Doctor

I went to the doctor today as I'm not quite 100%. The nurse swabbed my throat and such. After a while the doctor came in. She told me the test came back negative for strep, but she would like to look at my throat anyways. She looked at it for all of 3 seconds said "it's pretty nasty in there, looks like strep. We'll treat you for it". So what was the point of the test if they ignore the results anyways?

oh yeah...
Warning: I have strep throat.

Tug of War

The Battle's on...
















Pippin wins!

Oh Mom

My phone rang and Mom decided to answer it. She said hello, the person asked for Charity. My mom's response "she's in time out". The Lady "uh..well this is I Do Bridal-" Mom "Oh here's Charity". Me "Hi. Sorry my mom's crazy". Gotta love her :)

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas

which is possible in Iona!

I'm on a YouTube kick

The difference between boys and girls

I watched this for the first time by myself and chuckled.


Then I showed it to Kurt- he laughed so hard he cried. Watching with him made it 10x funnier. Boys.

Santa

Cutest. Niece. Ever.

Unusual

This isn't supposed to happen in Seattle.

As creative as I get

when it comes to baking

The Goose is Getting Fat!

Home made advent calendars:














lights:














and adorable cards!



















Christmas is coming!

Who wouldn't love this guy?

Even 13 year old girls hit on him while he's bowling.

Quote of the Day

"Your face looks guilty when you're innocent, so when you look innocent you must be guilty"


P.S. apparently I'm on a blog writing kick today.

Happy Thanksgiving

from Wednesday Addams

Fail

1. I was driving and eating on my way to work and I bit my lip really hard, drawing blood.

2. I went to school to watch a movie for my Scandinavian class. I found the appointed location for movie viewing, opened the door and found it was pitch black and completely empty...one minute before class was supposed to start. So I left.

3. I decided to donate blood at the blood truck by the George Washington statue before riding the bus home. An hour later there were still people in front of me waiting to donate. So I left.

4. I went to the bus stop and waited over 20 minutes for the bus to come. (I didn't leave the bus stop, but I did leave campus).

5. I went and saw New Moon soon after arriving home. (I had a great time with Susan Buffalo, so this wasn't a complete fail, but the movie itself was DEFINITELY a fail.) Seriously bad. We laughed at inappropriate times, because it's either laugh or cry since the acting is so bad and the plot so slow. We even got the teenage girls in front of us to turn around and glare because of this behavior. Susan almost fell asleep, so in a stroke of genius she left to buy popcorn to keep us entertained. Popcorn > movie. I thought about leaving.

Hm. 3/5 involved blood. Interesting. Maybe I'm the vampire! I am pretty pale...but my skin doesn't sparkle in the sunshine. I guess that's another fail :)

Adorable!

When my cousin told her 5 year old son I was getting married this was his response: "I thought Charity was going to be my wife".

Kurt, it looks like not all my family likes you after all.

Recent Questions:

Q: You're getting married?!?!?!!
A: Yes

Q: When? Where?
A: March 20th here in Seattle at the LDS temple (which is actually in Bellevue). The reception is at a fabulous location out in Bothell.

Q: What?!? That's so soon!
A: Yep. 4 more months.

C (comment): Wow. Congrats.
A: Yes, I'm excited.


All joking/exasperation aside: I am very excited!!! Wedding planning isn't the most fun, but it's worth it. I can't wait for March!

Gobble Gobble

The name of my Turkey Bowl team this year was H1N1 (what do we do? INFECT!). We had great cheers and lots of fun, but unfortunately that is not a recipe for success. I was rather sore the next day thus proving that football is bad.

Last year was my first time participating in Turkey Bowl down at Husky Stadium- it was also the first one on one time I spent with KGB. Things have progressed since then. Yay for turkeys and bowls!

If you want to be my friend

buy me some of these.



















Preferably from Laduree- This place invented the macaron and they did it right. locations in France, Switzerland, Japan, Ireland, and England. Oh, and they don't deliver.

