That big green house....

Storytime

2008-08-05T08:47:00.000-07:00

Howellers: here is the full story as promised. Some of you probably already read this on my personal blog, so sorry if you're reading it twice. In other not related to wedding news, I am going to make it so that you can subscribe to the Howell blog and an email will be sent to you when someone has posted something new. Check back soon for details on this, and hopefully people will be more excited about posting then. Alright, here goes the story:

Well, last Monday after work, I was surprised. I have yoga on Mondays, so I stay downtown, normally going to the Brew to read a book. On this particular Monday, James and I were meeting up to get wedding presents at 10 Thousand Villages. After this, we walked over to the Brew. James declined to come inside with me, instead handing me a note in an envelope and biking away like a flash.

I opened the note, finding a memo proclaiming me a winner of free coffee at the Brew (in the form of a $5 bill in the memo). It then stated that I had to complete a task to get to the next step of the journey: find another note hidden for me in the Brew and follow the directions inside. I knew exactly where the note was hiding--in a drawer in a nearby table, and upon finding it, opened another envelope that contained a map of a small part of Goshen, with a red X labeled "meet me here after yoga" Unfortunately, I am a map-reading failure and definitely had to call James at this point to ask him to direct me to where I needed to go.

Then I had to go to yoga, still unsure if the actual proposal was coming, or if this was only one step of the process. Needless to say, my yoga poses were not very focused that evening. I then biked to the agreed location on the mill race, to find a picnic laid out--two glasses of wine, one chunk of free co-op cheese stolen from The Spain's (name of my current house) refrigerator, and flower spread across a fitted bed sheet with a bunny print. Still not knowing what was going on, I remained my sarcastic and jokey self until James was finally able to get serious:

J: So, we spent a lot of time together last week (@ 2 family reunions), and I thought it went really well. And I know that I want to be with you for a long time.
E: How long exactly?
J: Oh you know....for the rest of our lives! (pulls out the ring, which is still in the small plastic ziploc bag we got when we bought it) Will you....
E: Yes!
J: *rolls eyes b/c I have beat him to the question* will you....let me borrow your car tomorrow?
E: *nods head and waits impatiently*
J: Will you marry me?
E: YES!

So there you have it folks, the story in its full glory. And now...back to thinking and planning this move to Denver that is happening next week.

Yup, me too, officially...

2007-08-02T22:39:00.000-07:00

Well, we're engaged. We = Zeb & me. Heh :) :) :).

How? Well, there was the code proposal. Also, the sunset/star proposal. Which was tonight. And was the 'official' one. We biked over to Oxbow, and managed to actually make it despite flat tires, a chain falling off, and gear shifter not working... watched the sun set and the stars come out from the top of the tower. Got engaged.

Anyways. If you want to know more, you'll have to ask me :).

Yes, yes... i've buckled

2007-07-09T11:20:00.000-07:00

Well, not really buckled. I decided that maybe if i'm going spend the rest of my life with Anna, i might as well start sooner rather than later (cuz i hear the gettin's good once you're married, eh kyle?)

Anyway, I'm sure you're all dying to hear how it went down. Well, that's Anna's department. But here's the basic conversation:

Setting: Plaza de Cesar Chavez, San Jose, CA. Sitting in the grass in the shade.
Brian: *says some nice things about anna*
Anna: "But why isn't that enough?"
Brian: It is enough.
Anna: "Then why aren't you ready to get married?!?"
Brian: "Who says i'm not ready?"
Anna: "YOU do."
Brian: "Well, do you wanna get married?"
Anna: "YES!"
Brian: "OK."
*Brian begins to dig in pocket. Anna's eyes grow huge and hopeful. Brian pulls out a quarter. Anna's eyes get bigger. Brian pulls out a gumwrapper. Anna's eyes begin to water. Brian pulls out a pen. Anna's chin quivers. Brian finally pulls out a ring. Anna Immediately yanks it from his hand and puts it on. *

That's the short and short of it. Anna tells it better than I do. We're not sure when we're going to get hitched, but again, Anna's pushing for sooner rather than later, like in the next 6 months. We'll see.

NEWSFLASH - FIRST INTRA-HOWELL WEDDING!

2007-07-09T10:33:00.001-07:00

Hey y'all :).

I'm posting this for Anna, as she hasn't yet quite figured out how to use this thing...

