Why spell check is evil...

I spent a fair amount of time on Sunday writing a detailed blog over all the comings and goings of the last few days. As I clicked the spell check button, the screen flashed and then opened up with a blank 'create post' page. I clicked on the back arrow and nothing came up. So, needless to say, spell check is evil!

I have already worked a shift at Starbucks this morning and need to begin getting ready for Ann Taylor this evening! House sitting for Curt went very well this past week and I am very thankful for Eric & Jenni Kelley (and girls) that are allowing me to stay at their house until I find a place to move into! Eric, Jenni and their three daughters (18 months to 5 years old) moved to Tucson from College Station the same day I moved here! We have mutual friends, David & Shelley Parks, who put us in contact.
They are a very sweet family and I appreciate their hospitality and kindness!

Brian and I are doing well and he is still being oh-so-patient with my roller coaster emotions.
One of our couple friends, Roger & Christina, are moving back to the northeast this Sunday so we are going to try to hang out with them tonight. There will also be a big going away party at Gavin's house this Friday!

Veeves should be coming home soon. I know she will miss the UK but she has to finish college! I am so thankful I am done!!!

It has been raining so much the past week or so. All of the streets are not designed to handle flooding so a lot of streets are closed/blocked and a couple of the overpasses are being patrolled by the police as people are walking close to the edge of the water to take pictures of rivers and lakes they didn't know existed! I think it is pretty funny that people are going this crazy over water, but hey, we all get excited about different things!

Well, the apartment that I thought was going to work out fell through this weekend. I am hoping another one I have checked out twice will work out! It is in walking distance from Starbucks and just a few miles from Ann Taylor.

I'll keep you posted on everything!
Blessings to you...

Maybe I like wearing 'heals' instead of 'heels'... how do you know!! :)

I don't know if any of you read and then reread my posts later but I just wanted to let those of you who do know that it is my mother that catches all of my spelling/grammatical errors and has me change them. Since this has become a near daily occurrence, I have just given her my info so she can get on and change the errors! So, thank you mom! And, I am sure that everyone else is thanking you as well for being able to read my life stories a little easier! Thank you!

So, I am now staying quite busy (praise the Lord) with my two jobs and working 6 days a week. Today was my first opening shift (4:30am) at Starbucks. It sounds awful, I know, but when you are working, all of the lights are on and you are having to function because you still don't really know what you are doing... it works out just fine. After I got off of work today at 8:30am (I am still in training) I worked out at Golds gym (because Brian will ask me later if I did go and he always gives me a hard time if I don't... he's paying for it... I guess I have to respect that), and now I am at the coffee shop with FREE WI-FI so I can write to all of you!!

I am still networking and looking for a career but am enjoying what I have on my plate at this point in time.
I have been able to talk to Lyndsey & Valerie a bunch over the last few days and have really enjoyed all of the laughs and serious discussions! I love having my sisters... who would have thought years ago that would ever have come from any of our mouths! (I really like my brother too... he just doesn't call me often!!)

My ACU friend, Daniel Carlson, came into Tucson yesterday from LA to spend some of his vacation time with his ole' friend and my new friend, Clay Utley. They are going to be driving around the AZ, maybe Sedona, maybe the Grand Canyon, they'll figure it out once they're on the road... boys! Either way, Brian and I met him for dinner last night! I haven't seen him since Cody & Chez's wedding so it was wonderful to give him a hug, catch up and have he and Brian meet for the first time!

I LOVE MY ACU FRIENDS!!! And I miss everyone so much!

That's all I got for now. I am house sitting Brian's uncle's house again this week... they have a pool... that is a nice convenience during the heat waves.

I can't think of anything else to keep you posted on at this point in time.

Oh... congratulations Mel Knox for your engagement! Dan told me last night... I am so happy for ya'll!

Okay... now, that's really all I got!
Ciao

For the mom...

Mom and I spoke today and she was updating me on the fact that Lyndsey, Catherine AND Valerie have not updated their blogs in the last couple of days and she has nothing more to read! So, here's to you mom!

Life is Tucson is good. I now have two jobs that have begun! Today was day #1 at Starbucks and for the next couple of weeks it seems like there will be a lot of training (which is a good thing) and learning. Everyone at the Starbucks I work at is very nice and sarcastic. Lyndsey, thank you for any useless trivia you have to share... I always appreciate feeling like I know a little bit more coming into any situation.

Ann Taylor is still going wonderfully. My feet are slowly acclimating to standing in heels for hours at a time. I think that the two jobs will balance just fine for now until another job makes it's way into my lap.

