Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Things not to do on a cold winter night: stand outside of a restaurant to chat.

Meme time. A music meme. Stolen from Jules.

Put your music on shuffle and take the first line of the first 20 songs that come up and make a song.

Call on your angels
I hope you never lose your sense of wonder
I want a little sugar in my bowl
Listen everybody.

Don't wish, don't start
My soul is as open as the sky
Maybe it's much too early in the game
Finally I figured out but it took a long, long time.

He was a famous trumpet man from the Chicago way
When marimba rhythms start to play
Lord of heaven and earth
Every time I fall down on my face.

Silent night, holy night
At last my love has come along
He set my soul at ease
Hey Jude don't make it bad.

A stolen meme

I stole this meme. But I had to do a meme. Because they are fun to do, and tonight I should do something fun because I am celebrating the victory of good triumphing over evil on Biggest Loser. Somehow along the way all the mean people in the house got lumped together on one team and they had been winning, which was killing me! Tonight, they got a big wake up call when one of their own was unexpectedly sent home. Now it's anyone's game. Ah, the wonders of reality television.

Seriously, though, one of the contestants acts in a particularly horrid manner, and I have to admit that it makes me laugh that the editors of the show chose to include some parts that depict her being utterly spiteful.

So onto the meme, stolen from Ms. Marie:

Round One

1. Who did you spend at least two hours with today?
Joshua... yay. :)

2. What do you look forward to most in the next six weeks?
Hmmm... celebrating Joshua's birthday this weekend; Heather Heather's visit; a trip home for Thanksgiving to see my family and Shell-Bell, my sister-in-love, who will be in Florida then; celebrating my two-year anniversary with Joshua by going to the new PF Chang's that's opening up down the street; Christmastime!

3. Who was the last person you called?
That would be Josh.

4. What were you doing at 12am last night?
Sleeping in my warm, snuggly bed.

5. What did you fear was going to get you as a child?
I can't remember. Guess it wasn't that scary.

6. When did you last see your mom?
In June! :( But I will see her very soon.

7. What are you wearing right now?
One of Josh's shirts and some Umbro shorts that I stole from Breanna a long time ago.

8. Where is your favorite place to be?
The right place at the right time. Otherwise, it would be impossible for me to choose.

9. Where is your least favorite place to be?
In rush hour traffic.

10. Where would you go if you could go anywhere?
I'd like to bop around Europe for awhile.

11. Where do you think you’ll be in 10 years?
I have no clue. Hopefully married and running after Jesus with reckless abandon.

12. What was the last thing that really made you laugh?
Josh doing a happy dance at the end of Biggest Loser.

13. What cities/towns/villages have you lived in?
All the places I've made my home...
. Tampa, FL .
. Wilmore, KY .
. Burgin, KY .
. Dade City, FL .
. Fort Pierce, FL .
. Orlando, FL .
. Fort Lauderdale, FL .
. Corinto, Nicaragua .
. Asheville, NC .

14. Are you a social person?
With close friends, yes. I don't do well with large groups of strangers, and even with my closest friends I still need alone time.

15. What do you like about winter?
. snow .
. hot beverages like apple cider and hot chocolate .
. winter wear .
. snowflakes on windowpanes .
. Christmas lights .
. breath that comes out in puffs of frost .
. carols, ornament-laden trees, and presents .
. using my electric blanket .
. pink sunrises reflecting on snow-covered mountain peaks .
. frozen ponds .
. made-for-television holiday movies .
. shopping at the mall .
. Pisgah National Forest covered in perfect white snow and icecicles .
. and much more .

Round Two -
Unconscious Mutterings:

I say … and you think … ?

Coverage :: news - thank God the election is over
Cynical :: most of the population
Gust :: of wind - soon it will be icy cold wind
Improvised :: Heather Heather and her amazing comedy skills
V :: Victoria's Secret - duh!
Guests :: The Red Rocker Inn in Black Mountain... it's a bed and breakfast and wonderful!
Brutal :: reality television
Grant :: LaFever - an old friend
Pull :: the trigger - yikes!
Streaming :: raindrops down my windowpane - it was more of something that I saw in my mind's eye rather than words I thought

Alright, I'm calling it a night. 'Till tomorrow, taters.

Long day

Today was perhaps the most perfect autumn day yet. The weather is really warm (unusually, maybe?) and the full explosion of color has reached the city streets of Asheville. Everywhere you look there are crimson, orange, and golden leaves twirling off tree branches and swirling on the pavement. I crunched through quite a few today. I was sitting with some friends on someone's back porch praying today, and I couldn't bear to close my eyes. I'm not really one to close my eyes while praying anyway, but today I couldn't tear my eyes away from the wind and sunlight moving through the trees in the woods behind the house. It was breathtaking. Literally. Made me want to shout praise to God.

It has been a very long day for me, and I don't even really know why. My emotions have been rather topsy turvy lately and I am attributing it to being a woman. But it makes my days feel long.

So, I will leave you with a meme:

1. What is your idea of perfect happiness?

Living free.

2. What is your greatest fear?

Bugs.

