Review of Renueva 2008

A few weekends ago, my church hosted their first (that I know of) Conference. I think it went very well. The purpose of the conference was to "refresh, renew and restore", and personally speaking, it did just that. After the conference, I certainly felt rejuvenated and had a new boost in my faith. I had been going through some personal issues, and was even considering to quit my worship leader position at the church. You know, sometimes things become too much, and you need to take the chance to recharge your batteries, so the conference was just what I needed.

I didn't actually do much for the conference, which was kind of a relief in itself. A lot of times I feel like, besides the pastor and his wife, that I'm the ONLY one who does anything, and sometimes that gets a little burdensome. I did play one song, though. I played the spanish version of "Never let go" by Chris Tomlin, but before I did it, I told a story about a scripture in Romans (8:30something) that had really spoke to me at a point in my life where I felt abandoned. I don't usually speak much before playing, which I am working on, but I felt led to this time and it actually went quite smoothly. The best part, though, was when I was done, a lady from our congregation came up to me and gave me a big hug. In preparing for this conference, it was really the first time I had taken the time to talk to her, and I think what I said really spoke into her, so I was very encouraged by that.

In fact, since that time, I have heard of several people who now want to help, which is pretty cool that we, as a church, are growing and people want to participate.

Even Pro Footballers use P90X!!

(See previous post titled "Take it to the Xtreme")
I am currently on day 71 of my 90 day P90X journey and found this article on an NFL football player who decided to use P90X to improve his kicking ability:

Philadelphia Eagles' David Akers gets a kick from new regimen

By Matt Gelb Inquirer Staff Writer

BETHLEHEM, Pa. - David Akers acknowledged he was embarrassed. The Eagles
kicker is a perfectionist. He keeps diligent track of his statistics in
practice, games and training camp. That's why his 2-for-10 clip from beyond 40
yards last season made him desperate to change something.Then one day, while in
Dallas during the off-season, Akers saw an infomercial for a new training
regimen called P90X."I said, you know what, it looks legit because it's not some
gimmick," Akers recalled. "It [involves] actually working hard and changing the
regimen all the time."He tried it for the sake of change. He did not intend to
lose weight, but he ended up dropping 20 pounds and 6 percent of his body
fat.And his leg feels stronger. He has shown that in camp. Akers, out to prove
last season was a fluke, has made two 60-yard field goals, including one
yesterday."I'd be real happy if I was able to keep this type of power and
consistency through the season," Akers said.Last season, Akers lacked on deep
kicks for the first time in his career. For a lifetime 68.1 percent kicker from
beyond 40 yards, 2 for 10 was like a slap in the face.Akers, though, was not
overly disappointed with last season. He made every field goal under 40 yards
that he attempted (22 for 22). Of the field goals he missed from beyond 40
yards, many were near-impossible kicks, he said. Plus, he was working with a new
holder, Sav Rocca, which caused some headaches."You don't lose it just like
that," Akers said.The distance was not the problem. A 57-yard attempt in Week 14
against the New York Giants that would have tied the game banged off the right
goalpost. He did not think he had a shot at making it from there, anyway.Still,
Akers questioned himself in the off-season. The 33-year-old cannot regain the
strength he had as a younger player, but he wanted to do something new.That's
when he saw the infomercial for P90X, which boasts on its Web site that users
can "get absolutely ripped in just 90 days.""I liked it because it really worked
a lot with the explosion of the legs," Akers said. "Jumping, cardio aerobic,
push-ups, pull-ups, jumping back and forth, it's crazy. Yoga, stretch, tempo . .
. it's all kind of mixed into one."

He convinced Eagles trainer Rick Burkholder, who said he lost 30 pounds on
the regimen. "And he was standing on a chair doing it at first," Akers said.
Burkholder has the injured Eagles doing parts of the training
system.Special-teams coordinator Rory Segrest sees a different Akers, who now
weighs 183 pounds."He's showing really good leg strength right now," Segrest
said. "He's hit them in warm-ups. He's hit them during our team reps."The first
day Akers came to camp, he was playing around with Rocca and long-snapper Jon
Dorenbos. He said he nearly hit a 70-yard field goal. That's when he realized
that maybe this regimen could pay off."There's something to it," Akers said of
his new training technique. "It's not like, 'Hey, take this pill, you're going
to lose 40 pounds of fat.' You bust your butt. It's tough."

