Losing my sweet tooth

Well somehow I've acquired a new appreciation for plain, dark coffee recently. I think it was brought on by the training a week ago when we had to do four different tastings of Starbucks coffee. It was done with plain roasted coffee and a pastry that complimented it, which I actually enjoyed. The girl next to me was like 'do they have any cream or sugar?' lol I said no kidding. There was about a good 20 of us sitting in a half circle, similar to my BOLD classes. After that experience, I've made more attempts to drink my coffee plain without ANY cream or sugar, and you know what...it's actually not too bad. Well okay it's still not as good, or sweet, but when you add a pastry or cookie it actually tastes better. In a way this is very therapeutic for me. It'll help me to kick my old habits of adding a ton of sugar and cream to my coffee, which only has the effect of adding empty calories and bloating. I never thought in a million years that I'd ever drink my coffee black either! Weird...

Dont get me wrong, I still drink my favorite Lattes. I'm not going to change that drastically. I finally tried the Cinnamon Dulce Latte and it turned out to be very good. The only other one's I've tried and liked are the Vanilla and Gingerbread Lattes. Something must be happening to my taste buds here cause I would never have drank Lattes before, only because it tasted too weird before, too creamy. My favorite back then was the White Chocolate Mocha and that was pretty much it. But working at Starbucks now is giving me the incentive now to be a little more risky and experimental, mainly because it's not costing me $3 a cup each time! I mean, if I don't like it, I can just dump it without wasting $3, so that's the advantage I have. A few people have asked for the Peppermint Latte. Not sure about trying that one yet.

Well one more Monday of Apologetics and I'll have a little more time on my hands for my other projects. Unexpectedly I got my refund deposited to my account on Friday when checking the balance online...thank God! I was getting a trite worried there cause my car payment is due this coming week and I'm not exactly getting paid enough just yet to cover it. So praise the Lord for that one! So now I can move forward with Onoma and get a few more designs printed and selling over at Macklin Open Air market, and get some display supplies for the booth, too. I'm still in prayer about Usana right now since I felt that the Lord put Onoma on my heart a few days ago. It's a great opportunity but I want to make sure it's an open door. I remember telling Stacy that investing in Usana would really depend on getting my refund in time, since I had only until March 3 or so to buy a package. So now that I got my refund I've been asking the Lord if this is His way of saying 'yes' and giving me the go, but I just want to make sure it's the right direction to go. He knows my desire to provide and establish a place so I know He will guide me in the right direction.

As a side note I'm actually just getting over a cold. :( I'm pretty sure I got it from Stacy, but honestly it was worth spending time with her. lol But thank God the worst is over and I'm sleeping better. On one particular night I think I was either just super dehydrated or I had a bad reaction to some cold and allergy medication. It was called Sine Off I think. I just took one pill cause I usually don't like loading up on meds. But that night I felt so weird in the middle of the night, like short of breath and panicky. Stacy said it might have been a reaction because she's felt the same thing. So after sitting up and drinking water for awhile and praying, I finally felt okay. But yeah that was a little scary there. But I'm glad this cold is almost over, especially since I'm standing up alot and need the energy. =)

Double Bday

I've finally reached that good ole age of 35. yep. Not really sure what that means though. I don't think 35 is really a significant age. oh well...it wasn't too shabby all in all. My mom made me dinner and a cake on Saturday so my brother and Stacy could be there. My bro's gf couldn't make it because her mom was in the hospital that night. But we kept her in prayer that night. Then on Monday, my actual bday, Stacy and I went up to Claremont college and just hung out there for a bit, did some walking and then sat on the grass for awhile. It's somewhat significant because we met there on our first date, by the fountain. I used to go up there awhile back ago here and there just because it's a nice place to just relax or study. After that we went back to her house and ate with her family and had some cheesecake later on for dessert, which was her mom's way of treating me to my bday.:) We all sat and watched Mr. Holland's Opus while we ate and had some coffee. So all in all it was a nice bday.

