I just spoke to a friend of mine, whose faith is much stronger than mine. He told me the following, which makes so much sense:

1) maybe I'm having problems with my apartment because God wants me to move out my apartment and into a better place;
2) maybe I'll get laid off from my job because God wants me to work on the two novels that I started and never finished;
3) I don't know what God's plan is for my life, but I'm not helping myself any if I fight and fear the changes in my life, which in the end may be better than what I've got in my life right now;
4) personal growth techniques can only take you so far, but so much of it depends on your own inner strength. But what if sometimes your strength gives out? That's where faith comes in. God is so much stronger than we are. It's like when you're watching a scary movie, and you get so caught up in the movie and you get all scared because you forget you're watching a movie. God can help you step back, and remind you that it's only a movie. Your faith in God can help you step back and see options that you hadn't thought of before, or see roads that you thought were closed to you.

Thank god for my friend whose faith is way stronger than mine. I also went to the Wednesday night prayer service, and it was a healing service. I don't usually ask for healing, but I went up last night and asked that my living situation be prayed for. The prayer thing totally works! I only do it when I'm totally desperate which isn't very often, but the few times I've done it, my situation either radically improved or my outlook completely changed. Prayer definitely works!

Another great article from the LA Times, Searching for a happiness strategy. I definitely need a "happiness strategy" right now.

Hear's a great story from the LA Times on Nancy Pelosi and San Franicisco Politics.

If you believe the republicans when they say that San Francisco is out of step with the rest of the country, then why does San Francisco always win as the place most people want to move to? If the rest of the country hates San Francisco politics so much, then why do people want to move here? Every day on my commute I see license plates from all over the country, which tells me that people keep moving here, even though the economy is not doing that great right now and the everything here is so very, very expensive.

It's a conundrum.

More on Guam from the FEMA webisite, Federal Agencies Mobilize To Assist Guam After Devastation By Super Typhoon.

The remnants on the storm are on its way to California. They're forecasting a serious storm on Saturday and on Monday. I'll be in a screenwriting seminar all day Saturday, and I'll probably have to deal with the storm coming home. My life is getting better every day, isn't it?