minzikatze's Xanga

Sick Cycle Carousel

Sun, 05 Oct 2008 14:59:09 GMT

No, I don't mean the Lifehouse CD...though I haven't heard that particular song yet, so who knows, maybe it's alot like that. But what I mean is work. All day, every day, no days off. Work, home, sleep, work, home, sleep, work, home, sleep! Ok, maybe not exactly that, but it's very close to it. Luckily though, I've been able to still see people & do what I want to do after work. I wake up at 5am every morning, get to work at 6am, get off work at 6pm at the earliest or 8pm at the latest. Usually it's around 7:30ish. I can't complain too much, though, because it's good money plus it's only temporary. I would never do this as my actual job. I'd be entirely depressed if I did. I follow dump trucks around, monitor them picking up debris from the hurricane, write them tickets once they get full loads, and have breaks while they go to the dump. It's not hard at all. It's not interesting either, but it works for now. All I know is I gotta pay off my credit card & some car notes. I'm making more than a sub or even a real teacher right now. Possibly even a little more than Jason, but all that's only because of the hours, ha. I mostly like the group I'm with. Even though they want to force me to take 4 donuts out of a huge box of them that probably anyone else would like but me. I hate donuts. But I took em to be polite. They're really nice ppl. One of em has the same story as me. Started out Catholic and things changed later. However we weren't really Christians til a little before I became Baptist and he became Nondenominational. It's funny how so many ppl have that same situation. I'm sure there are plenty of Catholic Christians...I just wasn't one back then. I thought I was, but there is alot more to it than I understood at the time.

New Music

Fri, 19 Sep 2008 23:56:40 GMT

Most of the songs on the playlist now are the ones that we listened to on the honeymoon.

Hurricane Ike & our 3 yr

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 05:37:12 GMT

I've heard now from Mom & Jason's mom that our house is ok, no damage done. Obviously, there's trees down, nothing crazy. My parents' house has shingles and the chimney down plus some trees & Dad's antennas. But their place is ok too other than that. I'm so glad they're ok b/c they never evacuated this time, which had really worried me alot.
It's been 3 years today since Jason & I started dating. It was Sept 17 at about 12:30am after the last day of Phi Lamb RUSH & an after party @ Butter & Shelby's dorm playing Apples to Apples. And a week after we started dating, Hurricane Rita came along and gave us an excuse to spend LOTS of time together while evacuating to Center with my family. That was an amazing time, and I don't think I had ever laughed quite as much in my life as then. And I laugh ALOT. So...here we are 3 years later evacuating another hurricane (IKE), and it's like a vacation yet again. This time, we're in San Antonio with JJ, Nelda, Laynee, & Camdan, hopping from hotel to hotel (Staybridge, Embassy, Holiday, and now Embassy again). So since alotta ppl had blamed Katrina on Bush, we had "blamed" Rita on Al Gore 3 years ago, just for grins and giggles. But then we had to "give credit" to Gore for bringing us closer together too, haha. And now, we have decided that Obama caused Ike. Not really, but it's just fun to say so. And I now pronounce Ike & Rita as husband and wife. Remember that, because it's related to something else I will reveal later at the right time. Yes, it makes no sense yet, but it will soon enough...muahaha. Now, we're just hanging out in SA, shopping, swimming, going to the theater, seeing the riverwalk, the Alamo, etc, until we decide to come back. Right now, we plan on coming back Thursday, but it all depends on when we get power back and when Jason has to go back to work. What's also special about this last hurricane (IKE) is that it happened on Camdan's first birthday. We went to the Magic Time Machine to celebrate it. He was actually born during Humberto too. So he's a double hurricane child. And the cutest nephew ever.
So what about you? How was your Ike experience? I've been texting alotta ppl back and forth, but if I haven't heard from you, I'd sure like to!

You bought what?!

