I've seen fire AND rain.

Ryan and Tim's Visit :)

2007-11-03T15:19:00.000-07:00

2007-09-15T16:24:00.000-07:00

The views from our apartment

2007-08-08T18:21:00.000-07:00

Come visit us! See? Milwaukee is pretty!

Lake Superior in May. BRRRRRR

2007-06-03T14:11:00.001-07:00

Just for fun-- Mono Maggie

2007-04-16T19:20:00.000-07:00

She was not a happy camper.

The trollway

2007-03-27T09:01:00.000-07:00

Cave of the Mounds, Wisconsin

2007-03-17T17:42:00.000-07:00

X-Treme Pictures!!!!!! Wah!!!!!

2007-03-03T17:09:00.000-08:00

This was taken as we were getting ready to leave for the day. That's why I look so happy.

Live action shots are hard to come by, so this was Spencer's one shot in hopes of attracting X-games sponsorships.

Me upright.

Spencer on the lift for his final run.

Where Spencer ended up on his final run. Whoops!

Nancy Drew, on the case.

2006-11-01T12:06:00.000-08:00

Halloween Fun

2006-10-28T22:21:00.000-07:00

More pictures

2006-10-22T10:25:00.000-07:00

Some pics, more to come

2006-10-21T21:26:00.000-07:00

The Change

2006-09-18T19:54:00.000-07:00

All right folks, though I know we're all still holding candlelight vigils for Notre Dame, it's time we took a moment and ruminated on something really important--my teeth. That's right, it's time to say goodbye to my Maryland bridges that I've had for about seven years now. They were good companions. I got them as a teenager, and they carried me all the way through menopause (HA). They stayed with me through half of high school, and all of Spring Hill and UChicago. They bear the battle scars of these years. And probably a few Dr. Pepper stains. (I've started drinking from a straw since then.) But like all things, these teeth must pass to be replaced with fancy pants new teeth, which is costing me and my generous fiance several thousand dollars. (How funny is it that my fiance is paying for me to get cosmetic surgery before our wedding?) However, while these new teeth may not carry all the history along with them, I can at least be fairly certain that they won't fall out, thereby (hopefully) putting an end to those missing teeth nightmares that plague me so, as many of you know.

Giving up these teeth painfully coincides with the passing of another Marcilliat icon--The Silver Bullet. Yes, our beautiful '92 Buick Century Station Wagon is now officially for sale. As I drove it to the warehouse, I had to hold back a few tears. While it may not have been as constant a companion as my teeth were, the Bullet still went with me on more adventures than I can count, and I shall always fondly remember our special times together, sitting by the side of the interstate after having been attacked by the tire trolls, sitting on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere in Oklahoma, sitting on the side of the road in... well, never mind. Ah, memories. I sure do love that car.

And so, dear friends, as I know all of us have recently been through times of great change, please know that you are not alone. I am also feeling the pain of losing things I loved, inanimate as they might be. My consolation is that when I smile sadly, yet dramatically, shaking my head slowly over the good old days, it will at least be with a brand new, shiny smile.

Love to all.

I'll jump on the bandwagon...

