Documenting this Moment!!!

My friend Joseph and I wanted to document this day (actually it was two days ago). We recapped the last ten years of our friendship and the various events that have shaped our friendship, our careers and our personal lives.

Our friendship has spanned him moving from Nacogodoches, TX to Orlando, Fl to Portland,OR to where he now resides in Baltimore, MD. It has covered me from roommates with Jason and Preston to living in Ethiopia for the summer to moving back to Atlanta to being roommates with Mi to moving to Washington, DC and being roommates with my Grey (my first deaf roommate) to moving to Tanzania getting married returning to the states/Atlanta getting divorced and finally living on my own in my first solo apartment and then buying my first house. Friends always knew never to write our address in their address book in pen because it would change after a while. Then their came the Iphone and the Blackberry!

We started together at Stephen F. Austin State University and departed at seperate times and have taken vastly different routes. I left SFASU knowing my goals of being in the Foreign Service and Joseph left because he was in LOVE and endeavored on his career path as one of the best psychotherapist in Baltimore in my opinion. I have not utilized his services however I suspect he is great because of his passion and concern for his patients. I am still on my path of being in the Foreign Service. I have not gotten in the door yet however I am confident it will happen in God's time not mine. I was talking to the best Psychologist on earth yesterday and I made the statement that the Lord is going to restore me and he made the observation that God has. The way he knows HE has it that I know what I want to do and I am moving towards it. Because when I came back to Tanzania I was in such an abyss but now I am awake and excited and that is a restoration to be proud of. I had to smile about that. He was right!!

As for our personal lives Joseph has been with the person he was in LOVE since Texas the whole time until recently. He is in the process of finding himself however I feel he will inevitably end up where he started. As for me my relationships I have spunned dating a man 20 years my senior, then a mechanic who I found out later was married ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh living in Atlanta I tell you, dating and marrying and divorcing my husband, then meeting and dating a man with a child a first for me, he was a teacher an attraction that is deeper to me then saying you have a credit score of 800 and he could speak to me without words and now I am in the waiting place. Read Dr. Seus Oh the Places You'll Go to understand that more!

Natalie Cole

I worked at Pottery Barn today and Natalie Cole was there to sign her CD. FYI Pottery Barn is not a music store. It sells home funishing and accessories as its core business. I had a not so positive experience with the whole will you sign my CD epxerience. I only wanted to get some signed for friends who are fans. I had written my personal message on stick notes on each CD. I went up to her and gave her the covers and the notes. She was about to start and I was going to tell her I was praying for her health when her publicist came and told me to step aside while he edited my notes to just the names of the people they were to go to. He was so rude, had I not opened the CD wrapper I would have returned the CD's to the store. One of my pet peaves is that I never spend my money at stores or on people who do not respect me. However I endured and I got the CD signed in the most impersonal way. And then they had the nerve to ask me if I wanted a picture with her and I said no I do not. I do not know if she heard me but honestly I did not want a picture with her. Her publicist was rude/mean to me. Why would I want a picture with someone who allows her staff to be disrespectful to me. I walked away from this experience torn. Was I wrong to say no the pciture? Was I wrong to feel that that the publicist was rude. I was the the fith to the last peron is line, she was probably tired? Right. But then as I reflected on it I just felt sad for her and people that go gu gu for ga ga over such people. Sad for her because she is currently in need of a kidney transplant and has dialysis three times a week. Either she needs the money from such events or her self esteem is in need of the attention she receive. Sad for the people who are gu gu for ga ga in that there are so many more people who have made more substantial contributions to the world such as Gandhi's peace movement, Bill and Melinda Gates and the Gates foundation's contribution to AIDS research and public health in resource poor countries or the winner of the MacArthus genius award winner.

Quotes by George Washington Carver

There is no short cut to achievement. Life requires thorough preparation - veneer isn't worth anything.

When you do the common things in life in an uncommon way, you will command the attention of the world.

Ninety-nine percent of the failures come from people who have the habit of making excuses.

How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving and tolerant of the weak and strong. Because someday in your life you will have been all of these.

Education is the key to unlock the golden door of freedom.

Quotable Quote

I was talking with my stepfather and his assessment of the inauguration festivities of our first African American President he said:

"It was almost as if the United States did not have a color line."

I thought that statement was pretty profound and I thought I would share it with the world!

Inauguration of the 44th President of the United States

For the past few days I have had the privilege to be in Washington, DC to witness the swearing in of the first African American President of the United States-Barrack Obama. I am thankful to be alive to witness this grand event!!!

I also was able to share this moment in history with a great friend. These are some pictures from our time in DC.

New Year 2009 - Year of Restoration

Well today is Thursday, January 1, 2009 - The start of my year of RESTORATION

1. Restoring my relationship with God - living the life I believe
2. Restoring my career that utilizes my education, talents, gifts and drive to travel the world to make a positive impact for change
3. Restoring my status to loving wife, friend, life companion to a man that is a Christian, Adventist, leader, honorable, respectful and knows how to love me best
4. Restoring my finances to position me to return in tithes and offering what I currently make in less than five years
5. Restoring me to a level of maturity that accepts people as they are and respecting their desire to be different

Heavenly Father please fulfill my restoration request not to bring any glory to me but that people can see your glory in me and I can point them to the cross that saves in Christ name AMEN!

