Bethjoy.com

I was about to write a nice quiet and rational title when I decided that I wouldn’t so I wrote the title you see and though some may consider that to be quiet and rational, I don’t.

This morning a box arrived which I opened with eagerness about three hours after it’s arrival when I finally decided that I should not ignore it any more. It’s contents where examined closely and then I finally got to the point where I installed it on my computer. And in case you have no idea whatsoever what I am talking about, I am talking about Switched on Schoolhouse. The new Switched on Schoolhouse. The interface is slightly confusing but once you get used to it it is not bad. It is not particularly “quick and easy” but it could have been a LOT worse. Student Mode and Teacher Mode are now in two completely different programs, and if you want you can have them both open at the same time.

Having set up a student with all of the necessary schoolwork I started doing “Language” that being the cd that was currently in there as it was the last one I installed. So far it is has been relatively easy, I only missed one problem out of about thirty on the quiz, and I’ve done about four lessons. Hopefully the whole course won’t take too long. And hopefully I will retain at least a particle of what I’ve learned. Oh, did you know that the word “jargon” comes from an old french word which means the “chattering of birds”? That is one piece of interesting knowledge I will probably retain. At the moment I seem to be primarily writing in words of more than one syllable. Or perhaps not. I suppose I am attempting to raise my level of competence with the English language to such a lofty altitude that I shall have no difficulty whatsoever in completing eleventh grade language.

The above cross stitch design is based on the dress I just made, with myself modeling. Until I get a picture of the dress this chart will have to do to show how it looks. It should be fun to cross stitch.

To begin with I had breakfast, which isn’t unusual. Having stayed awake late last night I spent the morning napping and then after lunch I started sewing and cutting out a sort of elvish gown. Before completing it I and Mom left to go to, you guessed it, Walmart to buy some combination locks. I bought four DVD’s for $0.88 each at Walmart and I got a new watch too! At home I finished sewing my dress, and personally I think it is quite impressive. It is a black dress, fairly simple, but it has long flowing white lace sleeves that reach to the floor and are quite interesting. Then I have a white and gold trim around the top which really enhances the gown. Hopefully soon I will do a movie and feature the gown. It has a very long train.

This evening we went to the YMCA and tested it. I was rather tired when we came back but it wasn’t too bad there and it was a whole lot better than walking around our neighborhood. So I’ve had a pretty busy day and now I’m tired. My new dress is very nice in my opinion. I think it’s a bit Elvish, like something Arwen would have worn in the Lord of the Rings movie. It definitely isn’t bad for a dress with a net total of $7.00 for the materials to make it. I tried a new design with the dress and it turned out very well, though I can see places for improvements and I’ll probably do another dress soon and use my newly acquired knowledge to improve the design.

Which is bothersome as I will need to get up and be active in a few hours. It is currently 3:34. Normally I try to be asleep by midnight. And the completely ridiculous thing about my being awake right now is that I stopped using my computer and started trying to go to sleep around ten… Apparently I’m not very tired this evening/morning. I think I may be a bit hungry.

Well, SCHOOLWORK OF DOOM is approaching rapidly. Monday, if not sooner or later, I will start on the eleventh grade. I’m pretty sure it’s eleventh grade since I know I never finished tenth or ninth… Getting school work done is not exactly my strong point. I dislike in the extreme the subjects of Math and Science. Which is why I think I probably ought to start with those two subjects and leave the fun of history and the potential fun and torture of language for later. The school work I will be doing is Switched on Schoolhouse and despite the fact that I don’t like doing school work, I feel as though I can highly recommend Switched on Schoolhouse. It is a computer program which is relatively inexpensive as far as complete home school courses go. It is quite easy to use and requires minimum teacher participation. You do need to know how to read as there is a LOT of reading and then you answer questions etc. It can teach ethics very well because if a student does hack into teacher mode they can easily give themselves very high grades by looking up the answers or just marking the questions correct… Um, I suppose in order to clarify that last sentence I should say that the student should NOT do that. Teachers can set passwords to prevent anyone else going into teacher mode. My Mom set the word “eyeball” as the password. And no, I did not figure that out on my own, Mom told me after the computer crashed I think…

Now as Switched on Schoolhouse doesn’t work on my Mac I will be using Arwen, my Pc laptop, a lot. Arwen is the computer that has my cross stitch design program on it and for some reason I think that some new cross stitch designs will be forthcoming…

Monday will also be interesting as I think Mom is planning to start going to the YMCA to use their exercise equipment. We went there tonight to see what it was like, and the entry fees etc. and though we didn’t sign up then, we did get an application form to fill out. It was really nice there, and note that I have not exercised there yet. They have lots of exercise machines, drinking fountains, classes, friendly staff, and the height of civilization, indoor plumbing. AND to top it all off, they have a Subway right beside the exercise area so if you get hungry or you feel you are getting too thin, you can just go over and get a subway sandwich or two. I will definitely charge the Ipod of DOOM, and probably my PDP too, so that I will have entertainment as I exercise.

