CHRISTMAS!

Merry Christmas! Let's see... it's the 3rd day of Christmas so we ought to all have the partridge and coordinating pear tree, the turtle doves, and three french hens from our true loves. Mmmhmmm that sounds about right!

The gift exchanging in this house was way fun, though it's difficult to realize "hey, I'm not a kid anymore and I shouldn't expect to have these crazy, frivolous gifts!" It was quite fun to give the coaster sets I made, the scarf I knitted for my mom, and Jimmy's gifts. I got the things I needed (which isn't romantic, but it's terribly thoughtful and very much needed), like new speakers, a USB 2.0 card, a full spectrum light bulb for my floor lamp, ipod case to fit the latest replacement, Apples to Apples (for fun and for stairwell program enjoyment), and a great book called Teacher Man by the guy who wrote Angela's Ashes. The biggest news was that my mother gave me a gift certificate to get my ears pierced and promptly on Monday we went... it's the strangest sensation to have things stuck in your head, but here we are!

Jimmy came down for Christmas evening and the next couple days, which was amazing. We got (gasp) CHINA (see the print at Macy's -- don't worry, we found it 70% off in the EP Mall). The best part of the visit was tonight, when we took the SW metro transit bus to Nicollet Mall and walked through the Marshall Field's Cinderella display. Then we decided to get "mystery beers" at a bar nearby -- they ended up being Polish and damn good for $1.75. :) It was Budapest and an adventure and time to just be together all rolled in one. Wonderful!

I'm trying to apply to St. Thomas by Dec. 31st but alas their site is experiencing infuriating technical issues. Time to go muscle with it. Goodnight and Merry 3rd and now 4th Days of Christmas!

the dress

Here are pictures of the wedding dress as promised! Wow... what a blogging day! :)

lutefisk

Last night, Jimmy and I thought "what the heck?" and decided to try lutefisk. For me it was a second try, a just to be sure I don't like it sort of trial. After take #2, I am convinced.

There are several things that alarm me about the dish:
1) it is cured in lye... lye! what we use to make soap! no one eats lye for fun (usually)
2) one needs an inordinate amount of butter to drown the sorrows of the lye-cured cod and make it edible
3) it is literally clear! for those of you who are not scandinavian or at a scandinavian school, picture this: it's a whitsh, gellatinous glob whose appearance warrants serious concern
4) the best description of how it feels in your mouth is nearly tasteless, fully colorless jello

The best way to approach the dish is to forget that it was at any time a living organism. Don't expect fish, expect nondescript food that jiggles on your fork. If you go into it thinking you'll be eating cod, you will be ALARMED at what sits on your tongue (if you manage to let it stay there for more than a femtosecond, that is).

It is quite endearing though to think that lutefisk, the butt of all scandinavian jokes concerning food, is alive (sorta?) and well especially at St. Olaf College.

In other notes, yes, it's Christmas Fest weekend. Finals are looming ahead but life continues quite merrily when the campus is transformed into an ice palace and Christmas spirit is increased with each cup of cocoa.

the season continues

So much has happened recently... it feels like there has been about a year's worth of time between tonight and my last update.

One exciting thing: I have a dress! I'll try to post a pic of it soon. It was lovely and discontinued so I will need to take the size 10 in a bit, but the place where we got it in St. Paul has a good seamstress and the dinner theatre is always an option. It was hard to decide because it seemed so familiar and yet nothing like what I had expected to get and that's doesn't make decision-making easy. Thank God I have a wonderful mother.

More hall updates: things in Rand are still pretty difficult. Lately it's been a lot more policy-enforcement, which is absolutely the least appealing aspect of being an RA. Ah well.

I'm so ready for break that you wouldn't believe it! Haha, j/k. Actually, everyone seems extra ready for break this year! Tonight we're reading poetry in Nic's honor. I can't believe it's been a whole year. I'll update again soon.

leaves and frustration!

