UNBELIEVABLE...

I'm sitting at Flying Star...all by my lonesome....hoping....wishing....wondering if there is a single soul who can relate to me? I could use this time to divulge my inner feelings and emotions about life and people but I will restrain. I will say that sometimes it's easy to think we are all alone, going through a time that seems so foreign to our understanding. I guess the good news is that we have a loving savior who will never leave us or forsake us....so resting in that truth should suffice.

Tuesday Humility

So I just got back from the Well, a college group I go to on Tuesday nights...Tonight we talked about what it means to be a woman of God and how we are to be according to His word. Well after a very humbling and convicting sermon given by our pastor, we went into a time for questions...the girls and guys separate.

It is so easy to get caught up in this American culture of what a woman should be, do, want, have, etc. As I was listening to what Sarah Kelly was saying, one thing totally stuck out to me. She said, "This time you guys are in, being single, is such a great opportunity to run into and learn as much as you can about being a woman of God." This hit hard...she's right, we should be pursuing Him daily. But instead it's so easy to get caught up with school, work, career opportunities, and all the things of this world.

I have totally come to a point in my life where so many things of this world; people, work, school, a career, and just the "American life" have just creeped up. Its a scary thought in that these things aren't neccessarily bad, that is as long as Christ is first and foremost. But its so easy to get distracted with all the selfishness the world offers in ways that can be justified. I want to pursue Christ and understand what it really means to be a woman of God. In reality...everything under the sun is meaningless...and Christ is our true treasure.

Another Day In The Shoes of a Nanny

So its been one of those weeks! Let me tell you, If going on 30 hours with no sleep isn't bad enough... I got a flat tire this morning on my way to drop the kids off at school! I guess its kind of like the icing on the cake after a week consisting of 45 hours of work, 24 hours of internship, all on top of a full semester of classes. BLAH(Not complaining by any means, and no, my weeks aren't always this busy...)

So recaping this morning...Make the kids breakfast, pack lunches, get them dressed, all while holding a fussy little guy. So I'm a little tired at this point, was up all night writing a 10-page paper but can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Just have to drop the kids off and come back and put Sean down for a nap....and yep, take a nap too!

Well this was not the case...I get the kids loaded up in the car and then not even 20 yards later I realize the rear end tire on the passenger's side is completely flat. School is suppose to start in 10 minutes and we have at least a 20 min walk ahead of us. So I park the 4runner, grab the baby and try to balance him while carrying Megan's heavy snack box for her class. I only lasted 10 minutes before my arms were about to give out. So finishing the rest of the walk was painful to say the least!

A Day in the Life of a Traveler

Friday

            Well the day was off to an interesting start.  All the flights from ABQ (Albuquerque) to ATL (Atlanta) were oversold…and yes I should not have been surprised as Spring Break arrived.  So my plans for a straight shot to ATL quickly turned to a double leg through CVG (Cincinnati).  I made the full flight out to CVG around 1:30 and of course got the middle-seat.  Ah yes the middle seat, everyone’s favorite seat where two large people are almost always sure to overflow into your seating space, your looking room is only straight in front of you cause anything in your peripheral vision and beyond is now an invasion of their privacy, and where you have no rights to the arm rests.  You know the drill.  That was a lovely two and half hours, but it got the job done.

            CVG to ATL came with no problems, plenty of room on the plane, only there were sixty-two non-revs; so the space quickly became middle-seat torture for the last thirty that made it aboard.  Luckily I got a window seat. It was a two-person row with plenty of leg space and looking room.  Right as I put my headphones in, the lady who was to occupy the seat next to me arrived.  We got our stuff all situated and without a second to spare she introduced herself.

            Hunter Frazer was a beautiful well-to-do woman in her mid-forties.  She had a smile so graceful and eyes so piercing as to never go unnoticed.   As our small talk came to an end she continued to induce conversation.  For the next two hours, this lady poured her heart out about her failing marriage to the love of her life, the beautiful children they had, the wonderful family whom she treasures, and the wonderful memories of her past. 

