the markings of a "J"

My former roommate, Tanya, made me take the Myers-Briggs personality test prior to our living to together. It turned out to be a powerful aid in our living together as it provided some understanding in our actions. It has also been helpful as I joined the IV staff world; they too often speak in "myers-briggs".

Lately I've been noticing (and doing that thing where I blog in my head) traces of my "J" ness as I walk through my day. As a J, noticing these things probably would have made me self-conscience, but after living and working with P's, I've learned to laugh.

I am an ESFJ.

Here's my version of...

You Know You're a "J" if:
(Some of these might actually be a combination of SJ)

10. You fight (or give in to) the urge to call the person you're meeting when they are 3 minutes late.
9. You lock your pens in your desk so your coworkers won't walk off with them.
8. You call your boss everytime you think of something you need to tell him rather than saving it all up for one conversation.
7. You have to unpack all of your boxes before you sleep after moving into a new apartment or house.
6. Your underwear drawer is not only organized, but compartmentalized.
5. when using a microwave, you must hit the clear button after stopping something before time runs out because you just can't handle a "portion" of time sitting on the screen.
4. Everything in your freezer is in a container...and is labelled.
3. You do the same thing every morning - hit snooze for 10 minutes, get up, go to bathroom, turn on hot water, wash face, get dressed, make breakfast, quiet time, pack lunch, get shoes, go to work.
2. Every file on your computer is neatly filed away and you can actually see the desktop picture.
1.You wake up a bit sweaty from a nightmare that consists of someone expecting something of you last minute

(for those of you that know me: my "nightmare" - Andrew and Paul, the work day coordinators had a team of around 150 sitting in the cafeteria waiting to eat. I had NO IDEA that I was even supposed to cook for them. And Paul was insisting that he told me and expecting me to pull something together right there)

longing for the familiar of what once was

Do you ever find yourself longing for the familiarity of what once was? The bed you used to sleep in, the schedule of an old job, the friend you always ate cafeteria food with in college.

I'm in the middle of my fourth year in St. Louis and while I have friends that will dance with me, a job - or three - that I enjoy, and a home that brings me comfort, there are times when everything feels so foreign. Today was one of those.

I spent most of the day on the couch; the result of an eventful night, a terrible headache, and some sore muscles (no, there was no alcohol involved!). Amidst the throbbing I found myself thinking of a particular friend from the college days. Our first meeting was in an InterVarsity Bible Study. I was a table leader, and he was a freshman - as awkward as they come. However, he was a friendly awkward freshman.

Our friendship seems to have happened overnight as I can't recall much of how it happened. At some point, he grew into a mature leader with a passion for people, Christ, and justice.

I'm not certain why he made it to the front of my mind tonight, but I do know that I am left with a longing for the familiarity of him. To lose horribly at ping-pong against him, to absorb his political knowledge, to talk late into the night about God's heart for justice and the oppressed, dreaming big dreams about saving the world.

Maybe I was feverish this afternoon. Maybe I was just walking down memory lane. But really, dreaming of the familiar is what helps me walk through the unknown.