Downcast

Why do i feel so discouraged right now!?
I was incredibly encouraged this past weekend at the BIG bible study and then on Sunday morning as well, but now i am just heartbroken with no clue why!

Psalm 43

1 Vindicate me, O God,
and plead my cause against an ungodly nation;
rescue me from deceitful and wicked men.

2 You are God my stronghold.
Why have you rejected me?
Why must I go about mourning,
oppressed by the enemy?

3 Send forth your light and your truth,
let them guide me;
let them bring me to your holy mountain,
to the place where you dwell.

4 Then will I go to the altar of God,
to God, my joy and my delight.
I will praise you with the harp,
O God, my God.

5 Why are you downcast, O my soul?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God.

It's a Boy!

This morning i became the proud aunty of a baby boy, born to Sam and Yvonne Davies. His name is Jonas Luke Davies and he weighed in at 8lb 13oz. My first nephew!
on a side note.....I WON THE BETS!! HAHA!!

Weary

Weary

1. Having the strength exhausted by toil or exertion; worn out in respect to strength, endurance, etc; tired, fatigued.

2. Causing weariness; tiresome.

3.  Having one's patience, relish, or contentment exhausted; tired; sick.

This word describes how i feel right now in respect to waiting.  I am weary of waiting.

Moe Window Troubles In The Lives Of Alpha, Jack, And Retta.

The strangest thing happened the other day.  

I got into my car after physio and fired up ye old engines, so far so good, but all of a sudden two of my windows (front driver side and back other side if you get my drift) ABORTED and COMMITTED SUICIDE.   ie they started going down.  No problem for the front window, its the one in my car that actually works and at the half-way point i pressed the button and up it came safe and sound.  Not so lucky for the back window!!  It is one of the three windows in my car that DOES NOT WORK (or, isn't supposed to work because the mechanic was SUPPOSED to have fixed them so they do not go down at all.....obviously he didn't).  and it didn't just slide down gracefully like a window should normally.  no. it dropped.  it plunged.  it plummeted. whichever word you prefer. just let it suffice to say that when it stopped it only had 1/2 cm showing.  

bummer! now what?! 

Well, i got out of my car and after about 2 minutes in the pouring rain i had coaxed the window up about 4 or 5 inches with my fingertips and then it just would not budge anymore.  Now sometimes if i press the button it will actually work and go up so i figured it wouldn't hurt to try it. I got back into the car and pushed the button.  No such luck this time!! I grumpily got out of the car and tried pulling it up again and it went up another inch but no further.  

Suddenly, out of the blue, randomly, a strange guy gets out of his car next to me (i had no idea he was there, probably laughing his head off at my efforts....) and strikes up a conversation by saying something like "having trouble with your window?",  'yes you dummy isn't it obvious' i thought (thankfully i didn't say it out loud),  and graciously said "yes it has a mind of its own".  really dumb reply i know.  but whatever, irrelevant to the story.  He tried his luck at pulling the window up but it didn't budge.  I had a strange feeling (prompted by the Holy Spirit probably) that i should try the button again, so while the strange dude stood by watching i climbed back into the car and pressed the up button.  

PRESTO!  IT WENT UP!

flabbergasted i got out of the car and went around and stood there like an idiot in the rain and stared at the window muttering under my breath and laughing at the same time in sheer relief.   "well thats that i guess!" i said.  The dude piped up "what you need now is a wedge".

what the heck is a wedge?  how would i find a wedge?  

Well guess what the guy does now?  Reaches into his pocket a pulls out a wedge!!!!  HOW RANDOM IS THAT!??  i was speechless. 

He reaches in the front right window and wedges this little wedge (Will called it a shimy? but who cares either word will do) between the glass of the window and the door.  "there, that should stay up now" the guy says.  I turned to him "dude. you are a freaking genius!!!" i say and thank him as he gets into his car and drives away.

And then i drove home safe and dry in my car with all my windows up!  That, my friends, was the high of my week.  Seriously the most random thing that has ever happened to me.  I felt like God had sent me help even before i'd thought to ask him, despite my bad attitude!  and boy did i ever change my attitude after that!!  

Happy Hunting!

Alpha

Pain, Advil, and Surrender

So what's the point of the whole "save your back, lift with your knees" if you not only have a bad back but bad knees as well?

i have discovered that being on advil all the time is not necessarily a good thing, no matter the pain.

After a few pills are popped you begin to feel a bit whoozy and then you don't really feel much at all. I'd much rather have the pain and laugh through it than be dizzy, out of pain, and out to lunch!

A super encouraging bible verse that i read the other evening is from Psalm 73.

"Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing i desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever." (Psa 73.25-26)

How easily we forget the simple fact that we have a strength that comes from God alone! And how much less stress and worry we would have in this life if only we learned to place our trust in Him. Because we do falter and our flesh is weak, but God has promised that He will not put more on us than we can bear.

How precious is that promise!

I am learning, bit by bit, day by day, to place my struggles, pain, rejections, and sorrows before the One who is the only one who can fully understand our problems and give us the strength to carry on.  Through the achy joints and creeky bones and advil withdrawls, God is teaching me to surrender to His Will.  No-one said it would be easy!  But we have God's strength on our side!!

"Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God forever and ever. Amen!"  (Rev 7.12)

We're not in the Dark Ages anymore Jack...

I've finally taken a step into the world of technology and bought a MacBook.

it was a big step.

and expensive.

but altogether worth it. macs are great fun once you get the hang of them!

so for the more technological-minded folk, here are the specs on my new baby:

13-inch: White

2.1GHz

120GB Hard Drive

Combo Drive

nothing too fancy, but i don't really need something too high-tech. that would just be way too confusing...

as it is, it took me half a day to figure out how to set up the internet, WHICH I DID ALL BY MYSELF! and i'm still figuring out the just-beyond-the-basics.

s'ok, i have time on my hands every evening!

Oh, and my baby is named Jack, so if you want to refer to it in any way, use the name...otherwise it might get mad and go kibitz...;)

happy mac-ing and happy pc-ing folks!

"The Stuff My Toe Goes Through In A Regular Work Day Just To Stay Alive" and "The Undiet"

What is with my toe being such a heavy object magnet today!!?? i had a big water bottle dropped on my broken big toe which just about KILLED me, i almost had tears in my eyes! And then, approximately an hour later after i'd just about finished recovering and could feel my toe again, ANOTHER water bottle was dropped ON THE SAME TOE!! OUCH!! so after staying in the doubled up/in a lot of pain position for a couple of minutes i got on with my day (albeit a little numbly), kept pricing stuff and whatnot, had a few good laughs...and then, yes, the inevitable happened. A large box of Mott's Applesauce Cups slipped out of my hands, flew through the air (ie, downwards) and landed square on the previously so unfortunate toe!!!!!
the magnitude of the pain my friends was something else.
an experience i hope never to experience again.
i mean, it hurts bad enough without the broken toe (trust me, its happened more than once to me), but WITH?
So ya. Believe it or not i had a good day despite those tragedies. I got an uber ton of stuff done with Leslye on the shipment, laughed at an inordinate amount of hilariously random things and made a blonde idiot out of myself more than a couple of times...:D
In other news: i've decided that junk food is a thing of the past and am currently on a new "health kick" (as heather would put it) with my mom for a whole entire week! No chips, pop, chocolate bars, chewy dipp bars (a huge favorite of mine, especially the extraordinarily ridiculously swell tasting peanut butter ones), candies of any shape or form, and snacks at night time that fall under the names of almonds, sesame sticks, cheerios, raisins, fruitloops, croutons, daims, smarties, walnuts, peanuts, nutella covered bananas, icecream, etc etc etc.
its really hard.
its only been like 2 days and i'm already experiencing withdrawl symptoms. Leslye tried to convince me (by force) to eat a Wagonwheel at work today and i could smell it and boy did it ever smell good! i was sorely tempted...but i triumphed!! the night before the diet um i mean HEALTH KICK started i ate all the remaining Daims in my room. BAD IDEA! there were about 30 of them and i had a MASSIVE sugar headache all night long! but i knew that if i didn't eat them i'd be looking at them all week long while i wasted away to nothing and they'd be such a temptation.
still, not doing it again. 3 or 4 at a time is definitely enough.
I know it might sound like i'm going a bit overboard/melodramatic and all, but seriously when you work in a freight damage store there's SO MUCH TO EAT and it usually is not at all good for you. I didn't even fully realize how much junk i ingested in a regular work day until i stopped eating it altogether!
Well thats all for now folks, be sure to stop by later this week for another installment of my work day adventures!

Spin-Pong and the out of control events of BIG

So basically i watched Jonny's spins again on FB....laughed so hard i almost peed myself....again....
It reminded me of all the crazy fun times i've had in the past year at BIG (formerly C&C). Staying out til 3 at Timmys on Lougheed...bowling at Revs...double movie nights...yes that crazy spin-pong night :D...witnessing on the Drive....volleyball!!...late nights doing absolutely nothing...bible study at the Whitleys....and so much more!!
I've been so blessed with wonderful friends this year who made me feel welcome in their lives! I was an uber shy girl before (still am sometimes) but i've learned to be open, learned to share my thoughts and ideas in an environment that wasn't critical or unforgiving (welllll....sometimes, but all in fun). I've made new friends and caught up with old ones that i hadn't seen in years.
I guess one day i'll wake up and realize that being sleep-deprived from being up too late the night before isn't exactly the cats meow, but hey! i'm young and invincible, or at least i like to think of myself as such.
So if anyone is craving timmys at 2 am, don't hesitate to call me because i am totally ready for another BIG season!

