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Tuesday, February 28, 2006:

Home Again

I rolled back into town from Seattle yesterday just in time for work, then worked, ran errands, watched a movie, went to part of a band concert, picked up my mail, talked on the phone for several hours (should have gone to bed way earlier), and then printed out a few pages before I went to bed.

Things are coming to a head at work. I can't say anything more about it right now. Maybe I will after it's all over. Needless to say I'm struggling, angry and stressed out.

And I'm off to run errands.
Rachel LeAnn // 9:53 AM

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Saturday, February 25, 2006:

Never Content to Leave Well Enough Alone

I'm reading (again) Dorothy Sayers' Busman's Honeymoon. Sayers always allows Lord Peter to quote a tremendous amount of poetry and literature. And probably more than I know since I don't catch all the references. It's easy enough to realize what she's doing when she throws in a phrase in Latin or antiquated French (untranslatable on Babelfish).

My favorite reference was in Unnatural Death.

"But I never know when I am not spied upon," she said. "It is sheer spite, you know. Considering how my husband has behaved to me, I think it is monstrous - don't you?"
Her guest agreed that Mr. Forrest must be a monster, jesuitically, however, reserving the opinion that the monster might be a fabulous one.

A throwaway reference to Lewis Carrol's Alice in Wonderland:

"It didn't hurt him" the Unicorn said carelessly, and he was going on, when his eye happened to fall upon Alice: he turned round instantly, and stood for some time looking at her with an air of the deepest disgust

"What--is--this?" he said at last.

"This is a child!" Haigha replied eagerly, coming in front of Alice to introduce her,.. "We only found it to-day. It's as large as life, and twice as natural!"

"I always thought they were fabulous monsters!" said the Unicorn. "Is it alive?"...

Alice could not help her lips curling up into a smile as she began: "Do you know, I always, thought Unicorns were fabulous monsters, too! I never saw one alive before!"

"Well, now that we have seen each other: said The Unicorn,"if you'll believe in me, I'll believe in you. Is that a bargain?

So a fabulous monster, is just a run of the mill human. Oh frabjous day!!

In Busman's Honeymoon, the title is a double play on words. Lord and Lady Peter have come to their new country home expecting to spend a pleasant honeymoon, but find the house shut up, with the owner clearly away. Later he is found murdered in the cellar. In one scene, Lord Peter and the constable entertain themselves while gathering evidence by working quotes into their conversation for the other to identify. Harriet, newly Lady Peter, joins in:

"That's what I was thinking," said Harriet. "A busman's honeymoon. Butchered to make a--"
"Lord Byron," cried Mr. Kirk, a little too promptly. "Butchered to make a busman's - no that doesn't seem right somehow."
"Try Roman," said Peter.

So what is a Busman's honeymoon? The real phrase is "busman's holiday" which the American Heritage Dictionary defines as, "NOUN: Informal A vacation during which one engages in activity that is similar to one's usual work." Word-Detective gives the common explaination of the phrase origen.

It is said that the drivers of horse-drawn omnibuses in London in the 19th century were so solicitous of their horses' well-being that the drivers would often spend their days off surreptitiously riding as passengers on their own trolleys to make sure that the substitute driver was treating their horses well. This practice was so widespread, it is said, that "busman's holiday" came to mean, as you say, "doing on your day off the same thing you do all week at work," with the added connotation that you are doing it out of the goodness of your heart.

He then goes on to say that most likely that story is an urban legend. The real word was "buzman's holiday."

Now the question is, "When is a pickpocket's holiday? When is he off-duty, not cruising for a score?" Simply put, never. Pickpockets are always working to some extent, and I think that's the point of "buzman's holiday." I think the phrase probably arose as a sardonic comment on the voracity of criminals, and gradually spread as a metaphor for anyone who seemed unable to "put down his tools." Only when the phrase reached the stratum of polite society where "buzmen" were unknown did the heart-warming story of "busmen" arise from an attempt to explain the origins of the phrase.

