Invasion of the Body-Snatchers

Last week I purchased three praying mantis egg cases. Each case contains between 100-300 eggs. I gave one egg case to a friend and kept the two remaining cases in a brown paper bag. I had no fear of their hatching immediately, so I was rather casual in my placement of the bag. Today, after a string of lovely days, I decided it is indeed time to put the egg cases out in the yard. The trouble is, I can't find the bag anywhere. I remember putting it on the kitchen table, and one child says that's where she saw it last. It looks just like a lunch sack. We've had a couple days of warmish, humid weather, and I don't know if I'll be able to sleep tonight.

Elmo Gone Emo

My 13-year old son is quite the writer. Here is one of his latest poems, created at the drop of a hat to drive a dark-dressing female schoolmate nuts. I don't like the last verse so much, but the tune he sings it to is catchy, so much so that once it's in your head, you can't easily get it out.

Elmo Gone Emo

Elmo gone emo,
Emo for a day.
Elmo gone Emo,
Emo all the way.

Elmo be on drugs now,
Dying his fur black.
Elmo get a big tattoo
Of monster on his back.

Elmo quit his job
On children’s TV.
Elmo’s black fur
Not good publicity.

Elmo get a job
At some old emo store.
Elmo grow his fur out long,
Not cuddly anymore.

Big Bird and Barney
Decide to go emo, too.
They both put on black clothes
Like Emo Elmo do.

In the end they cut themselves,
And they bleed to death.
This proves quite frankly,
Being emo’s not the best.

Eyes Reveal Fabric of the Soul

I asked my eight-year old son today what color his eyes were.

He tried to think of the word for the color in between blue and green and replied with, "Corduroy."

Jury Duty

I was called to be a reserve juror last month. You are assigned four days before which you call in to a recorded phone message and see if they need you. On the morning of my first reserve day, a Monday morning, I was so sick. I had an awful cold and was shivering, coughing and wheezing. I called the emergency number on my juror information sheet and told them I simply could not leave my house. The woman on the phone was very nice and told me I could reschedule, but I would then have to be a regular juror and would be assigned two days of service at the Courthouse. I chose April 25 and 26, so yesterday was my first day of duty.
I took a Freeway Flyer, courtesy of the County, straight down to the Courthouse and checked in around 8:15 am. They had us sit in this room with auditorium style seating, a podium up front and three television screens across the wall. After about a half hour wait, they turned on an orientation video featuring Chief Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Shirley Abrahamson. After this, a woman came in and explained the jury process to us, followed by Clerk of Circuit Court, John Barrett. He looks just like his brother, Tom, our mayor, except slightly less gray and heavier. He mentioned that he was also in charge of sales for the video we had just seen, but that so far no one had purchased one. Laughs all around.
When he was done with his spiel, a voice over a loudspeaker called out about 25 names. These people got up and left the room to be assigned to a jury. A little while later and about 30 more names were called. And again, about two dozen more. Then the voice announced that the movie Hitch (starring Will Smith) would begin on the video screens. That was a fun movie, which I glanced up at every now and then while reading my book on California redwoods. I rued all the knitting I could have gotten done in there, had knitting needles not been considered a possible weapon by Courthouse Security. One jury service worker checked on this restriction for me, but came back to tell me that I couldn't bring the needles into the courthouse. He then pulled out two brand new pencils and offered to sharpen them for my use. I thanked him, but told him I hadn't even brought yarn.
When the movie ended, the voice called out another batch of names, and yet another. They finally got to me, but once out of the room, I understood that our group was just being dismissed for a one-and-a-half hour lunch. It was cold and wet outside, so I visited the Courthouse Cafe in the basement for some mostacholi and garlic bread. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't great either. I returned to the waiting room upstairs a little early to regain my aisle seat in the front row of the back section, where I could stretch out my legs if needed. There were two fans in the front of the room, one on the windowsill in front of the open window. I suppose it can get rather warm and ripe in there, with all those people waiting around, but it was a chilly day and I opted to leave my jacket on and stay out of the path of the fans.
Once everyone who wasn't yet on a jury had returned to the room, the voice said that the movie Monster-In-Law would begin playing on the screens. Someone put in the DVD and it ran through a couple of previews, then hit that screen that plays over and over and over unless you direct the cursor to "play" and hit enter. It just sat there, playing the intro about ten times. What gives?
The voice came once more and called out about 30 names. These people got up and left, including another Graf. I scrutinized this Susan as she left, but she bore no resemblance to anyone in my husband's family.
30 seconds later, and 30 more names were called. As I am near the back of the room where the hallway doors are, I can hear these last two groups being let go for the day. I can't wait for them to call my name. A few minutes go by, but no more names are called. There are only 33 of us left in the room. Then the movie begins to play. I don't think this is a good sign. I put down my purse, open my book and settle back into my chair.
Two hours later, the movie ends (stupid movie) and the voice announces that all those remaining with last names beginning with the letters A-L can report out to the lobby. Yes!
To my surprise, we were not only let go for the day, but we were told that our services were no longer needed. We did not have to come back the second day. Our checks in the amount of $19 would arrive in the mail in about three weeks. Thank you for your time. I am so glad I had a good book with me.

