September 30, 2008

brains before beauty

So, yesterday I ran my fingers through my hair ( hey, I brushed it on Sunday! That's enough!!) and I put on eye-liner and mascara and I went and got a new passport picture.

And can I just say, without sounding too vain, that I absolutely look better than my 18 year-old passport picture! YESSS!

Of course, I can't seem to figure out the passport-renewal form at all, so apparently my brain HAS suffered in the past 6 years. Ahhh well, beauty before brains. Or something.


So, I know I've been a terribly blogger lately. But, I honestly had nothing new/original to say. And while you may be thinking, "That hasn't stopped you before, Abigail". And while that may be true. I've also had a perpetual headache for days, that has made staring at a computer screen seem like a terrible idea.
Which brings me to my prayer request:

I never actually switched my medical care to Kansas because...1. It was too much trouble. and 2. It was going to take weeks to switch over and I'm only here for a short time and 3. I never get sick ( HAHAHAHAHA! Just kidding, I'm just lazy...)

Annnnyway, long story short, now its REALLY too late to switch my medical care, because I'll probably only be here for three more weeks. Soooo, I'd just like my headaches to go away for the time being. That would be really really nice.

September 26, 2008

Shedding a little light

I'm watching the presidential debate right now. I don't like to talk about politics. I think its unladylike. ;-)
Actually, I'm incredibly incredulous towards government. The government has let me down a couple of times, but that won't stop me from voting. No siree. I'm gonna vote because I think I'd be letting down all those non-diplomatic country's citizens down if I didn't.

I do think I know who I'm voting for now though. It definitely helps to see the two dudes up there talking side-by-side. I like this much better than those lame-o advertisements they have on TV.

Whew. Ok, let's talk about something more important( sic). Today I went and watched the movie The Women at the theatre by myself. I went by myself because Brett is working tonight and tomorrow and sometimes you have to do fun things by yourself to make the time go by more pleasantly, besides I've quite literally spent 80 percent of my week in bed so I needed to celebrate the end of my headache ( hopefully). Annnnyway, I really liked this movie. I think it portrayed women and their relationships with each other, with work, with the opposite sex, with themselves -in a very interesting and sometimes rather accurate way. I laughed, I was touched and I would like to have Meg Ryan's hair.
Seriously, her curly hair was gorgeous. I'm thinking about getting a perm. For serious.


In other news, I talked to Carmi on the phone this afternoon and I mentioned to her that I needed to start mentioning the little ways that God is helping me get through "the hard days" more often on my blog. So, here goes...the past few days I've been fighting a pretty nasty headache. Its gone up and down in strength, but it pretty well tainted everything I did from Tuesday until today, and its been hard! But, even through this difficult week of Brett working late and me being Crazy Headache Girl, I felt God's help... on Wednesday Brett got home from work and we were going to go to the Navigator Bible study. I was totally torn because on one hand I wanted to be with Brett and I wanted to support Brett ( he was going to be sharing a lesson), but my head also felt like it was going to explode and the thought of spending two hours with a bunch of guys ( there are no girls at the bible study yet, unfortunately) was hard to stomach. Annnyway, I was really discouraged and tired and I felt miserable. But, Brett made the decision that I should stay home...So there I was, laying in the dark ( my favorite thing to do when I have a headache like that. ), and I ended up listening to a really great sermon by my Papa that really encouraged me and THEN I got a phone call from Leah in Washington. And I was able to talk and pray with her! I was struck by the fact that if I had not stayed home I would not have gotten to talk with Leah, something I'd wanted to do all week! So, there on a day when I was feeling pretty crummy as a wife, as a person, just crummy period. I was encouraged by a little reminder that we have a God who cares about the details, details like when a friend is going to call. He is able to bring light into even the darkest of rooms....
of course, not literally that would have made my head hurt worse...

No, the light He brought me was so much better, the beauty and Truth of His Word, the support of a sister, the encouragement of prayer, that light will not go out.

September 24, 2008

total recall

So, I have a pretty exciting/verging on migraine headache right now. Which I'm totally fighting off with willpower and three extra strength Tylenol. I'm mostly fighting it off because I had big ol' fat plans today that consisted of me going to the library.
Its important to my mental health for me to go to the library because of yesterdays overdose on television which I'm not allowing to happen today. So, yes, the headache has to go.

I asked my housemate yesterday for any good ideas for places for Brett and I to go for our four day weekend in coming up in October. She told me about this place.
And if there was ever a link that you went to on my blog this is the one to go to. Check out the accomodations section....that's right. THEMED rooms!!!! AHAHAHAHAHA!
Brett and I are very much considering staying in the Tahitian Treehouse just because the pictures will be worth it. That's right a Tahitian Treehouse in KANSAS. Tacky tacky.


