This one might not make it past your internet filters. (by the way, if you don't have a filter, get one)

Nudity is the topic of the day. Specifically, toddler nudity. Toby has cast off restraint... I cannot keep him clothed. The trouble is, he's not even remotely potty-trained. This morning, he peed on the porch. Which, gotta admit, is better than the carpet. Except for the whole nekky outside thing.


Nekkid breakfast. Perp is nabbed and taken in for booking.









Perp resists arrest, have to apply the squeeze.












Diaper applied backwards for the confusion element.











Snapped into one piece garment, against his will.











Jeans on top, but without rehabilitation.... this kid will be back on the street, peeing, in no time.









Plan: buy a little potty today. Give it a whirl.

for a letter from Richy (the bigger one)

---

The Official on the Clarks Move

To our MCF family,

First of all, please forgive me for not writing an official letter sooner. I want to fill you in on all the exciting things that are happening with our family for ’08. I’m going to state these things from a very personal level, as I hope to answer some of the questions I’ve heard regarding these changes.

As many of you know, Jess and I lost our twins in 2004. Up until that time, I was fairly familiar with having a strong direction for my life in ministry, having served locally as a youth leader, then launching out with Radiant Ministry. After 2004, we felt God re-arranging things in our lives. We were to slow things down with Radiant and focus locally for a season, while still taking some ministry opportunities abroad. We helped with several prayer initiatives, and spent a year doing the Rad Rev outreach at Sanctuary Church. I am very encouraged to see the Holy Spirit emphasizing prayer through MCF, and am personally confident that many things have been set in place, by God, for a sustained manifestation of Himself in Montgomery Co! (as the Lord would have it) Also, Charles has launched his Friday outreach at Sanctuary to the college age, which is going well, and giving many young people an opportunity to serve and grow in their walks with God.

For the last few years, I’ve been receiving many words and dreams regarding the Lord bringing us through a season of discipline and training, for future ministry. Much of these past 3 years have been that, including 1 year spent back in the “normal” workforce! Jess and I have been through, what many ministers know as, a “stripping process.” This is where we get to see what we are made of! Not fun, but necessary for all of us who want to go strong for God!

Hos. 6:1-3 says,
“Come, and let us return to the LORD; For He has torn, but He will heal us;
He has stricken, but He will bind us up. After two days He will revive us; On the third day He will raise us up, That we may live in His sight.
Let us know, Let us pursue the knowledge of the LORD. His going forth is established as the morning; He will come to us like the rain…”

The third day (year) is here for Jess and I, it’s resurrection time! I believe the Lord has knit our hearts together with the MCF congregations through all of these trials Jess and I have been through,. The prayer support of our church family has been an exceedingly great comfort and I believe will bear much fruit for the kingdom through our lives and our children! I have learned a lot about leaning and being carried these last few years. This is true “body life,” as the Scripture states ”bearing one another's burdens.” I do not believe this bond has to change, no matter what venture our Father has for the Clark family, and I hope to stay knit together in love.
During our trip to Nashville 7/7/7, Jess and I felt strongly impressed to spend a season in Kansas City, with the IHOP and Call ministries. This truly came as a “left field” impression, and was confirmed by several influential people in our lives, even during the trip. Looking back, Jess discovered multiple dreams in my dream journal about a time in Kansas City, including one she had. (Though I’ve always interpreted them differently, as many times man does.) After a few weeks of prayer and some counsel, …and a few more dreams during this time; we made the decision to go with, what we are convinced, is God’s plan for a season. We view this as not only a special ministry assignment, but a time for Jess and I to get “filled” with the heart and vision God has for our lives. (We’ve been torn, but now comes the rain) We will be serving this season as missionaries in the house of prayer, and volunteering our time to the Call as well. This is a very uncomfortable place for me, as I am familiar with a full time worship / preaching ministry, but not this! I could see God, if He wills, using our time in KC to even bless Montgomery County! Oh God is so much bigger than us! Jess and I will be raising $2000.00 in monthly support beginning in December. We would love for our friends and family to partner with us for God’s kingdom purposes.

Trials tend to cause the natural man to recoil into himself. I feel like our church family has been so gracious to us during this great season of trial. “Each man’s work will be tested by fire.” I know by the grace of God that he is making us into humble, selfless servants who will live every moment in love. May His kingdom come! “We will all be changed!”

