Is it over?

This week is almost over.
At least I hope so.
I haven't been this stressed in a long time.
Stress, stress, stress.
Stress.
hahaha, it's funny when you write the same word over and over again, it starts to look funny.
Meh.
Ttyl.

Breather

Hey Everyone,
Sorry it's been awhile.
Finals.
Would you believe it?
Maybe, maybe not.
I will try to be more constant.
Anyways, onward with the updates!
I read 67 young adult books for my Literature for Adolescents class. My teacher made the mistake of saying the previous record, so of course, I just HAD to beat it. 32 of those 67 were read in the last two and half weeks before the end of the semester. So basically, I read like three books a day until I beat it.
Looooooooooooooooootsssssssssss of reading.
But good news, I recorded all of it at Goodreads, so I won't forget.
Thank goodness, right? Wouldn't want all of that work to go to waste.
I finished grading final papers and assignments. Now, I am just waiting to grade the final tests.
I have finals, of course. But they will wait until tomorrow, of course.
Seven a.m.
Who, may I ask, even gets up that early anymore?
I certainly don't.
That is right, the days of getting up at 4:30 a.m. for work have long since gone the way of all the earth.
LATE nights...fairly early mornings...
I guess this is like, real college, right?
Good thing I only have one semester left. Well, if you live in the land of technicalities, then I have like three semesters left, but remember, those last couple semesters are reserved for student teaching, no classes.
That is right folks! This next semester is the end of official classes!
Don't ask how many credits, it takes too long to explain it all.
I will do it because I have to...and I will try to sleep a little bit also.
But that is about all I have right now.
See ya laters.

Loves.

#BooksWithBeddes: The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

source

So for my Literature for Adolescents class, I've been reading like a madwoman. (Sorry Goodreads friends...) Anyways, I had heard a lot from various people and professors that The Graveyard Book was a good read. At first, I wasn't sure I believed them. I tend to be a coward when it comes to reading material and anything the least bit scary or suspenseful I avoid. But I was intrigued. So I picked up this little jewel of a book yesterday and basically devoured it. SO GOOD.

There is a reason why it won the 2009 Newbery Medal and the 2010 Carnegie Medal.

Neil Gaiman wrote Coraline and Stardust and Mirrormask, so if you are familiar with any of those titles, you have a pretty good idea of how imaginative his is. His craftsmanship is supremely evident in this book. The sentences are just gorgeous! I know that may seem like a strange way of describing a book, but I can't think of any other way which emphasizes my love of this book.

The story is very similar to The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling, in the sense that a boy is orphaned and brought up in unique circumstances. Nobody Owens, as the boy is called, is raised by a graveyard full of ghosts, after his family is murdered when he was just a baby. The graveyard and its residents protect him from the murderers who want to finish the job, but they can't protect him forever. Bod grows up and faces his fate.

It's a suspenseful tale that kept me turning the page frantically and annoying my roommates with my agonized gasps. I definitely recommend it to anyone willing to take a chance.

Words of Inspiration

"Know all the books in your local library better than the librarian. Go there every night. Live there. Educated yourself. Know all the stock in the local book store. I do. There is no day in my life I do not go to at least one book store. Go to art galleries. Look. Fill up. See every film ever made. Fill up on that medium. Know everything that is bad. Only by knowing what is bad can you avoid badness. The snob who refuses knowledge in mediocrities remains always second-rate himself. I have collected Prince Valiant for 30 years. Listen to bad music and good music and great music. Study architecture. Read science-fiction, because it is the one fiction which is curious about ALL the above, all and everything, on every level. In sum: run, shout, search, be puzzled, go on, from day to day, with high enthusiasm."  

~Ray Bradbury

Source: Witkin, Mitzi. "A Defense of Using Pop Media in the Middle-School Classroom." The English Journal 83.1 (1994): 30-33. Print.

80

 

This was FHE or Family Home Evening in our student ward on campus this past Monday. We went bowling

I...LOVE...BOWLING

These two lovely ladies are my roommates. They are adorable.

My team.

I would just like to mention that my final score was 80. That is a whole 19 points higher than my last high score.

Yes. 

I still love bowling.

:)

Hurrah for Tugboats

source

I don't know how many of you heard, but off the coast of southern California, a massive Carnival cruise liner has been stranded some 200 miles San Diego. There was an engine fire which knocked out power to basically the whole ship, also cutting hot water and electricity off. (There is a link to the article here.)

No crew or passengers were injured.

You would think, out of all the sea-going vessels, cruise ships would be some of the safest (Poseidon Adventure aside), especially with all that food. I never really thought about this problem, but with no electricity, the is NO REFRIGERATION. All that food, gone to waste. The US coast guard had to actually fly in emergency food supplies until the ship can make it back to land. 

Which, bring me to the purpose of this post.

How is a powerless, broken 113,000 ton (that means it's BIG) cruise ship going to make it back to land?

 

The answer, my friends, is tugboats.

 

Can you imagine it? These hearty little things are pulling that monstrosity all 200 miles back to safety.

My admiration level for these little boats has gone up immeasurably these past couple of days. I sure hope those passengers appreciate what is going in to save them, although I can pretty much assure that they are probably furious right now. 

Scared, maybe; furious, most definitely.

Anyways, as I was trying to find a picture of these brave little engines, these engines that could, I came across this delightful gem.

Tugboat Enthusiasts Society

Who would have known!

(I'm kind of tempted to join now)

(...also, the style is very old school internet...the kind I remember learning about in elementary school. It kind of warms the cockles of your heart to see such nostalgia.)

Anyways, I'd thought I'd share what I've been following the past couple of days. Knock on wood that it turns out OK, and that everyone gets home safe.

Except poor Carnival...they are going to lose a boatload* of money.

*no pun intended.

Good Eats: Aebleskiver!

Look at how crafty I am!