In other news, Brett was able to come home last night after all. Of course, it was midnight, and i was half asleep. But, if you're an army wife you know just how important it is to just sleep in the same bed as your husband. So no complaining here.
I also can't complain because I talked to several wonderful friends/family on facebook chat last night, which totally kept me from going off the deep end. So that was a major bonus to life. The other majorly good thing about last night is that I listened to the Bethlehem Mission podcast of The Lord's Supper service from several weeks back. It basically consisted of Steve reading scripture and then the congregation singing. Now, sure the singing part wasn't the best quality recording...but it was enough for me. There is NOTHING so wonderful as listening to family sing praises to God. I was already getting my headache at the time ( this was around 11pm last night), but it was wonderful just lying in bed listening to that.

So, yes, I'd have to say this has been a struggle of a week, but I'd also have to say that I've been helped through it. So, three more days ( until Sunday...which is the best day of the week so it doesnt count), I think I can make it.

September 23, 2008

I'M-barrasing

So, kids. Its come to this. I'm watching the 100 top songs of the 90s on the VH1. This is not even the worst thing I've watched on TV today.

The worst would have to be: "The most smartest model" , its a competition with a bunch of really really stupid pretty people.

That's right. Bad grammar is in the title, that is JUST how bad it is.

OH!!! Yesssss! "I don't wanna wait" by Paula Cole just came on as number 80 of the songs...gosh what a great song!!


Can you tell....Brett isn't coming home tonight.

September 22, 2008

Another Month.

So, the last month in Kansas has really flown by, in fact, so quickly that I didn't even realize we'd been here for over a month until now. Wow.
I think the big thing about the past month has been just how much time I've gotten to spend with Brett! He actually comes home almost every night around FIVE! I didn't even know that was POSSIBLE in the army!!! Of course, this week he won't be coming home at all on Tuesday or Thursday and he still works six days a week every week...but considering when I decided to come to Kansas I thought I would only see Brett on Sundays, I am incredibly grateful for how well things have turned out thus far!
If anything this is all a testimony to how the Lord has been faithful to lead Brett and my life...even though we couldn't see it at the time we felt certain that there was a reason for me to come to Kansas...at the time I figured it was going to be some sort of "learning through torture" experience, but for it to turn out to really be about quality time with my hubby before he heads off to Afghanistan is an EXTRA unlooked for blessing! It has encouraged me greatly about the coming year and how God will continue to be faithful in His guidance.
While I realize that things might not always be such a nice surprise, I do know for a fact that all will work out for His glory.

So, this weekend Brett and I went and saw the comedy Ghost Town. It was totally hilarious. I totally recommend it to those of you into dry humor.

On our way out of the theatre Brett saw a guy who is also on another MiT team here at Riley driving out of the theatre at the same time, E was actually at Fort Benning at the same time as Brett several years ago and they have a lot of the same friends...anyway, as we drove past him and his wife on the road I yelled an impromptu invite to have dinner with us ( because that's just what I do). So Brett and I ended up having dinner with E and his wife J. It turns out that J is from Korea and Fort Riley is her first "taste" of middle America. Poor thing she was definitely shell shocked and seemed like she had not had a very good experience thus far. So, I was so happy to be able to tell her how to get to the library in Manhattan ( poor thing, she'd been going to that postage stamp-sized one on Post, remember? the one where I had the melt down and got locked in the trunk of my car!?! yeah.) And I invited her to PWOC with me tomorrow. She seemed really happy to have met us and I'm hoping that maybe I'll be able to make her time her in Kansas a little better. MiT team wives support group here I come!

*ahem* It serves me right for saying all those complimentary things about the Army, because I just got a text from Brett saying he won't be home until 8 or 9. BOO! Poor guy, he was SO looking forward to the season premiere of Heroes tonight too!! I wish I had a way to tape it or something :-(

September 19, 2008

information:

1. I just finished reading "Bulletproof: The Making of an Invincible Mind" by Chuck Holton. While the cover and premise ( written by an ex-army ranger) totally turned me off, this book is definitely not just for military minded people or guys...In fact, I thought of women that I knew as I was reading, it definitely addresses the ( often associated with..) feminine fears that we have about our own lives, our husbands, children and friends. And overall, I was inspired to put my life into Christ's hands more and more. Go read it! *thanks to Leah for recommending it, and to Chuck for giving me the book!*

2. The Office Season 4 is making me laugh....but is it just me who has to fastforward scenes where the office employees interact with people outside the office setting?! I get SO embarrassed for them!

