I just realized that every time I come to this coffee shop...I blog. Apparently orange and yellow walls and coffee is good for whichever piece of my brain is the piece that writes. 

This is a good day. Partly because I bought conditioner...which I was out of. Partly because I'm wearing three different colors for no reason except I felt like it and because my hair is having a good attitude. And partly because a guy walked by a few minutes ago with multi-colored clown type pants on. It must be a good day for him too. Also I was making a list with one of those fine-tipped Sharpies. Fine-tipped Sharpies always inspire me to good handwriting and excellent list-making. (So do sharp pencils.)

Oh...and also I get to see Nicole tonight. You'd think since she's my roommate and one of my bests I would actually see her all the time. But not. I come home at night...she's in bed. She gets up in the morning...I'm in bed. I will be home almost all day, and then leave for something in the evening. She'll stop by home after I leave to pick something up. So pretty much we only see each other for passing moments as we sleep. Which in my book, doesn't really count.

Yesterday I had a violin lesson from Cody's sister, Carissa. She's an expert teacher. I can play Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. It sounds horrible, but considering I can only play piano...I was pretty proud of myself. I could probly play better if I didn't laugh at myself the entire time. It makes the violin screech when you laugh. 

Tomorrow is Mia's birthday. She's gonna be nine. I'm pretty sure I was nine for like five years. Maybe she'll stay nine for five years too. That would be nice. I don't think growing up should be allowed. 

Alissa had a photography class so these are from a day we went to parks and took pictures together...

I feel like life for the last two or threeish years hasn't given me time to catch my breath. You know...like something happens and life turns slowly back into a new normal, and you breath in this great big breath thinking you've got it covered now... then blam! You don't have time to breath out because somethin else came along and smacked you across the face. 

Then you kind of gasp and tears come cuz it hurts. But you've done this before so you recover quick and shake the fuzziness out of your head as best you can and focus on the next thing. Like reading the next chapter in homework. Or watching a movie with your little sister. Or doing yard work for your grandma. And you look at your wrist where you wrote "belonging to God" in blue pen ink. And you smile and head out to face the next thing because life is great anyways...how can it not be if you belong to God? 

And by the way, my little sisters are all becoming old. Ania's 6, Alissa's 15 today, and Mia's turning 9. Not ok. Not ok at all actually. 

Look at her...she's still my baby sister except not...

Yep...I know...I know. I didn't blog yesterday. Failure extraordinaire. But I had good reason...my mind was full of this: 

Super cool. So much fun memorizing all that on the day of a test. You have no idea...


I was also definitely NOT thinking about this: 

  ...or this:

 ...or all this:

Yep I was there. And I knew all those people. And loved them a whole stinking lot. That's Ridge Burns...one of our lecturers at Capernwray. He was the only American lecturer we had...and he wears Vans shoes. Only ever red Vans. He even has a deal with the company and orders a dozen at a time. 

(And this counts for yesterday's post...by the Way...have to keep these things straight.)

You have to understand...I will do anything. ANYTHING. to avoid being tickled. It gives any enemies, siblings, friends, peoples-in-general, extreme and complete power. I will become your humble submissive slave in half a second if I'm threatened.

And...it didn't take Cody long to figure that out. Darn.

So yesterday, when he offered me an entire week tickle-free if I did something for him, I took the deal. No questions asked. The requirement...blog. Everyday this week. The issue is I generally only blog when monumental thoughts enter my miniature brain and happen to morph into explainable ideas which I then find time to write in words that someone other than my dear mother will understand. It's a long and complicated process...and generally doesn't happen every day. Tough life.

So...with that, I present you with Tuesday's amazing brain light bulb: uuum. hm. ok. well. It's sunny...and yesterday was rainy. Which probly means that a cow with antlers will land in a banana space ship and take over the world using optical illusions and peanut butter...

Just kidding. No need to avoid peanut butter today.

Actually...I was kind of thinking about my little sister. The biggest little one. Alissa. She's six years younger than me and alot different...than me.

And growing up I honestly didn't really like her that much. Partly cuz she was very much the annoying little sister. And partly because I was the too-mature-for-all-that-immaturity big sister.

But lately...I don't really know what happened. Every time I hang out with her I turn into this spastic weirdo. I think she has powers that make people that come in contact with her act 15 years younger than they are. ...which would explain my recent relapses into six year old behavior.

It's frightening, really, the random things that come out of my mouth and the contortions my face can perform under her spell. And then she'll laugh and point at me as if I'm a moron and need to get control of myself. Which I probably am and probably do. But it's way easier to blame it on her.

Pretty much she's become a best friend. I think, because life has thrown alot of nasty at us lately and we've both had to go through it, it's made a friendship that wasn't ever really there before.

And I'm glad. Because she's amazing. Yep...she casts her spell of immaturity over people, but she's deeper than that. I know she loves people...alot. She's a been a brick and babysat a whole stinking lot in the last year. (And I know from experience that babysitting your own little sisters is not exactly cake.) And she's still sane; except for the part of her that never was.

So...thanks Mr. NastyLife for giving me a sister...even though you took a whole lot of other stuff away. I sort of really appreciate that.

I drank my coffee. And did a freaking lot of math. Then i went on facebook and saw a picture of a guy with boots and a stick herding his cows down a lane in the middle of a field. I suddenly need to get chased by thirty cows in an English field again.

Ania is turning six today. I think it should be against the rules for baby sisters to turn six.

There's a VW van out there in the rain. VW vans are always charming. But this one is definitely the most uncharmingest one out there.

What's weird is that at Ania's little birthday party tonight Papa-Do won't be there. It'll be weird to not go ask him if he wants ice cream with his cake. It's weird to see his truck in Gramma's garage and think that it doesn't mean he's home.

It's frustrating not to get to say good-bye. And it's frustrating not to have anything to process. I have this feeling that there's something I need to think about and figure out and get straight in my little mind and then it'll all be good again. But not really. He had a heart attack and didn't make it and that's that.

It's one of those things that you really don't get, but at the end of the day you come to the conclusion that God's still a whole lot bigger than the yuck of life.

So life is happy anyways, and the good hings are more than the nasties and I smile and eat ice cream and roll the car windows down and vaccumn my house.