The Lincolns

Too Long

2010-05-18T14:13:00.003-04:00

It has been far too long since we posted. I just noticed that the last posting was in August 2009. At least I can now confirm that my sense of living in a flurry of action the past 9 months was not a mental aberration. It was reality.

I don't know how many folks still check in here. Obviously the author(s) took a leave of absence, so why shouldn't the reader? In any case here are a few brief updates from the past 9 months. And then, I'll get back into regular posting. Promise.
August/September was our re-entry into American living and the highlight was probably having an abundance of water at our immediate disposal. That, and the ability to cook with our own pots and pans with specialty spices which were hard to get (at a decent price) while in Rwanda.

The downside was that work was ramping up for me (Liz) and school was in full swing for Ryan. And of course, we really missed our friends in Rwanda. We also were missing our neighbors/friends B & S who moved to New Hampshire with their 4 adorable children while we trotted about Central Africa. Fortunately, old friends from college moved nearby (hooray for S, L, and son T!) which helped us to adjust. They still help us to adjust weekly, and we are truly thankful for their friendship.
October was a challenging month - Ryan had interviews for summer 2010 internships and completed, I think, about 29 interviews in just a few weeks. Intensity was up! I was also occupied by two different major fund raising events at work. If I were Emeril, I would insert a "bam!" right about here. Oh why not?

November is only a sliver of a memory in my mind. It was a month of great transitions. My only coworker resigned and I was promoted from the director of one of our 4 programs to becoming the Executive Director of our small non-profit. Small meaning that I was, at the time, the only paid employee. I executively direct myself to do a lot of things now. =)

And suddenly it was December! That means year end tax receipts for me and finals for Ryan. Both of which were ghastly. We did get to travel to Missouri for the holidays to spend time with Ryan's family, and we even squeezed in a few days on either side to spend with my parents who live about 90 miles from us.

And then we continue into the January/February blurr when we decided it would be a good idea to move to a new apartment. Live in "the village" was dragging along and not too exciting for us since our friends ran off to New Hampshire, so we thought it best to look for a place closer to campus that we'd really love. And Voila! After a few days of searching craigslist, examining 3 apartments in total, we settled on a place that we absolutely LOVE! We have less storage and no laundry facilities, but the view and location make up for it tremendously. Now we walk to school/work and just about everywhere else. It reminds us of our days living in Cambridge, and we couldn't be happier. We have a stunning view of the Sather Tower on the Berkeley campus and easy access to beautiful walks in the Berkeley Hills. Charming to say the least.

Most recently we went on vacation to Santa Fe, NM for a week. We realized recently that we travel a lot but it isn't always "vacation" because the agenda is packed or we are in a place that requires bed nets to prevent malarial infection. Santa Fe was a week of shifting landscape due to the the sun's position in the sky, art galleries, good food at the Coyote Cafe Cantina (rooftop gourmet!) and hikes to ancient pueblos. Amazing. We actually went back 2 nights in a row and ordered the same dish (al pastor tacos - "Our Special Citrus Marinated, Spit-Roasted Pork with Pineapple. Served with Tomatillo Avocado Salsa.") which I will now try to make at home. The tomatillo avacado salsa may be the greatest challenge.

These days we're gearing up for the LOST finale this weekend (short-term fun) and in the longer term, Ryan's position at a legal firm in San Francisco. We are hoping that some of that old fashioned "wooing" that law firms conducted when the economy was strong, is still in place to a certain degree. I keep hinting that I like spa days and cooking lessons.

In a few weeks we'll head to Missouri again for a family visit and time at Lake of the Ozarks. A perfect way to kick off the summer. It is human nature to let the mind wander further (possibly a trip to Liberia for me in October) but for now I just keep trying to stay in the present moment.

New apartment photos and trip photos to come soon! Oh, and if I'm allowed, some photos of the items I am taking to the viewing party for the LOST finale. For anyone who hasn't seen the sneak peek of tonight's episode, check it out.....

How can it be?

2009-08-04T04:53:00.003-04:00

How can it be that we are in week #10 of 10? It is true - we are near to our departure from Rwanda. There have been many times when I have thought, over these past 10 weeks how we needed to post a blog about our adventures, friends, questions, and new perspectives. But, I think we have been so caught up in the moment, we have not paused to share all of these things with the rest of you. We are sorry. And we know we have a lot of "back-blogging" we need to do.

We knew heading into the summer that 10 weeks would be just enough time for us to start feeling settled, as if we lived here. And we also knew that as soon as that happened, it would be time to leave. While we were accurate in our anticipation, it doesn't make it easier to say goodbye or to return home, feeling like we are starting over again.

When we return home there is much that will feel familiar, much that will be the same. But there are many things which will have changed. We have very dear friends who have moved to the east coast and one to Southern California (practically a different country!) whom we will miss greatly. There are new courses to be taken, a relatively new job to dive into. Our senior pastor has taken a new position elsewhere, so even our church will be different when we get back.

Goodbyes are never easy. But, there is something which we have learned from friends here this summer. This hello and goodbye (mwiwiwye and mwiwirwye) is the journey of life - people come and go. And as one of Ryan's dearest friends here said to him on Sunday as we traversed to his house for an afternoon visit, "I feel you in my heart." It was this same friend who said later that day, that life is not flat - it is some of the flat but also a series of hills and valleys. He is correct indeed.

So as we wind down our last week here, there are many things and people that we "feel in our hearts." We feel in our hearts the friends at the IJM office, the staff who have kept our home safe and clean. We feel in our hearts the joy of great iced mochas, the many children who pass us on the street in the afternoon but say "good morning," eager for this attempt to practice their English. We feel in our hearts the enchantment of mountain gorillas, the surprising joy of meeting friends in unlikely places, the reminder at a vibrant charismatic church service that "worship never ends."

We feel in our hearts the stories of loss, pain, and suffering which will never be shared, the scars of 15 years ago. We feel in our hearts the now-familiar call of the many birds which, along with our evening guard, rejoice in song at the rising sun. We feel in our hearts, the place we have only begun to learn - Rwanda.

News from Rwanda: Gorilla Tracking

2009-07-04T02:42:00.009-04:00

Last week we went to Volcanoes National Park (formerly Ruhengeri) to see the famed mountain gorillas. Many of you will recall that Dian Fossey spent years of her life studying and protecting the gorillas in their mountain territory, and working hard to dispel myths that gorillas were a danger like the fictional King Kong.

I am discovering that there are certain pivotal moments in my life where I am in the midst of a powerful experience and suddenly understand the professional life of someone notable in a way that I never had before. Spending an hour with the Kwitonda Family of gorillas was one of those moments. Dian Fossey made complete sense to me.

There is little one can say to describe the power of being so close to an animal so rare, powerful, and so human-like. It was awe-inspiring, amazingly peaceful, and incredibly moving. I truly believe that I could go there day after day and never get bored. Like I said, Dian Fossey suddenly made perfect sense.

I am not alone in my wonder-struck phase. Ryan too has been charmed by the gorillas. Now, don't worry! We are not packing up and moving to Volcanoes National Park. But truly, if we were wealthier I can safely say that we would have spent several days tracking just to see the other gorilla families. As it is, gorilla tracking is a huge splurge for us, but looking back, it was well worth the price. If you ever travel to Rwanda, you should not miss this same opportunity!

The last bit of information before I post the photos. Please note that we were NOT in a car. We hiked for roughly 60-90 minutes into the mountains where the Kwitonda Family was having a bit of breakfast. (Omnivores! No King Kong fangs to be seen.) By national law, you may only stay for 60 minutes with the assigned family and then you must leave. There are many families in the mountains and they move each day and night to varying degrees in order to find new food. Thus, you never know exactly how long your hike will be when you sign up!

How do you sign up? You must buy a permit through the Rwandan government and they don't come cheaply. Nor is there ample supply. Only 50 permits are issued for each day of the year, so when you come to Rwanda in a "high season" like we have, you must plan ahead! We wound up sharing a vehicle (which took us only to the trailhead) with 3 British medical students who had bought their permits on June 10, just 2 days later than us. They were not given a choice of days on which to trek. They could go on July 1 or they would not go at all.

So, I will now post some photos which I admit don't capture the experience all that well. But so it is with most photos. If you have not received an invitation to view our videos (broadcasting from Rwanda!) on Gabble, please send me an email or make a comment on the post below. We are currently posting video from our gorilla tracking expedition on Gabble.

Above is the Kinigi Guest House where we stayed the night before our trek. To get here we spent 2 hours on a big bus, 20 minutes on a little bus, and 4 minutes on a "moto" or motorcycle taxi. Total cost per person for all three legs of the journey was $5.00 - we are budget travelers. Had we hired a private driver we would be paying $250-275 per day. (Not in the budget.)

Gorilla tracking requires you to meet at the park office by 7:00 AM and they will leave without you. So staying nearby the night before is quite useful. We got a small clean room and breakfast for $50 US. Profits from the guest house go to ASOFERWA which helps support women and children left "vulnerable and struggling" as a result of the genocide. There are other places to stay which are much nicer, but they range from $100-$500 per night. Maybe next time!

Presenting: The Kwitonda Family

This first image is one of the two Silverbacks in the family. He was the first gorilla we saw in the family upon arrival at their feeding spot. Our guide Oliver was in front, a tourist from the Seychelles behind him, and I was next. As we approached the feeding area a massive arm reached up out of the bushes and my jaw dropped open. The woman from Seychelles turned here head slowly to me and whispered with the most shocked expression on her face "Did you SEE THAT?" I think we were both a little scared but that emotion quickly passed. As you can see, he is majestic, beautiful, and quite serene.

This next image may invoke fear, but I must tell you...he is yawning! He had been eating and every so often you'd see him look really sleepy as though he might nod off. Then he gave several great yawns and laid down to have a nap. (See? No fangs.)

The Here is one of the youngest family members - this little one is roughly 3 months old and thankfully came out of its tree a bit later to play with a furry sibling. Cute no?

Seeing these two play and roll around a bit was definitely a highlight of the morning. One of our British companions (from Yorkshire) referred to these small gorillas as being "so cooduhlay" and she was right. They were VERY cuddly.

The greasy thumbprint.

2009-06-23T05:00:00.001-04:00

Since arriving here in Rwanda, both Ryan and I have sensed an undercurrent in daily life. Sometimes the undercurrent comes rushing to the surface in a way that has continually proven to be uncomfortable for us. The undercurrent is of course the genocide which occurred 15 years ago and as I described to one friend over email, it left a greasy thumbprint on everything.

Now, I need to clarify up front that these are just my impressions and thoughts. In no way am I an expert or even all that well-informed about Rwandan culture, the genocide, or their politics. What I'm going to share here are some of my observations and questions that have come to mind since we arrived just two weeks ago. It isn't necessarily easy to read this, I'm sure, but it isn't easy for me to write it either. But, in truth, I think a great disservice is done if we're not honest and open about our time here.

During our first week here we went to the genocide memorial. Photos are only allowed in the outdoor sections which consist of several very symbolic gardens and the mass graves (which are not ornamental in any way) where more than 250,000 victims of genocide have been buried.

As you would expect, the memorial is very somber, and the designers of the memorial have laid out the facts and events leading up to the genocide in bare terms, beginning with colonization, and the church's part in developing a resentful divide between the native people who had lived harmoniously prior to their arrival. It lays out the political underpinnings of all the events leading up to 1994. And, in quite an extraordinary honor to the rest of the world, they also have displays about other genocides throughout the world. It is in many ways a museum as much as a memorial.

We took our time passing through each exhibit and realized, before we had even completed all the exhibits, that we'd been there well over 2 hours. The memorial had, unbeknownst to us, in fact closed. When we rushed upstairs to the lobby to see how late it was open (we saw on our phone that it was already nearly 5:20 PM) the security guard came behind us switching off lights and closing doors. So, I must also admit that while we have seen at least 65% of the memorial we have not yet finished our visit there and must return.

I hate to admit this, but being a the memorial I realized, even in the moment, that I could not fathom the 250,000 people who were buried there, let alone the entire toll of the genocide. Such a diabolical scheme is incomprehensible to me in the first place. To try and understand such evil in the world and to then also comprehend the number of lives taken was, quite simply, too much. The realities were too big to grasp after just a visit to the memorial. That was Tuesday.

On Wednesday, our house cleaner came for the first time. She is a very sweet woman and I will call her Carol here, although this is not her name. She is in her mid- to late- twenties and has a rather quiet disposition. She is very fun to talk with, and she has been so gracious to help me with speaking Kinyarwanda. She is quick to correct me when I pronounce something wrong, but not in an offensive way. She works so hard, and she makes this house shine.

On Wednesday, I noticed that at the secondary school across the street there was a loud assembly or event going on all day long. There was a lot of music, someone on a microphone, and it was kind of nice to have in the background. I couldn't understand anything being said, so for me, it was just music.

On Thursday, Ryan left the house for work with a driver from the office who picked him up. Shortly after he left, I heard someone outside making quite a ruckus. I could not tell if it was screaming, or wailing, but whatever was going on, the person was quite upset. I decided that it was likely a child walking to school who'd gotten in trouble for something and was still carrying on a bit as they dragged their feet to school.

Carol came again to clean and as the morning hours progressed, I worked from my "office" which is the section of the house closest to the school. I was deep in my work when I realized that the wailing and screaming would come and go. Maybe this wasn't a single child who was crying on their way somewhere. Sometimes, the wailing would sound like several people.

It was nearly 11 AM when I finally realized (coming out of my concentrated work stupor) that something must be happening. I knew I was safe in the house (we're bolted down pretty tight here) but I was also extremely disconcerted about what I was hearing. The unknown creates such fear in us.

I asked Carol what was going on and she told me that the music I'd heard yesterday was for the school's day to remember the genocide. Now, this is somewhat unusual I learned because usually the national commemoration and memorials happen in April. But, the school had apparently decided to hold something in June as well.

She told me that there were many students who had been so deeply affected by the memorial at school that they had gone to the hospital on Wednesday evening. The wailing, crying and occasional screaming sobs I heard were students still overcome by events held the day before. They were not actually IN school, but likely leaving school.

And suddenly, I started to leave behind the abstract understanding I'd developed reading books about the genocide and visiting the memorial only two days earlier.

I like to simplify, label, and neatly package "things" in life. I do it all the time without thinking. People, ideas, concepts, beliefs, feelings. I'd venture that we all do it on a subconscious level. Wasn't it Peter Berger among others, who suggest that we use language (and labels) to make sense of the world? To create order in our lives?

I simplify in order to get to the bottom line.

I label in order to call something by name and to have a common name that everyone understands. And package?

Well I like to package things so that I can put them away in their proper place. I package things, wrapping them up as neatly as possible so that perhaps they will look better and help me to access them when I want them for some reason. It makes for a tidy "life."

So that is what I began to do in my first 3 days in Rwanda, but this public mourning was preventing me from my task. And when I am confronted by things I cannot simplify, label, or package, I have questions. So I began an internal dialogue which later turned into a conversation with Ryan. A conversation which continues throughout each day that we spend here.

How could it be that after 15 years, mourning could still have such power? How, as a secondary student, (high school) could you even remember anything from the genocide? I don't know much about early childhood development nor the psychology behind violence, but even the oldest student at the school would have been only 3 years old when the genocide ended. At the age of 3 would you remember the events? I guess so - but you see, it was in this bevy of questions that I realized that the undercurrent of genocide is still very strong. That greasy thumbprint was suddenly everywhere, dirtying up the packages I was trying to sort and store away.

As the week progressed and we met new people from Ryan's office, we realized that even the simplest and most well-intentioned question is imprinted with the genocide. A simple conversation with questions like "Where do you live? How long have you lived in Kigali? Do you have siblings?" requires the person to draw upon the past. In the past, is the genocide.

And yet, as I have been learning, it is very much a part of the present as well. I don't know that it is part of Rwanda's present in a violent way which would cause a repetition of events. But it is very present in collective society. Cultures mourn in different ways, and I suspect that the only thing I might possibly draw upon from a recent American experience are the attacks of September 11. And yet, even in an attempt to draw any type of comparison which might help develop understanding of cultural mourning, I am confronted with the truth that the only common thread is tragedy itself.

The events cannot be compared even for the sake of trying to understand how a culture mourns. To compare the events is to minimize one tragedy or the other, it does not allow them to stand in their full sorrow, depth, or loss.

And so, I am left without a simplification. I have no labels and this package will refuse to be wrapped up in a tidy fashion. I don't mean to sound depressing, but it seems that all I have at the moment is the knowledge that the greasy thumbprint is there.

At our church back home we are helping to plan an annual conference which brings church leaders from resource-poor countries to share their experience with us. So often the churches of resource-rich counties (NGOs and governments too for that matter) think it is necessary that we do the talking and the telling. We've got the resources, the access to education, the money, the power. But in truth, it doesn't mean that we have everything figured out. Nor does it mean we should be talking or telling. This conference is intended to help us listen. And to learn.

The theme is about joy and generosity in the midst of suffering. I have been reflecting on that quite a bit, but again feel as if I am lost in a similar bevy of questions. The first element of this theme that I tackled was suffering. Much like my attempts to understand cultural collective mourning, I realized that I must accept that the suffering of people cannot be compared. We all suffer. However, there is perhaps, a comparison we can draw out, a question we can ask ourselves to open up our minds and our hearts. What comes in our suffering? What comes out of our suffering? Is there a joy that can be found even in the midst of suffering? A generosity?

As I shared at the start of this blog post, I don't have answers. If you have made it this far in the post you will see that I have mostly questions. But I am beginning to relax a bit in the midst of the questions. Letting loose the paper wrappings, the labels, pushing those stored packages around a bit and allowing the dust to float sparkling in the sun-filled air. Maybe that is part of what this summer holds. We have 8 weeks remaining, and I can sit with that quite contentedly.

News from Rwanda: Week 1 & 2

2009-06-21T11:14:00.005-04:00

Week one, over. Week two, over. I have a lot to write. There may not be a consistent thread or theme in this post, so please bear with me.

Week One: Transition
The first week was indeed about transition to a new country, a new place to sleep, new foods, new languages. New everything. I will admit that it was, especially in hindsight, stressful and nothing reveals that more than how every bump in the night seemed to alert us to some imagined danger lurking in the darkness.

Week one also held some adventures and discoveries. We visited the genocide memorial which was a very good experience, in the way that reflection upon tragedies of the past help you understand the present and change the future. While the past 15 years have no doubt helped to heal some of the wounds felt by all, the scars are present and the deep pain of genocide is an undercurrent which can be felt in many. I do not want to dwell on that right now though – it is just an observation which must be made and noted for now. I will have a post later on some observations and things that I (Liz) experienced in our first week here which really got me thinking and asking questions internally.

We also went to the US Embassy where they were playing Slumdog Millionaire. We took along some of our new Rwandan friends from Ryan's office and they enjoyed the film quite a lot. We had seen it before with friends back in the fall which made for an interesting connection in our minds.

Let’s see, in week one we also went to the Kimironko (Chimmy-Roho) market to buy produce and cleaning products. Kimironko is an outdoor market where individual stalls hold fresh produce, dry goods, there are also used clothes and shoes, a hardware section, and one of my favorites – fabric! It is hard to describe the market. I hope to take some video the next time we are there, or at least before we leave. (Below - photo of seamstresses working on custom orders at the market. They make clothing primarily.)

Produce is much cheaper than at the established and ex-pat catered store in town called Nakumatt. For less than $10 I purchased enough produce us to last nearly a week. Not bad. There is some bartering required as I am automatically given the “Mzungu” price. (Mzungu means “white person” and while I don’t like it, it is not a derogatory phrase. It’s more of a statement.)

Week Two: Settling In

To kick off week number two, we went on Sunday the 14th to Akagera National Park which sits on the Rwandan and Tanzanian borders. We didn’t see some of the animals I had hoped for (Some day I would like to see an elephant!) but we got much closer to the game than we did back in 2005 at Hluhluwe in South Africa.

As the week progressed we went to a surprise party for one of Ryan’s colleagues. We also watched a lot of DVDs (2 Harry Potter Movies, Cars, and also Bee Movie) during the weeknights. And on Saturday we invited everyone over to our place because, as the people we rent from described it, our house is “awesome solid.” Which I am pretty sure is an expression meaning that this house has a lot to draw people over for the purpose of hanging out.

We have a small pool table, ping-pong, a basketball hoop, an electric piano, and lots of space. There is also a fabulous flat screen TV mounted on the wall but it is mysteriously missing the DVD player and the Wii. (Read: removed from view & locked away prior to our arrival) Moving into a home occupied by a family of 6 certainly has its advantages, even if we can’t use the TV or video games.

It is now Sunday night and we have spent the afternoon at Bourbon Coffee (heavenly!) and playing pool back at the house. Next up? We are going to make a rhubarb mango crumble using the butter from Nakumatt which cost $4.00 for two sticks. Ouch.

