Chincoteague diary

This week was a highly feminine combination of dragons, movies, books, and food, especially butter and rosemary. We ate well and enjoyed pretty well everything!

Saturday, March 18th
We drove out and had problems with trucks (getting caught behind a dump truck twice before getting off campus, making three wrong turns, getting assistance from a pickup at one turn-around and getting caught behind a stopped semi at another).
In Kirsten’s car: Carolyn and Maggie.
In Tiffany’s car: Lisa and Shelley.
In Helen’s car: Hannah, Sarah, and Angela.
Lunch and retrieving sheets at Kirsten’s house—blessings on Mrs. Etherton!
I finished Zahn’s Survivor’s Quest.
We found the rental office and retrieved house keys.
We arrived at the Red House, unloaded vehicles, explored, and settled in. There were five bedrooms, three bathrooms, a big kitchen, a gazebo nobody went into, and a graveyard just past the backyard.
Lisa made dinner: spaghetti and salad.
I took a cold bath and Shelley turned up the hot-water heater.
We watched Someplace in Time and Cheaper by the Dozen.

“The moral of the story, if you can’t live happily on earth in your own time—” Lisa
“You should die!” Helen 3-18-06

“I feel a bath coming on.” Carolyn 3-18-06


Sunday, March 19th
Tiffany made chocolate chip pancakes.
We visited Union Baptist church; good teaching, though not terribly friendly.
The pastor (among other, more spiritual things :-)) talked about how our idea of love is to get married, discover you got the ugly stepsister or the toad instead of Cinderella or the Prince and then go marry somebody else’s cast-off toad.
We made a pilgrimage to Food Lion.
Lisa, Angela, and I went to Assateague, the beach and forest, and saw ponies.
Hannah made us biscuits and gravy.
Maggie made us a birthday cake for her birthday which was last week and opened presents.
We all read one of her books, Viva La Repartee. It was full of brilliant quotes.
Tiff and Shelley tried to break into the attic without actually breaking in.
I had a hot bath.
I finished Edwin Abbott’s Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions.
We watched Life is Beautiful.

“I am convinced the zombies will not get you on your way to take out the trash.” Carolyn
“You never know.” Kay
“If the zombies come, just scream and we’ll all come out wielding spoons.” Helen 3-19-06
“Poor zombies!” Kay 3-25-06

“I think it would make an interesting story if you married Prince Charming and he turned into a toad.” Helen 3-19-06

Monday, March 20th
I made French toast, bacon, and two pots of coffee, the second of which exploded.
Schoolwork started in earnest.
I explored the graveyard next to the house.
Some of the girls walked down Main Street to see the shops (nearly all of which were closed) and the used book stores (where I bought poems by I. A. Richards). The rest of them stayed home and watched Empire Strikes Back.
Angela made us a salmon loaf and Lisa made brownies.
We watched Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow.

“You don’t punch someone in the face when they are about to save the world!” Lisa 3-20-06


Tuesday, March 21st
It snowed all morning.
Tiff tried to make us waffles but the waffle iron was weird, so they turned into pancakes.
When Angela attempted to help her salvage the waffles, they started the stove on fire because the oil soaking the waffle iron dripped off the iron as they were flipping it and drizzled onto the gas burner—this is a bad thing.
I did laundry and made potato soup for lunch.
It rained all afternoon.
I went stir-crazy and ran around outside the house twice and felt better.
Maggie made us lamb with rosemary for dinner.
We watched the Matrix and then swing danced in the dining room till past midnight.

