today.

Today was my first full day as a summer resident in Marfa. My morning began at a ridiculous hour - 6:30 am when I was awoken by the birds chirping and the trains chugging along by the house. I like sleeping with my windows open out here because the breeze feels oh so good but the "city" noise just really messes with my sleeping schedule :) So, since I had some extra time after waking up so early, I went for a jog - I figured I would get my workout over with so I wouldn't have to come up with an excuse later haha. While jogging, I realized that, at least in West Texas, 6:30 am is really not an "unGodly hour". It is only at this point in the morning that one is able to experience a West Texas sunrise. I rarely see this because I normally sleep until the risen sun awakes me. But alas, today I had one of those breathtaking moments...and not just because my out of shape self was jogging along! The sky was truly stunning - purples and pinks in every shade just took over the sky and the mountains were a dark blue. Such beauty this world possesses! Thank God, for real, that there are moments like those. I found myself purposefully running up the hill - something I avoid at ALL costs - in order to see the multicolored sky for a moment longer. It was amazing.

Thinking about this made me also ponder the incredible genius that God is. He provides us with the day time hours of sunshine when we (at least most people) work and socialize. Then we have the night time, a few hours where the world becomes quiet, the lights are shut off, and we are allowed to rest and rejuvenate our minds, bodies, and spirits. How reassuring it is to know that, in the words of Scarlett O'Hara, "tomorrow is another day" - another opportunity to experience life and build relationships. I love that God gave us day and night, a time to "live" and a time to rest. What an extremely vivid example of His Grace - we live life and then sleep only to awake to the glorious Light and eternal life. Mmm, God is good and I see it so much more clearly from the porch of our little adobe house. On my perch, I begin the day with a quiet time to rejuvenate and remember, then work my way throughout the day with the town's sounds as my soundtrack, and end the evening with a gorgeous sunset and the quietening of streets and homes. I love it. Just another way to show that God knows our needs (to have a quiet time after a long day) and consistently reveals himself through daily activities (remember that our full circle of day and night reflects the full circle of a life in Jesus).

Ok, well, I have activities of the day to report but I will save that for another time. This gal is HUNGRY and must rummage around for something to eat. Hmmm, I'm feeling spaghetti tonight :)

home sweet home

As anyone who knows me would attest to, I have a loud speaking voice. It's probably about 1 or 3 decibals above a "normal" volume to speak at. I don't MEAN to be loud but it just happens. My sister says it's my need for constant attention, I think I am just deafening at a young age. In elementary school, I often got in trouble for talking - it wasnt that I was the ONLY one talking, they just didnt hear the others. So unfair! In high school, they teased me by saying i have a voice modulation disorder, or something like that... Whatever the reason, I speak loudly - supposedly people can recognize my voice from quite a good distance.

So, as you can imagine, those situations where talking is acceptable as long as it is your "inside voice", whatever the heck that means! Today I encountered such a situation. On my way home (aka to Marfa where I now sit tying away on the porch), I had some intense hunger pains. Rather than brave the sketchy McDonald's or use the nasty outside Sonic bathrooms, I sprung for some real food - Pappy's BBQ in Monahans. I dont really like to do things alone but I dont have any problem with picking up something to go and eating it in my car like a true loser. So, after having two very attractive and older men open the doors for me (sadly, they were both wearing wedding bands...), I entered the local joint. I immediately got nervous - NO ONE was talking! Wait, let me rephrase this: no one was talking above what I consider to be a whisper! It was weird! I had to order my meal in an uncomfortably quieter voice - such a foreign experience from the hustle and bustle you find in Dallas or Lubbock...or anywhere for that matter! I mean, good thing I planned on leaving from the beginning - the noise around my car was louder than the voices in that building! I did realize what the issue was: the customers were 90% men, they were all the rancher type, and they clearly had one thing and one thing only on their minds...FOOD. After a long morning on the ranch, I guess I can't blame them. But still, I had to rethink the situation: Am I really THAT used to talking at a normal level or was it just a weird place? Who knows...

So, as I drove the last 2 hours of my trip to Marfa, I had that to consider. Of course, I got tired of thinking about my flawed decibel of talking and turned on my newest book on tape: Harry Potter #5 - The Order of the Phoenix. For anyone who is unaware, I am a Harry Potter fanatic! I am now listening to the last three on tape so I can be better prepared for the upcoming movie in July. As I drove down I-20, I constantly had to turn up the volume...more than halfway of the alotted volume "dashes" appeared! So, maybe I really am deafening myself? Oh well, at least you all hear me coming.

P.S. it's fixin to rain here :)

It's finally here!

After years of hoping, months of building up excitement, and weeks of waiting for THE time to come, I am finally off towards my summer in Marfa. I have honestly wanted this to happen for a good five years now. Summer before senior year in high school, I tried so very hard to convince my parents that they should let me live, by myself, in Marfa for the summer. Forget that I was only 17, forget that I had no job lined up, forget that I had no CAR to transport me around the West Texas dessert. I just knew that a summer in Marfa was just what I needed to get ready for senior year and for "real" life - as if college is "real" life!

They, however, did not agree with my convictions. Much to my dismay, they would not allow me too mooch an unused car off of family friends or bike around Presidio County. I still don't totally understand but, then again, I REALLY wanted to experience that... So, now a few years later with a LITTLE bit of life experience and hopefully some maturity under my belt, I embark on the next adventure in the life of Abby. As a girl who LOVES to be out West and whose heart resides there, this experience is right up my alley. I am 99.99% sure that I am more excited for this experience than I was for last year's summer as a Spaniard. Even amidst the Spanish culture, handsome latino men, and delicious sangria, I couldn't wait for my return home and immediate excursion to the great west. Sorry Spain, ya never really had a chance with this Texas gal - born and raised!

Tomorrow I will leave the humidity and family love of Dallas to live in our Marfa house for the next few months. I have a really exciting opportunity to be THE (yes, the one and only) intern for a chain of hotels out there. They aren't massive or commercialized hotels. They still have the old, vintage style and hospitality that so many love about the Lone Star State. Not only do I get to clean toilets and make beds, I will get some unique and inside observations of how smaller hotels are run. PLUS, I will help them open the newest concept - a hotel better suited for the interstate travelers of today. For those in the hospitality industry, you know that if a student of hospitality management can get her hands on experience in OPENING a hotel, you are leaps and bounds ahead of the rest. YAY!

Along with work, I fully intend on utilizing the kiddie pool my Aunt purchased for my cousin and I, soaking up lots of local and cultural color, working on my lovely tan, working on my summer project (I want to start writing a book!), and spending hours upon of hours on the porch. Honestly, where the porch is does not matter - so long as it is in West Texas and has a view!

For those who want to hear about the horrors of working in a hotel; for those who want to know of my progress in finding my cowboy who will sweep me off of me feet and into his lovely ranch house; for those who just have nothing better to do this summer - read my blog, delight in my perfect summer, and experience the magic of West Texas with me.

"Texas is neither southern nor western. Texas is Texas." -Senator William Blakley