Anna and Brian are engaged!! Brian proposed on July 4th in a park in San Jose.

So, you all should congratulate them :).

Also, maybe I'll send out an email telling you all to check this thing. Because I'm sure most people haven't been :).

fruit

2007-07-04T16:57:00.001-07:00

oh, and my current favorite summer fruit:
cherries that i got from the farm down the street :). they're like candy, they're so good! except the ones that are sour/tart/bitter/whatever the taste is. those aren't candy. but the rest are!

Well, Erin & Travis wrote something, so I guess I will too...

2007-07-04T16:28:00.001-07:00

Howellers!
So I haven't checked this place for a while and, lo and behold, there were actually new entries! I'm so proud of y'all!
Travis, it's fun to read your family's website (well, not that I'm doing it regularly. I just skimmed it now, for the second time since y'all have started.) and, well, gosh, I have to say, I wish I were in Africa. ...In Swaziland, specifically.
But, I'm in Goshen, sitting in front of the fountain in Schrock plaza checking email before stopping over to see Alana. It's currently pretty quiet in Goshen, as lots of people are over yonder in San Jose (Anna, Brian, Jason the other Switch-er). I've been house-sitting for the Holsopples, which has been good... mowing the lawn, taking care of the house and plants, taking care of the dog & fish, paying bills, etc. Oh, and yeast genetics research, which is the same as always. Nothing new, but there's always something to be doing. And random work for John Yordy like filing and other projects. So all-over, pretty low-key.
Oh, for those of you who don't know, I'm doing MVS in Elkhart next year. Yup, Elkhart. I decided that it was important to be close to Goshen, where Zeb will be teaching (at Goshen High School, teaching environmental science classes to upperclasspeople and biology to underclasspeople). I'm pretty excited about it though; it's with Prairie View Mennonite Church, which is a pretty neat church filled with lots of cool elderly people and a few cool younger people too. I'll (maybe) be doing stuff with VORP part-time and something else part-time. Yup, lots of stuff still up in the air, but this seems pretty typical for MVS. From what I've heard. And there will likely be another person in the house and a third person joining in Decemberish.
Oh, a few people know about this already (alana, anna, lisl, andy, brian), so I'll announce it to the rest of y'all as well. Zeb left a long string of code for me to decipher while they are in Africa. I deciphered it; it was a proposal. However, as it is another four weeks until I will see him or hear from him at all, I like to think of it as a 'pre-proposal'. But in any case, it's exciting and I'm happy.
What else? It's a nice day in Goshen finally - blue sky, warm but not hot, sun shining. It's been raining a lot, so everything is green still. And I keep waiting for the deathly-hot weather that last summer brought, but that weather hasn't yet appeared. Maybe it won't.
Also, my laptop battery sucks. Meaning it's time to end this post.
For anyone else who remembers about this place and happens to look at it: I hope your summer is progressing marvelously!
lots of love,
sarah

Take II from the deserts of Africa

2007-06-25T22:58:00.001-07:00

OK, so we're really not in the desert at all. Yet. Still in the (small) city of Gaborone, getting ready to set out and explore a little more of the wild side. Travis has already given you the basic run-down of what we've been doing, but I'll take his advice and give you all an update from my perspective. So, what else do you want to know from my end? I've been having lots of good bonding time with Travis and the rest of his family, cramming 4 of us into the backseat of a rental car, having giant seaweed fights, sharing germs on big bottles of mango juice, nearly getting stuck between the South Africa and Botswana borders, etc, etc. Even the relatively uneventful days here seem to turn into all sorts of adventures, and nothing, of course, goes as planned. Basically, I love it. Even though I miss all of you dearly. And my family. And by August, I'll be missing Travis, too. So seriously, I really want to hear what you guys have been up to. Keep me up to date on life in Goshen and all the other corners of the world where you are. And I have to admit, if anyone goes to visit Travis next year, I would be incredibly jealous, both that you would get to see him, and that I wouldn't get to see you. So let's extend that invitation to include Cambodia. Just make it a 2-stop round-the-world trip. Ah, goshen life, I sure took you for granted. Anyhow, we're headed out to the Flying Mission office again now, so I'll sign off and wait to hear from all of you. Until next time.
P.S. My favorite summer fruit is mango, but sadly, since it is winter here, it is not the season for mangoes. Que lastima. I'll just have to hold out until Cambodia.

