random sass & musing™

somehow blogger hates me & my posts. it ate the last handcrafted post i made 5 minutes ago. stupid blogger.

to summarize in short (because i'm short on time, big shocker):

(1) boone was amazing with the snow & sledding. nothing like sledding in a mountain pasture with a bunch of cattle staring at you for several hours while you sled down a 75 degree angle, bumping over their frozen cow patties which allegedly busted two cheapie plastic sleds. for real. more on that in a separate post, together with pics to prove it.

(2) new musical goodness for you. headed out last night to the cats cradle for the melodious renderings of pedro the lion. i was pleasantly surprised by the opening band, earlimart. i even forgave them for starting 45 minutes late at a sunday night show. i don't forgive & forget easily (yes, it's a downfall), so that tells you something. PTL gave an excellent show but i enjoyed the most hearing the dual jam sessions between the two bands (affectionately referring to it as earlilion). what could be better than drums, bass & sweet guitar in triplicate on stage? good times.

(3) the super bowl is forthcoming. here's hoping children won't have repeated traumatization from last year's event, dirty chest bumps & all. i'm just sayin'.

on a completely unrelated note (that's why they pay me the big bucks to be random & sassy, sassy & random, sandssy & rassdom), here's a small contest. submit some captions ideas for the small picture to the right. since i'm so creatively blocked these days, it's your chance to shine.

go.

has it really been 11 days since i posted?
this is just a teaser for some photo goodness that will be coming shortly.

heading to boone this weekend to visit with the newlyweds. here's to hoping we don't get snowed in up there.

i am so behind the times. i've been spending my time more productively reading & seeing movies.

on saturday i saw un long dimanche de fiançailles (or a very long engagement for those lacking in the french department. like amelie (same director), it has an other-worldly feel to it, one in which you really suspend reality & must be in tune to pick up on the small nuances in order to better appreciate the flavor of the film. i enjoyed it, despite the many treacherous battle scenes. there was a large amount of gore, more than i anticipated. i don't think i'd put this in the chick flick category, by any means.

i've also been reading when the spirit comes in power: signs and wonders among God's people. i've been slowly digesting some of the claims & observations made by john white in this book. i have never taken kindly to charismatic theology, or so i thought. it was more likely that i never took kindly to the expression of charismatic action. maybe the words i'm really looking for here to express is more a distaste for some abuse i've seen in the use of such charaismatic worship practices. (i'm not bashing all charismatics here, i'm just noting my experiences.)

i've attended some churches that could fall into the holy roller category & i've been quite skeptical. in reading this book, i've been trying to examine my beliefs as to how i think God still works in these times. i haven't ever really refuted that God could work in miraculous & awe-inspiring actions in biblical times, so i'm trying to understand my disconnect with that in today's times.

i fully believe God is capable. He's God. to not acknowledge His power would be to not acknowledged His character. and to not acknowledge His character would be to believe in nothing. i can't do that. i know i've experienced & observed enough wonders in my own life that are simply unexplainable if we do not account for an omniscent, loving, gentle & just God.

so, my mind has been occupied. and my fingers have not been tippity-tapping its actions. perhaps i shall remedy that.

being 30 sounds old.

it's three decades.
it's three years earlier than Jesus died.
it's almost 1/3rd of 100.
it's equal to the time between my birth & v-day in world war II.

i am now closer to 50 than to zero.
what to do with that information?

may i say that i find the gym in the morning entertaining? the array of people:

- those who park in the closest spot to the door in the gym, so that they can come in & run 5 miles on an elliptical machine;
- the man who has a perpetual cowlick every morning but who faithfully executes his stair stepping for 45 mintues every morning, even if he's draped over the machine;
- the personal trainers who are working with their supposedly hopeless charges, sneering as the chubby woman executes her rowing machine exercises with grunts of despair;
- the young professionals that are trying to hurry through their workout so that they can get out to their closely parked car, get a bucket o' starbucks mochaccinononfatnowhipextrachocolatesprinkle, take the elevator up to their desk, huddle over their work & stare at their monitor for 10+ hours before going home to do it all again tomorrow;
- the 70+ year old woman i see on the elliptical every morning, spry as if she were ... 30? ...
- the bulky weightlifters who are more concerned with impressing other bodybuilders in the gym than they are with being fit;
- the wonderful 50+ lady behind the desk who greets me with a genuine smile every morning.

a wide variety of physicality & a wide variety of emotionality & a wide variety of spirituality. i'll see what happens.

amazing before & after pictures of the tsunami damage. i am strangely fascinated.

i'm not posting because jason called me a slacker. i'm posting of my own accord. so there.

welcome to 2005. i could do the typical blog thing where everyone lists their new years resolutions, complains about their broken last year's resolutions, & essentially blathers on about their life. not that i've ever been accused of blathering. or i've convinced myself of that, anyhow.

i think i'm still recovering from the holidays. & i think i'm still astounded at the utter devastation that exists in the aftermath of the tsunami. i read somewhere that children are being found in the ruins, told their parents no longer exist (despite no actual search is completed to verify said fact), & these children are sold on black markets.

it remind sme of the holocaust families. children were separated from their family, lost contact with their parents, assumed their families dead & were not reunited until sometime later. i can't fathom considering myself an orphan, only to be told that my parents were indeed alive. what a revelation it must be & what a feeling of utter despondency to discover that what you thought you were is no longer the case.

i used to think there was no way i was my mother's child, although i am undoubtedly my father's daughter in looks & personality. yet, i still retain the knowledge that i am like her. i find more & more that her phrases slip out of my mouth, which causes me to whip around & say, "who said that? is my mother here?!"

that reminds me of that book that i must procure for my children one day, are you my mother?. cuteness!

other recent cutenesses in my life:

* the fact that my friend sarah is willing to kick my arse enough to get in the gym every day by 6:30 AM & will meet me there (or hunt me down if i'm not there). the benefits of a friend in personal training is sweet.
* completing the romans bible study with eric & moving onto 1 corinthians (all with little to no maiming involved).
* my new computer desk purchase from ikea ($29.99 for sleekness which can't be beat, not to mention enjoying swedish meatballs at the store. that's what i'm talkin' about!)
* planning a trip to vegas in march & staying at the golden nugget™.

so there. i AM alive.

2005 .... happy new year.