New Music

Today, I am THANKFUL for new music! I got some money for Christmas and am using it to get a few things that I've been wanting.  I got a pair of shoes, a shirt, and two new CDs.  I love new music. 

Today I bought John Mayer's new album, Battle Studies. 

And I bought the Avett Brothers new album, I and love and you.

I think John Mayer's hair looks stupid in this picture on this album cover.  I've been wanting this album for awhile. I was never a big John Mayer fan until I saw him live.  He's a good performer and an amazing guitar player!   After I saw him live, I bought his then new album Continuum.  It is FANTASTIC.  One of my all time favorite music selections.  I have hardly taken that CD out of my player for almost 3 years now.  It is just so good and I like every song on it.  I am enjoying Battle Studies so far.  Just chilling listening to it tonight.

I think the album cover for the Avetts is pretty weird too.  I love the Avetts.  I really started to enjoy them more after seeing them live too!  They're awesome!  My friend Andy turned me on to them and I've been listening to them for about 3 years now too! I'm excited about their new album.  I have already listened to it before buying it.  NPR had it featured on their website a couple of weeks ago and I kind of wore it out!  That's all I listened to at work all day for about a week.  So I'm excited about listening to it too.

Jesus

Isaiah 9:6

For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Jesus

Luke 2:2-20
So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."

So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

How Much Proof Do You Need?

 There is a God - Lee Ann Womack

Try and put your arms around the 100 year old tree
Climb up on a horse and let it run full speed
Take a look down at the world from 30,000 feet on your next flight

Watch a flock of birds against the morning sun
Close your eyes and listen to the river run
Catch a firefly in your hand or a raindrop on your tongue
That's right

Plant a seed and see what comes out of the ground
Find the heartbeat on your baby's ultrasound
In a few years hear it laughing, and don't it sound like a song?

Stop and think about what you don't understand
Things like life and love and how the world began
Hear the doctor say he can't explain it, but the cancer is gone

There is a God
There is a God
There is a God
How much proof do you need?

Science says it's all just circumstance
Like this whole worlds just an accident
But if you want to shoot that theory down,
Look around
Just look around

There is a God
There is a God
There is a God,
How much proof do you need?

Mary and Joseph

Today and I am THANKFUL for Mary and Joseph, the parents of Jesus.

Every year about this time, I am reminded and again made in awe of the amazing story of Jesus.  Growing up in a Christian environment, the Christmas story is so engrained in my brain that I sometimes forget how Mary and Joseph felt!  The past few weeks at church I've been hearing about this.

Mary, who was maybe 15, engaged, a virgin. Joseph, maybe early 20s, engaged, a virgin.  Both are brought the news that they are going to be parents by a miracle of the Lord.  They both say, "Ok, Lord. We'll do it."  I can imagine my reaction if I were her.  Probably something close to "You've GOT to be kidding me?!"  I just can hardly imagine how difficult all of this would have been for them and their families.  John, the pastor at the church I've been going to, did a wonderful sermon this morning along these same lines.

I think about the incredible faith that these two had to have to step out and wait on a miracle.  To trust the Lord. To know that this was the right thing, for them to raise the Savior of the World.

Matthew 1:18-25

Christmas Dinner

Tonight, I am THANKFUL for my co-workers.

HA! Never thought I'd be saying that one. A lot has happened in our office in the past 5 1/2 months. It's been interesting.  But tonight, I had dinner at Foothills Milling in Maryville with my co-workers.  It is a fabulous place.  Reminded me of Bistro 107 in Greer.  Very similar.  I had horseraddish panko encrusted grouper with mashed potatoes and asparagus.  It was fabulous.  We had a wonderful bottle of Cabernet and Key Lime Cheese cake for dessert :) MMMmmmm! It was so good.

I had a great time laughing and telling stories and hearing stories of my co-workers tonight.

Friends

Once again this week, I am reminded of how truly blessed I am to have such wonderful friends.

In the past few weeks:

I have had countless laughs with friends.

I have had wonderful conversations shared over fabulous meals.

I have decorated Christmas trees.

I had a friend rescue me from the cash only parking garage, when I didn't have any cash.

I have shared prayer time and Bible studies.

I have hung out with college roommates, that I usually don't get to see.

I have heard SUPER exciting news.

I have talked on the phone for many hours.

I have received a couple "make my day" text messages.

I have traveled to visit friends.

I have seen friends get married.

And I have made new friends here in Knoxville.

I am so very THANKFUL for my friends!

Copy Cat

This is from my good friend Natalee's blog:

I'm thankful.

That he turns my half-hearted stale prayers into shouts, into victory chants that usher in His Kingdom.

That my days, at times, that seem saturated in dull routine, are transformed into priestly activities; offerings.

That my limp worship attempts are now the sweet songs of a beloved child.

That my lack of faith is exchanged with the complete faith of Jesus.

That when I'm not thankful, He always is. On my behalf.

That we have a King that's coming, a Morning that will dawn, Who will wipe away all our tears.

That my boredom and apathy is exchanged with the jealous passion and zeal of our King Lover.

That my unfaithfulness is now wedded bliss.

My dryness, Springs of Living Water.

My unbelief into belief.

---------

What wonderous Love is this?

The Most Beautiful Christmas Tree

Today I am THANKFUL for Christmas!

I have a feeling that there will be a few more posts about Christmas in the near future.  I totally have the Christmas spirit after tonight.

I have been wanting to get my Christmas tree this week.  I didn't really want to go by myself to get a tree.  Well, it just wasn't working out for any of my friends to go with me.  I went Thursday night to look for a tree and just got really sad that I was doing it by myself.  So tonight, I went with Nick, Christmas tree shopping.  It was super fun and we found "the perfect tree".  It's bigger than I need but I ended up getting a pretty good deal on it - only $20!  I got a few new ornaments, some ornament hooks, and a few new lights.

It really is beautiful!

I am kind of embarrassed to admit this but there are 1,100 lights on the tree.  It really looks great.  We had a fun time out shopping and decorating the tree and listening to Christmas music.  It just makes me so happy to be all decorated for Christmas and in the Christmas spirit.  It really is "the most wonderful time of the year"!

I'm also working on getting my Christmas cards together.  Hopefully getting them out in the next week or two.   So be checking your mailbox!

Merry Christmas!

Grandparents

Today, I am THANKFUL for my grandparents.

This past Thanksgiving weekend, I was able to spend some time with my grandparents. I have my maternal grandfather, Baxter, and my paternal grandmother Momise still with us.  Baxter's wife, Dot, passed away a little more than three years ago. I miss her a lot, a whole whole lot. She was a wonderful woman.  She lived a full and wonderful life.  She loved to travel, was fun to be around and had a great spirit. Baxter is 92.  He is bedridden and sometimes can't remember whether or not he ate lunch.  But he is usually wonderful to be around.  I think he gives my mom a hard time sometimes, but over Thanksgiving this past weekend he was in especially good spirits.  Maybe he'd been into "the spirits" before we got there :) We had a great time eating with him and telling him about our lives.

Baxter is kind and generous. He is a wonderful man.  He worked hard in the earlier years of his life to provide a good life for his family.  He came from a family with a lot of children (he had 5 brothers) and one parent.  His father died when he was a teenager.  He is the oldest of the brothers and the only one still living.  He is so proud of his children and who they have become.  And who his grandchildren are becoming, all 9 of us.  He is a provider of great stories and good laughs.  He always has a great story and a good joke. He has lived a full and wonderful life.

Momise's husband, Junebug, passed away about 23 years ago.  Momise is 84.  You would never know she was 84.  She looks and acts like she's in her late 60s.  I am amazed by her and hope I have long lasting health like hers.  She too has lived a full and wonderful life. She too is proud of her children and grandchildren, all 10 of us.  She is a wonderful woman.  She is the provider of encouragement, wisdom and laughs.  We had a great time this past Thanksgiving sitting around the table, listening to my aunts and uncles share stories from childhood.  It is always just hilarious to get them all together.  Momise, Anna and I also went to lunch on day this weekend.  Nothing special, just a good time to hang out and get to be with Momise.  I really wish that I could have known my grandfather.  I love to hear stories about him and I know that he was a great man too.

