Anna Lauren McDowell

The Pioneer Woman

2010-04-01T15:32:00.000-07:00

Before a few months ago I had never heard of Ree Drummond. For those out there that have also not heard of her she is the Pioneer Woman. Every time I hear the word pioneer, my mind immediately goes to two things, the Little House on the Prairie series and Oregon Trail. When I was younger, I loved Little House on the Prairie. I actually still do. I just started rereading the series. It is excellent.

My roommate Natalie recently purchased The Pioneer Woman cookbook. She has made several different recipes, all delicious, and I am now inspired. Ree's cookbook as well as her website are filled with recipes that look so amazing you want to eat your computer. Not only does she have step by step instructions, but also step by step pictures of whatever it is your are making should look like along the way. This seems genius, but so simple in the cooking world. I am always wondering if something looks right while I'm making it.

Anyway, my point to this is, I bought into the craze here among a lot of women in Norman. I made my first pioneer woman recipe, "The Best Chocolate Sheet Cake. Ever." It's sitting on the table cooling with all of it's chocolatey goodness. I'm excited to try it. I'll let you know how it is...maybe.

Last Year, This Year and Beyond...

2010-01-30T09:16:00.000-08:00

As most of you know, I'm engaged (to be married). For those that didn't know, I'm sorry I haven't blogged about it yet. On December 29th, 2009, Michael asked me to marry him and I said yes!! I am really excited to get to marry my best friend and the greatest guy I know.

After getting engaged, we entered into a whirlwind of wedding planning and life planning. It is strange to actually have to decide what I am going to do with the rest of my life and that whatever it is affects someone else. I am already learning that I am terribly selfish and not a great person. Those are probably good things to be aware of.

So, we got engaged. Set a date. And are now deciding life after marriage. Michael and I are hoping to go to seminary and are in the process of applying and getting things lined up to do that. It is scary, but exciting. I am trying to trust Jesus in all of the planning and preparations for so many life changes. I fail every minute. I am thankful he is gracious and patient and is changing me.

In light of planning a wedding, we will undoubtedly have music and dancing. Which means there will need to be good music so that people will dance. I love dancing...others do not...that is ok, I guess. In your opinion, what are your top 5 songs to dance? They can be anything. We'll more than likely use them.

Only Recently Well Read

2009-12-08T11:14:00.000-08:00

Growing up I tried lot of different activities. I danced, I sang, I played sports. There is a long list of hobbies that I took part in, but listing them here would bore you to tears. I tried just about everything. With every new opportunity, I knew it was going to be the one thing I would do for life. It never was. I enthusiastically persuaded my parents allow me to take piano lessons. I quit two years later due to lack of interest and talent. I begged to take dance. I quit that too due to lack of interest and talent. I tried out for cheerleading, made the squad and asked for parental sponsorship for all of the uniforms and fees required. I quit after a year. The list goes on and on. Somethings lasted a month, others last years, but in the end. I did not seem to be as interested in them as I thought I would be in the beginning. I would guess a lot of kids were like this. Some were forced to stick with what they asked for. I pitched fits frequently. So eventually, I was always allowed to give up.

Of all the things I "loved" doing as a child, reading was not one of them. I hated it. I liked being read to. I liked the stories. The act of reading myself was miserable. I learned to read pretty early, but it was not my great passion. Reading was what the kids that were socially challenged did. I was socially inclined. Reading was not for me. Fortunately, my parents made me read anyway. In elementary school, all I wanted was to get my ears pierced. But getting them pierced would cost me. 11 chapter books. I tried negotiating a low price, but was denied. The parents held firm to their price. So, I quickly skimmed through them and received two holes in my ears. In high school, I read one book per summer of my summer reading and spark noted the rest. Reading was slow, uninteresting and antisocial. After graduating, I picked up a copy of Pride and Prejudice. I was no longer forced to read. I would not be test on any material. I figured it was worth a shot. Something changed. I loved it! I immediately started reading everything I could get my hands on. All of the books I skipped reading in high school I read. I bought new books. I read and read and read. I had found what I loved to do and it was wonderful. Every book opened up a new world and new adventure. Each one was different. It didn't get old. So far, I still love to read. I'm hoping this is one of those things that sticks around for life. I don't consider myself a well read person. There is so much more to read and know. It's difficult to know where to begin. Books are like people. Each one is so uniquely different. You can't just lump them all together and define them. You have to get to know them. You can judge a book by its cover, but you might be horribly wrong.

Oklahoma to Alabama to Oklahoma to Alabama to...

2009-11-12T10:02:00.000-08:00

Living over 700 miles from where I grew up sometimes gets a little complicated. I love my family and want to be there for every activity that happens. But I love my friends in Norman and want to be there for every activity that happens. This can be difficult when there are things going on in both places. Especially around the holidays. As of Tuesday at 1:30pm, I became officially unemployed. That's exciting. I was offered a job at Republic Bank and Trust, but regretfully turned it down due to family commitments and weddings I am involved in and promised to be in or at. I am happy with that decision. (I guess I shouldn't have said regretfully then). Over the past couple of days I have been concerned with how I am going to make it financially until I return to Norman in mid-January to see what other job opportunities I could find. I have brainstormed different part time seasonal businesses I could start...Annie Mac's Holiday Snacks seemed to be the best of all. Basically, I would send out something to people that have Christmas parties in Huntsville and see if they need someone to bake things for them. And then they'd pay me. Simple right? I think so. I will still potentially do that.

Today, my dad called me and told me some happenings at ministry he runs in Huntsville. They are in need of someone to work at their preschool from now until the holidays. I said that I could do that. It seems like a pretty good deal. I will get to be at home for the holidays, getting paid and directly working with people. The downside, I already have a lot of plans in Oklahoma between now and Dec. 25. So, I will be in Huntsville for a week then drive to Tulsa for a few days then back to Alabama and stay for a little bit then back to Tulsa then back to Alabama then to Georgia and back to Alabama and then finally back to Norman. I'm going to need some good music. Suggestions?

Etsy

2009-11-08T06:14:00.001-08:00

I've heard about Etsy for a long time, but have not spent a good deal of time looking through the stuff talented people all over the country make by hand! It's great! I am a sucker for hand crafted, one of a kind (or at least not mass produced) stuff. It is inspiring. I want to start painting again, learn to sew better and just do awesome stuff. I would also love to learn how to make pottery. Become a potter, as it were. Here are some of my favorite things I've seen on so far.

This is a watercolor print. You can buy it for $12. I really like the style of the trees.

This is a ceramic mug. ha. I like that it is just "brown" but there are so many other colors making it just brown. It can also be bought, but for $20.

This is a rubber stamp to put in your books. I would probably get it to say Anna McDowell rather than Stacey Burns. I think that could get confusing. $13.50

This seller has a lot of cute post earrings. I really like them. And they are only $4.50-$6.50. Right there is a deal for buy 3 get 1 free on all of the seller's stuff. Woot.

I guess that wraps up this post.

Job Update #3

2009-11-02T12:31:00.000-08:00

I have a second interview on Wednesday for the bank job. That seems like good news. That's all I have at the moment.

Job Update #2

2009-10-29T12:13:00.001-07:00

I have officially put in my two weeks notice at La Baguette. My last day will be November 10th. I'm pretty excited about this! No, I do not have another job at the moment. You might be thinking, "That's crazy!!" It probably is. But I do have two interviews this week. So, I am hoping that something great comes from one or both of those. The first one is today (Thursday) at a consulting company for a receptionist job. They work with companies to help them reduce the amount of energy they use. That seems pretty great of them to do that. Ha. The second one is tomorrow (Friday) at Republic Bank and Trust for a teller position. A bank is where people deposit and withdraw money...along with many other things. I am pretty excited that people are at least interested in talking in person with me. That seems promising. I am trying to trust God in all of this. He is faithful and good even when I am not. I am thankful for that.

Fictional Couples.

