bathing suits and modesty

Growing up, I thought the only reason to wear a one-piece bathing suit was to hide fat. I thought skinny people wore two-pieces and fat people wore one-pieces. Just the rules. However, when I was in highschool, my friend Natalie (who is thin) wore a one-piece all the time. I remember talking to her about it, and she said that wore one when she knew she would be around guys- because she thought that her body was none of their business. I remember being surprised about that because I had never given much thought to modesty in regards to bathing suits.

By their very nature, bathing suits are not modest. They are skin tight and resemble underwear. Everything is on display. But talking to Natalie made me realize that there are some decisions you can make about someone else's ability to know everything about your body.

I was reading Elizabeth Esther's blog this morning about her daughter's bathing suit choices, and it made me remember this revelation with Natalie in highschool. Her husband reminded her that it's not about the bikini- it's about the relationship. The relationship with her daughter for her to understand modesty and purity is what matters- not the bathing suit.

I go to a camp with my church every summer, and they have a rule that you have to wear one-piece bathing suits. And, I'll be honest, there is a incredible sense of innocence for that entire week on the beach. People who come to camp for the first time always complain about the rule, but after you've gone a couple of years, you kinda come to like it. However, I do think there is such a thing as TOO modest.

I have some friends that I babysit for- their daughters are 11 and 8. Naturally, when I babysit in the summer, we go to the pool. The first time we went, I was shocked to watch the little girls get their bathing suits on and put a pair of board shorts over their suits. I mean, they're little girls. There's a part of me that feels like making little girls wear shorts or those crazy swim-outfits is teaching a sense of shame of their bodies. I think there has to be a balance.

Obvs, I'm not a parent, so I don't have to make these decisions, but it does make me think.

annoyed

A few weeks ago, my facebook status said something along the lines of, "When people say the education system is broken, it hurts my feelings."

See, I'm an educator. And it hurts my feelings.

I am under no false illusions about the education system. I do not think it's perfect. In fact, I think there are many flaws, and there is no "quick fix" from any one source to fix those flaws. I'm not trying to say that we don't need to improve education, but attacks on the system as a whole feels personal to me.

And you can tell that it's not, but it feels like it is.

I know this guy. I won't call him a friend because he's not. We are not friends. We know each other.

In all the years I've known him, he's never had one decent conversation with me. He only speaks to me to make snarky comments about Alabama football.

But, he decided to further our relationship and add "attacking my profession" to his list of conversation topics.

He felt the need to comment on my fb status- to let me know that it is actually broken, but that's it not a personal attack on me. I say my peace, but I try to let it go. But it made me mad. I mean, I JUST SAID that it hurts my feelings! What do you not understand????

Fastforwardafewweeks.

He messages me on fb chat. (Once again- we DO NOT talk. EVER.) Just so he can bring it up again. UGH.

It made me so mad that I just closed my whole computer.

Deep breaths. Cleansing breaths. Trying to get over it.

THEN.
I'm at church last night. And he has the AUDACITY to come up to me- SEEK ME OUT- to bring it up AGAIN. In the meanest way possible, I told him that I would not have that conversation with him. Not now, not ever.

In thinking about it today, I've realized that it bothers me on multiple levels:

• If this convo had been with one of my friends,then I wouldn't be as mad. But the fact that he doesn't have anything positive to say to me EVER is frustrating. Other people at my church single me out to encourage me on a regular basis, and he doesn't even speak to me outside of snarky remarks about Alabama football and to criticize my profession. just more than I can handle.
  
• The fact that the VERY FIRST time he said something, it was on a status that explain that this topic HURTS MY FEELINGS. So it's not like he didn't know that it was going to hurt my feelings. He knew. But being right was more important to him than my feelings.

And that's the biggest part.
It was more important to be right than to consider how I felt about it.
And THAT is why I'm annoyed.

annoyances

There are things people say in the Christian world that drive me crazy. Not because I'm super sp or anything, but because I noticed. I'm not saying haven't done/do these things, but I'm annoyed with myself if/when I have/had.

For instance.

It really annoys me when speakers/worship leaders/prayer people/Christian talkers of any kind say that the Bible "reminds us that "quote said scripture here".

I heard a guy say the other night-- "the Bible reminds us that all things work together for the good of those who love the Lord and are called according to His purpose".

That doesn't even make any sense.

It's not reminding you. It told you first.
Maybe YOU were reminded by the Bible's words.
But the Bible isn't reminding.

That would be same as saying that "Shakespeare reminds us that a rose by any other name would smell just as sweet".
Uh, no. I'M reminding you. Shakespeare said it first!

This may be stupid. And it may not even make any sense. But it annoys me for some reason.

THE OTHER THING. (and I know this one makes sense.)
I HATE when people say that "worship was good".
Uh. Pretty sure that worship is YOUR response to God, and what you meant was that you liked the music. Just say that. Don't over spiritualize something that IS NOT spiritual.
Your worship can be good in any setting. Good music or not. Fast or slow. Loud or soft. Crying or jumping. It doesn't even have to be music. Because worship isn't music.
Worship is a response.
YOUR response.
YOUR choice.
Stop making it the responsibility of others.
OWN it.
CHOOSE to worship.
Make your worship good.
And let the band know that you liked the music.

just ready for it all to be over

I love America. I love democracy. I love debates. I love elections. I love voting.

However.

I am SO ready for election day to come and, more importantly, GO.

In the last weeks, the election has turned. For the worse. It's gotten dirty. And I don't just mean the Presidential election- the Georgia Senate race is annoying me the most. But, I am OVER IT.

