Mosaic Life

Writing away the weekend

I’ve spent much of my weekend writing. On Friday night I wrote a paper for my Hitchcock class comparing the heroines in The 39 Steps and Shadow of a Doubt, and tonight I’m comparing Henry V and Macbeth as “great men” for my Shakespeare class. I really shouldn’t have put off the papers like I did, but it was sort of unavoidable since work was pretty busy last week.

Brandon got back from Indiana University early Saturday morning. It’s nice to have him back, since things just don’t feel right without him home. I think the nights are the weirdest. I mean sure, I have the cat here with me, but he’s not so much of a cuddler as he is a pouncer and a biter. But I love him for who he is, just like he loves me despite the fact that I accidentally locked him in the bathroom all day Friday in the dark without food. Woops.

Saving the earth

Well, maybe a little. We’ve switched from using plastic grocery bags to cloth ones. It started when we were at Publix, and Brandon saw how cheap one of their big green cloth bags was and decided to get one. And then we went to Kroger, and I had to buy one from them so that neither grocery store would get jealous of the other, y’know? I strive to be impartial. Although I do prefer Kroger to Publix, because there’s this really mean mustached cashier lady at our nearby Publix who we never can seem to avoid.

We also have two bright blue Pitts Theology Library bags to add to the mix. I figure that this gives the impression that not only are we impartial to grocery stores, but we like to read, too. Now that’s well-balanced!

As long as we remember to keep the bags in the car and actually take them in at the grocery store, I think this switch could work pretty well. Even when we get a cart full of groceries, we only seem to use about four bags. They kind of make you feel like your groceries are nicer for some reason, like you’re taking better care of them or something.

So I guess now we’re sort of green. Maybe just a minty shade, but still. We’re getting there.

Let me get this one

Since Brandon lost his debit card, I often used my card to pay for meals when we dined out. The money comes from the same bank account, but it gave me the opportunity to say a variation of the following line when the bill came:

“Let me get this one, I know you’re struggling financially right now. But your ska-country band is going to make it big someday, and then you can pay for dinner.”

He totally loved that. I think he’s sort of sad that Bank of America finally got around to mailing him his new debit card.

Catching up

Man, this week has been rough. I’m not sure if it’s that I’m coming back from vacation, or if I have jet lag, or if it’s just that my body has decided to rebel against me, but it’s been really hard to get through the last few days. I feel like I’m going in slow motion or something. Brandon gets home tomorrow (he stayed an extra week for work), which will be really nice. Things will feel more normal then.

I was able to visit my sister and the babies the weekend before we left for California. Rylan and Dawson are doing great. Dawson is nearly 2 pounds heavier than Rylan now, and they’re both developing like crazy. Dawson can hold his head up, and Rylan can pretty much melt a heart of ice with her smiles. They are both excellent poopers. They’re going to be christened on Sunday, August 3rd, which will probably be the next time I see them, what with my terrible schedule.

California was great. It was really nice to be back. As we left the airport, I just kept marveling at how sunny and beautiful it was. It all felt so familiar, which it should, since I lived there 4 years, but it’s funny how a place littered with palm trees, beaches, and beautiful people could feel like home while at the same time, a place like my tiny hometown (which lacks beaches and palm trees but does have old homes and a Walmart) feels like home. It was really good to see some of our friends and Brandon’s family again as well. I haven’t been back since we moved, which was nearly 2 years ago, so it felt a little surreal. But we were able to relax and do some of the things that we were too busy to do while we lived there, so it was nice.

I started my Shakespeare class on Monday. We’re reading King Henry V and watching both movie versions of it. This play didn’t really do a great job of convincing me that I’m going to enjoy reading Shakespeare’s work. I couldn’t slog through the reading what with my lack of back story information and my annoyance at having to check the bottom of the page for a translation of every word, so I watched the movie with subtitles on. It’s silly to have to read the plays anyway, as they were meant to be seen. I think we’re reading Macbeth next, which I seem to recall vaguely enjoying in the past. Doesn’t it have witches and the quote, “Out, out, damn spot”? That may make it more worthwhile.

Happy fourth!

Hope you all have a great Independence Day. I’ll be back to my normally scheduled blogging next week. Until then, hope you see lots of fireworks.