Italia Sneak Peak

Italy was amazing. Simply amazing. I'm still processing, pondering, laundrying, cleaning and sleeping, but here are the highlights:

Lots of gelato eating....

Duomo seeing......
Pasta and wine eating.......
Ancient ruin seeing.....
Historical places viewing.....
Surreal moments......
Wine drinking......
And wishing to go back......

The Day before....

.....you can recognize a campaign staffer by the drinks on their desk. This should signify how the next 36 hours is going to go for me. For those worried about my caffeine intake, I have now added a water bottle to the mix.

Have you seen a campaign staffer?

#3. Their pockets or purses jingle with the delightful sound of an advil/tylenol/excedrin bottle, seeing as the headache that has persisted the last week has still not gone away.

#4. To repeat an earlier point, they always have two phones in their hands. This morning at the doctors office I was chided and made fun of by my doc for sitting on the examination table with both phones in hand.

#5. You see them leaving restaurants with mass quantities of food in their hands. Actually in this case you are probably witnessing some poor, unpaid intern running around doing the bidding of his bosses.

7....er...6 days

In honor of the election taking place in seven days and completely consuming the lives of campaign staffers all across America, including mine, I will be posting every day various ways you can identify an overworked, underpaid campaign staffer. This is important for you to recognize as they are likely running on little sleep, caffeine, last weeks pizza from the fridge and they could snap at any moment.

{Disclaimer: at this point, I realize that it’s 6 days away from the election. I meant to post this yesterday but got distracted by, well, everything. Take your pick of things that distract you, I was probably distracted by it. Off the top of my head, yesterday I dealt with a screaming cursing man who didn't like my candidate, a high school kid who hung up on said man, an internet outage, a sweet older lady who couldn't figure out how to make a call, and a deluge of Vietnamese callers who could not understand what I was asking and vice versa. Today I've dealt with the killer mosquitos in my apartment, my car being five months past the registration date (thank you for pointing that out officer), a tire that needs to be changed on my car, a tire that needs to be changed on our other car and I still have to find time to do laundry and throw things in a suitcase for Italy. By the way}

#1. You know you’ve seen a campaign staffer when you spot someone running down the aisles of the grocery store, grabbing boxed foods that can be eaten on the go and are juggling two cell phones – on one they are talking and the other they are emailing. Most likely in this scenario they are on a conference call with the candidate and trying to sound like they are in the office, so do your best to avoid them.

#2. You know you’ve encountered a campaign staffer when you ask them a simple question and as they answer your question their voice slowly starts to rise and they get really passionate about their answer. If that’s the case, it’s simply because they are used to defending the every move of their boss.

More to come…..

A Letter to Sears

Dear Sears,

Last week you had a fantastic sale on New Balance Tennis Shoes. Seeing that my husband needed a new pair of tennis shoes, as his current ones were given to him by my Father three years ago and who knows how many years my Father wore them, I decided to buy him a pair. Looking at my busy schedule as a campaign worker leading up to the election in November, I decided to buy the shoes from Sears.com. Even more exciting, I found a 20% off coupon code that included free shipping. I was so excited about the great deal I was getting without ever having to leave my couch!

After some difficulty ordering the shoes from the website, I finally entered my credit card information and purchased a snazzy new pair of tennis shoes on a Monday evening. Much to my surprise, a package from UPS arrived in the mail the very next Thursday! Could it be that my order was processed, shipped and received in just 4 short days? Amazing!

But then I opened the box and this is what I found:

One shoe. The left shoe, to be specific.

Really, Sears? I was not aware that I needed to specify in my order that I wanted the left AND right shoe included in my order.

Slightly frustrated, I picked up my cell phone to call the number listed on the "invoice." I put this in quotes because it was not really an invoice at all, but an email printed off with my order information. But I digress.

