The AMISH are coming!

You think the Amish stay in their communities and have only limited contact with the world. It's not true.

It was 7:14a and I was jarred out of a nice morning sleep that would've lasted until at least 9 o'clock if the noises coming thru my ceiling hadn't disturbed me. "Noises" sounds mild compared to the tyrannosaurus-rex pounding and scrapings we were serenaded out of bed this morning with. It wasn't even light enough to see the roof, let alone steal my sleep!

Okay, okay. So my dad told me they were coming. But I forgot ... I called him at work and yelled, "The Amish are coming!!" He had no pity. At least tomorrow I won't have a problem being to my new job on time. Geez.

However, Amish men on top of your house is kind of interesting. Beards, suspenders and all. I'm trying to convince my mom that it would be utterly annoying to be stared at by us, but she just laughs. And my curiousity has perked up too... I've read about these so-called "simple" people and really I do just want to go out and talk to them. See their reactions to me (a worldly girl) -- see what they would tell me, how honest they would be about their lifestyle. It really is intriguing.

In two days they'll be gone. I hope they like the oatmeal-raisin cookies I'm going to bake for them. And then, we'll have slept a little less, gotten out of the house a little more (especially when the air hammer starts shooting), but have a nice roof job to boot.

:-) and, today, i'm painting a garage. i KNOW all of you envy my exciting life. haha. until then.

garage sales.

so, tuesday this week, i talked my mom into a garage sale. (after it's all said and done, I'm avoiding being ALMOST sorry for being so convincing. I'm tired!) So, every day this week we worked our tails off trying to get ready for the big day. I found out today that when you have a garage sale you come across some interesting people!

Like:
- a little boy who walks up the driveway with his mom and yells, "HEY! Do you have any cars?!" (His mom explained apologetically that he was looking for Hot Wheels. I thought it was hilarious.)

- an old lady, with one eye closed, who wanted to buy a two-person outdoor glider chair and had no way to get it to her porch and the random, big-gut old guy in suspenders (putzing around, wasting time with his buddy, probably waiting for their wives at the hairdresser) who offered to drive it to her house for her.

- another old guy who sounded like 50 cents was ridiculous to pay for an 8-piece egg poacher set. (he bought it anyway.)

- five Amish women with three children and their "chauffeur" (i suppose because they aren't allowed to drive) who were so sweet and let my mom hold one of their SWEET baby girls while they 'shopped'.

- a girl (with her boyfriend) in a oversized marijuana t-shirt that read,
"God made weed.
Man made beer.
In God we trust."
(followed by the classic weed picture.)

oh, she bought a precious moments mug. haha.

- and, finally, last but not least (literally!), the skinny hippy old guy with long wiry hair and long dangly earrings and his girl who were SO excited to buy every last one of our jars of shells. shells, you might be interested to know, that were hand picked by us from black sand beaches in Hawaii. 25 cents a jar. they were thrilled.
"Oh! i make earrings outta these!"

More good times in the life of Lisa. Tune in soon for more next time.