Tea!

Good news for me; bad news for my stomach lining? We've finally got a working microwave in the gallery where I work, which means I don't have to run across the street to the annex when it's freezing cold to heat water for my tea, which is only lukewarm anyway by the time I get it back to my "desk" (read "table"). I know this doesn't sound particularly significant if you are not a tea-drinker, but if you are, you will realize that it's almost a vital element of the day...especially if your blood circulation is as poor as mine. Sometimes a mug of hot tea is the only thing that will warm my hands up, and uncurl my frigid fingers long enough to be able to type/write/whatever. Or warm up my brain.

So I'm celebrating by drinking more hot, strong, black tea than is really good for perhaps my stomach (I'm told the acidity is bad for you. Meh.) but is actually quite good for my mind and my soul. This one's for co-workers who bring in old, outdated microwaves to work when they replace them at home!

Mood swings

I've been bored, tired, and cranky all day. Then I got the phone call. That's it. I can't say I'm completely ecstatically happy about the rest of the day now, but I'm definitely, positively feeling a lifting of the spirits. A question about the roads, about how my cold is progressing, that's it. But it's the only time today, since leaving home and saying bye to my roommate, that I've heard the voice of someone I actually enjoy talking to. Funny how that changes things, isn't it?

That and the assurance that tomorrow will be better.

And besides...

They make me spell grey with an "a." It's not right. I mean, it's just as correct as the other way, but it's not right. I'm quite put out about that.

Out of the Loop?

Oh my gosh. So Landon just happened to mention to me some random comment about "the Christmas Party" that's TOMORROW NIGHT!
What Christmas party?
The lab party.
There's a lab Christmas party?
Yes, I've known about it for months. Even the British kids have known about it forever. You didn't hear about it?
No. How did you hear about it?
It's just been known. I suppose they assumed you knew.
WTF!

Gotta love the way word gets around at the office. So he went and told the head honcho's in the office, came back, and handed me a flyer with info, and said "They feel really bad about it."

I laughed evilly. I'm glad.

Waking up thoughts

Why, even if I slept really well, does it take me so long to wake up in the mornings? Probably because I come to work and site at a computer and start correcting page numbers on the List of Figures for chapter 5 of the survey report. Mornings work so much better for me, when I get up and start surveying or shovel testing right away. I'm going to have to start resorting to the dreaded caffeine if things don't get a little more exciting around here!

On the plus side...my little honey-bee called me the other day and told me she is going to be the yellow Care Bear for Halloween. Adorable! And my brother and his fiancee have set a date for the wedding...so, just to let you all know, I'm going to be busy on January 9, 2010. And I get to see Rachel tonight! Hooray! We're going to knitting night. It's incredibly exciting. That sounds like such a weird thing to say, but it's true. We are also probably doing more fieldwork next week, which I imagine will be the last of the season. I'm already getting cabin-fever!

Distractions

British boys have lovely accents. The one in the basement should shut up so I can concentrate on work.

Firsts

In keeping with pirate tradition, I'm stealing this from Anne, who stole it from Gwyneth. ARGH!

1] Who was your FIRST prom date? Hehe, probably my friend Erin. :P
2] Do you still talk to your FIRST love? Alas, no. I was 5, and I haven't seen Patrick since then.
[3] What was your FIRST alcoholic drink?nasty cheap red wine
[4] What was your FIRST job? detasseling corn
[5] What was your FIRST car? 1976 Dodge Aspen, baby!
[6] Who was the FIRST person to text you today? My roommate's boyfriend. Funny.
[7] Who is the FIRST person you thought of this morning? Um...?
[8] Who was your FIRST grade teacher? Miss Haberman. Ick.
[9] Where did you go on your FIRST ride on an airplane? Memphis to see Erin
10] Who was your FIRST best friend and are you still friends with them? See #2.
[11] What was your FIRST sport played? Annie-Over?
[12] Where was your FIRST sleep over? My cousin's
[13] Who was the FIRST person you talked to today? Myself
[14] Whose wedding were you in the FIRST time? Flower girl for my aunt Lisa
[15] What was the FIRST thing you did this morning? Yelled at the alarm clock to shut up.
[16] What was the FIRST concert you ever went to? I think that would be Emerson Drive.
[17] FIRST tattoo or piercing? Ears at 6.
[18] FIRST foreign country you went to for vacation? Germany, to see Jackie.
19] What was your FIRST run in with the law? Um...Sitting in Kenny Meyer's cop car at about 2am after hitting the deer on the way home from the Emerson Drive concert. See#16.
[20] When was your FIRST detention? Junior year of high school--for eating a cookie in the hallway. Yeah, she was everyone's least favorite teacher. Even the other teachers.
[21] What was the FIRST state you lived in? Nebraska
[22] Who was the FIRST person to break your heart? See #2. I moped about him for years.
[23] Who was your FIRST roommate? Kelsey Hoffman. Could not stand the girl. I kinda hope she sees this. :P
[24] Where did you go on your FIRST limo ride? Eew. Why would I even touch one?

