So this is from 2006 and I don't know why it is just now coming to my attention but I thought I would share the wealth!!! It is a hot dog eating contetst promo from Grace Bible Chruch in College Station and I hope you enjoy. If you know Ben Cooper or Stan Matthew you should find it hysterical... If not you might get a laugh anyway. :)
Hot Dog Eating 2006
I found out yesterday that my cousin is having a boy!!! Praise the Lord!!! They would have been extremely excited no matter what, but both Jacki and John were hoping for a boy. I am so stinking excited for them. Baby Finnegan #2 (no name yet) is due on August 3rd and I can't wait.
In other baby news, Jacki sent out an update today and attached some pictures of Jessica. I barely recognize her!!! I have not seen her in a month and she is SO MUCH BIGGER. I was already planning on going to the Woodlands next weekend but seeing how much she has changed has confirmed my decision. It is amazing how much happens in a month when you are 10 months old! I am attaching the pictures that Jacki sent me so you can see how BIG and ADORABLE Jessica is!
One of my friends sent me this link today and I thought it was hysterical in a "could be sad but true" sort of way. If you get a chance look at some of the attorney bio's. They are very amusing:
Anonymous Law Firm, LLP
These 2 are my favorite of the 5 or so I had time to read:
Elliot Elderberg (Senior Counsel)
Notable Experience
Mr. Elderberg, Senior Counsel in the Los Angeles office, joined the firm in 1906. His practice focuses mainly on the journey from the elevators to his office in the morning, and then back again in the afternoon. Mr. Elderberg is chairman emeritus of the Pullman Palace Car Company, and one of President Hayes' appointees to the office of economic affairs.
Hobbies/Interests
Breathing.
Family
Wife, Ann. Five children, thirteen grandchildren, thirty-six great-grandchildren, seventy-four great-great-grandchildren. Over fourteen hundred grand-nieces and nephews.
Best Experience at the Firm
"The firm's been very good to me. I thought that once we were out from the under the rule of King George, it would all be downhill, but it's been a terrific surprise."
Worst Experience at the Firm
"Definitely the bratwurst. What? That's not what you meant? What? Talk louder."
Advice to Law Students
"Keep your quills sharpened and your wigs clean. It's important to make a good first impression."
Steven J. Axelrod (Associate)
Notable Experience
Mr. Axelrod served as articles editor for the Columbia Journal on Law and Sports, and finished third in his section's moot court competition his 1L year. He spent his 1L summer volunteering as part of the legal team for New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's Commission To Build New Sports Arenas. Since coming to the Firm, he has spent most of his time doing document review.
Hobbies/Interests
Checking www.i-am-bored.com every ten minutes for new links.
Best Experience at the Firm
"Great seats at Dodgers games. I got to go once, when I was a summer associate. I was supposed to go again, a few months ago, but a client emergency came up. Well, it wasn't an emergency, but they told us it was. And so I couldn't go. It was a good game. The firm's seats are great."
Worst Experience at the Firm
"Sometimes it gets a little frustrating to spend all weekend reading through stacks of documents. But you turn on the MLB.com TV feed of the Dodgers game and you can almost imagine you're in the firm's seats instead of at your desk, cheering for Jeff Kent to hit a home run instead of looking for an e-mail written by the CFO of some stupid company about the money he's embezzling from the firm."
Advice to Law Students
"Definitely go somewhere cool after the Bar Exam, because once you start your job at the Firm, you won't have any time to take any trips, not even little ones, like to the bathroom, except with permission, and they don't always give you permission."
I have not sent out a real update in a long time… partly because I have been busy and partly because I have not really had anything encouraging to write about. Though I still am not feeling very encouraged by my circumstances, my prayer is to leave you encouraged by my update none the less!
