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Look at what I did. I put that little dinging bell there. It is dinging, you just cannot hear it. I am so proud of my small accomplishment. I changed my little description too. This could be fun. I have mopped half of the floor. Another small step. No big leaps today. Well, I did rearrange the books on the shelf (again). I don't think that can count since they really didn't need to be moved. Someone always gets mad when I do that. It looks nice, though. Okay, I go to finish and go to bed. Tomorrow will be something worth reading. Indeed. |
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Just a quote. That's all for today. I have to mop my floor. The man who never reads will never be read. He who never quotes will never be quoted. He who will not use the thoughts of other men's brains proves that he has no brains of his own. Charles Spurgeon |
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I have finished Frankenstein. I am not exactly sure what I think about Frankenstein. It was sort of like a wreck on the freeway that you don't want to look at but you have to. Or the violin recital with ten little kids playing twinkles and you have to sit through it all because your kid is last. I had to keep reading. All I can say is "I have read Frankenstein". I guess it's just another classic under my belt. I'm not going to pick it apart. Obviously, it's wrong for man to try to create man. It just doesn't go well. It's also not good for man to run away and not take responsibility for the "man" he created. Maybe the scientists lobbying for cloning should read it. I also read a short story by C.S. Lewis. I cannot think of the best word to describe it. Interesting isn't strong enough. It was called "Man Born Blind" and is in the book The Dark Tower and Other Stories. It was about a man who was given sight surgically after living blind his whole life and his search for light. No one could explain to him what exactly light was. At least not to his satisfacion. His wife (I guess- it didn't really say) said he was standing in her light and the artist said he chose that spot for the light. C. S. Lewis is by far one of my favorite writers. Definitely one of the best of the century. The last century, that is. His imagination is extraordinary. A friend of mine once said that to write Screwtape Letters he would have had to get into the mind of a demon. I don't think that's true at all. She was being critical of him in general, but I think that book was a great help in pointing out sin and behavior and how it could be viewed by the "other side". How original to flip the story that way. Well, I'm certainly no expert and not interested in debating Lewis or demons. I think I'll just go read another book. |
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Here is my basic smoothie recipe, with a few options for other flavors 1/2 cup plain yogurt 1/2 cup orange juice 1 banana 1 cup strawberries and/or blueberries drizzle of honey (to taste, depending on the swetness of the berries) Put everything in the blender, liquids first, and process, adding ice cubes until it is as thick as you like it, or until it won't suck down any more ice. You can add vitamins or medicines in powder form without tasting them. I have added vitamin c powder, psyllium powder, ground flax seeds, oatmeal, and spirulina powder. You could use flavored yogurt, but it has sugar. If you use peaches instead of berries, I like to add some fresh mint. You might want to use milk instead of orange juice. |
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Movies are usually emotional experiences to some degree. The people who make movies are very good at using music, scenery, and to some degree dialogue to get the viewer emotionally involved in the story they are telling. Millions of people of all ages are hooked on the Pirates of the Caribbean story. And hey, Jack Sparrow is quite a character. How fun it must have been to portray him. Johnny Depp has indeed created an icon in the character of Captain Jack. But think about it: He's a pirate. The few good deeds he has done in the three movies made were to his own benefit. At the end of Dead Man's Chest Elizabeth "helps" Jack do the right thing and save them from the Cracken. It's no spoiler to say that in World's End, they rescue Jack from Davey Jones' locker. What we find, though, is that Elizabeth has not told Will what she did. He saw her kiss Jack but they have never spoken of it. In fact, they aren't speaking at all. "How long must we continue not speaking?", he asks her. She replies that when they rescue Jack everything will be fine. Later, when the truth is revealed, he asks why she didn't tell him. She says it was her burden to bear. He points out that he still bore the burden; he just didn't know what it was. Later, after another incident I cannot recall, he asks her how he can trust her if she makes decisions alone. She says he cannot. This is never resolved but they live happily ever after (to some degree) anyway. This bugs me. The same thing bugged me in Spider Man 3. Peter Parker acted like a jerk for much of the movie but no apology is ever made. Earlier I said that movie makers use dialogue to some degree. This is what I was talking about. It's the things