A Year Full of Updates...GO!

Gosh it's been awhile since I've written anything here. The shame of the matter is that I've been so many places and done so many things in the past year that I feel like this post could go on forever, but I would rather ramble than skip a whole year of my life. So I'll do my best to give the highlights and not ramble on aimlessly, but if I was smart, I would have been more diligent with travel updates in order to avoid this fiasco. Alas, I'm blonde, though, so bear with me as I try to flip through journals and remember/reminisce about my adventures.
Last you read was that I was on my way to Mississippi to volunteer for tornado cleanup with Samaritan's Purse. I did this for five days and it was a good experience. I spent most of my time picking up debris in yards and bonding with a couple from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. There was also a group of college kids from Michigan that I slowly got to know throughout the week, and we finished things off by getting icecream at Bops the night before I began my drive north again. During the week, I was blessed with the opportunity to find a family Bible amid the debris and deliver it back to a family member. It was crazy that it was even still there considering hardly any of the house still remained on the lot. Most of our time was spent raking leaves, picking up shingles that were strewn across various properties, and disassembling portions of roofs that blew off of homes. I occasionally served as the safety spotter for the skid-steer operator, and also had the opportunity to assist with a mudout. This involved removing carpeting, padding, and particle board while others tarped the roof.

March 8, 2013, I ate breakfast with the SP crew, got a group picture, and then headed on to Memphis. On a scale between nanosecond and space odyssey, I opted for the Gilligan's Island length tour of Memphis. I went to the Peabody Hotel to see the ducks in the fountain in the lobby before wandering down Beale Street. I stopped at a Starbucks for a frappacino and Wi-fi. I happened to be wearing my Darling Parade shirt and the barista asked me about it. That gave me the opportunity to share about the band releasing their first album April 2, 2013. I soon found myself along the shore of the Mississippi River, gazing across at Arkansas, a state I have yet to set foot in. I then made my way back to my car, which was parked at a garage on Union Avenue.

I then drove through Franklin, Tennessee, jamming to Paramore, before heading up to meet up with my friend, Sarah, in Nashville. Her house is in a quaint suburb just outside the city. We ventured to Edley's for dinner and ran into some of Sarah's friends while we were there. Sarah and I caught up on life and I explained Samaritan's Purse to her so she understood why I was in Mississippi. After a long night of conversation, I crashed for the night on her couch.

The next morning we drove down Music Row and went to a bookstore across the street from Jackson's Pancake Place. After perusing the bookstore, Sarah drove us past the Belle Meade plantation and the surrounding neighborhood so that I could get a glimpse of the fancy architecture of the area. We then opted for a relaxing afternoon, watching episodes of Law & Order: SVU and eating pizza. To keep us from completing wasting the day, we went for a walk to Love Circle Park, which is close to Big & Rich's house. The park gave a lovely, overlooking view of Nashville, and the walk served to wake me up for the rest of the evening. Our first stop was the Opryland Resort, which is practically like wandering through an indoor tropical rainforest. Following Opryland, we drove to central Nashville to meet up with some of Sarah's friends at Legends to listen to some live music. Soon we wandered down the street to a different honky tonk called Second Fiddle. We mingled until about midnight before making our way home to sleep considering I had to get up early in the morning to drive back to Pennsylvania.
Leap forward in time to the end of April and I could be found in New York City. I went to Hillsong Church before I made my way to Central Park. The Central Park Running Club hosted a solidarity run in memory of the victims of the Boston bombing. I wrote a post elaborating on the experience here if you would like to read about the day in detail.
April 28-May 16th I spent in North Carolina. During that time I stayed with ERobb. I went to the beach, visited friends, went to Bible studies, played miniature golf, biked 20 miles, went to the Maritime Musuem in Beaufort, went to Boone to have breakfast with Jerry and tour the Samaritan's Purse facility, interviewed for a job, went paddleboarding, participated in the hash dash, attended the Beaufort Music Festival, and helped make a powerpoint and a spoof video of the "Safety Dance." May 18th I went to see Five Iron Frenzy and House of Heroes with Lulu, Scott, and Danny.
May 19th I went to New Jersey to participate in the Color Me Rad race with Jane.

