say what you mean...and say it in love

I think one of the best pieces of wisdom I've received and worked to apply to my life has been this:

Life is too short and precious to withhold complements when you have them to give....or to cling to your possessions too tightly.

I learned this from a woman named Lynda Schevitz, whom i met while singing in the alto section of the choral society. I learned from the few years of sitting near Lynda, that she often takes hold of opportunities to say what she thinks about people..for the good..for their encouragement!
I noticed that Lynda seems to always makes sure to do so in a fairly discrete manner, not drawing attention to herself. If she likes someone's scarf...she says so. If she notices a certain quality of someone's personality...she lets them know she appreciates it.

She also takes any compliments to her personality or appearance with such grace....that if someone were to say they like her coat..she'd offer to let them use it anytime they want...and she MEANS it! (I say this as fact..because she actually let one of the altos borrow her mink coat for a Chicago vacation a couple of winters ago)

Lynda stands by a standard encouragement and of sharing the gifts with which she's been blessed with others.

I hope to be able to teach this sort of living and loving to those I encounter each day...just like Lynda does.

Can you picture a world in which even just a small percentage of the population began living this way? Lets do it.

shopping spree!

Friday and Saturday Michael and I spent the remainder of our target and walmart gift cards!
(except that we still have to return one item [paper shredder] to target because when we brought it home Saturday....it was broken)

we now are the proud owners of....
a stanley 1 liter thermos (green!)
a 40 gallon 5-day cooler with wheels
a double-high queen sized air mattress with pump
a water and fireproof file safe
a rake
an electric drill/screwdriver
a big maglite flashlight (not as big as the one michael wANTED to buy)
D batteries for flashlight
a diamond knife sharpener
a set of interchangeable dumb bells
a lint roller
2 christmas plush toys (a reindeer and a teddy bear) for Eisley (michael noticed her puppy was beyond hope..and threw it away before we ended up with stuffing everywhere...and we knew it would take 2 stuffed animals to replace him)

and hopefully soon, a paper shredder

ANd i just made and drank my first peppermint mocha of the year!

a running partner found me

As I was taking in my Saturday morning run...a neighborhood dog decided he liked running with me...so he joined up for about a block and a half. When I took a walk break..he even nudged my rear with his nose to make me run again!

As amusing and encouraging as it was to have this large black and tan dog running my route with me, I thought it best to stop at the end of his street and command him to stay...I could probably get in some trouble for dog theft if I let him follow me home.

On the way home, I made sure to check a couple of times over my shoulder to be sure he hadn't decided to follow. I'm a little disappointed that he never showed up again to nudge me back into running. Maybe we'll meet up again, next time I run his street.

ramblings and goals

i realize that with all of the networking and friend-connecting sites we're involved in...few really read plain old blogs anymore....especially when we are told SO much on those other sites...without having to scan our eyes across an entire entry of thought-out text.

i realize this...

but i still love this blog. i refuse to leave it alone for too long..and always feel as though...even if no one reads it...even if its just me pouring out my thoughts in phrases and paragraphs...if that is all....that is enough. i NEED this from time to time. i need to be able to go back and read where my thoughts have been. i need to remind myself later of what i've accomplished. i need to remember the things i've enjoyed, and get excited about what used to make me excited.


now that i've got THAT out of my system....

i've recently begun calling myself a runner.
i think this began about a month ago.
i own running shorts and a wicking tshirt.
the other night when it suddenly turned cold..i went straight out and bought some running pants and an ear warmer headband so i wouldn't miss my scheduled run.
i know the mileage of our neighborhood.
3 times a week. 25-45 minutes....depending on how i'm feeling.
If i didn't know better, i'd call myself someone who walks a lot with spurts of running tossed in.
I haven't even run 1/4 mile straight....but i have run.
i'm certainly still "in training"
(though from what i understand, a runner always is.)
my current goal: run the cooper river bridge in Charleston come April. (10k!)

roses and kisses and love notes...

God loves me very much...and for some reason, has chosen to show it to me in lots of ways today!

