Stress Eating, Tears and Martinis (Or: Graduation, the big meeting and turning 30)

Sigh. Of. Relief.

Hello, friends. It's been a long time. This is my first free evening in I can't remember how long. It's been a rough, crazy, and fantastic spring. The three biggies are that I graduated, made it through another big meeting and turned the big three-oh. Yikes.

I don't really know how to begin to explain the crazy, but here are a few photos. Mostly, though, I'm going to put it behind me and think of the lovely things that are in store for me this summer. Like weekends. At home. With nothing to do.

Graduation! My friend Arleen and I have a lot in common, like our love of Bon Jovi and NKOTB. I shall henceforth be referred to as Master Stephanie. Because I worked hard for that!

David got married! Here are Jami and I with him at Huber's.

Somewhere along the way, I got to go to a fantastic Jars of Clay concert where they played their first album, beginning to end. And we were uncomfortably close to the band. But it was awesome.

I took a little birthday trip to Colorado. Things kept going wrong. U2 was canceled because Bono had back surgery. Then I planned a hot air balloon ride, which was also canceled because of the weather. It rained all weekend... I stayed a couple days extra to work and the weather was lovely. Above, Holly and I are at Red Rocks to see Princess Bride. I also had the opportunity to catch up with summer project friends from both 1999 and 2000.

This is Colorado birthday dinner #2. On my 20th birthday, Chad sang a Backstreet Boys song to me. For 30, he didn't really want to, but Holly and Jess helped. I Want it That Way is much better than Happy Birthday, anyway.

So... what's next?

Well isn't that the million dollar question. I'm hoping to take a little time to rest and do nothing this summer. Oh, and I am just now remembering that I DO like to read, so hopefully I can get through the big stack of books I've been collecting. I also have an idea for a fun new blog that a few of you know about. Hopefully that will come later this summer. Other than that, I'm going to stay in town for a bit, enjoy all the fun summer Indy things, reinstate Staycation Sundays, and do a little dreaming about the future.

Surprise Encouragement

Believe it or not, I tend to overcommit just a tad and then end up completely stressed out. Like now, for example. I am in the midst of the busiest time of year at work, trying to finish my last class of grad school despite the raging senioritis, not to mention all of the other day-to-day things that make up life. This week seemed especially silly. Dumb things* kept happening that made me want to be really mad.

But every time I even thought about being mad, someone did something ridiculously awesome for me that made it impossible continue being angry.

Here are a few examples:

Monday night I came home to find not only a martini waiting for me in the fridge, but also a custom crossword puzzle.

These were a fantastic surprise, dropped off at my office for me.

(Except there were more of them...)

I got this in the mail from an old (not literally!) friend. Hilarious.

There seemed to be some extra kindness from co-workers this week, plus lunch with one of my besties, and let's not forget the phone call on Sunday that had me laughing so hard I was unable to speak. Either I am radiating stress and people think I'm completely on edge, or I just know some awesome folks. I'll go with the latter.

Thanks, friends. I'll do my best to pay it forward.

*Sorry, kids, not going into specifics on 'dumb things' here...

Singing My Memory Verses

I've often wondered how many songs to which I know the words. It's easily hundreds. There's something about words set to music that just makes them simple to memorize. And I have quite the repertoire - from Bon Jovi to Taylor Swift to New Kids on the Block to Shane & Shane.

But when it comes to memorizing Scripture, I am not so good. I'd say I know about 98% less Bible verses than songs. There are a couple of reasons for this: it doesn't come as easily to me and I quite honestly don't try very hard.

So when I started a new class at church this year, I wasn't too thrilled to learn that there's a weekly memory verse. Until, that is, I discovered that the book came with a CD. Yes, that's right friends, each weekly verse has been crafted into a delightfully cheesy song. The CD has taken up permanent residence in my car, and each Tuesday morning, I giddily listen to the new song/verse. And I giggle. By about Thursday morning, I am singing along, totally into it. Then it gets stuck in my head. When Monday rolls around, it's time to say it aloud. I end up having a hard time just saying it and wanting to sing it. But either way, I have successfully mastered another verse.

