Happy New Year!

An Australian journalist gets a taste of Department of Homeland Security hospitality.

Infuriating and scary.

Thanks to Dean May over at Polemics.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

And no, I'm not referring to the traffic, checkout lines, or holiday sales.
Our tree is up and decorated, but the presents haven't all migrated to the living room yet. That is a good thing because I doubt they'd all fit under it anyway.
My Christmas shopping is nearly done. I need to pick up a few things that I already have in mind, and figure out one gift for a hard to buy for person, and then I can make gingerbread houses (or die trying!) and play nonstop Christmas records.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

'Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.
And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid.
Then the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.
"For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord." '

(Luke 2:8-11 NKJV)

What Natural Disaster are you? Take the quiz!

"At the time Augustine wrote City of God, it must have seemed as though civilization itself was collapsing. In A.D. 410, Rome was sacked by Alaric and his forces. The Empire was in decline. In our day, as homosexual ‘marriage’ is gaining acceptance and abortion is completely commonplace, sometimes we feel helpless and distinctly outnumbered. Augustine tells us that our homes should be small parts of the City of God, and that we ought to interact with others in our households as we should, remembering our citizenship and obeying the laws of the City of God. Augustine doesn’t lay difficult burdens on our shoulders. He doesn’t tell us we must be political leaders or influential and prominent celebrities. He tells us we must treat others in our homes the way we ought. He tells us we must remember that we are part of the Heavenly City, the City of God, which was founded by our Lord Christ Jesus. And the simplicity of that task of living our lives rightly is complex enough to keep us all busy to our deaths, and simple enough that we can know what we must do."

~a paragraph from one of my recent essays.

"As you remember, Tolkien sold the original rights for a hundred pounds because he didn’t think the book could ever be made into a film."

~John Rhys-Davies, who played Gimli in the LOtR movies.
Here is the entire interview. Found from another part of the interview linked to by Little Geneva.

My parents gave me a sewing machine yesterday for my birthday. I'll have to learn to use it well.
The sewing plan-
-pj pants
-simple shirt
-easy skirt

At some point after that, I'd like to make a ball gown, despite the fact that I already possess an absurd amount of formal wear, most of which I was given and most of which I have never worn. You see, you can wear only one dress per ball.

Josh Matthews, of Polemics, says movies
can never replace the reading experience and applies that to the Lord of the Rings movies.
I think he puts it very well when he says:

"Lord of the Rings, the story, is an invitation to mentally participate in an active, crafted world of Tolkien’s construction. But unlike Tolkien’s words, popcorn, big screens, and Hollywood’s special effects do not usually involve mental participation."

Blogger Poll

I'm just checking to see who is out there.
Please leave a comment if you stop by while this is on the current page. If you want to elaborate on how you got here, feel free. :-)

(Note: My comments just all disappeared. If you left a comment before, I probably saw it so there is no need to repost, but if you want to that is fine.)

(they're gone yet again. The first time it was their fault, but this time it was mine. Apologies. Thank you to those who posted.)

“The result is that although there are many great peoples throughout the world, living under different customs in religion and morality and distinguished by a complex variety of languages, arms, and dress, it is still true that there have come into being only two main divisions, as we may call them, in human society: and we are justified in following the lead of our Scriptures [footnote: cf. Eph. 2.19, Phil.. 3.20] and calling them two cities. There is, in fact, one city of men who choose to live by the standard of the flesh, another of those who choose to live by the standard of the spirit. The citizens of each of these desire their own kind of peace, and when they achieve their aim, that is the kind of peace in which they live.”

(Pg. 547, City of God, Augustine)

Today is the calm before the storm.
Thursday a paper is due-- not just any paper, either. A persuasive essay paper on whether Augustine's view of the Two Cities is still relevant. I think I'll have to spend more time in the book to get a better handle on his view before I dive in and really begin to write.
Also Thursday, I'm going to babysit from 2-7pm. Ideally, my paper will be done before I leave.
Friday I'm hoping to hitch a ride with Ant to go see Kit.
Tuesday and Thursday I have class, too.

I am enjoying the Sabbath calm. We took a walk to look at the neighborhood Christmas lights. And ate fudge.

Joshua wants to know what is in dynamite. I told him I wasn't sure. He told me he thought something 'explosion'. (explosive). No doubt he's right. Five year olds always are.

A few days ago my grandparents called to wish Brendan a happy birthday. I stood and listened to half of the conversation. At one point, they must have asked him, “What are you doing?”, because he replied calmly, “I’m talking on the phone.”

I saw "Master and Commander: The Far Side Of The World" last Saturday. I enjoyed it quite a bit. Speaking of violinists, as I did last post, Russell Crowe's character, Captain "Lucky" Jack Aubrey, plays the violin.
Crowe has joked that playing the violin is "probably the most difficult stunt I've done" , and says that ' "I have gotten to the point where I know that I can make a beautiful sound," ... Bettany [ship doctor, with whom he plays duets] also studied the cello, but has no such warm feelings for it. "It's a ghastly instrument," he said.'

The rest of the movie was very good too, with great fight scenes and flying cannonballs.

Did you know that Patrick Henry was a violinist?
According to the biography of him I dipped into ( Give Me Liberty: The Uncompromising Statesmanship of Patrick Henry, by David J. Vaughan), he was a very good one, too. He also knew Latin, Greek, a bit of French, and mastered the flute at twelve while recovering from a broken collarbone.

The only time a woman really succeeds in changing a man is when he is a baby.
~Natalie Wood (20th century), U.S. actress. Quoted in The Joys of Having a Child, by Bill and Gloria Adler (1993).

Today’s difference between Russia and the United States is that in Russia everybody takes everybody else for a spy, and in the United States everybody takes everybody else for a criminal.
~Friedrich Dürrenmatt (1921–1990), Swiss dramatist, novelist, essayist. Trans. by Gerhard P. Knapp (1995). Sentences from America, no. 37 (1970).

I like Bartleby.com

“In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.” So begins a literary romp through the land of Middle Earth. For The Hobbit really is a romp. J.R.R. Tolkien’s later books are journeys or quests, but in this first book of Middle Earth, Tolkien gave us a rollicking good time without any background information needed.

Go read the rest of my review.

Book review due this Friday. Test this Friday. Test next Friday. Paper and presentation due Friday after next . Paper due Dec. 12th on the Two Cities of St. Augustine.

I'm in a Christmas mood. I'm ready for stollen making and Christmas lights and trees. And sweaters and wearing red. And Christmas music and crackling fires.

I'm still enjoying 'In the Fiddler's House' (see sidebar). I borrowed it from the library, but I think it deserves a permanent place in my collection. If you like fiddling you should give it a listen.

Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou such a sap, Romeo?

(inspired by having to write a paper on my least favorite Shakespearian play.)
Fortunately, it is due today, so it will be gone soon. Another paper (on another topic, yay!) is due Friday, so my paperless elation will be short lived.

"Sadly, what is lost in all of this is that the Lord's Supper is primarily blessing. It is, after all, a means of grace. Though we suppose we are protecting our children from judgement, we are in fact 'protecting' them from the Supper's benefit."
Chapter 3 of Feed My Lambs, by Tim Gallant.

Take the 100 Acre Personality Quiz!

All right, so at first I was Kanga. But I thought saying I was patient wouldn't always be correct. So I tried again, and was Rabbit. But I prefer to be a silly old Pooh bear!

My brothers are cowboys at the moment. I'll share some of their cowboy knowledge with you:
Cowboys don't use forks.
(a simple enough mistake, they merely confused Vikings and cowboys!)
Real Cowboys tie their own shoes.
(I thought real cowboys wore boots. I stand corrected.)

On another topic:
When (and if!) you make cupcakes in ice cream cones, here are a few tips~
~ test one first
~ bake about twenty minutes, using cake instructions
~ fill cones about half full or they'll overflow
~ put aluminum foil around the bottom half to keep it from burning
~ bake in a muffin tin, set one cone in each

"Covenant community is not a nice fringe benefit of Christianity; it is essential. A Christian cannot exist apart from it, and those who are isolated are in great danger of perishing spiritually. No individual member can prosper apart from the whole."
Pastor Wilkins, Face to Face: Meditations on Friendship and Hospitality

Happy Reformation Day!

"This blank space brought to you by Google."

Its better than ads for Yu-Gi-Oh! cards.
(Which, frankly, baffles me.)

Chemistry is going well. I'm glad we're out of Romeo and Juliet in Shakespeare. We're starting Twelfth Night, which I know nothing about.

I've begun to play Christmas songs on my violin. It was really bad at first, but with practice they will all improve (hopefully).

