february in review

(originally posted on my blog at the original groupee.com social networking site.)

i used to be in the pattern of posting "month-in-review" blogs, but i fell away from it. life has changed so dramatically since the beginning of february, i can't help but post.

* began Lent, giving up eating out, determining to eat from our home (groceries), being better stewards of our resources, and taking better care of our temples.
* superbowl party at kids church.
* welcomed my long-distance friend, steven, to the Groupee team.
* saw the church come to financial crisis, resulting in major cutbacks.
* accepted a job offer at the church to fill essentially 4 positions in one.
* gave notice at Groupee, after more than 7 1/2 years.
* saw God's faithfulness as He provided for the big and little things - like health insurance and a second vehicle.
* celebrated valentine's day.
* went to a huskies game with mom.
* already late to apply for our passports, we realized we'd lost our birth certificates, had to order new ones.
* applied for our passports.
* filmed my last (...or is it?) paranormal office episode.
* noted spiritual growth in myself as the turmoil of the church brought me to praying that God's will would be done, instead of a more selfish prayer like "God give me this job". thank you Lord for spiritual growth!!
* today's leap year!

whirlwind! next month promises to be just as exciting...

25 Things: 19. Celebrate Lent.

(originally posted on my blog at the original groupee.com social networking site.)

when i set out to celebrate lent, it was to sacrifice something that might give me a greater understanding of Jesus' 40-day fasting experience in the wilderness, to prepare my heart for the Good News of Easter, to celebrate life after death.

what i didn't know was that lent would be a life-changing period of time for me.

when i felt prompted to give up eating out, i thought at first that it was just me thinking, that it was too hard, that i couldn't do it, that matt wouldn't agree to it. but i couldn't really let go of the idea. matt was opposed at first, but then had a change of heart. together, we agreed to sacrifice eating out. Jesus spoke of cutting off the appendage that causes you to sin, and that was what we were doing, as eating out has always been an area of sin for us - 1. leading to gluttony, 2. a poor use of our resources.

so we wanted to take better care of our temples (bodies) and be better stewards of our finances.

we noticed the financial savings almost immediately. balancing the checkbook was easier to do, because there were substantially fewer receipts. what we didn't realize was that God was actually preparing us to live within our means in such a fashion that our means would lessen, and we would still continue to live comfortably within them.

then there was turmoil at the church. financial crisis happened, my paycheck - which i should've received the day before lent began - was held a week, and the church was facing a $20,000 deficit. giving was down 25% and expenses were up. i knew that our elders had decided to perform our annual reviews (instead of just Don) this year, so as to make sure we were in the "leanest, meanest shape" we could be in when we move to the campus, this fall. i knew some things in the office were inefficient. i reminded Don that i was willing to do office work.

then the Spirit told me "march 1st". i didn't really understand what that meant. was it just my own selfishness wanting to get out of Groupee before we packed up and moved locations in march? or was God telling me something. i prayed. i pondered. i asked for clarification. He said "get your affairs in order". so i started tying up loose ends, not really knowing what else might happen.

on february 10th - 4 days after lent began - Don asked for my resume. i emailed it to him, and asked a week later for an update. he worked very hard to play things down, so i would not get my hopes up. i was told there was a 60% chance that they'd be making changes, and a 50% chance that it would even be me that they hired. but a week and a half later, he asked me to meet with him so he could make me an offer.

the church has nearly matched my salary at groupee - more than i expected. however, my overall take-home pay will still be less, as i will be losing the extra $525/month from the church to which we've grown accustomed. but through this lenten season, i have seen that we are capable of living within lesser means that we currently do. we trusted God in the big things, and we will trust Him in the little things too.

God's blessing, of course, didn't stop there. one of our biggest concerns was finding a second car, now that we'd be driving opposite directions to get to our respective workplaces. saturday, we stopped by the bank to talk about loan options, then did a little car shopping, knowing we were shooting for $6k. we didn't find anything we loved, but got a good idea of what we wanted. sunday, matt found his dream truck online in marysville. new enough that the bank would finance it, 83k miles, and only $6k. i felt in my heart that *this* was the truck we would buy. we decided we could run up and look at it that afternoon, so we scrambled to get driving directions and such online. first the internet connection wouldn't work, then the computer froze, then the connection wouldn't work again. had we not encountered these problems, we'd have been out the door 20 minutes earlier.

then my dad called. he told me that grama & marv were planning to sell their 3rd car, and they wanted to sell it to us for $1. all at once, i realized how God was providing for us, and how those earlier circumstances that seemed to delay us only prevented us from making the wrong decision. we had trusted God in the big things, He came through. we trusted Him in the littler things, He came through.

matt was understandably disappointed that he wouldn't be getting a truck right away, but knowing that the buick was God's provision, i persisted. this car will allow us to take our time getting a truck, make sure we get the right one, and hold out for exactly what he wants.

my two biggest concerns - my job and the need for a second vehicle - were taken care of, just like *that*. "all things work together for the good of those who love Him." this verse is usually applied to unfortunate situations, to show the silver lining, that God is working. but today, i see this as God allowing difficult circumstances to be a positive change in my life.

before lent is over, i will be starting a new job, driving a new car, and focusing all of my life on a mission that my heart has been in for the last 14 months. part of me wonders if any of this would have happened if we hadn't chosen to sacrifice something so dear to us for lent. only God knows.

tech confessions.

