odd but delicious.

in the last several weeks, i’ve come across some very odd but yummy things.  for example:

1) HUGE GRAPES.  by HUGE, i mean HUGE.  they were twice as large as kyle’s thumb.  but delicious.

2) gummy bears but with a twist.

check out the gummmy bear model showing off its swirly cool 'skin.' also take note of both PLAID pj pants.

 

3) two words:  cheese ball.  the odd part is how excited AND obsessed this group is with cheese ball.  you just need to trust us on this.  it’s worth obsessing over.  well worth it.

the last authentic cheese ball. not odd, but definitely delicious.

4) new salads.  i’m branching out.

my first attempt at roasted beet salad with red and golden beets. looks gross, but is actually really yummy.

 

if you have any other interesting things to suggest, feel free to send them my way.

hungry,

jacks

 

 

 

life is a but a box of chocloates.

if only that were true.  right now life seems to be a massive tidal wave in a little washing machine.  there is SO much going on i don’t even know how to manage it.  mostly because i think i just realized how chaotic my life truely is, thanks to my intern for pointing it out.  

however, amidst the choas it was quite refreshing to hear from our pastor this morning about being a “prisoner of Christ.” the sermon focused on acts 24-26 and the injustices and delays in paul’s life, which ultimately led to his execution in rome.  as many of you know, i have been struggling with this concept of justice for over a year now. 

- why do good people have to endure horrible things?
- why do we as Christians have injustices happen to us?
- how do people get away with injustice acts and even seem to be blessed by them at times?
- if God did exist, why does allow these injustices?

 1) God’s intention is for a perfect and just world. that’s what we are moving towards (Isaiah)
2) Christ’s reign has begun but is not complete. until Christ’s reign is complete, the world will continue to be unjust. 
3) what is my response when I’m the victim of injustice?

#3 really hit a chord with me.  what should my response be?  typically it’s been anger, resentment, me wallowing in pity, frustration, etc.  should it be any different? the answer was yes. 

dahlstrom went on to provide a slew of christians who have been persectued, held captive, even exceuted through unjustice.  marting luther king jr, victor franco, deidrich bonhoeffer, paul and even Christ all had unjustices done against them.  however, the difference between their response and mine was just that.  their response was not one to wallow in self pity.  but to respond in a way that said “you can’t take away a person’s freedom to respond even though you have taken away their life, their possesions, their job, etc” (paraphrase from Victor Franco). 

a good example is looking at paul’s life inacts 24-26.  through the delays and injustice, he goes through it all without complaining.  his approach is not trying to change his circumstances (which is my normal and typical reaction) but rather to ask what the “RIGHT” thing to do in the moment?

the interesting thing i found through all of this was how these people did not have bitterness or resentment.  how could they NOT?!  it was, as dahlstrom put it, “people find themselves in the stream of God’s activity.”  and only by being in the stream of God’s activity do you realize that you can conquer anything and in the end it’s through God and God alone that justice will prevail. (romans 8).

and finally the challenge for me (as if everything else dahlstrom said wasn’t enough of a challenge) was that even with delays in “our” plans, we must stop saying “my life will begin when ____ happens.”  if i wait for my life to be utterly free of injustice and challenges, i’ll be waiting forever.  and to be honest, i’m far too type-a to be sitting around and waiting forever.  i might as well jump in the deep end and have God pick me up and carry me downstream where the “action” is.  i hope you will join me there soon.

what an amazing weekend consists of:

Friday:
1.  date night on fri night. pad thai and red mill for dinner (the former for her and the latter for him)
2. eating the #1 while watching macgyver.
3. going to bed at 8:33pm

Saturday:
1. spin class w/ kyle at 8am. joined by a woman with a big bird mask on.  happy halloween.
2. hitting up the “restore” in ballard for xmas presents
3. shopping at jcrew and crate and barrel for xmas presents
4. lunch at burgermaster
5. massage with manita
6. studying for the GMATS
7. smoking out the apartment while making dinner
8. chicken with mushrooms and polenta for dinner

Sunday:
1. getting an extra hour of sleep. i love day light savings
2. awesome sister-sister time at ladro and hales ale for coffee and lunch. thanks yoshi for treating. 
3. church and actually being able to sit in the main sanctuary as opposed to the “overflow area”
4. finding the LAST matching lampshade at target for the new one i just burnt. oops.
5. i love after holiday candy sales. its time to load up.
6. going shopping with rach at the outlet malls and indulging at jcrew. gosh, that store is brilliant.
7. doing “undercover” xmas shopping for the hubby. shhhhhh.
8. making african chicken soup

welcome back jack.

