Friday

TGIF!!! Fridays are extra nice now because I don't have class on Fri. It's like having two Saturdays. Because of that I should be getting tons of work done, but I've been finding little things to do to occupy my time instead of homework and reading: check e-mail, check facebook, read blogs, eat a little snack, check e-mail, listen to the radio (particularly Sean Hannity sp?), eat lunch or another snack, check e-mail, check facebook, go to the store, go check my mail, maybe text message a few people in between all of these things, and maybe do a little reading or homeowrk in between. Very lame. I think I'm going to begin limiting myself to one e-mail check a day. I got into this habit of over-checking all of these forms of communication when I was in Daegu, got out of the habit while I was at home, and now I'm back in the habit. This bad cycle happens for two reasons. One, it helps me feel connected to people even if I'm not, and two, it helps me delay the work I need to do. So, no more! Maybe I'll limit my check to twice a day + try to actually respond to people instead of just checking it. Okay, enough on that.

Here's what's been happening. We're supposed to get some wind and thunderstorms from Hurricane Ike, but it's not supposed to be as bad as Gustav. Yesterday, the tank on my toilet overflowed while I was gone for an hour, so I came back to a slightly flooded bathroom. It was an easy fix. Something had come out of place in the tank. Anyway, when I went to tell the office about it, they asked me what color of chair I would prefer for my apt. They had two to choose from, from corporate that are in good shape, that they're giving away if people need it, so I willingly took this cute little blue chair. God is so generous!! I really love this little chair. I also love the management at these apts. The maintenence man observed that I could use some furniture when he was in doing a work order and his wife and step-daughter, the office manager, all jumped on board. They are great.

Today is Fri. so I went to Happy Hour at Sonic and got a DP. Chrissy, everytime I go to Sonic now, I think about what my mom told me about Cooper thinking the trip is to get water. Do I have the story right?

The college/young professional class at church is studying A Purpose Driven Life. Looks like it's going to be a good study. I've tried reading it before, but couldn't get into it, so maybe reading a chapter a week will work out better. They do "house church" on Sun. night which is the same as a small group/care group/cell group/whatever you want to call it. Everybody's been very welcoming. My expectations for finding a church I liked were low coming here, although I was hoping to find one I could get involved in quickly. I had a definite negative stereotype of what churches are like in the South. This place is Christ-centered, sincere, warm, welcoming, open-minded, and very mission/outreach oriented. And I love the musical worship. Really great. Don't get me wrong, it's not perfect, but I'm thankful to find a place so quickly. Now it's time for me to get disciplined and plug myself in. Recently, I've talked with several people about the importance for community. No doubt I've written about this before, but I'm going to again.

Not a single person was created in isolation. We weren't born into it. We can't survive in it. Relationally, emotionally, spiritually, mentally, and even physically (have I missed any?), isolation is cancer. When people let themselves become isolated, it often (usually?) destroys the relationships they did have. Isolations cuts people off from understanding others, which in turn creates more isolation and often a lot of pain for all parties involved. Part of the problem a lot of people have with wanting to be part of a community -- church, town organization, spending time with family, spending time with co-workers, etc. is that they've been poorly treated in their socializing experience. That is unfortunate, but it does not mean that it's not valuable to have solid relationships with people who care about you and who you can mutually care for. I'm not talking about constant interaction, but everyone can use and can benefit from having people -- at least one person, but two or more is better, I think -- they can depend on. The key factor I saw last year with my clients that I think determined their poor mental health, was poor socialization they experienced. Problem #2 was that I, as one worker, could not meet the needs they had for relationship. These people did not have the skills to create meaningful relationships and the majority of people they knew had no desire to create meaningful relationships with them. Many people who are isolated are surrounded by people physically, and do not experience real community. Real relationships and real community comes out of mutual openess and trust. It doesn't happen overnight, and it's not something that just happens to you. It's something that has to be created or developed. It's something you have to be intentional about. I'll put an end to these thoughts, but get out there, out of your comfort zone, get to know people, and let yourself be known. This has very much been a pep talk for myself. There's no pressure I would put on any of you, that I'm not having to forcefully put on myself. I'm no expert at putting myself out there and it's difficult everytime I do it, but it's always, always worth it.