"...you may cut off my branches..."

Youth group was really great for me tonight. Especially the worship and the testimony.

Typically when we do worship, there's all these couches spread out in front of the stage and we just...sing, and it's always really cool and I really get into it. But tonight was just...AWESOM. All the couches were scooched up so they were really close to the stage and it was like really personal. I dunno if that makes sense or if you had to be there...I dunno. And there were couches on the stage too, and that's where Matt and Doug sat and played, so it was just kinda...chill. But you couldn't even see them playing because the entire room was dark except for one candle up front, which stood for Jesus' light. It was a REALLY cool experience. It took me back to campfire times...a whole bunch of people just singing their heart out for God with only a guitar and a fire as their backup. Amazing.

After worship a woman got up and gave her testimony. I always love listening to those...I dunno why, I just...I love hearing about the ways that God has worked in other people's lives. And I love hearing that I'm not the only one who's gone through tough times, other people have been there too, and God has led them out of it, just like He'll lead me out of situations in my future. I just really enjoy that sort of thing. The woman tonight was VERY good. She had three paintings that kinda showed stages of her life, and they were kinda sad and scary but awesome at the same time.

Then she read a book to us...first off, I just gotta say that I love it when people read to me. It's juts one of those things. Like I love foot rubs, and I love having books read to me, especially children's books. So I was very happy. :D

Anyway, she read us a book called "The Giving Tree" and told us before she read it that God had spoken to her with this book. And so she starts reading and of course automatically you're trying to figure out how it connects, and it is REALLY cool. Here's the link, I suggest you read it:

http://www.atel.org.uk/the_giving_tree.htm

God's the tree...and we're the little boy. I think it's SO cool...like I love finding ordinary things/examples in life that help me understand God more. Like...when the tree is always so happy to see the little boy again...that's God. God is always ECSTATIC to see me, to hear me talk to him. The creator of the universe shakes with joy when I pray...how COOL is that??? Wow...

The part where she read the line "The forest is my house, but you may cut off my branches and build a house. Then you will be happy" hit me SO HARD. I think I actually gasped or something...I dunno. It's just like that moment where you realize the tree loves the little boy so much that she'll give him whatever she can to make him happy, she'll sacrifice herself for him, she'll go through pain just so he can have a chance at life...God sacrificed for us. For ME. For YOU. OMWord it makes me so happy I don't even know how to explain it...just...WOW.

So that was my night...pretty good. And I got to hear all about Cadets, which I loved. ;D

"Anger is nothing more than an outward expression of hurt, fear and frustration."

Oh you better believe that I just quoted Dr. Phil.

I am ANGRY. I'm hurt because of what you did to her. I'm afraid of what else is gonna happen because of this--how many more times you'll make her cry. And I'm frustrated with you. This is NOT acceptable.

You are NOT allowed to call me and tell me that she left your house crying and you're all confused and don't know what to do when she just told me that you TOLD her to leave and then slammed the door in her face. Ok first off, you just don't DO that to somebody. Especially to somebody you told me you cared about. And then you do NOT lie to me about it, trying to get me on your side and trying to get my sympathy. It doesn't work that way buddy boy. I'm sorry, but I believe her. She's earned my trust and KEPT it, unlike you.

I can't believe you. If a girl gives you her heart you just don't go and trample on it. Oh yeah, you don't want the "title" cause that messes everything all up...well if that's your only reason then why did you tell both her and me that you're scared about what's gonna happen in 6 months? I don't know what to believe...do I believe that you're scared about the future or do I believe that you just can't commit to a girl who's CRAZY about you and who you seemed pretty crazy about yourself? Ok...let's go with the 6 months thing. Say that's true. It's STILL unacceptable. You CANNOT let your fear of the future prevent you from doing something now. TRUST ME. I have learned that one THROUGH AND THROUGH. You're choosing to give up 6 months of happiness cause you don't know what will happen later? Uh NO. I just can't believe that you'd rather make the girl you "like" COMPLETELY unhappy and confused for the next 6 months, instead of making her COMPLETELY happy.

Maybe it's wrong of me to expect that you'll care about her feelings. Maybe it's wrong of me to expect that you'll want to make her happy. Maybe it's wrong of me to expect that you would place her happiness above your own fears. MY BAD.

BOGO

Well you know how I said this was gonna be 'not such a great day'? Not so true. It turned out to be 'quite an interesting day'.

We went out grocery shopping to Giant (yay Giant! Boo Landis!!!) and it took us like...an hour and a half. It was CARAZY. It kinda worked like this...Josh was designated to push the cart (mom can't push or lift stuff cause of her arm) and they slowly went around the store as mom sent me and Sanya out to get certain stuff. Shopping is usually kinda boring but today there were REALLY funny moments...