so as most of you know i’ve been traveling a bit recently.  portland. new york. california. three cities. three weeks straight.  let’s say i’m i a little tired. by body is a little tired of it too.  it was great to see rachael and nate finish the portland marathon.  i honestly was a bit jealous that i was on the other side of the fence. but, hey there’s always next year right! the kullbergs were gracious enough to let us crash at their house while they were out of town for the weekend.  it’s always nice to have a home away from home.  that’s really what they’ve become to us- a second family.  immediatly after we returned from p-town, we unpacked and i started re-packing for new york.  i left the next day.  arrived in ny that evening and flew out the next evening to return at 12:30am on tues night/wed morning. whew.  let’s say i know that i wasn’t in new york to give new york a chance. especially since i was in albany. but at least i’ve marked another state off the list of places i’ve been to for work. california was well, california.  i’ve been there so many times for work that its just another quick trip- there and back. but each time i am there i’m reminded of how much i love their drivers and how much i hate their interstate signs.

other than traveling, i’ve been entangled in a two month battle against a cold that starts to come and then dissapates and then changes its mind, it’s been quite frustrating.   i’ve also been studying AGAIN for the gmats. i unfortunately have to take it again because i didn’t score high enough on the math portion.  verbal and essay- yes! but, seriously folks. who remembers stuff that we learned back in the day. and you can’t tell me its critital reasoning and logic. there’s an entire section devoted to that stuff.  nonetheless, i forked over the $400 bucks for a math prep gmat class. you read that right folks. math ONLY. someone shoot me and shoot me now.  honestly, its also been a bit embarassing to tell folks that i need to retake it but i’ve finally decided, “who cares?” i’m the only one who is embarassed. it’s tough test and i may need a bit more help than the kaplan book. so seattle university, here i come. 4 days devoted to math. bring it on.

and you know that you’ve been gone for a bit when you go to get gas at 7:30 in the morning to find a slutty barista stand in your gas station. WTF?! when did this happen?! i thought that crap was for the everett folks.  ballard. seriously. i’m disappointed. i thought we were above that.  i won’t even post the name of the stand since 1) i refuse to market something that disgusting and unethical 2) it’s blatantly inappropriate. but through my scowl i did observe that all the customers, were men in their 30-50s, alone in their car, and refused to look anywhere else other than straight ahead. i wonder if they’re feeling a tad bit guilty. perhaps i’ll find another gas station to offer my loyalty that does not include lingerie, perveted men and inappropriate naming conventions.

welcome back jack. welcome back.

and we’re officially done…

with our redecorating! check out before and after photos here. and since you’ve all been waiting patiently for this i figured i’d include photos. we hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

living room 1

living room 2

living room 3 and kyle

the finished shabby-chic end tables we redid ourselves

friends are friends forever.

so back in highschool i met a gal named leslie.  i can’t recall how we met. neither can she. but nonetheless, we hit it off and were best of friends.  the years have past but the friendship remains.  i sheepishly admit i lost touch with her over the years but every time we do talk (maybe once a year) it’s like we’re back in maui, just chillin’ and having a grand ole time.  considering it’s been 9 years since we last saw each other, it’s quite a blessing that we can pick up exactly where we left off.

she helped me ditch my very first time, EVER, from school to grab lunch off campus.  she let yoshi and i drive “The Bus” aka her van during highschool, since we didn’t have our license and mom was a bit too busy to let both of us drive on the weekends. we took AP government and politics together while yoshi suffered in AP chemistry and i joined her in photography when i saw a kid with a gun and was transferred out of ukulele class immediately. thanks mom. we used to do taco bell runs, bakery runs, jack in the box runs, all while not really ‘running.”  we would go to polo beach ALL the time and change in the hotel next door ALL the time. we made a mix for graduation that got played throughout the state of HI and were basically inseperable…the three musketeers.