* woke up feeling rested and very loved and in love
* all green traffic lights when i was running 5 minutes late...made me only 1 minute late!
* no spills or mistakes in a 40-customer, $75 hour
* the next hour was almost as busy! yay!
* marked the wrong card..told customer she had a free drink..when i looked at what was really her card...she did have one!
* tasty fair trade coffee
* discovered that the reason the sales report i printed off for last month was low was because i'd left out a week of sales...found that week and added it in to the total..yay more money for this little corner!

help us light the night

Michael and I have signed up to walk and raise money for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Light The Night Walk.
click the link to see our fund raising page:

http://www.active.com/donate/ltnAtlant/2085_becca11

thanks!

photos from the honeymoon

adventures in marriage I

adventures in marriage II

a few wedding pics

(Click)Haley belle gets credit for these

(our pro-photos will be out in a few more weeks..sarah took over 1,000 shots..so now she has to narrow them down to the best ones!)

the bride is

Googlism for: the bride

the bride is an overcomer
the bride is a lover
the bride is much too beautiful
the bride is
the bride is finally ready for the coming of her lover
the bride is ready
the bride is chosen
the bride is your daughter—well she's your daughter and if she's your daughter
the bride is both touching and funny
the bride is to see that the bride's wishes are carried out the bride's way
the bride is presented to the groom's ancestors in the presence of both parents during a wedding in ho chi minh city
the bride is extremely successful on both accounts
the bride is undoubtedly in the most enviable position
the bride is expected to combine warmth and wit into one short address
the bride is the daughter of mr
the bride is definitely not an exception of ms
the bride is part of a crowd
the bride is selecting gowns for her attendants
the bride is a young girl
the bride is chock full of comforting suggestions from women
the bride is blessed and given some silver coins
the bride is assisted by the driving rhythm of the music
the bride is white satin
the bride is the one wedding participant who is likely to feel the most left out during the organisation of the wedding
the bride is not without certain charms
the bride is traditionally the first person to greet the arriving guests in
the bride is proof
the bride is a harmless time killer
the bride is a breakthrough in the field of eschatology
the bride is often given to a son or daughter
the bride is a success
the bride is selected by the boy's family the couple exchange rings in a ceremony accompanied by serving of sweets
the bride is a loose remake of the 1935 horror classic the bride of frankenstein
the bride is brought to the mandap
the bride is an important release for a couple of reasons
the bride is your one
the bride is given a ritual bath
the bride is the most memorable vision of any wedding
the bride is rubbed with ointments and cosmetics daily
the bride is essentially an argentinian version of treacly middle
the bride is a heartwarming story about personal transformation that is consistently fresh and funny
the bride is just what it appears to be
the bride is free to decide what she wants to do at her wedding as long as she keeps it tasteful
the bride is getting more gifts
the bride is even now in the process of being perfected
the bride is given to the groom by her father
the bride is the holy city

next weekend!

in case you're wondering: still not nervous.

ive made so many lists and timelines, that the only way i could miss any details is if i just plain haven't thought of them yet....and if i haven't thought of them yet, they must not be very important ;)

creative urges

i love to to create...i think i live for it

i think creating this wedding is temporarily starving my other creative outlets.

i mean, i've had more than plenty of opportunities for creativity within the wedding planning: choosing the dress and everything to go with it, reception and rehearsal planning, reception setup, SO much flower arranging, wedding cake planning, how i'll do my hair, making the jewelry, addressing envelopes, writing thank you notes, arranging the invitation and program texts, drawing maps for the invitations, keeping in touch with everyone involved, rearranging the house so that both michael and i will be able to have our things in it comfortably, and figuring out the most cost-effective and enjoyable favors for our guests...it goes on and on...and thats a lot of creativity being pulled from me out of only 7 months!

honestly, until now, i had not realized what a creativity machine i've made myself into these past months. i suppose i was wrong about being starved of creativity. i think its closer described as having the creativity switched on to overdrive...where i must create even when the urges aren't there...and everything i've created in 2007 is centered on the same end focus....its all about our "big day".

