banana-haters have feelings too

merry christmas everyone! i'll be in the philippines, in the hot sun... thinking of all of you in the cold weather. heehee... =) see you in 2003!

posted by Laura @ 8:52 PM 0 comments

we don't stop playing because we grow old.
we grow old because we stop playing.

- from an email forward from my little cousin.
***

"with great power, comes great responsibility." ~ ben parker, Spider-Man

i just spent my friday night watching spider-man all by myself. isn't that sad? it's a good movie... but not quite as enjoyable when you're holed up in your home with no car cuz your younger brother took it for the weekend. anyway, i was thinking about this quote that's like the whole theme of spider-man... it kind of works for us too doesn't it? God has given us this great power, the power that comes from the Holy Spirit. how often we abuse it and take it for granted. "oh holy spirit, please help me do well on my test." "oh holy spirit, heal my sore throat." i don't think this is how God intended us to use the Holy Spirit. let's take on the responsibilty and calling God has given us to really be empowered and make disciples of all nations! i was thinking about this making disciples deal last night as i was reading my old diaries (my favorite pasttime when i'm at home...hehe...) and i realized that my gift is most likely not in the outreach realm of things. i have tried, but i don't know... it's not really in my nature. that's not to say i shouldn't share the gospel with non-christians. no, i believe that i, along with all christians, am called to do this very thing. but making disciples doesn't just mean evangelizing. it also entails building up other christians so they might understand their calling and responsibilities. and i think this is something i can do. i almost regret handing over the ccf newsletter this year, because i think i actually have a lot to say this year. i don't know... perhaps i can transform my blog into some kind of exhortation newsletter for ccf people to read... to encourage them and challenge them. what do you think? you people who actually read this? i dunno. it's an idea. it'd be way more useful than this silly little blog.

anyway, just wanted to share that tonight. i'm out! i'll write again hopefully before i take off for the phils. it's weird, this past week i heard it referred to as "flip" or "flip side". is this some weird asian slang i was not aware of? i just call it the phils. well, at least i haven't heard "philippians" too much. hahaha... alright, ttyl!

posted by Laura @ 11:59 PM 0 comments

this is the blog about laura's dating philosophy. comments/questions welcome.

laura's ideal man.

1.
2.
3.

notice there are no rules. that is because, i have no ideal man. i think it's such a christian girl struggle to idealize who they're gonna marry and assume some prince charming on a white horse is gonna gallop his way into our lives. sorry, girls, ain't gonna happen. and that's in no offense to guys either. let's face it. there are no prince charming's, as well as no perfect princesses whom they are meant for. we are all human, weak and imperfect. that is why marriage is such an awesome thing... God puts two imperfect people together to make them better, to complement one another and bring each other's strengths out. it's not our own goodness that makes us eligible for a relationship, it is God's goodness, His plan, His perfect will for us. so let's be patient, trust God and work on becoming the woman or man that God wants us to be, so we can be complete in Him...

daily wisdom:

- we must be completely in love with Jesus before we can be in love with anyone else.
- instead of asking, "where's mr. right?", consider asking yourself, "am i the kind of person who mr. right would want?" (change the mr. to miss if you're a guy, of course..heehee)

posted by Laura @ 12:59 AM 0 comments

laura's top ten movies:



still trying to think of the last three. will update soon. =)

posted by Laura @ 3:55 PM 0 comments

Things will happen in your life that can't stop, but that's no reason to shut out the world. There's a purpose for everything, the good and the bad. ~ from the movie, Now & Then.

that's an AWESOME movie. why? because it's about four girls growing up and learning about life together. how autobiographical can you get? except, they're white. hahaha... they need to do a movie about eLLe. and you know, there would be enough drama to actually make a movie. i wonder who would play me... heehee... i could probably play myself because i still look like i'm twelve. :Þ

i'm going home tomorrow! aagh! it's amazing how quickly this semester went by. it just gets faster and faster... life is flying by before my eyes! goodness, before i know it, i'll be graduating. that's so uncool. i am totally not ready for that part of my life. i'm still struggling to figure out what i'm doing here as it is!

anyway, i'm trying to finish up my take home exam. it's almost done! whoo! then, after that, i just have my religion exam on wednesday. that'll be... blah. i haven't looked at a book since the last exam. yikes! oh well. who cares?

people i've been able to chill with this week :
beatrice : steffi : tiffany : liz lin : ben : jared : andrew : dave wong : cassie : sewa : cindy : jenn : diane :
wow! i have FRIENDS! isn't that a novel thing? i'm so grateful to all of you guys though... this week has truly been full of good times. =) God has good timing, doesn't He?

well, if i don't blog again for a while...

