July 31, 2004
i get to play with sam tomorrow. that's fun. hehehe, remember when sam and i were going out... oh that's so funny! poor sam. poor jenny. come to think of it, poor zoe, debbie, libby, tim dabinett, jake and everyone else too.
i was thinking the other day about all the fun stuff we did together before anything got too complicated. i was remembering challenges! we went to playgrounds with equipment and tried to squeeze through the smallest and strangest gaps in the equipment. we were very strange kiddies.
but bring on the lolly bananas tomorrow! although, i was eating some last night with ben at GAP and we both felt sick from them. hmmmm.... oh well. i'm sure it'll be fine. i'm glad sam and i are totally buds again. all break ups should have been that easy and fun!
just quick
about to head off to church. today is all-day prayer day, 7am-7pm. GAP is taking the 3-4pm slot. last night's GAP was good. it was good to catch up with ben particularly. it's so exciting when he's able to come to GAP. still a smaller kind of group. there were only about 20 of us, but it was good to hang out together, talk about the Bible together, and listen to Scott's talk about how much God loves us, and how big He is, and living out His words. i'm glad i can't comprehend God. i don't think i'd want to believe in a God that i could fit into a nice little package.
oh and catching up with Junior was quality yesterday too. we laughed for ages. but we also spoke about really important and meaningful stuff and time positively flew by!
athens trivia night fundrasier tonight. i hope it's good fun and that people learn more about the trip and stuff. randwick is such a long way away!
July 30, 2004
it's not a competition!
but just checking webstat before and i've had 18 unique visits today, and robert had only had 17!! i have amazement.
and it's a lunch break. so it's all good to blog in the office :D
today is apparently "dress up for work day" - since we never dress up for work, and other businesses dress down for fridays. i have two issues with it though...
1. i don't own any "dress up" clothing (ie. businessey type outfits)
2. i'm suspicious that i'm gonna end up being the only one dressed up, coz it's all a joke on me
oh, and 3. i don't like dressing up
but we'll see how it goes. maybe i'll borrow some of debbie's clothes.
July 29, 2004
today was a bit hodgepodge again. i think all days will be in the lead up to Athens. my definition of "hodgepodge" is "a bit all over the place, with a range of things happening and needing to be done". so my hodgepodgeness included the following:
~ meeting with phil in the morning
~ working on something or other this morning (i'm sure it was important, i just can't remember what it was...)
~ sending various emails
~ updating the database
~ prayer time
~ printing and photocopying all the labels for the next newsletter mailout
~ working on newsletter
~ working on internship assignments
~ foodcourt with howie and chris, plus steve and josh
~ working more on newsletter
~ working more on assignments
~ having a talk with steve
~ organising chocolates for trivia night
~ moving my car three times
see, nothing that seems really productive or important in terms of getting big picture work done. but i guess it all is in the scheme of things. everything's a bit all over the place at the moment. i'm not in a routine. and sometimes that drives me crazy. other times it's all good.
i need to be flexible for Athens... no more stickler for time, structure, detail and information. oh dear. i hope i cope.
July 28, 2004
so maybe women are over-sensitive. i tend to think i'm not. but i am. and i know i behave wrongly when i'm hurt.
July 27, 2004
i love spending time with libby. tonight was great. it was great to be free to talk and to listen and to be encouraged and challenged. she's wonderful. God makes me more hungry for Him through her, everytime we meet up.
today was an interesting day. i slept in, on purpose. i didn't get heaps of work done it seemed in the office, because of prayer meeting, and meeting with steve, and getting myself some space after that. before i knew it, we were at the cafe, after some bank adventures. i think howie should change banks. i think anyone with st george should change banks. but the arvo was pretty fun. new hot water tank (thanks brett!), fun games of pool and jump, time with some cool young people.
the days just seem to fly by.
"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails."
i may have posted it before. but does it not always stand as valuable to remind ourselves. i think so. sometimes i wonder if i ever show love to anyone.
