"Ing"

readING rundown

2012-02-23T15:04:00.000-05:00

I don't do reading posts as often as I'd like or as often as I finish books. I want to get better at this. As a future language arts teacher, I feel it is part of who I am and what I do to get people (students, adults, anyone really) excited about books. Here's two I've read, one I'd like to, and one I just heard about.

This book was beautiful. I didn't expect myself to love a book that is narrated by a dog--but I did. The perspective of Enzo as he recounts his life with the Swift family is one that made me laugh and cry. It was so very moving (again, I was surprised that a book about a dog could do this). It deals with love, and loss, and unfairness, and redemption. I just loved this book.

This book refilled my "hope tank" like no other book has in a long time. I swear it made me a better person to read it. Amber Appleton is a teen whose life is anything but fair, but seeing how she copes and comes through grief is so hopeful and reviving. I also loved her perspective on her faith. She has a very raw and unrefined faith that I wish we all had. This book restored my hope in goodness. I think it's one of those books that I'll come back to when I need an extra shot of optimism.

I haven't read this book yet. It's on my list. It was recommended to me by one of my professors but it's not a "professory" book if you know what I mean. It's written by a reading teacher. She speaks on the ways that she gets students to not just read, but to love it--which is what I hope to do someday. I can't wait to read this.

I honestly can't remember how I even found out about this book, but I'm glad I did. It's about a girl from the city who finds an ordinary box of yarn that turns out to be not so ordinary. I love children's books and I love knitting so this is perfect. The little "snippet" I've seen on Amazon looks so lovely. The illustrations are wonderful. Can't wait to own it. :)

Happy Reading Everyone!

skatING in circles by yourself

2012-02-21T11:49:00.001-05:00

I will never forget my tenth birthday. I had a skating party. All of my friends came, there was cake, music, presents, everything a ten year old Ali could have wanted. There was just one thing about it though--I was the only one who skated (at least to the best of my memory). By myself, I circled and circled the rink. I requested songs, I had a blast. Knowing my competitive self, I probably timed myself to see if it could get better. Now, I did take the time to spend with my guests thanking them for coming, eating cake, laughing, hanging out etc., but I alone skated, probably wearing some nerdy shirt that had something about NASA or the planets or something like that on it. I had my weird short haircut that made my head look like a mushroom, but I didn't care, I just skated.

When I look back at that memory I have two initial reactions. The first is that I sort of want to recognize that memory as sad. How did I not realize how "uncool" I was? Were all my friends just pitying me by being there? Oh my gosh, I was such an nerd and didn't even know it. The worst kind! I almost get embarrassed over my ten year old self. No wonder I was never a "cool kid." It can kind of be a painful moment to look back on.

Then I think about it for a second longer, and I laugh and I'm honestly proud. The thing is, when I look back at that memory, I wasn't embarrassed at all. It didn't occur to me on February 20, 1995 that nobody else skated. It didn't occur to me that I was skating in circles by myself. I just had a blast. The DJ played the music and I just went for it. I skated forward and backward, and did the scissors, and tried to go faster and faster each time around. I would say I was brave, but to be honest, I don't remember it being something I was afraid to do, I just did it because it was fun and I wanted to.

Now, why am I telling you about my tenth birthday??? Lately, there have been these moments where I've felt like I'm skating in circles by myself. I've had moments where I didn't even know I was alone in what I was doing, and I looked back and realized no one was joining me. This feeling has come up with my job, with some friendships, just everywhere lately. I felt like maybe I was still that 10 year old skating in a circle by myself not going anywhere, looking uncool.

Then I rethought it again. I realized that sometimes in order to really live, you just have to skate in a circle by yourself, because it is fun. The truth is, everyone else usually wishes they could go out there and skate. After all, how is not fun to listen to "Ghostbusters" and feel the air flutter through your mushroom haircut, as you zoom around on a bright orange floor while the lights from the disco ball swirl around you??? I mean, come on. Everybody is just too afraid and fear makes us miss out. We sit and we think of a million reasons why we shouldn't be out there. We think about our ability or lack thereof, we think about how dumb we might look or how uncool it is (adults worry about coolness just as much if not more than Jr. higher's I've noticed).

Life sometimes, is trying to rip the hope right from us--through criticism, through painful experiences, through disappointment, but I've realized that that's the fight. The battle is to hold on to hope, simply because its worth it. Sometimes in order to do that it takes skating in a circle by yourself. It even takes grit. Not the kind that makes you calloused, but the kind that can still love even when things feel unlovely. The kind that believes in other people (or even yourself) even when it seems like there is no reason to. It takes laughing and smiling and rejoicing even when no one else seems to care to join you. The hope is that maybe they will join you, maybe they will feel less alone, less afraid, if they just get out there.

Maybe this still seems sad, but I don't think it is. It's freedom. I hope that I can always look back at 10 year old me and have the courage to rejoice and to hope, and to just be me really; I hope that you can be you too.

" Be soft. Do not let the world make you hard. Do not let the pain make you hate. Do not let bitterness steal your sweetness. Take pride that even though the rest of the world may disagree, you still believe it to be a beautiful place." --Unknown

"No child on earth was ever meant to be ordinary, and you can see it in them, and they know it, too, but then the times get to them and they wear out their brains learning what folks expect." --Annie Dillard

restING, resolvING, and laughING with my mouth full

2011-12-31T16:49:00.001-05:00

So, I could go into a big explanation as to why I haven't posted in so long, but I won't. Life has just been busy, now I'm on break and my laptop was the last thing I felt like looking at for awhile.

Anyway, I'm still on break, and its lovely. This has become one of my favorite times of the year. As much as I love all the hustle and bustle and glory and excitement of Christmas, I love this quiet, lovely, restful time afterwards. There's something about it. The slow putting away of an old year, and the bringing in of new one.

For break I have simply been resting. Resting. In all its many forms. I would like to say I'm one of those people who do only wholesome things with my break like, meditating, prayer, or even just reading (I've done a little of all of those things). But, I can also safely say I have watched every episode of 30 Rock (while eating McDonald's most of the time) and rewatched the episodes I found to be particularly hilarious. Laughing out loud...by myself, in my sweats, probably with my mouth full. It.was.glorious.

I have been cleaning, here and there, little by little--putting away some Christmas decorations, reorganizing a cupboard here, and a drawer there. I think every stitch of clothing in our house besides what Dave and I are currently wearing, is clean.

I've been knitting. Working on that lovely kid mohair wrap. Its a creamy natural white, on wooden needles (I usually use metal) and something about that combination of the cream colored fuzzy yarn, and the grainy wooden needle is lovely to look at as I knit.

I've been sleeping. A lot. Whenever I want for however long I want, and staying up as late as I want.

It has all been wonderful. So very wonderful to just rest. Rest.

It has been this time of the year, that has slowly, year after year, developed into my own little sabbath. Kent recently shortened Christmas break in attempts to get us out earlier in the spring. While I know that once spring rolls around and I am done by the end of April, I will be elated, I sort of miss the extra time in the middle of winter.

I love this time to recharge, refresh, create, vegetate (hence the 30 Rock marathon), renew, and even prepare for the busyness ahead.

I love this time to reflect. I always say I'm not resolution person, but I think I secretly am.

I've been thinking about what I want from the next year. I know I want simplicity, I want rest (which I am still trying to figure out how that fits into the wild amount of work that comes a long with this final semester of classes and then student teaching in the fall...ugh...who wants to think about that right now!).

I want to be a resting place for others too.

I know one small goal I plan on moving towards in order to be that resting place, is listen more and talk less. Simple, maybe difficult. ??? Most people just want to be heard. I have ears. So I guess I'll try and listen. Words are precious too, and that's just it. We use them like they aren't sometimes. I want my words to be valuable, to always leave people better if possible.

So, listen more, talk less.

So, that's it, break so far. Rest. Resolutions. Junk food. I have one more glorious week left.

Happy New Year everyone! I've really missed this online community and plan on being around more often if I can.

Image Credit: Somewhere on pinterest.com...

writING

2011-12-04T10:50:00.000-05:00

For my teaching reading and writing class, we had to take sometihng we had written earlier in the class and make it into a four page piece. I've never tried this before, but I chose a poem. I chose The Dark Things. I don't know if this helps or kills the poem. It a four poem piece. Each poem is connected to the others, but hopefully distinct. I have no idea if this is good or not and I'm not just being modest. I'm just not sure. Its really long, so if you don' tlike poetry, this isn't for you. Well, here it is:

Four poems about you, for whenever you need them most:

Part 1: What you are not.

You are not too small.
You are not too unimportant.

You are stronger than you know.

You are not too tired,
You are not what they say.

You happen to have what it takes.

You are not alone.
You are not undone.

You are not as fearful as you think.

You are not unlovely,
You are not a coward.

You are not about to fall apart.

You are not too weak.
You are not too faint-hearted.

You have what it takes for one more step.

So take it, for then, you will find you have the strength for the next.

Because this is not your stop.

Part 2: What is in you.

Some days, the dark things win.
The days that are deep down and heavy hearted.

Those dark things are down inside our shaded souls, tremendous, and terrifying, and cold.
When try as we may, we cannot imagine life any other way.

We cannot pull ourselves from those dungeons, deep, and spiraled down.
We know what it is to want.

But, we know too, that that’s not all we are.

We know in us lies light and loveliness, beauty and bravery,
and the quiet, wild, courage to carry us through.

but, that all seems worlds away in some high castle tower.

For somedays,
some days,
the dark things win.

Part 3: What belongs to you.

This is your adventure.

It is not what you thought it’d be.

It is not always as exciting as you’d once imagined,
at least not on the surface.

It is darker and scarier than you could have dreamed.

Some of the days seem long, and tiring, and you don’t always feel like
the hero you’d always thought of,

Strong, valiant, and brave.

Other days seem difficult and impossible, the kind they never told you about.

The kind filled with back breaking work, or even the slow strange tears of failure.

There is sweat, the kind that causes you to stop for just a moment and wipe your brow, before you just keep plodding on.

It’s not at all like they said.

It doesn’t feel like an adventure.

-

But it may be one still, an adventure that is,
and it’s yours.

-

There, beneath what seems so dim and cold.
Or, so ordinary and normal, not the stuff of some great story.

It’s there.

The quiet slow kind of adventure,
the kind that makes you who you’ve always wanted to be.

Someday it may come, quicker than you dreamed, or slower,
that is not for me to say,
nor you,

Someday, You will find yourself again on some marvelous mountain top.

Standing on two strong legs,
And that will be your adventure too.

You will have conquered, and fought, and rejoiced, and sang.

But this, this dark and ordinary day,
this one moment,

this, dear friend,

This is your adventure.

Live it well.

Part 4: Where you must be..

When you have made it through,
when you have crossed safely to the other side.
when you are feeling strong,
nd have walked with straight sure steps for awhile:

Remember this,

Somebody carried you,

Whether through words or deeds,
Whether an embrace or glance,

someone helped you up and walked that bravest mile

with you.

Whether aware or not, they were there.
They were there to speak hope and life,

or to be silent.

to listen, to search with you, to sit with you, to laugh with you.

They were there to make you feel normal for a moment,
they were there to tell you the tale of their own strange story,

a journey not unlike your own.

They were there with gentle hands, or the courageous caring of someone who has walked that road.
Back when their world was harsh, and unforgiving, and dark.

They were there to pass along sand bags, or buckets of water,
they stood in the night watches with you, in those long awful times.

Somebody carried you,

They were there.

They were guardian healers,
The makers of a safe place, a landing strip, lit up in the night,
when you needed a harbor from some storm.

What you must remember is this:

You must be there,

wherever there is.

You must be a quiet place
a strong place
a knowing place.

You must be ready with tears
or with smiles
or with silence.

Or with hands ready to work, and a brow ready to sweat.

You must tuck someone under your wing for just awhile,
You must make a place for them to breathe.

You must be there.

You must remember where you once walked,

And that now you have what it takes,

to be there.

makING it through

2011-11-12T16:30:00.001-05:00

It has been a long time. A long long time since I have really posted or read anyone elses blog. Life has been busy and difficult for me lately.

There are many many factors contributing to life's difficulties and busyness, and I don't feel like this is the time or place to really go into it, but suffice to say, I've been going through a period of burn out. Burn out on school, and church. I'm burned out on people--some very critical and exhausting people.

However, I will say this, that even this time--this funk, I guess-there is still goodness. For one thing, I have learned that with all of my heart, I believe that encouragement will carry people much farther than criticism..."constructive" or not. I am thankful for this, and hopefully a better person because of it. I hope (hope hope hope) that the next time I am in the position to criticize, that I choose to encourage. I hope I choose to search for goodness.

Also I recently attended a literacy conference required, but still enjoyed, for my undergrad work. It was just what I needed to get me through I think. To keep me going and hoping and trying and dreaming. It reminded me of not just why I want to teach, but it even reminded me of the loveliness in the people I may have the honor to work around and with someday.

