The Paper!

The long awaited paper has finally arrived!

I went to the post office this morning to pick up a certified envelope from Pensacola Christian College.

This evening I bought a mat and frame for it (the contents--not the envelope) when we were in town.

Preen

Last year Mary knew I would not have time to keep the garden and flower beds weeded. She sprinkled Preen on them to help me out a bit. I was rather skeptical but thought it was worth a try.

This year I decided I didn't want to spend my whole summer weeding. I bought more Preen and used it in almost every part of the garden and flower beds.

The photo is two weeks after I weeded the garden. I am sold on the stuff.

Goodbye Cannas -- Hello Hostas

While I was congratulating myself on cleaning my kitchen like my mom taught me to, I was ignorant of the fact that my cannas had frozen once again.

Last fall we admitted defeat and hired a cleaning lady. She kept the place from becoming a total disaster, but she certainly didn't clean like we do--when we do it. That was the problem that brought about the aforementioned defeat. We didn't get the cleaning done until both of us tired of the mess we were living in. Then we would take an entire Saturday and CLEAN! With the coming of summer vacation, I started by doing a good cleaning of the entire house. I cleaned in corners that hadn't been cleaned for a long time; I moved furniture to sweep the floor (apparently that had not been done either for a long time); I scrubbed the drip pans on the stove, scrubbed the sides of the refrigerator and stove, and wiped the cabinet doors. The house was clean once again.

Then I moved outdoors to finally get the dahlia and canna bulbs planted. I found a bag of dahlia bulbs, but discovered the cannas had stayed in the ground all winter. They were a rotted mass not to be revived. How many years have I had to get new bulbs from Romaine because mine froze? I have no idea. I have now admitted another defeat. I have said goodbye to the cannas and planted hostas in their place. Every year when it is time to bring the bulbs indoors, school has started and I am busy (who said I don't have anything to do?) and it doesn't happen. Hostas can stay out all winter and will come back up the next year. That is the kind of plant I need. I console myself with the fact that because they were planted on the back side of the shed we never got to enjoy the flowers much anyway.

Success or defeat is a matter of making the right choices. I choose to be successful in growing hostas.

Track and Field

This afternoon was the first part of track and field at school. I helped judge the girls' high jump and some of the running events. We will finish up with the girls' long jumps, the throwing events, and the mile run tomorrow afternoon.

GRADUATION -- May 9, 2007

I have finally completed the last step of the doctoral program. I attended grad on Wednesday! Now, all I have to do is wait for the degree to come in the mail since they ordered it incorrectly and had to reorder it.

Old Rag

Last weekend the senior girls hiked Old Rag Mountain in Virginia. They left the cabin about 8:30, drove to the mountain, and did not return to the cabin until about 6 PM.

They were exhausted for most of the evening, but were quite exhilarated by the hike.

April 16 -- I thought spring was here!

I took these pictures just before 6 AM when we left for work this morning.

I thought spring was here, but this is evidence that we have a wait a little longer.

The snow was blown against the house on the west side. There was evidence the township had been out and plowed the snow but the closer we got to work, the less snow there was.

FONDUE is FUN to DO!

Last evening we had Mary's sister, nieces, and nieces little girls here for a fondue supper. We had approximately 20 people here for the meal and seven who stayed for the night. It was a fun evening.

The meal could be started at any of the tables but I will begin with the Swiss raclette in the kitchen. We had baked potatoes, bacon, peppers, mushrooms, and ,of course, the melted cheese. I was kept busy frying bacon, peppers, and mushrooms as people wandered through the house and arrived at the kitchen at some point in the meal.

The next table was in the dining room. We had a sweet and sour sauce in one fondue pot and a barbecue sauce in another. We also had meatballs, Italian meatballs, chicken nuggets, and little smokies on the table. We didn't do much decorating in that room, but we did have classical music.

The third table was in the library. This table had a ranch cheese sauce and broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and cooked potatoes. This room was rather devoid of decoration and music.

The last table on the main floor was in Mary's bedroom. We had moved her dresser into my room and moved the regular kitchen table into the corner of her bedroom. She brought the deck umbrella and lawn chairs in and set them up in there. We had fresh daffodils and instrumental music with ocean and sea gull sounds. The food in this room was a loaf of bread filled with a cream cheese/sour cream/ham/green chilies dip and a relish tray with two other kinds of dip.

One of the favorite tables of the evening was in the basement. We had an angel food cake and a fresh fruit tray. We also had cherry pie filling, cool whip, and a chocolate fountain. Mary's sister Arlene provided the chocolate fountain and chocolate. That was really a hit!

We spent the evening together and about 10PM the ladies and little girls started going home. The teens, just post teens, and preteens stayed for a sleepover. We had a late rising time this morning and a breakfast of mostly leftovers concocted into a breakfast casserole. By 1 PM the house is cleaned up and most things are back in place again. We still have a few pieces of furniture to move.