            I never imagined I could look in the window of one woman’s life of love, hurt, and hope. Hunter married the man she fell in love with, a Marine JAG officer, when she was 21.  She followed him for over 20 years and recanted all the fond memories of being a military wife.  However she was in the middle of a divorce as her husband had a second affair and took every bit of trust left to walk on, away with him.  The tears in her eyes came from the sincerity in her heart and the smile she always resorted back to was the hope she had for the future. She made such an impression on me that I don’t believe I will ever forget her or her story.

            I arrived in ATL at 9:30 after a long day of traveling of middle-seat madness and a brief look into a stranger’s life.  But in the end it was just another interesting day across America.

 

Sunday

            The day started with an early flight from ATL to VPS (Fort Walton Beach).  I arrived an hour before my flight, but to my surprise, the security line was so beyond backed up that I was sure I wasn’t going to make my flight.  As I got in line, I noticed a young man in front of me.  Well it wasn’t too long before we both were stressing about making our flights and he introduced himself to take his mind off of the situation. 

            Carson was a senior at Georgia Tech studying some kind of engineering. He was on his way to Philadelphia for a conference for a possible summer internship with the nation’s best in his particular field of study.  It wasn’t long before we started to talk about March Madness.  He had his money on North Carolina and I had mine on Tennessee. 

            We talked for the next thirty minutes as we traveled through, what seemed to be, the never-ending line.  By the time we went through security, our brief conversation of college life and basketball turned into smiles and wishes of good luck.

            On the airplane I sat in between a man in his mid forties and a woman in her late twenties.  Yes, another adventure in the middle seat, I’m practically a pro at sitting between people now.  A few minutes after take off the woman next to me started a conversation about how late we were taking off.  She was quite irritated to say the least; I just nodded and smiled, knowing that it’s fairly common for this kind of occurrence.  The man on my left jumped in and decided to irritate her further by exclaiming the baggage claim always takes forever in VPS.  It was quite humorous after our conversation had continued for a good twenty minutes.  The man on my left was definitely Mr. Optimistic, volunteering his time every summer to teach English in third-world countries and on my right was Captain Negative, who’s reason for still being single is because she’s stuck in the air force and has nothing better to do.  As you can imagine the conversation was quite amusing…smiles on the left side of me and negative sarcasm on the right.  I put my headphones on and tried to enjoy the rest of my middle seat flight.

White As Snow

I saw an old friend tonight and we talked for a few moments. I guess you could say we had a falling out (I hate that term because I think that any situation can be worked out..) a little over a year ago. When I saw her tonight I felt so awkward as I do every time we run into each other. It's so stupid people let things and misunderstandings come between them. I remembered a lot of the good times we had shared and wondered if we would ever have any kind of friendship remotely close to one we had. Probably not..at least that's what I gathered by her actions. But I cannot put it all on her. I'm definitely not running back with open arms...Its hard to open back up to someone who hurt you. But with all this to say, we forgive those that hurt us because we have been forgiven by the blood of christ. So I guess the rest of it is in His hands....

An International Affair

In late December I was sitting in the Atlanta airport, waiting for my flight to San Antonio (to kick off the new year). As I usually do in Atlanta, I go to terminal B and get a turkey panini form the Atlanta Bread Co. It's pretty much my favorite sandwich and they don't have it in New Mexico so its a must.

I go back to terminal C and eat my sandwich at the gate i'll be leaving from. I look around and as usual there's not a whole lot of people there 3 hours before the flight, just the occasional person with a long layover. There's army boy sitting next to his green duffle bad, the little three-year-old playing on the floor. The teenage girl scrubbed out in sweatpants falling asleep on the bench, the business man on his blackberry,the cute old woman with matching everything, and then there was something striking that is not so common in the Atlanta airport. Sitting right across from me was a very tall, blonde, dark skinned muscular man with the brightest blue eyes that I had ever seen. I totally didn't know what to think of him, he had kind of an exotic look and seemed to be a little puzzled.