I didn't want to be an absolute slacker blogger again, so this time, I wanted to be sure I updated before three weeks passed. I thought that this year I would be too cynical to appreciate the falling of the leaves, but I was wrong. I've collected dozens so far and I'm on the lookout for more. Just when you're walking across campus and aren't expecting anything, several leaves just pop out and say "pick me up and press me!" Ok, well, I guess that's just a Lauren thing. Jimmy and I took a long rambling walk around campus today and discovered some nifty new places. We also got to walk through the fiery tunnel that is Norway Valley right now. Curtains of small, fluttering pieces of golds and oranges... it took away every dark thought. Wow.

So that was the leaves part of my post. The frustration has to do with Rand. Being an RA has been the best experience of college, but this year is wrapping up to be entirely different and perhaps not quite as rewarding as last. Sadly, there's been lots of mud-flinging in the building. A large rock flying at my window at night, stealing bits of my in/out board, harrassment, ripping down my bulletin boards or writing on them that I'm a bitch, and general bad feelings have been the name of the game this year. I'm not the only RA dealing with this, but I really wish that people could understand we have a job to do and show a bit more respect. I honestly didn't think this happened at St. Olaf... depressing. Maybe something can be changed to prevent future issues and I'm trying to remember that Rand isn't Mellby, that the people living here are different and wonderful, and that I can make a difference, but it's all very discouraging.

Tomorrow morning, we're playing for the Crown Prince of Norway. What fun! Two old friends grace the band program: Crown Imperial (Chaska High School's processional at graduation) and Valdresmarj (which instantly brings back good memories of our Norway tour). I'm not Norweigan at all, but perhaps I've become naturalized at St. Olaf because it feels like home.

it's fall!

Regardless of what those "experts" might say, fall does not begin until the maple trees in the quad starting turning colors. And today, almost unexpectedly, the first really good fiery leaves were ablaze on the trees outside my beloved Mellby. Hurrah! My absolute favorite time of the year is here! Each colored leaf is like a little banner saying "cheer up, Lauren -- life is absolutely wondrous!" And so it is! I'm sitting at my desk with sunlight pouring in, listening to Disney songs, drinking a cherry vanilla Dr. Pepper, and smelling the beautiful rose left in my P.O. by Mr. Randolph. It really doesn't get much better than this. And, like all hectic college students I know, I seem to have a hard time remembering this! Maybe that's why I absolutely love the autumn -- it's a new school year and all sorts of chances to improve oneself, but most importantly, it's hard not to be mindful when the world around you is suddenly so vibrant!

Lately, I've been trying to be a bit more social in the evenings. Living in a hall with all sorts of interesting people is such a unique situation and it's occured to me that this is my last year (for some reason, I was under the impression that the good parts of college would just continue forever?). The only catch is that one needs others to make time for socializing in order to be social in the first place. Not many people have the time or the priority to do something goofy like play Taboo for 30 mins on a given night, either during the week or surprisingly on the weekend (save bandies, but they're just awesome!). In education and sociology, I'm being hit over and over again with the importance of spending time with people close to oneself because it improves learning, social skills, and well-being to have so much close personal contact. Maybe that should be a required course: see your friends in the evening every other day for an hour and profs could assign social time as homework in support of such a measure. Hopefully as the year progresses, we'll all make more time to appreciate our last year on the Hill. At least, that's the plan!

Tonight's the first stairwell cookie bake... 'twas EXTREMELY yummy and delicious! Sarah and Nicole were particularly helpful and fun... I will post a picture of us and Nicole's prospie Allison eating a nice large cookie! Ahh... life in the dorms at its best!

anniversaries, accidental meat-eating and a date

Excuse the long blogging absence. Life here has been crazy. It was an unconventional year in Rand Hall for many reasons and while this was fun at times, it mostly scared the hell out of me and caused a lot of stress for the weeks leading up to its opening. Glad that's done. The RAs are well trained, things are clean, the gnome door decs are up, and we had a ton of fun last night at our first stairwell function with chocolate fondue with assorted fruit.

On an unrelated note, today I've been dating Jimmy for two years! Tonight consisted of a caf dinner but Saturday night, I think we'll go out to the cities and actually celebrate.

