20.

Start of month 20 at IMM in España. cool. times gone by pretty fast. I've done lots of fun things a lot of people don't get to experience in life. i feel like i'm in college again at times...it's Thursday night at 10 pm (the start of a 3 day weekend for Semana Santa (Easter) and I'm still working. We have a big, huge project due on dvd by next Monday night and my part of it is just taking way longer than I hoped. Always things to fix and challenges to work through in video production (actually, in all things in life that are worth the time and struggle). I don't really want to work much this weekend, so I'm trying to get lots done tonight! And, I want to sleep in and enjoy some on the decent, but not really really nice weather we have finally, this weekend. If I only I got paid for overtime...nah, this is missions!! But, I'm super excited for when this project will be DONE because 1. I've been working on it for over a year and 2. our first foreign language is African French at the end of April! 3. it's a sweet production with a story and message that changes live!

march madness!

it's true---this month i can easily call march madness! once i get time to upload pics of my fun activities from the weekends with my housemates (including some very spanish cultural things) you'll see how the madness has occured. then there's the thing that takes up more of my life...work at imm. we are coming close to the deadline of the open the bible: gospels project...por fin! but we have been encountering challenges as we like to call them! lots of work. lots of working a bit of longer hours than normal. stress. headaches. lower back pain. edititis (a new word cheree made up. it's the problem of the pain i have from editing too much, sitting in the same position too long and using the mouse the same always!!) so, with that, there's also other issues in my personal life and the issues that come with living with other people who don't exactly know how to clean up after themselves the greatest and leave left overs in the fridge far too long since they never go back to eat it! then it becoming very nasty and smelly around my food! and what not. then there's the taking an online course in spanish and having to write a 4 page paper in spanish by april 20. oh, and also having a passion to make a human trafficking awareness video and really really need the help and guidance of God to make it work because i need Him! getting tax stuff ready to send with someone to the states. making cards for my friends who've had great events happen lately and getting those ready to send. trying to convert a pal timeline to ntsc but having issues (that's what i'm doing now as i write this). constant IT problems that slow me down at work. just straight up stress, annoyance, busyness, not being able to fall asleep when i lay my head down. this makes me a bit on edge and perhaps my housemates have felt or seen it. sorry gals. not to mention missing my super adorable nieces and nephews that i see pics of on fb. that' s it... only pics. no vids. :(

so, please keep me in your prayers because i need it!

month 19 almost over. month 20 on it's way. good thing I'm extending til november, because thinking of leaving in 4-5 months would be crazy!!

*listen, i know my life is greatly blessed and so much better than about 97.9% of the worlds, i'm just in need of venting and happen to be doing it on here so alicia and christina can read it because they are the only 2 people who regularly read this. and if you're not one of them, please tell me so i can be surprised!

Start of Month 19!!

Did I count that right? I've been here since Aug 1 of 2008. I think 19 is the right number. Wow. Who can believe it? These months have gone by pretty darn fast! 2010 has already flown by. It's so weird to think that this is the year I'll be moving back to the states. It's probably not going to be at my official 2 year mark which would be Aug 1. I'm thinking of staying just a bit longer because there is a lot of transition and staff changes this year and I think my boss will appreciate me staying...well, I know he will, he's hinted at having me stay longer!

This month is March Madness! No, I don't care about college bb. My housemates only have 5 weeks left and they have a list of things to see, places to go, and what not...so we have many weekends booked for fun events! This Saturday-a Flamenco show!! Our friends found it--it's a not too spendy and looks really good! Other things on the tentative schedule: a Jazz club, the Rastro - huge market, Monet museum and a girls slumber party... which is also happening this weekend!

To add some fun content to this blog and break up the text, here's an adorable image of Alexandra. I had coffee with her mom and my friend Tiffany the other weekend. Lexi is seriously the most precious and adorable baby in Spain! Her daddy is a Spaniard and her mommy American. She's like a precious moments doll. Her eyes, that curly hair....too cute!!

What will I do when Cheree and Julie leave? It won't be as fun. I'm sure more peeps will come to visit--we have 2 interns this summer, so I've heard. A bunch of MA's are in the works, but who knows when they'll get here.