well, considering how type-A i am.  you’d think i’d remember alot of things….like when your best friend from high school is visiting seattle. ha!  nope. i got a text message on friday morning (she sent it thurs night) that she was in town and to give her a call. oops. praise the Lord my work trip to MN got cancelled.  i was free!  so we spent the majority of the weekend doing toursity things….it reminds me of how much i love the city. sigh.  her friend noah gave her the majority of the tours- underground, space needle, pikes place, original starbucks shop….we made sure she got to visit the most important places.  1) thaiku for awesome food and yojhitos 2)kings hardware for a dark and stormy 3) cupcake royale 4) THE troll 5) gasworks 6) kerry park 7) our newly redecorated apartment.

well, i remembered to bring the phone out for some of the lovely excursions.  everyone, here’s leslie. leslie, here’s everyone.

friends are friends forever.

cupcake royale. i couldn't resist. i had to take a bite first.

trip to gasworks at sunset.

shilshole. shithole. same thing. only in ballard.

it’s been real. it’s been fun. it’s been real fun.  can’t wait to see her again soon.  hopefully next time, i’ll remember to plug the dates into my calendar and we can go camping.  welcome to the great Northwest. nothing else like it here les!

the process of patience.

most of you who tracked and read my posts as i trained for my races could attest to my obsession.  i can say i’m an all or nothing kinda gal. and as you also know i haven’t really posted about running, racing, running, sweating, running.  you get my point, anytime recently. 

well, since my car accident in 2008 i’ve been steadily working on recovery only to find that i can take 3 steps forward and 5 steps back.  literally.  in this case, i was training at quite a good pace and speed for the CDA race only to find that my body had been over-compensating for itself.  scyatica from the accident, led to lower back pain which lead to weakness in hip flexors, IT band issues and i officially have a bad case of tendinitis in my knee.  through the training for both CDA and rock and roll, my PT has been trying to get me to bike and swim. ha! she clearly doesn’t know me. 

i don’t own a bike. i haven’t since i jumped on kyle’s mom’s old bike to ‘test’ it out. and prior to that i was in second grade when i was riding, without training wheels thank you very much.  i actually don’t swim either. i love the beach but hate the ocean. i know, an oxymoron.  how can i you ask? i am indeed from hawaii.  one word, folks. sharks. enough said.

so after much time on the elliptical and pseudo running (3-5 miles not more than three times a week), i was tired of me feeling like i wasn’t doing enough, my fear of gaining the college weight back and well, just needing an outlet for agression and stress. kyle can attest.  i’m a much happier human being after i’ve had a draining and butt-kicking work out.  i left rain fitness and joined the new LA fitness signature club in ballard.  let me tell you it’s a cool gym. i’m not fond of the corporatiness of it all but it does have it all and its all in ONE place.  i can’t complain.

and it’s officiaI. i now own a pool suit with googles.  i’ve been swiming 3 times a week, do yoga at least once a week and take spin 3 times a week! crazy eh. All for the sake of cross training and running. but with persistence and a heck of a lot of patience i hope to join the ranks of those who have run a marathon next summer. and don’t you worry your littl’ tush off.  i plan on keeping you apprised of my goals and health so i can count on having a cheer squad to cheer and catapult me to the finish line!

photos: a week in the life

humor me.

He stole my idea.

mac book pros have come in. i know you're jealous.

E and her broken fork. If it was a spork it wouldn't have done that.

J: "is that a growth growing out of your tooth?" e: "no, it's just a blizzard."

sweet chocolate bell pepper and settlers!

my hubby surprised me with flowers. and a sneak peak at our redecoration!

annual fall camping trip.

so a few months ago, the roomies (i realize i technically have ONE but the girls will forever be roomies in my heart) and kyle and i decided that we needed to reinstate our annual fall camping trip.  and so we ended up in wenatchee of all places on a massive piece of land, next to a babbling brook and eating a lot of hot dogs, cheese ball, and smores.  it was quite the experience considering it was the onset of fall and we basically lived in our down coats the ENTIRE weekend.  however the highlights are:

• we did not feign from lack of food, drink or firewood.
• kyle forgetting the sleeping pads and thus he showed off his MacGyver skills and built a bed of pine needles beneath our tent.  far nicer and comfy than any sleeping pad i’ve ever slept on.
  

  sleeping in macgyver style.

• we did indeed make a hand shadow puppet show, including facial expressions and sounds.
  

  can you see the bird and rabbit?

