Pool Chemistry 101...

At my high school there were two chemistry teachers --the one everyone loved, who taught for 6,000 years and was legend for making his students want to become doctors and pharmacists, and the crazy one who was working on her PhD but couldn't explain the chemical structure of carbon dioxide vs. carbon monoxide to students, yet she was allegedly brilliant in a research environment. Allegedly.

I had the crazy one.

So when pool chemistry goes awry, as it is wont to do the latter part of June every single year, I am clueless. And impatient.

In the middle of June, our pool looked like this:

And today it looks like this:

Wait... it's hard to see just how bad it is from a distance. Let's try that again. Here it is two-ish weeks ago:

And here it is today:

Hmmm... notice a change? Yes, it is a different color. Copper-colored, to be exact.

As I understand it, what had happened was this: the chlorine and pH levels dropped. A lot. We added a ton of chlorine (and repaired the automatic chlorinator, leaving it set on MAX-10).

Then we filled the pool with about 8" of water because between the lack of rain and the prevalence of diving championships, the water level had fallen significantly. The unbalanced chlorine and pH helped leach copper out of the pipes in the pool heater. Mind you, if the heater were a little newer, it would have been plumbed so that when it's off the water flows around the copper pipes and not through the copper pipes. But no, it's old, so water flows through the copper pipes of the pool heater whether it's on or not. Over the course of a week, the pool went from pristine blue to pond-muck green-brown. Lovely.

Only here's the thing... now the water chemistry is near-perfect. It's the pool liner that's stained. I feel like I need to call Bill Murray and invite him for a swim.

Other pool-or-pond, pond-would-be-good-for-you visitors we have include insects...

(OK, you have to be a little impressed at the sparkles under the cricket's feet. Downright Disney, don't ya think?)

...and amphibians...

We are waiting on someone who majored in science and understands chemistry (i.e. won't kill every living thing in the neighborhood) to get off work one evening while it is still light and finish the de-staining treatment.

In the meantime, I'm headed poolside to chat with the enchanted creatures who have taken residence in our backyard pond pool. 

Belle...

What I did on Saturday (and Sunday)...

Bright and early Saturday noon, I decided to tackle the deck furniture and get it spiffed up for Summer 2011. Saturday was primer day. And Sunday was top coat day.

Thankfully, I was able to resurrect the dining set for yet another year, which is good because replacing the decking boards is on our pro-jik list for July (and probably August and maybe even September, if things go the way they usually go when I tackle DIY pro-jiks).

Last year I left the cushions out all the time. They faded, mildewed and even grew some lovely algae which very rudely wouldn't come off completely in the washing machine. I believe that's the outdoor fabric triumvirate of ick. I ended up scraping and scrubbing them by hand before they went into the attic. When I took them out of storage this year, they were faded AND stained. Ew.

So I did what every cost-conscious DIYer would do. I flipped them over. :)

I blame last year's cushion debacle on my own laziness. It seemed like too much trouble to untie each cushion and take it inside when we weren't using the table.  This year, instead of tying the cushions to the chairs, I made bows out of the ties and laid them in the chairs.

And it looked so very lovely. Seventeen minutes later, the loud thunder clap signaled the beginning of "Operation Save the Cushions."

Less than a minute after that, all six cushions were safely tucked into the stairwell of the bonus room, conveniently located next to the back door that leads to the deck. I'm guessing it's fewer than ten steps from dinette to stairwell. I think it'll work, because let's face it, if it takes a lot of effort, it's probably not happening in the summer. Except for the decking thing. I hope.

Mighty little man...

Still my favorite song by Steve Burns (including the planet song from Blue's Clues, and that's saying something).

Confession...

All those things I always say I'm going to do during the school year but never actually have time to do... that's what I'm doing this summer.

And it is fun...

Old Navy rocks the 80's...

It's official. The 80's are back. Old Navy has pleated jeans.

Old Navy pleated capris in dark blue - click here.

Old navy pleated capris, light blue version - click here.