We also set a wedding date -- Saturday, July 29th, 2006. It'll be in Boe Chapel with the reception in B*rock. I feel like I belong in the St. Olaf magazine wearing a Norweigan sweater (which I actually own).

The only downer today was that I made what I thought was a tuna salad sandwich. It turned out to be chicken salad, something I discovered after several bites. One upset stomach later, I was a very sad non-meat eater. The caf should really label its sandwich materials so this doesn't happen to unsuspecting occasional fish-eaters! And I was doing so well.... Alas!

Looking forward to Saturday -- if anyone has good restaurant suggestions in the cities, please let me know!

"you're... here?"

New York has been wonderful and very eventful! Tomorrow is the last day of the most eventful trip ever so I really ought to update!

We got to my aunt and uncle's house on Tuesday (after flying in late on Monday night). They're the head of the family, so to speak, and of course we were going to have a big family dinner with all my cousins and their kids. We were hanging out on their patio and my cousin-in-law, Wendy (whom I adore), called me inside. I'm bounding up the deck stairs to the house and out steps Jimmy. IN NEW YORK. AT MY FAMILY'S HOUSE. And he gets down on one knee right there in front of all the people I love and proposes!!!!!!! (Of course you know what I said! :) So, he stayed until very early this morning and got to meet all the family (which takes some considerable time) and it's been just wonderful and very, very surreal. Esp when he gets introduced as "Lauren's fiance". I also had the most wonderful 21st bday party ever thrown by my cousins Dave and Wendy complete with Dave's band playing live music. What a trip! I am a lucky girl! I hope everyone else has been having a wonderful couple of weeks!! I can't wait to see you Oles back on campus!

live and legal!

There is nothing quite so exciting as ordering a drink on your 21st birthday... or 5 drinks. :) (Haha, don't get shocked -- they were spread out and I was definitely not to the point of anything past giggly! The best was a Sex on the Beach.) We went out to dinner with family and a few friends at Punch Neopolitan Pizza in EP which was wonderful. My aunt and uncle came down from Maple Grove and Elizabeth, Amanda, Jennifer, and Jimmy also came from various corners of the cities. Then we wandered over to Old Chicago and sat on the terrace for a few hours. It was like a birthday open house -- people kept dropping in and out. I hadn't seen many of them in a while, so that was quite exciting!

Other interesting things happening lately:
*found a baking soda remedy to the green hair
*the power went out at the pool yesterday and everyone was screaming when it went dark from the awful storm that slammed Chaska
*Wendy and I played frisbee with two 15 year olds in Excelsior
*Res Life has not sent out any rosters for door dec info and I'm leaving in less than a week!
*Peter is definitely going to be at school all of next year, yay!
*My family was invited up to Askov to meet the farm, Jimmy's foster brother and his family, and generally hang out for a day. It went really, really well!
*I'm trying to tie up loose ends in the next few days like doing all my shopping and packing for school. Next Monday is NY and then the morning after we get back, I move in! Wow!
*TWO MORE DAYS OF WORK!!! 'Nuff said, that's damn exciting!
*Can't wait to see everyone back at school!!!!

signs you spend too much time at a pool

1. You teach two sessions of swimming lessons a day and still have time to pull a full 6 hours of guarding.
2. You look forward to the days with 200+ kids because "the time passes faster."
3. When you leave the pool deck, there's a ringing in your ears from hours of screaming children.
4. You eat the majority of your meals at work.
5. You wear a swimsuit more often than not.
6. It will take about 4 showers to scrub the smell of pool off you.
7. Even the construction workers say "you're here AGAIN!?"
8. You don't have enough time at home to wash your guarding shirt.
9. You forget you're wearing a whistle and walk around in public.
10. While showering in the locker room, you notice that your hair is green like a mermaid's! (actually happened this morning!!!!!!!!!)

While it's fun to keep busy and I love teaching those kids, I'm very much looking forward to the 12th, my last day at the pool!

Posting a couple pictures ('cause I just learned how!)

The Glass Cathedral: ruins encased in a modern shelter -- what an amazing place to play!



Taken at about 11pm on a fjord near the town of Laerdal, Norway.

