Frustrations, Hopes, and Dreams

So its been a while

2006-08-18T17:40:00.000-07:00

Ok....so I haven't been good at all about blogging - in fact I have somewhat abandoned the practice. But anyhow, I have decided to take it up again - we will see how good I am at it. It has been an extremely busy summer...

Unfortunately, not much knitting has gone on. In fact, I am still working on the same project I was over Spring Break...but perhaps it will be finished by the time winter begins. (It is a sweater)

I began my Master in Public Health. I took classes this summer and got a first look at what my education will be like for my second degree. I won't really be doing much more work on that for another 2 years though. It was good to get a start on it.

I helped plan a U2 Eucharist at my church. We weren't very thrilled with the turnout. Of the people that did come though - it seemed to go over well. We are planning another one in the very near future - so maybe that one will have a better turnout.

I started marathon training. If you would like to donate just click here. We are almost halfway through and I just ran the Chicago Distance Classic - a half marathon that was this past Sunday. It is a little scary to realize that starting next Saturday, I will be consistently running on Saturdays further than I have ever run before. I just have to remind myself that I have a few good reasons for going through the training.

Finally for tonight - Chris moved in this past June. So far things are going well and we both seem to be pretty happy. The only thing is that our condo is pretty small and we would love to have a bigger place - but our place is great for now.

Okay, I have to make dinner now so that I am rested when I wake up at 5am tomorrow for my 10mi run. (This is a cut back week - I still can't believe that 10 is cut back)

Summer Ride

2006-05-11T19:58:00.000-07:00

Your Summer Ride is a Mini Cooper

You are all about unique, one of a kind adventures.
The only thing predictable about your summer is that it's unpredictable!

What's Your Summer Ride?

Support my goal!

2006-05-11T14:37:00.000-07:00

According to the American Cancer Society, this year in 2006, approximately 212,920 new cases of invasive breast cancer are expected to be diagnosed among American women. It is also estimated that, in Illinois, approximately 1,780 women will die of breast cancer this year. This year, I have chosen to make a difference in the fight for breast cancer by Running Pink. I have committed to running the 2006 LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon and raising much-needed funds as part of the "Pink Streak" team for the Illinois Affiliate of Y-ME National Breast Cancer Organization.

We are all affected by breast cancer in some way. According to the American Cancer Society, between 1993 -1997 in Illinois, the rate of breast cancer was 108.1 per 100,000 residents and the rate of death because of breast cancer was 26.7 per 100,000. I am not big on statistics, but this set is personal. My aunt, Shirley Traback - who I affectionately called TwoMamma, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1996. After many medical ups and downs and trying all of the treatments we could, Shirley lost her battle with breast cancer on October 18, 1996. Loosing Shirley was devastating for my family. The 3 years after she died, my mother and I walked in the Y-Me Race Against Breast Cancer on Mother's Day. This October is the 10th anniversary of loosing Shirley and I have decided that I will be running the 26.2 miles in her honor.

The mission of Y-ME National Breast Cancer Organization pretty much says it all: this amazing organization works to ensure that no one faces breast cancer alone. With all of the cases of breast cancer comes a huge need for support, to help the women and men recently diagnosed, to help the friends, partners, and caretakers of breast cancer patients. Y-ME Illinois does just this - and so much more.

The Illinois Affiliate works right here in my community, implementing programs and services free of charge to all those facing breast cancer. Some of these include support groups, educational programming and public outreach, a wig and prosthesis bank for women with limited financial means, and a state-wide grassroots advocacy program that works to secure governmental funding of research and access to high quality health care for all.

I am asking for your help! I am required to raise a minimum of $750 as part of the Pink Streak team for Y-ME Illinois. My personal goal however is $1,500 for this incredible organization. With your help I will be able to do that. While I encourage you to be as generous as possible, and amount will be greatly appreciated and make a difference! (All donations are 100% Tax Deductible)

I will be facing a tough summer of early morning long runs, energy bars, gel packs, and sore muscles. But I know that those dealing with breast cancer face a much tougher challenge every day of their lives. I am committed to making a real difference for all of those touched by breast cancer, and appreciate your participation in my endeavors.

Visit my Personal Giving page to make a secure online donation.

MILEAGE SPONSORING

$1.00/mile x 26.2 miles = $26.20
$1.50/mile x 26.2 miles = $39.00
$2.00/mile x 26.2 miles = $52.40
$2.50/mile x 26.2 miles = $65.50
$3.00/mile x 26.2 miles = $78.60*
$3.50/mile x 26.2 miles = $91.70*
$4.00/mile x 26.2 miles = $104.80*
$4.50/mile x 26.2 miles = $117.90*
$5/mile x 26.2 miles = $131.00*
$100/mile = $2,620.00!!*

*T-Shirt giving level – Anyone who donates at or above $3.00/mile will have their name written on the back of my race shirt so that they are making the run with me!

Holy Week

2006-04-20T09:54:00.000-07:00

Holy Week was filled with good things.....
Finishing my first half-marathon on Palm Sunday
Getting accepted to the MPH program so I am now officially a MD/MPH candidate on Maundy Thursday
Finding out I passed my last couple of exams on Good Friday
Successful Easter Egg that I planned (the rain held out until after wards) on Easter Sunday.

It was a good week!

2006-03-30T16:53:00.000-08:00

So there are many things that I have to blog about especially since it has been so long (AWE meeting in NYC, my cruise with Chris, Anatomy being over). But those are going to have to wait until after my exam on Monday.
Three little things have made my week this week
1) I learned to suture today
2) When I got home from my run yesterday, the flowers I planted in the fall had started to sprout
3) I was able to run in shorts outside - Spring is here!

New Year, New Challenges

2006-01-15T20:02:00.000-08:00

So with the new year have come some new and exciting challenges. Well, at least 2 exciting challenges besides my new classes.

1) I was appointed to the Bishop's Commitee. For those who might not know, a Bishop's Committee is very similar to a Vestry. The main differences are, as far as I am aware that is, that terms are for 1 year, members are appointed by the bishop (rather then being ellected by the congregation), there is no Jr. Warden, and they are for missions (rather than parishes). So this is the beginning of some exciting work.

2) Tuesday I begin training for my first half-marathon. I am planning to run the St. Louis Half Marathon on Palm Sunday. As long as all goes well, I plan to run my first full marathon this year as well - the Chicago marathon in October. I have never run more than 6.2 miles, so here goes 13.1 then 26.2.

So we will see how this goes :)

2005-12-28T18:56:00.000-08:00

Here is a picture of Chris and I from a cousin's wedding in October. We don't usually agree on pictures - one of us always finds something wrong with them. That is true of this one as well, but we do agree that it is one of the better ones. Hopefully I will have new pictures after tomorrow's party.

2005-12-28T18:13:00.000-08:00

This is the lace scarf that I am so very proud of. It is my first lace pattern and it came out pretty well if I do say so myself. It took me forever to finish with classes and exams and such (which I thankfully passed). This picture is taken curtesy of one of my Christmas pictures. I got some great things this year including one of those sets of interchangeable knitting needles which I am really excited about.

After I finished my lace scarf, I made a quick scarf with some yarn that I had gotten for a dollar over the summer at JoAnns. After knitting it up, I decided I didn't like the color combination, but my mom's best friend liked it so it is on its way to her. Here is a picture of it. Right now I am using my new set of needles and making a computer bag. Once its all knitted up, it gets felted, so I am excited about my first felted project. I am hoping to finsih the knitting before Monday because I start classes again on Tuesday. My break has gone by so quickly.

A quick run down of my break....
Celbration dinner with 2 of my med school friends after our last final, saw Wicked, Large family dinner, some relaxing evening, helped out at Church to get ready for the Christmas and Christmas Eve services, some relaxing evenings with Chris, made Christmas Eve lunch for my parents, Christmas day brunch at my Godmother's house, made lunch for my mom and her best friend, spent a day in bed with a migraine, cleaning, reading, saw a couple of movies and knitting. I actually did get a lot done in the past two weeks. Tonight I will be making a cake for Chris's 25th birthday. We are sort of having a party for it at a bar so that should be fun. Okay, I must finish cleaning before tomorrow morning. Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and will have a Happy New Year.

World AIDs Day

2005-12-01T08:57:00.000-08:00

Did you know today was World AIDs Day? Here are some corrections of some common myths that I received in an email from my local American Medical Student Association chapter.

WORLD AIDS DAY - DECEMBER 1, 2005
Our Future, Our Crisis. Fight Global AIDS.

The HIV/AIDS epidemic has already claimed more than 25 million lives and
another 40 million people are currently estimated to be living with
HIV/AIDS worldwide. Over 8,000 people die everyday. Whether you choose
to practice here in the US or abroad, as a future physician it is
guaranteed that you will face HIV/AIDS. AMSA would like to help you
prepare by eliminating some common myths.

--- MYTH ONE ---
Myth: The AIDS crisis in the developing world has no impact on American
interests. Citizens and politicians have little to gain by fighting the
pandemic.
Fact: Halting of the spread of HIV/AIDS will benefit Americans in the
areas of public health, the economy, and security:

Ever-increasing travel will transport infectious diseases such as HIV
across national boundaries at ever-increasing rates. AIDS reduces
profitability of multinational corporations operating in the developing
world due to illness-related absenteeism and worker deaths. AIDS
significantly reduces the GDP of countries in many parts of the world,
weakens markets, and makes trading partners less reliable. World economic
growth and the American economy suffer as a result. The CIA has
officially designated the global AIDS pandemic as a threat to US national
security.

--- MYTH TWO ---
Myth: AIDS is mostly an African problem.
Fact: Of the 42 million people around the world who live with HIV/AIDS,
70% are in sub-Saharan Africa. But AIDS is not an African problem:

HIV/AIDS exists and is spreading in Africa in a socioeconomic context
created by western colonialism, western trade, and economic policies.
HIV/AIDS continues to spread in the rest of the world, especially in
communities within countries where poverty, inequality, and conflict are
prevalent. Eastern Europe and Central Asia have the fastest rates of
spread, followed by countries in Asia and the Pacific, the Caribbean, and
Latin America.

--- MYTH THREE ---
Myth: To stop the spread of HIV, people simply need to give up promiscuous
sex and drug use.
Fact: Socioeconomic structures around the world constrain many people's
ability to make free choices regarding the behaviors that put them at risk
for contracting HIV/AIDS. Economic insecurity, gender and racial
inequalities, labor migration, and armed conflict all limit people's
ability to avoid exposure to the virus.