3. This morning I was called at 2am by a guy on staff duty at Fort Lewis trying to get a hold of Leut. Wilson...ummm....yeah...there were so many things wrong with this that I had to actually number them in conversation:
"Look, number one CAPTAIN Wilson is no longer at Fort Lewis, Number two I'm his wife and you have MY cell phone number PLEASE make note of this on your contact list, don't call me again." Lucky for him it was 4am my time or I probably wouldn't have be so proficient with my words ;-)

Of course, I have no hope that the phonecalls will actually end ( this is not the first time this has happened...), somewhere, someone accidently put down my contact number as Brett's and thus began a long line of annoying calls from silly soldiers. *sigh* Yet another reason to get a new cell phone!

4. The weather continues to make me incredibly happy. All this sun! All this coolness of tempature! I'm loving it!!

5. I want some yoga pants that do not cost a fortune yet do not shrink the first time I wash them, making the leg too short and me look like I'm wearing too short pants. Any help with this?!

6. I realized this week that I don't think my body likes meat very much. I naturally gravitate towards vegitarian meals...I feel like I could be a vegitarian that eats a steak once a month and that would be great. Oh. And a vegitarian that doesnt eat carrots or celery....

7. I'm off to hang out with a chick I meet through the Navigators- and now we're PWOC friends...I can't remember the last time I had a lunch date so I'm excited!!

8. Tomorrow Brett is working and I'm going to an art fair in the park near my house. It would be more fun with him there :-(

September 17, 2008

I shop at Dillards now!

It turns out that when I'm bored and feeling fat ( as in not happy with how I look in any of my clothes) I like to go shopping in the middle of the day**....however, I will say that when you go shopping at 11:30am on a Wednesday you'll realize that you're spoiled. Because the only other people shopping at that time ( broad generalization here...) are Rich People Wives. Women that have money but obviously don't work....

And just so you know...I am NOT one of those women. I just don't work.
Luckily, the Manhattan mall is MUCH to be desired....there are lots of empty shops alternating with shops like Claires and Wet Seal and other teenage trash stores where I don't fit in their street-walker clothes. This is lucky because that means I don't spend as much money. I'm basically left with an under-stocked Gap and Dillards. *sigh*

** Oh, and I know it makes no sense to go shopping when you're feeling fat because then you have to look at yourself in the mirror and you have to get bigger sizes...but I bet you didn't get the memo about over-sized cardigans being in style this fall...well, they ARE and they cover up fat-rolls really well!!! Problem solved!


Annnyway, I forgot to tell you about PWOC ( or as Amy would have me to say: "Pee-Wok" ) yesterday! It was one of those totally intense planned-by-a-no-longer-teaching-elementary-education-teachers events.
You know the kind, themes rule the day: Everyone divided up in groups according to their nametags picture...placed with a "conductor" ( dressed up in cute matchy-matchy train conductor outfits complete with whistle) and then each "train" went around to different "locations" where we learned about each of the bible studies being offered this year ( I was actually told to "stand in a line against the wall at one point-something I havent been told to do, quite literally SINCE elementary school!) ....while ALL at the SAME TIME we also were given different ice-cream sunday toppings at each "train stop" and then at the end we were given the icecream so we could eat our "upside down sundays" while we signed up for the study we wanted to do.

Yeah. I may or may not have made fun of myself for being a part of such shenanigans throughout the whole two hours.


So, amongst all the "fun" and "food" I almost forgot I was at a bible study...but seriously, I did end up signing up for a video study done by Ray Vanderlaan on Israel and the Holy Land. I think its going to be a good choice for me since 1. I will only be here for part of the study, so better to not get involved in a more intense study. 2. I really like Ray Vanderlaan. Brett and I have listened to quite a few of his teachings and I really respect him as a teacher. 3. This group will also be used for the "intro group" for any women who might come to PWOC in the middle of the year, so I'll be able be part of a non-offical welcoming committee! Which I'm totally down with!

September 16, 2008

seeing red.

Not what you think! Brett and I just finished watching The Red Violin. I'd seen it years ago, but thought it needed a re-watching, especially since Brett had never seen it before. Totally great story, beautiful music...watch out for the nudity though. ;-)

Annnnyway, I suppose I should start giving my reviews with some sort of a warning attached after that last comment about Twilight... obviously some people are not going to agree with my opinions on books and movies hehehe...although, I can't say I was surprised that it was this particular book that brought out the outrage...it seems that those who love the books REALLY love them and those who don't ( me, anyway) have pretty strong feelings about it too! Leila, I do appreciate your comment nonetheless and I'm happy to hear that, at least of what you have read of my blog so far, that was the worst...nice to know what my lowest low looks like to at least one of my readers ;-)
Oh, and I probably will go see Twilight when it hits the movies...afterall, by then Brett will be off fighting a war...I might as well fill my time with things like bad teen dramas, what else will I have to do?!? hehehe.

