Buckeyes, Bengals, Bearcats, and Browns.... Oh my.

Well, I've officially moved. If this is the first time you're hearing about it, don't worry. It was a pretty sudden thing. So let me walk you through this...

First, I was working at a restaurant in Zionsville. Loved the people I worked with... well, almost all of them. One in particular made it really hard to be around, so I decided I needed a new job. My dear friend Laura knew a woman who worked in a dentist's office and needed someone to come be a receptionist. So I did. But all the time, I kept feeling like... this isn't it. And what kept popping up in my head was this coffee shop my uncle had told me about out in Ohio.

So I found out the email address of the man who owns the coffee shop, and I emailed him. And I waited for a week, hearing nothing back. I prayed one morning- Okay, God. I guess this wasn't it, either. Well, whatever the next step is, show me. And that day, the man called me. He said I should come out and take a look at it, see what I think... and I did. That weekend, my mom and I drove out to Millersburg, Ohio...

I have to admit, I was very grumpy this weekend. Mostly because I already knew I'd be moving, and it's in the country, and I rather enjoy the city. Plus I'm a little tired of moving around at this point. But I sat and talked to this guy, Martin... and heard myself telling him yes, I'd return to Indiana, give my employer my two-week's notice and head out to Ohio.

So let me explain a little about the coffee shop that made me move several hundred miles away... again. Martin was a pastor and he felt like God was giving him a vision to open a coffee shop in order to reach people who wouldn't feel comfortable in a church setting. So he runs it as a non-profit and they have church here on Sunday mornings and stuff. And it's basically this cute little place where people can come in and eat and drink coffee and sit on the internet (like I am now)... and sometimes, they can talk to someone about Jesus.

Now let me talk to you about my "big dream." Ever since working at a coffee shop early in college (Smokey Row), I've loved the idea of one day having my own place. Of course, I always thought it'd be second career or something. I like the atmosphere of a coffee shop and I love the idea of ministry. So when I heard about this, I thought- cool. Two things I like in one. And then Martin (the man who runs the place, called Jitters, by the way) said that he would be willing to work with me and teach me to open my own place, giving me the tools and knowledge I would need to run a coffee shop of my own.

How this will look: I have no idea. I committed at least a year out here to work and to learn. I would loooove to head back to Indy eventually. And by eventually, I mean in a year. But we all know how plans go... especially in my life. So basically... I don't know when this will happen, or how it will happen, or where it will happen. But I'm being equipped in the next year to make it happen. Which is pretty cool, I think.

Your prayers would be appreciated as I embark on this adventure. I'm already in Ohio, living currently with a girl a year older than me who manages Jitters; I am planning on getting my own place at some point. I'm sad about leaving Zionsville, I really really loved Indianapolis. I'm sad about being further away from my family (though it's not as far away as Kentucky was)... and I'm getting pretty tired of moving. I'm ready to have a place to call "home." Jesus and I are talking, and I'm trying to convince him it should be Indy... but we'll see... :)

(This =/= me... I'm missing my Hoosier state, for sure!)

The Super-grump

"Sometimes it doesn’t hit me until I see the sky. Like, a lot of the sky. Most of the time, I actually just forget to look up. But walking back from the A train the other day, I remembered, and for a block or so, between buildings, I could see a sizable chunk of sky– clouds and everything. And I realized that I’d been thinking about deadlines and whether or not she meant to sound so irritated when she said that in the meeting and, of course, dinner. But then, when I looked at the sky, I was suddenly thinking about how perfect it is, to be alive. Being alive is this crazy, ridiculous, utterly ordinary gift. You were given it. Make sure you look at the sky." - Eat the Damn Cake This is something I need to remember way more often. Especially lately. I've been so crazy busy, what with 3 jobs and a general disatisfaction of life... that I forget that- wow, I really have a lot going for me. And by "a lot" I mean "everything." If I took the time I spent worrying or working or grumping around to remember all the people I love and who love me back, and all the blessings I have received, even recently- I would never be grumpy. Except in the mornings... right before coffee...

The Knot Prayer (author unknown)

Dear God: Please untie the knows that are in my mind, my heart and my life. Remove the have nots, the can nots and the do nots that I have in my mind. Erase the will nots, may nots, might nots that may find a home in my heart. Release me from the could nots, would nots, and should nots that obstruct my life. And most of all, Dear God, I ask that you remove from my mind, heart, and my life all of the "am nots" that I have allowed to hold me back, especially the thought that I am not good enough. Amen

Found this on Post Secret Archives... and basically... it's my secret, too. Though I didn't send it in, this is what every beat of my heart tells me. I long to find "home."

Today:

- Was asked where I was from, then was told I look Norwegian - Shattered a wine glass in attempting to polish it - Worked 11+ hours - Served a table full of Manic Pixie Dream Girls - Saw a photo shoot of newlyweds at the bar area of our restaurant - Spoke too much about someone behind her back - Got really frustrated - Drank a lot of coffee - Dropped a wine bottle (empty) in the street - Put my hip out - Laughed - Ate delicious food (Stuffed pork medallions at Plum's Upper Room- eat them. Die happy) - Considered more ways to wear my fabulous (but not worn enough) tall brown boots - Stayed on Pinterest too long - Made decent tips - Saw my busiest Saturday to date - Survived to live another week

Confession: I only really seek God (and I mean really, truly seek) when I want something. Doesn't matter what it is- an answer, direction, whatever... that's when I'm truly interested.

All the other times, it has sort of become a non-issue.

And I'm challenged every time I recognize this in myself.(Confession: This is not the first time I've realized this.)

Ohp. I haven't updated in nearly a month... I guess some things have changed in my life. So, here's a quick rundown of everything.

1- Korea does not appear to be happening. The door did not slam shut, but it was the quiet, pushing a cat's nose out of the door type of movement (with me being the cat here).

2- Transition to Teaching. I'm planning on taking an 18-month program through IWU, getting my teaching license, and... yeah. I don't actually want to teach, which sounds silly, I know. But I do love tutoring and would love to do something like that, and it takes a teaching license to do it. So there.

3- Got a job at a restaurant in downtown Zionsville. Two restaurants, actually. They're owned and operated by the same people. They are G. Simone's (moderately-price, lighter fare) and Plum's Upper Room (casual fine dining). I'm training to become a server. I'm also still working at Banana downtown. Also, I may through in a couple random hours for the children's clothing shop Laura (the woman I live with) works at.

4- I will have a house as of mid-November. Not an actual house that I own, just one to stay at. There's a couple in Z-ville that winters in Florida, so I'll have it from mid-November to sometime in May. It's incredibly well-priced, and it's a house! Yay!

So that about wraps it up... excluding my new hair cut, which you've probably seen on facebook, and my new glasses (lovely tortoise shell Ray Bans...)... and a pair or two of new boots...
Life after college. Wow.