out and about - go figure

shifting into the working world is not as glorious as it sounds. most days i come home just ready to be a couch potato. it is especially tempting on weekends to just sit in the house and not do anything. my last several weekends have been an unusual success for me, though, getting out and not being lazy.

Three weekends ago, on the spur of the moment i traveled to bluffton, oh. "spur of the moment" is no phrase here-- i literally found out some friends were leaving for bluffton a half hour beforehand and offered to pack really fast if i could come with them. it was so good to be back in my college town, surprise my boyfriend, and spend time with friends. i really miss being a college student-- why do we have to grow up again?

Last weekend a housemate and i decided to go to Carnegie Mellon University for a movie. the students show movies for a few bucks, so i got to feel like a college student once again and watch scott pilgrim vs. the world. (dont buy it, not worth it)

The next day, i headed to church for a womens leadership conference. to my surprise, two of my housemates were also going! the conference was titled "fearfully and wonderfully made". it started out with a meet and greet, then worship time (Presbyterian style), followed by a plenary (aka opening talk, i had no idea what that word was either), then two seminars, and finally dinner.

The plenary was probably the most interesting part of the day. "Being Fearfully & Wonderfully Made -- what would it mean to believe and live into the words of psalm 139?". She spoke through 139, breaking down the meaning of words and phrases. Then she asked how the american culture views women. After this, she talked about developing into a women and how society influences it. Finally she talked about the self-esteem movement in the 70s, 80s, 90s. She ran out of time, but she was hoping to just get us thinking about this society we try to fit into without even thinking -- and a lot of times, how much of a detriment it is to us.

The two seminar sessions i went to were titled "Our bodies: being made in God's Image" and "Stages of faith development". The bodies one talked about definitions of beauty. What i found most interesting was the acknowledgment that our society has two very opposite but directly related problems:: a society with eating disorders and obesity. The conversation curved to the thought that our eating habits have gotten out of control because we have lost communal eating. Food is such an easy commodity to obtain in our society. Coming back to the table, eating prepared simple meals not only could benefit our bodies, but also our souls.

The stages of faith development seminar came out of "Women's Spirituality: Resources for Christian Development" book. our discussion came directly from the book's resources, so if you are interested in faith development, you should check this out.

This weekend i got out and about by being connected to music. friday night a friend who is in a band was performing at a bar/lounge. So we went to support her. we got to hear several bands that night and then had a brisk walk home, since the buses weren't running as frequent at the late hour.

the following night, last night, i went to pittsburgh mennonite church and heard "sons of the day"! having been introduced to these guys a few years back, i was so excited to hear them in person! they are an all male a capella group who sing all genres-- from hymns to the beatles to renaissance to country music. (click here for their website) it was great worshiping with them not only last night, but also this morning at pmc.

so there you have it, proof that i've been out and about, at least for the past three weeks. ;)

bring your glasses to toast with me

for those of you who were concerned, worry no longer. an old friend has -- yes has returned and we shall rejoice and be glad. today we cheer because heat has returned home. please raise your (non-alcoholic) glasses with me.

(for those of you who didn't know, our main heat thermostat has refused to go above 58 ish degrees lately. it's favorite spot was to sit at 55 degrees. despite us commanding it to hit 80, it wouldn't budge. with 20 degree weather outside, our old drafty house was COLD. i walked in the house tonight thrown by a 65 degree heat wave. hallelujah, praise Jesus)

a short testimony

My job is one of those jobs that is never satisfying; there are disappointments everyday. And honestly, one can see first hand accounts of Satan at work in this world.

When I am researching what is related to homelessness, I get to ask the direct questions. I sit down with homeless women and discuss any mental health problems, substance use, traumatic events, and basic life history to find out what has led them to homelessness. The answers I get are extremely interesting and surprising.

You would be amazed at how much evil is at work in this world. I am Not saying what these women have done, but rather what has happened to them.
In front of my eyes, there are

Horrific life stories
Women on their “last strand”

Always talks of hopelessness

In the shelter, there is constant gossip, drama, and endless tension
The environment is draining

...

Though there are constant reminders to me about hopelessness, there really is hope. Because I am convinced that our God is bigger than anything else working in this world.

please continue to pray for the homeless in Pittsburgh, the people who work with them, and for the presence of our God to reign.

hey 2011, whats up

Oh it's been a long time since I've posted. Between everything winding down for the holidays, exciting holidays, and monotony at work, I haven't seen anything worthy to post about.

So Happy New Year! Man, my christmas was .. interesting. Extremes of good and bad- different life happenings, but I guess it all equals out? Sure. Every morning (besides waking up and feeling like P'diddy) I just keep reminding myself the lyrics to Josh Radin's song...

It's a brand new day
the sun is shining
it's a brand new day
for the first time in such a long, long time
i know i'll be ok

I haven’t made a new years’ resolution in a long time because it seems silly to me to make a random promise just because it’s January 1. With this said, I’m about to make a January 7th resolution. I was thinking today how proud of myself I am in relation to dealing with my anxiety disorder. The thing is, over this past year I have greatly improved my mind's reactions and thus lessened the physical reactions, but I haven’t improved my shoulders. Internally, these muscles are where I put all stress and anxiety. My January 7ths’ resolution is to be committed to yoga. My work has employee yoga on Mondays and it’s all about de-stressing. The instructor is very one-on-one and has already started helping me. But I need to do yoga at least 2x a week to be effective. With my shoulders, I probably need to do it everyday… but I’m not committing to that! (with SMART goals, they have to be Attainable!) So... a focus on yoga in my life. Yeah. Happy Russian Christmas. :)