The Perfectly Awful Poem

There are many brands of poets in this world,
Few of which ever produce anything worth reading.
But, before I raise a general outcry, let me explain.
There are the quivering, cowering types
Who are terrified of their own writing and
Secret it away in some darksome corner
To be found decades later by poor, unsuspecting relatives.
Then we have the normal, everyday type
Who writes passably well and is relatively sane
(Or as sane as a poet can be)
He shares a few succulent selections
With his friends once every year,
March 4th, 2:30PM to be exact. Rain or shine.
However, this world never was perfect and
Sad to say there is also the Conceited Poet.
Brassy and bold, he pours his creations upon the
Poor unprotected public with little regard
For the continuance of their mental health.
With a forceful "Read this!" he waves It under their noses.
And so they do; their toes curl and the hair
On their heads stands at attention.
Tiny rivulets of sweat trace delicate patterns down
Troubled brow, and they hand the offending article back,
Held gingerly between two fingers.
With a perfectly awful grin he retrieves his disgusting spawn.
And then the shaken reader,
With quavering steps makes his way home.
And with eyes rolling and hair wild he
Regales his friends with a recount of
The Perfectly Awful Poem.

Merry Christmas, everyone. Here's a little Christmas music to make you chuckle.

Sweeeeet

I finally did it, people. I finally missed posting at least once a month so now my archives list is forever marred.

Woohoo! I love this feeling of freedom. :-D

Here's hoping you all find the needed freedom from blog bondage (if it exists for you, of course).

I feel positively giddy...



ok, maybe not giddy...




hmmm...

God must be beautiful...

Last night

Last night I went to bed wearing a pair of cozy socks.

This morning I woke up and they were laying on my bed next to my head, folded together very neatly.

I don't remember a thing about doing it.

Hmmm...

Claire... I think you might like this one

I just had to share this. It was too funny.

Buzz off, I'm happy here

"To many, total abstinence is easier than perfect moderation." - Saint Augustine of Hippo (354-430AD) Numidian-born Theologian


Is it our place to wait around to be taught, or should we be stepping out to grasp knowledge and experience for ourselves? Possibly a mixture of the two? There seems to be a tendency to set ourselves in a patterned daily lifestyle and expect those over us to endow us with wisdom. We, like sponges, absorb only what they work to produce, to one extent or another. There must be a difference between living our lives in a manner better than the majority of the mob and opening ourselves to something more. To excel. There is a need for a mind set of reaching out and taking hold.

Note the quote at the beginning of this post. The general mass wishes to stay comfortably within the total abstinence area, it's simpler, safer and, may I suggest, lazier? Fear based? I haven't yet searched out every reason for this. It takes a quantity of effort to seek out the perfect balance that overreaches that exuded by a "better" lifestyle. Truthfully, it just takes too much energy to allow ourselves to be brought into a place of openness with God that equips us with the ability to sense where His balanced pathway may be.

Relax, I'm not implying the idea of mediocrity, wishy-washiness or fence-stitting. To have a high standard is a part of the "excelling" lifestyle. But then one may take it to the extreme only because it places you in a highly comfortable position; a position not based on knowledge or understanding, but merely an easy following of tradition. Tradition, too, is never to be tossed aside on a whim, however, when a sharp-edged relationship with God is sacrificed on the altar of mindless tradition following, what then can we expect? A mass of robots, possibly.

So, ask yourself why. Why do we do this? Why don't we do that? Why should I resist mediocrity and stand for something far beyond a "better" life? Why should I not wait around to be fed like a baby bird? Why must I seek something that will most likely be uncomfortable? Don't be a mindless being... "Seek not to follow in the footsteps of the men of old, but seek the things they sought."

Seek; don't float down the current of life. Swim away from the falls of the "better." Climb up the banks of the Best and excel.

Sounds good? Well...

"My" grapevine

Mt. Monadnock

We left Fairwood, walked there (about a mile) and started to climb the mountain around 9pm. It was understandably slow going, but that was fine because we had no pressing appointments other than finding our beds again sometime before the sun started to rise.

It was really dark. When Vanlora turned off her head lamp and I my flashlight, all objects instantly vanished from sight. However, we only did that when we stopped to take a breather. It was for the conservation of battery power, you know. I think I might have been permanently damaged if our batteries HAD died and we were stuck out there, deep in the woods on the side of the mountain. The night was moonless, so keeping to the trail would have been more than difficult. "Nearly impossible" sounds about right.

