Thursday, October 27, 2011

Doodle Day: Sleeping Reality and Possible Doodle Fail


Here come the doodles. First up, Sleeping Reality. Because who looks that good when they're sleeping?


And this one...is kind of evidence of how strange my humor comes out sometimes. When I told Michael my idea, he wasn't sure everyone would get it. Or that it would work, really. So if you don't get it, my apologies...I'm just weird!

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Random Q-toids: Voices and Faces


1. I love to read with different accents. It got me through many boring homework assignments (Christopher Columbus was more genuine with a lisp, and the long studies of economics went by much nicer with a Spanish anchorwoman's smooth voice).
2. One time, Maddie and I pretended we were British friends with carefully chosen aliases for a plane trip. We were a little too giggly to pull it off very convincingly, but we imagined we surprised at least some people.
3. In London, I psyched myself up to order lunch with a British accent (I'm sure I'm not the first "tourist" to get that idea). When it came time to perform, I was uncharacteristically nervous about it, and I whispered out my mumbled order with red cheeks and hot ears. I couldn't tell if the look I got was for my shyness or my badly executed accent.
4. My favorite way to play a board game is when I'm hyper and with people who understand that I may not take the game seriously. It's especially better if I feel free to sing little tidbits stuck in my head, speak in different voices, and laugh so hard I snort. What good friends to tolerate that!
5. I make faces. All the time. But I especially make faces in the mirror...literally. I highly recommend storing a dry erase marker in your bathroom drawer (it's good for love notes, too). Check this out, and do try it at home:
(I love the incriminating notes above the woman's head...)

I look good as this guy. ;)

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Qusings: Running


I just realized.
I don't really have a love-hate relationship with running like I thought before. I actually LOVE running, everything about it, but it has to be a solitary thing.
That's why I don't always come away from running with the feeling that I loved it.

I'll run with Michael when we work out in the mornings, and I love his company. But I don't really care one way or the other about the elliptical machine.
I'll run by myself on the elliptical at the gym, and it's better with my music on, but I'm still in a room full of stinky, sweaty people.
I'll run with a friend, and I sincerely enjoy the laughter and conversation, but I'm not alone.
I'll run with a stroller...but that's not alone, either.

I relish the chances to shut down and lock up. I'm jealous for time with myself, just as much as I'm jealous for time with Michael. Would you believe? Sometimes Michael and I resist going to events or being with friends because we want each other all to ourselves. It's so true.
But I can get just as greedy for time with Me.

When I think of running in the most ideal way, I think of myself on a trail wide and open, with no one in sight (nothing, preferably). Ideally, I would have a stretch of beach to myself. I adore the ocean, especially when it's cold. A cold ocean is private. Hot oceans equal crowds and parties and lazy vacations. Cold oceans I get all to myself.
So putting it all together, I would run along a freezing cold shoreline with no other people in sight. Alone. Blessedly alone.
Because that's when I can finally let my brain eject its possessions. That's like my secret chance to climb into the attic and unlock my treasure chest without worrying about intruders. I get to cry ugly, I get to laugh ugly, and I even get to sing ugly if I feel like it. I get to be ugly, and no one will insist that I'm not.
I'd feel the cold wind whipping pink into my cheeks, throwing my hair into a flying mess, making my fingers brittle. And I'd feel the sand puffing under the pounding of my legs, making my toes numb because I would run barefoot, my absolute favorite way to use the shoreline...it feels like a more honest way to run, too.

The freedom running, as I've come to think of it, would be medicinal in so many ways. I would be allowed to feel bitter, depressed, lonely, and then-- my thoughts would evolve into the most honest of prayers, and I would feel raised to such a feeling of joy and fulfillment.

Running for me is supposed to be a time that I can take out the garbage. But the garbage is so personal, the running has to feel secret. It has to happen in my secret world.

I would leave the beach with a new level of privacy. Clean, rinsed out, relaxed, with a secret adventure of self discovery and self revelation behind me. Left safe behind me, the treasure chest locked once again, though feeling light as if it were empty.

I am an undeniably introverted person. I live on the inside, and then I project, instead of living on the outside and then internalizing. But I'm also extremely picky about my projection. Who, where, when, what. Picky, picky, picky, picky.

I thought for some time that I hated running because it didn't always give me what I wanted. The physical part wasn't as much a big deal as the mental part. And if the running didn't bring an emotional purge, what was it for? So I thought I hated it. Rather, I loved it and hated that it didn't "work" for me as it seemed to for others.

I'm practically itching to gear up for a marathon. It's laid out in my mental calendar, waiting for me. And I'm waiting for it. I get so into the idea I wonder why I'm not doing it now, but then I remember I have to wait. Because I have a new, nursing baby. Because my husband is in school. Because, because, because. And unfortunately, they're such good reasons that they're not excuses.

