Terrapin Station

Mawwaige

Is what bwings us togevvow...

and it's a good thing all the time, even when it's frustrating. 

My husband is insanely stressed out right now...he has taken on a whopping big job with the attitude that it'll be hell on wheels, but over in a few months and very profitable.  I just hope he won't be over along with it.  Keep him in your prayers if you would please, and me too, for humor, patience, and supportiveness.

Scene:

I bring Ken some spaghetti with canned meat sauce for lunch.  Also some cottage cheese with mandarin oranges.  He had asked me to get him meat sauce, the last time I fixed spaghetti with Healthy Choice jarred sauce (garlic and onion flavor).  So I did.  He really prefers my mom's homemade sauce recipe to anything; it's chock full of ground beef and other stuff, but we do not have any. 

He takes the first bite and says in a choked voice, "Is this supposed to be MEAT sauce on here?" 

I say, "It IS meat sauce, and I bought it because you asked me to." 

"Oh," he says meekly.  Keeps eating. 

*****************************

Scene: 

I stayed home from work this morning to babysit a locksmith whom Ken engaged after my years of increasing nagging.  Now, I am proud to say, we have deadbolt locks on all three doors of our house.  Before...we did not.  And one of the doors wouldn't shut properly, due to settling of the house. 

So, we have been going off leaving the house unlocked for YEARS.  I grew up in Houston, and this has NOT BEEN OKAY WITH ME. 

So I mention that the locksmith is done and gone, and the keys are hanging on the wall. 

"Are you happy now?" he says.

I walk back into the room where he is and ... just ... look at him. 

"I didn't mean that in a mean way," he says quickly.

"Yes, I'm very happy now.  Thank you."  I say. 

And I am.  And I went around locking the doors as I left the house to go to work. 

And I didn't lock him out (in the driveway).

Pachelbel's Canon Redux

Watch all the way to the end.  Props to Presbyterian Gal for this one. 

Friday Five: Reductionist but there you go

Over at RevGals, ReverendMother challenges us thus: 

Below you will find five words. Tell us the first thing you think of on reading each one. Your response might be simply another word, or it might be a sentence, a poem or a story.

1. vineyard

2. root

3. rescue

4. perseverance

5. divided

(Each of these appears in one of the readings from this Sunday's lectionary.)

The Episcopal Church is like a vineyard.  It has its roots in the Roman church, and it left that church because Henry VIII wanted to get a divorce (and some other stuff). 

We are divided today because some people can't agree to disagree within the structure.  I truly believe that with some perseverance God's will can be done. 

In the meantime, while we are spending tons of time and money fighting, big portions of the vineyard are in danger.  We could be rescuing people from their fears and pains; helping them to come to Christ.  Instead, we are fussing. 

When I consider what God would suggest to us in this situation...it's doesn't seem to me that it is this. 

PS:  Speaking of divided...Episcopalians have a different lectionary for today, from the Book of Common Prayer.  We will be moving to the Revised Common Lectionary with the first Sunday of Advent, 2007.  May I say, hooray.  I have been told by people who do not approve of this step that it is an attempt to take out the harsher portions of the lectionary...having compared Sunday's lectionary from the two sources, I think not. 

See for yourself.  Here's the BCP lectionary.  Here's the RCL. 

Stuff, Random

Brandon showed up at the house today.  You know how he moved out so he could do whatever he wanted?  Well, he has gotten his lower lip pierced with a black ring.  I can't tell you how unimpressed I am. 

Neither of us said a word to him about it. 

He and his friend were there to look for a spare modem in our office closet, but Ken was in there with someone.  While the boys were waiting, they ate up all my fat free tortillas.  And then complained because they "weren't very good."  I had an acerbic retort for that one...

As Cathy's friend would say, I love my kid but I sure don't love eighteen.

New students coming in this weekend.  Always a busy & exciting time.  New boss arrives Monday. 

I've exercised 3 mornings in a row now.  First day, horrible.  Muscles felt like macaroni.  Second day, better.  Muscles were awake and glad to move!  Third day, even better.  Sore but muscles working for me, and I could even remember to "hold in my abs!" occasionally during the workout. 

Janet's brother has had the stem cell test and she has had hers, but it takes a long time to determine whether there's a match.  The charming and lovely doctor apparently told Janet's husband that he was going to have to pay a quarter of a million dollars to even get the stem cell process started.  THANKS A LOT BUDDY!  Their insurance is not paying for any transfusions or the transplant (if it goes forward). 

