Possible reasons for not writing last week:

1. I was too busy studying 
2. I was having too much fun partying
3. I had no stories to tell
4. I decided sleep was more important
5. There was no internet connection

I have done far more studying over the last few weeks than I care to admit. Taking two summer classes at the same time is pretty intense. I've had little time for anything else. I spent so much time doing math problems this past week trying to get my homework done as well as do some review for the final that my wrist ached. But I refuse to study on Sunday, so that isn't the reason.

I did help a couple from church celebrate their marriage last weekend so I did do some partying and came home with a good story to tell. Between the ceremony and the beginning of the reception I was talking with Alex, Brandy, Britney and Elizabeth (names have been changed to protect the innocent) and I asked Anna what she remembered about her wedding day 17 years before. Then her husband, George, came up and he told his side of the story. One of his memories was the cream cheese mints, which no one in the group had heard of besides me. At this point in the conversation, we were ushered into the dining room. I spotted a plate of rose shaped things that looked just like those cream cheese mints that were at just about every wedding I attended growing up. I pointed this out to Britney and Elizabeth who then made sure they sat on the side of the table closest to that plate. Elizabeth picked up one of those roses and popped it in her mouth. Before Britney had the time to get one into her mouth Elizabeth blurted, "Don't eat it! It's butter!" When Alex and Brandy joined us and I picked up the plate and told them this was what those mints looked like. Elizabeth piped up that they should try one. Alex popped one in his mouth and got a very quizzical look on his face. His fiance, Brandy, took a small bite and immediately pronounced it butter at which point Alex was able to put a name to the taste which he knew wasn't cream cheese but couldn't quite place. He swore his revenge on Elizabeth for knowingly encouraging him to eat plain butter. Once I was able to stop laughing and dried the tears from my eyes I wondered if cream cheese mints were an Iowa thing (as George and Anna are also from Iowa) or a generational thing (as the other 4 are at least 15 years younger than I).

I did get some extra sleep last weekend. In fact I was so tired that I had to take a nap at 4 on Sunday and still went to bed before 10 that evening. But the real reason I didn't write last weekend was that our internet connection didn't get hooked up until Wed. It is nice to once again be connected to the electronic world and now that my math class is over (as of Thurs) I actually have time to follow the excitement of the Tour de France and the women's world cup, as well as catch up with friends by email and Skype.