06.10.10
Posted in Education, Personal at 7:49 am by admin
I’m one of those European mutts. (I think there are a bunch of those in America if I’m not mistaken) Still, parts of my bloodline are more dominant than others and Norwegian is definitely the largest percent of my heritage.
I grew up surrounded by Scandinavian traditions that were both subtly blended into the fabric of our family life and also paraded around as a BIG deal. the most obvious was the Norwegian prayer we said at dinner time on a regular basis. The less obvious practices were making lefse, celebrating our version of St. Lucia day in December, and saying hello in Norwegian when answering the phone.
In the last year I have returned to those roots with renewed interest. In November my Mom and I took a rosemaling class together. My Mother to brush up on her skills, me to begin learning the art form for the first time. It is a challenging art form to pick up but the results are very rewarding.
The piece pictured above is a very rare 1800s piece that I had the privilege of photographing at the last quarterly meeting of the rosemaling group at Pacific Lutheran University.
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06.07.10
Posted in Personal at 10:52 am by admin
I’m a list maker. They give me such satisfaction. Last September when I turned 26, I decided to create a list of my hopes and dreams for this…my 26th year. I had forgotten about the list until just the other day and when I pulled it out I was pleasantly surprised by the things that have already been accomplished.
Get a pet. Check. Thank you very much Chief for joining our family.
Make a significant career move. Check. Being CEO of Pamiris is an exciting challenge.
Be more involved with my neighborhood. Check. I’ve been attending monthly community breakfasts and recently became vice-chair of the Mt. Scott-Arleta Neighborhood Association (MSANA).
Compete in a race. Check. Bellingham’s Ski to Sea was the adventure of a lifetime. More on that in another post.
Of course, some of my goals are on-going and will never have a neat and tidy “end date”. Those are probably the most challenging for me to assess and require rooting around in my soul periodically and examining the present condition of my heart.
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Posted in Personal at 10:48 am by admin
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05.28.10
Posted in Personal at 4:44 pm by admin
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05.06.10
Posted in Personal at 10:08 am by admin
A funny thing happened on the way to forum. If the reference doesn’t mean anything to you then you haven’t been introduced to the absurd collection of movies my husband gets a kick out of.
Tuesday’s events made that movie come to mind. I was on my way to a networking event hosted by a good friend I haven’t seen in ages. I decided today was the day to bike commute. It happens to be pouring down rain, Portland-style. Only a mile into my ride and the back tire of my three week old bike goes flat. Lovely. But that’s ok. I’m resourceful and I have a patch kit. Ahhh but having the tools and knowing how to use them are two very different scenarios. I have no idea how you change a tire with fenders on and it just had to be the back tire where all the gears are. Instead I decided to MAX my bike home and try to bus it to my next meeting.
Then, while waiting for the Max I find myself in the middle of shouting/choking match between two very disgruntled men. Talk about interesting.
Turns out, it can be pretty challenging to get on MAX at 5pm on a weekday since there are a number of bike commuters and I watched three green lines pass me by because the bike spots were full. Thankfully Bryan came and rescued me….or my bike rather and I caught a bus uptown.
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03.27.10
Posted in Personal at 8:21 am by admin
After a ridiculously long week I am soooo ready for it to be over.
- The car needed a new starter, timing belt, and water pump.
- I just switched jobs at work and now have a to-do list that’s making my eyeballs POP.
- The list of house projects is getting a little overwhelming.
- The furnace went out at our rental. AGAIN.
- Plus, Bryan and I are crazy and we added a brand new puppy to the mix. (Which is pretty much like having a toddler. I find myself using all the phrases I do when teaching Sunday school to 2-year-olds.)
But after half a bottle of wine last night and a great meal with friends, lattes this morning from Stumptown and a chance to get some much needed work finished at the office…I am a tad bit more sane.
My life is blessed. There’s no doubt about it but that doesn’t mean I appreciate how crazy-loco it makes me sometimes.
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03.25.10
Posted in Beliefs, Personal at 3:05 pm by admin
Complicated. That’s what life is like most of the time.
Relationships are complicated.
Work is complicated.
Learning to be obedient is definitely complicated.
But something that isn’t complicated, is basking in God’s love. It’s like a little slice of sunshine in an otherwise rainy kind of day. And I am like a cat that stretches towards the shaft of light, curls up in it and soaks as much of it up as possible. Good thing God has an endless supply because some days I feel like I require a whole lot of His unconditional love.
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03.08.10
Posted in Personal at 5:46 pm by admin
Talk about a Monday. The car goes in for a new sunroof and the replacement has a problem so now they have to keep it overnight.
I decide for the first time in my life that I can wing and just toss in a a towel, some shorts and my tennis shoes for a trip to the gym. Packing light, right? Which means of course that it also happens to be the day that the soap dispenser in the gym shower is OUT of soap. I always bring my own…except for today. Last time I ever pack light.
Then there was the fact that a 15 minute bus ride back to the office turned into a 45 minute ride when the Burnside bridge shut down.
So now I find myself guzzling down a Blue Dot IPA and it’s good. And right now I need it. Here’s to Monday!
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02.09.10
Posted in Personal at 6:14 pm by admin
Bryan and I were so guilty of this and as a matter of fact…we still do when we’re apart. We’re so silly.
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01.28.10
Posted in Personal at 9:09 am by admin
My attempt at a diaper cake for my sister-in-law’s baby shower last weekend.
Chlorine-free diapers aren’t exactly the most beautiful thing in the world but I think it turned out ok.
We’re excited to welcome Kaylie into the world soon.
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