Sunday, 01.20.2002
Called to service. Ever since I heard Danny Lehmann's sermon about fanning the flames, I've been praying that God would show me where he wanted me to serve in the church. This morning, Bobbi approached me and asked if I would be able to help out by running the laptop computer which essentially provides a multimedia experience for members by providing on-screen lyrics for the songs, church announcements, Bible passages and video presentations during the Sunday morning services.

Okay, so it may not be such a noble task like feeding the homeless or building schools for children in Rwanda, but heck, it's in my realm of expertise, isn't it?

I quickly agreed to help. Although I'm not sure exactly what it entails (i.e., how many services per week I'll be manning the equipment) or when I will be starting, I'm quite excited about finally have something to call my "ministry."

As we sang worship, a distinct thought planted itself firmly in my mind: volunteer to create a web page for the church. I'm sure it was triggered by speaking with Bobbi about computer-related things, since she was actually the one who approached me about doing a web page for the church about a year ago. But it was there, strong and as clear as day. My pulse quickened a bit as ideas flooded my mind and I started getting excited about the possibilities.

After the service, I spoke with Bobbi again and inquired about the web page. She assured me that she would put me in touch with the right people and have someone contact me about beginning on the project.

Another eventful step in the right direction was deciding to join a MiniChurch. We got the appropriate information and I made a note in my Visor to be there on Thursday night to attend my first Bible Study in years. I'm quite excited about that as well!

.::.

Self-inflicted stress. I'm not sure why, but there's nothing like a little self-inflicted stress to make your day complete. I've been wanting to redesign Okinawa.com for some time now, but was always either very busy or lacking in the inspiration department.

For the past couple of weeks, I've been trying to formulate design and navigation ideas but I've been coming up dry. There's something wildly intimidating to me about trying to redesign that particular site -- maybe it's because there's so much content to manage. Maybe it's because tens of thousands of people visit it annually. Maybe it's because there are some very vocal and critical people who are members of my online community associated with the site who dislike change and blasted me the last time I redesigned the site two years ago. Whatever the case, it's giving me a bad case of blockage of the Muse. 

This afternoon, Hubby caught me staring vacantly at my computer screen trying with all my might to conjure some ideas. He walked around behind me to gander at what could be so interesting, only to find that I was staring at a blank screen in Photoshop. He thought that was quite amusing. I, for one, didn't find it amusing at all. It's pure torture, I tell you.

Finally, I just gave up. At least for today.

.::.

Question(s) of the Day, courtesy of Joobii!

Four things you would eat on the last day of your life.
- Mom's Turkey Jook
- Bacon with Mochi & Cheese Okonomiyaki
- Big Island Candies Macadamia Nut Crunchies
- Filet Mignon cooked to perfection on my George Foreman Grill

Four CD's in your collection that you will never get tired of.
- Josh Groban
- The Eisa CD that I got from Okinawa
- The Ryukyuan Dance music CD from Okinawa
- The Best of Sting: Fields of Gold (1984-1994)

Four songs you get stuck in your head recently.
- "Whenever Wherever" by Shakira
- "Trading my Sorrows" by Darrell Evans
- "How You Remind Me" by Nickelback
- "You're Still You" by Josh Groban

Four movies that you adore.
- Lord of the Rings
- Farewell My Concubine (Chinese)
- Shall We Dance (Japanese)
- Iron Monkey (Chinese Kung Fu Film)

Four vacations you have taken.
- Okinawa
- Vegas
- Maui
- Big Island

Four things you'd like to learn.
- To speak Japanese.
- Chinese brush painting.
- To sing.
- All the intricacies of Adobe Photoshop.

Four beverages you drink frequently.
- Hoji-Cha
- Water
- Mug Root Beer
- Oolong Tea

Four places to go in your city.
(I'll have to expand this to my "state" since there isn't much to do in my city.)
- Valley of the Temples
- Waikiki
- Aiea Loop Trail
- Diamond Head

Four things to do when you're bored.
- Work on my webpages.
- Aimlessly surf the web.
- Go for a walk around the neighborhood. 
- Rubber stamping

Four things that never fail to cheer you up.
- A warm huggle from Hubby.
- A fine dining experience.
- Listening to my favorite music.
- Going for a walk.

"Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. If you do this, you will experience God's peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus."
- Philippians 4:6-7

:::::::

::Byte Me::
Breakfast: None
Lunch: Chicken Pho from Bale
Dinner: Mahi Mahi, Salad

::Bits 'n' Bytes::
Moving: None
Feeling: Relaxed & Content
Reading: Gen. 39-40; Ps. 20; Matt. 20
Hearing: Josh Groban, "Alla Luce Dal Sole", Shakira, "Ojos Asi (Thunder Remix)"
Smelling: Victoria's Secret Fragrant Body Splash, Sweet Temptation (A gift from Hubby's travels to Seattle!)
Tasting: Velamints Chocolate Mints

::Show your Love::
Please be a dear and take a dinner mint or indulge yourself a few grains from the rice bowl before you leave. Your clicks help to rank me higher on those two journal directories and that makes me happy. :)