Sweat

Prompt: Wonder. How did you cultivate a sense of wonder in your life this year?


Hmmmmm. Wonder. This could be a toughy. I've thought about this prompt for most of the day and it's been a bit difficult to conjure up places in 2010 that have caused me to wonder. Sitting through a sweat lodge for 2 very intense hours definitely had me wondering about life, the ability of adaptation my body experienced, and the amount of heat my little heart and lungs could deal with. I've thought a lot about that sweat lodge and the amount of perserverance I never knew I had stored inside myself. I wish I could feel that fierce every time I go through something stressful. Hopefully, I'll experience more sweat lodges in my life. The feeling of crawling out of the little structure on my hands and knees into that cool mountain air will never be repeated as it felt like in October.

Dr. Jekyll & Ms. Hyde

Prompt: Moment. Pick one moment during which you felt most alive this year. Describe it in vivid detail (texture, smells, voices, noises, colors).

My job definitely keeps me on my toes. There's definitely a Dr. Jekyll and Ms. Hyde quality to my job. Part of the year, I'm an office person. Cubicle, window, standard plant on the window sill, coffee mug(s), inspirational office flair, name on the window, stapler, headset, map on the door, sorta girl.

The other part of the year I'm leading people of all ages through a few weeks of sessions, trips and experiences. In the past year, I've done these orientations in Florida, Maryland, Virginia, and Oregon. I really must admit that I do feel most alive when I'm pulling up to the airport to pick up a whole new batch of people. So cap a great year of travels, tears, stories and sessions, let's take a look back!

             Ahh yes, the lovely beach in Florida. Part of orientation, is relaxation (it's a very tiny part).

                 Listening to a seasoned, organic farmer share her knowledge of edible weeds!

 Our classic session of storytelling to help the people get to know one another. Share a story about a scar you have. Describe your mother. What's your ideal project?

And finally, all four of us staff/drivers/cooks/listeners/calling-out writers staying in the basement of a church, beyond delirium telling stories and barely surviving another orientation!

This is SOOOOOOOOO boring.

Prompt: Writing. What do you do each day that doesn't contribute to your writing -- and can you eliminate it?


Well, this prompt for today isn't so thrilling. Somehow, committing to a daily blog prompt for a month isn't always exciting when it gets boiled down to writing about writing. I'm not sure I do a certain something everyday that takes away from writing. If anything, I don't feel guilty about not writing enough. I'm much more of an avid reader than a writer. Living abroad for 3 years, with only listening to BBC World, Deutsche Welle, and the always pathetic/propagandic Voice of America, made me hunger to know what was going on outside of my village. Since then I've always read more than I've written. Nowadays I read a lot of news from NY Times, The Trib, and other small newsy places online. Magazines have always been one of my staples as well. I had a Sports Illustrated for Kids subscription for most of my kid life! 


Might I suggest a lovely subscription for these great under-the-radar magazines?
Dwell
Afar
Ode

One word

December 1 One Word.
Encapsulate the year 2010 in one word. Explain why you’re choosing that word. Now, imagine it’s one year from today, what would you like the word to be that captures 2011 for you?

Congrats! You'll get to read little wingdings from me all month! Consider it a Catch-Up with Callie month.

One words that encapsulates 2010: LOVE
Yes, it sounds so boring. As I was cleaning out my ears in the bathroom this morning, I was thinking of what the word would be. And the word LOVE just floated to the top of all my thoughts. I experience a lot of lovin' in my daily life and most days I rarely acknowledge it in public! Love from my volunteers who send me little messages, love from my dog when he races up the stairs ahead of me so he can sit and get his ears scratched, and even love from the people I go to church with.

And even as I go on and on about love and love and love, the real big love of 2010 has been Crystal.

The word for 2011 will hopefully be: Gentleness. I just like the way it sounds.

I haven't blogged in 2 months. I feel good! I am gearing up for the Best of 2010 blog thingy I did last year, though so don't fret. In other news, I'm giving up tv again.

