beautiful people

Sarah & I one or two summers ago in our "twin tops" :)

I had lunch with Sarah yesterday...how my soul feels such a rest and peace when I'm with her. :) There is something about being with those friends who just GET you, each complex layer, and have the capacity and the space to allow you to be who you are in joy or in pain, and to inject joy and encouragement into your life. I needed this; it's been a long and somewhat lonely summer. Sometimes I need to be reminded that I do have people to walk through my valleys with me. :)

my first angels game

At least the Dodgers win whenever I go...I borrowed Ryan ("the funny beard man") from Janell for the evening and Bobby back there was thinking about how to improve his Bill Cosby impersonation.

We got great seats for free (just show up around game time or a little late and hang out by the entrance for all those season ticket holders who weren't able to fill their seats), it was $1 hot dog night, and the Angels lost, HAHA (I really could care less).

when the day seems long...

I have had this song in my head for weeks...

Rock of Ages, when the day seems long -

from this labor and this heartache, I have come.

The skies will wear out, but you remain the same.

Rock of Ages, I praise Your name.

Rock of Ages, You have brought me near.

You have poured out Your life blood, Your love, Your tears,

to make this stone heart come alive again.

Rock of Ages, forgive my sin.

Rock of Ages, Rock of Ages,

Bind Your children till the Kingdom comes

Rock of Ages, Your will be done.

Rock of Ages, when in want of rest

My desperate need for such a Savior I confess.

Pull these idols out from my heart embrace.

Rock of Ages, I need Your grace.

Rock of Ages, broken, scorned for me,

who am I that You would die to make me free?

To give me glory, You took the death and pain,

Rock of Ages, my offering.

Rock of Ages, Rock of Ages,

Bind Your children until the Kingdom comes.

Rock of Ages, Your will be done.

Rock of Ages, "It is Done!" You cried,

The curtain's torn and I see justice satisfied.
Now write Your mercy here on my heart and hands.

Rock of Ages, In faith I stand.

Rock of Ages, my great hope secure,

Your promise holds just like an anchor to my soul.

Bind Your children with cords of love and grace,

Rock of Ages, we give You praise.

Rock of Ages, Rock of Ages,

Bind Your children until the Kingdom comes.

Rock of Ages, Your will be done.

sandra mccracken

what a difference a shoe makes?

Well, whaddaya know ... turns out I've been running in the wrong shoes, and not JUST the wrong shoes, but the wrongest possible shoes. I finally had to break down and buy new running shoes (only about 6-8 months too late), and I decided to go into the Running Lab in Orange for a proper fitting. My friend who works there has been insisting that I'm running in the wrong shoes because if they were the RIGHT shoes, I would not be having my periodic knee pain, etc.

I believe him. I really do. But knee and hip pain runs in my family and no shoe is going to make that go away. But I knew that the proper shoes could at least slow the process of whatever is happening to my poor body. So, my beloved Nimbus = the WRONG SHOE.

After all their measurements and tests and footprints and touchy feeling and observations, turns out my right leg is secretly a fraction longer than my left leg, my joints are loose, and I pronate way more than I thought I did. At least, way more than the people at the OTHER running store noticed. So I got my new shoes, Saucony, and we'll see if they stand the test of time. Not too much time, though, these things don't last very long, and definitely not as long as I like to make them last.

How was that for a completely scintillating blog?

Well I am 28 years old, almost finished with a master’s in theology and biblical studies, and I have finally narrowed it down to the three things I wish I were doing with my life. None of which involve a bible degree. 1. Social Worker; 2. Counselor; 3. Nutritionist. Each of these would be in the context of working with underprivileged. I always knew about the social work thing; my undergrad degree is in sociology. At the time I could not see myself doing that and just floated along with my useless liberal arts degree. But with the things I am interested in now, I’m wishing I had continued with that.

I don’t think I’d trade my Talbot degree; I have enjoyed being there and I feel like what I’ve learned has been (and will be) extremely valuable. And I’m taking comfort in the fact that I have felt all along that that is exactly where I’m supposed to be, and what I’m supposed to be doing during this time. So there’s that. :) But the more I study into the human rights things and different ministries I’ve been interested in, I’m seeing how valuable this MSW would be… and in the context of overseas ministries, any of these 3 career choices would be of great use.

BUT. Here I am. :) For a reason. I’m still pursuing a ministry to prostitutes in Athens that I would love to spend some time with in the next few years. Prostitution is legal in Greece, and many of the girls there are brought in through sex trafficking. This is a huge “industry” in Europe where girls are lured with promises of nanny and waitress jobs, and it has found its way into the United States. I was horrified to read the other day that at any given time, it is believed that there are 20,000 - 30,000 “sex slaves” in the U.S. alone, toddlers through early 20s. Most of these “operations” are run through homes in middle class neighborhoods. Here is a good article with a lot of information on it if you are interested. I’m trying to do more research, educate myself a little more, and look for more opportunities to somehow DO something. (Why did I not do social work???) Perhaps in the future more school will be on the agenda but I am really done for now.

Side note, you should really read this book… I haven’t been impacted like this by a book in a long time – still, even now, some time later. War, death, killing, tremendous loss, and eventual rehabilitation from the perspective of a 12-15 year old child affected me really deeply. Seeing the author speak now (he’s on the board of Human Rights Watch I think among other things, and SO well spoken) is a testimony to the resilience of humanity and also the love of people who are willing to sacrifice much for the lives of others…

Blah blah…I’m changing desks and jobs today within the office…I hope it’s a good change…

Birthday Celebration/Fattening Gorge Fests #3 & 4

Birthday lunch at Alicia's Cafe...yum.
(brownies for my birthday...YUM.)
Dinner out again...yum. Good to see my Dad, who came up to take me out to dinner tonight.
(Ran 4 more miles today...HOT. Gotta keep up with all the celebrating.)

