An Interview

I am thrilled to share this video segment with you today.  It is probably my best video ever.  I had an opportunity to answer some interview questions that Ronnica gave me, and I enjoyed doing this for her... and for you.

Here are the questions she asked:

1.  You've mentioned a couple of times your love of Disney World...what is your favorite ride/exhibit/part?

2.  What are you reading right now?  What do you think about it?

3.  What's your favorite part of your job?

4.  If I were to visit you, what places would you show me?

5.  How did you meet your husband?

I hope you can hang in here with me to the end.  It is about 15 minutes long (shout out to Flip Mino for potentially a full 60 minutes of recording time), but if you figure about 3 minutes per question, you can see why.

Interview With Liz from Liz on Vimeo.

I thoroughly enjoyed answering these questions on video.  If you happen to have some questions for me, why not ask me a few in the comments.

A Whole New World

I'm hoping I get a few more responses about vlogging ideas.  And thank you, Ronnica, for the vote for a song & dance.  I know you just wanted to get a laugh out of me, and you did.

Moving on to a different topic...

Today, for the first time in 3 years, we have satellite TV service.  Oh. My. Goodness.  I feel like I've stepped into another world.  A world in which I will no longer be subjected to Antiques Roadshow on PBS because nothing else is on.  A new world with really cool commercials that I've never seen before.  A world of Emeril Live, classic movies, and Lifetime.  Do you have any idea how many episodes of Reba you can view in a day?  A lot!  Not to mention my dear, long lost friend, Monk... Oh, how I've missed you.

And do the 3 little letters D-V-R mean anything to you?  I don't know how to use it yet, but whoa baby, am I gonna learn.

Earlier in the week when we were anticipating the installation of our dish, I told Rich that we were going to celebrate by picking out a classic movie to watch.  I've been looking forward to seeing old movies more than anything.  Well, as he avidly channel surfed this evening, as any red-blooded American male would do, he landed on a movie that he knows I like, and we proceeded to watch it. 

Yours, Mine, & Ours with Lucille Ball and Henry Fonda has always been enjoyable to me.  The storyline is funny and never gets old to me.  I really didn't think we'd watch the whole movie.  I assumed he would become disinterested and move on to something else soon enough, but we watched it all the way to the end.

Are you ready for the irony?  Out of all the things he chose to watch on our new satellite TV, he picked a movie that we already have on video.  Yes, that's right.  We ALREADY HAVE IT ON VIDEO, meaning we can WATCH IT WHENEVER WE WANT TO.  Does anyone else do this?

Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go find out when Monk is on....

Oh, the Vlogs... How They Elude Me!

I haven't vlogged in over a month, and I think I might need therapy.  Can a vlogger experience withdrawal symptoms?  I mean, is eye twitching normal, or should I be concerned?  I can't come up with a THING.  My Day at the Office segments have dwindled away to nothingness. 

I'm afraid to say it, but I think I've got VIDEO BLOCK!  {gasp}

I've got this fancy, schmancy Flip Mino camcorder now and don't know what to do with it.  Makes me a little sick to my stomach.  Okay, maybe a LOT sick to my stomach.  What has happened to the video making, crazed woman inside of me?  I don't even know who I am anymore.

So, my faithful readers, I need to hear your opinion on this matter.  I've created a poll in order for you to weigh in on what you would like to see in a vlog.  (Again, for those who don't know, a vlog is a video blog.)

Please vote and tell me what YOU want to see because I am all about being a people pleaser.  You can even vote for more than one choice.  If you have some idea other than what is included in the poll, especially if you choose "none of the above", leave me a comment. 

Can ya help a girl out?

*If you're viewing this in a Reader, you may need to click through to my blog to see the poll.

25 Things About Liz

Just for fun, today I thought I'd make a list of 25 random things you may not know about me.  Just think of this as the typical "100 Things About Me" list that I should've written for my 100th post about 200+ posts ago and never finished.  Twenty-five is hard enough.

So without further ado...

