Work related delusions

Ok, maybe I'm crazy.... ok, I AM crazy, but maybe this is crazy.... I was working on a project along I-45 and I was using some background aerials to help me create a diagram of the highway between 59 and Beltway 8.

As I was faithfully plodding along, something caught my attention from the right side of the screen... there was a section of aerials that reminded me of a sock monkey face (picture attached for those less familiar with the sock monkey). I looked at it and I just kept thinking..."yup, sock monkey face". If I squinted just right and let me eyes go out of focus then it looked EXACTLY like said sock monkey.

After a moment of contemplation on this fact, I decided it was definitely time to go home..... Whenever sock monkeys start to appear to you in aerial photographs, it's time to go home and sleep.. or something :)

Wedding Weirdness - Part 2

Ok, so I have been looking at flowers over the past couple of weeks and frankly, I've been appalled. I cannot BELIEVE how much money these people charge for flowers!! How do they sleep at night?! Perhaps one of the most annoying things is that I went to the same place that my sister in law got her flowers 2 years ago and instead of $40 for a bridal bouquet, it's now $95-$150. She spent $23 on each bridesmaid bouquet which now range from $50-$75. The boutenniere and corsage prices have doubled and tripled respectively. The saddest part? Some of that price differencial can be attributed to price rising over time, but most of it is that they charge that much more at the Houston store than at the San Antonio one.

For those of you who didn't know, Houston is one of the most expensive cities in the US in which to have your wedding. Surprised? ME TOO!! Logically I don't get it. The only guess I have is that they see the huge market and as long as everybody overcharges, we have no option but to pay it. Well... I am taking an option. My mom, Nate's mom and I are making the bridesmaid bouquets, boutonnieres, and corsages ourselves. I will still get my bouquet made cause... well... I'm not that talented :) So :P to the floral industry... I refuse to pay $15 for a boutonniere or $25 for a corsage. I refuse to pay $50 each for 7 bridesmaid bouquets that I can make for $120 total.

Oh, another weirdness.... so Nate and I have had floral appointments, cake tastings, etc this week and tell me if you think this is awkward. We will be sitting there with the consultant and they will say, oh I want to show you something and they will get up and leave. Nate and I look at each other with the clear question, "Are we supposed to follow?". They didn't say, "I want to show you something, come look at this." or "I want to show you something, I'll be right back." Over the course of the weekend, we didn't follow the cake lady... awkward, maybe we should have..... We followed the Florist...awkward again, we end up standing uncomfortably behind her and we still don't think this is the right decision. Oh what to do... what to do?

Side note to- "The other side of me"

I will still post about said wedding... I will still talk about it (happily :).

The other side of me.....

Ok, so I have been avoiding posting so as not to go off about something in particular that I've been struggling with recently. My small group last night helped me realize that it's ok to let it out.... you can therefore blame them if any of the following bothers you :)

Ever since Nate and I got engaged, almost every single conversation I have had with somebody starts with either "Ok, tell me the WHOLE story!!" or "How are the wedding plans??". I am sooooo the wrong personality to deal with that! I am more than an engaged person... I'm still me. I still have struggles, I have other things going on in my life. I love that people are excited for me, i'm excited too... but I can't let this wedding be my whole life. It is a HUGE part of it right now, that is unavoidable and I am enjoying it in a lot of ways. Here is where the problems lie~

-I love that you care, but PLEASE ask me anything else before you ask me about the plans. I don't mind talking about them, but not all the time and not as the very first thing I am approached about every single time someone talks to me.... When it is all that is talked about, it begins to give you the feeling that the only thing that makes you worthwhile is the wedding.

-I know this may disappoint some people, but I cannot be the bouncing off the wall giddy bride. It wasn't my personality before I got engaged and it still isn't. Please know that I am excited... very excited :)... but I may not be able to show it in the way a bride "should". If you want to see a giddy bride, look here... She is adorable about it :)

I feel like I am failing to live up to some societal standard of behavior for engaged girls, it's frustrating :P If you have looked at the link above, I agree with Erin.... It is hard to be engaged. Your single friends begin to put distance (even if only slightly) and you don't belong with the marrieds yet. It inspires a sort of identity crisis.... Who am I? I'm not truly a single, nor am I a married... it's tough. God has been showing me through this that I can't put my identity in my marital status (or lack thereof :) I can only put my identity in Him. I am a child of God, an adopted daughter. Ok, breathing now :)

I'm sick

I am on my third day of sick leave..... this is getting old :(

Wedding Weirdness - Part 1

Did you know that there is something known as a "Cake Cutting Fee"?? That's right, they charge you per slice that they dole out at your reception. I figured this was something random at this one location, but when I brought it up with my brother and sister-in-law they were like "yup, they charge you for every slice they cut of your cake." I mentioned it to another married friend and she had also paid such a fee. This is one of those weird things you just don't know about until you get married.... every non-married person I have told has given me a "WHAT?!"