The first thing mom sent me and Sanya to get was...YEAH. And Sanya had to come cause we had two coupons for BOGO...ok quick sidenote about BOGO. Me and Jenny were at a store once shopping with her mom and her mom sent us to buy the BOGO ice cream. So we got to the ice cream section...and for LITERALLY, like TEN MINUTES, we stood in front of the case and were like, "Where's the BOGO? I can't find BOGO! Is that a flavor? Wait...is it a brand??" and we got a LOT of really weird looks, and finally her mom came over and told us it was Buy One Get One...and we were like OOOOOH...but it was rather funny and I think of that every time now. :D

So ANWAY...we went to get YEAH that was BOGO. And so I gave Sanya the coupon thing to get it and I went and was looking for Dove soap (hah...we're out...as I discovered the morning I tried to shave my legs and ran all around the house in a towel looking for the soap :P) and so I'm looking at the soap and there's like a few customers around me and Sanya comes up and says, quite loudly, "Rachel...we want the Tampax kind right?" and I said yeah and she's like, "Ok, that's what I thought cause that's what I got last time." The women around me all turned and GAWKED. Legitimately GAWKED. It was HYSTERICAL. Oh I nearly died...see, you gotta understand that Sanya's been out shopping with me and mom before so she knows what we get and she knows what it is...in a way. Haha!!! OMWord...when my mom told her what both of them were she strongly declared that she was gonna be a "PAD ONLY" girl. HYSTERICAL. Aaaah...I digress...

My mom went to a work "Christmas party" tonight (????) and she had to bring a dessert. So me...being the adventurous one, offered to make it. So I found a recipe I liked and we bought the stuff needed at the grocery store and once we got home I like RUSHED to put it all together. It was going great...until we ran out of carrots. And then we realized we didn't have the correct type of pan. Hah...so as I'm typing this all out I'm realizing that it sounds really calm and everything but it wasn't...it was HECTIC. Who ever knew carrots were such a big deal? Haha. So we decided to put what was supposed to be a cake into muffin pans. Well...most of you have seen the picture...that didn't turn out so well. What I was making was a carrot cake with a cream cheese filling, the batter tasted AMAZING (but there were three raw eggs in it...oops), and so I put that in the muffin tin thingy...and filled it up to the brim. NO ONE TOLD ME YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO LEAVE ROOM FOR IT TO RISE. So...the muffins overflowed QUITE a bit and so it looks like a cake...I'm serious. You look at the pan and it looks like a cake. I haven't had the courage yet to cut into it and try to get the muffins out...maybe after this. :P

So that was the big adventure of the night...it was quite a catostrophe. And guess what I learned today? Catostrophe's make a lot of dirty dishes. So I did the dishes from that morning and then the dishes from the cake accident. Then I 'made' dinner for the youngins and me. I cheated. We had Bagel Bites. I was gonna try and make this new omelet thingy I wanna try but I figured I'd save it for Wednesday cause I didn't feel like doing anymore dishes.

Haha...in the midst of my amazing cooking of the Bagel Bites, I had to go upstairs and help mom with her wardrobe crisis. Me and mom share MANY traits, but one big one is that we can never decide what outfit to wear. Haha! So she had on my red sweater and then I recommended something else and she'd put it on, pout, take it off and then try something else on. It was rather comical. ;D So instead of wearing MY red sweater, she settled on wearing MY nice shirt with MY cool bracelot from Homecoming. Funny how that all works out. :]

After she left all three of us crashed on the couch and watched Chicken Little...good times. And David texted me!!! So it was extra good. :D I miss him a ton when he's gone at Cadets. Like it's so cool thinking about that he's off doing some super amazing thing while I'm lounging on the couch and I'm so proud of him and I LOVE that he's doing it and all that, but still, I miss him.

Haha...that mello tech dude is funny... ;D

ANYWHO. That was my day. Kinda interesting, not half bad. I didn't get the homework part done though...uh oh...that'll be tomorrow's chore. *sigh* Oh moose.

Yaaaay...punishment!

So I was supposed to make a blog post last night...or at least I was planning it. OBVIOUSLY that didn't happen...oops. Dad was over last night and after yummy Chinese food we all crashed on the couch and decided to watch Mulan. Around 8:30, I gave up watching, flipped over, and fell asleep. Can we say 'too much homework/stress during the week'? :P

Ugh...this morning wasn't great. I woke up and I was just in a mood. Cause I knew what the day held for me. Chores. Shower. Grocery Shopping. Homework. Yaaay...Saturday? NOT. So I already wasn't looking forward to today.

