Sunday, February 28, 2010

spring break [second]


point one one: cheese. so in wisconsin we saw a lot of cheese. it seemed appropriate. and stereotypical/touristy of us. but appropriate.








we went to a little chapel on the base and there was a woman who played the keyboard who wore a brown hat. that's the only thing i can say about her because all we could see from behind the keyboard and the music was her hat. when the chaplain asked for praises, the woman with the brown hat would poke her hand out from behind the piano and ask questions. it's possible she HAD no head, but was only an entity connected to a hat and an arm.

we experienced a true wisconsin accent from our waitress after church and it was amaaazing. we had to wait to order because she had managed to cut her hand and needed a band aid. she was quite the character, but i had waffles so what could be better.

as we were walking to the mississippi river (our first visit), a pay phone close by rang and ii, naturally, ran to answer it. i politely answered and informed the woman on the other line that, no- dooby was NOT there. *the video at the bottom of the page includes this little episode :)*


as we were walking parallel to the river, i saw an orange carnation sitting in the snow like it was supposed to be there. i "picked" it only to discover it was sitting in a little plastic flower bottle and had just been planted there for kicks. it became my new friend. ... not in a creepy way.


we got a tour of Captain Chaplain Johnson's office and watched the US vs. Canada for the gold. it was a win/win for Redwings fans since we had connections on both sides. Redwings aside, it was an exciting game... until the end.

PS- in sparta we saw a lot of symbols of a man on a high riding bicycle and had a long discussion about whether it was a bike or a trike. it was the former.

iMovie is being a hamburger, so I had to upload the 3 videos separately. Sorry!



spring break [first]

we drove. we drove and, honestly, didn't do a ton. we talked about barns, went past chicago (but didn't see the city), read books to one another, and arrived in wisconsin. when we arrived at fort mccoy, we got a tour of the base, ate at culvers, and then went back to the apartment and watched seinfeld. at culvers, i had my first fried cheese curds and, contrary to what i had been told, they did not squeak. this wouldn't have been odd, except two people (ahemkaylaahembobby) told me about the cheese squeaking without knowing that the other had said anything about the squeakiness. it stands to reason that squeaking is a big part of cheese curds. i feel like an adult who doesn't believe that neverland exists for doubting the squeak of the curd.


Friday, February 26, 2010

the hearty laugh

point one. a couple weeks ago at a staff breakfast, kayla got "this vision" of everyone at the table throwing back their heads and letting out a hearty laugh- so we really did. the deep, throaty, rumble that erupted from our table immediately changed into high pitched squeals of laughter and it was a good day. so this morning, while i was eating my waffle with strawberries and whipped cream and we were having a combined "old staff/staff-to-be" breakfast, we decided to continue on the tradition and induct the new staff thusly. there is something pleasing about a laugh straight from your gut. even if you have nothing to laugh about.

point two. i've decided to make a little tradition out of going to the back corner booth in the blue moon on a french test day and just study. i kind of enjoy munching food, sifting through papers, flipping book pages, and listening to study music on my open laptop. a meal alone every once in a while is kind of nice. although i think there's something in that contentedness that comes from eating in silence with someone you're really comfortable around.

point three. dinner in the brohos was delightful and enlightening. things i learned: it makes sense that david is bobby's roommate, alyssa is the sweetest sports management manager i never knew existed, zach will be emily's brother R.A., caramel can ferment, it's fun to run and slide on snowy sidewalks... i guess these things are only interesting if you're me. OH well. this thought, then: meals made with friends are meals made with love. awwwwww. no, but they kind of are.

i miss the quirkiness of the previous post. unfortunately the long day ate my quirk in one big pac-man-esque bite (i picture the sound effect being *CHOMP*) i leave my thoughts at the door and collapse into bed until the staff wakes me up to do something odd that i will willingly participate in, though i'm exhausted. thus my day begins with a hearty laugh and ends with a laughy heart. question mark.

PS- I was pseudo-woken up by Kayla and I stumbled down to Noelle's apartment with a pillow and Marty the Kangaroo in tow. Here I found staff members + one Bobby Wrigley hangin' out and munchin.' There was much discussion of tea between the Schrockster, the Bobster, the Robbster (clarification: sarah), and the Kayster. Then everybody peaced except Bobby and Kayla, so we invited David and Alyssa to Noelle's and watched Benny and Joon while Bobby continued the endeavor of Fixing Kayla's Pants, a feat in and of itself. It should be noted that by the end of the movie, Bobby had almost completed the patch job, David had sewed a button for Alyssa, Alyssa had fixed a hole in her jacket, and Kayla had repaired Noelle's sweater.


PPS- It should be noted that we wanted to call David, but Bobby said he was waiting for David to call since David wore the pants in the relationship. It was then determined that David wears the pants and Bobby sews them. This is all. hahaha

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

i'm digging up phantom vibrations

the title is dedicated to kayla, who is apparently having hallucinations about her phone.

so today is a day dedicated to fasting. it's not something that i was going to include at all in the blog, but i'm taking a quick moment to blog before i study philosophy. and what is going on besides work? mostly the fasting today. so as i sit staring at kayla, who's curled up on the armchair like a baked honey ham with green all-stars on, i think to myself how sweet breakfast will be tomorrow morning. i think after i go to breakfast, i'm going to go to IHOP and have second breakfast. see, i'm not really going to, but wouldn't that be hobbit? yeah. yeah, it would.

there's this kid that goes to IWU who looks strikingly like cameron from ferris bueller's day off. it's like cameron with a hint of dustin hoffman. every time i see him, i just want to say, "call me sir!" but... he wouldn't get it. so as he sits a couple tables away in mcconn, i blog about him instead. just think about that every time you sit in a coffee shop: what if someone's blogging about me? what person from a cult classic do i remind them of? and why aren't they studying for their philosophy midterm?

as i sit here reading Bethany's blog i think to myself... is this thing still logged in.......????? YES!
This is Kayla, phantom vibrating straight into Bethany"s blog!
BOSS!
shoot, she's back.
peace homies, keep it real and don't eat veal.

