Sometimes I wonder why I just don't give up on this blog. I can't believe it's been over a month since I wrote in it last. It's a good thing I don't have many followers, or they would have given up on me!
Usually, I'm either too busy or too tired to write, or I can't think of anything very blog-worthy. Or if I do think of something blog-worthy, it's usually while I'm in the car.....far away from my computer. I think of all kinds of things I could write then, but when I get home I can't seem to remember what I wanted to write about or it just doesn't seem important anymore. I wonder if anybody else feels that way? Some people have such a knack with words, and come off sounding witty, clever and very cheerful.
Tonight I feel neither witty, clever or cheerful. Especially not the cheerful part. It's not that there's anything terribly wrong, I just feel very tired. But yet, I feel peaceful.
I didn't feel that way earlier today. I didn't have the greatest day. While driving home from a house-cleaning job, I could barely find find anything to be thankful for. Everything sort of just hit me all of the sudden, and in a very busy area, too....... of all things. I was finding it hard to drive, because of the tears. I tried to think of things I was thankful for, but, counting my blessings seemed very difficult. Any blessings I had were so elusive..... and about as far away as the moon. Maybe even further. (Or is it farther? I get those two words mixed up. )
It seemed as though so much was going wrong & was feeling very sorry for myself! It was VERY grey and rainy, my back & neck were killing me, I had ( and still do ) a painful abcessed tooth, numerous family problems to worry about, and then of course..... my car has some issues. There's a leak in the oil pan, the trunk leaks and the driver's side window refuses to open. (The positive side of this being, NO MORE drive-thru's for Lana!!!! Therefore......I have been losing weight. If I want to eat anything while I'm out, it's a jog into Safeway or Fred Myer for me.......... )
But, getting back to my blessing-less afternoon.......I did have recieve something that made me stop feeling so gloomy. In fact it helped a lot. A phrase from Nahum 1:3 just popped into my head, where it says, " the Lord hath His way in the whirlwind". Just those 8 words made a complete difference in my attitude and comforted my heart!! God will never let satan get the upper hand & is in complete control. He has a good purpose for all the storms I go through, was so encouraging to me! I know He put that verse into my head when I needed it.
Here's an excellent excerpt that I came across that I thought was so good.
" If we look up into the regions of the air, there we shall find proofs of his power, for he has his ways in the whirlwind and the storm. Which way soever God goes he carries a whirlwind and a storm along with him, for the terror of his enemies, Ps. 18:9, etc. And, wherever there is a whirlwind and a storm, God has the command of it, the control of it, makes his way through it, goes on his way in it, and serves his own purposes by it. He spoke to Job out of the whirlwind, and even stormy winds fulfil his word. He has his way in the whirlwind, that is, he goes on undiscerned, and the methods of his providence are to us unaccountable; as it is said, His way is in the sea. The clouds are the dust of his feet; he treads on them, walks on them, raises them when he pleases, as a man with his feet raises a cloud of dust. It is but by permission, or usurpation rather, that the devil is the prince of the power of the air, for that power is in God's hand. "
Of course as the rest of the verse in Nahum talks about the clouds & how they're the dust of God's feet. So, if there are a fearful amount of clouds about in our lives, doesn't it thrill you to know that He who has caused these clouds must be so very near to us when we see them so much?!
Actually........there are several verses in that chapter that are so good.
I usually feel reluctant to share precious experiences that happen to me, but maybe someone else will find this useful & be as encouraged as I was! We MUST remember that Jesus is always near, to trust no matter how dark & hopelesss the situation may seem. He IS faithful and will never allow anything to touch our lives that is not His will, or that isn't for our own good! Praise His name!!!
( Oh, I did think of something to be thankful for a bit later. It was chocolate! )
~ Scattered thoughts about life & living ~
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Young at heart.
Boy, it's hot here today! I'm doing some house-sitting now, and the upstairs room where I'm using the computer is pretty toasty, let me tell you. Someone just left a message on the answering machine. In order to make the beeping stop ( after someone leaves a message it will beep endlessly all day unless you do) I had to go through all of them to stop this one. I came upon my own message I had left a few days ago. Good grief. I sounded so young & ridiculous!! It was almost too painful to listen to it. Everyone else I talk to can't bear to hear their own recorded voices either. Isn't that funny?