I tried to escape after breakfast, I went upstairs and collasped on my bed to read "Nineteen Minutes". About two minutes later I was called downstairs so we could divy up the chores for the day. I got dusting and vacuuming and laundry. Not too bad...laundry's annoying though. Mom and I were supposed to chill while I was sorting and watch an old episode of "Make It or Break It" that we missed, but PopPop called so that didn't work. :(

Then stuff happened and Sanya ended up getting in trouble...she deserved it. Hah...this is SO funny to say, but I am EXTREMELY grateful at the way my parents punish up and put us in our places and don't tolerate laziness, stubbornness, interruption, pig-headedness...all that good stuff. I remember hating it as a kid, but I am REALLY thankful. THANK YOU MOM AND DAD FOR YOUR LOVING PUNISHMENT.

So yeah...now Sanya will be in a mood the rest of the day. And I have to babysit tonight. Oh JOY. She is so ridiculous sometimes...I'm sorry, I really really do love my sister and she's great and adorable most of the time and we get along and all that, but...YEAH. She's a character...

Not happy this morning. I mean, I'm better than when I first woke up. I really wasn't that fun to be around then, but yeah...not such a great start to a not such a great day. I'm so spoiled. I'm so used to having the house be such a happy environment all the time. And so now when it's been really stressful continuously...it's tough, and it frustrates me.

I just have to keep reminding myself that God's here in the midst of all this. There's a reason that all this happens...that really comforts me. I don't need to know all the specifics of why and all that...I just need to know that God's here, and He is. And that's good enough for me.

Shane and Shane

So there's this great kid at my church (well...he's in college...haha!) and we were just talking about music and different stuff and all that and he told me about this band called Shane and Shane, so I looked them up, and they are AMAZING. I LOVE THE MUSIC.

So this is my way of spreading the awesom-ness. Go forth and listen to this music!!! ;D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hr4QGDYcXaE&feature=related

"I like to eat loudly!"

Oh YEAH.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-uwY3sjqYX0

On the treadmill...

So I've recently discovered John Mayer...as in gym 10th period today.

"Your touch is electric
I felt it the first time you held me
The way we connected
So easily
I've tried to define it
Searched for the perfect phrase
I've tried to describe it
In a million different ways

It's joy, it's ecstacy, it's truth, it's destiny
And even love is not enough to tell you how you make me feel
There's only one word for this

I've got to admit it
You took my heart by surprise
Don't know how you did it
But baby, I've never felt so alive

It's joy, it's ecstacy, it's truth, it's destiny
And even love is not enough to tell you how you make me feel
There's only one word for this
It's bliss

It's faith, it's honesty, it's life, it's everything
To say "I love you"'s not enough to tell you how you make me feel
It's in your smile, in your kiss
It's the reason that I exist
There's only one word for this
It's bliss"

"I see you and I'm so perplexed." - Ani Difranco

...what do you do when you're trying to understand another person and you realize you don't even understand yourself anymore? What do you do when you feel like you've lost yourself?

"Maybe you've been wounded too
Maybe all this is your self-protection
And all the hurts you thought were hidden
Are the ones now hurting me"

In the Heights!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm going to see "In The Heights" today!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

OMWord I can't wait to go to New York! I LOVE that city!!!

The plan for today is to drive up at 9, get there, eat some yummy food (what other kind of food is in NYC?), go to the show (:D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D!!!), do some stuff around the city, and then drive home and stop at Cracker Barrel for dinner.

So happy. :0{D (my dude's so happy he has a nose, AND a mustache!)

It's called a lance. Hello?

So tonight after dinner mom was feeling pretty lousy and I too wasn't doing so well, so we decided to crash together on the couch and watch a movie. Our neighbor had loaned us one called, "A Knight's Tale" and so we watched it, and it was pretty good. I enjoyed it...it made me laugh a whole bunch. :D

And of course...since I liked it...I must post quotes!!!

Old Bishop: Pray that your years come swiftly, pray your beauty fades, so that you may better serve God.
Jocelyn: Oh and I do. I pray for it all the time.
[Looks up to God]
Jocelyn: Why God, did you curse me with this face?
Old Bishop: God's will has a purpose, though we may not understand it.

