My third snowy winter truly began this past Friday, and this one got me. After spending all day Friday watching the snow, on Saturday I had things to do. I went to yoga, I got groceries, then it was time for me to head to church. On my way to my car, I slipped on the ice and landed on my arm. I hurt, but didn't think too much was wrong, so I went on with the evening. Unfortunately after icing it for a couple of hours at home, it had gotten to the point that I shrieked every time I moved my arm, so I could tell something more was wrong. So, I called a woman on my support committee for a ride to the hospital. Turns out, I've got my first broken bone: my left radial head - my elbow. So now I'm in a splint and a sling and I'm typing this one-handed.
Despite this rough weekend, especially to my elbow, I'm finding myself grateful. Maybe because it's almost Thanksgiving and we celebrated gratitude in church this weekend, so my mind is there, but I'm pretty happy about it.
I am grateful that I fell on my left arm instead of my right, so I still have a lot of ability to do things. For the smallness of the fracture that will hopefully heal quickly. For people I can call at 10 at night who will wait with me at the hospital until 1:30. For people thinking of what I may need before I can and offering help. For an opportunity to learn to receive help. For the ability to write and color since I can't knit or crochet. For a fiberglass splint that keeps my elbow still and free of pain. For bodies' amazing ability to heal themselves if we let them. For a cat who refuses to let a thing like a splint and sling get in the way of cuddles. For my situation moving me forward in my hopes for my sermon preparation and delivery. For a good reason to practice self-care by going to a salon and having someone shampoo my hair on a regular basis. I am grateful for these and so many other things.
It's been a good week.
Earlier this week, I had the opportunity to worship with a congregation within the walls of a women;s prison. I love the fact that congregations like these exist, allowing people in prison to form their own communities, just like the ones we form and I work with. The women I met were kind, and deeply engaged in being the church. I was incredibly happy to have a chance to be with them, to share in prayers and communion with them.
Advent is beginning soon, it is a new church year. It's a Luke year (in the gospel readings) which makes me a bit nervous, because I find Luke a little difficult, but this will give me more ways to grow in this role. The church is blue and beautiful, it's time to decorate for Christmas (yes, I do that in my home during Advent) and I am very happy. Keep looking around this season, there are so many reasons to develop a grateful heart.
May God's peace be with you all.
Showing posts with label Christmas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Christmas. Show all posts
Monday, November 23, 2015
Saturday, February 7, 2015
The Start of a New Semester
So here I go again, a brand new semester, and I am going to make an effort to write here more often. I actually really miss it. Since I last wrote, I've done Christmas and New Years at home, come back to Ohio, taken a class on Emotional Intelligence, and jumped both feet in to this semester of classes and work.
Christmas was wonderful, full of time with friends and loved ones, and I enjoyed every minute of it. I got to reconnect with a few of my friends in Texas, Kevin and Amy were able to come up for Christmas and stay for three whole days, and Silas visited for New Years, and we made our regular New Years date at Fearings in Dallas.
I drove back with my Mom and George, both of whom make great travel companions. Other than getting stressed out by the rain and the dark the first night and stopping early, the drive was nice, and it was lovely to have Mom along to keep me company. George was glad to be back in his apartment where no other animals live.
I spent three weeks in a class on emotional intelligence, which was fascinating, but exhausting. It was a class where we spent a lot of time learning about ourselves and how we lead. I learned a lot about myself, but it was also a lot like counseling for three hours a day every day. I ended up taking several long naps over my J-term.
I also spent that time being the J-term sacristan, which was a nice way to ease back into my job. We had worship services each day, but they were very simple, and a lot of wonderful people helped to create and lead the worships. I still love planning and executing worship in any form, so doing it in this smaller way was lovely.
Then after a week off, I jumped into the semester full swing. It's almost hard to believe that I have only had two days of my regular spring classes. We began with a communion service, which I loved getting ready. There's something about the happy chaos of getting a large service set up and running that just makes me feel in my element. Read into that about me what you will. Then my I-group began planning our own week of worship services for the end of the month. Then I took a mile and a half walk with a couple of friends, ate lunch while I played fetch with George, and finally went to my first class.
I began my semester with a class called Hermenutics for Preaching, which I am excited to be in. We're learning about how a preacher goes about reading the Bible and telling a congregation how it applies to them today. Seems like an easy question, but it's deeper than it appears, and I think I'm going to learn a lot in that class.
Thursday introduced me to four more of my classes. Care of Souls will help me dive into pastoral care, something that is really important to my forming pastoral identity. Once again, there is so much I can learn from there. Then I went to New Testament 2, covering the New Testament after Acts, and it's going to be a tough class, but I think worthwhile. And the professor is fantastic. Next was Psalms, which I think will be fascinating. I have always loved the Psalms, but I think this class will help me to really engage with the poetry of them and be able to use them more in my future work. I finished the evening with Spanish. I'm excited to be back in Spanish this semester, and I'll be taking Spanish three.
