clean and tidy

Tonight as Levi has been falling asleep, I've been tidying the house.  Not cleaning, per se, but just putting things back into their place.  I've been working my way from one end of the house to the other, top floor and basement, just straightening and organizing and setting things right again.  And here's what I've realized:

I've become way too accustomed to seeing things out of their place.  

For example, I tidied the basement rec/family room and thought, "There.  That's pretty good." And then I stepped back to look at it again and saw that there were still two or three remotes laying around, one right there in the middle of the floor.  There were still a couple of alphabet blocks scattered along the walls.  And I hadn't even touched my desk!  Wow.  I came upstairs and there was still a pair of Levi's socks in the hall that I'd meant to take to the "too small" box downstairs.  Levi's belt was still sitting beside the dryer where it fell as I did laundry today.  I just have gotten too used to seeing random things around the house in random places.  Now, that is partly due to having a son who loves to carry things around the house and drop them wherever he sees something more interesting to pick up.  It brings me great joy to find some of these treasures (broom in bedroom, hairspray in living room, cup at the end of the hall by the deck door).  But I bet that's not the whole reason.  I think I've just become a bit lax when it comes to keeping the house tidy. Instead of putting things away when I'm finished with them - like my mom tried to teach me over and over again growing up - I've gotten into the habit (anyone else tend to spell "habit" like "hobbit" with two "b"'s?) of just moving on to the next thing and leaving my project sitting on the floor for days or putting something in a pile to be dealt with later.  I still have Christmas cards/letter sitting on the microwave from December for crying out loud!  It's been two months!  And yet, I am just so used to seeing them there and have no idea what to do with them, so there they sit.

Today I was watching Levi play, like I often do.  He was playing with his Little People Barn that he got for Christmas.  It is interesting because, when he plays, he is very intentional about all his animals standing on their feet.  If he puts the goat in the barn and it falls over in the process, he'll carefully reach in and set it back on its feet.  Seeing this got me thinking about whether this will be a life-long characteristic of his...will he always be particular and want things to be proper and in their place?  I have had phases in my life where I have been like that.  Everything had to be in its place, facing the right direction, and no clutter piles whatsoever.  (My dorm rooms at Bible college, both first and second year, were amazingly clean and tidy ALL.THE.TIME.)   And you know, life is alot less stressful like that!  I enjoy having a place for everything and putting things back where they belong as soon as I'm finished with them (or at least at the end of the day).  But it's easy to get lazy when there is a house full of people (and animal) who don't necessarily have the same vision as you.

Well, all this is to say that yes, my house can get untidy.  It is usually clean (enough), but the clutter builds up.  I'm human.  I admit it.  BUT, my goal after this evening, is to designate a place for everything and then, instead of just getting lazy and making piles everywhere of things to be put away, I think I might actually try putting stuff away right away!  Could you imagine?  Putting something away as soon as you're finished with it instead of just setting it aside to be cleaned up later?  Oh, what freedom the evenings would bring!  haha.  Well, it's been nice to dream.  Back to tidying the house...!

Quote of the Day...

I've found that I have alot of time to do homework these days (just what I needed!  Now I just need motivation...).  Anyway, I have been reading the book Dissident Discipleship by David Augsburger and came across a quote that I just thought was SO true, but didn't realize anyone actually had the guts to write it down and publish it.  But I'm sure it's true for all of us!

"We might define true community as that place where the person 

you least want to live with always lives." - Parker Palmer

Haha.  Makes me laugh every time I read it.  The best humour is humourous because it is true.  And in my case, it is humourous because I live in "true community" right now. 

Life...

Life these days...
-  has been warm!  Yesterday and today have been up to 25 degrees and sunny.  It feels SO good.  It sounds like you up north are also having continued beautiful weather so I won't consider this bragging, only rejoicing in the en of winter!  It is perfect barbecuing weather...
-  has been laden with homework!  Yeah, not much new there.  My parents were out for a 5 day visit earlier this month and this past weekend was a Young Leaders Conference thing here at the school so, while there is starting to be alot of homework due, especially for Nathan, he has had less than normal amounts of time to work on it.  BUT, this week is reading week so he's being quite productive.  I'm so proud of him!  He even goes so far as to sit inside on these beautiful days, just so he'll be more productive.
-  has been fun.  Nathan and I have been having alot of fun together.  You know those times when there is just lots of laughter and joking around and everything just seems to be perfect?  It's one of those times right now and we're enjoying it!
-  has been routine.  Class, work, homework...there hasn't been much variation from one day to the next, and I'm quite alright with that.  But some days it just makes me want to go out and do something different!  Perhaps Nathan and I are almost due for another relaxing morning spent at Starbucks together...

Weekend...

Another weekend is coming and it's a big one around here.

