Bite Me

It seems that I’ve been (slightly) domesticated.  Lately, I’ve been doing quite a bit more cooking, and I’m starting to reember how much I enjoy it…especially when I get to cook for someone else.  A good portion of my recent web surfing has been centered around cooking sites and blogs, hunting for new ways to flex my culinary muscles.  To my surprise and delight, I also found out that one of my high school classmates has begun a food blog of her own!

Through her site, The Bite Me Kitchen, Rose Cameron is sharing the delights of her kitchen with the rest of the world.  Although I’ve never sampled her food in person, her inventiveness, flair for design, and quirky sense of humor have put her blog on my short list of favorite bookmarks.  There are several cooking pages that I frequent regularly, and hers is easily my favorite.  Many of the others have been in production for years, and are backed by dozens of big-name sponsors, yet Rose’s casual style and obvious joy for living add a personal touch that most of the other sites lack.  Sadly, I don’t have access to Trader Joes, or I’d try out more of her recipes for myself.  I have no doubt that The Bite Me Kitchen will impress anyone who enjoys cooking, eating, and life in general.

So…kudos to you, Rose.  Thank you for sharing your talents with me and countless other foodies.  Keep up the good work!

Ousted

Recently, I’ve written a few posts about the band I’ve been playing in.  I was having a really good time playing for and promoting one of my favorite local musicians.  It was a lot of fun feeling like I was part of and contributing to something that I believed it.  Unfortunately, I received a call last night from the band leader, letting me know that my services as bassist would no longer be required.  I was crestfallen.  From the beginning, my former band mates had stated that they were “trying out different musicians”, and that they were looking for someone who would be a good fit for the band.  For my part, all I was interested in doing was helping out some friends, supporting local music, and getting a chance to jam.  Apparently, I wasn’t good enough, or didn’t fit into the future plans they had for the band.

I’m really not bitter about it, and am as understanding as possible with these matters.  I realize that I’m not the best bassist or most experienced musican in our group of friends.  I know that there are dozens of more capable people that will be able to serve the band better than I.  I’m glad to have been able to join in the fun while it lasted and to have played a couple of fun shows with musicians that I admire.  Hopefully, I’ll get the chance to join another band someday.  If not, I’ll always have pictures to prove that I was a semi-professional musician for a couple of months.

LOVE!!!

Prepare for maximum mushy-ness…

I am totally, completely and unabashedly in love with Brianna.  I’m not afraid to admit it.  She is the most amazing woman I’ve ever met.  I am completely in awe of the way that she loves me, in spite of my faults and shortcomings.  I could never have hoped for someone as completely wonderful as she is.  Brianna is incredibly beautiful, amazingly intelligent and wise, incomparably courageous, and through her own love for the Lord, she inspires me to greater heights of His Love than I’d ever be able to attain by myself.  She is an accomplished cook, has great taste in coffee and wine, has an affinity for arts and culture, and will be a wonderful homemaker.  Because of her loving ways and selflessness, I am confident that she will be an amazing mother to our children.  She is well read, has GREAT taste in music, and is an astounding musician, as well.  I love her smile, her eyes, her hair, the way she laughs, the sound of her voice, the way she writes, the way she walks, her smell, the softness of her skin…I could really go on like this forever…and I probably will.  She also gives great massages.  I am so blessed to be with her for the rest of my life.

Super Sunday!!!

Today was a busy day, as far as Sundays go…at least for me.

This morning, Brianna and I went to Rivercity Church again.  We’ve decided to make it our church home, for several reasons.  First, it is a smaller congregation than Forerunner Christian Fellowship, which helps us feel more at home, and part of a community.  Second, Brianna’s work schedule has changed, and now she has Sundays off of work.  Now we are able to attend church in the morning, enjoy the afternoon however we like, and still attend FCF in the evening, if we so desire.  Most importantly, we’ve spoken with pastor at length about the direction of the church, and we feel strongly that God will be able to use our specific gifts to a fuller extent at Rivercity.