Shopping

Dresses.

Are.

Pretty.

and expensive...

I would post pictures of the ones I like, but a certain fiance of mine looks at this blog. So blame Kurt :)

Sometimes

you've just got to let it be.

Note to self:

Don't drop things on your ankle. It hurts.

The End.

How to celebrate Halloween

1. Dress up as Charlie Brown and Peppermint Patty



















2. Get engaged (technically this happened on the 30th, but close enough)

Forecast = Rain

My birthday is close! How can I tell? Well, it's on the 10 day weather forecast.

I must admit

It is bizarre to me that people from high school still hang out with each other.

The Fun Theory

The Fun Theory

Spectacular Spectacle

I went to Aunt Kathy's (Kurt's aunt that is) annual cider party today. Delicious. With fresh pressed cider and homemade donuts you can't go wrong. And there was a trampoline. Of course I couldn't resist dusting off the old gymnastics skills. Hailey, Maddy, and I were jumping together. Hailey is a gymnast and began showing off her tricks...so I stepped in and did as well! Her response- "I've never seen anyone as old as you do a flip before".

Druscilla Penny

Fun fact: My mom is a fan of the Carpenters thus we, her children, listened to them all the time growing up. The chorus of the song below really stuck a chord with young Charity- I thought it (mind you, the chorus only) was about me and my sister Ashley- we didn't get along so well when we were little. (I stumbled across this song on YouTube today and had a sudden flashback)



Just FYI Ashley and I get along great now! And she has no idea I ever thought this about this song...until she reads this post.

P.S. I thought Druscilla Penny was a hilarious song growing up (because of the funny name). However, I didn't believe my mom when she told me the Carpenters sang it.

Remember Winnie Remember!

Two weeks ago I came home from school and realized my car was missing. Panic quickly set in. Was my car stolen?!?! I called Jeanette and asked her if she knew where my car was...of course she didn't. Why I thought she would, I don't know. Immediately after hanging up with her, it dawned on me. I drove to school that day. And then I rode the bus home.

Today I was up in my room doing homework. (FYI: I can tell which of my roommates and now Kurt has arrived home by the sound of their cars and the way they climb up the stairs to our front door...my room is facing the street, directly above the front door and I've lived in it for over 3 years). I heard a car and someone approach our house, it was Kurt. I was expecting him, so I was surprised when he called me on my cell phone and asked where I was. "I'm in my room". "Well, your car isn't here". Crap. I did it again.

Happy Birthday Adam! Today, you are my favorite brother-in-law.

Bonus points if you know what movie "Remember Winnie Remember!" is from.

Hook

Today I wish I had discovered Scandinavian Studies and Classics earlier than my junior year of college. Perhaps I wouldn't be a history major. Perhaps I would have majored in something more useful...like Scandinavian Studies or Classics. Why am I only interested in useless majors (meaning majors that can't get me a job)?

In the words of Peter Pan- to graduate college will be an awfully big adventure.

I love my niece!

And my family!








































And my mom!

The Saga Continues

Lady: So how did you two meet? What's your story?

Charity and Kurt: (Tell our story)

Lady: It seems like you two were meant for each other. I met my husband on eHarmony.

Charity and Kurt: (jaws drop)


We told her our "eHarmony" story and she assured us it was definitely a compliment.

Paintball

The cool part starts at about 30 seconds.

UW

Today was the first day of my last year at UW. I saw a guy carrying a stuffed animal lion on his shoulders, saw another guy doing yoga in the quad wearing jeans and a button down shirt, ran into a million different people (it was 5), got hit with someone's keys, remembered how annoying over-talkative/show-off types are who aren't always on topic with their comments, and discovered I have two great professors (we'll see about the third tomorrow) that will make this a great quarter. I love UW. And that is not sarcastic (in case you weren't sure).

Headlines

I keep using too much shampoo.