September 15, 2008

On that note...

So, to continue the theme of the last few posts...bemoaning my lack of competence in the way of my blog...I REALLY wish I could re-work this blog so I could have a little section over on the side where all of you could easily see all the movies and books I've been reviewing for your general knowledge over the past few weeks, I KNOW all of you would love it! But, too bad...I don't know how...

Hey! Paul, ( do you still read this blog)since you're all unemployed right now-what's your hourly rate to give me a new blog?! Seriously! I just thought of this....I'll give you a wish list of how I want it to look, you'll make it happen, I'll pay you the big bucks...whadda ya say?!?

*ahem* I should have probably emailed him, since he hasn't seemed to be around my blog in a while and the rest of you probably didn't need to read that shameless plea...but where were we?!

Oh yes! Reviewing!!!

Ok, so to recap...in book news:
I hated Twilight by Stephanie Meyer.
I also hated ( just a little less) New Moon by Stephanie Meyer. The characters are annoying. The plot is mostly girl going on and ON about how much she loves a certain vampire. The action is minimal and the stories are terribly guessable. Big fat ZERO in Abigail's book.

In Book news:
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a day: I watched this when Brett wasn't able to come home at all on Friday night. Its the perfect, feel good girl movie. It was adorable and light-hearted. Amy Adams continues to be so charming...but was very similar to the character she played in Enchanted, so there's that. Anyway,if you're looking for a good "girls night in" movie this one is perfect!

Forbidden Kingdom: Ummm...Ok, so obviously this movie was picked not for my benefit but for Brett's- who's been dying to see it for ages. Anyway, you should probably ask him for his review since it is entirely different from mine ( I know this because we discussed it in full...)...but this is my blog so let me just say that *I* knitted the whole time and was entirely "whelmed" by the experience. ( not over or under). Basically the plot ( for me, anyway) was entirely too close to The Karate Kid, and while the Kung Fu was very good ( both Jackie Chan AND Jet Li?! It's bound to be!)....I felt like the plot could have been a bit better. Ah well! To each his own! So if you wanna see to Kung Fu legends go at it for a full-length feature, you should go get this movie. You will not be disappointed.


Eagle vs. Shark:
This movie is what I call a "celebration of awkward"...if you are not down with socially weird you probably won't like this movie, but if you like off-beat comedy than this movies if for you. Of course, being a person who DOES like such movies,I will say I wasn't totally into how mean the main character Jarrod was to those around him....I never felt like it was justified enough....but maybe that's just me.


OK! That's it for today...

No Prob Bob.

Of course, it must be noted after my last post that it is NOT Katie's fault that I stink at all things internet. One day I will catch up with all those crazy kids who can text and drive at the same time and all that jazz, but till then everyone will just have to love me for my faults, k? ok.

Annnnyway, it is a pretty much beautiful day in Kansas. Bet you didn't think that sentence would ever come out of my mouth!?! hahaha! But, it IS! And its mostly because I love fall weather. As long as its sunny fall weather and its in the high 60s.

I'm currently procrastinating going on my run. Even though its beautiful outside I'm also a very lazy person.

This morning I went to Hastings ( yes, Kansas has them too...and its just as terrible here.) and read the second Twilight book ( good guessing, Josh). And I'm going to use common sense and stop while I'm ahead and NOT read the third and fourth book in the series. Here's one of the obvious reasons why Abigail would hate these books:
The author references Romeo and Juliet as a parallel of Edward and Bella's love ( the main characters) throughout the books. Um yeah. Who hates Romeo and Juliet's story?! That's right! I do!!
There is nothing worse then melodramatic teen love that ruins lives in their own self-indulgent fashion.

Anyway, apparently I'm more of an adult than I thought-since I can no longer love the things that teenage girls love.

Of course, I'm not too much of an adult, since last night Brett and I bought Eagle vs. Shark for ONE DOLLAR at the supermarket! YESSSS! We couldn't even find this movie ( its a NZ movie, granted..but still!) at Blockbuster, and here it was for uno dollar next to the deli section in the grocery store! It was a dream come true! Anyway, the movie was weird, but it was also funny...and it has the guy from The Flight of the Conchords in it so that was a bonus...plus it was in NZ and therefore made me all nostalgic for my second homeland :-(

I just re-read the above paragraph and realized I gave you no real reason to think I wasn't an adult. Adults buy DVDs too.