An "Oh yeah" and a Roll Call

Oh yeah...can't believe I forgot about this, but...my little brother is getting married. Well, he's not so little anymore, being taller than me, and it won't be until he and she graduate. But it's pretty exciting news! It's also a bit weird, when your younger siblings start getting married off. I've kinda been expecting it for a couple years now; that they would announce their engagement shortly before they graduate college. They're so cute together; he's so much nicer since he met her! lol Or maybe he just had enough time to grow up and get out of the annoying little brother stage.

Also...who actually reads this blog? I really can't remember who I even sent the link to, so if you see this, you should give a shout. Thanks. :D

A Case of the Mundanes

To those of you who read this who are in the SCA: does "real life" ever feel like a Monday, no matter what day of the week it is, after a really good event? Cecil's Siege was far too short, and I'm having issues adjusting. It's really hard to sit at this stupid computer at work, and try to type map locations and field conditions into a table. Don't get me wrong; I know life can't be all SCA, and I wouldn't want it to be. I have far too many other hobbies and activities that I pursue. But for one weekend, I felt like I was home again, with new family and old friends around me, in a place I love, doing things I'm good at...it's not even about having fun, it's about having a place and a job that belongs to you. And now I'm back in a city that's completely foreign to me, just wondering if I'll ever have a place here that feels anything like my place at Home.

Love ya's,
Jessie

It's going to be a good day

One of the British boys who works in the archaeology lab is downstairs singing along very loudly and soulfully with whatever music it is that he's playing--I'm not sure, but it sounds like showtunes.

It makes me happy.

You really take what you can get around here to lift your spirits a little. I mean, I've been sitting here for going on 3 days now, just typing things, not even original things, just other people's field notes and such. So things like the British boys singing, all the stupid little jokes, the sarcastic comments people write in their field notes that I come across as I type them...it's appreciated! That's what it takes to keep me awake.

To Do List

Baby shopping for three soon-to-arrive chibbies.
Fencing garb for Cecil's Siege.
Pretty blue linen dress for Cecil's Siege.
Finish crocheted baby blanket.
Work.
Buy a computer so I can blog from my own, and not someone else's.
Read a book.
Write a book.
Make a skirt.
Eat supper.
Tell everyone hi and that I miss them and love them, like always!

Jessie

Pollen and Cornfields

I get to go to Hot Springs next week for work! Hooray! At least 10 days away from the icky, humid, sweltering, tearing cornfields of eastern South Dakota. The corn, and every other plant that grows here it seems, is pollenating and making me miserable with allergies. I'm so drugged up right now it's a wonder anything I type makes sense. Or does it? You tell me. Anyway, so my crew chief, bless him, suggested to the Divinity of the Office that they send me out to help finish up the Hot Springs survey next week, and I'm forever grateful to him. Besides the allergies, I'm just tired of being here. If I can't be at home, I want to be far away. None of this mediocre stuff.

Hope everyone's well!

Love,
Jessie

Can I go home now?

One is seemingly lost forever and it's devastating. Another asks questions from a friend. One that I had been asking about makes First Contact. Another is also lost, and strangely enough, I don't care. I don't know where I should be, or what I should do there even if I did know. I don't know what I'm doing here, either. And I can't help but ask myself, does it really matter where or what? As long as I do it? I need to go to bed and stop thinking.

I've been up in Brookings, SD, for those who don't know. Brookings is pretty nice, but I don't seem to know anyone up here, and it makes for lonely. Weeks upon weeks, seeing no one but co-workers, most of whom are certainly likeable enough, but they aren't my sisters or my brothers, except maybe one that I would rather wasn't quite. I love this job for now, probably for years, but I can't do it forever, and I can't help but think...but what else is there? Where did all the options go? I swear there were more last time I counted.

You should give me a call in the evening if you've got the time, because I'll betcha I do!

Luv,
Jessie

The Secret Garden

I've found it. It's in McCrory Prairie Gardens in Brookings. It isn't the Prairie Gardens themselves, which are stunningly beautiful, but it's within the Prairie Gardens. I've found my happy spot for while I am up here. Which I really really really really needed. I could use some happy.

it's going to be okay

First: I love and miss you all so very very much, that you don't really even know...well, I suppose you maybe do, because I imagine you've all probably loved and missed people a lot before too.
Second: I don't know, I thought I had a second. The first is really all that matters right now. Because it really is going to be okay. No, reverse that. It's really all going to be okay, because of the first. So the second doesn't matter anymore. Something like that.

Thanks.

Why?

Why are people so dense sometimes? Why would I take a replica over the genuine article?

Out to Lunch...