That is one thing that people tried to warn us about but was difficult to believe before arriving. Some items are very expensive. Like Ragu for instance, is $10 per jar. Want a bar of Dove soap? That will be $4.00 for one bar please. And should you need to purchase some Nivea lotion you should be prepared for highway robbery…it will cost you $14.00. I was bemoaning the price of oats as well ($4.00 for roughly 2. 5 cups) when a friend in Hawaii told me that milk was $10 per gallon. I’ll stop whining I guess and enjoy the things which are luxurious – like paying less than $1.00 for a pineapple.

More thoughts and reflections are to come - just wanted to give you all a general update on our social activities and well being.

Tell that baby to be QUIET! (News from Rwanda)

2009-06-09T13:36:00.008-04:00

We have arrived safely in Kigali and without any major incident. Our first day in Rwanda was quite nice and now that we're on our second night here, I can safely say that we're going to have a great summer.

We left D.C. together on Saturday night (6/6) at 10 PM which was no small feat. Keep in mind that when we booked our tickets back in March, we were forced to travel separately for a portion of the trip. (The joy of using airmiles to fly anywhere.) That might not seem like a big deal to most people but for someone (me, Liz) who finds air travel somewhat anxiety-provoking, it was a challenge. Earlier on the 6th, I spent more than 2 hours on the phone with different airlines to see if there had been cancellations which would allow us to be on the same flight.

The two legs of the trip where we had previously been separated were on Air France. With the devastating and still mysterious crash that Air France had over the Atlantic less than a week before, some seats had opened up.

This airline crash of course, seemed to color our own trans-Atlantic flight. People were clearly edgy. Or maybe they were just irritable and French. It is hard to say. I don't mean to stereotype, but at the same time... there was a certain entitlement espoused by several of the French passengers which would make it east to stereotype. If I were trying to.

Ryan and I were seated together watching everyone else board the flight, when suddenly a commotion sprang up just 6 or 7 rows in front of us. A French man had gotten to his seat only to find out that someone had put a bag in the compartment directly above his assigned seat. (Gasp!)

It was entirely unacceptable to him that he could not store his bags directly overhead, even though the flight attendant showed him an empty space in the overhead bin just one row behind him. But no. He started a mini-rampage that could be heard by everyone in our section of the 777 and certainly the sections on either side of us. The offending bag was removed by its owner and the Frenchman settled into his seat looking disgruntled.

(My thought at the time? Wow, that guy is cranky and ridiculous)

Just as the Frenchman was seated, another commotion arose one row in front of us and to our right. A family of 6 were traveling together and needed the compassion of other passengers. Four of them had two of the three seats on the right side of the plane, and one seat in the middle section of the plane. The challenge? There happened to be an older couple who had the aisle seats which essentially split the family. See below:

What the family proposed was to have the older woman give up her aisle seat and sit next to her husband so that the family could have 3 seats in a row. Yes, they were a family of 6 traveling together spread throughout the plane. 4 of them, the mom and dad were trying to sit together in 3 seats with a 7-year old and a 2-year old on their lap.

The family was pretty staunch in their request and kept begging the old woman to move.

When you think about it, the most positive outcome for ANYONE in this situation is to make the switch. If the couple kept the aisle seats they would have been disrupted most of the night by the family getting up, kids crying, or whatever families do on planes.

But, NO. The older woman, who I will now refer to as the "Crabby Old Woman" or COW for short, was infuriated. "We have been in our seats for a very long time! Why are you just now coming to sit down?" she barked? (She was either unaware that many people were still boarding the flight or simply flailing about a very poor excuse for not wanting to move.)

The haggling went on and on. Finally, the older man, now referred to as the "Crabby Old Man" or COM, said in the most exasperated voice to the mother and father "Well if we DON'T move for you we're going to wind up feeling like hell!"

What he failed to realize, was that his wife, the COW, was going to make everyone around her feel like hell even if they did make the move. It was inevitable. Finally, the COW moved, but not after telling the flight attendants who merely watched the exchange, "Ce n’est pas juste!" and sat down. (Translation: "This is not right/just/fair!")

The COW continued to grumble in her seat, looking for ways that she could assert herself. As the family got settled (and espoused many times their gratitude and thanks to the COW) they family stowed their bag in the overhead bin, where the COW's things remained. The COW shouted "They are crushing my hat! Look at that bag! (then jumping up and hitting the family's bag) That bag is too big for this! Too big!"

The attendants settled that matter but the adventure was not over. Why? Because the very cute 2-year old boy started to cry. And the COW became enraged.

As the safety video played, she screamed (yes, she literally yelled) at the mother. "We switched our seats for you and now your baby is crying. TELL HIM TO STOP CRYING!!!"

At this point, I couldn't help but step in. It is my nature. So, I tried to raise my voice gently enough to be heard by the COW and the COM. "Ma'am, please keep your voice down!" I said. And then myself and another passenger quickly pushed our call buttons to get the attendants on the scene.

There is nothing to raise your heart rate before a flight like having passengers scream at someone right before taxiing. I have never had it happen before but it was enough to make me want to run screaming from the plane. Erratic and volatile behavior does not bode well on a transatlantic flight.

Eventually the COM and COW got moved to seats elsewhere, which worked out quite well for the family. Their 2 other family members took the empty seats. The baby? He slept the entire flight and never made a sound again.

If that weren't enough to make the flight interesting or noteworthy. There was the other crabby Frenchman sitting behind the woman next to me. As soon as she reclined her chair, he began to hit it with his fist. My French lessons didn't prepare me well enough to understand him, but he clearly hated the idea of having an airline seat in his way. Even though that is the norm on any flight. The woman next to me had been living in Paris for the last 3 years. She barked back at him and then turned to me saying "The French. They argue over EVERYthing!"

Think the chaos is over? Nope. About 75% of the way through the flight, the crew all seemed very interested in the lavatory right behind us. Why? Some idiot decided to smoke in there. Can you believe it? Who smokes on an airplane these days? And, by the way, in case you are wondering...if that cigarette had somehow caused a fire on our plane, and the cabin got heated up, you, as a passenger, have roughly 90 seconds to get yourself out of there before you die. And you wonder why I don't like flying?

That particular flight was quite turbulent and I think everyone, including crew, were quite stressed out. It is easy enough to see why. Not only had their very own airline lost a plane in very heavy turbulence 6 days prior, but THIS plane was full of crazy people. Or maybe most of them were just French. (Sorry - I could not resist that stab.)

After landing in Paris, napping for 2 hours, then flying to Amsterdam and wasting another 4 hours, we boarded our flight to Nairobi. We landed in Nairobi and waited for 90 minutes to depart for Kigali. But wait? What is this? We must stop in Burundi first? You'd think that by this time another flight would put me over the edge. But, I even though I was really ready to be done with all of the airline travel it seemed like one more tiny punch in the gut that I could handle. Maybe I'd already been pushed over the edge and thus no longer had the energy to fuss. After all, we'd been traveling for more than 48 hours and hadn't been outdoors or had fresh air since D.C.

Once in Kigali, we were met by two IJM folks who took us to our house to unpack. They said they would return in a few hours to take us to the market and then have dinner. It was hard to stay awake during those hours, as you might imagine. But I did my best to try and get the unpacking started. Everything went well until I came to the bag we'd borrowed from our friends the McWhorters.

They had offered us the key to the suitcase when we left, but figuring that you're not supposed to lock suitcases anymore, we decided to leave it behind. What we hadn't considered was that the lock was an approved TSA lock which they CAN unlock when they decide to search your bag.

Lo and behold, TSA checked only one of our bags. And it was the bag we did not have a key for. And what did TSA kindly do for us after searching the suitcase? They locked it up. Thoughtful, no?

Other than these small adventures, everything has been smooth sailing. Here is a photo of us with Lucy at dinner on our first night in Kigali. That is our kitchen! Maybe when I get back I can upload the video showing the "How to catch a cockroach" tutorial our other IJM friend, Liz, gave us earlier that evening in the very same room.

Wish you were here!

This past week...

2009-04-20T10:40:00.009-04:00

This past week was a lot of fun...it was part of my "Birthday Season" and thus involved hanging out with people I really cherish. And a lot of dessert.

In addition, a friend of mine was being honored at a baby shower so that meant a little creativity was in order. I took the challenge seriously.

Shortly before my birthday, Ryan and I went to Golden Gate Park and had tea at the Chinese Tea Garden.
On Saturday the 11th we celebrated my birthday with friends and I made a French pear tart for dessert. It was the 2nd time I'd ever made a tart (I'd created a "practice" earlier in the week so I wouldn't serve a failure) and it was quite good. I'm excited to try some of the fresh fruit tarts next.
Then mid-week I started working on the gift I'd make for the baby shower on the 18th. Wow. Talk about working under a deadline. I enhanced some cute baby shirts with the same fabrics I made baby shoes out of. That's right. I sewed baby "shoes" as part of the gift. Believe it or not, it was easier than making a baby quilt. And less time consuming. I finished the baby shoes around 2 AM the day of the shower. The shower took place 10 hours later.
The onesie and matching shoes. The real difficulty in all of this (and something I have yet to figure out is:
1) What size of foot will this shoe actually fit? The onesie is a 3-month size but what about the shoes? I need to figure that out before I make another pair so I can ensure that the onesie and shoe fit at the same time.
2) I need to figure out how to make a nicer interior for the shoe. You can see some of the seams at present and I think it would look more finished if I had some kind of insert.
The other onesie and accompanying shoes:
After the baby shower, my parents came over to celebrate my birthday. They brought a delicious carrot cake and gifts. You can see the table cloth they got me as a gift on the table. It is antique/retro and hand stitched. I love it!

Just because

2009-03-31T12:50:00.002-04:00

This in many ways, seems like a strange video to post. But maybe it doesn't seem all that strange in other ways. This video is a compilation of footage taken from a trip taken by musician Sara Groves on a recent trip to Rwanda.

While there are many things about this video I don't care for there are a lot of things I like about this song and the lyrics. I think the lyrics are what get me the most. They remind me of all the volunteer work I've ever done, and of all the times I've spent with people when they are in pain, their hearts are broken, and there is little I can do to help.

It also helps me prepare myself for our own journey to Rwanda this summer where Ryan will be putting his intellectual abilities to work by helping people through pro bono legal services.

The lyrics are listed after the video.

I saw what I saw and I can't forget it

I heard what I heard and I can't go back

I know what I know and I can't deny it

Something on the road, cut me to the soul

Your pain has changed me

your dream inspires

your face a memory

your hope a fire

your courage asks me what I'm afraid of

(what I am made of)

and what I know of love

we've done what we've done and we can't erase it

we are what we are and it's more than enough

we have what we have but it's no substitution

Something on the road, touched my very soul

I say what I say with no hesitation

I have what I have and I'm giving it up

I do what I do with deep conviction

Something on the road, changed my world

The garden grows

2009-03-03T01:28:00.008-05:00

We have been busy building our garden, and soon, we hope to report that it is growing rapidly and full of good organic food! I found the photos which I'd originally thought were lost. Here is our garden plot when we first got it. There was some serious growth we needed to chop down and remove.

After a couple of hours our 12 x 18 plot looked like this:

Here are some photos of our hard work the last few weeks after clearing the weeds. Let me emphasize one word...HARD. This was all very hard and I have such great respect for those westward trail blazing pioneers.

Here I am raking in the new compost into the existing dirt, which has a very high clay content and thus does not drain well. Mixing in fresh compost is essential to ensuring our plants grow and don't just live in a giant puddle.
Here is Ryan building our second box.
In Box 1 we planted broccoli, an heirloom tomato, thyme, as well as green onions and carrots.
The carrots and green onions have yet to sprout, but it will take at least another week until we see anything. In Box 2 I'm hoping to plant potatoes and some peas!

I planted the peas in a small pot on our back deck and we'll transplant the seedlings once they are a little bigger. Since we'll be gone for the summer we're hoping a friend will want to tend to our plot and possibly grow some new produce.

We have been out and about the last few weekends taking hikes, visiting Sonoma, meeting up with friends in San Francisco. More to report soon!

A summary

2009-02-13T20:17:00.015-05:00

Since Christmas, there has been a lot going on for us. We visited Kansas City to have a “second Christmas” with the Lincolns.

We took time to test out some of our new Christmas gifts. We treated a couple of friends in our neighborhood to tangerine sorbet, blackberry sorbet, and homemade waffle cones. The ice cream maker and waffle cone maker worked perfectly. We can’t wait to experiment some more!

We also took advantage of our time off and trips to the Peninsula to go to my favorite taqueria. My favorite tacos are found at El Grullense #3 in Redwood City. They cost $1.15 each and they are delicious. El Grullense has many taquerias in Redwood City, but #3 is the most, um, rustic. There isn’t anywhere to sit down (it is a taco stand after all -- the tradition is to take your tacos back to your car and use your trunk as a table. This is not everyone’s tradition, but it is the way my friends and I have always done it, so that’s the tradition I carry forward.

We have also been making pizzas from the Cheeseboard cookbook. We have mastered one particular pizza and now need to branch out a bit.
Cilantro, tomatoes, lemon zest, garlic oil, feta and mozzarella cheese. It is truly wonderful. This particular pizza below had too much cheese for my liking, but it was still darned good.

On Martin Luther King Jr. day we decided to hit the coastline and drove down Highway 1 from San Francisco to Santa Cruz. It was a gorgeous day and we stopped at many different beaches to explore. We tried to see the elephant seals, but it turns out that you need to make a reservation, so we’ll wait for next winter.

January 20th was the inauguration and we went to Sproul Plaza on the UC Berkeley campus to watch the proceedings on big screens. It was special to watch the inauguration at Sproul Plaza because it is the location which began the Free Speech Movement at Berkeley back in the 1960s. The large screen was set near the front of the Administration building where, during the beginning of the movement, Mario Savio and countless others stood on top of a police car shouting out their frustrations and concerns about the UC Berkeley Administration. The police had come to arrest the protestors, but, there were too many to be squished into the car.

I had to go to a school to sub for a teacher so we did leave early, but we were able to catch Obama’s speech. I must admit that I was a little disappointed by some of the Obama supporters at Sproul Plaza. I had an expectation that they would always be quiet and courteous, even if they didn’t like what someone had to say. During the campaign I believed that Obama was time and again, raising the bar in so many areas of American life. I had believed that his supporters would rise to the occasion, but they didn’t always do that during the proceedings. In my opinion at least.
Speaking of substitute teaching...I have been subbing at Cornell Elementary School in a "long term" position over the last few weeks. I've been teaching second grade and I have to say that the kids are pretty darn fun. I'm exhausted at the end of the day, but subbing in the same class every day is much better than getting a phone call at 6 AM asking you to go somewhere new and to try and organize 20-30 kids for 6 hours.

I try to put a good face on the random subbing jobs by saying that "at least I'm on my toes and doing new things every day." Honestly though, doing that every day makes me feel old because I am just so wiped out and crabby afterward. But I am collecting some seriously funny stories, and perhaps some fodder for that children's book people have been pushing me to craft.

On my first day subbing in this particular classroom, the first thing scheduled for the day was to cook "teem gok" which turns out to be a deep friend wonton cookie. Great. Classroom full of 20 kids waiting to make their very own fried cookies and I don't even know any of their names. Thankfully the classroom aide demonstrated the recipe and stood by the electric fryer for the entire lesson.

On the second day subbing we took a walking field trip to the local library. Wonderful....field trips were my least favorite thing when I taught before and I get to take one on just my SECOND DAY with this new group of kids. Needless to say, I am learning how to "go with the flow."

During my first full week teaching this we celebrated the schools 100th birthday...and all the second grade teachers tried to dress up as if it were 1909. I made a very good attempt and looked the part. I just wished I'd had some sort of bonnet. Wondering why there is no picture here? Read below.

Last weekend we found out that we could get a garden plot in our student housing! We labored for about 2 hours trying to clear the plot from its 2 foot high weeds. We were sore. Since then we have purchased some things to plant but because of the rain we haven't been able to rototill or plant. It is hard to be patient. I really want to plant all our new produce.

I somehow managed, for the very first time in all 3.5 years of owning this digital camera, managed to delete all of the photos showing our garden plot AND my 1909 costume. Woe is me. More to come when we plant.

Dreams do come true: Monterey Market

2009-01-26T19:42:00.003-05:00

One of the best things about living in the Berkeley Area are the little "hidden gems" as Ryan likes to call them. We had been here a few weeks when a friend asked if we'd been to Monterey Market. We shared that we weren't familiar with the store but really liked another highly recommended place for food, the Berkeley Bowl.

Well, the Berkeley Bowl is very popular, but it is out of my way to drive to, and the parking lot is atrocious. I have sat in line waiting to get into the parking lot for 10 minutes even. They have a HUGE produce selection and every item you can imagine, but the parking lot makes me understand "road rage" in a way that nobody wants to.

So, when this friend mentioned the Monterey Market I listened closely. It was 1) close to our place 2) more affordable than Berkeley Bowl (which is hard to imagine) and 3)sells primarily local produce, so it is nearly the same as being part of a CSA.

The first time I went to Monterey Market I was a little dismayed by the parking lot, for it is nearly as painful as Berkeley Bowl. But, what I found inside was worth any wait I may have.

First, this place SMELLS like FRESH PRODUCE precisely because it is full of it.

Secondly, they have nearly an entire aisle of bizarre mushrooms. I like mushrooms but haven't ventured much beyond shitake, portabella, and your standard button. The Monterey Market has mushrooms I've never even imagined before. I haven't bought them yet, but I still like to look.

And finally, they are incredibly affordable. Just look at this bounty I got for $24.18:
It might be hard to see all the specifics here, so I will just tell you:

Carrots
Green Beans
Garlic
Half -n-half
5 fuji apples
Celery (organic)
Sweet Potatoes
Red potatoes (organic)
Risotto
Dried Chickpeas (experimenting with these)Cilantro
3 Yellow Bell Peppers
Red Kael
Baby Bok Choy
4 Oranges
Casbah boxed Cous Cous (w/my favorite flavorings)
Fennel

Would you believe that three of the items (risotto, cous cous, half-n-half) actually resulted in $9 of this $24.18?

When I think about it another way, I have even a bigger smile upon my face. I purchased 16 items for $24.18. If we just divide that straight up, it turns out I only paid $1.50 for each item. (For the sake of convenience I grouped certain things into a single item ie: 3 peppers = 1 item)

And the fun part is that if I want to splurge and by, oh, QUAIL EGGS, I can. That is right. They even sell fancy things I don't anticipate cooking such as quail eggs.

Dreams do come true. They do. They do.
(More hidden gems to come)

Advent-ageous

2008-12-03T02:04:00.002-05:00

A friend from High School recently shared this video with me, and I passed it along to some more friends. One of them posted it on her blog, which I think is an excellent idea, and precisely the reason I'm doing the same thing.

Thankful

2008-11-25T17:35:00.003-05:00

As it is the week of Thanksgiving, I thought it appropriate to pause for a moment to think about the things I really am grateful for. There are many!

Dictionary and Thesaurus widget on the Mac
I don't know how many of you use macs, but I just love the widget that shows my calendar, weather, time, calculator, or just about any other function I'd like to have when I push the F4 button. The feature I seem to use most is the Dictionary/Thesaurus. There are a few words that I can't ever remember to spell....one of them being "grateful." As you'll notice in my first sentence on this blog post, I got it correct.

Cook's Illustrated
I love having a subscription to Cook's Illustrated, in part because every recipe we make from the magazine is delicious, but also because I am learning a lot about cooking and tend to appear as a culinary genius as a result. Last night's stove top roasted chicken took a TON of work, but it was delicious and I think even Gordon Ramsay would have been proud.

Gordon Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares on Hulu.com
We have a number of cable channels to select from as part of our monthly lease in the student village. Channel #70 is BBC America where we were recently introduced to Gordon Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares. I needed more than just a 10AM fix each day, so we were thrilled to find out that he also has an American version of the show that we can watch online. As silly as it may sound, Gordon has really raised the bar for us in the kitchen when it comes to getting the freshest ingredients. We are sold!

The Internet
I know that sounds ridiculous, but where would I be without the internet? Seriously...my Master's degree would probably have been entirely different without it, not to mention that I would have a very difficult time trying to keep up with our friends who are literally scattered across the country....and Ethiopia & Cuba. No email? No google? No NYTimes online? No book-reading blogs to give me tips on the next fascinating novel? And quite possibly the most important element of online living...google maps.

Barack Obama
I'm sure it is obvious why I'm thankful for Barack Obama, and all the obvious reasons for my thankfulness are shared by many. But I am also thankful for Barack Obama because it means I won't have to watch Sarah Palin wink at the cameras for the next 4 years. I may have to hear "Shrillary" Clinton's nagging voice, but I can tolerate that pretty easily.

Old Friends
We have a number of very dear friends who we don't get to see as often as we'd like. I think that stinks. But they are still dear, and many of them are still very familiar with the goings-on of our lives. They have shaped us and sharpened us in a variety of ways, and the various transitions we've recently made have found us relying on them a great deal.