I am extremely blessed! I have a loving Savior who died on the Cross for my sins. Not only that but I have known Him for a long time and He has blessed me abundantly by showing me His path from a young age and thus keeping me out of trouble for the most part. I have more deep, real, and amazing friendships than I could ever imagine. And solid friendships that I am confident will stand the test of time. I have more than a handful of people who are dedicated to pray for me on an almost daily basis. Basically, I have gotten everything I have ever wanted. Everything. I have never had to experience hardship. I have never gone hungry. I have always had shelter and I have always had unconditional love. Not just unconditional love from my Lord, but I have been blessed with unconditional love from my family and close friends. I state all of this for myself and not for you. As I prepare to tell you all what I am struggling with I want to remind myself of the many blessings I have. And I want to remind myself that the Lord has always been faithful to me in EVERYTHING and this is no exception.
That being said, I can use your prayer in everything dealing with law school. It is so hard and so discouraging. And if I am not GROUNDED in prayer there are areas that I can be very easily attacked. Last year, God was so unbelievably faithful to confirm that I am supposed to be in law school. I feel like he daily affirmed me that law school was where I was supposed to be. I began to see my blessings, such as being at the top of my class and getting a clerkship with ease as being further affirmation that I was supposed to be in law school. Now, when I am not receiving as visible of an affirmation, I have begun to falter in my assurance that I am where I am supposed to be. I hate that I can let my circumstances dictate my faith. The LORD is faithful regardless of my circumstances. I KNOW THIS TRUTH!!! But applying it has not been the easiest thing.
I have been looking for a clerkship all year and have yet to find employment for this summer. Now, for someone who has gotten every job I have ever applied for until this semester, this has been a hard blow. Those of you that know me well know that my intelligence is an area that I struggle in. Not being able to find a job is making me feel extremely stupid. I know this is not truth but I am feeling dumb none the less. I have applied at so many places and doors keep closing and I am not seeing many open windows in their place…
I also feel like I am failing at all of my friendships I was mentioning earlier that are such a blessing to me. I feel so rushed all the time these days. I do not have the time that I want and need to invest in my friends that so important to me. And for all of you that have not heard from me as much this year as you normally do, I am so sorry. Know I love you so despite my level of communication!
If you are still reading, I hope I have not fully disheartened you and I hope to finally get to a part that might be encouraging! I want you all to know that regardless of how I am feeling about law school and finding a job, I am standing firm and I know that the Lord has a will for my life. I have always (and hopefully will always) wanted to fulfill the Lords plan and not my own. However, having gotten everything I have ever wanted for the majority of my life, it has been quite easy to trust the “Lord” because there was nothing uncomfortable about it. Well, ladies and gentlemen, I am finally uncomfortable in my circumstances but I am not giving up! My verse of late has been James 1: 2-4:
Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
Though it is uncomfortable, I am excited for the opportunity to truly preserver so that I may be mature and complete! I have a long way to go... But I don’t plan on giving up anytime soon.
Prayer Requests:
Thank you all! I hope you could gleam a little insight into my life of late and I hope I didn’t leave you disheartened. Law school is only for a season. I am just in one of the hard seasons of law school right now and it is not as enjoyable as I would like… But I don’t see anything in scripture that says my life will always be fun. I do however always hope to posses the love and joy of the Lord regardless of my circumstances. That is my biggest prayer! Feel free to join me in it… (for me and for yourself!)
The following is taken from Donald Miller’s Blue Like Jazz (Romance Chapter beginning on p. 147). My friend Amber was talking about it this week and challenged me to read it, so I did. I read it three times. I think it is an extremely interesting quote:
I wonder if all of us are scared that others will see the real "me" and not care or not love us anymore. I know that fear is real for me. I hate that being "real" is sometimes the hardest thing you can do. Sometimes it is so much easier to pretend to be someone else (both in friendships and in relationships). But that is where I love this quote because at the end of the day I think we all have a desire to protect ourselves but we also have a desire to be really known by someone... And at some point that desire to be known has to win out... Because if not we cannot experience love the way God intended.What great gravity is this that drew my soul toward yours? What great force, that though I went falsely, went kicking, went diguising myself to earn your love, also disguised, to earn your keeping, your resting, your staying your will fleshed into mine, rasped by a slowly revealed truth, the barter of my soul, the soul that I fear, the soul that I loathe, the soul that: if you will love, I will love. I will redeem you, if you will redeem me? Is this our purpose, you and I together to pacify each other, to lead each other toward the lie that we are good, that we are noble, that we need not redemption, save the one that you and I invented of our own clay?