Hello everyone! I've been away, I know. I've been in the middle of moving, and they're sending us far away for work. I'll be in and out this summer. Posts might be few and far between. And if I don't respond to your emails, it's not because I'm ignoring you, it's because I haven't seen them!

Signing out, for awhile,
Jessie

I Did

Green Day - Time Of Your Life
Another turning point;a fork stuck in the road.
Time grabs you by the wrist; directs you where to go.
So make the best of this test and don't ask why.
It's not a question but a lesson learned in time.
It's something unpredictable but in the end it's right.
I hope you had the time of your life.

So take the photographs and still frames in your mind.
Hang it on a shelf In good health and good time.
Tattoos of memories and dead skin on trial.
For what it's worth, it was worth all the while.
It's something unpredictable but in the end it's right.
I hope you had the time of your life.

Rain

The best thing about a rainy day is curling up in a blanket on a picnic table at the park, under the shelter; sitting next to a friend and only talking a little.

Renewing my Obsession

Sometimes, when I don't do anything SCA-related for long periods of time, either because I am in Wyoming, or working every single day except every other weekend, I forget how much I really really truly love being in the SCA. And after a while I start to think that there really is life for me without the SCA. And then I go to an event again and realize that the whole time, I wasn't really breathing very deeply while I was gone.

I FENCED again this weekend! It felt so incredibly awkward, not having done it since November, but it was so good to pick up a rapier again this weekend, and remember that I really really do want to get better at this.

There's No Place Like Home

I'm glad to be back. Really. I got to see my babies again, and hang out with my grownup people, and am going to an SCA event this weekend (I was starting to go into withdrawal). Kaia and I found a new apartment. I don't want to move out of my farmhouse. I am incredibly selfish, in that I don't want to think of someone else living there. I was so happy there. But now I have to move up to The City. Because it's hard for an archaeologist to find a real job in Vermillion. I hate cities. But...we do have a nice apartment, and it's on the edge of town, so I'm going to make the best of it.
So glad to see everyone again!

But I will miss Wyoming.

Stumbled-upon Treasures

And, for my third post today (a personal record), I've just found a couple links that must be shared. The first is the Lord's Prayer recited adorably by a young lad:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6kZuBzY1iHc
And the second, on a slightly different tack, is stick person animation to one of my very favoritest (that would be all of them) Gaelic Storm songs:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuRjO8WbgT8

They made me happy. I'm sharing the wealth. Enjoy!

celestial chuckles?

Are people who have reached enlightenment allowed to laugh? It sounds like such a solemn affair, but depictions of the Buddha always seem pretty jolly.

More in the Aethelflaed Chronicles

I had an adventure yesterday. I drove round Flaming Gorge, which is on the Green River (the river, not the town). The loop goes south from Green River, down into Utah and the Uinta Mountains, across Flaming Gorge Dam, and back up onto the high plains and to Rock Springs. I was gone about 8 hours. I think I could have done it in 4 if I had just drove, but what's the point in adventure if you don't stop once in awhile to have one? It really is incredible country...it quite literally took my breath away, and then made me laugh and laugh, out of sheer awe, not knowing what else to do. It's called Flaming Gorge because of the bright red sand and rock formations down there, and the red rock, combined with blue sky, and green pine trees (and a very little bit of green grass!) and the grey of sage...it's just incredible. My first stop was by the Navajo Cliffs to eat my lunch of doritos, tortillas and hummus. There's a road that offshoots from the main loop called the Sheep Creek Geological Loop, so I took that. They had most of it blocked off, but I got probably 10 miles through the canyon before I had to turn. I parked at a picnic spot where the road was blocked off, and walked aways along the creek, then, spying a relatively decent looking peak nearby, decided to climb it. And realized a quarter of the way up that I'm either in worse shape than I thought I was, or it really wasn't such a decent peak at all, or that I'm not at all used to the altitude! But once you set out to climb a mountain, you really can't stop halfway up...because than why did you go through all the trouble to exhaust yourself, only to get halfway? So, with trembling legs, and trepidations as to whether I would be able to make it back down without rolling (!), I continued. Being on top was interesting. There was no panoramic vista of mountain upon mountain stretching out into the distance, just another, higher peak in front of me. Don't get me wrong, the view was spectacular. But it's a rather curious sensation for a prarie girl to stand on top of a mountain and just look. It's like gazing into the face of someone who's thoughts you know you can never fathom. You ponder it for awhile, but you can't do it forever, because we are, after all, tangible creatures, and we can't dwell in the intangible always, only visit.
Halfway back down the mountain, after noticing a strange lifting of my spirits, I came to the conclusion that God must have purposely made mountain tops to be cold, windy, desolate places, as well as majestic, to remind us that we weren't made to live on the heights...the hills, the valleys, the slopes of mountains are fine, but the tops are reserved for real majesty, such as humans aren't likely to achieve. Anyway, whatever you think of it, you should definitely try climbing in the mountains sometime, if you haven't. It's a humbling experience.
Driving back out of the valley, I met up with the namesake of the creek...a small herd of wild sheep were there grazing just on the opposite side of the road. I probably could have walked right up to them, but I'm not keen on getting attacked by wild sheep. They may look harmless, but I know better. Ever looked at a sheep or goat's eyes before? There's something slightly creepy there! Anyway, we stared at each other for awhile with equal amounts of curiousity, then went back to our respective endeavors...me to adventuring, the sheep to getting fat after a skinny winter. Passed an old homestead, with the dugout house still jutting out from the side of a hill, and the grave of the homesteader, who, the plaque said, was shot in self defense by an associate. It really is a "wild and woolly" place.
Drove around the rest of the Gorge, trying really hard not to stop every 5 minutes to take pictures, and only stopping every 10. I was attempting to get back before dark. Next time I'm just camping down there. Drove across the Dam, which is immense. Gavins Point Dam back home is impressive enough, but this...I can't imagine the force of the water that it's holding back.
On the east side of the Gorge, driving back up to Rock Springs, you get out of the Uintas and into the Red Creek Basin, which is RED, and up into the high plains. I understand better now what the term "high plains" means. It's strange having grasslands that are a couple thousand feet higher than the river bed...not mountains, but plains! plains broken by canyons, creeks, ridges, and ancient sand dunes, but plains nonetheless. I felt at home again. I love the mountains, but the plains are like coming home, even hundreds of miles away from my birthplace. It's funny, even in England I felt quite at home once I got away from the cities, and out into the farm country, the rolling hills and the grass.
I drove for a good hour through an area that had regularly posted signs reading "Open Range: Loose Stock." Meaning that you've been given fair warning, and if you hit a cow, it's your own fault, and you will be compensating it's owner. I saw more signs than I did stock. It's big country, they could have been hiding anywhere!
Made it back to Rock Springs by 7:30, almost sundown, then the short trip back to my temporary home in Green River. And that concludes this episode of the Aethelflaed Chronicles.