I have now narrowed down my living situation to two apartments. I am still debating but will hopefully make my decision within the next week or so. There are pros and cons to both of course.

Brian's dad and step mom are in town this week. They brought Brian his boat (he wants to go sailing this weekend) and Connie (Brian's step mom) is helping move her son into his new home with two of his friends. They will be attending the U of A in the fall. We had a family dinner last night with Connie & David, Connie's mom, Curt (Connie's brother & Brian's boss), Curt's wife and two kids, Connie's son, Kyle, his girlfriend, Dana, and one of his roommates, Steve. We had a great time laughing and picking on everyone at some point in time during the dinner.

I am house sitting Curt's house this week while he and the family head to San Diego for a nice little vacation.

I visited Gateway Christian church yesterday. I really enjoyed the people and the worship. They are still in search of a preacher and I can't say that I was the biggest fan of the style of the man that spoke... but all in all, it is the best all around experience I have had thus far. Hopefully, Brian and I will be able to attend together next week. I think that he will really enjoy the worship time! They also expressed the desire for help with the junior/high school groups which I would love to get plugged into at whatever church I decide to attend.
Either way, good experience and the people that I was able to meet were so friendly!!!!

That's all I got for now! I hope you enjoy the update!
<3 C

Thanks dad!

Thanks to me wonderful dad I finally have a links table on the left side of my page and have a cluster map so I can see where everyone is looking at my page! I would think that I should be able to figure that stuff out on my own but I never could... but DAD ALWAYS CAN!!!! THANK YOU & WAY TO GO!!!

Work is going well! I start at Starbucks on Monday and AT is wonderful! I am really enjoying the job, learning alot and like the people I work with! I am still apt/house searching but I feel like I am starting to narrow down all of the possibilities!

Ready Val's blog... she just got back from Portugal and had such a wonderful time! I'm so excited about all the wonderful experiences all of us Goode kids are getting to have! How fun is young people life! I like it! :)

I did get my first AT paycheck today! It isn't much at all and it will take a while to get used to the small # on the right hand side of the check... but at least it is money in my account!!

I miss you...

Everything is goode....

:)
All in all, things are going a lot better these days! Curt asked Brian if I would like to house sit his house next week so I am now able to have free housing for at least one more week! I much appreciative of this!!!!

Today has been my first day off in a week since I started Ann Taylor! I have spent the day finishing up letters that have needed to get into the mail over the past week and apartment searching. I have found a couple of good possibilities, it would just be so much more helpful if I could find a roommate.

Brian is out of town in Cali for the week on business and I am enjoying time to focus on jobs, apt hunting and working out on my own schedule. Of course, I do miss him dearly and am looking forward to him getting back toward the end of the week! It has been so wonderful to actually get to have him in the same city and go out with him... on real dates!!!!

I did get another job at Starbucks, so I now have two jobs to keep me busy at least 40 hours out of the week! These jobs are so much fun and I am getting the opportunity to meet a lot of very neat people.

It is still very hot. Every day I walk out side sweat starts dripping from my pores. Hopefully through this I will appreciate the winter months so much more!

I miss you dearly! Let me know what's going on with you!!!!

<3


Oh... and Dad... I still can't figure out how to do the LINKS thing on the template page. I tried to figure it out from your email but it is still not working! HELP ME PLEASE!! :)

Day #2 of Employment

I had so much fun working at Ann Taylor today!! I am so glad I have a job and get to interact with people all day long! It's pretty fun to dress people as well! A sweet mom and her daughter came in to find the mom and outfit for her Golden Anniversary!! I got to dress her and (in a non-snobbish manner) she looked good!! The managers are very friendly and then other women that work there that I have met so far are also very nice! I think it will be a good start to great things here in Tucson!

I got to talk to Philip and Lyndsey yesterday for a while and catch up! That was great to hear all the juicy gossip of both of their lives! Congrats again Phil to the job!! But don't you worry people, some day even the Goode kids with college degrees might get a steady job... :)

I have been receiving phone calls and emails for some of my favorite friends over the last few days and I appreciate it so much! It is always amazing how the Lord blesses you with special notes, messages, smiles, hugs, phone calls, etc. right in the nick of time!

I work for the next 4 days at Ann Taylor and have a little bit of temp work squeezed in tomorrow morning before my AT shift! I am so thankful to be staying busy and actually making a little bit of money!!