If you are interested in trying out P90X, find it here: www.beachbodycoach.com/demaak in the store. And stay tuned for my 90 day results!!

What's been going on?

Yeah, I guess I haven't posted in a while! I guess I have kind of replaced this with a fitness forum that I post on, so I haven't been here as much as I should! I have a bunch of ideas in my head of things to post on, even some drafts, but I just haven't gotten around to actually doing them!

Well, one thing that is different is that I lost about 20 lbs. I talk a little bit about it in a previous post (which I can't figure out how to link!) in January. Well, I have stuck with the Beachbody programs and have been pretty successful. I think people are starting to notice the results. I think I posted a while ago about P90X. Well I'm past day 60 of the program. I will post my results with that on day 90.

I am really liking the whole losing weight and feeling go about myself thing. It's really working out for me. I'm more active now than I've been in a long time and feel much more fulfilled. If you would like to feel the same, you can visit my other site and sign up for more info, or just bop around. It is www.beachbodycoach.com/demaak . HOPEFULLY, I'll post more later!!

Food is Fuel

Your body is an AMAZING machine. It is filled with miles and miles of blood vessels that carry cells which travel precisely and completely to every single part of your body continuously from the day you were born until the day they stop, and you stop with them. It has many organs that are a team and work intricately together to perform hundreds, if not thousands of functions, from regulating your body temperature, to fighting off infections, to transferring oxygen from the air to all your little blood cells. It has hundreds of bones, muscles, tendons, and ligaments that all need to cooperate along with your hugely complicated and extensive sensory network, called the nervous system, in order to make all the millions of movements that you want to make. Without all these things and many many more, that I don't have time to list, you would not function the way you should.

I know that you probably already knew all those things, but I don't think that we think about them enough and truly appreciate the genius creation that is our bodies. Because if we did, we probably wouldn't be filling it with all the sludge and trudge and junk that we drop down our gullets.

Let's say that your body is a Cadillac. Cadillacs are considered high end luxury vehicles. A complex, expensive machine which the manufacture requires that you use a high performance of fuel, Premium Unleaded, in order for it to function they way it should. Your body is your high performance machine. If you want it to keep going and going and going, you have to use the best fuel. If you want to respect your body it is important to give it the fuel that it needs to keep going. It is not about what your taste buds want or what your brain thinks your body needs. Food is fuel. If you give your body the nutrients and clean energy that it needs to function, it will thank you by performing better and longer, giving you the higher quality of life you are striving for.

Know your Options..

And Know what they are NOT.

Once upon a time, my boyfriend asked me a silly question. He said "Do you even WANT to go to work tomorrow?" And I just looked at him, kind of puzzled because honestly, the thought never crossed my mind. Whether I want to or not, I still HAVE to go, and my feelings on the matter doesn't change that, so I don't even bother to think about it. The same thing can be applied to working out. We shouldn't even consider whether we WANT to or not, but just go DO IT! I think I learned that when I was a kid because whenever us kids got all whiney and said we didn't want to do something my dad would say "Well you are going to have to change your want-to-then!"

So what are your options? By saying what your options are NOT, you give your options more power and room to succeed.
Not working out is NOT an option.
Not giving your 100% is NOT an option.
Not meeting or exceeding your goal is NOT an option. (With the only exceptions being injury or death.)
Sugar comas are NOT an option.


Feel free to list yours in the comments or any you think I may have missed.

Don't forget your Vitamins!

For a few months, I have been taking BeachBody's Activit Metabolism Multi-vitamin as well as the Omega 3 Fish Oil capsules. I have noticed some good results with both. Even aside from internal health, the fish oils actually help keep my skin clear. Well, I recently went with the Core Nutrition Pack to see if the simple addition of Cal-Mag to my vitamin routine would make any difference, and I must say that it has! My concentration had been pretty non-existent in the past few months, and the Cal-Mag somehow has given me the ability to come back to earth and focus on things a whole lot better! I was skeptical at first too, but I think that in addition to all the health benefits these vitamins provide, things that we don't necessarily see and notice, these other noticeable benefits make it all worthwhile.

