My Travels

Now, I am the first one to admit I do not like Vegas. It stands for all the wrong things and I don’t smoke or gamble and I only drink occasionally … so why did all of us girls want to go again?!?! Well, I hadn’t been in 8 years and had heard really great things about the hotels Like the Paris, Wynn, and the Venetian-The dancing fountains at the Bellagio are beautiful-and of course it was a chance to spend some time with the girls since we no longer work together.

We ended up having a great time despite all of the vices surrounding us! It was great to hang and shop and stroll around grown up Disneyland! My favorite part of the trip was working out with Brenda on the rooftop indoor/outdoor gym. It was nice to be away from the smoke filled casinos, breathing the fresh air and enjoying the sun on our faces!

And of course we made some memories that we will probably have us laughing for years to come. Barb and I have been teasing Brenda and Rosanne mercilessly since we came home about a few of those priceless moments. See, Saturday night we finally surrendered to the $1 beers and $2 Cobo Wabo shots and as the sang goes … ”What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.” (Except for the few pics I will post here) …

  

  

 

… yeah, it was great to hang with the girls but I am thinking I have had my fill of Vegas for at least another 8 years!!!

    

I’m actually here. Just really focused on other things right now … but here is an update.

First, I LOVE my job. I couldn’t be happier. I have been at Amgen for 2 months now. Boy how time flies!! I work with a great bunch of guys like my cube mate, Scott, and my friend, Rich, who told me about the job to begin with. We have all become pretty good friends. We joke around a lot. Besides all of the amazing benefits I like being so close to home and Dean visits me for lunch at least 3 times a week!!

More going on …. our Thousand Oaks team has also been meeting weekly to refine and clarify our strategy for VOX culture pubs. It has a lot of us thinking about the Gospel and what it really means. Good (and hard) and important stuff to be processing as we move forward.

Another focus of mine (which has also kept me out of the blog world) is weight training. I have really become addicted. I train 3 times a week in the morning and then I go back to the gym in the evenings another 3 to 4 days a week to do cardio or Pilates or I run. Yeah, the gym is my second home!! Lately, my friends and Dean have encouraged me to become a personal trainer because I love it so much. So, I am going to do just that!! It will take about 3 to 6 months to prepare for the big exam. Once I pass I will be certified and can work in a gym!!

One thing that has kept me from committing the time it takes to become a trainer before now is that I didn’t want to expend all my energy on something that I didn’t feel would have some bigger purpose. I know I would be helping people get healthy, fit and strong and that I may even have opportunities to share deeper spiritual things with my clients but, for some reason, those ideas just weren’t compelling enough for me.

For several months now I have been looking for a more specific and important reason to spend 6 months preparing to become a trainer and then working a second job as one. I finally found my answer last weekend. God spoke so clearly that I could do something that I love and then give all of the money that I make doing it to help the Pokot people in Africa. See, it has never been about the money. Heck, I would train people for free. But, now I have a story to tell. My clients will know that the money they are investing is not only to get them fit but also bringing life to people that may not have life if we in the West didn’t do something. Anyway, it was been so freeing and exciting to discover this reason and purpose.

until next time here are some photos from the last few months …

 

The fam in Kauai for Christmas

 

Me in the Kauai surf (photo by Dean)

 

The gang at The Rainforest Cafe in Orlando, Florida.
Relaxing after the Humana 2.0 conference.

 

Me, Rachel and Staci - Humana 2.0

We had an absolutely amazing time in NY … 10 years of marriage to the most amazing man I know. And, ahhh, New York was the place to celebrate. Just me and Dean for 5 glorious days!