We worked on preparation most of the week as we eagerly anticipated the event. It was certainly a fun thing to do, and although we are not quite finished putting things back in place, I can imagine we will attempt it again at some point.

Fondue is a fun do!

Snow Days

What do I do on snow days? Well, that depends on whether I am already at school when the call comes through that we are closed or if I am at home.

Yesterday I got up at regular time and got ready for school. We were scheduled for a two-hour delay, but all the time I was thinking: "there is no way we are having school today." Just before we left, I checked online one more time and saw the Garden Spot school district was closed. We usually do whatever they do. I quickly made the decision to stay home. I was glad because about a half hour later the call came through that we were also closed. I spent the day doing laundry, a bit of computer designing for the print shop, blowing snow in the driveway, and school work that I had brought with me the day before in anticipation of a day off.

Today we were again supposed to have a two-hour delay. I checked the local school district again just before walking out the door and it was still a two-hour delay. I decided to come along. Mary drove to Conestoga and then I came back to the school to wait for others to show up. I guess I will be waiting because about a half hour after I was here, I got the call that I will have the building to myself today. So what am I going to do? I spent the first hour catching up on my Bible reading. I have some papers to grade. There is a book I would like to finish reading. I could change a bulletin board (although the winter scene I have up now seems appropriate), I could always take a nap, and I brought healthy size bags of pretzels and grapes for breaking boredom. Somehow, I think the day will quickly pass in solitude.

Monday was scheduled for a snow make-up day. We hadn't had any snow days before yesterday, but now it is evident we will have school on Monday and the Monday after Easter.

Out in the Cold

Yesterday morning it was 16 degrees at 6:15 A.M. I was dropped off at the back door of my classroom. I had a box, a bag, my purse and my lunch on the step outside the door. I reached into my coat pocket for my trusty little key.

But, alas! My key did not open my door. I tried several times to no avail. I tried all the other outside doors to the school to no avail. I was locked out in the cold.

After about three tries at most locks, I called another teacher who called another teacher. He came and unlocked the front door for me. What a relief! What a blessing to have a colleague who will leave the warmth of his house to unlock a door.

I felt the effects of my being in the cold for 20 minutes without proper attire for such weather until about lunch time. I feel the effects of the gratefulness today.

The Passing of First Semester

First Semester, born August 24, 2006, entered into rest on January 12, 2007 at Terre Hill Mennonite High School. Surviving is one sibling, Second Semester, Terre Hill.

All first semester papers, projects, and exams have been graded. Quarter and semester grades will be calculated on Saturday (We [the editorial we] hope all students have passed their English classes this semester). Second semester begins on Monday.

THMH now has one teacher who has celebrated his 60th birthday. (Mr. Isaac -- if you are wondering)

Another class of sophomores is getting legal driving privileges (some on the first attempt and some later).

We (not the editorial we) are set to complete two years of mortgage payments on this house within the next month. Has it already been two years since we moved? Has it only been two years?

Another Bible quizzing season begins with the first quiz in two weeks.

Winter has finally arrived, I think.

It is 2007 and I figured out when I was in third grade that I would be OLD by the year 2000. I guess I was right. I am old in the eyes of a third grader. In fact, I am 7 years past being old. I guess that makes me older than old.

I wonder how many mortgage payments I have made for eternity?

When the winter of my life finally comes, having passed the course of life will be more important than any student passing an English class or a driver's test or winning a trophy in quizzing.

I'm glad I've lived longer than First Semester. And if I live to be older than older than older than old, it will have been a life of blessing and fulfillment.

Star's Arrival!

Star arrived at his new home yesteday. The new owners are quite delighted. We are quite thankful!

Across Country

Star arrived in southern California this morning at 12:03. Now, he has to travel to northern California to his new home.

Colt Update

Star left the area about midnight Monday night. As of today, he was in Kansas City, Kansas.

Still Going!

Well, the saga of the colt goes on! We took the colt to UPS only to discover it was too large to ship. So, it came back home to be repacked.

We measured, and calculated, and measured and calculated again. We checked freight rates and decided that was a last resort. We considered a quick trip to California over Thanksgiving, but didn't think we would make it back to work in time. Finally, we decided we could do it UPS, but there is not even a quarter inch to spare.

After taking the colt off his base, drilling holes to sink bolts in his feet into the bottom of the box and raising the one end of the box 3/4 inch over his ears, and cutting holes for the points of his ears, we finally got a box constructed. He is totally wrapped in bubblewrap and covered with a lauan box that is screwed together.

UPS says 165 dimensional inches. We have the box 39" L x 43" H x 20" W. That is exactly a total of 165 dimensional inches. We will try again on Monday. We hope this time it actually begins its journey!

