It is 7:30 AM Wednesday morning. It is 49 degrees this morning, but the sun is shining in the sky today. This morning I was thinking it is tragic to know you were never a part of anything great.

I got up this morning around 6:13 AM. I woke up thinking about my last dream I had before getting up. I remember in this dream feeling absolutely sick that I failed a test. I remember sitting down and looking at a test sheet and not knowing any of the answers to any of the questions. All around me were fellows who were writing away their answers to the questions, but I did not know any of the answers to the questions. I just sat their realizing how ignorant I was. I am glad at my age I do not have to worry about proving I have any brains. I know I know nothing.

So I got up and made a pot of coffee and then messed with our main computer. After playing with our computer for awhile I decided to eat something. After breakfast I wrote in my paper diary. Now I am writing in my blogs. Existence is flowing along full speed. I have nothing to do today worth doing. I might drive out to Lake Michigan this morning.

Last night I listened to music and read, "Selected Essays" by John Berger. I went to bed around 10:30 PM. Now it is another day to prepare for the Eternal State. "Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure" 1 John 3:2,3.

Well I do not know what else to report so I will close to drift through the Last Days.

music: Teenage Fanclub "Four Thousand Seven Hundred and Sixty-Six Seconds: A Short Cut To Teenage Fanclub"

Originally published at Poise and Pen. You can comment here or there.

Let’s play with verbs, shall we?

Use the following five verbs in something new.

1. embezzle
2. infringe
3. mow
4. polish
5. revert

Let us know if these inspired you.
~Amber

This is my first snark in a long time. Partly because I'm one of those people who keeps posting partial snarks, then not finishing them. I'm sorry. I've vowed (to myself) to post a FULL snark the next time I contributed to the community. I haven't quite made it there yet because my middle name = Ridiculously Wordy, but at least this snark will have only two segments. Here's the first one.

(This book has been snarked by others before, but not since last summer. Think of this as the 2013 edition?)

I present to you... the cover (thanks, Dibbly Fresh):

I give Hodges a B for effort. This scene sort of happens in the book, but not really. Stacey's expression is all wrong. She looks all pissed off, while Robert looks dorky guilty, which -- at least in Stacey's case --shouldn't be the case until (SPOILER ALERT!) after Stacey returns home from New York. She actually does receive flowers from Robert (and even brings them with her to the train station) but that happens before her visit. It's like Hodges combined "before New York" and "after New York" for his cover photo. But he got the daisies and sunflowers right; I'll give him that.

Meanwhile, that floating picture of Honorary Member!Dawn above the 'B' block, with just enough space to separate her from the others, always makes it seem like she's... dead? or something. Like an angel floating over them? It looks weird to me. I'm not sure why.

I'm also not sure why Hodges drew the guy with the red jacket and porn 'stache (and the other guy gazing back at him) in such detail, whereas the girl with the Mallory-esque hair sitting down (behind Robert) only gets a blob for a face. Anyhow...

( The author gratefully acknowledges Suzanne Weyn for her help in preparing this manuscript...Collapse )
Coming up... Ethan, Abby ruins the BSC, Stacey finds out the truth about Robert!

I decided my countdown needed a little bit of the newer members of the Disney family and I just loved this part of Iron Man 3. I didn't make it, but whoever did, totally read my mind.

Dawn took us all out to Pei Wei tonight. We were supposed to go there today for lunch, but someone that she works with called in and they basically called and begged her to go in today. Kind of sucks, but I got a good chunk of our shirts done or ready to paint. I still have three of mine to paint and three of Dawn's to make stencils for and iron down. She paints them herself, but doesn't like to make the stencils. It's a lot of work for me, but oh well. Keeps me busy and not really thinking about other things.

I also think I'm going to make a new layout here soon. I think I'll use it for the time between Disney and Shark Week in August.

I told Josiah that when they were visiting Dublin Ireland to get a picture of the James Joyce statue. Joe told me they were in Dublin on Bloomsday.