Other than that I'm just reading and writing papers for my 2 bible classes right now as usual. In a few weeks I should be getting both of my businesses going. Thank God I'll only have one class to focus on at that time. I have one more class in Apologetics on Monday and then it's done. I think I'll be cruising along the rest of this year since I'm trying to balance everything. I think it'll work out okay though...a little here, a little there. It would definitely help to have a set schedule and a plan for each day though so I'm being productive. That would be good. =)

Balancing Act

It's been quite a challenge lately balancing everything in my life, but I can say that I'm definitely getting better at it! I recently recommitted my relationship to a girl whom I was seeing for a few months last year. We separated for a good 3 months to pray and see what the Lord would do and ask for His guidance. Well, about a good week ago we got together after service on Sunday and had a good talk about things, and it turns out that what she said was the Lord separating us was really her own conviction that we weren't pleasing the Lord by being together, only because we were struggling in a few areas and working to amend them. But her feelings for me never diminished and neither did mine. So, upon clearing that up and also talking with her parents about things, we decided to make a committment to each other to work on things and just go forward with this, since we know that we're content with one another. So...we'll see how things go. So far, so good.

With that established, I'm having to make my own committment to doing my homework and stay focused and disciplined with my reading and all. Not only that, but I just recently got hired by Starbucks and will be working the morning shift starting tomorrow, at 5:30am! Actually, that's nothing. When I start opening, I'll need to be there at 4am, cause we open at 5am. Nice eh? It's funny cause I'm constantly trying to make the transition from waking up late to waking up early, so hopefully this will give me the motivation I need. Besides, they have so many little perks that come with it, it's almost ridiculous. lol I mean they're great, but almost overwhelming: free coffee while working, 30% off everything when not working, and a free bag of coffee every week! And of course, tips. Then they have all these little reward systems and all, which could actually make it fun. Interestingly enough, this is one direction I have been contemplating going, into the coffee business, that is. I was almost shocked when she hired me on the spot! I was sitting there thinking..."they hired me." lol Well...an open door was provided...and I walked through it.

So with school and Starbucks and my other small businesses, Usana and Onoma going on, plus my revived relationship will require a concious effort to keep things in order and balanced. Especially with two classes overlapping this week and next week. But it's been working out well so far and hasn't been stressful thank God. We've even been a little creative about it too. Last night she was going to a bday party for a friend in MiraLoma and wanted me to come. I needed to do homework at some point that day, so we decided to see each other for a bit during the day instead, then I would do homework that evening while she went to the party. She was driving quite a distance though and I and her parents were a little concerned about that. So she came up with the idea that maybe she could drop me off at a Starbucks nearby to study while she went to the party for a few hours. It worked out perfectly, because I lived halfway back to her house, so she wouldn't be driving back alone all the way home so late. Now I know your'e thinking 'come one, you couldn't take one night off to go have fun?' And that's what I thought, and ideally yes, I should've prepared for that by getting ahead. But...I also know myself, and that's that same excuse I used every time to get out of doing my homework, and it got me in lots of trouble! So standing my ground and deciding to do homework was good therapy for me and will help me to be more disciplined and to plan ahead for events like that. But again it worked out well.

Besides that, my tailbone has been bugging me for over a month now, mostly when I'm sitting down on harder surfaces. When I'm sitting on the couch I'm fine, but if I'm sitting in a weird position it will start acting up. Not sure what's going on. Too bad I don't have medical or I'd get it checked out. Getting lots of prayer though. Hopefully it'll diminish soon. =)

15 Degrees Cooler Good Enough Reason

I couldn't believe the difference in the weather conditions between Chino and Newport Beach on Friday. It was a nice sunny 82 degrees in Chino, and I thought it would be a perfect day to head down to the beach and read for a bit and enjoy the sun. But was there sun? Noooo...but there was a nice marine layer (or fog) that totally covered any sign of the sun and brought the temperature down about 15 degrees! So much for that. sheesh But...I'm glad I also love cool weather and rain, so the surprise was actually nice once I got the idea that the sun was gone. lol But honestly I was looking forward to the sun this time so it was a tad disappointing.

Still, that's exactly why my goal is to move down there in the future: that 15 degree difference. When it does get hot in the summer, I am hating it up here! During the summer I'm a frequent visitor of Newport and the surrounding areas. It's sooo much nicer down there. So you ask, how are YOU going to afford to move down there?!? Do you know how expensive it is? Yes...I realize that the most INEXPENSIVE home in Newport Beach is 1.9 million dollars. I didn't say I was moving into Newport, which would be nice yeah, but at least in the vicinity. Some of the condos in the surrounding areas like Costa Mesa start around $450,000. What? For that kind of money you could buy a nice house further inland! Yes, I know that. But that would defeat the very goal I have to escape the inland empire or any empire 45 min north of the coast. In other words, it would be well worth it.