July 26, 2004
my brain is still pretty confused. i want to hear God's voice, but i'm not sure who i'm hearing. i want to be doing what's right. and i know i often don't. {that's something about learning more about God. you see how much much much more you're so unlike God. so it's good, and it's sad. but it makes you more thankful i think for that He's done.} but yeh. i don't want to just be doing something because someone is telling me to. i don't want to be stretching myself too thin, or losing focus or attention in certain areas. i acknowledge that it might come down to self management, but still, i don't want to be overloaded. i don't want to be doing something, just coz i like the people i'd get to hang out with. so it's confusing. coz i don't want to be making excuses, but i don't want to be doing something God's not asking me to do. i need clarity!!
i think i'll get in trouble for this photo being here... but that's ok. they're lovely people! and photos are fun. i told internship class today that if i had to put something in a snow globe, i'd put little laminated photos of my friends and family in there. i love photos. my bedroom is a testament to that. i love the "capturing a moment" thing, and the memory that sticks with that. i love to look back and remember good times. not to dwell unhealthily, but to appreciate and smile.
"Having your objectives and goals clear is the first step in learning to say NO to others and to yourself. At times we agree to things, not because of a value but because of an inability to say "no". It is not easy to learn to live with the possibility of being misunderstood, but if we live on the basis of whether we will be understood or not, then others are determining the unfolding of our lives and we end up doing everything others expect of us. As we learn to say "no" for the right reasons, we become free to say "yes" as God leads us."
i'm tired. things are too scatty at the moment. i don't like that. lots of disorganisation. that frustrates me. and file server at work still broken. and that really sucks. i was so on track with this newsletter. silly computers. if it's not mailed out before i get back from athens, i will scream! and cry.
July 25, 2004
tops day
i have had a tops day. really have.
went to morning church. had fun playing with zachariah, kate and jess before church. he's such a little bubble of fun! had fun sitting with jason and will. and then after i spoke, sitting between chris and brett. after church was awesome. i am blown away by the generosity of God's people. crazy. but thankyou.
after church, i had a fun few minutes in the greenhouse with the likes of luke elk, chris, deb, lach, kel, lib, megs and grant. plus neil. twas funny.
somewhat spontaneous lunch with tim, brett, chris and brad was fun too at "pie in the sky" (inspired by last nights lantana viewing). luke elk joined us too, and the bells, karen and tim showed up coincidentally as well.
after yummy pies, the six of us headed to westfield for some digital camera shopping on brett's behalf. i got a john mayer cd from angel (inspired much by the ryan and jem i think. oh, and the $9.99 price tag) - but found out when i got home they put the wrong one in the case. brett is funny, sometimes silly and worrying, but funny. coz i love tim.
back to tim's for brad, tim and me.
tim and me to my house.
night church sitting next to bart and tim. i like bart. church was good. i'm enjoying faith, hope and love being thrown in my face recently. go 1 thessalonians! i like dave's preaching style.
after church was good too. people bought chocolates and spoke with me about athens.
youth supper was at the blair's. and that was fun mostly with jason and will. it was great seeing luke walker again too. i miss him a bit.
back to my place with tim. and then the days activities finished off at about 10pm.
it's been a full but great day, with lots of fun people to play with. although i don't recommend fitting five adults in chris' car. especially when those adults include brett and brad. so tall. so little room. and me always in the middle.
i've eaten so much bad food this weekend though. bring on the walking! dear oh dear.
last night was fun. it ended being option 2. no option 5. which was disappointing. oh, i did option 4 too, but he was busy coz his mum came home from uganda yesterday. but anyway. SNT was good. fun with twister, and worship, and sam northe speaking on the exodus. yeh. at the end tim showed up which was exciting. spent some time talking with people, throwing around basketballs, drinking tea. eventually we ended up with a decision, and chris, lach, deb, tim and me spent the evening eating pizza in the greenhouse. it was pretty fun. i like laughing. then we watched lantana. wasn't bad. i think deb was the only one who'd seen it before. so it was an enjoyable night. i like those four people.
but now it's scary coz i have to talk in church this morning. and i never feel at all prepared to go up in front of so many people. jeepers! its ok though, coz God's words not mine. please.
July 24, 2004
options on the table for tonight after SNT:
~ dinner party with Brad and much older scarier people
~ whatever people think of at SNT to do afterwards (may involve a birthday celebration of some sort for cathy bell?!?!)
