I'm coming home tomorrow!

 Oh glorious day!  I get to drive a manual!  I get to go barefoot!  I get to wear pants!  I get to be outside...a lot!  I don't have to serve dinner twice a day!  I get to make soap!  I get to go camping!  I get to go to the beach!  I get to see everybody!  Spider-man!  Campfires!  Gaelic Storm in stereo!

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Real gold fears no fire.

View of our frisbee field...

...(parking lot) from the room next to mine...as taken from my room. My most amazing play of last night's amazing game: running deep in the near endzone, I snagged the frisbee just enough inbounds for a goal and finished with a crash and burn that broke out in a rash up my right arm. I couldn't begin to tell of John's innumerable amazing plays. I'll just leave it at: I'm glad we were on the same team some of the time.

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Real gold fears no fire.

Lemon-Honey Drop Cookies

Monday we made these delectable little cookies no one could get enough of. Imagine honey-butter infused with lemony sunshine and this is what you would get. I won't even disclose how many found their way to my stomach in the name of 'taste testing'.
Speaking of large quantities, last night during Bible study we counted over 20,000 clear and pink beads for craft packets for Pre-EXCEL. We paired up, one girl counting 44 clear beads and the other, 32 pink. The girl I was working with had a speedy counting method that I had a hard time keeping up with until I adopted it and we became *cough* the fastest counting team *cough*. We probably counted enough for the next two conferences.

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Real gold fears no fire.

Week at a glance

 Monday: We had a windy picnic in the courtyard to enjoy our newly painted gazebo.  I made lots of picnic-y things to eat including raspberry lemonade and, not so picnic-y, shortcakes with lemon curd and raspberry sauce.

 Wednesday: Took a long drive in a rainstorm so severe that visibility was reduced to lights and reflectors and we could barely hear each other in the same car because of the noise the rain was making as it pelted the van.  Meanwhile, back at the ranch, 90-100 mph winds blew in a window, causing glass to fly some 40 feet from its original location, and downed several trees and large branches.

 Thursday: Scraping out the seeds from a jalapeno for salsa, I got squirted in the eye and spent several minutes on fire at the same time remaining completely calm so Katie wouldn't freak out.  Later on, since Katie and I were the only two around for girls' Bible study, we decided to convene at la Madeleine over a groan-worthy chocolat mousse crêpe.  I love that place...Bible study I mean, Bible study.

 Saturday: Our day to celebrate a few staff birthdays and, it being the 5th of May, the theme recommended itself.  The menu comprised chicken empanadas, salsa fresca, mango salsa, agua fresco, and dulce de leche flan, none of which I had ever made before.  Everything turned out wonderfully and I would definitely make any of them again (except perhaps the same flavor of agua fresca; I think I prefer to eat my watermelon), especially the dulce de leche that I had to make for the flan, if only because it just tickled me so much to make something by boiling a can of condensed milk underwater for four hours.

 Only one week and two days until I'm home!  I'll have to post if I make anything wonderful between now and then.

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Cheers

On the Wall

Coming from choir practice, I got to Exposure Rock Climbing Gym about an hour after the rest of the group. After watching a cheesy orientation video, I harnessed up and made a quick trip to the top of their 'we just want to be sure you're comfortable with the equipment' wall and belayed for Rachel as she went up. I made a beeline for John and he pointed out a couple of walls that he thought would be good to start on. Most of the time John and I would alternate between belaying and climbing but we got someone else to belay so I could take pictures and then so he could. I only climbed one wall that was a real challenge. John picked it out for me and coached me to the top. At one point, I had to jump to reach the next handhold, but fell off the wall because I couldn't get a grip that would hold me. Back on the wall, I tried it with a different foothold and didn't have to jump. My forearms were so tight after that climb. After two and a half hours, most everyone was ready to go, but I kept climbing as long as I could and was the last one out of my harness. That's one more thing I can check off my list, and definitely something I will do again.

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Belaying for Johnny

Last one of the day for John.

Belay Man

Concentrating on keeping me on the wall.

I never did get that picture, but if I ever do it will go right here.

