Being Alexander

So... this week has had l0ts of wonderful blessings in it... but if you don't mind, spare me a brief rant for just a second.

In the past 48 hours:

- I lost my keys.
- My phone died randomly, and I can't turn it back on.
- The little girl I nanny had one of those days. I'm pretty sure if I had asked her to breathe today, she would have thrown a fit.

Some days are like that... even in Australia Denver.

Visit from little sister

Had a great weekend with my youngest sister, who just graduated from high school and is off to college in the fall. This is the two of us at Snooze, a breakfast place here in Denver.

My name is Inigo Montoya, you killed my father, prepare to die.

We at least were prepared to watch one of the best movies of all time.

A week ago Tuesday... (I know, I know- and I still have to post about little sis-in-law's visit!) we crossed another To Enjoy off of my list. It's definitely beating out the To-Create one.

We headed up to the Red Rocks Amphitheater to enjoy some Wesley and Buttercup action and to enjoy the beautiful scenery. It was amazing! I was happy to be joined by lots of good friends, including some last minute additions. It was fun to watch the movie with a sold-out crowd and to hear the cheers, boos, and along-side quotes as the movie progressed.



The only warning I would give would be to watch out for aerial attacks. I was half-way through my dinner when I heard a SPLAT and received a protein rich bundle of well .... For your viewing pleasure, see below. I guess I can take a gift from a bird over an ROUS though.


So... what's your favorite line?

World Cup Watching

I've been enjoying watching lots of World Cup the past few days. Seeing the last goal taken away from USA today in their match against Slovenia, however, was very painful. Eventually I had to stop watching the clip on youtube over and over again because it was just working me up into a frenzy. There is clearly no off-sides foul occurring. In fact, if the referee wanted to make any call he could have chosen from 2-3 Slovenian players who had full bear-hugs around American players at the time of the kick. Frustrating.

Two thoughts from today:

1) Nicole says this poor call by the referee is part of why Americans will never embrace Soccer in it's current form. We are big fans of justice, equity, and fairness here in the States and a sport that embraces human error and rejects any semblance of instant replay or official review is hard to swallow for Americans. FIFA has gone on record as wanting to preserve the human-error element of Soccer and rejects calls for instant replay or a "fourth official" with the ability to quickly view video evidence and alter game-changing calls on the field.

2) This afternoon on NPR I heard a brief interview with David Brooks from the NYT. His comment regarding soccer was funny to me and helped assuage the pain of our stolen win from earlier today: "soccer is agony." You can find the audio clip (~6 minutes) here.

Missing Contributions

Yesterday, June 16th, was Day of the African Child. Below is some background on the day of remembrance:
In Soweto, South Africa, thousands of black school children took to the streets in 1976, in a march more than half a mile long, to protest the inferior quality of their education and to demand their right to be taught in their own language. Hundreds of young boys and girls were shot down; and in the two weeks of protest that followed, more than a hundred people were killed and more than a thousand were injured.
Source: UNICEF, Right to Education Project

This is a day not only remembered in South Africa but also in Sierra Leone. The past two years I would have already been in Sierra Leone, and in Banta, for several days. I would have gone to the celebration they cancel school for each year. I would have enjoyed the dancing from the children and their skits. And I would have endured the contributions. Contributions are a lovely invention whereby anyone who wants to share, talk, sing, pray, etc. may at a public event. They bring the community together, and they teach the Americans patience. And they last a really long time (see patience).

However, on my way home yesterday I was listening to NPR where they were discussing the day, and I found myself missing the contributions that had been shared earlier that morning an ocean away. I try not to think too much about how I am not returning to Sierra Leone this year. It just makes me sad and impatient to return. (Apparently I still need to listen to some more contributions!) My hope is to return to Sierra Leone next summer, but this still seems so far away. I will have missed a year of growth in all of the children's lives. I will have missed some teachers and friends who may move on. I will miss Aunty Chris's beautiful smile and her delicious food. I will miss Aminata's laugh. I will miss so much. I do miss so much. I miss this:

Hearting Denver

I do like Denver! Since I will be around Denver most of the summer this year, I decided to make a list of To Creates and To Enjoys. Not much has happened on my glorified To-Do list, but Eric and I have already had the opportunity to enjoy several summer happenings.

First up was Susan's baby shower. After a minor Facebook snafu in which my delight over hosting the first of all future friend baby showers was misinterpreted to declare that I was the pregnant one (sorry to disappoint), we threw a Bear Hunt themed shower for my friend Susan. We were then joined by the boys where Al practiced his upcoming dad skills with a football.



Followed by this lovely event, we headed downtown to enjoy Denver's Chalk Art Festival. By far my favorite was this lovely picture:


Notice that the image is distorted on the ground but clear in the mirror. Hmm... You may add your interpretation in the comments section.

One of the many things I love about Denver is all the free stuff. If you need to find me on Sunday evenings between 6 - 8, I will be here:


Jazz in the Park is a lovely event where you bring a blanket, food, drinks, games, and your friends you've convinced that this is cool (talking to you Al) and you enjoy some free music and equally entertaining people-watching.

Tuesday night we headed down to the Rockies game. We scored some free parking and dollar hot dogs but unfortunately, like the Rockies, did not score enough to garner $4 seats. However, it was still a classic Take Me Out to the Ballgame good time!


On my summer goal list, an addendum to the Rockies game was getting a hot dog and a beer. As you can see, this is now crossed off my list!



One added note: All these pictures were taken on my spiffy new phone! And let me just say, it is all that I hoped for!

To Four Years...

Dear Phantom Blogger Eric,

I love you. I am so glad you are my husband. The past four years have been eventful, involving three states, temporary pets, a house purchase, school then more school, cross-continent treks, as well as many other simpler, wonderful times. I don't think we knew much about life or marriage when we said "I do" four years ago (and we still don't!). But I'm glad I'm figuring it out with you!

Love,

your wife

On Fairy God-mothers and Mother-in-Laws

I had a dream.

After college, I had managed to collect a lot of debt as well as over 35 college related t-shirts. These t-shirts gradually got worn less and less (as I more and more started working), but they held many special memories for me. So 3 and a half years ago, I embarked on a journey to make a t-shirt quilt. It began with my grandma. We went to the store and bought a "How-to" book. The dream stayed a book for a long time, until my lovely mom-in-law offered up her help, service, wisdom, and patience in fixing all my mistakes. When I went to the store to buy the quilting supplies with Eric, the sweet lady ringing me up warned me that quilting was addicting.

Let's just say I never had to go to rehab. I began the project with mom-in-law, watched my dream take shape, and then watched it disappear into a bag in the back of my closet due to multiple moves and this thing called Life. My dream was mostly dead. Last holiday season, I attempted to pull it out once more by bringing it with me to the in-laws- the end.

Just when I thought there would be no quilt, my gracious mom-in-law saved the day memories and finished it for me for my birthday.

And I love it!!!! And don't worry- I only explain the significance of every square in person!