quote of the day

Johnathan: "I dropped my first phone in the ocean and now some dolphin has it."

Most Wonderful Time of the Year

I think I blog about this topic every year. And I think the people who actually read it care even less every year. But football is among us, folks. Last night my fantasy football league had their draft party. I have to say I’m very pleased with my team as I have Matt Ryan, Sidney Rice, Ledanian Tomlinson, the Steelers defense, Deangelo Williams, and several other promising players. This is the first year I’ve actually played in a hardcore league and I’m stoked. I mean I keep up with all the teams and their stats anyway, so I figure I might as well trash talk some people from my church while I’m at it. My Panthers probably have the same chances at winning anything as they did last year, but at least we’ll get the #1 draft pick again next year. Not that Scam Newton is currently doing us any good, but you never know. The Gamecocks also kick off their season this week at the Panthers stadium against ECU. Everything about that seems odd to me, but it should be an ok game I guess. Ya know, college football gets more and more sketch every year, as we have several teams trying to join different conferences, we’ve got players going to jail before the season even starts, and Clemson still has a team. It’s getting pretty ridiculous. But college football will probably always be my favorite worldly thing ever, besides Cali the black dog and finding out who’s killing everyone on Pretty Little Liars.

Here’s a fun joke my Dad shared with me…
A Georgia fan, a Clemson fan, and a Carolina fan hiked up a mountain one day. When they got to the top, they decided to have a little competition over who was the most loyal fan. So the Georgia fan screams out on the top of the mountain, "I'm a Bulldogs fan and will always be a Bulldogs fan!" and then jumps off the mountain. The Carolina fan then says "I'm a Gamecocks fan and will always be a Gamecocks fan!" and then pushes the Clemson fan off the mountain.

Happy football season everyone!

Friday Favorites

Confession: I don’t like babies. They don’t function enough to enjoy them and they are terribly confusing because they cry all the time for sometimes no reason. Few of you understand this. Everyone else probably considers me less of a woman or a dark lord with no soul or something. But I think it’s just because I haven’t had enough practice with them, ya know? I’ve never actually babysat for a baby, only older kids. I love kids 4+ because I’ve hung out with them more and can be silly right along with them. But babies are a foreign thing to me. And let’s be honest, if I haven’t mastered the knowledge of something, I usually don’t like it. But with all that said, there is a little bundle of sin that I’m already in love with after 1 ½ days of Earth life.

Her name is Savannah Kate Fox, the baby cub of Chris and Brandi Fox. It’s wierd that friends my age are having babies but I think I’m ok with it. As long as Savannah will still let her parents hang out with their friends every once in a while and do fun things, I think this will work out. I hope the Foxes never leave Rock Hill so Aunt Katie can teach her how to play soccer, tell her to stop texting boys, and secretly teach her to pull for the Gamecocks.

QOTD time:
Me: "She was in labor for 27 hours."
Nicki: "I've never done anything for 27 hours."
Stephen: "That's just shy of a work week for me!"

quote of the day

After being confused/creeped out by the ending of Pretty Little Liars last night...
Me: "WHAT WHAT WHAT WHAT!?!?"
Amanda: "You sound like Lil John."
Me: "Only you would say that!"
Amanda: "Quote of the day? idk but probably."

Friday Favorites

Medical records show that one of the coolest people on the planet, @ltotheburns was born exactly 25 years ago. For today's Friday Favorites, here are 25 of my opinions as to why Laura is one of the coolest people on the planet (and in no particular order).


1. She puts up with me.
2. She has the second cutest dog in the world.
3. She just bought a cool new house.
4. She's awesome with directions. Public transportation and her own.
5. We talk almost every day, even though there's hardly ever anything interesting to say.
6. We like to be recreational at the beach while everyone else lays out. We think that's dumb.
7. She likes to take road trips.
8. She always has her camera so I don't have to.
9. I don't feel as lame about going to bed early because she goes to bed at 9.
10. She pretends to be interested in sports when I talk about them.
11. I'm REALLY close to convincing her to start watching Pretty Little Liars.
12. We see dumb movies together (High School Musical, Hannah Montana Movie, Step Up 3, etc.) and we like them.
13. She loves Jesus a lot.
14. She had a lot to do with why I love Jesus now.
15. She's a fun travel buddy. Boston was a great idea.
16. She has literally the coolest family ever. They should have their own reality show.
17. She loves the kids that other people typically don't.
18. I think I'm responsible for her taste in rap music.
19. She listens to bands that no one has ever heard of.
20. We go to USC football games and she doesn't have to ask me what a touchdown is anymore (sometimes).
21. She goes to way too many concerts.
22. She updates me on daily Gaffney life, which I really appreciate.
23. When it comes to clothes, she can pull just about anything off. Still haven't figured that one out.
24. She is one of 3 that reads this blog.
25. She is a regular contender for my quote of the day:
Laura: "We should have a joint birthday next year. 26! That's halfway to 30!"
Me: "We were halfway to 30 at 15. But whatever."

quote of the day

Janna: "You have to judge a tree by its fruit. And that fruit is creepy."

