I've got about 15 minutes here at the hotel so I wanted to dash off a quick note to let you all know that I'm doing just fine and making new friends and everything is wonderful.
We had a pretty interesting tour of DC yesterday- we went to the German Embassy and then we visited our senators' offices (neither was available, but another group passed Hillary Clinton on the staircase) and then went to Freedom Park, which is pretty awesome and I'll try to upload the pictures I took later.
We went to dinner at some place whose name I forget and I had a pretty decent hamburger, while most everyone else near me had very mediocre chicken (which is what Frank gets for gloating that his food came first). We wandered around Old Town and found a pretty cool bookstore and were amazed by street performers and basically worked toward being good friends. In case you want to know the names of some of these new people in my life, there's Mary and Emily and Casey and Allyson and my roommate Lauren and Anna who I stayed up late talking to and Bevelyn who called my room 3 or 4 times last night and Carly whose name keeps getting mixed up with mine (Caroline's, too) and so many other awesome people.
I'm bonding really well with all the people here and I can't wait to get to Tübingen to hang out with them a whole lot more. I've got pages and pages and pages of paper-based journal around that I'll transcribe when I get some more time.
I haven't gotten any e-mails from any of you yet. What gives? Too busy mourning?
If you want e-mails from me you should probably join the mailing list down in the corner- for those of you who are already on it, I don't have time to send one out today, but I'll get it going once I get to D'Land.
This computer has a terrible mouse and it's almost 9 so I'd better wrap up.
Love you guys!
Saturday, July 30, 2005
Thursday, July 28, 2005
Just One More Before I Go
I'll be heading up to DC in about an hour, so consider this my final blog from home. I'm packed, the camera's charging, I have euros and dollars and a passport and and my whole life fits in 2 suitcases and a carry-on. It's a little surreal. I haven't dreamt much about this whole thing- there's been a dream or two, but it's been almost a month. I've been running things through my head since I got up this morning, but my subconcious doesn't seem to understand that this is it.
Some people have asked me what Beige Space means, and I've decided now would be as good a time as ever to elaborate. The name didn't mean so much when I first picked it- it had a nice sound and seemed to fit what I was trying to do here. Now I have a clearer idea of it. In art, white space is emptiness on the canvas, whether left intentionally for effect or unintentionally by a bad artist. So the first idea I came up with was filling the emptiness- my life as a canvas and this blog showing you how I fill it. But the space is beige, not white. White is pure and utterly lacking of color (in the world of paint, not light), but my life isn't. I bring things with me- prejudices and bias and personality and the like, so even my blank space is already colored, but only a little. It's more beige than white. Beige is also associated with the bland and boring, that which has no real character. That's a little bit how I see the world I'm operating in- lacking of character until I bring my stamp to it. This blog itself has a beige background filled with green dots- those dots are the experiences I write here, filling my life and making it into something more like art.
I want to thank all of you who have been part of those dots so far, and I promise to share all my future dots with you.
I don't know when I'll be blogging again, as I'm not sure what my internet access situation is for the near future. I'm keeping a paper journal, though, so I promise lots of detailed reports and pictures as soon as I can.
Gender: 54% male.
Some people have asked me what Beige Space means, and I've decided now would be as good a time as ever to elaborate. The name didn't mean so much when I first picked it- it had a nice sound and seemed to fit what I was trying to do here. Now I have a clearer idea of it. In art, white space is emptiness on the canvas, whether left intentionally for effect or unintentionally by a bad artist. So the first idea I came up with was filling the emptiness- my life as a canvas and this blog showing you how I fill it. But the space is beige, not white. White is pure and utterly lacking of color (in the world of paint, not light), but my life isn't. I bring things with me- prejudices and bias and personality and the like, so even my blank space is already colored, but only a little. It's more beige than white. Beige is also associated with the bland and boring, that which has no real character. That's a little bit how I see the world I'm operating in- lacking of character until I bring my stamp to it. This blog itself has a beige background filled with green dots- those dots are the experiences I write here, filling my life and making it into something more like art.
I want to thank all of you who have been part of those dots so far, and I promise to share all my future dots with you.
I don't know when I'll be blogging again, as I'm not sure what my internet access situation is for the near future. I'm keeping a paper journal, though, so I promise lots of detailed reports and pictures as soon as I can.
Gender: 54% male.
Wednesday, July 27, 2005
My Last Night
I hate to think of things as the "last" of anything, but there's really no other way to look at this. It didn't really seem that way- it was totally normal. Jamie did an awesome job on her story (the watercolor dots thing was SUCH a good idea!) and then I was sitting there eating a baked potato with Mary and it just felt so normal, like I'd keep doing this every night for the rest of my life. Stevie was late tonight because he was working (11 hours, poor baby) and we just sat and talked and talked and we made keychains and Stephen colored my fish and put his name on it and then we went and played dodgeball with beach balls and it was pretty awesome. Stephen got really into it after saying that he was too tired to go outside and play. Did I mention that Mary broke his heart? He offered her his keychain but she said no and he got so so sad but then they traded keychains and it was all better. I think that gave him the energy for dodgeball. In music we sang and danced and Stevie did his usual awesome air guitar solo and acted all tired again. With VBS done, we decided that I should have one final trip to Tropical Smoothie. Now, TS closes at 9 and we decided this around 8:30. Parents had to be alerted and we got out of church at 8:43 by Stephen's clock. He made lots of vrooooooom noises all the way there (with his mouth, not his engine) and we got there at about 8:50. The poor Tropical Smoothie people were certainly not happy to have 8 people come in 10 minutes before they close! We ordered our smoothies (I got a Sunny Day and Stephen paid for it like a good date) and when they were all made we left (it was 9:07 by Mary's clock). I made my sad goodbyes to Stephen and Jamie and Douglas and Mary drove me and Travis and Andy home (also Laura, of course) and sang to us and we met Stevie's car at a stoplight and rolled our windows down and yelled "I love you" to each other and blew kisses and the like. Then we got to my house and I had to say goodbye to Andy and Laura and Mary but I've made so many goodbyes recently that my brain can't process that this is the last one. I feel like it's just our normal hug until we see each other again tomorrow. But this time tomorrow I'll be in a hotel room in Washington getting to know my new friends and knowing I won't see my old friends for a whole year.
As excited as I am, there's a whole lot of sadness, too. I feel like I've just realized how wonderful these friends of mine are, and now I'm going away and things are never really going to be the same. We've had this really great final summer while we're all still young, and after this is going to be college and careers and grown-up things.
*phone call!*Sarah just called me and we talked for about 45 minutes and now I don't remember what I was typing about. Oh, depressing things. Well, I'll try not to make you all sad and I'll wrap things up (sorry for the delay if you were frantically refreshing, Stevie and Mary!)
Gender: 51% female
As excited as I am, there's a whole lot of sadness, too. I feel like I've just realized how wonderful these friends of mine are, and now I'm going away and things are never really going to be the same. We've had this really great final summer while we're all still young, and after this is going to be college and careers and grown-up things.
*phone call!*Sarah just called me and we talked for about 45 minutes and now I don't remember what I was typing about. Oh, depressing things. Well, I'll try not to make you all sad and I'll wrap things up (sorry for the delay if you were frantically refreshing, Stevie and Mary!)
Gender: 51% female
I'm Running Away to Switzerland to Become a Chocolatier
I should probably pick Belgium, actually.
My daddy took me to see Charlie and the Chocolate Factory today and boy was it good. I love all things Johnny Depp and Tim Burton anyway (they have another movie coming out soon!), but this was still so much fun (in spite of the average age of those in the theater being approximately 13, and only so high because there were adults present). Depp's Wonka had a fair share of Pee-Wee Herman in him (which makes sense, with Burton directing and all) and made me think of a children's tv show host who is always in character but doesn't actually like or know what to do with children. It's not really that much like the Gene Wilder version (directed by Mel Stuart)- there's a whole subplot of Wonka past added on, and I missed hero Charlie's "fall from grace" (in the 71 movie, Charlie and Grandpa disobey Wonka in the scene with the bubbles, but are never caught). Instead, there's a nice little theme about family and the incomparable Christopher Lee gets to be Wonka's dad and one man named Deep Roy plays 165 or so Oompa-Loompas. There are also trained squirrels, which are much cooler than gold-egg-laying geese.
The internet tells me that Wonka's backstory was written specifically for the film, and I rather like it. Surprisingly, Burton's movie isn't as dark as the "family" version- Wonka's not quite so malicious, just incredibly confused. Don't get me wrong- there are moments that make it seem that Wonka was planning on harming some of the children, but it comes off as more an Oompa-Loompa plot that poor innocent Wonka got somehow attached to.
Overall, I'd suggest not really comparing it to the 71 version of the same story- the names may be the same, but you'll enjoy both much more if you keep them entirely seperate in your mind.
I cannot wait for Corpse Bride!
Gender: 57% female.
