Meet Evie

So, this is my new roommate. Her name is Evie.

Yes, my new roommate is a cat. In fact, she is a cat I am not supposed to have. (I know, please don’t remind me.)

Every morning, Evie would wait outside my door before work. Every morning, I would stoop and pet her and be late for work. It seemed as if she had a home before, because she appeared to be well cared for, and friendly with people. Within a few days, I discovered she had been thrown out of the home of one of my neighbors when they discovered their lease did not allow pets. I happen to have the same lease. I hated the thought of that poor, sweet cat just being dumped, and not being given a new home.

Two weeks ago, it was snowing outside. I was sick. My roommate Shea and her friend Ashley walked in the door, and discovered the cat huddling underneath a truck. Evie would come to both of them and allow them to pet her and play with her. They knew she was friendly. I knew her history, that she had been an indoor cat until very recently… and I couldn’t bear the thought of leaving her out in the snow. My roommate Emily has wanted a cat, and Evie was friendly, and there.. so we brought her in. Evie has adapted to her new home quickly. She is very “talkative” and affectionate. She sleeps on my bed with me and is friendly with others. Evie has even earned her keep with already catching two mice. This morning, I received a text message from our manager telling us that Evie had to go. I pleaded with her to give us a week to find her somewhere else to go. I have had my friend Jenni offer to take her until I move again (which would be February). I have to check with Scott’s family to see if we can eventually have her after we are married, since Scott’s parents own the house he lives in. (Wait, did I just say that? Okay, I’ll be honest. We have a wedding coming soon. As if none of you hadn’t already figured it out.)

So this is where I need your help.

I want to find a foster home for her, or a permanent home, until I can make arrangements to keep her myself.

Any takers? Seriously, I will fly her to you.

Kidnapping Fail

I really like having Scott around, and I hate it one of us has to leave. But right now, its not possible for us to be together all the time. Long distance. That’s how we roll. So everytime I see him, we hatch plots to keep the other around. This time, I was done playing… I actually tried to keep him here. I decided to use Facebook to gather some kidnapping suggestions from friends.

One friend suggested I shave Scott’s beard. As you can see in the picture below, my man is hairy.

Scott is part werewolf

 My friend theorized that Scott could not bear the shame of a beardless chin, and would be forced to stay at least as long as it took to grow back in his beard.  This was a good plan, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. It would be too much like trying to shave Aslan’s mane… it’s pretty much against all that is fair and good.

Back to the drawing board…

I had one friend suggest to steal his clothes. I hid them, but not well enough, because he found them. When Scott went back to re-packing his clothing, a piece of Brocka’s western home decor caught my eye. A solution came to mind! In fact, why hadn’t I thought of it sooner?

That’s right. I literally lassoed my man.

But he had such a sad look on his face, I couldn’t let him stay like that…

Who can resist those blue eyes?

So now he is back in Sioux Falls. Of course.

I miss you, baby…

Just Get Me The Mixer

I love Kitchen Aid Stand Mixers. Love them. Especially in red. When Scott and I were wandering around the mall, he found out just how much I love them.

I mean, seriously, have you ever seen a kitchen appliance make anyone look so happy?

Wouldn’t you say that this would be a wonderful gift for me? My birthday is coming up on December 8th. Christmas is December 25th. Maybe you should get me one for my wedding!

 Um, hi Scott! Don’t worry, I will let you decide if there is a wedding or not. Cause seriously, after finding out what a crazy woman I am, I wouldn’t blame you if you decided against attaching yourself to me for the rest of our lives.

Scott Meets IKEA

While Scott was visiting me in Utah, I decided to take him to a store he had never been to: IKEA.  We all know I have an interesting love affair with this store, and now it was Scott’s turn to experience its wonders.

