Wisdom

Jen had her wisdom teeth out last Friday, same as I did three years ago. Three whole years since I graduated from high school. I am so old. I looked back on my blog to see what I posted about having my teeth out, and I must have deleted that post because I didn't find anything. I should probably delete more of those old posts. Some of them are so silly. My memories of the wisdom tooth experience are fading; I do know I got them out on a Friday morning; came home, watched a movie, took a nap, got up and ate ice cream and was fine. I don't remember any extreme discomfort, I didn't take any painkillers, and I went to Church on Sunday in good health.

Jen's experience was not so rosy. She, too, had hers out on Friday morning. We stocked up on ice cream, pudding, soft fruit, etc. The one thing that made me mad when I had my teeth pulled was Mom(albeit accidentally) bought ice cream with almonds in it- very frustrating to eat. We were all hushed and excited when Jen finally got home, wanting to know how it went. She laid down on the couch and was a zombie for three whole days- swollen, not speaking, no facial expression, hardly any eating. Nothing. She was just starting to get better yesterday. And she had to use painkillers.

Have I just forgotten how bad it was, or did I have it easy? The one thing that did plague me for more than six months afterward was tightness in my jaw and pain when I ate popcorn. And I love popcorn, so that was an affliction.

I'm In the Mood

I had the privilege this past weekend to visit Clarinda, IA, for the annual Glenn Miller festival. An elderly lady asked me to take her(she was tired of bus trips) and so I had basically no expenses. The price I had to pay was to listen to the lady talk talk talk for two whole days... See, I'm still being sanctified.


I was glad to go though, because I had family reasons to go there- my grandpa(who died before I was born) was born there in 1916, and served as a "flower girl" for his Uncle's wedding at this house:

I enjoy Glenn Miller music, too. I got to go to three concerts- the Glenn Miller Orchestra, Glenn Miller "Live" from Cafe Rouge, where they reproduced a Miller TV show, and the 312 Army Reserve Band. That SPC Reynolds is the Army version of Michael Bluble- He was great!

Currently Reading:

I am trying to read up on women of the Revolutionary War; unfortunately most books on that topic are incredibly feministic in style and therefore demeaning to the women they are addressing. I'm forging ahead though, and slowly making progress.

Details

Let me update you on my life. Since my last post, I have:

• Met an overly friendly male "tour guide"(???) on my last day(sob sob, session is over) at Capitol. I tried to politely not answer his questions about where I live.... always after one of these weird conversations I wonder if I should have been more reserved, and if I said to much.
• Went to a family reunion, which I hate to say wasn't much fun, and on the way home we were stopped by a man in the middle of the road waving his arms. A young man driving a van that wasn't his, with no driver's license, no insurance, no registration, no money, no food, no one to call for help, and nowhere to go. In the end we had to just leave him at an all-night gas station. Then when we were almost home late at night, we barely missed hitting a deer.
• Finished sewing projects for Jen's ballet recital, which is on Thursday. Panic!
• Had my teeth cleaned, no cavities, Yay!

So there you have it. My life is currently consumed with Recital details and plans for the next month, since I am organizing a mini Tea party(Taxed Enough Already) for July 4th and our cousins are coming for two weeks at the end of June. Oh, we also have two birthdays, a Swedish festival, and a trip to Clarinda, IA in the next week. So many details!

Frustrations

Last August Dad became an Elder in our Church. Becoming an Elder in our church is a lot harder than it is in most churches, I would guess. Dad had to study for months to take a big long test before he could be approved. He was rushed through the process because our Church needed another Elder. Then just a short while after Dad was ordained, our church decided to switch denominations from the PCA to a much smaller, more conservative denomination. Dad had to immediately start studying for a much longer, harder test to be completed in a shorter time space.

Dad is in Tennessee this week for the church conference of our soon-to-be new denomination, and yesterday he was questioned for three hours by a panel of six men to see if he met the standards to continue to be an Elder when we switch denominations. He wasn't approved, but he is a candidate, which means another interview in the fall.

I guess I am slightly frustrated, though I'm trying not to be, at this whole process. It's been maybe a year since we started down this road. To require so much of Dad in such a short time frame when he has a family still at home, a full time job, a business on the side and an acreage, seems a lot to ask. If you haven't been studying this theology for years and years, it's hard to cram enough of it in your head to be able to answer surprise questions under pressure! Dad is willing to serve, but the standards are so high.


This post has been my opinion on the affair. I needed to vent. I hope you understand.

My Hobby

In another attempt to make people see how enjoyable it can be to visit cemeteries, here is another bunch of pictures. I stopped at two different cemeteries on my way home from Lincoln last week, and now I'm out of cemeteries to visit on the route home. The first cemetery was the beautiful Swedish cemetery of Fridhem off of highway 77 near Ceresco. It was on a hill with a beautiful view; there were lilacs and flowering trees, cute benches, very well kept-up.

Ok, if you still don't get it, here are the reasons I enjoy visiting cemeteries:

• They are peaceful. There's just peace and quit. I prize that! It's very relaxing. I am not an extrovert. So, I love the quiet.
  
• They are beautiful- both the landscaping and the stones themselves are a form of artwork! I enjoy art.
  
• They are historic. Nebraska's pioneers are buried in these places. I respect them, and it is good to look back and think of those people who came before us. I get excited over history.

Cemetery number two was Elim Lutheran-I think- near Hooper. Not as pretty as Fridhem, but it has some really old stones. The older the stone, the better. I just became a member of Find-a-Grave, which is similar to USGenWeb's Tombstone Transcription Project. Since I am also interested in genealogy, contributing to these projects makes sense to me, and I hope to do more tombstone transcription over the summer.






Well, I guess I've talked enough about cemeteries for one post. I just wanted to share with you my love of cemetery visiting. My family thinks it's kind of strange, and I'm guessing most people think the same.

Always Learning

The Capitol building.
South side, taken by the Governor's Mansion while walking on the way to the office.
(There's a really weird "modern art" Lincoln bicycle on the Mansion lawn, checkered black and white with checkered monkeys hanging on it. Modern art- bleh!)

Jen and I have been taking turns driving to Lincoln every week to Volunteer at the Capitol. The work is slightly mundane and not very useful(at least, sometimes I feel like I'm not being very useful), but it's been a great learning experience just being in the State Capitol. I'll only be going one more time and then session will be over, but I am grateful that I have been able to learn more about our Nebraska Legislature.

This past week was my week to go to Lincoln. On Wednesday I spent the day writing letters of response to those people who contacted the Senator's office; and when I got done with that I did an overview of LB 218, which was about county aid. I'm pretty sure LB 218 was voted through yesterday. You know, interesting things happen in the city. I hate parallel parking, so I always end up parking far away from the capitol in the easy parking places, usually in the same spot-across from the pink house with purple trim. I am really trying to remember this is the city, so lock the car- but I worry that it might get stolen anyway. I worry too much.

On Thursday I spent the day searching online for the phone numbers of people in the district who have unclaimed property. Thankfully there were other things going on so I had a few good breaks!

So there's a quick picture of what my week was like. How was yours?