This book is sure to hook you.

I, for one, am so glad works of fiction like this occasionally pass through my hands at work.

What stellar advice. Major life decisions ahead? Overwhelmed by feelings generally forbidden to simple farm folk? Secret passions burning, mayhaps?

Go fishing, young man.

Oh and seriously girlfriend, what’s up with that face?

Three Days in Bed or How I Almost Went Crazy

There’s been a lot of gross stuff swirling around in the air these days. I thought I’d been spared and congratulated myself: my hands almost falling off from using so much hand sanitizer every day at work was clearly paying off. Of course, as things generally go, I got sick.

Noon, Tuesday: I am feeling a bit under the weather. No, actually, like I am drowning in a tsunami. This is not cool. It’s my only day off this week. There are 27 things on my to-do list for today! There is a mountain of laundry looming over me. I decide I will take a 1-2 hour power nap, believing this will make me more productive all afternoon + evening.

6 pm, Tuesday: Good Lord, I’ve been alseep since noon. I feel like I’ve been eaten by the Loch Ness monster. Must … get … water … pant … pant.

9 pm, Tuesday: Wake and conclude I a) definitely have a fever and b) probably shouldn’t work tomorrow. Moan for a little bit about all the things I didn’t accomplish today. Fall back asleep.

8 am, Wednesday: Ugh. I think I’ve relocated to the Amazon. Please God, send some grass-skirted handsome native to come and spear me. Let’s just end this now. Remember weird dream: I am in an airplane, flying to Chicago. Derek Webb is two rows in front of me. I am speaking Spanish, French, and Portuguese.

9:30 am, Wednesday: Drink 3 cups of hot honey-lemon tea. Realize I really have to pee. Cursing the fact that I still sleep in a bunk bed, I navigate from the bed down to desk, step onto chair, avoiding book pile, and finally make it to the floor. Hello, sweet nausea.

10 am, Wednesday: Realize I am too dizzy to read, which clearly means I am on death’s door. I hang over the edge of my bunk bed and stare at the pile of books on my desk longingly until suddenly being partially upside down isn’t such a great idea.

6 pm, Wednesday: I can feel my legs rotting and shriveling up. I swear, all it takes is 24 hours in bed and my muscles begin to atrophy. Thrashing and wrestling with my sheets does not seem to count as exercise or alleviate the itches in my Achilles tendons.

12 am, Thursday: Wake up totally ravenously hungry. I walk downstairs without leaning on any walls and eat half a block of cheese.

8 am, Thursday: Yes! I can focus on things across the room without going cross-eyed. This is great cause for rejoicing. I still feel like the bog monster and my laugh sounds more akin to a witch’s cackle but … NOW I CAN READ. So I tackled …

In Pursuit of Elegance. If you ever wondered what fractals, Toyota,  how to run a company with no top-down infrastructure, In-N-Out Burger, Jackson Pollock and traffic patterns in Europe have to do with each other, this is just the book for you. It’s a quick read, simple, and worth a few hours of your time, even if the only result is an increased knowledge of the addictive nature of sudoku.

And an old favorite: Animal Vegetable Miracle. Because everyone needs a recipe for zuchini cookies.

And today …

I licked and sealed 452 envelopes.

450 people will be receiving a newsletter.

2 people will be receiving letters.

My tonsils are still glued together.

Junk Mail Envelopes, by eco_monster, via flickr

The Big Stuff: a brief run down of the last 6 months.

May.
Pennsylvania: Retired from secretary job.

California: Spent two weeks with NC’s parents. Secretly marveled at what a blast traveling + adventuring with said boyfriend was. Had one unfortunate sleep-walking incident involving a wall-mounted lamp at a hotel. Spent three unbelievable days in Yosemite. Secretly marveled at how delightful hiking + trekking with boyfriend was. Had amazing Indian food in San Francisco. Ate like a queen and took my first steps on the path to wine snobbery. Got a fever halfway through a 12 mile hike – turned out to be mono, spent the next 4 days in bed (had a nice view of palm trees across the street). Secretly marveled at boyfriend’s compassion and patience with my grouchy sick self. Had my suspicions confirmed: NC’s family is amazing.