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

thank You, Jesus, for being THE GIFT. may we all receive God's blessings and gifts, and spread them around to everyone this season. =)

posted by Laura @ 5:17 PM 0 comments

Good things, when short, are twice as good. ~ Gracián

hahahaha, i just had to add this in. granted, this quote is talking about writing. but hey, it can apply to people right? [GRIN]

posted by Laura @ 11:46 PM 0 comments

wow! i have 25 friends! or... 25 stalkers. hmm...

it's so weird... this is probably the busiest time of the year for everyone, and i've had so many great conversations and talks with most of my closest friends! praise God for that. =) i've been enjoying and cherishing that a lot.

the plus one christmas cd is good! i finally got it. =) check one off my list. hehe... maybe i should start asking for big things... i do kind of want a laptop... [GRIN]. or how about a car?

strawberry mango yogurt tastes pretty much like strawberry yogurt. i can't wait to eat real mangoes in the phils.

and now, everyone's favorite part:

attaining the best things in life often require hard work and sacrifice.

friends are eternal. grades are not. ~ from my very wise roommate's away message

the sovereignty of God, in its definition, means that we are completely and utterly unable to control anything.

a true close friendship sometimes entails complete stupidity and silliness.

***

i'm gonna start using quotes that aren't my own from now on... but hopefully i'll still be able to make up my own. feel free to suggest your own in the blogouts. =)

this week just will NOT end. gosh. well, i must go. i have TWO dinner dates tonight. oooooh. okay yeah they're just my girlfriends. not to give you guys any ideas. haha... yeahh... riiiight. -_- byee!

posted by Laura @ 5:15 PM 0 comments

i added a counter. so now i can keep track of who actually reads this! whoooa... hehe. all you stalkers, beware! jk. i'll just hafta remember not to go to my own blog too much. hehe...

studying at the ugli is such a novel thing to me. this is where everyone is when i am alone doing nothing. i must remember this next time i feel lonely. just go to the 4th floor and bug people. haha... ok anyway, i gtg.

got nine hours of sleep last night. niiice.

daily wisdom will have to wait for later. i'm compiling a list still. =)

posted by Laura @ 1:40 PM 0 comments

seizing opportunities is different from searching for opportunities. the best thing is to be doing both.

"contrary to popular belief, i do not believe that friends are necessarily the people you like best, they are merely the people who got there first." ~ Sir Peter Ustinov (social psych textbook)
--> how true, how true. unfortunately, i don't know how many people even made it to my front door.

the most comforting thing is knowing that we can't do anything at all to achieve God's grace.

i kinda like this daily wisdom thing. far more interesting than my boring life. who has time to read blogs anyway? everyone is studying for finals! i don't understand why i have so much more time than everybody. i mean, i'm taking four classes, i have four exams... just like everyone else right? it's weird. it either means i'm really smart, OR, i just have easy classes. hmm.... i'm thinkin' the latter. i dunno... it's kinda nice though, not feeling very stressed. but i almost feel this pressure that i should be stressed or something, cuz everyone else is! maybe stress isn't the right word. hmm.. i dunno. but yeah, good luck to everyone out there taking exams... just remember it's only ONE exam! heehee... that always helps me see things more clearly. it's like two hours out of your whole entire life. obviously it's not gonna be the end of the world if it doesn't go perfectly.

i started writing this paper about predestination. yeah, kinda random. well, i figured since i have this spare time, and since there's no one to hang out with, i might as well work on it. it started when i went to that conference w/ r.c. sproul as the speaker. although a lot of it was pretty deep stuff, i actually enjoyed it. it would be so cool to take a class about theology. it's like mixing school with God. something we should all be doing anyway. hehe... but anyway, it's pretty cool making myself think about this predestination stuff again. a good reminder of how sovereign God is and how un-sovereign we are.

alright, i guess i'll be going now. although i really have nothing to do. haha... sigh. k byee!

posted by Laura @ 12:36 AM 0 comments

more daily wisdom:

people who are "listeners" often do not get to be listened to. if you know someone who's a listener, chances are they are dying to be heard.

God chooses to redeem the most unexpected people. (from knox sermon, 12/08)

Love is like war: easy to start, hard to stop. (from my social psych textbook.)

the spoken word is a rare gift. don't abuse or overuse it.

lilo & stitch is a cute movie! -- okay, not really a quote. but i just recently watched it, so i thought i'd add that in. =)

happy finals week everyone! okay, not so happy really. but... remember:

God never stops being God. even during finals week!

posted by Laura @ 1:23 AM 0 comments

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BREADSTICK!

here's to a new decade of good times, laughter, tears, memories, DRAMA, and growing to become the women God wants us to be. bffaad. =)

posted by Laura @ 1:07 PM 0 comments

my christmas wishlist:

1. alaska 2003 calendar (can be found at borders.com, click on picture)

2. a new journal (can you believe it? i'm finishing up #17!)