The trip started out a bit crazy. First, I missed my flight and had to spend over 5 hours at LAX waiting and hoping I would be able to make the 9PM flight. I was on standby and anything was possible. After a good cry and feelings of pity and frustration I asked God to use the time. I sort of looked at it as a break in the busyness of life - a disruption in the Matrix, if you will (smile)

I did make it on the 9PM flight and even though I was in the center section, middle seat I didn’t care. I was so thankful to be on the plane. I was seated in between two guys. I ended up having a really nice chat with the guy to my left. He’s a young 20-something guy. He lives in LA and works as a writer’s assistant on the TV show Vanished. He was traveling to visit his girlfriend. We talked about LOST and chit-chatted until a natural break in conversation caused me to turn and talk with the man to my right. This is where God stepped in. Ends up this guy, Craig, also missed his flight and happens to live in Thousand Oaks! He is a 40-something guy, married with a couple of kids. He was traveling on business. I got the impression that he was a tired man. Tired and beaten down by the pressures of the corporate world. Apparently, he had lost his first company and was starting up a new one. He was traveling to try and work some business deals. He said he didn’t feel completely motivated this time around. He just didn’t have the same drive/energy that he once had. He described the loss of his first company as a “business divorce that cost him 2 million dollars.” Business-Divorce … interesting choice of words. I can only imagine that must have been hard. I told him why I was traveling and I mentioned that I hadn’t seen my husband in several weeks because he had been traveling all over the US. He kept asking questions. So, I kept giving him more insight into the IMN, Makers of Fire, mission, Jesus, life in community, etc. Ends up he attends the Presbyterian church in Westlake but doesn’t seem to really have a relationship with God. It sounds as if he attends because maybe it’s a “safe place” where you can meet people with “good morals”. He kept asking more and more questions. So, I kept sharing. We talked almost the whole trip. I really felt God was talking through me. I think Craig needed water for his withering soul. He isn’t sure what comes next in life and I get the impression he isn’t really sure what the point of life is. I don’t know what will come of Craig but he gave me his business card as we exited the plane. Maybe Dean and he can connect … time will tell. (by-the-way … neither of these guys were hitting on me. They were just nice people. Thank you God for making that plane ride enjoyable!!)

I finally arrived in NY at 5AM. My Deanie was waiting for me. It was sooo good to see him. We slept most of the day away but got up and headed into Manhattan in the evening and here is where I will start the pictures …

Day 1 Our first night in Manhattan. We took the bus from Jersey into the city. The moment I stepped off the bus I felt like I was home. I love NYC!
We ended up in Little Italy and ate at this amazing little Italian cafe.

Day 2 we drove Long Island and the Hamptons until we arrived in Montauk. This Lighthouse was commissioned by George Washington in 1792. We drove almost 4 hours to get here. We arrived at ‘golden hour’. Perfect time to capture these amazing pictures. (Isn’t Dean a good photographer!)

Day 3 we played in Manhattan again. This is me in time Square PROUDLY wearing one of Aaron’s hats. Check him out at http://www.myspace.com/staggertogetherforever

We walked down 8th until we arrived at Central Park …oh how I love Central Park!! We strolled and talked until we arrived at the MET (Metropolitan Museum of Art).

The picture of me sitting next to the large windows I included because it reminds me of one of my favorite moments on the trip. We sat in this large atrium/cafe in the museum. We sipped coffee, stared out the window into Central Park, and talked for over an hour about life, dreams, possibilities, technology and God. What a great time I had with my Deanie!! We stayed for over 5 hours at the MET and still didn’t see everything. But, we didn’t fret … we just promised that, God-willing, we would come back soon!

We spent the rest of the evening hanging in the city. We walked down 5th Ave and OF COURSE We HAD to check out the Apple Store … it is so cool!

Day 4 we took the bus and the subway to the Village. What a fun and hip place. It’s sort the the college part of the city. Lots of culture, street perfomers and diversity. The town is centered around NYU. We ate at John’s (one of the famous places to have New York pizza … yum!!!)

Me and my baby!Â

It has been awhile hasn’t it? Time just flies by. So, the last time we talked I was off to the U2 concert, Disneyland and scuba diving. We did have an amazing weekend. But, I reached sensory overload by Sunday and I think I took all of last week just to recover. So here are some of the hi-lights…