100 club

So I had allergy testing today -- over 100 pricks from various sources (including little shots)!

YOUCH! Not too pleasant when you start hitting nerves. The verdict? Random hives caused by nearly all trees, pollens (also causing food allergies), weeds, grasses, dusts, and a couple nuts! The irony of being an environmental nut (no pun intended) and allergic to nearly everything found outside is not lost on me... Now, what to do for a career? ;)

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

No spoilers here, so have no fear.

In one's life, there are so many things that fail to live up to one's expectations. Just look at the most recent episodes of Star Wars.

And then, there are times that what you expect pales in comparison to the real thing. Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince falls under this category. I forced myself to slow down and read it in a day and a half (instead of in one night like I considered)... This latest installment is more suspenseful from the first couple chapters and continues the trend of the past few books by becoming even darker than 3, 4, or 5. Fortunately, there is no more irrational, moody teenage Harry, though there are the usual Ron/Hermione disagreements. Well? What else would you expect? I do with that the novel overall had more to do with its title, but then... Goblet of Fire could have been seen as a stretch for a title, too, now that I think of it. J.K. Rowling's writing gets even funnier. I think that my family and Jimmy think I've cracked because I was laughing hysterically as I read. :) A must read... I can't wait for book 7!

July is here?

Hey everyone!

Thanks for the comments on the last post. Sometimes one forgets that anyone might read online ramblings. Guro and Nina: you made my day!

I started teaching swimming lessons this morning. After the unpleasant surprise that my boss had cut my first lesson and that I'd get to sit around for an hour, things went really well. The kids are so sweet and excited to be in the water. The first class is comprised of younger, newer swimmers. Class #2 has older kids who know the basics and it's a lot of fun to work on the finer details of swimming with them. The lessons last for two weeks... I hope I get scheduled to teach more! It feels so wonderful to be in a pool again. Swimming is like flying in water.

And now, it's time to relax with a mud mask, Futurama, and a glass of wine (something I can actually do here with my family unlike at St. Olaf!). Hopefully more entries to follow soon.

Post-Norway

I'm almost ashamed to show my cyber-face for lack of blogging in the last month and a half! But, here I am, back from travels in Norway and working as a lifeguard and swim instructor in Chaska for the summer, so I think it's time to update.

Norway has to be the most beautiful country in the world. There are dozens of waterfalls on each mountain and the water everywhere is clean. From the short while that we were there I could tell that money and big business are not at the center of Norway. Citizens, families, taking care of their land, and a having a permanent culture were higher priorities.

But, now that I'm back home, all studious thoughts seem to have flown out of my head. Existence as I know consists of cable TV and wireless internet (the new ammenities in my room), playing with the Chaska community band, trying to make sense of the chaos in my room, work, catching up with friends, and seeing Jimmy. Not very profound, but it's a nice break, I suppose.

HA

Your Birthdate: August 5

With a birthday on the 5th of the month you are inclined to work well with people and enjoy them. You are talented and versatile, very good at presenting ideas. You may have a tendency to get itchy feet at times and need change and travel. You tend to be very progressive, imaginative and adaptable. Your mind is quick, clever and analytical. A restlessness in your nature may make you a bit impatient and easily bored with routine. You may have a tendency to shirk responsibility

What Does Your Birth Date Mean?

Sunday morning, rain is falling

I mean that in the relaxed Maroon 5 song way because I just had the best Sunday ever.

It started terribly with me in a bad mood feeling bad about not having studied better yesterday, not sleeping well, allergies, not going to lunch, not saying goodbye to my pet Georgia in a proper burial, and then having to run off to meet a group to work on a small paper.

After the letter to a public policy maker was finished, I decided to sit behind Mellby in my plot to read. The whole area was full of life. It was shaded and pleasantly cool; things were moving all around me. After giving up on my reading, I put David Orr down and looked around me for long, perfect moments that stretched out into a seeming eternity. As I meditated on what I saw, and smelled, and felt, and heard, I could feel God in the soft grass between my fingers. And in the squirrel next to me. The bugs crawling on my Campus Ecology reading. The trees that swayed gracefully with newly unfurled leaves. In the wind that was racing swiftly over the hill and through me. As the wind touched me, I looked down and realized that I was a part of this magnificent divine creation. I felt blessed and connected to life all over the planet. Time slowed to a near standstill and I could take in this wonderful moments.

