Music with a little Sun and Badminton

There are some things that every person should figure out about themselves. For instance: you should realize if your sunglasses are swallowing your face, you should figure out if you are good at badminton, and you should realize if you can sing.

Now that i have said that I think we should all admit that we enjoy watching others not understand these things about themselves. We enjoy looking at picture of celebs in US weekly with bug-eyed sunglasses that are all wrong. We enjoy listening to the whiff of a missed birdie in a friendly game of badminton. And you are lying if you say you don't love watching the "next American Idol" complete butcher "Hit Me Baby One More Time."

I have tried to figure out these thing about myself. I do have oversized sunglasses; however, when I purchased them I made sure that my face was not swallowed by them. If you disagree with the size of the shades, please don’t wait to see me in US Weekly looking ridiculous, just tell me. In case you were wondering why I would be in US Weekly, I will be in once I get my own reality TV show. I have a great understanding of the fact that I can not, I mean really not, play badminton. My family has given me great grief about this over the years. I am not good at sports that require an extension of my arm such as softball, tennis, but honestly, badminton is the worse. I blame it on a lack of spatial perception. And finally, I realize that I am not the next Kelly Clarkson.

If I was on the Miss America pageant, singing would not be my talent portion of the competition. Last night while watching the pageant Jess said that her talent would be putting puzzles together. She is really good at it. Even though I am not really a great music artist myself, I would like to share my observations of music in pop culture with you.

1. If you have not listened to Sara Bareilles’s music you should. Lyrical genius! She is the girl that sings "Love Song" that is popular now. You know, "Not gonna write you a love song cuz you asked for if, cuz you need one, you see? Not gonna write you a ... " I have her CD called Little Voice and there is not a song on there that I don't like. Love Song is definitely her most pop-ish song and that is probably why it was her first single. The rest of the CD is more folky. The music is good, but the lyrics, oh my word...I don't know what else to call it but genius.

2. I personally think that Britney Spears has made quite the professional comeback considering her current personal life and her previous attempt to make a professional comeback (does anyone else cringe to remember the VMAs?). I recently got her new CD "Blackout." It really something you can dance to or work out to. Someday she will get her life back together and I and waiting with anticipation for that day. I personally feel bad for her because it is our fault that she is the way she is. Constantly being watched and analyzed and photographed and we drove her crazy--literally. Now she is just crying out for attention. So in the first-stated-half-serious-half-sarcastic words of Chris Crocker (you know, crazy you-tube guy) “Leave Britney Alone!”

3. And finally, I would like to give a shout out to The Fray simply because they are my favorite band…ever. This summer Jessica and I saw them live and I fell in love with love. Amazing music, great lyrics, and it is impossible to get tired of listening to it. It is really good music to drive to. I just really like them and I want them to make the blog.

Now you are probably thinking about if your sunglasses are swallowing your face, if you are talented in the badminton field, or if you could be the next American Idol. May you be successful in your efforts to understand yourself in these important areas.

Tat.

I am thinking about getting a tattoo. I have been thinking about this for some time actually. Don't worry, my parents already knows that I am thinking about it. Now, mom is probably still freaking out, but she has already heard about it. She has way more warning on this adventure than on my last couple. I called her while I was driving to the salon to get my nose pierced and then sent her a picture after I got it done. She didn't get any warning about the belly button. Actually, I had to get it done twice due to a "miss stick" the first time. I invited mom to go along with me to Big Daddy Cadillac Tattoo Parlor (no, it is really called that) to get my belly redone. She walked into the parlor with me, but unfortunately I was unable to get it done because the piercer was sick.

I had decided some time ago to not get a tattoo until after going to Israel. This was to allow me time to think about this decision, because yes, I realize that it is with me forever. (Although my mom tells me that removable is easier than ever…) So I have some ideas of what I might like.

1. Before going to Israel I was thinking of getting “truth” in Greek on inner surface of the arch of my foot. Get it? Walking in truth. I randomly selected Greek because I liked the look of the letters. I realize that that reason alone is not a good enough one to permanently place on my body Greek letters. I think I would get Hebrew now because I learned the alphabet (pronounced olive-bet) on my trip and I am still a big fan of truth. Truth in general and as a tattoo.

2. The second idea came to me tonight in the form of a friend. He wanted to make the blog so I asked him to please submit some ideas so that I could more easily mention him. He came up with 2. The first is a bad one. I am not afraid to hurt his feelings with that comment. He knows in his heart…someday he will learn. He thinks that I should get a purple power cat. Enough said.

