When severe weather comes knocking…

I biked down to the shopping complex by my house again today. Yes, I knew there was going to be some bad weather later on in the day, but I didn’t think it’d hit while I was down there. After all I didn’t plan to stay long- just needed to pick up some stuff for my mom at a hair place and Target, and maybe window shop a bit. So after about an hour and a half (I did end up window shopping…), I ended up at Target in the magazine section. I was about halfway through some article in a celebrity gossip magazine when my cell phone started to ring. And it was my mom. So I answer it and hear, “You need to come home. Now. The tornado sirens are going off.” Of course, my first thought was OH CRUD! I’m NOT riding my bike home in this weather! So I wait about five minutes, buy the tomatoes Mom needed, hop on my bike, and ride away, but not before hearing two Target employees taking a smoke break discuss the weather. According to them, a pretty severe tornado touched down near where we live. DARNIT!

I pedaled as fast as I possibly could (which was actually surprisingly fast) and mumbled a prayer to myself. The clouds were definitely getting grayer, and the wind was picking up. Oh yeah, and by now I was kinda frantic. So I do a little pleading with God. Our conversatin went something along the lines of this: “Is it starting to rain? God, please don’t let it rain. Not while I’m pedaling. Please. Erm, well, I guess it’s nice that you’ve at least kept me safe so far. And that’s what really counts. You know, me not dying and all… but if you want me to die in this tornado because that’s part of your plan or something, I won’t be angry. So I guess I could die. But, uh, it’s up to you, and- CRUD! The rain’s getting heavier!” C’mon- I was really freaking out there!Thankfully I got home before the rain really picked up (which it did, trust me).

And, for those curious, the tornadic weather is gone, and I’m safe and sound. And alive. Phew!

Back when life was simple…

Today was quite interesting. Rode my bike down to the Target complex near my house, picked up a book at Barnes and Nobel (for those curious, it was “The Big Picture” by Jenny B. Jones- the latest of the Katie Parker series I talked about here), just walked around the complex, then finally sat down and read for three hours. I’m such a bookworm. After getting pretty far in the book, I biked down to Wendy’s and grabbed a hamburger.

Anyways, I sat down across from four girls who looked about eight. They appeared to be good friends having a playdate. The mother who was chaperoning the girls was a bit stressed out, and I don’t really blame her! The girls were quite rowdy. I watched them the entire time I was there, and I was strongly reminded of myself as a little kid.

You know what I miss most about being a little kid? My innocence, that’s what. Back then I didn’t have to worry about AIDs or the starving children in Africa or teen pregnancy or drugs, or any other not-so-kid-friendly matters. My world was a happy, safe, clean place, and nothing really bad could ever happen in it. I had my friends and my family and my school, and that’s really all I had to worry about. Now that I’m older, however, the world isn’t such a happy, clean, safe place, and I do worry about some pretty serious stuff. I miss being 8 and just breezing by in life.

Another thing I miss was the simplicity of my social life. I had two or three close friends that I hung out with, and got along with most girls. Boys, of course, were cute, but you couldn’t be friends with them. Sure, there were some mean girls, but they weren’t half as vicious as the older kids (which I learned soon enough). You had sleepovers with your good friends every couple of weeks and stayed up listening to the newest Disney Channel sensation and playing pretend games until your mother came in and said it was time for bed around 10 or 11 PM. Then you crawled in your sleeping bag and talked about everything from clothes to the boys you had a “crush” on- and back then, a crush meant simply a guy that you thought was relatively good-looking. Sometimes you’d have playdates with those friends and go to the mall or the park or to someone else’s house (with a parent standing by, of course). And maybe sometimes you’d go home together after school to finish up the small amount of homework your third grade teacher had assigned.And that was your social life. It was all so easy. Life isn’t so easy now.

So what about you? What do you miss most about being a little kid? I want to know your opinions. Thanks a bunch for reading.

Family stuff!