Oh, 1980's, I always knew you'd come back. And now... enjoy this lovely photo of the 1986-ish me, making a college spring break stop at South of the Border on the way to Disney.

English major armadillo #2...

Kitchen issues...

Why, oh why, do I feel like I have to redo every inch of my house to "make it my own"? It must be some sort of psychological disorder.

We actually bought this house because I fell in love with the combo kitchen/eating area/family room. I suppose the addition of the columns to keep our master bedroom from falling into the family room disrupted my psychological flow as well as the space-to-space flow of the entire area.

So now of course -- because it makes no sense at all financially or time-wise -- I just have to redo the kitchen.

My favorite kitchen is the one here. But that isn't going to happen. Why? Counter tops. I have freaky Go Wake Forest/Go Georgia Tech gold-black granite counter tops. So I am now in decorating therapy for my kitchen redo issues.

I know I'm going to do something, but I don't know when. And I don't exactly know how. And, of course, I don't know what. But here are the leading inspiration ideas, all from Coastal Living...

English major armadillo...

I love this kitchen...

Other things the kiddies liked about HCW...

Wide variety of behind-the-scenes writing, huh? We had a lot of fun.

Remember those course evaluations on the last day of class? The overall favorite thing about the class was the "fun" atmosphere. I thought: those kids are nuts. The class started at 7:00 IN THE MORNING. We were a crowd of decidedly night people sitting in a zero-hour class that met before anyone else even thought about getting in the car to drive to school. In the winter, it was DARK OUTSIDE when the tardy bell rang.

But it was. Fun. 

After the "fun" atmosphere, they said their favorite special exercise was playing with beach balls. That was just on the last day. They were told to deflate them and not take them out again during school hours. They were supposed to take them home, write angsty quotes on them and slap them around their rooms in moments of stress. There are no pictures of said beach balls in this post, owing to the fact that one Mr. A.H. of APUSH fame is on a quest to find out who gave students beach balls the last day of school. Oops. [Just kidding: I confessed to being the beach ball supplier. He confessed to lowering expectations for student behavior on the last day.]

It's hard to say good-bye to the first group of anything you teach. There's something special about those intrepid students -- I will miss them each and every one.

But I am grateful NOT to drive down the highway racing the sunrise for a couple of months. 

about a girl

So I had this dream…

that there was a war in america. 

and a battle was fought at my school. 

and all the guy teachers fought it in. 

and after it was over, i was going around making sure everyone was okay.

beaver was. and ridlehoover was. 

which was a big relief. 

and then i saw this old car car.

and there was someone in it.

and so i went to see if they needed help.

and i opened the door.

and it was mr. hahn.

shot through the head.

and missing his lower half.

so i freaked out and ran away.

but then later, while i was still freaking out.

he just showed up.

not dead…?

and in one piece. 

and so i freaked out again, but in a happy way.

and then i went and did homework with kelsey. 

and nathan…

and….hayes?

why was hayes there?

but he was.

and then kelsey’s mom showed up.

and was mad at me.

because i hadn't finished an assignment or something yet....which is not that far fetched.

i have REALLY weird dreams....

 Copyright - about a girl

Love, love, love...

I was perfect once...

some place

meet me some place
far from here
take me to a place of beauty
life here is too boring and droll
i need energy
i need color
everything here is black and white
flowers die
and breezes are no more
take me to a place of peace
a place of harmny
some where
where the flowers blossom even in winter
warm breezes warm my heart on a pretty day
a place to laugh
a place to grow
a place to be me
take me to that place
that place where nothing can harm us
and all is friendly
i want to go to that place
in your warm embrace
take me there

Copyright - I was perfect once

mSmith Creative Writing...

Into School

As my car makes its way into the familiar parking lot, I look upon that same building that I see every morning at an hour in the morning when no one should have to think for themself, let alone take an honors class. I slowly trudge my way from the car to the path way that leads to the entrance of this building. As I make my journey through the hallways, I see other students and teachers, all of whom have the exact same facial expression. It’s the same as mine as well.