Brian is planning a work trip out of town starting on Monday for the whole week. So, I am trying to spend as much time as possible with him before he leaves... I don't know how excited he is about this but he will deal with it, dang it!! :)

LOVE YOU!

Life as a Temp...

I can't say it's the most exciting thing ever, but as Lyndsey understands whole-heartedly, it's a pay check and I'll take it!! Today I am working in the main office of the shopping center where I just got a part time job. Sort of odd to be here but not in Ann Taylor... Tomorrow through Saturday I will be at Ann Taylor working! I am so excited to have consistent days of work. Hopefully, I can continue to increase my hours and find another full time job as well!

To change topics, for all of you who don't know, DTR stands for "Define The Relationship". I know it can be confusing to some... Please, always feel free to ask!

So, Lyndsey got a good job! And today, PHILIP got a full time job! So, that only means that in no time, I should be getting a job!!!!

My temp boss has been very encouraging of my transition. I am very appreciative of people who don't really know me, or completely understand my situation and yet are very positive of the outcomes that are to come!

That's all I've got for now!

LYLAFB

I<3 Ann Taylor

Today was my first day of work as a part time sales associate at Ann Taylor! I am very excited about the possibilities here and am very thankful to finally have a job and be getting out every once and a while. Now, this job is only part time so I am continuing to look for something else but I am hoping that I will be able to balance both because I think AT will just be fun!

I went walking last night, I haven't done this since I left my sweet Brittany back in Dallas, and it was very hard! Hot and hard!!!!! I am going to go this evening... but I am trying to kill some time so it isn't so sweltering hot! Believe it or not, 5:30pm in Tucson still means it is at least 105 degrees out side.

Brian and I have been having more DTR talks trying to figure out what we both want, expectations, etc. Some days are encouraging while others make us both question what in the world we got ourselves into.

I will be working for the temp agency tomorrow all day and then will be back at Ann Taylor on Thursday, Friday and Saturday! I am looking forward to staying busy and actually getting some money coming in!

Brian is going to play his guitar at some bar tomorrow with a friend of his! I'm so excited for him! He's fabulous and he just looks so cute when he plays! :)

Well, that's all I got...

Not a lot to share

Sunday was two firsts... the first time to ever be in Phoenix and not just the awful airport AND the first time I have ever gone to IKEA. Brian really wanted me to go and have the full experience. We had a good time. We also saw Pirates of the Caribbean II... not as good as the first but still slightly enjoyable. I start my first day of work at Ann Taylor tomorrow. I am so thankful to be doing something eventful but am still ready to have a steady full time gig. I was very upset today and was rude to Brian... that poor kid... he deserves many jewels on his crown for getting to deal with me.
I'm going to look at apartments today... check out what is around.

That is really all that is going on in my world at this point and time. I wished it were more exciting.

TTYL

Dear Veeves,

Veeves,
I forgot to tell you that I saw Jason Mraz in concert on July 4th. Just thought you would be interested in knowing!

Love you,
Cather

It's Friday!!

So, today is about as eventful as much of the other days I have experienced in Tucson. I spoke with the temp agency this morning and let them know I would be available next Monday and Wednesday... they didn't have any work for me today.
I will wait by my phone today and see if I hear back from Canyon Ranch. The woman I interviewed with had said she will try to get back with people today after the last interview but will for sure (I've heard that before) get back with everyone by next week. So... we will have to wait and see on that!!

In other news, I have been able to speak with Tim, Kyle Lindsey and Brittany over the last 2 days!!! It is always wonderful getting to talk with old friends for long whiles! I miss everyone so much and always love to stay up on the gossip that is life else where!! :)

Well, I've got some thank you cards I need to write, so I must go!
Ciao

Oh... and today is the official second one year anniversary of Brian and I dating! How exciting is that!! Just thought everyone would want to know!

hot=crankiness

It really does! I never noticed it as much at home... maybe because I had friends and a job... hummmmm....

Sorry for the slight tangent!
I had an interview today! It went very well and I really enjoyed visiting with the interviewer as well as looker around the facilities. It is with Canyon Ranch (www.canyonranch.com). They are a wellness facility focusing on health and well living. The position I applied for is Fitness Administrative Assistant. It doesn't pay a lot but it is full time and I think I would love to work for a company like this one. I will keep you posted as I hear back from them within the next week.

I start my part time job with Ann Taylor on Tuesday! I am excited about getting out and having something to do! Maybe I can also make some friends along the way as well!

