reunion January 17, 2008

today i had lunch with my aunt
michelle. my dad’s sister.  i am
proud to say that we are very
much alike.  i would make a list
of qualities i love about her, but
since i just said we are alike, i think
i will refrain from making  a list
about myself.

i have not seen her in ages…maybe
two years!! 

to make this day even better, i
got to meet her lovely boyfriend,

m
i
k
e

he is so great!!  they seem to be
so very happy….a perfect match!

i took them to my favorite thai
place on the upper west side.
they loved it. then we went to
beard papa for a cream puff and
coffee.  we walked to 72nd street,
i put them on the train, and gave
them some directions and a quick
itinerary for their evening.
itineraries are what i do best!

as soon as i left them i turned and
called my mom to ask her how
much she loved meeting mike
several weeks ago.  we both
agreed that he is a nice man and
we both hope to spend more time
with him.

highligts of the afternoon:

*the sweet kisses i always get from
my aunt michelle
*seeing how happy and connected she
and mike are…that makes me happy.
*hearing mike’s perception of my
wonderful family.  (he thinks they are
lovely too!!)
*my aunt has always treated me as
a smart adult person, even when i
was five, but now we are able to
connect and understand one another
in such a way that gives me great
joy.  conversation was deep and
delightful.
*mike’s smile.  his eyes light up
bright, his face changes, and his
dimples come out to play. 
he’s so cute!!

it was so nice to meet you mike!
aunt michelle, i love you so much!

      

p.s i forgot to tell you that i’m feeling
a little bit better! yesterday and today
my health has steadily improved. 
thanks for your prayers!  i am ready
for my runny faucet of a nose to turn
off!!  i’ve never had a chapped nose
before.

this is the song that never ends January 17, 2008

…it goes on and on my friends.

that’s how i feel about this cold!!
it just won’t quit!!  it’s been about
10 days and i’m ready to be done
with this. 

yesterday i slept like a sickly person
on kari jo’s couch for hours.  when i
opened my eyes caroline walked by
and kindly said,

“lisa, can i get you anything?”

i do think that today was better.
it was the first morning that i woke
up without a pile of tissues by my
side the size of texas… maine maybe,
but not texas.  i’m faithfully taking
meds to fight the symptoms and 
trying my best to hydrate. 

you know you are sick when your
friends lure you to their house by the
amount of tissues they can offer.

“want to come over and play?  i have
two boxes of tissues and some cough
drops?!!”

i did make it out today. 
maren, brianne’s little sister, and i
went to young frankenstein.  zak is
an usher and got us free tickets! 
(great seats too!!  Thanks zak!!)
it was worth seeing for free.  i’m
glad that i didn’t pay for it.  although
i do love sutton foster.  she’s so good!!

and tonight was fellowship group.
it was so sweet to be back again.
so many new faces
and such lovely familiar faces.

prayer time at the end is often my
favorite part.  sharing and praying…
so sweet.

this week’s observation:
we all deal with very similar issues
when it’s all boiled down to the core. 
do we believe that God is good and
will do and be what he has promised? 
it was so good to confess that to one
another and encourage each other
in prayer tonight.

worship with friends, old and new, was
as sweet as ever.

tonight i ran out to fairway to pick up
dessert for fellowship group.  i took
caroline with me.  we threw on her pink
boots, hat, and coat over her monkey
pajamas.  she looked adorable.

on the way back, as i swerved through
the people and pushed sleeping caroline
in her stroller, i was hit hard by this feeling
of delight and happiness.  it was triggered
by the biting cold on my face and the
wind that cuts right through you and makes
you doubt for a moment whether you put
on your coat or not.  my skin was cold, but
I was warm.  i stopped and stood still for
a moment…

and adored and worshiped God.

for what, i am not exactly sure…my soul
was crying out…i’m not certain what it
was saying, but it was good and glad and
toward God.

lazy sunday January 14, 2008

how many of you are flashing back to
the SNL skit/song/rap with this
same title? it’s about two friends
who go out on a sunday to see the
chronicles of narnia. please go to the
SNL website and watch it. it’s under
digital shorts, on the last page.
funny funny funny

anyway, i really did have a lazy
sunday… i’m still not feeling well.

we had pancakes and eggs for breakfast,
a tradition in the cates house. it was
all cory for breakfast, as usual… and
delicious!!

then some of us enjoyed a mid morning
game of junior apples to apples.

