cicada song

a quiet space

2010-12-07T08:19:00.001-05:00

i long for this...

Let there be a place somewhere in which you can breathe naturally, quietly, and not have to take your breath in continuous short gasps. A place where your mind can be idle, and forget its concerns, descend into silence, and worship the Father in secret.

Thomas Merton. New Seeds of Contemplation.

2009-03-16T12:28:00.002-04:00

Love That Boy

I love that boy and he is my friend.
I see him going down the long hall.
I love that boy and he is my friend.
I wave to him from very far off.

He goes uphill,
I wish that I could follow after him.
He goes uphill.
Please let him be safe there, across the way.
I love that boy, I say.
I love him all the day.

I love that boy and he is my friend.
We’re driving through the state of Maryland.
I love that boy and he is my friend.
I love to see him sleeping in back.

He goes uphill,
I wish that I could follow after him.
He goes uphill.
He dreams a city street a hundred ways.
I love that boy, I say.
I love him all the day.

And I’m standing up under the trees,
I’m cheering every day.
I love that boy, I say.

...innocence mission

the words from our mouths

2008-08-01T13:10:00.003-04:00

yesterday, laura, asher, and i went to chick-fil-a for a tasty, fried snack. as i was driving towards the drive-thru, i stopped to let a dude in a jeep come out of his parking space. he decided to let me go ahead instead. well, little did he know that i was headed for the end of the line which was right behind him. he had a little space to weasel his auto out of. not enough for his liking, i guess. these were his words to me as he was pulling away. "learn how to drive, you bitch!"

i will never yell at anyone from my car window again. you sound like a tool. and, most of all, it's not loving.

if you're trying to save your marriage...

2008-07-20T10:31:00.002-04:00

this might not be the activity for you. today is sunday and we finished our picnic table. neither of us do well taking instructions from the other. maybe it's an oldest child thing. since we're both the oldest of two.

i started the table on friday by cutting the boards to length and angle. yesterday, i put the bolts into the sides. today we screwed in the top and seats. now, we must sand and stain.

ryan and i do have a hard time working together. maybe it's on me, but we're just now somewhat able (after 4 1/2 yrs) to work in the kitchen at the same time. rarely do we, though. we do gladly eat what each other has made.

today, my frustration could be towards the meeting that i have at noon. note to self, don't plan meetings on sundays. sundays should be family days.

seedleaf

2008-07-19T12:55:00.002-04:00

ryan's non-profit, seedleaf, is in full swing this summer. click on the link to read about the happenings.

i've had the privilege of giving away the vegetables that they've been harvesting. quite a bit has gone to ms. teresa, the cook at the kid's cafe. we've also given some to ms. smallwood, a 96-year old african american woman who lives not even a block away from the london ferrill community garden. she has a great story. she graduated from tuskegee university in alabama with a teaching degree. instead of going into teaching, ms. smallwood decided to get a nursing degree. during her time in tuskegee, she informed me that there was a pretty scandalous syphilis experiment going on. that'll fire a soul up.

i've also given veggies to a loving grandmother who lives a couple of blocks from the garden and cares so well for her two grandkids.

i'm quite proud of ryan and what he's doing for our community in lexington.

carbon footprint for food

2008-06-04T10:13:00.001-04:00

here's an interesting link that teaches about how what food we consume might affect global warming.

The Clear Days

2008-02-11T10:51:00.000-05:00

...a poem by Wendell Berry

The dogs of indecision
Cross and cross the field of vision

A cloud, a buzzing fly
Distract the lover's eye.

Until the heart has found
Its native piece of ground

The day withholds its light,
The eye must stray unlit.

The ground's the body's bride,
Who will not be denied.

Not until all is given
Comes the thought of heaven.

When the mind's an empty room
The clear days come.

doing our part

2008-02-08T11:12:00.000-05:00

here's a link to the STREAM SAVER BILL that has been put before the house. our friends at kentuckians for the commonwealth are putting together an "i love mountains" rally on valentine's day over in frankfort at the capital. it's to raise awareness for the bill and mountain top removal in general. the koch family will be there and invite anyone local to come as well.

if you're not local, it might be informative to look over that link. i had no idea what our power hungry society has been doing to the earth until i moved to kentucky, closer to the devastation. it has been here that i've seen mountain top removal and strip-mining firsthand. a sight that will bring you to tears.

today

2008-02-08T11:06:00.000-05:00

from the words of paul...

don't fret or worry. instead of worrying, pray. let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. it's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.

summing it all up, friends, i'd say you'll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious-the best, not the worst; the beautiful, no the ugly; things to praise, not to curse. put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies.

it's been quite some time

2008-02-07T20:30:00.000-05:00

i've neglected the blogosphere for a while now, but hope to get back into writing. i've actually been sharing my life through photos on our flickr page. i often update it with photos of asher. but i want to get better with words.

today, our son is 10 months old! wow. times flies! i'm enjoying a good beer and have decided to give up swear words for lent this year. it was between swearing or alcohol. i've also added daily scripture readings...already slacking on this one. i have a hard time sitting down and focusing.

phillip and melissa (ryan's sis and bro-in-law) are home from their 6-month jaunt to ecuador. we love having them in lexington for a bit, but we eat so darn much when they're here. oh yeah, they're loving on asher. i think they might be getting the baby bug.

ryan's starting a non-profit urban gardening service called seedleaf. our city is eating it up. ha ha.

well, hopefully this post will encourage others to follow.

peace.

local food potluck

2007-08-08T11:50:00.000-04:00

this saturday (8/11), ryan and i are hosting a local foods potluck at our house at 931 idlewild ct. starting at 5pm. all are invited. bring friends and let's talk about ways to eat better and live more sustainably.

cheesemaking party

2007-07-09T11:51:00.000-04:00

lisa graham and i will be making cheese sometime this thursday (7/12). let us know if you're interested in joining us and we can decide times based on interest.

article in financial times

2007-07-08T14:05:00.000-04:00

here's a quick link to the article in financial times that jp was commenting about. pretty interesting read.

i love cheese

2007-07-05T17:58:00.000-04:00

here's a link to a recipe for 30 minute mozzarella from the kingsolver book. this is my next undertaking.

what is local?

