A Spiritual Experience

Every spring I read the eight Anne of Green Gables books. They follow her from childhood on to when her children are grown and fighting in World War I. (I will not tolerate the movies as they change the time period in an unacceptable way.) I think each spring Anne reminds me more of how to be a gracious, godly person than all the time I spend in church during the year. This time, a passage of Anne's thought when her childhood friend, Ruby, dies stuck with me:
"She was leaving everything she cared for. She had laid up her treasures on earth only; she had lived solely for the little things of life - the things that pass - forgetting the great things that go onward into eternity...
"The little things in life, sweet and excellent in their place, must not be the things lived for; the highest must be sought and followed; the life of heaven must be begun here on earth."

I first encountered this concept (of living as though in the Kingdom while still on earth) in college, in books that had been recently published, and thought it was so novel. L. M. Montgomery was theologically ahead of her time. And so much more poetic.

Deceit

Adelaide has another urinary tract infection. It's probably because of her food, so we're going to change her diet now that we know. In the meantime, she's taking an anti-inflammatory drug and an antibiotic. The sneaky, (relatively) little dog has been hiding her medicine! We just put the pills in her food so she'll gobble them up with the rest of it. But the other day Josh was walking across one of our shaggy rugs and found her medicine hidden in the shag. She took it out of her dish, carried it to our room, and hid it in the rug. I have to cover them in peanut butter now to entice her to eat them.

Also, our first iris bloomed this morning.

This Gala Is Off the Hook!

Or, it's going to be. The Red Cross Red Carpet Gala in Tulsa will be complete with paparazzi, a jazz band, an auction, and heartwarming awards to heroic locals. Our Financial Development Department knows how to throw a party! And since I'm a part of it, I have responsibilities to help. I've been getting auction items, and I'm proud of myself so I wanted to share. I've got museum memberships, a photo session, pet training classes, a private party at a local venue, and other stuff in the works that may or may not include furniture, cosmetic procedures, and some trees. We'll see.
I do have a failure story that I want to share. I asked a local bakery (that will remain nameless) to donate something for our silent auction. I wrote a very nice letter in which I explained the purpose of the event and that a silent auction item must have a minimum value of $50. I even made some suggestions (a custom cake, a muffin a day for six months - a la Scrubs). In response, this inconsiderate bakery just mailed my letter back to me along with a coupon for a dozen donuts. Thanks. $7.50. Since they didn't meet the requirements I clearly outlined, the Financial Development office will be using this coupon on ourselves. Ha.

Satisfied

I had a nice birthday. Josh had to work in the morning, but he was off by 2 and we got to spend the afternoon together. I was determined to only do things I really enjoy doing and to only eat things that I really like to eat. So, I had an english muffin for breakfast. I worked in the garden in the sunshine. I sewed. Josh and I went hiking and had wine and cheese (smoked Tillamook cheddar - the only kind of cheese) on a rock part way down a cliff. I ate dark chocolate. We went out for sushi and I had my favorite peppermint ice cream for dessert. I watched the Blazers play (and by "watched" I mean read the play-by-play online in real time). It was a very satisfying day.
This morning, however, was not satisfying. I made a cake to take to Josh's parents' for Easter dinner. And it had the nerve to stick in the pan. It was a nice cake, made from scratch and beat to fluffy perfection. Even though I greased that bundt pan, the top of the cake stayed in when the bottom came out. I couldn't take that unpresentable cake anywhere, so it is sitting in the fridge waiting for Keith who I'm sure won't mind it's haphazard state. I threw together a chocolate cake from a box to replace it and regretted getting so worked up about my failed cake because it's Easter. I mean, what's an ugly cake on the day we celebrate the resurrection, right? Perspective, Laura.
Speaking of Keith, I think Adelaide is excited he's coming. Because she understands, because she's awesome. We were putting together his room today, and making his bed. She insisted on putting her ratty stuffed cow by the pillow for him. She wanted him to feel at home, but I wouldn't let her leave it there. It's kind of yucky.

Unbelievable Afternoon

A couple weeks ago someone backed into our Sonoma. She left her information, so we were able to get it fixed. It was in the shop until yesterday, and I was driving a rental car (Chevy HHR = lame). I was headed home in that lame HHR yesterday afternoon when the first unbelievable thing happened. I was stopped at a red light behind a guy in an oooold Nissan sedan. This guy started letting his car roll backwards. I thought, "Surely, he will stop at an appropriate time." Then he got uncomfortably close, and continued to roll. I frantically honked my horn at him but to no avail, because sure enough, he rolled right into my rental. The guy didn't even notice and just kept going. Luckily, we were stopped at the next stoplight, where I pulled next to him and yelled out the window to get his attention. We pulled into a parking lot to examine the damage, but didn't see any (he hit it pretty lightly), so we went our separate ways. Josh and I returned the car an hour later with no problems. Whew, crisis averted.
Josh dropped me off with my shiny, repaired truck and I headed back to work. Two miles from the office, I was pulled over and given a $100 ticket for having expired tags. I had just discovered their expiration before taking it to the shop and had the truck in my possession for a total of 10 minutes with this knowledge. I was very polite, I explained to the officer that we had just moved to Tulsa and our reminder must have been sent to our old address, but I got a ticket nonetheless. I went and got new tags today, and I was penalized there too for having let my old ones expire.
I need some time with no car drama, please.