i feel as though i want to take just a few hours away from this..and make something else...write something else...draw something else...glue and assemble something else...paint something else...

yet, every time i find myself with a pencil and moment...i end up sketching out a wedding dress

excited doesn't really describe it

its the kind of excitement that sends a rush of chills all over my body

in just four weeks, we'll be decorating the sanctuary..

in four weeks and one day, out of town friends and family will begin to arrive..

in only four weeks and two days, we'll be decorating the fellowship hall for the reception, and i'll probably be packing my bags and cleaning the house a bit...

in four weeks and three days, we'll be getting ready for the rehearsal and then relaxing a little..

and in four weeks and four days, dressed in the most beautiful dress i've ever worn, in the shoes i looked for longer than any shoes, with the veil i stayed up far too late decorating, carrying the flowers i saw in every magazine and then was able put together...i will walk (dance) down that aisle without a thought of any of the garments....focused on the man i've fallen crazy for, has taught me much about myself and about relating to others, has loved me tremendously already, who has honored me and upheld me through these few beginning years, has pushed me just enough to use my gifts...but not so much that i ever resented him for the pushes, has brought me over and over again to the truth and to remember the grace we've been given, has waited patiently (mostly) and encouraged me toward patience for the timing for this moment...

and we will be joined together...to one life.
a new ministry.
and then we will praise our Father...our Lord, who gave us the pure gift of Us.
and many will rejoice with us.

My Love, we're so near that day.

waves of change

*sigh*
i just finished sending a rather heart-wrenching and difficult note to friends and leaders in my church family...explaining how much they've meant to me but having to tell them why july 1st will be my last sunday in their membership.

nobody ever said that following the Lord's leading would be an easy thing
but rarely does anyone tell you that even when you're in a congregation of God-honoring fellowship and discipleship, that leaving that can also be the Lord's will.

the responses are trickling in with sweet encouragement...i just may break into tears in front of a customer today for this.

blogger is so fickle......it makes me like it less and less

one thousand five hundred seventeen hours and sixteen minutes

counting down

nine weeks
twenty-five hours
eighteen minutes

finally!

for the past MONTH i haven't been able to log in to my blogger account!

i've had lots to say and had to limit it ALL to facebook "notes" instead of including my bloggish friends in my rambles.

sad days

but maybe this will continue working for me...and maybe i'll have lots more nice thoughts to share soon.



ps...if you're not on facebook, i think you should be.

the unexpected

grace....receiving what you do not deserve...have not earned...did not ask for...did not expect

like picking up our wedding invitations from the print shop and being told there is no charge...but
have to be told again..because the fact is so surprising

lights

He uncovers the deeps out of darkness and brings deep darkness to light.
For these commands are a lamp, this teaching is a light, and the corrections of discipline are the way to life.
For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them.
For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

Send out your light and your truth; let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling!

job 12: 22, Proverbs 6:23, Romans 1:19, 2 Corinthians 4:6, Psalm 43:3, Matthew 5:14-16

making some adjustments

(this starts out a little tedious..but i promise i will make my point by the end of it!)

early this week i noticed that half of our track lighting was burned out...but, to my surprise, my boss actually got me replacement bulbs fairly quickly. light is shining.

today i came in and noticed that-yes, the lights were bright. but also, the lights were making the area a bit too warm. also, the direction of light wasn't doing anything for me or doing much to help people see the board much better than before the lights were replaced.

as i looked around the area...i decided to come out from behind the counter and do a little adjusting. aiming lights so that the nearest spot wasn't the one shedding light on the area..looking for glares on the menu from customer perspective...tedious..a little daunting at times when i just couldn't figure out where the light was going....but upon considering my work complete...i stood back and enjoyed the look of it.
a few hours later...i noticed, not only does the menu look nice...but it is feels cooler (less warm) than it was before and, as an added bonus, i seem to have achieved a bit of fung shui in this setting, too!