I made aebleskiver!
They are this delightful little Danish...thing. A little like pancakes, but a little different.
Supposedly, the history of aebleskiver is something like this:

Once upon a time, Vikings were tired after a rather exhausting raid and so they got back to their ship and they wanted something to eat. Pancakes! However, they didn't have anything to cook it on but a badly dented shield, so they made do with what they had. Pancake batter in a dented shield and viola! You get aebleskiver. 

The name, when literally translated means "apple slices" which...doesn't make all that much sense seeing as there usually isn't any apples in them any more...but it's fun to say!

"abe-el-skae-ber" would be the phonetic way of saying it. Danish...it's all at the back of your throat, just swallow the words.

Anyways, this ^ is the type of pan you use to make them with. You pour in the batter and turn it as it cooks so it's done all the way in the inside and golden brown all around the outside.

I am going to make them for my History 201 TA class on Thursday. I get to teach and since there is a connection between  Scandinavia and the Kievan Rus, why not make class more enjoyable with treats!
Except, since this was my first time, they are a little gooey.
However, in the immortal words of Scarlett O'hara, "Tomorrow is another day!"
...
And tomorrow will bring more aebleskiver.

p.s. I made these Norwegian cupcakes a couple of weeks ago. They are really just chocolate cupcakes with the Norwegian flag in icing on the top. Still, I think they are pretty creative. They tasted pretty good too.

Here is Nay, modeling them for everyone.
Labor of love, I tell ya, labor of love.

Kievan Rus, Heian Japan and Mali

Oh boy, oh boy!
I am so excited, folks!
I get to teach in my TA class about the post-classical civilizations of the Kievan Rus, Heian and Kamakura Japan and the Empire of Mali in Sub Saharan West Africa.
I made a prezi. (It's like powerpoint, but much cooler.)
Here it is!
PREZI
Anyways, if you can't look at, give me a couple days and I will try to get it up here.
Stay tuned, I will give you a heads up of what next semester looks like
Oh goodie.
Yes, that is exactly what you should be thinking. :)
Loves.

World Awareness

It's weird. Whenever I blog, I just send it out in the great wide world, not really thinking of who is seeing it. I just found the stats section of blogger. And it's opened my eyes, man. There was people in Russia, who has seen my blog. Russia, of all places! And other places. Like Norway! That was exciting. I love Norway.

Suddenly, I feel like I should be more cosmopolitan in my blogging approach.

Any suggestions?
If not, I will continue to do what I do.
Put up stuff that I find unique, interesting, or just me.
Loves to the great wide world. :)

Crystal Stairs

Mother to Son

by Langston Hughes

"Well, son, I’ll tell you:

Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.

It’s had tacks in it,

And splinters,

And boards torn up,

And places with no carpet on the floor—

Bare.

But all the time

I’se been a-climbin’ on,

And reachin’ landin’s,

And turnin’ corners,

And sometimes goin’ in the dark

Where there ain’t been no light.

So boy, don’t you turn back.

Don’t you set down on the steps

’Cause you finds it’s kinder hard.

Don’t you fall now—

For I’se still goin’, honey,

I’se still climbin’,

And life for me ain’t been no crystal stair."
*from poetryfoundation.org

Life may not be a crystal stair...
but it's worth it.

Keep that in mind as school tries to take it out of you.
with loves,
Kiera

If I Could Save Time in a Bottle...

Apparently, I am on a 1970's singer-songwriter phase. First Dan Fogleberg, now Jim Croce.
But have you ever listened to his stuff?
It is so soothing, so friendly, so heartbreaking.
It makes you wonder what he could have done, had he lived longer.
He died in a plane accident, just when he was 30. It's that kind of tragedy that makes you grateful for what you have.

"If I could save time in a bottle
The first thing that I'd like to do
Is to save every day 'til eternity passes away
Just to spend them with you

If I could make days last forever
If words could make wishes come true
I'd save every day like a treasure and then
Again, I would spend them with you

But there never seems to be enough time
To do the things you want to do once you find them
I've looked around enough to know
That you're the one I want to go through time with

If I had a box just for wishes
And dreams that had never come true
The box would be empty except for the memory
Of how they were answered by you

But there never seems to be enough time
To do the things you want to do once you find them
I've looked around enough to know
That you're the one I want to go through time with"

*there is no video of him performing this song, it was released posthumously. But it is a good, good song. Just like all the rest.

"No Juicy Tacos!"

If you follow this blog, you have probably already seen this stuff on Facebook, but I couldn't help myself. This movie needs to be known.
Here's the story:
There is this thing called the Lost Media Archive. I can't find the website right now, but I will update it when I can get to it.
Shannon goes sometimes because she is cool like that and has unique friends. So anyway, it's a group that collects old and out-of-print things. Like things that you have never, ever heard of. Last night was the showing of this movie, The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit.
BEST. MOVIE. EVER.
Ray Bradbury, the author of Fahrenheit 451 and who is most well-known for his suspense/sci fi stuff, wrote this screenplay. It was actually a short story of his and it has actually been turned into a musical. A musical that still plays, like on stage. I am constantly amazed by what I don't know.
I can't believe I lived my whole life without this gem!
It was a slight shock to me to see someone who knew more obscure stuff than me. I'm usually the one showing people true film treasures. If The Shoe Fits, anyone? Who can forget Rob Lowe, Jennifer Grey, France, 80's fashion? It's the best. Apparently, it's hard to find online too, so I can't show you a picture. Boo. But if you are interested, give me a holler and we will watch it. I am only too happy to oblige (I have a VHS, yes, I am that cool).
Anyways, back to the Wonderful Ice Cream Suit!
It's about five Latino men in East LA who are down on their luck in various ways. They all come together and pitch in 20 bucks and buy a fantastic electric white suit.
Like, burn your retinas white.
...I can still see the suit dancing in front of my eyes...
Anyways, each of the men share the suit for one hour and each of their wildest dreams come true, thanks to the suit. Kind of like the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants but BETTER.
There is mariachi music, Latin accents (in various degrees of awfulness) and superb quotable lines, i.e. the title of this here post. It's like, gooood stuff. If you manage to get your hands on it, again, give me a holler and we will have a party. There is nothing like good Latin movies and 80's.
Gosh. I love the 80's.