At least the weather should be good for watching meteors tomorrow. I can't imagine there would be any clouds, but you never know. This is something my family loves to do every August, if it works out! We gather up our blankets, pillows, and a great many snacks & head out to Gram's large field, where we lay happily for hours watching the sky in great anticipation. Even if we don't see that many, we have so much fun just being together! The later it gets into the night, the sillier we become. And there is always someone rummaging around in the snack bag a lot ( that would be me; meteor watching does that to you ) or talking up a storm ( my sister) Then someone just may decide to play some prank on everyone, while we lay there completely unaware of it being planned. Yes, white sheets on little munchkins have a way of startling even the bravest person when not expected.
It will be also quite interesting to have Annika, my sister's very large, furry, Alaskan Malamute included in our company. I forsee a lot of people getting kissed....
Today, I was sitting in my car happily eating my typical stand-by...... McDonald's honey mustard w/crispy chicken snack wrap--- and drinking a strawberry banana smoothie ( which by the way..... is too banana-ey). A man parked next to my car was putting his groceries away, and afterwards he came over to my open window. I was like, ok what does he want? He looked at me for awhile and asked, "Are you sitting there enjoying your lunch-ey?" And I was like, Uh... yeah and laughed just because I didn't know what else to do. I mean what do you do? when someone says something like that?! Then he said, "Good girl". Hmmm.... I had no idea what to say about that one. Did I look young today, or was he hitting on me?
I had almost the same experience a couple of weeks ago. Another man came up to my window, and acted very friendly. I had a vague recollection that I had met him somewhere, but I just couldn't remember. He looked familiar. And he acted like I was supposed to know him. Don't you just hate that? It turned out, that I had met him at a care facility while on an assignment with my company. He talked to me several times during the assignment, telling me that he was so impressed with my attitude and my care of people. I mean, he really laid on the praise. What do you say when people do that? I simply treat others the way I'd like to be treated, and ask God to help me be a light in the world. Anyway, not tooting my own horn here.....really I'm not! I'm just amused at two similar situations that happened to me recently. :o)
Enough blogging for now. A person can only blog so much in a hot room.....
At least the weather should be good for watching meteors tomorrow. I can't imagine there would be any clouds, but you never know. This is something my family loves to do every August, if it works out! We gather up our blankets, pillows, and a great many snacks & head out to Gram's large field, where we lay happily for hours watching the sky in great anticipation. Even if we don't see that many, we have so much fun just being together! The later it gets into the night, the sillier we become. And there is always someone rummaging around in the snack bag a lot ( that would be me; meteor watching does that to you ) or talking up a storm ( my sister) Then someone just may decide to play some prank on everyone, while we lay there completely unaware of it being planned. Yes, white sheets on little munchkins have a way of startling even the bravest person when not expected.
It will be also quite interesting to have Annika, my sister's very large, furry, Alaskan Malamute included in our company. I forsee a lot of people getting kissed....
Today, I was sitting in my car happily eating my typical stand-by...... McDonald's honey mustard w/crispy chicken snack wrap--- and drinking a strawberry banana smoothie ( which by the way..... is too banana-ey). A man parked next to my car was putting his groceries away, and afterwards he came over to my open window. I was like, ok what does he want? He looked at me for awhile and asked, "Are you sitting there enjoying your lunch-ey?" And I was like, Uh... yeah and laughed just because I didn't know what else to do. I mean what do you do? when someone says something like that?! Then he said, "Good girl". Hmmm.... I had no idea what to say about that one. Did I look young today, or was he hitting on me?
I had almost the same experience a couple of weeks ago. Another man came up to my window, and acted very friendly. I had a vague recollection that I had met him somewhere, but I just couldn't remember. He looked familiar. And he acted like I was supposed to know him. Don't you just hate that? It turned out, that I had met him at a care facility while on an assignment with my company. He talked to me several times during the assignment, telling me that he was so impressed with my attitude and my care of people. I mean, he really laid on the praise. What do you say when people do that? I simply treat others the way I'd like to be treated, and ask God to help me be a light in the world. Anyway, not tooting my own horn here.....really I'm not! I'm just amused at two similar situations that happened to me recently. :o)
Enough blogging for now. A person can only blog so much in a hot room.....
