Exciting Things Are Happening

April 15th was the last time I blogged and other than paying my taxes, a lot has happened since then. Here's a peek at my last 2 months:

1. I GRADUATED COLLEGE!

       That's right, I'm now Miss Janah James B.A. (I know, no one actually puts that at the end of their name, but after 4 long and hard years, I really want to sometimes.) I am also currently unemployed, so you know, if you know anyone that needs to hire someone who's very skilled in marketing/communications/public relations/social media and/or French, send them my way.

2. I'm moving back to Lexington
       While it's been great living with my parents again, I miss my independence. Don't get me wrong. I have a great relationship with my parents, love them dearly, and am very thankful for all their provision, but I'm just in that stage of life. It's time to be on my own.
        I'll have two roommates (Sharayah being one) and we've found a SUPER adorable house we're going to rent. More to blog about later.

3. I learned how to breathe fire
        Yup, I may as well join the circus (which seems like a reasonable option at this point of still being jobless). Check out the sweet picture. 'Merica.

4. Tyler and I got to meet and hang out with The Lone Bellow

        I've blogged about The Lone Bellow and how amazing their music is, but hearing it live is even better. Tyler and I may fall into the groupie/obsessed category at this point, since we'll be making our third trip in 3 months to hear them, but we have no shame. Not only do they make great music, but they're genuinely great people. Check out when they played on Jay Leno. AMAZING!

5. Sydney is finally getting married!
    Tomorrow is the big day! I'm her very excited Maid of Honor and can't wait! I'll be sure to post pictures soon.

Oh, and I'm still with this guy. I'm so thankful for him :)

 

An "Engaging" Spontaneous Trip to the Beach

It all started while studying in the library on Thursday.

Sharayah, Heath and I sat in a sea of chemistry and communications notes in a study room discussing how much we did not want to be studying. Productivity was nonexistent. Sharayah kept talking about how much she wanted to be at the beach for the weekend with her family, especially because her sister's boyfriend was proposing on Sunday.

Then she had the bright idea of a road trip.

We were reluctant. Twenty-two hours in the car and 20 hours at the beach over a 42 hour period? If you've been in Kentucky over the past week, you know it's been frigid. Running in the ocean on a warm sunny beach was a very tempting offer. Heath and I both fell into the temptation and agreed to go.

We left in the late afternoon on Saturday and arrived at Holden Beach, NC at 2 A.M. Sunday morning. It was late, we were tired, but too excited to not splash into the ocean.

Sharayah's family is amazing. Not only did they fund the entire trip, but they're just so much fun to be around. We woke up Sunday ready to hit the water, but not before we ate delicious homemade chocolate chip pumpkin bread and sang hymns during breakfast.

Photo taken by Sharayah's mom

The Travelers

After breakfast we headed out to the beach to play volleyball, body board and throw the football around. There were lots of face plants and diving into the water, mostly by me, but others looked ridiculous as well.

Throughout the entire day it was VERY difficult to keep the proposal a secret. I was just too excited. I've known Sharayah's sister Whitney and her fiance Tyler since freshman year. They've been dating for about three years and it's that time of year and life where every other friend is getting engaged, so we were all expecting it to happen sometime soon. Heath, Sharayah, her parents and I were the only ones that knew it was happening that day.

Tyler told Whitney that he wasn't able to come to the beach, because of practice and school. There were many other lies told so she wouldn't see it coming, but it was all in the name of love. We told everyone else that we were going to take pictures on the beach before dinner so we got everyone to dress up.

I was given the daunting task of taking pictures of it all. I was honored, but very nervous. Thankfully the pictures turned out great and tell the story better than I can.
 

Note the small blue dot to the left. That's Tyler

Still clueless

She was shocked

As you could probably guess, she said yes and the ring is gorgeous. Good job Tyler.

The whole thing worked out perfectly and although we were exhausted returning to campus at 8 A.M. Monday morning, it was worth it.  
 

  

Have You Heard of Abe Parker?

Have you ever had an event in your life occur that seemed completely arbitrary at the time, but in retrospect it's an awesome story? I had that moment of realization last night when I asked my friend Abe to recap the the past 6 months of his life.

