Hot, Sticky and Psyched!

Today is the day! My mom and my sister are arriving from the east coast in just a few hours. I am very excited, although it looks like my mother's flight may be a bit late...as in two hours, although I do not understand how that is possible since the computer said it left on time and it is just coming from Chicago. We shall see.


In the meantime I am waiting in the air conditioned Riverview Cafe having an iced chai. Last I checked it was 95 here in the cities.


I have updated my recent films list. This morning I watched Shop Girl written by Steve Martin with Claire Danes and that guy from Rushmore (as well as Martin himself). It was good, a sort of romantic drama without any real huge conflicts, just life (not my life, but someone's I'm sure). I would recommend this movie only if you can handle awkward situation, which I can't really. Still, the cinematography was awesome with LA playing a kind of character of its own. I loved the music, although it seemed a bit sinister in comparison to the plot. If you see it or have seen it, let me know what you think!

Your results:
You are Dr. Doom

Dr. Doom 60% Poison Ivy 60% Dark Phoenix 57% Magneto 54% Lex Luthor 51% Juggernaut 51% Venom 51% Apocalypse 50% Mr. Freeze 50% Catwoman 48% Mystique 43% Two-Face 43% The Joker 42% Kingpin 39% Riddler 32% Green Goblin 19%

Blessed with smarts and power but burdened by vanity.

Click here to take the Supervillain Personality Quiz


Darn, I changed my answers 3 times, and I still came out as Dr. Doom! I would have rather been Lex Luther, but I'm not bald. Oh well, maybe someday...I can dream can't I?!?!

Your results:
You are Wonder Woman

Wonder Woman 70% Green Lantern 70% Iron Man 65% The Flash 60% Supergirl 60% Spider-Man 55% Catwoman 50% Hulk 50% Superman 50% Batman 30% Robin 25%

You are a beautiful princess with great strength of character.

Click here to take the "Which Superhero are you?" quiz...


Eat that Magician!

How My Weekend Has Gone

On Friday I went to a bar with some friends for the Arts High 2002 5 year reunion (I graduated in 2003, but it was a small school). But that bar sucked, so we all went over to the Hexagon Bar (where I ran in to a few of my brother's friends) and hung out there for a while.

On Saturday I went to Breakfast with arts high friends at the French Meadow Bakery and then back home for a nap. In the evening I went out to Prior Lake and babysat for two very sweet girls. The only problem was that I didn't get home till after midnight, so now I am a bit tired.

After coming home from singing at PPUMC (which went well by the way), I played some Mario and then took elliott and emily to PRIDE, which brought me into the general vicinity of Joe's house, so that's where I am now! Later we will be hanging out with another high school friend, Jennifer Mills. I am so excited to see her and hear how her life in New York has been going! (at least, I think that's where she has been...)

Still, with all this excitement, I am feeling a little icky, mainly because it is getting hot again after a short but oh-so-sweet cold snap. Also, my house is still a mess (no body's fault but my own) and AuntieKnickers and CordeliaKnits are arriving on Tuesday. I will have to get on that at some point, but probably not today.

I think I will cheer myself up by looking at dogs on the internet!

This Sunday and Next Week-How Exciting!

After a few weeks (ok, more like a month or two) hiatus, I will be going to Church this Sunday. The funny thing is that I will not be going to Lynnhurst UCC, where I am a member, but instead to Prospect Park United Methodist, where I am the secretary. I am going for two reasons;

1. because it is nice for people to see my face and feel I am a part of their community
2. because I have been asked to sing and, with some trepidation, have said yes

I will be singing Evening Star, a beautiful folksong/hymn that we sing at Family Camp about learning from nature how to behave in the world-at least that's how I see it. I will only sing a few verses because the morning is going to be very full of music with many hymns by a lyricist parishioner.

It is also PRIDE Sunday, so there will be a guest preacher and lots of rainbows! In case you didn't know, the Twin Cities has the largest PRIDE festival in the Midwest and the third largest in the country!

Then next Tuesday, both AuntieKnickers (MommyKnickers to me I suppose) and CordeliaKnits will be arriving for a week or two of pure fun! Many people would not be as excited about there mother and sister coming for a visit, but since I will not have to feed or house them much, I am psyched! Plus, on Friday or Saturday we will be heading up to Luck for the aforementioned Family Camp. WooHoo!!

A Quick Word about Family Camp

One of My favorite things in summer is family camp and it is coming up! It is a little late for registering, but speaking as a new member of the board, we always welcome newcomers (even if they are late-comers!) So here is the link to the West Denmark Family Camp 2007 page

It starts soon, but it may be something for folks to think about doing next year. It is really great for family's, as my mom, AuntieKnickers, recently pointed out in her blog.