*sigh*
In other news, Brett and I had a good weekend together. Lots of good conversation. Lots of eating. Lots of lounging around. You know all the good stuff. I cannot tell you how delightful this time in Kansas has been for Brett and I- I mean, yes, I'm left by myself for most of the day doing next to nothing, but its a small price to pay to have time alone with Brett before he leaves...
We have also been informed that he could get up to two weeks ( don't hold your breath) of time off before he deploys. So, of course, as I say that I'm trying HARD not to get my hopes up. It would be nice though, since I'm thinking I'll need to drive the Prius back to Washington BEFORE I go to China instead of after because of all the snow and winter-y driving that I'd have to do if I waited until later to do it....so maybe just maybe Brett could drive with me....one last road trip before he goes?!?
Is that too much to ask?!

Probably.

Silly Abigail. You'd think by now I'd learn not to make plans.

September 14, 2008

Annoying: technology

So, after getting a comment that someone couldn't be a "follower" of my blog I went on a search of what in the world that even meant, and low and behold it turns out Blogger has been making all these changes behind my back. I've been going happily about my blogging day and they've just been "adding exciting new advancements" like crazy...so after doing some reading it turns out my template was not "up to date" and for me to add things like "Follower" buttons, than I'd have to change my template. But, no worries ( ha!), according to Blogger they were going to make changing my template "super easy"...so off I went, discarding my old template, getting one of their horribly generic templates, and THEN I set about trying to make their lame-o template into something that reflects me. Weeeelllllll, turns out, unlike the OLD templates, these NEW ones are a LOT harder for Abigail ( self-taught html reader that I am) to read! BOO!

So, that's why my blog looked terrible... with its two-color, color sceme and the weird line that ran through the middle of the title without any way of me getting rid of it...whatever.
In other news, after ALL THAT...it turns out that if a person WANTED to add me to their "follower" page, than all they had to do is type in the HTML on their ADD section and there it would be. No button necessary. Ahhhhh! Well, serves me right for jumping in head first.
BLAH.
So, I went back to my 'classic template'. I am apparently not cool enough to have an exciting-up-to-date blog.

I hate change. I also hate the new facebook too. What was wrong with the old one?!?

September 11, 2008

words

Let me hear your loingkindness in the morning
For I trust in you
Teach e the way in which I should way,
For to you I lift up my soul...
Teach me to do Your will
For you are my God
Let Your good spirit lead me on level ground~ Ps 143:7,9


I read that in my quiet time this morning and it spoke perfectly to the theme of the day. It seems that all my plans for the future ( "Future" these days is limited to that horrible time I like to call A.B. ( after Brett leaves), has crammed itself nicely into November/December. This is actually not as nice as it sounds because I tend to want to go to ALL the parties life has to offer and then I'm generally shocked and upset when it doesn't work out that way. It looks like it is now highly probable that Brett will not be leaving until the middle of November, and I've been asked/offered to teach six weeks of High School AP English starting after Thanksgiving plus I am planning on going to China ( this plan has been around the longest and I'm most attached to it...) pretty much as soon as Brett leaves...BUT....if you check out a calendar of November you'll notice there are literally not enough days to do all those things together, plus the added bonus that Brett's schedule is still never set in stone and all this worrying could be for naught since it could all go out the window in a second...which leads me to my point. I am SO SO thankful that I have a God who directs my steps! I mean check out the verse that's been at the top of my blog for years ( if you're reading this on Facebook, the verse is Prov 16:9..you should look it up if you don't already know it...its wonderful!)! That is exactly what I'm talking about! How many stomach ulcers would I have if I didn't believe in the Son of God who cares for me?!?

Truth be told, I know God has plans for me. He knows exactly what is important for me to do, what is not. He knows the people He would have me to meet, the people He would have for me to love. He knows all about today, all about tomorrow. Rest in Him.

Ok! While I'm waiting for Life to tell me what's going on, I currently have very little on my plate-this is something which has turned out to be quite enjoyable ( at least most of the time!) especially since Brett is still getting off work around 4:30pm and I get to talk to him all I want all evening! Anyway, I made a little request on my facebook status yesterday and I got several responses already...so I thought I'd throw it out to the blog-readers too...Book recommendations:
As you may know I like pretty much ALL genres of books...I like fiction, I like nonfiction ( especially if it paints a good picture of something I don't know much about.) I like spiritual books, I like fluffy fiction....so if there is something you think I should read or at least know about...add it to my ever growing list! This is such fun! I already have four new books I need to read just since I put up my plea yesterday afternoon :-)

September 09, 2008

I don't visit blogs anymore...