--- MYTH FOUR ---
Myth: AIDS treatment in the developing world is impossible because
antiretroviral drugs are too expensive and because developing countries
lack the sophisticated infrastructure necessary to deliver the drugs.
Fact: ARVs should be a cornerstone in fighting AIDS in the developing
world:

Treatment for the poor is no longer prohibitively expensive, due to recent
sharp drops in drug prices. Both generics and cheaper brand names have
become available. The enormous economic costs of no treatment outweigh
the costs of treatment. Evidence shows that treating patients with ARVs
can save health systems money and relevant infrastructure is actually
present in many regions.

--- MYTH FIVE ---
Myth: Since resources are limited, officials should concentrate on
problems that effect large segments of the population, such as nutrition,
clean water, maternal & child health, and immunizations, rather than
expensive and complex AIDS treatment that helps only a few.
Fact: AIDS treatment would have far-reaching benefits, since the disease
has such devastating social, economic, and general health effects:

AIDS kills primarily young adults in their prime working years; these
deaths are devastating to economies. Agriculture is gravely threatened by
HIV/AIDS. As workers die, food production falls, the nutritional status of
the population is undermined, and all aspects of health are affected.
Young children are often left parentless, leading to hunger, poor health,
lost educational opportunities, economic and sexual exploitation, and loss
of future prospects. AIDS fuels the spread of other infectious diseases,
such as tuberculosis and treatment will help reduce pressure on health
facilities by reducing opportunistic infections.

Harry Potter, Turkey Trot, and more

2005-11-21T11:47:00.000-08:00

So on Friday, before going to the opening of the new Harry Potter movie, my mother and I went to a memorial service for her mentor. Apparently, this man taught my mother a lot about people of color, and how to encourage students who by most considered to not really have any chance of a good future. It was kind of neat because it brought up a lot of memories for my mother that I had never heard before. It helped explain a bit how my mother got to be who she is today. Also, I met all of these people who I don't remember because they new me when I was baby. One of these people was my first pediatrician, who actually might end up being one of my attendings during my third year. I also got to see me godmother, who I haven't seen since before I started undergrad and was ecstatic to see.
After that, my mother and I went to dinner then off to Harry Potter. Now we made a big mistake and only got there about 15 minutes before the show started (I had purchased tickets early that morning). We really didn't have any expectations of sitting together, but when we got there, no seats were available. We got the usher and he refused to ask people to move coats until after to movie started. I was a bit ticked off. Why would you wait to ask people to move their coats until after the show started? That was totally beyond me. We did get seated together in the very first row. I think that they forgot a couple of important things - I wonder how they are going to deal with that in later movies. Besides that, I really liked the movie.
Saturday I went to an anatomy review and babysat - nothing terribly out of the ordinary there.
Sunday morning, Chris and I ran our first Turkey Trot. It was a 10K and the furthest I have ever run. It was in a suburb of Chicago - and because it was a pretty small suburb, we were zigzagging up and down the residential streets. It looked as if they were trying to show off all of the houses that were for sale because it seemed like there were at least 3 houses for sale or under new construction. I am happy that we did it though. We ran at a pace that was pretty good for me too. The next obstacle is the half marathon, and then the marathon - as long as no major injuries occur.
That evening - I had sushi for the 2nd time. The first time was this past New Year's Eve and I had gotten sick. This time though, we asked them to just put the wasabi on the side rather than on every piece and I had a much better experience. I would definitely eat it again. It was kind of odd though because Chris and I were the only ones eating there the entire time we were there. The only people that came were for carry out. It was an interesting phenomenon.
This week, I will be heading to Little Rock and be spending Thanksgiving with Chris's family. I then come back to Chicago for my first final on Monday. I then have another exam on Friday, one on Monday, then finals on that Wednesday and Friday. Then I am off to Florida with my mom to spend time with my great aunt and my mom's cousins for the weekend. I then come back to two more finals on Monday and Wednesday then finally 2.5 weeks of winter break. Needless to say I have a busy few weeks coming up. I'll write again when I finally come up for air.

It snowed today

2005-11-16T20:38:00.000-08:00

So yes, I know, most people don't like Chicago winters. But even though I complain when its cold and I have to walk outside, I really like snow. Especially in Chicago because the city actually takes care of the streets. (That wasn't always true of St. Louis). So yeah for a light dusting of snow. Maybe that will help get me in the holiday spirit since I have been dragging my feet. I am totally disturbed by Christmas decorations in malls the first week of November and eggnog in the grocery stores before Halloween. Whatever happened to the Christmas season starting with Advent? I guess I just refuse to buy into it until Advent start. Oh well I guess if that makes me a grinch - at least until December.

So I have been tagged

2005-11-16T20:12:00.000-08:00

I'm not sure that I have been knitting long enough to have good answers, but I will try.

What is your all time favorite yarn to knit with? I am currently knitting with a worsted weight 100% wool from Knit Picks, and I have to say it feels so soft while I knit:) But I am happy with anything.

The worst thing you've ever knit? I actually like everything I have knit. I did make 1 sweater though that I don't think is quite long enough, but I'm going to make it again and make it a bit longer.

Most valuable knitting technique? Well, I hate weaving in ends, and in fact have 2 projects sitting around that just have weaving or joining left. So when joining yarn, knitting with both ends so that I don't have to do as much weaving in of ends makes me happy.

Your most favorite knit pattern (maybe you don't like knitting it, though it was fun to knit) I would have to say my current WIP. It is my first lace pattern and is just making such a cool pattern as I am going along.

Best knit book or magazine? I don't have a favorite magazine, but I recently ordered Interweave Knits and am looking forward to it. I will always love Stich N' Bitch because it is how I learned.

Favorite Book? Same as above.

Your favorite knitwear designer? I defintely don't know enough to have one.

Your favorite knit blogs? The only one I read with any regularity is Wendy Knits.

The knit item you wear the most (and possibly a picture of it)? That would most defintely be my mohair pink sweater. A picture can be found in my archives from early this year.

Who should be tagged next? How about Lindsay and Cecily. Are you part of Knitting Episcopalians?

Latest Happenings

2005-11-01T07:14:00.000-08:00

So things have been pretty good lately. I just found out that I passed my exam making it 8 passed exams. For my 7th exam I was sure for days that I hadn't passed, but I really had. I think I was driving my mom and Chris nuts because I was so upset - but it worked out.
I have almost finally finished my first knitting project since I have been in school. All that is left is weaving in the ends. I made the Drop Twist shawl from Knit Picks. I did start my next project because I really didn't feel like weaving in the ends, so I really just need to sit down and do it. I started my first lace project which is a scarf - I thought it was a good way to try making a lace pattern. Its coming along well - and I am making more time for my knitting because besides my running, its one of the few things I can do by myself to calm down. Hopefully I will weave in the ends and can post a picture of it.
This Saturday is the physicals event at my mom's school - so trying to coordinate for that has certainly kept me busy and my inbox full. I am excited that it is going to happen though.
Also Sunday, I went to my first ever All Hallow's Eve service. It was a neat experience and I am really glad I went. Before the service, we had food, fellowship and pumpkin carving :). Next year, e are hoping to extend the festivities to the community and maybe even have our own pumpkin patch. We had a fire pit going and candles lining the pathway. It was great.
Besides that, I am just trying to keep up with all the school work and keep running and just stay afloat. My next race is November 20th and is a 10K. Just building up for a half marathon hopefully in March, then the Chicago marathon in year. It is going well though. It is hard to believe that we are quickly approaching the holiday season - probably my favorite time of year.

Ive actually been doing some good

2005-10-15T05:02:00.000-07:00

I feel like lately, I have been consumed with me - my schoolwork, my frustrations, my problems, but I am happy to say that in the midst of this that I have been able to do things for other people besides just donating money - which I have very little of at the moment. Yesterday, I had a teleconference with my mom (who is the principle of a school in a low income neighborhood), my advisor, and a really nice physician, to set a date for a health fair of sorts where we are going to get free physicals done for a bunch of people in my mom's neighborhood. It all started with a conversation with my advisor and I am just so excited that it is really going to happen. It is neat to finally feel like this profession that I am working so hard to become part of is finally going to let me of some real help to people.

THANK YOU SO MUCH TO NICOLE - Nicole informed me of how I could stop the ads in my comments section without just turning them off.

Batting 1,000

2005-10-04T11:51:00.000-07:00

Well it's official, I have passed all of my first round of exams (4 question exams, 1 lab exam) and I am thrilled. I even passed all of them with a bit of room. My next round starts again next Monday, but I am just happy that I made it through the first set. Also, I ran in the Race for the Cure on Saturday and did much better than I expected. I had a goal of 34 minutes, with a stretch of 32 minutes, but ran in just over 29 minutes. Especially after not being the best about running because of my exam schedule, I was excited. Thank you to everyone who donated to the Komen Foundation in my fundraising page!!! My next race is called the Turkey Trot and I am moving up from a 5K to a 10K. The goal is to be able to run a half marathon with Chris in March, either in Indiana or Little Rock. Then, the year goal is to train for the Chicago Marathon in 2006 - a mightly lofty goal for a girl who could barely run a mile at the beginning of the summer. But I enjoy the training. I'm not sure I really enjoy the act of running, but I like the time to clear my head and train with someone for something specific. There is a lot going on - I seem to barely have time for life - but that is the life of a med student I am told. Hopefully I can keep it all up :)

Another Pass

2005-09-20T11:55:00.000-07:00

I passed my 2nd exam - hopefully I can keep it up. After Monday, my anatomy exam will be over and I can come up for air. Almost there!!!

Passed my 1st Exam

2005-09-15T11:56:00.000-07:00

Well I think that says it all. I've also taken a second and have 2 more in the next weeks. Hopefully I will get through :)

Running 2 5K's

2005-08-30T09:12:00.000-07:00

I am doing my first 5K's ever! (It was big accomplishment this summer that I am now able to run more than a mile without stopping.) Both of these races are for causes that raise money for issues that important to me and to my family - Education and Breast Cancer. The first race is for the United Negro College Fund the second the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, If you are at all able, I would greatly appreciate a contribution. Even $5 will mean the world to me. I only have goals of $100 per race because they are so soon, and because I hate asking for money. This racing thing is something that I am planning to add regularly, so please feel free to pick and choose causes that are dear to you. Donations for both of these races are tax-decutible.
As a side note, fundraising is not a requirement, this is just something additional that I am choosing to do. If you know of anyone who might be willing to donate, please pass this information along.