Janet's husband told him, "Well, I don't have it."  (And for mercy sake, who WOULD!?)  After what I am sure was an eternity (several days anyway), the doctor came back and said, "Don't worry, we'll take care of her." What a freaking sadist.  This makes me furious. 

I'm adding "reform of medical care" to "equal rights for everyone, which includes GLBT folks" to my goals for my life. 

What's up with you?

Platelets

We had a blood drive for Janet at church yesterday, but I wasn't able to give since it was too soon since my last time. 

So today I went at my lunch hour to give platelets, which you can do every 2 weeks as they replenish themselves overnight.  They used an apheresis machine, which I've experienced when I do a double red blood blood cell donation.  However, this time it took quite a lot longer...I was actually on the machine for over 2 1/2 hours.  If you are squeamish, don't click the link; suffice it to say, it was a bit wearing.  And longer than a lunch hour. 

But NOTHING NOTHING NOTHING to what Janet's going through. 

Here are some platelets.  They didn't look like this in the little bag at all!

On the second platelet donation, I can be tested and added to the National Bone Marrow Donor Registry as a potential match.  I'm quite sure I've done this before (at least 15 years ago!) and still get their newsletters...but they don't have me listed somehow. 

Later today I'm going to Dallas with a friend to learn about co-captaining a team for the Susan B. Komen Race for the Cure this fall. 

What are you up to?

Church Family

Can't believe how much I obviously missed church last week (was at knitting camp), judging by how glad I was to be back today. 

The colors were brighter, the people dearer, the liturgy more enveloping than ever.  I heard God clearly a few times and found myself in tears more than once. 

We had a blood drive (2 buses!) for friend J.  She still has leukemia after the first round of chemo and has been moved to Big City Hospital, where she is on the Stem Cell Transplant ward.  Her brother has come in from out of the country to be tested as a potential donor. 

I had the honor of taking Communion to her today.  She is very weak and in the third day of a 5-day chemo session.  There is a lot of fluid retention and it is making it quite bothersome for her to breathe.  She is so brave and such a fighter.  I stayed with her and knitted for a little bit after Eucharist.  Some of Janet stays in that scarf for the homeless shelter. 

Please keep Janet and her family in your prayers.  She has been a member of our church for 35 years, so the whole church family counts in that number.   

Knit Camp - Part I, The Products

I spent last weekend at Camp Tyler in East Texas at knitting camp with my niece and mom and about 20 other girls and one boy from ages 6 to 15.  'Twas noisy and happy and fun. 

The theme was Christmas in August and a Special Surprise Guest was promised! 

The organizers of the camp, the Wildflower Fiber Guild, do an incredible job of setting up the projects.  They start with something super simple, so that very beginning knitters can do it and take their time throughout the workshop...then they introduce other projects throughout the day, for more advanced folks.

Our first project was to knit a very loose wool square, which was taken home that night and felted by the camp leaders. The next day, we cut out the felted material into shapes of Christmas ornaments and sewed on beads and sparkles for decoration.  I haven't done the finish work on that project yet, but here are my ornaments ready to decorate:

Next, we made BIRDS!  We used different colored scraps of yarn so some wild and wonderful creations emerged. 

Here is mine:

We each put a paperclip in our bird's back and hung it on a Christmas tree they had set up. 

Finally, we made Santa gift bags.  These are meant to hold a gift card (credit card size) but mine got a little bulky on the bottom.  Woops!  Too many cookies, Santa!? 

And, finally, here are Mom and Mallory and I with the Special Guest (a gorgeous alpaca belonging to one of the Guild members) and a Firefighter who came to pick up the toys we each brought to donate to the Tyler Firefighters' Christmas toy drive.  Can you see that the alpaca is wearing a red saddlebag thing with toys in it, handmade by his owner of his own hair and hand dyed?  Soooo cool. 

This post is so enormous with the pictures; I have more to say but will continue in the next.

Knit Camp - Part II, The Thinking

I knit pretty infrequently and wish I did it more. 

The thing I loved most about camp was the opportunity to sit and knit, with like-minded people, and just BE.  We talked, of course; but there were quiet times too (Mallory has become less incessantly chatty since last year).  In the quiet moments, I found myself praying for various people...if you read this blog, you are probably included in the list.  So each of you is knit in some way into the work I did. 

