Jenn's Zen

Where to begin?  First, I suppose I should admit that I only saw two movies in the theater last year. They were Sex in the City and Horton Hears a Who.  “Sex” was a girls night out event and “Horton” was part of a great Saturday (previously blogged).  Each year when Oscar nominations are announced I feel a sudden urge to go out and try to round up as many movie tickets and DVDs as possible to watch in the weeks between the nominations and the awards.  This rarely works.  This year I almost saw Anne Hathaway’s performance, well, maybe almost is too much.  Friends and I discussed seeing it, but ended up missing it’s re-release.  I have felt completely and totally out of the loop because I haven’t seen Slumdog Millionaire.  In one of the post-Oscar articles I read today it said that the film was going to be re-released.  So, maybe I’ll catch it there.  If I don’t, I already added it to our (ever growing, over 300 titles) Netflix list.  In addition I also added these:

• Encounter at the end of the World
• The Garden
• The Betrayal
• Man on Wire
• Trouble the Water
• Pineapple Express
• The Reader
• Tropic Thunder
• Doubt
• Milk
• Seven Minutes
• Frost/Nixon
• Secret Life of Bees (I have to read the book first)
• Revolutionary Road
• Frozen River
• The Visitor
• Australia
• Ironman
• Defiance
• The Class
• Revanche

(more…)

This started on Facebook and then I thought it would be fun to post it here as well.

1. I started Kindergarten when I was four years old. By high school I was the youngest in the class.

2. I have lived in in 18 different homes, in 10 different towns, in different four states.

3. Except for a school year in Missouri, I’ve always lived in states that border an ocean.

4. My leg (femur) was broken in a car accident when I was in 2nd grade. I was in the hospital for a month, at home in a body cast for a month and then at home on crutches for another month.

5. In 8th grade I had the chance to go to the Jackson Five Victory tour in Vancouver, BC (for free) and didn’t because I didn’t think it would be a very Christian thing to do. I’m STILL kicking myself for not going. Not cuz I’m a Michael Jackson fan, cuz I’m not, but I really think it would’ve been an incredible thing to see.

6. I traveled to Baja Mexico for a mission trip the summer before my sophomore year of high school. It forever changed how I view what I *need*.

7. Even though I was a band geek (flute) I was voted to be a cheerleader as well.

8. I started playing the flute in 5th grade band. I played until my early 20s and haven’t played since. Growing up I was often in vocal choirs. I haven’t in the past seven years and I miss it.

9. I attended an all women’s college (Cottey College, Nevada MO) for one school year.

10. In a children’s theater production at Cottey I played Rabbit in Winnie the Pooh.

11. During my second year of college I managed the 99 cent theater in town. I learned how to splice film together and run a cinema grade projector.

12. Because of the above mentioned job I have listened to the Rocky Horror Picture Show more times than I care to count.

13. I married my high school sweet heart. And we are still happily married!!!

14. For our tenth anniversary we celebrated with a trip to Hawaii, a new diamond for me and a house (in NC). We will have a difficult time topping that in the future.

15. We had the name Emily picked out since the early 1990s. There are a few people who may actually remember. I was very distressed when Alex Trebeck named his daughter Emily in the early 90s.

16. Until I witnessed a friend give birth I was convinced I would not be able to do it.

17. If I were to go back to college it would be to get my RN and masters for mid-wifery.

18. My dream car for years was a Volvo wagon. I’ve driven one for the last seven years.

19. I have eaten crepes at the base of the Eiffel Tower.

20. My number one goal as a parent is to raise a child who can give and receive love in healthy ways.

21. My favorite Disney princess is Belle (because she reads alot)

22. At Starbucks I order a tall, non-fat mocha, no whip.

23. If I could live anywhere it would be the Oregon Coast.

24. My favorite color is the darkest of navy blue.

25. I’ve decided that high thread count sheets, massages, psycho therapy and good hair cuts are worth the expense.

Ah the pressure, however self-inflicted… Each year for the last few I’ve had a word for the year. It has been a kind of touch stone for that particular year. I can’t seem to find the right word for 2009. Maybe it’ll come to me further into the year. Possible choices that have come to mind thus far are clarity or strength.

Past words:

• 2006 Peace
• 2007 Balance
• 2008 Breathe

Suggestions?

It has been pointed out to me that in my previous post I didn’t thank God for my husband. Does that mean I take our relationship for granted? Hardly. Several years ago we hit a marital wall and one of the things I learned then was to be sure not to take our relationship for granted. It’s almost as if our marriage is in it’s own separate category. To add it to the list of things below would somehow diminish all that it really is.

These thoughts have been rambling through my head since I made that post. Jeremy had surgery a couple weeks ago and in the first few hours of that experience and into the coming days these thoughts came together. Thus, a convergence of thought.

• I am thankful for a vital husband who is extremely capable and talented
• It makes me smile that even through his pain (emotional or physical) he still tries to make me laugh and often succeeds
• During the first hours and days of his recovery I helped him get dressed, socks, shirts the whole bit. It occurred to me how grateful I was that this wasn’t our normal. That he will get better and he’ll be able to care personally for himself. I was happy to do it, don’t get me wrong, but I was glad that it was temporary and not a Christopher Reeve situation.
• At one time I would have said we are lucky. These days can’t say I really believe in luck so much (check back if we ever win the lottery). I know that we both work hard at our relationship and I know we are both committed to it.
• I am thrilled to be with someone that I would be attracted to and desire to be with even if I met him for the first time today.
• It’s interesting to note that we’ve known each other for 20 years and yet I learned just a few weeks ago that he likes Laffy Taffy. who knew?! I can’t help but wonder what else I’ll learn in the coming years.