I can't remember the first time I met Abe. It was probably sometime freshman year when I met several new people everyday and couldn't keep names with faces. Over the past three years we've become friends and I'm very thankful for that. He's kinda awesome at music and when I say kinda, I mean REALLY awesome. Check out his music HERE.

Back to my awesome story ... Last semester, while on Facebook when I probably should have been doing homework, I discovered a contest that Andy Grammer was hosting. Basically you put a video on a website, people vote, Andy and his crew vote and the video with the most votes wins. Winning meant opening for Andy Grammer at one of his concerts. I sent the link to Abe with a note encouraging him to enter. He took my advice and you can probably guess the outcome. He won.

He and his band packed up their gear, traveled to Vienna, VA and were the opening act for Andy Grammer. Abe was able to meet Andy and make some great connections with his band and tour manager. He was able to travel to several cities with him to play for the crowds as they waited to get into the concerts.

A few weeks ago, Abe traveled to Atlanta to play at Eddie's Attic in their open mic competition. Of course he won. I had no doubt that he would. He's just that great, but don't take my word for it. Check out what another blogger who heard him play at the competition said HERE. He met up with Andy while in Atlanta and spent several hours talking to him about music and songwriting.

I got to hear this whole story from his perspective as he strummed my ukelele on my couch last night. It was funny to think of how me sending him a link to a contest started all of this. Another cool thing, the Vienna metro station is the station I got on every morning to get to my internship in DC.

His enthusiasm for music and passion for songwriting is very evident in his relentless attempt to do what he loves. The best part is he gives all the glory to God. He is so trusting in God's sovereign plan and purpose for his life. Keep your eye on this guy. He'll make it big one day and I can't wait until his does.  

Check out one of my favorite songs of his. He wrote it for his little sister before she went to college. Precious, right?

   

Flashback to Freshmen Year

Remember how I said I was going to participate in a Mud Run? Well ... that didn't happen.

Cassie realized that she had double booked herself and decided that taking the GRE instead of doing a Mud Run was the better choice. I decided to forgive her since it kinda determines the rest of her life, but this did not cause my weekend to be a disappointment. It was like freshman year all over again.

I have so many great memories from freshman year. Always meeting someone new, bonfires, staying out until the last minute before curfew, gen ed classes and figuring out what I wanted my major to be. It seems like it was forever ago.

Saturday, the senior class ushered in the fall season by hosting a bonfire accompanied with volleyball, singing around the fire, s'mores (my favorite) and hotdogs (not my favorite).

After the bonfire, a group of us ran to the upper soccer field to lay on the hill side. Blankets were stretched out with us squishing together to keep warm. We laughed reminiscing about how we all met one another, our first impressions, both good and bad, how excited and eager we were to be in college, the crushes we had that now seem ridiculous and the rookie mistakes we made.

I am so thankful for my past three years at Asbury. I have made a wonderful group of friends and will never say goodbye to them. I'm thankful that we can spend our Saturday nights around a bonfire, under the stars and not out partying or getting drunk. I'm thankful that they've been there to comfort me when I've felt at my lowest and to celebrate with me when I've succeeded. I am so blessed.

Highlights from freshmen year:

First bonfire at the Owens' house

Girls' Night Out where I met some of my best friends

Freshmen Class Cabinet at Freshmen Formal

Freshmen Homecoming Representatives

When Asbury was a college

Is it really senior year already?  

Goodwill Hunting

Fall is fast approaching and I am elated. It is, without a doubt, my favorite season.

Chunky knit sweaters, pumpkin spice lattes, the Red River Gorge, my brown leather boots, colorful leaves, campfires, s'mores. Wrap it all up in "brown paper packages tied up with string. These are few of my favorite things."

As part of preparing for fall, I research when Starbucks' Pumpkin Spice Latte is once again released into the world for humanity to enjoy (Sept 6) and bring out my (small) fall wardrobe. I try to add to it every year and this year I had help from my lovely apartmentmates Jane and Sharayah.