To browse the vitamins, click this link then "shop for Products": www.teambeachbody.com/demaak

Your body will thank you!

Take it to the Xtreme

I am not a fitness professional. (yet) When I first started working out, I was a little intimidated. The thought of going to the gym where all these other people were working out, and in great shape scared me a little. But I didn't let that hold me back. I set aside my embarrassment and went for it anyway. Besides, it doesn't matter what other people think anyway.

Well, for people like me, and maybe you, too, I want to get in shape. I want to feel good about my body. I love the beach and want to look good in a bathing suit and no longer have to dread going clothes shopping and trying on clothes. But I really don't want to pay big bucks for 5 sessions with a personal trainer, either. Is there another way?

Why, yes there is! I found P90X. And for this one, you don't even need to go to the gym! It's like your own personal trainer who does house visits. I'll be starting P90X in June. Who wants to join me? Check it out:




**warning there are a couple "bad words" in this video, but only 1 or 2.

If you are interested in purchasing, go to my site: www.teambeachbody.com/demaak and click on "shop for products" for more info.

Kryptonite

From the 3 Doors Down popular song:
If I go crazy then will you still call me Superman
If I’m alive and well, Will you be there a-holding my hand
I’ll keep you by my side with my superhuman might
Kryptonite

What is your kryptonite? You know, that thing or person in your life that makes you week every time you go near it? But the thing about that kryptonite, is that you can't get rid of it on your own. The harder you try to let go, the stronger it is. If you are fighting with your kryptonite, maybe it's time to ask someone to help you get it out of your life. You don't really know how much it is holding you back until you get rid of it. Then you'll wish you had done it sooner.

I'm a Beachbody Coach!

Hi Everyone! I want to tell you some great news! I am now a Team Beachbody Coach! What does that mean? Well, everyone has their own fitness goals, whether it is to lose weight, get in shape, run faster marathons, or get totally ripped. Whatever your goal, as a Beachbody Coach, I have resources available to me to help you reach your goals!! Here are some of those benefits that I can hook you up with:

• World Class fitness video programs
• Customizable Meal planner to help you meet your goals
• Supplements to target your needs
• A website full of helpful health and fitness resources
• An online support community where you'll find others on the same journey as you!
• The opportunity to win daily, monthly, and yearly!!

If you are interested, send me an e-mail at krild@hotmail.com. You can also visit my website and look around at http://www.teambeachbody.com/demaak. You know what your goals are and I know you have a strong desire to find some way to help meet them as you have wanted to for weeks, months or even years! I have committed to making this the year where I go after my goals AND SUCCEED! I know you want to too, so stop sitting around and do something about it! E-mail me or click the link above.

~Krista

What country are you?

I found this fun quiz. First I took the Country test and I turned out to be North Korea, which is only accurate about 5% of the time. So I found this one to be a litte more closer to the truth. Especially about Water, not so much about volley (I try to avoid confrontation), and Columbo is a little before my time, but I think I would probably like it.

You're Sri Lanka!

Some have compared your general appearance to a teardrop, and
it's certainly true that you've been crying a great deal lately. You are
colorful and vibrant and bring a certain air of mysticism to much of your
life. You enjoy a good exchange of volleys, be they balls, arguments, or
even more dangerous blows. You have a love-hate relationship with water.
Your favorite TV show is Columbo.


Take the Country Quiz II
at the Blue Pyramid

(semi-HT to ysmarko.com)

2008 is Marching on

Ok, sorry I haven't posted in a while. Can you believe that at the end of this month, we will be a quarter of the way through the year already? I guess I've been pretty busy. Let's see...What have I been doing? I've been reading more, almost every night. I've been working out 6 days a week (yes 6!), I've been cleaning more. Well, I guess you could say I've actually been doing the things that I made it my goal to work on more! Yes, I know, shocking!

