this just makes me happy...

granted, it's not the exact quote... but it makes me smile a lot...



and i added a couple of extra pictures i found, just for the heck of it...

"but it's in the middle of the night..."

nothing major to report... i was just checking my email on my fabulous roommate's computer... and thought i'd post a little tiny something... or a couple of things...

1) i got a new cell phone number... if i haven't sent you an email or text message about it and you want it, let me know... i'll plan to have it written in the sky for you to see... or i'll email or call you... which is actually way more economical...

2) i lost my digital camera... it could potentially be at the grand ole opry house... but that has caused the delay with posting pictures... my heart has already wept silently for the loss... and i'll be calling to see if it's there next week...

3) i've been watching the last season of dawson's creek this weekend... and i hate that i love it... and i don't completely understand the appeal of joey potter... i mean, she is great, but she can't make up her mind and she breaks a lot of hearts... then again, it is a tv show, intended to be dramatic... so i can't really complain... i mean, i am still watching...

4) if you can name the quote that the title is from first, you'll get an undetermined amount of points...

happy easter...

I promise that my personal tragedy will not interfere with my ability to do good hair.

there are a few stories to tell...

i got to go to the gma/dove awards on wednesday... it was kind of a crazy, unexpected thing... i found out the day of the awards and got to go for free... we sat in the very back... i mean, all the people were there, but i didn't really "hang" with them... we kind of walked around before it started and we were all really tired and ready to go when it was over... but it was a great experience... there was a tribute to steven curtis chapman... mac powell (third day), jeremy camp, mark hall (casting crowns) and david crowder all sang acoustic versions of steven curtis chapman songs... when mac powell sang "i will be here," i don't think it's sounded better... i mean, i like scc, but mac powell brought an edgier version... i enjoyed it... other than that, it was just good times... my roommates don't know a lot about christian music, so i was way more excited than they were...

it was definitely chris tomlin night, as he walked away with 5 dove awards (3 that were presented during the evening)... and it ended in a great way... chris tomlin and his posse sang how "how great is our god" (which won song of the year, by the way), and then "how great thou art" acapella... it was wonderful... i mean, i knew i was singing in the same room as many of christian music's finest... and it was a really cool thing... definitely an "i live in nashville" moment...

*****

last weekend, i also had an "i live in nashville" day... i went shopping in the afternoon with a friend and randomly ran into lindsey, a friend from college... afterwards, i went with sarah to the indie showcase for gma music week - which was incredibly fun... i will post pictures later (i just have one word... koffey)...

then, i went and hung out with lindsey at wanna b's - a karaoke bar on broadway... and i saw maybe the best thing ever... this little asian guy got up there - with a davy crockett (raccoon) hat... and sang "man, i feel like a woman" - he knew every "woo" and word - i mean, he didn't even look at the screen... and it was amazing... when he got to the part that said, "man, i feel like a woman" - that was the best part... he couldn't really say woman the right way... he was saying woo-man, but it sounded more like hoo-man... so funny...

*****

i went to church with sarah on sunday the people's church in franklin... and donald miller (blue like jazz, searching for god knows what) was speaking... i've read blue like jazz... and i have always thought he's kind of a regular guy... i mean, i like what he writes, but i don't think he's a genius or anything... i've always felt like what he writes is cool, but not too meaty... if that makes sense...

i did really enjoy hearing him speak... it reminded me of portland... and a lot of it made me laugh and think at the same time... although i can't remember much of it... barely anything... but that's the way with most things i hear these days...

*****

i get to take a class on monday and tuesday... a 2nd level photoshop class at a computer learning center... my company is paying for it... i don't have to be there until 9:00, which means i get to sleep in a little bit on monday and tuesday - and i don't have to work for 2 days... and i probably get to dress down a little bit for both days... i'm really excited about it...

*****

monday night my roommates and i went to this random show... i really have no words to describe it adequately... it was the most random display of talent/entertainment i have seen in a very long time... it stretched from the gospel raggae group singing "salute da king" to what seemed to be phillips, craig, and dean impersonators... it was a crazy night... we thought it wouldn't be a late night, but it ended up being almost 2:00 a.m. by the time we got home and to bed... crazy... but the end of the show was amy's friend and some other people that i had heard of through camp circles... and they were really good... i sat there and got to take in peacefulness... the thought that was resonating with me was "peace. be still." and it was comforting...

