I spent my fondue set money on a shirt and tie for Scott since nowhere in the freaking land of Great Britain sells real fondue sets. Can a man wear a midnight blue shirt with black trousers? It's such a good blue...

Free Tuesday

It's a lazy Tuesday morning, and I've blagged myself out of a day of work. Scott is off work until tomorrow, and I hated the idea of missing a special day off with him. So I rearranged my shift to Sunday afternoon (leaving me time to make it to the Rememberance service) and voila! today I am free.

Scott and I are spending the day in true Lori fashion. We're heading up to Glasgow to visit Braehead, IKEA, and John Lewis, in search of clothes, tea cups, and a fondue set. After shopping, we're thinking of catching a movie at UGC (mind you, the biggest cinema in the world, it's like a million stories tall.) I'd quite like to see the Merchant of Venice, being the Shakespeare fan that I am.

Speaking of Shakespeare, [insert seeming pretentiousness] I'm desperate to get my books back. I've been without my books for, what, three months now? I bought a book in a charity shop so I've got something to read but it's not the same as going through a huge collection and selecting the perfect book out of them all. If it were up to me, I'd be reading Nathaniel Hawthorne's Short Stories.[/pretentiousness]

I had a dream last night that I was a freaking amazing painter and that before I became a Christian I had painted a picture of a Bible story (which now that I'm awake, I realize is not a Bible story) about some people who drowned. In the painting the people remained dead because I didn't believe God had saved them. But after I had become a Christian, I painted over it and made the people alive. The painting was amazing except for the fact that the alive people I had painted looked like Scott and Pete.

I also dreamed my dad totally rocked and told off the people at his old church for being self-righteous and condescending. The people at his old church aren't actually self-righteous and condescending, but in the dream they were, and my dad rocked.

I'm gonna go gather my husband away from his XBOX LIVE and make him take me shopping.

(SCOTT'S MIDNIGHT P.S.)

It's midnight.

Today was a mega-stressful nightmare ;). "January" sales shoppers everywhere. We didn't go to Glasgow, it was too busy. We didn't go to the cinema, we'd forgotten about the fact that Lori was going to a workmate's birthday party and I was off to a men's fellowship/eat a meal in a pub type thing. It was nice, apart from beer was off the menu due to people in rehab being there.

But I'm pretty sure Lori had fun. Which is the important thing in the end.

Christmas Happened

Our first Christmas was delightful. Snow, presents, a warm hubby, a coal fire... Sigh. It was perfect.

Scott and I woke up around nine or half nine and lazed about for a bit before rushing downstairs to open our presents. We both totally scored. I got stuffed toys, two floor lamps, Scrabble, and some decorative trinkets. Scott got a two-tiered keyboard stand, a tie, a CD, and lots of other wee things. (We had a price limit for Christmas.) Then we walked into the kitchen and saw that it was snowing! (Which has been mentioned already, I know.) I then began cooking a stuffing--the smell of chopped onions is amazing, by the way--for Christmas lunch, and once that was finished, we headed through the snow to the in-laws. There we opened more presents such as a coat, a map, and whiskey for Scott and a skirt, a statue and art supplies for Lori. We then ate dinner and subsequently spent the entire rest of Christmas watching Friends episodes back to back on E4. Scott and I came home, put in It's a Wonderful Life and around 2am found ourselves asleep on the couch.

Perfect, perfect day.

Hogmanay is next. See a couple of you then!

We're Not Dreaming Of A White Christmas

Because it is a White Christmas! Yay! For the first time in YEARS there is actually snow on the ground on Christmas. Usually it's too wet, since we live by the river, but this year has done us well.

Lori and I exchanged presents this morning. Our very first Christmas in each other's company. Lovely. Then we walked through to the kitchen to get breakfast, noticed and celebrated the snow. Before Lori monopolised the bathroom. And I phoned BT to sort our crackly phone line.

Incidentally, poor guy. He was working on Christmas morning with people moaning about their broadband and stuff. I felt bad. I think he was sleeping when I called to be honest, he didn't seem quite with it.

I just got sidetracked with other people's blogs for ten minutes. No one else is sad enough to post at this time. Haha, I am the ultimate blogging dweeb.

Have a good day, and I hope Santa is good to you all. He was to me.

P.S. Check out the link.

-by Scott.




Yuletide Ponderings
-by Lori.

Last night at the Christmas Eve service we attended, a few Christmasy thoughts came to mind as we sang The First Noel. I've never thought too in depthly about the Christmas story and how it all worked to fit into God's plan and character. Here's what I thought about:

1) God always chooses the lowly and poor to reveal himself to. On the night Jesus was born, angels appeared to the shephards. Why the shephards? God could've revealed himself to well respected members of the Jewish community, or at least the truly godly ones. Certainly there were better deserving people who could've received this message and gone to worship. But God sent angels to the shephards. Probably mostly young men, even boys. And they believed what they heard and went to worship the new King.
Then I started wondering what happened to those shephards as they grew up. Did they follow what was happening in Jerusalem with the little boy they knew to be the Messiah? Did any of them become followers when Jesus began his ministry? Were any of those shephards who were present at Jesus' birth find themselves present at his death, too, or resurrection? I wonder what happened to them after 30 years passed with nothing spectacular happening with that baby they found lying in a manger.

2) The second verse of The First Noel then deals with the wise men and I got to thinking about them. In Romans (I think it's Romans) Paul says that no one is without excuse of not knowing God because God has shown Himself in all things. The wise men from the East saw a star they couldn't explain. They believed in their hearts that this star must mean something incredible--so incredible that they picked up their things and traveled for two years across the continent to find out what was at the other end. They were Gentiles. They were not part of God's covenant to the Jews. They knew nothing of God. Yet by faith, by the way God showed Himself to all the world (for I imagine anyone could've seen the star, and anyone could've, by faith, followed it) wise men from a foreign land came and worshiped.

So then, were they saved by faith? We have no reason to believe they stayed in Bethlehem and heard of Jesus' life and death. Yet they had faith in Jesus and knew him to be a great and mighty King. Obviously this is not something we are able to know while on this earth, but it struck me as interesting. Surely the whole world was without excuse those years that the star was in the sky--except the men who followed it.

I also find it interesting that, while God sent angels to the lowly shephards, he also showed the star to educated and wise men all the same. God doesn't actually exclude learned people from his Kingdom, it's just that learned men most often will reject God. God deliberately showed Himself to the poor shephards, but God also gave everyone the chance to follow His star. The wise men knew enough about astronomy to know that this star was unique. Yet instead of considering one of nature's oddities, they followed it believing it was more. And they found the Messiah. And they brought him gifts and worshipped him. Interesting.


Merry Christmas.

I'll be home for Christmas
You can count on me
I'll be home for Christmas
If only in my dreams.

Ba Humbug.

After hearing "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire" about six times every day since the beginning of December, and after looking at the cheesy Christmas decorations on our blog every time I make a post, I have decided Christmas is over for scottandlori.blogspot.com. It's not over for the real Scott and Lori--no, no, that is still to come, and I am still excited!! But for now, we're going with the superhero look. Our superhero pictures to the sides are now fixed to where you can click on them and see a larger image.

We have the internet at our house. :D Merry Christmas!!

I Have The Power....

Of Broadband. Not Greyskull, although that'd be cool. 1 Mbit per second. Suweet.

Although, the speed isn't that impressive in reality, since we're pretty far away from the exchange and a lot of people are online right now, it being peak time and all that. But it still beats nothing/dial up.

Anyway, Lori redecorated, I think she was sick of Christmas. Scrooge.

Does everyone know she doesn't intend to tell our kids about Santa? :(

Holy crap! I just found, like, a million friends' blogs! See new section in sidebar.

Breaking Crayons

When I was a kid, I coloured really hard. I didn't like when other kids coloured lightly because you couldn't really get the full colour that way. I pressed hard so the colour would be as vibrant as the wrapper around the crayon.

I broke a lot of crayons. But thats when you simply peel back the paper and get on with it.

I've always been "hard handed." I slam car doors with the best of them. I stomp. I twist tightly. I yank. I plunk. I slam. I'm wound up tighter than a tick, as they say. I think tighter than a clock makes more sense, but I didn't start the saying. It's just how I am. I don't do this intentionally; it doesn't reflect my mood or my attitude. I just do things powerfully. I break crayons. I prefer to think of myself as vibrant.

I'm strong spoken, too. I say what needs to be said that no one is saying. I wouldn't say I'm blunt, but I'd say I'm honest. Extremely. I yell if it is necessary. Sometimes I don't realize I'm yelling. I think I'm just speaking. But people tell me I'm yelling, and I guess they'd know. I fight sometimes, but sometimes people have to fight. If you don't fight, you don't fix things, and if you don't fix things, life gets complicated.

But this has gotten me into trouble numerous times. Needless to say, teachers didn't like me breaking their crayons, even if I had the prettiest colouring pages out of the class. Amanda and Scott always scold me for slamming the car doors. Downstairs neighbours hardly appreciated my heavy steps around the house. And people certainly have not liked me in the past because of the way I speak. But it's something I can't seem to change, and where the honesty comes in, I don't think I should. I don't do things forcefully on purpose, and when I think about it, I try extra carefully to be softer. If you point it out to me, I'll see that I did slam, and I'll try not to do it again. But the thing is, I will. I will do it again. My body is stiff as a board, and I dream about punching people. I'm a forceful person. It's in my marrow. How does one change something so indigenous to one's entire being?

But today I was told it must end. No ifs, ands, or buts. And if I don't stop, I'll probably get fired.

