progress!

"Most people go to Europe or the Caribbean or someplace nice for their first out-of-country experience. Honey, I think you missed the memo." 
           -nurse giving me shots

Progress has been made!
I am excited, because I now have my yellow card. I know how people wanting a green card feel. Kinda.

I have all of the shots and immunizations I need for travel to Africa (well, I do have some typhoid pills to take after I finish up this antibiotic treatment for my strep throat. It's crazy how everything hits all at once, isn't it?)
So I have amoxacillin in my system from the strep, and I ended up getting three shots for travel.
I really don't like needles. Or the thought of shots.
Some people are creepy and like watching the needle go into their body.  
NOT ME. Ew, ew, ew!
*shudder*
So I feel loopy today. But that's okay.
I am so thankful for modern medicine.


 Today started out kinda crummy. (Locked outside in PJ's in the cold? Yep...)
But then I remembered, God has got this. And he is majorly showering me with blessings I take for granted.
Like health, beautiful weather, family, and people who care about me. 
Taking time to notice those little blessings totally changes ones outlook.

Today is going to be awesome. Because God is in control, and I am not.

my car and such

I have some deep thoughts that I'm mulling over, but I am still too scatterbrained to type them out clearly.

My allergies have been terrible the past few days. 

Therefore, I have been high on benadryl. 

On a 1/4 dose of benadryl, people. A 1/4 dose!

What can I say? 

So, tomorrow, I am venturing out on an interesting endeavor. 

I'm taking a road trip.

I feel like a road trip is a rite-of-passage. I feel like this will be fun. 

Me. 3 1/2 hours. A long highway. My car. My camera at pit stops. My tunes. 

Not a crazy long road trip, but it will still be the longest trip that I've taken in one stretch in my beautiful stick-shift car: 

It's not bad for a first car, not bad at all. 

I positively love driving it. I'm about to the point where it feels like an extension of me. I'm still a wee bit jerky when I start from a dead stop, but I'm working on it...

Today, I realized that the summer was slipping on by. 

I realized that I wanted to visit my Mimi. 

I realized that I didn't have any solid plans for this week.

I remembered that I had a car...

and the thoughts came together in an instant. Faster than it took you to read all of that. 

Like, boom, boom. Two seconds and it all came together. 

It was on impulse that I asked my parents what they thought of my proposition. 

Happily, they agreed that it was a good idea. (of course they've made sure to go over some safety issues/procedures, and all of those things that loving parents do to make sure I'm cared for. Their worry makes me feel loved.) 

So as the idea hit me that I should go for a road trip, Dad told me I should make sure all was right with the car. 

Meaning, I needed to check fluid levels, tires, and other things that fall under "tune-up" (I really like that word, it sounds like I actually did some sort of tweaking of the engine). 

That first part wasn't hard, though it was a bit dirty under the hood. 

The part that was hard was when I decided to wash my car (the isuzu needs a name. I'm working on it. Suggestions? I'm thinking something crazy like Vendela or Esmé or...I think it's the benadryl talking...)

 Not only that, I was going to wax my car, too. 

I had a mental image of my gleaming car, ready to roll down the road in the morning, thanks to my waxing compound and nice buffing job.

Oh the insanity. 

Let's just say...I'm not going to try to be an overachiever anymore. 

Washing the car was easy, but waxing that thing took ages. 

This car is about 15 years old, so the paint isn't exactly glossy. In fact, I might go so far as to say that the paint is on the porous side of things.

I think that the car actually looks worse after my attempt at waxing. The wax got stuck in every nick (and this baby has its share of nicks) I buffed and buffed. 

My arms felt like they were going to fall off, but the wax/compound remained. IT WOULD NOT GO AWAY! I spent about three hours in total washing and waxing and tuning-up. The waxing took 75% of that time. 

Finally, I got most of the compound off, but every scratch is now blaring.

I feel like I have accomplished nothing. All of that blood (figurative, pumping through my body of course), sweat (literally, literally, for rizzle), and tears (of frustration held back for dignity's sake) for naught. 

Ah, c'est la vie. 

Wish me luck! Or better yet, pray for me. Pray that I don't die or kill anyone. Wow, that sounds morbid. Moving along. 

Posting in this state of mind is going to be interesting to look back on... 

time time time

Hi Blog,

While I've been out-of-town, I have gotten some FANTASTIC pictures of my ah-dorable little cousins and nature. And cousins + nature too.

Blog, prepare to be inundated soon!
I have many thoughts to be shared, but I don't have the time to articulate...

Today I went to a tea party. A MANLY tea party, since it was with my four boy cousins. It was so very cute. We all talked in english accents (they are, after all, at least 1/4 English. A good heritage. Anywho...)
I shall have to post pictures later. Right now, I'm much too lazy (and preoccupied) to upload them.


Also, God is so awesomely amazing; it's crazy how he is taking care of me and everything seems to be just falling into place. Huzzah!

