What kinds of things embarrass you? I was amused recently to have someone I know describe Japanese seasoned fried bean curd pockets called "Inarizushi-no-moto" as a rather embarrassing/inappropriate body part. While not the most polite way to refer to this delectable treat, anyone who's eaten this dish can attest to the aptness of the description... the anatomy analogy makes it obvious to what food is being referred! Crass, yes, but helpful in getting the point across-- especially since the name is rather long and foreign to non-Japanese speakers! I told the story to others afterwards... and was surprised to have the individual request that I not tell anyone of the opposite sex what was said because it would be too embarrassing. So, herein lies the question of "what is embarrassing?"... it wasn't the story itself, the crassness of the title, the bluntness of the creator, the potentially offended Japanese associates, or even the thoughts of the anatomy involved that chagrined the describer. It was only the idea that someone of the opposite sex was going to hear this story that embarrassed the individual!

Are you more easily embarrassed by things in the presence of the opposite sex? Certain family members? Certain co-workers or peers? What situations are least embarrassing to you, regardless of embarrassing content in discussion or actions? Stories, please, because I'm looking forward to hearing what you all think!

Quilts and Gardens: Aren't We Domestic?!?!

The last time I completed a sewing project of any kind was in Junior High when I made two of those felt sewing kits: a red race car for my brother and a computer with keyboard and mouse for my dad. And I think I even sewed a bunch of mini red stockings for some Christmas project at church. As an artist, I am attracted to fabrics... and I'll admit that I have a stockpile of some beautiful material with which I haven't done a thing except run my hands over it every once and a while! When I was in High school I was inspired by my best friend Jennie's t-shirt quilt and I cut up a bunch of raggy old shirts of mine for use in a similar project... those cut pieces are still in a nice neat bag in my craft closet. Somehow I forgot about the part that I didn't know how to sew when I began going at it with the scissors. In college I got excited about making a cute green quilted purse for my lil sister's birthday. You guessed it, I still have all the pieces, buttons, thread, and even lime green zipper... but no purse. I wanted to make a paint brush holder that rolls up and protects your brushes. I got everything cut and laid out... and broke 2 sewing machine needles in the space of 1 hour. My brush holding project rests next to all the other incomplete projects and failed attempts at being "domestic-seamstress-Elisa" in the craft closet. Hmmm.... Something had to be done about this!

So, I joined the quilting and sewing Enrichment group in our ward. Not because I'm really skilled in this area (as detailed above), but precisely the opposite! I borrowed a sewing machine and was flustered that I couldn't get it to work... and then embarassed and chagrined when I realized that the bobbin had no thread on it. Go figure. Well, I think that my ineptitude prevented me from completing the red, white, and blue rail fence project in a timely fashion, but it didn't keep the completed blocks from looking pretty darn good for a first try at quilting! I was admittedly proud that the center lined up on my second block. Now to do it again with a cute pink and green pinwheel pattern... and maybe I'll be brave enough to add my name to the drawing to take all the completed blocks and actually make a quilt with them!

Eric's man-version of domestic bliss this week has been his successful installment of a lovely 7x7 garden plot! He spent 8 hours digging up a previously weed-ridden portion of our backyard (after securing permission from management, of course) and trying to eliminate the plentiful rocks claiming that spot of soil as home. After removing 3 5-gallon buckets worth of rocks from such a small area, he has been hypothesizing that perhaps previous residents had a Zen rock garden there! In case you're wondering why I'm only taking pictures rather than helping to dig a lil, let's just say we have stray cats around here who are most likely carrying Toxoplasmosis.

Well, since we (when I say 'we', I really me 'I') successfully slaughtered all our tomato and pepper seeds that we started in our kitchen in March, Eric and I purchased some Roma tomato, Jalapeno, Bell, and Sweet Chili peppers. Don't they look nice in the soil? We've also got onions, carrots, beets, peas, cucumber, green onions, and herbs either already planted or on the schedule to be planted this week. What a great lil garden! Good job Eric!