A lovely green

My graduation present from Curly Tom just came in the mail:

Nice, eh? And "A" for Aethelflaed!
But I think he may have made a mistake in making it for me, because now he's going to have to teach me how to do that when I get home! :D

The Latest News

In case you hadn't heard yet...

I'm coming home.

Should be back May 10.

I do love my Northshield.

They Found Me!

http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2008/04/11/anglo-saxon-cult.html

My SCA persona is from the same time period, and may even have almost exactly the same name, as the woman they excavated from this cemetery in England. I'm so excited! I even emailed the guy doing the excavation to ask him about it, and already heard back from him. Why can't we have archaeology like that over here?

Longing for apathy

Have you ever tried very hard to convince yourself that you don't really care about something, when you know that you really do, just so that you can make it through the day without making yourself ill?

No matter how hard I try, I've never been able to do it.

Extreme Croquet

I've learned about a wonderful new game. I have never played croquet before in my life, and I'm really glad, because it would probably be incredibly boring played properly. But when you play it in a yard that is full of divets, rocks, holes, bumps, lumps, corners, etc, it's incredibly entertaining. Not to mention, the course circles around the house from the back yard, to the front, instead of being laid out straight on a level lawn. It is most commonly played with a beer in one hand and mallet in the other; mallets being thrown through the air in frustration when the ball gets stuck in a hole is not uncommon. Followed by jumping up and down, yelling incomprehensibly. I'm told it's even more fun when camping in the mountains, and the wickets are placed on the sides of hills, behind rocks, next to sagebrush...it's pure torture, so why is it so freakin' fun?!
First game of the year was last night, second was this afternoon. It's croquet season!

A Welcome Addition to the Household

I have two new plants. We went to a co-worker and his wife's house last night for a house-warming party (we helped them move in a couple weeks ago). After profusely admiring her lovely plants, she gave me cuttings from two of them. One is a spider plant, the other is the kind that evidently looks like a philodendron, but isn't really a philodendron. I will call it a philodendron, not knowing the difference. :D They both sit on the kitchen table by the window; one in black currant jelly jar full of water; the other, in a pickled baby corn jar. I pull them out every few hours to check and see if they have sprouted. But not yet! I'll keep you updated. I'm very excited to have something living that needs to be taken care of again. I've named them Peace (the spider plant) and Hope (the not-so-philodendron) because after only 24 hours, they have already given me more of both. Funny what a houseplant can do for your morale, eh?

Mehr Bildern

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2046781&l=6252d&id=41302325

More pictures...this was Easter with Rachel in Spearfish.

