7QTs on Coffee Trends, Cat Feast Days, & Snow Cone Trucks

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Did you know that there's a new trend in coffee and it's called adding BUTTER to it? Right? What!? I'm so confused. I'm not quite sure how I feel about this...

It's called Bulletproof Coffee and it was created by this dude after he climbed mountains in Tibet. Apparently it can help you lose weight? It's all about the type of butter you use. Who knew, right? I'm not sure if I'm going to hop on this trendy bandwagon, but I'd be interested to try it. Anyone want to go in on some grass-fed butter with me?

--- 2 ---

So, I ordered a case for my ukulele. Because I want to be able to take it places and have it protected, right? Not only did the thing come in a GIANT box (thank you, Amazon), but there was a ukulele INSIDE of the case! So now, I have two ukulele's. And it is extremely unnecessary.

This is what they sent me.
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I decided to play said second ukulele, and it turns out it's really nice. Like really nice. Like Amazon made a mistake and sent me the wrong product nice. So now I'm in love with the new ukulele, but alas, I have to return it because I'm pretty sure they made a mistake and I'm also pretty sure keeping it would be stealing.

--- 3 ---

In other news, my 2008 Macbook died when I got back from training. The screen putters in and out, is excessively slow, and is almost dead. After a lot of deliberating & soul searching, I have decided to purchase a MacBook Air. I got it Wednesday night and it is SO EXCITING! I went with the 13-inch basic 128GBs, but when I went to migrate my files from my old computer to the new one, it was going to take up 98GBs. So I've decided I definitely do not need any of my papers from college...but the main question is what do I do with my pictures? Do I store them on google? Dropbox? Some other fancy application!?

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Stubenville of the Rockies is this weekend and it is going to be way fun. I am chaperoning for my parish and I get to spend the weekend with 32 of our highschoolers, 3 of them being members of my discipleship group. I am so excited for this on so many different levels - for my own spiritual refreshment, for the kids to encounter Christ, and from a professional standpoint.

--- 5 ---

Speaking of professional things...I got a (quasi) promotion! Well, it's more like a title change. I am now a SENIOR Event Specialist for FOCUS & it is pretty much the most exciting thing ever. Because I get to change my email signature, LinkedIn profile, and NEW BUSINESS CARDS.

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Monday was St. Kateri's feast day. And since I don't know my cat's birthday, I dubbed Monday as her feast day/birthday!

My roommates finance suggested we have a procession, but since cats don't do stuff like that, I just gave her a few extra treats.

--- 7 ---

Since I've posted almost nothing about the actual happenings of NST on here, please enjoy this candid photograph from Snow Cone Day.

Please note the PURE JOY on Carol's face and the dysfunction on mine. This picture is everything.

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

5 Reasons to Talk to Strangers

I went to ink! coffee with Holly & Cass two weekends ago to write and do lesson prep while they studied. First of all, I got a blended chocolate and banana espresso smoothie, so that was amazing. Second, while I was getting my coffee I became best friends with the barista. 

He asked why we were up to, so I told him. He told me he thinks it's so cool when people blog and that he's always wanted to start a blog focused on interviews, but never felt qualified to do it. I told him that was silly and he would start it anyways. He's in such a cool position to meet a bunch of people, working at a coffee shop. We talked a little more about dreams, and then I quoted Tangled at him and went to get working.

image via.

I loved this little encounter and am so grateful for his willingness to chat. I am constantly amazed by how honoring others by talking to them or acknowledging them can turn your day around. Holly told me that last week she was walking home from school and when some random guy have her a high-five, it just made her day.

Events is reading The Hidden Power of Kindness by Fr. Lawrence G. Lovasik.

Approximately every sentence he writes jumps out at me and kicks me in the pants, but this really struck a chord with me:

"Greet people enthusiastically and sincerely. A man's name is to him the most important sound in his language."

Seems simple, right? But I think my mouth dropped all the way to the floor and I started banging my head against my desk when I read this. How many times to I walk by another human, even at work, and fail to acknowledge them? 

Christine had us pick one thing from chapter one that we were going to work on for the next week. Greeting people was my personal challenge. Guys, it was embarrassingly hard. Even in a place where our main goal is relationships, we too can shy away from greeting one another. But, I persevered in my challenge and I'm glad I did.

After many awkward and failed encounters, and a few pretty great ones, here are

5 Reasons To Talk To Strangers:

1. It's actually not that scary. Seriously. You can smile. So what if you feel awkward? Actually, why do I feel awkward when I greet someone I don't know?? I know it can brighten my day when someone says hello & says my name. Why can't I do that for other people?