I would like to say proudly that I am getting married at a place where there is no cake cutting fee.... they actually advertise that. So take that, weird wedding fee maker-upper... ha!

So anyway, Nate and I officially have a place for the wedding.... it is in North Houston near I-45 and FM 1960. That means that we can say the date with authority now... December 30, 2006. Get excited kids, it's gonna be a wild ride :)

Weird Wedding Word - Sepia Tone. Now, this is technically a photography term and it's pretty common, but the first time I saw it written out it just looked weird... so there you go :)

Will You Marry Me.....

Last Friday I took a half day and I rushed home to get ready to go to San Antonio with Nate to visit Ben and Amy. The things is, when I got home Nate was already inside my apartment..... with a ring :) Long story short, Nate and I are engaged!!

I was getting some grief for not posting something about this earlier, so here it is :) We are looking to get married on December 30 (Nate's 28th birthday) somewhere in the general Houston area.

Now, some thoughts from this weekend~

-God is so amazing! His timing is perfect and his knowledge of what we need is beyond our comprehension. I never dreamed that he would bring such a godly, caring, and perfect (for me :) guy into my life.

-Friends are such a blessing! The excitement I got as I made phone calls was so encouraging! Then when we got back, there was a large LH group waiting in Nate's apartment to surprise us and celebrate this time in our lives. That meant so much to me to have them there. God has truly blessed me by bringing so many amazing people into my life over the past year. I believe that young singles have the capacity to have such an amazing impact for the kingdom, and the caliber of people in LH convice me of this constantly.

-Glory, it's what it's all about. Glory, God's... NOT mine.


Well, I'm sure planning a wedding will provide some amazing material for future blogs..... get excited :)

For Liz.. and the other Liz :)

I found this tied in with our conversation yesterday, and Liz H..... you started it back up :P

Ladies and Gentlemen.. Life after Summit

So I just witnessed my first Summit wedding yesterday when Karrie and Dan got married. So it isn't a myth...people DO make it out of Lighthouse :) This is always an encouraging thing to see. Anyways, I have included some pictures.... shamelessly ripped off from Leslie's facebook profile (cause I'm at work and can't access my own pics :).

If you know Dan and Karrie, be praying for them as God shows them how to be a married couple. Pray for them to grow closer to Him and closer to each other with every passing day and pray that their love and devotion to God would increase thier love and devotion to each other. Finally, pray that in all things they seek after God's will for thier life together. Congrats guys!

I, Abby, being of sound mind.....

So, I'm at work reading a design manual section on metal beam guard fences (my life IS that exciting, I know you can't believe it :) and the first paragraph is as follows~

"The objectives of this appendix are to make available data and guidelines for the use of roadside traffic barriers (typically metal beam guard fence) in a consolidated and understandable form. These guidelines should be supplemented by sound engineering judgment."

I don't know how sound my engineering judgement is, but I'll give it a shot :P

Adventures in Canada... Eh?

I went to Calgary over the Fourth of July Weekend to visit with Erin and to see some of my family up there. It was so great! The weather was absolutely beautiful and it is always encouraging to be around Erin. You can see God moving in her life and her desire to know him better and serve him completely infiltrates every aspect of her life. I feel so lucky to know her and be able to spend time with her this weekend.

My first day there was Canada Day, July 1st. It was so much fun to be there on their nation's birthday. We got to see parades (or at least get trapped in a town that was setting up for a parade because they had blocked off the street we came in on :), everybody and I mean EVERYBODY was wearing something with Canada written on it and we got free Canadian flags everywhere we went. We went to Lake Louise, Lake Moraine and stopped in Canmore and Banff. The flowers below were outside the Banff Springs Hotel.

My second day there we drove to Jasper (about a 5 hour drive each way, through the mountains :) It was absolutely gorgeous. We saw three rainbows while I was in Canada, below is one at a waterfall. (The other two were in the sky over the mountains... and I live in Texas why?)

We went by the Columbian Ice Fields and Erin and I took the opportunity to get this little photo op~

Erin and I had a great time and came away with quite a few interesting quotes. You might not get all of them, but Erin knows they're funny ;-)


1 -"Do you think the mountains look just like they did when God created them"
2 -"No, erosion."
3 - "Just like us."
2 - "We erode? Is that what happened to my boobs?"
- Names have been changed to numbers to protect the identity of the parties involved :)

"I wish every day was Canada Day. " - If you have witnessed Canada Day, there is no explanation needed. If not, I don't think you will ever understand :)

"Why is that checkmark on that car?" - Erin's car was just shipped from Houston and arrived the day before I got there. Whoever shipped it managed to lose the title and put a white check mark on the car that, as far as we can tell, cannot be removed.

