sentio aliquos togatos contra me conspirare.

Yay for lots of chocolate, and also for Persephone being fixed! Dad switched the power coupling...thing to a more generic connection, and it didn't work, so he took it apart again. And then he put it back together again, and it worked. Yay! It's worked for a whole day. I tell ya, it's good to have Persephone back in the family. Yayness.

I've also seen the new Pride and Prejudice. It's good, I think. I mean... Jenn and I kept making comments the whole way through (we probably drove the people around us nuts), but despite all my objections, I rather liked it. And of course we saw it late at night, so that made everything just a tad bit funnier. Surprisingly enough, Kiara Knightley (or however the crap you spell her name) didn't do a bad job as Elizabeth. The only thing that really bothered me about the movie is the compression of the script. If I didn't already have the story memorized, I might have been lost at a couple points. And they skipped scenes really quickly. And also, nobody makes as good a Mr. Darcy as Colin Firth. I mean, it's just not possible.

In conclusion, I played DDR today with my cousins and Jenn. I suck. But I'd love to see my aunts and uncles (and parents!) play.

whoa, freaky... i keep forgetting there's a new year's

Tonight Jenn and her family get here. I'm mucho excited. (I almost typed "exited") Ben and Rosie and Tina and Gary are here already, and I think Diane and Tammy are getting here sometime today too. And then Pam and Ed are coming, and then Paula and George... yeah, Grandma and Grandpa's house is going to be packed. None of the older cousins are coming, but they haven't for the past five or six years anyway, so it's no surprise. Anyway, I'm sure we'll see them at Genny's wedding this summer. Also mucho exciting. I now know three couples who are getting married this summer. Bizarre feeling? Yes. Most certainly. Especially since, at home, I revert to being twelve in my head.

I'm actually looking forward to lots of people, and hopefully some excitement and noise. I can practically feel my brain atrophying, and it makes me grumpy in the extreme.

Still no word on Persephone's projected recovery.

i think i'm going to have to stop checking my e-mail first thing in the morning.

I'm not emotionally prepared for onslaughts first thing in the morning. Even if "first thing" happens to be at nearly ten o'clock. (I should also start setting my alarm.)

I've read about... five books in the past three days, not to mention the little bits and slices of other books I sort of find laying randomly around (...or that I steal from family members who were currently reading them). It's good to be home. Very good to be home.

There's hope on the horizon for Persephone. I optimistically hope that before I go back to college she will have recovered entirely. I think, though, that I will undoubtedly miss the deadline for the whole village-story-thing. Forgive me, my college companions, because it's not actually my fault.

Lots of peoples are coming to my house on Thursday (It was supposed to be Wednesday, but for some reason that I wasn't told their plans have changed.). So Mom's preparing menus with Grandma, and cleaning the house, and all that good stuff. We've lately instituted "tea time" at about 3:30 in the afternoon. We eat white-chocolate raspberry cheesecake and drink either tea or coffee. The cheesecake is ginormous, and really rich, so we have to peck away at it a little at a time. Mmm.... it's really good though. And we have lots of nice cheese and crackers and probably some smoked oysters hanging around in the fridge too, leftover from our special Christmas snackage. And chocolate. The house is brimful (is that a word?) of chocolate. I tell you, I like food really really a lot.

Also, I got a new pair of tennis shoes to replace the ones that have holes in them. Yay! = D

Yay. I like Christmas. Really a lot.

And now, I'm so full I feel like I might explode. Mmmm.... I flipping love food.

And also, instead of a bow to improve my mad bow-hunting skills, I got a tripod. So now I can totally hone my mad photography skills.

And also, John Hodgman is a flipping genius, although completely insane. I think quite a few of you would like him. His obsessions include lycanthropy, hobos, squirrels, and lint.

merry pre-christmas

although in a few hours, it won't be pre-Christmas anymore.

Today, we went to Grandma and Grandpa's for supper, and it was really, amazingly good. Mmm.... I'm so spoiled. I mean, I know grandmas as a whole are supposed to be good at that whole domestic/kitchen thing, but Grandma cooks really well.

And also we went to church for a Christmas Eve/communion service, which was pretty cool. They served communion in family groups, which was kinda nice. I don't know as communion has physically been reinforced as more than an individual thing in any other church I've attended.