Just Plain Blah

Wow, my brain has been completely dead this last little while. No inspiration for blog entries whatsoever. Folks you'll have to excuse my blog tardiness for a few days as i get back into the swing of things.
In the meantime.....www.pipesmokingprof.blogspot.com.....here's some pretty super writing.

Camping? Again? YAY!

The last two weeks have flown by! One minute i was just getting home from camping and the next i'm dying to be out of this polluted, busy, headache-inducing city as fast as i possibly can.
Paul Lake or bust!!
So tomorrow morning, bright and early, i'll be up and ready to go. Only i'll probably have to wait around for Heather to finish packing her bags and then i'll probably be stopped by Dad and made to help lift the boats onto the back of the truck, by which time it will be noon, and then i'll probably remember something important that i've forgotten to pack......oh it could take hours!
And speaking of hours......i'm not really looking forward to the drive up there. mind you, the weather is cooler than usual. and thats good. but still, 4 1/2 hours? minimum?
THIS IS GOING TO BE FREAKIN AWESOME!!!
see you in two weeks!!

Home

So after 7 hours of boring travel i finally arrived home again on Friday night. Why 7 hours? Well for starters, Becs and I were stuck in traffic from Abbotsford to the Port Mann for 3 stinkin hot hours, and then i had to drive all the way through hot traffic infested Vancouver to Kitsilano to drop Becs off at home. That part wasn't so bad, just the traffic was horrible, and then i had to brave the roads of Vancouver AGAIN and drive all the way back to Burnaby, stopping at Lordco for a fuse, to my house.
One highlight: i actually changed the blown fuse in my car and had music for about the last 15 minutes of the drive. so good. i was pretty impressed with my mad skills (thanks to Sam).
Camping was exhausting but really fun. Volleyball every day and Cribbage! The weather was hot and sunny the entire week, i burned my shoulders and got about a million mosquito bites but it was so worth it. Laughing Circle, the lighthouse, the waterfalls, the new dock, swimming, sleeping in the middle of the field, walking, taking stupid pictures, hardcore hemping, the sports and game tournaments, the lack of bees and grasshoppers (and the presence instead of mosquitos), campfires at night, chubby bunnies, killer bunnies, dogs running circles around each other and knocking down stuff (grrr), relaxing and doing nothing, capture the flag, so many awesome memories!!!
And to think, in just 11 days i get to do it all over again at Paul Lake!!
hope to see you there!

Beach

Well I'm finally off to the beach tomorrow, the first time we'll been there for the whole day! I'm pretty stoked because it means I get to work on my tan before I go camping (which is only 11 days away!!! :D SUPER STOKED), or most likely my burn.
Sand, Sun, Water, Food, Volleyball, FUN TIMES!
So if you're in Vancouver just come down and join us anytime!
Oh and happy early Canada Day......

Guttering and Scrubbing

So guess what i get to do on my day off?
WAKE UP EARLY!
CLEAN THE GUTTERS!!
SCRUB THE DECK!!!

DIE A HORRIBLE DEATH!!!!

ok so maybe not so bad as all that, my mom is the one cleaning the gutters and climbing all over the roof because i'm hiding down in the basement avoiding her....
but pretty soon she'll be screaming for me to come help her scrub the deck.
*sigh*
and as for the dying a horrible death part, well thats just me being all melodramatic.


on a more serious note, RIP Meeks, it was a privilege to be taught by you!

Life in God's Plan

Sometimes i wish i actually was in University. Like when friends are leaving for far off schools or just found out they've been accepted somewhere, and i think oh that would be such an adventure. And i become disatisfied with my work and disappointed that God hasn't called me to something more glamorous or exciting than just working as a cashier.
But God is faithful when you are obedient to His Will, hard as it may be. We come out the other side a bit different, closer to God, more like Him.
Even though it's difficult (very much so), i know that what i'm doing right now (working) is what God has asked me to do. So by the grace of God i will persevere. Be it weeks, months, years, even the rest of my life!
So if you were thinking of asking me what i'm going to be doing in the future.....think again because i don't know!!

Jane Hazel Davies!!