Tea for Two

Kurt and Charity went out to eat at The 5 Spot in Queen Anne.

At the end of our meal, the waiter said: "You two look like an eHarmony commercial...wait...you didn't meet online did you?"

Is that a complement?

Life is good...

and full of frustration.

As if doing it once wasn't difficult enough, I had to quit my job at the IMA 3 times. Apparently telling your boss to her face "I cannot work in the fall" is not clear enough.

My computer just decided to freak out. iTunes was not working and neither was the internet. I restarted. Apparently there was a corrupted file which took 15 minutes to delete. Then it finally turned back on. Now Internet Explorer won't work (luckily I also have Safari) and iTunes keeps on giving me issues. And now I'm going to bed at 1am instead of midnight.

Sorry to complain especially since it has been great to be home. I love Seattle, my friends and family and I'm so happy to be in regular contact with them again. I love my bed, ice in beverages, the price of gum (and everything else), screens in windows, English (the language), and even the food. It's good to be home.

Final Countdown

Today is my last day in Paris. Crazy.

I bought a children's book at the Louvre a few days ago. It is kind of like "Where's Waldo" but each page is a different location in Paris. It was really exciting to flip through and realize that I've been to many of the places in it. But, there were several I had not been to. So while Kurt was here he indulged my endeavor to find some of these places (despite the fact that he only had 2 days in Paris and wanted to see other things and was terribly jetlagged for most of the time). Now, there are only 4/24 (I think) places I have not been that are illustrated in this book. I plan on printing off pictures of all the places I've been and putting them in the book as proof. I'm pretty excited about it.

The picture was taken at a Roman Arena still standing in Paris from the days when it was part of the Roman Empire.

The Surrealist Guide to Paris

Our final project for my Paris class is to create two entries for "The Surrealist Guide to Paris".

For my first entry I chose (surprise!) The Eiffel Tower, but more specifically the Eiffel Tower at night when it's all lit up and sparkling. Pretty sweet! I wrote an entry about it (I don't tell you the history, but just my experience there...which should make you want to go) and instead of attaching a picture I made a collage. The collage is based off of a photo I took of the tower from underneath. It's made of pieces of paper I've collected while in Paris including receipts, pieces of brochures, and a metro pass. It is on yellow paper because it glows at night and on the hour it "sparkles" so the small, round, yellow circles represent that.







My second entry is about the small park behind Notre Dame. I wrote about my hour spent there, a most glorious hour indeed. I also did a collage for this entry, but it's quite different. I wrote about park benches, trees with shade, being fenced off from the city, and pidgeons. So, I found pictures of those things (the background and tree are actually cut out of one of the books for this class) and put them all together. The most tedious part was cutting out space between the individual bars of the fence so my guy on the bench could fit behing them and still be seen. Also, I couldn't find a picture of a bird in my limited selection so I just "wrote" it out.




I hope that this will be suffiecient. We weren't given a lot of instruction, so I just did whatever. We'll see! I present on Thursday.

P.S. Sorry if there have been a lot of spelling/grammar errors in the blogposts of late. I can get blogspot in English, but spellcheck is for the French language...not very useful.

Chartres!

A church was built in Chartres, France in which was kept the veil of Mary. It was burned down in a viking attack. Then it was decided to build a stone cathedral. The towns folk were resistant to have it built due to extra taxes, but before it was finished, the church burned down again. Three days later, 3 priests rose from the rubble with the veil of the Virgin Mary entirely intact. After this miracle the town willingly gave money to have the cathedral built. Years later they rebuilt the second tower (which fell in the fire) and it is therefore built in a different style. If I remember correctly it's new vs. old gothic. This is one of the oldest cathedrals in Europe and the first to build such a huge facade for the entry way. Chartres became the center of the Virgin Mary cult in France and eventually throughout Europe. People still make pilgrimmages every year. Unfortunately, it has been discovered the veil was not actually Mary's- it's origin has been traced to Africa (I can't remember where).