Sat, 06 Sep 2008 23:47:25 GMT

Jesus talked more about money than Heaven and hell combined,because money puts a lot more ppl in hell why? Because the person who has not accepted Jesus yet as Lord and Savioruses money to be god of his own world. Once your life is fixed spiritually, the other problems tend to fixthemselves. Not saying all is perfect,but the other things do fall into place pretty well. God has a sense of humor. This is displayed in many ways, and one ofthose ways is that He always puts a spender and a saver together inmarriages. Not only have I heard thisfrom others, but I know this from experience too. The spender never has enough money to spend,and the saver never has enough piled up somewhere. The problem is not in the wallet,though. It’s in the heart. 1 Timothy 6:6-12

God’s always gonna be there to give you value andcontentment. Happiness is not gettingwhat you want all the time; it’s wanting what you have. Happiness is being right with the Lord andwith everyone else; it’s not the size of the boat or the fish. Or how much “stuff” you can buy. If you’re looking to anything at all to giveyou happiness, it’s not happening. Notgonna work. If we have food andclothing, that should be enough for us. The love of money that puts God and your loved ones in 2^nd& 3^rd place is the root of all kinds of evil. Money itself is not the problem. Money is a tool, not a god. Lack of godliness and contentment is theproblem. It’s ok to borrow money andhave some debt as long as you don’t keep it that way and make sure you pay itback. And if you can’t afford something,just do without it. Money only showswhat you want. What you want shows yourheart. Your heart shows yourrelationship with Christ or lack thereof. If the husband loves the wife enough, is he going to put his householdin jeopardy by going out and doing something stupid and selfish withmoney? No. Same for vice versa. I like my pastor’s analogy about there beinga piece of fried chicken left in the fridge that went bad, because nobody ate itthinking someone else might want it. Ifmoney is sitting in the bank because the wife is leaving it for the husband andthe husband’s leaving it for the wife, that’s pretty ideal. You can’t give anyone enough money to makethem happy. Those that want to get richfall into temptation. If you ask anywealthy person if they’re rich, their answer is no. There’s always someone else with more. If you can’t live without something, it ownsyou.

Y'aint Single No Mo

Mon, 25 Aug 2008 22:08:34 GMT

This is some advice for married & single people that I took off my church's website, so check it out! And if it looks like I'm talking down to a certain someone, I'm really not. I just stole this off an audio msg, because I liked it. I am not a judgmental person. Many of my friends do things that I don't necessarily agree with or condone, but I am not one to judge them for it; that's up to God.
When marriages are right, nothing can bless those couples quite as much as their marriage . And when marriages are going downhill, nothing can hurt as badly as that marriage. It's a sick experiment to put 2 human beings together to cohabitate and do whatever married people do without God being in the equation. The only way 2 human beings can live together peacefully is that each one already belongs to God first. One thing about being married obviously is that you aint single no mo. There are 2 sides of single. The first is being single because one can't be joined with one until they are separated from everything else. That includes even family and friends. It doesn't mean you can't spend time with them. It means they move to the back of the bus. I have heard examples (and most of this message, I'm stealing from my pastor Nathan Cothen) about married ppl's single friends playing video games expecting the married friend to constantly be there playing with them. You're married. Quit it and go be married. One must put aside all the things and people that came first before, because it's the spouse who comes first now. Once you are married, you will never be single again. So don't act like you're single. No good can come from that. It's like that song, "She acted single...I'm drinking double." Of course, that doesn't mean that's the best response. It just is an example of country ppl blues with some illiteracy thrown in. There's no pain like the one you gave yourself to acting like they're single all over again. Check out Genesis 2:20-25. God made Eve out of Adam's rib bone. They are truly one person, just like married ppl. Yes, they were also 2 different people, but they were also one. It's unity. Relationships are important. First, your relationship with God, then your relationship with other human beings.
Rule One: Sin separates. Via anger. Because someone did wrong.
Rule Two: Justice joins together.
Rule Three: Mercy mends. While we were sinners, Christ died for us. That's how we are forgiven.
We were created for relationships. We are in it for God and others. We're here to glorify God. My preacher said something really funny, because it's kinda what I've already started doing, myself. He said his father told him that it's great he always took his advice before. He then told him, "Once you're married, I'll still give you advice. Just listen, nod your head politely, then go do what you and your wife want to do; I aint married to you." I thought that was just great, because that's what I've been doing. Back to earlier...so many marriages have been derailed from hanging out with single people too much and neglecting the spouse. When you get married, your marriage becomes the relationship for which all others must suffer. Your primary point of reference is your spouse. It's not desertion. These other people are still in your life and deserve to be loved by you. It's not neglect; it's reorientation. Everything falls in line into a new order. God first, spouse second, family third (like kids, parents, other family, friends, etc). The best thing that can happen to a marriage is for each person to first be joined to Jesus Christ, whose love endures forever. Some people choose to get married late in life or never get married, while saying being alone is fine with them. There is a difference between being alone and being single. Are you really alone and ok with it? Or are you having sex with the people you date? That's not alone; that's joining yourself to someone else. It's fornication. Not only are you sinning against God, that person, and everyone else, but you're sinning against yourself. Joining yourself to this person, then that person, then another, and so on will put your world in the toilet fast. If you are not married, stop having sex with person after person that you're not married to, because it takes God's intimate gift for your future spouse and trashes it. Just stop it. It's not too late. If you're alone, be alone. If you're married, be married. True togetherness starts with separation from the world and unBiblical togetherness as we accept God's plan for our lives.