There is a second level, in the quote Harriet modifies,and Kirk picks up on.

"He heard it, but he heeded not . his eyes
Were with his heart, and that was far away;
He reck.d not of the life he lost, nor prize,
But where his rude hut by the Danube lay,
There were his young barbarians all at play,
There was their Dacian mother . he, their sire,
Butchered to make a Roman holiday."

Lord Byron: Childe Harold

Lord Byron is depicting Gladiators, who are killed to give the Roman masses something to do. Harriet is concerned that the discovery of a corpse in the basement will make Peter turn his honeymoon into a working vacation, hence, busman's holiday. These two phrases combined become the title, "Busman's Honeymoon."
Rachel LeAnn // 4:55 PM


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Wednesday, February 22, 2006:

Robert Jordan Strikes Again...

...with his longest prologue ever; 99 pages. I've read seven of them. I think it's stopped raining enough to go get my sewing machine out of the car and start quilting. My drunkards path is coming along nicely, except that I started by using up scraps, so I don't have an even number of anything. Exactly the look I'm going for, but harder to plan around when I'm buying new fabric.

What do you do when you get acquainted with someone that you can actually talk to. About something. Last night the most amazing thing happened. I called a guy in the middle of a documentary, and he turned it off to talk to me. Shocking! We talked about all sorts of things. Favorite movies, coffee shops, Cate Blanchett, Keanu Reaves, city life, poetry, one act plays, gender roles, and sea lions. It's a new concept. I'd always been in the situation of having to tone down to avoid the look of panic that comes when your average guy hears you go on about a book. (And rightfully so. I can go on for ages after it's actually interesting any longer) It's been lovely. And I love listening to him talk about things that interest him. And he thinks I'm smarter than him, but I think he is, so it works out nicely.

I'm going to go finish the last of my chocolate turtles and get to quilting. 100 channels of cable and I've run out of sitcom reruns to rot my brain. Tomorrow -- used bookstore, getting my eyebrows done, and maybe a pedicure.
Rachel LeAnn // 8:06 PM

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Tuesday, February 21, 2006:

Quilting Tonight, teaching tomorrow, then back to Seattle. Two nights. Then an over and back teaching, and Seattle for the rest of the weekend.
Rachel LeAnn // 6:36 PM

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Saturday, February 18, 2006:

Re-Decorate

An interesting thought. The wife of the man who runs the Habitat for Humanity Re-Store asked what I thought about starting up a store called Re-Decorate so that they could accept some of the donations that they don't have room for, and wanted to know if I'd be interested.

I might be.
Rachel LeAnn // 10:21 PM

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Thursday, February 16, 2006:

Johari Window

It seems that everyone is doing it. Fill out mine and I'll return the favor!

Please? Denise? Drea? I know you want to!
Rachel LeAnn // 11:35 PM

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Wednesday, February 15, 2006:

Filling Space as I near Post 1200.

The past few days have been really stressful. The nice thing? I'm off to Seattle Sunday after church for a whole week, plus a day, housesitting for some friends of the family. I needed some time away, and to myself, so I'm looking forward to it.

I'm nearly finished with book nine. I'll confess, I cheated and read the last couple of pages when I was starting to get antsy around page 400. So I've ruined the ending for myself. But with no hope in sight of an end to the series, I don't feel very guilty.

Below is the nicest Valentine anyone has ever given me.
Rachel LeAnn // 11:30 PM

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Tuesday, February 14, 2006:

Kisses
By Steve Pedersen

Snuggled after games
Of Doctor and House,
We questioned kisses,
Wondering whether
The Butterfly
Was better than
The Eskimo.

I believed the first,
With its
Fluttering eyelashes,
Tickled way too much
To be a real kiss.
But the second one
I believed came closer.

Rubbing nose to nose,
I thought the Eskimos
Were on to something.
But still I knew
There must be something more.
Then you leaned in,
Kissed me and ran.