2007-07-01T12:32:00.000-04:00

when it comes to foods like coffee, tea, dried fruit, etc., how can these fit into a local diet?

for fun...here's a place where you can enter your zip code and find out the areas within a 100-mile radius of your home. 100milediet.org/map/

eating local

2007-06-26T15:53:00.000-04:00

in what ways are you trying to eat locally this summer or do you have specific hopes on how to have a more local diet? or do you think this is a load of crap?

local eating discussion

2007-06-25T10:00:00.000-04:00

some of us are reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by barbara kingsolver and i can honestly say that i'm being inspired to become a locavore. starting today, i'm going to open my blog up for discussion of the book and eating locally. please feel free to comment and let me know if you'd like to facilitate any of the discussion. i look forward to our get together on august 11th.

trying to do better

2007-06-03T21:11:00.001-04:00

fat baby and big feet
Originally uploaded by jodesterkoch

i haven't had much time to blog, but i'm going to try and put more pictures up on flickr as this guy fattens up. maybe i'll do better about blogging in the future.

new photos

2007-04-24T17:08:00.001-04:00

Asher
Originally uploaded by jodesterkoch.

our friend erin labelle is a wonderfully gifted photographer. she did some belly shots for us and some 3-day old asher photos. we've put some new shots on our flickr account if you want to check them out.

sleepy baby

2007-04-18T19:57:00.001-04:00

sleepy baby
Originally uploaded by jodesterkoch.

if only he would do this during the night.

baby mama

2007-04-17T15:16:00.000-04:00

well, we've brought home a cute, little coneheaded kid. he's already starting to get too long for some of his newborn clothes. ryan says that he liked asher better when he was smaller. but he also says alot of stuff. here's a link to asher's hospital photo. the password is KOCH. i'm trying to get some photos up on my flickr page as well. here's a link to our flickr page. hopefully i'll get a chance to put some on soon.

photo shoot

2007-04-02T14:31:00.001-04:00

jod20
Originally uploaded by jodesterkoch.

our friend erin labelle came over and took some prenatal shots last week. hopefully she'll do some birth and post birth shots. after this i won't post any more naked belly shots, i promise.

bare belly

2007-03-29T12:18:00.001-04:00

dscf0038 (2)
Originally uploaded by jodesterkoch.

sorry if this is too immodest. i find it quite impressive!

the sphere of love

2007-03-29T12:17:00.001-04:00

DSCF0042
Originally uploaded by jodesterkoch.

still waiting

2007-03-27T13:41:00.000-04:00

i've been taking a break from blogging as we prepare for our urchin to arrive. please keep us in your prayers as it comes down to the wire! april 2 is our due date, but from what i understand that doesn't mean very much.

move along al gore

2007-03-07T11:39:00.000-05:00

just wanted to give a shout out to the matthew sleeth article posted at the ashram. link. it isn't until now that i actually trust and respect someone who defends the reality of global warming.

james cameron and the davinci code

2007-02-27T12:51:00.000-05:00

so, titanic producer, james cameron, has a documentary claiming that some folks found the remains of jesus, (his wife) mary mags, and a junior? the funny part is that i just watched the davinci code a few days ago. i wonder if he's read or seen it. it's like deja vu. you know, one day we'll figure out this whole God thing and we won't have to ask any more questions. is that what we desire? so now that we've found jesus's body (how many guys were named jesus during his time?) and some dna tests show that he might have been married to mary magdalene we're almost done. i'm still trying to get over the fact that king david makes me so angry yet God loved him and allowed him to be powerful. i can't handle this davinci code ripoff right now. does jesus have a moustach in that picture?

baltimore sun jesus article

fish fry and lent

2007-02-26T11:18:00.000-05:00

last year ryan and i talked about going to a fish fry during lent, but didn't ever do it. this year, we're definitely going to take one in. every friday during lent, mary queen catholic school off of clays mill road is doing a fish fry from 5-7:30pm. link.
let us know if you're interested any fridays.

harry potter and the deathly hallows

2007-02-15T14:30:00.000-05:00

i must confess that i'm a big fan of the harry potter and i'm excited to read that the last installment of the series is coming out on july 21. but are these books BAD? EVIL? that's to be determined.

are christian people bad drivers?

