Mosaic Life

Monday again

Wow, it’s another Monday already. My weekend was fairly boring but productive. I wrote two papers for my last two summer classes. It was raining outside, so I really didn’t feel like I was missing out on anything outside the walls of our apartment. Oh, and by the way, I’m totally done with Hitchcock and Shakespeare! Woo! I mean, they’re nice and all, but I’m ready to move on to… Let’s see. World Lit, the classics to the Rennaissance and Media Writing. That should be entertaining.

Apparently the high today is in the upper seventies, which is insane. This is Hot-lanta, and it is August. I don’t care if it is raining, usually the temperatures do not go that low until, let’s see, October. So I’m all about this weather. It means that it’s cool enough to take a nap in my car during my lunch break, and I have missed those naps so much during the hot summer. I’m definitely the type of person that can’t function without a midday nap. Why doesn’t America have siesta time? That would be so awesome.

The other Georgia

So now that Georgia is on the news for being attacked by Russia, it’s got to be sort of confusing for people at first. Especially people who weren’t very aware that there were two of them to start with. I know when I first saw the news, I did a double-take and wondered why I hadn’t noticed that sort of thing. I can be incredibly oblivious sometimes when I’m focused on other things, but I’m pretty sure that bombs or fires would pull my attention away from my usual musings as I drive to work/school. But then I realized that it was the other Georgia they were talking about and did what most other Americans probably did. I muttered “oh, that’s a relief” and cared about 85% less about it.

But here’s the thing. Even though the state I reside in isn’t the only Georgia, aren’t we the most popular one? Shouldn’t they have to qualify it when they’re talking about the other one by adding “you know, that little country in Europe somewhere, not the U.S. state”? I think it would avoid a lot of confusion that way. And I’m all about avoiding confusion.

He’s still around

I realized I haven’t blogged very much about Monster lately, and that my Flickr content has been overwhelmed with pictures of my niece and nephew rather than our gray beast. Rest assured, he’s doing quite well. In fact, we’re thinking about potty training him! (If you click on the link, you’ll find lots of videos of cats using the toilet; you are welcome.) That’s right, if you come over to our place in the next few months, you could very well have to wait your turn at the bathroom door while our cat takes a squat. After that maybe we’ll teach him to eat with a fork and spoon and drive the car to Steak ‘n Shake. The sky is the limit, my friends. The sky is the limit.

Happy Friday!

Yay, it’s Friday. I have one week left in my Shakespeare and Hitchcock classes. I can’t believe they’re nearly over. I do like 8-week classes though, because we get right to the important stuff and it’s over quickly. You get a nice sense of accomplishment afterward, so that’s good too.

In a few days we’ll have lived in Georgia for 2 years. Isn’t that crazy? I feel like we just left California yesterday. When we first moved here, we lived in campus housing, which was pretty much a complete dump, especially compared to the nice apartment we left. I remember standing in the empty apartment, looking at the elementary school-style carpet, still sweating from the heat and humidity outside, and having this panicky what-have-we-done sort of feeling. At first, I hated Atlanta. I didn’t know my way around, it was hot and disgusting outside, we didn’t know anyone. But it got better. I got a job. Fall came. The trees changed colors and the temperature began to drop. We made friends. We moved out of that 400-square foot dump and into a nicer apartment. Things got so much better in less than a year.

After our visit back to California in July, people asked me if I missed it. I do. It was a beautiful place to live. When they ask where I like living better, it’s harder to answer. Both places are so very different. Southern California has amazing weather all year long, but fall and spring in Atlanta are gorgeous. I will say that it feels like it’s easier to make friends here in Georgia, but that may be because Brandon’s in seminary, so there are more people that have similar lives and interests to hang out with. Plus, it seems like there were more beautiful people in SoCal, and they have awful personalities. I’m sure they mean well, though.

Fall classes

Signed up for fall semester tonight. Here’s the lineup:

Special Topics in Writing: Media Writing

World Literature: The Classics Through the Rennaissance

The Italian Rennaissance

World Literature: The Enlightenment to the Present

Should be good fun! Now I just have three more papers to write before the end of summer semester.

It seemed familiar

Driving through a quiet neighborhood somewhere in Atlanta:

Brandon: This is a really pretty area. I’ve never driven through here before.

Wendy: It is pretty. I don’t know if I’ve been here before; it seems familiar. I’ve probably gotten lost here at some point.

Brandon: You have.

Wendy: (laughing)

Brandon: No really, you have. I remember tracking it on Google maps.

Wendy: Seriously? I have the best sense of direction.

Six years

As of today, Brandon and I have been married six years.

It’s funny to think back on how young we were when we got married, and in a sense, we’ve grown into adults together. I was thinking about how easy it might have been to grow apart, but we’ve done the opposite. We listen to the same music, watch the same shows, share the same beliefs. And we’re happy. I’m just so glad that I found someone to share my life with, and that I found him so soon. Despite the distance and all of that. Anyway, here’s to another great year. I’m looking forward to many more.

Lesson learned

Wanna know why I have a big round bruise on my hand, and one on the inside of each arm? Well, if you ever have to have blood drawn for any reason, never go near closing time, especially if you have bad veins. Because the lady who took my blood, she was not afraid of going in after the vein. Yeah, and after finally finding it on the third attempt, moving the needle around to keep the blood coming.

Ouch indeed. I’m just proud that I didn’t faint.

Christening away the weekend

Wow, is it Wednesday already? And I’m just now getting around to writing about the weekend. Ah well, better late than never.

We went to Alabama for a good old fashioned christening. My sister’s twins, Rylan and Dawson, were christened at the very same church that my sister and her husband were married in. I was able to get a lot of practice with my new camera, which my dad got me as an early birthday/graduation gift. It’s a Canon Rebel EOS Xsi. Below is a photo of Brandi and Dawson that I took with my 50mm lens.

Doesn’t he have the bluest eyes? He’s gotten to be quite chunky since the last time I saw him. But that’s the good thing about babies. They can get chunkier and it only adds to the cuteness. Next is a photo I took of Ally Grace, Rylan, and Dawson lying on the bed:

It wasn’t too long ago that the three were still in their mamas’ tummies. Ally Grace is about 2 months older than the twins, and has about 3 inches more hair. Aren’t they cute?

As for the actual christening, I tried to avoid using a flash in the church, but here’s a picture of Rylan in her bonnet:

The babies were actually great during their christening. Dawson squealed and laughed when he felt water on him because he thought it was bathtime. As you can see from above, Rylan was pretty much just sleepy. But neither cried.

Anyway, I enjoyed relentlessly photographing everyone and everything this weekend while trying to get this hang of my new camera. It was also really nice to be around my family. I’m so glad that we live close enough now that we can do that.