(originally posted on my blog at the original groupee.com social networking site.)

this morning, i was writing something out (by hand), and as i wrote a word i doubted my spelling of it... so i glanced back at the completed word, waiting for the little red spell-check squiggle to tell me if it was spelled incorrectly...

the great quilt conservation project

(originally posted on my blog at the original groupee.com social networking site.)

years ago, when my great-grandmother passed away, (1991) my family let me choose something from her estate by which to remember her. i chose this quilt.

since i moved out on my own (2001), this quilt has been in loyal service: folded at the foot of my bed, slung over the back of the couch, and used for snuggling. even the cats have enjoyed it's warmth. but because it is so very loved, it's beginning to show signs of it's age. a few years ago, i tried putting it "away", so it would last - but what's the point in storing something if you can't appreciate it? i brought it back out, and it continues to be appreciated daily.

but i know that it won't last much longer. already the edges are tearing off, and some of the individual pieces have holes worn into them. it makes me sad to think that this piece of my family won't be keeping me warm forever.

so begins the great quilt conservation project. rather than "preserving" it, which implies preparing it for storage so that it will last, i'm choosing to "conserve" it - keeping it in use, even if it takes a different form. april and i did a little brainstorming this morning, and the ideas are percolating. i have more ideas than i do fabric, of course - so i have a little decision-making to do...

anticipating one very disappointed easter bunny...

(originally posted on my blog at the original groupee.com social networking site.)

just got off the phone with gina. at a tumultuous staff meeting this morning, it was decided that we do not have the budget for easter this year. our fabulous idea for an outreach is being shelved (we'll lose the $75 deposit i placed to hold the date after it was originally approved), and we'll have to do easter cost-free this year.

the news is that giving is down 25%, and expenses have gone up. there is literally no money to be had. we should've known that it would get harder before it got easier... maybe we did, and i was just in denial.

while disappointed on the surface, deep in the bottom of my heart, i feel a stirring, perhaps God whispering. perhaps this is an opportunity to highlight the true meaning of Easter, without the distraction of bunnies and eggs and chocolate. perhaps this is God calling us to a more focused celebration. "do this in remembrance of Me," i feel in my heart. Lord, what does that mean here?

and yet, the hardest part awaits: gently letting down our easter bunny.

cat CSI

(originally posted on my blog at the original groupee.com social networking site.)

an unfortunate event took place at our house this morning... immediately, there were only two suspects, no dependable witnesses. i was in my studio, matt in the living room, when we both heard the unmistakable sound of a half-full coffee cup falling from the counter to the linoleum floor.

a discussion of suspects, alibis, and motives ensued. matt stated that he had watched fugue skitter from the kitchen, (have you ever seen a 15lb cat skitter? it's a sight.) but he had an alibi - he had been with me in my studio just moments before. i was pretty confident there was not enough time for said 15lb cat to maneuver his way onto the kitchen counter and then frame a coffee cup for suicide, which left only one other suspect. and boy, did she look guilty. (and a little shell-shocked.) motive? she'd been picketing for better dining selections all morning, and had already been rummaging in the kitchen garbage. and if there's one thing i've learned from watching tv crime-fighting shows, it's that the guilty party always returns to the scene of the crime.

luckily, the coffee cup sustained no injuries. but like many victims, i believe our suspect has intimidated it into not talking. there is no word if charges will be pressed at this time.

and i watch too much tv.

january in review

* celebrated my 25th birthday.
* wired the dollhouse for electricity. (25 Things)
* picked up jewelry-making again.
* made awesome jewelry hanger/organizer.
* toured preschool at ECA and brainstormed for adding a preschool to Creekside.
* babysat betty, the cutest little toddler (under 2).
* was asked to perform heather's wedding in july.
* had french food at cafe de paris, in edmonds. (25 Things)
* ate a cupcake named kate. (25 Things)

25 Things: 7. Wire the dollhouse for electricity.

(originally posted on my blog at the original groupee.com social networking site.)

