Goodbye... sort of

I'm sick of maintaining this blog in its current state, and I felt the need to start over, so I did. This blog will be deleted soon. (It doesn't help that I have it under my Mom's gmail account)
But I have not given up on blogging, I am just trying to start afresh, with my new blog

Dianoetic and Digressive

If you liked this blog, please check out my new one. I plan to update it weekly, but we will see what happens...

Here is a link:

Dianoetic and Digressive

Enjoy!!!!

What's with the Weather?

This March Weather is fascinating. We still have a few days until spring, but it feels like it could be June!
Since many predict it won't last long, I took a few photos of "signs of spring" around our house to commemorate this fragment of summer we are currently experiencing.

Lissa is already searching for oases of shade. (Yeah, oases is the plural of oasis.)

Shorts, t-shirt...and flip-flops! :)

Amelanchier of some sort...

Turtles are out! This one was named Turketoi by Sibling.

Narcissus Spp.

Sedum Telephium

I'm Back!

Yes, it has been a while. I was discouraged for a while because I thought no one was reading, but I was mistaken! I brought the topic up at Bible Study, and received two...threats, I think they were, that I better start writing again. I did receive one request to give my blog some direction. Apparently, some of my older posts are meaningless. If that is true, then I sincerely apologize.
I've always been fascinated by nature in general. I take great joy in taking in the night sky, a sunrise, or a thunderstorm. I have had this fascination for as long as I can remember. I subscribed to any nature magazine I could get my hands on, and dreamed of being a marine biologist. Drawing from that background, I have also been fairly nature-conscious throughout my entire life. If I had had my own way, I would probably have embraced the environmental propaganda out there today. Now, I enjoy nature for the immense testimony it gives to the glory of God. Yet creation, as I will now call it, has always seemed to mean a little bit more to me.
I recently read The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Mr. Hawthorne wrote in the time leading up into the time of Romanticism, if I remember correctly. Nature, and "natural" played a big part in developing the Romanticist thought. In the book, where did the characters go when they were hopeless and depressed? The forest. The Forest, actually. In the book it was nearly deified! As they tried to do away with God and put man at the top, they needed something else. Man, in its fallen state is evil. They wanted something good to look upon. Where did they turn? To the only "perfect" thing out there. The untouched, untainted beauty of the natural world.
Needless to say, I disagree with that view. I would also contend that creation in its current state is imperfect. It is in a tainted, broken, state due to the fall. Yet the handiwork of God can still be seen through the layer of sin. In many areas in the Bible, creation is used as a tool to point to the majesty of God.
So, when I read the book, and when I considered that school of thought, I saw the absence of God. Funny, but that happens to be a characteristic of most philosophies. I can definitely see where they were coming from, with my fascination of creation. It is amazing. You don't need me to tell you that, just walk outside.
So, let's acknowledge the presence of God. Let's analyze the Romantics' thought with God involved. What does nature become with God? (Really, this question is irrelevant; it wouldn't be here without God! But remember, we're coming from a Romantic's point of view.) Read Psalm 148. Stop right here and do not read any more of this until you do. Thank you.
Doesn't that create a wonderful feeling, reading that Psalm? To me, the psalm-writer is taking the awe of nature characterized in Romantic philosophy and showing where that fascination comes from. Not only, are we a living, breathing part of the handiwork of God, but it is actively praising Him! The Psalm goes on to command us to join in.
How often do we walk through the woods, look up at the night sky, or even walk across the yard without realizing we are walking right through a symphony of creation praising God? I take that symphony for granted way too much.
A friend recently mentioned that she is thankful for the wind. Really? The wind? Why? Because when you look at this symphony of praise and take it in, how can you not be thankful for it? It is actively praising God. Also, I appreciate the huge encouragement that you get from knowing that you have a God that created all of this and that He is more powerful than it all.
Lastly, this isn't a sermon, but a thought. I just had to put this down because to me, when I think to connect my fascination of nature with Psalm 148, and when I do join in to the symphony of praise, I find more joy in nature than any of the Romantics ever will.
P.S.- If you happen to be a professor of philosophy or literature, please make allowances for my high school understanding of Romantic thought. :)
P.P.S.- Louie Giglio has an awesome, awesome talk on Psalm 148. It is about ten minutes long; look it up on youtube and watch it. It is really cool!

Back from Maine!