1. I have a fascination with books.  Not just reading them, but I love the covers... to smell them, feel them, and I always judge a book by its cover.
2. My feet are always cold.
3. I have a fear of being trapped in a fire.
4. It freaks me out to be upside down, so I do not like standing on my head and never learned how to do a cartwheel.  Somersaults were even debatable.
5. I do not watch any of the most popular TV shows like The Office, Lost, 24, etc....
6. Speaking of Lost... I don't get it.  Really.  I've tried.
7. The only vacation destination I love is Disney World.
8. Everyone thinks my husband is younger than me, when in fact, he is 7 years older than me.
9. I have never seen any of the Rocky movies, nor do I care to, for that matter.
10. My full given name is Elizabeth.  I was named after royalty.  :)
11. My favorite movie of all time is Anne of Green Gables, which I guess is more like an epic series, since it spans 4 VHS tapes.
12. I took piano lessons from age 4 to 16.
13. Psalm 27 is my favorite.
14. Ephesians is my favorite book of the Bible.
15. John Piper is my favorite non-fiction author.
16. The attribute of God that I love the most is His sovereignty.
17. I have never ice skated, roller bladed, or skied.
18. I own 3 pairs of running shoes.
19. My favorite food is Chinese.
20. I never tried tapioca pudding until I was 35 years old, and I discovered I like it.
21. I had a brief try at scrapbooking but found I was too much of a perfectionist for it to be a relaxing hobby.  It would take me hours just to create one page.
22. I am a recovering perfectionist.  :)
23. Whenever I am driving down the street and see a cat I say, "Kitty Kitty", every single time.  I don't know why.
24. I used to sew my own clothes.
25. I just bought a Flip Mino camcorder, which I plan to use very soon to produce riveting vlogs for you to view.

So there you have it.  Twenty-five random facts that you never wanted to know about me.  Thrilling, huh?

Now We're Getting Somewhere

Do you remember what I do on Saturdays?  Probably not, so I'll refresh your memory.  It's the day I go to my First Place Bible study.  Yeah... that.

So, you know how last week I had to really get myself back on board with the plan of being self-disciplined and choosing with my will to eat good stuff?  Well, that's exactly what I did. 

For the past week I've written down on my fact sheet/food diary all the food I ate, even when I went out to restaurants.  This week I will start counting the actual exchanges and tallying my bread, meat, milk, veggie, fruit and fat servings. 

Uh oh...I forgot about the 8 glasses of water a day.  Hmmm...can I ease into that, too?  I'm really into Vanilla Coke Zero right now, which leaves very little room for water.  I guess I still have a couple kinks to work out with my diet plan. 

On a final note, I'm pleased to report that it made a difference to rein in my appetite last week.  I lost about 1.5 pounds.  Now that's a step in the right direction.

How Thoughtful!

I want to say thanks to my special bloggy friend, Ronnica, the Ignorant Historian.  You probably see her name on my blog more than any other blogger's, so I'm sure she's familiar to you.  She is my most faithful commenter, too. 

Well, the reason I'm thanking her is because she bestowed a special honor upon me.  She has given me my first blog award.

                       

Ronnica, you made my week.  It was sweet of you to think of me.  Thank you so much!

Through the Fire

This week I've been through the fires of testing and have experienced much suffering and anguish, but I've come through the other side by God's grace.

There's no need for me to explain the circumstance.  I just want to testify to the GREATNESS of our God.  He is bigger to me than He was a week ago.  God answers prayer!  He is sovereign and mighty, mysterious and unfathomable.  I cannot comprehend His ways.  But I know His goodness and faithfulness.  He is our hope.

Ephesians 3:20-21a  Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory...

To Him be the glory.

Google Reader Issue

I've been having real issues with Google Reader, so I just wanted to give a heads-up to those of you who use it.  Most of the time it does not display my feed as being updated, when in fact, it is. 

So if you don't see my blog bolded in your Google Reader, that doesn't necessarily mean that there isn't a new post there.  Sometimes it has even gone a full 2 days before showing I have a new post, and by that time there are 2 new posts.  You might just click on it periodically to see if I have a new post that happens to be hiding there.

Oh, Google Reader, you are an enigma.  Can't live with ya... can't live without ya.

