So, I'm sitting in a hotel Starbucks in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Why am I in Michigan you may ask? To receive database training from the database creator of Good Works, the donor management program my organization uses. I know....fun AND exciting.
Anyway, I'm probably just grumpy because:
a. My coffee is still to hot to drink
b. I didn't get any sleep last night because my body rebelled against my trying to convince
it it was really 11:00 and time to go to sleep, and not 9:00 and time to cuddle and watch South Park with the husband and the kitty.
c. I burned my wrist on my hair straightener this morning, right on the spot where it rests
on my laptop when I type so each syllable is a painful act of will
d. I question the point in blogging because I haven't done so since October, meaning no one
most likely read this.
e. This blog editor doesn't do all the cool Microsoft automatic format editing I've come to
love so much, so I can't indent the way I want to and I keep hitting the tab key which annoyingly goes to the next link instead of doing what I want it to do.
All that aside, as I sit here this morning 5:00am Pacific time, waiting for my coffee to cool and preparing for a stimulating day of database discussions, I've decided that Oregon is better than Michigan. Indisputably.
Now for the reasons why.....
1. It's frikin' cold here! I mean really cold. The cold where it's snowing but not really and the flakes are super small becuase it's too cold for it to actually snow with the big soft flakes that I really like. It just makes everything gray and depressing. Not to mention that now that Christmas has passed, snow is just overrated anyway.
2. The yogurt sucks. I realize now how much I've taken Tillamook for granted. Wonderful...beautiful....smooth....delicioius Tillamook dairy products. What I wouldn't do for a slice of pepper jack...for a cup of the Cherry Vanilla Yogurt. My mouth is watering just typing about it. Instead, I'm stuck with this Dannon fruit on the bottom crap. It's completely flavorless and actually kind of gritty. It reminds me of the slop they dispense in the first Matrix movie where they have the discussion on how the robots could've known how to make things taste like. For the love of humanity, I hope they didn't make anything tast like Dannon Fruit on the bottom Strawberry yogurt.
3. Internet connection. In Portland, pretty much every coffee shop has free high speed wireless. Here...you have to go hunting....and then it's still not that great. I finally gave up on trying to go through my Outlook mailbox this morning because it was taking too long. I receive an ungodly amount of Spam email every day advertisting mostly Viagra and penis growth supplements (i know...lucky me), so I have to spend the first half hour of every morning sorting through my mailbox and deleting the 50-150 I've received overnight. Nothing's more embarassing than your computer freezing on an email with the word "cock" in it while you're sitting in a Starbucks hoping no one will notice your screen and praying that your co-workers don't come in to see what you're working on.
I'm sure there's more, but unfortunately, it's time to head out for the day. Can't wait to come home.
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Monday, October 8, 2007
The One Where We Were Married
OK, so.....the past month has pretty much been insane!
Brian and I were married September 30th, left for Maui on October 2nd, came back on the 6th, were home for a couple of days, and then
took off again for a business trip I had with my work (that'll be another blog soon) for a whole week. We've been back for a week now, and it's so good to be home!
It's funny....people keep asking us what it's like to be married, but the thing is, neither of us really feel like we've been experiencing married life because we spent 75% of the first month of our marriage off the main land. It doesn't seem like we'll really experience that until we've been home for a while and start to learn how to live with one another...the proverbial "end of the honeymoon."
Note: I don't mean that in a bad way at all! It's just part of the process of realizing how self-centered we are, being wi
lling to let go of the little things, and loving each other unconditionally even in the face of differences. Even tiny differences....I.E. I like five million blankets on me while I sleep, Brian goes with one to zero. I'm a "clean up as you go" dinner maker, Brian's a "do the dishes after you've finished eating" dinner maker. It takes me anywhere from 1/2 hour to an hour to get ready in the morning, it takes Brian a solid five minutes. It's just all those things we couldn't have learned about each other just from dating.
On the other hand, we've been having a blast! I've basically been with the man 24/7 for the past month, and I still can't get enough of him. It's been awesome to be able to travel together, to put our house together, and best of all, no going to bed alone at night. That is probably the single handily most common thing I hear f
rom young Christian married couples....and it's sooo true. There's nothing better than going to sleep next to the person you love and waking up to them again the next morning.