We are back from our be-awesome trip to New England. Our first stop was Toronto,where we visited Casa  Loma, a mansion built in the style of a medieval castle. It had beautiful gardens. We drove to Vermont from there. It was fun going through Québec. People would try to talk to us in English sometimes, and it was very funny! McDonald's menus look different in French. In Vermont, we hiked, climbed trees, roasted marshmallows and ate well. From there, we went through the White Mountains (gorgeous!) to Boothbay, Maine to visit our friends. After a dinner of lobster, we drove down to the beach. After we had spent the night there, we drove up to Rockport, Maine, where the Schooner Timberwind awaited. We boarded that night after dinner at a local deli. Four days of sailing, then we were on our way Boston. After some time there, we left for home, spending the night at Niagara Falls.  

Home at last! After a wonderful trip to Missouri, I am very tired. I did more horseback riding than I had ever done in my life. The first horse I rode, named Star, was nice, but the ride would have been more enjoyable if my legs hadn't been dragging on the ground. She also enjoyed my grunts of frustration when she went under a tree. Other than that, she was nice and fairly easy to control. I also rode a horse called Dandy. A beautiful horse, she was big enough she felt like more like a normal-sized horse. Unfortunately, I did not like her and she portrayed her same views about me quite often. She particularly enjoyed acting tired and sluggish, then bouncing into a lively trot whenever she felt like it. Then there was Charlie. Everybody warned me about his quirky moods and habit of looking for things to spook at. At 17 hands high, he really fit me and I felt like I fit him. I never had any trouble with him after we found out what the other wanted. He was my favorite horse by far.
What is it about the movie Megamind that makes me laugh even after we have watched it five times in the same trip? 'It boggles my mind! I am extremely boggled!' I just can't figure it out. What is it about the word 'cello' that makes you sigh? How do you explain that freeing feeling when you can let your fingers fly up and down the piano and bask inside the sound of an orchestra? Why does moldy applesauce that was left in the fridge over your trip make you shudder? Why do the words 'video games' and 'wasted time' go together so well?
My glasses fogged up when I walked outside today. It is humid and hot, but I can be thankful for air conditioning, T-shirts, swimming pools, couches and cameras. Shade, fans, iced tea, and lunch on a shaded patio or deck. Running water helps out too.

Raining and Pouring

It's raining, it's pouring...Just when it looked like the weather was getting better, I look outside, and, gasp! Could it really be? It is raining. What's that? As I write, I hear my siblings rejoicing, quickly donning rainboots and running out the door. It reminds me of this passage:

Behold, God is great, and we know him not;

the number of his years is unsearchable.

For he draws up the drops of water;

they distill his mist in rain,

which the skies pour down

and drops on mankind abundantly.

Can anyone understand the spreading of the clouds,

the thunderings of his pavilion? 

Behold, he scatters his lightning about him 

and covers the roots of the sea.

Job 36:26-30 

Hollyhocks

Driver's ed is going ok, but I'm alive, so it's not all bad. I'm still not allowed to practice with parents for who knows how long...I have to spend 6 hours of instruction in a car and 24 hours of instruction in a classroom. I have spent 18 hours in a classroom and 1 hour in a car. I also have to finish all of this by the end of July. Today is Mom's Birthday! Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you. Happy birthday dear Mom, happy birthday to you!!!! I asked her what she wanted for dinner & dessert, and she said: Creamy Chicken with Linguine with Chocolate Chip Cookies for dessert.  I have our chocolate chip recipe memorized!! Hee-hee. I have been having some fun on my clarinet lately. I don't have viola lessons thru the summer, so... more time to practice other instruments. I walked over to a bookstore while our tires were being changed... I LOVE BOOKS. I found so many things I needed, er, wanted. Cookbooks, CD's, an awesome book that taught you spanish by using lines from movies like Princess Bride, Finding Nemo, most of them were movies I have watched. It went on and on. If I ever stumble across $1,000, that is where I would go. I could spend that much within five minutes. The End for now.
PS- Answer to joke in last post.... "Hampede!!"

You can draw otters

Radishes grow fast. I checked out a 280-page book at the library last night and finished it before bed. Now I have to find someone to drive me all the way to the library to get another book. I was not supposed to read it that fast. When you are surprised, try saying 'Gasp!' with a lisp. It would sound like this: 'Gathp!' It makes people think. Books are fun to read. I have to leave. I had hoped I had had more too say. Wow! I fit 3 "had's" in one sentence! That is neat. Note: What do farmers yell when a multitude of frenetic pigs are quickly progressing in one direction? Answer comes next post!

