Pattie's Place

Random Ramblings

I haven't written many blogs about many things, so please don't keel over from shock when you see that I've posted here! I come over occasionally to update my reading challenge post, but that's about it.

I have been wrapped up in taking care of my family, reading, working, and several friends who are dealing with various and sundry issues. I am happy to be of service, to listen and love my friends from anear and afar...but it also uses up any creative energy I have in me to do that. And that is okay, really. My spiritual gifts run along the lines of service and mercy.

I've begun to wonder if writing is really my calling, or just something fun I do sometimes.

What did you do in 2007 that you've never done before?   
I was a short-term single mom while my hubby was deployed to Iraq.
I drove by myself from North Dakota to Independence, Missouri, twice; to South Dakota once.
I rode an Amtrak train from our town to the Twin Cities.

Did you keep your New Years' resolutions and will you make more for next year?
I kept several, and made progress on others. Yes, I will make new resolutions for 2008. It’s a tradition of mine!

Did anyone close to you give birth? 
Several gals on W@H did!

Did anyone close to you die?
Yes.

What countries did you visit? 
None this year.

What would you like to have in 2008 that you lacked in 2007?
More of God, more writing, more courage.

What date from 2007 will remain etched in your memory and why? 
There are three: May 26, June 7, and October 27.

What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Surviving Chaplain Hubby’s deployment—our first.

What was your biggest failure?
Not being perfect.

Did you suffer illness or injury?
It’s been another healthy year for me, praise God.

What was the best thing you bought?
My new digital camera.

Where did most of your money go?
Dance and gymnastics lessons and costumes for the girls.
Gasoline & hotels for all the road trips!
Airline tix for Roma’s wedding.
Books, for which I am compensating by selling off other books in a never-ending cycle.

What did you get really, really, really excited about? 
Chaplain Hubby’s piece accepted for publication! His safe return from Iraq.
 
What song will always remind you of 2007? 
Blessed Be the Name by Matt Redman.

Compared to this time last year are you:
a. Happier or sadder? Happier in some things, sadder in others.
b. Thinner or fatter?  About the same; I keep gaining and losing the same five pounds in a frustrating, never-ending cycle! 
c. Richer or poorer? Poorer in savings since we paid off some things, but richer in the knowledge our debts are fewer.

What do you wish you'd done more of?
Writing. Listening. Walking.

What do you wish you'd done less of?
Stressing out and complaining.

How will you spend Christmas?
This year we visited family in Minnesota.

Did you fall in love in 2007?
Did I fall? No. Did I stay? Yes.

What was your favorite TV show?
Heroes, Monk, Grey’s Anatomy, House.

What was the best book you read?
Tough call. I read 148 this year! The two excellent book series I read were J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series and the first six of Neta Jackson’s Yada Yada Prayer Group series (book 7 is on the TBR list for 2008).

What was your greatest musical discovery of 2007?
Job Christenson.

What did you want and get?
A new digital camera.

What did you want and not get? 
To be published.

What was your favorite film this year? 
I chose two: Enchanted and Freedom Writers

What did you do on your birthday? 
Got a job! Went out for dinner.

What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Being published and actually finishing some of the projects that remain unfinished, even after 18 months’ time.

How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2007?
Jeans, sweaters, capris, t-shirts, and lately, sweats!

What kept you sane? 
JOURNALING and coffee! Chocolate, talking with friends old and new.

Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Colin Firth!!! (*drool*) as always, and Patrick Dempsey in Enchanted!

What political issue stirred you the most?
C’mon, border state residents…you’ve known about the passport requirement for what, two or three YEARS? and you are just now thinking about applying for one? Good grief.

Who did you miss? 
Nattie, both when she was sick and I couldn’t talk to her, and after she went Home and I couldn’t talk to her.

Who was the best new person you met? 
The ladies at the book club I joined.

Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2007.
God is always with me, loves me, and takes care of me, even when I do not cooperate with Him. J

Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.

 

Blessed Be Your Name

by Matt Redman

- - -

Blessed Be Your Name
In the land that is plentiful 
Where Your streams of abundance flow
Blessed be Your name

Blessed Be Your name
When I'm found in the desert place
Though I walk through the wilderness
Blessed Be Your name

Every blessing You pour out 
I'll turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in, Lord
Still I will say

Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name

Blessed be Your name
When the sun's shining down on me
When the world's 'all as it should be'
Blessed be Your name

Blessed be Your name
On the road marked with suffering 
Though there's pain in the offering 
Blessed be Your name

Every blessing You pour out 
I'll turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in, Lord
Still I will say

Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name

Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name

You give and take away
You give and take away
My heart will choose to say
Lord, blessed be Your name

Like the proverbial headless chicken

I think the title speaks for itself!

Working 20-25 hrs. a week when I'm used to being home and having a leisurely schedule, sure has been an adjustment for me. Don't get me wrong, I like my job a lot . . . but even though it is only part time, it's still been an adjustment for me to get organized enough to keep my family's schedule running smoothly; getting all of my tasks completed has been a challenge I have yet to accomplish or conquer.

