smell them marilla; drink them in!

what a blessing to live in such a beautiful place. being surrounded by God's creation is one of my favorite things about the place i call home. these are just a few snapshots taken in the glorious sunshine today...along with a few thoughts from another of my beloved authors, who seems to capture some of my more rapturous moods.

"isn't it splendid to think of all the things
there are to find out about? it just makes me feel glad to be alive--it's such
an interesting world. it wouldn't be half so interesting if we know all about
everything, would it? there'd be no scope for imagination then, would there?"
-l. m. montgomery, anne of green gables

"the woods are never solitary--they are full
of whispering, beckoning, friendly life. "

-l. m. montgomery, anne's house of
dreams

"we must have ideals and try to live up to
them, even if we never quite succeed. life would be a sorry business without
them. with them it's grand and great." -l. m. montgomery, anne of avonlea

"marilla, isn't it nice to think that tomorrow
is a new day with no mistakes in it yet?"
-l. m. montgomery, anne of green
gables

“i’m not a bit changed—not really. i’m only just pruned down and branched out.
the real me—back here—is just the same. it won’t make a bit of difference where
I go or how much I change outwardly; at heart I shall always be your little
anne, who will love you and matthew and dear green gables more and better every
day of her life.”
-l. m. montgomery, anne of green gables

daddy date

yesterday i had the special privilege of going on a date with my daddy. it was so fun to be with each other. he is so smart...and such a gentleman! the rule was that i was not allowed to open my own door. =)

our stops included :

-costco

-coldstone creamery

-regal cinemas

and each one was a treat because of who i was with. i think i've always been a daddy's girl and last night was no exception.

love, romance, marriage and other such notions

with another summer of weddings having started its no wonder that marriage has been on my mind. here's a few of the thoughts that have been floating around my head lately.

but first-
at the wedding last weekend, two things happened that involved boys. (i call them "boys" not because they are younger than me, but because i'm in the habit. no disrespect intended in regards to their age, etc.) i'll start with the one that amused me. one of the groosmen reminded me of a movie character, "riley" from national treasure. in my head and i must admit, even out loud i called him "riley." he had a good sense of humor and resembled the actor. i was disappointed to learn that "riley" was not his name. yet, at the rehearsal dinner, i couldn't help but loudly gasp when i learned his middle name was "riley!" maybe i'm silly and school-girlish, but this gave me no end of amusement for the weekend.

the second thing was i was able to tell that a guy (is label even any better? maybe i should ask a "member of the male sex" what they would prefer to be called...) liked me. honestly, i couldn't tell you one guy that has liked me. ever. i think i'm pretty clueless when it comes to stuff like that, but not this past weekend. he kept looking at me. he asked my dad how old i was. we made eye contact several times, and i felt like he wanted to come talk to me...or ask me to dance. he looked at me when the music started up, and yes, my mommy made note of that. yet, we went the whole weekend without ever talking. it probably didn't help that my brother was always at my side. (love ya john!) i left a little sad about his (and my!) shyness.

when running errands a few days ago, i bumped into a friend's mom. after a few questions, she asked me the question that i could tell she had been waiting to ask. was i seeing anyone? i told her no, to which she said she was very surprised. she was convinced i must be warding them all off. i laughed and told her that wasn't quite the case, but even then i don't think she believed me. part of me wishes that i didn't believe me either.

i'll stick this in quickly- here's a quote that i found and liked, even if it has little to do with my previous writings. =) it reminds me of how horrified i was at the unpredictable nature of driving when i was first learning. it also reminds me of the NEED to trust God, if we are all as problematic as suggested...
"love is as unproblematic as a vehicle. the only problems are the drivers, the passengers and the road." -franz kafka

sometimes i wonder if i'll ever get married. after all, i did just watch spiderman 2, and heard aunt may's advice to peter. "i believe there's a hero in all of us, that keeps us honest, gives us strength, makes us noble, and finally allows us to die with pride, even though sometimes we have to be steady, and give up the thing we want the most. even our dreams." even though i don't agree that there is necessarily a "hero" that enables us to do these things, instead it is the holy spirit's power, i do think doing the right thing can mean giving up our dreams.