I love spending time with my grandparents.  It is a wonderful reminder of the heritage that I come from and the wonderful people that have paved the way for me to have a full and wonderful life.

I am THANKFUL for my grandparents.

My Job

Today, I am THANKFUL for my job.

Well I'm obviously thankful for my job every day but especially today.  We've been working out of the office for about 2 weeks now.  When I got back to the office today, my boss - who is a little intimidating, must have been feeling the Holiday Spirit.  He asked me if I was going home and said "Y'all can go ahead and leave at lunch today if you want".  I was like you don't have to tell me twice! What a great thing for Thanksgiving to be able to leave at lunch time!

So, I'm heading to South Carolina here in a few minutes to celebrate Thanksgiving with my family.

I have so much to be thankful for.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Friends

Today I am THANKFUL for my wonderful friends and two weekends in a row with college roommates.

Last weekend I visited my friend and past college roommate (for two years), Ashley, in Thomasville, Georgia.  It is a beautiful little classic southern town about 15 miles from Florida.  We actually went to Florida to go to Target! Ashley lives there with her husband, Tim, who is the associate pastor at Thomasville First Presbyterian Church.  It was so good to be able to see their new home, their new town, and get to experience some of life with them.  They've been living just north of Boston for the past three years so it's nice to have them a little closer!

This weekend I had Joetta (college roommate for 2 years), Keli and Melissa (college roommate for 1 year) come stay with me in Knoxville to celebrate Melissa getting married!  It was a good excuse to hang out together and be with each other for the weekend.

I have a lot of wonderful friends and you all have no idea how much I am thankful for your friendship and encouragement.  It has meant more to me in the last year than ever before.  I am so grateful to share life with you!

Grace

I am THANKFUL for Grace, the loving infinite Grace of Jesus. 

I saw this on a friend's facebook status update today: The beauty of grace is that it makes life not fair.

Over the past two years almost, grace has been a big topic in my life. It's certainly a big topic in Christianity.  How many times through Sripture do you read of grace?  Grace is truly amazing.  I have written of grace several times of the past year. I was talking to a friend of mine recently who is not a believer and telling him about Jesus and what all he has done for us and he said "It just doesn't make any sense." That's right.  Grace doesn't make any sense.  Mostly because it breaks our rules.  It cannot be earned. It is grossly undeserved. It is a gift.

Two analogies I've heard recently about Grace:

1) Grace is like when I have a worn out, stinky, gross, filthy cloak. Jesus gives me his perfect, new, clean, white cloak for no reason and takes mine.
2) Grace is like you're in a courtroom where a criminal, who has committed an especially terrible crime, has been given the death penalty.  Jesus is also there.  He doesn't know the criminal and has no connection to him but stands up, interrupts the judge, and says "I know that I didn't commit this crime, but I'll die in this guy's place".

Grace truly is Amazing!

My family

I am THANKFUL for my family! I dont know what I'd do without them.  I have kind of a large family.  Well not immediate family, but big extended family.  I have two older brothers and two sister-in-laws and a niece and a nephew.

I am particularly thankful today for my dad.  Today is his 60th Birthday. 

Happy Birthday Papa!

My mom is pretty awesome too!

I just cannot say enough good things about my family.  They are amazing encouragers, life long friends, and wonderful support.

Love you all!

Veterans

Today I am THANKFUL to the Veterans - past and current - who serve our country through the military.  Growing up in a post-military family has certainly had an impact on me with an increased appreciation for those willing to give of their time and often lives.  I am proud to say that both my dad and one of my brothers served in the military- Army specifically.  My dad for 10 years and my brother for 4.

So a big Thank you to the veterans of our country.  We appreciate you!

Happy Veterans Day.

A Month of Thanksgiving

Today I realized how much I have to be thankful for.  All of my November posts will be about things that I am thankful for.  Most of my posts will not be this serious but this topic is on my heart after tonight. This post will be about Freedom of Worship. 

Today was the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church.  Since we, as Christians living in the United States, have no idea what it is like to be afraid for our lives just to follow Christ, I think its important to remember this.  I didn't make it to church this morning where there was a Christian from Iran who spoke.  He said that the pastor of their church had been killed for being a Christian.  Tonight I went to my community group and we spent our time together praying for the persecuted church.  The top 10 countries that are the most persecuted in the world are: North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Afghanistan, Somalia, Maldives, Yemen, Laos, Eritrea and Uzbekistan.  A few of these countries are countries that you never hear about.  I dont think I've ever heard of Maldives or Eritrea.  Others are a lot more well known for being oppressive to Christians: North Korea, Saudi Arabia and Iran specifically.  I am also a little familiar with Yemen because there was a couple that were missionaries there from my parents church. 

I cannot imagine living in a place where I could not worship freely.  The people in these countries continue to meet and worship Jesus and share their faith, even though they run the risk of being arrested, beaten, tortured and killed.  I am THANKFUL to live in a place where these thoughts do not ever even enter my mind. Just thinking about the courage the Christians in these countries possess makes me a little embarassed at how much I take for granted the freedom that I have to worship Jesus and often don't take advantage of it.  I will continue to pray for the people, leaders and Christians of these countries that persecute believers, and I hope that you will do the same.

A Year Ago Today (Installment 2)

It's funny how things can change in just one year.

One year ago today...
I was living in downtown Greenville.
I had a job with a large regional accounting firm.
I had just bought a condo on Halloween.
I had just had a fantastic Halloween party with amazing friends.
I had just stood in line for an hour and a half and voted in probably the most controversial presidential election of all time, I even remember what I was wearing...

Suddenly in a moment all of that changed.  I've been so reflective recently about the past year.  I cannot believe how quickly things changed but how slowly this time seemed to go by. I cannot imagine the past year without the support and encouragement of too many friends and family members to name.  You are all wonderful.

So to update:

Today...
I live in West Knoxville.
I am working for a small accounting firm.
I am renting a townhouse.
I just had a fantastic Halloween weekend in Greenville with friends and a wedding!

Things are good. Life is good. :)

Halloween Weekend

So this past weekend was pretty fabulous!  I got home late Friday night (about 1030).  Thanks to I-40 being closed in North Carolina I had to go through Johnson City adding an extra hour to my trip.  But that made for a good excuse to stop and see Joseph for dinner :)

I spent Friday night with my parents.  It was good to see them and spend some time with them.  I also got to see Ben and Beth for a few short minutes...and sweet Caldwell who was too tired to acknowledge my presence!

Saturday I went to Adam and Lisa's wedding.  It was beautiful and perfect and so good to be with friends to celebrate such a special occasion!  I hung out with greenville friends for the rest of the night and today after church! It was so fun. I stayed with Nellie last night and it was great to be able to really catch up with her! We just hung out downtown and enjoyed people/costume watching.  I went to church at DPC today and really enjoyed it.  It is always good to be refreshed by corporate worship at Downtown Pres! I've been doing a lot of reflective thinking lately about a lot of things. But also about how much Downtown Pres was apart of my Greenville life and how much I enjoyed being apart of the body of believers there! I am truely blessed to know and love all those folks!

The Law and Grace

So, I've been on the "church search" since I moved to Knoxville.  I think I've found a place that I can call my new church home.  I have been homesick for Downtown Pres since I moved but I am starting to enjoy Cedar Springs Presbyterian Church.  It's an EPC church, which is a little different than the PCA. Today there was a guest pastor, Tom Henry from WorldServe.  He did a fabulous job and it was one of the best sermons I've heard in a long time.  The regular pastor at CSPC is a great teacher too and I've enjoyed hearing him but really enjoyed Tom Henry today. 