June.
Pennsylvania: Home for 4 days, did some laundry, said sad good-byes to Henrik + Lisa, and left for Switzerland.

Switzerland: First time traveling in 2 (?!) years with my family. Met up with grandparents. Hiked hiked hiked. Ate bread, cheese, yoghurt, and rosti. Finally got to see the Matterhorn. Fought my dear sister the heat-seeking missile off every night. Wished NC was there with us. Enjoyed watching the sunset across the valley in the evenings with my grandparents. Had joyful ears – French, German, Italian, Korean. Experienced the Swiss medical system as my brother came down with meningitis. Rejoiced as he walked out of the hospital 4 days later. Bid the grands goodbye and headed home across the ocean, excited to see NC.

Pennsylvania: Home for 10 days, did more laundry.

Vermont: Met up with NC’s parents + family friends from UK/Uganda. Spent a week with 3 phenomenal kids. Learned to call desert ‘pudding’. Got a spider bite and several thousand mosquito bites. Decided ‘land of the nuclear mosquitoes’ was an apt nickname for VT. Feasted on cheese + maple sugar + Ben + Jerry’s. Walked down a freshly-rained-on road and watched the sun set. Rode a huge slide down a mountain. Read Milly Molly Mandy. Had fabulous and mind-bending conversation.

July.
Pennsylvania: Home just in time to celebrate the 4th. Showed NC’s parents around our bit of the country. Drove through a monster rain storm + discussed Second Life with B + K on the way to Falling Water. I irreverently referred to Frank Lloyd Wright as Frankie.

Virginia: Our trusty stead Gamgee kicked the bucket in 6 lanes of Virginia traffic. NC valiantly fetched gasoline, but to no avail. Tow truck showed up and took us an hour up into the Shenandoahs. Arrived at garage in middle-of-no-where at 5 pm on a Friday. Threw rocks in puddles with mechanics’ kids while 7 men tried to ascertain the problem. Ended up sleeping in the car and grateful we’d packed enough to be a relatively self-sustaining for several days. Spent the day reading in the sunshine. Moved base to a hotel end of second day. Made friends with the omelet man at breakfast. Made friends with entire hotel staff. Read through a bag of books. Ate ham sandwiches. Went to biggest WalMart in the world for more carrots. Happy about free wireless, cleaned out inbox. Swam, on average, 50 laps every day at pool. NC ran many miles on treadmill. Watched wildlife out window. Laughed a lot. Finally crossed Virginia border 5 days later.

North Carolina: Fell in love with Asheville. Visited amazing friends. NC was attacked and tickled by 3-5 children every morning. Came upon impromptu bagpipe concert in woods at Warren Wilson. Admired R + E’s property. NC went through much yellow trace. Was enthralled by The Bread Bible. Told our story for the first time. Hit up Belle Chere with two kids in tow. Fell in love with Penland. Had car trouble coming down a mountain. Ended up at a mechanic’s for the afternoon. Headed off to Virginia, only 6 or 7 hours behind schedule.

Virginia: Met NC’s aunt + uncle + grandmother. Slept like a rock. Had sweet breakfast with grandma, went back to bed while she went to Dr.’s visit. Spent three sweet hours with grandma, hearing stories. Killed several flies with a stylish fly swatter, as per instructions from grandma. Consumed delicious apple pie, took pictures, headed off for Pennsylvania, only 6 or 7 hours behind schedule.

August.
Pennsylvania: home for 2 glorious weeks. Enjoyed sharing studio space with NC. Caught up on sleep.

In transit: NC accuses me of getting him decaf coffee to test the placebo effect.

Ohio: Gamgee makes it all the way to Cleveland. We are super proud. Meet another set of NC’s relatives. Discuss pounding wine bottles on the wall to work the cork out.