As we wandered through the store, Scott and I discussed how we wanted our home to look one day. Neither one of us are into postmodern Scandinavian design, but he did  like some of IKEA’s more classic peices. We sat on every sofa that looked comfortable and even some that did not. We both found a kitchen style, sofas, and bookshelves that didn’t want us to go screaming for the hills. Eventually, Scott and I stumbled upon an area that sold nothing but desk chairs. Scott chose one of the strangest looking ones to see how it supported his imposing frame. WordPress isn’t letting me insert photos from the computer I am on, so click here and here for a taste of how he liked it. I guess you could caption both of the pictures, “Ooh, springy!”

Not long after that, I was distracted by candles and baskets being sold at low, low prices, and Scott had to practically drag me out of the store. I managed not to buy anything other than lingonberry jam, which is practically a rule that I have to purchase it. In the checkout line, Scott mused that there was an IKEA in Minneapolis, and once he was in the market for new furniture, maybe the two of us could go shopping.

IKEA? I think you have a new convert… and Scott and I have a bright future.

 

Good Natured Mischief

After Scott grew bored  with examining the grounds, we moved closer to the inner gate of the Salt Lake Temple. Since neither one of us are LDS, we cannot enter the Temple. Still, Scott wanted a closer look. He approached one of the missionaries, where we were informed that we could walk up to the doorways and look at the carved crevices of building. Score!

So here we are, getting that “closer look”….

Good luck stormin' the Temple, Scott!

Again, remember… we had permission.

Oh, no! He's trying to go in!

Hey, is that Scott down there?

 After our goofing around, I just had to go back and examine an olive tree. Yeah. I know. Me and my landscape photography, right? Poor Scott.  You can view that photo here, as well of one of Scott by some lovely fall foliage here. After all that walking and Temple-storming, Scott and I were hungry, so we went to my favorite restaurant, Tucci’s, for a late lunch, and rested up for our trip to IKEA the next day.

Scott Does Temple Square

So, on Scott’s first full day here in Salt Lake City, we made a visit to Temple Square. To say we had a good time would be an understatement. We went on a tour with a couple of missionary sisters, and Scott was very impressed with the huge pipe organ in the Tabernacle.

After our sweet pipe organ action, we wandered a bit around the grounds of Temple Square.

Eventually, we got tired of fountains and wandered more, where I shot some fall colors.

Scott grew bored with me taking pictures of random trees, and decided he wanted a closer view of the Temple, which is when we created some good natured mischief… that you will get to see. Tomorrow.

All Saints Day

Happy All Saints Day, world.

This holiday is virtually unknown to people. Because of this particular Roman Catholic mass, the holiday we all know as Halloween exists.

On Saturday, I took the bus with to go see my friends Peter and Leslie. On that bus I was with Elvis, The Cheshire Cat, and a Rastafarian. I also ran into a guy who had danced in a musical with Patrick Swayze, but he wasn’t in costume. Seriously though people, he was crazy enough that he should have been. So lets just say…. Halloween brings on a very colorful public transportation experience.

To be honest… I am not a huge fan of Halloween. Instead, I choose to celebrate Reformation Day. This was the day that brought forth the Protestant Reformation in Germany that eventually spread to the rest of Europe. Luther nailed his 95 Theses, a list of grievances against the Roman Catholic Church, that brought forth sweeping reform in Europe. The Bible was translated into common vernacular. The way man understood the Bible changed. With the Word of God in their own hands, people no longer relied on clergy to tell them what Scripture meant. They understood that Christ was their true Great High Priest, and they needed none other to go between them and God. Because of this Reformation, people began to embrace these five principles: Sola Fide, Sola Gratia, Solus Christus,  Sola Scriptura, and Sola Deo Gloria.

People were freed from the bondage of legalism, sin and death by faith in Christ.

You can read Luther’s 95 Theses here and the cry of the Reformers, the Five Solas, here.

Something to Look Forward To

So, in the last two weeks, I haven’t blogged much, have I? Again. I want to apologize for that. I do have a valid excuse though, outside of lethargy! My itteh bitteh red Lenovo, dubbed Lenny, has been acting up on me. With my vast knowledge of electronic expertise (which is basically… zero) I have determined my dear netbook needs a new adaptor. I will soon be on the hunt for one so I can be blogging more regularly again. So here is a quick rundown of whats been going on in my life to hold you over until I am able to post a few other updates.

