Monday Night Video

The Indigo Girls sing for me about love.... "The Last Tears."

(Warning: Amy wears a skirt in this video! Also, this video has a different spin on the song than I'm using it for...but just listen to the song)

My Personal Art

Well, it's done! I hope the picture is clear enough.

It wasn't that bad, actually--the process, I mean. Outlining wasn't the greatest, but the rest was very tolerable. And I impressed the artist--and Man About Town. Both of them expected that I would object a lot more, or have more discomfort, given the location. Pah! I've been through childbirth, I told them; 20 hours of induced labour and a c-section. I can handle a tat!

I love the design he came up with and the way he blended the colours...he even thought to ask me which colour I wanted on the top of the circle! I told him red, because while blue is my favourite colour, red is the one that I identify as "my" colour. It's a tad larger than I envisioned at first; but so much detail was lost when it was smaller, that I decided to go for a bit more size. And it's still small enough that I can, if I want, cover it.

The artist called it "striking." I'm inclined to agree!

P.S. This morning it's itchy and sting-y--like sunburn--just like RDQ said it would be!

Skin Art--It's Almost Time!

Three hours!

I was most impressed--I called the studio yesterday to confirm the appointment, and was given a list of do's and don'ts for last night and today:

• Do get a good night's sleep (I did)
  
• Do have a good meal in the afternoon before coming in (I'm doing that right now)
  
• Don't drink alcohol or do drugs (!!) before coming in (no...not a problem)
  
• Wear something comfortable (going home to change soon)
  
• Expect to be tired tonight (OK...)
  

Clearly this is an establishment that cares about its clientèle. Well, I was aware of that from the length of time I had to wait for an appointment. They are certainly not the only studio in town, so there's another reason for the wait time--the quality!

So I'm off on the adventure, friends! Will post pictures later!

Friday Five on Monday

Believe me, this is typical of my life these days… Friday becomes Monday...

So, RevHRod wants to know about books! Dangerous question to ask a former librarian… But here goes!

1. What book have you read in the last six months that has really stayed with you? Why?

Wow, this one is actually pretty difficult. I’m trying to remember what I’ve read! Leaving Church, by Barbara Brown Taylor had a lot to say to me. But then, so has Identity and the Case for Gay Rights: Race, Gender, Religion as Analogies, by David A.J. Richards.

2. What is one of your favourite childhood books?

Wrinkle in Time, by Madeline L’Engle; The Lord of the Rings, by JRR Tolkien; The Rising of the Lark, by Anne Moray. I know, you said one. But all of these taught me, in different ways, that life doesn’t always have happy endings, that people who deserve good things don’t always get them; and that while life simply isn’t fair, there is nonetheless value in doing what is right. Which sounds hackneyed, but at the age of 10-14, these are valuable lessons to learn.

3. Do you have a favourite book of the Bible? Do tell!

My favourite Gospel is Luke, followed closely by Mark. In the Hebrew Bible, Isaiah, followed closely by Job.

4. What is one book you could read again and again?

Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte. Coming Out Spiritually, by Christian de la Huerta (and I’m sure everyone is tired of reading that title in my blog! Too bad…). And the “Kristin Lavrandottir” series, by Sigrid Undset. The latter is the life story of Kristin, from the age of 5 or so until her death. She’s on the fringes of major events in Norwegian history, but nothing major. It’s simply the story of her life—her youth, her marriage, her children, the rise and fall and rise again of her fortunes, the mistakes she makes (some huge ones) and the right decisions (some very good ones). And all wrapped in a medieval Norway you can feel.

5. Is there a book you would suggest for Lenten reading? What is it and why?

A daily devotional. I tend to get back into my daily reading and prayers during Lent, stick with it pretty well until the summer, when it falls apart, and make a few feeble stabs at it until the next Lent… I have a Celtic one I like very much.

And because we all love bonus questions, if you were going to publish a book what would it be? Who would you want to write the jacket cover blurb expounding on your talent?

I would like my friend Builder in Large Capitol City to write his memoirs. He’s lived an amazing life and has the most wonderful stories to tell—funny, sad, touching, bittersweet, horrifying—and he tells them well. He’s lived through some amazing times, and his stories need to be told.

Oh, you mean what book that I would write? I’ve been mulling a novel about a small-town band… And the jacket blurb should be by kd lang, Eric Clapton, Steve Martin, Bob Seger, Bono, Bishop Gene Robinson, and Archbishop Rowan Williams issuing a joint statement.

And what did you have in your tea after dinner?

Skin Art, Part…Whatever

Whoo hoo...Less than forty-eight hours now. Um, 43.5 to be precise. Man About Town says, "The countdown begins!"

Still looking forward to this. Well, maybe not looking forward to the process but the result. Well, maybe I am looking forward to the process--in a testing-myself way. Seeing if I can do this.