"Stupidity glories in never yielding to the force of truth; that is how it effects the ruin of anyone who is under the dominion of this monstrous moral fault. It is a disease proff against all efforts to treat it, not through any fault in the physician, but because the patient is himself incurable."
Book VI, preface, City of God

Many conservative Christians reject strict individualism, which is evidenced by their intact and thriving families or their connection to tightly knit local churches. Consequently, they assume that, because they are immediately surrounded by people they love and are committed to, they are not guilty of individualism. But although they do not go through life as detached individuals, they do go through life as members of detached families and as members of detached churches. This problem requires a more accurate name: I suggest independency.

I'm making cupcakes in ice cream cones. They're turning out alright so far.
I'm going to frost this batch, hide them, and do some chemistry homework.
Now, where shall I hide those cupcakes? ;-)

Update: they turned out great! There are no more left.

Marlins win! Yankees lose!

Now I'm off to finish up Book V of City of God.

   "As for this mortal life, which ends after a few days' course, what does it matter under whose rule a man lives, being so soon to die, provided that the rulers do not force him to impious and wicked acts?" (Book V, Chapter 17)

"4. Kingdoms without justice are like criminal gangs
Remove justice and what are kingdoms but gangs of ciminals on a large scale? What are criminal gangs but petty kingdoms? A gang is a group of men under the command of a leader, bound by a compact of association, in which the plunder is divided according to an agreed convention.
  If this villainy wins so many recruits from the ranks of the demoralized that it aquires territory, establishes a base, captures cities and subdues peoples, it then openly arrogates to itself the title of kingdom, which is conferred on it in the eyes of the world, not by the renouncing of aggression but by the attainment of impunity.
  For it was a witty and truthful rejoinder which was given by a captured pirate to Alexander the Great. The king asked the fellow, 'What is your idea, in infesting the sea?' And the pirate answered, with uninhibited insolence, 'The same as yours, in infesting the earth! But because I do it with a tiny craft, I'm called a pirate: because you have a mighty navy, you're called an emperor.' "
St. Augustine, City of God, Book IV, Chapter 4

  "'Drinking, sir? Me, sir? No, sir. Where would I get a drink, sir?'
  'You're as tight as an owl.'
  This was a wholly unjustified slur on a most respectable breed of bird, for owls are as abstemious as the most bigoted temperance advocate could wish..."
~Pigs Have Wings, by P.G. Wodehouse

The lizard survived. But it had to be photographed first, to prove its existence to posterity.
I tried to take its picture with Joshua lying in the grass and the lizard in his hands, but the lizard would escape, terrified, from the hands that caught him. He would leap out and try to run through the grass, which is like me trying to run in thigh deep water. He made very little progress and I would catch him again as gently as I could. Then I put him on Joshua's head. The pale, translucent skin of the lizard showed up very well against his dark brown hair. Hopefully the snap will turn out well. One's first lizard must be properly documented!

Those who have never had a small lizard dart up their pant leg do not know what they have missed. The search for it, though, gently patting my pants, was the harder part. Happily, the lizard decided to exit my pants, and headed for under my dresser, where I recaptured him.
Had I lost him there would have been grief, because this lizard was the first one Joshua has ever caught. The lizard is sitting by my keyboard in an empty Celestial Seasonings box, safe for the moment. He is due for release at nightfall, and my self-appointed mission is to keep him safe until then.

I've been listening to 'Downstream', a WeatherVane Compilation for a while.
While I have my favorites, of course, it is a good listening CD. You can just let it play, without groaning and thinking to yourself, "Why did they put this in here?"
It is difficult to place this CD in a tidy genre. Buzzwords would be folk, folk/rock, grassroots, acoustic guitar, alternative rock, country and folk, haunting poetic lyrics, and acoustic pop. Altogether, its an excellent CD.
My favorites are

Lady of Cicero, by Hughes & Wagner,
Mary Visits Elizabeth, by Claire Holley,
Listen to the Rain, by Hughes & Wagner, and
Pull My Wagon, by Loni Rose,

however, there are 18 tracks, so there are lots of other choices. Not every song appeals to me yet, but when I get around to listening to each track and appreciating it on its own, not as a part, I'll be better equipped to judge them individually.

The violin has lovely tone and squeaks less. I'm enjoying practice more. I'm playing simplified versions of Psalm 122, 119 X, the doxology, and Rise Again Ye Lionhearted.
Also, by ear, If I Were a Rich Man. (from Fiddler on the Roof). It is addictive-- all the boys have asked me to play it, and now, today, everyone is walking around the house singing the 'yabba dabba dabba dabba dabba dabba da!' part. Only some of them are singing 'yubba dubba.' Ah well.
I'm going to try to squeeze in finishing my chemistry homework before I have to leave.

my violin arrived!

I had class this afternoon so it isn't set up yet, but it looks beautiful. And now I can stop jumping up in agitated hopefulness every time the doorbell rings, hoping its the UPS man.

Saturday...

is a great day. Even if you have to do Chemistry homework. (didn't get done yesterday, due Monday) I'm planning on seeing Open Range (with Robert Duval) this evening.

I finished The King of Torts, by John Grisham, last week. I didn't like it as well as, say, The Testament. The main character absolutely failed to endear himself to me, becoming a slimeball lawyer too quickly in the narrative for me to hope for a turn around, or to make it seem realistic. He says he thinks about a blatant wrongdoing he committed, but if I'm going to be convinced he really did, not just says he did, I want to see symptoms of remorse. As it was, it looked like at the end leaving it all behind in repentance was just an excuse for flying off into the sunset with the girl. (The first girl, not the second girl.)

Anyway, at least The Man in the Brown Suit, by Agatha Christy, came through with a rousing whodunnit plot and plenty of details and twists.

Tennis this morning. Shakespear this afternoon.

I'm reading St. Augustine's Confessions still, books 6-9 this week. As well as The Hobbit, which I must say doesn't seem at all like homework. The Hobbit is sheer pleasure to read. In Shakespear we're reading A Midsummer's Night Dream.


btw, what color does my blog background show up as for you? I see white, but apparently for some of you it shows up as "chartreuse on steroids". Hmm. Odd.

Played tennis this morning. I was happily surprised that I hadn't lost all my playing ability. Just, apparently, my serve. And backhand. Oh, wait... I didn't have the backhand to start with.

Read Shakespear aloud in class today. I was Helena speaking to Demetrius in Act 2. It doesn't make a lot of sense to me, though, that she would follow him despite his hatred for her. I would agree with her statement that "[w]e should be woo'd, and were not made to woo." Which points to the upside-down-ness of our culture, where boys learn to sit back while girls chase them. Which I read somewhere-or-other but cannot remember where at the moment. But I would guess Her Hand in Marriage.

I'm off to read Augustine's Confessions. I've read through his babyhood and boyhood so far. Books one through five need read by Thursday.

Government class today. We had an ex-state legislator come speak. I disagreed with him on some things (he enthusiastically supports Bush and the war in Iraq), but on other things he was correct. He told us it was very important to vote for Christians, more important than the Democrat/Republican distinction.
Tolkien/Lewis, Great Books, and Shakespear all going well. We're reading through The Hobbit, St. Augustine's Confessions, and A Midsummer's Night Dream. I've read The Hobbit many times, but this is the first time through for the other two.

If you are at the video store pondering whether to view The Importance of Being Earnest, I advise you, discerning viewer who likes good plots and everything to tie in, go across the street to your local public library and get a Jeeves and Wooster such as Jeeves and the Cowcreamer. We watched the former last night. Enjoyment was keen at points, but very spotty. Go with Wodehouse.

We watched Wit last night, a movie with Emma Thomson as a woman diagnosed with stage four ovarian cancer. It was a very intense movie. Definitely a shift stylistically from the M. Night Shyamalan we've been watching and analyzing-- Vivian, the main character, often speaks directly to the camera. We didn't see any symbols. We did hear John Donne read aloud, which was interesting because I had not heard or read any of his work. I'll have to do that sometime. I really enjoy Emma Thomson's voice reading poetry. At the beginning of Much Ado About Nothing she speaks the words to a song in the text of the play, and I learned those lines, not so much because I loved the meaning, but the words and the sounds and the rhythms.

I just might survive Chemistry. I got the first test's results today. Better than I had expected.

Natalie --------, Government Homework due 8/22/2003

The Life of Francis Lightfoot Lee
The Lee family and Virginia are inescapably intertwined and woven into the American fabric. The first Lee to sail across the Atlantic to a wild new land was Richard Lee, who became secretary of the colony under the royal governor, and later became acting governor. His great grandson was Francis Lightfoot Lee, signer of the Declaration of Independence and the Articles of Confederation. Richard Lee’s great-great-grandson Robert E. Lee was descended from Francis Lightfoot Lee’s uncle. Some have claimed to trace the Lee family back to Robert the Bruce.