Calligraphy

Is it odd that the achievement I am proudest of since coming to Wyoming is learning to write with a calligraphy pen? We use them to write the catalog number on artifacts. It took awhile, but I finally developed a knack for it. It's a rather strange point of pride for an archaeologist...but not so much for a writer.
I may need to acquire a set of pens and ink. :)

25 Reasons I Owe My Mother

I always thought this was cute...because I remember hearing most of this from my mom. :D

1. My mother taught me: TO APPRECIATE A JOB WELL DONE ."If you're going to kill each other, do it outside. I just finishedcleaning."
2. My mother taught me: RELIGION."You better pray that will come out of the carpet."
3. My mother taught me: TIME TRAVEL ."If you don't straighten up, I'm going to knock you into the middle ofnext week!"
4. My mother taught me: LOGIC." Because I said so, that's why."
5. My mother taught me: MORE LOGIC ."If you fall out of that swing and break your neck, you're not going tothe store with me."
6. My mother taught me: FORESIGHT."Make sure you wear clean underwear, in case you're in an accident."
7. My mother taught me: IRONY"Keep crying, and I'll give you something to cry about."
8. My mother taught me about the science of OSMOSIS "Shut your mouth and eat your supper."
9. My mother taught me:CONTORTIONISM."Will you look at that dirt on the back of your neck!"
10. My mother taught me about STAMINA."You'll sit there until all that spinach is gone."
11. My mother taught me: WEATHER ."This room of yours looks as if a tornado went through it."
12. My mother taught me:HYPOCRISY."If I told you once, I've told you a million times. Don't exaggerate!"
13. My mother taught me: THE CIRCLE OF LIFE."I brought you into this world, and I can take you out."
14. My mother taught me about BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION."Stop acting like your father!"
15. My mother taught me: ENVY."There are millions of less fortunate children in this world who don't have wonderful parents like you do."
16. My mother taught me about ANTICIPATION."Just wait until we get home."
17. My mother taught me: RECEIVING ."You are going to get it when you get home!"
18. My mother taught me: MEDICAL SCIENCE."If you don't stop crossing your eyes, they are going to freeze thatway."
19. My mother taught me: ESP."Put your sweater on; don't you think I know when you are cold?"
20. My mother taught me: HUMOR."When that lawn mower cuts off your toes, don't come running to me."
21. My mother taught me: HOW TO BECOME AN ADULT ."If you don't eat your vegetables, you'll never grow up."
22.My Mother taught me: Genetics"I swear you're just like you father."
23. My Mother taught me about my Roots."Shut that door behind you. Do you think you were born in a barn?"
24. My Mother taught me: Wisdom"When you get to be my age, you'll understand."
25. And my favorite: My mother taught me about Justice"One day you'll have kids, and I hope they turn out just like you

Angry

Does anyone know a cuss-word vile enough for the disgustingly corpulent, money-grabbing Texan who thinks he's going to put an oil refinery in MY state? Because quite frankly, I'm pissed off, and the normal words just don't quite cut it.

Peectures

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2046162&l=c7712&id=41302325

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2043743&l=d50b4&id=41302325

Links to my recent pictures if anyone wants to see them.

Ug

I don't want to go to work tomorrow. I just had a very nice few days off, and I'm expecting to go back to having absolutely nothing to do. I wouldn't mind, if only I knew I would be able to keep busy, but I'll probably be staring out the window again, unless the college has sent us more cataloging.
Anyway, so that's the complaint section. I went to Rachel's for Easter, and had tons of fun. I got to go to her knitting/crocheting group and meet peoples, and we went to supper with Andrew, and visited with Rita for awhile, ate more good food than I usually have in an entire week, went walking in Spearfish Canyon AND went to Flanagans, the uber-cool Irish pub downtown. Went to Mass 3 times, it being Holy Week, and the Lutheran Easter service as well. Ooh, and I got my head put back on straight by the chiropractor, which is a good thing, and got my car fixed, and a tour of the tortilla factory. Watched movies, swapped CD's, and made book recommendations. And came home with another writing project. :P
Oh! And I nearly forgot, silly me. On the drive up there, I stopped at Independence Rock. It's the halfway point on the Oregon Trail between the Missouri River and the Pacific Ocean. The wagon trains usually ended up there in early July, hence it's name, and there are hundreds upon hundreds of names carved on it. You can climb up to the top as well, which was really, really cool. You can just look and look and LOOK in all directions from up there, and everywhere you step is someone's name in the rock. It's incredible. Some of the modern ones are just as interesting as those from 150 years or so ago. Like the one I found with a man's name carved in the rock, the year 1969, and the peace symbol carved below it. I've got loads of pictures, and if I don't get them uploaded here, they will be on my facebook page. If you're not on facebook and want to see pictures, lemme know, and I'll send ya the link to my photos. Maybe I just need to start a flikr account.

Cheating at Tag

I don't know if I was technically supposed to post this on myspace, since that's where I was tagged at, but I'm going to cheat just a little and send the game into a new dimension. (Is that okay, C?)

So once you get tagged you have to post a blog with 10 weird/unknown/interesting/really true facts about yourself. Give us the good stuff nothing like "my hair is brown".Once you have posted the blog you have to tag new people by posting a comment that says "tag you’re it" and to go read your blog.