Are there really undecided people out there??? I mean, maybe. But, it's really hard for me to believe that you are slightly educated about either candidate if you are undecided. Obama and McCain are extreme opposites in their basic fundamentals, so how can you still be torn? Maybe I'm being judgemental since I've been decided for a year now- but still. It's hard for me to understand.

The most annoying part to me is that a lot of people's choices are defended by the negatives of the "other guy".

Really?

You're only voting for your person because they're better than the alternative? That sucks. Why would you be ok with that???

Last week I was watching Greek. This is a silly ABC Family show about sorority/fraternity life at a small college. It's super.

But.
The point.

One of the characters said this:
"Great politicians are supposed to inspire people, not just be better than the alternative."

That really made me think. A lot.
Why do we vote the way we do? Are we inspired and voting FOR someone? Or are we just voting AGAINST someone?
I really hope that, as a nation, we are FOR stuff. Not just against something.

Are YOU inspired?

Reason #7583645 to Live Alone

If you live alone, you don't run the risk of being woken up at 4:30 in the morning by your roommate talking LOUDLY on the phone to a boy.

an answer

This was a response I sent to a "friend" who was trying to talk trash about my political views.... Another real friend thought I should publish it-- so you're the lucky audience.

~~~~~~~~~~~

I think you need to be careful of attacking someone's relationship with our gracious God because of the way they choose to vote. You say questioning, but your words attacked me. You made me feel as if i'm supposed to be following some rules so I can be Christian enough. Jesus wasn't a republican. Or a democrat. He lived in a dictatorship. But he submitted to one authority. And it wasn't Rome.

Morals matter. But having a republican in the white house for the past 8 years hasn't changed anything in the way of abortion or same-sex marriage. Yes. They are both wrong. Yes. I am against them both. But that doesn't change the fact that the law isn't changing. People get so upset about those two topics and never stop to think that maybe they're NOT the most important issues. Our greatest commandment is to love God- and because of his love for us, love others. Are you really doing that by questioning my relationship with Jesus based on how I vote? No. You're not.

You want to get mad about something? Get mad about the fact that Jesus commanded us to care for the orphans and widows- but we don't protest our country's neglect of it's own people.

Get mad that there are THOUSANDS of girls that are searching for love so badly that they turn to sex and end up with unwanted pregnancies. Outlawing abortion isn't going to change that girl's need for love. People loving her is the only thing that can change that.

We'll probably not the vote the same way. And probably not agree on the issues at hand.But the fact that we disagree doesn't make one of us bad and one of us good. It doesn't make one of us right and the other wrong. And it certainly doesn't make one of us a Christian and the other not.

It just means we disagree. Which is ok. That's what makes this country great. We can disagree and it not be the end of the world.

Don't buy into the bipartisan lie that you have to hate your opponent. Jesus called us to love our enemies as ourselves. You really want to be a radical? Love the person that your disagre with- neither party will know how to handle that.

Here's an annoyance of mine.

When you ask someone to do something for you and they don't do it. Then procede to give you some "SPIRITUAL" reason as to why they did not do it.

But we all know that it's because they were just too lazy.

I enjoy calling people out on stuff like that.
Don't blame God for your laziness.
Please. Good grief.

spin me right round, baby, right round

I believe I have an ear infection.

mainly because I am SO DIZZY. 

I almost threw up earlier. from dizziness. and no, there have been no adult beverages involved in this situation.

and even worse, when I get all dizzy, it makes me look all washed out. so, I'm dizzy-- and I'm WHITER!?!?! what in the world? talk about annoying illnesses!

un-freaking-believable

and then people have the audacity to wonder why people hate Christians.

I'd hate me too.

do you know what annoys me?

when you text people and you KNOW they got it, but they're just being douche-y and won't text you back.
and then for some reason I become a stalker-ish person and keep texting them periodically.
and THEN when they FINALLY text you back, they're all "why are you blowing me up?".

and all I want to do is yell "IF YOU WOULD HAVE TEXTED ME BACK HOURS AGO, I WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN BLOWING YOU UP"

boys can be so stupid.
just because I'm not your girlfriend DOES NOT mean that I am not a girl.
I still react to things like a girl. I cannot help it. I am who I am. I am a girl.

arg.

SUPER Tuesday

Have you voted?!!? Get up and GO!

of course we had school

Good grief. I told all of my kids that yesterday. And yet, they roll in this morning all "OH MY WORD! I CAN'T BELIEVE WE HAVE SCHOOL TODAY".
Middle schoolers.
Good grief.

ice cold below zero

It's snowing here in Atlanta!!
And I am annoyed.

I was watching the news earlier-- and, NO LIE, they were talking about the weather for about 25 minutes. Kept going "back outside" to check on the SAME SNOW. It's not sticking. It's not accumulating. It's not below freezing here. It's cold. And it's snowing. It's not much to write home about.

Atlantan's prepare for this:

But get this:

And that'll only be one suburb far far away from where I live.

I mean, yeah, I'm excited. But honestly, calm down before all of your excitement creates heat and melts the snow before they cancel school tomorrow.

Here's my actual PET PEEVE OF LIFE:

When preparing to be snowed in and without power (in Atlanta? puh-lease!), WHY IN THE WORLD would you buy milk, bread, and eggs!??!?!?!?!

Seriously? If the power goes out, the fridge will turn off and the milk will go bad. What do you want eggs for? And if you have an electric stove and the power goes out, you'll just have eggs that you can't eat. And why in the world do you want just bread? I mean, buy some peanut butter or something!

There is no reason why there should be NO eggs, milk, and bread just because it may snow.

Buy some Spaghetti-O's and granola bars. Things that don't go bad- and that don't need electricity to prepare. And some Diet Coke. That's for me. I'm an addict.

And maybe some Reece's Peanut Butter Cups. Because they're delicious.