3. His second idea is to get a random number such as 14. Thank you Eric Tippin, I would have never thought of this idea on my own. His thinking is that when people ask me why I have a number on me I can be mysterious. Ashton Kutcher had a 2 tattooed on his back in the movie the Guardian. He was a competitive swimmer and so the 2 let the guy behind him know what place he was getting. Let’s see how many blogs in a row I can mention that movie.

4. When we visited the Garden Tomb which is the site of Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection, the tour guide mentioned that the garden is meant to be an oasis of peace and beauty. He went on to say that the garden is just a location and it isn’t about the actual place but about the person of Jesus Christ. This got me thinking about how what Christ did there made it so that it wasn’t about a place but rather Christ indwelling the church, his people. We are now to be oasis of peace and beauty for the world. That is a nice thought. So all that to say that I am thinking about getting ופ שלום אואזיס which translates “oasis of peace and beauty.” I like this idea best.

Talented Life in Lawrence

School has started. We had two days of class and now we have a three day weekend. It is nice, probably unnecessary to have a long weekend so quickly, but I am not one to complain about an extra day to sleep in.

On the first night of my long weekend, my bff Jess came to Lawrence. We dinner ate at On the Boarder because we eat Mexican every time we are together, naturally. Then we went to Target to get a few necessities such as gum, US Weekly, and a tape measure. After the quick shopping trip, we went to see 27 Dresses. Really cute movie. The theatre was full of chicks and two guys. Seriously there were only two guys in the whole theatre. Jess and I like to watch movies together and we are really good at it. I especially enjoying seeing lighthearted movies with her because I can get out of the theatre with less bruises. Let me explain. When Jess and I went to see the Guardian, (another great flick, one of my favs) she squeezed my knee so hard during the intense parts of the movie that I literally had bruises the next day. In her defense, I do bruise easily.

Today we slept in, watched Dream Girls, and ate Macaroni and Cheese (another one of our many talents).

Speaking of US Weekly, Trista Sutter graces this weeks cover. If you have previously read my blogs, I believe in the post titled Observations from Grandfather's Chair, I noted my ideas about the Bachelorette . You know, the show that my blog is named after. It was a nice cover story about how Trista got back in shape after giving birth to Max. The mag was full of pictures and quotes that support my position on the Bachelorette. That is all I really have to say about that. So...

On the second night of my weekend, my friend Jenna and I are going to eat dinner at Mrs. E's. Mrs. E's is best cafeteria on campus, and I would argue that it quite possibly the best in the entire state. Take that K-state! After that we will probably do something really fun because it is one of our talents.

Once I Went to Israel

I have heard that the distance between a person's head and heart is the longest distance on the earth.

My wish for my life is that the things that I learn, see, and experience would affect every area of my life. I wish to be more than an aquirer of knowledge but that I would allow my heart to be changed by what I learn and then ultimately live out what is in my heart.

One time I went on this trip to Israel.

I learned a lot of infomation while I was there. The things that I learned connected the dots of my faith. It made facts that I previously knew make more sense and fit into a context of culture and normal life during Christ's earthly stay.

I saw a lot of sites while I was there. I saw beggers sitting in the gates of the old city of Jerusalem. I saw the wailing wall. I saw ruins of great cities of the time of Chirst.

I experienced a lot of things while I was there. I swam in the dead sea. I kissed the road that Christ walked on on the way to the cross. I touched the place where he once lay dead.

Now my wish is that the things that I have learned, seen, and experienced on my long journey (22 hours of travel time!) would embark on the long journey from my head to my heart. For me this journey comes through journaling, talking about the trip, looking at pictures, and filing it to memory.

So if you were hoping that I could sum up what the trip has meant to me, sorry to disappoint you. I probably, and hopefully, won't be able to do that for a long time. I want to be uncomfortable with what I saw. I want to struggle with these confused thoughts and emotions. I want this trip to change me.

On an airplane for 13 hours!

View from hotel window in Tiberias with Sea of Galilee in background.

In valley of Elah where David killed Goliath.

Empty tomb! Greatest things that has ever happened!

Floating in the Dead Sea.

Modeling on the Mt. of Olives. I like this picture because i think i captures all our personalities. Hah!

Riding a camel. Hey it was in Israel and on the Mt. of Olives even if it was in a parking lot.