2009-10-25T10:21:00.000-07:00

Over the past month or so the topic of fidelity among "fictional couples" has been addressed briefly several times. I am amazed at how in television and books we often hope the heroic person cheats on their tyrant of a spouse because the "other" person is SO much more likable. I think this all the time. For instance, in the television series, Glee, Will Schuester the show choir director is married to a woman, Terri, who outwardly lies to him about being pregnant, demands a better house and nicer things that are way out of their means of living, and manipulates his every move. The show does a good job of portraying as a terrible person to be married to. Will does his best to provide for her, takes on a second job but still does not reach her expectations. So, we don't like Terri...she's terrible. But we do like the guidance counselor, Emma. She is sweet and caring and is totally in love with Will Schuester. They are friends and talk often. The entire time I am watching this show I find myself wanting them to end up together, completely forgetting that he is MARRIED and she is engaged to someone else. This is something I feel like no one would be pulling for in real life. But for some reason in television, movies, books, theater or other made up media and art forms I find myself wanting things to happen to people that in real life would be awful and forever damaging to people. We hope people have affairs. We want people to get killed. We want what seems like will make that person happy in that moment, but neglect the overall affects of their decisions and the last results that it would have on the people if they actually existed. I find this interesting. And all the more evidence to our total depravity. I am not saying that we should not necessarily be watching or reading things that contain these things, but that I have become aware of what I am apparently hoping for with these people it completely contradicts what I believe in actual life. I don't feel like there should be such a divide. I could be wrong. This entire blog could be completely incomprehensible. My bad. Thoughts?

Job Update #1

2009-10-12T17:55:00.000-07:00

My second round of job searching has begun! I spent all afternoon researching and applying to jobs personally and electronically. I am really hoping something materializes soon. I traded shifts with a girl at La Baguette, so I am not working on Thursday. That is good news because it gives me the whole day to beat down the doors of potential employers. My thought process is this...I'm not making much and my job is really not great, so I feel like I can find and easier job for the same amount of money. I am hopeful. I'll try and keep this updated. We'll see how that goes.

Kind of depressing and Concerts!!!!!!!

2009-10-07T16:42:00.001-07:00

To update those that actually read this blog, my life is different than I expected. It has been a surprising roller coaster of trying to make life everything I want it to be. I think that is the problem. I need to let go of trying to MAKE it something it is not. I am trying to be everything to everyone and I feel like I am failing miserably. I think more than anything I am worn out. I wake up too early and go to bed too late and work really hard the 8 hours I am at work everyday. I am constantly wishing for a slow day or an early out...those usually don't happen, but it's a great day when it does! I am still looking for other jobs. I am hoping something more consistent and "real job" like comes up. I am praying. I am realizing that not getting enough sleep or rest makes me crazy. I have WAY over reacted to things that are definitely not big deals and really under reacted to things that are. It seems like in the past 5 years I have been pretty consistent in my reactions to things and I am unsure of my sanity.

On a good note, I am going to a lot of concerts this semester! Michael and I recently went to go see Blink 182. It was at least interesting. We were stuck in traffic for two hours in Dallas and missed the first two bands, but it turned out ok. Blink 182 are definitely entertaining in one way or another. ha. Also, on the line up there is U2, Brian Regan, Ben Folds, hopefully Regina Spektor and Jon Foreman with Switchfoot. I have decided I really like concerts and seeing bands and hearing music I listen to in my car on on my ipod. It seems like a worthwhile experience.

Things are going to get better. I am hopeful.

I'm no good at blogging

2009-08-11T06:21:00.000-07:00

The last blog I wrote was all about how worried I was to move back to Norman and find a job. I have to tell you, it was pretty stressful. It's definitely possible that I made it more stressful on myself. I have good news though, I got a job!!! Praise to God for that! I basically spent half of every day for the first week I was back putting in job applications and talking to managers and driving around trying to find other places to apply. I just wanted something to start out with. I fortunately walked into La Baguette, a local french bakery and cafe, on a day that they were about to start sorting through applications for a new employee. They hired me that Friday and a started the following Monday. Not bad for 5 days worth of looking. I am not completely done searching for a job...I am going to stick with this one for awhile. A job with some money coming in is better than no job at all and no money at all. But I would like to be working somewhere with more of a set schedule. It is difficult to make plans for anything when your schedule for the week is set 12 hours before it starts. But I am thankful. God is good and he has provided!!

I also got a new roommate!! Her name is Natalie and she is awesome! She is the new OURUF intern. I am so excited about the year she has ahead of her and I am even more excited that I get to live with her and be her friend! She arrived on Sunday after 32 hours of driving from Florida. She spent yesterday unpacking and we rearranged the entire living room. I really like it! Sally won't even know her own house when she gets back. I miss Sally, but I am very happy to have someone here. The past three weeks of living by myself have been strange, quiet and at times a little scary (I can pretty much psych myself out over nothing). So, yay for new roommates!! It seems like people are slowly starting to return to Norman. I am looking forward to everyone coming back. So, hurry back please!!

The Same As Usual

2009-07-09T10:37:00.000-07:00

So, I have done a very poor job keeping this thing updated on my life. Honestly, there isn't a whole lot to update. I've been living in Huntsville with my parents, working for my dad about 30 hours a week, visiting friends whenever I can, reading books, and searching for jobs back in Norman the best I can from 700 miles away. So far nothing has come of the job search. I have received a few leads on jobs, but they don't seem to materializing into anything. I am heading back to Norman next Friday (July 17th) to hopefully be reunited with one of my favorite roommates and possibly some other friends. After the weekend I will begin my job search in person and make these people want to hire me!!...or at least I hope that's how it will go. If any of you know of anything or anyone that is looking for someone to do work for them, even babysitting or whatever just to keep my going for longer, I would appreciate it.

I've recently started reading a book on prayer, A Praying Life by Donald Miller, which has made me think about prayer a lot more. I don't understand it. I know that I am supposed to be praying, but I have no idea how it works. I am cynical when things happen and I have prayed for them and I am angry when things don't happen and I have prayed for them. This doesn't seem like a good place to be in my prayer life. I feel like them more I read and research prayer, the less I understand about it, but, also the more I know that I need it. I know that God calls us to pray and that he works through prayers, but I don't know why or how. I want to know more and I am hoping to continue reading scripture and books about the reason for prayer, but I am almost certain this is one aspect of the Christian life I will never understand. Thoughts?

Not Sure

2009-05-30T20:33:00.000-07:00

My year of interning has come to a close, as most of you know, and I will not be returning for a second year. However, I will still be living in Norman and sticking around the RUF community. I feel as if an era of my life has ended. The end of the school year and Summer Conference was extremely difficult for me. For the first time in five years, I am not expected to show up at RUF or really have to be involved at all. Of course, I still want to be there and will be, but it is not necessary since it is no longer my job and I am not a college student. I got my degree. (though it's not helping me out very much at the moment). RUF has been an huge influence in my life and I am sad to not be directly involved. I signed up for the internship and moved out to Norman expecting to do an amazing job and change lives and show people the Gospel, but instead I was shown the Gospel, my life was changed, and the people that I was hoping more to minister to ended up ministering to me. I am so thankful for the opportunity I have had to love and be loved by the students of OU. So many people have reached out to me and loved me and welcomed me into a wonderful community. Thank you to those that have done that.

The next couple of months I will be in Huntsville working for my dad and searching for a job out in Norman. I am hoping to return in the middle of July to seriously look for something to do. To be honest I have no idea what that will be and that is terrifying. I am not sure what is next for me in life. It will be different. People say different is okay, but I'm not sure.

Day of Fun

2009-01-28T12:04:00.000-08:00

It's so nice to be back into the swing of things now that the semester has started. We had almost a full or week of normality, but this week OU has been closed for the past two and a half days due to ice and snow. I would definitely say there is more ice than snow though. It's white, but very VERY slippery. I think there is something so comforting about being inside and bundled up with a blanket and some tea. I almost feel as if time has stopped over the last couple of days. Groups of people have been getting together and hanging out, playing games, watching movies. Typically, my days are filled with meeting with people at specific times and a variety of activities that require me to show up relatively close when they start. It's freeing to not be constrained by time and have the ability to just go with whatever comes up and stay there as long or as short as I want. Timelessness. It's awesome. I feel like I have experienced that several times this week. I would like my whole life to be like that. I think being on time and setting times for things is an important and necessary thing to do for life. But ideally it would be great to live life as things come up and enjoy the moment you are living for what it is. I think I generally am somewhere else wherever I am. I can't say that the past two and a half days have been altogether impressive with what everyone did or conversations people had, but they have been so fun, unrushed, and low key. It has been great. I'm assuming the ice will be mostly gone by tomorrow and everything will be back to normal. That is exciting too. Woot. It's definitely been several days of fun.