- Richy Clark and family
--
We are starting a new prayer and financial support page under
http://www.richyclark.com which will have updates and online support!

Also, I excited about our new CD! Check out a sample at http://www.radiantworship.com Much love -R

Newbie Materialistic Worrier said...
Hello Ms. Smarypants,
I'm not usually a worrier.
But i find myself worrying now...over the silliest thing. The office where i work is being carpeted this weekend, and i can't stop worrying about whether they'll break my desk when they move it.
I mean i've been thinking about this for DAYS!
I'm afraid i won't be able to sleep in in the morning; i may have to come and supervise them.
This is RIDICULOUS!
Ms. Smartypants, what's WRONG WITH ME?????

It sounds like you may have Incurable Neurotic Psychosis. You should invest in soft carpeting for your walls and plan for a lot of time indoors. Best of luck!

BethC said...
dear ms. sp
please use your superior verbage and insight to critique some/or one Christian movie(s) from recent year(s). I have heard of a new one, "Noelle".
My dear reader, I am not familiar with the film you speak of. However, it is produced by the same company that made "One Night with the King", which was, in this alter ego's mind, a real snoozer. This reporter does not have high hopes. I have heard great reviews of the movie, "Bella", which is also produced by a Christian company.
As to my typical response to "Christian" movies, not so much.

In other news, we went to see Switchfoot in concert Saturday (my birthday present from the Leah and Nates. Rock and roll.... it was awesome.
Pretty quiet around here, thank God. We are almost a week into the Daniel fast, and I am missing sugar FEROCIOUSLY. But it helps me remember to pray. Let's see complete healing! Wahoo!

OH- AND LOOK DOWN THERE

NEW CD SAMPLER!!

Richy is doing really well. We have to make an appointment with the neurologist for 3 weeks or so from now, and we'll be able to talk medication then. The stuff he is on is ruining his teeth, and this higher dosage keeps him a little groggy. I'll take groggy over seizures any day, but maybe there's a better option.

It's a weird place, to be praying for his healing but planning for things to stay the same. Like drugs and action plans and so on...
Here's the thing- I don't think it's God's will for R2 to stay this way. I think God wants to heal him. All the way. I just don't know how to "make" that happen. So I will pray, and wait.
In the meantime, I do enjoy him.... he is such a funny, goofy little guy.

Toby is practicing his ear-piercing screech. No, not just now. All the time. That's right, all screaming, all the time. This has to be a phase. It has to. Otherwise, it will never end. I choose phase.

Ms. Smartypants is back in business! Ask your questions, maybe get an answer! Questions of a general nature can be submitted today through Monday morning, and will be answered (or not) Monday at naptime!

Also, I said it the other day pre-crisis, new pictures on me picture blahg. Comment-vous!

Last night I politely requested to Richy and Toby that they sleep until 9. Wake up in time for Sesame Street, that was the request.
Can you believe, it worked? After months of waking up around 8, today they snoozed until 9:12. I was so happy. I actually feel somewhat rested.
Trauma takes it out of you. I can't imagine what R2 must feel like. He won't sleep unless it's night, even if he's exhausted. So hopefully last night was good sleep for him.
He seems a little more like himself today. He's goofing around and such, still a little on edge. Also, he's on a double dose of his seizure medication, so he's a little dopey and slow to respond. Please, continue to pray with us for his complete healing.

In other news, I am going to the library today.
In other, other news, Toby is asleep and I think I will go work on my new blanket idea....

This is a familiar feeling, coming home from the hospital. So relieved and so grateful to have a backseat full of voices.

Last night, they started talking about possibly letting us go home, but we knew that could change if one doctor wanted to observe him longer, or he didn't meet this standard or that one. So we waited, and waited. R2 got really sick of the room, so they unhooked his monitors and IV's (they were still in, just capped) and he explored the room a little, and went down to the playroom and conquered the Potatoheads, and so on. All day I had to force him to eat Jello, because he had to eat something and his throat was so raw from the ventilator. Later, they brought in a tray of meatloaf and mac and cheese, and he inhaled it. Poor kid. I guess he just doesn't care for Jello.
Finally, the Neurology team showed up. The head of Neurology is Dr. Slopis, and he was there when R2 was in the NICU there. I remember him sitting with us for a long time, showing us the CT scans (in 1999) and explaining where the blood was, and what had happened in R2's brain, and what it would probably mean, long term. So here he is, 8 years later. And he remembered us, and remembered those scans. He walked in saying, "This can't be a 24 weeker!" He was just so excited and upbeat. The MRI, CT, and EEGs had all come back good, no further brain damage or issues with the shunt. (we're already talking miracles)