i know the desire to be married, to be a wife and mother, is within my heart, and God promises to fulfill the desires of our heart, when we delight in him, right? as simple as this sounds, i've already seen the desires of my heart been changed by him. i remember at the beginning of my freshman year thinking that i did NOT want to be a r.a. and wouldn't even consider it. yet, there i was turning in my application, having my heart changed enough to go through the interview process. during the period of waiting, i felt my heart grow with love and excitement for possible residents. i realized how disappointed i would be to not get the position. when i got my letter, i sat praying, my hands shaking to discover what God would have me do.
now, over a year later, as i prepare for my 2nd year in residence life, i can only praise him for leading me down the path i didn't want to go.

as much as i would hate to give up my dream of marriage, i can't help but consider this to be a possibility. i've already seen this in my own life.

at the time, surrender is so hard.

so hard, but He always proves it to be worth the struggle to obey.

this is the chapter of my life called dreaming...and hoping my dreams are the same as His.

pooh bear

i love the simplicity and the sweetness found in the words of a. a. milne.

i received a treasure in a small book of his sayings for my birthday. i also discovered three other books at a thrift store in may and have been enjoying the wisdom and humor from this writer since.

here are a few of my favorites from here, there and everywhere in between-

“if the person you are talking to doesn't appear to be listening, be patient. it may simply be that he has a small piece of fluff in his ear.”

“it is more fun to talk with someone who doesn't use long, difficult words but rather short, easy words like "what about lunch?"”

“when late morning rolls around and you're feeling a bit out of sorts, don't worry; you're probably just a little eleven o'clockish.”

“you can't help respecting anybody who can spell TUESDAY, even if he doesn't spell it right; but spelling isn't everything. there are days when spelling tuesday simply doesn't count.”

“poetry and hums aren't things which you get, they're things which get you. and all you can do is go where they can find you.”

“piglet sidled up to pooh from behind. "pooh," he whispered. "yes, piglet?" "nothing," said piglet, taking pooh's paw, "i just wanted to be sure of you."”

hope

sometimes i ask God, "why me?"
today was one of those days.

nothing bad has happened to me. no tragedy has struck me. no evil has befallen me.

instead i was once again reminded of the grace that God has shown me.

mommy and i went to a lunch today put on by shared hope international. what i heard broke my heart-the little girls who are forced into slavery, forced into prostitution. some of them are sold by their parents, who know full well of their child's fate. others believe they are acting in their child's best interest, sending them off to school or a better opportunity. yet, the result is the same: bondage for these girls.



unlike these precious ones who have been sold into slavery, i was free to remain innocent and girlish for longer than most. unlike these beautiful girls who were prostituted against their will, i have been protected by my family. unlike these shame-filled women who are just beginning to experience the love of God, i have been loved all my life and have known of God's grace and love for me since childhood. girls who have known torture and abuse, when i can only imagine the horrors they have experienced.

i don't know why God chose to save me. i don't know why others must suffer such horrors because of the greed and sin of others. but i do know that as bleak as this situation is, i was also shown hope today.

hope for a future. women who have thought of themselves as nothing,able to own their own homes. women with seemingly no future, being able to learn skills and having a profession of their own. women who were forced into prostitution, being able to their dream of romance through marriage to a christian man. girls finding safety in hope houses. girls getting to go to school for the first time. as i watched the video i was struck by the joy found in the laughter and smiles of these daughters who had been hurt so much. only jesus could make a blind man see, a lame man walk and heal these hurting girls.










he truly is the God of miracles. he truly is the God of wonders. praise our God!

restoration. freedom. life. hope.

these are the promises of our savior.

give me jesus

my prayer for tonight is in the words of this song.

