Fall comes to the city - and the kitty.

Last night, we were *finally* able to sleep with the windows open. (I'll spare you the saga of the search for expandable, removable window screen. Just know that I prevailed, and we own them.) Our poor cat, who has had to become an indoor kitty since we moved into Atlanta, did not sleep. She went from one window to the next, and the instant she heard an acorn hit the porch, or the leaves rustle in the bushes, she jumped off the bed & ran to investigate. I do feel bad that she can't run & play outside, & enjoy the weather, but at least she'll get to sit in the window for a month or so.

I spent Wednesday through yesterday at noon in Athens. We went out for dinner in downtown Athens (home of the University of Georgia) on Thursday night, and it was so funny to watch the extremely dressed-up freshmen ready for a night on the town. Caro would have especially enjoyed that the boys were dressed up in KHAKIS. (gasp) I keep telling her it's an SEC thing, but she just doesn't get it. ;)

Further entertainment was provided by huge clumps of sorority pledges, ridiculously dressed so as to humiliate them. Now, I will own my sorority membership with semi-pride, but I was NEVER, and I do mean NEVER, forced to look ridiculous or behave stupidly to join. I wouldn't have stood for it, and neither would most of my pledge class. (There were three or four girls who WANTED to be hazed, but we weren't really friends, being as they were, quite simply, insane.)

I was a little jealous that all of them (I'm sure) were headed over to Sanford Stadium this afternoon to watch UGA beat Ole Miss. It is perfect football weather, bringing to mind this fantastic song. Ignore the video (unless you want to reflect on the deeper meaning of this song as sung by a Lousiana band (LSU kids, in fact) in relation to last season's Saints' post-Katrina success as New Orleans' team). I'll quit before I cry. And before I use any more parentheses-within-parentheses. BTE used to play every Lundi Gras at Tipitina's uptown, and it was always an amazing show. (At least it was the two times I went.)

Last night, we went over to East Atlanta Village for dinner, dessert, and a visit to the local bookstore. (Not to be confused with these less-local bookstores.) It was lovely.

I. Love. Fall.

Swap partner answers

Yep, I joined another Sweet Goodness Swap. (That's the same lovely group that linked me up with Amy for the Summer Fun Swap.) This time around, I'm paired with Jeannie, whose blog is a riot. Check it out. We'll be trading three seasonal surprises, so that should be exciting. It's like having a secret pal at school, only I know who my partner is. :) Part of our assignment is to answer these questions below. Being as I know I'll forget to do this if I don't do it now, here goes nothing:

1. Favorite Color: red, or this particular shade of green
2. Chocolate Lover? Milk, Dark, White, or none of the above? All. Thank you. The end.
3. What is your favorite craft hobby? Anything involving paper, or sewing that only requires straight seams.
4. What is a craft/art hobby that you would like to start? knitting - finally bought some needles
5. What craft do you NOT have an interest in or just not great in ( so your partner doesn’t send something you wouldn’t use)? drawing that is supposed to look like something
6. Do you have any allergies? (we don’t want to send anything with peanuts if it’ll make you blow up like a balloon!) green vegetables & the vacuum cleaner
7.What’s your favorite part of Halloween? Decorating, candy eating, costumes, or something else? decorating & eating candy simultaneously - I'm in about my 9th year of the Dorothy costume with red Converse high-tops for ruby slippers
8. Do you decorate for Thanksgiving/Fall? absolutely - I turn the jack o'lanterns around so they just look like pumpkins
9. December Holidays--what holiday do you celebrate? What type of decorations do you like to put up in your house for that holiday? Christmas - we decorate anything that will stand still. I have a vintage aluminum tree w/vintage ornaments, a small tree in the kitchen with utensil/food ornaments, and a regular tree. I love vintage holiday things, especially when I find them cheap.
10. Do you have any children, if so what are their ages, boys/girls? Nope.
11. Do you have any pets, if so what kind? One black cat - she's our Halloween mascot.
12. Are you a reader? If so, what type of books do you like? I read everything, including shampoo bottles & cereal boxes. If it has type, I must read it. At the moment, I'm on a "biographies of average people" kick, but that could end at any time, if the right new thing came along...
13. Are you celebrating a birthday or anniversary in October, November, or December? If so, what day and what is the occasion? Nyet.
14. Do you collect anything? If so what type of things do you collect? Oy. I collect a variety of old stuff for the kitchen, including red-handled utensils, aprons & linens, and metal cookie cutters.
15. What type of things do you like to cook? Are you an appetizer person, cookie maker, dessert freak or a take out type of person?? I love to bake, particularly sweet things, but I'm developing some bread skills.
16. What is your favorite scent? Is there one that you can’t stand? I pretty much love all "good" smells, especially things that smell like cookies! I don't like those fragrances that are dangerously close to smelling like public bathroom disinfectant.
17. What’s your favorite song? Geek alert! "Ne me quitte pas," by Jacques Brel. In English, probably "In My Life," by the Beatles, or "Dancing Virginia," by Jump Little Children
18. What’s the last movie you went to see at the movie theater? I can't even remember, but I think it was Knocked Up, which I saw with my mother-in-law, tee hee.
19. What’s your favorite Candy? Junior Mints. No, wait. Rolos? Or maybe Reese's Pieces? Those new dark chocolate 3 Muskateers are good, too... Oh, and there's Sixlets, which are increasingly hard to find.
20. Tea or Coffee or other? OTHER - milk. Or root beer. Or beer. Or good white wine.