Eric Wrestles a 420 Pound Sumo Champion! Or wishes He Had...

For those of you who didn't know, Asia is a great passion of mine! What began as a passion for Korea has spread into a deep love, respect, (or atleast appreciation) for Asian culture as a whole. So naturally, I was thrilled to see a sign at our local library for an Asian Festival here in Columbus! Especially one where parking is free, there is no entrance fee, weekend-long performances are all free, vendors will be showcasing their international wares, and the food promises to be legitimately exotic and tasty! Eric entertained the idea--at first out of deference for my passion, I think-- until I looked up the schedule online and found out there were going to be REAL sumo wrestlers there! Then he was suddenly sincerely excited about attending! I mean, I think he would have been happy to come with me because he loves experiencing other cultures too, especially if there is food involved;... but now he was actively participating in the planning and tried to recruit other buddies (his selling point was always "there're going to be sumo wrestlers, man, come on!").

Saturday afternoon we tackled the challenge of finding parking, waiting for the shuttle, getting food quickly (we chose Cambodian food because the line was shortest-- and it was delicious! Loved the spicy sweet dipping sauce for my ginormous burrito-sized spring roll! Sorry, we didn't really take many pictures of our food.), and settling in for a boring announcer...but the moves from the 420 pound American International Wrestling Champion (who happens to be from Idaho--Eric was proud!) and the 300 pound Mongolion International Wrestling Champion made it all worth it! They were very impressive... Eric and I were both surprised to see how flexible they are (doing the splits, low squats, the works) and to hear that the American guy actually ran a marathon earlier this year (I'm skeptical about the definition of the word 'run')! I guess they are pretty good athletes despite appearances!
They did lots of warmup exercises.One reminded me of how the boys in Eric's family scoop out the air around them with cupped hands after they pass gas so that others can 'enjoy' the smell too. (Sorry the announcer is so boring and that there are so many pauses. Couldn't figure out how to edit down the video.) The matches only last 3-10 seconds each. I think the longest one we witnessed was about 11 seconds. Eric was waiting for them to ask for volunteers to go up and wrestle so that he could school them with his skills, but the Mayor took too long getting whupped. We had to settle for a personal photoshoot with them after the matches. I really didn't mind... except he was pretty sweaty... cold, clammy sweat. Super nice guy, though! Here you see, he is wearing his diaper (that is not what it is called, mind you.)


There was also a cool sport called Takraw or Krataw or something like that played similarly to volleyball only the ball about the size of a whiffle ball could only be touched by the feet and head. There were so many back flips and amazing leg kicks from the players we couldn't believe it! Talk about flexibility and acrobatics! Extremely entertaining sport! All the videos we took of it are too large to post here, so if you'd like to see some Takraw/Krataw in action, just ask and we can show ya via email or something.





We ate some delicious Korean food for dinner and Eric was so proud of the red pepper flakes in his teeth he insisted on a picture to document the evidence.


What a fun day at Asian Festival 2008!

A Lil Bit of Everything/Nothing

Well, seems we've had a busy week full of fun, random activities:

Eric the Handyman

Eric finished his test Friday and has since been very productive around here. He's gotten the canoe hung above our car in the carport with Ryan's help (and neglected to take any pictures of his manliness at work despite my consistent urging and reminders that I want to do a 'Man's work is never done' scrapbook page and need evidence!...Oh well. I guess pictures to document the sweaty labor is more a wife thing anyway. I'll just include pictures of the end result, and since no one would believe that I did the work the credit will obviously fall on him.).

here're some pictures of Eric's manly projects around the house!