Francis Lightfoot Lee was born October 14th, 1734 in the same room Richard Henry Lee, Sydney Smith Lee (a famous member of our fledgling navy), and Robert E Lee had been or would be born in. His parents were Thomas and Hannah Lee. Young Francis was called Frank as a child, and unlike his older brothers, who were sent to private schools in England, he was taught at home by a tutor, who imparted a love of reading to his charge. Depending on which source you believe, he was the fourth son, the youngest of eight, or the fifth of eight, and wedded Miss Rebecca Tayloe, a Williamsburg belle, in either 1772 or 1769. His mother died when he was twenty one, and his father died the year after.

In December 1757, he was appointed "First Justice" of the initial 13-man county court, and was in charge of the Loudoun militia as county lieutenant. His first political office was in 1765, serving as a member of the house of burgesses of Loudon County. He strongly opposed the Stamp Act. He was reelected annually, but soon after his marriage he moved to Richmond County, VA. In 1773 we are told that he helped to organize Virginia's Committee of Correspondence. In 1775 he was sent to Congress. Apparently in Congress he was quiet, yet impressed companions with his vote and private conversations.

It is said that in Congress Francis Lightfoot voted for freedom without fear, saying, “Let us, my dear friend, do the best we can for the good of our country, and leave the event to fate.” No doubt it was with that attitude he signed the Declaration of Independence, scorning the personal risk that was connected to national failure. After signing, Francis Lightfoot continued to serve his state in congress until 1779, when he tried to retire. He was then elected to the Virginia legislature, then the senate. Francis Lightfoot participated in the debates over the treaty of peace with Britain, insisting on our rights in Newfoundland fisheries and the Mississippi River. He died on either January 11th or April 3rd, 1797, at the age of 63.

Since the Francis Lightfoot Lee’s had no children, the estate passed after their deaths to a nephew, Ludwell Lee, son of Richard Henry Lee, who also had signed the Declaration of Independence. Francis and Rebecca Lee’s home, Menokin, located in Warsaw, Virginia, a “2-story structure...of stuccoed local stone” is now in ruins but can be seen. The finely-detailed interior wood paneling has been removed and put into storage for protection.

You're Iraq!

An outcast from all you meet, you have very few friends who haven't
later backstabbed you in some way or another.  And you've made your share of mistakes...
a little torture, a little coercion, a little stealing, it was all part of a day's work.
 It's hard to say if it deserves the kind of treatment you're getting now, though.
 When people look for someone to point to with a worse life than they have, they think
of you first.
Take
the Country Quiz at the href="http://bluepyramid.org">Blue Pyramid

This doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me. To be honest, I should tell you first I was the United Nations. I tried again and got Cyprus. They thought my parents were divorced. Then Israel. Lebanon. Finally I gave up and stuck with my last one, Iraq.

In our kitchen, before he had to go do his homework, the Neighbor Child said to my brother:
"You know whats wierd about your house? You don't have a t.v."
my brother "Yes, we do. Its just not out here."
"Where is it?"
"In my parent's room."
"Do you ever watch it?"
"Yes. We did today. We watched about gravity and airplaines." [it was a movie. N.]
"I have a Playstation 2 and t.v. in my room."
"Do you wanna play cards?"

Its amazing how disconcerted some people are by the lack of a prominently placed television. Of course, children are more likely to tell you they think something about your home is strange.

Go see if you have Achoo Syndrome
Thanks ubi sunt which I linked to from
Lucy Zoe.

The boys are engrossed in the first day of school. I'm about to go immerse myself in Government.

The boys are (again) in bed. Dad is at Men's forum. We had a baptism today. Young Jackson Knox M., the M.'s seventh son. Appropriately, the sermon was on baptism.
I was very glad to worship with my own church again.
Last Sunday I was up with Kit's family. They have four people living with them at the moment, a father and his three children, Efua (3), Jojo (2), and Ekoua (3 weeks). Their mother is in intensive care at the moment from ( I think) a blood clot on the brain. She is stable and they hope that, although it will be a long time, she will recover.

I passed my CPR test. I have a chemistry test tomorrow.

I have a plot idea for a book. But I don't think I can write it yet. I'll have to continue scribbling for a while.

The boys are in bed. I'm mentally gearing up to study CPR for my test tomorrow. Whew. I'm not sure I'll pass. Its not automatic yet. And I'm being tested by someone different from the teacher. I just hope I don't get flustered. I did pass my written test, though.
Government started today. Looks ridiculously easy so far. Hopefully it will become slightly more interesting. Mrs. H. did say she was planning on supplementing the text to make it more challenging.

I went up to visit Kit last weekend. I'll tell you more about that some other time. Off I go to practice rescue breathing and CPR on adult, child, and infant. And try not to confuse any of it. :-)

8.45pm
The boys are in the kitchen watching The Family Movie, except for Brendan, who is in the bath, having had enough ice cream.
We would’ve had to vote again on the movie choices, but it gets tedious for me to record votes so I made an executive decision. I don’t want to watch their favorite John Wayne, “The Star Packer”, again, yet, either.
When Mom and Dad go out for the evening, it is wise to plan. Once we did puzzles and I played DJ. Requests included “Sweet Home Alabama” by Lynyrd Skynyrd (request made by Jon, 6) and “I Could Spit on a Stranger” by Nickel Creek. I can’t recall who wanted that one, but I ignored that request (it is best, I find, not to introduce the spitting motif) and went on to the Painter Song, by Nora Jones (requested by Joshua, 5).
This evening we had root beer floats and watched uncles open packages at Christmases long before any of us were born, a water fight involving my aunt on the roof, my Oma’s mother visiting from Germany, lots of German cousins from when Papa was over there in the military, and uncles who look like cousins.

9.36pm
Now, Joshua is wailing in the bedroom because he didn’t get a bath, Brendan is brushing his teeth, and everyone except for B. is in bed. James is reading Brighty of the Grand Canyon, by Marguerite Henry. The cat, Oreo, is on his bed.

I’m going to get them all in bed and finish my homework for Lifeguard Training. It isn’t hard or complicated and the chapters are short. It’ll get harder when we have to perform rescues and use the floating stretcher.

I start Chemistry next Monday, for the first time. I’m not apprehensive yet, but something tells me I will be after my book arrives.

Psalm and Hymn sing was yesterday. We worked on the Lorica, among others.
The dance Saturday went fairly well but needed more people. We had enough for two sets every time, but it still would have been better.
I started a Lifeguard Training Course this morning at 8am at our local public pool. It will last for two weeks, covering CPR, rescues, etc. So far it is interesting and I've been able to do everything required. We had to swim 20 laps, but they counted from one side to the other as a lap. When I swim I count from one side to the other and back as a lap. So I was prepared to swim twenty of my laps, and only had to do ten. We also had to retrieve a ten pound brick from the bottom of the eleven foot poot and swim on our backs with it on our chests with both hands holding the brick.

My dad went to my uncle Mike's house this morning to build a cat fence. Yes, a CAT fence. Last night Uncle Mike was over really late helping dad work on the van. The A/C is still out, so we're avoiding driving in this 100+ heat.

I'm going to go to Heather's later and get ready for the dance. Another family in the church (whose kids I love to watch :-) said they'd watch the boys so mom and dad can go.

I should get offline. Heather's going to call me back after she calls Kate.

Yay! Miss Jenn handed out the invitations yesterday. There will be a dance! The only specifics I heard were a polka, the Virginia Reel, and the Posties Jig, but she borrowed our Scottish Country and Chieftains (Water from the Well) cds, so probably all the other normal ones. She also said yes, I could bring others, so I'm going to call my cousin Joe and see if he wants to go. He hasn't (to my knowledge) ever done any of the dances, but this is just an informal dance, so I don't think it matters.

We saw Signs recently. Three times, before we returned it to the rental place. The circles, everywhere, were fascinating to look for. Did you see them in the curtains? I was stunned at the end because I somehow assumed, "Hey, this is Hollywood, and there is no way he'll return to the faith." But he did. I thought going in that it would be an action/alien movie. Something like MIB or Independence Day. Far from the truth, however. The main focus wasn't on the aliens, or the crop circles, really. The focus was on whether things which happen are mere chance, or have a purpose. It was well done. Much, much, much, MUCH better than Planet of the Apes starring Charlton Heston, which I also saw for the first time recently. Lots of evolutionary propaganda, clumsy comparisons between Bible believing Christians and Apes who deny clear evidence of man's existence as intelligent beings, and silly looking apes with rubber lips.

