Chico!

I traveled up to Chico this last weekend to take a look at CSU Chico. I absolutely LOVE it up there and cannot wait to go back. :-) I would love to write more about it but I'm actually quite sick and don't have much energy for writing. Here is a short video I put together of my time there.

melancholy

Sometimes I feel like life has left me in the dust. I don't want to exist, I want to LIVE!

And not just for the future, but for the present.

This week I just existed.

Pathetic.

One Down

I turned in my first college application tonight. Wow, let me rephrase that. . . I turned in my first college application tonight as an upper-division transfer student. Woa, I guess time does fly! It's shocking to think that after this semester I will have completed half the necessary requirements for a B.A.

I've changed and grown in so many ways since high school. I hope this rate of change doesn't continue for the rest of life because I find it exhausting! (Well, it is exciting too.)

Oh, yes. . . my new major = Liberal Arts with a Literature emphasis.

Goal = credential in single subject instruction.

I think God has finally pushed me over the edge. Apparently He has decided that the ONE career I refused to embark upon is the one that is best. . . at least for now.

Nutrition is still in my interests though, I plan to pursue that subject for the rest of my life. :-)

Netflix

This summer I discovered the beauty of Netflix thanks to my online "Film as an Art Form" class. First, I explored different interpretations and adaptations of classic novels such as Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice, Persuasion, Sense and Sensibility, Northanger Abbey, Emma, Mansfield Park and other, mostly British novels. It is quite fun to see how the same book can be interpreted differently and explored through an entirely different medium than text.

Recently, I've been interested in the many documentaries out there. I've been especially caught up by the documentaries that are based on the books by Lee Stroble. (Stroble is a Christian journalist who documented his journey from Atheism to Christianity based on solid evidence.) His documentaries include "The Case for a Creator,""The Case for Christ," and "The Case for Faith." I find that these documentaries are complimented by the recent "Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed" by Ben Stein.

I'm also quite excited to watch other documentaries about health such as "King Corn."

All in all I find that Netflix has opened up an entirely new world of discovery! It enables me to learn in a much faster way. It is such a discouraging thing to realize that one can read for an entire lifetime and still not read all the great novels, biographies, or informational works that are present in this world. At least Netflix has allowed me to expand my knowledge double-time.
( NO, I did not get paid to write this.) :-)

Road Trip Video

Well, I have had this video in a state of partial completion for quite some time. It's been sitting on my computer just waiting for the pictures from my cousin's camera. But I have decided that awaiting their arrival is futile as my cousin is quite busy and I'm sure has completely forgotten that the pictures even exist! Therefore, this is a semi-complete timeline of our road trip through the Midwest. And as I was the photographer, there are many sections which were not recorded because I found it difficult to operate a camera and a motor vehicle simultaneously. I know that it is a rough cut video, and that it is probably very boring for most people as it includes many road sequences. (Hence the term "road-trip") But I hope it is still fun to watch. I ended up cutting quite a few portions of the original video because got to be fairly lengthy. Unfortunately, it is still long but I found it hard to condense 4,000 miles into 8 and 1/2 minutes! :-)

I hope everyone enjoys it!

Much love,

Chin up!

Whoa! It sure has been a while! I guess I got out of the routine of writing but don’t worry I’ll reinstate it! Life is currently quite busy, in a good way. After the upsetting start of the semester, I’ve gotten involved with some extracurricular activities such as: Jr. High ministry at HDC, work at “The Island,” and I’m currently in the training process to become an AVID tutor at one of the local Jr. High schools. I’ve also been trying to spare time to help my grandparents move out of their house in Arrowhead. So that’s life in a nutshell. I don’t really have anything specific to write about tonight but I wanted to update my blog so that people don’t think I’m still drowning is self-pity; I’m not. :-)

Aurora and I all ready for 80's night at Jr. High "Tribes."

Ventation

I’m almost done with week-one of school. :-) I’ve wanted to post a blog almost every night this week but when I would sit down to write, words wouldn’t come to me. I have had a much harder time adjusting than I expected.
Even though I’ve known that I’d be attending VVC this semester, it has really “hit me” now that it’s a reality. The reason for me staying home seemed so logical to me before, but now I am constantly trying to rework my decision. Hindsight is always 20/20 right? Life certainly does not go according to plan. I think that should be the theme of my blog as it seems that every few blogs I post have something to do with plans and expectations!
It’s hard to put raw emotions into written form, especially when it’s on the internet. Basically here is the gist of my life for the past week: I attend VVC. I’d rather not. I have applied for many jobs, none have worked out. I feel kind of lonely. I’m a little on the angry/discontent side even though I know that God has me here for a reason. I’m slowly learning that God really needs to be enough. I need to rely on Him first and foremost. :-)

Wow, this is great therapy! Thanks for reading my venting post.
Much love!
Natalie

P.S. after a quick edit of this post I realize that 10% (I did the math) of the words used include some form of the word “I.” Ugh, perhaps (I) should work on being a little less concerned about (my)self!