Two verses really stood out to me today from Isaiah 30:

15 - For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel "In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strenghts" but you were unwilling.

18 - Therefore the Lord wants to be gracious to you and thereforever he exalts himself to show mercy to you.  For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for Him.

Verse 15 represents the law and verse 18 represents the Gospel, GRACE and the power of God.

Return. Rest. Quietness. Trust. He LONGS to pour out his grace on us.

Thankful Thursdsay List

old friends
family
spontaneous lunch meetings
a job
new friends
church
good food prepared by others
Jesus
music
a break
home cooked chili on cool fall nights
plans to look forward to
gps (thanks nc)

A Year Ago today

One year ago today I was planning, a lot.
- I was planning on a fab Halloween Party hosted by yours truely. 
- I was planning on going to see the Avett Brothers at the Peace Center with Andy.
- I was planning on buying a condo.
- I was planning on who I would vote for in the most controversial election our country has probably ever had and definitely the most controversial one that I've been able to vote in.

To Do List

1.   Get over the worst cold I've ever had: Check....finally!
2.   Work in the office, rather than in the field: Check
3.   Enjoy living in Knoxville: Check
4.   Hang out with friends in Knoxville: Check
5.   Go to the gym every day: Check
       - went to an Ab class and Zumba this week! Both kicked my butt!
6.   Clean my home: 1/2 Check; on the agenda for the weekend.
7.   Decorate my home for fall: on the agenda for the weekend (Thanks Mom!)
8.   Find a church home: tentative Check
9.   Celebrate friends getting married: Upcoming!
10. Hang out in Greenville for Halloween: Upcoming!
11. Find a renter for the condo: In process
12. Be Thankful: Check

God of Beauty Truth and Goodness

God of beauty, truth and goodness, Lord of wisdom yet unknown
Grant us strength to match the vision, As we come before your throne. Refrain

Stand for truth and cry for justice, Share with those who don't belong
And remember as you serve them, sing for those who have no song. Refrain

Run with faith and live for honor, bearing witness in His call
As disciples, build the future, until Chris is Lord of all. Refrain

Make a joyful celebrationm, God in Christ has conquored death
If you really are a witness, sing until you have no breath. Refrain

Refrain: Sing a joyful Alleluluia, Praising God in all you do
And remember as you witness, God is singing over you

Another Great Weekend

So it's been another great weekend!!

Friday night, I hung out with Carshonda and some of her friends.  She's a friend from ETSU and we have several mutual friends from Morristown, where shes' from.  We had a great time!  Saturday I went up to Carson-Newman for Homecoming.  I didn't stay around too long but got to see several people and enjoy being on campus.  I didn't stay for the game at Carson-Newman.  They beat Catawba for the Homecoming win yesterday! I came back to Knoxville and hung out with Nick and watched the UT/Georgia game.  UT won and it was an awesome game!!

I really enjoyed Carson-Newman's Music Sampler.  CN has a fantastic music department and they worked really hard to show off their program yesterday for all alumni.  It was a great time to enjoy music and worship.  All of the songs they sang were religious in nature.  There were also performances by jazz band and other musical ensembles and they were so good. I'm planning to post the words to a hymn written specifically for Carson-Newman called God of Beauty Truth and Goodness.  It's a beautiful hymn.

Trust

Trust and faith are intertwined in a believer. When we know His truth and what He says about Himself... then trusting Him becomes natural. We know His nature is good, His mercies are unending, His love is unchanging, His truth never fades, His grace is sufficient, His wisdom is all-knowing...

Caldwell's Birthday and Harvest Moon Party

These photos are all from Caldwell's 2nd Birthday party and from the Harvest Moon party at Nellie's in Greenville.  What fun, fun weekends! I love my friends and family!

Birthday Girl!

Nellie and Marie's 2008 Harvest Moon (photo taken by Gregg Johnson)

Nellie and Marie's 2009 Harvest Moon (Photo taken by Chris Schmidt)

Out of Town

So, I went home this past weekend and it was fantastic :) Caldwell turned two.  I can't believe that she's that old already!  Her actual birthday was Monday the 28th but we celebrated on Saturday with a big party at Ben and Beth's!  There were a lot of children there.  They all had a great time and there was crying a lot of the time.  It was fun to be able to be there. I'll post some pics next week probably.  I left my camera at home. 

I went to the Clemson football game on Saturday. It was fun but it POURED down rain the whole second half of the game.  I've never been that wet.  We may as well have just gotten in the shower with our clothes on.  I told Jared that he's owes me one for sticking in there and staying out in the rain the whole game! It was a good game, even though Clemson lost. Thanks to Jared's friend who gave us his coach's tickets we, we were on the 2nd row! It was awesome! I'm attributing my vicious cold to this game and standing in the rain. (Even though I probably would have gotten sick anyway!)

I worked in North Carolina on Monday and Tuesday, had dinner with Melissa in Jeff City and came on home Tuesday evening.  I was already starting to feel bad.  I did not work Wednesday or today.  I'm going to meet my friend Lindsey for dinner and a movie here in a bit, even though I'm still not feeling that great.

I'm headed home this weekend to Nellie's Harvest Moon Party.  I'm super excited about celebrating this annual event.  I cannot wait to see my Greenville peeps! 

Photos to come next week of Caldwell's birthday and the HMP!

Night at the Museum and Other Funny Things

I love the movie Night at the Museum.  I have yet to see the second one but my favorite character from the movie is one of the old guys, Gus (Mickey Rooney), who used to be one of the security guards before Larry (Ben Stiller).  He's hilarious!  He has all these nick-names that he uses for Larry and some great one-liners.  He's just hilarious and it cracks me up because he's like this 80 year old man. A couple of my favorite quotes of his are:

Listen up, Lunch Box!
Do you want the job or not, snack shack?
Sweet dreams, cupcake.
Sleep tight, hotshot.
Keep a lid on it, butterscotch.
Do you want to dance, hot dog?
Look here, Hop Scotch!

There are a couple of other funny things that I've discovered this week.  They are fantastic time wasters!

http://www.peopleofwalmart.com/
http://www.wikiality.com/

People of Walmart has pictures of people from Wal-mart. 

Wikiality is The Truthiness Encylopedia by Stephen Colbert.

Always Changing

Previously I wrote a post about change and how the only constant in life is change.  I think that it's mostly a good thing even though it's usually hard to understand.  This week, my plans changed. Quite a few times. Thanks go out to my boss who can't make a decision until the last minute and who is unconcerned with the plans of anyone else.

So this weekend I had plans to be in Johnson City with friends.  I was super excited about seeing these friends, who I haven't been able to spend much time with lately, and going to Rhythm and Roots...a music festival in Bristol.  Well, that didn't exactly happen.  I was totally bummed. But it turned out to be a pretty good weekend in Knoxville anyway!  I went to dinner with a long time friend Friday night in Market Square to a new Knoxville restaurant and then walked around World's Fair Park, which is awesome. It just made me realize even more how much I love Knoxville!  Saturday, I shopped with Mel and then went to....are you ready for this....Dixie Stampede. I hadn't ever been before and it's every bit as cheesy as I thought it was going to be, but it's pretty fun and entertaining and the food is really good, except that you have to eat it with your fingers.

So, even though things didn't go as planned, it turned out to be a good weekend!

Weekend Update

Well,this probably won't be as funny as Weekend Update from Saturday Night Live!

This has been a pretty great weekend! I worked in Johnson City all week and got home around 6 Friday night, went to dinner and then to see The Breakfast Club! They're an 80s coverband and it was awesome! I've seen them perform a lot but it is always so much fun! I went with a bunch of Carson-Newman friends and saw a bunch of other Carson-Newman people there too! It was great! Saturday I went to lunch with Nancy and Jerry - who were stopping by on their way to Kentucky. It was a great visit with Greenville friends. I watched the game (Tennessee) nd cooked dinner with Whit. They lost but it was good to hang out with her and just relax!