Summer is just around the corner... my siblings believe its been here for almost a month now, but if you go by the calendar, we have to wait till June 21. Yesterday I performed in the festival of the arts downtown. It is indeed a strange feeling to be in front of a crowd outside on a windy day, only to have your music blow off the stage. It didn't happen to me, but I did still had to secure my music to the stand with six clothes pins. You have no idea how hard page turns are when you have to undo six clothes pins, turn the page while holding down the other ones, and put all the clothes pins back in place while playing Haydn's Symphony No. 104., Mvt. I. After the performance, I had the brilliant idea to buy some ice cream from a concession stand, and didn't realize till afterward that I had to eat it before it melted while carrying my viola and music. What an adventure. Snacktime...oh, by the way, today is national cello appreciation day. So listen to some cello music if you find time. Better yet, if you play cello, play. And if you don't play cello...ask someone you know that does if they can recommend a teacher. And remember, harpsichord appreciation day is the 11th. 

I like toffee

I like toffee. My name is not George. Here are some recipes you might enjoy.
1. (Caleb, this is the one you requested)

Chocolate Toffee Trifle

1 devil's food cake mix, made as directed

1 small instant chocolate pudding mix, made as directed

16 oz. whipping topping

6 Heath bars

Freeze Heath bars. Make cake as directed, in a 9" x 13" pan. Cool and cut into 1" pieces. Make pudding as directed. Crush Heath bars (note: A sledgehammer works best!)

Layer 1/2 of the cake pieces, 1/2 of the pudding, 1/2 of the whipped topping, 1/2 of the Heath bars in a glass bowl and repeat. Cover with clear plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

                                 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

2.

Chocolate Delight

German chocolate cake mix                            8 oz.  non-dairy whipped topping

1 can sweetened condensed milk                    6 Heath Bars

1 jar butterscotch/caramel sauce

Bake cake according to package. Punch holes in the top of the cake after it is baked (but while cake is still warm) using the handle of a wooden spoon. Pour can of condensed milk over the cake, making sure it dribbles into all the holes. Spread the excess around. Pour 1/2 to 3/4 of the butterscotch/caramel sauce over the cake in the same manner. Cool completely. Spread whipped topping on cooled cake. Crush Heath bars and sprinkle on top of whipped topping, chill until you find time to eat it. Caution: Ingesting this material may greatly multiply one's love for desserts in general. Side effects include: Raiding the local Meijer, smearing whipped cream over one's face, and the overpowering desire to count blades of grass. Have fun!

Translation

Something along the lines of... Can you understand what I am saying?  

Wait!

I can read German, it just takes a while...warning to people who try to rub in that they know more German than I do! (That means you). Be right back
P. S. - If you are confused about the meaning of this post, I am responding to a recent comment. 

Concert coming up!

Our next concert is coming very soon, and I can't wait! The youth symphony is doing Rhapsody in Blue, which I love. My orchestra is doing Beethoven's first symphony and Schubert's Overture to Rosemund. The day after is the Skip Gates Concerto Competition. I will be playing Telemann's Concerto in G, Mvts. I-II.
I am very excited about the warm weather! Daffodils are poking through the snow, and the muskrats are out of hibernation and swimming around in the parts of the lake that have melted. I am also hoping the grape hyacinths I planted last year will come up soon. Opossums are ugly creatures! We have seen them on and off lately. Fortunately, they don't seem to have any fear of humans, which make them much easier to... dispose of.
Heehee! I have a great idea!
I have to write a short story this semester, and it will be mysterious and haunting. Coming to a bookstore near you June 14, 2011.

Short update

No deaths have been caused recently on account of sledding. Just wanted to keep you updated! I have to go to orchestra practice now. Bye! 

Sledding

Since I told some people I would post a post on my blog, I am. Sledding gets better every day. Big hill with  trees, ending with a patch of thorns, followed by a thin patch of ice on the edge of our lake which does not hesitate to break when stepped on. I have not broken through myself but I have seen it happen many times to some people (their names will remain unspoken for sake of privacy due to embarrassment). Luckily, the water is only about a foot deep, but underneath that is about three feet of mud. Many a sled and bone hath been broken upon the tree stumps hiding under the snow. They are about an inch or two around and about four inches high, and joyfully await the chance to impale a person, along with a sled here or there. According to one person, one stump even succeeded at dislocating their hip. Later, we deduced that this information could not be considered credible. To add to the excitement, we made a jump out of hay bales and post snowball-throwers to distract you on the way down. We also challenge each other to see who can weave in and out of the trees the most with out getting hit. The Judges then grade your performance on a scale of 1 to 10. In the past, there have also been contests for the most impressive crashes.
All this is considered great fun by those who have not perished, but don't tell our parents. You never know how far they'll go. They already ruined one game by saying that we're not allowed to break through the ice on purpose :oP. I wonder why? I can't seem to comprehend why such a rule would be established. I didn't do it of course, I just stood and watched. It brought joy to my heart to see the person that crashed into me on the way down the hill willingly plunge themselves through the ice and into the water. The reason the ice is thin at the bottom of the hill is because our geothermal heat system discharge goes out into the lake there. Mud galore! To be continued... 