Wandering Presentation

On my wanderings I came across a church. I walked in and sat down. It was there I had my surrealist experience. Immediately afterwards I wrote this:

"I entirely forgot my location. Paintings, statues, and mosaic tiles cover every inch of the church I sit in. Displays of modern art spaced throughout contrast the rest of the building. Despite the splendor, I forgot my surroundings and got completely lost in places I've already been. I look up, take a moment to remember reality, and return to enjoying the church."

The picture is of the seat I sat in while this experience occured. Just as I was in the church but not seeing anyting around me because I was lost in my own head, this picture is within the church but you cannot see any of its grandeur.

Wish me luck!

Second Time Around

I went to Notre Dame for the second time today. It was packed, as it is Sunday, and stuff was going on. There was an organ concert while Sarah and I were there. My personal opinion is that the organ playing is a bit creepy. The organist had mad skills, but the song was a tad on the eerie side. After the song ended and I'd taken enough pictures (mostly of the Rosette windows- I LOVE them) we headed outside. Behind the cathedral there's a small park with a bunch of benches. We sat under the trees while people passed, children played on the toys, and an old man played the harmonica. It was fantastic. I love Notre Dame.

Sacre Coeur

I went here today:

You can't miss it. In Paris it's the big, white, domed building on top of a huge hill that looks like it had Indian or Muslim influence (it reminds me of the Taj Mahal). But it's actually a Catholic church. While there we got to see some sort of service. The organ played rather creepily and then a nun came out and set up a microphone and music stand and then sat down. After a while this little old woman stood up and started to sing. She was pretty dang good. A priest (is that right...I'm not up on my Catholic terminology) came out and spoke between verses. It was interesting, but I have no idea what anyone said. Some people were there for the service, they knew when to stand and kneel and even sang along with the nun. I think it would be so weird to have a church service with tourists walking all around, buying souvenirs in the gift shop, and street performers just outside playing loud music for their acts. I appreciate being allowed to go into such magnificent structures. They are beautiful and impressive, but I almost felt like I was interrupting as I had no idea what was going on and I am not Catholic. At least no one was taking picturs (supposedly) because that was not allowed. All in all, it was a good experience and I'm glad we went.

The Fountain

Here is the Fountain, on display in the Pompidou Museum of modern art in Paris.

Marcel Duchamp was on a board to choose art pieces for an exhibit. He entered this piece under the pseudonym "R. Mutt" (hence the signature). It was immediately thrown out, with no one (except Duchamp) understanding how a urinal could be art. Later Duchamp made a fuss saying he wanted to buy the piece because Mutt was the only entry that truly understood what art is. Art is not the object, it is the concept (according to him and the Surrealists).

So...that makes sense, right?

Happy Birthday KGB!

Happy Birthday to You!



















Happy Birthday to You!



















Happy Birthday Dear Kuuurrrt!















Happy Birthday to you!



















Happy Birthday KGB!

Flea Market!

I went to my first swap meet today. There was some awesome merchandise and great deals. And you can bargain for lower prices! I'm not very good at it, but I saved a few bucks.

Here are Sarah and I at the market:




















My first purchase-
I got a few Euros knocked off the price.




















My second purchase-
(I didn't barter for it. It was pretty cheap already and there were a lot of people around so the lady wasn't paying much attention to me.)





















And I bought a secret 3rd item (which I did some bartering for) but it's a gift so no picture.

Yay for flea markets!

Homework Assignment: Wandering

"As I walk down the streets searching for something "surreal" I'm distracted by shops and restaurants. I think of the souvenirs I need to buy for others and things I want to buy for myself. So I do. Then I'm fascinated by the buildings and roads. I love the windows adorned with flowers and how the streets make no sense. They suddenly split into 3 and the buildings shrink and expand to accommodate. Grand structures are found down narrow streets and magnificent restaurants with fantastic mousse hide in side roads. They don't need to advertise their grandeur, they simply are. I realize there is no need to search for something "surreal" for according to those who know more than I reality is surreal...a little boy just walked by wearing no pants, only underwear".