J'adore la culture de Tahiti

I have a delightful story for everyone.
...No, I did not suddenly learn French... (Thank Heaven for Google Translate.)
No, this story is about Tahiti.

They speak French there.
Yesterday, my History 202 professor invited us TA's over to her house because they were hosting a dozen Tahitians for the LDS General Conference. Apparently her son served his mission there awhile ago. Anyways, they made a ton of food, real Tahitian food, and were going to do a performance for everyone. Dr. Frederickson's philosophy is one of "the more, the merrier" so she invited us to go.
It was SO much fun!
We got there just as the girls were about to do their dance. There was this adorable little girl, around 11 or 12 and she was amazing. I definitely can't move like that. After the girls did a couple of dances, they pulled people from the audience and had a sort of "dance off", where they showed the audience members how to dance and everyone just danced together. One girl pulled me and my roommate up and we were laughing and dancing. Not everyone can shake their hips like that. Let me tell you, it was one heck of a workout. You are constantly moving your legs! And hips!
After the dancing, we had food. Real Tahitian food. There was sooooo much foooood. Seriously, so much. Mind you, I didn't eat everything. They like raw fish, so I avoided that. But everything else was really good. I had taro, and pork and curry and a soft, breadlike thing covered in coconut milk; and potatoes, and a noodle and shrimp salad. Not quite what I expected, but it was so good. It was real culture! And even though we couldn't communicate (again, that darn French language) it was such a neat experience to be there and be with them.
Bon Appetit!

Locked Out Again

So I am part of a little club called the Phi Alpha Theta. We are self-proclaimed history nerds. We have an office on the second floor of the JFSB. We help other history nerds find their niche. I cannot get into said office because the key is missing.
Who lost the key? You might ask.
Well, it wasn't me!
Alas, I am still locked out regardless.
Boo.
I hate being dependent upon others. You can get let down so easily, if you are not the one responsible for things. I have office hours. People could need me and I can't be where I said I will be!!! This kind of irresponsibility is killing me.
Also, I like having my own office. I am in control and I don't have to acknowledge other people's existence unless they come to me. In my office. Out here in the open, you have to say "Hello" to everyone who you made eye-contact with. It can be very exhausting, let me tell you.
Also, in other news, I just finished reading The Great Gatsby.
Can you believe that I had never read it before?
Which is silly, seeing as it isn't very long and it is widely considered a classic of American Literature. I mean, I have heard of it before, but I had never read it before. Somehow, I escaped high school without reading it. I got away with a lot of things in high school, apparently. Go figure.
Anyways, let discuss The Great Gatsby, shall we?

The original cover art was commissioned and finished before Fitzgerald actually finished the novel, so he sort of wrote the picture into the book. I really appreciate it when different formats of art are blended together. It provides such a deeper interpretation and meaning. Anyways, Fitzgerald has a beautiful use of the language. Seriously.
Also, the simple tragedy of it all. People trying to reach out to one another, albeit, without the best of intentions, but really, people just wanting to be loved, and then they get shot down, thrown aside. I am glad that Fitzgerald set the time period during the 1920's because you can imagine all sorts of awful things happening to the characters that you hated during the Great Depression. You wish that they get what they deserved, but they probably didn't.
The moral of the story is, just be nice to people. Don't be a jerk. No one likes jerks.
Also, don't obsess over people. It isn't attractive and it doesn't get you what you want in the end anyhow.
The End.
oh p.s. they opened my office! I am in control again. Woot!

Hallelujah, It's Friday

TGIF
The week is practically over and it couldn't have come at a better time.
I have decided that the next couple of goals shall include:

• Whittling down the stuff I have to take to school to ONE bag.
• Actually trying to get up at the right time.
• Getting to bed at a decent time.
• Looking pretty for school.
• Staying on top of the schedule.

That is the plan.
Fortunately, I have the whole weekend to put it off.
Happy Friday, ya'll

Part of the Plan

I have these moments
All steady and strong
I’m feeling so holy and humble
The next thing I know
I’m all worried and weak
And I feel myself
Starting to crumble.

The meanings get lost
And the teachings get tossed
And you don’t know what you’re
Going to do next.
You wait for the sun
But it never quite comes
Some kind of message comes
Through to you.
Some kind of message comes through.

And it says to you...

Love when you can
Cry when you have to...
Be who you must
That’s a part of the plan
Await your arrival
With simple survival
And one day we’ll all understand...

I had a woman
Who gave me her soul
But I wasn’t ready to
Take it.
Her heart was so fragile
And heavy to hold
And I was afraid I might
Break it.

Your conscience awakes
And you see your mistakes
And you wish someone
Would buy your confessions.
The days miss their mark
And the night gets so dark
And some kind of message
Comes through to you
Some kind of message
Shoots through --

There is no Eden or
Heavenly gates
That you’re gonna make it to
One day
But all of the answers you seek
Can be found
In the dreams that you dream
On the way.

Wanna see something funny?

This is something that I came across as I was doing my project for English. It's pretty clever, not going to lie.
Enjoy!

UFG

K everyone this is for a school project. I had to research an unfamiliar genre and attempt at making my own. I chose parody movie trailers which are a fascinating genre, especially when you watch so many of them like I have. For my example, I didn't use a real movie trailer. I just edited a clip that I had on my computer. If I had the know how I would definitely do some things differently. So don't judge. If anything, just enjoy it for the cheese it is.

Thanks

Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)

This is my new favorite song.
At the moment.
Anyways, I realize that I am a little behind everything...I just don't like doing something that everyone else is doing. So if you are wondering why I am paying attention to the World Cup two months after it's over, you must realize that it is a pride issue.
I'm working on it, ok?
Anyways, can I just say how much I love Shakira? Not because everyone, upon hearing my name says "Like Shakira, huh?"
(I can't tell you HOW many times that has happened. Let's have some originality here, please people!)
Anyways, I totally want to learn how to dance like this.
I think it's going to take some practice...