Monday, June 28, 2010
Sandpipers and burglars
Lately, life has been so busy that I've barely had a moment to update my blog. But I do think of it now & then...... in the fondest sort of manner. So, at least it's not completely forgotten......
I'm currently doing a house-sitting job for one of my neighbors. And, get this....not just 1 house, but 2. They've bought the empty house across the street from them, and are attempting to renovate it. I guess they didn't want just anyone buying it. They decided to rescue it from whoever might buy it. Yeah....the previous owners were making meth there, and they pretty much trashed the place before they moved out.. Actually....all sorts of dubious activities were going on while they lived in that house, not just the making of meth. 8-{
Just recently it was burglarized, so they wanted us to stay in it, as well as their current house. So, between mom & I we take turns spending the nights in each house. It's weird ( and creepy) to spend the night in a barely furnished house. Not to mention scary, not knowing if someone might be planning on breaking in while you're happily sleeping! They have an alarm system which I always set at night, which brings me great comfort. But, the first few nights I was exceedlingly nervous.....alarm or no alarm!!
It's a neat house, though. My neighbor said it used to be a hotel from the early 1900's. I will try to post some pictures of the turret, and also of the view from the deck. It's so beautiful! It's a view of the lagoon, where you see a lot of different birds. We've see osprey, eagles, warblers, sandpipers, warblers, cedar waxwings, finches ( of course tons of sparrows) geese, kingfishers and other birds that are still mysteries as to what they are.
Note to self: Never wear a wrap-around skirt on a windy day. I'm sure the people at the Taco Bell drive-thru were blessed by the sight of pale legs as I blithely hopped out of my car at the bank today.........
Well, this is all for now. Hopefully I can write more soon. I can hardly wait until 2 weeks from today!! Our super fun road trip to Oregon & CA will begin. :o)
I'm currently doing a house-sitting job for one of my neighbors. And, get this....not just 1 house, but 2. They've bought the empty house across the street from them, and are attempting to renovate it. I guess they didn't want just anyone buying it. They decided to rescue it from whoever might buy it. Yeah....the previous owners were making meth there, and they pretty much trashed the place before they moved out.. Actually....all sorts of dubious activities were going on while they lived in that house, not just the making of meth. 8-{
Just recently it was burglarized, so they wanted us to stay in it, as well as their current house. So, between mom & I we take turns spending the nights in each house. It's weird ( and creepy) to spend the night in a barely furnished house. Not to mention scary, not knowing if someone might be planning on breaking in while you're happily sleeping! They have an alarm system which I always set at night, which brings me great comfort. But, the first few nights I was exceedlingly nervous.....alarm or no alarm!!
It's a neat house, though. My neighbor said it used to be a hotel from the early 1900's. I will try to post some pictures of the turret, and also of the view from the deck. It's so beautiful! It's a view of the lagoon, where you see a lot of different birds. We've see osprey, eagles, warblers, sandpipers, warblers, cedar waxwings, finches ( of course tons of sparrows) geese, kingfishers and other birds that are still mysteries as to what they are.
Note to self: Never wear a wrap-around skirt on a windy day. I'm sure the people at the Taco Bell drive-thru were blessed by the sight of pale legs as I blithely hopped out of my car at the bank today.........
Well, this is all for now. Hopefully I can write more soon. I can hardly wait until 2 weeks from today!! Our super fun road trip to Oregon & CA will begin. :o)
Sunday, May 30, 2010
I can't think of a title!
I finally decided it was time to update my blog, before all 3 of my followers forget who I am.
Not a whole lot going on in my world. Though, I guess almost having a computer crash is pretty high up on a the list of monumental happenings. The computer was doing crazy things last Wednesday, but I just figured it was being tempermental. But, it was more than that because it refused to do nothing more than stubbornly show a black screen constantly, with the exception of a feeble, white line halfway right down the middle. Very weird & VERY frustrating!!! I really thought the computer was toast. My uncle came to the rescue, being the computer savvy person that he is and kindly took a look at it. He finally figured out that it was probably a Windows update gone wrong. Sometimes they do that, and the trouble did happen right after the May 26th update. But, thanks to him & also a well-timed idea from my sister, the computer came back from the dead!! So, now I'm a happy camper. :o)
I'm finally beginning to get better from the car accident. It has been a long, slow healing process with setbacks & hours of pain. Seems like my life the past 2 months has existed mainly of doctors visits, Aspercreme, icepacks and long, hot baths!
