Thursday, September 29, 2011
Title
I remembered it! What do you all thing about the new title... zealous super-naturalist? Lame, isn't it. You don't even have to comment, just check one of the boxes.
Face Lift.
Hello everyone! I know things have been a little- a lot!- crazy around my blog. I've FINALLY settled on a format that I like. I'm not going to be changing anything for a long time. I don't want to be too confusing.
I'm really struggling with formatting issues, okay. If anyone has any advice to give, please don't hesitate. I need to figure out
1) How to get background music going.
2) How to turn OFF the email reminders of every new post... it's so annoying. And,
3) One more thing.... can't think of it. Blast.
I'm really struggling with formatting issues, okay. If anyone has any advice to give, please don't hesitate. I need to figure out
1) How to get background music going.
2) How to turn OFF the email reminders of every new post... it's so annoying. And,
3) One more thing.... can't think of it. Blast.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
I Spy
That last post was sooooo bland. Yuck. I can be so boring sometimes I surprise myself. I don't know if it's possible to write a worse post than that.
Aside from that, though, I just wanted to say- yesterday was Pookie's 2nd birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY POOKIE! (It was also my dear Queeny's birthday- happy birthday sister!) I know it's little late. I wish all the best for both of you.
Pookie and I had our own special little ceremony today. David left for school in the morning and we had the whole house to ourselves. It was delicious. We finished up breakfast slowly and afterward I brought out two, stiff presents. Pookie was delighted. This was everything that brilliant two year old has ever or will ever want in life. A quite morning with one or two pleasant surprises.
I watched him painfully tear through the wrapping paper to reveal none other then- I Spy, Spectacular! The joy that filled his eyes as he opened his very first I Spy book and caught his very first glimpse into wonderful world of Walter Wick gave me so many mixed feelings.
That was me, sixteen years ago. I adored I Spy. I lived inside that world. I traced every line of every book until I had memorized it all. When I went to sleep at night, I became a little person and traveled through the horror, mystery, wonder, and excitement of it all. I just couldn't get enough of I Spy.
I sort of forgot my old fascination with it until I woke up this past Monday and realized- "It's Pookie's birthday!" I instantly knew that I was going to get him books. This kid can practically read. He reads all his favorite books TO ME! I just can't keep up with him. So, I'm wandering around B&N and there, sitting on the shelf are dozens of I Spy thrillers.
Suddenly, I wasn't 18 anymore. Suddenly, I was two again, thumbing through those beloved classics. I went, unconsciously straight to my favorite spots. The warf in Treasure Hunt. The sand castle in Fantasy. The shop window in A book of Picture Riddles.
Something struck deep in my heart. Something I've never been able to define. When we are very small children, we have nothing to lose. Then, we grow up and the world revolves around our petty wishes. It's only when we're old enough and once again have nothing to lose that we can go back to our old loves once again.
I miss my childhood- my deep childhood- more than I can say. Way deep down inside were no one can see, I still love the things I used to love. I have guarded that love and cherished it, even though it is so rarely expressed in my life.
I long more than I can express for the day when I can enjoy once again the secret world of I Spy.
(P.S. That other present wasn't half as exciting... just a plain, old Richard Scarry ABCs)
Aside from that, though, I just wanted to say- yesterday was Pookie's 2nd birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY POOKIE! (It was also my dear Queeny's birthday- happy birthday sister!) I know it's little late. I wish all the best for both of you.
Pookie and I had our own special little ceremony today. David left for school in the morning and we had the whole house to ourselves. It was delicious. We finished up breakfast slowly and afterward I brought out two, stiff presents. Pookie was delighted. This was everything that brilliant two year old has ever or will ever want in life. A quite morning with one or two pleasant surprises.
I watched him painfully tear through the wrapping paper to reveal none other then- I Spy, Spectacular! The joy that filled his eyes as he opened his very first I Spy book and caught his very first glimpse into wonderful world of Walter Wick gave me so many mixed feelings.
That was me, sixteen years ago. I adored I Spy. I lived inside that world. I traced every line of every book until I had memorized it all. When I went to sleep at night, I became a little person and traveled through the horror, mystery, wonder, and excitement of it all. I just couldn't get enough of I Spy.
I sort of forgot my old fascination with it until I woke up this past Monday and realized- "It's Pookie's birthday!" I instantly knew that I was going to get him books. This kid can practically read. He reads all his favorite books TO ME! I just can't keep up with him. So, I'm wandering around B&N and there, sitting on the shelf are dozens of I Spy thrillers.
