haphazard musings

So what does it take...

...to put it all in perspective.

Sometimes it requires a life-changing event.

But sometimes, it doesn't.

Which for some reasons reminds me of a commercial: "sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don't."

 

Anyway, sometimes, all it takes is a little road trip.

No I wasn't driving down that specific road, but it kind of looked like that.  Only a little wider. :)

Today is a beautiful day.

Seriously, one of the best we've had in a while.  This is why I love fall!  

So anyway, I was taking a little drive to Marion (for work) this afternoon.  And I was a little crabby.  No real reason why, but lately I have just been a little crabby.  I am sure Ryan would confirm this unfortunate truth.

I was in a big hurry to get there because, of course, I was running late.  I got there in plenty of time (without speeding, well not too much).  So on the way back to town, I decided to take the "back" way and cruise with the windows down and the tunes cranked.

It made me stop and wonder.

How long has it been since I have let my hair blow in the wind because I wasn't afraid of what it would look like later?

How long has it been since I have slowed down and gazed at the scenery as I drive by?

How long has it been since I have sang at the top of my lungs with songs like some old school Tim McGraw or "September" by Earth Wind & Fire?  

(Ok, well on this one, not that long....:) This is a relatively common occurance at the Frasier household.)

So I guess my point is, when you slow down (literally & figuratively) you can really see God's amazing world.  And you realize, that the little things that are making you grumpy aren't really such a big deal. 

I feel fantastic.  A little fresh air goes a long way - so does the song "Part of Your World" from The Little Mermaid that just came on the Glee station on Pandora.com.

I hope you are having a great day too.  Go outside and get some fresh air.  And sing your favorite jam at the top of your lungs. 

Its good for you.

 

Something crafty

Don't you just love a good craft show?

Well, I never thought I would be a craft show kind of a gal, but as it turns out, they are right up my alley.  So I went with 6 gals and 5 kids (all 3 and under) to the giant craft show in Hillsboro.  

Two double strollers ...

and one little red stroller...

does not make it easy to trek through this.

Seriously, it was nuts.  We also kept getting stopped by people we knew...it was fun, but I tell you what, kids don't like 90 degree days and craft shows. 

This little guy kept trying to hide from me.

 
 

So while his mama was chatting, we played hide and seek from the camera.

After that game, Anne and I got a little bored so I started taking random picutres and Levi and Anne played with sunglasses.

Next was lunch.  Thank goodness.  I needed some air conditioning and the kiddos really needed some food.  (Well, I should be honest - I was just as grumpy as the kiddos.  I needed some lunch myself.)

Finally, the part I was most looking forward to.  The barn sale.

It was awesome.  So many amazing things I "needed": trucks, rocking chairs, doors, chairs, dressers.  Fantastic stuff.  I just need to figure out how to go back there and how to know when its open...any suggestions?

I really want to know what this lady plans on doing with that ax.  Weird.

I will show you what I got tomorrow.  I hope to get it cleaned up tonight. : )

Plus, I couldn't take a picture of it since my camera battery is so dead that the shutter won't click.  oops.

  

 

Deep Questions

So as a result of stretching my literary analysis muscles (they are a little stiff, but getting functional), I feel like I have been looking into things a little deeper than usual.  I have in the course of the last couple weeks, but wrestling (in a good way) the a few questions.  

I won't pretend to have answers to them, but they have been intriguing me so I thought I would share.

1.  What is the definition of ignorance?  Is it defined as a lack of education?  Is it defined as a lack of moral or ethical boundaries?
We are reading The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in my graduate literature class, and have been struggling with this question there.   

2.  When it comes to my rights/freedoms as an American citizen and my Christian beliefs, where do I draw the line?
Last week, Pastor Dave gave this sermon on Daniel chapter 3 about Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and the fiery furnace.  It was really great.  A friend sent me an interesting article reviewing a sermon given by the pastor at Capitol Hill Baptist Church in DC.  Some thought provoking material in both.  Also you can check out in your Bible chapter 13 of Romans and Mark 12:13-17.  Its good stuff. 

3.  Do I really see what is happening around me?  
Most of the literature we have been reading in the class comes from the late 1800's and is a commentary on various social conditions that existed at that time.  In almost all the cases, I believe the author was asking the reader to open their eyes and see the problems that were all around them.  It has led me to ponder, what is happening that I am not seeing?  How deep in my bubble am I?