Well, my aunt and younger cousins came down here for the weekend (they actually left today). And let me tell you, it’s little visits like these that reminds me how far from normal my family is. Now, don’t get me wrong- I love my family very, very much… but I’ll be the first to admit we all have issues. Since my aunt and cousin stayed with family that lives in town, I got to spend the entire weekend with all of them. Now that I think about it, actually… maybe we spent a bit too much time together…

Well, the visiting cousin, who turned 11 Friday, just so happens to be in the “gangsta” stage. Which means he wears giant shorts, T-shirts that reach his knees, puffy shoes, and oversized hats. Oh yeah, and you can’t forget the “bling bling” (which, in my cousin’s case, just so happened to be this giant, chunky necklace made out of rubber bands), and the fact that he’s got his iPod jammed in his ears 24/7. My other cousin, who turned 13 in March, is the same way.

Then there’s my grandmother… she plays a big role in the church she goes to (it’s not my church, though). I only go there when family’s in town or if I’ve spent the night over there. Well, I went this Sunday… and found out that my grandmother really likes to “get down” during the Praise and Worship songs. I mean, REALLY get down. In front of the entire church. I didn’t know whether to laugh or scream.

Oh yes, and did I mention that the aunt that lives in town is really emotional? She cries over the littlest stuff. The aunt that lives out of town, however, knows how to do the Soulja Boy and the 2-step, and she claims her favorite song is SexyBack.  I’m convinced my brother is part monkey, my mother is a germ freak, and my dad is… well, my dad!

But you know what? As crazy as these people may be, they mean the world to me somehow. Maybe I’m just as crazy as they are…

My religion

Today I think I’m actually going to type up a Christianity-related post. Ooh, yay! I think you guys have already figured out that I’m a Christian… if not, now you know. However, I’m not the best Christian out there. That’s an area I’m working on. I think I’d be a much, much better Christian if my family had gone to a church conisistantly for the past couple of years. My parents just kind of slacked off on going to one (I think it started with their disagreement on what church we should go to in the first place). As a result, I went through my tween years without a good church home, and that really impacted my faith. I’m trying to regain what I lost, though. We’ve decided to start going to a church again, and I plan on getting very involved with the youth group. One of the things that helped me regain my faith was reading some Christian fiction novels- they’re really neat. I wrote about my two favorite series in a previous post.

A couple of my non-Christian friends are curious about why I’m determined to have and keep such a close relationship with Jesus. I think that answer is obvious- He’s my savior! He died on the cross for ME! His love is unconditional. Jesus cares- He cares so much He gave His life for mankind. And that’s why I’m a Christian. However, I’m not one of those Christians who shoves my religion down everyone’s throat. That’s kind of obnoxious…

10 Important Things I’ve Learned

1. You can hold a hamster… but you can’t hold a fish.

2. It’s impossible to lick your elbow.

3. It’s also impossible to calculate how many licks it takes to get to the center of a tootsie pop. So don’t even try it.

4. Hand soap tastes funny.

5. Variety is the spice of life. And so is garlic.

6. You will never marry Zac Efron. Sorry, hon.

7. Shower regularly, or else people may avoid you!

8. If nobody laughs at your joke, it’s probably not funny.

9. Don’t eat food that looks like it may be turning green.

10. Honestly, folks! When a TV show says “don’t try this at home”, it’s probably best not to try it.

The YMCA and… abortion?

So today I went to a kickboxing class with my best friend, Ariella, at our local YMCA. And man, am I ever tired! You don’t stop moving during that class for the entire hour. No breather. Just kicking. And punching. Even though I’m pretty skinny, I’m not a huge fan of exercising. I know- I’m a wimp!

Now, on to today’s subject- abortion. Over the past couple of days I’ve been thinking about it a lot, and I thought I might as well get around to blogging about it. Being a Christian and all, I guess you can kind of predict where I stand in the whole abortion matter- I am pro-life. I think abortion is murder, I really do. One of my friends is pro-choice, and somehow she and I got to talking about abortion a couple of days ago. She, of course, said the the baby involved isn’t really a baby since it hasn’t been born. But did you know by week 12 that the baby is already very complex and human? My friend also argued that the woman should be able to choose what happens to the baby, since it’s growing in her body. But who are we to choose whether another innocent human being lives or dies? That’s not our job- that’s God’s. Terminating a human life for selfish reasons is just that- selfish. The baby is not just a meaningless blob of tissue- it’s a BABY. I was reading this article earlier today, and it brings up some very good points. But what really popped out at me is the abortion methods they listed. I mean, can you imagine the pain involved for the fetus? Here’s another good article on abortion. If you’re not totally convinced on where you stand in the whole issue, I suggest you read them both.

