Beyond the Bubble

Author: CLAIRE NIELSON AND LISIE MEHLMAN

Our friend Nura is like a demigod to us. She can do backbends with the best of them. (Claire wanted to write that Nura could turn straw into gold. Lisie does not understand how she is friends with Claire. Then she is reminded of -- actually, she just doesn't know). Nura wears cool earrings. We thought, with stellar logic, that if we wore cool earrings, then maybe, just maybe, we too could achieve demigod status. So to town we went. More specifically, we entered the colorful and vibrant world of Middlebury's own Beads and Fibers located just around the river bend.

When you first walk into the shop, the abundance of knitting supplies and multi-colored yarns can be shocking. Or, if you are like Claire, they might fill you with the overwhelming desire to knit booties for small grandchildren. Or her cats, since, clearly she will be a lonely old cat-lady. That will be difficult since she's allergic. Hey, it's better than being Lisie, who already is, according to some, a Yiddish grandmother. Apparently kids these days don't use the term "sexual urges" to describe the burgeoning sexuality of previously pre-pubescent friends. Who knew?

Once Lisie managed to drag Claire away from the yarn, we freaked. We have about as much creativity and artistic skill as... something with really little creativity and artistic skill. We were instructed as to how to go about picking out beads and earring posts. We, for one (or two?), did not know just how many different varieties of earrings posts there were. Oh the things we learn whilst seeking adventure.

We wandered around the bead table, feeling lost and confused, kind of like when you can't find your friends at Proctor and you just wander around the salad bar pretending to be remarkably interested in the soy beans. Which, by the way, have not been too great lately. We had big plans of revolutionizing the art of earring making. Then those dreams were crushed... BannerWeb style. We thought about making blue and yellow earrings, because our Fairfield County friend, who basically embodies all that is prep in the world, told us that blue and yellow were the new green and pink. Instead, we made the most boring, simple, untrendy earrings you could possibly make. We kind of like them.

When the time came to add up the bill, Lisie meticulously gave it the old college try. As it turns out, long addition is not her forte. And now we know why she's a history major. But that's still better than being a cat-lady.

Our new earrings have gotten us a lot of compliments. And a lot of guys. And a lot of pain in the form of an ear infection. One of those statements is a lie. A big fat lie. You decide which one. We are trying to increase reader participation. Don't worry - we haven't forgotten how small our fan base is. And by fan base we do mean... Markandbar, we love you!

Basically, we have Nura to thank for inspiring this week's adventure. However, Nura doesn't read, and certainly doesn't love Claire and Lisie - mere mortals - enough to read their article. But if you happen to see Nura and her dangly earrings, ask her to do a backbend for you! She's always happy to oblige.