Ha ha! No more math!

Well, I did it. I took the ACT. I'm so very glad it's over! Now I have to focus on the application and various essays that go with it.

Also, I need to start planning for caroling, a cookie exchange, the Halloween party (this week!), Thanksgiving dinner, and Christmas dinner. I love planning parties!

Natural Cleaning Supplies Are Great

I used my new-and-improved cleaning supplies today, and they work just as well as the commercial stuff. And they don't gas me. Definitely a bonus, no? I like the smell, too: a touch of tea tree oil (essential oil, not fragrance). I don't think I'll ever go back!

Another thing that made cleaning more pleasant: my new Zune. I got it on sale (huge sale! very cheap!) and I've been putting songs on it yesterday and today. It's quite handy, and I feel so stylish and in-the-now.

Being trendy isn't really what I'm going for, but my Zune is brown (a very unpopular colour), so hopefully that makes up for it! Ha!

Books & Other Things

As I said, I've been reading quite a bit more lately than I was able to do this spring. It's been nice to have that time to myself. I've read lots of Terry Pratchett; in fact, the library doesn't have any more of his books- I've read them all! I'll need to use the interlibrary loan system from now on. I don't have many left to read, so I hope he continues to write...

I've also been reading a biography of C.S. Lewis by Alan Jacobs. It's called The Narnian. I think I may have started it before, because it seems awfully familiar. But I don't think I finished it. I was reading Joseph Pearce's bio. of Lewis, but it turned ridiculous. When I left off, Pearce was talking about Lewis' feelings of sadness that he could not be reconciled to the Catholic Church, or reveal his true feelings for it. A little odd, if you ask me. Pearce isn't usually this denominationally dogmatic. Perhaps it's just that this is the first non-Catholic biography of his I've read. I've borrowed his biographies of Solzhenitsyn and Wilde, and I'm beginning to wonder if they'll be any good.

I'm in the middle of Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm; it's very entertaining. I like Rebecca, she's a good character. Paige got the book from the library for me to read to the kids, but we're already reading The Railway Children and The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Unfortunately, the kids have already seen the movie. It ruins the story a bit.

We've also been looking at some art recently. I got a book of Gustave Dore's engravings through the interlibrary loan system (quite handy, isn't it?). The kids really like his illustrations of the Bible. Caleb's favourite is David, standing on Goliath's body, and holding his head up in the air. In the background, you can see the Philistines on one side (running away, of course), and the Israelites on the other, cheering. I can see why he likes it so much. Some of the flood pictures have incited interesting questions. I haven't shown them the ones with all of the nudes (at Paige's request), but the one they have seen shows some small children and animals clinging to a rock. Caleb and Colin were very concerned, and Caleb said that the children didn't get to choose whether or not they would obey God. I had to remind him that we are born with evil hearts. We've gone over that quite a bit; I've had to, considering their t.v. diet. It's very Disney, and it makes things difficult.

I'll be staying the next two nights over at "school". Paige's mother is having surgery, and Paige is staying with her in the hospital, so I'm staying with the kiddies (Mr. Dad will be out of town). We're going to a pumpkin patch on Wednesday for hay rides and such. It should be fun, but also very tiring. I'll be back home Thursday, but then I'm taking the ACT on Saturday.

I really, really hate algebra. And I really, really hope I don't fail.

Catch-up

Right. Sorry I sort of dropped you and then forgot all about you. I've been very busy, you know. Not too busy to post, but busy enough to try to use it as an excuse! I understand if you don't forgive me. While you're deciding whether or not to accept my apology and renew your hopes that I'll remember to post more often, why don't I tell you what I've been doing and thinking lately?

I've been reading quite a bit. Mark Beauchamp (Moscow, ID) recommended an author to me while I was there: Terry Pratchett. He is hilarious and I have been devouring every one of his books I can get my hands on. I also found some new dystopian fiction that I'm reviewing. I didn't get to do much reading earlier this year, so I'm making up for that lack now.

I went to the library book sale on Friday & Saturday (I'll be going to the $3/bag sale on Monday) and I found some good books. I got David some books on body language (he likes to read people), Paige & Kelly some gardening books, and some hardback classics for me. Also a book on cryptography and two on shorthand. I'm going to learn and it will be such fun! ("'Amusing', or 'quite diverting', dear, but never 'such fun'!")

I've been studying algebra in preparation for taking the ACT this coming Saturday. As in, six days from now. I really hope that I don't fail miserably.

I'm looking into making some natural cleaning solutions for my housecleaning "business". I've had headaches and sinus troubles ever since I started. No wonder, either, what with all those dangerous chemicals I've been inhaling five or six hours a week! I think proper ventilation would help, too, but these houses all have air-conditioning and they feel quite sealed-up.

I found an interesting website (they sell hats!) that I thought Mrs. Badgermum might like to see: www.queenofhats.com. They have a few hats for men, too, but the women's hats are prolific! Actually, you should look at this post on Haute*Nature about millinery. There are a dozen or so links to some very interesting hatmakers.

I've been thinking about mimetic desire and scapegoating lately, as Doug Wilson has been posting some interesting things about Rene Girard. I got the Girard Reader from the library, and have started reading. It's very enlightening. I definitely need to read more.

That's all for today; I'll try to post again sometime this week and tell you about the other books I've been reading.