My boss had a talk with me today after work. No one likes to be called aside by one's boss; it always means you are doing something wrong. He asked me how I felt I was doing at the job. Sheepishly, I answered, "I think I'm doing well. Does this mean you don't think I'm doing well?" Indeed, it always does. He told me then and there he can't stand how heavy handed I am. "It just has to stop. No trying. It has to."

I sat there speechless as he told me how all day long I slam mugs down, drop dishes in the sink, stomp all around, and speak bluntly. But-- but I-- when do I do all this? And how exactly am I to stop? I told him I was completely unaware of all this and that I'd do my best to catch myself. He said that wasn't good enough. I told him he'll have to tell me as I'm doing it because I have no idea I'm being forceful. He didn't respond. That was it.

And the ironic thing? After that, he went on to scold me for not telling them when I am upset about something. After telling me I'm too blunt to customers (which I didn't think I was--I just try to speak clearly because they're all old and can't understand my "Australian" accent), he tells me to speak up if I'm upset. I won't go into the details on that one, but the one time I've gotten upset with the management, I decided to just let it go and then I got in trouble for letting it go. Sigh. Today's a rotten day.

I shall go now and practice being soft.

Hogma-what?

Arkansans would like Britain. They have Hogmanay instead of New Year's Eve. Hogmanay. Hog. Get it? Whoooo Pig Soooieee!

We don't know what we're doing for Hogmanay yet. There is an annual ceilidh that we could go to, but I don't know. I do like the idea of my husband wearing his kilt again. Mmmm. But I also like the idea of having a party at our house. I could invite Debbie and Niall. Jonathan and Sarah. It could be fun.

Today is Mom's last day here. It's been a lovely visit. She loved everything. We have snowcapped mountains outside our window. She loved that. (So did I.) She loved Edinburgh castle. (Eh, it was the same as three years ago to me. I'm not a castle person.) Anyway, she's away in the morning. I'll miss her. But we'll be home again soon for a visit. Time is on our side.

Christmas is Saturday, in case you're a Scrooge and don't know. I wouldn't know Christmas was on Saturday, considering we get no holiday off work for it besides the day of which I don't work anyway. Grrr. Scott gets several days off. I imagine he'll be playing Halo 2. Hurray for him.

I like being married. Especially to a man with day shifts. Yeah, Scott's on day shift for a few weeks. It's brilliant. I absolutely love it. Life is good.

I'm going to drive on my own for the first time tomorrow. Prayers are appreciated.

Jesus is God. Merry Christmas.

Officially An Adult

My adulthood cannot be denied by anyone from this day forward. Not only am I 21, but I have a wife, a job, a car and a baby on the way.

HAHA. Psyche.

Interpol was absolutely marvellous. The supporting band, Secret Machines, were sucky. Which is a shame, last time they had an amazing support. Also, it was a much less personal gig this time, without exaggeration, it was 10 times bigger. But they were good, and I sang my throat sore.

We left before they came back for the encore, though, since all they had left to play was tracks from the new album, which I don't have and wasn't too bothered about. So we missed the leaving rush.

Today we opened our Christmas presents from Lynda, Lori's mum. Yes, mum. I got some rather fetching trousers, a smart shirt/tie/hankerchief combo along with a scarf and hat. Grand. Lori got a leopard skin type set of scarf, gloves, headscarf and bag. She is pleased.

Anyway, it's time for early Christmas dinner, so that Lori can have dinner with her mum, and vice versa. I'm being hurried to get off the computer. Cheerio.

Scott and I are on our way to see Interpol in Glasgow tonight. Achoo.

Sniffle. Tomorrow is Edinburgh Castle with the parental unit. Sniffle.

I have a cold. Today is my husband's birthday. He's hot. And twenty-one. Achoo.

Bits and Bobs

Yes, yes, it's been a while. A substantial post is most definitely in order.

I have several wee things to say that have been growing in my mind this week so I will offer them to you in bits. That is, if I can remember any of them now that I'm here to blog.

Paris
You've all been wondering, I'm sure, how my day trip to Paris went. It was fantastic!! While I didn't end up spending anytime with my (ex)Girl Crush #1, I did spend the day with a friend called Debbie whom I really super duper like. She's one that I've known since my first trip to Scotland. We really hit it off though in Paris, and I'm very thankful. I like her a lot. She's better than some old girl crush anyway.

Let's see... highlights... I had un vin chaud (a hot wine) in une café and it was lovely! They dropped a slice of orange in it and gave me a tiny jar of nutmeg to sprinkle on top. It was delicious. We visited La Tour Eiffel, La Notre Dame, et L'Arc de Triomphe. I bought my very first parfum, Allure by Chanel. (I was in France, of course it would be Chanel.) We also visited lots of tiny boutiques and a tiny café where I got to practice my French with the natives. Most of them were nice and seemed to act like I had rather good pronunciation. I stopped a woman in the street and asked for directions to le metro and not only did she answer me without missing a beat, but I understood her back! So I felt like I truly spoke French. It was exciting.

All in all, it was a wonderful trip. I got to know many of the women in my church and now feel like I have some sort of bond with some of them. It was a good time, it was edifying, and we really felt the Lord was in it. (The trip, not Paris. Heheh.)

Christmas Work's Night Out
The coffee shop's Work's Night Out was on Friday. This was my first venture out without my husband. It was exciting, strange, and fun. We went for a dinner at a hotel/resort called Seamill Hydro. We all drew Secret Santas so we all got presents. My Secret Santa was none other than Girl Crush #2! She bought me (took from her shop?) a lovely yellow stone necklace thing. You will see pictures of me in it, I'm sure. It's beautiful. She and I shared two bottles of wine between just the two of us, so needless to say, we were steamin'. But it was fun. She is definitely moving from Girl Crush to Friend. It's exciting. We all had lots of fun, but I'll spare you the details, seeing as we had two bottles of wine, so in real life, the details probably aren't nearly as tale-tell as we think they are.

Books To Burn Request
We received a request for another book to burn, Against Love: A Polemic by Laura Kipnis. I have not read the book myself, but after reading the amazon.com review of it, it is certainly to be added. Read the review yourself. As a married lady and a Christian, I find the idea behind this book appalling. Marriage is to be honoured by all, says Hebrews 13. This attitude toward marriage is sad. Our society has seen marriages done all the wrong ways and thus cannot believe that it ever was or could ever be a successful institution. No longer do people even see anything worth being honoured in marriage. It's devastating. But it's not going to fool me. By God's grace, marriage shall continue and the blessings of marriage shall continue. So if you find a copy of this book, just burn it and help to guard hearts against such negativity thrust upon God's beautiful design.

(And while I'm at it, I'll just quote the whole verse: Marriage is to be held in honour among all, and the marriage bed is to be undefiled; for fornicators and adulterers God will judge.-Hebrews 13:4. I'm truly heartbroken by all the defiled marriage beds in this world. Sometimes it can make me just cry.)

My Mom
My silly mother. She told me she was arriving tomorrow at 12:30 at Glasgow Int'l Airport. Turns out she's leaving tomorrow and arriving on Wednesday at Glasgow Int'l Airport at 12:30. What a let-down. I thought I'd be seeing her tomorrow. Now I won't. Oh well, it gives me one more day to clean house. And our gas should be fixed tomorrow morning so it gives us one more day to warm the place up. We hope.

Conclusion
Christmas is (nearly) here, bringing good cheer. Our Christmas tree is up--it's a live spruce, still in the pot--and our presents are bought. I love Christmas. I simply love it. And I don't care what some people say about "idolatry", I can't wait to find a pretty little nativity scene to finish up the decorations in our house. A little figurine signifying the birth of Christ does not equal a figurine signifying God the Father, which is the only thing the Second Commandment refers to, as far as Scott and I can interpret it. I'm going to go nativity scene shopping soon. Or maybe I'll just make my own like I did with our wedding toppers.

A bientot!

Well, I was commanded to blog, so I shall.

But I have nothing to say. Which is why I don't blog. Is that wrong?

This morning/afternoon was another Ikea adventure. Buckets of fun, I tell you. [/sarcasm].

Tonight, I get to get the spare room ready for Lori's mum to come visit. This bloody futon is driving me nuts. Some Swedish genius thought plastic nails/studs/whatever for it would be a good idea. It isn't. And the holes aren't in a straight line either. I hate it.

Sigh.

Deliberate Friendliness

In high school, I had some of the best friends in the world. We all hated each other and loved each other and gossiped about each other and knew each other inside out. I'm still friends with those people today, in that we-were-best-friends-in-high-school way and therefore-we-will-always-have-a-close-bond.

In college, I had the best friend I've ever ever had. No one will replace her. But in general, the people I hung out with in college weren't the closest people I've ever known. We didn't really know each other, and I couldn't tell you hardly anything about them. They are perhaps quite close to one another (though maybe not), but more or less, we were all just acquaintances/friends who had similar interests.

When I moved here, I decided to be deliberate and make friends that were really for me. Sound selfish? I hope not. Because I also want to make friends with whom I am really right for as well. I want to make friendships that last with people who I never need to hate or want to gossip about. I desire friendships that are deep and meaningful and experiential and beneficial to us all.

I have picked out three main targets:

Jonathan and Sarah. You, I'm afraid, are the main targets. Watch out for more Scott and Lori. We very much like you. It might even be love. (But the heart is deceitful and desperately wicked; who can know it? Your taste in board games is frankly quite disappointing.) Along with you, beware, Ashley and Bryce. I don't know how long you intend to stay in Scotland so you could possibly be heart breakers, but beware anyway. You are also being targeted.

Girl Crush #1 (and boyfriend). You live in/around Greenock. We live in Greenock. You are beautiful and cool and I think you have a crush on me, too. I loved our conversation we had that one time. I do ever so hope you will be our friends. You's are big targets.