2006-07-10T20:13:00.000-07:00

My Favorite Spring Hill Memories

1. Fresh flowers in my room every Valentines Day.
2. Classic movie nights with Sarah.
3. Impromtu Girl Parties that Spencer always felt the need to crash.
4. Finals week- the best part of every year.
5. Spencer's 21st Birthday Eve- Spencer, Brian, Sarah and me, and one of the funnest nights ever. Wine and Saltines, mmm mmm
6. Freshman year Game Night- when we all first really let it all hang out. Sans Spencer, of course ;)
7. Tangoing with Andrew and swing dancing with Mike. In spite of our total incompatability, we did pretty good :)
8. Being groupies for Brian's band
9. Globetrotting with Caitlin... "COFFEE!"
10. Visiting Dr. James's home Senior Year
11. The freshman year betting season. "Yes, my darling." Spencer making me get him a peanut butter and jelly sandwich...
12. Finally quitting the Dance Team.
13. That time Spencer thought Sarah was me and gave her a caressing head pat :) It was awkward.
14. The various ghosts we encountered- the APT ghost with the name blocks, "Not Alone" in the Chapel Attic, and that weird disembodied voice in O'Leary.
15. Watching Caitlin and Spencer give their final business presentation. They worked so well together, it was fun to see.
16. That song that Caitlin sang in Dragon Slayer of the North Part one. It moved me to tears. And Dr. Pebbles.
17. Ranting to Sarah- in the room, on walks, in bed, whenever necessary. That girl put up with so much from me. I'm eternally thankful :)
18. The foggy pier at Shape. We were standing on the edge of the world.
19. Several sunburnt persons rubbing aloe on each other in my kitchen.
20. Singing The First Noel to Palchelbel with Clare sophomore year.
21. The Silver Bullet Pantry Raid Team. Go Team!
22. The constant striving for ULTIMATE FUN!
23. The afternoon Dan, Caitlin, Kate, Sarah, and I all acted out different scenarios in our living room. I particularly enjoyed watching Dan the nerd come on to the dying Caitlin. She was totally just after his homework.
24. My magical late night walks with Spencer.
25. Santos the baby eater, with the necklace of thumbs around his neck.
26. Notre Dame games with Caitlin.
27. Constant, neverending dancing in the apartment.
28. The fart machine at Spencer's Birthday. "Geez Rob!"
29. Patrick O'Blakey, The Mandarin Gourd, The Mandolin Gourd, his evil twin, and Count Pumpkula.
30. Caribbean Spencer.
31. Freaking ourselves out, and then yelling at Sarah Pakrin at April's Beach House. And then bearing my breast to everyone. That was wonderful.
32. The caf rolls. Mooching, and then trying to quit.
33. The time Greg's mom called me and Clare's room to find him.
34. When Clare first informed me that she and Greg had kissed :)
35. "No wonder he's so thin. They probably feed him shadows."
36. The first time Spencer proposed to me. It was after a party, and he doesn't remember doing it. If you get my drift.

And finally,

37. Living with all of my friends. It's hard to top that. Miss you.

Ryan the Bride

2006-04-30T18:03:00.000-07:00

I'm not dead!

2006-01-28T20:12:00.001-08:00

Hello friends. Let me start by saying how sorry I am that I haven't updated in almost a month. I can't quite express though how insanely busy school has been. It's killing me. But enough of that. I'm going to try to give a basic rundown of anything quasi important/interesting since I got back. Don't expect it to be very organized though. It's been a long day of studying, and this is my way of unwinding. You know how it is.

My classes this quarter are ok. I'm taking US National Security Policy, which is quite interesting. Mainly so far I've learned that Taiwan is going to be an issue one of these days, and that it's a wonder we haven't torn this world to pieces before now. Sometimes it seems like our world is relatively stable, and sometimes the sheer number of nuclear weapons all pointing at each other makes me think we'll never make it. It's interesting though- how the retaliation/deterrence factor of nuclear weapons is really an amazingly stablilizing factor, though still somewhat scary.

I'm also taking a Shakespeare class, mainly because the class pickings were a little slim this quarter, and it was either that or another public policy class. Now, I like public policy, don't get me wrong. But I find that one class a quarter is generally enough to keep me satisfied. So, the Shakespeare is going pretty good, though I sometimes get a little tired of it. I guess I've moved out of the English major mentality a little bit.

My last class is Statistics. It's been really good. It's been relatively tough too. Our professor is a very famous stats guy, and he's really nice to boot, so I'm enjoying it. Plus, I actually know some people in that class, so it's my social quota for the week. Sad, but true.

Let's see... what else...

Last week I did a Busy Person's Retreat. It was very good. It really helped having somebody to go to and just talk about something real. I had a nun from St. Louis as my spiritual companion, and she was lots of fun and very kind. On the whole, the retreat helped me a lot with achieving a little bit of calm. And just in time too, otherwise I don't think I would have made it through this week without cracking. Don't you hate weeks like that? I'm afraid this week is going to stretch into the next three months. But back to the retreat. I started crying in the very first five minutes of the retreat meeting, and I think my advisor was a little concerned about me, but I explained the hormone thing, and then she didn't think I was so much of a nutcase. That's always reassuring.