Here's the sad news: Persephone has bitten the dust. She doesn't register anymore that her power cord is plugged in, and consequently her batteries never charge. So I'm going to have to get that fixed. In one way I'm glad she broke over break, when I don't have any vital papers on her or anything, but in another way I'm really frustrated, because she still has all my stories on her. And also, I still need to pay for books next semester, and I wasn't particularly counting computer repair charges into my budget. I know, that's obviously silly of me. I should always count on technology breaking, but Persephone has been so faithful for so long... and by "so long" I mean about a year and a half. Sigh.

Finished reading "That Hideous Strength" again this week, and I disagree with Lewis more every time I read it. He talks about obedience as a woman's lot in marriage, but forgive me, Lewis is NOT a woman, and I find it presumptive of him to preach at us about obedience in marriage from the point of view of one who could (in his philosophy) command. It's sort of like slave-owners teaching their slaves that Paul said they ought to be obedient and content with their lot in life, never seeking to be free. Not to that great of an extent, maybe, but there is a definite parallel. Don't get me wrong - there's definitely a lot of self-sacrifice and other-centeredness involved in marriage, but I think it doesn't fall under the category of "obedience." Maybe that's just me with my leftover Mennonite inheritance of social activism. Whatever it is, I know this: I would find it insufferable to marry or even date a man who claimed my obedience.

Now, it strikes me as funny that I declare this so firmly when there's no man at all on the horizon.

I feel that, since it's Christmas eve, I should post something Christmas-y, and not just rant about obedience and marriage and Lewis and technology. Mysterious packages have leapt up around our tree, but right now the lights are off and the house is quiet. Most of the family has gone to bed, mandating that they not be woken until nine. Avery's getting sick and running a fever, so he's not really filled with cheer (although he's not complaining either). There are three giant buckets of popcorn scattered around our kitchen, begging to be eaten. And yeah, I'll admit, the anticipation is getting to me a little. I hope everyone likes what I got them. And I hope I don't oversleep my alarm.

And also... I hope that my heart is in an acceptable state to greet the Christ-child.

Merry Christmas.

catapultam habeo. nisi pecuniam omnem mihi dabis, ad caput tuum saxum immane mittam.

Today is the winter solstice. And also the birthday of Joseph Stalin, ironically enough. Maybe that's why he went so wrong. He was born on a day without hardly any sunlight at all, and so instead of light, evil darkness seeped into the depths of his soul.

I tell ya, Hermitopia is looking better and better every day. No real world to contend with, not even of any kind.

I need group feedback before I can start writing again on Mabyn. Hurry up, group. This writing thing is hard enough.

I just realized one great advantage of having a dog. I really can say, "Canis meus id comedit." And what's more, it's probably true. She ate some extension cords the other day here at home, and lately she's been dragging around a mole.

what the author intends with their work is just a single azure twinkle in the manifold lite-brite of interpretation.

I found that quote and absolutely had to use it. It's totally amazing, in so many ways.

My story about Mabyn is not going well. I think I've probably said that to everyone at least twice, but it never hurts to drive the point home. Not going well. I'm not sure if it's because I lack writing motivation, lack affection for the characters, or just plain lack the skill to translate from my head to paper. I think I have all of three paragraphs so far, most of which I will probably end up discarding. I'm still fumbling for a starting place, for some grip on where the story is going and what's important.

The dragon lady isn't going well either. I seem to have hit an insurmountable obstacle in the way I planned to have the plot proceed. So now I'm going to have to change it, but I'm not sure how. I could just change the characters, but I like them. So the plot will have to be tweaked. I'm just not sure how to do that without a blatant deus ex machina. I suppose I could... maybe just take the investigations in a different direction. I could maybe work that in without more than three extra pages.

Also, the poems I'm working on are not going well either. The one I've got the right metaphors for - I think - all except for what I want to say at the very end. I'm so lousy at resolutions. And the other poem I know what I want to say, but I can't find the right image at all. For some reason, I ended up with too many to choose from. That never happens.

The Christmas present thing, however, is going surprisingly well. I got Meredith's today. = D

this comic totally made my day.

Harry Potter fans and critics alike will love it.


And also, for anyone who ever thought Santa was creepy....


P. S. Woot. Grades came back today. And for all my nervous breakdowns, I made the cut!

stop it peter! just because some man in a red coat gives you a sword doesn't make you a hero!

