Three Cups of Tea

Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time by Greg Mortenson

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
Not the easiest read of the year, but definitely a very satisfying one. You will be inspired by Greg Mortenson's personal mission to build schools in some of the most volatile parts of the world: Pakistan & Afghanistan. His ability to understand and embrace a culture often misunderstood in the western world is an eye opening experience. The determination and courage it takes to do what this man does is incredible. He is truly the best example of actions speak louder than words I have seen in a long time. Instead of talking about what needs to happen - he is doing it. Bravo!



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2008

2008: A Year in Review

Places I traveled:

Colonial Heights,VA
*saw my whole family play a Wii (especially TJ & Johnny boxing)
*surprised Em & E on their birthday
*enjoyed Christmas with my family

Atlanta, GA
*stayed at the Ritz
*stepped inside the Georgia Pacific headquarters and felt important
*ate at yummy restaurants like Ted's, Gladys Knight's Chicken & Waffles
*had a drink at the top of the Westin while overlooking the city
*toured the Coke Museum & Millenium Park...alone
*visited the Georgia Aquarium where I fell in love with a whale shark

New York City
*finally saw RENT (on Broadway that is)
*hung out in Greenwich Village
*had Pinkberry, and then continued to dream about it
*bravely went to the Bodies exhibit
*shopped, shopped, shopped

Galesburg, IL
*met my beautiful nephew Dimitri
*got to sleep in a room where Carl Sandburg once stayed, which just happens to be in my sister's lovely new house
*ate at a delicious Creperie'
*walked an Italian Greyhound

Greenville, SC
*stayed with Heidi & Spencer and went swimming
*had a delicious fried turkey
*ran my best time in the Electric City Turkey Trot 5K – 30:15

Spring Lake, NJ
*showed Em Ryan's old house
*saw the ocean
*ate 7 lb. Lobsters

Chicago, IL
*toured the city
*took in some improv at The Second City
*drank handshaken margaritas made with fresh squeezed lime juice
*picked up a copy of the November 5 Chicago Tribune

Napersville, IL
*shopped in the adorable downtown
*celebrated at Kara's wedding
*ate Chicago style pizza

Books I Loved:

The Book Thief
Shadow of the Wind
Moloka'i
Marley & Me
Kite Runner
A Thousand Splendid Suns
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
Water for Elephants
The Other Boelyn Girl

Things I Learned:

Worry less about what others think of you.
Give thanks for your blessings – every day.
If you wake up and want to do something – then do it if you can!
Work is work – end of story.
Hug people you care about often.
Anything is better than watching TV.
I feel better when I write, and best when I talk about it.
Knitting something for someone else makes me feel happy.

Proud Moments:

*I have a wonderful marriage to an amazing guy (4.5 years!)
*I taught myself how to knit.
*I kept running even after I hurt my knee.
*I'm organizing a Pennies for Peace campaign for my school in 2009.
*My blog (Thanks Heather for getting me started again!)

Update: Mission Organization

Just wanted to let anyone out there in the blogosphere who is interested that Mission Organization '08 is officially over. Our humble abode is officially spruced up for the new year. I am wiped out. G'nite.

A short list of what I did:

*cleaned out built in cabinets in living room. (Now Ryan has a place for his photography gear!)

*organized media room (aka the basement, but let's call it the media room because that's where we watch movies, and it is what all the fancy people are doing)

*rearranged and organized the last frontier (aka neglected guest bedroom - it is a very happy room now that it has had a facelift, and I just love it)

*cleaned everywhere

*framed and arranged some photographs by my favorite camera man

*found lamps & finally hung pictures in the guest room formerly known as the purple palace

*even made my first cup of coffee in my French Press -- oh la la!

The Bears

I have decided that I am a Chicago Bears fan. I know, I know, this seems totally out of the blue. However, this came to me when I was at my parents' house over Christmas break. My dad & Ryan were watching football and the Bears just happened to be playing. That's when I realized that I was a Bears fan. I knew right then and there that the reason I hadn't ever been able to connect with an NFL team was because they never seemed right for me! Whenever Ryan would convince me that I needed a team to root for he would always make suggestions (usually based on how many old VT players were on the team). I would try to like a team for the heck of it, and I tried many - Broncos, Ravens, Falcons, Giants, Browns (my precious Lee Suggs #22 played for them...sigh). They were good teams, but I felt something was missing inside. Then it hit me...hey! I love Chicago, AND I love Bears! BINGO! So, GO BEARS...GRRRRR!

Mission Organization

I have been given a gift...a gift of vacation time. i feel the need to do something productive with this time instead of just wasting it away. Since we have been in our house over 2 years now, I feel that I have really come to know what we use & what we don't use on a regular basis. When we moved in, we did a great job of unpacking for the most part. But then, there were all of these other "things" that just got tossed in a spare bedroom closet or even better, the basement. So, my mission will be to take all of those random things and assign them to places that make sense. I really want to maximize the space that we do have. I also think it would be fun to be one of those container people, you know what I'm talking about. They open a cabinet or drawer and BAM everything is so fantastically arranged in boxes and containers. Those people don't have to dig...and I like that! So, I'm off, to get containers and get organizing! Sorry this blog was so lame, but that is what is on my mind at the moment.

The Spirit of the Season

I'm not an in your face kind of person when it comes to matters of faith. Part of that might be my Catholic roots in the midst of the sometimes unaccepting Protestant community where I live. However, that is neither here nor there. Today there is something I would like to share with you. For Christmas this year my parents got me the Willow Tree Nativity set. It was something that I saw awhile back, and just thought it was perfect. I was very excited when I opened it! Well, it came in about a hundred boxes and plastic bags. But as I was unwrapping it, I couldn't help but be moved by the miracle it represented. I love those small, quiet moments of your life where you realize the magnitude of something you may have skimmed over before. I don't know why our hearts are touched when we might least be expecting it, but you can't help but feel a sort of inner peace when yours is. One part of being a Catholic that I really enjoy is the emphasis that Christmas is just starting on December 25. I love the symbolism of Epiphany on January 6, twelve days after the birth, when the wise men came and the good news was then spread to the world. Those twelve days after Christmas give you a chance to settle down after the madness of the holiday and reflect. So when others may rush to pack up their tree and decorations, whisking Christmas away, I like knowing that I have some extra time. Merry Christmas!

Favorite Christmas Albums of All Time

I have a lot of Christmas music in my house. For a while I loved getting new Christmas albums every year. In the past few years I have been a little disappointed by some of the ones I have bought. I think, "Hey! I love this singer, this will be a great one." Only to get home and find that their songs are a little too "breathy" or "jazzy" or "groggy." Here are my top four in no particular order...

1. Bing Crosby's White Christmas - it doesn't get any more classic than this. Bing is the ultimate Christmas crooner. He makes me want to sit by the fire and sip on a Hot Toddy. Actually, scratch the Hot Toddy, I have never had that, and it sounds pretty disgusting. Let's try Hot Cocoa instead.

2. Amy Grant's Home for Christmas - this was THE Christmas album for me growing up. Amy's sweet voice, blend of contemporary and classic, and my own nostalgia is perfection. It takes me back, and I love that.

3. Mariah Carey's Merry Christmas - no popular Top 40 artist to date has been able to recreate the rocking album she delivers. Some might have a great song or two, but every song on this is delicious! Part gospel, part pop this CD is always the first one I listen to when I want to get in the holiday spirit after Thanksgiving.

4. Christmas with Coniff - from my parent's own collection, this record has been around for as long as I can remember. It went on a hiatus when record players did, but I still remember the cheerful voices beckoning me to go on a sleigh ride.