More Photos from Discovery World

Jellyfish in the aquariums - I don't even know how I did this. Cool.

This is a reflection of the east side of the building in Lake Michigan.

This is a reflection of the boulders used in the breakwater around the Denis Sullivan's dock.

Discovery World, Milwaukee, WI

We finally visited Discovery World yesterday for the first time. My Dad's friend Chris gave us an extremely knowledgeable tour, and even got us up onto the third floor Pilot House. It was a beautiful, clear day and I got lots of nice photos.

Milwaukee Skyline from Discovery World Deck

Some Days Are Golden

What a wonderful day! It stopped raining, the temperatures have risen into the lower sixties and the sun is shining. It is pay day and two shipments of new knitting yarn showed up at my door. My Dad and I went for a brisk three-mile walk and upon arriving back home, I discovered that my latest eBay listing had sold with an instant buy-it-now. To top it all off, my recently vegan daughter just discovered cheese in the burrito she brought home from Fiesta Garibaldi.

It was delicious.

The Tokheim Pump

This rusty old gas pump was by the side of the road, actually in front of the barn below, in Sturgeon Bay. We were driving my mother-in-law to town to pick up her car from the body shop when I yelled at my husband to pull over. He made a quick turn around and pulled off onto the gravel so I could run out of the van and take a bunch of pictures. My family is used to this behavior by now.

Doorknob Detail

Doorknob on the barn pictured below.

Apartments for Rent

3-, 4-, or even 5-room apartments for rent in Sturgeon Bay, WI. I wonder what they go for?

Today at Havenwoods State Forest

Dying and rising flora at Havenwoods this afternoon. The darker blobs through the middle are dried out teasel.

Pamela's Fine Jewelry, Spring Green, WI

Small Thought for the Day

Sitting under citrus trees can be a sublime experience.

The Language of God

I am reading a wonderful book on the reconciliation of science and faith by renowned scientist and longtime head of the Human Genome Project, Francis Collins, entitled, "The Language of God." I find it fascinating. Always having been a person of faith, I admit to an ever-growing struggle with the findings of modern science over the past decade of my life. It's not that I don't believe in a billions of years old earth, or in evolution and such matters (though I did deny both when I was younger), but not fully understanding the details, the explanations and the ramifications of these theories and how they could live peaceably beside my faith in God was troubling.
There is rather fierce debate in many evangelical Christian circles over the literal versus allegorical interpretations of the first two chapters of Genesis. It used to really bother me, this apparent denial of the "validity" of scripture, but I now see it from a totally different perspective, one not cowed by scientific discoveries, but rather enlightened by them and freed by them from fear and doubt on both the scientific and theological fronts. What really bothers me now are those who will put their interpretation of scripture before scientific fact and try to form this always enlarging body of scientific knowledge to their will. The earth simply cannot be billions of years old, so we need to come up with the science to support our belief! Besides being unwise and untruthful, I find this behavior detrimental to the positive view the Church wants to portray in our needy world. We already look ignorant and judgemental (just look at our president), so why heap injury upon insult by refusing to even consider the overwhelming evidence for commonly accepted science? When Galileo announced that the sun did not revolve around the earth, the Catholic Church condemned him as a heretic and forced him to recant. Everyone knew that the earth was the center of the universe, based upon the literal interpretation of scriptures such as Psalm 93:1 "The world is firmly established; it cannot be moved" and Ecclesiastes 1:5 "The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises." Yet, no one questions Galileo's description of a sun-centered system today, despite what the Bible says regarding an immovable earth. And, of course, these verses can no longer be interpreted as literal, so there you have it.
Christians who belong to the young earth creationism view believe Genesis 1 and 2 can only be taken literally, as creation happening in six 24-hour "days", and are often entirely sincere in their stance. Collins writes that if their "claims were actually true, it would lead to a complete and irreversible collapse of the sciences of physics, chemistry, cosmology, geology, and biology." I could go on and on about this engaging topic, and probably will in posts to come, but for now I highly recommend the book for anyone interested in or struggling with matters of popular science and faith. Collins' genetics background lends itself especially well to the theory of evolution. Evolution almost put my faith under, but now it is once again freed to a new level, a new understanding, and a new and more vigorous appreciation for the complexity and utter beauty of God's creation.