Girl Crush #2 (and boyfriend). I'd already decided I wanted to be your friend but when I saw your flat today, I just knew. We could be great friends. We both like pink. And I think you'd both really like Jesus if you gave him a chance. But even so, I like you very much. Do you like us? Check yes or no.


The hunt has begun.

Well, the home of Scott and Lori has definitely been a disaster as of late. We've been without heat for going on two weeks now. Please keep in mind that it is wintertime in Scotland. Being without heat is lethal. I've definitely been feeling sick for the past week, and I'm blaming it on coldness and dampness of our abode.

This has meant lukewarm showers (not cold, thankfully, as we have a separate boiler for the shower which kinda works), cold dishwater, I'm assuming cold laundry water, and cold air. Our laundry won't dry on its clotheshorse, the dishes are piling up (I only attempt them at times of high motivation--for it's either plunge into the cold dishwater, or heat up the kettle four times which takes ages and only produces a mean amount of water), and the electricity bill is skyrocketing as we've been using a couple of tiny space heaters to keep our bedroom warm.

To make matters worse, our ceiling began leaking a few days ago. After my lukewarm shower, Scott went downstairs and noticed water leaking--rapidly--out of the ceiling underneath the bath. We thought a pipe had broke. We shoved a bucket under the leak to catch the drips and called our emergency home service number (Hurray for Royal Bank of Scotland Premier Account!) and discovered the seal was broken in our tub. This problem, too, has yet to be fully resolved. Which explains why I'm at my in-laws right now, blogging. We had to come over here this morning to get our showers. I'm hardly complaining. It's warm here.

Luckily Scott and I are coping with all this well. I did have a wee breakdown when I came home yesterday and saw our house totally torn apart--parts of the bathtub lying here and there, ceiling missing, new boxes brought over from Scott's parents' house, the old guest bed taken apart, and a massive pile of dirty dishes. But we'll get there. We'll get there. We've got it better than most of the world, don't we?

Today Is Thanksgiving

Today is Thanksgiving, but not for me.

Tears are falling down my cheeks.

Pumpkins are baking; turkeys are dead.

Today is Thanksgiving, but I did nothing instead.



The leaves are falling, but so is the rain.

Forgetting my blessings, I only feel pain.

I'll eat some dinner and go to my bed.

Today is Thanksgiving, but I'm crying instead.



My family is gathered around for the feast.

But somehow they sense a small missing piece.

I am not home; I'm merely a thought.

Today is Thanksgiving, but here it is not.

Contraceptive FYI (TMI?)

a) Did you know that all birth control is free in the UK?
b) Did you know they have implants now?
c) Did you know that the implants are free in the UK?
d) Is that creepy or amazing? I'm still trying to decide.


****PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT OVER****


So... so, so. Edinburgh was great. We visited Jonathan and Sarah/Bryce and Ashley's church. Bryce preached, and he did a fine fine job. I was very impressed. And he spoke out, man, about how crap some churches/evangelicals have become. Preach it, brother. Hallelujah.

Let's see. Something interesting to talk about...

Well,
a) I'm going to look into teaching classes at the college here in Greenock. You get paid like £22 an hour for teaching a class there and all you need is a degree!! I'm gonna mail off my CV and see what becomes of it. Can you imagine £22 an hour? Holy moly!

b) I'm also gonna bite the bullet and start mailing out my poems to publishing magazines. If I get rejected, so be it. But it's about time I try. I'm dead nervous just thinking about it, and it makes my stomach turn, but if I never try, I'll never know. (But if something does get published, I expect all of you to go off and mail the publisher asking for more and more these Lori McF poems.)

Scott and I are currently reading through Romans. It is very hard to start a consistent quiet time on your own, let alone with someone else. Because when you feel motivated, they may not, and when they feel motivated, you may not. But this can come in helpful if you are both truly interested in growing in the knowledge of God. So we are taking Romans one chapter at a time each morning and discussing the troubly bits (which is practically all of it.) I'm glad my husband is so clever. He helps me through the parts that make me go, "huh?". It's been very rewarding. We've also started praying together during these times. It's hard enough to pray alone and be honest and say embarrassing things to God by yourself, but doing it with someone else is even weirder. I find I giggle a lot more now when we pray out loud, but its good. It seems when you talk to God there's less room for hiding the truth so you end up hearing the truth come out of your beloved in a much more honest way. It's very good. Because, see, apparently, you are supposed to become one flesh in a variety of ways, not just physically, in marriage. :D So, we're learning what those ways are. And we're trying to keep in mind that it's ok to not understand it all--we are newlyweds.

I need more friends in Greenock. Girl crush who is to remain nameless, talk to me.

I like my friends in Edinburgh. They should move to Glasgow.

I miss my friends in Fayetteville. They should come visit. (March is lovely, Miss Emily.)

Me mum is coming over in just a few weeks. I cannae wait to hug her and show her my grown-up, married, Scottish life.

My work is having its Christmas Night Out in two weeks. It'll be my first party with my very own friends. I'm gonna dress like a party girl and talk about boys (my husband). I'm gonna drink cocktails on the company and probably end up discussing Christianity with my boss again. Bottoms up!

My husband will be home from work soon, and I can't wait to see him, because he is a FOX. (...Can men be foxes?)

This is a tribute to my other best friend besides Scott.

Amanda is my best girl friend in the world. We've been friends for many moons. She is even probably one of the most significant figures in my salvation story. We lived in the same dorm, in our separate single rooms, and stayed friends even after both liking and dating and making-out-with-behind-each-other's-back the same guy. That's friendship. That's true sisterly love.

Amanda used to hate when we got crafty. Crafty, as in, making crafts. She was something like a Communications major or an English major or something at the time. She didn't like it when her friends got in crafty moods.

Yet one day, Amanda says, "I'm going to change my major to art." Art? Amanda who hates craftiness? Hmm... I would've suggested she stick with English, but then again, that's what I majored in.

Amanda has impressed us all. I think I am the most impressed, though, because I remember un-crafty-manda. I think I am the most impressed, because I thought I knew Amanda so well, and here she comes with some crazy hidden talent that I am entirely and lovingly jealous of. So, because this is Amanda's last semester of university (finally! hurray!) have a look at what an ex-communications/english/elementary education major has done with herself. Amanda is my favourite artist.

Update Poem

Work today was long
so luckily nothing went wrong.
But all my joints are sore,
its like I'm rheumatic or
arthritic, but I'm twenty-two years old,
why does my neck creek and groan
like I'm ninety and dying?
I'm serious, I am not lying.
I'm gonna get a Swedish massage,
they're half-off at some Greenock spa!
I'm lucky my husband understands--
he'll let me go, he's no typical man.
I think I'll go next week
while Scott's at work or asleep.

I had curry tonight with the fam
I ordered chicken but somehow got lamb.
Yet I didn't complain cos it was nice,
I mixed it all up with my rice.
I didn't have wine with my meal
cos of how last night's wine made me feel...
(I drank a lot and I drank it fast,
I didn't know I'd be jaked off my ass,
I just wanted to feel a tiny bit tipsy
and I think I went overboard... I'm not gonna even try rhyming with tipsy.)

Saturday I'm visiting friends
in Edinburgh, all Americans.
Anna is from my home town
and she's staying in Northern Ireland just now.
She's coming to Scotland to shop
so we'll have lunch, and she'll meet Scott.
Then we'll go visit the Hayses,
(the fun we have with them amazes...
me) and we'll all have a really great time...
Gosh I'm so sick of this rhyme.

The End.

"[To] serve God properly we must learn to give up our own wills, thoughts, and desires. Why? Because otherwise we will be wise in our own conceits and will imagine that we can serve God with this or that, and thus spoil everything."

You are John Calvin! You're the most intellectual and thoroughly intense theologian on the block. You know what you're talking about and you recommend people to ignore you at their own risk. Yeah, baby, you know your stuff. You speak in riddles and confuse people for fun. Still, this hurts your social skills a lot... and you end up always appearing arrogant and rude.

What theologian are you?

A creation of Henderson

And now....

For the moment you've all been waiting for---

THE HOUSE!

Yes! This IS the Second to Last House in Greenock. Would you like the tour?

We'll enter through the back door, it's easier. Oh, look's like Scott's just leaving. Bye, darling!


This is the kitchen.


And on through the living room....


Up the stairs...


Let's just shut the door to the guest bedroom. It's not quite ready yet.
The W.C.


And finally our bedroom.


Oh, and check out our view! It's magnificent.

Though the pictures don't do it much justice...

Well that was the house. Here's me and Scott, a happy wee couple.


*All these images can be seen in super big style at www.zenandjuice.com/gallery/lori. It's much more effective there.


Well, that was it. The house. Oh, and just because it's really funny:


See yous when you come visit!

Congrats to Ian and Sarah

Congratumalations to the above couple, who don't read this blog (I don't think) but had a baby boy last night. I've known them both since I was yooooung (Ian was my tent leader at church camp many moons ago) so I'm happy for them.

That's all. Isn't our blog pretty again? Hurray.

Wife Lesson #6

The eviler your scheme for punishing your husband, the guiltier you feel when he apologizes first.

'Nuff said.


***********


My last post (prior to the pictures) was about seeking knowledge and truth from the Bible and not relying on feelings or emotions.

Today I'm gonna talk about the other side of the argument, since me, my husband, and a number of our readers fall too far into the knowledge bit and forget the heart bit. This is going to be hard for me to write about, because I struggle with it so much.