Have you ever tried to lap swim with an older, pleasantly rotund couple relaxing and talking on one end of the lane, and a middleaged man standing in the middle of the lane? Its quite the experience, allow me to tell you. First of all, Mom and I tried swimming laps around people in the main part of the pool. But swimming around people begins to pale after a while. So then we thought we'd go for the lap lane and hope that either the three people occupying it would swim or move. After a lap, the couple at one end realized that yes, they were in a lap swimming lane hanging on the wall. I didn't really mind them, though. They were refreshing to look at. They were a picture of serenity, fenced off from the churning mobs by a lane line.
No, it was the man standing (STANDING!) right in the middle of the right hand lane that bugged me. After the couple left, another man joined the lane, but this one swam. Three people using two lap lanes, one of which is obstructed, is not nessesarily ideal. When one person is coming toward you in the left lane, and someone is standing in your lane, it really clogs traffic. We would have asked him to move, but it didn't look to us like he understood English. Possibly the lifeguard could have asked him too, but it was, after all, a public pool, and the lifeguard might hold that standing in the lap lane is his right.

On a more cheerful note, have you ever opened a bottle of sparkling cider with a crochet hook and a short stick? Neither had I before last week. The boys have all had coughs for the last month ( it starts with one, then goes from boy to boy till all five have had it). The cough is bothersome, but the cough syrup is worse. It causes rapid loss of stomach contents. So after Mom gave Jon cough syrup, he was sick in the hall outside our door. We'd been trying to keep Kit from getting sick, so Mom refused all offers of help and told us to stay in my room. We eyed the cider. Then we realized we didn't have a bottle opener. I'm pleased to report that a large crochet hook, slid under and pulled up, breaks the seal, and a stick thrust upward under the lip of the cap pops it off. We drank it from our water glasses on top of the bunk bed, where the airconditioner blows best. We talked about almost wishing life would never change while knowing it would. My attempt to drink cider while lying down added levity to the situation. And we discussed her upcoming birthday's party plans.
Miss Jenn is in town, and she has tentative plans to get a dance going. Should be lots of fun. :-)

I'm back! But don't expect my trip journal for a few more days, because Kit is here. We're eating healthy-- lots of (cocoa) bean extract. We're planning on watching My Big Fat Greek Wedding tonight. We had a great vacation, even though the van's A/C broke twice, Brendan went to the E.R. for croup, I left my pillow and Bible at Ainsley's, my swimsuit at my Aunt Sally's, and our dog got lost from our uncle's and went to the pound. (we got her back, thankfully.)

Best (anonymous) Quote since I blogged: "I love zits and blackheads!"

I'm here but will soon be gone again. I'm at my aunt's house, which was built in 1907. My uncle was here last night but had to fly out early this morning.
The boys and dad camped out in the back yard in the tent with cots and sleeping bags. Right now Aunt Sally is checking on the dog, Winston. He is walking stiffly and is very old. She is worried that he will either nip one of the boys because he is irritable or feel better and push them over with his paw. So we gave him aspirin in peanut butter sandwiches last night.
We are planning on going to an art museum this morning and swimming in their pool this afternoon.

We saw the B.'s and stayed with them Saturday and Sunday night and went to church with them. I jotted down some notes about liturgical differences that I noticed, which I may blog later today, but I don't know how much time I'll have.

My Saturday, or Why You Should Never Turn off Your Brain on Weekends....

Six things I learned Saturday--
1. Before pulling out of the driveway to go shopping with your mother at the mall, it is wise and smart to check your purse for your WALLET, which contains your DRIVERS LICENSE
2. This means you (a) have it, (b) know you have it.
3. When you get home and discover your wallet is missing, it is a good idea to stop everything and logically think about where it could be.
4. Although calling Mall Security, Robinsons-May, and J.C. Penney's Customer Service is also interesting.
5. When you go to the pool, leave your wallet in the car, come out, drive home, and get out, putting your wallet in the pool bag, it is very advisable to take the wallet OUT of the pool bag before tossing it in the closet.
6. Its funny when the lady at customer service helpfully inquires "Have you deactivated your bank cards?" when you only have a savings account. It becomes much funnier after you find the wallet, as do most things.

I had a nice shopping trip and drove there and back. Then after dinner I got ready to go get a movie (The Pianist) and checked my purse for my wallet/ID/driver's license. It wasn't there. I'm stunned. My mother suggests perhaps it fell out of my purse in the dressing room and someone found it. So I call. The people I got were all very sympathetic, which made me feel slightly better then and slightly guilty now (since I didn't deserve any sympathy at all!).

"Shhh...don't tell ANYONE its Father's Day!"

My brother Shawn, misunderstanding what he was supposed to keep secret. We explained that everyone knew that it was Father's Day and it wasn't just for our dad. What he wasn't allowed to tell (and amazingly, none of them did) was that mom bought seven squirt guns (for the kids and dad) and that I was making an apple pie (his favorite). I hadn't ever really made an apple pie before, and I did it without any help except with peeling apples. It looked pretty nice, but tasted great (if I do say so myself!). We had it after dinner and the water fight after church.

My Saturday was really something. I'll try to blog about it before we leave on two weeks of vacation on Thursday.

Yesterday, June 11th, was the one year anniversary of our adopting four of my brothers. We played kiddy golf and went out for ice cream to celebrate.
One year ago yesterday we went downtown to the courthouse and children piled over adults because there weren't enough chairs, and the heavy lawyer asked questions and the judge looked relieved to have a simple, happy case to deal with. Then we went out to lunch at a fun pizza serving restaurant with the pastor and his family. The next Saturday we had a huge party- cake, balloons, relatives... And four baptisms. The next Sunday, the boys were finally able to partake of the bread and wine, instead of being excluded. The imagery was beautiful. The parellel of being adopted by us and of being adopted by God, and of the symbols (new middle names and baptism).

Did you know toothpaste foams when you try to rub it off carpet with a wet cloth? Neither did I till Brendan got toothpaste on the carpet this morning.
The range trip was good. I'd never really helped learners before but I think I did alright. The younger girl, Theresa, was a natural. Shooting the single shot .22, she slid out the bolt after every shot and engaged the safety in a a single fluid motion. Her aim was also good.
When we got back from the range, my friend Heather was here. She stayed Saturday night and went back home after church Sunday. We had a great time.

Saturday morning.
The boys are eating cereal in the kitchen. Dad is putting baseboard down in the bathroom we tiled recently. We're going to the range later to help some friends learn about guns.
They're going hunting with Kit's family, so the shooters need practice. Should be fun. I haven't seen their oldest daughter for a while, not since Kit's party, so I'll enjoy catching up with her.

Bush's war doctrine questioned
News analysis by John Diamond and Bill Nichols, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON — The Bush administration's policy of taking pre-emptive military action against dangerous nations faces growing scrutiny from members of Congress who voted for war in Iraq but now wonder why Saddam Hussein's alleged weapons of mass destruction have not been found.
Because pre-emption means striking an enemy before the enemy can attack, intelligence would be a key ingredient in any future pre-emptive action the president might propose. For example, Iran and North Korea are both said by U.S. intelligence to have active nuclear weapons programs that could be a threat to the United States. While the administration has said it has no plans to invade, those countries could be high on any list of pre-emption targets.

The inability to find banned weapons in Iraq has put U.S. intelligence under a cloud. Congress is beginning inquiries into whether intelligence claims about Iraq were accurate or exaggerated by the White House to smooth the way to war.

A failure by the Bush administration to prove its prewar allegations could undermine the pre-emption doctrine. The next time the president comes to Capitol Hill warning of an emerging threat, one that requires military action to pre-empt and defeat, some lawmakers of both parties say they will be skeptical.

The week in brief--
Mon, Tues, Wed, Thurs.- boys' swimming lessons at local public pool. Mom and I swim laps for the 35 minutes they're at lessons. I did fourteen yesterday. Tuesday, crochet class. Thurdsday, Dad had a meeting.
I ventured forth in search of a birthday present for my buddy Katie. I went to the bargain store first, because they have interesting things, and often less expensive close-outs. I almost bought a lovely glass vase with 3-D glass flowers, but couldn't find one uncracked. As much as I wanted to, I couldn't find the heart to give her a huge, foot tall glass vase, either. Whatever would she do with it? You only need a vase that big a few times a year, at the most. I had fun looking, though. I settled on two floral print notebooks and a bottle of bath oil stuff.

Lest my outing lack the spice of adventure, as I was backing out of the parking space my side mirror slid gently up the top of the shopping cart anchored on the curb beside me. My brother alerted me to the fact that it was so. I realized if I continued backing up I'd rip off the mirror. Amid offers to get out and move the cart, I rolled down my window and tried to move it from inside. Discovering I couldn't, I unbucked and then leaned out the window. I pushed the cart away, then slid back in. Viola! I bet those two guys by the payphone staring had never seen that before. For that matter, I had never seen anyone do what I did, or did it before. New day, new adventures, what, what?

Yesterday...