"Weighing" In

Has anyone noticed how there's never a mention anymore of my treadmill, my stellar eating habits, or an exuberant proclamation of my most recent weight loss goal being met?  Oh, no?  That would be because I haven't stepped one toe onto that treadmill since October (at least I think it was October), and my eating has consisted of cookies and chocolate for snacks... and weight loss???  Um... we're gonna have to call it weight gain.

{sigh}

Yeah, I fell off the First Place wagon big time.  Before you go feeling all sorry for me because it was the holidays, after all, I just can't blame the holidays.

I only have myself to blame.  It all started when I made an allowance here and then one there.  Next thing I knew, I didn't care anymore that I was eating sugar cookies and cupcakes at the carry-in dinners at church.  I didn't care that I had to have just one more piece of birthday cake at my niece's party.  It was a party, after all, and it was a big cake that needed to be eaten or it would go to waste.  Shouldn't the goal be that a good time was had by all, which means eating as many baked goods as one can, so that they feel really good and had fun?

Well, not so fast, girl.  Let's think about this.  If I've learned anything in the last year, it's that discipline is good for me in ALL departments - physical, spiritual, mental and emotional.  And I'm not just spitting out a First Place mantra here, okay?  I've seen it worked out practically in my life.  I just forgot.  I'm really good about forgetting.  You too?

The Christian life is all about discipline, that I will be sober minded, focused, able to discern the will of God.  The baked goods have been weighing me down, becoming cumbersome, so much that I lost my focus and continued to make allowances.  I forgot that being healthy is a choice of my will, not waiting for a special feeling that would make me stop dead in my tracks and drop that cake right into the trash can.  Yeah, like THAT'S gonna happen!

So I'm back at it again, as of Saturday, making the choice with my will.  I'm taking small steps by writing down everything I've eaten on my fact sheet and making good food choices.  Since you all know now, I guess I better stay with it.

How's the Weather?

You all might be encouraged to learn that the temperature actually got up to 22 degrees today.  It may have gotten even warmer than that, but that was the highest reading that I happened to catch on the TV. 

Some roads around here are still scary to drive, depending on the time of day.  Since we've received snow on a fairly consistent basis for days on end AND with the temperatures being as cold as they've been, the roads are snow covered and slick.  In the city we live in, we have a very hilly area.  It just so happens that I have to drive up and down a hill that is quite long, in order to get to work, church, the grocery store, and back.  It's scary to drive it, if it hasn't been sanded.

I didn't tell you about how I did a 180 in my car the other day.  I had just exited the church drive and pulled into traffic, on my way to the store at the corner to buy snow boots of all things.  I hit black ice immediately, tried to pump the brakes to no avail, and started heading sideways toward the two cars in front of me.  It was either hit them or direct my car to a hopefully safer area to careen into, so I opted for the latter.  I turned my steering wheel in the direction of the side of the road, and sure enough, my car spun around and I landed in a snow bank.

Not fun!  In order to calm my nerves I kept telling myself that at least I wasn't in an accident, and I was fine.  It still shakes you up, when you lose control of your car, though.  Thank the Lord, He took care of getting me out of the snow bank when a kind man pulled over and brought his shovel to dig the snow out from behind my tires.  It didn't take but a couple minutes, and I was able to back my car out and head on down the road.

By the way, I did buy some snow boots.  You'll probably think I'm nuts when I tell you that I haven't had a pair in years.  I don't even remember the last time I had them.  Since I've been wearing them the last two days, I'm now wondering... HOW ON EARTH DID I EVER LIVE WITHOUT THEM?  They keep my feet so protected from the snow and cold.  What a concept!  I think I will never be without them again.

So how is winter in your neck of the woods?

Global Warming? What-ev-er!

I'm wondering something.  Have I mentioned anything about the weather this week here in northern Indiana?

No?  Not at all?

Well, let me tell ya then....

It's STINKIN' COOOOOOLD here!!!!!

You just have no idea, especially if you live in Texas or Florida and it only gets down to 50.  Puh-leeeeeaase!  Put on a sweatshirt, for crying out loud, and don't tell me how cold you are.  (I mean that with all the kindness and brotherly love that a Hoosier can muster.)

It's absolutely freezing here, people!  We met a record low of -19 this morning.  I think it maybe, might have, could have possibly reached a whopping 3 degrees this afternoon sometime between 2:30 and 2:34 p.m. 

