Cookie Are Harmless

So yesterday I had the following experience:

During work I was given a few giant cookies, yippe! I saved them to bring them home and share them with Lars. On my way home while at a stop sign there was a homeless guy holding out a sign asking for food. Now I don't have much and can be a very selfish person, but I had a cookie and honestly it was a flavor I didn't care for, oatmeal. So I rolled down my window and gave the guy the cookie and he seemed very grateful for it. Then the light turned green so I kept driving along my merry way feeling pretty good about myself. Then the car behind me pulled up next to me at the next stop sign and honked and asked me to roll down my window. I did so thinking there was something wrong. This guy then yelled at me for giving the homeless guy food. He told me that his roommate is a college graduate and is working at Walmart with other people that are in wheel chairs. He told me that I should be ashamed for enabling the homeless guy by giving him food. He said that homeless people need to get jobs and people like me keep them from doing that. I argued with the guy for a moment about showing kindness regardless of the situation and then decided he wasn't worth arguing with because he started to yell even more as I talked so I rolled up my window and looked forward and shook my head until the light turned green.

This guy ticked me off. But I wasn't going to let him kill my good mood so here are my thoughts.

It was just a cookie. I don't think giving a homeless person a cookie will enable them to never work. Besides that my motives weren't completely honorable because I gave away something I didn't even like. It would have been more of a sacrifice if it were chocolate chip or snicker doodle. But oatmeal...who cares!

Besides that who are we to judge their situation.I recently became acquainted with a lady and her daughter who decided to move into a shelter and become homeless not because she wanted to but because there is no money and the job market is saturated. This lady is very smart and educated so not all homeless people are manipulators, they are human like the rest of us just trying to survive. Even if someone wanted to work maybe they couldn't find a job. We just don't know the whole truth of peoples lives and we probably never will in this life. So until then we should show Christ like love and serve each other. I am not saying we should give to every homeless person we see everyday on every corner. I usually give if I have change in my pocket or happen to have food in the car. Friday I just happen to have a cookie I was probably going to throw away anyway so the opportunity presented itself to give it to someone else and I put it together and acted upon it.

I am Christan and I believe in showing love and kindness regardless of the situation. It is not my place to judge whether or not the homeless guy really needs help or not. Judge not lest be judged. Our scriptures say to help the poor. I saw an opportunity to help someone, despite how small the cookie was, so I helped him. To me it didn't mean much, but to the homeless guy it might have meant a lot.

Charity is the pure love of Christ and to me that means giving service, but doing so without passing judgement. In our church we teach to show love to all and to serve and help each other. I think everyone should adapt such an attitude especially in these hard times. Everyone is struggling in this economy one way or another.

A cookie can go along way.

I know Lars and I are having struggles to find work and make ends meet. Unexpected expenses get us down and frustrate us and getting a hand out from someone even if it is just a cookie would mean the world to us. A cookie in any form can ease hearts and minds. Even though we are having a touch time I still feel like we are blessed and are a lot more well off than others, so why not give.

My point here is we are all living in hard times and rather than passing judgement on people and not helping anyone, we should love and help each other, even if it is just giving a small cookie away... lets face it...cookies are harmless!

Trip to Vallejo

After camping we went up to Jamie and Nelia's for the weekend. It was awesome! We had a little reunion with all of Lars' childhood friends and we had a lot of fun doing some of this....

which led to this...

which then led to a lot of this...

which wasn't enough so it led to this...

All this and more made us smile.

If you have Facebook and would like to see more action shots of the above go to Christy Warnicks photos Fun with the DLPC
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/album.php?aid=272476&id=649100374

It was Father's Day so we had a little BBQ with the gang. We love you guys and can't wait to do it again.

First Camping Trip of the Year!

We love camping. In Utah we tried to go camping monthly. Living here hasn't been the same case. In Utah we would rough it and just drive up the mountains until we found a spot we liked. Here we have to reserve a campsite and we have to pay a fee to get into a campground. So our camping trips will have to be planned out instead of spontaneous, which is fine. We planned a big camping trip with our friends from Vallejo, CA. They live in Northern Cal and we live in Southern so naturally we found a place in the middle, Big Sur. It was just off the coast and it was beautiful. It was very woodsy which I like because then there is shade. There was a mix of redwoods and other trees. There was also a creek that we hiked up and down. I love camping because it is relaxing and this was one of the most relaxing trips yet. I slept so much and enjoyed everything, the food, the company, and the beautiful world around us.