I called the 1-800 number listed on the "invoice." I spoke with a nice girl on the other end, but I ran into some problems. Mainly, every time I asked her a question she put me on hold for around 4 minutes and then came back with the answer. I was not asking hard questions, mainly ones such as: "Hi, I ordered a pair of shoes and only one came in the mail. What do I need to do to get my second shoe?" Like I said, not a hard question. Oh, also she kept apologizing that I only receive one "piece of shoe." One piece of shoe? Really?

After about 25 minutes of playing this fun little ask-a-question-get-put-on-hold game, I asked to speak to a supervisor. I was put on hold for 5 minutes and then the "supervisor" picked up the phone. I put it in quotes because I am 99% positive that it was the same girl I had just spoken to, she was just using a different name. But since I cannot prove that, I'll move on.

The supervisor told me my only option was to send the shoes back to Sears and then she could place a new order for two shoes. The catch was that my debit card would be charged for the second pair of shoes and I would not get my money back from the original shoe purchased for up to 15 business days. That was unacceptable to me. I can understand this process if I made a mistake and ordered the wrong item, but you only sent me one shoe! She assured me the money would be refunded to my card, but how could I trust that? I trusted you to send me two shoes!

The only remedy I could find was to go into a Sears store and exchange the shoes. Seeing that I had to work this past Saturday, my sweet husband went into the store to make the exchange. It took him six associates, three trips across the store, several phone calls to Sears.com from the associates in the store and an hour to make the return. An hour later, he finally walked out with two shoes, albeit in a wide not regular but at that point we didn't care, he was just glad to have two shoes. Or pieces of shoe, as the 1-800 girl would have said.

Last night he decided to try out his new pair of shoes on our evening walk. He pulled them out of the box and was about to put them on. Then he noticed something. The associates at Sears forgot to take the anti theft device off his shoes.

Really Sears?

So let's recap. In an effort to save time, I ordered shoes from Sears.com. My order came to me short one shoe. I then spent 30 minutes on the phone trying to figure out how to get the other shoe. My husband spent over an hour in a Sears store trying to return the shoes. Then we got home and realized that the anti theft device was still on the shoe. In my desire to save time and order off the internet, I have now cost myself over 2 hours.

So now I will have to go back to Sears to get them to take the anti theft device off my husbands shoe.

The only positive thing in the midst of this is that all my friends have gotten a really good laugh out of this situation. I cannot count the number of times I have pulled out my phone to show them a picture of the single "piece of shoe" that came in the mail.

So I guess, thank you for a good laugh?

Sincerely,

Laura Murray

Finally a paycheck!!

So I got a new job last week and then realized that since I had to keep it on the DL for so long, I forgot to tell people about it once I was finally allowed to! Starting Monday, I will be working in conjunction with the Bill Flores for Congress campaign and Victory Texas to get Bill Flores and other conservative candidates into office. I am really excited about the possibilites that extend before me with this campaign. It'll be hard work - don't expect to see much of me between Labor Day and the elections - but I am very excited. When I look at my "political heroes" and the people I look up to, they all got their start working on campaigns so I recognize the fact that I will learn tons and gain great experience in the next few months.

I'll write more later, but for now I am going to sleep off the effects of my root canal this morning.

Colorado Sneak Peak

I just got back from six great days in Colorado with my sister and two of her friends. I am currently too tired to even process thoughts about it, except for the fact that we saw everything and had a great time. We saw Breckenridge, Evergreen, Idaho Springs, Loveland Pass, Mt. Evans, Echo Lake, Castle Rock, Sedalia and Colorado Springs. I headed to collapse into bed, but I just wanted to share two of my favorite pics from the trip.

MaryClaire and I at Echo Lake. Funny story: we actually have a picture in this exact same spot from when we were 10 and 2!

Colorado Sneak Peak

I just got back from six great days in Colorado with my sister and two of her friends. I am currently too tired to even process thoughts about it, except for the fact that we saw everything and had a great time. We saw Breckenridge, Evergreen, Idaho Springs, Loveland Pass, Mt. Evans, Echo Lake, Castle Rock, Sedalia and Colorado Springs. I headed to collapse into bed, but I just wanted to share two of my favorite pics from the trip.