Yellow Lichen on Cracked Granite, Maine

Yellow Seaweed, Maine

Seaweed Pool, Maine

Back to Maine

This is a bit of the Maine coastline from last summer. I'm finally getting back to the hundreds, maybe thousands of photos that I haven't worked on yet from our trip.

Raindrops

These are raindrops on the edge of an upturned canoe outside my mother-in-law's house in Door County. I ran it through a watercolor filter in Photoshop Elements 3.

Geocaching and Other Diseases

The rain stopped and the sun is now out, so it was time to do some more geocaching. I hadn't gone in a long time, so I put new batteries in my gps, downloaded a handful of caches in an area easily accessible to REI for the ride home, and headed out with my camera. I found four, and would have easily found two more, but there were other folks out there enjoying the nice weather which prevented me from parking next to them and wandering off into the brush without causing, at the very least, too much interest in what I was doing. One nice motorist stopped next to me, rolled down his window and asked if I needed help. I think he meant with my van, but maybe he meant with myself? I told him thanks, but I was just taking a photo of these lovely dead and rotting cattails.

On the way home, I stopped at REI to use up my member dividend and check out what they had for sale. I had already scoured their website, but you never know what's on the actual shelves. I'm glad I went because I found a pair of Keen Venice H2's in my absolute favorite green color, in my size, on the clearance rack for $29.95. With my dividend, I paid $22.30. Oh my gosh. That was like a little bit of fairy tale come true. What a great find.

A Dog's True Life

I was sick with a nasty cold all last week and with the summer-like weather recently realizing it's only March and we're in Wisconsin, I have been inside more than usual, avoiding rain and yuck. I have had to turn to more mundane models if I want to use my camera. I will have to post this one on Lexie's website on Dogster.com.

Oh, I can just hear you - "Get a life!"

What We Didn't Bring Home From Spring Green, WI

We made the responsible decision and did not bring home this adorable miniature schnauzer puppy. Sigh. The timing in our family, current crises, medical complications, finances and non-unifed committment to another life in the house put the kabosh on my emotional yearnings for another someone who would love me unconditionally.

More Images from Spring Green, WI

Scenes From Spring Green, WI

Some images from last weekend's trip to Spring Green.

For a Five-Year Old

A snail is climbing up the window-sill
into your room, after a night of rain.
You call me in to see, and I explain
that it would be unkind to leave it there:
it might crawl to the floor; we must take care
that no one squashes it. You understand,
and carry it outside, with careful hand,
to eat a daffodil.

I see, then, that a kind of faith prevails:
your gentleness is moulded still by words
from me, who have trapped mice and shot wild birds,
from me, who drowned your kittens, who betrayed
your closest relatives, and who purveyed
the harshest kind of truth to many another.
But that is how things are: I am your mother,
and we are kind to snails.

- Fleur Adcock

Oh, how I long for the five-year old sensibilities, the young mind that still accepts what comes out of a mother's mouth and is not yet ruined by noticing the actions that may contradict words. We have one nine years past five who has taken it into her own hands to be extremely cruel to snails, among other things. Mom and Dad's words no longer hold any sway. We just pray.

Wisconsin Kennel Club Dog Show II

A few more. We didn't see any miniature schnauzers, but a few standards and giants. This was such a fun event for me and my camera.

