Summer Goals

I've decided that while I'm waiting to hear back from potential employers, I'm going to write down some of my goals for the summer. I've divied them up into categories: Personal, Chores, School- Related, and Fun. This post will be incredibly boring for most of you- sorry. It's more for me than anyone else.

Personal: Feel Good.

1) I'm going to lose 20 lbs on purpose. Now that my knee can tolerate a bike again, I will be biking and swimming every day early in the morning, along with eating healthier. No more biscotti with my morning coffee, and definitely no more big helpings of my special tortellini pasta with butternut squash sauce. :( This also means some serious weight training. I usually lose 15 lbs every summer just from stress reduction, so maybe I can make it an even 35 this time? That would be awesome.

2) I'm going to get more sleep. I'm so tired of looking like a cover model for Zombie Magazine. No more dark circles, no more dependency on coffee to stay awake in the morning! On average I get about 5 hours a night, if I'm lucky, but now I can get a whole lot more! That is guaranteed to make me feel like waking up in the morning, and will probably help with the whole weight loss goal, too.

Chores: Organize My Life.

1) I'm going to go through my closet and get rid of a ton of clothes I don't need anymore. Seriously, it's time to get rid of the stuff from 8th- 12th grade. Yikes.

2) I'm also going to go through my books, and see if I can't come up with some other place for a lot of them. My room is beginning to resemble a small library, and while I've ALWAYS wanted a library like Belle's in Beauty and the Beast, right now it's not very practical.

3) With the space I'll create from re- locating books, I'm going to better organize all of my crafty/ artsy stuff. It's not terrible now, but I'm going to find something that works better for organizing all of my:
knitting needles & crochet hooks
YARN. Oh man, that stuff piles up from leftovers from projects!
paintbrushes
paints
paper- watercolor, sketching, etc.
pencils/ markers/ glittery things/ etc.
scrapbooking supplies (again, a lot of stuff here too)
stamps, ribbons, etc.
school supplies
beads (good for all sorts of media)
sewing stuff
fabric. uggh.

I don't really have knick- knacks, so that's good. Very, very good. But, I do have a lot of school papers to go through. Some of them I need to keep, but a lot I don't. They just clutter up my desk to the point I'm annoyed just looking at the stack of them.

School- Related: This summer, it's going to be about Getting Ahead.

1) Regularly go over Hebrew flashcards, and finish worksheets from last semester. If I can keep up with the vocabulary, which was A LOT this spring, I will be ahead for my third year this fall.

2) Start making flashcards for Greek. I found an awesome new website for those beginning Greek, and I am going to make flashcards for all of the grammatical terms, and learn the alphabet (print and script) for the fall. I have a feeling I will be thanking myself over and over again that I did!

3) Pre- read my books for all of the English classes I'm taking in the fall. I usually try and read what I can of textbooks before the start of school anyway, but I have a ridiculous amount of reading to do this semester... and if I have already read my books (for at least the English courses anyway), then I should be a lot better off than trying to stay up late and finish things during the semester. I'm trying to break that 5- hours- of- sleep-if- I'm- lucky streak!!

Fun: Hey! I can finally have some!

1) Catch up with friends! I don't get to see them nearly enough during the school year, and they are important. This is a priority.

2) Music: I'm going to improve my sweet guitar skills. If I can master just a few more chord progressions, then I can pretty much be my own band! I'm my own drums, keyboard, and bass. And soon guitar. Of course, I can't sing worth anything but that's ok... I'll find someone who can.
Can't forget, either, the good 'ol piano. I am going to be more dedicated to learning more this summer. I am going to record my compositions, and learn a song I've wanted to learn for relally long time.

3) I would love to finish my quilt, but I need a job first to secure the things necessary for its completion. So far, though, it's pretty darned cute! And owl themed. I'm in love with them.
I'm also going to make my own dress form, and figure out how to make my own dresses. Cute, light, summer ones, of course. Here's one of my practice appliqué owls. I have several different kinds, they aren't all shaped like this one. That's because I made my own patterns for them.


4) Painting. Drawing and painting are huge de- stressors for me, and I've begun to copy some of my favorite paintings and sculptures in black and white (it's the Classics major in me). I am going to add to this collection, and paint my very favorites. Check my "Experiments in Shadows" post for some examples if you want.