Given that what we believe must, simply must, be derived solely from God's Word, there is more to Christianity than just arguments. See, that's whats so amazing about Jesus Christ. He came not for the great and the wise, but the poor and humble. The Pharisees were incredibly intelligent; they could quote Scripture, they knew all the prophesies, they knew the Law by heart, but they had no relationship with God and they rejected Jesus as the Son of God. For this, they were condemned. It was the fishermen and the children and the adulteresses and the tax collectors that Jesus revealed himself to. It wasn't to the wise, but the small. What the unintelligent and poor and the lepers had that the Pharisees didn't was heart. They believed in Jesus and had faith in their hearts. They couldn't wrap their minds around it, but neither did they try. They just believed, like children. The disciples were incredibly naive and, well, let's be honest, a bit dim-witted at times, but it was the disciples to whom Jesus revealed himself. He told the crowds that unless we come with faith like little children, we cannot be saved.

Often times, I find myself wanting to prove God. More often than that, I find myself wanting to talk theology and get down to the bits and pieces of Christianity when talking to people. But this is not where faith comes from. Faith does not come from figuring God out, or beating people over the head with the Calvinist stick. People don't need a religion made of nuances and semantics and Covenant Theologies. What people need is a Saviour. They need help. They need to be lifted out of their sin and out of their despair and out of the path to eternal damnation. They need grace. They don't need to be bogged down with whether or not grace is irrestistable, they just need grace. Why do I always scoff at basic Christianity, when it is basic Christianity that the unsaved need?

I for one am very skeptical of feelings. I am very skeptical when someone says they "felt" God saying something to them. I'm very skeptical of my own feelings. I do not trust them. In church, when I begin to feel something rising up in me, I immediately question it and think, "Is this God or am I just getting psyched up emotionally? I mean, the worship is getting hyped. Is it just the way the music just welled-up and the drums came in with a loud crash? Am I simply being tricked into an emotional state due to the modern conveniences of a sound board?" And suddenly it's over. I don't feel anything anymore, and I feel a lot more intelligent for it. "CGR would be proud," I think.

What's with that?! Didn't David dance around like a crazy person because he was so caught up in the joy of the Lord? Didn't the Holy Spirit move him so deeply that he wrote hundreds of psalms? Feeling is a part of the Christian experience. We mustn't underestimate it. Especially in evangelism. While we shouldn't allow young Christians to be blown around with the wind because they believe every thing they hear and rely on every feeling they get, we aren't meant to quench what the Holy Spirit is doing in them. For me personally, I accepted Jesus as my Saviour because of the feeling of joy and happiness he gave me. (Though, actually it was because of the divine and sovereign mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ and God's unconditional election.*wink) I'd lived 18 years believing that Christianity was all about laws and predestination and theology. I never knew that there actually was a joy involved. But when I asked God to give me a feeling that was better than drugs, he gave it to me, and I was turned upside down. I've never been the same! So why do I trivialize others when they have similar experiences? Why do I immediately beseech them to question everything and prove it with Scripture? If I know Scripture so well, then I should know they don't have to prove it. What did the lame and the blind and the adulteress and the theif on the cross do when Jesus healed them and forgave them for their sins? They rejoiced!! They felt something real!

That is my point. Jesus is alive and real. Christianity is Truth. Jesus is the only way man can be saved. This isn't Plato or Nietche, but a real live working salvation that leads to real eternal life. We must allow ourselves to be moved by the Holy Spirit. Jesus lives in our hearts, so we say. I know for myself, I've got to remember to keep him in my heart even as I fill my head with the knowledge he has so graciously left for us.

Yes Pictures

I take that back-- hurray!

Now, this was haphazard (I used that word yesterday, didn't I?) but it makes me happy for now because I was sick to death with what used to be.

Here's a couple pictures to peruse of the wedding:



And for the unveiling of That Ever-So-Talked-About-(at-least-I'd-like-to-think-so) Groom's Cake.....



Pictures of the house (and more wedding pics) coming soon to a Blog Near You.

No Pictures

Well, I came over here (the in-laws' house) for the sole purpose of uploading pictures for you all of the wedding and so forth, yet I have encountered technical difficulties. I'm used to having Microsoft Office and using the Picture Editor for resizing and whatnot (my Macromedia suite is lurking around somewhere, but not on this computer). Plus my gallery isn't working. And I can't for the life of me get to My Documents, the A drive, without pulling up this horrid Fugi Film program that I refuse to take the time to figure out because it is so pish.

I'm sorry, fans. No pictures still. (And I was even gonna change the graphic at the top of the page.)

Bleh.

Coherent Dreams

Last night I had one of the most coherent dreams I've ever dreamed. In my dream, I accurately and thoroughly described the five tenents of Calvinism (TULIP) to three misguided strangers at the park. Actually, I woke up at the end of Limited Atonement, so I didn't actually make it to Perseverance of the Saints, but I went into great depth with the first three and spoke quickly about the fourth (for there isn't much to say about it, even though it is the most disputed of the five, I would think.)

In the dream, I explained that it was important to have a Biblical understanding of God. I believe it is incredibly important to study Scriptures in order to discover Truth. It is right to be always reforming.

I perhaps mispoke the other day to a friend in this regard, but I've been thinking a lot lately about the importance of studying Scripture for knowledge and understanding. We are all impressed with the importance of Scripture for the sake of getting to know God and having closer communion with him, for it is the way God has chosen to speak to us. This is true, indeed, and greatly important. But why aren't we encouraged to study the Bible to actually learn about God, to actually get to know Him? I told a friend, who had said he feels greatly tested in his faith when speaking to another friend, that it wasn't until I really started to study Scripture to see what it actually says that I really felt secure in my faith. After I said it, I felt it was the wrong thing to say at the time, but it is true. Before then, I just sort of knew what I'd learned in church about Jesus and the Bible. When someone had a difficult question, I wasn't sure how to answer it, and I would stumble. It wasn't until I started really studying it for myself that I began to understand who God really is (and I'm sorry, my friends, He isn't pink and fluffy and soft as a cloud like we've been taught).

My point is, is it correct to study the Bible for knowledge's sake? I believe it is. Look at Paul. He encourages us to study things for ourselves (like the Bereans of Thessalonica who went home and researched what Paul said, because they weren't going to just take his word for it.) He tells us not to feed on milk forever but to begin feeding on solid food (Heb 5:12-14). I think it is right for all of us, at whatever time in our life is appropriate, to begin feeding on the meat of God's Word.

However, there seems to be a disadvantage to this. My husband and I have often discussed the dichotomy between the relationship side of Christianity and the knowledge side. It is hard to balance the two. We mustn't forget in our studying that this faith is real and alive. Jesus desires a real live relationship with us that must thrive. Feelings are real, and important. Yet, they are not the most important to our spiritual growth. Far from it. If we only rely on the feelings we get from our faith, we are stumbling into dangerous territory. We can even (easily) stumble into heresy. We must follow up our feelings with what is written in God's Word to ensure that what we are feeling is actually genuine, is actually the Holy Spirit, and not our own deceitful hearts. Sadly, too many evangelists and pastors and teachers rely far too greatly on what they feel and what they sense, rather than what God has revealed to us in His Holy Scripture.

Here's an example of what I believe to be a good balance of these two important aspects of Christianity. Sunday, a man told us about a time when he was in church about to preach, and he was waiting for a couple to show up that he had expected to come that day. They did not arrive, but he noticed two strangers come in, and suddenly he felt God say to him, "I will build my Church." Now--let me interject. Had he stopped here, this would have been a mistake. We often "feel" things like this; how do we know if it is just our minds thinking, or the Holy Spirit? This is how: He said he then when home and started searching Scripture to see if this was true. He read Acts and began to see that, indeed, it was the Holy Spirit who led the apostles to different places and the Holy Spirit that built the Church. After this, he believed it was the Holy Spirit showing him that it is not us who builds the Church, but God. We have one agenda, but God's will prevail.

Feelings lead us astray. Feelings tell us that God said this and God said that. Feelings tell us God says things far from what He would ever actually say. Now, I've probably gone on long enough now. So, if you take anything away with you from this post, which I have written so haphazardly, consider the importance of knowing what you believe and why. Is it Sciptural or is it something that you've learned from someone? Is it Scripture or is it something you feel is true? If you are certain it is Scriptural, seek it out. Find the Scriptures that prove it. Be able to back yourself up, even if it is just to yourself, just to keep you from stumbling. "Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path," says Psalm 119:105. It is also the sword (Eph 6:17) to fight anyone/thing that may try to destroy your faith. I'm not saying everyone is meant to be a theologian, for that is not true. Just don't feed on milk forever. The character of God is infinite; it is exciting and good for us to learn all we can while on this earth.

(To begin your new search into seeing if this is true, my friend Jonathan points out Psalm 1 in defense of this argument.)

Three Letters: G, T and A.

GTA: San Andreas is phenomenal. In more than it's a life eating, time chomping, wife annoying addictive monster. The sales are through the roof. Unreal.

Lots of fun, too. Racing the other guys in work to see who can buy the abandoned airfield first is fun.

Anyway, I'm sure Lori is about to tsk at the fact that I actually blogged about that. Hehe.

Well, I'm just letting you people know that I'm alive (just, I had an allergy attack today) and will be blogging more when I don't have to use my parents computer. Should be next week.

Cheerio.

Wee update:
-Still don't have the computer.
-Had a great time at the Polyphonic Spree show; it was beyond incredible to see Tim DeLaughter and Mark Pirro just feet away once again, and to see Bryan Wakeland on drums for the first time ever. It was like the Polyphonic Daisy or the Tripping Spree. I was in heaven.
-I had another driving lesson today, and I did much better than usual.
-Pictures from Halloween can be found Bryce and Ashley's way.
-I talked to my best friend on the phone, and I miss her a ton.
-I'm going out tonight with my mum-in-law and sis-in-law for curry and wine.
-My husband is freaking hot.