"Old wood to burn,
Old books to read,
Old wine to drink,
Old friends to trust."

New Friends
Having recently moved and now feeling like we are starting to become settled in Berkeley, we are very aware that we could not have done so without some very special new friends. New place, new friends, new adventures! We are especially thankful to the many friends we have made at FPCB!

Family
I would be remiss if I didn't mention family, not to mention I'd be in a lot of trouble with a number of people. Every year we come to cherish our families more and more. While we don't get to see everyone in our families as much as we would like, we hold on to the knowledge that our affections are shared and that the next visit will be "just around the corner." Although, those next visits are never soon enough. I am also very thankful to be living just 90 minutes from my parents...it makes our visits much easier and particularly enjoyable.

Free Stuff from the Dumpsters
It seems crude to post this after writing about being thankful for family, but whatever. It isn't intended to diminish the importance of family and you'll just have to trust me on that one. But seriously, I am so thankful for all the free stuff we have gotten in the last 3 years.

Crate & Barrel down cushioned sofa
Coffee table trunk
Library ladder bookshelf
Christmas plant in basket
24x36 inch cutting mat

Need I say more?

Luxury of time and space to bake and reflect
While I have been looking for work (yes I have been looking...just not finding) the past 4 months I have also had an opportunity to be in the kitchen more often. And being in the kitchen means I am also doing a lot more thinking and reflecting. This is a very good thing for everyone because it means good food and good thought. It is rare, culturally speaking, to have such a block of time and space to reflect on one's life. Sure, I spend time watching TV and doing social things online, but I have the rare opportunity to really think about things. Where do I want to go professionally? How can I be more supportive of Ryan during law school? How can our small group become more inclusive and dynamic? It's just so great to not be mentallly stagnant, even though on the outside it may just appear that I'm making parmesan peppercorn biscotti.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, and over the next few days, think about all the people and things you're thankful for. Then tell them.

Got $10?

2008-11-15T11:10:00.003-05:00

'One Home Many Hopes' is a home for abandoned and orphaned street girls in Kenya that was founded by a friend of ours from Boston, Thomas Keown. He saw the need for such a home when he visited Kenya and was shocked by the sight of children foraging through trash piles for food just to stay alive.

Today, One Home Many Hopes is providing shelter and education for 35 young Kenyan street girls. Thirty-five girls who once ate flea-ridden scraps from trash piles, will today have cooked meals. Girls who once slept cold in the mud of Mtwapa's streets, will tonight curl up in clean sheets. Girls who had no hope and no future will spend nine hours in school tomorrow. These 35 girls who were once known to nobody, right now know that they are loved.

One Home Many Hopes was selected as 1 of 2 small non-profits to be filmed raising $20,000 in 30 days for a documentary. They have someone who is willing to match up to $10,000...so their personal goal is to have 1,000 people give $10...the need now, is to find 1,000 people to give $10...by November 23rd! If you are interested in learning more about One Home Many Hopes, please click here.
If you are interested in giving $10 to go directly toward OHMH, and also achieving the goal for $20,000, please click here.

Election Day....POST #5

2008-11-05T01:42:00.009-05:00

6:00 Ryan agrees to a "hardcore 30 minutes of study" so we can get to our friend Renjit's to watch election coverage. I fold mountains of clean laundry.

6:30 Television turned off, running to the Nissan to get beverages for the election night party at Safeway.

6:48 Arrive at Renjit's house to hear "It's over." Meaning that the consensus is that Obama has taken the election by storm.

7:29 Ryan shares some of his beer with Obama.

8:02 Heard on MSNBC and CNN that with the close of west coast polls, Obama can be named as the president elect.

8:05 BBC website announces Obama's victory.
8:06 Screen shot of Google's interactive political map site showing Obama has clinched the west coast and enough electoral votes to claim the presidency.

8:07 Champagne bottles are opened and the bubbly starts to flow. Miraculously I get Ryan to make an "excited election face" for the camera.

8:17 McCain begins his concession speach. Our election party crowd, myself included, was really moved by McCain's gracious words. We were all impressed.

8:28 Screen shot of the Obama Biden campaign website updated to reflect the big news. A hearty "Thank You" is displayed on their main page.
8:31 Screen shot of the NY Times website and Obama as president elect.

8:34 Dessert time at the election party. Dessert of choice? BAKED ALASKA.
8:57 Obama and family take the stage. I start to feel my heart swelling.
9:11 Obama talks about those whose vote he did not win, and how he hears their concerns.
9:12(ish) Obama addresses the world at large. I have to wipe my tears at this point. "Our stories are singular but our destiny is shared."

9:14 Obama honors Anne Nixon Cooper. Ryan's tears start to build too!

9:46 We realize it is time to head home.

10:59 Prepping for bed. Tomorrow is "just another day" and yet it marks the dawn of a new era in our minds. We may need to keep plodding along as usual....studying, looking for work, building new friendships. But, we are also encouraged that we have been a part of a moment in time that is truly historic. We have helped create change, just as we do every 4 years, but this time it seems a little more real.

Election Day....POST #4

2008-11-04T20:40:00.007-05:00

3:35 Ironed Obama t-shirt to wear tonight while waiting for the final count at our friend Renjit's house.

4:00 Drove to Berkeley campus to pick up Ryan

4:22 Ryan hops in car and I hand him an envelope containing HIS Obama pin.

4:26 Parked car near Oxford street where both Starbuck's and Ben and Jerry's are located in the same block.

4:37 Got my free Starbuck's drip coffee for having voted today.

4:46 Got in the line outside of Ben and Jerry's (under the Starbuck's awning) to wait for my free scoop of ice cream...again, just for having voted today.
5:03 Got my scoop of "Chocolate Therapy" ice cream. Delish!!
5:07 Tried to share a bite of ice cream with Obama.

5:21 Took photo of the Berkeley hills under the light of the setting sun.
5:42 Turned on MSNBC to see that Obama has 103 and McCain has 58. Still several states to go.

MORE TO COME.....

Election Day....POST #3

2008-11-04T17:01:00.002-05:00

1:47 Logged in to the Barack Obama campaign site to make calls to Obama supporters in swing states, encouraging them to vote and tell them about their polling location.

1:50 Familiarized myself with the calling script and website where I am expected to record information.

1:55 Made first call to a supporter in Missoula, MT. Turned out to be a wrong number. Logged information.

1:56 Made call to a supporter in Fort Shaw, MT. Went to voicemail. Left a message encouraging supporter to vote today at their specified location and provided a phone number if they had questions.

1:58 Made call to a supporter in Malta, MT. Wrong number again. Logged information.

1:59 Made call to a supporter in Savage, MT. Elderly woman answered the phone and I asked for the supporter. She told me he was deceased. I expressed my condolences. She said "Why did you want to speak with him?" So I told her I was a volunteer with the Obama campaign and that I was calling to give him polling information. She said "Oh! I talked with you last night! I voted. I know he would have voted too if he was here." It was terribly awkward and I just said I was sorry and appreciated her support.

2:02 Decided I was not up for contacting more people via phone. It was just too uncomfortable.
2:03 Guilt smacked me upside the head.
2:04 Got distracted by the television (turned on, but on "mute) for a moment. Decided this was no time to be wimpy.
2:06 Looked at list and realized I could call a few more. Ugh. Responsibility and obligation aren't always easy to deal with.

2:08 Called supporter in Glendive. Left a message which was more profesisonal sounding than the first message I left. Maybe my nerves are calming down.

2:12 Chinook voter supported Obama and took her husband to the polls with her. Hooray!

2:14 Realized I need to get some work done on the contract I've taken with a friend's non-profit to do some data entry this week. Yikes! Civic duty collides with bringing home a little piece of bacon.

MORE TO COME.......

Election Day....POST #2

2008-11-04T16:08:00.003-05:00

10: 15 Placed "I Voted" sticker on my sweater.

10:38 Scrambled out of apartment to drive to Oakland school where I tutored a 4th grade student for 60 minutes.

12:40 Signed out of the school office visitor's list and tried to recall if I'd seen any Starbuck's along the drive from Berkeley to Oakland so I could get my free coffee for having voted.

1:05 Arrived back at the apartment complex (NO Starbuck's coffee in hand) and checked the mail. My Obama campaign button FINALLY arrived.
MORE TO COME..............

Election Day....ONGOING post

2008-11-04T09:20:00.001-05:00

The big day is here at last!

7:30 Woke Up.

7:42 Watched YouTube video regarding Harlem voters sent by a friend.

7:55 Donated my FaceBook status to Obama campaign.

8:25 Left apartment with Ryan to walk to our polling station. And waited.

CONTINUED TO WAIT IN THIS LONG LINE.

8:47 Took excited photo of waiting in line once we reached the sign indicating we were 100 feet from the entrance.
8:55 Entered polling room.

8:57 Provided identification, name, address. Signed registry.

9:00 Wrangled with polling employee about not taking the "I Voted" sticker off of her thumb.
I wanted to take one at the end that had the paper backing on it. Notice in the timeline above that I haven't showered at this point. I had wanted to put a sticker on the clothes I'm REALLY going to wear for the day. Additionally, for those of you who assume I was out of line....even Ryan confirms that I was not. The woman said "Take this." And I responded, "I want to get one of those (gesturing to the end of the line) with the paper on it." And she said "JUST TAKE THIS." I said, "I don't want this one."

And then seeing the flustered and fearful faces of the other polling employees I stepped down to the right to get my ballot. I may have also said "I just want to vote." Or maybe I just thought it. Who knows.

9:03 Stepped into secret booth to vote. Tried to collect myself following the incident with the sticker pusher.

9:04 Cast my vote for President.

9:05 Cast votes on different propositions in California such as the high speed train, Sarah's Law, Prop 8 on gay marriage, and of course I voted for a school board member in there too.

9:08 Ryan and I emerge from the polls and immediately discuss the sticker pusher. Ryan rightly chuckles that if the woman was THIS testy after the polls had only been open for 2 hours, she has a LONG day ahead of her.

MORE UPDATES on VOTING DAY EVENTS to come. STAY TUNED.

I love KFOG

2008-10-28T14:50:00.006-04:00

On Sunday night Ryan and I were sitting at the kitchen table reading and listening to KFOG which is my favorite radio station. I first discovered KFOG when I moved to the Bay Area in 1997 and when I moved away in 2002 I was really bummed. What radio station could be better than KFOG?

One of my favorite memories from living in the Bay Area was actually at a KFOG even, the KFOG Kaboom! which happens in the spring/summer. The KFOG Kaboom consists of daytime concerts on the San Francisco piers and then after the sun sets, they provide a fireworks show. The part of this experience which was so amazing was that the fireworks exploded over the top of the show. Maybe not the safest thing in the world, but certainly the most powerful. That fireworks show (in my opinion) rivals the 4th of July show in Boston.

Speaking of Boston...when I moved there in 2002 I really did miss KFOG. And then the heavens opened, beams of light shot down to earth, and KFOG started streaming their music online.

What joy! I could listen to KFOG at work online! The best part was that because I was 3 hours ahead of the San Francisco, I could get the morning show while I was having my own mid-morning slump at the computer. I didn't have to be awake at 6 am to enjoy Dave, Peter, Renee or Irish Greg. They were coming through loud and clear after I'd had my breakfast, tea, and was just getting into the nitty gritty at work.

So, when we returned to CA just a few months ago on our moving day, we turned on the radio in the car and listened to KFOG as we drove to our new apartment. Since then, Ryan has converted into a Foghead, just like me.

Back to Sunday night...we're sitting at the table enjoying Rosalie (the dj) and her "accoustic sunset" show they offer on Sunday evenings. The newest single off of Ray LaMontagne's album came on and we both sat in silence, soaking it in. We hadn't heard any of his new album yet and were, as always, in awe of his talent.

As the song ended, Rosalie came on the air and suggested people send her an email to win tickets to see Ray LaMontagne perform in Oakland on November 3rd. So, I did.

I told her in my email that I'd been a Foghead for 11 years and had recently returned to the Bay Area bringing a new recruit with me. I hit "send" and completely forgot about the whole thing. In part because I read on the website that my favorite morning dj, Dave, will be retiring in December. I have to admit that I got a little choked up. Some people may think that is silly, but I don't actually care.

Yesterday afternoon, as I watched a few items on my desk shake (I think it may have been a very very minor earthquake) I went to the USGS website to see if there was any news of any earthquake. Then, out of habit, I checked my email and saw this:

"Congratulations Elizabeth,

Thanks for listening to KFOG’s Acoustic Sunrise and Sunset. You’ve won a pair of tickets to see Ray LaMontagne at the Paramount Theatre on Monday, November 3^rd and passes to the soundcheck before the show! Please respond with your current phone number and a KFOG representative will contact you with details shortly.

Enjoy the show and thanks for listening to World Class Rock on 104.5 San Francisco, 97.7 San Jose – The Bay Area’s KFOG!"

What?? That's right, I had a hard time believing it too. I had simply sent an email and won TWO tickets to the concert AND TWO tickets to the sound check beforehand! Ryan of course, was beyond thrilled. He could hardly believe this was true.

One of our favorite concerts we went to together was Ray LaMontagne in 2004 at a seemingly small concert venue which holds 650 people, but you would never know it when you're inside. It was clear that he had not done a lot of performing - he seemed so uncomfortable on the stage and simply sang out his songs. No talking, no joking around, no stories from the road. But it didn't matter. His voice was MORE than enough. In fact, I remember that when he opened up his first song, my jaw dropped open. I'd heard his album but hearing him live was an entirely different experience.

The next time we saw him, he was at a much larger Boston venue, Avalon (3500 people), and he seemed tired. We were catching him at the end of a tour and you could tell that it had worn him down a bit. It was amazing though, his voice still had the power to silence the crowd. I've never seen anything quite like it. It took a moment, but on one of his songs there was an absolute hush of the crowd.

And the next time we see him perform, it will be at the Paramount Theater (3040 people). And we will be seeing him for FREE, all thanks to KFOG!

Vanity Numbers. I've got a yam.

2008-10-18T23:22:00.003-04:00

I have often thought about what my cell phone number might spell out in words. I'd forgotten the term for this is a "vanity number." I'm not vain, but I would like a number that spells something just for kicks.

I have a friend whose number is "(###)-## money" and if you knew this friend, you'd agree that it TOTALLY fits him. Yes, he is suave and if anybody deserves a special phone number, it is him. He is a truly nice and kind person so it isn't like he is a macho jerk that acts (or thinks) he is loaded with cash.

Now that Ryan and I have new cell phones I thought I'd see what our numbers might spell. It turns out I don't have that many options. About the only true word I can spell is "yam."

If you want to try it for yourself:

http://www.phonespell.org/phoneSpell.html

"The Quee Doesn't Cook"...and other musings from our trip to Mexico

2008-10-05T18:19:00.013-04:00

Earlier this month we went on a cruise from San Diego to two different ports in Mexico. We had a great time on board (excepting a few poorly behaved kids and their equally obnoxious parents) and really enjoyed getting away for a few days. All in all it was fun and there were a number of memorable moments.

The Quee Doesn't Cook
As you know, translation is a tricky thing as often seen on fortune cookie papers. The message is just a bit off balance because something went awry in the translation to English. (Which is odd to think about with fortune cookies since they originated in the US and not in China)

In Ensanada Ryan spotted a number of nice, hand painted pottery signs that one might purchase and hang inside or outside the home. Mi Casa Su Cas (My house is your house) and others. But the one which really struck us was "The Quee doesn't cook" and clearly the Quee doesn't spell check either.

Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhowtime!
Our Maître d' for our assigned dining room, Hatem, would often make announcements mid-meal. In the evening he would begin his announcement with the phrase "Shhhhhhhhhhhhhowtime. Showtiiiiiiime." At first I thought he was saying "shhhhhhhhh" over the microphone because he was going to make an announcement and needed everyone to listen. But soon it became clear this was part of his routine to introduce whatever performance the dining staff had created for the evening.

This introduction became so funny to our table, that one of our dining table members who was selected to perform as Ricky Martin during the last night of the cruise in the "All Stars" show actually said this as he walked on stage.

I'll try to find a way for you to hear Ryan's rendition of the famous phrase, as soon as I figure out how to use garageband software.

One Tragic Accident
During our stop on Cabo San Lucas we took a water taxi to Playa del Amante which means "Lover's Beach" and we'd both confidently say that the name matches the beach. It is the kind of place you want to be with the one person you love. Of course getting there and not dying is another thing. But if you're with the one you love I guess that's a good time to go.

The night before we got to Cabo San Lucas the cruise director warned everyone NOT to take a water taxi because, as their cruise brochure had indicated, there had been one tragic accident at some point. The actual tale was never divulged and the fact that there was only ONE tragic accident they could refer to led us to believe that, in fact, the warnings came to us simply because the cruise wanted us to spend $100 to take their 45-minute tour around the beach.

We opted for the $20 taxi and swallowed our fears. Here is some brief footage from our own excursion. You'll see Ryan, the 2 Spanish tourists also on the taxi with us, and Panchito, our "driver."

Towel Art
Other memorable moments included finding towel animals made nightly for us and left in our cabin by the housekeeping staff. I couldn't help myself...I photographed them each night.

And on our last night...there was a heart!

Dance Lessons

2008-09-27T01:32:00.004-04:00

Picture in your mind....Ryan and me on the dance floor at the local YWCA. It is Thursday night and there are about 23 people awkwardly standing about, preparing to learn new steps to the East Coast Swing. We have learned several lessons throughout this experience...and not just about dancing.

Lesson Number 1 - Look at your partner
Thursday we learned a move where the leader (Ryan) lifts up both dancers arms and lays them behind the head to do a "slide" down the arm. Our instructor explicitly mentioned that both dance partners should be looking at one another in this maneuver. We practiced this move a few times standing still and then put our steps along with the arm movement.

Ryan smacked me square in the head, which caused quite a lot of laughter from me, especially when he said "I guess that's why I'm supposed to look at you?"

If you want to get an idea of the move I'm describing (I know it is hard to visualize) you can watch this video on YouTube....the move I'm talking about occurs roughly 57-60 seconds into the video. (You can watch the time expire on the bottom of the video)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uL3u-d8STmA

Lesson Number 2 - Keep your eyes open
There is one guy in the class who is somewhat tall and lanky, and if he didn't have so much facial hair, I'd say he looked a little bit like "Shaggy" from the Scooby Doo Show. He stood next to us in the opening demonstrations and often stretched his arms, legs, rib cage, etc. to warm up....with his eyes closed. Then, as the instructor demonstrated moves for the Leaders....he followed along with the movements, again with his eyes closed. I'm glad he is isn't my partner or I might get hit in the head more often.

Lesson Number 3 - Rabbits do not necessarily have the best moves
We learned another new move on Thursday - a 45 degree turn where the dancers' arms make a motion that looks like they are pulling back a bow to shoot at something. Of course the two dancers are holding hands and doing this maneuver at the same time and some how it still looks pretty good. But apparently one of us (me) was turning the move into a rabbit pose. I didn't even realize I was doing it, but at the end of each arm maneuver I'd whack our hands together in the dead center creating what Ryan described as a Rabbit Pose. I guess it looked a little bit like this:
I'm still finding it hard to believe, but I don't think he'd lie to me. I just hope I don't look as startled as this rabbit.

At any rate we're having fun with our lessons and will soon start to learn the Fox Trot. Watch out Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire. Y'all ain't seen nothing yet.

Article on Obama

2008-09-21T21:27:00.005-04:00

I quite like Nicholas Kristof for his attempts to raise awareness of human rights abuses, issues of poverty, etc through his Op-Ed columns on the New York Times. I don't always agree with his suggest methods of correcting injustices, but at least he is trying to increase visibility!

I really enjoyed this article about Barack Obama and rumors (false rumors) about his faith.
Please...make sure you read at least the first three paragraphs.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/21/opinion/21kristof.html?_r=1&em&oref=slogin

And...if you find you were misinformed about Obama's spiritual beliefs and were using this as your basis upon which to cast your vote in November...please, think again.

4.2 ... " a really good jolt"

2008-09-06T00:18:00.005-04:00

Perhaps our initiation is complete! We just experienced our first earthquake (4.2 on the scale about 14 miles north east of Oakland) which was very brief - it was over before Ryan could finish saying "Is that an earthquake?"

We still ran and got under the kitchen table but there was no point to that. Not to mention the table probably couldn't have withstood much weight had anything fallen on top of it...AND our rear ends were sticking out! Nothing else happened and the extent of the shaking was mild enough and short enough that nothing wobbled on the shelves.

As for the "really good jolt" that is the recurring line from the newscaster, Dan, who can't seem to come up with any other descriptors.

Ryan has decided that we will now wear our bike helmets at all times. Great.

Labor Free Day

2008-09-02T18:36:00.011-04:00

We had the surprise fortune of spending some time over Labor Day with our friend BB at a lovely "estate" where she wound up housesitting. It was a Labor Free Day for us. From swimming pools to tree houses we had fun.