And I hadn't thought of this until this moment...When I was 10 years old, I had a disorder of the spleen, called idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura...basically, my spleen was destroying more platelets (blood clotting factor) than it was creating. Thus I bled very easily and didn't stop easily. I eventually had to have my spleen out, but in the process of coming to a diagnosis, I had to have bone marrow drawn. There are two locations they generally draw it from--either the pelvic girdle, in the small of your back, or the breastbone. Because of my age (I suspect), they used the breastbone...in approximately the same place my new art will go.

In that case, they were searching for what was wrong with my body.

In a couple of days, we'll be celebrating what is right with my spirit.

And it feels so right.

Skin Art, Obsessional Division, Subsection Two (Procrastination)

Four days, five and a half hours!

Skin Art, Obsessional Division, Subsection One

Six days, four hours, forty minutes!

Skin Art, Obsessional Division

One week. Whoo hoo! Only seven days! And 7 hours. I am so ready!

Still have: several days of work, a haircut/colour, an anniversary celebration, a pre-wedding session, a sermon, two meetings and a Bible study to get through first.

Seven days, 6 hours, 45 minutes!

Reversing Gravity?

I’m taking a big leap here, and becoming a bit more personal on this blog. I know, what’s more personal than skin art?

Well, emotions. The tangled and blue state of mine, to be precise. How do you fall out of love?

(Forgive me if I sound melodramatic or whining. I’m not terribly rational on this subject.)

You see, there’s someone I care about very much—OK, someone I love. It’s not infatuation or lust or anything but honest love. But. For a variety of reasons I’m not going to go into, this person is never going to be my significant other. Just trust me, these reasons aren’t something that can change. We’re reasonably close friends, so there’s a true intimacy there. But it won’t, can’t, go any further than that. And yet I can’t get this person out of my head and my heart. Every time I think I’m over it, something makes me realise I’m not over it. Reason isn’t working; the pain of constant contact while knowing it’s impossible isn’t doing it; trying to meet and fall for someone else most certainly hasn’t worked.

I’ve prayed, I’ve cried, I’ve rationalised, I’ve journaled…nothing has worked . I want it to stop, but it won’t. I don’t dwell on it…but it’s always there, when something reminds me of this person, or of a joke we’ve shared or of something we’ve done together.

I’ve thought of ending our friendship, even, simply because it hurts so much sometimes. But I can’t bring myself to do it—for one thing, explanations would be needed and I want to keep my dignity, because I know this person doesn’t feel the same way for me as I do for them—and, I pray, has no idea how I feel (and the person rarely, if ever, reads my blog, so I feel fairly safe that they won’t read this or won’t recognise themselves if they do). And I can’t pretend there’s another reason for ending our friendship—I’ve never lied to this person; I can’t end our friendship with a lie. And then the friendship part is very good, and I think mutually enriching. We just have a good time together.

And part of me feels stupid or juvenile for having this sort of issue at my age—the half-century mark isn’t that far away, and you’d think I’d have this love thing figured out by now.

But I want to let go of it; I want the pain to go away, I want to be available for whatever mutually rewarding relationship is possible. But how do I do that? Do I just endure until I stop feeling this way?

I have no ideas left. Any of you have an idea, brothers and sisters?

Skin Art, Part…Whatever

Two weeks today. I’m looking forward to it; I’m nervous. I can’t wait.

I mentioned that I was getting a tattoo to some friends over the holidays, and was surprised at some of the responses. One friend, whose father had always regretted his Navy-acquired tattoos, warned me about those regrets, especially considering where I plan on having it done (on my chest, about where a pendant would hang). Another, fairly conservative friend, was dead against it. Yet another shrugged. TO was impressed (he hates needles and wouldn’t get a tattoo if his life depended on it—the last time he got an immunization, he fainted), as was Travelling Sister. I haven’t mentioned it to Mom yet.

And then one friend—Honest Lawyer—was very enthusiastic. HL is one of those friends I see maybe twice a year (we don’t live near each other any more), but every time we do get together, our connection is still there and we can talk about anything at all, pick up the threads of our last conversation and carry on. We can be very honest with each other (she really pushed me, this last visit, to think about some things in a different light), and yet we shared some intensive experiences that meant we know parts of each other in ways no one else ever will. Anyway, she was very supportive and excited about it—she wants a photo of it the moment it’s done (ah, the joys of camera phones and photo messaging!).

And Man About Town is almost as excited as I am. It’s on his calendar!

But in the meantime, there’s a board meeting, an anniversary celebration, preparations to make for a presentation at a national conference in Sister City, and one or two sermons to write. Among the usual other stuff of life, like renewing health cards and getting groceries and doing laundry and putting up pictures…

Only two weeks!!