2009

2009-01-12T11:38:00.000-08:00

I am twelve days late on posting a new year's blog...but here it is. Yay 2009!!! 2008 was a great year for me...or the second half of it. Actually all of it had good things and good learning experience. I am excited to start another year and so far 2009 has been fantastic! I just got back from Winter Conference with RUF. There really isn't a better way to start your year than hanging out in Colorado with great people, great teaching and great scenery. It was beautiful. The only downside was the result of the National Championship game. I've gotten over it now. Actually, I was over it within 5 minutes once I realized that Ole Miss is actually the number one team in the nation, since they were Florida's only loss of the season. Woot! Hotty Totty!! I know that that is poor logic, but just let me be deluded into thinking that.

Also, in 2009 I got two new roommates. They two and a half days I have lived with them have been awesome!! It's going to be a great semester. I am so excited to see what this semester brings. I feel settled in Norman and hopefully interning will be ballin' this year. I am going to Peru for spring break with a couple of students and the RUF from the University of Texas. I'm really excited, but I have no idea what I am getting myself into. Peru Mission, the organization we are going to volunteer for, seems like an incredible organization. I can't wait to find out more about it and see how God is using the people in Peru to advance his kingdom.

Honestly, 2009 has a lot going for it right now. That's exciting. It's totally going to chumpatize 2008.

Seriously.

2008-12-18T07:10:00.001-08:00

To return to my original purpose of this blog (which is updating people on my internship), I need to write about the first semester as a whole. I was briefly sidetracked for about 3 months with randomness and trivial posts. For the more serious followers of my blog, I apologize. For sillier reader, I am sure I will digress again. But for now I am completely serious.

I cannot explain what it was like to move to a completely new place, knowing practically no one and having to instantly be friends with people, to pursue them and initiate all points of meeting. That was definitely new to me. I don't think I understood what that meant (and probably still don't) when I first moved to Norman. Looking back over the past 4 months I can honestly say there was not a collective time where I thought I had made a bad decision in going through with the internship. At each point I have been thankful for what I was learning and the relationships that were forming. And I have so much joy in talking with the girls I have had the opportunity to spend a great deal of time with. I honestly cannot imagine myself doing anything else at this time in my life.

I did not notice any significant change as the semester progressed, but thinking of all that has happened so far it is really interesting to see how the students have changed, how I've changed and the overall experience of being an intern has changed. I feel like the Norman/RUF/Christ the King Pres community is a 3rd home. Third only because Huntsville and Oxford are homes too. I was telling a couple of people the other day that I am extremely excited about going home for Christmas. I get to see some friends and my family, there really isn't a better time than that, but I am sad to leave for two weeks before coming back for Winter Conference. I am happy here, I am also happy at home or in Oxford. It's strange but such an amazing feeling. Originally, I would have never thought that living in Oklahoma and being an intern at OU would have been a great fit for me. Now I couldn't imagine anywhere better. I am so thankful for the people that God has put in my life here, for the people I get to work with and the friendships I get to invest in. I love being involved with the people here and most everything about my job. I am looking forward to coming back to Norman and OU in January for another semester. I am so glad that God is at work and that he is in control of things. That is a hard concept for me. I cannot wait to see what 2009 is going to bring. It will definitely bring back the exclamation, "HOT DOG!!" I'm bringing that back. Get excited! It'll be awesome.

Hey Buddy, wanna go pick some snowberries??

2008-11-30T10:49:00.000-08:00

It's officially after Thanksgiving, which means it's CHRISTMAS!!!!! or well the Christmas Season. Christmas isn't for another 26 days. I have a rule for my life that there is NO Christmasy things before Thanksgiving...mainly because I get sick of Christmas music and Christmas movies and Christmas clothes and Christmas decorations if it starts before Decemeber. But tomorrow is December 1st and in case you were not aware of this...Christmas is in December. Woot.
The past four years, my friend Leah and I have always watched Elf and have continuously quoted it throughout the season. We're still planning on watching this movie together even though she lives in Knoxville, TN and I live in Norman, OK, but we'll see each other in Oxford before Christmas...and thus the Elf screening will happen. I'm planning on watching it before then though. Maybe every day...or every other day. We'll see...I am also looking forward to watching Little Women, A Charlie Brown Christmas, It's a Wonderful Life, and many others...I might even try out White Christmas...I've never seen it, but I hear it's pretty classic. Yay ELF!!!!!

Oxford and More

2008-11-26T15:32:00.000-08:00

I've been rockin' the Thanksgiving break for about six days now. It's been awesome! Though it hasn't been as restful as I wanted, I have been able to go a lot of places and see some people I have missed over the past few months.

My break started with a brief visit with Lauren and Walt Jones who so graciously let me stay at their house in Ft. Worth before my flight left Friday morning. It was great to see them and catch up on what's going on in their lives and everything.

I made it home the next day with no flying problems whatsoever. That restored my faith in the airline industry...for now.

Saturday, my parents and I went to Tupelo. I kicked them out of the car at my brother and sister-in-law's house and continued on my way to the beautiful Oxford, Mississippi. Home of the Ole Miss Rebels! Who aren't doing so bad in football this year...not great...but better. I'm proud to be a Rebel. It was so nice to be back, even with most of the people I know gone, it felt like I was home. Bottletree was still kickin' and Square Books was just as great as ever. I loved seeing Lauren Babbitt and Whitney Williams and catching up with them. Check out why this place is so great...

Bottletree Bakery...as the sign clearly states...Best Coffee and Triple Berry Muffin EVER!!!
The inside of Bottletree...It's pretty much perfect...and where I spent about half of my money while I was at Ole Miss
Still Bottletree...that's the coffee...I bought some. Drink it with me...
Square Books...beautiful...*sigh*
Upstairs at Square Books...Where I spent the other half of my money...
Downstairs at Square Books...I love books. They're so great.

After going to Oxford, I spent some time with my brother and sister-in-law in Tupelo. And then came back to Huntsville. On Monday, my friend Shelton and I drove to Cullman, Alabama to have dinner with our friend Victoria. It was great!! I love seeing friends and being able to pick back up right where you left off. The rest of the week for me should be lower key. Tomorrow we'll get together with family and do the whole turkey and pumpkin pie thing and then I don't have anything planned. I'm not gonna lie, I'm really looking forward to doing nothing. It'll be so great!! While I love being home with family and friends, I am definitely missing my new friends and my new home in Norman. It's weird how quickly you can grow to like a place. I think that is a good thing. Woot! Thanksgiving.

Because I said I would?

2008-11-18T07:18:00.000-08:00

I was tagged in a note of facebook that said I had to write 16 random unrelated facts about myself and tag 15 people in it. Normally, I don't participate in these things. But who doesn't like to talk about themselves? So, I am letting you people know as well.

1. I hate peanut butter, you can be offended, horrified, surprised or whatever emotion you want , I think it tastes, looks and smells super gross.

2. I was in a show choir in 6th grade that made me dress up like a clown and sing and dance...I never realized how creepy that was until I found out everyone's irrational fear of clowns

3. I sleep with a stuffed lion that I've had since I was two. His name is Azzie. He rocks. Most people think that he looks like a weasel or ferret or some other creature besides lion, but they are wrong.

4. I'm awake for approximately 18 hours every day.

5. I love coffee--just black coffee--non of that latte stuff. I'm done with that.

6. I used to only drink something with three ice cubes in it. Not two, not four, just three. I grew out of this. Don't worry I have other weird things to keep my OCDness going strong.

7. The sound of any kind of smacking or noise made with a mouth makes me feel like I'm going to throw up.

8. My third biggest fear is of sharks. They are terrifying. I don't get in the ocean due to this. They are in there and will more than likely find me and take an arm or two. I also hate sand. But I like going to the beach and not actually being near it. So maybe I don't like the beach. I like the mountains.

