the DL from Devo
helloooo! I'm back. Actually, I tried to be back about a week ago, but after typing a very long post, my computer decided to freak out (or the blogger website more probably) told me the blog I was trying to post on didn't exist. It lies!!! You are still here, and hopefully, this post will turn out more successfully. Anyhoo, things...

Maria, one thing we certainly have in common is getting a pick-me-up from your niece. Granted, I have never met her, and she's your niece, so the nature of our encounters are probably a little different, but just a few days ago when I was feeling really really blah and having no desire to be a part of the world, I went to Isabel's blog and looked at all the posts for the last 3 months. I felt better immediately!! I think I'm gonna put one on our blog to show people (now that she's showing up lots) because I think she looks a lot like her auntie in it!!

Aside from admiring babies I've never met, though (I hope that's not too sketchy), I've been sewing (I'll post a picture of the outcome), dancing, sleeping, selling family heirlooms on ebay (or trying), and generally wasting a decent amount of time. Some details: I finally finished my wedding present for my best friend and her husband, and I'm giving it to them tonight (only 6 months and two weeks late!). I made a quilt, and I'm telling you - I'm NOT doing that ever again, or at least for a very, very l0ng time. It is a rewarding task, but obnoxiously time consuming and at times more frustrating than it's worth. Overall, though, I'm thinking that it might be my second-greatest accomplishment after, of course, the 185 page thesis. Anyway, the title "Quilt in a Day" is complete BS if you were wondering. It took me 7 months!

Dance-wise, I finished up the summer program with the ballet studio before I went to Minnesota to chill with the chicas (and missed others!). On the day of the final performance (in which I danced a measly two numbers, but it was fun nonetheless), the jazz teacher (this huge intimidating black dude that looks way more like a football player than a dance teacher) asked me to come to some classes and rehearsals with the company he directs (which does jazz and modern pieces). Somewhat honored by the invitation and without much else to do this month, I've been going to rehearsals with that company 4 times a week. It's a good workout, and I'm really challenged by some of the acrobatics and weird stuff that they're making me do, but it's also showed me that (though I guess this isn't that new news) I really need more ballet in a company!! I'm not a kick-butt ballet allstar, but I'm better at that than the other stuff. So I don't think I'm going to join this guy's company for life, and I'm still deciding if I'll stay with him for the year, but for the time being it's helping me diversify my talents I guess - something we all need now and then. Week after next I start teaching ballet to little kiddies...I'm a little scared, but mostly excited - I'm really just itching to serve some people and do a real job and have some new interactions!! It's gonna be tough, but I think it's also going to rock.

Yes, well, there isn't much other news here (hence the lack of post-age)...I did decide yesterday, after successfully selling a good number of my school books on half.com, that I wanted to try ebay...I put up this old picture that was in my basement that my mom's been trying to get rid of. It seemed a bit wacky, though if it sells (no bids so far) it will be a bummer to ship. It's an experiment, though, and I got inspired by watching Jay Leno's segment on "Things we found on Ebay" where a guy sold a giant bag of marshmallows that he hand-picked out of Lucky Charms for like $100 and another guy sold his sister's most despised high school picture for $250. You just have to be creative...

Also, some prayer requests: My dad has a very hopeful job prospect (yayayayay) which, if it pans out, will mean that his commute will shrink from 2 hrs each way to 15 minutes each way. He'd be a partner in the company, too, and it has stemmed out of connections that seem really reliable and go way back, so this could be a welcome miracle!! Um and my two grannies need prayer - one (my dad's mom) just got diagnosed with bone cancer (myeloma), and it's not bad now, but cancer stinks, and the other (the crazy one that was at graduation) needs company and attention that my family can't give her. We really need to find somewhere else for her to live, but it keeps getting put off, and in the meantime, she's pretty much a danger to herself and others. But I love her! So that's the prayer requests...and my decision about doing this dance company (that apparently doesn't pay) or another part time job (I'm waiting to hear back on some applications) in the fall.

Yay - hopefully my post works, and it's SO good to hear from everybody as usual! Next week Midd comes to my house in the form of a bachelor brigade - Evos and Amay are road-trippin across America and staying in Wheaton for two days. I'm psyched - it should be sweeeeet. Stay smilin', squirrels - I love you!
- posted by Devon @ 7:25 PM