I am not scared of you, my love, I am scared of me.
I went looking, I wrote out a list, I drew an image, I bled a poem of you. You were pretty, and my friends believed I was worthy of you. You were clever, but I was smarter, perhaps the only smarter, the only one able to lead you. You see, love, I did not love you, I loved me. And you were only a tool that I used to fix myself, to fool myself, to redeem myself. And though I have taught you to lay your lily hand in mine, I walk alone, for I cannot talk to you, lest you talk it back to me, lest I believe that I am not worthy, not deserving, not redeemed.
I want desperately for you to be my friend. But you are not my friend; you have slid up warmly to the man I wanted to be, and I was your Jesus and, you were mine. Should I show you who I am, we may crumble. I am not scared of you my love, my love, I am scared of me.
I want to be know and loved anyway. Can you do this? I trust by your easy breathing that you are human like me, that you are fallen like me, that you are lonely like me. My love, do I know you? What is this great gravity that pulls us so painfully toward each other? Why do we not connect? Will we be forever fleshing this out? And how will we with words, narrow words, come into the knowing of each other? Is this God’s way of meriting grace, of teaching us of the labyrinth of His love for us, teaching us, in degrees, that which He is sacrificing to join ourselves to Him? Or better yet, has He formed our being fractional so that we might conclude one great hope, plodding and sighing and beathing into one another in such a great push that we might break through into the known and being loved, only to cave into a greater perdition and fall down at His throne still begging for our acceptance? Begging for our completion?
We were fools to believe that we would redeem each other.
Were I some sleeping Adam, to wake and find you resting at my rib, to share these things that God has done, to walk you through the garden, to counsel your timid steps, your bewildered eye, your heart to slow to love, so careful to love, so sheepish that I stepped up my aim and became a man. Is this what God intended? That though He made you from my rib, it is you who is making me, humbling me, destroying me, and in so doing revealing Him.
Will we be in ashes before we are one?
What great gravity is this that drew my heart toward yours? What great force collapsed my orbit, my lonesome state? What is this that wants in me the want in you? Don’t we go at each other with yielded eyes, with cumbered hands and feet, with clunky tongues? This deed is unattainable! We cannot know each other!
I am quitting this thing, but not what you think. I am not going away.
I will give you this, my love, and I will not bargain or barter any longer. I will love you, as sure as He has loved me. I will discover what I can discover and though you remain a mystery, save God’s own knowledge, what I disclose of you I will keep in the warmest chamber of my heart, the very chamber where God has stowed Himself in me. And I will do this to my death, and to death it may bring me.
I will love you like God, because of God, mighted by the power of God. I will stop expecting your love, demanding your love, trading for your love, gaming for your love. I will simply love. I am giving myself to you, and tomorrow I will do it again. I suppose the clock itself will wear thin its time before I am ended at this altar of dying and dying again.
God risked Himself on me. I will risk myself on you. And together, we will learn to love, and perhaps then, and only then, understand this gravity that drew Him, unto us.
The Hebrews didn’t just see love and sex, it was a complex structure based on three words (I only quoted the part about the first 2, feel free to follow the link above and see the full sermon).