9. I used to iron my money. And occasionally wash it if it was excessively dirty. I don't do that anymore either.

10. My parents made me write all the verses in the Bible about honesty and deceit when I lied to them one time. I did that a lot when I was younger. Apparently it's not a good thing to do and honesty is a big deal in the Bible. Lying is bad. Don't do it.

11. I love the South and the charm it has...especially Oxford. I don't know if I could live there forever, but the four years I spent there were definitely worth while. I think I have idealized it since I've left. I love the trees and the quaintness of everything. The manners and the style. Bottletree, Square Books, Faulkner's Woods... I miss it.

12. Writing letters is my favorite. I would write anyone a letter especially if they would write me back. I think it is a lost art. There is something so much more personal about a handwritten letter than an email or text message or even a phone call. Feel free to write me anytime. 813 East Hayes Street Norman, Oklahoma 73071

13. I insisted on people calling me Romona when I was in preschool. It was a ballin' name back then...I don't think so anymore.

14. My family is awesome and hilarious. Really you should hear the stories. They are probably some of my most favorite people in the world. I love spending time with all of them. There is never a dull moment. Mary is always doing something or Bill is saying something that is not quite what you would ever expect from them. Unless you know them of course and then it is totally typical. Love it.

15. My favorite tv show is Friends. Thought Arrested Development comes in at a close second maybe even infringe on the number one spot. The Office and Seinfeld are also in the running. Those are my top 4 favorite shows. I guess if I'm completely honest Lipstick Jungle would fall into the number 5 spot, I know, it's a really really dumb show. I got sucked it.

16. I like learning and reading. Especially about things that interest me. If I could choose between books, movies, and television. I would choose books. But I would miss movies and my top 5 favorite shows.

So there you go. Anything else you want to know. You can ask, I'll probably tell you, but no promises.

Hypothetical Ben

2008-11-10T13:29:00.000-08:00

So...my beloved brother called me today and told me some very good news. For some background that don't know, I LOVE my brother and sister-in-law's dogs, Pippin and Lola. I have half-heartedly been entertaining the idea of getting a dog, but all the ones I have looked at have been substandard to Pippin. He is such a sweetheart and sooo cute. He is a pomchi. Well, Jonathan, my brother, called me and told me that the parents of Lola are having another litter of puppies and that they would be ready right after Christmas. AND they are FREE!!! even better! So, my half-hearted thoughts have turned into whole hearted ones. And I'm thinking about getting one. I will possibly name him Ben. I love him already. I love Jonathan and Amy too. Aren't they pretty?

A Fork in The Road

2008-11-10T07:55:00.000-08:00

I've come to a pretty important decision in my life...should I ski at Winter Conference or should I snowboard or not participate at all in the wintery sporting world? My past experiences with skiing have been 50/50 on good and bad. I've only been twice. The first time, I totally rocked out at ski school and tore up the bunny slopes and even moved up to the greens and blues (those are the categories, right), BUT the second time I went, I had suffered an injury in a climbing accident and had convinced myself and others that I was fine enough to ski. I was not. I don't think I have ever experienced so much pain as I did from a tightened ski boot around my semi-swollen foot. And then standing on it not even skiing was excruciating. Needless to say, I did not ski very well because of the pain and because of the terror I felt of becoming injured again. Sitting back at the hotel watching the Lord of the Rings over and over was definitely a good use of time and money on that trip.

Now, I am no longer injured from climbing and I do like adventure. But, I don't know what I should do. I've never snowboarded. It could be new. Or I could just hang out the whole time and not do either. I'm slightly leaning towards that. What do you think?

Twilight

2008-11-07T07:34:00.000-08:00

Apparently there is movie coming out next weekend that is a HUGE deal to many of the girls in America. This movie is Twilight. It's based on a book called, you guessed it, Twilight, by Stephanie Meyer. I don't really know a whole lot about this book or the series of four books and from what I just googled apparently a fourth is coming out. I had heard of this book previously from my good friend Leah, who worked at Borders recently and said that EVERY female in the Memphis area was coming in to buy multiple copies of the book for their daughters, sisters, friends, mothers, grandmother (maybe not grandmothers, but is seemed that way). I just didn't really pay much attention to it since its story line didn't sound all that interesting. I mean a love story about a vampire and a girl...weird and kind of dumb sounding. But before all of you that have read the book fly off the handle, I'll have to say that your interest has made me want to see what the big deal is. I cannot promise a love for it, and actually hope that is not the case...I would prefer to consider it an entertaining story that is completely unrealistic. I have been told that I will FOR SURE be in love with the main guy, Edward Cullen, of the story by the end of the book. We'll see about that.

I went to the bookstore yesterday and bought Twilight. The guy at the counter told me I should go back and get the rest because I would inevitably be back tomorrow or at the latest on Saturday. I told him I was ok with coming back and I was really just reading the book so I wouldn't be left out of the discussion of comparing the movie with the book. He didn't looked convinced. I felt like a poser. or a loser. Oh well. I started reading it. It has been entertaining, but I can put down. Ask me tomorrow, I might feel differently. Peaces.

Furniture

2008-11-05T17:13:00.001-08:00

So, my roommate is getting married in January. I might have mentioned that before, but SHE has all the furniture that furnishes our house. Next semester I'll be living with two girls that are studying abroad, Sally and Amanda (word to the both of you). I'm super excited. But back to the point of this whole blog. I bought my very first couch today. I found it on craigslist. It's pretty ballin' I'm not gonna lie. Next semester everyone should come see it, possibly sit on it, but at least come hang out. Or you could come before next semester and just be awesome. I guess that's all.

Peaces.

Election Day is here!

2008-11-03T17:56:00.000-08:00

So, it's finally here. The day the madness ends or for some the day it begins. Either way, I'm glad a decision will be made and we can all go on with our lives as usual and begin to adapt to whatever changes are in our country's future. I'm not really a politics kind of girl. Sure, I care about the direction the American people are heading, but campaign time does not present its candidates with the most clarity for educated choosing. I, for one, am not voting. Not because I don't want to, because I do. However, I neglected to submit my absentee ballot application in a timely fashion and the 11-hour drive to Huntsville seems needless, my vote would not swing Alabama in any particular way. I have a feeling I know which direction it is going anyway.

It's always fun to get a new president. New jokes, new weird character quirks for comedians to make fun of, new chance for them to totally mess up...and they will, they all do, they are human too...I just hope they are wise in their decisions and don't expect to be the savior of the world. So, I'll be waiting to hear who's the next victim of the American media. I'll probably find out Thursday or Friday. I'm not very well informed. So, yay America!

Halloween

2008-10-30T08:33:00.000-07:00

I need to be something for halloween, but I have no ideas. Suggestions???? The only stipulation is, I don't want to spend more than $7. So, it has to be done mainly out of what I already have. Assume I have the normal things. I'm open to listening and considering all suggestions.

Speeding

2008-10-28T09:55:00.000-07:00

I got a speeding ticket...two and a half weeks ago at 4am. I was returning a dvd to Blockbuster before I went to the airport to go home/intern training. It was very upsetting...I think mainly because I decided to stay up all night rather than going to sleep so when the copette (she was a girl) pulled me over I was not ready to defend my haste due to my exhaustion. I actually had NO idea why she was pulling me over. I don't think I saw a single car the entire time I was out, so unexcusably I had no other cars to gage my speed by. I realize that there is a spedometer on my car, but who actually looks at that? But the lights came on behind me, and they are very bright at 4am so I pulled over in the the Taco Mayo parking lot and sat there wondering what I had done. Then she was like, "license and insurance" so I gave her my license and my expired insurance card (the in date one was sitting on my dresser at home...I had actually thought earlier I need to put this in my car...I did not). I got two tickets. One for speeding, another for out of date insurance. And then after she gave me my stuff back and the tickets she tried to ask me questions like what I was doing in Norman and what my job was. I was like really? You just gave me two tickets and you want to know about my life. I don't think so. I answered her questions, but I was not happy about it. I'll admit. I cried. AFTER the girl cop left. She was not very nice. But I guess she was doing her job, I was speeding.

