Sunday, December 30, 2007

What should the name of Pastor's dishwasher be?

It is no longer Nick-Ig. Note: ours is Charlie, and the one at Anan's house is Igor.

I would say that you may give many many suggestions and i'll pick one, but i think it would probably be better to let Pastor pick. Suggest away!

Also note: Scrubby-do Sue is also taken.

Monday, December 24, 2007

Fröhliche Weinachten

Fröhliche Weinachten!

And that's about it for now.

Friday, December 21, 2007

Title:

|Times 6| TT6 | b i | T1 | b | = = = = | 1= •= " | ABCa | M | H | / |

Thursday, December 20, 2007

Reading extremely old e-mails

There are places that have giant fans that blow people into the air so that they can really fly.
Agent Delta


I had a dream something like that once. We (Dad, Mom, Naomi, Nick, Nat, me) all visited a space station for Nathaniel's birthday, and they used the jet engines to blow us up in the air, and you have to go straight up or you'll get out of the flow and fall and die. It was pretty hard. Then we played a game where it was put at an angle, and when we were blown we had to fall into the windshield of Nick's new car and catch the yellow crayon there. It was a great game till Nathaniel crashed and died. Then Nick died. Dad and Mom and Naomi didn't want to play any more, but they let me, only they drove away in the late Nick's car, and i had to catch the yellow crayon in midair (i think it floated), and do an air-flip and land on my feet. After that i don't remember.

Wednesday, December 19, 2007

Throwing things away

I clutched the small piece of paper closely to my chest, running hard and fast away from the group of people. I slowed down just enough to look back a time or two. They were giving me strange looks, and i trembled and picked up my pace. I slowed again a little later, this time to a stop: I had reached where i was going.

I took a deep breath - and entered. Walk slowly, i told myself. Be respectful. My feet were unusually quiet upon the floor, as i was walking toe-heel, toe-heel, always bringing the latter down carefully.

I stopped, just two feet away from the Heirloom Box. It was a lovely thing, all dark subtle green, like the color of a dark pine, just ready for you to decorate for Christmas, full of promise and mystique. There was a black plastic bag inside, to protect the Box itself, and to package up the heirlooms to make room for more. The bag was also a thing of beauty; both Box and bag were made of the finest plastic, picked from the rare and hushed-up plastic trees way up in the Himalayas. A special group of monks, snipers, and upholsterers went to pick and choose the very finest for Heirloom Boxes and bags, and also to nourish and prune all the plastic trees and saplings, in hopes that someday there will be more.

I gazed lovingly at the Heirloom Box, but i was still thinking of the group of people back in the hall, and it would be terrible to approach the Box with angry or frightened thoughts.

Involuntarily, i remembered what had happened…

We (the youth group) were putting Christmas cookie platters together for the bake sale, and we had just finished. I was taking one last plate in to the room where two people were putting plastic wrap (made of cheap, discount synthetic plastic) on them, and when i came back, everybody else was gathered in a sort of group, laughing. I wedged my way in to see what was up, and there it was: the paper. The poor little thing was frightened beyond its wits, and was fluttering at every movement of the plastic-gloved (also cheap plastic) people. At a quarter the size of most papers, the paper was already too tiny to be out on its own, not to mention crumpled up to be made smaller. When i was still for a moment, i saw the holes in one shoulder where it had been stapled to its fellows.

Quicker than i would have thought i could, before i could think at all, i crouched down and scooped it up. It struggled feebly for a moment, but it was only paper, and i held it carefully so as not to spook it further, if possible. Then i ran.

And now here i was. My heart was steady now. I was calm.

I almost took a step right then. When i look back at it, i still shiver a little. How could i have not thought? I forget things sometimes, but this is the most important, memorized from the first. I sat for a moment and pulled off my shoes, then my socks. A small clod of dirt fell from the crevices of my shoe's sole, and after a moment's thought, i collected that along with the paper. It, too, was an heirloom.