Nathan has a Young Leaders Conference that he is a part of this weekend.  Actually, it starts tonight (Thursday) and goes until Saturday night.  It will be fun for him, because quite a few people from his (our) Bethany days will be here for that.  We are actually hosting two of our Bethany friends in our apartment (it'll be TIGHT!).  The days will be long for them: 8:30am - 9:00pm.  I'm just glad I don't have to worry about meals or anything.  Pretty much, I just have all that time to myself!

Well...not quite all that time will be free time for me.  On Saturday I have part 2 of my Counseling Couples course.  From 9am-5pm I will be sitting in class, learning how to try to get couples to communicate and deal with conflict.  I'm really quite excited for this class to be over.  It has turned out to be much more focused on the professional counseling side of it and less relevant for someone who may hope to do some lay counseling one day as, perhaps, a pastor's wife.  Seeing as the course is part of their counseling program here at the school, though, it really does make sense.

Once all of that is over and our house is back to just the two of us, I imagine we'll have a pretty quiet Sunday.  We'll probably watch some Nascar (Nathan will watch Nascar and I'll sleep!) and just hang out together.  That just never gets old...

Hope you all have a good weekend!  Sorry about the lack of blogging lately.  It just feels like there's not much to say right now.  Routine, routine, routine.  There's only so much I can talk about classes and homework.  But life always picks up sooner or later, or at least the blog inspiration does, so keep coming back!   

Busy morning

I have a busy morning of running all over the city for random appointments and errands today.  It's nice when you can schedule everything that has been piling up for the past few weeks/months into one busy day instead of many...but it makes for a busy day!  But I think it'll be fun.  I'm pretty confident driving in our city now.  It helps that American cities are pretty well set up as far as infrastructure and transportation goes.  I just need to jump on the freeway and I'm good to go.  None of this starting and stopping at red lights all the way to the other end of the city!

There's not much to write today.  It's been sunny and WARM lately, but I know how much I would hate to be back in Canada just hearing about it and not feeling it, so I won't mention that.  Homework is coming along.  I have a full day class on Saturday, which I'm not looking forward to (because of the long class hours, not because I don't think it'll be an interesting class).  It's supposed to rain on the weekend, though, so that'll make it easier to be sitting inside all day. : )  I keep thinking that if I just buckled down and did a week of homework straight, I could finish everything that I have.  Ok, maybe 2 weeks.  If I could manage to not be distracted for 2 weeks and put in nice, long 8 hour days of homework, I could probably finish everything.  Then again, the blog would be silent and facebook would feel shunned...and we couldn't have that, now could we?  Haha.  I'm sure everyone out there would manage.  Truth is, I'm just not sure I could!

Well, it's time to shovel my breakfast and keep moving if I'm going to get everything done today!  Here's to productivity!  Yay!

Random thoughts...

-  Nathan and I spent a couple hours in Starbucks today doing homework.  It's nice to get off campus together sometimes, even if the activities of campus follow us...

-  I just realized this weekend that the fabric I bought HERE and made into THIS QUILT, actually stretches far enough to make another two quilts!  I sewed another quilt top on Friday evening and have the fabric cut for yet another quilt top.  I didn't think I bought that much...only 1 yard of four different fabrics.  I guess that is quite a bit when each quilt is only 40x60 ish.  Makes for tons of fun for me, though!

-  Today is a long weekend down in the States too.  President's Day.  Whoop-de-doo.  Nathan is enjoying a day without any classes (when he would normally have had both an afternoon class and an evening one) but I'm sticking to routine.  Monday is house cleaning day.  I usually try to wash the floors, vacuum and do laundry.  This week the bathroom may need to be cleaned on Monday as well, and perhaps the kitchen.  Oh, and the spare bedroom.  Ever since we re-arranged our living room and added the bookshelf from the spare bedroom, that room has been a disaster.  And my parents will be here in two weeks!  It needs to be cleaned before too long anyway! 

-  Nathan is reading outside today.  It was a foggy, chilly morning (8 degrees when we got up) and the heat wasn't on in the house, so it felt pretty cool inside too.  But it has warmed up quite a bit and it is now 14 degrees.  The high for today is 19 and it usually makes it at least to the forecasted high, if not higher.  I certainly don't mean to brag, but it really does feel beautiful outside.  All of our doors/windows are open and the fresh air is amazing.  We've had an exceptionally rainy winter in California this year (which we needed), but it is nice to have the sun back.  Don't worry, all you Canadians.  I am not taking it for granted.  I am still a Canadian from the prairies and am enjoying the weather to all it's sunny, warm fullness!

-  Well, not sure what else is happening.  Anyone out there have any burning questions for me? 

A good day for coffee...

A friend of mine, Kelsie-Lynn, once mentioned that it feels to her like she's having coffee and a chat with me when she reads my blog.  I've often thought of that, Kelsie, since you mentioned it.

