In lieu of a Christmas letter this year I am sending out this one-of-a-kind Christmas/4th quarter update. I’m not exactly sure where I left off on my 3rd quarter update and I’m guessing that probably means you’re not exactly sure either. So you’re getting a year-long summary.
December 19th, 2008 I stepped out of Managua and back into what I thought would be considered “normal life.”
By August I had been on sixteen trips. I got to see a lot of you and felt I was doing pretty well on the transition. God provided quite a few very odd jobs and I was able to take eight nice months of schedule-less life.
And then...
BAM!!!
The real world hit. Or what I thought was pretty close to “adult-life.” I got a permanent job. 9-1 EVERY DAY. I had to switch from waking up at 10 (or later, I can’t lie especially if you were one of the people I stayed with on one of my trips) to 7:30. I also had to start getting dressed EVERY DAY. And these outfits could not include shorts, denim, flip-flops or Converse.
That job lasted until October 19th then believe it or not, I started working full-time. 8-5. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday & Friday. That is my life now (plus or minus a few family birthday parties and Bible studies), so that is what the rest of this e-mail will be about. I’ll try to keep it brief.
Who: Joy Eklund
What: Receptionist aka Administrative Assistant aka Personal Assistant aka Car Washer aka Travel Agent aka Ambassador of Goodwill (no joke that is what my boss told me my main job title is, my parents think he’s a prophet).
Where: Dowd and Guild, Inc. – “We sell chemicals…and that’s all” actually that isn’t true we also sell chemical containers but you get 1,000 bonus points if you sing the above quoted line and know what movie it’s from. D&G is in San Ramon, it is exactly 20 miles from my parents’ (where I live). It takes exactly 35 to 60 minutes to get there.
When: 8-5. 5 days a week.
Why: First of all, it is a job. Second of all, I get to do really cool things like watch videos entitled “The History of Paint.” Third of all, it probably the most un-green job possible so I get to be countercultural. Fourthly, they at least pretend to understand that if I had life-goals they would not be in the chemical sales field and they don’t hold that against me.
Overall I like what I am doing and I’m good at it. Everyday is completely different and I work independently, two things that fit well with me. Plus I work with a very “special” group of people that keep me entertained all day long. I could tell you about the day the bathroom key went missing or about a lovely conversation that began with the question, “So, Joy, what do you think of my son?” or about the backlash received when a customer wanted to take my picture or about a billion other things. But this is already getting too long and I wanted to share with you today’s Christmas lesson.
I like Christmas music, I listen to it on the way to and from my job. Today I was listening to “We Three Kings of Orient Are.” I realize that the concept of three kings is not biblical, but this song is pretty tight, and not just for Christmas. That said I am going to put in the lyrics (you can skip the first verse if you can’t handle it):
We three kings of Orient are
Bearing gifts we traverse afar
Field and fountain, moor and mountain
Following yonder star
O Star of wonder, star of night
Star with royal beauty bright
Westward leading, still proceeding
Guide us to thy Perfect Light
Born a King on Bethlehem's plain
Gold I bring to crown Him again
King forever, ceasing never
Over us all to rein
Frankincense to offer have I
Incense owns a Deity nigh
Pray'r and praising, all men raising
Worship Him, God most high
Myrrh is mine, its bitter perfume
Breathes of life of gathering gloom
Sorrowing, sighing, bleeding, dying
Sealed in the stone-cold tomb
Glorious now behold Him arise
King and God and Sacrifice
Alleluia, Alleluia
Earth to heav'n replies
-Rev. John Henry Hopkins 1857
I hope that this Christmas you drawn to the perfect Light not just of Baby Jesus but of the King and God and Sacrifice.
Monday, December 14, 2009
Monday, November 23, 2009
some perspective
The past few months my life has completely flipped around. Mostly all I do is work, participate in church related functions and celebrate family things. Sometimes I feel that all of my time is scheduled and can't really believe the drastic change that my life went through since August. A change that really doesn't cater to creative expression.
This week I have been staying at my boss's house taking care of his dog. So far I have seen three deer and two shooting stars. Tonight I actually had to wait for a deer to cross before I could pull into the driveway.
I was going to write more but it is now 10pm and part my lifestyle change is that I go to bed before 11. Plus tomorrow I have to wake up in time to prepare Maddie's breakfast before work.
This week I have been staying at my boss's house taking care of his dog. So far I have seen three deer and two shooting stars. Tonight I actually had to wait for a deer to cross before I could pull into the driveway.
I was going to write more but it is now 10pm and part my lifestyle change is that I go to bed before 11. Plus tomorrow I have to wake up in time to prepare Maddie's breakfast before work.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Joy's 3rd Quarter Report
October has begun and now you get the chance to catch up on my life, what a glorious day.
Does anyone out there remember where I left off in the saga of my life? I don’t.
I think around August 6th I started working for Dowd and Guild Inc. that means I’m almost celebrating two months of waking up (and getting dressed) five days a week. For some of you this may not seem like a big accomplishment but it is something I haven’t done regularly since high school. I like my job. Lots of people ask me if working in an office is like the TV show. I think I could easily write a 23-minute bit every workday (and I only work 4 hour days), there would be none of the romantic tension.
More specifically, what do I do? I am the receptionist i.e. the face of the company. I sign for a lot of UPS packages. Today I spent close to an hour and a half decorating the bulletins board for October. Where do people come up with clever things to read while you’re waiting for the coffee to brew? I made a list of daily things to celebrate in October. The 9th is moldy cheese day. And October is Pickled Pepper month. The rest of my job consists of answering and routing phone calls, updating things, running reports, filing papers, mailing things and extracting data from excel spreadsheets.
Soon I might start working full time. My possible change in schedule has been the drama of the week. Some people may think that me taking on a job fulltime would make me a sellout. I figure it is either sellout in that area or sellout to socialized healthcare. I have expressed my desire to have a modified vacation schedule. You can pray that they will think that is a great idea so that I can still be open to travel for philanthropic reasons (they’re really into philanthropy).
I was also working on getting that restaurant started. That kind of fizzled out the end of August but then last week they mailed me a bonus check.
A few weeks ago I decided to get a new bed. My parents voted for a full because it would still be a change but wouldn’t take up less of my room than a queen. So for a whole week I was on craigslist trying to find a bed and finally on Saturday morning (the day my dad could go with me to get something) I found one. I got to the house, they lowered the price, I brought it home, rearranged my furniture, went and bought sheets, and then figured out it was a queen. Why the people didn’t know that, I don’t know, I guess because the nanny was in charge of selling it. Oh well, it fits fine in my room and I got a great deal. Now, during the process of rearranging my furniture I moved all of my excess stuff (lots still un-organized from moving home) into the spare bedroom. Now I am in the early stages of getting rid of stuff. During this process I have learned that I am, in fact, a hoarder, I just store things well hidden.
That is mostly what is going on with me, now go enjoy some homemade cookies and get ready to name your car tomorrow and let me know what’s going on with you.
Love, Joy
PS Yes! You can still buy my book!
Sunday, September 13, 2009
grandpa vermon
I have a grandpa Vern. He looks nothing like this:
He lives in South Lake Tahoe, the previous owner ran the local brothels. I guess the house attracts "characters." Anyhoo this weekend he wanted to host a garage sale so I went up with my aunt and mom to help out. If you saw the pictures I posted in March you may have started to understand that he has more junk than any other person on the planet (hopefully). Here are some of my favorite pieces:
I sold the hats, $3 for 2 (he wanted $3 each or for me to take them myself) and the picture for $20 (he wanted $25) even better, I sold them to the same person. I hope they display them they same way I did.
This African CD stand we didn't sell until day 2 so he dropped the price from $20 to $12, another thing I wish I needed.
But it wasn't all awe at finding amazing things, here are some other emotions I dealt with...
Bitterness: My grandpa challenged my pricing one too many times. Trust me -- there is no way he paid $10 for the tacky umbrella I sold for $1.
Shock: So a lot of the garage sale patrons were my grandpa's biggest fans. He was selling his paintings for $100 and people were walking away bragging that they got an "original" and telling me how lucky I am to have such an amazing grandpa. I kept thinking of The Emperor's New Clothes. I could expand but either you understand the analogy or you don't. Another shocking thing was that he made over $4,000.
Disgust: The first night on the way in we met him, Ethel (his ex-girlfriend) and two of their friends for dinner at the Lakeside Inn. I really don't like the Lakeside Inn, or the Smokeside Inn as my aunt likes to call it. I don't every know what to order there, I think I need to start going with the prime rib special because that is what the old people get and the restaurant definitely caters to old people. Instead I got what I thought was going to be seafood with a white wine sauce over linguine. What came out was this flavorless soup with chunks of fish and a side of spaghetti. It did not go over well with my stomach. After dinner when we stood up to leave I realized that the lady that I was sitting across from was like 4 feet tall, I mean she stood up and was the same height as she was sitting down.