I met a lady who did a session on found poetry. Found poetry takes words straight from a text (we used an excerpt from The Tale of Despereaux). You use the authors own words, fragments, etc. and restring them to create a poem. Simple enough, but powerful.

More powerful than the strategy though was the woman who taught the session. She was quiet and passionate and giving. With everything in her, she wanted us to create a poem close to us. She wanted us to share and to learn, and to connect. She created a beautiful almost unexplainable sense of community with the people in that room. We shared and laughed and even cried together.Coming through this time of being face to face with critical, negative people, this was a chance to regain some confidence in humans in general.

When I wrote my poem, in this rich, warm, environment--a resting place really. It was cathartic. Here it is:

The Dark Things

Somedays the dark things win,
the days that are deep down, and heavy hearted

The dark things are down in our shaded souls, tremendous, cold and vast,

When try as we may, we cannot imagine life any other way.
We cannot pull ourselves from those dungeons deep and spiraled down.
We know what it is to want.

But we know to, that not all that we are,
We know in us lies light and loveliness, beauty and bravery,
and that quiet, wild, courage to carry us through

but that all seems worlds away, in some high castle tower.

For somedays, some days, the dark things win.

So thank you, Lisa Patrick, where ever you are. You got me through.

huntING, a wife's perspective

2011-09-12T21:16:00.002-04:00

I get the call,

“I got one, a doe.” He says.

“I can’t find her.”

“I’ll be right there.” I answer.

By the time I find him, in golden timeworn wood,

the autumn air around us,

she’s there.

Eyes on the last thing she saw. Frozen in time.

Still warm to touch.

There it hits me.

She’s gone.

She was old. Long lean legs, white tail, aged face.

Who once bounded through woodland wonder,

crossing the creak in one swift leap.

Now silent.

And still.

I wish I knew, I wish I knew,

some ancient, primitive, song,

or native, age old dance.

Some prayer, or ceremony.

Something to mourn and to celebrate,

what she has given to us,

for us.

A life for a life.

It is the archaic way of things.

One must give, for another to have.

rememberING

2011-07-28T15:00:00.004-04:00

Last week it was hot here. Really hot. Hot seems like an understatement, and I really don't know what word to use to give you the full effect of this sweltering, oppressive,overwhelming, record-breaking humidity and heat.

Mostly I've stayed inside, eating popsicles and ice cream and sitting in the air conditioning, but last evening Dave and I first went for a drive and then a walk. We rolled the windows down in the truck and let the hot air swirl around us. When we walked we could feel the heat pressing down on us. Although it was hot and some would argue miserable, there was a sweetness to it for me. Heat like this reminds me of 10 days that seem so long ago that I spent in India and Nepal. I went shortly after I graduated from high school and have never ever been the same since.

It reminded me of walking the muddy ridges in the rice patty fields to get to someones house who probably didn't want hear what we had to say (we were "missionaries...but I'm not sure how effective our tactic really was, but that's another post for another time), but all the same, they graciously took us in and offered us tea and conversation. This is where I learned to like hot drinks on a hot day.

It reminded me of asking a rice farmer what he thinks about out there in the soggy rice patty all day. He said "That there are too many mosquitoes." Reminding me that people, no matter where they are, are more like us than they are different.

It reminded me of seeing tiny, old, wrinkled women carrying heavy loads of wood or food or some other necessity, and wondering what other burdens they had carried all their lives long.

It reminded me of the relief or rain, or on the days it didn't rain and mid afternoon heat brought life to a screeching halt. We squatted in old store fronts that somehow had Coke and Fanta (it was the middle of nowhere....where do they get soda at?) drinking and cooling and talking and laughing.

It reminded me of the "untouchables" of Calcutta, and made me wonder who are my "untouchables"? Who can't I love?

It reminded me of people who had much less than me, but didn't seem to mind or even know. As long as there was food and shelter and a community, life was ok.

It reminded of me goats and chickens and children and bicycles and cars and rickshaws in the crowded chaotic (sometimes smelly) streets that make up India and wondering if they have more or less accidents then our organized streets here in the States.

It reminded me of sandles salwars and sauries and color. So much color.

It just reminded me of seeing the world differently.

This isn't really a statement on which country, the U.S. or India is better, but it is a commentary on finding the good everywhere and in everything, even if its not what we want, or expect. When it gets hot like it did last week, I'm thankful for the sweat, and the slowing down, and the reminder of another time and another place.

So yes, I'm glad the sweltering heat is gone (for now), but I'm thankful for what it reminds me of. I think I'll go make something curried now. :)

Image from Google Image.

decoratING inspiration

2011-07-01T22:19:00.002-04:00

I've really been wanting to be at the beach lately, which is impossible. So, I think I want to make our back porch (current picture to come) into a very caribbeany feeling space. I'm thinking about doing the bathroom this way to..hmmm decisions (I feel another poll coming). This is my mood board so far. You can click it to enlarge it. Everything you see is from Etsy.

my favorite "ING's" of summer so far.....

2011-06-30T16:15:00.003-04:00

I have been too busy to enjoying my summer to bother blogging, which is probably a good thing, but here are some of my favorite "ings" so far.

ReadING:

There's really just two books I've been working on. Both probably rank pretty high on the "nerd" list somewhere, but we've already established I fit quite nicely into that category anyway.

I know, sounds enthralling, right? Well, at least I think so. It's about ancient women's history and women's roles in creating fiber and textiles. I love it. Barber is a weaver herself and does such a great job of connecting us to our own history as women, as users or makers of fiber.

Yes. It's true. I'm a closet sci-fi nerd. Those that know me best are well aware of this. Lewis has a space trilogy and this is the first book. I totally plan on reading all three. I completely recommend this (at least what I've read so far) if you like sci-fi, fantasy (Narnia????), or even just C.S. Lewis. It's suspenseful and thoughtful and makes you think about what makes us, well, human??? Anyway, just read it. It's not very long.

KnittING:

Ok, ok, I admit it. I haven't actually done as much of this as I've planned this summer so far, but I've done a little, and bought some yarn (isn't that the fun part anyway???).

I LOVE this yarn that I found at the Great Lakes Fiber Show. I immediately fell in love with the colors. Twice without realizing it, I drifted over to the same booth and the same color scheme. It was fate. It reminds of our honeymoon in the Dominican Republic for some reason. It looks summery, coral-y, and beachy, and Caribbean-y. I have absolutely no idea what I plan to knit with it, but I couldn't resist.

And...good news...the first leg warmer is finished!!! The second one is started and should be finished soon. (I told you they'd be done by July. :)

EatING:

We've been doing a lot of this. :)

Dave had some clients from work come up from Louisiana, and I mean Louisiana. When we ask them where they live it's "Up the bayou." Which I had no idea where exactly that was. We had dinner with them one night and then they gave us 30 lbs of crawfish. Lucky for us, Dave's brother knew exactly how to prepare them and we had ourselves a crawfish boil! Complete with jumbalaya and corn on the cob and a little fried chicken. It was ALL delicious.

Confession: I didn't actually eat the crawfish...:( I wanted to but, I'm allergic (I told you, I'm a nerd...complete with allergies.)

WatchING:

I know I'm probably supposed to talk about how I have better things to do then watch TV, but I'm going to be honest here and say that in summer, I allow my inner couch potato come out. It's not like I spend all day doing this, but I have a few shows I love. Here's my current favorite:

Don't judge me.

I realize this show is trashy, soap opera-y, and created for 16 year old teens, but I'm addicted and I DVR it every week and am totally up on the latest thing that "A" has done to scare the "Liars". If you don't know who Em, Aria, Hanna, or Spencer are...you should. You'll be hooked. (Also, I am very aware I have some Bachelor and Bachelorette fans who are readers out there...you absolutely can't judge me for this then.) :)

Those are some of my favorite "ings" of the summer. We've also had a trip to the zoo, some Sonic runs (yum!), and some nights out on the lake...which I would have mentioned...but I have no pictures.

What have YOU been up to this summer???

Photo Credits: All Images except for the two from KnittING are from Google Images...as usual.

balancING act

2011-06-10T12:54:00.006-04:00

There are two types of hiking packs.
One for men, and one for women.

The difference comes in how the weight is carried.

Men hold the weight on their shoulders.

Bearing up under it, lifting it up high,
wide and strong, like Atlas, under the weight of the world.

All shoulders and arms and strong backs, with grunts and heaves of power,
efficiently moving the burden from one place to another,

with such splendid strength.

A women's pack though, fastens across the two hips,

balancing the burden, evening it out, until its almost a part of them.

They carry it steadily, absorbing the weight,
carrying it for miles and miles, step after step, sometimes even forgetting it's
there, or where exactly its going.

They hold it with quiet subconscious groans and sighs, busying their free hands with some other task,
touching the world as they walk, still plodding on.

There are two types of packs,
each designed with some purpose at hand.

makING my excuse

2011-06-10T11:04:00.003-04:00

The Vacation

Once there was a man who filmed his vacation.

He went flying down the river in his boat

with his video camera to his eye, making

a moving picture of the moving river

upon which his sleek boat moved swiftly

toward the end of his vacation. He showed

his vacation to his camera, which pictured it,

preserving it forever: the river, the trees,

the sky, the light, the bow of his rushing boat

behind which he stood with his camera

preserving his vacation even as he was having it

so that after he had had it he would still

have it. It would be there. With a flick

of a switch there it would be. But he

would not be in it. He would never be in it.

--Wendell Berry

He said it better than I. I would like to think this is why I only post pictures from Google Image. Although, maybe it's because I always forget my camera....

Oh! And before I forget , feel free to vote in this month's poll (to your right).

anticipatING

2011-06-07T12:37:00.007-04:00

Well, I'm back.. We have finally adjusted to life with a puppy...I think. :)

I'm so enjoying my summer, but there are so many things I'm excited about. Here are a few, in no particular order:

1. The school year.

I know, I know, I couldn't wait for it to be over, but this coming fall seems exciting to me. I will be in advanced study which mean I am in a "cohort" with all the other future middle school teachers. I think calling it a cohort makes it sound like we are up to trouble (which we probably will be) but what it really means is that we have all of our classes together, and have only about 5 professors that will be teaching those classes. It has a very "Hogwart's" feel to it (I know, that's a very very geeky reference to Harry Potter, but still). I'm anticipating getting to know fellow teachers, getting to know our professors, and spending a lot observation hours in actual school classrooms. Hooray!

We also get out own lounge/study rooms which has a fridge, a microwave, tables to study, "teachery" supplies like paper cutters, hole punches etc., and shelves containing copies of all of our textbooks, just in case we forgot. Maybe it's dorky, but I'm excited. Super excited.

2. Dave and I have our 2 year anniversary!

It's not until July, but I still I can't believe it. It's flown by and at the same time I can hardly remember what life was like before being married to Dave. I know that sounds super cheesy, but it's true. Everyone talked about how hard the first year would be for us. When it wasn't, they told us how bad the second year would be. I can honestly say we've spent the last two years enjoying each other. We laugh together everyday. We almost feel ready to duck because it hasn't seemed "hard" or "bad"...whatever that means.

I'm happy to celebrate the time we've spent together and happy to look forward to the time we will spend together.

We aren't sure what we are going to do yet. It could be anything to a weekend away, to an Indian's game (I'm thinking the all-you-can-eat seats....as romantic as that sounds, I love baseball food). Sometimes the planning and anticipating is just as fun as actually getting to do whatever it is we end up doing.

3. Summer

I know, we are already in it! I guess not technically, but the temperature and the time off says otherwise. I love that I have most of the summer still ahead of me. I love that summer comes with, hot days, stormy days, goodness and green trees, gardens, hikes, swimming, slushies, putt putt (Dave won our first game of the season) and many more wonderful wonderful things.

Anyway, sorry this post probably isn't interesting to most of you, but it's just a few of the things I'm so excited about. I love having things to look forward to. What are YOU looking forward to right now???

Image Credit: All images from Google Images.

sayING "hello" to the new addition!

2011-06-01T09:35:00.000-04:00

So...I know I haven't posted in awhile, but I've been kind of busy....

playing outside...

keeping the peace....

playing tug o' war...

fending off "vicious" predators....

and catching some Z's...when she'll let me...

Everyone, meet Luna!

I actually have a few other things I would love to make a post about...soon, I promise. :)

votING results!

2011-05-23T14:42:00.000-04:00

Ok. So first of all I am so sorry it's taken me so long to create a post about this. Second, I'm sorry that this will definitely be a short post. Life has been busy with visiting friends from out of town and friends from out of town visiting me, which is a good kind of busy to be. :)

Anyway....I know you can all just look to the right and see the results, but for the sake of fanfare...drum roll please:

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The winner, of the mohair election
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is.
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in a landslide victory
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The cowl!!!!!

I'm honestly not sure how many votes there actually were because blogger lost a lot of them when they were down a while ago, but I can say that almost entirely throughout the voting process, the cowl was always winning.

Now, to be honest, I'm also not sure if I really am going to knit a cowl or not (kind of seems like a real presidential election now doesn't it???).

I probably have enough mohair to make the two things I am now most torn between, and that is still the cowl and the wrap.