My daddy took me to see Charlie and the Chocolate Factory today and boy was it good. I love all things Johnny Depp and Tim Burton anyway (they have another movie coming out soon!), but this was still so much fun (in spite of the average age of those in the theater being approximately 13, and only so high because there were adults present). Depp's Wonka had a fair share of Pee-Wee Herman in him (which makes sense, with Burton directing and all) and made me think of a children's tv show host who is always in character but doesn't actually like or know what to do with children. It's not really that much like the Gene Wilder version (directed by Mel Stuart)- there's a whole subplot of Wonka past added on, and I missed hero Charlie's "fall from grace" (in the 71 movie, Charlie and Grandpa disobey Wonka in the scene with the bubbles, but are never caught). Instead, there's a nice little theme about family and the incomparable Christopher Lee gets to be Wonka's dad and one man named Deep Roy plays 165 or so Oompa-Loompas. There are also trained squirrels, which are much cooler than gold-egg-laying geese.
The internet tells me that Wonka's backstory was written specifically for the film, and I rather like it. Surprisingly, Burton's movie isn't as dark as the "family" version- Wonka's not quite so malicious, just incredibly confused. Don't get me wrong- there are moments that make it seem that Wonka was planning on harming some of the children, but it comes off as more an Oompa-Loompa plot that poor innocent Wonka got somehow attached to.
Overall, I'd suggest not really comparing it to the 71 version of the same story- the names may be the same, but you'll enjoy both much more if you keep them entirely seperate in your mind.
I cannot wait for Corpse Bride!
Gender: 57% female.
Tuesday, July 26, 2005
VROOOM
One more night of VBS done, one more to go. Makes me sad.
We had tacos tonight and they were so so so yummy- I ate 3 or 4 and they were delicious. I also read a Dr Seuss story to everyone (the one about the Sneetches) and we talked about acceptance and it was really nice. After we talked we went and made pillows and mine is purple but I accidently left it at church and my sketchbook too but I will get them tomorrow. We went outside and played in the water and Stevie and Mary and I got really wet and Stevie dumped a bucket of water on me and the little kids cheated so they would win the games and we didn't cheat and so we really won no matter what they say. We sang songs after that and Stevie danced around a whole lot and Susan and I braided his hair but he shook the braids out (although he doesn't really have great hair for braiding like Ryan does) and I was very sad to see his pretty braids go. But then he did some great shirtless dancing and guitar playing, so it was okay. His shadow also punched my shadow and that was kind of mean. After VBS a bunch of us went out for ice cream! Stephen drove me and he made awesome driving commentary and VROOOOM noises. He was also topless, and, as we were leaving the parking lot, Billy beeped at him. I told him I was going to talk about my half-naked friend taking me to get ice cream. He beeped at Mary when we were behind her and it was wonderful. I got a big cone of Tangerine Sherbet that was DELICIOUS and it dripped all over but it was so so good and Billy had this not-found-in-nature-pink cotton candy ice cream that seriously tasted like cotton candy. Like, at first it was just ice cream flavor, but then the aftertaste on your lips was totally cotton candy. I don't know how he ate it all- it would have been way too sweet for me. I'm a little mad at Billy for taking his nail polish off, especially when Stevie has kept his, and I STILL have not received a decent answer for why it is gone (Mary's cop-out answer does NOT count). Oma and I spoke German on the way home and now I am typing my blog. Fun!
Gender: 76% Female
We had tacos tonight and they were so so so yummy- I ate 3 or 4 and they were delicious. I also read a Dr Seuss story to everyone (the one about the Sneetches) and we talked about acceptance and it was really nice. After we talked we went and made pillows and mine is purple but I accidently left it at church and my sketchbook too but I will get them tomorrow. We went outside and played in the water and Stevie and Mary and I got really wet and Stevie dumped a bucket of water on me and the little kids cheated so they would win the games and we didn't cheat and so we really won no matter what they say. We sang songs after that and Stevie danced around a whole lot and Susan and I braided his hair but he shook the braids out (although he doesn't really have great hair for braiding like Ryan does) and I was very sad to see his pretty braids go. But then he did some great shirtless dancing and guitar playing, so it was okay. His shadow also punched my shadow and that was kind of mean. After VBS a bunch of us went out for ice cream! Stephen drove me and he made awesome driving commentary and VROOOOM noises. He was also topless, and, as we were leaving the parking lot, Billy beeped at him. I told him I was going to talk about my half-naked friend taking me to get ice cream. He beeped at Mary when we were behind her and it was wonderful. I got a big cone of Tangerine Sherbet that was DELICIOUS and it dripped all over but it was so so good and Billy had this not-found-in-nature-pink cotton candy ice cream that seriously tasted like cotton candy. Like, at first it was just ice cream flavor, but then the aftertaste on your lips was totally cotton candy. I don't know how he ate it all- it would have been way too sweet for me. I'm a little mad at Billy for taking his nail polish off, especially when Stevie has kept his, and I STILL have not received a decent answer for why it is gone (Mary's cop-out answer does NOT count). Oma and I spoke German on the way home and now I am typing my blog. Fun!
Gender: 76% Female
I'm Gonna See the Pope!
Well, probably.
I have found out that I have just been ok'd to leave Tübingen early to go to World Youth Day with my host family! I'm very excited- there are going to be tons and tons and TONS of people from all over there and camping and fun and the Pope!
What this means to you: if you've got one of those bright pink things with my addresses on it, it tells you that I'm at the Tübingen address until 19 August. This is no longer the case- I'll be leaving there on the 13, so your mail will probably not reach me if you send it after about the 7 (I figure you should give it at least a week to get to me, just to be safe). So if you want to send me things after about the first week or so that I'm gone, go ahead and send them to the Niederkassel-Uckendorf address.
In case you know nothing about WYD (and why should you?), I'll quote some things from the website: "The XX World Youth Day 2005 is a pilgrimage of faith and a colourful event in every respect. People between 16 and 30 are invited. They will pour into Germany from more than 120 countries. The Pope and about 400.000 registered participants are expected. There number will almost double by the end of the event. Their will be accompanied by approximately 600 bishops and cardinals as well as by 4,000 international journalists. For ten days the eyes of the world will be on Germany, North Rhine-Westphalia and the Cologne region. The events and the guests are diverse. We will start with the Days of Encounter in the German dioceses: From August 11 until August 15 young people are guests in parishes all over Germany. Getting to know each other, exchanging ideas and thoughts, making new experiences is in the centre of attention during these days. The motto of this event is: „Guests are a blessing “. Right in the middle of this period, on August 12 2005, Germany is „under construction“: On the Day of Social Service guests and their hosts will join to begin to build a new civilisation of love and justice by taking part in numerous projects. The central events of the XX World Youth Day will begin on August 16 and will end on August 21 2005. The international guests will travel with their German hosts on Monday, August 15th into the diocese of Cologne where they will gather in either Cologne, Bonn, or Düsseldorf for the opening Mass. For three days at approximately 400 different places small groups will talk about faith and celebrate together. The Youth Festival will bring music, dance and performances from around the world to stages in Düsseldorf, Bonn and Cologne.
On Thursday the Pope will be welcomed with a big celebration in the City of Cologne. Friday is the day of the Way of the Cross, when the young pilgrims will contemplate the passion of Jesus Christ. On Saturday all pilgrims will make their way to Marienfeld (a former open-cast mine in Frechen), the venue for the major final celebrations. During the evening hours they will join the Holy Father in celebrating a Vigil. The young pilgrims will spend the night there and on Sunday morning during the final Mass, say farewell to Cologne and the XX World Youth DayJust a few moments before this big event ends the Pope will send the young people out into the world. He will then issue a next invitation: “You are invited to….'"
In case you're super-interested, here's the English website.
Gender: 59% male.
I have found out that I have just been ok'd to leave Tübingen early to go to World Youth Day with my host family! I'm very excited- there are going to be tons and tons and TONS of people from all over there and camping and fun and the Pope!
What this means to you: if you've got one of those bright pink things with my addresses on it, it tells you that I'm at the Tübingen address until 19 August. This is no longer the case- I'll be leaving there on the 13, so your mail will probably not reach me if you send it after about the 7 (I figure you should give it at least a week to get to me, just to be safe). So if you want to send me things after about the first week or so that I'm gone, go ahead and send them to the Niederkassel-Uckendorf address.
In case you know nothing about WYD (and why should you?), I'll quote some things from the website: "The XX World Youth Day 2005 is a pilgrimage of faith and a colourful event in every respect. People between 16 and 30 are invited. They will pour into Germany from more than 120 countries. The Pope and about 400.000 registered participants are expected. There number will almost double by the end of the event. Their will be accompanied by approximately 600 bishops and cardinals as well as by 4,000 international journalists. For ten days the eyes of the world will be on Germany, North Rhine-Westphalia and the Cologne region. The events and the guests are diverse. We will start with the Days of Encounter in the German dioceses: From August 11 until August 15 young people are guests in parishes all over Germany. Getting to know each other, exchanging ideas and thoughts, making new experiences is in the centre of attention during these days. The motto of this event is: „Guests are a blessing “. Right in the middle of this period, on August 12 2005, Germany is „under construction“: On the Day of Social Service guests and their hosts will join to begin to build a new civilisation of love and justice by taking part in numerous projects. The central events of the XX World Youth Day will begin on August 16 and will end on August 21 2005. The international guests will travel with their German hosts on Monday, August 15th into the diocese of Cologne where they will gather in either Cologne, Bonn, or Düsseldorf for the opening Mass. For three days at approximately 400 different places small groups will talk about faith and celebrate together. The Youth Festival will bring music, dance and performances from around the world to stages in Düsseldorf, Bonn and Cologne.