Awe: This morning I walked down to the lake. Some of the houses in his neighborhood are beyond massive and gorgeous. But then I got to the lake and it is much more massive and much gorgeous than any 5 million dollar home. A little perspective is good every once in a while.
Now I will share 3 completely unrelated things:
1) Even though I've been back now for 9-months, my body has not adjusted to the climite. Henceforth I have really bad dandruff, I feel like I have that gross cradle cap disease that my sister's kids get.
2) This week I am working full time. 8 to 5. That means I have to leave before I usually wake up.
3) It is raining right now. Very odd for September. I head there were thunder storms yesterday, I missed out, I hope they come back, those are something I miss from my former life.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Survivor
Yesterday at work I had a very Survivor like experience. I've only seen about four episodes of Survivor, all on my NYC trip to the Congdons, but it seems like everyone is making alliances all the time, behind people's backs. So this lady literally cornered me in the copy room to ask me what I think about this other lady in the office. I said I liked her and that for the most part I try to live liking people, a very unexciting response,. She shared her undermined opinion of the lady in question and then we moved onto a more neutral topic. Do I look like I want my life to be filled with middle-aged drama?
On a brighter note, yesterday I got to deep-clean some cabinets, a break from the spreadsheets I've been spending my time with.
Another thing I get to do is sign for UPS packages. The UPS guy scares me, I guess he is just really friendly. I don't know how to deal with it so it is always a very awkward time.
Today I was informed that I am not supposed to just transfer every call to customer service because they are very busy. Good to know because unless someone calls and asks for a specific name I transfer them to customer service, because I don't have a clue what the rest of the people do.
In honor of the three day weekend, tomorrow is casual Friday. I now know how students feel when they usually have wear uniforms then get a free day. A lot of pressure.
Speaking of students, my commute is no longer exactly 30 minutes. It has been taking at least 35; 45 today because of an accident.
Last weekend my friend Morgan came to visit. She's from Iowa and been living in New Mexico, but we know each other from Nicaragua. It was great to get to spend time with her and lucky her, she got to house sit with me one night. To follow tradition, we played Boggle and Speed Scrabble. We probably played 10 rounds of Boggle and all but 3 rounds her score was double mine -- exactly. We also went to pick fruits and vegetables from my neighbor's house. He has something like 30 fruit trees and 50 tomato plants. He carried what we picked home for us down the road on his riding lawn-mower. He is 82 so I guess he can ride a lawn-mower down suburban city streets wearing a cowboy hat.
On a brighter note, yesterday I got to deep-clean some cabinets, a break from the spreadsheets I've been spending my time with.
Another thing I get to do is sign for UPS packages. The UPS guy scares me, I guess he is just really friendly. I don't know how to deal with it so it is always a very awkward time.
Today I was informed that I am not supposed to just transfer every call to customer service because they are very busy. Good to know because unless someone calls and asks for a specific name I transfer them to customer service, because I don't have a clue what the rest of the people do.
In honor of the three day weekend, tomorrow is casual Friday. I now know how students feel when they usually have wear uniforms then get a free day. A lot of pressure.
Speaking of students, my commute is no longer exactly 30 minutes. It has been taking at least 35; 45 today because of an accident.
Last weekend my friend Morgan came to visit. She's from Iowa and been living in New Mexico, but we know each other from Nicaragua. It was great to get to spend time with her and lucky her, she got to house sit with me one night. To follow tradition, we played Boggle and Speed Scrabble. We probably played 10 rounds of Boggle and all but 3 rounds her score was double mine -- exactly. We also went to pick fruits and vegetables from my neighbor's house. He has something like 30 fruit trees and 50 tomato plants. He carried what we picked home for us down the road on his riding lawn-mower. He is 82 so I guess he can ride a lawn-mower down suburban city streets wearing a cowboy hat.
Friday, August 28, 2009
more on jobs
I still like my primary job. I think the number of stupid mistakes I am making is decreasing, that is good.
The other day the head boss walked in, it was the first time I'd seen him in the office this course of employment
He said: I heard you were were working here again.
I said: Yeah, and I heard you were in charge.
He made no further comment and walked away.
I know almost everyone's names now, except for Carol, I don't know who she is. Well, I guess she is the one I see whose name I never know.
Today I was thinking about the people I work with, as Bob Grieco would say, some of them have high IQ and not so high of EQ, I don't know about SQ.
A lady asked me if I am a "plant person" I didn't know what she was talking about but I guess it was just her transition into asking me if I like sprouts. I do. The next day she brought me in a zip-lock of mixed sprouts. I have been enjoying them.
This week my secondary job is dog-sitting Dani Girl and Buddy Boy. Before bed I am supposed to say, "Poo poos for night night" and supposedly, "They know exactly what that means." I personally do not think they know what that means.
The other day the head boss walked in, it was the first time I'd seen him in the office this course of employment
He said: I heard you were were working here again.
I said: Yeah, and I heard you were in charge.
He made no further comment and walked away.
I know almost everyone's names now, except for Carol, I don't know who she is. Well, I guess she is the one I see whose name I never know.
Today I was thinking about the people I work with, as Bob Grieco would say, some of them have high IQ and not so high of EQ, I don't know about SQ.
A lady asked me if I am a "plant person" I didn't know what she was talking about but I guess it was just her transition into asking me if I like sprouts. I do. The next day she brought me in a zip-lock of mixed sprouts. I have been enjoying them.
This week my secondary job is dog-sitting Dani Girl and Buddy Boy. Before bed I am supposed to say, "Poo poos for night night" and supposedly, "They know exactly what that means." I personally do not think they know what that means.
Friday, August 21, 2009
wedding and work
Last weekend I went to San Diego to participate in the wedding festivities that correspond with the the previous post's faux wedding. It was super wonderful to spend so much concentrated time with my college roommates.
I drove down (with the two girls on the right) in my little Honda and discovered I can get 400mi/tank with freeway driving, that is very exciting since I won't be getting a hybrid anytime soon.
I've hit a dead end at the restaurant job for now. I've turned in all of my initial reports and am waiting for him to assign me something else to do.
I haven't gone to my office job all that many times yet but so far I really like it. 9 to 1 is a really great schedule, someone asked me if I have kids because I guess if I did that would be the perfect hours to work. The HR lady told me to not just have kids because of the schedule, I agree. So what do I actually do...
1) I drive to work, it takes me exactly 30 minutes.
2) I answer the phone and transfer calls.
3) I listen to people tell me about their lives.
4) I file papers.
5) I run reports (I don't really know what that means but it encompasses a variety of things and takes a lot of time)
6) I mail things.
7) I book reservations.
8) On Mondays I open Saturday's mail.
9) I do anything that THT tells me.
Right now I am at a coffee shop drinking iced tea, waiting for my college roommate Katie (on the right) we are going to motivate one another to do projects. My project it putting together a photo album from the last 3 years of my life.
Here we are: The groom is in the suit and the bride in the white dress and veil
I drove down (with the two girls on the right) in my little Honda and discovered I can get 400mi/tank with freeway driving, that is very exciting since I won't be getting a hybrid anytime soon.I've hit a dead end at the restaurant job for now. I've turned in all of my initial reports and am waiting for him to assign me something else to do.
I haven't gone to my office job all that many times yet but so far I really like it. 9 to 1 is a really great schedule, someone asked me if I have kids because I guess if I did that would be the perfect hours to work. The HR lady told me to not just have kids because of the schedule, I agree. So what do I actually do...
1) I drive to work, it takes me exactly 30 minutes.
2) I answer the phone and transfer calls.
3) I listen to people tell me about their lives.
4) I file papers.
5) I run reports (I don't really know what that means but it encompasses a variety of things and takes a lot of time)
6) I mail things.
7) I book reservations.
8) On Mondays I open Saturday's mail.
9) I do anything that THT tells me.
Right now I am at a coffee shop drinking iced tea, waiting for my college roommate Katie (on the right) we are going to motivate one another to do projects. My project it putting together a photo album from the last 3 years of my life.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Time slipping away
I'm not very good at remembering to write here but I am into turning over new leafs so I'm going to try to be more faithful.
Dowd and Guild has been going well. I've now learned how to say "Good morning, Dowd and Guild, this is Joy." Hopefully after I say that they introduce themselves and then I know who to transfer them to. When people call and ask like they are my best friend and don't tell me their name I get really frustrated but today I decided that no matter how embarrassing it may be I am always going to ask who it is, because that is my job.
On Thursday something very dramatic happened. It was Rachel's birthday so someone brought this caramel dip thing and apples, some people didn't realize it was the equivalent of a birthday cake and started eating it. When we went to get it to surprise Rachel, there was a big wedge missing. Gale used the apple slices to fill in the gap. Crises averted.
