grace eventually.

I find it interesting that in matters of life, I'm not a fan of change, but when it comes to how things look (i.e.: my hair, my apartment, my blog) I love change. It keeps things interesting, I suppose. I've had many a conversation about how weird it is when you get out of school. My life has been based on change. I take new classes every semester and there's always a break to look forward to. That is not the case when you graduate and get into the working world. Last night I had dinner at the Convilles. I got to meet their 2 adopted college students and they were talking about finals and the upcoming break. They asked me if I missed school. Yes and no. I don't miss the late night studying and paper writing but I miss the ebb and flow that school offers. Most of all I miss the friends I made both in college and seminary. The Lord is continuing to remind me that he hasn't left me here in Ruston; he is providing through the comfort of old friendships like the Convilles. I am grateful.

Tonight I am grieving for the Best family. Their 23-year-old son, Bo, was killed in a car accident yesterday. The whole thing is so surreal. Yesterday afternoon we heard he had made it through surgery and we all thought he was out of the woods. He died last night around midnight. Death is an unwelcome change that can happen in an instant. Please pray for the Best family in the coming days.

I realize that it's become incredibly easy to receive spam and junk in our e-mail inboxes. I don't like it, but if it becomes too overwhelming, I've been known to start a new e-mail account. Today I was sitting at my desk when I heard my phone ringing. I recognized it as a text by the ringtone. Yes, I'm a text-messaging junkie, but that's for another blog. As I looked to see who it was from, I noticed it was a 5-digit number. Odd. I open it and it says, "Brandie@terrymurphy.com (c this) Hey, meet locale singles goto: (www.chairsplacedina.com)" First off, who the heck is Brandie? Second, how did you get my number? Third, how did you know I was single? Fourth, you should really learn how to spell. I really hope that I am not entering the the realm of spam texts. Changing my phone number is much more difficult than changing my e-mail address.

Tonight we decorated Starbucks for Christmas. It's the beginning of November. I often wonder what happened to Thanksgiving. It happens to be my favorite holiday and it practically gets overlooked. That's okay. When turkey day rolls around I'll continue my tradition of staying in my pjs as late as possible, watching the Macy's Day parade, and eating a lot! I can't wait!

Last week I started another (3rd) job of sorts as Director of Photography for a new film. We held auditions last Thursday and then picked the characters last night. This is all new to me but my friends I'm working with are old pros. Okay, maybe not pros, but they know what they're doing. I think there will be a full spread on the movie this Sunday in the Ruston Daily Leader. Be on the lookout, you local folks!

Can someone tell me why it is that the single people tend to get left out of things...such as being invited over for dinner? At least 3 couples have invited some friends of mine over for dinner since the husband has started working at the church. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy for them. I just don't understand why I get looked over. Is it because single people make couples uncomfortable? Do they think it would be awkward to have an odd number sitting at the table? Or is it simply because we lack the common connection of marriage and kids? I don't know why this has hit me so hard today, but I had a minor breakdown this afternoon. Even though I know it's not intentional, I feel left out and somewhat invalidated. I'm searching for community but I'm not sure where I fit. Most of my single friends are in college and the friends I have that are closer to my age are married, many with kids. Is there a way to get over the societal norm of single v/s married? Sometimes I wonder.

A couple of days ago I was heartbroken to find that my camera that I love and take everywhere has decided to no longer work. It was just fine Halloween night and then the next night I pull it out to find that when I turn it on it says "lens error." I took it to my dad thinking he could fix it. I mean, he's into cameras and computers and loves to tinker with things. Instead he quickly concluded that something has jammed the lens deterring it from working properly so my options are to send it back to Nikon or buy a new one. Great. The truth of the matter is that it's probably my fault that it's not working. I'm not all that careful with it. I throw it from purse to purse and never think to maybe consider putting it in it's own carrying case to avoid such scenarios I'm now facing I tend to forget that I'm dealing with a piece of equipment that costs up to $200. I think from now on I'll remember to be more responsible with my treasures.

I ran out of time in search for the perfect Halloween costume, so I dressed up in one of my formals and went as a princess. A friend of mine from Starbucks had a party. Here are some pics of my favorite characters:)