10 Things You Probably Didn't Know About Me

1. One of my guilty pleasures is eating icing straight out of the can. Disgusting, I know.
2. Ironically enough, I also have a fear of being overweight.
3. I have an embarrassingly huge phobia of needles and shots.
4. I have a hard time telling people no.
5. I have been blogging since July and I just figured out that pressing the compose button allows me to do bullets and numbers and change the size of the font. I am computer illiterate.
6. I am beginning to develop an odd addiction to re run crime dramas. Law and Order, NCIS, Burn Notice, Psyche, Monk, CSI, Without A Trace, Cold Case. I watch them even if I've already seen the episode. Weird, I know.
7. I havn't skipped any classes yet.
   
8. I enjoy listening to books on tape. I am currently halfway through the first Twilight book. Thanks Ally!
9. My family has 100s of rabbits in the garage. My dad raises them as a hobby. That statement is neither a joke or an exaggeration.
10. I'm going to be spending June and July in Uganda working with the organization Empower A Child! You can check out their website here.

Obviously, I'm extremely excited about this opportunity, and I ask that you would start praying for me now. I promise to write more on this later, but I have two papers I need to get started on. I just wanted to share my exciting news and ask for your prayers for this exciting journey.

Also, just in case you keep up with my blog, this is the big news and the secret exciting opportunity I've been talking about, just in case you didn't catch that.

Spending the summer in Africa!!!!!!!!!!!!!,
Jenna

Lessons Learned at a Hospital

Today was my second fieldwork day at the hospital. I love going to the hospital. I love the patients, I love the treatments, I love the activity, but most of all, I love seeing the patients get better.

After these observations, I know I am going to love what I am going to do when I grow up.

Anyways, God taught me a cool lesson today.

Most of the patients at the hospital are really nice old people, like grandmas and grandpas, but there is this younger individual who has Guillain-Barré Syndrome. Guillain-Barré Syndrome is a really rare disease effecting only 1 in 100,000 people. You can read more about it here.

Anyways, to summarize Guillain-Barré Syndrome it is a disorder in which the body's immune system attacks part of the peripheral nervous system. Patients begin to lose feeling in their limbs and trunk. Eventually, the patient is completely paralyzed. This loss of function can occur over hours, days, or weeks.

Our particular patient went from a fully functional adult to completely paralyzed in 4 hours. My therapist said a lot of patients as bad as him die from their symptoms. This happened to him over 5 months ago and he has been in the hospital doing rehab ever since he reached a stable condition.

Today, when we went to therapy with this patient, he had something he was really excited about showing us. He gathered us over, had us lift up his hands and showed us how he is now able to move his two pinkies and right thumb literally a centimeter, if that.

This guy lost his total independence in a matter of four hours. He had a life and a job and a family and everything changed in a matter of 4 hours. He has been working so hard for the last 5 months, all for some centimeter movements in 3 fingers. 5 months.

If you could have seen the look on this guy's face, you would have thought it had just won the lottery. Over a centimeter. Incredible.

I sit here and whine about how my life is hard and school is boring and God takes to long to answer my prayer requests, and then when He does answer them, I don't do enough to appreciate them.

This patient sits in the hospital and works is but off for 5 months for a centimeter. And then he is overjoyed at his progress, instead of getting frustrated that things aren't moving faster.

I am such a brat.

Admiring the determination of the human spirit,
Jenna

Quiz Results

Normally, I'm not into quizzes, but I have two papers to write, and I am doing my best to put them off for as long as possible. I got this from Pam, you can check out her blog here. You can also take the quiz for yourself here.

I'm posting my results because this quiz is the most interesting thing that has happened in my life over the last couple of days. Also, its depressing how accurate the results are.

Here it goes:

You are a Doris -- "I must help others."

Dorises are warm, concerned, nurturing, and sensitive to other people's needs.

How to Get Along with Me

* Tell me that you appreciate me. Be specific.
* Share fun times with me.
* Take an interest in my problems, though I will probably try to focus on yours.
* Let me know that I am important and special to you.
* Be gentle if you decide to criticize me.

In Intimate Relationships

* Reassure me that I am interesting to you.
* Reassure me often that you love me.
* Tell me I'm attractive and that you're glad to be seen with me.

