A Slew of Haiku

I was looking through my college papers and I found some surprises. A few years ago, some college friends and I wrote these haikus. It was about 1:30 in the morning and we wrote them by each doing one word and then the next person does a word and so on.

Snow
Snow falls in the house.
Holes inside roofs when falleth
Grandpa down the tree.

Turnbuckle
Botany lies well.
Bamboo falls irregardless.
Buds, suds both follow.

Yelp!
Paint grows in moss. Yuck!
Until mussels eat well, death.
Ev'ry kind of treat.

Gravy
Thickening liquid,
Joy born of fiery sources
Flowing upward spills

Flower
Chrysanthemum is
A very long word to say.
Great is its name length.

In Which the Author and His Bathtub Engage in Fisticuffs

The bathtub and I got in an argument this morning. Maybe it was a fight. Whatever it was, it got physical (he started it). He wanted to stay dirty, but I wanted him clean. The argument started when I took some Comet and a washcloth to his walls. Try as I might to convince him to get clean, he wasn't going for it. There was no persuading him to change his position.

Time to change tactics: Wal-Mart run! Scotch-Brite brillo pads!

This time, I forced the tub to agree with me. He was willing to let the walls get clean, and even most of the scum and whatnot.

He's just too stubborn though. There are a few almost-gone spots that he refuses to let me get clean even though I tried persuading him for considerable amounts of time. At this point, we've decided to agree to disagree. I just hope my roommates feel the same . . .

A Weekend in Bluff Country

My family and I spent the weekend camping, biking, kayaking, perusing, hiking, mushroom-hunting, and watching Amish people in Southeastern Minnesota. It was wonderful!

I could talk about a lot, but I'll only talk about the first night at the campground in Lanesboro. After a delicious dinner, we decided to go for a family bike ride. It was misty and dark, but it was one of the best times of the weekend.

The region looks a little like the Shire (which I realize makes me sound dorky), and with the mist and the flowering trees, we couldn't help but enjoy ourselves immensely.

And then it rained. In fact, it poured.

And it was lovely.

No Mas Chili's Para Mi Und Mitarbeiter Fragebogen

I worked my last shift at Chili's tonight. At least, until September.

And, I'm getting so excited for camp this summer! I need to make a staff questionnaire, and I'm always the worst at those. Here are the questions I have:

1. Name
2. Age
3. College?
4. Greatest Passion?
5. Biggest pet peeve?
6. Favorite Book of the Bible?
7. Favorite Bible Verse?
8. Longest/best road trip you've taken?
9. Place you'd most like to go on a road trip?
10. Make up a question and answer it.

I'm not too satisfied with this list, but I can't think of what else parents and campers would really care to know about the staff. I feel like I need some more fun questions, though. Comments? Suggestions?

How bou' some Sco'land far yeh?

So I went to the Minnesota Scottish Fair yesterday. It was so much fun! Everyone was walking around in kilts or tartan, and the events going on were really great!

The day started out with me driving 55 minutes (listening to Celtic music the whole time) and getting out of my car all pumped up. I was not disappointed. The first event I watched was Scottish Highland Dancing. A family from my hometown is very involved in this form of dancing, and two of the girls competed. It was really fun to watch.



Oh, and just when you think you've seen enough Scottish, you go and buy some haggis (basically a meatloaf cooked in a sheep's stomach lining) with tatties and neeps (mashed potatoes and rutabagas) while watching men in tartan kilts throwing the caber (a 15 foot log). That's it, right. Can't get any more Scottish than that. Just kidding. How about throwing in some bagpipe bands. That's right. Haggis, cabertossing, kilts, and bagpipes. Oh, and just to complete the whole feel, it was cold and cloudy. Just about the closest you can get to a true Scottish cultural experience while in America. I loved it!

A Second Birthday Already?

I can't believe that my nephew is two already! His birthday was on Saturday, and it was great to be home for it (even though he was sick).

Five Postcards from Dusk on the Lakeshore

1. Amber lights twinkle
Across the Wolf's nose
As ducks in formation
Lead me to the moon

2. Slip on a rock:
Blood on silver waves

3. Solemn stars peek through a
Window of slender birch boughs
And quiet my heart

4. Only the barest distinction between
Grey sea and
Grey sky

5. The waves and shore
Have called a truce
To hear the silence of
Celestial nocturnes