New Things

Ok, so it's been an eternity since I blogged. I'm officially the world's most suckish blogger. So, how about an update on what's been going on with me since last semester's final exams?? Here we go!

Over the summer I worked again at the Baptist Children's Homes of NC in the daycare, specifically the infant room. It was challenging, but so fun! That's pretty much all I did for the summer, I worked almost 500 hours so I was pretty swamped. I also hung out with my family, went to church and saw lots of superhero movies! Oh, and I cut my hair short and used Sun-In on it all summer, so it's chin-length and blond. No big deal. :-)

I've started my Junior year at good ole North Greenville University! I'm getting deep into my major classes, taking some of the hardest classes I'll take in my undergrad years. I feel like I'm learning so much and enjoying it all, but it's a bit overwhelming. With 18 hours of class, work-study hours, workouts, sleep, and homework my life is super busy right now. I'm also trying to come up with a story idea to submit to this year's Mountain Laurel in my spare moments. If you think about it, pray for me. I'd appreciate it. If you leave a comment with a prayer request I'll most definitely pray for you!

That's about all I have for right now, but I'm going to try (don't laugh) to blog more often. Any ideas for posts or series would be appreciated. Happy Labor Day weekend!!

Finals Are Coming!!

For all my fellow college students, the hardest week of the semester is coming. For my fellow NGU students, that week is already upon us. Finals week. FInal exams are (unsurprisingly) an incredibly stressful time for college students. It's hard when you're in the middle of it to see things in perspective; it seems as if the entirety of the world is riding on the results of your exam. Many students pull all-nighters, drink copious amounts of coffee, and sleep very little during this time. If a college student/zombie seems rude to you in the next few weeks try to cut them some slack, it's finals time! Ready for a study break? Check out some of these awesome finals-inspired memes and study hard!!

Blast and Bless

I am the world's worst blogger. Ever. In the entire universe. I won't attempt to make empty promises about posting more often (thought I really will try to!) but since my lovely roomie has been asleep for awhile now, I decided I should blog. (I could blog while she's awake, but there is a never-ending flow of conversation in our room, so it doesn't really work.) This semester at good ol' NGU, I'm really enjoying most of my classes, particularly British Lit. 2. I love this class because I love to read and I love my professor, Dr. Boone. She does an excellent job of incorporating different types of learning into our class in order to keep us from getting bored and tuning her out. For example, last week we were all assigned an aspect of the Modern era and told to sculpt a representative from playdough. How fun is that? This past Tuesday, we started talking about the modern era. One very interesting piece we looked at were excerpts from the short-lived magazine called "Blast". These short pieces are not really articles, but attention-grabbing headlines and lists. The author makes two lists on one of the pages, a "blast" list of things he doesn't like and a "bless" list of things he likes and loves. In an effort to embrace the modern period, here's my attempt at blast and bless lists. (Please keep in mind this is kind of a cathartic, brainstorming exercise for me, not intended to offend anyone)

BLAST

Allergies          

 Sunburn                          

Yelling in the Hallway               

Water Fountain Water         

Tests                    

Rude People            

Red Lights            

Cafeteria Food             

Money Issues         

Lack of Sleep           

Gravel Parking Lots         

Cold April Weather     

Diet Soda         

 Room Checks 

The Scale                   

The Gym        

Dry Contacts       

Transition Lenses      

Chipped Nail Polish 

Country Music     

Forgetfulness     

Foreign Languages   

Printer Ink       

Immaturity   

Inconsistency

Singleness

Insults 

Rain

Rejection

Student IDs

Heartbreak

Sleepless Nights

BLESS

Spotify 

Strong Coffee

Chivalry

Kind Words

Smiles

Oreos

Disney Princess Cups

Say Yes to the Dress

Pinterest

Rae

NGU

Mom and Dad

Texting

Lord of the Rings Desk Calendar

Cherry Coke

Earrings

Sparkly Things

Sweet Tea

Mascara

Chapstick

Precept Studies

Renewal Church

Boys who hold doors

Naturally Curly Hair

Hugs

Next time you feel frustrated, it might help to make these lists. It certainly helped me to realize I have just as many (if not more) blessings as I do frustrations. Happy Thursday!