Now, being well versed in this routine, I am feeling a little nervous. Because you answer one question wrong, and not only are you spending another night in the hospital, but the little guy is probably getting stuck and prodded and scanned and it's miserable. So Dr. Slopis asks us if he can walk, since the seizure. And I am nervous, because he has been walking, but he's irritable and wobbly (R2), so we go for a little walk with the team of neurologists watching. And I'm down the hall watching them watch us walk, and I'm in that realm. But get this, R1 is in the room with the docs, and Dr. Slopis is shaking his head and saying, "Amazing."

He is marveling at how the child he knows should be non-functional, if even alive, is such a miracle. They are watching him hobble down the hall with wonder.
About an hour later, we were driving home.

Thank you all so much for praying. We have turned the corner on this thing, praise God.

R2 had a bad seizure yesterday afternoon. He didn't stop seizing when he normally would, and was not getting good oxygen and starting to struggle to breathe, so we took him into the ER. After another 20+ minutes, he was still seizing a lot. They gave him a drug to stop the seizure, and he stopped breathing. So they called a code, and everybody rushed in from everywhere and it looked like, for a little while, that we might lose him. God intervened, and we prayed through that. He was intubated (put on a ventilator) and life-flighted to Hermann downtown.

Here, he started coming out of the sedation but was still really groggy. They ran an MRI and CT scan (these are brain scans) and several Xrays. Late last night he started waking up enough to want the ventilator out, NOW. He was gagging and bucking and really, really mad. We had to really fight for it, but we got the ventilator removed.

It's not funny, but he is such a peaceful, placid kid, and he was furious. He was screaming at the nurses. "NO! NO! CALM DOWN! NO!" We were trying not to laugh at the poor baby because he was about to start flipping hospital beds. Good sign.
He calmed down once everyone quit touching him, and then he started getting sad.

He fought sleep all night because he couldn't lay on his tummy. Several times he flipped over and disconnected his cannula and occluded IVs and wrapped cords all around him, and they would have to come flip him back. Finally this morning they figured out a massive cast-like thing to secure his IV, and then he was able to sleep on his stomach for a while.

Now, he's almost back. He's really jittery and irritable from the pain, but talking and I made him laugh a couple of times.
We've been moved to a less critical area of the ICU, and we should be able to talk to the doctors in a couple of hours.

Good reports, the CT scan and the MRI both look good. So, it is probably not his shunt malfunctioning.
They are doing an EEG now, which measures what's going on brain-wave/seizure wise.

We love you all, and thank you so much for all the prayer and support. Please keep praying.

R2 has just been lifeflighted to Hermann after a very severe seizure. He is critical but stable.
Thank you for your prayers.

I left you on Friday... so, a recap. Friday, we got lost in Vegas some more. Went to three services at the School of Intercession. Ate at In-N-Out. Friday night Mike Bickle preached at the service. I'm not much of a sit-and-listener, but I did. And it was good.
Don't like thinking about the end times, though. But I think I would be less fearful if I was closer to Jesus... gotta work on it. That simple.

Saturday morning we woke up for the Call- Hannah got in from the airport around 2ish... AM. We sleep-talked for a while, and then the alarm clock went off at 5. Oops. That was supposed to be set for 6. So I was wide awake after that and lay there wishing I was asleep for an hour. At 6 we got ready. The guys... who knows. I called at 645 and nobody answered. Sheesh.
At 7 we left for our 7:30 sound check. We arrived at the Thomas and Mack Center at 7:06. So, you know... we stood around for a while, took some pictures, prayed... and went in to the stadium to stand around with our gear until 7:45 when they were ready for us.

Now before I talk about the Call, let me give this disclaimer. I don't speak for Richy, or Radiant, or the Call. These are just my impressions and my heart, which is undoubtedly a little hard. I'm being saved.
The stadium was basically empty- remember, this is 2 hours before the event begins. There were a couple hundred people there, mostly volunteers and ushers and such. We starting what Richy calls a "D piddle" which is just piddling around in the key of D and singing spontaneously. And there was such a sweetness. Just being there, in that empty stadium singing to Jesus. Simplicity. Later it got a little harder. Our goal was lifting the opression. Breakthrough. Somewhere during You are Holy that began to happen.
So it was good. It wasn't easy, but good.