Speaking of speaking languages I don't know well. This Monday, we're putting on our first Spanish/English bilingual morning prayer service, and I've been asked to be the Spanish leader! Apparently some people think I have a decent enough grasp of the language to read and lead at the same time.
Then comes this weekend (I know, half this blog is covering four days). Yesterday I spent a day doing worship planning and getting prepared for interviewing with internship supervisors. Oh yeah, in just over a month I should know where I'm going to be spending my next year. On the subject of internship I oscillate between terrified and excited, so I'm reading the applications from all the churches and being as organized as I can in an effort to remain more often on the excited side of things. I meet with supervisors at the end of the month, and I'm really looking forward to getting a chance to actually talk with the pastors and get a feel for them.
Then today I began my day teaching children about the fifth and sixth commandments of the big ten. You shall not murder and you shall not commit adultery. People say that you really know a subject when you can teach it to a child, and I have to say I definitely spent more time than before thinking on these two and how it might be best to teach them to 11 and 12 year olds. This was confirmation, and the class actually went really well, despite several giggles that ensued. I spent the afternoon getting ready for church tomorrow, which is going to be a bit more complex than normal. Tomorrow is the first time that I will preach the same sermon at three different services, so obviously I had to write a sermon, and because one of the pastors is out of town, I'll be doing everything for one of the services. One nice thing is that our motto there is basically "if you make mistakes, it's okay, worship will still happen and God still loves you"
Well, that's probably enough of an update for now. Thanks if you've stuck with my through this whole post! I'll keep you up to date about all I'm learning and doing, and next week I'll even tell you about one more class I'm enrolled in that doesn't meet until Monday!
Peace be with you all.
Christmas was wonderful, full of time with friends and loved ones, and I enjoyed every minute of it. I got to reconnect with a few of my friends in Texas, Kevin and Amy were able to come up for Christmas and stay for three whole days, and Silas visited for New Years, and we made our regular New Years date at Fearings in Dallas.
I drove back with my Mom and George, both of whom make great travel companions. Other than getting stressed out by the rain and the dark the first night and stopping early, the drive was nice, and it was lovely to have Mom along to keep me company. George was glad to be back in his apartment where no other animals live.
I spent three weeks in a class on emotional intelligence, which was fascinating, but exhausting. It was a class where we spent a lot of time learning about ourselves and how we lead. I learned a lot about myself, but it was also a lot like counseling for three hours a day every day. I ended up taking several long naps over my J-term.
I also spent that time being the J-term sacristan, which was a nice way to ease back into my job. We had worship services each day, but they were very simple, and a lot of wonderful people helped to create and lead the worships. I still love planning and executing worship in any form, so doing it in this smaller way was lovely.
Then after a week off, I jumped into the semester full swing. It's almost hard to believe that I have only had two days of my regular spring classes. We began with a communion service, which I loved getting ready. There's something about the happy chaos of getting a large service set up and running that just makes me feel in my element. Read into that about me what you will. Then my I-group began planning our own week of worship services for the end of the month. Then I took a mile and a half walk with a couple of friends, ate lunch while I played fetch with George, and finally went to my first class.
I began my semester with a class called Hermenutics for Preaching, which I am excited to be in. We're learning about how a preacher goes about reading the Bible and telling a congregation how it applies to them today. Seems like an easy question, but it's deeper than it appears, and I think I'm going to learn a lot in that class.
Thursday introduced me to four more of my classes. Care of Souls will help me dive into pastoral care, something that is really important to my forming pastoral identity. Once again, there is so much I can learn from there. Then I went to New Testament 2, covering the New Testament after Acts, and it's going to be a tough class, but I think worthwhile. And the professor is fantastic. Next was Psalms, which I think will be fascinating. I have always loved the Psalms, but I think this class will help me to really engage with the poetry of them and be able to use them more in my future work. I finished the evening with Spanish. I'm excited to be back in Spanish this semester, and I'll be taking Spanish three.
Speaking of speaking languages I don't know well. This Monday, we're putting on our first Spanish/English bilingual morning prayer service, and I've been asked to be the Spanish leader! Apparently some people think I have a decent enough grasp of the language to read and lead at the same time.
Then comes this weekend (I know, half this blog is covering four days). Yesterday I spent a day doing worship planning and getting prepared for interviewing with internship supervisors. Oh yeah, in just over a month I should know where I'm going to be spending my next year. On the subject of internship I oscillate between terrified and excited, so I'm reading the applications from all the churches and being as organized as I can in an effort to remain more often on the excited side of things. I meet with supervisors at the end of the month, and I'm really looking forward to getting a chance to actually talk with the pastors and get a feel for them.
