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Reason #141.

14 Mar
Reason #141 why I love St.Paul, MN : Art Scraps.
My friend, Sara, discovered this gem of a shop on the corner of St.Clair and Pascal in St.Paul.  
It. is. an. art. thrift. store.
As in people can bring in things that they have too many of, things that they don’t use, things that have potential as an art project.  It’s like a Goodwill for art supplies and factory overstock.  It’s non-profit and runs on donations.  And it is the best store.  Ever.
Sara will vouch for me – I got a little excited when I first started exploring the possibilities.  I wanted to buy 20 purple cardboard boxes not because I knew exactly what I would use them for but because they were only ten cents a piece.  (I actually bought 22.)  I wanted to buy a roll of shiny blue metallic foil not because I knew what I would do with it but because it was cool.  Oh my, and the stacks of paper, sold by the inch.  The barrels of old trophies, doll heads, and wine corks.  I could have stayed a lot longer than Sara’s lunch break allowed us to stay.
So I went back the next morning.  I was only in St.Paul for the weekend and I needed more purple boxes.  And a few more yards of that silver twist-tie ribbon.  Maybe just to browse a bit more to see if I could think of a use for a bucket of bottle caps.  (Negative.)  And to think that the inventory fluctuates constantly as people bring in more and more art scraps.  I will definitely become a frequent shopper … and it makes me feel so hippie cool doing it.  

Meet Webster.

23 Feb

Webster arrived in the mail today.  The box was big and light and didn’t shake.  I was severely puzzled at what it could be.  With the sender as lynnkjernes, anything could possibly be inside.

I had no words as I pulled Webster from the box.  I wasn’t sure how to react.  As I realized that this ‘banana dog’ was pretty much the strangest yet funniest thing I had seen in a while, I began to giggle.  This wooden/ceramic-like banana dog is ridiculous, I thought, and all of my coworkers at staff meeting totally agreed.  “You have the strangest friends,” one of them told me.  (I concurred.) 
And so Webster will live among the gnomes.  The dog of the gnomes.  
Welcome to the abode, Webster.

mail call.

19 Feb
I mentioned in the previous post that I have had a 
very exciting mail week … 
1. The annual Valentine’s card from Mom, of course with a Hershey bar inside.  (Growing up, Mom and Dad would always put a Valentine’s day card and a Hershey bar in our lunches when going to school.  The tradition has continued.)
2. A Valentine’s envelope from Grandma and Grandpa included the Edgerton Reporter and a quilting magazine.
3.  My two magazine subscriptions came on the same day!  Bonus!
4.  One Yard Wonders, a soon-to-be-dangerous-to-my-productivity book, sent from a family friend, Katja, to “help the lonely winter go by a little faster.”  All of the patterns/projects inside (from bags to purses to pot holders to organizational dreams) are made from only one yard of fabric.
5.  A gnome lunchbox!  A Valentine’s package from the Karen, Mark, and Ben, complete with the plates (also pictured), a matching bowl, and glass.  I am most certainly going to carry my lunches to seminary in this lunch box next year, perhaps with Borg (the gnome) inside!
And one last piece of mail that graced my box this week –
Below is the vintage Valentine postcard I received from Grandpa Sid.  
Pretty much the sweetest Valentine ever.  

happiness is –

17 Feb
This week has been stressful.
It’s been emotional in the crying sense of the word.
Despite the downer days that seem to have invaded my week, herein lies my happiness:
… the fun-size pack of Starburst that, once unwrapped, I discover holds both a red and a pink. My favorite Starburst flavors.
… the third grade boy who tends to be disruptive, needs to be redirected a lot, and sometimes is a bit sassy in my release time class is the one who absolutely ROCKS the Bible trivia game we played. That makes my heart grin from valve to aortic pump.
… my preschool buddy, C., who visited my table at least three times during the lenten dinner, just to jump around and say hi. It was recently his birthday. I asked him, “Hey, C, how old are you?” He told me 44 and insisted upon it. “You’re older than me!” I told him. His mother later clarified that he is four years old and weighs 44 pounds.
… I discover that my favorite go-to paper store, Paper Source, has a blog.
… friends whom I love and who listen to my crying rants at 11pm via gmail chat.
… a 20 minute reading slot as the “community reader” for a first grade class at the elementary school. The leader of my intern committee is their teacher and invited me over for the honor. A new favorite children’s book: The Paper Bag Princess.
… my supervisor’s sense of humor. love it.
… second and third graders who insist on giving me hugs when I pick them up for release time every Wednesday.
… a ridiculously awesome mail week.
… recognizing that I finally feel completely comfortable with where I am. Dawson and Grace Lutheran have become [a] home.

so freaking excited!