FRIDAY - APRIL 1, 2005
U2 was…hmmm…I can’t even find words good enough to describe the experience …. let’s go with absolutely powerful and fabulous. The moment the lights went down I swear the temperature in the arena rose about 10 degrees. I broke out in a sweat and actually had chills. WOW! Shawna and I grabbed each other, screamed, and jumped up and down…we were like teenagers…kinda surprised both of us….The energy and unity was incredible. U2 have been making music for over 20 years and they sang a lot of old stuff mixed in with the new. It felt like walking through their life journey and pausing here which is very special place for them right now. They went non-stop for 2 hours. They ended the concert with one of their new songs called Yahweh which Bono sang with great depth and intensity. Bono dedicated the concert to the Pope who had not yet died but we all knew was quite ill. Yahweh led into their last song called 40. 40 is a song they often finish their concerts with. Bono sings, “I will sing…sing a new song…” then he goes on to sing, “how long…how long must we sing this song…” the crowd joins in and melodically chants these wonderfully familiar U2 lyrics over and over again along with Bono. He took a giant spot light and began slowing turning in a circle, shining the light around the room, illuminating the audience. Then, he placed the spotlight on the floor so that this single flood was up lighting the microphone. He took off his cross necklace and draped over the microphone and slowly exited the stage. While the audience was still singing, one by one the rest of the band exited the stage–first the base player; then the lead guitarist. We continued signing with just the drums accompanying us. The drummer broke into an awesome drum solo and eventually he too got up and left the stage. The crowd just roared. It was amazing. It was a spiritual experience. And man does Bono know how to command an audience. I specifically admire him for using his success and influence to motivate people to do for others. He is all about bringing awareness and opportunity to people about social justice issues. His latest endeavor is a campaign to fight AIDS and poverty … if you are interested you can check out the website at www.one.org. Jason and Dean are now U2 fans! See, you can like U2 and enjoy the music but once you “experience” a concert you are forever a diehard U2 FAN!

SATURDAY - APRIL 2, 2005
Disneyland….it was a great day—not too hot—crowded but not unbearable. And, I have to say experiencing Disneyland through the eyes of a 2 1/2 year old is like being a child all over again. We had so much fun and ran those kids ragged until 11:30 at night…

SUNDAY - APRIL 3, 2005
Scuba diving….We got home at 1AM from Disneyland but it was really 2AM with daylight savings. We hit the bed hard and the of course the alarm came way too soon. We were up at 5:30AM, out the door by 6:15AM and Ventura by 7AM. The boat out to Ana Capa was really choppy but I took by sea-sickness medicine and so I did ok (barely though cause it was pretty nasty out there). One boy got really sick and didn’t dive. A brother and sister were also along for the dive. The sister could never get her ears to clear so she didn’t dive. Her bother did 2 of the 3 dives but felt sick so didn’t do the 3rd dive …. The 3rd dive was my personal favorite—it was just me, Dean, Mike (the dive shop owner/my instructor) and one other guy. I was the only uncertified diver so I felt pretty safe! Mike’s whole goal on dive #3 was to get me 50 feet deep so that he could tease Jason that he got me deeper than him…kind of a guy bantering thing they have going…

My first dive was very disorienting. I stood on the deck of the boat and took that giant step into the water. I wasn’t nervous and felt pretty good about that but resurfacing was a different story. I had walked off the edge of a swimming pool in full gear so I kind of knew what to expect….but coming up is easy when water is calm…ocean water was very different. The chop kept hitting me in the face, my weight-belt was over-weighted so I kept being forced onto my back and I tasted a bit of sea water which made me panic (you know, bad memories of being knocked over by waves as a kid and not being able to get up and swallowing water etc etc…). I didn’t want to take the regulator out of my mouth and put in the snorkel. I was just too freaked. You are supposed to use the snorkel at the surface so you don’t waste air. But, I was sucking that air hard and grabbing on to Dean so tightly … my main thought was get me out of here I can’t do this!!!! But, Dean has a way of calming me down which is why he has had special permission to be with me every step of the way in this class. He encouraged me to try going below. I felt better about that concept because I could put the regulator back in my mouth (smile). As soon as we went below the surface, even just a few feet, everything changed. It was calm…the nauseous feeling began to pass and I was looking at the bottom of the ocean!!!! I had a bit of trouble getting my ears to clear but eventually we were 25 feet down!!! The sea life was amazing. I held sea cucumbers and starfish and saw a bunch of garabaldies (fish). I played with other little critters and was in awe of the life that lives along side us that we aren’t even aware of. The sea plants dance so gracefully in the water and the colors and textures are so unique to that world below the surface. I struggled though and had some trouble with my buoyancy (inflating/deflating the vest to achieve a sort of weightlessness). To say the least, I was awkward–even clumsy down there. But by dive #2 I had a better handle on things. I practiced my buoyancy and was able to swim around more fluidly. I even accomplished my drills… loosing the regulator… clearing my mask… shared breathing… Dean was so proud of me and when Mike gave me the thumbs up…I felt like a million bucks!!! By dive #3 I felt great. I couldn’t wait to get back in the water. We swam all over searching for that “50-ft deep” place (Mike is so funny). We experienced being pushed along in a current and even saw a huge school of fish… It felt good to overcome “water fears” and even false assumptions I had about scuba diving. I loved it!