I've also had some major disappointments. Or at least one. I didn't get that job that I was pretty sure I was going to get. And that is all I'm going to say about that. It's hard when you have your heart set on something, and you are basically already making plans in your head on what life is going to be like when you go through that change, and then it all comes crumbling down.

Either way, I've made a realization. Or a decision. Not sure which. But I think 2008 is going to be a great year, so I'm just going to say that and believe it. It is a year of transformations (physically and spiritually), a year of success, a year of growth, and all around a year of change. I mean, I don't really know what exactly the year has in store but I have a pretty good idea. In spite of disappointment and heartache, I still see lots of opportunities for hope. And let me add a note of wisdom, I guess you could call it. There will be no success where there is no action. If you want something, you have to go after it. So that is why I am:
Working out 6 days a week. (I think I also have 3 5k races planned this spring/summer)
finding oportunities to grow by reading and also, shhh, I haven't really told anyone, I'm also planning on getting involved at Rez again (the church I grew up in).
I can't really think of other things I'm doing, but I'm planning on doing a lot less sitting around this year!

Between my trip to Mexico and the leadership conference, I really felt a spark in the kindling in my heart. I have soaked in a lot of stuff and I'm still running different things through my head, but I think I had a good heart change in those times. Nothing drasticly different, but something like a push or a major shove in the right direction. So I'm excited to see where it takes me.

Mexico- Tuesday February 5, 2008

All of the three full days I was in Mexico were work days. There was a lot for us to do, especially at one specific orphanage. It is called Casa Hogar Del Norte, I think. It is on the north side of the city. This orphanage is run by a 72 year young woman named Martha and she is something else! Instead of going off and living in ease in her retirement, she has such a heart for children she decided to start a children's home instead! How many of us are willing to make such a sacrifice?! In order to have a home, she needed a place for the home so she went to the government. They "lease" land out for a certain number of years. It's really for free, but I think for certain policy bookwork issues, it's actually for like $1 a year. Usually it is for a maximum of 25 years, but can be renewed. Well, she went to the government office and asked for her land, and they said no. But that Martha, she is a determined woman. Some people you just can't say no to, and maybe we can all learn a thing or two from her. She didn't go moping around saying things like "Oh, man, if it didn't happen, it must not be from God" and leave it at that. NO! After a little while, the government person go so sick and tired of seeing her every single day, that she gave up and gave her the land she is on now on a 90 YEAR lease, which is absolutely unheard of! See, persistance does pay off! If you are convinced of your purpose, don't give up!

Our main project at that children's home was to work on an Auditorium that they are building for the kids. In the summer, it gets up to 120 degrees, and they wanted to make a place where the kids had lots of space to play and also have services or watch movies. Our main project there was to help pour a cement floor. I actually didn't have anything to do with that project. I did some of the other projects that there were. First, with a small group of people, I helped clear a large brush and trash pile that was on the back of the property. They had to get it out of the way so they could build there eventually, so we threw as much of it as we could up into a big dump truck. Another project I worked on was getting the footer ready for building a wall around the home's property. Pretty much all the properties in Mexico have walls around them and they currently had a chain link fence. We made the forms to pour the cement in mostly this day.

That was mostly that whole day. We basically worked from 10 am to noon, ate lunch, then we were back at it again until about 5 or so. There were some people who played with the kids, too, but I spent most of my time working, because that was what was needed most.

Mexico- Monday February 4 2008

It had been TOO long and I need to write down what we did in Mexico before I forget! And I want to write it ALL down so I will never forget. I'm glad that I can post it here, so I can always go back and remember it and re-experience it.

First, let me just say, wow. I really feel that God was speaking to me on this trip, specifically about missions, and my mission and purpose in life. Going on this trip just reminded me so much about what it is ALL ABOUT. I LOVE missions trips because I like going other places and seeing God working, no matter where it is. It's so awesome how mission trips take us up out from where we are and take us to a place, spiritually and mentally, where we are more sensitive and open to what he has for us. We are put in a place where we have no control over our schedule and just have to go with the flow and be led in everything we are doing. It is in those times of humility that we sit back and observe and God speaks to us in his still small voice. I went on at least one mission trip almost every year since I was 17 and I hadn't gone on one for a couple years, so this one was like sweet relief for me to feel it again.