Aside from that, school is going well and my knowledge is ever increasing in this Apologetics class. I have my first essay due Monday, then there's one more after that. The hard part will be when Acts overlaps that one, so I'll need to be on top of my homework during that time. After Acts I have just about a month to relax, then I'll be taking on Stats! Yeah, baby, yeah! lol I have no idea what to expect so I'll pretend like it will be a breeze.

As a side note I just have to give my thoughts on something. I attended a financial class today at the church. It was very informational and helpful, too, and I got a few things confirmed that I've been in prayer about. One thing that is already confirmed is the direction I'm going with Onoma, my clothing company. The Lord has totally guided me in the direction to go and has opened doors for me and it's been quite amazing. The steps are small yes, but I believe it's for a reason, to teach me along the way. I believe some people have the mentality that we need to be more aggressive if we're going to have our own business and get out there and 'stake your claim.' That was the advice I got from one of the attendees there who had her own business. I mentioned that I got good advice from someone else to start small at events and open air markets, but her advice was to be more aggressive and get out there. Although her advice was well intentioned and I was open to everything she said, again, I know where the Lord is guiding me, and if the Lord says to take small steps, then I'm taking small steps. I believe when you can hold to your convictions no matter what anyone else says, even if they appear disapproving or critical of your approach, that's when you've decided to heed the Lord's voice, and His alone. Cause He alone knows the approach we need to take, even if we ourselves don't understand for the moment. Again, I have nothing against her personally and I wish her the best in her business, but this is only to confirm further to myself that I'm going in the right direction. =)

The Winds of Change

I finally started school again on Monday in Apologetics. So far it's very interesting to me, and it's especially good to know that we as Christians DO have evidence of our faith that we can share that is not merely blind faith, but is actually concrete faith based on historical, scientific and logical data. The myth that faith and knowledge must be separated, which is so prevelant in our churches today, is untrue and these two actually work hand in hand to prove that God exists. The reason God has been slowly pushed aside is not because we didn't have the answers back then...but because Christians weren't debating the inaccuracies of theories like Darwinism. We let it permeate society while we continued in our little part of the earth within our own communities. But it finally seems like Christians are rising to the occasion today against the errors of humanity and using reason to prove that God is true. That's why organizations who are against God and faith-based organizations that stand up for truth are crying so loud and resorting to name calling and kicking and screaming today...cause what they thought was an easy win is turning out to be an all out war! And I say that the more we rise up and stand on the foundation we've found through Jesus Christ, the more others will around us who will realize the fight is hardly over against all deception from the evil one.

But that's what I got out of this first class and I'm looking forward to the rest of it definitely.
Other than that, I'm continuing my training in Usana and going forward with that, as well as my business. I may have more capital available to continue forward once I get my tax refund, assuming I'll be okay financially by then! I'm just praying I will! If that works out I can print a few more designs and get them going at the open air market down the street and start getting the word out. The last visit I made there to do some research, the Lord totally opened the doors and led me to a place where I can buy most of the merchandising equipment such as shirt racks, metal grids and so much more to sell my stuff! A friend of mine is selling a few clothes racks and said I could have them for free! That was a surprise I didn't expect. So things seem to be falling into place in surprising ways, and I thank God for that.

Anyhow, lately I've created a site on myspace, mainly as a way for our BOLD group to keep in touch over the years. You can see my personal site at http://www.myspace.com/onoma
I may be blogging there more often than here since I can network a little better there with other people who have the same interests. I can also put music on my site! yay! lol

As a side note, many unbelievers think that our prayers and faith to God are such that we depend of Him because we can't so much as lift a finger in this life. While it is true that He IS the reason we even exist and have free will, it doesn't mean we are mindless and helpless. We are all made in the image of God and have the ability to do the same things. But what prayer DOES do is give us help in supernatural ways that are beyond explanation and comprehension, and I think that's where people tend to freak out because they are still bound by their carnal nature.
=)