Pool time. A prerequisite for tree house adventures

Tarzan, meet....

....Jane.

We had the fortune of eating good food with old friends....
And then sharing the joys of the tree house with them!

When we returned home we were sad to look out our window and see other apartments instead of a glorious patio, lawn, and the hills which make up the landscape of Woodside. But we were also amused to see the portable washing machine perched outside our neighbor's door. I wonder if they realize they have just displayed a prohibited appliance right across from the Resident Advisor's front door? If they can get away with a washing machine, then we can probably get away with having a cat. Time to call the SPCA for those adoption papers!

Settling in

2008-08-29T13:10:00.010-04:00

We have finally begun to settle into our lives here in California, which is a relief. It has been nearly 3 weeks since we moved into the UC Berkeley student housing and we both agree that this is the nicest apartment we have ever had!

(Ryan hanging our masks from Uguanda and Lesotho)
(Tah-dah!)

Couple that with living with your favorite roommate of all time (sorry all prior roommates...MFG, BB, JL, RM, CF et al) and we're in a state of happiness.

We really miss our friends back in Indiana and can't understand why they won't give up their prosperous and interesting jobs there to move here and be with us. That would make things even better. Alas, we must meet new people and new friends....the Christmas card list grows longer.

Ryan loves his law classes and we see this as a confirmation that starting law school (and leaving his PhD program) was the right decision. I am assuming it is extremely rare for a first year law student (known as a 1L) to actually LIKE what they are learning. But he IS and we wouldn't change that for anything.

As for me, I'm starting my job search - if anything new or interesting comes up, I'll let you know. A lot of people have been asking me about this area of our lives, and I appreciate the questions but so far I don't have a lot to report. I have to admit that the well-intentioned questions such as "how is the job search coming?" can make me feel a wee bit depressed that I'm not employed yet or making 6 figures. Yet.
(I'm not really expecting 6 figures but I thought it would be nice.)

I'm sure there are many who will still ask and I recognize it is a sign of shared hope and confidence in my ability to find a job. BUT....it is the primary question people ask me thus I hear it multiple times a week. I could use a break for a while. Hopefully the next blog post will make a gigantic announcement about an interview for my dream job. Fingers crossed.

In other news, we have taken some gorgeous bike rides and are actually enjoying living on the 3rd floor of the building without an elevator. Our legs are shaping up nicely which is clearly a bonus.

We have discovered a number of wonderful places to take scenic walks, the joy of farm fresh produce at a nearby store (Ryan actually ate some tomato and LIKED it) , and possibly the cheapest gasoline station for miles around. I actually filled up for $3.93/gallon when all other stations were selling for $4.05.

We have also rediscovered our love for In-n-Out Burger. Visit us and we'll help you get addicted.

(Albany Waterfront Park)

We have had the opportunity to see 3 friends from Boston - TW, DA & GA, and HC were all out in the area over the last 2 weeks and it really helped us fill up our time with good conversation and the assurance that we will, in time, make new friends that we like equally as well.

Also during the last 3 weeks, we celebrated our 3rd anniverary. It was a lot of fun - though nontraditional for us. We had dinner at an Indian restaurant, walked around the campus area, and wound up (finally) buying the board game Scrabble so we no longer have to play on our travel edition. Ryan was the high scorer, but he beat me by only 8 points. Not bad.

We're looking forward to the weeks ahead - Ryan's 30th birthday, a Welcome Back BBQ in our honor, hosted by our friends J&G, and a visit up to my parent's house toward the end of September. We're busy (go figure) but we're having fun.

Uganda Photos and Video

2008-08-04T10:54:00.000-04:00

I have been meaning to post photos from my trip to Uganda, but as you might imagine, we have a lot going on. What with packing, making Borg costumes, and general summer fun, I've gotten a little bit behind on some things.

Fortunately, I also have some video to post that my coworker took. I haven't had a chance to edit any of the video so you can MUTE the volume, or just ignore the bits of fuzzy conversation in the background. It isn't relevant to the moving images.

This video was taken in the produce section of the Nakasero market in Kampala.

This video was taken on Kampala streets by my colleague while I was shopping frantically for fabrics:

Video as we drove through Kampala, leaving the city and heading toward Kasubi Palace & Tombs:

Here are some of my favorite photos from the trip.

On the way to Kasubi Palace & Tombs in Kampala:
Kasubi Palace and Tombs:
Inside the Palace, looking up at the thatched roof. The walls are covered in bark cloth:

Shores of Lake Victoria:
A fresh catch of Nile Perch:
Boys who stared with deep curiosity as we waited for our driver to get back to the van. Also at Lake Victoria:
Young girl at Lake Victoria who indulged me in some foot races:
First Grade student at the school where we visited 3 times and observed lessons:
Fifth Grade classroom we visited...roughly 100 students in this class:
Third Grade classroom we visited:
Kayabwe Trading Center where we would pass through each day on our way to the school:

You work in IT......Resistance is Futile

2008-07-11T09:20:00.010-04:00

I love summertime for a variety of reasons, one of which is that the workplace seems to lighten up a bit. People start dressing more casually and in general, having more fun. Fortunately, I happen to work for places that also like to do fun activities in the summer.

At my present job, we recently got an email saying that our entire department (roughly 200 people) would be treated to a movie of our choice at the posh Browning Theater here on campus. We could vote on 1 of 4 movies:

Men in Black
Mission Impossible
Holes
Star Trek: First Contact

As soon as I got the email I went to the online voting and cast my vote for Men in Black. And even as I did that, I knew that my film would not win. Why?

Because I work in Information Technology (IT). And all those IT basement dwellers like Star Trek. (By the way, I too am a basement dweller - but not by choice)

As it turns out, about 66 people cast their vote (pathetic!) and 43 votes were for Star Trek.

Go figure.

So, over lunch last week my two colleagues and I decided we'd have a little fun at the movie. Maybe I coerced them.

But whatever - it was good for everyone this time.

I am happy to admit that I saw the movie "Star Trek: First Contact" when it came out in theaters in 1996. Yes, I have watched a little Star Trek in my day and I kinda like it. But I am not above making fun of it.

The plan was to come up with a costume the 3 of us would wear to the movie. But the costume could not involve:

a body-hugging jump suit
face paint
require special hand dexterity.

Clearly, dressing as Vulcans was out of the question.

Instead, our costumes required that I tear apart our broken DVD player, use my sharpie markers and a glue gun to turn my 2 colleagues and myself into Borg. For those of you not familiar with Star Trek, the Borg are a menacing species.

They are know for the following statement:

"We are the Borg. Lower your shields and surrender your ships. We will add your biological and technological distinctiveness to our own. Your culture will adapt to service us. Resistance is futile."

The Borg are sort of a hive-like species that operate with many drone bodies sharing a collective mind. Hey! It's kind of like working in IT!
This is a pretty good shot of the Borg Crew. You think that's creepy? You should watch the in action.

The good news is that even if you ARE assimilated into the Borg, you may, through gallant rescue, be returned to your former self. Well kind of. Here is "Seven of Nine" who was assimilated into the Borg but then later rescued. It's a serious case of "before....and after."
People used to comment to me that "You can take the girl out of Montana, but you can't take Montana out of the girl." With the Borg the saying is literal.

Note the metallic objects still embedded on Seven of Nine's head in the photo on the righ. But I digress.

Our posse decided to wear all black and to sport some head gear to give us the appearance of being in the Borg collective. Here are the props in my costume shop. Most of these came from our broken DVD player.
The black portion on the left was done with a sharpie marker. It was hard to get in between some of the circuits. But I did it eventually.

This particular piece made me nervous because of that bright yellow battery-like object in the center. I colored around this one VERY carefully.
This piece also got colored black, and made an excellent addition to the arm-band pieces we wore.
One of the arm pieces midway through assembly.
To see photos of us in costume, you'll need to visit the link below. You'll see us as the 3 Borg looking menacing and then a few action shots as we made several advances toward assimilating other coworkers.

The last photo is where we assimilated our manager. Like I said...resistance is futile.
http://picasaweb.google.com/lisaweinberg0/StarTrek72008?authkey=y4apfyGw128

One month 'til Berkeley

2008-07-09T13:10:00.007-04:00

Sometimes I get the syncopation of one of the Beastie Boys' famous lines in my head when I hear or write phrases like the blog title on this post. You know the line....

"NO! SLEEP! 'TIL BROOKLYN!"

You can imagine me typing and having "ONE! MONTH! Til BERKELEY!" running through my brain. Again and again.

In some ways it feels very much like we're living that line....there is little sleep until we reach Berkeley. For now our time is jammed with packing and trying to hang out with friends in Indiana before the fateful day of departure.

As the Beastie Boys said..."I'll be rocking this party eight days a week."

So while we rock the party 8 days a week for the next month, we also look toward the future and what await us.

Such as????

A 3rd floor apartment in Cal student housing called "West Village" which is located a few miles from campus. During Ryan's spring trip to Berkeley, he drove past West Village toured one unit, so we have a sense for what life there might be like. And life there sounds like it might be pretty good. Here is the floor plan for our apartment.

And even better...some photos from Ryan's trip thanks to our friend KA who joined (with camera in hand) the Berkeley Bandwagon Funtime Bonanza. Both KA and our friend BB toured Berkeley with Ryan, making sure to show him the highlights and point out the lovely weather and resulting foliage which comes with sunny March weather.

Here is our soon-to-be neighborhood of West Village.

We have a lot to do before we move, but at least we can stop thinking about where we'll be living. We didn't know until Monday night (7/8) whether we'd have the option of a 2 bedroom with student housing or a 635 Square foot 1 bedroom unit.

In the meantime we've kept busy by packing, playing, and planning a yard sale. That's right, the pre-move yard sale. We thought we'd purged most of the non-essential items before leaving Boston, but it turns out you can always find more things you don't absolutely need when money is involved.

The best part of the yard sale is that we'll be gathering with about 5 other friends for a multi-family sale. If you don't already know, yard sales can be pretty slow and dull at times so friends keep it interesting. There has even been talk of digging out a deep fryer so we can have fresh donuts in the morning. I LOVE my Indiana-Michigan friends. Where ELSE would we be able to deep fry donuts?

More updates as the come...

Snap-its from Uganda

2008-06-11T09:55:00.012-04:00

Here in Uganda I keep hearing people say "snap-it" instead of photo, so that's what this post is called.

The trip is going well, although my internet connectivity and ability to receive phone calls has been less than superb. I have just a few days left in Uganda and while I could enjoy spending more time here, I am also excited to get home and see Ryan. =)

Here are a few snap-its from the trip thus far. Sorry they're so small, but I'm working with a wireless connection that operates at the speed of dial-up.

Click the photos and they should enlarge so you can better see them.
A street scene in Kampala - this was our walk from our hotel (Hotel Africana) to the Garden City shopping center where we had lunch (I selected Indian food) and bought our cell phone. As you can see, lots of cars and motorcycles. Not my favorite city of all time.

Need a toilet? This guy has a new commode which he is delivering via motorcyle. Better than carrying it himself I suppose and he was still weaving through traffic with the best of them.
This was a child sitting on the sidewalk of one of the Kampala streets we drove through on our way out of town. This sort of thing will always surprise me. Just the evening before we were waiting to cross Kampala road and we saw a young child (roughly 9-10 years old) being sent by her mother to beg money from cars at the stoplight. There are worse things you could do to a child on the grand spectrum, but this was still hard to see.

On Sunday we drove to Nkozi where the Uganda Martyrs University is located - our lodging Sunday through Thursday. On the way we stopped at the Equator...sadly, I did not think to have one foot on both sides of the line like my coworker, but oh well. I've got proof that I was there.

We visited several vschools on Monday (it was a holiday so they were closed but we did get to take a lot of photos (that you're not seeing here) and we also went to a small village, Ggolo, on Lake Victoria. While we were waiting around for our driver to buy fish (which he then tied to the front grill of the car so they wouldn't stink up the van on the ride home) these boys congregated and posed. It was so unbelievable. I did not ask them to pose this way - it just happened and they were all staring at us, so I figured it was fair enough to take their photo.This young girl was also at the water's edge . After these photos I challenged her and her friends to a race - which is harder to communicate via charades than you'd think. They don't speak very good English and I'm certainly no pro at the local language. At any rate, the races were fun and I let them win. NOw they can say they beat a mzungu in a foot race. More photos and updates when I get home!

The Apron

2008-05-16T13:13:00.005-04:00

Just a follow up to the last post and the topic of the Mother's Day Gift I made with Ryan's help. My Mom loved it and she and my Dad were kind enough to send on some photos so you could take a look!

My Mom in her radiant kitchen-queen glory, part of which is achieved by having such a cool apron.
A close-up of the ribbon...which was one of my favorite parts of this apron. It was expensive ribbon but well worth it for the cool factor.
And here is a glimpse of Ryan's handiwork on the grommets. My parents were particularly proud of their display....notice the elephant "hooks" holding up the elephant fabric. It took me a second to catch on, but I may be more dull than you.
And just because my Dad sent this photo along, I will post it. She has NOTHING to do with the apron, but she is pretty doggone sweet. So, here is my parent's (truly she belongs to my Mom but my Dad seems to love her just as much) dog, Lucy.
I felt somewhat obligated to post her photo....not because my Mom often refers to her as "Your little sister" which is odd enough, but mostly because (and this is even more strange) Lucy will send me money from her allowance on my birthday and at Christmas. She usually sends $1.00 to me...but I think she forgot this year. So maybe this will put me back in her good graces.

In dog terms I think it would be phrased as "you rub my belly, and I'll rub yours."

Destination: Golden State

2008-05-10T14:16:00.009-04:00

It feels like ages since we last posted - and I guess it has been close to 2 weeks. But a lot has been going on, including Ryan's completion of final projects for school and the planning for my trip to Uganda for work. To top it all off, today I helped some neighbors rescue a duck.

But I'll skip all the excuses and reveal the latest turn in our adventure. We're moving to California in August! Ryan will be leaving his Sociology program at Notre Dame to attend UC Berkeley Law School. He'll start a program in Human Rights in the fall.
I'm sure many of you are surprised to hear this news, so I'll let you get the full story from him via email. Just send him an email and he'll write back with all the juicy details.

We're both really excited about this upcoming adventure and plan to move at the end of July, taking a few days to spend time with Ryan's family in Kansas City along the way.

Other things we've been up to include a "classic car" auction out in Goshen, IN a few weeks ago. We didn't buy or sell, but simply wandered around. It was great for me to reminisce about the many times in Jr. High and High School that my parents and I joined our family friends at these classic car shows and auctions. Here is a model A that we saw - right before my camera battery died.
I've also been working on a mother's day project that I can safely reveal now that the day is nearly upon us. I founds some great linen fabric online (imported from Japan) that I knew would make a great apron for my Mom. Several years ago we both bought garden aprons that we use in the kitchen. Over Christmas she commented that she needed a new one so I decided I'd just sew one for her using mine as a template. Here is the fabric, which although it may look somewhat childish up close, is VERY COOL when you see it as a whole.
I never seem to have the appropriate workspace so I often find myself using the floor. That's my green apron serving as the template.
The original apron uses grommets and a sturdy linen ribbon to tie it on and I decided to use the same design. Here are the practice grommets:
Sadly, I didn't take a final photo before wrapping this up and sending it in the mail. I'm hoping my Mom will model it for me instead!

Speaking of my Mom - she sent me a very funny (but appropriate) email the other day. I had sent her an email letting her know that the Uganda trip for work had come through. It went something like this:
ME:
hi mom,
just wanted to let you know that your mother's day gift was shipped yesterday. also, i found out yesterday afternoon that I am going on the Uganda trip!!
hooray!
love you,
Elizabeth

MOM:
Do tell more about Uganda – do not send information like this without details! We must know more! Hurry with your reply! Loves

The message gave me a chuckle and she had every right to say "do not send information like this without details!" I would probably throttle my own kid if they sent me a message like that! And then I'd probably ask them to bring back a cool souvenir for me.

And now the story of the duck - because I know that somebody will ask. Our apartment sits on a man-made lake/pond and this is the time of year when little ducklings and goslings are hatched. Ryan went out on a bike ride with our friend Bruce today and while I was at home quietly reading my book Snow. A duck-sounding ruckus was taking place outside so I took a look outside and found that some of my neighbors were throwing rocks at the ducks. I mistook their gestures as an attack only to later realize that they were in fact trying to chase off the mallards in an attempt to rescue a female that was being killed by the 15+ males.

Somehow she wound up in a box on my back porch and this afternoon we took her to the humane society. All in all a successful day.

While we know that there is a lot to be done before our big move, but we are confident that there will be a lot more fun and tomfoolery before July is over. We'll keep you fully posted.

How could this be?

2008-04-29T14:03:00.004-04:00

Lots going on in the land of the Lincolns and we are really excited to update you soon.

BUT FIRST let me tell you about the best contest of all time, history, places, people and genetic combinations. I read up on quilting/sewing/crafting blogs fairly often and just learned about this quilt giveaway.

You too can enter (hurry - the contest ends on Thursday of this week) and if you indicate that you heard about the contest by reading MY blog...I get an extra entry too! Good deal don't you think?

Just visit her blog, read the "contest rules" and leave a comment with the details she mentions.
Good luck on the contest and don't forget to mention that you heard about the contest on this blog which is:
http://thelincolns.blogspot.com

Here is the quilting contest blog:
http://web.mac.com/cjroskelley

If you're a quilter looking for new patterns you might want to take a look at her patterns which are here:
Thimble Blossoms

Everybody wins.

2008-04-10T11:44:00.002-04:00

It has been a couple of weeks since we returned from Jamaica and while we have been "quiet" when it comes to blog posting, we have been very "noisy" behind the scenes.

During the week the Matron had identified several needs which we worked on immediately. There was one need however which was quite a bit bigger and at one point she suggested a solution which we were really excited about trying to implement. We took both the need and the proposed solution to Won by One to Jamaica and they have decided to help support the resulting project.

So what was the need and the proposed solution?

As you have likely realized in many of our photos and stories shared thus far, there are a number of people who need help rebuilding muscle mass, increasing their mobility (for circulation, muscle retention, etc) and people who simply need exercise to stay healthy.

In addition, everyone at the Infirmary could benefit from recreational activities (which we tried to explore and assess in 2006 & 2007) to keep their minds fresh, hands busy, and spirits high.

The Matron had identified the need for physical conditioning and activity as an improvement to residential care, but also recognized that the Infirmary could not financially support the hiring of new personnel to lead activities.

She had a resume on file for Nichola, a young woman who lives in Harmons. We'd brought in Nichola's resume earlier in the week related to a separate open position at the Infirmary. Nichola has several nursing diplomas and has been seeking employment for a significant period of time. She is an incredibly warm person with integrity, confidence, and a persevering heart.

As our conversations with the Matron went deeper about their need for someone to lead physical activities her eyes widened. Tapping on Nichola's resume, still on her desk, she said "Perhaps SHE could do the job!",

Ryan and I had been having a similar conversation the night before and were thrilled that the Matron had come up with the same idea on her own.

Once we returned to the U.S. we spoke with Won by One and the organization was very supportive of the project to hire Nichola as their full-time employee who will volunteer at the Infirmary on a daily basis.

Ryan and I have committed to raising 50% of the yearly salary for this position and Won by One has committed to raising the other 50%. The Matron and Nichola will be meeting this week and finalizing the new agreement.

At present we have funds to pay Nichola for just over one full year. Thanks to a series of gracious donors the position is funded from April 2008 to July 2008.

As you might have guessed, we still have other needs to be fulfilled which include training items (books and manuals), physical therapy materials to conduct activities such as stretch bands, stretch tubes, strength-training squish balls, and a variety of other things. So the work is not yet done.

We are thrilled about this new opportunity not only to support Nichola with full time employment, but also to provide the residents of the Infirmary with consistent care addressing their physical needs, and to continue developing a deeper partnership with Infirmary as a whole.
It is not often in life that a project can be so seamlessly conceived, implemented, and still achieve victory on all sides of a collaborative effort. But this time, everybody wins.

We're home!

2008-03-10T08:44:00.001-04:00

We still owe you some highlights from Saturday and Sunday, but we're home again which is the most important headline.

We don't have any luggage to show for it, but all in due time!

Thanks to all our readers - look back in the next few days for more info!
Liz & Ryan

Friday - May Pen Market Day 4 (Mar 7, 2008)

2008-03-07T15:56:00.000-05:00

The daily highlights....

-Arriving at the May Pen Market with Winsome and Evelyn, completely intact. Our taxi driver was from Harmons and thus knew Winsome and was a safe driver.

-Buying a handmade cassava/coconut grater and not getting laughed out of the market for it.

-Visiting the market butcher area and having my mouth closed when a piece of flying beef bone hit me in the chin. Had my mouth been open, it would have gone in.