I followed knowing
The game of Chase
Is never won
-simply played again:
After both fall clasped in arms,
Tickled to the nose
With kisses...
Rachel LeAnn // 11:02 PM

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Sunday, February 12, 2006:

A Suffusion of Yellow

Today was sunny for the second day in a row. I almost got back on the highway and took the right fork instead of the left (To Mt. Rainier National Forest instead of White Pass. Yesterday I started towards the grocery store and wound up in the mountains) but I ate with the Pros at Olive Garden instead and then watched a brief Halo Tournament while enjoying the feeling of sun on my head through the window. I'd forgotten how much I miss windows. Or rather, I try not to think about it, since what am I going to do anyway. Even if I carved a hole in the wall, it would just give me a birds eye view of the front counter.

We watched Waiting..., which had some funny moments. Then I half napped on the couch until Sean remembered that I'd grabbed a ride with him and Kris from Olive Garden, and was at his mercy for a ride home. It was nice to get out of the house for the day. He couldn't figure out why I was hanging out so long, and thought it was cool, until he realized that I was in essence trapped there.

I took a nap late this evening, always a bad plan, because now it's nearly midnight and I'm wired. There is a chocolate lava cake cooling in my kitchen, and three blocks of fudge in my house from Drea, so I've got my fix for the time being. Fudge is not something you can plow through quickly. One must savor it, or die of a diabetic coma.

Tomorrow is Monday again. Where does the weekend go. I have a week in Seattle planned for next Sunday. I'll be in and out of town all week to teach, but the rest of the time is MINE! I'm really looking forward to the break.
Rachel LeAnn // 11:32 PM

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Saturday, February 11, 2006:

Working on Saturday. Again

But just for a couple of hours. Our Saturday Manager is gone, and I'm covering for her until our regular volunteer gets here to run the register. Then Nancy is going to be on call. Which means, I'll be second on call if they can't get ahold of her.

Yesterday after work I ran to Inklings to grab book nine of the Wheels of Time series. I AM going to finish. As long as I was on that side of the world, I dropped in at Kris and Sean's to say hi, and ended up staying for pizza. Canadian Bacon and Olive - but I took off the mushrooms. Then I came home, read the 86 page prologue, and took a nap until 10:30. At which point Denise came in and we had an unplanned chick flick marathon. Under The Tuscan Sun came in at the store, so we watched it (bad news for me, now I have itchy feet again. I get that about the new Sabrina, too). Then Must Love Dogs. Another Diane Lane movie. Not as good as Tuscan Sun, but it wasn't a totally wasted two hours either. And Denise had also never seen Love, Actually. Which is my favorite Romantic Comedy. So at about 4:30 am, a bowl of popcorn, several glasses of iced tea, some Ben and Jerry's Half Baked, and Macaroni and Cheese (we got hungry for real food) later, we turned in for the night, and I decided to cut my hair. At 5am.

It's actually really cute. Since being poverty stricken, I've gotten fairly resourceful about the health and beauty stuff I took for granted when I made all the money in the world in California. I spent $180 to get my hair colored, highlighted and dyed more than once. Also pedicures were my favorite vice. Now I can cut my own hair. I kept most of the length on the bottom layer -- since I'm still trying to get the 10" I need for Locks of Love. But I did another row of layers an inch an a half shorter than the rest, and then cut some shorter strands to frame my face. The shortest ones are chin length. And I'm pretty proud of how well it turned out, if I do say so myself. The layers around my face need some futzing, but they'll get there.

And now I'm at work. For 20 more minutes, God willing, assuming Connie shows up on time. And then I can go back to bed. Because I'm standing here in my pajamas and slippers. Luckily for me, the fashion dieties have declared velour sweatsuits as appropriate daily wear. And my hair is still fixed.
Rachel LeAnn // 10:29 AM

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FIVE THINGS

The way it works. Knock the top name off the list below. Add yours to the bottom. I don't know exactly why you do this, but okay....