Want to donate or help? Simply go to the link below:

United Negro College Fund Chicago 22nd Annual Walk-Run-Bike-Skate-a-thon

Chicago Race for the Cure (Komen)

Bronchitis

2005-08-26T13:17:00.000-07:00

So I am currently stuck in bed ith bronchitis. Additionally, the cough medicin I was give has codeine, so I am not allowed to drive. Fun time huh? Of course, this is all occuring during my second real week of medical school so I already feel behind. Unfortunately I think it means much of this weekend will be spent studying. It is really sad because I was hoping to spend a nice weekend with Chris. Also, I haven't been able to run this week, so I have lost some training time. Chris still reassures me that I should be ok by our Sept 10th race. Well, the codeine is starting to kick in. Perhaps I will write later.....

Some countdowns over......some still going

2005-08-09T19:36:00.000-07:00

So its been a while since I have posted, but I feel that it is to be expected with all of those things I had as countdowns. Here is an update on those.....
My visit to Little Rock was good. There was a party in Chris's honor hosted by his coworkers as a going away party. It was nice to finally put some faces with names and stories that I have heard. Also, its nice when people recognize that you were part of the team and are leaving (at least in my oppinion.)
My birthday was uneventful. My mom, Sofi, and I went to an amazing restaurant that my mom and I had been to a few times before. It was amazing. They were really nice and actually gave us free tiramisu since it was my birthday - something you do often see restaurants do anymore. We also had 2 other desserts after appetizers, salad and entress, so we all had to be rolled out of there.
Camp being over is awfully sad for me. I really enjoyed it and have never felt so appreciated at any job as at that one. I will still be doing birthday parties so I will still get to vist Emily Oaks.
Chris moved his stuff. It seems to have gone well. Our parents met too which I also think went well.
Started Med School Orientation this week. Lets just say I have been spoiled by the relatively smooth workings of private school and have had my first frustrations with bureacracy. Also, the whole getting to know 200+ people in 4 days doesn't really float my boat. So I will just do what I need to do while being somewhat social and productive. I figure I will have the next few years to get to know my class.

I guess all that is left on my countdown is the white coat ceremony on Saturday and the beginning of classes on Monday. Its hard to believe that so much has happended in the past month. On a sad note - not as much knitting has occured as I would have liked :(. But I did some today and hope to do a little bit - even if just 30 minutes every day. I did get some money for yarn for my birthday from my mom and it arrived yesterday. I can't wait to finish my bathing suit so that I can start!!!

And the Countdowns Begin

2005-07-18T18:56:00.000-07:00

So recently, I have become increasingly aware that in just a few weeks, I am about to go through some major changes. Here are all of the countdowns...
11 days until I visit Little Rock - which also happens to be Chris's last real weekend in Little Rock
14 days until my birthday - not that this is a big birthday by any means, but probably worth mentioning nonetheless
18 days until my last day of camp - 19 until camp clean up - This is very sad for two reasons 1) I absolutely love working at camp - the kids, the staff, the environment - I LOVE it 2)This is the last real income I have until next summer and that is just kind of odd to me
19 days until Chris moves his stuff to Chicago
22 days until I start medical school orientation - enough implied I believe
26 days until my white coat ceremony - I think my family is more excited about this one then I am (I think I will be more excited about when I actually have M.D. behind my name)
28 days until I start classes and the stress really begins

So with all of this looming ahead, I keep getting asked if I am excited or nervous. My best answer is neither. I can honestly say none of it really feels real. (With the exception of Chris moving - I am ecstatic about that). I think some of it has to do with the fact that I haven't signed my loan papers yet and officially gone in to debt yet. Chris also had a great observation and insight as well. I have already done my big move. I am not getting ready to pack up and move to a new state like I was with undergrad. I already know the city, my family is near by, and I am already settled in my condo. On my long runs, I have gone by the campus to get a better feel for where things are so that I am not lost. I didn't get to do anything but my initial college vist for Washington University. Also playing into the mix is that I litterally have 3 days between when I stop working and when school starts. There isn't a big lull of time for me to process - but I think that I already did that in May when I moved to Chicago. The really cool thing about all of this is that in a very un-Tina-esk way, I don't feel totally stressed out about it all. It is all just happening and it is kind of how things are. If you know me well, you know that I have a huge tendency to obsess about everything and let stress really get to me. But probably for the first time ever in life, things just feel to be falling into place without me controlling them. Lately everything just seems to be going well. Sure there have been some bumps along the road, but I feel like I am getting closer to achieving my ultimate life/career goals, and that is a really neat feeling.

Much less serious, this weekend, I was among the throngs of people in line Friday evening/Saturday morning to purchase Harry Potter. Now, I really like the series, but I don't believe that I belonged there that night. I went so that I would have my book on Saturday because I was going to be stuck in Skokie for long enough to read, but not really come home or hang out with anyone. Anyhow, I am not part of the Harry Potter cult, I am just an avid reader, and think it is a great series. Also, I am only about 1/3 of the way through the book. My mom on the other hand is already done, and now listening to it on tape, and may be reading it again later in the week. I picked up the stickers and glasses and poster for her benefit :)

As far as knitting goes, I have finished the front of the top of the swimming suit with the exception of weaving in the ends. My goal is to have to back of the top finished by Sunday and the suit finished by my birthday because I would like to actually get use of it this summer.

Okay, thats it for now, a bit of reading a knitting before bed

Happy 4th of July

2005-07-04T19:24:00.000-07:00

So it is the evening of the 4th of July, and its really sad, but its only 9:30 and I am exhausted. The sad thing is that there are fireworks going off outside my window and I might not get to sleep because it is so loud. I'm currently drinking hot milk, so that might help me fall asleep soon.
I have been proud this week because it was pretty productive. I finally hung my mirror and drying rack in my bathroom, put together 2 of 3 bookcases for my basement, replaced a flood light outside my front door, and cleaned my entire apartment. In addition to all of this, I went our for a 5 mile run - my farthest thus far. I think I am well on my way to being ready to run a 5K this fall with Chris. It has also been a productive knitting week. I finished two pillow cases, which means I only have 1 left, made a face cloth - great for exfoliation I might add - and started my swim suit. I am really excited about the swim suite and hope I can finish it before my birthday - kind of a birthday present to myself. The swimsuit top can also double as a regular top and I think will look really cute for going out.
I also had fun this weekend, which isn't necessarily a regular thing because I have spent so much time trying to get the condo together. My friend Beth had her graduation party on Saturday, and I hadn't seen her in I think a couple of years. It was great to see her. She is moving nearby, so I am looking forward to hanging out with her during the year. After that, my friend Talia had a party. Of course it was on the other side of the world, but it is always great to hang out with Talia. Today I went to my mom's and we made some great food to take to the bbq we were going to. My mom works closely with a priest and they are pretty good friends, so he invited us to the church where they have a rooftop patio. It was nice - good food, and good conversation. It was also interesting to see the fireworks coming up from the street. Members of the community gather in the center of each block and try to outdo the other blocks. It was most interesting that this was still all being caried out even though it was raining. As I was leaving, the amount of fireworks was only increasing. Amazing that there are so many fireworks when they are illegal in the city - maybe even the state.
Ok, I'm exhausted, more another day.

Acronym

2005-07-04T19:15:00.000-07:00

Found this on Emily's blog......

S	Shiny
A	Altruistic
N	Naughty
T	Tempting
I	Intense
N	Natural
A	Awkward

Name Acronym Generator
From Go-Quiz.com

Been So Long

2005-06-25T17:51:00.000-07:00

So it has been a while since my last post, and I highly doubt that I could even begin to consider my last post a true post, since it was just a survey. But anything, a lot has happened which has kept me busy.
Las Vegas -
I went to Las Vegas for a family friend's 21st birthday. We kind of grew up together and it's weird to realize that we are all growing/grown up. Vegas is Vegas and is always interesting. Unfortunately, as soon as I got back, I started work the very next morning. Which brings me to:
Work -
I am spending my summer as a camp counselor in Skokie at Emily Oaks Nature Center. I absolutely love it and could barely be happier. My first week was just a rules and procedure week and getting to know the staff. I think its a great group of people and a great place. The only thing is that there are snakes at Emily Oaks, which I can't stand. So hopefully, I won't come across any this summer. I am also leading some birthday parties there on the weekend for extra hours which will help out with spending money during the year. We just finished our second week with kids, so I have 2 more weeks with this group, then 4 weeks with a new group a kids. Immediately after that, I start orientation for school.
School -
I found out yesterday that I was accepted for a brand new curriculum dedicated to urban medicine. I don't know a whole lot about it, but I am excited nonetheless. I should find out more later this summer, but its nice to know that I am in a smaller group which I hope will help me not get lost in the bureaucracy of a public university which I have yet to experience. I have also received a scholarship which not only helps with my debt, but I feel will also help me with this not getting lost thing. Also, last night I actually registered for classes. I don't get to choose my own classes, but we are asked to register before orientation. Anyhow, it still doesn't feel real. I think it will feel real once I finally sign my loan papers.
Church -
I think that I have found a new church home. It is Church of the Epiphany. It is interesting because there isn't a Vestry, but a Bishop's committee. Also, there isn't a rector, but a Priest-Developer. It is a community going through restoration, both of the building and of the congregation. It is a mixed congregation, which is what I was looking for, and is only 5 minutes away by car, if that, which is a bonus. So far I feel welcomed by the community and am looking forward to continuing to grow there.
Chris -
Chris and I have a better idea of when he is moving now and I can't wait. It will be wonderful to be in the same place again after almost two years of being long distance! Can't wait until he comes!!
Knitting -
Well there hasn't been much of that lately. I have though finished a bathmat which turned out better than expected. I still need to finish 3 decorator pillows before I can start my next projects. There are a couple I have in mind including a swimsuit, a felted computer bag, a belt, a going out top, and a fun scarf. Okay, off to knit now:)

Tag

2005-06-12T19:30:00.000-07:00

Mike tagged me...........so here goes....