Bloomsday
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloomsday

I got bit by the travel bug early in my life, most likely because of my parents. When my parents were first married in the 70s, they were in their 20s and childless. My dad was an Air Force officer working for the Defense Intelligence Agency in Italy, and my Mom was halfway through college and working for an insurance company, while learning Italian so well she spoke it in her dreams. Dad still likes to brag about how they did Europe for a dollar a day. Every weekend that Dad didn't have to work was a different adventure in a different country, unless of course it was a communist country that Dad had to avoid for security reasons. I know they got to see Paris and Prague, along with most of the Italian countryside.

Dad and Mom instilled their love for travel and the lessons it teaches in both my sister Patty and me. I think part of why they didn't have kids until ten years after they got married is because they wanted to see as much of the world as they could first. I understand this mentality. I'm in my early thirties, and so far, I've been to Italy, England, France, Scotland, China, Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, Spain, the Isle of Capri, and several islands in the Caribbean. This Christmas and New Year's, I am going to South America with my parents, my sister, and my brother-in-law Ethan. Usually, during the summer, I teach writing camp and write tests just long enough to make some extra money, and then I leave Atlanta for as long as I can. I try to go to a foreign country, or at least out to the west coast. (Last summer, it was California, the Redwood National Forest, Crater Lake, and Portland. The summer before, it was Seattle and the Washington Peninsula, including Forks and the surrounding wineries). If I'm lucky, this summer, I'll get to do a long weekend in Charleston to visit a beach and a National Park. Other than that, I'm not going anywhere this summer except for my home city of Atlanta. My family is coming to me for July 4th weekend, including my Aunt and Uncle, so I'm excited about me.

As someone with a wandering south and heightened senses, though, it's almost painful to me to not be doing much (if any traveling) this summer. I've been a writer since I was five years old, and traveling to new places always gives me new ideas and new scenery to describe. But, I have one more credit card to pay off, and until that happens, I'm going to be responsible and not travel anywhere else major. Also, I'm starting a Ph.D. program in the fall. I am super excited about my new Assistantship, but it does involve me taking a sizeable pay cut from my former public school teaching job. So, I've decided that I need to get creative this summer, and find ways to make myself feel like I'm on vacation this summer even though I'm technically not. If you're in the same boat as me (and I'm sure some of you are), here are some of the tips I'm trying:

1. Try a new restaurant: Some of my friends and I tend to gravitate toward the same restaurants, partly because they're close by, partly because they're familiar and reliable. However, trying a new place is a good way to shake things up. My friend LeeAnn suggested that we try Red Sky Tapas in Marietta on Friday night, and the tapas and beverages were excellent. You might not love every dish you try at a new restaurant because you don't yet know what to order, but at least it feels like a new adventure.

2. Go to your pool, or find a friend in an apartment complex or condo who has a nice pool: why pay a ton of money to go to a resort when you can go to a pool with a resort-like fee to it. You'll save a whole lot of money and get a similar effect.

3. Take advantage of the outdoor parks in your area: The beltine in Piedmont and Inman Park is amazing, and it's also a fun adventure to take with a friend. Piedmont Park in Atlanta reminds me of Central Park in New York City, a lovely mix of trees and water. If it's not too hot, find a cool trail to bike or hike. In Atlanta, I recommend Kennesaw Mountain or the Silver Comet Trail. The bike rental fees are very reasonable, and more often than not, you only have to pay about five dollars to park at a National or State park site. Other adventures in my area include Acworth Beach (which I have yet to visit), Sweetwater Creek Park, Redtop Mountain, and Lake Allatoona.

4. Wander around a cool neighborhood in your area and people watch: Yes, it sounds strange, but it's actually really fun. One of my favorite things about traveling to a new city is getting to see new architecture while people watching. Now, I figure why not do the same thing here in Atlanta. Virginia Highlands, Candler Park, Decatur, and Inman Park are my favorite neighborhoods/small cities, so they're fun to wander around, as though I were on a vacation and exploring a new city.