“Did the waffles work?” Carolyn
“Kind of. Tiffany’s making pancakes now and told me to destroy the evidence.” Angela
“It doesn’t look too bad. If you have any more evidence I’ll help you destroy it!” Lisa 3-21-06

Coming into the kitchen after waffle, coffee, and ant problems: “Are we having any more explosions or invasions or anything?” Helen 3-21-06

The Matrix gives Helen warm fuzzies. “I like my warm fuzzies in black leather.” Helen 3-21-06


Wednesday, March 22nd
We all slept late.
Lisa and I went to McDonald’s all afternoon and wrote papers most productively. Mr. Pibb is very conducive to writing papers.
Then we went on to Assateague and explored the marshes, saw the lighthouse and ponies, and went back to the beach.
Hannah and Sarah rode their bikes to Assateague and Lisa and I kept leap-frogging them, passing them in the car. J
A policeman flashed his lights at us while we were at the beach, so we hurried back to the car. Happily, we hadn’t parked in the wrong place or anything; he just wanted to tell us the park closed at six and we were crazy for going in because it was cold. I pleaded that I was from New Mexico and I hadn’t gone much in.
I had another hot bath.
Shelley made us Carolina chicken and dumplings, Hannah chocolate chip cookies, and Angela orange juliuses.
I made a pot of coffee, only forgot to put the grounds in, much to everyone’s hilarity.
Then we watched Return of the Jedi and an episode of Lost.

“I feel like a big bowl of chocolate ice cream.” Lisa
“I feel like a girl.” Angela
“I imagine a bowl of chocolate ice cream is very happy. And it feels wanted. But then it gets eaten.” Lisa 3-22-06

“Helen is never hungry.” Helen
“And the sun rises in the west.” Hannah 3-22-06


Thursday, March 23rd
Hannah made us cinnamon toast. J
Lisa discovered a fairy upstairs whose preferred prank is unrolling toilet paper.
All of us except Tiff and Lisa went to the beach; Hannah and Maggie bought saltwater taffy on the way back.
Lisa, Maggie, Shelley, Hannah, and I went and had ice cream at the Island Creamery. Yummy!
Kay made us southwestern burrito things with avocado and Spanish rice.
We played Cranium.
We had sort-of fried ice cream, courtesy of Angela.
We watched Kronk’s New Groove.

“I’m not weird, I’m supernormal!” Angela 3-23-06

“Thank you for putting on coffee. I firmly believe in coffee after meals.” Hannah
“And before meals, and during meals, and all around meals. Like that St. Patrick’s prayer.” Helen 3-23-06

“Um, our lime water is turning green.” Kay
“Cool!” Carolyn 3-23-06


Friday, March 24th
I made scrambled eggs with veggies and rosemary in them for breakfast. Kay decided she does not like rosemary.
They watched two disks of Firefly.
Leftovers were eaten.
Lisa, Angela, and I went and studied at the Island Creamery. I read Milton and Macbeth, Angela took an expedition to Pony Tails, and Lisa directorially coordinated with her wireless internet and cell phone.
Helen made fettucine alfredo and we ate upstairs by candlelight and listened to Josh Groban.
We had chocolate ice cream and listened to everybody read aloud what they’d been working on.
We watched Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and decided it was a strange movie.
Then we packed and cleaned. Hannah swept. Thoroughly.
A bunch of people stayed up late watching Bend It Like Beckham and Tiff stayed up even later watching something else.

“Kirsten is competent. She rented this house. That makes her all kinds of competent.” Helen 3-24-06

“That’s the depressing thing about not having Laura in the dorm any more. She was excellent to have about when you wanted to steal small stuffed dogs.” Helen 3-24-06


Saturday, March 25th
I was the first one up and was actually dressed before 7:45 am. Mirabile visu!
I made scrambled eggs again with green onions, celery, and mushrooms (and rosemary, not knowing Kay didn’t like rosemary). Hannah made coffee. We ate anything left in the fridge.
Packing and cleaning commenced.
I turned down the hot-water heater.
Tiff did dishes.
We were all out of the house by 9:50 and had checked out at the rental office by 9:55.
I think we all rode back in the cars we came in.
Kay’s car stopped at Food Lion and Sonic for batteries and cokes.
I typed up quotes.
Kirsten's wonderful mother fed us lunch.
Then we stopped by IKEA and bought two vases, four mugs, a package of napkins, and a cool ice-cube tray, all for $8, while adroitly missing the traffic tangle on the Beltway and reading Lord Peter aloud.
Maggie napped.
Kay: 55 bugs, 42 X-Terras
Carolyn: 24 bugs, 0 X-Terras

And now we are back; for which we are grateful.