A gorgeous grey, rainy Saturday. And after a lovely walk, a few shots of espresso and good chats with John at home and MJ at Red…I’m now enjoying this Saturday in the best way I know how…grilled cheese, tomato soup and basketball on the tv – NC State vs. UNC. Thanks be to God for this beautiful day which He has made!!
Tag: friends
Apples and Cinnamon
So today will be an interesting day. The weather conditions are advertised as being a “wintry mix”, which when hearing that – sounds delightfully pleasant right? Wintry mix sounds to me like maybe a peppermint tea or exotic hot cocoa or something delicious that can be sipped while cosy at home during the depths of winter. But no – this wintry mix is much more annoying – namely, very cold(probably sub-freezing) temperatures and various forms of precipitation. Yay? Driving here this morning, all the signs proclaimed: “ICE PREVENTION OPERATIONS AHEAD”. At least Houston is trying, am I right!? My one shoutout of the day goes to the woman I saw on her morning run as I drove to work. 5:45AM, 37 degrees and slight rain. And she still went on her run. I shake my head in admiration and shame – never am I that dedicated!!
But apart from the weather forecast, right now I’m enjoying my coffee here at work as I continue to wake up. Thankfully I’m less sleepy than I was yesterday! Totally slept through my alarm so had no time for breakfast or coffee…and why did I sleep in yesterday? Well, the night before that was Julian and Kelsey’s wedding – and oh what a gorgeous wedding it was!! I shan’t describe it all here…but their wedding was God glorifying – a simply beautiful ceremony of them affirming their marriage covenant to one another before God Himself. And I must briefly mention the beauty of the venue itself – outdoors surrounded by the mid-winter Texas countryside. As I stood by Julian’s side and gazed out at the setting sun, brisk air enlivening(and slightly shiver-inducing!) and fading light spirit invigorating…I had no thoughts but to thank God for blessing Julian and Kelsey so – for giving each of them to the other as partners in this beautiful, crazy, wonderful life. All praises to the One from whom all blessings flow. Amen.
What else can I write before it is work time? Well I suppose I should start on my pledge for this year. I typically enjoy reading very much(as you should know, if you know me at all), but I am very poor in recording what I’ve read. So I’ve decided this year to keep track of each book I read. Even re-reads(because yes, I do re-read quite a bit – and I don’t want to miss the chance to highlight good books, just because they’re not first reads). This is a slightly perilous resolution, for several reasons. Firstly, because I’m typically terrible at keeping on something like this, so I must be diligent at recording these, even if I have no time to write any fancy reviews. Secondly, because…this means my reading tastes will be exposed for the whole world to see – will be a good impetus to (try to) read quality books! For now though..here goes. I will record the books as I finish them, so here’s my first two, which coincidentally or not I completed last night.
1. Authority by D.M. Lloyd-Jones. This was a remarkably short book, less than 100 pages! But I much enjoyed this adaptation of several of Lloyd-Jones sermons he gave on the subject of authority, namely – the authority of Christ, the authority of the Scripture and the authority of the Holy Spirit. I much enjoyed this book(as I enjoy almost all of Lloyd-Jones’ writings!) and it encouraged my soul. Oh how we should more often remember that our faith does not come from within us and is not founded on the shifting sands of our moods or the ever changing tides of the wisdom of this world…but our faith is in Christ Himself, as revealed through the external witness of the Holy Scriptures and the internal witness of the Holy Spirit. Oh might we rejoice in this thought and take heart. Too easily do I get discouraged by my circumstances and by the trials and tribulations I find myself in. Let me more oft consider the God whose son I am.
2. Oathbringer by Brandon Sanderson. This is the complete antithesis of the previous book. Definitely not a short book – I don’t know the exact page count, but easily over 800 pages I would think. A classic high fantasy novel. Sanderson is truly one of my favorite authors and I think I own a higher percentage of his books than almost any other author. I’ve also met him a few times, which adds to my liking for him. His writing style is definitely not quite as beautiful as a Tolkien or a Rothfuss, but his world-building and action sequences are almost unparalleled. This book is the third book in his magnum opus Stormlight Archive series and so I shan’t attempt to summarize the plot here, but I much enjoyed this book and will be definitely revisiting it in later re-reads. I’m just sad I’ll have to wait a couple more years for the next book to come out…alas!