Let me just get right into it then. I'm not going to go into boring travel details because no one really cares, or at least shouldn't. It was as uneventful as it should be. We got to the airport in Monterrey at about 3ish, I think. The only plan for that day was for us to go to the compound of Back2Back ministries and get introduced to our new temporary dwelling, and then we walked to one of the orphanages that Back2Back supports, which is only about a half a mile from the compound.

Before I get into it, maybe I should say a few things about B2B. In summary, they are a ministry in Monterrey that has a heart for the orphan child. (I think they are actually based in Cincinatti.) They come along side orphanages in and around the city and help them in areas where they need support. You can search for them online and get more details, like their history and stuff. I might explain more as I go along.

So we walked to the orphanage, called Casa Hogar Douglas. We were there to serve the kids dinner of hamburgers and nachos. I don't think they get burgers like that often, so they really appreciated it. While the burger were grilling and stuff, some of us played with some kids. I gave some kids bubbles, like a girl named Bernice and a little boy names Simon. There was also a person on our team who made balloon animals and stuff, and that was a real hit there. Simon loved the little sword that we made him and let me just say, we witnessed many sword fights on the trip! I also met a little girl named Lolita who is there with her brother, Angel, and another little sister, who I did not meet. They were sweet. It was nice for me to see them there, though they were in some sense of it all alone with no parents there to take care of them, they were there to take care of each other and I was really happy to see that. There were a lot of kids there. One of the workers (Jim) gave us a tour of the place and told us that it costs about $9000 a month to run that orphanage, and that they really only have a guaranteed $3000 a month to cover it, so they basically go month to month waiting and hoping for people to send support and totally relying on God for everything.

That was actually almost a running theme in the people we met on the trip. One thing I learned is that I don't rely on God enough. He is supposed to be my Lord, my all, my everything, yet I only call on Him at the deepest point of my need and just keep him to the side when I really need him. I should be relying on Him AND offering Him everything, not just when it is convenient. You will probably notice this in more of the stories I tell of the trip.

Stay tuned

I've been meaning to write more about Mexico, but I've been kind of busy since I got home. And tired. And sometimes lazy because it's so cold! So, I will try to write some soon!

Happy Valentine's Day

I used to hate Valentine's Day. Now I think it's kind of lame and over commercialized. However, I still expect some sort of token of appreciation from my special someone. Just because.

Wikipedia says that Valentine's Day is named after a few different Christian Martyr's who shared the name Valentine. In the Bible times, they said "kiss one another with a holy kiss" and I heard that was because they never knew if they would ever see eachother again, so goodbye's were a whole lot different. Isn't it nice to know how times have changed? How I can work at a Christian company and worship freely in my place of worship and not worry about getting thrown in jail or killed? So maybe Valentine's Day is supposed to be a modern day "holy kiss": A yearly reminder where we all show one another appreciation and love because, in truth, we don't really know when and if we will see each other again.

More Words of Wisdom!

I guess we get an extra blessing of words of wisdom today! I got this in one of the e-mail forwards that some people send around to everyone. Well, this is my way of forwarding it! Except I cut out everything but the words that struck me the most:

God still sits on the throne.

Isn't that true? You could be having a really crappy day, think back and take comfort in this fact. Through the storm, God still sits on the throne. In the aftermath, God STILL sits on the throne. Through our highs and lows, God still sits on the throne. He is the alpha, the omega, the beginning and the end, and no matter what you do, he will still be sitting on that throne!

I'll leave you with this verse:
"Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Hebrews 4:16 (NIV)

Words of Wisdom

I was just remembering something my Pastor told me last Thursday when I was telling him how I was growing and improving in what I was doing, but how sometimes it's still a struggle. He said someone told him a couple weeks ago that:

"If you aren't ready to quit every Monday, then you must be doing something wrong."