2007-02-12T14:29:00.000-05:00

well, the only way that people can know that is if you put one of those jesus fish things on your car. if you're going to drive like an ass, just don't do it. for the sake of us who want to be christians, but still drive like maniacs...avoid putting the fish on your car.

sam's and costco are evil

2007-02-08T07:56:00.000-05:00

i've been watching the today show this morning while waiting for king biscuit to awaken. they did a little blurp about the crazy (enter gnarls barkley) astronaut lady who attacked her lover's lover. astronut is what she is. they also did a segment on how costco runs. for those who don't know, it's like sam's wholesale. you can buy large amounts of mayo, toilet tissue, plasma tvs, grand pianos, rotisserie chickens, twizzlers, etc. they can cut the cost quite a bit when you buy in bulk like this. maybe almost half of what you would pay at a normal grocery.

you'd think that it would be great for organic farmers to be commissioned by one of the wholesale clubs to sell organic produce at their stores, but does that sacrifice the quality of the organic product? i mean, to grow anything in the bulk quantities that they would ask for, wouldn't that make the product fauxrganic? i guess organic standards aren't that high anyways.

don't these places exploit our consumerist society? who cares if the employees are offered fair wages. the people who are producing some of the shit that people buy probably aren't getting payed fairly at all.

so, even though it's tempting to shop at these places (good, cheap alcohol for one), i want to encourage us to forego that temptation and shop locally. yes, it's more expensive. but, why in the hell do we "need" half of the stuff in that store anyways? we're suckers for a deal.

p.s. i shop at target sometimes and love chick-fil-a. i don't always eat organic or locally. and frankly, sometimes i don't care. but, i want to do better.

learning from books

2007-02-02T10:10:00.000-05:00

ryan and i were having a discussion this morning about fiction v. non-fiction readings. i was figuring out (out loud) that i seem to get more out of a meaty fiction book rather than a non-fiction. actually, i loathe non-fiction. possibly b/c i don't like people telling me what to do. well, maybe i don't loathe non-fiction. i can get into a thomas merton or henri nouwen book. but to me they seem old and wise. they have lived lives close to God. maybe i have some sort of mistrust for "new" and "modern" thought when it comes to spirituality. i'd rather read brother lawrence than philip yancey.

anyways, all of this to say that i'm listening to "to kill a mockingbird" on cd. i might be learning more from the words of harper lee than i have from any other book in a long while. i want to parent like atticus finch. i want to respect all humans like atticus finch does. i want to cry at hatred like dill does in courtroom when tom robinson is getting questioned by gilman. like miss maudie when her house burns down, i want to be able to let go of things beyond my control and be open to what life brings next.

if i can only open my eyes to see the traits in those around me that i want to emulate, then maybe i could learn to appreciate the non-fiction as well as fiction.

why starbucks?

2007-02-01T07:53:00.000-05:00

i heard a blurp on npr this morning that was saying something about starbuck's stock rising and more shops being planted. my question to those who like starbucks...what is the draw?

joys of the mall

2007-01-31T08:11:00.000-05:00

on monday biscuit and i went to play at the fayette mall. for those of you who don't frequent the mall like i do, you may be surprised to find out that there's a kids play area right, smack, dab in the middle. zach plays with other germ-infested children and i people watch. and sing along to the muzak. well, guess who was at the mall with a buddy. none other than steve zahn. the local celebrity. it's always a treat to see that fine actor. the muzak channel also played the worst song ever overplayed on the radio. "i touch myself". sorry if it's stuck in your head now. but seriously, it's a party at the mall. no wonder so many people love that place.

maybe a good film will actually win

2007-01-26T08:02:00.000-05:00

one of the best movies i've seen in a while," little miss sunshine", is surprisingly up for four oscars. alan arkin (the grandad) is up for best supporting male. abigail breslin (cutest little girl) is up for best supporting female. best motion picture. and best screenplay. in the last two, they're up against "the queen" which will probably win, but i'm still hopeful. by the way, if you haven't seen "little miss sunshine", do so immediately!

the delicate art of southern food

2007-01-18T11:31:00.000-05:00

today i've been so hungry. i had some scrambled eggs, cheese grits, and toast for breakfast. then another piece of toast. then some yogurt and granola. some orange. oh yeah, and a small, corner slice of pizza. all of this has been consumed within the span of four hours. dang. maybe i really am eating for two. no. that's no excuse. i love to eat. i love food. all types of food, but especially southern food.

the southern foodways alliance has an interesting "oral history" section on their website. you can follow the BBQ, boudin, gumbo, and tamale trails as well as learn more about the food culture that happens in a number of southern states. alabama's focuses on the birmingham greek restauranteur population. those greeks know how to cook. however, i must say that our family friends in b'ham that are lebanese make the best baklava. by far.

for those interested in the "greek" (not the country, but the fraternity) scene might get a kick out of the "ole miss cooks" section. it's all about cooks at fraternity and sorority houses at ole miss (university of mississippi).

for example:

Sigma Chi Fraternity: Willette Booker, Cook
“[Every Friday] is Fried Friday; that’s what we call it--Fried Friday…Tomorrow [for example] we have macaroni and cheese wedges--I will deep fry them. It’s--it’s breaded. It’s a breaded macaroni and cheese and it’s real good.”

this is why i always wanted to date a fraternity guy.

if you appreciate the south and our food, this website is worth a look.

some info on engine idling

2007-01-16T13:04:00.000-05:00

now that it's cold, i often ask my sweet husband to warm the car up for me in the mornings. he does this and rides his bike. what a saint. maybe we should think twice about the whole warming up the car bit. union of concerned scientists article on idling. i guess i'll just ask him to scrape the windows now.

the gift

2007-01-03T14:20:00.000-05:00

if i could get this as an anniversary gift for my husband, i would certainly do so. is this animal style? can you tell me what the big deal is about this meal? maybe you have to be a californian to appreciate it.

3 years of marital bliss...

