locked out

i decided to go for a short run (2mi) before i had to be at my math meetings this morning. When i get back from my run at 8:24am, i take my key out of the little hidden pocket in my running shorts and put the key into the door, it won't turn. did i mention that i also wasn't wearing contacts or my glasses and that my meetings started in 36 minutes? luckily, camp eagle crest if full of friendly neighbors, and i was able get the spare key from the office. this was a very unexpected morning. so it's now 10:15 and i've decided i am just going to go to the afternoon session of meetings and try to get errands done this morning.

things are winding down:
out of apt in 1 day
move into new play in 2 days
go to L.A. in 5 days
first day of school in 20 days (yikes)

the clue of the velvet mask

this was the most extreme mystery yet!!!! I was deeply concerned to the physical and emotional state of Nancy's friend, George. You see, George was abducted by thieves, drugged, and threatened. I was concerned because Nancy and Bess didn't really seem to care, Nancy was more focused on solving the mystery than being there for her friend. There were also several times in this book (i feel more so than others) that Nancy put herself in really sketchy situations, practically looking to be bound and gagged.

Nancy was out to catch a gang of thieves who wore black velvet masks, "The Velvet Gang" and stole things from really extravagant parties. Nancy was determined to figure out who the gang was made up of. Usually in her mysteries, there are multiple cases she is trying to solve that eventually all tie in, but this one only focused on the masked thieves. I did enjoy this mystery, because there were a lot of things I was not expecting in the book.

This book mentions several of Nancy's friends from school, Gloria Hendrick, Linda Seeley, and Alice Tompson. I find this interesting because there isn't much talk of Nancy's schooling. She reference Chemistry class in one of her earliest books and talk of her taking art classes has also been mentioned. Ned and friends go to college, I guess since all of her time is devoted to sleuthing, she doesn't really have time for higher education.

mystery at the ski jump

i realized there are different types of Nancy mysteries. Some in which she aides the police in catching criminals and others where she is trying to locate something secret or hidden based on an initial clue. I prefer the ones where she is SOLVING something, instead of solely helping to locate criminals. She also does this when she is locating the secret 'thing' but it just adds more suspense.

Here is the premise of this story:
The Forest Fur Company is selling fur items and stock (as in an investment) to unsuspecting ladies in River Heights and the surrounding areas. Nancy soon discovers the company to be a complete hoax after housekeeper, Hannah Gruen, purchases stock. It is up to Nancy to locate the members behind this scheme in addition to aiding Carson Drew in resolving a missing inheritance.

I was hoping the main setting of this book would be at a ski resort, it is not. However, we learn that Nancy is indeed a fine skier and even does slopes with moguls, with limited teaching from her instructor, Chuck. Also, Nancy can figure skate. What can't this young titian-haired girl do?!?! Aunt Eloise has a cabin in the mountains, so she makes an appearance in this book, and Togo (dog) is mentioned at the beginning. While this book was 'slow' in the beginning, I found myself a little anxious for Nancy's well-being towards the end.

I don't want to give anything away, but let's just say the book ends with Ned getting a deer head to place about the fireplace in his fraternity house at Emerson.

oh hey summer

still no updates on ND. i've been surprisingly busy this past week.

Friday was my first real day of summer (being done with my masters and such).
i started the day feeling really anxious. you see, on tuesday night, while i was at the mall, my car started freaking out and i couldn't drive it, so i spent the week without my car. long story short, i got it towed Friday morning and spent part of the afternoon crying from shock at the price to fix the car and the fact that i was completely helpless in this situation. i absolutely hated dealing with this situation because it was very inconvenient. i mean, my car was stuck at THE MALL, which is forever away from where i live (or at least it seems that way). i also really dislike asking people for help, and i had to do that a lot this week-- calling up various friends to get me around columbia. i think this is what i hated more than having to pay the mechanics. my car troubles helped bring to the surface again how much i fear being an inconvenience to people. i had to fight that this entire week, and let me tell you, it is EXHAUSTING. i am looking forward to some real rest in this upcoming week.

yesterday i also sorted through all of the papers i have accumulated over the last 13 months, it is a VERY huge stack. i found notecards that i had my students fill out on the first day of school that asked them: 1)what is your favorite tvshow or movie 2) what do you like to do for fun? and 3) what is a talent you have that most people don't know about.
i realized after reading through them yesterday, i had never read them during the school year. i feel like i missed out on a piece of my kids having missed this information, but it was nice getting to remember them for a few minutes.

see ya, Fellows Program!

well, today i finish my masters. i have a presentation this morning and graduation this afternoon. not going to lie, i'm a little nervous. BAH.

back to ND

well, after some thinking (I think the mountain air cleared my senses) i decided i will not continue reading Twilight. I made it through the first book and 130 pages of the second and realized it's not something I want to devote my time to. So I will continue reading Nancy Drew, I am now on #29.

Went to Colorado for the weekend, fun trip, but I'm glad to be home! I got to play spades , horseshoes (my arm is still REALLY sore), walk around moraine park, and catch up with friends I haven't seen in a while.

Life Lesson from Colorado Trip: Never eat at Denny's after driving all night even if you GPS is telling you that it is the only restaurant around because Denny's is sicknasty.

oh, hello july

Praise the Lord! It is finally July! My absolute favorite part about a new month is changing the page on my calendar that hangs on my wall. It's funny, because I've had a calendar for a very long time, and I rarely ever write anything in it.

June seemed like the never-ending month. It is just so wild that I was still teaching at the beginning of that month.

July is a somewhat big month for me:
1)Trip to colorado (leaving for TODAY, need to pack and get snacks)
2)Finish Fellows (one week from today)
3)Sign all my papers and contract stuff for CPS (like my retirement plan (WHAT!?) and stuff)
4)move into my new pad (which means i have to CLEAN my old place)

SO, while I feel like i have reverted back to being a teenager (watching dawson's creek, reading Twilight and Nancy Drew), there has been more to my summer than just those things. I've been studying the book of Isaiah, and it has been pretty sweet. I also have the opportunity to lead a discussion group where we talk about fundamental ideas of christianity, like who God is, the Holy Spirt, Sin, stuff like that.


"let us walk in the light of the Lord" Isaiah 2:5