Vacation all I ever wanted.

It's finally here -- five days of no responsibility. Mom is on her way to pick me, then we will hit the road for Gilroy (outlet malls!) and Pacifica (ocean air!). I will miss my store, I know, but give it a couple days. Hope everyone has a great week; in the meantime, enjoy some Pearls of Wisdom.

"Twenty-Five Things It Took Me Over 50 Years To Learn" by Dave Barry

1. The badness of a movie is directly proportional to the number of helicopters in it.

2. You will never find anybody who can give you a clear and compelling reason why we observe daylight-saving time.

3. People who feel the need to tell you that they have an excellent sense of humor are telling you that they have no sense of humor.

4. The most valuable function performed by the federal government is entertainment.

5. You should never say anything to a woman that even remotely suggests you think she's pregnant unless you can see an actual baby emerging from her at that moment.

6. A penny saved is worthless.

7. They can hold all the peace talks they want, but there will never be peace in the Middle East. Billions of years from now, when Earth is hurtling toward the Sun and there is nothing left alive on the planet except a few microorganisms, the microorganisms living in the Middle East will be bitter enemies.

8. The most powerful force in the universe is gossip.

9. The one thing that unites all human beings, regardless of age, gender, religion, economic status, or ethnic background, is that, deep down inside, we all believe that we are above-average drivers.

10. There comes a time when you should stop expecting other people to make a big deal about your birthday. That time is age 11.

11. There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."

12. People who want to share their religious views with you almost never want you to share yours with them.

13. There apparently exists, somewhere in Los Angeles, a computer that generates concepts for television sitcoms. When TV executives need a new concept, they turn on this computer; after sorting through millions of possible plot premises, it spits out, "THREE QUIRKY BUT ATTRACTIVE YOUNG PEOPLE LIVING IN AN APARTMENT," and the executives turn this concept into a show. The next time they need an idea, the computer spits out, "SIX QUIRKY BUT ATTRACTIVE YOUNG PEOPLE LIVING IN AN APARTMENT." Then the next time, it spits out, "FOUR QUIRKY BUT ATTRACTIVE YOUNG PEOPLE LIVING IN AN APARTMENT." And so on. We need to locate this computer and destroy it with hammers.

14. Nobody is normal.

15. At least once per year, some group of scientists will become very excited and announce that:
* The universe is even bigger than they thought!
* There are even more subatomic particles than they thought!
* Whatever they announced last year about global warming is wrong.

16. If you had to identify, in one word, the reason why the human race has not achieved, and never will achieve, its full potential, that word would be "meetings."

17. The main accomplishment of almost all organized protests is to annoy people who are not in them.

18. The value of advertising is that it tells you the exact opposite of what the advertiser actually thinks. For example:
* If the advertisement says "This is not your father's Oldsmobile," the advertiser is desperately concerned that this Oldsmobile, like all other Oldsmobiles, appeals primarily to old farts like your father.
* If Coke and Pepsi spend billions of dollars to convince you that there are significant differences between these two products, both companies realize that Pepsi and Coke are virtually identical.
* If the advertisement strongly suggests that Nike shoes enable athletes to perform amazing feats, Nike wants you to disregard the fact that shoe brand is unrelated to athletic ability.
* If Budweiser runs an elaborate advertising campaign stressing the critical importance of a beer's "born-on" date, Budweiser knows this factor has virtually nothing to do with how good a beer tastes.

19. If there really is a God who created the entire universe with all of its glories, and He decides to deliver a message to humanity, He will not use, as His messenger, a person on cable TV with a bad hairstyle.

20. You should not confuse your career with your life.

21. A person who is nice to you, but rude to the waiter, is not a nice person.

22. No matter what happens, somebody will find a way to take it too seriously.

23. When trouble arises and things look bad, there is always one individual who perceives a solution and is willing to take command. Very often, that individual is crazy.

24. Your friends love you anyway.

25. Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance.

(From http://www.lucidcafe.com/library/pearls.html.)

Hold me together, be forever near me.

People, how could you let me get away without blogging for three weeks? So much has happened in the past three weeks:

1. Espresso Excellence went well, and there's been positive change in my store and Starbucks as a whole.
2. Met Jenn, the girl from the church thingie, for a wonderful dinner.
3. Went to my first hip hop dance class tonight. I'm awful, but it was super fun.
4. Church social and Robin's graduation gathering were great for free food and catching up with people I don't see nearly enough.
5. My brother took a big work exam today, and from what I hear, it went great.
   
6. My grandma is out of the hospital and feeling much better.
7. My grandfather had cataracts surgery that has already proven successful.
8. My sister got to enjoy sunny San Diego for spring break.
9. It snowed 20 inches in Cleveland, and I wasn't there! (Sorry, Clevelanders.)

To remember the rest, I'd probably have to dig out my planner, but suffice it to say, things are good. Have been writing in a personal journal a lot, and it's brought a lot of insight. I've realized that I need to have something planned on my days off for those days to be productive; otherwise, I'll let myself sit around the apartment reading, dozing, and catching up on Netflix. All fine to an extent, but not all day.

More spiritually, I went through a couple of days of feeling deeply sad that I lost my best friend, that he betrayed me, my trust, and my love. That's not a new emotion, but the realization that Jesus has been there -- that opened my eyes. Jesus chose twelve men to be his family, his intimates, his bosom friends, his legacy, and one of those men betrayed him so completely that it led to his death. But, even knowing what was to come, He chose Judas. And, even more amazing to me, He treated Judas no differently than the others. How many times in life do we do something we know is the right thing but because it's difficult or we feel morally superior or possibly know of some sour consequence, we act without a cheerful, loving heart? Jesus welcomed Judas into His inner circle, treated him as a brother privy to as much of His love and teaching as the other eleven, all the while knowing that Judas would eventually deceive and betray him for a bag of coins. It has been an amazing comfort to know that Jesus has been through what I have been through. That someone He loved so deeply hurt Him to the core through an act of betrayal. This is the first time I've ever felt that Jesus went through something just so that He could help me through today. Isn't that an incredible feeling? Knowing that Christ humbled Himself to offer eternal salvation to every soul on Earth, but also that He willingly submitted to humanness in order to save my heart in this moment.

As for the future, I'm looking forward to:

1. Serena's baby shower this weekend.
2. The steak dinner Julio owes me in April!
3. VACATION. Next week, Mom and I are going up to Pacifica for a few leisurely days at my aunt's home. I can't wait for a long drive through beautiful country (sweet alfalfa fields, here I come), shopping in Gilroy, walks/runs along the beach, time to read and write and nap without guilt, hanging out with Ryan, cozy dinners at home or out, Mom's egg custard, cool sea air.
4. Easter.
5. Dance classes to come.

I've actually written more than I'd planned because I have lots of pictures to share (be warned). Next week, I'll be gone so don't expect an entry for a while, but after that, blogs will be more regular (more fiber!), I promise. Adios.

Straws make excellent playthings when Mom just wants a cup of water.


Before a date.


Giada playing fetch!


Rubber isn't so tasty; making use of laundry day; riveted to a cheetah on TV.


Well, that's our little family of late. Everyone have a wonderful couple of weeks.