goodbye forever. i really mean it this time.

dear coffee,

i have given you plenty of chances to wow me with what everyone else sees in you. but even when i continuously get a horrible impression of you every time we share quality time together, i still seem to think that i should give you a second (third, forth, fifth...) chance.

don't get me wrong, you have some great qualities which is why i believe i have given you so many chances to win my heart. you smell amazing. you are very social and tend to hang out in large groups of people or even in smaller, more intimate settings. you seem to be the first thing that most people want in the morning. you're very cultured, seems as though it doesn't matter where i travel to in the world, you are there. you're presences can turn someones horrible mood into a more calm and relaxed mood within seconds, what a talent!

but none of that matters because you make me feel sick. your aftertaste is completely repulsive, not to mention that it tends to linger around for what seems an eternity, nasty. you smell absolutely horrible on everyones breath that consumes you, which leaves me somewhat self-conscious of my own breath when i drink you and then am forced to talk to someone. you don't taste good to me unless you have 3/4 milk/sugary syrup/water in you which isn't all that good for you anyways so i'm ruling that possibility out too.

so i am sorry but i'm done giving you second chances. i'm moving on. tea will always be my favorite.

sincerely,
Lo

let all within us praise His holy name.

tuesdays tune

canadian tenors - o holy night

it only seems fitting this week to have a christmas song. so take a listen to my all time favorite christmas carol...

Emma McCune

emmanuel jal, born in war-torn sudan, was taken from his family home in 1987 when he was six or seven years old, and sent to fight with the rebel army in Sudan’s bloody civil war. for nearly five years, he was a child solider, put into battle carrying an AK-47 that was taller than he was.

by the time he was 13, he was a veteran of two civil wars and had seen hundreds of his fellow child soldiers reduced to taking unspeakable measures as they struggled to survive on the killing fields of southern sudan. after a series of horrific events, he was rescued by a british aid worker, emma mccune, who smuggled him into nairobi to raise him as her own.

to ease the pain of the horrible memories that he had faced in his past, emmanuel started writing and recording music. this song is a moving tribute to the women who saved his life. to a lady that took a stranger and gave them life

physically, spiritually

and emotionally.

if you were given the chance to say thank you to someone, who because of them you are now a different person, who would your song be about?

fab five friday's signs

five funny billboards...

This weeks fab five is someone useless, other then for a good laugh. Enjoy!

this sign should be on every street in calgary and should be edited to say 'you will never get to anywhere in life on time mmmahahahhaa!!'

i love ikea, lame signs and all!

no need to buy a radar detector.

this is the most random sign ever. not to mention

who is going to be able to read all this while

speeding by the sign on the highway?

hhmmmm, i wonder if this was on purpose?

i'm only one voice in a million, but you aint taking that from me

tuesdays tune

natasha beddingfield - strip me

this song, which is full of empowerment, gets me really excited every time i hear it as it reminds me of the girls i work with. i work in a protective safe-house/treatment centre for sexually exploited youth (males and females, but most of our clients are females) under 18 years old.

one of the biggest issues my clients struggle with is lack of self-esteem and often that's what causes them to get into situations that land them at my work. it's my job to help them realize that they are worth so much more then the dangerous situations that they are putting themselves in. then to help them put the past in the past and learn how to move forward in a more positive and healthy manner.

our staff team does everything in our power to give these young people a voice. unfortunately our society typically looks down upon my clients for the things that they are engaging in. my kids usually get tossed to the side and have their self worth stripped for them.

but when i listen to this song it gets me excited because it's a reminder that it's okay to be individualistic. it's okay to not fit into a mold. that even though people might take what they want from my girls, steal their pride, build them up or cut them down they still have their voice and no one can take that from them. if it's only to teach them that one thing, i will go to work day after day just so they understand this.

have a listen....

fab five

five house old trinkets that are must...

i'm in the process of doing probably one of my least favorite things, moving. i love going to new places don't get me wrong but the whole process of packing/unpacking and getting settled into a new place is one of the worst!

my two roommates and i have been chatting about what we have and the things that we still need to get which is what lead to this brilliant idea for this weeks fab five. here are some trinkets that i don't want to live in a house without. they aren't do or die items, rather just items that make life a little easier or more enjoyable. read on for my current five favorite things...

1. a message board. this is an extremely handy tool if you have roommates and need to leave little notes to communicate. it's also nice to have for reminders or for that cute little note a guest often will write.

2. an apple corer. your probably thinking, wow Lo you are the laziest person ever and sometimes you are right. but i find that apples are one fruit i love but don't eat because i tend to hack away half the apple to get the seeds out. this nifty little tool not only takes milliseconds to cut my healthy snack but it also does it in a way that cuts down the amount of apple that i throw away. it's great. don't knock it until you try it!