5) Cooking/ Baking. I love love LOVE to do these things. However, because I'm focusing on being healthier, I'm going to focus more on the cooking part. I already know I can bake well. ;)

I need to pay more attention to my mom, because she's an absolutely skilled woman when it comes to taking ordinary things and making them taste extraordinary.

6) Grandparents. Wait, what? I know, that's what just went through your head. Let me explain. My grandpa has been valiantly fighting that line between life & death for a while now... cancer does that. My goal with him? To get his life story. He has done it all- worked in a lot of different places, had many experiences in different parts of the country, and raised a large family. Every time I'm with him I learn something new about his life. A lot of times, old people (sorry grandpa) will tell the same old stories over and over, but with him it's not like that. He always has some new tales up his sleeve. Like when he was in the hospital recently, I learned that he wore pantyhose in a satirical production of a barn wedding. ??? You can't make this stuff up.

7) Well, can't leave out writing. This ties in with number six I guess, but I want to start writing my book. It's been in the planning stages for some time now, and I think with a few more tweaks of the character development I can finally start it! I'm excited. I also want to write and illustrate two children's books this summer. Contents are a secret though, because I don't want anybody taking them!

I guess that's about it for now. I know I had a few more, but I need to go help with dinner. :)

-Hannah

In Honor of Mom Part II

Well. I suppose I had better post some really sweet memories and things about her before ya'll get the wrong idea. ;)

Some of my very first memories of her are from when I was still pretty much a baby. She would rock me and sing me to sleep every night.

I also have her to thank for being such a wonderful example of what it is to be a Christian woman- compassionate, gentle, and real. Speaking of compassion, I don't think I've ever met anyone else in my life whose compassion matches hers. I remember one day coming home from school and finding her sobbing in our living room. A quail had flown into our long kitchen window and was hurt, so there she was with it wrapped in an old washcloth, rocking the twitchy thing and crying. She's like that, and I'm glad.

She also sets an excellent example of how to grow in the faith. She prays with other moms once a week for kids at my brother's high school, and she and a friend pray every Friday morning for their kids. She makes going to church a priority, and even when she feels terrible she still goes.

Mom is also very creative. She has the best handwriting, and when I was little I always had the best school projects! She's artsy in her own way, even if she denies it.

Another thing I appreciate about my mother is her ability to cook. Oh my, she does it a little too well. Everything she does always tastes really good, but trying to watch how she does things frustrates me because she doesn't really follow recipes and it's hard to remember.

My mom also has a heart for people. She fills the role of counselor in many lives, not just mine. She is the first person everyone goes to for help or advice, and it is always given lovingly and for free. :)

I also have to say that she is FUN. Always the life of the party, NO ONE ever forgets my mom once they've met her. No matter where we go, she always runs into someone she knows! Seriously, everywhere.

And finally, she has this unique ability to get things for free, often. Because she is so funny and nice, she somehow affects people in a way that they give her things. I'm trying to figure out how she does it! Free dessert, free products, free drinks, free makeup, free whatever- it happens everywhere. What's so cool about it is that she never expects it- people just like her that much. :)

There is so much more I could say, but I guess the bottom line is that I am very blessed to have her as a mom. What more could a girl ask for?!

In honor of MOM

Tomorrow is my mom's birthday, to be closely followed by Mother's Day on Sunday. I have to share some of my favorite memories of her with all of you.

Memory #1

I will NEVER forget the time we drove up to Minnesota the summer before fifth grade. We crammed all of our stuff in the car, and didn't stop for two days. No hotels, nothin'. My brother and I got so annoyed with each other that we built a wall of stuff in the middle seat just so we wouldn't have to look at each other! So poor mom, dealing with two cranky kids, was forced to take over the job of distracting us. We were stopped at a gas station in Kansas, and mom mysteriously disappeared into the quikie mart. She came back and we got onto the interstate highway, and then... she whips out a pair of these!!


She put these puppies on, and waved likes a madwoman at passing old people. Oh my gosh, we had never been more embarrassed before. Priceless.



