Mel the meddler

The Best April Fools EVER!!

2007-04-02T16:26:00.000-07:00

I come from a long history of pranking. One of my earliest memories of April Fool's day was putting corn flakes in my dads work boots early in the morning. And this weekend I witnessed the best April Fool's day prank EVER!!

So Erin and Adrian got married on Saturday, March 31. The wedding was beautiful. For me, it was a bit crazy, as the bridesmaid's dresses ripped up the back and I was running through the superstore trying to find something to paste or pin a dress together. After a small police altercation, some re-routing, and a black cat walking across our path, we made it to the reception.

That evening, my cousins wanted to do something fun, so we went to White Rock. My brother and cousin started doing flips on the grass. There were other kids down by the white rock who could also do some awesome moves, so we had a little showdown between our group and their group. So we stood around and cheered for the different guys who were doing stunts down by the rock.

Last night, Erin and Adrian got pulled over by the police into the grandview Highway Superstore (while we hid behind the shopping carts and filmed the whole thing. We had been waiting at the Superstore for an hour or more and we couldn't stop giggling). The policeman got Erin and Adrian to get out of the car, as he wanted to see Erin's Visa information. He tore up Erin's Visa to Canada as she got more and more frustrated and Adrian started to get angry.

Then Adrian got handcuffed and stuffed into the policecar. Erin followed soon after. Then I walked by. Erin opened up the door and said, "officer, this is my cousin," as she looked to me for help. "Oh hi Erin?!" I said.

"APRIL FOOLS!!!!" I shouted as all of my brothers, Jessica, Shaun and Brenda crashed the police car with their cameras and the policemen started laughing. Seriously, a weekend to remember!!!!

SUMMER TIME IS A COMING!!

2007-03-18T17:42:00.000-07:00

Jessica and I have tons of plans for the summer, and I am getting excited. First up is a trip to Billings with my mom to visit two good friends from university (they're married - hehehe). I'm thinking about the Mexico trip with my church, and Rough Acres bible camp. And then there will be surfing trips, camping, swimming, frisbee, a little soccer outside, hiking, fishing (if we ever get to go with Kris), and lots of weddings.

And, unfortunately I have missed my chance to get a weird tan from summer activities because I have a fake one from a tanning bed. (although my favourite one is the water skiing one)

So get excited everyone, we are going to have a great summer!

Weddings, Weddings, Weddings!!

2007-03-17T11:03:00.000-07:00

So, I have approximately 100 cupcakes to make this next week (I have made over 100 already... they're in my freezer). I couldn't sleep last night because I was trying to think up a skit for Erin and Ade's reheresal dinner, and I ended up dreaming about transporting cupcakes to the wedding (for some reason they were in donut boxes in my dream). Now I am starting to understand why girls plan their weddings without having a guy in mind. I am constantly surrounded by wedding ideas. I am starting to know what I like and what I don't like about other's weddings. Weird, I know.

Jeremy and Kalena got married yesterday. Both of my roomates are at weddings today. Erin and Adrian get married exactly two weeks from today. Becca got engaged on Thursday this week. Her wedding is in May.
For the summer: Taylor and Pam are getting married on July 7th, Sarah and Mike are getting married on August 19th (for some reason that date sticks in my head, but I'm not sure it is the right one), My cousin Alyssa is also getting marrie d sometime in August, Chris and Gina are getting married on April 27th, and it seems that I have forgotten at least one. Our fridge is covered in wedding invitations.
And the question remains... where is my husband? Where is he hiding? Why can't I find him?

DDR at work??

2007-03-04T20:30:00.000-08:00

So, not many people can say that they play DDR at work. It's pretty awesome!! It was (GASP!) almost worth skipping a weekend of hanging out with friends. We took the Skytrain to Science World on Friday to see their chocolate exhibit (which didn't have enough free samples for my liking). I played basketball for a while yesterday with the kids, and today, well, we watched a movie and played some badminton (one of the girls schooled me), and looked at silly music videos on YouTube. I don't have any idea what they have planned for tomorrow, but I know everyone went skating last Monday (and I missed out!)