That is so true, though. There have been times when I want to quit doing what I'm doing at church because it can be hard and it's a stretch and sometimes I just don't want to go through with it anymore, but if you think about it, that is when you learn and grow the most and when it is the most rewarding.

It's alive!

And it's growing!! AND it Sits!






































Here's Rusty! He's my Golden Retreiver, not really a puppy anymore. He'll be 9 months old in a couple weeks.

He looks very mild mannered in these photos, but don't be fooled! He's pretty crazy hyper! He just loves to sit pretty and get his photo taken. He loves the attention!

Blessings

Yesterday we went to Target because I want to upgrade to 8 lb weights for my workout and I needed to buy some. So we ended up taking those as well as a Power Shovel! No, I'm not making this up! It is like the cross between a snow blower and a shovel. Kind of nifty. So we were doing my driveway, and the power cord that I have isn't long enough. (I still need to buy my own and give that one back to my dad. Oops.) So I borrowed one from my neighbor. Well, I haven't really talked to my neighbor in a while because of winter, and it's always dark out when I'm home and he's never home, so we talked for a few minutes. Somehow Internet came up, and he told me I could use his wireless Internet and gave me his password and everything! I'm glad because I haven't gotten it yet (along with cable) because those are considered luxury items in my mind, and I'm not ready to pay for them. So that was a blessing! Woohoo, I have internet now!

I was going to post this last night, but Gabe had to take my laptop to his house. Oh, the irony.

Broken Sunday

I know some people might be surprised by this, but I actually listen to some secular music. There's some out there that is actually "Christian", but they don't say it, and some that are just spiritual. In my opion, music is spiritual and many bands use it as an expression of their hearts, so sometimes you see that what's in their hearts is not good, but sometimes it is.

Anyway, I was listening to Pandora, a site that is great for discovering music. You type in what you want to hear and it plays that, and music that is like it. So I hear the song "Broken Sunday" a lot by Saliva. I think the lyrics of this song are pretty powerful. I read that the writer of the song says it's about God. To me, I think it is about heaven because of how he says that this world is not our home. But it's also about God, because he won't leave us.



Here are the lyrics:



"Broken Sunday"
I looked up at the stars tonight,
To see your face and to feel your presence now,
I need you here right now..I came from a lonely place,
Windows strewn in my darkest hour now,
I need you here right now,
I need you here,
Cos you won't leave me lonely,
Cos I can't go on,
You won't leave me broken,
In a world that's not my home,
Cos I'll be gone,
Until forever,
I'll be home,
Goodbye my broken Sunday.

One love and one escape,
To another place where the pain and fear fade out,
I need you here right now,
I need you here cos you won't leave me lonely,
Cos I can't go on,
You won't leave me broken,
In a world that's not my home,
Cos I'll be gone,Until forever..
I'll be home, until my name is etched in stone,
Oh, and we will never be alone,
Goodbye my broken Sunday.
You won't leave me lonely,
Cos I can't go on,
You won't leave me broken,
In a world that's not my home.
Cos I'll be gone,Until forever..
I'll be home,Until my name is etched in stone,
Oh,And we will never be alone,
Goodbye my broken Sunday.

Countdown!

Woohoo! 13 days 'til I go to Mexico! I'm pretty excited! I checked and the weather in Monterrey is anywhere from the 50's to the 80's this week, which is WAY nicer than I am experiencing here in the snowy tundra of Michigan!

(Click here if you have no idea what I'm talking about and need some more background info. It is the entry in my old blog where I wrote about the trip.)

I just ordered 2 children's CD's: Niños Cantan Clasicos 1 & 2. So I have 13 days to go through it and figure out how to play at least 3 songs to play at the orphanages. I'm shooting more for 5 and hopefully other people on the team will step up and learn to sing them with me.

I know it's going to be a work trip, but I am still looking forward to getting away for a while. I haven't had a real vacation in a long time (Vegas with my family in 2006?) so this is the next best thing, in my books. Even more terrible, I haven't been out of the country since going to Mexico with Gabe and TDS in ... 2005, I think.

