dear old man on union street,

thank you for so generously offering that hefty round of applause as i limped past you on my morning jog. when i first turned the corner from perkins street onto union street, i saw you making your way down the driveway...shuffling in your slippers, bathrobe tied gently around your waist, trash can following your left hand's guidance.  i was envious.  why did i exchange my cozy slippers and warm pajamas for running shoes and achy legs?  you started shuffling your way back to the house, with a bit more ginger now that the trash can had been dropped off.  out of the corner of your eye you saw me coming.  and you stopped.  you watched me, and you lifted your hands and started clapping.  "you're doing great," you said, "it's a beautiful day for a run...keep up the good work!"  maybe you saw the twinges of pain in my face.  exercising with a bum hip is no fun.  perhaps you can understand?  maybe you're just a genuinely nice old man who would say that no matter who was running or walking by.  i don't really know.  but i do know that i needed a cheerleader on my jog today and i'm thankful that you chose to take out your trash and stop at the end of your driveway.

november's resolutions

this post is either coming really early or way too late, you decide. i've recently been feeling the urge to change things up a bit. as you may know from my last post, life has gone from about 95mph to a more steady pace these days. while i'm grateful that the absolute chaos of wedding planning is over, i'm starting to feel the itch to take on some new challenges. so, rather than new year's resolutions i am making november's resolutions. the motivation is here now, so better to take advantage and start before hibernation-mode sets in than wait until the dead of winter to try and re-muster the motivation. so here we go with a few resolutions...

be more faithful in doing yoga.

write at least once a week (and do a better job maintaining my blog, hence the makeover today).

create margins of time to just be.

fully embrace the seasons rather than complain my way to summer.

read.

be intentional about investing in the here and now, take advantage of moments to talk with complete strangers, and be a part of where we live.

the last resolution stems from an experience josh and i had going out for ice cream last week. we were in line trying to decide which of the plethora of flavors would satisfy our sweet tooth for the night. this takes concentration, right? hard ice cream vs. soft serve, healthier low fat version vs. indulgence, cone vs. cup, and other such weighty decisions. engulfed by the concentration required for these choices, i didn't even realize that the woman behind us had started up a conversation.

"oh, this is new! do you know if they keep this up all winter?"

pause.

her pondering look broke my concentration and i realized the question was addressed to me.

"oh, i'm sorry. what was that?"

repeat the question. "this is new! do you know if they keep this up all winter?"

"uhhmm...i'm not really sure."

turn back to the ice cream list. before i can even re-focus on my selection process, she asks another question.

"so, tell me about the low fat option over there. do you think it's good? does it taste like the real thing, or can you tell it's watered down? have you ever had this one?"

whoa. calm down with the questions. this is only my second time at this place and i have no idea whether the low fat version tastes watered down. we were motioned up to the window to place our order before i could respond to her trail of questions. as we finished, i quickly responded "i've never had that kind before" as she moved over to the second window to place her order. we grabbed our cones and headed to the car to blast the heat while we eat (after all, ice cream in november in new england doesn't make much sense). once in the car, we both said, "she must not be from around here." how sadly adjusted to new england culture are we that we can't reciprocate a conversation started by a stranger in the ice cream line? we get suspicious about questions, skeptical about eye contact, and turned off by smiles. the whole thing sounds pathetic, right? like guys, c'mon, is it really a big deal to talk to the lady in the ice cream line? but seriously, this IS counter-cultural in new england. and in all honesty, i don't think she was from around here. regardless, the encounter was a wake up call to how sadly adjusted we had become in just a few short years of living here. embarrassed by our reactions to the woman, we started talking about how great it would be to live in a place where it was normal to greet strangers and strike up conversation. life would be more joyful and less cold (in reference to emotions and the weather). well then, we resolved, if we can't relocate to that type of place right now, let's be more intentional about living that way right here, right now. and thus began the november's resolutions.

playing catch up

138 is a reasonable number when talking about the number of miles to drive to see a good friend, photos to take on a particularly glorious day or momentous occasion, total cheerios in a box, and dollars for a slamming outfit (or twenty, if you like a bargain).

138, however, is not a good number when talking about the number of days that have passed since my last post. so here is my attempt at making up lost time.

138 things that happened in the past 138 days:

1. i got married (see http://joshheathwed.blogspot.com for that post)
2. i acquired a new last name (we're both still getting used to that one)
3. my grandma had a birthday
4. my little sister had a birthday
5. i got a promotion
6. han and sy got married (we were both brides and bridesmaids within a two week span)
7. we went to mexico and wished we'd never came back
8. i sort of went twice, if tucson counts
9. hurricane irene came
10. we got stuck in cleveland during hurricane irene
11. we drove 13 hours from cleveland in torrential downpours
12. josh had a birthday...in mexico
13. i had a birthday...in the rental car
14. snow came in october
15. seventy degrees and chirping birds came back in november
16. i skipped numbers 17 through 127 because you don't care that much and life has been too much of a blur to remember everything
128. we rented a cottage in new hampshire and escaped for a weekend
129. the dawsons came for a quick visit
130. i went to colorado
131. i bought tickets to go back in january
132. i saw a good friend in colorado
133. she up and left her job to make more creative space, and i got inspired
134. we painted our apartment (the wife has arrived and it is no longer a bachelor pad)
135. our church decided to buy land for a building
136. josh got tattoo #2
137. we created a pretty tasty new pizza recipe
138. life quickly went from about 5mph to 95mph back down to 5mph within four months, and now we're smoothly sailing at an even 35. let's hope it stays this way, at least for a little while.

