5 weeks!

Until Dad gets home! I am counting the days! The days actually number 24--5 weeks is a rounded number.

Mama and Dad got me a 6 month membership to a ladies' gym for Christmas. I went every weekday this past week and I feel great!

Mama is having Ethan, Naomi, and Joshua read Paul Johnson's A History of the American People for their (wait for it) American history credit. So I volunteered to read it first and write tests, short essay questions and full essay questions for them. It's a great read. I'm really enjoying it! I have wanted to read it for a while now. I figured that volunteering to write a curriculum around it would be a good way to guarantee that I read it.

Hebrew class starts up again tomorrow. I'm so excited! I hope I haven't forgotten everything over the break.

I am Excite!

A Japanese exchange student named Miharu used to say that. And I am very much excited about opening Christmas presents and watching people enjoy what I'm giving them. I got a taste of it while exchanging gifts with the Teagues and now I can't wait for our belated Christmas!

Merry Christmas Eve!

Poor Dad is far away. Everybody over here doesn't have him but we have each other. Poor Dad only has Eric, which is better than nothing.

In other news, Claremore might actually get a white Christmas.

I know it's rude to brag about your own cooking, but the soup I just made smells really, really good. Can't wait for supper. Maybe I should make biscuits to go with it.

The Bravest Thing of All Is To Hope

"And in the dark we climb this slope
'cause the bravest thing is always hope."
Binary from The Light of Things Hoped For by Brave Saint Saturn

"Deepest oceans of despair
This vast and somber
Charcoal night of space
Have you given up yet?
What hope lingers in the crevasses and corners of your soul?
I know you
You haven't given up yet
You are brave in this darkness, Saint Saturn
Sometimes the bravest thing of all is to hope"
Atropos from The Light of Things Hoped For by Brave Saint Saturn

No profound thoughts to go with it. I'm just enjoying their music right now. I'm also enjoying having BonnieJean, Chera, Ethan, and Naomi all home and in the same room.

The headache and stupid feeling from yesterday is gone, praise God! I just have zip energy but I can handle that, kind of.

I'm rereading Jane Austen's Emma. I had forgotten how funny Mr. Woodhouse is. "Poor Isabella..."

I'm also finally reading Rodney Stark's Victory of Reason. It's been recommended to me for forever. I'm only in the first chapter but it's good so far. It's a deep enough book that you have to take it pretty slow.

I got some wrapping of Christmas gifts done today. I love wrapping paper and pretty bows, but I am so bad at it. In fact, right now I can see the lovely gold ribbon that matched BonnieJean's black gift bag so perfectly lying on the floor next to said classy black bag. *sigh*

I have an itch to go Christmas ornament shopping. I'm noticing some terrible holes on the tree right now. I want to get some pearlescent (sp?) gold balls and maybe some more red ones, too.

I've decided to quit the praise band. Sunday was the third or 4th time I've shown up for rehearsal and had no music stand, music, or microphone. So, I'm taking the hint. I'm trying to extricate myself quietly. I just have to come up with an innocent but honest answer for when everyone starts to ask me why I'm not playing anymore. BonnieJean and Dad both suggested finding another group to play with because it is something I have really enjoyed. Something to think and pray about.

I'm Back!

Hermione's power cord broke and I realized that I have forgotten how to share a computer. Instead of relearning I just stayed off the computer, almost entirely. After throwing up in front of the $80 power cord at Office Depot, I found one on E-bay for $14 and got it today. Sing with me--"I got it on E-Bay!"

I've been doing a lot of reading. I re-read "A Voice On the Wind" and "An Echo In the Darkness" and finally read "As Sure As the Dawn". I'm also reading "The Victory of Reason".

I did a deep cleaning of my desk--rearranged, filed, dusted, and threw a lot of stuff out. Now to maintain it.

Mama and Naomi had a joint, 68th birthday party Friday evening at the Pizza Hut. Lots of wonderful people came and we had a lot of fun. I'm glad we did a party. We don't often but we sure have fun when we do.

I have a lot more peace about my job hunt since the sermon mentioned in my last post. I haven't been very productive in my job hunt since but I don't think it's related. I think I've been under the weather, busy with other stuff (said birthday party and cleaning), and am now suffering doubly from menstrual cramps and a swollen throat. When it rains it pours. Despite that, I did do some networking tonight both for my job hunt and the county party--reception for a Ryan Leonard who is running for state attorney general.

I'm very excited about Christmas shopping. I sure hope everyone likes what they're getting! And I'm even more excited about Jen being here for our week-late celebration!

Merry Christmas!