 

 The Monday before my birthday, a storm threatened to keep us in from our after-EXCEL picnic, which would mean staying inside the building and, of course, no running around barefoot, kicking a soccer ball, and playing frisbee.  Happily for me, the rain held off long enough for us to be already in the vans driving out to the lake.  We ate and played with the soccer ball under a covered picnic area until there was a break in the rain when I could convince everyone to come out and play frisbee.  People are so funny.  They won't come out to play in the rain, but once they're started...ch...what's a little rain?  The game is ON.  We ran, slid, slipped, churned up the field, and made a mess to remember our time by.  The only way it could have been better is if we had been in Oregon...and if I had been wearing pants.

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Real gold fears no fire.

Adventures

I don't suppose this first one actually counts as an adventure, but it was quite an experience. I pulled up to the gas station and hopped out of the van, when up strolls a gas station attendant. "I'll take care of this for you today," he offers as he takes my card and starts filling. He makes small talk as twenty-eight gallons of gas transfer ownership and, finishing up, hands me my receipt and sends me on my way. Now, you know, Texas has self-serve gas stations and I've never seen any attendant talk that much with a customer. Interesting.

Driving back from running errands, with one more stop to make, I found myself in a right-turn-only lane one street too soon. Rather than try to change lanes and continue, I decided to turn and make my way over down the street. As I was approaching the first light, I noticed a left-turn-only sign for the lane I was in, which was exactly what I wanted and, conditions being favorable ( i.e. green light, oncoming traffic way down there), I turned...onto a one-way street...the wrong way. Apparently the sign was for the next light. Faced with a wall of cars, my split-second decision was to pull up on the sidewalk and let the back half of the 15-passenger van hang out on the lightrail tracks while all the one-way cars made use of their green light. As soon as they were cleared out, I backed myself right around, made a right on red and got out of there. If you can think of a time when I was that embarrassed, I'd like to hear about it. At least they all just thought I was from Illinois.

Friday, forty minutes before EXCEL graduation, ten minutes before we're supposed to be back in the kitchen cooking for the reception, the power went out...with a little girl stuck in the elevator. So while everyone's running around trying to open the elevator, get the generator started, and finish preparing for graduation, I'm thinking, "Well, at least all the cold reception food is ready." After forty minutes in the dark with no air conditioning, just in time for graduation I might add, the generator kicked in enough to power the main hallways and the meeting room...but not the kitchen. It was another ten minutes before there was enough power for that. With forty-five minutes before the reception, the kitchen was a flurry of activity as hot appetizers slid onto pans and into the ovens. Punch flowed; cake was frosted and decorated; plates, napkins, plasticware, and trays piled high all made their way to the line. Finishing touches for a beautiful reception were placed with plenty of time. Success!

The final adventure of this series must wait till I get some pictures, but feel free to stew and wonder what in the world it could be.

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Real gold fears no fire.

No One Likes Their Job Every Day

Such a partan (crab) I was today, at least until midafternoon when I chilled as I cut twenty-one pounds of raw chicken thighs and 14 pounds of raw beef. No one could have told, if I hadn't answered how I really was when they asked, but I woke up on the wrong side of the bed. An hour too early. And all because my window being open let the wind bang my door repeatedly and insistantly. Being wide awake for an hour after lights out last night didn't help my mood either.
Instead of taking a break today, I ran errands. Usually I like to get out and go for a drive and see the outside world once in a while, but not if it means giving up my break. Yay for working 10-hour days!

 Our staff outing today was a trip to West Village in downtown Dallas.  We walked to the trolley and rode across town on a 100-year-old streetcar.  Our first stop after we got off was (I'll give you three guesses and the second two don't count.) *surprise* Starbucks!  We browsed in Borders for a while and saw way too many things that called out to be bought and spent the rest of our time drifting in and out of the shops.  We got back just in time to roll out the dough for stromboli so the EXCEL girls could have dinner on time.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 The best way to get acquainted with the lay of the land is to traverse it.  You could do this by taking a leisurely drive on a Sunday afternoon...or you could attempt to reach a destination you've only been to once and are unsure of its location, take a wrong turn, have to turn around twice to get back on track, drive past it because you're looking on the wrong side of the road, finally arrive and complete your errand, and have construction workers close the ramp to your next stop so you have to continue to the next exit to turn around and make your way back.  Quite an educational experience that would be.