~ hang with tim
~ see what luke's doing
~ go to bed early coz i have to go to morning church (and speak - aaaaargh!!)
hmmmmm..... i think that no matter what, option 5 will still come into play
what's in a name?
i think of myself as a jenny. the rest of the world seems to think of me as a jen. except my grandma who thinks of me as a jennifer. or zoe who thinks of me as an itchy. or libby who thinks of me as a jentle. or lachie who thinks of me as a jk. or cathy bell who thinks of me as a quacker. still. i think of myself as a jenny.
i decided yesterday, besides it not really mattering at all, that i don't like it when i tell people i've never met before that my name is jenny, and they immediately call me jen. i told them my name was jenny, not jen. but it's ok if you call me jen if that's how you were introduced to me, or if i know you well. that's ok. i just get annoyed if people assume we're that buddy buddy. see... it's silly and unmattering. blah.
we had youth leaders training this morning. not heaps of us. just phil, libby, ez, lyndal, nath and stu. was good time though. we were working through being disciples and being a disciplemaker. i think the next two terms are going to be heavily focussed on involvement from the young people, so that they're active and growing in their faith. and that's pretty exciting, coz there's heaps of potential. i hope that they will take hold of it and make choices for Jesus. so it was good to get some more focus for ourselves, and motivation for us to be imitators of God, so we're worthy of being imitated. that's a huge thing for Paul to say in his letters "imitate me as i imitate God" - i don't know how comfortable i'd be in saying that a lot of the time. but i want to be more comfortable with it, so that my life has more integrity and honours Jesus more wholly.
July 23, 2004
oh yeh... bed time! bring it on...
but briefly. lots going on at the moment. lots of things happening in peoples lives. it's all very interesting. i often don't get how God works things out. some things seem so completely messed up. i'm so very glad God knows what's going on and how to fix things. but goodo. we have a good God.
i don't like the saying "it doesn't matter in the long run". coz that might be true, but it still matters now!
sometimes i'm such a bully. i am realising more and more of my selfishness. i'll get mopey if things don't go my way. and i don't like that i'm like that. i'm sorry to all the people who have to deal with me when i'm that way. hopefully it's not too often. but it seems it may likely be. mawww...
July 22, 2004
yay - tim and luke are coming over for dinner tonight. that shall be most fun! i like tim and luke. and then i have the day off tomorrow to spend time with timothy. hoorah!
meanwhile, how fun are computers. the file server died at work today. then it came back to life. then it died much worse. and that wasn't good. but the internet works. and that is good. but, the last backup steve did was just before he went to tassie. so that's all well and good for him and howie, but bad for me. i may have lost two and a half weeks worth of work. good. God will figure it out. it's all good. He does good things in situations like this. like miraculously unlocking locked filing cabinets when we can't find the key. awesome. how good is fun God stuff like that! bring it on!
July 21, 2004
Attention Howie
Tamara wrote you a letter tonight on my hand. I want to wash my hand, so I'm blogging this for your benefit...
"Dear Howie,
Please stop
showing Jenny
your boogies
so I can drink
her water.
Thanks
Tamara"
July 20, 2004
be strong and do the work
1 Chronicles 28:9-10, 20
"And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you forever. Consider now, for the LORD has chosen you to build a temple as a sanctuary. Be strong and do the work."
David also said to Solomon his son, "Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the LORD God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you until all the work for the service of the temple of the LORD is finished."
good on ya paul
i thought that the doctor visit would be painfree, but paul was looking after me. so i got Hep A+B injection. joy. he told me my mum would be proud of me. coz i didn't even flinch. how fun is having a family doctor who knows you forever. hehe. plus he gave me three more medications to take with me overseas. hoorah for paul. except now i have another two injections lined up for when i get home. ba baow.
July 19, 2004
long day again - that's how mondays are at the moment. office at about 8:30, cafe at 2:30, athens meeting at belmore at 7pm, home at 10pm. quite tiring - i think more mentally for me at the moment rather than physically. although i am also physically tired. and i think i'll be sick too soon (thanks howie). so that'll be a new experience with a hole in my nose. why do i ALWAYS get sick before going overseas. it bites. but i don't think there's really anything i can do about it.
it will be nice to go to sleep soon. i'm visiting the doctor tomorrow morning. i haven't been to the doctor for a long time. i hope it's not too scary. i just need him to write a letter saying it's cool for me to have medications overseas.
i want to be more like Isaiah...
Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?"
And I said, "Here am I. Send me!"
and less like Moses...
But Moses said, "O Lord, please send someone else to do it."
but it's hard!!! why oh why, when i know God knows best, do i live like i think i know best??
