Bookstore Review

Back on Thursday I decided to take a detour on the way to school and stop off at John W Doull Booksellers, a second hand bookstore on the corner of Barrington Street in Halifax, Nova Scotia. I stepped in and smelled books. I'm not entirely sure if that's a bad or good thing, but it was there. Posted around the store are floor plans of the store in the fashion of London Underground maps, and they are definitely necessary! JWD is two stories of bookshelves stacked floor to ceiling, dusty boxes backed with books, and piles teetering haphazardly. I sold the book I had brought for some pocket change, and began my search.

I spent an hour literally digging through their collection. The most amazing thing I found was a "window" that was cut into a shelf! I can't post the picture because of copyright, but really, check it out! They seem to have glued large books in place to hold the shelves, as well as the sliced books. I stood an marveled for a good five minutes!

Unfortunately, they didn't have the two books I was looking for. One was Euclid's Elements, or some version of it. I was in the math section, on my way back downstairs, when I passed a room labeled "Travel". The shelves inside looked interesting, so I took a step forward. Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye, a mouse scurried across the floor and dived into a pile of books.

I have to say that did it for me. It's true that Doull has an amazing selection, and I know they are trying to go for the disaster-yet-organized look, but cleanliness has its values. I may go back if the need comes, but I will be sure to stomp very loudly before I peek into a room!

Picture of JWD Booksellers by Miss A, http://www.flickr.com/photos/miss_a/9994353/

Baby Ruths (said with a sing-song voice)

The prodigal blog writer has returned with stories of camp!

From July 4th to August 8th, I participated in the Baby Ruths program at Pine Cove. Basically, I was assigned to a camp (the Timbers) with five other girls. We were placed under the authority of a "Mama Ruth," Sheryl. During the five weeks we worked to keep the camp as spic-and-span as possible, mostly with the aid of the cleaning chemical Spic-and-Span. We also helped with dishes and kitchen responsibilities and ran the tills at the camp store.

We participated in an intense Bible Study called the Gauntlet, ran by Jeff and Jason, where we studied women of the Bible, character traits, and memorized scripture. There were also mentorship opportunities with the director's wives, and practical skills learned along the way.

If this post seems dull and undetailed, it's because it has to be. A large component of the program is not knowing where you're going till you get there, or what you're doing till you're doing it. Half the time our mama would wake us up, so we didn't even know how much sleep we would get when we laid our heads down at night. It was a great experience, learning to let go of control and trusting in the program. To be honest, the first week I slept horribly because I was so anxious about what the next day would bring, but then I realized, they wouldn't make us do anything dangerous. They wouldn't make us do anything we couldn't physically do, or something they wouldn't make their own daughters do. If we were hungry, we would be fed on schedule, and if we were hot and nasty sweaty, we would be inside by the end of the day.

I was thinking on the way home about the opportunities I had this summer. I was invited to participate in a student leadership conference in Prague. I also had the opportunity to go to Greece with my family. I would enjoy visiting those places one day, but I'm glad I didn't miss out on this opportunity. I learned more about community and myself, and more about who I want to become than any other experience I could have chosen. Yes, it was exhausting and frustrating at different points, but what I gained by serving was worth it.

Pine Cove

Hey all. This blog will be down for the next five weeks. I will be serving at Pine Cove Timbers from July 4- August 8 with six other lovely girls as Baby Ruths.

If you'd like to mail, the address will be

Chelsea [Last Name] - Baby Ruth

Pine Cove Timbers

PO Box 9055

Tyler, Texas 75711-9055

I will write back if you send an address. :)

Halifax: What I'm Looking Forward To

On September 2, 2009, I will be packing up my things and shipping out to Halifax, Nova Scotia, where I will be spending my next three years. It just struck me the other day that I have a high school diploma. This is where some people stop- as far as they go. I'm so thankful for the opportunity to continue learning and recieve recognition for it, because quite frankly, I don't feel prepared at this point to survive off of all the knowledge I've accumulated thus far.