We went with the G.'s and helped the B.'s load their two moving trucks. Or, to be more specific, Mr. G, Frank, Mr. B, two other men, my dad, and the mothers did. Ainsley, the B.'s oldest, and I were assigned babysitting duty. Yay! So off we went-- Ainsley and four younger siblings, two G. boys, my five brothers and myself-- to the park down the street. Where the boys (and two B. girls) chased lizards, found praying mantis', ate mulberrys, climbed trees, went down slides, swung on swings, etc. Ainsley and I sat on the bench for a while, then swung. David G. helped the youngest B., Andrew, (nickname: Drewness) swing on the swings. Since he's only oh, about seven, eight months, he needed held on and pushed. Ainsley and I both enjoyed watching David, 12, who is great with younger kids, and Andrew, who was grinning ear to ear. We relieved him and swung, and Ainsley had him on her lap. He laughed and laughed.

Dad is at men's forum right now. I'm being called to go get ready to go to the park and play tennis.

snoopy!





Which Peanuts Character Are You Quiz

Home again, home again, jiggety jig, after a nice calm bus ride.
Monday we went to the G.'s house and swam in the pool. I'm pink and sunburnt and had lots of fun, as did the boys. We swam, then rested, then swam, then I tried to relax on a lawn chair while my little brothers and the two younger hosts threw water balls at me. Little boys find it hilarious to do that since I usually don't pay attention and so I get socked every time. Me throwing the ball back at them, mind you, is even funnier. Lets just say that my ball throwing is an expression of my femininity. (another way of saying: I throw like a girl.)
We're going to the pool with Mrs. M. and Jay today, which will be fun. Speaking of which, I need to go get Math, History, and Bible (all summer catch up subjects) done early so that I can go.

Only one more cake to go. I'm at my friend Kit's house and have been since Wednesday night, and she is making a wedding cake. We have baked. We have frosted. We have tasted. (or at least, I have, since she can't eat wheat.) We have despaired. We have tried again. We have become sick of frosting. I personally consider sugar, cake, and frosting to be the bane of humanity. At least when you have to taste each batch of frosting. We've used seven pounds of butter just for frosting. And since its a white cake, we've struggled with the cakes themselves. White cakes, I gather, taste worse, are harder to make and less moist than others. We had though one where the inside was very moist. Kit's sister Ant said it would make a good pudding. We deduced we hadn't cooked it enough and maybe we needed to add a little white flour to the cake mix. Fortunatly, we finished. Then we had to bake two layers each for two side cakes. But they were chocolate, so they turned out fine. (except for one...) Then we had to deal with how to put a pattern of three evenly spaced dots around the outside of the cake. We debated the merits of a paper stencil and marker. We sat and thought. We talked through several ideas. "We could use lace," I suggested. Kit stared at me across the table. "So we could," she said, and off we went to find some that would work. We decided eyelet lace would work best. We went to the fabric store and found some. Then we went to find ice cream.

While we frosted and Ant ironed, we watched US Marshals. Since we have all seen it several times (it being a favorite) it was easy to listen and frost at the same time. I'm taking the bus back home tomorrow. After we set up the cake at the reception. All for now. Bedtime is definitely here.

I went to the thrift store to look at books and old National Geographics. The National Geographics are 30 cents each, so I like to get a few that look interesting. The following is as accurate as possible considering my memory.
I was kneeling down, since they are on the bottom two shelves, and I had just decided to get February 1976: U.S.S.R., Ob River, Apollo-Soyuz, Sargassum, Minnesota, Jefferson, Azores, and was flipping through an article on Tolstoy in June 1986: Immune System, Tea & Sugar Train, Tolstoy, Snow Leopard, Bikini , when a sharply dressed foreign man knelt beside me and began looking at them too. After he had scanned the rows in front of him, he went to the other side of me and looked. The only place left was in front of me. He politely said,
-- "Excuse me..."
(I nod and move over)
--"I'm looking for a specific one," he explains, "from 1980."
We continue looking, he for the 1980 he wants, me, well, for anything dealing with Russia/U.S.S.R. or anything else that catches my eye. His hand darts out and he pulls one from the bright yellow stack.
--"This is it!" He says happily, looking at me.
--"Great!" I say
--"It has a picture of one of my friends," he says
--"Wow!" I raise my eyebrows and nod. It is not everyone who is in National Geographic.
--"Yes", he says, looking through it, smiling. "A picture of where I was from. Here, let me show you the picture."
I'm slightly taken aback by this, but I wait while he flips swiftly through the bright pages.
"Here it is!" he exclaims happily! He shows me.
I see a picture of three Hispanic males standing in a row near a white car with thick blue and red pinstripes. They stand there comfortably, I have a vague recollection of drinks in their hands, in wifebeater shirts.
"Do you see the car?" he continues, "Can you believe that my friend did that himself with spraypaint?"
I am genuinely surprised. "Really? Neat!"
"Yes!" He continues, telling me about the car. I have never had an intense interest in old cars, however, as he shows me the stripes on the car done with spray paint, I become mildly interested. He tells me that his friend had sold the car and then regretted it because he had the car before he got married and he and his wife had many memories involving said car. Then I listen as he tells me what year the car was made in, and the fact that this car from this particular year has a different fender-thingee. (not his words, mine.) He goes on to tell me about visiting a friend and going down to the local mechanic and seeing a car just like this, only without this paint job. He can tell it is the same year as his friend's was. He walks over and knows its the same.
"Now," he tells me, "Can you see anything on this car that you could tell it was this car even if it was repainted?"
I shake my head. He points triumphantly to the windows.
"He had roses etched on the windows!"
I'm speechless for a moment. This is most interesting. Roses on the windows, hmm?
"Oh!" I look closer. "Yes, I see them!" I stifle a giggle. This is just plain strange. People don't just start talking to utter strangers...do they? I know I don't usually.

I just took my history test. The last question was: Read Philemon 15-17 on the relationship of Paul, Philemon, and Onesimus. How does this passage undercut the religious arguments in support of slavery? This reminds me of a rhetoric assignment: "Should the US go to war without the approval of the UN? Why or Why not?", which begs the question, should the US go to war in the first place? This question suffers from assuming agreement on whether this passage does, in fact, undercut those (undefined) arguments. It also suffers from not defining slavery--do they mean the OT pattern (Leviticus 25.39-40), or the Southern pattern of lifelong slavery? My (edited) answer is below.

This passage is confusing when applied without defining terms. How can a lifetime slave, who is enslaved by race, be treated as a beloved brother? If he has little or no hope of freedom, is that not cruel? Yet Ephesians 6:5-9 and Colossians 3:22 are clear that bondservants, or slaves, should submit to their masters and their masters should remember their own master is in heaven. The key to understanding this is the Old Testament law which required that every 7th year all slaves/ indentured servants be freed who were fellow Israelites, or brothers. (Deuteronomy 15:12) Since this law nowhere was repealed, it is still required, thus putting the South's system of lifelong servitude clearly at fault.

I discovered recently while looking through my visitor statistics discussing fetal pigs on your blog will increase hits, I imagine from desperate students. I'm not sure yet whether this is good or bad. I do not anticipate it helping them.

Still thinking about those elusive weapons of mass destruction?

Amazing Poetry Generator. Enter URL and wait. My blog was summed up in the following piece of weirdness:

Blog so went well.
I had my
strand of life, yet there is it?
was a fetal pig
lab . report on many reasons, so
still throw it for
some good pictures back. into their lives. A Poetry
blog.

(thanks to Ebbing Tide for passing on the fun)

just now~
younger brother with spiky hair from sweat from biking, crooning,
(him) - i'm spookay, i'm spookay, i'm spookay...
(me)- you don't even know what spooky means!
(him)- yeah I do!
(me)- what does it mean, then?
(him)- it means my hair spooks out!
.

What I'm reading-
The Brethren, John Grisham
First Circle, Alexandr Solzhenitsyn (these too are for fun...I'm enjoying both of them immensly)
Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis (for my Rhetoric class)
Lord of the Flies, William Golding (for a co-op literature class, but I'd read it before)
2000 Years of Christ's Power: Part One: The Age of the Early Church Fathers, N.R. Needham (Dad got this at the last History Conference)
Rules for Monasteries, St. Benedict (this too)
Of Plymouth Plantation: Bradford's History of the Plymouth Settlement 1608-1650, William Bradford (a gift a while ago)
William the Baptist, James M. Chaney (Dad read this aloud to us at some point, but I didn't remember it so went back)
Feed My Lambs: Why the Lord's Table Should Be Restored to Covenant Children, Tim Gallant ( dad got this, too, at the last History Conference)


btw, check out Classical Free Virtual Academy I'm taking a Bible class from them. Very interesting mode of teaching.

Much ado about Marshmallows. (thanks, Little Geneva)

Someone found my blog by searching for 'fetal pig lab report'. I find that mildly depressing for some odd reason.

overheard this morning~
mom- ...and the Lord made the heavens and the...
younger brother- what?! I thought God did!