in the morning, when i rise/in the morning, when i rise/in the morning, when i rise, give me jesus

give me jesus/give me jesus/you can have all this world/but give me jesus

when i am alone/when i am alone/when i am alone, give me jesus

give me jesus/give me jesus/you can have all this world/but give me jesus

when i come to die/when i come to die/when i come to die, give me jesus

give me jesus/give me jesus/you can have all this world/you can have all this world/you can have all this world

but give me jesus

summer goals

for the past few summers, brio magazine has put out a 30 day challenge, offering teen girls the chance and incentive to better themselves over the summer months. while i don't plan to engage in all of the activites that are laid out in this article, i do want to utilize the rest of my time at home during these sunny days.

a few of my summer goals-

-bless my family. whether this means running errands, paint a bedroom for my grandma doing chores, going to a movie with my daddy, playing games with my brothers, talking with my mommy, making gluten-free food, i want to be a blessing to some of the very most important people in my life.

-read uncle tom's cabin by harriet beecher stowe.

-get a passport. australia is only 11 months away!

-work on curbing my tongue. i think in the last year i've become more critical, more unkind with my words due partly to the influence of those i've been around but also because of my own sinful nature. i want to work on building other people up with my words and not saying the thoughts that amuse me when they are at another's expense.

-memorize colossians 4:6 to help me with curbing my tongue.

-spend minimal time on the computer. i can easily waste hours on this machine, but i want to commit to using it to communicate with people i am away from and doing useful activites. and getting off of it when i'm done!

-pray for my upcoming year. with a full schedule of nursing classes and exciting opportunities as a r.a. i know i will face opposition. i want to be a blessing to those i am serving!

-read the space trilogy by c. s. lewis.

-spend time with some of my dear friends here at home. its easy to take for granted living on campus, close to all my friends at school. while it takes a bit more of an effort, i want to be able to spend time with those that i am away from when i'm at school.

-write at least 2 letters to my sponsored child in india. i know letters are such a treasured thing. during the school year, i often neglect this important part of my ministry to this little girl whom i have never met. during the summer, i'm afraid laziness more than business prevents me from blessing her in this way.

-eat less dessert. self explanatory.

-make my decorations for the apartments' doors. i want to have as much ready before training week as possible!

-read the last of the mohicans by james fenimore cooper.

-exercise. with a varied schedule almost every day, it isn't always possible to exercise in the same way. but i want to be ready for walkabout this august and i want to be in shape anyway! i want to make an effort to be active in whatever way i can each day. i know the value of convenience hinders my progress in this area and feeds my lazy nature. no more!

-scrapbook my school year. enjoying the pictures taken of my friends and family during the school year while preserving them in a special way is something i discovered was impossible to do in the midst of res. life and nursing!

-watch less movies. play more games as a family.

-not mindlessly watching movies, but making the choice to evaluate the content with a biblical worldview.

-read ephesians every day. the week that was spent in the study of this book during my last semester made me realize how much i wanted to learn more from the wealth found in this book intended for all believers.

wow. i guess i had more goals than i realized!

jesus, help me to not waste the precious gift of these summer days.

a wedding

there's something indescribably beautiful about weddings where God is honored.

this weekend we drove to a special wedding. i suppose all weddings are special but this one felt especially so, for several reasons:

-i got to see my daddy as a groomsman for a young man he had known since the days as his sunday school teacher in elementary school
-i witnessed two people who loved God even more than they loved each other
-i saw their commitment to purity through their decision to wait until this day before kissing
-i also saw their first act as man and wife to be a way to honor God, instead of the traditional kiss

what a blessing to witness such a union. and what a reminder of what i am waiting for...

chapter of my life

on sunday, daddy received "the pursuit of happyness" for father's day. i liked the messages found in the film, even if his hard life was difficult to watch. i liked the father-son relationship portrayed. i also liked the way in which the narration included the various "chapters" in his life.

"this is the chapter of my life called 'being stupid.'"

"this is the chapter of my life called 'running.'"

this is the chapter of my life called "hanging out with my best friend."

-driving to the store where she works

-trying on dresses

-having her act as my saleslady, telling me how flattering the dresses looked

-discussing how to compliment someone even when a dress isn't flattering

-picking out earrings with my birthday gift certificate

-eating spaghetti and salad with her family

-learning archery

-feeling heroic while aiming at the target

-actually hitting the target!