We kept up a pretty steady stream of conversation which served us well when it came to encouraging all the large, hairy, long-clawed, and big-toothed animals to keep their distance. What could be more terrifying than a couple girls talkingandtalkingandtalking? I don't know about you, but it sure scares me at times. Thankfully I'm not large, hairy, long-clawed and big-toothed (no smart comments here :), so I stuck around to keep Vanlora company.

We had agreed together if one of us broke a leg or something that: 1) "If you do, I'm not going to carry you" and 2) that we wouldn't leave one of us behind to go get help. The first was sure to result in the uninjured one getting injured and the second would have put whoever was left behind through a long and terrifying wait. Just imagine being deep in the pitch dark woods all alone, listening to every tiny sound and hoping it wasn't a hungry bear or a huge angry bull moose about to find you. In any case, we had brought a cell phone with us, so it was all good.

Actually, I wasn't afraid at all. Ok, maybe a couple times near then end of the hike when I was getting tired and the crunching sounds from the woods got a little too loud... but other than that, I was fine.

The only wildlife we saw in the beam of our lights was one fuzzy bunnie rabbit and one very small and swift rodent. The view from the top was fabulous; for living out in the boonies, there still manages to be a lot of lights trailing to the horizon. I would have brought my camera to prove that we'd done this, but it's not at it's best in the dark, so I left it behind. Too bad.

Vanlora and I made it back to the bottom of the mountain around 12am and walked the mile back, arriving at Fairwood a bit before 1am. We'd been meandering, that's why it took so long. I wouldn't want you all to think we were so terribly out of shape that it took us 3 hours to climb a mountain that should only take around 2, or anything. :-D

It was fun, you guys should do it sometime!

100 things about me (yeah, I know, it's a cop out)

1. ONE OF YOUR SCARS, HOW DID YOU GET IT?
A series of 3 half inch scars in a row on the side of my heel. When I was just born, the doctor wasn't able to draw blood with the conventional means, so he switched to plan B

2. WHAT DOES YOUR CELL PHONE LOOK LIKE?
I'm rarely out of reach of a land line, so why get a cell phone?

3. WHAT MUSIC DO YOU LIKE TO LISTEN TO?
No heavy metal, pop or someone taking classical and sacred and blending them together

4. DO YOU KNOW WHAT TIME YOU WERE BORN?
Sometime early in the morning

5. WHAT DO YOU WANT MORE THAN ANYTHING RIGHT NOW?
To be in heaven (don't worry, I'm not prone to suicidal tenancies)

6. WHAT DO YOU MISS THE MOST?
Now there's a broad question. One would have to be being allowed to drive

7. WHAT IS YOUR MOST PRIZED POSSESSION?
A prized possession would be my black hoodie

8. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SMELL?
Rubbing alcohol, sun-dried sheets, and the air right after a rain

9. DO YOU GET CLAUSTROPHOBIC?
No. It's all about mind-control

10. DO YOU GET SCARED IN THE DARK?
No, except I do get a little nervous walking down a moonless pitch dark country road, but once one applies the answer to the previous question, one realizes the chances of being attacked by a grouchy bear are very thin. Tripping over a porcupine is far more likely. After I do that, I then get distracted by trying to avoid veering off the road and walking face-on into a tree.

11. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE COLOGNE / PERFUME TO WEAR?
Too much perfume gives me a headache, so why attach it to myself?

12. WHAT KIND OF HAIR DO YOU LIKE ON THE OPPOSITE SEX?
At least three strands, blue-black (so black it looks almost really dark blue... hard to explain) or blond. Oh, and mullets give me the willies

13. WHERE CAN YOU SEE YOURSELF BEING PROPOSED TO AT?
Bad grammar. It should be more like At which place can you see yourself being proposed to?

14. COFFEE OR ENERGY DRINKS?
Surprisingly enough, I've never had an energy drink, so I'll have to get back to you on that

15. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PIZZA TOPPING?
Everything. Olives and feta cheese especially

16. IF YOU COULD EAT ANYTHING RIGHT NOW, WHAT WOULD IT BE?
I have no appetite, so nothing sounds good at the moment

17. WHO IS THE LAST PERSON YOU MADE MAD?
Other than myself... ?

18. DO YOU SPEAK A DIFFERENT LANGUAGE?
I've heard that men sometimes believe women speak a different one than themselves

19. WHAT WAS THE FIRST GIFT SOMEONE EVER GAVE YOU (OF THE OPPOSITE SEX)?
First?? Most likely it was my dad and I would have been faaaaaaaaaar too young to recall what it was. In relatively recent memory (the last 5 years or something)... a red rose.