kj started cleaning the boys room and i
laid on the top bunk to keep her
company. i ended up keeping the pillow
and blanket company as i snoozed for
maybe three hours. i woke up to a pile
of used tissues and some very sweet
children playing quietly and whispering
on the floor below me.when they saw my
eyes open the noise level increased
considerably.

at two in the afternoon we were all still
in the clothes (and i mean pajamas)
we were in at breakfast. what is a better
indicator of a lazy sunday than this??
today is our friend hisaya’s birthday.
so some folks came over for cake
and tea before church tonight. it
was fun to see some old friends.

henry made a sign for hisaya, then taped
it to the door himself. do you see how
much tape he used? henry is a master
at craft projects!

hisaya is in the chair next to henry.
in this pic betsy’s word bubble would probably say
“justin, thanks a lot, my friend, for exposing my
underpants to the world… i really appreciate it.”

or “i’m so embarrassed that my underpants are
showing! i’ll just hang here like a rag doll and
act like nothing is wrong.”

church was great! the walk there was
just as eventful and accident-filled
as i remember. henry is a maniac
on his scooter nearly taking out
innocent sidewalk users as he wildly
zooms by. many who do not know
henry compassionately stop to see
if he is alright when he wipes out.
he is always fine and ready to get
back on and make up the time lost.
he gets good use out of his helmet.

tonight after church we taught nathan
how to play spades. it was fun.

girls won 175 to 165, baby!!!!

henry was making me name tags.
his writing is getting much better!

it is supposed to snow tonight!!
i hope it does. keep praying…
your prayers are almost answered.

my plans if it snows a good amount:

1. go sledding in central park
2. drink my weight in hot chocolate

invalid January 13, 2008

that’s me

well, that’s a slight over exaggeration.

today i am sick.
remember that scratchy voice situation?
it got worse, and now it’s turned into
chillsheadachecoughingmucusfaucetsinuspressureeyewatering-lisa

while awake from coughing last night i
had a hard time getting back to sleep.
in the quiet every slight sound becomes
d e a f e n i n g:
tick tock of the clock on the wall
inhale exhale of the boys on the top bunk
click click of the lady’s heel’s on the sidewalk out way too late
ring ring of my cell phone at 4 am (someone thinks i’m still in hawaii)

me and sleep did a very seductive
dance last night. what i mean is that in
the tango you lean in close, think you are
about to get a kiss and then your partner
slings you out of his arms in a graceful
turn. i laid in a very comfortable bed, with
a soft pillow and warm covers….as i nodded
off into congested sleep i was slung out of
it by my own coughing… again and again.

this morning was so sweet. the cates and i
did christmas! the grass hula skirts were a
big hit. i got some beautiful earrings and
lovely paper from them.

cory and i took the kids out of the house
to the park (central ,that is) and lunch
while kari jo hosted a baby shower.

the afternoon was lovely despite my
runny nose and pounding head.

henry, kari jo’s 5 year old, made a bed
for me on the couch. then one for his dad
on the other couch. we slept this way for
over an hour while kj cleaned and the kids
played quietly/napped. pre-nap i got some
snuggly lovin’ from the cates children.
h a p p i n e s s

later meghan joined our lazy afternoon.
i also got some snuggly lovin’ from
her as she shared the couch, blankets,
and pillows with me. we stayed this way
and chatted for hours.

we are watching a baby break dancer
do you see caroline in the hula skirt
with the flower behind her hear?

to end our lovely afternoon we youtubed
hula girls and watched caroline, nathan,
and betsy show us their versions of the dance.

cory kindly played the pharmacist and
drugged me.

now i am at brianne and meghan’s apt. i have
mittens on and am covered in a blanket.
these girls are excellent at caring for sick
people. (if they weren’t they’d be SORRY
nurses). i squished myself up next to
brianne for a good while… that brought
some releif to my hurting head.

juice
echinacia
emergen-c
water
food
tissues
a nice cocktail of medication
TLC
NFL playoffs (i heart brett favre)

so now, although i have a pile of
used tissues around me and a fever,
(i can’t remember the last time i had
a fever) i am as happy as a clam!!

i’d like to say thank you to everyone
involved in my healing today,
including maren, brianne’s sister,
who is about to make cookies!!
and tea…she’s good at the tea!

pictures to come

bliss January 11, 2008

flight to nyc… smooth and fine
nothing crazy or funny happened,
i’m a bit sad to say.

then, i found myself on kari jo’s
couch, with a cup of tea and a
plate of warm cranberry apple bread.
i was melted into the couch,
warm and happy. i’d been
dreaming of being in that very
spot doing that very thing for
weeks!!

