Things I Want in a House - Part 1

So I'm in the process of looking for a house, ready to expand beoynd my one bedroom 4th floor apartment. The problem is I'm not exactly sure what I want. So I thought I'd bring some ideas here. Sure I could write about
- School district (Don't care I'm single and all taxes are high around here)
- Down Payments (Can you ever save up enough?)
- Real Estate Agents (Who send me lots of e-mails but otherwise ignore me)
- Time deadline (I'm not being kicked out but I'd sure like that tax credit)
- Kitchens (As long as it has appliances from at least 1990 and work, that's good enough for me)
And much more, but I find the things I care about will never show up on any webpage or printout.

So I thought I'd share some of the things that really do matter to me.
1. A big window to watch thunderstorms, yes I love them and it's what got me inspired to write this instead of going back to sleep.
2. A place for a hammock in the yard in the shade, I really find these soothing.
3. A dark backyard to look at the stars from, right now I've got a well lit parking lot.
4. At least one entrance without stairs, why make things difficult on myself.
5. A master bedroom were I can have the window open at night and not be awakened several time because of noisy traffic.
6. The house should at least be three blocks from any train tracks, if you knew where I live currently you'd understand.
7. An attic, garage or basement, it doesn't matter which as long as there is someplace for storage.
8. A place for my bicycle, which is currently still at my parents house.
9. A garden, it doesn't have to be much, but I need someplace to get my hands dirty.
10. Dog friendly, I love dogs and want to have one of my own.
11. A location that's less than my 45 minute commute, but still closer to friends and family.
12. A place where people could come over and feel comfortable, but I guess that part is up to me.

That's enough for one night, but I promise to write more soon.
KC

GLB

Here's a video I created for the one and only Ginny.

Brazil Video

Here a video I captured while in Brazil. That's my friend Sharon spinning.
The words being sung are: Let Your fire fall, let the wind blow, let Your glory come down.

Happy Thanksgiving

I know I haven't said it elsewhere, but I thought I'd at least say it here; HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!

Things I'm thankful for are:
Family
Good Friends
A job in the field I love
A few days off from work
A Savior who loves me
Crazy older neighbors
Cheaper gas prices
A car that gets me where I need to be
Talents and abilities
A place to call home
Internet access
A life changing trip to Brazil
A time to worship

God Dreams and the Narrow Road

So after talking about the narrow road in Bible study tonight, God just gave me a follow up on some questions I had.
Here's my dream.

I had gotten in the car, and was listening to the radio. I knew my friend from Bible study were in the house behind me, and we weren't at our normal meeting place, but on a retreat or something. I'd like to think were were down the shore, or at least by some body of water. Anyway, I'm sitting in the car, and one of my friends sits down in the car next to me and squeezes beside me. A song comes on the radio, I think it was an Avalon song, but I thought at first it was a different song, and I asked my friend what they thought of the song. As I was waiting for an answer, I realized it wasn't the song I expected it to be, when my friend asked, "Why do you want to know?" Knowing now that it was not the song I thought, but at least a good song, I replied, "Because what you think matters to me." So she started to talk, and I started to drive. And I listened and was absorbed by what they were saying, not just about the song but on many other things as well. As I'm driving down this road with turns, hills, stop signs, traffic lights and scenery, I realize I only have control over the wheel, my friend has control of the gas and break. As we start to drive on after mostly stopping at a stop sign, and not instantly hitting the gas, I realized it was not my friend I thought sitting next to me, but Jesus in the car with me. Then I woke up.

You can take your own meaning from this, but here's what I've got. 1. It's our job to follow the road. We aren't in control of the pace of this life, God is. So sometimes we slow down and don't know why, God's got a plan. He also has a plan to get us moving again, but it's in his timing. 2. God is craving that relationship with us, more than we can comprehend. He just wants to sit with us, talk with us, and share His love with us. All He asks in return is that we seek Him. Seek His guidance, and opinion.

One of my friends at the Bible study commented that to be Christian is to never be lonely. I struggle with this. I get spiritialy attacked on this issue often. It usually comes from when I leave the people I'd just been with and head off alone home, without feeling like I contributed, or connected with people. And I'll admit, I got hit with this again tonight. So part of this dream was just saying, I know your struggling, but I'm in the car with you.

Gold Tooth Video

This YouTube video was posted by one of our leaders from my trip from Brazil.

Photos from Brazil

I've got so many stories from Brazil, that it's going to take me a while to figure out how much to write. In the mean time, here's the link to all my photos.

Now I just have to figure out how to label them.

http://picasaweb.google.com/kjade78