-Eating Juici Patti for dinner (Jamaicans refer to lunch as dinner)

-Getting rained on in the afternoon while visiting with Mark & Emily outside.

For more detailed updates (including photos) go to our Jamaica Blog!

Liz & Ryan

Thursday - Infirmary Day 4 (Mar 6, 2008)

2008-03-06T15:56:00.000-05:00

Today's Highlights:

-Liz met with the Matron today to draft a letter to the volunteer organizations that routinely offer services so that their gifts can be better used at the infirmary, and drafting a brief public service announcement.

- While Liz was in her meetings Ryan made balloon animals for residents/patients at the infirmary. Always a tremendous hit! Karen, one of the residents made sure that everybody got a balloon and helped to hand them out.

- At the school, we turned on all 11 computers to make sure they worked - or that the various hardware components worked (mouse, keyboard). It wasn't as difficulty or as tiring as we'd thought.

- We walked home the 4-5 km from the school which allowed us to run into at least 6 people we knew. The beauty of village life and not having a vehicle.

-Tomorrow we are taking a break and going to th May Pen Market with Winsome who is one of the cooks for the house-building teams.

For more detailed updates and photos go to our Jamaica Blog!
Liz & Ryan

Wednesday - Infirmary Day 3 (March 5, 2008)

2008-03-05T16:39:00.003-05:00

Day 3 Headlines:

Many of our hopes for the future of the infirmary and beginning to come to fruition. We had a fruitful conversation with the Matron this morning and are making some headway in launching programs to better facilitate volunteer activity, provide exercise and creative stimulation for residents, and provide better standards for performance evaluations.

As always, more time was spent with residents. Liz spent time with Patricia, who was not feeling well today...not a good development given that she's scheduled for surgery on Monday.

Another man passed away last evening, an occurrence common enough to be rather routine for the staff and residents but a shocking reminder to Liz and I about not only the sheltered-ness of our lives, but the needs of the Infirmary.

I (Ryan) got locked in the bathroom today. One of the staff members came to help me, but I didn't understand her when she told me to stand back. She kicked the door in while I was leaning down fiddling with the doorknob, and now I've got a nice lump on my head - I guess it's better than being stuck in the bathroom!

For the full update please check out our Jamaica Blog.

Tuesday - Infirmary Day 2 (Mar 4, 2008)

2008-03-04T14:41:00.000-05:00

Infirmary Headlines:

The woman who we thought had passed away (Ermina) is actually still alive and residing at the infirmary. She is in not in very good health and seems to have poorly recovered from her broken hip in Feb 2007.

Our relationships with infirmary staff are steadily growing and improving.

We spent several hours at the school where we graded 6th grade journal entries. Tomorrow we anticipate working at the computer lab helping to check which computers are working and which are not.

We had a very good evening tonight - it was better than last night when we felt a little lonesome. We know that the first 24 hours are always an adjustment period though, so we're back in good shape now.

I (Liz) am despising this apparent heat rash which has developed on my arms and fingers. Whenever I think I have contracted something really heinous I remind myself that 1) my ailments aren't that bad when compared to those I work with and visit each morning at the infirmary and 2) anything I might contract can be healed when I get home. That's the blessing - I get to go home.

For more details and photos, go to our Jamaica Blog.

Liz & Ryan.

Monday - Infirmary Day 1 (Mar 3, 2008)

2008-03-03T14:41:00.000-05:00

Day 1 Headlines:

We spent the AM at the infirmary and were sad to realize that several faces we hoped to see were no longer there. There are about 4 people we "knew" who have passed away since our last trip. Mr Jackson, Pearl, Myrtle, and we believe that Ermina has also passed away.

We had a great converation with the Head Matron and are so thankful that we are making some progress together and hopefully starting to move into a more active role rather together.

We also learned that our friend Gary will likely move out of the infirmary in October to live with his sister.

We're off to cook dinner now and watch a movie on our laptop. Nothing much else going on besides the rooster's crowing at 6PM. Bizarre. Don't they know it's getting dark?

For more detailed information visit our Jamaica Blog!

Liz & Ryan
PS If any of you have sent us email to our gmail accounts please note that we cannot (for some strange reason) open new messages. Feel free to send "messages" by posting a comment on either of our blogs at the bottom of this message. (Click the pencil icon to post a comment)

Arrival in Jamaica (Sunday - March 2, 2008)

2008-03-02T14:26:00.000-05:00

Our flight left South Bend very early this morning. Thankfully our friend E.V. was kind enough to wake up early to pick us up at 4:30 AM to shuttle us to the airport.

Our friend Don was waiting for us at the airport and kindly stopped along the 4 hour drive so we could pick up some food at the market.

We are ready for bed (to say the least) and looking forward to our first day at the Infirmary tomorrow. We know already that it is the head Matron's birthday so we have a little gift to convey our appreciation of her.

More tomorrow, pending a strong internet connection.
For more detailed updates you can always visit our blog at:

http://jamaicanow2006.blogspot.com

Liz & Ryan

Back in the saddle

2008-02-25T12:55:00.006-05:00

We're headed to Jamaica again very soon, and with the continuing cold weather and almost daily snow, the warm temperatures are welcomed. This time last year we were visiting Notre Dame and in hindsight I am not at all surprised that we experienced a major snowstorm during our visit. The winter hasn't been as bleak as I'd expected it to be based on that visit, but even so, I am glad to be flying into sunshine this coming Sunday. (Visitors and new friends have helped w/the bleak factor. Thank you!!)

This next trip to Jamaica will be different from the others, and I find it amusing that I've said almost that exact same phrase at the start of the last few trips. There are two major changes which make this trip significantly different from those of the past.

1) Just Ryan and I will be traveling to the Infirmary each day. We won't be accompanied by a team of volunteers. In the past we have always had 4-6, sometimes even 8 other Infirmary volunteers with us. It will seem a little strange to not have lunch with our handful of friends each day, but there is always something new to learn in the quiet ways of life. This will be a "quiet" week at the Infirmary.

2) Our dear friend Pearl, who had lived at the Infirmary for the last 12 years, passed away in early August 2007. At each of our visits we treasured spending time with her, visiting with her about her life, her concerns, and hearing about how she reached out to support other residents at the Infirmary. We anticipate a gaping hole in our hearts as the reality of her death sets in during our visit. (Especially me - Liz.)

We plan to spend our time in Jamaica conducting an informal "needs assessment" on behalf of the Infirmary staff. Our general goal is to carefully plan each successive step of this adventure of serving the Infirmary, to ensure that our service is truly beneficial to the Infirmary as a whole, and that each new implementation is sustainable into the future.

We don't want momentum to build up only to dwindle off after a few years' time and have begun to examine the ways in which we can better maintain consistent communication and relationships with those at the Infirmary when we are back home in the U.S.

During the last visit volunteer medical staff offered a class to Infirmary employees on common medical conditions (heart disease, diabetes, etc) and we discovered that while this type of professional information is helpful, there are other avenues where needs are still unmet. We want to understand these needs, document them, and look for ways to help staff and the surrounding community meet these needs.

In addition to spending time at the Infirmary, we will also spend time at a local school where I volunteered last year. The computer lab at the school is anticipated to open on March 10th so we hope to be of service to the staff in making this a reality.

And perhaps the largest difference anticipate during this trip is the flexibility to relax, enjoy visiting with our Jamaican friends, and spending time together. While our previous trips have been truly rewarding, they have also been very tiring! A lot of preparation beforehand, and coordination on the ground has made our volunteering possible, and we're glad to just "look out" for the two of us this time around! If there were a beach nearby and possibly someone to make me a daiquiri at the end of each day, it might almost pass for vacation. Okay, so that's definitely stretching it, but we are excited for a slower pace of service this time.

We'll post new updates to this blog as often as possible next week and we thank you in advance for your prayers, encouragement and support for our work in Jamaica! The blog you're reading now will get "the basics" but if you want a more detailed report and photos, please check our Jamaica Now blog.

We may also have some guest posts on the Jamaica Now blog if our "old" team members feel inspired. Keep your eyes open.

"Tonks Mon!"
Liz & Ryan

3 bottles and herd of rabbits

2008-02-04T08:00:00.000-05:00

I realized the other day that we had not posted for quite a long time. There was one post waiting in the wings for a few weeks that seemed too boring to post. But I put it up anyway this week.

And then I promptly followed that with another post about how I miss the bicycle gang of Cambridge. Again, nothing too interesting but at least I'd posted some filler until I could adequately show off the way in which time had been spent since December.

Much of the time I have been sick. So a lot of time and money has been spent acquiring medicines to either rid me of bacteria, mucus, or coughs. I even got the prescribed inhaler from my physician for the ridiculous rate of $100 - ridiculous mostly because it didn't do a blasted thing to tame my coughs but rather induced them further.

Never in my lifetime have I consumed a entire bottle of "nyquil" medicine within one week. Until December 2007. (You may recall those other posts about my celebrity mug shot...that's when I was guzzling the first bottle of "nyquil") After consuming the entire bottle, I finally went to the doctor and got antibiotics which eventually did the trick.

Welcome to my drug counter....this is the medicine I purchased in November. It's called "maximum strength" but I think it must mean maximum strength if you are Thumbelina or somebody really small. It didn't do a darn bit of good for me.
I also have taken, with some reservations, a dayquil-esque medicine. I would have to say that it is truly non-drowsy, but also non-effective. And yet, 1/2 the bottle is gone. I like to think of myself as an optimist and endlessly hopeful. Hopeful that this daytime drug will truly squelch my coughs and dry up my nose. Can I switch to realist?
Near the top of my list is the 2nd bottle of nyquil-type liquid which I have almost completely devoured within 2 months time. It would probably be gone already (yes, I have been routinely sick for nearly 6 of the last 8 weeks.....with 3 separate visit to medical professionals) but it tastes so disgusting I can hardly bring myself to slurp it down each night.
And lastly, and certainly most importantly, the dynamic duo suggested on the last trip to the doctor. Tussionex (complete with narcotics!) and a 12-hour nasal spray that is so powerful you can only use it for 3 days.
These are my two favorite meds thus far. Apparently I like my cold remedies just like my adult beverages. I'm not as interested in "a shot" of any single drug as I am in a cocktail of drugs. Shaken, not stirred please.

In those 2 weeks that I haven't been sick, I have been really productive in the sewing/craft area. VERY productive. I have been making (with assistance by Ryan on the finishing touches) the most wonderful stuffed toys.
Yes...stuffed toys. Rabbits, in fact because every child needs somebunny to love them. If you are expecting a child soon - you can expect that one of these will arrive as well. Here was the test rabbit:
And here are some of its new friends:
The first rabbit recipient was this little guy who flew out from Boston with his parents to spend the weekend with us.
He seemed to like the rabbit well enough to suck on its ears and was less suspicious of the rabbit than he was of Ryan. Eventually both of his new friends seem to win him over.

Sadly, we failed to take a picture of our visitor with his new bunny sidekick. If nothing else it gives me reason to nudge Ryan about sewing on the rest of the rabbit faces so you can see the newest facial designs. (no more beads - only stitches) I'm sure you're just bursting at the seams.

Cheerio and stay warm wherever you are.
PS - as I am finally getting well, Ryan has detected a slightly stuffy nose. At least we have all the meds on hand. =)

*For those of you wondering why this post's title says "herd of rabbits" it is because that is what a group of rabbits is called according to www.rabbit.org I thought at first they would be called a "warren" but that's where herds of rabbits live.

I miss SCUL

2008-01-29T16:07:00.000-05:00

One of the things I haven't seen too much of around these parts are some "alternative folks" like we always got in Cambridge....or back in Missoula.

The other day our friends E&B were mentioning they were part of a little "bike gang" back in the land of their origin (either New Haven CT or the Bronx - not sure which place). So I knew they'd be excited when they heard about SCUL - the bike gang in Cambridge.

SCUL isn't like a gang of hoodlums but rather a collection of people interested in modifying old bikes to create something entirely bizarre yet ridable.

Uploaded with plasq's Skitch!

Apparently SCUL stands for "Subversive Choppers Urban Legion" and they look like they're always out for some fun. Their various "missions" seem to involve food, riding their bikes to the final destination and in some fashion, earning points within the organization.

Maybe we can start a chapter here. Maybe. We've got a lot of time until the snow melts...just enough time to collect some spare parts and a welding torch.

http://scul.org

The new job...

2008-01-17T14:41:00.000-05:00

What's the weather like in Indiana these days? Well, from my basement office, I can't tell you all that well, at least not with out some technological assistance. After all, my basement office is in OIT (Office of Information Technology) and my job title is "Instructional Technologist" so you'd better believe I'm going to use the tools of our trade to stay current on the "above world" happenings.

On my first day here at ND just about 2 weeks ago, my boss sent me an email. The message said "In case you need to see the weather before leaving the building." And in the message was a link to the webcams on campus.

Yes, I look at the weather above ground on my computer so I know whether I need to dig out my hat, scarf, and gloves to go along with my puffy coat. And I check the temperatures online or by using the "weather widgets" that my "mac" conveniently hovers on my desktop.

You can check the webcams out for yourself right here:
http://www.nd.edu/campus-and-community/sights-sounds/

While you're at it, feel free to also look a the rather stunning photos of the campus right here:
http://nd.edu/campus-and-community/sights-sounds/virtual-tour/#tour-nav

These are especially helpful for those folks coming to visit us in January and February. We don't always reside in an ice box. It's true.

The first few weeks of work have been pretty good. People have been very welcoming and my new computer is incredibly cool. Pretty soon I'll enter a level of geekdom that I never thought possible. I will actually have 2, yes, TWO computer monitors on my desk. One for PC viewing and one for Mac viewing.

I'm settling in nicely and this Friday my new coworker will start as well. We've only spoken over the phone, but I see a bright future ahead!

Merry Christmas

2007-12-26T02:25:00.000-05:00

We arrived (after a 17 hour day of travel) in California....and are happy to report that while the weather in Indiana was roughly 19 and snowing....we are experiencing nice 50+ degree weather and sunshine.

(view from our back windows in Mishawaka)

Gotta love it when family lives somewhere warm you can visit for the holidays.

(this is sort of how we feel in California)

I'm (Elizabeth/Liz) feeling much better and took my last antibiotic yesterday. What a relief to be healthy again!

Soon we're heading to the Bay Area for a few days of fun with some old friends and then will head back to the land of snow and cold wind.

Merry Christmas to all of you!
Love,
Ryan & Elizabeth

Passive Resistance

2007-12-17T12:20:00.000-05:00

I have been staging my own personal passive resistance this past week. It seems to be the only way I can get my enemy to lower the cannons. Well, passive resistance and antibiotics are the true power behind me.

I'm slowly returning to health, in spite of my premature blog post where I divulged the similarities of my appearance this past week to Nick Nolte's mug shot and suggested I was suddenly on the mend.

My own passive resistance continues to be dozing in bed, getting up for water, Gatorade, or juice, and of course to tune in to MTV or Vh1. Fortunately I realized last night that we have the Food Channel and was able to see Paula Dean share her personality in full color on her Christmas Special. I think it was the first time I've seen her on TV and actually liked her. Maybe it was my mellow mental state. I have also learned about the national gingerbread house competition in Asheville, the enormous gingerbread house that Disney World constructs each year, as well as the way candy canes are made.

My passive resistance continues until we fly to California on Wednesday. And, if all goes well, I will truly be on the mend. Otherwise, it looks like pneumonia for me, and that isn't the Christmas gift I was hoping for.

Fear not....passive resistance has worked before and in my case, I hope it will work again.

PS. After a more careful review of the many celebrity mugshots on www.thesmokinggun.com I think I may have some of James Brown's attributes as well. Sigh. I wish I looked more like Janis Joplin's mugshot, but we can't all be political rockstar hippies.

you give me fever....

2007-12-13T23:08:00.000-05:00

I went to Seattle last week to visit some college friends and had a wonderful time hanging out. The only drawback was that one of the youngest members of the crew (Hi Sam!) was missing some very special days of kindergarten because he was sick. Really sick. High fevers, coughing, snuffly nose, and a sore throat.

While I was there, I washed my hands until they were visibly dry and cracking. I held my breath whenever I was in the same room with him. I drank more than my share of Emergen-C.
(Sorry Sam! You looked miserable....best to play it safe.)

But alas, sometimes we just get sick. And let's not peg all of this on Sam anyhow. The guy sitting next to me on the plane ride home kept coughing with his mouth closed in the way that suggests "I'm coughing but not really because my mouth is closed, therefore it doesn't count as a cough. It's just a little blockage in my airway."

I do not have the full resources of CSI and thus, I will probably never know the origin of my miserable bug. But I have spent the last 4 days wearing the same clothes (pajamas) and have not left the house. I have endured a hacking cough, sore throat, fevers, and now a little green thing we call mucus. But that's not the ugly stuff really.

The real tragedy was when I looked in the mirror and realize that yes, I really could have a miserable "celebrity mugshot" if I were arrested in that instant.

We've all seen those celebrity mugshots and sometimes we say "Ha! Look at you pretty actress...you're not so pretty now, are you?" and sometimes we take those opportunities to remember how much professional makeup artists work to keep their clientèle looking pristine. But then there are times when we see those photos and recognize a little bit of ourselves. Just a smidgen of our own self in the photo.

I'm not trying to say that I looked like Paris Hilton in her mugshot (click here to view) because frankly, she looks really good. I'd be happy if I looked this good in the photo on my driver's license.

After so many days of being sick and moving from bed to sofa, back to the bed, I was starting to have more of that Nick Nolte (click here to view) thing about me. I guess that's what happens when you rely on nyquil to sleep and wake up drooling on your pillow. Add in the pajamas and a fever, and quite frankly, nobody would use the word "fresh" to describe me.

I am happy to report though that I am beginning to feel better. And I will be venturing out of the house at some point on Friday to take a mandatory drug test for my new job. Yes, I have to adhere to the standard requirements of all new ND staff hires and take a drug test. Apparently they need a strand of my hair so I will make sure to wash it before I leave the house.

No reason to give the testing agency any ideas about my compliance with the law - sure they aren't supposed to discriminate on the basis of race, gender, or my apparent cleanliness. But if I show up looking like Nick Nolte's mugshot, we all know how this story will end.

So this post is really just to say that "I'm coming back." But don't play it in your head the way the little girl from poltergeist said it. It's more like this: I'm going to be back on email soon. I'm going to be leaving the house soon. And yes, showers will now be part of my regular routine once again.

Oh Christmas tree, oh Christmas tree....how lovely are thy branches.

2007-12-02T20:13:00.001-05:00

Neither Ryan or I have had a full-sized Christmas tree of our own since living with our parents. So...that means it has been a loooooong time since we've had the fun of decorating a tree.

Since this is the first time we have actually had room in our apartment for a tree (room for more than just the essential furniture items), we decided that when we saw a tree lot nearby we'd stop in to pick a tree.
Here is the PERFECT tree we found. It is pretty, no?

We got the tree on top of the car:
Up up and into the apartment:
And here is where it started to get interesting...
We got the tree into the stand and then started to screw the eyebolts. And it wasn't necessarily easy.
Then Ryan cut off the twine and the tree began to spring to life and its full form.

As the tree unfolded itself I heard Ryan say, "The tree is totally crooked. NOW what am I supposed to do? I'm not equipped to deal with this!"

Indeed. The tree was a little crooked and it meant more struggling with the eyebolts. I suddenly had flashbacks of my parents wrestling with their own Christmas tree when I was a child. Ryan and I had even gotten that same stupid kind of tree stand my parents had always had. It was the cheapest one available - so you can't blame us too much.

As we straightened the tree (me holding the trunk 1/2 way up while Ryan messed about with the eyebolts...the perfect reflection of what my own parents had done so many times) I soaked up the scent of the fresh pine. And then I started to notice the other "gifts" the tree was giving us. 2-inch long needles all over the carpet. Sigh.

Another Christmas flashback of my Mom trying desperately to vacuum up pine needles and always wondering if they would "do in" her vacuum cleaner. I had a surge of compassion and knew that payback was here. I was merciless when my parents finally switched out real Christmas trees for a "fake." I know it is probably the ecologically wise choice and easier on the vacuum cleaner but....what can I say? I had never gone through all this hassle. I was probably off digging through the ornaments and dreaming of whether or not I'd get the "day to night" Barbie or not.

With the tree finally straight, we unraveled the 2 strings of 50 lights we'd bought along with the tree stand. We plugged them together and started the prickly process of passing them around the tree to one another. And then we realized our next challenge.
We only had enough lights to barely cover 1/2 the tree. This meant another trip out to get more lights. Sigh. The never-ending process of trimming the tree.

We picked up more lights - this time 2 strands of 100 lights. Which definitely was enough. But since we had left the 2 sets of 50 lights on the tree and added to them, we found that adding a strand of 100 was not enough, but if we added all 200 it would have been WAY too much. So we gathered up any remaining patience and stripped the tree of lights. We then added 250 (instead of 300) and while it was just a tad sparse at the top we decided to go with it. As Pooh Bear would say....."Oh bother."