So, today I realized that since the advent of www.bloglines.com, I very very rarely actually "visit" my friends blogs anymore. In fact, unless it doesnt load properly on bloglines..or unless they say something like, "like my new layout?" I dont venture out beyond the handy-dandy little list of blogs that I already read.
But, then I realized that this means some of my best stalking is being missed out on-that's right! This means I'm not checking out all my friends links...therefore, unless they mention it on their blog ( which they totally SHOULD!) I never know when other people I know start blogging! HORRIBLE!

I feel like I've been missing out on a party because my invite got lost in the mail!


Annnnnyway, on more relevant matters-today I went to my first PWOC bible study, had a long chat with the only person I knew there ( we'd met at the Navigator get-together on Saturday night...) and all in all I left feeling happy. ( this was helped by actual interaction with another human other than Brett, the fabulous food they had at this all-women's bible study, by the prospect of good bible study to come, and by the fabo fall weather we were having today.)
And just in case you didn't notice, I pretty much missed getting out of the house and DOING things.

In other news, I have come up with this silver lining about living in Kansas:
Silver Lining: Getting to spend time with Brett without the distractions ( good or bad) of other commitments to family/friends/work/bible studies/housework that we often had in Washington. I have been so very ( very, very) grateful that Brett's had so much free time since arriving here. Today he got off of work at 4pm....I hadn't even gone for my run yet!!!! This basically means I hadn't even run out of things to do before he got home! A miracle!

Ok, its review time! Tomorrow I'll be headed to the library, which I'm waaay excited about-I've got three books on my list and I'm excited about all three...the problem is going to be picking which one to read first.
Here are some clues:

1. This book is a much talked about teen book which is featured in more facebook flair than any other.

2. This book is about a certain "bowl" in our nations history. Its not a cereal bowl.

3. This book I can't think of any clues for except that its possible a text book in disguise.

Stay tuned for the answers...but feel free to leave your guesses in the comment box!

But, back to the topic at hand...since I have no book reviews at yet-its movie review time!
YAY! So for your reading ( and viewing) pleasure: two good reviews, two bad....


The Great Debaters: I totally dug this movie, I mean, suuuure Oprah told the whole country to watch this movie months ago-but I'm sorry, I had things to do up until now. And I gotta admit, ol' Oprah she was right about this one...The Great Debaters is a total must-see! I was simultaneously struck by the "little dog overcomes all odds to beat big dog" story and the realistic depiction of racial hatred in the South. I came away feeling more educated, and also wishing that American's still spoke with that much eloquence-black or white, we've ALL gone down hill I'm afraid.

Bella: I'm usually not down with political-statement movies...but if you'd like to see a Pro-life movie, by all means see this movie! Actually, if you'd just like to see a really touching ( warning: its slow!) movie that looks at the very delicate nature of the human spirit and is incredibly heartwarming that you'll feel like hugging a stranger. Watch this movie. Its really, really good. Oh, and I also craved tortillas after watching it. whatever that's worth.

I'm Not There: Two words: Big disappointment. Ok, now I may just be admitting to my lack of musical appreciation or something, but HONESTLY! This movie was wack! I had NO idea what was going on most of the time...and I'm sure there was some deep artistic message that all the TRUE music-lovers and indy-movie people were totally digging...but I lost interest after I made note of the fact that Cate Blanchet looked freakishly like a man, so much so that I pretty much forgot it was her on screen. She deserved serious props for this roll-she put all the guys to shame. So I say, fast forward.. stopping only to take in the eyecandy of Christian Bale, Heath Ledger ( NOT Richard Gere, EW!) and Cate Blanchet and then hit eject and go watch Hanna Montana-it'll be more entertaining.

Bottle Rocket: Neither Brett or I had seen this movie. Now we know why. I was very much underwhelmed by this highly acclaimed cult classic. I spent most of the movie pondering how young those Wilson brothers looked ( not related to Brett or his brothers)...and that it was strange that they were cast as friends in the movie and yet noticeably had a strong family resemblance. I would have rather watched "What Happens in Vegas" ( which I watched tonight, and totally laughed a lot...this just proves my point about "America going down hill sense the time of The Great Debaters")

September 08, 2008

What's in a name?

Well kids, its official! After 1 year, 1 month and 26 days I actually went and had my name officially changed at the Social Security Office. It turned out great, actually, because the office is quite literally three blocks from where I'm living....and also if I hadn't done that today then the only thing on my list of accomplishments would have been "marathon Gossip Girl watcher", which is, well, not really something you wanna brag about.
In other news, I think I've found a solution to Brett and my problem of eating out all the time because I don't want to get in the way of my housemate by using her kitchen. Solution: make her dinner too.