No more late nights where we're both exhausted but stay out for a couple more hours just to be together. No more "accidentally" falling asleep on the couch during a movie, then waking up and having to drive home at 3:00 in the morning. No more saying "goodbye" followed by going home. Seriously.....it's the best thing ever!
All in all, this is without a doubt the best/scariest/most exciting thing that could've possibly happened to us. We have so much more to learn about each
other, and we have our entire lives to figure out how to love eachother well. Brian is amazing and I could not have married a better man. His selflessness and passionate love astound me every day. I am truly blessed.
**You can see more pictures from the honeymoon and wedding at www.myspace.com/krittymack
Brian and I were married September 30th, left for Maui on October 2nd, came back on the 6th, were home for a couple of days, and then
took off again for a business trip I had with my work (that'll be another blog soon) for a whole week. We've been back for a week now, and it's so good to be home!It's funny....people keep asking us what it's like to be married, but the thing is, neither of us really feel like we've been experiencing married life because we spent 75% of the first month of our marriage off the main land. It doesn't seem like we'll really experience that until we've been home for a while and start to learn how to live with one another...the proverbial "end of the honeymoon."
Note: I don't mean that in a bad way at all! It's just part of the process of realizing how self-centered we are, being wi
lling to let go of the little things, and loving each other unconditionally even in the face of differences. Even tiny differences....I.E. I like five million blankets on me while I sleep, Brian goes with one to zero. I'm a "clean up as you go" dinner maker, Brian's a "do the dishes after you've finished eating" dinner maker. It takes me anywhere from 1/2 hour to an hour to get ready in the morning, it takes Brian a solid five minutes. It's just all those things we couldn't have learned about each other just from dating.On the other hand, we've been having a blast! I've basically been with the man 24/7 for the past month, and I still can't get enough of him. It's been awesome to be able to travel together, to put our house together, and best of all, no going to bed alone at night. That is probably the single handily most common thing I hear f
rom young Christian married couples....and it's sooo true. There's nothing better than going to sleep next to the person you love and waking up to them again the next morning.No more late nights where we're both exhausted but stay out for a couple more hours just to be together. No more "accidentally" falling asleep on the couch during a movie, then waking up and having to drive home at 3:00 in the morning. No more saying "goodbye" followed by going home. Seriously.....it's the best thing ever!
All in all, this is without a doubt the best/scariest/most exciting thing that could've possibly happened to us. We have so much more to learn about each
other, and we have our entire lives to figure out how to love eachother well. Brian is amazing and I could not have married a better man. His selflessness and passionate love astound me every day. I am truly blessed.
**You can see more pictures from the honeymoon and wedding at www.myspace.com/krittymack
Monday, September 17, 2007
The Pirate Movie
Saturday night, Joel and Katie came over to hang out with Brian and I at our new place. We decided to watch a 
movie and were perusing through the free on-demand movies, and came across probably the most horribly amazing musical of all time....The Pirate Movie.
Apparently it's loosely based on the comic opera, The Pirates of Penzance, and was extremely entertaining with 80's dance numbers, corny songs with unbelievably trite lyrics ("Give me a happy ending, every time. We'll kiss and make up, that's a very peaceful sign. "), and more than enough slightly inappropriate,
not really subtle innuendos, made by Ted Hamilton, the Pirate King, otherwise known as the old guy with the tight pants and the bedazzled....well....his man region had jewels all over it. I'm not kidding....it was like a train wreck. So awful but you can't stop looking. See what I mean?
The movie was nominated for a good number of awards...which thanks to Wikipedia and IMDB, I've listed below:
AFI Awards
Nominated: Best Achievement in Costume Design (Aphrodite Kondos)
Nominated: Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Garry McDonald)
Golden Raspberry Awards
Won: Worst Musical Score
Won: Worst Director (Ken Annakin)
Won: Worst "Original" Song (Pumpin' and Blowin')
Nominated: Worst Picture
Nominated: Worst Screenplay
Nominated: Worst Actor (Christopher Atkins)
Nominated: Worst Actress (Kristy McNichol)
Nominated: Worst Supporting Actor (Ted Hamilton)
Nominated: Worst "Original" Song (Happy Endings)
All in all, if you love mullets, pirates, the 80's, or just poorly written, directed, produced and even more poorly acted films, this is the movie for you!!!