I'm back working at my Jewish nursery school, which I just love. It's the high point of my week. My little kids are growing up so fast! We've got several kids who don't speak English yet (a mixture of Korean, Italian, Russian, and Chinese) but as time goes by they're learning more and more words and it's really encouraging. This Monday is the Chinese New Year, so one of our kids from China is bringing in special Chinese treats. I'm really looking forward to it. My fellow workers tell me it was really good last year.

Last weekend I took some time off and went to see Spencer for his birthday. We had a very fun-filled weekend! When I got there on Friday, it had just started to snow. By about 7 or so, they'd accumulated about 6 inches so we of course went out to play in it! (Sadly, I think we were the only two people in all of Milwaukee enjoying it though.) We did all the winter fun we could think of. We ran and threw ourselves in snow banks to leave shapes, made snow angels, had several snowball fights, and made our first real snowman (Grover.) I don't mind saying, Grover was about the cutest little snowman I've ever seen. (When we went back to check on him the next morning, somebody had given him a hat. Unfortunately though, he'd melted into a weird backbend, which kind of negated the funness of the new hat.) Then we topped off our evening with the ultimate fun. We went and bought some big, black garbage bags and tore holes in the bottom of them for our feet and wore them like diapers. Then we went running and sliding down the hills. Spencer was especially good at this. All his baseball sliding training finally paid off. I personally liked to just sit at the top and then push myself down backwards. It was a fun sensation :) So that was Friday night. Then on Saturday, we went ice skating (outside!). Unfortunately, Spencer got some very dull skate blades, so he was falling all over the place (including onto a little girl, who, I swear, had a limp afterwards.) Then after ice skating, we went back into the apartment and played Spencer's birthday present- HARRY POTTER SCENE-IT! It was fun. We need to all play it together sometime. I know several of you out there in readerland would really enjoy it. Then on Sunday, I caught a cold, so we didn't really do much that didn't involve staying still and nose blowing. It was very glamorous.

So, on a not-so-fun note, right now I'm in the middle of trying to find an advisor for my master's thesis. It's a very intimidating process given that the faculty has no obligation here to sponsor your project. You've got to interest somebody enough to have them take you on. It's scary. I'm trying to get a Professor Glaeser of Sociology, who is apparently rather a big-wig in his field, which just makes it all the more scary. I sent him an email and have yet to hear back from him. If I can't reach him on Monday, I'm seriously going to just sit ouside his office all morning on Tuesday. (As Courtney says, I'm going to take a page out of Rory's book.) If he says no, I've got one backup. The problem is, I'm in a bit of a time crunch. My research proposal is due soon. Aside from the advisor issue, I've got a couple other problems going on with my thesis. Basically, I'm doing an analysis of mainstream economics through looking at some economist detective novels, but because I have to be all social scientific about it, I have to do this thing called Content Analysis. Basically, this means I use a computer program to go through the content and code things and build relationships between categories and whatnot. It's basically how I've always worked, only with a little cleaner methos and a little more power behind it. So I'm excited about trying it. The problem comes in with 1) I have to pay $140 just to license the program for a few months and 2) I have to actually have the novels in digitalized form. Now that means either 1) the publishers give me permission and they let me buy an electronic version from them, 2)the authors are sympathetic to my scholarly plight and send me their files, 3) I scan in 600 pages manually or 4) I type it in by hand. I'm exploring all the options right now, but unfortunately, option 4 is looking to be the most likely. If anyone has any other ideas of how I might do it, I'm all ears.

On a completely different note, I planted a flower bulb about 2 1/2 weeks ago, and it's already got a thick, sturdy stalk about 6 inches tall. It is the fastest growing plant I have ever seen in my life. I'm a little afraid it's going to take on a life of its own like in Little Shop of Horrors. Hopefully, it'll just be a flower though. If I start hearing "Feed me, Maggie!" I'm going to have to get rid of it.