So there you have it – the first two books completed for 2018. Already begun another one, will record when finished!
Have a most lovely day, dear friends – may it be a day of joy and peace.
the Julii
Happy Sunday friends!! A quick post here as I wait for my pizza…since today is Sunday and it is playoff football time(currently Saints v Panthers – go Carolina!), I decided it was time to get Pizza Hut, mmm…will walk down and pick it up shortly. Anyways, apart from my dinner plans, nothing much going on right now…it is truly nice to rest this night! I’ve had a busy little weekend…Julian’s bachelor party on Friday night(a poker night, where as is tradition I performed valiantly and flamed out quickly!)…then Saturday morning took my car to the shop to get brakes done. Following that, went over and helped Julian move into his new apartment(which will be his and Kelsey’s following their soon coming wedding!! I truly can’t wait for that wedding a week from today….so so excited to see one of my best friends get married. Me and Julian had a great time chatting yesterday and then this morning as I was making coffee for deacon duties…I truly love that guy). The moving took longer than I thought and then had to go do my final fitting for tux, so didn’t get home until late in the afternoon. Later that evening, I went to airport to pick up Julie – she’s now back from her home holidays in Pennsylvania. We had nice chat driving…then once got to her place, she made tea and we got more chat time yay! It was good to catch up after not seeing her for some…three weeks? We chatted about our respective holidays and other sundry things…beautiful conversating, as always. Today was a busy day at church, doing deacon duties from 8 to 1…then had some good times hanging out with Earnie, Mandy, Joe and others…I have good friends here, I must confess. And this afternoon, started my workout routine for first time post Christmas holidays. I put it off long enough…could delay no longer! And just now, had a nice chat with Maryanne…I will get to see her in Charlotte in a little over a month – can’t wait!!! Alright, now it’s time for this very dense paragraph to be over. Hope you don’t mind me just dumping all my weekend activities on you…just thought it was worthwhile to share this snapshot…as busy and tired as I often am, at the end of the day, I simply cannot help but thank God and praise His name for all He has given me. Amen? Amen. Now…time for a nice brisk walk down Heights Boulevard…pizza time is upon us!
Second Sun
Happy Tuesday, friends! My first day back at work…and while my mind is still sleepy, I am somehow (!?) a bit eager to get back into the swing of things and especially see all my work friends again! This morning was nice and cold here – apparently the cold air is following me around lately! 31 degrees when I got into my car…so lovely(and yes, I mean that sincerely!). Of course, also got my traditional first-day-of-work-week peppermint mocha(and saw Katie for first time in a while – had a nice little chat despite my sleepy state!). Now, as I’m sensing this entry is a bit disjointed and raw…I shall flee to my email inbox and attempt to catch up on all things work. Have a most gorgeous day, dear friends.
Road Goes Ever On
I really have not written enough lately. Apologies.
But today at least…even though I don’t plan on writing much, I can say – Happy New Year!! This year of 2018 is now beginning – may it be ever blessed by our Lord Jesus Christ – amen? Amen.
Today has been a glorious day to begin this new year – a day of rest and joy and fellowship with friends so dear! Since last night I got back from Calgary in the evening, didn’t feel like going to any parties and so I stayed home, hung out with John and Camille and was in bed before 11. Slept straight through to sometime after 6 this morning – ringing in the new year is overrated, says I. This morning went and got breakfast with Earnie and Julian…over three hours at Starbucks/Buffalo Grille and what topic didn’t we cover? I shan’t describe our conversations…but I am truly blessed with such friends as them. Heartily encouraged. Following that, went and did a shop at HEB, then home for laundry, etc!
This afternoon has been amazing – I started by putting together my roast beef dinner. A nice eye of round roast with potatoes and onions and carrots – now in the oven “resting”. I will be able to eat it sometime this evening. Eventually. Apartment smells simply wonderful just now. And these past few hours, been relaxing on the couch with my coffee and reading and Rachmaninoff. Also been texting a bit with friends – guess I shouldn’t omit that! Reading D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones “Authority” – read the chapter on the authority of Jesus Christ right now and while I probably should excerpt some so you can get the beauty of his words, I’ll just encourage you to read it on your own. Understanding that there is nothing on this earth that is more important for us to understand than that our salvation comes through Jesus Christ alone. What shall we preach but Christ crucified? There is nothing that shall answer that aching longing in our souls except to be filled up to the utmost by the glory of the knowledge of Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen and Amen.