Ok so as you can see from my long blog…I experienced a tremendous amount in 3 days. I was throughly wiped out and as I look back I really did spend all of last week recovering. To top things off the guys jumped right back on the remodel bright and early Monday morning. They were desperate to reach the point of opening up the wall and moving all of the furniture into the new room. And, after all sorts of obstacles (some downright bizarre) mission was accomplished by 11PM Tuesday night. It was nuts … but I can’t tell you how having that new, larger living space has created a sense of peace and calm in our home …. Next step is the kitchen with the rest of life thrown in for good measure…wow!

I really enjoyed my time away. I spent a lot of it in quiet meditation and contemplation in some new areas of thought. I had many things swirling around in my head and I needed this quiet time away to focus and process.

We had some flight delays which took us off course by about 4 hours so we didn’t arrive in Anchorage until Tuesday evening. We had planned to take the 4 hour drive to Homer that same day but didn’t want to do so at night so we stayed in Anchorage. It was well worth
waiting until Wednesday morning to make the drive. The views were breath taking and we would have missed so much in the dark. The sun sets around 5:30-6PM which isn’t all that different than home but waking up Wednesday morning at 8AM to complete darkness was so different. This time of year the sun rises around 9:30AM! We enjoyed the conversations all the way to Homer. The time flew by. And we even saw a moose which is what I was hoping for!

We stayed in a B&B in Homer right on the ocean that overlooks the spit. The couple that put us up is a part of the Refuge community that we were there to get to know. The view from our bay window was amazing. The air was so cool and clean. (About 25º in Homer but got
to -6º in Soldotna where the retreat was held) I felt a little under the weather when we arrived but something about that clean cold air was healing. As I would breathe in, my nostrils would tingle and my chest felt such great relief. I came to find out that the owners pray for this place to be a healing environment and it truly was. I wasn’t ill for long.

The people are very different in Homer. I enjoyed learning about howthey live. Marilyn (the owner of the B&B) and I connected right away. She shared that the people in Homer usually only live in their homes during the winter. In the summertime they move out and and if they
own they rent out their homes. But, they don’t do so to travel anywhere…they just move out to live in tents on the spit (a piece of land that juts out from the coast line). Fishing is big and a good source of income for many. So, the summertime is for making money and the winter is for playing. Marijuana grows quite nicely there too so many have plants. It isn’t illegal as long as they have under a certain weight so often their isn’t much done about it. Interesting! I am told The native Alaskans are a very hurting people…especially the women. The men abuse drugs/alcohol and in turn the women get the brunt of their addictions poured out on them. They have lived under much physical, sexual abuse. But, I am told that even so the women are so gentle and loving.

Wednesday - Friday we relaxed.  We read and slept and Jason got to play his music. What an environment he had to create in. It was so quiet. In fact, coming home today made me so aware of what a noisy place we live in. My senses were so in tune with the hum of the freeway and the acceleration of cars. I found it really distracting as I lay in bed this morning trying to sleep. Anyway, Only about 5000 live in Homer—and not clustered together—so the town feels even smaller than that. Most of the people we met come to live in Alaska—not natives. They are from all over the world too! Alaska seems to be a place people come to to live out adventure and independence. Homer tends to be a very creative, artistic and spiritual town too which was something I didn’t expect. We spent some good time with John and Brandy too (the couple that invited us to come up). They took us on a hike to the ocean which was quite icy but beautiful. We had dinner one night with Darrin and Lorraine (pastor and his wife) and Eric and Stephanie (associate pastor and his wife). They are all wonderful, easy going and inviting people. Darrin has long hair, a big bushy beard, and tattoos up both arms and is such a gentle and warm man. I loved him instantly!