Here is a clip for your enjoyment and convenience:
You can find everything you'd like to know about the pirate movie (including the full script) at
http://www.geocities.com/smac75/index.html
Enjoy!
-Kristy
movie and were perusing through the free on-demand movies, and came across probably the most horribly amazing musical of all time....The Pirate Movie.Apparently it's loosely based on the comic opera, The Pirates of Penzance, and was extremely entertaining with 80's dance numbers, corny songs with unbelievably trite lyrics ("Give me a happy ending, every time. We'll kiss and make up, that's a very peaceful sign. "), and more than enough slightly inappropriate,
not really subtle innuendos, made by Ted Hamilton, the Pirate King, otherwise known as the old guy with the tight pants and the bedazzled....well....his man region had jewels all over it. I'm not kidding....it was like a train wreck. So awful but you can't stop looking. See what I mean?The movie was nominated for a good number of awards...which thanks to Wikipedia and IMDB, I've listed below:
AFI Awards
Nominated: Best Achievement in Costume Design (Aphrodite Kondos)
Nominated: Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Garry McDonald)
Golden Raspberry Awards
Won: Worst Musical Score
Won: Worst Director (Ken Annakin)
Won: Worst "Original" Song (Pumpin' and Blowin')
Nominated: Worst Picture
Nominated: Worst Screenplay
Nominated: Worst Actor (Christopher Atkins)
Nominated: Worst Actress (Kristy McNichol)
Nominated: Worst Supporting Actor (Ted Hamilton)
Nominated: Worst "Original" Song (Happy Endings)
All in all, if you love mullets, pirates, the 80's, or just poorly written, directed, produced and even more poorly acted films, this is the movie for you!!!
Here is a clip for your enjoyment and convenience:
You can find everything you'd like to know about the pirate movie (including the full script) at
http://www.geocities.com/smac75/index.html
Enjoy!
-Kristy
Friday, September 14, 2007
DEMAND.
Ok, so as stressful as my job is, there are some pretty awesome things going on right now.
For those of you that don't know, I work at Shared Hope International, a non-profit organization located in Vancouver, WA. We deal with sex trafficking victims and modern day slavery, and are working toward the complete eradication of the sexual exploitation of women and children all over the world. You can check it out at: http://www.sharedhope.org/
As exciting as that sounds, my job isn't very glamorous. I'm the development manager, which means I deal with fundraising, events, donor relationships, local speaking engagements, foundation research.....let's just say I wear a lot of hats around here. And if you heard me talk about what I do all day for more than 10 minutes, you'd probably be severely bored (I apologize to anyone I have subjected to more than 10 minutes of my work talk).
ANYWAY...the exciting thing is that we've been working on a report and documentary for the past two years on the trafficking markets around the world. It takes a look at 4 different countries and six different cities and shows underground footage of the sex trade. It's pretty intense, and very informative.
The name of the report and the documentary is DEMAND. The point is, sex trafficking works like any other business. It's fueled by the demand of the buyers. If there were no Buyer, there wouldn't be a Seller, and then there wouldn't be a Victim.
Probably the most shocking discovery is that the majority of trafficking victims in the United States are....Americans. Not foreigners like most people assume. That means that hundreds of American girls (Yes girls. Not women. Most girls are teenagers when they are introduced to prostitution. 1 out of 5 pornographic images on the internet is of a child. You can find more statistics on the website as well) are being prostituted and pimped in our own backyard.
The Documentary is 45 minutes long and is a bit graphic, but there is also a 16 minute version available in english, dutch, and japanese that cuts out the more explicit stuff (better for church groups, etc). You can watch the entire full length or the shorter version at: http://www.enddemand.org/
Do yourself a favor and check it out!
