old navy drivers

i am so tired. my friends are in the hot tub, and i didn't even have the strength to get off the couch. loser. tomorrow we should know if the talwrn house is going to be dropped or not. i wish i was rich and could buy an old victorian house to live in for the rest of my life. i love wood, attics, fireplaces, and large open spaces... goodnight all

james bond and a stumbling toof fairy

today was a very interesting day. my dad and matt and i spent ten hours looking at houses and going over them deciding what the next steps are. okay, i'm done talking about this...
our church had a pirate theme party tonight. people were playing poker, loaded questions, watching pirates of the caribbean, and there was a rootbeer keg. nice clean fun. then box, matt and i went to go to box's cousin, brandons halloween party. it was a real kegger featuring jello shots. it was very funny. i find drunk people to be highly amusing. it's always interesting to hear the same three stories over and over. oh, yeah... and the same six songs. i get a kick out of convincing drunk guys to mimic me. i easily got brandon to do the twister dance from thirteen going on thirty. i'm still smiling from that one.
here are some quotes from the night:
box: "is it just me, or did i miss the 'loose women' sign outside?"
brandon: "i'm not really like this... don't tell grandma!"

one of the people i went with had a few drinks so i drove him home. as i was one block from where my car was after dropping him off, i got pulled over for having my headlights off. this is a full minute after i have already noticed ad corrected the problem. since there are no warrants out for my arrest that i am aware of, the nice cop let me go. that and the fact that i'm a girl of course (this is matt's assumption...).
oh, bed... i shall now answer your call!!!

5000 calories taste so fine

I met Lindsy for "coffee" today. I love having friends who are managers at coffee shops. Kate made me hot chocolate with a full cup of whipped cream on the side. I was in heaven...
We just heard back from our remedy requests on the house. They are willing to do the radon mitigation, but my dad irritated them with one of his requests so they refuse to do anything else. I didn't realize people could get so petty when it came to finding a happy compromise. Oh, well. Dad's coming out for the day tomorrow to look at what's out there and to finally see the Talwrn property, so I guess we'll decide then if we're going to walk... More fish in the sea! I would like to give a shout out to David Anders who is now not only on Alias, but is also in a recurring roll on CSI. My tv viewing life is now complete. (enter sigh of contentment here)
I love TIVO. It's the greatest thing since Reeses holiday shapes. I also love Matt's parents for taking my advise and getting him one for his birthday. I called them to extend my deep appreciation last night. I just love talking to Stan. He's so funny!
There's a guy walking around the java house right now who looks like a short David Anders minus the accent. He really should acquire an accent for his own marketability.
New favorite King of the Hill quote: "Luann, remember your heart is your employee, so tell it to get up off it's butt and get back to work!" - Hank's great rebound advice.

so an angel, a devil, and a jew went putt-putting...

tonight i hung out with matt and ethan. ethan is five and incredibly strong willed and loud. he and matt are very fond of each other... at one point they were discussing sports and matt wanted to know if ethan liked the yankees or boston. ethan said he liked the yankees as long as they weren't playing the cubs. here is an excerpt from their conversation:
matt: "i'll tell you what, ethan... if i had to put money on tonight's game, i'd put it on the yankees."
ethan: "i'd buy shoes."

have you ever felt left out when your friends have "their people" and you don't? one of my friends would always mention that he was going to talk to "his jeweler" or ask "his concierge" to get us reservations. another friend is always talking to " his accountant" or "his lawyer". i've decided that i have them beat and from now on when someone says they will get back to me after checking with "their assistant" i'll tell them that they'll hear back from me after i talk to "my jew." i have one on retainer.

i told george that the only time i could meet with him today was at 8:30. he told me that wouldn't work cause he had bowling league then. apparently my being worth six grand doesn't rate above bowling. yes, i met him at the bowling alley...

can i fire george?

i am convinced that my one year olds read my blog. two of them were uncharacteristically affectionate today. and myron, who was yet to say my name, said "i love you!" that made my week (the e-mail from kathy bravo made my day).
i almost slept through work today. i remember my alarm going off and then he next thing i knew, i had six minutes to be at work. it's amazing how quickly i can move in the morning when i have to! by skipping the make-up (it doesn't really accomplish anything anyway) i was able to make it to work within the five minute grace period. also without excessive speeding.
i hate the little paperclip dude in microsoft word. he kept giving me useless and bad advise. then he gave me this window where i could type in what i wanted to accomplish and he would advise me on how to best get there. i typed in "how do i kill you?" he just responded with punctuation advise, thus proving his worthlessness. the day i get rid of said paperclip, will be one of the happiest days of my typing life!


i am a selfish person. i am really amazed by the depth of my selfishness sometimes. today, instead of supporting a friend who is trying to follow what they believe God to be telling them to do, i claimed my rights. i am quite disappointed in myself. i don't think i care about fighting my sinful nature as much when i m sick. that's not an excuse, it's an observation. so again, you know who you are, i am truly sorry...