I've got ideas for our new blog, so just as soon as we get our computer (which is just at the parents house, waiting for the family to clear off their personal stuff), and once we get some new webspace (our current webspace is inaccessible as my password has been mysteriously changed, disallowing me to upload pictures), once all this is done, we'll have pictures and stuff for you all. Wedding pictures, new house pictures, Halloween pictures, possibly by then Thanksgiving pictures (yes, we are celebrating Thanksgiving, even if we aren't in America.)

Speaking of America, the ole Bush won. I didn't get to vote because of the whole absentee ballot thing which you have to send off for like 2 months in advance, which I didn't know, but I was gonna vote Peroutka (Constitutional Party) anyway so... At any rate, I'm glad Bush won, if only because it means Kerry didn't. I don't like either man. Ooh, but some jerk came into the coffee shop today and Jean told him I was American and he said, "That prick got into office again," and Jean and I said it was better him than Kerry and then this man started going off about Americans and how "they aren't taught in schools to think for themselves!" and other such bs and it thoroughly pissed me off. I made myself an excuse to walk away and went off glaring. He continued to bitch about America and Americans for another half hour or so to anyone who would listen, and had he not been the boss's uncle, I would've totally considered telling him off. I mean, how stupid do you have to be to insult (thoroughly insult) a person's homeland right freaking to their face??? I mean, I don't think America's got nearly half of everything right, but I sure as hell don't want to hear some pompous British person tell me that we don't know how to think for ourselves! Think for ourselves? This is what I think. Changing leadership, party and all, right during the middle of a war, simply because you don't like the war, and hope the new guy will end it, is a serious threat to national security. I mean, if the other guy would've handled the war better then far enough, but how could anyone trush Kerry to be smart about the war when the guy has no personality and absolutely no ideas whatsoever??

Ok, whew that was a rant. Don't know where that came from. For the record, I'm no Bush fan. Like I said, I was gonna vote 3rd party and try to help build it up to an actual competitive party.

All right, I gotta go. Bye.



-Look on me with Thy favour; vouchsafe to me Thy grace.

Big Girl

In just a few minutes I'm off to the Polyphonic Spree gig. This post is called "Big Girl" because tonight I have to be a big girl.

It's already dark, now that it is 5:00pm, so I will be walking down to the train station in the dark to take the train to Glasgow Central where I will disembark. Then I will walk through the streets of Glasgow (in the dark) until I find the Underground, where I will buy a single from a little machine and take the subway on the right. I will get off the subway at Hill Head and walk a few steps to the left, then go down an alley full of pubs (in the dark) until I reach Boyd Orr. I will turn and head for Queen Margaret's Union where the gig will be, and I will meet Jonathan and Sarah (in the dark). Whew! Pretty grown up stuff here!

This post is merely to pass the time before I go be an adult.

In other news, Halloween was fabulous-- I met fabulous people, Ashley and Bryce being two of them. I also had my first fuzzy navel(s), and I was quite pleased. I rapped with Jonathan for a wee while, too, which is always a pleasure. Perhaps when Sarah and Scott form their bluegrass band, Jonathan and I can tour with them as emcees.

(Is it cooler to say MCs? I only know ghetto speak, not ghetto spell.)

And we promise, my husband and I, to bring you pictures and a new blog-look soon. We still don't have the computer.

Ok, I'm off to the train station. Aieeee!!

*Big long shocking bad words*

I just typed up a long thoughtful/thought-provoking post about Christianity and blogger lost it. Forget it. Just forget it. Calvinists rule.

Sup, G

Just checking in. I've been busy for the last few days and haven't had a chance to check email/blog/read blogs/CGR/stuff.

Sigh. I'll be happy when we've got the net at home. Should be this week. Then this blog will get fancied up big time, since I'll only have Lori trying to get on the computer I'll have time to do stuff.

The BT (British Telecom) engineer came today. Even though they had told me the fault MUST be internal, it wasn't. It was external. Our house is fine, it's just their dumbass cables. So someone should be out tomorrow to sort that. Then I'll be calling BT to get them to take a lot of money off of our bill.

Lori decided today while she was cleaning the dishes (since I've been relegated to drying duties)that she wanted to test her strength. She took the first thing she found into her hand, in this case a glass, and squeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeezed with all her might.

Then screamed. The poor baby cut herself on it. I had no idea what to do, so I thought about what my dear mum would have done in that situation. It didn't help. So I sent her upstairs to put her hand under the tap (with the water flowing, duh). Then discovered we didn't have any plasters (which Lori didn't understand, so band-aids for most of you). So I drove her to my parents house.

She didn't pass out, die or anything. Just cried and shouted and screamed. And bled, Lori adds.

Now she has a snazzy see through plaster, second skin style stuff. Futuristic. I'm jealous of it.

I've just been given into trouble. Lori wants me to stress that she was, in fact, not testing her strength. She was merely cleaning the glass over-vigorously. "And it crumbled in my hends!".

I replaced the "a" in hands with "e" because Southerners only have one vowel. Goodnight, you've been a lovely audience.

Drivin' on the Highway of Love

I took my first driving lesson today.

I didn't die. Nor did I kill anyone else. Though I nearly side-swiped a parked car. But Instructor (Instructour?) Frank grabbed the wheel, and we survived.

See, if Scotland were as great as America, people would actually park in parking places instead of the road. How is one supposed to drive when a car is parked in one's lane and a bus is coming at one in the other lane?

If America were as great as Scotland, I'd know how to drive already.

In all, I did a good job. I switched gears like a champ. I only stalled the engine once, and it's because (in Frank's words) I'm trying to drive like an experienced driver. But I have to learn to stop driving like an experienced driver and start from scratch. I'm suddenly 16 again, and my mom has parked the car on the side of the road and has forced me into the driver's side, me resisting with all my might. Only this time, instead of inching along, slamming on the breaks when I see a car within the next 500 yards, I'm speeding, and Frank is telling me that more than 6 Penalty Points within the first two years of passing my test will result in a revoked license. It's hard to turn back. I'm a speedster by nature.

* * *

I love my husband. See, I came home from work a few days ago to a clean house. My darling had tidied the living room and washed the dishes. Last night I didn't get home until late so I didn't get the dishes put away. Today after work, I came in, rolled up my sleeves and started to put the dishes away so I could wash the new load. I noticed there was food still on a plate. Oh well, I thought, I'll just rewash it. I picked up the next plate to find the same thing. I picked up the pan and saw dried green pea juice stuck to the side. I chuckled. I pulled all the silverware out and dropped it back in the sink without even inspecting. I saw dingy, smudgey light come through all the glasses so I simply pulled everything off the drying rack and put it back in the sink. I just smiled to myself, pleasantly amused. I was not annoyed at all. It was the thought that counted to me, and rewashing the dishes didn't bother me at all. The fact that Scott wanted to serve me by cleaning the house was the whole point. He is such an incredible man. It's worth doing the dishes again to know that I am loved and respected by such a guy. I'll casually mention to Scott tonight to kinda watch that in the future, but the whole thing was cute, and it made me say out loud to myself, "I love my husband."

Rainy Days and Mondays (written 2 days ago but never published??)

...this time, they haven't gotten me down.

Yes, it is a Rainy Day and a Monday. But I'm quite pleased with myself; I started my new job today, and I was fantastic. Yes, I do say so myself. See, I worked in a bakery/deli my sophomore year of college so this stuff isn't terribly new to me. Working in an actual coffee shop is a bit different, but I'm well familiar with how to make a cappucino (though I may not know if I'm spelling it right) or hand over a pastry. And I like to clean so the dishes and the table bussing isn't a problem. And the best part - no tax to figure in to the prices so everything is a nice round figure with no pennies or 5p coins to bother with. It's great! At any rate, I didn't tell anyone that I've worked in a bakery before so they all just think I'm really clever and that I'm catching on fast. In actuality, it's just really easy.

I like it.

The people I work with are all pretty nice, too. I kinda hope I become at least sort of friends with them. Stephanie, who is still in high school, is very nice and friendly, and Jean, who is the owner's mother, is also incredibly cool, but perhaps a little old for me. Gordon, the manager who got me the job, is really patient (so far) and is just as nice as always (perhaps a little more now that he has a reason to speak to me.) So, you know, the new job is magnifique or something close to that.

Scott and I had a really great weekend. We dated. Having never lived on the same continent, we've never dated. We've never ordered a pizza and rented a movie. We've never stayed out all night on the town. This weekend we went on one of our first dates. (I'm excluding the honeymoon because that doesn't really count as dating even though we went out a few times.) Friday night when he got off work, we got dressed and went to a late dinner at Pizza Hut (he had chicken wings, since he hates cheese) and then saw Saw at the midnight showing. I'd seen it before, but he hadn't. I thought it was great and scary and creepy and all; his response at the end was "Well, that was pish." Men. Boring men. Go see it for yourself and tell me what you think.

Saturday night we rented Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Good-bye Lenin and laid on the couches and ate snacks til late at night. We watched one movie Saturday night and the other Sunday night. It was a right good weekend.

....

I've noticed my blog has become a "What's-up-with-the-McFarlanes" blog instead of a "What-do-the-McFarlanes-think-about" blog. Sorry. I don't think much now, I mostly just feel and experience. I'll start thinking again after all that stuff is sorted.

Cheerio.

Hey, It's the Sun, and It Makes Me Smile

The rare Scotland sun is shining down on me today.

Brightly.

I rested on the couch this morning and when I opened my eyes, I thought new lights had been turned on in my house. But it was just the sun. My father-in-law picked me up to take me to their house, and I didn't recognize the way because I've never seen it so lit up. Once a picture of the roundabout in the rainy dark flashed in my head, I located myself in Port Glasgow. I'd never have recognized it otherwise.