2. You honor & acknowledge the other person's dignity & worth. Guess what? I'm not the center of the universe. And neither are you. There are billions of other people out there with value and a story to tell. You just have to ask them.

3. It leads to great conversations with people you wouldn't expect. Exhibit A: Ink! Coffee Barisita, my new bestie. You'd be surprised how a simple "hello, how is your day?" can lead to deep, meaningful conversation.

4. It's a way to step outside of yourself. I used this quote when I wrote about loneliness and stepping outside of ourselves to fight that struggle, but I think it applies just as much here.

5. It increases your capacity to love. To love is to will the good of another. So if we know making connections and saying hello does the other good, we can love them by doing this. We also increase our capacity to love when we think of the other person's need first.

So carry on, my friends. And tell me, when was a time you had a good experience talking to a stranger?

Little Happies [2]

In the spirit of practicing gratitude, I am back this week with some little happies!

--one--

It's Holy Week, so obviously that's a happy! Michelle (my roommate) & I are going to try to get up early every morning to say morning prayer. Lent has been challenging for me, so I'm excited about this opportunity sprint to the finish line this week.

--two--

While it was nice to have a month long break from traveling, I am excited for what the week ahead holds. I'll be hitting up Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Tennessee, and Florida. I love the anticipation of seeing old teammates and students, fellow missionary friends, and spending a lot of time with my team. Hopefully I will return refreshed from Easter and even more excited for SEEK and NST!

--three--

Last week I read an entire trilogy in a few days. Whoops. Matched had beed on my list for awhile now, so I was really excited when I got the email that it was finally available for download onto my Kindle.

image via.

It was an easy read, but I wasn't the biggest fan of the main character Cassia. Probably because I would have picked her to be with a different guy, but whatever. It also really reminded me of the Delirium series.

What I did love was the love of words and poetry the characters have, how the author explored the different types of love, and how she showed that even the revolutions against oppressive systems can be corrupt. It was fun reading the books and escaping into the world of The Society for a bit. 

--four--

Speaking of reading, Megan & I have quasi started a long distance book club. It's really informal, we read a book and then text about it, but it has been really fun. I highly recommend it as a way to stay in touch with a friend and to keep yourself accountable to reading. BONUS: I get to see Megan this week since she lives in KC. 

--five--

I have been about to burst at the seems with passion for youth ministry these past two weeks. So I took sometime this weekend to pray specifically for my girls and set some goals for the summer. I am excited to talk with Megan about making some of these dreams a reality. 

Look at how much fun youth ministry (camp) is!!!

For more happies, check out Blessed to Be!

7QTs on #Ashtags, Camp Reunions, and Religious Edu [19]

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Enjoy this photo of the FOCUS DSC with their Ashes.

#Ashtag
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Did you know #Ashtag was a trending topic in the US on Wednesday? Pretty neat.

--- 2 ---

My new household has community dinners once a week, and at the end of dinner on Sunday night I whipped out my ukulele to show off my new You Are My Sunshine skills. Mainly because there is a two year old who lives upstairs and she would actually appreciate that song. However, she demanded that I learn Wheels on the Bus, and we jammed to that for quite awhile. It was so cute and so fun. I told her mom that I was going to learn lots of kids songs just for her. I can also play Let It Go from Frozen on the ukulele now. So my life is pretty fun.

--- 3 ---

Quite of few Camp Tecumseh people live in Denver, but we all have crazy busy lives and rarely get to see each other. My good friend Murphy was in town for a family vacation, and her arrival sparked a reunion.

We ventured to a new bar that none of us had ever been to for some live bluegrass music. It was so great. I hope these friends can make it a habit to get together more often.

--- 4 ---

My team is so fun. This week, I am grateful for our friendships and jokes and coffee runs in the middle of the day. We have two on site planning visits coming up in April and I am excited to go exploring the venues of our next two events with them.

I would like to say that we were indeed working hard...

 

--- 5 ---

I pulled an all-nighter last night, because I had so much to do. But it's been very productive thus far. I'm feeling good about leaving for NINE WHOLE DAYS (what the heck). However, It is currently 12:21 AM and I am SO JITTERY because COFFEE.

 

--- 6 ---

I WILL BE IN MEXICO AT 2PM CST TODAY. WITH MY MOM AND MY SISTER. This is the best. It has been a long time since we've been on a vacation, and I just can't wait to relax and read a million things and bond with my mom and sister. I am hoping to get the #1 item on my bucket list crossed off...

--- 7 ---

It has recently occurred to me that over the course of the year I have created a year long Salvation History lesson plan for kindergarteners that other people might want to use. So I might be starting on blog series on that resource later this year. Hmmm...

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!