Brian is going to play guitar with some guy tonight so he is busy which means I will pretty much bored a while longer than normal! :)
I am going to a small group tomorrow with Clay Utlee (the youth minister at Palo Verde c of c & good friend of my older sister). I am very excited to meet some people around my own age and I will enjoy the fellowship!!

That's all I got for now... my espresso shake sure is good though!!

Come before Winter, Fiji Islands, June 2006

Here is the general run down of my week in Fiji...

Saturday:
I left Tucson for Fiji on Thursday evening... I arrived in Fiji at 5 am on Saturday morning!
When we got to Anchorage Resort we loaded our luggage into a couple of rooms at the top of the hill, went exploring for a while, and went shopping in Nandi. Later that evening, once other people had checked out of our rooms, we moved all of our luggage down to the bottom of the hill and got situated for the next week! The husbands that had come to visit their wives and my Aunt Suzy were still around for the afternoon so we were able to spend time with them before they left that evening.
This is me and Aunt Suzy!!! She normally attends all of the retreats but had to go back to the states for a conference in Kentucky...

During the shopping trip, we also stopped by the Orchid gardens that are well known in Fiji. Garden of the Sleepting Giant was founded by Raymond Burr (aka: Perry Mason) in 1977. He aquired the land to house his own orchids, which now display Fiji's largest orchild collection. We had dinner with the whole group that evening and relaxed before we prepared for all of the Come before Winter preparations.

Sunday:
The Sabbath... we spent the whole day in relaxation and quiet time. Susanna Ang (our missionary ambassador from Singapore) arrived today after much confusion from the Sydney, Australia airport people giving her the wrong information and having her miss her flight on Saturday! Once Suzanna got here we had worship time in the bure (gazebo), which is actually the wedding chapel of the resort, and a beautiful overlook of the ocean and surrounding islands. The four youngest team members, Brook Hollingsworth, Jana Graves, Shelley Parks, and me (Catherine Goode), washed the feet of the four team members who traveled/hosted the renewal in Singapore and had not been home for 2 weeks at that point (Karen Alexander, Cynthia Agnell, Jeanene Reese and Marianna Long). The breeze began getting stronger as the sun set so we had communion in Jana and my room and also spent more time in worship.

Monday:
Spent the morning in prayer and preparation before the women arrived this afternoon. I was busy with the video camera as team members greeted the women and helped usher them to their rooms and to where the snacks were. For the first time in Come before Winter history, all of the participants arrived on time!!! We then spent the evening with praise, going over the schedule and then ended the evening in our cluster groups... getting to know the women we have been praying for for months and preparing them for the week ahead. The two women in my cluster group were Laisa and Nancy, two of the younger married participants!

Tuesday:
During one of our praise times, the Fijian woman sang a church song in their native tongue and one of the workers of the hotel joined in with them. It has always been such a neat experience for the CbW team watching the hotel staff and their participation with us, whether through song, prayer, worship or questions about what we are doing and who we are!!
Through out the week of a CbW renewal all of the participants have a prayer appointment with the prayer leaders of the team. This renewal they changed it up a bit and gave all of the participants a prayer appointment assigned to them with one of the team members. I was so nervous about being assigned a woman to pray with; not feeling confident in my own abilities and worrying that I may not have the right words to share or the right things to pray. My time with Venina was so wonderful; sharing with her, spending time encouraging her about her ministry work and her support of her husband who preaches for their small congregation! I hope she was blessed by the experience; I definitely was!

Wednesday:
Jana, Brooke and I walked around on the beach during free time after the tide had gone out. We saw a massive jelly fish embedded in the sand.
There were beautiful shells everywhere! Being able to walk out further on the beach gave us a new perspective of all that surrounded us! The island is amazing, the view magnificent. Right down the coast from our hotel is the first village of Fiji. It is a small community and has a church dedicated to John Wesley (?), the first missionary to Fiji.

It seems that every place we travel to we are surrounded by such a neat history!