-making a list of our intended summer adventures together

-thinking our many years together as friends, with moments both remembered and forgotten

-showing her my hawaii scrapbook and wishing she could have journeyed there with me

-carrying the mattress to her floor

"if it fits, its meant to be."

-sleeping on the mattress and talking until we fell asleep

-walking up in the middle of the night and being happy to be sleeping next to my best friend

-eating watermelon and bumble bars for breakfast

-listening to country music on the drive to our hike

-hiking around the edge of lake cushman

-enjoying the peace of the lake while swapping stories of our separate adventures this year

-drinking water out of nalgenes

-having her recite poetry to me, including the tree poem

-hugging good-bye with the anticipation of seeing each other soon to begin fulfilling our list

-realizing that even distance and different experiences has not changed our friendship

plaster and large red top tubes

sometimes i have expectations for how things are going to be-

on sunday i taught sunday school with mommy. prior to getting there, we were informed that we would be making plaster hand-prints with the kids for father's day. when i found this out, i was less than thrilled. i dislike crafts that are not simple and do not fit with the story. unfortunately my fears were not unfounded. the plaster turned out to be rather a disaster, but fortunately mommy was there to help. she took over the plaster, which ended up using up most of the class period, while i taught the children about joshua. and i would like to point out that they were much more excited about the pieces of paper we rolled into trumpets than the plaster. =) simple but fun.

on monday i went to get tested for allergies. as i held the letter in my hand on the way to the lab, i was filled with anxiety over the words, "please fill one large red top tube...and spin it." yikes. after a small prick, a vial of my blood and a sore arm later, i realized that my fears were somewhat unfounded. i thought the worst was over.
then today, i learned that it was all for naught. the tube of blood was not spun enough and will have to be re-done. yuck.

expectations. sometimes i'm right and sometimes i'm wrong. sometimes i like the satisfaction of being right, but would prefer being proven wrong. and sometimes i hope that i am incorrect...

more than a garage sale

what a privilege to be around family: both relations and dear friends.
people who may not be related by blood, but who know you.
kindred spirits and gentle hearts.
delicious food and shared memories.
so many conversations that blessed my heart.

i think the day can be summed up with one happy thought in the words of john avery whitaker, "you can never put an age limit on friendship." or distance limit...or time limit...or any other kind of limit!

what a gift God gave us in relationships with other people. days like today give me a small glimpse into the beautiful character of our God.

counter-culture

this summer, our church is doing a series on "counter-culture christianity." even though i've heard so many times that we are to be "in the world, but not of it," these lessons always seems so much more real when seen in my own life. even though i wish i could learn by simply reading the words on the pages of my bible, i'm glad God gives me the visual reminders that serve as the lessons i need.

today i was taught the lesson of what freedom really looks like. we're told that happiness will happen when we have the latest [fill in the blank]. these messages can be subtle as a line in a movie or blatant as a billboard, but it is easy to buy into the idea that stuff brings satisfaction and contentment. i know growing up during the depression influenced poppop's habits and purchasing choices, but i can't help but think that he too bought into this belief. as i hung up almost all of his 124 shirts to (hopefully!) be sold/given away tomorrow, i was sad for several reasons. the first was the obvious sadness of knowing poppop would never wear the shirts again. i didn't like seeing his favorite shirts without him. the second reason was the realization that having so much stuff brings about bondage, as the number of shirts is just one of the many examples to be found in the garage and house being prepared for the sale. it made me sad to think that he was unknowingly not truly free as he held onto so much stuff unnecessarily. there was no possible way for him to wear, use or much less enjoy all of the things we are discovering in his absence. even though it isn't what our culture teaches, i am venturing to believe that freedom comes, not from stuff, but from God. i am far from having this lesson applied to my own life, but i think i'm going to start by memorizing this verse...and maybe cleaning out my closet better than i ever have before:

"yet true godliness with contentment is itself great wealth. after all, we brought nothing with us when we came into the world, and we can’t take anything with us when we leave it. so if we have enough food and clothing, let us be content."
1 timothy 6:6-8

and can i mention how much i love brooke fraser? i find her lyrics filled with truth, her heart bursting with righteous causes and her voice passionately and genuinely praising God with sweet melodies. today on the way home from the service, mommy, john and i listened to the soundtrack for moulin rouge. while hollywood attempts to distinguish between love and sex with this film and its music, the blurry confusion about pre-marital sex remains. no matter how "sweet" the music is, it seems to reinforce the message that freedom is found in sexual activity, in any context where "love" is found.

brooke fraser has a song called "love is waiting." although waiting is hard, God makes it clear that true freedom is found by following his plan. i know jeremiah 29:11 is quoted at every graduation ceremony and casually said so often that it is no longer meaningful, but i feel like this verse helps to show the desire of God for our lives. he wants the very best for us when we seek after him and choose life. i love the lyrics of "love is waiting" and find hope as i also wait, because i am also trusting.

on the autumn on the ground/between the traffic and the ordinary sounds/i am thinking signs and seasons/while a north wind blows through/i watch as lovers pass me by/walking stories, who's and how's and why's/musing lazily on love, pondering you/let's give it time, give it space/and be still for a spell/when it's time to walk that way/we wanna walk it well

i'll be waiting for you baby/i'll be holding back the darkest night/love is waiting `til we're ready/'til it's right/love is waiting

it's my caution not the cold/there's no other hand that i would rather hold/the climate changes, i'm singing for strangers about you/don't keep time, slow the pace/honey hold on if you can/the bets are getting surer now/that you're my man

i could write a million songs about the way you say my name/i could live a lifetime with you and then do it all again/and like i can't force the sun to rise/or hasten summer's start/neither should I rush my way into your heart

disclaimer

yesterday i received my order from rei. one of the items was a pair of hiking socks, with liner woven into the material. yay for walkabout adventures in august! on the packaging of the socks was a sticker reading, "slightly imperfect."

as soon as i read it, i felt as though i should stick the disclaimer on my forehead...for the rest of my existence.
"there has never been the slightest doubt in my mind that the God who started this great work in you would keep at it and bring it to a flourishing finish on the very day christ jesus appears." -philippians 1:6, the message

to switch subjects, we are going to a service for poppop today. we get to see his urn get placed in a wall and see his plaque. guns will be shot and taps will be played. people who loved him and want to honor his memory will be there. and i'm sure tears will also be present.

and as i write, i'm listening to casting crowns. i like them.

treasure

today we went to grandma's house to prepare for the sale on saturday.
what a task to sort through someone else's stuff...

stuff that he probably didn't even realize he had
stuff that he had multiples of
stuff that is now covered in dust, dirt and bugs

i think my favorite phrase from the night was the answer to the question, "why does poppop have [blank]?"
"i don't know!"
this applied to everything from the unopened gas mask to the multiple smoke detectors.

i must say it has given new meaning to the importance of storing treasure up in heaven. i wonder if people in heaven get a view of anything that goes on earth after they are gone. i wonder if poppop is watching us go through his workshop packed with his belongings and deals from many years and wishing he could have done things differently. i am continuely reminded, with no disrespect to poppop, of the futility of earthly collections.

stuff. we can't take it with us, and so often it distracts us from what God would have us do. help me to store treasure where it will truly count. help me not be distracted by the desires of the moment. please give me an eternal perspective.

celebration

we finally were able to celebrate my birthday. yay for pumpkin pie and chocolate drizzled strawberries! yay for chinese rice and strawberry lemonade! yay for beautiful weather and sweet peas! and yay for my family!

save me from myself

where do i come up with some of my ideas? sometimes i wonder...does God just laugh at what i come up with? how silly i can be?

when i pray for protection and safety, i almost always picture physical safety-but usually in the form of protection from a car crash, not always health or the use of my different senses. yet, i have been coming to realize that this is only one aspect of the protection God offers. he can protect more than just my physical body from harm. he is capable of guarding my emotions, my heart. he is able to save my spirit, my soul. but even with all this different kinds of protection, i usually think of them as protection from outside sources. yet i've come to realize something else...