more than happy, really…
it was peaceful bliss.

i got some serious loving from
betsy and warm hugs from the
boys after school. my heart is
brimming with delight and gladness.

this is baby betsy! isn’t she darling!!!
i can’t get enough of her!!

this is caroline. we are reading about
what happens when you give a mouse
a cookie.

kari jo is a bosom friend, a kindred
spirit. time with her already has
been sweet and full as we talk and
share and bounce things off of one
another.

i went to brianne and meghan’s
before they went to work. i came
in, gave several big tight happy hugs,
and made myself at home. they said
it was like i was never gone for seven
months. i love these girls!! we talked
and laughed and told stories as i admired
the new decor. they have an amazing
apartment!

it was my first time back on the streets
of nyc. i took my time, observing every
stranger, taking note of each person’s
fashion, as well as the ranges of emotion
painted on each face.

i strolled through citarella, a classy
colorful market, and slowly made my
way back to the cates’ house, soaking
in very detail of the world around me.

later in the evening i took myself up
to the hospital for a visit. all my girls
were working, and it was brianne’s
last night at the hospital. it was so
so good to see erica and dive right into
conversation, connecting with her right
away. we had snacks and cake!!
it was fun to see everyone again.

i crawled into the top bunk in the
boy’s room and slept happily all
night. it was perfect first day back.

i’m so glad i have 16 more days!!

today i get my hair cut and see cory…
he was out of town last night.

check-list lisa January 9, 2008

i love me a good check-list.
i’m a list maker to the core.

so, it’s the morning i leave for my
trip home.

i leave here at 2pm and i woke up
at 8am. 

i went to be at 3:30 am
after getting off work early at
11:45pm.  you do the math on
how many hours were worked and
slept and how much time is left to
do the tasks at hand.  i might hurt
something if i try to get it all straight
in my head.  i might need a piece of
loose leaf notebook paper, a pencil,
a protractor, and a pocket protector.

here is my check list for this morning:

make bed
vacuum and clean apt
finish packing
get safety inspection for my car
leave julie notes and a welcome home sign
journal and read my bible
go to beach with jared and associates
shower
go to store for snacks and medicine
pick up coat from the cleaners
fill out a recommendation form for julie’s seminary application

do you think i can do it all?

i think i can, i think i can, i think i can!!

then off to the airport at 12:15pm or so!!

nyc and okc………

H E R E   I   C O M E ! !

update: i got everything on my list done
except beach with jared.  but i did have
lunch with jared and associates.

an afternoon on the green January 9, 2008

    

yesterday afternoon mikey and i
had a tee time of 2pm.

we are both not so good at this
game yet.  we have a few things
to learn, but had a blast!

it took us 2 hr and 45 min to play
9 holes.  good thing we decided to
drive instead of walk.

i’m not so good at driving the ball
very far, so my long game was
pretty embarrassing. i had two
strokes for mike’s one on the
fairway.  i can hold my own when
putting and chipping, so that is
what kept me above water.  well,
that’s not entirely true seeing that
mikey beat me by 20 strokes.

on the 2nd hole we ran into a pack
of baby wild boar. three little guys
…maybe they were preteen boars,
they seemed pretty ornery.  on
our way to the third hole they
started running after our cart.  i
yelled at mikey who was driving,
“go! put the pedal to the metal, lunchbox!”
as we turned on the path they kept
going straight into the bush/woods. 
it was so funny.

    
and chickens… the wild chickens are always up
in people’s business!!

i only lost one ball. we didn’t follow
all the rules very well, but we did
have a wonderful afternoon. it was my
first time to play a game and keep
score and do it up half right. 

i really am bad, and had to keep
reminding myself that i can only
get better.  i think i will stick to this
thing.

it was warm and beautiful!
the back half of the course is tucked
into the mountains.  yesterday
the clouds moved up and down the side
of the mountains.  it was stunning! i
think this is my favorite part of golf…
the scenery!  of course the cute golf
skirts and shoes are my real favorite,
but that is a given, right?
 