On a more positive note, the sun was shining.  But unfortunately the sun does not help with the temperature.  Cloud cover creates a blanket effect, which will warm things up a bit.  Sounds like clouds may be moving in tonight, and they're calling for a high of 15 tomorrow.  Woot!

That might actually feel like a heat wave after the last two days we've had.  Oh, one can only hope.

Another Crochet Project

I've been working on a new crochet project for the last week.  I thought it would be fun to try something smaller than a baby blanket, so it could be made up quickly.  I found a very easy pattern for a child's scarf and thought I could make one and give it to a little girl at church.

I was able to attempt and conquer a new technique, which was attaching fringe.  It was actually much easier than I thought it would be.  In fact, I think it was my favorite part of the whole scarf.

I just finished it today and wanted to show it off.  I think it's just adorable, and look how little it is. 

Cute, huh?

Maybe I'll have to go find a pattern for a big girl scarf.  I do love the fringe!

A Cook Is Born

Have I ever mentioned that cooking is not my thing?  It's no wonder that among the many bridal shower gifts I received 13 years ago there was an assortment of cookbooks.  At that point my entire cooking repertoire consisted of heating up soup, making grilled cheese sandwiches, sloppy Joe's, and whipping up a mean Hamburger Helper meal.  As Rich had been a bachelor for a good number of years before I entered his life, he had to help me learn the basics, such as how to tell if meat was cooked to proper temperature.

Even though I've learned a lot since then, I still have to follow recipes to make everything, and I believe those all-inclusive frozen meal kits with the meat and veggies are my favorite way to tackle meal preparation.  Things are changing, though.

Last week I made vegetable soup all by myself. 

No recipe.  No kit.  From scratch.

That isn't to say I didn't have help.  You know my friend, Judy?  She is a cook.  A good one.  She makes a variety of specialties, including omelettes, chicken & dumplings, and her famous pizza.  When I observe her cooking, I get inspired to go home and cook something because she makes it all look so easy.  She is practically calm, cool, and collected whenever she cooks, and would you believe she even has FUN?  This is very foreign to me as I am more the type to stress about what to make, groan, kick the cat, and can't wait for the experience to be over. 

So I bet you're wondering where I got the idea to make vegetable soup.  It happened that we were talking about eating healthier and how eating more vegetables and soup is a good way to fill up on less calories.  It sounded like a pretty good idea to me, so I inquired how one might go about making a vegetable soup... you know... in case a certain girl who hates cooking might just be interested in trying something new.  And easy. 

So she took me into the kitchen right then and there and showed me how to do it.  I learned it was a piece of cake.  (Well, it was actually soup, but that's just the expression.)

Anyways... a cook was born.  I went home and made vegetable soup ALL BY MYSELF.  Would you like to see a picture? 

(Of course, I took a picture!)

 

Campbell's has got nothin' on me!

Reading. It's a Good Thing.

Remember the new goal I set for 2009 of reading 10 pages of theology a day?  I just love it.  And when I say reading theology, please don't think that's as deep and profound and stuffy as it sounds.  I'm just reading books about God and spiritual growth.

I'm finding there are a handful of benefits resulting from this exercise... 

#1: I look forward to my reading time because I know I'm going to learn something else about God and my relationship to Him that I didn't know before.  Sort of like going on an adventure.  The book I'm adventuring through now, Let's Start With Jesus, has been amazing.  I'm seeing God's love in a whole new light, and light bulbs are coming on for me concerning the command to love others.

#2: I am reaping the very result I had anticipated - an ongoing meditation over the spiritual truths I'm reading.  I enjoy the thought processing and putting together the new stuff I'm reading with the truths I've previously learned.  Making those connections is a treat. 

#3: I really enjoy time spent with my friends, discussing what I'm learning and then in turn listening to what they're learning in their studies.  Often the Lord puts it all together, and we find that what each of us is studying separately meshes beautifully.  I thrive on these discussions.

To be honest, I've cut way back on my blog reading in the last week, and the book reading has easily taken priority.  I'm feeling content that this is the direction God has sent me in.  How I look forward to the next book!

What are you reading?  Leave a comment and tell me about it.

I Want One!

