julio.

julio's my dog. when i say he's my dog, i really mean that he lives at my parent's house. and he doesn't bite me.
today, i was sitting in the backyard, reading THE BOOK (if you know what i mean), and julio came up to me and started jumping into my lap. it was pretty annoying, he's pretty furry and he sheds a lot, and honestly, i was busy. but just a couple of minutes later i realized that in my life, i treat god a lot like i treat julio.
i realize that comparing the dog to god is pretty blasphemous, but stick with me here.
i like julio. i do. he's cute and he loves anyone who plays with him. but i don't ever go out of my way to be with him. in fact, today was the only the second time i had spent more than 5 minutes with him since i got here. and it's not like i haven't had time. i spend most of my day at home. and it's not like he disappears randomly---he never leaves. i just don't bother. but everytime i do, julio can't get enough of me. (i know, it's an awkward sentence). and i have a lot of fun too. it's as if i never rejected him. he's forgotten all the times i've screamed at him or pushed him off of me...he's even forgotten that i only see him twice a year. he loves me anyway. and he can't wait for me to just spend 10 minutes with him.
thanks, god. and sorry. again and again.

love, krystal

shuffle.

i got an ipod for christmas this year. well, it's an ipod nano and according to my brother, it shuffles the songs when you physically shake it. sounds pretty cool. also sounds way too high tech . it kinda freaks me out, actually. although, there would be a lot of things that could come in handy if they did cool stuff when you shook them...
1. my brother. let's say he's talking too much or is in an iffy mood...give him a little shake and ouila, he's happy, or at least quiet. perfect.
2. my watch. just shake it a bit and i have 10 extra minutes to sleep. of course, then i would run the risk of it taking away 10 minutes, but that's a risk i'd be willing to take.
3. my credit card. free money.
4. my favorite heels. a different color everytime.
5. my face....well, i guess it's self-explanatory by now.

love, krystal.

p.s. my ipod's really cool. i think you should be jealous.

i played with barbies today.
that's right, you heard me. in my defense, it was at the request of my 3 yr. old cousin.
it surprised me how mature she was for her age. at one point, she pointed out chad, who was engaged to a blond (let's call her stacey). She knew stacey was engaged because she had a ring on her wedding finger. she even knew the term "fiance". i was very impressed.
the more astonishing part was the story playing out in her mind. she was sitting right next to me, but the dialogue was voiced to an audience of one...plus the dolls involved. however, i heard snippets of the conversation as she used a low voice for chad and a girly voice for stacey. as i listened i thought for sure i was not understanding, so i asked her to tell me what was going on. and here's the story she gave me:
stacey and chad are engaged, but their friend quit and doesn't want to have the wedding at her house so now they don't know what to do. (i then told her to just ask another friend to host the wedding, a suggestion she felt was appropriate...she continued) i just asked stacey and she decided that she wants to quit the wedding with chad so they're not getting married anymore. chad then talks to his mom who says he should find another girlfriend. chad finds ariel and tells her she's pretty, which will lead to a date, which will lead to ariel being chad's new girlfriend.

the girl is three. but already, she knows more about marriage and relationships than i knew in the 5th grade. and this leads me to the list for today:
facts about relationships- from the mind of a 3 yr old...

1. if a boy asks you on a date, that means he wants to be and will become your boyfriend.
2. a boy will only like you if you are pretty.
3. every boy gets all his advice from his mother.
4. friends are flaky.
5. it's not very difficult to just "get over it".

thanks, i really needed that.

love, krystal.

i'm writing now as i watch a legendary show: iron chef.
for those of you who don't know what this show entails, let me explain.
there are 2 chefs. one is always some famous challenger from europe or china or some other place with a long list of experience and expertise. this challenger then chooses from 1 of 3 iron chefs--more experienced chefs that work for the show and usually win the competition. this competition consists of a 60 minute showdown, where these two chefs battle to make several plates/entrees based on a main ingredient. in this particular show, the theme ingredient is piglet. anyway...after the 60 minutes are over, there is a panel of judges that decide which chef made the best combination of plates according to taste, presentation, and use of the main ingredient.