4.  How can war actually determine who is fit to govern?  When killing another person is the strategy, how can either side be "right"?
This is not a comment meant to choose sides on any war that has been fought, and it is not a comment meant to bash the war that America is currently involved in.  As I have been reading an account of a Civil War soldier in the Red Badge of Courage, some of the realities of war have become more clear to me, and I just wonder how it can be right?  But maybe it isn't right.  Maybe it is just another example of our fallen world and our attempts to right in our imperfect way?

So there you go, a little glimpse in to my head for the week.  Good luck sifting through the thoughts.  Sorry if they are a little discombobulated.  It seems to be the way I roll.  

I'd love to hear your thoughts or insights.  Leave a comment or shoot me an e-mail [email protected]

Fun Fact Friday

• Ryan is home.  He was gone all week to Salt Lake City, at a phone conference. Personally, I think its ironic that he had to travel to the phone company to meet face to face.
• I really, really have been grooving to this song for like 2 months.  
• Confession - I am totally in love with Glee.  I am totally fine with that by the way.  But, I thought you should know.  I think it comes from my love of musicals - I have loved them since I was a pretty young girl.  You should know about that too.
   
• I am not very sentimental, but I remember one of the first gifts Ryan ever gave me was a movie watching kit.  It was for Christmas.  It had hot chocolate, popcorn and Guys and Dolls.
  My mom said, "Wow, he was spot on with that."  He is pretty good with gifts.
  
  
  
• I was driving home for lunch, and I saw a kid and a mom in the front yard playing with a wiffle bat and ball. The catch is that the wiffle ball was tied to string hanging from a tree branch and the kid was going after it like a kid at a birthday party with a stick and a pinata.

• Saturday (tomorrow) is the United Way Chili Cook-Off at the corner of 6th & Main from 11:30 to 1:30.  You should come, the weather will be perfect and the chili will be amazing!
   
• We slept with the windows open last night, I was cold.  It was perfect.
   
• This morning I had to wear a sweater to work.  It was also perfect.
   
• Finley ate a cardboard box this morning.  He does that sometimes.  Do you think he needs more fiber in his diet?
   
• We ran a 5K last weekend.  Ryan and I both did a great job.  It was even fun.
   
• I haven't run since.  How can I keep that motivation going?  Suggestions?

Have a great weekend.  See you all later!

Its so old fashioned...

the State Fair.

I'm not sure why it feels that way, but it does.  As soon as I walked onto the fair grounds, despite the ridiculous lights of the midway, the $8 turkey legs, and the hot tub sales, I feel almost like I walked back into time.  

Maybe its the fact that the fair has been happening since 1873.

Maybe its the fact that the same food has been available since then...

Meet Rebecca, she will demonstrate.

Roasted corn.  A definite favorite.

Maybe its the animals.

Meet the Alpaca (could be a llama, but I don't know the difference, but I think the sign said alpaca).

Maybe it that we still pay good money to sit on a potato sack and go down a slide.

Maybe its the pig races.

Meet the other version of Rebecca.

The cheerleader version.

In the interest of full disclosure - those pom poms smelled like...well...poop!

Oh yes, out of all the kids there under the age of 10, Rebecca was selected to cheer on piglet number 4.

  

She did a great job.

I enjoyed some potatoes.

You will be glad to know - I did not eat that whole plate full.  

I really, really wanted to eat every ounce of them, but when I dumped the ketchup on my jeans, I decided to call it a day.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

amazing morning

did you all see those clouds this morning?  As I was going to the Chamber Breakfast at 6:50 or so, this is how the sun was greeting the morning.

A life lesson & a cool bug.

I was making dinner a few weeks ago, and we had some IBC Root beer in the pantry.  I thought, "Yum, that would be good with whatever we are having."

So I put it in the freezer to get it cold fast.

Then, we ended up saving whatever I made for dinner for the next day.  We went to eat with some friends instead.

But we learned a little lesson in the end.

Lesson: One should not put a glass bottle in the freezer without a timer set to remind one to remove them.

Reason: Explosions.

Result: A large frozen, sticky mess.

 

Ryan took these pictures of the giant praying mantis while I was gone.  Turns out he can take a decent picture.  He should take them more often.

He was like 2 inches long.  In the top picture you can see our blinds in the dining room, the opening on the slats are about 1 inch wide.

So there's your news for Thursday.  

