Currently Nation By Terry Pratchett see related

Princess in Disguise

Okay, I know I just started another blog, but this post just seemed better suited to xanga than to an "official author" type blog! Plus I haven't figured out how to load pictures on the other. Technology hates me. But some stories must be told even so! Such as this one . . . .

Last night at the Barnes and Noble where I work, we had a costume contest (of which I have not yet learned the results). I dressed as a princess (surprise, surprise). Complete with an enormous, girly tiara, a poofy, petticoated dress, and lots of curls. I was rather shockingly noticeable, but since my comrades in arms were zombie-slayers, sea-monsters, Max from the Wild Things, a thug, and Hagrid, it was all fine in the long run. I got lots of funny looks, plenty of laughs and smiles, and my manager made announcements over the speakers asking for Cinderella to please come collect her glass slipper at customer service.

Me being powerful, overlooking the ocean . . . though the lighting is too strong to see the ocean. Trust me, there's lots of China Sea out there! I stood at the point where the Pacific Ocean and the China Sea meet, and it was an awesome feeling.

And Tom on our hike in the jungle searching for Hiji Falls . . . which we did find eventually, only I'd run out of battery on my camera by then, so I'll never be able to share it's indescribable beauty.

Author Blog

Dear Readers,

As much fun as xanga has been over the years, I have decided to switch to a more official "author" blog. http://anneelisabethstengl.blogspot.com/search?updated-min=2009-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-08%3A00&updated-max=2010-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-08%3A00&max-results=2 I will most likely do my updates here from now on, so please subscribe to me! It will be primarily focused on writing-story-related subjects. But I will keep telling some stories from daily life, such as news of my fencing class--see tonight's post--and forthcoming photos from my trip to Okinawa.

Anyway, I won't necessarily close this site down . . . I would miss it rather! But don't expect quite as much of interest to appear on this page as former years.

Thanks all!

Currently Stellaluna - Oversize edition By Janell Cannon see related

The Okinawa Adventure: Day 1

Greetings from The Future!

Since I am visiting my older brother it will come as no surprise to those of you who know him that the best aspects of The Okinawa Adventure: Day 1 have been Tom Quotes.

Tom Quote the First: On the drive back from the airport last night.

Tom: "I went grocery shopping today, to stalk up for your visit. And I was wandering the aisles going, 'Dude! What do chicks eat?' So I hunted for some seeds and nectar and things."

Annie (ravenous after 28 hr. journey): "Seeds? Nectar?"

Tom: "Yeah, but I settled on some chocolate cake."

He's pretty good at picking out chick food after all. Chocolate/marshmallow/death-by-sugar cake. Oh yeah.

Tom Quote the Second: Upon his sister's remark that he needs to be careful not to pull daredevil stunts in an already dangerous occupation.

Tom: "I never pull daredevil stunts! Except at work. And during off hours."

Annie: "And only on days that end in 'y,' yeah, I know . . . ."

I'm afraid I don't have much memory of the rest of today. I slept through a great deal of it. But we just got back from a Turkish restaurant which was quite good and quite filling! We were going to go to a sushi place and be much more "Japanese" but Tom wanted to walk there.

Annie: "How far of a walk?"

Tom: "About twenty minutes."

Annie: "It's raining."

Tom: "Only a little."

Annie: "You said there's a typhoon coming."

Tom: "It's not that bad! Yet."

Annie: "It's raining harder."

Tom: "A little rain never hurt nobody!"

Annie: "I'm soaked to the bone."

Tom: "Fine! Fine! Turn here, we'll go to this little Turkish place instead."

I took pictures in the Turkish place, but my hair dried really funky after that walk in the rain, (bangs curling out rather than curling in. You get the picture.) so I won't post them. Okay, I'm kidding. Not about my hair drying funky, 'cause it did, but I would post the pictures anyway, I just happened to forget my camera cable, so I can't . . . . You'll have to wait for pictures until I return. Sorry!

Oh, one last quote. So last night we took a walk along the sea wall because I mean, come on, I'd only traveled 28 hrs. without sleep and needed a little exercise before bed! It was too dark to see a whole lot, but the ocean air felt good, and it was pleasant to be on my feet. A large black bird flew overhead, about the size of a crow.

Tom: "If you see any large black birds this time of night, they're not birds. They're bats.

Annie (frozen in mid-stride): "You're kidding."

Tom: "No."

Annie: "You're pulling my leg."

