Archive for March, 2008
Baptism!
Yesterday morning, Cam and Tab’s son Colin was baptized. He was so good! No nose picking or yelling or whining or crying. Good job, Colin! Colin was mesmerized by all the people looking up at him.
During the ceremony, we were reminded that we, as a community of faith and as witnesses to Colin’s baptism are responsible for nurturing and loving Colin as he grows up in our congregation. And as Godparents Eric and Tara reminded us during Sunday school - that is a beautiful and important responsibility! I am honored to be a part of it.
Photos by Uncle Kevin
Boyfriend survey!
It’s a “boyfriend” survey – brought to you by Morgan! (You can fill it out for ladies too)
2. How long have you been together? Married for 4 years
3. How long dated? We met in 2000, started dating in 2001 and got married in 2003.
4. How old is your man? 28
5. Who eats more? Depends on the cuisine. Slab of meat? – Husbanks. Sushi? – Hil
6. Who said “I love you” first? Husbanks. But we had been friends for so long it was anti-climatic. We already knew we were getting married by the time it was said. It was a formality.
7. Who is taller? Husbanks
8. Who sings better? That’s a tie. We are musical people. Husbanks is a better drummer though.
9. Who is smarter? Husbanks has the math, science and golf knowledge – I own all things historical.
10. Whose temper is worse? Mine for sure. Husbanks has one mood: smiley. He is never mad or upset with anyone– even when they deserve it. I am a lucky, lucky woman.
11. Who does the laundry? Husbanks does laundry (master folder), and I drive all other items to the dry cleaners.
12. Who takes out the garbage? Husbanks takes it out, I bring the empty containers back in.
13. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Me. Hollis behaves more when Husbanks is closest to him.
14. Who pays the bills? Husbanks.
15. Who is better with the computer? Husbanks is an excel master (you have seen his designs), and he can code … but I may be better at the interweb.
16. Who mows the lawn? Have you met me? Prissy with the heat situation. Husbanks gets in the Texas sun. I won’t even bake cookies when it’s over 50 degrees.
17. Who cooks dinner? Me (usually). I make the menus.
18. Who drives when you are together? Have you met me? Prissy with the driving situation. Husbanks is a better driver AND I hate driving.
19. Who pays when you go out? We switch off. It’s not very adult. We have our own individual “fun” accounts and someone has to pay out of their account when we go out. Every time Husbanks picks up the bill he reads it, closes the folder, and says, “It’s too much, I won’t pay.” But then he pays.
It was funny the first time.
20. Who is most stubborn? Have you met me? Prissy with the “getting my way” situation.
21. Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? Take a guess. Between Prissy and Smiley, I think Husbanks is the more “emotionally mature” one.
22. Whose parents do you see the most? His. My dad doesn’t travel very often. Ryan’s parents take that Chevy Suburban all over the Lone Star State!
23. Who kissed who first? It was Husbanks’ idea.
24. Who asked who out? Husbanks asked me to go see Janet Reno speak because we thought it would be a funny first date. But then 9/11 happened, Reno couldn’t fly to Waco, Texas … so we went to the Black Eyed Pea.
25. Who proposed? Husbanks proposed in March 2003.
26. Who is more sensitive? That would be Prissy.
27. Who has more friends? I think I do because I am in PR – I am an outgoing person. Husbanks is really hot so people just come to him. Doesn’t really try. Jerk
28. Who has more siblings? It’s a tie: I have two half siblings and Husbanks has one full sibling so we each have one – do the math.
29. Who wears the pants in the family? It’s kind of a three-legged race. Husbanks wears the necessity (maintenance, money, moving to Austin, negotiating) pants – I wear the social/travel pants. You could say I wear the fun pants!
The UBC reunited!
After a long hiatus, the Uptown Buffet Club is back at it! The re-dedication ceremony began with community theatre before commencing at the mama of all buffets - Thomas Super Buffet. The “Super” was burned out on the sign though, so it was just a “Thomas Buffet.”
Ryan ate fried frog legs. We stalked the buttery-roll bringer and stockpiled several rolls after every replenishment. There was a Mongolian BBQ station. It was “seafood” night. Morgan noted that all things “stuffed” were really just filled with melted cheddar/nacho cheese. It was a true buffet experience.
Photos courtesy of Nathan. Check out Nathan’s thoughts on the UBC revival here.
The adventures of Hollis and Martin!
Posted by hilstreet in My animals on March 25, 2008
Let’s see what our favorite baby animals are up to!
Lounging around the house …
Exploring behind the blinds …
Window shopping …
Turning on and off the lamp …
… and daring each other to drink from the toilet.
Reunited!
Coffee and I have been reunited. At first, it was awkward. Yesterday morning it was like drinking coffee for the first time. I forgot that coffee is really hot straight from the coffee maker. I burned my lips and laughed, shook my finger at the mug and gave it a high five. We were back together again! Partners in crime!
I asked Coffee how it had been the past few weeks. He caught me up on all the coffee-happenings in his life. He told me all about the free-trade politics, debates over genetically-engineered beans, and the union movements demanding cleaner grind stations at grocery stores. I told Coffee that the writer’s strike was over, but it turns out that Ryan already told him about that.
Coffee asked about all my time spent with Chai and Green Tea. I told him that the time with them was meaningless. I was thinking of Coffee the whole time! I explained how hard it was to give presentations and get to work early without him. I told him how hard it was to watch him have fun with Ryan every morning. It will take some time to get the trust back.
