Monday, April 30, 2018

Hiking Peters Mountain

at the ridge


Sara and I hiked Peters Mountain Saturday morning. The weather was perfect for our two-hour ten-minute outdoor event. The well-marked, four-ish mile trail was a fun, varied trek-- some rocks, some steep portions, a few switchbacks, lots of trees, and plenty of good views.


the Susquehanna

Thursday, April 26, 2018

real mountains with snow on top

way off in the distance

One of the things I was most excited about during our spring break trip in March was being with my youngest siblings when they would first see/experience some REAL mountains with snow on top! (the putsy tree-covered hills of Pennsylvania don't even register on the scales of true mountain competitions)

not so far away now!

One of the coolest parts of our drive was a 10,000ft. mountain pass as we drove into Colorado from Arizona.

oolala!

I didn't really take many pictures of the incredible views we saw, but we had a grand time soaking in all sorts of scenery and topography throughout the journey.

Tuesday, April 24, 2018

On Being an Accountant, or, Of Numbers and People

Well over a decade ago I was midway through high school and daunted by that classic teenage question, What are you going to do after high school?  

I never guessed I would be where I am today in life, doing what I do.

When I took the ACT exam, it offered a complimentary career path finder. I diligently completed the scantron bubbles and curiously awaited the little summary printout I received in the mail some weeks later. The results: it was recommended that I not work in a people field (healthcare and teaching being their main offerings) but rather work with things. Based on my bubble answers, their top job recommendation was for me to work in shipping and distribution (i.e. folding and taping boxes—and maybe eventually overseeing the folding and taping of boxes). I was not enthused, and never pursued a packaging degree.

Instead, I weighed my options between studying to become a dental hygienist or an accountant. It went something like this:

Dental Hygienist

Pros: 
  1. short two-year training for certification
  2. an excellent well-respected program close to home
  3. helping people keep their teeth clean just sounds like a very worthy cause
  4. practical skill can be used anywhere in the world
  5. part time positions would be common in the field (flexibility being an important career consideration)

Cons: 
  1. many science classes required
  2. lots of people have bad breath
  3. it might be too gross

Accountant

Pros: 
  1. accountants are needed everywhere (#thinkglobal)
  2. accountants can work/consult  from home, or hold part-time or full-time positions
  3. the profession is well respected
  4. I think I like numbers (at least I was always good at math in elementary school)
  5. a nationally recognized excellent business school within driving distance from home

Cons: 
  1. minimum four-year (read: forever!) program to get a degree—and that doesn’t even meet pre-CPA eligibility requirements
  2. accountants are smart—and what if I’m not smart enough and fail
  3. I don’t even know what accounting really is
  4. tax/busy season horror stories (quite literally terrifying)
  5. I don’t want to work for a giant scary accounting firm
  6. the thought of ever even having the slightest chance of being that person doing taxes in the H&R Block tent behind Walmart checkouts freaks.me.out!  YIKES.

In the end, the con of “many science classes required” played a heavy part in my decision to turn and run from the dental hygienist path (despite my big fears surrounding giant accounting firms, tax season, and those H&R Block tents at Walmart*). And while I do still love seeing bright, clean teeth, I’ve never regretted my decision to focus in the world of business.

My favorite thing about numbers is that they don’t talk back. My second favorite thing is that they don’t have bad breath. 

Numbers are essentially the opposite of people—in the most refreshing way possible.

Numbers just are. They are facts. 
It’s the manipulation of numbers that makes them meaningful and effective, but the numbers themselves… they are. I love me a big bunch of numbers that need to be organized and arranged and sorted and translated into relevant, meaningful sense for the rest of the world. I love black and white spreadsheets that aren’t fancy but are oh.so.practical. I love taking a bunch of information and fitting it into predetermined “boxes” (but not the kind you mail…) so the end result makes real-world sense.

But the thing is that I love people too. I love numbers, and I love people.


And the more I work with numbers, the more I realize how much numbers affect people.

Every.day.

Sometimes the day-to-day affects of numbers are happy (when I prep payroll), and sometimes they are sad (when I deny someone’s request for reimbursement for an expense which doesn’t fit within IRS guidelines).