A new baby is born!!!
Jane Hazel Davies, born to Austin and Leah Davies on May 6th 2008 at 11.51am, weighing 7lb 5oz (3315 kg). Leah is recovering steadily from her c-section, and comes out of the hospital on Friday morning with baby Jane.
The extended family is THRILLED with this new addition and big sister Kiara is stoked that her and her Aunty Fifi WON the bets placed as to the gender of the baby.
yay!
~Aunty Fifi

a most interesting phone call.

Can you believe how long its been since i last blogged? My sincerest apologies to the people who read this (assuming some people actually do?).
Well today i received a most interesting phone call.
alpha: "surplus sam's alpha speaking?" (why do i always do that when i'm at home!!)
*shakes head to clear brains*
person on other line: "uuuuh. oh is this surplus sam's?"
*i recognize the voice to be that of my dear brother Sam to whom i extend my 'sorry' for being so confusing.*
alpha: "oh, no. sorry sam, this is home."
sam: "oh ok do you do that often? was that intentional?" (sam laughing)
alpha: "yes well unfortunately i DO do it quite often, but quite unintentionally. whats up?"
sam: "well i'm just calling to tell you that Yvonne's pregnant."
*way to just drop the bomb eh? i mean he could have at least broken it to me a bit easier doncha think?*
alpha: screams quite loudly, demands to know if he's lying to her (i wouldn't put it past him to do something like that to me), and then demands to talk to Yvonne.

So yes folks! Yvonne really is pregnant! and i'm authorized to tell as many people as i want! YAY!!!
but the downside is that i really want one of my own now. a baby, that is (in case you were confused....somehow....). in fact i always have, but now i guess you could say my biological clock is going into overdrive.
patience, alpha, patience.

peace out people, go have a raindance in this fabulous vancouver rain.

Aunty Alpha (for the fourth time)

Adventures on the Drive Part II

Sorry about the interruption folks, on with my story.
So to make a long story short, we prayed for one more guy and then eventually made it back to Joe's Cafe where everyone was meeting up. I had a pretty fantastic drink, ice cream with espresso poured over top. And, ironically, it was called Espresso With Ice Cream. We debriefed with everyone and shared our experiences, some incredible, some just strange, and others just downright hilarious!
It was the most enjoyable thing i've ever done! i mean, last week we played volleyball and it was killer fun and we all had a blast, but last night we were vulnerable and scared and God used that and just knit us together as a group. Every one of us stepped outside of our comfort zone and relied completely on the Holy Spirit to guide us and indeed He did. it was pretty incredible!
And i realized something important last night, something that i already knew but didn't really fully REALIZE, if you get my meaning.
When we go out there on the streets, or stand behind the counter at work, or walk through the mall on our day off and share the gospel of Christ with someone, it has absolutely nothing to do with us. We as humans are completely and utterly inadequate.
But get this: JESUS IS ADEQUATE. and HE IS FAITHFUL!!
All we have to do is ask Him and He will help us! its a scary thing! but OH SO WORTH IT!!

Adventures on the Drive

Last night i did THE scariest and most adventuresome thing i have ever done. Basically, last week we had a friend from Vernon down sharing about their mission work and just reaching out and sharing the gospel with people. So Leonard had the idea of going down to the Drive and doing just that! we were ALL nervous and ALL scared spitless, most of us had never done anything like it, but Charlie paired us off guys with girls and sent us out with the purpose of approaching people, introducing ourselves, and asking if they had anything they needed/wanted prayer for.
And it was incredible.
For the first 5 minutes Miguel and I just walked and said stuff like "oh man this is so awkward" or "what if we don't get to talk to anyone?" to which my unspoken answer was "hey well that would be fine with me!". But God definitely had BIGger and better plans than just turning tail and running back to Joe's. The first person just brushed us off and kept walking and the second person asked if we could pray for a "change of consciousness for all mankind". How do you answer a question like that let alone pray for it? Miguel and I REALLY were not prepared for that, and you could tell the guy had some WAY deeper issues to deal with (which he obviously wasn't about to share with us), so we made a graceful-ish exit and kept walking. Miguel had seen a program on tv that weekend about homelessness in Vancouver and knew that there was this guy named [?] that lived on the Drive. the government had been trying to get him onto welfare but he was afraid of signing any papers b/c he didn't want his aboriginal rights to be taken away. So the next block there he was sitting against a telephone pole making some of his art. we stopped and chatted, Miguel mentioning the tv program. He was really friendly with us but when we asked if we could pray for him he said some others had already asked him that and besides, he talks to his creator every day already. I just hope and pray that he really and truly is saved and the creator he was talking about wasn't some mad-made god in his imagination. At the end of the night we brought him a coffee.
Right after that we were just walking and discussing stuff and the two people in front of us (a guy pushing a bicycle and a girl) stepped aside to let us pass, the guy with the bike making a light comment about his foot being hurt and he couldn't walk too fast so he'd let us pass. It was like God was shoving the perfect opportunity right in our faces! we stopped, introduced ourselves, and got to talking. When asked if we could pray for anything the girl outright said "oh actually yes, i'm having trouble with my relationship with my boyfriend and i'm scared about what will happen, if we'll break up or not." or something along those lines. So we prayed for her and nothing spectacular happened at all, but a seed has definitely planted! i just hope that something does happen and she'll remember the two crazy people that prayed for her.
but thats all for now, our bible study begins a few minutes ago upstairs so i'd better vamoose...

