Partygirl, upon hearing that I was hanging out with the Methodists for Easter, said, “Are you sure you want to be entertained that much in church?” And, indeed, the Presbyterian Assembly, reacting in the 1800s to the Methodist revival movement, warned against “undue excitement in church”. But I am enjoying being in a church in which people shout “You tell ’em, Girl!” to the pastor during the sermon.

Of course, Partygirl is Catholic. On the High Church to Low Church continuum, they are at the top, followed by the Episcopalians, Presbyterians, and then the Methodists. I think if you went any further down, you’d be a Baptist. I am not sure where the Lutherans fall; I have enough trouble with Holy Communion without bringing in transubstantiation, so I did not include them in my possibilities.

The Methodists have not yet begun their Easter music, and they say I can come sing it with them without having to make any commitment (do I seem particularly noncommital to them, I wonder, or do they always offer that possibility?), so I will be hanging out with the choir. I will also continue to sing in the early service at the Presbyterian church. I am trying not to feel too much like a secret agent.

Hopkins is coming along happily with the gray back. It is not interesting enough to take a picture of yet, so you will have to take my word for it.

The quilt for #1 son is not coming along that well. I had thought the steps would be something like this: buy pattern and fabric, cut, applique, piece, quilt, bind, give to said son for his birthday in April. Instead, they have gone like this: search bootlessly for pattern and end up having to order it, read instructions and take a week to recuperate, buy fabric, decide to make sample piece to try out new technique, find pattern for same (at right), search bootlessly for freezer paper, beg some from local butcher, trace pattern for sample piece, cut out sample piece with X-acto knife while seeking way to avoid this tedium and cursing myriad slips of said knife, quit to go find scraps for sample piece, return to cutting with X-acto knife, cut self, quit and sort out all quilting scraps by shape, color, and size, return to cutting, quit and play on computer for a while — oh, well, that’s as far as I have gotten. It may be a Christmas gift. Or perhaps for his going away to college in 2007. We’ll see.