What I Like About Being a Doris

* being able to relate easily to people and to make friends
* knowing what people need and being able to make their lives better
* being generous, caring, and warm
* being sensitive to and perceptive about others' feelings
* being enthusiastic and fun-loving, and having a good sense of humor

What's Hard About Being a Doris

* not being able to say no
* having low self-esteem
* feeling drained from overdoing for others
* not doing things I really like to do for myself for fear of being selfish
* criticizing myself for not feeling as loving as I think I should
* being upset that others don't tune in to me as much as I tune in to them
* working so hard to be tactful and considerate that I suppress my real feelings

Dorises as Children Often

* are very sensitive to disapproval and criticism
* try hard to please their parents by being helpful and understanding
* are outwardly compliant
* are popular or try to be popular with other children
* act coy, precocious, or dramatic in order to get attention
* are clowns and jokers (the more extroverted Dorises), or quiet and shy (the more introverted Dorises)

Dorises as Parents

* are good listeners, love their children unconditionally, and are warm and encouraging (or suffer guilt if they aren't)
* are often playful with their children
* wonder: "Am I doing it right?" "Am I giving enough?" "Have I caused irreparable damage?"
* can become fiercely protective

That's all

Wishing my life was more interesting at the moment,
Jenna

Music Selections

A few updates before we get down to business:

1. I've gone through two weeks of school without skipping a class. I'm seeing how long I can go. I'm pretty proud of myself.

2. I'm also keeping up with my Bible readings on You Version. Hopefully, this year I will actually finish the Bible.

3. Maybe you remember me asking you to pray for something cool that I am trying to do over the summer. I got word today that my application for said cool thing has made it through almost the entire process. It is simply awaiting final approval from the head person in charge of said cool thing. So again, pray for the application process, and that everything would work out the way God wants it to. Also, pray for my patience, because I have none, and waiting for that e-mail is going to drive me crazy!

If I get accepted, I'll let you in on what "cool thing" is. Although most of you already know because I'm terrible at keeping secrets.

Finally, the reason for today's post. Over the summer, I bought an older version of the iPod on eBay. I also thankfully bought a warranty from squaretrade.com, which I highly recommend if your electronics don't come with warranties. They should pay me for that advertisement.

Anyways, older iPod broke, and Square Trade said it wouldn't be cost efficient to repair my iPod. Additionally, they didn't have any more iPods in my version, so Tuesday I got a refurbished 5th generation 80 GB iPod for only the cost of shipping. I transfered the collection from the old iPod to the new one, and I have right at 4,000 songs, which leaves me with plenty of room for more.

So today, I am allowing you to recommend songs to add to my collection. You can recommend one song or many. I promise to download and listen to all of them at least once. Most unique song, overall best song, and best collection of songs will be awarded.

Expanding my Musical Pallet,
Jenna

Weekend in Review

The highlight of this weekend was hanging out with Shelby and Kelsey on Saturday. We redecorated Shelby's guest bedroom so that she can turn it into a mini salon. Shelby is extremely good at what she does, so if you ever need something done to your hair, you should give her a call. Seriously. Shelby can make anyone look good, so if you're interested, let me know.

I realized this weekend how much I love decorating/painting. I also reorganized my bathroom, and as nerdy as it sounds, I had a blast. If you ever need something reorganized, let me know. I think in my next life, I'll be a decorator or a home organizer or something.

I also realized this weekend how much I love Shelby and Kelsey. They are simply fabulous girls and I can't wait until we get old and our kids can have play dates together.

Saturday night we went to The Tap Room in San Marcos. Good food. Good drinks. And cheap. It's my new favorite hang out place in San Marcos. Ask me about it and I'll take you sometime.

Tomorrow I have my first fieldwork of the semester. I'm a wee bit nervous.

Hoping everyone enjoyed MLK day, sorry this was so boring,
Jenna

Last First Week of School

This week, I started back to school, for the very last time. I survived, but barely. Here are some random thoughts and reflections from the week:

• First of all, I honestly don’t know how I am going to survive the real world. The past couple of semesters, I've only had to go to school 3 days a week. This week, I had to go all 5 days, and it was exhausting! Plus, I didn't even go all day on Monday, Tuesday, or Friday. If I had my way, I would have the college life, without the classes, forever.

