Happy Little Trees

"I am the Lord, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?" Jeremiah 32:26

This verse has been rotating in my mind over and over. No matter what situation in my life, I apply to it, the answer is always the same. Is anything in my life too hard for God? No.

It's knowing power beyond a Magic 8 Ball. It's power beyond whatever poll I take among my friends. It's power that extends beyond my imagination. And it's the greatest comfort.

God sees. God knows. Thank you, God.

My hair is too long. I never thought I would ever utter that statement, but it really is true. For years, I was a girl with a bob, then I decided to grow it out since Carrot Top had pretty much the same hair style. And now, my other ginger brother, Shawn White, is torturing me with his long, auburn locks which resemble mine. But with those redheaded nemeses to the side, my personal hair has reached a length where it has lost its luster.

To remedy this situation, I am visiting Giovanni next week. I love my visits with Giovanni. I wish I could afford just to get him to style my hair any time I felt like it, because a trip to the salon feels like being slightly tickled with feathers and then floating on a cloud. For the rest of the day, I feel have a new bounce in my step.

Giovanni is always amusing. His stories--which sometimes border on their level of appropriateness--bond us. We're going on an over two year relationship--which is my longest hairdresser relationship. I sit in the chair, and sometimes give him some guidelines like "bangs" or "no bangs." And then he works the magic.

He always has the coolest clothes. Sometimes his own hair is wavy and dark, and other times, it's shaved close to his scalp. And he always has his ever-romantic Italian accent. Most of the stories he tells me (I have a weakness for good stories) are about when he grew up in Italy and his family.

Since most of my good friends also go to Giovanni, we catch up on everyone. "How is so-and-so's house build? And how is so-and-so since she had the baby? And what about so-and-so that moved to New York?" Then, he spins me around to let me examine the back of my head with a mirror, and then we hug and I leave until my next visit.

For years, I never had a constant stylist. I had a few from Toni&Guy that were pretty good, but I didn't connect with anyone before. As a kid, one of my mom's friends would drive for hours after she moved for an appointment with her stylist. I have become that woman. But the great thing about this man (unlike other men in my life), is that I want to share him! If you want his number, let me know!

For about two months, a song has been stuck in my head. I know one of the first times it stuck with me was when I saw it on a commercial. I may have heard it in earlier years when I was in my 70s rock phase. I think I used to have a Janis Joplin Greatest Hits tape.

I frequently find myself in the car, and suddenly the tune starts flowing from somewhere in my subconscious--and I must finish the song.

"Oh, Lord, won't you buy me, a Mercedes Benz...my friends all drive Porsches, I must make amends, Oh Lord, won't you buy me, a Mercedes Benz..."

I pray a lot while driving in my car. I pray for friends. I pray for random people I see. I'm hoping that this song is not confusing God because it does sound like a prayer. And I think the Mercedes is a nice car, but I don't really want one. It's definitely not something I would pray for. I'm not sure God should use his money to buy me a Mercedes. But, God's ways are higher than my own. Maybe I'm supposed to be driving a Mercedes for Jesus.

We'll see.

I've gotten back on the running wagon. I wouldn't say I'm an avid runner, but more of a casual runner. Right now, I'm training for a few 5Ks, and possible a 10K. I was all set for 10K training, but I found out about a 5K in Charlotte that might involve more hills and terrain than I'm used to, so I need to train a little bit differently than I would for Texas.

I love reading about running (sometimes more than running), and sort of wish I could be a trainer, like on the Rocky movies. I could get an old bike with a basket and put on a skull cap and yell, "Datta boy, Rock!"

But back to me and running...
I've been running mainly on a treadmill which actually serves a good purpose. When I am not on the treadmill and running outside, I appreciate the outdoors so much more. I also read about a marathon runner from Alaska that had to do all her training on a treadmill. She qualified for the Olympics. So, who knows what this treadmill training may bring?!

I did get out and about on for a run on Sunday, but it's a bit of a crazy thing to do in Houston during the summer. It's dangerous to walk around in the heat, much less, run. When I'm out doing my little jog and see men that don't appear to be in optimum health running around with me, I have flashbacks to the video I saw when I had Red Cross CPR training. I think happy thoughts like this when I'm running.

I also noticed that I have trained myself to be a hip-hop runner. My body won't move as well or as fast without a hip-hop beat.

My goals are to:
a) run without passing out
b) get my times down by 30 seconds per minute
c) not eat too much during the training phase and therefore gain weight although exercising like a banshee
d) run inclines
e) get some new running shorts
f) get some earbuds that don't fall out
g) learn how to run with a buddy