So, the reason for this delayed information to the blogsophere is I had purposely forgotten about it so that I could enjoy my time at home and not worry about how much money I was going to have to pay for my criminal offense. I paid my debt to society today. I think I might have rather spent a night in jail. The people might have been nicer. The lady at the municipal court place was not very helpful and actually almost made me cry again. I don't like tickets. I guess that's what you get for breaking the law. So, a lesson for all of you out there. Don't get tickets, they are expensive and sort of ruin the next 25 minutes of your life.

Peaces

Not that Interesting

2008-10-27T09:22:00.000-07:00

This weekend was so great. Not because anything particularly amazing happened or didn't happen, it just actually felt like a weekend. Saturday morning was spent doing some much needed cleaning to my house. And there was some tie dying with people. I remember tie dying at camp, but this we different...better. Although, I washed my shirt last night and it's heinous, but beautiful. apparently the mixture of purple and yellow make a gross brown color. And so now the shirt is light purple with brown undertones and splattered with more brownish purple and yellow. I can't wait to wear it!! The day was also filled with baking, cooking, hanging out with friends and watching people carve pumpkins! Fall is in my top four favorite seasons. There just seems to be so many activities. Sunday was also great. Church, Lunch, Nap, Movies. I really don't think I could get a better Sunday. There was supposed to be a church bonfire, but it was especially windy yesterday so it was postponed for next weekend. It's windy a lot in Oklahoma. Yay wind? I guess that's really all I have to say. Sorry for the lack of interesting posts. I'll work on getting something awesome to happen.

Peaces

Update

2008-10-26T14:02:00.000-07:00

So, for those that are wondering the puppy's "small rehoming fee" was not so small. I didn't get him. And my roommate got a cat...dogs and cats apparently don't get along too well. I'm not the biggest fan of the cats. Oh well. Maybe one day. There's still hope for the wii though. I think they get along with cats, but I could be wrong.

Puppy?

2008-10-22T12:49:00.001-07:00

So, I'm considering getting a puppy. There are a lot of factors that play into this decision:

1. I have to make sure I'm allowed to have a dog at my house.

2. The particular puppy I want has to still be available and not cost a bajillion dollars

3. Do I want to take the time to train it and play with it and walk it?

4. Do I want to spend the money on it?

We'll see how these things work out. At the moment there is a yorkie puppy that I found on Craigslist. I think he is super cute. He's the one in the picture actually. What do you think of him? It's very possible all of these plans are going to fall through. But, as of right now, I really want him or a wii.

Stancy Richards

2008-10-21T09:01:00.001-07:00

This post has been requested by my friend, Stancy Richards.

Stancy, formally known as Constance Marie, came into my life through the efforts of Molly Tuza. Who will be a complete different blog. Molly insisted that I meet her friend, Stancy when I moved to Norman. And so meet her I did. First, I sent her a very eloquent facebook message that said,

"Stancy,

I was informed by our dear friend, Molly Tuza that we need to be friends!! I am the new RUF intern at OU and will hopefully be moving to norman super soon. I would love to meet you and maybe grab some coffee or some eats or you know just kick it. So, let me know what's up and i can't wait to meet you!! Check ya later yo. I'm pretty gangsta. We can discuss Molly in depth. She's sitting next to me right now which explains a lot of the ridiculous comments in this message. jk. Yay for friends!!"

My message was promptly responded to with:

"Anna,
I promise I haven't been ignoring you! I'm so sorry! I was out of the country, and when i got back I kinda had to do email overload and got really sick of it. BUT i'm so pumped that you're coming and we definitely must be friends!!! I'll be back in norman around the 20thish...what are your plans? if you need some help moving i must say i'm pretty buff ;) do you know where you're living yet? How's all the fund raising going?

and, yes please! i love coffee dates, or ice cream dates.....i'm pretty much up for any kind of food date ;)

let me know what your plans are and give molls a huge hug for me if you see her first!!!

my number is **********....use it! ;)" --I don't think she would appreciate her phone number being in the blogosphere

Thus, our friendship began. We've been through so much together. I created her blog. She let me sit with her and other people at Cafe Plaid. I raptor walked for her. She made fun of me. Such a beautiful friendship. Thanks Stancy. I hope you like this tribute to you.

Peaces

Flying and Waiting

2008-10-17T08:52:00.001-07:00

My past experiences with airports have contributed significantly to my love for them. Everything has gone smoothly, connecting flights were made, luggage was present at the end of the trip, people were friendly and helpful. It made the traveling experience worthwhile. But now, my view has been tainted, marred by unfortunate circumstances and long hours of nothingness and waiting. I'm desperately trying not to let it influence my general love for flying and the hubbub of traveling. (I think hubbub is such a ridiculous word, who uses that in real life? It's fun to say though)

My journey from intern training back to Norman was, to say the least very long. My flight originally was to leave Atlanta at 6:50pm. We boarded the plane, as usual, half an hour before departure time and then we waited. Taxied out to the runway. And waited. Buckled our seat belts, put our tray tables and seats in the upright secure position. And waited. Went through the put on your own oxygen mask first and your seat can be used as a flotation device. And waited. Then they turned the engine off. And waited. Finally, the captain announced to us that there was bad weather in Houston and we were delayed 30 minutes. No big deal, I had a two hour layover in Houston. 30 minutes past, the Captain came back over the speaker and told us that in 50 minutes Air Traffic Control would let him know what was going on. 50 minutes past. We waited. The Captain announced we would be delayed another one to two hours, but we were going to wait on the runway so when we were clear to go we would. So we waited. At the beginning of the third hour, the plane people decided to take us back to the terminal and let us see if there were other flights to our final destinations. I missed the last fight out of Atlanta to OKC by 15 minutes. I got back on the plane and waited. An hour later we took off, putting us in Houston sometime after midnight.

Houston brought no good news. I stood in line and the people told me the next flight to Oklahoma City left at 7:35am and they would probably put me on standby for that, but I had to go to a different concourse. So, some other passengers flying to various places and I made our way to Concourse B. But to get to the particular place this late at night you have to go out of the secure zone, get on a trainesque like vehicle and ride over to it. So, obviously we did. We arrived and were quickly told that the security gate to get back in doesn't open until 5am and the ticket counters run on that same schedule. So, we waited in the entrance of the airport. Most people slept. I watched a movie on my computer, paid $7.95 for 24 hours of Free Internet as the company put it, and waited for 5am to roll around. It rolled very slowly.

5am- I went to the ticket place to get on standby and get a seat on the next flight if the standby thing didn't work out. The lady helping the people that spent the night at the airport was probably the rudest person I've ever met in my life. It could have had to do with that I didn't sleep at all, but she was very mean and I was seconds away from crying right in front of her, but she probably would have laughed at me and said some mean remark. So, I did not. I found another person to help me. I was put on standby, got some very much needed coffee once the places in the airport opened and went and waited to hopefully board the place leaving at 7:35.

7:25am- I got on the plane!! Yeah, that sounds awesome right! Well, the plane started up it's engine and sat there for a second. I was giddy with excitement to be almost back. And they shut the engine off. I laughed when they said that the maintenance light was on in the plane and they were going to unload us all and move us to a different plane. I laughed, probably because I was so close to crying, the emotion had to get out someway. So, 45 minutes later we boarded another plane and after about an hour of taxiing we took off.

We landed in Oklahoma City at about 10:45 (twelve hours later than my originally arrival time) and I bolted down to baggage claim. I was really ready to get out of the airport. And, surprise surprise, my bag was not there. I talked to the luggage people and the said it will probably be on the next flight, which was coming in in 30 minutes. So, yep, I waited. My bag was not on that plane, either. So, I filed my claim, and came to find out that the person that gave me my ticket for the standby plane gave me someone else's boarding pass. They didn't even have me registered as being on any plane. Interesting. Good thing I wasn't a terroist. I thought those things were pretty tight. I finally left the airport and arrived at home around 12:30pm.

It was a long day. The good news is I made it back and 8 hours later they brought my bag to my house. So, now, I have that story. How exciting? So, I'm off to Dallas for the weekend. Not on a plane.