Anyway, thanks for all your participation, votes, and suggestions! They will all be aptly (is that actually a word, and is it the right word for what I'm trying to say???) considered.

knittING decisions...help! (take 2)

2011-05-13T16:27:00.002-04:00

Ok, lets try this again....last time blogger somehow deleted the whole.entire.post.....and poll. Sigh....

Anyway. Remember this?

The kid mohair from Maryland??? Well, I'm super excited to knit with it, but I'm quite torn about what exactly to knit. I'm feeling very conflicted over this! Now, I realize that I have 1200 yards of the stuff, but still, this is a big decision! There are basically three things I can't decide among and they are:

A cowl? Picture it all wrapped around the neck, you know....to get the full effect.

A scarf?

Or...a wrap???

These are the big three. What do YOU think? I've provided a poll and would love your input. I may not use those exact colors and patterns, I'm just looking for a general idea.

If you choose "other" for the poll, please put suggestions as comments on this post. I'm open to just about anything, although there are some things a person just doesn't knit. ;)

I would LOVE your input! :)

Image Credits: All except top picture are from etsy, click on descriptive word for specific shops/sites. Top image from Google Image

geekING out in maryland

2011-05-10T10:33:00.008-04:00

I have good news and bad news. Which do you want first??? Well, you don't actually get to answer, so I'll get the bad news over first--I forgot my camera this weekend. :( So no pictures from me, but I'll do my best to search online to find some good ones (probably better than I would have taken anyway).

Ok, ok , that's over with so here's the good news--I don't think it would have been possible to cram more fiber fun into one festival. The Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival was even better than I could have imagined. We left Friday evening arriving in the DC area that night, spent a marathon day at the festival, and then the evening in DC eating really great food (more on that later) and seeing things like the White House (Obama didn't wave, I was disappointed). On Sunday, we had quick (but tasty) brunch, and headed home. The weekend was a whirlwind, but it was a blast! :)

Here are some quick takes of the festival:

There were so. many. people. I was shocked. I mean, anyone I told that I was going to a sheep and wool festival looked at me like I was from another planet. Apparently, there are lots of other people from that planet. They were all great too (except some of those pushy people with strollers, a stroller is not a license to shove!). Anyway, my favorite was this old man I sat down beside in the heat of the afternoon. We started talking and he was a history and civics teacher for years in Michigan. We talked about teaching and how it's changed, we talked about history, we talked about SB 5, women's roles in modern society, and the fact that even I am now getting old because I don't like modern music (That was his theory, once you start thinking the best music was from 10 to 20 years ago....you are getting old. We laughed). The guy knew everything. He had a BA, two masters degrees, and PhD in history! I learned so much.

Lamb Gyros! Ok, I didn't actually eat one. The lines were too long and I had too much to do, but don't they look tasty?

I think this guy is called a Cotswold sheep (I might be wrong though). He was my favorite when I walked around the barns. He was extra soft, and how do you not love all that wool in his eyes?? All the shepherds were more than willing to talk about their animals. I wish I could say I remembered more of what they told me.

Vendors: there were tons! Selling everything from yarn, processed wool, unprocessed wool, spinning wheels, looms, needles, finished knitted products, felting supplies...you get the idea. I managed to actually not go broke while I was there. My favorite purchase is a 1200 yard skein (that's huge in case you were wondering) of kid mohair for just 30 bucks! It is white and soft and wonderful. You just want to bury your face into it and smell it's sheepy smell ( I realize how weird that is, but I love the smell of sheep) . It looks like this:

All in all--it was fabulous and I can't wait to do it again. Besides what is pictured, there were folk bands, Celtic music, TONS of food, sheep shearing competitions, herding dog demonstrations, auctions, and so, so, so much more!

I totally plan on going next year and I hope, that I by then, I will be in the market for knew spinning wheel! :) I fully plan on learning to spin this year.

If you like knitting, crocheting, or any other fiber-related craft even a little, it's completely worth going to. The countdown to next year begins....now!

Image Credits: Because I forgot my camera, all images are sadly from Google Images. :(

gettING through...

2011-05-02T11:07:00.004-04:00

...finals week.

arrivING soon (in june to be exact!)

2011-04-29T22:07:00.005-04:00

Isn't she adorable? We went out today to pick out which puppy from the litter we wanted. This is the yellow lab we picked out. June just can't come fast enough! :) (Sorry for the bad picture quality. All we had with us were our phones).

air conditionING

2011-04-28T10:26:00.011-04:00

the other day along the freeway, i passed a sign,

"FRESH BLUEBERRIES, PICK YOUR OWN,"

it said boldly, blue letters on a clean white square.

i smiled, as i thought about how charming it would all be ,
picking blueberries on some sunny spring day, popping a few into my mouth, every now and again.

then i wondered,

what would happen if i told some woman,
from a hundred years ago, or even a thousand , it doesn't really matter,
about that sign,

"pick your own!" she would sigh and shout,
throwing her sturdy arms into the air,
"my whole life, i've been pickin' my own!
and cleanin' my own, and cookin' my own,
and his own, and their own! pick my own.
of all the...."

...and her voice would trail off as she thundered into the other room,
to do some thing that needed doing.

i think she would jump at the chance
to walk alone, into some fluorescent lit supermarket,
and feel the cool manufactured air breeze over her summer-stained skin,

and pick out the first, square, plastic quart of berries she saw,
throwing it in the cart, on top of the box of kix cereal,
and the boneless skinless chicken breasts.

she would remember the days she spent, up with the sun, and out in it,

knees pushing against the hot ancient earth, as she knelt down,
filling the apron that she starched herself, watching the scarlet blue blood,
staining the perfect white,
pausing, as she used the back of or her arm to wipe the sweat from her wrinkled brow.

"pick your own." she would mutter and shake her head,
throwing in an extra plastic quart,
just for good measure.

Image Credit: Google Images

5 thINGs i love for under $5

2011-04-27T10:08:00.003-04:00

Earl grey tea from this website!

Seeds....from here!
These are purple cherokee tomatos and I'm trying to grow them this year!

Happy mug from drugmart. I only paid 89 cents!

This knitting pattern. I'm totally making these someday. :)

One of Starbuck's newest additions--the Cocoa Cappuccino. You can get it iced or hot. Yummmmm.

Hope you are all having a great week! I promise when school is over to actually write something.

Image Credits: www.starbucks.com, www.etsy.com, Google Image, https://secure.spicemerchants.biz/sm/

livING

2011-04-17T13:08:00.007-04:00

In the spring of the year,

there is so much life.

There is rain and grass and sun,

and they all need each other.

There are lambs.

New and white and warm,

their legs shaky, as they learn to walk in the world,

and their pink tongues, thirsty for milk.

We go outside, and dance in the streets, with our faces tilted to the sky,

and we plow the soft, cool, earth,

and dream of what is to come of it.

We still, but barely, remember that there was winter, and cold.

Days and days where there was not sun,

Only piles and piles of snow.

And wind, that aged our faces and made our skin rough.

We have almost forgotten the months we've weathered,

and how,

in those months, we almost forgot there was anything else.

But spring still came to us,

new and muddy,

and we still rejoice and we laugh our laughs,

and smile our smiles, when it does.

When it finally does.

The earth breaks open,

and we carefully sow the seeds, and we wait.

For in the spring of the year,

there is so much life.

Image Credit: http://www.fiberfarm.com/2011/04/pipers-first-day-out

knittING news

2011-04-11T11:46:00.005-04:00

So I haven't done a knitting update in quite sometime. Let's do this.

First of all our famous knitter...I love this one!

It's FDR! He was a knitter! I would love to find more man knitters.

Next on the knitting docket, I found this mug:

I want it.

Also....in a few short week I will be attending....The Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival!!!Yes, it's exactly what it sounds like. A festival, in Maryland, dedicated entirely to all things wool and fiber related. You can see sheep, shear sheep, watch them be herded, eat sheep (yup, gyros...sorry sheep), learn to spin wool, knit, felt...and any other fiber related activity you could possibly imagine. There is even a parade of sheep which I completely plan on attending. I am way too excited! This is my first major fiber festival and I feel like a kid waiting for Christmas.

Here's the flyer:

Finally, I really really really (at least I think so) want to get a knitting related tattoo. Maybe a ball of yarn or something. I have to think this through though, because....I.am.a.wimp....not mention a chicken. As I've thought about it I think of how cool it would be then it somehow morphs into thoughts like:
What if it hurts? What if I hate it after it's done? What if I can't get a job because of it? What if I get aids from the needle? What if I'm allergic to the dye and go into anaphalaxis (spelling?) and die!?

As you can see, I have let the questioning get out of hand.

But look at these cool yarn tattoo ideas:

See? Aren't they cool? Mine probably won't be that big and it will need to be somewhere I can hide it like on my back or foot or something. Some schools don't like teachers having tattoos I guess.

I have some other yarn tattoo ideas bouncing around in my head. :)

So, that's my update...the funniest and saddest part is that due to blogging and school, I've had very little time for actual knitting. However I have worked on the leg warmers a little. Soon, I will post some pics of my progress so far.

Have a great day...Keep Calm...and Carry Yarn!

Image credit: All images from Google Images and http://www.sheepandwool.org/ .

watchING a miracle

2011-04-08T13:54:00.005-04:00

Ok. So I know I've posted a lot lately, but I just HAVE to tell you about this link. It's from one of my favorite blogs. It's a farm blog from Juniper Moon Farms. They are a fiber farm. Raising their own sheep and selling its fiber. It's so so fabulous.

It's lambing season at Juniper Moon and it's so so exciting! You can click on the above link to be connected to one of the LambCams (there are actually 3) and you can actually watch the mother's with their baby lambs....live! If you're lucky you can actually watch a live birth. Which, I realize to some people might be gross, but I think it's so cool and hope I manage to catch a birth this season. Even if there isn't a lamb currently being born, this lambcam almost always has lambs that you can watch as they feed and learn to walk etc. It's way too cute. Anyway, just thought I'd share. :)

Image Credit: Google Image

callING all rebels

2011-04-06T15:04:00.013-04:00

Rebels wanted:

We teachers...need rebels in our proud profession.

Teachers tend to be the straight A, club president, rule follower crowd.

we love structure.

we covet order and routine, and we live on a schedule of bells and breaks.

work in the fall and spring....have the summer off...then do it all over again.

lunch is always...and i mean always at 12:15

we got A's for the sake of A's

and we started clubs so that the word "president" was on our resumes.

We use our turn signals, and very seldom speed.

It's not a bad thing....

its just what we tend to be like.

What we need....are some rebels.

rebels are not afraid.

they don't mind if the rules change, because they weren't planning on following them anyway.

rebel's don't flinch at danger but rather invite it,

and they aren't afraid of the F-word.

They ask "why?" and smirk at you when you say "Because I said so."

Rebel's have an edge, and an appeal, as they sit quietly and observe with their arms folded cooly across their chest.

We need a teacher with a tattoo, or maybe several.

we need the black sheep.

We need the kid who laughed at the school handbook if he even read it, which he probably didn't.

If you are a rebel and you're reading this, you are wanted.

I can't promise you a great paycheck,

and I can promise that you will be surrounded by the over acheivers that probably bug the H*** out of you.

But I think you'll love it.

I think you'll change things,

and that's just what we need.

makING a difference

2011-04-06T10:21:00.004-04:00

I LOVE this. His name is Taylor Mali, and he does poetry slams and he is a teacher. Sorry if the profanity (there's only two spots) is offensive to you. Its just a little towards the end. One of my professors showed this one in class and its TOTALLY worth watching:

I promise a "real" post soon, where I actually write something.... :)

procrastinatING...

2011-04-01T15:20:00.002-04:00

...because I am, and you probably are, and it's the last month of school, and we could all use a laugh:

restING

2011-03-30T15:29:00.007-04:00

Today, I got up and tried to get some school work done in the house. Of course that didn't work. It usually never does. So, I got myself ready and left early for class so that I would have two extra hours on campus to sit and research. So, here I am one hour before class starts and no research is done....imagine that. I am however, caught up on facebook, I've been to Starbucks and I did finally submit a poem to a local zine to try and get it published (for some reason, I've been terrified to submit it....its scary!) However, I have to say it was worth coming up. It's snowing up here. Big, fluffy, wonderful, flakes. Everyone hates it. Normally I would be with them, talking about how it is actually officially spring and so really, all this snow nonsense should stop. Somehow, and I have no idea how, I've changed. I think I like winter. I'm not saying I like it more than summer. Maybe I've just learned to accept it. I remember when I worked at Gradall for 3 months when I very first moved back to Ohio. I worked there January through March, and my job was to go down to the dock pit and dig through giant boxes of greasy parts, retrieve the part numbers and enter them into the new computer system. Anytime the word "pit" is in your job description, that should be a dead giveaway that its going to be awful--and it was. It was cold and greasy and I worked for the meanest man in the world. Really really, he was so, so mean. It was really the most miserable job ever. While I worked there I met a man name Harry. Harry had a cubicle beside me, and he smoked. So, anytime I wasn't in the cold awful pit, and Harry had just returned from a smoke break ,he would give me a weather report. Most of the time it contained snow and I would sigh, and complain, and talk about how I missed the California sunshine. Harry usually just laughed. But one day, he stuck his head over the ugly cubicle wall and said, "Al" that's what he called me, "Winter is a season of rest. Use it." One would never expect such sage advice to come from Gradall, the land of welders, steel, part numbers, freezing cold dock pits, and mean mean bosses, but somehow this advice made its way permanently into my mind. Rest is such a hard thing for us to learn. For me to learn. What Harry reminded me of, is that each season brings with it some benefit. Big or small, easy to find or difficult, its there, you just have to find. After hearing Harry's words, I learned to embrace winter. I began to use it as a time to settle in and read or watch a movie. Then I learned to knit. I finally got some sensible boots and stopped trying to wear flip flops in January. Now, I might even prefer my boots. What I am taking forever to say, is that I think I've grown to not only accept winter, but to actually enjoy it. I've learned to accept what is, and find joy in it. Rest has been a theme in life lately for me. I am happy for today and one of the final days of snow and of a season made for resting.