Anyways, the bottom line is abortion is wrong. It’s inhumane and cruel and it’s MURDER. And that’s that. Now, I think I should be hitting the hay. I think I may pass out anyways (kickboxing really isn’t my thing…).

Books…

So right now I’m reading the Diary of a Teenage Girl series (by Melody Carlson). They’re really, really amazing. I feel A LOT closer to God after reading them. Anybody else ever heard of (or read) them? If not, I really suggest you do. I finished the Kim books, I read one of the Chloe books, and I’m on the second to last Caitlin book. You can get them at your local bookstore. Here’s the cover for the one I’m on. It’s really a great teen fiction read, and deals with a bunch of real issues. The dialogue can be a bit dated at times, but it’s still a very powerful book.

Another book series I’ve been reading is the Katie Parker series (another Christian book!). It’s about a 16-year-old girl who’s living with Christan foster parents. Of course, when Katie came to them, she wasn’t a Christian, but that changes in the second book (sorry ’bout the spoiler!!). Right now I’m anxiously awaiting the third (it comes out in April). Unlike the Diary of a Teenage Girl books, the Katie Parker series is HILARIOUSLY funny. Here’s the cover of the first book in the series. This may be one of my all-time favorite book series- the writer, Jenny B. Jones, has a real talent (and is laugh-out-loud funny to boot!).

Anyways, if you guys have any other good reads, let me know! I’m a huge bookworm, after all.

STG has gone to the dogs!

Today was certainly tiring. I had spend-the-night company (and we certainly stayed up too late), and after she went home I went to volunteer with a local animal rescue group like I always do. Every Saturday the group brings down the dogs they’re fostering and tries to adopt them out at our local PetSmart. I go down there and do whatever I can- direct the customers, walk the dogs, clean up, give them food and water, and anything else that needs to be done. Here are some of the volunteers (I changed their names just in case).

Dee: She runs the whole thing, and is a real sweetie.
Nora: Noel is amazing too. She fosters a big majority of the dogs.
Jane: Another one of the main adult volunteers. I absolutely LOVE her.
Jessie: Noel’s daughter. She’s 17 years old, washes dogs at PetSmart, and sometimes comes to volunteer with her mom. She very occasionally comes off as a bit controlling, but most of the time she’s pretty sweet.
Abby: She’s thirteen, nearly fourteen (like me!). I gained newfound respect for her after she let me draw really random stuff ALL OVER her arms (in Sharpie, no less) in red and black. Only a very courageous person would wear my drawings on their arms.
Jayna: One of my best friends! She’s another teen volunteer (age 14), although she doesn’t come as much as she used to. Grr.
Warren: This guy really bugs me sometimes. He’s always contradicting himself, and it’s kind of evident he has a crush on me. I figured that out when he timed how long it took for me to walk a dog.
Now, of course there are more volunteers, but I don’t feel like listing them.

Anyways, today somebody brought in a new little puppy. She’s a German shepard-beagle mix (we think she’s about 12 weeks old), and I named her Lucy. But the thing is, the woman said that she found little Lucy in her yard all alone with an embedded collar. Now, most of the fur on her neck where the collar was is gone. Her wounds look INCREDIBLY painful. It really makes me sick, knowing somebody would allow poor Lucy’s collar to become embedded into her neck. Honestly, it’s times like this that I wish cussing wasn’t against my moral standards, because I’d definitely like to shout a couple of colorful words at whoever did this to my Lucy Loo. However, Lucy was in good spirits- the woman who found Lucy in her yard was taking great care of her (but she can’t keep her, due to health reasons). That dog’s a real sweetie, and a cuddlebug to boot! I just hope she makes a speedy recovery, and that whoever did this to her does some serious thinking about proper animal care.

PS- sorry about the terrible blog title. Hah.