it wasn't simply a matter of replacing the bulbs that were burnt out..though...having full capacity of lighting is very helpful....what made the difference was how the light was being distributed.

i'm sure if i ponder this long enough...i'll find the spiritual application point. its there....

maybe its that once we've been given all that we need in order to glorify God and enjoy Him forever, it doesn't do to just go through the good works and motions of life...it doesn't feel like we've got everything where it ought to be if we just take what he's given us and keep doing what we were doing to begin with...

it is then that we should ask that the Lord interrupt our lives and move stuff around...to shed some light on the areas that we've left in shadows..and take some light off of what we had thought was so important before.

caught up with you

after weeks of reading....i finally caught up on all of the entries of QC i'd missed

*sigh*

now what do i do with the time between customers?

it feels good to be reading about real people today

invitation paper is purchased (and at a steal of a price, too!)

invite lists are almost complete

invite design is closer to ready

facebook is my new obsession.

i agree with chelsea....forget myspace...facebook is where its at!

(i especially like that i can post the same entry to my blog and facebook without having to actually post it to both of them myself. did myspace ever give me that freedom? well...if they did....nobody ever told ME.)

hello! i am Too-Much-Coffee-Girl!

(not that there could ever be too much of coffeegirl...but rather..that the coffee girl has had too much coffee!!!!)

the machine here is set to pull two shots of espresso at a time...which means that anytime someone orders a drink calling for only 1 shot....or for three shots..or anyone odd number of caffeiney goodness...the lone shot either gets poured out....or drunk. (my coffee is drunk!)
(actually..most coffee shops are set up to pull doubles...so as you read on, imgine that every barista you have ever encountered has had days like this...)

today..i forgot to monitor my coffee intake...and i began my sleepy morning with a cup of regular brew....or two...then added a bit of leftover latte to the tummy...then i had a cup of green tea (make that two, also)...then i had a straight shot ( because someone ordered a shot cuban style...brewed with yummy raw sugar in the portafilter! those are too yummy to waste...and sooo fast to take down...)
..and from there i just lost count....but i can FEEL that it was much..and i can feel that this hyperness is lonely..because i work alone..and the afternoon is slow...and i realy realy just want to goof off and make wisecracks with a fellow barista when i feel like this...dangit.

the only thing that would make this any worse would be if i'd had that teriyaki chicken for lunch today instead of diner last night...because Michael and i discovered that the sweet red sauce Sun and Moon Kitchen uses on that realy gets the system into hypermode, too. (dont do that sort of thing before attending small group discussion-oriented bible studies....the rabits are many...)

all of this to say.....what was i saying?

if only we could get away with this sort of treatment somedays

this reminds me of life before the corner coffee kisok
life when i had co-workers
http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=375

"that's how life usualy is, honey"

i spent my saturday late-morning and early-afternoon traversing from store to store in search of those perfect shoes.

my well planned trip took me to only three parking spaces, but i was able to cover dozens of stores (4 free-standing, and one mall included...adds a lot there)
the whole time i searched, my dear friend fer came with me via telephone. (because its hard to find someone who will actually come with me in person to hop stores as quickly as i ...just searching for that one pair of perfect shoes. )

my first stop, i discovered the most amazing shoe store..which i'll have to reattend on a day when i can permit myself to browse for non-wedding shoes..it was HUUGE and had so many different types of shoes to behold....but did not carry my perfect wedding shoes.

2nd, 3rd, and 4th stops were no good. lots of fall and winter clearance items..no white shoes...welll... none except for those pumps that resembled something from 1985.

at the mall i kept finding fancy silver shoes and gaudy gold shoes and no white satin shoes. i found some white casual platform sandals..but nothing wedding appropriate. nothing at all.

after nearly three hours of searching..and no moments of finding...and no more stores in the immediate area to shop in...i decided to put my search on hold til another day...to move on...to buy groceries...to finish my saturday without the perfect shoes in my possession.

i got my groceries...i went home..i unpacked my groceries...then i noticed that my "plan" for the day had been to be finished with shoe shopping and grocery buying around 3pm..but it was only 2:15 at the time...there was still shoe search time alloted!

i decided to look at one more place today..afterall...it was nearby..and wouldnt take very long just to check.
i drove about 1 mile...maybe less...to the shopping center where Shoe Carnival has recently been added. i HATE going into shoe carnival....thus why i had not looked there to begin with. to get my nerve up, i went into Goody's next door first...before facing the game-show-like employees of the dreaded shoe store. remembering that i'd found one of my favorite pairs of dress shoes at goody's once..