Christmas 2008

well well well. The day is essentially over. I only wanted to capture my attempt at making a gingerbread house for the center piece for our holiday brunch. The only pieces to survive were the gingerbread men thus they have survived to be documented on this blog!!!

My Perspective on the Commercialization of Christmas!!

I officially hate the commercialization of Christmas and the environmentally imposed pressure that you must buy people tangible gifts. I have decided after this Christmas in no matter what state I find myself financially I will not participate in it. At most I will distribute cards or letters that update peopele on my life. I receive such a letter every year from a couple and look forward to receiving it to see what is knew is their lives. The letter is so genuine and honest, I am touched.

People that I love and care about will and do receive gifts from me all year round. It is the priceless gifts that are the most memorable. I reivew this year and think of the awesome gifts my friends and family have given me: prayer as I took the GRE, edits of my personal statement and resume, advice on my car and personal life, money however the most important has been their time and attention. Those are the most valuable gifts on earth to me. I want to thank each of them for that and I pray it continues into the new year!

Thanksgiving Weekend

I felt as if I should memorialize this weekend somehow. So I figured I should write something to remember this time next year and see what is changed my life. Well lets see. Thanksgiving Day my mom and Luther came over. We ate together and I went to the movies later that evening solo. Which is kind of empowering. This weekend I had a breakthrough in applying for a cool job with the Department of Health and Human Services. Thanks to my heavenly Father for opening my eyes. I just finished working on my personal statement for Emory. I sent it over to a friend of mine who insisted on editing it. I actually appreciated his eagerness to do. My friends are always amazing me. I kind of wanted to go shopping for the after Thanksgiving rush but then thought better of it because I do not really NEED anything material. I just want stuff. I tend to NEED stuff that I cannot by and thankfully the stuff I NEED is not for sell. I went to the party of the year to celebrate a friends birthday. It was cool to see people I went to high school and college with. We have all grown up and we seem to have grown up to be someone our parents are proud of.

I just received a phone call that I have been waiting on for while and his name is still SUNFLOWERS to me!!

FYI - Our World

Did you know?

Girls' education provides perhaps the single highest return on investment in the developing world.
Educated girls tend to marry later
They are better paid in the workplace
They have fewer, healthier children
They are more likely to send their own children to school
They are better able to protect themselves against HIV
They assume a more active role in social, economic and political decision-making throughout their lives

taken from the CARE newsletter!

Patches

I realized I have no pictures of my dog on my blog that was a complete oversight. Here we go!!!

Quotable Quote

Only those who will risk going to far can possibly find out how far you can go by T.S. Elliot

pictures from Bermuda

Quotable Quote from Akeelah and the Bee

I watche Akeelah and the Bee for the first time this past week while in Bermuda and the character of Akeelah stated this poem by Marianne Williamson that I thought was worthy of note and memorization;

'Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. '

Words of Wisdom

I was speaking with a friend and he made the following obervation about people that I thought I would share.

There are three types of minds in the world, they are:

1. Great Minds - they discuss ideas - they make things happen
2. Average minds - they discuss events - they watch things happen
3. Small Minds - they discuss people - they wonder what is happening

I thought it was pretty neat and wanted to share it!!!

Quotables Quotes

don't spend major time...with minor people

Career Aspirations

Years ago this older man at church said to me wouldn't it be nice to return in tithe five years from now what you currently make. And I thought to myself I would hope so. I was in graduate school and was therefore not making a whole lot.

As I was sitting at my desk and reviewing the federal pay scale (GS) and reflecting on my next career move I decided every 4 years I need to make twice as much I did at the initial year. For instance if I made 25,000 in 2008 I should be making 50,000 by 2012. I will keep you posted on my aspiration!!!!

Getting to know someone

After speaking with my family on Monday about what characteristics would be the ideal match me. My stepfather stated someone who is adventure minded. And I thought to myself he is right. I have not dated that type of person on average.

Questions to explore in getting to know someone

1. What is your favoriate meal of the day?
2. What is your favoriate group activity before or after that meal?
3. Would you like to do those two things we with me?

If you use these questions let me know how they go!!!!

My 32 nd Birthday

it is 8:23 am in the morning and it is my birthday. I asked all of my family and friends to pray and fast for me a career post/job in international development with a great organization/company, doing great work,with great people and with awesome compensation. I did not ask them to fast from food particularly but whatever would be a sacrifice for them to live without for a day. It could be food, it could be their cell phone, it could be TV or it could be their ipod. Just whatever each of them considered to be a sacrifice. I am really petitioning God for a change in jobs to do what I got my Master's to do.

It is amazing what my friends and family are fasting from. I am really touched. It awesome to have the love and support of friends and family. Thank you Father for the beauty of true friendship and family!!!

Sabbath Lesson for me March 29, 2008

It was probably not so much a lesson but a phrase in a song that I had not heard in a long time that really touch me. We had guest recording artist Gayle Jones Murphy at church this past sabbath and for the appeal she sang a song with these words:

"I have made my decision. I am going all the way with the Lord.'

That really got to me. and trully I have made my decision and I am going all the way with the Lord!!!!

I have been searching online for the song and artist to buy on itunes however have been unable to find it. If you know it please share it with me. Thanks!!!