• kyle got his knife stolen from a punk junior higher only to be defended by his mother
• kyle got his knife “mysteriously” returned back to him when the dumb kid couldn’t figure out how to close the blade
• the girls got to lounge in 80 degree sun by the babbling brook in shorts and tanks while the campsite, a mere 50 yards away was like the artic. bring on the down and beanies!
  

  caption not needed.

• we got yelled at from the camp host for going 5 over the 10 mile per hour speed limit and threatened to be homeless that night
• the same camp hosts’ felt bad about the stolen knife incident and thus we secured a very LARGE bag of FREE firewood which left us with an amazing HOT fire.
• the last authentic cheese ball made courtesy of rachael…thanks rach.  it was delish.
• having rach and harper exhibit their kissing feet skills. it was amazing.
  

  mmwaaaah!

• being frightened out of our wits when we heard an eeire human like-cat like-dog like howl on the second night and third morning we were there.  be thankful we don’t have photos for this one.
• watching at least 4 police cars and 5 fire engines and 3 ambulances screech down to highway 2 for a really bad car accident
• heating up water in the nalgenes’ to keep us from freezing to death each night.
  

  The Lifesaver.

here’s a few other favorites that needed to be included..  looking forward to next year gang.

base camp.

Yoshi and her amazing 2 legged chair that is light and compact. We all wanted to steal it from her.

Heart shaped Maui Onion chip. The Yoshi will always have a place in my heart.

Kyle's new emo look.

and final note.  all photos were taken courtesy of my new blackberry tour.  it has a 3.2 megapixel camera….I LOVE IT.  and all the photos seem to come out clear and hi-res, at least for a smartphone.

God moves quick. are you ready?

last sunday, the message was on Act 12-13.  peter’s miraculous escape from prison.  it hit home in a lot of ways.  i think the thing that i took away from this message was the following:

1)  God moves quick.  Are you ready?  i like to think i am.  but embarassingly enough, I’m not.  half the time i feel like i’m stumbling through life trying to determine if this is really the path the Lord wants me to travel down.   or am wrestling with what the Lord really wants me to do….”like really?! this is what i’m supposed to do?!”  a good visual that comes to mind is i’m late and am running out the door with one shoe on, one off and trying to get my coat on and the contents of my purse spilling everywhere when i’m trying to close the door.   prepared and graceful. that’s me. 

2) God moves quick to answer our prayers, sometimes before we even speak them.  Do you believe it when he responds?  i hate to say it, but no.  i’m just like the disciples praying for Peter’s release, even when Peter is at the door, knocking to get in.  i’m one of the gang telling the servant girl that it’s his angel and just go right back on praying even when it’s Peter, in his flesh waiting to get in.  heellllooooo.  He knows my heart. He knows your heart.  and He chooses to respond to our needs and prayers before we even utter them from our lips.  He’s amazing like that.

3) God goes through great lengths to reveal himself to us.  in the scripture reading, it was pointed out the amount of effort herod went through to guard peter.  he was a prized prisoner.  typical prisoners had maybe a guard and a ball and chain.  but peter had roughly 16 total at one point and 4 guards for certain at any given moment.  that says a lot.  however, even with that much security, the Lord helped him escape- imagine being led through that many guards, unharmed and untouched.  it’s only by these great steps is it that we belive it is God.  the challenge for me is, can i believe that it is God even when it’s not great lengths but little ones? 

4) However sometimes he allows good people to die and good people to live.  Nonetheless , God is a God of justice.  and this one i struggle with.  in acts in notes that james was put to the sword but peter survived and then was captured.  now i’m not justifying that getting captured by herod is any less of an ordeal than being executed but it really struck me that the Lord allows  His chosen to be killed.  his servant, his follower.  that’s hard for me to swallow.  i think it’s also because i’m wrestling right now with this idea of justice.  how can the Lord allow good people to suffer and those who are sinning or living unclean lives be blessed? how is that the even our fellow christian brothers and sisters can hurt one another and put on a facade that they are pious and holier than thou and still be blessed?  where is the Lord in all this?  and i guess that’s where my unbelief sets in.

and drumrolll….the finale to this is that even as believers we suffer from unbelief. we all do it, even if we deny we do it. my unbelief is that though i know He is of justice and love and will vindicate those who are oppressed why does He allow for it to seemingly go on forever? to those who love Him and serve Him be hurt so much? so my unbelief continues as i wait for God to reveal himself with justice.