Topmost Apple
Lutheranchik
Rebel Without a Pew
Clever Title Here
Inklings

Tag five people for this meme...even if they'll never do it?
Drea (Endersname)
Denise (Coloratura81)
MaeGum (pickingatmybrain)
Jess (Babblings)
Angie (You never told me what your blog is, but I know you've got one.)

And anyone else who hasn't been tagged, but wants to play. I'm doing this for you Teri...

What were you doing 10 years ago?
I was 15. I would have been a Sophomore, so I was really into the band thing. Mr. Kunze's Daughter and all that. There wasn't a musical that year. I did Babes in Toyland later that year, but I don't recall if I did another Warehouse Theater show. I guess I would have been gearing up for Drum Major auditions. And getting set for running start in the fall.

What were you doing a year ago?
I was on my second tour with Wycliffe Dinner Theater. We would have just left rehearsals and were probably doing a show in Northern California, somewhere around Redding.

5 snacks you enjoy
chocolate chip cookies (fresh, homemade) or just the dough
ritz crackers and peanut butter
tuna fish, miracle whip, and saltines
devilled eggs
wheat thins with cream cheese, seafood sauce, and baby shrimp (Can you tell the type of cracker is a very important part of the decision making process. Tuna fish and ritz, for example, don't work together)

5 Songs to which you know all the word
The Hole in the Bottom of the Sea
Books of the Old Testament/New Testament (You should hear my kids blast through them. I keep breaking my nail trying to play my guitar that fast)
There's a Hole in the Bucket
12 Days of Christmas (our Christmas program song. Sang it more than anyone anywhere this year teaching K-4)

5 things I'd do if I were a millionare
Pay off debts (Amen, Teri)
Buy a house for a commune for short term ministry people
Travel everywhere
Sponsor more kids
Sponsor a missionary

5 bad habits
Not cleaning dishes as I go
Playing with my hair (Especially now that it's long again. I'm no unused to having it to play with that I toy with it constantly)
Ditto on the kitty litter
Not brushing my teeth or washing my face before bed when I'm tired
Eating three bites of any meal, and then running off too busy to finish.

5 things you enjoy doing
Reading
Blogging
Quilting/Sewing
Napping
Picnics with a book on a warm sunny day

5 things you would not wear again
tapered, high rise jeans
polyester and other scary synthetics
Non-hoodie sweatshirts
scrunch socks
Huge Glasses

5 favorite toys
12 column ledger. This is a 3 year affair now.
My heater disguised as a fireplace. I put my feet on it and read in a comfy chair.
Napster. I never burn anything, but I love having the wealth of songs on my ebay computer.
A fresh box of crayons. Is there anything better? Especially if there are new colors.
Rachel LeAnn // 9:51 AM

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Thursday, February 09, 2006:

The sun is shining, right in my face through the plate glass window. And I'm staring into it because it has been so long since we've seen the sun and I don't care if I'm blinded. It's slipping now, halfway behind the train shed across the tracks. And soon it will be hidden, and the day will be normal again. But for now, I'm basking.
Rachel LeAnn // 4:48 PM

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Another One Bites the Dust

Nan is sick again, so I'm in charge at the store today. I spent the morning letting the employees run things while I try and pull the Christmas basement back into order. The jail crew had it cleared out and cleaned up a month ago, but when the new loads-o-Yuletide came in, Jesse and Bill pretty much did whatever they wanted with no supervision. My fault - I was too busy to give directions. But now I have to clear off the tables so I can make room for the sorting bins. And the basement hasn't realized that it's 51 degrees out there. A heater, hot chocolate, and two pairs of long underwear are just not cutting it.

Lunch breaks are beautiful things.

I took a quick walk to the mailbox at track 29. First, I never see daylight living in a windowless room, so the sun and warmth were wonderful! And I needed to mail off a Valentine. Now I'm waiting for water to boil so I can make lunch. Funny, it seems there's a saying about that. How does it go...?