"Crazy Texas drivers!" - Erin's shipped car still has Texas plates... this was our response to any time we did something stupid while driving

"Shagganappi" - the name of a car dealership in Calgary.. Shagganappi Chevrolet

"If we were in a Tahoe I bet our butts wouldn't hurt right now." - I guess we'll never know....

"Mmmm, it smells like......Canada" - Well, it did :)

"I'm seriously thinking about getting the Prince of Darkness, but I'm not too fond of the name. I mean, I'm just not sure I want an evil cup of coffee..."

I make a great second impression.. most people don't know that about me

First impressions.... I think too much emphasis is placed on first impressions. I am a bit of a spaz, so I hope that the first feelings that people get about me are not the ones that they hold forever. I can think of quite a few of my friends that wouldn't be my friends had they taken their first impression of me and ran with it.. Examples: Preston and everybody else in the room that day :) , Renee.. and a countless number of other people who saw the weird or soapbox me before they got to the creamy nougat center that is me.

I realized though that I often meet someone and make a decision about them within the first couple of minutes. This happened recently with someone in LH (who shall remain nameless :). They drove me nuts and I couldn't stand to be around them. This lasted for something like 9 or 10 months. Just recently I have had the opportunity to get to know them.... I REALLY like them! They are so much fun and have a genuine heart for the Lord. I thought I had learned my lesson about "judging a book by it's cover", but God has taught me so much about what it means to love someone through this person. Now I am excited when they are coming to things and disappointed when they are not. And it isn't me practicing loving the unlovable.... it's me giving a person a chance so that I can truly understand who they are and who God is making them and then I understand how they are lovable.

All this to say, get to know someone you don't think you could get along with... you never know what God will do :)


Weird Abby revelation o' the day- I love the smell of the black and white copier at my office. I don't know why, but it makes me happy :)

Great Love Songs (by genre)- parts.... i dunno

I'm going to dispense with the full on lyrics attack and just list a few more (although if you haven't read the Plankeye lyrics, I highly recommend them :)

Country-

Pat Green "Wave on Wave and "Crazy"- I choose Pat because of his freakin awesome voice and the fact that I find him curiously attractive (isn't that right, Jana? ;-) The chorus from "Crazy" goes like this~

If I am truly crazy,

don't you know I like my life that way

and if I'm really going on out of my mind

won't you hop on board and make your getaway

Alternative/Rock/a little Ska-ey

Haha, so I don't know what genre Yellowcard is, but here is where I praise them for the song "Only One". If you mean it, sing it loud

I just want to tell you so you know

Here I go, scream my lungs out and try to get to you

You are my only one

I let go, there's just no one that gets me like you do

You are my only, my only one

~

And that's the end of that. Sorry :) , I was in the car listening to Wave on Wave and an idea was born. Plus, the other topic option was littering so I figured I'd spare you. I will say this... Don't Mess with Texas... and don't throw a beer can out of a truck at a speed limit sign on my street, seriously the guy was right infront of me and I'm thinking, "Wow, he managed to break at least three laws at once." Ok, soapbox over :)

Great Love Songs (by genre)- part 2

Broadway-

I am going to make an unusual choice here and go with "On my Own" from Les Mis. This is not your typical "great love song" as Eponine's love is unrequited, but it is there none the less and it makes this song one of the most powerful and incredibly depressing love songs ever. With that said.. enjoy :)

On my Own
from Les Miserables

On my own
Pretending he's beside me
All alone, I walk with him till morning
Without himI feel his arms around me
And when I lose my way I close my eyes
And he has found me

In the rain the pavement shines like silver
All the lights are misty in the river
In the darkness, the trees are full of starlight
And all I see is him and me for ever and forever
And I know it's only in my mind
That I'm talking to myself and not to him
And although I know that he is blind
Still I say, there's a way for us

I love him
But when the night is over
He is gone, the river's just a river
Without him the world around me changes
The trees are bare and everywhere
The streets are full of strangers

I love him
But every day I'm learning
All my life I've only been pretending
Without me his world will go on turning
A world that's full of happiness
That I have never known!

I love him
I love him
I love him
But only on my own


Ok, i'm going to go find a happy love song for the next one... otherwise I will depress all my readers :P

Great love songs (by genre)- Part one

Christian Rock-

For me this is hands down "Beautiful" by Plankeye. I prefer love songs by rock bands. I think love is something to be excited about, to get loud about, not just hum quietly about... anyhoo, as far as my particular choice, I think every girl wants a guy to think about her this way. Check it out :)

"Beautiful"
by : Plankeye

You shared her with me yesterday.
So close yet so far away.
It's the little things she does
That magnify your grace.
And your grace,
Resonates in my soul
Every time I see her face

At your feet I lay her down,
Humbly before you I bow.
She's the blessing,
You've given to me,
Father of light.

