Best way to study...

...is in a thunderstorm! Talk about April showers being on time. I totally forgot about lightning and thunder until today. Even mild, it adds a new dimension to lots of rain! Cozyin' on up with some reading, bean soup, Annie Hall and a husband. Not bad.

Results.

we are slowly plugging away at what feels like monotony every day...work, work, read, read, work, study, read, sleep. Eat. That's about it. Sometimes we mix it up by eating WITH other people besides ourselves, those are special moments. Then back to working and reading. I miss PLAY!

But we are seeing results, on both our parts. Tim had El Presidente of Starbucks North America tour his store today, with Tim's boss, her boss, her boss, and maybe one other level boss. Lots of bossing. But lots of liking! Tim worked really hard to get his store in fantastic order and he knew his numbers and facts! Talk about crossing T's and dotting I's - Tim is TI. He's been doing that his whole life! Anyway it feels good for him to get some positive results!! No where downhill from here, but a nice breather.

I feel about the same, with putting in too much time on unending projects still not finished, but getting some great feedback on drafts along the way. At least I'm enjoying what I'm learning enough to be tolerating the time it takes! And in some cases investing more and more. And I got to play with soda and sugar and food coloring with middle school students yesterday to do a nutrition lesson with them and talk about the effects of added sugar in sweetened drinks we all like/love. Progress indeed, results, and rewards! The mountain is doable.

What makes it less doable at times is MISSING EVERYONE! When your life is just work and read and eat, you get lonely for friends and family to provide needed relief and comfort and motivation! Spring is going to be really hard because it's my favorite season in Tacoma...I can even smell the air. I'm having to distract myself from looking at everyone's blogs multiple times to see all the fun things they are doing. Major distraction and sadness! Luckily things will start to pickup here, and if we can create time to get away and explore, it will be better in no time! Anyway it's weird how all the constant busyness makes us miss and think of people even more.

Also we can't wait for all of our coming visitors!! Dinah and Ben and Julie and Owen are all coming within the next few weeks and we are so excited! That's what I call motivation. More exciting posts to come once our life becomes exciting again. Peace!

Job hooplah update

Well guys, keep the prayers coming (for peace and surrender!) for my full-time job opportunity starting in May (tuition remission!?). It would be another research assistant position in the same department I am in now (networking works!), helping with some current community interventions related to youth violence, homelessness, domestic violence and maybe hunger. BUT it turns out there are a lot more hoops to run through, and it's NOT guaranteed. It's still possible, just a little nervous.

Keep praying for N and Roxie, N's slowly stabilizing and now needs prayer for his feet and a bladder infection.

Praises for mom's third skin cancer test, came back negative this time!

I'm a bit overwhelmed with work-and school-loads, but they will even out eventually. We miss you all!

Geoff turns Boston upside down

Our time with Geoff has come to an end. Our minds are blown and our faces melted. We nearly burned Boston to the ground. It will take quite awhile to recover. Here are our top 10 memories:

10. Cannolis in the North End. Fabulous ricotta-filled chocolate shell pastries. We knew where to get them, too, once we were given service. The popular pastry shops had lines down the sidewalks since it was the first 55 degree day we've had all winter (everyone was out). But our secret place had no line and the best cannolis in town.

9. Settlers of Catan. Geoff was a quick learner, fierce competitor and side-swiping winner of the longest road.

8. Sprinting down the sidewalk to catch the bus (or run for cover from the weather). Also fake sprinting. "Geoff! Here it comes! Go! Go! Go!" when there wasn't a bus at all. Also, running through a massive random snowstorm that hit the day after our 60 degree weekend.

7. Photography lessons from a pro. Helping me get a better handle on photo techniques. The second half of the album pics are from a day trip to Rockport on the North Shore of MA with Geoff's old camera he let me borrow. Thanks! We also enjoyed a fantastic photo exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts.

6. Orinoco. The best Venezuelan food ever. The best food in our neighborhood. Tasty dining and great celebratory fellowship with our generous brother.

5. Listening to music until the wee morning hours. More and more music. Including some live Yo-Yo Ma at Symphony Hall and an open mic at Club Passim.

4. JFK Museum. More concurrence that the Ormsbees/Opels resemble Jackie O.

3. The ice dancer. Roxie, we can't believe it but we actually saw him skating again when we showed Geoff the Commons! Remember that dramatic guy we were talking about? Check him OUT!

2. Deep talks over coffee. Lots and lots of coffee, lots and lots of good talks.

1. Geoff!!! What a guy, hard working, generous, and all around cool. Welcome back anytime.

Enjoy our slideshow on the side toolbar, and see Geoff's pics here.

Adventures with guest #1.

Stay tuned for the adventures with Geoff. We are majorly adventuring.

prayer requests

Hi friends, please keep your prayers going for our friends the Daggetts. Nathanael cracked his sternum earlier this week and has been pretty immobile and in lots of pain. Plus his mom and Roxie have been putting in lots of extra help and service to take care of him in such a fragile state. It's exhausting for them and they are kind of on the edge of being pushed over the top, except for God's continued and abundant grace!! Thankfully N's dad is coming today to help, but keep beefing up those prayers! They need God's miracles daily.

Also pray for Joanie and Josh and their job situations for the future, as well as Joanie's recovery from this continued illness to her nervous system. Her joints are really sore and she gets very tired easily, and her body needs to respond positively to the antibody transfusions.

