Life

ENFP

I was reading through my personality profile and I’m always impressed at how accurate I feel the test is. If you haven’t taken the test (and have your spouse take it too), I highly recommend it. Jeremy and I have taken it and we both agree that each other’s results are stunningly accurate.

Here are the bits that are totally me.

  • They live in the world of possibilities, and can become very passionate and excited about things.
  • They love life, seeing it as a special gift, and strive to make the most out of it.
  • Project-oriented, they may go through several different careers during their lifetime.
  • An ENFP needs to feel that they are living their lives as their true Self, walking in step with what they believe is right.
  • They see meaning in everything, and are on a continuous quest to adapt their lives and values to achieve inner peace.
  • They’re constantly aware and somewhat fearful of losing touch with themselves.
  • An ENFP needs to focus on following through with their projects. This can be a problem area for some of these individuals. [uh, yeah]
  •  Others [me] may fall into the habit of dropping a project when they become excited about a new possibility, and thus they never achieve the great accomplishments which they are capable of achieving.
  • They have an exceptional ability to intuitively understand a person after a very short period of time, and use their intuition and flexibility to relate to others on their own level.
  • They place no importance on detailed, maintenance-type tasks, and will frequently remain oblivious to these types of concerns. When they do have to perform these tasks, they do not enjoy themselves.
  • ENFPs sometimes make serious errors in judgment. They have an amazing ability to intuitively perceive the truth about a person or situation, but when they apply judgment to their perception, they may jump to the wrong conclusions.
  • ENFPs like a little excitement in their lives, and are best matched with individuals who are comfortable with change and new experiences.
  • ENFPs are basically happy people. They may become unhappy when they are confined to strict schedules or mundane tasks.
  • ENFPs work best in situations where they have a lot of flexibility, and where they can work with people and ideas. Many go into business for themselves. They have the ability to be quite productive with little supervision, as long as they are excited about what they aredoing.
  • Because they are so alert and sensitive, constantly scanning their environments, ENFPs often suffer from muscle tension. They have a strong need to be independent, and resist being controlled or labelled
  • ENFPs are charming, ingenuous, risk-taking, sensitive, people-oriented individuals with capabilities ranging across a broad spectrum. They have many gifts which they will use to fulfill themselves and those near them, if they are able to remain centered and master the ability of following through.

 

 

Bucket List

Machu Pichu

Jeremy and I have been talking about international trips we would like to take once I have procured my US Citizenship. Peru is in our top 10, and Machu Pichu is a must. It\’s a physical challenge, which is exciting in and of itself, but it\’s also a beautiful destination in a country I\’ve never been to!

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Image from http://amasperu.com

I have some friends from Peru who can give me ideas on what to see locally. There\’s also a ton of seasonal deals with tour agencies that give you the whole Peru experience.  One more thing I\’d love to knock off my bucket list!

Life

Blessings

[vc_row][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]I\’m in that weird state where I feel like I have a million things to do. I also feel like I would have the time to do them if I weren\’t so unmotivated during the evenings. Things are busy at work and the following few weekends are packed with business clients, family, friends, shopping, and I feel overwhelmed sometimes. Then I start wanting stupid things like less friends, family, or business. But then the days are filled with some really awesome stuff too. So, to practice what I preach, I\’m gonna think about how blessed I am instead of how stressed I am! 5 years ago, I would have killed to have the life I have now.

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Lately, I’ve been, I’ve been losing sleep
Dreaming about the things that we could be
But baby, I’ve been, I’ve been praying hard,
Said no more counting dollars
We’ll be counting stars, yeah we’ll be counting stars
OneRepublic – Counting Stars

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]Things have been going well. I\’m just going to list all the goodness over the last few days.

  • I got to watch Thor: The Dark World. I totally loved it. I think I\’ll always love the Thor movies as long as Chris Hemsworth is playing Thor. He reminds me of Jeremy. He\’s white, dirty blonde, and loves hammers.
  • The First Issue of Lucky Peach arrived. I have been looking forward to this magazine since I ordered it months ago. It\’s a treat since it\’s a quarterly publication. It\’s well written, beautifully designed and on top of that, it\’s ad free. And it\’s about food which is the best thing ever.
  • We turned on the heater at home. :) I am toasty more often than not now.
  • We spent a fun evening seeing some friends we hadn\’t seen in weeks at Haven Hookah Lounge for Samina\’s 29th birthday.
  • I heard one of the best sermons I\’d ever heard on Sunday.
  • The holiday service projects have kicked off. I look forward to serving these few weeks. I never feel like I give enough of my time to the needy the other days of the year.
  • I was reminded that a woman\’s rights, and desires have to be fought for continuously. And I\’ll set that example til the day I die.
  • My ring was replated. The sparkling diamonds and shiny gold make me smile and I remember 11/1/12.
  • I actually cooked dinner once. It was a shrimp dish and Jeremy loved it. It made my day.
  • We can\’t stop watching Nanny 911. It\’s an old show but the psychological techniques it promotes works for people.
  • The tumor Jeremy had discovered in his side was just a fatty lipoma. That was great news.
  • We went to Steak ‘n Shake with my In-Laws. That Jalapeno burger is pretty sweet. :-)
  • Jeremy turned 29. :)
  • I got my Starbucks ornaments for the year!
  • We went to see Ender\’s Game. I enjoyed most of it!
  • The maid is at my house today. Tonight we\’ll go home to a spotless abode. It\’s an amazing feeling.
  • I have TWO boxes of Chocolate Cheerios. Two. I am in heaven.
  • We finally deflated the helium balloon my parents bought us for our anniversary…by inhaling it and laughing at our crazy voices for a few minutes.
  • I didn’t kill all my plants and remembered to bring them in during the overnight freeze.