How Many Books Do You Own? Not quite sure....I've become a big fan of the library, I donate, trade, and resell books, even though I read a bunch, I would probably say only about 50.

What is the last book you bought? 3o minute meals - a cookbook

What is the last book you read? I'm hoping to finish Anthony and Cleopatra this evening.

Name 5 Books that mean a lot to you. Following Mike's lead, I'm going to assume the Bible and the Book of Common Prayer not to be included in the list.....

1. A Child Called It
2. The Five People You Meet in Heaven
3. Don't Sweat the Small Things, and they are All Small Things
4. Traback Family Recipes (family made)
5. Matilda

Now "tag" five individuals to provide their own lists. Hmmmm.. do 5 people read this?? I only know 2 besides Mike for sure Chris and Emily. Just found out a 3rd, so tag to Cecily too!

My So Called Life

2005-05-22T09:34:00.000-07:00

So last night, I was flipping through the channels trying to find something on Saturday night tv. I stumbled across this stations that I've never heard of before - the-n.com and they were playing 6 hours of My So Called Life - the great show that only had 1 season. It is defintely to bad that the show didn't continue. Would have loved to see what else could have happened with Angela and Jordan. The best thing about coming across is show though, was that it made it okay that high school wasn't always easy - and the best time of your life. High School definitely wasn't the best time of my life - and if it was, that would just suck. But anyhow, things have only gotten better since high school - maybe not easier, but better nonetheless. Anyhow, it seems that they play the show at an ungodly early hour, so for the week I will be recording it on my DVR while I sleep so that I can rewatch ana old high shcool show.
Totally unrelated, things are coming together in my condo. Some of my curtains are finally up. This was especially important in my bedroom. My bedroom window faces east, and even though I have blind, I have been woken up with the rising sun every morning. Usually I have been able to go back to sleep, but still nobody likes to wake up before their ready. I now have cuains in my room so this wasn't a concern this morning. I'm getting to the point though that all that is mainly left are pictures and knick knacks, but I don't know where to put them yet. Hopefully I will ind a place soon because I am ready to have all the boxes out of my condo - they take up too much space. Plus, I'm just anal and would like everything to have its place.
I also can't wait for things to be done so that I can start really knitting again. Currently I am knitting decorator pillows and crocheting an afghan. There are so many other projects that I want to work on though and can't wait to start. I might start going to the Chicago Stich N' Bitch this weekedn so that I can start having some realy dedicated time to relaxing and getting projects done. Okay, so my life is kinda boring right now, but I'll write again if anything exciting happens.

Enjoying the View

2005-05-13T13:22:00.000-07:00

So I am currently pretty much moved in, and pretty much set up but not completely. I still have a couple of big projects left - some ceramic tile, my drapes, etc, then some smaller projects - taking winter clothes to the basement and hanging and placing phots. By deadline is basically June 1, since I am going to Vegas the next day and then start work the following Monday.
Even though I still think things are much more difficult than they should be, I have finally started to enjoy the view from my apartment. From all of my East facing windows, which are in my living room, bedroom, and one at the top of the stairs when you enter the condo, I have a partial view of the Chicago skyline. It is absolutely gorgeous. It is really neat to be able to see the Sears tower while I am laying in bed. So, I guess to sum that up, even though I am still feeling a bit of the stress, I am starting to truly enjoy my new home.
This weekend I am going with Chris to his niece's high school graduation. I just finished making a bunch of cookies for her graduation party. I also went to the office with Chris and met some of the important people. It is nice to put a face with the name when I hear stories. Okay, should get ready to head to Memphis.

In Chicago

2005-05-06T19:13:00.000-07:00

So I have made it to Chicago. I am staying in my condo, though it isn't completely set up yet. Unfortunately, nothing has been easy. My move was a disaster and if at all possible, I am absolutely never using a moving company if I can help it. Also, as a word of advice to anyone moving, if you do move with a company, have extra boxes, bubble wrap and paper on hand so that you don't get royally screwed as I did. Also, have absolutely everything that could possibly go wrong in writing, otherwise it will.
So I am trying to change my cell phone number, and my carrier wants to completely change the contract and is also putting me through the wringer. Their customer service totally sucks. Then, I ordered a countertop dishwasher, which arrived today, and its too big. So now I have to return that or move my cabinets. I think I rather just return it. Also, I cooked dinner for the first time today and the smoke alarm went off and I couldn't get it to stop. Hopefully everything will start working and I will stop stressing. All in all, its still been a difficult week, though I thought it was going to get better, but I still have hope next week will be better, and maybe I will actually call some of my friends in Chicago and have fun.
So on the schedule for the upcoming week:
Possible jury duty on Monday
Going to Little Rock on Thursday so that I can go with Chris to his niece's graduation in Memphis.
So things aren't all bad -
No more difficult roommate,
My own place,
I'm closer to my mom,
My mom bought me an LCD tv,
I've been catching up on some much needed sleep
and there are a bunch of nice restaurants and bars right around my condo.
All in all, even though I am totally frustrated today, things are looking good.
If you are in Chicago, give me a call!

I am Moving!!

2005-04-29T06:37:00.000-07:00

So the big day is finally arrived......or will arrive tomorrow. I am pretty much packed, but can't believe how much stuff I actually have. Especially after I have thrown out so much. I lose my internet later this morning, so I wanted to take advantage of my last post for a while. I will be without intenet until at least Monday, and then I will setting up my condo, so posting will probably be not much until I am a bit set up in my new place.
I possibly have jury duty next week. It is possibly because I am an alternate, and won't know if I have to go until the night before. I think it is funny that I have been pulled in Chicago and not in St. Louis since I have only voted in St. Louis. But then again, its by registration and not actual voting, but I still think its odd.
Okay, have to actually pack, so hopefully I will post early in the week.
Oh by the way - finished knitting projects - a purse and cell phone holder for my mom for mother's day. They are adorable.
OTN - pillow case for my decorator pillows - totally obnoxious to knit, but really neat looking.

Chris and I - Opening Weekend

2005-04-21T19:34:00.000-07:00

DCP_0032
Originally uploaded by sjgrant.

Its Been A While

2005-04-21T19:01:00.000-07:00

So its been a while since I have actually published anything at all, but I really have been busy. So in the past two weeks, I officially now have a condo to call my very own. Well actually, my mom owns it, but its for me, so I have a condo. Last weekend, I drove home after my mom closed and started moving stuff in. We also made a huge debt in my wallet at Ikea buying a bunch of things that I needed. Somehow though, we managed to get it all to fit in my little Elantra with just two shelves up on the roof. Don't think I could ever manage it again though. Next weekend is the official move to Chicago which has me feeling excited, scared, stressed, and a bunch of other emotions that I can't even put my finger on. My mom is being super cute about it all though and extremely helpful.
On a sad note, I found out that I didn't get the full scholarship that I was hoping for. I applied for another one too, so there is still some hope, but I am starting to try to figure out other ways to pay for medical school. Putting it all in prospective though, I don't have any undergraduate loans, so I could already be in debt, but I'm not. I am applying for some small schoalrships now, so hopefully that ill defray some of the debt.
Today was my last day at the dialysis center and I was surprised with a cake. Everyone at work has been super sweet and I am going to miss a lot of them.
I finished knitting my mother a purse for Mother's Day this morning. She knows about the purse, but I have also decided to surpise her with cell phone case. Hopfully she will like it. She saw the purse that I had made for myself and like that one, so I am assuming she will like it.
Two weekends ago, Chris and I went to opening weekendat Busch Stadium for the stadium's final season. We are going again this weekend, hopefully they will win this time and improve their home record.
In addition to my packing, I have made 2 sets of curtains and a tablecloth for my condo. I still need to make 6 sets of curtains and some pillows. I have a whole month before I start my summer job though, so I don't expect to finish that all before I move. I also have a bunch of knitting projects waiting to be started, but those aren't my first priority, but I certainly can't wait to start them. Okay thats all for now. I must get back to packing, but postings will probably become regular during May.

A Happy Holy Week

2005-03-28T14:01:00.000-08:00

Although last week was busy and I didn't get a whole lot of time to sleep, I had a great Holy Week. Last Sunday, Palm/Passion Sunday, Mike gave the sermon, which was wonderful because I haven't heard him give a sermon in over a year while he was on his sabbatical. I have always liked Mike's sermons. Sunday was also my 3rd anniversary with Chris, and we had a nice time the night before. Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, though not necessarily busy were nevertheless productive. I was able to get a good amount of weeding done. Also I did get a rewards credit card which is quite exciting since I am going to have to be buying things for my new condo and it is always cool to get something for nothing (as long as I have a zero balance at the end of every month). Thursday I met with Dr. Miller and am starting to write another abstract for publication/entering into a poster presentation. It is always nice to have something truly productive to work on. Also, it is great experience now and can be helpful for getting a good residency. (Yes I realize that I have yet to actually start my first year of school and I am worried about a residency.) After meeting with Dr. Miller, I went to the Maundy Thursday service at Holy Communion. It was a good service and I had a great opportunity to spend time with people that I wouldn't ordinarily spend time with. Holy Communion is definitely a place that I will miss when I move to Chicago. It has been a wonderful community for me to be a part of.

Good Friday, I went to Good Friday services, but also got a lot of weeding done. I would actually venture to say that I am almost done with the weeding process and purely have packing left. I also got a bunch of my books that I don't need anymore up on half.com, so hopefully someone will buy them. Saturday, after working, I went and met the newest members of my pledge-family, my great-granddaughters. They seem to be great girls. I also got to see Amee and Blythe who I haven't really gotten to talk to in a while. Saturday evening I babysat Ellie, maybe for the last time, but it was wonderful to see her. She still needs to grow a whole lot, but she seems to be getting more help now. Once again, I also did more weeding and packing. Also interestingly, on Saturday, I wore my pink sweater that I made and got a bunch of compliments. That was definitely a bit of a confidence boost.