Overdue Update

Goodness, it's been an embarrassingly long time since I've updated this blog. Oops. It's been a crazy 5 months for me! Here's a snapshot of life since January....

It snowed. ALOT. More snow than I have ever seen. It was, for this Texas girl, a dream come true. I loved waking up to see snow outside my window. It was delightful to hear kids shrieking with joy during snowball fights. Sometimes, I would just stand on my balcony and breath in the cold, sharp air. I loved it. Nathan and I also got the chance to make our first, legit snowman.

Nathan learned how to make pizza!! Seriously, he makes the best pizza I have ever had. I'm not just saying that because I have to, it really is phenomenal pizza. Our friends who have tried it can attest to this fact. Free on a Sunday night? Join us for our new Sunday night tradition: pizza, beer and a movie. It's a delightful way to end the weekend and prepare for the week ahead.

It's finally baseball season!! We love love love Rangers baseball. So far we've only been to a few games, but it is a delightful way to enjoy the not yet stifling hot Texas evenings.

We went back to Tyler for the weekend for MaryClaire and Hannah's Prom weekend. Aren't they gorgeous??

On a side note, Mom's dog Sadie got a really really bad haircut. Mom is currently refusing to take her in public until her hair grows back. While she no longer looks like a naked mole rat, she still has yet to achieve her pre haircut level of cuteness.

Nathan took me to Chicago to celebrate my 25th birthday, my graduation from University of Dallas and our two year anniversary! It was such a fun weekend to get away and explore a new city together.

I completed my Masters in Politics! It was a crazy busy two semesters, but I am so glad I crammed it all in and was able to complete the program in a year. I love the education that I received at the University of Dallas. In all seriousness, if anyone is looking to get a Masters in Humanities, History or Politics, I would highly recommend UD. They are unique in their approach because they teach and study out of primary sources, so students can actually form their own opinions about subjects instead of being told what to believe. My professors there are some of the most dynamic, knowledgeable and friendly people I have ever encountered. I learned more about politics, history and my personal worldview in one year that I learned in four years at A&M.

All in all, it has been a great five months. Hopefully the above pictures can make up for my lack of blogging and allow you, my three readers (shout out to Nathan, Lo and Reese), to see my life in pictures since January.

I am now on the job hunt for employment in Dallas. There are some great options out there for me, I am just waiting for the timing to be right. Currently, I am volunteering on some great local races, which is keeping me busy. I'm still working a few hours a week for a PAC, which continues to further my love of politics.

Thank you, faithful blog readers, for giving way to my semi annual insomnia that is currently wreaking havoc on my sleeping schedule, and reading my almost coherent ramblings. There are no more drawers to organize, closets to clean, floors to sweep or meals to be cooked in my apartment. I'm ready for my body to decide to start sleeping again.

Until next time.

Writing Contest

I entered a writing contest a few months ago. I didn't win, but I wasn't expecting to. The prompt was: when did you first feel like an adult? The question really challenged me and helped me process the last 2.5 years of my life since I graduated from Texas A&M. Just thought I'd share it with you. Enjoy!

Remarkably, I did not feel like an adult when I was handed my college diploma. Nor did I feel like an adult when I landed my dream job in Washington DC and moved there with $1000 in my pocket and nowhere to live. And I didn’t even feel like an adult when I walked down the aisle to marry the man of my dreams. I didn’t feel like an adult as my husband and I combined our salaries after marriage and realized we were making over $100,000 a year at age 23.

That all changed November 4, 2008. While this date holds high sentimental value as the day when the first African-American was elected into office, that’s not the reason I feel like an adult.

No, November 4, 2008 was the day I was called into the CEO’s office, told I was a valued employee but unfortunately, I was to be let go. I had 10 minutes to clear my desk, say goodbye to coworkers and then walk to my car and melt into a sea of tears.