Lazy Day Saturday

You know when you have had a lazy day when your roommates celebrate the fact that you stop watching TV episodes on your laptop.
Ok, background:
I was so excited for the weekend.
I just wanted to do NOTHING.
So I did.
I did nothing all Saturday.
And it was delicious.
Well, what I did was I found a TV show that only ran one season that I remembered watching in high school, briefly, because, well, it was canceled.
Anyway, joy of joys, I found all of it on youtube. So my Saturday was set. I watched all 13 episodes.
Now, this would only be a problem if I did so on a regular basis. But I don't and probably will never do so again.
It's part of the philosophy that you have to know the worst before you can understand the best, right?
Alas, school is upon me again, and so is real life.
I need to think of some healthy diversions for my next weekend.
Got any ideas?

Seriously?

WHY?!Why do I enjoy this so much?!
Dang you, nickelodeon.

"I like to laugh. I think everybody should laugh more often. That's what helps to keep us sane..." Lloyd Alexander

Isn't Lloyd Alexander just a doll? I think he is one of the greatest YA authors in the world. For my Eng 420 class, we have to pick a YA author and do a presentation about him. I just finished reading the Prydain Chronicles this summer by Alexander. And I just adore him. The more I learn, the more I gush. There is an exhibit in the HBLL dedicated to him, with all of his stuff. I just adore him. Don't get me started. I have a ton of material and could go on for awhile.

Anyways, I came across his quote, which I used for the title. I like to laugh, obviously, but I have noticed something rather distressing about my giggle...

It's disappearing!

Something else is taking over, this dry, tired sort of ha-ha.
I am not pleased.

I feel like I have been kind of angst-y. Or maybe that is the stress talking. It could be. I don't really know anymore. I feel like I keep going and going and I am getting nowhere. I don't know what to do about.

I mean, there is nothing that I can really do, you know? I have to go through school. I have my duties and obligations to fulfill. I don't want school to be one of those things that I grit my teeth and struggle through looking on to better things because that is part of trying to find joy in the journey, learning to enjoy your circumstances now.

But what if they don't get better? Then I would be in a real pickle, to not have enjoyed college just to find out that the rest of my life is going to be pretty much the same dull battle.

Gah! I just don't know what to do.

I think I miss hugs. I used to be the kind of person that would hug everyone and everybody. I still do, but I have noticed a significant decrease in the frequency in which I receive hugs. Especially in the good, strong kind. You know? Hugs don't always have to mean, "Hey, I really like you!" They could just mean, "Hey, you are a good person and I don't mind being so close to you."
I miss that.
I miss knowing that people seek my company because they want it, not because they want something or because they feel obligated. I miss being sought after. I feel like I am doing all the chasing here, both in the romantic and platonic sense.

I guess it's time to get back to basics. I am going to try and rejuvenate here, as much as possible, considering that school doesn't really care if you need a time out moment. I think I can do it.

I will let you know how it goes.

Anyways. Don't let this post get you down. That wasn't the intention. It's just me venting. Sometimes I just need to write it all down and release it out into the great unknown of cyberspace instead of bogging down human ears. Hopefully, this is the end of angst-y kiera, and we can get back to the giddy, giggle-y, joyful, and (hopefully) peaceful Kiera.

Actually, I think the angst has something to do with all the YA lit I have to read this semester for 420. Hmmm...

I might be on to something here...

Teenagers are such drama queens. The books they read do nothing to contain that. It's an emotional roller coaster from the very first sentence to the very last chapter. Think about it. If you know any aspiring YA authors, tell them to lighten up on the hormones. There is only so much readers can take.

Trust me.

Let's Start a Winning Game

"Daring ideas are like chessmen moved forward. They may be beaten, but they may start a winning game." Goethe

This semester might been one of the daring-est ideas that I have had so far, even though it is threatening to bring me down, even before it starts.

I thought about having conniptions over the fact that I wasn't sure if I could add a class that I really needed. But then an opening came up and I got it. Then I found out that the class required 23 novels to be read over the course of the semester. 23 novels! For ONE class!

Alas, I can't freak out too much, seeing as it is vital for my graduation plans. Besides, they are young adult fiction, so they can't be too hard to get through, right?

What is really killing me right now is my TA jobs. I love what I do, don't get me wrong, but I have done so much and class has not been in session yet!

18 credits, two jobs, etc, etc.

Shannon made a good point the other day, saying if we had just skipped the past two years, jumping from freshman to where are we are now, we wouldn't be able to handle it. Experience, although hard at the time, is one of the ways we are able to handle our current situations. And one little ray of hope, it only gets harder from here on out.

Lovely.
Something to look forward to.

Although, I am getting to the point where I don't really want to think about the future. I have most of the next year planned out down to the last T crossed and the last I dotted. But there is just so much that could go wrong!

What if my last semester of classes don't fit properly in a cohesive schedule? What if I don't get enough money to go to Norway this next summer? What am I supposed to do when I graduate? What if I don't find a job? Where am I supposed to go for graduate school? What should I study in graduate school? Where do I even start?

It's questions like these that are getting me a little apprehensive/stresssssed on this, the eve before the new semester.

If we take a doomsday approach to things, it's like the beginning of the end, you know?

Or

We can be optimistic like my lovely friend Goethe here and think positively.

THIS year is the start of something wonderful.
THIS year is going to be full of friends, learning and new opportunities.
THIS year I will become a better person than I am today.

I WILL survive.
And stay alive.
With love,
:)

I have got to stop watching teeney-bopper tv.

I am so ready for school to start...
I am spending too much of my time watching nickelodeon television.
I am starting to think life should be one wacky, drama filled, fashion-fest.

I am so ready to be a grown up again.

...sorta...

"Bread is the warmest, kindest of all words. Write it always with a capital letter, like your own name."

