It's funny when your nights consist of leaving work really late, running to 7-11 to grab midnight snacks, and relishing in your cleanliness after a shower.
But, thus is my night. I'm drinking a glass of some fruity wine, eating hot Cheetos and sour gummi worms.
I did research about my D.C trip and called the hotel to ask questions about their facility. Very, very grown up stuff.
I'm re-watching episodes of the Walking Dead.
Life of a grad student is pretty exciting. My life is fun and I enjoy these quiet cheeto-wine-gummy worm-Netfliz moments.
Late nights. Good night.
Thursday, September 26, 2013
Off to See D.C!
My newest travel plans will take me to D.C! I've never been to D.C. so I'm really excited. PLUS, I get to spend time with my bestest girlfraaaaand (you know who you are *ahem* Sammi!). My Instagram will be full of pictures :) I hope they look as good as these professional ones...
Monday, September 23, 2013
Life Points
I'm not sure if I'm just having an emotional period or if life really is all that stressful. I'm constantly in a state of worry that I'm forgetting to submit an assignment or take care of something at work. I'm worried that I haven't fulfilled my duties as a worker, student, girlfriend, sister, daughter, and Christian.
This causes me to become flustered as I attempt to make sure that all of my life points are covered.
Last week was tough as I had a breaking point. I cried while at work and as my friend/co-worker consoled me, she asked me what was wrong. And I couldn't even formulate an answer. I think I had reached a boiling point and didn't know how else to cope.
I'm slowly beginning to realize that I became preoccupied with what I thought were obligations. It is not an obligation for me to read my Bible everyday just to assume status as a "good" Christian. It is not an obligation for me to not make mistakes at work or in school to avoid being labeled a bad worker. I had become so focused on being perfect that I forgot I was still living life. A life, that I might add, will never be perfect. I will never be perfect. All I can do is make sure that I am trusting in God and doing what I can do live a full life, not a perfect one.
So, here's to my realization. And here's to me making sure it becomes reality.
This causes me to become flustered as I attempt to make sure that all of my life points are covered.
Last week was tough as I had a breaking point. I cried while at work and as my friend/co-worker consoled me, she asked me what was wrong. And I couldn't even formulate an answer. I think I had reached a boiling point and didn't know how else to cope.
I'm slowly beginning to realize that I became preoccupied with what I thought were obligations. It is not an obligation for me to read my Bible everyday just to assume status as a "good" Christian. It is not an obligation for me to not make mistakes at work or in school to avoid being labeled a bad worker. I had become so focused on being perfect that I forgot I was still living life. A life, that I might add, will never be perfect. I will never be perfect. All I can do is make sure that I am trusting in God and doing what I can do live a full life, not a perfect one.
So, here's to my realization. And here's to me making sure it becomes reality.
Tuesday, September 17, 2013
So I Went on a Road Trip
This past April, I went on a road trip. My first road trip. I'm such a big girl ;)
Let me lay out the scene for you. My friends Sammi and Ryan were getting married in Pennsylvania. My boyfriend, Stephen and I were in the wedding party so, of course, we needed to travel there for the wedding. We had planned to carpool with friends who were also traveling from Virginia for the event. I don't particularly like driving long distances, especially on the high way. The thought of it makes me nervous. I have a strange, irrational fear of getting pulled over by the police. No one likes getting pulled over, but I get all sweaty and extremely terrified that I've broken the law. See? Seriously irrational.
I had been looking forward to carpooling also due to the fact that I drive a used car that I am comfortable driving around town and short distances. I just didn't like the idea of traveling over 6 hours each way at high driving speeds. Plus, splitting gas money is a college student's dream!
A couple of weeks before we were to leave for the wedding, our friends encountered unexpected events and they were not able to attend.
This threw a wrench into Stephen's and my travel plans. I was freaking out. HOW were we going to get to PA? WHAT car was I going to drive?
