Binyeke

I awoke this morning to the sound of (what I thought was) a bunch of dogs howling in pain in the distance. It erupted every few seconds and lasted for a few seconds and then subsided again. I was awakened at around 5:45am to this very noise. At first I tried to ignore it because my sleepy state was causing the hulabaloo to become part of my dream and I then forgot that it was actually happening. I remember it was 6:30am when I finally began paying attention to what it was, exactly, because it is unusual for a pack of dogs in THAT much agony to not be quieted by their master...I mean, we are in the city, and not the great outdoors or the backwoods. The breeze was chilly and my blood was not pumping yet, so I found my blanket and drew it over me, I closed my eyes, and I concentrated on that particular noise...I honed in and it became the only noise I was a aware I could hear. I finally realized that I was hearing clapping...and that the noise I thought was yowling, was really the sounds of distant encouragement from a group of people and that they were yelling, "Whoo hoo!! C'mon YEAH! WOOO!!!". I got up out of bed and stuck my head out the window to see if I could detect from which direction the sound was coming, but it was so high-pitched and distant that it echoed and bounced off of the brick walls, and made it impossible to track the direction of origin. By this time, I was ready for it to stop, so I turned on NPR....they were talking about something...something that I did not care to hear that early in the morning. So I turned it off. But the silence of my house was again disrupted by the whooping of those distant cheer-leaders...so I turned NPR back on. I suppose I did not think to turn on some of my own music. What I really wanted was peace and quiet, but that was unfortunately not on the agenda. Today is "MOVE-IN" day for both VANDY and BELMONT students...and I suppose they began to move in at 6am.
So I ate breakfast (quickly), packed my computer and headed to JJ's...my "quiet" place. It will not be quiet, soon, either. All of the Vandy kids are moving back and friday and saturday nights are already filled with the din of drunk little college kids. Last night, as I worked at the Village Market, I caught a fake i.D. or 2 (usual occurrence during the school year). The boys come in and act like they know everything there is to know about beer, trying to impress their lady-friends (and sometimes, I regret to say I would not call them "lady"). And I stand there and shake my head as they say things that are ridiculous. And the girls usually act like they have helium for brains and try to dance to my music, and get the guy's attention. The guys then look at me, faces red with embarrassment, and give me their credit cards as quickly as possible so they can get the heck out o' Dodge. Then you've got the workers from "Cabana" and "Boscos" who come over, dragging and tired of it all, looking for RED BULL and oreo cookies and cigarettes, the Dominos Pizza guys who come over for Vitamin Water, and the Vanderbilt Nurses and Doctors who come in for a beer or 2 before heading home after a long day. It really is an adventure working at the Village Market...and at the end of the night, after hearing and ignoring all of the "hey beautiful"'s, "I like your bandanna"s, "how do you get your hair to do that?!", I lock the door, close the store, Jae (my boss) comes in and wishes me a good night
, and I walk home and breathe it all out of my system. It is usually around 11:20pm when I finally reach home, read some while taking a bite to eat, and then sack out in my bed.
A guy just sat down close to me here at JJ's and he smells like the Cronicles of Narnia books that I have. He smells like the actual books...and sitting here I am having visions of the dreaded magnificent queen of darkness pulling the children down into one of the pools in "The Land Between the Worlds". Teddy (Theodor Butler) from the tatoo parlor "Lone Wolf" just came over to order his usual "large Iced Coffee...no room for cream", his loud tenor voice resonating off of the brick wall to my left, and also bouncing off of the tin boxes of tea that are on the shelf above him. He's a small little man, about my height, and small in every other particular, except his voice - which BOOMS, and his personality that makes him seem much bigger than he really is. When I am behind the counter and he laughs, the counter trembles with his laugh. He is a giant in a little-man's body. One usually does not think that a tatoo artist would want to raise chickens, or become a blacksmith with wood-burning ovens, and you wouldn't think that your hair-dresser would look like a lumber-jack and have a 300 acre farm where he raises organic and pure veggies, flowers, and dairy cows. And you wouldn't think that your local wine merchant, who is thin beyond compare and shyer than shy, has a secret desire to be a funeral-home director, and that the other one thinks he is John Lennon incarnated. And you wouldn't think that a bouncer from a pub would actually have one of the most genuine hearts and kind, soft-spoken, very masculine, spirits that you've almost ever met. Tatoo artists have a reputation for being rough and tumble and untouchable, hair dressers are usually flamboyant, bouncers have a reputation for being all brawn and no brain, and wine merchants are rather aloof. All of these people frequent JJ's and The Village Market here in good ol' Nashville Tennessee. This is only a taste of the variety of people around me. I cannot say how much I love and appreciate this beautiful opportunity that I have! How often is it that one gets to meet such interesting people and learn their dreams and what they are all about. They suddenly become more than a lump of skin walking around...they grow soul and spirit and beauty. Sometimes I am repulsed by learning what these people are about, but I am thankful even for those experiences. The tatoo artist who raises chickens keeps me updated with pictures (on his cell phone) of his chickens and their eggs, and I've looked at knife-making and blacksmithing books with another tatoo artist. I am working on one of the tatoo artists who seems to like to mock everyone and his favorite shirt is black and says, 'There IS no GOD" on the back. He seems to live up to the whole "tatoo-artist" persona - "meat & potatoes" type guy. I will be sad when I need to leave this place of many people. But I will meet new people and have more experiences and that is what is so amazing to me in life.