May 30th I met up with Hannah and KK to eat at the Powerhouse off I-80. We considered visiting the monastery nearby, but opted out of that. Instead, we did a photoshoot in the restaurant parking lot, doing cartwheels and interpretive dances.
June 19th I went to the lakehouse in order to see Natalia who was in the country from Brazil. I then went to New York City to go to the OMusic Awards at MTV Studios. I met Erika and TJ while waiting in line and we quickly began chatting as a caricature artist and street vendor had a disagreement in front of us about their personal spots on the sidewalk. We finally got to head inside and up the elevator to the studio in order to see Darling Parade play. They were up for the "Make a Band Famous" award and actually happened to win. After the show I got my picture with the lead singer, Kristin. I mingled with Tj and Erika and then we bailed with Caitlin and Dandara to meet up with the band in Times Square. We chatted on the sidewalk for a bit and the bands manager got a group picture of us all. What was funny was that tourists started taking some pictures of us all too. Afterwards Tj and Erika walked with me back to my car since it was after midnight. Since I was parked right in front of a German bar, we went inside for last call before I drove home. June 23rd I met up with Jane at a rest area in Tuxedo, NY, so I could drive us to the ski resort for the 5K Foam Fest, which was the first mud run she ever participated in. I enjoyed myself and managed to cut my knee open pretty good, but I said it was just a flesh wound. I grabbed some leaves off trees as I ran to wipe the blood off.
Fast forward to August 7th with me waking up mad early in order to drive to Staten Island to meet up with ERobb and some of the RE:flect girls at a convent for breakfast. They were doing some volunteer work to help rebuild after Hurricane Sandy. We helped spackel and paint in a home and also went for a prayer walk. I stuck around for dinner and then we all went to the Brooklyn Tabernacle, which was definitely an experience. Getting there sure was an adventure in rush hour traffic. When we returned to the convent, ERobb, Emily, and Shannon prayed me out for my drive home to Pennsylvania.
August 9th and 10th I went to the lakehouse. First night played Author's Rummy with Mark and Beth and then went sailing. Second night chatted with people around campfire, watched people play flip cup, and played Author's Rummy.
August 11th I went to NYC for Hillsong Church. I then wandered to Jane Street to enjoy the vibe of the cobblestone streets. Read on a bench outside the Tavern on Jane before driving to the Vibe Lounge in Rockville Centre. Met up with Erika, Caitlin, Dandara, and TJ. We all helped Darling Parade carry in their equipment for the concert before going to get pizza. Had some drinks in the venue during the first band and then went outside and watched TJ and Erika skateboard in the street. Enjoyed watching Darling Parade play and helped carry their equipment out afterwards. We all hung out and chatted. When Kristin learned I had a three hour drive home she gave me a Red Bull for the ride home and wanted me to tweet when I arrived.
August 20th Teresa and I went to Gramercy Theater in NYC to meet up with Erika for the Icon for Hire concert. Took pictures in the beginning and then headbanged and jumped around for the rest of it after Ariel commented on how people needed to experience the show and not just capture it on video. After the show got autographs and Adam the drummer said he saw my picture on Instagram earlier and thanked me for the shout out to the band.
September 21st went to Hunter College in NYC with Nick, Matt, and Nadine to see a performance of The Great Divorce. I then went to stay at Rhi's. The next day I went to her lifting competition and got to see her qualify for the American Open.
September 28th I went to Teresa's mom's wedding.
September 29th I started my drive to Niwot, CO. Got a little past St. Louis my first leg, which was 17 hours of driving. I got the Aurora, CO, by the night of the 30th. Made it in time for breakfast in Niwot with SP and Jimbo made me a sandwich for lunch. I was part of a spray team for the majority of my two weeks volunteering. Met lots of awesome people including a handful of chaplains, Amanda, and Dave. Got to see Lois and Chuck again, who I met in Mississippi. Helped with a mudout for four days and went through two tyvec suits a day crawling in the mud. The night before Amanda and I left we went with a few others to a health club in Boulder to soak in a hot tub. Then at 4am, Amanda and I went with Will to the REI garage sale. We were first in line, which was pretty cool, as were the temps since it was only 38 degrees out, so we all curled up under blankets and sleeping bags. When we got back, I confirmed my plans with Ryan and Jessica to stay with them in Kentucky on my way to North Carolina. For lunch, Amanda and I had lunch with Teresa and Christy.
October 12th I officially left Niwot in the afternoon. Around midnight I made it to the Nebraska/Iowa border. I opted to walked the bridge that spanned the Missouri River so I could say I walked from one state to the next. A young couple was walking and I struck up a conversation with them. I asked if they lived nearby and they said no but over on 118th. I said I was from Pennsylvania and I'm pretty sure that they thought I was crazy for stopping just to walk across the bridge. Slept at the Iowa welcome center and had an interesting encounter with a cop when I got pulled over in the afternoon. He thought I was possibly smuggling drugs, but he thanked me for volunteering with Samaritan's Purse. A full account of this can be found here. I visited Aunt Jan and Uncle Archie in Portage, MI. Got a good night of sleep and then ventured to Georgetown, KY, on October 14th to stay with Ryan and Jessica and meet their sons. We went out to an Italian place and shared plenty of stories over dinner. Relaxed when we got home by watching the Voice. I got up early the next day to head out to Morehead City.