5. Try new events with friends new and old: Another reason I love to travel is the opportunity to meet people I otherwise would not encounter. But I'm beginning to realize that you can do that even if you don't go to a new city. For the past ten months, I've been trying to follow my cousin Cindy's mantra: "If someone invites me to something, I try to go if I can." It's simple advice, and it seems obvious, but it works wonders. I know it can be tempting to say, "that doesn't sound like my alley," or "I'm tired," or "I have a lot of work to do." And yes, occasionally, those are valid excuses. Yet more often than not, when I coerced myself to go to an event that was maybe a little out of the box for me, I ended up meeting some really cool people. A prime example was Dragoncon 2005. I went to that event with a date who was really into Star Wars, and I was at first a little worried that I would't find "my people" there. I ended up being wrong. I went to some of the Young Adult Literature panels and Creative Writing panels (in addition to the Star Wars panels), and I met people who are still my friends today. Along the way, I've also met several authors and learned about more conferences where I could meet more inspirational scholars and writers. Also, I've coerced my cousins Cindy and Kris and my lifelong friend Angela to come with my every year, and it has now become a tradition for us. I know you wouldn't believe it, but Dragoncon is actually a great way to meet potential dates. So, it turned out to be a great and continuing adventure for me, even though I initially thought I would be out of my element.

6. Read and write: Yes, I know I'm preaching to the choir with some of you here. :) But reading can make you feel like you're in a different world, and writing can help you to get in touch with your emotions, and also be a good emotional "cleanse" for things you've kept bottled up for a while. If reading is not your thing, go see a movie. There are a lot of good ones out there by now.

Whether or not you travel this summer, I hope you embark on a lot of new adventures. Tis the season. :)

It is 11:31 AM late Tuesday morning here where I am at. I have been wandering the house and reading "The Interior Way" by Matthew The Poor. I suppose I am not in the mood to leave the house today. All the windows are open and there is a nice breeze blowing through the house. A nice simple quiet morning. I thought I would quote something from "The Interior Way" that blessed me this morning.

"Such is the way of contemplation: an easy way demanding an easygoing soul. All it has to do is simply believe and walk along easily, guided by faith.

There will come a time when your soul is quiet and prayerful, your senses tractable, and your mind collected. Your soul will then move on gradually to shake off the sway of the senses and break loose from the mind's turmoil. It is as if the soul were elevated above the body, not in distance or space, but in quality and entity. It contemplates itself adhering to a spiritual truth or an attribute of God. During its progress, it meets new things and wondrous realities, some perceptible to the mind, others imperceptible to it. We are thus overwhelmed by a sweet sense of joy, amazement, and pleasure all together. We find ourselves entrusted with hidden realities and mysteries. Thus, faith and trust increase, inspiring the soul all the more and strengthening our hope.

The spirit, henceforth, becomes more active and militant in its continuous progression farther and farther along this easy and difficult way. This progress goes on until it approaches the source of light, which inspires it with all these feelings. Once it faces it, the mind stops in a flash, and all senses are brought to a halt. The soul then falls into a state of ecstasy before the one whom St. Augustine describes as the "Unchangeable," that is, God. . ." Matthew The Poor pg. 64 "The Interior Way"

Caroline has declared that this is the summer that she will learn to use the sewing machine so she can start designing clothing for her dolls and stuffed animals. I am also going to teach her about hand sewing as well. She should be able to put a button back on or darn a sock.

Next week, I think, I am going to be taking her into the city with me to shop the fabric shops for a couple of projects I want to do. We have most of the day already planned. She is looking forward to some Mommy/Daughter time.

She, like me, has a million of ideas of things she would like to do. Most of what is stopping her is lack of practical knowledge to do these things. So among her other activities we are going to work on her sewing skills and her drafting skills.

I have also decided that she is going to learn cursive this summer and work on her handwriting (At this point I know my mother is probably laughing really hard now considering my lack of penmanship and that I went back to print as soon as I could). I think it is important for her to learn that. And now science is backing me up on this What learning Cursive does for your brain. I am also going to introduce her to calligraphy, which I think she will like. That and we are going to continue on multiplication and division. Can’t let the math brain stay dormant.

She is also practicing her flute. She is taking lessons this summer and will continue her practice of the instrument. She is getting serious about her flute playing because she can see how far she has come in nine short months.

I am grateful that my daughter wants to learn skills from me.

