Tonight we had out first Ohana Group meeting of the semester. We are studying out a book called The Legend of the Monk and the Merchant by Terry Felber. I just finished the story last night. I cannot wait to discuss it. I really enjoyed it. You know how I've been trying to figure out what to do, and what I want to do with the rest of my life. My "future." So I came across a passage in the book I really liked. It talked about how you should work hard at something you love and eventually you will see the blessings of God in what you do. I love that! Just do something that I love, that is pleasing to God, and watch God work in my life. Work hard and God will bless it. So even though I sometimes feel as though I am not doing anything of importance or worth, I am. I am taking care of God's children. I am teaching them. I am loving them. I am making a positive difference in their lives. And I know that God is blessing the work that I do. I can see it everyday, if I pay attention.
Another point I really like is "see challenges as stepping stones, not as obstacles." When it comes down to it, it is all about perspective. All of my problems are there to guide my life journey. Not stop me. Step on. Step up.
What I take from the whole of the story is this. We are all made differently. We have different gifts and talents. We are made to do jobs that are unique to us according to the way God designed us. Some monks. Some merchants. And it is all good. As long as we are doing it all for God. To please Him. That's what really matters. It's a weight lifted from my shoulders. I don't have to be perfect. I don't have to be able to do everything. I just need to do what God calls me to do and do it well. Work hard. Awesome.
I really love my little Ohana group. I am looking forward to getting to know new people and building relationships. Yes, I love relationships. Getting closer. I am greatly looking forward to discussions and delving deeper. This is going to be so much fun!
Showing posts with label Books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Books. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
Saturday, May 25, 2013
Boundless
I woke up and instantly began to finish reading Boundless by Cynthia Hand. Which I did. It was the third and final novel in the Unearthly series. I am sad it's over, but I cannot contain my excitement at how much I loved it. You know, for me, it's all about the ending. And boy did I love love love that ending! I cried. Tears of sadness. Tears of joy. Oh, Tucker. Sweet sweet Tucker.
Quotes! From Hallowed and Boundless :)
"I'm having an argument with myself. And I'm losing. So not a good sign."
"Death is a transition, I try to tell myself, a passing from one plane of existence to another. It's not the end of the world. That's what Mom has always told me. But I guess that depends on how you define the end of the world."
"Then nothing can ever truly separate you, not even death. Love binds you."
"That's the hardest part. The absence of certainty."
"You learn to find your happiness, kid. You figure out those things that give your life meaning, and you hold on to them. You try to stop worrying about the stuff you can't control."
"I made them go away, just by my refusal to be afraid of them. I took control of my fear. I conquered it."
"Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive."
"'Haven't you guessed by now?' I say, my heart hammering. 'My home is you.'"
Quotes! From Hallowed and Boundless :)
"I'm having an argument with myself. And I'm losing. So not a good sign."
"Death is a transition, I try to tell myself, a passing from one plane of existence to another. It's not the end of the world. That's what Mom has always told me. But I guess that depends on how you define the end of the world."
"Then nothing can ever truly separate you, not even death. Love binds you."
"That's the hardest part. The absence of certainty."
"You learn to find your happiness, kid. You figure out those things that give your life meaning, and you hold on to them. You try to stop worrying about the stuff you can't control."
"I made them go away, just by my refusal to be afraid of them. I took control of my fear. I conquered it."
"Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive."
"'Haven't you guessed by now?' I say, my heart hammering. 'My home is you.'"
These are the beautiful covers of the three novels.
This is the novella that comes between Hallowed and Boundless.
"My home is you."
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Elephant's Eyebrows
The audiobook I'm listening to is The Diviners by Libba Bray. It's set in the 1920's, and I enjoy the different sayings. I've heard of the "cat's meow", the "bee's knees", but I've never heard of the "elephant's eyebrows". Haha. I love that. You're the elephant's eyebrows. Teehee. While listening, I came across a line that I really love. I don't know the exact punctuation, I'll have to get the book and see. But these are the exact words. And I adore them.
"In its way, writing was like healing. A cure for the loneliness he felt. Sometimes the cure took. Other times, it didn't. But he kept trying."