Until later,
Kenzie

Undedicated

What. A. Weekend!
I'll post something interesting sooner than later, I promise.
It was so crazy that I'm still processing it.
My brain feels like scrambled eggs (which I ate for breakfast, yum--not that I ate my brains...oh, you know what I mean, right?)
I'm slacking off, just a smidgen...

WARNING: long, inane post. Get comfy...

Thursday was my mimi's birthday. (yep, that's what we call her... are you thinking what I'm thinking? About the song about grandmothers? If so, like woah <--click)

To celebrate, we met her in Charlotte.
We got up early for the drive. Surprisingly, I was semi-peppy for it to be 6:15 a.m.

{Daddy made coffee (to be specific, cappuccino). That drug is amazing. I am such an addict. I hope they don't outlaw that bean.
Oh the horror of that thought. I can do without it, but the hordes of addicts would NOT be fun to face. Headaches, hysteria, and horror would result.}

Upon arriving in Charlotte, our first stop was the Billy Graham Library (pic from nytimes):

I was expecting books and plush chairs in front of a huge fireplace.

Not so. This "library" had a false name.

It was more like a museum of Billy Graham's life and ministry.

Some of the stuff on display was incredible. Among the honorary doctorates, the certificate of  knighthood, and various awards of recognition from all over the world, one thing really stuck out to me. (aside from B.G.'s amazing testimony for God)

Bono wrote him a poem!
Here's how it went:

“The journey from father to friend
is all paternal loves end.
it was sung in my teenage ears
in the voice of a preacher
loudly soft on my tears
I would never forget this
melody line
or its lyric voice that gave my life
a rhyme,
a meaning, that wasn’t there before.
a child, born in dung and straw
with The Father's love and desire to explain
how we might get on with each other again….”

for The Rev. Billy Graham (that preacher)
Ruth and all the Graham Family
from Bono (March 11 2002)

with much love and respect….

Aww, isn't that sweet?

(I really appreciate poems.
Unless they're stupid.
Like William Carlos William's The Red Wheelbarrow...look that one up )

I was surprised at some of the stuff that was saved and on display...like the case for his wife's engagement ring, various papers and books...

It's a confirmed fact that the Grahams were pack rats. His wife wrote a book about it.

I've resolved to save supposedly insignificant things. One day, they will be placed in my museum for thousands of people to observe from behind glass. Just in case. You never really know.

...kidding...a museum isn't as much my style. A big statue or monolith floats my boat. Something like the Lincoln memorial...

But seriously, I was encouraged to see how God used this one man to spur on a huge revival.

After filling our noggins with Billy Graham trivia, we went to a cute and quirky french bakery called Amélie's in the arts district:

I LOVE CUTE AND QUIRKY PLACES. 
(I bet you already knew that. If not, now you do)

The atmosphere was great. The pastries were by no means terrible. The ultra dark coffee with real cream (no fake powder-y stuff here!) complemented nicely. The soup was wonderful too.

Many of the people who decided to frequent this place were "unique". It was almost like they were putting on a show.
One lanky guy, wearing a gray hooded sweater (with the hood up), ray-bans, and a five o'clock shadow, looked shifty. Not "up to no good" shifty, but "I'm a cool guy and I want to look like I'm doing something incognito" shifty.
I could go on telling you about the different peoples, but this is getting to be a LONG post, so I'll move along.

One thing I hate about Charlotte is that the roads are CONFUSING. Lanes suddenly drop. Lanes strangely appear. Roads are not called the names that appear on the GPS.

The GPS was confused. Poor thing. But she was still bossy about it, so I didn't feel THAT bad for her.

After our leisurely lunch, we could not possibly leave the area without visiting Ikea.

If you've been keeping up with my posts (I don't expect you to), you'll know that I'm redoing my room. It's bright green
(the color of creativity, my aunt says)
and the hardwood floor is in as of yesterday. w00t!

I decided to take mental notes at Ikea. Ikea seems like the place to be to get inspired.

Walking through the maze of rooms, I was inspired.

I want a closet like the ones on display. I sighed with envy for the pretend ikea people who get to enjoy such well-organized storage. (I don't envy that they have strangers going through their house daily and inspecting every nook and cranny.)
You know how many clothes I could fit into one of those closets?  It's a nice number.


So, basically, I wanted to buy a whole bedroom suite from that inexpensive, yet well designed store. But we decided to wait and actually measure the space I have available. Acting on impulse is not always the smartest thing.

I ran (erm, sped-walked) through the maze of store twice. That's one problem with ikea: they are so controlling about where you can and cannot go. Follow the arrows, they say. Follow like a drone.

Backtracking to find an item is crazy.

I found a lapdesk on display, and found out it was at the BEGINNING of the store. We were getting ready to check out, and I reeeallyy wanted that lap desk. Finally, after getting slightly lost a few times, I found it and bought it.

Then we daintily ate princess cake in the ikea cafe.