After spending some time at my favorite coffee house, we headed to Goodwill to see what we could find. One can ALWAYS find something that is at least intriguing if not purchase worthy at Goodwill.

Like I said, you can at least find something intriguing

 Sharayah is the "Goodwill Goddess." She always finds the best stuff
 

   Jane found an exercise video to go along with her yoga video.

 

I walked out with a gray chunky knit sweater, but was tempted to purchase this. I have no use for it, but it made me think back to my childhood. Do you know what it is?

Sharayah also purchased a DVD of "When in Rome," a Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen movie. We were all so excited to watch our favorite childhood celebrities.

I couldn't handle it. I made up the excuse that I had to bake. It was SO BAD. The acting, the cheesy lines, the ridiculous romances that 15 year old girls should not be having ... 10 years ago, I couldn't get enough of their movies. My how we've changed.

Then

Now

Mud Running (Part 1)

So I'm doing this next Saturday:

   

It is what you probably think it is. It's a mud run.

For a class, my roommate Cassie has to complete some sort of physical challenge that she has never attempted before. I was sitting at the table, doing my French grammar homework (that class is already killing me) when she asked if I would do it with her.

Running through mud, climbing over obstacles, face planting and making a fool of myself for 5 kilometers.... why not? Yup, I thought about it probably as long as it took you to read that last sentence before I agreed to it.

We registered online and then it hit me. 

WHAT DID I JUST AGREE TO DO?!?

We'll see how it goes. Prayers would be appreciated.

Celebrating the Olympics

The Olympic games are well underway and my patriotism is bigger than ever before. Not only am I proud to support Team USA and their stylish Polo getups, but I have multiple friends and hometown heroes that I'm excited to cheer on.

During the 2008 Summer Olympics, a high school friend, Elaine Breeden rocked the 200 meter butterfly and won silver. Unfortunately she did not make the team this year, but I'm still proud.
Lexington natives Lee Kiefer and Tyson Gay are representing Team USA in fencing and track.

They aren't the only people representing the great state of Kentucky in London. There are nearly 100 Asburians there as well. They are working with the local news station WLEX writing articles, creating short videos and even keeping a blog. Of course I've been ridiculously jealous and sad that I am not there with them sharing in all the fun. Thankfully I wasn't the only one left behind. The few of us remaining decided to have an opening ceremony celebration of our own.

My friends Laura and Katie invited several of us over to watch the ceremony, so of course we ate lots of junk food like good college kids do. I made red, white and blue cupcakes with "Go USA" written on them and Zach brought the necessary ingredients for loaf.

                                                       

I was really proud and Katie was really happy

I tried to google loaf to see if I could find a better explanation for it, but it seems that the rest of the world hasn't discovered it yet. Basically, it's a cookie dough log that has been baked and is eaten with ice cream. It's best to eat it one part cookie and one part ice cream on your spoon. If you enjoy eating raw cookie dough, this is a good way to satisfy that craving without the fear of salmonella. Very sweet and very filling, but so good.

This isn't everyone that was there, but the chef and sous chefs that made loaf.

I've missed these people and am so happy and excited to be around them 24/7 again, starting Thursday. That's right, Thurday and I'm back at Asbury. It can't be here soon enough.

Honored

I moved around a lot while growing up. Made lots of friends, lost lots of friends, but some friendships just stuck. One of those friends that has continued to remain close is my friend Sydney.

I remember meeting her while we were both "volunteering" in the church preschool class. We were something like 7 and 8, circa 1999.  We were playing with the little kids and I asked her why she was hiding in the kitchen playset cabinet. I don't remember her response and she might even have a different story, but that is my first memory of Sydney.



My first time at the beach (2007)

Since then we've danced in the Nutcracker together, went on many family vacations, camping, school dances, helped one another get ready for prom and shared many embarassing moments together. My favorite: when we went hiking in the Red River Gorge with our dads. I'll spare her the embarassment. I don't remember a Sunday at church without her. She is a friend who has always been there.

I threw her a baby shower and was there when her sweet little Emma was born. I have so much love for this little girl. She has a great momma.