October 15th I made it to ERobb's around 6:30pm, in time to make it to community group. In the course of my stay, which lasted until October 29th, I helped decorate a homecoming float, went to community group at Jim and Jeni's, went to community group, One Harbor, danced in the street in the rain after going to Jack's, went to a birthday dinner at the Ruddy Duck, fishing in the Beaufort Inlet, toured Fort Macon, had a campfire, helped work on building a website, played basketball at Rotary Park, dressed as a penguin for the Run Your Booty Off 5K, went to the kite festival, helped host Spooksgiving party at ERobb's, went for a boat ride, watched Pitch Perfect, and went with Jeni to New Bern to have breakfast at IHop with a woman from the halfway house. Jeni and I then drove around looking for Nicholas Sparks' house before I drove to Kernersville to meet up with my friend Kate. Went to Mellow Mushroom for dinner and caught up on life before getting some sleep.
October 30th I drove to Boone, NC, to meet up with Amanda who I met in Colorado. We ate at Chick-fil-a with some of her co-workers and then went back to her place on some random mountain road. Had a fire in the firepit out back before bed.
Drove to Kutztown on Halloween to watch the Bengals game with Scott. Took a detour through part of Shenandoah National Park on my way to Kutztown.
November 1st met up with Chrissy and picked up Teresa so she could join. Played cards and caught up on life before driving Teresa home.
November 2nd I went to Cici's with Jamie, Lulu, Jeremy, and Rachel. Then drove to NYC to go to the Tonight Alive concert with Erika and AJ. Echosmith, For the Foxes, and Downtown Fiction opened for them and were all great. Probably one of the best concerts I've ever been to.
November 11th I met up with KK at the Sands in Bethlehem. I had tickets to the Paramore concert, along with a skip the line pass. We ended up being in the second row from the stage, which was awesome!
November 17th was an afternoon of bowling with Jamie, Lulu, Jeremy, and Rachel before I went to Teresa's for some delicious leg of lamb, mashed potatoes, and Heineken.
November 19th I picked Rhi up from work so that we could hop a train into Manhattan and go to the Sisterhood gathering at Hillsong NYC. We then had a tasty dinner at a quaint Irish pub before we got some sleep.

November 24th I got baptized at the Tabernacle Bible Church in Honesdale. After the church service, I drove out to Morton, IL, to get some sleep at a motel before I volunteered with Samaritan's Purse after the tornado. Made it to Grace Church the next morning in time for breakfast with Jimbo and Shannon, my team lead for the week. Shannon's an arborist, so he led a chainsaw team. There was a group  of college kids from North Carolina who were also on our team. Spent time hauling branches and picking through debris. Thanksgiving we happened to salvage some furniture and a ceramic cat from a house. It was a perfect little setup for lunch that day. One of the greatest parts of the experience was helping cleanup a property for a family who had the tornado go straight through their house. We were able to locate some family photos and the family came to the church for dinner the evening after we completed the job, which they assumed would take them months. December 1st was my last day there. Shannon and I went to Elevate Church before I headed to Downers Grove. I checked into the Red Roof Inn and then ventured to the Brick House Tavern for dinner. The waiter was very personable and I shared with him about Samaritan's Purse. I then went to the AMC Theater to see The Book Thief.