It was a beautiful day weather-wise too. I hate the cold weather, but the trees are positively mesmerizing this time of year.

Are you still reading? I think I would have given up by now...

Friday I ran 6 miles. It was a brisk, crisp day.
Then, I went to my friend's house and met her other fabulously fun friend.

We ate dinner, and left to get good seats for:
THE TAMING OF THE SHREW 
The theater was arranged in such a way that there were no bad seats.
The production was GREAT. I was impressed. {Although, I forgot how much innuendo Shakespeare put in his plays. It wasn't horrid, but still surprising...)

Afterwards we went to Goodberry's. Heath bar sundae. Score.
It was a lot lot lot of custard happiness.

Can you tell that I'm running on little sleep? I'm going to look back at this post in wide-eyed wonder...

...we stayed up until 4ish. We got up 8:30ish
mmm
sleep does sound good. But I want to finish recording memories here.

At 9, my parents came. We went to celebrate my grandaddy's 70th birthday!
They cooked some good steak.
As is usual when visiting my dad's parents, I was utterly stuffed full of food.
My grammy is the type to offer food repeatedly, telling you that you need it or it won't hurt to have a bit more. It's a sweet trait...

It was fun to visit with them. We came up with some crazy career paths for me to take...

After eating, I felt like the granddaughter/grandparent roles were reversed. My parents and grandparents were talking, and I nodded off while sitting on the couch. I couldn't seem to keep my eyes open. I dozed for a few minutes. AT LEAST I didn't snore.

The lack of sleep was WORTH IT. So worth it. Whenever I miss out on precious shut-eye, it's always for a good reason.

...I am dragging here.

I really should sleep.

oooh, I bought some white face cream. I'm dressing up tomorrow for the fall festival at my church.

Okay, I'm getting slower and slower at typing. My eyes keep closing, and my spelling MUST be suffering, not to mention the high likelihood of atrocious grammar errors. Four hours of sleep will do some crazy things to you.

Goodnight. 

For the Beauty of the earth

I'm in Gatlinburg!
It is gorgeous. At least the wilderness is.
As for the main drag downtown? It makes me shudder.
So tourist-y...But it is not all thorns. There are gems to be found among the rough.
Such as...
 the artisan store.  I appreciated the workmanship. Intricate carvings, handwoven cloths, jewelry, and last but not least, the pottery. [I want to take some pottery classes now.] There were some über cool mugs there. The only drawback was the price. With the price they were asking ($30 or so), I'd be hard-pressed to actually use the mugs. Perhaps they were just there to be displayed.
[I have a thing for mugs.]
Another store called The Honeypot had soy candles that smelled heavenly. I ended up with a coffee cup filled with a soywax candle that smells like roasted espresso. There was no choice. I had to buy it. [I hope it doesn't encourage me to drink more coffee...]
In many stores there were moccasins. I tried on a groovy pair, and came close to buying them. Not so close on the fringe coat that coordinated...

We are staying in a spacious rental house that has a lovely view.
Standing out on the deck, gazing out at the beauty, you get a sense of grandeur.
I can never decide. Mountains or Beach? Both have redeeming qualities.

We hiked out to a waterfall on Monday.

Swam in the cool pool, warmed up in our hot tub, took pictures, played pool...it's been a nice stay so far.
I also got to finish one of my books. The Oath by Peretti. Oh boy, that guy is a good writer. He keeps you interested. It is a difficult task to put one of his books down.

Tomorrow we're going on a long hike. I'm looking forward to it. Better make sure the camera batteries are charged.
But now it is hot tub time. Everything's cooling off, so it will feel lovely to soak in the warmness. We walked an extensive amount today around downtown. I think our three mile walk today was more exhausting than a 10 mile hike in the woods would have been...

take me home, country roads...

...my Mimi said that song would make her cry for homesickness.
It's high time that I come home "fer a spell"
Although my hometown is far from "country"...

I feel like I haven't been home but a week this summer. That one week was an outreach, so I wasn't really home at my house.

It has been a grand summer, for the most part.

the cliffs notes version of my summer:

• The SAT (what a way to kick it off!)
• Housesitting and dogsitting. That helped alleviate the stress of the SAT. 
• Serving in MTYC's kitchen
• counseling at MTYC for the middle girls 
• the SPORT camp outreach! 
• Cooking at HCBC
• counseling at MTYC for the little girls
• a week with my grandparents (on my mom's side) 
• a week in Hilton Head! 
• Back to my mom's parent's house
• My Grandaddy Henline's funeral
• A week with my grandparents on the other side

and now...
a few days here at home and I'm off again!

Well, this summer has been exceptional. I have learned much. Many lessons that I will be able to glean wisdom from in the upcoming years.

On another note: I'm glad that I know the Meaning of Life. Otherwise, I would be SO despairingly depressed. I would be in the absolute pits. Not knowing is a terrible feeling...