The sun is good. Thank you, Jesus.

Well, in my last post I was a bit of a Negative Nancy. Today I'm much more of a Positive Pam. I have good news.

I have a job! I will begin Monday working at Flava (pronounced FLAY-vah, like I'm a GANG-sta) Coffee Shop. An easy job. A no-thinking job. No data to report, no calculation (except change, which the till does for you-- and no tax added too. Easy peasy pie), no computers... Just me in black trousers serving customers a warm cup of tea and sweeping the floors now and again. I'll find a computer job later-- for now, I'm just saving up for Paris.

Yes, Paris. I'm going to Paris with the ladies from the church on 7 December. I'm gonna practice ma française avec les garçons dans les pubs au les cafés.

I also now have money to go see The Polyphonic Spree. Yes. Finally. I've been with the Spree since they began-- I even have a promo copy of "The Beginning Stages..." that I received with some Tripping Daisy stuff I'd ordered from the now non-existant Deadfly Merch. This, my friends, means I've owned The Beginning Stages before any of the rest of you. And finally I shall see them. It's a bit necrophiliac--it's like I'm finally seeing Tripping Daisy, long dead, in its afterlife, singing with the angels.

I should get some hits after using that word...

In other news, Scott is going to a videogame-playing party tomorrow, and I shall be left alone at the house bored. I might con him out of some of his money and go to Glasgow to do some shopping. Anyone wanna come with me?

That's it for now. Friends in Arkansas, I miss you.

Husband Lesson(s)

Lesson Number One:

It's always your fault ;).

Just apologise. Even if you're absolutely certain you were right. Say sorry. Having a wife who still thinks of you warmly is far more important than being right about some little driving thing.

Lesson Number Two:

Never.

Ever.

EVER.

EVAH.

Take your wife on driving lessons.

I didn't think it'd be as bad as other guys had advised me. But all the love, compassion, tenderness and patience in the world go out of the window when a woman INSISTS that she didn't just let the wheel slide through her hand, even though you just watched her do so.

Lesson Number Three:

For some reason, girls think that it's perfectly legitimate to make us wander around shops full of candles, tea pots and bed linen for a few hours, but when it comes to spending 5 minutes in a used cd shop, this is the most boring and unfair thing anyone has ever been subjected to.

Don't point out this contradiction. It's obviously not the same thing, moron. The candles, tea pots and the like are for you too, aren't they? Uh huh.

Well, I'm off to work. I'm working extra hard to get promoted/moved onto the dayshift soon. So cheerio. I'm going to go in early.

a ~wee~ update

It's another day, and I file it into the "Not Good" folder with all the rest. The "Good" folder is indeed starting to fill, but the "Not Good" is still fatter.

Wife Lesson #4: Never under any circumstances let your husband teach you to drive a standard. It will always end in pain.

Scott and I had the brilliant idea this morning to take me out driving. So we went to a car lot, and I got behind the wheel. Mistake #1. I have no problem with driving on the left side of the road, and I've driven a standard before, when Carol, my trusty old Ford Taurus, was in the shop. The problem was with all the rules in this dumb land. I couldn't "control" the wheel "correctly"; I wasn't "feeding" it with my hands or something. Scott kept telling me I'd get a "minor fault" if I did that in the driving test. At one point he said, "You just failed your driving test." Arg. I gave up at that point, and we officially had our first fight.

Then we went to Argos where I got myself a "whirly-gig" and a hair dryer. That part was good.

Then the issue of my job came up. I have sort of been offered a job at a coffee shop in Gourock, the town next door, but the hours will be daytime hours while Scott will still be on evening shifts. Scott mentioned me possibly working elsewhere (T-Mobile). I was already emotional, and I burst into tears. I just want this job, because it will be easy, and I'll have weekends off, and I know the manager, and I won't have to go through a long 6 week application process..... Scott told me to take the coffee shop job. But I was reminded of how little time we'd get together, and I cried for a long time.

Then my mobile went off, and the song it plays when it rings cheered me up. I danced to it for a moment before answering. It was the Job Centre, where one must apply for a National Insurance number (similar to a Social Security number) before one can work. They set up an interview with me (to prove my identity and right to work in the UK) for 25th October.

Scott had to leave for work then (and I just realized he left without his lunch--one sec--gonna text him...) so he took me to his parents house and dropped me off. I phoned the manager at the coffee shop and will go see him today or tomorrow.

The day has potential for getting better, doesn't it? I might have a job. This is good news.

I love my husband. Wife Lesson #5: Say you're sorry. If you're not sorry, then pray.

Wife Lesson #3

Just do it your way. Hear advice, but chuck it if it's not for you.

Wife Lessons with Lori

I admit we've been bad posters. We apologize for the lack of new reading material, but I promise you, once we get broadband set up at the house, we will be back to usual, posting far too much for anyone to be interested in reading.

Also you can expect a new look soon, as "Pre-Marital Blogging" has turned over a new leaf, and I don't have a job.

Last time we spoke, I was feeling depressed. This has subsided immensely. I've felt much better in the past couple days than I was at first. Though I had a sore throat and now have no voice. That part's still pretty rotten. I met one of my new neighbours today, and I sounded like a goat. She's gonna think all Arkansans sound like goats.

I'm starting a new series: Wife Lessons with Lori. In this series, I will list small things that I have learned as a new wife--stuff I didn't expect and I don't imagine many pre-lyweds expect, especially the wifey-to-be types. These won't necessarily be amazingly profound, but hopefully helpful to any pre-lyweds out there.

Wife Lesson #1:
Whether you thought you were a baby before or not, once you're a wife, you can't be a baby anymore. Sure you can use your feminine power to coerce your husband to get out of bed in the mornings to go turn the heat on for you, but don't expect him to put up with your distaste for peeling off the skin of chicken thighs. I think maybe it's called Wife Power, but suddenly you must embrace all those things that you hated doing before (laundry, cooking, cleaning, whatever it may be). It's time to get over it. I knew all this in my head before marriage, but now I'm learning by experience that either the skin comes off or you eat it. And with WeightWatchers, the skin adds, like, 2 POINTS per thigh.

Wife Lesson #2:
Your money is no longer your own. Nor is his his. And worse, your credit is no longer yours but his. And even worse, his is yours. So what does this mean? It means gone are the days of frivolous buying or depression-shopping. If you're feeling loney and bored and all your clothes make you look like a wrinkly rolly hippopotamus, you would be unwise to take it out on a new coat or new shoes. Because imagine how annoyed you'd be if he came home with a new video game he hadn't asked your permission for. (For the record, this has not happened to us. I've just realized what could happen if it did.)


More Wife Lessons to come. I thought of several the other evening while I was juggling washing the dishes, boiling the chicken, and vacuuming the living room, but my mind is full, and probably the most important Wife Lessons I've learned have gotten lost somewhere in there.

Feel free to leave your own Wife Lessons in the comments. Let us all help one another!

Second-to-Last House in Greenock

*Introduction

We are here in Scotland. Details below.

*Scotland
It's rainy and cold. VERY cold.

*The Hoose
I love our house. As Scott already mentioned, it is well Ikea-fied. Our coffee table (which my manly husband put together last night) is so hip. The kitchen is my favourite room so far though. There are green tiles on the walls and orange terra-cotta coloured tiles on the floor. We accented in deep red and it looks amazing. We put two red mats on the floor and a red vase and with my red dishes, it looks smashing.

And get this-- my bedroom is PINK! No kidding! The walls are painted ivory and pink. Soft pink, like the pink in our bed. Our bedroom is decorated in pale pink and pale brown, if you can imagine that. It's not my favourite room just yet because its not finished but its a close second.

The living room is next. That is how I shall comfort myself tonight when Scott goes to work. Decorate the living room. In deep wine red and earthtones.

*The People
I've had hundreds of invitations to friendship. We shall be attending our first couple party this Saturday. It's exciting. Scott and I along with Alan and Sherri, another newlywed couple will be dining with Debbie and Niall at 7. I'm very excited. Margo, one of the ladies in the church (who is by the way, the hippest grown up I know), encouraged me to call anytime to hang out or go to lunch or go shopping. Being married is weird. Grownups consider you their friend now. I quite like it. Now I just look forward to seeing my beloved Sarah and Jonathan and meeting Bryce and Ashley. We'll have to arrange something soon.

We're also planning a Housewarming/Halloween party for Halloween. Coool eh?

*Scott and Lori
We as a couple are doing very well. It's so nice to have Scott around all the time. He makes me laugh a lot, and he's so much goofier now that we are married. I love that about him.

Lori as an individual however is feeling pretty down. I don't think its quite the homesickness yet, as its just the feeling of being out of place. I feel pretty ... foreign. I feel helpless. I feel like I've lost my sense of self. I can't do anything for myself- I don't have a job, I can't drive, I don't know how to use my (new!) mobile, I don't know people, I don't know where I am... I fully depend on Scott for EVERYTHING, and I mean EVERYTHING. Down to how to turn the stove on. Down to holding me back from stepping out in front of cars (pedestrians don't have the right-of-way here). Down to leading me around at church so I'm not left standing alone and having to figure out where to go and who to talk to. I feel like Mary's little lamb. I feel pretty useless.

Scott swears I'm not useless and reminds me that I've put together our whole house and have vacuumed and washed dishes and so forth.

At any rate, it's hard. But it's really good at the same time. I love my in-laws, and I love my coat. :) Most of all, I love my Scott, and I love my Jesus. Those two guys are the ones who will get me through this. And that bottle of Tylenol isn't hurting, either.

*Conclusion
My Scott just got back from the bank. I'm gonna go kiss him.