December 2nd I went to Chicago in order to wander around while I waited for Mark to get out of work. I took the Red Line from Sheridan to Chicago Avenue to begin my adventure. I then made my way to the John Hancock Building so that I could go up to the Signature Lounge on the 95th floor. I had a Coke while I enjoyed the vast view overlooking Chicago. I then made my way to Water Tower Place before walking down Michigan Avenue. Since it was cold, I opted to go to the public library to get warm and enjoy the blessing of free Wi-fi. Mark got out of work around 5 and we met up along the river. We then took the Red Line back towards his apartment and we went out for deep dish pizza. I showed him the Time Magazine I had picked up at the Barnes & Noble as I wandered around. There was a two page spread that showed the path of destruction of the tornado in Washington. We then went back to his apartment and I showed him, his girlfriend, roommate and his girlfriend pictures from my volunteer experience. They all seemed pretty intrigued about the situation. I fell asleep watching The Hunger Games. The next morning I had some gourmet Crunch Berries before embarking on my twelve hour drive back to Pennsylvania.
Jump forward in time to February 4th and I was awakened by two friends who were kind enough to serve as my text alarm clocks at 3am. I made my way down to La Guardia to catch my flight to Chicago so that I could interview for a sports statistics position. I had an entertaining Irish man sitting next to me for the short morning flight. I had pre-ordered a taxi to pick me up and drive me to Northbrook for my 11:30am interview.  After the interview I caught a train back to Union Station in the heart of Chicago as the snow began to fall. I met up with Mark by his work and we went to State Bar for trivia night with his girlfriend and some of her friends. I got a 5 Rabbit 5 Lizard beer, which had a rather odd aftertaste that I still can't place. I enjoyed the tater tots and ordered a cheeseburger, only to discover that cheddar cheese has an odd texture in the midwest. We ventured back to Mark's in the snow and I fell asleep on the couch.
February 5th I woke up to emails suggesting I change my flight, but I held out, hoping the snow would pass. I ventured out into the frigid weather so that I could go to Eataly and enjoy breakfast at the Nutella bar. I had some bread and Nutella and checked my flight using the free Wi-fi. I left after about an hour in order to organize my stuff at Mark's before catching my flight. Come to find out my flight got delayed, so I raided his kitchen and had Tostitoes and a Sam Adam's for lunch. His roommates girlfriend stopped by and we chatted briefly. I then noticed that my flight got bumped up a half hour, so I ventured to the train station to catch the Red Line to central Chicago, where I transferred to the Blue Line, which took me to O'Hare. I chatted with a woman as we got off at the airport, and we continued our conversation until we reached our respective terminals. We wished each other well before venturing through security. The flight got delayed another 20 minutes, but we all immediately boarded and caught a nice tailwind to land a half hour early at La Guardia. I had to clean my car off and get my car jumped before driving to Nauman's, getting stuck at the end of their driveway and walking the half mile to the cabin. It was a beautiful reminder of God being in charge and that I enjoy nature.
February 6th I dug my car out of the driveway and made my way down to visit Jim and Jeni in North Carolina. I surprised everyone at Home Group and got a warm welcome from everyone. Afterwards I helped Jim and Jeni make the bed in my room and I got some sleep. It was a great ten days where I got to feed pelicans, play basketball, walk on the beach, go for a boat ride, shoot at a gun range for Valentine's Day, get snowed in with friends, go to a potluck dinner at Cru bar, visit the aquarium, enjoy church and community, and watch some movies. I did unfortunately get sick for a bit, but thankfully I got healthy in about four days. 
February 17th I packed my car and was 2 hours into my drive home before Jim called and said there might be a chance to volunteer with Samaritan's Purse in South Carolina. Though not in my plan, after two hours, I turned around and went back to Morehead City to stay with ERobb for the night. We went out to dinner with friends and I talked to Jim and Jeni on the phone about South Carolina.
February 18th I went and packed stuff into Jeni's car before we drove to her brother's to drop off the dogs and then go to Moncks Corner, SC. A complete account of that experience can be found here.

