Car accident

I was in a car accident on Tuesday night.

I was driving in downtown Dallas in my car when I exited the freeway and came to a stop at a traffic light. I was the first one on the line (fortunately and no so fortunately) when (I think) an SUV plowed right into the back of me. The force pushed me out into the middle of the intersection which was four lanes of traffic going in both directions (so 8 total). My car spun around and finally came to a stop. I will tell you that it scared me b/c as it pushed me into the traffic I remember grabbing the wheel and thinking 'this is it' because I just knew someone would hit me from the side. Thank God that no one did because at this point the light was red at all intersections. So, it was a hit and run because the driver just plowed into me and kept on going. Praise the Lord that I have sustained no real injuries. I think I was the pivotal point in a centrifical (sp) force so as the car spun it kept me from hitting the steering wheel or any glass w/ my head. I totally walked away and I have some sore neck and back muscles but I went to the doctor and he explained all the soreness and strain was from the impact, etc. So, I am OK! I do not have a car and I cannot finance one right now. That is the only bad part. I paid for that car in full with my savings...yes it was THAT cheap, it was a 1989 Honda! My parents and boyfriend insist that I get a newer car. So, I'm trying to figure out my finances so I can do that. Grad school is hard on the wallet! (:

Please join me in praying for the Lord's provision. I know he has a plan for me and the car etc. For now I am well taken care of with transportation because no one has classes this week. But, I'm on the hunt. So, if anyone has any good leads on a car let me know.

Swing Dancing

You can't beat a fun evening of cuttin' a rug! I love to dance and we had a great time at this center in Dallas. I think it's a type of community center. It was a great way to spend a Saturday night!

Two week break!

So, the great thing about this school is that we get a full week off of classes for a "Reading Week" where we should be using the time to accomplish reading a lot of the books we've been assigned. Then we get a full week off for Thanksgiving! Yay!! So, today marks my first official day of the break. I intend to do A LOT of school work. But, that's what I'm here for right?

On a side note: The high in Dallas today is 81 degrees my friends! Can you believe it? 81!! Good grief. I guess we'll see if it gets that hot or not. I am however wearing sandals today. I can't believe it's breaking into mid-November. I hope where ever you are you are enjoying your weather. If you're a GA friend, I'm praying for you. I know you need some rain.

Retraction

An informed Texan corrected my blog! (; Big Tex is in fact not blow up. He is evidently a permanent structure. At any rate he is not blow up. I certainly want to give Big Tex the full credit he deserves. See...there's so much to learn about Texas.

Stone Mountain Highland Games

Last weekend I made a quick trip back to Georgia for a little family fun. I had planned this trip since the Summer and it turned out to be a perfect time to go home! It was half way between Summer and Christmas. We've been attending the games for 25+ years and I had missed the last two.

It was great to spend time with wonderful friends and family! I am so blessed. The weather was beautiful and the company was awesome!

Weekend trips are little bit too quick though. I am looking forward to going home for Christmas for about two weeks. It'll be a needed break from school and should include more quality family time.

Please continue to keep me in your prayers as I try to finish out the semester strong!

Texas State Fair

Pictured here are classic elements of the Texas State Fair! First off is Big Tex. He's the giant cowboy.

Then, fried food is a must. If you read the sign you'll notice they featured fried coke, fried peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and fried cookie dough.
So, pictured is some yummy fried cookie dough. I thought it tasted great!



We stopped by to see the dancing dog show. Of course some dogs were more talented then others, but for the most part it was fun line up of dogs and trainers!

A Day In the Life of a Nanny...

Well friends, finally I have some pictures of the precious little girls that I babysit for four days a week. The two little ones are twins and the oldest girl is 5. They are a ton of fun and it's a great family. I am so blessed. On this particular day we were finger painting. If you look closely you can see the artistry of the little ones. Clean up is just as much fun as you imagine! (:

Nothing like breakfast for dinner on a Sunday night

On Sunday night the guys, ie David, Travis, Ryan and Alan had some friends over for a little Sunday night breakfast! What fun! Pictured below are half of the guests as the others managed to escape the camera. Also, pictured below are the able bodied chefs. Dallas isn't so bad if you consider the people that are in it! Ok, just kidding, I like Dallas, really. I'm learning to dodge traffic and apparently it has an aquarium which sounds promising. And… I hope to go to the State Fair on Saturday which also promises lots of Texas fun! Yee Haw! Stay tuned for pictures.

Reunion Tower

Last night I did a little Dallas city sightseeing! I finally got a picture of the Dallas city sky line...sort of. We had great intentions of getting a good picture of the skyline but there was some glass that inhibited us from getting a really great photo. But, nevertheless, I did get to go to the top of a place called Reunion Tower. It is basically a skyscraper in the shape of a large ball that has blinking lights on it. It is definitely a unique feature of the Dallas city skyline. At the top of this ball you can visit a restaurant, cocktail lounge or the observation deck. We spent some time at the cocktail lounge and the observation deck! I have included a picture of me and the Dallas city skyline. (look closely) The other picture is of me and my handsome, accompanying photographer.

