I spent pretty much all of yesterday in front of this computer, reading articles for my research paper. I'm not feeling good about this one...I can't seem to get a handle on the research. It does't seem to pull together into a cohesive thought. The resources have been really sparse, which isn't helping.

In other news, I have a question for you. Let me preface it in this way: I was looking for a song by one of my favorite performers from the 1920s. One of my favorite of his songs was on YouTube, and the description was "a corny and charming song." Here's the thing: I wouldn't have called it corny. It makes me get all teary when I hear it.

In fact, I find that often things that I find sweet and sentimental are labeled as corny. So maybe I don't have a good grasp on what corniness is.

So here's the question: what makes something corny? What kinds of things do you, personally, label corny?

Wedding went well.
Am pooped.
More later.

So I have to tell you about my husband and his fabulousness.

First of all, he has been so accomodating throughout all of my big life changes of the past two years, up to and including various episodes of crying, gnashing of teeth, and wailing, "I can't do this!" Not once has he told me to suck it up and stop whining.

In addition, he proofreads all my school projects for me, brainstorms Math Lab lesson plans, and in general listens to me yammer on about how hard life is and no one understand.

This week, he has volunteered to do the grocery shopping and cook dinner every night.

That, ladies, is love.

Today in the car, we listened to the book of Ecclesiastes...and then the sermon was about Ecclesiastes as well. I've heard it referred to as a depressing book, but I've never found it to be so myself; I've loved it ever since I was a young girl reading to escape a "boring" sermon at church.

I think that one of the reasons I find it comforting is because I find that I can relate to it very easily. I have a very keen sense of responsibility and of wanting to do the right thing...it feels like everything matters so much. Sometimes I have a hard time making decisions, because every event and ever potentiality seems so fraught with importance and weight.

When the Teacher in Ecclesiastes says, "Meaningless! Meaningless! Everything is meaningless!" I find that I can think about it two ways. One is simply as a resigned utterance: "Nothing is worthwhile. Nothing has meaning." The other, though, is more helpful to me. "Nothing means as much as you think it does. It's not worth getting worked up over."

I get worked up about things easily--we've talked before about how I can actually start worrying that I'm not worry enough about something--but I tend to vacillate between feeling like everything is huge and important and thinking that nothing's worth anything anyway, so why even try?

Ecclesiastes reminds me that I need to be walking somewhere in the middle. How I live my life is important, but most things are probably not as all-encompassing as they become in my head. If I start with God, start with doing what I know I ought to be doing, then everything else will fall in place. Something unpleasant happening to me doesn't even mean that I did something wrong--Ecclesiastes reminds me, too, that "time and chance happen to all."

I really needed it this week, too, so I'm thankful that I got a double dose. I've been sort of up-and-down this week, now feeling on top of things, now feeling totally discouraged. I'm really craving some balance and some normalcy. Reading Ecclesiastes is like sitting down and taking a deep breath.

And you think it's scary that *I* drive!  What about this woman?  O_o

At least I passed the test the first time! ;-)

Tags: driving, news, public
Current Mood: amused

( September/October Books )

September/October Books: 12
Books read in 2009: 64

Tags: augustine

( Day 308 )

Tags: fashion09

Hi! I am new here but it seems like an excellent idea
to have a place to talk as Christians about reading
and to also get suggestions of what might be interesting
to look into oneself.
My name is Seraphim Sigrist but you knew that from my
livejournal name which is the same. The Seraphim is for
a Russian saint from the 19th century, it is an added on
name when I was ordained. My original and, so now middle
name I guess,is Joseph. My original middle name of Paul
kind of gets lost in the shuffle most times I guess.
Anyone is welcome to visit my journal and I will be happy
to exchange friends with you...

Lately I have been reading a couple of things, one on
the subject of the artist Wassily Kandinsky because I am
going to see his work at a New York museum on Saturday--
anyone in New York area want to joint the expedition?

and then poems of Charles Reznikoff. Here is one I
like and you may too.