Goodbye:
Survivor
Parking Wars
NFL
NBA
MLB
The Cooking Channel, not to be confused with Food Network
Food Network
Grey's Anatomy
Frontline on PBS, not the flea and tick guard medicine
The Documentary Channel
The Daily Show
16 & Pregnant
Sesame Street
The Rachel Maddow Show
Check Please!
French Cooking with Julia Child & Jacques Pepin


That is all.

2004

I went through the album of letters and emails Mom made me for Christmas. I think there's enough details in here for a book! Who knew?! Anyway here are some excerpts for your reading pleasure

3/29/2004

Dear Mom & Dad
Greetings from KBC. It's about 8:15 on Sunday night. It seems as though I will head to Yola tomorrow morning to pick up yet another box someone has sent me in the mail. So I am sitting in the living room typing up a couple of pre-emails on ms word. The weekend was nice and boring just the way I like 'em. It's definitely moved into the hot season. There's no where to really go to cool off except the shower and even that isn't too cold.

I am getting geared up for the Niger trip. Have you done your research yet on the country so you can be properly scared about my safety? I will email you from Kano, the town nearest the border to Niger, before we cross into Niger.

Martin, Nancy, and I went to the next village over this afternoon. We were really bored and hot. So I drove into town with them. We walked down the street for about 45 minutes looking for a chophouse that sells rice and yams...no luck. We settled on hot tea and bread for 35c all together. We people watched for over an hour. It was kinda fun. It was like an airport without the planes. Just people still going somewhere.

I have a big project scheduled for Wednesday. It's the beginning of a 3 day all church conference in my village. My 13 year old helper kid and I are going into business together. We will make about 15 gallons of different kool-aid and them sell them to the conference goers. We'll pour the juice into lil baggies and cool them in the fridge overnight and then the helper kid will sell them. I think we'll make about $20 and split the profits 50/50. This way I can reduce the size of my kool-aid stash. Not many people have access to a fridge so we think have a good piece of the market already cornered. Dad, you would just be so proud of my salesmanship!

So I guess that is all for now. Things are good here. I have been healthy and malaria free since 12/6. I am changing my malaria meds to combat the stronger strains of malaria coming in the rainy season. Don't worry my meds are paid for. My teeth are good...no problems since that double root canal.

Love,
Callie

A break from the river.

Let's take a lil' break from the river memories k? Old school Mary Chapin Carpenter songs always grab me because they're timeless. Wanna feel like you're rolling through North Carolina? Well here's a song just for you:

I'm a town in Carolina, I'm a detour on a ride
For a phone call and a soda, I'm a blur from the driver's side
I'm the last gas for an hour if you're going twenty-five
I am Texaco and tobacco, I am dust you leave behind

I am peaches in September, and corn from a roadside stall
I'm the language of the natives, I'm a cadence and a drawl
I'm the pines behind the graveyard, and the cool beneath their shade, where the boys have left their beer cans
I am weeds between the graves.

My porches sag and lean with old black men and children
Their sleep is filled with dreams, I never can fulfill them
I am a town.

I am a church beside the highway where the ditches never drain
I'm a Baptist like my daddy, and Jesus knows my name
I am memory and stillness, I am lonely in old age; I am not your destination
I am clinging to my ways
I am a town.

I'm a town in Carolina, I am billboards in the fields
I'm an old truck up on cinder blocks, missing all my wheels
I am Pabst Blue Ribbon, American, and "Southern Serves the South"
I am tucked behind the Jaycees sign, on the rural route
I am a town
I am a town
I am a town
Southbound.

1986: The Mississippi Edition

Well it's happened, yet again. Summer has actually shown up! I was looking through some old photo albums this weekend and started remembering all the great years I spent at the Mississippi River with my family. So, let's take a trip back to around 1986.
I'm the kid at the beach wearing the yellow life-jacket. This life-jacket is pretty much an extension of me, I wear it the entire time I'm at the river, except at lunchtime when I'm eating my ham sandwich with ketchup and a handful of Bugles.