City life

Well, I realized there have been some city stories that I haven't shared yet! One being that I tried to go rollerblading in the city a few weeks ago. I have been trying to find parks in the city. Someone had warned me about a park called "Fair Park" that was in fact not a park at all. Well, they said that it wouldn't be what I thought it would be. However, I googled rollerblading in Dallas and this park came up with a review from someone stating that it was a good park to try! So, luckily my roommate and I both own rollerblades so we gave it a shot. After all the park is not far from my apt. On a nice hot cloudless Sunday after noon we ventured over to Fair Park. When we entered the area I thought hmm..surely there is more to it than this. It was obviously a large place. There were multiple gates but nothing really green to speak of. I was hopefully stubborn and thought well there must be a nice place to rollerblade because the internet says so! Upon more investigating we just kept driving from parking lot to parking lot! "Fair Park" is where the Texas Sate Fair is held so there is a ton of park-ing..but no real "park." It suddenly dawned on me that the miles and miles of hot, concrete, parking lots that we were driving through must be what the review on the internet was talking about. I was immediately amused and disappointed at the same time. Someone had a different definition of park than I do. And all of that concrete was hot!! Nevertheless in all of our time spent investigating we figured it was as good as place as any so geared up and bladed for a little while from concrete slab to concrete slab. Welcome to the city!

Another amusing city tidbit; On Thursday on my way from school I saw some pigeons taking a bath in a pothole in the street. The pothole was not more than a foot by a foot and those crazy pigeons were jumping in and out of the pothole to dodge cars in between quick dips. Life in the city can be rough!

Dr. Dwight Pentecost

One of the many benefits to studying God's word at seminary is meeting the distinguished faculty. I do have classes with Dr. Howard Hendricks otherwise known as "The Prof." For those of of you well versed in Biblical..Christian stuff his name may mean something to you. He is very well respected and really an amazing man of God. But, I have had the privilege to actually spend quality time with one of the professors.
Dr. Dwight Pentecost is another distinguished professor here. He was born in 1915 so he is an aging man (not unlike the rest of us I suppose) but despite his age he still speaks in chapel and teaches a class. I got the opportunity to have a meal with him and other students during one of my first nights here. As a result of that wonderful time and conversation I learned that he had married a southern woman. She has since gone to be with the Lord. But, in honor of her..and him I made him a plate of biscuits and delivered them to his apartment. His apartment is beautiful! He was kind enough to visit with myself and a friend I brought along who is a HUGE fan of him and his writing. In fact I really must give credit to my friend who really introduced me to Dr. P. and helped me understand his contributions.

Apparently it is tradition for Dr. P. to give ice cream to his visitors. So, I enjoyed a big bowl of ice cream! He is a witty, wise, gentle, man and we had so much fun! I have linked his name to a wikipedia page that will tell you a little bit about him and his accomplishments in case you don't know who in the world I'm talking about!

The Blevins' family farm

Well, if you've noticed there is a trend here. Living in Germany I spent almost every weekend for two years with friends Nathan and Amanda and my sweet roommate Erika! So, since moving to Texas I have gotten to see Nathan and Amanda 3 times! That's amazing. They only live about 2 hours away, but still it's tough to see them. So, for Labor Day weekend (pictured below) I traveled with them to Nathan's family farm. We did the Labor Day weekend things like picnic and eat watermelon of course. And...we got to see the horses, mules, cows and chickens. The farm is located in northwest Arkansas so it was fun to do a little traveling too!

Labor Day Weekend

Texas baseball

I attended a Fort Worth minor league baseball game with my friends from Germany; Nathan and Amanda. They love to introduce me to their friends as "their German friend" and people sometimes actually assume that I'm actually German and speak limited English! So, sometimes I give them blank stares just for fun but mostly I open my mouth and it comes out "Georgian" and they get it!

Chapel

Chapel sounds boring doesn't it? I thought it would be boring. I have never gone to a Christian school before so the "chapel" thing is new. Attending chapel from a student's point of view anyway. When I was teaching in Germany we had chapel for the kids..but it's one thing to lead it and another to be required to attend. So, I LOVE chapel! There is something about hundreds of adults getting together 4 days a week to sing praises at the top of their lungs..and the guests we have are pretty darn famous, in the Christian world anyway. Today Dr. Charles Swindoll was the speaker for Chapel. I had to work so I missed it in person. But, I can watch it online..and so can you! If you want to be encouraged and watch a DTS chapel online check out www.dts.edu/media/podcasts/ or go to www.dts.edu and click on chapel. Disclaimer: Dr. Swindoll's message from today is not up there yet. I have not yet figured out how to navigate it completely but at any rate it's a blessing .

we pray in class...

Y'all...we PRAY in class! I mean, I know a lot of people pray in school....like Dear God, please help me make a good grade, etc. But our professors pray FOR us. It is an amazing experience. The last teacher that I had actually pray with me during class time was in the second grade!
I really like my classes so far and I feel like I am really where I am supposed to be right now. What a GREAT feeling! Some of the subject matter is a little intimidating and I admit that I feel a little ill-equipped..but I can only learn more from here! So, if you haven't prayed for or with a student lately..do it..it's encouraging.

something a little more Texan..

Well, I had a stroke of genius when I woke up this morning. I decided to change the name. Something a little more Texan...I've been in Texas two weeks tomorrow and so far I have sung this song twice in a public setting! Once at a Baseball game and again at the intro to the seminary. What a hoot! So, in honor of the state...and the excitement that the folks here seem to have for this song..I'll change my title!

The stars at night - are big and bright
Deep in the heart of texas.
The prairie sky - is wide and high
Deep in the heart of texas.
The sage in bloom - is like perfume
Deep in the heart of texas.
Reminds me of - the one I love
Deep in the heart of texas.

Good ol' Texas welcome center!