And lots of times I wish the numbers didn’t affect the people, because it hurts to care about people. It’s exhausting to care about my employees as they walk through deep valleys of pain, grief, trauma, cultural, and economic challenges. Because in the midst of those painful, grief-stricken, fear-inducing realities they face… appears this funny little part of my life: money.

The money matters.

There are no plane tickets to travel across the ocean when a loved one is in distress unless there’s money.

Those times of rest and rejuvenation away from the demands of cross-cultural ministry… they don’t happen without at least a few bucks to sustain one’s physical needs while seeking to refresh the spirit.

And life—the every-day-normal-stuff-kind of living—it can’t happen without some everyday income.


Some days I leave work thinking dreamy thoughts about accounting jobs that are more removed from people than my current position is. Sure… you can trace all money trails down/back/up/around to people, but somehow hugging spreadsheets in an office with a door (an office with a door! Oh my. That is a dreamy thought…) on the fourteenth floor looks like it would provide a bit of insulation from the monetary realities that haunt people outside and below.

And some days I feel like I’d like some of that insulation.


Portions of the accounting field that deal solely with numbers are the portions that are most easily automated. Those parts that deal more directly with people and strategic decision making are the bits the robots can’t handle so well—they’re the reason we still have so many accountants in the ever increasingly automated field, and they’re the reason for my job security :). Robots don’t know how to weigh the realities of life with the realities of written policy. They don’t know how to combine empathy and equity. They are programmed not Holy Spirit filled. And they rely on algorithms not Heavenly wisdom when it comes to problem-solving those messy, real-life, every-day-money dilemmas.

My job continually provides me with two of my favorite things: black and white numbers, and meaningful life experiences involving a whole lot of unique people. And although I may dream of many beautiful things during long, stressful times at the office, I’ve never dreamed of that position as a shipping manager. Additionally, while being surrounded by bad breath remains an unfortunate normal life occurrence, I’ve never wished for that dental hygiene career either.

As an accountant right here and right now in this position, I choose to:
  • Celebrate the little victories at my desk: an improved process, a clearly communicated instruction, the happy news of the safe arrival of an international wire, a smooth semi-automated monthly payroll.
  • Pray through the struggles: those emails from stressed out peeps wherein I feel like I’m being yelled at (ouch), broken processes that never seem to improve, too many to-dos—all of them affecting someone in some way…
  • and Care about my people: an employee in crisis or illness, uncertain legal/paperwork renewals, the struggles of living far away from Stateside family, the one who still doesn’t understand even after multiple explanations…  all of them.  Each of them.

The people.


The people and the numbers.






*A couple years ago, I was unbelievably happy to learn that H&R Block's contract with Walmart was not renewed, and therefore H&R Block tax tents no longer dot the checkout lanes of Wally-worlds around the nation. Hallelujah for fears dispelled.

Sunday, April 22, 2018

The Canyon


A few more shots from our visit to the Grand Canyon last month.
It is, indeed, grand!








Monday, April 16, 2018

blog comments

First I want to say thanks to those of you who periodically post comments. It's fun to hear from you.

Second, I want to explain why I've been somewhat delinquent in publishing your (much appreciated) comments on my posts the past several months. The number of spam comments I receive is ridiculous. In fact, it's so many that several months ago my email started automatically putting all blog comment notifications directly in the trash. It took me a while to realize what was going on (I thought no one was interested in leaving comments anymore... but actually the real comments were all mixed up and lost in the junk comments out of sight).

If you're wondering what spammo comments look like, here's a recent example:

They make no sense.

Anyway, please know I do appreciate your comments even if it takes me a while to get them posted sometimes.

Thank you.

Sunday, April 15, 2018

Hike to Cedar Ridge


More shots from our hike at the Canyon last month.
Thanks to Naomi (and a fellow hiker) for a few of these pics.






good ol' trusty chitenge hiking bag on yet another trail



we lunched at this lookout. oolala.

some folks do this cardio-intense trek by burro





taking a breather on the way up

you can see tiny people going up the switchbacks on the rock to the left in the background of this photo

Friday, April 13, 2018

D.O.N.E.