I approach my assigned locker that is all the way down the virtually vacant hallway and I think to myself how amazing that in only an hour, these hallways that I can hear footsteps from the other side of the building in, will soon be filled with loud children and teens. There will be no more dead silence. After pondering this, I hurl my oversized bag off of my shoulders and down to the hard floors so that I can begin to enter the locker combination. I am late to my class and therefore decide to somewhat speed up my actions in order to make up for time lost. Of course, my locker somehow knows this and refuses to open. I bang the frame of the locker with my knee repeatedly, hoping somehow the door will open. But no. I must re-enter the digits and hurry towards the stairs, another inconvenience. The “brilliant people” that are behind this decision no doubt put absolutely no thought into this idiotic plan. The staircase that is the most out of the way for every student is the only available method of getting to the 2nd floor. Brilliant.

I am now at this point at the fastest pace I can go without making a fool out of myself. I quickly shoot a glance at the television to see the time. The bell should be ringing any second now. I approach the hallway to my class and grab the handle to the door. As I pull open the door, the bell rings. I got lucky this time. As I sit in my chair, I think to myself that I won’t cut it that close again, but of course, this idea has disappeared by tomorrow morning when I smack the snooze button on the alarm and go back to sleep. Maybe next time.

Copyright - mSmith Creative Writing

sensible nonsense...

where do we go from here?

I’m going to take a brief moment to be blatantly honest. My last day of high school ever is tomorrow. Sure my dad doesn’t believe it because I have two days with one hour long exams, but dad hate to break it to you, I’m done with school tomorrow. I’ve have spent most of my time wishing away my senior year. I wished that I would hear from colleges, make it to prom, make it to field day, make it to all these big senior moments but in the time I have wished away so much time. Now looking back with only one day left, I feel like I have missed out on so many moments. There have been so many times that I picked one thing over another, and now there’s no way to ever get that back. The one thing we will never have any more of, is time, and now that is all I need. I know that this is crucial to my life, I have to move on at some point, but now that it is here I don’t know if I’m ready for it. Its been fun having something to look forward to but moving out, and college, and growing up is a whole lot scarier once it gets here. So, my honest confession would be that I am terrified out of my mind right now. This is a huge step that I just haven’t mentally prepared myself for yet. People expect so much from us now, we’re going to college, we are starting our futures but now that it is here, all I want is for people to be telling me what to do again. I’ve never had a life beside school, I don’t even know where you go from here. I know that it is all God’s plan, he has it worked out for me, but trying to see it from here is terrifying. It can only go up from here though, and the next chapter of my life is only just beginning. 

 Copyright - sensible nonsense

this is a blog...

It's sad that you can't hear me.
It's sad that you won't hear me at this very moment.
Because this is the time I'll speak the truth.
This is the moment I'll reveal the things I know,
Illuminating my story.
Sometimes I wonder if anyone will ever listen,
if we're all too selfish to truly listen to anyone but ourselves.
Maybe I'll never know of someone like that;
Just.
Pure.
Listening.
Because the longer we live with ourselves,
The farther and farther we get from the truth.
The constant sameness;
It blinds us from everything.
Everything but want.
Today, I understand Peter Pan more than ever before.
I don't want to grow up.
I just want to be heard.  

Copyright - this is a blog

creativity vs. logic...

 you are vertical assortment of concrete and bricks - get over yourself

“GOD IS NOT REAL GET OVER YOURSELVES” – a post on youtube.
But, thats exactly the point, because there IS a God, we have to get over ourselves. We are not the greatest beings anymore, once we accept that there is a God, and have to get over our mortal carcasses made of dust and focus on Him.

For people that believe in no greater being, after getting over themselves, there is nothing left – their universe becomes void, or they return to being obsessed with themselves. They are searching for a purpose – and after seeing past themselves – there is nothing left – an empty void with flitting shadows of enjoyment and good deeds. Either they try and sate this void with living a fun and/or good life, or they return to being obsessed with themselves.

Which is why, as Christians, we must all get over ourselves – or we too shall become Godless people.
I think the Christian community needs a new slogan – not God bless you!, not God is watching!, not you are loved!,

but…

Get over yourself! It aint about you! You’re in the way!

