Friday, February 29, 2008

Cabin

This weekend I (Gene) am being whisked away... by my buddies. They called and informed me that they are meeting at my place at 3:00 this afternoon and we are going to the cabin for the weekend. Should be fun, there's usually a lot of sleeping and other manly activities that take place. This is the cabin of the infamous bear taunting episode.

Yes, I am leaving Amy at home to fend for herself. I'm already feeling lonely. Last night I dreamt that one of the other guys was only allowed to go if his wife went along. I guess she decided she would rather spend a weekend with her husband in a cabin with a bunch of smelly guys than be alone all weekend. Definitely a dream.

Monday, February 25, 2008

New York City & The MET

Needless to say, the prior post was a complete farce. Our church did have a program last Saturday night, however we did not attend as our post from Feb 21st would lead one to believe. I had every intention of being home all weekend, however my darling husband had other plans. Gene had been taunting me for several months now of a planned trip to visit his cousin and her husband in New York City, yet for all this time had successfully managed to keep the exact date under wraps. I came home Friday night to find dinner on the table and his bags already packed. The drive north to New York was somewhat "white-knuckled" with the questionable weather, but we arrived without incident and with the help of a friend's GPS. While coming off the George Washington bridge into Manhattan I was further reminded of how much of a country girl I truly am. I found myself gazing out the sunroof with what I'm sure is the characteristic awestruck gaze of a tourist. I've been to NYC several times now, yet I'm far from acclimated to the environment. Gene is fairly adept at blending in, charging ahead with his head lowered and eyes averted like the best of New Yorkers; yet I still struggle with tripping over myself whilst trying to take in everything and anything around me. It seems to me that the city has a life of itself, completely independant of it's inhabitants. One could exist in relative annonimity while the city looks on with a quiet sentience, detached from the human drama that plays out on its streets. There was a moment when I likened the subway system to the vascular network of some great organism, but I'll leave my biological ramblings for another post.

We were graciously provided with a bed for Friday night and treated to a personal tour of the Metropolitan Museum of Art for most of Saturday. I had not put too much thought into what we might see at the museum prior to our trip and I was delightfully surprised to find exhibits of much more than just the Renaissance masters. The most impressive of which was their collection from Egyptian antiquity. Far more than the traditional model of "art", we saw everything from ancient sarcophagi to amazingly detailed models of everyday life along the Nile. I've come to realize that despite the many articles I've read and documentaries I've seen, I had grossly underestimated the sophistaction of of the Egyptian civilization. Though I haven't seen the pyramids nor likely ever will, far more impressive to me were the many peices of fine jewely. Stone and gold formed so elegantly and with such fine detail one would expect to find no better at the nearest jeweler. Their culture was a rich and complex as ours today, and their technology limited it seemed only by their lack of electricity. I did manage to get chastised by one of the guards while in the display. A massive granit sarcophagus stood all by its lonesome imploring me to touch. Without putting too much thought into the obvious sacrilege I would be commiting in the eyes of the museum, I walked around it while tracing the outline of millennia old hieroglyphs. Needless to say, my thoughts were quickly interrupted by the gaurd informing me in no uncertain terms that touching was strictly forbidden.

Thank goodness for my wonderful husband, who before I came along would probably have never willingly set foot in an art museum. Gene made it through most of the day despite his aching feet and reserved only a few snide remarks for the modern art exhibit. He gives me yet another reason to do my best at remaining supportive even after we've wandered past the hundreth car in a sweltering parking lot filled with much of the same one after another. Thanks honey...

Thursday, February 21, 2008

Jury Duty

I was supposed to go to the courthouse today for jury duty, but last night they said I didn't have to report. So I took the day off anyway. I had a lovely day rolling around under the Chevelle putting the transmission back in and getting nice and greasy. Right now I have supper in the oven, so we'll eat when Amy gets home from work, then its off to church for Praise Team. We are having a special worship service Saturday night and have to sing about 15 songs.



Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Snoozing

I am a chronic snooze junkie. When I was like 14, I decided that people who used the snooze button were of a very weak self-discipline. I never once used the snooze. I started having trouble getting myself out of bed, but still refused to use the snooze. I would turn the alarm off and go back to sleep, then be late, thinking that was somehow better than using the snooze. I started putting the clock under the bed, which worked until one morning I woke up under the bed. At that point I started putting it across the room. I gave up when I started running across the room, turning it off, then leaping back into bed. Now I use the snooze, but I'm embarrassed to say how long I hit it in the morning. Here's one possible remedy:

http://www.art-and-home.net/servlet/the-4696/Flying-Helicopter-Alarm-Clock/Detail

And another:

http://www.nandahome.com/products/clocky/index.php?color=raspberry

I kinda wanna get one of these just for the geek factor.

Wednesday, February 6, 2008

For Eyes

If Mom had made me get these 15 years ago, I would have freaked.




Dallas & Elaine, your new frames are sweet.


Oh Yeah. Amy's best friend from high school took the plunge on Saturday. We were there to witness it. Amy played the piano quite well for the processional, then quick went truckin' over and got in line so she could be a bridesmaid, too. Then there was lots of pix and food. Here's some of the pix (sorry, the food is long gone).
"PRIDE GOES BEFORE DESTRUCTION" AND IN OUR MODERN ERA, PRIDE AMONG THE NATURAL SCIENCES HAS TAKEN THE FORM OF OVERESTIMATING OUR KNOWLEDGE, OF ARROGATING FOR SCIENCE A KIND OF OMNISCIENCE THE WE DO NOT IN FACT HAVE. OR, TO REFINE IT A BIT: "PLAYING GOD" MEANS WE CONFUSE THE KNOWLEDGE WE DO HAVE WITH THE WISDOM TO KNOW HOW TO USE IT.