Forced Inactivity Is Killing Me!

So i've pretty much hurt my leg badly enough to have to stay home from work today. has this ever happened to me? NO! am i peeved? YES! am i extremely bored? YES! but life must go on as they (who?) say.
So far this morning i've done the laundry, tidied the house, vacuumed, watched a movie, screwed up 3 sudokus and finally finished the 4th, and sat on my rear end for countless hours. Now what?
who knows. but not being at work is killing me, and i'm beginning to wonder if i'm too obsessed with it. i mean, it's pretty much all i think about, all i talk about, and all i dream about (literally, i dream about work almost every night).
But i don't see any break in the near or far future from the retail line of work so i guess i'll just have to stick with it....
except today! today i stay at home and do NOTHING!
end of rant.

Holy Cow!

I heard THE stupidest and lamest and crudest joke today from a customer and after he went out, laughing and punching his friend on the arm, i took a moment to reflect on WHY i put up with idiots in my store. why wouldn't i just quit or something? another customer who heard the joke suggested i carry a squirt gun around in just such an event, i could just whip it out and spray them and MAYBE they'd SHUT UP!
But here's why i still work at Surplus Sam's (despite the idiots):
1. Believe it or not, i love it. i mean, where else can you get a job in which you can freely climb shelving units and throw stuff around and yell at your coworkers and do all sorts of stupid awesome stuff without getting in trouble?
2. I enjoy the stimulating company of my coworkers. Just the other day i took advantage of the good humour of Hannah and shoved her into a conveniently placed pallet box. I'm kicking myself now for not having my camera handy. boy was it hilarious. and just so you don't think i'm a mean horrid person for doing it, she did it to me the day before. NOW WE'RE EVEN!
3. We're the best paid cashiers this side of Hope, seriously, its awesome.
4. There's always something happening, never a dull moment, either a shipment coming in or a customer buying 5 tvs and two couches or the store being rearranged or a threat of flooding (every spring) which makes us run around like maniacs trying to get stuff up off the floor and secure. It's FUN!
And i'm sure there are more reasons, but the yummy dinner in my stomach is overflowing into my brain making it impossible for me to think.
So that's why i put up with the idiots and numbskulls.

Something i learned today

Maturity comes from Productivity.

Snow Daze

Well everyone I'm back safe and sound from Kelowna (albeit a day late due to road conditions).
Driving the coquihalla was definitely an adventure to remember. I almost turned back at the toll booth it was snowing so hard, but figured i'd come that far and i might as well keep going. Creeping along at 40kph. Sliding like mad. Having loads of fun. And about 2 1/2 hours later i arrived at work! Just in time for Hannah to leave at 1:30. God definitely kept me safe on that journey, without his incredible protection i might just be dead on the side of the road in an overturned car in the snow!
And now? Home again. Going to bed. Work tomorrow.
Goodnight all!

Adventures in the Dark Part 2

sorry about that folks, i was called away for dinner and had to post an unfinished blog. but the rest of the story is pretty tame, we just wandered around the store in pitch blackness, so dark you could almost FEEL it.....and i only realized now that the emergency lights didn't even go on! what is WITH that! cool.
so anyways, at 2 the power went out and at 2:45, after making sure all the light switches were in the off position, i was on my way home! a full half day off! pretty sweet. i tidied my room and went shopping and bummed around.
so ya thats all for now, if you want more on the adventures of alpha you'll have to wait because this week has been pretty boring.

Adventures in the Dark

Today started out like any other work day. I dragged myself out of bed at the crack of dawn, woke up in the shower (literally, i was seriously still asleep when i got up. in fact, its a wonder i wasn't still wearing my pjs in the shower), and drove to work while stuffing a banana in my mouth.
but then everything changed.
Power Outage!!!!
2 o'clock and all of a sudden the lights blinked off, and the store was plunged into darkness.