Musically, it could be the mid 1970s if you listen closely to my dad's 8-track player on the Cobalt. The Beach Boys are the most played selection, and really the best music for the adults to stand around and drink their stubby beers to.

If you hop into the boat and grab that white hot latch to the built-in floor cooler you'd find the kid's drinks: Sunkist Orange pop (bought at the vending machine at the Savanna Marina), Grape pop,and a bunch of Capri Suns with their yellow straws dislodged somewhere down deeper in the ice.

For the adult's drinks, you'd find the styrofoam cooler just at the edge of the river with a little sand and mud anchoring it down into the edge of the water. The contents of the cooler hold about 8 Diet Rite's and about a dozen or so stubby beers. I think they're either the Michelob Stubby's or the Budweiser Stubby's.

Since the stage is set with the food, drinks, and music let's take a look at what the kids are up to (that would be me and my brother and whoever else went boating to the same sandbar we chose). If you peal back the seat on the left side of the boat(my side where I sit right in front of Mom) you'll find a frisbee, a plastic sand castle making set, a red ski-rope (good for skiing and tubing), and a beach ball that needs to be blown up.
If it's a perfectly sunny and hot day, my brother and I are probably floating in the river parallel to the sandbar. We'll walk up to the northern most point in the sand, float out about 10 feet, and then let the lazy current float us back to all of the boats with adults standing around them. We do this for about an hour before taking a break for ham sandwiches, drinks, and chips.
If one of the more daring adults has shown up at the sandbar, there's a good chance that he's strung up a ski rope to a far leaning tree over the river. This is definitely my favorite activity...swiniging out on the rope and then falling into the river. I don't get so many turns on the rope because I'm one of the younger ones. And could you believe that it's actually fun to wait my turn at the rope because my brother and the big kids do fancy flips and turns right before they splash in the water? This is pretty much the only time in my life that waiting my turn is actually entertaining!

I guess I'll stop this lil' memory for tonight. Part II includes the major and minor characters at the sandbar, the restaurants in the area after boating and cleanup, and an insider's look at how to select the right friend to join the crew on the water!

I have no good ideas for a title.

In the absence of all clean work clothes, I'm wearing a skirt today. Just so you know.

A lame bloggy

As I've read through old blog posts, it dawned on me that it seems as if I'm writing for an 8th grade English class. I've done poems, repetition, even an acrostic poem. Thanks to all you lurkers for not pointing that out to me! So with keeping in the vein of 8th grade, how about some boring haikus that would garner about a C- for lackluster creativity?

What makes a haiku? Well the first line must have 5 syllables, the 2nd line 7 syllables and the 3rd line 5 syllables.

Orientation
weed walks, food groups, rice rice rice
faith journeys, we go!

Boring breakfast food
soup crackers iced tea thrilling
wishing for crabcakes...

A boring post that sounds like I've written it from a bay window in a nursing home.

I went walking in the woods today with a friend, my dog, and her dog. It was one of those glorious spring days that just kinda creeps up on ya. The tiny leaves were finally uncurling on new branches, mud was beginning to slink back in to dirt, and old guys on bikes were wheezing past us trying to regain their 'bicycle shape' they once had last fall. I find that spring is one of my favorite times of year because it feels like I've earned it. 5 months of scraping snow off my car, of taking Eli out for a pee in -10f weather, of simply just having to put on a scarf and hat and coat and dry shoes and socks to get ready to go to work..basically spring is the reward we get for living through the winter and I'm pretty happy about that one.