We looked at Amtrak tickets and decided that with our work schedules and budget, it was not the best plan. We looked at plane tickets and thought the same. Our next plan of action was to rent a car. Stephen and I could split the rental and gas costs and I wouldn't have to drive my own car. The only issue was that I am not 25, which means the rental company tacks on an additional daily "underage" fee. The costs were just adding up and up!
Ultimately, we decided it was our best option. But, I was still stressing over the amount of money I would need to spend since I hadn't previously budgeted for it. The same day that I placed my reservation with the rental car company, I stopped by financial aid at school to ask a few generic questions. During the conversation, the financial aid counselor told me that they had charged me too much during the last semester and that I had a negative balance on my account. I'm not sure exactly why they hadn't informed me of this sooner, but I know it was God's timing that I found out about the credit when I did! It would be more than enough to supplement the travel costs. God is so good!
We were all set to go with the rental car!
The wedding was on a Sunday and Stephen and I planned to leave Friday morning so we could get to PA by Friday evening. That way, on Saturday, we could enjoy the bachelor and bachelorlette festivities and the rehearsal/rehearsal dinner. The night before we were set to leave, Stephen found out that he might have to work Friday night which means we may not have been able to leave until Saturday morning. While we could still make the wedding, we were sad we may not be able to enjoy Saturday's festivities.
I called Sammi and let her know of the new information and tears were shed on both ends of the phone line. I told her I would text her later with any new information. After my class that day, Stephen called me with a surprise. He didn't have to work on Friday. We were free to leave Friday morning!
BUT, I never called Sammi and let her know of this little development. Am I a mean friend? ;)
Friday morning rolls around and Stephen and I head to the airport (thanks to our lovely friends Crystal and David) to pick up the rental car. It was a cute little car, but big enough to fit our luggage and fit Stephen's long legs.
We left the airport at approximately 10:30 a.m. We still needed a few outfit items for the wedding, so we stopped by the mall on our way out of town. God continued to bless us both tremendously, as we found our items at prices a lot less than we anticipated. At around noon, we left the mall and were headed to PA!
I had been loaned a fancy GPS to use during our travels (thanks Rich and Dawn!). We set the GPS and began our travels. We spent sometime getting out of VA. I got to drive over a long bridge that I have only ever seen from above when I fly into Virginia. It was a cool experience.
Stephen and I really enjoyed our time together in the car. He makes me laugh so much and we spent time making jokes and being silly together. It was a great bonding experience.
Detour: Remember when I said I have a fear of getting pulled over? Well, about 2 hours into our trip, we were driving on a back roads highway with 2 lanes on each side. Knowing cops would scatter the area, I drove only 5 over the speed limit. Then, I see a police car behind me. My heart stops, my palms get sweaty, and I slow to the speed limit. I drive like this for several miles. The cop stays behind me. Stephen tells me to go a little faster and to move into the next lane so the cop can go past. But I am frozen in fear. Suddenly, the cop's lights go on. Oh shoot. So, I drive a little further and pull over. My mouth is dry as the officer walks up to my window and asks for my license. He asks me why I was going so slow. I explain my fear of getting pulled over and my safe driving nature. After running my license and seeing that I wasn't sketch, he tells me to drive a little faster and to stay in the right lane and sends us on our way. The first thing Stephen does is call my dad to tell him I got pulled over for the first time! Stephen thought the whole situation was funny.
We continued driving and stopped about 3 hours in to stretch our legs and eat. McDonald's it is! We were already tired and looked forward to reaching our destination in a few hours. I don't think we even know what state we were in at this point.
A few hours later, we finally drove into PA. It was rush hour and I ended up taking a wrong exit. This put us out of the way about 45 minutes. We stopped for gas to recoup and ended up taking the streets to our final destination. This way we could avoid any other toll booths. It was a nice scenic drive in the lovely hills of PA. The sun was setting. Very romantic, if I do say so myself.