3. What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?

I deplore my fleshly self... there's a lot of bad traits that go along with that.

4. What is the trait you most deplore in others?

Indifference.

5. Which living person do you most admire?

I admire my brothers and sisters in Christ who are persecuted and killed for their faith and still stand firm through torture, pain, and death.

6. What is your greatest extravagance?

The occasional massage or pedicure (just got one, as you might have noticed from the picture above). Probably eating out would be a better answer though, because I love to go to restaurants and I do that far more often.

7. What is your current state of mind?

Tired physically and emotionally, but hopeful.

8. What do you consider the most overrated virtue?

If political correctness is considered a virtue these days, I think that needs to be thrown out of the book.

9. On what occasion do you lie?

Usually when I'm embarrassed. But I get so incredibly convicted upon the spot that I have to confess right then. Which makes my embarrassing situation more embarrassing. So I avoid lying altogether.

10. What do you most dislike about your appearance?

My ridiculous complexion.

11. Which living person(s) do you most despise?

I don't. I dislike some. But I'm working on that.

12. What is the quality you most like in a man?

Loyal love.

13. What is the quality you most like in a woman?

Trustworthiness and stalwartness.

14. Which words or phrases do you most overuse?

"Yo" after I finish a sentence, and I'm annoying even myself.

15. What or who is the greatest love of your life?

Jesus, and I actually mean that, although it sounds like a Sunday school answer. :)

16. When and where were you happiest?

I am very happy right now. For the past several years, I always had this nagging dissatisfaction that there was something more, that my life was meant to be something different. That feeling is gone now... replaced with excitement and hope.

17. Which talent would you most like to have?

I'd like to be able to play the dulcimer.

18. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

I'd be more disciplined.

19. What do you consider your greatest achievement?

I don't know what to answer for this one.

20. If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be?

A cat. I'd like to lounge around on the deck all day stretching in the sun, then pretend I'm a lionness and stalk a squirrel. Then I'd like to come inside and allow people to pet me. :)

21. Where would you most like to live?

Here, Chicago...

22. What is your most treasured possession?

I think it might be some of my jewelry, or my journals, or my keyboard. I dunno.

23. What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?

Shame and condemnation.

24. What is your favorite occupation?

The one I'm doing now!

25. What is your most marked characteristic?

Hmmm... I'll have to ask around. Maybe my pointy nose?

26. What do you most value in your friends?

Vulnerability and loyal love.

27. Who are your favorite writers?

I think my two favorite fiction writers would be Ted Dekker and Francine Rivers.

28. Who is your hero of fiction?

Haddassah from A Voice in the Wind.

29. What is your favorite movie quote right now?

"What's the matter with you? Your life's going down the toilet!" - Moonstruck

30. What is your favorite blog to read?

Aaron's usually makes me laugh. I also like to read Elyse Sewell's, who is a model who was on America's Next Top Model, Cycle One.

31. What are your favorite names?

I don't have a list... not that close to baby world yet.

32. What is it that you most dislike?

Injustice. Complacency. Nuts.

33. What is your favorite color?

Green.

34. What are you most looking forward to in life?

Transforming into the woman God created me to be, marriage, community, Jesus coming back.

35. What is your motto?

I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.
Philippians 3:10-11

Another meme

I Am...
feeling uncreative tonight
and so I present you with this meme stolen from Miss Marie

I Want...
to have my inner person changed
to know the Word of God
to somehow have an extra $35 to get my haircut at Carmen Carmen

I Have...
no money
big desires
and a wonderful boyfriend

I Wish...
that I could have my cake
and eat it too
for a trip to Nicaragua
that I could suspend time and travel around the world for ages

I Fear...
what I might allow myself be
lazy
undisciplined
complacent

I Search...
for people who have willing hearts
and are okay with plunging beneath the surface of
"how are you" and "good"

I Wonder...
if there are many people out there in the world
like me
with this same burning inside their hearts
for depth and passion and change

I Regret...
wasting time

I Love...
my friends
my family
my Armando del Castillo
my God

I Ache...
to be what I am not
but I am destined to become

I Always...
ache that way

I Sometimes...
get insecure
depressed
discouraged
and lonely

I Dance...
when Joshua takes me in his arms
and twirls me around like a princess

I Sing...
because I'm happy
because I'm free
because His eye is on the sparrow
and I know that He loves me

I Never...
want to stop loving Jesus

I Rarely...
get a pedicure
but I would really like one

I Cry...
when I have PMS
or when someone hurts my feelings
or when I am misunderstood
or when I am angry

I Am Not Always...
nice
and then I get really sad about it

I Lose...
my temper very infrequently
my cell phone constantly

I'm Confused...
about how the American people can be so dumb

I Need...
a hug
a nice date with my boyfriend
to go on a hike and see all the leaves before they fall off the trees
and a haircut

I Should...
be getting ready for bed
staff meeting tomorrow bright and early

I'm Thinking...
that I'm glad that Joshua got a job
but I will miss him
because now I will be eating lunch by myself :(

Also, I took this picture to share with you today... it's the railroad bridge I was talking about yesterday:

And here's a nice one Josh took of the tree in front of Grammy Doris' house:


Beautiful fall!