Our gutted washing machine. Somehow (don't ask me what he did, because I have no idea) Eric fixed it. All by himself. He had to gut it, do some research online, and purchase some replacement parts... but our washing machine has been resurrected! Hurray for tool-savvy handymen! :)

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Donor Memorial Service

On Sunday there was a beautiful Memorial Service for the families of the donors who gave their bodies to scientific discovery for the first year medical student's anatomy class. It was an impressively moving service with a touching slide show of the donors with pets and family, a candle lighting, thoughts from students and faculty, and beautiful music. Eric and Bryan sang a duet of "Homeward Bound" together. It was lovely. Eric was very emotional and sometimes struggled with composure at the beginning, but it only made the music that much more tender. No pictures, sorry. The whole thing really brought a lot more gratitude for such a gift and a profound respect for the donors and their families. It made us think more deeply about the sanctity of the learning experience.

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Sportin a Random Pink Victoria's Secret Hat

I was encouraged by my best friend, Jennie, to include details about work on the blog. So here ya go! Yesterday at work we found an unexplicable surprise in each of our mailboxes: a bright pink, floppy hat. No explanation about who donated them, why staff received them instead of residents, or when we ought to wear them. Just a pink hat on top of our usual announcements and memorandoms. Random! Welcome to the unpredictable world in which I spend my day time hours. It fits, actually. Just an example of the unexpectedness of each moment at the Y. You never know what's going to happen! The best part: It says "Victoria's Secret" across the front! Ha ha! I'm totally going to wear mine all summer whenever we take the Teens outside for some fresh air and sunshine! :) With our 'persimmon' YWCA shirts, we look like a sherbet commercial or something. Just need some lime green...

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Well, that's it for today's random posts. Last week was full of lots of things of minor interest. Hopefully all together it is kind of cool! :) This week promises to be the same, so look forward to future posts!

Deciphering a Dream

How much symbolism and/or emotional significance do you all think dreams have? I had a random dream last night that is not only still extremely vivid, but I actually fell back into the SAME dream twice after getting up during the night. That rarely happens!

Eric, my lil sister Amber, and I were all undercover agents on a mission to uncover the hidden location of a Mafia gangster's secret lair. In the process, my brother was shot and killed in front of my eyes after the Mafia found us sleeping on the floor in a lil cabin in the woods, I sat next to a gossipy Mafia gal in the back seat of a huge unmarked van parrying comments from the Mafia king (he was driving the vehicle and talking to me in the rearview mirror) while she was telling me how you end up doing things you don't want to do to get to the top of the Mafia heirarchy, I attracted lots of "SHHHHH's" in a library because I was trying to get Eric's attention and he was looking for textbooks that might have clues, I was shot in the neck and chest by poison darts when I walked through a glass door ahead of everyone else at the Mafia king's insistence, and had to convince some Korean friends of mine sitting in a photobooth that doubled as a transportation device that I could protect them (yeah, I'd done a great job of that for everyone else so far, right?) if they would provide me with the clue to my lil sister's location (she was still with the Mafia guy after Eric rushed me to treatment for the poison darts--and he had insidious plans for her! yikes! I had to save her!). I am still amazed at the details I remember! What does it all mean?

...Probably absolutely NOTHING! Any interpretations? :)

Eric's Birthday

Eric celebrated his birthday on May 1st, and I'm the slacker wife who neglected to take even ONE picture on my dear hubby's 25th birthday! So, I'll attach this studly pic instead. Lookin good!

We went for dinner at a local Taqueria called Cuco's. It was delicious! We had an adventure arriving (Eric was driving, but it was a surprise destination and I didn't quite know how to get there. I maintained the appearance of being in complete control and pretended to be coy and playful about the mystery chase on which I took us--as though I had planned the entire time to drive up and down Henderson a few times!-- but we did eventually get there and had some yummy Mexican food that neither one of us had to cook. There was WAY too much food, so we had lots of leftovers too! We don't eat out very often and it was really fun to celebrate together and practice speaking Spanish. Eric's Portuguese ability makes him tons more fluent than I am-- so unfair! :) After dinner the Wheelers had us over for birthday brownies and icecream! Such great friends!