Today was the third in a series of sermons on The Prodigal Son.  As I was once a prodigal, this message is very close to my heart.  I enjoyed it immensely.

After church, Brianna and I had lunch at the newest location of Jerusalem Cafe, just down the street from Rivercity, on 39th Street.  We both had pita sandwiches, mine with gyros, hers with falafel.  The gyros weren’t quite as good as the ones that I had earlier in the week at Olive Cafe off of James A. Reed and Bannister, but they were good enough for the day.  Next time, I’ll be taking Brianna to Olive, instead.

Next, we rushed home so that I could go to band practice with Kevin Hanly, Tim York, and John Hendrickson in preparation for a song that we are playing at the Justice Rally at FCF tomorrow night.  The event is primarily a screening for Angel Soto’s 22 Weeks film, which I’ve been waiting to see for over a year.  Kevin and Tim’s song is a pro-life anthem, and I was extremely pleased to offer my assistance as bassist for the evening.

After practicing for about an hour, Tim, John and I made arrangements for more band practice…this time for our upcoming show at Record Bar, this Saturday.  This will likely be the record release party for Tim’s new album.  I’ve had the record for about a month now, and I LOVE IT!!!  I’m really excited to play this week, as it will be the first time that we play with a full band.  It sounds like we’ll also have a lead guitarist for this show, and John (recently back from a month and a half of traveling) will be playing an a trap kit, rather than the cajon.

THEN…Brianna and I went to Super Target for wedding registry stuff.  We had a wonderful time picking out things for people to buy us =)  We’ve been tossing around ideas for weeks about things we need…or really, really like.  It was surprisingly easy.  We agree on most things, and only had to compromise a few times.  If we get half of the things we registered for, we’ll be more than happy.

Now, we’re hanging out at Brianna’s apartment, goofing off on the internet, and being silly.  Brianna is working on her address list for wedding invitations, and I’m playing with the Rubik’s Cube that I picked up at Target (thanks Darin, for getting me hooked!)  I’m starting to get pretty sleepy, and I know it will be a long week, so I’m about ready to head for bed.

I feel very satisfied with all that we accomplished today, and will be looking forward to next Sunday….my favorite day of the week!

Wedding Miscellany

Things are coming together quite nicely in the wedding department.  Many of the major obstacles have been hurdled, and the light at the end of the tunnel is growing increasingly bright.  Our wedding and Alabama reception locations have been booked, and a considerable amount of headway has been made in planning the California and Kansas City receptions, as well.  All of our airfare and travel arrangements have been made, our honeymoon location has been finalized, and we’ve nearly decided on a location for our rehersal dinner.  Brianna has her dress, and we both have wedding bands.  We’ve already sent out hundreds of requests for addresses for our invitations and announcements (which Brianna’s maid of honor, Emily designed…yay!), and have received replies on nearly half of them.  I even managed to find a best man (thanks, Micah).  Our photographer (my soon-to-be sister-in-law, Maggie) and our ceremonial musician (sorry for the strange title, Daniel) have also agreed to help out.  We’ve begun registering for wedding gifts, and set aside some time for a bridal shower…and bridal pampering.

Sadly, I cannot take much of the credit.  Brianna has put at least three times as much into planning as I have.  Brianna’s mom and my stepmom have also done a huge portion of the work.  I’m starting to feel like I dead weight.  Of course, it is probably a good thing that I haven’t done more.  I was stressed out enough while trying to pick out rings.

Several of the items on my to-do list have yet to be completed to my satisfaction.  I spoke with the restaurant owner for our Kansas City reception, and have to make another call some time this week when the manager and chef are available.  I’ve been diligently looking for a non-traditional suit (I’m probably being too picky) for myself and something decent for my best man to wear.  I’ve also been charged with the task of picking out music for our various receptions…and I have no idea where to start.  Actually, I’m sure that there are a few other things that I’m supposed to be doing, but unfortunately, I can’t think of any of them at the moment.  God give me grace!