..i took a venture to their shoe department. on the first aisle i saw a pair of nice looking shoes..definately better than what i'd seen in all of my galavanting at the mall previously...but they weren't WHITE..they were BONE (which is a little bit nearer to ivory) i tried them on..and they looked okay...but the heel of them was brown like wood..instead of being white...and they did have pearls on them like everything else i'm wearing...but they also had some not as pretty beads.they were 1/2 price... i was about to just get them to have "in case"...when i turned around...and exactly behind me were the same shoes..but PERFECT.

they were white.
the heels were white.
the beads were EXACTLY like my jewelry.
(i felt certain these would be the most uncomfortable shoes on the planet. )
the moment i slipped my right foot into the shoe, another shopper --who, to me, seemed like a very wise woman-- said "oh my goodness! those look perfect on you!" and "You've got the legs for those" (and no one has ever told me that i have legs for any sort of shoes)
(and the shoes weren't uncomfortable at all.)
i looked at the woman and told her how i had just spent hours searching for these shoes ...and here i come to the nearest shopping center to my home, and there they are.
she replied "that's how life usualy is, honey"

i tell you...when i turned and found the shoes, i was pretty certain about them already...but she was like a messenger from the Lord.

because samantha asked how plans are going...

...and i have so few regular readers, i like to respond to them as proptly as i am able!

(i'd realy love for my readership to go up again...darn me taking so much time away from this blog!)

my goal for this week is to finally choose where we're ordering invitations from and what those invitations will look like.....hopfully all the way down to the wording...but that depends on when michael can work with me on that part...because i have a feeling he'll be better at it than i will.
(....i like run-ons....)

i'll at least make all the needed print shop visits and various phone calls and such this week to know where i can afford to best decide from...
...and by the end of next week weed down the invite list some more and redefine it...and fill in the blanks....
...and before march ends...we'll have them ordered so that we can get them back, address them, and have them going places before summertime is on us.

(ps....email me addresses if you would like to be included in the mail outs....i'll do my best to send to those who want to come! rjgosey at hotmail dot com.)

i also get to start deciding about shoes. i know shoes dont seem like anything difficult to choose to some people...but for me, i have a few criteria which must be met.

1. white shoes. not clear...not silver...not with gaudy metal stuff....not with ribbons to wrap around my leg.
2. heels with a little width. i cannot stand on toothpick heels...i'd die trying. but...i do want heels...otherwise, i'd just buy some slippers at belk and not be concerned with this at all. i am concerned. i want shoes that make me a little taller. (or maybe just a touch above short, as the case seems to be)
3. do not cost a rediculous amount. we're on a budget here. i like $20 enough.... i do not like $40... i'd need medication if i spent $70.
4. would go with things i wear after the wedding. i dont have any white shoes anymore...so while i'm shopping for some..they should be a little bit univesal.
5. dressy shoes. not flip flops... or brown heeled casual sandals...or the other beachy wear trend of white shoes i keep seeing.
6. i have to have this by the end of april. thankfully...its almost spring..so i should be able to find these soon.

recap: 1. please read my blog. 2. invitations soon. 3. shoes also soon.