#mythoughtsontwitter

In my book "Crap Katie Says" (release date TBA) there will probably be a chapter dedicated to social media. I think I wrote in a previous blog post about why sports teams need twitter accounts. Actually when twitter first entered the world, I didn't know why anyone needed a twitter account. But as more and more people join, I can see it now. There was that dark period in my life when I didn't have cable this summer and unfortunately the Women's World Cup was happening at the same time. Twitter helped me keep up with all of the scores and each play of the USA games. Similarly, I know every time the Panthers gain 5 yards and who's starting at Quarterback. But if you're not into sports, just pick a favorite celebrity or President to follow, dead or alive. It's cool I know every time Lauren Conrad designs a new outfit, when the cast of Glee is in dance rehearsal, that Obama is using Foursquare, and what Cameron Bunce is growing in his garden. Truthfully if it weren't for twitter, I wouldn't know about some of the world's happenings such as the recent riots in London or when we killed off Osama. Some tweets are hilarious and some are just quotes or website links that I couldn't care less about. But overall I have good feelings toward this form of social media. It's less of a headache than facebook most days and the 140 character limit is a really good thing for some people. So if you haven't joined the twitterverse yet, I think that you should get at it. Have me, your mom, your favorite rapper, and the Twilight vampires all sent to your mobile phone throughout the day. Who knows, maybe I'll start a twitter for the black puppy that lives with me. @iliketochewthings has a nice ring to it don't you think?

Quote of the Day

Amanda: "What if we just did a flash mob of Bad Romance right here in Krispy Kreme, stop I'm just kidding!"

KtB: "I love my TOMS. Don't buy BOBS though. I've got a sneaky suspicion that the same kids that are receiving those shoes are also making them."

Friday Favorites

I don't know if Jon Acuff has added this to his list of "Stuff Christians Like" but this Friday's Favorite definetly applies. Yup, I finally gave in. I bought TOMS. I've always been impressed with the business model and story of TOMS shoes, giving a kid in need a pair of shoes for every pair you buy. I guess it was just that everyone was wearing em and you could only buy em online and I just never put that much thought into it. But I figured for my birthday, a shiny new pair of TOMS is just what I should buy myself. So I did, and shocker, I love them. For as style challenged as I am most days, I do love shoes. And these bright reds sure are comfy. But ya know I've only seen mostly Christians sporting these flats in funky colors. Christians are more likely to back this "One for One" cause as we typically love underprivaledged children in countries we've never been while being stylish at the same time. So next time you're in a crowd and want to spot your future Christian mate, stop your wondering. Just look for their flat feet and a guitar case with the TOMS sticker placed among about 75 others.

Dang it.

Feet.

This weekend I volunteered with Shoes for Hope, sponsored by Samaritan’s Feet and the Rock Hill School District. Basically, underprivileged kids and youth could come and get new shoes and new school supplies. I didn’t know exactly what I was doing when I got there, but I volunteered to be a foot washer. I think some of the kids thought it was weird that some stranger was washing their feet, but that’s actually the best part of it. I was washing people’s feet, having no idea where they come from, where they’ve been, and will probably never see some of them again. Those kinds of situations are the best reminders for me though, about why we should serve people and who we should serve. Because it’s super easy to serve my family or even my best pals, because they love me so much and I love them enough to do whatever I can for them. But kids off the street don’t know me and have nothing to offer me. But that’s the best kind of service, the kind of service I believe Jesus is pleased with. It was really cool to be able to give kids a new pair of shoes to walk into school with on the first day. New shoes was always my favorite part of going back to school, I felt really good about myself if I had cool new shoes on. One girl’s face lit up when I put her new pink converses on her feet because it was her favorite color and I have a feeling she’ll wear those things out! It was also an awesome reminder about how rich I am. I wish I could do something like this every day, just to bring me back down a few knotches. It’s easy to forget how much I’ve been given when I spend most of my time walking my dog in one of the nicest neighborhoods in rock hill. When I go to my super fun job and get surrounded by people who love me and always want the best for me. It’s really easy to forget that some people have nothing. Every kid that sat down in front of me is loved by Jesus just as much as I am and He died to save them too. Our stuff and our status gets us nowhere in the end. That puts us all on the same level when you look at people that way and what a cool thought, how much He loves us.

"How God thinks of us is not only important, but infinitely more important. Indeed, how we think of Him is of no importance except insofar as it is related to how he thinks of us. It is written that we shall “stand before” him, shall appear, shall be inspected. The promise of glory is the promise, almost incredible and only possible by the work of Christ, that some of us, that any of us who really chooses, shall please god. To please God…to be a real ingredient in the divine happiness…to be loved by god, not merely pitied, but delighted in as an artist delights in his work or a father in a Son-it seems impossible, a weight or burden of glory which our thoughts can hardly sustain. But so it is."

-C.S. Lewis, "The Weight of Glory"

Fat Weekend

Every year since we were freshman, Brooke, Maggie, Erica, and I would save up all our money and go to Outback to celebrate the end of the school year. Our biggest problem these days isn't finding the money to treat ourselves with good food, it's finding a weekend when all of us are free to be together. Well this weekend, we all arrived successfully at Brooke's pad in Raleigh. Not only was it Outback weekend, but it was my birthday on Saturday, so we ate. We ate a LOT of freaking food. On friday night we went to this awesome place that had grilled cheeses and milkshakes. We ate at the Cheesecake Factory for saturday lunch and got our half-priced cheesecake (in honor of National Cheesecake Day! Convenient huh?) Then we played a hardcore game of laser tag and together won 300 tickets in the arcade. Our Outback night included but was not limited to: bloomin onion, cheese fries, wine, steak, wedge salads, mashed potatoes, and Carvel icecream cake, our favorite thing ever. I love it when friends find time for each other. Even after 7 years and several miles apart, some silly traditions are just too special and fun to give up on. It was a swell 25th birthday!

Quotes happened, of course...
Maggie: "I think I'm autistic."
Brooke: "Don't take this the wrong way Maggie, but you could totally be on the spectrum."

After taking her inhaler...
Maggie: "Now I have to go wash my mouth out so I don't get a yeast infection in my throat."
Brooke: "See, on the spectrum."

Maggie: "My boss is one of those people who are devestated by the fact that she's getting older. I'm like, don't hate me cause you aint me!"