things you should watch

i thought i'd share a few things i've watched lately.

i've already decided i want to adopt willie. he's the super tiny one with cornrows.


i really just love this last video b/c it shows TI getting "slide certified" at the ron clark academy (around the 6:30 mark)

i need warmth

i tried writing a blog on oct. 11th, but never finished it. im having to start over now.

the past month has been kind of a blur. it started off with adam's birthday. he came up with his parents and we spent the weekend celebrating. his parents stayed with his brother, just around the corner from little five points. it was really hard for me to drive past several times and not hang out. greg - do you remember the time we went with dave, thomas, and justin? fun times. adam isnt a fan of his birthday, but i did my best to make a deal out of it b/c i love birthdays and think they should always be celebrated. it was a good weekend.

a few days later was one of the best experiences ive had in a while. jill came up for a few days and we went together to the catalyst conference. it was amazing. there were over 12,000 people there this year. i think that was a record. we heard some amazing people speak. there were many tears. God showed up. what can i say? as usual, im changed b/c of it. it was good to see jill, too, b/c we hadnt seen each other in almost a year. romeo was also glad to see her :).

the weekend after that i headed down to savannah to sing in a friend's wedding. it was great to be in savannah, even if for what seemed a moment. the wedding was great, and it was good to see such loving faces. i also celebrated my mom's 58th birthday. i used to think that was old, but if you know my mom, you know she's not old, so...

the weather started to change that weekend. now it's about a week later, and i've been sick ever since i left savannah. i don't remember ever being sick for this long. my head hurts. my ears are stopped up. i've sneezed so much i've probably started what will be a tsunami headed for goodness knows where.

this weekend sucked. i spent - and im not kidding - the entire weekend on the couch. i slept. i blew my nose. i took medicine. i slept again. it was awful. it didnt help that the moments i was awake, all i could think about was the awesome reunion a lot of my friends were having up at milligan. it was homecoming this weekend, and it was my five year reunion. there are so many hearts dear to me i wish i could have seen. oh, to hang out at sub7, hear chris sing, play games and drink shakes! i was really bummed that i couldnt be there. i dont deny that i cried about it.

i feel so weak. i know that no matter where i go in life, what my circumstances are, and who i'm with or without, that God should be enough. but he's not. if i'm really honest about how i feel (feel being an important word here), i dont think that he's enough. im struggling with lonliness a lot. it's been over a week since ive had a hug. don't misunderstand me. i know that God is enough. all im saying is that im in a spot where im struggling to believe that. i am so blessed, and i know it. i thank God for all that he's blessed me with, but i confess that im in a spot of weakness. i believe God wants me where i am, doing what im doing. that doesnt make it easy. and when i think of all the other places in the world God could call me, i recognize that i still have a very cushy life. the things im struggling with here are the same things i struggled with when i went to college for the first time and the things i struggled with when i lived in a foreign country for a summer. i crave warmth. i crave tangible love. i crave meaningful relationships. and i know these things do not magically appear, and that they are things that often take time. i dont feel bad in admitting that i struggle with this. i miss family. i miss the great friends that ive made over the years. i wish i didnt come home everyday by myself. that's all.

i beat anorexia, wait- i'm funny?, and poetry is...

oh geez.

you just dont know.

here we go...

- my niece, brady (http://www.bradyfaith.net/) is doing so well! her site is my homepage, so each time i open a browser i check on her as well as her mom and dad (my brother and his wife). i got so excited last night b/c in her pictures she's starting to look like a little fat baby, and this is a good thing. she was so tiny, and now her little fingers look so cute and pudgy. it kinda made me think of this shirt...



she's come a long way, and i'm super excited to get to see her in october.


- speaking of october, a few exciting things are going to happen. adam is coming up next weekend to celebrate his birthday, so that will be fun. i'm going to get to spend more time with his family, so that will be fun. the week after that is the catalyst conference. this is going to be amazing. this will be my third time going, and it has twice melted my face off. jill sims will be attending with me, so that makes it super fun. and finally, in mid-october, i get to go home b/c i'm in a wedding. that will be awesome for several reasons.