Another random note, I've been reading this book for about a week and a half or so, and I'm getting close to the end and it's getting really good, when suddenly, the book just stops because the author died! Can you believe that? They should at least advertise on the front of the book that it's an unfinished novel. I was so disappointed!

Ok, I think that's all I've got. I'll try to write again before another month has gone by. Now it's off to bed. Goodnight and miss you all.

P.S. Courtney is so totally cool.

Pride and Prejudice Review

2005-12-06T20:07:00.000-08:00

Here's my in-depth review of Pride and Prejudice (probably too in-depth for the interest span of most of my readers, but what the hey.) I'd be interested to hear any comments, rebuttals, whatever. I fully realize that I'll get these probably only from Caitlin or Sarah, but the invitation to all is there.

Let me start out by saying that, on the whole, I think the film was a good adaptation. The camera work was really fun, although occasionally I did wish that they would focus a little bit more. Literally. The scenery was gorgeous, and they did a nice job of fitting all the important plot points in without making it feel rushed (of course, that could be because I already knew everything that was coming. I think it was good though.)

I think that they should have switched the actors who played Lydia and Kitty. Kitty seemed far more stupid than Lydia most of the time, with the only exception being when Lydia came back with Wickham. Also, I found that Mary wasn't really plain. she just wasn't as made up as the others. That's like the trick in movies where they turn the "nerd" into the beauty queen, but really all they did was take off her glasses and brush her hair.

The parent's relationship was interesting in this one. The dad wasn't so bitter and tired, but not as funny, and the mom wasn't nearly as annoying. She came off more as sweet, but somewhat dumb. I liked her more in this one, but I think some of her lines didn't come off quite as well without the obnoxious personality. I didn't like the new dad as much as I liked the new mom. I don't think he had a good grasp of the character at all. I never got a good feel for who he really was. Also, Donald Sutherland freaks me out when he smiles. His teeth are freakishly white.

I liked how the new Jane was played. Not that she was better than the A&E Jane, but given the time contraints this Jane was facing, i think she did a good job. She was also very pretty, probably the prettiest of the bunch, in my opinion, which fits well with the book. Bingley seemed to be pretty good in this one, but with some moronic tendencies. He seemed a little out of it at times, and wasn't as in control of himself as I would expect Bingley the king of pleasant manners to be. On the whole though, he still had that pleasant Bongley-esque air about him.

I thought Mr. Collins was played well and quite differently than the A&E version. This one wasn't quite so obsequious and more self-righteous, and it worked pretty well. I enjoyed this Lady Catherine de Bourgh also. Oh, and when did Miss darcy turn from a shy girl into a little minx? apparently the past few years have been good to her self confidence.

I had mixed feelings about Keira Knightley as Elizabeth. In the beginning of the movie, she seemed a bit too impish for my tastes. Yes, Elizabeth is happy and likes to laugh, but she generally has a reason when she laughs. I didn't really get that impression until about 15 minutes into the movie. For the first quarter hour, my impression of Keira laughing was suspiciously like the crazy person laughter. So there was that. Also, now I think Keira Knightley is absolutely beautiful, but they really didn't play that up in this movie. I thought she looked kind of drab throughout the whole movie. I think they were trying to give the impression that she was above such things, kind of like when they started out the movie with her reading a book, like it's an integral part of her personality. That's not really Elizabeth. she's not above trying to look nice, and I think she reads a book only twice in the entire novel, both times because she's got nothing else to do. So I think they were trying to make her a little too perfect. This also happened with the whole Wichkam thing. In this movie, Elizabeth never really got the chance to get herself into a hole the way she does in the novel by going overboard in her support of Wickham. In this movie, she seemed justified in what she thought about Wickham, and then changed her mind right when she heard the truth. That's not much of a self-revelation about her own blindness. Just saying "I was blind" doesn't cut it.

As for the whole, Elizabeth/Darcy relationship, I thought they did a great job of showing the attraction between the two, though I've got to question whether there really was that much attraction in the beginning. I guess they kind of had to do it in the movie though, since there wasn't time to develop it slowly over time. I didn't personally find that much to love about Mr. Darcy, which leads me to think something was missing in his performance, though I can't quite place what it was. I'm pretty ambivalent about the last scene. I don't think it particularly adds much to the movie to do it that way, and it seemed out of place, or rather out of character when compared to the rest of the movie. However, I do realize that every film adaptation apparently has to take some sort of liberties, like A&E and wet-shirt Colin Firth. So, take that for what you will.