Peaces.

Intern Training

2008-10-15T14:40:00.000-07:00

The past 3 1/2 days I've been in Atlanta for training on interning. I am actually sitting in airport right now waiting for my flight to board in two hours. I think I get some places entirely too early. But you know how they say to get to the airport early and all that nonsense. I don't believe them. I'm going to start arriving 30 minutes before my flight is supposed to board. That sentence is mostly likely a lie. I don't like being late. It stresses me out. I'm trying to stick to a stress-free lifestyle. In case you're wondering...I'm failing miserably at that.

Training was soooo helpful. It was great to recongregate all the other interns in the country and be taught on what we are supposed to be doing and what we aren't. There were many convicting talks and it's always so nice to be in a room full of peers and know that everyone is going through pretty much the exact same thing you are.

All of my fellow interns are so great! I can honestly say that there is not one of them that I do not enjoy talking to and hanging out with. It's beautiful to hear about the work that they are doing on the selected campuses and how much they care about their students and the people they meet. I am so proud to be a part of such a wonderful group of interns. I'm sad that we won't all see each other again until May. However, at least when we do see each other, it will be for two weeks...at the beach for Summer Conference. I really can't wait to see how God changes everyone over the rest of the year.

Peaces

A Joke

2008-10-11T11:52:00.000-07:00

Here is a joke:

What did Batman say to Robin before Robin got in the car??????????????????????

Get in the car.

AhHAHAHAHHahahha. Ok, I know. It's not funny and actually could be considered dumb, but I laughed.

Going Home

2008-10-07T13:23:00.000-07:00

This week is very exciting for me! On Thursday, I will rise at 4:15am to get ready and drive to Oklahoma City to catch my plane leaving at 6:30am. Of course, normally, it would not take that long for me to get ready and to the airport, but I'm allowing for snoozing and grogginess to slow me down. I'M GOING HOME!!! not forever, only until Sunday. Then, my very gracious parents will drive me to Atlanta where I will have intern training. I am so pumped about seeing everyone. It's going to be so great. 78% of me wants to not sleep at all the whole time I'm there so that we can get every second of bonding time in, but that is ridiculous. Sleep is too good. We can bond by all sleeping at the same time in our separate rooms. It will be great to see my family this weekend and my friends that are still in Huntsville. I can barely talk about it I am so overwhelmed with excitement. I love Norman and interning and everything about my life right now, but it will be a very welcome break from it all and then I can come back all revived and re-focused and back in the swing of things. It's a very good thing. Oh man, my enthusiasm far exceeds my vocabulary, so I don't even know how to describe it other than "WOOT!"

Although, I am going to miss my people in Norman. It's amazing how I have only lived here for 8 weeks, but the people here have already made such a huge impact on my life. It's going to be weird to not be around for a week. I feel like I'm going to miss so much. But, I guess sometimes we have to make sacrifices. I will be back, so no worries.

And I get to fly. Airports are one of my favorite things in life. There are so many emotions floating around. Sad people, because their loved ones are leaving. Happy people, because someone is coming to see them or returning home. Working people, leisurely people, hurried people, slow people. Every kind of people. It's so great!!! Airports are so great for people watching. I'm really excited. I guess that's it.

Peaces

Walking and Squawking

2008-10-01T15:05:00.000-07:00

I don't know if everyone is aware of my talents. Sure, everyone knows about the general ones, like sleeping, talking, and I am occasionally good at walking, but one that often goes unnoticed is my impression of a raptor. Seriously, it is uncanny. I realize that most of you are reading this and wondering if I have lost my mind. I have not. I really am a very good raptor impersonator.

My discovery of this particular talent came about the summer after my freshman year. I worked at a camp in North Carolina, Camp Merri-Mac for girls. I was a counselor/climbing instructor. My cabin was full of ten year old girls that did not believe in showering regularly or nap time. Both of which I hold highly in my life. For some reason, these girls responded well to silliness. It could have been their lack of maturity or their incredible insight into life, but they would get in their beds if you chased them around in a raptor-like gait while making raptor noises. And surprisingly, this seemed to make them actually be quiet for a while as well. So, of course, if me pretending to be a raptor gets them to take a nap or shower, than I guess a raptor I pretended to be.

Throughout the summer, my skill progressed and I became a more and more convincing raptor until I had it perfected. The summer ended and I returned to Ole Miss, lived in an apartment with a couple friends and essentially forgot about my raptor-like abilities. Needless to say that was a very interesting year without pretending to be a raptor. Well, after sophomore year ended, I moved into the dorm and brought the raptor back.

At times I would walk down the hall like a normal person, but it was always way more fun to raptor walk down the hall. Walking is something that most people do everyday. And everyday we walk the exact same way. I'm tired of this. There are TONS of ways to walk. Why not change life up a little bit, make it a little more interesting. So, I would walk down my dorm hall pretending to be a raptor. I thought it was perfectly normal, still do actually. I could be wrong. Maybe I did lose my mind. But really the point of this is, I'm bringing it back.

Raptor-walking and squawking. It's back. But only from time to time. It looses its greatness when I'm always raptor-walking. I don't want to get burnt out. So, maybe if you are lucky, you'll get to witness this impressive display of raptorness.

Hotty Totty!

2008-09-29T08:36:00.000-07:00

This is a delayed post, but how bout those Rebs?? I mean wow. I'm such a proud Rebel.

Woot!

2008-09-26T07:43:00.000-07:00

I'm not going to lie, I'm pretty proud of myself right now. I mowed the grass at my house all by myself this morning. And I know that this is not a great feat of excellence, but you should have seen the grass. It was like a jungle out there...it was literally up to my knees, or mid calf. Needless to say it needed to be cut. If I had been coherent when I woke up this morning I would have taken before and after shots, but most of my efforts were focused on getting the lawn mower started. But with a short call to my dad who talked me through it, it started and the grass was cut. So, yay!! I'm such grown up now. Cutting grass, paying bills, giving out advice to unsuspecting people, calling the cops on suspicious teenagers standing in the middle of the road. Where did my youth go? Crazy.

Sick

2008-09-25T09:57:00.000-07:00

This is how I feel about me being sick. I'm not happy about it. It's possible I have allergies...a totally new thing for me. I always thought of myself as very fortunate for not having to deal with allergies every year, but I guess it all changes when you live in a different part of the country. I might just be sick though. Who knows. My voice is mostly gone...exciting for most, but somewhat painful for me. I like to talk. I'm trying to be as silent as possible so maybe it'll work when I actually need it too. I'm sure I'll be better soon. At least I hope this whole congestedness and headachey and lack of voice thing goes away soon. I'll make it.

Peaces.

Ultimate Banana

2008-09-21T13:42:00.000-07:00

Over the past four years I have noticed the increasing popularity of Ultimate Frisbee. Many of my friends played in college and I attempted to participate on the Girls' team at Ole Miss, but decided they were way to dedicated to the game than I could ever be. And my lack of athletic ability...mainly running, blocking, catching and throwing, made it not as fun. I was good at showing up on time, that's about it. Through my constant facebook researching (or some might say stalking) I have found Ultimate to be among the top activities for guys and girls. Though I don't know how many actually partake in this feat of athleticism, I will agree that it is a pretty amazing sport and I commend their interest in it. Fun to play and fun to watch.

This weekend, however, OURUF took Ultimate to a new level. Eliminate the disc and substitute bananas. It has become somewhat of a tradition around here. I know what you are thinking, won't the bananas break? And won't that be messy? Can Ultimate be played legitimately with fruit? The answer my friends to all of the questions is a resounding yes! What better way to spend a Saturday afternoon than through bananas are your closest friends? Needless to say, Ultimate Banana was a ton of fun. There were also games of Ultimate Squash, Ultimate, Cantalope, Ultimate Tomato, Ultimate Pineapple (slightly more painful to be hit with), and Ultimate Pumpkin (not a good idea, but still fun). I think after the word gets out and the teams form, Ultimate Banana will quickly rise to the competive sport level and eventually land itself as an Olympic sport. It's pretty exciting. I guess that's all I have to say.