Your friend,

Lindsay, the wise.

 

Not to brag continued

Well I am going to brag for a minute:

I contributed intelligent comments twice during my class this week.  

The professor even acknowledged them.  It was great!

Sadly some of the more umm...we'll just say vocal individuals interrupted my smart comments with their really intense and exceedingly deep commentary.

The part I can brag about is the part that my comments spurred on their commentary. Which is good, right?

I just wanted you to know that class was a little better this week.  So the goal will now be to add to my contributions each week. 

Week 1 - no comments, ridiculous head-nodding.

Week 2 - 2 very short statements, confirmation that they were at least on track, and ridiculous head-nodding.

Please stay tuned.

Eat Pray Love

Over the weekend we saw the movie and a year or two ago I read the book.  I enjoyed them both.  Not to say that I agreed with all her philosophies, but they were enjoyable to read and watch.

 

I think I most liked the traveling part.

I regret one thing about my college experience.  Yep, just one thing.  I wish that I had taken a summer or a semester to study abroad.  

A little background.  Decision making has never been a great skill of mine.  So I had a hard time committing to a major, in my last two years I thought about changing my major several times.  I also even added a major my junior year.  

So rather than get behind a semester, I chose to stay in Kansas.  Its kind of interesting looking back on it now, wondering how my life would have been different if I had chosen to go abroad. 

But mostly, I just think about the experience it would have been.

Let me reiterate, I loved college, I loved being at k-state and I loved all of it. (Don't worry, Mom.)  Its just something I kind of missed out on.

Interestingly, I don't think I would go to the same place now that I would have then. Rather than studying at a cafe in the lights of the Champs-Elysees;

source

I would be studying at a cafe enjoying the ancient crowded streets somewhere in Italy (this picture happens to come from Naples).

source

But someday, I have big plans.  Someday I will enjoy these places with my hubs instead of by myself.  Which will make it all the more enjoyable.

I will just leave you with this thought, because I am hungry and I just watched that movie.

Pizza in Naples.

source

Seriously.

Are you hungry now?

 

 

Now I don't want to brag,

but it might sound like I am for a minute here.  But never fear, I have been brought back to my appropriate place in the world.

I have always felt like a relatively intelligent individual (in spite of my inability to use an apostrophe correctly in the contraction of its and it's - of this inadequacy, I am often reminded).  

School was always work, but rarely was it really hard.  Plus it was something I enjoyed, so that made it easier too.

Here I am at my college graduation. 

Please note: a college degree in no way assures that an individual will be classified as a relatively intelligent.  Just FYI.

So in light of my classification as "a relatively intelligent individual", I decided it would be a wise decision to take a class this semester called Seminar in American Literature 1850 - 1920.  Doesn't so too bad, right?  

That's what I thought.  I can do this.  Understanding literature always came fairly easily to me, so this shouldn't be any different.  No big deal that I have never really taken a college literature course, let alone a graduate level literature class. It will be a bit of work, but hey, let's do it.

However, my above classification as an intelligent individual is in serious jeopardy.

Insert my new - hopefully temporary - classification here - Meet the dumb kid.

This is my current status in Seminar in American Lit: The Dumb Kid.

Now this may seem like an extreme statement; however, at times, I almost feel like I am taking a lit class in French and I can only use what little French remains from a few semesters in college.

I am the quiet kid who sits in class that never raises her hand or volunteers information.

Rest assured, your assumptions are correct, this has never happened to me before.

I have resorted to nodding emphatically with someone else's statement, when it strikes me as a smart comment.  

Then I say to myself, "Lindsay Anne (I usually refer to my self in 3rd person and really emphasize Anne when I'm disappointed in myself), come on, get with it.  Say something, anything that pertains to this discussion."  

Then, I come up with something good, but one of my assertive classmates, always jumps in before I can and says the exact same thing, then all I can say is, "I agree."

Lame.

Then everyone looks at me like they are expecting more, but that was all I had - "I agree."

It makes me feel like this was the only time I ever graduated (please ignore the mullet like hair - it was 1987 and I was at the mercy of my parents).

On another side note, do you see all those bruises on my legs?  I probably fell down the stairs or something, they constantly looked like that as a kid. Grace has never been a word to describe me, kind of like quiet has never been used either.

Now you know.  And I feel better having made a full confession.

Love,
Lindsay, the dumb kid.