FOR IT... LAZY." Today officially marks the start of a time when there is no excuse why you cannot be what you want to be -- it's only in Your motivation. While some may perceive that as a negative statement, I'm a firm believer that it's the truth. I grew up in an area where there was ALWAYS an excuse. I'm most excited because that doesn't have to be the case anymore. I don't have some unrealistic hope for total equality (hello people, we live in a capitalist system -- there will always be financial inequality because that's the nature of the beast), but today, there are other inequalities that are dead -- like the wicked witch in Oz! -- and THAT is reason to celebrate!

I did not vote for our president elect -- but I am behind him 100% in prayer, and believe that is my right, obligation, and privilege as a citizen and as a human being. My hope is that today, people will take down the signs in their yards and off their cars, so that we can stop seeing the harsh divisions and be one nation, with a president and president elect, fairly inexpensive gas (PTL for $2.04!), and a God-given hope and future.

I am proud to be an American, and you should be too.

Now can we get back to praying for our economy? Please?

I'm confident that this is one of the signs that Jesus really IS coming soon.

I know that I've blogged before about how funny my Mom is. Shirley is hysterical. And 99.9% of the time, she's funny by accident. I grew up with a Mom who doesn't always get comedy, but laughs when she sees or hears everyone else laughing. (And Trust me, it's always funnier than what you're laughing at!) She has this silly non-conventional sense of humor that my brother and I especially love.

Back in March, the Mom's career was totally changed (it's a long story), and now she has every Tuesday and Thursday off. Growing up, my mother rarely had a day off. I mean, we seriously didn't take a family vacation for about 10 years, just because she always had to work. Mom especially loved Saturdays because it was the only time she could veg and just watch tv or rest.

But now that she has every Tues and Thurs off, she's been watching a little more tv. Case in point:

My mom and I were on the phone this morning, talking about all kinds of stuff, and then she says,

Mom: You know I was watching tv the other day, this guy named Julio. He has a show. He used to be a rapper back in the day, but now he's got five kids, one boy, and four girls, and he cried on tv because they're lazy and don't want to work.
Me: (SHOCK!) Mom, who were you watching?
Mom: Some rapper named, I think his name was Julio?
Me: Mom, do you mean COOLIO? Mom, were you watching Coolio?
Mom: (Clearly excited) YES! Yes that's who I was watching! He was talking about his kids and how unmotivated they were.
Me: (laughing uncontrollably)

Then, she proceeds to tell me she's also been watching Kimora Lee Simmons (She called her Kimono at first), and the Real Housewives of Atlanta.

This all coming from the same woman who had MTV blocked out of our house for 8 years growing up.

Yep, if you don't know Jesus, go Here, because TRUST ME, My mom watching Coolio on TV means that Jesus is coming SOON.

Weekend in Pictures

What do you get when you cross Sarah Palin, an Oompa Loompa, Chuck Norris, and three NASCAR fans together?

A really hilarious Halloween!

I have 8 currently.

You know you have too many blogs when you mispost more than once. In a day. In the same half hour.

And strangely enough, my title is True.

WARNING: TANGENT. Be advised.

When my grandmother was here a few weeks ago, she made a point to wait until I was trapped in the car for a good while to ask me about Paul. Paul was a guy I went to church with ions ago. He's 6'4", a year younger than me, and had the great cheeks that I called "hypercolor" (think about the t-shirts). I had a HUGE crush on Paul (partly because he was such a sweetheart and because he was so tall!), and it was my understanding the feelings were mutual. But I was 16, and he was 15 and frankly we were both dorks. I SOOO wanted him to take me to my junior prom (I even bought a dress), but he never asked.

And everytime I go to my Mom's church, his aunt tells me how sad she is that we never dated. And so my grandmother asked me in the car that day, "Why didn't you ever date Paul?". And my response was that he NEVER ASKED.

He's now happily married, but everytime I see his Mom or Aunt or third cousin twice removed, the only thing they can say to me is, "Why aren't you with Paul?". And frankly, it's exhausting. And hurtful. And kinda mean.

All I'm saying is: You have not, because you ask not, and making the girl feel bad about it now: NOT EFFECTIVE. Please stop asking.

Thank You,
Management.

And suddenly, I'm not SO worried.

I really do worry about getting married. I'm fully aware that that's COMPLETELY the opposite of what I should, but the upcoming birthday gets to me.

And then I get a chance to watch three episodes of My Big Redneck Wedding and suddenly:

1) I realize my standards are good,
2) There really is someone for everyone, and
3) That show makes the South look good.

Thoughts? Comments?