A Summer-y Response

2007-06-25T22:31:00.000-07:00

Well hello all! I would also like to hear more from the rest of you. Unfortunately, I haven't been in one place for more than a few days for the last 8 weeks or so, so I haven't been able to keep in very good contact with people. So poor me has no idea what's going on with people, and I am sad. After we tired of roaming the European continent, Erin and I hooked up with my fam and headed for southern Africa, where I spent the first seven years of my life, and that has been really sweet so far. A few days ago, we arrived in Gaborone, the capital of Botswana, where I will be working with Flying Mission for a still somewhat ambiguous time period (although it sounds like we've agreed on about 15 months). So it's pretty exciting to be here, and I'm really looking forward to coming back to live and not to be a tourist. Anyway, we will be on the road for about 4 more weeks before I come back to Gaborone to stay, so after that i should be able to be in a little more regular contact. Erin is coming back to Gaborone to stay with me for a week after my family leaves, so it will be really good to have that time together here before we part ways for a while. Oh, also, if anybody wants to read a little bit about our trip, my family has been blogging at rojoweaver.blogspot.com. The blog is as much for our own record of the trip as for everybody else to read, but if you're interested, feel free to peruse. Cool. Well, I wish you all were here with me. And you can be! If any of you would visit me at some point in the next year or so, my little heart would be in heart heaven. That would be cool. Forget the budget and just do it. Really. But anyway. Miss y'all lots and hope to see you soon. Love,

Travis

Oh, and my current favorite summer fruit is fresh papaya, which I never really thought I like, but has turned out to be really good.

A summer-y query

2007-06-20T21:34:00.000-07:00

My lovely, most excellent Howellers.
It has been many moons since I have checked this blog. No one has updated.
So here I am. Here, specifically, is West Unity OH, my childhood home.
I just started working at the Christmas store once again. I'll never leave, it seems.
Otherwise I have been keeping busy re-reading the books of my childhood and baking pie.
Rhubarb, in fact.
This weekend am a throwing a graduation party of sorts for some friends who couldn't come to graduation.
And you all? What plans do you have?
And: what is your favorite summer fruit?
My current favorite is honeydew melon. ...so juicy.

Holding down the fort

2007-05-09T06:25:00.000-07:00

I hope that all you Howellers who are traveling in Europe right now having a grand 'ole time. Goshen is same old, same old. Sand volleyball is a blast and my MMM class is really interesting. I miss you all very much, but hope that you have a great time. I hope that this blog is one way we can keep in touch. Don't forget to let all of us here know what you're up to over there!

Somos los Howellers Verdaderos

2007-04-25T14:37:00.000-07:00

Yes, we are the true howellers, always and forever! I tried to write that in spanish, but I don't know if I did it right.. yah. Yours truly, Lisl K

That'll be all, Travis m'lad

2007-04-25T12:09:00.000-07:00

you did well, following my orders. I hope that through this blog your subservient nature will continue to cater to my natural dominance... but really, i glad you made this blog. congradulations, you did the right thing.

this new thing and what i had for lunch

2007-04-25T12:02:00.000-07:00

Travis, you're long-winded. I've never been a part of a blog like this before, but i think that given the abounding capabilities of the world wide web, this thing is good. Also, i had chicken salad for lunch.

Howell Map

2007-04-25T11:18:00.000-07:00

http://www.frappr.com/howell2005

It's like our Howell map. Only online.

There's a way to add this link to the side of the blog, but I don't think I have that capability as just an author. So Travis, if you ever feel like adding the above link to the side of the blog, go for it.

Hurrah

2007-04-25T11:07:00.000-07:00

Good going, Kate and Travis. I kept meaning to do this. But it never happened. :)

Hey Y'all

2007-04-25T10:06:00.000-07:00

My friend Kate (formerly known as Katie) suggested just yesterday that I start a blog for all of us Howellers (cause we know Howell rightfully belongs to us) so that we might keep track of one another. Well, here 'tis. So as we spend the next few years tripping the light fantastic and living oceans apart, may this blog serve as a table around which we can gather, if only every once in a while, to share the body and blood of Christ through miles of wires and innumerable trails of bytes, to commiserate in times of trial and celebrate in times of triumph, and thereby keep the ties that bind well-bound. May it be so for us. Amen.