left unsaid that drive the story on in a certain direction. If things were explained, apologies made, answers given clearly, the story would be quite different. This episode is also about choosing sides. Of course Jack is always on his own side. Will has a cause: to free his father from the Flying Dutchman. This cause is the motivation for his decisions. It becomes necessary for him to switch sides depending on the need. Elizabeth, on the other hand, has no cause particularly, but chooses the side of the pirates. She is at first driven by her guilt, but after Jack is rescued, there is no real reason clear to me, but she remains the most passionate about the Pirates fighting the British forces to avoid extinction. There is nothing in it for her. These choices put Will and Elizabeth on opposite sides on more than one occassion. Without giving away the end, I can only say I was surprised to some degree and found the end of the story a bit hard to stomach. If they entertained the idea of a fourth movie, I can't see a happy ending for the main characters, unless some magic force intervenes, which is very possible with the supernatural element that was introduced in the second movie and contnues strongly in the third. |
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I have remembered where the phrase "to you from me, Pinky Lee" came from. I am sure it was a phrase from way back when, like the fifties probably, but I heard it in the movie "Grease" which for a while (during my teen years) was my favorite movie. I would not let my kids watch it now. When we bought our first computer, early in our marriage, I had a card making program I used a lot. On the back of the card, instead of putting "made for you by Lisa" I put "to you from me, Pinky Lee". Funny how your brain won't remember things and then all the sudden you do remember. Anyway, I think I'll leave the lame title. It's growing on me. Maybe one day I'll figure out how to put a picture on here. |
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So the barnyard guests are causing no trouble for a little while, except a rather foul odor. Alicia and I are going to see Pirates 3 at 2:00. Just as we're getting ready to go, the pigs somehow knock the gate open and the little pigs get out. By this time, we have learned, by coincidence only, that the pigs probably belong to a Cuban family that lives on the street to the back of our property. I call animal control and direct them to this house, but no one is home. The officer leaves a notice and tries to call a number they acquire at dispatch, but has no success in reaching them. Not wanting to use anymore of my dog food, and having no scraps to feed these pigs, who are rooting around in the mud they have made by knocking over the bucket of water, I decide to call Animal Control back to pick them up. Unfortunately I did not get to witness the spectacle of getting the pigs into the trailer because we went to the movie. More on Pirates in another post. It took four animal control officers an hour to get those pigs into the horse trailer they brought. By that time, both pigs and people were worn out. My children had to watch from the window because some unsavory language was directed at the pigs. My dad really wants to keep a pig to make barbeque, but doesn't. We learn that after four days they will go up for adoption. One of the animal control officers lives next door to us and she said she'll get one for him for free. I think I better make her a cake or something to take in on Monday. Don't want to be on the bad side of the dog catchers. So, by 6:00 that evening, we're back from the movie, Chad is home, and all but three of us are off to the mountains to camp. All is normal. I am counting on the weekend being completely uneventful. Side note: our little friend Matthew (age 2) was here for the pig happenings on Friday. He was completely fascinated. His mom is convinced ours is the most exciting house in the city. I think the last time they were here a squirrel was being roasted in the back yard over a fire. I think we provide a great deal of entertainment for them. Oh, and I forgot about the snake. There was a snake in the yard but with the pigs there, no one thought much of the snake. I thought about throwing it to the pigs, knowing they would tear it apart, but decided to let the harmless snake live another day. It did, however, slither into Chad's shop. We'll see what comes of that. I'm sure it found a nice cool place to stay. That will probably generate a post soon. |
