This abusive relationship needs to stop. For all the time I devote to you, I'm not getting the love and respect I deserve. We've been going steady for a while now - it's time to stop playing hard to get. I can't hold this relationship together by myself. I need some positive feedback from you. You've got me on an emotional roller coaster. Most days I just don't understand you at all; you keep me up at night trying to figure you out. I'm tired of crying over you. I want to quit you, but every time I'm ready to walk away, you remind me how interesting and beautiful you are. I remember how great life is when we're getting along, the exhilaration I feel when I discover something new about you. I want it to work between us, but I can't do it alone. Enough with the enigmas - open up and let me know you love me back!
Love and confusion,
Hallie
10/13/07
9/29/07
Czech-xas
On most days of the year, absolutely nothing happens in Caldwell, Texas. Then there's the second Saturday in September, when the town is flooded with visitors, local and out-of-town vendors, and kolaches for the annual Kolache Festival. It's enough of a happening that it even rates a mention on Wikipedia's kolache page. At this point you might be wondering, what is a kolache? A) It is delicious. B) It is a traditional Czech pastry consisting of a bread roll and filling, usually fruit and/or cream cheese, but sometimes sausage (though apparently these aren't technically kolaches). C) See the picture on the right (those are Caldwellians in Czech costume for the Kolache Festival). 
Though my town lays claim to the title "Kolache Capital of Texas," there is actually a large Czech community throughout Texas. (If you want to know why, you can check out the Texas Almanac entry on Czech-Texans.) You can listen to radio broadcasts in Czech in parts of central Texas, and the other dance (the one being two-step, of course) that most people where I live know is the polka. But my favorite part of Czech heritage, not being Czech myself, is definitely the kolache. Tasty!
9/28/07
This Is Why I Love Math
Today in calculus, my professor was scribbling definitions and examples on the board in full flow when he hit the end of the board. He jokingly suggested that for his birthday, he wanted a round room with a neverending chalkboard. Somebody in the class called out to ask him when his birthday is. It's sometime in October, but I don't think anybody in the class remembers the date because we were all too busy trying to work how old he'll be. His age will be a product of primes for the third consecutive year, and this is the first time in his life that this has occurred. I love how he already had that worked out and didn't even have to think about it. So, how old will Professor Schmitt be?
8/20/07
Sing Joyfully
Last night I went to the annual United Methodist district hymn sing, and to open one of the pastors read John Wesley's directions for singing (John Wesley is the founder of Methodism). They're printed at the front of the United Methodist Hymnal, but if you're not Methodist you've probably never heard them. Which is a real shame, because nobody says it quite like John Wesley. Therefore I would like to share them with you now:
Wesley's Directions For Singing
I. Learn these tunes before you learn any others; afterwards learn as many as you please.
II. Sing them exactly as they are printed here, without altering or mending them at all; and if you have learned to sing them otherwise, unlearn it as soon as you can.
III. Sing all. See that you join with the congregation as frequently as you can. Let not a single degree of weakness or weariness hinder you. If it is a cross to you, take it up, and you will find it a blessing.
IV. Sing lustily and with good courage. Beware of singing as if you were half dead, or half asleep; but lift up your voice with strength. Be no more afraid of your voice now, nor more ashamed of its being heard, then when you sung the songs of Satan.
V. Sing modestly. Do not bawl, so as to be heard above or distinct from the rest of the congregation, that you may not destroy the harmony; but strive to unite your voices together, so as to make one clear melodious sound.
VI. Sing in time. Whatever time is sung be sure to keep with it. Do not run before nor stay behind it; but attend close to the leading voices, and move therewith as exactly as you can; and take care not to sing too slow. This drawling way naturally steals on all who are lazy; and it is high time to drive it out from us, and sing all our tunes just as quick as we did at first.
VII. Above all sing spiritually. Have an eye to God in every word you sing. Aim at pleasing him more than yourself, or any other creature. In order to do this attend strictly to the sense of what you sing, and see that your heart is not carried away with the sound, but offered to God continually; so shall your singing be such as the Lord will approve here, and reward you when he cometh in the clouds of heaven.
I'm afraid I have trouble seeing that my heart is not carried away with the sound, but for the most part I find these instructions very apt, and pricelessly phrased. Take heed, all you choral singers!
Wesley's Directions For Singing
I. Learn these tunes before you learn any others; afterwards learn as many as you please.
II. Sing them exactly as they are printed here, without altering or mending them at all; and if you have learned to sing them otherwise, unlearn it as soon as you can.
III. Sing all. See that you join with the congregation as frequently as you can. Let not a single degree of weakness or weariness hinder you. If it is a cross to you, take it up, and you will find it a blessing.
IV. Sing lustily and with good courage. Beware of singing as if you were half dead, or half asleep; but lift up your voice with strength. Be no more afraid of your voice now, nor more ashamed of its being heard, then when you sung the songs of Satan.
V. Sing modestly. Do not bawl, so as to be heard above or distinct from the rest of the congregation, that you may not destroy the harmony; but strive to unite your voices together, so as to make one clear melodious sound.
VI. Sing in time. Whatever time is sung be sure to keep with it. Do not run before nor stay behind it; but attend close to the leading voices, and move therewith as exactly as you can; and take care not to sing too slow. This drawling way naturally steals on all who are lazy; and it is high time to drive it out from us, and sing all our tunes just as quick as we did at first.
VII. Above all sing spiritually. Have an eye to God in every word you sing. Aim at pleasing him more than yourself, or any other creature. In order to do this attend strictly to the sense of what you sing, and see that your heart is not carried away with the sound, but offered to God continually; so shall your singing be such as the Lord will approve here, and reward you when he cometh in the clouds of heaven.
I'm afraid I have trouble seeing that my heart is not carried away with the sound, but for the most part I find these instructions very apt, and pricelessly phrased. Take heed, all you choral singers!
8/8/07
Nepotism in Action
My parents have been self-employed in the printing and publishing business (The Insite Group) since before I was born, which has meant various things to my family and me over the years. It has its perks, like free printing on anything from birthday invitations to science fair displays, advertising trade accounts with local businesses and restaurants, and the occasional free copy of Adobe Creative Suite. It also means being recruited to help with bulk mailings, sorting archives in the filthy attic, and having a mom who doesn't have time to cook dinner during magazine deadline week. In our photogenic childhoods, my siblings and I would crop up with relative frequency on the cover of Insite. Amusing family stories became fair game for mom's PubDesk column, and even occasionally for the cover story, like the week my family was Amish (in retrospect, I'm not sure why I agreed to that). I've been proofreading and editing magazine stories since high school, but this month is the first time I've gotten to try my hand at writing something of my own (and, even more miraculously, getting paid for it). It's also the first time I've been on the cover since I was about nine. I guess being a college student has its perks too.Check out this month's issue of Insite - I'm on page 39.
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