We left to take Nate and Hannah back to the airport (and the Shatter Festival) pretty soon after we finished. So we weren't there for the beginning of the ten o'clock set. But the rest of the day was good. I think that we (people) connect more with this or that cause. So the focuses (foci?) of this Call were not as close to our hearts as Nashville. But we did pray, and worship, and pray, and fast. All day.

The thing with mass intercession like that is, there are ebbs and flows. You're praying or worshipping, and somebody hits on something that is in sync with God's heart in that moment, and zooooom the momentum just takes off and a room of 6000+ people are crying out in unison for one cause. And it is exhilirating. And emotional. And then, it slows down. And you wait, and pray... and hit it again.

But in that moment... you are in destiny. And you (I mean I) can breathe for a minute. It's the right place, at the right time.

This is already maybe the longest blog post I've ever written, and I don't know if anybody will even read the whole thing. So I'll finish the trip update tomorrow.

Oh, and new pics on my picture blog! Click here

After a long day of obsessively making lists and eventually packing, we were off. I said goodbye to my babies.... sigh. My mom picked us up and the MOG (speaking of obsessive) spent 20 minutes looking for his OTHER sunglasses.
I was looking so cute in my overalls with all the brass buttons and buckles. They loved me in airport Security. They just wanted me to stay and stay. I was wanded.... excessively. Everything beeped. *undie alert* even my foundation garments... every dadgum button set off the thing. Wanded wanded. I had to take off my shoes, unbuckle my overalls, arms up, arms down. (that's what it's all about) Frisked, TWICE.

i have to stop this newsy little tome as we have to go now. Catch ya later.

No Smartypants this week.

---

False alarm. We don't really have to go... because the MOG has to get some Jesus... this is possibly the most oppressive city I have ever been in.
Anyways. Frisked, and then we get to our gate as the flight is boarding. The flight was 3 hours, which is LONG. I did watch my first in-flight movie (Nancy Drew)... that was fun. Unfortunately, we were seated far, far away from each other. But it was okay. My seat companions were British, and I just blissfully eavesdropped on the accents for a while.

Got here. Pacific time. It is so trippy to take off, fly for three hours, and land one hour after takeoff. Ride shuttles and buses and such until we finally get our rental mini-van. I was hoping for something sporty, in fact, I rented a Jeep Liberty online. But we have to pick up the whole band tonight, and besides, the car rental place was out of SUVs. So they rented us a minivan for the same price, which is awesome. And... matronly.

We drove in crazy circles. Figuring out a new city is always a challenge, and doing it dog-tired is wacky. After 4,983 hours, we finally went to sleep. The end.

My mission today, whether or not I choose to accept it, is to pack for 5 people for 4 days.... I have to start making lists or my brain will just combust.

The MOG and I leave for Vegas tonight. It will be my longest separation from Brynn ever. Uh, except that 2 months she lived in the hospital. But you know what I mean.
I'm pretty nervous about it. She is not such a fan of the bottle, and I haven't started solids yet. So best of luck to Viking Granny!

Oh, and in the usual way these things work, we found out that Radiant is playing before the Call again. But we get a whole hour this time, so that's cool... the songlist is exciting. There's something about opening the morning, preparing the field... hopefully we can get some video for all you cats.

The other thing happening this weekend is Shatter Festival. Leah and Tred (her dance company) will be dancing and there's a webcast. So check it out.

My stomach is all nervousy. I should take a shower now, and then wash clothes. And pack. Clothes. And bottles. And patch cords. And batteries. And **poof**

I remember it well. Happy Birthday to ME!

I love my birthday.

I just... I just geek out about it. It is so fun to have a day that everybody celebrates that you were born. What an honor... I love it.

We leave for Las Vegas for the Call tomorrow. So I imagine any cake related festivities will be postponed until post-Vegas. Unless I'm having a surprise party tonight.


I hope I can get my picture with an Elvis impersonator in Vegas between all the fasting and praying.