Teenagers are super funny when it comes to food. We have lots of stuff they can make - pancakes, soup, grilled cheese sandwiches, mac and cheese, toast, pizza pops, lots of different kinds of fruit - but they will open up the frigde and say "There's nothing to eat!" But when stuff is made (I made waffles and bacon for breakfast Friday morning) it is completely devoured!!

Favourite quote of my day at work: "I just want to be married and have kids and it's not happening!!"
The story behind my favourite quote of the day:
One of our teens was frustrated and yelling at one of our staff about all the things she didn't like about the day (we ran out of peanut butter, then while the girl was on time out, another teen ate her lunch!! - I would get angry too if I couldn't eat what I wanted!) So, the staff member gave her a little piece of what was wrong with her own life! "I just want to be married and have kids and it's not happening!!" I laughed until I almost cried, mostly because I understood the sentiment. We all have stuff in life that we don't like, but even a day without peanut butter isn't that bad!

Cutting and Coloring

2007-02-22T10:55:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I got my orientation to the unit I will be working on at least for the next two months. I have to admit that yesterday was a depressing day.

I am just in the middle of learning what all the teens on my unit have been through, and it's not pretty. (abuse, multiple foster homes, etc.) And leads to lots of problems. At least one girl on the unit is a cutter, some have suicidal ideations. One girl likes to sit and mutter (things like "Don't hurt me!" "F___ You!" "I'm scared" "I'm gay.") We sat together and colored pictures of the Little Mermaid, and I think she actually made eye contact with me twice. One girl taught me some hip hop dance moves, which made me laugh, and I think I am helping her with homework tonight.

Then I went home and chatted with my roomates, and ended up watching about half of "The Color Purple." (it was the most depressing movie I have ever seen - we had to turn it off). It's basically about this black woman who is abused every way possible by her husband her whole life.

Life is ugly. I think we all know this in some way. And it had never been more real to me than yesterday. I have a tendency to be like "God where are you? Why didn't you stop this from happening?"

I was praying last night for Joy and Endurance. (two things that I am going to need) Because these sad stories are not the end. God knows what each of these teens have been through in intimate detail. And he cares for each one more than I could ever know. And God is shown to the world through those who love Him. I am Christ's light shining in a dark place. I am excited and scared for the months ahead, but I know that I am growing in His light.

How to Get Wax out of Your Hair

2007-02-15T14:58:00.000-08:00

I've always wanted to have dredlocks... just like this guy.

Liz and Anna had a pirate Valentine's day party. And what's more Jack Sparrow than dredlocks? So last night was my chance. I made dredlocks.

And what's the most difficult hair styling product to get out of your hair?

We used wax and glue to make dredlocks. Well, I looked hot like this guy last night, but even after washing my hair three times last night in the shower, I woke up with a very waxy head and pillow.

So I phoned Nikky, my friend that also made dreds, to see how she was doing.

Her concotion was eggs, peanut butter, mayo, and vegetable oil. Rub it in, wait for five minutes, wash it out. My head was still waxy.

I found an internet site that said vegetable oil would work. I tried it, my head was still waxy.

Finally I found a site that said to get wax out of carpet, you should use an iron and wipe up the wax as it melts with a cloth.

So I went to the shower, pretty determined. I scrubbed my head with every random product there was in our shower. And I thought, well, what about the carpet method. The iron provides heat, and the cloth adds a mechanical way to remove the melted wax. So I turned up the heat in my shower, stuck my head under, and scrubed with a cloth.

My head is feeling less waxy, but still not normal. It might take a few days. I think I've washed my hair nine or ten times now. hahahahaha Oh what we do for dress up parties....

This week...

2007-02-11T21:52:00.000-08:00

I'm really enjoying not having homework.
- I spent lots of time this week planning Erin's bridal shower, phoning a ton of girls to come, and getting really excited about being part of another wedding.
- I was one of the few people in my class to get my IV catheter in Nikky's vein. Unfortunately, I messed up and she had a huge hematoma the next day (sorry!!)
- I went to see the play at Trinity, and it reminded me too much of what my job is like... It was a play about a doctor and feeling helpless about actually saving/helping people. I mean there are so many people with so many problems, I just want to fix them all, but I can only do so much... and I really don't have the power to actually change another person's mind. (although, I pray that God gives me influence in relationships that I will be building with my teens at work).
- We ended up talking to one of Jessica's friends for hours that night (and it gave me hope that there are nice guys out there that I have not met yet).
- Oh, and dating Maia is great! Saturday made me feel like it was summer, we made a list of summer goals - I think for me skinny dipping is at the top of the list!! (oh, did I say that outloud?)
- Wallyball is really fun!! I just love playing games with friends!!