*****

there may be some more stories, but that will do for tonight...

just a man on the plane...

i have a story that is worth sharing...

when my coworker and i were coming back from san antonio, we got on the plane... we flew southwest, so we were looking for a place to sit... i saw this guy sitting by himself in an aisle seat... so i thought, "he looks nice" so we sit down next to him and wait for the take-off...

it wasn't too long before we started talking to him... and he was just a normal guy... but there was something about him... in this weird normal way... he was actually a pilot for southwest... so that's kind of what started it off... and it was off from there...

i've never had a better conversation on a plane... between the three of us, we talked about everything from religion to politics to sports to airlines... and a lot of stuff in between... he's a christian... but he wasn't a preacher... he was a pilot with season tickets to the spurs... with 3 kids - twin girls and a son...

but the conversation kept going... we all talked for almost the entire flight... and it was just cool... i got off the plane and i just wanted to tell people about meeting this man who was refreshingly normal... he's probably my favorite chrisitan stranger i've ever met... most of the time i'm either annoyed by their overbearance or unaware that they are christians at all... instead... i liked him...

i thought it was just me... i thought i was the only one who would be affected by this man whose name i don't know... but we got in the car and my coworker called someone to tell them she was back safe. as soon as she said "we got back okay," the next words out of her mouth were about this man... she said, "we sat by this great man on the plane." and she kept talking about him...

and my heart smiled a little bit... because i knew it wasn't just me... and it made me realize the importance of being normal and myself... and also the effect that we can have on each other... if we'll take the time to have a conversation... not to force it... this man wasn't forcing his agenda... he was being nice... and his friendliness had more effect on a couple of unsuspecting business travelers than many evangelists i have heard or seen...

secrets...

lately i've been intrigued by the idea of secrets... i read a book called "can you keep a secret?" on my plane ride to san antonio... it was a fiction book - easy read... for entertainment... the main character was on a plane and ended up spilling all her secrets to a man who turns out to be her boss...

then... today, i read a quick article about postsecret... a website dedicated to publishing postcards of people's secrets... and there are testimonies about how free the people felt after they shared their secrets anonymously...

anyway... it all made me start thinking about the idea of secrets... what secrets do i have? what if the secrets i had were broadcasted for the world? would it become a point of stress - having all of my inside information available for the world? or would it be a huge relief?

and who earns the right to hear the secrets? does anyone deserve to be entrusted with someone's secrets? with whom should we share our secrets?

i know this doesn't make a lot of sense... it's all just kind of random thoughts... mostly, i'm trying to think of what secrets i have... i think i'm generally a pretty open-book type of person... but i'm sure there are some... but what do i do when i figure out what they are?

maybe i shouldn't think about it anymore...

on a much lighter note... i'm watching she's out of control with tony danza... matthew perry is in it... and he's also in friends... in friends, phoebe says that she always thought the song tiny dancer said "hold me closer, tony danza..." and all roads lead to tiny dancers or flavor flav once again...

no... my computer did not crash yet...

but by my lack of posting, it wouldn't be hard to believe... i can claim busy-ness and a lack of interest... but the fact is... i just haven't thought about it...

but here i am... now... writing... not really anything thought provoking... but some good news... starting with some informational stuff and bad news...

two of my coworkers were scheduled to go to a groundbreaking in texas - leaving tomorrow and coming back on thursday... but one of their uncles died this weekend and so she has to stay and deal with family stuff and cannot go... (bad news)

but, because it's spring break, the hotels and airlines won't refund the money for her very expensive flight and room... so she needs someone to go in her place...

and that person is me!!!

so - tomorrow afternoon/evening i leave for san antonio... i'll be gone until thursday mid-morning...

then, thursday night, i'll be repacking for a quick trip to lr and to shreveport... which means i'll be in 4 states in 3 days...

and, according to weather.com - it's warm in san antonio, which makes my heart happy a little bit... because it's been cold and rainy here!!!

march fools' day...

tomorrow is march fools' day... don't take anyone seriously or fall for any tricks... sincerely...

just kidding... but seriously...

okay... moving on... i feel like i had something of importance to write about, but the faint memory i had telling me what it was has faded into the back of my mind... right now all i can think about is the wonderful sleep that awaits me...

but i want to write some other stuff... the sleep can wait for another 10 minutes...

i've never watched the amazing race until last season with the families... but i thought i might be interested in this year's... and i am... i cracked up more times than i care to admit at tonight's episode... if you missed it, you missed the crack up couple... because they got kicked off tonight... but i think it's going to be a good season...

but i've been up late every night this week... and i'm exhausted... so it's time... i'm going to take a ride on the sleep train!!!