At about 7:30 p.m., we were close to Sammi's. Remember, she still thought we weren't coming until the next morning. We pulled into the driveway and could hear sounds coming from the house. Stephen and I walked up to the door and rang the doorbell. Ryan's dad answered and was shocked to see us. He was quiet as he led us into the house. I hear Sammi say, "Dwight, is that you?!" (Dwight was a groomsman they had been expecting to arrive around that time). Then, Sammi saw that it was us and I couldn't tell if she was mad or glad! ;) It was definitely a surprise! Of course, Sammi was happy that we had arrived on Friday.
It was fun to reunite with all of our friends to celebrate the days leading up to the wedding and the wedding itself.
After the wedding on Sunday, Stephen and I had to leave right away. We both had to be at work the next day. We left PA around 7:30 p.m. The sun had just started to set. I set cruise control. And off we went. Our return trip went a lot smoother than the trip down. The roads were empty and quiet. Stephen stayed up with me the entire trip :) We stopped after a few hours to eat. I was sad our trip was ending. I so enjoy spending time with my dear Stephen. We arrived in VA later than expected, probably around 1:30 a.m. We were both extremely tired. After dropping Stephen at his apartment, I went home and unpacked all my belongings. I dropped into my bed and fell asleep. The following morning, my sister Alex followed me to the airport so I could return the rental car. Thus, the final chapter of our road trip had concluded.
Needless to say, it was a really fun trip! It helped me get over my fear of driving (a little bit). And I got to spend a lot of time with Stephen. Of course, it was great standing with my friends as they got married!
I look forward to my next road trip and hope it is as fun as my first.
Let me lay out the scene for you. My friends Sammi and Ryan were getting married in Pennsylvania. My boyfriend, Stephen and I were in the wedding party so, of course, we needed to travel there for the wedding. We had planned to carpool with friends who were also traveling from Virginia for the event. I don't particularly like driving long distances, especially on the high way. The thought of it makes me nervous. I have a strange, irrational fear of getting pulled over by the police. No one likes getting pulled over, but I get all sweaty and extremely terrified that I've broken the law. See? Seriously irrational.
I had been looking forward to carpooling also due to the fact that I drive a used car that I am comfortable driving around town and short distances. I just didn't like the idea of traveling over 6 hours each way at high driving speeds. Plus, splitting gas money is a college student's dream!
A couple of weeks before we were to leave for the wedding, our friends encountered unexpected events and they were not able to attend.
This threw a wrench into Stephen's and my travel plans. I was freaking out. HOW were we going to get to PA? WHAT car was I going to drive?
We looked at Amtrak tickets and decided that with our work schedules and budget, it was not the best plan. We looked at plane tickets and thought the same. Our next plan of action was to rent a car. Stephen and I could split the rental and gas costs and I wouldn't have to drive my own car. The only issue was that I am not 25, which means the rental company tacks on an additional daily "underage" fee. The costs were just adding up and up!
Ultimately, we decided it was our best option. But, I was still stressing over the amount of money I would need to spend since I hadn't previously budgeted for it. The same day that I placed my reservation with the rental car company, I stopped by financial aid at school to ask a few generic questions. During the conversation, the financial aid counselor told me that they had charged me too much during the last semester and that I had a negative balance on my account. I'm not sure exactly why they hadn't informed me of this sooner, but I know it was God's timing that I found out about the credit when I did! It would be more than enough to supplement the travel costs. God is so good!
We were all set to go with the rental car!
The wedding was on a Sunday and Stephen and I planned to leave Friday morning so we could get to PA by Friday evening. That way, on Saturday, we could enjoy the bachelor and bachelorlette festivities and the rehearsal/rehearsal dinner. The night before we were set to leave, Stephen found out that he might have to work Friday night which means we may not have been able to leave until Saturday morning. While we could still make the wedding, we were sad we may not be able to enjoy Saturday's festivities.
I called Sammi and let her know of the new information and tears were shed on both ends of the phone line. I told her I would text her later with any new information. After my class that day, Stephen called me with a surprise. He didn't have to work on Friday. We were free to leave Friday morning!