Friday, yesterday and today I was supposed to work from 8-5 to get a feel for a full day. I went in at 9 instead of 8 because the girl I am working with, Christie, said that nothing happens before 8. I wasn't disappointed that I got to sleep an hour later. Today I started this excel project around 3:30 for Guild, of Dowd and Guild. It was nowhere near finished at 5 so he asked if I could stay and finish it. I think on your 4th day of work when you're about to take a week's vacation and the head guy asks you to stay and finish, you stay and finish. I was there until 6:30. On the way home I found out my sister and cousins were eating fro yo so I met them.
I haven't had a lot of time to work on the restaurant job but last night I stayed up late and finished the sandwich part. Now onto soups, 5 vegetarian and 5 non. I don't like soup.
This weekend I went to Davis, (and to Evan's show in San Francisco). I like Davis. On Sunday I went to Elk Grove (or as I like to call it, Fair Oaks) for my college roommate's faux wedding. I didn't really know what to expect of a faux wedding but was pleasantly surprised.
Tomorrow I am leaving to go to San Diego for the real wedding, I'll be back on Monday. I need to pack now. I'm not unpacked from this weekend yet. I can't imagine how crazy my life would be if my mom didn't do my laundry for me.
Dowd and Guild has been going well. I've now learned how to say "Good morning, Dowd and Guild, this is Joy." Hopefully after I say that they introduce themselves and then I know who to transfer them to. When people call and ask like they are my best friend and don't tell me their name I get really frustrated but today I decided that no matter how embarrassing it may be I am always going to ask who it is, because that is my job.
On Thursday something very dramatic happened. It was Rachel's birthday so someone brought this caramel dip thing and apples, some people didn't realize it was the equivalent of a birthday cake and started eating it. When we went to get it to surprise Rachel, there was a big wedge missing. Gale used the apple slices to fill in the gap. Crises averted.
Friday, yesterday and today I was supposed to work from 8-5 to get a feel for a full day. I went in at 9 instead of 8 because the girl I am working with, Christie, said that nothing happens before 8. I wasn't disappointed that I got to sleep an hour later. Today I started this excel project around 3:30 for Guild, of Dowd and Guild. It was nowhere near finished at 5 so he asked if I could stay and finish it. I think on your 4th day of work when you're about to take a week's vacation and the head guy asks you to stay and finish, you stay and finish. I was there until 6:30. On the way home I found out my sister and cousins were eating fro yo so I met them.
I haven't had a lot of time to work on the restaurant job but last night I stayed up late and finished the sandwich part. Now onto soups, 5 vegetarian and 5 non. I don't like soup.
This weekend I went to Davis, (and to Evan's show in San Francisco). I like Davis. On Sunday I went to Elk Grove (or as I like to call it, Fair Oaks) for my college roommate's faux wedding. I didn't really know what to expect of a faux wedding but was pleasantly surprised.
Being given away by her faux dad
The Faux Bridesmaids
Some Delicious Fauxcakes
Tomorrow I am leaving to go to San Diego for the real wedding, I'll be back on Monday. I need to pack now. I'm not unpacked from this weekend yet. I can't imagine how crazy my life would be if my mom didn't do my laundry for me.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
jobs
I now have not one but TWO jobs (three if you count watching "Oprah" with Mrs. Johnson). Both of them are paid and one of them is not a joke, neither of them are full time. You may wonder where this step into stable adulthood came from, good question. They were previously closed doors and then within the week they opened. I clearly believe that these opportunities (with virtually no effort on my part) are God's way of telling me that it's time for me to be here for a while, so I will.
Job 1: Hello again Dowd and Guild. Last Jan/Feb I found my self as assistant to a personal assistant at the lovely chemical sales firm, Dowd and Guild. I went in twice a week for four or five hours, probably a total of 9 times, to run errands and order pictures at costco.com. All that effort paid off (and the aptitude test I took last week) because starting tomorrow I will be working there Monday to Friday 9-1. There is the opportunity to go full-time but I let them know that I am not sure if I'm really ready to do the full-time thing. We'll see. Oh yes, I'll be an office manager aka receptionist. I'm really excited, the job seems to offer adequate diversity of tasks and I really like the company. I'll have to come up with five business casual outfits every week, except the week of the 12th -18th because I'm taking those as vacation days.
Job 2: S3Technologies, Inc commonly known as "Little Caesar's Guy" For some reason I really hit it off with Indian men, first thousands of free books in Nicaragua and now a job. In March I got this job interviewing Little Caesar's customers. This venture capitalist owns a few Little Caesar's and was interested in opening another one so I had to find out where people we coming from so they could decide on a good future location. Now he has hired me again but for something completely different. He wants to open a new salad restaurant, I guess they are all the rage right now. From what I understand I am in charge of the menu. So I've gone to eat at our future competitors to discover all their secrets and have been making lists and charts of crucial salad toppings and popular recipes. We'll also be offering some sandwiches so now I need to do the same research but for those. When we nail down what is on the menu I get to decide how to display it and then work on marketing (I guess at the women's gyms in the area). I don't really know what I'm doing but I'm taking things one step at a time.
So there you go folks, I hope that clears up some miscommunication about me becoming a Mexican citizen (at least for now). Now it's time to find something to wear.
Love, Joy
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
A farewell of pictures
I’m not in Mexico anymore; actually I’ve been back since last Tuesday. Some of you I have seen since then, mostly if you are of the Southern California persuasion because that is where I am. I flew into LA on the 7th, did some laundry in Huntington Beach, went to a church conference, and now I am back in Huntington for a wedding on Saturday and then I’ll fly home on Sunday.
Yesterday I rode my bike to the post office and it was quite the dramatic experience. Just trying to pump the bike tire wore me out then when I got to the post office my water bottle had condensated on my mail so I couldn’t send it. Tragic.
Basically my real life has little entertainment value so I was planning on retreating back to Mexican life even though it is now a little out dated. However, this afternoon I can’t think of any witty anecdotes to share so instead I’m going to attach three pictures.
A man riding through the town on a donkey. No that is not a usual occurrence.
Seven girls that go to Luz’s house on Saturdays for breakfast and Bible class. I could write pages on their family stories but instead I’ll just try to remember all their names. The two on the left are sisters, Lola in the back and Meme in the front. The three in the middle are sisters too, Melissa, Dariana and I’m totally drawing a blank. The last two are Denise and Daniela.
This is of my two best Mascotan friends, Dahlia and Deisey. This picture was taken at the walk around the square thing. Dahlia actually met her husband at one of them so she was giving Deisey and me pointers. When I saw her again the next day she was quite disappointed that I was still single. I was very blessed to get to know these girls during my trips to Mexico and I pray for them frequently that they don’t get caught up in the crazy immorality of those around them.
Well that is all I have to say. Thank you.
Yesterday I rode my bike to the post office and it was quite the dramatic experience. Just trying to pump the bike tire wore me out then when I got to the post office my water bottle had condensated on my mail so I couldn’t send it. Tragic.
Basically my real life has little entertainment value so I was planning on retreating back to Mexican life even though it is now a little out dated. However, this afternoon I can’t think of any witty anecdotes to share so instead I’m going to attach three pictures.
A man riding through the town on a donkey. No that is not a usual occurrence.
Seven girls that go to Luz’s house on Saturdays for breakfast and Bible class. I could write pages on their family stories but instead I’ll just try to remember all their names. The two on the left are sisters, Lola in the back and Meme in the front. The three in the middle are sisters too, Melissa, Dariana and I’m totally drawing a blank. The last two are Denise and Daniela.
This is of my two best Mascotan friends, Dahlia and Deisey. This picture was taken at the walk around the square thing. Dahlia actually met her husband at one of them so she was giving Deisey and me pointers. When I saw her again the next day she was quite disappointed that I was still single. I was very blessed to get to know these girls during my trips to Mexico and I pray for them frequently that they don’t get caught up in the crazy immorality of those around them.
Well that is all I have to say. Thank you.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Good-bye first half of 2009
At first I was thinking thinking that I really don't have that much to say, but then I made an outline and realized I have plenty to share. Keep in mind that my outline is like my Spanish, a little hard to follow but if you really try you can figure it out, and every once in a while it is worth the effort.
- We're still going to these nightly prayer meeting things. I pretty sure the guy can see now but they are to embarrassed to tell us to stop coming so we keep coming. There is this relative there with her 3-year-old that is still nursing. Julie, thinks it is "progressive." Last night the mom opened a bag and handed the girl something that looked to me like chocolate chips. Someone asked what it was, it was cat food, dry at least. The mom said that she eats fish food too.
- Mascota is not a quiet place. For the past week they have been celebrating all sorts of sacred things: hearts, blood, people, etc. They celebrate with fire crackers, today they started before 5am. Along with this there are church bells, not on the hour or evenly spaced out. I'm pretty sure that anyone can ring the bells at any time for any length of time. Elections are July 5th, that is loud too. This morning a truck was driving around announcing that for the 4th and 5th it is illegal to drink. A few days a witch doctor was in town announcing all of the things mental and physical that you could get healed from. There is also a circus in town. The houses here all have propane tanks and 5 gallon purified drinking water. All day every day trucks drive around playing their water or gas jingles ("Zeta, zeta, zeta gas!" and "agua purificada! running water sounds") then you go out side and wave them down if you need anything. It is very convenient, but once again, noisy.