Been a while

Tue, 12 Aug 2008 20:20:22 GMT

If you continue to say that homosexuality, abortion, and things of the like are wrong, many will automatically call you a hater. But for now, it is still allowed to be a Christian here in our country. So it’s still easy for us to live for Him. What if it wasn’t? In times and places that people are persecuted for being Christians, it’s hard to imagine how some of us would react. We really want to say we would stand our ground, but we can’t actually know that we know how we would react unless it’s happening. But a good way to decide as to which path you’re on as to whether you’d fail or succeed in that moment of proving your faithfulness to Christ is…are you serving Him during the easy times? Chances are, if you’re not, you sure won’t when it’s hard. And when it’s even just inconvenient and you can’t deal with that, then when the steaks are high, you won’t either. It is somewhat easy for us (whoever is able to read this) to give to God with our hands, giving the tithe of what we earn in money back to Him. We must also give with our hearts. Whether that’s working with children, working behind the scenes, or getting right out there in the middle of everything, doing missions. Some might say, “What are the benefits for this? What’s in it for me?” Well, let’s see. Being saved by the grace of God from hell, getting to live an actual meaningful purposeful & abundant life, getting to bless others with what God has given us, what more could one want? We’ve got all the blessings we need and more. What we need is to show up to go to work. Have you thanked God lately that your needs have been met? Not only that, but most of our wants are usually met too. Even though they don’t have to be.
SO what’ve I been up to since coming back from the honeymoon? Reuniting with family, friends, having bday parties for 3 ppl (and surprising Tiffany with hers, that was great lol), finishing kitchen cabinets, getting our granite tile counters done, and trying to get a teaching job. I’ve had 3 interviews. Didn’t get the one at the head start, & I haven’t heard back from the other 2. Calling seems to do nothing sometimes. Not always, but ya know how it is…especially if you’re in the same boat (Tana, Amanda, Juwairia, etc…yall understand haha). Pray for me that I’ll get a good teaching job that not only benefits me but also to where I benefit the kids/school/parents/etc. That’d be awesome. J And if nothing else happens for another semester, I’ll still have subbing, which is good too. Just so long as it doesn’t stay my permanent job foreverrrrrr….lol.

My updated music

Mon, 11 Aug 2008 21:54:54 GMT

If anyone ever looks at this site anymore, I updated my music playlist. It's some of the music that was played at my wedding & reception. I Will Be Here was one of the Prelude songs, Tara's Theme from Gone with the Wind was my bridesmaid entrance song, Trumpet Voluntary was my entrance song, and Just Like Heaven played when we walked out of the church. The rest of the music was played at the reception dance. Enjoy!
McSmittie

I'm married!