Community Service Post

In honor of Monkey's love of organizational products: I don't know if this is true at CVS stores everywhere, but ours here in the hood had all back-to-school stuff 75% off last night. For all of you teachers, they had a set of 5 Sterilite plastic shoeboxes (you know, the size we use for EVERYTHING), originally $5.99, that came out to about $1.70. We only bought one set, but I may have to go back for more today.

I am not bright.

Oy.

#1) I did not take the camera to breakfast this morning, so I have no cute baby pictures for you. The baby is, however, precious, and laughs & smiles ALL the time. He smiled more at me than at Lindsey, thank you very much.
#2) The La Boheme concert is NEXT weekend. Duh. Fortunately, I don't think I've double-booked us.
#3) The wedding in October to which I did not think we were invited? Yeah, we're invited. Fortunately, I have a dress. What we do not have is a gift, or an idea for a good one.

I think it's time for some M&M's. Have you seen the cute Halloween ones with jack o'lantern faces? They make me quite happy...

Some people think I'm funny...

Today's group of trainees thought I was hysterical. I'm thinking maybe they just don't have access to a lot of funny people? After all, we know that Nat is the funny one. ;) They were, seriously, an awesome group, & received the information we were presenting really well. Yahoo!

This weekend, I get to go & see La Boheme with Torrence. I'm very excited. We are, however, going with his friends from the Georgia Tech orchestra. That means, I'll be outsmarted on all fronts. Normally, I feel only slightly inferior around Tech people because I never made it to Calc 47. These folks made it through Calc 47, AND play music. They play well - I've heard them. Torrence is the one, of course, who is getting his PhD in biomedical engineering, and trying to win Tech's concerto competition. Again. This time, on a new instrument. Yeah.

Crazy weekend here, trying to visit some folks and get ready for my next week of travel. I'll be in Cobb for Tuesday, then on to Athens for the rest of the week. Then, I'm off for a week, before finishing this training round up in Rome & Gainesville. I'm quite ready for a break.

Have a great weekend. Hopefully, I'll be back tomorrow with some cute baby pictures.

Gratitude, redux.

In light of all that's gone on in Lennye's world this week, I'm feeling more than a little grateful. Even though it took me 5 and a half hours to get home last night, in the rain, I couldn't help but notice how pretty so much of the drive was. And then, today, I was thrilled to discover that the rain had brought us our first taste of fall.

Moral of the story: be thankful for the little stuff. Jenn had actually reminded me of this when I was visiting her in Sylvester. While we were discussing the struggles that living in Worth County has created for her, she told me that she wakes up every morning & drives to work in awe of the sunrise she sees over the cotton fields. That, she said, helps her. As usual, I listened to that girl. And it served me well.

Happy Saturday night.

Merci, Amy!

You Belong in 1953

You're fun loving, romantic, and more than a little innocent. See you at the drive in!

What Year Do You Belong In?

I've know this for a long time... ;)

So THIS is what people do early in the morning...

Tuesday morning, 8:30 a.m.
Originally uploaded by sarahblascovich

A happier post, to apologize for the previous one.

This afternoon, the Saturn will be transporting yours truly to Augusta, & then onward later in the week to Savannah. I've never actually been to Augusta, so that should be exciting. I always love Savannah. Since I'm on the work schedule, I got up early to finish getting some things together for the trip.

This is what I saw when I looked up from the back porch where I ate breakfast. Pretty cool, huh? I became, um, slightly obsessed with light the year that I lived in France. Paris gets ZERO light in the winter, so when Caro & I ventured south, almost to the Mediterranean, in January, we thought we were in heaven.

My winter light obsession is part of the reason Lindsey & I were married in January. (Well, the light & the fact that I sweat a lot, & wedding dresses are heavy.)

Anyway, the camera's batteries have been fully recharged, so that all sorts of picture-taking fun can be had in Savannah. And, maybe Augusta - who knows?

Six years ago today...

... I woke up to my roommate screaming as she watched her morning news show, live from New York. Can you believe it's been that long?

Hilarious. Truly.

We've all done this forward before, but it still cracks me up. Feel free to play along.