I am contemplating a serious subject this beautiful Sunday afternoon. Very serious, indeed. The subject today is food. More specifically, Bread.


Many of you may wonder, why today? Why Bread?
Well, like my somewhat good friend Emily Dickinson here, I am contemplating making it.

"I am going to learn to make bread to-morrow. So you may imagine me with my sleeves rolled up, mixing flour, milk, saleratus, etc., with a deal of grace. I advise you if you don't know how to make the staff of life to learn with dispatch."
Emily Dickinson

*saleratus is baking soda, used to make the bread rise, fyi.

And also like Emily Dickinson, I advise you that if you don't know already how to make bread, learn immediately. Nothing will bless your home, family and mental health more than to learn how to make bread from scratch.

NO CHEATING.

Breadmachines=cheating.
People have made bread for THOUSANDS of years without some utterly non-essential machine making bread for them.

Find a recipe.
Mix it together.
WITH YOUR HANDS.

It is a sticky, messy, fantastically glorious exercise and you will become a better person, I guarantee it. If you don't believe me, listen to M.F.K Fisher.

"[Breadbaking is] one of those almost hypnotic businesses, like a dance from some ancient ceremony. It leaves you filled with one of the world's sweetest smells...there is no chiropractic treatment, no Yoga exercise, no hour of meditation in a music-throbbing chapel. that will leave you emptier of bad thoughts than this homely ceremony of making bread."
M. F. K. Fisher, 'The Art of Eating'

(I didn't know who M.F.K. Fisher was either, before I posted her quote, but in case you were wondering, she was a well-respected author who wrote a lot about food. Now I am interested in reading more about her. I think she's making a lot of sense here.)

You are certainly welcome to imagine me covered in flour from toe to tip, because that is usually what tends to happen. EVERY TIME. And yet, I continue to make it. Sometimes, I even make bread in black clothes, which you would think a normal person endowed with a even a little common sense would realize that white flour shows up really well on black clothes. And yet, I have yet to learn.

Why do I continue to do it? There are many reasons. Top of the list is that is just tastes so GOOD. Seriously, if you haven't had the pleasure of eating real, homemade bread, you haven't really lived. (Also, if you have not ever had homemade bread, please tell me so I can make you some. No one should ever live without real bread.) Other reasons include it's relaxing, fulfilling, and a great way to serve somebody. It's really lovely to go up to someone and hand them a warm loaf of bread. It's a great connection between you and them. You put a lot of time and effort into that bread. The recipient is going to spend not quite as much time eating it, but they will certainly be enjoying it as much as you enjoyed making it. At least, that is what I have noticed. Nothing smells quite like home, as fresh bread baking.

"The smell of good bread baking, like the sound of lightly flowing water, is indescribable in its evocation of innocence and delight."
M. F. K. Fisher

Anyways. I will leave you with these thoughts. Make bread. Be Happy. And remember, the best bread is the kind you make at home.

"Without wishing in the slightest degree to disparage the skill and labour of breadmakers by trade, truth compels us to assert our conviction of the superior wholesomeness of bread made in our own homes."
Eliza Acton, 'Modern Cookery for Private Families' (1845)

Also, it's rude to preach without offering some sort of redemption, so I'd thought I'd share some of my favorite bread recipes. Both are delicious and satisfying.

White Bread (approx. 2 loaves)
6 cups flour
2 Tablespoons sugar
(almost) 1 Tablespoon salt
1/2 cup powdered milk

yeast mixture: 1/3 cup warm water
1 teaspoon sugar
2 Tablespoons yeast

Directions: prepare yeast then combine dry ingredients together in breadpan. When yeast is ready put 2 cups water, yeast mixture, and 2 good sized globs of shortening into the dry ingredients. Mix bread until it does not need any more flour. Knead for 10-12 min more. Cover and let rise for 2 hrs. Punch down and divide into 2 loaves. Put loaves into pans and let rise for 40 min. Bake at 425 for 15 min, then turn down to 275 for 30 min. Remove read and butter immediately. Serve Hot!

Sweet Roll Dough
3/4 cup scalded milk
3/4 cup warm water
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons yeast
2-3 large eggs
3/4 cup shortening or butter
5-6 cups flour
2 teaspoons salt

Directions:
Dissolve yeast in warm water (add a little sugar to help the yeast to grow). Stir in milk (after you scalded it), sugar, salt, eggs, shortening, and 2 1/2 cups flour. Mix together, then add the rest of the flour. Knead and let rise for 1 1/2 hrs. Shape in whatever kind of rolls you like best. (I always make Parker House style which involves rolling out the dough, cutting it out with a large cup like sugar cookies, then folding them in half and baking them, also this is the same recipe I use for making cinnamon rolls, so you could make them too.) Let rise 30 min. Bake at 375 for about 10 min or until golden brown.

"Long Goodbye"

("Long Goodbye" by The Nadas)

This is the best song in my universe right now.

I am not kidding.
When I am not playing it over and over again on my ipod, I am watching it on youtube.
I am fairly certain that a big portion of the views have come from me, but I feel very strongly that it needs to be watched a lot more by more people.
So watch it people!

I love their sound.
I love the mixture of strings and guitars and drums.
It's so delicious.
And soothing.

And if you are interested, Amazon mp3 has the "Long Goodbye" for free as well as all of their other songs for a price.

Enjoy!

And the award goes to....

Utah gets kudos for the sunsets.
Seriously, I haven't been able to stop looking at the sky the past couple of days. Doing so makes walking kind of difficult.
But it is so pretty!!!
Brilliant colors, fantastic shapes, constantly changing.
It puts me in raptures, I tell ya.
Clouds. Who knew?!

“Faith is the daring of the soul to go farther than it can see”

have you ever wanted something so bad, everything hurts with that want?

your soul,
your heart,
your head?

Right now, I am not going to pretend everything is ok and life is good but I do know that it will be soon.

I guess the point of this post is to keep the faith.

In the end, it is all that matters.