Do you want to know what I'm drooling over right now????  One of these...

 

                      

It's a Flip Video Mino Camcorder.  Did you know that it will record up to 60 minutes of video footage?  60 minutes!  1 whole hour!  Of video footage! 

Do you realize what that could do for my A Day at the Office vlog series?  You could listen to me ramble on about nothing for 60 minutes.  Think of how that could change YOUR life, too. 

Yeah, I'd probably cover my ears and sing la-la-la-la-I-can't-hear-you, too.

But a girl can dream, can't she?

A Letter

Dear Starbucks Barista,

I'd like to thank you from the bottom of my heart for refraining from dousing yourself with your favorite eau de parfum this morning.  It must have been a truly difficult sacrifice to make for your customers in that it's your favorite scent and you enjoy it immeasurably, so I thought I should let you know that it made a difference in my life today.

You see, I have been unable to enjoy my very special Peppermint Mocha Twist to the fullest degree because of your perfume.  The flavor of my beverage and the scent of your perfume do not mix well, practically gagging, and your scent was all that filled my nostrils as I sipped on my cup of mocha.  Can you imagine the tragedy that has come to my frigid, winter mornings in being unable to partake of the warm creaminess of my beloved drink?  Not to mention the parting with my $3.65 for the smallest of comforts?

Granted, the Peppermint Mocha Twist is now off the menu, and I will not enjoy it again until a mere 11 months have passed.  The Raspberry Mocha will do just fine in its stead, though.  Even now, I am enjoying the raspberry goodness, free of floral notes wafting from my cup.

So I just wanted to say thank you.

Your Ever-Grateful Patron,

Liz 

To Know Him

As I have anticipated the new year coming, the last few days I've been mulling over what I ought to set as goals for 2009.  One goal continues to be at the forefront of my mind because of various situations prompting me, and it is to become disciplined about reading.  Specifically, choosing to do more theological reading.

The best idea and most straight forward plan is to read 10 pages a day.  That would provide a constant flow of biblical truth to meditate on, with the intent of spurring me on in spiritual growth.  I know I always feel spiritually dry when I go weeks upon weeks without reading books apart from my Bible reading at quiet time, so setting this as a goal would benefit me tremendously.

I thought I'd make a short list of what I intend to read.  Put it in writing, so to speak.  The plan is to read a minimum of 10 pages each day, if not more.  Here are the books I have in mind to get me started:

Let's Start With Jesus  (by Dennis F. Kinlaw)  - This is already in progress, so I'm counting it in my new year's plan.

Because He Loves Me  (by Elyse Fitzpatrick)

Love, The Ultimate Apologetic  (by Art Lindsley)

The Fear Factor  (by Wayne Mack & Joshua Mack)

Future Grace  (by John Piper)

Suffering and the Sovereignty of God  (by John Piper and Justin Taylor) - This is already in progress, but I haven't touched it in weeks.

I would also like to read something from Ravi Zacharias, and I'm pretty sure I have a friend who can hook me up with one or two of his books.  *Hint...hint, friend.*

I'm looking forward to the learning that's ahead for me this year.  I love it when I discover new things about God that I have never seen before.  I want to know Him.

2 Peter 1:2-4a Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature....

------------------------------------------------------------------*Updated to add that as I finish these books I will be listing the titles/authors over in my sidebar.  That way you can see what I've completed and have quick access to them, in case you might just like to join in on my reading adventure, too.

New Year, New Look

So... anything look different around here on the old blog?  Hmmm... let's see.  Could it be that I changed my background design again?  Of course I did. 

Christmas is over.  It's a new year.  Time to start fresh.  And I'm downright fickle.  I love to change things up whenever I can.  I'm so glad I found The Cutest Blog on the Block site because it's perfect for people like me who would like to change their blog design as often as they change their underwear - EVERY OTHER DAY. 

Oh, I kid!

I've probably broken Blog Rule #253 and changed my blog design too many times, creating a blog identity confusion for my readers.  I might be shooting myself in the foot by caving to my fickleness.  Does my blog lose its "stickiness" with my frequent changes? 

Dear readers, if you want to chime in on this, go ahead and give me your two cents worth.  Please be gentle, though, because I cry easily.