Lessons learned in 06

I love this time of year because it is a time of contemplation and recommitment. 2006 was a good year to be 24. Here are a few lessons I learned.

In 2006 I learned to...

1. Stand up for myself.
2. Give when I can.
3. Eat when I'm hungry and stop when I'm full.
4. Love where I live.
5. Take myself seriously (PA School, here I come!)
6. The value of doing my best and what happens when I don't.
7. Fall in love.
8. Let go of love.
9. The importance of establishing net worth when you're young.
10. The reward of living with wonderful roommates.
11. Exercize as much as I can.
12. I'm happy happy happy!
13. Not play games: be hard to hurt, not hard to get.
14. The power of attitude.
15. What I want to be when I grow up.
16. Set and accomplish goals.
17. What it's like to be in the lime light.
18. Make friends with strangers. (Don't worry - I'm not stupid about this one.)
19. Appreciate my body - I can't complain about what I've been given.
20. Love and share the Gospel!
21. Be confident - say what I know like I know it.
22. The joy of taking care of myself.
23. The importance of reporting, accounting, and saving.
24. What the hydrolic system of a car is.
25. Deal with insurance.
26. Stay put - be satisfied and grounded in the present.
27. Things don't always turn out the way I want them to.

These come in no particular order. Every lesson can be linked to a situation or experience that requires a greater explanation, but I'll save you the saga!

Christmas at the White House

Deck the Halls and Welcome All!



My roommate works for Mrs. Cheney, and she also plays the harp. She invited us to come enjoy an afternoon in the East Wing of the White House as she serenaded visitors with her talents.



My favorite tree:

Homeward Bound!

Quote of the day from a fellow homward bound travelor (stranger on the airplane):

"My grandpa lost his big toe to a combine -- that's South Dakota!"

I'm one of the lucky ones who slipped through this season's holiday trains, planes, and automobiles adventures and landed safely at the homefront with no troubles at all! If only traveling was always this smooth!

MOTO Award

A point of frustration in my life right now is that I'm 24 years old and my face is breaking out like I'm 16. I'm almost embarrassed to talk about it, but hey, it's not like no one notices. Speaking of noticing...

I work near Union Station. The area is a hot-spot, per se, for homeless folks (actually, they're in abundance throughout the entire city). I honestly can't afford to give money to them everyday (non-profit salary). So I've made it a personal policy to be friends with the needy and to treat them with respect. A few of them are regulars in my quotidian life. They know my name and I theirs. I expect a half toothed smile from them when I rush back and forth to the office.

So today, my buddy, Clayton, with his radio blasting Christmas music (surely an appeal for the season), said something as I passed by. The blarring stereo on his shoulder (no joke, we're talking 1980s style) made it difficult for me to hear. He repeated. Nope, didn't hear it. So this time he starts to touch his face - to my utter surprise, I finally understood the words he was saying...

Pointing out the obvious, he said, "You're breaking out, Charlee."

Ha! Thanks for the reminder! Like this isn't something I'm completely aware of! What, are you 4 years old or did you forget that it's not polite to bring this sort of stuff up? ok - calm down, Charlee.

It's not everyday that a homeless man tells me that my face has zits on it! Clayton wins the MOTO award of the day - master of the obsvious.

Haha! Really, how in the world do you respond to that?!?!?!? It's a good thing that I don't have self conscious issues about these kinds of things. Nevertheless, I am scheduling another appointment to see my dermatologist - soon! Ugh!

Lifetime Accomplishment!

Goal driven people often have a list of adventures, experiences, ideas, etc. that they hope to accomplish during their life. Does anyone out there want to climb Mt. Everest? How about run a marathon, ride in a helicopter, or cross the Pamana Canal? My best friend wants to be able to order "the regular" at a cafe.

Well, on Saturday, as I was running along the Patomac River, I put a big check in the box next to an item on my list! Are you ready for this?!

I was in the shadow of an airplane! I've always wanted to be in the shadow of an airplane!

Think about it - what are the chances? I'm a moving target; an airplane is a swiftly moving target; because of the rotation of the earth, the sun's angle is a moving target; skies could be cloudy; it might be night time.

So alas, the sun, the plane, and I aligned. For about .2 seconds I experienced pure bliss!

Now I'm set to work on my next big check off the list...

Car Story #3

It turns out that I finally had a real car problem. Last week, I pulled out of my driveway and only got about 50 yards from my house when the pressure on my clutch went out. Without the clutch, it's impossible to put the car in gear. Long story short... my hydrolic system needed help. Wajid, a sweet Afghan dude with the best deal around, replaced the master and slave cylinders for me.

Funny story:
So I have towing coverage on my insurance. I had to explain the location of my car to the dispatch lady. For some reason she could not find the street on her system map. So I spelled it out for her.

I-V-E-S.

The first thing that came to mind: I, as in YOU idiot! But I could not say that to this lady. In a struggle to find a word, I said Ingram instead.

Hahaha! Ingram, where did that come from?!?!

Neglect!

I've totally been MIA this past week... busy busy busy! I promise to keep you updated soon.

Stay tuned for:
1. Car Story #3
2. A Life Time Accomplishment
3. Stuff I Learn in 2006

K, I miss you and love you and will be back soon!

Christmas Music

I was just thinking about how cheesy some Christmas music is. I think that people actually prefer this inoffensive story-telling style of music. However, the sing-a-long holiday tunes are not the type to top the pop culture charts; therefore, no one listens to it the rest of the year. Do you ever hear Easter music played in the stores?

When Christmas comes around, people's true colors come out. They become merry by listening to Mannheim Steam Roller, renditions of Rudalph, and simple instrumental versions of familiar tunes. Any other time of year, Alvin and the Chipmunks would not make the Muzak CD that is sent to the Gap.

It's no wonder that pop stars like Mariah Carey and Clay Akin have tapped into Christmas music... they don't have to find excuses for their ever present cheesiness!