And…on that note, back to coffee and reading…
White and Grey and Love Unbounded
Happy Saturday friends!!! I have but a few minutes before I need to start getting ready for wedding, but…thought I could write a few words! I’m currently here in the Frozen North, which deserves its capital letters because it truly is Frozen up here in Calgary right now. -17 F(-27 C) and snow flakes slowly whirl past the window of my hotel room…
Of course you may ask – why am I in Canada right now? Well…Robbie is getting married!!! Such a dear friend, even though I haven’t been able to hang out with him as much as I wish I could. But we’ve had many adventures – from Isle of Man to Boston to Vancouver! And now…he’s beginning one of the biggest adventures of all…marriage to his soon-to-be wife, Natasha. So I shall soon witness this glorious wedding and it shall be wonderful indeed! And while I rejoice with Robbie and Natasha…I do look forward to the day that shall be more glorious than all others – that day when we shall sit down at the wedding supper of the Lamb. Oh for that beautiful day!! Come quickly, Lord Jesus.
And now…I suppose I should start getting dressed for wedding. Had a nice little breakfast here in hotel, and then because I was tired of staying indoors, braved the wintry blast of outside and walked down to Tim Hortons and got a nice yummy chocolate donut and blissfully hot coffee. Mmm so good. Now in my hotel room warming my toes and enjoying looking out at the white blanket upon this city of Calgary. Frozen outside and warm and cozy inside. This world so often seems cold and dark…remember the light and rejoice in the love of our God.
Peace and love.
Fields and Flocks and Flurries of Fresh-Fallen Snow
So it’s a nice(albeit far too warm) Tuesday morning and I’m rather hyped that this is my last work day of 2017! Tomorrow I fly off to Tampa in the early morning and then it shall be a nice long holiday with family. Shall be lovely. This morning I’m rather sleepy after enjoying the Rockets game last night with James(120-99 victory over Jazz – 14th W in row!) and while I (sorta) wish I could say tonight would be a night of rest, alas it is not to be. Going to local Heights Theater to see Julien Baker play a show – she’s a new artist that I discovered recently(one of her songs is the closing track on my latest mix CD – Tears of Nienna – for which I will attempt to post track list at some point)…then last week, was walking down 19th past the theater and I saw them advertising her show! It’s rare I get to see an artist I know in such a nice small venue…so I’m excited!! It does mean that I will yet again get no sleep tonight. Ah well. I’ll sleep on the plane tomorrow, I guess. Now – I suppose it’s time to start work soon. Going to heartily enjoy my peppermint mocha – saw Katie at Starbucks today and she gave me a free one…yay, Merry Christmas, Katie! I realize this entry is quite all over the place…but I’ll not attempt to edit. Thus is my early morning stream of consciousness. Have a most lovely day, one and all!!
Dashing
Well. I did not quite believe the forecasts but they proved to be right for once. And so I stepped out of my door this morning to be confronted with the almost-forgotten sight of snow on the ground. It has been a while, dear friend. And I did not expect to see a blanket of nice clean snow o’er top the city of Houston this morning, but there you go.
I have to say, it was a bit disconcerting(but wonderful!) driving around this morning. Driving to work in snow is a very normal occurrence in Scotland but not so here. So I felt as if I was in Aberdeen again for a bit, seeing the frosted tree tops and white roadsides flash by as I drove in. Of course, the (relatively) small bit of snow we got here is as nothing compared to a good Scottish winter. Although I was amused by one of the road-signs this morning: “ICY CONDITIONS. SNOW EXISTS. DRIVE WITH CAUTION.” Oh Houston. And yes, people in Houston really don’t understand snow. I was driving behind one person who had a blanket of snow entirely covering their rear windscreen. Um? Guess they didn’t feel like wiping it off before driving?? I put a good distance between them and I!!
