Esprit de l'escalier

I’ve been asked to be a judge in the Gold Coast pet show Saturday! So fun!

I’m slowly adjusting to my new surroundings. The longer I’m here, the more I realize the caliber of the population. Everyone is beautiful and people dress up to go to the mall. Don’t get me wrong…the socio-economic diversity may linger closer to the wealthy side, but it’s not completely uncommon to see older cars or people wearing T-shirts and jeans (as opposed to business suits.) But I figure for the most part, those sightings are just people passing through.
This seemingly perfect community has, in my eyes, somehow made my own imperfections more prominent. So I suppose the only thing I can do is admit to my shortcomings now, rather than be called on them later.
*I own grandma panties.
*I refuse to spend more than $20 without thoroughly investigating all other options.
*Some people whisper the word “cheap” – I think “frugal” is more fitting.
*I still make, instead of purchase, many of my holiday gifts.
*When looking at a menu in a restaurant, I take into consideration how many meals I can get out of one order. (Hooray for to-go boxes!)
*I pick up change on the street.
*I use the Safeway coupons that come with the receipts.
*I may not admit it, but if you don’t recycle I probably will think less of you.
*I’ve had my car for 5 years and have no intention of getting a new one any time soon.
*I save EVERYTHING, just in case.
*Socks aren’t dead until they have at least five holes.
*Shoe Goo is the fountain of youth for my footwear.
*Only buy it if you can’t make it yourself for less.
*Eat in always, unless out with a friend.
*Sunday coupons anyone?
*…on that same note, the neighbors still haven’t noticed that the coupon section of their Sunday paper has been missing these last few weeks.
*Praise God for book trade!
*Spare a paper cup…always have a mug handy for emergency coffee breaks.
*I recycle my Post-Its
*compost!
*Turn off the water in the shower to lather up then turn it back on to rinse.
*Washing dishes right after use, before the food gets hard, crusty and stuck, helps avoid longer scrubbing sessions.
*dolphin free tuna!
*buy products packaged only in recyclable materials.
*give mean looks to people when they throw away recyclables.
*I still wear clothes from high school.

…I have more. But I can’t think of them. Yesterday, while trying to explain this to a friend I concluded that I’m a Christian liberal hippie. Does that seem accurate?

The villa still has unreliable internet connection. To get a hold of me, give me a ring!

Quick, fun story…
I was washing some dishes the other day in my cottage when I hear giggling. I turn around and see little fingers hooked over the top of my red dutch door.
“Hello?” I said, knowingly.
*giggles*
I walked over to the door to see Lenora hanging from the side, twirling her legs in a pink Disney Princess dress. I thought she was cute (as always) so I gave her a cookie from the test batch I’d just made.
“Muchas gracias!” she said and skipped away. Then came back. “Muchas gracias!”
“You speak Espaniol?” I asked, surprised. This girl was only just out of preschool.
“Si!”

That’s pretty cool.

Hello friends, it’s been a while since I’ve updated and boy is there a lot to say. God has been teaching me a lot. Perhaps when I have more energy and I’m not on the clock at work, I’ll update more extensively. Until then, here is some important info for you all to know.
I went to the mall the other day and got one of those “Pay as you go,” cell phones. This way all my Washington friends won’t have to endure those long distance fees. If you have Cingular or AT&T we get to talk for free…weee!
Here’s the new digits: (425) 753-6444

Hello!
Happy summer time to all! I hope this post finds you well.
I’ve finally settled into my little cottage over in Medina and I’ve been hired to write a book on the history of a nearby town called Hunts Point. Exciting, huh? All that to say, I’m near Seattle and I haven’t given up the cause for the cool kids’ Writing Group. We’re still on and going strong! Our next meeting will be Thursday the 30th and we can meet at my place for dinner at 6 pm.
This meeting will simply be for updating and regrouping, don’t worry if you don’t have anything to share. I’d just like to see how you guys are doing and make plans to arrange a regular meeting time. Plus, dinner is always good and I make a killer peach cobbler.
If you can’t come and would still like to be part of the group, no worries, just let me know and I’ll keep you on the mailing list. If you are a cranky pants and don’t want anything to do with the coolness of this group, no worries either, just let me know and I’ll sadly remove you from the mailing list and put you on my prayer list.
I hope you are all doing well and I’m anxious to hear what you’re up to! Many blessings to you and I’ll see you soon!

Israel won a trip to Maui and Flordia yesterday. He didn’t say how he won it but when the people called to ask him who he wanted to take he gave them my name! Ha-ha. Looks like I’m going on a vacation! The trip is a package deal for four people so he said he was going to take his brother and he said I can bring a friend too. *clearing throat* So…the question now is…which of you loves me more? 🙂

In other news…I was driving back from a chiropractic appointment this morning and I came across some interesting impulses. I hadn’t thought much about it before, but does anyone else ever have strange impulses or daydreams? Today I had an impulse to drive up next to the person in the red Mustang in front of me and smile, just to see if the person would smile back. I’m not sure why I wanted to do this…but it seemed like fun at the time. Yesterday I had an impulse to call the number on the back of a truck in front of me to compliment the trucker on his driving. The bumper sticker did ask “How’s my driving?” I thought it’d be nice to have the guy get back to the office with kudos in his in-box.
But when it comes down to it, I always squelch these weird impulses. Is that unhealthy? Perhaps in the long run it’s better this way. Otherwise, I might get too crazy and cross some lines. I dunno.