- On Thursdays Luz and I go to the town jail for a Bible study. They really have nothing better to do and are a very respectful bunch. One guy has been in there for close to a year for stealing a chicken. Last week while we were there some one new got locked up, he seemed quite familiar with all of the procedures and I'm thinking it wasn't his first time. The week before last we took a break because someone was coming to deliver cigarettes.
- I really like Fridays, there are three Bible studies so I don't get bored. Last friday I decided to do my laundry, by hand. I'm sure I used more water than necessary but city water is a standard $80/year. In spite of all that water it is very easy to tell which of my clothes I washed because they smell like soap. Any tips?
Last week I mentioned that the water heater wasn't working. Now it is. Some old man came on his bike and fixed two water heaters for $5, one of them had been broken for over two years. - Sundays are very boring. On Sunday we went out to breakfast, there was a dead fly in my sandwich. Every Sunday night there is a big party/mating ritual in the town square. I wasn't planning on going because it isn't something you go to by yourself. However, it was 9:30 and I was bored and they sell fresh churros. So I put a few pesos in my pocket and headed downtown in my overly casual attire, smiling to myself about the patheticness of my situation (however, not as pathetic as that Friday night in Concord when I took my dog to get her nails cut). And when I got there, what did I find? No churros! So I left where the churros are supposed to be and went to see if they were are in another place, and what did I find? Still no churros, BUT "Joy, why are you here by yourself? come to dinner with us." It was one of the girls that I've been getting to know on Friday mornings and her husband and their son. So no churros but a friend.
- I finished my first art project last night and for some reason I started a second one even though I only have one more session. The class has been a huge blessing because it gives me something to do with my excess of free time. If you want to purchase on of my works of art, I think I'll start auctioning them at $500
- Yesterday we were hanging out with my favorite 90-year-old lady so I took my picture with her and will attach it. She still cooks all the food for her and her husband and is appalled that people buy canned food. Her husband is like 94 and still rides his horse.
- There are some rumors going around about me moving down here more permanently. I don't want to completely refute them because I want to be open to where God wants me. However, He hasn't told me yet if/when I'm supposed to come back and for how long so I personally am not making any plans.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Pictures!
Here are some lovely pictures that you have been much anticipating.
a bug, i don´t know what kind
family making good use of their lack of front porch
my bff old lady feeding chickens
my mad poster making skills
self portrait in front of a house when luz and i were on a field trip to find things to draw in art class
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
More from Mexico
I'm still in Mexico and will be here for another 2 weeks. Last Friday/Saturday I hit the 10 day point and that I have discovered is my personal limit of living the transitional lifestyle in a foreign country. This realization was compacted by a lot of rain, sometimes I like rain, sometimes it makes me claustrophobic. The good thing about hitting the point where I end is that I have to rely on God instead, and fortunately He is sufficient.
On Sunday I decided I needed to take a shower, the water heater wasn't working well so, it runs out about 7 minutes in. I take quick showers but still some of the water was wasted because we were testing it, I was a little nervous (I don't know why, I've taken plenty of cold showers before), so I prayed that there would be enough to wash my hair, and their was. Now, I probably could have shaved my legs too, but didn't have enough faith to bring my razor, lesson learned.
Saturday morning a group of girls come over for breakfast and a sunday school type of thing. This week we made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and for most of this girls this was a first. I have to say, there were mixed reactions, some girls did the whole save it in the napkin for later trick that I would do with nasty Nica birthday cake. The lesson was on God's generosity towards us and how our desire for being like Him should be our motivation behind giving.
Sunday was father's day. I made a really cool sign and a bunch of Luz's family came over for dinner. I sat at the kid's table with some bratty 6-year-olds.
Monday Luz and I went on an adventure. First at 6am (I was told to be ready at 5) we left with her brother in a 2-passenger pick-up truck heading towards Guadalajara. About 2.5 hours later he dropped us off on the side of the road which I guess was a bus stop. There we waited for around an hour until a bus came that was heading North-ish. The bus was surprisingly nice and I was settling down for a nice nap when they put in the movie, "Danny the Dog." Have you seen it? It is definitely as good as it sounds and is not about a dog but switches between crazy excessive violence and piano playing. Unfortunately we got off the bus before it ended so I have no idea if Danny had to go back to being a "dog." When we got off the bus no one else did because we were in fact not at a bus stop but on the expressway. We then started walking towards an exit and then got picked up by another bus heading towards our destination of Santa Maria Del Oro, Nayarit.
Luz has a friend in the States whose in-laws live in this town and I guess she visited them ten years ago and has been meaning to go back, so we went. They live a much humbler life-style than I am accustomed to but were very hospitable. We slept in their room that is dedicated for guests. This may seem normal except for the fact that their 50-year-old daughter and 15-year-old grand-daughter sleep on a mattress in the very open living room, even when there aren't visitors. The house main house doesn't have running water so I got a pan in case I needed to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, I didn't.
I got a lot of strange looks from the family matriarch in my 18-hour visit. Here I will summarize our most frequent conversation:
Her:do you want beans?
Me: No, thank you.
Her: What you don't like beans?
Me: No, I like them but am not hungry.
Her: huph(dirty look).
That was repeated a lot and not during meal times but just when we were sitting in the backyard and no one was eating, it soon became the family joke.
This is second favorite:
Her: Do you eat cactus in el otro lado?
Me: No.
Her: What your mom doesn't know how to cook cactus? hump (dirty look)
Anyways, eventually I'll attach two pictures from there. One of her feeding the chickens (did you know that chickens sleep in trees?) and another of us sitting in front of the house (luz, my empty chair, rosario (the great-grand-daughter), an aunt that lives there, and the patriarch). The patriarch's name is Marco and when his wife would be calling for him, "Marco! Marco! Marco!" I kept wanting to yell, "Polo," I restrained myself.
We only stayed there Monday night and left early Tuesday morning to get back in time for art class. We took all buses back, no movies but yes we did walk some more on the express way.
Ok there are more things that happened this week but this is probably already more than you need to know.
love, joy
On Sunday I decided I needed to take a shower, the water heater wasn't working well so, it runs out about 7 minutes in. I take quick showers but still some of the water was wasted because we were testing it, I was a little nervous (I don't know why, I've taken plenty of cold showers before), so I prayed that there would be enough to wash my hair, and their was. Now, I probably could have shaved my legs too, but didn't have enough faith to bring my razor, lesson learned.
Saturday morning a group of girls come over for breakfast and a sunday school type of thing. This week we made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and for most of this girls this was a first. I have to say, there were mixed reactions, some girls did the whole save it in the napkin for later trick that I would do with nasty Nica birthday cake. The lesson was on God's generosity towards us and how our desire for being like Him should be our motivation behind giving.
Sunday was father's day. I made a really cool sign and a bunch of Luz's family came over for dinner. I sat at the kid's table with some bratty 6-year-olds.
Monday Luz and I went on an adventure. First at 6am (I was told to be ready at 5) we left with her brother in a 2-passenger pick-up truck heading towards Guadalajara. About 2.5 hours later he dropped us off on the side of the road which I guess was a bus stop. There we waited for around an hour until a bus came that was heading North-ish. The bus was surprisingly nice and I was settling down for a nice nap when they put in the movie, "Danny the Dog." Have you seen it? It is definitely as good as it sounds and is not about a dog but switches between crazy excessive violence and piano playing. Unfortunately we got off the bus before it ended so I have no idea if Danny had to go back to being a "dog." When we got off the bus no one else did because we were in fact not at a bus stop but on the expressway. We then started walking towards an exit and then got picked up by another bus heading towards our destination of Santa Maria Del Oro, Nayarit.
Luz has a friend in the States whose in-laws live in this town and I guess she visited them ten years ago and has been meaning to go back, so we went. They live a much humbler life-style than I am accustomed to but were very hospitable. We slept in their room that is dedicated for guests. This may seem normal except for the fact that their 50-year-old daughter and 15-year-old grand-daughter sleep on a mattress in the very open living room, even when there aren't visitors. The house main house doesn't have running water so I got a pan in case I needed to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, I didn't.
I got a lot of strange looks from the family matriarch in my 18-hour visit. Here I will summarize our most frequent conversation:
Her:do you want beans?
Me: No, thank you.
Her: What you don't like beans?
Me: No, I like them but am not hungry.
Her: huph(dirty look).
That was repeated a lot and not during meal times but just when we were sitting in the backyard and no one was eating, it soon became the family joke.
This is second favorite:
Her: Do you eat cactus in el otro lado?
Me: No.
Her: What your mom doesn't know how to cook cactus? hump (dirty look)
Anyways, eventually I'll attach two pictures from there. One of her feeding the chickens (did you know that chickens sleep in trees?) and another of us sitting in front of the house (luz, my empty chair, rosario (the great-grand-daughter), an aunt that lives there, and the patriarch). The patriarch's name is Marco and when his wife would be calling for him, "Marco! Marco! Marco!" I kept wanting to yell, "Polo," I restrained myself.