I am especially looking forward to discussions this year as we have a green theme as well as a literary theme going on. Watch for my reflections when I get back after the fourth!

Musings on The Magician

I can't tell you how amusing this reading is to me...but I'll try.

I have often found that girls annoy me. I don't understand their round-about way of doing things, though I have adapted to fit in. So now I get this reading and it says that my card is all male and what-not!

An acting teacher in New York once told me that men are linear and women spiral, which is what makes it so difficult for us to communicate at times. But as he described attributes of these things, I realized I was much more linear at heart the spiral.

(on a side note, if you know me you are thinking, ("but elinor you talk so much!" this is true, but it's what I talk about and how I talk about it that's important)

Besides that, I think this card is dead-on for me. What do you (few) readers think?

My Tarot Card

You are The Magician

Skill, wisdom, adaptation. Craft, cunning, depending on dignity.

Eleoquent and charismatic both verbally and in writing,
you are clever, witty, inventive and persuasive.

The Magician is the male power of creation, creation by willpower and desire. In that ancient sense, it is the ability to make things so just by speaking them aloud. Reflecting this is the fact that the Magician is represented by Mercury. He represents the gift of tongues, a smooth talker, a salesman. Also clever with the slight of hand and a medicine man - either a real doctor or someone trying to sell you snake oil.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

I hope this works-musings on my results in a moment...

Today I am totally bumming around since I don't have to nanny. And I wish I could say that I deserve it, but I don't. I have been doing jack since I got done dog sitting.

I woke up at about 11:30am and took forever getting going. Now I finally got myself to the coffee shop to do some blogging and email checking. However, I should really be at home cleaning and doing laundry.

I am excited because I am going to the Lilly Tomlin concert at orchestra hall tomorrow night-just another reason I love having friends like Dan and Becky! I will tell you all about it on Friday.

In the mean time, you will have to be happy with what I update my blog with today!

So, as promised in my first post, here’s what I mean by counter-culture. (You can also go to wikipedia to read about it.)

While other children my age were watching Fraggle Rock and Britney and Timberlake on the Disney Channel, I was watching reruns of Night Court and Dear John as well as Are You Being Served?

And while some children were being introduced to Boyz II Men and Mariah Carey, I was memorizing the Ramones and Sgt. Pepper’s. Some books I read were current, but many had been bought for my brother in the late 70’s and early 80’s (I’m talking Susan Cooper books and Lynn Reid Banks), and some were older then that (Noel Streatfield, and Judith Kerr).

So, you see, my formative years were spent among the pop-culture of a by-gone era. This caused me, among a few other factors, to grow up slightly outside of the mainstream (which is and was fine by me), making me counter to the culture of my generation.

Why I chose this title and other musings

For many years I have heard of the book, “Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.” But never read it. I knew enough about it that I could laugh at the jokes made on VH1 at the book’s expense, (but, I was laughing because I am a counter-culture member of my generation. Read my next post to see what I mean by that!)but had never bothered with it. So why, being a little Christian girl obsessed with Jews, did I never pick up this book?

At some point I had been told I should read Judy Blume’s book Blubber. Not a good idea. I can not think of a worse book to give a young girl, especially one who has body image issues and, shall we say, “grew up early”. I was traumatized by the atrocities that occurred in this young adult novel.

After this blucky-Blume experience I was less than thrilled at the idea of picking her up again, but the other night at my dog sitting job I had forgotten my book, and so went looking in the various bookshelves around the house. I stumbled upon “Are you there god? It’s me, Margaret.”

So I began to read it.

A little ways in there is a prayer to God before she attends Temple for the first time, which ends with, “…I’ll look for you” I love this idea of a little girl who has never been "formally" introduced to God or Religion just up and going to Temple and looking for God.

I have not finished the book yet, but my initial impression is that Margaret’s attitude to God is refreshing in it naivety. She addresses God as though she were calling him on a cell phone with bad reception, “Hello?! Can you hear me? It’s me! Hello?!” , and then continuing as if she doesn't really care if God can hear or not.

Surprisingly, the ‘real’ book I am reading, “eat, pray, love” by Elizabeth Gilbert, is the memoir of a woman who is learning how to speak to God at a later stage in life, but is much less skilled at it then Margaret. She, too, has a bit I like, about sitting on the bathroom floor and hearing a voice while she is praying (and crying). The voice comes from within her and is beautiful, calm and loving, just what I have been taught God is.

So, I am looking for God, and I realize I may not need to look any further than myself, but I am willing to look in a temple, too.

Currently, my God cell phone is a pay-per-use that I grab only when I’m in dire need, but I hope to buy a plan soon…