Then yesterday, Easter Sunday, I went to morning services at Holy Communion, then went to an ECM brunch at Rockwell House. This was probably my last event with ECM which is kind of a weird thought. After that, I went to dinner with Lindsay at the Stansbery home. It was a great experience and I was so thankful to be included in their Easter Dinner. After dinner, Marylen went me go through her yarn stash that she is giving away before she moves. I felt like I was in a yarn store/knitter's heaven. I found a whole bunch of great yarn that I think I can make 4-5 projects out of. It definitely pulled me out of the depressing thought that I wasn't going to purchase any yarn for a while because I have to save money. Now I know that I don't have to and won't run out of projects. (At the rate I have been knitting, running out of projects was definitely becoming a concern.) After that, Lindsay and I hung out and just caught up which was great because she is another person that though I have seen her recently, we just haven't really gotten a chance to catch up with each other.

All in all I would say it was a good week. There were some frustrations in there too....a scholarship scare (which I think has been averted), roommate frustrations as always, serious finishing issues with my pink sweater (that has finally been completed though), and frustrations about the Schiavo case and serious thoughts about drawing up my own living will though I am only 21 (but I am happy with the stance the courts have taken). Since I think my scholarship scare was adverted today, it looks like the beginning of another week with a trip to Ikea at the end!

Sweater2

2005-03-24T20:45:00.000-08:00

Sweater2
Originally uploaded by sjgrant.

This is my second sweater. I think it is a more spring sweater, and I definitely like this one better than the first, but I haven't tried it on yet, so hopefully it will fit.

Purse1

2005-03-24T20:44:00.000-08:00

Purse1
Originally uploaded by sjgrant.

This was my second knitting project. At first I didn't like it, but it is most definitely growing on me.

Sweater1

2005-03-24T20:43:00.000-08:00

Sweater1
Originally uploaded by sjgrant.

This was my first big knitting pattern - yes I know, a sweater is a big project, but I can actually wear it :)

ChrisandTina3years

2005-03-24T20:16:00.000-08:00

ChrisandTina3years
Originally uploaded by sjgrant.

Here is Chris and I at the Melting Pot for our anniversary dinner. I think we make a cute couple:)

Really.......I've been productive

2005-03-22T11:05:00.000-08:00

So I know its been a while since I've written, but a whole lot has been going on. Here is an update in my life since March 10th.....

Chris visited - This past weekend, Chris was in town for our 3rd anniversary. I can't believe its been 3 years. We were together for most of my college life. Kind of wierd when I think about it. We had a good time hanging out on Saturday and went to dinner at Melting Pot - we hadn't been there in a while. The only bad thing was I waited too long to make our reservations, and we didn't have reservations until 9, then they were running late. We didn't get home untill 12 - which is extremely late now by our standards since we act like 70 year olds when it comes to bed times. It was a great weekend.

Moving - my moving seems to become more and more official every day. I have complete all the forms required before registration for UIC in July - a big weight off my shoulders. I have actually hired movers and placed a deposit. I almost died when I found out the price - but its not like I have a truck handy or an entourage thats going to move me - so I guess in the long run its worth it. I bought a new shower head and a shower curtain to make my bathroom a bit more me. I have a job interview for the summer - so cross your fingers. And I have started making my plans for leaving work here in St. Louis. I have also canceled my cable and scheduled the disconnection and gotten prices for when cable/phone/internet in Chicago. Now that I have an income possibility, I feel much better. All financials are in order for the actual condo on my mom's side - so thats good.

Knitting - my 2nd sweater is almost done - though I almost died last night. I only had one seam left to sew last night when I realized that on the front of the sweater, in the middle of the piece I had reversed the right and wrong side. So I had to unsew all the pieces (I almost went blind), unknit part of the piece and reknit it correctly. Tonight, I am hoping to finish sweing the pieces back together again. But, it is a pretty sweater, I must say and when I had started sewing it before, it looked like the pieces all matched up - so thats good. Perhaps I will be modeling that sweater when it warms up a bit.

My Computer - my lovely little ibook didn't want to update recently, and I couldn't figure out what was wrong. But the helpful people at Apple had published information on my exact problem, with everything I needed to do, so last night I followed the instructions and updated my computer with all of the updates from the past year. Definitely have a much smoother computer now. :) :) I am currently much happier about that. I thought I had to buy a new operating system, but now I am assured that I only have to if I want to.

Thats about it for now......perhaps if I get time soon I will be able to write about something I think is really important.

Woo Hoo for the Aspirin Study

2005-03-10T15:26:00.000-08:00

This week, I want to give kudos to the medical community for doing the aspirin study for women. I am so excited that this study was done acknowledging the fact that women aren't just smaller versions of men. Hopefully women will head to their doctors' offices and have that conversation about what changes they need to make in order to take care of themselves.
Here is a link to the NPR story.
Recap of the story:
Aspirin regimens don't help middle age women reduce risk of heart attacks, but it does help reduce strokes. Aspirin does help older women reduce risk of heart attacks. Doctor should be consulted before starting aspirin regimen.

Much Accomplished

2005-03-08T16:21:00.001-08:00

I haven't written for a while, but I have been quite a busy girl. In the last two weeks, many exciting things have occured. Here is a brief rundown with some elaboration to follow........

1) I drove to Chicago and saw what might soon become my condo and drove back to St. Louis.
2) I got really, really sick..............though not contagious (I don't think)
3) I applied for a bunch of jobs in Chicago - hopefully one will pan out.
4) I met a primate - Archbishop Ndungane. Primate of South Africa.
5) I had dinner with Archbishop Ndungane.
6) My little dog died..........he was like 16 years old.
7) I got even sicker, but went to the doctor and got antibiotics.
8) I bought more yarn to the dismay of my bank account
9) Chris visited :)
10) I finished knitting my purse.
11) I started knitting another sweater with my new fabulous yarn.
12) I have slowly started packing for my move to Chicago.

Condo -
So I am really excited about the condo. I am just sad that the cost of living in Chicago is so expensive. It is small, but it will be a great starter place and will likely be a great investment. I have spent time researching appliances and picking out colors. If things go through, I'll be fabric shopping this weekend to make curtains for the absolutely gorgeous windows.

Sick -
Nothing really to write home about. It is the first time I have truly been sick in a while though. My doctor thinks it was the kittens at home. Its hard to be allergic to cats when I love them so much. Especially when they like to cuddle.

Jobs -
No news yet, but I am optimistic. If worst comes to worst, when I get back to Chicago I will apply for waitressing jobs. I can't do that now because you have to apply in person.

Primate -
Meeting Archbishop Ndungane was totally amazing. I went to a presentation that he and Mike Kinman gave and then had dinner with him the following evening. It was truly amazing to talk to him. He is funny and modest and from the brief interactions I had with him a truly wonderful person. He doesn't like Chicago accents though, which I found out before I actually began speaking with him. He mainly spoke about the problems with A.I.D.S in South Africa and about the Millenial Goals. For more information about those, see Mike's blog and also the One petition on the side of my blog. Also, with everything going on in the Anglican community, it was interesting to hear his oppinion of how the recent primate's meeting. Here is a picture of Lindsay, the Archbishop, and me.

My Dog -
Not much to say here. He was an important part of the family, but he was old and it was his time. The worst part was that this was the last animal my aunt knew, so it was hard seeing him go.

Chris -
Since I was sick, and Chris had a really long few past weeks, we were both tired and didn't do a whole lot. We did go see Hitch, which was really cute and then ate at Stir Crazy - one of our favorite restaurants.

Knitting -
I bought my new yarn at Knitourious. It was cute little store and they were really helpful letting me check my gauge in the store. The yarn is beautiful, but I wasn't expecting to spend so much. With moving, it is probably going to have to be my last yarn purchase for a while. I have decided to do oddball projects with my leftover yarn until its gone and I absolutely have to buy more. I didn't have to buy new needles though, so that was a plus. My purse is growing on me, but isn't really what I expected. I have carried it the past two days and it is holding up - so thats a good sign. The new sweater is moving along quickly - probably too quickly. I should probably be doing more packing/sleeping then knitting, but its always hard to stop.

Packing -
It is looking never ending. I am making a trip to Chicago the week after Easter, so I am hoping to take a bunch then, so that it will be less to deal with during April.

Well, thats it. Maybe I'll have time to write something actually meaningful later in the week. :)

Yet Another Busy Week

2005-02-22T09:52:00.000-08:00

So it pretty much just seems that the rest of my days in St. Louis are going to be extremely busy. Unless I find a job in Chicago for the summer, that is going to drastically change once I move. Hopefully I will find one though. The search has just begun. Interesting point about jobs in Chicago - it is possible to make $10-$11 an hour to walk dogs for a dog sitting service. What can I say? Thats more than I make now. They are only part time, but that and maybe another part time job could have me set for the summer.

On Friday, my mom put money down on a condo in Chicago, so I am making the drive home this weekend to take a look at it. This however means that I can't work on Saturday and was planning to, so I have to make up my hours yesterday and today. It basically just makes for extremely long days. Also, I have all of my regularly planned activities of work and the lenten book group. But also on Thursday evening, I am running a simulation called In Her Shoes which is a domestic violence simulation. I think it is an amazing simulation, but it is just one more thing to add to my already busy schedule of the week. Hopefully my friend Lindsay will be coming with me and my drive won't be so bad because I won't have to do it by myself. Last weekend I just drove to and from Little Rock, so basically I am spending a lot of time bonding with my car recently.

I am kind of sad to be going to Chicago this weekend for two reasons. One, I can't take my pledge daughter out for drinks like I was planning - she recently turned 21. And Debbie Stoller is coming to St. Louis and will be having an event at Knitourious promoting her new book, Stitch N' Bitch Nation. I have her first book and love it, so would have loved to meet her.

Saturday, Chris and I had lobster for dinner. The most interesting part of it was that we bought live lobster and I cooked it. Definitely an experience. It was an expensive experience, so not something we can do all the time. But it is defintely something I hope to repeat again for another special occasion.

I finished my sweater last week, so I am extremely excited. Even more exciting, I washed and dryed it last night (acrylic yarn) and it held up. So that was amazing. My new project is a purse which I am making a very pretty purple with yarn that I actually found on sale. Its chugging along slowly, but I have been busy and haven't had a whole lot of knitting time since Thursday night when I started. Maybe while the kids are sleeping this week I will get a bit of progress.

There are news stories bothering me lately - but I will comment on them later on when I have more time. Hopefully that will be later today. I can smell lunch now though, so I think that it is time to eat :).