Mon, 14 Jul 2008 03:32:21 GMT

I know this is really late, but...thanks to those of you that helped me in any way for the wedding; I truly appreciate it. Like helping with my bachelorette parties, decorating the church, decorating Idylwild, thinking of things that I forgot, taping the wedding, taking pictures, and even the little random favors here and there. And thanks to my bridesmaids for being in my wedding. I got married on June 21, 2008 at Calvary Baptist (our church), and our reception was at Idylwild in Pinewood. I have to say that was insanely fun. And a special thanks also to those who danced with Jason & those who danced with me for the money dance! Wow, let's just say we made enough to nearly pay for our honeymoon in hotel cost. And the hotels we stayed in were extremely nice, so we felt rich and spoiled We spent the first 2 nights in Jacksonville, Florida (after spoiling Jason at Nascar in Daytonna) then the rest of the week was in Key West! We went on a glass bottom boat, on a sailboat too, went snorkeling, went to the beaches (where you can actually see your entire body underwater--the water is clear/turquoise/blue btw), and shopping. It was beautiful...just looking off the balcony from our room, the beach was right there, down below. And if you're a Jimmy Buffett fan, we went to Margaritaville too. "Searched for the lost shaker of salt" and "wasted away" from a "cheeseburger in paradise"...j/k. And the chef that cooked for us in the Japanese restaurant made a heart shape with the vegetables and also made a volcano out of onions. Maybe that's normal, but we'd never been to one til then, lol. So as of lately, we're remodeling our kitchen with new granite counter and new cabinets. Eventually new floor and lighting too. My mom and uncle plus Jason's mom were so sweet that they came over while we were on our honeymoon to clean up our house and move most of my stuff over!

Bachelorette (for now)

Tue, 17 Jun 2008 02:52:51 GMT

God is not sitting up there in Heaven, waiting to smite you for everything you’ve done wrong. This is a good thing, because if He was, I’d be out of luck...a long time ago. Everyone would. When the prostitute got caught in the Bible and was brought to be stoned, Jesus said whoever was without sin could be the first to stone her. Of course, nobody was without sin, so they all dropped their stones. And the prostitute was forgiven. It also says Jesus had written in the sand...maybe it was names and dates...how did these men know where to find her doing what she was doing? Maybe they each had had a turn before. We don’t know, but it’s a possibility. What causes Christians to do what God wants them to do? It is out of love and gratitude of what He did for us. He who has been forgiven much loves much. You “is” or you “aint.” Rather than looking for what you can get out of life, you will be looking to see what you can do for others. A real Christian will not stand on the bank and watch someone drown. They have to go pull them out. And they get more joy out of giving than receiving.

Next on the list...my bachelorette party (part 2) was awesome and full of German traditions, of course. I am more percentage German than anything else, so it’s only right, lol. I had my lingerie shower, we broke plates, had Jeremy be “jack in the box,” and I got kidnapped. Yep, the reason we broke plates is because in Germany, when your friends break dishes, it symbolizes all the future problems in a marriage. The bride (with the groom if he wants to) sweeps up the pieces, symbolizing that the problems are being solved and “swept away.” So I guess all our future problems are gone! HA! And instead of getting a stripper to jump out of a real cake, Tana & I hired Jeremy to jump out of a box, decorated as a cake (with clothes ON). It was pretty funny. I think the box has just about had it. So the other German tradition (the kidnapping) is usually supposed to be done by a groomsman, but I didn’t really feel comfortable with that, so I got my friends to do it instead. Also, the kidnapping is supposed to take place at a bar, and hints are given to the groom until he finally finds out where they are. When he gets there, he is supposed to pay for all the drinks everyone had, while he was searching. This is what motivates the groom to hurry up and find them fast. But we went to a restaurant instead (Olive Garden) and made Jason guess where we were with little text msg clues here and there. It took him a few guesses, but he guessed it pretty quick! He’s too smart for these games. I can’t win with him, lol. But it was loads of fun. Those of you who came, thanks for coming, and I hope yall enjoyed it too! Oh, and the games Danielle brought gave us all such opportunities to be creative and make up our own crazy advice sayings! “A woman’s place...is doing missions!” “Every man’s home...is such a mess.” “A watched pot...grows plants that kill people.” (The Happening is a cool movie, aside from the liberal environmentalist freakiness) “If the shoe fits...hit someone with it.” “Home is...in Germany or on the beach.” “Too many cooks...are picky.” “A woman’s work...is sitting on her dairy air.” “My house is...the castle.” “True love...is for sissies.” “Marriages are...for crazy ppl.” “A watched pot...might blow up.” “Too many cooks...eat all the food.” Compliments of Tana & me...