My story...

2005-12-03T21:09:00.000-08:00

It's a dark, cold winter night here in Chicago. The wind rips at my trendy miniskirt and faux fur jacket. As I walk down the street, my thoughts are drawn, as always, to that enigmatical phantom of my dreams... The Red Gardenia...

What did The Red Gardenia, aka Jenny Fuller, aka the Red Gardenia think about this dog eat dog town? Did she arrive here in the Windy City full of hopes and dreams as I once did? Dreams of Nobel Prize-winning economics? Of bestselling novels with movie rights? Well, I'd been here four months now, and every beautiful thought I'd ever had had been as effectively driven from my brain as Jenny Fuller's feet were taken from her body. I could count the number of opportunities I'd been given on five fingers on my right hand... opportunities snatched away too soon, snatched away like the Red Gardenia's shoes...

I'd have to leave soon. Not even my oh-so-hunky boyfriend could keep me around any longer. Boyfriend? Boy toy? God only knows what the man meant to me! It was just too complicated to try to discover my true feelings. Much better to hide it behind my biting wit and sarcasm, and my enigmatical, devil-may-care beauty.

I'd given myself a strict timeline of four and a half months to make it big in the big city. My time was running out. I'd have to simply fade into the night, much like Jenny Fuller, aka the Red Gardenia, aka Jenny Fuller, never to be heard from again...

New View From My Window

2005-12-01T08:32:00.000-08:00

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

Santa's Reply

2005-11-15T12:31:00.000-08:00

Dear "Good Girl" Marcilliat,

Santa is quite impressed with you glowing personal assessment of your behavior this year. I am quite sure that there is no exaggeration in what you report and the elves are busy verifying your account at this very moment. By the way, my elves take great pains to verify the spelling of all names on the official "Nice" gift list. Less detail is given to those names on the "Naughty" list. It may interest you to know that your email is the first of the year. Santa expects many more like yours but most arrive after Thanksgiving.

After reviewing your file, Santa has decided to grant your requests.

You will find all of your hopes and dreams in a very large package that Santa will leave on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan. The name tag will say, "Chicago" but it is for you, and all you wish for is there.

Tucked away in the southeast corner of your package you will find your diploma. Many request for this special present makes timeliness a problem some years. Santa has not been able to grant some such requests until late May or early June. If your diploma is not there in December, please feel free to "re-search" until you find it.

The other tings you wished for are in this package also. Your own car, parking space, dance studio, cashmere sweater, manicurist, and Pony can be found in various locations within the package. You may have to work a bit to find them, but I know how special they will be to you when you finally do. You will find as you grow that few things worth having are come by easily.

Leaving cash will probably be a problem. Santa does not carry cash with him. In fact, I now have that bit of information prominently posted on the side of my sleigh. "Sleigh driver has less than $50 cash." Santa has found that his VISA debit card is the one thing accepted worldwide. I must travel light, you know.

As for your boyfriend, the one time you did decide to kill him apparently didn't harm him to the degree you thought. My elves report that he is hiding out in a nearby city where he seeks legal advice.

Mrs. Claus says "Hi" back. It is her fondest hope that you will share some of your holiday cheer with her at the house. It is cold here, but you will not see any noticeable difference from where you are. It's just a matter of a few "Degrees."

As always,
Love from Santa

P.S. - I like Oatmeal-Raisin cookies.

Dear Santa

2005-11-14T20:27:00.000-08:00

Dear Santa,

This year I have been especially good. On no less than
217 occasions I have been nearly provoked into killing
my boyfriend, but have managed to abstain from doing
so all but once. For this, I think I have earned many
good presents.