Well, I had my oral presentation today, and it went well. I was a little nervous because I was the first one up, but I did ok. The only questions were two that I actually knew the answer to. Then we finished dissecting the fetal pig. Yuk. I think I'll try to do the lab report on it today, so I'll still remember what we found. Next Friday we're having finals, and the teacher says she is going to use an actual fetal pig and stick in pins and we'll have to ID them that way. I find this scary because I can ID black and white pictures pretty well, once you are actually dealing with brown organs, I'm lost. I'm not to worried, though, because the term paper grade came back. It was 1/4 of my grade and I got 190 out of 200 possible. So one bad final won't completely sink my grade.
btw, I started a Poetry blog. Right now I'm pretty busy, so I won't be updating it regularly. I've also been messing with the template for this blog. (in case you didn't notice). My links therefore have disappeared. They will return as soon as I can put them back up.

scene: Walmart cosmetics aisle
characters: myself and five year old brother Joshua
his comments are in quotes
Joshua stares at a makeup ad while I look at eyeshadows. He sees a close up of an eye and eyebrow with a dark smudge of purple shadow from the inside of the eye diagonally to the outside of the eyebrow. He intently studies it for a moment. Then he asks me, with a grimace,

-"do you like that?"
-no
-"if you buy that" pauses to grimace and shake head "then...I'll just throw that right away."
-well, that isn't your job, though, is it?
considers
- "no, but when I'm grown up and have my own house, then."
I misunderstand and think he's still talking about throwing away my makeup
-well, even when you're big you won't be my boss, you know.
-"no, with my girls, I mean."
-with your own daughters?
-"Yeah." he walks alongside me as we leave the aisle. "even if the mom [his wife] thinks its ok, I will still throw it away."
------------------------

I walk on with him, marveling at the fact that at five, he is planning his household's rules for eyeshadow.

I have to dissect a fetal pig tomorrow. Bleh. :-/
On the plus side, I drove with my mom today again, and all went well. I got a letter from an old friend, which always cheers me up. :-)

I had a wonderful time at the party (thank you, Kit, Ant, and Meg!) and will (hopefully) get some good pictures back. Most of the people hadn't done the dances, but we successfully taught them not only easy ones like the Pattycake Polka but medium hard ones like the Virginia Reel, and then we were all having so much fun that we went ahead and did the Posties Jig AND the Scottish Polka! My blisters are healing nicely, thanks.

I'm going to go study for the dissection. I want to do it a ways before bed b/c I think it would impair my sleeping ability to have pictures of the internal organs of fetal pigs floating around in my head.

Someone asked me the other day why I write. (poetry, short stories, etc.) I was at a loss for a moment, thinking. I wasn't sure I had a clear answer. I have too many reasons, so how do I decide which one is the most important, the one that keeps me at it?
The joy of flowing words? Just for fun? To share with others? Because of aspirations to be published?

I ended up just saying it was for fun, but now I think its a combination. I started to write because of the joy of flowing words, about five years ago. I don't often tell people that I write, so few people have read any of it. Finally, I do want to be published someday, but every time I think about it I imagine it published under another name.

"The farm family, by and large, is gone from our culture. Barren industry and large monopolizing agribusiness has taken the place of small yet fertile farms. This has had adverse effects on many areas of life, yet there is hope for a resurgence of the agrarian lifestyle. Many people are discovering anew the joys of daily interaction with farm animals and of working with the earth. More people have decided to put working with the land back into their lives. A return to a natural farming paradigm, integrating animals and food production, which is most effective on small farms, and a return to the land would benefit our culture in many ways. More people would live and work on family farms, and so more people would enjoy and love the land. It would benefit rural economies and family farms, and it would be a step in fulfilling our God-given responsibilities to the creatures around us. “Man was appointed by God to have dominion over the beasts, and everything a man does to an animal is either a lawful exercise, or a sacrilegious abuse, of an authority by divine right.” (Lewis, 138)"

(The last paragraph of my term paper.)

Tonight we went out for Thai food with Mr. and Mrs. M. and Zak and Jake. Lots of fun. Mrs. M. was kind enough to read over my paper and give me some feedback. I'm pretty happy with the paper except I wish I could've thought of a snazzier title than 'The Benefits of the Farm Family'. My dad suggested 'The Boons of the Barn'. lol.

Only 11 hours till I get on the bus to see Kit! I won't have time to blog, so I'll probably be back Monday.

Today so far has been class and little tasks. I cleaned the van because Mrs. G., Mrs. Gray, Frank, and Ben are carpooling with my mother two hours to the Mystery Dinner Kit's throwing with Ant and Meg. Of course, it needed cleaned anyway, but that was the motivating factor.
Last night mom rode with me as I drove to crochet class. This was a huge step for me because previously she was sure her nerves couldn't take it. Yet, the only reason she became at all emotional was when she said I was growing up. And while she gave me tips, (which I appreciated immensely), she was really calm. It was good.
I need to go work on my term paper.

Last night we went to an open house at the C's for Miss Jenn. She is visiting during spring break, since she's a teacher. It was lovely to see her and she looked and sounded like she was doing really well.

Mrs. Gray and Mrs. G. gave me book titles for my research, and I found one of the books at another library branch. So now we're going to head over there and get it. Hopefully I'll be able to incorporate the information and the paper will flow well. And oh yes, get my rhetoric reading done for tomorrow.
When we get back maybe I'll go make myself a cup of tea and work on that paper.
(only 3 days till I take the bus to see Kit! :-)

I just got my drivers license!!! In case you can't tell, I'm excited.
I'd ramble, but time constraints (yuk) make me be concise.
Chris and April (cousins) came over last night and visited. The boys were already asleep so we had a calm visit.
I'm still working on the farm family term paper. Right now I'm scrambling around last minute trying to find sources on why its better for the animals to be raised on a small family farm rather than a huge meat factory. I know reasons, but the teacher wants a 'well-researched' paper, which means sources cited.
Only 4 days till I take a bus to see Kit! :-) Lots to do, and lots to look forward to.

Well, I return. Let me sum up all that I had no time to blog. My Oma's party was wonderful, the food was great, everyone had fun visiting, and we had a group picture of the 30 of us. All aunts, uncles and cousins present and accounted for. We got together yesterday, twice, at the park, once for lunch and once for dinner. Lots of fun. Today all the relatives are gone home except for the ones who live here and one cousin and his girlfriend. So we'll probably still get together with relatives.

When I got home from the party, I looked on my wall and realized that I had actually done it! The canvas was gone. I kind of missed it, but I was glad it was gone because after a certain point I don't think my labors were actually improving it. So now I need a new project. I took pictures of a historic house and rose garden that I think will be good to paint from after I have them developed.

I have a paper hanging over my head so that is all for now.

The second book written and the third chronologically, you're the story of a Narnia hundreds of years after the last visit, populated by mythological creatures struggling to overthrow a king determined to wipe them out. Susan's Horn brings help when it's most needed ...


Find out which Chronicles of Narnia book you are.

surprised myself. i figured The Voyage of the Dawn Treader or The Horse and His Boy.

Ever have a day when you ate nothing but sugar and did practically nothing but spend time with a great pal? My day. Chocolate orange and decorating a hat. I've been invited to a "Mystery Dinner" which will include dancing. Since its set in the old west circa 1840 we had fun decorating my hat and trying on the pinafore. Normally I avoid frills like the plague, but this hat is incredibly befrilled and beribboned. Eyelet lace around the rim and crown, three colors of blue ribbon (braided) for the under chin ties and to go along the top of the eyelet lace around the crown. Whew.

I painted today. I worked on the tea cup that I added to my still life vase with yellow tulips. The paint was acting up so it looks like I applied it with a popsicle stick. Kindof reminds one, if you feel generous and like to praise, of Van Gogh's heavy paint. I'm still trying to loosen up and come to grips with the fact that painting is not always a 2 dimensional art form.

Me: ACK! Its sticking out! Oh NO!
Mom: Well, are you going to wipe it off and start over?
Me: No....I guess it looks good. Its just me.

My Oma's 70th birthday party is tomorrow night. [That, in case you care to know (and even if you didn't), is when the painting needs to be done, dry, framed and wrapped.] Anyway, family are descending, which is fun.

Someone found my blog by typing in 'one egg cake joy of cooking'. Hmm. Interesting.

You know that modern civilization has come to a destroyed country when gun control arrives. Thanks to Little Geneva.

I dissected a rat today. (NOTE: those with weak stomachs are advised to skip this paragraph)
Its fur was yellow. It had a long, snake like tail. Its eyes were tightly closed and its ears clamped to its head. Its nails looked manicured and were sharp. Rocky, a classmate, actually opened the skull and showed us all the brain. The most spectacular thing I found was the small intestine, which was 18 inches long.