We only stayed there Monday night and left early Tuesday morning to get back in time for art class. We took all buses back, no movies but yes we did walk some more on the express way.
Ok there are more things that happened this week but this is probably already more than you need to know.
love, joy
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Vida in Mexico
I came down to Mascota last Wednesday and it may have caught some of you off guard (I know it did me) so I figured I'd let you know what is going on. Some of this may be repetitive so you can read at your own discretion.
There is this lady Luz, she lives in this town, Mascota but she used to live in San Diego, that is why I know her. She is originally from here, and three years ago moved back to share the gospel. Some of the churches that support her try to send down people to help her out with whatever and to encourage her. I first came down with a group in '06 and then in '08 and earlier this year. Since my visit in February she has been encouraging me to come stay here for longer than just a week. I love it here but I also am quite fond of my life in the US so I wasn't sure what I should do. So I prayed and sought council and looked at my calendar and I'm here.
Now onto what I've been doing. My sister, Julie and her husband, Dylan flew down with me on the 10th and were here until Monday. It was great traveling with them, they flew down in first class and sneaked food to me to go with the salt and pretzels the coach passengers get. Mostly what Luz does is lead Bible studies and visit people, so that is what we did (and what I'll continue doing). You can probably check mi hermana's blog to read about Mascota from my her perspective some time soon.
That is the overview, now I'll go onto some specifics.
There is this lady Luz, she lives in this town, Mascota but she used to live in San Diego, that is why I know her. She is originally from here, and three years ago moved back to share the gospel. Some of the churches that support her try to send down people to help her out with whatever and to encourage her. I first came down with a group in '06 and then in '08 and earlier this year. Since my visit in February she has been encouraging me to come stay here for longer than just a week. I love it here but I also am quite fond of my life in the US so I wasn't sure what I should do. So I prayed and sought council and looked at my calendar and I'm here.
Now onto what I've been doing. My sister, Julie and her husband, Dylan flew down with me on the 10th and were here until Monday. It was great traveling with them, they flew down in first class and sneaked food to me to go with the salt and pretzels the coach passengers get. Mostly what Luz does is lead Bible studies and visit people, so that is what we did (and what I'll continue doing). You can probably check mi hermana's blog to read about Mascota from my her perspective some time soon.
That is the overview, now I'll go onto some specifics.
- Every night around 10 Luz goes to a house for a prayer meeting. This guy, Ramon...I think, had a blood vessel pop in his brain and temporarily lost his vision. Now I guess he sees but with double vision. The family invited Luz and another lady to come and pray for them. So every night she goes and reads the Bible a little and prays. She is the only one that participates so you'd think they were bored but they keep inviting her back and usually about ten family members are there.
- The food here is great, and I think I'm getting used to two meals a day thing. Today it was a little rough because we had toast and a smoothie at 10 and then at 4 we still hadn't eaten again. Then we stopped by someone's house to visit and got this huge lunch of super spicy soup and gorditos.
- When Julie and Dylan were here it was really hot but now the rain is here and it is a lot cooler. Probably not cool enough to justify the wool socks that I am wearing but I am too lazy to take them off.
- Last night I started an art class. I am not an artist but supposedly that isn't important. We'll see.
Public Service Announcement
You can still buy my book by clicking on the link on my last post.If I sell 1,000 copies I can go to Ireland in the fall.
Friday, June 5, 2009
my year; half-full or half-empty
Introduction
For the past 3 months I have been planning on sending out an update on June 19th because that is 6 months from when I moved back from Nicaragua. I’m going to be busy on June 19th so instead you’re getting this on June 5th, two weeks early. So much for planning. And now I am not in a writing mood, I have too many thoughts in my head and it is hard to get them on to paper.
Travels
The last three months have been pretty busy considering my lack of schedule or responsibilities. In March I worked then in April I travelled and I guess in May I travelled some more. It has been really nice visiting people; it’s much better than sporadic e-mails and phone calls. When in Concord, it’s been good participating in family life: dinners and coffee shops and toddlers.
Mexico
On Wednesday I’m leaving for Mascota, Jalisco, Mexico for a month. It has been in the back of my mind for a while but recently I’ve been receiving lots of confirmation so Monday I bought my tickets. This will be my fourth trip there to visit Luz, a national missionary there. I’ll be there from June 10th to July 7th; much longer than I’ve stayed in the past but still quite a bit shorter than the year that she thought I should come for. I don’t really know what I am thinking/feeling about going so I think I’ll break some things down for you
• I love Mascota and am extra excited because my sister and brother-in-law are coming for the first five days I’ll be there. You should come down too, swine flu and drug wars make flights cheep.
• Yesterday I bought bug spray and was annoyed. I had plenty of bug spray that I left in Nicaragua because I wasn’t planning on needing it anymore. Yet here I am going back to hot humid bug ridden Latin America. Same goes with shorts.
• Once I am in a place I easily adapt but that makes leaving places harder, I’m accustomed to my life here now and a month is kind of a long time. Even typing that is a reminder how susceptible I am to getting attached to this world when I am made for another.
• As I said earlier there has been lots of confirmation that I should go. That makes things easier but there are still practical things that I start worrying about. Fortunately God has a plan that doesn’t rely on my plans.
Book
I wrote a book. Nicaragua, Nicaraguita: 91 letters from the land of lakes and volcanoes. If you have read my e-mail updates than essentially you have read the book. Now, you may be thinking, “Joy, if I’ve already read it for free why would I now buy it for $12 + S/H?” My response, “Just think of all those great books that came out first in magazine or newspaper installments in and then were later published in their entirety, (ex. The Bible) plus it has a pretty cover.” Other than that, you are right, there is no reason but it was very cathartic (and a little embarrassing) for me to read through 2.25 years of my life. If you are thinking that this is the perfect gift for every occasion you can buy as many copies as you wish here
Love, joy
For the past 3 months I have been planning on sending out an update on June 19th because that is 6 months from when I moved back from Nicaragua. I’m going to be busy on June 19th so instead you’re getting this on June 5th, two weeks early. So much for planning. And now I am not in a writing mood, I have too many thoughts in my head and it is hard to get them on to paper.
Travels
The last three months have been pretty busy considering my lack of schedule or responsibilities. In March I worked then in April I travelled and I guess in May I travelled some more. It has been really nice visiting people; it’s much better than sporadic e-mails and phone calls. When in Concord, it’s been good participating in family life: dinners and coffee shops and toddlers.
Mexico
On Wednesday I’m leaving for Mascota, Jalisco, Mexico for a month. It has been in the back of my mind for a while but recently I’ve been receiving lots of confirmation so Monday I bought my tickets. This will be my fourth trip there to visit Luz, a national missionary there. I’ll be there from June 10th to July 7th; much longer than I’ve stayed in the past but still quite a bit shorter than the year that she thought I should come for. I don’t really know what I am thinking/feeling about going so I think I’ll break some things down for you
• I love Mascota and am extra excited because my sister and brother-in-law are coming for the first five days I’ll be there. You should come down too, swine flu and drug wars make flights cheep.
• Yesterday I bought bug spray and was annoyed. I had plenty of bug spray that I left in Nicaragua because I wasn’t planning on needing it anymore. Yet here I am going back to hot humid bug ridden Latin America. Same goes with shorts.
• Once I am in a place I easily adapt but that makes leaving places harder, I’m accustomed to my life here now and a month is kind of a long time. Even typing that is a reminder how susceptible I am to getting attached to this world when I am made for another.
• As I said earlier there has been lots of confirmation that I should go. That makes things easier but there are still practical things that I start worrying about. Fortunately God has a plan that doesn’t rely on my plans.
Book
I wrote a book. Nicaragua, Nicaraguita: 91 letters from the land of lakes and volcanoes. If you have read my e-mail updates than essentially you have read the book. Now, you may be thinking, “Joy, if I’ve already read it for free why would I now buy it for $12 + S/H?” My response, “Just think of all those great books that came out first in magazine or newspaper installments in and then were later published in their entirety, (ex. The Bible) plus it has a pretty cover.” Other than that, you are right, there is no reason but it was very cathartic (and a little embarrassing) for me to read through 2.25 years of my life. If you are thinking that this is the perfect gift for every occasion you can buy as many copies as you wish here
Love, joy
Monday, May 18, 2009
permanent vacation
I haven't been working so I've had time to do other things instead. Every once in a while I wake up thinking that I should actively pursue getting a job but usually that thought dies fast. Instead of working mostly I've been going on trips (13 since December), somehow I've worked a system so that I can do this with minimal expense.
Here is a brief summary of my most recent
#1 Sequoia National Forest with Morgan.
You may be familiar with my dislike of camping, but did you know that it is possible to camp in a place with running water? It is.
We played a lot of speed scrabble, here you can see the word DIN is used.