this was quite the little adventure... quite simple, just tedious.
flat wire tape, engineered specifically for dollhouses, is run through the house, connected at joints by little brass nails, which conduct the electricity into the intersecting wire. pretty neat. the hardest part (aside from handling the teeeeeny tiny brads) was deciding where all my lighting would go and wiring accordingly. it all felt so permanent (even though it's not, really).

the photo shows the initial test of the first run of wire - just to make sure the junction splice is properly set. the real trick is in testing each additional run after you connect it, to make sure that you set the nails properly, and that electricity is still flowing. there was some serious cheering going on when i tested the final run in the attic with success! Smiler

(now i just have to buy and install lighting. eek.)

a new fascination

(originally posted on my blog at the original groupee.com social networking site.)

i've discovered a new fascination: pinhole photography.

possibly the least complicated form of photography there is: a simple "camera" - usually a homemade box - with no lens and only a tiny hole in the front (hence the name) exposes one frame of film for several seconds, resulting in a dreamily soft image.

i always liked the look, but it's hard to find a lab that will process single frames of film, so i've never tried it. recently, i heard of a method for the dslr: drill a hole in the body cap, put the cap on the camera (no lens, of course), do some math to figure out the exposure time (or skip the math and just mess with the shutter speed until you like it, like i did), and shoot!

here are my two favorite takes from last night's experiment - can't decide which i like best. darned cat kept moving in the middle of each 30 second exposure... both have been minimally processed - noise filter to smooth some excessive noise, and a vignetting to add to that old-timey look. next, i'm venturing outside to try it in better light. Smiler

birthday in review

(originally posted on my blog at the original groupee.com social networking site.)

with a little forethought, i managed to celebrate my birthday every day from sunday - 1/6 through friday - 1/11 (albeit lightly, on some days). pretty clever, if i do say so myself. unfortunately, it seems old age has set in, because i can't for the life of me remember what i did monday or wednesday of that week... ah well - here's the rest of it for posterity's sake.

thursday, 3rd:
perhaps we started a little early, but it was all that would work with our schedules. visited matt's mom & sister for dinner & cake. discovered that my age no longer fits into 1 box of birthday candles, as my mother-in-law rummaged to find the 25th birthday candle.

sunday, 6th:
part 1: determined to locate the highly-sought-after cupkate, allie and i ventured into ballard to ruin our appetites and a do a little window shopping. no cupkates, had lavendar instead. bought a really fabulous hat.

part 2: dinner with family at a fabulous new thai place. we celebrated three birthdays - mom, aunt jodee and i. first time that's happened, i think. opened our presents together, blew out candles together, oohed and aahed over eachother's gifts. savoring a few of the last hours of jodee's visit, enjoying her company.

tuesday, 8th:
part 1: day off from work. met denise at the delicious new papersource in bellevue. went home and played in my studio. resisted the urge to straighten, tidy or clean anything.

part 2: picked matt up from work, who greeted me with starbucks and dark pink roses. yum. went to dinner at the melting pot, which is an event in itself. so fun.

thursday, 10th:
gift from dad arrived, for which i had been practically stalking the fedex guy. i was elated to find a new mobile hard drive, which will allow me to download photos directly from my memory cards for storage, without the use of my computer. great for traveling, which it seems i'll be doing a bit of this year.

friday, 11th:
there was this great restaurant in seattle - where i'd never had anything other than dessert, because it was served in the form of a 27 foot dessert buffet. i hadn't been there in a couple of years, but i drove by it a few months ago and thought "we should do that sometime". so i decided to have a birthday party with my friends there. made the invitations, had a 100% rsvp rate, and i was totally excited. due to a long day, i forgot to make a reservation for the 11 of us, so i was scrambling at 7:15 to find the phone number. our friends had just arrived to carpool down there, and we were still scarfing dinner. they called the make the reservation - but the line was disconnected. a little more research showed that this restaurant had closed, and was replaced by a restaurant that definitely did *not* have a 27 foot dessert buffet. bummer.

it took a few minutes to formulate the backup plan. my house was not clean enough for serious company, so we bumped the start time to 8:30, and called the guestlist. matt & mike were sent to hunt & gather (dessert) while allie, lani and i tidied, cleaned and decorated. white christmas lights were hung, miscellaneous ribbons were hung, candles were lit, coffee was made. we pulled it off. the rest of the party arrived just as the mighty hunters returned. the boys went out of their way to bring a true dessert buffet - fruit tart, 2 flavors of ice cream, frosted brownies, cheesecake sampler, tiramisu, a box of cupkates (at last!) from cupcake royale, and a special little chocolate "coffee cup" filled with mousse and decorated to look like a cappucino. our friends showed up with yet more dessert, and even after all 11 of us had had our fill, each went home with a box of leftovers. we were up late playing games, talking, laughing, taking pictures. in all honesty, plan B was better than plan A would've been, and my friends made me feel truly special.