i think sometimes he protects me from myself.

this last year, i had a crush on a guy. although i prayed for God's will if something were to happen, in my heart i hoped that my prayers would be for God's will when not just if something were to happen. maybe this isn't the best example, but it was important to me at the time. i know that God was protecting me, whether i liked it or not. this guy didn't pursue me, but if he had, i'm not entirely sure if i would have been as concerned with God's will as i would have been that what i wanted was actually happening. i know that i wouldn't have appreciated someone telling me that "God knows best" at the time, but now i am able to see his protection over me...even from myself.

this past week, i've been laying in bed, sicker than i've been in quite some time. i've been pushing myself at work, doing my best to finish well. i know that is what i was supposed to do, but i wonder if God is saving me from myself? armed with good intentions, i have been running for over 8-hour-shifts, wanting to end my job with the knowledge that i gave all that i could. yet, i've been exhausted and maybe even made myself sick because of it. i've missed 2 days of work, and could potentially miss my last day on the job if i don't regain my energy/strength/ability to run soon. while i'm not especially thrilled to have a pounding headache, the need to blow my nose every few minutes and barely enough energy to walk to the bathroom and back, it seems as though God does have a purpose in even this.

i guess my realization isn't so new. really, i'm just re-visiting the trust issue.
the struggle between what i think is best and what God knows to be best.
not merely trusting him with words,
but with my actions, my prayers and my thoughts.
trusting him to save me

even from myself.

al-is-on

when i was in fifth grade i made a marvelous discovery. although i probably should have been paying attention to something that was pertaining to my education in the classroom, i was finding out something pertaining to myself that i found to be quite important. although it seemed quite unusual, i was very pleased with my finding.

my name is a sentence. al-is-on.

my discovery has proved to be very useful throughout the years. i have often used it to help people remember how to spell my name. for instance, this last year, scott made the error of spelling my name with 2 "l"s (which is a quite common mistake...almost as common as spelling my last name with only one "t" or my favorite, adding an "e" to the end.) i informed him (along with my entire staff, thanks to the "reply all" key) of my name's dual ability-to serve as my name and as a sentence. kevin tried to convince me that "all-is-on" could also be a sentence, but i refuse to acknowledge that. =) since then, my sentence has become almost another nick-name. al-is-on.

and martha shared her first thoughts about my sentence revelation:
al-is-on drugs. =)

since then there have been others...
al-is-on edge
al-is-on the clock
al-is-on time
al-is-on the way
al-is-on fire
al-is-on the ball
al-is-on the verge of tears
al-is-on tv
al-is-on the fence
al-is-on board
with more to come, i'm sure...

my name is a sentence. al-is-on.

happy birthday to me

i've celebrated my 20th birthday by laying feverish in bed, sleeping until 1 pm because i was too delirious to do anything else. but even in spite of my sickness, i've been able to be thankful for a few things:

-birthday messages waiting on-line
-my family checking in on me and being more sad than me about my sick state on my birthday
-being taken care of
-phone calls from some of my dearest friends

so, even though this is definitely the grossest i've ever felt on a birthday before, it hasn't been completely bad.

i've felt very loved.

teenager for one last day

julianne told me to do something stupid and impulsive on my last day of teenager-hood, since i would still have an excuse. so i proceeded to get sick and spend the day in bed. the only thing that slightly resembled irresponsibility (is that a word?) was me calling in sick and spending the day in bed. a real exciting way to enter adulthood. not working because all i have the energy for is laying here. =) not that i'm complaining...sometimes i think God saves me from myself. i was actually thinking about forcing myself to go to work, when i still had some energy. but all of it has been taken away, so working wasn't even an option anymore. time for a nap...

potc 3-seriously?!?

let's make a movie, ok?
let's take a popular film with good actors and no plot and randomly strung together events which don't even make sense...
let's call it, pirates of the caribbean 3: at world's end...