2007-02-04T20:51:00.000-08:00

So, I've had some random days. Yesterday, I went four-by-fouring with Erin and Adrian. Adrian is always an adventure. We found a hiking trail starting in Coquitlam, but it was blocked off with large cement blocks.

So, we were like "That's dumb, we want to drive up the mountain in our truck. Why don't we pull the cement block out of the way?"

There was a Chinese woman waiting for the bus across the road, so we drove around the block until she was gone. Then we stopped and Erin, very stealthily, put our tow rope around the block as Adrian drove (partly on the sidewalk, partly on the road). I'm not sure how many cars saw us (at least 5). The block tipped over and we dragged it almost to the sidewalk, Erin unhooked it and hopped in. And we took a drive around the block again (to make sure none of the cars that saw us drag the block would see us drive up the trail).

We turned onto the trail. The rain was lightly falling, Adrian had his window rolled down, enjoying the fresh air as we drove up the mountain. It was a beautiful trail.

About 1/2 km up the trail there was another set of boulders and also posts to prevent anyone from driving up the trail. So we just gave up. And did a 10 point turn to get back down the trail.

So we went to Buntzen Lake. "Oh this trail is closed for dangerous conditions. Let's go see!!" The trail was closed because a bunch of trees had fallen in the winter storms. So we climbed on tree trunks in the snow until I was so cold and wet that I couldn't feel my fingers or toes.

Then, we went for ice cream! (I also had tea).

Classic, I hung out with Maia afterwards, went to Death by Chocolate for supper (and almost died) and watched The Devil Wears Prada at Liz and Anna's. It was the perfect day.

South Africans Take over Vancouver

2007-02-02T18:24:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Maia and I went to Vancouver with four South African guys - David, Yanni, Ben and Neku. They were so much fun!! And it was the perfect day. The sun was shining and we easily found each other after parking (which can be a hassle sometimes). My favourite memory from yesterday - Neku chasing me down the street in Gastown (which was a complete surprise from such a quiet fellow). We did the classic tourist thing - took pictures of the steam clock, went to Lonsdale market, Robson street (and lululemon). Altogether, an awesome time!!

Oh, and tomorrow Jessica and I are going snowshoeing. Hurray!!

2007-01-29T17:34:00.000-08:00

Tolkien. (that's who is in the picture). Imagination.

So, I've been reading G.K. Chesterton's Orthodoxy, something I have attempted many times, but I haven't actually finished because of... well, school reading. So, Chesterton's got me thinking. He says what keeps sane people from insanity is imagination. It is the attempt to rationalize everything that drives you crazy. I agree with him. And somehow being justified in my imagination is something that I need (especially right now).

It is good for my little mind to think of my life as a story. It is good for my camera for me to see beauty all around . And I think all of those memories that I hold on so dearly to have sparked my imagination. (I remember being in the mountains for close to a week with my siblings, and reading a Narnia book while lying on the moss on the forest floor - some part of me remains on that forest floor). The stories that have meant so much to me were epics (I love lord of the Rings... I think I have read it two or three times front to back, And there was one friend at Upward Bound in Austria who said to me "We get to play lord of the rings again today!!"). There is more to life than the mundane. Imagination has the power to bring color and energy to the life. I want to make so many more beautiful memories with friends. I want to be silly and run around in the fog. I want to take pictures of random things (which pretty much describes today!)

Oh the people in my life...