Memory #2

The next memory I will NEVER forget of my mom was the time I took my best friend Naomi on her first camping trip. We had to take two cars, so my dad & brother rode in one and us girls got in the other. It was a long drive, and we talked and chattered away. Until Mom broke out the CDs, that is. She popped in some oldies and started seriously groovin' to the beat. My friend looked at me, as I turned red, and we both laughed so hard that the Sprite we were drinking was in serious danger of coming out our noses. She got the car into it, too, and we were b-boppin our way through the forest. I can only wonder what the local wildlife thought.



Memory # 3

Years later, I took same friend Naomi with my family to Disneyland, because she had never been before.

Naomi, my mom, and I were walking around Main Street when, lo and behold, a fire truck drives by full of firemen with band instruments.

Before even thinking about it, my mom YELLS and I mean YELLS:

"Look, those are some horny firemen!!"

People stared. I cringed. My friend turned crimson, and so did one of the firemen. I could have died, but it was pretty hilarious.



Memory # 4

This is on ongoing memory, because it happens all the time. Maybe I should call it a characteristic of hers instead of a memory.

Anyway, it's a well-known fact that my mom is cool. Much, much cooler than I am- by far. She is so cool, in fact, that many of my friends text her or come over to see her under the pretense of seeing me (but I know they just want to see her). :) She has been dubbed "Mama Jones," and the story of that is of course worth hearing.

My brother had some friends over one time to create musical fusion in our loft. They had brought over another friend that had never met my mom, and he was kind of a shy kid.

Well they were all upstairs, and Brittany (the cute one) made him call my mom. Why, you ask? I have no idea, it was just random. So this scared kid calls my mom- without knowing it was her- and what on earth does my mom do? She doesn't even know who's talking to her, but she decided to start talking like a Southern African American lady. Oh yes, she did! So this poor kid is getting very confused, and talks back like a African American man. And thus, "Mama Jones" was born. When he came downstairs later, he met her in person. Then they told that poor kid who she was, and he about died running out the front door (I kid you not, he sprinted out that front door!).

I guess I should also tell you that when she used to work as a waitress, sometimes she would wait tables with foreign accents. Just because. Yup, NEVER a dull moment at my house!! :)


Well I have to go, but I will probably post more tomorrow.

Experiments in Shadows

Lately, I have been drawing up a storm. I have never had art lessons, but they are something I wish I had. I have just been experimenting with some of them, and concentrating the most on shadows. Enjoy!

The Dying Gual

The Dying Gual's head.
I love it.
Even if he does somehow mysteriously look like one of the Village People. Y-M-C-A!

Lady with an Ermine

Guess who? ;)

Venus de Milo... head

I am going to try and paint this one!

Formatting

Today I am playing around with formatting... sorry!!

Be Thou My Vision

Verssification by Eleanor Hull, 1912

Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart,

be all else but naught to me, save that thou art;

be thou my best thought in the day and the night,

both waking and sleeping, thy presence my light.

Be thou my wisdom, be thou my true word,

be thou ever with me, and I with thee Lord;

be thou my great Father, and I thy true son;

be thou in me dwelling, and I with thee one.

Be thou my breastplate, my sword for the fight;

be thou my whole armor, be thou my true might;

be thou my soul's shelter, be thou my strong tower:

O raise thou me heavenward, great Power of my power.

Riches I heed not, nor man's empty praise:

be thou mine inheritance now and always;

be thou and thou only the first in my heart;

O Sovereign of heaven, my treasure thou art.

High King of heaven, thou heaven's bright sun,

O grant me its joys after victory is won;

great Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,

still be thou my vision, O Ruler of all.

I love this hymn. As I was walking across campus today, this random girl was singing this, quite loudly. Did the pressures of finals get to her? Maybe. But maybe something else did- the verses. I know they grabbed me.

It was deadly quiet as I walked along, something incredibly strange for a bustling campus. And then I heard it- this beautiful voice, clear and sweet, singing these words. Aha! That would explain the confused looks on everyone's faces. Everyone just walked with their heads down, thinking, and concentrated on them. How odd.

As I got closer to her, I looked at her. She looked at me, and we both broke out in a grin. That was all, after she passed things went back to normal.

Such a simple moment, but one that I probably won't forget for a long time. What an excellent thing to be reminded of- my Tower, my Might, my Strength. Amen to whoever you are, sister. Amen. :)