- i've been checking out some dave ramsey stuff on money, and it's really good stuff. if you're not amazing at managing money, you should check him out. i ordered a few of his dvds, and they've been amazing so far. highly recommend that action right thur.




- um, suddenly i was funny in class last week. i mean, it wasn't the pity laugh the kids normally give, which usually amounts to a verbal equivalent of, "oh, ms. reagan. you're so lame. we pity your humorless soul." no, this one was more like, "bwahhahahahahah....stoppp!!!! i'm bout to pee my pants!!!!ahahoiwehahwoeihhahahah!" oh yeah. we were reading a short story called "checkouts" and i explained one of my favorite skits to each class, and all three classes thought it was the funniest thing. who knew. maybe i'm adjusting better than i thought... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DA1BO5mjHiA

today we listened to bradley hathaway's poetry in class and discussed his use of imagery, alliteration, poem structure, and allusion. it was magical. www.myspace.com/bradleyhathaway

- chLC is coming to visit (i think) this weekend. she's one of "my girls" from when i did student ministries at savannah christian church as well as young life. she's just started college, so it will be fun to catch up with her and giggle for the weekend.





- last weekend mom came up to visit and it was great. greg and jessica came over for dinner on saturday night. we watched a little from the last season of the office.



- i've been listening to tunes by the following as of late: joshua radin. kate nash. old crow medicine show. fleet foxes. johnny flynn. jose gonzalez. tyga. and, as always, copeland.

- today in the faculty meeting we watched a video interview with this kid named brian. a year ago, brian had the normal life of your average 17-year-old boy. this past spring he was diagnosed with a very rare and aggressive form of cancer. in the video, i saw this bald-headed kid nervously rock back and forth in a big comfy chair and attempt to explain what he's gone through in the last few months. he misses school. he misses his friends. but there was nothing pathetic or needy about him. physically, he is so weak. but the voice i heard in the video was far from lacking in strength. he talked a lot about how God has carried him through all of this. when asked if he had a message for people watching the video, he stressed several times not to take the little things in life for granted, and that if you're doing something you love, whether it be playing sports, being artsy, or hanging out with friends, that you should enjoy it to the fullest - and i love this part - because that's the way God wants us to live.... at the end of the video, brian said he wanted to pray for us, so we all bowed our heads as this teenager with cancer prayed for us.... i mentioned that in my classes we read poetry today. well, another poem we took a look at is carl sandburg's "ten definitions of poetry"... poetry is being ungrateful and oblivious of blessings, while the One who provides these things speaks over you through a sick child fighting to survive.

this is why i'm hot

this is what i'm talking about.  this is what i miss when i say i miss savannah.  this occurred in the stands at a savannah high vs beach football game.  more than likely this is at memorial stadium.

ps - if you dont already know, the dancing style is called crumping. watch the movie rize.

little boy fall

peanut butter jelly time/why i'm a starbucks whore

so. omg. life is still very different, and i'm still adjusting, but i'm definitely trying to enjoy the differences rather than miss familiarity.

one of the main reasons adjusting has been challenging is because i crave community - i need it - and i know it. i'm the type of person who could be by myself for an entire week and actually really enjoy it, but i know that God created us to be social beings, and despite my interpretation of my own personality, i know i still have a need to connect and be with others. well, i think God answered prayer this week, and, as he normally does with me, it was in a pretty random way.

last tuesday i ventured out for a drink from starbucks. for the past ten years or so, i've lived reallllly close to a starbucks, regardless of where i lived, so i've become a bit spoiled. i recognized the fact that it was a really good thing i'd have to make a drive just to get a drink from starbucks when i moved up here, b/c with the given gas prices, i'm not likely to drive anywhere with the exception of work, publix, and the gas station. well, i'd gone maybe a week and a half without having starbucks, so i braved the distance. i walked in, asked for what i wanted, and sadly was told they had changed their menu and no longer had the drink i liked. what the. ok. fine. so, i was walking out of the store when i heard someone call, "laura?"

