do you think he might like playing soccer better in Seattle??
Archive for October, 2009
Have you ever had one of ‘those days’? Sure you have, we all have. Those days where nothing seems to go your way — well, this wasn’t one of ‘those days.’ This was just a strange day. Strange things happen to me occasionally. But, I’m not sure I’ve ever noticed so many strange things coming my way in a single day. And let me preface this by saying these ’strange’ things were not necessarily bad, just weird, random, out of the ordinary. Maybe it’s just my reaction to these things that makes them such, but it’s been a strange day.
It all started as I was getting into the check-out line at Office Max. I noticed a man coming up behind me talking on his cell phone through his earpiece. Not so strange, I know. But he was a little loud and was commenting (maybe with a bit of frustration in his voice) on the sarcasm that he was encountering from the person on the other end of the line. He continued his conversation as I moved up in line and started to take care of my transaction at the register when all of a sudden he says, “WAIT! Hold on (so and so)”, then to me (and still in his too loud cell phone voice), “Excuse me, ma’am – you’ve got something ALL OVER the back of your leg.” As I attempt to look down & backwards at my leg, he’s kinda freaking out, “NO, NO, the OTHER leg.” Just as I am starting to get a little paranoid as to what exactly could be ALL OVER the back of my leg, I find a couple of small yellow leaves and proceed to brush them off. “Thanks,” I say to the loud cell phone talking man while considering, am I really all that thankful? He made a HUGE deal about a couple of small leaves on the back of my thigh. These happen to be the same type of leaves that are ALL OVER the northwest right now. You know, it is Fall after all. Sure, he was probably just trying to be considerate but why exactly was he looking at my upper, left, rear thigh to begin with? It just kinda made me feel a little… strange.
My next stop was REI (across the street from Office Max) where I seemed to get the 3rd degree from the checkout girl as to why I would like to return an UNUSED item (with tags still attached and receipt in hand.) “It just doesn’t fit right, I’ve got a big head.” To which her response was – silent blank stare, silent blank stare, silent blank stare, takes care of my transaction on the register, “Do you have a bank card you would like for me to put your refund on?” silent blank stare, silent blank stare, silent blank stare, “Gosh, you look familiar,” silent blank stare. To which I reply, “Well, have you ever been to Arizona because I just moved from there (and I’m pretty sure I’ve never seen you before.) To which she replies – silent blank stare, “No.” silent blank stare, silent blank stare… weird!
Then, I’ve been skimming an interesting blog recently called the West Seattle Blog and while the graphics & ads are quite lacking, it’s got tons of helpful community info (which is great for someone who recently moved here, I might add.) I saw this video in a post today and apparently there’s a lot of controversy over this subject (and many more) up here in Seattle. So – I’m not sure why, but I decided to comment on this video on YouTube today. The video just seemed a little dramatic and I wasn’t sure that the issue really demands such theatrics. Anyhow, I don’t think I’ll be making comments on YouTube anymore. Why do strangers feel compelled to call other people names? Especially when they are the ones proving themselves to be the ‘idiot’? Here’s how the comments went (there’s plenty more, this is just mine and then reactions to mine – I’m ‘mrsjenmommy23′ in case that wasn’t clear.)
Seriously? Ever hear of little quake called Nisqually?
Unfortunately, the use of the double-negative in my sentence confused you. It was sarcasm! My point was that the Viaduct has obviously survived other quakes.
ur an idiot
we have had plenty of earthquakes and we are located very close to a fault
You too, seem confused by the double negative in my sentence. Yes, I know that there have been plenty of earthquakes. There’s no need for name calling. Again, my point was that THE VIDEO might be overkill. The Viaduct has OBVIOUSLY survived plenty of OTHER earthquakes. I have a hard time believing the damage would be so dramatic.
So, if I ever do comment on a YouTube video again, I will not be using double-negatives in my sentences. Apparently the Seattle public can’t handle such sophisticated use of the English language. Definitely out of the ordinary for me…
Finally, and I’m not sure it’s even worth mentioning, because, really, it’s not terribly entertaining or exciting. But I did something tonight for the first time here in Seattle – I ran into someone I know at Target. That may not sound significant to you, but when you hardly know anyone where you live, you just don’t expect it to happen. Maybe it seems strange to me because when we lived in Mesa we would run into people we knew (or more accurately, people Ryan knew) ALL the time. It’s just been different to be so anonymous… random.
Well, it’s just been a strange day!
UPDATE on ministry w/ Fireproof – www.stripchurch.com / xxxchurch.com
This week I am down in Ely, NV working with our staff and several volunteers from Seattle, LA & Nashville. The project – remodeling 3 rooms (think very small dorm room) for the girls who find themselves living here. [VIDEO] The working mission of our organization is “to bring the light of the Gospel into the darkest corners of Las Vegas” and beyond. For us this means sharing God’s word and love in brothels, strip clubs, on the Las Vegas strip and in any place we find where christians and the church are hesitant or resistant to go.
Regularly, we press into places and projects where many christians ask the question, “WHY?” Very simply… because the gospel of Christ does not discriminate. His love and salvation are for all of us, no matter where we are in our sin. We chose this project as an avenue to communicate His generous love for the girls and managers at this brothel. Jessica (our staff leader for the clubs & brothels) is seeing some great things come from this project already, as she and our teams continue to develop ongoing relationships. Tonight, we were able to BBQ burgers & hot dogs for not just 1 but 2 of the brothels in town. Last night the manager bought us all dinner. 2 nights in a row, here we have been – believers, eating meals, sharing life and stories with people stuck in one of those dark corners. While most in our society and in our churches would look down at such a gathering, somehow it seems very much like what Christ would be doing.
Many of you have heard bits and pieces of the saga that has become of our Seattle Schools enrollment “experience”. We will take any prayers, influence or pointers that you may have to offer as we are still attempting to get Ethan enrolled over with his brothers at one of our neighborhood schools. Currently he is by himself at a school that is 1 hour away by bus (not to mention that that bus passes by 5 other closer elementary schools on its way to taking him to school). Also, the school Ethan is attending has had failing test scores for more than 3yrs. When I have more patience for writing sometime in the future, I will attempt to detail how it is logical (from the administration’s perspective) that our 2nd grader should not be able to attend the same school in his neighborhood along with his 1st and 4th grade brothers. Both the principal at the desired school and the principal at the other school don’t understand the district stance on the ‘waiting list’ and ‘enrollment policy’. Suffice it to say the kicker is that if we were to enroll him today for the very first time we could get him in the desired school BUT since we are already enrolled in a school it “wouldn’t be fair to other kids/families who have already enrolled their children but may have wanted their child in that school when we didn’t have room”. Bureaucracy at it’s finest. *** I have a lot of curse words in my head right now but I have left most of them there or in my office while alone. Ok, I have said a few with Jen and then again tonight with Dean. He is a pastor though, so it was like confession with a priest.*** I am currently climbing the hierarchal ladder, taking names and notes along the way. Currently, 1 administrator has paused because when I summarized my meeting notes with her, she didn’t think it sounded so hot that she only gave me 15 minutes, reviewed the case for the first time while we were talking (not before) and then only initially went so far as to quote me policy. She is the 3rd rung on the ladder. Before I am through, either Ethan will be in the school with his brothers OR someone at the district office will have a permanent public nemesis until the situation is resolved. The saddest part of this whole (now long) story is that EVERY TIME I tell my story to a parent in the Seattle area, they invariably respond with ‘oh, I hear that is pretty norm’ in regards to how screwed up the system is.