Good morning!

I woke up early this morning so I wouldn't sleep in (until 11:30 like yesterday), and usually start my morning with coffee and the previous night's episodes of the Daily Show and the Colbert Report. Oh, yes. I'm such an adult.. beginning my day with hot, black coffee at 6 am and watching the news.

Wait. I drink my coffee with lots of creamer, I didn't wake until 8:45, and I watch pseudo-news. My mistake.

Neither of the shows are on Hulu yet, so I seem to have woken up for nothing. There was an ad for a new show called Mental, so I turned that on to its pilot to see what it is like. So far, I don't really have much of an opinion, but there was a very, very interesting monologue that Dr. Jack Gallagher, new "boss" to the hospital performs at his first staff meeting.

I've been thinking about the Church lately, and what it means to have church on an ongoing basis. Of course, I enjoy the hours-long conversations both in order to get to know others and to discuss different topics within Christianity, the worship and fellowship; but I've been wrestling with as if it is adequate. Yes, it is adequate for ME; me, personally, benefits greatly from this.. to a point. We have to, as Jesus did, dine with others who are not at all like us. In this, I believe we will encounter incredible intelligences and thoughts on our own behavior and the works of Jesus. In that, our conversations could be so much more interesting, even than they are now.

This isn't to say that every meeting of the Church should be with others, outside of our comfort zone. Or maybe it is. I'm sure it has to come from a gradual move to that. Maybe not. For me, it seems to be about comfort, which is.. null and void, in my opinion.

Back to the monologue. I think it fit very well.

Dr. Jack Gallagher, to his new staff at his first staff meeting.
"First staff meeting. Hot coffee, juice, jelly doughnuts. The problem is we're in here, and they're out there."
"Who's out there?"
"Patients. See gang, I'm thinking this whole secret society thing isn't the best way to go. So, starting today, I've invited a few of the patients to sit in."
"You want us to discuss diagnoses and treatment in front of the patients?"
"Bang on! There's a tendency, and I'm as guilty as anyone, to wall ourselves off from the people we're here to help. But it's really more their hospital than ours. We work for them. They have the right to be involved in their own recovery."
"But we're MDs, not social workers."
"MD! Medical doctors, not medical deity. It's their heads."

I will update this soon.

Perhaps tomorrow, because I know you all are dying for something new to read ;)

I ran a lot today, and my eyes are very tired. I'll go to sleep now, and wake up refreshed and ready to write.

The Boring Continues

Wesley would hate me for this title, since I'm currently watching The West Wing.

But let me explain. I have caught up on The Office (all that are on Hulu), watched all the Gilmore Girls that are online (perhaps numerous times), and now I'm finally watching The West Wing, which is something Wesley has been telling me to do for years.

I am so ready to have a job. And I'm so tired of that sentence.

Today, I finally slept past ten. This is the first time since I've been here. Not because I didn't want to, but because I physically couldn't sleep past eight.

Despite my severe boredom and pending bankruptcy (maybe a little overexaggerated), I don't want to leave... I'm already beginning to try to find a way for myself to stay, though right now it looks like I would come back next Spring. Here's a pseudo-plan: Spend a fantastic summer here, go back to UTT to finish and graduate, then return here for an internship and some more classes (online, I hope) at UCLA. That'd be sweet, and I have nothing else to do.

I don't want to be shoved into a job at 21.5 years old, just because I've graduated. I want to experience things I can't later. So why not? Why not just do something? I did by moving here, but I don't want this to be my only adventure.

Back to today. I want to cut my hair, but I need a place to go. Umm, I'll probably go run in a few. I also would like a bike. The one I am using now is for a 14 year old boy, so obviously it doesn't fit me too well.

Adios for the morning.

Day One (Eleven)

www.wime2009.wordpress.com

Wesley, Kristen, and everyone else left yesterday morning for Paris, then Amman, Jordan. It is 10:10 pm there, so a ten hour time difference. It was a little sad to see them go, but I know they're going to have a wonderful time, and it's definitely going to be the experience of a lifetime.

Kris, Sarah, and I are sitting at the duplex, just kind of relaxing. I may go run again today, maybe sit by the beach and read or something.

We spent the day down on State Street yesterday, after the group left for LAX. We went to the Apple Store, which had its grand opening, and got a (few) t-shirt(s). Technically it's one per person, but we found a way around that. Then we just kind of walked around, and I got an interview at Gap tomorrow, and also turned in that application at Starbucks. I slept for the most part of the day after that, and then Sarah's friends Ashlee and Stephen (?) came over and we just hung out for the night.

So, I was looking on CNN this morning, and saw the article about Racing the Planet Limited, which stages 150-mile footraces across crazy terrains. This one is in Namibia, and it starts today. Each person must bring with them everything they'll need for the six days, and it costs $3,100 to enter. It looks absolutely nuts, but incredible, and probably the highlight of one's life. I would do that, if I could get into shape. That would take years and years, but perhaps I'll try..

An Even Newer Adventure

I'm currently not feeling like I thought I would be at this point (eight hours away from Wesley leaving for the Middle East for thirty-five days). Perhaps it's because I simply haven't had the time to think about it.

We've been getting ready to go all day. We had more people over tonight for a Eucharist dinner, and it was a potluck sort of deal. We had some great food. I attempted to make fried rice (canned peas don't do as well, but there were no fresh), and Wesley and I also made lasagna, rotini, and banana pudding. Odd combination, but remember: we're poor and it was potluck.. go with it.

We've been packing since around eleven. We finally got things put in the backpack(s) he's bringing, and he's now doing some research.

I'm still waiting on a job.. And I'm going to follow up tomorrow.