3. plus one christmas cd (can be found at familychristian.com, click on picture)



4. a new hat! (i can't seem to find any online that i really like. but, that's okay... i think i like pretty much all hats. excpet for the ones with the earflaps and strings hanging down cuz those looks kinda silly on me. heehee...)

hmm... those are just a few little things that i'll probably end up buying for myself after the holidays are over and i realize i didn't get any of them. heehee... =) it's ok, sometimes the nicest gifts are the ones from yourself.

anyway, tonight's the christmas banquet... i guess i'll go get ready for that now.

:daily wisdom:
- it's hard to get sappy when you're coughing up phlegm. (i speak from personal experience. ewwww...)
- you can't change your physical looks, but you can change your character.
- seeking love from anyone but God is futile, for His is the only kind that is over-abundant and unconditional. (see Romans 8:38-39)

posted by Laura @ 4:18 PM 0 comments

why i love winter:

because when you walk around campus all bundled up you bump into people cuz you're so busy trying to shield your face from the cold wind that you can't see a thing (hmm, okay maybe that's just me).

because everyone's cheeks get a little rosier. (heehee... so cute!)

because everyone has a muddy puddle around their feet when they come into class.

because there are less people harrassing us on the diag.

because my jeans get the salt rings at the bottom and when i sit indian style my butt gets all wet and dirty.

***

okay i ran out of reasons. it snowed like crazy on monday, so now we get to walk in the icky brown slush. yay for us. all the out of staters in my small group were complaining how much they don't like the midwest. i personally think it's just the snow. i mean, other than the coldness, what's so bad about michigan? i guess i wouldn't know any better. after all, i've lived here for more than twenty years! and i still can't get used to the weather. aiyah. i guess it's really only bad if you're a college student and have to walk around a lot, or if you have a car that you can't park in the garage and have to clean off whenever it's snowing. i think when i was little i liked the snow though, cuz i was neither a college student, nor someone who had a car. our elementary school is on a big hill, so during recess, we would get to go sledding! sometimes on our butts if we didn't have a sled. it was fun. i imagine that they've banned that activity now cuz parents are so overprotective. but when we were there, they didn't care. hehe...

anyway, enuf reminiscing about the old days. i really need to go do something. i've been bumming around in my castle all night. i have no attention span. :Þ maybe i'll try to read.

laura's daily wisdom (this was from yesterday actually...)
- hot guys are only hot until you meet them. then, they're just guys.
- we ARE the drama.
- i like Boys. they're just famous ones.

three weeks to christmas!

HAPPY 18th BIRTHDAY FATSO! =)

posted by Laura @ 10:34 PM 0 comments

yes, i want the new plus one christmas cd. it's actually good! i've heard clips! trust me they are a good singing group. of course no where NEAR my boys. hehe... but still enjoyable. they turned a bit weird though... now only jason is goodlooking. hehe... so sad so sad.

for all y'all who want to be nice and get me a gift, here's what the plus one cd looks like:

thanksgiving could have been better. but it was still nice being away from school/studying/ann arbor. it was kinda weird that my parents were out of town for the weekend. i kinda had to play mom for a while. that wasn't too fun. :Þ reminds me why i'm not ready to grow up.

i think my favorite thing was chilling with cassie on friday after her birthday dinner. it was funny i got invited to their family dinner... but hey, i'm family. the lins love me. hahaha... but yeah, it was definitely GOOD to catch up with my best bud. we don't get to talk in person enough. i forgot how nice it is talking to someone who knows exactly what you mean all the time. and you don't have to feel stupid when you say something stupid. cuz i know i do that a lot. hehe... as cassie will testify.

ANYhow... now it's back to school. can't believe it's practically OVER! sigh... and what a semester it has been. i think pretty much every part of my life has been tested in the past twelve weeks. not to sound all "look at me look at me!" but yes, it is true. God, however, is GOOD. and He will never stop being good. no matter how good or bad things are. isn't that the truth? it's so nice to KNOW that.

anyway, i have been chatting away tonight, on the phone and online. waiting for a phone call from my parents when they land in detroit. hope it's all okay with the snow and weather and stuff. but alas, my oh-so-entertaining blog must come to an end. props to all you who actually read this stuff. i think this is more for my own indulgence anyway. cya!

posted by Laura @ 12:44 AM 0 comments