It has been a good weekend with friends and so much fun! I'm back to JC this week for work. Hoping to hang out with friends while I'm there too!

Thankful Thursday

So it's Wednesday night but this is my Thankful Thursday List...

Work
text messages/stories from friends about great experiences (even though I'm insanely jealous)
new friends
old friends
visits from out of town friends
The Breakfast Club!!!!!!!!!!!
friends from Johnson City
Cootie Browns

Loving Knoxville

Well,  as of this coming Monday, September 7, I will have been in Knoxville for 2 months!  Kind of unbelievable.

Things I love in Knoxville:
1. Home: I love my new home.  It's a great neighborhood, some-what odd neighbors, but great location and great space.

2. Friends: I love being so close to college friends.  I've had something to do every weekend that I've been here and it's because I'm so close to so many college friends. It really is fantastic.  I love meeting new people but there is something about old, comfortable friendships that is special.

3.Work: Work is going great.  I am really enjoying the work, my co-workers (most of the time) and manager/boss.  We all work well together.

4: The City: Knoxville is a great place to live.  It is overrun by college students though! I think campus is part of what makes Knoxville so great.  There's this extra energy in the air!  Especially this week with it almost being "Football time in Tennessee!"  They'll be playing Rocky Top on the radio starting this afternoon.  I'm going to the game tomorrow and am expecting to hear it at least 50 times :)

Fallish Weather and Pet Peeves

As I write this, I am sitting on my lovely back porch on this cool summer night.  It did get warm today but there's no humidity and it felt like Fall first thing this morning.  Fall is my favorite season - it's getting cold, not too cold but sweater weather, there's college football, and the Holidays just around the corner....can life get any better??? 

I decided to write about my pet peeves today.  I have two - people who don't return phone calls and people who blow their nose in public. Originally I intended this blog to not be a personal journal or complaint column but I feel that this post is more of a PSA (Public Service Announcement). A lot of you know that my number one pet peeve is people with poor communication skills.  This applies not only to friends but in business relationships as well.  Freakin' call somebody back already! I have wonderful friends.  I have friends all over the country.  And I have friends who don't like to return phone calls.  How are you supposed to manage relationships if friends won't respond to phone calls, emails or text messages.  Currently, I have a two call limit on my friends.  I will call a friend twice without a return phone call in a reasonable amount of time then (usually a month or two), I will not call them again, unless I forget because it's been so long! There is hardly anyone who falls outside of the two call limit, except my family and maybe a college roommate or two!  When people don't return phone calls, you know what it says to me...."I don't care".  When I don't hear back from you, I automatically think that you, who refuses to return calls, don't care about my friendship and that it's not important to you.

This two call (and now text) limit may sound ridiculous but friendships are so important to me that I work hard to maintain them.  I also feel like I shouldn't have to chase down my friends.  When I lived in South Carolina, I was always driving back and forth to Knoxville and all over the country and spending counltess hours on the phone with my friends who weren't around.  My friends are some of the most important people in my life.

OK, I'll get off my soapbox now but I hope you know that the two call limit is not in place because I'm demanding or being ridiculous but because I value relationships with people that I love.

That being said - Happy Fall and Happy Football Season! College kick off is just a few days away! :) I guess I'm a Tennessee fan now that I live in VOL Country.

Life is Ridiculous

This week has been ridiculous.

This week I have forgotten:
1) My purse, in the grocery cart, in the parking lot of kroger, on sunday night at 8 PM. I didn't realize it until I got home BUT thankfully it was still there when I went back. Ridiculous.
2) My keys. I locked the door knob, closed it and walked out while my keys were on the kitchen counter. Ridiculous.

I have gotten some fun things accomplished. Well I dont know about fun.... I got a Tennessee Drivers License and a Tennessee license plate.

I'm SOoooo tired. Hoping for a mental health day Friday. Tomorrow is going to be CRAZY busy trying to get ahead so that I dont have to work Friday :) Hoping for a nice relaxing weekend with few plans...chillin with friends and hanging out.

Life Continues to be Unexpected

GREAT NEWS: I have rented my condo in Greenville!

This is the best news I have received since I got the phone call from Mark saying 'I was calling because I'd like to offer you a job'! I've yet to sign the lease with this girl, but she seems pretty serious about the condo and we decided on a price and all. I am SOOoooo glad to be relieved of this burden!

Life is Unexpected

So, my life is still feeling a little bit crazy and unexpected. I had a good weekend here in Knoxville. Celebrated Bryan's birthday friday night. Saturday: gym, lunch with Whit, Jake's football game, and rockband. Sunday: church and lunch with Mike and Bev. So fun to receive a last minute phone call from them yesterday and find out that they were in town! :)

I was hoping for a little down time this weekend. I had that today but still feel like I have a lot to do that I shouldn't be wasting my time with tv watching and chilling. I'm planning to take a mental health day this week and be able to take care of some things that have been left hanging since my move to Knoxville - mostly my car. The other thing is the organization of my life!

I think this mental health day will help my brain. It really will be a mental health day. Today, I did one of the dumbest things I've ever done. No, seriously. I went to the grocery store today because I will actually be able to cook as I'll be in town for the next two weeks! Yay! So, I was loaded up my car, moved the buggy to the cart replacement thing and drove away. I got home and realized that I'd left my purse in the cart, in the parking lot at Kroger at 7 pm on a Sunday night. Have I seriously lost my mind? Well of course I took off and sped back to Kroger and there it was, right in the cart, in the cart replacement thing, in the Kroger parking lot. Praise Jesus. Seriously, Praise Jesus. It could have been disasterous.

In the past several days, I have heard of deaths or suffering of several people, two semi close to my age. Earlier this week, a guy that I went to high school with passed away. I didn't really know him but was shocked to hear this news. The reality of life's fragility was again brought to my attention this weekend in Knoxville. On opening high school football night, a team from Kingsport was playing a Knoxville team and one of their players collapsed on the field and passed away. A high school senior. Playing his last first game of the football season at the beginning of his senior year, collapsed on the field and never got up. I also have a friend who is dealing with a sick, old grandparent. It's just a bittersweet reminder of how precious life is and how most of the time - life does not go according to plan, things change, stuff happens.

Life is totally unexpected.

I'm curious to se what God is going to do next in my life. This past almost 2 months now, has been an amazing time for me to see God working: in my job, my friends, my new city, my old city, in looking for a church, in new friends, in old friends. I'm excited about what's next!

Life is Interesting

In my mere 25 years, I feel like I've learned a lot about life. My boss, who is in his mid fifties, thinks its hilarious to ask me about things like onion paper and broken records - things that were before my time. Although - I did grow up listening to records, thanks to my parents. Mostly Monster Mash and Willie Nelson. Quite the combination!

I'm not really even sure to put into words how I'm feeling...

Friends change. People change. Plans change. Places change.

Life changes.

I feel like I've heard the statement: The only constant in life is change.

Reality

Things really are going good here in Knoxville, but reality is that I'm:
extremely tired,
emotional,
frustrated,
and anxious.

Still Feeling Crazy

This week has been INSANE! I've been working in Crossville, which is about an hour from Knoxville and just on the other side of the Central Time Zone. We've been working 8-5:30 their time. We leave here at 8, get there at 8, work til 5 or 530 and get home around 730.

Wow, I'm tired.

Life is good though! I celebrated Nick's birthday last night with him and a bunch of his friends who just happen to be friends of mine too and it was so fun! We went to Litton's (best burgers in Knoxville) and then to the DGB, my fav! It was such a great time to hang out with friends and relax. I so needed that. Even though we stayed out til 1130 almost, it was so much fun! I am kind of paying for it today. We went into work early this morning to get some stuff done. I do not have anything to do tonight and that makes me so happy! :) I'm sitting in my pajamas. Just finished eating left over Thai food and am looking forward to watching a movie on TV or cleaning up my apartment. You wouldn't believe how messy it can get in one week without time to keep it up!