• While we are talking about this semester, we can talk about how difficult it is going to be for me to keep my resolutions. I thought the break would give me a better attitude about school, but no such luck. I hate school just as much as I did at the end of last semester. Doing well is going to be difficult, not because of lack of intelligence, but because of lack of motivation.

• Another thing making my resolutions difficult is the amount of boredom that some of the classes produces. And by some, I mean most. In one class, we watch a video tape of a woman reading notes about ethics, and then we have class discussions about it. You'd think that would be the worst, but it isn't. On Wednesday and Thursday afternoons, we go over how to do documentation. We have gone over abbreviations, if right/left should go before or after the body part, when to use the word "of", and how to use hyphens. We go over the rules of proper documentation, which is a complete waste because every job site has their own rules for how documentation should be done, which you can learn when you get said job. It is the most ridiculous waste of time class I've ever taken, which is saying something because I've taken scuba diving, water aerobics, and a class in the 9th grade called "Teen Leadership" which consisted of watching inspirational movies and writing colorful notes for my friends.

• I did a terrible job of spending responsibly on my credit card this past month. I swear I'll do better in January.

• It's been brought to my attention that some clarifications need to be made from my last blog. I won't be skinny dipping with anyone of the male persona. Additionally, it is much to cold for skinny dipping, so it will be moved to May/June/July's list.

• Today I bought a bunch of fruits and vegetables at the store. I'm going to try to start eating healthier. It will probably last until the next trip to the store, but I'll try for now.

• In other news, I can no longer go to San Diego with FBCgt because of some incorrect information on spring break dates I received from my mom. I am REALLY disappointed about not being able to go. The good news is that instead I'll be able to go visit David on his "Go and See" weekend for Mission Year. I'm looking to go from Thursday, March 5thish to Tuesday, March 10thish. I did a little research and the cost for one person to fly and stay in a hotel by themselves is about $350. So, who wants to go with me? Obviously, the price goes down if we drive or split a hotel, which I'm all for. Let me know if you want to go. Seriously.

• I'm starting to get sick. I'm also going out every night this weekend. I know this is a bad combination. I'm crossing my fingers I'll make it.

• Today, when I went to the store, a woman was eating grapes out the bag. Not just one bag, but multiple bags. Like she was testing the bags or something. In case you're wondering, this is not socially acceptable. I had to get green grapes instead of purple. I'm still a little bitter about this.

• Haley took Bella to the dog park this week and she humped a girl dog. She has never humped anything before, ever, but for some reason, she found it appropriate to hump a girl dog. This means our dog is at the very least bisexual. I don't know how I feel about this.

Wishing Bella liked boys,
Jenna

Things to Do Before I Die-January Edition

As promised, today is the day we pick out what thing I am going to complete for January. The bad news is, my list has over 150 things on it. I realized today that it is simply too long to type up, so here is the game plan:

Every month, I am going to list things that I think could be completed in the month. Then, you read them, and if you want to do something on the list with me, you let me know, and we will work something out.

Obviously, this plan depends on you a lot, so I really hope you won't let me down. I don't care who you are, how well I know you, or how long its been since we have talked, if you're willing to complete something with me, I'll entertain the idea.

With that being said, here's the stuff I think I could complete in January:

1. Ride in a hot air balloon
2. Play a round of golf
3. Sword fight someone
4. Ride a horse
5. Go skinny dipping
6. Ride on a train
7. Go to a rap concert and be the only white people there
8. Eat caviar
9. Sing karaoke by myself
10. Hit on a boy with a cheesy pick up line
11. Learn to tap dance
12. Go to a horse race
13. Play tackle football
14. Tour Texas stadium
15. Shoot a gun

And there you go. Let me know if you want to do one with me.

Completing Life's Goals,
Jenna

A Night Out With the Girls

Last night, I missed my first night of blogging for the new year. I'm ok with it. Blogging every day gets really old.

Anyways, I missed blogging yesterday for good reason, because yesterday was a super busy day.

First, I came home. It feels grown up to call San Marcos home, but I really do consider it home now. I do miss a lot of the people and places and conversations in Georgetown though.

Then, I went and worked with Merced. I took the whole break off from work, which was nice, and it was good to see Merced again. Yesterday was his birthday, so I refused to make him do his usual worksheets and stuff. Instead, we went to Wal-Mart and picked out toys.