I think that will about do it. I've been full for two straight days. It's only once a year, right! Well, plus Christmas. And Thanksgiving. 4th of July. Easter. And other people's birthdays. And bridal showers (tomorrow). Not very often.

28 glorious years of living

woohoo. :)

Perhaps I will try this conversation today, from The Office, which cracks me up every single time I see it or think about it:

Michael: Happy Birthday, Jan!
Jan: It's not my birthday.
Michael: Oh really? Because I thought we shared a birthday.
Jan: (pause) Happy birthday, Michael.

:)

Birthday Celebration/Fattening Gorge Fest #2

Yesterday I biked 20 miles and the day before ran 4 miles and the day before that ran 6 miles, just in case you were wondering. Because right now I am SO FULL. But it's my BIRTHDAY!

Birthday Celebration/Fattening Gorge Fest #1

I heart Costco cake... celebration #1: (ok it was just in our staff meeting at work today, but I had my favorite cake ever and they sang to me, so it counts.)

Birthday week officially commences.

my American birthright?

Funny quote from an article in the July Runner's World Magazine:

"I've always monitored my body weight closely, believing I have an American birthright to obsess over it, just like Oprah, Jared, and millions of others."

Haha. Maybe I've just gotten all the justification I needed. :) I don't think it's a problem to monitor, especially to find (and stay at) your healthiest weight, and when racing, your fastest or most productive weight. I know I may be at one, but not the other. It's just too easy to make it an obsession...like Oprah and Jared the Subway guy...but it's also easy to turn a blind eye and let a few pounds sneak on. Ah, striking the healthy balance...

It's true that Americans battle with these health issues and are probably the most obsessive about them of any other nation. (A visiting friend from England, after eating at a few restaurants exclaimed, "It's true! The portion sizes ARE enormous!") Does that mean we earn the right to obsess about our bodies just by being born here, just like we are born with our citizenship? :)

waiting for the fireworks...

working for the weekend

My cheeks are pink, my hip bones and ribs are bruised, and my sinuses are cleared from the blunt force of salt water up my nose... yay, it's surfing season! :)

Actually I didn't do a whole lot this weekend besides sleep and beach and read...kinda like my vacation I just had. I realized that my 4-day work week is just a blip until I can get to the weekend. If I can power through those four days I'll do whatever I can to stretch out my 3 days of summer vacation each week.

At this point my job feels like just a job that I endure for my sustenance. The real living happens Friday through Sunday, and frequently after 4:30pm on Monday through Thursday. At times I have looked at my work as ministry, which it is...but right now it is just employment, my job. It's definitely more fulfilling when viewed the other way around, but jobs and ministries have their ebbs and flows I suppose. For now my flows are on the weekends. :)

my mexican retreat

back...and gone again

unpacking and packing again. 4 flights in 2 weeks, 4 airports, 3 destinations, 2 countries. :) leaving in the morning...

More graduation pictures

So the sunny graduation picture I posted the other day was actually from another SPU graduation (pre-graduation) event that was the day before the actual graduation. It was sunny that day. Saturday, we got the privilege of sitting in Qwest Field for 3 hours as it rained. Actually most of the audience was covered; but the grads had to sit out in the rain the whole time!!! They were soaked through at the end.

My sister likes to take self portraits, but she frequently forgets to zoom out first:

And I wasn't paying attention to my umbrella, I just didn't want to get wet! Oops.

And more tri pics

The professional pics were posted this week, here are a few more from last week's race:

Janell coming out of the water (ok, I'm a little bitter...all the other ladies I raced with got pictures of them coming out of the lake but NOT ME!)
Janell looking very intense...

Wow, a running picture that is not totally nasty! That never happens!

On the home stretch, at the finish.

another silly one of our group :) (is this the same one I posted last week?)

Seattle

Qwest Field, Seattle, after SPU graduation yesterday

my brother the mountain man

graduated from SPU today!

Travis and Mom

welcoming summer!

Mmmm...anchovies (not for eating).

I caught one...look closely!

Race Day

This was so much fun!!! I love triathlons. Call me whatever you want. I think they are such a blast. I actually had the thought "this is so fun!" during the swim this time, as opposed to hating myself for being there in that lake last time. :) I just attacked it this time. :)
Weather was great - it was overcast the whole time and probably in the high 60s. I thought it would be cold but it was perfect. it started to warm up as we hit the run but still felt good. I'm grateful that the sun stayed hidden until almost everyone there finished.
I'm really happy with my times - I cut off significant time from my times from last year in all three: Cut 6 minutes from my swim, 4 min. from the bike, and 2.5 min. from the run! I finished in 1:52:38. We ran in the mixed age group section, so we could all race together. I finished 11th out of 129 ladies in that group! Wahoo! Overall there were about 700 competitors today. Danskin is always really well organized and make it a lot of fun. They even call your name out as you cross the finish line. :)
It was SO FUN having friends to do it with this time. Janell finished her first triathlon today, and some women from church did it too...

We had twin outfits. The Bobsie Twins. Bright and early. It started at 6:45am. I woke up at 5am. 5 AM.
After I finished I was able to run back and grab the camera and capture Janell's finish :)

After... (hmm, this kind of looks like the before picture, just with medals)

Our whole group, afterward. Everyone finished and did great!

(The photographer suggested this ridiculous pose...)

I think I need a nap...