A Nice Thing To Think About

You Are Lemon Meringue Pie

You're the perfect combo of sassy and sweet. You always know how to brighten someone's mood, but you're not overly sappy. In fact, you can be a bit too honest at times. And most people find that refreshing. While you're always true to yourself, you keep things light. That's how people are able to stomach your slightly bitter outlook. Those who like you have well refined tastes. You're complicated - and let's face it - a true enigma. You enjoy defying expectations, and there are many layers to your personality. There's not one easy way to define you.

What Kind of Pie Are You?

Slightly ironic because I'm not really supposed to have lemon meringue pie because of its citrus content.

Just In Case...

Just in case you thought you might be bored next weekend:

Friday, December 7 - Redeemer Concert Choir and Sinfonia - Christmas concert - 8pm in the auditorium

Saturday, December 8 - Chelsea Schinkel's senior art exhibit Marked Places - 7/8pm in the art gallery

Sunday, December 9 - Church in the Box, featuring responses from John Terpstra, Dr. D. Bowen, Dr. D. Zietsma, Jeanette Lodewyks, and Micah Van Dijk

The Elevator

So I've been living in this apartment building since August. I take the elevator at least twice a day to get either down to my car or up to my apartment. And I just wanted to share one of my little observances on humanity.

Nobody seems to press the elevator buttons the same way. I just walk in, press the button for the floor I need and I'm done. But this does not seem to be enough for other people. Some come in and hit the button 5 times and then stop. While others hit their floor and then as soon as someone else presses their floor number they have to go back and hit their's again. There is a variant on that one - when a floor has been reached by the elevator and someone gets off the person hits their number again, in case the elevator forgot. Just all kinds of little quirks that are second nature to their owners.

You Wanna Bet I Am!

toothpastefordinner.com

A Question Brought On By The Temperature Drop

What makes a more realistic puppet?
	A sock
	A mitten
Free polls from Pollhost.com

Language

If you're somewhere around my age - which is mid-twenties - then you're probably familiar with the term "love language". There is a book about some of this stuff. I haven't read it. The term was introduced to me in my late teens/early twenties by some YFC peeps.

Lately I've been doing some thinking about love and love languages. I guess I should kind of spell out my understanding of love language. I interpret a love language to be one of the ways in which you speak love. For instance, touch is a love language of mine. I speak love to you through touch. Another way I show love is in details. I express my love by remembering little details - like that you really enjoy dark chocolate, or Golden Grahams, steak, long walks in autumn, gummies, cake, action movies, etc.

It is said that we love the way we want to be loved. At least for those of us who are free enough to express love. Those that aren't... well that's a whole are post. And if we love the way we want to be loved, then we want to be loved the way we love. *Shakes head in confusion* Right. My thinking about that has led to see that that circle has the potential to be, well, a bit selfish. It puts a big expectation on the other person/people. "Hey, you! I'm gonna love you like this. I hope you like it, but I'm not really gonna change if you don't. Oh, and can you love me the same way in return?" That doesn't sound right to me.

A friend of mine has been challenging me to look at the ways I love. If you've ever been a close friend with me, you can attest (and maybe set up a support group for yourselves) to how, um, intensely I love. Pretty much I go hard or go home. Eventually I settle down. But usually the settling comes after a bunch of me getting hurt. I love, love, love some more and then don't get it back, scare someone off and end up confused and lonely.

That was quite the little pity party up there, but still true. There are few people who've been able to ride the wave for very long. The challenge from the friend mentioned above was to figure out new languages of love, for the sake of me and my friends. How can I love without swinging around out on the limb? How can I figure out, intuit, listen, observe, how to love my friends how they want to be loved? I feel God is in there somewhere, or more specifically the Holy Spirit - how do let the Holy Spirit move me in ways of love that best suit the needs of my friends?

I guess we'll see.

Progress Report #1

I thought as part of being accountable I should let you know how the whole out-working is going.

Week One: Good and great and full of legalism, thought I could conquer the world.

Week Two: A little more tired. Discovered that if I started the workout too much after 4:30 then pre-dinner light headedness would occur.

Week Three: Didn't enter the gym - wasn't in this part of the province for one of the work out days - need to learn how to deal with a week that lacks all regularity.

Week Four: Back on the horse again.

Week Five: The routine is getting a bit easier. Added a few more aspects to the ab workout.

Let's Do The Time Warp Ag-aaain!

I had a time warp today. Picture this: Brian Van Oosten, Brian Van Doren, Erin Goheen and me standing and talking to each other in the main foyer of Redeemer.

Upon me pointing it out Bun exclaimed, "Welcome to 2002!"

Eschatology

I hope there is no email in heaven.

Random Fact

Majel Barrett Roddenberry - aka the computer voice from Star Trek (TNG and onward) - aka Deanna Troi's Mom, was in two episodes of Bonanza as well as one episode of The Lucy Show.

update - she was also in one episode of Leave It To Beaver. and i swear i read that she was in General Hospital too. wow.