Note: Sorry this is all one big long paragraph, thats not how I wrote it and I've tried to fix it. Everytime I hit "publish" this is what I get.

fillING the empty space

2011-03-24T11:25:00.014-04:00

Life has been quiet. I don't know why, but it just has.

Quietness is rare.

Lately I've had a chance to "catch up" with a lot of far away friends on the phone. Their lives are so eventful and I've found myself saying over and over "Well, not much is going on here. Just the usual, you know, school and everything." Many of my friends are moving or having babies or raising babies or working a million hours or some combination of all of those. Many have big and exciting things going on in life.

At this current season in my life I just....don't.

At first I fought it. I was restless. I felt like I should be doing more. Maybe I'm not walking with God like I should. Maybe I should join a new ministry, be more outgoing, maybe I should be moving or having babies (don't worry Babe, I don't really want one right now). Maybe, I should be filling the empty space...with something....anything. Finally I realized,

quietness is rare

and we need it.
My life won't always be this way. Someday there may be kids, or a move, or a ministry (again, I have no current plans for any of these things), and I know there will be more work hours. I look forward to any or all of those things. For now though, I've decided to embrace it. I've decided to embrace the normalcy, and the quietness. This time of just Dave and I, in our quiet house, doing simple things like dishes and laundry and petting the cat.

It's funny, even as I say this, I have that little voice in the back of my mind saying "There should be more going on. Go! Do more! Change something!" It's that feeling that something spectacular should be going on. I'm a little bit of a change-o-holic. Be it good change or bad change, sometimes change feels more normal than routine.

But still, I know that this quiet time, this time of routine, this time to breathe in and out is ok, even needed. So I've just decided to let it be, for I know it won't last forever, and that someday when life is busy and full of change again, I'll wish I hadn't wasted it trying to fill it up.

"Time’s this priceless currency and only the slow spend it wise enough to be rich."

- Ann Voskamp

on beING a woman

2011-03-22T11:38:00.005-04:00

Sometimes I feel like I live in these two contradicting, at-odds, worlds.

On the one side I have a typically somewhat conservative "church" world. It's almost hard to write about this because I'm not trying to criticize. I love it.

On the other side I have this typically more liberal, "school" world. Again, I'm not trying to criticize.

These two sides seem to hate eachother, and I can't understand why.

Both of these worlds have their views on women. They vary from mild views, to extreme. Mostly I'm writing about the extremes. They have been popping up everywhere lately.

Let me start with school. Here, sometimes I feel like I'm almost supposed to be mad about being woman. Like its some kind of curse, brought on by men, or religion, or ignorant women or some mix of all three. Once during a discussion on Virginia Woolf I suggested that although her writings were probably appropriate for the historical context, perhaps they don't apply to us as modern women who can

work (if we want),

go to college (if we want),

get married (if we want),

get divorced (if we want),

have a baby (if we want)

or not have a baby (if we want)

I don't support abortion, but for the purpose of discussing women's rights...there it is. The point is, I don't really feel all that oppressed or angry for that matter. I feel like a free-thinking, choice-making woman. This isn't to say that in some cultures there is still not oppression, but I found it ironic that a bunch of women sitting in a college classroom, many of them working on their doctorates, wanted to apply A Room of One's Own to themselves.

From the reaction I got, one would have thought I had suggested that I think women ought to still be oppressed, and it would be best if we were kept underground as breeding stock and baby-raisers. One lady looked on me with pity, "Poor oppressed soul", another with indignation "How dare she!", another with a blank look of shock that I'm not sure what it meant. To me it seemed....odd? It was just a suggestion, not a statement against women everywhere.

On the other side, I have my church experience. Much of this thinking isn't explicitly stated, but subtle, and much of it isn't around so much anymore, but in some circles, it is.

Church is a funny place sometimes.

I know people whose marriages are nothing I could ever want. Husbands who talk to their wives like she couldn't possibly solve a problem on her own. Wives who think I'm crazy for considering working and having kids. I haven't decided yet, and I don't think I need to.
Men who feel "usurped" in everyday conversation because a women (very politely) suggests a way of thinking different than his own.
There is the thinking that its more spiritual to married, and the thinking that it is more spiritual to be single. Ugh! What a mess!

It's almost suffocating to sit in between these two opinions and hear them yell back forth (figuratively and literally at times). You want to yell for everyone to just "BE QUIET!" just for one minute so you can think and process all of this.

Where is the line between giving your life to your family and being so consumed by your kids you really have neglected your own identity to unhealthy level? Is it possible to work and to give your kids what they need? What does the Bible really say about women's roles in life and what does that look like played out? (Both "sides" of the tension I'm speaking of have horrifying views in my opinion as to what the Bible says about women). What about being a woman without kids and without a husband? Is that less valuable if you are a Christian and more if you are sitting in a classroom in a public University?

My. Head. Is. Spinning.

Mostly, I would just like to feel free to just be a woman. Not someone lost in the battle, or overtaken by any particular side. Not a slave to anger or to ignorance. Just...a woman.

More on this later.

sleepING and not....mostly not

2011-03-16T14:44:00.004-04:00

So lately...I don't sleep. Ok, maybe a little. Maybe four hours a night. Two on a bad night. Six on a good ("good night" occurring maybe two or three times in a month). It's awful. I don't mean to complain. I swore to myself I wouldn't use this blog as platform for complaint, but I really haven't been doING much worth blogging. I've been trying to slog through each day in a tired haze.

I've tried so many things. Warm milk, stretching, reading, counting sheep, reading about sheep (which is actually interesting to me, so I realized that wouldn't work for me). I pray. Which has been good actually. I've cut out caffeine completely, although I never drank much to begin with. I've tried not napping, but gave up. It didn't help. I still didn't sleep. I decided that if I could get some sleep during the day, it was still better then none all day. I even took a pregnancy test to make sure that wasn't the cause. Big sigh of relief...it is not.

Today, is actually a rare extra extra good day. I slept from 1:30am-7am and I fell back asleep for another hour or two. This is the best I've had for awhile. I'm hoping its the beginning of the end. I really really really hope its the beginning of the end.

Not sleeping is miserable. My whole body hurts sometimes because I'm just so tired. I'm sorry for anyone who has had season's of no sleep. Be it mom's, or other insomniacs like myself, or nightshift/swingshing workers.

It's taken over my life. I've skipped a class or two on bad days, for fear of falling asleep behind the wheel. My house is a mess. I fall asleep while reading for school. I feel so unproductive.I feel grumpy over silly things like facebook statuses, other drivers on the road, the fact that mail hasn't come yet. It's not an excuse for grumpiness, but it sure amplifies it.

I've had so many opinions about this given to me. "You must be stressed." You're right, I am...I haven't slept for a month or longer (I've lost track)...wouldn't you be? "Just wait until you have kids...you don't know what tired is..." Maybe. But for some reason, I think I do know what it is. I don't mean this disrespectfully. Sometimes I wish I wasn't sleeping because of kids. At least there would be a reason. I know that I am lucky in some regards, because at least my schedule is such that if I can fall asleep for a few minutes during the day, its ok. I can move my own schedule around with the exception of class times.

Again, I'm so sorry for using this for a platform to complain. It's just that this has been my life. I'm just ready to sleep again.

Next week is spring break. I'm going to try Motrin PM to get me back into a normal sleep rhythm. I think over the weekend, I will let myself rest and sleep as much as I can to "catch up". Then during the week I will try the PMs. I wait until break to try this because typically drowsy medicine makes me sleep much longer than the average person. If that doesn't work, its time to see the doctor I suppose. I'm also going to start running again. That should help...right?

Thanks for listening. I promise...this will be one of very very few complaining posts. I know that I'm blessed with a warm bed to at least try to sleep in, and a man I love sleeping beside me. I just know I would feel a whole lot better, if I could just sleep.

eatING

2011-03-03T20:33:00.011-05:00

In the spirit of up and coming St. Patrick's Day, I've decided to tell you about one of my favorite, very Irish, incredibly cozy, and rather local places to eat--Mulligan's Restaurant and Pub in Canton Ohio. It's right off the Whipple exit and it's more than worth your time (and gas money!)

It's nestled into an unlikely place, a strip mall...I know, I know. But before you judge, step inside. You'll first walk into an old Irish pub-like enviroment. Surrounded by brick work, wainscoting, stained glass windows, and beautiful woodworking and copper working around the very cozy bar--a bar that makes you want to walk up and order an Irish ale. This is the room with a more casual sports bar atmosphere (without losing it's charm), there are TV's with sports running. The last fun part about this room is it's running, year-round, second by second, countdown to St. Patty's Day.

If this isn't charming enough, venture a little further in. To your left you'll find the Victorian room. Here, you'll find a gigantic beautiful fireplace, that was actually featured in the movie The Haunting. This room has a much more formal feel, and no TV's.It has a very "it was a dark and stormy night", feel. Typically it's reserved for banquets, but sometimes it's available for regular seating.

Finally (yes there's more) to your right you will find the library. Here you'll find another beautiful fireplace, lovely wainscoting, tapestries hanging from the walls, and a wall of books. It feels like the library of some olde (with an "e") lord. Typically, you have to call ahead to sit in the library for dinner.

Now, if environment alone hasn't compelled you to immediately race on over in time for a St. Patty's Day celebration, I am pleased to tell you that the food is....wonderful! I've never (ever, ever, ever) had a bad meal there. Among my favorites are the reuben, French onion soup (best I've ever had, perfect of the cozy surroundings), Mulligan's fried mushrooms (they are HUGE), fish and chips....you get the idea...everything! They also have great steaks, and ribs.

It should also be mentioned that they will serve your drink to you in a gigantic, bowl-sized, two-hander, glass goblet. Seriously, these goblets are like the size of your face. If you order a beer, it comes in a frosty one. This only adds to the lovely, olde world feel.

If you've never been there...go. Sit at the bar, or a cozy booth, or the library...just get your Irish on, and go. :)

Credit:http://www.mulliganscanton.com/pictures.html

readING

2011-02-21T11:19:00.008-05:00

For a phonics strategies class I'm in, one of the projects we do is to read a young adult or older children's book and do a "book talk" on it. The "book talk" part is simply giving a brief "preview" of the book...without giving too much away. The goal is to learn to make books sound exciting (which they are) and to read books that the kid's we will be teaching could read.

I chose Hoot, and I have to say I liked. It's sort of a series of hilarious mysteries that are all connected and stacked on top of one another.By the time you feel that one mystery is "solved" your knee deep into the next. It begins with Roy, the main character being beat up by the school bully on the bus. His face is smushed against the glass of the window. It's at this point that Roy notices a boy running. Not just any boy though. He had no shoes, no books, and was running in the opposite direction of the school bus stop. Roy immediately sets out to find out who the running boy is and from there, the mysteries only begin. By the end you'll find out what an owl, nine snakes, an alligator, a bulldozer, a police car, and pancakes all have in common and you'll laugh a lot along the way.

I liked it. It made me laugh. In a few places it was actually a little too....political(?) for me, which surprised me for a book written for 12 years olds, but as whole it was great.

Whatever I think of the book though, I love this idea of book talks, and plan on using it in my classroom someday. We not only have to talk about the book, but we have to create a website, or use props, or do something visual.

The second book I've been reading isn't school related at all (clearly)-- The Knitter's Book of Yarn by Clara Parkes. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this book. It's everything you could want to know about yarn, choosing it, using for the right projects, where it comes from, how it's made, and more. It comes with some 40 patterns that are all beautiful. Some are above my skill level, but I'll get there...someday.

Perhaps its interesting to me because I love wool, yarn, and all fiber related topics, but I would venture to say that even to someone who may not have a natural affinity for yarn could find her style and content interesting.

My favorite part is when she talks about fiber festivals (yes, that's a real thing...all the knitting nerds really do all together at one time, I'll post on that sometime soon). She refers to them as "Woodstock, for knitters". I love this!