The power at the lake was off Sunday morning, from the time we arrived at 9 until about 11:00 (? - I wasn't paying attention to time!)  Instead of sitting in the air-conditioned lodge, we sat outside on the porch.  It was very pleasant...occasional breezes, good company, children running 'round to increase the breezes.  Nice to be in nature doing what we came to do. 

I got to talk with a perfectly delightful woman who had been at the camp last year, wearing a scarf and clearly having just been through chemo.  This year...she has gorgeous curly hair and a clean bill of health!  what a joy and answer to prayer.

She says she is part of a knitting group that meets in the Barnes and Noble in her home town.  I got to thinking, wouldn't that be cool, to have a knitting group here?  All the knitters there were so very different, but all had this thing in common. 

So, I came home and looked it up on www.Meetup.com - the closest one to me is in Plano, which is NOT close - a good 40 miles.  Meetup.com also informed me that 360 people had inquired about a knitting group in my home town!  Wow!  So I'm thinking about that. 

My new friend Angela was working on mittens, which were the "advanced" project for the camp.  I had intended to do them, but the pattern they were using was for "Family Mittens" knitted from 2 wools at a time and "thick and durable for Maine winters."  Texas winters do NOT generally cause us to need such items, and I doubt that my one and only friend in Maine needs me to knit her mittens...she is a much better knitter than I am!  One of these days I will get to that sort of project. 

So I stayed with my final project, a "trellis scarf."  Here it is in progress:

you can't tell from the picture, but on the fifth row in, I did a pattern of *YO K2tog K2* which left holes in that row.  The rest is straight knitting.  When I get to the 5th to last row, I just drop those same stitches and the whole column (as opposed to row) of stitches will unravel down the length of the scarf.  Like a run in a stocking. 

Like so much of knitting, I don't see how this is really going to work, but I am proceeding on faith.  That's actually like a lot of life, isn't it?

Friday Five: Stress Buster

Sally Says at RevGals:

I am off to spend a few days at the beach chilling out after a hectic few weeks and before I head off for Summer School...(um, Sally?  Summer's practically over, here...I know y'all do it differently over there, but how much summer do you have left!?)

So with that in mind this week's questions are looking at how you deal with the stress monster!!!???

1. First, and before we start busting stress, what causes you the most stress, is it big things or the small stuff?  It's small stuff that piles up.  And just when I think I have let something go...pop!  Stressors are like corks in the sea of my mind. 

2. Exercise or chocolate for stress busting ( or maybe something else) ?  Reading.  Exercise.  Sleeping.  Tai chi. Crying.

3.What is your favourite music to chill out to?  Right now, Hildegard of Bingen.  aaaaahhh.  Also I am enjoying listening to a CD of a regular Sunday Eucharist at my church...very softly...at work.  I can't hear all the words, but periodically I tune in and it is ever so soothing.  Yesterday a co-worker came in and we were talking, and the first words of the Nicene Creed blurted out a bit loudly.  She was a bit startled (though I don't imagine she knew what had been said). 

4. Where do you go to chill?  Walks on my street, the public library, Barnes and Noble with a coffee, and my little library room at home.  :)

5. Extrovert or introvert, do you relax at a party, or do you prefer a solitary walk?  I'd prefer almost anything to a party.  Boiled in oil, run a marathon?  sign me up....

Bonus- share your favourite stress busting tip!  Beat on the bed with fists, or do kickboxing moves.  Pretend to be beating or kickboxing the source of stress.  (This is best done alone). 

Breathe very deeply and exhale even more deeply.  Get it all out! 

Cry, using the Debra Barone prescription ("I put on a sad movie, see," (she used Ice Castles) "and I make a sad kind of face, and then I just cry!"

STUFFIES!

St. Cass, the lovely and clever, makes the most marvellous STUFFIES.  I have actually seen her do it!  Right out of her head, without a patttern or anything!

Josie and Boudreaux wanted to send a donation to the South Mississippi Humane Society, and so they did.  (Paypal is hard on Paws.)  However, then St. Cass sent them some Stuffies to cheer them!  Here they are playing:

Boudreaux:  "Stop flashing that light in my face!  I can't see the Stuffie!"

Josie comes to take away the Stuffie (much snarling and growling):

Boudreaux:  "Okay, fine, I like this other one better anyway!  And we're going to sit way over here, my Stuffie and me!"

There is a darling owl one with more detail work that...um...shall live on my desk so they can see it better.

Yeah right.

Thanks, Cass! from all of us!