20. WOULD YOU FALL IN LOVE KNOWING THAT THE PERSON IS LEAVING?
Uh... define 'falling in love' and 'leaving'

21. WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO TELL SOMEONE HOW MUCH THEY MEAN TO YOU?
The best would be face-to-face, however, it's also potentially the most awkward way

22. SAY A NUMBER FROM ONE TO A HUNDRED.
From one to a hundred? Don't you mean between? I've always liked 22

23. BLONDES OR BRUNETTES?
Yes

24. WHAT IS THE ONE NUMBER YOU CALL OFTEN?
Home, then either Katie's cell, or my parent's cell

25. WHAT ANNOYS YOU MOST?
Having to trim my fingernails

26. HAS ANYONE EVER SPIT ON YOU?
Does spit up count? In which case that would have been Joseph

27. YOUR WEAKNESSES?
I am proud to announce I have none. Just read my book Humility, and How I Conquered It and you will come to agree with me

28. WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST JOB?
Might have been constructing Math-U-See block sets, if that counts

29. EVER DONE A PRANK CALL?
Just the other day I came close to convincing Katie that I was some stranger calling about the canoe they'd advertised for their yard sale. Only there wasn't a canoe, so she was trying to politely tell me I was mistaken. That's about as far as I got before she was sure enough it was me to start laughing

30. WHAT WERE YOU DOING BEFORE YOU FILLED OUT THIS SURVEY?
Training my attack goldfish to bark on command

31. IF YOU COULD GET PLASTIC SURGERY WHAT WOULD IT BE?
I'd rather use that money on something else... say, brain surgery or skydiving lessons

32. WHY DID YOU FILL OUT THIS SURVEY?
Because it's perfect for a blog post, at least for lazy people like myself

33. WHAT DO YOU GET COMPLIMENTED ABOUT MOST?
Maybe my ability to listen? I don't know

34. WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF ALCOHOL BECAME ILLEGAL?
Quickly build a stil deep in the woods at the base of Mt. Monadnock so I could get a corner on the black market

35. WHAT DO YOU WANT FOR YOUR BIRTHDAY?
My two front teeth

36. HOW MANY KIDS DO YOU WANT?
Between three and five

37. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE?
My mom, Sue

38. DO YOU WISH ON STARS?
Uh, no

39. WHICH FINGER[S] IS YOUR FAVORITE?
Thumb and pointer finger on my right hand. Couldn't do without 'em

40. WHEN DID YOU LAST CRY?
This isn't a fair question to ask a woman

41. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING?
Nope

42. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT?
Sliced turkey, I suppose

43. ANY BAD HABITS?
Talking too much about myself in conversations where I'm nervous or uncomfortable. Familiar territory seems safer, you know

44. WHAT IS YOUR MOST EMBARRASSING CD YOU OWN?
I don't feel embarrassed by any of them

45. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON, WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU?
Hmm, sure. I'm open to friendships with almost anyone, no matter how distasteful they may be

46. DO LOOKS MATTER?
Down deep, no. Socially, yeah, sometimes

47. HOW DO YOU RELEASE ANGER?
Release anger, what's that?

48. WHERE IS YOUR SECOND HOME?
Well, one has to have a first home, first. If I did have a first home, then the Demme's was my second

49. DO YOU TRUST OTHERS EASILY?
To some extent, yes. But I often hold some in reserve

50. WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE TOY AS A CHILD?
My teddy bear that I lost... I still miss it. **sniff**

51. DO YOU USE SARCASM?
HA! No never, what an utterly ridiculous question!

52. HAVE YOU EVER BEEN IN A MOSH PIT?
Ew?

53. WHAT DO YOU LOOK FOR IN A GUY/GIRL?
All I want is to be able to look up at him

54. WHAT ARE YOUR NICKNAMES?
Rach, Fran, Rachabelle, Druggy, Gabby

55. DO YOU UN-TIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF?
I wear shoes with laces so infrequently that I had to go look in my closet. What did I find? One pair was tied, the other untied. Hmmm

56. WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM FLAVOR?
One favorite is Edys strawberry

57. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE COLOR?
Purple

58. HOW MANY WISDOM TEETH DO YOU HAVE?
I only had two in the first place, but they are gone now

59. WHO/WHAT DO YOU MISS MOST RIGHT NOW?
Depends. Currently: being allowed to drive

60. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS?
That wasn't my point in posting this

61. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW?
Israel Kamakawiwo'ole's Take Me Home Country Road

62. LAST THING YOU ATE?
A handful of dry roasted sunflower seeds

63. LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE?
John L. He wanted to talk to Brandon. (I answer Fairwood's phone)

64. THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE IN THE OPPOSITE SEX?
Whether they are breathing or not

65. WHERE WERE YOU BORN?
San Francisco, CA

66. SCARIEST THING THAT HAS EVER HAPPENED TO YOU?
Being in the Tel Aviv airport when there was a bomb scare and joining the crowd of people running away from the suspected area. Or, on a solo trip to Israel, almost getting lost in the Paris airport because of all the really confusing construction and the fact that when I asked for directions, even though they spoke English, it still sounded like French because their accent was so thick. I could just imagine myself wandering around the place for hours, then missing my plane and getting stuck there for who knows how long

67. FAVORITE DRINK?
For comfort; hot milk with vanilla, sugar and whipped cream on the top. For everyday; ice cold water lightly flavored with lemon and sweetened with a lil sugar

68. FAVORITE JOKE?
Don't really have one

69. FAVORITE SPORT?
Watching friends watch sports

70. YOUR HAIR COLOR?
Dark brown

71. YOUR EYE COLOR?
Dark brown, except in direct sunlight, then they go tawny

72. DO YOU WEAR GLASSES?
Used to, but no more, thankfully

73. SIBLINGS?
Too many. JUST KIDDING! Seven

74. FAVORITE MONTH?
Whichever of them are warm

75. YOU LIKE SUSHI?
No like sushi. Actually, I only had it once, so maybe I could have my mind changed

76. LAST THING YOU WATCHED?
Lady in the Water

77. FAVORITE DAY OF THE YEAR?
Whichever is the one right after I finish my taxes

78. ARE YOU TOO SHY TO ASK SOMEONE OUT?
I'm getting braver every day ;-P

79. SUMMER OR WINTER?
Summer all the way

80. IF THERE WAS A QUESTION HERE YOU DIDN'T APPROVE OF, WOULD YOU CHANGE IT?
I already did, #13. It had a problem with incorrect grammar

81. WHO DO YOU SECRETLY LOVE?
If I told you, it wouldn't be secret anymore, now would it?

82. FAVORITE SONG AT THE MOMENT?
Nickel Creek, The Hand Song

83. LAKE OR OCEAN?
Ocean

84. BIGGEST TURNOFF?
Bad breath

85. LAST TIME YOU SAW YOUR BEST FRIEND
What, I can only have one?

86. LAST KISS:
Hmm... maybe when I was a baby?

87. LAST TEXT YOU RECEIVED:
Closest to a text would be the text in an e-mail from my sister and it's far too long to reproduce here

88. DO YOU HAVE A CRUSH?
I never was the crush type

89. DO YOU WISH YOU CAN SEE ANYONE PARTICULAR RIGHT NOW?
Do they have to be alive? Cause I'd like to meet my grandpa Adams

90. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE NAME?
Mahershallalhashbaz

91. HIGH SCHOOL YOU ATTENDED/ ARE ATTENDING:
Living Waters Academy, Good Shephard Academy and Open Door Academy

92. WHERE ARE YOU NOW?
In the living room of my (!) apartment

93. ARE YOU SMILING?
No, my face is currently in screen saver mode

94. WHAT ARE YOU WEARING?
A stone washed cranberry/pinkish Life is Good t-shirt, a short jean skirt and my black hoodie

96. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE MOVIE?
Hmmm... maybe Gladiator (don't take this as a recommendation, though)

97. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SONG?
I'm sure I have one, I just can't remember the title right now :)

98. WHEN WAS YOUR LAST RELATIONSHIP?
Still have all my relationships, why would I get rid of them?? I love my friends and family

99. EVER BEEN DRUNK?
I plead the fifth... just kidding... no

100. PLAN ON GETTING DRUNK SOON?
Naaa, I already have trouble with a hazy brain, why add to it?

Credit card (b)ills

A word to the wise (actually, to the ones who wish to become wise).