2007-01-23T14:18:00.000-08:00

are great, what can I say? Those people that tolerate my cheekiness in class, my tears in homegroup, my neat-freakiness at home, my sense of silliness anywhere else. How I could I live without them. Honestly. Because I feel like I am completely dry of any deep profound thoughts, this is what I am thinking right now: Some times I feel dumb that I am me. I don't know if anyone would get that. But I sure am weird.
I'll let you analyze the data:
- I am turning 23 this year and have never had a boyfriend
- I started castrating calves when I was twelve years old (maybe this one has something to do with the first one).
- I have a tropical plant named Wesley.
- I buy cut flowers for myself
- I actually enjoy running in the rain (today is perfect!)
- I dance like a ballerina in my house
- The radio stations currently programmed on my car radio: classic rock, pop, contemporary rock, classical, christian, and country. I mean, who listens to those?
- I have a giant purple ball that I am staring at right now that is covered in nipples
- I asked the pharmacist for emergency contraception yesterday (this is weird, yet again, looking at the first note)
- My public high school graduating class consisted of nine people (and I was valedictorian YIPEE!)
- I have hiked and snowboarded in the Alps
- I like owning an orchid, it's the only plant that dies if you water it, but keeps going if you never water it
- I see naked people all the time at work

Yep, I'm weird.

2007-01-18T14:28:00.000-08:00

God, I am sick of snow and cold. I feel like a wall of ice is separating me from the fresh energy and new life of spring. I feel like hibernating until I wake up and things are warm. Am I suffering from seasonal affected disorder? Maybe. Or maybe it is just that I want to skip the gray cold lifeless parts of life to come even faster to the good times. I know that you are changing me more than ever right now. I can feel my passion for you and your word and your people growing, but still, God, why are your lessons so hard?

Wait for the Lord. Be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.

I guess underneath all that snow is the promise of life. Last Wednesday when it snowed it felt like I was underneath a huge white down comforter, I felt completely protected and surrounded. Maybe the gray cold is more like a crysallis, a cocoon, and I am in the middle of metamorphsis. I have this problem of not being able to see what God is doing while I am in the middle of his latest scheme. But I have confidence that a few months from now, hindsight will be (as always) 20/20.

2007-01-16T18:47:00.000-08:00

So the time has come again! Jessica and I will be making another turkey on January 26th. For Thanksgiving we had a very limited invitation-only dinner. This time, we are making the invitation open to who ever.

There is a catch - cost of admission is some sort of food item. We are hoping for a TON of people to come... but a few catches, I haven't checked the youth schedule and I actually haven't invited anyone yet. heheheheheehe. It will all work out. Anyway, expect an invitation soon.

Snow Day!

2007-01-11T14:33:00.000-08:00

So, I'm a clean freak. After one of my coffee dates with a friend from school fell through because of the crappy roads, I decided that I was going to clean! Somehow it feels good to have everything organized and tidy. As if I wasn't domestic enough, the snow has kept Jessica and I both in the house today. I am such a nerd. But maybe cleanliness is next to godliness.... (hehehehehe)

My Sister

2007-01-08T22:28:00.000-08:00

I wanted to wait until I was home in Langley to write about my Christmas holiday. I had a good time, but stuff with my sister has been hard. It's been months of agony for my parents and family near home. One night in October, Rachel (my sister) had snuck out, walked a mile or two, and met some guy she met on the internet to have sex. My parents found out through some notes she had written to a friend that were in her pocket. That was the first of the struggles. We have all been eager to put the past behind us, repent, forgive and move on. Rachel had been doing a good job of rebuilding trust in our family, but the holiday has shown that her heart has not changed.

The last phone bill showed that my sister had been calling a guy in Edmonton. Only in the Edler house do phone bills lead to prayer meetings. We gathered around my sister to pray for her. Every few days there is another temper tantrum, or set of lies that have become transparent that all lead to big discussions at home. Rachel is using her cellphone to sex-text (textmessage sex talk) two guys.

Just one example of the many battles we have had:
My dad took her cellphone away Wednesday night so she could sleep instead of text all night. Thursday she hid the phone. I decided that I was going to stay awake all night until we found the phone. She finally gave in and gave my dad the phone and started scream "YOU DON'T TRUST ME." I have never been more angry in my life. I threw her down to the bed and screamed at her through my tears "WE DON'T TRUST YOU BECAUSE YOU ARE NOT TRUSTWORTHY" (if you knew my sister, you would be surprised, she is much stronger than I am). She started screaming and yelling that she was going to leave, but I held her down. She was begging my mom to kick her out of the house.