2007-01-03T13:56:00.000-05:00

happy anniversary to my sweetest husband!

best gift

2006-12-28T16:41:00.000-05:00

it's pretty sad when your favorite christmas present is someone's scribbled autograph. my brother got gillian welch to sign a cd cover to asher, our soon to be child. he's probably going to hate that kind of music. poor kid.

velda plendor in lexington

2006-12-13T10:23:00.000-05:00

i was walking down main street today and saw this lady from behind who, i swear, was the character velda plendor from one of my all time faves, troop beverly hills. she had on the whole get up. fatigues (pants tucked into khaki lace-up combat boots), bun, and a black beret. so many memories.

the national chamionship

2006-12-04T11:12:00.000-05:00

well, well, well, alot of people are up in arms b/c the florida gators were chosen to play the ohio state buckeyes in the bcs national championship this year. yes, the choosing of who gets to play in what ncaa bowl game is extremely screwy, but now i'm going to have to root for the gators. gag. it might be worse that auburn had an undefeated season a couple of years ago and weren't asked to play usc for the national title. but forgive and forget, right? oh yeah, my auburn boys didn't do so hot this year, but wait, who was florida's one loss to? hmmm. michigan should probably have gotten this bid to play ohio state. oh, it is so nice to have an sec team in there to represent. let's just hope they come ready to play.

espn natl. champ. article

big 12

2006-11-29T15:20:00.000-05:00

"dirty dozen" article from salt lake tribune

for those of us who are trying to eat healthy, here's an article that talks about the 12 foods to buy organically. these 12 usually contain higher amounts of pesticides in the conventionally grown versions. this kind of info is good for those of us who are watching what we spend, but don't want to be exposed to the evils that can seep into our food. the article also talks about other foods grown conventionally that are usually low in pesticide levels. i do want to be a more informed consumer.

2006-11-28T09:55:00.000-05:00

The Merton Reflection for the Week of November 27, 2006

"But basically, the discipline involved here is that of a crucifixion which eliminates a superficial and selfish kind of experience and opens to us the freedom of a life that is not dominated by egoism, vanity, willfulness, passion, aggressiveness, jealousy, greed. Finally, discipline means solitude of some sort, not in the sense of selfish withdrawal but in the sense of an emptiness that no longer cherishes the comfort of various social 'idols" and is not slavishly dependent on the approval of others. In such solitude one learns not to seek love but to give it. One's great need is now no longer to be loved, understood, accepted, pardoned, but to understand, to love, to pardon and accept others just as they are, in order to help them transcend themselves in love."
i had to read this a few times to get it, but for those of us who are trying to become more disciplined in order to become more whole, these are great words.

one can only hope

2006-11-21T20:46:00.000-05:00

2006-11-21T20:17:00.000-05:00

Beck - Nausea (Letterman)

fun song. lots of energy. watch for the special guest.

oh how i love thanksgiving

2006-11-19T12:23:00.000-05:00

why is this holiday so great?

1. best food ever
(turkey y cornbread dressing, sweet potato casserole w/pecans, pumpkin pie, corn pudding,
broccoli casserole, pecan pie)
2. lazing around with the fam
3. taking time to really give thanks for the many blessings in our lives
4. best food ever
5. charlie brown on tv
6. some of us actually wait to start listening to christmas music around this time (the exception...ty samson

photos from dave rawlings/gill welch show last night at dame

2006-11-15T10:51:00.000-05:00

this might be the best reason to stay up until midnight.

this is great

2006-11-10T15:00:00.000-05:00

tuesday. 8 pm. the dame. david rawlings. $15. very much worth it, i'm sure. this is the guy that accompanies gillian welch on the road. i wouldn't be terribly surprised if she showed up.

2006-11-09T14:32:00.000-05:00

assface

classic waiting for guffman clip. just b/c i was in the mood.

so sad

2006-11-09T11:51:00.000-05:00

divorce sucks.

you know, the whole britney/k-fed thing wasn't a surprise to me. but the reese witherspoon/ryan phillipe divorce is a surprise. they just seemed to have what it takes. i'm so sad for all of the kids involved.

not again

2006-11-08T12:32:00.000-05:00

as if dave matthews hasn't put out enough cds of the same old songs...he's doing it again. the best of what's around vol. 1. i enjoy dave, but enough is enough.

hmmm...johnny murtha

2006-11-08T11:38:00.000-05:00

who said politicians had to be pretty?

"the public has spoken"

2006-11-08T11:21:00.000-05:00

i am so cynical of politicians. my stepdad, who's on city council in his little suburb of birmingham, was highly offended when i confessed this. i was raised a conservative and presently think more like a "liberal". whatever that means. but a liberal can't be pro-life, so i must still be conservative. moderately. oh wait...i oppose the war in iraq. holy hell, which side am i on? this is my problem.

the dems are claiming that there are going to be numerous changes now that they're gaining power of the house. john murtha said this morning in an npr interview that "the public has spoken". we have. and as usual, in all things, we want to see some change. we can't sit still. we love power. but we also hate war. well, some of us do. change, in this case, could probably do us some good. all i have to say is put your money where your mouth is people.

this is a bit off the subject, but you know what would be an interesting political race? barack obama vs. rudy giuliani for pres. 2008. i would certainly have a tough time deciding on which guy to vote for.