BUT, I never called Sammi and let her know of this little development. Am I a mean friend? ;)
Friday morning rolls around and Stephen and I head to the airport (thanks to our lovely friends Crystal and David) to pick up the rental car. It was a cute little car, but big enough to fit our luggage and fit Stephen's long legs.
We left the airport at approximately 10:30 a.m. We still needed a few outfit items for the wedding, so we stopped by the mall on our way out of town. God continued to bless us both tremendously, as we found our items at prices a lot less than we anticipated. At around noon, we left the mall and were headed to PA!
I had been loaned a fancy GPS to use during our travels (thanks Rich and Dawn!). We set the GPS and began our travels. We spent sometime getting out of VA. I got to drive over a long bridge that I have only ever seen from above when I fly into Virginia. It was a cool experience.
Stephen and I really enjoyed our time together in the car. He makes me laugh so much and we spent time making jokes and being silly together. It was a great bonding experience.
Detour: Remember when I said I have a fear of getting pulled over? Well, about 2 hours into our trip, we were driving on a back roads highway with 2 lanes on each side. Knowing cops would scatter the area, I drove only 5 over the speed limit. Then, I see a police car behind me. My heart stops, my palms get sweaty, and I slow to the speed limit. I drive like this for several miles. The cop stays behind me. Stephen tells me to go a little faster and to move into the next lane so the cop can go past. But I am frozen in fear. Suddenly, the cop's lights go on. Oh shoot. So, I drive a little further and pull over. My mouth is dry as the officer walks up to my window and asks for my license. He asks me why I was going so slow. I explain my fear of getting pulled over and my safe driving nature. After running my license and seeing that I wasn't sketch, he tells me to drive a little faster and to stay in the right lane and sends us on our way. The first thing Stephen does is call my dad to tell him I got pulled over for the first time! Stephen thought the whole situation was funny.
We continued driving and stopped about 3 hours in to stretch our legs and eat. McDonald's it is! We were already tired and looked forward to reaching our destination in a few hours. I don't think we even know what state we were in at this point.
A few hours later, we finally drove into PA. It was rush hour and I ended up taking a wrong exit. This put us out of the way about 45 minutes. We stopped for gas to recoup and ended up taking the streets to our final destination. This way we could avoid any other toll booths. It was a nice scenic drive in the lovely hills of PA. The sun was setting. Very romantic, if I do say so myself.
At about 7:30 p.m., we were close to Sammi's. Remember, she still thought we weren't coming until the next morning. We pulled into the driveway and could hear sounds coming from the house. Stephen and I walked up to the door and rang the doorbell. Ryan's dad answered and was shocked to see us. He was quiet as he led us into the house. I hear Sammi say, "Dwight, is that you?!" (Dwight was a groomsman they had been expecting to arrive around that time). Then, Sammi saw that it was us and I couldn't tell if she was mad or glad! ;) It was definitely a surprise! Of course, Sammi was happy that we had arrived on Friday.
It was fun to reunite with all of our friends to celebrate the days leading up to the wedding and the wedding itself.
After the wedding on Sunday, Stephen and I had to leave right away. We both had to be at work the next day. We left PA around 7:30 p.m. The sun had just started to set. I set cruise control. And off we went. Our return trip went a lot smoother than the trip down. The roads were empty and quiet. Stephen stayed up with me the entire trip :) We stopped after a few hours to eat. I was sad our trip was ending. I so enjoy spending time with my dear Stephen. We arrived in VA later than expected, probably around 1:30 a.m. We were both extremely tired. After dropping Stephen at his apartment, I went home and unpacked all my belongings. I dropped into my bed and fell asleep. The following morning, my sister Alex followed me to the airport so I could return the rental car. Thus, the final chapter of our road trip had concluded.
Needless to say, it was a really fun trip! It helped me get over my fear of driving (a little bit). And I got to spend a lot of time with Stephen. Of course, it was great standing with my friends as they got married!