So today, in my completely uninspired state of mine, I am asking myself: What would I share with you all if we were drinking coffee together and chatting.

Well, I would probably start by explaining that I really prefer tea over coffee and proceed to switch my cup for a good herbal, fruit, or black tea.  My current favorite is a Blackberry Sage tea from The Republic of Tea, though I find that it is quite finicky.  But if you steep a cup just right it is one of the most amazing teas to have crossed my lips.  That said, if the process goes awry, the cup is pretty much a write-off; such is the importance of doing things right. And then the conversation would likely continue.

How's it going, Niki?
(now it kinda feels like I'm talking to myself, but I will push through the awkwardness...this time...)

It's good!  I spent all of yesterday morning in bed feeling sick and sleeping, and spent the rest of the day eating crackers.  But today I am feeling quite rested and back to my normal self, so I suppose it was a good day after all!  Sometimes it's worth getting sick for a day...

What have you been up to lately?
(now, I'm assuming that you all understand that if you ever take me out for coffee, I won't just talk about myself the whole time and expect you to ask all the questions.  I WILL allow the conversation to go both ways : )

I haven't been up to much.  I constantly have this feeling of, "I should be doing homework."  But luckily I am not a full-time student, so even though there is always something to be done, I don't really get behind if I am sick for a day or if I just decide that I'd rather do something else (like laundry, babysitting, making things, or cooking/baking).  I also have another afghan on the go.  I bought two more balls of the yarn that I used to make the last one that I showed you (green and brown) but didn't end up needing them, so now I have enough for another blanket.  This one is going much slower (smaller stitch), but that is nice because it means that I have something to work on during movies/tv watching.  Other than that, I haven't been up to too much.

How are you enjoying California?

Ooh...this is a tough one.  The weather?  Yes.  I am enjoying the weather.  No snow.  Decent amount of sun, though it has been cloudy/foggy and rainy alot this winter.  It just feels like we've had a cold summer for the past few months.  A nice day here and there, but overall it is still chilly when you go outside.  Not cold by Canadian standards, but still uncomfortable to be outside if you're not moving.  And if you're soaked while you're out there, it doesn't matter if you are moving or not.  It's just COLD!
What else do I enjoy about California?  I enjoy the novelty of the fact that we are living in California.  That is pretty sweet.  I'll be able to tell my kids that I lived in California for two years.  They'll be pretty impressed...or else they just won't care at all.  I'll take my chances that they'll be pretty pumped though. : )  I also enjoy the different culture.  There is a very distinct Latino culture, especially right in our area of the city.  It has been interesting to adjust to that.

Some things I am not enjoying so much about California.  For instance, being so far from friends/family.  By the time we were finished in Altona, I was feeling very ready to live closer to our family.  And here we move three/four times as far as we were when we were just in Manitoba!  It's crazy, I know.  But it was the right time to do seminary, and the right seminary was 3000 kms from our families.  I guess that's just what happens sometimes.  So while I would really love to be living somewhere closer to our parents and siblings now, I keep hoping that our next move will take us back closer.

Well, I should really get going.  I didn't talk write as fast as I thought I might and it's time for class to start.  Hope you are all doing well.  Nice having coffee with you today.  Perhaps the next time I'm in your neighbourhood we can actually grab a cup of coffee...or tea...or hot chocolate.  : )  See ya.

Why I am not a Theologian…

I have now sat through my first ethics class.  And I now see, more clearly than ever, that I am so very much further from being a philosopher or theologian than I ever realized.  This "being a student" thing will be quite enlightening, if in no other way than to help me understand myself more thoroughly.

So far, it is very clear that I like distinct, organized ideas.  I like piles.  I like categories.  I like order and structure and boxes.  I like to be able to sit back and look at things and understand where the lines are.  I like to be able to take a list of ideas and be able to organize them into piles so that they all make sense to me.

I don't like to receive a pile of thoughts that we're supposed to wrestle with and think through and try, somehow, to understand.  I have no idea what to do with that!  It feels like a useless old blanket in a crumpled heap on the floor (one I'd rather not touch).  It's just a jumble!  A mess.  I would much rather have a clean, fresh blanket, neatly folded and placed carefully where it belongs.  Organize those thoughts into clear, concise points for me and I can deal, but don't just talk at me for three hours nad expect me to get anything from it.

I think thi sis why I liked the sciences, maths, and English so much in high school.  There were right answers and wrong answers.  There were concrete laws and predictable results.  I knew where the boundaries were and could either choose to work within them or not, but at least I knew where I stood and would have an answer at the end of the process.

[{(a+b)/c}/{(r*g)/2}]*h=F

I can do this.  This makes sense to me.  I can work with this.  It's logical.  It has structure.  It has piles and boxes and systems and processes and answers!

