Monthly Archives

September 2005

deep thoughtssimplicity

jana’s breakfast of champions

–1/3 c. Irish Steel-Cut Oats, cook (the kind that come in a can and take half an hour to cook)
–1/3 c. Trader Joe’s lowfat organic vanilla yogurt (yah, it’d probably be tastier w/creamline, but I’ve gotta watch the calories)
–one peeled, diced, fresh peach (a nectarine will do, too)
–a handful of sliced almonds
–a splash of Cannon vanilla (top secret family recipe that involves vanilla beans imported from Tahiti that ferment in dark bottles in the back of the spice cupboard)
–a dash of hand-grated nutmeg

Stir.
Throw your head back and chew in ecstasy.
If you’re really lucky–like I was this morning–you will get a shoulder massage while eating. If so, make deep sighs of satisfaction and swear to start every morning just the same way.
:)
PS: If you’re eating this for dessert, as I am wont to do, you can increase the vanilla splash to a TB or 2….

September 30, 2005
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country home
friendsmake me smile

country home


home sweet home
Originally uploaded by pilgrimgirl.

This is a picture of a house that is typical of those that Caroline and I encountered in CT.

I loved the white paint, the shutters, the large lawn (many sat on more than an acre and had their own pond!), but most of all I loved the porches.

Can I just say right now that I want to live in Connecticut? And have a house with a wraparound front porch. And a pond. And a history.

September 28, 2005
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boathouse
amputeefriendsLDS

boathouse


boathouse
Originally uploaded by pilgrimgirl.

On Saturday Caroline and I got up at 6:30 to go canoeing. That was 6:30 a.m. CT time, which meant 3:30 CA time (yawn!). When we got down to the lake we realized that the canoes were not conveniently located by our cabins, but were across the lake from us.

After a few hesitant moments, we headed off at a trot around the lake. What made it all more interesting was that I had forgotten my coat (left it on the floor of my bedroom back home) and it was COLD! I also hadn’t worn my leg (didn’t want to get the computerized knee wet), so I was on crutches. To my surprise the 1/2 mi hike around the lake goes pretty fast when you are freezing and it is 3 a.m. and you haven’t eaten and you are wearing a coat that you kifed from your still-sleeping bunkmate.

The paddling turned out to be delightful. All the more so because we were accompanied by one of the well-known founding mothers of ExII. What fun to get to know her better!

By the time I had crutched to the boathouse and back and paddled for half an hour, my arms were about ready to fall off. After a hasty breakfast I headed back to bed for an hour…

September 27, 2005
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familyLDS

worship

One of the most beautiful sights I’ve seen:
Last night E spread her homework around on the living room floor. She sprawled her own body out in the middle of textbooks, papers, pencils/pens, erasers, etc. As she tapped her toes together while doing math problems, well, it rivaled the most beautiful painting on the Louvre. To see her wholly absorbed in the moment as her pencil moved across the paper, to have her look up at me every once in awhile and confirm a math question. To see the small ringlet curls that had escaped her ponytail, and the way they framed her face.

John, C and E can always capture my complete attention. To me they are the most disarmingly beautiful creatures. Perhaps it is sacrilege to say that I worship them. But I do. I devote most of my life in serving and loving these three people. They are my trinity.

It brings to mind a quotation from Jeffrey Holland that I heard a lot this summer. He said “Heaven just wouldn’t be heaven without my wife and children there.” I agree with him wholeheartedly. But I can also say that, for me, every day _is_ heaven. Because every day I mingle with deity.

September 22, 2005
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amputee

phantom

It’s a hot white sheen that shimmers across the top of my right shin. It burns there, deep and slow. And every once in awhile flares hot and close to the bone. I see it in my mind’s eye. It is the vision that hurts.

On a night like last night I lie awake. Hoping the pain will cease so I can sleep. I twist the feather comforter into a tight wad . I wrap my legs around it. I bury my face and hands into it. I bear down.

Sometimes the pain is a comfort. A connection to what is lost. Sometimes it makes me wonder why it still hurts so bad. To lose a limb. After 21 years.

September 20, 2005
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daisy
garden

daisy

This is a daisy in my garden (it was actually a gift plant from Sandra last year that I put in the ground next to the teapot planter in my flower garden).