My gift requests are, of course, modest. First and
foremost, I would like a master's degree (or a Ph.D if
you have any extras) preferably from the University of
Chicago, but I will also accept one from Yale,
Harvard, Cambridge, Oxford, or Stanford. Please be
sure to spell my name correctly on my diploma(s).
There is no "e" in Marcilliat.

In addition, I would greatly enjoy my own car, parking
space, dance studio, cashmere sweater, manicurist, and
pony. If this list is too complicated, feel free to
simplify matters and just send cash. I accept most
first-world currencies, but please, no checks. One can
never be too careful, not even with Santa. If sending
dollars, please concentrate on 10's and 20's, with the
occasional 50 thrown in for good measure.

I feel sure that you will find this list satisfactory,
and completely deserved by yours truly. Please send my
greetings to Mrs. Claus, and may you have a joyous
Holiday Season.

Cordially,
Maggie "Good Girl" Marcilliat

Spencer Pants

2005-11-13T20:57:00.000-08:00

Crazy Legs

2005-11-13T20:54:00.000-08:00

Pretty leaves outside my apartment

2005-11-01T09:19:00.000-08:00

Yuck

2005-10-30T16:21:00.000-08:00

I always worry when I'm walking on fallen leaves at dark that one of them will actually turn out to be a toad, and I won't know until I have it squished under my foot. Wouldn't that be gross?

This is the view from my window...

2005-10-13T12:28:00.000-07:00

Bright Lights, Big City

2005-10-11T19:10:00.000-07:00

Chicago by Night

2005-10-07T21:03:00.000-07:00

Pretty pic from Tuesday night.

Rational Game Choice Historical Narrative Marxist Theory

2005-10-06T17:33:00.000-07:00

Hello folks.

Well, it's the end of rational choice week in my social science perspectives class, and I have discovered that I am a rational choice theorist all the way. Go RCT!!! This week we also had a guest speaker from the economics department, and I was just more excited than I can say :) I even stayed behind after class to ask a question, which was really intimidating. I didn't quite understand his answer either, but at least I asked. This week I've also finally learned game theory, after hearing the term thrown around for years. I love it. Game theory is sheer fun. It's like those logic games on the LSAT. So now I'm also a game theorist for life. Amazing how quickly I can be converted, hmm?

On another note, Courtney and I went to see School House Rock Live this past weekend, which was awesome. Not only is School House Rock great on its own, but the actors/singers/dancers did an awesome job. I'd pay to see it again. We also saw a preview for Wicked, and I want to go so badly. I just need to scrape up $40 to go. I think it would be worth it though. Who needs food? Not I.

Hello from Chicago

2005-09-25T14:26:00.000-07:00

Hi Guys.

Well, I have officially been in Chicago for one week now. It’s growing on me. Slowly.

First of all, my apartment is fabulous. It’s much bigger than I expected, and has really nice woodwork on all the walls. It’s a very old building, with old-fashioned iron grill elevators and everything, but I like it. Lots of character. The view from my window looks down onto the courtyard, which contains our very own Christmas Tree.

The school so far seems a little intense, which I expected. I’ve signed up for my classes, which start on Monday, but I’ve already been doing homework for them. Sometimes I’m really glad to be here, and really excited about the challenge that I know this year is going to be. Other times, I tell myself that I’m really a little stupid for making myself go through this again, only exponentially increased.

The school campus itself is very urban, but there’re a lot of parks spread around. (And lots of bookstores, which I love! If only I had money to buy a book.) I live about 9 or 10 blocks from where my classes will be, but luckily I got myself a bike this summer. I have a feeling I’ll be living on my bike. The streets through here are gorgeous. There’s some crazy architecture here, and a surprising amount of trees, some of which have already started changing colors. I’m really looking forward to my first real autumn. My street’s going to be beautiful once the colors really get going.

I already bought myself my first pair of snow boots, which I am really excited about getting to wear for the first time. This Chicago weather’s not gonna beat me! (I hope!) This past week it’s been in the 80’s, which really had me missing my air conditioner. However, luckily a cold front moved in on Friday and put it into the 60’s. It feels totally awesome outside. I’ve only closed my windows once since I got here.