When I get to Halifax, I will be staying with the "A" family. They have three children, and the wife was a math major from Dalhousie. I'm looking forward to getting to know their family and that sense of community. I've really weighed the decision of residence life vs. boarding, and I think I would miss a home too much. I want to be able to cook and sit in a living room to read. Granted, I will be spending a lot of time on campus anyways, but I like the idea of returning home, rather than living at school. Plus, it will get me off campus more. I'll be forced to master the bus system, so I will not put off exploring the city.

Next, I'm looking forward to my classes. Right now, it looks like I'll be taking waaay too many math classes this year, so I'm glad I enjoy it! Hopefully I won't become overwhelmed, and thanfully they're all in different areas (calculus, statistics, computer science, etc). However, once I get these basic classes done, I will be ready for the more advanced and interesting options next year (game theory, number theory, cosmology, etc). I'll also be taking a class on Arthurian legends in the winter.

I'm looking forward to having access to the Dalplex, the gym on campus. They have a large indoor pool that I anticipate using a great deal. I've been looking for a regular fitness program, and I think this year may be the start of it. There's a nice gap in my schedule Monday afternoon, and available spaces on Tuesday and Thursday.

Likewise, I plan on joining the Dalhousie Swing Dance Society. They give lessons at different levels each semester, and host dance events. This will be another great way to exercize, and meet new people.

I'm also looking into the campus's chapter of Habitat for Humanity. They do trips each year on reading week, and HH is always something that I've been interested in getting involved with, but felt too young to participate in. Now, I can!

So that's what I'll probably be doing starting September!

The Jon and Kate Debacle

Well, since every tabloid is getting nosy, I'm going to take advantage of this somewhat unsurprising event to give my opinion on "Jon and Kate Plus 8." I have watched the show twice. I know one of my readers is (or was, not sure what her opinion is now) a die hard fan.

Let me preface by saying that when I was babysitting several months ago, a young girl wanted to watch "Jon and Kate" and her parents always let her, etc etc. I said no. You can watch it with your parents when they get back, but I didn't feel it was appropriate for her to be watching at her age. First off, from the, maybe forty minutes I have seen of the show, I was very disappointed. The family is advertised as being a Christian family (If you'd like to argue that, then why is their biography in Christian bookstores and the Christian aisles of secular bookstores?), but I do not have a sense of peace when watching them. Sure, they have eight kids. Sure, that causes stress and tension. My family is a perfect example of faulty relationships. However, if you know your family needs to work on its character traits of patience and peace, then why invite a camera crew in to broadcast every dramatic scene? It appeared to me, quite frankly, to be a family that wanted to be in the spotlight and was willing to foster drama to get there.

Now, on the topic of their separation, I think the reasons given are beautiful goals, but the execution is wrong. They both stated in video interviews that they were getting separated because they wanted to give their children a peaceful environment. Separation does not create a peaceful environment. It creates a void in the children's life. Sure, they still have a mom and dad, but they do not have parents. They don't get to witness the interaction between two grown adults on a day-to-day basis. Furthermore, bitter feelings eventually create resentment. Just because the two parents aren't there to bicker in front of their children does not mean there will not be bickering. Bitterness seeks out common areas to take a stance, and for them, this will be their children. Even if they say they won't, they will try to gain the preference of their children at the cost of the other. My parents said they wouldn't (and I can tell they tried not to for a long time) but after being separated for five years, the jabs just get worse.

Next, the arrangements that they have made for their children seem to shine the spotlight on their weakness of placing their children before their marriage. They have decided to keep the children at one house, and each live their on their separate days. They referred to it as the "children's house". Whoa. Does anyone see the world these children are being raised in? They are being taught that they are the center of their world.

This show (both before and after the announced separation) has turned me completely against reality TV (not that I was a fan before this show appeared). I find it absolutely revolting what people will do for fame and money. Apparently, Jon mentioned that he was annoyed with paparazzi following the family's every move, but both have agreed that the show will go on... through the divorce. Hopefully people will watch it long enough to see what a messy and depressing solution divorce is to their problems.