William: It is strange to think, I haven't seen you since a month. I have seen the new moon, but not you. I have seen sunsets and sunrises, but nothing of your beautiful face. The pieces of my broken heart are so small that they could be passed through the eye of a needle. I miss you like the sun misses the flower; like the sun misses the flower in the depths of winter. Instead of beauty to direct its light to, the heart hardens like the frozen world your absence has banished me to. I next compete in the city of Paris, I will find it empty and in the winter if you are not there. Hope guides me, that is what gets me through the day and the night. The hope that after you're gone from my sight, it will not be the last time that I look upon you.

[Keeping beat for a dance lesson]
Chaucer: And one and two and three and four and your hands should be light like a birdie on a branch. And one and two and three and four and Wat doesn't lead he follows like a girl.
[Wat punches him. Scene changes, and Chaucer now has a tissue stuck up one nostril]

Roland: God love you, William.
William: I know, I know. 'Cause no one else will.

Jocelyn: Better a silly girl with a flower than a silly boy with a horse and a stick.
Wat: It's called a lance. Hello?

Jocelyn: Sir Ulrick. What are you wearing to the ball tonight?
William: er... nothing...
Jocelyn: Well, we shall cause a sensation, for I shall dress to match.

William: Oi sir, what are you doing?
Chaucer: Uh... trudging. You know, trudging?
[pause]
Chaucer: To trudge: the slow, weary, depressing yet determined walk of a man who has nothing left in life except the impulse to simply soldier on.

"You know, Hobbes, some days even my lucky rocketship underpants don't help."

There are good days, and there are bad...and there are days when you can't figure out which one it was but you just wish things were better.

That's kinda the day I had today. It wasn't like...horrible, but it was less than average.

I woke up late, which always throws me off, and then my cat threw up like three times and it was very icky and I had to clean it up which made me rush and we all know how much I hate communists (you'll only get that joke if you're in band...).

Band STUNK as usual...but I had a pretty good "diss" or whatever you wanna call it. Some annoying freshman girl was complaining about how at Indoor Guard they were figuring out make-up and she's like, "I hate make-up! Anyone who puts it on me will DIE. I am NOT gonna wear ANY OF IT." So then I said, "So...you joined Guard...but you won't fully commit to it?" Something like that...it was good, probably best part of my day...that's how lame it was.

Then English...and I got to read, which was really nice, "Nineteen Minutes" is GREAT, I just started it today. :] (I lied, that was the best part of my day)

German we took a benchmark, it was just like meh...I feel ok about it. I'm hoping that it's ok enough to get me an A for the marking period.

Lunch...is terrible. No fun. I end up sitting by myself half the time. And I'm not a person who likes being alone. Jordan and JWaz are great...when they're there...

AP was aight, got to finish my work so I don't have to do any this weekend, so that was good.

Math was confusing, I mean I GET it...but I'm not retaining it or FULLY understanding it, which is frustrating.

Science I took a LOUSY benchmark...I legitimately guessed on more than half of the questions. And my essay was bad. And don't try to tell me I did fine and I'm just being hard on myself, it was BAD.

Then Driver's Ed...well THAT'S always the highlight of my day...please realize that's a VERY heavy dose of sarcasm...I went down to the guidance office for awhile though, to talk about my grades and college and whatnot...so much pressure...

After that I went home, and took a nap...which got me in trouble.

So...in writing this, I've realized that it was indeed a bad day.

I am SOOOO thankful I get to go to New York City tomorrow...it'll be such a break. "In the Heights" here I COME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Umbrella...ella..ella... ;D

Another good day! :]

Some tests and a stupid German quiz, but overall, I enjoyed today. I was in a rather bizarre mood during/after wind ensemble...and I love being in weird moods cause usually when I'm in a weird mood I'm really happy, so yeah, good stuff.

And David sent me this, which I love:

Yay yay yay!!!

I have had...an AMAZING day. Legitimately...very VERY good. Haven't had one this great in awhile.

Yes, of course I went to David's today...haha, it was so much fun. We watched "Monsters vs. Aliens" which was kinda dumb and silly, but some funny parts, and like there was one part where it was like referencing global warming and it made me crack up, haha. :D

Then I got to have some mean LeanCusine sandwiches (his special stash), YUM. And sidenote: how is it possible that guys can eat so much? Just throwing that out there...get back to me when you have the answer...haha.

Since it was such a nice day we went out for a walk after, which is always fun. :D

And then tonight I've had a lot of great conversations with a lot of great people.

I'm feeling very loved tonight...and very very happy.

And I've had an answer to prayer, which always makes me wanna scream and jump and shout and give God a big hug. :] :] :]

Toilet Paper Rolls

Yupp, toilet paper rolls. They're kinda always there but never really spoken about. Well tonight at dinner, we talked about toilet paper rolls. Another reason why my family is so awesom.