Then today I began my day teaching children about the fifth and sixth commandments of the big ten. You shall not murder and you shall not commit adultery. People say that you really know a subject when you can teach it to a child, and I have to say I definitely spent more time than before thinking on these two and how it might be best to teach them to 11 and 12 year olds. This was confirmation, and the class actually went really well, despite several giggles that ensued. I spent the afternoon getting ready for church tomorrow, which is going to be a bit more complex than normal. Tomorrow is the first time that I will preach the same sermon at three different services, so obviously I had to write a sermon, and because one of the pastors is out of town, I'll be doing everything for one of the services. One nice thing is that our motto there is basically "if you make mistakes, it's okay, worship will still happen and God still loves you"
Well, that's probably enough of an update for now. Thanks if you've stuck with my through this whole post! I'll keep you up to date about all I'm learning and doing, and next week I'll even tell you about one more class I'm enrolled in that doesn't meet until Monday!
Peace be with you all.
Friday, January 3, 2014
Christmas Break
So I was right about being sporadic in my blog writing over Christmas break. I've been quite busy, and I've had a cold, so I spent a solid week mainly laying on my couch feeling like a lazy bum.
It's been a busy Christmas with much traveling and family. I went with my parents to visit all of my family on my mom's side in Tulsa the weekend before Christmas. Tulsa had had an ice storm, but the roads were fine. It was actually fascinating to look at the trees and all the icicles. I know it's bad for the trees, but they were beautiful encased in ice. I had a very good time with my family. We exchanged small gifts and had a big Christmas dinner. It was nice to see cousins that I don't see very often and catch up with them. I also hand washed all the dishes from the sixteen person dinner, which I actually enjoyed doing and catching up with my aunts and cousins while I did it. I was also able to read on the way there and back by listening to a book on tape, since I can't actually read a book in the car without getting nauseous.
When we got back I celebrated my parents 32nd anniversary with them. I've always loved that their anniversary is two days before Christmas, so it's always been part of my Christmas celebration. Unfortunately, right after that is when I came down with my cold. It hit me pretty quickly and pretty hard, and I was sad that it happened just before Christmas Eve when my mom and I were planning on some Christmas cooking. I was basically kicked out of the kitchen, so I just had to talk with my mom while she baked cookies and got Christmas breakfast ready.
On Christmas Eve we went to church for a service at 6, and I was sad that I wasn't able to sing along with all the hymns. But it was still a lovely service, and I managed to sing Silent Night at about a tenor to finish the service. Then my brother came in and we decorated Christmas cookies. I had my own plate of cookies that I decorated and ate over the next few days in an attempt to not get my family sick.
Christmas was fantastic. I got up first and came downstairs and sat on the couch by the lit Christmas tree and read for awhile before everyone else woke up. Then as my family got up and came out to the living room, we ate our traditional breakfast and Kevin and I opened our stockings. Santa brought me a duck shaped tea infuser this year, which floats on top of my teacup while it makes tea. It is adorable, and I can't wait to use it on cold Ohio nights.
I have always sat by the tree on Christmas and passed out gifts, and this year was no exception, despite my cold. Usually I also reorganize the gifts under the tree leading up to Christmas so there will be a nice order to passing out gifts. I hadn't done that this year, but I was still trying to be even in passing out gifts to my parents, Kevin, and myself. But then I quickly realized that Kevin had many more gifts than me. Of course, that was because he didn't want anything big and I had asked for a tablet this year. I finally got to open a Samsung Galaxy Note, which I really enjoy and I'll use a lot while I'm in grad school. We spent the rest of the day playing a couple of board games that Kevin had gotten and then going to my Aunt's house for Christmas dinner. Then we sent Kevin back, because he had to work, and I went to bed shortly afterward.
Last Sunday, the Sunday after Christmas I preached my second sermon ever, to my home church. I was nervous, but I also felt more prepared than before, and when it came to actually delivering the sermon, I felt really good about it. I'm pleased that I've been able to improve over my last sermon and I'm looking forward to getting even more practice this next year.
I have also interviewed at both Children's hospital and Parkland hospital here in Dallas for my summer of Clinical Pastoral Education this summer. I will be working as a hospital chaplain for ten weeks this summer, and I'm sure it'll be an experience. Especially at one of these hospitals. The interviews went great, though, and I am actually looking forward to what I'll learn over the summer.
Other than that, I've been running around with my mom and having a good time in Grapevine, and now I am getting ready to head back to Ohio. I'll fly back tomorrow, and then leave on Sunday for a class in Iowa. It should be a great class, all about parish ministry, which I think I will love. Then I'll have a couple of weeks off in Ohio before I start my second full semester at Trinity!
Wish me luck.
It's been a busy Christmas with much traveling and family. I went with my parents to visit all of my family on my mom's side in Tulsa the weekend before Christmas. Tulsa had had an ice storm, but the roads were fine. It was actually fascinating to look at the trees and all the icicles. I know it's bad for the trees, but they were beautiful encased in ice. I had a very good time with my family. We exchanged small gifts and had a big Christmas dinner. It was nice to see cousins that I don't see very often and catch up with them. I also hand washed all the dishes from the sixteen person dinner, which I actually enjoyed doing and catching up with my aunts and cousins while I did it. I was also able to read on the way there and back by listening to a book on tape, since I can't actually read a book in the car without getting nauseous.