Anyway, I don't really know what to expect this time around. It's going to be a bit different than most of the other trips I've been on. I guess my biggest worry is that I don't bond with people and become a loner since I don't really know anyone else who is going. I'm really going to have to open myself up for this one. It should be fine, though.

Job Interviews are fun!

If you love the stress and difficult questions of job interviews, then I'm sure you'd love a public one! The interviews for the new GRPD Police chief are open to the public. That is one tough interview!

http://www.woodtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=7690251

Tell me about your interviews! Your worst/best one, I want to hear a good story. I was once in an interview with 5 people! If you ask me, five against one is not quite fair.

Nothing new

I haven't posted anything in a few days. But mostly because nothing big is going on and I haven't come across anything that I thought was that worthy to put in print. But I guess, here are some things I could touch on:

I'm getting a little skinnier but not really losing weight. That is how it usually works for me at first. There were these pants that I couldn't find into a couple weeks ago, but don't worry, they fit now! It's so good to see results of all my work. I've been getting up at 5:30 on weekday mornings except Wednesday is my rest day for my boot camp. I still woke up at 5:30, though. I guess my body is getting used to it already.

I guess I haven't really mentioned this, but I'm applying for a manager position in my department. I've kept most of this to myself because ..well, I keep a lot of things to myself. I don't want to go on and on about things that may or may not happen. It would be really nice, though. I feel like I'm ready and also feel I am the best fit for the job. I had my review recently and it was very good.

I got my hot tub fixed last night, so I better use it more often. TTYL! *splash!* Ok, just kidding about that. I can't jump in the hot tub in the middle of the day! I'm not even home. Although... I could go home for lunch... Nah, too much work. My joints are kind of hurting so I'll probably use it tonight.

Speaking of tonight, I got an electronic dart board, and that thing is so fun! There's like 30 different games on it! The first day we put it up, Gabe threw out his elbow. I think he'll be joining me in the Tub tonight!

Ok, that's all. Although I do have an observation. I need some pics on my new blog. It sure is boring.

Follow up- January Series

I got back from the January Series presentation not too long ago. It was very interesting, though a little different than I expected. I thought he would basically be making some sort of dramatic telling of his story. At first he actually said "I was a child soldier from the ages of 12-15, then I was rehabilitated." And I was a little disappointed, like I already knew I wasn't going to get what I was expecting. But it was still really good.

He did go into more detail here and there, but I think the reason he didn't tell it all is that he couldn't. He actually wrote an entire book about it, and for me to assume he could tell that story in one hours time was probably a little naive of me.

Here is a little summary of his story: at the age of 12 he happened to be away from home when the war entered his country (Sierra Leone) from Liberia. His whole family was in their village and were killed. He was left with his brother (I think) to survive on their own, day by day, when they were basically kidnapped (though he didn't say that) and forced into military service. He said he was "involuntarily drafted". He said that one awful thing about fighting in a war is that it forces you to dehumanize your enemy in order to justify killing them, but in that process, you also dehumanize yourself. At the age of 15, he was rescued by UNICEF and put in a rehabilitation center in the capital city, and through a long process (at least 8 months) was rehabilitated. He came to the US (I think maybe he was adopted) and lives in New York and speaks regularly during presentations at the United Nations and various other NGOs. I hope to buy his book soon and read it. It's called "A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier".

Here are some highlights that I took away:
"One thing that I learned was that the human spirit is so resilient and strong that it is able to find hope in complete hopelessness."

One thing that enabled him to recover faster than some was that he was taught at a young age to find and celebrate the simple joys of life.

Suffering is all equal. We tend to discredit other people's suffering and consider it smaller than our own, but we shouldn't judge or belittle other people's suffering.

Education helps us discover our place and purpose in this world. He credits it for helping to rehabilitate him as well.

These are the breeding grounds for war: demoralization, destitution, poverty and desperation. People in these circumstances and are more manipulable because if you offer anything that could possibly change their situation, they will be desperate to comply.

Writers should only write with a purpose and they have the responsibility to be accurate. If they make things up, they are doing a disservice to people who may have lived similar stories.

He said that after going through so much and now living in the US, every day he wakes up with a smile on his face. He used to live minute to minute just trying to survive and appreciates that every morning is a gift from God and an oportunity to live out your purpose in this world.