I'm looking forward to a relaxing weekend!
Hope yours is great too!
LOVE!

Feeling Crazy

I can't put into words the way my heart feels.

good. bad. excited. scared. anxious. happy. frustrated.

there's so much going on at one time. my brain never rests. for the past month my thoughts have been jumping from:

YAY! Work!
knoxville.
greenville.
moving.
friends.
visits from friends.
missing friends.
condo.
whoa.
condo.
comcast.
comcast sucks.
sell?
rent?
knoxville.
friends.
work.
work.
texting.
traveling.
missing DPC.
hamilton.
momise.
caldwell.
family.
busy.
gym.

deep breaths...
one thing at a time...
i can do this.

Busy Schedule

So this past week was my first week of out of town travel for work. We were in Johnson City for the week. The work went well and I think that the more familliar we (the audit team) get with the process and the work, the easier it'll be. We've completed two audits at this point.

It was weird to stay in a hotel room by myself. I hadn't realized that it would be weird. I guess I've just always been with friends or family when I've stayed in a room and been with other people. It was so good to be in Johnson City and see friends. I met with friends for dinner every night but one and it was so fun to be in town for a few days. It was weird to travel and not be home. I thought that I would have a nice relaxing weekend to recover from being out of town for the week but it's turned out to be crazy.

It's saturday night and I haven't even unpacked from the week! I ran in last night, changed clothes and ran out to meet a friend for dinner and a movie. We saw Julie and Julia and it was so good. I really liked it! I would love to cook my way through a cookbook! Which is what Julie did - she cooked her way through a Julia Child cookbook! I came in late and went to bed, slept late, went and got my nails did with Mel-Dawg - who's finally back from China - waited on the cable folks who never showed up, dinner with Diana and now to bed again! I think tomorrow will be pretty laid back -lunch with Kevin and Kathy and then hopefully nothing for the rest of the day! It'll be good to relax and take it easy for awhile!

Hitting the road again next week for work. We'll be working in Crossville, which is an hour away. We'll be driving every day. It wont be that bad but it's across the time zone so we'll be getting home late every night. But I really dont think it'll be a bad drive. We'll carpool and we won't have to leave as early...if we leave here at 8 AM we'll arrive in Crossville at 8 AM. But leaving is going to be hard - we'll leave Crossville at 5 PM (6 PM Knoxville time) and get home around 7ish Knoxville time.

Off to sleep :)

Sunday Reflections

This Sunday, I went back to Redeemer in Knoxville. The sermon was taught by a Carson-Newman grad who is a pastor/music leader at Redeemer. The lesson was about waiting. His main points were 1) Expect to wait 2) Be Prepared to wait 3) Know what we're waiting for.

Recently coming out of a period of waiting in my life, this sermon caused me to be very reflective over the past few months/weeks. I'm not sure that all this change has sunk in my head yet. It's all been so fast and so much all at one time. It's all good, for sure, but it's just a lot. I've been waiting for so long for something to happen. I'm still reflecting of this lesson but these are my initial thoughts.

There were two things that Matt said today really made me think. The first was that God has something for us in the waiting periods of our lives. I'm still struggling with this. I feel like I might never know what the waiting period of the last 8 months was for. Maybe it was to change me. To allow God to take HIS time and mold me and teach me about His timing. I do feel like some things about me have changed. I'm a lot less of a planner, for one thing...this could be good and bad. I have a lot more empathy for others. And part of me just feels different. Different in a good way. It's hard to describe. This waiting period was definitely also a learning period.

The second thing Matt said that stuck out to me was "how you wait depends on what you are waiting on". This is so true. When we wait in line or waiting at a restaurant, we're impatient becuase we're hungry. When we're in line at the grocery store, we're impatient because there's 1234098 registers and only one cashier (Thank you Wal-mart and Target). What about waiting on Jesus to come back? Do we, as Christians, really live our lives like we're waiting on the Savior of the World to return? Also, if we're living our lives in the waiting...are we really living our lives? So much of life can pass by without even realizing what has happened. Sharon, a new friend, commented that she felt like so much joy is lost in waiting. Are we letting life pass us by because we're waiting on that one certain thing to happen? So often, we make excuses, saying "if this one thing will just happen, then I'll __________..." You fill in the blank.

What are you waiting on?

How much of human life is lost in waiting? - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Time

Time flies when you're......

...working a lot! I'm really enjoying my job. I'm working a lot (but not a lot of over time) and things are busy (but not too busy)! We did our first audit last week and that went well. I think. My manager had 5 pages of review notes today (most of which weren't mine and that made me happy!!) We are going out on our second audit next week and we'll be staying the week in Johnson City so I'll be hopefully visiting with friends at night while we're in town! We'll probably be there all week but we might be coming back Thursday night. I'm looking forward to traveling and being out of town for the week, even though its for work.

...really tired. I'm beat. Tonight I worked out with a trainer and she totally kicked my butt. I'm so tired, it's going to be a battle to get dressed in the morning. We did pretty much all arms/shoulders/core and I am worn out. It's not even 10 and I think I am going to bed. It was a GREAT workout! I felt like I'd worked out with Holly!

...looking forward to the weekend! This weekend should be fun. I'm going to have a girls night with some friends tomorrow night. Saturday Joetta and Justin are driving through on their way to Charleston for the week and I am super excited to see them. I haven't seen Joetta since her wedding last April! Almost a year and half ago! Sunday I'm planning on going to Redeemer church. It's so similar to Downtown Pres. It's a PCA church and it's downtown and close to campus. I visited there last week and really enjoyed it. I'm looking forward to going back this week!

Recently Reminded

I've recently been reminded of the story of the Prodigal Son from Luke. Most of my life usually when I've heard a sermon on this topic, it's been about the younger son, the one who ran away. But over the past week especially, and really over the last few months, I've heard lessons on the older brother.

The post below this one references a Stuff Christians Like post that is about this same thing. This past Sunday I went to Redeemer Church in Knoxville. It was so good. It was almost just like being back at Downtown Pres. The speaker, who is a friend of Brian's from DPC, did a great job with this lesson. He said some things that really stood out to me.

The desvestating truth is that the older brother, the duty-do-er, is more lost than the younger brother. He confuses faith and duty. This is totally me. I generally follow the rules and do what I'm supposed to do and forget that I am not the one that determines my relationship with Jesus. Both sons are blind to who their father really is. I definitely sometimes forget and don't remember who the Father is. We are generally suspicious of Jesus' love. This can only be changed by the astonishing certainty that JESUS LOVES US!!! No one has ever or will ever love me like Jesus. I do not determine my relationship with Jesus. This was huge for me to realize. It is not up to me!

"God is God. Because He is God, He is worthy of my trust and obedience. I will find rest nowhere but in His holy will, a will that is unspeakably beyond my largest notions of what He is up to." - Elisabeth Elliot

Worth Checking out

It's kinda long but so worth reading...

Stuff Christians Like

Culture Shock

I dont know that it's really culture shock but it is in a way. Every day while I'm driving home I think, man, I can't believe that I really live in Knoxville now. I'm not here just visiting friends or hanging out or going to a wedding...I actually live here!

I love Knoxville! I love my job! I love the people that I'm working with! I love seeing college friends on a regular basis and without the rushed need to see a lot of people all in one weekend! It's so great. It's great to be able to drive a short distance and be able to see most of my friends that still live in the area. It's great to connect with old friends. It's great to drive less than 3 miles to work and the gym. It's great to have 3 sessions with a personal trainer. I love my new home! I think I've finally got it like I want it, with the exception of the downstairs bedroom. Who knows what I'm gonna do with it. Eventually I'd like to get some furniture in there and have it be a real guest bedroom. Right now it's the "everything-that-I-dont-know-what-to-do-with-goes-here" room! It's great to have friends who come to Knoxville (Jennie) often and that I can see because I live here now! It's crazy! It's great to be 2 1/2 hours from Nashville!