By the way, I do NOT recommend cupping!! My doctor did it only once to me, and that was one times too many. Not only did it hurt, but it left bright, purple dots all over my back for days that made me look like a polka-dotted butterfly. I can laugh at it now!
In a way, I feel like life has been passing me by lately, and I've been left behind. Or at least been put on hold for awhile. There are so many things I haven't been able to do the last couple of months that I hardly feel like my normal self. But, in between the doctor visits & bouts of pain, I have enjoyed relaxing in the sun, and had many wonderful hours of solitude. I also feel much closer to God now, and have spent many wonderful moments of prayer with Him. This pause in the journey of my life has given me a chance to contemplate...to be still before God.
My doctor said I could go back to my job(s) and I have mixed feelings about that. In once sense, I am more than ready to resume my normal, albeit rather hectic life....... because it gives me a sense of purpose. I don't mind too much the house-cleaning jobs. But, on the other hand it is going to be hard to get back in the swing of things as a caregiver. With this current caregiving company, sometimes you never know where or when you'll be sent to work. And I find that rather hard sometimes, not knowing what to expect. I have encountered some pretty tough clients & situations!! 8-[I'm coming to the conclusion, that I like and crave, as I grow older.......stability. I really dislike being on call.
So, I'm having mixed emotions here & praying that God will give me guidance on what to do next with my life. Because I sure do need it!
Not a whole lot going on in my world. Though, I guess almost having a computer crash is pretty high up on a the list of monumental happenings. The computer was doing crazy things last Wednesday, but I just figured it was being tempermental. But, it was more than that because it refused to do nothing more than stubbornly show a black screen constantly, with the exception of a feeble, white line halfway right down the middle. Very weird & VERY frustrating!!! I really thought the computer was toast. My uncle came to the rescue, being the computer savvy person that he is and kindly took a look at it. He finally figured out that it was probably a Windows update gone wrong. Sometimes they do that, and the trouble did happen right after the May 26th update. But, thanks to him & also a well-timed idea from my sister, the computer came back from the dead!! So, now I'm a happy camper. :o)
I'm finally beginning to get better from the car accident. It has been a long, slow healing process with setbacks & hours of pain. Seems like my life the past 2 months has existed mainly of doctors visits, Aspercreme, icepacks and long, hot baths!
By the way, I do NOT recommend cupping!! My doctor did it only once to me, and that was one times too many. Not only did it hurt, but it left bright, purple dots all over my back for days that made me look like a polka-dotted butterfly. I can laugh at it now!
In a way, I feel like life has been passing me by lately, and I've been left behind. Or at least been put on hold for awhile. There are so many things I haven't been able to do the last couple of months that I hardly feel like my normal self. But, in between the doctor visits & bouts of pain, I have enjoyed relaxing in the sun, and had many wonderful hours of solitude. I also feel much closer to God now, and have spent many wonderful moments of prayer with Him. This pause in the journey of my life has given me a chance to contemplate...to be still before God.
My doctor said I could go back to my job(s) and I have mixed feelings about that. In once sense, I am more than ready to resume my normal, albeit rather hectic life....... because it gives me a sense of purpose. I don't mind too much the house-cleaning jobs. But, on the other hand it is going to be hard to get back in the swing of things as a caregiver. With this current caregiving company, sometimes you never know where or when you'll be sent to work. And I find that rather hard sometimes, not knowing what to expect. I have encountered some pretty tough clients & situations!! 8-[I'm coming to the conclusion, that I like and crave, as I grow older.......stability. I really dislike being on call.
So, I'm having mixed emotions here & praying that God will give me guidance on what to do next with my life. Because I sure do need it!
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Christe Eleison
I recently discovered this song, and I really love it. One of those songs you could listen to endlessly.....
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