If you have any Q's or want to talk more about what my organization does, I'd love to chat about it. Feel free to email me at work: kristy@sharedhope.org
Once you watch the video, send me your thoughts!
-Kristy
For those of you that don't know, I work at Shared Hope International, a non-profit organization located in Vancouver, WA. We deal with sex trafficking victims and modern day slavery, and are working toward the complete eradication of the sexual exploitation of women and children all over the world. You can check it out at: http://www.sharedhope.org/
As exciting as that sounds, my job isn't very glamorous. I'm the development manager, which means I deal with fundraising, events, donor relationships, local speaking engagements, foundation research.....let's just say I wear a lot of hats around here. And if you heard me talk about what I do all day for more than 10 minutes, you'd probably be severely bored (I apologize to anyone I have subjected to more than 10 minutes of my work talk).
ANYWAY...the exciting thing is that we've been working on a report and documentary for the past two years on the trafficking markets around the world. It takes a look at 4 different countries and six different cities and shows underground footage of the sex trade. It's pretty intense, and very informative.
The name of the report and the documentary is DEMAND. The point is, sex trafficking works like any other business. It's fueled by the demand of the buyers. If there were no Buyer, there wouldn't be a Seller, and then there wouldn't be a Victim.
Probably the most shocking discovery is that the majority of trafficking victims in the United States are....Americans. Not foreigners like most people assume. That means that hundreds of American girls (Yes girls. Not women. Most girls are teenagers when they are introduced to prostitution. 1 out of 5 pornographic images on the internet is of a child. You can find more statistics on the website as well) are being prostituted and pimped in our own backyard.
The Documentary is 45 minutes long and is a bit graphic, but there is also a 16 minute version available in english, dutch, and japanese that cuts out the more explicit stuff (better for church groups, etc). You can watch the entire full length or the shorter version at: http://www.enddemand.org/
Do yourself a favor and check it out!
If you have any Q's or want to talk more about what my organization does, I'd love to chat about it. Feel free to email me at work: kristy@sharedhope.org
Once you watch the video, send me your thoughts!
-Kristy
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Apathy, Marriage, and the Grace of God
I am 17 days away from the wedding and nothing else matters.
No really....it doesn't.
I'm having a hard time caring about much these days. You married folks can probably attest to this: When you've been planning and stressing over one day for 6 months and that one day is just over two weeks away...well...everything else just seems to fade into the background.
Work especially...I mean, look at me! I'm at work blogging about being apathetic about work when I should be working. Meh.
On a different note: How weird is marriage? Seriously.
Brian were talking about this the other day while we were driving in the truck. I've known Brian for a total of maybe 2 years, and we've only really been friends for a year and a half.....and now I'm suddenly deciding to spend the rest of my life with him? I mean, who is this guy? We're like total strangers and I'm willingly committing myself to him and entering into an unbreakable covenant before God and everyone I know that's important to me. Gah! And how the heck can he think it's a good idea to commit himself to me? I'm all sorts of crazy!
*excuse me for a moment while I hyperventilate....where's that damn paper bag?*
Phew! I'm ok now.
Don't get me wrong...I fully believe that Brian is the one for me and that there will never be another, and I have never questioned his love for me...it's just I know how little we fully grasp the weight of what we'll be doing in 17 short days. How can we? We have no idea what we're getting ourselves into.
Which brings me to my final point: It's a good thing we believe in a God that's bigger than whatever mess we can make for ourselves. I feel like I have to say this out loud or write it down to remind myself that it's true: He's bigger than our selfishness, bigger than any fight we might have, bigger than any misunderstanding, bigger than any illness or tragedy we might have to face, and ultimately, big enough to help us goobers blunder our way through a lifetime of loving each other, raising a family, and doing whatever it is we choose to do with the rest of our lives together.
Ok, I really do have to work now.
*grumble grumble*
-Kristy
No really....it doesn't.
I'm having a hard time caring about much these days. You married folks can probably attest to this: When you've been planning and stressing over one day for 6 months and that one day is just over two weeks away...well...everything else just seems to fade into the background.
Work especially...I mean, look at me! I'm at work blogging about being apathetic about work when I should be working. Meh.