I’m beginning to feel a bit sleepy, which is good as it is now almost FOUR in the morning, which is quite a bit later than I usually stay awake, and as we will be having breakfast in about three to four hours I hope I’ll be able to get to sleep soon.

Oh, and guess where I went today? Other than to the YMCA. I went to WALMART!!! And Target as well. At Walmart I bought some black fabric and some white lace and I think I’m going to make an “interesting” gown combining the two. I’ve been think carefully through the details and the dress has high potential to be “interesting”. If the dress turns out all right I’ll probably do a quick movie to show it off. But of course, I may not even end up sewing it.

So any case, I suppose I ought to end this post and attempt to get some sleep. Which I think is what I am going to do. So, THE END

Or at least, I like making cross stitch charts with princesses on them:) I’m having fun on this computer so that I have some fond memories of it before I start doing school on it.

Long ago a beautiful young princess was born the only child and heir to a prosperous and wealthy kingdom. However he father was killed in battle but for many years her mother continued ruling. But then in a tragic illness the queen died and the young inexperienced princess was placed on the throne. For a while she ruled well but she knew the kingdom needed a king and finally she accepted the advances of a young and wealthy nobleman. Many promises he made to her, and within a few years after their marriage he broke them all, except for the one that he would be the king and her lord and master. However before all of this had taken place, but enough had happened for the queen to see the shadow of the future, a child was born, once again a princess and once again, an only child. At the christening a fairy asked the queen what gift she would choose for the princess to have and the sorrowing queen said, “I would that she would keep her promises”. So it was the fairy gave the child the gift that no matter what, she would keep her promises. However none there at the time knew what serious consequences would follow from this gift.

That might make a good opening for a story, or perhaps a plot opener. At any-rate, with the exception of a few scattered ideas, that is about all there is of the story. There may be more eventually and then again there may not, but I’m quite sure it will all end happily. Hopefully.

Now the following pictures have been taken with my very small low quality camera which explaines why there are somewhat, um, not high quality. I hope you enjoy seeing a tiny glimps of what I saw in Hawaii.

So, that is some of what I saw in Hawaii and deemed worthy of putting on here.

And as you can see, I have a new cross stitch design. I used a different process to get this design than I’ve done before. Mainly I’m just putting this up here so I can print it off so I can cross stitch it.

What did I do when I went to Hawaii? I went to Walmart. What did I do when I came home? I went to Walmart. And in case you can’t tell I have just returned to Walmart where I purchased two Dvd’s, two necklaces, and the materials for two medieval/fantasy dresses all with one twenty-dollar bill. I very much like Walmart, and they now have a dollar DVD section! One of the necklaces is a very pretty locket and the other has a large blue stone and they were on sale for $2.50 each. Then I bought eleven and a half yards of fabric in total for one dollar a yard. I got three different fabrics, a really thin sheer pink, then a solid pink, and then a royal blue/purple satiny/silky type fabric. I plan to use the two pinks together on one dress and then use the other fabric for a colonial type ball gown with some white lace that I have. I don’t think I’ll wrap it all up though since the two necklaces are already in nice looking gift boxes. So it was a very nice trip to Walmart. The End and they all lived happily ever after.

We arrived home to find that in our absence the heater had stopped working. Now coming from Hawaii where it was very warm to our house which was very cold was quite a shock. Fortunately about twenty-two or three years ago when my Dad built the house he installed a “woodstove” heater which still functions occasionally whenever somebody bothers to put wood and a lighted match into it which is seldom. But despite the fact that the “woodstove” heater has been raging since we got back my room is still a little bit cold. But my computer is keeping part of me warm…

I just have been reading the comics and I noticed one where the main character posts their Christmas wish list on the refrigerator for the rest of the family to see, and the all mention that they have all done their Christmas shopping. There are some advantages to writing wish lists early.

Now, for an update on my brothers. Daniel: Have received five dollars worth of internet connection while gone but I’m not sure that was a Christmas present. John: He says he has one for me but I haven’t gotten it yet. Andrew: Admits he didn’t get one for me.

So you know what I think I’m going to do? I think I’m going to try going shopping in the after Christmas sales at Walmart and Toys R Us and buy myself a few toys to wrap up and have a special Christmas party for myself since I do miss opening wrapped presents, although the Cruise was a GREAT Christmas present which couldn’t be wrapped. So I suppose I’m not totally without Christmas presents, I got a cruise and some souvenirs from Hawaii from my parents and a check for fifty dollars from one Grandmother and a yet unopened present from my other Grandmother. And that is why I think I’m going to buy myself a few Christmas presents, probably with the fifty dollars from my Grandmother:) But considering the state of my room… Well, I suppose having a lot of stuff in it means less room for cold air.

And speaking of cold air I am not particularly feeling healthy due to the amount of forbidden food I consumed on the cruise. I should be feeling healthy again soon but right now it is rather fun just lying down in bed and using my computer. (Insert contented sigh) I could almost be on the cruise again… Only then I was watching movies on the state room TV. So Happy holidays for what’s left of them.