My sweet husband was the first to get the news. It didn’t completely shock us. Financial firms internationally were laying people off and we had been putting money in savings just in case. He offered to take the rest of the day off work to spend with me, but I told him to stay – someone had to make the money now! After phone calls to my parents and close friends, I finally collapsed on the couch, completely and utterly exhausted. I had been given a generous severance package, so finding a new job was the last thing on my mind. I was determined to keep high spirits and conquer all those pesky things on my “one day when I have the time” list. So for the next two months that’s exactly what I did. I learned how to cook, for which my husband was very grateful. I did all the Christmas shopping before Christmas Eve. I deep cleaned our small apartment and got rid of all our useless still-in-a-box wedding presents. I wrote letters. I spent quality time with friends and their children. I had lunch with my Mom. I spent time with my brothers and sisters. I organized every drawer in our home. I started reading again, something I was unable to find time to do when working.

And then just like that, I ran out of things to do. I looked up and it was January 5^th, 2009 and the days and weeks and months were stretching out before me – taunting me with their emptiness. Still determined to remain optimistic and in high spirits, I started the job search. I figured that surely someone with political experience on Capitol Hill and a degree from a respected University in our state would have no problem finding employment. Was I ever wrong.

January dredged by in front of my eyes. February solemnly began, had a middle and ended. By early March, my husband and I had to face the fact that a new salary wasn’t going to surface soon. So we cut our budget. And then we cut it again. A few weeks later we figured out the minimum amount of money it would take to purchase groceries (eating out was a thing of the past), pay for dry cleaning, gas and miscellaneous expenses and cut our budget again – that left us at $200 a week. For everything. I cannot count the number of times that I dissolved into tears over the prospect of having to eat dry pasta with butter for dinner. My husband, ever the trooper, would kindly smile my direction, dig through the couch for change and head to Chick Fil A. We began to get used to the stealthy glares from waiters at restaurants as we ordered one plate to share and waters to drink. We moved to a smaller apartment. I started to get creative in how I shopped for groceries. I began to compare prices at stores across town. I went to one store to get fruits and veggies, a different store for dry food staples and yet another one for household needs and cleaners.

And then all of the sudden I woke up one morning and life didn’t seem to be so difficult anymore.

Grocery store trips turned into a contest against myself to come in under budget. Desperate glances into our empty pantry turned into an adventure on what I could create for dinner that night. We began to discover fun things to do in our city that were free. I learned that the movie theater down the street offered the first showing of the day on Saturday for $5.00, so we turned Saturday morning into our “date night.”

That’s when I realized I was a grown up. Life will continue to throw curve balls at me. Jobs will end. Careers will change. Cars will break down. Friends will let me down. Money will always seem scarce. But it doesn’t matter, not really. What matters is celebrating life. It is waking up every morning with a renewed sense of purpose. It’s glancing across the bed in the morning and still being surprised that the guy who sat next to me in sophomore economics, the crush I had for years, actually married me. It’s enjoying lunch with my Mom. It’s driving 2 hours on Friday nights just to watch my sisters cheer at a football game.

It’s life. And I wouldn’t miss it for the world.

Haiti

My heart, our hearts, should be more burdened for what is going on in Haiti. So often, it is easy for me to forget that suffering exists in the world. From my comfortable vantage point on the couch, life is easy. It seems impossible to imagine the chaos, fear and uncertainty that is gripping lives all across Haiti right now.

I wish there was something that I could do to help. Nathan and I have donated money, but I wish there was more. I was just convicted as I walked into my bathroom, opened the drawer and pulled out Neosporin and a bandaid for my burned finger. My injury is tiny compared to the children who have broken their pelvis, back, arm, leg or shoulders in the earthquake.

Nathan and I chose to donate to Samaritan's Purse, https://www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php/Giving/Haiti_Donation/, which is just one of many organizations that are providing relief in Haiti. We have also donated through this site: http://aaronivey.portmerch.com/stores/product.php?productid=17149. I wish I could give more.