I applied a “watercolor” effect in a photo editor program. I think it turned out nicely–certainly much better than if I’d tried to paint a picture myself….I think it would be great to be a skilled painter. But for now I’ll settle for computer programs that let me pretend to be one.

September 20, 2005
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family

score

Went to the Costa Mesa Goodwill with the family on Friday night. Probably a weird way to spend a weekend evening. But we’re just weird that way I guess.

Funny we ran into another Turtle Rock Mom there–we both admitted that the Goodwill was the last place she expected to see Irvine folk. We both compared our ‘scores’–what fun. My two treasures: A Brand-new-in-the-box Le Creuset-style crockpot (complete w/French instructions and cookbook). And a like-new brightly-colored wool coat (which I wore to the symphony last night and it kept me perfectly warm). It’ll match the funky scarf that I crocheted last year. I think it might be just the thing for me to wear to China in November, too. Oh, and I also got a cute spring dress for $3 (sort of 50’s style w/an A-line skirt).

John got me an awesome made-in-Italy pocketbook. It’s so beautiful I’ll have to find an appropriate outfit to wear with it. He also scored some brown cords (his favorite style of pants). He wore them yesterday, too, and is already on his way to walking the backs of the hems threadbare.

All in all we spent about as much $$ as at Taco Mesa for dinner [and isn’t it so handy that Taco Mesa is right across the street from the goodwill?!].
:)

September 18, 2005
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finale
familysongs/poetry

finale



Another night with the Pacific Symphony. Carl St. Clair conducted–his long gray hair flying all about as he leapt around on the podium. I told John that in some ways he looks the very caricature of a conductor–his movements so exaggerated, his whole body leaping dramatically around the stage. But he remains a complete joy to watch.

Tonite was all-Tchaikovsky. The first piece his No 1. concerto in B flat played by a recent Van Cliburn silver medalist. Beautiful & breathtaking.

Then at intermission E and I made the mistake of getting in line for hot chocolate (for her, not me) after using the restroom. It was about 50 degrees and windy in the stadium and E was freezing in her fleece. It seemed the right thing to try to get a quick warm beverage for her. Big mistake, tho. As a result we missed the final call for seating and had to sit outside the stadium (where we couldn’t see a thing!) for Swan Lake. We entirely missed the ballet performance. I was crying as I pleaded with the usher to let us in. To no avail. [FWIW: John had never seen ballet close up before. I think he was a bit shocked. He said the male dancer in his body-baring tights had muscles where he didn’t know muscles even existed…And to think that I missed all of that–Sheesh! :) ]

But fortunately we were able to take our seats for the finale: the 1812 overture complete with cannon fire and fireworks. There was a full moon and the cannons were shooting off adjacent to our seats. They shook the whole amphitheater. It was awesome. Cannons rock! The moon had risen and was just barely visible through the red haze of the display overhead. John tried to take a quick picture (the moon is the glowing white thing in the pic above), but it’s almost impossible to capture that kind of scene on film–the shutter speed too slow, the fireworks exploding so quickly.

What a great end to a great season. I fear it may be years before we can afford orchestra-level season tickets at the symphony again. But I am so glad for these summer concerts and hope to be able to squeeze in a few individual performances again soon.

It seems, in a way, a frivolous thing to pay the outrageous prices of the Pacific Symphony (or any other local symphony, for that matter). Especially when the same amount of money could be used for more important things. I tell myself that I could just buy a CD and listen to it real loud and pretend that I am hearing it live [and then I wouldn’t have to put up with our neighbors who fiddle with plastic bags during performances, or fight for parking spaces, or cry in front of ushers who won’t let me back in after intermission].

But the CD just can’t compare. I want the real thing: the cannons, the tights, the conductor, the family, the summer, the stars, the fireworks…the memories.

September 18, 2005
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John

busy

Today was busy. Not just your regular garden-variety busy, but the kind of busy where you are timing how long it will take to put away the frozen stuff from the grocery store because you are already late to your next meeting and you have to choose whether to take 20 seconds to pee or to change your shoes that are giving you blisters.

I got so flustered this afternoon that I goofed and took the car to a meeting when John needed it to get to class. And then his cell phone broke. And then my cellphone starting ringing like crazy in the middle of my meeting when he got home and found no car. ACK!

So…what I’m trying to say, John, is that I’m sorry. And I hope you made it to class on time even though you got a late start.
Ganbarimasu!!
:)

September 16, 2005
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