On Thursday the Pope will be welcomed with a big celebration in the City of Cologne. Friday is the day of the Way of the Cross, when the young pilgrims will contemplate the passion of Jesus Christ. On Saturday all pilgrims will make their way to Marienfeld (a former open-cast mine in Frechen), the venue for the major final celebrations. During the evening hours they will join the Holy Father in celebrating a Vigil. The young pilgrims will spend the night there and on Sunday morning during the final Mass, say farewell to Cologne and the XX World Youth DayJust a few moments before this big event ends the Pope will send the young people out into the world. He will then issue a next invitation: “You are invited to….'"
In case you're super-interested, here's the English website.
Gender: 59% male.
Monday, July 25, 2005
The Trinity Gang
Check this dude out- Jesus flashin' the Trinity gang sign, clearly down with the Crumpers. I swear I need video of Stevie crumping because it is the most entertaining thing ever. We had a lot of wet wet wet crump fun tonight, although TJ would not join in because he is not brave enough to do anything fun at all. Jamie was also a chicken- she said she'd crump if Mary and I did, but when we did she wouldn't and it made me cry, if only on the inside.
Gender: 60% male.
Sunday, July 24, 2005
Writer's Block Stream of Interrupted Conciousness and Miscellany
Man, VBS. It's way too short for one thing. Mary and I think it should be 5 hours at least, and then I tried to bring Stephen home for another slumber party. But no. Instead I'm alone at my computer listening to Berlin and Hall & Oates and Journey and Jackson Browne and Motley Crue and the B-52's and Paul Young and Huey Lewis & the News and Talking Heads and U2 and Starship and Madonna and Ray Parker Jr and Bryan Adams and ZZ Top.
Stephen and Ally had a crump battle tonight and it was XTREME. Stephen really seems to understand the anger and struggle of the ghetto- I think his anger at Mary for abandoning him Saturday has a lot to do with it. Poor poor Stella (he was awfully pouty tonight, but he did a guitar solo that included playing with his tongue and I had been secretly psychically begging him to do that right before he did it and it made me so so so so happy.) I just realized that I have imprints of Stephen's fish drawings on my arm from our arts 'n' crafts tonight (we were making a big picture thing for our door) and I don't think I want to wash them off. They are blue and they have smiles and eyes.
At church this morning Mary had a picture of Jesus doing the Trinity gang sign and it was the best thing ever! She needs to e-mail a copy of it to me because I really really really need to show this picture to all of you, gentle readers.
I've had a Billy Joel song stuck in my head for three days and it is starting to really really annoy me. If you know how to get rid of earworms, please help me. I am going insane from it.
The internet is quiet tonight. I need to finish my Oscar Wilde biography before I leave.
I like pictures. This is my left ear.
And this is what my left ankle looked like on Friday afternoon.
Gender: 67% female.
Stephen and Ally had a crump battle tonight and it was XTREME. Stephen really seems to understand the anger and struggle of the ghetto- I think his anger at Mary for abandoning him Saturday has a lot to do with it. Poor poor Stella (he was awfully pouty tonight, but he did a guitar solo that included playing with his tongue and I had been secretly psychically begging him to do that right before he did it and it made me so so so so happy.) I just realized that I have imprints of Stephen's fish drawings on my arm from our arts 'n' crafts tonight (we were making a big picture thing for our door) and I don't think I want to wash them off. They are blue and they have smiles and eyes.
At church this morning Mary had a picture of Jesus doing the Trinity gang sign and it was the best thing ever! She needs to e-mail a copy of it to me because I really really really need to show this picture to all of you, gentle readers.
I've had a Billy Joel song stuck in my head for three days and it is starting to really really annoy me. If you know how to get rid of earworms, please help me. I am going insane from it.
The internet is quiet tonight. I need to finish my Oscar Wilde biography before I leave.
I like pictures. This is my left ear.
And this is what my left ankle looked like on Friday afternoon.
Gender: 67% female.
Saturday, July 23, 2005
Life Doesn't Get Much Better
I do not know where to even begin. . . if Stephen and Mary had set out to give me the absolute best possible last weekend here, they could not have planned things any better.
It all started Friday evening (I guess it was just yesterday), when I threw some clothes and a toothbrush and a bunch of cds into a bag and headed one neighbo(u)rhood over to the Ruxtons'. Travis and I brought way more stuff than any two people have any right to bring with them overnighting (I swear my mom sent as much food as Travis and I brought stuff, but who can complain about that?) and found that TJ had arrived pretty much right before us. We all crashed around the living room watching tv and then Bill and Andy and Mary showed up (with smoothies and not to share, no less!) and we started trying to figure out what kind of pizza to order and from where. This was far more of an ordeal than it should have been- instead of having too many opinions, however, we have next to none among us- Stephen finally got us to commit to 3 pepperoni, 2 cheese and 1 sausage pizza, and we went for Domino's because it is cheap and delicious. Stella didn't want to order the pizza over the phone (I can't blame him- phones are scary) and there was another hilarious fight, but we finally got the 'zas ordered and planned for Bill to go pick 'em up. In the ensuing time, we played with my camera and were entertained by a microwaveable bowl of cheese salsa (do not judge, ye who were not there!) and I painted Nick's toenails and Andy took a picture of Mary with a halo (I'll upload it eventually). After eating, we decided to play Cranium, and it was awesome. Teams were as follows: Green Team- Andy, Travis, Me; Yellow Team- Kathy, Tim, Bill, TJ; Blue Team- Stephen, Mary, Nick. We start playing and I show off my ability to guess the meaning of "complaisant" from a list, and then my memory becomes a blur of Sensosketches and Cloodles and Humdingers and Cameos and Polygraphs and the Blue team could NOT seem to get any of the Creative Cat things, and we were accused of cheating because Andy and I are totally on the same brainwave, and I swear that nobody in the world (except MAYBE Steppenwolf) knows more than the first few bars of "Born to be Wild." Should I mention that Stella's song is "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun?" My team won, because we are awesome, and then we moved onto Twister. Stephen v. Bill v. Mary v. me. 4 people on a Twister mat can be very difficult, and Mary claims that I pushed her, causing her to go out first- Bill was leaning on me, however, and I was trying desperately to push back against him. I went out second, although I lasted a little bit longer, and then it was some crazy death match of Bill v. Stephen. There is no way I can begin to relate the entertainment of watching these two wrestle across a Twister mat- Bill eventually won, but there was probably a great deal of cheating on both sides (not to mention on Tim the Spinner's part), so I'm not sure he should get too much glory. Feeling lazy, we decided to chill and watch Hidalgo, which was a pretty sweet movie. Viggo Mortensen's character was a little too much like his LOTR character Aragorn at times, but there were exciting action sequences and it was light on the sap without being all about shooting people and horses running really fast. I also got to entertain myself by picking the real horses from the fake barrel horses, although I am perhaps the only person in the world who would enjoy this activity (which is why I kept it to myself). Stella, who put in something like 50 hours in the warehouse this week and was very knackered, fell asleep halfway through the movie, and, upon waking, completely missed the fact that there were people in his house. He picked himself off the floor and went up to bed, disappearing until Kathy went up to remind him that we were all downstairs. I'm sure he was still half asleep when he drug his blankets downstairs and went back to sleep on the floor. With the movie over, Mary started trying to convince everyone to go play sardines outside (it was nearly 2 in the morning and so so so so humid). The crazy people followed her, but Tim and Kathy and sleeping Stephen and I stayed inside. Stephen woke up for real while they were out (I managed to get one of his toenails painted first, though) and blew up the Aero bed. The game lasted about half an hour, and then we figured out sleeping positions and Travis and TJ and Kathy went to sleep (Stephen of course had fallen asleep again) and Tim went to his own bed because he is sensible and Bill suggested that the 4 of us still awake play cards. Thus, at some ungodly hour like 3 in the morning, I was playing Phase 10 with Bill, Mary and Andy. Mary won, and there were some great moments during the game that my exhausted brain can't even begin to reconstruct, as well as a lot of bending of the rules because we were all so very very tired. We fell asleep after the game (I should probably mention that Futurama was on at some point and dealt with time jumping due to holes in the space-time continuum and Bill and I shared many giggles over this coincidence and his own take on it, which lacked Globetrotters).