A Case of the Mondays

2005-02-14T14:30:00.000-08:00

So I was planning to post on Friday, but that never really happened. I'm not quite sure why I never got around to it except that I was somewhat busy at work and then my flight to Chicago was delayed. As for other things that didn't happen last week, I didn't make it to either knitting group I was planning on attending because I was absolutely exhausted. I did however finish my final sleeve, so now all that remains it putting it together. That might have been completed by now, but brilliant me forgot to bring home a yarn needle or the correct size knitting needles. I will get started to tonight and will hopefully finish later in the week.

Having finally made a medical school decision, my mother and I went condo shopping on Saturday. All I can say is, 'Are studio aparments ever really worth more than $200,000 no matter what the location is?' I certainly don't think so. We did find some prospects though and hopefully they will pan out. Also, now that we know for sure, we can actually work with a real estate agent and find those non-public listings. Also, the x-factors of whether or not I will have a roommate or a scholarship are huge.

Yesterday, being my mother's birthday, we did what my mother loves to do. We went to the casino boats to play the nickel slots with her two good friends. We won!! Defintely a great birthday present for my mom and a great Valentine's present for us all. It took forever to get out there, but it was well worth it.

Today has most certainly been a case of the mondays. Last night I layed out my clothes to wear like a good girl so that today would be an easy morning. One of the kittens at my mom's decided it was his baby and carried away my socks to some unknown location. So you have my mother and I at 6 this morning searching for socks. My yarn got caught in the suitcase zipper so I couldn't zip the suitcase. That still needs to be untangled. Then, I was carrying my suitcase and purse down the stairs and tripped nearly killing myself and the dinning room table which has been in our family since before my mom was born. Then my flight was at 7:45 when I thought it was at 8, so I was running late. Then getting into the car I managed to hit my head on the door - still don't know how I managed that one. Then after rushing to my gate and actually making it on time, they made us sit on the plane for a good 30 minutes because the flight after mine was canceled. They wanted to wait for passengers to get there. I was and am a bit confused and frustrated about that one. Although nothing else has really happened to me, though it did to those I am close to, today really just felt like a Monday.

Well, Happy Valentine's Day to all. This isn't my favorite of holidays. I really don't think we need a day where you are supposed to be romantic with your significant other.......that should happen everyday, or whenever it is spontaneous. And we definitely don't need a day to remind those without significant others that many other people have them. I guess if it is a day for love, and you are celebrating love in all senses of the word thats one thing, but that isn't really the way we celebrate. Also, its just another thing to remind me that I can't be near Chris as often as we would like...............though that will hopefully be chaning late this year.

That's all. I should be leaving work soon and heading to my apartment for the first time today and then heading out again to babysit. I have another busy week ahead of me, though once again the reward at the end of the week is great. I get to see Chris and have a wonderful dinner with him. We are planning to make lobster.........if anyone has any side dish/cooking suggestions please let me know!

Busy Day - Busy Week

2005-02-07T11:59:00.000-08:00

Today I am going to exercise restraint and not complain about our fearless leader's decision to double to prescription co-pay that veterans have to pay in an effort to reduce the deficit. Perhaps he should raise taxes on those who can afford it because the tax cuts sure aren't helping the non-wealthy with all these additional costs, but I digress. If interested, here is the link for the article. Bush Budget Raises Drug Prices for Many Veterans.
But anyhow, I feel today for Eagles fans, especially Justin who were so hoping to win last night. I didn't watch the game, but I can only assume the sadness and frustration.
Currently, I am anxiously anticipating my site assignment for medical school, so I am hoping to have a final decision this week. Then comes all the moving preparations and searching for a place to live. Hopefully this will go as smoothly as possible, but there are sure to be a few kinks in the way since I don't know if I will be living with anyone and whether or not I am going to get my full scholarship for school (with a living stipend). Those are two big financial factors....but as my mom said to me on Saturday, things always seem to work out for me, so I am just going to hope for the best and try not to worry.
Lent is quickly approaching, and I have no clue what I am giving up. I really am having a hard time with this, so any suggestions are welcome. It is shaping up to be a very busy week, but I am headed home for my mom's birthday this weekend, so that should be fun. So in addition to my normal work schedule with an additional few hours, I am presenting tonight at RA training and returning my unneed yarn at Hobby Lobby, cooking for a Shrove Tuesday pancake dinner at Rockwell house tomorrow, Ash Wednesday services, and a meeting with my Rector on Wednesday, hopefully two knitting groups, one on Wed and one on Thursday, then flying home Friday night. Wish me luck getting through the week with a bit of sanity. Oh, and I have to figure out how to take meat out of my diet on Friday and replace it with fish.
Well I better get back to work.......hopefully I can write again on Friday.

Knitting Update

2005-02-05T13:54:00.000-08:00

I will write comments on my views in this world probably Monday, but today, I think I'll put in a knitting update. Earlier this week, I went to Hobby Lobby to by knitting supplies, and of course the yarn that was onsale was not the yarn I wanted, so I bought expensive yarn and went over my preconceived spending limit. (Yes, I know I got taken. My mom has already informed me.) But today, when browsing a knitters blog, I think I found a cheaper place to buy yarn so I might be making a return on Wednesday on my way to a knitting group since I have managed to save that receipt. But, my sweater is treking along. I have the front and back done, and about a half a sleeve. I need to finish the sleeve, plus make another one, make the neck, and sew seams. Then I will have finished my first huge project. I am pretty excited and might post a picture when its done. My goal is to have it done by the end of the month - that would make the project 2.5 months, although I periodically stop to work on a scarf that seems to be going nowhere, but will gorgeous with my camel coat. I don't think thats terrible considering my crazy schedule and being a very beginning knitter.
My next project is likely to be a purse, or a baby blanket. I would like to do the blanket, but no one I know is expecting, so at the time, it doesn't seem worthwhile. But we shall see. Any suggestions are welcome! Also, it looks like I am going to have a bunch of yarn left over from my sweater, and didn't save a receipt, so if anyone is interested in some Lion Brand Homespun sierra yarn, please let me know. Perhaps we can swap. If worse comes to worse, it would make a great scarf. Even though this week is going to be quite hectic because of Shrove Tuesday, Ash Wednesday, presenting at RA training and flying to Chicago, my hope this week is to actually attend a couple of Stich N' Bitch knitting group sessions. Looking forward to knitting with others. Also, I got a new knitting book this week so I am looking forward to having more resources for when I monumentally screw a project up, as I have done several times already with my sweater. Thats about it, I am just happy that I found another way to destress that can be done while watching movies.

Update from our Leader

2005-01-28T07:53:00.000-08:00

In the NYT today, there was an interesting article where our president addressed several issues. Click here to read the entire article.
But here are just a few highlights and my comments. The first part of the story is about international affairs, and I'm just nto going to comment because I'm still not completely sure how I feel. But I know how I feel about the domestic issues.

On domestic policy, Mr. Bush sidestepped a question on whether he agreed with a Florida law barring gay men and women from adopting children, saying he was not aware of it. But he said that while "children can receive love from gay couples," he believed that "studies have shown that the ideal is where a child is raised in a married family with a man and a woman."
So being the product of a 'non-traditional' family, and having turned out pretty well adjusted, at least in my oppinion a married family isn't always the best situation. And for many different reasons, for many families, whether the parents are gay, strait, transgendered, or anything else that just isn't reality of this country or society. That's not even getting into the whole discrimination against someone because of their sexuality.

He also suggested, three days after telling a March for Life rally that he could see the "glimmerings" of a nation in which every child is "welcomed in life and protected in law," that he was resigned for now to the continued availability of abortion and that his role would be to show moral leadership rather than advance specific anti-abortion initiatives.
This was actually encouraging to me. This is the best statement from him that I could hope for. I can only hope that it continues in this way for the rest of his term.

"He brushed aside questions about his relationship with the Congressional Black Caucus, which he met with on Wednesday and invited to the White House once in his first term. Asked why the group, now composed of 43 Democratic African-American members of Congress, had received only the single first-term invitation, he responded, "That's just the way it worked out."
For comments on this, I refer you to this entry of Chris Wheat's blog to say it all.

He laughed when asked about his admission on Wednesday, during a news conference, that he had not read the article in the periodical Foreign Affairs written in 2000 by Condoleezza Rice, his new secretary of state, laying out his foreign policy.
"I don't know what you think the world is like, but a lot of people don't just sit around reading Foreign Affairs," he said, chuckling. "I know this is shocking to you."
Maybe he shouldn't have to sit around reading Foreign Affairs, but perhaps he should know about articles his secretary of state has published.

Then there was more discussion about Iraq, and discussion about stem cell research, etc. But these were just some of the highlights.
All of the included quotes come from the NYT article:
Bush Says Iraqi Leaders Will Want U.S. Forces to Stay to Help
By ELISABETH BUMILLER, DAVID E. SANGER and RICHARD W. STEVENSON Published: January 28, 2005

Weight Loss

2005-01-27T16:04:00.000-08:00

So, I thought it had been determined long ago that people that expended more energy throughout the day were leaner than sedentary people who ate the same amount of calories. I didn't really think we needed a study to prove it. Study Ties Weight Loss to Restlessness and Fidgeting. The funny thing to me is I am most certainly not a restless or fidgety person and am relatively small, and I know plenty of people who are extremely fidgety and aren't. I guess its nice to understand obesity and all, but I'm not sure I really find this study so helpful. But still, the take home lesson remains, if you want to loose weight, expend more calories than you take in.

Hot Button Issues

2005-01-25T14:18:00.000-08:00

In case anyone couldn't already tell, I am one of the most liberal people. I am liberal on just about every spectrum that one could find. I think that is important to keep in mind for this post. Once again, here are a couple of NYT articles that have sparked my interest.

Score 1 for the democrats! I am extremely pleased about Hillary Clinton's latest statement on abortion. This is the first time that I feel that an appropriate stance was taken. For all of the voters who are concerned that Democrats aren't moral enough, I feel this was a step in the right direction to win back trust. I have always felt that abortion is such a hot topic issue because people who are pro-choice are often represented as pro-abortion and the choice part just gets glossed over. No one says that it isn't a hard choice, or that it is a particularly wonderful choice, but it is a CHOICE. But I digress, in an effort to establish a wider base within the party, I feel that this was most certainly a step in the right direction. Especially coming from someone as liberal as Senator Clinton. I am somewhat concerned on how the pro-life groups reacted. I don't think its wrong to find common ground and try to prevent pregnancy before it reaches that stage. I feel that is something that we can all come to a common ground on. And though some people might believe it to be so, being very committed to being pro-choice does not mean that you really want a high incidence of abortion. It just means that you feel that women should have a choice.