Still – as fun as a small bit of snow is here…it’s nothing compared to driving in blizzard conditions down the A90. I don’t know if I miss that or not. Right now, yes. But if I was back in Scotland, I’d say no and that all snow should go away. Even though on a proper day – snow is wonderful. John texted me this morning from Aberdeen and notified me that it had snowed there too overnight! He sent me some pics from Calsayseat…scenes I’d seen many times before – grey and white everywhere. He also reminded me of our fun sledging adventure…sadly, that is almost impossible here in Houston – firstly, not enough snow. Secondly, not enough hills(or any?). I do miss John and wish we could recreate our winter fun day again!!
Also been texting with Chris – and since he and Jo and Lily are now in the south of England, it is warmer there than it is here. Definitely no snow there! I take some pride in the fact that it’s colder here. I also would be proud that as I was out and about this morning, I didn’t feel cold at all – didn’t even have my good wool coat(my “Scotland” coat as I like to think of it) zippered up. But I cannot take pride because I know the secret to staying warm – it is wearing long underwear. And since I’m wearing that, I can’t boast in my cold tolerance. But I can say I am very toasty and it is wonderful to be nice and warm inside when it’s so briskly cold outside!! Oh and of course, I got my peppermint mocha this morning and I can say that for once it’s very proper to get this drink since there is actual snow on the ground – and what drink goes better with snow than a peppermint mocha? Well, maybe a peppermint hot chocolate but it is early and caffeine. Y’know. Also saw Katie at Starbucks and she was super excited about the snow here too!! It is so fun how the snow puts us all in such good moods here in Houston…
Just one more note on the snow since I can and since it will melt soon and since we probably won’t get snow here in Houston for another eight years…so I must take advantage of it. The sight of snow really does cause so many Scotland memories to come flooding back…so many times walking into town with the crunch of snow underneath my boots and flurries of snow past my ears. Good memories because they’re associated with good friends and God’s goodness to me. Abounding in faithfulness, always.
Farewell, dear friends – peace and love and warmth and joy!
A Little Bit of Sunshine
And so another week comes to a beginning. It is a nice morning, complete with peppermint mocha(as is tradition for a Monday!) and I am quite possibly a little looking forward to the work week? Shocking. The weekend was busy(my only quiet night was Friday – thankfully I did make sure to keep that night free so I had a nice evening reading Lord of the Rings…) but though I am now tired from the weekend, it was filled with lovely times with friends so I cannot complain. Game night at Erica and Emily’s last night…lots of laughter and banter and it was beautiful. Got a nice chat with Earnie and Mandy on the way home…oh do I love those guys! This morning, took my sleepy self to Starbucks and got to chat(briefly!) with Katie and Kelli there – realized that I was not the only sleepy one since Katie had pulled an all nighter for school stuff – no sleep at all!! So I suppose that I should be thankful I at least got a few hours!!
Driving to work, was listening to one of my latest mixes…and got to enjoy hearing some classic Needtobreathe. Love their song “More Heart, Less Attack”. Music is indeed so powerful and yet again I was reminded of that as my soul rejoiced to that song – hearing the piano and then the harmonica kick in just brought a chill to the back of my neck and a thrill to my heart. Gorgeous music that reminds me of my longing for something that is beyond my grasp. That yearning for a greater call, a brighter star, a deeper love, that far country.
Now as you can probably tell, this entry is sleepy itself – apparently I haven’t had enough caffeine yet – and it is just about time to start work…so I shall get to it. Excited to see what the Lord has in store for me this day. Rest in the love of our God – all ye His saints.
Fluffy
And so I return to this posting apparatus, though not as quickly as I thought when I wrote last post. It is now Thanksgiving Eve and I sit with my mug of coffee here, about to do some more reading…but thought I should continue my chronicle first, while it is still fresh in my mind! I must say as I type this, I am much enjoying the Tampa home keyboard…it is very mechanically responsive and fun to type on. Much more bouncy than my laptop keyboard, I approve. This may or may not contribute to my being even more verbose than usual…apologies in advance.