I think that was my favorite moment in the Narnia movie. Everything went right, and, although it wasn't in the book, I felt that it was a good addition, and added greatly to the motivational conflicts within Peter's character. The conflicts which were, unfortunately, poorly gotten over. I think my overall impression is this: good, but falls short of great. It's definitely not a bad movie, but it definitely falls short of great. Still, you should see it.

We got a Christmas tree. It's sort of leaning, but it's beautiful. Mom and I went a little crazy with the lights and decorated the arch between our kitchen, dining room and living room. It looks extremely festive though. There are already mysterious little bulges in the stockings above the fireplace, and I've made one shopping trip. I still need to make at least three more. Avery needs to be taken shopping, and Dad has some stuff he needs to get, and I still need to pick up at least one gift.

It's good to be home. I'm also glad that it's Christmas. It's funny to think how much Christmas has changed for me since I was seven or eight. I remember Christmas really vividly; how exciting the tree was, and the gifts, and how hard I thought about every single one I was going to get and give. And the night before I could hardly sleep! This year especially the gifts seem much less important (though I still put a lot of thought into the ones I'm giving people), the anticipation for the actual day is somewhat lacking. Santa Claus? I never did believe in him. I'm just thankful to be home. People, not presents, make this Christmas good. I tend to just bask in being with my family, rather than do any of the things I usually enjoy, like writing. I played x-box with the boys yesterday and today, and it was pretty hilarious. I suck, of course, but it's still fun. I also find that the spiritual devotion of preparing for Christmas is much more meaningful than the material preparation for Christmas. I'm not sure if I should be glad or sad. Christmas has both deepened and shrunk. It's probably just one of those growing up things that are sort of bittersweet and overly sentimental.

"One gets these presentiments"
- Jeeves
(if you haven't read any P. G. Wodehouse, go check out "Carry On, Jeeves" immediately from your local library. It will help you recover from oversentimentality stemming from the Christmas season.)

goodness knows i'm no master-mind myself, but compared with biffy i'm one of the great thinkers of all time

I'm back home, and it's nice. I slept for about twelve hours last night, which almost completely makes up for not sleeping at all the night before. The trip to the airport was eventful, leaving me almost completely lost and making it to the departure gate a mere ten minutes before they started boarding. The layover in Detroit had me walking across the entire terminal and underground over to another concourse, as well as waiting an hour on the plane before we could de-ice and take off. I'm just glad they didn't cancel the flight altogether (the weather was kinda bad). And then, when I got to Huntsville, it became apparent that my luggage didn't make it. It still sat in some other airplane in Detroit. But it came this morning, so all is well.

And I realized just how much stuff I planned on doing this break. I might not actually have time to get that much done - especially since I plan on taking it easy. This is break, dangit. It's not meant to be a time where you give yourself homework assignments because the teachers failed to. If you want to work, then do, and if you don't, then don't, and that's my Christmas break motto.

Merry Christmas.

...to be happy

I fell again yesterday. Twice. I hurt my wrist this time. I suppose I should be glad I didn't hurt my head.

I also discovered that if I ever have to jumpstart my car, I'd be so screwed. Meredith's car wouldn't start, so we thought, hey, Meredith's got jumper cables, she can call her dad and find out how to do it, and we can jump her car from my car battery. Well, I got the car up to where Meredith was, and we discovered that my battery is hidden somewhere under a bunch of other parts. So that wasn't going to work. But a nice boy saw us standing around with the cables and our emergency blinkers on and came over to help. He very kindly jumped Meredith's car from his truck, and he'd done this before, so no one exploded. (How is it that boys seem to just absorb this kind of knowledge? Meredith's younger brother knew how to jump the car too.) But if my battery ever goes dead, heaven only knows what I'll do.

Finals are officially over for me. I got my butt kicked by them, but at least they're over. I feel less like a triumphant runner finishing a marathon than a runner who started out triumphant and ended up quadriplegic by the end of the marathon. But possibly sleep, some home-cooked food, and some free time will help with that. I'm leaving tomorrow at 7:30 am, and God willing will arrive in Huntsville at 12:30.

leg deinen schatten auf die sonnenuhren, und auf den fluren lass die winde los.

Lots of inarticulate grumpy noises direected towards all printers in general and the graphics lab printers in particular. Lots and lots.

all that glory shining around and we're all caught taking a dive

I think Meredith is right. When it hits midnight, I simply lose my mind. Last night, it was about 1 a.m., and since visiting hours were finally over, I was going to go take my shower. Only I forgot to take off my fuzzy yellow slippers.