Not only am I honored to have been her friend for 13 or so years, but she has asked me to be her Maid of Honor when she and her hubby-to-be get hitched. With great power come great responsibility and I'm excited.

She, her mother and I went wedding dress shopping on Monday and were very successful, not only in dress selection. I had the opportunity to introduce them to bubble tea.

A tough contender, but it didn't make the cut

They didn't like the pearls, but still enjoyed it

My family has always been really bad at taking pictures. I do have more of the two of us when we were younger, but she would kill me if I posted them.

I love this girl. We've been through many happy times and many rough times together. it's just one of those friendships that no matter what happens, will never end.

Getting Back in the Swing of Things

I've been back for over a full week now and it's already felt as though I've been here all summer. Throughout this past week I would think to myself, "Where was I this time last week?" My answer usually was playing with kids, attempting to speak Spanish or puppets. I miss that.


There is no doubt I miss Honduras, but I've definitely missed my old Kentucky home. I started back at AirMart. They let me out of the conference room and promoted me to the front desk. It's the little things that make life exciting.


Something I've really enjoyed  is getting to catch up with friends. One of my best friends and roommates, Sharayah, came into town to take a test for a class she's taking this summer. It was a great excuse for her to visit me.


We went to a new restaurant in Lexington called Shakespeare and Company. The atmosphere and decorations were great. We really enjoyed our goat cheese and herb pizza as well. The service wasn't so great, but I'd give it another chance.

Afterwards we went to our favorite coffeehouse, Common Grounds Coffeehouse to hear the live music they have every Friday and Saturday night. To our disappointment, the guy singing and playing his acoustic guitar wasn't very good. There was only a small table of his friends who yelled out inside jokes and songs for him to sing. Although it was somewhat amusing, we decided to head upstairs to chat and found this sign on the door of the room we wanted to go into.

We decided not to intrude. I thought about leaving the number of the CDC and their website for Zombie Preparedness. It's a comical website and amazing public relations case study. If you call or text the number on the sign, please let me know their response.


Only 2 1/2 more weeks and I move back to school. I can't believe how quickly this summer has gone by! It is definitely not what I expected it would be, but it seems that God always exceeds my expectations. Going to France didn't work out. Visitng my friend in England and Northern Ireland didn't happen, but the adventures I had in DC and living with Julie and Martin are unforgetable. I learned so much and grew in ways I didn't see coming. It was great making new friends in DC and seeing old ones in Honduras. This is my last school summer break and it's definitely been a memorable one. 

My Friends are Cooler Than Yours

I realize with a title like that I sound like a dramatic middle school girl and I know what they are like, because I once was one.

It's true though. Most of my friends are doing amazing things this summer and most are blogging about it too. 

Abby and Daniel are working at Yellowstone National Park. I'm not exactly sure what all they do other than hike and see lots of bears, but they look like they're having a blast while doing it. Check out Abby's blog It's the Experience.

My lovely roommate Cassie is interning with CURE in Kenya for almost 2 months this summer. She has such a big heart for serving and helping others. The pictures of the cute kids she helps heal make it worth checking out her blog Won't Turn Back. If you leave a comment, tell her I miss her.




 

My future apartmentmate Jane is traveling to London to work at the summer Olympics. She's been blogging for awhile and although she doesn't update much, I know she'll be blogging about her adventures in London. She's super sweet and one of the most encouraging people I know. Check out Jane Loves Words

Max is road tripping out westward with some hometown friends. I'm not sure the purpose in it other than just having a good time, but he's a photographer for the Air Force so his pictures are always great @TheRechCenter 






I also have friends that have gone or are going to Peru, Ecuador, Northern Ireland, Uganda, Guatemala and I don't even know where else.They are all serving in some capacity and I've enjoyed praying for them and seeing what experiences and opportunities God has given them. Lots of them are working at the Olympics and I am jealous, but I can't complain too much. I'm still loving it here in D.C.

A Girls' Night at the Outdoor FIlm Festival in the City

Yesterday was back in the office and like any Monday, I was tired and not excited about waking up at 6 A.M. I am not a morning person. My mother and roommate can attest to that. Those of you who are, you have a special gift and I envy you.