  We're doing Christmas a little different this year.  We've all been taking it in turns to be sick with one bug or another since before Thanksgiving.  This means that nobody felt like shopping, wrapping presents, or cooking.  So, we decided to postpone Christmas to January 1st.  Or, rather, we're spreading Christmas out over several days.  We did our big Christmas breakfast of pancakes, bacon, orange, etc. today.  Either Saturday or Monday we're doing the big turkey dinner thing.  Sometime this weekend, I think, we'll drive around and look at Christmas lights.  Tomorrow and on other days throughout this week we're taking advantage of post-Christmas sales to buy presents.  Thursday we'll open presents and read the Christmas story.  We might do this again next year whether we're sick or not--it has distinct advantages.

  I don't know if any of y'all outside my family know them, but Katie Sova and Ryan Deckard have finally made it official and set a date of October 10th, 2009!  I think that's too far away, but I'm sure they have their reasons.  I don't know Ryan very well, but Katie is unadultered perfection and she's very happy with him.  Congrats, guys!

  Happy 19th birthday to my favorite teddy bear, Johnny!  I remember getting him as a present on my third Christmas when I was only two years old.  Very long life for a teddy bear and he's still going strong.

  The fam is watching Jingle All the Way (great movie!) and Mama had planned to watch it with us, but she's gotten a terrible ear/toothache from sinus trouble.  So, I'm going to go sit and read with her back in her room.  I'm reading The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett, the Gospel of John, and Do Hard Things by Alex and Brett Harris.  I think right now I'll go with the Bible and Terry Pratchett.

  

I should be sleeping

instead of keeping these late hours I've been keeping...sing with me!...I've been tracing and retracing every step of every move...

That's a good song.  It's a tad unrelated, but good for a post at 10 p when you only had 6 hours of sleep last night.  Ha--listen to me!  I have obviously settled into break mode quickly.  6 hours of sleep used to be really good.

  Tomorrow we get family pictures done for the church directory.  I'm so excited.  Our pictures two years ago turned out really nice.

  I really need to jump onto Christmas shopping.  I haven't done any.  Good thing we're celebrating it a week late this year.  Our Christmas tree is up and totally overdone, just the way I like it.

  Last night was Twilight Prayer and Praise.  We almost didn't go since the roads were icey, but I'm glad we went anyway.  I feel full, replenished.  Christian fellowship is such a mystery to me.  Why do we self-destruct by denying it to ourselves?  Why do we see God differently when we're alone than when we're with a group?  Why did God make it where we need both?

  Poor Caleb has a terrible, croupy cough.  There's not much we can do for him. :(  And of course, we're having to practically tie him up to get him to slow down and rest.

  Friday I have a job interview with IBC at 2--please pray!  Friday is my last day at Donna's!  And Chera's going to call me Friday and I get to go to the homeschool band concert!  Oh, but Chera, if your throat is still sore Friday, don't call me.  I don't want your voice to run away like mine did.

  I have turned into quite the ogre while at home this semester.  I'm not quite sure why, but that doesn't really matter, I just need to straighten up.  I think the main thing is I need to praise more than I gripe.

  We had dinner at Mazzio's with the Teagues tonight.  They are so awesome!  Mama, Mrs. Teague and I discussed trends and situations, past and present, of the Christian music industry, economic theories of the advantages and disadvantages of deflation and inflation, psychotic habits of our own and our family's, and other sundry topics.  Stockton let me listen to an awesome Celtic fiddle piece on his mp3--it was beautiful.

  I'm going to go play or read something mindless.  My sinuses are terribly congested and I'm tired, so I don't feel like writing anything original or reading anything beyond a 5th grade level.  Love y'all!

I should be in bed

so of course I'm writing a blog post instead.

  I have turned in almost everything for Internship II.  I only have two forms left to turn in and I need Julie's signature for one of them.

  I'm working on the group historical analysis project for Research Methods II right now.  It's going very well.  we each take a court transcript and identify categories and types of evidence.  So far I've found three in Samuel Wardwell's trial: confession, physical affliction, and eyewitness testimony.  I hope the rest of my group is making progress as well.

  I really like the songs we're doing in church on Sunday.  I'm not much into listening to Christmas music, but I sure love to play it.  I actually get a solo part on Three Kings this Sunday.  I'm nervous already.

  The weather keeps getting colder here.  I've rediscovered my black trench coat the last couple of days.  Today the wind was really strong.  I felt very dramatic striding purposefully across the campus with my black trench coat billowing out behind me.

  We're doing another church directory and we're having the same company do it as last time.  I'm really excited.  The pictures they did last time were incredible.  Our's was the best family portrait we have ever had done.  Which reminds me that JC asked for a copy of it...

  I only have three major school assignments left: journals for Social Systems and Problems, and the two final papers for Campaigns.  Minor assignments left are the historical analysis and final for Research Methods II, finals in Public Policy, Literary Traditions, and Social Systems and problems (which all be in class), and one presentation for Public Policy.

  I love Mama's cream cheese icing!

  I need to start thinking about Christmas shopping.

  Ok, now I'm going to bed.  Love y'all!