LlamaFest

Are you excited?!
This is a sneak peek of what I am doing today!
Llamas.
Come on, say it with me. It's so fun to say.
"Llamas"
Anyways,
real pictures are forthcoming...
enjoy your weekend!

"Who Dances in Glass Shoes?!"

It's funny how fairy tales make you believe the impossible.
I am all about fabulous footwear and making a statement....
But seriously?

Glass Shoes?
On what planet has that ever been a good idea?
Ok, so I watched "Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella" with Brandy as Cinderella.
And that is why I was thinking about glass shoes.
Also, I would really like to have Whitney's hair. It's a fro and it has gold sparkly ringlets in it. Who wouldn't want to rock that?
Back to fairytales.
It is amazing to me that the same stories are found the world over. Every society has a version of the Cinderella story, which obviously means:
~girls over all the world have waited for their prince charmings
~seeing as there are still plenty of people on this planet, they must have found them and had lots of children to prove it.
~if thousands of other girls found prince charming and happily ever afters, then it can't be THAT hard.
But we are NOT talking about boys or dating or marriage or other such nonsense because I have things to do and people to see.
Right?
;)

Sentimentality

I have been meaning to blog about this for some time. It has been playing on my mind for a couple of weeks.

Usually I only wax poetic when I have been reading too much. Specifically when I read Anne of Green Gables too much.

Ah, but it does my soul so much good.

My roommate, Shannon, had never seen the 1985 TV movie series and I considered this a great sin so we sought to remedy that fact by watching them. I do so love the movies, but my family never watched them with me. I'll admit, it takes a certain amount of patience to enjoy them. It is a little easier when you love the books.

So naturally, after we watched the movie, I had to re-read the series, just to remember all of the differences between the two formats. (The books are SO much better, BTW.)

Sigh

I love turn of the century novels. There seems to be an inherent goodness about them, an innate sense of optimism. Bad things may happen, but spring always comes, nature is always renewing and all stories end happily ever after. Old-fashioned goodness seems to flow off the page and it makes me want to slow down and savor life more.

Anne made me want to find romance again. Not the kind of romance that is BYU happy-valley edition: too fast paced, like love is race against graduation and old-maid-hood. But the golden, soft, pure romance that makes life sweet and rich.

It seemed a beautiful twist of fate that I stumbled across an old essay from my high school creative writing class. It is entitled "Romance" and it was given as a commencement speech in 1983. It helped me get started finding romance again, for as the author, Robert James Waller says "Romance is hard to get, hard to keep, and fairly easy to drive away." (pg 46) Waller also says that you can't examine it because like most things "too much analysis of certain things removes the romance from them" and kills the magic. Mostly he encourages those who would like to see romance dancing back in their lives to read poetry every day. Actually make something with your own two hands. Collect things, purely for the sentimental value. TRAVEL. Play a musical instrument. Listen to good, soft music. Keep a record of your life, remember where you have been, who you have met, what you have seen. There will come a time in your life when you will need those memories to uphold you in times of loneliness, sadness or even in times of joy. Memories you make now will bless your life and enrich it a hundred times more. They don't need to be epic, dramatic exploits because while there is a certain level of "romance" attached to epic dramas, the best kind of romance is your own brand. Things that are special to you and moments that take your breath away."Romance [does] not come into one's life with pomp and blare; perhaps it crept to one's side like an old friend through quiet ways." (pg 366)

I tried to describe my sentimental feelings to a co-worker. And while he tried to understand, I don't think he fully did. I like Anne of Green Gables because I feel like I identify with her. It seems silly to love a character so much and like horoscopes, I tend to see similarities where there are none. Maybe there are and maybe there aren't any.

BUT:

I can be imaginative and dramatic, whimsical and silly at times.

I can be loud when I want and quiet when I choose.

I love my friends with the depths of my soul and always rejoice when I find new ones in unexpected places.

"If we have friends we should look only for the best in them and give them the best that is in us, don't you think? Then friendship would be the most beautiful thing in the world." (pg 171)

I have this inexplicable need for anyone and everyone to love me.

As Anne said "I want everybody to love me and it hurts me so when anybody doesn't." Not many people understand this, but it's an undeniable fact about me.

I want to change the world and leave it a better place, but I don't know where to start.

I want to teach and inspire, but even more so, I want children to be good.

"Perhaps she had not succeeded in 'inspiring' any wonderful ambitions in her pupils, but she had taught them, more by her own sweet personality than by all her careful precepts, that it was good and necessary in the years that were before them to live their lives finely and graciously, holding fast to truth and courtesy and kindness, keeping aloof from all that savoured of falsehood and meanness and vulgarity."

I sincerely appreciate superficial aesthetics. I love things to be pretty and charming and I love it even more when pretty things are accompanied by beautiful souls.

Anyways, this is what has been playing on repeat for the past week or so on my mind. Maybe not many people would cite Anne of Green Gables as "great literature", and maybe rightly so, but for me, it makes me want to be a better person and to look for the best in other people. Which, in the end, I think is the purpose of great literature, to make mankind better, kinder, more humane than before.

Some more delicious quotes from Anne:

"What I want to get out of my college course is some knowledge of the best way of living life and doing the most and best with it." (pg 359)

"That's a lovely idea...living so that you beautify your name, even if it wasn't beautiful to begin with...making it stand in people's thoughts for something so lovely and pleasant that they never thing of it by itself." (pg. 253)

*It has been a secret desire of mine to have one of my friends name a child after me. Because I was such a good person. This is not as vain as it sounds, because a. it makes me try to be a good person so someone will notice and b. ok, so it is mostly vain. But Kiera IS a good name. I just have to live in such a way to make it better so that everyone will have lovely and pleasant thoughts whenever they hear it. :)

Anyways, have a beautiful, romantic, blissfully happy day!

iHeart iCarly

I know this show is aimed for eleven year olds, otherwise known as "tweens".
But it makes me SO happy.
Freddie is adorable
And Carly's older brother/guardian Spencer is hilarious.
It is one of my secret pleasures, that now is not so secret...
Check it out!
Bon Appetit!