i love crying cats

today were the home inspections and i am sick and exhausted. i relly liked the inspector. he thought i was funny. my realtor, george, does not find me funny. don't misunderstand me now, he laughs at all my jokes and smiles frequently, but that's just cause i'm worth six thousand to him and it's in his best interest to keep me happy. i feel bad for people like him though. they just don't seem to enjoy life as much as they could.
i would just like to declare that the world is not in a hug shortage. this is directed to all of you who hoard your hugs and only share them begrudgingly. shame on you! when you give them away, they bless others and multiply. and generally, you feel better too. just a thought.

i love, love, love pachelbel's canon

i detest not being able to sleep when one is as exhausted as I am. i wonder who keeps calling the sixteen-year-old who sleeps in the room next to me. her phone's been ringing off and on since three-thirty. she's only woken up for it once... oops! now twice.:) today's the inspection. i plan to walk behind the inspector and take notes (her phone's ringing again) and act all interested and like i understand what he's talking about. i shall use the smile and nod method that mera taught me.
i would like to comment on the fast that i believe my nephew to be one of the cutest little boys in existence. my sister looked just like me as a baby and now tucker has a lot of me in him (okay, so it's her, but it was me first!) he has my nose, lips, and eyes that disappear when we smile. he's also one of the fattest babies i know. i love him.
oh, i wish i could sleep tonight...
i had lunch with three of my favorite guys when i was home yesterday. i have grown to appreciate all of them so much more since i left chicago. i miss them. they always make me smile (except for the times that one of them makes me cry) and i'm completely comfortable with them. they were trying out the smooth moves jon anderson taught them at encounter. such a hoot! i've known all of them since before any of them were six. they are growing up just fine...
i miss nate swinton's blog. a lot...

"i love that movie..."

well, tomorrow is the house inspection. fun. and it's all for naught if we don't have our financing figured out by Wednesday. Physically and emotionally, I feel like death warmed over and none of it's house related! Oh, for sleep tonight.
This weeks shout out goes to... Kathy Bravo. I love this woman. She is such a good godly example of a wonderful Christian woman. She raised two awesome "men" (insert quotation fingers here) and married the man she fell for in high school. And she introduces Amanda and I to people as her adopted daughters. I love her.

sorrows

i did not reach my goal (sigh)... there's always tomorrow, though...

Talwrn... correct spelling

just wanted to let you all know that they accepted our offer on the house! we're one step closer (... to the edge and I'm about to break!) to ambre being a home owner. that will truly be the day. my goal for tomorrow is to go to bed on the same day on which i woke up. that's the rule of thumb i try to live by, just not this past week . big mistake...

my kingdom for the pencil sharpener

i placed an offer on a house today. i've been told i didn't do so bad by some, and that i did it while thinking like a girl, by others. go figure. now i shall progress into the land of counter offers, being flat out rejected, or losing our pencil sharpener contingencies (sorry, matt... we tried). this whole process has the makings of a very discouraging and draining time. I need to make sure I am staying in the Word and keeping my eyes and mind centered above. it has a pretty cool basement though...
Myron gave me a ten minute hug today. not just a "let me use you to be comfy and just vegge." oh, no, my friends. he was squeezing me tight and smiling the whole time. apparently, one year olds become very fond of people they have puked all over. maybe it's the start of them understanding unconditional love... i wonder if this really applies to all ages. hmmm... needs more research with me not being the one getting puked on.

pistachios, popcorn, pudding, and pop

There are few things that hurt me more in life than knowing I've hurt someone I care about. I found out today that through a situation that involved me, someone compromised one of their convictions. I didn't cause then to sin, it's just that by having different convictions and not being aware of theirs, I apparently led them into a compromising situation before it occurred to them to say no. This is made more frustrating by the fact that I was actually consciously trying to help them keep convictions that I was aware of at the time. The irony is not lost on me... I wish I didn't have the tendency to hurt those I value most...
Now, about my future house. Thank you to Matt and Pat as they saw houses with me in the last twenty-four hours. It looks like I will be placing a bid on one tomorrow. I am trying to take all the wise counsel I have received such as not growing attached to the house before everything is finalized. The only problem with that is that without the adrenaline that comes with excitement, I am not sure how I will make it through the process of bidding, home inspections, contingencies, etc., that I have no skills or knowledge about/in. Feel free to pray for me as the devil is attacking me with a full scale attack of self-doubt. Thanks, and good night all...

houses and two movies

i went house hunting today. i found one i really like. pat's going to take a look at it tomorrow. i am trying to take matt's advise and not get excited, but i'm just excited about getting a house period. i have moved fifteen times in under to and a half years. i am very ready to be done with that for awhile...

matt's privileges have been revoked as far as being allowed to pick out movies go. tom and i both agree (yes, i know it's a rarity) that the forgotten was one of the dumbest, most time wasting movies we have ever sat through. it's a good thing we were doing a double header and followed it up with wimbledon. otherwise i would have felt i wasted my afternoon. of course my movie choice turned out to be very funny and enjoyable.

movie quote of the day: "loves not just blind, it's bloody stupid."

divorce... apparently not a last resort...