This makes me extra happy because we all know how much I enjoy feeding other people.
So tomorrow I'm going on post to the PWOC ( "protestant women of the chapel", thats right, I dont know WHO came up with that name...but I make fun of it EVERY time I hear it!) Bible study which I'm excited about because its actually something that's during the day and also a social/learning/productive event! YAY! Anyway, when I go on post I'll also visit the commisary which I have yet to grace with my presence....more tomorrow. :-)

September 05, 2008

Must be the weather...

I woke up at 4am this morning and could NOT go back to sleep. Awful. Absolutely awful. Especially since I count on sleep taking up a good portion of my mornings, leaving me only half a day to fill up with "activities". Boo.

Anyway, I have sad news for my readers who were waiting with baited breath for my report on the WoW girls (I still laugh at that name! hahaha!)....I asked Brett last night what his schedule for today was and it looks like he's going to be off around 5. This is good news for me because it means I get to spend the evening with him, which I did not get to do last night...( more on that later*) but bad news for juicy details on my "lady function". Of course, its always possible that Brett will work late and I'll end up going....but the prognosis does not look good.
Sometimes, I get distracted by my boring days and my desire to make friends...but then I'm reminded of my REAL reason for being here in Kansas. Spending time with Brett. Period.

However, last night* Brett got home and he was a total zombie. This was not really a surprise to me, since I've been calculating how much sleep he's been getting ( this is something I do every morning with both Brett and I's night sleep..I'm pretty much obsessed with how much sleep everyone gets:
example: Monday: Brett got 4 hours of sleep, I got 12, Tuesday Brett got 5 hours and I got 11...and so on..

anyway, I've been waiting for his obvious sleep deprivation to kick in and it did last night. Of course, this did not stop me from being a bit sad that me seeing my husband pretty much meant me watching him snooze. So, I went up stairs and talked with my housemate and we ended up going to the gym together and then talking for about three hours. This was an incredible answer to prayer for me since I've been really hoping that I would have the opportunity to get to know her better. Anyway, we talked about all sorts of army, marriage, faith related things...needless to say I'm totally excited about this development!

In other news I delivered meals on wheels in the rain today which turned out to be not as bad as one would expect. Even though I prepared for it all by going and getting a latte to give me some energy ( only got four hours sleep, remember.. That's like a Brett's night sleep here!) and I opened up the sugar packet on one end, opened the lid on my latte and then proceeded to forget about that first 'opening of the sugar' incident, flipped the packet over, opening it on the other, pouring the whole thing onto my lap. Yup. And this is why I need lots of sleep!! Seriously! Not good! *sigh* But, I recovered from the sugar spillage and drove around in the rain delivering meals to cute people. Seriously. Cute.
In fact, the first guy was so adorable that I got back in my car and declared out loud, "SO GREAT!" and then proceeded to shed a tear. Made me miss my PawPaw and going to the Senior Center with him!

September 04, 2008

Chillaxed

So today was my first day of Meals on Wheels. It took me about an hour to deliver all twelve of the meals on my route. I only turned around twice ( hehe!) and never got seriously lost....and it was fun! I absolutely loved saying hi to the people on my route. Talking about the weather mostly....but all it all, it was really a good experience, and I hope tomorrow is just as good! In general people are always happy to see food coming so you're pretty much in their good graces from the beginning!
So far, my favorite thing about the experience was the little tiny man who helped me load and unload the two coolers into the back of my car. I was by far bigger and stronger than he was but he insisted on helping me! A true gentlemen for sure! And he totally made my whole day :-)

Yesterday, I had a minor mishap with my attitude. Brett called me while I was out running my one errand for the day ( I know! this is my life!) to say that he got off early and will be home as soon as he cleans up. Imagine my excitement! It was like a half day from heaven! But then the clouds rolled in, when thirty minutes later he called to say that he'd decided to stick around and do some homework with some of the guys....long story short he arrived at 5:30. Now, here's the deal: I already know this about myself....so we're basically just re-telling the same story, but basically, I'm not good when I get my hopes up and then they're dashed. So far, here in Kansas, I've had incredibly loooow expectations so that I'm always very happy to see Brett when I do. But, I really need to learn how to be happy AND flexible all at the same time. Because, these things are going to happen. Brett is going to change plans on me ...and the Army most definitely will...so I must learn to adjust. And I must adjust with a GOOD attitude. Its hard.

Oh, and it didnt help that all I'd had to eat all day was a bowl of cereal and a bagel. Low blood sugar never helped anything. Ever.