I look forward to my next road trip and hope it is as fun as my first.
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
I Can Be Whatever I Want to Be
Someone recently asked me what my plans were after I graduate from grad school.
I answered, "Well, I'd like to work for a newspaper or magazine as a writer or multimedia contributor. I'm open to wherever God leads me. I love to write and I even have my own blog."
So they responded, with a bit of disgust in their voice, "But you're not gonna be one of those people who blogs for a living, right? That's silly."
I was so taken aback and my immediate reaction was to become defensive. Not only do I think it was ignorant to make assumptions about people's professions, but I also think that they were placing a limit on me. Is blogging not good enough? If that's what I enjoy, why shouldn't I go after that dream and make money doing it? You don't even know me well enough to know my favorite tv show, but you are choosing to tell me what profession I should go into?
Perhaps, I am taking their comment way out of context. Yet, I feel that my concerns are validated. The comment made me upset, then later I realized that I shouldn't let it fuel my anger. I should let it fuel my desire to make a name for myself. To make a name for the gifts that God has given me.
When I am discouraged by the comments of man, my dad likes to tell me a story of his childhood school days. When he was younger, he enjoyed art class so much. He was excited to go to class and see what his imagination could come up with. This stopped one day when his teacher told him that his art "wasn't good enough" and that he would never amount to anything. This disheartened him so much that he never pursued art any further. He tells me this story so that I am reminded that the words of man, when said in a negative and trifling manner, mean as much as dirt in a pie.
Philippians 4:12-13 says, "I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength."
This verse keeps me steadfast of the promise that nothing is impossible with God. So, the next time someone comes at me with: "Oh, you're not gonna [insert trifling remark here], are you?", I'll hold firm to God's promise knowing that it is His word that matters and not the word of man.
I answered, "Well, I'd like to work for a newspaper or magazine as a writer or multimedia contributor. I'm open to wherever God leads me. I love to write and I even have my own blog."
So they responded, with a bit of disgust in their voice, "But you're not gonna be one of those people who blogs for a living, right? That's silly."
I was so taken aback and my immediate reaction was to become defensive. Not only do I think it was ignorant to make assumptions about people's professions, but I also think that they were placing a limit on me. Is blogging not good enough? If that's what I enjoy, why shouldn't I go after that dream and make money doing it? You don't even know me well enough to know my favorite tv show, but you are choosing to tell me what profession I should go into?
Perhaps, I am taking their comment way out of context. Yet, I feel that my concerns are validated. The comment made me upset, then later I realized that I shouldn't let it fuel my anger. I should let it fuel my desire to make a name for myself. To make a name for the gifts that God has given me.
When I am discouraged by the comments of man, my dad likes to tell me a story of his childhood school days. When he was younger, he enjoyed art class so much. He was excited to go to class and see what his imagination could come up with. This stopped one day when his teacher told him that his art "wasn't good enough" and that he would never amount to anything. This disheartened him so much that he never pursued art any further. He tells me this story so that I am reminded that the words of man, when said in a negative and trifling manner, mean as much as dirt in a pie.
Philippians 4:12-13 says, "I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength."
This verse keeps me steadfast of the promise that nothing is impossible with God. So, the next time someone comes at me with: "Oh, you're not gonna [insert trifling remark here], are you?", I'll hold firm to God's promise knowing that it is His word that matters and not the word of man.
Happy Birthday to You
Happy Birthday to my wonderful boyfriend, Stephen Brown!
You are the bomb dot com!
You are the cup to my cake and the music to my song!
Your smile brightens the room when you walk in,
You enrich the lives of those around you with your kindness and Stephen-hugs.
I pray many more happy years of life for you. Blessings to you, my love.
You are the bomb dot com!
You are the cup to my cake and the music to my song!
Your smile brightens the room when you walk in,
You enrich the lives of those around you with your kindness and Stephen-hugs.
I pray many more happy years of life for you. Blessings to you, my love.
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