1. I like anime. It's hard to admit. I've been sucked in. It's Sarah's fault!

2. I was very disappointed when crocheting and knitting somehow became the new thing for young folks as well as old, because I really liked being one of few people my age that did something so "old-lady-ish."

3. My hair is brown...and I will never ever ever dye it or cut it.

4. I don't want to be a plains archaeologist, but that seems to be what I am.

5. I believe in fairies.

6. I have held conversations in my head, probably with each and every one of you who will read this, when you were nowhere to be seen or heard. Does that make you nervous at all? :)

7. I just bought a book last night, about Dracula, one that I read recently and couldn't put down. The weird part? I'm a little nervous about having it in the house. My skin crawls when I walk past the table it sits on.

8. I really like people. Sometimes.

9. I have a slightly irrational, paranoid fear about something happening to my eyesight.

10. I want to be a pirate when I grow up...scratch that, I can't, since I've decided never to grow up. Dash it all, I'll just have to start now, won't I?

I tag everyone who reads this that has a blog to post it on. :D

Haiku

The National Geographic did a short article on 17th century Japanese poet, Matsuo Basho. I am entranced.

Listen! a frog
Jumping into the stillness
Of an ancient pond!



A mound of summer grass:
Are warriors' heroic deeds
Only dreams that pass?

Another Explanation

I've just realized that I owe another explanation or two. Three actually. We'll see how many I get through before I feel like I'm being terribly dull. Actually, no, scratch that. Nobody says you have to read this, so I'm going to be as dull as I want to be!
The Willie Nelson nickname comes from...actually, I'm not sure; it's a little tangled. I've always liked his music, and naturally I got picked on for that by my siblings. Any fuel for the fire, right? Evidently they thought I looked just like the picture on the cover of the record...he was wearing a tanktop--I wear tanktops. He had his hair in braids--I often display the same hairstyle. Naturally that makes me look like Willy Nelson. So...my cousin Kyle began greeting me with "You look like Johnny Carson!" Why, I will never know. Well, I turned it around, and directed it back at him, so he changed it to "You look like Willy Nelson." And it stuck. One of my strangest nicknames ever. On explaining that story once to a friend of mine, he thought for a moment and then said, "Well...if you had a beard..."

Cupcake is another nickname I never would have expected. Sam's idiot ex started calling me that before he was her ex, because he knew it would make me mad. Sam liked it, and started calling me that. Super Dave heard it from Sam and thought it was funny. And it only spread. The Twins were calling me Cupcake before they ever knew my real name. Bron came up with the variation of "Tasty Pastry." I used to hate it, and getting mad when I got called Cupcake naturally made it funnier for everyone else. I have to admit, I am rather fond of it now, in a grudging sort of way. I mean, it's a horrible nickname, but used by friends, so that makes it a little less icky.

And, lastly, The Favorite Aunt. One of my numerous aunts has always said that she is the favorite aunt. So naturally when my oldest sister had a darling baby girl, my other two sisters and I began to constantly argue over who was the favorite aunt. It was undoubtedly Heidi, at first, or at least, that was the easiest name to say. BUT! I might be moving up in the ranks! I called to talk to her twice last week. Then Heidi called the next day, and Mom asked Katelyn if she wanted to talk to Heidi . She said "Yes!" (it's always a fully-articulated yes, never "yeah"), took the phone, and said "Hi Jessie!" Heidi said, "No, it's Heidi, Katelyn." "Hi Jessie!" she repeated. The same thing when she said bye later on..."Katelyn, do you want to say bye to Heidi?" "Yes!" "Bye Jessie!" "No, this is Heidi!" "Bye Jessie!" She knows it's Heidi, she's just being a little scheisster. But it's so adorably, naughtily cute!

There. Explanations of the profile completed. Any questions? :) How did I do, Christina?

Your Life is An Occasion...Rise to it.

I'm going to write a book. Several, actually. I'll let you know when I've finished one.

And I'm going to be happy. I'm sick of moping.

And I'm not going to grow up. I've seen what it does to people.

I will stop and pick up rocks. I will lie on my stomach in the dirt and watch ants run in and out of their hills. I'm going to enjoy what's left of the snow. I'm going to read books for pure enjoyment, as opposed to self-education. I will ignore rude comments, or I will make sickeningly pleasant ones back. And having freshly shined shoes will always make me smile. Babies will always come first on the list.

On second thought...

I wonder if anyone took Jane Austen or the Bronte sisters seriously when they wrote their romances. Probably not too many. "It's a silly story," they would have said, "things like that don't really happen." They still do say it, and people don't really change much with the times, after all. But then, why is it that those books are now some of the most famous, most often read? Because we all want to believe in a beautiful story? And if so many of us want to believe it, and a scant few of us really do believe it, than surely it must be allowed to happen every once in awhile?