Foreshadowing

So as you can guess, Facebook and I are back together. We said some things we didn't mean, we both apologized, and are now working at seeing less of each other. In my last post, I wrote that I hadn't seen some of my 'friends' in year or even decades. I guess that was a little bit of a foreshadowing event because I landed in Milledgeville Friday afternoon for a visitation of our beloved Mr. Hefty. And during the time my brother and I stood in line to see the family, a lot of my old facebook 'friends' came to life because they were standing all around, too.

So Mr. Hefty, thanks for bringing the entire town together last weekend.
Thanks for teaching at least 3 generations of jr. high and high school kids.
Thanks for letting me be the screaming Queen of Hearts in 7th grade.
Thanks for honking and waving as you and Mrs. Hefty drove past as I shot hoops behind the house.

Me and facebook are sorta broken up.

A FACEBOOK FAST.

Not being on facebook is quite nice during this Lenten season.

No updates, group invites, friend requests.

Leaving behind the empty feeling of reading status updates about 'friends.'
Thinking of something clever to write about now lives on inside Twitter where just a few people read what I think.

Forgetting the urge to read about others' lives even though I haven't seen them in
months, days, years, and for the majority of those friends....a decade.

Realizing that the people I want to be connected to are already connected with me whether it's family, co-workers or neighbors. They are in my actual waking life.

An acrostic poem based on my groceries of the week.

Dropped
Untouched
Missing a price tag
Precious English Muffins!
Snow keeps things fresh
Thoughts of Matthew 6:25
Eclectic mix of fruit, veggies, and bread
Rescued onions from rotting

Discovering the dumpster gate was unlocked
Investigated the state of rotten strawberries-too moldy for me
Valuable food perched on the dumpster just waiting
Iffy expiration dates have never phased me
No need to buy actual food, when free things sit out back.
Going again on Sunday, 3ish. Wanna come?

WIFI

This morning I find myself at the office for orientation at a camp in central Florida. You may be asking yourself what does an office at orientation actually look like? Well the 2010 office at camp consists of a laptop, and a picnice table nestled close to the camp manager's house to catch a wifi signal. I head here about once a day to check emails and then wak back up toward the block of rooms where everyone stays. I like the fact that the wifi around here has to be earned. I don't automatically wake up and open my laptop. I have to be intentional about walking down the road to the house to check email. The camp life definitely has its perks!

A love letter

Dear Aldi,

I hate to cross reference my facebook statuses and my blogideas. Tonight I went to the gym for an hour or so and then I felt too lazy to drive across town to my regular store, Aldi's. Instead I drove a block from the gym to Dominick's. I've been doing my shopping at Aldi's for about 10 months. I used to go to Food 4 Less (yes it's a number 4 instead of the word, and yes that type of thing does bother me. But then the management at F4L changed the layout of the store and I really couldn't take it any longer.) 2 blocks south of Aldi's. But one day, I just decided I'd be super frugal gal (notice gal is actually in the word frugal!) and swallow my pride and see what was new with Aldi's.
I'm actually quite familiar with Aldi's. We've gone there a lot for orientations and such. I also went to the store down in Sterling when I was growing up. I tended to feel pretty embarassed about shopping there but I couldn't really figure out why it was like that. Now as an actual adult, I tend to shop at Aldi's once a week. Yes they don't have every single vegetable, but they definitely have the basics I need (potatoes, onions, garlic, carrots, red/green/yellow peppers, mushrooms). Their little wine section rivals the $2 chuck from Trader Joe's. My fave of the month is Winking Owl's Chardonnay.

So anyway, as I was strolling the extra wide aisles of Dominick's tonight with the really sad bastasrd music playing in the background, I realized I missed Aldi's. I missed using my quarter to get an extra clean cart from the section near the door. I missed the quietude of my store. Barry Manilow serenading me in Dominick's just about made me choke up in the ethnic section. I told myself that using my shiny little Dominick's savers card would make up the difference, but in the end I still spent $18 more than my weekly trip to Aldi's.

So in the end, you won my heart and debit card back, Aldi's. I'll see you in a few weeks, with my shiny quarter in hand.