July 18, 2004
yesterday, tim and i saw 'fahrenheit/911'. i'm not quite sure how to debrief it in my own mind, let alone in writing. i had quite a mixed reaction i think. some of it i thought was a bit rough (like on george w), and then other parts brought up anger, despair, confusion, grrrrr-ness, sadness, disgust, horror and some bits made me chuckle or laugh. some images were very disturbing. i was thinking how desensitised i am to violence or death because of stupid hollywood movies. and was reminding myself these were real people - both the iraqis and american soldiers. it's just all so crazy. hmmmm.... so thats my very poor attempt at debriefing. like i said to tim, and bart later said to me, it's one of those things with which you take a grain of salt. it's in things like this that i know i'll never know the answers or "why" so i just have to trust God that He does. and sometimes that's hard, coz it's all so injust and wrong and stupid. meanwhile, i know the film was on a slant, but it makes you realise even more how incredibly slanted the media is. which i knew. but still. aaaargh!
hung out with a different kind of bunch last night. after SNT, lach, deb, tim, me, chris, brett, lyndal, bron, chrissy and chrissy's mate watched a dvd at chrissy's. i must admit i didn't move too far out of my comfort zone, as i sat with lach and tim, but that's ok. sometimes i feel very awkward and self conscious around people i don't know so well, even if i'm with other people i know really well. silly jenny. but it was funny how not into 'monty python and the holy grail' we all were. brett's a classic though.
July 17, 2004
last night i went out to dinner with tim and his family to celebrate his birthday. dinner wasn't too bad. we went to straits. i'd never been there before. was a very cold night though!
after dinner, it was back to their place for the traditional game of trivial pursuit. it ended up young ones versus old ones. brad ripped it up, with their team getting three or four pieces of pie while we only had the chance to answer two questions (incorrectly mind you!). finally we did a bit of catching up, and eventually, against all odds, we won. hoorah for dan, tim and me! it was a valiant effort by brad, michelle and tim's mum. but i laughed so much. again. trivial pursuit nights are awesome, coz it gets all my laughs out. dan is so funny. and he took the funniest photo of tim.
after brad, michelle and dan left, we watched the rest of the glasshouse which was pretty funny last night, and i went home soon after that. for a nice sleep. how good is sleeping in! 9:30am this morning. i feel naughty when i sleep in.
as an aside, i can't believe how crazily much jo works though. she sounds so busy and run off her feet. grrrr to not enough nursing staff. puts me back in my place for when i get all stressed about my work or life. i think jo's tops. so very sweet.
Libby's back (well, has been for a while) and we get to catch up. Oh how I love my friend Liberachi. She is one of the most special people in the world to me. And I miss her. But I'm glad we'll get to catch up before I go to Greece. I want to hear all about how God has been working in her during and since Byron Bay, and how He's revealing more of Himself and His plans to her. It's always encouraging, exciting and challenging to speak with Libby. And stacks of fun! She has the most beautiful heart. It's strange though. I think I've always struggled to make sure I don't put her on some sort of pedestal in my mind. There are so many parts to her that I've always wanted to be the same as, and sometimes that's really got me down on myself. Which is silly coz I'm my own person, and God's created me unique. But Libby's the one person who affects me that way. It's interesting. It's not so evident now, but it always was something.
July 16, 2004
[sorry tim]
Q - What's the definition of a bass player?
A - Halfway between a drummer and a musician.
July 15, 2004
mum's clearing out our wardrobes to put stuff into storage with my grandparents things (since we have no storage space at home). and it's so fun sorting through our old toys. such happy memories. so many things i'd forgotten about that brought me and debs so much joy! it's made me even more thankful for my mum. she's quite the craftswoman. she made a lot of the stuff we played with. my mum is awesome. little kid stuff is so much fun. if only we could justifiably play with such things more often. i hope my kids will be into creative playing, rather than plonking in front of the tv or computer or the like.
In Christ Alone
In Christ alone my hope is found
He is my light, my strength, my song
This Cornerstone, this solid ground
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm
What heights of love, what depths of peace
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease
My Comforter, my All in All
Here in the love of Christ I stand
In Christ alone, who took on flesh
Fullness of God in helpless babe
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones He came to save
‘Til on that cross as Jesus died
The wrath of God was satisfied
For every sin on Him was laid
Here in the death of Christ I live
There in the ground His body lay
Light of the world by darkness slain
Then bursting forth in glorious Day
Up from the grave He rose again
And as He stands in victory
Sin’s curse has lost its grip on me
For I am His and He is mine
Bought with the precious blood of Christ
No guilt in life, no fear in death
This is the power of Christ in me
From life’s first cry to final breath
Jesus commands my destiny
No power of hell, no scheme of man
Can ever pluck me from His hand
‘til He returns or calls me home
Here in the power of Christ I’ll stand
July 14, 2004
food #3
mum went crazy with a fly buys promotion. we've never had so many boxes of icecreams in our freezer. if you buy $100 worth of coles frozen food section stuff, and $100 of coles/shell petrol during july, you get 1500 bonus fly buys points. sure it's worth it.