If you filled General Serman with water, it would be enough water to take one bath a day for 27 years.
Here I am very awkwarly with a tree, it was March but there was a lot of snow.
Here is a brief summary of my most recent
#1 Sequoia National Forest with Morgan.
You may be familiar with my dislike of camping, but did you know that it is possible to camp in a place with running water? It is.
We played a lot of speed scrabble, here you can see the word DIN is used.
If you filled General Serman with water, it would be enough water to take one bath a day for 27 years.
Here I am very awkwarly with a tree, it was March but there was a lot of snow.#2 Southern California with all sorts of people
My college roommate, Katharine, is getting married in August and had a bridal shower in March. 5 out of the 6 of us that lived together got to go celebrate with her and sample wedding cakes.
Katharine is the one with all the flowers in her hair.
My college roommate, Katharine, is getting married in August and had a bridal shower in March. 5 out of the 6 of us that lived together got to go celebrate with her and sample wedding cakes.
Katharine is the one with all the flowers in her hair.After her shower in San Diego I stayed in Huntington Beach with my aunt and cousin for a few days and hung out some more with Katie H and Keiz in LA. It was great.
#3 Chippawa Township, Pennsylvania with the Griecos
I guess that Pennsylvania is a commonwealth and that means it has townships. The Chippawa Township butts up to Ohio and Pittsburgh. People there kept asking me if I was suffering from culture shock. I didn't really know how to respond to that. It was a mostly rainy while i was there but I got to see cool things like two Frank Lloyd houses and a state park and the Giant Eagle grocery store.
Here I am with Nancy looking at Pittsburgh on the one sunny day we had during my week.
Here we are at some very cool (little creepy) mosaic house.
And again with the beautiful cherry blossoms.
#3 Chippawa Township, Pennsylvania with the Griecos
I guess that Pennsylvania is a commonwealth and that means it has townships. The Chippawa Township butts up to Ohio and Pittsburgh. People there kept asking me if I was suffering from culture shock. I didn't really know how to respond to that. It was a mostly rainy while i was there but I got to see cool things like two Frank Lloyd houses and a state park and the Giant Eagle grocery store.
Here I am with Nancy looking at Pittsburgh on the one sunny day we had during my week.#4 Phila, PA with Katharine
I went to go visit Katharine (and Ted) in Philadelphia for a long weekend. It wasn't rainy. We got to walk around a lot and it was great to see her life and Ben Franklyn (he was everywhere!). One day there I did my laundry and the dryer didn't dry my clothes all the way so I had to hang them around the house, then the power went out, it was a very Nica experience. Another Nica thing there was that one day when we were waiting for the bus a girl I know from Nicaragua walked by, very strange.
I went to go visit Katharine (and Ted) in Philadelphia for a long weekend. It wasn't rainy. We got to walk around a lot and it was great to see her life and Ben Franklyn (he was everywhere!). One day there I did my laundry and the dryer didn't dry my clothes all the way so I had to hang them around the house, then the power went out, it was a very Nica experience. Another Nica thing there was that one day when we were waiting for the bus a girl I know from Nicaragua walked by, very strange.
Here we are at some very cool (little creepy) mosaic house.
And again with the beautiful cherry blossoms.#5 New York City, NY with some people
I went from Philly to NY on the China Bus Express for $12. I stayed with Dana and Julia but mostly hung out with Eunice. We walked a lot and ate a lot and sweated a lot. We hadn't talked for about five years so it was really good to catch up. One day we went to see her husband give his closing arguments in this case is was prosecuting in the Bronx. I don't think I'll ever be able to watch Law and Order again.
Here we are in front of Alice in Central Park
#6 Richmond, Virgina
In Richmond I again I got to spend time with some people that I hadn't seen in over 5 years. I'm all into keeping up with people by e-mail but it is still way better to actually talk in person. I stayed with my East Coast parents took a lot of naps on their couch. I also slept a lot in my room there because the bed was amazingly comfortable and there were blackout curtians. I don't know how people ever wake-up when it is constantly dark.
I love the South because you can buy things like tobacco plants
Here I am with Mama Stella on some bridge over to some prison island conservatory
Here we are all rested before our drive home, good looking out grandpa vern
I went from Philly to NY on the China Bus Express for $12. I stayed with Dana and Julia but mostly hung out with Eunice. We walked a lot and ate a lot and sweated a lot. We hadn't talked for about five years so it was really good to catch up. One day we went to see her husband give his closing arguments in this case is was prosecuting in the Bronx. I don't think I'll ever be able to watch Law and Order again.
Here we are in front of Alice in Central ParkIn Richmond I again I got to spend time with some people that I hadn't seen in over 5 years. I'm all into keeping up with people by e-mail but it is still way better to actually talk in person. I stayed with my East Coast parents took a lot of naps on their couch. I also slept a lot in my room there because the bed was amazingly comfortable and there were blackout curtians. I don't know how people ever wake-up when it is constantly dark.
I love the South because you can buy things like tobacco plants
Here I am with Mama Stella on some bridge over to some prison island conservatory#7 Lake Tahoe, Nevada with the girls.
Grandpa Vern won two nights in a two room suite at the Ridge resort in Tahoe we decided to use it. For two nights my sister, Julie, cousin, Bryana and sister-in-law, Cristina had a girls weekend. We got to watch movies, gamble our life savings away, play speed scrabble and ticket-to-ride, sleep (another place with blackout curtians), window shop, get pedicures and eat. It was great fun.
Grandpa Vern won two nights in a two room suite at the Ridge resort in Tahoe we decided to use it. For two nights my sister, Julie, cousin, Bryana and sister-in-law, Cristina had a girls weekend. We got to watch movies, gamble our life savings away, play speed scrabble and ticket-to-ride, sleep (another place with blackout curtians), window shop, get pedicures and eat. It was great fun.
Here we are all rested before our drive home, good looking out grandpa vernNow I'm home until Thursday when I'm going on another little trip, but then really I might get a job.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Quarterly Report
Today marks the end of my third month back in California and in honor of that anniversary I thought I would come out of e-mail silence and tell you what I’ve been doing and thinking.
DECEMBER:
Now if someone asked my on March 1st if I had found a job yet I would shyly say, “No,” and say my goal was really for some time in the month, not necessarily the beginning (there are some things I mentally block out). Last night when I was contemplating my month so far, I realize that I do have a job and God completed this goal for me in His timing and in the way He wanted. And as added assurance I did have it by March 1st, it was just disguised.
The last few days in February, ending March 1st I dog sat for some new friends in San Francisco, not only did they pay me for living in a gorgeous neighborhood and walking their dog but I was able to make more money doing some extra data entry work for them. This money came just in time to pay health insurance.
The morning after I returned from their house I left for Lake Tahoe with my mom where I got paid to help clean my grandpa’s house, and shovel his snow. Although that was not the most ideal job and the furnace in my room was broken it was still God’s provision for me, and who am I to discredit that. The week I got back from Tahoe I baby-sat twice and got my tax return.
On Monday night my sister sent me a listing for a 20-60 hour, total, market research job. I applied Monday, interviewed Wednesday, and start today. I’ll be asking people as they leave Little Caesar's Pizza what their nearest cross street is and putting the data in an Excel spreadsheet so they can determine where to open a new franchise. I’m not sure who my actual employer is but the pay isn’t bad and he thinks they’ll have other work for me too, if I’m interested.
Not only have these jobs been a blessing financially but they have amazingly coincided with what God has been showing me about who He is as my Guide just as He guided the Israelites.
MORE ON MARCH
DECEMBER:
- Christmas time! I’m a big fan of Christmas, even if it marked another year losing the poetry contest.
- I sat goals to get a job by March 1st, clean my room, and buy a pair of boots.
- New Years! I went to Tennessee for almost a week. It was great seeing friends that I hadn’t seen in a few years but a challenge explaining my lack of future plans (this seems to be a reoccurring theme).
- Cleaned my room
- Took first big step into permanency of life in the USA by getting my car insured. To save $7 a month a paid all at once and said good-bye to some more of my savings account.
- Had a fabulous reunion in Davis with my five college roommates.
- Started working on writing a resume.
- Got a flu shot.
- Cleaned my room.
- Went to Mexico with my mom for ten days to visit a friend, Luz. I thought my time in Davis was introspective but take away English, internet, clocks, TV, radio, newspaper, and phone and a whole new level is reached.
- Went to Santa Cruz with my church.
- Read lots of Craig’s list job postings found by my sister.
- Started compiling memories from Nicaragua, both pictorial and written. Hopefully these will be available for the smaller public soon.
- Continued reconnecting with various US citizens.
- Cleaned my room (I guess that goal was too vague).
Now if someone asked my on March 1st if I had found a job yet I would shyly say, “No,” and say my goal was really for some time in the month, not necessarily the beginning (there are some things I mentally block out). Last night when I was contemplating my month so far, I realize that I do have a job and God completed this goal for me in His timing and in the way He wanted. And as added assurance I did have it by March 1st, it was just disguised.