I’ve met some friendly people here. The faculty and staff are surprisingly warm and accommodating. The students… well, some of the students seem warm. This is largely a campus of loners. You see more people walking by themselves here on any given day than you’d see in a month at Spring Hill. I met a couple of nice girls, one from Toronto, the other from Salt Lake City. Unfortunately, I saw the Sale Lake City girl a day ago, and she seemed like she’d forgotten who I was. Oh well. I’ve also met a very nice guy from Portland. I like Northwesterners. They’re so laid back. (That’s my little shout-out to Katia.) It’s a very different feel here on campus. It’s just… intense. That’s the only word that adequately describes it. People wear shirts that say, “UChicago, The Only Place Hell Really Does Freeze Over,” and “UChicago, Where Fun Comes to Die.” On the whole though, I think there’s really a sense of pride about this place being so hard, kind of like how the snobby shirts always sold the best at SHC. This campus is peopled by eccentrics. I feel very plain and uncosmoplitan, which I guess I am. Maybe by the time I’ve graduated, I’ll be as weird as the next guy. We’ll see.

I miss everybody lots, and hope everyone’s doing well. I’m thinking about you guys. Say a prayer that I can handle this!

Construction and Destruction

2005-08-24T07:18:00.000-07:00

Ok, so the Marcilliat family has decided to do some remodeling on the house. There are things mom's been wanting to have done for years. Then, with Ivan hitting, we had so much damage that we really couldn't wait much longer. So, it started out as a pretty big project. First, we were going to replace the water damaged ceiling and walls in the living room, replace the kitchen cabinets, and replace all the flooring in the kitchen and living room. That alone would have been a pretty big job. Then, Dennis hit. We then got new, much worse water damage in three bedrooms, the foyer, the attic, the garage, and one bathroom. Our construction project was growing daily. So, now include new ceilings for all these places, as well as new floors for the entire house. Quite a load, but still manageable, right? Then the termites were discovered. We actually had a pretty good amount of damage, but thankfully the termites had left a while ago. Apparently some enterprising ants came up through a hole in our foundation (a big thank you to the negligent builders there) and ran off the termites. But the damage, and the ants, remain. So, we had to basically go around the house tearing out walls until we found the end of their trail, and then remove and replace all the damaged wood. So, at this point, we have no walls in the living room, no wall separating the kitchen from the rest of the house, nothing but concrete for most of the flooring, a couple of doors had to be removed, as did some cabinets, amd pretty much our entire laundry room will have to be. It is a Mess. We've got almost no furniture inside the house anymore. We did set up our couch in our kitchen, so we'd have somewhere to sit. I really think the "kitchen couch" is going to become a big hit in coming years. My parents are really hoping to have the house done by the holidays, though even with my dad working like a maniac, like he has been, I still don't know if that's possible. I tell ya, it's an interesting way to spend my last month at home, in the middle of a construction zone. It's Ryan's last months home too. Funny how change always seems to come all at once.

Randomness

2005-07-21T17:13:00.000-07:00

Wow, reading all you guys' new blogs and/or comments has really put me in the mood for writing something myself. Unfortunately (or fortunately for you, as the case may be) I don't have much of anything to say. I could just make stuff up like a certain dead friend of mine (hint- he's tall) but in respect of his memory (because he is dead,) I'll try to stick to fact.

You guys (meaning Cait and Jenn) sure did come up with all kinds of deep stuff contained in the HP books. Spencer has some stuff too. I feel downright cultured having read the books now. Funny how I can be infused with culture without even realizing it. I'm going to have to become pretentious now, which should be fun. I can handle being a snob. I can't even see all you people right now, my nose is so high.

We have strangers in our back yard right now. They're cutting down limbs. We didn't ask them to. Strange, hmm? "People are strange... When you're a stranger... Faces look ugly... when you're alone... Women seem wicked... when you're unwanted... " Am I the only person who takes offense that women are the ones singled out for being wicked in that song? Granted, many of us are. Or, excuse me, many of YOU are (nose high up in the air) but does it need to be so pointedly mentioned?