Anyways! I think I ended my last post talking about game night with Laura and Caisson and friends and getting to bed far too late. Thankfully the next morning we were able to sleep in a little…had some coffee together, then we went out to get breakfast(/brunch?) at one of their favorite breakfast spots – a diner that had definitely not been around when I was in Gainesville! Actually…this was a running theme throughout my time in Gainesville…so much had changed since my residency there, even though it’s been less than nine years. Whole new roads had appeared and new shopping centers and other things have replaced woods and fields(my favorite open field at corner of University and 13th is now a shining uber-modern apartment complex – the horror!). Progress(in shape of concrete and steel) marches on unimpeded by more poetic concerns…
Pardon that interlude – but onward! We had a lovely time eating breakfast(I had a delicious breakfast pie with eggs and cheeses and meats and it was wonderful alongside the good strong coffee) and of course talking. We had so much good talking times throughout this trip that I shall soon neglect to mention them, but just know they happened because Laura and Caisson are truly both so dear. Following breakfast, I’m trying to remember what we did next…if I recall correctly, it was a trip to campus! We spent a few hours wandering the gameday-crowded campus, seeing old spots(the Bunker at Graham! the new-(and improved??) Union! the Florida bookstore – I think we spent the most time there perusing random books!) and eventually ending up at Pascal’s Coffeehouse. Oh Pascal’s – truly the holder of so many memories. I even have an old adolescent lit story I wrote back in ’09 where this coffeehouse was featured prominently. And I am actually wearing one of their shirts as I write this now, randomly! Anyways – it was great fun being there again, walking past the table where Laura remembered first getting a text from Caisson, peeking into the room where so many good Creekside College Ministry Wednesday night meetings were held…and eventually, we got some drinks(a hybrid London-fog/peppermint mocha for me!) and ended up talking there for a while, the three of us. Expounding on the power of poetry and the characteristics it should contain. Caisson has a good “Three Laws of Poetry” summary that I really need to heed when I’m writing. I have discovered that I’m not really that good in presenting a clear and easily understandable theme to my audience in my works. I may know what’s there, but the readers most definitely do not always understand what I’m getting at! But I shall not attempt to summarize our whole conversation here.
Eventually, it was time to part ways…for I had told Laura and Caisson that I had wanted to spend a few hours by myself. These hours that I spent wandering campus…I don’t know if I can fully and properly put them to page here as it is something maybe best left to my heart and soul alone. But I had long desired to undertake what I have now called a pilgrimage back to the lands of my youth. And so I did walk through campus, stopping at the sites of so many hallowed memories. At each spot I was able to sit and reflect and think and meditate and pray on what God has done in me and for me and through me these past years. And as I brought back many memories…some bitter and some sweet…I could not help but thank my Father God for holding me fast throughout every dark night and every raging storm. I was able to write various things in my little notebook throughout this pilgrimage and while I shan’t reproduce them all here(partly because they’re very crude and quickly written and not at all amenable to proper editing and partly because I want the majority to remain truly personal), I will put down one…
Lake Alice
gleams prettily
in glow
of setting sun –
its quiet beauty
thrills my soul.
A heron rests
atop the stillness.
I shiver
at the
crickets’ song.
That is the least emotional(and/or personal) so I think it’s ok for sharing here!
Now eventually I realized that even over two hours of walking around by myself was not sufficient for my purposes…but I knew I must return to Laura and Caisson’s place for dinner! Laura came and picked me up and after a quick detour to Target(where asparagus and…er…the long desired new Taylor album reputation were acquired), we returned to the apartment. Caisson was in the middle of crafting a delicious Guinness-beef stew..full of beef and carrots and onions and parsnips and other savoury ingredients. This was poured over mashed potatoes and it was definitely a proper and hearty dinner! After we enjoyed that, we eventually decided a quiet movie night was in order. It may have taken us a while to decide on a movie, but eventually we did settle on an old classic I’d never seen before…10 Things I Hate About You and it was much enjoyed – full of classic Shakespeare references and fun 90s nostalgia! I do so love fun high school movies from my era and this is a well-deserved classic…Heather Ledger and Julia Stiles..simply perfect.
Now…this entry is far too long and I’ve decided to end it for the now. Going to go off with my coffee and have more reading time. Also listening to some classic hymns(And Can It Be currently playing) and I just can’t focus on writing anymore. Peace and love.