The last few days in February, ending March 1st I dog sat for some new friends in San Francisco, not only did they pay me for living in a gorgeous neighborhood and walking their dog but I was able to make more money doing some extra data entry work for them. This money came just in time to pay health insurance.
The morning after I returned from their house I left for Lake Tahoe with my mom where I got paid to help clean my grandpa’s house, and shovel his snow. Although that was not the most ideal job and the furnace in my room was broken it was still God’s provision for me, and who am I to discredit that. The week I got back from Tahoe I baby-sat twice and got my tax return.
On Monday night my sister sent me a listing for a 20-60 hour, total, market research job. I applied Monday, interviewed Wednesday, and start today. I’ll be asking people as they leave Little Caesar's Pizza what their nearest cross street is and putting the data in an Excel spreadsheet so they can determine where to open a new franchise. I’m not sure who my actual employer is but the pay isn’t bad and he thinks they’ll have other work for me too, if I’m interested.
Not only have these jobs been a blessing financially but they have amazingly coincided with what God has been showing me about who He is as my Guide just as He guided the Israelites.
MORE ON MARCH
- I turned 25 this week.
- I got a new stereo for my car.
- I am very concerned about the state of crepe restaurants in Walnut Creek.
- I’m planning some trips for next month (now that I have money).
- It is almost the beginning of Spring and I’m getting a farmer’s tan right now to prove it.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Walking
A few months ago I read that the average American walks 1.4 miles a week. Although I was appalled by this statistic I didn't do much to counter it, especially in the frigged rain. Now however, the days are sunny so I need to get over my laziness. I enjoy walking and have been trying to incorporate it more into my schedule (that I don't have).
On Saturday I was talking to my neighbor and she invited me to go walking with her and a friend at 5am for an hour and a half 3 times a week. For some reason while she was talking this sounded like a good idea, walking partners are a good motivation and walking in the mornings gets you energized for the day. I told her to let me know when their next day was and that I'd come. She texted me on Sunday night and I was still all in and excited. As soon as I set my alarm for 4:45 I started feeling a little sick. I knew I would be a little out of it in the morning so I picked out my multiple layers that I could quickly throw on in the morning (it is about 40 deg in the morning). I tried to fall asleep at a normal time but I kept staring at the clock and counting down the lack of hours I had left in the night, and then subtracting one because of the time change. Finally at 2am (t-2hours 45minutes) I came to my senses and saved a bail out text message in my phone to send to her at 4:30. I was then, able to fall asleep but was exhausted all of Monday, just the thought of waking up that early robbed me from sleep. This morning when I couldn't drag myself out of bed at 7:30 and could still see my breath outside at 8:30 I finally conceeded that that kind of walking plan wasn't suited for me and tonight I let her know that 5am walking wasn't going to be a reality in my life any time soon. She was very understanding and I did make plans with my sister-in-law to walk at 9. Baby steps.
On Saturday I was talking to my neighbor and she invited me to go walking with her and a friend at 5am for an hour and a half 3 times a week. For some reason while she was talking this sounded like a good idea, walking partners are a good motivation and walking in the mornings gets you energized for the day. I told her to let me know when their next day was and that I'd come. She texted me on Sunday night and I was still all in and excited. As soon as I set my alarm for 4:45 I started feeling a little sick. I knew I would be a little out of it in the morning so I picked out my multiple layers that I could quickly throw on in the morning (it is about 40 deg in the morning). I tried to fall asleep at a normal time but I kept staring at the clock and counting down the lack of hours I had left in the night, and then subtracting one because of the time change. Finally at 2am (t-2hours 45minutes) I came to my senses and saved a bail out text message in my phone to send to her at 4:30. I was then, able to fall asleep but was exhausted all of Monday, just the thought of waking up that early robbed me from sleep. This morning when I couldn't drag myself out of bed at 7:30 and could still see my breath outside at 8:30 I finally conceeded that that kind of walking plan wasn't suited for me and tonight I let her know that 5am walking wasn't going to be a reality in my life any time soon. She was very understanding and I did make plans with my sister-in-law to walk at 9. Baby steps.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Day four in Tahoe
Today we drove home and I think the cleaning trip was a success although we didn't get to the garage...
Here is grandpa freeing the windshield wipers from excess ice...
The drive home was beautiful...
Here is grandpa freeing the windshield wipers from excess ice...
The drive home was beautiful...
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Day three in Tahoe
Guess what, more snow. Not much during the day but I overnight there was over a foot. You know how I know this? My mom and I got to shovel it in order to get out to the early bird special at the gross Lakeside Inn and Casino. To rebel against back-breaking labor I didn’t order off of the early bird special menu but got a dry turkey sandwich instead. Don't worry we still got our money's worth, my mom ordered a tea and they brought her a basket of tea bags to choose from, she took one and then grandpa stuffed eight more in his pocket.
Here are some pictures of me and mom shoveling (grandpa started and then decided he would help by warming up the car). Normally grandpa hires someone to do it but when the guy came by to offer to grandpa declined because “his girls were here to do it.”
Before the whole snow shoveling adventure we cleaned his “studio”. Which meant putting the 600 bottles of acrylics together.
I threw away a lot of his stuff while he was taking a nap. So far I’ve only been caught once when he pulled this
out of the garbage yesterday (I guess I didn’t hide it good enough). I did find a real treasure of a glasses case in a bag of eye-glasses and accessories so the trip isn't a complete waste.
Here are some pictures of me and mom shoveling (grandpa started and then decided he would help by warming up the car). Normally grandpa hires someone to do it but when the guy came by to offer to grandpa declined because “his girls were here to do it.”
Before the whole snow shoveling adventure we cleaned his “studio”. Which meant putting the 600 bottles of acrylics together.
I threw away a lot of his stuff while he was taking a nap. So far I’ve only been caught once when he pulled this
out of the garbage yesterday (I guess I didn’t hide it good enough). I did find a real treasure of a glasses case in a bag of eye-glasses and accessories so the trip isn't a complete waste.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Day two in Tahoe
It snowed a lot but we were able to get out to stock up on some necessities (garbage bags) and hit Taco Bell for lunch (it was that or the Senior Center). Good thing I am strong willed because my mother was completely content never leaving that house, just working all day.
Besides that exciting outing there was lots of shifting junk from one place to another, one of my tasks was putting all of his picture mats together. Hopefully that will make it easier for him when he sells them at his art classes.
We were supposed to go out to dinner with ex-almost-grandma Ethal but she canceled because it was snowing to much. No prime rib special for us.
Besides that exciting outing there was lots of shifting junk from one place to another, one of my tasks was putting all of his picture mats together. Hopefully that will make it easier for him when he sells them at his art classes.
We were supposed to go out to dinner with ex-almost-grandma Ethal but she canceled because it was snowing to much. No prime rib special for us.
Monday, March 2, 2009
Lake Tahoe Day One
It is snowing outside and I would like to say that I am nice and cozy inside but the thermostat in my room is broken so I am freezing. This afternoon I took a nap with my down vest and scarf on. Fortunately I’ve taken to stealing my dad’s wool socks so at least my toes are ok.
Besides the cold here are some points for the day:
1. I like the snow, it makes me happy.
2. I hope the snow doesn’t turn into a blizzard because I had the task of cleaning out grandpa’s fridge of expired food – now we have no food. There was one thing I found that I honestly had no idea how to classify – animal? Vegetable? Mineral? It is in the trash now along with lots of pickles that expired in 06.
4. After chores I sat down to watch TV with him. We watched Kull the Conquer with Spanish sub-tittles and no sound. Surprsingly little language is needed to really understand the movie.
5. During a Penny’s commercial he pointed out that Mexican girls always dress up nice, not like the trashy American girls always wearing levi’s and t-shirts. Yes, I was wearing jeans and a t-shirt when he said that.
6. From Thursday to Sunday of last week I dog and fish sat at a really cool place in SF.
Besides the cold here are some points for the day:
1. I like the snow, it makes me happy.
2. I hope the snow doesn’t turn into a blizzard because I had the task of cleaning out grandpa’s fridge of expired food – now we have no food. There was one thing I found that I honestly had no idea how to classify – animal? Vegetable? Mineral? It is in the trash now along with lots of pickles that expired in 06.
3. I also got to clean out some of vernon’s closets. He stood there and decided which of his 200 shirts were keepers as I pulled them out. Pretty much all that were “really something” or “stellar” that he could wear to the art league he kept and all the normal ones he got rid of. I found an old bowling shirt of his with these 250 pins. I told him that I went bowling last week and told him my scores, he quickly changed the subject (I think out of embarrassment).
4. After chores I sat down to watch TV with him. We watched Kull the Conquer with Spanish sub-tittles and no sound. Surprsingly little language is needed to really understand the movie.
5. During a Penny’s commercial he pointed out that Mexican girls always dress up nice, not like the trashy American girls always wearing levi’s and t-shirts. Yes, I was wearing jeans and a t-shirt when he said that.