We must be empty vessels, jars of clay, perfect conductors of His electrifying presence…
and THEN they will know that we are His disciples – by our love…or more accurately, by His love flowing through us.

So get out your bulldozer and raze the vertical assortment of concrete and bricks – raze the part of you that is in the way. [not all of you - only that which prevents the Holy Spirit from freely and continuously interacting with your life]

and once more, the words of someone not knowing how much he would help God-believers by his impulsive remark:
“…GET OVER YOURSELF”

Copyright - creativity vs. logic

Sights Unseen, Sounds Unheard...

The King’s March

Winter winds brush through the town

Howling above and roaring below.

Cold rain drips down from the clouds

And gives to the air a humid glow.

The crowds did cry and shout aloud

“All Hail the King! He has returned!”

In such a case would one be proud

But much more still was to be learned.

His features would to no man prove

The thoughts which raged within his mind.

For such a time as this demands

 Resilience of the utmost kind.

The King marched on without a glance

 His war-torn face refused all praise.

His silence gave them not a chance

To hear of his heroic days.

The masses rose in earnest plea

To know the tale of their great king.

He stood up high for all to see

And at last spoke willingly:

“In nations, countries, provinces far

Have I fought and risen the victor.

All other forces from sea to star

Collapse into my strengthened hand.

And so my pain is not due from

My superficial world success.

But rather from my lover’s heart

Which, hours ago, was laid to rest.”

The King then stepped down from his throne

As his resolve fought like a war.

Even so, he let nothing show

As he marched onwards ever more.

Copyright - Sights Unseen, Sounds Unheard

blahblahblog...

shower spider

over the summer i spent two weeks on a mission trip to Brazil. we stayed in a house that had three showers for over twenty of us, in one of these showers lived shower spider. shower spider was very sneaky. only two people actually saw it but seven of us were bitten, every one of us bitten on the back of our right leg. no one knows why he choose wanted to bit us, all we were doing was trying to be clean. maybe shower spider didn't want us to be clean, he was not a nice spider like you may have read about in Charlotte's Web. he was pure evil. a kind of evil that hates clean people the most if there is such a thing. anyway we left and i thought shower spider was gone forever but after a few months of being back home i was taking a shower in my bathroom which is not very clean and the drain was stopped up so as water filled the floor a spider about the size of a nickle ran out from behind a bottle lying on the floor and began to attempt to swim. spiders are not very good at that. so as he moved his arms and legs frantically but wasnt moving i picked up a bottle of tilex and began to spray him until he stopped. when i turned the shower off the water slowly left and my American shower spider lay there motionless in the floor. then i sprayed it a few more times because i felt like it and left to go about my day. it stayed there stuck to the floor for two more weeks until the cleaning ladies scraped him off the cold tile because i didnt want to touch it. even though this spider was an immeasurable amount dumber than Brazilian shower spider i still feel like i won...

copyright - blahblahblog

My Heart In Print...

when i was little,

books were an adventure. first i was learning to read, finding meaning in those black lines with curves and angles, discovering the difference between letters.

soon, books were mainly an escape. away from loud siblings or a gray winter, i could experience life. i couldn’t drive yet, so the only way to taste the real world was through a character. i lived vicariously.

i forgot them for a while, actually. i began to have my own adventures: stargazing, 3 a.m. runs to cookout, spontaneous trips to the lake. i didn’t need someone else to live through - i had my own life.

luckily, that only lasted about a month or so. you see, real people always let you down. it’s a fact of life, and i can say it because i’ve even let my best friends down, unintentionally. people disappoint.

but characters? they always wait for you. they’ll stop in mid sentence if you need to grab a sip of coffee or answer the phone. they’ve had months to think over their words and contemplate the meaning of a sentence. they’re ideal.

i’m not a hermit and i’m an extrovert to the max, and i adore my friends. but i find that when i need quiet… books are one of the best places to go.

copyright - My Heart In Print