Crafting with Flora

Per your request, here is a picture of Flora in her "I Love My Nanny" bib that I designed for her. Another project recently inspired by my boredom was to make the letters of her name to hang on her wall. I first traced and cut the letter shapes out of styrofoam. Then I used hot-glue (the duct tape for women) to wrap the sides in white fabric.


Finally I filled the exposed styrofoam with artificial flowers, courtesy of Joann's 70% off clearance bin. The result is very colorful and fun, but it still hasn't quite made it to her wall yet!

Mac's Middle Name is Lazarus

It was very still and dark last Thursday night, yet I had no impending sense of the doom about to befall. I sat at my desk playing Text Twist while I waited for Bryan to come online. Around 11pm I heard Skype's musical queue and abandoned my word scrambling to answer Bryan's call. Then it happened. Everything... stopped. Mac's screen turned pale gray like a face on a deathbed. His last words, "You must restart." I obediently turned him off, but he made no effort to turn back on for me. I felt like a doctor duped into an assisted suicide. I grasped his metal casing which I never cleaned or loved enough during his short life and cried, "Don't leave me!! You can't leave me like this!!" That night I repeatedly tried to turn Mac on, but it was too late. The flatline was buzzing; Mac was gone.

I went to bed dreading the arrangements I'd have to make for Mac's remains in the morning. At least I had finally (for the first time) backed up all my data last month. I thought about how kind it was that God didn't let me lose all my digital photos and illustrations. I'm sure those things are not essential to His life-plan for me, but he made sure I had them backed up before this happened. I was touched. We had a moment.

Friday morning I groggily stumbled to my desk out of habit and opened up Mac--then I sighed remembering the night before. One more try... I pressed the button and plastered my ear to the keyboard hoping to hear the whirring sounds of life inside. I did! I was shocked! I waited and watched as Mac started up just fine. I half expected to see him display an error message that said "Psych!" I never knew Mac was a prankster, but he got me good that night. I'm already thinking of ways that I can get him back--like downloading Windows Media Player or pricing new Macs online.

Independence Day

One sunny afternoon I pulled in to Wal-Mart and found a parking space. As occasionally happens, my timing was just awkward enough that I came around the back of my car just in time to intercept another pedestrian heading for the doors. I didn't look closely at him, but my initial glance told me that he was older with a strong gait. He must've glanced my way too, because he noticed the "Marines" sticker on my car and said, "Are you in the Marines?" I smiled a little and considered saying yes, but instead opted for the truth and told him no, it's my husband who is the Marine. "Ah. Well tell him I said thank you for serving our country." To which I replied, "That's very considerate of you and yes, he deserves your thanks, but what am I? Chopped liver? Does a military wife not deserve your thanks, too? I put my wedding, my career, and my life on hold because I chose to love and support that man who's serving our country. I keep his morale high so that he doesn't become part of the statistic that Marines have the highest suicide rate of any military branch. I put up with all the crappy aspects of the military like ever-changing homecoming dates, rules that don't make sense, and moving cross-country every few years. I didn't sign a five-year contract that requires me to put up with all this; I'm voluntarily letting the Marines run my life because I know my husband needs me. My husband is the hero, but if he was here and not in Iraq he'd tell you to thank me, too, for making so many sacrifices and sticking by his side through everything we've endured together for the sake of service to our country."

Ok, so I didn't really say that whole last part, but I wanted to. When you're thanking a military hero, don't forget to also thank their spouse for persevering in a position that many could not handle. But please, do not thank me. I'm not asking for recognition from my family and friends who already know my plight...that would be a little weird. :) Next year I will no longer be a military wife, and I just hope that I won't forget the experience in years to come. And if I ever thank a military wife for her husband's service, I hope that I won't forget to thank her, too.

Done with Ivanhoe, On to Don Quixote

Hello. My name is Sara K., and I am a book snob. If it is not a classic, then I do not want to read it. I am finally admitting my problem after years of failed interventions from family and friends who propose adding non-classics to my reading list. It's a modern classic, they say. It's just like Jane Austen, they say. It's gripping and you won't be able to put it down, they say. I politely smile and nod and tell them I'll keep that book in mind, while secretly I'm lamenting all the great classics that have made it onto Wishbone but not into my hands. Not that I use a talking dog as my standard for knowing the best books to read, but I think there's a reason he never resorted to modern literature. It's just not as good. I think I've given it a fair chance, but in my opinion Harry is no Frodo. Sue Grafton doesn't compare with Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and I've yet to find anyone who can rival Austen's subtle wit and understated passions.

Yes, I admit that I'm a book snob. It's a crime to be so unfair and it's a punishment to miss the pop culture afforded by Peretti, Grisham, and Rowling. I'm sure that even Rory Gilmore would recommend a more diversified reading list, but it's just too hard for me to change my ways. It's a disease I have to live with, and I hope that in time my well-meaning family and friends will learn to accept my errant snobbery, or at least accept my apologies for being so proud and prejudiced.