I did manage to complete every item on my List of Seven and the basket/bookshelf concept is working fabulously for my harder-to-store clothing items. Also, with my new extra hangers, I have less clothing on the floor and more in my closet.  We did get a rental car, and it did cost us an arm and a leg, but… oh well, right? We had wheels!

Second, Scott had a good time out here in Salt Lake City. (Well, at least from what I can tell he did!) Since he was only here for two and half days which in terms of length equals exactly not long enough, we hit some of Salt Lake City’s main attractions, ate at my favorite restaurant, and I took Scott to experience IKEA for the first time. Perhaps he was not as enchanted with IKEA as I am, but I know he found certain items fascinating, if not useful. Pictures from this trip are forthcoming.

I have a new “roommate” in my apartment. Her name is Evie. If you are my facebook friend, perhaps you know a little bit about her. No, this roommate isn’t the same one who replaced Angela. This roommate is much smaller than the rest of us. And again, details will be coming soon!

Next week, I am traveling to Indiana to be in my friend Racheal’s wedding. I am excited to possibly see the Notre Dame campus and actually be in Chicago for the first time in, oh, thirteen years.  I also will be enduring the bad side of time change. Rach’s wedding is early on November 7th, so I will be waking up at 5 am Eastern Time to get my hair done.  I am currently in Mountain Time, which is two hours behind Eastern Time… yeah, you do the math. I will be waking up at my body’s equivalent of 3 AM. I might be the first non-alchohol consumption related undead bridesmaid in the history of Indiana. Oy.

Lastly, I have an exciting month for November on my blog. I have decided I will do NaBloWriMo instead of NaNoWriMo. I thought they both occurred in the same month, but suprise! They don’t. NaBloWriMo actually happens in October, but hello, I am a little late for that, aren’t I?  so I will participate in NaBloWriMo at the same time of NaNoWriMo to honor the spirit of NaNoWriMo… are you getting that? In so many words, I will try to blog every single day in November. Remember when I did that in May? Well, lets see if I can do it again.  Friends, I need some topic ideas. I will probably resurrect What in the World? and tell some some stories, but what kind of things do you want to know about my history? Lets really make me work NaBloWriMo!

Iowa Girl

I am an Iowa girl in more ways than one. I wasn’t just born there. I don’t just still love the state. I don’t just pine for it on a regular basis. I am also in love with Iowa sports.

Don't Mess With Herkey

Not just any team, though…. the University of Iowa Hawkeyes is where my allegiance lies.

Iowa girl through and through

I know, I know, there are two other teams to cheer for in the realm of Iowa state schools, the Iowa State Cyclones and University of Northern Iowa Panthers. The Panthers are in Cedar Falls, which borders my hometown, so they get a free pass. I do back ISU, especially when it comes to playing one of my least favorite teams. the Nebraska Cornhuskers. But still, my Hawkeyes are where its at. After all , Iowa is the Hawkeye State for a reason, yes?

My Hawkeye fanaticism is hard to maintain out here in the Mountain West football, where people in Salt Lake City have the “Holy War” rivalry with BYU and Utah (by the way, GO UTES!) Big 10 teams take a back seat. Iowa is one of the smaller Big 10 teams, so they don’t get as much attention as teams like Michigan or Ohio State and are rarely widely televised. I could catch their games on ESPN or ESPN-2 from time to time… but I don’t have cable.The devastating fact of the matter is… I have not seen an Iowa game in two eyars. I know, shame! So to keep up with the games, I have score updates sent to me from ESPN by text message and look up the highlights later.

Until today.

The sad streak of not watching my team play ends tonight. Tonight…. I get to watch my beloved Hawks play my least favorite team…. the Michigan Wolverines.. because it will be nationally broadcast on ABC. I didn’t think it could get any better, oh, but it does!! The game is at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, the Hawkeyes home stadium. So I can see the Hawkeyes? At Home? Playing my least favorite team? Sign me up!