"Read it. I know you'll love it!" (Name that movie) But really, do read it.

knittING news

2011-02-18T10:44:00.007-05:00

First of all, I will start this post by saying...I should absolutely be reading Heart of Darkness for my lit class right now. However, as Fridays tend to go, I got online and started looking at knitting, fiber, and wool related things and now I feel compelled to blog about them. What can I say? I'm obsessed.

First and foremost I am extra pleased to announce that.......the Tumnus scarf is finished!!!! Well, sort of. I'm finished knitting it. I haven't decided if I'm going to block it. Blocking, for any non-knitting reader I may have, is the process of wetting and drying the knitted piece to help achieve the desired shape. There are a lot of ways to do this, and I've never done it before, but I may try it for this project. The edges of this scarf curl, so it's almost like a long, red, snake-like rope. Surprisingly though, it wears great like this. We'll see what I decide. Pictures to come. (I would post pictures of it today, but sadly I've been so focused on reading about wool and such, that I haven't even showered or anything....pathetic...I know).

Second, I am happy to tell you all that I finally found a pattern that I really love for the legwarmer project. It took me forever because I wanted to find one that was free, that I still liked, and that seemed easy enough for a new knitter like myself. Here it is. I found it on a site called the purl bee. It's great you should check it out if you like knit, crochet, or sew anything at all.

Here is what the finished product will hopefully, but not likely, look like.

I will probably wear them a little "slouchier" then what is pictured, but I just can't wait to knit and to wear these. Once I can spare the money for the yarn they recommend, I'm getting it, and I am going to start knitting. I figure I'll probably have these done in time to be extra useful. Like, maybe....in July....you know, when legwarmers are just the thing you are looking for. Either way, I'm wearing them, even if it is 90 degrees out. I'll just turn up the air a little more.

Finally, here is our "celebrity knitter" for the month:

Yup! Audrey! If that doesn't put the class into knitting, I don't know what does.
I know this picture looks like its from a movie set, which it is, but she really was a real-life knitter and she is real-life knitting here.

This discovery made me so happy and made me feel less like I'm 90 years old for being a knitter.

So get those needles clacking! Everybody's doing it! Even Audrey!

Image credit: Google Images

lovING today

2011-02-14T09:53:00.006-05:00

candy hearts

wearing pink (it's like the only day of the year that I do)

hugs and kisses (both the chocolate ones and the real ones)

love sonnets

flowers and cards

being together

valentine crafts

love songs

smiles

us.

slayING the jabberwocky

2011-02-09T14:48:00.033-05:00

I love Tim Burton movies. I just love them. I love the sets. I love their costuming (someday, I'm going to be a Tim Burton character for Halloween, but I better get started on that now,if I want to have it all figured out by then). I love their edgy, whimsical darkness. I love thier sarcasm and satire. They alway's seem like these artful retellings of stories we've heard, or at least feel like we've heard before.

I finally got sit down and watch Alice in Wonderland, and as usual, I was not disappointed. It. was. fabulous. It was whimsical and dark and fanciful. It made me wish there were a real place called Wonderland. I have to confess I've actually watched it more then once. It made me want to read the book, and I think, someday, I will. Someday, when I'm not in school and being forced to read things like The Picture of Dorian Gray....ugh....although perhaps it would make a good Tim Burton movie someday. ;)

Although I loved everything I've already mentioned that I love about Tim Burton movies, there was something else about it that stuck with me. Every now and again in a movie or a book there will some one or two-liner that repeats itslef in my mind and somehow makes its way into my life. When I watched The Dark Knight it was "You make your own luck." In Lord of the Rings it was something about making the most of your time....I know, I know, for something that stuck with me, I should remember it better.

What stuck with me about this movie, was the Six impossible things. When Alice was told she should stop wasting her time thinking about such impossible things, like flying, she responded with,

"Sometimes, my father believed in as many as six impossible things before breakfast."

Later in the movie she used this idea to bolster herself to gain the courage to slay the Jabberwocky (If you don't know what a Jabberwocky is, you should, its great fun. Look it up and see picture above.). She listed them all as she fought, things like "Animals can talk" and "There is a cake that make you grow when you eat it." Her final and 6th impossible thing was " I can slay the Jabberwocky."

So, she did.

While I don't have literal Jabberwockies to slay, and I'm not really all that certain about the idea of cakes that make you grow when you eat them, and I would actually be freaked out if my cat talked to me, there are goals, ideas, or accomplishments in my life that seem just as impossible. So, I've decided to make believing in six (or sometimes even one) impossible thing a part of my life.

Sometimes they can be "little", like " I can pass economics", "I can get over it if I don't pass economics." or " I can write this paper" or, on a bad day, even "I can get through today". Sometimes they can be "big" like " I can make it through this season of life" or "There is joy to be found here." There are no hard fast rules to what my impossible things could be, just whatever seems impossible for that day, week, month, year etc. Sometimes it can be things that just feel impossible at that time but aren't, like "God loves me" or "Fear not" or even "I can try something new."

Six Impossible Thing's is really more of an attitude then it is a list. It is the willingness to take risks and move forward. It's the ability to stand on the edge of some terrible, wonderful, wild thing and jump. It's the dreaming up of new ideas and saying "This could work" and then doing it. It's being creative and not apologizing for it.

It is being fearless. It is trusting. It is being free.

So, whatever your Jabberwockies, I hope you to find the courage to slay them. I would say "Good luck"...but remember, you make your own. ;)

the science of bakING

2011-02-07T08:45:00.013-05:00

i bought a bread machine last month,

i measured and poured each simple ingredient
and flipped a switch to "on" and went about my day.

it whirred and it hummed, and it tapped
metallic, like some alien craft on the kitchen counter

the bread came out in soft, square, blocks
warm on the tongue
and was eaten up with butter and jam and so much soup
all just the same.

but my hands

missed the feel of oil and flour and cracked wheat
sticking to my skin and under my fingernails

and the strength my arms felt
as they kneaded and kneaded to the rhythm of my own passionate breath

pausing only to brush my hair back from my brow with my wrist
leaving primitive streaks of flour across my human cheek

like a journey, a pilgrimage
to Mecca, or the holy land
or Damascus

measuring the oil as careful as Elijah's widow

choosing a place, a warm, dry womb
to watch the dough, the yeast, the flour, rise like some miraculous, living, testimony
to the way things are and have been for centuries.

Image credit: www.ooh.com

xoxoxoxoxING

2011-02-01T10:28:00.009-05:00

So, it's a new month and guess what? Da da dummm! I LOVE Valentine's Day! I know, I know, it's so hard to imagine me loving a holiday and getting really into it, right?

Well, Valentine's Day is no different for me. I know, it's a holiday that is often black listed by single women and married men everywhere, but really, I've ALWAYS liked it, yes even in my single days.

Whether it's a Hallmark holiday or not is of little consequence to me. I love it's cheesiness. I love big red and pink hearts, and those little heart candies with messages like "Ur hott", I love the heart-shaped boxes of chocolates...yep the whole deal.

I think I love that it's this bright spot in the middle of our dreary Ohio winter where we can get our goofy on and make heart-shaped cards for those we love. For anyone we love. Friends or family or anyone. That is why I loved it even in my single days....it's fun day to just say "I care about you".

So break out the chick flicks, and the good old fashioned love songs! Get out the markers, the doilies, the glue and the glitter! Get out the chocolate, and heart shaped cake molds! Break out all the love and cheesiness you can muster and get goING! Share the love!

Happy Valentine's Month Everyone!

xoxoxoxoxox

Image Credit: http://www.etsy.com/shop/vesnav?ref=seller_info

procrastinatING

2011-01-30T14:57:00.020-05:00

i could write of anything right now,
anything except anne elliot, and jane austen, and mary wollstonecraft.

i could win a pulizter,
if not for this blasted assignment.

my prose would flow like paint onto the canvas of my word processor, and of of souls,
i'd move men to tears,
i'd be a regular da vinci, your everyday rembrandt.

if only i wasn't sitting in this empty room armed with nothing but a laptop and a rubric.

i could change the world with a word,
if this cursor would just stop blinking at me,
and the syllabus would just stop staring,
and it wasn't the sunday before the due date.

if i hadn't been told to write,
i swear.

i could do it.

rememberING

2011-01-28T12:04:00.012-05:00

So I logged onto my old Xanga site. Remember Xanga? Anyway, I had a lot of old poems, thoughts etc. It was so funny and insightful to look into the mind of me, from even 5 years ago. It's funny how much life has changed, how much I have changed. What I wanted, what I thought life would be etc.

It's funny how much I haven't changed. How the little things that make us who we are never change.

I found this poem that seemed appropriate for the season.

"Extended Winter"

Some time ago,

spring was to come,

As it always does at this time,

with its new wet warmth,

and the sun on my winter-worn face.

I anticipated and expected its newness to come,

and my soul even stirred at the thought of it.

But winter, having worn out its welcome,

stays a little longer,

lingering and hovering with its bitter cold,

old and worn out like some dirty rag.

Stale and stagnant like so much old coffee,

that has long since lost its flavor.

It's weird to post old poetry. It's like a love-hate relationship. I always think it's great when I first write it. A year removed though....usually I think it's awful, like I tried to hard or something (I really think I did for this one...really.) At the same time, it's endearing, like an old baby picture, or growth chart, or a scrap book or something. It shows me who I used to be and who I am now. At least I know that winter, although it's grown on me, was never really my favorite. Who knows?

Happy winter everyone!

Image credits: www.xanga.com and http://sustainabledesignupdate.com

givING...a "guest" post repost

2011-01-19T09:46:00.011-05:00

The other day, I read this post on a blog (yes, its a fiber and wool blog so to speak...its delightful by the way, you should check it out.) The blog is from a fiber farm, but this post isn't so much regarding fiber as it is giving. I loved what she had to say:

"A couple of weeks ago, I was on the way Washington D.C. for a meeting with Tanis when I pulled into a convenience store for a Diet Pepsi. On the way back to my car, I noticed a homeless man huddled up by the side of the building, trying to make himself as small a target as possible for the bitter cold wind. He was bared-headed and his coat would have been inadequate on a day that was 10 degrees warmer.

After I got back in my warm car, after I turned on my seat heaters and adjusted the heat to full blast, after I took my wool coat off because I was suddenly too hot, I realized how miserable I was spending less than a minute out in that cold and wondered what it must be like to have to live in it.

And then I glanced into my back seat and saw a giant box, over flowing with the lovely Red Scarves we, you and I, made for the Red Scarf Project. I wondered briefly if I should have given him one, if the maker would mind it going to a cold homeless man rather than it’s intended recipient, but by then I had arrived at my destination and I put the idea and the man out of my mind.

He wasn’t out of my mind for long though. I have spend some part of every day since then just sick about the fact that I didn’t think to give him a scarf. I can tell you this without a moments hesitation: if I had seen a dog suffering in the cold they way that man was, I would not have walked away and left it there. I know I wouldn’t have.

I can’t imagine how cold he much have been. I can’t imagine the turns his life took to get him to that parking lot. I can’t imagine the misery. I’ve tried. I just can’t.

There is another box of scarves in my back seat right now. Scarves and hats and a few pair of mis-matched gloves. The next time I see someone who looks cold, I will step out of my toasty car and my comfort zone and offer him or her something to help keep them a little warmer.

And I’m asking you to do the same. Please go through your closets and make a pile of the hats, scarves and gloves no one wears and put them in a bag in your car. If you have the time and the inclination, it would be lovely to include a couple of hand knit scarves and hats as well. It doesn’t need to be fancy- warmth is what we’re aiming for here.

I briefly considered turning this into some kind of giveaway but then I realized that would be silly. You are lovely, kind, amazing people and you won’t need any incentive. Please do this for me."

One of my new years "resolutions" was to be a person marked by generosity. I want to be more giving. Anyone who has ever changed or impacted my life has been a person who gave. I don't just mean money. I mean generosity with time, talents, smiles, anything. I mean this as a change of attitude and lifestyle more than I do just a goal to meet.

It's been funny how much giving has come up...everywhere. On Sunday at church it was talked about, in my economics class my professor somehow brought up that economist have found that people who give (in this case money) are overall happier with their lives and their money.

Like I said, I don't know that I have a specific way this will look, but this idea is one thing I think I'll implement into this resolution and into life. :)

thanks for votING!

2011-01-17T10:39:00.006-05:00

Results are in! I have to admit that I was surprised to find out that the cozy, comfy, calm colors won! :) For awhile I honestly wasn't sure if I was going to abide by the poll results or not, but I've decided to give power to the people and go with it. So calm, comfy, and cozy it will be. I haven't picked a yarn yet, but when I do, you will all be the first to know.

On the note of knitting...Although I will probably start the leg warmers very shortly, I have some other projects that have taken precedence...baby knits!!!!

No, no, no, its not what you're thinking. It's really for a friend of mine who I've known they are pregnant for awhile, but they just found out they are having a baby girl. So I've been brainstorming on what the best thing to knit for a new mom and baby. Ideas anyone?

knittING news

2011-01-08T07:51:00.040-05:00

I'm up. I've been awake since around 6:30. I wasn't really planning on getting up this early on a Saturday, especially my last Saturday of break, but I'm a crazy person so here I sit waiting on my coffee to brew.