It's Coming!!!

This is T-Rex.
He is soon to be mine as soon as he comes in the mail.
Just thought that I'd share.
It's CoMiNg!!!

"and smiles are the foundation of beauty."

I went to a used bookstore last week with Karina May. Definitely one of my new favorite activities. Anyways, I found this copy of Tarzan and bought it to see if Disney got it right. It's different than the movie. But good. I can see how this story is definitely an adventure story enjoyable for any young child, minus some hunting scenes. I included some quotes to show you how perfect Tarzan is. He has everything. He was raised in the jungle, so he can fight anything with teeth. He teaches himself how to read and write in English, but he can't speak it. He is the son of an English lord and lady, so that of course, has a major impact on his upbringing among the apes. ;) Later on in the story, he saves a French soldier from cannibalistic savages and he teaches him how to speak french. Tarzan has beautiful hair! Mah, this was a fun read. Especially considering when Burroughs wrote it at the beginning of the 20th century. (1912 ish) So women are women: gentle, fainting types who need to be protected. Men are either bad such as illiterate sailors or cannibalistic savages or good: i.e. Tarzan other white, aristocratic, educated men. Very cut and dried and fast to read.

Quotes!

"Though but ten years old he was fully as strong as the average man of thirty, and far more agile than the most practiced athlete ever becomes. And day by day his strength was increasing." pg 35

"At eighteen he read fluently and understood nearly all he read in the many and varied volumes on the shelves. Also could he write, with printed letters, rapidly and plainly." pg 63

"The young Lord Greystoke was indeed a strange and warlike figure, his mass of black hair falling to his shoulders behind and cut with his hunting knife to a rude bang upon his forehead, that it might not fall before his eyes. His straight and perfect figure, muscled as the best of the ancient Roman gladiators must have been muscled, and yet with the soft and sinuous curves of a Greek god, told at a glance the wondrous combination of enormous strength with suppleness and speed." pg 97

"But the girl, ah--that was a different matter. He did not reason here. He knew that she was created to be protected and that he was created to protect her." pg 134

"It seemed to him that no pleasure on earth could compare with laboring for the welfare and protection of the beautiful white girl." pg 147

"(after Tarzan saves Jane from another ape) it was a primeval woman who sprang froward with outstretched arms toward the primeval man who had fought for her and won her." pg 156

"It was the hall-mark of his aristocratic birth, the natural outcropping of many generations of fine breeding, an hereditary instinct of graciousness which a lifetime of uncouth and savage training and environment could not eradicate." pg 168.

Other things:
At one point or another in the book, everyone but Tarzan faints. Even other men. Granted, said men were under great deals of pain and stress, but still. Come on, be a man.
Tarzan gets shot, IN THE HEAD, and still lives. He is attacked by no less than 3 apes/gorillas and lives to tell the tale. And kills a lot of lions and such along the way. Basically he is invincible.
*Even though he does survive impracticable odds, he does suffer from wounds and stuff. At least, that makes him a little more like us mere mortals.
I appreciate that Edgar Rice Burroughs makes an effort to emphasize that it is man's intellect and reason and education that sets him apart from other animals.
Apparently, one only need centuries of pure-blooded aristocratic lineage to survive growing up in the jungle because OF COURSE your heritage has a definite impact on your personality and intelligence. Nature vs. Nurture, don't cha know.
In other words (despite a few obvious flaws in mannerism) Tarzan is perfect.
Basically, JANE IS A FREAKING IDIOT.
The end.

LOTR

I have started something very big. For some inexplicable reason, (probably my pride...i have a hard time getting into something that everyone else seems to love.) I have made it twenty something odd years without reading OR watching The Lord of the Rings series. Apparently, the lack of this has caused some of my friends to question the validity of our friendship. (Karina) We decided to change this by watching all of the extended versions of the movies. We were going to do a marathon...but time and schedules make that hard to accomplish. BUT! We watched the first movie last night. The Fellowship of the Ring. I...I...I'm hooked. I was sucked in and emotionally drained by the end of the movie. Emotionally drained, I tell you. AND THIS IS JUST THE FIRST ONE! There are two more 3 hr long movies to go through. It is a very good thing that we didn't do the marathon. I don't think I could have handled that. Emotionally or mentally. I need time to process these things. And I have officially decided that once the movies are over I am going to have to read the series. My summer book list just got a lot longer....
:)
p.s. I am going to have a hard time wearing any sort of ring again. For a long time. And I have a lot of rings.

“No matter how busy you may think you are, you must find time for reading, or surrender yourself to self-chosen ignorance."

Delightful day it was today.
The weather was beautiful!
And it was PAYDAY!
I paid rent, got the oil changed. (They left me flowers on my dashboard! I am DEFINITELY going back.)
Tithing.
Car wash!! (so clean and sparkly!)
various banking duties, i am best buds with my credit union now. Going to get a credit card. (GaSp!)
dinner and movie with the sister. so fun. :)
next up: grocery shopping and then WEEKEND.
can't wait, can't wait, can't wait.
oh! explanation for the title.
I have been reading! (ya, i know, big shocker huh?) I relish it. I just finished a book. Scaramouche by Raphael Sabatini. DUMB BOOK! Ok, i really enjoy the author's occasionally delightful turn of phrase but the book wrapped up wayyy too nicely. The protagonist's arch-enemy, the person he vowed to destroy turns out to be his father? What the heck?! Is this some sort of French-Revolutionary-Star-Wars-epic? Apparently so. A little less hero worship and a bit more character development, please. Still, the quotes I get from Sabatini are gold. And it was a fast, fun read. I am pondering starting Moby Dick. It is one of my friend's favoritest books and a classic so I thought that I'd give it a try. Also in the queue is Les Miserables? Maybe, we'll see.
Any lovely book recommendations out there? I have the time, unlike the rest of the year. Let me know!

