My Blog....

Yesterday's Memorial Day (church) picnic was SO much fun! It was a glorious time actually... I had mixed expectations for this picnic, but it was much better than I'd thought it would be.
High points included getting roughly two dozen kisses from little 2-year old Matthew K. and playing with his baby sister Mary, also playing with little Sophia V. and hearing her tell me that she loves me and that "we will never not be friends"... Awwww!! Not to mention a rousing game of Ultimate Frisbee, fellowship... and other things... Most fun! :-)

I have been reading Passion and Purity by Elisabeth Elliot and in my reading I came upon this statement, which I find very encouraging, so I had to share it! :-)...
"[B]ut the years since, have proved to me over and over again that the heart set to do the Father's will need never fear defeat. His promises of guidance may be fully counted upon. Does it make sense to believe that the Shepherd would care less about getting his sheep where He wants them to go than they care about getting there?"
Passion and Purity (chapter 8, p.47-48)

I went to lunch and shopping with a friend today. Most enjoyable! We spent most of the time at the mall, but around a half hour at Half Price Books (a used book store), although I could have spent a good couple hours at the book store! My that was fun! I got two books, The Case for Christ (by Lee Strobel), and When God Writes Your Love Story (by Eric and Leslie Ludy)... I am told they are both excellent books (I've already started both), so I shall probably post my unsolicited opinions when I've finished them. But anyway, a good day. :-)

I am so excited! It looks as if I'll be able to take a voice class this summer. The class will run from June to August. I took a voice class for 5 weeks last year, and I loved it! I have wanted to continue since then, so this is a dream come true/prayer answered!
Well, I'll stop rambling now, lol... but I will post more about the class after it starts and all! :-)

I always love to read anything to do with the creation vs. evolution debate, and my favorite place for information is www.answersingenesis.org, the following are two extremely good articles that I would highly recommend... the first is an article listing some arguments that creationists should NOT use when talking to evolutionists, the second is sort of a follow-up.

http://www.answersingenesis.org/creation/v24/i2/forward.asp

Excellent follow-up article:

http://www.answersingenesis.org/creation/v25/i2/bullet.asp

I actually wanted to do this yesterday, so I'm not totally copying my sister. ;-)

1. What time is it? 1:28 pm
*2. Name as it appears on birth certificate:* Ingrid Christine R (well there are also a few letter after the "R", but I don't think I want to totally compromise my identity...?) ;-)
*3. Nicknames: GAH! Umm... "Sunshine", "Eenie", "Bunkie", "Tic", "Inga", "Grid", "Ingy", "Ing", "Pumpkin", "Chilly Willy", "Tina", "Saunders", "LNI", "FMotR", "De Leiblich Kronkensvester Ingrid", "DeDe", "Abay", "Enid", "Shelly", "NiNi", "Princess Lollipop", and roughly a bazillion more. :-)
*4. Piercing: Yes, indeed! My ears are pierced.
*5. What is your hair color: Dark brown
*6. Favorite Holiday: Christmas :-)
*7. Place of Birth: Sheboygan, WI... but I am NOT a "Sheboyganite", okay? ;-)
*8. Favorite foods: Chocolate, Peanut M&M's, honey mustard pretzels, cheez-its (or "Cheez-0hs", as Greta would say), strawberries, etc. :-)
*9. Been in a car a.ccident : GAH! *bad memories* Yes...
*10. Croutons or bacon bits: Both, but I prefer croutons...
*11. Favorite day of the week: Sunday
*12 Favorite restaurant: Solly's (!)
*13. Favorite flowers: Roses!!!!!!!! (I'm crazy mad for them!) ;-)
*14. Favorite sports to watch: Football, Basketball, and volleyball, if I know the people playing... (i.e. in person... not on tv)
*15. Favorite ice cream: Chocolate Chip cookie dough (!)
*16.Disney or Warner Brothers: Not sure, possibly Warner Brothers
*17. Favorite fast food restaurant: Wendy's
*18. What color is your bedroom carpet?: beige with lavender dots (NOT non-descript, Betsy)
*19. How many times did you fail your driver's test: I passed the first time I took it.
*20. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card?: Definitely Maurice's...
*21. What do you do most often when you are bored: *coughs* Only boring people get bored, I always say. ;-) But in my "spare" time, I play piano... and I play around on the computer. :-)
*22. What time is your Bedtime: 10:30-11:30 (p.m.)
23. Favorite TV shows: I Love Lucy, Get Smart
24. Last person you went to dinner with: Greta, and my parents
*25. Ford or Chevy: Ford
*26. What are you listening to right now: the birdies chirping merrily outside my window. ;-)
*27. What is your favorite color: Pink!
*28. Lake, Ocean or river: Probably the lake....
*29. How many tattoos do you have: Zero.
30. Which came first-chicken or the egg: chicken
31. What are your favorite movies?: I don't remember, check my profile. ;-) I really love "The Searchers" and "Oklahoma!" and "Princess Bride" though...
32: Favorite Singers: Michael W. Smith, Bobby Darin, Dean Martin, Rich Mullins, Sara Groves, Jadon Lavik, Casting Crowns, Rebecca St. James, Nichole Nordeman...
*33. Time you finished the Quiz? 1:39 p.m.