There was something definitely intriguing about this guy. I sat there talking on my phone looking back from time to time trying to figure out what it was. 45 minutes passes and I'm still talking on my phone, but i've noticed now he's been looking over here for quite some time. A few minutes later I notice this guy glancing over again, we played the glance over and pretend we never saw each other game for a bout 10 minutes. Well he then decides to get up, and right as I saw him come over my way, as though he was passing by, he stops right in front of me and in the most intriguing accent i've ever heard, asks me if it might be ok to borrow my phone as he is not from here. Of course I let him borrow my phone, he sat next to me now, and i couldn't help but speculate what his story could be. Well he only talks for a minute and leaves his friend a message saying his flight was delayed and he got to the states a day later than he expected.

At this point we start to exchange conversation, mostly small talk. It was quite a bit awkward at first because he looked me straight in the eyes as he talked and was sitting right next to me. (But maybe it's common to invade people's personal space where he comes from?) Ah yes, and that was the question I had.

"I'm from South Africa. I've lived there all my life. I own a safari business, it's what actually brings me to the states. Every year from January to April I come out here to market my company."

We continued to talk for the next two hours laughing and smiling at all the neat cultural differences as well as similarities we had.

"I'm a professional hunter and outfitter. I have a resort on 200,000 acres of land where I help people hunt the great 5." (let me just say that I didn't know much about South Africa before I met him, but after our lengthy conversation about our lives, (it felt as though i'd been there)he continued to show me pictures and talk about his family and then his goals and what he wants from life.

You could tell by the look in his eye, he was a genuine guy with almost a chivalrous demeanor. We found out we both were headed to San Antonio and were quite delighted to have the company and conversation on the way. As our hours of an international affair concluded, he invited me to Africa, and said if I ever wanted to come he would personally take me on a safari. With that we exited the plane and headed down to baggage.

I was sitting in the claim area after having realized my luggage was in Atlanta and wouldn't be here until the next flight arrived.

Hannes(this was his name) was waiting for his friend to pick him up. He came over several times to make sure I was alright waiting by myself or to see if I needed a ride. I assured him I was fine and that he have safe travels while here abroad. His friend came over and he introduced us and then we said our good byes and they walked away. Twenty minutes later Hannes returns to make sure I'm ok and that I'm on my way. As I'm still sitting there he seemed concerned and walked back over. I assured him again I was definitely ok and my luggage would be coming soon. So we said our goodbyes and he walked back to his friend. Well this series events happened a few more times until I was on my way and he saw that I had left safely.

Is it possible to meet a complete stranger from accross the world who has nothing but the most honorable intentions? Someone who seems so genuine and chivalrous...so counter culture of the fast paced, all about me, crazy day-to-day American life? That I cannot conclude seeing how it is nearly impossible to judge the true intentions of another. But what I did find quite amusing in this adventure was that two complete strangers from opposite sides of the world can relate to eachother over a pleasant conversation sharing stories of their lives.

"Good Night, and Good Luck."

I can feel the cold brisk air sending chills up my back as I get into my car. I drive along the foothills of the mountains, the moon is shining bright over the unending lights. As i drive I can't help but remember the times...

....I can't get the thoughts out of my mind. I roll my windows down to remember the bitter cold reality. The tip of my nose turns pink with the frost settling in. I drive, keep on driving, all I know to do is to drive. I'm trying to drive the feeling of cold away. With no avail. I see the picture. The smile on your face and the glistening in her eyes. I continue to drive, the city lights have faded and the moon is brighter then ever. I feel my stomach sink and a knot in my throat begin to grow. My fingers have begun to turn numb and the feeling of not being able to feel has taken place as my relief. I'm heading down an uncertain road and all I can mutter under my breath in the brisk lonesome dark is Edward R. Murrow's famous words -"Good Night, and Good Luck."