The first Hebrew word is raw-ah. Raw-aw is the Hebrew word for companionship. When I think companion, I think about a dog, but that is not rayah. The Hebrew word carries with it this implication; that I have seen in you both good and bad and I’m still willing to walk with you. This is the foundational element of Hebrew love. You cannot have love without raw-ah. Raw-aw can be for a man or a woman but not an inanimate object or animal. So a Hebrew couldn’t love a house or a camel, it wouldn’t make sense. Raw-aw never takes place on a first date because every man can at least pull off one good one; we can put on the cologne, we can iron the nice t-shirt. But rayah does not occur when all is well, it is a decision that takes place the first time you see the dark side. It takes place at the point when you see the bad and choose to walk away or say I’ve seen this about you but I’m here anyway, when you decide to keep going even those there are some things you don’t like. For some of us that happens at 6 weeks, for others 9 months. Unfortunately for some of us that happens after we get married. But some try to hide who they really are and bring a great deal of pain upon themselves. I know its dangerous to throw yourself out there, to say this is who I am, here’s my weaknesses, here’s my strengths. Because what if someone says I can’t live with that, it’s a scary deal. Nobody loves rejection and that’s why we hide from others. But without this foundation of raw-aw, love goes no further.Song of Solomon, Chapter 5, verse 16, "His mouth is full of sweetness And he is wholly desirable. This is my beloved and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem." Raw-aw leads into ahabah which is a “love of the will”. Ahabah is that there is no place I’d rather be than right here, right now with you. We like to make that sound really romantic, but ahavah is not about romance, it’s more like your hiding behind the couch while your spouse is throwing things at you trying to kill you. Now with that picture in your mind imagine “that there is no place I’d rather be than right here, right now with you”. Ahabah says, “I’m not going anywhere!” No matter how crazy you are, not matter what issues we have to work through, I’m not going anywhere.
I think it is funny because to be truly known by another person is my biggest fear and my highest goal in life. Though it is only a fear if that person rejects who I am. The joy comes when you show a person your insanity and they accept you for it (or with it).
Regardless of my relationships with people, I take joy in the fact that my Lord knows me inside and out and He will not turn away. God is not going anywhere! But man do I hope to one day understand (on some level) the gravity that drew Him unto us!
I am the newest member of the "real world". :) I got a job this week. I am working at Merichem (a chemical company) in the legal department. I analyze their past and present contracts and input relevant data (like warranty information, limited liability clauses, arbitration clauses, etc.) into a access spreadsheet. I will eventually be adding other things into the database as well, like blanket purchase orders and leases.
I find it interesting and I can already tell it will greatly increase my knowledge of contracts. I work 15-20 hours a week, but it is much closer to 15 and I will work until the end of April. It is going to be really nice to have a pay check! The summer of 2005 was the last time I got paid. Though don't celebrate too much about me having money. I have already decided what I am doing with the money I make and unfortunately for my wardrobe I am being "responsible" and using most of it to pay down my loans with high interest rates...
I went to the DMV today to get my drivers license renewed and to my surprise I did not leave wanting to strangle someone. This had a lot to do with the fact that 1) I was going to the DMV out of pure vanity... (I did not want the same picture for another 6 years.) and 2) I had my wonderful friend Amber to keep me company. (She also wanted a new picture but did not need her license renewed... more vain perhaps? :) Haha... j/k... Thanks again for going with me Amber!!!)
Though we were there for 2 and a half hours, it went by rather quickly. We spent about an hour of it listening to Seinfeld on her Ipod. He is quite hilarious! We also were entertained by those around us. We had a man in front of us that was unbelievably impressed by the wallpaper (he thought it should be peeling off the walls because so many people lean against it on a daily basis) and surprised that his trip to the DMV took the whole afternoon... I reminded him that it was, in fact, the DMV and that he was too optimistic to think it would take anything less than 2 hours. We also saw about 100 15 year olds getting their permits (I think this number was higher than normal because it is spring break). It was cute to see all the young girls reapplying their lip stick and brushing their hair before their pictures. :) Reminded me of me when I was 16... and technically me today because I too reapplied my lip gloss before I took my picture... But I didn't brush my hair... Slight maturing with age? Or maybe I am just getting lazy... :)
I will have to let you all know in 2 to 6 weeks whether the trip was worth it... Once I get my new license (and most importantly my new license picture).
Then on Saturday we went to the Capital and went shopping on the strand. We went to dinner at Baby A's and it was just about the best food I have ever tasted! I give it a huge thumbs up and you should go if you are ever in Austin!!! We then drove back by 6th street because Laura had not seen it the night before. I have to say I enjoyed 6th more from the car. Though this is because of the wonderful, hysterical and memorable conversation that took place. :) I will not go into specifics, but I tell you the memories will last a lifetime!!! We finished up the evening by going to Mozart's and having some coffee. I, of course, had tea instead.