Indiana: Meet ALL sets of NC’s relatives. Discover they are awesome. Hang out at the state park for the weekend with everyone. Tried frog legs for the first time. The power goes out on Monday morning at breakfast. This means no toilets flushing or elevators working.

Illinois: Make it to Chicago with no major hiccups, just coffee. Crash with NC’s sister + dog, Jasmine. Go pants shopping for NC and are laughed out of Bannana Republic when we ask if they carry 28″ waist. NC has big interview + gets job offer. NC deliberates, we blitz Craigslist for apartments, and meet lots of peculiar realtors. Drive through a rainstorm and notice the car makes squishing noises. Eat excellent Thai food. Fall in love – most impractically – with a big lovely gorgeous apartment. NC takes job. Gamgee is filled to bursting with NC’s old drum set.

In transit:
EP, on phone with grandfather, giving current location: “We just passed … umm … err … Climax.”
Grandfather: “Michigan is a racy state.”

Michigan: We dine with my grandparents, who stayed up until 11:30 pm to have dinner with us. NC decides to take big lovely gorgeous apartment. NC finds a roommate. Gramps + NC repair the back porch, Grannie + I watch from kitchen window and take bets on how long it takes two architects to fix anything.

Ohio: We drop the drum set off with a certain very happy young man.

Pennsylvania: Home again, home again! But not for very long. We flurry + scurry for two days to get NC’s life packed up, rent a bright yellow Penske truck, and drag odd bits of furniture out of the hayloft in the barn. NC is set to leave on Friday morning. We’re up early, finishing  packing. I may or may not have snuck out at 6 am to decorate inside the cab of the truck with post-its. Lunch is made + eaten. We sit on the front bumper of the truck and say good-bye. I am most surprised to find NC down on his knees, holding a ring, which he explains is made of paper, and asking me to marry him. He pulls out a roll of tape, proceeds to measure my finger and tapes the ring to my size. I may have cried, there was a yes, said somewhere in all of this, and we are suddenly very ridiculously giddy + happy. Comparing notes a few days later, we both complained of acute pain in our faces, due to an inability to stop grinning.

Presently.
Currently employed at the library. Planning a wedding long distance. Flying to Chicago when I can afford it. Haunting goodwill.com for cheap wedding dresses. Being generally overwhelmed by all the goodness and joy, with so much to smile foolishly about.

Lightbulb Disaster

Beastly Busy

This week somehow went from look very nice and orderly on paper to mayhem and mess in real time. I have a hundred things to write about, but there are always dishes to be done, books to read, e-mails to write, snow to play in … Blogging just hasn’t made into my daily rhythms. Maybe that’s a good thing.

Last night and into today, I’ve felt agitated and squirmy, wrestling with this problem: how does one fuse a strong  pursuit of excellence and achievement with peaceful rest and time to just be? Madeleine L’Engle has always been an encouragement in this, but lately, it’s been an ever-present tension for me.

Anyhow, I have 1 more lesson and 1 more cup of chamomile tea to finish. 6 hours until I hurl my alarm clock against the wall.

And yes, if you’ve been on twitter or facebook, I do have a black eye and it’s from a clothesline. Story to follow …

The latest reading.

I’m on the third chapter, wishing I was further along. Two tests and a paper this week have slowed me down a bit. The schedule and deadlines that come along with most sorts of schooling are beginning to aggravate me, especially when there are so many good books (that don’t involve human anatomy) out there just waiting to be appreciated. Also, this lovely fall weather: it seems such a crime to be inside.

The first two chapters, Rethinking Thinking and Schooling the Imagination, have left me in deep appreciation of my parents and all of their efforts to encourage, rather than stifle, imagination and thinking. It also goes along nicely with my psychology class, as we’re studying brain functions etc. If we were honest, I’d be getting credit for neurology and not psych, but ah well.