Also tomorrow includes the opening of the Apple store (which Wesley just told me that there is already a line [?!?!?!?] but only of five people). Hopefully, Sarah and I will be able to get a t-shirt. This is all, of course, after we drop and see the M.E. travelers off at Westmont at nine a.m. Then we'll hang around downtown, I may apply at Starbucks, and I'll probably try to go run, because we had lots of yummy, fattening food tonight :) BTW, Sarah and I could probably eat comfortably for a week on just the leftovers from tonight.

I wish I had a tape recorder in my mind, for everything I thought about today. I feel like I had a lot of interesting thoughts, but they seem lame now.

I'm enjoying cooking more than I thought I would. Hopefully, I can just get better at it.

I'll do that and read new books this summer.

Oh, and, Emily (bf) sent me her bridesmaids dress options for her wedding in December. It is such an honor to be included in her ceremony, and I absolutely cannot wait to help her in any way that I can. This is an exciting new time in our lives, and it is wonderful. Love you, Emily.

Realization Number Three and Accomplishment Number One

The sun is not forgiving in California.

I gave directions today, to the beach. I'm proud.

Thursday Morning

Back in time.. Wesley and I made tacos for dinner yesterday, they were fantastic. Then he, Sarah, and I went and saw Star Trek. I was impressed. It was very good and not really what I expected. An easier storyline to follow for me than even Star Wars was. The storyline was easy, but the character personalities weren't as much.

We came back to the duplex and had a great time for Brittany's birthday with a good number of people.

I'll probably finish my book today, possibly on the beach. I think it's warm outside, so that'll help.

Realizations Numbers One and Two

One:

In terms of number and frequency,
Coffee shops/smoothie shops : California :: Fast food : Texas

Two:

Highways are much nicer to drive on than the constant stop and go traffic.

Today's Already (Almost) Over??

So this, sadly, isn't yet going to be a blog of intelligent thoughts and musings like that of my best friend (see www.weshargrove.com), but hopefully we'll get there.

As of late, I've forgotten to get the coffee filters for my coffee pot. Oh, I have the coffee maker, the coffee, the creamer, and numerous coffee cups. However, the thought of buying filters simply has escaped my mind on my many trips back and forth to the/any store. So I've been making coffee using something so incredibly simple, so obvious, that I'm not sure why I haven't come up with this genius idea before in my twenty-plus-some years of life. A paper towel. Yea, so maybe it doesn't work quite as well.. but it did the job.

Wesley and I went around town today, trying to get him ready for his trip on Saturday. Then I dropped him off at Westmont, turned in my application at Gap (hopefully I'll get a call about an interview tomorrow), and went to another store, where.. I bought a coffee filter. Successful day, I'd say.

Oh, and also, I went to the laundromat. Our dryer hasn't been emitting hot air (nbd) so I decided that as of this new adventure in California, I will also try this new adventure of the laundromat. It wasn't as exciting as I'm making it out to be. I put the coins in, washed my clothes; took them out, put them in the dryer; put the coins in (after which I realized it's free) and dryed my clothes.

Oh wait, oh wait! Here is the excitement. The first dryer didn't work, so I had to stay for about an hour longer than I should have and some things still aren't dry. Again, nbd. I actually enjoyed myself. I've been reading a book that Lisa (bf) got me before I left by Russell Brand called My Booky Wook. It's a memoir of his life, which is pretty crazy, but it's entertaining, and he's a very funny person.

Sarah and I went running today too. She dominated me: I was dying after the first 50 steps. Always time to start again. The best part is that we went running through some woods and went along the beach. I mean, really? This is possible?

I can't wait to start working.. anywhere! But really, I kind of want to hold out for the previous two. Those would be spectacular. As of late, I'm just busying myself with cleaning, organizing, reading, and enjoying.. just like I should. But really, I get a lot of pleasure from work. So I'm ready for that.

I'm still getting lost numerous times a day; I get confused as to which parking lot/garage is the closest, so I end up walking a lot. I don't mind. Also, you can't use your phone while in the car.. so I'm just making a lot of guesses of where I should turn. The ocean's presence should help, because it gives some sense of direction; however, I can never quite remember which way it is. Also, they have roundabouts here. Weird!! And I still say 'yall' and 'coke'. I'm trying, but so far no one has (openly) judged me for it. :)

My Fifth Day

We're smoking hookah tonight. Wesley, Kristen, Amy, Sarah, and I. We had a wonderful dinner of Angel Hair pasta with Italian Sausage, green beans (thanks, mom), and garlic bread.

Kristen and Wesley had their first class today before their trip to Syria, Jordan, and Israel. I went job-hunting today, and had two great leads. I had an interview with Anthropologie that went more perfect than I could imagine, and Gap is hiring, to which I'll return an application tomorrow. For those who know me, I'm an avid Anthro and Gap fan. Those who know me will also know that my paychecks will disappear before they're received.


So, California. I'm here for the summer from Tyler, Texas. I haven't quite identified the major differences between the two, besides the obvious: beach, cool summers vs. the lake and very very hot summers; and pretty much everyone I know vs. knowing just about nobody.

I'll hopefully keep this up with what's going on, what's on my mind, and my HUGE transition to something completely different. I keep hearing that I'll never go back. I'm not sure about that, but I'd be very glad to have that feeling. As of late, I've been more than nervous about moving here, and even thinking about going back home. My first day here, the Jesusita fire was in full force, and there was an earthquake about an hour away (which I haven't revealed to my mom yet). It's getting better each day. I can't wait for my excitement to grow.

Here's to a new experience, a summer that is never to be forgotten, and finally stepping out.