Saturday morning (this morning, though I can't begin to think of it that way) opened with various fights over prime locations- started by Stephen, who rolled and somehow managed to get his hand onto Mary's face (Mary was on the couch and Stephen was beside it on the Aero bed). As we became more awake, Andy and Stephen in particular were responsible for many shenanigans and rowdy activities, from which I of course restrained, angel that I am. I refuse to hear any talk of me stealing Stephen's blanket or tickling or otherwise participating in their morning games. Kathy made us delicious waffles for breakfast and we watched the anchor on the Today show wear a blazer that looked like it was made out of very bad drapes and people started heading home. Stephen, however, had exciting plans for Mary and I to accompany him to Maryland to pick up his Oma. Mary ran home and I took a quick shower and Kathy, unsure of how sure Stephen was of the way to Oma's house, decided to come with us. Around 10, we dropped Travis off and picked Mary up (after a scenic tour through the wrong side of the Highlands) and headed for 95. I was wearing Stephen's new trucker hat from his work, which I then gave to him to wear, and he passed it to Mary who wore it far too well, and it eventually wound up back on my head. We passed Stephen's work (sort of) and Mary's former school and enjoyed the great fun that is 95 North. There were moments where Mary had to prove her leadership and courage by picking a cd, and times when Stephen road-raged a little, and I even critiqued his driving, but mostly his road rage (Bill will want to know this, I'm certain). We stopped at Subway and rich man Stephen bought us lunch (via his mother's credit card because he forgot to cash his check, so he owes her) and there was a fender-bender that blocked traffic more than it has any right to, and we drove on Route 1 for a bit to be scenic, and I think I'm going out of chronological order, but refer to Bill's panorama theory. We got around DC without a hitch and into Maryland and soon we were at Oma's! She was so excited to see us and speak German to me and Stephen gave us the grand tour of her field (she has a pond with a HUGE turtle in it!) and we petted her dog and put blue eyeshadow on it and then we got in the car to visit Stephen's Uncle Paco. Stephen has a very very entertaining family, to say the least. His Oma is so much fun to talk and listen to, and when we got to Uncle Paco's, Stephen's Aunt Stephanie and family were there because cousin Katie keeps her horses there. I fed the horses (Hope and Nina) animal crackers and they loved me and were very piggy but adorable and sweet and it was so funny for me and Mary to listen to Stephen and his relatives together and we hung out there for an hour or so. We hit the road again and made pretty good time- there was a bad accident northbound that tied us up for a bit (rubberneckers) but 95 could have been far far far worse. We stopped at a RaceTrak in Fredericksburg for gas and it was $2.09 (the station just down the street was $2.21) and there were SO many people there! There were adventures just getting a pump, including a jeep that took so so SO long to fill and circling a few times and backing up and a mean glare or two from other drivers. On the road, Stephen taught Oma how to pout via example (she's even better at it than he is) and we had so many funny funny conversations and Oma would talk to me in German and then she'd talk to Stella in German and he'd ignore her and we decided it would be fun to see Wedding Crashers later. We called a few people to try to get them together, but nobody wanted to join our trio. We got back to Stella's around 6:45 and Kathy warmed up leftover pizza and Stella downloaded a copy of R Kelly's "Trapped in a Closet" which I thought would be so lamesauce, but it was actually hilarious- they'd only seen the 1st chapter (there are currently 5, and it promises at least 10) and were so excited to see 2-5 and we laughed and laughed. We also watched the first half of Anchorman (I do love that movie- it is so so funny) and left for our movie, which started at 9:20. Unfortunately, Wedding Crashers is R and Stevie's still 16. They carded him, of course, and, because you have to be 21 to buy multiple R tickets, we couldn't get him a ticket. That, and, because the movie would let out after 11 (curfew for those under 17), they wouldn't let him get a ticket to any movie. We were most upset and complained loudly in the car. Tropical Smoothie closes at 9, so we couldn't go there, and we decided it was time for Mary to learn to drive a stick shift (which Stephen drives). We went to Bird parking lot and Mary is possibly the fastest learner of this skill- she barely stalled at all, and picked up shifting gears really quickly. She actually drove back to Stella's house from Bird! There was one moment when she stalled in the middle of an intersection because we told her to stop one street too soon, but it was in a neighborhood and there wasn't really any traffic anyway. Otherwise, she was so awesome and is my personal hero. Back at Stella's, he looked up this very site for a bit and perused and then Stephen dropped me off here and I plopped down at the computer and wrote this.
I have the best friends in the world. How can I leave them on Thursday?
Gender: 61% female
It all started Friday evening (I guess it was just yesterday), when I threw some clothes and a toothbrush and a bunch of cds into a bag and headed one neighbo(u)rhood over to the Ruxtons'. Travis and I brought way more stuff than any two people have any right to bring with them overnighting (I swear my mom sent as much food as Travis and I brought stuff, but who can complain about that?) and found that TJ had arrived pretty much right before us. We all crashed around the living room watching tv and then Bill and Andy and Mary showed up (with smoothies and not to share, no less!) and we started trying to figure out what kind of pizza to order and from where. This was far more of an ordeal than it should have been- instead of having too many opinions, however, we have next to none among us- Stephen finally got us to commit to 3 pepperoni, 2 cheese and 1 sausage pizza, and we went for Domino's because it is cheap and delicious. Stella didn't want to order the pizza over the phone (I can't blame him- phones are scary) and there was another hilarious fight, but we finally got the 'zas ordered and planned for Bill to go pick 'em up. In the ensuing time, we played with my camera and were entertained by a microwaveable bowl of cheese salsa (do not judge, ye who were not there!) and I painted Nick's toenails and Andy took a picture of Mary with a halo (I'll upload it eventually). After eating, we decided to play Cranium, and it was awesome. Teams were as follows: Green Team- Andy, Travis, Me; Yellow Team- Kathy, Tim, Bill, TJ; Blue Team- Stephen, Mary, Nick. We start playing and I show off my ability to guess the meaning of "complaisant" from a list, and then my memory becomes a blur of Sensosketches and Cloodles and Humdingers and Cameos and Polygraphs and the Blue team could NOT seem to get any of the Creative Cat things, and we were accused of cheating because Andy and I are totally on the same brainwave, and I swear that nobody in the world (except MAYBE Steppenwolf) knows more than the first few bars of "Born to be Wild." Should I mention that Stella's song is "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun?" My team won, because we are awesome, and then we moved onto Twister. Stephen v. Bill v. Mary v. me. 4 people on a Twister mat can be very difficult, and Mary claims that I pushed her, causing her to go out first- Bill was leaning on me, however, and I was trying desperately to push back against him. I went out second, although I lasted a little bit longer, and then it was some crazy death match of Bill v. Stephen. There is no way I can begin to relate the entertainment of watching these two wrestle across a Twister mat- Bill eventually won, but there was probably a great deal of cheating on both sides (not to mention on Tim the Spinner's part), so I'm not sure he should get too much glory. Feeling lazy, we decided to chill and watch Hidalgo, which was a pretty sweet movie. Viggo Mortensen's character was a little too much like his LOTR character Aragorn at times, but there were exciting action sequences and it was light on the sap without being all about shooting people and horses running really fast. I also got to entertain myself by picking the real horses from the fake barrel horses, although I am perhaps the only person in the world who would enjoy this activity (which is why I kept it to myself). Stella, who put in something like 50 hours in the warehouse this week and was very knackered, fell asleep halfway through the movie, and, upon waking, completely missed the fact that there were people in his house. He picked himself off the floor and went up to bed, disappearing until Kathy went up to remind him that we were all downstairs. I'm sure he was still half asleep when he drug his blankets downstairs and went back to sleep on the floor. With the movie over, Mary started trying to convince everyone to go play sardines outside (it was nearly 2 in the morning and so so so so humid). The crazy people followed her, but Tim and Kathy and sleeping Stephen and I stayed inside. Stephen woke up for real while they were out (I managed to get one of his toenails painted first, though) and blew up the Aero bed. The game lasted about half an hour, and then we figured out sleeping positions and Travis and TJ and Kathy went to sleep (Stephen of course had fallen asleep again) and Tim went to his own bed because he is sensible and Bill suggested that the 4 of us still awake play cards. Thus, at some ungodly hour like 3 in the morning, I was playing Phase 10 with Bill, Mary and Andy. Mary won, and there were some great moments during the game that my exhausted brain can't even begin to reconstruct, as well as a lot of bending of the rules because we were all so very very tired. We fell asleep after the game (I should probably mention that Futurama was on at some point and dealt with time jumping due to holes in the space-time continuum and Bill and I shared many giggles over this coincidence and his own take on it, which lacked Globetrotters).
