Various and Sundry Monday: Vol. 6

What this world needs is a new kind of army — the army of the kind.
–Cleveland Amory

Another Rainy Monday Music Spot: Rhythm of the Rain
I think I finally put my finger on why I love rain so much. Utah is a desert state and it doesn't rain much here so I see every single drop of rain as a miracle. Since miracles don't happen every day, it is nice to have a front row seat when they do. Today is another lovely rainy Monday. Actually, it's been raining since yesterday afternoon and I've been really enjoying everything about it. Here's another of my favorite songs about rain.


Change Is Bitter-Sweet
I mentioned yesterday that I was released from my calling in the Primary Presidency in our ward. We kind of have our own vocabulary , so if you're wondering exactly what that means {or even if you're not}, this is the scoop. All service in our church is voluntary, from the top on down. Unlike most volunteer jobs, you don't get to choose what you do. I guess you could say that we volunteer by assignment. Each assignment is called a calling, and just as you don't get to pick what you do, you also don't get to pick for how long. I've been in Primary {the children's organization} for about three years now, first as a classroom teacher and then as a member of the presidency {leadership organization}. And I have grown to love it so much. I've worked in Primary before; twice as a teacher, which was hard for me because I didn't have kids of my own yet and didn't know all the tricks that you get to know when you live with little people. I was also the pianist for the Primary in the ward we live in now for a couple of years after we moved here. I really enjoyed that, but this last three years in the Primary have been the best. I am really going to miss the children and the wonderful feeling that accompanies them.

It is sad to say goodbye to something that has been such a big part of my life for the last three years; a service that has been a pleasure to me and more of a blessing than a sacrifice. I feel kind of like a cast-off. Yes. I will miss Primary. Knowing how I felt, and not being able to be with me much after I found out {they let me know a few days in advance} because our work schedules are opposite, Mr. Bug had the most beautiful roses I have ever seen delivered to me on Saturday afternoon. I'm going to pretend I didn't see how much they cost. The note said, Happy Mother's Day! Congrats for "graduating" Primary. I love you. Mr. Bug always knows how to put things into perspective.

Is One of These Things Not Like The Others?
Last week I showed you my list of current projects. The list only covers projects I'd like to finish by June 30^th {which keeps creeping closer and closer}. That is probably why I didn't include the Sudoku quilt I'm working on. It is a longer-term project but sill something I'm working on right now. It is pretty much the only crafty thing I've worked on in the last two weeks. Work has been really overwhelming the last few weeks and I haven't had much time at all for anything creative. I did some {more} sorting of the polka-dot fabrics, and I got all nine of my fabrics cut to their 4½" squares for the Sudoku quilt. I'm going to be teaching a class on it for a group of women at my church. I'm really looking forward to it.

I asked Mr. Bug what he thought and he said they go together pretty well. Then he said that the flowers on yellow {thanks, P. } kind of made him think, one of these things is not like the others. I think it is the two prints on either side of it that make it not quite fit in. Admittedly, this quilt did not go in the direction I was planning. I was thinking more mellow-and-yellow to set off that beautiful floral print, but I like this color combination really well. The modern-ish prints on the turquoise and green fabrics contrast with the vintage feel of the florals. I still think it works pretty well, so I don't think I will go stash diving again .

I {still} ♥ Tulips
This is what is blooming in my yard today. Most of the buds are closed because of the rain, but they are still exceedingly beautiful. {Right} click on the photo for a closer view.

The End of the Tunnel
I'm starting to get Carpal Tunnel. The heels of my hands had been bothering me for a week or so, and so last week after being woken up and not being able to go back to sleep because they ached so much, I went to the source of all knowledge {the internet} to see if my symptoms matched Carpal Tunnel. Sure enough, they did. It must be all that texting I'm doing lately . I'll be getting new keyboards for work and home {probably those funky, split, ergonomic kind}. And I've started doing exercises to hopefully prevent further damage. I do them while I'm eating breakfast. I do them sitting at stop lights on my way to and from work. I do them while I'm laying in bed at night trying to go to sleep. They seem to be helping a bit.

I'm thinking it kind of sucks when the old equipment starts wearing out. I've been putting off going to see the optometrist for eight or nine months because I can't read small print anymore — yeah, it's time for bifocals . The really hilarious thing is that somebody out there has got me on a 55-and-older list because I keep getting flyers and postcards in the mail for retirement communities. There's nothing like being told you're past your prime when retirement is a good 30 years off into the future.

Much Ado About The Doctor's Socks
David Tennant, my all time favorite Doctor was on a British talk-show promoting his latest Shakespeare performance. Along with him was his Doctor co-star, Catherine Tate, who is also performing in Much Ado About Nothing with David. They got onto the subject of little OCD things that you have to do and I could totally relate to David's OCD tendency towards matching socks. But what was absolutely brilliant was his solution. Catherine's is a bit weird but she's first, so if you want to skip to David, go 36 seconds into the clip.