Thoughts of Today

So I have some random thoughts. Those of you that know me....you guys know that when I was little, I had two aspirations. 1. Grow up and marry a big black guy named adrian 2. Grow up and be the first pink navy seal....Why a big black guy named adrian? And Since when is a navy seal dressed in pink? Ha. I guess we all grow up eventually. Anyways...I think there will always be something inside me that wants and longs to do something in the world that makes a difference. I have friends who are PJs who rescue hurt soldiers, a brother who is a reconnaissance marine that well Lord knows if I ever find out what they really do, a dad who flew F-14s and F-16s in the Navy back in the day and a mom totally devoted to ministering to women, making a difference daily. And here I am...No I'm not going to join the service, but I'm still goin to do my time. I'm a journalist and that's what I love. I love the truth, real people and real stories. I think that everyone has a story to tell and it's those stories that come back to impact lives in ways we could never imagine. So no I'm not going to be running around with an M16 or dressed in BDUs but hopefully I'll make it out there someday to tell a story...to share life with people who have gave up so much for a greater cause.

Saturday Night at the Roadhouse

So tonight was a typical Saturday night at work- good tips, rude tables, servers who only look out for number 1 and somehow always have selective hearing, inconsiderate hostesses (you know the ones you have to tip out at the end of the night because they're rude to your guests, triple seat you, give you an incomplete party, seat your closed section, and totally disregard everything you say to them....), and then the managers who let you know that you pretty much killed their whole perfect world because they actually have to do their job like talk to a table because the kitchen didn't cook the steak right the first time. Ha ha I'm sure this isn't anything new to those of you who have had to walk this line before.

Anyways I can't decide what my favorite part of tonight was.... I liked the little host who is ALWAYS in the way and every time you say excuse me she just looks at you like a dumb deer staring straight at the on-coming headlights. (Well I guess I can't blame her, I mean they do have the unwritten code of disregarding everything that is said to them.)  I kind of liked that one server, you know the one who has been there forever and work is their whole life and entire world so they always make a point to  get all bent out of shape if you so much as do one thing less then perfect (severs like this beware: Irrational-bent-out-of-shape outbreaks might cause ulcer).  One that's always at the top of my list is the newly promoted manager, you know the one that runs a power trip just because they can (can't really blame that either....i mean after all they are no longer lowlife servers...they're a MANAGER.) Anyways there are always good times like these that can be elaborated on but why bore you with the typical incidents...its the not-so-typical that are entertaining.

How about the intoxicated military guy who grabs your arm and tries to kiss you. Or there's the dirty man who puts 6 one-hundred dollar bills on the table to bribe you, the lowlife server to please an old man. (I mean cause after all if you're a server, you must be down there with the strippers....)  Then again there is always the weird old cowboy who sits in your section just so he can stare at you and make a pass (i mean oh yeah....every server would just jump at the opportunity to get with an old dirty cowboy...)  Maybe the best one yet is the guy who tips you cause you're good at line-dancing, but his idea of a tip is a slap on the ass.  Needless to say didn't have anything to interesting tonight, just the occasional fat-ass who can't put down the fork, you know the one who asks for 5 refills of coke and then expects you to keep bringing the bread when they run out...like every 2 minutes.

Ha ha good times.  And you wonder why there are places like this???..Corporate America has made it good by capitalizing on lowlife servers to aid the fat-ass cause...but who can really complain? They profit off the guests getting fat, and we get tipped for it!

Just Another Girl

I'm only amused until I'm unamused
Don't worry you won't be accused

Enjoy the adventures along the way
But love the misadventures every day.

I take the chance with many bets
Always living with no regrets

You see me riding that wake
In the summer at every lake.

Wear my jeans all ripped
With my Boston hat tipped.

I might get frisky
But I stay away from that whisky.

Don't dance on bars
Just under the stars.

Show me your friends
I'll show you your future.

Love with all you got
Don't waste it on a lot.

Bring your best game
And you won't leave with shame.

Look for the best
Don't settle for less.

If you're going to leave
Go before I cleave.

Take the chance
It might let you dance.

Have some respect
But do not neglect.

Why do you know me?
Why don't you show me?

Love me, hate me
Just as long as you feel me.

I'm not your booty call…
I'm firm and standing tall

Don't waste my time
I'll drop you like a dime.

I'm making the mile
I'm leaving this pile.

I'm gonna do it all
I may not hear you call.

You think you know me, but you don't.
Try and figure me out and you won 't.