Then I realized that my trees looked like the shire! Howard Shore played in my head. I went in to get my camera and I came back out to bury Georgia under the trees and take Mellby pictures. I was standing on a trash can when out came Cathy on her way to cut lilacs. I joined her and we happily and rebelliously walked around campus cutting small sprigs and inhaling the heavenly scent. There's something infinitely wonderful about lilacs in the spring!

After walking back to Mellby, I carried the bouquet to my room. I packed a bit more before my parents came down. My mom was wearing the jewelry I had made her!! My mother and father and I went out to the Tavern (after checking MANY restaurants only to find they were closed for Sunday) and ate outside. We talked and laughed and just enjoyed one another's company. It was so rare and precious! Usually at home, someone is getting mad over something but it's different when they visit me. St. Olaf is pacifying and seems to bring out the best in everyone.

After we came back, we walked behind Mellby and in the quad appreciating the memorial chime tower (where I could point out the bundle containing Nic's chime) and the flowering crab apple trees. I never had appreciated limestone until recently (see an earlier blog entry last semester) but I marvel at the buildings' construction now. Besides of the verdant green and the company of my parents, it felt wonderful to be outside because the air was electric the way it is just before a storm moves through. It's exciting and vibrant and still tranquil all at once. My dad brought petals from the blossoms of our crab apple tree and they remind me of home.

Despite the desire to relax and see familiar sights of Grandview Road, I can't help but realize that St. Olaf is my place now. I've made a full life for myself here and I feel at peace. I only hope that thought will carry me through finals and Commencement Weekend. I cannot wait to see Jimmy when he comes home and to walk everywhere with him. He's the one piece that was missing from this perfect Sunday.

thoughts on friendship

After some thought-provoking reads for Campus Ecology, I have been thinking more critically about friendships, namely those here at St. Olaf.

We're all such busy individuals and go about our days in very individualistic ways: we plan our lives around our classes, commitments, activities, jobs and not around those of anyone else. Some do manage to see a boyfriend or girlfriend quite a bit, but it seems like if any relationship is to suffer due to our individuality, it's a friendship. As far as our friends on campus go, "out of sight, out of mind" seems to be the rule. We don't fall into good conversations with people who live on the other side of the Heights the way we do with our neighboring friends. I think part of the reason is because the friends across campus don't fit into our cozy, autonomous routine and thus seeing and communicating with them requires expending more energy than the typical over-booked Ole seems able or willing to do.

Then I think about the quality of conversation we do have in chance moments between the hubub. Sometimes, we fall into talks in which we feel comfortable enough to tell what's really on our minds: "man, I really hate this class because..." or "I feel more alive because it's springtime" or "this is what I think about the meaning of life, about religion, or about family." These times in which we truly connect with those around us are beautiful and precious. They are also rare. More often than not, conversation falls to "hey how are you" without really intending to receive or listen to the answer. Or, discourse falls to more superficial subjects such as other people, the work we have to do and an almost competition to see who's more miserable. We're either too distracted or too busy to really listen and give one another the time they deserve.

I love the people I've gotten to know here and I know I'm anything but the ideal friend at times. It's troubling to think that we are hardly conscious of how little respect we give one another. Friendship is one of the most worthy things we can hope to accomplish in our time at St. Olaf. Perhaps if we were mindful of these relationships, if we stopped and took the time for conversation with one another, we wouldn't feel so rushed all the time.

sinking

Hey everyone,

I promise I've been meaning to update about Budapest and I will once I feel happy enough to do it justice for the most wonderful week it was...