When we got back I celebrated my parents 32nd anniversary with them. I've always loved that their anniversary is two days before Christmas, so it's always been part of my Christmas celebration. Unfortunately, right after that is when I came down with my cold. It hit me pretty quickly and pretty hard, and I was sad that it happened just before Christmas Eve when my mom and I were planning on some Christmas cooking. I was basically kicked out of the kitchen, so I just had to talk with my mom while she baked cookies and got Christmas breakfast ready.
On Christmas Eve we went to church for a service at 6, and I was sad that I wasn't able to sing along with all the hymns. But it was still a lovely service, and I managed to sing Silent Night at about a tenor to finish the service. Then my brother came in and we decorated Christmas cookies. I had my own plate of cookies that I decorated and ate over the next few days in an attempt to not get my family sick.
Christmas was fantastic. I got up first and came downstairs and sat on the couch by the lit Christmas tree and read for awhile before everyone else woke up. Then as my family got up and came out to the living room, we ate our traditional breakfast and Kevin and I opened our stockings. Santa brought me a duck shaped tea infuser this year, which floats on top of my teacup while it makes tea. It is adorable, and I can't wait to use it on cold Ohio nights.
I have always sat by the tree on Christmas and passed out gifts, and this year was no exception, despite my cold. Usually I also reorganize the gifts under the tree leading up to Christmas so there will be a nice order to passing out gifts. I hadn't done that this year, but I was still trying to be even in passing out gifts to my parents, Kevin, and myself. But then I quickly realized that Kevin had many more gifts than me. Of course, that was because he didn't want anything big and I had asked for a tablet this year. I finally got to open a Samsung Galaxy Note, which I really enjoy and I'll use a lot while I'm in grad school. We spent the rest of the day playing a couple of board games that Kevin had gotten and then going to my Aunt's house for Christmas dinner. Then we sent Kevin back, because he had to work, and I went to bed shortly afterward.
Last Sunday, the Sunday after Christmas I preached my second sermon ever, to my home church. I was nervous, but I also felt more prepared than before, and when it came to actually delivering the sermon, I felt really good about it. I'm pleased that I've been able to improve over my last sermon and I'm looking forward to getting even more practice this next year.
I have also interviewed at both Children's hospital and Parkland hospital here in Dallas for my summer of Clinical Pastoral Education this summer. I will be working as a hospital chaplain for ten weeks this summer, and I'm sure it'll be an experience. Especially at one of these hospitals. The interviews went great, though, and I am actually looking forward to what I'll learn over the summer.
Other than that, I've been running around with my mom and having a good time in Grapevine, and now I am getting ready to head back to Ohio. I'll fly back tomorrow, and then leave on Sunday for a class in Iowa. It should be a great class, all about parish ministry, which I think I will love. Then I'll have a couple of weeks off in Ohio before I start my second full semester at Trinity!
Wish me luck.
Monday, December 9, 2013
The End of the Semester
It is officially my last week of the semester.
I came back to Ohio last week to finish up my semester with just a week and a half left of school. It's been a relatively easy semester, especially compared to my classmates who are middlers or seniors, and I have appreciated the chance to get used to the seminary with a semester that is not awful. I'm already looking forward to my next semester, except for the fact that I have classes literally all day Tuesday - 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.!
On Monday last week, we had a yoga teacher come in and teach a restorative yoga class in our smaller chapel. It was absolutely wonderful, except for the fact that I had to go to class afterward. I am trying to add more yoga into my life, because as a graduate student I spend the vast amount of my time sitting, and I am nearly desperate for activity and some time to get out of my head. Yoga offers both of those, and I don't have to wear shoes to do it!
The rest of the week went perfectly smoothly, and it is interesting to be wrapping up each class. I am so excited that next semester my only evening class will be Spanish, which is not a traditional class. I have such a hard time engaging in evening classes, especially during winter when the sun is already set, and I am looking forward to that change next semester.
This weekend was full of snow and time with friends. At common meal on Thursday, those of us who were sitting around the table got into a lively conversation about the merits of various Doctor Who companions. The fact that this is the kind of conversation I can engage in here makes me very happy, this place is full of the best kinds of nerds, me included. Saturday, I went out to watch the OSU v. MSU game with a few people from the seminary. It was great fun, partially because I didn't really care about the game. I rooted for MSU with my table, of one actual MSU fan, and two people who cared even less than I did. We had a good time being one of the odd groups out in the bar, which was of course full of buckeyes.
It snowed quite a bit this weekend, which I have found probably much more exciting than most others here. It's beautiful, and has given me great reasons to wear my cloak. It's getting a lot more use up here than it did in Texas or Oklahoma. I went to work and a faculty meeting on Friday and had a great time watching the snow come down from the windows, and then I stayed inside most of the day Saturday. I have spent a large part of my weekend working on Christmas gifts, which have to remain secret for now, but maybe I'll post a picture later.
Sunday I also went to my official Ministry in Context site for the first time, which was really great. I like the church and I really like the pastor, so I think it'll be a good place to spend the next year and a half. It's a shame I got assigned so close to the end of the semester and I'm leaving town, but I'll get properly settled there as the MIC student in January.