In our house, once a toilet paper roll is totally gone, the person who emptied it generally just puts it up on the bathroom shelf, and magically it disappears. I never really thought about it...that's just always how it happened. So I never knew where they were supposed to go or anything, the toilet paper roll fairy just took care of it.

In the past couple of weeks though...literally, weeks, the empty toilet paper roll pile has become a STASH. The stash has accumulated on a ledge in our bathroom. At first it was just a few and I didn't really think much of it...then it got to be a whole huge line of them. And it was one of those things where you'd notice it, think, "Huh...", but then just leave them there.

Well...the line grew...and grew...and GREW. One day I walked into the bathroom, and they were all stacked up, like a pyramid. It sorta made me laugh. I wondered who had done it, but I never really asked...it was an unspoken question. And then one day they were stacked on top of each other in tall leaning towers, and each day there was like a different pattern.

FINALLY, after like a WEEK of having 11 or 12 all lined up and in patterns, we talked about it. Tonight. At the dinner table. Mom mentioned something like, "So I started an experiment awhile ago...I've always been the one to take care of the empty toilet paper rolls, and I wanted to see how bad it would get before someone else took care of them...now it's at the point where I thought I should just say something." So we launched into this huge conversation about the toilet paper rolls and how Josh was making all the patterns and doing the stacking and we all noticed but didn't do anything.

Rather hilarious. ;D

Happy Moment

So today in band...Mr. O. usually counts us off like "1, 2, 3, 1, 2..." and then each number gets a note and we make a beutiful chord (...sometimes, haha). But earlier this week he got tired of it so we did, "Chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, chocolate..."

We did that for two days and so today he wanted a new one...it was, "Soo Jin, Kyle, Rachel". I loved it!!! The three of us sit in the back row of band and we're kinda separate from everyone else, we talk a lot during band, so it was really funny. :] :] :]

Mr. O. was like, "All the Rachels...play concert Eb" and it sounded HILARIOUS. Well to me it did, I guess it wasn't as funny to some other people, but oh well, it was my happy moment of the day.

You Should Really Get Up From Under That Bus

I am so SICK of your moods. I'm not really mad...I'm just upset that you let yourself get this way. You put yourself in this mind set and then NOTHING I say can get you out of it. NOTHING. Do you know how frustrating that is? To see someone you love totally throw themselves under the bus, and when you go under there and try to pull them out they just shove you away...yeah ok, I get that you're upset. But I am too. I am so SICK of you always putting yourself down. YOU DON'T DESERVE THAT. You are so much BETTER than that. So just STOP, ok? I need you to stop. And I don't want you to read this and then stop out of guilt. I want you to stop because you owe that to yourself. You REALLY do.

I'm sorry if I've done something or a lot of somethings that you're upset about, but instead of just keeping them all inside and then blowing up on me randomly, can't you just tell me about it when it happens? Then I would KNOW. I would know if something I said upset you, and then I'd be able to fix it for the future. But right now? I don't know ANYTHING. I'm not inside your head, I can't just guess what you want/need from me.

I'm SORRY, ok?

My finger almost DIED

So today in wind ensemble, SOMETHING happened and I ended up dropping the bari and my finger got caught on a sharp needle part and as the needle was falling it took my finger with it. Can we say OUCH? I did...except with a ! instead of a ?.

Luckily, Trolley saved my life. I was talking to him later when Amy gave me and him a ride home and he said he's trained in emergency medical stuff, which is kinda cool. So I cut my finger badly, blood's gushing all over my hands (no joke) and he's like, "Rachel, calm down (I was crying...), it'll be ok, just let me see it..." which I majorally protested to like a baby cause it hurt. But everything turned out to be ok. I survived with a little more than half my finger. KIDDING. Haha, it's all good, just a really deep cut.

So that was my adventure of the day.

It's all true!

Stumbled across these as I dozied through space. Heading to bed now.

Every time you lick a stamp, you're consuming 1/10 of a calorie.

Ants stretch when they wake up in the morning.

More people use blue toothbrushes than red ones.

A sneeze travels out your mouth at over 100 m.p.h.

You'll eat about 35,000 cookies in your lifetime.

In Alabama, it is illegal to wear a fake mustache that causes laughter in church.

In Florida, it is illegal to sing in a public place while attired in a swimsuit.

Kansas prohibits shooting rabbits from a motorboat.

In New York, the penalty for jumping off a building is death.

In Ohio, it is illegal to get a fish drunk.