The lines have fallen in pleasant places,
Many daughters have done well,
But you excel them all.
Protect her and mold her with your hands.
You've been good to me my sweet.
And your grace resonates in my soul
Every time I see her face.
You have been a shelter Lord,
She has been my dream.

At your feet I lay her down,
Humbly before you I bow.
She's a blessing,
You've given to me,
Father of light.

Beautiful, Beautiful,
I feel your grace abound on me.
In the light, In the light.
At your feet I lay her down,
Humbly before you I bow.
She's a blessing,
You've given to me,
Father of light.

You know you get up too early when....

So, I woke up this morning and I was tired but I forced myself out of bed, did my hair, got dressed, went through my whole wake up routine... I went to go unplug my phone to take it with me when I noticed the alarm was still on. Interesting, because that is how I wake up and I could have sworn it was how I woke up today. So I look at the time on my phone and see that it says 12:55. Uhhhhhhh, what? I check my watch which is already on my perfumed arm and I look at my nightstand and yeah, it is definitely 12:55.

So, I got back into my pajamas and went back to sleep. When I got up at 5:40 I decided once a day is definitely my limit on how many times I fix my hair, so here I sit at work... my hair slightly off.. wondering how I looked at the clock a couple of times before getting up without noticing that it was 12:40 and not 5:40. Now to address the title of this out-of-body post.... You know you get up too early when you accidentally wake up 5 hours early and the only thing that tells you you're up early is the clock (If you look closely, that is :) Yes folks, 5:40 am is just as dark as 12:40 am.... disturbing, isn't it?

She Thinks my Tractor's sexy.. and other random thoughts.

So I drove to Dallas this weekend to hang out with some old friends (Some from preschool, some from college :) I had a GREAT time! It is very weird to go somewhere and feel almost more at home than you do where you live. When you combine the city I grew up in with people I grew up with and then throw in a few people who were my closest friends in college then it is hard not to be comfortable. (Having said that, I love Houston and have no intention of going back to Dallas... although it is very shiny :)



As I drove into town, I realized something.... do you know that song "She thinks my tractor's sexy"? I have always liked this song and thought it was funny and frankly weird if you stopped to think about it. Then as I drove into Dallas I had a thought, Central Expressway is one sexy highway. No seriously, the segment from downtown to the High 5 is seriously attractive.... to me :) I guess I have a little more understanding for the girl who has a tractor thing as I have a highway/ interchange/ bridge thing.. in fact if you throw in my fascination with concrete, mine is probably more weird.

Anyways.... thoughts from today~

1) It takes some seriously scary rain for Houstonians to voluntarily drive 20 mph up I-45.... even at 20, you could still see almost nothing... pretty fun way to start the morning.

2) I think I realized why professional women would want to wear panty hose...... It is perfectly acceptable now to not wear panty hose even in the office, but as I walked in today in a skirt I realized that panty hose would have been a nice little barrier between my legs and the over-active air conditioning system in my building. Why are offices ALWAYS so cold?!!

Oklahoma sucks.... apparently :)

When he found out that I was going to Oklahoma City over the weekend, my supervisor's response was "You know what keeps Texas from sliding into the ocean? Oklahoma sucks". Well, Oklahoma may suck, but the weekend was great. I went with Nate to go to his cousin's wedding and I got to meet almost his entire family. We had such a good time and he has a really great family :) The first picture is of Nate's cousin Nicholas.. sooo cute!

We stayed in Norman and drove into OK City for the wedding so we got to go to the OU campus while we were there. It is so pretty! The second picture is of a building on campus.

We had a great time but we also came up with a few reasons why Oklahoma sucks.

1) If you follow the signs to the OU campus, you never actually see the OU campus.

2) They have these evil biting gnats that I still have marks from all over my feet & neck.

3) They park trains on the tracks for 30-45 minutes blocking 3 intersections in the process.

When it comes down to it though, I wouldn't trade this weekend for the world :)

A Tale of Two Roaches.

Ok, so we are in the car on the way back from Metro Live and Bonnie tells me a story about a roach that was in her shower this morning. Apparently it came out of nowhere and caused her to whimper and try a few disposal tactics before finally sucking it up and grabbing the Raid. My favorite part of the conversation...

Me- "Ew, there is nothing worse than a roach in the shower!"

Bon- "I know! I mean... you're naked, you're vulnerable to their every whim!!"

"And this is my other child.... so and so"

My mom went to help her mom move out of her house and into a retirement community this last week. It was interesting to say the least. My aunt was also there and every time they would be introduced my grandmother would say~

"This is my daughter Cathy, and this is my daughter from Paris"

I suppose where Cathy is from (New York) and my mom's name (Susan) are secondary concerns :)