If you see them, will you love them like i do?

as i stand here in this hospital..day after day...and i smile at as many people as i possibly can...and i know that i'm here for THIS...i begin to wonder..what is "this"?

what do i say to the woman who buys a smoothie or two every time she has an appointment..and tells me how well they settle her stomach during her chemo treatments?

what do i say to the man who says "pile on all the good stuff" as i make his hot chocolate...who is trying to decide where to go for his hospice stay while he simply waits on the end of it?

how do i encourage those who are stuck roaming these hallways..day after day...feeling trapped because of something they cannot change...?

i watch some go from wheelchair..to walker..to cain..to freedom....while the others i see fall in the other direction...from cain..to walker..to chair...and then i just dont see them anymore...

i watch men objectify women and say all sorts of improper things..and i watch women (and men, too) feel unlovely, lonely, or forgotten

yet...i love being here..i know that what little i do is something...but what more can i do...from behind this counter?

If You See Them
(sherri youngward)

My Father’s heart broke today
His children ran away
His children slipped out the back door
His children He loved and adored
And He said
Have you seen your brother Have you seen your sister
Where is your brother Have you seen your sister

If you see them will you love them like I do
And maybe they’ll remember who I am
I’d give anything and everything I have
Just to bring them back again

My Father paces the floor
I’ve never seen Him like this before
He says He won’t restUntil they’re all safe and sound
He says He won’t rest until they’re all found

five months from tomorrow

i'm in a bit of calm right now....its its rather surreal.

the first month was a whirlwind of teling and reading and deciding and making lists

this month was the realization that i dont have to do it all at once..and that i can't do it all at once

next month will be the calm moving forward with just what needs to be done

then the following few months will be when i have to take this planning brain up another notch again

and i dont even want to think about what all will have to come together those last couple of months

but in five months....i'll be collected and ready and excited

read all instructions

credit for finding this link goes to the kids at the coffeegeek forums

the coffee mug owners manual:
http://www.cyclofiend.com/salsa/salsa_mugman.html

update on my lenten thoughts

i decided that i'm sacrificing:
a. listening to music/radio in my car
and
b. watching tv (unless i need to know the weather report) at home

and during times that i would normally turn on the tv, i'll read from the gospels and/or consider various aspects of Jesus's life and death...and how they affect my daily living.

when its quiet in my car, i'll be able to reflect on my recent readings, and better hear from the Lord as i'm going from place to place.

(also, how horrible of me..i had no idea how short a time it would take to read through ALL of the gospels! if i just read 2 chapters a day and 3 chapters on sundays, i'll finish the whole set before Easter. if i read my Bible more often, i'd probably have realised how quickly one can read through four books from it..before now.)

side: i just witnessed my first Ash Wednesday participant customer! (when i lived in the heart of Catholicism [Louisiana], seeing ash-smudged foreheads didnt excite me as much as it does now that i'm in the heart of Baptistism [Georgia])

joyous sacrifice

"Now I rejoice in my sufferings for Your sake and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of His body, that is, the church." Colossians 1:24

lent. the days between fat tuesday and easter.

a time to remember Jesus' great sacrifice(his life lived in earth..and his death) and suffering(the pain of crucifixion...and the weight of all sin). a sacrifice that is made worthless unless we live in light of it, accept his payment for our lives....and tell the world about it. honestly..it shouldn't take a certain season and observance to remind me of how much he gave...but i'm human..i need big reminders.

i usualy start thinking about this like..two days AFTER the fact...so i'm going to jump start it..and figure out my plan today.

i wont give up something that is BAD for me. thats not sacrifice....just an excuse to do what i should already do.

i should give up a thing i enjoy..and usualy consume or do frequently....otherwise its not hard to give it up. its not a sacrifice. this needs to take effort.

a certain food: bell peppers, salad dressing, cheese, turkey sandwiches, chocolate, coffee, tea, caffeine in general...
or an activity: wearing contacts, watching tv, knitting, listening to music in the car... (THAT would be sacrifice!)

or maybe stop NOT doing something? no. that gets me into the list of bad habits which just are not what lent is about...its realy hard to think of things that i WOULD give up...that are not things i SHOULD have already quit...like "i'll give up eating bread" or "i'll give up not excercising" or "i'll give up staying up too late at night" "i'll give up picking at my face"...these are not lenten vows..these are just good ideas for every day life...these are not sacrifices which would remind me of what he gave for me.