Work was beyond ridiculous yesterday. Since Monday, I have been picking up on some tension between me and my coworker, Ashley. I had no idea what could be causing it, and she tends to internalize things so I knew there was no way to get her to open up before she was ready. I showed up yesterday to the silent treatment. In the first four hours of being there, she was in our room at the same time as me for all of five minutes. Then she comes to tell me our supervisor wanted “a word” with me. Apparently, the powers that be had picked up on the tension and spoken to Ashley about it. I was informed that she was upset at all our differences and the fact that I wouldn’t let her decorate our room for Halloween since I didn’t like the holiday with no regard for her feelings and the fact that it’s her favorite holiday. She conveniently forgot to mention that I had just asked her to wait until October first instead of starting in the second week of September. Either way, none of this matters… My main point is to say that she then proceeded to tell me that my opinion that we did a good job compromising may be valid, but that we shouldn’t have to compromise. We should just be more in agreement with issues and that if we aren’t naturally, that maybe we shouldn’t work together and should find people to work with that had the same values and likes and dislikes as us. On what cloud is she living? Since when do all partnerships consist of 100% compatible pairs? She then proceeded to tell me that since Ashley had been in our room two months longer than me, that she had the choice to stay or go and had chosen to stay, and that they were going to try to find a room where someone was willing to trade out for me. If that wasn’t possible, then it looked like Ashley and I would just have to work out our differences.
Hold the phone, everyone! Are You Freaking Kidding Me, People??? Reality checks here please. Since when is the first plan of action a “divorce” without any attempt at reconciliation? And why the crap does Ashley not only get the “house”, but she gets full custody of our kids as well? Where is the fairness in that? Having been the apparent underdog in this relationship, I have a small inkling why some wives (or husbands) stay in abusive or unfaithful relationships. They know they most likely won’t win in court and that they stand to loose all they hold dear. It’s a risk I know I couldn’t take. It made me so sad to think I might have to leave my eight babies yesterday. I also know that if they try to follow through on this “solution” that I will fight them with everything I have. Sometimes, you just have to stand up for what you believe is right.

On Wednesday, Myron threw-up all over me. And his mother had the nerve to stand there watching as I held my little angel with the 100.5 degree fever projectile vomiting in my hair and all over my shoulder and arm, and tell me that her son was not sick and that she was bringing him back the next day. Would someone please describe sick for me?

the power of a kind word

here's a conversation i had with an old friend today that was really sweet...
me: do you know why i haven't been able to get a hold of so-and-so? i know they don't hate me, so i've just assumed she's out of town.
them: i saw her at church so she's in town. i don't know why you haven't heard back from her.
me (jokingly): hmmm, maybe she does hate me after all!
them: if she does, she'd be the only one!

his saying that totally made my day. the power of a positive joke is amazing, isn't it? let's all try to build someone up today. it only takes a second...

on a different note... i had to stick my hand up a chickens rear and pull out slimy body part rejects today for the first time in my life. i believe everyone should have their moms to do this for them for their entire life... honestly though, it helped to relieve some stress i've been under. i also watched the last half of a new hope and the first half of empire strikes back this evening. i am reminded of how much i love the original star wars films. so much.
today was the best mental health day i have ever taken from work. back to the grind stone tomorrow... Lord, i want a new job!!! ...sigh...

she said, he said...

tonight at the shoebox:
becki: "who owns ambre's butt?"
jbox: "i own stock in it."

rat pee and other pleasant things

here are some highlights from my encounter weekend... in no particular order... (for the uninitiated, encounter is our fall singles retreat...)

-mark darling spoke. note to self: pray for his daughter jessica's health.
-i became friends with a real ninja.
-a rat peed on me. i love pet rats!
-i killed my first cockroach
-laura and i got pulled over and just given a warning
-laura and i got lost in marshalltown. curses!
-i drank more caffeine in the last 48 hrs than in all of the last three months combined.
-Narmin left me for a week in japan. change your priorities, woman! :P
-got some hugs. good thing cause my hug bank was overdrawn.:(
-lots of baptisms (cheers to all napoleon dynamite references made.)
-played flag football (we didn't loose any games until i stopped playing)
-got to hang out with maggie. she's cool. :)
-received peace about what was happening in a valuable friendship.
-amanda turned 23. happy birthday, friend!
-had lunch at the west street deli in ames. i love that place with a passion.
-got to see one of my other "moms", joshy, and meet brit's family. finally.

ways one can be better prepared for next year:
- pack wd40 for squeaky doors
- pack kleenex
- pack hand soap for the bathrooms
- get married so you can stay in a room with a real mattress. (i strongly advise this as sleep is so precious.)