Saturday morning (this morning, though I can't begin to think of it that way) opened with various fights over prime locations- started by Stephen, who rolled and somehow managed to get his hand onto Mary's face (Mary was on the couch and Stephen was beside it on the Aero bed). As we became more awake, Andy and Stephen in particular were responsible for many shenanigans and rowdy activities, from which I of course restrained, angel that I am. I refuse to hear any talk of me stealing Stephen's blanket or tickling or otherwise participating in their morning games. Kathy made us delicious waffles for breakfast and we watched the anchor on the Today show wear a blazer that looked like it was made out of very bad drapes and people started heading home. Stephen, however, had exciting plans for Mary and I to accompany him to Maryland to pick up his Oma. Mary ran home and I took a quick shower and Kathy, unsure of how sure Stephen was of the way to Oma's house, decided to come with us. Around 10, we dropped Travis off and picked Mary up (after a scenic tour through the wrong side of the Highlands) and headed for 95. I was wearing Stephen's new trucker hat from his work, which I then gave to him to wear, and he passed it to Mary who wore it far too well, and it eventually wound up back on my head. We passed Stephen's work (sort of) and Mary's former school and enjoyed the great fun that is 95 North. There were moments where Mary had to prove her leadership and courage by picking a cd, and times when Stephen road-raged a little, and I even critiqued his driving, but mostly his road rage (Bill will want to know this, I'm certain). We stopped at Subway and rich man Stephen bought us lunch (via his mother's credit card because he forgot to cash his check, so he owes her) and there was a fender-bender that blocked traffic more than it has any right to, and we drove on Route 1 for a bit to be scenic, and I think I'm going out of chronological order, but refer to Bill's panorama theory. We got around DC without a hitch and into Maryland and soon we were at Oma's! She was so excited to see us and speak German to me and Stephen gave us the grand tour of her field (she has a pond with a HUGE turtle in it!) and we petted her dog and put blue eyeshadow on it and then we got in the car to visit Stephen's Uncle Paco. Stephen has a very very entertaining family, to say the least. His Oma is so much fun to talk and listen to, and when we got to Uncle Paco's, Stephen's Aunt Stephanie and family were there because cousin Katie keeps her horses there. I fed the horses (Hope and Nina) animal crackers and they loved me and were very piggy but adorable and sweet and it was so funny for me and Mary to listen to Stephen and his relatives together and we hung out there for an hour or so. We hit the road again and made pretty good time- there was a bad accident northbound that tied us up for a bit (rubberneckers) but 95 could have been far far far worse. We stopped at a RaceTrak in Fredericksburg for gas and it was $2.09 (the station just down the street was $2.21) and there were SO many people there! There were adventures just getting a pump, including a jeep that took so so SO long to fill and circling a few times and backing up and a mean glare or two from other drivers. On the road, Stephen taught Oma how to pout via example (she's even better at it than he is) and we had so many funny funny conversations and Oma would talk to me in German and then she'd talk to Stella in German and he'd ignore her and we decided it would be fun to see Wedding Crashers later. We called a few people to try to get them together, but nobody wanted to join our trio. We got back to Stella's around 6:45 and Kathy warmed up leftover pizza and Stella downloaded a copy of R Kelly's "Trapped in a Closet" which I thought would be so lamesauce, but it was actually hilarious- they'd only seen the 1st chapter (there are currently 5, and it promises at least 10) and were so excited to see 2-5 and we laughed and laughed. We also watched the first half of Anchorman (I do love that movie- it is so so funny) and left for our movie, which started at 9:20. Unfortunately, Wedding Crashers is R and Stevie's still 16. They carded him, of course, and, because you have to be 21 to buy multiple R tickets, we couldn't get him a ticket. That, and, because the movie would let out after 11 (curfew for those under 17), they wouldn't let him get a ticket to any movie. We were most upset and complained loudly in the car. Tropical Smoothie closes at 9, so we couldn't go there, and we decided it was time for Mary to learn to drive a stick shift (which Stephen drives). We went to Bird parking lot and Mary is possibly the fastest learner of this skill- she barely stalled at all, and picked up shifting gears really quickly. She actually drove back to Stella's house from Bird! There was one moment when she stalled in the middle of an intersection because we told her to stop one street too soon, but it was in a neighborhood and there wasn't really any traffic anyway. Otherwise, she was so awesome and is my personal hero. Back at Stella's, he looked up this very site for a bit and perused and then Stephen dropped me off here and I plopped down at the computer and wrote this.
I have the best friends in the world. How can I leave them on Thursday?
Gender: 61% female
Wednesday, July 20, 2005
"Homework"
I've been recently informed that I need to report to the State Dept/German Embassy with an idea of what diplomacy means to me next Thursday. As far as I know, I'm not going to have to make some presentation or paper or thing, but I'm warning you that there may be long ramblings about foreign relations here for the next week while I try to sort my thoughts out and get some feedback ('cause I don't want to look dumb in front of an ambassador!).
I also have exciting plans for tonight's shindiggity, so expect entertaining (and probably mildly embarassing for those involved) stories and pictures later.
I also have exciting plans for tonight's shindiggity, so expect entertaining (and probably mildly embarassing for those involved) stories and pictures later.
Monday, July 18, 2005
Mail is Fun!
You know about Dinosaur Comics, right?
Have you read the one about things that don't exist?
Did you see the video that Jason Eppink made? (You have to scroll down a little)
Did you known that Ryan and Jason had a remix contest and that I entered a video of my own and Sean did voices for it that everyone loved?
Did you know that I won one of the original sock puppets in the contest?
Did you know that it came to me today?
Did you know that it is hard to take a picture with one hand, but I tried really hard for your sake?
Gender: 69% male.
Have you read the one about things that don't exist?
Did you see the video that Jason Eppink made? (You have to scroll down a little)
Did you known that Ryan and Jason had a remix contest and that I entered a video of my own and Sean did voices for it that everyone loved?
Did you know that I won one of the original sock puppets in the contest?
Did you know that it came to me today?
Did you know that it is hard to take a picture with one hand, but I tried really hard for your sake?
Gender: 69% male.
Happy Happy Bittersweet Happy
Mmmm. . . good weekend. I left my house a little after 2 on Friday afternoon (after picking up Andy and then running home because I forgot my camera- good thing I grabbed it, as I have lots of pictures!) and me and my mom and 3 boys (Travis, Bobby, Andy) drove out to Hopewell to meet up with Pat and Katie O and Kim and Lindsay and Brittany and get on a bus to drive to Dinwiddie. Of course, Dinwiddie was not our ultimate goal! We were just meeting Betty and Katie Jo and Victoria and Vladimir there- they got on the bus and we started back down the road, but then Betty's husband Jim pulled up beside us waving money out his window! Turns out Betty forgot it and he was being really sweet and bringing it to her. It was very funny, and I wish I'd had time to get a picture. I did, however, get pictures of Andy and Lindsay on the bus (I tried very hard to get a picture of Bobby, but he thwarted my plans using a pillow).
The bus ride was pretty long and we got lost for a little while- neither Pat nor Betty managed to see the sign for the road we were supposed to turn on, but we backtracked and found it. There were bears with chainsaws and a golf cart in the air that made Kim really excited and after more questionable navigation moments we got to Sam's grandparent's lakehouse!
That is a view of the house from the lake, but of course we came upon it from the road so that is not what we saw first. We did see Sam and Gwen, who were there waiting for us! It was very very hot, so we unloaded the bus (we had SO MUCH stuff) and threw everything somewhere in the house, then changed into bathing suits and went swimming! The nasty nasty plant that used to live at the bottom of the lake was gone, so we could go in without fear, and there was jumping off a roof and flipping and throwing Andy and Sam and horseplay and jokes and floating and noodles and fun!
Gwen finally called us for dinner, and we went and ate delicious hamburgers and hot dogs and there was so so much food, but we were all really hungry from swimming, so it was great! After dinner and drying off, we got on the boat to go ride around the lake. I took my camera and took lots of pictures- here are some highlights!
Travis and Bobby really did not want me to take their picture, so I took about 5.
Kim wanted me to take her picture, and she smiled so pretty with Victoria and Katie Jo.
Sam and Vladimir tried to prove their manliness by taking the 3-horsepower little boat. They ultimately failed.
We went past Willow Run, where the Septemeber retreat will be- I am so sad that I will be in another country and miss it!
Here is Katie O and Betty's back. They are looking at the pretty lake!
See how pretty the sunset was?
I think that first sunset picture proves that I may have some skill as a photographer, but maybe it is just my camera's special sunset setting.
When we got back, I took a picture of Bobby that I really like for some reason.
We all got off the boat and went inside because it was getting dark, and hung out and talked and talked and Sam and Vladimir pulled out their guitars, and Sam broke a string, but insisted it wasn't important. I took pictures of the guitar playing, and Lindsay stuck her foot into one of them!
There was lots of great talking and sharing and we went out and looked at the stars and they were very pretty and made me feel really good. Around 1, we decided to play Life and it turns out that Life is hard to play when it is late and you are tired and the game just gets longer and longer and longer. We started changing rules to try to make it end faster, but it still lasted until after 2. When we finished the game, Katie O and Kim and Katie Jo and I retired to our back room, and everyone else (except Pat and Betty and Gwen who were sensible and had gone to bed much earlier) apparently stayed up much later talking and talking and talking. Sam made some videos for me, but I haven't figured out how to put them on here yet. I have heard many stories of late-night hijinks, but, being as I was not there and having no guarnatee of their veracity, I shall not repeat them. The next morning, we had Hot Pockets and cereal and I ate more breakfast than I ever eat, but I was hungry! Then we hurried out to swim and swim in the lake because it is so so much fun. We came in for lunch (sammiches and leftover hamburgers and hot dogs and I ate a ton yet again!) and then we went out on the boat, leaving Pat to enjoy some peace and quiet (she doesn't do water and swimming). We went all the way out to the middle of the lake and jumped in on our floats and noodles and there were more hijinks (Sam and Vladimir are of course most responsible). There are lots of waves in the lake, and they make you drift and drift. Most of us held onto each other's floats, but Betty and Katie Jo floated very very far away- Sam and Vladimir stole a float from someone and went out to them, but then there were 4 people very far away that we couldn't get to come in! We eventually got them corralled back to the boat and then we figured out that there was a rope we could hold onto and then we wouldn't float away from the boat! We held on until we'd floated nearly across the lake and then we all got back on the boat and drove back towards our cove. Through skilled boat-manuevering, Gwen managed to get us to float right back into our cove by 5 in the evening- just in time to shower before dinner! Some people went in before others, and a few stayed in the shallows of the lake to wrestle and splash and play chicken. I took pictures!