Today was a very exciting day for the Christian Legal Society! We fed the entire law school... Well anyone that wanted to come by and get food that is. We had enough food to feed around 500 people and at the end of our event there was food for 20 or so left... We have no idea how many people actually came but I estamete it was between 350 and 400.
The weather was absolutely beautiful and the event could not have gone better! We wanted to feed the law school as an act of love and service. We got the idea from Jesus... And I hope and pray the people were satisfied today as they were 2000+ years ago...
Thanks to all the students, faculty and staff that came out and ate... You made our event a huge success!!!Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand:
Matt 14: 13-21
13 When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns. 14 When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick. 15 As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, "This is a remote place, and it's already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food." 16 Jesus replied, "They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat." 17 "We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish," they answered. 18 "Bring them here to me," he said. 19 And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. 20 They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. 21 The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.
And praise the Lord for allowing us to raise the $3000+ dollars necessary to host this event. All the glory to God!
I went to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo on Friday and Saturday and had an absolute blast! Twice in one weekend?!?! Crazy Jen... Yes, but it was kinda fun to see the same cowboys do the same events 2 nights in a row. I learned more about the cowboys that way and it enabled me to sound smart on Saturday. :)
My favorite event is the calf scramble. On Friday night a calf trampled the boy that was holding onto the calf's neck for dear life and ripped the boys jeans. The boy was not injured but it was quite a sight to see. I find it hysterical that the announcer runs up to these poor kids who just spent 10 minutes wrestling a cow, harnessing it, and pulling it into a box in the middle of the arena and tries to conduct a "serious" interview when the kids can barley breath.
After the rodeo on Friday night, I was also introduced to two new and amazing things... Fried Snickers and Tilt-A-Whirl.
Abby and Leslie had been discussing the wonder that is the Tilt-A-Whirl the whole night and I have to admit they had set the bar pretty high... So when it came time to venture onto the ride, Jana and I were a bit skeptical. Well, the ride was a riot and Jana and I were laughing hysterically the whole time. So the Tilt-A-Whirl fan club proudly has two new members.
Secondly, I have found my new favorite junk food... Fried Snickers!!!! It was one of the most wonderful things I have ever tasted... and I am not a fan of fried foods. However, with its crisp outer layer of dough and a delightfully melted snickers middle.... peanuts, chocolate, nougat and caramel... I was hooked!!! So hooked that I made my friends to try it on Saturday night... They were not disappointed either!
Seeing as I did not stay for Natalie Cole on Friday night, I can honestly say that Clay Walker put on the best show. I knew almost every song that he sang and I sang along to most of them. He had a dance move that was quite humorous... But not as humorous as Jeff replicating it... See:
Sorry Jeff! I could not resist! :) All and all the rodeo was a blast and a great and much needed study break. I am looking forward to going again in 2008! 
TIME TO CELEBRATE!!!
I officially turned in my "final" copy of my journal paper. What journal paper you ask?!?!?! Only the 66 page paper that I have been working on since August!!!! It is out of my hands for good!!! Woohoo!!!! EXCITING DAY!!!!
Not only that but I actually like the final product! It is rewarding to work hard on something for so long and to actually be proud of the end result. Law school is down hill from here guys! Get excited!
I am feeling overwhelmed of late... Probably because on a daily basis I hope to get a small amount crossed off my to-do list... and at the end of the day... I find that my list is longer than it was in the morning... Yikes...
Fortunately I get to spend my Spring Break (March 12th-16th) playing catch up. This may not sound fun to any of you... But less stress is always a nice thing... :) So hopefully I can be caught up on my class work after Spring Break...
On the paper front. I got my "rough draft" back yesterday and I have to turn in my "final copy" on Wednesday, March 7th. I am going to be SO EXCITED when I turn it in. I will have finished my Seminar/Writing Requirement for law school!!! I really believe that law school will be downhill after that... But I am always the optimist... and I have been wrong before...
On an exciting note... I get to go to the Rodeo TWICE this weekend. I am going to see Natalie Cole tomorrow night and Clay Walker on Saturday... Pictures to come! :)