Another reason for March Madness: countdown to the Open the Bible: The Gospels project is due!! April 1 baby! I'm juggling various projects at work. Taking an online course (in Spanish) on intervention of prostitution and human trafficking-which is basically research for a project I feel I need to do while I'm here...an awareness video for human trafficking. There are a few parties lined up in March for co-workers leaving and co-workers adding a baby to their family! Oh so much to do and seems like not enough hours in a day--especially when I like/need to get at least 8 hours of sleep a night!

And here's Plaza Cervantes in Alcalá de Henares! I love this place. Just gorgeous. This was taken last week on my phone...not bad huh? Oh my-I'll miss Spanish plazas when I leave this country.

Weather or not...

I guess comparing the temps in Madrid to the temps in MN usually puts a smile on my face and a thought "I'm so glad I'm not there right now". I know this type of thing will only last so long, so while I'm living in Sunny Spain--I'm going to milk it!

Next winter, I'll be back in the frozen tundra, chillin' with the fam, looking for a job and trying to readjust to a new culture once again. In some ways I look forward to it and in other ways not. So for now I'll look forward to the warmth the sun down here brings!

Almost the end of the month blog.

There's only 10 days left of this month. That is crazy. Where do the days go? Well, I know recently since I don't blog as much it doesn't go to blogging and wasting my time because I know not many people read this. A lot of communication seems to happen via fb. And that is where a lot of my time goes...to wasting time looking at peoples pics and seeing what's going on in the lives of those I went to high school and college with. I admit...I feel like I am on it too much, because an hour or 2 goes by before I know it. It's addicting, I say. With 4 new people living in the IMM apartment-mansion, my nights have been filling up with community dinners, girl chatting and showing them the ropes of being an MA with IMM-particularly being a tour guide. It's all good though, I'm happy to have chicas to hang out with and when I need to be an introvert I just go to my room and close the door and hope no one knocks. ;)

Tips for the new year...

I got this off of Christina's blog. I thought it'd be good for me to do a check of what I need to work on, and I think it's going to be a lot. My thoughts are in parenthesis, and what I need to work on is in pink.

Health:

1. Drink plenty of water

2. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a beggar (good advice, but sometimes not possible, dinner is usually my biggest meal)

3. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants (living in Spain helps a lot, so I already do this!)

4. Live and express yourself with Energy, Enthusiasm and Empathy

5. Make time to pray

6. Play more games (now that my house is full I’ll have more people to play games with…well, card games because we don’t have too many board games to play L

7. Read more books than you did in 2009 (I don’t really like reading, but I know I should read more)

8. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day

9. Sleep for 7 hours

10. Take a 10-30 minutes walk daily. And while you walk, smile.

Personality:

11. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about. (it’s hard not to compare my life to friends….most of them are happily married and starting or continuing to grow their families, but they aren’t traveling Europe and Spain!)

12. Don't have negative thoughts of things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.

13. Don't over do it. Keep your limits.

14. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

15. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip.

16. Dream more while you are awake. (is dreaming the same as thinking way too much about the future!?)

17. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

18. Forget issues of the past. Don't remind your partner of his/her mistakes of the past. That will ruin your present happiness. (if only I had a partner I could remind)

19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Don't hate others.

20. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.

21. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.

22. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.

23. Smile and laugh more.

24. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree... (this is good)

25. Challenge yourself to listen more if you're a talker and to talk more if you are a listener.

Society:

26. Call your family often. (how about the other way around, my family should try calling me too)

27. Each day give something good to others.

28. Forgive everyone for everything.

29. Spend time w/ people over the age of 70 & under the age of 6. (I wish I could spend time with my nieces and nephews, I hate that I am missing so much of their lives!)

30. Try to make at least three people smile each day.

31. What other people think of you is none of your business. (Only God's opinion truly matters)

32. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch. (this I do all too well, it’s green because I have some people in my live who need to hear this!)

Life:

33. Do the right thing!

34. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.

35. Remember GOD and TIME heals everything, not me.

36. However good or bad a situation is, it will change. (keeping it real this way)

37. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

38. The best is yet to come. (I will try to wait, as patiently as possible, although I’ve had some of the best experiences in my life in the past year or so)

39. When you wake up alive in the morning, thank GOD for it. (I'm not much of a morning person)

40. Always exude joy.

2010

HAPPY NEW YEAR! FELIZ AñO NUEVO!

Who can believe it's already 2010?! I can't. wow! Let's make it a year to remember!