15 Feb
I have been most wonderfully blessed to have participated with many of my closest friends on their wedding days.  Bridesmaid?  Check (x3).  Preacher?  Check.  Guest book builder?  Check (x3).  The friend who gets a little too happy with the champagne at the reception?  Check.  
Best man?
Check.
On April 10th, I will have the wonderful honor of standing next to my friend, Adam Teske, as he marries his sweetheart, Kara.  Technically, in wedding terms, I will be the “groom’s honor attendant.”  Even if that’s the politically correct version, I’ll proudly opt for the best man title.  
[[ Adam and I on a wedding adventure together this past summer. ]]
Being the best man in Adam’s wedding means a couple things.  No, I don’t have to wear a suit but will sport a black cocktail dress of sorts.  (Two are ordered and in the mail to me as we speak as possibilities.)  I get to hang out with Adam on the Friday before the wedding – I declare it to be officially Adam and Lindsay day.  I also get to plan and participate in the bachelor party, and knowing us, the night of board games and hard cider at the hotel might get a little crazy.
I am honored beyond belief to be there for Adam and after meeting up with him this past weekend in St.Paul, cannot get over my excitement for the wedding weekend!  
… (to all my SNL quoters) I’m so freakin’ excited!

a most excellent week.

8 Jan
As written about previously, my Christmas was … eh. Okay. I was snowed in. I went a bit crazy. It didn’t really even feel like Christmas. I was very thankful that the next week totally redeemed the holiday for me – I had a week of visitors, familiar faces, and lots of friends. Here’s a quick recap:
Sara Stenstrom (a bestest friend, former housemate and coworker from my days in Stillwater) journeyed to Dawson to meet the gnomes and no two feet of snow was going to stop us. We got very cold and very snowy on our visit to gnome park.
My seminary friend, wonderful Ms.Kate, came to Dawson to spend New Year’s Eve with me. We drank a bottle of wine and quilted! These were our fabric accomplishments that evening —
I drove to Willmar (one hour northeast of Dawson) to enjoy the Gieseke family Christmas. The Gieseke family – another Stillwater connection – has basically adopted me into their family since I’ve lived in MN and I love them for that! (Note to self: take family photo + Lindsay with Gieseke’s to include in blog.)
From Willmar, I traveled to St.Paul to meet up with my long lost buddy, Adam Teske, who was in town from Iowa! I have known Adam since my days in Decorah and my fingers are crossed that he will be joining me on the Luther Sem campus next fall.
I spent the night at my college roommate and her husband’s new place (sleepover!), we had a lovely breakfast together, and then it was time to journey back to gnome-town for me. But my, oh, my, the whirlwind week of wonderful people was just what I needed after too much isolation!

home: a brief summary

28 Nov
… I had a wonderful sleepover in St.Paul with my bestest, Sara, on my way home for thanksgiving. We did everything that we love to do together – watch Friends, IKEA walk about, play Carcassone, a bottle of wine, Pride and Prejudice and an extended conversation about office supplies – notably the multi-color packs of Sharpies.
… New Moon! Emma, Aunt Kari, Molly, Kay and I watched vampires and werewolves with their shirts off on Tuesday night. Kay and I cuddled (made easier after breaking the arm rest between us) and rooted strong for Team Jacob!
… an impromptu lunch with friends including the movie Up!, grilled cheese, coffee, and cookies. A perfect chance to catch-up. Timmy’s day-after-Thanksgiving party with trivia was a great time as always. Twenty people a year do this when they see the Goodyear blimp – ________.
… family at Thanksgiving. Well, family and the homeless guy. Two great games of 31 (which I lost), chats, a bake-off, a mini-hike alongside the creek, and yummy food.
… a thanksgiving day bake-off! This year the dessert had to include a vegetable and thus we had a carrot cake, pumpkin cupcakes, and a store-bought chocolate cake with a green pepper turkey on top. After the very technical voting process, the results were a tie between the three – the carrot and pumpkin desserts tied for taste and the cheater cake won for presentation.

… a trip to the playground. After the turkey and stuffing, a bunch of us walked to the elementary school where we had a crazy time running off some food and energy. The sway fun? It was way fun.
… the tiniest little black Friday shopping trip with Emma and Molly. It wasn’t a zoo according to Molly; there were no giraffes.

… family. friends. hugs.
I’d be lying if I didn’t say that it was difficult to get in the car this morning at 10 am to make the drive back to Dawson. Part of the difficulty is knowing that the next holiday is one I won’t be home with my family and also not necessarily knowing when I will next be home. Alas, eight hours later, I arrived in Dawson, unpacked, resettled, and I think it will be okay though I miss home a bit already.
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