I'm not doing real sewing yet... just practicing on some fabric my mom gave me. I don't have any patterns or anything, just cutting out what kinda looks like half a shirt to me and sewing it all together. So there you go. Toby is very impressed by the monkey's shirt, but Richy keeps saying "Baby needs some pants!"

Today if I get the chance I might try something using real fabric... like, something to keep. Maybe.

Anonymous said...
Dear Mrs. Smartypans,
What priority class do you suggest for Jessica to enroll in so she can understand that friends come before family?
Thank you,
Trashed in Texas
My dear reader. I suggest Express Mail. Priority is overpriced and Express has nicer envelopes.

Not posting... or doing laundry... or making food... BECAUSE



WAHOOOO! Happy Birthday to me!

My new refrigerator will be arriving any minute... the main thing that bummed me out about this apartment was the broken-ish old fridge.... isn't it like God to get me a new one even though I didn't say anything? YAY!

Ms. Smartypants is the definitive advice columnist of whatever century this is. Ask her your questions about love, life, manners, politics.... whatever. She will answer at least one of you. So make it good.

I hope my fridge is really on its way. Because all my foods are currently uncooling on the kitchen counter. Have a happy weekend!

---

The way I said the CTK/Sanctuary thing was more flippant than I really feel. All this transition is hard for me... I don't like change. We'll explain a little better next week... but know this, CTK family- you are so loved and so much family to me. Hopefully we can make all these transitions with grace.

The plan was to make a quick trip to the library and the grocery...back in time to blog pre noon. We were unavoidably detained by a trip to the mall, the carousel and the Talking Tree. Fun was had by all.
Back to the apartment which stinks to high heaven because the apartments sprayed today. And may their efforts be fruitful, is all I'm gonna say about that.

I have been listening to KSBJ around the clock trying to win these Switchfoot tickets. It's a great station, but I am starting to hate EVERY song. So there you go. Peace out.

What a horribly unpleasant day yesterday... I HATE throwing up. I go to great lengths to avoid it. Gee whiz.
Feeling much better today, although still a little queasy.

But enough about that. I ask you this question, on today's edition of

Can this Marriage Be Saved??

Let's say that *Anne and *Jim have been married a good long time, oh, 11 years or so. And Anne likes pulp. Pulpy bright fresh tasting orange juice. HIGH pulp. Jim likes NO pulp. Tang-tasting watery pulpless orange juice.
Neither Anne nor Jim nor little *Harry or *Jim Jr. drink enough oj to buy multiple cartons.
The options are no pulp, low pulp, medium pulp, high pulp.
Jim considers a compromise "low" pulp.
Anne considers compromise "medium" pulp.
Can this marriage be saved?

And a VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO BETH C, sharer of my birth week for all of my remembered life!

*names changed to protect both the innocent and the guilty

I am so sick. No, I'm not pregnant.
Just sick. IDONTWANNAPUKEIDONTWANNAPUKEIDONTWANNAPUKEIDONTWANNAPUKEIDONTWANNAPUKEIDONTWANNAPUKEIDONTWANNAPUKEIDONTWANNAPUKEIDONTWANNAPUKEIDONTWANNAPUKEIDONTWANNAPUKEIDONTWANNAPUKEIDONTWANNAPUKE

sheesh. and so far today toby has figured out how to plug in lamps... and get in the fireplace... (did you know sooty hair actually has gray suds??) and just wreak general havoc. In fact, I think I shall call him General Havoc.

uh.IDONTWANNAPUKE

dear ms.sp, why is "hot" such a versitile word?
Hot, from the latin Hotus, is truly a word of many meanings. It can be used to refer to the attractiveness of another member of the species, although an outcry may occur. It can also be used to convey danger to a toddler. "Don't touch that! It's HOT." applying to any type of household hazard. There are other meanings, but you already know them and I am moving on.
As to WHY it is so versatile, only God and maybe Thor know.


-pants on fire! why did lithium batteries pass govt scrutiny?
The government is very busy testing things for millions of dollars. They don't have time to worry about the ocassional American's pants combusting. Unless those are the President's pants. That would be costly and embarassing.

and what about all those toys with lead paint recalls?
Is this a plot by the Chinese? You never can know. I would like to say, for the record, that pencils do not contain lead. They have a combination of Madagascar clay and graphite, and the random toddler chewing on a random unsharpened pencil is in no great danger of contracting lead poisoning. For the record.

josharoo said...
For Mrs. Smartypants:

-What is your suggestion of how we should spend our time when we visit Texas the week of Christmas?
Skiing, snowboarding, snow angels.... OR go to Splashtown. More amusing would be to ride every elevator in town. Just go on a whirlwind trip through Conroe, finding elevators. Fun AND exciting.