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The most used phrase this week has definitely been, "I bet you've never heard this one before". Now, odd things happen around our home. There is usually something interesting to talk about. "Regular" people (meaning non -homeschooling subdivsion -living people) find us very exciting. There is usually a snake story or a hunting or camping escapade or at least someone has drawn a mustache on someone with a sharpie or said something hilarious. This week was a doozy indeed. It began on Tuesday when we were doing all the laundry from the weekend of camping. The last bag of clothes brought in happened to have in it a banana. Don't ask why there was a banana in a bag of clothes. Some questions just don't have answers. So, the banana made it to the laundry room and got put on the dryer. Well, the next thing I know someone is hollering that the banana has fallen down into the lint trap. We have the type of dryer that has the lint trap on top and it is very deep. There's no getting this banana out of the lint trap easily. When I called Dear Hubby to inform him of our delimna (there were by this time two wet loads to contend with), I began with "How is your day going". He knew then something was up. He failed to see the humor in the banana and the fact that it was defintely one he'd never heard before. Well, after taking the wet laundry to Nana's to dry and taking the back of the dryer, the banana was extracted and all was well. Thursday on the way home from a long stinky day of Atlanta traffic in a 5 speed Ford Ranger, we saw something we'd never seen before. Going down I 75 was a big white van, not unlike our own; but on the back of the van was a hot air balloon basket. It was quite an interesting sight. I'm assuming there was a balloon folded up inside. This was followed up by a near injury at Sam's when a man on a shopping scooter rammed full speed into the flat of large metal lounge chairs right beside me. I jumped to the side just in time as they all came crashing to the floor. They were about an inch away from my leg. He didn't even say anything. Now to the most interesting story of the week. Friday morning, as we're getting ready to go camping again (well, not me; just my more adventurous family members), Morgan says, "There are pigs in the yard". My brain is still processing rather slowly at this point and I don't even know how to respond when another kid say's "Wow, pigs!". Sure enough, there is a sow and five half-grown piglets (piglings?, whatever) in the front yard thinking of eating my flowers. We chase them over near the dog pen, which entices quite a reaction from Lady, the Shetland Sheepdog, and begin to contemplate where in the world they came from and what we'll do with them. Beginning to fear for my young vegetable plants, I decide we must get the pigs in the dog pen. Katey takes Lady in the house and we manage to corrall all but one pig in the pen with dog food. The last pig, however, gave us quite a hard time and we ended up bringing Lady out to herd it into the pen. She did her job well. Sam (Australian Shepherd) just wanted to eat it. He was no help at all. There the pigs stayed for a few hours while we tried to track down the owner. The end of the story will have to wait until tomorrow. Be advised that (so far) none of these pigs have been turned into Memorial Day barbeque. |
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Okay, yes, that is a lame title. I don't even know where that came from, but I can't think of a clever one at the moment. The problem is when I have time to work on this blog thing, I can never think of anything to say. So I jsut end up sounding like a boring dufus. I don't even know if that's how you spell "dufus". I've never actually written that word before. Oh, good grief. More later. . . . |
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It's that time again. Time to pull out the summer clothes and pack away the winter. Sounds simple. I wish it were simple. It ceases to be anything resembling simple when you have six children, who change sizes nearly every year and combined have enough clothes to fill a Mac truck. Too many clothes is as much a curse as not enough clothes; especially when you still have things with no match. So that is my project this week. I imagine it will take the whole week and then some since I do have a life that must be maintained. Things like music lessons and schoolwork and grocery shopping. I really hate this chore. I wish sometimes I were rich and could just chunk all the old stuff and go buy new. Not worry about packing stuff away for the next kid to grow into. I just gets too complicated. A size 10 is just not a size 10 after two kids have worn and washed it over and over. so do i move it to the size 8 box? Do I put the summer with the winter? Are jeans summer or winter? Am I making this too complicated? My system is fairly simple. Rubbermaid boxes in the attic labeled B for boy and G for girl. S is for summer and W is for winter. Then there's the size. Simple, right? Should be. All I can do is hope for the best. This year I am bagging stuff to give away since our quiver is full. So the youngest boy and the youngest girl stuff goes away. On top of that, the youngest two boys wear nearly the same size. That's good mostly. There are always those things that are "mine" and HE can't wear it. "Meme gave that to me!". I have actually come up with another good system for clothes. I got some cubbies to keep right outside my laundry room so each person has a cubby for their clothes. With my youngest three, who are terrible at keeping clean clothes in the drawer and dirty in the hamper, I make five outfits and put them in their drawer. Everything else stays in the laundry room. They also get one set of pjs that must be kept up with for at least 3 days and then they can ask for more. This has cut down somewhat on unnecessary laundry. So laundry is one area that is fairly well organized. All I really have to do is keep up with it. And get everyone else to help. |