Now as I finish my last two days of the semester, I am getting ready to go home and spend a lovely Christmas there. I can hardly wait to spend a bit longer at home and have a proper rest between semesters. My blog might be a bit more sporadic, but I'll try to check in. I hope everyone is staying warm!
I came back to Ohio last week to finish up my semester with just a week and a half left of school. It's been a relatively easy semester, especially compared to my classmates who are middlers or seniors, and I have appreciated the chance to get used to the seminary with a semester that is not awful. I'm already looking forward to my next semester, except for the fact that I have classes literally all day Tuesday - 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.!
On Monday last week, we had a yoga teacher come in and teach a restorative yoga class in our smaller chapel. It was absolutely wonderful, except for the fact that I had to go to class afterward. I am trying to add more yoga into my life, because as a graduate student I spend the vast amount of my time sitting, and I am nearly desperate for activity and some time to get out of my head. Yoga offers both of those, and I don't have to wear shoes to do it!
The rest of the week went perfectly smoothly, and it is interesting to be wrapping up each class. I am so excited that next semester my only evening class will be Spanish, which is not a traditional class. I have such a hard time engaging in evening classes, especially during winter when the sun is already set, and I am looking forward to that change next semester.
This weekend was full of snow and time with friends. At common meal on Thursday, those of us who were sitting around the table got into a lively conversation about the merits of various Doctor Who companions. The fact that this is the kind of conversation I can engage in here makes me very happy, this place is full of the best kinds of nerds, me included. Saturday, I went out to watch the OSU v. MSU game with a few people from the seminary. It was great fun, partially because I didn't really care about the game. I rooted for MSU with my table, of one actual MSU fan, and two people who cared even less than I did. We had a good time being one of the odd groups out in the bar, which was of course full of buckeyes.
It snowed quite a bit this weekend, which I have found probably much more exciting than most others here. It's beautiful, and has given me great reasons to wear my cloak. It's getting a lot more use up here than it did in Texas or Oklahoma. I went to work and a faculty meeting on Friday and had a great time watching the snow come down from the windows, and then I stayed inside most of the day Saturday. I have spent a large part of my weekend working on Christmas gifts, which have to remain secret for now, but maybe I'll post a picture later.
Sunday I also went to my official Ministry in Context site for the first time, which was really great. I like the church and I really like the pastor, so I think it'll be a good place to spend the next year and a half. It's a shame I got assigned so close to the end of the semester and I'm leaving town, but I'll get properly settled there as the MIC student in January.
Now as I finish my last two days of the semester, I am getting ready to go home and spend a lovely Christmas there. I can hardly wait to spend a bit longer at home and have a proper rest between semesters. My blog might be a bit more sporadic, but I'll try to check in. I hope everyone is staying warm!
Sunday, December 1, 2013
Thanksgiving Week
Sorry I missed a blog last week, but of course I'm getting to an odd schedule for the time being as the holidays are approaching.
The week before my Thanksgiving break was a good one, mainly filled with trying to finish things so that I wouldn't have to take any work home with me on this visit. I ended up cutting it close, but I only had to do a bit of studying while I was back in Texas, and it's didn't interfere with my time with my family. I also managed several evenings out, so all in all it was a good week. However, by the end of it I was itching to be home. Do you know that feeling when you're nearly home and your anticipation and homesickness amps up? I had that in spades the Thursday before I left. I was supposed to have a direct flight from here, which would have gotten me home in the morning, but unfortunately I got a call the night before saying my flight had changed to one with a layover in La Guardia and I wouldn't be home until the afternoon.
So, I got to see New York for the first time. For a bit, anyway, but my layover was tight and I didn't spend much time there. The six hours I had in a plane were well spent reading, and I actually finished a book. Then finally I was home and my mom was waiting for me at the baggage claim. It was great to be back in Texas, even though I brought some Ohio weather down with me. Mom and I went out to several different Grapevine places, including Cassie's, our favorite frozen yogurt spot. That night Silas drove down, and it was wonderful to see him too. It had been far too long.
The next day, Silas and I drove down a little ways past Austin to go to a wedding of friends of his. It was a lovely wedding, although it was supposed to be outside and that Ohio weather kept following me. However, the bride and groom were ecstatic and obviously meant to be together, and it was a wonderful thing to be a part of. There was good Texas beer, Texas barbecue, and delicious Texas pie. It made me happy to be back in my home state. There was also dancing and smores, so all in all, it was a great night.
The rest of my week I spent with my parents and Kevin and Amy, who we went down to spend Thanksgiving with. And Felicity, their cat, of course. We had a great time with Kevin and Amy, and I love getting a chance to spend time with them since we don't see each other nearly often enough. We had plenty of delicious food, and on Thanksgiving we watched the parade, the dog show, and the Lady Gaga and Muppets Christmas spectacular. We also played games, including one about trains which was really fun. All told, it was a wonderful Thanksgiving.