2006-11-07T21:16:00.000-05:00

i'm like a college girl sometimes

i love a little john mayer every now and then. this is a song from his newest cd. check out the hair. what a rock (pop) star. oh yeah...watch for the flowy shirt.

worth a listen

2006-11-03T09:06:00.000-05:00

well, it's been a while since i've posted on this blasted blog. ryan and i are officially in the new house and we're excited about hosting a party tonight for some friends who are expecting in the next couple of months. oh yeah, i have recently added an addiction...grey's anatomy. according to my employer who is a resident anesthesiologist at uk, the medical stuff is pretty unrealistic. looks like real blood to me. i'm in it for the steamy love scenes anyways.

i've heard some pretty good music lately. beck's new cd-the information. and ray lamontagne's till the sun turns black. two very different sounds. my bosses have great taste in music.

would you rather...

2006-10-24T10:26:00.000-04:00

would you rather have clay aiken or jessica simpson as a roommate? you have to commit for a year and you have to share a bedroom with him or her. in a one room flat.

when this week is over

2006-10-17T14:05:00.000-04:00

it's nice to finally have some moments in the day to process all that's going on this week. painting, closing on a house, parents coming into town to help us move, living in a new house, forking out thousands of dollars, settling in lexington, moving out of the samson house (we'll miss them dearly). God is teaching me much about trusting him with the details here. i was a wreck the past few days thinking that the painting wouldn't be finished by thursday when my folks get here. well, thanks to our lovely friends, it will (more than likely) be finished. why do i fly off the handle when i worry? you'd think the simple solution would be to breathe and pray. if only. but i'll keep working towards holiness. thanks, lovely friends, for all the help that you have given and plan to give us. i hope that ryan and i are people that you can call on to help as well.

by the way, if you'd like to see some funny right-wing banter on will samson's blog check this out. some freakout conservative is having issues with what will's writing about. quite humorous. keep it up, will.

2006-10-10T18:55:00.000-04:00

Kelis - Milk Shake

what is a milkshake and why does it bring all the boys to the yard? i've never been to a diner quite like this before. this video is pretty 80's. and pretty narstee.

energy expo

2006-10-10T15:37:00.000-04:00

dear lexingtonians...the 2006 green living and energy expo is this weekend at rump (rupp) arena. the website gives times and such. if you are a somewhat earth-conscious homeowner, this is for you. check it out. oh yeah, last year there was a couple who builds hay insulated homes. very cool. if they are around, their pictures of the homes they built are worth a look.

to be an informed consumer

2006-10-04T12:27:00.000-04:00

today i went to a couple of shops and started pricing front loader washers and dryers. why a front loader over the conventional top loader? a) saves an average of 20 gallons of water per load b) uses 30-40% less energy c) uses less detergent d) looks cool. as i was looking i realized that it is QUITE a bit cheaper to just purchase the top loader. so, i started thinking more about best use for finances than the conviction to have a greener household. does cheaper ultimately mean better? i guess that's our mentality as americans. the less money we spend on something...the more things we can get with our money. why are there so many walmarts? sam's clubs?

so this is the dilemma. the average price of a front loader is from $600-1000+. the dryers were a bit less. top loaders averaged about $350-500+. i also found out that maytag, GE, and LG appliances are made in Korea. whirlpool, frigidaire, and bosch are made in either the US or Germany.

my pick is the bosch. $799 for the washer. $699 for the dryer. energy use: 165 kWh. water usage per year: 4155 gallons. it also has a good track record for durability. the prices are comparable to the frigidaire and whirlpool.

i did go to a scratch & dent appliance shop, but unfortunately they were mostly GE (quality has gone down). and the price wasn't actually as good as i had originally thought.

all in all, my hope is have a greener home. that might mean spending a little more money up front along with realizing that i don't need to buy something that's cheap just so that we can have lots of "stuff". most of it would probably break quickly anyways. i guess we'll see, huh. i better start pinching pennies.

pimpin video games

2006-10-03T18:57:00.000-04:00

do you remember the old atari? man, i loved that thing. best game ever...pitfall. what's your fave?

steve zahn sighting

2006-10-02T11:04:00.000-04:00

steve zahn brief bio...movie star (happy, texas; saving silverman; sahara), married j. peterman's (seinfeld) daughter robyn, and lives on a farm near lexington.

while on a walk this morning, laura and i were passing by the sayre school on our way home and saw this muscley, greasy, redneck-looking guy getting out of a huge ass black truck. for some reason, we were both looking at him trying to figure out why this guy looked familiar. well, then it clicked. it was steve zahn. this might be sighting numero tres for me. it always takes me a minute too to figure out who he is, but i always keep staring. what a dork.

deep thought

2006-10-01T10:17:00.000-04:00

"one thing kids like is to be tricked. for instance, i was going to take my little nephew to disneyland, but instead i drove him to an old burned-down warehouse. 'oh no', i said, 'disneyland burned down'. he cried and cried, but i think that deep down he thought it was a pretty good joke. i started to drive over to the real disneyland, but it was getting pretty late".

jack handey

living in the ghetto

2006-09-27T10:11:00.000-04:00

great article from the onion. a stellar news source. like no other.

don't ask me how i found this

2006-09-25T16:00:00.000-04:00

if you know james and anna walsh, you should really check out this photo. someone at the herald-leader took it of those two and seamus waiting in line to get into the legends game where roger clemens was pitching. for some reason the caption needed to let us know that they had gen. admission tickets. i thought they'd have box seats for sure.

walsh link

they are picture number 2. surprisingly enough, i believe that seamus has had a growth spurt since then.