So don't give me a three-hour "sermon" full of vague, abstract ideas and tell me to wrestle with it.  Give me practical.  Give me stuff that fits into boxes and can be neatly organized.  Then we'll be getting somewhere!

PoSt SoMeThInG...aNyThInG!

Don't you sometimes just want to post but have absolutely nothing to write about?  Yup.  I thought so.  I guess I'll just share random thoughts.  Those can end up being entertaining (not to mention, enlightening), right?  Let's see...

-  I started doing homework again today after almost a month off.  I was just not feeling like this was the right time to become a full time student again, so I put the books aside and re-evaluated what I was thinking.  I ended up deciding that I would go through with the whole application thing and then take whatever courses caught my eye.  So I won't be actually trying to complete any sort of degree while I'm here, but I feel so much more peace about this decision.  And this way I'll have some seminary credits sitting around in case I ever get around to finishing my BA and decide that I would like a Masters degree.  How is the homework going, you ask?  Well...how do I put this?  There are a few other things that I would rather be doing right now...

-  I wrote a bunch of letters yesterday.  It always takes me so long to actually get myself to sit down and write a personal letter.  I LOVE getting them though, so I can't expect any to come if I don't write them myself every once in a while.  So naturally, when I picked up the mail later that day, I expected our mailbox to be full of mail.  If I write some, I should receive some, right?  I DID end up getting a book in the mail that was part of a Christmas gift, though.  That was exciting.

-  Right now I'm babysitting our friends' daughter.  She's NAPPING so I'm sitting here at their place, with my laptop and homework reading, hoping that she won't wake up too soon so I can actually get some homework done.  But then again, if you remember my comment from earlier, obviously I would rather be having fun with an 8 month old than reading about Paul's idea of community!

-  It's raining outside...well, misting/sprinkling really.  It's been so foggy lately that we haven't really seen the sun for a couple weeks.  I thought California was supposed to be sunny all year round!  Apparently not.  It is foggy and cloudy and today it's raining.  We are in the middle of a drought, near a desert, though, so even when it rains, it doesn't get you too wet and doesn't last that long, so I really can't complain.  And it has been around 7 degrees during the day, so I really can't complain about that either. : )

-  I am working on a scarf for my Etsy shop...also almost finished binding a baby quilt that I plan to list.  Fun stuff.  Thing is, it takes money to make things, so the beginning has been unfortunately slow...

-  Does it seem to anyone else like pregnancies go in spurts?  It seemed like there was a huge amount of pregnant women that I knew back in 2007/2008.  And now there seems to be another swell (no pun intended) for 2010.  I counted the other night and there are 12 women I know who are either pregnant or who have had babies in the past week.  And most of those babies are due in June and July.  Wow.  Is it that alot of those 2007/2008 babies are going to be older siblings, that the timing between kids is the main factor?  I guess that could make sense.  But alot of the babies are firsts for the parents.  So I have no idea why they all group together like that.  Weird.  Must be some kind of conspiracy...

-  Nathan has started blogging again!  He wanted to get in on book reviewing, like I'm doing, so he has resurrected his old officehourthoughts.blogspot.com.  You can find him on my sidebar as "A Short Step Down From Thought Provoking."

Well, I really have no idea where to go with this post from here.  As always, I am open to post suggestions or random questions in my comments.

Have a good week!

is there any point in posting...

Lately, while everyone else is feeling more relaxed, I have been feeling more busy. I'm thinking it's because I had nothing much to do while everyone else was doing homework and now that homework is wrapping up, people have time to socialize again. It would be great, except I always feel like I should be doing my homework! Don't worry, though, I'm overcoming that feeling quite effectively. Most of my books are still sitting on the shelf unopened.

Seriously though, I do need to get down to work soon. I've finished two of my seven papers that I need to do before next semester starts. That's 5 books to read and 5 papers to write in 6 weeks. My practical side says that I should just dive into it and put out paper after paper until I'm done. My procrastinating side reminds me (over and over) that they're not actually due until the end of January and I have nothing to do between now and then, so why not take a few days to relax? I'm just afraid that I'll take too many days to relax, then suddenly realize that I have two weeks to write 5 papers. Hopefully I talk some sense into myself soon!

Speaking of homework, I downloaded the syllabuses (yes, it is just as technically correct to say "syllabuses" as the more annoying sounding "syllabi" - I dictionaried it) for my courses next semester. Then I opened my calendar and plunked all of my assignment due dates onto it. And my heart kinda stopped a little bit. Or maybe that uncomfortable, tight feeling is more of a stomach cramp. Whatever it is, I'm realizing that I'm going to be a real, stressed, busy student in a matter of a few weeks. Yikes. Perhaps it really is time to get going on those papers so that I can finish them and start reading ahead for my other classes!

Well, Nathan is antsy (didn't take long after classes were done!) so we're going to go out for a bit. Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!