I’m really looking forward to all of the being completed, and for the wedding day to be at hand.  I just want to be married.  I’m pretty excited about our honeymoon, but traveling isn’t my favorite thing to do.  I’m sure that all of the receptions will be a ton of fun, but I’ll be even more happy when we can return to life as usual.  All that being said, I’m going to try my best to buckle in and enjoy the ride.

Car Rental Woes

During our recent trip to Alabama, Brianna and I flew into Nashville (the closest major airport) and rented a car.  It wasn’t the cheapest option, but I don’t have a credit card (yuck!), so it was the best we could get.  They gave us a Chevy Cobalt.  It was definitely the economy model, but it was a smooth ride, and easy on the gas.  Instead of having to leave my credit card info, I was told that I’d have to leave a $150 deposit.  That didn’t seem like too bad a deal to me…a ten thousand dollar car for a relatively small deposit.

Everything went very smoothly.  We returned the car to Nashville with no problems, and I considered the deal complete.  I figured that they’d charge me for the $85 I owed, and close the transaction.  Unfortunately, they didn’t process the sale until the Tuesday after we got back to KC, AND charged me for the deposit.  That made no sense to me whatsoever, so I called customer service for an explanation.  The representative was rather confused, as well.  Apparently, this wasn’t standard operating procedure.  It turns out that the Thrifty Car Rental at the Nashville Airport (BNA) is a franchise location…which has a completely different way of doing business.  At that point, I called the BNA franchise directly and spoke to their rep, who explained that they ALWAYS charge for the deposit, but that I should receive it back into my account in three to five business days.

Sadly, I made a large transaction on Wednesday night, and hadn’t accounted for the deposit being taken out of my account…and now I have gone into overdraft.  Luckily, the thirty-five dollar fee only put me six dollars and change in the red.

I will never rent from Thrifty at BNA again.  Caveat emptor.

Other Endeavors

I’m still working on writing blurbs for our wedding website.  It has seemingly drained me of my creativity, and I can’t seem to think of anything worth blogging about.  Stick around and I’ll post a link to the website in the next few days.  =)

They Are Night Zombies!! They Are Neighbors!! They Have Come Back From the Dead!!

I had a pair of zombie dreams last night.  I’m accustomed to having strange dreams, but there aren’t many that I’d consider nightmares.  Last night was definitely the exception.

I “awoke” in my dream in a zombie graveyard, in the middle of a swamp.  I had apparently been sleeping in an alcove that was my shelter from the foggy climate.  Pieces of zombie anatomy covered the swamp, each with a tag listing the expiration date on the various zombie body parts.  The other caretaker of the graveyard explained to me that when the tag expired, the body parts would join up, and the zombies would rise again.  It would then be my job to make sure that they got chopped up into bits so that they wouldn’t break free from their watery prison.  Things were going well (albeit creepy) for a while, until the zombies started reanimating.  Frantically, I tried to slay as many zombies as I could, but they quickly overtook me.  As I fled from the graveyard, the zombies tore me to shreds…and I awoke in a panic.

The next dream wasn’t zombie related, but still rather strange.  I was attending a Dutch university, and wanted to play football for them.  Unfortunately, one of the requirements to join the team was a Dutch heritage.  I was rather upset about that, so I decided to start my own intermural sport.  It was pretty silly.

Back to the zombies…

Again, I awoke in the zombie graveyard…this time it didn’t take quite as long for the zombies to reanimate and start feating on my flesh.  I was pretty upset about it.  Once again, I awoke in a panic.  I hate zombies.

By the Way…

After that long post, I may have to take a couple days off again…

Actually, I’ve been charged with typing out the story of our relationship for our wedding site. It might take me a little while, so if I’m not posting too much on here, I’ll at least provide a link to that site so that you can keep up with my writings =)

Why I Haven’t Been Blogging… AKA the Proposal

I don’t even remember the last time that I wrote a post. I know that I could go back and check, but I don’t want to get distracted in fear that I might not finish this one.