[pause]

june? oh hi. last time i blinked, it was march. you came quite quickly and out of the blue. but now you're here, and well actually, you're on your way out now. maybe the next time i blink, it will be september.

as i mentioned in the previous blog post (which was, whoa, about six weeks ago), we could probably write a whole book on the month of april, but really it can be summed up in two words: pure chaos. between job offers and family being out of town and house sitting and friends visiting and millions of extra commitments on top of the normal ones, we were running around crazy this month. the very last day of april was literally the first day that we had free the whole month! i was pretty excited about a long nap and staying in that night. but it was beautiful out, so josh asked if i wanted to go on a walk (i can never pass up the opportunity to get outside so we went). he took me up to castle hill in ipswich (if you've never been there, google photos because it's beautiful). there's a huge estate that sits on the top of the hill and has a long lawn that overlooks the ocean. we walked around the grounds for a while and ended at the edge of the lawn over the water. josh asked me to name everything that happened it april (which honestly look about five minutes) and then suggested that we go out with a bang to top off a crazy month. then came the "will you marry me?" and the ring and tears and lots of hugs and "oh my goodness's." well the nap and staying in didn't exactly happen, but i think i'm okay with that.

so, needless to say, the past few weeks have just continued in the pattern of pure chaos. my friends, life (and this blog) is sort of on pause until august. if you're itching to stay in the loop, check out our wedding blog in the meantime: http://joshheathwed.blogspot.com/. until then, thanks for staying tuned.

just keep swimming (and running and biking)

well, april 2011 has set a new record for the craziest month of my life. it's true that time flies faster the older you get, but we're talking usain bolt speed this month. march comes in like a lion and out like a lamb, and april just sprints right past you. needless to say, i've been slacking on the posts recently. it's hard to live life and remember to set aside time to write about it too. but i find that i need that time. i'm a verbal processor, and words are important to me. to sum it all up, joboffersandplayingmomwhileparentsareinaustraliaandhousesittingandplanningthesummerandcrazyworkseasonandcomplicationwiththeapartmentandcatchingupwitholdfriendsandtryingtogetmoreconnectedinthecommunityhereandthathardlysaysanythingatallbuthatsthebasicjistofthingsso anyway, to keep up with the fast-paced theme of this month, josh did a sprint triathlon this weekend (in 38 degree weather with a cold and sleep deprivation because that's what happens in times like these). he did a great job anyway so here are some photos:

while we're on the subject of races and athleticism, these are from a half marathon in salem this past fall--fun course (so i hear, but didn't get to experience this time around).

churning up the sea

this is the japan i know, the japan i saw just a few months ago. praise God that this area and it's people were not affected by the recent earthquake and tsunami. but families, friends, and loved ones in other areas likely were.

the day after the destruction occurred in japan, i was reading through isaiah 51 as part of my study. i came across verse 15: "FOR I AM THE LORD YOUR GOD, WHO CHURNS UP THE SEA SO THAT ITS WAVES ROAR--THE LORD ALMIGHTY IS HIS NAME." so often throughout the book of isaiah God identifies himself to his people as their creator--the ones who put the stars in their place and laid the heavens out like a blanket over the earth. he is the one who churns and calms the seas, and he is ultimately the one who knows his reasons why. he is the Lord almighty.

keep praying for japan.

healthy eats : baked oatmeal

some days i really enjoy cooking. i like knowing what goes into my food and where it comes from. i also like to experiment with new recipes and revamp old ones. so here's an old baked oatmeal recipe revamped and health-ified. it's great for warming your soul in the cold months, and providing some nutrients while you're hibernating.

b a k e d o a t m e a l

3 c. quick-cooking oats (old wessex ltd. makes whole grain, high fiber quick-cooking oats and 5-grain cereal)
1/2 c. brown sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 c. fat-free milk (or soy milk)
1/4 c. unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp. vegetable oil

a combination of any of the following fruits:
3/4 c. chopped peeled tart apple, 1/2 c. blueberries, 1/2 c. cranberries, 1/2 c. peaches, 1/2 c. raspberries or blackberries

in a large bowl, combine the oats, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. combine the eggs, milk, and apple sauce; and add to the dry ingredients. stir in your fruit combination (the more fruit the better, so get creative!). pour into an 8-in. square baking dish coated with cooking spray. bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes. serve warm with milk.