I swear Sam was above water when I hit the shutter on this picture- he is in that big splash bit, having been shoved under by Vladimir.
Sam tried to get his revenge.
The next three are a sequence of events involving Sam and Andy.
And, finally, those are Sam's legs, not Vladimir's, in my this picture.
I went up and colored some butterflies with Pat for a while after that, and then I showered (it felt really nice to be clean!) and we had delicious lasagna for dinner and we hung out and talked and talked and were waiting for Sam and Vladimir so we could discuss some stuff, and it got dark, and we talked and waited and talked and finally Vladimir poked his head in and said we could come outside 'cause they'd planned something for us. We all went down and sat on a tarp by the lake and Vladimir and Sam played their guitars and sang and it was so beautiful and sweet and we all loved it. We made them play the song at least 10 times for us, then we went back inside and shared for a while and we all cried and then we went out and looked at the stars and the world was so beautiful and amazing and I can't describe it. Once again, Pat and Betty and Gwen went to bed at a sensible hour and we stayed up talking and giggling and Katie O and Andy and I played Upwords and were bad at it, but that's okay. We finished the game and Andy fell asleep on the floor almost immediately while we were hanging out. I took a picture, but forgot to upload it. Oh well. I did upload this picture of Katie and Kim!
Some of us went to bed about 1:30 because we are smart, but the others stayed up really really late again (once again, I'm not sharing the stories I heard). We woke up Sunday morning to Pat and Betty arguing like an old married couple (Betty insists this is just for show because she knew we were listening) and had breakfast and packed and cleaned and hung out and took a few group pictures and loaded up the bus and ate lunch and went home. Andy fell asleep on the bus ride back and Bobby was restless and hyper and Victoria threw things at him and we said goodbye to half the group when they got off at Okran and then to the rest in Hopewell and Andy's mom drove us (me and Travis and Bobby and Andy) home and I took a nap and went and played Frisbee with Billy and Andy and Lynn and Mary and Laura and Cindy and Kathy and Tim and Nicholas (Stephen was with a certain girl and apparently too good for us) and Lee and Elizabeth and Joe and Turner and I'm probably forgetting some people but I hope not. It was hot hot hot and humid and we sweated and sweated and Bill laid out twice and was so so soaked by the end of the game and it was so much fun and my team got slaughtered but that's okay. I slept a whole lot last night, and I'm very very sore, but I'm so happy.
I'm a little sad that this was the last time that particular DYC will ever be together like that, and that it may be a very long time indeed before I see some of these people again, but that is the way life is.
There's gonna be a bon voyage shindig at church on Wednesday (6:30 pm). Everyone's invited- e-mail me if you need more info (oneseventy@gmail.com).
Gender: 59% female.
The bus ride was pretty long and we got lost for a little while- neither Pat nor Betty managed to see the sign for the road we were supposed to turn on, but we backtracked and found it. There were bears with chainsaws and a golf cart in the air that made Kim really excited and after more questionable navigation moments we got to Sam's grandparent's lakehouse!
That is a view of the house from the lake, but of course we came upon it from the road so that is not what we saw first. We did see Sam and Gwen, who were there waiting for us! It was very very hot, so we unloaded the bus (we had SO MUCH stuff) and threw everything somewhere in the house, then changed into bathing suits and went swimming! The nasty nasty plant that used to live at the bottom of the lake was gone, so we could go in without fear, and there was jumping off a roof and flipping and throwing Andy and Sam and horseplay and jokes and floating and noodles and fun!
Gwen finally called us for dinner, and we went and ate delicious hamburgers and hot dogs and there was so so much food, but we were all really hungry from swimming, so it was great! After dinner and drying off, we got on the boat to go ride around the lake. I took my camera and took lots of pictures- here are some highlights!
Travis and Bobby really did not want me to take their picture, so I took about 5.
Kim wanted me to take her picture, and she smiled so pretty with Victoria and Katie Jo.
Sam and Vladimir tried to prove their manliness by taking the 3-horsepower little boat. They ultimately failed.
We went past Willow Run, where the Septemeber retreat will be- I am so sad that I will be in another country and miss it!
Here is Katie O and Betty's back. They are looking at the pretty lake!
See how pretty the sunset was?
I think that first sunset picture proves that I may have some skill as a photographer, but maybe it is just my camera's special sunset setting.
When we got back, I took a picture of Bobby that I really like for some reason.
We all got off the boat and went inside because it was getting dark, and hung out and talked and talked and Sam and Vladimir pulled out their guitars, and Sam broke a string, but insisted it wasn't important. I took pictures of the guitar playing, and Lindsay stuck her foot into one of them!
There was lots of great talking and sharing and we went out and looked at the stars and they were very pretty and made me feel really good. Around 1, we decided to play Life and it turns out that Life is hard to play when it is late and you are tired and the game just gets longer and longer and longer. We started changing rules to try to make it end faster, but it still lasted until after 2. When we finished the game, Katie O and Kim and Katie Jo and I retired to our back room, and everyone else (except Pat and Betty and Gwen who were sensible and had gone to bed much earlier) apparently stayed up much later talking and talking and talking. Sam made some videos for me, but I haven't figured out how to put them on here yet. I have heard many stories of late-night hijinks, but, being as I was not there and having no guarnatee of their veracity, I shall not repeat them. The next morning, we had Hot Pockets and cereal and I ate more breakfast than I ever eat, but I was hungry! Then we hurried out to swim and swim in the lake because it is so so much fun. We came in for lunch (sammiches and leftover hamburgers and hot dogs and I ate a ton yet again!) and then we went out on the boat, leaving Pat to enjoy some peace and quiet (she doesn't do water and swimming). We went all the way out to the middle of the lake and jumped in on our floats and noodles and there were more hijinks (Sam and Vladimir are of course most responsible). There are lots of waves in the lake, and they make you drift and drift. Most of us held onto each other's floats, but Betty and Katie Jo floated very very far away- Sam and Vladimir stole a float from someone and went out to them, but then there were 4 people very far away that we couldn't get to come in! We eventually got them corralled back to the boat and then we figured out that there was a rope we could hold onto and then we wouldn't float away from the boat! We held on until we'd floated nearly across the lake and then we all got back on the boat and drove back towards our cove. Through skilled boat-manuevering, Gwen managed to get us to float right back into our cove by 5 in the evening- just in time to shower before dinner! Some people went in before others, and a few stayed in the shallows of the lake to wrestle and splash and play chicken. I took pictures!
I swear Sam was above water when I hit the shutter on this picture- he is in that big splash bit, having been shoved under by Vladimir.
Sam tried to get his revenge.
The next three are a sequence of events involving Sam and Andy.
And, finally, those are Sam's legs, not Vladimir's, in my this picture.
I went up and colored some butterflies with Pat for a while after that, and then I showered (it felt really nice to be clean!) and we had delicious lasagna for dinner and we hung out and talked and talked and were waiting for Sam and Vladimir so we could discuss some stuff, and it got dark, and we talked and waited and talked and finally Vladimir poked his head in and said we could come outside 'cause they'd planned something for us. We all went down and sat on a tarp by the lake and Vladimir and Sam played their guitars and sang and it was so beautiful and sweet and we all loved it. We made them play the song at least 10 times for us, then we went back inside and shared for a while and we all cried and then we went out and looked at the stars and the world was so beautiful and amazing and I can't describe it. Once again, Pat and Betty and Gwen went to bed at a sensible hour and we stayed up talking and giggling and Katie O and Andy and I played Upwords and were bad at it, but that's okay. We finished the game and Andy fell asleep on the floor almost immediately while we were hanging out. I took a picture, but forgot to upload it. Oh well. I did upload this picture of Katie and Kim!
Some of us went to bed about 1:30 because we are smart, but the others stayed up really really late again (once again, I'm not sharing the stories I heard). We woke up Sunday morning to Pat and Betty arguing like an old married couple (Betty insists this is just for show because she knew we were listening) and had breakfast and packed and cleaned and hung out and took a few group pictures and loaded up the bus and ate lunch and went home. Andy fell asleep on the bus ride back and Bobby was restless and hyper and Victoria threw things at him and we said goodbye to half the group when they got off at Okran and then to the rest in Hopewell and Andy's mom drove us (me and Travis and Bobby and Andy) home and I took a nap and went and played Frisbee with Billy and Andy and Lynn and Mary and Laura and Cindy and Kathy and Tim and Nicholas (Stephen was with a certain girl and apparently too good for us) and Lee and Elizabeth and Joe and Turner and I'm probably forgetting some people but I hope not. It was hot hot hot and humid and we sweated and sweated and Bill laid out twice and was so so soaked by the end of the game and it was so much fun and my team got slaughtered but that's okay. I slept a whole lot last night, and I'm very very sore, but I'm so happy.