With the tree twinkling I embarked on a real Christmas task - sugar cookies. Fortunately I had a box mix from Crate & Barrel to simplify the task. But the simple part is the mixing of ingredients so the mix didn't really knock THAT much time off the process. The real work in sugar cookies is the rolling out of dough, pressing out the shapes with cookie cutters and then re-rolling the dough to do it all over again, and when that is all done, the time it takes to ice all those blasted cookies. As I slid the first sheet of cookies in the oven I vowed I would not put any icing on them. Just a sprinkle of sugar. I needed to build up my Christmas cheer somehow and icing 50 cookies would not help in the least.

This was a good decision considering that making and baking the cookies alone, took up about 2+ hours of time. But it was worth it.
With cookies smelling so sweet we decided to brew up some mulled & spiced wine so we could enjoy both as we decorated the tree that night.

And then at last, the fun began. It didn't take long to trim the tree, but since it was our first time to have our own Christmas tree, we were both pretty sentimental.
When all was said and done....I think the tree turned out beautifully. Pesky pine needles and all.

As my family always said after finishing the tree...."this is the prettiest tree we've ever had. It's perfect."

Thanksgiving in Missouri

2007-11-29T22:16:00.000-05:00

Like many of you, we spent our Thanksgiving visiting family. We were able to take off nearly 6 full days to hang out in Missouri. Here are some highlights:

Thanksgiving Day was of course a big part of our trip so I took the opportunity to photograph the family together. For once I remembered to bring my tripod on a trip and was able to make good use of it.

Roger, Ryan, and Uncle Bob

Grandma and Bo

All of us together

Bo...again and again

(I think he is yawning here from the tryptophan in the turkey)

We visited Grandma Keele and she had a project for Ryan to work on. I actually recommended him for the job, after all he is quite handy and I knew he could fix the tear in her upholstered chair without any trouble.

First, he assessed the situation. Next he got down and dirty (mostly just down) to really get things rolling

I don't think it made Grandma nervous, but she did take a moment to divert her eyes from the scene.

Then he started to stitch - Grandma helped out

Ryan finished up the sewing. And finally, Grandma got to relax in her favorite chair again. It was a funny story about that chair - she told us how nearly 10-12 years ago she and Grandpa Howard had gone into a furniture store and he basically said that was the chair they needed. She was not convinced since it didn't match any of their current furniture, but after he had her sit down in the chair to see how comfy it was, well, it sounds like it was a done deal. And I can vouch for how comfortable it is!

On our drive home we saw (supposedly) "The World's Largest Truck Stop." I don't know who can certify that it was indeed the world's largest truck stop, but this place was pretty big even if our photo doesn't demonstrate it.

I counted at least 3 full sized cars inside not to mention the full size semi truck that was also indoors. Ryan kept getting turned around and thinking we were going the wrong way. So...maybe it was a pretty big truck stop after all.

Soon we'll share our photos and stories of our Christmas tree with you. And a lesson finally learned after 29-32 years.

Just a general update!

2007-11-06T11:31:00.000-05:00

Hi All - this blog post is just a general life update. Guess I'm bored or procrastinating!

The wind is really in a frenzy outside the window and if it weren't so blasted cold outside I'd think a tornado was on the way.

I think it is just winter coming although I'm not sure which would be worse. Apparently we are already behind in our annual snowfall. I'm not complaining, although I can understand why others in the area might need or want the snow. I'm quite happy on November 6th without a single flake.

We have been attending the ND games (they have still only won ONE game out of 8) and keeping busy with new friends. This Friday we are hosting a "Chili and Beer" party that we hope will rival the ones that we always attended back in Boston. What better way to gird oneself for the bitter winter than eating a hot bowl of chili? We don't have many chairs for people to sit in, but fortunately our new friends J&A have floor cushions we can use.

The one thing the Chili and Beer party will not have (sadly) are the famous "Scotcharoos" that a former roommate used to make. We have been noticing that the reduction in daily walking is starting to take a toll on our waste lines. Yes, I do miss walking everywhere. I never thought I'd say that, but it was a really great form of exercise and always helped me participate in the seasons and explore the Cambridge neighborhoods.

The rattle in our car is getting more and more annoying so we'll have to take a look at the underbelly of our car pretty soon. The timing is pretty bad - hopefully we can do that before the first inch of snow hits. Then again, maybe we could just make a snow angel while we're under there.

I (Liz) had an interview at Notre Dame this week and am waiting for final word on whether or not I will progress to the next round. Never having owned a suit until this past spring, I had no idea how they could really constrain one's movement. I looked sharp though, so it was definitely worth it. I can't decide if I'm hoping for a second interview so that I can wear my other suit or because I would still be in the running for the job. If I am completely honest, think I may hold them in equal desire. I'm glad I don't have to wear a suit all the time, but it sure feels good to look like some sort of powerful NY executive every so often.

Both Ryan and I have started thinking about Jamaica again - and we are going to look at a date to return this spring. A lot has changed since our last trip in late March including the death of a very dear friend, the hurricane that touched down on the coast in late August, and the change in the ruling governmental party. Our next trip is likely to be more of a "fact finding" trip instead of an intensive week of service at the infirmary - but you never know what will happen so we're trying to be open to a variety of possibilities.

I'm getting to read a lot these days and have also been volunteering at a "Family Literacy" program that is part of the South Bend Housing Authority and the South Bend Schools. I'm working on creating a website for them which has been a big learning experience. I feel pretty inept - but at least I'm learning and trying something new. The program itself is pretty incredible - it is an opportunity for low-income women to get their GED and to learn more about early childhood development. The idea is that the women spend some time in the morning daycare with their child and then walk down the hall to their GED study class. After class they return to the daycare to spend more time with their child - they may do singing, drawing, reading, and a variety of other activities. It is pretty amazing to see the complex combination of services that this program provides. Now if I could just make a representative website for them I'd be pleased!

As for the reading - feel free to send any book recommendations my way. I'm limited to what I can find at the ND library and the St. Joseph county library. I knew I'd miss the Harvard Libraries when we left and I do miss them a great deal. Sigh.

Recent reads that I really enjoyed were:

The Brothers K by David James Duncan
Nickle and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich

I'm hoping to pick up a copy of these books from the libraries next:

The Secret History of the War on Cancer by Devra Davis
and
The Sharper Your Knife the Less You Cry by Kathleen Flinn

All in all, we are surviving and possibly starting to reach a stage of "thriving" here in Indiana. Notre Dame men's basketball has just started up so I am excited to watch a sport that I understand more than football.

Oh and how about those RED SOX??? You can take the girl outta Boston, but you can't take Boston outta the girl. (For that matter I still have a lot of California and Montana in me too!)

I'm off to make some tortillas for my lunch (Ryan has nearly perfected them!) so.....
Autumnal Greetings to all from Mishawaka!

Bloom where you're planted

2007-09-30T19:07:00.000-04:00

When I was in college, Mary Engelbreit products were sort of this cool thing that my friends (most of us Elementary Ed majors) liked and sometimes purchased. We generally liked the note pads, the sayings, and maybe the bookmarks. We didn't get into the little statues, coffee mugs, or the other trinkets. I think we were (and maybe I should just speak for myself - that is usually the safest route) drawn to the unique and vibrant colors, the detailed layering of multiple designs, and the heart-warming sayings. My favorite saying was always "Bloom where you're planted." I liked this suggestion and I have held onto it through a variety of my life's seasons.
So, in Mishawaka where I still don't have any new friends, it seemed wise to find other ways to bloom where I've been planted. The art class was one area to help myself grow, joining a women's group at the church was another, and getting to nurture growing greens was yet another. I'm literally creating blooms where I've been planted.

I started off by taking the seeds from a red bell pepper we'd eaten in a stir fry a few weeks ago and planting them into this great planter we got at IKEA. I also had seeds from one of my old bell pepper experiments that were 5 years old - that's right, I'd been holding onto them since 2002. I didn't know if there is an expiration on this sort of thing so I just threw them in for fun. And lastly I took the seeds from a banana pepper I'd used to make some fresh salsa while Ryan was away at his ASA conference in mid August.

While the 2002 seeds and the banana pepper haven't worked out, the red bell pepper has done really well. Here are my 3 planters after just a few days:
It's hard to see it here...but on the far left the bell pepper is starting to sprout - there are 2 teeny green buds. I don't expect you to see them in that photo above though.
There they are!! Two itty-bitty green sprouts. But even more exciting was what things looked like just 2 days later. Voila!

So those photos were essentially Day 3 and Day 5. But, wait a bit more....maybe until about Day 14 and you will see quite a transformation.

Tah Dah!

Now, I know that I can safely say (without sounding too pompous) that I am a reasonably likable person and I have some finely tuned professional skills. Hence, at some point I will make friends and I will get a job that is worthwhile and pays the bills.

But it didn't happened in 2 weeks time, unlike my little peppers' progress. And it isn't likely to happen in 2 months' time either since we are now venturing into week 8 of Mishawaka living.

But maybe I shouldn't always expect my personal and professional trajectory or timeline to progress quite the same as these little plants. After all, not all of the seeds I planted actually started to sprout. I would really like things to move more rapidly than they have, but I guess it is just a reminder that I'm not entirely in control of life or growth.

So, I'll plant more seeds - both figuratively and literally, and I'll turn things toward the sunny side of the apartment. Something is bound to grow, and bloom. I just have to give it more time and maybe mix in a different varietal.

The Hidden Gems

2007-09-14T15:02:00.000-04:00

We have been on the look-out for some "hidden gems" within Mishawaka. I mentioned Ritter's frozen custard last week, and it is still a gem. But since we are trying to avoid Ritter's 29 days out of the month (we want but don't actually need those calories) I thought I'd pass along some of the other surprises that have appeared.

I know already that this blog post will sort of look like an advertisement, but I don't care. We've been working hard to find ways to feel at home in this strange new place and here are some of the things we've enjoyed and will share with you when you come visit. You're coming soon, right?

Now that we have left the east coast, we can purchsae a truly midwestern special....Vernor's soda. While Vernor's may be confused with the standard ginger ale, it is far from it. It is, as some say, "liquid gold."
We discovered just yesterday the best of bread franchises one can imagine....Great Harvest Bread Company. The store here in Mishawaka is not as hip as the one in Misosula MT but the items are just as good. Sweet lovin' we found a Great Harvest. Forget Panera ever existed.
Yesterday we bought the "Apple Cheddar Bread" and it was pretty darned good. What was missing in ambiance was made up for in the quality of the product.
I also recently discovered the favorite cereal of my childhood. Boo-Berry. I didn't even hesitate to grab it off the shelf. It was an automatic reaction. BAM! Boo-Berry in basket without balking for a bit about wellbeing at the breakfast bar.
Oh baby, we are living the good life.

Another discovery has been the South Bend Studio Arts Center where art classes are amazingly affordable. I'm taking a landscape painting course that uses pastels on Friday mornings. Today was the first class and it was pretty cool. For just 100 bucks I get 8 classes that are 2.5 hours long. The same course in Cambridge would have been at least 2x as much. I'm thinking about taking one of their calligraphy classes taught by Anne Binder - here is a piece you can see at her online gallery.
We're still on the lookout for a good Indian and/or Thai food restaurant, but maybe we can't replace all the things we loved in Cambridge with something here. Maybe we just have to find new things we love. So far, we're not doing so bad on that goal.

This weekend we head to the Nappanee Apple Festival to do a 50km bike ride. We'll see some of the Amish country there and enjoy some apples. Can't be all bad now, can it?

Thou Shall Not Speed

2007-09-04T20:43:00.000-04:00

We saw this church reader board on our drive back from "the Dunes" a week or so ago.

I think God may have better things to do than watch for people speeding in front of the Pines Bible Church.

But if I'm wrong, well, I suppose we narrowly avoided trouble.

I can see it now...the window rolls down and Ryan says with his most winning and innocent smile...

"Yes, Officer of The Lord, what seems to be the problem?"

Highlights of Mishawaka and the surrounding 90 miles

2007-08-27T15:38:00.000-04:00

Before I completely lose the ability to recall our drive from the East Coast to Mishawaka, I thought I should outline a few notable events and the sights as we drove from Lake George, NY to Mishawaka in early August. After the notable events on the way to Indiana, it seems worthwhile to mention the notable events that we have had the pleasure to experience within the 90 mile radius of our apartment. It will be a long post, so please be patient.

Niagara Falls - New York
We left Lake George NY (where we'd been staying with my sister & family) early in the morning hoping to beat traffic (on a Sunday?) and arrive in Mishawaka before dark. We decided on our way to visit Niagara Falls. Ignoring our map, we followed the signs to the falls which were deceptive in the sense that they forced us to journey off the main thoroughfare and into the narrow roads of the rural towns which had once thrived on their proximity to such a wondrous tourist destination. We drove through the graveyard towns composed of battered hotels which had not seen "the glory days" for decades. Forced to drive 30 mph for the majority of the way, we found ourselves with very little time (or patience) once we arrived at the falls.

Parking was nowhere to be found, at least not for free. So we decided to at least get the best deal on parking and selected a lot where we were guaranteed a free souvenir from the visitor's center. We made our way to the visitor's center with 2 papers in hand, ready to claim our free souvenirs. Ryan went to find a drinking fountain while I waited my turn at the counter.

If you are going to work at one of the largest tourist destinations in the country, you ought to be friendly. Alas, the woman who barely uttered a greeting hastily slapped down a photocopied map along with my special souvenir, was not the vision of a welcome greeting I'd expected. As she lay down my souvenir magnet, I actually said with great disturbance, "THIS.......is the souvenir?"

It was a magnet with a ridiculous picture of Niagara falls. The kind of magnet that should be thrown away as soon as you get it, simply for the fact that the photo it displayed was so bad that no postcard company would even try to sell it as a "view of Niagara Falls." Here it is so you too can be irritated by the fact that of all the photos in the world taken of Niagara Falls, THIS is the one they give out as the free souvenir.

I grabbed my magnet and got out of there. I should have thrown it in the trash instantly but I didn't. And now it is on our fridge.

We meandered toward the falls only to realize that the view from the American side is rather obstructed and much less impressive than what the Canadians get to see. We didn't want to pay $25 for, nor did we have the extra time to spend climbing to the observation deck which allows people to walk an extra 20 feet beyond the fence to get a better view.

I left feeling disheartened. Niagara falls had disappointed me - all the hype & the build up of the "glorious" Niagara Falls for 32 years (my life span) was just too much. As Ryan and I continued to discuss, we realized we had set our expectations for a experience a little more like visiting Semonkong Falls in Lesotho. That was breathtaking for us, and what we expected of Niagara. An uninhibited view all to ourselves. (You can read about Semonkong Falls & our visit here.)

Don't be discouraged by my review, however. Instead, take it in stride and visit the falls from the Canadian side. Trust me, they really do have the better end of the deal.

Euclid Avenue - Ohio
As we approached Cleveland, heavy rains began to fall, and our stomachs began to growl with the hunger that can only be satiated by fast food. Or a really good homemade pasta.

Homemade pasta is hard to find, pretty much anywhere, so we took the first exist just outside of Cleveland. As we left the busy freeway we realized that we had chosen an exit where the fast food rows were not *just* off the freeway, but rather through the neighborhoods. We followed Euclid Avenue towards the Taco Bell sign (McDonald's was the other direction) and thought we'd capitalize on the affordable gasoline too. We pulled into the station and Ryan locked the doors behind him, having noticed the deterioration of the buildings and clientèle as we progressed down the street.

I wasn't as concerned about our surroundings (I think I rarely am) but since I was in the driver's seat I felt obliged to be vigilant about all that occurred outside the tightly sealed bubble of our '97 Nissan Sentra. We emerged with a full tank, and unscathed. Taco Bell was yet another intersection deeper into the urban jungle so we settled on going to Popeye's chicken which was nearly across the street.

We went in to Popeye's, kept an eye on the car (bikes on top of the car were the primary concern) and waited for our order. I found everyone was really friendly, but I also found that we were sticking out like a sore thumb. And it wasn't until I noticed on our way out, the ominous sign posted on the entry door. It was similar to this:
Basic idea...you are welcome, but your guns are not.

Ryan had noticed the sign on the way in, but I hadn't. Which explains why he quickly told the woman taking our order that it was definitely not "for here" but rather, " TO GO!"

I thought he just wanted to make good time on the road. But nah, he was looking out for my safety, an excellent quality.

RV Hall of Fame - Indiana
After entering Indiana we laughed our heads off at the RV Hall of Fame. That's right, when you come to visit, we might go to the RV Hall of Fame. I can't imagine what we'll see inside, but we'll find out together.

During his orientation at Notre Dame, Ryan learned that Indiana is the RV Capital of the World. I'd always suspected that Honduras might be the RV Capital of the World, but it turns out I'm wrong. I suppose it makes sense as Indiana is known as the "Crossroads of America." At least I think that helps it make sense to me.

90 Miles or less:
If you travel just 90 miles to the Northwest-ish, one will find themselves (hopefully) outside the clutches of Gary Indiana (wretched wretched wretched) and in the middle of the beautiful parks of

We went to Chicago for our anniversary and stayed at the Swissotel near the Navy Pier. A fabulous view from our room greeted us each morning....along with incessant rains. We got a few hours of sunshine which we used to explore the Millennium park and enjoy a walk down the Magnificent Mile. I enjoyed walking on Frank Gehry's bridge which I didn't know about prior to our visit.

45 Miles away
If you travel about 45-50 miles to the West, you come to the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, about which we'd heard rave reviews. We hadn't considered that there would be a "beach" feel to the lakeshore and planned our trip there to focus on some hikes. We were both glad for this.

When we reached the beach, we realized we had no desire to swim. Yep, that water is clear, but reddish brown. And it's not because of the sand.

As we approached the water's edges we looked down the beach to our left where we saw the Gary Steel mills on the water's edge less than 6 miles away. (Can you see the towers in the distance?)

We thought the water must be reddish brown because of pollution (I'm sure there is pollution!) but then we read a sign over the creek that runs into the lake and learned more.

The creek flows through a culvert into Lake Michigan and it looks pretty gross.
The sign above the culvert reads:
"Swimming, wading or playing in creek is strictly prohibited due to frequently high bacteria levels." We didn't need the sign to tell me to stay out of the creek water nor did we need a sign to convince us that we would have more fun hiking a dune than splashing in the water. Yuck.

We took a short hike up a dune to an overlook point, which, unfortunately just gave us another view of Gary. But I did get a nice shot of Ryan on the trail. So not all was lost.
We spent the rest of the afternoon at the Michigan City outlets.

We have explored our new area with zeal and will now take more careful recommendations on where we venture. We've heard from several sources that Sagatuck is nice and that there is a great ice cream place in New Haven.

And there are some gems here in Mishawaka too.

Mishawaka Gems
Ritter's Frozen Custard is down the road and they have some of the best frozen custard I've tasted. I'm no expert of course, so we'll have to have some Missouri folks sample it too. One of the best things about Ritter's is that they give Notre Dame students 50% off their purchase. Can you believe it?
Last week we took our friend Bruce there and we got all 3 of our orders for around $4. Ritter's has won our hearts.

Other gems include a Mexican restaurant, Fiesta Tapatia, which is close by. We ate there on Friday night and thoroughly enjoyed our meal. Traditional Carne Asada tacos and chile rellenos. Oh my, it was heavenly.

We're still exploring the area and finding the spots we'll eventually call favorites. When you come to visit, we'll take you to all the hot spots. We promise.

Mishawaka waka waka

2007-08-15T11:01:00.000-04:00

We made it to our new place in Mishawaka, IN with only a few bumps and bruises. Our families are very curious to see our apartment here, so I took a few snapshots to tide you over until I can put up a "real" post about the adventures of driving to Indiana.

The living room - before we got new lamps. I just love a deal and when I saw a new lamp combo at Kmart for only $12.00 I decided to buy new lamps instead of continuing the dead-end search for new lamp shades. No art on the walls just yet and not because we lack things to hang on the walls....just waiting until we are more settled.

The new floor lamp....see the boxes behind it? Those still aren't unpacked.
The kitchen with cute b&w flooring. That is about the only bit of "charm" in the new apartment. But I think I'll take space over charm. 435 square feet of charm in Cambridge is more difficult than 926 square feet of bland standard apartment in Mishawaka. And a heck of a lot cheaper. While our kitchen would appear to be bigger than the old one, it actually doesn't offer any more cupboard space. AND we only have TWO drawers!

The pond behind our apartment. We can't BBQ on the balcony, but at least we can see water!
With the water comes some interesting neighbors who are clearly not toilet trained as evidenced by the sidewalk which stopped me in my tracks while taking photos of the property.

The neighbors who made the mess are also kind of noisy, but at least they will only be here for a season. I think their lease ends right as winter starts....they're genuine "snow birds" I guess.

