Picnik

I have seen a lot of teenagers I know editing their photos using this website called Picnik so they come out really cool. I have a photo I took last week that I really like, so I edited it. I think this website is really cool!!! Check it out:


Original


Sepia


This is soooo cool! I really like this effect. This photo may have to be blown up and framed to go in my living room.


Black and white...my original thought

No Perfect People

This evening I skated round and round and round, meticulously doing my mohawk and 3-turn steps. I did a few pretty well, but was disappointed by the imperfections they contained. The tester passed me anyways and I almost felt bad, as if I didn't deserve to pass. She sent me off with a reminder that they don't have to be perfect and I'll have plenty of time to keep working on them in the next levels. While I'm not going to get bent out of shape about it, I like doing things perfect.

Last night, after class, I made a peach pie. As I sliced the peaches, I noticed they weren't as ripe and juicy as the first time I had made the pie. And upon filling it, I notices it was rather flat. I chucked it in the oven anyways and submitted it to our neighborhood's National Night Out bake off. I won! The pie was far from perfect, but sometimes Best if as good as Perfect.

With skating and pie baking in mind, I met up with my neighbors this evening for our party, and as we sat watching the police break up something at the park across the street, I was struck more and more about how imperfect we all are. AND ITS OK!!! I heard three sermons (yes, I know, I'm a nerd) this weekend, all proclaiming that GOD IS FOR IMPERFECT PEOPLE not against them. God is on our side...on my side, on your side. He is fighting for us and loves us.

What gets me about Jesus is that people didn't have to pretend around Him. The prostitutes were prostitutes, the tax collectors were tax collectors. Jesus was a party boy. He hung out with a crazy group of people! He went right up and hugged them. He went right into their homes. They didn't scurry around hiding their lives from Him. They didn't pretend to be something they weren't. They didn't clean up their act for him. They were just themselves. I think the church misses the mark on this one by a long shot. When people come to church, they feel they have to dress a certain way, act a certain way, say certain things. And, sadly, I think, if they were honest, a lot of church goers wouldn't want people coming in and messing up their comfortable services. Have you ever heard anyone say to the pastor, "hey, sorry I was a little late, I'm still a bit hung over from last night"? I think Jesus would be ok with this. Does He want us to live by His plan, well, yes, but first and foremost, He loves us, He already knows us, He wants us to be real with Him. So, two questions: how do people feel around you? Do they feel like they must pretend? Why? How can Christians and the church make people feel free to be themselves?

Life

I haven't posted in a while so thought I'd give out my two cents.
Life has been busy and fun. My brother and sister-in-law are visiting from Texas so I have been spending a lot of time with them and with my family up at the cabin. There is the never-ending cleaning that must be done and since it is the beginning of the month, bills must be paid. Plus I have weekly class and ice skating lessons (which will be cut this fall due to starting graduate school). I can not believe it is August. This summer has been chilly and has gone fast!

Tomorrow I start the MBA program and on Thursday night I have my final Statistics class! I have made great friends in that class so it will be hard to part ways. I am nervous and excited about starting the MBA.

I did a church visit this morning. I am happy with my current church but like to check out area churches every fall. I started this last fall and enjoyed seeing the worship of God take on various forms and flavors throughout the Twin Cities. This morning I visited Real Life Church and was thoroughly impressed. It was done with excellence and very real, as their name described. Between that church visit and my normal church attendance this week, I am struck by how much we can allow ourselves to live lives of mediocrity. It is very easy. How much courage life takes to life a full life as God intended! It is not easy.

Ken Ken Puzzles

I've done Sudokus for a while. They are similar to crossword puzzles but with numbers instead of letters. You have to order the numbers so there are the digits 1-9 in each 3x3 square, each row, and each column. Sounds easy, but its rather complex. There are also Monster Sudokus that have digits 0-9 and add letters A-F. However, I've been more delighted with the Ken Ken puzzles. They not only have numbers (which I love) but also incorporate math skills (which I love). If you like math or simply enjoy puzzles, give them a try. This is the best selection I've found: You can do these on the computer or print them. Enjoy!

http://www.nytimes.com/ref/crosswords/kenken.html

The Asters Finally Bloomed!

They finally bloomed!!! I've been growing these from seed since about March!

The Bug

Today I saw a bug diligently attempting to get through my window to the plant on the other side. The bug was so focused on the great looking plant it had very little hope of getting to, it completely ignored the vast forest of leaves, trees, and flowers behind it.

Life is often like this. We are the bugs, vainly attempting to reach a great looking goal, when all along, God has a whole forest of better goals behind us.

What are you focusing so diligently on that you are missing the forest God has for you?

Frugal Goals...If I Must

It has been nearly a month since I set my frugal goals. Like all goals I make, I completely forgot about them until I read my cousin's update on her blog. So, here's how I've been doing:

Overall, I am doing terrible on my goals (which is understandable seeing as I forgot I had made goals. : - ) Maybe I'll do better next month. For this week, if I can get my homework done and the frige cleaned, I'll be a happy girl.

FAIL 1. Frugal Clothes
NOT DONE - Donate clothes I don't wear
NOT DONE - Buy matching pieces for clothes I like but don't go with anything (this may not seem frugal, but I wear clothes for a long time, so its worth it...and buying one shirt or shorts to complete an outfit is cheaper than buying a whole outfit)

OK 2. Frugal Food
I'LL HAVE TO CRUNCH SOME NUMBERS, but probably NO CHANGE- Eat out cheaper (hmm...how to do this)
DON'T LOOK IN MY FRIDGE...ITS SCARY - No food waste (cheerfully eat what I have)
GOOD!!! SPINACH/STRAWBERRY SALAD!!! - Make more food at home

OK 3. Frugal Spending
NEED TO CRUNCH NUMBERS - Spend less (I'm thinking of going to good old cash and the envelop system)
NOT DONE - Analyze giving (this does not sound frugal, but giving is important and I'd like to give more)
FAIL FAIL FAIL!!! I've been to Target a zillion times since last month (fortunately some was to do returns) - Don't buy STUFF (I spend untold amounts at big box stores like WalMart and Target, rarely remembering what I purchased or if I do, its stuff I don't need)
GOOD! I returned nearly $100 worth fo stuff (but means I also bought it) - RETURN stuff (I did this today...returned a book I know I'll never end up reading and a bracket that's the wrong size, normally I would have just kept these two things seeing as they weren't very much money and could be useful, but I'm glad I have my money back and glad I have the space in my apartment this stuff would have taken)

OK 4. Frugal Time
NOT DONE - Anyone who knows me, knows I hate reading, but its something I want to do more of (maybe 15 minutes a day to start)
A LITTLE DONE - Spend more time with God (is there ever enough?)