6. From Thursday to Sunday of last week I dog and fish sat at a really cool place in SF.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Mascota, and surrounding territories
I'm writing this while sitting in my car in my parent's driveway listening to Christmas carols because my niece, Callie, fell asleep and now I don't want to wake her up. This wouldn't have been a problem but I left my sister's house later than intended because Grady stole and hid my keys (we found them in the bathroom trash). So yes, yesterday and today I've been baby-sitting but before that I went to Mexico and that is the purpose of this post.
From January 30th to February 9th I was in Mexico with my mom and family friend, Luz. This was my third trip to visit Luz in Mascota, Jalisco. It was my mom's first time. I love Mascota and when I am there I always think it would be a great place to live, or at least question why I didn't live there instead of Nicaragua for the past two years.
I think I would be a much better person if I always lived that simple of a life. But that is not the life that God has given me, so I need to learn to apply the same disciplines in my life here. That is not easy for me to do, maybe I should take Luz up on her offer to move there permanently I'm sure that running away is the best way to solve problems. Or maybe not.
One funny story. On Sunday nights the whole town goes to the town square to hang out. Luz asked this girl Deisi to take me so that I could experience it (I had gone once but on my first trip). It is a pretty important event and I had to borrow a sweater since my grubby clothes weren't appropriate. So Deisi and I walked to the square and then for and hour and a half walked around it smiling and nodding at the boys walking around in the opposite direction. Quite the cultural experience and it was great getting to know Deisi better even though I didn't get a husband or anything. Luz thinks I would have had better luck if I went both Sundays not just the second one. Or maybe I would have had better luck if I wore heals instead of flip-flops (heals and cobblestone don't really mix in my mind)
That sums up about none of my trip but oh well. Tomorrow marks me living here for 2 months, I'm still scared of getting a job but it isn't quite March yet.
love, joy
From January 30th to February 9th I was in Mexico with my mom and family friend, Luz. This was my third trip to visit Luz in Mascota, Jalisco. It was my mom's first time. I love Mascota and when I am there I always think it would be a great place to live, or at least question why I didn't live there instead of Nicaragua for the past two years.
This trip was very different than the last two, partly because I was with my mom and partly because I'm personally in a different place in my life than I was the past two visits. Overall it was extremely relaxing and clarifying. For 11 days I had no internet, phone, watch, TV, newspaper, or radio. So basically I just read and talked to my mom and Luz and went to Bible studies and slept. I also decoupaged a chair and baked bread and made chili relleno. 
One funny story. On Sunday nights the whole town goes to the town square to hang out. Luz asked this girl Deisi to take me so that I could experience it (I had gone once but on my first trip). It is a pretty important event and I had to borrow a sweater since my grubby clothes weren't appropriate. So Deisi and I walked to the square and then for and hour and a half walked around it smiling and nodding at the boys walking around in the opposite direction. Quite the cultural experience and it was great getting to know Deisi better even though I didn't get a husband or anything. Luz thinks I would have had better luck if I went both Sundays not just the second one. Or maybe I would have had better luck if I wore heals instead of flip-flops (heals and cobblestone don't really mix in my mind)
That sums up about none of my trip but oh well. Tomorrow marks me living here for 2 months, I'm still scared of getting a job but it isn't quite March yet.
love, joy
Thursday, January 22, 2009
reunions and taxes and more
Reunited
Just about 7 years ago, like many highschool Seniors, I was deciding where to go to college. I very adamantly didn't want to go to UC Davis, however my desire to be a weather girl out-weighed my dislike for Davis so that is where I went (to later graduate as an organizational studies major). Not long into my stint there I fell in love with the town, its people and its sandwiches. A few weekends ago I went back to meet up with some of my favorite people and eat some of my favorite sandwiches. It was fabulous bonding with my college roommates, those are 5 of the people that know me best in the world and I had forgotten how refreshing it is to spend time with them. The weather that weekend was perfect and we got to spend a lot of time outside walking around the town and campus. I was excited to see some changes to the town like 3 frozen yogurt shops and a new Peet's, there were changes to the campus too but who really cares about those. I started writing this a while ago and I think it used to have more of a point, but I've since forgotten what that was. I guess you should just know that I had a great time.
Then (+1)
Now (I think we are more happy)
Just about 7 years ago, like many highschool Seniors, I was deciding where to go to college. I very adamantly didn't want to go to UC Davis, however my desire to be a weather girl out-weighed my dislike for Davis so that is where I went (to later graduate as an organizational studies major). Not long into my stint there I fell in love with the town, its people and its sandwiches. A few weekends ago I went back to meet up with some of my favorite people and eat some of my favorite sandwiches. It was fabulous bonding with my college roommates, those are 5 of the people that know me best in the world and I had forgotten how refreshing it is to spend time with them. The weather that weekend was perfect and we got to spend a lot of time outside walking around the town and campus. I was excited to see some changes to the town like 3 frozen yogurt shops and a new Peet's, there were changes to the campus too but who really cares about those. I started writing this a while ago and I think it used to have more of a point, but I've since forgotten what that was. I guess you should just know that I had a great time.
Then (+1)
Now (I think we are more happy)Etcetera
- I am going to Mexico with my mom on Friday for 10 days.
- I filled out my tax returns the other day, hopefully I get my returns before the federal economy crashes more. I'm letting California keep the $4 they took from me this year, it was that or an IOU.
- I put away laundry today and filled papers so there are only 4 boxes I still need to unpack before my bedroom will be settled.
- I finished writing my resume. It is good, full of euphemisms. Now I have to decide where to apply, boo.
- I am not ready to be a parent, fortunately I'm not in the position to become one any time soon.
Monday, January 12, 2009
in the land of the living
In my mind I am constantly writing but sometimes the sitting down and making my fingers move takes a little too much effort.
I now have been back for almost one month and people keep asking me if I’ve found a job yet, no I haven’t and I’m not looking, remember I have until March. I am taking steps towards the whole job thing, I am about 1/3 of the way through writing a resume and my sister e-mails me about ten job postings a day.
I finally realized this weekend that one of the reasons that I have been so unmotivated to do anything is that it is cold and dark. Every time I walk in my bedroom I get depressed and have to return to the living room where there is light and a fire. Now that I have come to this realization I can modify my behavior some, by taking steps to turn on the heater and open my blinds. The transformation is incredible.
Even though I’m not working I’m still coming up with things to do. I went to Memphis over New Year’s, that was nice. I don’t really have any friends so they don’t take up much of my time. I’ve mostly just been baby-sitting, or hanging out with people that share my last name.
My car is insured now so potentially I can leave the house. Unfortunately the mostly likely thing to do is go shopping and that is highly overwhelming, first of all there are too many options and desirable things, second of all, contrary to popular belief, I don’t actually have money to spend. Even when I attempt to simplify my life people like Danny and the Verizon store are so pushy that I crack under pressure and end up buying things much more deluxe than necessary.
Last week I went to the optometrist to get my eyes checked and get new reading glasses because I lost mine. I don’t like it when people put their perceptions of my generation onto me. After he told me that I’d better not answer my phone and try to set up any hot lunch dates during my appointment he told me that I must have lost my glasses at a drunken party. Really, who loses their reading glasses at a drunken party.
Well, this might sound more depressing than I intended, sorry about that I really do like being back and Trader Joe’s Greek Style Yogurt.
I now have been back for almost one month and people keep asking me if I’ve found a job yet, no I haven’t and I’m not looking, remember I have until March. I am taking steps towards the whole job thing, I am about 1/3 of the way through writing a resume and my sister e-mails me about ten job postings a day.
I finally realized this weekend that one of the reasons that I have been so unmotivated to do anything is that it is cold and dark. Every time I walk in my bedroom I get depressed and have to return to the living room where there is light and a fire. Now that I have come to this realization I can modify my behavior some, by taking steps to turn on the heater and open my blinds. The transformation is incredible.
Even though I’m not working I’m still coming up with things to do. I went to Memphis over New Year’s, that was nice. I don’t really have any friends so they don’t take up much of my time. I’ve mostly just been baby-sitting, or hanging out with people that share my last name.
My car is insured now so potentially I can leave the house. Unfortunately the mostly likely thing to do is go shopping and that is highly overwhelming, first of all there are too many options and desirable things, second of all, contrary to popular belief, I don’t actually have money to spend. Even when I attempt to simplify my life people like Danny and the Verizon store are so pushy that I crack under pressure and end up buying things much more deluxe than necessary.
Last week I went to the optometrist to get my eyes checked and get new reading glasses because I lost mine. I don’t like it when people put their perceptions of my generation onto me. After he told me that I’d better not answer my phone and try to set up any hot lunch dates during my appointment he told me that I must have lost my glasses at a drunken party. Really, who loses their reading glasses at a drunken party.
Well, this might sound more depressing than I intended, sorry about that I really do like being back and Trader Joe’s Greek Style Yogurt.
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