Sweet, Sweet Cable Modem

I'm back to my fast connection. Aaah.

Lori and I arrived safely, but tiredly. We then went to Tesco and bought lots of stuff like ironing boards and kettles.

Then we went to Ikea and bought things like vases and weird curly sticks and a door mat. All was fun. And quite economical.

Now I'm at home taking my asthma medicine (I'm not sure if it was the return to the dampness of Scotland or the fact that our house needs hoovered/vacuumed) and collecting some of my stuff. I should head back for Lori, it's time for Ikea 2 : This Time It's Personal.

We're buying tables and stuff.

Viva la Scotland

Today is my last 24 hour day in the United States for a very long time.

I'm doing pretty well.

I saw my grandparents and aunt/uncle last night for the very last time. It was okay, I didn't cry. Mom is dropping me and Scott off at the airport quickly because she's got "Pillar Talks" at work that she can't miss. So there shouldn't be any tears there either. Dad will meet us at the airport around that time, and I already told him no tears. I'm just not in the mood for tears. Not yet. I'll cry later.

I have been a little depressed over the past couple days which I suppose is only to be expected. But I haven't been grumpy or difficult, just a little quiet. And tired. I am incredibly tired. I spent the better half of yesterday afternoon trying to stuff as many things as possible into our 4 suitcases and 2 carry-ons and 2 personal bags. I still don't know how I'm going to fit in the shampoo and other toiletries after Scott takes his shower.... They are full to bursting, I'm serious.

Meanwhile, we just have to run a few errands today, wash the car (to be sold), clean it out, and run to the post office. Then it's off to the airport. Au revoir.

I Am A Winner!

I won a Gamecube! Really! From Codemasters!

I entered a competition on their website simply because I wanted to play a little Flash game on there, which I seen on Milk And Cookies (read with caution, some risque content, but lots of funny stuff too). Well, I checked my email yesterday and there was an email saying I'd came in first, won a Gamecube, a copy of the game, posters, cards, stuff, yay.

So I'm happy about that.

I'm not so happy about the fact that I'm going to miss the Polyphonic Spree's next gig in Scotland. I'm working, and I've used all my holidays to come here and get married. In fact, I used more than all of my holidays, I still have to work a few Saturdays to make up for what I missed.

Sigh.

But something else made me happy today. I was sitting eating some porridge I made myself. Mmm. Then Lori laughed loudly while she was on the computer. Go read Amanda's blog for why she laughed.

Guess who had left the pile of pennies on top of the freezer so it'd collapse when Amanda opened it? Hehe. Surprise, Amanda!

So. Only three more days and I'm out of the country.

Weird.

I got my visa, easy as pie. Good thing. I am cleared for entry into the United Kingdom. The UK won't be big enough for the Lori!

I like being married. No, I love being married. I think what I love most is going to sleep with him every night beside me. And then waking up every morning, him beside me. Though I don't like trying to get him out of bed. He's a lazy-butt. Tomorrow morning I'm letting him sleep in though while I make chocolate gravy and biscuits (with bacon and eggs) for breakfast. My brothers don't live here anymore (We're at my parents' house) and my parents will both be at work so we have the morning all to ourselves. I might do some other things before I wake him up, like take a nice long bath and watch tv or something.

Scott and I were discussing in the car on the way to Cabot the other day our last five albums we bought. (We were talking about the application for KXUA, the student radio station, where this question is asked. I actually admitted to having received Extreme's Best Of album and they still hired me.) So my most recent to date are:
-The new Faint album
-Postal Service
-Wilson Phillips (*blushes)
-the Trainspotting soundtrack
-the Love Actually soundtrack

I'm way not hip. Yours? (And don't lie- I admitted to Wilson Phillips.)

We also talked about mixtapes and how painfully pretentious it is to make a tape of music one should get into. However, I have a nice sweet story of the best mixtape I ever got. My old roommate Katie and I were in a music store back before I was very into indie music. She asked me if I like Modest Mouse, and I shrugged. She asked me if I liked several bands, and I didn't know any of them. She kept saying, "You don't know Built to Spill?!" I got embarrassed and told her to stop announcing how musically uneducated I am. When we got in the car she apologized.

The next morning I got up for work and in the bathroom was a mixtape and a note. She said she was sorry for making me feel dumb, and to apologize she had made me a mixtape of many popular indie bands so I could know for myself if I liked them or not. She titled the mixtape "Don't feel dumb" and subtitled it "You don't have to like it." It was the nicest mixtape ever received. And I have subsequently purchased nearly all the albums featured on it. She did very good.

That is enough for tonight. I'm sliding back into the blogging spirit.

Love, Lori

LA: Just Like Home

LA is so much like Glasgow it was comforting. Although it was crazy expensive, that wasn't so hot. $20 for breakfast wasn't a lot of fun.

We got up crazily early to leave our cozy log cabin for the airport. We were flying standby thanks to a kind gift from a friend, so we had to be there as soon as possible. In the end, we got seats on every flight we tried for, which was good. The flight from LA to Dallas looked ropey, but some seats appeared from nowhere (I'm assuming cancellations, not an extension to the plane or anything) and all was well.

While we were there, we got Lori's visa, which was also crazy expensive. As was the cab fare there. If you like money, don't go to LA. The actual visa-getting was much easier than we expected it to be, other than the five hour wait.

Now we are back in Fayetteville. Lori and Manda are talking, laughing and stuff. Manda got a CUTE new hairdo. Very nice.

I'd like to thank everyone I know for coming to our wedding. I was so happy to see some faces there that I actually knew, I'm sorry if I didn't get a huge amount of time to talk to you guys.

The booty dancing wasn't taken up as well as hoped, but that's fine. That meant I got to leave the reception earlier. No complaints here, I can tell you.

When I get home, I'll fix up the blog in the few days before I go back to work. Just in case anyone thought they'd point out the intentional mistake in the title, etc. There are also new pictures awaiting for the top.

Speaking of pictures:

Actually, Blogger is being funny and not letting me post the picture without automatically parsing the URL. So just go to the photo gallery, click on the Scott and Lori album and go to the last page. There are a few pictures for your delectation there.

Thanks for all the comments. You make us feel loved.

Hunneymooooooon

We are currently honeymooning so don't expect much of a post here-- we've got better things to be doing.

However, we had to leave our cozy cabin to come into town to get our marriage certificate (we go off for the visa tomorrow- could use prayers!), and we picked up our wedding pictures while we were here. 18 rolls. They are so good! Scott's gonna post 2 or 3 for ya now, but we'll save most of them for when we have time for a proper post.

Thanks to everyone who came to the wedding, particularly the out-of-towners (Benj, Joshua, Kristen, and Judah, etc.) We loved seeing/meeting you.

And we love being married. :D I love being Mrs. McFarlane. I keep wanting someone to call me that, but it hasn't happened yet.

We will blog more next week when we are in Cabot with my family. We're having so much fun!!!!

I won't give you the details.

You're A Taco Bell!

Lori is a stressed girl today. People aren't doing things in the right order, she's having to change her schedule, she's not happy. Poor baby.

We're at a friend of her family's house. There are lots of people here, my family, her family, the family who live here, their friends, Lori's two aunts. It's crazy.

So I've escaped to a side room. I've had enough of wedding talk for today, but I know there is MUCH more to come. Ah well. The day after tomorrow all this is done. I think this might be the closest I've come in a long time to being stressed, mostly because I can't take charge because I don't know anything and I can't help out because I don't know anything.

We are seperated by far more than a common language.

We being the US and the UK.

Right now, Lori is decorating the groom's cake. It's got a big picture of me on it. Funny.

Have fun, everyone. And see you soon to anyone who is coming to the wedding. Email if anyone needs any help/picked up/blablabla.

Blindfolds and Funny Cards

Well, Lori decided that she'd head off and call that photographer. We're at the U of A (University of Arkansas, non-Arkansites) computer lab. Nice fast net connection. No dialup. Bleh. Sorry Manda.

I'm having a LOT of fun. Lori is going crazy, but she'll get by and we'll be married soon anyway. Yay.

I have my mandolin! That means I'm the happiest person in the world. My Lori is a lovely wife to be, you're right Benj.

She just got back, and is now correcting me. Heh. I am almost married indeed.

Thankfully, she laughed at that. I thought she'd hit me on the arm and call me a butthead.

Later. I'm off to sleep, I had to get up at 7!

Fuzzy Handcuffs and Delayed Flights

If anyone blames us for not posting, you're crazy! We're having a wedding in 3 days!

But to keep everyone happy, here's a wee post.

We are busy and crazy and I personally am losing my mind, but in a totally good way. Scott has been keeping me calm, which is a great feat. This is what I love him for, among other things.

A couple things have gone not as planned but I think we're working through it. (I am noticing that I'm leaving a lot of comma splices in this post--that's how busy I am!)

Tonight was my lingerie shower and Scott got a lot of cool stuff.

Scott's family is all here and I love having them around. Us four kids (me, Scott, Pete, and Kate--and possibly Amanda) are planning a wee scheme.... More on that later. It's a surprise. Ooh suspense....

This isn't coherent, is it?

That's enough for now. My mind is spinning in a hundred different directions right now and I've got quite a list of things to do that I need to check off. One is call the photographer right now....

Cheerio!

Scott is sitting behind me!!! He's playing Amanda's guitar. At least he's not playing his new pitch pipe that I got him to go with his new mandolin. (The mandolin's not here yet for him to play but Mom'll bring it up Wednesday. So for now it's the pitch pipe. I'm so glad he found a guitar to play instead.)

Ah, having him here feels so GREAT! I am so thoroughly happy. I love running around with him, running errands, or eating dinner. Whatever. I love all of it.

