Way Past Time for an Update!

I ended up starting the job at the call center. I've nearly completed the 10 weeks of training and should get a pay raise to $9/hr. next week. It's likely I'll have to fight them for it because the company seldom does things in a timely manner. I like the work sufficiently, but I will also begin looking for a different job shortly because of the low wages.

My current schedule is 2nd shift, from 2:30 to 11:30pm. Surprisingly, this works fairly well for me given my sleep disorder. My days off are Tuesdays and Saturdays-- I'm not sure how refreshing it is going to be having only one day off at a time, but it is rather nice to break up the work week into segments.

I really enjoy my co-workers although company policies and office politics are ridiculous at times. I actually ended up "adopting" a couple of co-workers who've been slammed around by life lately. They've been staying with me for about 7 weeks. Depending on how things go for them, that may continue into the new year. They are most certainly NOT freeloaders, but their situation is personal so I cannot go into detail here. I have helped them, but they have been a blessing to me as well, taking on some of my house projects & "upgrading" my car with maintenance and detailed cleaning. Some good things are beginning to happen for them, but other situations remain unresolved.


My other exciting piece of news is the purchase of an upright piano!!! It is used, but in great condition and will allow me to practice and improve my skills. It will be delivered tomorrow or on Tuesday. I can hardly wait!!! I dipped into my savings for it because it was available at a newly reduced price. It was in the store for quite some time and a previous purchase arrangement fell through-- I think God was saving it for me! ;-)

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

A Full Rich Day

I love the M*A*S*H TV series, and watch the DVDs far more often than any sane person should/would. This post title is taken from one episode of the series.

But, it has indeed been a full, rich day for me. (Or rather yesterday was-- I can't sleep and am taking advantage of my insomnia to write this, but I can't keep my tenses straight, so bear with me.)

I got to church this morning, which was great. Moved to tears by the very first worship song-- a fast-paced old hymn. I can't even say why, but it really got to me (in a good way). First message from the new senior pastor too. I'm looking forward to having him; apparently he'll start officially at the beginning of June (after leaving the church where he presently ministers and moving his family up to Kentucky). Yay! The long search and wait is over.

A good friend shared some personal information with me privately on Facebook; I was glad she opened up and honored to have been trusted.

My brother and sister-in-law are moving to a new apartment. Their new duplex neighbors are people they go to church with, and they won't have to commute any more. So awesome.

I did lots of cooking and baking as well: granola, crustless pumpkin pie, and a pseudo-Thanksgiving meal of turkey meatloaf, scallion mashed potatoes, and green beans. I had so much fun playing in the kitchen. I was singing at the top of my lungs and doing my private "funky chicken" and booty-shaking dances between chopping and measuring and stirring. It was gray & raining outside, so it was the perfect way to spend a drippy day: celebrating life, life, life-- and that more abundant! The giving thanks of my pseudo-Thanksgiving was real. ;-)


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

God's Love

I was reading from the book of Revelation tonight-- particularly the worship scene in heaven when the Lamb is found worthy to take and open the sealed scroll. I can't pretend I understand half of what follows. I don't think most Christians understand-- even if they tell themselves and others that they do.

I do know that God's love for His people is clear, and that is my security. That's where there's rest. And so, I am motivated to sing...

Great Song, Good Video

Some of the images are super, others are so-so at conveying the meaning of the song.

Art Exhibit Video

Someone at my brother's church made a video that scrapbooks their art exhibit from start to finish with a few credits at the end. My brother is the first "angel". The band you hear toward the end is The Welcome Wagon and the song is "But for you who fear my name"-- love it!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Birds

I seem to think about birds a lot. Even when I was very young, my mom recorded some words of mine in my baby book: "Hear the birds sing?"

There's a song by Jon Foreman of Switchfoot with these lyrics: "I look out the window / The birds are composing / Not a note is out of tune or out of place..." Of course, if one considers the raucous sounds of crows and seagulls, that poetic sentiment might be debatable. Still, I believe that creation points to and reflects the glory of God. I too want to join in His daily praise, magnifying Him for all He is and has done and what is yet to come. He deserves worship.

"From the rising of the sun
until the time that it goes down,
I will sing of the mercies of the Lord."