By the way, my gall bladder's days are numbered. It's coming out in one week. Poor little gall bladder. I think it heard the news. And here's something interesting. Apparently, once the gall bladder comes out, the tube that used to lead from it (the bile duct) then takes over the duties of the gall bladder and does a much better job. Isn't that interesting? Also, you know how the appendix doesn't really seem to do much of anything? That's because its use is now obsolete, not that it doesn't actually do anything. In fact, it seems the original function of the appendix was to help digest raw meat. Oh this crazy, interesting world.

Hurricane Harry

2005-07-17T14:59:00.000-07:00

I've finished the new Harry Potter book, and I need to talk to someone about it! If you're finished, call/email me.

On non-Harry fronts, we just got our new roof! After Ivan and Dennis, we needed it so badly. We've got water damage in every room of the house except our kitchen. What a mess. If we get another hurricane this season, I'm just going to cry. No more hurricanes! Please! I'm tired of the boarding up and waiting for gas and storing water, and then no power and no phones and grueling clean-up for weeks at a time. This time the eye of Dennis went right through Pace. I've been in the eyewall several times, but this was the first time I've made it in the eye. It was crazy! The whole neighborhood was outside during it. Dad had to go up on the roof really fast to tarp over where out chimney was torn off. That part was a little stressful. Thank God this storm was really booking it, so the dangerous part only lasted about 30 minutes (as opposed to Ivan, which was dangerous for hours upon hours.) Hopefully, hopefully, hopefully, we won't be getting any more storms for years. I think we've earned a break. I also want to offer poor Jamaica and the Cayman Islands a break. From now on, I decree all hurricanes should head to Texas.

Onions and Ghosts- What A Combo!

2005-06-30T19:35:00.000-07:00

Ok, so my story begins two years ago when Courtney and I went to play raquetball at PJC. It was the middle of the day, and we had just finished our game and were headed to the car. Once we reached the parking lot though, we noticed this weird thing up in the sky. It looked like an oversized ping pong ball floating through the air in a straight line. It only moved straight ahead, with no bouncing or wobbling or anything. We sat there and watched it for about ten minutes while it moved slowly across the sky, about 40 feet up or so. It didn't look like it was connected to anything, just chillin' up there. Eventually we got tired of watching, but we never were able to explain what it was. Now fast forward two years to this past Tuesday night when Court and I again went to play raquetball at PJC. When we first started playing, I noticed our ball was a little soft for optimum bounciness, so I set it down in the corner, and we got out the second ball. Notice, I PUT THE BALL IN THE CORNER ON THE GROUND. That's important. So, we continue to play, when I accidentally really sky it over the back wall (these are outdoor courts.) We watched it go over cleanly, without bouncing back in or anything equally unlikely. So, we leave our little court and walk around behind the building. This walk takes approximately ten seconds. We only are behind the building for a minute when we decide it's getting a little too dark to see clearly. We head back to our court to pick up the flashlight we'd brought for just such an occasion. As we get back inside, Courtney leans down to pick up the flashlight, and suddenly jumps really high. It takes me a minute to figure out what startled her, but I get the idea when she picks up both the ball that had been on the ground AND the ball canister, WHICH NOW HAS THE OTHER BALL SAFELY BACK INSIDE WITH THE CAP SCREWED ON! Now, how weird is that? We're gone for about one minute, ten seconds, and the ball not only finds its way back into our court, but also back into the canister with the top put back on. There was absolutely no oppotunity for another person to both retrieve it and put in back in while we were gone. We were a little freaked out. Granted, it's not a ghost sighting, but we like to think of it as our own little physical manifestation. Crazy world we live in. Crazy world.

Speaking of craziness, I just gotta toss in a good word for onions here. I feel they're getting a bad rap. Granted, the carmelized onion taste is about as fabulously yummy as it gets, but let's not forget the special little chopped up onions that McDonalds puts on all of its hamburgers. Without them, McD hamburgers would be just slabs of processed meat. I think those onion bits add that little something that makes those burgers worthwhile. And for God's sake, I think those burgers can use all the help they can get. Don't begrudge it to them.

Incidentally, the onions and ghost combo is number 4 on the McDonalds Value Menu. You should try it. And... Fight the man!