This may be my most boring post ever. But when Karen Braden looks at you and says, "You really need a new post...maybe even some food pictures," you know you just have to put something up!

We are moving away in one week. OH MY GOODNESS! I am so stressed and nervous. But we do have a place to live, and for that I am extremely grateful.

And my to do list has gotten extremely shorter. Here is all that's left to do:

* sell my car (we are selling my Civic and just taking Bech's Colorado to Vermont)--a little side note: you may remember that Bech and I have trouble selling cars. Not sure why. But pray that this one will sell sooner than our Malawi one!

* cancel our current health insurance

* change addresses for bills, netflix, etc.

* finish Latin--I've been working through Wheelock's Latin this past year to make sure my grammar is up to par. I only have 5 more chapters to go!

* send off our old laptop to apple to be recycled (okay, that's probably not blog worthy--well none of this is--but it's on my actual to do list)

* return borrowed items--I have started doing this, but I still have some things to return!

And finally, because what would a post be without a picture, I have posted one from the latest camera import. Needless to say, I did not take this picture nor did I even know it was taken. My food pictures are of good food about to be eaten.

Bech, on the other hand, likes to artfully arrange fresh produce...you just never know with him...

book review

I am currently borrowing my mom's kindle to read a few books. She has been suggesting some of these books for a few months, so she wants me to read them before I move.

Anyway, the first one I read was "Same Kind of Different as Me." Oh-my-lanta...this book is amazing! And what's even more amazing is that it's true. It tells about the parallel (then later intersecting) lives of Denver Moore and Ron Hall.

Denver grew up on a sharecropping farm in Louisiana then headed out to Texas where he is homeless. Ron grew up in Texas, then later become a wealthy art dealer.

It is through Ron's wife that Ron is encouraged to become Denver's friend.

Seriously, you need to read this book. It is incredible and it's true. It will convict you and encourage you.

Here are a few of my favorite quotes:

“Then after I met Miss Debbie and Mr. Ron, I worried that I was so different from them that we wadn’t ever gon’ have no kid a’ future. But I found out everybody’s different- the same kind of different as me. We’re all just regular folks walkin down the road God done set in front of us.”

“You never know whose eyes God is watchin’ you through. It probably aint’ gonna be your preacher and it just might be someone who was liven like I used to.”

Ron and Denver

The book, which you've probably seen in the stores...I think it was a big seller.

“The truth about it is, whether we is rich or poor or something in between, this earth ain’t no final restin place. So in a way, we is all homeless – just workin our way toward home.”

I just found out about Synesthesia, "a neurologically-based condition in which stimulation of one sensory or cognitive pathway leads to automatic, involuntary experiences in a second sensory or cognitive pathway." I had never heard of this before, but read about it on this blog. She actually links to a few other blogs.

Anyway, I was amazed reading about this condition. I mean, it's not a bad condition at all, just a way of understanding certain peoples quirks, I suppose. Go the synesthesia link and scroll down to the Personification section. I do that and have done that since childhood. Fingers, colors, numbers, and tons of other inanimate objects and ideas have a set personality in my mind. I don't ever talk about it, because I thought it was a weird quirk I alone had. But I guess there are other people who do this as well!

There are several types: Grapheme (associating colors with letters and words), Sound (certain sounds create set images in your mind), Number form (a mental map of numbers--the wiki site has a great illustration--and I think this can also apply to days and months), Personification (things like numbers, months, days, and letters have set personalities), and Lexical or Gustatory (words and sounds create taste sensations).

So are any of y'all synesthetes? I would love to hear if you are!!!

be prepared for lots of pictures...!

I have been a bad blogger lately. For the past week, we have been staying at the Bech's parents house with their dog. Bech's dad surprised his mom by flying her out to Phoenix where they picked up a white convertible he had bought for her (her dream car). They then drove all the way back to Mississippi.

Anyway, that has kept me away from my computer. But I am posting now! And I have pictures!

2 weekends ago, we went down to Tupelo where Bech was an usher in Mike Ashley's wedding. Mike was a first year MFA ceramics student Bech's last year. They got to be great friends. We loved cooking with Mike then playing Settlers or watching Top Chef. Mike started dating another ceramics student the next year, Laura, and now they are married!

I got to spend some time with my grandmother who lives in Tupelo, and I know Bech loved seeing all of his Ole Miss ceramic friends.

Laura has been accepted to Alfred next year for a MFA in ceramics...it's only 6 or 7 hours from us so we hope to visit at some point!

Here we are enjoying the reception!

Bech and Mike

Mike's parents...we love them!

We got up early Sunday morning to take the Natchez Trace back. We arrived in Brookhaven just in time for church then headed home for a Father's Day lunch (I feel the need to add here that I was LEFT at church! Everyone forgot about me and I didn't have a ride home :( mom came to get me when I called, and it's not like we live that far from the church...but still!). We ate really good boiled gulf shrimp (it may be the last for a while, thanks to BP!), corn, and potatoes. I forgot to take pictures but we had a great time.

We left that afternoon to drive back up to Jackson for a sushi Birthday dinner for Miss Karey (I know, summer is a busy time birthday wise for our two families...and my birthday is Friday and my dad's is Monday). I actually got pictures this time, but I think it's mostly because I wanted to take pictures of all our sushi rolls.

Karey and Mary Elizabeth. Miss Karey hates to have pictures taken so she held up her camera.

Hunter and Farmor.

Bech and his dad

And of course, the food! Here is mine, inside out roll with shrimp, cucumber, avocado, and the spicy sauce! So good!

I think this is Hunters...isn't it pretty?

Maybe Bech's dad's? or Bech's?

Anyway, we had a busy but very fun weekend! Now it's time to pack!!!!!

1 year ago...

One year ago yesterday, we left Malawi. I cannot even believe that we have been home for almost a year. Maybe this seems silly to anyone reading this post, because we were only in Malawi for 11 months. But it really does change you. And I hope that I have held fast to my memories.

One thing Bech and I talked a lot about before we left last year was these changes. We didn't want to get back to America (where you can pretty much have whatever you want whenever you want it, where you can avoid poverty if you want, where you can seclude yourself from community), and fall right back into American life. And it is definitely hard. It is so easy to just think of Malawi as a fun adventure and simply go back to "normal life."

Hopefully we have changed somewhat. We are definitely much more deliberate about what we buy and where we buy it. I by nature am a stingy person, but I have become (at least somewhat) more generous.

But there are things I still want to change. I want to be much more generous with my money and time. I want to be a stronger prayer, especially for missions and missionaries.

And I want to go back to Africa, maybe not long term but at least visits. I don't know if this one will ever happen. I want, very strongly, and also feel called to be a Classics Professor. There is not much of a need for Latin and Greek in Africa. Of course, there is some, but it's obviously not the same as the need for doctors, nurses, teachers, etc.

But I know that God's plans are a lot bigger than mine, so we will just have to wait and see!