I'm not even half way through with it yet. It's quite long. But I really like it. It's very different than what I'm used to reading. Here's the summary from goodreads:
Evie O'Neill has been exiled from her boring old hometown and shipped off to the bustling streets of New York City--and she is pos-i-toot-ly thrilled. New York is the city of speakeasies, shopping, and movie palaces! Soon enough, Evie is running with glamorous Ziegfield girls and rakish pickpockets. The only catch is Evie has to live with her Uncle Will, curator of The Museum of American Folklore, Superstition, and the Occult--also known as "The Museum of the Creepy Crawlies."
When a rash of occult-based murders comes to light, Evie and her uncle are right in the thick of the investigation. And through it all, Evie has a secret: a mysterious power that could help catch the killer--if he doesn't catch her first.
"In its way, writing was like healing. A cure for the loneliness he felt. Sometimes the cure took. Other times, it didn't. But he kept trying."
I'm not even half way through with it yet. It's quite long. But I really like it. It's very different than what I'm used to reading. Here's the summary from goodreads:
Evie O'Neill has been exiled from her boring old hometown and shipped off to the bustling streets of New York City--and she is pos-i-toot-ly thrilled. New York is the city of speakeasies, shopping, and movie palaces! Soon enough, Evie is running with glamorous Ziegfield girls and rakish pickpockets. The only catch is Evie has to live with her Uncle Will, curator of The Museum of American Folklore, Superstition, and the Occult--also known as "The Museum of the Creepy Crawlies."
When a rash of occult-based murders comes to light, Evie and her uncle are right in the thick of the investigation. And through it all, Evie has a secret: a mysterious power that could help catch the killer--if he doesn't catch her first.
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Persuasion
I finished Persuasion by Jane Austen on my break at work today. Anne and Wentworth. Here are a few of my favorite lines:
"A man does not recover from such devotion of the heart to such a woman! He ought not; he does not."
"... when pain is over, the remembrance of it often becomes a pleasure."
"All the privilege I claim for my own sex (it is not a very enviable one; you need not covet it), is that of loving longest, when existence or when hope is gone."
“You pierce my soul. I am half agony, half hope. Tell me not that I am too late, that such precious feelings are gone for ever. I offer myself to you again with a heart even more your own than when you almost broke it, eight years and a half ago. Dare not say that man forgets sooner than woman, that his love has an earlier death. I have loved none but you. ”
After work, I went to the library, just as I do about every Tuesday. When I got home, I went on my run. Listening to an audiobook, of course. I ran into the same girl from yesterday and talked to her for a bit. She's so nice. Afterwards, I sat on the beach. Winding down. Breathing in the crisp cool evening air. Watching the subtle waves break against the sand. Peace.
Exercise
Walk/Run w/ two 5 lb weights (45 min)
"A man does not recover from such devotion of the heart to such a woman! He ought not; he does not."
"... when pain is over, the remembrance of it often becomes a pleasure."
"All the privilege I claim for my own sex (it is not a very enviable one; you need not covet it), is that of loving longest, when existence or when hope is gone."
“You pierce my soul. I am half agony, half hope. Tell me not that I am too late, that such precious feelings are gone for ever. I offer myself to you again with a heart even more your own than when you almost broke it, eight years and a half ago. Dare not say that man forgets sooner than woman, that his love has an earlier death. I have loved none but you. ”
After work, I went to the library, just as I do about every Tuesday. When I got home, I went on my run. Listening to an audiobook, of course. I ran into the same girl from yesterday and talked to her for a bit. She's so nice. Afterwards, I sat on the beach. Winding down. Breathing in the crisp cool evening air. Watching the subtle waves break against the sand. Peace.
Exercise
Walk/Run w/ two 5 lb weights (45 min)
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Pandemonium & Chocolate Chip Cookies are Fine By Me
Today we made chocolate chip cookies! For our Storybook Share Day tomorrow. I clock in for for work and my mom says, "Kiko, can you makes cookies or something with the kids for tomorrow's share day?" I obviously reply, "Yes!" I magically find two eggs and the recipe for Nestle Tollhouse Chocolate Chip Cookies on the back of the large package of chocolate chips we have. We had all the other ingredients. Success! So we had our second food prep of the week. Cheehoo.
Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver. I told you about it yesterday. Remember? Well, I finished listening to it today while I was on my break at work. Aaaahhhhh!
SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!! He's ALIVE! I knew he would be. I knew that he could not possibly have died at the end of the first book. I couldn't believe it. I wouldn't. I knew that he was alive and that he'd come back. As Pandemonium went on, and Lena and Julian started to fall for one another, even more I knew he was alive. I was like, OMG, he's going to come back at the end of the book, but Lena and Julian will be together. He will come back. I knew it would be this way. I had a gut feeling. I just knew it! And I was right. So happy, she was promising Julian they would stay together. "You and me. I promise," she said. "Don't believe her." Hardened, stony eyes. Auburn hair. Boy brought back from the dead. Alex. Gaaahhh!! I need Requiem now! I have no idea what's going to happen next. I am very VERY excited to see...
"If you want something, if you take it for your own, you'll always be taking it from someone else. That's a rule too. And something must die so that others can live." -Pandemonium
"That is what hatred is. It will feed you and at the same time turn you to rot. It is hard and deep and angular, a system of blockades. It is everything and total. Hatred is a high tower." -Pandemonium
Exercise
Walking w/ two 5 lb weights (50 min)
Fine By Me - Andy Grammer ft. Colbie Caillat
"The best way to make your dreams come true is to wake up." - Paul Valéry
Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver. I told you about it yesterday. Remember? Well, I finished listening to it today while I was on my break at work. Aaaahhhhh!
SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!! He's ALIVE! I knew he would be. I knew that he could not possibly have died at the end of the first book. I couldn't believe it. I wouldn't. I knew that he was alive and that he'd come back. As Pandemonium went on, and Lena and Julian started to fall for one another, even more I knew he was alive. I was like, OMG, he's going to come back at the end of the book, but Lena and Julian will be together. He will come back. I knew it would be this way. I had a gut feeling. I just knew it! And I was right. So happy, she was promising Julian they would stay together. "You and me. I promise," she said. "Don't believe her." Hardened, stony eyes. Auburn hair. Boy brought back from the dead. Alex. Gaaahhh!! I need Requiem now! I have no idea what's going to happen next. I am very VERY excited to see...
"If you want something, if you take it for your own, you'll always be taking it from someone else. That's a rule too. And something must die so that others can live." -Pandemonium
"That is what hatred is. It will feed you and at the same time turn you to rot. It is hard and deep and angular, a system of blockades. It is everything and total. Hatred is a high tower." -Pandemonium
Exercise
Walking w/ two 5 lb weights (50 min)
Fine By Me - Andy Grammer ft. Colbie Caillat
"The best way to make your dreams come true is to wake up." - Paul Valéry
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Audiobooks
We made Banana Muffins today. They are one of my favorite things to bake. It's definitely the thing I bake most often. We always find ourselves with overripe/browning bananas. Some people like to eat bananas like that. I am not one of those people. So what do I do? I make Banana Muffins! They are so deliciously tasty. The perfect way to not waste bananas.
You know I love reading. I also love listening to audiobooks. Especially when they are read with such emotion and I can just close my eyes, listen, and imagine I'm there. That's one thing I really love about audiobooks. I can close my eyes and be fully consumed. When you watch a movie, you see what you are shown. When you read a book, you get to create the images in your mind as you read. When you listen to an audiobook, you create the images in your mind while having the emotion and diction of the words come through another's voice. It's like watching a movie, but better, because you get to "see" what you want. Visualize it the way you see it. I am not sure if you are able to comprehend anything I am babbling about. But I understand what I'm saying. Haha. I also love audiobooks because I can listen to them in the car, when I'm doing dishes, when I'm running errands, when I'm waiting in the dentist's office, when I'm lying in bed at night in the dark before I go to sleep, or when I go running/walking (which I did today by the way.) It's on my phone, so I always have it with me. It's perfect! I borrow them through the library, and they show up on my phone through OverDrive. I heart technology.
The current audiobook I am listening to and absolutely loving is Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver. I adore Sarah Drew's voice. Her narration draws me in and I can't stop. She speaks with passion and fire. Which is perfect. I read Delirium (the first book of the trilogy) a while back. But listening to Pandemonium (the second book of the trilogy) now makes me want to listen to the audiobook of Delirium. I did that with The Hunger Games trilogy. I read them as each of them came out. But right before the movie came out, I decided I wanted a refresher. So I audiobooked that business! Which was very very fun. Oh, I love audiobooks.
Oh! Oh! Oh! Stolen by Lucy Christopher! The audiobook! Narrated by Emily Gray! Iloveloveloveit! You know how I feel about accents. Emily Gray is a-ma-zing. Gemma has a British accent, and Ty has an Australian accent. Swoon. Go listen to it if you can. It's a crazy story. But I couldn't get enough. That's another thing I love about audiobooks. Accents! I can hear it perfectly in my head. Reading it, I may accidentally put the wrong accent on it. But if it's an audiobook, I can hear it! Here's the cover of Stolen, and a couple quotes from the book.