well, now you know....and honestly, you could have gone without reading the previous synopsis and survived just fine.
the iron chef, however, is not the reason i'm writing this post...although it is the inspiration. what i really want to address are reality shows.
i realize this can be a tiresome topic. i'm pretty sure i've heard just about everyone's opinion about said reality shows. "they're fake" "they're amazing" "i can't stand them" "i don't really care". well, i don't really care either. what i DO care about is, what show would i least want to be on? (and isn't that the most important issue of all?)

1. project runway. ugh. drama drama drama. and really...if i could just "make it work", i wouldn't be having any trouble finishing my crappy design, would i?

2. the bachelor/bachelorette. really? how can you expect to find the love of your life from 25 men/women who are all basically the same person? there's only a small percentage of the population that would even think of being on a reality show, and guess what, mr bachelor? they're all in your living room, ready to "win your heart" and steal your money.

3. amazing race. why risk ruining a perfectly good friendship or family relationship just to run all over the world doing ridiculous tasks and inevitably finding myself in morally iffy situations? i'd much rather grab my "partner" and run around the neighborhood, growing closer with meaningful conversation and funny jokes. cuz i don't care who you are...i WILL be annoyed with you very soon after starting this supposedly "amazing" race.

4. every other reality show. as much as i like other people making fools of themselves...i would die if it was me on that tv instead.

love, krystal.

life on frearth

i cleaned the fridge today. it was a highly rewarding experience. although, if and when you decide to clean your own fridge, please know that it is not a small task...there are several things that need to be done.
there are leftovers to sort out. some that have been there since the creation of man, others just babies--in their first few hours.
there are food items to check. a cup of yogurt that's been expired for a month, or maybe a piece of cheese that no one realized existed. that is, until you discover that now, billions of particles of mold exist because of it.
there are spills to clean. little solidified puddles that you had told yourself you would clean 2 months ago, but never really intended to.
there's reorganization to be done, cuz you realize that you now have twice as much room and half the amount of food you used to think you had.

but the most important part of cleaning a fridge is imagining what you would be if you were an item in said fridge. having said this, i will now proceed to give you a list (wow, what a unique idea) of the top 3 items i would choose to be if i lived in a fridge.

1. MAYO. i know what you're thinking...gross, right? well. yes. it does sound pretty disgusting to want to be a large jar of fat. but you're thinking in human terms. cuz in frearth (the name i've designated for this fridge world), being the mayo is as good as it gets. first of all...you rarely spoil. 2nd...you last a long time because your owner (me) only uses you in small amounts for tuna or...tuna. 3rd...you live on the door, which means that every time the fridge door gets some action, so do you. hello, personal roller coaster. 4th...everyone knows that the mayo is one of the most intimidating items in frearth---only to be exceeded by the all powerful chipotle leftovers (but these only last about 1 day on average, so it's not really an issue).

2. MILK. although you rarely last very long, and expire very quickly, the short life you live is filled with excitement and love. you're like frearth's version of the latest fad. almost as soon as you hit the shelf, you're being emptied. you go from cereal bowl to coffee to mac 'n cheese to an oreo's sidekick to hot chocolate all in one day. no one can get enough of you. and then there's the glorious moment when you only have one more use in you and you get to witness the sadness in your owner's face at the sheer thought of running out. there's power in every last drop. your life has purpose, it's worth something.

3. CHIPOTLE LEFTOVERS. the mayo's afraid of you. enough said.



love, krystal

i don't usually like posting lyrics. i feel that it can get boring and, frankly, it's not really your own. but i'm listening to this song that never fails to touch me and convict me and i really wanted to share it. some of you may recognize it, it's written by garth bostic.

v.1
on a path that's been beaten but no one walks

i've been looking for some answers but no one talks

i've done things i wish i couldn't remember

my God i need You to carry me

c.

out of my prison and out of my chains

out of my burdens and into Your mercy

out of my worry and out of my pain

out of my fears and into Your mercy

out of my past and out of my shame

out of my mourning and into Your mercy

into Your mercy

v.2

i've got stains that nothing i try can get out

i've got hope but it's pulled by the weight of my doubt

but all my faults Your grace will never remember

my God i'm free and You carry me

b.