Kinnick Stadium

This game is so in the bag!  Why, do you ask? Well, the Hawks are undefeated so far (YEAH!!!) and there is something akin to magic when they play at Kinnick with one of the “scary teams”… they usually win. Michigan is historically a “scary team” but I think they are now just a bunch of punks resting on the laurels of old success. Need some help? Check out this record. On top of that, last week they were schooled by their in-state rival Michigan State and one of their golden boys is injured. Michigan? YOU ARE IN FOR A SPANKING!

Bring. It. ON!

Theology Bimbo

I think that most of us that make regular use of Facebook are aware that it can be a potentially volitale networking tool. One minute your posting something on your wall and then a full-on digital debate breaks out among your friends.

With that, such an occasion almost occurred yesterday when Scott posted this blog on his profile yesterday.  Rather than go over the intracacies of the issue here, I will leave you to read the article if you so choose. Anyway, back to the post. One of Scott’s “friends” commented on the post, basically saying, “You actually believe this Scott?” Being the miniature pit bull I am, I jumped out from behind Scott’s legs and started yapping defensively at the one who dared to ridicule my beloved.  First though, I read the article to make sure  I backed Scott for reasons that went beyond loyalty. I drew my conclusion on the matter and responded to his friend expressing my view. Within a few minutes, his friend brushed off my critique, saying that since I am Scott’s girlfriend, of course I agree with him!

Wait a second, did he just ASSUME that I AUTOMATICALLY parrot Scott’s thoughts? Oh, no he didn’t!!

Perhaps some of you reading this blog out there in the intertubes don’t know me very well. Perhaps some of you know me very well and are scoffing at this dude’s comments. Whichever you are, I will tell you right now… I am a very independent thinker. I very rarely follow without question. Depending on the situation, this can be a good or bad thing.

  To be fair, this gentleman (if he deserves that title?) has never met me before. If he had, I am sure he would not have made that borderline chauvinistic response.  Surely, anyone that knows me would not think that for a minute…right? I let myself grumble and grouse for a few minutes over the insult, then I replied to his comment,  elaborating on my argument in favor of Scott, while employing  a bit of mild sarcasm to respond to this person’s outright brush-off that I share a brain with Scott.

Before I go any further, I adore Scott. I think he is a great guy (obviously!), but we don’t agree on everything.  We both find this perfectly acceptable.  In fact, the good-natured debates that spring from our minor disagreements seem to make our relationship more interesting! At least, neither one of us complain….

Wait, wasn’t there a story involved here? Back to that…

Within a short time of my reply, I felt guilty.  I hadn’t consulted Scott before I jumped to his or my own defense. I called him, and not only had he found my response perfect, but he was just as indignant as I. Scott wrote his friend a private message asserting that I drew my theological conclusions on my own. Scott stated was offended by his friend’s comments and demanded a public apology.  (By the way Having a man who defends your intellect is HOT!) Before we hung up, Scott told me he wouldn’t be dating me if I was a bimbo without an original thought. Well, thanks darlin’, cause I wouldn’t be dating you if you didn’t have a mind of your own, either. I said so before we even met, way back when I wrote my “husband list.”

Well, back to Scott’s  friend.  The “friend” responded to me once more on the blog comment.. There was no apology. He didn’t really attempt to defend against my argument, and addressed his statement that ticked Scott and I off by simply saying so many of the people he knows will tailor fit their views to that of their signifcant other. I will have to admit, I did that in the past… and was not a happy person at all. I am with someone who hasn’t tried to change me beyond spiritual encouragement in my conformity to Christ. He has no desire to push me into a mold I don’t belong in… and it’s refreshing.

After his friend’s last comment, I let things go. Why bother?

Last night was my church’s midweek prayer meeting. As I relayed the story to our small gathering, everyone laughed. My dear family from Jordan Valley responded with, “This guy must not know you very well!” to sarcastic comments like, “Yeah, Scott tells you exactly what to think and you just listen.”

See why I love these people? At least they know better!