I’m so glad to be back together with Coffee!
Hope you are having a Good Friday
Today is Good Friday- the day we remember Jesus’ crucifixion. Although it sounds inappropriate (and kind of rude), Good Friday is one of my favorite Holy Days. It’s a serious day and it’s not about us at all. Christmas and Easter are busy holidays that require a lot of coordination and planning while Good Friday is a time for quiet reflection. A time to process. A time to think. I mean, no one bakes a cake for Good Friday. (After reading this blog post, I realize that maybe I am just lazy and don’t want to host a party?)
In all seriousness … have a mindful and reverant Good Friday. Today we have the time to stop and focus on Jesus’ radical revolution refocusing the world on love, new life, equality and forgiveness.
Maundy Thursday
Growing up, my mother gave me all sorts of advice. As a kid, I didn’t understand any of it. In my adult life, I will have “ah ha!” moments when something happens to makes me recognize what my mother meant. Processing a mother’s nuggets of wisdom is a never-ending process.
Today is Maundy Thursday, the day we remember the Last Supper. I imagine the Disciples’ impression of the Last Supper was similar to my experience with my mother’s advice. Communion didn’t make total sense at the time – but the Disciples discovered its meaning later that weekend, and we, as part of Christ’s tradition, understand this Holy Sacrement more and more as we live our lives. Processing the true meaning and significance of the Eucharist is a never-ending process.
Today, Holy Communion services are taking place all over the world. These church services commence in the evening, and some churches will even have feet-washing ceremonies to commemorate Jesus washing the Apostles’ feet.
My favorite hymn, In Remembrance of Me, shares what Holy Communion and Christ’s teachings mean in our lives today.
In remembrance of Me eat this bread
In remembrance of Me drink this wine
In remembrance of Me pray for the time
When God’s own will is done
In remembrance of me heal the sick
In remembrance of me feed the poor
In remembrance of me open the door
And let your brother in, let him in
Take eat and be comforted
Drink and remember too
That this is my body and precious blood
Shed for you, shed for you
In remembrance of me always love
In remembrance of me don’t look above
But in your heart, in your heart
Look in your heart for God
Do this in remembrance of Me
Do this in remembrance of Me
In remembrance of Me
Have a reverent, thoughtful Maundy Thursday.
Lenten Promise Update!
Well, dear blog readers, I am pleased to announce that I have not had a sip of coffee since I made my Lenten promise many Wednesdays ago on Ash Wednesday. This commitment has made me more mindful. Not because it’s a big sacrifice, but because … well … it has made me more mindful because I am less of a spazz in general. Since giving up coffee, I can’t help but take an average of one 2 1/2 hour nap per weekend and I have almost fallen asleep in 6-7 meetings and during 3-4 movies. I stop and appreciate things instead of whizzing on by. This blog post will probably take me an hour to complete. But I don’t care. I am a calm, calm shell of my former self.
But let me tell you, I am ready to have some coffee! When I do, fast typin’, fast talkin,’ moving my car forward when the light turns green, witnessing the end of television shows before falling asleep, and bring generally “on time” Hil will return on Easter Sunday!
Hil Street Book Review: Eat, Pray, Love
Eat, Pray, Love was a summer Oprah Book Club pick, so I am pretty sure that I am the very last person to read it. Then why a book review? During Holy Week? This novel is not necessarily a Christian book. It’s also not one of my favorites. I have mixed feelings. I loved it and I hated it, which may be exactly what the author wanted.
Downgrade:The author talks about her self-pity and woeful life for roughly 200 pages (even though she is a privileged, talented, beautiful woman – cry me a river, please), then, she doesn’t even stick to her guns. So, I felt like I was trapped reading post after post of someone’s whiny, whiny blog (please don’t leave me, dear blog reader).
Upgrade: What I did like about the whiny Elizabeth was her sincerity. During the “pray” section of the novel, she shared her experience through complete mindfulness. Our Sunday school class recently spent a few weeks studying meditation and mindfulness, and our lessons took me back to Elizabeth’s descriptions of complete peace in prayer. Spiritual preparation like that can better prepare you for Holy Week than giving up coffee or sweets or reality TV.
Conclusion:Perhaps Elizabeth’s constant, grating complaints were making a point. Maybe that is the peace of the book – you are so sick and tired of her whining that the peace of her meditation experience is the fresh air of the novel because in her real life she was so sick and tired of being sad that the peace of meditation was the fresh air of her real life. I’ll never know. What I will know is that I do not believe that she met someone in Italy with the last name “Spaghetti.” That is just too much.
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@HilM- HilM: Our baby sleeping on a prayer shawl from Bethany UMC, Austin at #swtxac in Corpus. http://twitpic.com/5acwsn June 12, 2011
- HilM: Great friendly service from Corpus Christi @OMNIHOTELS. They are making it very easy to travel with an infant. June 8, 2011
- HilM: RT @pastor_cynthia: Baptized a mother and her two kids this morning AND got to preside at Table. #Ihavethecoolestjob June 6, 2011
- HilM: Good morning @SWTXUMC! Is there an Annual Conference hashtag? Holy Conferencing 2.0. See you in Corpus! June 6, 2011
- HilM: @the_masters Would Adam Scott be the first person to win a major with a long putter? #masters April 10, 2011
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