Although I was tired, I was looking forward to the evening, because Katie had invited me to go to a movie in the park with her that evening. I cleared things from my not so busy DC social life schedule and agreed to go.

Katie and I met on Saturday when we went to Eastern Market with our mutual friends Lyman and Chad. We hit it off as soon as we began browsing through the market, talking about our internships and love of all things communications oriented and social media. We may have even discussed renting an apartment together in DC after we both graduate in May.

I met Katie and her fellow intern, Allie in Chrystal City for an outdoor screening of the Wedding Singer. I know it's hard to believe, but none of us had ever seen the movie, but we all loved it. Chrystal City is hosting an outdoor film festival every Monday night at sunset in the summer, so we decided to make it a weekly outing.

The venue is a little patch of grass with 3 walls of tall office buildings, which gives it a cozy feeling. The warm breeze, the feeling of the blanket on the grass and the good company made it a great night. I'm already excited for Sweet Home Alabama next week.

Schools out for the Summer

Wednesday, May 2 at 7:04 P.M. I successfully emailed my last final and paper that was due at 9 P.M. that evening. I should minor in procrastination.


Since then, it has officially been summer time for me. So far I've packed up my dorm room, said goodbye to my friends, moved all my stuff home, left everything sitting in my room and started working at AirMart again. Doesn't sound like a very exciting summer thus far, but I have some things I'm looking forward to, like yard sales with Zach, Brian, Laura and Sharayah, internship at the Pentagon, going to Honduras and hopefully flying a plane or two.


What are your plans for the summer?

I'm Famous!

Okay, so I'm not actually famous, but I did play a (very) small role in the short film "Beholdhim," written and produced by my friends Zach and Andrew. It was selected and appeared in the 2012 Highbridge Film Festival. Check it out:

"I judge a woman by her sandwiches"

Yesterday, at lunch, I was chatting with my friends when I overheard one of them say, "I have to know how she makes her sandwiches first." I was instantly curious. I asked him what he meant by that and he said that he wants to see a girl make a sandwich before he decides to date her. According to him, you can tell a lot about a girl depending on how she makes her sandwich.

If the sandwich is neat and tidy, then she will be able to keep and maintain a neat and tidy household. If it's sloppy with mustard oozing from the sides and the sandwich is falling apart, then she's going to have a harder time maintaining a house. If it tastes good, then that's even better.

I just shook my head and decided to be more aware of how I make my sandwiches. Who knew guys judged sandwiches? 

New Year, New Blogging

To all my faithful readers (all 18 of you), I am terribly sorry for not posting since September. I have made a resolution to be a faithful blogger and I am excited about it.

To catch y'all up on last semester, it was great, wonderful, grades were good, I threw the first all school dance, grew in my relationship with Christ and am looking forward to next semester.

Now to 2012:

My friend Jane and I road tripped to Corbin to visit our friend Sharayah. We ushered in the new year watching the ball drop in Barbourville, KY. That's right, southeastern Kentucky has its own glowing glittery ball it drops, while counting down to the new year. It was no Times Square experience, but free hot chocolate and good company made it just as enjoyable.

On New Year's Day, we went to church, came back and did a photo shoot, courtesy of Sharayah's younger sister. Afterwards, we enjoyed every model's favorite diet foods, Chinese and pizza, while watching Tangled. I'd say 2012 is off to a great start.

The End of Summer

First, I apologize for not posting anything lately. It's been a crazy busy summer that is bittersweetly (yes I just made that word up) coming to a close.

Here's a short overview of my summer:

Lots of nights hanging out at Confrontation Point with friends, playing euchre until the wee hours of the morning

Went to the rope swing on some hot summer days to jump into the muddy Kentucky river

Worshiped, served and praised God at the wonderful Ichthus Music Festival with friends and made some
 new ones

Hung out in Nashville with some friends


Helped out the wonderful people of Tuscaloosa, AL

Threw a surprise birthday party that was a great success

and had an awesome internship (I'll write a post about that later)

I'm very thankful for the summer I had, but I'm really looking forward to being back at Asbury.


God is good