When I saw the topic suggestion of “South Indian Cuisine”, my brain immediately went to “regionalism”. Southern Indian cooking is a different animal from what they have in the more popular Northern dishes, and it’s something that not as many people are as familiar with. But that core idea of how something within the same border can be so different appealed to my sensibilities, stretching it far beyond food.

“ha-ha (not to be confused with laughter) had a similar effect. There was the definition of what a “ha-ha” was, and that certainly had enough metaphorical ways to twist it around. But the fact that they included the phrase “not to be confused with laughter” took my brain in all kinds of interesting areas.

The historical “Go Tell the Spartans” and how that could be translated into modern life was great, and I knew that a lot of people would have “It’s not Tacky if You Wear it Well” stories. I’ve seen pictures of most of you. ;)

So, despite the complaints to the contrary, I thought this week had a hell of a lot of potential of what could be done with it. I’ve found that often people just end up slamming their heads into the wall, until they realize that they have been staring at the solution to their problem the entire time!

Some people went in similar directions to me, and others went into interesting pathways of their own: http://therealljidol.livejournal.com/664951.html is where the poll is located, which is where you should be busy reading, commenting, and voting to keep in your favorites!

Day of judgment! Day of wonders!
Hark! the trumpet’s awful sound,
Louder than a thousand thunders,
Shakes the vast creation round!
How the summons wilt the sinner’s heart confound!

See the judge, our nature wearing,
Clothed in majesty divine!
You who long for His appearing
Then shall say, "This God is mine!"
Gracious Savior, own me in that day for Thine!

At His call the dead awaken,
Rise to life from earth and sea;
All the powers of nature shaken
By His look, prepares to flee.
Careless sinner, what will then become of thee?

Horrors, past imagination,
Will surprise your trembling heart,
When you hear your condemnation,
"Hence, accursed wretch, depart!
Thou, with Satan and his angels, have thy part!"

Satan, who now tries to please you,
Lest you timely warning take,
When that word is past, will seize you,
Plunge you in the burning lake:
Think, poor sinner, thy eternal all’s at stake.

But to those who have confessèd,
Loved and served the Lord below,
He will say, "Come near, ye blessèd,
See the kingdom I bestow;
You forever shall My love and glory know."

Under sorrows and reproaches,
May this thought your courage raise!
Swiftly God’s great day approaches,
Sighs shall then be changed to praise.
We shall triumph when the world is in a blaze.

http://www.hymntime.com/tch/htm/d/a/y/dayjdayw.htm

"Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed-in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed" 1 Corinth. 15:51,52

It is 9:25 AM Tuesday morning in the flow. It is a cloudy sunny morning here by Lake Michigan. It is 60 degrees this morning.

I got up this morning around 7 o'clock AM. I made a pot of coffee and then messed with our main computer. The first thing I do in the mornings in read my LiveJournal blogs. It has been a very long since anyone new has added me to their friends list. I think LiveJournal is dead. I often think of not writing here any more, but it is so easy to sit down and write down words. I could write all day in LiveJournal if I had the desire. There is so much to write about! If I am not writing in LiveJournal I am writing in Diaryland or my paper diary. I have no one to talk to so I talk to my Self.

This morning I trimmed one of our trees in our backyard, that took an hour. Carol came home from work and went to bed for the day. I wrote in my diary after she went to bed. Existence keeps flowing by. I might drive out to Lake Michigan this morning. I might just sit in silence and let the day float by silently.

Last night I read "The Interior Way" by Matthew The Poor and watched television. I went to bed around 11 o'clock PM. Now it is another day in the history or redemption. The Kingdom of God is coming. "Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so. Amen" Rev. 1:7.

Well I will close to read my books and see how this day unfolds. There is no way of escape.

old diary entry July 27, 2011

Crookedfingers
http://crookedfingers.livejournal.com/2011/07/28/

Glorycloud
http://glorycloud.diaryland.com/110727_34.html J

http://azurelunatic.dreamwidth.org/7063411.html

So a bunch of people I know have been reading Alternity, a piece of Harry Potter role playing game and collaborative fiction. Reader, I have been drawn into reading from Year One.

My brain latches on to the weirdest things, and even though it's only related because Harry Potter, it's been circulating a phrase.