I wrote this sitting here:





















"We happened upon the Palace and Gardens of Luxembourg. Absolutely beautiful and dare I say "surreal". There is nothing similar back home. Being here would feel like a step back in time if not for the thousands of people with their cameras, iPods, and cell phones wearing modern clothing which surround me. I'm resting now, sitting in the shade watching people pass and birds fly by as sweat appears on my skin. This doesn't quite seem true- to be in Paris seems beyond reality."

I wrote this here:





















"We're sitting on the banks of the Seine, not too far from Notre Dame. Falling in the river would be disasterous, but I wish it wasn't so far away so I could dangle my feet in the cool water. The birds fly too close for comfort- they are not afraid of people. It has been a glorious day."

I wrote my final entry here:














*The class I am taking while here in Paris is on the Surrealist movement (hence the assignment. We'll be "presenting" our wanderings in a couple weeks")

*For more pictures of today's adventures go to my Facebook page!

The Passages of Paris

Why is Paris called the City of Lights? Why do the women dress so fancy? It's because of the passages of course! That's pa-sage...pronounced in French. They are pathways which go directly through buildings. Back in the day streets were all muddy and it was only through these passages that people could keep out of the mud (unless they were in a carriage). They had glass roofs to let in light, large mirrors to reflect that light, and gas lamps to keep them well lit at night. It was the only city which lit up at night. Trust-fund women would hang-out in these passages and could see their reflections in the large mirrors. They became places to show off your great style- perhaps only to yourself. Less reputable women also adorned these locations and many lived in the apartments above them. Men could go upstairs and return to the passage below...good times. They essentially became the first malls- enclosed spaces (mostly) lined with shop windows to entice customers into their stores.

We explored several different passages today. Many of the original passages no longer exist but there still are some- a few are still fancy locations.

Lined with shops (most are closed because it's August and Parisians are on holiday)





















Tiled floors





















Statues (only one had a statue)




















Clocks (all had clocks and beautiful ceilings)

















and glass ceilings

Parisians

1. Have been quite nice and helpful thus far.

2. Seem a bit stuck up.

3. Smell. At least some do. They should use deodorant.

4. Do not have good directions to the RER (train) but great directions for the train system.

5. their city is quiet- at least our sector.

time to find food and explore.

Cherokee People Cherokee Pride

I got a package today. It contained my new phone, capable of being used in France. However, it was not sent to me. It was sent to "Cherokee R. Johnson". I've been miscalled several things in my life from Cherry to Trudy, mainly due to my inability to say my own name clearly, but Cherokee is definitely a new one. Also, my middle name is Ann.

Auntie Chew!

Meggie had her baby! On July 31. Her name is Charlotte Cathryn Roth. Yay!

July 31

6 days 'til Utah.

15 days 'til Paris.

The summer is just beginning.


*And my neice was born. (It didn't happen until later)

What do you see?

Grandpa's Garden

(sorry it's sideways)

Luxury

I'm here at my grandparents house and it is wonderful. And you know what is fantastic (aside from spending time with G&G and the homemade meals- meaning grown in the garden and bread freshly baked)? The endless supply of clean, fresh towels. Seriously, having an abundance of clean towels is fantastic- at home (being a college student) I only own 3-4 towels and they're not nice fancy ones. They're kind of old. And two of them are orange. It's like staying in a fancy hotel. And my grandparents got new computers with high speed internet, so it's really fancy pants.

I love it here.

And Sarah Hammond does too. I don't know how you couldn't.

(FYI: the towels are far from the only reason why this place is great.)

P.S. Pictures to come- we went on a bike ride today.