Let's just pit one really bad law against another really bad law! Backers of Gay Marriage Ban Use Social Security as Cudgel. The best response I have hear is GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR! I really don't believe that either of these are really in the best interest of the country. In fact, I think they are both to the detriment of society. I don't quite understand why the Arlington Group feel that a federal ban against same sex marriage is a good thing, or an immediate need. Until someone can convince me that it is completely unnatural or wrong, (which is highly unlikely if not impossible), then they can simply keep this law to themselves. I understand laws that might not make people happy because the acts are unsafe to the individual or to others, but really what harm does same-sex marriage have? If you don't believe it in, fine, don't believe it. Choose not accept your friends or family that enter into same-sex marriages and teach your children that you don't believe in it. But I really don't believe that history tells us that is wrong or unnatural, seeing as same-sex relationships have been going on for years. In fact, many people who have been admired have entered in same-sex relationships. One example is Cole Porter. (If you like musicals, see DeLovely with Ashley Judd and Kevin Kline for the story.) I realize that many states have already passed this law, and it should remain a state issue, but actually, I don't think it should be a government issue at all. We should just do away with marriage in the state and all enter civil unions. Marriage should only be the ceremony performed by the church, then it is up to each individual religious group to make up their minds about it. Why should a heterosexual couple entering a committed relationship in the eyes of the law be attributed to any special privledges over a same-sex couple. I don't believe that the government has the right to define marriage. Really, I only feel that religious groups do, and to be honest, I don't think that many of them are doing such a good job right now. So once again GRRRR.

Perhaps I will be able to have a more calm response in the near future, but both of these articles concern some of the few issues that I get really heated over.

Medicare Changes

2005-01-22T12:06:00.000-08:00

This article was in the NYT today. New Medicare Rules on Drugs Balance Access Against Costs I think I have mixed feelings on this one. It looks like everyone made compromises. It looks like it will be adequate coverage, I guess I am just concerned about the complexity of it all. I am just worried that patients are going to be so confused that they aren't going to get all of the benefits they deserve. Hopefully my concerns are just overworrying, but I highly doubt it. But, I have to say, at least there is prescription coverage.

Catching Up

2005-01-22T09:53:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, in order to go to the opening of a women's health art exhibit at Wash U and to visit a friend, I ended up running into a bunch of people that I hadn't seen in a long time.
First I went to the opening of Inside Out Loud and saw Jen, who was in my pledge class and I find to be a wonderful person. It is always good to see her. Then Shelly, who I haven't seen if forever. Shelly is one of those friends that I love to hang around with, go out with, talk to, just about anything. Our schedules just never seem to work out.
Then, Lauren and I went to dinner and ran into:
Sara and Ali, who I haven't seen since before they went abroad and
Shikha, who I haven't seen since summer, and is one of my friends much like Shelly.
Then at Lauren's, I saw Katie someone I haven't seen since I graduated.
I guess I shouldn't be surprised that when I start going to Wash U events and go to restaurants near the university that I am bound to run into people I haven't seen in a while. Most of the time I think that seeing people is a good thing. But there have definitely been days when I have run into people I definitely don't like to be around and wondered why they felt the need to continue small talk when I am obviously trying to enjoy quality time with someone else.

Fufilling the Dream

2005-01-21T14:45:00.000-08:00

On Wednesday, the discussion group reading "Fufilling the Dream" began. This is a book meant for discussion groups which is a use for the journey of dismantling racism from a Christian point of view. I am happy that people at Holy Communion began the discussion and are using a tool that was provided by the Dismantling Racism comittee. There ae some other people that I would have liked to have seen there, but I am sure that scheduling has much to do with it. There aren't many of us, but for such a serious discussion, I think that a small group is best. I think that it is a great group of people and I am looking forward to the continuing discussion.

Interesting Articles

2005-01-18T12:27:00.000-08:00

It is not very often that two completely unrelated articles in the New York Times are able to completely and utterly frustrate me in the same day.

First is "Harvard Cheif Defends His Talk on Women." It is ideas like this that still cause women to run into men who don't think we belong in math or science. I have to say, I am personally a complete contradiction to all of the theories that Laurence Summers has. This is a good reason why I might not want to attend medical school there.

Second is "Cut in Medicare Payments to Hospitals Is Advised." I would be nice if President Bush and his panel didn't think the best way to decrease our national deficit was to give less money to health care providers. This is an incentive for hospitals to run even more like a business than they already do. It will make it harder for our elderly and underinsured to receive quality healthcare. Perhaps for once politicians should think of the people that really need them instead of finding ways so that their cronies don't have to pay higher taxes.

Tsunami Relief

2005-01-15T09:00:00.000-08:00

I am troubled by many issues surrounding the tsunami relief. Here are just a few.

1) The lack of money that our president has pledged. This bothers me for several reasons, one being the cost in comparison to the amount of money being spent on the celebrations for his second inauguration. Is it really that necessary? This New York Times article addresses my quams with it pretty well. Additionally, I am not sure how accurate these figures are, but at my interview yesterday, my interviewer suggested that had $10 of tax dollars from each tax payer been donated, more money would have been pledged to aid the victims. Kind of startling to me. Finally, when I think about how much money is being spent in Iraq, a place in which I am not convinced we are doing any good, it simply devastates me that so much money is going to war and not aid. (As a side note, I do fully support our troops, I just don't believe they should be there) If we are truly doing the right thing, the moral thing, the Christian thing, or whatever spin you would like to put on it, does any of this really make sense? Perhaps someone can explain it to me.

2) The attack of celebrities who are supposedly gaining publicity by holding fundraisers. This MSNBC story gives a bit of the background. Although O'Reilly has now 'jumped on the bandwagon,' was all of that nonsense really necessary. People use their various influences all of the time for things that I wouldn't consider admirable. I don't feel there is anything wrong with a celebrity using their popularity for a good cause.

3) Why is it that a following story for the tsunami relief effort is the "Brad and Jennifer Break Up." I know that they are a cute couple and all, but is that really as important as a major disaster? I don't think so, but I guess I don't share the same perspective as many people.

4) Why does it take a disaster for people to install warning systems? From my understanding, part of the reason that there was so much devastation is that there weren't any warning systems to inform the people that there was danger. Now it has been realized that warning systems need to be put in place for the protection of the people. This seems to be a trend, not the rule. It takes a fire for some people to realize that they need to check, or even install a fire alarm. It takes a robbery for people to install a security system. I realize that I am oversimplifying the issue, but I just think that if we prepared for the worst, but hoped for the best that things would be much easier in the long run. Things like: making a plan with your children in case there is an emergency, having code words, knowing where fire routes are,
learning how to change a tire before you start driving, having smoke and carbon monoxide detectors in our homes, etc. The list just goes on. Having grown up in the Midwest, I am use to monthly testing of tornado sirens. Would a siren to warn of danger of oncoming hurricanes or tsunamis be bad for coastal places. Maybe this isn't a solution, but with all of the available technology, something should work. And yes I realize that some of these countries might not have had very much money available money, but that brings me to my final point.

5) It shouldn't take a tragedy for people to become giving. Perhaps my mother brought me up differently than many people are raised, but I was taught that giving should be year round. Even if you are on a student budget, or don't feel that you have anything to give, there is so much more than money that can be given. Since I was a little girl, my mother used to make me go through all of my toys and clothes to see what I didn't use anymore, or what I didn't need anymore to give to those who could use them. Many of the things went to students at her school or to charities, but I always knew that they would go to those who needed it more than I did. I understand the whole I work hard for my money and I should be able to do with it as I please argument, but there are some people that work three times as hard and for varying reasons can't even make ends meat. There are easy ways to give year round: donating to the church, donating to the Salvation Army, UNICEF, Red Cross, donating blood, becoming an organ donor, and volunteering time just to name a few. All of these things don't require a whole lot, but could mean the world to others. Once again, I am oversimplifying the issue but I just don't understand why people get so much attention for donating when there is a natural disaster, but not for being a giving person year round. I don't by any means feel that I am perfect, or the most giving person out there, I just think that many people don't always realize that they can do so much more than just give money, and that aid is needed even when there isn't a natural disaster.

Sorry about the tirade, just need to get it off my chest.

Deciding not to go

2005-01-04T14:39:00.000-08:00

So recently, I was offered an opportunity to travel to Africa with my church, and was extremely excited about it. However, I came to the unfortunate realization that if I went, I was being selfish. By going, I would have been going for my own personal experience and not truly acknowledging the concern of others for my well-being...........mental, physical, financial, etc. I do think that the trip is one of those once in a lifetime opportunities, but I can only hope that in the line of work that I am planning to go into that other trips, perhaps ones in which I can be more helpful to the people that I am visiting, will present themselves or will be able to be sought out. I was really looking forward to going on this trip and becoming closer with the others who would have been traveling, but logistics are just not in my favor.
The trip is the first week and a half in April meaning that I would have to move two weeks after I returned. In addition, it is possible that I won't know for sure which Medical School I will be attending until the week before the trip, or even the week of because of financial aid packages. My personal deadline for deciding which school to go to in currently the first week in April because I have to know where I will be moving. Seeing as I have narrowed it down to an out of state move since I have decided that SLU isn't for me. Also, I would have to come up with the money for the trip, through both fundraising and personal funds, but I would also loose two complete weeks of work and have to find extra money to pay for my rent. and other bills. Also, any saved money that I had that I used towards the trip would be that much less money that I had saved in order to move, start paying for school supplies, and make a down-payment on wherever I will live. Although I think this trip would be an amazing experience, I have just realized that this isn't the time for it.