So here's to you, Mr. (or Ms.) Bible-verse-song-creator!

A few of my favorite things.

I know, I know. I've been back from my trip for a week and have yet to blog. I'll go ahead and blame that on jet lag, school, and the fact that the Olympics are keeping me up way too late.

I love the Olympics. You probably know that by now. It's a hallmark event that brings people from all over the world together, not only to cheer on their country's team, but also to become an international community, if only for 17 days. People are generally kind and in great spirits. They cheer for countries they couldn't find on a map. They get caught up in the emotion of watching fantastic athletes who each have their own story.

I'll write more later, but for now, here are a few of my favorite memories from an amazing trip to Seattle and Vancouver:

This is at the Opening Ceremony. Being there was definitely one of the coolest experiences ever. It's hard to explain, though I do really like the word 'pageantry.'

Holly and me just after the cauldron was lit. Despite the minor malfunction, a glorious site, indeed.

Gold medalist Evan Lysacek! We attended the men's short program, where we saw 30 skaters.

Yes! That's me... and Matt Lauer! We got up at 3:30 am and went to Grouse Mountain for the Today Show. While I was a little angry when the alarm went off, later I was really glad that we went. We were on tv!

The outdoor cauldron... one of those "there it is, kids" kinds of things. But neat, nonetheless.

The last night of my trip, in Seattle, we went to see Bon Jovi. It was opening night for The Circle tour, and it was a great show! This was Bon Jovi show #5 for me... #6 is coming up this summer in Chicago!

Bible Shopping

I somehow misplaced my small Bible, so today Jess and I went to Books A Million (aka BAM!) to look for a new one. They have quite the selection, and among them we found these three gems:

Camo Bible. Wait. This seems like it could be a bad idea. It might blend in too much, causing you to lose it...

It might have been just a little bit difficult for me to NOT purchase this one. But rest assured, I did not. It has a bedazzled buckle!

Oh boy. Really? Should I purchase this now in order to "Prepare spiritually for the most important day of my life?" Are you supposed to purchase this after engagement and read the whole thing before the wedding day? That's a lot of pressure, in addition to finding a dress, cake, venue and flowers... No wonder so many people opt for long engagements!

Must. Save. Princess.

If you are ever kidnapped by strange creatures, I'm probably not the one who should travel through dungeons, water and deserts to rescue you. You would be trapped for a long, long time. Maybe even forever.

That's right. I got Super Mario Bros. for Christmas. And I knew this would happen. That's why I hadn't actually played it until yesterday. This is the stuff of which addictions are made. I've been yelling at turtles and Luigi and dragons and fire and Mario. A lot.

I was not good at this game when I was nine. I am not good at this game at 29, either. I've learned a lot of things over the past 20 years, but how to navigate underground worlds with my BFF is not one of those things.

But there are advantages to playing when you're an adult. You can do things like move your furniture to make your living room more conducive to video game-playing. Neat, eh? (My couch is generally not right in front of the television...)

Hopefully this newly-formed habit will not negatively affect my grades or my intention to graduate in a few months!

The In Between

Tis the season to create goals and resolutions for the year. But rather than outlining a bunch of specific goals that I probably won't accomplish, I'm going to say this:

In 2010, I want to live in the in between.

"In between what?" you ask. Well, I tend be the kind of person who is always looking forward to the next big thing. And there's no doubt that 2010 will have its share of fun and exciting things. I'll be going to the Olympics, graduating, turning thirty (with Bono in Denver), taking a little trip to Japan (!), and who knows what else...

As awesome as all those things will be, it's the little in between things that make up life. The conversations at Starbucks, the day-to-day interactions with co-workers, the dinners with friends, the lazy Sunday afternoons... these are the things I want to pay attention to and enjoy.

There are appropriate Steven Curtis Chapman lyrics for any occasion, right? From his "Miracle of the Moment:"

There’s a wonder in the here and now
It’s right there in front of you
And I don’t want you to miss
The miracle of the moment

There’s only one who knows
What’s really out there waiting
In all the moments yet to be
And all we need to know
Is He’s out there waiting
To Him the future’s history
And He has given us a treasure called right now
And this is the only moment we can do anything about