food #2
lunch today at sheraton-on-the-park. a joint birthday celebration for debbie's 21st, grandma's 78th, dad's 51st and tim's 20th. very swish. so much food though. it makes me want to take a big bag, so i can bring some home wth me. but it's too classy for that. shall be nice though.
food #1
went out for dinner again with jem last night. very spontaneous of him. i was very impressed. he disappears off to melbourne for almost two weeks on thursday, so i'm glad he thought to catch up before he goes. pizza at belmontes. i don't think i've ever eaten so much garlic in my life. when they say garlic bread, they mean garlic bread!
July 13, 2004
how can some people see life as something there to be taken, manipulated, tortured, destroyed, ended? how are their brains wired? i just don't get it.
July 12, 2004
done and done
after all my talk, i did it. the lady who pierces noses in hornsby is such a cack. the girl before me was about 14 and was there with her mum. i think it's good having someone go before you - coz i got to listen to all the instructions, and see it done. i wasn't gonna have it done after that ... but suddenly i did. so no more "will i, won't i". i'm a little bit wondering how my parents will go with it. and more so, my grandparents. but that's ok. and it doesn't hurt all that much. i'd say less than ear lobe piercing. it is a little "hello, how you doing" but thats ok.
July 11, 2004
amusing toilet story for today
i went to the toilet, as you do. and i used the last of the paper. and i thought "i'll flush the toilet and then change the paper" rather than change it while sitting there (sorry if that's a bit graphic for people).
anyways, so i stood up, flushed and reached over to get the new roll from the toilet roll stand, and proceeded to drop it in the flushing toilet. the whole thing. and i burst out laughing, ran out to mum in the kitchen - realised i hadn't washed my hands so did that in the kitchen sink - and told her the story. she asked where the roll was. i'd left it in the toilet. so she told me to get it out. so i armed myself with two plastic bags and got it out of there and into the outside bin. tim came in to have a look at it. good absorption for toilet paper - it was pretty waterlogged. and i kept giggling the whole time. dad called me a stupid twit. it was funny. i wish i was a better story teller.
the case of the missing ugg boot
i got up this morning and could only find one of my ugg boots. the left foot. so i put it on. and made a somewhat meagre attempt at finding the other one. i didn't. so i went and had breakfast, trying to squoosh my right foot in my left ugg boot alongside my left foot. that didn't really work. so i sat on my foot, so that when i get in the shower i don't end up with a foot that burns from the heat. why is it that when a part of your body is super colder than all the other parts, it's so hot on that cold part when you get in the shower or bath, that it actually feels cold? very strange.
July 10, 2004
i just had a power nap - oh yeh, so tired - and you know when you get lines on your face... i've got a mega one! and i'm off to speak at an 18|30 event in 15mins. sometimes you need a face iron. cmon cmon get out stupid crease!
tim and i were watching lateline last night ... and sometimes stuff makes me cringe. it was about peter costello addressing Hillsong conference. all well and good, until it got a little more politics and Christianity. things like Hillsongs "marketing empire", Jesus wanting us to make money, that congregations can be marshalled to deliver votes. i don't like the implications and assumptions i jump to in my head - so what does that mean for someone who isn't a Christian or who is anti-Christian. i'm not bagging Hillsong. i'm just cringing at how Christianity is sometimes represented and portrayed in the media.
BRUCE BAIRD LIBERAL MP: The new charismatic Pentecostal churches are huge in number, in the number of people who go, and so, therefore, it's significant that you attend from time to time and let them know who you are, take an interest in their interests and certainly have a dialogue with the leaders.
STEPHEN MCDONELL: Hillsong Convention is put on by Sydney's Hillsong Church, a high energy Pentecostal church and marketing empire based in the Sydney's Hills District. 15,000 people attend the huge church every Sunday to hear straightforward messages about Jesus and how he wants you to make money. Senior pastor Brian Houston even wrote a book called You Need More Money.