      

    

washing the ball was a true highlight for me.
do you see the mountains in the background?

    
above is mike trying out his happy gilmore swing.
it took him several tries before he actually hit
the ball.

now for those of you with weak stomachs,
or those of you who know anything about
golf or care anything about golf, you might
want to look away, or skip this last picture
altogether. it’s our score card: a shame. 
a deep deep shame. 

like i said… things can only look
up from here.

stinky shoes January 9, 2008

remember the friends episode when
phoebe gets sick and her voice is hoarse
and low. she called it her sexy voice
and loved it and thought she sang so
well with it?
(was her song ’sticky shoes’ or ’stinky
shoes’? i just can’t remember)

well, just call me phoebe. i’m battling
this half cold with zycam and ice cream.
ok, the ice cream is because i’m out of
food and that’s my only option.

last night at work i tried not to talk to
my pt’s families much. who wants a
coughingsnifflingthroat-clearingscratchyvoiced
nurse?  no one!!  not even if she is wearing
pink and a big smile.

i hope my sexy sick voice clears before i
get to nyc. (i leave tomorrow!!!!!!!!!!)
 i’ve been instructed by zak, a singer
and actor, to “coat the cords” and
hydrate.  so, that i will do.  thanks zak!!

ps. fun lisa tried to rationalize
with the nurse lisa that a cherry icee
would help my throat.  nurse lisa
won and i went icee-less last night. 

she is so bossy sometimes!!

lunch at the malone’s January 7, 2008

before i tell you about my
lunch at the malone’s house
i want to share with you the
prayer of confession we spoke
together aloud at church today

Almighty God and most merciful Father,
we ask that you help our weaknesses.
If you see in us any wrong thing encouraged:
any evil desire cherished; any delight that is
not your delight, an habit that grieves you,
any nest of sin in our heart – reveal these to us
today and turn our hearts to you.  And teach our
feet to walk in the way of your commands. Lead
us safely on to your eternal kingdom – not asking
whether the road be rough or smooth.  We only ask
to see the face of Him who first loved us – that we
might live in Your House forever, to live in your
everlasting peace. Through the name of the One
who suffered on our behalf, Jesus the Righteous,
Amen.

wow.  i hardly ever make it through this
part of the service without moist eyes,
(i am very aware of how i fall short, and
the prayers of confession usually offer
deeper conviction as well as relief to
have such clear statements of the
condition of my heart)
but today my eyes were especially
moist.  i have been praying through
what this next year of life should look
like for me and today’s confession is
almost a mirror image of the pages of
my journal over the past couple of weeks.
(ok, not mirror image…the puritans said
it in a much more concise, full, eloquent
way than i ever could…but the heart of
this pray and my own are the same)

i was invited to lunch by the malone
family. charlie is an elder at trinity and
anne leads our women’s bible studies.
they have two lovely, smart, charming,
well rounded children.

over lunch we chatted about all sorts of
things like charlie’s brother’s tea company,
caroline’s most recent reads, how they
got to hawaii, and their decision to
home school their children. 
easy
smooth
fun
enlightening

p.s caroline loves LM Montgomery
as much as i do.  maybe more! she
dreams of going to prince edward
island (where the anne of green gables
books are set) on her honeymoon one
day.   she’s my kind of girl!!

here is caroline’s christmas list:
*flat iron for her hair
*doll clothes for her american
girl dolls
*gun

yes, a gun.  she got an airsoft pellet gun.

so for the next 30 ish minutes we shot
her gun. charlie taught me how to load
it, hold it, aim, and SHOOT!!  all of us
but anne took a turn with the gun. 

don’t be fooled, anne took a class on
using guns and can probably take out
a bad guy with her left hand from
around a corner!!!  i’m sure she’s
got some sweet moves!

we had a great time and i got to feel
like sydney bristow!!  this was a
practice session for my trip home to
OK in a couple weeks.  my dad is
planning to teach me to shoot real
guns.  (it’s his newest thing…i’m sure
he’s totally u.s.-secret-forces good at
it!!!)

thanks for a terrific afternoon
malone family!!!

in the back yard is a little house they use
as a schoolhouse.  it’s every home schooling
parent’s dream come true!!!  it’s darling!!