If I can just get through tomorrow my life will be cake. English 108 final, Theology paper due, and Philosophy final. And of course once those are over I have to start working on the currency project due Tues. And once that's done I have to work on my weaving project which is due Wed. And Wed. I'll be working on some fun weaving before I leave quick, and also cleaning my room and defrosting the fridge. So maybe not cake. But it will at least be a batch of cookies.

My knee is a lovely mottled combination of green and purple. I also discovered a bruise on my side by accidentally punching it, which is kind of mysterious.

omg omg narnia!!!!!1

It was the best movie ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Just kidding. But I thought I'd join in the fun. = D

"human beings are restless for a fulfillment of life not yet realized." Now that, my friend, I can agree with.

i'm talented. and also completely unfit to live in the north.

I hurt my leg today, and now it's swelling and has a weird bump. All because I wore my clogs this morning. [It was pretty funny to see me slipping and sliding down to Climenhaga though. Liz pulled me along for part of it, like ice skating, except with a heck of a lot less control.] I know, it's a dumb thing to do when you just got seven (or so - I'm bad with numbers) inches of snow dumped on your doorstep. I still can't explain. And also I'm afraid to drive to Camp Hill to get the art supplies I need. I keep telling myself I'll wait till tomorrow when all the roads will be cleared for sure. Let's hope that works out.

It's Friday! The last official day of classes. Woot. And we had a 2-hour delay, so we only had half a Color & Design class, and Crystal Downing (heteroglossia) got stuck in her driveway, so no English 108 either. Which is kind of sad, because it was supposed to be a review day for the final exam, and now we're just completely on our own with that whole reviewing thing. But it's also great, because I went and visited Professor Perrin instead. That always makes me happy.

I'm kind of sad that I have a conscience. It got me volunteered to work the art league sale this afternoon, because Christine was the only worker who had shown up, but she had to leave for work. And also it made me volunteer my loom to another girl in my weaving class, so she could finish her final. But half of me really really wanted to just keep the loom and do my fun stuff on it.... I'm just hoping against hope that she gets done before Wednesday. Otherwise I'll be up all night weaving before I leave. And that would kind of suck. I don't like doing the right thing.

OK. I'm done, and going to go write my theo paper. I want to finish that today, and also my clarion pages. And tomorrow I'm going to finish the currency project, and Sunday I'm going to sew really a lot. That's the plan.

hahaha.... [wicked smile]

http://www.clv-comic.com/view.php?pic=822

So, I know someone who I could totally see saying this....

the art of losing isn't hard to master

Today I wove almost three yards, wrote four pages, and lived through class. That should make me really happy. The problem is, I need to average that in order to get done with all my work in time. This theology paper thing is turning out to be much longer than I thought. Just to cover the basics it might end up being 14 pages long. I've never written a paper that long before. Heck, I've never even read a paper that long before. I think even the concept of writing a paper that long is going to make my head explode. Of course, that could be because it's 12:30, and one more day of my life is ticked off, the countdown to finals week looming ever closer.

The really good news: no more chapels. Not a single one. I'm taking this as a wonderful opportunity to sleep in.

christopher paolini is a lousy author - get over it and stop talking about his dumb books

I hurt my knee yesterday. It hurts. Mostly when I walk up and down stairs, and when I stand up or sit down. But it hurts, and so I'm whining like a small child.

To my family: sorry I didn't call today. This is the first free moment I've had today, and I won't get off work until 10:30, by which time I imagine everyone will be asleep, like real-life human beings. And my flight is arriving in Huntsville at 12:30, so if I forget to tell you that on the phone, you'll know anyway. Don't forget me. (Maybe whoever picks me up and I could have lunch at Dad's office before going home?)

I just realized that I have one week to finish my color & design final, which I haven't even begun yet. And 8 days to finish my weaving, which I've barely started. And 6 days to write a 7-page minimum paper, of which I have written three paragraphs. I also found out that I have three finals on Monday. So Monday is going to suck. And also I discovered that I have three, not two, spreads to do for the yearbook before Saturday. Hm. The good thing is, it only took me two hours to almost-completely-finish 2 spreads, so the third ought to take me only an hour or an hour and a half more. The problem is, the front desk does not have the right key to the Clarion office, so every time I want to get in to work, I have to call dispatch and wait half an hour for them to show up.