However- I REALLY love Greenville! I miss my family. I miss seeing BopBop every day. I miss being the family babysitter. I miss stopping by to see my grandparents. I miss eating food from my parents garden. I miss Downtown Pres. I miss Downtown Pres and the people there and my little group of folks who always hung out and my CG. I miss Sunday nights at Barleys (there is Barleys in Knoxville but it just wouldnt be the same). I miss Sunday mornings with Brian's teaching. I miss living downtown and walking everywhere. I miss Chicora Alley. I miss Spill the Beans and the Blueberry Frog. I miss Oysters on the West End. I miss the Paris Cafe for lunch with Nellie. I miss living 1/2 a mile from the park. I miss Downtown Greenville - there's something captivating about that place...

I have some real mixed emotions about being here but I'm so excited about "starting over"!

I stole this from my friend Lindsey's blog:

Here's to
d o i n g
things you never
thought you could or would,
o b e y i n g
that voice inside you
that tells you big things only
happen when you take big risks,
and
b e c o m i n g
the person you know you're
supposed to be...
even when you don't want to.
Time for a new chapter.

Quiet Friday Night

So tonight has been good. This week has been insane. I've worked late and hard all week (mostly because I have no idea what's going on). I've cooked dinner, visited with friends, met new interesting neighbors and learned even more about Knoxville. I've also gone to bed by 1030 almost every night. I'm worn out! But in a glorious way!

Tonight, I left work around 530 and came home, completely exhausted. I talked on the phone (a fav activity) to several different folks and then decided that I needed to go to Super Target. It's huge! I did that and then went to the Kroger Marketplace. It's HUGE too. I did my grocery shopping for the week. It was nice to just take my time and take it slow and the grocery store not be crowded (partly because it was Friday night - wow, am I a loser?)

Things are good and I love Knoxville!

Living Life

So, the move went GREAT!! Thanks to Jason, Michael, Ben, Chris, Mark, Lauren, Chandler, Jerry, Katharine, Phelps, and my parents. I hope I'm not leaving anybody out! These guys met me at the storage until at 930 on Saturday morning and everyone was gone by about 1020! What a great crew of folks to show up and help me move! My dad drove the truck to Knoxville and arrived about 245. The Reillys - Kevin, Kathy, Sean and Jake, Joseph, and Ashley H helped me move and did a fantastic job! :) We had the truck unloaded by 310! It was awesome! My A/C was broken when I moved in and so it was a little more than warm on Saturday and Sunday. I sweated a lot but I figure that it's good for me!

I'm still working on getting things settled and I'll put pics up here sometime soon!

Thanks again for all your help with the move!

More to come....

Adventures in Knoxville

I've been meaning to write all week but things have been INSANE! I haven't had a moment to myself. It's wearing me out. It's all be really great though! I had a great time with Diana on Monday and Tuesday. Her place is really cute and she lives in a great area in Maryville (Prounounced Mur-vul). Nick was a lot of help Monday afternoon while looking for a place to live. Monday there wasn't really a place that I was super excited about. I got up early Tuesday and went to run (so proud of myself) and started at 930 AM looking for a place to live. I visited 7 places and found my new home on my last visit!

It's a townhome close to work and in West Knoxville. It's about a mile from my friends, Matt and Whitney. It's in a great location. I hope you can see the pic of the outside I'm attaching. It's super cute. 2 bed 2 bath. The 'master suite' is upstairs with a washer and dryer.

Wednesday night and Thursday night I stayed with Matt and Whitney. It was great and close to work. They have a black lab puppy that's super cute. She's a mess and she's really sweet. Her name is Lady. I think she's probably sad tonight because I'm not there to keep her company!

Work is going good. All training all week. I'm looking forward to getting to work next week. I like the people that I'm working with and for, so that really helps! I just know it's going to be great!

I may write more later when I can think! :) I'm so tired - physically, emotionally and mentally - but its all from good things! Things are really falling into place and I give all the glory to God with Thanksgiving for his grace and peace.

New Blog Title

So, since I'm moving to Knoxville the name of my blog can't exactly be Displaced Downtowner any more. I mean, I still am, but I feel like I need to rename my blog. I'm liking the alliteration though (DD). Any suggestions?

Whirlwind

Wow! This week has been such a whirlwind! It's been the best week I've had in a really long time and I feel like I've spent 1/2 of it on the phone. I'm pretty sure that I put my phone down barely long enough to eat dinner Tuesday. I was just so excited and had to talk to everybody!

My worries have totally changed! On Monday, my worries would have been "will I ever get a job? what about the condo? what if neither job in Tennessee works out? I'm going to be back to square one. what am I going to do?"

Tuesday and the rest of this week, my worries have been "find a place to live, find a place to live, find a place to live, what about the condo?..."

I was totally stressed out and overwhelmed by CraigsList and the abundance of apartment complexes in Knoxville! One of my friends in Knoxville and has been a lot of help with looking and giving me ideas. I made a list the other day and it had about 15 complex/condos/townhomes and stuff to call and I just went online, picked out my favs and crossed off the rest. I am going to Knoxville on Monday and Tuesday to meet with about 6 of them and pick one for my new home! All of the places I've looked at have been a lot cheaper than what I was living in in Greenville. Although I walked to work, grocery and eat out. So I'm confident one of these will work out!

So many of you have asked about the condo that I bought. I dont know if everyone knows but I bought a condo on Friday, October 31 and lost my job on Tuesday, November 4. SO...I bought it from my brother and there was a guy renting it through March this year and I was going to move in. Well, when January rolled around he called and said his contract with BMW had been extended and that he would like to stay for another year. At the time, I was pretty upset because the plan had been to be with my parents short term and then go ahead and move into the condo in March, more than confident that I would have a job by then. Well that wasn't the case but I let the guy stay through May next year and so I'm not going to worry about it right now. In the Spring, depending on the market, I'll probably put it up for sale and if not, I'll try to rent it out again.

Also, things ended well with the job possibility in Johnson City that I interviewed with at the beginning of the summer. I called them Wednesday and said that I would just like to know where they were in the hiring process and when they called back I told them about the job offer in Knoxville and that I was going to take it. He said that if I ever needed another job even if its in 2 or 5 years, to be sure to give them a call because they were interested in me and were intending to invite me back for a second interview. So I feel good about that situation and that no bridges were burned in the process. I was nervous about making that phone call and it went really well.

OK, well I think that might be all the update for now. I'm headed to Knoxville Monday to start looking for a place to live and will start work on Wednesday! Woo-Hoo!!! I'm SO excited!

JOB!!!!

I HAVE A JOB! I'm am so excited to be writing this! Finally! I've written this in my head so many times! It seems like it's been FOREVER! It's been 8 months!

I will be moving to Knoxville sometime in the next two weeks. Seems crazy, I know. I'll be working for a small accounting firm in West Knoxville. I'll be starting work next wednesday but probably won't get officially moved for a week or more. So save those great muscles to help me move!! (Greenville will be the easy part!! It's all packed in a storage unit!). I'm so excited to be starting a new leg of my journey!

I cannot thank you all enough for your prayers, love, support, and encouragement.

Love!

Intense Anxiety

So, this afternoon visiting my lovely friend Jeanne...I MISSED A PHONE CALL FROM KNOXVILLE ABOUT MY INTERVIEW!! So, I'll be waiting until the morning to find out what happens!