Don't overspend your credit card limit and then forget to pay the bill. It's, like, the epitome of idiocy. When one has a terrible problem with compulsory purchasing, this sad scenario can, and will, repeat itself over and over until your bad dreams about being chased down by a bounty hunter out to get you to pay your bills becomes an adventure in real life. So, the next time you enter a store and consider leaving it with a cart full of "stuff", remember to picture yourself on foot, running with all that is in you, screaming your head off, while your worst nightmare (scary bounty hunter) gains on you relentlessly.

So, to reiterate. Compulsory purchasing = overspent credit card limit + forgetting to pay the bills = really sore muscles.

Ah, the joys of literary anomalies.



Thanks to DJ for this post subject.

Oh yeahhh

So Megan and I just splurged...

I couldn't decide which picture to post, so, hey, why not both?

Dryer time

What better place to go when you're cold?

Got lint?


I can't imagine anything more exciting than a huge pile of lint. Can you?
:)

Tonighttt, tooonightttt...

Well, tonight was fun. Three friends and I went out to dinner and were going to go bowling afterwards, but when we arrived at the alley, we discovered it was a league night. Lots Of People. Oy. So we decided to go kill time for about an hour. Not being sure what to do, we puttered into the middle of town... then I came up with a fabulous idea! How about we go to our local eatery which has an internet connection and hang out in there for a while. We could sit ourselves down and act like we had computers--typing away on the tabletop and pointing out items of interest on the nonexistent screen. Sweeeet. So we did. I can't believe how much fun it was! We got some pretty funny looks. It was later in the evening, so there weren't that many people there, but I think we may have given those who where something to go home and blog about (hehe). Once an employee came over and asked us if we wanted anything to eat (to which we replied in the negative) and they did their best to act as though nothing was out of the ordinary. I mean, the customer is always right, right? No matter how much they look like a mental hospital escapee. Hahaha... there was a lot of stifled laughter from us when they went away.

Then, after we had killed enough time and after we had packed up our invisible computers in their invisible cases, carefully folding up the invisible cords and tucking them away, we blew the joint and went off to the bowl-ery. Lots of people had left by then and we had a lane to ourselves. Fun was had by all.

Cryptic, yes.

I was talking to a friend yesterday about a situation I was freaking out about; something that I've been chasing in fruitless circles around my mind for a long time and have always ended up with the same uncomfortable conclusion. However, in the middle of our conversation, she said one of those "duh, I should have realized that all by myself" things to me and I sat there going, well, duh (of course). Then all my distressed-out feels started to fall away and even though nothing about the situation has changed, God stepped in and helped me to realize that what I was feeling wasn't just me feeling unable to deal with the situation, but it was that I was fearful. I don't think I've ever been so happy to find out that I was afraid of something. It's like having lots of strange physical symptoms for a long time and then finally getting a diagnosis. "Oh, it's Fear!" The problem is still there, it still needs to be medicated, but it sure helps to know what it's called.

Of course God didn't just leave me sitting there thinking "Woohoo! I'm afraid!". I walked away from that conversation into the dining hall just in time to catch the tail end of a meeting (there's been a Ladies' weekend going on here). Just as I walked in the door, Andrea started singing that song titled "Be Not Afraid". The words are from Isaiah 43 and go something like this:

"Be not afraid, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through the fire you shall not be burned... For I am Jehovah your God... you are precious in my eyes, and honored, and I love you." Be not afraid.

Hmm, I believe can handle that. :)

EDIT/

I forgot to mention that once I started to be happy about being afraid, all the fear went away. Cool....

I am not a terrorist

Well, in keeping with my recent habit, I am now writing my monthly post. My reasoning, other than the obvious "I want to keep my 'adoring fans' from giving up on me in (and with) disgust", is that I also want to make sure my "Archives" list does not loose it's fascinating pattern which only comes with at least one post a month.

Pathetic, I know.

Another reason for my posting is to share some pictures of an evening stroll I took last night. As I stepped outside on my way to my grandma's, I discovered a fairyland. "Ah me," I thought," what a perfect chance to take some pictures." So I dashed back inside to grab my camera, and dusted it off as I clipped a doorway on my way back out of the pitch dark house. Ow. I then commenced wandering around the grounds, taking pictures as I went.

You are now blessed to view a few.






And that's all I have to say. :)

Sadness and woe

I made this to use in TOR with Penny's article (if you get TOR, you'll understand) , but there just wasn't enough space. :-( So I figured I'd just post it here because it was toooo sad to waste all my efforts.

:-D

She lives and breathes

Wow, a whole month since I last posted.

I am awesome.

*rolls eyes*

Ooops, I missed one

Amusing