Child Soldiers

Today, I am going to a January Series presentation by Calvin College. It is being given by a guy from Sierra Leone who is a former Child Soldier. His name is Ishmael Beah. I spent time at the United Nations a few years ago, so it should be really interesting. I better take tissues, too, because it could get emotional. I try to post on it when I get back to share the most interesting points.

I'm losing weight!

So, I've been on a new, self-directed weight loss plan since Saturday (January 4) because I quit working out a few weeks before Thanksgiving and had gained about 5 pounds or so. I am an avid customer of Beachbody.com and decided to buy one of their new workout plans: Power 90. However, I didn't want to wait until it delivered to start the program, so I did some Turbo Jam in the meantime. Plus I've been eating healthy. You know, fruits and veggies, whole grains, lean means, low fat, NO soda, etc. I think I've been eating 1500-1700 calories a day, maybe less. Well, I already lost over 3 pounds. I even had a "rest" day yesterday and still lost weight! Overall, I'm pretty satisfied. I feel better, have more energy (and I'm drinking less caffeine), feel stronger and slimmer.

And guess what else? I got Power 90 the other day (their shipping is fast!) and I love it! I like it better than Turbo Jam. It's way less complicated. The moves are simple and seem to work. I can feel that they work. It's a little more directed to men, but women do it too and have been successful with it. The only thing I didn't really like was the yoga warm-up. It was just way different to what I'm used to and the range of motions is really long. I'm not that flexible yet! Maybe the ones in the next level are better or maybe it will feel better as I keep doing it. Overall, I think it was pretty fun and I'm really looking forward to my next session. Speaking of which, I've been getting up at 5:30 in the morning to work out! I know, I'm shocked, too. The first few days I was tired, but I think I'm adapting.

Oh, and I ordered a heart rate monitor, too! I'm always excited about electronic gadgets! This should be cool. I saw it and had to have it, so hopefully I get a lot of use out of it. I'll post more about it when I get it and figure out all the features. It's coming tomorrow!!

History

Here is my old blog, in case you want to do a little more digging.

http://krild.spaces.live.com/blog/

New Years Resolutions

Yeah, I actually don't really "believe" in New Year's Resolutions, because not very many people follow through with them. I would rather call them decisions for change, because I make "resolutions" at different times, not just when the new year comes along.

I do, however have a few goals that pretty much have to be done this year. In fact, they should be done before summer:
1. Lose 20 lbs and eat better. I've done it before, I can do it again, right?
2. Unpack my moving boxes and settle in my house. It's been over a year! Get with the program!

And here a few things I'd like to try to do this year, or at least before I die. I'd say, maybe, pick a few out of the list to do this year:
Find a winter sport to do
Take an ACTUAL vacation!
Do something adventurous, such as go out of town/state on a hike or to bike some trails, etc.
Take up Kayaking or Mountain Biking
get a new car or start saving for one
Write a book

And to be more transparent, and possibly accountable, here are some things I need to work on:
Go running regularly with Rusty (my Golden Retriever)
be more organized
be more organized at home
be more organized at work
Get out more!
Spend more time with friends and family
Eat less, but more healthy
Get a new place to host my blog (DONE!)
Blog regularly
Read my Bible more
Pray more
Play guitar more

Ok, that's all for now. I might update it later.

Hiking up Life's Mountain

So, here is my first post on this blog. How's if I explain it a little. You know how you can say "life is like.." pretty much anything? Well, I think that life is like a mountain. Well, it can actually be any terrain you want it to be. It could be a walk in the park, but there is no challenge to that. It could be a swim in the lake, but when you're done, your just all wet and need to take a shower. It could be a bunch of hills, but hills are boring and all start looking the same after a while. So, for me, it should be a mountain. If you want your life to be fulfilling, it should be challenging. We shouldn't be just living day to day, but creating our own challenges to help us learn and grow, become better people, and keep on moving up in the world! And in order to do that, you need to pace yourself, take it one step at a time, and no matter what, keep on trekking! So here, I will document my trek.