Change of plans...sigh

Well, maybe I should be relieved because I think God has taught me something, but I won't be going to Michigan this weekend. It's sort of a long story, but I had a job opportunity there and I would have been able to work on my Masters (which is my goal) with the job because of the hours. It would have been a real ideal situation for me right now, however, I think God has something else in store for me. I don't know what this could be, but I'm excited about the possibilities and I know He hasn't forgotten me. I'm reading a book right now called "If you want to walk on water, you've got to get out of the boat." Maybe I just had a case of jumping out of the boat too soon. I trust that God is going to guide me, but sometimes I guess I think He needs my help. This is obviously not true, and I'm really glad it's not. If it was I think my life would be in a huge mess right now. So my post for now will be short, because I feel "spent", but as Derek said, "We have a big God" and I know that my big God will care for my needs, no matter how petty they may seem.

Just another manic Monday

My morning:
5:05 a.m.-Received a call from Shani asking if I was on my way to the gym. I looked at the clock and reminded him that it wasn't 6 yet.
5:07 a.m.-Went to the bathroom then fell back asleep (in my bed, not the bathroom)
5:50 a.m.-Got up, brushed my teeth, pulled my hair up, put on my t-shirt, adidas pants, and "N" shoes as the Cox's boys call them.
5:58 a.m.-Left the house and went to the gym
6:02 a.m.-Did some stretching then started lifting weights. Shani arrived a few minutes after this and told me he was looking at his TV for the time, and he hadn't ever set that clock back. After a few quick sets, went to run around the track until Shani was ready to leave.
6:46 a.m.-Left the gym, dropped off Shani, and went home to get ready for the day
After this, the times are a little hazy, but I did manage to shower, get dressed, talk to my Mom, hear the names of Julia Roberts twins, and eat breakfast. Right before I left, I went in the garage for a minute to look for something (I'm sitting here now, racking my brain, trying to figure out why I went in the garage). Anyway, I did notice while I was in there that my pants weren't zipped. So I'm glad I went in the garage. Who knows when I would have noticed this otherwise.

I think I'll go to lunch now, only because if I don't, I'll probably pass out soon. Oh, but in the middle of me writing this, I just agreed to go to Michigan this weekend. Pray for me. I truly need guidance in a big life decision.

Bear Trail afterthoughts

Tonight as I was in Waco, I was walking my dog on the Bear Trail. If you're not familiar, this is a trail that goes around Baylor's campus. My dog had just been in the car for 2 hours, so I figured she needed to stretch her legs and probably take care of other business. So off we went...I realized that I'm thankful for something else today. I hope it's ok that it's a day after Thanksgiving. While we were walking, we came upon another girl with her dog. As our dogs approached each other, they did what every dog does--put their noses right in each others butts. That's the moment I realized that I'm thankful God doesn't have such a big sense of humor that he thought it'd be funny to make humans do this to in order to "get to know each other". So there you have it...Everyone can come up with AT LEAST one thing a day they're thankful for. I just did and it wasn't even that hard. We also went past a lady that was sweating profusely. I wish I had that kind of stamina. She asked me when I was going back to school. Now, I could have said, "how did you know I was even thinking about going back"? But, I know she just assumed I was a Baylor student. I figured it was easier to just tell her when, instead of explaining that I wasn't a student and actually just here with my sister for the night. Anyhow, she said, "I think you might be the only one here." and then she went on running. Made me wonder if she was going to double back and kill me, but that was just a fleeting thought. Hope everyone had an excellent Thanksgiving. I'm out to enjoy the metropolis of Waco, Texas.

44 degrees and I'm loving it

Man, I couldn't ask for better weather. I love the cold weather. Of course some people wouldn't call 44 degrees cold, but hey, I'm in Texas and this is good for us. I'm really not properly dressed for this new weather change though. I'm wearing my beach-walkers as Zelda, my secretary, calls them (flip flops, if you didn't figure it out) but I just can't get out of that habit. I would go barefoot if they'd let me. Oh, and who is shocked I have a secretary? Yeah, me too. I don't have to file anything if I don't want to. Oh, but she's really great and so are the student workers in our office too. I'm only working for about another 20 minutes so that's really nice. I went out walking on campus earlier because I had to help a guy in the student mailroom, but I was glad because it gave me an excuse to enjoy the outdoors. It's so weird to walk out on campus with no students. I think I would be depressed if I was here everyday with it this dead. I did stop by the admissions office though and visit Stephanie and B-rad. Of course Brad called me an idiot, but I'm sure he didn't mean it. :-P
When I get off work I get to go help Chelle move her stuff out of her apartment. My brother is going so I plan on making him carry the heavy stuff. He's going to make a great husband one day because my sister and I have trained him well. His future wife better appreciate it!!
Well, it's almost time to get off so I'll just leave you with a tip for Thanksgiving on behalf of good 'ole Jack Handy:
If you're at Thanksgiving dinner, but you don't like the stuffing or the cranberry sauce or anything else, just pretend like you're eating it, but instead, put it all in your lap and form it into a big mushy ball. Then, later, when you're out back having cigars with the boys, let out a big fake cough and throw the ball to the ground. Then say, "Boy, these are good cigars!"