Based on the lj interests lists of those who share my more unusual interests, the interests suggestion meme thinks I might be interested in
1. seattle pacific university score: 10
2. queen anne score: 6
3. weezer score: 5
4. fremont score: 5
5. coffee score: 4
6. phil eaton score: 4
7. parties score: 4
8. beer score: 4
9. u2 score: 4
10. indecent man score: 3
11. college score: 3
12. switchfoot score: 3
13. road trips score: 3
14. huzzah score: 3
15. alumni score: 3
16. vodka score: 3
17. living:room score: 3
18. starbucks score: 3
19. ballard score: 3
20. sleep score: 3

coded by ixwin
Find out more

How to sum up the past few weeks? It’s a huge task that I’m too tired to take on right now, so I’ll just go over the events that I remember off the top of my head. Last night I went and saw Batman with Lance. It was a good movie. I give it thumbs up. Cassie…Christian Bale is hot stuff! I hope you enjoyed the scenery as much as I did! he he. Plus, it was great to catch up with Lance. I miss that guy and it’s encouraging to hear all the wonderful things God is doing in his life.
Loreanne’s wedding is coming up and the more I think about it the more excited and anxious I get at the thought of my best friend being wisked away to the land of newly weds. *sigh* I already miss her. I’ve been working on my best friend speach for the wedding for a while now. It’s impossible to capture everything I want to say in a single essay. I have a ways to go before it’s perfected.
Graduation was beyond words. I think it’s going to take a while before the actualness of the event sinks in. Expect more on this later.
I will admit right now that I cried. My roommate has been trying to get me to surrender to tears for a long time now. But it wasn’t graduating, or leaving my safe SPU community that made me break down, it was a single card that I got from my kindergarten and first grade teacher Mrs. Davis. She’s been keeping tabs on me ever since I moved on to second grade. What an amazing woman she is. She has had the greatest impact on my life in shaping who I am today. She’s the one who got me started journaling, drawing and she taught me how to read and write. She introduced me to the friends I would go through elementary and jr. high school with. This woman epitomizes the impact teachers have to shape lives and love children. She sent me a card for my high school graduation and I thought that was amazing so I wrote her back. I never received a response but she explained to me in the most recent card that she couldn’t write back because her husband had cancer and she was battling it with him until the end. By the time he passed away she felt silly writing a response so late. Just reading about that brought me to tears. I locked myself in my room and just wept for a few minutes while my parents were eating reheated pizza and my roommate was packing. I knew they would understand. I was planting flowers in the garden today and I thought about putting one in a pot and driving over to her house to thank her in person. But I started worrying that maybe an unannounced visit wasn’t the best way to say thank you. She’s probably about 90-something now and I wouldn’t want to upset any routines she may have in place to make living easier. So instead I’ve started composing another more elaborate letter this time. I want so much for her to know how much of an impact she’s had on making me who I am today. Every teacher should have the satisfaction of knowing they played an important part in the success of their students. Victory should be shared.
In other news, I tried on my grandma’s prom dress today. I found it in a box of stuff that she passed on to me when she was cleaning out her house to move to a new home. It was funny how well it fit. Almost like it was made for me. I felt old wearing it. The smell made me feel cultured and wise somehow, like I had suddenly gained a knowledge of my history that I hadn’t realized before. It was a full skirt and I remembered stories my grandma had told me of how she used to sneak out and go dancing at night with her friends. How fun would that be! “Back then, boys knew how to dance as well as they knew how to eat,” my grandma would tell me. What a wonderful time that must have been! She also gave me her wedding dress, some photos, a jewelry box with all sorts of wonderful necklaces and scarf ties. I feel humbled and sad accepting these treasures. I’m humbled that she chose me to pass them on to, and I feel sad that she feels the need to start distributing inheritance. I just found out tonight that she fell and broke her left ankle last week. Nobody told me before because they didn’t want to upset me before graduation. Although, I think I would have rather known that than wonder why she didn’t come and see me walk.
In the same breath as she used to tell me that grandma isn’t feeling so well, my Aunt also started telling me about this painter guy she wants to hook me up with. *sigh* My heart grows tight when my family starts bringing up the whole “gentlemen suitors” thing. Sometimes I feel inadaquate or unhealthy when I think of my relational status. Then I remember the wise words of my grandma that she used to say whenever she heard a relative giving me a hard time. “The more patient you are the more ripe they’ll be for the pickin'” Thank you grandma, I love you so much! My grandma was in her early 30s when she settled down. I hope I’m not that far along in years by the time I get married, but I’d rather be old and be happy with the right person than be young and struggling to love the wrong person. Someday my prince will come and hopefully by that time I’ll be a suitable princess. But until then, I’m a solo career climbing woman and the ladder is tall! Lord be with my friends, family and future these coming weeks. Prepare us all to achieve the tasks you’ve laid out for us and to do them to the best of our ability and to your glory. Amen.

I just received an unexpected but much needed reality check today. Just now…a few minutes ago.
As interesting as it is that it has taken almost four years for me to come to terms with this small sliver in my side (as opposed to a thorn, of course), I’m glad it came before graduation. I appreciate the closure.
Perhaps I’ll elaborate more later. I need to finish this paper. Thank you to the people who have been praying for me. I love you!