Finally, after work, we went to downtown for Macy's 21st birthday. I had sushi for the first time, which was an interesting experience, but I really enjoyed some of it.

Afterwords, we headed to 6th street, met up with a bunch of fun people, and even spent part of the night with Todd Reesing:



It was an outrageously fun night!

It was so fun that we skipped going out tonight because we were all too tired. It does feel so good to be back home with my favorite people!

Now that I'm back home, I can start working on completing my "List of Things To Do Before I Die". Look for that post tomorrow.

P.S. Since its going to be coming into conversation a lot, can someone come up with a shorter name?

Enjoying the Comforts of Home,
Jenna

My Biggest Fear

I thought I'd continue on with my theme of confessions and tell you my current biggest fear.

There is a lady that lives next door to me and my roommates. We call her Paula, but her name is not actually Paula. We named her that because we didn't know her real name, and we got tired of calling her "Crazy Raccoon Lady". Which is a completely different story for another time.

Anyways, Paula is your typical neighborhood crazy cat lady. She has at least 4 different cats that I've seen. She lives by herself. She has few visitors. When I try to smile or say hello or start a conversation, she blows me off.

I imagine that when Paula gets older she will live in a nursing home all my herself with no visitors, lonely and waiting to die, like my granny's roommate was when my granny used to live there.

My biggest fear is growing up to be Paula.

I'm so relational that I get lonely when there aren't people around me for more than a couple of hours. I'll never be able to live by myself. I spend the night at Nic and Jo's every time both of my roommates are gone. I hate being by myself.

I can't imagine waking up every day with no one around and no one to look forward to seeing.

My biggest fear? Loneliness.

And now you know.

Hoping I'll Never Be Your Neighborhood Crazy Cat Lady,
Jenna

Confession

Today, I have a confession to make. My sister is spoiled.

That's not the confession. And I know some of you are rolling your eyes and thinking to yourselves about how spoiled I am. Admittedly, I am spoiled, and I have no problem telling you this, but my sister is even more spoiled than I.

How could I make a statement like this? Well, blog readers this Christmas break I came home to discover that my sister has so many clothes, shoes, purses, and just all around stuff that she has taken over a second closet in our home. Both her bedroom and the guest bedroom closets are literally jammed packed full of things.

My sister has so much stuff that she doesn't even know half of what she owns. I have been wearing her things all Christmas break. Sometimes, she notices. Other times, she tells me its cute, not realizing that its hers.

I love it because its like going on a shopping spree without having to spend any money. I simply dig around in both closets to find little hidden treasures.

My confession to you is this:

I have already started picking out my favorite things so that I can take them back to school with me. I have a little pile of stuff hidden in the dresser I have been using.

Do I feel guilty? Yes. But I have told my mom my plan and she thinks its ok as long as I agree to return anything Allyson notices missing within the month. My mom says she has too much stuff.

And if she doesn't notice it missing, it can't be that important to her anyways right?

Let me know your thoughts.

Hoping you'll keep my secret,
Jenna

MLK Day

On a lighter note, I would like to share a conversation that recently happened between my roommate Haley and I.

Scene: Walking together through Target upset that it is yet another store that does not have New Years decorations for our house.

Haley: This sucks. How are we supposed to decorate for New Years if all of the stores are sold out of stuff?

Jenna: Yeah I know, and its way too early to put up stuff for Valentines.

Haley: We can only get away with keeping our Christmas decorations a few more days. They have already been up since November. What other holidays are there?

Jenna: Well, I suppose we could put pictures of black people all over our house to celebrate MLK day.

The next day, I came home to the following:





In case you can't tell, that's a "Happy MLK Day" banner hanging up in our kitchen. The pictures are pictures of famous African Americans, and Micheal Jackson, who used to be African American. I think my favorite is the OJ Simpson mug shot.

I share this to tell you that stuff like this is why I never ever ever want to leave Scott Street. Seriously, Whitney's parents will probably have to drag me out kicking and screaming. It's the perfect house with the perfect people.

No one gets me quite as well as my roommates do, and I am dreading leaving in May. Therefore, I am going to do everything I can to ensure that this semester is our best yet.