And lastly, the pool & hot tub. Which I still haven't used! Guess we better get our towels and sunscreen. If you don't see another blog post for a while, you'll know where to find us!

2007-07-31T21:52:00.000-04:00

The Simple Life

By Mary Frances Giles, guest blogger

Ah, the great outdoors. Fresh air. Open spaces. A time to simplify and get back to basics.

I am not a camper. I never have been, and I have no desire to become one. I don't understand why people spend hundreds and thousands of dollars on gear in order to sleep outside and make the whole experience seem "just like home". Why not just stay home? You are already paying rent there, plus there are no bugs. However, because of my undying love and devotion to the Lincolns, I agreed to grant them their one last "dying wish" before their permanent departure from Boston: to accompany them (plus Tracy and Nate) on a weekend in the woods.

Upon my arrival at the Lincolns' house on Friday afternoon, Tracy was already staring into the back of her Explorer, wondering how in the world we were going to fit everyone's stuff into the car. She even came with ropes (and let's be honest, a bit of hopeful excitement!) should we need to strap anything to the top of the car. I mean, we were only going to be gone for 48 hours – did we really need all of that gear? To demonstrate my point I had Tracy snap this picture of me with all of my stuff:

I promise that this is more stuff than I have ever packed for any other trip in my life. Ever. And did I mention that we were only going away for 48 hours??? Here is another shot of me in the car, as the rest of the team worked to fit everything in, like trying to solve one of those puzzles that only the engineers at MIT can figure out.

So, about half an hour and many packing iterations later, we were off to begin our adventure in the great outdoors. I'll give you a brief version of my thoughts and observations from my weekend as a wilderness woman:

Sleeping: I don't care what Mardi Fuller or the guys at REI say, Thermarest pads are NOT sufficient padding for sleeping on the ground. Who are we kidding, people? I didn't sleep a wink the entire weekend!

Fire: Thank goodness for matches. As we learned first hand, starting a fire with only a flint is near impossible. Big props to Ryan for finally beating the odds after many, many, many tries. I have a new appreciation for the cavemen and their ability to survive without waterproof matches.

Food: It really is amazing how good a marshmallow or a hot dog tastes when cooked over an open flame. Ahhhh, fond memories of childhood! I could, however, go the rest of my life without eating corn beef hash again (sorry Ed Hawkins!).

Hiking: Don't trust Nate Pelsma to pick a hiking trail for you. Ever. But if you do, be sure to check out the definition of "trail". In my dictionary is does NOT mean "large boulders stacked on top of each other, requiring full use of both arms and legs to ascend to summit". But apparently they define things a little differently up there in New Hampshire. Here's a shot of me and the "trail"(notice that I'm not wearing clothing that "wicks". This is apparently scandalous in the world of hiking…):

Neighbors: Growing up in east Tennessee, I've seen my fair share of insects and guys on motorcycles. But New Hampshire sure does give Tennessee a run for its money.

Friends: A couple of days spent in the beauty of God's creation with friends that you love (without the distraction of cell phones, email, or the grind of daily life) is pretty fabulous. While I'm not in any hurry to spend another night on a Thermarest pad, I had a great time and am so grateful for our weekend together and the memories that we made. Maybe the great outdoors isn't so bad after all…

Land of the Living

2007-06-19T12:29:00.000-04:00

We have just gotten a new laptop - which is a wonderful blessing to us both!
(Thank you E& R!!)

Having each had separate laptops that slowly slipped into comas over the last 2 years we have relied heavily on other options to get our computing done.

At last we have a new sleek diva of a laptop. The macbook. The best part about buying a macbook when you're affiliated with a university or school is that you get a slightly better price and this time around, we also got a rebate toward an ipod! So now we have officially entered (after many years) the territory of savvy computer users.

We are now, among the land of the living.

Yes, you can probably expect to start seeing videos we've made (the macbook has a built in camera on it) and perhaps some podcasts here and there. I've had the hardware needed (which is not much) to make a podcast but not the software and I hate to fiddle with the free stuff you can dig up online. Blog readers beware....we may soon be in full motion and sound. A scary prospect for those of you who just like the safety of the printed word.

And for those of you who use skype to talk for free - we will be back in action on skype soon, again, with video instead of that cute picture of me with a green umbrella. Well, at least I thought it was cute.

I am not sure how quickly I will adapt to the mac, I know it is supposed to be simpler to use and all creativity and information is now supposed to flow at the speed of light because we have a mac.

BUT....I am awfully attached to my keyboard shortcuts that make my work so much faster. Alt + F4 to close windows, Alt + Tab to scroll through windows I have open. Ctrl V or F or A or C.....will I find their twins on the mac? Or I will be slow again and relying on a stupid file menu.

But never mind that now my friends. We have a video to make...perhaps you'd like to see me quilting or the banks of the Charles river. Perhaps a cooking lesson and recipe for a delicious fennel salad? The possibilities, well, they may just be endless. We'll do our best to keep you entertained.

Commencing at last!

2007-06-13T13:10:00.001-04:00

Well, at last, Harvard Commencement is over and I am a graduate. It felt pretty darned good.
Not a lot more to say other than we had a wonderful time celebrating and it is such a relief to know that I don't have to do any more school work!

Everyone in my family finally got a ticket to the morning commencement exercises, which is no small feat. Roughly 32,000 people (including grads and guests) gathered in the yard for the morning exercises.
This photo shows people packing in on the library stairs - they are the unfortunate folks who didn't get seats. But they also didn't wait at the closed gates starting at 6 AM so there is a trade off of sorts!

These are the Ed School doctoral students leading the HGSE procession into the yard. Somehow our school got seated incorrectly and I almost wound up sitting with the School of Public Health. The great thing about my seating was that I was only about 20 feet away from my family. So I got to sneak over and have a little visit before the ceremony began.

The photo above features our Dean (in blue) at our HGSE diploma ceremony. Our ceremony occurred in the Radcliffe Yard which is a lovely green lawn behind our main HGSE building.

The diploma ceremony was a lot of fun and afterward I had this moment of deep emotion - and I knew that all I wanted to do was find Ryan and give him a giant hug. I really could *not* have survived the program _and_ full time work without his support. It was a moment of relief that all of that extra hard work was over and I just wanted to squeeze him tight!

We did some family photos after the ceremony which I think turned out quite nicely!

HOORAY!

A production

2007-06-04T12:25:00.000-04:00

I cannot begin to explain the production which is Harvard's Commencement. Here are a few pictures from over the weekend that we took while hanging out in the yard, working on my own "commencement photos" so that I won't have to take a bunch on Thursday when all the other thousands of grads are staking out the best spots.

Cranes, giant white tents, cables, chairs, and a lot of extra hands start to appear the week or so before commencement. It's pretty fun really, and I imagine it is very expensive too! Good thing the tuition is so high - how else would they cover the cost? ;-)

Here is Widener Library with the first of the three giant Veritas flags which will appear on the building during commencement week.

Below is the flag which represents the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
Each school has a flag similar to this, and they hang side-by-side on the trees in the "Tercentenary Theater" - the open space between Memorial Church and Widener Library where the main commencement events are held. It is quite a site to behold.

Although I have not seen the morning events in person (each graduate only gets 2 tickets to the morning event) I have heard several reports that it is a very interesting morning. Long, but interesting.

The gates open at 6:45 AM for parents, family, friends (whoever got the 2 tickets) to get seats, or standing room. Two hours later, a procession of scholars, dignitaries, and graduates roll in. As well as the sheriff of Middlesex and Suffolk counties who will arrive on horseback.

To keep everyone happy, or at least the grads, there is free beer (a tradition that dates back to 1703) and a variety of interesting speakers throughout the day. The morning exercises will include student speeches (one will be in Latin) and the afternoon exercises will feature a notable speaker (for Ryan's graduation it was Kofi Annan) - this year it is Bill Gates.

I'm really looking forward to the arrival of my family this week, which will really heighten the experience and make the commencement more "real" and of course more fun too! We haven't had all of us together (and I say that with the caveat that it will only be my sister joining us, not her whole family) since Christmas of 2005. But I think it will be a great time. We have plans to go to my favorite restaurant on Wednesday night, and we may grill at our place on Thursday. Lots of fun is in order!

Now if Harvard could just do something about this dreadful weather! We are anticipating sunny skies and 73 degrees, I really hope the good weather will pull through! Here is what we are looking at today:

For those of you who can't join us on Thursday, I will post some photos ASAP! Many thanks to those of you who have expressed your congratulations - it has been fun to get your cards in the mail and the smiles at church or across email these past few days!

On the road again....

2007-05-29T20:38:00.000-04:00

As Willie sings it, he can't wait to get back on the road again. But even though we share a love of bandanas worn on your head, we don't have the same beliefs about long drives. Or being on the road as a lifestyle.

Ryan and I are soon be "on the road again" with our upcoming move to South Bend, IN. Yes, we are moving to the land of corn, or as their official state nickname puts it "The Hoosier State."

Sounded like an insult to me. I didn't know what a Hoosier was, so I looked it up on my trusty dictionary website. And OH MY. It isn't as nice as it could be. In fact it isn't nice at all.

Hoo·sier [hoo-zher]

1.	a native or inhabitant of Indiana (used as a nickname).

2.	(usually lowercase) any awkward, unsophisticated person, esp. a rustic.

I have just spent two and a half years working on a degree that will help me be more sophisticated and less awkward and now I'm moving to the state named after some country bupmkins. The origin of the nickname is contested on the Indiana State Library website, but even if it is the official nickname it just seems a little odd.

At least the housing prices are good. For the same price of a very small condo in the Boston area, we could purchase a home of 2057 square feet. Of course, who wants to spend close to $300,000 on a home when the majority of houses sold in 2005 and 2006 cost between
$50,000 & $100,000. When I first saw these prices I instantly thought we should purchase a couple of places and rent them out. Ryan said I sounded like a slum lord.

It still seems like a good idea to me. And if I'm going to be called a hoosier, I might as well be called a slum lord too. Perhaps I can employ some of the skills I learned at the Boston Architectural Center a few years back. Although this place seems like it is doing okay without my expertise and is within the "easy to sell" price range. The resale options on a home are very important to me now because I know that once Ryan is referred to as Dr. Lincoln it will be time to be, (sigh) on the road again.

What I find interesting about this next move is that it starts to outlines a pattern I seem to have. In August 1997 I moved from MT to CA. In August 2002 I moved from CA to MA. And in August 2007 I am moving from MA to IN. Presumably, in August 2012 we will be moving out of Indiana and to a new location where Ryan will be on faculty at a college or university. Every 5 years I am on the road, moving across the country. And every time you can imagine me with the music blaring and a box of Junior Mints wedged in the cup holder. Although you won't hear Willie on my speakers - his stuff gets stuck in my head and that isn't good for me or the passenger in my car.

At least this time I'm moving with somebody I love to the deepest depths, and to a place where, even if it is full of hoosiers, I will get to enjoy life a little more because I will have time to breathe. After I get those condemned houses redesigned. Sing it with me now.....

"On the road again
Just can't wait to get on the road again
The life I love is makin' music with my friends
And I can't wait to get on the road again
On the road again
Goin' places that I've never been
Seein' things that I may never see again,
And I can't wait to get on the road again.

On the road again
Like a band of gypsies we go down the highway
We're the best of friends
Insisting that the world be turnin' our way
And our way
Is on the road again
Just can't wait to get on the road again
The life I love is makin' music with my friends
And I can't wait to get on the road again

On the road again
Like a band of gypsies we go down the highway
We're the best of friends
Insisting that the world be turnin' our way
And our way
Is on the road again

Just can't wait to get on the road again
The life I love is makin' music with my friends
And I can't wait to get on the road again
And I can't wait to get on the road again"

Bday weekend

2007-05-21T12:42:00.000-04:00

Many have asked for photos of my nephew's Birthday weekend - which was quite fun. Tiring but certainly fun, and Daniel had a blast which was the most important thing.

The birthday part include 15 kids (5th graders) at my Sister's house in NY. My sister, a woman who is like Martha Stewart (without a criminal record) always manages to come up with really creative parties. This year the party entailed making 15 cardboard-box cars - one for each child to decorate and customize to their liking. Once the cars were completed, the kids got to sit in them at the "drive-in" to watch a double feature.

Of course, no drive-in visit would be complete without the concession stand, so there was one of those too! I am telling you, my sister goes ALL OUT for this sort of thing.

FRIDAY night was the family birthday party complete with dessert, pinata, and a lot of playing a new toy, the "Wii" (pronounced wee).

Pinata preparation

Meghan takes a turn at the Pinata
After the big pinata break, all the kids (big and small) dove in for the candy.

Here are the big kids playing tennis on the Wii.

A Wii tennis tournament in the wee hours of the night.

SATURDAY was a little rainy so Daniel's afternoon game got canceled which gave us the much needed time to take care of last minute details, like painting the cars before all the kids arrived.

15 cardboard "cars" waiting for their glossy paint job

Daniel had a firetruck which he painted in a fluorescent yellow-green.
The cars waiting for their new drivers...and customization!
The mad scramble to get a car, and afterward take it to the stations including:

Making an air freshener
Adding tires
Adding a removable spotlight
Painting a grill on the engine
Making & adding side mirrors
Adding headlights
Exterior customization (stickers, etc)

Making an air freshener to hang in the car

Adding Tires

Adding a "grill" to the front of the car.
Car with headlights and side mirrors...but it looks like a tire has come off in the process.
Some "customized" cars.....the pink feather boa makes a colorful addition don't you think?
Putting the petal to the metal.....a real road race. Some of the cars did well, and others didn't make out so well with tires flying off and side mirrors dropping to the ground.

After a "hard day's work" at the custom car shop, all the kids got "Daniel Dollars" to use at the drive-in concession stand later that night.

After the race, the cars parked at the drive-in while Daniel opened gifts from his friends.
Opening gifts - and thanking everyone for coming over. (Daniel had impeccable manners)
Making sure the concession stand is set up before the movie starts. The concession stand served: pizza, popcorn, nachos, hot dogs, candy, and soda.
Quite a spread!
But no birthday party would be complete without cake! So first the birthday song and then off to the movies!
All the kids are sitting in their cars watching the movie projected on the living room wall.

As 10 PM rolled around, the parents popped in and took kids home. And then, as the lights came on, the carnage was revealed.

After the clean-up I have a little more respect for those who clean up movie theaters. I am so glad that I am one of those people who throws out my trash at the theater...I didn't used to be. Eeew. I will forever clean up after myself from this day forward.

HAPPY 10TH BIRTHDAY DANIEL!!!!!!!!!!

Celebrate good times CoME ON!

2007-05-18T22:10:00.000-04:00

On Monday night I sent in my FINAL final project. The project to end my HGSE student career. It wasn't a moment of great fanfare, but it did feel good. And anytime I finish a school term means it is time to celebrate. And celebrate we did.

Our favorite end-of-term celebration usually takes the form of dessert, specifically ice cream. On warm spring nights, the best ice cream is found at Christina's in Inman Square. It is some of the best ice cream I have ever had. If you go to Ben and Jerry's you'll get ice cream with a lot of good chunky stuff in it, which I like a lot. All of America seems to like it a lot.

But the oh-so special thing about ice cream (and sorbet) at Christina's is the intensity of the ice cream flavor. One time I got Pear sorbet and it tasted exactly like a fresh ripe pear. I don't know how they do it - but the flavors are intense, pure, and delicious.

So we went to Christina's last night and for once, I went all out. I got 2 scoops of real ice cream in a waffle cone. Yep, I splurged an extra 50 cents for a waffle cone. Normally I stick to fro-yo or sorbet but this was a celebration...and it was worth it.

This photo of me waiting to order doesn't accurately capture the long and persistent line that is always found at Christina's. We got there in the nick of time before the line got too long.

The special treat. Chocolate Mint Chip and Coffee Oreo. Oh yes and it was all mine.
Ethereal sounds and wavy lines moved through the air as I gobbled on my giant cone.

And then the words rang out..."I don't think I feel so good."
When you spend your time eating frozen yogurt or sorbet, the real stuff can make you feel a little woozy. But in the moment of celebration, you must press on. So press on, I did.

Yes, that is potentially a look of nauseated regret...but I am not one to pooh-pooh a celebration. It is my duty to carry on the party.
Pressing on...for the sake of the celebration. MY celebration. Sure it was my ice cream party and I could cry if I wanted to...cry if I wanted to. But....
Things were starting to look up. The wooziness was wearing off...and sugar kicking in. Just like mile 25 of a marathon....the finish was in sight.
That's right this is a PARTY people! Let's see some smiles and hear some laughter. Anybody ready for another cone?

Congratulations Liz!!

2007-05-16T10:06:00.000-04:00

Yes, that's right - Congratulations!! I wanted to come out of hiding to write a blog post to celebrate Liz and her amazing achievement. As of Monday, she turned in her final, final paper. All that's left to do now is don a cap and gown, partake in many parties and free food, and walk across the stage on Radcliffe yard to recieve her Harvard Diploma.

I can't even begin to say how proud I am of her. For two years she has worked over 40 hours a week at a demanding job and excelled in her graduate program. She has also done this while planning 2 mission trips to Jamaica, continuing to be a great friend, and being an amazing wife! Truly incredible!

Well done, love, well done!!!

Tune in soon to see how we celebrated the completion of that last paper...

You have a choice, but I suggest you just give me your $10.

2007-05-13T11:38:00.000-04:00

WARNING: I am going to discuss the plot of Spider-Man 3. This movie is about choices. I thoroughly disliked this film and considered it a waste of time (even though I liked #1 and 2) so, if you still to want to watch this movie and don't want to "spoil" the movie I suggest that you don't read any further. You do have a choice.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Saturday night, after a lovely day of bike riding through Concord and Acton, we had a brief picnic on the Charles River. It was a wee bit chilly so we made our way home, checked the movie listings and decided to see Spider-Man 3. After all, we had enjoyed the first 2 films and this new film seemed to have more of a real-life dilemma (personal choices and their consequences as opposed to *just* fighting super-power villains) so we decided to go.

But don't be fooled by the media commentary...."The budget has been estimated at over $250 million, making it the most expensive movie of all time. Look at it that way and $11 a ticket is a real bargain!"

It was a wretched waste of money. At this point you may want to make the choice to just give me your $10 (or more if you would have been buying popcorn and soda) and I'll take you somewhere different where we will have a lot more fun. If you're really worried about missing the great content of the film, I have taken the liberty of finding some clips for you to explain the whole story. And if they dare to make a Spider-Man 4, you will have these cliff notes. Trust me you are missing *nothing* by skipping this movie, except wasting 2 hours and 20 minutes of your life. This film is about choices....and so is this blog post. I urge you to choose to spend your cold hard cash on something else.
(Problems ARE right around the corner...at this point in the film you are only about 20 minutes into it and have 2 more hours to go. The dumbest 2 hours of your life.)

By the time Peter/Spidey gets the suit, you've seen 2 supernatural bad guys that really don't make any comic book or sci-fi sense, and you're introduced to a 3rd bad guy who is the typical over-acted 20-something schmoozer-looser character without superhuman abilities, that later GETS super powers. To make matters worse, once Peter gets the new black suit, which by the way has a *very weak* explanation... he starts messing up his hair and wearing black eyeliner to indicate he is suddenly "troubled" and in great angst. Did they have to use the eyeliner? Please.)

(Peter is mean to and neglects the two best things going for him, his girl MJ and sweet Aunt May. This actually is a bad thing - we should not neglect the people we love.)

(Actually, this revenge stuff happens before that stupid black suit enters the picture. I really like "Harry" who was also in the great TV show "Freaks and Geek" quite a lot. Especially in the parts of this film where he is a nice guy. But what will these two boys do to settle their playground disputes? Darn that bad black spidey suit. Will it ruin everything? NO! The writers ruined this film looooong loooong ago.)

(Additionally, two of the most unbelievable supernatural evil guys have teamed up. But of course, spidey can get them with the help of his former best friend who was evil and decided to be good. Because the theme of this movie is that we have choices.)

Will he or won't he? What if he can't over come the power of the black suit? What if he can?
Untangle me from the web of powerful special effects...I will think twice about CHOOSING to spend my money on Spider-Man 4. And now you can think twice about Spider-Man 3.

Multi-tasking

2007-05-11T11:44:00.000-04:00

This week some old friends were in town, who are moving back to Cambridge after being away for 3+ years. It was an important goal of mine to make sure that they reconnected with old friends who are still living in the area, and to meet some new friends too. And maybe some friends who will help with child care on occasion once J. has her baby!

What better venue than the weekly meeting of friends who gather in Roslindale to watch LOST on TV together?

Here are my old friends (J & P on the right, meeting a new awesome friend, TG who is also our gracious host each week for LOST)

Little did we know that there would be even MORE multi-tasking than just connecting friends and watching TV. Enter MFG, a woman who knows how to multi-task AND have fun.