I have labeled myself a crazy person because I've realized that anytime Dave leaves while it's still dark (this is usually for hunting) I usually lay awake listening for the sounds of someone breaking into our house. Seriously, it's crazy. I convince myself that someone watched our house, waited for Dave to leave, and is going to break in, attack me, kill our cat, and steal all of our earthly goods (in that order). I need to stop watching Law and Order or something.

Since I'm up though, I thought I'd do a quick knitting post--more of an update on my slow and sad progression as a knitter, but a happy knitter nonetheless.

First of all, the Tumnus Scarf still remains unfinished. It's almost there, but not quite yet.

However (doesn't putting it bold make me sound like a mean old teacher..."However you all need to work on your grammar"...something like that). However (after all that...geesh) I do feel like I have an excuse. For some of my Christmas gifts I knitted coffee cup cozies (is it pronounced cozy, like a cozy cottage, or coozie, like the word cootie but with a "z" instead of a "t"? I'm dying to know).

Here is what they are supposed to look like:

Here is what mine look like (I'll let you in on a sad little secret...this is my best looking one):

It slightly resembles the picture. This is a victory for me.

Here is the pattern if you are a knitter and would like to make one yourself.

I've been thinking for awhile about what I can knit next. I've decided on (drum roll please):
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That's right! 1980's, aerobic instructor-like, almost dorky, leg warmers! The ones pictured are from someone's Etsy Shop.

I am so excited to pick out a yarn and a pattern and get knitting on these. I don't know if its the cheesy factor or the cozy factor, but I just love the idea of these. I also can't decide between doing a fun bright 80's color yarn or a calm cozy color like the one here (goal for today's post....use the a form of the word cozy as many times as I can squeeze in). Opinions regarding color are welcome.

Here's my last tidbit on knitting. I promise. I've decided to occasionally find a celebrity who knits and post at the very least a picture every now and then. I think this helps feel less like a 90 year old when I post about knitting.

I got this idea from Martha Stewart (should this really make me feel less like a 90 year old???). She did a short segment on Karen Allen.

You know, from Indiana Jones? Per her interview with Martha, Karen learned to knit from her grandma and has loved it ever since, even through her acting career. She now has her own shop. Not everything she knits is entirely my style, but it's definitely art.

Well, that's a wrap (or a scarf, or a shawl, or mittens, or a cozy...) Sorry I had to.

The 12 9 "Ings" of Christmas

2011-01-05T00:28:00.025-05:00

December was busy. I suppose anyone who follows this blog (all nine of you...thanks by the way, I appreciate all 9 of you..really, not sarcastically!:)) is wondering where the one who claims to love Christmas so much went during my favorite time of year. Well, here it is--my 12, or rather 9 (because I couldn't think of 12) "ings" of Christmas.

1. Travel-ing: Dave and I packed our bags and headed out to ~~sunny~~ ~~warm~~ California. We actually had a very eventful travelling experience going there (and back actually) which included a one night stay in a hotel (if you want to call it a night...it was more like a few hours in Pittsburgh in attempts to get
some sleep, which I think we got less), sleep walking, very mean security guards (one actually made me cry, she was the meanest lady on the planet... combine that with my 45 minutes of sleep, BOOM, tears). On the way back we had delays, a security breech, running through Chicago to catch our flight (yeah, like on Home Alone), and I hate to admit that I was cranky enough to tell the lady who tried to push everyone on the plane in Chicago claiming "I have a tight connection"--"We all do, sit down."...sigh...such is travelling I suppose. At the very least though, I'm thankful for a way to get us from here to there much quicker. :)

2.Rain-ing: We anticipated a lovely sunny trip full of outdoor activities and a maybe even a couple beach days, what we got was more rain than I've ever seen in Southern California. Even having lived there for several years, I've never. seen anything. like it.
It worked out though. It gave us a great excuse to just hang out with friends and family--which is what we were there for. All in all I think we had 6 days of rain and 5 of sun. So we did get some beach time in after all. :)

3.Go-ing...for it!: At my step family's Christmas, one of the cousins had the new Wii game "Just Dance 2"...

I won. :) (Not according to Lauren, but if she recalls the Avril song "Girlfriend", I was the victor.)

4.Laugh-ing: Mostly we laughed at the Californians. For my California readers, sorry, but read on, you have to admit it's true. :)

We laughed at how they drive in the rain. They either go 40 mph and hold up traffic for miles, or 80 mph and end up flipped over. I know its not really funny, but I forgot how big of a deal rain is, especially buckets and buckets of it, to Southern Californians.

We also laughed at the ~~self centered~~ individualistic (I'm being nice) SoCal attitude. It permeates the culture. :) Example (one of many): We were walking through a mall with my four year old niece, she dropped the gloves she was carrying so we all stopped while she picked them up. The lady behind us was so put out about it that she shoved her elbow between Dave and I and leveraged her way through saying "ExcUUUUse me!" (They never mean it when it goes up in the middle like that). Wow...but funny.

We laughed at the role of dogs in California. We saw dogs with sweaters, dogs in purses, dogs with purses. We saw organic pet food stores, restaurants with dog seating and dog menus. We saw a dog clothing store called "Preppy Pets".

Dog...the new human. :)

5.Cuddle-ing: With this cute face:

My sister's daughter and my very cute and sweet niece. She's 4 1/2 so Christmas with her was more fun than ever. It was all the heart-pumping, Santa-believing, Toy Story 3, present ripping open a kid (or adult) could ever want.

6.Receive-ing: This was one of my favorite gift years of Christmas ever. I got gifts that meant something to me (Mom, I know we haven't had Christmas yet, you'll be included because I may do an entire "gift post" because I loved this Christmas so much).
Here is one of my favorites:

My dad gave this to me. He used to read it to my sister and I over and over when we were kids. I love it. I've read it over and over since I've been home.

Other gifts worth mentioning that I just loved: a knit kit (lovely, soft, luscious alpaca yarn, scissors with a gold handle that I think elves used at some point, and a holder for small knitting necessities), lots of tea, a dough hook for my Kitchen Aid...so many things. I may do a separate gift post because I love gifts and what they mean, and the people that gave them.

7. Paint-ing: My sister was painting mini gourds as ornaments this year and I joined her in painting. Here is my favorite:

Yes, it's my cat. Yes, I know that's somehow sad and places me in the same category as Angela from The Office, but still, that's what I painted. :)

8. Hang-ing...with friends and family: I know this is a given at Christmas, but I just felt so blessed by it this year. We got to spend Christmas with family I don't see much but miss all the time. We got to see friends we hadn't seen in so long. We got to come home and spend time with family here. It's like Christmas is being stretched out into days and days of family and food and gifts and trees...it makes me think the Jews are onto something having 8 days of Hanukkah. ;)

9. Refresh-ing: We got to hang out with some good friends who have recently moved out to California. It couldn't have been more refreshing for us. They are the type of people who remind you to keep being who you are and to walk with God and that together with God we can do anything. Everyone needs friends like that. Everyone. Thanks guys. We love you and your family.

I think being away, and coming home was refreshing to. We loved our trip but we were so happy when we got back to our own house, our own bed, our own traffic (or lack thereof), our own routine...being away always makes me thankful for home sweet home. :)

All in all everything about Christmas has been great and its not over for us. We have one more Christmas left this weekend and I'm glad to have one more week with my tree. :)

christmasING and why it's ok

2010-12-01T19:00:00.014-05:00

I love Christmas, I know, we all know this by now, I've been building this up for months and months it seems. I know for some I start too early...sorry. I know for others they don't like the hustle bustle.

I feel like I need to make a case for Christmas.

I actually took a lot of flack for being excited about Christmas. I received various complaints in my exubrant celebreation of Christmas...this is my attempt to answer them as best I can. By the end if you still don't like Christmas, I'm okay with that, but please, I beg you don't rain on my parade anymore. :)

Complaint 1: "It's too early for Christmas."--Okay, okay I'll give some of you this one in my over-enthusiastic-starting-after-Halloween-facebook-counting-down celebrations of Christmas....so there, Scrooges 1, Christmas lover's 0. But look out, we Christmas lover's are about to make quite the comeback. :)

Complaint 2: This one is much like the one the above, only slightly tweeked--"It's not even Thanksgiving" or the reoccurring "What about Thanksgiving, it's a holiday too!" First of all, I want to answer the complaint with a question: How does my Christmas tree being up inhibit your Thanksgiving celebration? For me, my tree only enhances Thanksgiving and gives me one more thing to be Thankful for. Also, just because I start Christmas decorating doesn't mean I leave Thanksgiving out. If I had the money to invest in fabulous Thanksgiving decor, I might. Usually after Halloween, its easier to move from our Halloween decor, into Christmas. It's sort of a practicality...is that word???
Also I view Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years etc...as part of a general holiday season. One is not more important then the other, rather all are occasions for Thankfulness, Joy, and the anticipation of the bright new days to come. :)

So its 1:1...Tied up!

Complaint 3: "Christmas has become so commercial...all about buying stuff." Okay, to this I have a two fold answer. First of all, if you don't like that it's so commercial, don't let it be. There's no rule saying you have to break the bank and spend your entire savings on Christmas gifts. Try something handmade. Christmas is a lovely time to exercise your creativity. Second, and I'm serious in saying, giving gifts for some people is a huge way of showing love. Again, this doesn't mean you have to break the bank. Usually for people that give and receive love by giving and receiving gifts, it really is the thought that counts...get creative.

Uh-oh! 1:2 Christmas lovers are winning!

Complaint 4: "Christmas was originally supposed to be about Jesus and it's not anymore." This is actually one of my least favorites for a few reasons. First of all, historically if we really look at Christmas it wasn't originally about Jesus. It was originally pagan. I'm not saying that I don't love that its a beautiful time to remember what Christmas became over time--a time to remember Christ...but let's get our facts straight. This leads me to my next point...for those of us who want Jesus to be the reason for the season: shouldn't everyday be like Christmas??? Remembering who he is and that he became Emmanuel ("God with us"). I love Christmas songs, particularly ones that refer to Christ as Emmanuel. Think of it...God with us. God with us. God coming into our dark world as light. I just love it. This leads me to my last point in addressing this complaint: Jesus can still be your reason for the season, even if to others He's not.

1:3 Christmas lovers!!!! :) (see, aren't I winning you over)

Complaint 5 (last one because this post is getting too long and I'm already afraid I've made someone mad, even though that's not my intent at all): "Christmas is too busy!!!! All the family party's, work party's, church party's..." This answer is much like my response to Christmas becoming too commercial...don't let Christmas become that busy. You're allowed to say no...even if you don't have anything planned that night. It's okay to stay at home curled up by your tree with cocoa and a Christmas movie. It's okay to take a nap every now and again. It's okay to figure out a different day to celebrate with a particular side of the family. Relax, enjoy, take time for Christmas. :)

This should clench it...1:4 Christmas lovers! :)

Did I win you over yet? (Or just annoy you...sorry)

All in all, I'm just saying I don't understand the Scrooge side of Christmas. Christmas is supposed to be a season of joy and I think, especially as those who claim to know the Source of joy, it's okay to celebrate, to stand in awe, to enjoy the mystery and magic of the season, to give gifts, and to love, and to rejoice in Emmanuel, to give to those in need, and to pray for the grieving, and to rejoice with those who rejoice. It's a fabulous time of year and worth defending (I don't mean that in the "Merry Christmas vs Merry Xmas" way, personally its not an argument I'm worried about).

Before I close this long post that no one probably made it all the way through, I do want to add this...I understand for some Christmas is painful. It may be the first Christmas without a loved one, or the 1st Christmas without a job, or the 2nd without a job, or a Christmas centered around hospitals and a family illness, and for those people, its okay to grieve in this season and my heart really goes out to you. I think its okay to find Christmas hard to celebrate this year. I've been there in one way or another, most of us have, and wouldn't want to be there again.

To me though, it's all the more reason to celebrate Christmas and look for those in need to reach out to and be Emmanuel to...after all we are the body of Christ...we are those who are to be "God with us" to so many.

Anyway, that was long, but its been building. I hope no one was offended. :)

Merry Christmas!!! :) :) :) :)

communicatING: kids these days....

2010-11-22T10:35:00.009-05:00

If your a teacher--watch these. If you are a pastor--watch these. If you are a parent--watch these. If you are any kind of communicator--watch these.

You may need to turn off the music on this page. Scroll to the bottom and hit pause on the Flash player.

I watched these in a psych class I'm in. I loved these. Both of them. 8 books, but 2300 web pages...this should change how teach, how we preach, how communicate, how we create.

Recently my four year old niece proclaimed to the world that she wants iTunes gift cards for Christmas to download apps for the iPad. She's four!!! This made me laugh and made me think. These are the students I will have, these are the kids that will be sitting in classes, and maybe the people sitting pews....pews? Maybe not. I'm not sure what it will look like, but I think it will look different then it does now and it has to.