Tom: "I'm not!"

Annie: "Bats don't come that size!"

Tom: "Yeah, they do."

Annie: "You're lying to me!"

Tom: "No, seriously! That was a bat!"

And it was.

There is a flock of enormous fruit bats living just beyond his house. I had no idea bats were legally permitted to grow THAT BIG!!!!

Tom: "It's like the little picture book you had."

Annie: "Stellaluna?"

Tom: "Yeah, that one!"

Annie: "Cute little Stellaluna didn't look THAT BIG on the page!"

I'll never read that story the same way again . . . . Please note, I posted the book Stellaluna the Oversize Edition, at the top of the page.

Love and good night from this side of the world!

Currently Crime and Punishment (Bantam Classics) By Fyodor Dostoevsky, Constance Garnett see related

My New Home

I've been meaning to post about my new home for about a month now. Sorry for being so tardy! I am on the cusp of my Great Adventure to Okinawa, so I figured I'd better post some pictures now before they're all old hat. I'm sitting home with a fever and, I suspect, a touch of the flu, so I might  as well blog anyway . . . .

First of all, I must say that my new home is significantly smaller than my old one. It's been a bit snug with three cats. But angel-face Molly still likes to sit by the front window and gaze out on the world:

Like I said, it gets a bit snug with all three of them:

But we make do as well as we can. We're just grateful to have a roof over our heads:

Okay, so there isn't a roof yet. We're working on that. Marilla, at least, can't help but look like an Egyptian goddess, roof or otherwise.

Here's Minerva Louise in the bedroom:

Try to believe me when I tell you that Minerva is a very sweet and pretty kitty. Somehow she always looks evil when I take pictures of her. I suppose we can't all be blessed with Molly's angel-face.

Okay, truth be told, my new place is a little bigger than all that. Here is my new livingroom:

My grandparents very generously gifted me with the furniture, the new lamps, along with a lovely dining room set which I will point out later. My mother bought me the candle sconces, and I splurged on the painting, which was really too beautiful to pass up!

Here is me with Jack, my "nephew."

You can kind of see the dining room set off to the left. It's very pretty, but that's just not a great picture of it. Hmmm. I'll try to upload one that shows more.

Okay, this one is a little better. Pardon Jack's expression:

There, isn't it pretty? And that's my lovely kitchen back behind with my china along the cupboard tops. Since that picture was taken, Allison gave me some pretty glass and wrought-iron shelves for my dining room on which many of my teacups now sit. But I haven't taken a picture of that yet . . . .

Anyway, here is my piano!

Do please notice those big windows there too. I have a sun room with huge windows, and the apartment is always full of natural light! Just what I like. I'm currently practicing the piano more seriously than I've been for years. Studying Beethoven's Pathetique sonata, a prelude by Rachmaninov, and a little Chopin and Debussy. It's been nice.

And here's Erwin and my lovely Mummy:

And me and Jack, just because I loves him:

Currently The Best of Simon & Garfunkel By Simon & Garfunkel see related

Human or Alien?

Yesterday, I went to visit my little friend Hannah at the children's hospital, bringing gifts of pretty journals and clip-on reading lights. It was fun to see her again and her family . . . especially her brothers, a pair of talented clowns!

When the doctor stepped in for a moment to check over Hannah, her brother Daniel grabbed my hand and pulled me over to the hospital room window, seven stories above the world.

Daniel: "Do you see the Mother Ship? It lands right out there!"

I looked.

I confess, I saw no signs of a Mother Ship. But how can you tell a little boy that?

AE: "Oh, yeah! Look at that Mother Ship!"

Daniel turns to me and very seriously explains that many of the people walking around down below are aliens masquerading as human. He and he alone can tell the difference.

AE (pointing): "So what about that man with the blue shirt?"

Daniel: "He's human."

AE: "And the woman in the stripes, holding the little girl's hand?"

Daniel: "The woman's human, but the little girl's an alien."

AE: "Really?"

Daniel: "Really. I can tell."

Thus we entertained ourselves while the doctor checked Hannah, observing the people far below, deciding whether or not they were human.

So I admit it. I'm easily amused.

When at last I had to go, I couldn't help but cast glances back up to that window on the seventh floor, wondering if Special Agents Daniel and Josh thought me human or alien. And the people I passed gave me odd looks, wondering what in the world I found so amusing! Little do they realize that there are aliens in our midst . . . .