I was back in Morehead City by the evening of March 2nd and stayed with ERobb until the 5th. I got to enjoy an evening with the RE:flect girls, take Charlie to the groomers, and go to IHop for brunch with ERobb. The afternoon of the 5th I drove to Fayetteville so that I could see Darling Parade in concert. They were surprised to see me at a concert other than New York City. I got to tour Gus the Bus before the show and chat with the band before sound check. I enjoyed the show and stayed to listen to ARIA and bought one of their EPs before I ventured north. I slept for two hours at the Virginia welcome center before continuing my drive to Cresco to see the Nauman's. My GPS thought it would be fun to randomly send me to a park and ride off of I-95 during rush hour outside of DC. Other than that, though, I had a smooth drive back to Pennsylvania.

Update From Tennessee

I'm currently in a Panera in downtown Chattanooga after an 11 hour drive. I feel very accomplished because I have been in six states today: Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, Virginia, Tennessee, and Georgia. I had a lovely exchange with a cashier at a BP in Virginia. I asked her how her day was going and she responded with, "It's going," before asking me about my day. I said that it involved a long drive because I was on my way to Chattanooga. Upon asking me why, I proceeded to tell her how I'm volunteering with Samaritan's Purse for tornado cleanup in Mississippi. Her response was, "Bless you heart and have a blessed day! Also stay safe!" Nice to know that even a stranger wants me to be careful in my travels.
The drive went smoothly and I had time to drive up Lookout Mountain, which is on the Georgia/Tennessee border. I opted to venture into the Ruby Falls cavern for a tour and was very excited to see the 145 foot waterfall that is 1000 feet underground. It's pretty spectacular and I'm very glad that I was able to play tourist. Now it's about time I finish my food so I can go find a place to park my car for a nap.

Trampoline Bouncing Before a 7 Mile Trail Race

So I'm currently in Sunbury, PA, visiting my my friend KK, which is always a good time because she has truckloads of energy and makes everything fun. We met up at Kmart yesterday with Hannah and Andrea to go to the Bounceplex, which is pretty much a gigantic facility that has trampolines for floors and some on the walls as well. We spent a good hour bouncing around watching Hannah do sideways flips before trekking to Perkins, which is a tradition that KK and I have and pass on to others. I had my usual french toast, but opted to add a side of bacon because I was hungry. Everybody else got omelette platters. The conversation was great too as we joked a lot, adding plenty of laughter to the evening. The toast that was brought out for Hannah was slathered in butter, so we nicknamed it Paula Dean Toast. Something else that I found quite amusing was the fact that she was rattling the ice in her empty glass of water hoping more would appear. When none did, we called it her death rattle.

After leaving Perkins, KK and Hannah were making lots of funny noises in the parking lot causing Andrea to comment that she felt like she was at the zoo with the monkeys talking to each other. On that note, we headed back to  KK's house to be bums on the couch watching television for the rest of the evening.
Today we had pancakes for breakfast, freshly cooked by KK. It was a great pre-race meal since we both ran the Humdinger 7.1 mile trail race. It started at 3pm and we had a wonderful time! KK was hilarious because she was chockfull of endorphins the entire run. There were plenty of creek crossings where we had to balance on logs to get to the other side. Mud abounded along the course and the hill we had to climb up was massive. Regardless, KK and I had a blast, especially at the first "water" station where we got served beer and acquired a set of beads.
Towards the end of the race there was a sign that said "cool people" with an arrow pointing to a creek that went under the road. KK and I opted to follow it since we were so close to the finish line. After the creek, we ran across planks over fire, climbed fences through pig pens (and yes, two pigs were actually in the pen), climbed a cargo net into the pig barn loft, and then slid down the slip n slide before finishing the race. Although I was exhausted afterwards, I'm so glad that KK and I participated and we plan on doing a race every year as a tradition.