We are just about to go to teach Scottish country/ballroom dances to 6-12 yr. old girls. Always fun. They love it so much.

Driving instructor update: My mother called and asked the office if we could have another instructor, and explained the problem. The lady said no, we couldn't, but she'd tell him. So I hope he isn't upset at me. Maybe he won't know which student complained. However, even if he flunks me, I think I have enough experience to brush up on my traffic laws and take the test. Anyway, I think I'll know today, I have a lesson this evening.

I started driving lessons. Had my second one today. The bad news is that he wears a fishing hat and hasn't showered, from the smell, for weeks. He honestly smells like cat urine. I'm debating with myself whether to force myself to endure three more hours and get my license or somehow get another instructor. Maybe the company would comply. But I think after this I've lost faith with them and want a refund. Its pay by lesson, but if I stopped now I'd have wasted $100. Hmm... Not good, so I may just endure it. Would you switch?

Dad is at men's forum. They're discussing the just war theory tonight. The boys are tired out-- we went to Mrs. Klaus's house and they played with her boys and Mrs. Kinney brought her three kids over too. They took turns jumping on the trampoline, joyfully ate popsicles, and built with blocks. Now they are asleep, no doubt recharging so as to have more bouncing-off-the-walls energy.

I've been listening to four cds lately. U2's 1980-1990, U2's All that You Can't Leave Behind, Nora Jones' Come Away With Me, and Fine China's You Make Me Hate Music. I have my favorite songs, of course- Bloody Sunday, The Sweetest Thing, Beautiful Day, Grace, New York, Seven Years, Painter Song, and Rock Can't Last Forever. I put them all in the living room cd player yesterday while I baked mom's cake. She and dad went out to a brewery for lunch. I made a one egg cake from my Joy of Cooking that I'd never tried before, but looked simple. It turned out well.

Tomorrow I have my first driving lesson. Dad and I have accumulated about twelve of the required hours, the lessons will provide six. I practiced switching lanes on the freeway last time we went. Easy so far-- traffic was light.

I've just started Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's First Circle. I regret that I have abandoned August 1914 for now. I do hope I'll have mustered up the will power to finish it someday, but First Circle was tempting me away till I couldn't slog through the muddy Russian ditches with constantly changing soldiers. As I told my mother, when you read an abridged (but still heavy book) edition of War and Peace without finishing another book, that book is officially on pause.

I finished the toucan painting. Now I need to figure out what to do with the one for my Oma's 70th birthday. Its a green vase with yellow flowers, i think tulips, but they still need work, so who knows, on a red and periwinkle background. The red is a tablecloth. But because of how far up on the canvas, the plain red needs something in the foreground. I'm thinking a tulip lying on the table, like a lady left her flowers for a moment to answer the door, or a sprig of babysbreath. I do know I'm going to need to do a few trial runs. I'm kind of over my head anyway with the shadowing and the depth of the flowers, although I do have a plan. lol, though, who knows if it will work? I do have till the night of April 15, though, so if it works a few late nights should finish it off, except for finishing touches. Dad's agreed to make a frame for it. I'm thrilled because he usually uses a honey colored pine, which he used for two bookshelves and for my table, and I think the coloring will look great with the bright, clean colors of the paint.

My rhetoric essay is turning out to be harder than I thought it would be. Its due tomorrow at midnight, but I think it'll be ok.

Mom went out to lunch with Mrs. M. today. Her birthday's Saturday, so it was nice she could go do that. I painted while she was gone. I painted a snow scene a few years ago, and she says she won't take it down till I paint her something else. LOL ... I find the snow looking silly in the middle of summer, so I'm planning on finishing a painting of a toucan by Saturday. hmm.... without her knowing?
I'll tell her its for a project on Friday. That'll work. :-) I hope it keeps going well. I'm working with the help of a book, but still... I've never painted a bird before...

Which reminds me... I have homework for tomorrow. I was in a group project and we will present it to the class tomorrow. I was elected leader of our group of three, so I'll be doing the talking. I just hope I can think of interesting things to tell them.

important announcement
I've decided to stop blogging......April Fool! :-)
The morning is going well. I don't know why, but I'm almost always motivated on Tuesdays. I'm going quickly and things are all doing nicely.
I've got my homework almost done for tomorrow, which is good, and the assignments for Friday are also falling into place.

I'm happy because I get to go babysit tonight. Not always is babysitting such a treat, but it is for these people. Three children, two boys and a girl, and another on the way. Besides the facts that their children are well behaved and good natured and cute, there is something better about babysitting children when they're kids your younger siblings play with, a family your family worships with, a family to whom you're more that 'just' the babysitter. Its a sense of community, I guess.

Yesterday dad decided to take me driving, since my lessons start April 7th. First, we warmed up with left turns in residentials, then we went (for the first time) on the frontage road, from there on to a four lane, then turned right at a major intersection. Whew. Then we went out of town and got on the freeway. My first time going 65 mph. Today, I drove to the little hardware store. They didn't have what we needed, so off to a bigger one. On a bigger street. On the way back we went on the freeway.
Driving is ... so ... well... its one of the few things that I've done that are stressful and exciting at the same time. Its like dancing a dance at a ball, when you don't know it very well and are scared of messing up, yet are so full of exilaration you're about to burst. Only with driving, the stress is dominant. With dancing, the exilaration is.
anyway. toodle-oo.

Frogs are really amazing. The only thing is, when you're disecting, that you get into it, and lean in closer, and then the smell hits you. Yuck.

And now, a word of heartfelt advice to all of you, since my blogging inspiration has run dry, plus I need to go clean the bathrooms: Don't swallow pennies!

I'm going to dissect a frog tomorrow. *furrows brow* I hope I can find the things I'm s'posed to.
Today was a quiet busy homework day. April will be hectic, so I'm enjoying this time, which is, I gather from a glance at the calender, merely the lull before the storm. But busy can be fun. I'm working on my term paper on the farm family and my rhetoric essay on why high school students shouldn't be apathetic, should change the world for the better. Frankly, the thought of many of the high school students I see walking down the street (you ever seen those guys who wear their visors upside down and backwards? whoa, man! *rolls eyes*) trying to change the world is a scary thought. What would Mr. Backward-Upsidedown-Visor-Man's view of a better wold be? So I'm going to make the target audience Christian youths, and if I'm asked about it I'll say that non-Christians ideas of a better world are better left unexecuted. After all, Stalin, Hitler, and Margaret Sanger all tried to change the world.

Here is a quote from my roughest-of-rough drafts of my farm paper, and then I'm going to go help mom with dinner:

The farm family used to be an integral part of our culture, and throughout the centuries it was the mainstay of agricultural and small livestock production. Yet a shift has been made from many small family farms to huge mega-farms created by consolidating family holdings. Because of the widespread disappearance of the farm family in our culture, animals and people alike are living lives disconnected from the soil and each other.

I haven't blogged for a while...but I do have good excuses. Kit was here Thursday afternoon through Saturday evening. We had a great visit. We went downtown Friday and walked around. We found a new favorite little store--a mix between antiques from the 50's and tea things. We took Meg and Ant there Saturday, after all going horseback riding. I was a little worried about the twins and two of my brothers on horses, but they did really well. Honestly, I think they had less trouble with their horses than I did. I'm consoling myself by telling myself that the wrangler gave them easier horses. :-) Mine wanted to eat, and because of snakes their not supposed to. It was lots of fun.

While downtown I went to the racks in front of an incredibly disorganized used bookstore that I really like. There are two sections of shelves out front on the grass ( I never venture into the disaster area inside). One section is $2 and the other is $4. I found Dr. Zhivago which I have never read, and War and Peace which I had wanted to read for a while. They are both nice looking and smell good. I always smell my books. I discovered to my chagrin that War and Peace was an abridged version. Even so, I've been drawn in. (that is one of my good excuses for not blogging.) I'll have to get the whole thing.

It feels like spring break...
...even though I'm still doing school today.
My friend Kit is coming to visit tomorrow! I'm so excited.
I took my history test. I hope I did well. I think I did.
I've decided to write a great short story instead. I think it will be a little easier.
On second thoughts, how 'bout I write a mediocre short story first, for practice. hmm.

Ermetrude
Isn't that quite the imposing name? Kind of a combo between Ermegarde and Trudy. Personally I think its a bit much.

I started crocheting a purse. So far its going ok. It'll be a light khaki color, tannish brown.
I played tennis with a friend tonight. And I threw a tennis ball up straight in the air and stood watching it come down. And it hit me in the nose. Hee hee. So smart. It was too funny to really hurt.

I decided to write a great novel today. Only it will have to wait. Rhetoric reading needs read for tomorrow, and a preliminary outline for a term paper that will be 1/4 *gasps* of my zoology grade needs drafted.