Remembering

I was just (seasonally appropriately) thinking about remembering; about remembering the dead. And more specifically about how remembering keeps the dead alive. You're going to be disappointed if you are looking for conclusions and not just wisps of thought streams. I guess one the things I was just sort of connecting in my head was the difference or the similarities in remembering the fallen from conflict and remembering loved ones that have passed away (or in some cases these are the same).

I've buried a few friends in my time. One of them was in high school. I've written about him before. His name was Aaron Van Vark. He died when we were in grade 11. I haven't forgotten him, he influenced my life. And I feel that in a small way that because I remember him, that I am helping to keep him alive (but not in an unhealthy way). A year ago this past weekend my friend Crystal Williams was killed. We grew up together, I remember her. I feel like she should still be alive.

This was veterans week and climaxed with Remembrance Day. I was honoured to sing O Canada and God Save the Queen at the WRF - Leadership Lessons From Vimy Ridge on Friday night. To hear a bit about war and conflict past and present always hits me. And sometimes I feel that every time it chokes me up a bit, or that I remember that I can parade around the world with a Canadian Flag sewn on me and be welcomed, well that I am remembering all of these people that I have never met and never will meet, and the gifts they have given to me.

I struggle with knowing if the gifts of my beloved friends are different, worth more, worth less, worth the same, comparable at all, etc with the gifts of these soldiers and military personnel. Regardless, these gifts cherished, valued and treasured.

In Serious Need

I just really feel that I have a serious need for a Sugar Daddy, or really a hard core committed Sugar Momma. Though Daddy just seems more natural. And I think I have brought this subject up more than once.

I was just thinking about how I'm singing in front of a bunch of people tonight and would love to look nice. But due to weight fluctuations and budgetary matters, well I have a hole in my wardrobe called Fall/Winter dress clothes. If only I could attract the sugar like my brother does. He attracted generous Sugar that liked Banana Republic. Yeah... that's good Sugar.

Whatever, I'm Western and gr/n-eedy. (But for reals, if there's going to hors d'oeuvres and a keynote, I should look nice.)

You Should Probably Come To This...

(side note, you may here this a lot over the next 6 weeks - actually check the links - there is good stuff coming up)

So yeah, you should come to this. I'll be there.

Leader Bean

Sometimes I feel that every time I have to lead something I take a year off my life.

My Three Jobs

Well, you may have noticed the lack of garden or outdoor talk in my posts recently. Or maybe its the mentions of cleaning Aug Hall. But after the first week of October I got three jobs here at the school. I am the helper monkey for the Theatre and Music departments and do a little bit of work for Janitorial. Anything to make the bills get paid.

For the Music dept I have been and am doing a lot of work in and with the choral library. I'm currently done about a quarter of databasing the whole thing. And then generally just doing things that Dr. T asks me to, like procure things from the registrars office or call people/places for tour.

For the Theatre dept I am production managing the mainstage for the semester as well as doinag lots of other little departmental things like updating display cabinets, organizing a trip to the Shaw or putting together some stuff for one of the profs.

Janitorial is pretty cut and dry. Jon Stumm and I clean the hallways and entranceways (and such) of Augustine Hall twice a week.

That is how I pay (or try) to pay the bills. It would likely be more possible if I didn't have schoolwork or ministry stuff - oh the tension - ministry doesn't pay the bills, so i have to give attention to things that do.

Now you know.

Peace

I've been doing a little thinking this week about peace and its relation to me.

You'll recall on Monday I was singing for the NYFC dessert reception. When I got there for my sound check I got a nice hug from my friend Sarah and then went on with what I was doing. Later in the evening Sarah and I were talking and she said when I got there she thought "Oh good, Laura's here, everything will be fine." She went on to explain that the fineness of the evening was not hinging on my arrival for sound check or even my presence, but the feeling of my being there put her at ease.

This is not the first time she has mentioned something like this. My friend Hope has the same reaction and says that there is often almost an aura of peace around me - she has seen it when I am with children.

Sometimes I really wrestle with this. I am more than aware of my sway with the dynamic of a group of people and my ability to take all decorum and toss it out the window with one action. Sometimes I forget exactly how much weight I have to swing around in that capacity, but I am aware that its there. But I usually view this weight and this decorum smashing ability to be the antithesis of peace - I rile people up. And I know that in times of stress where there is pressure and responsibility on me, I spin. I spin hard. My friends from NYFC will attest to that. So will my CITB friends, etc, etc. So if I'm spinning so hard how can I bring peace?

Personally I feel even just in my life there is a general lack of ...tranquility - I dare not say peace for fear of that being read as being outright in disobedience to the will of God. There is usually drama, stress, attacks, etc. Most times I don't feel like I'm radiating peace.

Now, this is not to say that I am trying to destroy an observation from some people I love. So I have tried to think about the peace that passes through me and I guess I could sort of see that. Maybe more like I am a very cracked vessel for peace. Because I know with children I would much rather just sit with them or help them fall asleep then play with them. And yeah, I don't have a problem (in fact I enjoy) simply sitting with an anxious friend and playing with their hair and praying over them while they fall asleep or just get some respite. I like to eat with people and have some real chat - does peace emanate from that? I don't know.

The comment section is (almost) always open. Wrestle with me.