(Song lyrics inspired by Psalm 113:3)

Image sourceAs edited by wallpaper app Backgrounds:http://m.flickr.com/#/photos/tambako/2632386248/
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Converted Music

I had an mp3 player which I earned as an incentive prize from the library by completing a technology course designed for library staff. It worked just dandy for a good while but finally "died."

For that mp3 player, I had purchased music from Wal-Mart's online store. The music was "protected" because Wal-Mart was involved with DRM (digital rights management). Those restrictions ended, but I didn't make the adjustments to my music in time. (Wal-Mart sent an email reminder, but I misunderstood and disregarded it.)

The upshot is that I ended up with at least 60 songs I had paid for, but that I could only listen to on Windows Media Player when using my laptop-- which I rarely do these days; it's not convenient.

iTunes could neither play nor convert the songs from the wma format to mp3 files so no transfer to my iPod. Bummer. 60 songs = $60!

But it's been months, and I really got to missing those songs. They were by some of my favorite artists-- Third Day and Newsboys for example. I'd get one of the songs stuck in my head but then couldn't remember all of the lyrics without the prompting of actually listening. And the radio just doesn't play these songs often enough to suit me-- they concentrate on the current top 20.

There is free software that can convert wma files to mp3 files, but if the songs are protected, that software doesn't work.

After a little Googling, I discovered Tunebite. They let you download and try it free, but I did have to purchase the basic version. However, it was less than half the price of replacing the music. Additionally, the software will serve me well in converting voice memos, blogging, and maybe even podcasting in the future.

The idea behind Tunebite is that while you play the music using Windows Media, it's being recorded from your computer's sound card, so the recording is free of DRM restrictions and can be played by iTunes. And the sound quality is decent.

Yipee! Now I get to hear those songs and integrate them with my newer music. I've got a few more to convert today, then I'll be all set!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Another Great Song!

Singing in the Kitchen

I was cooking dinner (Baked Parmesan Salmon Loaf) and listening to K-LOVE and WJIE (whichever station was playing music instead of ads) when God used some song lyrics to remind me that He is with me and will provide for me. I thought I'd post them so I can encourage myself (and maybe God will use these words to strengthen others too.)

Lyrics from Signature of Divine (Yahweh) by Needtobreathe--

I won't leave you alone, you say.
It will be okay.

Lyrics from Mercyme's Bring the Rain--

I know there'll be days
When this life brings me pain
But if that's what it takes to praise You,
Jesus, bring the rain.

Incidentally, I did notice that the latter one goes along with Steve's comment, "Rejoice in the Lord always. And again I say, Rejoice."

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

I was a SLUG yesterday...

I woke up at some ungodly hour-- 5 am something I guess. I played with my iPod a bit, but by 10am, I was a zombie-- staring into space, all thoughts seemingly suspended.

I know I'm not supposed to nap, but I did-- even knowing I might pay the price of insomnia again another night. It was either nap or spend the day as a zombie, so napping seemed the lesser of the evils.

The rest de-zombified me, but I still achieved nothing yesterday-- I didn't even get the dishes done. Ugh-- pile up. I actually kind of like doing dishes. I put on some music and sing my heart out. However, I hate when it takes 2 dishwasher loads to clear the sinks. Well, it's my own fault, so there's nothing to do but suck it up.

Amazingly, I not only slept through the next night but overslept, waking up this morning at 10am. YIKES!

I have got to END my two-day slug streak.

Image source:

blog.oregonlive.com/ kympokorny/large_slug.JPG

I realized that even though I can't always follow a 9-5 work schedule, my body appreciates some semblance of a schedule-- regular sleep and eating hours are good things for a balanced life. I need to make the effort.

A Song I Like

A more polished version is available to download on iTunes, but this video will still convey the idea...

I'm a recording artist (or not)!!!

I used my iPod's included Voice Memos app to record about 8 seconds of myself singing. I emailed the resulting m4a as an attachment and downloaded it to my laptop. Next up: converting the m4a into an mp3 file; I downloaded and installed suitable free software. I uploaded that result to a free PBwiki so that it would be publicly stored and accessible as a link. Then I scoured the Internet to find a player I could embed on this blog with an accompanying link to the audio I made. Voila! Now anyone in the world who actually gives a darn can hear me sing my little snippet of recorded music. Aren't I clever (or at least a creative procrastinator)? ;-) I do have some more important things to do today.