Jimmy Buffett Psychology

Fri, 13 Jun 2008 06:33:03 GMT

Ok, so here's parts of a conversation that a friend of mine & Jason's was having with him and me...well mostly with him but very entertaining to me...if you know anything at all about Jimmy Buffett and Gone With The Wind, you'll like!
J: B wants to know what you're wearing to the thing.

me: Spaghetti strap dress.
J: Ok, she's wearing spaghetti...with fetticune maybe a nice garlic bread i dont really know. She just said spaghetti...like anyone has ever heard of that.
J: Break up with the loser...I hear Shane and Shane are single....unless i have a say in that (yes, yall...Jason has a huge man crush on them...he's in looove with them). Usually, the rule is that if the guy doesn't call for 2 weeks, it's over.
B: That's what I hear.

J: Exactly we're on the same page...so call me tomorrow and tell me how he took the break up..."if the phone doesnt ring...youll know that its me"....or the other way around. (Jimmy Buffett psychology begins)

B: Okay. i've decided that when its all over..."i'll never be hungry again!" Haha (plus GWTW psychology)
J: Yes, and just be single after that.
B: Forever? Lol
J: No, just long enough to find the right one. "200 years too late." (more Buffett, see all quotes)
B: Yeah...i hope its not..but if it is...at least we'll have "boat drinks."

J: And "boats to build"

B: And a "license to chill. Come Monday..it'll be alright."
J & me: Hop on my "slow boat to China."

B: No, "please come to Boston in the spring time."

J: But "theres fins to the left"

B: "Fins to the right!"

J: "And youre the only bait in town."

B: "If you're a caribbean amphibean."
J: Well I need to go...work will come early....
B: "Work work work...a big pile of it, and my boss is a jerk."
J: Well actually, my boss is great. We go fishing together, and he loves me.
B: 10 ways to a better life according to Jimmy Buffett
J: "Mother Mother Ocean....I have heard you call...in your belly you hold the secrets" of how to break it off
J: "Here's seeing you kid" (nonBuffett thrown in)
B: "Rhett..if you go..where shall I go...what shall I do?" (GWTW)

me: "Frankly my dear...I don't give a damn!"

J: Flip that role and you have a solution on how to break up. You could be Rhett.
B: "Do you remember when...we used to sing?"
J: Ok, not completely.
B: "Sha la la la la la la la la lala ti da."
J: "My brown eyed girl"...so you gonna do it?
B: I'm working on it!

J: Well I work on a lot of things....I do few....but what I do do is worth it....see if that applies in this situation.
B: This whole conversation is very enlightening on more than one level.

J: Well that is good...that is Jimmys doing though. I'm confident that deep down....God is using Jimmy.

B: Uh, yeah He is! So what's up now?
J: Currently in a worship Shane and Shane mode...wait gotta refresh myspace so the song will start over...and I'm being abused by my future wife...but i have to type alot before she gets back so she cant see it so that it will be off the screen

J: hurry type

J: typppppeee

J: ok itsgone now