Self Discovery as a Vagabond

“Live, travel, adventure, bless, and don't be sorry.” ~Jack Kerouac

We're all searching for ourselves in unique ways. Some dive headlong into careers believing that money will provide happiness and solve their issues. Others hibernate within their homes playing video games, desperately searching for distractions from reality in order to avoid growing up. I've chosen to search for myself on the roadways of America.
What thrust me onto the roads of America was discontent. I found that I wasn't happy with where I was and what I was doing with my life. I honestly felt like I was just wasting my time. For years I've been trying to function inside some manmade system that the world tried to convince me was the way I was supposed to live and the lie was that it'd bring happiness by following its formula. In high school, I ran cross country and track, at first because I enjoyed it, and then because it was expected of me. I then went to college because I was told one can't succeed in America without a degree. I then furthered this education by getting a Master's degree because the unwritten rule is that a better job with a higher salary will present itself. And what has this all done for me you might ask? Well, I'll tell you what it's done; it's turned me into an unemployment statistic. So much for trying to live within the confines of the system, right? Rather than it bringing happiness, I've seen the system pummel and almost crush people under a weight of misery (myself included). They became beaten and downtrodden, shells of their former selves until they decided to escape the tumult in order to follow their own dreams and definition of success. I've personally discovered that I've lived too long trying to live up to other people's definition of success. What is success anyway? There is no clear cut way to define it because it means something different to each person. And that's the problem with trying to live up to someone else's expectations; their expectations aren't the same as your expectations and your true self gets lost in the melee. Rather than enjoying life, you end up living in fear of failure. After listening to the song "Letdown" by The Glass Child, I knew I wasn't the only one who felt this way about going through this life in an empty fashion. This song is the epitome of trying to stay true to oneself while desperately trying to avoid failing others. I no longer wish to live this way and would rather discover myself outside the confines of other's expectations.
I don't know why I didn't discover this sooner. I've always channeled the first line of Romans 12:2, which warns against being conformed to the ways of the world. Looking back, I've always pushed back against the system in any way possible. In my running career, I refused to follow the coach's instruction to train in the winter. Instead, I took time off, which probably spared me from serious injury, although it caused some friction with the coach. In college, while I always strived to achieve good grades, I didn't do it at the expense of my social life. I've always felt that other people were more important than my personal goals and that we're meant to have fun outside the confines of work and trying to be the best at something. It's this living for other's that has helped shape me and gotten me to where I am today. Being unemployed has provided me with ample opportunities to wander and go on adventures that otherwise would have never come to fruition. It's on these adventures that I have had the ability to serve others. No longer am I the hopeless wanderer that Mumford and Sons speak of. Rather, I'm living my life with purpose, although some may not agree. What my detractors need to be aware of, though, is that "not all those who wander are lost," borrowing wise words from J.R.R Tolkien.
The adventure that really began to shape and mold me into my present self took place back in November. After Hurricane Sandy, I chose to volunteer for two weeks with Samaritan's Purse in Teterboro, NJ. This was life changing in many ways. It not only opened my eyes to the pain and suffering of the struggling lower class, it also helped me build another family. I was able to listen to those who needed to share their stories and I was able to assist in cleaning up storm damaged homes. I have to admit, those were the most rewarding weeks of 2012 for me, and I was functioning outside the confines of the system where one only works for money. It was a reminder that the most important things in life don't have a price tag on them, that we need to be aware of those around us, and that we must always be willing to give of ourselves to benefit others.
That trip to Teterboro opened a door for me into a world focused completely on serving others. It led me to volunteer for a day in Island Park, NY, with friends from North Carolina at the end of January. More importantly, feeling led by the Holy Spirit, my team leader from Teterboro and his wife chose to move into the trailer park where we served back in November in order to further serve the community that was in desperate need spiritually. I opted to move into their RV for three weeks in order to connect with those in the trailer park. I felt it was important to listen to all of their stories and learn about their lives. I can't think of any other situation where I could comfortably interact with alcoholics, recovering drug addicts, the lowly, and depressed and we could openly learn from each other. It brought to my attention the desperate situations that certain people are living in and how the systems of the world can truly fail people.
I opted to go home after three weeks in the trailer park to rest and recuperate since I was emotionally, mentally, physically, and spiritually exhausted. When I was in my parents house, though, I didn't feel like I was truly home. I felt like I was detached from my true purpose. After two days of being "home," I was restless and antsy to leave. It was a strange realization that being stationary at home was distressing, as opposed to relaxing. Now don't get me wrong, I love my parents very much, but I no longer felt like my time was being well spent on the couch of the living room as I struggled to find and apply for a "real job." What I opted to do instead was call Samaritan's Purse to see if they needed volunteers for tornado clean-up. I was told they did, so I applied online and got a phone call about two hours later to set up my trip. That led me to venture out on the road again and brought me to where I am currently, which specifically is a Barnes and Noble in Lewisburg, PA, where I sit passing my afternoon and sipping on a mocha frappucino (Yet another way to buck the system; drinking cold beverages in the winter, though it actually causes vasoconstriction of the blood vessels, reducing the loss of core body temperature and keeping one warm, so ha, I win!). I'm patiently waiting for some friends of mine to get out of work so we can enjoy some fun hours at the bounce-plex this evening followed by a seven mile trail race tomorrow afternoon. Then it'll be an early start Sunday to follow my calling down to the tornado ravaged area of Petal, MS.