Here's the site to find a bunch of other random ones about the laws, those crack me up. ;D

http://www.lawguru.com/weird/part01.html

Good Kid Bubble

So I guess you could say for most of my life I've been in the 'good kid bubble'. I'm still kinda in that bubble...it's just gotten a bit smaller (due to marching band...hah).

Anyway...for most of my life I've been the stereotype of a "good kid". Looking back at things...at age 14, I obeyed and had a great relationship with my parents, could have an intelligible conversation with an adult, had only seen one PG-13 movie, didn't understand "that's what she said", and had never had a relationship with a boy. I wasn't rebellious, I was content with my "good kid" bubble.

Thinking back to those times, I realized that even though I didn't do anything bad...did I really do anything that excellent either? Was I just..."good"?

Looking through the Bible recently, I've seen that I haven't been called to be "good". Jesus Christ didn't give his life on the cross for me to make me "good". God has called me to excellence.

In the book of Proverbs, one verse stuck out to me, “The complacency of fools destroys them. - Proverbs 1:32″. Over time, refusing to reach higher, try harder, and risk more robs us of the glorious purpose and wonderful future God has created us for.

Those are my thoughts for the night.

My apostraphe? The Lord expects great things of me, and I'm determined to deliver. I am SO excited now to see what I can do, what GOD will have me do.

Cara and David back me up on this...

...remember at youth group last night? And that one song came on and I was like, "I don't think I know this song...but it sounds familiar" and then it came to the chorus and I was like, "I LOVE THIS SONG. I GOTTA POST IT ON MY BLOG."? Remember that? Yeah, so I'm posting it. :]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YyikWzpiyk

"Smiling Down" by Pillar
You make it so hard on yourself
But there's nobody else
That could ever understand
The feelings that you felt
I could hear you think about
All the time I was around
If you could only see me now
I'm right here looking down

So next time that you feel like crying
Next time you don't feel like trying
Just remember I'll be right there
Smiling down on you
In the morning you don't feel like rising
Next time you feel like compromising
Just remember I'll be right there
Smiling down on you

I know you won't forget
All the time we got to spend
Just because it's been a while
Doesn't mean that its the end
So right here and now
I'll swear you a vow
That I will always be with you
Whenever you feel down
Nothing ever will come between us
Now I'm holding on to the hand of Jesus

I'll be right there looking down
Even when the shine don't shine
I'll be right there looking down
All along the winter night
I'll be right there looking down
With a smile on me face
I'll be right there with my arms open wide
Right here on Jesus' side


Good song. I really like it. Speaking of another song I really like...meh, I'll post that one later, it would make this post really long.

Ok, quick sum-up of the day before I get my battle gear on and charge to go to homework:

Andre was back!!! As funny as that sounds, it made my day THAT much more fun. It was HYSTERICAL having him back in German, he did all his old shenanigans of messing with Frau, stealing my pencil, trying to hide my backpack, and all that. And then we played this review game where we had to point to a picture that represented a vocab word on the board, and it got INTENSE. There was one point, when Zane went up, and Andre was like, "Ok Zane, you got this!" and he was like getting him all pumped up and then Kevin (sidenote: whenever I think of his name, all I can think of is, "Kevin!" from 3-2-1 Penguins) comes up to Zane and SLAPS HIM ON THE BUTT. Frau didn't really know what to do. HILARIOUS.

And then at lunch, Jordan had this brochure about eating right (I assume he got it from Health class?) and on the back there was a cartoon drawing of a girl and then there were arrows that said like, "Heart", "Bicep", and stuff like that, and she was holding a jump rope. So for a large portion of lunch we made fun of the picture, and Jordan said that the jump rope was her whip, and she was standing in a rather provocative way so we were laughing at that, it was funny.

Thhhhheeeeennnnnnnnnn....umm....what next...oh yeah! Jazz band!!! Jazz band was aight. It was a weird day cause it started late and so it wasn't our usual routine, and it was Monday (which always stinks, it was just uber stinky today), and then we were getting 'fitted' for our uniforms and everything, so we were just all over the place today. But I got to play my solo-ish section today in Libertango, so that made me very happy. Haha! We got our bow-ties towards the end of rehearsal,

Got a ride home with Amy, and she was giving Trolley a ride home too so that was a fun car ride. The three of us might try and go see "The Blind Side" sometime, but that was just random conversation, who knows if it'll happen.

Haha...speaking of movies, I might be seeing "Sherlock Holmes" TWICE this weekend. There's a possibility that me and David are gonna double date with Sean and Amber and go this Friday night to see it, and then me and Alice are gonna go see it Sunday afternoon. So fun weekend plans. :] :] :] (Haha...Cara look, three smiley faces ;D)

Gotta go do homework now, adios.