MFG is my old roommate and great friend. She needed some extra help with a mailing project for work, so we all pitched in, putting addresses and stamps on envelopes. MFG works for the Bolivian Street Children Project that helps homeless children get off the streets of La Paz. It is a great organization and you can (and should!) read more about their work here:
http://www.bolivianstreetchildren.org/v2/index.php

And of course, as MFG knew already, many hands make light work. We finished in no time at all. I'm sure we got done so fast because Molly the super dog helped out.

That's right, even the dog was participating in the multi-tasking. As for LOST, it was one of the best episodes of the season...but I won't tell you why. Just in case you haven't caught up on the episodes yet.

Am I really graduating?

2007-05-05T14:32:00.000-04:00

I was telling Ryan last week that it doesn't "feel" like I am really going to put on a cap and gown, walk across a stage at HGSE, and receive a masters degree. It seems bizarre that I am going to graduate. Not to mention the fact that I am graduating from an elite institution. I never aspired to getting my masters degree, I certainly never aspired to attend Harvard. That's part of why this upcoming commencement feels kind of weird. But there is more to it as well.

The feeling that I have at the moment is that I have been taking 2 courses every term as a part of my job. As if it were a requirement of my job that I skip lunch breaks to attend classes, read countless pages at night after work, write long assignments and collaborate on projects. It seems like a nightmarish part of my job that is, for no apparent reason, coming to an end.
I think there are some obvious reason for this which have to do with ideas, expectations and assumptions on a social level. You see, everyone else I know who has a masters degree speaks fondly of those few years in grad school. Those years when they didn't have a dime to their name. It was a struggle, they will reflect poignantly, but then they share more about the great friends in their cohort and how down the road they networked with those same friends who helped them get stellar jobs in high profile positions. Ah, the glory years.
Anyone who has seen, spoken to, or heard about my "grad school experience" will know how vastly different these "glory years" have been. I have been working full time in a stressful job, trying to manage my course work, maintain existing friendships, and of course, pay attention to my husband.

The people that will walk across the stage with me are essentially strangers. I know a few names, fortunately, because last week I went to a grad student potluck. It seemed wise to introduce myself a few weeks before the term ended rather than as I was about to be handed my diploma. I hatched this plan with one of the other part-time students who shared a few classes with me last year. We went together which was great - safety in numbers, right? I can count on her to know my name and smile or clap when I cross the finish line. At least one graduate will know me, and I will know her too.

You see, between trying to keep my job, my husband, and staying current with friends, I have had little time for making new friends or networking. I have some money in my savings account that those other students probably don't have, (thank you Harvard for paying 90% of my tuition!!) but my struggle has been one that is emotional and relational. While those I graduate with have made financial sacrifices, I have made relational sacrifices. And I think that is a much higher "price" to pay. Sadly, it feels like a very high price to have paid, a debt that I hope will be quickly forgiven.

So, when people ask me whether I am excited about graduating, I am more excited that this hellish experience is over. In some ways I don't really feel that I need the cap and gown experience because, quite frankly, I didn't have the "grad school" experience. What I want the most is to feel like "me" again. I want to return to being the person that Ryan fell in love with before all of the stress, time, and anguish of grad school began. I want to feel like me again because it seems like a very long time ago that I wasn't consumed by books, articles, papers, classes, and stress.

I know that there is always a challenge in life, a struggle, a hurdle to jump. But I am really ready for this hurdle to be removed. I'd rather have a hurdle like "too much time on my hands" to contend with for a while. Maybe that will make me nostalgic for the days of grad school.

Nah. I doubt it.

I will go through the commencement ceremony in June, and I am sure that it will be really fun and rewarding. But I probably won't have that sense of loss or sad nostalgia the others will have about parting from this fun, rewarding time. I think I will be silently satisfied that it's over. I hope for that overwhelming excitement to reach me, perhaps it will. But I think that I will be happy that "it" is done, and now I can be a wife and friend who isn't preoccupied with school.

Ryan is, in so many ways, the only reason any of this accomplishment was even possible. I owe him much gratitude for his help, encouragement, and support. And of course a big thanks for all of the late night "treats" and early morning mochas he made when I was studying and writing for school. I could not have done this without him, or the mochas. Thank you my Love.

I Double Urban Dare You

2007-05-02T12:13:00.000-04:00

So, as I mentioned in the prior post, Ryan signed the two of us up for Boston's Urban Dare as a surprise birthday gift. It was incredibly fun, even the debilitating leg pain I endured for 3 days afterward.

For those of you not lucky enough to have competed, I would like to answer the FAQs up front. (Courtesy of www.urbandare.com)

1) What is Urban Dare?
Urban Dare is the team race that’s part photo hunt, part trivia and part dares. Teams of 2 must solve clues to find checkpoints throughout the city. To move on they must take photos or perform dares to earn passport stamps. Each team must determine their own route to the checkpoints. Most teams will cover about 5 to 7 miles and finish in about 3 or 4 hours. The Urban Dare challenge is to be the first team to cross the finish line after successfully completing checkpoint dares and getting required photos.

2) What are dares?
Dares are challenges that may be physical or mental. You may have to climb a wall, shoot a few baskets, solve a riddle, or eat something (no slimy bugs like on Fear Factor). We expect most people will be capable of completing all of the dares. We want to challenge you, while keeping it fun.

3) Do I need a digital camera?
You betcha. At the end of the race you must be able to show you took the required photos. The perfect tool for this race is a phone with built in camera, internet and gps. Any digital camera where you can show your pictures will do. If you don’t have one, you certainly know someone who does.

Our mission began at 12:00 PM on Saturday April 28th in the Boston Common. We first spotted a large yellow tent and headed toward it, eager to get our Dare shirts and get ready to beat the competition. I mean, enjoy the healthy competition. The yellow tent didn't say "URBAN DARE" across the front but it was the only organized event we could see on the Common so we headed toward it.

Luckily I have excellent vision and realized that the print on the balloons said "Scientology" before we wandered inside. THAT would have been an adventure on its own.

We made a quick 180 and looked to the next likely target - a mass of people all wearing light blue shirts. We headed over and found that yes, we were in the right place. To get things started, we had to answer a question correctly and then search for our team number (49) on one of many many many tennis balls scattered on the ground.

We got the answer correct at the same time as about 15 other teams, so we were really in a tight spot trying to get the tennis ball. I didn't see anybody throwing elbows, but I suppose that's because I wasn't in the pack rolling on the ground.

After we got our tennis ball, we traded it in for our list of 12 clues. We quickly singled out the clues which were tough and called in for reinforcements. That's right, we had an agent back at "headquarters" to help us solve the tough ones. Dean Green is her name and she is fabulous. Not only is Dean Green a history teacher, but she was sitting at home grading papers by her internet-ready computer. A force to be reckoned with. A mega-brain in a jar if you will.

Here is a sampling of the clues we gave to Dean Green (aka mega-brain) :

1. This square is named for the French Revolution and holds a statue that commemorates a failed 1956 revolution. Have your picture taken with the statue.
(Answer: Liberty Square near State Street)

2. Satchmo is featured in a mural at this spot. Have your picture taken with the mural.
(Location: Near Berklee College of Music)

3. __________ Andronicus and Captain Jack __________, one of the pirates of the Caribbean. Using the names in the blanks, go to this park to take your baseball challenge.
(Answer: Titus Sparrow Park in the South End)

So, as you can see, some of the clues were not as easy as you'd like. Thanks to Dean Green, they weren't a problem. Well, except for Satchmo's mural but she got is headed in the right direction.

Here are some photos from the big day:

Posing with the gravestone of Mother Goose

We found Satchmo's mural over by the Berklee College of Music

Us with 4 strangers making the "Vulcan Salute"
Our 2nd to last stop (I'm on the phone with Dean Green)
All done, having finished in the top 15 teams (out of 60 total).
Ryan is so happy he can hardly open his eyes.

After finishing the race we hobbled over to the apartment of our friend Mary Frances. She was "tower 2" during the competition and one of our reinforcements but due to technical failures she was unable to assist. We call that "going dark."

Fortunately Mary Frances was available to provide reinforcements in the form of food and coca cola, and a ride to the T-station.

The thing that neither Ryan nor I expected was how sore we'd be. Neither of us are runners, and while we do hit the gym on a fairly regular basis, there was little that could have prepared us to run so hard for 2.5 hours. The next day I could barely move and on Monday I was only slightly better. We drove to a movie on Monday night and I had to hobble for about 2 blocks to get to the theater. On the way, I asked Ryan if I looked like I was in pain, because believe me baby, I WAS in PAIN.

At the end of it all, our thanks go out to Mary Frances and Dean Green. We couldn't have made it without your food or brains.

A little while back....

2007-05-01T10:42:00.000-04:00

I turned a year older. It wasn't so bad. One of my dear friends from CA was out for the weekend and we enjoyed celebrating together.

(Becky & Me)

The best part of that weekend was that several friends who'd moved away from Boston were *also* in town. A reunion of sorts occurred.

(Tracy, Carrie, and Raychel)

(Becky and Kristin)

After my official birthday weekend Ryan and I went to NY to see my sister's family. We got to take Meghan and Daniel for the day and shuttle them from their opening day softball/baseball parade to a leisurely picnic we had together in the park. Then off to Meghan's first softball game of the year. She's quite the pitcher!

(Daniel on the Right leading his team in the parade)

Meg is quite a pitcher and has just gotten signed on to double games since one of the other pitchers has a broken arm. While we are all sad for the other pitcher we are of course, happy about this good fortune for Meg to keep getting experience!

Next post will be about my surprise birthday gift from Ryan over the weekend. I celebrate a "birthday season" rather than just one day. Certainly more fun not just for me but for everyone else too.

To give you an idea of what is ahead, the surprise was that Ryan had entered us into a contest called "Urban Dare" that essentially sets up scavenger hunts around different cities. We had a fantastic time and we even beat our personal goal. We wanted to finish in the top 20, but we made it into the top 15!! Not bad when you're competing against 59 other teams.

Urban Dare may be coming to your city...check out their website: http://www.urbandare.com/

Stay tuned.

2007-04-11T20:59:00.000-04:00

I got a comment after the last blog post about one of my stylish shirts I was wearing in my photo with Winsome. It came from a friend who knows how much I disliked the shirt I was wearing so it was all in good fun. But this made me think that I might want to point out that the stylish and fashionable ensembles I wear in Jamaica are tailored to the local trends rather than those we are familiar with here in the States.

Back in February I visited my sister and we went to Goodwill one afternoon to see what conservative, durable, comfortable, and colorful (or if you are spelling it in a Jamaican school: colourful) clothing I could find for a good price. The key here was cheap and conservative if truth be told.

Goodwill happens to have sales on particular days so I was on the hunt for clothes with a red tag (the were only $1.00) and I found a number of items that would help me look both professional at the school as well as meeting my CDCC (conservative, durable, comfortable, colorful) requirements.

One note before the fashion show begins. You will notice in almost any photo take of me in Jamaica, I am wearing some sort of headband or fabric to pull my hair back. This is *not* how I wear my hair on a daily basis, unless I am in Jamaica.

My natural curl is stubborn and insistent that it do wild things when I reach the tropical climates and having a shorter hairstyle guarantees that I will either look like Kramer, Lucille Ball, or Little Orphan Annie. None of which are all that pretty. Then again, my attempts to control my hair through the restraint of a headband isn't pretty either. But I do try.

So, fashionistas, fashion police, and those of you who think you have some style....here it is. My Jamaican fashion show along with commentary. (Note that these photos were taken here in the U.S. for the express purpose of showing the awesome outfits I donned. These photos were not take "on location.")

The Teacher Dress

I have to admit that I really like this dress and would actually wear it in my everyday life. I just need to find the right shoes to go with it. My driver to school said "You look very nice today. Just like a real teacher." Encouraging words from a man of fashion about town.

The Orange Blossom

When I saw this shirt at Goodwill, I knew the color would be a perfect jolt within the Jamaican color palette, but I didn't realize how nicely it would fit me. Another item I may wear here in the U.S. This shirt has a built-in safety feature which may not be obvious to the Jamaican-traveling novice. It is perfect for "being noticed" on the road, thereby avoiding being hit by a car.

The Rural Teacher Shirt

This red linen shirt was clearly a more Americanized selection and it reminds me of some of the teachers I have worked with who are from rural areas (here in the U.S.) that seem to select a softer, muted color palette. This is actually the shirt I chose to wear on my plane ride home so as to better blend with the home country after getting off the plane.

The Rural teacher shirt has one accessory which I didn't notice during my travels. The "pricing" tag that came with it at the Goodwill store.

The Rural Teacher skirt is featured here with the Urban Trotter Skirt, a skirt which I personally embellished.
The Urban Trotter Skirt features a zig-zag stitching pattern in hyacinth thread providing a unique design and practical mend to unfortunate splits on some seams.

The Kool-Aid Shirt with Black Broomstick Skirt
The Kool-Aid shirt was what prompted the comment on the prior post. It was by far, the favorite of the Jamaican fashion writers and I believe it may be again due to the vibrant colors. While it does not have any slenderizing qualities, it does indeed turn heads in both the Jamaican and American cultures. The broomstick skirt made of linen is the perfect length for just about everything *but* playing hacky-sack.

The Ego Pants

The Ego Pants are a flexible (both literally and figuratively) capri with an elastic waist. While the exact origin for the name of these lightweight pants is not clear, speculators agree on two possible theories:

1) The elastic waist allows deflated egos to grow when you try on a smaller size and the pants actually fit.
OR
2) You cannot have much of an ego if you wear these pants in public. Especially in the rain as they do become completely transparent when they are wet.

I'm betting that #2 is the correct origin for the name of these pants.

This concludes the fashion show, as well as my ability to walk in public with any sense of dignity.

A long 2 weeks

2007-04-03T18:42:00.000-04:00

I have returned from Jamaica - but was unable to post this before I left Jamaica. I am so happy to be home again! Enjoy reading.

=====
It has been a long 2 weeks in Jamaica for me - I've spent time at the local school and 5 days at the Infirmary.

I can't say that I am sad to be leaving Jamaica this time, certainly not as sad as I was back in November. Some of my earlier posts have reflected my frustration and I would say that much of the time here I have been fighting frustration and also fighting myself in ways.

At the end of our time at the infirmary I realized that all the things I had seen and the stories I had heard, had changed my perspective about the residents, staff, and management at the infirmary. And I must admit that at this point I really need a break from thinking about any of them.

In many ways, the truth about my love for those people and the infirmary as a place has been put to the test. I know that in all relationships the feelings can "fade" and one true test is the passage of time. Will I choose to continue loving or will I succumb to my disappointment in others?

I suppose that I have succumbed to disappointment momentarily but I know that what I believe stands firm - those at the infirmary (staff and residents alike) are humans who deserve love and to know a life of peace and grace. For the time being I am part of a larger group who extends love, peace and grace to those who work and live at the infirmary.

I realized by last Friday that the infirmary was a puzzle to me. The staff have a series of puzzle pieces, the leadership has some puzzle pieces, and the residents have many puzzles pieces that all fit together in some shape that I can't quite make out. In fact, I wonder if they all have pieces to the same puzzle at times.

All the pieces must fit together, it's just difficult to see what the puzzle, once assembled, is showing me. I don't know yet and I think it will take some time before I do. It seems like I can see some of the picture, but I'm not yet confident that the view I have is correct.
After leaving the infirmary and saying goodbye to our team on Sunday, I have been spending my nights at the home of Winsome Rose, a lovely woman who is heavily involved in the Won by One ministry and serves on their board of directors.

Every night I have grown to enjoy her company more and more. Around me, she is quiet for the most part and she graciously puts up with my many questions.

"What foods do Jamaicans dislike that Americans love?"
black olives

"What do you call Junebugs?"
guungu bugs

"Who are your friends in Harmons?"
none - she has many many cousins and extended family here, so she doesn't really have friends in Harmons, just family.

"When was your first trip to the States?"
2004 (which was also when she took her first plane ride)

(This was as far as I got in my post before I flew home...but I have finished the post below)
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Before I departed, Winsome gave me a big hug and told me to call her when I got home. I called her and she said how much she had missed me the previous night. It seems she must have missed sitting on the veranda with me and my endless questions. I think that I can safely say that Winsome is my friend and she will continue to be. At last a puzzle that seems easy to piece together.

2007-03-28T22:02:00.000-04:00

This post has been put up late due to trouble with connecting to the internet. I originally wrote this post on Wednesday, March 28th:

Since my first trip in 2004 Ryan and I have been trying to find ways to return to Jamaica. The first return was in November (2006) and now we are here again. We have been quite literally planning for these days and nights for 2 1/2 years and more specifically we have been planning to serve at the infirmary during week-long trips for the last year. It has been a good but also tiring process.

We've just completed 3 days at the infirmary and it has been an interesting experience, especially compared to our last trip. I think this is in part because the dynamics of our prior group were vastly different from the current group.

We are again 5 professionals with varied skills (but all sharing passionate hearts) except that this time we have included 5 students with every day-long visit. It is interesting to see how the different college students respond to their time at the infirmary. Some are immediately captivated and express a sense of "calling" to be there. One particular student came to the infirmary yesterday (Tuesday) and was blazing with a sense of injustice that others would live in such dire conditions.

He decided to work on house building today with the rest of the college student teams, but when the full Won by One student team came to visit the infirmary today for about 90 minutes, he immediately approached me as I worked on crafts with some of the women. He was beaming, so I asked him how the housebuilding had gone.

He shared that it had been fun, but he "knew where he belonged" and it was clear at that moment that he would be spending the remainder of his trip with us at the infirmary. It is encouraging and inspiring to see such ferocity and compassion in someone at the same time.

Personally, I have been struggling on this trip - realizing more about my selfish nature and realizing that a part of me wants to be needed by those at the infirmary. The moments where I saw Silvia walk on her own (using a newly donated walker) brought me to tears and it was in that same moment that I realized she would no longer use her "death grip" to cling to any of us in order to move around.

It was a scene of freedom for Silvia which made me feel elated. And yet at the same time a very dark part of my heart became afraid that this was could be one of the many first steps toward not being needed by these new friends. It was a feeling of devastation within my heart, and also a feeling of shame that I would somehow want people to be limited so that I could serve them. Could this really be a part of my heart?

It wasn't until this morning that I was reminded that friendship holds times of joy and sorrow, gain and loss. In friendship, you need a friend who can relate in a reciprocal way, not a donor who can network or fundraise on your behalf. So my friends at the infirmary still need me - simply because we are friends, and people need people. They may need some of the money and supplies I can get donated, but more importantly they need an advocate, a friend, someone to hold their hand in joy and in sadness. The joy of reuniting and the sadness of parting, which will happen very soon. Too soon.

I think my expectations for this trip have not matched reality - I anticipated that I would feel deeply moved during my time here as I have in the past - in a very positive way. And yet I have found myself frustrated much of the time. Stymied in some way which I find difficult to articulate.

I suppose a classic example of feeling at a loss or socially bewildered has just happened to me. Needing a break from the group and a moment to myself to simply reflect, I have took to our bedroom to write this blog post. All of the team and a ton of our Jamaican friends are out in the "courtyard" watching a movie on the big screen that Won by One has set up, using a digital projector to play the movie. It is a rare treat for the Jamaicans to see a movie on the big screen so the night has drawn a big crowd.

Just moments ago I needed to run out to say hello to our Won by One driver and give him a gift I had brought with me for his help in taking me to the airport next week. I peered into the courtyard after we spoke and saw an older woman who I had met back in 2004. She was difficult to talk to then - a woman of few words, and those few words were often tinted with a bit of bluntness which I always find hard to deal with.

As I peered into the courtyard she saw me from the aisle and waved at me to come over, looking excited. The person sitting next to her had just gotten up and left the empty popcorn bowl in the seat next to her, and from the way she motioned as well as what I *thought* she said, I went around to sit in the newly vacated seat. I was a little too quick to take this greeting as a gesture for me to join her, even though we had sat next to one another during the movie we watched during our November trip.

As I bent down to sit on the bench next to her, she raised the popcorn bowl and said - "get more popcorn." So I took the bowl, shaking my head in disbelief and allowed someone else to take it back out the crowd. I'm a little spent emotionally it seems (AND I didn't sleep well last night) so I decided that was enough for one night and returned to the computer and empty bedroom.

Sometimes we don't get to be everybody's friend, just their popcorn-getter. To everything there is a season. I guess I will just ride through this season and look forward to the next.

We still have 2 days left at the infirmary and I think that things will slow down a bit for me tomorrow and Friday. Tomorrow I plan to relax a bit more, enjoy making cards with my friends, visit with Pearl, and relax in the sense of light, freedom, and proximity to Christ that I feel when I am at the infirmary. It seems paradoxical but it is what I now experience when I am there, among my friends.

Here are some photos from the trip:

New artwork Evelyn created with markers and paper we left with her in November 2006.

Crafts made by Infirmary residents using the art supplies we brought with us.
(Photo frames, greeting cards, crosses)