Thursday:
The day of presentations. All week the participants study the book of Philippians, reading the book in different versions during the Silence and Solitude times. Every woman must get up in front of the group and share what the learned from two specified verses of the book and then share their Monday Meaning (from the exegesis of scripture, how will they incorporate this into their lives once they return home). By the end of the day, everyone is so relieved to be finished and believe that this is pretty much the end of the renewal! That night we host a fun, layed back party for them. This time the theme was suppose to be 1950's beach party but it turned into a wild Polynesian Dance Party with fire dancers and a lot of cultural dances.
It was a great time had by all but a little surprising at times... that is all I can say about this matter! :)


Friday:
The last day of the renewal. I think that Friday is the sweetest day we share with these women. Most of the time, the participants have had a wonderful week in their own spiritual renewal and allowing themselves a week of relaxation with the Lord and in fellowship of other believers. For our last worship time, the women prepare the worship and allow the team to participate whole-heartedly. They then go off for their last Quiet Time before the renewal ends. During this time, the team sets up the chairs in a circle with only enough seats for the participants. As the women walk in they grab their last gift that is sitting on the chairs, (one of the other features of the retreat is honoring the women with gifts. We give them two small gifts a day; a picture frame, pot pourri box, note pad, socks, nail polish, etc. Just another way to thank them for all of the work they are doing for the Lord in their countries/areas of town.) and sit down... all done quietly. Once the women are sitting we explain to them that this is a time of blessing. Each team member blesses the women in their cluster group that they have been praying with all week. It is a sweet time, normally tears and lots of hugs are involved, and we, the team members, spend our own short moment, thanking these women for their work and praying for their strength once they return to the battle field.

At the end of this time, the last blessing that is given is from our Missionary Ambassador (Suzanna) to the woman she is passing the cloak to. Our new missionary ambassador from Fiji to Kenya is Jo Tukana! She is an amazing woman, deeply in love with the Lord, and spends her days as a nanny to a wonderful little boy! Because she nannies a boy who has homes in two different cities, she has been able to develop relationships with many of the churches and women in Fiji. She also attended the South Pacific Bible College in New Zealand, so she had great relationships with the women that were at the renewal representing NZ.
Coming from Fiji, money in this community is not pouring in. The women of this renewal are so excited for this experience for Jo and the representation she is for all the women... they are all wanting to pull together and help her raise the money needed for her to make it to Kenya in March of 2007.

I know that I have not explained this very well but believe we when I tell you that watching the women embrace her and dedicate their help and support in fund raising for her... the Lord is working my friends, and it is always amazing to me to see what He is doing for others... and in my life!!!

Saturday:
We went snorkeling at South Sea, an island about 30 minutes away by boat. We saw the most amazing electric blue star wash covering the ocean floor, a sting ray and fabulous coral all over!! It was such a fun day and a gorgeous end to our time in Fiji! I am glad that I was able to go and see God's creations that just don't exist in Dallas, TX or Tucson, AZ! :)

Sunday:
Time in worship and saying our goodbyes to Suzanna as she headed back to Singapore. We left that evening at 10pm... and with the time change, Brian picked me up in Tucson at 7pm on Sunday!! Crazy huh?!?!?? :)

Well, I love you all and thank you for your prayers and support! I hope that this was enough detail but please feel free to ask for more information that I probably forgot to add during the writing of this entry!!
I leave you with a picture of one of the amazing sunsets that ended most of our evenings in Fiji! The Lord is mighty!!

I'm BACK!!

Hello friends and family!! I am now officially back from Fiji. I did not have access to internet while I was there so I have a lot of catching up to do! And, I would love to do that right now... but I left all my notes in a suitcase that is not with me at the coffee shop where I get FREE WIFI!!!! right now! So, I will attach a few pictures and will promise that within the next few days I will update you all on the wonderful/amazing/fabulous/etc. etc. etc. renewal that I just got back from!!!

Veeves, I will try to keep you entertained as possible but can not promise anything!!

This is a picture of the big hill we had to walk up every day to get to the meeting room. The rooms to the left are the rooms that the team stayed in. Each little house was like a duplex holding two people in each room.
Here is a picture of one of the many amazing (that doesn't really describe it... no word does), phenomenal (still doesn't describe what we saw) sun sets that we were so blessed to experience. The sun rises weren't too shabby either!! The first day we got to the Anchorage Resort/Hotel, Jana Graves, one of the team members that had already arrived, greeted us with big hugs and pretty flowers to put in our hair. This is a picture of myself the first day I was in Fiji with the background of our hotel behind me!!


Another sight off the balcony where all of our meetings and study sessions were! We were surrounded by beauty in the dead of their winter. The 70's and 80's was lovely for those of us from Texas and Arizona but for the Fijians... they were all in sweaters sniffling and carrying their kleenex everywhere they went!!

I will update with more information through the week as I can!!
Thank you for all of your support and prayers! I hope to have the dvd finished and being approved by Karen within the next month!!

Blessings... and it's good to be back in the blogging world!! :)

Catherine