Well, at least I have one thing resolved in my mind: I'm not going to start missing sleep until the very last minute, and only if I absolutely have to. That might mean staying up all night, but it will also mean that my thinking is at top speed (which, I know, isn't really all that fast) until the point where I almost don't need it anymore. Maybe. That's the theory, anyway.

Good night to all, I'm going to do more research for my paper. Wish me lots of luck.

and don’t say woot - you sound like a retarded owl.

So I stole that from Ben, who was quoting someone else, but I don't think either of them will mind being made a little more famous...er.

Did I forget to mention that I played DDR for the first time at Chad & Amy's at Chrisgiving?

And by the way guys, you'll totally love this... especially you, Jenn. Bet you can't guess the grapevine route I traced to find it. http://www.energyfiend.com/death-by-caffeine/

I'd have to drink 585 cups of hot chocolate in order to die from caffeine poisoning. I would have to drink 252 cups of Chai tea. Think of the stomach ache you'd get from that.

Today was pretty good I guess. About like normal. I'm going to just keep going and not think about anything except what's right in front of my face, because if I do, I might just get stressed again.

Someone remind me to meet Katie Ness at 4:15 tomorrow. I forgot we had a layout meeting on Saturday. Oops. A consequence of my "not-looking-at-anything-except-what's-right-in-your-face" policy, but heck, if I lost my mind, it wouldn't do me any good to meet Katie Ness anyway.

i sort of feel like if i don't post everday, it'll seem like i have more of a life. is that weird?

Hi.

I like Pro Tempore. Have I said that before? I really do. People actually put effort into reading my poem for the meeting, which I totally appreciate.

Food today at Chad & Amy's was good, a lot of fun. I almost felt guilty for not working, but then I forgot to think about working. So that was kinda cool. = )

Also, our felting project has been completely put off until tomorrow, which kinda freaks me out, but on the other hand, I don't actually care about felting or about this presentation.

And the senior I'm working with for the project said that Professor Forsythe gives us a ridiculous amount of work, so see? I'm not the only one that thinks so. I'm not just complaining, although I'm doing that too. But it's not gratuitous whining. Mah [sticks tongue out a screen].

i had more comics to make you all laugh with, but i wrote which ones i wanted on my hand and then took a shower.

I hate it when that happens.

So, I'm getting totally excited that this is the last week of class, as well as freaking scared. Scared?

Because I'm aiming to do nine yards of weaving before the 14th, and parts are mysteriously missing off of all the looms in the studio.

And also because I have a seven page research paper to write before the 13th.

Of course, Lucy and Andrew wrote nine and eight page papers (respectively) in one night. I couldn't do that, but I can at least do three pages in a night. Maybe. If I don't particularly want them to be good pages.

Anyway, enough griping. I've got a lot to do, and by golly, I'm going to do it. I'm fortified with a longer-than-usual sleep, and I have (thanks to Mom) a large supply of hallowe'en candy at hand. I figure, every time I accomplish something I'll reward myself with candy. Shameless bribery works on little kids, so why not on college students?

though i walk through the wilderness

"Arminianism: I chose this shirt!"

H: "I just love this basket. It's so amazing! I wanna put baby wild animals in it."
P: "Like baby cows?"
H: "Like baby bunnies... and kittens... and also muffins."
- Haley and Professor Forsythe

"I saw a kind of rigor in practice, and thought the sacrifice of contentment (which I didn't have anyway) was well worth such serious joy."
- Louise Gluck

"I bought this giant spool of elastic - I don't even remember why. I think I was just excited."
- Amber

I walked into the alley yesterday, went over to the bins of colored resume paper, looked them over, and pulled a few out. I took them over to the guy at the counter and said, "Can I get these copied onto a color transparency?" The guy looked at me, then looked at the paper, then squinted thoughtfully, and said, "Wait... you want me to just copy these blank pieces of paper onto transparencies? Just the blank paper?" I said, "Yes, thanks."

Today in theology class we formed groups (of between 4 and 5 - however that works. Could you get a group of 4.5 people? I think not) and the spokesperson of our group happened to be named Ben. When Ben went up to the board to write down our answers to the discussion questions, he realized he didn't know how to spell "efficiency." (wow... I just discovered that all spellings of efficiency look wrong to me now) So he asked. About five people started telling him how to spell it, and it went through three different (wrong) permutations before, with admirable elegance, he finally wrote "efishancy."

"Paper is wood."