Eric opened up his presents... I think the best was the package from his mom! He got baby clothes and a cute hooded towel! Aw!

Top Ten of Eric's Habits and/or Traits that I Find Most Endearing:

10. I love that he can't help getting sucked into games on his numerous 'breaks'...it is so funny to me! I know many other wives rue the day that their husbands sit next to Eric in lecture...and get nothing out of it because he's introduced them to another 'addicting game'. Maybe I'm supposed to find it annoying, but I don't. Perhaps that is why it is so easy for him to do it.
9. Fascination with all things manly: he tries to keep one 'manly' project going every week. Anything from changing the oil in the car, to repairing the washing machine himself, to setting up a pulley system for hanging our canoe in the carport.
8. Maybe ya'll don't want to know this, but anytime he gets a chance (an open window of opportunity, if you will) he pinches my bum and says 'honk!'
7. His bottomless stomach and endless passion for food...even if it was a recipe flop, he scarfs it right up! We ought to compile a list of our/my cooking disasters that he consumed anyway!
6. His big hands. Usually warmer than mine, but when they get cold...they're freezing! Somehow simultaneously worn and yet tender. I love all the scars on his hands. Though I know from the stories that some are just from horseplay, I like to think of them as evidence of his hard-working nature, manliness, and bodily sacrifice. There is that scar on his arm from shielding Bryce from falling glass...
5. Singing, 'Doo-doo'ing, whistling, you name it! He's always makin music! He has a beautiful voice too. And I find it very endearing how anytime he sings he looks like a professional (eyebrows up, mouth shaped into perfect vowels) even if it is a rock song.
4. The delighted lil-boy-at-Christmas look on his face whenever he sees some 'honkers' or a likely fishing spot.
3. He is a big dork who has a LOVE (I don't mean thinks it is cool, I mean deep-boned PASSION) for science and math! Here's a boy who takes a break from his med school textbooks by opening his college Calculus book and reading, working on an M&M physics problem from an impossible test last year, or theorizing about balls bouncing around variously shaped zero gravity rooms. For fun!
2. His tender heart, sincere concern for others (including me), and continual service. He doesn't hesitate to help, never complains, and always notices where there is a need. I think his selflessness comes from the examples of both his mom and dad (who also give so freely of time and resources) and his deep love for the Lord. I definitely love him for it!
1. Those handsome hazel eyes...I can't get enough. Those eyes won me over, really, cuz I got lost in them and decided I ought to stick around to find out more about the man!

I love you, Hon! Can't even imagine what misery life would be without you by my side!

Canoe's Maiden Voyage

A couple of weeks ago Eric bought a canoe off of Craigslist. He had been wanting a water craft of some kind so he could go fishing without inviting all the local ticks to dinner by crashing through brush and weeds on the banks. He had been itching for a chance to take our new family canoe on a maiden voyage... and a few weekends ago we decided the morning storms had cleared enough to allow us the perfect window of opportunity! Armed with life jackets (just wanted to make sure you saw that, Mommy and Daddy!), sandwiches, fishing gear, and friends Justin and Brianna, we were all set to go! That is, after Justin and Eric showed off their muscles and knot-tying skills in order to Jimmy-rig the canoe onto our lil Impala! (Yes, those are pool noodles...)

The weather was great, the Delaware reservoir was pretty empty (probably because of the morning storms), and our canoe didn't sink! The back portion was even cut off so that Eric could try using a small trolling motor! What a rig! :)

Eric looks happy, eh?

A really cool tree that had new 'trees' growing straight up out of its trunk!

Just wanted proof that I was indeed there. For balance I'm sitting in the bottom of the canoe. I felt pretty good but had to keep nibbling on stuff throughout the afternoon...and Eric didn't get even a bite of his own sandwich. He doesn't seem to mind though, still playing oar guitar. Good thing we stopped at a lil diner on our way home to get dinner and awesome milkshakes!