( Crude humor. )

IDEK.

comments

So it's two somebodies... whatever. :p


I took Mako to get a check-up today, since his service indicator light came on. When I got there, they scanned his key, and found nothing that was in need of immediate attention. The representative said the only thing it was indicated from my file was the state inspection due in July. When he went with me to look at Mako and get him to a technician for reset, he noticed that my inspection isn't actually due until NEXT July. So he had the technician reset that as well. And since I brought Mako "in for nothing", he gave me a free wash and a free interior vacuuming. I've never been treated so nicely by a car dealership. He could have just as easily sent me on my way, but he didn't, he went above and beyond. I tweeted MINI and a few minutes later they'd retweeted me. That kind of made my day right there. :p

Yes, I totally missed a day. Yesterday was busy.

A few words from clauderainsrm:

The Summer continues to take it’s toll, like a long walk through the Red Waste. The topics took their own toll, with some rising to the challenge while driving others insane. Well, more insane than they already were... which many doubted was possible!

Somehow though, most people did make it across to the Promised Land of the poll. “Most”, but not all. bringing_words, emileonus and myrna_bird notified me that real life was taking them out.

While the elements got to annaonthemoon, barrelofrain, bewize, cacophonesque, i_id, jennickels and sweeny_todd

forcing them to collapse in a heap within sight of their goal.

They will most definitely be missed, and I hope whenever the heat stroke wears off, that they will be able to continue to Home Game, as well as supporting their favorites in the entries, and hanging out in the Green Room!

As for those who got here - first off, congratulations. Second off, welcome to your new tribes!

How were they decided? You did it yourselves, when I told you to declare your topics last week. The tribes have been broken down by what you posted on Week 4. The only exception to that was the two people who decided to write *all* of the topics, and I’ll admit, I was tempted to put them in a tribe by themselves to watch them fight it out. But instead, I put them on the two tribes with the fewest amount of members, to help balance things out a little. Of course, that was *before* the drops... so it didn’t work out quite as well as I’d hoped. Apparently choosing certain topics in Week 4 made one more likely to drop in Week 5!

We will be losing one from each tribe. So, on top of those who “self-eliminated”, we will be losing four more contestants. That should satisfy some of the more bloodthristy members of your ranks! ;) At least for a moment or two!


The polls will close Thursday, June 20th at 9pm EDT

Good luck to everyone!

( Click here to Vote!Collapse )

   "First!" began Nigel, "we need to choose one of the items from this list"
   "Why?" asked Cecil, straightening his top hat.
   "Because His Administrativeness says so" explained Nigel, sipping tea while holding a list in the other hand.
   "What if we don't choose one?" inquired Cecil
   "Remember that time he banned us while we were wandering in the Sinai Desert?"
   "Ah yes, that was a hoo-ha."

   Cecil looked out the window. The manicured lawns appeared to extend uninterrupted to the edge of the forest. Cecil and Nigel had been posted to a this distant outpost, he suspected, after annoying The Administrator far too many times. At the edge of the lawn he could see a large ravenous bugbladder beast prowling hungrily about. Fortunately it would be kept at the far end of the lawn by--
   "Ha-ha!" exclaimed Nigel, breaking his concentration. Cecil began to ask him what he was so excited about, but at the same moment Nigel tried to explain -- they were both speaking at once.
   "You're first!" broke in Cecil.
   "Am I first?"
   "Yes, congratulations, now what was it."
   Nigel showed him the list.
   "You know, this is really recursive." Cecil commented.
   Below the list (re-written in cursive) Nigel had doodled a picture of two dapper gentlemen, one wearing a top hat, one wearing a bowler, sitting at a table by a window, sipping tea and eating ho-hos.
   "No not my doodle, the list."
   "ah-ha" Cecil looked at the list for the first time, "it's a list of dinner options"
   "Yes, of course, what did you think it was?"
   Cecil awkwardly played with the tips of his curled mustache, "Oh, I don't know. Anyway, I guess I'll choose the pesarattu ... because there's a picture of it"
   "Hmmm '...similar to dosa, but with green gam ... and no urud dal' ...these are made up words! I think the Administrator made up everything on this list!!"
   "Go tell that to the Spartans!"
   "Eh?"
   "The McSpartan family, they used to live next door, they ate stuff like that all the time."
   "You know," began Nigel, "you're really shoehorning some of those in here," giving Cecil a somewhat disapproving look.
   Cecil looked up, from where he was in the act of using a shoehorn to try to jam Swedish fish into a ho-ho, "oh it's only four this time, you should have seen when I tried to get twenty in!"
   "Did it work?"
   "No, I ended up having a nervous breakdown, ended up wandering the Australian outback instead"
   "You know just because His Administrativeness gave them to you down't mean you have to include them all, it can be tacky"
   "Hrmph." Cecil had to admit the whole mess was indeed becoming a bit gummy though.

