they were so in love

this is so beautiful i had to post this one, too.

they had absolutely no clue anyone else was in the building.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=lEngqZv0RRE&feature=related

Sergei Grinkov

Chelley said she didn't know who Sergei Grinkov was, and that made me sad. I actually had been planning on doing a post on him eventually, but when she said that, I realized I had to do it right away.

Sergei Grinkov was half of the greatest pairs figure skating team of all time, and easily the most handsome figure skater ever. He and his wife, Ekaterina (Katia) Gordeeva, won the gold medal at the Olymics in 1988 and 1994. It was said that when they skated, everyone else just skated for second. Scott Hamilton said of them, "They complemented each other with a beauty and elegance that no other team in the history of pairs skating had. They had every skating quality you could beg for. I see skating all the time. With them, I would always watch them. It was a privilege." Verne Lunquist stated, "They make adjectives irrelevant."

Sergei was a quiet man with a twinkle, who was hopelessly in love with his wife, and was an adorably doting father. When you watched Gordeeva and Grinkov skate, you hardly saw him - it was like he wanted to present her to the world to show everyone how beautiful she is. In any picture you see of him with their daughter Daria, he has the biggest grin possible (as does she).

Katia described their life as a fairy tale. "He was so honest, and calm, and solid...He protected me; he loved me; he took care of me; he comforted me." They started skating together when he was 15 and she was 11. They were together on the ice when he died of a heart attack at age 28. And she was completely lost without him. "My Sergei: A Love Story," is her book. Very sad, and yet, of course, romantic.

He was great. They were great. I still miss them.

This is a profile on them:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=WI8ZNvlSmSk

This was their long program from the 1994 Olympics:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCOqBY_uri8&NR=1

This was their final TV performance:

http://www.gg-corner.de/?p=386

This was their final routine:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=0309tpNlK-I

(The songs on these last two are so fittingly sad)

my dream thursday night

i had a dream that i got fired from my job. it was the happiest i had been in a long, long time.

another sad note for my team

Johan Santana is no more (well, is a Twin no more)

I just found this verse on the inside of the door of the cupboard on my computer desk

I had completely forgotten that it was there. But I like it.
"Guard your steps when you go to the house of GOD. Go near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong. Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before GOD. GOD is in Heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few." - Ecclesiastes 5:1-2

More 'FOTR'

The Fellowship is headed for the mountains on their horribly hard journey:
"At first it seemed to the hobbits that although they walked and stumbled until they were weary, they were creeping forward like snails, and getting nowhere. Each day the land looked much the same as it had the day before. Yet steadily the mountains were drawing nearer."
Everything was tiring, every day looked the same, and yet they were ever drawing closer to the goal.

Happy News

Cuddyer just signed for 3 more years :)

And, very happy for him, he and his wife are expecting a baby. Part of me wants to be jealous, but I'm so happy for them that I'm not. He'll be a great daddy.

Sad News

Justin Morneau is engaged

Twinsfest

Sad news first: I didn't get my Cuddyer's autograph (nor did my nieces get Mauer's). I even ended up going 2 days (waiting in line 2 hours the second day) just to get it, but didn't. :(

Other sad news: There really wasn't anything to do there.

And now the happy news: We got to tour the Twins dugout and clubhouse (they don't call it a locker room because they don't have lockers, just open closets). And I got to go in and lean against the wall in Cuddy's not-locker. (Today there was a note saying "Out of respect for the players, please do not sit in their lockers" or something like that. haha) And we got to see that Mauer has a pimped out not-locker, with a cupholder and a folding chair with arms. And we learned that bat boys have to do the players' laundry. And we got to climb the 44 steps (though if you didn't see Torii Hunter climb them for the last time, that doesn't much matter to you [I miss Torii!!! :(( ]).

And since I didn't get an autograph, I consoled myself by buying this pic of my Cuddyer (and a nice pic of Morneau and Mauer for good measure). :)

And it was nice to be in the Dome again; felt all home-like. And we got free tickets to a game. And I bought tickets for some of the girls from work and I to go to the second game of the season, when we're playing the Angels - and Torii. :(( So those are all happy things.