Right now, however, I feel like I need to lock myself in my room and scream. It's everything at once: the band, and the hall, and the coffeehouse, and classes, and the future plans. All of it is piling up one after the other and I'm at the bottom with no hope of getting back on top of it all again for quite some time. Part of me feels "silly girl, you shouldn't have commited to so much" but the other part remembers that it hasn't been this bad the whole year! For the most part, I've been happily busy and I've really enjoyed what I do. So what's going on right now? My new best friend, my planner, is full of meetings, projects, reminders, and things I have to get done so that there's literally no more room to write down my assignments for school. I keep thinking "as soon as ____ is done, it'll be ok" but I have to realize that this is a lot more than just one hall event or one moment in band.

Tears are always bubbling up just under my surface. Tonight I cried in public and then some more and I realized afterward that no one stopped to help... I mean, I was talking to someone but there was no "Lauren, are you ok?" or "would you like a hug" nothing... I just kept trying to stop the tears and wiping them away when I could not. It wasn't until I got back to Mellby that I got some support. Support... yeah, that's definitely missing in my life right now. There's no Jimmy. He's not here and I can't see him until the end of June. I have to face that. But the other stuff... where is it coming from? I feel as if everything got so busy so suddenly that there's nothing I can do to renegotiate my schedule and, of course, no one can help. On the whole, my friends outside the hall are too busy with their own worries and troubles to help me. But, I really do need some help and support. I'm living in constant fear of sobbing or snapping or collapsing (literally... the CFS is not going to let me keep up with a schedule of no breaks from morning until late at night for much longer).

I wish that people would remember how much of a difference they make! In my super-hysterical state, the little bad things that happen get magnified but so do the small good things people do. Tonight, I talked to Kristin A., Josh, Lisa, Christine and Peter at the front desk and I could have kissed them all for the relief it was to have people care and sympathize with what was happening to me right when I needed it most. My life is spinning out of my control and now, it's those nice things people are doing that keep me going.

House of Hope

Hi everyone -- Long time no blog! I just got back from Ruth's House of Hope in Faribault which is a halfway house/shelter for women from a variety of backgrounds and experiences who need a safe place to raise children, get back on their feet, recover from drug addictions, find jobs and homes, and get their lives together. This is part of a service learning project for Feminist Theology and it was the primary reason I didn't drop the course. Our task was to drive in, interview some of the women who live there, hear their stories and we will compile them as a fundraiser for the shelter to show the positive impact it has. Positive impact is an understatement. It is all too easy when you come from a school like St. Olaf to forget the hardships that people endure while they are here on Earth. Talking to these women opens your mind to the gift of living and the power of hope.
After we interviewed women in the house, a staff member said she would like to tell us her story but that we should go someplace else. Gina is studying human services at a school in Owatonna and is an intern at Ruth's House. At the Java Live coffeehouse downtown, we listened to Gina, who was raised in Northfield amid physical, emotional, and sexual abuse. Despite this, she has vowed to break the cycles of abuse that consumed her family growing up. She is 38 and has four children, whom she is raising in a safe, healthy environment so they won't have to search for answers the rest of their lives as she has. She talked about how that abuse and the things that people say in anger never really go away -- people tell you to forget them and it's not possible because they have become a part of who you are. I really understood what she meant by this, but I have never faced the trials that she lived ith every day. What amazed me most about Gina was the faith she showed in God. She believes that God is watching over her and helping her to get through the earlier parts of her life, giving her courage to face what has happened and prevent it from continuing. It was uncanny coincidence that led Gina to Ruth's House and she has so many moving personal experiences that guide her to live a better life than she thought she ever could.
Hearing her speak made me realize that things do happen for reasons and that people are sent into our lives to make a difference. Meeting Jimmy has to be one of those things... He hasn't had the easiest life either, but he has shown me that I am worthy and deserve of love and happiness. Before, I had wondered before if they could ever really happen for me. It makes me appreciate my mother and father and brother all the more because they want the best for all of us and many families don't have parents who care so much. There is so much wonder and beauty in simply living your life and finding happiness in the fact that you have a roof over your head, food in your stomach, and people who care about you. Sometimes we think of these things as our rights, not as a privilege worthy of eternal thanks. Where has my faith in God been? I felt so alone and so confused. Volunteering this morning definitely made me see the world and my own experiences in an entirely different light. That place really is a house of hope, not just for the people who live there but for those who pass through.