bon voyage!

to Canada!
happy independence day America.

climbing brick walls

finished The Last Lecture last night. I truly admire Randy Pausch.
some good quotes:

"experience is what you get when you didn't get what you wanted."

"brick walls are there for a reason. they give us a chance to show how badly we want something."

"time is finite...[it] must be explicitly managed, like money."

"we cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand."

the last one really hit home for me. lately, I've been battling this whole "finding peace in where you are" type of deal. sometimes, it's really hard to be one hundred percent content with where you are in life. but this book helped to remind me that I have the choice to steer my life positively or negatively, depending on how I think and act with the cards I've been dealt. it's a pretty obvious concept, but we're all human, and we can all use a little reminder once in a while. especially me. I've really got to start climbing the brick walls that are set out for me. all this time, I've been too lazy.

today as I was browsing through Borders, I came across a book called 1000 Books to Read Before You Die. now that caught my attention. flipping through the pages, there were books I had already read, books that I will probably never read in my lifetime, and books that I wrote down on my list to read in the future. one of the books I put on my list is The Life of Pi by Yann Martel. after TLL, I felt an urge to read something with some adventure. so I picked up Martel's work. it will serve as book #3.

in my QT series, we are finally finishing jeremiah and venturing into hebrews. I am seriously so happy. jeremiah was great and all, but it just felt very...repetitive. I love hebrews.

I have yet to bake or cook anything. but the time will come soon. hopefully.

heavy boots

just finished EL&IC. I probably shouldn't have stayed up so late, because my dad wants to watch the game in five hours. but it was definitely an interesting read. filled my mind with a great many thoughts. on to the next...perchance The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch.

I decided to paint my nails and toes. toes are so much easier to paint. after messing up a great deal on my fingernails, I realized why people often go to nail salons. they are made for people like me, who do not hold much patience or perseverance for nail painting. and it doesn't help that dark colors are a pain to erase.

I can't seem to decide whether or not I like certain people. it's a weird dilemma.

who invented post-its? what a great invention.

one thing I really enjoy: bike riding in peaceful, pretty places.
another thing: worshiping Him when I'm all alone. I really should do it more often. get back into the groove.
and yet another: the gyro at olive pit.

I.must.watch.inception.july.16.please.be.good.

time is continuing to escape me. it's almost July already.

excited for Canada!

as of late

I'm extremely pleased with my grades this quarter.
project remodel-my-room is 90% complete, and I am loving the way it's turning out.
ikea is genius in a commercialized form.
I have found peace in not knowing.
nonchalance has become one of my favorite emotions. good or bad?
I've been involved in a love affair with coldplay.
I'm turning more and more into my mom everyday.
it takes me a long time to fall asleep. normal?
just started Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close--book one of my summer reading list.
toy story 3 exceeded my expectations.
love. patience. when?
time is a fickle pickle.
and He just keeps moving me along.

tickle my fancy

I have spent the last three hours looking at beautiful, creative bookshelves.
I've been dying to buy a new one for my room.
here are my faves:









so this last one I really love. it's called a staircase bookshelf, or the "secret staircase."
who would have thought to create stairs within a bookcase? genius!

I can't wait to have a library of my own...

striving after wind

"so I hated life, because what is done under the sun was grievous to me, for all is vanity and a striving of wind."
-ecclesiastes 2:17

as I look back on the past year, all I can say is
"my, how things have changed."