Anonymous said...
Dear Ms Smartypants,

What is the best way to rid oneself of toejam?

Stinky Feet

My Dear Stinky Feet... well, not my feet, mind you. I mean, my dear reader. You should collect the following ingredients: 1 pint of uranium, enriched. 1 smoking Ipod Nano, pocket edition, 1 small jar of mustard sauce from China delight, and a bag of paper clips. Take all of these ingredients into a Volkswagen bus and drive VERY fast down the freeway. Something will happen, I assure you. When it is over, you won't even remember toejam.

Man's Pants Catch Fire At Airport

POSTED: 5:04 pm EDT October 4, 2007
UPDATED: 6:53 pm EDT October 4, 2007

ATLANTA -- The new iPod Nano is hot. But one Douglasville man said his old Nano got even hotter -- hot enough to burst into flames.
“So I look down and I see flames coming up to my chest,” said Danny Williams.
Williams said the burn hole from the pocket of his pants marks the spot of his 15 seconds of flame. He said he had an iPod Nano and an glossy piece of paper in his pocket. He believes the paper shielded him from being burned.
“I’m still kind of freaked out that after only a year and a half my iPod caught fire in my pocket,” said Williams.
The iPod uses a lithium ion battery -- the same type of battery under recall for setting laptops on fire.
Williams said the fact is iPod Nano burst into flames while he was at work was bad enough, where he works could have been another issue. He works at a kiosk in Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.
“If TSA had come by and seen me smoking, they could have honestly thought I was a terrorist,” said Williams.
Williams said Apple wants him to send his iPod back and they’ve vowed to replace it. Williams’ mother called Channel 2 because she said this is more than one iPod. She said it’s about what could have happened.
“It could have happened when we were sleeping, it could have happened when he was driving and the outcome could have been much worse,” said Elaine Williams.
After Channel 2 sent Apple pictures of the iPod, they called back but they refused to say how common the problem is. In fact, Apple refused to talk about this particular incident at all.
Copy

I can't believe Apple didn't want to talk about it... there is so much to talk about.

Let's begin with the "money" elements. That is the words "pants" and "fire". I'm already laughing. Then you have to put all the pieces together....
What material were these highly flammable pants? Polyester, no doubt.
And what was the "glossy paper" referenced in the article.... the paper that saved Danny's life?? Pokemon, anyone?

(pause to laugh at my deductions)

And then, beautiful. Who calls in the story? Danny's mother. Because Danny's pants caught fire at middle school. Oh, wait....

I just have such a great image of the whole scenario. And maybe I'm totally wrong. But I don't think so.

Get yer questions in for Ms. Smartypants!! Ask em while they're hot!

I've been trying to think of the right thing to say... but there is no right thing. Not even a good thing.
To Josh and Shannon:
I (and I know it's all of us here on the blog) am so, so sorry that you lost your baby. My heart is so heavy and I am praying for you.
It makes heaven richer and earth poorer. I love you.

YAY! Fast internet.... zoooom
zoom
zoom

---

We moved into the new place Sunday. Unbelievable. We threw away and donated a 1 car garage full of stuff. And we still have too much for this apartment and almost half of Rob's garage. What is all this stuff? And why, when I look around, do I need all of it? Do you know what I mean? It's not like I can readily spot superflous belongings. It's all my stuff. And I want it.

And then this other part of me wants to just leave everything and start from scratch. But that costs money... I mean, we'd have to buy more couches and dishes and shoes... and DVDs and paper and instruments.

What do we really need anyway? When did I become dependent on SO much?? Just percolating.

---

So anyway, last night was Simplify's 80's party. We were awesome, but I can't upload pics yet. This is a cute little apartment. I like it. It's funny thinking we'll only be here 3 months. Kinda makes it a hotel. Kinda.

using a tiny little hijacked signal here... my real internet should be hooked up later today... we're in the new apartment....
it was a LOT of work to get here, and I still have far too many material posessions.
More on that later. Just checking in!