On an unrelated note, Rand al'Thor is driving me up the wall with all of the whining and angst. It needs to be Tarmon Gaidon already so he can serve his purpose and either die or marry the three women who are contimplating polygamy so they can all have him. I've finished book eight now, and gearing up for book nine. I've been reading these since September. I think I'm ready to reach the end of the series now, but no such luck, since Robert Jordon is still writing them.
Rachel LeAnn // 12:30 PM

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Tuesday, February 07, 2006:

Plotting the Summer and other plans falling into place

I've called the Alisal about working for them one more summer. I won't be teaching in July and August, which takes my pay here down to less than half of what I can make there in that amount of time. Plus business will be slow. I don't really want to work there too badly...there's been a lot of upheaval since the change in management, but it's a sure thing. They'll provide housing and I'm already trained. Hopefully my change in haircolor will allow me to go somewhat incognito with the guests. I got so tired of being chased around about the singing thing. And Wendy will be thrilled if I come down.

I'm ready for the school year to be over. I like teaching, but the triple split shifting has to end. I can't eat, and I run around like a maniac all week. If they want me next year, I want to teach first thing in the morning, have a break, and then come in at 12:30-5:30 at the shop like I used to do. The split in the middle is killing me.

In other news I got my taxes done. I've been doing my own taxes with the EZ form since high school. This year, since I had moving expenses to write off I had to go with the long form. I wasn't aware that you can take the standard dedution ther. Moving is an additional deduction, as is student loan interest, so you can move to the long form without actually havng to itemize. That was lovely. And my accountant waived off his fee as "we're family." Which isn't true. His ex-wife was my grandfather's second wife. That's hardly blood kin. Ah well. I couldn't afford to pay him and buy groceries in the same month, so it worked out well. Once the tax return comes in I can pay off more of my car.

Last night I watched Kill Bill 2. It was very artistic. There wasn't nearly the slaughter of the first movie, and a lot more plot. And a great soundtrack.

Now I have to go find something to teach for today. 1st and 2nd grades. Ta.
Rachel LeAnn // 10:56 AM

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Sunday, February 05, 2006:

THAT WAS THE WORST CALLED GAME IN THE HISTORY OF WORST CALLED GAMES!!!!
Rachel LeAnn // 8:13 PM

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Saturday, February 04, 2006:

Bible Study at Inklings Bookshop

Since I'm on a roll all of a sudden with the technology, here's the regular crew for our Saturday morning read through. We average about 10 chapters a week here, outloud, and we're almost through Numbers. Thank Goodness. There's a lot to glean, and we feel very well informed about sacrifices and heave offerings and grain offerings, and we've started tying in New Testament applications (Like Paul's reference in Philippians to a drink offering, or Romans' Christ as the firstfruits), but we're ready to get back to the adventure. The Pentateuch is rather repetative. Moses wasn't much of a writer. The Jackson's Sports Bar leg of the study should finish out the last five chapters so we're ready for Deuteronomy next week at Inklings.

Oh, and that's Denise, Johanna, and me. Sometimes we have Nathaniel and Julie too.

Rachel LeAnn // 10:17 PM

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Drunkard's Path

So, using the scraps from the Grandmother's Flower Garden, and bits from my Yo-yo quilt (in progress) I've started a new quilt. Since one must have several craft projects going at once, so one can trade out when one gets bored. That's a lot of ones.
Rachel LeAnn // 10:08 PM

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Getting Reacquainted

Last night, after I got off work, I got a phone call. It was Steve! We talked for about an hour. Lots of "what have you been up to since 1988" and then comparing our favorite books. He's trying to get a paper published on an analysis of a Robert Frost poem, and how it homages the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam. He's also writing a one act play.

It was great to talk to him. Afterwards, I went to the folks house for a craft night, which didn't happen. Instead we all sat on the floor and sorted through our old photo collection, trying to find pictures from preschool and kindergarten. No luck -- they're all on slides. But Allie found my class picture from then, which I've posted below. Weren't we adorable?
Rachel LeAnn // 1:20 PM

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Courtesy of the Tooth Fairy

Rachel LeAnn // 9:59 AM

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I have very few photos with my "real smile."

