Guess who?
Family vacation is upon us, and that means some surf fishing with Uncle Jim, pool time with Tara and the boys, and hanging with my baby brother. I have a few predictions for the week:
1) My nephews will be completely taken with my Uncle Jim, as he is simply the coolest uncle ever. (Sorry Jon, but it is true. You are second coolest, if that helps)
2) I will forget sunscreen on my feet and ears at least once and end up looking like some strange Vulcan-Hobbit cross.
3) It will take four hours before Mandy and I are rolling our eyes at one another. (Sisters are fun for that, right?)
4) After 24 hours, Jon and Matt will be itching to get away from so many women folk. Uncle Jim will already be on the beach with his fishing poles.
5) At least one Wolske (legal or biological) will end up with a headache one morning out of the seven. It will probably be me, as even my mother admits I am a complete pantyweight.
There you have it. My vacation predictions for 2007.
A little over twenty years ago, I wrote an essay for a Father's Day contest. Our task was to finish the sentence "My dad is the greatest because..." My parents still have that essay -my careful fourth grade cursive on its Cabbage Patch Kids stationery. My guess is that it is in the stack of framed photos that need to be hung somewhere sometime (Does every home have a stack like that or is this a problem unique to Hutsons?)
I do not remember all the particulars, but I know that some mention was made of pancakes for breakfast. I recall that, when the essay was read to the congregation, there were a few chuckles-- I imagine that I would chuckle myself to read it now.
A lot has changed in those twenty years. Dad is no longer the "man in my life;" I cannot remember the last time I ate his pancakes for breakfast; it's been months since I even had breakfast with him! One thing has not changed- my dad is the greatest.
He is the greatest provider I could have hoped for- always sacrificing for the four of us. Many stories are told about the sailboat Dad could have gotten instead of kid sand the convertible which was not safe for little ones. I'd be willing to bet there were times he would have seriously considered a trade.
He is the greatest protector a kid could need. One of my most vivid Jr. High memories was my father marching in to the office at Belle Vue Middle School, pretty much taking no prisoners, when I was slugged on the school bus. I don't think I had ever seen Dad really angry until that point. (Needless to say, the young man in question did not see the school bus for the remainder of the year.)
He is the greatest at letting go. We three brats have not been an easy lot (See that picture? Daddy had hair until 1976!), but my father has learned to trust God to look after us when we are too stupid to do it ourselves. I am not a parent, so this concept is completely foreign to me. I have a hard enough time surrendering myself to God.
I have learned so much from my father- from how to make a perfect roux to changing a tire, yet the most important lesson he ever taught was simply to watch and listen. One of the most perceptive people I know is my dad, and it is because he watches and listens.
Our earthly relationships are supposed to give us a tiny sliver of what God has in store for our Eternity, and I am thankful to have a glimpse of Father's love through my dad.
Appetizer
What do you consider to be the ultimate snack food?
I cannot narrow it down to one, so I have to go with one sweet and one savory. Sweet- grapes; I love how they start out ho-hum and then literally burst in my mouth. Savory- I am a hummus junkie; garlicky, lemony, garbanzo bean-y hummus.
Soup
On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 10 as highest), about how popular is your last name?
I would go pretty low for both my maiden name and my married name. Perhaps 1.5 for my married name and 2 for my maiden name?
Salad
Who is your all-time favorite sitcom character, and why?
Gosh, I am drawing blanks this week. Right now I will go with Karen from Will and Grace. That annoying voice and the constant stream of alcohol and prescription narcotics always proved an interesting mix. A somewhat less vulgar Patsy Stone, if you will.
Main Course
Do you shop online? If so, name some sites you like to browse for goodies.
Does a wild bear live in the woods? Yes, I shop online. Amazon, Lands' End, LL Bean, and 1-800-Flowers are my usual haunts. I can sometimes be found browsing ThinkGeek and Cafepress for fun shirts. My new favorite spot for tees is DownEast Basics- I love their prices and the clothes are modest.
Dessert
Fill in the blank: I think ___________ should be ___________.
Oooo... This will be fun and probably get me into a lot of trouble. I think the IRS should be abolished. I think parents should be intentional about what they teach their children. I think Christians should be less concerned with what the world thinks of us and more concerned with Kingdom work. I think Kelly (that's me) should be quiet now, lest she lose the handful of readers she has...
Each week Susan is our gracious hostess. Dine with us here.
Labels: memes
Jon and I caught a rerun of Nova Monday night which has had me reading all I can find about epigenetics. I have exhausted free resources which are not completely over my head and had to break down an find a book. I suppose I could have gone to the library, but I can shop Amazon in comfort...
I am especially interested in what Matt Ridley has to say about Richard Dawkins and his "Selfish Gene" assertions. Maybe I should go back a read that first, but I really don't want to. Instead, I shall find myself a good summary. That's the ticket. I may be a nerd, but I am a lazy nerd.
If anyone is interested in purchasing some Science Homework Offsets to fund my book habit, please let me know.
Labels: nerdiness, reading, what a dork