And Twinsfest means that the season will soon be coming soon!

to hobbitsister

where are all our friends?

Tolkienness of the day

"The road must be trod, but it will be very hard. And neither strength nor wisdom will carry us far upon it. This quest may be attempted by the weak with as much hope as the strong. Yet such is oft the course of deeds that move the wheels of the world; small hands do them because they must, while the eyes of the great are elsewhere." - Elrond, 'FOTR'

Eileen passed away last week. Our chaplain went to the funeral and brought back a program thing. In Eileen's little bio it mentions her love for sweets, the fact that she liked to watch figure skating, and that she loved the Minnesota Twins. I always knew I liked her. :)

heath

it's really strange to go on imdb and see a date of death listed

they said 'justin morneau' on the radio today. hooray for the first baseball commercial of the year! :D

coffee - not necessarily pg

one of the residents, maggie, said today that she saw a segment on the news about a study that says that if you're having trouble getting pregnant, you should drink lots of coffee. her response to that? "how are you going to get pregnant if you never go to bed?!"

happy ground hog's day!

my daddy got me a duvet for said holiday :)

facebook witnessing

i just realized that i have this quote on facebook:
"If GOD deals in strict justice with us, we all perish. We ought to spend our lives in HIS service; we shall find true life in keeping HIS Word." - Matthew Henry
mormons don't believe in hell. i wonder what my friend mark thinks about that.

poor kid (but so funny!)

http://youtube.com/watch?v=i9WmKre5O2I

a football fact i did not know

eli manning hath a bit of a lithp. i should tell him i went to thchool for thpeech therapy. maybe he'd let me help him out. ;)

Bible study

it's going to be good to be around people again. the other women are really nice, and it will just plain be good to get me out of the basement (though i'm now going to move down here for the rest of the winter cuz i'm tired of being in my freezing to death room). i don't like the format of the study (it doesn't foster much discussion), but it's a start (and it's the only BS i know about), so that's good. it's only every other week, and they're halfway through the study, so i'll be able to move on soon. for now, it's something.

amanda's little people wouldn't let me watch blue's clues when i babysat last week. it was very sad.

lunch today

i went out to eat with some of the young people from church today. it was so nice. obviously i felt like the new girl and didn't talk that much, but i felt like these were people i could be comfortable with. so yay! (plus also, one is a hot army boy who loves dairy queen. can you get much better than that? ;) )

i'm going to Bible study tonight!!! :D

i haven't started 'the practice of the presence of GOD' yet. i got about 3 paragraphs into it, but yeah, this is how my reading goes nowadays. :(

here's an idea

one of the residents, ned, asked me today what i went to school for. i told him, and said that i had discovered that it wasn't for me. he asked me if i had decided what i wanted to do instead and i said i don't know. later on ned asked me where i grew up. i told him, and he thought it was so nice and gave me a big smile (he big smiles a lot). then later he asked me if i was going to be at work tonight. i said no, and he asked me if i'm going to be there tomorrow. i said yes and he said, 'write down your name for me. i lived there, too, and i have friends and family there still. i used to work in construction management and maybe i can talk with some people and they can find something for you and i can help you. write down your name and address and phone number and maybe i can help.'
how do you say no to that? he was so earnest and had such a big smile. so tomorrow i'll have to give him my number so he can help me find a job. (i should ask him if he can find me a man at the same time. maybe he has a grandson. ;) )

good-looking maintenance guy had to come in briefly on sunday because the boiler broke (it was so cold we all almost died). they ended up having to call someone in to completely replace it, however, so he wasn't there long. he did stop in the dining room, though, where we three girls were working (one of the best things about the weekends - i get to work with young people). basically he just said hi and told us what was going on with the boiler. as soon as he left, ashida, with a sigh, said, 'i like it when he comes in.' to which amanda replied with a smile,' i do to.' to which i replied with a big grin, 'me, too.' and that was our happy moment.

an interesting take on the Christian life

i just read a sentence about us being GOD's whiteness. oh nevermind. it said witnesses.

smoking is so gross

i'm at the library. there is no one within 30 feet of me. but i can smell someone's stanky-ness. ish.

so cool!

ah! my friend mark really is my friend mark now, cuz he looked me up on facebook and made a friend request! so we're friends!

