How I Like My Turkey

Well, I had a wonderful Thanksgiving break and an enjoyable Thanksgiving dinner with my family and my "flatmate" Nicole.
I hope you enjoyed your Thanksgiving food and your time off!

During dinner on Thursday night, my grandmother handed me a platter of turkey and I politely declined. She questioned why I did not want any and I quickly declared, “I only like turkey in my shirt.” Then I paused and covered my mouth, after realizing what I had said. What?!?
What did I mean and where did that come from?? Well . . . . I had meant to say that I really only like turkey on my sandwiches – but, I guess it just didn't come out right. So, my family enjoyed a good laugh and I was thoroughly embarrassed.

A Puzzling Profession

My dad was listening to NPR this morning as I was getting ready to leave the house. I overheard the talk show host introduce a man named Will Shortz, (pictured in a cheeseball photo on the right) who had a degree in Enigmatology. The show continued as people began calling in and asking riddles, all of which he was able to answer.




So, I did a little research tonight to find out more about this puzzling degree in the study of puzzles ... Will went to Indiana University and designed his own major program. He is the only person in the world to have a degree in enigmatology! He sold his first professional puzzle when he was only fourteen years old. He has been the official crossword puzzle editor of The New York Times for more than ten years and he appears on NPR each Sunday. He is also the founder of the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament (picture of 2005 competion at left). What a life - he makes a living out of creating and solving puzzles!

Here is a riddle for you to solve (you can look under the comments section for a clue). Name a five letter word that contains four vowels. And if you remove those four vowels, the word is still pronounced the same way.

Super Woman vs. The Rat

My family has had a "small" problem with rats in our garage recently. My dad sets monstrous traps on the garage shelves and we wait in anticipation … he has already caught two within the last few weeks (two that he claims were very large and healthy looking).

So tonight, my lovely minivan was having engine problems – I needed to pick Joy up from church so I quickly jumped in my mom’s car and pulled out of the garage and into the driveway. That is when I saw him … my little rat friend. I had run him over with my mom’s car!! It was SO gross – his body was smooshed and his little legs were flailing in the air. I yelled, shivered, flipped out and then drove away.

I called the house hoping my dad could scoop the guy up and put him in the trash before I got home – unfortunately, my dad was already in bed for the evening. It was now my job to clean up my little rat mess. So, I got back home and found him lying on the garage floor (where I had left him) but now he was in a pool of blood. It was SO gross!! I couldn’t move him! Perhaps if I hadn’t seen him flailing earlier then I could handle moving his lifeless body. But, now I just could not bring myself to do such a thing ... It was at that point that I decided I needed a man – any man. I didn’t care who it was I just needed a man to come remove this creature from my garage. However, my guy friends were all at a Pastor’s Retreat in Mexico!! Ahhhhhhh!! I stalled a little longer, called a few girlfriends who were even more squeamish and disgusted by the rat … they would not carry him to the trash.

Finally, it was at this moment that my hero arrived. Now, this woman is not just any woman, I believe she is superhuman (which is why many refer to her as “Super Woman”). She does things that are beyond comprehension. She walked down the stairs in her bathrobe and tennis shoes, grabbed a big shovel and scooped up my dead friend in the blink of an eye. Then she quickly washed her hands and went right back to bed. This woman should receive awards and accolades!! I continue to pray that I someday become the Super Mom that she has always been (as long as it doesn't involve scooping up squished rats).

Man's Day

A few evenings ago, I ventured out of the church office for a nice, “gourmet” dinner in 4S Ranch with Charlotte and two male friends from church. Out of courtesy (and for the protection of these male individuals), I have chosen to keep them anonymous. For the sake of my story, I will refer to these men as Schmal and Fitz.

So, as I was saying . . . I went to dinner at Gourmet China with Charlotte, Schmal and Fitz. During our dinner we somehow got on the topic of Valentine’s Day. Both Schmal and Fitz expressed their feelings on the topic – they claimed that it was a stupid holiday created only for women because the men obviously got nothing out of the celebration. They also commented that they refuse to observe this holiday in the future … no chocolates, no flowers, nothing for their wives! After making such bold statements, they then went on to say that America needed to create a holiday just for men . . . a holiday in which the women stayed home to clean and cook dinner for the men.

I reminded them that women do these things everyday.
And as if suddenly a light bulb went off in their heads – they turned and looked at each other, wide-eyed, and exclaimed in unison, “Every day is man’s day!” And though I would like to prove otherwise, it is true … everyday IS man’s day.

No More Math!

I have often discussed the possibility of creating some sort of petition that would ban mathematics in our public school systems forever. I am fully convinced that math class prohibition would substantially benefit the morale of our country.

While sitting through another Wednesday night algebra class, I began to write out the details of this petition. After several revisions, I decided it was time to propose my ideas to Nicole (my Flat mate). She too thought it was a brilliant plan, however, she came to one discouraging conclusion … how would one count the number of petition signatures if he or she did not take an elementary math class?

That's a good question ... but I'm not giving up! Who's with me?

The Many Faces of Robbie

So, I just found out that Robbie is coming home in less than two weeks. Woo hoo! I was going to drive up to Joshua (left) and pick him up, but he has been given permission to stay in San Diego after a missions trip to Mexico next week. It will be fun to spend time with him. Stacy, Fiona, Chelcea & Anothony were able to go up and visit Robbie at Joshua last week. Here are a few photos from the trip, courtesy of Fiona . . .

Robbie and Anthony




Robbie & Chelcea Jowling (it's awesome!)


The Group Ventures Across Hume Lake




Another Classic Photo of Robbie