2006-09-21T02:12:00.000-04:00

auburn vs. lsu

beside the fact that auburn won this game (whew)...the coolest part of being there was when spirit (the eagle) flew over the stadium before the game. my stepdad and i were in the upper deck, i mean, i was out of breath by the time we arrived at our seats, and the eagle comes from behind where we're sitting and just circles the stadium. so cool. by the way, for folks who are concerned with animal cruelty, the auburn vet school takes in hurt eagles and rehabilitates them. so, war damn eagle.

back on the trolley

2006-09-19T21:36:00.000-04:00

for my first blog in over a week, i'm going to suggest five songs that folks should listen to at least once in their lives:

mockingbirdsing-ryan adams
super sexy woman-sufjan stevens
kid A-radiohead
long ride home-patty griffin
sliding down-bela fleck, edgar meyer

feel free to add your own. i'm always in the market for good music.

week of travel

2006-09-08T10:53:00.000-04:00

tomorrow i head off for a visit to the beautiful south. or as ryan calls it, "the dirty south". i'll get some beach time and a ticket to the auburn/lsu game. lsu's going down. then, as usual, i'll be more than ready to get back to lexvegas and my hubby. just how it goes.

2006-09-05T14:08:00.000-04:00

The Chieftains & Patty Griffin - Whole Heap Of Little Horses

now, here's some real music.

this ain't right

2006-09-05T13:36:00.000-04:00

today, while zach was catching some zzzz's, i watched a bit of the view. rosie started today. she took meredith viarra's (that looks too much like viagra) place. she did fine. her normal bit. kind of a camera hog, but i think she's pretty funny.

this is the part that fired me up...they had jessica simpson on as a musical guest. she sang a song from her new cd (which, by the way, got 1/2 a star on a recent review) called "let him fly". stop here. the dixie chicks have already borrowed that song from patty griffin and it was a hit. not to mention, it was actually pretty good. but jessica simpson! no way. how could patty let this happen? she is one of the best female songwriters ever. and this song is jessie's emotional retaliation to her divorce from nick lachey. let him fly? she's the one that broke up with him.

oh yeah, her skirt was so short that she was "accidentally" showing a smidge of her undies when she was interviewed sitting on a couch. this is uncalled for, i tell you.

a visit with the vampire

2006-09-01T13:59:00.000-04:00

i've been dreading this day for a week. i had to have some blood drawn. besides the fact that i had to wait almost an hour to see the doctor, it was a good blood sucking. i was nervous b/c the last time i had blood taken (i was 15), i almost passed out at the checkout window. so, this morning, i ate two biscuits (one with egg and cheese and one with syrup) before i went and was fine! praise the maker. i do want to keep this cool blue thing on my arm all day though.

welcome back, college football

2006-08-28T09:23:00.000-04:00

this saturday marks the beginning of my favorite season of the year. college football. mainly b/c it marks the beginning of fall (cooler weather, thank god), family get togethers, chili parties, and lazy saturdays. my auburn tigers are ranked in the top ten right now. i don't have my hopes up too high, but it's pretty exciting. this sat. night they play washington state. anyone interested in a chili party?

from the book of common prayer

2006-08-27T17:43:00.000-04:00

O God, whose days are numbered without end, and whose mercies cannot be numbered: Make us, we beseech thee, deeply sensible of the shortness and uncertainty of life; and let thy Holy Spirit lead us in holiness and righteousness all our days; that, when we shall have served thee in our generation, we may be gathered unto our fathers, having the testimony of a good conscience; in the confidence of a certain faith; in the comfort of a reasonable, religious, and holy hope; in favor with thee our God; and in perfect charity with the world. All which we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

2006-08-26T09:15:00.000-04:00

pop music

this is my new favorite cheesy song. i allow myself one every once and a while.

mcD's and SUVs

2006-08-23T19:04:00.000-04:00

this summer mcdonald's is giving out hummers in their "boy" happy meals. pretty creepy. which is worse...a sketchy ham (or probably dog) burger with sugar coated french fries or encouraging our young ones towards gas guzzling vehicles? i think that the oil companies and arnold swarzennager have something to do with this. also, a clown is kind of a creepy mascot anyways. what ever happened to the hamburglar?

here is a link to letter written by the union of concerned scientists to donald thompson, chief operating officer, asking him to remove the hummers, that you can put your name on and send away. you do have to give them some info, but they'll send some pretty decent emails about the state of our earth.

evolution

2006-08-22T09:45:00.000-04:00

the greatest show on earth

2006-08-21T13:59:00.000-04:00

what is it about the circus? it was just in lexvegas this past weekend. we did not go. thank god. but would we have taken our kids? probably not. could it be because of the abundance of scary clowns playing in groups of 8, jumping in and out of cars and playing with fire? maybe. mostly i think it is because i never got that souvenir spinny light that i wanted as a child. the circus has always been a bust since then. man, i was such a brat (and still probably am).

is this picture scary or what?

more on organic milk

2006-08-15T20:54:00.000-04:00

check this out...cornucopia institute. they "promote economic justice for family-scale farming". they are a group from wisconsin who are concerned with honesty in organics. this link is to a list of dairies rated from 5 "cows" (outstanding quality) to 1 "cow". there are some small farms i haven't heard of listed, but you'll also find organic valley, horizon, etc. very interesting.

alright!

