orphans are great people

saturday we volunteered at an orphanage.
our mission - to play with children and hold babies for 3 hours... and try not to take one home.

when we arrived, the children were all still in their pajamas and peeking out from their dorm rooms. girls on the left, boys on the right. seeing the arrival of 5 volunteers was enough to send them over the edge with excitement.

the girls came out to give hugs and were quickly ushered back into their room to change their clothes for picture day. the boys essentially rushed us, grabbing hands and legs, and pulled all of us into their room to the big couches in front of the tv. here, they proceeded to hug and cuddle, crawling into our arms, and eventually climb all over us until it was changing time for them, too.

once the kids were changed, they all lined up in front of the gazebo for a group photo. the babies and the beautiful boy in his wheelchair joined them.

after the group shoot, they did family and individual shots. three and four kids of various ages would be grouped together for a photo. at first we thought it was random - none of the kids looked alike. but it became clear that these small groups were siblings.

once photos were completed it was time for clothes changes again, so we went to the baby-room to play with babies. this was so much fun! the babies were so CUTE. most of them loved DB's wacky "surprise" face-making, and DB swears that all the babies adored me - i think they just liked being held.

i admit, it was challenging to stay focused on the positive - my little eyes had a hard time staying dry. here were entire families of children (weeks old to 10yrs) abandoned by their parents or for whatever reason wards of the state. some children were available for adoption, while others were in a kind of permanent foster care until their parents or families are ready or able to take them again. some of them looked so incredibly sad and depressed. yet, the majority of the children were joyful, playful and seemed well-adjusted.

overall we were very impressed with how nice the facility was. we weren't sure what to expect - i've worked in teen shelters but never an orphanage. i do know, if these beautiful children can't be in a safe home with family, they are sure lucky to be in that orphanage - in clean clothes, with bright, clean rooms, plenty of food and water, and with lots of love from staff and volunteers.

Desert Hike

We went hiking at Lake Morena Sunday. The surroundings were all rocky with a big manmade lake, although the actual "trail" is an old service road and not a trail at all. Apparently, they build a dam in 1902, but the lake never filled. In 1916 the city actually hired a guy from LA to come make it rain. They promised him $10,000 if he could fill the lake. He came, set up shop, and not only filled the lake, but filled the entire valley with rain. The city refused to pay him due to the massive flooding. Typical of government, huh?

In any case, it's a beautiful place, and the air was hot and dry. I love hot dry air - it reminds me of home - the dry desert summer of Moses Lake, WA.

Although there were so many little critters running about, and beautiful landscapes, photos tend not to come out well when the sun is high, so we only took a couple. Wouldn't ya know it, they turned out perfectly :)

Confessions

Somehow I talked DB into taking me to see Dashboard Confessional and Brand New. He's not a big fan of such music, but I happen to love the mushy lyrics accompanied by a whiney screaming chorus.

I'm sad to say, I was disaapointed by Brand New. I really thought they'd be so much cooler than they were. But it kind of seemed like there was this frat boy leading a band of emo punks... and he just kicked stuff around and rolled on the ground. It was sloppy, as was his singing/screaming and guitar playing. The bass player rocked though. And so did the back up screamer - who has the most perfect screaming whine ever!

Dashboard was tight - and I don't use that word loosly. They really had their act together - great and smooth playing, excellent ability to engage the audience. As DB said of Chris (the lead), "He could insight a riot right now." And he could have. He had all the screaming teen girls and gay boys going mad. I'm not joking. When during one of several chat-it-up-with-the-audience-monologues Chris said "Imagine if we'd never met," there was a guy behind us (who didn't even set my gaydar off) who in all dramatic seriousness said "Oh no, don't even say that!"

It occurred to me, as I was trying to figure Dashboard out, that Chris is a drag queen in tight pants. He looked like an old school Beastie Boy, but sounded like a New Kid. He is so incredibly theatrical, and his voice is clearly that of a choir-geek (being a choir geek myself, I can easily spot the good student who paid attention in class when the teacher talked about clear enunciation, the raising the eyebrows to lift the palette and round out the sounds). And, I confess, I was reminded of my late 80s days in middle and early high school when I'd tune in to the late night radio request shows - the ones that inevitably played dozens of christian rock tunes about friendship and god's forgiving love.

"Friends are friends forever, if the Lord's the Lord of them..."

what will you do with your toes?

so, i know it's totally not toe-ring season for most of my friends. but i still feel compelled to share my latest find.

as you know, im selling my wares on etsy.com. well, i don't remember how i found this toe ring exactly at Darling Designs shop, but it is so incredibly comfortable and amazing.

made in MA and shipped like a regular letter. only took it a few days to arrive. the great thing, is Lorene (the shop owner) can make them in ANY color. if you buy one, tell her i sent you (i don't get anything special, but its just nice to know there are peeps referring each other out in the big crafting world).

our first rain

it's raining. we've been here three months, and its actually raining for the first time. the rain seems to come in spurts of abut 15 minutes of hard rain, then clear skies, then 15 minutes, then clear skies. we don't really have an umbrella, so we're stuck inside. thus, we decided to record our indoor adventure.

me: oh man, i forgot... we're out of chocolate silk. all we have is vanilla silk. how am i gonna eat my autumn wheat without chocolate silk?

db: vanilla silk is good.

me(from the kitchen): oh no! it gets worse! i ate the last of the autumn wheat yesterday! multigrain flakes and vanilla silk? what am i gonna do?

db: im going to do an I Ching reading for today.

db *tosses coins*

db: the bird meets misfortune through flying. she passes by her ancestor and meets her ancestress. he does not reach his prince and meets the official. no blame.

me: so, we shouldn't leave the house?

db: if one is not extremely careful, somebody may come up from behind and strike him. misfortune. *laughs* no blame. he meets him without passing by. going brings danger. one must be on guard. do not act. be constantly preserving.

me: so, we shouldn't leave the house.

db: i think it essentially means we shouldn't leave the house.

two hours later... (rain has stopped, the sun shines and it's toasty warm out)

me: what do you wanna do today?

db: wanna go downtown?

me: okay!

db: we can get some quarters and play air hockey.

me: yeah!

holiday shopping

okay, so its a bit too soon to gear up for holiday shopping. however, i wanted to let you know that i am selling my wares on my website and on etsy.com (an online place just for handmade items), and you are invited to browse. i do custom orders of all my stuff (paintings, clear tape wallets, light switch plates, mini-boxes, etc.) and would be thrilled to personalize something just for you or your loved one.

amylburns.etsy.com
amylburns.com/gallery

and don't forget the fun of getting a Tarot or Faerie card reading, or Reiki treatment to start the new year off right! these are fantastic gifts, and since there is plenty of time, I can send you a personalized gift certificate to give your loved one.

amylburns.com/tarot
amylburns.com/reiki

a Self-Discovery Session might also be a great gift if you know someone who is in a place of self-discovery, transformation and personal growth. Personalized gift certificates available for these, too.

amylburns.com/coaching

Friends of Amy L. Burns receive a 10% discount or free shipping by mentioning my blog.

pepperoni showdown

body: "no, please! anything but pepperoni!"

mouth: "gimme that pepperoni..."

*brief scuffle*

winner: mouth.