Love,

callie

PS I won't forget my giant ikea bag in my car this time. I promise.

Guitars and such.

Have you wanted to make yourself small again? When I play the guitar when no one is around, I play it with my ear resting on the body. I can hear all the vibrations of the strings together. I can imagine that's what Beethoven did just to feel the vibrations when he was growing deaf. Whenever I hear Sweet Lorraine by Patty Griffin, I can almost feel each strum and rhythm,as if I was a little enough camp inside the guitar!

2010. This decade's gonna be great.

Did you notice that I didn't finish the Best 09 blog-month-thing? I love not having to follow through with every little minute (my-newt) thing!

Spike 2010

Social web moment: Many firsts came to me this year, related to online community building. First, in early January, my mother friended me on facebook. It was a big step! Then, this Christmas my entire family got hooked into Skype (my dad calls it Spike). Hello out there to Memphis and Somerville! Wahooooo!

Dean House 2.0

Insight moment or Epiphany of the Year:

My moment of the year occurred to me in early August in Harrisonburg, Virginia. It came to me while sitting the front porch on an old house. My vision was that BVS moved from Elgin to Harrisonburg. BVS bought an old house and converted certain rooms to offices. Then, when orientations were in session, it was converted over to a meeting area. And when nothing was going on, it was the house that I lived in and took care of while nothing major was going on. Maybe one day it will come to be!

LAME!

Gift: What's a gift you gave yourself that keeps on giving?

Whoa. This one seems entirely hoaky. Long walks at sunset? A gorgeous morning view from my ugly balcony? Nope. The gift I gave myself that makes my heart swell and soon is my amazing and humble grapefruit knife! I use it daily during the week at lunchtime and it just makes my soul sing....lalalalalala!

Do be do be Do

Learning experience. What was a lesson you learned this year that changed you?


I think B__ would agree that 2009 was the year that I learned how to do my job. It's as short and sweet as that. B__ helped think through logistical issues related to volunteers, housing, transportation, meals, and finances. In the end, I figured out how to do what I do without her prompting! Wahooooo! Independence!

Apps of the Year for Wasting Time

Web tool: It came into your work flow this year and now you couldn't live without it. It has simplified or improved your online experience.


I don't know if I have a certain web tool, but I definitely have some favorite apps for my ipod touch. 


Line Up is one that I tend to play in my head before I go to sleep. It has that Tetris effect!

Tap Word is the other app that passes the time for me when I'm traveling or just trying to unwind!

Huck

Start-up of the Year: What's a business you've found this year that you just adore?

I asked Eli this question today and he had a lot of good businesses to suggest.
I also asked him if he wanted to be a guest blogger for today's post, but he chose to curl up and promptly fall asleep. Eli's top notch choice for business of the year is....drum roll please...
West Paw Design  This is the company that supplies the super strong balls that Eli chomps on for hours everyday. I think they're great, personally. I've spent about $35 this year on 2 balls. Some would say that's a bit to pricey but for me and the things in the apt, Eli hasn't chewed a Christmas ornament, a flip flop, or even a plant on the coffee table.

Thanks West Paw Design for keeping Eli occupied and all of my belongings unchewed!

Run Bike Run

Project! What did you start this year that you're proud of?

I'm a little uncomfortable with how the above sentence ended with a preposition, but I'll let it slide this time. I think the biggest project that I've attempted and have had success at is RUNNING (ok biking, too)! (Please say that sentence as if Forrest Gump was yelling in your ear.) I started running & biking this summer after a really great orientation in Harrisonburg. Running in the morning is quite a drag, I've discovered. I'd have to say that running at sunset in August and September are really the best moments. Most of the best sunsets I've seen of 2009 have been while huffing and puffing around the 14 blocks that make up my never changing route. Besides running, I've been able to get on my old blue bike a few times a week before the seasons changed. My longest ride was 13 miles, but I never did ride out to Elgin and back. There's always next year!