The new box is significantly smaller than the original one. We spent an evening and all day Saturday repacking. We earned anything we get out of the deal. Clair was rather generous in arranging the deal, but it certainly hasn't been easy money.

Before we sell another horse on ebay, we will be wiser in stating shipping fees. I think it will be "buyer arranges for shipping" or "local pick up only."

The Colt is Going, Going, Gone!

More than a year ago Mary's brother-in-law had a colt that died several days after it was born. He had a full-body mount made of the colt. The colt made its rounds from living room, to feed mill, to basement.

Now, a year after he has it back from the taxidermist, he was ready to sell it and get it out of the way. A family with ten children needs all the room in the house without having a colt take up a few cubic feet. We listed it on ebay for him and it actually sold for more than he said he wanted out of it.


Saturday Mary took a big box and packing supplies to their house and packed the colt for shipping. The children said goodbye to the horse and then helped her pack him up. One of the little boys said, "I will never forget this horse!"

Now, the colt is packed and ready to be shipped. Monday it will begin its journey to California.

The Pursuit

Oh, the interesting things one sees along the road! Last week a local farmer was selling pumpkins. They attracted a lot of attention with their sign. Was it intentional? Did a child paint the sign? Or, was it a very dutchified adult who did it ignorantly?

Sometimes I need to restrain myself from correcting people's errors. In the last week we received two invitations that said, "YOUR INVITED." Now, I would like to know what an "invited" is. The possessive pronoun implies that I own one--whatever it is. Is it something I can carry with me or is it something that I will need my trailer to haul? Is it something that will last for years or is it perishable? Just what is an "invited?" This morning at church, the superintendent was having devotions and several times in 15 minutes used grammatical errors such as yous can . . . .

I failed. OK. Maybe I didn't have an opportunity to teach the farmer who is selling pumpkins jeap. And maybe I didn't have an opportunity to teach the one person who told me I have an invited. But the other one was from a former student who should know better. She passed all of my classes and, if I remember correctly, was on the honor roll at school. This is a person I would like to correct, but that may be the end of the existence of my "invited." The superintendent is also a former student. He is another person I would like to correct. But I certainly cannot go through life correcting all of my former students' writings and speech for incorrect grammar. I failed in teaching them to correct their own grammar. So, what can I do to change that in the future? I suppose that will be my pursuit until I retire.

To Camp or Not to Camp?

To camp or not to camp, that is the question.

I want to bed last night in 30 something degree weather inside a tent inside a sleeping bag with a second sleeping bag for added warmth. It was a bit breezy. I was chilly. I didn't sleep very well. Every time my nose peeked out from the pile of covers and got cold, I was awake again.

Who gets crazy ideas to camp the end of October? We were with the Motley Crew this time. It was warm when we planned the camping trip. We tried to live in denial that it was going to get cold; but when it came time for packing, we loaded a pile of covers and braved the cold. This morning it was about 32 degrees and we didn't mess around long getting a fire going again.

To camp or not to camp? Camp--but pick a slightly warmer weekend!

Admitting Defeat

We recognized years ago that neither of us likes to clean. It has always been one of those chores we both dread, but we both know it has to be done occasionally. As a result, our house has suffered and we along with it. After we moved, I started cleaning the upstairs one week and the basement the other week, but that schedule, too, died along the way. At rare times, the mess gets too bad and we dig in and clean. However, it becomes an all-day affair. I won't clean if she has become distracted by something in the organizing process. That statement is true for both of us. Hence, one or the other is voluntarily being distracted while waiting for the other to get back to the business at hand.

This week we have admitted defeat and hired a cleaning lady. She is only coming once a month and cleaning the upstairs and the office area in the basement. We PLAN to clean the rest of the basement and the whole house the weeks she isn't coming, but at least we know our house will be cleaned once a month by someone who enjoys cleaning. That is improvement.

An Evening to Sit and Relax

One morning this week a coteacher was leading in faculty devotions. He mentioned in his devotional that rather than do what he knows he should do in the evening, he likes to sit and relax for the evening after he get home from school.

That started my mind wondering what it is like to be able to sit and relax for an evening. I was trying to determine HOW a person sits and relaxes for an evening. I wondered, "What does a person do when he sits and relaxes?" But, then I had the startling thought that maybe he doesn't do anything. Is that possible? Maybe he reads? But when was the last time I read anything just for the pure pleasure of reading? I suppose people do that sometimes.

Maybe what I need is to hire a fulltime housekeeper to keep the house clean, have a nice hot meal on the table when I come home from work, do the laundry and return the clean things to my bedroom. If I were really fortunate, maybe she would even mow that lawn and keep the flowerbeds and garden weeded. Maybe then I would have the time to sit and relax for an evening.

I can only guess that is why my coteacher married a wife.