Thankful List

So, It's been a weird week and I was not having the greatest day yesterday and thought of all the good things in my life that I have to be thankful for even amidst all this other crap. In random order:

-My family - this is a quick way of saying: parents, brothers and their families, my niece and nephew, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins...
-My friends - College, Grad school, Greenville, others - you have no idea how thankful I am for friends...
-Jesus
-Grace
-A place to live
-interviews
-Interviews that provide hope
-Downtown Pres and the people there
-cell phones
-text messaging
-overnights to Knoxville
-this past Wednesday night
-radio
-live music
-exercise - gym, zumba, workouts with holly, iRun
-Birthdays
-Orange fingernail polish
-The beach

Interview Part II

OK, so this is a different interview than the one I previously wrote about but this interview is in Knoxville! So, thanks to my friend Nick (who sent me an ad about this job out of the Knox News), I have an interview tomorrow morning at 10 in Knoxville! It's a different kind of job that I've done. It's still CPA work but it's auditing rather than tax. Should be interesting. Anyway - I'm excited about the possibility of options! We'll see what happens and I'll be sure to keep you posted!

Quick Trip to Knoxville

So Monday night I decided it'd be a good time to take a quick trip to Knoxville! I ran (not literally) over there Tuesday morning, spent the day with Ashley, the evening with the Reilly's and the night with Melissa! I had breakfast wednesday with Kathy and lunch with Nick and was home by dinner time. It was super fast and I enjoyed every second of it!

My main purpose was to see Ashley. It had been about a year since I had seen her. She and her husband, Timothy, are moving to Thomasville, Georgia today. It's a heck of a lot closer than South Hamilton, Massachusetts but still a good bit farther than Knoxville! We had lunch at Tea at the Gallery. It's a wonderful little tea room with finger sandwiches, weird pasta salad, and delicious scones! I spent the afternoon with her and went to dinner with her family. I stopped by Kevin and Kathy's for a few minutes and visited with them after a great dinner at The Chop House with the Greenes. It had been a long time since I had seen the Reilly's, so it was great to catch up with them! We sat out on the porch and had a beer - it was fantastic! I spent the night at Melissa's and got to see Anna. Melissa and I stayed up late (as usual) and caught up. It was good to see her before she leaves for China for 6 1/2 weeks on Tuesday. (Who am I going to talk to while she's gone?!)

Wednesday morning I went with Kathy to Cracker Barrel and met Nick for lunch in Market Square. We went to the Tomato Head. It was really good. I was glad to be able to go there. I've heard so much about it but never been able to go before. I made it home for dinner with my parents on Wednesday night. Pretty quick trip but a great one.

I apologize to the other Knoxvill-ians that I was unable to see! We'll catch up next time! I'll be there next week again for another quick trip. This time for an interview! :)

Update

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you for your continued love, support, and encouragement always but especially over the past several months. You are all wonderful family and friends and I dont know what I would do without you. I have already told some of you about this but, if you didn't know, this is the biggest news lately, I had an interview today in Johnson City, TN at an accounting firm there. I sent my resume there through a reference that I used to work for in Johnson City when I lived there for graduate school. This firm has a lot of connections with ETSU and in Johnson City. I have a couple of friends who work there and hopefully have had good things to say about me. A friend here in Greenville who is from JC is getting his dad to put in a good word for me (Thanks Brian S.)! Also, I am going to call some professors who have relationships with people in the firm and get them to put in a good word for me too! :) It helps to have friends in high places!! The interview went well. Their timeline for hiring is about 6-8 weeks it seems. Which feels like an eternity to say it may be the end of July when I ear anything from them, but I am sure that it will go by fast! They are interviewing a couple other people too. In the mean time, please continue to pray that if this is the right thing it will work out in the right time. Also, that if it doesn't work out, that I'll be OK with it.

Other than the interview I had a GREAT time in JC visiting friends. I was surprised at how much fun it was to be able to hang out with those people again! I had a wonderful time at the Blue Plum Festival and really enjoyed catching up with "old" friends :) Thanks Carshonda, Philip, Andy, Jared, Erin, Joseph and Raven for a fantastic weekend!

Interview

So, the biggest news going on in my life right now is that I HAVE AN INTERVIEW!! I'm excited. It's Monday at 9 AM. I am hesitant to say too much about it but please be praying for direction in my life, the lives of the people I'm interviewing with and for God's will in my life.

Stuff Christians Like

Per Jon Acuff @ Stuff Christians Like:

I don't know what's going on in your life. Maybe things are great right now and you’re thinking “oh jeez Serious Wednesday.” That’s awesome that things are good right now, God certainly showers us with greatness. But maybe you just went from a great job to a no job kind of situation. Maybe you're crying out for novacaine right now. I don't know your specifics, but what I do know is that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

It's not in some things, or in most things or in the things that make sense in the moment. It's all things. And for the ones that hurt, for the moments that don't make any sense whatsoever, we're given a great reassurance in Romans 8:26.

"We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express."

I love that. I love that when we don’t have the right words or the perfect words, the Spirit groans for us. That's the prayer I pray during life’s root canal moments. I just ask the Spirit to “groan.” It's not the most elaborate prayer. It's not that fancy, and it would make perhaps the world's shortest book. But when I'm in a corner and don't know what to pray for because the pain doesn't seem to line up with my plans, that's all I say to the Holy Spirit. That's my simple prayer request.

Fun Weekend Ahead

I'm so pumped about this coming weekend, I am having to keep myself from packing my bag today! I'll probably end up doing it last minute and forgetting some important stuff. But I'm excited to be out of town and hanging out with some fun people!

Things I'm looking forward to this weekend:

1) Friends: I have a lot of friends still in the Johnson City area and I am so looking forward to being there and visiting with them!
2) Blue Plum: Outdoor music festival downtown! There's always great music and fun times to be had at the Blue Plum!
3)Wedding: My friend Holly from Carson-Newman is getting married Saturday. Should be a great time too!
4) Cootie Browns: My FAVORITE restuarant in Johnson City. It's one of those places that you probably wouldn't stop unless you knew what you were getting yourself into but it is so good.

Isaiah 43

Do not fear, for I have redeemed you
I have called you by name, you are mine
When you pass through the waters
I will be with you
And the waves shall not over come you
When you will through the fired
you will not be burned
And the flames shall not consume you.
For I am the Lord your God
The Holy One of Israel
Your Savior.
Isaiah 43:1-3

Temporary Downtowner

So, this week I'm a temporary downtowner! My friend Nellie is in England for 10 days and I'm staying at her place downtown for the next week! I'm hanging out with her dog Finn who's cute and sweet! I'm already enjoying being close to downtown and being able to hang out without driving 4o minutes! :D It was a great 8 minute drive to church this morning!

This is Finn

Thoughts on Staying Positive

So, as most of you know I'm not exactly a real positive thinker. And I've realized this more and more as my situation has been no-so-much-changing over the past several months. And, so, on that note, recently a friend of mine told me that I should be more positive and assertive in my language. Not only would this help me feel more positive and optimistic, it would really help my mindset.
For example, I tend to say things like "I probably should do....."; or "I probably won't...."; or "it might not work out but...." For me, these phrases are a healthy dose of reality. But, reality can be a little overrated (Thanks Nellie!). Although, I think it's good not to be the eternal optimist. Only because you're going to be disappointed at some point - but then if you're eternally optimistic - can you be disappointed? Hmm....Any-who, these old thoughts tend to make me a more negative thinker. My friend told me to turn those phrases into things like "I am going to..."; and "I will..."; and "It's going to work out..."
So, not that it's going to be every day all day thing for me, but I AM working on it but I'm going to need your help! And we can all use a little less negativity in our lives!

Amazing Grace

Many times in the past week I have been reminded of God's Grace. I have heard some reference to John Newton at least 4 times (in two different books and by a few friends) in the past week. I don't think that I had ever heard his story until this past Sunday. John Newton wrote several famous hymns, but the hymn that he wrote that everyone knows is Amazing Grace. Newton was involved in the slave trader before, and for a little while after he became a Christian. He has a great testimony about God's grace in his life. Sometimes the more familiar the words are, the easier it is to just sing them and not think about the meaning. More to come on grace, but for now...

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost but now am found,
Was blind, but now I see.