I’ve gotten slogged down enough in studying and homework this week that, when I have an empty hour, all I wish for is Mindless Things (also known as the devil, or television). Sketchbook and pens are looking lonely, the books on the shelf are awfully forlorn, and my journal … the pile of textbooks on top of it may be indicative of its disuse. 

Here’s to getting back into the real swing of things.

Do you concur?

I stumbled across this last night and couldn’t resist …
 

A man should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently and die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.

- Robert Heilein

 

Better bloggage soon to come. Today however is dedicated to study of the integumentary system and all its wonders as well as piles of laundry and other sundry must-be-dones.

Watermelon Days

There’s a watermelon sitting on the kitchen counter and, I kid you not, it’s a good two feet long. It’ll probably be gone by tomorrow morning considering the way people inhale it around here. The weather has been unbelievably beautiful in the last weeks. Being inside all day at work was felt criminal. I could walk all day in the glorious sunshine we’ve had.

I’m splitting my attentions between studying for an Anatomy & Physiology quiz, watching the Republican National Convention, and blogging. Yes, multi-tasking is surely what I do best.

I have no desire to write about politics, mostly because I don’t feel educated enough, but Sarah Palin’s nomination just made things really interesting.

School is going very well. This sort of learning, much more scientific and left-brained than I’m accustomed to, is a challenge to acclimate to. Studying for quizzes and tests is difficult; I really don’t have any idea what to expect. But it seems like the sort of thing that improves with time and experience, so sticking to it is the best course of action, I guess.

Last week, I found out there’s a girl in two of my classes who speaks Russian! She’s from Belarus and has lived in the US for several years. It’s such a thrill to talk every morning before classes begin. What a wonderful gift to be able to continue speaking Russian bit by bit.

I’m still on a Wendell Berry kick, but just got entrenched in War is a Force that Gives Us Meaning. Agh! So many books, so little time. 

I leave you with this — a little bit of Wendell to end the night with a quiet bang of truth:

Ask the world to reveal its quietude—
not the silence of machines when they are still,
but the true quiet by which birdsongs,
trees, bellworts, snails, clouds, storms
become what they are, and are nothing else.

Something you might like to know

August has been so fantastic that, as you can see, blogging was relegated to the back burner … and then fell off, got stuck behind the stove, and is only now being hauled back out and dusted.

It’s been an month of up and down, certainly. But that wise old Oswald Chambers said, “faith by its very nature must be tried.”

I’m exhausted and everything I write comes out sounding pompous tonight, so here’s the Announcement, after which I will retire in haste.

Tuesday was the official beginning of New Direction. My first of day of nursing school came and went. And yes, you did hear that correctly! Send me a flabbergasted e-mail and I promise to give my best shot at a well-thought out response. For now, take my word for it: it wasn’t the answer I’d been looking for, wasn’t the easiest choice, and I’m still second-guessing it. However, it’s excellent in close to every way and sits just right with my gut (which I’m still learning to trust).

Tomorrow begins two more classes, neither of which I’m feeling very intrepid about. Math and I just haven’t hit off well … ever. But I’m convinced it can be tackled with excellence – though I’m also sure there will be tears involved at some point in time.

Anyway, that’s a quick and messy summary of my life: school is exciting; job is great; health is better; community is precious and sweet; too many good books to read, as always.

I’ve had a sense of being super-blessed lately. Just lots of amazing Things all coming together, both in my head and heart as well as in friends-life-bank account-everything. Tuesday, I took all afternoon to sit out on the hill in the sunshine and start a new notebook. A goody book, as Madeleine L’Engle calls it. The kind that’s waiting to be filled with quotes, inspiration, goals, and jumbles of thoughts. It was fulfilling to both sides of me: the pragmatist and the dreamer. It’s so good to dream, to capture those pages of hopes and visions for my life. It’s also intensely satisfying to sit down and formulate specific goals.

Somewhere way back up there, I mentioned going to bed. Since you now know how I coddle my inner pragmatist and are aware I’m going to nursing school, I guess it’s good night, with promises for better things soon.