Finally, Stephanie's hip is also bothering her more and more each day and she has to go through surgery on the 23rd and be out of commission for 5-6 weeks...talk about a change in pace and opportunity for forced relaxation....pray for little pain leading up to the surgery and after!

home-work day

We're back to the blog, briefly. Life has been soo busy with work and school (mid-term time, no tests, just assignments), but we have been thankful. Last night Tim and I got to attend our church's bicentennial gala at the Westin. 200 years Park Street Church has been alive in Boston - in the same building even! What a crazy thing. Most churches in the centers of quaint New England towns today are dead or transformed into museums or coffee shops - it's a rarity to find such a vibrant and growing body in the center of Boston. We are loving being a part of it. Anyone can listen to Gordon's sermons online if interested!

We got to reconnect with our friends, Mitch and Rebekah, who so graciously invited us over on Christmas to share a meal. Again last night we were dined with a great menu, finished with this chocolate opera torte topped with edible gold!

Today is a much needed free day to catch up homework in the literal and academic sense. It will consist of muddling through my assignments, cleaning the apartment, running on the Charles River, a haircut, and a much-needed trip to the grocery store. Gotta love the end/beginning of the month! I'm tempted to move into the library today, but I'm actually going to enjoy a day at home and a day of sunshine through the windows before a small snowstorm arrives tomorrow:) Miss you all!

weekend of love...and graves

Lots of this weekend was filled with love, hearts shooting out of heads, chocolate and quality together time for me and Tim. I decorated our apartment with paper hearts for festivity.
Then we went on a dinner date near our apartment and tried (among other things) an earl grey vodka martini with lemon and egg whites (which was actually really yummy!).

We also ventured to the Harvard Natural History museum to see glass flowers sculpted in the late 1800's by a German vater-sonn duo. These things looked REAL! Not at all like glass. The artists were commissioned by Harvard back in the day to create 3-D life-like botanical specimens for science study. The pressed, discolored 2-D real life versions just weren't cutting it.

Yep, it's glass. Take THAT, Chihuly! 100 years ago!

This one's for Roxie and other desert-dwellers

This one's for Abbie and those other biology invertebrate lovers (it's not flora, but the artists started by making glass invertebrate specimens and then moved to botany).

Outside the museum we enjoyed sights of Harvard. Our highlight:

We finally learned where Pooh lives! He must be way smarter than he looks.

The other half of our Valentine weekend was a little creepier. We visited a huge cemetery for our winter hike fix. We didn't make it to our original destination because of a mishap with the bus schedules, so the alternative was Forest Hills Cemetery. e.e. cummings is buried there, and he was our token valentine's day author (see previous post).
We liked this creepy tree,

but weren't sure what to think of this one dressed in its night gown (way creepier),

or this family of trees sleep walking or something??

Actually, there is an art exhibit throughout the cemetery, and these nightgown-dressed trees are supposed to be celebrating the spirit of trees...which just end up looking really weird. You'd think if you were going to add art to a cemetery, you wouldn't play on the morbidity theme. Maybe we should have added some of the German guys' glass flowers for a happier atmosphere.

There were nicer parts, like the main entrance:

And some tombstones:

Kind of a nice way to spend a sunny, crisp winter day wandering, hand in hand. A realization to seize the day if nothing else. We are blessed to have a coming and advancing Kingdom and the grip of eternal love on our hearts.

And we got to take this cool old-fashioned trolley as part of the journey.

We hope you all enjoyed your weekends, too.

valentine poem

love is more thicker than forget
more thinner than recall
more seldom than a wave is wet
more frequent than to fail

it is most mad and moonly
and less it shall unbe
than all the sea which only
is deeper than the sea

love is less always than to win
less never than alive
less bigger than the least begin
less littler than forgive

it is most sane and sunly
and more it cannot die
than all the sky which only
is higher than the sky
-e.e. cummings
















(we made an unplanned visit to e.e. cummings' grave on v-day.
he's buried in boston of all places!)

happy vday to our loving friends and fam. we love and miss you!

my new friend, Walgreens

I have an embarrassing, tiny affection for our nearest convenience store, Walgreens. Partly because it's just that - the nearest place to get anything (besides the corner store on our street at which I can buy overpriced rarities and things middle schoolers get for $1). And yet I, too, rejoice in finding Haribo gummy bears for 99 cents! I feel I have come closer to understanding Steph's affinity for Bartell's Drugs in Tacoma, something I never fully took advantage of. Now I even love Bartell's! In fact I know it's better than Walgreens, so hypothetically I love it more.

The latest confirmations of this affair involve mostly milk and cereal deals (which everyone knows are staples for the Eyes). I can get a gallon of milk at Walgreens for 90 cents cheaper than at the grocery store, and I only have to carry it a block! I was happy with my $1.99 2009 Massachusetts calendar. What a convenient steal! I'm also fond of the overall randomness of the store. I still don't really know what they specialize in carrying, and I discover weird new commodities there every time I explore. Today it was fascination with the Valentine's Day gift aisle. I must have spent 15 solid minutes analyzing the goofy pez dispensers, doggy valentines, mini m&m figurines, pirate hearts and BFF chocolate heart boxes. And our neighborhood store is a small one; they don't even recycle printer cartridges. You should see the store near Tim's work!

Nevertheless, I am held back by whole ring of 'quality' in the back of my mind, and so I doubt this warmth will escalate too much. Especially if the only gallons of milk available continue to be those that expire TOMORROW. Maybe there's a reason they're so cheap.