I'm a little sad that this was the last time that particular DYC will ever be together like that, and that it may be a very long time indeed before I see some of these people again, but that is the way life is.
There's gonna be a bon voyage shindig at church on Wednesday (6:30 pm). Everyone's invited- e-mail me if you need more info (oneseventy@gmail.com).
Gender: 59% female.
Wednesday, July 13, 2005
Ukrop's Has Developed Amazing Taste. . .
In music! The last few times I've been there, it's been 80's extravanganza, which makes me very happy indeed. Today's Ukrop's playlist during my visit: "St Elmo's Fire" by John Parr, then SoHo's "Whisper to a Scream" then Pet Shop Boys' "It's a Sin" then some song I didn't quite recognize that had something to do with love.
If I could get the Ukrop's radio station to play in my house, life would be so grand.
Gender: 72% male.
If I could get the Ukrop's radio station to play in my house, life would be so grand.
Gender: 72% male.
Pikshas
I'm working on getting all these great pictures of my host family and their house up, but they're HUGE files and I'm too lazy to shrink 'em myself (my host'll do it automatically), so it's taking a while to upload them. I'll add more as I finish.
Church pals- if you haven't seen these already, you will soon.
Gender: 75% female.
Church pals- if you haven't seen these already, you will soon.
Gender: 75% female.
Monday, July 11, 2005
Tourist in My Own Town
In spite of certain comments from one Bill Putnam, it should be known that the following is entirely true and in no way "revisionist." Besides, who says truth is a simple dichotomy?
Yesterday was absolutely amazing- finally had Bill and Mary and the rest of the Putnam and Shelton gangs back and all was right with the world. I saved Bill by having a Children's Sermon ready for both services, and I got to stand in my normal place to play mandolin (squeezed in between Bill and Mary, of course), and then Stella made it through Sunday School without injuring himself (in case you're unaware, Stephen's new name is Stella, and it fits him well). Lunch at Applebee's and I'm through 2 chapters of Billy's book and I even squeezed in a little nap before the Frisbee game. Ah, Frisbee. It was a great game- the weather was too hot for any sensible person to be outside (should I mention that it never hits 90F in Germany?), but of course "sensible" can hardly be applied to any of us, so we had a nice big group out running around and sliding on mud and even trying to lay out (of course we failed). And Bill naming his own team the "old people" (I was part of this team), and us winning even though we gave David Heird to the other team halfway through (they did lose 2 key players to minor injuries, but still), and then decided to be nice and say the winner would be next 2 out of 3 when the score was 8-5 us. Other team got the next 2 (they had taken ultra-player David, you'll remember), so I guess we all get to say we won- my team got 8 goals, and they only had 7, after all. I went home and discovered that my host family had e-mailed me and sent lots and lots of pictures- if I get less lazy later, I'll post some. Their house is absolutely gorgeous, and I keep getting more excited. I showered because heat+running around in a field=gross gross sweaty dirty yuck. Then I was trying to eat really fast (I wasn't even hungry yet) and print pictures and then Bill shows up at 6:20 so we can go watch Jamie's concert. I got one page of pictures printed and ran out the door with half my dinner to jump in Lynn's car and we go to get the Sheltons. Andy found some bubbles in the back of the car, which we proceeded to blow and with which I very much distracted Bill. With Cindy, Mary, and Laura in tow, we headed off down the road- should I mention Bill trying to read a card (with a very long note in it) and drive at the same time? He was very possessive about the present Cindy brought him from Italy- no one else was allowed to touch it, even to keep it from falling onto the floor. I'm not sure how, but I got the job of navigator thrust upon me, and I read the directions exactly as printed. Had Bill bothered to pay attention to the distances I was reading to him, perhaps he would have avoided our most infamous mishap. Instead, we get on Forest Ave and Bill turns into the lot of the first church we see (of course no one looks at the sign). There aren't many people there, but it's a little early, and Mary said there was another parking lot on the other side. We wander in and start looking for the sanctuary- Mary and I found it relatively quickly, but (for some unknown reason) the door was locked and we were supposed to go out and around. I was willing, but, because Bill and Cindy were lollygagging and talking back in some hallway, Mary insisted that we return to them. After a while, we convince them to go with us toward the sanctuary, and Mary found some tiny side door to slip in. The sanctuary was completely empty and we became very confused. After a few more minutes of looking around, someone mentioned that we were at Thrid Presbyterian Church. Of course, we needed to be at Trinity United Methodist. We hurried out to the car, giggling and accusing each other of not reading the sign in the first place (I thought it was a pretty short half mile down the road, but I'm no judge of distance and Bill doesn't care about distance anyway, apparently). As we're heading to the right church, Stella calls Mary to ask where we were, and she tells him we'll explain later. Trinity is of course very crowded and we squeeze into a few of the last remaining seats- Stella was upset that I didn't sit by him, but Andy was going to cry if I didn't sit with him, and Bill had already taken the seat by Mary. The concert was great (Jamie had a solo and played her flute and she was so good, as always!) and Andy insisted on clapping out of rhythm and we were tickling each other throughout half of it and it was great fun. Bill was starving by the time it was over (did I mention that he didn't bother to eat dinner beforehand?) and planned to go to Tropical Smoothie, but it closes at 9. Being as it was 9:30 by the time we got there, we headed over to Dairy Queen instead (where I did sit by Stella, although he was IMing other boys on his phone and ignoring me and Mary, after insisting that we had to sit with him and not Bill). A little after 10, Bill decided that he needed sleep because he has to get up at some ungodly hour like 3, so we dropped the Sheltons off and then he dropped me off and I went to sleep before midnight for the first time in a while, because I was tired.
Gender: 54% female.
Yesterday was absolutely amazing- finally had Bill and Mary and the rest of the Putnam and Shelton gangs back and all was right with the world. I saved Bill by having a Children's Sermon ready for both services, and I got to stand in my normal place to play mandolin (squeezed in between Bill and Mary, of course), and then Stella made it through Sunday School without injuring himself (in case you're unaware, Stephen's new name is Stella, and it fits him well). Lunch at Applebee's and I'm through 2 chapters of Billy's book and I even squeezed in a little nap before the Frisbee game. Ah, Frisbee. It was a great game- the weather was too hot for any sensible person to be outside (should I mention that it never hits 90F in Germany?), but of course "sensible" can hardly be applied to any of us, so we had a nice big group out running around and sliding on mud and even trying to lay out (of course we failed). And Bill naming his own team the "old people" (I was part of this team), and us winning even though we gave David Heird to the other team halfway through (they did lose 2 key players to minor injuries, but still), and then decided to be nice and say the winner would be next 2 out of 3 when the score was 8-5 us. Other team got the next 2 (they had taken ultra-player David, you'll remember), so I guess we all get to say we won- my team got 8 goals, and they only had 7, after all. I went home and discovered that my host family had e-mailed me and sent lots and lots of pictures- if I get less lazy later, I'll post some. Their house is absolutely gorgeous, and I keep getting more excited. I showered because heat+running around in a field=gross gross sweaty dirty yuck. Then I was trying to eat really fast (I wasn't even hungry yet) and print pictures and then Bill shows up at 6:20 so we can go watch Jamie's concert. I got one page of pictures printed and ran out the door with half my dinner to jump in Lynn's car and we go to get the Sheltons. Andy found some bubbles in the back of the car, which we proceeded to blow and with which I very much distracted Bill. With Cindy, Mary, and Laura in tow, we headed off down the road- should I mention Bill trying to read a card (with a very long note in it) and drive at the same time? He was very possessive about the present Cindy brought him from Italy- no one else was allowed to touch it, even to keep it from falling onto the floor. I'm not sure how, but I got the job of navigator thrust upon me, and I read the directions exactly as printed. Had Bill bothered to pay attention to the distances I was reading to him, perhaps he would have avoided our most infamous mishap. Instead, we get on Forest Ave and Bill turns into the lot of the first church we see (of course no one looks at the sign). There aren't many people there, but it's a little early, and Mary said there was another parking lot on the other side. We wander in and start looking for the sanctuary- Mary and I found it relatively quickly, but (for some unknown reason) the door was locked and we were supposed to go out and around. I was willing, but, because Bill and Cindy were lollygagging and talking back in some hallway, Mary insisted that we return to them. After a while, we convince them to go with us toward the sanctuary, and Mary found some tiny side door to slip in. The sanctuary was completely empty and we became very confused. After a few more minutes of looking around, someone mentioned that we were at Thrid Presbyterian Church. Of course, we needed to be at Trinity United Methodist. We hurried out to the car, giggling and accusing each other of not reading the sign in the first place (I thought it was a pretty short half mile down the road, but I'm no judge of distance and Bill doesn't care about distance anyway, apparently). As we're heading to the right church, Stella calls Mary to ask where we were, and she tells him we'll explain later. Trinity is of course very crowded and we squeeze into a few of the last remaining seats- Stella was upset that I didn't sit by him, but Andy was going to cry if I didn't sit with him, and Bill had already taken the seat by Mary. The concert was great (Jamie had a solo and played her flute and she was so good, as always!) and Andy insisted on clapping out of rhythm and we were tickling each other throughout half of it and it was great fun. Bill was starving by the time it was over (did I mention that he didn't bother to eat dinner beforehand?) and planned to go to Tropical Smoothie, but it closes at 9. Being as it was 9:30 by the time we got there, we headed over to Dairy Queen instead (where I did sit by Stella, although he was IMing other boys on his phone and ignoring me and Mary, after insisting that we had to sit with him and not Bill). A little after 10, Bill decided that he needed sleep because he has to get up at some ungodly hour like 3, so we dropped the Sheltons off and then he dropped me off and I went to sleep before midnight for the first time in a while, because I was tired.