By that time my mom was in tears and saying "I don't even know what to do." We phoned an elder from our church, John, who is also a neighbour, Special Constable in the RCMP, and a friend. After long talks, some conclusions were made... my parents have to do what is right for their daughter (such as take the cellphone away until the Holy Spirit tells my dad it is time to give it back, phone the school to make sure Rachel does not have internet access). And Rachel can leave anytime she wants when she is legally an adult (For Rachel that means March 11 - her eighteenth birthday).

That night I slept in Rachel's room as 'gatekeeper' so she wouldn't run. I didn't sleep. I had visions of demons introducing themselves to me. I felt like at any moment Rachel was going to attack me. Rachel told my mom the next morning that she had seen a dark figure before her eyes got used to the dark. The whole time I was home, I could feel the spiritual battle in my house in a way that I have never felt before. I had nightmares of lots of dark things when I was home. Rachel told me, "There are voices in my head that tell me you don't love me."

Rachel, in her most lucid moments admits to a lot, like "I haven't been happy since I had sex with that guy. I am sad all the time. I don't like that everyone treats me different." But there are other times that you can literally see her eyes go murky and her lip turns pouty, she will lie, she will manipulate you, and will also have tantrums like a child.

Darkness has surrounded her whole life. As a baby, her mother almost killed her, and then ended up in jail, where she had my other adopted brother, Daniel. When we first adopted Rachel at two years old, she would scream and crawl the walls in her nightmares. My parents have prayed over her life many sleepless nights. After a happy childhood in my family, she is now at the time when she will decide the road she will travel.

It was not a mistake that we got Rachel (and Dan for that matter), and it is not a mistake that she got us. It is a rough chapter, but I don't know the end of this. The light has already conquered the darkness. And God is still good. I see it in the laughter of my brothers with some stupid joke they have made. I see it with our cattle in Alberta and the prairie that stretches forever and the space to breathe. I see it in the rain in Langley and the joy of coming back to Trinity for my last semester. And I thank God that I can come home to Langley and finally sleep without nightmares. Pray for my family.

And my constant companion...

2007-01-04T15:44:00.000-08:00

I have been playing violin a lot, especially during the holidays. My favourite: playing violin with my sister-in-law playing piano (she has her masters in piano performance).

Oh, and I'm half-finished reading The Da Vinci Code. I can't seem to put it down...

I can't help myself

2007-01-04T15:33:00.000-08:00

I can't help myself. This place is beautiful. I am blessed to grow up in a place that allowed me the space to run free. These are some of the pictures I took today.

An old windmill from a house about a mile from ours.
A tractor that I used to drive to swath the field. I think the thing should be in some sort of museum.
Oh one of those painted red farm buildings. This one houses one of our wells.
Oh, and the bales of straw.

Oh the Farm

2007-01-02T14:39:00.000-08:00

The old threshing machine

Our ancient snowmobile: The evinrude

Hospital Christmas

2007-01-02T10:45:00.000-08:00

So, in keeping with some wacky traditions, we had a theme dinner for Christmas, and it was my turn to plan. It took me since the summer to nab enough stuff from the hospital to make it work. I'm going to attempt to load some pics.

oh no I've caved

2007-01-01T15:44:00.000-08:00

Some part of me can't believe I've joined the infinite cyber community as another blogger. A little history on my blog experience - after a long semester I found I spent a lot of time flipping through the blogs of friends. The blogging universe is crazy because you can click on blogs of people that you don't know, and end up looking at pictures of people that you do know, but you didn't know that they knew those other people that you don't know but people you know know those other people. So I guess I'm just adding to the mess... But one thing that I find redeemable, I'm an obsessive journaler. I journal almost everyday. Oh, and I just bought a friend's camera with high hopes that I will one day be a closet photographer (what traveler hasn't always dreamed of taking pictures for National Geographic).

So I hope you enjoy reading what I write, and laughing at the strange humor that can only exist in a prairie farm traveler nurse.