Road-Trip! (Apple Valley -- Odessa, TX)

I am currently sitting on a nice clean hotel bed in Odessa, Texas. The road-trip has been a delightful experience so far! It’s my first road-trip with people other than my immediate family or grandparents, and also the first trip in which I have been an active participant in the decisions and responsibilities that go along with traveling. Yesterday was full of talking, laughter, singing, and music. We traveled from home to Albuquerque, New Mexico which took about 12 hours total. That’s including stops for gas, restrooms, driver swapping, and a few wrong turns thanks to Maggie the GPS who decided to take a vacation from functionality.

Along the way we have collected quite a variety of splattered insect intestines and have created a thorough video commentary to be published at a later time. We’ve also tried to document the every changing terrain. Some plants have been quite astonishing: a certain shrub that can be found thickly along the highway just south of Albuquerque is quite unique. When I was finally able to focus on these shrubs (during a lull in the usually excessive speed of a certain cousin of mine) I was able to discern that these plants are not shrubs at all! Instead, they are black cactus! Quite an astounding thing to realize! Perhaps this discovery means more to me because I was, at the time, quite trapped in the back of a Ford Focus.

Another discovery that was made by Autumn and I is this: breakdowns in communication are likely to occur after excessive amounts of time spent in such close quarters! A quick anecdote to prove my point: While discussing the stupidity of drug use I jokingly admitted to secretly doing meth in my “underground laboratory.” Unfortunately this phrase was taken as my “Undergrad Lavatory!” After we deciphered our communication error, we had a great cramp-inducing belly laugh. These communication flubs, among other things have been the source of many laughing spells which include snorting, eye-watering, and muscle spasms.

I am full of other comments but must refrain from writing more as it is now about 1am Texas time and my slave-driver cousin insists we leave by 8am. I have been taking many pictures and videos of the trip and hope to have a video posted shortly after I return home.

Much love to all my friends who are moving back to college this weekend!

Here's a challenge:

I am hardly sure this is possible, but here is a challenge for you:
Try to do your homework while watching 9 children run around the house screaming, laughing, and slamming doors. (They're playing tag of course.)
If you manage to succeed please tell me how, that I may be able to emulate your technique.
I'll wager you'd find it difficult too.
:)
Cheers,
Natalie

A tribute to Blaise Pascal-

"Between us and heaven or hell there is only life, which is the frailest thing in the world."

"Human beings must be known to be loved; but Divine beings must be loved to be known."

"It is good to be tired and wearied by the futile search after the true good, that we may stretch out our arms to the Redeemer."

"Jesus is the God whom we can approach without pride and before whom we can humble ourselves without despair."

On a more humorous note:
"Do you wish people to think well of you? Don't speak well of yourself." :)

It's hard to blog at home!

The busyness that I experience at school is different than when I'm home. When I'm at school, I am usually in class or in my room. Almost all homework assignments include the use of a computer so I find it much easier to blog about this and that. At home, however, I find I am on the computer WAY less, therefore I post fewer blogs. Don’t give up on me though!

Recent happenings:
My family went to mammoth for five days. It was beautiful and relaxing. You can check out pictures on facebook, or simply wait for the next video. (Who knows when that’ll be!?)

I am taking two online art classes through Victor Valley College -- more on that later.

In two days, Felisha and I will find ourselves at Thousand Pines Christian Camp as Jr. High camp counselors. I’m very excited!!

I got my old job back at the Island coffee shop. =) Hooray!!

Summer has seemed to be as scattered as this post. I guess I’d better get used to it!

The Shack

I decided that this summer would be one of reading! Not that my other summers haven’t been considerably full of books, but I rarely make a point of reading books (outside of class) that don’t fall into the categories of good-feeling/light-reading, historical-fiction, or romance. This summer I will not only try to get my fill of those types of books, but I will also dedicate time to digging deeper into what it means to live in the center of Christ’s love. The first book on the list was The Shack by W.M. Paul Young.
This book is certainly a work of fiction; however, that fact was often forgotten as I fell in love with the reality of the characters and the connection that can be made between their humanity and my own. The main character named Mack is invited up to the shack where the last traces of his abducted daughter were found. There, he is met by God, to break through the politically correct, theological perceptions of God that Mack holds. While the book’s portrayal of God was revolutionizing to me, it also made me think about how God is so completely indescribable. If this perception and understanding of God can be created in a work of fiction in the mind of a human, then the thought of the reality of God blows me away! This God loves me: Unbelievable!!
Anyway, if you’re up for a good cry (or lots of them) and you want to fall more deeply in love with your Creator, read The Shack.

Currently reading:
Your Relationship With God: drawing closer to God every day, by Dr. Gary Smalley
Crazy Love: Overwhelmed By a Relentless God, by Francis Chan
Mere Christianity, by C.S. Lewis

Up next:
Any or all works by George Verwer.

I LOVE SUMMER!