2006-08-07T18:58:00.000-04:00

my dream came true. today i saw a sign at the wendy's on alexandria saying that they have vanilla frostys! ho!

reminiscing the biscuit

2006-07-31T19:40:00.000-04:00

this photo was on my very first blog entry. i've taught the biscuit well. you've got to start them young, you know.

he was upset that his miller lite wasn't ice cold.

my, how kids grow up.

you know i'm excited about this one

2006-07-31T09:37:00.000-04:00

well, it's coming. Talladega Nights: The Legend of Ricky Bobby. i'm sure many of you will never trust my judgement in movies again after knowing that i can't wait to see this one. stellar cast: will ferrell (of course), sascha baron cohen (ali g), john c. reilly, and it seems as though molly shannon is in the mix. the trailer might contain the funniest parts of this movie, but i'm always a sucker for a will ferrell (or nascar) flick. i even went to see the woody allen movie, Melinda and Melinda, that he was in. sucked. i know jen paul is about as excited as i am...anyone else want to partake in some nascar goodness this weekend?

scoop

2006-07-30T10:04:00.000-04:00

i'm not a fan. normally. of woody allen or scarlett johansson. my husband loves woody allen and i can't understand why his movies seem to be all about sex and adultery. same thing? anyways, we went to see his new movie, Scoop, last night with our friends, clinton and lisa. honestly, i just wanted to go to the movies and those at the kentucky theatre are the most reasonably priced. my hope was to see A Scanner Darkly, but that didn't start until 9:40pm. i'm old. that's too late for me.

all of this to say, i thoroughly enjoyed this movie! this is by far the most entertaining and hilarious movie by woodrow allen that i've seen. and i've seen more than my share. scarlett j. isn't the slutty ho that she usually plays in recent movies. even though she does have her small moments. i haven't laughed outloud at a woody allen movie until last night.

warning: woody allen plays a major role in this movie. if you are totally annoyed by his neurotic-ness then beware, but overall, he plays a pretty darn funny role.

bestest root beer

2006-07-27T13:00:00.000-04:00

this stuff is on sale this month at good foods. holy freakin cow. so good! boylan's root beer. they have all sorts of soft drink options, but this is my fave. ryan and i first had it at a burrito place at the bottom of lookout mountain in chattanooga. loved it ever since.

kinky for governor...why the hell not?

2006-07-24T19:15:00.000-04:00

if only i was a texas resident...i'd vote for kinky friedman in 2006. probably because i'm a rebellious woman who LOVES to vote independent whenever i have the chance. to hell with voting democrat to help get the repubs out of office. i don't want the dems in either. you've got to check out this "kinkytoon".

more lessons in forgiveness

2006-07-24T15:00:00.000-04:00

so, i'm learning how to forgive myself and others. how can i better love someone who doesn't necessarily want to love me right now? for now, i'll just pray. and hope for reconciliation.

from becoming human by jean vanier...

"to enter into the path of forgiveness, we have to lose our feelings of both superiority and inferiority. each of us has hurt another, each of us has been hurt. and so we must own and take responsibility for our lives as well as for the future. we are all called upon to stand up and take our place freely in the world."

2006-07-21T17:47:00.000-04:00

lady

why do i love this song so? video...not so much.

thomas dybdahl

2006-07-20T17:17:00.000-04:00

song link: half of me.mp3

this guy is a 25-year old norweigian who writes and plays quite maturely (did i just make up that word?) for his young age. his music is folky and chill, but entertaining. check it out if you dare.

thomasdybdahl.com

let's be locavores!

2006-07-18T17:15:00.000-04:00

call me granola. or even hippie. but i'm totally digging this website from a group in san francisco who call themselves locavores. they give some good tips about eating locally and what to do for foods that you can't get locally. they deemed the month of may "eat local month". those participating purchased food from no more than 100 miles away. now, in california, it would seem that the option would be limitless. but, we'd probably be surprised to find what great foods (and drink) we can get close to home. in kentucky alone (within 100 miles from lexington):

elmwood stock farm for all sorts of organic meat, veg and free-range eggs. they have a stand at the farmer's market.

three springs farm is our personal favorite. they do csa shares through the late spring and summer. plus david and arwen encourage folks to go out and hike and see where the food comes from. they have some great info about joining a CSA on their website.

lexington farmer's market. with three different locations and four market days, there's no good reason not to buy weekly produce and many other groceries here. if you want cheez-its, you'll have to go to kroger.

kenny's cheese. all i have to say is...pure goodness. they sell this cheese at good foods co-op and at the farmer's market. these folks are quite nice.

bluegrass baking co. makes some pimpin' bread (some artisan) and sweets.

smith-berry winery. best wine around. unfortunately, they are having a hard time growing grapes organically so they're shipped from another state for now. all of the processing is done in kentucky. oh yeah, this is wendell berry's daughter's place.

equus run vineyards. although this wine isn't as stellar as the above, you can have the true vineyard experience here. it's always fun to do a wine tasting anyways. it's still delicious wine.

weisenberger mill. cool, old mill on elkhorn creek. you can get pretty much any baking flour, grits, corn meal, muffin mix, pizza dough mix from this place. they sell them in most groceries.

this is my best brainstorm list for places that i'd like to support around here. and it's to remind me that california isn't the only state with quality local foods and drink.

little brother living the dream

2006-07-17T09:09:00.000-04:00

my little brother, thomas...but now referred to as tommy, got on a bus last night in va beach to head up to nyc for a RENT audition on broadway. wow. i don't particularly care for musicals, but i'm quite proud of him. he's having great adventures. i hope he does well. especially after the jackasses at american idol voted him off.

ooh la la...organic food

2006-07-14T14:33:00.000-04:00

listen, if places like wal-mart are starting to carry organic products, question it. question all sources of organic foods. there's been a lot of hype in the "organic" world about the source of horizon organic's milk. article. so, i've decided to do some research since ryan and i try to buy organic stuff and eat as healthful as we can.