On Friday afternoon we headed to Soldotna, where the retreat was being held. What I found amusing is that normally a retreat is held away from the city—you know, trying to get some solitude. But, not people from Homer. We all drove an hour and a half back toward Anchorage to be close to a bigger city!  And, it was bigger but not even as big as Thousand Oaks (which isn’t that big!) Funny!

Our time there was great. I had visualized how I wanted my time to be and it was just that. I had some wonderful one-on-one conversations with different people. I love good dialog. My conversations with Marilyn (B&B owner) really stood out as quite special. She had been an atheist most of her life and then came to God but not the way we typically expect. And, by not growing up in modern church culture she doesn’t live in certain boxes or have certain fears. She has such a free spirit. Our conversations were challenging, inspiring and confirming. The people who lead music for the weekend were from a town about 40 miles north of Anchorage—a husband and wife, a guitarist and a percussionist. They have a heart to play music and spend most of their time traveling around together doing just that. You can tell by the natural way they play together that they are not only band mates but good friends as well. Their music was very fluid and organic. They call themselves North Wind. Jason and Mike (lead singer) hooked up instantly… kindred spirits really. They ended up hanging out the first night, driving into town, and having all kinds of crazy adventures. They invited Jason to sing/accompany them Sunday morning which was great. Many confirmations of Jason’s talent. For some reason, this time I felt this input was prophetic and felt a strong sense that I will be assisting him toward making music more than just a hobby…not sure what that looks like yet but it’s cool to have these strong senses about it.

Our time there was really well received and timely for Darrin and Lorraine. We all came away feeling a strong sense that we were going to stay connected somehow. I felt I was given words to many feelings I have been having and we had strong confirmations about adding some new elements to our gathering times. It’s cool, here we are two communities 4,000 miles away from each other yet sharing a similar vision and spiritually journeying together. We will probably go back in the summertime which everyone tells me is the really beautiful time to go. I can’t even imagine! People repeatedly shared with me how green it gets and how beautiful flowers are and of course how great the fishing is.

We are back. I am glad to be back. Rhode Island was beautiful. Massachusetts was beautiful. Connecticut was beautiful. The wedding was lovely. Dean was great. Jason and Sammy (a girl who stayed with us all summer and the brides 1/2 sister) wrote a song and sang it as a surprise gift to the bride. The song was all about being sisters and was the touch the wedding needed to secure that there wasn’t a dry eye in the room!

My favorite part of the vacation was our spontaneous trip to New York. Dean, Jason, and I took a train from Rhode Island to Manhattan for a day. WOW! I love New York. The sights … the smells … the people … it was a wonderful! We all agreed we could move there. Ahhh, What a great experience. Jason was even moved to write a song. The taxis were terrifying. The experience lived up to all the rumors. (I truly thought we were going to die) but it was a thrill! We laughed a lot about it (only after we were safely back on the street of course). Ground Zero was overwhelming to see. And the Statue of Liberty…ahhh, she was beautiful! Central Park was amazing. I expected a crime infested, dirty place where the smell of pee wafted from under the bridges. But, quite the contrary! It was beautiful and so full of lush/green trees. There are over 11 playgrounds for children and even a small amusement park for families in one section. The fountain and lake were breathtaking. I suppose New York needs a retreat place like this with grass and trees and gentle breezes. (Which is why I imagine it stays so nice.) Living with all of that concrete and the tall buildings that block the sun from beating down on one’s face would be hard to take day in and day out.

We spent the latter part of this week in the midst of conversations hosted by the Bridge-a community of like-minded people that gather in Ventura. It was called the Soliton Sessions. I have much to consider…and I went there already considering much. And, now, today I am reminded that I was wondering just before we left why I feel am entering a new season of life. Hmmm, I guess I will use the platform of blogs as a place to organize all of my thoughts, my chicken scratches, and the notes spread about on various articles of paper. And I am still pondering within my heart much of what I have been experiencing lately and most of my thoughts are in process so bare with me as I journey.

OK…I don’t want to be too self consumed here and I am certain I have already spent way too much time today answering e-mails and not doing the most pressing work at hand. So, I will end here.