Celebrating African American pride and freedom,
Jenna

Reflections

Some reflections from today:

1. Today I went and saw Marley and Me. It is an excellent movie. I cried, which is saying something, because I am not like the girls that cry in everything. The only other movies I have ever cried in are Armageddon, Remember the Titans, and 8 seconds. I say this to say that:

1. You should go see it.
2. It made me love Bella even more.
3. The main character in the movie is a columnist. The movie made me want to marry a columnist or write a book. I havn't decided which one, but book seems more likely. Each would be a wonderful addition to my life I think.

2. I would also like to add "Be on time more often" to my list of things to change in 2009.

3. This is going to sound cheesy and corny and lame. That's fine. Make fun, but I'm going to share it anyways.

Today I had this moment when I was riding in the car with the Ward's and Kelsey on the way to the movies. We had on "Yellow" by Coldplay really loud and we were all belting it out at the top of our lungs. It was like something out of a cheesy family film.

While I was sitting there, I realized I was in one of those moments in life that you'll remember for a long time. One of those moments when someone asks you to look back on a time when you were truly happy and you pick out that particular moment.

The best part about this particular moment was that it didn't take a boyfriend.

I have this problem with finding my identity and from that, my happiness, in who I am dating at the time. But in the moment in the car where me and 10 year old Sarah sat together and belted "Yellow" off key I realized that I am completely 100% satisfied with where my life is right now and I don't even have any sort of love interest. Not even so much as a crush.

I've had a boyfriend or a boy I was dating pretty much non stop, since I was in the 9th grade. 8 years ladies and gentlemen. I realized today that I don't even know who I am by myself. I realized today that I want to find out.

I think there is something so beautiful and freeing and sexy (can I say that?) in this. Something that gives me confidence. Its like a weight has been lifted, in that I no longer have to concern myself with someone else's happiness or well being, or what someone else is thinking. It's like I have this whole new thing in my life that's been hiding that needs to be discovered. It makes me excited to wake up and see what tomorrow will bring. I LOVE it.

I'm happy. And its going to take a very special boy, and by boy I mean man, to get me to give up this feeling.

So thanks to the Wards and Kelsey and Coldplay and the song "Yellow" for giving me a little life moment that you didn't even know was happening today.

Enjoying Freedom,
Jenna

More New Things for 2009

I am going to see how many days in a row I can post a blog. I know today is technically the 4th, but this one counts as the 3rd. Don't argue with me.

I thought of 3 more things I would like to change about myself in 2009:

1. I tried chicken fried deer steak tonight. It was good. Really good. Better than chicken fried steak. In 2009, I will never pass up the opportunity to try something new. You only live once.

2. I am going to stop biting my nails and cuticles. It is a disgusting habit.

3. I do this thing that really annoys me. I don't know if it annoys other people, but it annoys me. No matter what the age of the person I am talking about, I refer to them as boys and girls. I call my dad a boy, I call my grandpa a boy, I call boys my age boys, even though most of them are men. I have decided this is childish. I think making the move to refering to people over the age of 18 as men and women will take me one step closer to being a grown up.

Continuing the Theme of Change,
Jenna

New Year's Promises

I meant to write this blog yesterday, but I stayed out too late, so here in my list of New Year's Promises a day late.

It should also be noted that I don't like to refer to these as resolutions. "resolutions" says to me "I think it would be a good idea to try this, whether or not I actually to do kind of depends." Kind of liking making a resolution to work out everyday, and then not actually doing it. Therefore, I refer to them as promises. I hereby promise to God, myself, and my friends that I will do the best to do everything on the list that follows. I ask that you keep me accountable, ask me how I'm doing, and maybe even publicly humiliate and shame me if I'm not keeping up (this should only be done in extreme situations for those of you who will abuse said power).

My 2009 Promises:

1. I am going to read the entire Bible this year. Every year I mean to do this, and then I get to about March 17th before I start to get behind. This year, I'm reading the whole thing. Promise.

2. I am going to complete at least one book a month. I love to read. I don't read enough. This year, I am going to do it. The end.

3. I am only skipping two classes a week this semester. It's my last semester in the classroom. I need to appreciate the gift I have been given. I need to enjoy the opportunity to learn. Why I am not making a promise to not skip any classes? I figure, why set myself up for failure? I will do my best to not skip at all though.