This blue jay taunted the dog by flying over him constantly and then myself by moving from the camera when I was trying to get a picture of him.

Lars made cinnamon rolls and then rice pudding and they were both delicious.
Awe! Lars made a furry friend. Our friends brought their dog with them, Cocoa. He was a good dog and very friendly.
The kids being kids...fun

The boys spent most of their time here while the ladies cooked and hiked.

Nelia and the kids relaxing by a rock overlooking the creek.

This Squirrel was so loud and he kept eating the dog food. Later on we threw tiny rocks at this squirrel and his friends and I was the only one who was able to hit one. Mean right, I felt bad and found it later and apologized as if that made it all better. I am sure it won't stop him from taking food again in the future.

River Warrior Woman!

Lars and posed Jamie on the river

Resting after a hike down the creek. Jamie striking a pose!

This is a short video of what our campsite was like over all.

On our way out of the campsite we stopped at a view point to overlook the sea and there was a lighthouse I had to take a picture of. My mom loves lighthouses so this one is for you Mom.

After camping we headed up North to spend a few days at Jamie and Nelia's new house in Vallejo. We stopped at a fruit stand in Gilroy and had some of the most juiciest and sweetest strawberries I have ever had in entire life.

EYES

Do my eyes look blue in this picture or what? Man I am pretty hot sometimes.

Don't worry, they are hazel for real as this pitcure shows.

Stuff

So I have been behind on posting things as they happen so I just posted a bunch of stuff from May until now. I still have a few more things to post and hopefully I will get to them later. Until then enjoy the Adventures of STARS thus far. Thanks.

Life Is A Pitch...Then You Buy!

This week has been a sad week in Hollywood. Many people have moved on to the next life. I guess when it rains it pours. Many of them were very talented and their legacy will live on. Of all these people I will this person the most.

"Hi, Billy Mays here!....Here's how to order!"
1958-2009

Yep, that's right, I am going to miss Billy Mays more than Michael Jackson. Though I love Michael's music and I know that will live on forever, recently Billy Mays has found a special place in my heart. When I heard the news of his death I was more surprised and almost teared up a bit. Sounds lame, but here is why.

Lars and I have been watching the first season of Pitchmen on Discovery Channel. The show is about pitchmen veteran's Billy Mays and Anthony Sullivan finding new inventions to market and the process the product goes through from start to finish. Many inventors dreams are coming true because of Billy and Sully. All their sacrifice to make a difference in everyday life finally has a pay off because someone believed in them enough to take a chance on their product. I guess I really like this aspect of the show because that is where Lars and I are at in our lives right now. We had a pretty steady thing going for us in Utah, but we gave it up for our big dream. It has been a huge sacrifice on many levels, but we are pushing through with hope and faith that someone else will believe in us and take a chance on our talents.

Another thing I like most about the show is it gives the viewer an inside look at the behind the scenes of production. When I was in college I did a lot of behind the scenes work for theatre productions and almost got a job with the production company that did "The Little Giant Ladders". I wasn't able to take the job because they wanted full time and I was still school. Production work is tough, but so fun and there is a great feeling of satisfaction and camaraderie when finished. I am fascinated by production and all that it entails. This show gave me a detailed look at TV production. Something I hope to be involved in someday.

This show also gives the viewer a peek into the daily life of a Pitchmen. I have respect for Pitchmen. It is a lot of work and sacrifice from the beginning to the end. Many people have it as a talent and I appreciate all that they do because like Billy Mays, it makes a difference to the television world and in our economy. He may have been very loud and excited to sell us stuff, but it was effective and he stood by his products. Billy Mays broke the mold when he came out of it. He will be missed.

For more information on Pitchmen go to: http://dsc.discovery.com/tv/pitchmen/pitchmen.html