oh the biebster...

can I please just share with you how ridiculous this is?


Justin Bieber Cuts His Hair -- The PHOTOS

2/21/2011 2:15 PM PST by TMZ Staff  

The very fabric of the universe was altered today ... Justin Bieber got a haircut ... and it was unveiled on TMZ Live!


The Biebs underwent a little snip-snip today while on the set of a music video for a song he did withRascal Flatts -- that's Gary from the group (above) having a little fun with the scissors. (Ed.'s note: Kids, don't play with scissors) 

On TMZ Live today, Justin said the actual cutting was done by his regular hairdresser Vanessa. He said he was a little nervous about the cut, but he "wanted to change it up" and he thought the cut was "kind of a mature look."

They grow up so fast.

UPDATE:  The hair that was cut from Justin's head has been collected and will be doled out to a few organizations for charity.  TMZ is getting a lock and we're going to use it to raise money for some animal charities.

say what you need to say

Marriage counseling starts earlier than expected.
Giving relationship advice to people is interesting. 
I really feel like I lack in giving good advice a lot of the time. 
It comes from being an emotional, sensitive girl myself, who struggles and has struggled with a lot of the same issues that these everyone goes through.
How can I give good advice when I would act the same in the situation?
It's more about being an outside ear:
someone to say the things everyone else is thinking without realizing it, and pointing out patterns to be aware of in the future. And it's also about simply asking the right questions. Getting them talking. Letting them think out loud and admit things honestly and vulnerably.
Tip #1:
Journal. A lot. And be completely honest within your journal. Don't try to butter it up or add fluff or be elusive or nice or anything in fear of someone else reading it or sounding juvenile and making fun of yourself later. I've done that too much and it doesn't help anything. No one's going to steal your journal. And your future self will actually thank you for admiting the beginning signs of a failing relationship, revealing the way you truly felt at the time, and leading you to a clearer understanding of where things went wrong. 
Emotions are important and we're living in a culture where it is inappropriate to be honest with yourself. Feel what you feel. And when you're done feeling it, feel something else. 

Sunday nights...

It's moments like these where I just need to get off my computer and go to bed.
    yet here I am. 
I had a wonderful weekend. Both roomies were gone, so I got the room to myself!! Holla! It was amazing [getting ready for the day with the lights and music on; staying up late doing my devos and reading; and sprawling myself and my stuff all over our little room]. 
But I missed those roomies of mine. Kendra got back earlier this evening and we spent a lovely time catching up on each other's lives, feelings, opinions, and of course spent some solid time facebook stalking and youtube sharing. I really love her a lot. God has blessed me with an incredible roommate to grow with, talk with, and fellowship with. This year would have been so different without her. 
And I realized something about myself tonight:
I hate dirty dishes. I don't mind washing dishes, but I hate hate hate dirty dishes just sitting there, staring at you in your face, taunting you with their disgusting smelly dirtiness. When I see a dirty dish, I loathe the thought of washing it. Yet I have to wash it! Why can't I just wash it the moment I use it? Before it gets all old-dirty?
#annoyed
But I was also blessed this weekend. I think I found a church! [more on that later in case it's not for serious]. And God definitely showed up tonight at Singso, as the study body of Biola worshipped him in praise and prayer. 


I love my school. 
I love weekends. 
I love sleep.
I love my life. 

18 is my favorite number

Feeling reflective today. The weather reminds me of home. Not quite a bitter cold, but you can sense the moisture in the white fluffy sky. 


Just got off the phone with my mom. My sister took the train to Salem to spend the weekend with my parents (husband-less) and give them financial wisdom. I guess that's what happens when you finish college and get married, you start putting into practice all that you learned.
I miss home. I wish I could have spent the day running errands with my mom and sister... fighting through crowds at Costco, getting coffee and stopping by Great Harvest to say hi to friends, getting adjusted at my dad's office, maybe stopping by Dutch if my sister thinks I'm starting to get grouchy, and finally returning home exhausted to put on a movie and eat an avocado. 


In a few hours I will be attending a TV taping for the show "Joey and Melissa". Never heard of it, but it seems like a pretty good "LA thing to do". 


It's funny to be far from home... disconnected from the life you always knew but loving the one you're making for yourself in a completely different place. 




ps 18 is my favorite number. I just realized that today is the 18th and now have this new sense of hope for the rest of the day. 
I'm also wearing socks and flip flops today. (one white and blue striped and one white and purple striped). I was really nervous to do so (I know it's probably immature and hideous, but I find it comfortable and easy) but decided to just accept it. 
Thank you, Holly Cowan for your advice: "rock it girlfriend! be yourself! :)"
It's funny that "myself" is someone who wears socks and flip flops. What else does that mean about me?