May

Wow! So, it's May. Does that seem kind of crazy to anyone else? When did this happen? It seems that life and time go so much more quickly now that I'm a real adult (although that's up for debate since I dont have a job and live with my parents!) I've now been unemployed for 7, yes 7, months....

I've been pretty frustrated with God lately over this whole situation because I felt like I was doing the right thing moving here to Greenville and taking this job, which I no longer have. And then not being able to find something new for so long. I've had more than one person tell me that there is some purpose in this, and maybe I'll never know what it is. This morning I was reminded what a mighty and awesome God I serve, we as Christians serve. I was reading Stuff Christians Like and the post today is about fame. No accounting career is going to make me famous (unless I cheat a lot of people out of millions of dollars and go to jail), but it doesn't matter because the Creater of the Universe knows my name! He is the Creater, Maker, Redeemer, God...He knows what He's doing.

Summer Wedding Circuit

Let me first say that I am so honored to have so many wonderful friends that want me to be apart of their special day! Seriously...I dont know what I would do without these wonderful friends.

Yesterday I had lunch with a friend and we were talking about our summer plans. I would like to reflect on my life this time last year....last summer, I was participating in the "Wedding Circuit", from here on out, referred to as "the WC". I was in 3 and went to 10 and was invited to a couple more and couldn't go because they were on the same day as others or were too far away! The WC, especially in the south, usually gets started around this time of year, maybe a little earlier and carries on into the Fall. Easter/Spring is usually a pretty good kick off time, with the WC ending before football season. If a wedding is on the same day as "the big game", the big game always wins out so some people schedule their weddings around football, sadly enough.

The WC involves showers, teas, weekend get-a-ways for bachlorette parties, interesting cake shapes, beautiful summer dresses, and TOO much fun and food! Usually these weekends were traveling as well - Cincinnati, Baltimore, Nashville, Knoxville....When it was all over I had to think back to what "normal" was supposed to be! What was I going to do with all of these free weekends? And who was I going to hang out with? What about all my new wedding related friends? We all packed up and said our "goodbyes" and "we'll have to stay in touches" after the bride and groom left. Now what? I was sad that it was all over!

This summer is an entirely different story. I only have two weddindgs coming up and only two that I've been to already this year. It seems kind of unbelievable that I'd have around 15 friends get married in a little more than a year's time. But other than weddings, I dont have any plans. What am I going to do with myself, you might ask. Well, I'm going to read (suggestions definitely welcome, I LOVE to read), go to the gym, and hang out with friends and maybe a beach trip or two thrown in there!

All of that reflection to say that I'm really looking forward to the summer months and am already enjoying the beautiful weather that we've been having here in SC. I'm also looking forward to downtown events in Greenville. It seems like there's something going on all the time and I just LOVE being downtown with all the people out. There's just something about this place that has captured my heart.

What are your summer plans?

Waiting...

Like my dear friend Ashley, I am in a period of waiting in my life. Waiting is so hard to do when you don't know what's going to happen next. I have decided that I'm doing the following kinds of waiting .

Function:
verb
1: to stay in place in expectation of :
2 a: to look forward expectantly b: to hold back expectantly
3 a: to be ready and available b: to remain temporarily neglected or unrealized

Waiting for: a job, to move out of my parents house, to move into my condo, to know some kind of plan for my life.... It would be different if I knew when any of these things would happen. The temporary plan for the condo is to move in May of 2010, which seems so extremely far away. As for the rest of it: only He knows.

In prayer and hope for the future.

"God is God. Because He is God, He is worthy of my trust and obedience. I will find rest nowhere but in His holy will, a will that is unspeakably beyond my largest notions of what He is up to." - Elisabeth Elliot

Rock of Ages

Rock of Ages, when the day seems long
From this labor and this heartache I have come
The skies will wear out, but You remain the same
Rock of Ages, I praise Your name.

Rock of Ages, You have brought me near
You have poured out Your life-blood, Your love, Your tears
To make this stone heart come alive again
Rock of Ages, forgive my sin

Rock of Ages, Rock of Ages
Bind your children til' your kingdom comes
Rock of Ages, Your will be done

Rock of Ages, when in want or rest
My desperate need for such a Savior I confess
Pull these idols out from my heart embrace
Rock of Ages, I need Your grace

Rock of Ages, broken, scorned for me
Who am I that You would die to make me free?
To give me glory, You took the death and pain
Rock of Ages, my offering

Rock of Ages, "It is done," You cried
The curtain's torn and I see justice satisfied
Now write Your mercy here on my heart and hands
Rock of Ages, in faith I stand

Rock of Ages, my great hope secure
Your promise holds just like an anchor to my soul
Bind your children with cords of love and grace
Rock of Ages, we give You praise

Rock of Ages by Sandra McCracken

Immeasurable

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Ephesians 3:20-21

Litchfield Beach

I'm surprised by the number of people who have not heard of or been to Litchfield Beach. I almost hate to say that it's my favorite place in the whole world but....it is! My family owns a beach house in South Litchfield. The house is called "Dot's Spot", after my grandmother, Dorothy Marie Tourtellotte Carpenter, who passed away in 2006.

This house holds so many wonderful memories for me. I could not even begin to tell you all the stories from times spent at this house. I love to open the door for the first time of the trip, close my eyes, and breathe in memories of so many vacations, weekends, reunions, and celebrations spent inside the walls of this house over the past 45 years! What an amazing place. It is a place of rest and relaxation with no time restraints or schedules to interrupt.

Recently my parents, aunts and uncles have spent countless hours refurbishing the house and it looks fantastic with refinished hardwood floors, recovered furniture, new beds and linens! It almost looks like a new house! They have done a fantastic job!

This past week I spent 4 days and 4 1/2 nights (we got in kinda late Saturday after a wonderful day/evening in Charleston) at the house with friends from Greenville who are teachers and get Spring Break! It was great to be with them on my "extended spring break". I really enjoyed getting away and just relaxing. These girls were FANTASTIC relaxers! I wish that it would have been just a little bit warmer but it was overall a great trip! I was kind of sad to come back to reality this weekend. But...

This weekend is a wonderful time of celebration as we remember Jesus' death and resurrection on Easter.

Hallelujah! He is Risen!

Happy Easter!

Lyrical Confusion

Let me start off by saying that I LOVE MUSIC! I can listen to just about anything and I can definitely see just about anything live and enjoy it! My most recent show/concert was Josh Ritter at the Orange Peel in Asheville. The Orange Peel is an great venue for those who haven't been there, I highly recommend it!! And, they have a Big Ass Fan. No really, that's what it's called. :) I've also been to recently the Avett Brothers at the Peace Center in Greenville in November! They are so good live! It was a great show!

So, even though I love music, I'm pretty good at making up the lyrics to songs that I like and listen to but am just mistaken about the words. Here are a few examples:

1)Umbrella by Rihanna:
a) Actual Lyrics: Under my umbrella -ella -ella -ella
b) Marie's Lyrics: Under my arm forever -ever -ever -ever

2)Disturbia by Rihanna:
a) Actual Lyrics: Your mind's in disturbia, it's like the darkness is light; Disturbia, am I scaring you tonight?; Disturbia, ain't used to what you like; Disturbia, disturbia
b) Marie's Lyrics: Stir it up...(never would've guessed the rest of that)

3)White Horse by Taylor Swift
a) Actual lyrics: I'm not the one you sweep off her feet, lead her up the stairwell
b) Marie's Lyrics: I'm not the one you sweet off your feet, leader of the stairwell

4) Walking in Memphis by Marc Cohn
a) Actual Lyrics: And Reverend Greene be glad to see you, when you haven't got a prayer
b) Marie's Lyrics: will river and green, be glad to see you, when you haven't got a prayer

I'm know that I could think of some more but those are all songs that I've heard and only recently figured out what the real lyrics are! AND these are only the ones that I know about! Who even knows about the ones that I DONT know about! Ha!

Please feel free to share your stories of Lyrical Confusion!