REVEREND TIM COSTELLO, WORLD VISION: Some of the quotes in that book I felt were very troubling because the American televangelists who also preach a prosperity gospel, have bred the greatest cynicism that you might have towards authentic Christian faith by turning it into that get-rich formula.
STEPHEN MCDONELL: Reverend Tim Costello has spoken to Brian Houston about his concerns and he says the Hillsong preacher has now stopped publishing You Need More Money. But he doesn't have any concerns about his brother, Peter, speaking to the Hillsong Church.
REVEREND TIM COSTELLO: Look, I think any politician asked to speak to 20,000 people recognises the potential and I think Peter did that. Peter would also justifiably point out that he has Christian convictions and any group that invites him to speak, particularly if it's a strong group of Christians, he would go along to.
...
STEPHEN McDONELL: One thing that can be said about cohesive, fundamentalist congregations is that they have discipline, a discipline that can be marshalled to deliver votes.
our house looks so naked with the blue spruce and conifer gone ... it's very strange when bigger changes happen to or in the house you've lived in all your life.
i think xander must have missed rain. he was out on the verandah this morning licking the railing. that's how he likes to drink his water. never mind he has two water bowls - one inside and one outside. the railing is much more fun, and he hasn't been able to do that for a very long time. another devestating impact of the drought. i reckon it's almost media worthy. at least for a "current affairs"-type show.
July 08, 2004
Praise God for the Holy Spirit. Without Him, we'd be lost! Our GAP meeting tonight was so wonderfully productive and Spirit-led, as well as lots of fun. I love leading with Scott, and being taught by him. He's such a wonderful servant with such passion for Jesus, youth and youth ministry. I love that he was my youth leader when I first found Jesus. It's exciting when you know God is leading and guiding you places. The next two terms are nutted out, and it's pretty solid, in-your-face teaching from James and 1 John. It's time for the Gappers to be challenged and time for them to go deeper. We reflected on the great bunch of young people we have the privilege of leading. And were saddened and confronted to think we might only see a few of them in Christian ministry (above and beyond "just" attending church) in 5 years time, unless something dramatic happens. We pray these next two terms will be a part of that "something dramatic". It's exciting - all the possibilities, opportunities and potential. Hoorah for God!
"I will bow down toward your holy temple and will praise your name for your love and your faithfulness, for you have exalted above all things your name and your word" Psalm 138:2
my poor sore, red eyes. they don't like awakeness, or computer screens, or winter... hoorah for murine clear eyes!
some people are so awesome. i love my friends. i miss them. sometimes i feel so disconnected and don't think i really have any friends. but then other times it's just so much fun and so real with them. i like moments of clarity.
brrrrrrrrrrr
chilly this morning isn't it. it doesn't motivate me in any way to get up at 6:25am. oh, that's not true. it's not raining, so i could get up to see the sunrise. still... that's not enough motivation for me.
July 07, 2004
LOR
for a top-notch film, i forgot how slow the ending of "The Return of the King" is ... tim and i watched it today coz i couldn't remember much of the detail of what happened throughout the film. and for all the actiony stuff, the ending is, dare i say it, slightly boring. it's just so stretched out and tedious. and i don't like aragorn's girly hairstyle from when they approach the black gate. but i do think it's an awesome film. i can't wait til 4-disc comes out. i can't decide which of the three is my favourite. maybe the first. nah, i think the second.
this is a rocking album - it's pretty funny. veggietales is fun, especially junior asparagus... so cute!
day off day off day off
and i'm about to go to the office. aaah, that's tops.
but then, rest of the day off!
July 06, 2004
here i am. at the office. at 6:50am. awaiting a trip. on a tuesday. strange.
i thought as i drove here this morning, "it's all good, it's so early, there won't be any traffic". but i forgot - it's only tuesday! people are going to work. that might make travel time to doonside interesting?! at least for some. oh well.
i hope that today is exciting and fun and not too hot or messy, unless it's fun hot and messy.
i have really dry eyes recently. i don't think they're getting good rest at night. i don't think i'm drinking enough water either.
i don't think i'm allowed to bring panadol today. i'm not sure.
i hope that young people give their lives to Jesus today. that would be mega exciting and worthwhile. even for one young person to step up.
i'm always scared of leading a small group. i hope i have strong assistant leaders. i don't know the people i'm leading with. i don't have any sydney north kiddies in my group. hope that isn't an issue!