3. this is my dream fridge, however fridges aren't really a trinket. it's whats on this fridge that i love. it's full of madness. lots of pictures, magnets and random stuff. i hate it when peoples fridges are just plain with nothing on them, it's a space to be creative with and to express yourself on. it makes the kitchen a much cozier room. fridge magnets that hold up random things are a must.

4. this is a head messager. it (specifically this one) is a gift from God. i can't explain how great this thing is. so i wont, just trust me and get one. they are cheap cheap so there are no excuses. it will be the best money you have ever spent.

5. a soap filled scrub brush. no one likes to do dishes, but this little diddy makes life a lot easier to get the dirty work done. if you don't have one (i don't know many people that don't), get with the times and invest in this handy helper. your life will be easier!

do you have any little trinkets that you can't live without? if so please send them my way, i always love new ideas!!

all time favorite commercial.

i first saw this commercial when i was watched the super bowl last year. when i first saw it i wasn't able to catch all of it as it moves quickly. since then i have watched it on youtube probably a total of 100 times (a day) and shown anyone who will allow me.

i still get butterflies every time i watch it. it's as if i were the french girl that this guy is trying to pursue. i guess i'm just a hopeless romantic and this commercial is evidence of that. this is the cutest commercial ever, take a look for yourself!

like some drunkard elvis singing, i go singing out of tune

tuesdays tune
coldplay - christmas lights

i have been waiting since last week for tuesday to come because i was so excited to blog about the new coldplay christmas song! coldplay is my all time favorite band, i got to see them in concert last year and it was a heavenly experience (literally, i have only felt God that strong a few times in my life).

when i was looking through the lyrics to find a name for the post it came to my attention that this song isn't really a happy song, in fact it's actually really sad. chris martin sings about missing the one he loves after a fight.

one thing this song has got right though is that christmas isn't christmas if you can't be with the ones you love. hope you enjoy....

an irritated soul.

i LOVE christmas. a lot. so keep that in mind as you read the following....

every year around this time i start to get excited because christmas starts to take shape in all forms; lights on houses, music rings through the air, the smell of the christmas tree in my house (mmm). however, amongst all the excitement there is always a feeling of irritation and uneasiness in my body (literally i feel anxious) that i have been unable to explain, until now. did you know that lack of clean water kills more people everyday then anything else? and here is the thing, the estimated cost to make clean water available to everyone is 10 billion dollars. that's a lot, i know! BUT last year alone the united states and canada spent over 800 billion dollars on christmas. are you feeling a bit anxious now after reading that??

sitting in church today it dawned on me what this irritation might be caused by, money, money, money. while i was supposed to be sitting in church listening to my pastor start to unfold the christmas story i was busy making a list of my finances for the month; rent, bills, gifts for everyone and their dog. not only did i think of who i have to buy for but what i would buy and would everything add up to be about equal money value for each person - heaven knowns i wouldn't want to spend way more on one person then the other, that's not fair is it? then there is the task of trying to find time to get all this done. but wait a second, isn't the christmas season meant for spending time with loved ones?

i continued on this path of questioning with things like, do i really want to put myself in debt this year to make sure i get the most amazing gifts for everyone i know?, do i really want to buy a gift just out of obligation?, better yet do i want someone to buy me a gift out of obligation? the answer is no to all the above. however i am just as guilty of doing all these things as i'm sure you probably are.

as i mentioned in a few posts earlier i know i am truly blessed to be financially privileged and be able to have the choice to purchase gifts for the people i love. but i tend to get wrapped up in the 'spend, spend, spend' mentality that is swarming around me and when i stop to think about why i am 'spending, spending, spending' that's when the uneasiness sets in. i do it because that's just what we do.

in church right now we are studying a series called 'advent conspiracy'. the base of the study is about looking at the meaning of christmas, the real meaning of christmas. what was once a time to celebrate the birth of our savior has somehow turned into a season of stress, traffic jams, and shopping lists.

what would happen if we spent less, but still gave? give some of your time, volunteered, made our gifts, baking is always nice! or what if instead of buying that sweater for your fifth cousin once removed (because again, we have to buy for everyone, we wouldn't want to leave anyone out), donate the money you would have spent to places like the womens shelter or the mustard seed in her name.

christmas is a wonderful season; if we can get it right. december should be a month to look forward to because of the rest and relaxation that should take place. the extra time that should be spent with family and friends. instead it becomes the most stressful time of the year with our long lists of things to do and our credit card bills that are being racked up.

how do we solve this problem? do you and your loved ones do anything that's maybe a bit different then spend, spend, spend your money on each other?

http://www.adventconspiracy.org/

a typical girl.

i received this video through an email from my mum and it made me laugh soooo hard. the video basically explains it's self but the gist of it is about a little 5 year old girl that is talking to the EMS dispatch. she has called them because he dad can't breathe, but her dad isn't what seems to be her concern, it's what she is wearing for when the paramedics get there.

listen to the movie and see for yourself.