Saturday, February 28, 2009

I have two fingers!

Having had oral surgery 3 times (and one other surgery now), I have had some experience getting different types of anesthetics. In most cases, the post-op. is a much less pleasant state. For some of us who are a bit vapid to begin with, the numbness in mind and body , while harmless, can be quite bewildering. As seen in this video, can also be highly amusing to the people around you.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txqiwrbYGrs&feature=popular

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

French Press Fatigue...


So recently I found a totally amazing deal on a french press coffee/tea maker at a thrift store: New (as in still has the directions and Starbucks label on it) for $20. Naturally, this was so amazing, I could not resist. (and no, that's not it in the picture...but it's sort-of similar. In concept, anyway.) Coming to the point of my story: This pot brews approximately 1.2 liters of liquid. I decided I try it out with some loose-leaf tea I bought in China from a Christian lady who ran a teahouse. (Really interesting story. Ask me sometime.) I'm not exactly sure what kind of tea it is, but it brewed as dark as Baptist church coffee. It was good, and though I offered it to my family, I got no takers. So...I drank it all, which is why 6 hours later, I am still wide awake. At the very least, I've been reminded to pray for her.

Monday, February 23, 2009

God is good all the time.

The sovereignty of God is something I've never really questioned. Of course God loves me and has a wonderful plan for my life! I've been taught that as long as I can remember. But recently I've doubted; I've wondered what in the world I'm doing wasting my life in rural Canada. If I'm going to be unemployed, I might have done that just as well in Minnesota, while getting another free year of college credits and continuing under Piper's preaching to boot! (Surely God, You realize this would have been the better plan. Better than your sovereign plan, formed from the beginning of time and working out for my joy and Your glory. ) But I'm realizing that's my problem: I've been so worried about how my life will "work out" that I've forgotten that it already is. I'm a great sinner who has been redeemed by a great savior! My future is secure, my life will not "start" at some other point and it will be a grievous waste if I spend it pining to be something and somewhere I'm not. Praise God that He is patient as I continue to learn the things I already "know".
"This gift for this day. The life of faith is lived one day at a time, and it has to be lived-not always looked forward to as though the 'real' living were always around the next corner. It is today for which we are responsible. God still owns tomorrow." -Elizabeth Elliot

Thursday, February 19, 2009

The best anagram of my name I've found yet: Kelsey Sturm Treks Ye Slum. (perhaps reminiscent of walking around in Philips?) Here's a great website for those of us who can't anagram things ourselves: http://wordsmith.org/anagram/index.html What can you come up with?

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Shoes are curious things.



So recently I've been wondering: Why do men and women have different sizing systems for shoes? For example, I have a pair of shoes that are men's (size 5 1/2) while my usual foot size is 7 1/2 (womens). Any ideas?
And then I just felt like posting a picture of the vibrams because I think they look interesting. I'm a Chaco girl myself, but I can appreciate a good sole.

Saturday, February 14, 2009

I love cooking for crowds, but volunteering 10 hours straight at a formal event like I did last night is almost a record for me. As I lay in bed, too tired to move and too wired to sleep, I wondered: What exactly is the draw of working in big kitchens? It's high stress, labor-intensive, and in most cases, doesn't pay well. I suppose with that sort of thinking, most jobs become undesirable. Besides, "Everything considered, work is less boring than amusing oneself." (-Charles Baudelaire)




Wednesday, February 11, 2009

"Stolen" from 22 Words...

22 English words that still exist almost entirely because of hymns and the King James Bible
1. Verily
2. Buffet
3. Diadem
4. Beseech
5. Balm
6. Ebenezer
7. Hark!
8. Begotten
9. Hither
10. Admonish
11. Gird
12. Want (as in “lack”)
13. Hallowed
14. Firmament
15. Brethren
16. Bulwark
17. Countenance
18. Quickening
19. Adjure
20. Brimstone
21. Surety
22. Goad
This encourages me to use them all more regularly in my vocabulary.

Victorian Advice for Selecting that Perfect Valentine.


More than a century ago, Professor Thomas E. Hill published such works as "Morals and Manners Illustrated" and "Manual of Social and Business Forms", categorizing the etiquette that governed the lifestyle of a generation; a lifestyle against which the rascals of the "Roaring Twenties" would ultimately rebel. Professor Hill directed the proper American man and woman on the "approved methods in speaking and acting in the various relations of life." Today, propriety seems to have been replaced with "political correctness" and we can look back with nostalgia and amusement upon Professor Hill's era, but in his words there is a grain of civility and polish that we would do well to heed, or at least consider. Here is an excerpt from a section on the proper way to select a lover: "Those who are neither very tall, nor very short, whose eyes are neither very black nor very blue, whose hair is neither very black nor very red-the mixed types-may marry those who are quite similar in form, complexion, and temperament to themselves. Bright red hair and a florid complexion indicate an excitable temperament. Such should marry the jet-black hair and the brunette type. The grey, blue, black, or hazel eyes should not marry those of the same color. Where the color is very pronounced, the union should be with those of a decidedly different color. The very corpulent should unite with the thin and spare and the short, thick-set should choose a different constitution. The thin, bony, wiry, prominent-featured, Roman-nosed, cold-blooded individual should marry the round-featured, warm-hearted, and emotional. Thus, the cool should unite with the warmth and susceptibility. The extremely irritable and nervous should unite with the sympathetic, the slow, and the quiet. Thus the stolid will be prompted by the nervous companion, while the excitable will be quieted by the gentleness of the less nervous. The quick-motioned, rapid-speaking person should marry the calm and deliberate.The warmly impulsive should unite with the stoical. The very fine-haired, soft, and delicate-skinned should not marry those like themselves; and the curly hair should unite with the straight and smooth hair. The thin, long-face should marry the round-favored; and the flat nose marry the full Roman. The woman who inherits the features and peculiarities or her father should marry a man who partakes of the characteristics of his mother. But in all these cases where the type is not pronounced, but is, on the contrary, an average or medium, those forms, features, and temperaments may marry each other." So there you have it. I'm still trying to determine what happens when your personal description overlaps in several categories. Undoubtedly it means you're too odd to ever marry anyone and that you ought to consider monastic living. I'm looking up the nearest convent, myself. Hope this is helpful to you all. Happy Valentine's Day!

Friday, February 6, 2009


"Here's harmony!" Said she, "here's repose! Here's what may leave all painting and music behind, and what poetry can only attempt to describe! Here's what many tranquilize every care, and lift the heart to rapture! When I look out to such a night as this, I feel as if there could be neither wickedness nor sorrow in the world; and there certainly would be less of both if the sublimity of nature were more attended to, and people were carried more out of themselves by contemplating such a scene." - Mansfield Park (Jane Austen)
This picture always reminds me of this quote, perhaps because I believe Austen is right; almost. In her simple wonder at the glory of creation and man's inability to express or recreate it there can be no disagreement. And who hasn't felt that if the world would just slow down and enjoy the beauty of the world that wickedness and sorrow would be eased? But this quote rings hollow to me because in the beauty and splendor of the creation, we lose sight of the creator. In Him is harmony! In Him there is no wickedness or sorrow! There is no hope or peace in being carried out of yourself to some mystical place in contemplation. But getting away from yourself is vital; you must realize that the "sublimity of nature" before you was created so God would get glory. Be amazed by the fact that the new earth will be even more amazing than this earth! Be still,contemplate nature, and know that He is God.