Then back to Grapevine to set up Christmas at home and see my friend Lauren before I flew back here. It has been a very busy week, but one full of family, friends, love, and joy. Now I only have a week and a half left of school before I head home for Christmas. Christmas is my absolute favorite season of the year, so I can hardly wait. I have a few things up in my apartment, including mistletoe and my beautiful nativity scene, but Christmas is best spent with my family. My blogs might be a bit more erratic over the next month or so, but I will try to keep up, then you can hear about things in my life other than school!
For now, I'm off to set up my school things for tomorrow and to pack my lunch! Send me prayers for my last bit of my first semester here.
The week before my Thanksgiving break was a good one, mainly filled with trying to finish things so that I wouldn't have to take any work home with me on this visit. I ended up cutting it close, but I only had to do a bit of studying while I was back in Texas, and it's didn't interfere with my time with my family. I also managed several evenings out, so all in all it was a good week. However, by the end of it I was itching to be home. Do you know that feeling when you're nearly home and your anticipation and homesickness amps up? I had that in spades the Thursday before I left. I was supposed to have a direct flight from here, which would have gotten me home in the morning, but unfortunately I got a call the night before saying my flight had changed to one with a layover in La Guardia and I wouldn't be home until the afternoon.
So, I got to see New York for the first time. For a bit, anyway, but my layover was tight and I didn't spend much time there. The six hours I had in a plane were well spent reading, and I actually finished a book. Then finally I was home and my mom was waiting for me at the baggage claim. It was great to be back in Texas, even though I brought some Ohio weather down with me. Mom and I went out to several different Grapevine places, including Cassie's, our favorite frozen yogurt spot. That night Silas drove down, and it was wonderful to see him too. It had been far too long.
The next day, Silas and I drove down a little ways past Austin to go to a wedding of friends of his. It was a lovely wedding, although it was supposed to be outside and that Ohio weather kept following me. However, the bride and groom were ecstatic and obviously meant to be together, and it was a wonderful thing to be a part of. There was good Texas beer, Texas barbecue, and delicious Texas pie. It made me happy to be back in my home state. There was also dancing and smores, so all in all, it was a great night.
The rest of my week I spent with my parents and Kevin and Amy, who we went down to spend Thanksgiving with. And Felicity, their cat, of course. We had a great time with Kevin and Amy, and I love getting a chance to spend time with them since we don't see each other nearly often enough. We had plenty of delicious food, and on Thanksgiving we watched the parade, the dog show, and the Lady Gaga and Muppets Christmas spectacular. We also played games, including one about trains which was really fun. All told, it was a wonderful Thanksgiving.
Then back to Grapevine to set up Christmas at home and see my friend Lauren before I flew back here. It has been a very busy week, but one full of family, friends, love, and joy. Now I only have a week and a half left of school before I head home for Christmas. Christmas is my absolute favorite season of the year, so I can hardly wait. I have a few things up in my apartment, including mistletoe and my beautiful nativity scene, but Christmas is best spent with my family. My blogs might be a bit more erratic over the next month or so, but I will try to keep up, then you can hear about things in my life other than school!
For now, I'm off to set up my school things for tomorrow and to pack my lunch! Send me prayers for my last bit of my first semester here.
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Red and Green
I'm still working on my knitted Christmas decorations, and I've had a very busy week. Tonight I decided to sit down with the new Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince RiffTrax and make this.
This was also the first time I tried out an argyle pattern. It went quite well.
-Kat
Friday, October 14, 2011
Blue and White
I had a bit of time to actually sit down and knit today, so I added another ornament to my collection for this year.
I got to play with intarsia - using two colors - which I haven't had time to do in awhile. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
-Kat
I got to play with intarsia - using two colors - which I haven't had time to do in awhile. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
-Kat
Friday, October 2, 2009
In Which I Have a Lot of Knitting
Wow....
How did October get here already?
First off the college catch up:
Classes are fun (bet you don't here that from many people), they're pretty much the same as they've been.
I've had time to read a lot more than I thought I would so I've been reading a bit of Shakespeare. I don't think I'd read any of his comedies before and I really like them! Always learning something new.
With it being fall and a little colder up here than it is in Texas, I've had oppurtunities to wear stuff I've made, and I love it. Unfortunately it's also given me a bad case of startitis.
I'm currently working on five projects and I've ordered three more which are being shipped to me now. That's more projects on the needles than I've ever had before.
I'm still working on Joe my blanket, but it's gotten so big that it just lives on my bed now and can't travel anywhere.
I'm also working on an unnamed scarf that I started before college. It's a beautiful gray lace scarf and I love the feel of working with it.
I recently started a shawl in a pretty blue-green for a knit-a-long. I have to purposely drop stitches in it and I love it. It's named Anne.
I also ripped out a fingerless mitten I had made a year ago and am changing it into a lace neck scarf.
Then I wanted to learn how to do circular knitting with the magic-loop method so I ripped out Juliet, my pretty cotton yellow gloves with cables up the arm, and restarted them with magic-loop and it's working out much better.