On a different note: How weird is marriage? Seriously.
Brian were talking about this the other day while we were driving in the truck. I've known Brian for a total of maybe 2 years, and we've only really been friends for a year and a half.....and now I'm suddenly deciding to spend the rest of my life with him? I mean, who is this guy? We're like total strangers and I'm willingly committing myself to him and entering into an unbreakable covenant before God and everyone I know that's important to me. Gah! And how the heck can he think it's a good idea to commit himself to me? I'm all sorts of crazy!
*excuse me for a moment while I hyperventilate....where's that damn paper bag?*
Phew! I'm ok now.
Don't get me wrong...I fully believe that Brian is the one for me and that there will never be another, and I have never questioned his love for me...it's just I know how little we fully grasp the weight of what we'll be doing in 17 short days. How can we? We have no idea what we're getting ourselves into.
Which brings me to my final point: It's a good thing we believe in a God that's bigger than whatever mess we can make for ourselves. I feel like I have to say this out loud or write it down to remind myself that it's true: He's bigger than our selfishness, bigger than any fight we might have, bigger than any misunderstanding, bigger than any illness or tragedy we might have to face, and ultimately, big enough to help us goobers blunder our way through a lifetime of loving each other, raising a family, and doing whatever it is we choose to do with the rest of our lives together.
Ok, I really do have to work now.
*grumble grumble*
-Kristy
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Beginnings and Endings
Sunday night was Joel and Scott's birthday, and the crew went over to the Chase house to celebrate with Cheesecake, presents, ice cream, and glorious decaffeinated coffee.
Joel and Scott proceeded to convince me that blogging was the best thing ever, and that I would totally be missing out if I didn't join their world. Stef had a point, I'm not quite sure what I'll write about (I woke up at 6:15am this morning. I was tired. I hit the snooze button. I finally got up at 6:30. I took a shower and made coffee......), or who will have time to read it, but if nothing else, it gives me a reason to read something more interesting than emails at work.
It was a good night, but slightly depressing considering the impending and inevitable tragedy of friends moving away. It's really sad actually. Brian and I started dating right around the time Scott and Stef, and Joel and Katie got married, and we've been missing out on the whole married couple hanging out thing. Now that Brian and I are getting married in less than a month, the group's getting split up. *sigh*
Relationships are frustrating...and beautiful. They're so fluid and unpredictable. You invest and pour into one another, never knowing which ones will stick around and which will fade over time. It's always a gamble. Not that I think our friendships will fade (We all know that with Joel and Brian that is simply not an option), but it does make me sad that there never seems to enough time to go as deep as you want. Even if we were all staying in the same city, there wouldn't be enough time. Never the less, I am extrememly stoked for the success of my friends, but saddened that they'll be in a different state instead of just a different side of the city.
I'm gonna miss you guys...truly.
-Kristy
Joel and Scott proceeded to convince me that blogging was the best thing ever, and that I would totally be missing out if I didn't join their world. Stef had a point, I'm not quite sure what I'll write about (I woke up at 6:15am this morning. I was tired. I hit the snooze button. I finally got up at 6:30. I took a shower and made coffee......), or who will have time to read it, but if nothing else, it gives me a reason to read something more interesting than emails at work.
It was a good night, but slightly depressing considering the impending and inevitable tragedy of friends moving away. It's really sad actually. Brian and I started dating right around the time Scott and Stef, and Joel and Katie got married, and we've been missing out on the whole married couple hanging out thing. Now that Brian and I are getting married in less than a month, the group's getting split up. *sigh*
Relationships are frustrating...and beautiful. They're so fluid and unpredictable. You invest and pour into one another, never knowing which ones will stick around and which will fade over time. It's always a gamble. Not that I think our friendships will fade (We all know that with Joel and Brian that is simply not an option), but it does make me sad that there never seems to enough time to go as deep as you want. Even if we were all staying in the same city, there wouldn't be enough time. Never the less, I am extrememly stoked for the success of my friends, but saddened that they'll be in a different state instead of just a different side of the city.
I'm gonna miss you guys...truly.
-Kristy
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