i walked to the theater with john this afternoon to see a film i anticipated to be:
-somewhat funny with quotable lines
-slightly ridiculous
-slightly unsatisfactory

however, i found pirates to be:
-utterly unsatisfactory
-completely ridiculous and random
-mildly funny, but not enough to make up for the lack of conclusive anything, random events or the fate of will turner!

as the film started, i thought it was a bit strange, but it began to reach the half-way mark and nothing was changing with how the movie was progressing. soon i was laughing at all the wrong parts, because i was using laughter as my outlet for the ridiculousness of what i was viewing. i kept turning to john in disbelief, to whisper, "what in the world?" "what is going on?" "seriously?!?"

i felt like they asked a bunch of crazies what should be put in the movie and they threw it all in the film wherever it somewhat fit. this theory was somewhat confirmed when john and i returned home to read on the internet that the script hadn't even been completed when filming started. seriously!

as i think about all the random things that were put in this film, i can barely recognize its roots from the first film. (the following list is pretty much all spoilers...in case you still care to see this film)
-elizabeth as not merely a pirate lord, but the pirate king
-governor swann not merely dying, but floating around in a boat and talking to elizabeth
-tia dalma turns out to be not merely davy jones' lover (as if that weren't enough!) but the goddess, calypso who eventually is released from her human body and turns into crabs! (as john and i questioned later, "why did she turn into crabs?")

-the only explanation for barbossa being raised to life again was due to the fact that he was only dead
-multiple jack sparrows rule the screen and all of him-selves seem obsessed with eating peanuts, so much so that they are willing to kill the other jack sparrows to eat the single peanut (i wish i were joking!)
-norrington has a change of heart, right before he is stabbed by the only "good", but delusional character on davy jones' boat, will's daddy, and right after he kisses elizabeth. i guess its hard to be mad at him for this when he dies seconds later.
-the pirate council is crashed by jack sparrow's father, the keeper of the code. yes, it really exists in book form. and the dog arrives with the keys to the book, with the explanation that he escaped the cannibal island using sea turtles.
-we also learn that all that is left of jack's mother is her dead head which jack's father produces when jack asks about his mommy.
-will and elizabeth marry in the middle of a battle scene and manage to enjoy a looooong kiss without getting killed. but not for long...
-will is stabbed by davy jones. to keep him from dying completely, jack "valiantly" gives up his dream of living forever and helps will stab davy jones' heart, preventing his death...
-will must cut out his own heart and is destined to live 10 years at sea in exchange for one day on land.
-jack doesn't want elizabeth to witness the cutting of the heart, so he grabs hold of a rope to swing off the ship, which is attached to sails and part of the mast which floats them to the black pearl. talk about realistic.
-will spends 24 hours with elizabeth before heading out for his ten years...apparently they produce a son, which will meets for the first time ten years later. pathetic.

i liked what pluggedinonline.com had to say:
http://www.pluggedinonline.com/movies/movies/a0003236.cfm
(emphasis is my own.)
"it's clear that...[the movie's creators] want this film to have more heroes, more villains and a bigger, splashier pirate sea battle than ever a bunch of landlubbing moviegoers saw before.
But as it's said onscreen, "There's a cost for what we want most." To set up all those special effects, the story gets pulverized."
"And as the messiness mounts, we begin to care less and less about where this aimless projectile of a movie is heading."

i also liked several of jack sparrow's lines as they applied to the film itself:
as it relates to the producers of this film:
"permit me to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket."
"...shoot him, cut out his tongue, then shoot his tongue! "
and my favorite:
"Up is down"? Well, that's just maddeningly unhelpful." this whole film was maddening and very unhelpful in concluding any of the plot from the previous film.

seriously?!?

in the film, jack offers the advice, "pretend it's all a bad dream, that's how I survive."

maybe i'll do just that...