Weeks ago, I wrote about how I’d been looking for an engagement ring for my girlfriend. It was quite an ordeal. I found an awesome one and sent in my payment…then the seller decided that he meant to ask for twice the amount that I’d paid. I ended up having to wait for a few days, but finally got my money back. Then, it was back to the drawing board. I looked for another week or so before finding another ring that I liked. Hesitantly, I sent my money out again, and waited for it to show up in the mail.

A few days later, my roommates were acting pretty suspicious when I got home. They kept asking if I’d checked the mail…which, of course, I had. After several minutes of giving me a hard time, they produced a small package with my name on it. I tried to play it off like I wasn’t excited, but when I finally got the box open (it was packaged quite securely), my joy was impossible to hide. Now, all I had to do was propose =)

For weeks, I’d been thinking about the best time and place to pop the question, and several plans had been formulated and then discarded, for one reason or another. I thought of doing it in Brianna’s hometown, on the plane (after safety announcements) to Alabama for Passover, in one of our favorite restaurants…and then decided to propose at Jardine’s, our favorite Jazz club…the site of one of our first dates, and one of our favorite places in Kansas City.

We’d been planning on going to Jardine’s on the 14th of April, but decided to also go a week earlier to see our favorite live jazz band, Bram Wijnand’s Majestic 7. We started dating on the 14th of January, so I thought that it would be fitting to continue in that tradition, but apparently, it wasn’t meant to be.

Earlier that day, Brianna and I had gone to pre-marital counseling, and were extremely encouraged by the progression of our relationship. This was our fifth week in counseling, and the entire experience has been incredibly edifying for us. We are continually realizing how blessed we really are to be so compatible with each other. In every area that we talk about (except the one where I answered the questions wrong), we have scored very high: communication, conflict resolution, relationship roles, etc. It is very reassuring to have someone else tell you that you have all of the tools you need for a successful relationship.

After counseling, I went back to work to finish out my day, while Brianna went to Shawnee Mission to get her hair done. It looked (and still looks…as always, I might add) AMAZING. I am the luckiest.

When I got off work, I rushed home to change clothes, and while putting on my socks, I saw Brianna’s ring on my bookshelf, and decided to take it along with me…just in case. Brianna had a massage appointment (it was her day off), and I’d agreed to be her chauffeur, as she doesn’t like to drive after getting worked on. I dropped her off at the clinic, and went for a cup of coffee to consider my newly forming proposal plan. About an hour later, I had convinced myself that today was the day.

We got to Jardine’s just before eight o’clock…enough time to catch one song by the Majestic 7, before they took a break. We sat at our usual table, and greeted our waitress, before settling in a bit. Since it was relatively quiet with the band on break, Brianna told me how her massage went. Apparently she’d been bragging on me to her co-workers during her massage. She kept saying how wonderful I was, and how blessed she was to have me, and so on. My head started to swell a bit, and if it weren’t for being so nervous about proposing, I probably would have gotten a little cocky.

I’d considered going up to the stage and asking (on the mic) Brianna to join me, and then proposing. I’d also thought about asking for everyone’s attention…and then proposing. If it were a week later, I’d have had one of our friends come along and take pictures while I proposed. Since we were alone, and the time seemed right, I kept it simple. I pulled the ring out of my pocket and made a simple proposal (I decided that getting down on one knee was out of the question, as we were sitting in tall bar-type stools, and she probably wouldn’t have been able to hear what I was saying). Brianna later admitted that she’d expected me to “fake-propose” a few times, a la Jim Halpert, before I asked for real.

She said yes.

We spent the following couple of hours staring at each other. It was pretty mushy, and I’m not ashamed. I don’t think I heard much of the band that night. I’m going to marry the most amazing woman I’ve ever met. She is so beautiful, intelligent, talented, loving, thoughtful…incredible. I am so blessed to share the rest of my life with her.