Today is Wednesday–and this is my “favorite” day of the week for some reason. I know that it began my freshman year, because most of my classes were Monday & Tuesday, with 2 on Wednesday and one on Thursday…so by the time Wednesday rolled around, my week was done. 🙂 But it still is just a day to which I look forward, for some reason.

I found this piece that I thought might be of interest. Congressman James Rogan of California shares his first encounter with then Governor Reagan in 1973: “How I Ruined Ronald Reagan’s Day (And How He Made Mine)”

I am flying home today, so I’ll be taking a break from the blog until I return from my trip. Tomorrow’s the big day for my brother! I hope that he is able to figure out soon what he wants to do with the rest of his life, because he is really unsure right now, and I know that is rough.

Yesterday was a rough day, health-wise, but I made some really good discoveries in other aspects of my life that are making everything clearer. I know that is vague, and perhaps I’ll share in the future, but perhaps not. Just know that I am realizing the effects of things and people in my past–and how they affect my present and future.

Today is my best-friend’s 21st birthday! Happy Birthday Bethany! (I don’t think she reads the blog, but just in case :)) We’ve been best-friends for about 15 years now…and I look forward to many more.

Have a great couple of days–and I’ll be back soon. 🙂

Okay, people amaze me sometimes. I came across this website today, The Brick Testament, which tells Bible stories with Legos…and though I have yet to look through all the stories, the ones I have seen are beautiful! They use scripture in every scene, and it is so creative. Amazing. Anyway, check it out. I’ve only seen the Garden of Eden and the Flood so far, but it is worth your time!

Just found this and thought it was fascinating…gas isn’t the only thing that has risen in price, but it has blinded us to the raised cost of other goods and services.

 Goods and services rising the most so far in 2004

Item	Annualized price change
Motor fuels other than gasoline (diesel, etc.)	62.7%
Gasoline	58.1
Butter & margarine	47.2
Motor vehicle fees (license & registration)	32.4
Delivery service	22.7
Fuel oil & other fuel	18.4
Apples	16.6
Women’s suits & separates	16.2
Airline fares	13.0
Utilities (gas service)	12.6
Other fats & oils including peanut butter	12.3
Audio discs & tapes	11.5
Hotels & motels	11.0
Indoor plants & flowers	10.9
Boy’s apparel	10.5
Household item repair	9.5
College tuition & fees	9.3
Bikes and other sports vehicles	9.1
Legal services	8.9
Men’s shirts & sweaters	8.8
Jewelry	8.8
Pets & pet products	8.8
Eggs	8.7
Jewelry & watches	8.3
Cheese & related products	8.1

Data: January Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

I forgot to mention that I discovered yesterday that former President Reagan had four honorary doctorate degrees, and one of them was from (what was then known as) Azusa Pacific College in May 1973–while he was governor of California. How awesome is that to know that he not only spoke at the commencement of a then very small college, but to also know that he had an honorary doctorate from here…that made me smile. 🙂

I woke up this morning–after getting about 5 hours of sleep this time, which is an improvement from the past few nights–in so much pain that I nearly cried. The whole morning thus far has been excruciating–and I have a very high pain tolerance. A lady at work today was helping me put aloe vera on my back, and she gasped when she saw my burn, and said that it’s one of the worst she has ever seen. I am definitely lucky to not be blistering, or peeling, at all yet.

Let’s just say that Lesa has learned this lesson well!! This pain is so much harder to handle than any of my long-lasting arm pain (radial nerve damage) or anything else I’ve dealt with…and it’s my own fault!

Anyway, I only say all of this to hopefully prevent any of you from suffering from the same mistake I made. Wear sunscreen!!

Last night I had my Bible study group, and it was a wonderful experience. We have left Ecclesiastes for awhile, and have begun a study of Acts. We decided to do this because (1) it is always good to learn Church History–and it doesn’t get “old” even after having classes on it! and (2) because of the book “The DaVinci Code”, which I have yet to read. Our church is having a second discussion with a book club in Glendora on this book, and about the ways that the book tries to (poorly) prove that Christianity is false. There is also a movie coming out about this book next summer, so we want to be prepared for any questions that might arise from our friends and family.

Our group is so insightful because of the various backgrounds we have there. I go to APU, where I have had several Bible classes, and I have also been in church my entire life. We have a man from Fuller Theological Seminary; a man from UC Riverside; a woman from UCLA; two teachers who have had Bible classes as well; and three or more who have had no formal Bible training. We use several versions of the Bible, including the Knox translation from the Greek, which is regarded to be the most accurate translation from the Greek. It is a great time each week for in-depth discussions and great fellowship.

On another note, I feel that I need to clarify something: My short, not in-depth post about material things being unnecessary, etc. has been misunderstood, so I want to quickly clarify.

