24

Tomorrow is my birthday.

This picture is from my birthday last year: I had been in South Africa just over a month and was still trying to get my bearings. It really is amazing to me to look back on just one year and see what all transpired: good things, hard things, sad things, wonderful things! I know have a "real" job here in South Africa and basically live in here. That is crazy.

This was also my birthday last year...with my now boyfriend. :)

I'll be 24 tomorrow. Sounds like a good number to me. I think it'll be a good year. :)

Being human is cool

So, one of the reason I've been having a hard time getting going on my blogging again is because I wanted to have a clear direction and purpose for it before I just started writing. But that's proving difficult. And more because life is busy and tiring. But I'm trying. One thing that I want to write about is current events/life. So on that note, I just want to show you a picture I found on the front of the New York Times.

I love the news. Even though a lot of it can be negative and sad, I love knowing what's going on and even the sad the stuff at least makes me feel human. This picture is of an elderly Afghan man after an American citizen opened fire in Afghanistan. An American citizen. Not an Afghan person or a member of the Taliban. And in Afghanistan. Doesn't that surprise you? Americans are often so afraid of people in other countries and what dangers there may be, yet our own citizens are just as vulnerable to...to hurt, pain, suffering, anger, etc. What made that US service member open fire? I don't know, but that Afghan man is now experiencing the same sadness and loss any of us can feel on a given day. So whether it's deep loss or great joys, we're all the same. Isn't that cool?

Change is coming.

It's March.

It's spring (well, fall here).

I have a job (7-4pm, yikes).

I turn 24 in 13 days.

Things are changing. I promise.

Behind

I love travel. I love everything to do with it: packing, flying, shopping, learning, eating, seeing, hearing, smelling, doing. I don't know what it is, but I could never get enough of visiting other countries. In the past few years, I realized that one my most favorite things to do for travel gifts is use pictures that I personally have taken from my adventures. It's personal, unique and allows me to ever better my photography skills. LonelyPlanet is an excellent travel website that holds a photo competition each week based on a different theme. I just loved the picture above which was the winner for the theme "behind". Quite a different interpretation than what I would have thought of. If you want to participate, click here.

What are some of your favorite travel photos?

Also, LonelyPlanet is also doing a really easy and exciting contest to win a trip to Morocco! I'm so in!

I work in Africa

I got a JOB!! In AFRICA!! God is so good!

It's official: I got the letter of offer today and I start working on Tuesday, Valentine's Day, for a company that is one of the largest IT distributors in Southern Africa. I'll be working in the marketing department, which isn't quite international relations, but I really am so excited about this! I started getting cabin fever to the max with nothing to do the past few weeks, so this is God's perfect timing. I'm so thankful. :)

Now, what to wear...

J.Crew - Love this! So classy and timeless.

Scoopcharlotte.com - Love this too! Fashionable, but still means business.

J.Crew - The power suit. I have looked forward to the day when I have a "real" job, solely so I could rationalize buying a J.Crew suit.

Things are happening!

Hire me!
Top: Francesca's Collections. Jeans: The Limited (via TJ Maxx!). Shoes: Target

Ring: My own; a family heirloom.

While being home and back in the States was so wonderful, I did have a slight melt down about my future: I have no idea what's in it! When I say that out loud it sounds silly: no one ever knows what is in their future, duh! But I really had no idea. Did I want to live in South Africa another year? Did I want to stay in the States? I have no job!

No money (well, not a lot)! My boyfriend is from South Africa, I'm from America. That makes things complicated (oh I love references to "The Holiday"! Here's why.) 

But, it is now the sixth of February and I am in back in South Africa. After continuing my job search both here and in the States, I had an interview here! Someone wanted to talk to ME about a JOB! It is probably the most exciting thing that has happened in a long time. The interview went great and I am anxiously awaiting a proposal from the company and a start date. Hallelujah! I'm so thankful that God just works things out, especially when we don't know what we want or what to do.

More on the job soon, but I wanted to tell you all about that to encourage those of you out there who find yourself in a similar position. Yes, it feels like you will never find a job; that you will spend your entire life just looking for a job. But do not fear - you won't! Eventually, you will get a job. It WILL happen. :)

In the mean time, do things that continue to inspire you and excite you: like riding a scooter around South Beach. That's what I did. :)

Life is scary

So I have been promising updates on my life and I wrote out a bunch that I told myself I was going to post days ago. Obvi, that didn't happen. I was going to post them right now, but this weekend provided some very scary and blog-worthy happenings that took precedence. 


Friday evening, two families that I'm close to here in Joburg (and who live a minute from where I live!) were having dinner together at one of their homes, when three or four men, all with guns (apparently one had a machine gun), broke into the home. They told everyone to lay on the ground while they took their wedding rings, wallets, phones, and whatever else they could find. They also kicked a number of them and knocked a wardrobe on top of one of the fathers. They were trying to find the safe, but this family doesn't own a safe. Thankfully, that was the worst of it. Aside from a few bruises and being shaken up, everyone is ok. Please pray for all of them, especially the kids - for a quick (mostly emotional) recovery. 


That next morning, though, the neighbors next to my house were also broken into! While they were home! The perpetrators were never actually seen in that case. 


Needless to say, it has been an overwhelming and scary weekend. I constantly have to remind myself to pray, "get a grip", and think logically. I feel very safe where I live and the family I'm with has almost every safety precaution you can have here. I also have a wonderful boyfriend who is willing (and has) followed me home at night to make sure I get home safely. All of this, however, just reminds me that the world we live in is not, to simply put it, nice. It is dangerous, anywhere you live, and we all will go through hard and trying times. There is nothing certain accept God. I can't explain why things like what happened this weekend happen, but I still trust that God is good and merciful.


It also makes me grateful for Skittles and happy, kiddie movies like "Finding Nemo" that take my mind off of things. :)

Whew. Well, that was my weekend; how was yours?