I do thank God for my husband and our marriage. I don’t take it for granted. It is something so precious and so dear that it is difficult for me to put into black and white words on a page. It feels as though the words limit what it is.

So, there it is. Some people might say we are lucky to have been together for 20 years (married for 17), and I suppose in some ways we are, but the two of us know the hard work and committment it has taken and will continue to take. Here’s to 18 years in 2009!

Every night (that I’m home, which is most nights) I pray with Emily.  She has a prayer she says, one that my mom taught her.  The second part of the prayer starts with the “God-blesses” we “God Bless” everyone on our list, then we do the “Thank you Gods” as we have come to call them.  It’s a different list each night, but there are several repeats.  My point in teaching her to pray this way is to teach her to pray for others and also to be thankful.  She’ll learn the asking part in due time, and frankly I don’t have that part down so I have left it out for now.

A few weeks ago in church we discussed various things about being thankful.  One option was to list our thanks physically on a huge piece of craft paper taped to a table.  We made a list very similar to the one we come up with each night.  Ever since then I’ve been even more conscientious (really don’t know how to spell that word) about thinking what I’m thankful for.  Here goes:

• a safe reliable car to drive
• warm clothes to wear
• a heated nice house to live in
• enough food
• a computer
• access to healthcare
• a healthy body and access to a fabulous gym
• amazing friends
• sound financial advice
• working appliances
• a cozy warm bed to sleep in
• running water and toilets that flush
• a happy healthy child

Life has been stressful and it will continue to be so.  By continuing to be thankful I feel like I am being taken care of and that my glass is (at least) half full.

Thank you!

I voted for Barack Obama because:

• he has a timeline to get American soldiers out of Iraq
• his insurance plan won’t cost me any more money than my current plan
• he’s offering additional tax relief for the middle class

AND

• Sara Palin’s ignorance about the world, and possible new policies regarding guns and abortion scares the pee outa me

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Pastor Fred posted this fun visual test and JD and I just spent the last hour taking all the tests. So, that’s what we’ve been up to today. It’s a hang out day, the little girl is still in her cozies. We have a date tonight, the glamming up will start soon.

As I was getting dressed today I noticed my clothing:

• Levi’s jeans
• t-shirt from Hard Rock Café (Maui, yes, I really went there)
• bra from Vera Wang
• undies from Gap Body
• and sweater from Abercrombie and Fitch

I’m not a label girl, really I’m not. I buy what I like and what fits and only pay what I want to pay. The jeans are the $20 variety from Target, the t-shirt was a tourist purchase almost 7 years ago, the bra was less than $20, the undies were on sale I’m sure of it, probably 3/$10 or some such thing. The sweater is of course the gem from our recent Goodwill outing. All could have been made in China, so possibly not so very American after all.

With a visit from out of town family scheduled for later this week I thought it a good idea to clean out the car today. We (E was a fabulous helper) sorted the trash from the treasures.  Then the trash was sorted recyclable and true trash.  We tossed stinky smoothie cups, languished over the beauty of a black straw and pulled the booster seat out.  I held the booster upside down and a fine mist of crumbs and glitter hit the driveway.  Then I delved into the little girl’s booster cup holder.  There I found the following objects:

• a perfect shell no bigger than my thumbnail
• a nickel
• a straw wrapper
• three strands of short yarn
• several misc. stickers
• two sequins of different shape and color

The car is now clear, and the seat put back in, however I think the vacuuming will have to wait for tomorrow.  Let’s hear it for sunny weather!

This entry inspired by LCB  and her posts about what she finds in her sons pockets.

Since the beginning of the year this is what I’ve been reading.

When You Eat at the Refrigerator, Pull up a Chair by Geneen Roth : I found this author in Good Housekeeping magazine. She is a regular columnist for them now. My plan is to read more of her books as they become available at the library. Many of her insights were eye-opening, light bulb type moments for me. I found myself wondering how she knew exactly what I was thinking.

Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson: This book came up at Amazon under one of those “if you liked this, you may like this”. It was very entertaining both about his travels and adventures and also very insightful as to the way people in the areas of Pakistan and Afghanistan live. I feel like a more informed person having read the book.

Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert: The author was on Oprah and I realized while watching the show that apparently I was one of the only people left on the planet who hadn’t read this book. Since then I’ve discovered that I’m not. I gave the book to several of my friends for Christmas and I currently have my copy out on loan. Ms. Gilbert has a very entertaining style of writing. It’s cliche to say “I laughed, I cried”, but really, I did!

She’s Come Undone by Wally Lamb: My mother-in-law left this book here after her last visit. She said that it was very good and that I would enjoy it. She was right! It took me a probably a third of the way into it to really get into it, but it’s an enjoyable story. I didn’t find it as funny as one of the critics from People magazine (quoted on the back cover) but I also would recommend it to others.

Plum Lucky by Janet Evanovich: Pure brain candy!!! One of my dear sweet friends is to blame for getting me hooked on this series last year. I’m eagerly anticipating #14 in the series, however this “between the numbers” book was released first. The between the numbers books are glorified short stories in my opinion. Good none-the-less, but almost not worth publishing into a real book. It was enough to tie me over until the next “real” release. One of these days I truly hope Ms. Evanovich is given an offer she can’t refuse to bring these fantastic characters to screen, big or little, it would be a treat for us all.

Next in the pile:

• The Pilot’s Wife
• a few of Sheldon Siegel’s books
• whatever I can get by Geneen Roth from the library