   Cecil looked out the window at the world beyond the room they were sitting in and contemplated the seemingly continuous lawn, and the tyranny of His Administrativeness. On the lime green wall opposite the window he knew there'd be a large painting of The Administrator, a ridiculous gaudy mitre upon his head of curly hair, sparkling Sceptre of Polling in hand. It could all look quite bizarre, but Cecil had to admit, he wears it well.

It is 7:13 PM Monday night in the flow. I am sitting in my main study writing on my new lap top. My wife is messing with our main computer right now. My old lap top is down in the lower level and I already turned it off for the night. I was not planning on writing any more today, but changed my mind.

I had a super quiet day today. I mainly spent the day reading my books. I did not go any where. The day went by quietly. It is 80 degrees this evening here by Lake Michigan.

I mainly read these books today-

"Soul Recreation: The Contemplative-Mystical Piety of Puritanism" by Tom Schwanda

"Looking Unto Jesus" by Isaac Ambrose

"The Interior Way" by Matthew The Poor [Orthodox Prayer Life]

"Western Mysticism: The Teaching Of SS Augustine, Gregory And Bernard On Contemplation And The Contemplative Life-Neglected Chapters In The History Of Religion" by Dom Cuthbert Butler

Our son Josiah called from a airport in Washington D.C.. Our son Josiah and his wife were in Great Britain for a couple of weeks on vacation. Josiah and Hannah plan to be back in Gallup New Mexico by tomorrow.

Yesterday we talked to our oldest son Caleb Jon for awhile, he called to wish me a Happy Father's Day. Next month our daughter Bethany and her husband will be visiting us for a couple of days.

Well I suppose I will close to look for something to eat for supper.

Catherynne M. Valente, a brilliant writer whose books I occasionally rave about here, because they often feel like the distilled insides of my head made magical, recently wrote the first of a series of entries about her weight-loss journey recent adventures in and with her body. I found both the posts and the ensuing discussions really interesting, partly because she's an amazing writer who writes excellently precise/painful/funny descriptions of unpleasant things, and partly because it's a thing I find inherently really interesting. And admittedly, because my relationship with my body has currently deteriorated such that it is a wild, unkempt, neglected child, because I have been prioritizing my career and intellectual life over physical health, much less caring about appearances or establishing mutual respect between me and my skin. If you're interested, the post is in three places: Blog (no comments), DW (a few comments), LJ (a lot of comments). She also has photos documenting everything on Facebook. When we saw her at Philcon last fall (and she complimented my very not-work-appropriate outfit) she was clearly partway through this, which adds some layers to that exchange. She writes, in "Same Girl, Different Skin":

So as not to bury the lede, and so that if you find this sort of thing triggery or simply boring, you can skip right along, let me cut to the title card: I have lost 90 pounds (about 41 kg) over the last 18 months. I’ve gone from a size 18, creeping up on 20 to a size 6 creeping down on 4, if the black alchemical demonology of American women’s clothes sizing is a thing you can parse.

It’s weird. It’s surreal. It still seems impossible, even though I was, obviously, there the whole time and I did it on purpose. I’m gonna talk about it. With gusto.

Obviously, don't read it if you are not interested/if this kind of thing is triggery for you/if you don't want to.

η (5:23 pm): Sequel posted now. "The secret is that there is no secret." Again, the real conversation will probably happen on LJ. Blog, LJ, DW.

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