1. many big organic/natural product companies have been sold to a larger corporation. like tom's of maine toothpaste, horizon, stonyfield farms, burt's bees. does this affect quality? npr blurp on this subject

2. buy local over big name organic. there's a better probability that it's been picked recently. spinach from our csa farmer and from our own back yard is quite better than bagged organic from the store. it doesn't leave a weird film on your teeth.

3. check where in the world organic produce comes from. alot of it is shipped from countries other than ours. think about the petrol used to get that food to us.

4. eating seasonally could mean eating more healthily. i'm only going to buy fruits and veg from the farmer's market this summer. this is so much easier during this season. this article on eating with the seasons gives some examples of what foods to eat and when.

i guess i'm really just excited that i just made slaw with cabbage from our farmer's csa basket and peppers and carrots from our friends', the paul's, backyard. it's probably good to have a healthy mistrust in the organic market. i guess if they have to stress that it's ORGANIC, then they're probably out for money and i'll question their integrity even more.

plus, there's probably a little bit of shit in everything we eat. oh well.

book club

2006-07-12T11:01:00.000-04:00

last week i was introduced to a book called Brother To A Dragonfly by a man named will d. campbell. he's a mississippi boy who now lives near nashville, tn. into civil rights back in the day and a preacher. he seems like an interesting man and i'm excited to read this book. would anyone want to read and discuss it? i can probably find some used copies on the internet. i'd love to start a southern authors book club.

let's play cornhole!

2006-07-12T10:41:00.000-04:00

listen, who wants to help me make a cornhole set? (TP...i'm really talking to you and jen...we'll have to make bean bags too). think about the hours of fun this could be in the fall as we enjoy football and backyard grilling. i'm sure that will samson would LOVE to learn how to play. who's in?

mint royale

2006-07-10T17:23:00.000-04:00

i'm addicted to a seattle radio station that i listen to on the internet. kexp. every friday morning they play a song called "show me" by a UK electronica/dj-ish group called mint royale. i've just discovered the video (very anime) on youtube. one of the guys from de la soul sings with them on this one. i wanted to share...video link. this song makes me so happy.

who will it be?

2006-07-06T16:39:00.000-04:00

let's see... spacey french aliens or the italians? i've got my money on italy to win the world cup. my household is against me, but i love them anyways.

good to be back home

2006-07-06T16:25:00.000-04:00

what a treat to be pulling into the "driveway" this afternoon and be greeted by gwynnie, ty, and will. they were just getting home from a lovely picnic at woodland park. how we love the samson family!

ryan and i are so very glad to be back in kentucky where it was 77 degrees as we pulled in at 3pm. for the beginning of july, that's amazing. just monday it was close to 100 in b'ham. ugh. and yes, the water at the lake was the temperature of a nice bath. i loved it.

last night we stayed in nashvegas with our friend, bev. it's always wonderful to see her. ryan, of course, enjoyed our time at the brewery while we waited for bev to get her highlights. this morning we had coffee and ate breakfast at fido. if you're ever around nashville check this place out. we stop there almost every time we past through the city. it's easy to find and a good driving break. plus, i think that caedmon's call was eating there too. hmmm.

anyways, back to partying it up in KY!

sucks

2006-06-24T16:41:00.000-04:00

well, my body offically wore it's old self down this week somehow and i got sick. so sick that i needed to be on antibiotics. this was probably partially due to daycare stress, but i haven't been getting enough rest or treating my body as the temple that it is. the worst part about it is that ryan and i missed papafest. i've been looking forward to that time with our community and for the opportunity to meet others that are doing great things around our country. it was certainly the best decision for healing b/c i'm headed out tomorrow for a week long vacation with the fam minus ryan. still, it sucks. oh yeah, i asked ryan if he's going to miss me for the week. he said "no-i like being by myself. do you want me to lie?" hurumph. he'll have fun. he's going to eat luscious, local, backyard-barbecued goat. and camp at three springs farm for two nights. i'll be in colonial williamsburg taking in the sights with my family. and riding on the lazy river at water country usa. maybe i'll get in the wave pool too.

we'll get to reunite next saturday and go to the lake. woohoo! watermelon seed spitting contest! ryan always wins.

oh yeah, i'm missing my ten year reunion this weekend. too bad. no weird conversations and potato salad for me. and there's the comparing of social status. and of spouses. what more would i want to do with my weekend?

world cup and style

2006-06-21T08:02:00.000-04:00

this kid is amazing. fernando torres from spain. helped spain catch up to and defeat tunisia. now, i've found (through intense research) that there have been a few mullets donned on spanish players throughout the years. the top pic is recent, the bottom is a bit older. why is this ok? they think that just b/c they're footballers they can have bad hair day? can these guys actually pull this off better than someone from eastern kentucky?

could someone please explain the game of soccer to me?

video of the week

2006-06-19T14:16:00.000-04:00

g. love is just some fun music. check this out...

love video

colonial williamsburg

2006-06-19T14:05:00.000-04:00

here i come busch gardens! i leave for a week long trip on sunday with my parents to go visit my lil' bro, the opera singer, at b.g. he's in a dinner show called "holiday in roma". can't wait for this one. man, we're so different. i realized the other day that i haven't traveled for this length of time with my family since high school. there's a reason for that, i assure you. please pray for us. i'm trying to get up enough courage to ride some scary rides with my brother. he might be a dork, but i'm definitely the chicken. what are the odds that i'll actually get on a ride?