Something struck deep in my heart. Something I've never been able to define. When we are very small children, we have nothing to lose. Then, we grow up and the world revolves around our petty wishes. It's only when we're old enough and once again have nothing to lose that we can go back to our old loves once again.
I miss my childhood- my deep childhood- more than I can say. Way deep down inside were no one can see, I still love the things I used to love. I have guarded that love and cherished it, even though it is so rarely expressed in my life.
I long more than I can express for the day when I can enjoy once again the secret world of I Spy.
(P.S. That other present wasn't half as exciting... just a plain, old Richard Scarry ABCs)
Monday, September 26, 2011
Foolish Egicians
In church , we're going through the plagues of Egypt when God commanded Moses to tell Pharaoh, "Let my people go that they may worship me." I heard this story so many times that, of course, I'm ready to tune it out and fall asleep in the pew. But, this time something stood out about the passage we read.
Caught up in this whole struggle between Moses, Pharaoh, and the children of Israel are these magicians. In never really saw their significance until this morning. What do they have to do with the story? Their little magic tricks never solve anything. They just sort of repeat what God did, proving that it is possible to bring forth frogs and insects against the will of the Egyptian gods (who are just dumb statues anyway). Big deal.
But, that just the point!! This shows what idiots the Egyptian magicians are! Lets call them the Egicians. I like that word.So, the Egicians are called upon by Pharaoh in Exodus 7, verse 11 to repeat Moses' miracles right back to him.
"Then Pharaoh summoned the wise men and sorcerers, and they, the magicians of Egypt, also did the same by their secret arts."
Great. So now you can copycat Moses. That really solves the issue, doesn't it? What's really going on here? Let's take a closer look at the motivation behind the Egicians and their presence.
The first miracle that's performed is, of course, when Moses casts down his staff and it becomes a serpent. Pharaoh calls his magicians to do the same thing. Pharaoh is basically showing Moses that he's not impressed.
No big deal! You throw your stick down, it becomes a snake. My magicians can do that easily. I'm not scared by your God.
What's really going on here is that Pharaoh is testing Moses' God. Pharaoh knows this isn't just Moses on some humanitarian mission to rescue a suffering nation. Moses clearly states:
"The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, sent me to you, saying, 'Let my people go that they may serve me in the wilderness...'"
This is Moses coming from God with a command to let the nation of Israel go. This is a conflict between Pharaoh and God. And Pharaoh knows this. When he sets his Egicians on Moses with their magic tricks, he's combating with God, saying that he's not intimidated by Him nor impressed with God's display of power over nature. Pharaoh also has power over nature. He can be god too.
There's on really stupid thing about Pharaoh's whole approach: copycating God's miracle. What does that really show? For one thing it's the most blatant acknowledgment of God that Pharaoh could make.
If Pharaoh really wanted to impress God back or show that he is mightier than God, he wouldn't simply rearrange what God already created. If Pharaoh really had power over creation he would be generating new miracles, not copycat old ones.
The Egicians themselves have to finally call it off when they cannot immitate the miracle of the gnats. They tell Pharaoh,
"This is the finger of God." 8:19
What you see when you really look into the Egicians and there purpose in the plague narrative, you see a power struggle between Pharaoh and God and who has control over nature. God ultimately showed he power over nature by not allowing the Egicians to immitate the miracle of the gnats.
Caught up in this whole struggle between Moses, Pharaoh, and the children of Israel are these magicians. In never really saw their significance until this morning. What do they have to do with the story? Their little magic tricks never solve anything. They just sort of repeat what God did, proving that it is possible to bring forth frogs and insects against the will of the Egyptian gods (who are just dumb statues anyway). Big deal.
But, that just the point!! This shows what idiots the Egyptian magicians are! Lets call them the Egicians. I like that word.So, the Egicians are called upon by Pharaoh in Exodus 7, verse 11 to repeat Moses' miracles right back to him.
"Then Pharaoh summoned the wise men and sorcerers, and they, the magicians of Egypt, also did the same by their secret arts."
Great. So now you can copycat Moses. That really solves the issue, doesn't it? What's really going on here? Let's take a closer look at the motivation behind the Egicians and their presence.
The first miracle that's performed is, of course, when Moses casts down his staff and it becomes a serpent. Pharaoh calls his magicians to do the same thing. Pharaoh is basically showing Moses that he's not impressed.
No big deal! You throw your stick down, it becomes a snake. My magicians can do that easily. I'm not scared by your God.
What's really going on here is that Pharaoh is testing Moses' God. Pharaoh knows this isn't just Moses on some humanitarian mission to rescue a suffering nation. Moses clearly states:
"The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, sent me to you, saying, 'Let my people go that they may serve me in the wilderness...'"