Goodnight

I'm dead tired. My throat is sore. My head pounds. My neck aches. I've spent most of the day sick in bed. But, alas, I went to the midnight showing of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. It was good. Go see it.

Row 34

We (= Kurt, Jeanette, Sarah, and I) went to a Mariner's game last night. It was a blast even though we lost. Here's what was annoying: the two boys in front of us making moose noises. The drunk guys behind us making rude, annoying, and loud comments. The darn jumbo-tron camera people! They were literally RIGHT NEXT TO US. Sitting in the row behind us. Walking past us in the aisle (our seats were on the aisle), Sarah attempted to make eye contact several times (I think she was successful a time or two), but we never got on the big screen. They were only interested in children. If they saw a kid who could dance well they'd take him into better lighting and then film him for all to see. They did not like adults.

Clean Room

I rearranged and thoroughly cleaned my room today. I love the feeling of having a clean room. I don't know why that is. Perhaps I feel like I've accomplished something? Or maybe I don't feel the guilt of looking at my room and thinking "I really should clean"? Whatever it is, it reinforces my determination to keep my room clean- we'll see how long that lasts.
It doesn't look like anything special, but I assure you it is much cleaner. And, for those who have not seen my room before, I switched locations of the chair/small table and bed. This is the third arrangement I've had in my small room since I've lived here. Hm. I guess that's a rearrangement for each year I've lived here. And I still love my room!

P.S. Sarah is playing the kazoo for me right now.

HP6

Take note of the month it was supposed to come out originally:



It was supposed to be released 8 months ago. Lame. Hopefully this means the next two movies will come out rather quickly.

Here's a newer more revealing preview (a warning in case you haven't read the book):

Oh Canada!

The only reason I knew it was Canada Day on Monday was because Cake Wrecks saluted it along with Wheel of fortune. I then verified it on my calendar.
















(I'm flying Air Canada to Paris)

Wild Beasts

This evening I left KGB's (that's Kurt) house and drove home. I hopped out of my car and started walking toward my front porch. I noticed some movement and thought it was a cat. A big cat. Wait. No. IT WAS BAND OF RACCOONS! Three of them. Sitting at the bottom of my steps. And they didn't scurry away at the sight of me. They stared at me. I backed up immediately. If I took a step closer the big one would stand up. I may have freaked out a little (and KGB has the voice mail to prove it...plus a 6 min. conversation). "Rabies. I'm going to get rabies. Or my face will be scratched off". And what does Kurt say? They don't have rabies, so it's not big deal if they bite you. No big deal? NO BIG DEAL? These are wild animals!...of urban Seattle. They finally moved away a little bit and I ran for my life. The big one stopped when he (or she) saw me running, turned around, and picked up one front leg like a dog getting ready to attack. I made it up the steps and tried to open the door. It was locked. I fumbled for my keys, put them in the door, turned the key the wrong way, then finally got in. Closed the door, locked it, freaked out for a bit more, came upstairs, and wrote a blog post about it.







The end.

Fine

I'll be like everyone else and write about Michael Jackson. Here's what I have to say:

The guy creeps me out. I am not doubting his talent, the guy knows his music, but he is scary. I never understood why so many young (and older) girls were in love with the guy. Maybe that's because his popularity was a little before my time and the Michael Jackson of my time was much different....certain trials and such. But, back to my first point. The guy gives me the heebie-jeebies. Ask Sarah Hammond- she has tricked me into looking at his picture just to freak me out.

Ok. Sorry MJ. Sorry to be so cruel. So I'll say it again- the guy has some great songs. Thriller, Billie Jean, Beat it, and my generation's favorite, Will You Be There? The guy is a legend.

Envelope

Dear Office Depot:

Thank you for giving me a free greeting card envelope! I appreciate it mucho.

Sincerely,

Charity Johnson

Found:

A rock:



















A name in the sand:














and a giant Rubik's Cube

















all found at Rosario Beach in Anacortes, WA on June 13, 2009.