How to capture moments...Don't ask me!

So Sara threw a lovely GOING-AWAY party for Jenna and Pouria. The lovely Pouria has already posted about this event, and I admit I am very LATE with my contribution...but I thought "better late than nEvEr" ::smiles:: So sorry the first video is sideways...I am still learning about my camera ::sheepish smile::


so I love my family...I love the outlandish personalities and the other easily flushed ones, and the stand-offish ones, and the simply quiet ones. Everyone together makes my life interesting and beautiful. Of course, not always, but in retrospect the good outweighs all else. Now that Sara and Austin live in Tuscaloosa, AL, and Jenna and Pouria live in Boulder, CO, I am SO excited to see where Christa and I will live soon!! Mom and Dad will definitely have PLENTY of travel-time under their belts visiting us all in our various places. And I cannot wait till we are all together again around the same big table sharing stories and laughs of our life-adventures!!

Peace be da Journey!

All of these photos were taken via cell-phone...what a wonderful gadget at times!! First photo is Jenna and Pouria, he truck is all packed, and they are "mounting up" for the long ride.

This is just outside our little apartment complex. They used to live 2 doors down from me, and now they are about a 3 hour flight ::chuckles:: what a trip....literally! So, then they left...we watched as they drove away down 16th Ave. in Nashville. As they drove, Mom poured a pitcher of water down the road after them. It is an old Persian tradition for moms to do to their children who are moving away. Mom left to go to work (though in tears...) and Dad climbed into his truck to leave and realized that he'd left his wallet in the moving truck! OH NO!! He calls Jenna....she doesn't pickup....I call Jenna...no answer! I call Pouria...again, no answer!! AH!!! what are we going to do!?!? So I call Jenna once more, as Dad is frantically looking, even in the bed of his truck, to find his wallet. So I finally get in contact with Jenna, "I think Dad may have left his wallet in the truck...maybe on the dashboard?" "AND here it is!" she replies and I hear her reaching forward for it. Fortunately they were able to stop just off of Trinity Lane and dad and I raced over there to retrieve his wallet so that they could be on their merry way. We arrive at the gas station that they are waiting at and Pouria hops out of the truck and says, 'ok, so I know we said come and see us soon, but we thought you guys would wait until we at least unpacked!'. He's such a 'ham' at times ::winks:: So we give them the BIG SEND-OFF again. It is a Maurice family tradition to give everyone THE BIG SEND-OFF.
They spent the night in Kansas somewhere (I forgot the place) and arrived in Boulder the next day!


And had a neighbor there to welcome them...
It is a little squirrel just outside their back porch! Do you see his adorable little arm lazily hanging out of the nest? Jenna said that while they were unpacking, the little squirrel went and got a new little tree branch and brought it into his little house...so he was "moving in" just like them ::smiles:: it sounded so cute! And now they are unpacked...
Pouria's JEEP is in the right-hand corner. I am assuming that they will go and get Jenna's car today from it's spot, and they will unpack boxes. This will be their home for the next 3 years at least. I am so excited for them and I cannot WAIT to go visit them!! I can assure you, it will be epic!
(is this the part where I get all old-school dorky and pipe up the old song..."AND WE'LL BE FRIENDS FOREVER!! JESUS AND YOU AND ME!! HE TIES OUR HEARTS TOGETHER, AND FRIENDS - WE'LL - ALWAYS - BEEEEEEE!!!!!" Thankfully this time I do not have Jeffy Hutchins trying to kiss me every other word...::chuckles::

A TOAST TO JENNA AND POURIA!! May your semester go smoothly and may Jenna be protected as she travels!! PEACE BE DA JOURNEY!