4. I will study at least 30 minutes for every test. No more winging it. I'm doing my best this semester.

5. I will take Bella on a walk at least twice a week. This one, is two fold. Number 1, I will take better care of my dog. Number 2: I will take better care of my body.

6. I will not say yes to things I don't want to do simply to make others happy. I am a people pleaser. Sometimes, I worry so much about pleasing others that I don't take care of myself. No more.

7. I will not tell someone I am going to pray for them unless I actually intend to do it. This one is self explanatory.

8. I am going to make an effort to not talk badly or gossip about people. I do this WAY too much. Sometimes, I reflect on the things I said during the day and I feel like an awful person. If I'm with you, and I start to talk bad about someone. Tell me to stop. Please. If I get mad, remind me of this bullet right here.

9. I am not going to pursue men, men are going to pursue me. Additionally, I promise to give every man that pursues me an equal opportunity. This is not to say that I will date every loser that comes along, but I will be less picky. I don't know how to word this better, but it makes sense in my head. Basically, if you're a pretty decent guy, and you want to pursue me, I'll give you a chance!

10. I will do my best to not worry about my future. 2009 is going to bring a bunch of changes, and worrying about said changes is just going to cause me to miss out on the day at hand. This coming semester represents my last few months in the college lifestyle, and I plan on enjoying it! Plus, what's the point in worrying if God's taking care of it all anyways?

11. I am going to cross one thing off my "List of Things to Do Before I Die" a month. As many of you know, I have a very long list of things to do before I die. I am now in my 20s, and I think I need to start working on the list. I am going to try to cross off one thing a month for the rest of my life. In the coming days, I am going to post my list online, I want to complete as many as possible with people I care about, so hopefully, you'll read it and want to do some of them with me. I want to create memories with the people I love.

Making Changes,
Jenna

Some of the Godly Men I Know

I'll be writing a more meaningful blog later tonight, but I have a few minutes to spare in before my movie date, so I thought I would make a few corrections. Mainly, one correction.

Recently, I was accused of not following through on promises in my blog. This is mainly due to my promise to research political topics, and my promise to dedicate a blog to individuals who could correctly guess my favorite Taylor Swift songs.

I did not continue to research political topics because it took too much time, and frankly, I am lazy. I'm assuming everyone still voted, and I sincerely apologize if you were waiting on what I had to say in my blog to make your decision. If this is the case, for future reference, you should never listen to what I have to say when making important decisions like this.

As for the Taylor Swift contests winners, they were unhappy with only sentences about them, so the rest of the blog is dedicated to them.

Jonathon Mobley



Jonthan Mobley is the definition of modern and hip. If something is currently considered cool and awesome, Jonathon knew it was going to be cool and awesome now, almost 6 months ago. As a matter of fact, he knew it was cool and awesome so long ago that he no longer considers it cool and awesome.

Jonathan is extremely funny, smart, and an entertaining person to hang out with. He also really loves technology and such, and is very good at what he does. He is the first person I (and most people I know) go to when they have computer and other technology issues. He works for 12th Man Productions at A&M, and he also does a bunch of work for free or very cheap for churches. I don't know many college kids who would drive all over central Texas to work for next to nothing (or nothing), but Jonathon is using the gifts God gave Him to further the Kingdom of God, and thus, I consider him to be a very Godly man.

Daniel Foster



Daniel is one of the nicest people you will ever meet. Daniel is the person you would call at two in the morning if you needed something, because you know no matter what the circumstances, Daniel would drop what he is doing to help you out. Daniel is also very good at giving compliments. Additionally, Daniel is really good at making people laugh. I usually end up feeling much better about myself and my out look on life after spending an afternoon with him.

Daniel is also really good and what he does. Daniel has a life goal of being the athletic director for the University of Texas. This semester, Daniel has an internship at UT that was created specifically for him. I think that is a testament to what a hard worker and wonderful person he is. I think it also proves that it won't be long before AD Foster is hooking us up with box seats at the UT games.

Daniel has his head on his shoulders, knows what God's purpose for his life is, and is working hard to achieve that purpose, and thus, I would consider him to be a Godly man.

Both of these guys are great people, and any girl would be lucky to date them, so let me know if you're interested.

Keeping my Promises,
Jenna