"Let us fix out eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him, He endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God" Hebrews 12:2

it should be something which...after the lenten season is over, when Easter comes..i can enjoy that sacrificed thing again...and remember the absolute smallness of that joy compared with the joy of Jesus' reunion with His Father in heaven..and the comming reunion of all believers with the Father, too.

what's your stance on this season of lent?

may i help you?

yesterday afternoon as i was arriving home from work, my phone rang and this is about how the conversation that took place proceeded:

me: hello?
caller: hi, this is erica from David's Bridal, i was just calling to make sure you have everything you need for your wedding.
me: (laughing) um...no.
me: its kind of in process
erica: (laughs also) oh, i'm sorry, i guess that was a silly question.
(conversation continues briefly...but that was the amusing part)

add to that the customer earlier that morning who was insisting that i am not prepared enough and that i should have already picked out and ordered my invitations and flowers and food, etc...

she simply would not rest assured with my claiming that i do have a timeline and lists to work from...she proceeded to make her own vocal list of things for me to prepare.

..and i just cant tell my daily customers "please shut up and let me do this myself! you are certainly not being HELPFUL with your *advice* "

if this keeps up, i'll just start lying to people... like this:
them: so do you have everything ready for "the big day"?
me: (option a.) we elloped. (option b.) yep. everything's planned and paid for.
them: (option a.) well, that's nice. (or, if they are paying attention.... b.) are you serious???

stand back or i'll shoot!

wedding brain continues!
we spent the weekend playing with happy laser guns and are since registered at target, bed bath and beyond, and walmart.
after the whirlwind of gift registery had ended, i found myself pondering a great deal more over who might purchase our towels and the fact that my wonderings about how many items people actually recieve from these gift registery lists might finally come to a conclusion....instead of thinking as much about important things...such as what michael and i will be doing in way of ministry and how we will go about adjusting to living in one place and paying bills together.
i'm not overly concerned about my seeming unbalanced perspective at the moment..at least i know that Michael is thinking about it a bit more than i am...and that--even more importantly--God knows what He has in store for us....just got to trust Him...but need to come away from registry-brain and catering prices long enough to pray about it and let go of what i cannot change.

things on my mind

checklist upon checklist!

things to do..things to shop for..things to price..things to register for...things to remember to do later...lists lists lists...

thought: registering seems realy exciting before you start trying to imagine what you actually want people to buy for you and how your list reflects on yourself....and the places which you can get the best worth from the list...and are the most convenient for everyone.

thought: some things which i was sure we could save money on by doing ourselves are starting to look like the expense is worth not having to do them ourselves...and some things are actually ending up cheaper if we dont do them ourselves....crazy!

thought: when i wasn't actually planning a wedding, i thought i was going to have a very small very simple event.. i'd even picked out a nice little outdoor location which would seat about fifty. now that i'm in the midst of plans...its bigger than that...and this is without anyone else telling me how they want it yet!

thought: if it weren't for all of the helpful checklists i've found in books, the internet, and have made (every single day i make a new list!)...i'd forget to think about cake and flowers and doctors and social security cards. ...or else i'd think about them all of the time, instead of when they come up on the timeline. thank God for the timelines!

thought: its realy hard to sit back and let michael decide on the honeymoon destination. its realy easy to waste time searching for places on my own.

thought:God knows why the craft store stop putting 40% off coupons in the sunday paper every week. it is because God doesnt want me to shop for anything when it isnt in the timeline. God, please give me another coupon when i want to shop some more :)

thought: i hope that i dont get so wrapped up in planning that i dont let anyone help me besides my mom.

thought: in less than six months...a lot of these thoughts will be done with. then come all the new ones.

i've run out of things to do

i'm at work.
i'm ready to be home.
i've just finished drinking a "leftover" latte'.
i'm dancing a little bit to sufjan's Illinois album.
i'm wishing that i hadn't waited for a good reason to get back in touch with my friends.
i'm enjoying those i've found again.
i'm still wishing they all could move to where i am...even just for a little while.
i'm going to invent something to eat tonight.
i'm glad the library has movies for free.
it's felt like friday all day.
it's not friday.