Looking back, I'm very thankful that the system failed me so that I could rediscover myself on the road. Those original two weeks in Teterboro really helped to shape my life. In the process of discovering my purpose in life, I had to be willing to throw away my concept of success and completely redefine it from a different perspective. I also had to discard whatever I felt was my plan in life. A really catchy song I've fallen in love with that pretty much describes me is "And Run" by He is We. The lyrics really speak to me because they say, "I’m going to open my mind to all these, new found exciting possibilities. I’m making all my own plans, throwing all my old ones away. Gonna grow up, be someone. Draw a map, find a path. Take a breath and run." That's pretty much my life on the road. I follow the path I find on a map and just go for it and in the process, I'm creating a new life for myself by serving others and glorifying God. I can confidently say that I know I'm where I'm supposed to be and the people who matter the most to me, and understand what I'm doing, are proud of me. And in the words of the Glass Child, "This road is now my home." 

North Carolina Has Captured My Heart

I don't even know where to begin! I had such a great time down in North Carolina this past week. It was spiritually refreshing to stay with Jim and Jeni, who I met through my work with Samaritan's Purse. We had many late night conversations about Scripture and plenty of laughs with great food. I had never really liked seafood, but they cured me of that. We had steamed oysters three different nights, trigger fish, and I tasted mahi mahi and tuna.

One of my favorite parts was the weather. I was able to leave the snow behind in Pennsylvania and enjoy temperatures in the 60s for most of the week. It was great motivation to get out and run again, which is great since I'm doing a 7 miler in March. There were also plenty of opportunities for walks on the beach with the dogs, Josie and Abbi. It was amusing to watch them run with their ears flapping in the wind while they chased each other or a laser beam. The weather was also perfect to take the boat out briefly (and scrub it down, of course). I even got the chance to steer us through the canal as we made our way to the inlet.
I got to see a bit of the area as well. Went to Beaufort briefly to see the Fritha mored at the dock, along with the memorial to Michael John Smith, who was the pilot of the Challenger space shuttle in 1986. I also spent some time in Morehead City. Went to lunch at the Ruddy Duck with Jeni and also helped to box up some inventory of a gift shop for a day. Nice to feel like I had a job again. I also had the opportunity to hike part of the Neusiok Trail with Jackie and her hiking club. It was nice to spend time in a forest on such a beautiful day.

What touched me most, though, was how welcoming everybody was when I visited. I don't think I've ever felt more at home than I did in North Carolina. From Jim and Jeni taking me in like their own kid, to Jackie bringing me out on a hike, to Nema bringing me along for young adult bowling, I honestly hope that I'm blessed with a job opportunity in the area so I can move there permanently. I loved One Harbor Church and made so many new friends in my one week there that it just seems like the perfect fit. I haven't laughed so hard in a long time and I'm definitely looking forward to going back.