You know I love reading. I also love listening to audiobooks. Especially when they are read with such emotion and I can just close my eyes, listen, and imagine I'm there. That's one thing I really love about audiobooks. I can close my eyes and be fully consumed. When you watch a movie, you see what you are shown. When you read a book, you get to create the images in your mind as you read. When you listen to an audiobook, you create the images in your mind while having the emotion and diction of the words come through another's voice. It's like watching a movie, but better, because you get to "see" what you want. Visualize it the way you see it. I am not sure if you are able to comprehend anything I am babbling about. But I understand what I'm saying. Haha. I also love audiobooks because I can listen to them in the car, when I'm doing dishes, when I'm running errands, when I'm waiting in the dentist's office, when I'm lying in bed at night in the dark before I go to sleep, or when I go running/walking (which I did today by the way.) It's on my phone, so I always have it with me. It's perfect! I borrow them through the library, and they show up on my phone through OverDrive. I heart technology.
The current audiobook I am listening to and absolutely loving is Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver. I adore Sarah Drew's voice. Her narration draws me in and I can't stop. She speaks with passion and fire. Which is perfect. I read Delirium (the first book of the trilogy) a while back. But listening to Pandemonium (the second book of the trilogy) now makes me want to listen to the audiobook of Delirium. I did that with The Hunger Games trilogy. I read them as each of them came out. But right before the movie came out, I decided I wanted a refresher. So I audiobooked that business! Which was very very fun. Oh, I love audiobooks.
Oh! Oh! Oh! Stolen by Lucy Christopher! The audiobook! Narrated by Emily Gray! Iloveloveloveit! You know how I feel about accents. Emily Gray is a-ma-zing. Gemma has a British accent, and Ty has an Australian accent. Swoon. Go listen to it if you can. It's a crazy story. But I couldn't get enough. That's another thing I love about audiobooks. Accents! I can hear it perfectly in my head. Reading it, I may accidentally put the wrong accent on it. But if it's an audiobook, I can hear it! Here's the cover of Stolen, and a couple quotes from the book.
Exercise
Walking w/ two 5 lb weights (45 min)
Random song that I love.
Catch Me - Demi Lovato
Funny still from tonight's episode of New Girl. I had to take a picture of it with my phone and post it here. Classic Nick Miller. :)
Random song that I love.
Catch Me - Demi Lovato
Before I fall too fast
Kiss me quick but make it last
So I can see how badly this will hurt me when you say goodbye
Keep it sweet, keep it slow
Let the future pass and don't let go
But tonight I could fall too soon into this beautiful moonlight
But you're so hypnotizing
You've got me laughing while I sing
You've got me smiling in my sleep
And I can see this unraveling
Your love is where I'm falling
But please don't catch me...
See this heart won't settle down
Like a child running scared from a clown
I'm terrified of what you do
My stomach screams just when I look at you
Run far away so I can breathe
Even though you're far from suffocating me
I can't set my hopes too high
'Cause every "Hello" ends with a "Goodbye"
But you're so hypnotizing
You've got me laughing while I sing
You've got me smiling in my sleep
And I can see this unraveling
Your love is where I'm falling
But please don't catch me...
So now you see why I'm scared
I can't open up my heart without a care
But here I go, It's what I feel
And for the first time in my life I know it's real
But you're so hypnotizing
You've got me laughing while I sing
You've got me smiling in my sleep
And I can see this unraveling
Your love is where I'm falling
So please don't catch me
If this is love please don't break me
I'm giving up so just catch me
Kiss me quick but make it last
So I can see how badly this will hurt me when you say goodbye
Keep it sweet, keep it slow
Let the future pass and don't let go
But tonight I could fall too soon into this beautiful moonlight
But you're so hypnotizing
You've got me laughing while I sing
You've got me smiling in my sleep
And I can see this unraveling
Your love is where I'm falling
But please don't catch me...
See this heart won't settle down
Like a child running scared from a clown
I'm terrified of what you do
My stomach screams just when I look at you
Run far away so I can breathe
Even though you're far from suffocating me
I can't set my hopes too high
'Cause every "Hello" ends with a "Goodbye"
But you're so hypnotizing
You've got me laughing while I sing
You've got me smiling in my sleep
And I can see this unraveling
Your love is where I'm falling
But please don't catch me...