(plus also, he reads books to children)

a follow up to the last ring post

After Frodo inherits the Ring he tells Gandalf, 'I do really wish to destroy it! Or, well, to have it destroyed. I am not made for perilous quests...Why was I chosen?'

To which Gandalf replies, 'Such questions cannot be answered. You may be sure that it was not for any merit that others do not possess: not for power or wisdom at any rate. But you have been chosen, and you must therefore use such strength and heart and wits as you have...And now, the decision lies with you. But I will always help you. I will help you bear this burden, as long as it is yours to bear. But we must do something, soon. The Enemy is moving.'

apparently sdbgf has fallen off plaid's earth, too. that makes me feel a little better.

"The Practice of the Presence of GOD" - Why I Am Going to Reread This Book

I've been thinking for awhile that I need to reread this. I really like it, and I think it is good for anyone to read and reread it. But the reason I'm going to read it now, is that Brother Lawrence worked in a kitchen, and as the forward to this book in "The Treasury of Christian Spiritual Classics" puts it:
"For the first four years, Brother Lawrence did not like his work; in fact, he had a great aversion to it. He also anguished over the condition of his soul...depsite his best efforts, he was miserable...Eventually he understood that he was spending too much time and energy worrying about himself. He decided to get back to the basics and focus his life on loving GOD...From that time on, he found joy in his work...Even the most menial and unwelcome tasks took on new meaning. When he consciously decided to do everything out of his love for GOD, his life changed."

another sign i've found the right church

my pastor said that it's his dream to be the chaplain for the minnesota twins :)

i've lost my ability to concentrate and it's so frustrating. i have time and the desire to read my Bible right now, but i can't focus on it whatsoever. so i came on the computer to check out baseball chapel (which i'm looking forward to, and will do), but it's not the same as reading the Bible. GOD's Word should always come first, but it's just not working. ooh - just had an idea - maybe i should check out The Message to get a fresh look at things and to read something in not that "Bible tone." idunno. maybe a Bible study would help, too.

update as to why i babysit at slip aunt's

last night i had a really easy group: my 13 year old cousin (who amused herself), baby zoe (6 months - who is a very good baby usually, but was having a kind of tough night, but not tough enough to drive a person insane), 10 month old baby girl (who is such a good baby - if i ever get stuck having one, i hope he's like her; good and quiet and calm), and that baby's 7 year old brother jamar (who is a very good kid).

anyway, so jamar and i were sitting there playing play-do (which was very fun - i never get to do things like that at slip aunt's cuz it's always too hectic to actually do anything with the kids), when he said something about Christmas.

jamar: ...at Christmas, that's when JESUS was born.

me: yep.

jamar: and then at Easter, that's when JESUS was bo...no, that's when JESUS was...uh...

me: well, Good Friday is when JESUS died, and then Eas-

jamar [interrupting me all excited-like]: that was when HE was alive again! and then HE went to Heaven. and that's why we can be alive, because JESUS went to Heaven cuz HE died and was alive again and so we can go to Heaven!

update on the tub story

i did not drown

i fell asleep in the tub today. oops.

i should just quit

the second tuesday of every month is my night to babysit at slip aunt's. and every month i hope that she'll call and cancel. so why do i do it?

in honor of elvis's birthday

http://www.anelvisfan2001.com/AreYouLonesomeTonight.html

HAPPY 73rd BIRTHDAY, ELVIS!

I love Tolkien

In 'The Fellowship of the Ring' (book), Gandalf tells Bilbo, concerning the Ring, 'It has got far too much hold on you. Let it go! And then you can go yourself, and be free.'