In other news, we went to the Navigator Bible study on post last night. It's very small-but it was good to get some fellowship. Speaking of which, I'm going to *duh-duh-duh* WOW ( wives of warriors...hahaha! that's right! you heard me!) tomorrow night. This, of course, scares me to no end. Large groups of women when I know no one is pretty much the scarest thing ever. But, I'm all about growth these days. And besides its suppose to be a "spa night" so one can't pass that up.

September 03, 2008

Kold in Kansas

I guess the ol' hurricane brought a little cold front through Kansas last night...I felt it blowing in when I went for my run last night ( only my second one since getting to Kansas...what happened to my whole "dedicated to fitness" plan?! )...and it felt fabulous! Its about 62 degrees right now and it looks like it might rain. Thus is my life. Talking about the weather.

BUT! I actually have other things to tell you about! That's right! Yesterday, I finally got my butt down to the Senior Center and I am now officially a Meals-on-Wheels volunteer. There was a quick moment when they thought i was there for community service...hahaha! Sadly, it seems people my age only 'volunteer' when they've gotten in trouble with the law :-( But, once that was sorted out I talked to the lady that runs meals on wheels for about an hour...they only needed help on Thursdays and Fridays-which means my week is still ridiculously empty. I'm currently praying about whether I need to find some other volunteer work, or exactly what I should be focusing my time on. I think whatever happens I need to be doing things intentionally...so even if I end up just writing numerous blogs a day...I feel like I should at least look for direction before doing that, right? I just don't want to look back on this time in Kansas and be sorry that I didn't use the time here more wisely.

I have been thinking a lot about correspondence lately. Like I said in my last blog, I am now reading the letter's of Theodore Roosevelt to his children and I find it dreadfully fascinating. I am also saddened that there are not more letters out and about. I mean, sure we could all say that now letters have turned into emails-but when was the last time you got consistent detailed, anticdotal emails from a person? I think the only friend I have who has mastered this completely is Tabitha. In this day in age we've gotten our emails down to a few sentences that get straight to the point, or we send a text message or at the very most we leave a voice mail. Anyway, I was thinking about this...and I decided it was that people have stopped reading. I know that sounds really silly, but its TRUE! Letter's use to not just be about finding out information about your friends and family, but as you were writing them you KNEW that the person receiving that letter would be looking to that letter, not television, DVDs, or the internet, but YOUR letter for the evenings entertainment. I think it made everyone a little bit better at writing. I mean, if you thought of your friends and family as people that you should maybe entertain, or at the very least keep apprised of your life...well, I think it would change the way you corresponded with them.

Anyway, I know it would make me better as a writer. This week I've received several wonderful "newsy emails" as I call them...with each of these emails the distinguishing factors were that they told me details of their everyday life...the things that wouldn't necessarily make the six o'clock news...but believe me, those emails were far, far better than anything on TV right now!

September 01, 2008

Labor Day: Normal Day

So, someone had to remind me it was Labor Day today....this is because, as far as I can tell, its a normal day here in Kansas...Brett's working until very late ( may not get to see him at all) and I'm doing positively nothing. Yup. Rock on.

I dont know if you've noticed but I'm pretty much of the obsessive personality type. Thus why I own all ten seasons of Friends, why, after watching all of Firefly in a short amount of time, I had to then watch most of Buffy and Angel and all ofDr. Horrible's Sing-a-long Blog ( if you haven't seen this particular gem, you should...)-all the shows Joss Whedon has ever done...its why, as a child, I read every book by Lucy Maud Montgomery ( expect the ones that had witches in them, those were not allowed) .....every book by Maud Hart Lovelace, and all The Babysitters Club Books ( something I'm not proud to admit)...and countless other authors that I fell in love with.
Anyway, it seems only natural that in the past year I read several books on Burma, several books on Autism and I just finished yet another book by David McCullough who I feel in love with many years ago but I was reminded of a couple of days ago because of the John Adams series...

Ok, so I was delighted to find Mornings on Horseback at the local library ( I've decided to forgive and forget the Fort Riley library and go straight to the Manhattan public library which is not half bad ( only half is good, though).) because one of the books I brought from home was a book I read years ago and put on my Favorite Books List back in 2005, which really, in looking back is the favorite books of my childhood...but that's beside the point. Anyway, I brought with me, to re-read was Theodore Roosevelt's Letters to His Children. So I figured this book-but a wonderful writer-would be just the perfect precursor. And it turned out great! In fact, I am more excited than ever to re-read these letters to his children after reading in such detail about his relationship with his own father and the important part it played in making him the man he became to his own children....anyway, all very good. And I recommend with two enthusiastic thumbs up, Mornings on Horseback...you won't be able to put it down. Promise.

In other news, I'm a tad melancholy today, but if anything I'm glad that its finally September. I'm a big fan of time going by quickly at the moment....