Ice Skating

Ice skating is fun. See John run. John likes to run. Sigh... I feel like a cup of tea and a book. Unfortunately, school can get in the way of things. I do like school in moderation. But right now, I want to read a book, practice an instrument, or learn a language. I'm not fluent in anything except English unfortunately. But I am working on Spanish and Latin, and when I learn them, you will have to as well, because then my blog will be blogged in one of those. I figured you would want a heads-up. Have fun! I would also like to learn French, German and Greek, so go ahead and learn those too. Merry Christmas! Now where is that tea kettle...

Title: I can't think of one. How about 'Toucans eating Jellyfish'?

I had to get on here really a lot, because I had the sudden urge to tell you all something... It's very important, so it is something that I need to tell you. Therefore I will tell you, after, well I don't know. I might tell you, but it's very important so I guess I have to. Maybe not. While I'm deciding... do you like enchiladas? They can vary greatly, but I know a recipe that is the best. But that's not what I was going to tell you. But it still matters, because enchiladas are good, as long as you have a good recipe. I do. The reason I brought enchiladas up in the first place is because I can smell them. Mmmmmmm... They smell good. Eat much enchiladas.
Our Christmas tree is pretty.
I will tell you what I was going to tell you now. Listen closely. This will change your life. Ready? Make sure you are holding on to something and you haven't had back surgery between AD 1666-1689.

Gasp!......

Apparently, the last post on here was posted Feb. 21, 2010. In case you were wondering, that was a long time ago. So to all my fellow friends may I say sorry... but I have a good reason! Therefore, you must forgive me. This blog may undergo some major changes in the near future so stay tuned. For now, I'm officially advertising for my string quartet, 16 Strings Youth Quartet, in a marvelous font!Would you like to see it again? Okay! 16 Strings Youth Quartet. Uh-oh, I can't figure out how to get it out of the pretty font, oh well... Wait! there we go! anyway, my string quartet is very good and you would love seeing us perform... notice I'm using ellipsis points frequently! (...) I really like them... We are going to try to perform on Dec. 27 for a Christmas party, but I don't know if everybody will be able to. Right now I've really fallen in love with the song, "I'm Just a Little Black Raincloud" from Pooh Bear. It is very fully awesome. Even though it makes it sound like you're in a bad mood, I sing it when I'm happy, because little black rainclouds are so cute and Pooh is spectacular. So don't think it means I'm grumpy. After all, it is a springy little tune in a major key. I think it would be nice to have that song on my iPod, but I don't exactly know if I could get it. By the way, my friends, drink much eggnog, enjoy Christmas, don't scream if you find a toad in your eggnog, I didn't do it! Oh! and also, don't eat fried giraffe beetles on your pizza, it's hazardous to your health.

Hello, Stranger!

Hello! I know I haven't written in a while. So long, in fact, I want you to pretend this is a new blog and I just started it, okay? My last post was Oct. 16, which was before a lot of things. I now play viola, which is very fun, we are still doing school, and I am still into knitting and crochet and I am currently working on a crocheted afghan. It is rippled with four different colors. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving and Christmas, and I got a mandolin, which is fun. I started piano lessons again, which was soooooo nice! (luckily, we have our grand piano back). Lately, we have been enjoying skating on our lake and playing hockey. Reuben's birthday was yesterday, and we had a big hockey game and I have no skates that fit me right now so I had to use boots! Still, it was a lot of fun. He got a ukulele too, which is so tiny Ella suggested she could use it as a guitar for her doll! He can already play Mary had a Little Lamb.
Today was exciting for me, because I got a viola book I had ordered. It was Bach's Cello Suites arranged for viola. I have been practicing the easier ones, but with most of them I just laugh.
I am going to try to post again soon, so keep checking! bye!

Baby fish!

Hi! I am sorry I have not updated sooner, but we do not have internet and it is hard to find the chance to post. As you are probably wondering I do have a baby fish!!! (singular) It is only one, and it is a guppy! Now you are probably wondering why I have guppies. It turns out meijer had a great deal on them and I got them a month ago. The baby is definitely not new, because it is already about a centimeter long and has no fear of the other fish. It has no coloration and I can not tell what gender it is, so as badly as I want to, I will not name it until I know if it's a girl or boy, and I would like to see what color it is, too. I will try to get some baby bettas into this world soon, all I need is a tank stand, and I also need to order a microworm culture so that the babies can have food! I am almost nervous to start, because I feel like I still don't know what I'm doing! I guess I'm just worried about what to do with 200 baby fish!! ☺ I will probably wrap up, but I hope to get to you soon with pictures, news, etc. Bye!