"During our work and other activities, during our reading--even our spiritual reading--and during our outward devotions and vocal prayers, we should stop for a brief instant as often as we can to adore God in the depths of our heart, taste his sweetness momentarily and, catching him as it were by surprise, praise him, ask him for help, offer him our heart, and thank him."

Hey! Hey! Drinkin' Monkeys!

Yesterday I went for Monkeys with my 1st year buddy.

::pausing to allow you to re-read that sentence::

Yes, you read it correctly. No, we weren't plotting a kidnapping scheme at the Nashville zoo, but rather enjoying a delicious banana hot chocolate, the signature menu item, at the Frothy Monkey. The Nash is full of coffee shop gems. Ever heard of the Nun Bun of Bongo Java? http://www.bongojava.com/nunbun.php Now you have! I also had my first of 1.5 celebrity close encounters at Fido: Ben Folds. I wasn't even sure it was him (later it was confirmed), and I wouldn't actually ever care to invite him to dinner should the opportunity present itself, but I was finally able to cross an important item off my Nashville bucket list. Oh, and the other .5 (because I know you are burning with curiosity) is almost a double whammy: Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban. They attend Sunday Mass regularly at the Cathedral of the Incarnation, but I have yet to sit on the correct side of the church to actually site the red carpet couple and their baby girl. I know they are there based others' eye witness accounts. In the spirit of the Mass we share: I believe without seeing!

I have totally digressed from the original intention of this post...

While sipping our monkeys we talked about how overwhelming grad school can be...how we know everything gets done even if it is a painful process. (I mean I'm in 19th grade and have yet to just flat out not turn in an assignment. We'll talk quality later...) We curved toward the subject of planner usage. Now, I do take the time about once a week to write everything down, but I'm not at all faithful to checking it every day. My buddy pointed out that maybe the act of writing it down is enough to help me remember. Now at least I feel a little bit better about wasting $20 on a new At-A-Glance this semester. Don't tell me I could have written it on a napkin to achieve the same end. I don't want to hear it.

Anyway, she said her college boyfriend used to tease her about the "ridiculous" book that she carried everywhere to scribble down each and every potential activity--a feat which on a college campus can lead to a blackened page. (Did you know that eating blackened aka charred anything--even salmon or some other healthy "meat"--is actually bad for you? Carcinogen alert! Learned that in class last week--and I need to get these asides under control...) He didn't understand why she needed it. He went to class, did his work, and went to Church. No need to outline something so straight forward in black and white (or blue as I prefer).

She went on to tell me that one day he presented her with an excel-made schedule detailing 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday-Saturday. In every single slot he had written:

LOVE GOD.

After a grandiose "AWWW! HOW SWEET!" I immediately felt the Holy Spirit's conviction.

When I'm tired of the bore-me-to-tears lectures, the early mornings, the recalcitrant patients and helicopter parents the world knows it and not because I'm uniting my sufferings to Christ's...

Fahj spoke the other day of how Jesus had to do boring, mundane things in his life automatically making any boring, mudane thing we must do AWESOME since God himself took part.

How can I love God more in the boring and the mundane?

Acts of faith. For without fidelity there is no True Love.

Dehydration + migraine was responsible for yesterday's gloom and doom.

Much better today. :)

Feeling a bit bogged down with everything. At least once a day I announce "I quit."

I quit school. I quit 4th year applications. I quit being a leader of any kind or having any responsibilities.

It does make me feel a little bit better. At least better enough to not quit.

At least until tomorrow.

The Agony is Partially Over

So I turned in the intent form today. #1 was listed as...

(please intiate drumroll on your desk)


Boys Town National Research Hospital! 

#2, #3 and #4 were all other top children's hospitals, but I don't really want to go to any of them so we'll pretend they don't exist.

Now starts the resume, cover letter, interview process. Stressful in the midst of Capstone, but exciting.

It make me teary-eyed to think of leaving the Nash, but it became clearer and clearer that I should leave despite my obnoxious self. Kelly and Frances are saints for living with me. I mean really.

In the words of Matt Knoff, Omaha will hopefully become Homaha. :)

Have to start the application process for externship year next Wednesday. Freaking out. Thought I knew what I wanted to do...what God me wanted to do.

Something's just not quite right.

Ice Cream and iTunes

Ever have those "my life is a movie" moments? Well, above is the title of mine.

Funny story...Kelly and I went to the grocery store. As we were leaving she looked at the black flip-flops upon my feet and declared, "Hey, those are mine." She pointed at the black flip-flops upon her own feet, "These are yours." So we switched right then and there in the parking lot.

You know you laughed.

Oh, recording is in the works but not at least for another month. So, you'll have to be patient.