now, people up in flowery branch call me "laura sue," so i knew this had to be either someone from tennessee (college friend) or savannah (hometown). either way, i really didn't expect this person to be talking to me b/c, well, why would anyone i know be at starbucks in buford, georgia?? well, i turned around and saw one of my favorite smiling faces. it was lauren t. i met her through a friend when we were in high school. she's basically fabulous. i was so confused though as to why the heck she was, well, where she was. i knew that she had graduated from tech a few years back and then had spent time in bosnia, but i wasn't too sure what she had been up to since returning to the states. it turns out that two years ago she moved to gwinnett county and started teaching high school. so, there she was, at a starbucks three minutes from her house grading papers when i walked in for a drink that apparently no longer existed. yay, God!

after one of the best hugs ever, i sat down with her and we caught up on things. we got to talking about church, which was fun b/c there are lots of interesting churches up here, and she invited me to a small group that will start meeting this week at her house. this is exactly what i've been looking for. so, this week i'll be checking that out, and i couldn't be more excited about it.

at school i'm definitely still adjusting. about half of my pop culture knowledge is useless now. very few of my kids listen to rap or hip hop regularly. it honestly makes me sad, however, my new students are helping me out. on friday two kids asking to play some music of theirs for the class off of their ipods, and i agreed to it. one kid played beethoven's fifth symphony that had been remixed with techno (not too sure how i feel about that...) and the other put on the song "peanut butter jelly time," but the hardcore screamo version, which was hysterical.

so, i'm learning. adjusting. and always seeking God and ways to connect to the kingdom.

there's more, but if i don't stop typing soon, adam might start throwing books at me b/c he's been waiting for me to say i'm ready to go to church.... later, kids.

one month in

so i've lived in flowery branch for just over a month now. i'd say i'm pretty settled in with the exception of a few random things i have yet to hang or hide in a closet.

i've experienced a pretty significant culture shock. i'm reminded of the first time i visited my friend, josh goleman, in his hometown in oklahoma. i just remember wondering if there were any black people.

there weren't.

and so i'm faced with that strange fact again. only, this time, i'm living in a place that is culturally different from savannah. there is a mix up here of white and hispanic, but it's quite different from what i'm used to. the hispanic kids apparently don't learn the names of their teachers. they call me "miss" and that's it. it really bothers me, so i'm forcing them to add my name into the phrase. i've done my best to explain that it's a respect issue. i figure if i'm going to take the time to learn all of their names, they should be able to handle remembering mine.

my new school is quite different from windsor. i take that back. it's actually a lot like windsor, but not windsor in 2008. more like windsor in 1998. west hall is very much a family atmosphere, and it's such a blessing. i feel welcomed and instantly trusted by the adults in the building, and the kids are great. despite the green grass i'm enjoying at the moment, i can't help but miss windsor and my kids from the past five years. i know that as long as i live i will always love the time i spent in savannah.

i was reluctant to look for a church. finding a church has got to be one of the hardest things. i spent four years of college never really finding a church home. in the last few weeks i've attended mass, which was very interesting, a baptist church, and a christian church. i'm beyond blessed to say that after just one month, i believe i've found a home church. it's called browns bridge community church. it is a satellite location for north point community church up in alpharetta. andy stanley is the pastor. i've heard andy speak on two occassions and loved him. i checked out bbcc this past sunday and really like it. i hope to get involved shortly with a small group. i really need to find community up here - and soon. i struggle some with lonliness, but i know that will change with time as long as i pursue community.

i chose the title of the blog b/c a lot of things are changing for me, and i anticipate that they will continue to change over the next few years. i am learning to be away from home again, only completely on my own this time. i recently became an aunt, so that's new and exciting. i hope that a year from now i can say that i've been to africa. i'm hoping that God reveals himself to me in new ways. i need Him more now than ever. i trusted him enough to make this move. so now i'm trusting he will show me what's next. i just felt God say "go" so here i am. if you feel the urge to come visit, holla.

and i'm back

ok. so i used to blog on here. it's been a while. i miss it though, so i thought i'd return. i'm not quite ready to enter an actual blog, but for now, here is my old one if you'd like to get an idea of who/where i was two years ago...
www.laurasuereagan.blogspot.com