saggy and baggy

This happens when you wear your jeans throughout the day and they stretch (a lot). Though I hate it, I do not hate it as much as Brie Nickels does. She coined the term, "poopy butt" in-spite of the problem.

[call] YOUR MOM

Moleskine Magic

Surprise: Father Time!

I read something that said time is the best gift you can ever give. I completely agree.

Soooo....I am going ot be more intentional about making time for time. However it may be. Not wasting. Just giving.

Snickers | Cigarettes | Milk Glass

Just do it.

chicken soup

If you get this, then you probably think it is very funny.

She loves Tejas

Alicia came to visit me in Waco last week. We had a great time hitting up the local eateries and hanging out with new friends. We made our way to the glorious Austin to polish off the week by celebrating Thanksgiving with a family that neither of us belong to. A good time was had by all. Now all you Iowans, don't let Alicia hog all the fun [Iowa pun]. Make your way down south and you will be rewarded with some fried food and a sunburn (if you're lucky). 

Tall Sometimes?

ALMOST Cool

Someone told me that I am probably a catch because I have a clean room and trendy decor.

QUESTION: am I still a catch if I write about it in my diary and then blog about it later?

I'm thankful for eavesdropping (and probably you, of course)

In my defense: 1) I was there first. 2) It was a very small coffee shop. 3) I actually WAS waiting for my friends to get out of the Harry Potter movie and did wait longer than anticipated...

Self Portrait (minus the underbite)

Girls will be Girls

I was at Common Grounds the other day trying to read a book, but these girls came in just squealing because they must not have seen each other in a while. Then I was happy because MY favorite person would soon be visiting and we may cause a scene like they did.

Harry Twilight

Tommy Gurl

Tax Return?

Five pounds is not that much, but it sure was enough to make a point of drawing it [see the saggy left arm]. Unfortunately, my day of gluttony did not end well. I felt sick the day after. Huh. "Woe is me," as the whales say.

Sloshy

Don't ask why. Just don't say it.

Christmas list

V5 pens? Moleskine notebooks? Gas money for the Texas to Iowa excursion? 35 mm film? Best Buy gift cards? Design books? Fancy adult beverages? Nobody needs these things. But if someone did, it would be ME.

Typical Sunday

This does seem to happen quite a bit, the good news is: sleep, church, El Charro Mexican, reading, El Charro leftovers, napping, blog reading [BY THE WAY: Sunday was the last day of Kitsune Noir being called Kitsune Noir. It shall now be called The Fox is Black. CRAZY DAY!] Anyway, those are all GREAT things. Thank you, Sunday.

Woe is me, says the whale

According to Gawker, whales too can get sunburned. Infact, those on the Mexican coast are. One scientist states: "Humans can put on clothes or sunglasses - whales can't." 

Brie Nickels put it best: "Sick burn on whales. Literally."  She hates them, so this is all good news to her, I'm sure.

Janky 'S'

jacked up lip gloss wand

Corporate Fails

 

On Marriage

Boom. Boom. Boom. Boom. As a recent college grad, I should have known wedding season would be upon me before I knew it. And it is. So happy for all of you! Sister-in-law-to-be + cousins. Can't wait to break it down to some oldies with the folks on the dance floor.

book sale!

Waco is the coolest! I paid five bucks to get in early, and I got the 12 books listed above for just $18! I'm starting with Catch 22. I found a book on on Aubrey Beardsley, some nice type, and several other good reads to keep the brain juices flowing this fall.

Robbie!

For those of you who do not know, "Robbie" is the name of my tummy. Robbie goes on play dates with friends (usually Mexican cuisine or other such dinner parties). Lately, Robbie has been discontent with my apathy toward him, so he's been a little hoodlum inside the old tum tum.

Shop less. Give more.

duh.

L is for Lucky Laurel

True story:

 

I swear to you that the crickets in Texas are 3x bigger.

I'm sure he exists somewhere.

All I want to do is play. I wanna go to the lake & read.

I'd rather be short.

feels like death

Woof.

Halloween de Waco

 
First Halloween in Tejas! I didn't want to have the little snafu Cady did in Mean Girls, so I played it safe and went all 80's up in dat party. Julie brought back the Roxy midriff and butterfly clips circa 2000 (A.D.) Though I do not partake in the Harry Potter series, Anna's wizard costume thing featuring argyle socks sure does make me want to buy more argyle socks.

pop'stachtic mustache and music fancy

Rad new music hub. Launched yesterday. check it: http://popstache.com/
This is only the beginning of an arsenal for music updates, reviews, photos, and samplers. I don't have the time to stay current, so I'm glad Andy and gang are willing to do it FOR ME. You're the best, Pop'stache!

GREAT JOB ON THE SITE, ANDY! I hope you can finally get some sleep and rest those weary hands from all the high fives you should be getting.