See? I told you I've got startits! I started all those new projects within days of eachother.
Now I've ordered three kits. One is a kit of knitted ornaments that I'm going to decorate my room with for dead week and finals week. The second is a knitting bag that will teach me how to make linings and and use interfacing. And the thrid is a kit for a hat and gloves to teach me fair isle (knitting with two colors of yarn in one row), which was one of my goals at the begining of the year!
All this knitting will keep my hands busy and warm all winter.
Alright, tired of hearing about knitting?
In other news my classes at the Colvin Rec Center are going really well and I'm imporving greatly in both boxing and yoga. My boxing class has dropped from 20 people to about 8. It means we get to learn a lot more in each class because Jeremy, the teacher, only has a few of us to correct.
The other big part of my life here at OSU remains the Canterbury center with the Episcopalians. I love going to a church that has such a small congregation, because everyone knows each other; and I still love the two-three nights a week I spend at Canterbury, the people and conversation are great.
I also went on another tour of the library this week and found a fantastic study spot! It's on the fourth floor facing big arched windows so during the day it's really sunny and really beautiful. I also checked out a couple of books on e. e. cummings and I don't have to give them back till the end of January if I don't want to! How cool is that?
All of these things are keeping me very busy, and I'm really looking forward to tomorrow when I don't have any pressing responsibilities until the play in the evening.
"When you're a Jet you're a Jet all the way."
How did October get here already?
First off the college catch up:
Classes are fun (bet you don't here that from many people), they're pretty much the same as they've been.
I've had time to read a lot more than I thought I would so I've been reading a bit of Shakespeare. I don't think I'd read any of his comedies before and I really like them! Always learning something new.
With it being fall and a little colder up here than it is in Texas, I've had oppurtunities to wear stuff I've made, and I love it. Unfortunately it's also given me a bad case of startitis.
I'm currently working on five projects and I've ordered three more which are being shipped to me now. That's more projects on the needles than I've ever had before.
I'm still working on Joe my blanket, but it's gotten so big that it just lives on my bed now and can't travel anywhere.
I'm also working on an unnamed scarf that I started before college. It's a beautiful gray lace scarf and I love the feel of working with it.
I recently started a shawl in a pretty blue-green for a knit-a-long. I have to purposely drop stitches in it and I love it. It's named Anne.
I also ripped out a fingerless mitten I had made a year ago and am changing it into a lace neck scarf.
Then I wanted to learn how to do circular knitting with the magic-loop method so I ripped out Juliet, my pretty cotton yellow gloves with cables up the arm, and restarted them with magic-loop and it's working out much better.
See? I told you I've got startits! I started all those new projects within days of eachother.
Now I've ordered three kits. One is a kit of knitted ornaments that I'm going to decorate my room with for dead week and finals week. The second is a knitting bag that will teach me how to make linings and and use interfacing. And the thrid is a kit for a hat and gloves to teach me fair isle (knitting with two colors of yarn in one row), which was one of my goals at the begining of the year!
All this knitting will keep my hands busy and warm all winter.
Alright, tired of hearing about knitting?
In other news my classes at the Colvin Rec Center are going really well and I'm imporving greatly in both boxing and yoga. My boxing class has dropped from 20 people to about 8. It means we get to learn a lot more in each class because Jeremy, the teacher, only has a few of us to correct.
The other big part of my life here at OSU remains the Canterbury center with the Episcopalians. I love going to a church that has such a small congregation, because everyone knows each other; and I still love the two-three nights a week I spend at Canterbury, the people and conversation are great.
I also went on another tour of the library this week and found a fantastic study spot! It's on the fourth floor facing big arched windows so during the day it's really sunny and really beautiful. I also checked out a couple of books on e. e. cummings and I don't have to give them back till the end of January if I don't want to! How cool is that?
All of these things are keeping me very busy, and I'm really looking forward to tomorrow when I don't have any pressing responsibilities until the play in the evening.
"When you're a Jet you're a Jet all the way."
Sunday, January 11, 2009
In Which I Knit Socks
So here I am again.
My last post to this blog was in November and a lot has happened then. So much has happened that I actually did not pay attention to any of my emails, ravelry, or any blogs that I follow for almost the whole month of December. Now that I've caught up with everything and gotten through the crazy that has been these past two months I felt it was time for an update.
Apart from my grandmother getting the stomach flu on Thanksgiving day and passing it on to my dad who then passed it on to me (this was the begining of the crazy), then finally starting to work three days a week, and all the other stuff that goes along with Christmas including spending 7 hours at church on Christmas eve. I have actually gotten a lot of knitting done. I have had my first ever Christmas knitting, been knitting to get rid of my stash, and am now working on my knitting new years resolutions.