Pride and Prejudice

I recently saw the movie, and have finally, after meaning to for years, picked up the book. Jane Austen wrote wonderfully. Anyway, I really like this video; it's really good. Watch it. :)


http://youtube.com/watch?v=WsknGORDKKI

15 more days till I see my Rachel!

I had so much fun this weekend. We helped a co-worker and his German wife move into their new house. I think I was just glad that it was nice out, I wasn't at work, I was outside, and actually doing something. It makes a big difference. The night before we were all at Wade's having a Leap Year party (any excuse will work). Everyone else was down in the basement playing cards, but he and I and my roomie were upstairs discussing trade beads. I love beads. It was a good conversation. I am envious of that collection he's got.

Today, on the other hand, was one of the most humdrum yet. It's very frustrating, because we have been cataloging artifacts all winter, and the Head Honcho has been talking about doing a winter excavation for some time now...but we are running out of cataloging, the only thing that keeps us busy in the winter, he hasn't even begun doing the paperwork for said excavation, which can take about a month to get cleared by the BLM, and we are all dragging our feet, trying to make the work last as long as we can. I do believe that only one person out of all of us actually has real work left to do that's not just busy work. It makes it really, really, REALLY hard to want to get up and go to work in the morning.

Juicy

Now, as to why Joleen calls me "Juice." That actually started my first summer of doing archaeology ever. I was still new to the whole surveying thing, when Wade sent Jo, Maggie and I out on our own to do an artifact inventory of the site we'd found a few days ago. And so off we trekked. Well, I had already learned that the best way to clean off lithics--or anyway, the flakes of stone taken off in the tool-making process--is to stick them in your mouth and lick the dirt off. That way you can identify by various traits whether they are actually artifacts, or just rocks, or you can tell what kind of rock they are. Let me tell you, it's rather disappointing to put a particularly dirty one in your mouth, only to find out when you take it out that it's just a rock, and you now have a mouthful of mud for nothing. Which is why, when I picked one up that was rather large, and had quite a bit of dirt still on it, I put it in the palm of my hand, and spit on it instead. A much preferable method, in this case, I was thinking, when Joleen commented that "Eew, that was a juicy one!" It stuck. I was Juice for the rest of the day, and have been ever since. A couple of my professors and various other students know me as Juice as well. Thanks Jo. :)

Aethelflaed, Thumbslayer

This one's because I seem to be really bad at thwacking people on the thumb when fencing, sometimes with the rapier, other times with a buckler. It's been done more than once. Fingernails have been lost. The name was given by the one who's thumbs I repeatedly seem to thwack. I swear, it's not on purpose!


On a completely different note:
I don't particularly care for people who sneer at my music without ever listening to it. I rather dislike those who scoff at me because I am passionate about hobbies that are rather unconventional. But I despise them when they make fun of my friends without taking the time to get to know them. And then tell me that I shouldn't judge others. It makes me want to be very, very rude. I'm still not sure why I restrained myself. Actually, I do. But I'm not sure it's a good enough reason.

News

I don't know how much news I actually have. Let me think...

Things are going well in the state of Wyoming. Especially since it is now warmer here than where most of my readers will be! (hahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!!) It was right around 50 degrees this afternoon. It was lovely. Unfortunately, I spent all of that lovely weather inside at work, cataloging artifacts in between long, wistful stares out the window, wishing I could be running around exploring instead of cataloging. Let me tell you, burned bone bits and "debitage"--flakes of rock, that is--do not hold my attention when winter is coming to an end and the weather is warming up! Although, we are supposed to get more snow this weekend. Which is really a good thing, considering WY has been suffering from serious drought and they need all the moisture they can get.

Actually, Rocca gets me through the dullest of work days more than anything. Rocca is a Shiba Inu. Dog, that is. One of the guys brings his dog to work every day. In the absence of babies to play with, Rocca is the next best thing. Anyway, I'm just antsy for field season so I can get outside. I've been on two construction monitors in the gasfield and hour and a half away, which means we drive up there, check out a trench and say, "Nope, there's no artifacts in there," and go home. But even that was unbelievably entertaining, just to get out of the office for awhile. I'm beginning to realize that the outdoors is what attracts me to archaeology as much as the artifacts. I don't understand Plains archaeology. I mean, I know how it's done. But I don't know much about the cultural context from which the artifacts come. I told Wade so the other day. He voluntarily lent me his George Frison book so that I could learn more about it. The Frison book is his precious, and he has never before let anyone use it out of his sight. I got to take it home. He did tell me that if anything happened to it, he would take my first-born child. I asked, what happens if I don't have any? He said, oh, that I would have at least 20. I think that made my day.