Happy New Year

2005-01-02T16:00:00.000-08:00

So I am still somewhat recovering from my weekend with Chris. He drove in on Thursday and I had made him a belated birthday dinner. My new recipe that I made was baklava. I think good cooking genes must run in my family because it didn't turn out half bad. Either that, or I can read well because I am just pretty good at following directions. So dinner was a success and we went to bed with happy tummies. We also exchanged presents.......always a fun thing. Apparently I am a really hard person to buy for, but Chris did a good job.
The next day Chris and I got ready to bring in the New Year. We went to Wasabi for dinner and I had my first true experience with sushi. Prior to Friday night, I had only had calafornia rolls. I think I would have liked it much better if I didn't have to scrape the wasabi off of each piece. Wasabi and I definitely don't mix so well. I think sushi is more of a lunch food for me because its hard for me to feel full with a bunch of small things. However, since I wasn't provided with a fork, Chris taught me how to use chopsticks. And if I do say so myself, I did pretty well for my first time. Then we went back to our hotel room, relaxed then went out to Bucca. Having prepaid, I would have thought we would have gotten right in, but no, it took about an hour. And the people who paid cash got in in less than 15 minutes in the back. I was definitely cold and cranky until we got in. However, we paid for all the drinks we could drink, so we pretty much took advantage of it. The think that sucked was that girls were dancing on the bar, so it was hard to get a drink. They were dancing to win a trip to Vegas, and Chris and I were just trying to get a drink. Was not thriled. We had fun, but it wasn't the best club ever.
On Saturday, we both weren't feeling the best. We weren't hung over, but I don't think either of us had really drank that hard in a while. I defintely haven't drank that much since my 21st in August. But it was nice just spending the day together. I'm looking forward to the day when its no longer a once in a while occurance. Relaxing basically accounts for the rest of Chris's visit and I have spent most of today still relaxing, a bit of laundry and a bit of cleaning.
I have also been doing a bit of knitting. Knitting has become my hobby lately. It is added to my list of so called womanly things that I find totally relaxing. I do also believe though, that if I was told that I had to do it to keep my family clothed that I might not like it so much. So now, my list is cooking, sewing, crocheting, and knitting. I may be stuck to my guns about feminist issues, but aparently I am pretty girly at heart. Well there is a Strong Medicine Marathon on so it is time to watch that.

Chris and I on New Year's Eve

Post Christmas Wind Down

2004-12-28T16:06:00.000-08:00

Here is a wrap up of my 5 days at home for Christmas...
Christmas Eve was spent all day cooking. I truly believe in getting things done the day before to limit the amount of stress that actually occurs on Christmas Day. My new item this year was fudge, which actually came out pretty well for my first try.
This year for Christmas, my mom's cousins came along with their two sons, one son's friend who is new in Chicago and didn't have anywhere to go for the holiday, the other son's girlfriend and son, and a blind friend. Additionally, there was my mom, Sofi, and Sofi's sister and nephew. That rounded out our dinner total at 13. We cooked a bunch of food and had a wonderful dinner. The only true mishap was that the table managed to break in the middle of dinner, but luckily we had two engineers at dinner. The table is over 60 years old, so I think a mishap was allowed. Also, my mom's two kittens were a riot. They chose an ornament towards the top of the tree, climbed the tree and went after it, knocked it down, then climbed back down the tree and chased it around the house. It drove me nuts when we were trying to clean up, but all in all they are absolutely adorable.
The next day Mom and I went and saw Aviator with Babe and I made cheesecake for the family dinner the next. Nothing too exciting. The next day was the day of the family dinner. First we went to go get my oil changed and that was a complete disaster. I have just decided that I don't like that dealership. But then, Mom and I walked next door and she bought a new car. Wasn't exactly expecting that, but she is happy. I can't drive it though because I never learned how to drive a stick. Guess I will learn soon. Then we went to a wake, which usually isn't something to be excited about, but we saw old friends who we haven't seen since I was a freshman in high school. Can't believe that that was 7 years ago. We definitely all grew up. Then we went to my Dad's family dinner. I'd say it was a success, but my Dad definitely created too much work for himself. He decided that he was going to have his 'waiters' take orders and serve everyone. I definitely think that the buffet route is much easier.
Well believe it or not, that wraps up my Christmas trip home. Definitely the shortest Christmas break I have ever had, but I guess that is what happens as you get older.
But this week will be fun getting to celebrate New Year's with Chris. Can't wait!!

Blessed

2004-12-06T19:13:00.000-08:00

As I am frustrated about many things, I keep reminding myself about all of the things for which I am blessed. Here are just a few of them:
1) I have friends and family who all care deeply about me.
2) I have been accepted to several medical schools, which means I will actually be going to medical school next year.
3) I have a roof over my head, food on my table, and access to proper healthcare.
4) I am overall in good health
5) I have had many amazing people enter and touch my life
So when the little things in life start to get me down, such as lack of respect with people whom I come in close contact with, small illnesses here and there, or not getting a full night of sleep every once in a while, I have to remind myself that I am blessed. Unfortunately, I am currently frustrated about my little things, but hopefully I can keep reading this list over and over again to not get too upset. Although I find the holiday season to be a wonderful time to be with friends and family and be thankful for many things, it is still sometime difficult to keep perspective as I deal with the hectic schedule and seemingless endless hassles that accompany the season.
Hopefully I will be in a better mood soon.

Customer Service

2004-11-30T14:30:00.000-08:00

Well, this has been a month of non-stop traveling. I have experienced customer service both at its best and at its worst. I managed to loose my cell phone at the beginning of a trip which of course is my primary means of communication and absolutely terrible. However, the wonderful woman who works at O'Hare's American Airline's baggage claim was able to track me down and return it to me saving me the hassle of finding out everyone's phone number and paying a wonderful $50 deductible to have my phone replaced. Then, that same weekend, I had terrible service by United, but no real need to discuss that. They just will never get my money again if I can help it. Then, in our hotel in Newark, a worker walked into the room while my mom was there without even knocking to bring a message. Why wouldn't they just hold the message at the desk and call the room to let us know they had something for us? I have definitely never heard of such a situation.

But so when I complain in general about customer service, people like to use an excuse, "well customer service just isn't what it used to be." Well to me that isn't an excuse. People may not care about how they are serving others, but in an economy so based off of service, shouldn't it be more of a priority. Even if your taking a selfish stance, it is to your benefit to treat customers well to ensure repeat business. There are few places that are so good that no matter the service, clients will return. Well since we have officially entered the holiday season and are supposed to embrace the spirit of giving, hope, and joy, perhaps I will enjoy some good customer service for the next month. But then again, it is the busiest shopping time of the year, so perhaps people won't care about being friendly.

A Bit Encouraged

2004-11-09T15:15:00.000-08:00

So Saturday started off a bit difficultly with my Dismantling Racism Committee meeting. There seems to be a misconception in the diocese that racism isn't an important issue. Don't get me wrong, I realize that there are many other important issues and that the diocese isn't the only one that has managed to put racism on the back burner. However, it also frustrating for all on the commission when we have the feeling of being shrugged off and used so that it can be said that someone is working on the issue. The problem comes in when support both financially and in actually showing is up has been dwindling. Although we laughed a bit at the meeting, I think many of us still walked out of there frustrated.

However, a series of events occurred on Sunday that gave me a bit of encouragement. First, there was a baptism at the morning service which always brings joy and hope for a wonderful life as someone officially becomes a member of the church. After that, I went with Lindsay to Rockwell House where some finishing touches were being done on the basement before Mike returned. I am impressed by all of the hard work that went into it and that it was simply the initiative of community members rather than Mike saying it needed to be done. I contributed what I could with my handprint and the pillow and of course offered to run the pillows through my sewing machine later when there was more time.

Then, I was able to finish Christmas shopping for my mother, which I find to be one of the hardest tasks of the year. I know this seems to be totally off topic, but nothings makes me feel better than finding something I am sure that my mother will enjoy because everything she does is for me or her kids at school. It is always to do something nice for an extraordinarily good person. My day concluded at the $2 potluck at my church. This meeting was so energizing. It was almost awe inspiring to hear the ideas an thoughts that everyone brought to the table. It is also amazing to see some of the places that they are lacking. Who would have thought that the idea for a divorced person's support group would come out of a social justice meeting. But what better place to provide support and continued acceptance after such an ordeal for a Christian than through the church? Also, we talked about the idea that its okay to be against the homosexual marriage laws, the war in Iraq, and the actions of our current president and still be a good Christian.

So after a day of frustration and wondering how I could possibly make in the difference in the world with many obstacles, Sunday most certainly provided a bit of encouragement. I can go back to being though of as a dreamer like my wonderful mother once again. The way I look at it, God answered one of my prayers in an unexpected way...........Although the commission may still face difficulties, I still have found an outlet to work for the good of the community and the good of all people.

The Beginning

2004-11-07T14:38:00.000-08:00

While it is true that I don't quite understand blogging, I have decided to embrace it as an outlet for my hopes, dreams, and frustrations. I thought this might be better than writing in a journal because typing seems much more natural than writing. So now to get started............... Since election day, along with many liberals, I have been expressing great fear and looking for hope in the years to come. I am not so much concerned that I don't like our president, because that could happen whether the president was liberal or conservative. I am more concerned with the unfortunate truth that one party has a power in all of Washington. I don't believe that this is good whether it were Democrats or Republicans in power. More distressing for me is the future of the Supreme Court. I can only hope that a conservative justice will retire and be replaced by another. I would just like somewhat of a balance to be kept.

Furthermore, I am disheartened by this country's overwhelming belief that Christian values should influence the governing of this country and that so much of the country believes that the sanctity of marriage is threatened by homosexuals. If you ask me, we should just completely get rid of marriage from the state. Marriage is something that should be recognized by one's religion. I think that if a couple, and that is any couple, whether it be a man and a woman, two women, or two men, or any other possibility, desires to be recognized by the state and the country, then they should get a civil union. Laws should not be attempting to protect the sanctity of marriage. That is a struggle for religious institutions. And even if marriage remains, how does the marriage of a homosexual couple damage the sanctity of marriage when the current divorce rate is 50% and marriages occur that are purely for citizenship or as a joke.

Well I guess that I have to accept that we have another 4 years of President Bush, but I hope that our new Illinois Senator can protect some liberal views. Perhaps as Senator Obama has said on recent interviews, he will be able to help find some common ground for this country to move forward on. I of course realize that Obama can't do this on his own, it has to be a team effort. But I do still have a glimmer of hope with him being in Washington.

Recently things seem to be discouraging in this country as far as social justice goes. Perhaps things will begin to look up this afternoon. I am going to a $2 potluck at my church to discuss where we are headed this year. Not all Christians are members of the Christian Rite, and really do believe in equality for all.

Well that's all for now.......more when I feel the need for an outlet again. This will likely be soon the way things have been going.