Recent Things

First off:
I have watched A LOT of "Say Yes To The Dress" and "Jane and the Dragon". I know that these don't seem like they mix well together, but surprisingly, they do. Well, at least to me. I am an odd mix after-all.
Lest you begin to think that watching random episodes is all I do with my time, I'd like to point out a couple other things that I have been up to.
Geography Quizzes. Namely, identifying all 195 countries (spelling them CoRRecTly BTW) and doing it all under 15 min. Woot! I am proud to say I have done it and with 4:42 to spare. I recently bested my original time of 3:52 minutes to spare. Surprisingly, this game is addicting. I couldn't quit until I had won. So I won. Other quizzes I have beaten include naming all 44 presidents in 10 mins (piece of cake...huh, after a couple of times, uh...) and all 50 states in 10 mins, I think. The states one was easy, for reals, because it was a bigger map and hello-ooo! states should be the easiest thing to identify. Should be...not that they are. For some people, I guess...
Anyways: I get to volunteer at the MTC again! There are four new elders and boy, have I missed volunteering. True story. And there is a new guy that I volunteer with, named Mike. Wayy nice kid. RM like the rest of them. Blonde. He is so funny, yesterday he got all excited and asked me if I knew what next Monday is. I wasn't sure so I asked him to enlighten me. It's sutten av mai! The norwegian independence day the 17th of may. He is going to have a party and invited me. I was flattered and so excited.
Plans for the summer include: Moab with the fam in June. (hopefully we will get a good start on the summer tan...) Toquerville and Grand Canyon (maybe?!) in July... and Washington D.C. in August! Woot, woot! Along with the many adventures we are sure to have in the Provo-Orem area this year. Me and Shannon (my roommate) made an Adventure Time list. Things to do if we are bored and have a couple of hours. These activities range from eating establishments to hikes to interesting and unique stores and boutiques. I am excited. If I can remember, I'd like to be able to photograph these experiences and scrapbook 'em later. Hopefully! Anyways that is what is new and happen'en.
What is new with you lovelies?

Bring It On

No this isn't a reference to the neverending cheerleading movie series. Each one gets trashier than the preceding ones. This post is dedicated to summer.
Wahla, it is here!

Todo List
I will be working...wooo.
I will be getting sunkissed. That is about the only kissing that will be happening too. Trust me, I've tried. ;)
Reading till I can't anymore. I have a list a mile long.
Baseball games. I WILL get to one before the season is over. This I promise myself. This is what summer is.
Weddings? Lots of other people's. This will be fun :D
Traveling: As far as I can get with the money I have.
Elder Byers comes home. "best friend" if I have to use the term. So excited to see that dang boy.
Eating real food. No more eating out or fake packaged food. Fresh fruits and vegetables, that kind of thing.
Gym again. It will be nice to get back into the habit.
New hair? We shall see.
Ooo ya. Turning 21 this summer!!!
We will start with this and work our way to great memories.

Goodreads

Captain Blood by Rafael Sabatini



I watched the movie "Captain Blood" with Errol Flynn before I read the book. I like both. Sabatini is just classic heroic action and swashbuckling fun. Just a fun, fun read.

View all my reviews >>

Roseus

Roseus is the latin word for pink. I am dressed up in pink today. With a flowery spring dress and pink shirt and pink makeup. Then I look around me and I have a pink straightener and a pink phone and a pink notebook. I don't know when this whole color scheme got started. I have a lot of red. And pink is a devolution of red. I think it's because pink is cute. And I like to think that I am cute. So today as I go to my Scandinavian 430 final, I will at least be cute, if not completely prepared...

Rain/Dance

This weekend has been marvelous. Dancing, parties, movies and homework. It is almost done and that makes me drowsily relaxed. The rain helps too. I love the cold, rainy weather, with the mountains all foggy and mysterious.
Rain in the desert is always a miracle. I don't care how many times it rains in Utah, I am always surprised. And pleased. One of my most cherished memories happened one time in the rain. I used to go on walks around the neighborhood with a good, good friend of mine. We would just walk and talk. About anything and everything. That is one of the dearest things you could do, is honestly spend time with someone. It is the easiest, simplest way to get to my heart. It means you really care because out of all the million and one things you could be doing, you are spending time with me. It's true affection. Anyways, we were walking and talking as was our tradition when the heavens opened and poured down buckets of rain.
Like this. There was nothing left to do but run home, laughing. Which we did. Rain makes me think of that.

Besides the rain, this weekend, I went to the BYU Ballroom Dance Company Concert with a friend of mine. The concert was amazing. I love dancing. I love watching it, I love participating in it. Not just any kind of dancing, although that can be fun. I mean real dancing. Dancing is a blend of movement, music, art and emotion used to create whatever you want. Beautiful.

Someday I will dance without reservation or inhibition. Until then, I will dance when no one is looking and bide my time, waiting for the chance.

Me and Betsey could be Friends.

Can I just say I find these necklaces utterly delicious?!
They are a fantastic mixture of chaos and cute. Kinda like me. ;)
Betsey Johnson's designs have been described as "over the top," "feminine," "extravagant"...
To all of the above, I say "Heck yes."


Why wouldn't you want to wear them?



Yup, I am pretty sure we could be friends. Pink and black. Girly and hard-core, all at the same time! And she is still being herself, even when she is getting older. Adorable. I want to be like her, a little bit, when I grow up. Rock on, Betsey, rock on.

roll with the wind bringing distance to everything.

He is just too beautiful. I had to share.
The weather outside is beeeeyoooooooouuuuuutiiiiiifuuuuulllllllll!!!

I wish I could fly away, that final papers, and final exams would be over and I wouldn't have to worry about it anymore. I wish I could my housing figured out. I wish I could get my job situation figured out. I wish I could know for sure what I am doing with my life. I wish it was socially acceptable for girls to propose to boys that they love madly, deeply.

*sigh*

on to reality, to busy-ness, to friends and family, and to the future.

...whatever that may be...