My Awesome Office

I need visual stimulation to feel creative in my job. My perfect office would have a big window, with my desk strategically placed so I could always be facing it. But my office used to be part of a video editing suite, so I have no windows. So, I have to develop my own visual stimulation. I'm well on my way to completely plastering my walls with fun pictures and other artwork. Here's a look at the place where the magic happens.

Come on in! Don't be alarmed by the status - it was added by a disgruntled missionary.

Here we have the collage in front of my desk. We have pictures from Bangladesh, Aslan, old-world maps, Machu Piccu, and lots more. Oh, also Dwight and Jim represent at the top.

Behind my desk. Woven door hanging from Khabarovsk, Russia, Chinese lantern rescued from the trash, and my recycling bin!

My ultra-comfy chair. I'm the only one I know at WGM with a lazy boy chair. Note the map of Bangladesh on the wall.

I think I might be a tad eccentric. Oh well, I'm okay with it.

Gardening pros we are not, but we get pretty flowers in January

In the fall, when flower bulbs were on sale, Steve and I bought some pretty white narcissus bulbs, planning to plant them outside. But we never got around to it, and by Christmas, they had started to sprout. (We didn't know that we could have delayed that by putting them in the garage.) We realized that they would probably die if we didn't plant them soon, so Steve suggested we plant them in pots.

So we planted them over New Year's weekend, and here are the results:


This is how they started out. Itty bitty little sprouts of greenness.


And then a WHOLE bunch of them came up! It's like our own little garden. In the middle of freakin' January. They did like the sunshine today.


Close-up of prettiness. Also, they smell nice. Which is great, because it helps combat the faint smell of turtle. Because we're pet-sitting a turtle, not because a massive plague of turtles has struck our neighborhood. THAT would be weird.

My Obligatory Political Post

Possibly even more than religion, politics are the most divisive institution out there. At least with religion, people are (or they should be) tempered with kindness when they disagree. But with politics, kindness doesn't really enter into a disagreement.

It was an interesting day yesterday. Besides the obvious historic event, it was fascinating to read people’s statuses on facebook. Some were jubilant, some were THERE, some said they were praying for America, some were angry, some were cynical, and the ones who live in DC were complaining about the traffic.

As an Obama supporter with no declared party in a Republican sub-culture, I’ve been a little sensitive to unhelpful political remarks that I hear all too often, most of which are made out of ignorance. But I was pleasantly surprised yesterday, as a group of us gathered around a TV to watch the inauguration ceremony, that no one said anything mean or rude. It seemed like at that moment, people put aside their ideological differences. No one can deny that it’s just absolutely amazing that less than 50 years after Jim Crow laws were still in effect, we have elected an African-American president. And that’s what brought us together.

It was a cool moment.

Podcasts for The Call now available!

We are working on our podcast strategy, and we finally have some up on the WGM website! It's a work in progress, so please feel free to leave suggestions. I promise, I won't be offended or hurt.

Creative exercise for the day: (Okay, so I've hit a road block in the two articles I'm working on, and I'm trying to find my breakthrough. So I'm doing a couple creative exercises to try to knock something loose in the old noggin.) Think of 20 creative uses for toothpicks, paper clips, rubber bands, etc. I chose toothpicks, and my favorite one that I came up with was "weapon of choice for stick figures."

Eh? Eh? Think about it.

Praying for Boxes

I've been really trying lately, when something is on my mind and bothering me, to pray about it right then. So, a few days ago, I was worrying about boxes for mailing the books I've been selling. I had bought bubble envelopes, but whenever possible, I like to use free "found" boxes or envelopes. Because they're free. The IT industry has perfected a box for shipping memory and whatnot, and it's the PERFECT size for a trade-sized paperback, of which I have a lot. The WGM IT department kept me stocked for a while, but I had used my last one on this particular day, and I was worrying about where I would get more. So I prayed. I know it's silly, to pray about boxes. But I did anyway, and felt much better. It's amazing what happens when you tell God what's on your mind. It's like He cares and listens or something. :) A few days later, Steve brought these home:

Yep, a whole pile of perfect-sized boxes. God is amazing. Steve had told the guys he works with at Taylor to be on the lookout for me, and boy, did they deliver.

And while we're on the subject of boxes for books, here's a peak at my store.

This is only some of them. There's more on the right. I have over 500 posted on half.com.


Here's the rest that I still have to post from SF's stock. But the "problem" is, I've been selling so many more than I'm used to, that I'm a little overwhelmed. So I'm waiting a few days to post the rest of this stock. I've gone from maybe one sale a day to this:

A few more than one. Yay for college students starting a new semester! Check out the awesomely sized memory box!

Steve thinks it's funny. He said, "What other girl in the world gets this excited about boxes?" I still think God is so amazing that he would indulge this little want.

Of Life Lessons and Cats

My cat, Chai, HATES being held.

Which is annoying, because she’s very cute. She’s a beautiful “blue-and-cream” calico. (Thus saithed the pet shop tag on her cage) Chai will jump on the bed and curl up at my feet, and she’ll let me scratch her ears, and maybe play with her a bit – but only on HER terms. And when she’s done, she’s done. If you pick her up, she’ll go all stiff for a few seconds, and then start struggling, all the while wimpering piteously.

As I said, it’s annoying. Because I love holding soft, warm things, and Chai is a soft, warm thing that purrs.

Basically, I can look forward to holding her once a year. That’s when we go to the vet. The whole expedition is fraught with trauma as far as Lady (Other cat. Black shorthair. Looks like a demon when she’s mad) and Chai are concerned. First, they are stuffed in the kitty carrier (“Mew, mew!”), then a 5-minute car drive (“MMRROOOWWW!!), a brief pause in the waiting room that is inevitably inhabited by a spastic puppy (“Hisssssssss!!”), and finally a 10 minute wait in the exam room. (both cats now scared spitless)

When the vet finally comes in to do what needs to be done, poor little miss-I-don’t-like-to-be-held Chai is clinging to me and burrowing in my arms like the world is going to end. She doesn't stop until we're back, safe, at home. The other day, I was counting the months until her next vet appointment, and I started thinking, is this how I can be with God?

Do I tend to only spend time with God on my own terms, not allowing him to sometimes scoop me up in His arms without me planning it? But then when I DO want to be in His arms, I cling as hard as I possibly can, as if I never want to be let go. Only to back away as soon as my world falls back into place.

Lord, help me to quit loving you like a cat!

And I'm a girl who loves her cats.