~ Anna's Birthday ~

This past weekend I got to celebrate my good friend Anna's birthday with her and some friends in Alpharetta, GA. We had a blast that Saturday night, and then the following morning Anna and I went to hear her dad speak at a Bible study. It was really nice being in a group of people willing to hear and discuss religious/spiritual things together. I felt really welcome by everyone during our brief time there. :)

Anna and I spent the rest of the day at the High Museum of Art in Midtown Atlanta. We saw a really interesting (and slightly disturbing) exhibition called "Hard Truths" by an artist named Thornton Dial. He grew up in Alabama and witnessed a lot of racial tension and prejudice. His art was interesting- he used a lot of layers, sometimes incorporating items like desiccated rats, barbed wire, and barbies. It was  mostly dark but explored a lot of racial issues and "haunting meditations on events of contemporary global concern".

Here are a few pictures from our day out! :) Love you An!

The Local Natives is an indie rock band from the LA area... this song is brilliant!

Notable Quote

I was reading an article about yesterday's helicopter-crane crash in London, when I came across this interesting commentary:

It is often said critically of religion that it seeks to impose meaning on meaninglessness, that it is a sort of anxiety reduction strategy in the face of the general randomness of things. This is not the religion I know. What I see in church is a place that is remarkably accommodating to confusion and doubt. A place where people bring their not knowing what to do. They sit and light a candle or say a prayer, not fully understanding what this really means or expecting some instrumental purpose. "I don't believe in organised religion," people often say. That makes me laugh. All religion is intrinsically disorganised. Forever perched over chaos.

And no, I am not implying that God is the ready-made answer. For me, God is the question. A question that will not leave me alone. 

... I finish the day with a prayer. In the midst of life, we are in death.

Quote from: Giles Fraser, Guardian newspaper

Instagram 2012

^ Happy Thanksgiving!

^ Dutch plate (Delft blue from Delft, Holland)

^ Canadian Thanksgiving (October)

^ Roadtripping to Tennessee... and Emily's crayon art.

^ Hiking at Fall Creek Falls State Park with Em & Kristin

^ the things you see in middle-of-nowhere grocery stores.

^ pictures at the office

^ my morning running attire; cooking a pot of organic & vegetarian chili 

^ whilst reading Pride and Prejudice

^ my fortune... and early morning garage sales with the ladies 

^ visiting Chattanooga with Khan, Aiman, and Hasaan

^ Mini Wheats heist in Publix! And the GA State seal at Marietta Square.

^ stressful work week (office fridge, lol) and great sales at TJ Maxx

^ Marietta Square on a beautiful autumn Saturday.

^ Our condo in Ft. Lauderdale, FL... and trying not to get sick.

^ visiting a Ft. Meyers beach with the Garcias

^ me at Lee's new chapel - courtesy of Kristin Mueller

^ Lin's "healthy" ice cream/granola sundae. And my Callie darling.

^ rooftop ponderings

^ both pictures from Florida

^ beach bound with Lin, Randy, and Dad

^ poolside view, and view from above at our firepit

^ receiving mail from China

^ Christmas tree goes up! Callie gets festive!

^ at the Everglades for the first time

 ^ making Christmas cookies... and packing up my room.

^ being this cute is tiring... and my favourite album

^ reflections in our front hall