my job

every day that i'm still here, i am so thankful for the countdown that is going on. i'm continually reminded of God's goodness in telling me to quit. trust is such a difficult, hard but rewarding experience. i hate the idea of quitting from any job or task, but somehow the impossibility, the exhaustion and unrealistic expectations attached to my current job makes my two-weeks-notice not as horrible. last night, when some people called in and no one came to take their place, it fell to me to have double the work! after several attempts to do what was asked of me, i found a nurse and told her that it was not physically possible for me to care for all the people that had fallen to me. i've found that no night is ever the same, but it never seems to be good. it is okay on the best of nights, but mostly i feel like i'm behind with people waiting on me and no amounts of effort on my part will ever let me catch up. by the time for my dinner break (which usually falls between 7-8 lately) i feel like running away. but i am sticking it out. even though i don't feel like it, i'll do what i said i would do.

but the evening was not without its moments of humor.

i was told that my scrubs looked like maternity clothes. then i was asked if i was pregnant. oh goodness.

i was also told, after asking the resident sitting on the toliet if she desired privacy, that i was welcome to stay "if i enjoyed smelling those smellies."

more confirmation

i just climbed into my bed...after putting so many others to bed.

today i discovered that the very day after i gave my two-weeks-notice, my boss, who had only been there a few weeks prior to my hiring had resigned, effective and immediately! i could scarcely believe it! after she had tried so hard to convince me to stay, she was leaving herself. i found it to be quite ironic and at the same time, confirming of my decision. it seems that she wanted to take a different direction, according to one of the nurses tonight. this just wasn't what she was looking for and it wasn't working out. hmmm...same here.

as i prepare for sleep, i can't help but laugh at some of the comments throughout the evening...

today i went in to help a woman to bed at the usual time, much to her amazement. "bed-time! who would have thought? huh. bed-time."

i was also told that alison is a very pretty name. in fact, the woman who told me this explained that she had a family member with that name. however, it was her cousin who was a boy. i asked if it was his last name, but was assured that it was most definitely not his last name!

when i asked a man for his hearing aids, he told me that he didn't care for any coffee or tea, but he appreciated me asking. after all, according to him, i am such a sweet girl. he could tell because of my light brown hair. =)

memory lane-dear jovan

yesterday i came across a play that lucy and i wrote around 7th grade. all of our characters are under the age of 20, with the exception of the villian...and in 4 days, i will be 20. somehow 20 sounds so much more ominous than 19. and we apparently thought so even at age 12...

anyway, back to the play. with some of the cheesiest lines (that we thought were poetic, romantic or touching, at the time) i spent several moments reading our great work, laughing to myself. how silly and innocent we were.

for starters, the cast is as follows:
narrator
adelisa, the heroine, 17
casimir, the hero, 19
ignacio, the villain, 23
hadrien, casimir's best friend, 18
katriel, ignacio's younger sister, 13
jovan, a peasant boy, 14
namir, a good guard
henchmen

i remember the agonizing time we spent pouring over a name book, searching for the perfect names for our cast. apparently, we were completely satisfied with the results of our search.

my favorite scene is the final scene: the underground passage, scene nine. after they have made the daring escape from ignacio's castle, jovan was wounded with a flying dagger. we thought it would be more realistic if we killed off one of characters. we were near tears when we wrote this scene and thought the best lines in the whole play were found in this final scene. i remember reading jovan's last words to each other and being full of sadness for the sacrifice of this noble boy. =)

scene nine:
katriel: (crying) jovan, how badly are you hurt?
jovan: (gasping for breath) leave me. i don't want to slow you down.
casimir: no! i'll carry him.
narrator: after rejoining adelisa, they all rode back home on horses namir had provided. it was only later that they heard ignacio's henchmen had revolted and killed him. Meanwhile, jovan was taking his last breaths in adelisa's little cottage.
jovan: (gasping for air) don't be sad when i am gone. i would do it again in a second, for friends like you. (he dies)
(they stand around sadly; the ladies cry. casimir is comforting adelisa.)
narrator: soon, casimir and adelisa were married, and they lived very happily. but they never forgot jovan and the great sacrifice he made.

even as i type this, i can't help but laugh, especially when jovan dies. how melodramatic we were! =)

and perhaps, just maybe, turning 20 isn't so bad after all.