REVISITING FRESHMAN YEAR

Wow. I really haven't grown up since I was 18. Five years later my favorite things to draw are still monsters and awkward everything.

Nicaragua photos. CHECK IT.

Nicaragua 2010

some learnings

nica-inspired:

1. Even one suitcase is probably more than you need.
2. Your attitude is completely dependent on your attitude. ha.
3. Our value doesn't change to God no matter how screwed up or screwed over we become.
4. The good in the worst place still out weighs the bad.
5. Most of communicating is non-verbal.

6. We are all quite small (no, not just me). How do we feel invincible when something as gentle as the breeze shakes more earth than we ever will?
7. We probably weren't meant to live complicated lives.
8. I am convinced that God created this earth. Look outside. Better yet, look outside somewhere that seems to have no human influence. It can stand on it's own and it's far more ingenious and complex than our complicated whatevers.
9. Things that can't be plugged in have more value than things that are.
10. Suffering can bring about real joy.
11. If I were God, I probably WOULD create all the different species, colors, textures, landscapes, etc. Isn't that what you'd expect from infinite power? How could the world get any more delicate / solid / large / small?
12. Worship is universal.
13. It's fun to sit down during worship time and just write down what you think the words mean in your own vernacular. That's what I've found.
14. People always bring about more joy than my MacBook. Always.
15. Lost my favorite sunglasses in the ocean but I THINK THERE ARE BIGGER THINGS THAT COULD HAVE BEEN LOST.
16. It's good to just sit and be happy with where everything is. No use in being discontent when you shouldn't do it all anyway.
17. Life is better when there are fewer clocks and mirrors.
18. If you've been blessed, take care of it. God gave me a great apartment and I came home to a disaster. Cleanliness is Godliness. I guess I'd be mad too if someone trashed the house I gave them. Have a little pride, Becky.

19. when in doubt, pray.
20. If you have a layover that is at least an hour long, go ahead and do a scavenger hunt. Ideas include: someone reading Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings, velor jump suit, stroller used as storage (not child), socks + sandals, foreign hotties, someone who knows someone you know, and an airport worker who can say the alphabet backwards.


good trip.

...and now we're back...

Hi.
Glad you're reading. Much appreciated.

I really do not know where to start with this update of the trip. I experienced so much last week and I don't know how to sum it up in a blog post. I know you all care how the trip was, but I'll try to keep it brief and not test my luck.

SUMMARY OF THE HAPPENINGS:

Fri: Travel day. Flights from Des Moines > St. Louis > Washington DC > Miami > Managua > 2 hour bus ride to Arms of Love in Jinotepe.

Sat: Since luggage didn't arrive (not surprisingly with that many flights), we couldn't go to the beach this day. Flexibility was key on this trip. Instead, we worked on projects around the orphanage then hung with kids when they came home from school.

Sun: Day with kids. We were invited to the school's fiesta. It was nice seeing the kid's (we got to be the gringos in the front row of the skits. They loved it), but it got kind of long when 3 hours went by featuring only Spanish (and some German, but that story is for another time).

Mon: La Playa! Unfortunately I forgot my camera on beach day, but it was a treat. It was nice to get the kids out of the orphanage. I imagine it gets a bit mundane being there everyday. We also took them to lunch at a restaurant beach side. That red snapper is still the best fish I think I'll ever have.

Tues: La Chureca (The Dump). This was hard to see. 1,600 people live at this dump. They fight for food and daughters are sacrificed as prostitutes in the hopes for a plate of food. Nicaragua is the second poorest country in the western hemisphere, and La Chureca is the worst place in Nicaragua. The drug of choice is sniffing glue. If you go to the wrong area, you can get stabbed with a hangar.

Not cool. Those people know how it feels to live day by day.

We met this 19 year old girl and her father. They prayed for us. It was really cool. How rough, ya know? Here are these really poor people- they know it (Nicaraguans refer to them as 'garbage people'.) Then comes in this group of American folks and they were willing to not only let us come to their home, but they explained what it's like to live there AND then he prayed for us. It was a special moment for everyone.

Wed: Baggin food day. Doug and Julie said it would take all day. Harvest Vineyard said it would take three hours. It took one. We can kind of thank Henry Ford for the assembly line and mostly thank God for the hustle.

Thurs: I M P A C T I N G. It was really cool delivering the food to the churches. We also did a few skits, shared the gospel, and did a mini-carnival for the kids. They have so much love to share.

I couldn't sleep at all Thursday because I had so much to think about. Too many though

WE'RE THERE {and back}

Thanks for all your support!!
I forgot to update this before I left, but the week before the trip I raised exactly enough money. There was an amount that I expected to pay and thanks to everyone's help that's the EXACT amount I did. You are all wonderful. This was one of the best things I've done in my life. Details to come!

God. is. Good.