"It" has to look different in our classrooms and our churches. Students are not getting dumber, they just learn differently. Students get "it" differently.

It's funny but even kids in schools or churches now have more technology and information available to them I ever did at their age (do I feel old or what saying that???).

I'm rambling, but I hope these videos inspire us to communicate differently, and teach differently, and preach differently, and evangelize differently. I hope they inspire us to update (as much as we can afford), to create (in all new ways), to think before we complain about kids and their iPods, gaming habits, and attention spans. An effective teacher-preacher-learner-blogger-writer-thinker-communicator knows their audience and communicates in a way that the audience can understand it. This takes work and willingness to change, but it's worth it.

p.s. I know the intro the first clip is a little dated. Sorry. I feel like that fact is a little oxymoronic.

eatING

2010-11-13T17:07:00.007-05:00

Yes, I titled this post eating. This is a step that most of us (myself included up until now) can easily ignore in the preparation of our food.

Dave hunts...everything. This time of year several animals are in season, and pheasant is one them. Last year I made a pheasant for Thanksgiving, but Dave had already skinned it. This year I wanted the skin, so this meant plucking.

I've never plucked anything, so this was a new experience for me. Sorry that I look so greasy, but while Dave hunts, I sleep, so I hadn't really been up that long at the time these were taken.

Here we go!

As you can see, it gets rather messy. This was only a small amount of the feathers we took from it.

This isn't quite the finished product. I had to soak it to get some of the remaining feathers out. Also, I will add that yes, I gutted it. Dave helped with some of the cutting. This is because he is experienced, but I actually pulled out the actual guts...yes, with my hands. (For all of your sakes, I left out pictures of that...it was gross and it smelled.) And yes, I chopped off the head and feet and excess wing parts.

I really feel I can take on anything in life now. I mean, I've gutted and plucked a pheasant. That has to be some sort of rite of passage. I think this means I've moved into some new phase of life...or something...???

I also have to say I'm glad I'm already married. This can't be an attractive, feminine quality, gutting pheasants.

All told, the whole process took around an hour. It wasn't really that bad, but I will say I'm glad I don't have to do this for every meal. I can't imagine living at a time when that was your only choice. Think about this the next time you buy a boneless skinless chicken breast. :) Or maybe don't...I think that would be better.
:)

I will try and post a picture of the finished product on Thanksgiving. :)

knittING and feltING!!!!

2010-11-11T09:25:00.006-05:00

So, October was busy, full of field study in a 6th grade class(which was fabulous, I intended on posting something soon about how fabulous it was), work (which I have now quit, which is also fabulous and I now have time for things like sleep), Halloween partying (as I have already posted, we know this too, was fabulous)...somehow in all of it, I picked up something new. Actually two somethings new. :)

1. Knitting!!!!

Yes, I'm learning to knit. This is my first project and I'm pretty excited about it. I call it my Mr. Tumnus scarf. I secretly want to open an Etsy shop someday called: The Chronicles of Yarnia, and Other Storybook Knits. I would also knit hobbit style scarves, Harry Potter scarves and hats etc....you get the idea. :) I don't know that copyright laws would allow me to actually do that though...something to look into..hmmmm.....

2. Felting!!!

I have actually had felting supplies since June, but haven't made much to speak of. This is my first "figure"...a penguin! :) This isn't the best picture, but overall I was happy with how it turned out.

Unfortunately...

...this is the culprit who got a hold of the penguin and gave it an unfortunate end. The penguin is now missing a wing and has an eye sadly hanging from his head.

I think I could also include felting into my Etsy shop and felt little storybook figures as well. Not that I really have time for any of this...but maybe someday. ;)

Check out some of my fiber, wool, and felting blogs listed on my blog roll. If you click on the one that says "fiberfarm" it takes you to a yahoo page, you then have to click on one of the blog post title to get to the actual, and very creative, blog.

Enjoy! :)

votING and fundING

2010-11-03T09:58:00.009-04:00

Ok, ok, so I swore that I wouldn't get sucked into the world of debate and politics this voting season. Yes, I voted, but after spending 4 years in a public university, one grows quite tired of debating politics with people no matter what side anyone in the argument is on....however (I know, any of you who know me, probably knew I could never let a voting season go by without getting on my soapbox about something)there is an issue I see a lot of people uninformed about and its driving me nuts. So, I regress (surprise, surprise.)

School Funding. Particularly tax levies. (Big sigh...and here we go).

Let's first start by saying--I'm going to be a teacher. Obviously, I'm not in it for the money, so I hope that you can all believe me when I say that I care deeply about our education system and its future, and well, it's funding. I think schools need money. I also think though, that throwing money at someting, doesn't always fix it (sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't).

Now, having said all that, I often vote "no" on school levies. Usually on school levies of any kind. Someday, some futre employer is going to read this and not hire me and I may even delete this post when I go to apply for jobs (seriously). I have a good reason for my voting habits though, the reason being: the way ohio funds thier schools (ie property tax levies) has been ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court...more then once. I think it's been ruled that way four times, but I'm not sure if that is by the Supreme Court each of those times. I'm pretty sure, its worked its way up the Court System. To read all about it visit School Funding Matters.

I do know this, it has been ruled unconstitutional because of how heavily it relies on property taxes. Also more then one time the deadline for Ohio to change the way it funds it's schools has came and went with no solution found.

This is all hard for me to post because again, I hate seeing programs cut, teachers cut, and even schools closed, but schools have bent back the hand of tax payers by saying pass this levy....or else. Or else, your kids won't have busses, or else there will be bigger class sizes, or else they will have to pay to play. I just don't think this is fair. Even as an educator, I think there has to be another answer and we are asking too much of our property owners.

I really reccomend reading up on this issue before you vote for (or against) another levy. I know that so often I hear people say that voting down a levy doesn't change the system, but only hurts the education of our children. There are certain instances that I agree, however I also agree that by continuing to pass levies, we are saying we are ok with the ways our schools are funded. I think for a healthier relationship between schools and communities, we need a new answer. I know this is all easier said then done, but this battle has been going on for decades now.

I apoloigze if I've stepped on toes. I really was much more on my soapbox then I intended to be. I am ok with people voting for whatever they feel is right, I just want them to be educated about the issues.

Photo Credit: Google Image

hauntING : HardING style...

2010-11-02T19:42:00.011-04:00

Every year we have a Halloween party (well, for the last two years, but we are hoping it becomes an annual thing). It grew between this year and last and I hope it continues to.

Here is a little of what went on! :)

Our mad scientist laboratory...

Some of our creative costumers as "Up a creek, without a paddle."

Luigi and the baseball player!

Shrunken heads.... :)

Skelly in his laboratory...

Witch supplies (and scroll down to the bottom of this post to find out who the witch was)...

If you don't show up in costume...well...

Our costume contest winners: Storm and Ironman (Brittany and Aaron) :)

Our Apple Bobbing winner...Craig with 2.5 seconds! We were all very impressed. :)

Our costume...mwa ha ha!

I hope you all had a fabulously haunted Halloween...and maybe next year you can spend it with the Harding's :) (if you can't tell, I LOVE Halloween). :)

All in all, it was a blast and I can't wait to do it again next year.

Now...onto Christmas. :) :) :) :) (Just so you know....I love Christmas even more than Halloween!) ;) "Mwa ha ha!"...will change to "Ho ho ho!" quite soon. :)

shavING

2010-10-30T10:42:00.003-04:00

One of my favorite Halloween-ish movies ever. If you haven't seen it, you should....that is--if you can handle it. Mwa-ha-ha! :) Happy Halloween (again)! :)

spookING

2010-10-29T12:16:00.005-04:00

Happy Halloween!!! Have a great weekend! (yes, we carved those). :)

missING (its happy but humorous conclusion)

2010-10-01T10:06:00.005-04:00

I am happy to say that my day did in fact get better. However, I have to add that upon arriving home last night I did manage to successfully lock both Dave and I out of the house without our keys (hence the "locked out" part) or our phones. This resulted in walking to his parents house to get a key. Oh, and thank you Katie for giving us ride for the latter half of our walk. (sorry if we scared you too badly by pounding on your door...I think I really felt bad about that part.)

I am also happy to say I found the missing sweater. It was in my closet, but only halfway on the hanger so unless I individualy slid every hanger over to look for it (which I did last night) I wouldn't have realized it was there (like yesterday morning).

I am sad to say that my ticket was actually 134 dollars as opposed to what I orginally thought (114). Since I was doing 83 in a 65 (18 mph over the speed limit) this means that I am "bumped up" to the next bracket of speeders. Oh well.

Thank you all for your concern. :)

Image Credit: www.thekansascitylawyer.com

missING

2010-09-30T13:18:00.010-04:00

What was missing? My sweater. When was it missing? This morning, thereby setting into motion the following series of events:

I searched frantically for my sweater watching the time growing ever closer to the time I needed to leave for class (at Stark) and then pass it. I gave up, and left very frustrated as this was my favorite sweater and from Anthropologie even. I drove about two blocks (sweater-less...which means wearing my blue shirt that is a "back-up", I never really feel "ready to go" in it) realized I was missing a folder I needed for class and turned back around. I searched for about 5-10 minutes in the house for it and gave up (again). As it turns out, it was already in my bag I was taking to school. At this point, I realize I am going to be over 20 minutes late for a 50 minute class. I check the attendance policy on the syllabus: I only get one absence so I decide to go for it and try to make it to class (after all I still have flu season to survive...I may need my one measly absence later int he semester).

I am making my way down 77, yes, rather quickly. I am mad about my sweater, mad about my folder incident, mad about attendance policies, and mad that I'm mad about any of this. It was at that moment I looked in my rear view mirror...and yes...you know exactly what's next--flashing lights. It was at this point I finally burst into tears and feeling quite ridiculous about that (who cries over getting pulled over??? apparently me).

The cop approaches, tells me I was going 83 (yes, perhaps I was out of control). I am hysterical and feeling absolutely ridiculous that I'm hysterical and wondering why I'm hysterical when the cop (who was very nice by the way) says "It's ok, I'm not going to hurt you." Seriously? Am I that out of control and hysterical? This really only creates more tears and hysteria for me. Finally, I get my ticket and I'm on my way and I'm now going to be 40 minutes late for a 50 minute class and I don't even know if this now constitutes being "present" for class (so much for flu season...if I'm puking, I'll bring a bucket).

So today I arrived at class 40 minutes late, sweater-less, soon to be 114 dollars poorer, and yes still hysterical and unable to calm down.

The good news is, the prof for my class is a genuinely understanding woman, and didn't think I was crazy for being hysterical(although I still do). Also immediately following that class is a four hour break between my classes whereupon I retreated to Starbucks and then Borders where I used my phone to make out a pictorial Christmas list of the books I would like this year. I also had a conversation with my sister and have now blogged. I think (I say this ready to duck) I have fully recovered from my hysteria and can now move successfully into my afternoon. Also if you look to your right, you will see that there are only 85 days until Christmas. This is a good thing and that alone should make anyone feel better.

Thank you all for listening. If you happen to see a brown Anthropologie sweater, size small...please let me know. It is still missing and I feel it should know that its misplacement has caused quite the ruckus.

readING

2010-09-28T18:29:00.009-04:00

So I'm trying to post because its been awhile, and I'm posting about reading because I always mean to and never do. That being said...I love this book. It's everything I could want in an anthology of poetry. Every poem in the book was chosen by Garrison Keillor for his NPR show "Prairie Home Companion". In the collection you can find famous poets like Dickinson and Whitman. You can also find poems written anonymously and it's a GREAT way to find new poets to read and enjoy. I discovered Mary Oliver and Donald Hall, among so many others. Seriously...it's great.

What I love most about this book is it's simplicity. It really is exactly what it says it is--Good Poems. I love "picking at" this book. Grabbing it, opening it up and reading whatever happens to be on the page I opened to. I love picking poets and reading every poem included by them. I love picking a poem and reading it over and over until it becomes a part of me.

I love the way the poems are organized; into chapters with names like "Snow", "A Day", "Yellow" and "Music". It's so simple and common in a beautiful, wonderful way (except Dickinson...I never feel like she is simple...ok, so she's not my favorite).

If you like poetry (even a little)I cannot recommend this enough. Read it. Buy it. Enjoy it. It's wonderful ands often my inspiration for writing my own poems (or at least trying).

countING

2010-09-14T10:51:00.004-04:00

Yes, that is a countdown to Christmas you see to your right. I LOVE Christmas and everything about it. I fight off the urge all year to listen to Christmas music. I definately am one of those people that as soon as Halloween is over, I'm pulling out Christmas decorations,recipes,CD's, movies...all of it! I just can't get enough of it! So expect posts about Christmas. They are coming.

filterING

2010-09-12T06:48:00.014-04:00

I'm awake and it's 6:48 am. I know, I know to many of you that's really not all that early, but I've actually been awake for hours....thinking. Dangerous, I know. I don't really know if I've been awake because of the things I've been thinking (which you'll soon find out what those are), or because of a nap yesterday, or because I had sweet tea too late at night. Who knows? All three? At any rate, for a few hours its just been me and my thoughts, and now you. Whoever "you" are, which is the scary thing about this. And what may make me wait until I'm a little more coherent before hitting the "publish" button.