And I have been loving playing house. Now before any of you married types come on and tell me that'll get old quick, I know that already. But for now, I love ironing his shirts and asking what he wants for breakfast (though this morning I didn't make the pancakes he asked for, I didnt have time before church.)

Frankly, right now I could care less about blogging so I'm gonna go. I'd rather play with my Scott. (Plus its murderously scorching in this back room- no air circulation, I'm about to sweat to death.)

I'll talk later when I'm less hot and more bored with Scott.

Scott's gonna be here in, like, 11.5 hours. AYEIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Early In The Morning

Greetings.

It's 2:27. I'm staying up all night in an effort to battle the evil that is jet lag. Or prevent it, or something along those lines. I think it might be more to do with the fact that I don't want to have to wake up at 5:30.

I leave to get married in a few hours. These are my last few hours of being a kid, living in my parents house, not having to be too responsible, knowing that my parents will always tidy the kitchen when I can't be bothered to.

After today, everything is on my/our shoulders. I have to be a man. No longer a young man. An adult. A husband. Weird.

It's all very exciting. :).

I see Lori soon. My body clock will be thinking that it's like 4 in the morning on Saturday. I'll be grumpy. I hope she puts up with it. Not too grumpy, since I'll be very happy.

Yawn. I'm looking forward to sleeping on the plane. I hope they have Gameboy emulators on the little seat-screen things again. With new games. I finished the good'uns last time.

Coldilocks and the Three Brrrs/Party Like It's 1999

It's getting cold outside. I love that!

I was gonna be all ser./emo but not after having read Scott's post about the songs we're having at our reception.

It's gonna be a regular Junior High dance, folks. I might even ask my friend Evin to bring his karaoke machine. My ex-dj is making a mix for us as well which I imagine will be full of great surprises for everyone, except perhaps Mammaw and Pappaw. I suppose after 10 minutes Mammaw will be harping at me to "turn that racket down." (Daddy probably won't be too much of a fan either, but he'll be so sad that his little girl is going away that he won't say anything. Kinda like with the tattoo. He's learned to pick his battles in his old age.) Pappaw will still be fuming over the wine at the rehearsal dinner the night before, and as far as I know, dancing is a sin to them Pentycostals so I don't imagine him taking Mammaw by the arm and dancing the gig to "Two Become One". All this is ok though, because it's my wedding, and I want to dance!

I don't know if we picked enough slow songs. I'll have to look back over the list. I haven't put much thought into the way the reception should go. Perhaps we'll put in the ex-dj's mix while people are arriving and we're taking pictures. Then when we come in, we'll begin by dancing our dance (or is that too slow to begin the wild festivities? Perhaps we should enter with howling fanfare and kick off the dance party with Justin Timberlake- Rock Your Body.) We'll see how the evening goes. If you're coming to the wedding, my plan is to do my best to not be one of those snotty brides who suddenly forgets she has friends and walks around taking care of business. No, friends, my business is taken care of, let's rock our socks off! (There will be more business to take care of later, but we'll try to make it through a good part of the reception first.)

Scott and I will be dancing our famous first dance to the beautiful sounds of The Polyphonic Spree's "Days Like These (Keep Me Warm)". This song is very special to us- it brings back memories of last summer, sitting at his kitchen table late at night, before we had the nerve to hold hands or admit any affection, playing songs for each other and "innocently" playing footsie with our socked feet. Days like those have kept me warm during the long, cold separation, and a day like our wedding day will keep us warm for many more years to come. So "our song" seems appropriate for such a day and such a dance.

(Besides, The Polyphonic Spree grew out of Tripping Daisy, and how much more appropriate could you get for a Lori-wedding, short of Tripping Daisy itself? Only Radiohead would make it more Scott-n-Lori appropriate.)

This is gonna be a fun party. Andrew Byrns, be brushing up on your Savage Garden, for we've got some karaoking to do!

I can't wait to see/meet everybody.
(Mammaw would be shocked at the thought that I've got about 6 or so internet friends coming to my wedding- people I've never ever met in real life. It is rather disturbing in a way.)

3 posts in a day. We're making you guys look bad. You guys being everyone who doesn't post 3 times a day.

I just got finished making downloading the tracks for the mix cds. Some of them were deceptively tricky to lay hands on (for some reason, the New Radicals don't like to be downloaded). Of course, I own most of these tracks already, fear not, moral types. My cds are simply in big boxes waiting to move.

So they are burning as we speak. Behold:

Dancing Queen - Abba
Total Eclipse Of The Heart - Bonnie Tyler
Two Become One - Spice Girls
Sha Sha- Ben Kweller
In Other Words - Ben Kweller
Love Is All Around - The Troggs
Turn Me On - Norah Jones
Dance with Me - Justin Timberlake
Toxic - Britney Spears
Release Me - Wilson Phillips
Me, Myself & I - De La Soul
Intergalactic - Beastie Boys
You're The Inspiration - Chicago
Dylan In The Movies - Belle and Sebastian
Girls Just Wanna Have Fun - Cyndi Lauper
Rocket Man - Elton John
Crazy In Love - Beyonce
Heart's Design - Aqueduct
Get What You Give - New Radicals
Living On A Prayer - Bon Jovi
Sexual Healing - Marvin Gaye
It Must Be Love - Madness
Something - The Beatles
I Believe In A Thing Called Love - The Darkness
Nothing Compares To You - Sinead O'Connor
Hero - Enrique Iglesias
Break On Through - The Doors
Strumming My Pain - The 'Fugees
New York, New York - Frank Sinatra
Senorita - Justin Timberlake
Eternal Flame - The Bangles
Hey Ya - Outkast
Come What May - Moulin Rouge
Jump For Your Love - Pointer Sisters
God Only Knows - Beach Boys
Truly, Madly, Deeply - Savage Garden



Par. Tay.

Not To Be Outdone

By Lori's flagrant spamming of this blog, I shall post.

Kidding, dearest.

I've been a busy, busy bombus terrestris these last few days. Leases, passports, packing, work, stuff, rings, etc. It's been the busiest I think I've ever been. I even got up at 6 this morning!

Although, if I kept a closer eye on my passport, that could have been avoided. Either I, or my good employers, misplaced it at some point after I joined the company. I blame them, they blame me. They're probably right, but I'm sticking to my guns.

Right now I'm making the mix cds for our reception. I'm getting married in, like, no days. Wow.

Poetry

I'm not fond of my poetry blog right now. I don't like to post on it because I know no one wants to go there and read poems. So I'm trying something new. From now on, when I feel like posting a poem, I will post here and post it simultaneously there. So if you ever like a poem and want to find it easily, it'll be there, at Drop of Daylight.

Because I'm moving to Scotland soon, and Scott will be here soon (3 days!!!) this is a wee poem inspired by the uninspiring gray skies of Scotland.

In Memory of Corduroy

Scotland skies on a normal day
mock that gray corduroy skirt
I wore every Tuesday, Chapel Day,
when I was ten.

Chapel with its dim lights and songs and prayers
shadowed my friendlessness like a friend.
I fit in with Mary and Jesus
who also wore homemade dresses
and messy hair.

The stained glass masked my stained
corduroy skirt, and praising the Lord
lifted my heavy eyes right to the pulpit
across the altar into the baptismal.

About Nothing

I need to write a light-hearted post, lest I lose too many readers.

A Light-Hearted Post -by Lori

My favorite color is pink.

I don't know when pink became my favorite color, but at one point in time it suddenly thus became and was as if it always had been so.

I was a tomboy as a little girl. Though admittedly I had a penchant for Barbie dolls, I was far more interested in GI Joes and Transformers over baby dolls, dirty blue jeans over pretty dresses, and baseball over softball. And heaven forbid this child put on a pink anything. Oh I imagine the frustration I must've caused my poor mother when she tried to dress me in some pink garment sewn lovingly (or perhaps manipulatively) by my grandmother. I don't remember any specific time when I threw a fit over something pink, but I do remember the aggrevation I caused my dad when he tried to make me wear a pair of green tennis shoes they had bought me, and if I threw that much of a fuss over green tennis shoes, I can't imagine my reaction if a pink sundress was ever forced over my head.

But one day, I loved pink. And everyone suddenly accepted it as if I'd always loved pink. It was suddenly something that everyone knew about me, how much Lori loves pink. I had a pink bathroom in my first apartment, complete with pink towels, pink posters, a pink Powerpuff girl, and pink floor mat. Pink soap dispenser and trashcan, too.

Today I am wearing my pink coat. Saturday I was depressed because I couldn't find pink pillow shams to complete mine and Scott's bedding ensemble. (We are compromising with a brown and now purple bedroom.) [UPDATE: I think it's worth announcing that I just found the perfect pink shams on eBay and am trying to convince the seller to let me to Buy Them Now. Please pray.] I wear pink lipstick.

I wanted a pink wedding, but Scott said no. I love the red color I chose, but I still kind of wish it were all pink.

Here is an article about pink.

If you want to know why pink is my favorite color, this is why:
1. Some flowers are pink.
2. Some shoes are pink.
3. Pink is the color of blushing.
4. Pink is a girl color. And some boys can like pink, too.
5. Sometimes sunsets are pink.
6. Blondes sometimes look good in pink, and I'm a blonde now.
7. An old lady in Wal-Mart told me that she learned on Hollywood Squares that men like women in pink, any shade of pink, and she'd like to get a pink coat like mine.
8. Pink is cheeful and dainty and flirty all at once.

These are some of the reasons I like pink. My future daughters probably won't like pink, except for maybe Eleanor, certainly not Sophia, and this is just fine. I won't decorate my baby-girls' room in pink, but yellow because yellow is my second favorite color, and it's not so typical.