Here are my brief (but probably opinionated ;-)) and hastily-written reviews of 7 of the movies I've seen most recently:

**EDIT**
Here's the um, "long-awaited" seventh movie. :-)

The List of Adrian Messenger (1963)
This is an extremely engrossing thriller/mystery. I don't want to give away the plot, so I'll only say that it has to do with a man who is given a list of other seemingly unconnected men, and told only to find out if those men are "still living at those addresses"... it turns out, they're all meeting their ends in mysterious ways, one by one. Anyway, there's much more to it, the plot and pacing are excellent, the actors who are given a chance to act do fine (there are at least 4 major actors in disguise), and I liked the script as well. It isn't exactly family-friendly as there is some non-gory (but rather gruesome) , and a couple instances of very minor language. But, I really loved this movie! :-)

**END EDIT**

Pride & Prejudice (2005)
I loved this remake of my all-time favorite fiction story! I don't believe it should be compared to the last (6 hour) version, but to the last Hollywood version of the story (from 1940), since I think it's unfair to compare a mini-series and a movie, and it's like two hundred and twenty-three times better than the 1940 one! If I were comparing this one to the mini-series this would be a much longer 'article'... so anyway!

Family Jewels
This is a cute movie in which Jerry Lewis plays 7 (?) different roles. A wealthy little orphan must decide which of her six uncles she will choose as her new father. There is a scene maybe half-way through the movie involving an airplane, and an inept pilot that is absolutely hysterical!

The Errand Boy
This movie (starring Jerry Lewis) is a very random collection of mostly funny scenes, held together loosely by a so-called "plot". It was fun, but the lack of plot and extreme randomness of some scenes, was a little odd.

Lifeboat
This movie (directed by Hitchcock) is an intensely engrossing look at a group of diverse people under "extreme duress", namely being stranded in a lifeboat during World War II without a compass and with a man rescued from the U-boat that sunk their ship.

Inspector General
This ("comedy") movie has got to be one of the most boring things I've watched in a long time. Starring Danny Kaye and centering around the story of an illiterate con-man who gets mistaken for a government official and must perpetuate the deception. This *may* have been more fun if it weren't for the approximately three super-long super-boring songs, and relentlessly unfunny script.

The Trouble With Harry
This film is a very 0ffbeat Hitchcock comedy-mystery. Despite it's un-typicalness (?) it was extremely entertaining, and there were many typical 'Hitchcockian' camera angles and such.
The plot revolves around a man discovered in the woods... d.ead. Practically everyone in town thinks they are responsible for his d.eath, and hilarious complications ensue.

And YES, I realize that that is only 6 movies, but I intend to watch a seventh tonight and review it later. ;-)

Of course I am assuming that a brief update on my life *will* be of interest... but I shall post it anyway!

Saturday (April 29th)- I went to an extremely (!!) fun bridal shower, and then watched a movie with some family friends.

Sunday (April 30th)- After a most wonderful time at church, I drove (taking the freeway-- major milestone for me, since I'm not a freeway "fan") to the Fireside Dinner Theater (in Fort Atkinson, WI) to see The Music Man with my parents and sister. Much fun! And an excellent production of a fun musical.

Monday (May 1st)- I went bowling with friends, Amy and Allison, (and Greta) we had lots of fun... then after supper we went to look at a house we are hoping to buy.

Tuesday (May 2nd)- I took and passed the US History I CLEP, then I had lunch and celebrated with the friend I took the test with (different tests, same time). That was SO fun! Then in the afternoon I ran some errands.

Anyway, that was a brief update on the last couple of days in my life (not exhaustive of course, just overviews ;-) ) ... probably boring, sorry! :-)

I passed the exam!! Hooray!! (My friend and I both passed....) Thank you all for praying! :-)

I am going to take the US History I CLEP exam tomorrow at 11 am... I feel totally unprepared, so don't be surprised if I post soberly announcing failure tomorrow. ;-) BUT, I would extremely appreciate any and all prayers... I am taking it with a friend (she's taking the Math exam) so if you could pray for both of us, that would be soooo nice! :-)