Chirstmas knitting always has a good story with it. I've heard of many from other knitters which include such fun things as sleep depravation and finishing hats to go in stocings in the wee hours of Christmas morning. My story is this - I was only making Christmas gifts for two people, my Mom and my Brother. For my brother I choose to make a Jayne hat and a set of juggling balls. For mom I was making a wrap she picked out. I started both of these projects very early on so I was sure that I would have plenty of time. Due to this feeling of not needing to rush I worked on my Christmas projects sporadically and worked on other projects in between.
The week before Christmas I suddenly realized how little time I had left and how little yarn I had left for mom's wrap. I ordered more online, hoped it would show up soon, and set to work on finishing Kevin's gifts. A long doctors visit that was mostly waiting gave me time to finish the Jayne hat and start sewing up one of the juggling balls. A few nights later I was up at midnight watching Legaly Blond and finally filling the juggling balls, they went under the tree the next day.
During that time my yarn that I had ordered showed up I opened it on the Tuesday a week before Christmas and suddenly realized it was the wrong yarn. I had accidentally ordered the yarn I had used for the Jayne hat. I frantically ordered more and it didn't show up until the Saturday before Christmas. I frantically worked to finish the last sleeve and was up until 1 a.m. on the 23rd sewing it up it was wrapped on Christmas Eve.
For Christmas I was given among other nifty tools a yarn meter, so I immediately went to work measuring all my yarn and planning projects for it. I now have great plans for using up almost all of my yarn before I go to college in order to make it easier to travel and store (it's much easier to store nothing than a whole lot of something).
Then the new year came and I made some resolutions. I read the Knitting Daily and one might notice the banner on the side of my blog saying that I was a Fearless Knitter for 2008. I believe I lived up to that name too, I made my first sweater and it fits, and I tackled my first Christmas knitting as well as other things. Now I also have a banner proclaiming myself to be a Fearless Knitter in 2009 and I began to wonder how I would live up to that name. I came up with three ideas. I decided that in the course of this year I would conquer my fears of socks, lace, and colorwork.
I began eagerly last week with socks. I can now proudly say I have knitted a sock and am knitting it's mate and have plans for more!! The rest of the resolutions will hopefully come to fruition in the course of this year.
That's all I have for now, I'm off to finish my second sock!
My last post to this blog was in November and a lot has happened then. So much has happened that I actually did not pay attention to any of my emails, ravelry, or any blogs that I follow for almost the whole month of December. Now that I've caught up with everything and gotten through the crazy that has been these past two months I felt it was time for an update.
Apart from my grandmother getting the stomach flu on Thanksgiving day and passing it on to my dad who then passed it on to me (this was the begining of the crazy), then finally starting to work three days a week, and all the other stuff that goes along with Christmas including spending 7 hours at church on Christmas eve. I have actually gotten a lot of knitting done. I have had my first ever Christmas knitting, been knitting to get rid of my stash, and am now working on my knitting new years resolutions.
Chirstmas knitting always has a good story with it. I've heard of many from other knitters which include such fun things as sleep depravation and finishing hats to go in stocings in the wee hours of Christmas morning. My story is this - I was only making Christmas gifts for two people, my Mom and my Brother. For my brother I choose to make a Jayne hat and a set of juggling balls. For mom I was making a wrap she picked out. I started both of these projects very early on so I was sure that I would have plenty of time. Due to this feeling of not needing to rush I worked on my Christmas projects sporadically and worked on other projects in between.
The week before Christmas I suddenly realized how little time I had left and how little yarn I had left for mom's wrap. I ordered more online, hoped it would show up soon, and set to work on finishing Kevin's gifts. A long doctors visit that was mostly waiting gave me time to finish the Jayne hat and start sewing up one of the juggling balls. A few nights later I was up at midnight watching Legaly Blond and finally filling the juggling balls, they went under the tree the next day.
During that time my yarn that I had ordered showed up I opened it on the Tuesday a week before Christmas and suddenly realized it was the wrong yarn. I had accidentally ordered the yarn I had used for the Jayne hat. I frantically ordered more and it didn't show up until the Saturday before Christmas. I frantically worked to finish the last sleeve and was up until 1 a.m. on the 23rd sewing it up it was wrapped on Christmas Eve.
For Christmas I was given among other nifty tools a yarn meter, so I immediately went to work measuring all my yarn and planning projects for it. I now have great plans for using up almost all of my yarn before I go to college in order to make it easier to travel and store (it's much easier to store nothing than a whole lot of something).
Then the new year came and I made some resolutions. I read the Knitting Daily and one might notice the banner on the side of my blog saying that I was a Fearless Knitter for 2008. I believe I lived up to that name too, I made my first sweater and it fits, and I tackled my first Christmas knitting as well as other things. Now I also have a banner proclaiming myself to be a Fearless Knitter in 2009 and I began to wonder how I would live up to that name. I came up with three ideas. I decided that in the course of this year I would conquer my fears of socks, lace, and colorwork.
I began eagerly last week with socks. I can now proudly say I have knitted a sock and am knitting it's mate and have plans for more!! The rest of the resolutions will hopefully come to fruition in the course of this year.
That's all I have for now, I'm off to finish my second sock!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)