Lately, I've been thinking about a lot of things. Thinking, not talking. This is ok usually. But lately, I'm not sure if my motives behind not talking are all that healthy.

I've been thinking about Christianity, about church (we've recently changed churches), about how really, a lot of the newer friendships in my life know nothing about this part of me. Nothing. I'm genuinely not a proponent of beating people over the head with Christianity, or standing on street corners with clapboards and megaphones, or hokey t-shirts, or tracks, or really anything like that, to me those things are fake, and shallow and not really anything that Christianity is. (I didn't used to feel that way...sadly)

What I'm talking about are that people that are friends and want to know me....don't know me. I'm not being honest to hide this part of me. I'm going out of my way, to not be myself. I actually feel like avoided the fact that yes, I would call myself Christian. If it is mentioned, my words are so filtered, among Christians and non Christians alike. If ever I describe my faith or my relationship with God, I feel like every word is guarded, chosen slowly and painfully, like they may be my last. (This isn't always a bad thing, sometimes that's just called good communications, but I don't feel that is my own goal when speaking this way lately). Or I feel I have to duck after saying them, like some Christian somewhere is going to get out thier doctrine stick and hit me with it if everything I say doesn't quite line up.

Why is that? This is the question I've been asking myself as of late. Why do I feel the need to be so filtered? Why among those who call themselves Christians and those who don't do I feel like I can't just talk? Why am I afraid, in this aspect of my life to just be me, just be upfront?

I wondered if I was embarrassed of what I believe, if I was doubting it...no. Not it. Am I being too worried about what people think? Yes, that has to be part of it. But why only with this? Why is it I can talk freely about anything else..even controversial topics like politics, teaching theories (so, not controversial around everyone, but you have to remember who I hang out with all day at school).

All I can come up with over and over as my answer (right or wrong) is Christians. Recently (meaning within the last couple years) I have seen the ugly side of Christians. I have seen the judgemental, "well meaning" but mean spirited Christians. I have seen the Westboro Church side of Christianity>. I have seen close friends be hurt by those who would also call themselves Christian. I have seen Christians say nasty things too each other. I have seen Christians turn doctrinal molehills into mountains. I've seen them unable to listen, grieve, and do things that people (christian or not) do.

This is it. This is why I struggle lately. This is why my soul feels so worn out and tired, and I lay awake at night, thinking of these things. Wondering how and why and what makes people act like this. Wondering how and why and what my reaction should be, and trying to figure what my own reaction really and truly is. I am afraid to speak to Christians about what I think (see above paragraph as to why, or the part about the doctrine stick), and I am embarrassed to associate myself with the above Christianity to those who don't believe it (see above paragraph as to why).

Even in all that though, this is what I know, and what I need to preach to myself (over and over and over): The above Christianity, is not Christianity. It isn't the Christ I know, and it isn't the Christ that ever existed. Christianity isn't hateful, its not ruled by guilt. The point of it is not to beat the whole world or Christians into some nice neat "christian" mold. It is actually quite the opposite of that. Christianity and Christ are life giving, freeing even, when understood and accepted for what they really are. There are moments, for me at least, when all that is easier said then believed given recent experiences and having the Quran-burning church at the forefront of the media.

Please, please know after reading all this that I don't hate Christians (I'm one of them after all). I don't hate church. I believe it is capable of being the most world changing, life changing, soul changing thing on the planet. I don't hate Christianity, I believe it to be the most world changing, life giving, soul changing thing on the planet. And yes (for those with your doctrine sticks..I'm half kidding..sorry) I still believe in only Christ (and in the importance of doctrine for that matter). What I believe hasn't changed. That I go to church hasn't changed. What I want that to look like carried out in my own life--that has changed over time, and I'm more then ok with that. Know to, that I am still working through all of these things. This post of this blog is not my final statement on Christianity and Christians. It's just where I am at this point in this beautiful, messy, thirst creating, thirst quenching, wonderful, sometimes terrifying, wild, precious, abundant life that is Christianity.

So that was it. My (almost) unfiltered thoughts on my current Christianity (I'm still giving it a little time before I hit the publish button though). :)

stretchING (myself thin!)

2010-09-08T08:43:00.018-04:00

It's September. Which means back to school, a few more hours at work, we have a new small group, field studies at local schools, not mention,all school related activities come with a commute up to the Stark County campus...so needless to say life is busy. Right now it feels like every hour every day is a precious commodity that must be spent wisely and carefully (in a different way, shouldn't all of life be that way?). Work added an extra hour to my schedule in the morning and I could feel the noose tightening, and the questions of "When will I study, do laundry, sleep?!" All this to say I feel stretched out. As Biblo Baggins would say "Like butter, scaped over too much bread..." (Sorry for the nerdy Lord of the Rings reference, I love it). I don't just feel stretched out in my time, but in all of my resources. Mentally, emotionally, physically (running around in this heat is exhausting!)

September also brings one of my favorite times of the year though, fall. I love autumn and all that comes with it. Brilliant colors, cool quiet evenings, back to routine, chilly mornings, Halloween, carving pumpkins, fall festivals, sweaters, hoodies, soup suppers, the crispness in the air...ahhhh....I could just drink it up. Yet sometimes with all that is my life going on right now, it's hard to stop and do just that. It's going to be incredibly easy this semester to not take time to do the things I love, like drink cider slowly, read books I love, blog, felt, cook, and go for walks.

It's easy as people to feel like if we aren't constatnly accomplishing, and checking tasks and goals off our list, that we are failing. I thnk goals are important and so is a sense of accomplishment. We need it as people, but it can't end there. We need to stop and breath and drink it all in just as much as much we need to accomplish and feel like our life has momentum.

I know this is all obvious and really I guess most of life is, but it is usually the obvious that we miss so easily.

Anyway, I feel like I write this post a little hurried, knowing that in the back of my mind I need to iron my pants, change for work, pack my bag for school, clean up the kitchen etc., etc., ect...but it was great to even to take a few minutes to write and think and reflect. If you happen to see me racing from one place to the next, or furiously and frantically studying, feel free to remind me to stop and to stretch and enjoy life. :)

learnING

2010-08-04T10:10:00.016-04:00

A few weekends ago I took my Praxis I test in Mathematics (one of a few tests I have to take in my journey to become a teacher). I HATE and have always hated math(Until recently, more on that later). The experience alone was awful not to mention the content.

The test was at 7:30 am in Zanesville on a branch campus of Ohio University. Yes, I said 7:30 AM in Zanesville! So this meant getting up at 4:30 am, meeting the other two members of my group that also were taking the test, and driving aaaallll the way to Zanesville.

Nathan, Bobi, and I did get there in time and with a little (ha!) work found the right classroom (we actually think finding the room was part of the actual test in some way). We sat with our sharpened #2 pencils (not mechanical, as instructed online) calculators (again we THOUGHT this was instructed online) and waited for some of the others along with the test proctor to file into the classroom.

Without boring you with the rest of the long story, by the time we started the test it was an hour...yes...an HOUR later then when were supposed to start (yes, I was ANGRY) and it was declared just before taking the test that we could NOT use calculators. So, we had 60 minutes to answer 40 multiple choice math questions and wasted A LOT of time doing things like long dividing etc., were exhausted, hungry, and anxious. I was near hyperventilation by this point and all and all I still don't really know how I did on this test. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I don't have to pay $90.00 (yes...I said $90.00!!) to take it again.

This whole experience got me thinking about learning, school, and how we are taught to teach. What I kept thinking over and over as I was taking my test was "My ability to teach has been reduced to this?" (Perhaps I should have been thinking more about the volume of cylanders). I know testing has its place, but so much of my education on becoming an educator has been reduced to "Read this", "Take this test", "Say the right thing, at the right time....and you're in." I hate this. This isn't the kind of teacher I want to be, and I don't like that this is how we teach our teachers.

Remember earlier when I said that I HATE math? Now this is in part because I was the kid sitting my 7th grade pre-algebra class yelling "When are we ever going to use this!?" However, I don't know that my question was entirely unjustified. The responses I recieved were usually so that I could pass a test and get into a good college. Not a bad goal, but is this the only reason we learn? Is it the only reason we teach? (Yes, I'm on my soapbox now). To pass a test. That's it?

No one ever told me that math related to physics and the fabric of the universe, or that it could help me understanding chemistry and the miracle of the inner workings of plants and animals. Now I know, I know...will a 7th grader listen to this? Maybe...maybe! So why not try? Why not try to get the kid in the back of classroom wondering when this will be useful to see that it's interesting...even exciting and that everything they learn connects to the world around them.

I know this is all very idealistic and I don't feel like I've really expressed exactly what I'm thinking, maybe I was just mad over a math test. :) But, all this to say....teaching and learning...it's more then just about a test. I hope someday, I can teach that way.

"The test of a good teacher is not how many questions he can ask his pupils that they will answer readily, but how many questions he inspires them to ask him which he finds it hard to answer”

--Alice Wellington Rollins

Image credit: sweetlovelife.com

eatING

2010-08-02T11:07:00.001-04:00

Here's a little of what we've been eating this summer, mostly compliments of grandma's garden (see post below) and the Tuscarawas County Farmer's Market.....yum! :)

Fresh from Grandma's garden...

Pizza!!! (only the healthy, but still very yummy, kind)

Hillbilly tomato...really, that's what it's called... and it tastes amazing.

Pasta, with two kinds of tomatoes, fresh basil, and feta...yum. :)

Tomato, mozzarella, and fresh basil, with vinegar and oil! :)

seeING

2010-07-26T09:35:00.002-04:00

From Grandma I learn
that there is art everywhere

if only you know how to see it.

It's there in the mountian of fabric in the basement.
Ready to be cut and sewn and shaped into almost a million different things.
Depending on what you like.

It's on the side of the road in the Queen Anne's Lace,
what other's would call weed's, ready to be pressed and framed
and made into bookmarks and wall hangings.

It's on her back porch,
in the forest of potted tomato plants.
Tomatoes of every imaginable shape and color.
But this isn't just art you see..its art you
taste
This isn't just art,
it's a miracle.

Art is in the okra growing straight up like spears into the sky,
it's in ball after ball of yarn in every possible color
if only you know how to combine them.
It's in the shape of fern leaves,
and the smell of bread.

It's there, everywhere, when you

just

slow

down

and see.

I learned from her that there is art everywhere,
but never once did she say it.
She saw it and she taught me how to look.

celebratING

2010-07-12T11:23:00.003-04:00

Of the first year,
some told us of the terrors
of the woes
of how everyday would seem like a cold hard slap in the face
when the bills came
or the laundry piled up.

But we knew better.

We knew now was the time
to let the mundane seem so exciting to us
that everyday felt like the fourth of july.

We knew that now was our chance
to let the laundry pile
and to smile our secret smiles, the next morning.

We knew that today was the time
to spend snowy saturdays together
and marvel and rejoice when the sun finally came
and the ice from the lake melted week by week.

We knew today
we could walk down the street hand in hand
so that the old neighbors down the road
smiled
and remembered what it was to be like us.

Some still tell us of the terrible terrible days to come,
the way it will change and the ways we will change

But we know better.

eatING

2010-07-06T12:33:00.001-04:00

Any of you that know me probably saw this picture and wondered "What is HE doing on her page?!" Well, not to worry (or rejoice, depending on where your own persuasions lie) my politics haven't changed. However, I feel I must give credit where credit is due. While I have yet to really agree with Obama on his political choices thus far, the man knows a good breakfast when he sees--or rather, tastes one.

Pamela's P&G Diner in Pittsburgh. He visited last year during his stay in Pittsburgh for the G20 meetings and loved it--per all the media. Rumor has it, he has since even had Pamela's cater for a Whitehouse event.

So what's so great about Pamela's? The crepe pancakes! Dave and I ate them for the first time (hopfeully of many) on the 4th at the recomendation of Dave's boss, and the president. We loved it! The centers have this great eggy texture and the edges are this crispy almondy, vanilla-ey, buttery, lacy looking border. With or without syrup they are fabulous...and don't ruin them by getting the centers filled like a traditional crepe. Eat 'em like a stack of pancakes and enjoy.

Yum, yum, and yummo! That's all I can really say about them.

P.S. Expect more eatING posts...I'm obsessed. I heart food! :)

Photo Credit Dunand/AFP/GETTY via Rolling Stone

beginnING

2010-07-01T11:00:00.000-04:00

So, I'm finally posting. My first post of my first blog. Kind of exciting. Kind of intimidating. It took me a full month to finally post it, but here it is. I've never blogged before so I'm still figuring this out. So, if you're reading this, thanks for putting up with my first post. If you continue reading my posts, thank you for coming back and putting up with me as I write and learn, and for giving me a much needed outlet. Well, here it is--"Ing". A beginning. (I know, I know, SUPER cheesy...but more of that to come for sure...sorry.)