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Photography

Ooh, Shiny

We got the engagement ring polished and super cleaned. So, before it gets all loved and dirty I gave it a little photo shoot on some flowers I got from a friend last week.

I love ring shots.

Engagement Ring

Oh, and check out my new logo! I just love it. I’m on the fence about whether to brand all my photography under this name, It’s just a thought for now.

Sunira Photography Logo

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Fall

Jeremy and I went up to the blue ridge mountains for the weekend with our small group! I enjoyed the drive there and back. The road was framed by such beautiful fall colors. All I brought was my phone but the camera is pretty nice! Here are a few of my favorites from this weekend.

Life

All Hallows Eve

I had a super eventful Halloween. Not only did I finally get an iPhone 5s (yeeeesss!) I found a fluffy little stowaway in my engine! I was leaving home to head into work when I heard a loud howling coming from the front of my car. I drove back into my neighborhood slowly, parked and opened the hood of my car with an awful lot of apprehension. I was thinking small raccoon or possum or rat or something making that howling noise. I was also fully expecting some half mangled animal caught in the belt. Thankfully, it was a fluffy brown and black kitten, badly shaken up but not damaged. I was able to grab it without it hissing at me and trying to destroy me so I brought her inside!  I named her Tabitha and Jeremy and I took care of her until she felt safe enough to run around and play today!

She is so adorable that I had a taker at work within 5 minutes of sending the adoption e-mail!  Tabitha’s new name will be Deborah (named after Dexter’s sister from the show Dexter) and her new brother is a puppy!! :)

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Goodbye Tabitha! You scared the bejebus out of me but I’m glad we met! :)

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Photography

Fall

Fall in Georgia always feels too short. I think it’s a personal problem since I always balk at the idea of saying goodbye to summer. I enjoy getting into warm sheets, feeling the wall of heat as I leave my house, and never shivering. October is coming to a close, and Fall is almost over, leaving me facing the incoming, unwelcome winter. I spent Sunday morning visiting Gibbs Gardens again, with friends. I spent an inordinate amount of time under this still-green tree, saying my goodbyes to warm weather.

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Tell the Wolves I'm Home
Books

Tell the Wolves I’m Home

Tell the Wolves I'm HomeIf I’m a hundred percent honest with you, I’d tell you I don’t read much. Books were something I enjoyed in my youth until schooling and expectations turned books into these heavy things that carried your future. They were not fun and they were a means to an end, always. The joy of books seeped out of me slowly, all through high school and college and as I used them to only hone my skills in other fields after graduation.

But the truth is, books are pretty amazing. They can carry entire stories and place them in your soul like no television series, or movie, or even some life experiences can. And I was reminded when, on a whim, I decided to buy a copy of Tell the Wolves I’m Home. I even remember the moment. I was walking through Target. Unlike most stores, in Target I meander in the aisles for no reason at all. The style of the items they tend to sell just resonates with me. As I was walking around with pillows, throws, shower curtains, and decorative doo-dads swimming around in my eyes, I saw this book on a shelf.

I’m not sure what was so eye-catching about it, or why I had to buy a copy when I got home, but I did.

The general story is that June, a 14 year old girl, loves her uncle Finn, who soon passes from AIDS. She is then approached and befriended by a man her family hates for what he “did” to Finn, and their family. The story follows as everyone begins to face their own demons and become keenly aware of the demons living in the others. After I had read this book I felt like I had just finished opening a Pandora’s box for emotion. It was all so sad but so deeply uplifting at the same time.

I really connected with June, the main character of the book. The way it was written, it was like Brunt reached out and pulled some of the words from my heart and pasted it on the pages.

Here are some of my favorite quotes, pulled from both my personal Kindle highlights and GoodReads by Carol Rifka Brunt from Tell the Wolves I’m Home:

“You can build a whole world around the tiniest of touches.”

“I was in a place where nobody knew my heart even a little bit.”

“I felt like I had proof that not all days are the same length, not all time has the same weight. Proof that there are worlds and worlds and worlds on top of worlds, if you want them to be there.”

“I knew the way lost hopes could be dangerous, how they could turn a person into someone they never thought they’d be.”

“I thought how that was wrong and terrible and beautiful all at the same time.”

“I thought of trying to catch her eye, so she’d know I understood what she’d done, but I decided not to. Everyone needs to think they have secrets.”

“The kinds of things I want don’t cost money.”

I highly recommend this book. I don’t think I have felt this way about a novel since I read Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier.

Travel

Forest Park

Forest Park in St. Louis is one of the most picturesque parks I have ever seen.  The size of Central Park in NYC, this city gem houses the museums, zoos and plenty of gorgeously maintained green. I can’t stop thinking about the weather in St. Louis. Day after day of sweet breeze swirling the 70 degee air around you. Fluffly clouds drew  their shadows over your face all day and you never really felt the sun. Jeremy and I didn’t get to ride the paddle boats around the large lake and it’s canals through the park. Next time we find ourselves in this beautiful city we are spending a little more quality time in Forest Park.

 

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