I had a great day at work. I had an extra workout because in addition to my own half-completed workout, I also had one as I signed up my first member! In our club, that means I get a tiny little financial bonus as well, plus a compliment from my manager. She loves me. And even though I feel incompetent at some things, at work I am able to give what I have, and it's well-received. Any little thing I do to help keep the desk organized is appreciated. Any little smile I give a member is returned. Little things matter. And for once, it's visibly evident that they do.

I'm looking at giving up a few things online, since I have been so busy anyway. I haven't been asked to contribute to Armchair Interviews in a long time--I think I've been dropped. I mean, my reviews are still there last time I checked, but they aren't approaching me to do more reviews. I've turned down several book blog tours, although I've kept some of my favorite publishers and authors on my list. I've all but given up on some reading challenges as well. It's just become too much, and I'd rather do a few things well than everything shoddily.

Sending love and hugs to my few but faithful readers! Have a great day!

Friday Felicities

 

 

 

1. coffee
2. my hubby coming home today
3. the Jeep works, even when the van is leaking some kind of something all over the garage floor
4. my W@H girls
5. my cell phone
6. my friends
7. having enough
8. chocolate
9. a plethora of books with which I'm whelmed
10. the Lord Jesus!

Time Out Thursday

or is it TOT! LOL

Becky has a new meme for us, to take time out for ourselves on Thursdays.

I think it's a great reminder that we need to take time out of our busy mom schedules and do something good for us.

What is my TOT for today? Well, the fact that I slept late and am still in my pj's right now says that I took advantage of a no-school day to be kind to my body and take care of myself!

I will have about 1/2 hour tonight to wander around and browse in the Christian bookstore across from my daughters' dance studio, before picking her up from dance. That will be my indulgence. I won't buy any books, but I will add to my birthday book wish list!

AG Giveaway

Amy Grant has a new book out , and I can't wait to read it! Here is the link to Becky's blog so you can sign up to win a copy!

I did, but because she's using a random number generator to choose her winner, I probably won't win (because those things HATE me--I sometimes win drawings, but not from random number chooser programs...heh)...but that means YOU have a better chance of doing so!

Life is wonderful

My Chaplain Hubby is home!!!

I need a plan

I need a plan. A writing plan. To get a novel written to submit to the ACFW Genesis contest. Or to at least have a paid critique before next September 2008's ACFW writing conference.

To that end, I might still join National Novel Writing Month, but I'm not sure. It is a good goal, 50,000 words, but I've failed 3 times in the past. I'm horrible with failure.

Maybe I'm only meant to be a reader, not a writer.

True Confession Time

Just in the small boxes I've had stashed under my craft  (used to be a card) table in the living room, and the one I inadvertently found under the stairs today, I counted 88 unread books.

That is not counting quite a few others on my bookshelf, which is double-stacked.

Wow.

"It's just a bird stuck to your head kinda day."

I'll give you points if you can tell me the movie that line is from. Bonus points if you can tell me which actor said it, and super bonus to tell me to whom he/she said it!

OK. So.

After so many other things going awry (near-flat tire on van, loud/probably exhaust trouble with jeep, and worries about replacing siding on our townhouse), we found a dead bird yesterday afternoon on the roof overhang above the porch/livingroom window that hangs just below my oldest daughter's window.

A. Dead. Bird.

WHY??????????????????????

*sigh*

Can I just say, I WANT MY HUSBAND BACK!!!!

So, being enterprising me without a ladder, I was trying to think of how to fix this. I thought, "all I need to do is remove the screen in the bedroom window, and poke the dead bird carcass down with a broom handle or something."

So.

I did.

It fell.

Notice the lovely bee eating the neck off the bird? Yeah. I had to fend it off to pick up the dead thing.

So I did.

Birdie, sans buzzing living neck ornament, is now in the dumpster.

And my daughter's window is now without a shade (broke it) and a screen (can't figure out how to get it back in the grooves).

Did I mention I want my husband back home NOW???

Heroes

I will freely admit I began watching HEROES because one of the stars is my cousin. We aren't close, but when we see each other, it's always good to talk, and there is always something to talk about!

I have always watched his shows (not all of his movies, though, but he forgives me for that!), and have been so very proud to watch his career blossom over the past ten years (especially since Gilmore Girls, in particular). I still remember taping his one-line guest role on Fresh Prince to my classroom and playing it proudly for all my students. In another school, his Super Bowl commercial for Mountain Dew (the one where he reaches into the cheetah's mouth to get his can of Dew) played every day for weeks on Channel One News. And then there was Gilmore Girls, a show I really enjoyed when I caught it during the first season, but grew to love with him on it (and deal with all the squealing girls in my last years teaching high school), and I stuck with it through its last awful season, even though Milo had moved on to Heroes.

I bought Season One on DVD, and I've been watching episodes blissfully missing their commercials, back to back, and the story comes back to me as I watch. I am catching all those "aha" moments, all the reveals that are easier to spot when you know the end of the story. And I marvel at my cousin's talent, which was always there, but now he has the opportunity to play a really good man (not a teen anymore, thank goodness! Both of us are blessed with young-looking genes, as are all of us cousins on that side of the family. Grandma W. takes full credit ("You're damn right it's all from me!"). A good man in a bad situation, where he has the opportunity to make a difference with each new power he absorbs.

May we all choose to make a difference with what we've been given.

Welcome to Pattie's Place

This is my first post on this blog. Welcome to Pattie's Place!