For those wanting to read a few opinions on Gods and Generals, you can check out Chasing Hats
or here.

Don't you love the clean smell after rain? Today is sunny, unlike the last three.

I've been re-reading Wodehouse's A Damsel in Distress. Absolutely great. The world would be a less funny place without Wodehouse.

After reading Tim's post, I thought I'd pose a question of my own to the ladies. What wierd things do you carry in your purse?
During little league last year, I had a cell phone, mystery novel, package of graham crackers, pen and notebook.

I've listened to the Norah Jones cd, now, and like it. It might need a little more pizzaz in places but her voice is very smooth and soothing.

I watched Bush's speech last night.
Then today I read this just war article.

Yesterday the rain started, so today is still misty moisty, and cloudy is the weather. The backyard looks muddy, so the boys will probably be cooped up inside today. Poor kids. I hope the energy doesn't build up to the point of spontaneous combustion.

My mother just came up and pinched me! I was sitting here, thinking about what insignificant tidbit to broadcast to the world, and she pinched me. I realized that, sitting here in my grey and yellow tweety pajamas, having not dressed yet, I didn't have any green on. Resourcefully, I pointed to my eyes, which are, you guessed it, green. Hee hee.

I think I'll sing the Lorica today, in honor of St. Patrick. Our church is starting to learn it corporately, but I've had two advantages. I rode to the Psalm and Hymn sing with a family from Illonois who already knew it well, and we sang it all the way through. The other advantage is that my mother practices it on the piano. It really isn't a hard tune, its just confusing the first time or two because it changes. I remember Steve Wilkins reading from the Lorica a few years ago at a history conference, so when I heard it the words sounded familiar.

Dad just got a Norah Jones cd, Come Away With Me. He said Amazon kept recomending it to him, and after this cd was awarded 8 grammys he ordered it. I've heard it in the background but haven't had the chance to listen to it myself yet. Maybe today. But not if I blog all day. :-)

Cloudy Day
I love cloudy days. They hint at rain, another beloved weather state. It also made playing tennis this morning for two hours more enjoyable. Dottie and Marti, two older (55ish) ladies in my tennis class asked me if I'd like to have coffee with them and with Danielle, a 25ish marketing something. (job titles never seem to stick in my mind). I couldn't do it on such short notice, but was flattered to be asked. Dottie sells insurance, and she and Marti live in the same neighborhood. Two nice ladies.

On a very different note, have you ever eaten spiral cheetos? The only criticism I have is that they are slightly harder to eat, demanding more attention. But that isn't nessesarily a bad thing, since they are much more fun to play with.


Speaking of deals, today after tennis four of the boys, Mom, and I went yard saleing. I found a great one, the kind where everything is either 25 or 50 cents. I bought a rusty old blue suitcase. The proprietor (yardsaler?) was, I think, surprised to see it go, even for 50 cents. lol. I thought it looked fun. I've stacked a picknick basket on it, and a lamp on top of that. It looks good. Old books, a green wine bottle with a plant cutting growing, and two dark wooden jewelry boxes (50 and 25 cents) round out the look. I like it.

Today we went to a bug museum. I expected just bugs, but they had iguanas, snakes, tarantulas, and turtles! My brothers had a blast. They held a garter snake, touched water dogs, and saw scorpions glow under a black light. I let them handle the 'hands-on department', but I did hold the garter snake and touch a lizard. Today I discovered that Algebra takes twice as long and is twice the fun if you do it on the back patio in the sun with your 9 year old brother. The only downside is that in amidst the talking, jokingly kicking under the table ("Who? Me? Surely not!...well...maybe :-) and watching bumble bees, very little math is accomplished. Ah well. It was fun.
Tonight dad has a meeting. I think we're going to go to a used book store. I hope so. Last time we were there I saw some Russian science fiction by Issac Asimov that looked interesting. I've never read any Russian sci-fi or anything by him, but I do like other Russian authors (Solzhenitsyn, Dostoevsky) so I'd like to pick one up and see what its like. Anyone read any of it? Anyone else like Russian novels?

my cat likes oatmeal...
...she always comes in and tries to eat it out of my bowl in the mornings so I gave her a little bit and she ate it all. Odd, if you ask me.

I like Wednesdays

It might just be me but I do. Rhetoric class and (sometimes) Bible studies, besides a feeling of "Oh good, I'm halfway through the week" all combine. I felt like sharing a poem. Endure as best you can.

Ink Smears
The ink smears,
Nearly causing tears,
The ink climbs,
Like black vines.
Splotches spread
Like the chicken pox
That mothers’ dread.

I wrestle the ink to the ground and beat it.
I rub the dust from my hands.
“That will teach it."
So I send it smoothly
In straight lines
Like an arrow.

I glance away for a moment only,
It is far off the path,
Galloping along at a high rate of speed,
Is the ink which I increasingly need.


I feel guilty,
Like I have broken something,
As I stare at my straggly lines.
Was my poor attempt worthy?
Or did my lines involuntarily defile
The pure loveliness of the paper?

Busy day today.
History test, crochet class, tennis with a friend, laundry away, study for Bible test, work on preliminary outline for term paper...
Lest I think that my disorganisation has reached dangerous levels, check this out.
Doesn't that make you feel safe?

I have a comments system! I'm so excited! So far its worked out well, except I'd like to remove one (at least) of the smilies they provided. Until I can work that out (I have posted a question on their site, but its free, so I don't expect quick service) please excuse it. thanx.

Today the boys and I sat on the living room floor waiting for dinner to be ready, and we played story chain. One person starts, then everyone else takes a turn. Three sharks were killed (and two eaten) in the production of this story. Also many french fries and much ketchup. You could tell they were hungry. :-) Growing boys, eh?

Mondays are catch up days
... at least they are for me. The laundry I should've gotten done Saturday? Cleaning my room? Mailing a package? Taking my boots to the shoe repair shop? Picking up my prints at Wal-Mart? You guessed it... on for today!

I couldn't resist sharing this pun... Mr. G. emailed it to me in his ongoing quest to help me appreciate puns. This one helped a lot. Hee hee.

Q: What song did Snow White sing at the Kmart photo counter while waiting for her pics to be developed?

A: "Someday, my prints will come ... "

Rest Day
We went over to another family's home for dinner. Their three children, two boys and a girl, played with our boys in the back yard while the adults ate truffles and told snake stories. Which was fun, but I may look under my chair and bed and in my closet before settling in for the night. Mom is back now to do her online crossword puzzle. I'm going to get my tennis shoes on so we can take a walk.

A fairly typical Saturday at our house. I went to tennis lessons 8am to 10. Then Shawn and I washed the van while Dad and Joshua washed the truck. Then the neighbor boy over came over while his dad and mine went to the car parts store (I think.)
Last night my parents and I watched My Big Fat Greek Wedding. It was really funny. I don't think its a good family movie, for all ages (our family favorites that everyone can watch tend toward exciting things like Learning to Operate Your Table Saw, or old John Wayne movies). But I did enjoy the craziness of her family...especially vs. the blandness of his.
After the movie was done we stayed up late and played spades. Its almost a family tradition to play spades late at night. While we played we listened to an 80's U2 cd that dad just bought. I hadn't realized that many of the songs were U2 when I heard them, since I had a newer cd, but now I'm recognizing them on the radio all the time. Kind of neat.
And this is one of the reasons I'm not planning on visiting Florida any time soon.

Ever feel like you have too much and nothing to do at the same time? That was my day. I knew in my brain that I had to do History workbook, research for my paper on the dissapearance of the farm family (and why that has been a bad thing) and Math. I just didn't feel any urgency, as I should've. However, despite that, it did all get done. Now I need to clean the bathrooms. But before I do that I wanted to point out a funny/odd news article. :-) I do think duct tape is good for almost everything, but still, I think thats a little extreme.

I'm just having a great week. Yesterday my crochet class took a field trip (to wal-mart, of all places!) and looked at yarn. That was fun. Then I played tennis with a friend, stood in light rain, remembered more odd names to stun my pals with (Aravis and Brunhilde), then today I got gold in the rhetoric quiz. And last week, I got my pictures developed from the ball. :-) They turned out well, so I'm happy.

Today is going well. I told the first person (besides family) about my blog. And I'm going to a used book store later. So everything is looking sunny. Except for the fact that I have to do Algebra. But even that lacks terror because the rest of the day is so great.

Yesterday we took a long drive. Away from the city. Away from the buildings. Onto bumpy dirt roads. Past sheep and cows and horses and geese and bamboo. Near rivers and mountains. Past places with stories we retold. Like the time Mom and I jumped the rattlesnake. Maybe I'll tell ya'll bout that tomorrow. I'm kinda busy today.