Peaces.

Hymn Snob

2008-09-14T13:32:00.000-07:00

Over the past four years of being involved with RUF, I have become a hymn snob. I admit it and am unashamed. I know that hymns were sung early in my life, but during the 7 years of middle school and high school, I feel like we sang songs that only had one line and was repeated 30 or 40 times throughout the song. To me, these songs do God an injustice. There is so much more to be said than to "sing of His love forever." I remember being introduced to RUF hymns and other types of music when I first came to college and thinking, "Whoa, these songs have a LOT of words." But after I learned them, the words began to mean something and they are beautiful. I love hymns. Today in church, I think I added a new favorite to my list. "Be Still, My Soul" It's been a while since I had heard it sung and I could argue that I had never actually thought about the lyrics and the poetry of what was being said about Christ and the grace that we are shown and the glory of God. It was exciting. Here are the lyrics, read them, sing them, listen to them.

Be still, my soul: the Lord is on thy side.
Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain.
Leave to thy God to order and provide;
In every change, He faithful will remain.
Be still, my soul: thy best, thy heavenly Friend
Through thorny ways leads to a joyful end.

Be still, my soul: thy God doth undertake
To guide the future, as He has the past.
Thy hope, thy confidence let nothing shake;
All now mysterious shall be bright at last.
Be still, my soul: the waves and winds still know
His voice Who ruled them while He dwelt below

Be still, my soul: when dearest friends depart,
And all is darkened in the vale of tears,
Then shalt thou better know His love, His heart,
Who comes to soothe they sorrow and thy fears.
Be still, my soul: they Jesus can repay
From His own fullness all He take away

Be still, my soul: the hour is hastening on
When we shall be forever with the Lord.
When disappointment, grief, and fear are gone,
Sorrow forgot, love's purest joys restored.
Be still, my soul: when change and tears are past,
All safe and blessed we shall meet at last.

Be still, my soul: begin the song of praise
On earth, believing, to thy Lord on high;
Acknowledge Him in all thy works and ways,
So shall He view thee with a well pleased eye.
Be still, my soul: the Sun of life divine
Through passing clouds shall but more brightly shine.

Good Week

2008-09-07T14:21:00.000-07:00

The past week has been pretty great and definitely still busy. The cookout for Labor Day went very well and we had a bigger turn out than I expected. There were about 30 people that showed up with all sorts burger/hotdogesque stuff. It was fun! I met with about different girls throughout the week and it was so great to get to know some of the already existing RUFers as well as some of the new ones that are just starting out either as a freshman or just found out about RUF and came to check it out. I love listening to people's stories and how they have gotten to where they are so far in life, spiritually, geographically, mentally, all of it. Everyone is so different, but also so much alike. It's great!! I so looking forward to getting to know them better and understanding where they are coming from and where they are going.

This week was the second RUF. I think it went very well. I had to make an announcement about Girls' Movie Night we had on Friday...public speaking is not where I am gifted and I don't like it either.

Girls' Movie Night also went very well. 20 girls came to my house, where we made cookies and watched a movie. There were older students and new students and some students that had never even been to RUF. It was so exciting to have them all over to hang out. YAY!!!

To end the week, a couple of girls and I hit up the "art festival" on Saturday. It was not the best art festival I've ever been to, there were about 7 tables of random art. Mainly, not that cool looking of stuff. That's just my opinion though. There was also a porcupine, some kind of lizard, and a sugar glider. It was more or less on the lame side, but we had fun and we got a free print of native americanish style painting or colored pencils, which are all still sitting in the back of my car. All we had to do is right our email address down. I'm not sure why we did that, but we did get free stuff for it. I love free and apparently, we love the prints. It was a good week.

No need to read the previous post

2008-09-04T08:17:00.000-07:00

Well, I no longer need a new TV. People here are awesome. That took like 3 minutes. woot.

Soundless

2008-09-04T07:59:00.000-07:00

Well, what normally would be a very small issue in my eyes has just turned somewhat into a big deal. The TV at my house is broken. Poor TV, it has no sound. I would typically just go on with life not caring that the TV was broken and that I can't hear the people talking on it, which to me is what make whatever you are watching great...or in some cases not so great, but... I'm having a bunch of RUFers over for a girls' movie night TOMORROW and I have been told that those go over better if there is a TV to watch whatever it is we decide to watch. So, I went to some stores that sell televisions and a variety of other things I don't need but could be talked into buying if I didn't spend the majority of the time I was there on the phone (that's how I keeps salespeople away and catch up with friends). I am looking for a relatively cheap non-terrible quality TV. Apparently, those don't exist...unfortunately. They would be a big help right now. So, if you know of one or have one within a 20 mile radius of Norman, Oklahoma. I would be happy, more than happy to come check it out. Poor TV. Nobody wants to be replaced.

But hey, if you are a girl and are in Norman or want to come to Norman tomorrow night, come to my house and watch a movie with some peeps. It'll be awesome. 7:30pm. There will be cookie making as well. So, get excited!!

Invalid

2008-09-03T16:25:00.000-07:00

Well, I have my dumb moments or I prefer to say my not as brilliant moments. Because let's be honest, 99% of my moments I am thinking of or doing something brilliant. I should tell you that I had to retype out brilliant three times before I actually spelled it right. I'm in a dumb rut right now. It's kind of like asking how to spell genius and being told that I wasn't one instead of getting the actual spelling of the word. But all this leads to yesterday. Two friends and I went to a pretty cool little coffee shop that might could fail at successfully filling bottletree's place in my heart called Cafe Plaid. Well, we had a series of events happen to us.

Number One: I ordered a coffee and a scone the lady told me the price and I handed her my card. We waited and she came back and said that my card was invalid. Well, in my mind, I knew there was NO way I was out of money already and I started to panic that maybe my bank had shut down my account, due to unusual activity, such as not using it and it being in Oklahoma. So, naturally I looked at the card for answers. And it gave me the answer. The lady at Cafe Plaid was very generous to tell me my card was invalid rather than calling me a complete idiot because I had in fact given her my walmart gift card, which I am sure is zeroed out. It was funny at the time.

Number Two: I should admit that I have always been less than average in the whole smart thing. When I was younger I seriously believed that I was born premature. My mom told me that I was supposed to be born on February 2nd, but I was not. I was born on February 1st. So, as you can see, to a little kid, I was obviously one day premature. And I definitely went around telling people that for a year or so of my life, convinced that I had battled great things as an infant and had overcome so much. I had not. Though I do think that one day might could have developed my brain a little more.

The point of that was that I told them I used to think that, probably trying to justify my previous stupidity with the walmart card.

There is more but I'm tired of blogging. Peace yo.

Church Membership

2008-09-02T15:42:00.000-07:00

Tonight I have my interview to become a member at Christ the King in Norman. It's been a long time since I've joined a church...actually eight years. I don't really remember the whole process of that because I was fourteen. But, I have been reading through some stuff and as a fourteen year old I didn't quite understand the importance of the church and our membership in a local church as believers. It is definitely a good thing. I'm pretty excited about it, a little nervous. Interviews aren't my best way to shine. I do better in non interviews, but I don't get a choice between interview or non interview so, interview it will be. Please pray for me.

First RUF Large Group

2008-08-29T08:44:00.000-07:00

Soooooo, Wednesday was the first Large Group of the semester. And it was AWESOME! But, I'm going to be honest about an hour before I had to go I was pretty terrified and was definitely trying to figure out why I signed up for this job. I quickly forgot about my anxiousness and fear when I arrived and was given the opportunity to meet some many amazing students. From what I understand there were a lot of new people, which is definitely a good thing. It was great to meet people but also to see old people meeting new people and everyone bonding.

For the first three weeks of school Large Group is held in the Passion Pit, which is in the South Oval of OU's campus, which is pretty close to the stadium, which is very very big, which will be packed out tomorrow for the OU v Chattanooga game. That was a long sentence. But yeah, so, Chattanooga...kind of a big deal, right? I don't know a whole lot about OU or OU Football, but apparently they are pretty good. It'll be fun to be at a school that wins. Don't get me wrong, Ole Miss will always be first in my heart win it comes to sports and groving and all of that, but let's face it they haven't made an impression of a winning team in quite a while. As "Victory or Death" is my family motto, it'll be nice to live up to that for once in the football realm of life. So... I'll kick off this weekend with a heartfelt, "GO SOONERS!" and "HOTTY TOTTY" to Ole Miss as well in their game against Memphis. The best of luck to you my dear rebs.