Then i stepped. One, two, two and a half steps altogether, taking baby steps. I kneeled to the Heirloom Box and pressed my free hand, my left, to its side, asking permission. I kept it there for the count of six Hippopotami, and as it was still there and intact after the last one, i stood once more, hugging the - my - heirlooms one last time. Carefully, though. That dirt clod could break pretty easily.

I took the lid off the Box and took it smoothly to the floor. And gently, ever so gently, i placed the heirlooms in their Box. I could almost hear them getting happier. They were in their place now, and if i wanted i could go visit them at the Heirloomyard. Oh to be an Heirloomgirl, the glamor! Like the Heirloomman in Dilbert. One of the few who appreciates it openly. I hear they have strict tests for Heirloompeople, though. They have to.

I put the lid back on the Heirloom Box and backed away a few feet, back to my shoes and socks, put them back on, and exited silently. My work here was done.

Thursday, December 13, 2007

Seminary

Ah, the Seminary is a great place. In the chapel i can sing as loud as i can and not be heard, at the library i can check my e-mail or read terrifyingly thick books, and this time i spent a lot of time at the clothing bank, shopping. I got three pairs of jeans (i've been marveling ever since at how warm they keep my legs), six skirts (hehe), and four sewing patterns. Blouse, skirt, skirt, jumper.

I got asked today again if i'm a Sem-wife. I don't look that old, do i?

Yesterday at Grandma's i helped move a bunch of furniture. She was having the carpet in one of the upstairs bedrooms re-stretched to get rid of the forming mountains, so we moved out two chairs, a floor lamb, several stacks of books, three large boxes, a nightstand, two mattresses, two boxsprings, and various other bits of stuff. The other things, three dressers and two bedframes, the carpet people were able to work around.

And i got to pick my first Christmas tree. Every year we use the fake one in the attic. But i went with Grandma (and cousin Ben, two years old) to the place, and they were looking at trees with my Uncle Dave, who was proving every one to have gaping holes or rabies or something, and i just picked a tall-looking tree (always a plus) and showed it to them, and it was a good tree. Grandma and Aunt Amy and cousin Brandon (Ben's family) and i had to move a little furniture in the living room for the tree, but it wasn't that much.

Benjamin has bright red hair, bright red eyebrows, and even bright red eyelashes. He's pretty big for his age, and doesn't say much. He said Dindin for Brandon, barn which is exactly right, tthurt for church, and tree, once again right. He might've said Maggie once, but it's doubtful, as he wasn't sure if i could be trusted. Oh yes, and we played a game involving shooting little metal balls across a board, and he kept saying something that Grandma was convinced was guy, but i'm pretty sure he was saying, die, die, die! Also he half-screamed when i dared to pick him up of the couch. Which he was standing on.

Monday, December 10, 2007

La, a note to follow So

First singing lesson this morning. Did various warm-ups and exercises to, well, warm up and exercise, and find my range. I have one piece for practicing, Come and trip it by i think Handel. A minor, originally C minor. I can't put the whole thing on here for copyright reasons, but i can say that the entire lyrics are: "Come, and trip it as you go, on the light fantastic toe," put in different ways. It's really neat, three medium-sized pages long. I'm also supposed to get a book, Mezzo Soprano (Moderately Soprano, which is the high range)(it's Italian). There are two volumes and i'm not sure if i should get the second also, but i probably will.

I've wanted to have voice lessons or be in a more advanced choir since July, when the For You choir sang a Bach cantata. I've been in church choirs since i was probably six, when i learned to read. I won't say my age, but that means i've been singing officially for more than half my life. I was pretty sure i'm an Alto, except for the last couple months. The ranges go from high to low Soprano, Alto, Tenor, Bass, with generally the top two for women and children, the bottom two for men.

Going with Mom to Concordia tonight. Everything was covered in a thin layer of ice this morning. Storm tonight.

So tired. Not been sleeping well since Naomi's. First my schedule was just off, with going to bed and getting up late, but now it's getting to sleep latelate and waking up regular. Two mugs of warm milk and honey last night, with a headache and a stomachache, the kind i get when i need sleep. Still have that stomachache.