Sidenote: *bragging moment* My boyfriend looks cool when he plays trumpet. He's got his groove on. ;D

Pics!!!

So I'm procrastinating on doing AP work and I started looking through old marching band pictures, and I found some that I really like/are funny. Enjoy!

This was at Nazareth when it was REALLY cold. I like this one. :]

Funny face. This was after Championships at like...one in the morning?? :P

This was my face after we found out we won. Happy happy happy! ;D

Chicken Little???

So I was late to the bus today...don't worry, I made it. But when I got on the only seat that was open that wasn't in the very front, was between a group of guys. Not random guys, I knew them, but they're the uh...how do you say it? INAPPROPRIATE KIND? Uh yeah. So you could say that I wasn't really looking forward to the bus ride, cause it gets bad sometimes.

About five minutes into the ride...I hear Luke say, "And you know the time when he runs into the fence and says sorry? I love it!" so I turn to him and ask, "Chicken Little?" and he nods, and for the rest of the ride, me, Luke, Colin, and Tyler are quoting Chicken Little. It started out with like the well known quotes...and then it got like into really SPECIFIC territory of quotes. I must say I have never been prouder of those boys in my entire life. We were just shooting the quotes out SO fast and it was SO much fun.

Good bus ride. :]

Quick Quiz

So I'm doing terms right now (working ahead) and I was looking at the PowerPoints for AP and there's a link at the end of one that leads to a website where you take a quiz about how you pronounce things.

Here's the link:
http://www.blogthings.com/whatkindofamericanenglishdoyouspeakquiz/

And here are my results:
You Speak General American English!
60% General American English
30% Yankee
10% Dixie
0% Midwestern
0% Upper Midwestern

I clicked on the random quiz generator at the top (had to click it a few times...some are WEIRD) and got one that was like, "How Normal Are You?" or something and this is what I got:
You Are Fairly Normal
You scored 55% normal on this quiz
Like most people you are normal in some ways...But you aren't a completely normal person. You're a little weird too!

Why You Are Normal:You think fishnet stockings are trashy
You'd rather have rats than cockroaches in your home
You rather be screwed over than screw someone else over
You prefer a good meal to a good nap
You prefer fiction to non fiction

Why You Aren't Normal:You find the Chicken Dance to be the more embarrassing dance
You eat the cupcake first
You would rather be tan than pale
You prefer flat potato chips

...how about love?

I never made a New Year's Resolution...I guess I'm gonna now. There's a song, called "Seasons of Love", it's from the Broadway show/movie Rent. Basically, it talks about the different ways of how we can measure a year. We measure it in minutes...in days...in grades...in cups of coffee...that sort of thing. Well what about love? Measuring a year in love...I guess that's my Resolution. Not the measuring...the loving. I dunno, here's the lyrics and I'll put a link at the bottom of the post. It's really good.

"Seasons of Love"
Five hundrend twenty five thousand six hundred minutes
Five hundrend twenty five thousand moments so dear
Five hundrend twenty five thousand six hundred minutes
How do you measure, measure a year

In daylight, in sunsets, in midnights, in cups of coffee,
In inches, in miles
In laughter in strife,
In Five hundrend twenty five thousand six hundred minutes
How do you measure a year in the life

(Chorus)
How about Love
how about love
how about love
measure in love
seasons of love
seasons of love

Five hundrend twenty five thousand six hundred minutes
Five hundrend twenty five thousand journeys to plan
Five hundrend twenty five thousand six hundred minutes
How do you measure the life of a woman or a man

In truth that she learned or in times that he cried
In the bridges he burned or the way that she died
It's time now to sing out though the story never ends
Let's celebrate remember a year in the life of friends

(Chorus)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8iTeDl_Wug

Judgement and Love

I just had an AMAZING conversation with my dad.

I had finished practicing for jazz band (I PRACTICED! ;D) and he was sitting at the dinner table reading a book and I had a question about the Bible, so I asked if I could interrupt, he said sure, and an hour and a half later I'm writing about it on my blog.

I asked/we talked about bunches of things. One of the bigger topics was hell, and what Jesus did there for the three days, and relating that to a passage where Jesus talks to his disciples about Lazareth (not the Lazareth that Jesus brought back to life...), the beggar who lived outside a rich man's house, got his wounds licked by dogs, and the rich man never showed any compassion towards him or helped him in any way. Then Jesus goes on to describe what happened when both died. The poor man went to "Abraham's bussom", and the rich man went to hell, asked for a drink of water...and the story continues. That's like the really short version. If you wanna read the whole thing then go to the gospel of Luke.

