Finding the Joy in Everything

Wow. My weekend. I don't even know what to say. I had unending company; it was fantastic. We all cooked thanksgiving dishes and went over to the Hamline house (where the girls live) and had a gratitude feast there. Fellowship, food, and games started the night off well, and then we were invited to go out to Pastor Bob's house for dessert and MORE games. We got out there around 8pm... and didn't leave till about 2:30am. After touring town and seeing the tents camped outside of Best Buy, we realized a head start on black Friday shopping might be necessary. Thus, the ladies and myself made a pot of coffee and waited an hour back at the Hamline house until shopping time. Shopping was insane. I mean... INSANE. We could barely find a parking spot at Target, and when we entered, the aisles and circumference of the store made up for one... big... checkout line. We therefore had someone immediately just hop in line while the rest of us shopped, and rotated accordingly. This became our repeated tactic. I never use physical force, but I may or may not have shoved an old lady out of the way so I could grab the last deluxe plush Santa Clause teddy bear. Okay. That didn't happen. But if there ever was a deluxe plush Santa Clause teddy bear, I would push a THOUSAND old ladies out of the way to get the last one. Some of the ladies split and went home at around 7am while a couple of us went to the mall. The salesmen all greeted us with "Good morning!" and I think psychologically we were shocked, it felt like night and yet people were greeting us with good morning chants... I  finally got home at 9am and got in a few hours of sleep. I had to get up around 1ish to clean the apartment, workout, and cook because we were having a LOTR movie night at my apartment... And that concluded my birthday weekend (I believe I was sung "Happy Birthday" a good thousand times or so through the course of the week). After church I camped out at Starbucks, made slight progress on my homework, and now am at home, eating. It's terrible. I know I have less than three weeks to shed some good ol' lbs but as I reach for some fatty food I repeatedly tell myself "I'll start over TOMORROW..." and thus have put myself in an endless cycle. But for reals. I'll start over tomorrow. 


One last bit of news: it looks as though I have been brought out of Alaska for a reason... and it just may be permanent until I feel called elsewhere. I don't know how it is possible to have become content where I am (and I just so happen to be living in one of the most [in my opinion] uninhabitable places on earth), but I couldn't be happier. It made me realize it's not what surrounds me that brings me the "most" joy; and trusting God can bring about a surprisingly satisfying contentment not found by mere physical means. I'm praying about it, but I think I will be putting off graduation to December '12 instead of May and will be living it up here in Grand Forks, possibly taking a class that I need to graduate over the summer, but otherwise just wholeheartedly involving myself with the church and their ministry. This means I will most likely not be coming home again once I return after Christmas break. How I can spend a summer away from Alaska, only God knows, but we'll see what happens. Prayer. Prayer. And more prayer. And possibly some coffee. 

A few pictures from Thanksgiving, Bob's house, and black friday! Those were just a couple of the tents outside of Best Buy at 2:30am, and a mere portion of the line at Target. We were driving by and I was too embarrassed to take some SERIOUS pictures... 

Toodles!!!