Same old jokes and Thanksgiving memories

As I'm sitting here at my desk, drinking from my green nalgene bottle, I can't help but wonder if that guy thinks he's funny. Ok, so you ask, "what guy"? or maybe you think, "jenn needs help." Either way, I'll tell you about the guy. There is a guy in my office, and everytime he sees my green nalgene bottle, he tells me of how it looks like I'm drinking urine and that it reminds him of a bottle he had to use in the hospital. Yes, I'll admit the first time he said this, I sort of laughed, mostly to amuse him, but after the 20th time, it has gotten very old. Now I know, I'm pretty jaded anyway and usually find some way to be cynical about a situation, but come on...get a new joke! And if you don't have anything to say, then just don't say it. You aren't obligated to speak to me just because I walk to the water cooler to fill up my nalgene. Ok, there is my one rant for the day. I'm sure I'll have more, but I won't be at the computer so you're lucky you won't have to hear it.
This is a good week though...It's the week of Thanksgiving. I can think of many things I'm thankful for and for your enjoyment, I'll make a list:

1. My family, including but not limited to: Dad, Mom, Lindsey, Cory, Ine (foreign exchange student) and of course Annabelle (just because she's a dog, doesn't mean she isn't family) Maybe I should feel bad for leaving Franklin and Mary Jane, the other pets, off this list, but I don't think they'll be reading it.
2. My friends--especially Michelle and Jessica. I'm very glad Jessica is getting to spend the week here since she's living so far away now. And just because I didn't list your name here, doesn't mean I don't love you deeply and truly value our friendship .
3. Getting off work at noon on Wednesday-This is a very good thing. I'm very glad educational institutions close down for major holidays.
4. My uneaten orange sitting on my desk. You may wonder why I'm thankful for this, but I'm sort of hungry so I'm glad I have it.
5. And I've saved the best for last: My beautiful Savior, Jesus Christ. He continues to renew me daily and is always forgiving for my many faults. I know that without Him I am nothing and for this I am very grateful.

Obviously there are many things left off this list, but those are just a few that I felt like highlighting today.

I am looking forward to the week off though. My sister will be home tomorrow and her boyfriend is coming in on the weekend. That will be fun. For Thanksgiving day my mom's family will all be at our house. There will be about 30 of us, and I'll be at the kids table even though I'm 25. Last thanksgiving my sister and I sat in her room and ate while watching TV. My uncle came in and asked "What are you guys watching"? to which we both replied in unison "Pimp my Ride". Sadly, this is my only recollection of my Thanksgiving of 2003.

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving this year, and I hope you don't find yourself watching Pimp my Ride, but instead enjoying a stroll around the block with family and friends. Oh, or playing poker, because we've decided that is going to be a new Thanksgiving tradition thanks to Michelle. She's always got good ideas.

Just another rainy Wednesday

Weird question of the day (asked by an 8th grade boy): If you get in a fight and kill someone, then have to go to jail, when you get out of jail, will all your stuff still be in the dorm and you can move back in? Why are these kids thinking of things like this? I guess for those of you that don't know, I should explain that I work in the dorms, or residence halls to be more p.c., at a junior college. Occasionally we have a group of middle school kids come to tour our campus, and they usually want to see the dorms too. Some people might think this is fun, I however think it is REALLY FUN! I have always heard the strangest questions from this age group. They also don't understand how 2 people can live in the tiny rooms. Oh, and can we get a satellite dish for our room? We have to watch MTV and BET! What? You can't have girls in your room? Why not? And just so you know, these are usually the gifted and talented kids!

Anyway, other than this, my day has been pretty uneventful. I tried to do a little Christmas shopping online, but I got side tracked looking at the grilled cheese sandwiches that look like virgin mary on Ebay. One guy promises to make your grilled cheese within 24 hours of payment. He even states that he does this with a pumpkin carving kit and his george foreman grill. Guess the price...Yes, it's $87,100. So congratulations to ebay user nastyjack_bmore for having the high bid for now. Now the best one, and the one that gained so much attention, is the grilled cheese that this guy supposedly made 10 years ago and when he took a bite, he looked at it and saw the Virgin Mary herself looking right at him. He immediately sealed it in a plastic container. He says there were no steps taken to preserve the item, but it has remained mold free. He also believes that his house has been blessed because of this item. In fact, he gives the sandwich(i.e. Virgin Mary)the credit for his $70,000 winnings from a local casino. If you're interested in bidding, the current price is $69,107.69. It started out at only $3,000. What a deal! I think I might be on the wrong career path.


So you ask, what is my advice for the day? Stay off ebay. Once you start searching, you'll never stop. There are always more "treasures" to find that are usually a hoax, but of course fun to laugh at. Oh, and don't forget to go bid on Britney Spears used gum that I found...It's the real thing, I promise!

I want to dance...

Some of you know this is my 2nd attempt to start an online journal, or blog. If you want to see my first failed attempt, go to http://www.livejournal.com/users/jennshep0704 This was mostly unsuccessful because I started it towards the end of a semester and when summer came, I didn't want to spend my free time typing. This drove me to my composition book that I still have with me where ever I go, but after reading several of my friend's blogspots, I thought, "Man, I should try and do that again." This was also decided when I realized I really do have a lot of free time at the office. I guess that's fine for most people, but I get stir crazy so I'm going to try and be consistent and write in this at least once a week. I know you're all very excited now! Of course, this first post won't be very long...You'll have plenty to read from my aforementioned link. Stay tuned for more exciting news from the world of Jenn. I promise, it can only get better from here! Like my dad always said, "Don't give 'em the good stuff first or they'll always expect something more next time." Ok, my dad never said that, but someone's dad did I'm sure...