I know that this is all part of God's redemptive plan, but right now I am struggling to understand how this fits in. I trust in the sovereignty of the Lord, but that is easy to say as I sit in my apartment, with a glass of water in hand and dinner on the table. I would hope that my words and sentiments would be the same if I were in Haiti right now.

Some friends pointed me to this blog, and I have found it extremely helpful in understanding what is going on, besides what the media is reporting: http://livesayhaiti.blogspot.com/. You can also follow Troy on Twitter: http://twitter.com/troylivesay. He has been giving consistent updates.

The Haitian government today announced that they estimate 140,000 people have died in the earthquake. Sweet Jesus, please allow the rescuers to find more people. Allow the hope and the promise that resides only in You to permeate this nation. Strengthen the missionaries and the church in Haiti.

The Last Few Weeks...

In college, I never really valued Christmas Break. The 5 weeks that I didn't have class were fun and I enjoyed not studying, but I don't think I ever stopped to realize how great they were.

That has all changed now that I am in grad school. The fall semester started off fairly easy - I was able to keep up with the reading without much trouble. Midterms came and went without much difficulty. I knew that I had 5 final papers due the first week of December and then 4 finals the week after that, so I started researching for my papers and organizing my notes. I actually wrote 2 of my papers before Thanksgiving Break and my sweet husband spent a whole weekend in the library with me as I was writing. Then from the Monday after Thanksgiving until December 16, I did nothing but study. I'm not even kidding. I have never studied that much, done that much research or written so many pages in my life! I calculated it up: I wrote 75 pages over 2.5 weeks! Crazy. Needless to say, I did more intense studying in those 2.5 weeks then I ever did in undergrad. I honestly didn't speak to Nathan for longer than 20 minutes for that entire 2.5 weeks, I didn't clean the house, do the laundry or cook any meals.

That has made Christmas Break so sweet. I have loved just getting to lounge around the house (which is what I am currently doing: still in my pj's, sitting in front of a fire, watching TLC, organizing photos and blogging). For Christmas, my family gave me all cooking themed gifts so I have loved getting to use all of them! I even roasted a chicken earlier this week - I only gagged and screamed twice, which I think is pretty good.

Christmas morning at the Zandstra household

Along with lounging around the house, we had a great chance to take a small road trip to just get away and reconnect, along with seeing some sweet friends. We drove from Dallas to Jackson, MS to see our friends Hannah and Scott, and their son Ethan. It was so fun to see them and catch up. The next day we were able to have lunch with Nathan's college roommate, Cal and his new bride, Claire. We had seen them at their wedding 2 weeks earlier, but it was so fun to talk to them for longer than 30 seconds. After Jackson, we headed to Memphis, TN for some bbq from Rendevous, which was absolutely amazing. We also got to see one of my childhood friends, Elisabeth, and her husband Austin. After a fun night in Memphis, we headed to Hot Springs, AR for New Years Eve. Nathan booked a really cute B&B just outside the city. Hot Springs is a really cute little town and we had so much fun walking around, looking at the springs bubbling up around town and enjoying the scenery.

Hot Springs, AR

Dinner at Rendevous in Memphis

Now that we are back in Dallas, I am just enjoying lounging, reading, sleeping, cleaning and hanging out with friends. Classes start again on Jan 19 and I can't believe that this is my last semester! I'll be graduating May 16, which is almost unreal for me think about. This time last year I was unemployed and thinking my life wasn't going anywhere. A year later, I am starting my second and last semester of grad school and the possibilities for my career after May are so exciting! God is so good. Can't wait to see what this year holds!

Sweet Friends and a New Year

Nathan and I spent this last week driving all over the South sight seeing, visiting old friends and playing with some new camera equipment. I am still unpacking and cleaning right now, but just wanted to leave you all with this sweet face for the night.......