     





My Loving Hatred of Poetry

Poetry and I have an estranged relationship; sometimes we understand each other and communicate well, but other times we fight and struggle with misunderstanding. I've had a love for the English language for years and I've always loved to read anything from the back of cereal boxes to the complete works of Jane Austen. I've had some extreme favorites (A Wrinkle in Time and The Screwtape Letters) and some extreme hatred (Moby Dick and The Old Man and the Sea) but most things I've read fall into simpler like or dislike categories. Honestly, most of the poetry I read in highschool fell into the dislike category. Don't get me wrong, there were definitely poems that I liked, poems that made me weep, and poems that made me angry.
I didn't really fall in love with poetry until my senior year of highschool when my sister, Emily, and I watched a movie entitled "Bright Star" which depicted the tragic life of John Keats and his passionate love for his neighbor, Fanny Brawne. The movie made me curious (and made me bawl like an infant) about the poetry of the man who loved so deeply and died so young. I did whatt any eighteen year old nerd would and made a trip to the library where I checked out The Complete Works of John Keats and started reading. I ravenously devoured the poems and letters the book contained, but I was enchanted by one poem above all the others. The poem (technically a sonnet) is where the movie gets its title, "Bright Star". The poem is not long or complicated, but I think it's one of the most beautiful things ever written. I could try to describe it to you, but I think it'll be more effective if you read the words yourself.

Bright star, would I were stedfast as thou art--
Not in lone splendour hung aloft the night
And watching, with eternal lids apart,
Like nature's patient, sleepless Eremite,
The moving waters at their priestlike task
Of pure ablution round earth's human shores,
Or gazing on the new soft-fallen mask
Of snow upon the mountains and the moors--
No--yet still stedfast, still unchangeable,
Pillow'd upon my fair love's ripening breast,
To feel for ever its soft fall and swell,
Awake for ever in a sweet unrest,
Still, still to hear her tender-taken breath,
And so live ever--or else swoon to death.

I know many people more scholarly than I will disagree with my love of this poem and Keats in general, but Keats helped me broaden my outlook on literature. If it had not been for Keats, I might still be a hater of poetry today. What's your favorite poem and why?

Bursting the Balloon

Do you ever feel deflated? There were several instances today when I felt like all the air had been let out of me. Do you recall the feeling when you think of something really funny to say, you wait for the right moment to say it, and POP! the air is let out of your self-confidence balloon. A dear friend flashes you a look of confusion which you (being the sensitive, intensely emotional person that you are) take it as disdain and you feel like an idiot. Deep down inside, you know you're not stupid. But for a moment, however brief, you're crushed.

Why do I let things like that happen to me? I realize that even the best-laid jokes can go awry, but why does it make me feel like a babbling lunatic? The answer is so simple, it's mind-boggling. I care way too much about what other people think AND I think much too highly of myself. The solution to this double dilemma is not yet clear to me, but I think I know where to start. I need to stop taking myself so seriously.

People who do not know me very well tend to think I'm a very serious person, and I am, to an extent. I consider myself a realistic person, which can often turn into a pessimistic attitude if I'm not careful. I've been praying for God to cultivate a spirit of joy in me because, honestly, my natural instinct is to see the world for what it is and become kind of depressed. As a child of God, I am not called to misery, but to joy! Psalm 97 says: Light dawns for the righteous, gladness for the upright in heart. Be glad in Yahweh, you righteous ones, and praise His holy name. God's light shines on me, so I should be joyful! I'm not anywhere near perfect in the joy department, but Jesus is renewing my heart daily to delight in Him.

What fruit of the Spirit do you struggle with?

 

Being Crafty: Wall Hangings

So ever since I joined Pinterest, I've been craving crafts. Normally I'm not a "creative" person, i.e. the visual arts are not my strongest suit. Historically, crafts and I have not always gotten along, but this past weekend I accomplished a project I've been thinking about doing for months since I saw this post on A Beautiful Mess. This past weekend, my roommates and I headed to Hobby Lobby to pick up paint by number kits and spray paint, stopped by Redbox and picked up a few movies, then got to work! Once the paintings were dry, and after much homework, we selected quotes for our wall art and stuck positionable vinyl letters on our paintings. Once we were satisfied with the look of the letters, we took the big leap and spray painted our gorgeous paint by numbers! As soon as the paint was dry, we peeled off the letters and, Voila!, they were beautiful! Can you guess which one is mine?

We're already planning on making more!

P.S.- My birthday is this Saturday (Jan. 28) so expect a birthday post soon!

Weekend in Review: Beauty and The Beast in 3D

This weekend my roomates and I went to Asheville to stay with Catherine's Nana and, most importantly, to see Beauty and the Beast in 3D. For Rae, Catherine, and I, this was like our childhood coming full circle. Beauty and the Beast was originally released in 1991 and we were all much too little to see it in theatres. The movie was (and is) one of the best animated movies ever. The story, the songs, and the animation all work together to make one of the most-beloved Disney movies! We were all a bit wary about the 3D aspect of it, but it was awesome!! I have no idea how long it will be in theatres, but I highly encourage anyone and everyone to go see it before it leaves theatres!