This is Moses coming from God with a command to let the nation of Israel go. This is a conflict between Pharaoh and God. And Pharaoh knows this. When he sets his Egicians on Moses with their magic tricks, he's combating with God, saying that he's not intimidated by Him nor impressed with God's display of power over nature. Pharaoh also has power over nature. He can be god too.
There's on really stupid thing about Pharaoh's whole approach: copycating God's miracle. What does that really show? For one thing it's the most blatant acknowledgment of God that Pharaoh could make.
If Pharaoh really wanted to impress God back or show that he is mightier than God, he wouldn't simply rearrange what God already created. If Pharaoh really had power over creation he would be generating new miracles, not copycat old ones.
The Egicians themselves have to finally call it off when they cannot immitate the miracle of the gnats. They tell Pharaoh,
"This is the finger of God." 8:19
What you see when you really look into the Egicians and there purpose in the plague narrative, you see a power struggle between Pharaoh and God and who has control over nature. God ultimately showed he power over nature by not allowing the Egicians to immitate the miracle of the gnats.
Thursday, September 22, 2011
What's so funny???
I really should be going to bed, but I just had to share this with you.
I love kids. I love MY kids- the two beautiful boys God brought into my life to nanny twice a week. For a kid like me, the chance to watch other kids and get payed for it is the job of my dreams! What makes it such a wonderful job are the stupid, side-splitting things that happened like the one I'm about to tell you.
We're all in the basement together. The boys want to buys some ice cream. So, I get in my pretend ice-cream truck right between the furnace and the water heater and I start handing our strawberry cones. They both have double deckers, so I sure that will keep them content for a while. The moment I step out from behind that truck, David suddenly realizes he's finished with his cone.
"Can I have another!" he demands. I throw my hands up in the air in exasperation and turn to get back in my truck. A shriek of laughter explodes. It was a hit! I exaggerate my scoops and hand both boys another pair of cones. No sooner do I step out of the truck again, then- "Can I have another!" Once again, hand fly up to the ceiling in disgust and the earsplitting laughter echos across the basement.
Scooping ice-cream and running back for more. Disbelieving hand gestures and irritated grunts. Laughter that gives you belly aches. Now I can't stop laughing because of how hard they're laughing and my laughing at them.
"I want some meatball ice-cream!" David gasps as I'm frantically scooping out two cones.
"Meatball ice-cream!!!" I roar. "That's it! I can't take it anymore! NO MEATBALL ICE-CREAM!"
Silence. Not because the joke is over but because nobody can breathe.
I just want to know one thing- what makes something funny? Why do we laugh at things? No one can predict a joke- they just happen. You may tell a joke to someone that makes that person drop dead laughing, but totally turns the next person off.
Why is it that in a house full of awesome toys the one things these boys want to play with is an imaginary ice-cream truck?
I love kids. I love MY kids- the two beautiful boys God brought into my life to nanny twice a week. For a kid like me, the chance to watch other kids and get payed for it is the job of my dreams! What makes it such a wonderful job are the stupid, side-splitting things that happened like the one I'm about to tell you.
We're all in the basement together. The boys want to buys some ice cream. So, I get in my pretend ice-cream truck right between the furnace and the water heater and I start handing our strawberry cones. They both have double deckers, so I sure that will keep them content for a while. The moment I step out from behind that truck, David suddenly realizes he's finished with his cone.
"Can I have another!" he demands. I throw my hands up in the air in exasperation and turn to get back in my truck. A shriek of laughter explodes. It was a hit! I exaggerate my scoops and hand both boys another pair of cones. No sooner do I step out of the truck again, then- "Can I have another!" Once again, hand fly up to the ceiling in disgust and the earsplitting laughter echos across the basement.
Scooping ice-cream and running back for more. Disbelieving hand gestures and irritated grunts. Laughter that gives you belly aches. Now I can't stop laughing because of how hard they're laughing and my laughing at them.
"I want some meatball ice-cream!" David gasps as I'm frantically scooping out two cones.
"Meatball ice-cream!!!" I roar. "That's it! I can't take it anymore! NO MEATBALL ICE-CREAM!"
Silence. Not because the joke is over but because nobody can breathe.
I just want to know one thing- what makes something funny? Why do we laugh at things? No one can predict a joke- they just happen. You may tell a joke to someone that makes that person drop dead laughing, but totally turns the next person off.
Why is it that in a house full of awesome toys the one things these boys want to play with is an imaginary ice-cream truck?