A series of explanations

Once again, just for Sparkles, who has requested gradual, eventual revelation of the meanings behind various titles. :)
Handmaiden of Doom and Seeker of Schlepers go together, really. When the Mistress of Doom became the Queen of Northshield (and hence, the Queen of Doom) in the SCA, she naturally needed handmaidens to help her out in the hectic-ness that is being royalty. And who would pass up the opportunity to be called a Handmaiden of Doom?! I don't actually know how Anne became the Mistress of Doom in the first place, except that Sven had something to do with it. Maybe that would be a good blog post for her. Hint, hint? Anyway, I told her that I had no intention of schleping things around (I think I forgot about that, because I've done that anyway) (schlep meaning drag/cart/carry/lug) but that I would be in charge of seeking out people to do it for her. Hence, Seeker of Schlepers.
Stay tuned for our next episode in "Explanation of Titles."

Word of the Day

Anthropophagus=cannibal

Two blog posts in one day? No one can live at that speed!

Just before I left Vermillion, several of us went out to eat downtown, and after the food was cleared away, napkin hyjinks commenced. I was told that I needed to start a blog and post them online. A month and a half later, here it is! PLEASE keep in mind, I had no hand in writing these...!

1o Things to Do While Missing Jessica:
1. Hang out with goat ropers and worms
2. Walk about and tell people randomly "You're adopted!"
3. Take forever ordering food.
4. Force leprechauns to breed with chickens so that we can have our very own goblins.
5. Dress Karl up as Jessica and have him assume her identity.
6. Dream about *nobody in particular.*
7. Walk around the house in too-big of slippers, gloves, a scarf, and a stocking cap.
8. Complain about not having a copy of Escaflowne for 2 1/2 years.
9. Corrupt Hot Hrodwin instead.
10. Convince people that there really is NO table in the kitchen!

10 Things Jessica Will Do in Wyoming:
1. Play in the dirt lookin' for stuff...and find a space pirate's ship and their booty!
2. Complain that she needs a boy to open pickle jars.
3. Keep wishing the table wasn't there.
4. Walk around and tell people she's adopted.
5. Go on a killing spree after finding out her boyfriend of 6 years is Mormon.
6. Search for Snowy River.
7. Shout "Hey, I found a rock!"
8. Save a horse and ride a cowboy.
9. While out doing #6, she'll do #2. She'll trip and say #7 then realize that actually #1 happened. then the Feds show up. She tells them #4, offers #8, and after dating the Fed for years does #5.
10. Use "antidisestablishmentarianism" in an academic paper.

An Explanation

Since Sparkles has requested an explanation of the title of my blog "In Denial of the Existence of Tables," I am going to take a moment to do so.

It began, as many things did, with an argument between myself and Kaia.
"You know you love me," she said. I denied it, naturally.
"Yes you do," she replied, "or why would you have come in here to sit by me while you eat breakfast?"
"Because there is a table in here," I said.
"There's a table in the kitchen too!"
"No there isn't."
Evidently I said this last line with a perfectly believable expression and tone of voice, and she decided that she couldn't really argue with that.
(For those of you who have not been in my house, there technically is a table in the kitchen. But I didn't just admit to that.)
The story, however, continues, when another friend of mine, who had been in that house long before us girls ever rented it and who knows very well that there is a table in the kitchen, came over to visit. Somewhere in conversation one of us said "Yeah, well, there is no table in the kitchen!" He looked confused. So I said "Well there isn't! Go and look for yourself! " So he did. And came back looking even more confused. It was priceless.
Since then, whenever I want to win an argument, and can't do it by logic, I simply declare that there is no table in the kitchen. So the Mistress of Doom has dubbed me the Denier of Tables. I like it. Very much.

The Lion in Winter

Oh, how I do love that movie! I found it yesterday in the local movie/book/music store, and snatched it up. I rank it right up there with Shakespeare as far as writing quality goes. If I were wearing a hat, it would be off to James Goldman. (I guess I wouldn't really be wearing it anymore, then, would I?) The scenery and costuming always amazes me as well--it's the most authentically medieval-looking movie I've seen yet. They didn't try to dress it up at all.
It's not so much comedy as it is the irony in the movie that makes you laugh, and then at the end, feel sorry for the characters. Not because life has dealt them a rough hand, but because they've played it so badly. I'm more inclined to feel sorry for people when they have brought their troubles on themselves, interestingly enough. It's not nice coming to the realization that you've got no one to blame but yourself. I've been there. And then in the very end, hope comes, in the strangest of places, sitting on a cold, dusty floor in a castle cellar. When everything you ever had is now gone. Amidst tears, grim smiles, and despair. "We're both alive, and for all I know, that's what hope is," he says. Finding even that much hope in the deepest darkness takes courage. I suppose, you might say, the courage that a lion needs to face the winter?

I've still got it

I made pie yesterday. Peach. Fresh peaches. And it's still true. I really do make the best pies I have ever eaten. Besides my mother's. But that only makes sense when you consider that I make them exactly the same way.