"As I was wandering with my unhappy thoughts,
I looked and saw
that I had come into a sunny place,
familiar and yet strange.
“Where am I?” I asked a stranger. “Paradise.”
“Can this be Paradise?” I asked surprised,
for there were motor cars and factories.
“It is,” he answered. “This is the sun that shone on Adam once;
the very wind that blew upon him, too.” "

and here is one more,

"Scrap of paper
blown about the street,
you would like to be cherished, I suppose,
like a bank-note."

This last is not only true of pieces of paper but, also
I guess everyone we meet, plain or outwardly unattractive as
they may be, wishes and deserves to be respected for the
most humble is a bearer of the image of God. 'The least of
these my brethren' as it was said.

anyway these and I am yours
+Seraphim

He learned that tossing 2 loads of folded laundry off the couch and onto the floor does not constitute "helping". He also learned that when he tosses 2 loads of folded laundry off the couch and onto the floor, he has to pick them up again.

By the time he was done he left the remaining laundry Very Alone.

Ah, insight. Or foresight, perhaps. :-P

I would write more but I still have to finish refolding some laundry and get food items ready for our departure tomorrow. Busy busy!

So far the only similarity between this pregnancy and my first* is that I have spent two weeks craving Rice Krispy Treats like you wouldn't believe. With Little Ken I abandoned my sense of self control and actually ate a whole pan in one day. Bad me. I'm determined not to permit the same lapse in good sense this time. Don't know that I have much to worry about, though. Since getting the box of Rice Krispy's yesterday, I have already eaten 3 bowlfuls of the stuff. At this rate there won't be much left for treats!


* I am, of course, excluding the obvious similarities such as:
- there is a human being inside of me who kicks and hiccups
- I'm gaining the same amount of weight
- I'm tired and wanna nap
- I eat all the time
- I often want to sleep and eat simultaneously
- I can't comfortably reach my legs to shave
- I don't care that I can't shave my legs
- etc., et. al.

- - - - - - - -
Anyway, today was intended to be a "do as much trip prep as possible so you don't have to stay up late tomorrow night doing it all in one go", but that so didn't happen. (Did I mention my SIL is getting married this Saturday? In Idaho. We leave Thursday. Little Ken is the ring bearer, and he's wearing an olive green safari-style shirt, either tan coveralls or cargo pants, and cowboy boots. It's a country wedding, and it's going to be awesome.)

Instead, today was a "forget the to-do list and play outside". You know you've become an adult when "play outside" to you means potting soil, bulbs, compost, and bark-dust. I got my hydrangea starts in bigger pots, got all my potted plants up against the house (warmer + more protection = hopefully they survive the winter again!), got my tulips in the ground, weeded, mulched, and bark-dusted my still-tender flower garden, and picked up a bunch of random pots and garden tools that were strewn about the property. Bring on the frost! I'm ready for you now! Haha!

Note to self: If you haven't been working outside regularly, a 2 hour marathon is probably not wise. Like, really.

I came inside, stopped moving for 5 minutes, then discovered I could barely walk. Oops. Sorry, poor tortured muscles. I'll drink more water next time. Thusly I confined myself to the couch for the next half hour with a quart jar of water and Did Not Move.

But the plants are safe! :-D

Little Ken tried to bite my toe of all things while I was resting on the couch. I'm quite surprised he tried that, as he knows he gets a swat for that kind of behavior (not to mention my socks were smelly after working outside!), but he seemed satisfied (and apologetic) the moment I started moving so I figured he just didn't like seeing his mother so Still.

The clever kid swiped a pen from the table today, which (again) he knows he's not supposed to do. I saw it and called him, telling him to bring it to me. He turned around with this sweet smile, calmly proceeded to hide the pen behind his back, and made some sounds that clearly conveyed, "What pen?" 'Twas a new maneuver, and I'm still trying to figure out if he picked it up from observation or if he came up with it on his own. It didn't get him out of obeying, but I had to try very hard not to laugh just the same!

He is such a joy. I consider myself more blessed every day to have him. :-)