 

 Oh, speaking of educational!  The church is having a new organ installed and our accompanist, after choir practice last night, gave us a tour of the pieces since they are strewn all over the sanctuary.  This particular organ has between 5,500 and 6,000 pipes, each having to be individually tuned and voiced.  The process could take as long as ten weeks.  So we saw all the different pieces that make an organ.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 Mr. Bell ran errands with me yesterday and took me out to Starbucks.  It was a good break from routine, but made a long workday since the only time we could really go was right on top of when I usually take my break.  Things coming up and taking me from my lunch hour didn't help either.  Shocking fact of the day: World War II veterans are dying at a rate of 1,000 per day.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 The end of last week was spent getting ready for the annual meeting of *ominous music* The Board.  Claudia and the girls spit and polished the whole building.  All I had to do was make sure I ordered sweet potatoes, Mr. Gothard's favorite food.  I almost didn't see him at all because *ominous music* The Board spent most of their time in the second floor conference room and I spent most of my time in the kitchen.  Most everybody heaved a collective sigh of relief when *ominous music* The Board left, but I had barely noticed they were here since I had just continued to do my job as usual.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 I have the weekend off.  Lisa put brunch out, Advanced EXCEL took care of dinner tonight, and Laura is doing dinner tomorrow.  Yay for not thinking about work!  This afternoon the staff girls went out thrift store shopping and, of course, Starbucks run. ☺  I took a short extra-hot mocha with an extra pump of mocha, and ordered a grande mocha frappucino with a pump of hazelnut and a pump of caramel for one of the girls who wanted to try something new and really likes sweet drinks.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 I've had a lot of firsts while I've been working here.  First time pumping gas, first time going to Sam's, playing ping pong, and volleyball were a few from last year.  This year, I've driven a fifteen passenger van, carried a cell phone, gotten a credit card, cooked something I've never tried before for more than eight people, and bobbed for an apple.  Tonight was my first time to play soccer...and be hit in the face with the ball.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 This morning, as we were trying to get lunch out with ovens that were unreliable, the health inspectors showed up.  First Josh came through and told me that there was a Dallas Health Department truck outside and we were probably about to be inspected.  So I quietly tidied a few things up and Laura had one of the girls wipe some counters.  We kept working on lunch and chores till Trevor came in and said the health inspectors were here.  They asked to see my certificate, checked up on things, and ended up giving us 96% and remarking that we have the cleanest place in Dallas.  We all had a buzz the rest of the day.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 This morning we had no butter to make granola bars.  When I was going out to Farmers' market and to get butter, Josh wasn't around to give me petty cash and I had to switch vehicles twice.  When I got back the girls informed me that one of our ovens wasn't working.  EXCEL girls came to help in the kitchen an hour earlier than expected and the granola bars weren't ready to set out at snack time.  We didn't have enough broccoli for dinner and the steak was still frozen when I wanted to be cooking it.  And yet, in spite of everything that went wrong, nothing bad actually happened.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 It was chilly out this morning as Amy and Rachel and I left for choir practice and the fifteen minute drive to church was quiet.  I followed Rachel and Amy through the halls and up the stairs to the choir room where I found my music folder in the 14th cubby and pulled my choir robe off its numbered hanger.  After warming up, we ran through the two songs we would be singing a couple of times and then filed out and down and across the church and up to the balcony where we would stand to sing our introit.  Down we came again to process into the sanctuary to the choir loft.  The whole choir had been introduced to the song we sang only last Wednesday, so we met in the choir room after service to practice a little bit more before the second service.

 Tonight we're having a 'staff activity' with refreshments (super bowl food!).

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Real gold fears no fire.

 We have two new vans here at the Dallas Ministry Center: a 2000 E-350 fifteen passenger and a 2003 E-150 Chateau.  I much prefer the 15 passenger.  The Chateau, being an E-150 and not having a V-8, is really just a car trying to drag around the shell of a van it got stuck in.  I had never driven a fifteen passenger before last month, but it's only a little bit different than a twelve and only slightly scary.

 Tonight since it's too cold to play outside, we're playing sardines in the basement.

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Real gold fears no fire.