July 05, 2004
one for the record books
i went through McDonald's drive thru for the first time ever tonight - and i did it twice! how exciting. i wanted it to stay one of those things i've never done, like watch any of the Star Wars movies, or any Harry Potter movies. but oh well. not that i like McDonald's very much, but I didn't know what else to have when i needed to grab something on the way to Campsie.
July 04, 2004
tax
i don't like filling in my tax return. i used to coz it was easy - bang bang bang. done.
but now it's all hard. i don't think the government expects there to be full time volunteers whose "income" comes solely from gifts. and so i don't understand what i have to do. and there's a million different people giving me all this different advice - ranging from technically not having to declare anything coz it's all "gifts" to having to declare absolutely everything anyone ever gave me, except for my birthday.
either way, i think i've figured it out with all the income and deductions and stuff, and i'm gonna have to pay the government around $500. thems the breaks. it's only fair to pay my way after all. and the Bible says about giving Caesar what is Caesar's, since his face was on the coin and all. I don't think John Howard's face is on any coins, but the little kangaroo and emu are.
as an aside, i'm so thankful for the people who support me financially. what a blessing. hoorah for generous souls, and a generous God who looks after us.
i've had an eyelash or something stuck under my top eyelid since 5:40pm yesterday. and boy, is it irritating.... aaaaargh!
faretheewell
bubye david. and no, last night wasn't too scary. you're all wonderful people. i hope david had fun. plenty of laughter. lots of stories. so much food. i hope jo kemp is feeling better today. poor jo.
July 03, 2004
ummmm..... so i'm a little scared of tonight. i'm not much of a go-out-for-dinner person, let alone a go-out-for-dinner-with-heaps-of-people-i-don't-really-know person. and it's silly writing this here coz you'll all read it, but i'm glad tim will be there. he's so much better than me in social situations. i just am so bad at conversation with people i don't know. i have been asked if it's that i'm actually "scared" though. what am i scared of? i don't know. i just am. i can't help it! but i want to go. because i want to say bye to david. i'm sure it'll be lots of fun. yep. it will. good.
1 John 1:7
But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, His Son, purifies us from every sin
it's the season of dreams at the moment. two nights ago i had to wake myself up to get out of a dream - i don't like those sort of dreams. i'm not sure where it all came from but anyway. i was in pennant hills with ryan, kaia, howie, tim and debbie, just walking down the street, near insomnia (but not, coz things are always different in dreams). kaia was asking all these random questions. and then there were all these sirens. a gagillion (well about 10) different cop vehicles whizzed passed in quite the hurry. i asked ryan what kind of cops they were coz i couldn't read the sides of the cars. federal police or something. then we all knew what had happened somehow - a big bomb had gone off in the city. we then decided to analyse the media, what they'd report. i remember richard wilkins reporting that a bomb had gone off in hornsby and we all laughed at him coz he was so wrong. so all that was well and good. i was happy to keep dreaming.
but then there was a car accident across the road, and all these business men got really badly burnt and were screaming, and this one guy was impaled on a street sign pole. and i woke myself up then, coz it was gross.
so i woke and was pretty fearful of what's going on in the world, and of the fact that i'm going to some places which are potential targets for angry people. so i prayed at 2:38am about it all. and then i went back to sleep. i am a little worried though that the next five weeks will hold plenty of bomb or terror related dreams. maybe even some tornados. most of my nightmares are about tornados. so that doesn't excite me much.
July 01, 2004
GAP
sometimes i feel so disconnected from stuff that's going on. especially when i've been sick. i have leader's meeting tonight. and it will be chunky. which is great. but i'm tired. and it sucks that gap has taken such a back seat recently. that's exactly what i didn't want. i want gap to stay a priority - not that it isn't a priority, but it keeps getting shoved down. and i think that's wrong. it's such an important ministry. and i love the young people we hang out with there. they're absolutely awesome guys and gals. i think having youth group on a friday night is hard, coz that's when everyone is tired and weary from their hectic weeks. hmmm... but i guess i'm like that no matter what day or night it is, so bah. it'll be fine!
giggles, bubble blowing & squeals
i got to play with this little angel today... i babysat her for a couple hours. we had all kinds of fun going to the park for lunch. phoebe is just the cutest little thing ever. so happy and bubbly. i'm sorry steve, of course she's not grumbly. she just gets grizzly - is that better?? hehe. but she didn't like debbie today. that was sad. but yay for time with phoebe.
and i'm not clucky, yeh nah