I am NOT planning, hoping, trying, wishing, to move away to the jungle and leave everything behind. That has never been a realistic thought in my heart or mind! After graduation, I still feel led to move to Williamsport, Pennsylvania, to minister there, as well as to prepare for my eventual move to the District–Lord willing. Though to some Californians, Pennsylvania is a foreign land with “jungle” like conditions, it is not a jungle…and I’m not going to become Amish.

I was merely sharing my realization that our lives are not made more full by these things, by all this stuff we acquire…and I have been realizing how when I personally want more money, or more things, it causes a lot of other things to happen, such as worry, selfishness, etc., which are not good things.

Perhaps I should have mentioned more from Ecclesiastes–where the wisest man who ever lived tells us that in all his life, in his journeys, in his quest for happiness, he realized that if God is not glorified in what we do, it is meaningless. He was the richest man who ever lived, most likely, and yet he was not happy because of his money (see Ecclesiastes 1-3, primarily). Don’t you think that counts for something? In my mind it does, and in my own life I am seeing how his wisdom could be heeded and applied.

If you look at the majority of Americans today, they are not content. It’s just a fact! Our culture and society have trained us that we must have lots of stuff in order to be happy…and we always must “keep up with the Joneses” and acquire more “stuff”…

…and all I was saying is that I do not believe that to be true by any means. I am not happy because I own two computers, I am not happy because I own over 200 books…not at all…

Why am I happy?

Because I try to live life to the fullest, and I try to glorify God in all that I do.

I am happy because I believe that God is guiding me down this path and that He will take care of me, if I will trust and obey Him.

I am happy because I have been blessed with a great family and many amazing friends who have stuck by me through thick and thin.

I am happy when I use the gifts, talents and abilities with which the Lord has blessed me for His glory.

I am happy when I can make someone else happy, or when I can encourage them in even little ways.

That is what I was saying–though I didn’t delve into the topic at all. I hope this makes more sense, and I am truly sorry for the inadequate post that was easily misconstrued.

As always, I welcome your thoughts, comments, questions regarding any post. 🙂

“I thought in my heart, ‘Come now, I will test you with pleasure to find out what is good.’ But that also proved to be meaningless…I wanted to see what was worthwhile for men to do under heaven during the few days of their lives. I undertook great projects: I built houses for myself and planted vineyards. I made gardens and parks and planted all kinds of fruit trees in them…I amassed silver and gold for myself, and the treasure of kings and provinces…I became greater by far than anyone in Jerusalem before me…I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure…Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun…”

“A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work. This too, I see, is from the hand of God, for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment? To the man who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness…”

–Ecclesiastes 2:1,3-5,8-10,11, 24-26a.

This is a great article about cell-phone providers and the horrible service they give…I, too, am one of the many frustrated customers who strongly dislike my cell-phone provider…

I told myself I would not complain about my sunburn…so all I will say is this: This is the worst burn I’ve ever had, and I haven’t slept more than 4 hours in the past two nights because of the excruciating pain. It is so painful to wear clothes, which are kinda important, LOL. Anyway, that’s all I’ll say about that. I need sleep!

Other than the sunburn, it was a great weekend. I met with two women from my church Sunday afternoon to begin our weekly times of prayer, accountability and study. And I am so looking forward to this! They are amazing women of God, and I am SO excited about learning from them as we meet regularly. My roommates and I had dinner together both Saturday and Sunday night, which was great because we were able to get to know each other better through the meal-time conversations. Erin and I have been up until 1am the past few nights talking, which has been really cool. She gives me a lot to think about.

One of the things we were discussing was the degree to which “stuff” gets in the way in our lives. Our lives are filled with so much stuff, so many things, that are completely unnecessary (this topic came up because all three of us–Jes, Erin and I–are really stressed out about money right now, and we were discussing how wonderful it would be to not have to have money at all…)…we talked about how people who live in other countries are generally much poorer than we are in America, yet they are just as happy–if not happier–than we tend to be. Why is that? We have everything we could ever dream of…yet we are often distressed, discouraged and unhappy…

The Bible tells us that the love of money is the root of all evil, and I think there is some wisdom in that. I know that I struggle with the desires to have more money all the time, and when I want more money, I tend to worry more than normal. When I worry, I can be irritable, etc…and the list goes on. But how can that be changed? How can I truly learn to be content in life, as Paul said, “whatever the circumstances”?

On a different note, Cheyenne (my “sister” in Pennsylvania) is coming for a week in August!! I am SO excited! She’ll be getting her ticket this week, I think, and it will be so awesome to spend time with her this summer–since I lived with her the past two summers. 🙂 Yay for dear friends visiting!

I am looking forward to seeing my family this week…it will be great, even though it is only for two days. I’ll get homemade ice cream this week as well! YAY! 🙂

I’ll end this with a quote:

“Celebrate the significance and wonder of life. Don’t wait until it hits you over the head. It’s already there; embrace it.”