Saturday, February 20, 2010

sub-carnation issues.

1. I'm grading over 100 pages of full text metacognitive papers, all covering the topic of the Regulations and Responsibilities of a Teacher. This exciting topic explains why following administrative directives and carrying out curriculum in a legal way is imperative to the teacher's career. It's no Easter Basket, but I can't complain -- editing is better than writing and getting paid a little chunka change is better than several boys (What times is it?!)

2. Everyone and their eye-patched dog is applying to the T.E.P. (for those civilians who don't know, that's the Teacher Education Program), but I might have to wait until next month, just 'cause it takes a MOM of time and I haven't begun. Dear Poohs of the world: becoming a teacher is NOT a bucket of honey.

3. We just had a game board marathon in our end lounge and apparently I my handwriting is sub-hieroglyphics:

I write "rugrats," they say "roo-gratr"
I write "YOUTH," they say "yoo-tuf"
I write "otter lair," they say "outer lair"

We also played a DELEETFUL game of spoons after I decided that I would kill Kayla's hair and put it up on a plaque if I were a hunter- thank you, Loaded Questions. PS- I ate queso dip and double stuff oreos for lunch.

4. The spiritual discipline of the month is Fasting and the idea has spread randomly around campus, just a little. I don't think that many girls are participating in my dorm, but nonetheless, there might be an article in the Sojourn about it and I might get interviewed. It's funny because all I did was make a calendar for it, really. But hey! Whatevs.

5. Kayla's talkin' to Bobby on the phone. This may not seem like an ongoing current event, but it really is.

6. I like French II and I DON'T like English Grammar. OR: J'aime francais et je n'aime pas l'anglais... grammaaaiire?

7. I'm reading Going Bovine for Adolescent Lit and there's cussing up the WAAZ.

carnation.

I was pretty sure I'd been stupid. I'd picked a job that I knew I would do well with, but it would be so much more work and a sacrifice on my part. I'm going to be a junior, why live with freshmen when I can live it up in the West wing or even in the Lodges? Lycosa HELLEW. I should've picked what I wanted -- I should've picked the easier way -- God could've used me anywhere, anyways. Those were my thoughts-

then. I was walking from class into the student center when a sweet friend stopped me. She just said, "I'd like you to have this flower. It's from God." As I laughed and asked if it floated down from heaven, she just nodded and said, "It's just from God. Remember that."

Later she explained that she had prayed that God would put someone in her path who needed a flower from Him. She was so right. I carried it around all day since I didn't go back to the dorm and loved it. I take it as a literal Divine gesture, because it is. Isn't that... I don't know. It's just very tangible, very real.

I got some verbal confirmation about taking the position as R.A. from a girl I talked to, she said she was glad I took it because after she'd given me advice about it, she felt strongly from God that I was supposed to do it. It's funny. Blogging about anything spiritual always makes me feel wishy washy, but what in the world has more substance?

All I know is that I've been getting little God-gestures lately... isn't He cool?

I've got this carnation sitting in a jar, reminding me that God isn't running away as I pursue Him during Lent.

Thursday, February 18, 2010

decisions.

i've accepted the position of being an R.A. in my freshman dorm. i didn't do anything yesterday but bat it back and forth and pray and talk about it. i didn't sleep well. i texted my R.D. and said i was going to do it this morning and then laid in bed feeling sick for about 15 minutes. i'm so afraid.

but i'm done thinking about it.


Tuesday, February 16, 2010

mcculloch

mcculloch (mick-uh-luh) middle school: (noun)- a school containing children that i work with.

so. once a week i carpool down on to this middle school in dress attire. dress pants, dress shoes, dress(ish) shirt. not quite the nines, but we're talkin' sevens- sevens, at least.

i walk into the same classroom and experience study hall as i've never experienced study hall before. there are three to five kids, tops, all with some type of handicap or learning disability and sometimes with an attitude that matches puberty and simmers from whatever situation in home life burns underneath. it is frustrating to know i don't have the ability to help them with the basic concepts. i'm there for homework completion purposes and moral support. yeah, i can kindle the smallest sparks of critical thinking, but when application begins- it disappears behind the blankest, most semi-willing eyes.

it's not my job to try and explain the concept of a fraction to an autistic boy- i just facilitate numbers going into the calculator. i can't re-explain the whole process of why sound helps you figure out the population of one group of crickets as opposed to the other. an elaborate conversation boils down to answers that seem to be from my responsive 8th grader, but as soon as we come back to writing our words on paper, my only reward is a, "so... what's the answer?" no regrouping or pointing or re-evaluation will get me anything but a misspelled sentence that has come from words caught straight out of my mouth and slapped on paper with minimal coherence, if any.

the scribbles on the paper are factory work.

Sunday, February 14, 2010

The Peak

This is my actual legit blog. The previous one had no purpose. It was, if you will, a random hodge podge of newsbethany clippings and pieces ripped out of magazethanies.

NOW. It has a purpose. What is this purpose? Brain dumping. But, as opposed to before, it will be sublime- elegant- quirky... mellifluous brian dumping, if you will.

Thoughts will ebb and flow into a coherence that is only as well stitched as the innards of my slimy little brain and my funny little soul.

I invite you to read my contemplations, some more personal than others, as I live through what many have warningly called The Climax of My Life or The Peak. Let us hope God makes it beautiful and I don't get in the way.