Wisconsin Kennel Club Dog Show

A sampling of dogs from the show this afternoon at State Fair Park.

More Goldfinches

These little guys (and gals) are all over my neighbor's crabapple tree, just outside one of our upstairs windows. They are stuffing themselves on the shriveled fruit.

First Tries With New Lens

My Dad gave me this wonderful long lens for Christmas and it finally arrived from backorder last month. Here are a couple first shots of an American goldfinch. These were taken from our back window.

Ups and Downs, or Downs and Ups

I'll start with the downs first and save the more uplifting stuff for last.

• I am recuperating from a recent surgery and, while healing, am dealing with some post-operative concerns and decisions that now have to be made.
• Since I am sitting on my butt for a greater than normal part of the day during recovery, all the improvement I made during my last two months of physical therapy on rear end muscular/busitis issues has sort of backslidden (sorry).
• Being bored by the end of a week of sitting around here, unable to get out and walk (much), get groceries or run errands has intensified my normal February-in-Wisconsin cabin fever syptoms. The highlights of my recent days have been showers, and taking my daily dose of isoflavones.
• I am not able to lift more than ten pounds at a time right now, so my babysitting job is on hold for another week or two. I have thus turned to Internet shopping, spending bits of cash pretty much in reverse proportion to what I would have taken in during these last three weeks of work. This means I have lost not three weeks of income, but actually six, not to mention the loss of cuddle time with my adorable nine-month old charge.
• Beyond my health issues, there's always teenagers to make life difficult. My oldest got an interim report card today indicating a D in Math, another D in Biology, and a U in History if improvements aren't made soon before the next marking period. When confronted, said teen replied, "The homework is stupid." Well, if it's so stupid, I guess I understand why she wouldn't want to do it. How silly of me. Now, if my children were all animals, as they sometimes are, but no - literally animals, and these animals put on a circus in the forest, my eldest would definitely be the racoon dressed as a clown. A very creative, intelligent clown (except in math, biology and history, that is). Let's say she puts the E in Emo lately, and whether she means to or not, she is driving her concerned parents nuts.
• I can no longer have any more children. Ever.

There's more to the negative list, as I am all too capable of digging up an endless supply of additions, but I think it's time to move on and practice my weaker skills of enumerating the positives in life.

• The bad part of surgery is over, especially that first night in the hospital, which was awful.
• They gave me drugs, painkillers, to take home. This is very good. But it's also very good that I now no longer need anything more than Tylenol. Even better is that I now have some nice, strong, prescription painkillers left over for future use.
• I got flowers in the hospital from three different parties. This is a nice treat. They now grace our coffee table in the living room.
• I got the staples out of my incision only four days after surgery, and my doctor let me keep them so that my oldest daughter could make strange jewelry out of them.
• I have had lots of positive attention and MEALS brought over that I didn't have to think about, prepare or clean up after. This, to me, is one of the best parts of having to recuperate from surgery. I have never liked to cook, but I do have a nice cookbook selection. I love the idea of cooking, but this idea has never germinated into actually doing it on a regular basis.
• I got lots of healty isoflavones as gifts (dark chocolate) and less healthy isoflavones (milk chocolate). Sometimes I double or even triple my isoflavone dose.
• I have a nice supply of soaps, lotions and skin care products that recently arrived in the mail from one Internet shopping frenzy, and any day now my lime green Born shavano boots will show up, along with my bread baking pans and the four Burt's Bees starter kits I won on eBay at a fantastic price.
• My feet smell like peppermint more often than they ever have before.
• Before I even knew I needed surgery, I had started to think about getting a second miniature schnauzer. A few days later, out of the blue, a friend told me of a colleague's new litter of mini schnauzer pups! We saw them at eight days old, and they were, of course, adorable. Now that I have suffered through all sorts of medical brutality, I find the timing good in the end. Who would want to watch me go through all of this, and then deny me a puppy?
• The litter will be ready to go home six weeks and one day after my surgery, the magic recovery mark - and also my younger daughter's 11th birthday. Is that a sign, or what?
• I don't have to do laundry, take out the garbage, vacuum, shovel or even drive anyone anywhere for at least another week.
• I can no longer have any more children. Ever.

Sam-ism

Sam: "I was born to eat. Don't let me live in vain."

Frigid Weekend in Spring Green