INSERT ALTERNATIVE TEXT FOR YOUR HEADER IMAGE HERE

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

East Coast Post

The Uniform :)

After leaving Chicago, the last place I thought I'd end up was somewhere with 4" of snow. Never had I even seen that much snow, much less lived with it for a few weeks! So, following my heart I found myself in Rockville, Maryland for 4 weeks attacking a major snow storm head on as part of a "Special Disaster Team" working with Dan for State Farm. As his assistant, I pretty much scheduled appointments, chauffered him around (much to his, sometimes, dismay, hehe), helped with the virtual paper work, billing, etc. Glorious, I know. :)

It was quite the experience I must say. I've never quite had a 14hr/7days/week job and I won't mind too much if I never have one again, haha. There were sweet parts of this grueling job like meeting tons of people and hearing their stories and being able to give them money to restore their homes. One lady in particular started tearing up when we told her the amount she was getting. She had been laid off and out of work for years and was so appreciative of the help.
Another fave part of the job was touring the million dollar homes and checking out the various styles, designs and decor. Pretty much felt like I was on a daily tour of homes, which I didn't mind too much.




Biz trips consisted of trips to home depot to buy 28" ladders. And meals were quick and easy....a hearty diet of Chipotle, Subway, Panera (and Starbucks for me) sustained us daily. Sometimes, I would get brave and cook mac and cheese or Hamburger Helper at the ole Homestead Suites, our home away from home. When we were feeling fancy we'd mosey over to the Washingtonian Center for Macaroni Grill or Uncle Julios, which actually felt like a big treat! There were also the Olympics on for a few of the weeks to distract us from our nightly calls.




Just another day on the job! Brooke: aka "the office"

As the time went on, it got easier and more tolerable for sure. But as all things, this too came to an end, and with it the end of my relationship with Dan as well. As Ecclesiastes 3 says, "To everything there's a season, A time for every purpose under the sun." And this was a good time and season.

What I learned?
I'm not as good of a driver as I thought.
The GPS is a road hazard.

I'm spatially challenged.

I like having a mobile office more than a cube!

A 28" ladder is a lot heavier than it looks and, ironically, can be blown over by the wind!!!

I like having my room cleaned once a week.

I can be addicted to caffeine.

I never want to live in a hotel...ok maybe the Four Seasons, but not an extended stay ;)

You can make anything fun.

That I am who I am and that's just who I'm going to be...

Things are not always what they seem.

There is only 1 who will never let you down.

I need church community, solid friendships and a social life more than I realize.
God truly is my rock, my love, my hope and my all in all!


So there you have it....another journey, another adventure. Lessons learned and love let go. Another beautiful part of the story God's writing for me.