A Saturday meme

Hello again. Getting ready for a cookout on a blustery autumn evening in Myrtle Beach and I'm skimping out of the preparation in order to bring you this wonderful meme a la Miss Marie.

10 WHAT'S:

1. What was the first thing you thought about when you woke up?
Actual progression of thought this morning, even though it was very strange: Oh, sunshine! Let it soak into your soul! Sing a new song unto the Lord! I don't feel like singing. Whose bed is this? Oh, I'm in Myrtle Beach. I have to pee. My arm hurts. How the heck was I laying on it?

2. What did you do last night?
Had dinner (homemade lasagna... mmmmm) with Joshua's father and stepmom. Baked chocolate chip cookies (Betty Crocker... couldn't risk another Megan surprise) while waiting for Michelle to get off work. Surprised Michelle's socks off by being at her house when she arrived home. Watched The Illusionist and stayed up talking with Michelle and Joshua until 3:00 a.m. Blogged. Zonked out.

3. What is the most important part of your life?
My relationship with Jesus Christ and being the person that God desires me to be. Loving all the people that God has put in my path, especially my family and friends and a certain someone.

4. What would you rather be doing right now?
I'm content to be here right now.

5. What did you last cry over?
Some fellow Christ-followers misunderstanding an integral part of the character of God and their inability to see the truth at this point.

6. What always makes you feel better when you're upset?
Coke and pizza and snuggles.

7. What's the most important thing you look for in a significant other?
A man that understands my heart and that has the same desires in his heart that I have.

8. What are you worried about?
Not much, except the fact that I should probably be helping instead of blogging right now.

9. What are you looking forward to most in this week?
Dinner with Shell Bell and Joshua tomorrow night and reading.

10. What are you thinking about right now?
"It sure is going to be a long drive back to Asheville..."

NINE HAVE YOU’S:

1. Have you ever won anything?
Yes... a book about Aladdin from the movies when I was a little kid, an essay-writing contest for D.A.R.E., my high school talent show, Joshua Geiger's heart... ;)

2. Have you ever had a broken heart?
Multiple times by men, multiple times by this world. Expecting the world to continue in days to come.

3. Have you ever been out of the country?
Si. To Nicaragua, Italy, England, and Scotland.

4. Have you ever done something outrageously dumb?
Oh yes.

5. Have you ever been back stabbed by a friend?
Has anyone not?

6. Have you ever had the cops called on you?
Once a party my roommate and I hosted was too loud and someone called the cops. That's not very exciting, though.

7. Have you ever dated someone younger than you?
Joshua is 15 months younger than me.

8. Have you ever read an entire book in one day?
LOL - of course.

9. Have you ever sang to someone personally?
Yes. Many times.

SEVEN WHEN’S:

1. When was your last shower?
Yesterday afternoon.

2. When did you last see your mom?
In June. Sniffle.

3. When was your last time you saw your dad?
Same time.

4. When did you last dress up?
Not in a while. SAD.

5. When was the last time you cried?
This past week.

6. When did you last go to the movies and with who?
Two Fridays ago with Josh and Myles, to see Fireproof.

7. When did you last listen to music?
This morning. Michelle was teaching me and Josh some hip-hop moves... I now know how to "float."

SIX WHERE’S:

1. Where does your best friend(s) live?
Asheville and Orlando and VIRGINIA!!!

2. Where did you last go?
To look for a bike to buy Michelle for her birthday. Mission unsuccessful.

3. Where did you last hang out?
Here at the Geiger's.

4. Where do you go to school?
Done! UCF alum.

5. Where is your favorite place to be?
Where God's puts me. Otherwise, on vacation.

6. Where did you sleep last night?
In the Geiger's guest bedroom.

FIVE DO'S/DOES:

1. Do you like someone right now?
Yes.

2. Do they like you too?
Yes.

3. Do you ever wish you were someone else?
Sometimes. Mainly I wish I were more like someone else.

4. Do you know the muffin man?
Who lives on Drury Lane?

5. Does the future scare you?
Sometimes, because I'm not sure that I'm up to what's to come, but mostly I'm excited.

**FOUR WHY’S:

1. Why are you best friends with your best friends?
I just love them.

2. Why did you start your blog?
Because my best friend was doing it.

3. Why did your parents give you the name you have?
My mom decided to name me Megan because she once babysat a girl named Megan and really liked the name. My middle name is Elizabeth after the Bible character because for some reason my mom thought she would never have children.

4. Why are you doing this survey?
Because it's something fun to post today.

**THREE IF’S:

1. If you could have one superpower, what would it be?
Teleportation.

2. If you could go back in time and change one thing, would you?
Yes.

3. If you were stranded on a deserted island and could bring one thing what would it be?
This sounds cheesy, but it really would be a Bible.

**TWO WOULD-YOU-EVER’S:

1. Would you ever get back together with any of your ex’s if they asked you?
No.

2. Would you ever shave your head to save someone you love?
Heck yes! I've always wanted to anyways.

**ONE WISH:

1. What would it be?
If I tell you it wouldn't come true, now would it?