Hope

There is really only one thing we need to know - that there is hope.  Always and forever, through our darkest times, we are assured that there is a plan, a purpose and unlimited potential for our lives.

Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

We may not always have understanding but we can seek comfort in understandng that God promises us a future full of hope and prosperity. 

Believe His promise.

Nail Biter

Anxiously awaiting news concerning some dear friends of mine...they are waiting to hear if their grant will be refunded.  I feel as nervous and anxious as if it were my own program.

It's such a hard thing to pour yourself into these programs with the thought that it could be taken away at every grant competition. And really, the heart and soul of each of these programs is the people that labor each day to build them. It's the people that care, that want to make a difference - that's what makes the most difference to the participants. Knowing they have people who support them, guide them, care about them...

Such a difficult thing to think of any program shutting down.  I always think about the people who are waiting. Wondering.  Hoping.

But this one, this one is especially close to my heart.

Friday List

It's Friday, the semester just started, and football is just around the corner! Life. Is. Good.

I really feel that all this awesomeness calls for a list but I’m all out of creativity. I got nothing. Zip, zero, nada. Sorry to disappoint, but all my energy has been spent this week on the students parading in and out of my office.

I can, however, offer you a bunch of meaningless, random, and not so interesting commentary on nothing in particular…sounds riveting, huh?

1. Throwing a belt around a shirt does not magically turn it into a dress. Try it as many times as you want, it’s still just a shirt with a belt.

2. The older I get the more compassion I have for those in need and the less tolerance I have for ignorance.

3. I textured our entire mudroom. By hand. It was a good reminder how much I hate manual labor.

4. I was in a hurry when I went to the bathroom and was a little too aggressive when I pulled down my drawers. Apparently the little bit of working out has turned me in the Incredible Hulk because my thumb went through the lace and ripped the entire side. My choices of dealing with this were limited – try to wear one-sided panties and risk them falling off at the most inopportune time or trash them. I wonder if the cleaning crew noticed when they emptied the trash.

5. I don’t know why but every time I eat at KFC, I want ice cream afterwards. And I’m not even a big ice cream person. Although I have eaten a bacon sundae before. It sounded so gross that I was morbidly intrigued and had to try it. It wasn’t as gross as it sounds.

6. Nothing has made me feel so vain and frivolous as sitting across from a young women who is missing her entire front teeth while I have five grand of metal on mine.

7. I’m not trying to be gross but how exactly does camel toe happen? Does it not feel like something’s amiss? I mean, it’s gotta hurt.

8. My lack of patience is demonstrated by the fact that I absolutely cannot lick a blow pop long enough to get to the gum. I always chew it up and mix the sucker and gum.

9. I used to say I didn’t have a “type”. Technically that’s not true, my criteria were just a little unconventional. I cannot stand “little boy” hands. Or cheap looking shoes. I don’t know why, cheap shoes just make a guy less attractive to me. So nice shoes and grown up hands.

10. I don’t understand society’s obsession with beauty or looks. It’s especially harmful for young girls who are taught that beauty is above all else. If you believe your worth is in your appearance, what happens to your self-esteem when it fades? And it will. At some point we all shrivel up and end up looking pretty much the same.

Runnin Wild

What a week! It has been crazy busy! I don't think I hardly sat down yesterday! I did, however, almost manage to miss a meeting. I didn't forget about it - I just lost track of time.

That's what I get for running across campus without my phone. Because yes, my phone is my watch. I have an actual watch but the batter needs to be replaced. It's needed to be replaced for at least three years now, if not longer. So that watch doesn't really count…

I'm sure it was comical to anyone who saw me sprint across campus. Wait, no, that's not true. It was in no way a sprint. Maybe a sloppy jog? Whatever it was it left me out of breath. And I pretty much felt like I was running the rest of the day too. Just going all day long.
I went home, did Mommy duty and then nothing else for the rest of the night. So no workout for me. But I promised myself I wouldn’t skip tonight, so no matter what kind of day I have – the workout is in.

And so is that massive pile of laundry I’ve been ignoring…

They're Baaaack

The semester has started again!  Campus just feels different - exciting and full of energy. Love it.

This means planning time is gone - my days will be filled with students, students, and students. And I am so ready!  We're gonna have a great sememster - so looking forward to some really great things.

Here's to a new year! Let's do this!

Goodbye Summer

Day four! 

Is it sad that I'm celebrating four measly little days of working out?  Does that really even count?

Big day tomorrow - M starts first grade!  Yes they start on a Friday. I know, I think it's dumb too.  Of course, she doesn't know the difference. She's just excited to get to show her sparkly tank-top to her new friends. 

Big day for me too -we have our freshman mentoring orientation tomorrow and then our whole program orientation. I cannot believe it's here already. This summer went way too fast. I think we got a lot accomplished but it was kinda a whirlwind. We spent the entire summer trying to get some new programming in place. I think we're ready but I could have used just a few more weeks. 

Of course, I don't know when it will ever not be busy - every time I think we're getting close to where we want to be I see another gap or something that we're not doing. During in-service today we had a session on higher education accreditation. There are some big changes coming for our college. And I realized that we should develop some learning/program outcomes. I mean, I have a strategic plan but I think we need to step back, look at everything we do, and then outline what kind of result we want from that service and then measure - are we getting that result? If not, why not?  What can we do to change it?  I don't know, we do an annual performance report but that doesn't really help you get a better program...

I have ideas, I know what I want our program to be - getting there is the problem. I lack direction and resources. And time. And sometimes a reality check. Sometimes I catch myself getting into all that stuff and I have to step back and remind myself that we are really not there yet. But gosh, we're entering our third year - shouldn't we be there by now?  

I had a wonderful meeting with some colleagues the other day, a three hour exchange of program ideas and discussion. I walked away feeling that we were doing things right but I didn't get any solutions to the challenges that we face.  And I guess I felt better knowing that we share the same challenges but really, what does that do for either one of us?

Okay, going to continue those thoughts tomorrow at the office. Tonight, I've got a backpack to prepare and clothes to dry because tomorrow is a school day!

2 For 2

Mixed day today.

Good part: Day two of workouts. Cardio. Well, mini cardio. Nothing like I was doing or want to be doing but I was just happy to have my fat behind on the treadmill. Every step is progress, right?

Bad part: I did something today that I said I wasn't going to do. I've been really good but I had a moment of weakness and gave into temptation. And that's kinda frustrating.

Obviously though, I'm not a master of willpower or I wouldn't be doing mini sessions of cardio, now would I?

What I have mastered is the art of guilt. Not for others, just myself. I have such a strong guilt complex I used to jokingly tell people that I felt so guilty I should have been born Catholic. And then I quipped that to a friend of mine, who I didn't realize was Catholic. Then I had the fortune to experience awkward guilt.

But no guilt tonight - the workout is done!