You're the only one who is worthy to forgive

You're the only one who takes my end and then begins

You're the only one who can set this hostage free

my God i believe and You carry me


what an amazing God that forgets my mistakes and guides me in His eternal freedom. despite my doubt, despite my vain anxiety, despite me.

love, krystal

when harry met sally

i've always been convinced of the greatness of a movie i like to call "when harry met sally". but today, i was in the mood for some movie quotes and decided to look up this said movie, only to fall in love with it all over again. i just can't get over its brilliance....here, read some of the quotes...then maybe you can understand even a little bit of the love that i have for this spectacular film.


Harry: [after he has run into his ex-wife] She looked weird didn't she? She looked really weird.

Sally: I don't know, I've never seen her before.

Harry: Trust me, she looked weird. Her legs looked heavy. Really, she must retaining water.

Sally: Harry.

Harry: Believe me, the woman saved everything.

hahaha. she had pretibial edema!
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[Unable to guess what Sally is trying to draw during a round of Pictionary]
Jess: Draw SOMETHING resembling ANYTHING.

this entire scene was absolutely hilarious...i practically pee in my pants everytime. now...if you're my roommate, then you might hate jess and think he's a jerk, but really, he's just competitive and is frustrated at not being able to recognize the picture on the pictionary board. and i don't think he's a jerk.
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Harry Burns: We're talking dream date compared to my horror. It started out fine, she's a very nice person, and we're sitting and we're talking at this Ethiopian restaurant that she wanted to go to. And I was making jokes, you know like, "Hey I didn't know that they had food in Ethiopia? This will be a quick meal. I'll order two empty plates and we can leave." Yeah, nothing from her not even a smile.

i thought it was funny. i would have laughed, harry, don't worry.
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Harry Burns: There are two kinds of women: high maintenance and low maintenance.

Sally Albright: Which one am I?

Harry Burns: You're the worst kind. You're high maintenance but you think you're low maintenance.

i'm definitely low maintenance. no question. :)
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Harry Burns: Why are you getting so upset? This is not about you.

you have, unfortunately, harry, discovered one of the mysteries of women (or maybe just about me and sally), everything is about us.
____________________________________________________________________

Harry Burns: The fact that you're not answering leads me to believe you're either (a) not at home, (b) home but don't want to talk to me, or (c) home, desperately want to talk to me, but trapped under something heavy. If it's either (a) or (c), please call me back.

i WILL use this quote someday. i promise.
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Harry Burns: I've been doing a lot of thinking, and the thing is, I love you.

Sally Albright: What?

Harry Burns: I love you.

Sally Albright: How do you expect me to respond to this?

Harry Burns: How about, you love me too.

Sally Albright: How about, I'm leaving.

love. this. o harry, if only you were more attractive and closer to my age and in love with me instead.
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Harry Burns: I love that you get cold when it's 71 degrees out. I love that it takes you an hour and a half to order a sandwich. I love that you get a little crinkle above your nose when you're looking at me like I'm nuts. I love that after I spend the day with you, I can still smell your perfume on my clothes. And I love that you are the last person I want to talk to before I go to sleep at night. And it's not because I'm lonely, and it's not because it's New Year's Eve. I came here tonight because when you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible.

see previous comment. (by the way, if anyone watches scrubs, this is the speech that carla's brother gave to turk for the engagement/rehearsal party...i forget which...HILARIOUS.)
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Sally Albright: You see? That is just like you, Harry. You say things like that, and you make it impossible for me to hate you.

cute.



love, krystal