DTR week

In continuing with the topic of wuv <3 and vawentines day, my college is hosting a campus wide "DTR week" in which they promise to teach us everything we need to know about relationships. Through extra chapels, luncheons, movie nights, and evening seminars, they will echo the message that "Love Matters" and define the important principles of healthy relationships.
...really Biola?

Half of me thinks this is ridiculous. Being a private Christian University already adds unneeded pressures to find your husband the first week of school and get married by senior year (shout out to my brother and his wife)... so do we really need a whole week dedicated to such a focus? We are already commonly known as the "Bridal Institute of Los Angeles", and jokes about "ring by spring" were never funny.

However. The other half of me, (the loud, romantic, marriage-counselor that is dying to come out one of these days) loves it. I loved yesterday's speaker on the "climate" of your relationship in which he defined how your interactions with people exist within a certain climate based on communication, trust, commitment etc. I'm also unashamedly excited for upcoming seminars entitled, "Dating 101", "Love Hurts", and "SEX". (baha).And to give the school a tinsy bit of credit, the speakers are emphasizing all kinds of relationships, not just dating-married people ones. So that's exciting.

The finale of the week will result with the event, "Boy Meets Girl"... as they bring in 20 TONS of REAL SNOW so that people can mingle and go sledding. Pushing the week to its limit of insanity, I'm sure this night will also be the cherry of bringing many couples together.
Awww. Maybe I'll counsel them one day.

Love Day

Well, it's Valentine's Day. 
I love this day. 
I love the excess of chocolate. 
...dove dark chocolate... yes please
I love the hallmark cards and valentines
..."I love us"... "hope your valentine's day is dreamy"
I love watching couples be extra sweet and intentional
...seriously, I do
I love the obvious thought on everybody's mind:
...."who is my Valentine?"


I don't love the people who can't appreciate a good solid day devoted to the appreciation of love. Yes, I realize that it is difficult to be single on a day like this: after all it is SAD (singles awareness day). But today is a wonderful opportunity to glorify God for blessing you with a time to fully devote yourself to him. Today is a wonderful opportunity to develop characteristics in your heart that will strengthen you as a woman (or man) of God in such a way that your FUTURE relationship will be blessed... because you will be more of the person God has called you to be.


This year, I don't have a Valentine (besides my daddy... boys are bad except for dad). 
Which means that instead of spending my night on a hot date with my hot man, I got to spend it studying hard-core for my first psych exam and watch Bride Wars with some girls on my floor. (And I ate cake, don't judge). I'm genuinely thankful I was able to spend my time this way, especially cause my exam tomorrow is going to kill. 


I will most definitely be super super excited when I do have a Valentine. I look forward to making a boy cookies (gluten-free of course), writing him a sweet card (and including a stick figure drawing of us in a tree), and getting dressed up for him so he finds me extra pretty (hopefully he'll bring me flowers). But even then, I hope that my attitude remains the same as it does today... content with being loved perfectly by my creator. 


Earthly love is an incredible gift from God, but it is only a mere reflection of the relationship God desires with his beloved.


I am my beloved's, and he is mine. 



Love is patient
Love is kind
It does not envy
It does not boast
It is not proud. 
It does not dishonor others
It is not self-seeking
It is not easily angered
It keeps no record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Love never fails. 
...And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

here I go!!

I was asked tonight if I had a blog. In my head, I said yes, I do have a blog. But I don't write in it. This disappointed me. I wish that I had something impressive to send to this person who asked, something that would inspire them and challenge them, and make them think of how cool, witty, creative, and interesting I am. But I had nothing. 
So now here I am, in a painfully-forced study break, inspired to faithfully keep a blog. That's a funny thing. I feel slightly intimidated by the blogging world. I feel like I have to share crazy stories and insights and meaningless information that people still seem to care about (yet keep it pithy enough to hold the attention of our "race the microwave while you pee" generation). But those will not be the expectations of this blog. 


Now, I am very much a part of this plugged-in, online database world.
I do keep a journal. 
I'll attempt to save my personal sob stories for that. 
I also have a twitter. 
I'll attempt to save my random thoughts and day to day breakfast schedule for that. 
And (of course) I also have a facebook. I'll attempt to save my networking for that. 


After that, I don't know if I'll have anything left to write about. But I'm sure I'll think of something.