–Nicole Johnson

I have lived in California my entire life (21.5 years)…I have gone to the beach countless times…yet, today, I must have left my common sense at home!

When you are laying in the sun, it is very important to roll over every 20 minutes or so, not fall asleep while you are relaxing…and it is very important to apply sunscreen evenly…

Yeah.

My back, and the back of my legs (as well as half of the front of my legs…don’t ask…it looks so tacky!!), are like a LOBSTER! I cannot believe it. I broke one of the cardinal rules of beach going! I fell asleep while listening to the wonderful sounds of the Pacific Ocean…granted, it wasn’t for very long, but I didn’t roll over and now I am red. Amazing. If it doesn’t peel, I’ll have a great tan in a few days, which will be nice, especially on my perpetually white legs. LOL. Yeah, and now my new dress will look good because I’ll be tan…IF it doesn’t peel.

So, take the advice of a born and raised California girl–don’t allow yourself to become so relaxed while at the beach! You may fall asleep, causing a great deal of pain later.

Sigh…I’m not the sharpest crayon in the box today–I’m a little “dull”…at least it was a great day, very relaxing, with the roomies…which was much needed. 🙂

I am a lobster…:(

Tonight, when other plans fell through, I decided that I was going to take it easy. I checked out several books from the library today–Wordsworth, Eliot, Frost, Chopin, etc–and decided to spend the evening reading poetry, while listening to classical masterpieces by candlelight. It was so relaxing, yet stimulating, to read these works of poetry and decipher the metaphors within. It was wonderful…

…until the candle wax spilled all over the table, and my allergy medicine wore off–leaving me feeling horrible and unable to breathe. Then my roommates came home and were discussing various things, making the atmosphere vanish ever so quickly.

Sigh…it was great while it lasted!

I am loving this return to poetry…tomorrow, after a day of planting palm trees at church, perhaps I’ll take some time to write some of my own. 🙂

Until then…

Remember the games we used to play growing up? Remember the game M.A.S.H.? Wow, did my friends and I spend hours and hours playing that game…who would we marry? What would we drive? Seriously, we would play this game, get the results, then fall back on the bed in ecstatic bliss if the results matched our desires…if they didn’t suit us, we’d play again until they did. Sigh…(LOL!)

Miss those days?

Well, now you can play it online!

The “13 going on 30” website has tons of 1980s and 1990s flashback stuff, and it has been kinda fun! I spent about 30 minutes on there today…playing M.A.S.H. a few times.

I’ll keep the M.A.S.H. results to myself 😉

Today I decided to re-read the wonderful works I held so dear while in high school, and even in my first couple years of college. I took English classes simply for the joy and the mystery they brought to my life. I have realized how much I still LOVE to read these works! I am remembering how much I love poetry–both reading and writing it–and how wonderful my mind feels after delving into these wonderful works.

One poem came to mind this morning, which led me to begin to re-read Oscar Wilde, William Wordsworth, Kate Chopin and T.S. Eliot. The poem is one from my sophomore year in high school, Advanced Writing, with Mrs. Cleo Gambetta. “Dulce et decorum est, pro patria mori.” (in English–if I remember the Latin properly: It is fitting and proper to die for one’s country)I will never forget that phrase–and the poem it is from.

Dulce Et Decorum Est

by Wilfred Owen

Bent double, like old beggars under sacks,

Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge,

Till on the haunting flares we turned our backs

And towards our distant rest began to trudge.

Men marched asleep. Many had lost their boots

But limped on, blood-shod. All went lame; all blind;

Drunk with fatigue; deaf even to the hoots

Of disappointed shells that dropped behind.

GAS! Gas! Quick, boys!– An ecstasy of fumbling,

Fitting the clumsy helmets just in time;

But someone still was yelling out and stumbling

And floundering like a man in fire or lime.–

Dim, through the misty panes and thick green light

As under a green sea, I saw him drowning.

In all my dreams, before my helpless sight,

He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning.

If in some smothering dreams you too could pace

Behind the wagon that we flung him in,

And watch the white eyes writhing in his face,

His hanging face, like a devil’s sick of sin;

If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood

Come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs,

Obscene as cancer, bitter as the cud

Of vile, incurable sores on innocent tongues,–

My friend, you would not tell with such high zest

To children ardent for some desperate glory,

The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est

Pro patria mori.

This poem, with some analysis, brings some very troubling concepts to mind…I wish I could remember all that we developed in that class, for we spent a week or so on this poem alone. I do remember that it gave me a new perspective on war, and on extreme patriotism. This man experienced the horrors of war, of a comrade dying a painful death from poison gas, and this experience has understandably left him embittered. He states at the end that you wouldn’t be so quick to send people to war if you had been there, had seen the screaming eyes of your comrades…you wouldn’t be so hasty to enter into battle…

This leaves much to ponder…