Losing

2008-08-27T07:08:00.001-07:00

The past week has been full of greatness and some losses...mainly my winning streak in Cities and Knights. Sadly, there was no sympathy for the new person in town. I was ruthlessly destroyed by my campus minister, but there is always next time. I will win next time. I'm not a very good loser. I did learn how to play two new games so far...Carcassonne and Puerto Rico. I lost them both. I'll have to say they were both very fun. But I actually understood what I was doing in Puerto Rico. Carcassonne, not so much. I just was putting pieces wherever.

Tonight is the first Large Group for RUF and I am definitely pumped!! We'll be singing and hearing the gospel and having root beer floats afterwards. How much better can it get? It's going to be awesome.

The Beginning

2008-08-21T10:00:00.000-07:00

Well, my first week is almost complete. It has definitely been a long week. Not in a bad since of long, just packed with Church, Small group, RUF Book Club, RUF Flannery O'Connor Reading, Feeding International Students, working on my study program, an assortment of dinners with students and new friends, signing my lease for my house and getting everything fixed up, opening a bank account, figuring out my schedule for the semester, researching internet and cable options and still trying to learn my way around. It's been very busy, but that's a good thing. I am really excited about getting to meet some of the freshman tomorrow at the New Sooner Kickoff and meeting the already established RUFers on Saturday at the Relish leadership team Principles of Ministry day. I'm excited and looking forward to it all getting started, but it's definitely very terrifying as well.

I'm Here

2008-08-18T06:22:00.000-07:00

So, my parents and I made the looooooooong trek to Oklahoma on Friday with only minor complication of trying to find somewhere to eat in Arkansas. Apparently, signs lie...or I am just a terrible navigator. But anyway, after about 13ish hours of driving we made it, an hour later than we expected due to the unforeseen lunch adventure, but still made it.

I was so fortunate to have a crew of people waiting for me at me house to help unload my trailer, which made moving in take like 20 minutes. It was so great to have it all unloaded. And it was sooooo great to meet people. I am so thankful for all the help I got from everyone!

My three days so far, have been a whirlwind of unpacking, meeting tons of people and trying to get acclimated with everything around me. It's been crazy. I haven't even had a chance to soak it all in. But I'm ok with that. I love it.

I think this internship this is going to be for real challenging but definitely a whole lot of fun.

I'm Movin' Out

2008-08-14T09:58:00.000-07:00

The smooth tambre of Billy Joel's voice pretty much monopolized my car's stereo system my senior year in high school. I loved all of his songs. Billy Joel's Greatest Hits is still an all time favorite album of mine. There isn't anything better than rockin out in the car by yourself to Uptown Girl or Piano Man, though Piano Man isn't really a rockin kind of song unless you are rockin a baby to sleep or something. But I particularly loved the song Movin' Out. It just had such a good aspect to it. So, chancing sounding completely ridiculous, "I'm movin' out."

Tomorrow actually!! I'll be loading up the trailer tonight and stuffing my car to the ceiling and at 6am tomorrow I'll start the 11 hour drive to Norman, Oklahoma. I can't begin to describe how excited I am about finally getting to go. I feel like my entire summer has been leading up to this point and I really haven't given much thought to what will happen after I get there, except that I can't wait to meet everyone and get started. I just have no idea what getting started entails. I have a rough idea of what I'll be doing, but I really think this internship is one of those things that is a giant umbrella over a wide spectrum of things. So, get excited because I'm excited!! God willing, in a little more than 24 hours I will be officially on campus and getting started as the OURUF's intern!! Woot!!

Thank Yous!!!

2008-08-12T17:04:00.000-07:00

After 5 visitors, 6 phone calls, 7 emails, 4 hours and 3 hand cramps, I finally finished all of my thank you notes. A horrid display of my worst handwriting, as well as the most uncreative messages I could possibly think up. But I found after 57 notes that there are only a few ways to write out thank you. I tried thank you haikus, such as,

Thank you very much
I appreciate your prayers
The money helped too

but I just really didn't think it got the the depth of my thankfulness. I also tried acrostics like,

Thanks
Humans
A
Niceness
Known

You're
Outstandingness is
Unbelievable!!

Those didn't really work well either. I figured just the standard complete sentence way usually works best. But needless to say, I am so thankful to all my supporters financially and in pray that it was difficult for me to put it into words. I have raised the 75% of the $30,000 for the year and I will be moving to Norman, Oklahoma on Friday!!! I am so excited about beginning my intern adventures at OU. There are already so many events and activities planned, it's going to be so great! So, in 2 days and 10 hours I will be Oklahoma bound.

Being Patient is No Fun

2008-08-07T11:54:00.001-07:00

Well, I'm getting closer to the moving goal. Only $2700 away and I'm off to become the best Okie I can be. However, I did find out that Okie is a derogatory term for someone out there. I guess it is equivalent to hick or trailer trash or something like that. I don't really know. But I guess I will be the best Oklahoman I can be. I'm hoping to move next Thursday or Friday, so my money needs to come in quick. It's still amazing to me how much has already come in with very little work on my part. It's so neat how God works. I really have no idea what I'm getting myself into. I think I do, but I'm 100% sure it's going to be so much more and so different than I have imagined. And I might be ok with that. So, please keep praying for my money to come in and the OU campus.

Diet Coke

2008-08-01T16:34:00.000-07:00

My mom has banned diet coke from the house. My life is over.

Another Day...

2008-07-31T19:40:00.000-07:00

Today, I thought was very productive. I raised some more support which puts me closer to the day I get move and I cleaned out half of the garage at my parents' house in preparation for a garage sale extravaganza. It's going to be a big one because let me tell you what, I have A LOT of junk. In the past four years I have accumulated half of a garage full of stuff and I can honestly say I have only used about 2% on a regular basis. It's rather sad and wasteful. But I will waste no more and my junk can be transferred on to someone else's garage to sit until they decide to sell it in theirs. Or hopefully the stuff will actually get some use.
Moving to Oklahoma is kind of exciting. Cleaning out and getting rid of everything is very cleansing. I think I'm going to take on a minimalist view of life. A very loose minimalist view of life. I have been living out of about two boxes of stuff for the past three months and I have not been left wanting by any means. Less is more for real this time. Less stuff=less stuff to move/less to clean/less to get in the way=more time for everything else in my life. I'm super stoked.

Do this:

2008-07-30T15:25:00.000-07:00

Click here and then click on the green box that says donate to RUF. Then fill out all your information, put in an amount of money and make sure it is sent to Anna McDowell at the University of Oklahoma. Thanks for being awesome!

I just started a Blog?

2008-07-30T10:48:00.000-07:00

So, I guess it's official, I'm back in the blogging world. I had a short relationship with xanga and livejournal back at the beginning of college. All the cool kids had them, so I got one too. I deactivated my accounts in my effort to disassociate myself with the technological world one day during my sophomore year. But my thinking for this one was not just to rant on about how life is unfair or how utterly crazy I am. I thought this would be a good way to keep all you people updated on my internship with RUF. So, for that update:
I am in my what I hope to be my final days of support raising. I am amazed at the generosity of people and what God has already provided for me this summer. I have raised over half of the $30,000 that I have to raise for the year, with very little effort on my part. God has been so gracious and I am so thankful what has been provided and what will be provided in the future. I am at the moment $7,000 away from getting to move and $14,000 away from my final goal. $7000 is quite a bit to raise in two weeks. But I have faith that it will work out.
I am so excited about moving to Norman and meeting all the OU peeps. I talked to my roommate yesterday and she is moving into our house basically right now. I am so looking forward to meeting her and getting everything set up. I really am kind of a big fan of moving and starting all over. I think it's kind of fun. So, please pray that my support will come in quickly and I will be off to Oklahoma.