Wow. Now is that sin or what? 'It has much hold on you. Let it go!' Sin has a hold on us. But we are the ones who have to let it go. It is up to us. We can only be free when we turn our back on it. It only has a hold on us if we let it have a hold. We Must Let Sin Go!!!

baseball chapel prayer, january 2nd, 2008

Lord, my desires are to obey and serve you, but my life doesn’t always show it. Please help me to be more disciplined this year, and to fulfill these promises.

i struggle with that whole discipline thing.

one way to make yourself dumber

2 hours of 'american gladiators'

our new resident

apparently verna's family didn't want her to know where she was going. somehow, however, she found out....and proceeded to hop a bus, leaving her family with no idea where she was.
i think i could like her.

my mother's dearfoams slippers

the box says:
'we know slippers are special: they're a connection between who you are and how you live...'
'a gift of slippers shows you care: ...it says you want to share that special feeling of warmth, of comfort, of being truly home. share that feeling...with dearfoams.'
'your time at home is special, uniquely yours: ...pamper your feet in cozy softness...with dearfoams.'
'our slippers fit your life:...'

i miss tolkien-ing

Thoughts I had on Tolkien's birthday

I was talking with my mother last night, and said something about how fascinating the English language is, and how rich its history is, and all that, and suddenly it hit me: That history is not my mother's history at all! While English is her native language, as only a third generation speaker she has absolutely no connection to the roots of it! What a sad, sad thought. Thank heaven for my British Grandma Brandybuck. It's because of her that I have a connection to England (even if it was around 350 years ago), and thus to my language, and thus can have a full love and appreciation for the philology of it all. It is thanks to her, and her alone, that I can have this connection to Tolkien. Thank you, Grandma!

And this is in honour of Tolkien's birthday, too

Also in honour of Tolkien's birthday

In honour of JRR Tolkien's birthday

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Tin6NJqQQsM

Tolkien wisdom from 'From a letter to Michael Tolkien (6 October, 1940),' from "The Letters of JRR Tolkien"

' ...[In] times of peace we get, perhaps (and naturally and for the purpose rightly), too engrossed in thinking of everything as a preparation or training or a making one fit - for what? At any minute it is what we are and what we are doing, not what we plan to be and do that counts.'

HAPPY ELEVENTY-SIXTH BIRTHDAY, MR. TOLKIEN!

from the councilofelrond.com

You know you’re obsessed when...
5.)You can quote the movies/books word for word.
7.)Your acquaintances think you’re weird for liking LOTR so much.
8.)Your friends think you’re weird for liking LOTR so much.
9.)Your family thinks you’re very weird indeed for liking LOTR so much.
17.)You see a word like “celebration” and start to pronounce it “kelebration”.
18.)You see things like “token” and “habit” and see “Tolkien” and “hobbit” [i even read those first two words that way when i first read that sentence]
phewph - in a list of 26 things, that's all i got

apparently i'm getting old

ardelle [one of the residents]: when did your kids finish at the academy [k-12 private school]?
me: i don't have any kids.
ardelle: weren't you ever married?
me: no, i'm too young for that.
ardelle: too young to have children?
me: yes.
ardelle: well you don't look it!

i have to run errands, but i don't want to because it's cold and i'm so tired. for once it's not that i'm dreading them because i don't want to do them. it's just because i'm too cold and tired (if that makes sense). so i don't know what to do.

ooh! i just remembered a story i forgot!

way back at the resident Christmas party, after we were done serving and we worker people were sitting eating, i found out that allie (a girl who works at night) has epilepsy, too. (we were so excited!)
so when a few days later the cook was bugging me to have a seizure (he does every once in awhile - he thinks it would be funny), i told him allie would. 'you both should! at the same time! synchronized seizures! that would be funny. i'd tape it.'
'good, because i'd want to see it, too! cuz that would be really funny.'
'i'd put it on youtube. do think it'd get a lot of hits?'
'i'm sure it would.'
karol: 'especially if you put it to music.'
and so we have now invented a new olympic sport. :)