So ANYWAY...somewhere in that passage, Jesus talks about how he led the captives out of captivity...which could be connected to when Jesus died and there was an earthquake and all the dead souls rose up from their graves and walked the streets. The connection could be made because when Jesus tells the 'story' about Lazareth...it doesn't start it by saying that "This is a story" or "This is a parable" like he does with all his other parables, so it makes you wonder if it actually happened. But he tells this story BEFORE he dies...my dad explained it really well, I'm not sure if it's making much sense here, but basically...the Bible is amazing and I'm really starting to get into thinking about this stuff.

Ok, moving on to what I really wanted to post about---judgement and love.

I think a lot of times we get this idea in our heads that God is this big judge...who sits on His throne and says, "Well, you did good, I like you, welcome to heaven! Eh...well, don't like you, you can go to hell." I know that sounds really harsh, but I'm just trying to get the point/general idea across. But what dad and I talked about...is that God isn't like that at all, He can't do that. Think about it this way...imagine if you were a parent and you had five children, and God told you to pick three to go to hell and pick two that will get to go to heaven. Could you do it? I mean REALLY think about it...and if you can't visualize yourself as a parent...think about family...or two people that you honestly really love.

Now pick one that has to go to hell...

...go ahead, think about it for a minute, like legit take some time and think. Who would you pick?

...
...
...
...

I know for myself, I would just be so overwhelmed that I'd get to the point of, "God...could I take their place? Let me be the one that suffers."

And that's exactly what He did for us.

...think about it.

The other big topic was love. You've heard the statement before, "There's nothing you can do that will make God love you any less or any more". I could tell that to bunches of people, but THINK about it. Haha, that's my phrase of the night. The part that gets me...is the "there's nothing you can do that will make God love you more". It has ALWAYS been for me, that I've felt like I've needed to earn love, or maybe replace the word 'love' with 'acceptance'. Maybe not with family...but I definitely think better of myself when I can brag about grades, or the music accomplishments I've achieved.

I've always felt like in order to gain a person's acceptance, I need to do something, and not just do something...I need to do it WELL.

For example...Mr. O. I look up to the man, so of course I want his approval and acceptance. How do I work to achieve that? I play saxophone. But not only do I need to PLAY...I need to play well, in fact, I need to be a pretty darn good player to get a genuine compliment from him.

I think that's how I think about God sometimes too...like I need to do THIS for you God, and I'll do it well and I'll make you so proud and so happy and you'll love me so much!!

But then He says...Rachel...I'm already proud of you. You already make me happy. And I have always loved you so much. You don't need to perform for me. Just you is enough.

...and hearing that...makes me want to cry, makes my heart want to burst, it makes me wanna go dance for Him. It makes me want to PRAISE and WORSHIP and ADORE.

Oopsies

In the middle of doing lots of math homework right now, which was made even longer because I have this amazing ability of NOT READING THE INSTRUCTIONS. Yeah...it said odd, not all...oopsies. So anyway, I had to interrupt the amazing math homework cause I'm listening to B101 and I heard a song that I really liked and I figured I'd post the lyrics cause I need a break...so here it is!!!

"Hero" by Enrique Iglesias
Would you dance
if I asked you to dance?
Would you run
and never look back?
Would you cry
if you saw me cry?
And would you save my soul, tonight?

Would you tremble
if I touched your lips?
Would you laugh?
Oh please tell me this.
Now would you die
for the one you loved?
Hold me in your arms, tonight.

I can be your hero, baby.
I can kiss away the pain.
I will stand by you forever.
You can take my breath away.

Would you swear
that you'll always be mine?
Or would you lie?
Would you run and hide?
Am I in too deep?
Have I lost my mind?
I don't care...You're here tonight.

I can be your hero, baby.
I can kiss away the pain.
I will stand by you forever.
You can take my breath away.

Lessons I've Learned So Far in 2010

Communication...do more of it.
Reassuring...START.
Sweeping...be more thorough.
Comforting...shut up and listen.
Wii Fitting...stop yelling at the screen, it doesn't work.
Gratitude...GET SOME!

First 2010 post!

First post has to be big right? Right.

So I'm gonna OFFICIALLY declare something...you know how it's always been DK? Well...I've slipped a few times and said David...and so that's the way it's gonna be now...I like it and I like him...it works. :]

So I officially declare him David.
And I officially declare that I love him.
And I officially declare that it's gonna be a good year.

WORD. ;D