Rachel LeAnn // 9:59 AM

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Friday, February 03, 2006:

I loved to wear dresses so I could twirl

Rachel LeAnn // 10:57 PM

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Steven Pedersen and Me, Kindergarten class photo

Rachel LeAnn // 10:56 PM

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The Ups, Downs and Sudden Shocks of a Wooden Rollercoaster

Yesterday was quite the day. Nothing very formidable happened on the surface. Prayer Breakfast. They sang the song I loathe with an all consuming passion. (Walking and talking with my MIIIIIIND...SEEEEEETTTT on Jesus) No Amazing Grace to the tune of the Gilligan's Island Themesong. That borders on sacriligious.

I tried to get my oil changed, but Goodyear was backed up until Tuesday at 3:00. I'll drop my car off on the way back from St. Pauls and walk back to the Lighthouse. I can walk back after I close the shop. It's utterly convenient to live within a mile of all three major jobs, several favorite restaurants, church, and a used bookstore. Once the weather warms up again, I'll start walking more places.

I worked a full day, no teaching to break things up. Tessa and I priced the latest load at the front counter where it's warm. I put myself close enough to the heater to smell warm clothing particles all afternoon. Tessa is amazing. She is so smart, reads all the time, had all sorts of scholarships to colleges, graduated at 16, and was published several times as a teenager. Then a couple of bad decisions left her on welfare years later. She's about my age. We talked about what she'd do if she could do anything, and money and current situations weren't an object. She wants to go back to school for an English degree. She wants to go abroad for a while. I took my lunch break far later than usual to stay and talk.

I got two emails in a row, one with some bad news, and one with good. I am still grinning over Steve Pedersen showing back up after twenty years. That balanced out the other.

After work I had band practice for Sunday, and then went to Borders to buy a new Cloud and Townsend book that I've been coveting for a couple of weeks now. I'm not a big fan of the "Self-Help" genre, but my counselor in college recommended their "Boundaries" book. It took me a year and another recommendation to actually read it, but it was very good. The new one is good too.

And I'm back to work.
Rachel LeAnn // 1:16 PM

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Thursday, February 02, 2006:

Blast from the Past

I had my second thoughts about being on myspace, but today it did what it was supposed to do. I got an email from someone in Southern California. A guy politely introduced himself, saying that he had a girlfriend named Rachel once. They were both in preschool together, and then he moved to California when they were seven. Before he left she drew a picture of him. Could that Rachel possibly be this Rachel. And it was.

I wrote back that I had been madly in love with him in Kindergarten and Preschool, and we must have watched the My Little Pony movie at his house a zillion times. He had a pogo stick, and one of those bouncy planet-with-a-ring balls that you could stand on. I had wondered off and on over the years what had ever become of him. From my memory, he was the nicest guy I've ever known.

I hope he writes back! He was my best friend.
Rachel LeAnn // 1:04 PM

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Wednesday, February 01, 2006:

Ledgering Again

The first month of accounting sucks. I spent two hours making sure everything balances out between last year and this year, and my purse broke, so I can't carry my spending log around. Basically everything was two weeks behind, and I had one transfer that didn't, luckily I didn't spend the same money twice, and was typical a few years ago when I only checked my bank account balance to see if "I had any money to spend." Usually not, but I spent anyway. So my first month's spending log is done, and my account is up to date, bills paid, and I'm all caught up with a little play money left over!

In a note of rejoicing, I paid off my move finally. I can't move again for a while. This was too expensive. I hope I can write it off.

I have more to write, more observations to make, and some general pithy comments, but I'm yawning my head off. Tomorrow is my long day, so I think I'll turn in very early for me.

Oh, and guess who sorted through 80 boxes of donations in a little over 2 hours? ME. That's who. I did a little dance with a peppy cheer after work when only Nancy and Sam were watching. "Who just sorted the whole d--n load. It's me! It's me!" Complete with choreography.
Rachel LeAnn // 9:48 PM

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