Full-Time Nanny + Part-Time Graphic Designer =

I just ordered a bib for Flora with this design on it!

An Off-Broadway Review

Tonight I joined my sister and two other friends to see a Broadway-style production in a large outdoor Starlight Theater. The show was called The Drowsy Chaperone and even after reading the programs we had no idea what it would be about. It turned out to be a really great show and a very fun night (despite a first-act margarita that pushed on my bladder for three hours).

I'd love to show you pictures, but unfortunately cameras were not allowed. Basically the show is about a modern-day man using a record-player in his home to listen to a 1920's musical comedy called The Drowsy Chaperone (ie, the drunk maid of honor). The entire jazzy musical proceeded to take place in his living room with occasional exclamations and explanations from the "man in chair"—as his character was called. I was delighted to recognize two actors from tv and film: Georgia Engel, Robert's mother-in-law in Everybody Loves Raymond and Georgette in The Mary Tyler Moore Show, and also the "man in chair" himself, Jonathan Crombie who graced the Anne of Green Gables movies as Gilbert Blythe. Georgia Engel's best line with her softly delicate voice: "Poooooop." But my favorite line was Man in Chair's "Is this the person I'm supposed to pee with for the rest of my life?"

I'm so glad that live theater has survived the 20th century and not suffered the same sad fate as its doomed sister, musical films. I'm a big fan of choreographed tap-dancing, exaggerated expressions, and the philosophy of why say it when you can sing it? The cheesier the better. I'm looking forward to next month's production of High School Musical. (Seriously. Really excited about that one.)

Politics Make Me Uncomfortable

Ow. My foot is asleep and my shins are imprinted with red creases to match the form of my desk's edge. This is what happens when I try to do my American duty and research the presidential candidates of 2008. I've never been able to sit normally at a desk, so my twisted legs and squashed feet are not too happy with my decision to ignore their protests and remained glued to my computer screen.

I consider myself to be an open-minded conservative, so I went to the websites of both Obama and McCain. I discovered that both stand for things I agree with, and both stand for things that scare me. However, there is a bigger issue to consider that is not represented on either of their listed stances: web presence. Between the two there is one clear winner of my vote for the better website. I think that McCain's campaign has underestimated the importance of their web presence in this race. A quick YouTube search found 193,000 results for "Obama" and only 65,000 results for "McCain". Statistics show that people who are using the internet as the main source for their election news feel like they understand what is going on and that they have a say in how it turns out—in short, they sound like the type of people who actually get out and vote on election day. So if a candidate's website is unattractive and his web presence weak, how much of an effect will that have on his poll numbers?

Blogging, Writes, and KC Life

There are other ways of reading my blog besides coming to this website. You can subscribe to the RSS feed at the bottom of the page, or I can add you to a list of people who will get my new posts emailed to them. I know several of you received emails when I updated my Xanga blog, so I thought you might like that option here, too. Just send me your email address and I'll add you to that list.

I just thought of another great name for my blog: Writes of a Military Wife. Too late to change the name though. And after next year I won't have that military angle to my blog anyways. That's right, we only have about a year left with the Marines!

I wish Bryan could share all my Kansas City experiences. He said I should send him photos of everything I do and everywhere I go so he can picture my life here. (too easy pun) So today Flora and I went out with camera in tow and documented the following places that I frequent: two coffee shops within two miles of the house, a drive-through with the best frozen custard ever, the closest post office which happens to be in a strip mall, my new bank that I chose based on its attractive exterior, the convenient Quick Trip that highlights many a weekend with coffee and donuts, and the slightly overpriced hometown grocery store. It's not too exciting, but that's pretty much the extent of everything I do in KC. Eventually I'll have to get a picture of the Apple Store for him because I'm definitely dragging his PC booty into one of those. Maybe I'll call ahead so they can have an intervention prepared.

May 20—Happy Anniversary

Another anniversary, another absent husband. Saying it that way makes him sound like a deadbeat, but he's far from it. Our first anniversary he was stationed in Japan. Today, our second anniversary, he is deployed to Iraq. In the past 24 months of our marriage, we've only spent 8 months living together. That's two-thirds of our marriage that we've been separated against our wills. It sucks, but thank God for web cams! Despite our unusual situation we have a terrific relationship. (Thanks in large part to the five years of dating before the wedding.) Happy anniversary, Bryan! May we be ever as in love and never as separated as our first two years of marriage.

Today's Translations

What was said: "I don't hate it enough to custom order."
What I heard: "I don't hate it enough to cuss or murder."

What was said: "It's your dress destiny."
What I heard: "It's your dresstiny."

What was said: "Sara, you need a beer."
What I heard: "Sara, you need a beard."