1. YOUR ROCK STAR NAME: (first pet & current car) Goldie Saturn

2.YOUR GANGSTA NAME: (fave ice cream flavor, favorite cookie) Mint Chocolate Lorna Doone (not as cool as Timbaland, for sure)

3. YOUR “FLY Guy/Girl” NAME: (first initial of first name, first three letters of your last name), S-Bro, which beats my maiden fly-girl name: S-Bla

4. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite color, favorite animal), Red Tamarin

5. YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, city where you were born), Anne Bryn Mawr (no joke)

6. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first), Bro-Sa (again, WAY outdoing Bla-Sa)

7. SUPERHERO NAME: (”The” + 2nd favorite color, favorite drink), The Pink Milk (isn't that for upset tummies?!?!)

8. NASCAR NAME: (the first names of your grandfathers), Walter Albert (unlike their middle names, Harrison Lawrence, which sounds like a Hemingway-esque novelist)

9. WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: (mother’s & father’s middle names ), Anne Albert

10. TV WEATHER ANCHOR NAME: (5th grade teacher's last name + a city in the world that begins with the same letter), Locke London

11. SPY NAME: (your favorite season/holiday, flower). Winter Freesia (let's be honest - way more like a woman of the night than a woman sneaking through the night)

12. CARTOON NAME: (favorite fruit, article of clothing you’re wearing right now + “ie” or “y”) Cantaloupe Jeansie (DUMB, DUMB, DUMB)

13. HIPPIE NAME: (What you ate for breakfast, your favorite tree), Biscuit Oak (??)

14. YOUR ROCKSTAR TOUR NAME: (”The” + Your fave hobby/craft, fave weather element + “Tour”), The Reading Wind Tour (we won't discuss what that sounds like)

Give it a shot! It's fun.

Finally...

Here you have it: Kimono Pillow #1. Thanks to the great folks at Kyoto Kimono, who recycle damaged kimonos into fabric scraps for crafters. I think the grey striped piece is most of a sleeve. What's really amazing is that the few pieces that are still sewn - everything is done by hand. This is very slippery fabric, so I am very impressed. Kimono Pillow #2 is ready to be stitched, but I just didn't feel like getting out the iron today. I'm also learning that making these to fit a pre-formed pillow would be a really good idea. Stuffing this sucker was zero fun. It also takes a lot more stuffing than you might think. I'm envisioning some yo-yo embellished pillows in the near future. You might recall the original kimono yo-yo experiment. Some progress has been made since those first attempts.

In other news, our pastor cited a Jump, Little Children song during her sermon today. Cathedrals, to be specific. Our little section of the church had a momentary fit, since we're all about the same age. Lindsey & I had the privilege of accompanying Torrence (soon-to-be-Dr. Welch) to their farewell tour show here in Atlanta at the Variety two years ago. It brought back good memories - back when Napster wouldn't get you thrown in jail, sophomore year, writing papers WAY too late in the dorm... (It was a good sermon, too, dwelling on showing the love of the church to others, rather than scaring or goading them into/toward salvation. It's why I'm Methodist, these days.) Did I mention they have a CELLO in the band???? Sigh....

You can do this too! Thanks to my newest swap partner, Jeanetta, for the link!

I am recovering nicely from my trip to south Georgia. The trainings went well, people were nice, and we discovered a great Mexican place in Waycross with equally great drink specials. I also got to visit with Jenn & Harris, and absorb some of the craziness that is football coaching. In the interest of privacy, I won't share the stories here, but let's just say their life jumps from one extreme to another, in this case, all within a few hours. I was exhausted just watching.

Hope everyone is having a great weekend - more typing later. :)

Intermediate Posting

Since I don't have the infamous picture of me WITH Jimmy Carter yet, I thought I'd tempt you with a few of the man himself:Here he is speaking to the Japanese students. He was pretty funny, actually, and made a few jokes about how Plains is TINY. He said it had 635 people. I'm not sure where about 450 of them live, so that might be the greater Plains metropolitan area.

Here are President Carter, the Superintendent of the visiting Japanese school system, and the translator. The translator worked HARD for his money; virtually no one spoke English in the group, so even simple things like "leave your bags in this room, so the Secret Service doesn't have to search them" took a LONG time to explain.

And the bike... As you can see, this is no titanium, German-engineered racing bike. In fact, I think it is older than I am. (However, the agent riding with him DID appear to have a fancy bike.) He rides very well, you'll be happy to know.

In other fun, here are some pictures of Lindsey with the Rhino. They had a lot of fun opening Ryan's present & reading a book. Much like our house, the book contains Ryan's favorite word, "mess." ;)


As of this weekend, we are now proud members of the High Museum of Art and Zoo Atlanta. I FINALLY got to see the baby panda, Mei Lan, for about 12 seconds until I was smushed by a bunch of adults with large cameras. Sheesh. She turns one on Thursday, so hopefully after that, the crowds will die down. (She is very cute, and quite a ham. She also appears quite healthy, so maybe soon she'll get to hang out with both of her parents. They are still separated most of the time.)

In other excitement, I'm on my way in about an hour to south Georgia, where I'll be training teachers in Pelham and Waycross. Go swapiness! I will get to see Jenn, who lives down that way in Sylvester. Her husband is the high school football coach there; the Rams won on Friday night. Whoo-hoo!

I'm still in the middle of a few kimono-fabric pillows; hopefully, I'll get those finished next weekend so you can see them. Happy Labor Day!