Gender: 54% female.
Friday, July 08, 2005
To Please Them
My mom's complaining that I don't update enough. (Don't I still live in her house? Whatever.) Anyway, I've been doing absolutely nothing of interest- well, there was some totally manic-depressive insomnia last night, but there's no way I want to type up anything relating to late night mood swings, especially when I'm more sane (like now). And I've been having vaguely interesting dreams, but they're also private.
Instead: I shall present a list of my favorite new "slogans" for DC, as stated by T-Rex, who has moved up to the top of the page. Maybe I will steal one of these for my own purposes! Maybe they will inspire you to read an internet comic about talking dinosaurs! Maybe not! Maybe you will at least giggle, and life will be a little bit better.
DINOSAUR COMICS
I will consider it a public service!
So dumb!
Yep, that sure would suck!
Summer has arrived woooo!
In which a point is effectively proven by analogy.
Phew, it was all a dream!
-
It rained last night, and it was really great rain. Somewhere in my manic depressive insomnia, that registered, and it only exemplified both moods. I love rain.
I'm also reading a lot of awesome stuff right now- I just finished the Color Purple, and I loved that book in ways I have no right to love a book. Then there's Bernard, who's being ignored in favor of an Oscar Wilde biography (I swear I don't love Oscar like I love Bernard, but I still feel guilty), and an awesome linguistics-type book I picked up at B&N. If you want to talk books and/or Victorian/Edwardian writers and/or culture, drop me a line. Otherwise, I promise I'm so boring right now.
Gender: 58% female.
Instead: I shall present a list of my favorite new "slogans" for DC, as stated by T-Rex, who has moved up to the top of the page. Maybe I will steal one of these for my own purposes! Maybe they will inspire you to read an internet comic about talking dinosaurs! Maybe not! Maybe you will at least giggle, and life will be a little bit better.
DINOSAUR COMICS
I will consider it a public service! So dumb! Yep, that sure would suck! Summer has arrived woooo! In which a point is effectively proven by analogy. Phew, it was all a dream!-
It rained last night, and it was really great rain. Somewhere in my manic depressive insomnia, that registered, and it only exemplified both moods. I love rain.
I'm also reading a lot of awesome stuff right now- I just finished the Color Purple, and I loved that book in ways I have no right to love a book. Then there's Bernard, who's being ignored in favor of an Oscar Wilde biography (I swear I don't love Oscar like I love Bernard, but I still feel guilty), and an awesome linguistics-type book I picked up at B&N. If you want to talk books and/or Victorian/Edwardian writers and/or culture, drop me a line. Otherwise, I promise I'm so boring right now.
Gender: 58% female.
Sunday, July 03, 2005
Gender Genie
I just discovered this fun site that will try to determine the gender of a person based only on his/her writing! I have decided to use this fancy machine to let you know what gender I am at the end of each post. Of course, the machine works best on entries of 500 words or more, but let's play with its head anyway.
I've found that my shorter posts tend to be rather male, but it evens out and figures out what's going on as soon as I get to a long enough entry. For example: this entry started out male, but became female when I made it longer!
Totals:
"Male" posts: 19
500+ words: 1 (with quotes from a male)
"Female" posts: 10
500+ words: 2
I seem overwhemingly male at first, but when we're fair, I'm pretty certainly female. I guess this thing works! There's a really really long paper (thesis) you can read on why this works, but if I (future linguistics major) don't want to dig through it, I doubt you do.
I will, however, provide a list of the male and female words, leaving them out of my calculations concerning this post.
Male: some, this, as, now, good, something, if, ever, is, the, well, in
Female: him, so, because, actually, everything, but, like, am, more, out, too, has, since
I use "this" an awful lot, likely contributing to my higher male score. I also use "but" a lot- apparently I am rather apologetic, which I guess is a female thing to be.
Gender: 52% female.
I've found that my shorter posts tend to be rather male, but it evens out and figures out what's going on as soon as I get to a long enough entry. For example: this entry started out male, but became female when I made it longer!
Totals:
"Male" posts: 19
500+ words: 1 (with quotes from a male)
"Female" posts: 10
500+ words: 2
I seem overwhemingly male at first, but when we're fair, I'm pretty certainly female. I guess this thing works! There's a really really long paper (thesis) you can read on why this works, but if I (future linguistics major) don't want to dig through it, I doubt you do.
I will, however, provide a list of the male and female words, leaving them out of my calculations concerning this post.
Male: some, this, as, now, good, something, if, ever, is, the, well, in
Female: him, so, because, actually, everything, but, like, am, more, out, too, has, since
I use "this" an awful lot, likely contributing to my higher male score. I also use "but" a lot- apparently I am rather apologetic, which I guess is a female thing to be.
Gender: 52% female.
Saturday, July 02, 2005
Flowin'
I got creative yesterday and today. First I decorated some shoes, and I'm pretty happy with the way they turned out:
You like?
Then I drew a bunch of pictures- one for Adam that's top top secret (for now, at least), and a couple for Bill that I shall put below:
First one's me an' Mary, then it's Bill and his reptilian pal, and then it's the 3 of us walking away, off on some exciting adventure. I really like the last one, but it took forever to draw. The first one took the longest to color, but it turned out really nice, too. Bill wins the award for having the absolute hardest haircut to draw ever.
And this is my third post today. I must be getting lonely.
Gender: 55% male
You like?
Then I drew a bunch of pictures- one for Adam that's top top secret (for now, at least), and a couple for Bill that I shall put below:
First one's me an' Mary, then it's Bill and his reptilian pal, and then it's the 3 of us walking away, off on some exciting adventure. I really like the last one, but it took forever to draw. The first one took the longest to color, but it turned out really nice, too. Bill wins the award for having the absolute hardest haircut to draw ever.
And this is my third post today. I must be getting lonely.
Gender: 55% male
One
I wasn't going to mention the ads, but the message in the one in my sidebar is too important not to translate for my non-German speaking readers.
Every 3 seconds
A child dies
From extreme poverty
We need your voice
Anyway, click on them for information in either language, or go here.
Bernard pretty much got it when he said "the worst sin towards our fellow creatures is not to hate them, but to be indifferent to them: that's the essence of inhumanity." I've been reading his writing on censorship and poverty and vice (specifically prostitution) and the entertainment industry, and, like always, it's totally amazing and really relevant today. If you want a gorgeous polemic about how those who are quickest to hide behind a moral argument are often the least moral, grab Mrs Warren's Profession and check out the preface- I promise there's some golden ideas hidden in the wordy wordy wordy Shavian prose.
229 years ago today, the Declaration of Independence was signed. I feel like this relates, somehow.
Gender: 60% male.
Every 3 seconds
A child dies
From extreme poverty
We need your voice
Anyway, click on them for information in either language, or go here.
Bernard pretty much got it when he said "the worst sin towards our fellow creatures is not to hate them, but to be indifferent to them: that's the essence of inhumanity." I've been reading his writing on censorship and poverty and vice (specifically prostitution) and the entertainment industry, and, like always, it's totally amazing and really relevant today. If you want a gorgeous polemic about how those who are quickest to hide behind a moral argument are often the least moral, grab Mrs Warren's Profession and check out the preface- I promise there's some golden ideas hidden in the wordy wordy wordy Shavian prose.
229 years ago today, the Declaration of Independence was signed. I feel like this relates, somehow.
Gender: 60% male.
I like lists, do you?
Because I've got next to nobody's e-mail address around (what is up with that, self?), I've decided the best way to make mass e-mails from Germany easier would be to make a mailing list! So I did! Sign up for it by putting your e-mail in the box under my links, down there to left. Basically, I'll e-mail you to remind you to be reading this blog, and maybe (maybe? More like you bet!) I'll send you extra-special mailing-list only stories and pictures and fun!
Sound good?
Gender: 60% female
Sound good?
Gender: 60% female
Friday, July 01, 2005
Canadian Friends
Happy Canada Day!
I had a Canadian nickel once. I think I have some Canadian pennies around, discovered when I emptied my big thing of change. Foreign currency always excites me a little, with its different smell and pictures of a strange queen.
Gender: 100% male
I had a Canadian nickel once. I think I have some Canadian pennies around, discovered when I emptied my big thing of change. Foreign currency always excites me a little, with its different smell and pictures of a strange queen.
Gender: 100% male
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