lets go play outside.

coughy girl trains music man

since opening this new store, i've had the strangest difficulty in finding someone to work the hours which i cannot. we began by utilizing a couple of people from the first shop....but things kept comming up where that wasn't working well...schedule conflicts and undertraining and inconsistency from having too many people filling in...
...so it was suggested that i hire someone new to work here with me and here only. what i hated about the idea was simply that first of all, trusting someone as a new hire to run the place when i'm not here is hard....and training them for this would be rather complicated considering the cramped spaces. i needed someone i knew, trusted, and wouldnt have to take long with training.
cue my brother...who has just started masters work and cannot work his full-time print job anymore...and was a great asset to the shop in his day!
the nick spent the last few hours of this morning "in training" here at my store. he'll be working in my place a couple of mornings a week, giving me two mornings to get other things done...and preventing me from working 55 hrs a week...letting nick have a flexiable work schedule during his music study. i think this is a perfect soloution!


another perfect soloution might be that nick knows the ins and outs of the print shop and suggested a great way to save money on wedding invites!

so..i worked in coffee for 3.5 years so that nick could work there so that nick could meet his boss at the print shop and work there so that he could then go on to finish his music study while having a nice part time job helping his sister at the job she was born for...coffee...and he's able to save his sister and friend money on their wedding invites....because of the print shop job.

my God works in mysterious ways

infection control is after me

why is it that EVERY time i get a cold, i lose my voice?
it always made sense when i'd keep working when i felt bad...thus using my voice...but this time i made sure to keep pretty quiet and took a sick day and everything...and now my voice is almost inaudible.
its okay..though. i'm only working 4 hrs today...a stark contrast to my usual 10. when i get home, i wont have to talk anymore:)

who is coffee girl?

i know i've done this before..but it always amuses me just a little bit....

Googlism for: coffee girl (with my comments)

coffee girl is still mumbling to herself (this is usually true)
coffee girl is actually at work today (mostly...i'm rather out of it)
coffee girl is not on my links
coffee girl is cute too and has a lip piercing (...used to think i wanted that...more leaned toward a nose piercing, though. never got myself either)
coffee girl is nice enough to get him coffee (always true!)
coffee girl is a mostly acoustic 10 song collection which displays her genre eclectic style (i am not a compilation disc)
coffee girl is damn lucky to have captured your respect/attention (yep.)
coffee girl is on board (if this means "knows what's going on" then...no.)
coffee girl is pissing me off (i hope not)
coffee girl is pricelss (absolutely!)

i cant catch you

between attempting to organize my home...and beginning the wedding planning prcoess....i've come to realise that after a year and a half of internet-less-ness...and many moves and others moving...i have a grand total of THREE current addresses for people i love. Please bring me up to date with a quick email to rjgosey at hotmail dot com. (especially send such information if you would like to be included in the invite/announce list for the becca-michael wedding!)

hello world of interweb. it is nice to see you today.

this afternoon of coffee is rolling by dreadfull slowly....after a morning which flew....so i dont feel bad at all about posting an entry to this thing. (trust me...if i thought that i could make you more money by sitting on the ice box instead of standing here at the counter...smiling and speaking to everyone whom i see..as i post this..i'd do it, boss...i would!)

i've found that the only journal i can acess from the only place i regularly find any internet(work)...is blogger...so here is where i may be more frequent...should you care to/need to know.

also means i will be keeping up with very very few of you through blogger or typepad...and no one else.

also also means i check my email every day now, instead of only once or twice a month...this is big big news! i haven't been at a place where that was possible in well over a year.

so....any of you (you know..the two people* who view this EVAR) who know people who know me...should pass on that i'm back online a little...and may be reached and spoken to in ways other than my cell phone. comments and emails...being those ways.

*make that THREE people...because a mr. roderick just commented on my previous entry THIS morning! woo! i'm becoming increasingly popular with the people!