Monday, October 24, 2011

Questions for Q: Ask Your Kids



This is a different take on how I'll normally do this. I couldn't resist this little interview! Christy did it first, and Rae copied...and I copied!

Questions with Ender (he is 3½ years old)

1. What is something Mommy always says to you?
You say "yes you can watch a movie, Ender!" Sometimes you say that.

2. What makes Mommy happy?
Make you smile! You make me happy and then I am happy.

3. What makes Mommy sad?
If I cry if you don't. You make yourself when I cry. When you're frus-chated.

4. How does Mommy make you laugh?
She makes me laugh! Sometimes she blows up balloons.

5. What was Mommy like as a child?
You were being really quiet to the stories from Grandma!

6. How old is Mommy?
Three when she's three. Three when Grandma read you some stories when you were a kid.

7. How tall is Mommy?
When you grew big, you were into my mommy!

8. What is Mommy's favorite thing to do?
She loves to do...what do you love to do, Tate? (Qait)

9. What does Mommy do when you're not around?
We go sometimes and Daddy! I'm gone when I drive inside my home.

10. If Mommy becomes famous, what will it be for?
Hm?

11. What is Mommy really good at?
You're good at ...she loves to...you love to do...to draw a house. And you love to draw a rocket.

12. What is Mommy not very good at?
She sings that she has to write at the computer.

13. What does Mommy do for her job?
You do for building a giant, GIANT ROCKET!!! You make balloons. Sometimes you make three balloons. Sometimes you make butterflies out of balloons.

14. What is Mommy's favorite food?
Your favorite is ....uh...chicken.

15. What makes you proud of Mommy?
Because I'm proud of you. That you came home.

16. If Mommy were a cartoon character, who would she be?
Ferb! That would be funny.

17. What do you and Mommy do together?
We and I help us make ourselves eat popcorn and then watch a movie with popcorn!

18. How are you and Mommy the same?
We and I match like the same as our clothes!

19. How are you and Mommy different?
We and I are not ...the colors are not the same.

20. How do you know Mommy loves you?
Because I very love you too.

21. Where is Mommy's favorite place to go?
You love...what do you love to go to? You love to go to the grocery store.

Blast from the Past: The Count of Monte Cristo


I went to summer school once. 
But let me explain! I wasn't a delinquent! 
I was an Army Brat. 
There's a difference. 
Each school I went to treated me like a permanent student, so if I didn't have all the same classes other kids my age had, I had to make up for it because each school wanted to believe I'd graduate in that school. 
So at Pleasant Valley High School (it's just as valley and snobby as it sounds), I was "behind." 
And instead of wasting my time with taking those classes during the school year, I decided to get them behind me and do it in the summer! 

Here's a little assignment I found. It kind of makes me laugh...I'm not sure why...oh I see why. Because I don't agree with the teacher's last comment. But that's okay! :D
I think we were just supposed to draw a portrait of Dantes and then talk about his character? 



I saw the Count of Monte Cristo as a darker man than portrayed in the movie and on the published book cover. Edmond Dantés seemed to rid himself of his innocence after the suffering and turmoil he endured in the Chateau d'If. Gaining intelligence and strong knowledge, his countenance changed. The torment he underwent transformed his entire being. His image, eccentricity, and confidence presented somewhat of a threat to his enemies and an idol for his admirers.
In forming this portrait, I tried to render both the bitter anguish the count held and the kind deity he possessed. A regal figure, I wanted him to look strong and independent. The Count looked to God for direction in how he led his life. Because of this, nearly all his acquaintances looked to him as their leader.
teacher's remarks: 
Excellent portrait --
You definitely capture the anguish of Dantes.
That book meant a lot to me, actually. I still love it. I recommend it to anyone...but you might be better off with the abridged version. You're not missing anything. 

Sunday, October 23, 2011

Blog Newness!

IN HONOR OF 200 POSTS
There will be some changes here-- more like additions to and an organization of what's already here! 
I'm excited, and I hope you are, too! 
We all know I'm busy, so I'm not going to glue this to myself like a promise, but I'm hoping to do a collection of posts each month, falling under the following themes. I will still blog outside of those themes and continue as usual, so this is mostly going to bulk up what I already do. 

Stories, pictures, memories!

Something doodled by me and perhaps other doodles that I find hilarious.

I sure hope this one will be interesting for you...

Posts written by others! So far, I have no rules in mind.

Pieces of ponderings - this is what I often blog about, but these will be more specific vignettes.

Short snippets, random blips! Just like it says!

This has been going on all year, but I will now have this doodle (which I am unabashedly proud of) to mark these creation posts.

What do you think, my beloved readers???