This week I received results for my final CMA exam.
I've now fulfilled all the requirements for my CMA and anticipate receiving the official certificate in the mail within the next two months.

Praise God, all those hours of studying (estimated 550+) are OVER!

I.am.THRILLED to be done.

Thursday, April 12, 2018

faves


favorite mug
+
favorite tea
+
favorite blanket
=
favorite way to start the morning

Sunday, April 8, 2018

Pansies


I recently bought a carton of pansies and potted them outside our door.

Saturday, April 7, 2018

Brunch


Sara and I both had the day off on Good Friday, so we had brunch together and then visited a local greenhouse to buy seeds and dream about summer.


recipe for cinnamon sugar knots if you want to make some too
(I made minor alterations)

Monday, April 2, 2018

hotels


Somewhere along our 4,800 mile trek across the mid and south west last month, Logan attained Genius booking status through Booking.com. (Booking.com likes people who take long road trips which require many hotel rooms.)

Because variety is part of what keeps life interesting, we set out to experience a different brand of accommodation every night of our trip.
(actually, we didn't really have this goal, but I thought it would be a fun goal, and...
turns out, we did it!)

If you're curious about our sleeping stops, here's the run down:
  1. Hampton Inn near St. Louis airport in St. Louis, MO
  2. Howard Johnson in Oklahoma City, OK
  3. Econo Lodge in Santa Rosa, NM (I know, this one may sound sketchy, but I assure you it wasn't. It was recently remodeled, and conveniently located on historic Route 66 [insert a Route 66 infatuation emoji]. This is the first hotel I've stayed at here in the States which boasted a hard floor rather than carpeting throughout the room. Brilliant, absolutely brilliant.)
  4. Airbnb in Mesa, AZ
  5. Best Western Premier in Tusayan, AZ right near the Grand Canyon (This was the most expensive and worst of our stays. We were sure to leave a poor review. All other hotels received top notch reviews. The massive number of tourists plus the lack of accommodation options near the Canyon seemed to be what keeps this hotel alive... not its excellent service.)
  6. Comfort Inn in Page, AZ (This one had beautiful Canyon photos on the walls)
  7. The Academy Hotel in Colorado Springs, CO (breakfast pictured below)
  8. Days Inn in Ellis, KS (note: it can be a challenge to find a hotel in Kansas as there is hardly anything-- trees, buildings, towns, etc.-- in the State. This hotel was excellent and we recommend it next time you are in Kansas.)
  9. LaQuinta Inn and Suites in Indianapolis, IN

And now, a word about hotel breakfasts, because, that's one of the funnest parts of hotels. [Did I ever tell you about the one I stayed in last year which had a pancake making machine?!] Anyway:

When I was five and we took our big trip to Washington D.C., the ultimate hotel breakfast consisted of doughnuts and Fruit Loops.
I realized midway through our recent road trip that none of the hotels we had stayed at offered Fruit Loops! Hopefully our route/stay combination is not a common one for five-year-old little girls, because that could turn out to be an ultra disappointing vacation.
 (Note: we did encounter some Fruit Loops later in the trip.)

Breakfast at The Academy Hotel, Colorado Spring's premier breakfast stop
(according to the online hotel review world)
And a general word about our hotel stays throughout the road trip:

I've spent more than a few nights in more than a few sleeping arrangements in my adult years,
and some locations have been, well, not the greatest. For example, there was that time when a cockroach climbed out of the bread basket at breakfast (okay, so that one was in another country...).

Logan's accommodation selections impressed me night after night as we pushed open door after door and surveyed our surroundings.
no smokey rooms
no stinky rooms
no dirty rooms

In fact, Logan's hotels included top quality wifi, served a variety of complimentary full breakfasts, and always contained a mini fridge to accommodate our #econoroadtrip needs. Each hotel boasted a minimum 8.5 star rating (out of 10), and was also economically priced (...except maybe the Best Western Premier near the Canyon...).

All this to say: if you're ever traveling and in need of a second opinion regarding lodging selection, I recommend you get in touch with Genius Logan :).