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Nick Toth, 2011
BEEEEEEEEP!
I rush down to the end of my strip.
BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!
So long as there is life on earth, we will never be able to please the insatiable appetite of the box. It continues to scream at me until I hook my umbilical chord up to it's life line.
I approach my opponent to test weapons, studying her confident face and bold stride. She's an A and she knows it. I wonder, as we salute and pull our masks on, just how could I use all that pride to my advantage?
Where is she weak? Everyone has their weaknesses. What are her strengths? Where do I have to be careful? What is she known for? What is she not expecting?
All these thoughts are racing through my brain as I assume my position behind the white line.
"Fencers ready? Fence!"
Barely a second and one light goes off. It mine! How did that happen? I don't even know! All I know is that the ref called my touch.
Another round, but this time two lights. It was mine! I knew it because I chased her all the way down to the end of the strip and nailed her when I got there. The attacker ALWAYS gets the touch. It's that wonderful thing called "right of way"!
Next time, it's her touch, then my touch, then hers and hers and now we're tied in a five touch bout. I'm tied 4-4 with a A rated fencer. That's not supposed to happen.
I start to panic. Inside my head, all the sirens are going off. "You're not supposed to be able to beat an A! You're not even rated yet!!!"
I get anxious to make that final touch, not at all confident in my own judgment. I hesitate. She finishes. The bout is over and the A saved her pride from being squashed by a measly little U.
I walk off the strip beaming from ear to ear. "I got four touches on and A!" Actually, all I really got was chewed out by the armorer.
"Don't be so impatient to get that last touch! You could have done it. Don't tell yourself you're not supposed to beat an A!!"
For the record, I will never be making that mistake again. When it's time to win the bout, I'm going to win it. I'm far more intimidated by the fury of my coach (and certain other armorers) who are tired of seeing me pass by golden opportunities then I am of big-headed A's.
I walk back to my bag and grab the rest of my equipment, headed for the other gym where the real competition begins- Direct Elimination. This is the part where the A gets to pinch off every single one of our dreams one by one.
I was tempted to say, "It's not fair!!! I'm only a U!" I can't say that, though. I can't say it because I gave that A a run for her money. She was really irritated with me by the end of the day. I was totally messing with her head. The last bout that I fenced her (the bout where she eliminated me) was totally epic.
I scored 7 touches!!! I hope she remembers it as the hardest E rating she ever worked for. It's not, but I'm entitled to my dreams.
What made the entire day was when my coach told me, "U's aren't supposed to get 7 touches on A's". Oh, yeah! That's me! Now I just have to get out there are make something of that compliment.
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Battle Blog
Checks her blog. Two followers. Checks again.... Ugh! Still TWO followers.
Does school- checks blog- studies leptin and the consequences of your body's resistance to it. Checks blog. SOMEBODY COMMENTED!!!!! Oh. It's only Andrea.
Someone told me, "blogging is an every day emotional battle." Why is nobody commenting on my blog??? They must hate what I said!
No, Tina. You've only been blogging for four days, okay. Chillax.
Goes back to quietly figuring out how much protein American's on average consumed during the early 1900s.
Does school- checks blog- studies leptin and the consequences of your body's resistance to it. Checks blog. SOMEBODY COMMENTED!!!!! Oh. It's only Andrea.
Someone told me, "blogging is an every day emotional battle." Why is nobody commenting on my blog??? They must hate what I said!
No, Tina. You've only been blogging for four days, okay. Chillax.
Goes back to quietly figuring out how much protein American's on average consumed during the early 1900s.
Saturday, September 17, 2011
Wind Chaser
Grasp the tail of the wind
Thunder through the sky
Slip and fall with the rain
Dive into the sea
Wash up on my sandy shore
Rest your weary bones
Rise again when morning comes
To chase, once more, the wind
FYI- Lots and lots of poetry on this blog, people. More to come:)
Thunder through the sky
Slip and fall with the rain
Dive into the sea
Wash up on my sandy shore
Rest your weary bones
Rise again when morning comes
To chase, once more, the wind
FYI- Lots and lots of poetry on this blog, people. More to come:)
Friday, September 16, 2011
Hello, everyone. As you have probably already guessed by the blog title, I like Owl City. Okay, I LOVE Owl City! I was laying there listening to "Angels" and the lyrics were streaming through my head:
Livin' close to the ground
is seventh heaven 'cause there are angels all around
among my frivolous thoughts, I believe
there are beautiful things seen by the astronauts.
That when I realized it's finally time to open up that blog of mine. Here it is! I hope you enjoy.
-Tina
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