     
 

confession January 4, 2008

i’ve been hooked on the Sports Guy.
i ravenously read all his articles
since kari jo mentioned him on  her
blog a few months ago.
(thanks kj, for that golden nugget!)

he is hilarious.  i understand half of
what…no, less than half of what he
is talking about, but i love it.  i check
daily to see if he has written anything
new, i even have listened to his
podcast… more than once, and i have
a shortcut to his espn page on my
desktop. 
(i would have made it my home page,
but couldn’t figure out how to do it)

the more i read, the more i get and
the more i want to read.  it’s getting
out of control really.

this morning, i got off of work, came
into the apt, dropped my things in the
floor, ripped off my scrubs, and am
now glued to my computer screen
reading his NFL playoff picks article
and eating cracklin’ oatbran…..

instead of sleeping.

i

have

a

problem

a small dream come true January 2, 2008

well, it has only half come true… 
do you all know how much i love

commercials??

well, brianne and meghan’s favorite
past time is to watch me watch
commercials.  i love them…and maybe
laugh more than i should. 

ps. the commericals during the sugar
bowl today were pretty good.

espn has the best, funniest, most
clever commericals of all.  

so how do you think i reacted when
i happened to stumble over an entire
show of espn this is sportscenter
commercials!?

i called brianne yelling into the phone
and then went on to describe my
favorite ones to her. 
sorry, brianne.

i only saw the last 20 minutes of it and
am dreaming of seeing and owning the
program.

here is where you come in….

if any of you can get me a copy of
that show (it was on new year’s eve)
i will offer a reward, … i promise to
send you cookies weekly for a year,
or i will memorize all the words to
gettin’ giggy with it (or your favorite song)
and sing/rap (yes, rap)  them to you,
or i will let you be the ring bearer in
my wedding one day, or take pottery
lessons and make you a set of dinner ware,
or…

do we need to go on??  the point is
that i will pay big for that show.
you would too if you saw it with your
own eyes.

new girl at the party January 2, 2008

that’s me!

for new year’s eve i went out
with a girl from work. i didn’t
know anyone but her.  the first
few people i met were from
colorado
nebraska
missouri
do you see the connection?

the BIG 12

being a sooner fan i was a bit
startled to meet my enemies,
but then i thought that since
i’m way out here in the wac
conference, it’s best to stick
close to the midwest.  stay
within the conference.  i didn’t
go wrong with this game plan.
naturally, these folks were friendly
and easy to talk to. 

there were maybe 25-ish people
in our party.  we called cabs and
made our way to the restaurant/bar
right on the water.  there were two
bands and lots of loud talking.

i won’t go over everything that
happened through the night.  i
didn’t have such a good time, so
i won’t put you through it.

         

left: this is me and melissa, my co-worker.
right: these are the people who were at my
table: girl on the left was on vacation from
canada, middle was smashed at 9pm when i
first met him, he’s in the navy.  the girl on the
left is a helicopter pilot in the coast guard
who ran a 10k at 7am the next morning. 
she is extreme!!!

the fireworks were great, and i got to
wear julie’s pretty dress.  the fireworks
were launched off a barge. there was a
dreamy reflection of the fireworks on
the water.

this pic above is after the party and
i’m on the phone with meghan. both
of us had less than ideal evenings
and we were comforting each other. 

that’s what friends are for!!!

here’s the conversation i had with toasted
navy guy 5 min before the new year.

navy: hey! hey!  who are you going to make
out with?
me: uuuhhh.  no one!
navy: what?!!  let’s find you someone to make
out with.
me: uuuuhhh. no!!
navy: yeah!!!!! it’s new year’s eve!  come on! 
how about that guy?!!
canadian: he is with that girl!!  leave her
alone,  she’s a nice girl!
navy: no. no. no. everyone needs to make
out with someone.  quick!  what about that
guy? (he points to a very short guy that
looks a bit like the oompa loompas on the
new chocolate factory and dancing mindlessly
with a bottle of champaign in his hand…just
recalling this scene makes me laugh)
me: wha…?? uuuuhhhh. no!!

so today, the first day of the new year
i was invited by another co-worker to
her house for a party and the sugar
bowl. 

so i was 0-1 and was a bit nervous about
being the new girl two days in a row.

but i went.

as i walked down the street to her
house every single home had the
hawaii game blairing; garage doors
open, people eating, kids playing,
grills smoking.

her family was so so nice and i got
lots of hugs and kisses as i was
introduced to everyone.  she is
hawaiian and there were piles of
hawaiian food.  most of it was
delicious. 
my favorite: chocolate haupia pie

the game was sad, but the party
was great!!  i’m so glad i went.
keola, my co-worker is so very
sweet with a soft voice and a 
contagious laugh.

after a few glasses of wine, keola’s
auntie showed me some of her
yoga moves… it was funny, but
she had some guns and long
graceful legs to speak for her
swaying “balance” postures. 

wine+yoga= dozing and stumbling
(don’t try this at home… if you do just
make sure you have your spotters
ready…and maybe some mats)

ps. her oldest daughter’s name
is isale.  it is pronounced like
my name in pig latin.