So now you see why I'm scared
I can't open up my heart without a care
But here I go, It's what I feel
And for the first time in my life I know it's real
But you're so hypnotizing
You've got me laughing while I sing
You've got me smiling in my sleep
And I can see this unraveling
Your love is where I'm falling
So please don't catch me
If this is love please don't break me
I'm giving up so just catch me
Funny still from tonight's episode of New Girl. I had to take a picture of it with my phone and post it here. Classic Nick Miller. :)
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
Miranda Kenneally!
Okayokayokay. Breathe. Miranda Kenneally tweeted me!!! :) Look!!! I tweeted her on her birthday and she tweeted me back! I'm so excited!
The second is Stealing Parker. Oh, Parker. She's great too. In the beginning, she has a wall up. She's been let down. So she masks her feelings by hooking up with boys. Lots of boys. Until she realizes that perhaps she's gone too far too fast. It gets real. Forgiveness. Being a good friend. Tangled hair. Corndog. Bo! Burning written prayers.
The third is Things I Can't Forget. Matt and Kate. I can't get enough. Matt is so sweet. I love their history. They were each other's first kiss. She was 11. He was 13. Seven years later, they meet again at the place it all began. Summer camp. How cute is that!? That's one of the things that I love most about this book. Their backstory. Their short little history.
Kate has strong beliefs. She can sometimes push people away with her judgmental ways, coming off a little too intense. But during the summer, she changes. She falls in love. She figures out where her convictions lie. She learns how to stand up for those convictions and how to be a good friend. She messed up, but she makes amends and pushes forward. She matures. In her life and in her faith.
Matt is a hot, confident frat boy. Or so he seems. But he's been hurt. He's been sad and lonely in the past, and has undergone great struggles. He turns to the girl who once saved his life - though she didn't know it - Kate. I love how they help each other heal the other's brokenness. And let me just say that what happened near the end of the book, on her porch, was so cute. And pretty hilarious at the same time. I loved it. Perfect. Matt's the best. Seriously.
Oh ! Oh ! Oh ! SPOILER ALERT! And Parker and Will are in this one. Which greatly added to my love for this book. They don't just appear for a quick moment, like Jordan and Sam, but they are truly apart of this story. In fact, Parker and Kate become close friends. So sweet. I most certainly did not get enough of Parker and Will as a couple in Stealing Parker. So it filled me with much happiness to watch their relationship and love grow in Things I Can't Forget!
Now you may or may not be wondering, "Who is Miranda Kenneally?" If you already know who she is, I adore you. If not, well let me enlighten you. Miranda Kenneally is a Young Adult author. She currently has three books out. All of which I most absolutely love. They are kind of like a series. All intertwined with one another, which is the best. I love when my favorite characters continue to reappear in books down the line. Like their story isn't finished. Even if the next book doesn't revolve around them, it involves them. And that, my friends, is good enough for me. The worst part about finishing a book are those thoughts I get. Well, now what? What comes next? I miss them already! I need a little more! Does their relationship develop further? Please, I need to know! So the fact that I get to keep hearing about my beloved fictional characters, as I read new stories, makes me smile smile smile. (:
The first is Catching Jordan. Jordan is by far my favorite. Jordan is the quarterback. Jordan is the captain. Jordan is highly respected and looked up to by everyone on the team. Jordan is tough. Jordan is driven and focused. Jordan is strong. Jordan is a girl. iloveitiloveitiloveit. I completely love the fact that Jordan is this tough, beautiful, girl quarterback. It's the best. Witnessing the respect that her teammates (all boys) have for her is the coolest thing. They follow her leadership. They always have her back. Always. I love their friendships. She's one of the guys. They ride each other, mess around, and get real. I love it. I wouldn't mind being like Jordan. She's got major skills. And she doesn't back down. She plays football because she truly loves it. This book was completely un-put-down-able.
The second is Stealing Parker. Oh, Parker. She's great too. In the beginning, she has a wall up. She's been let down. So she masks her feelings by hooking up with boys. Lots of boys. Until she realizes that perhaps she's gone too far too fast. It gets real. Forgiveness. Being a good friend. Tangled hair. Corndog. Bo! Burning written prayers.
The third is Things I Can't Forget. Matt and Kate. I can't get enough. Matt is so sweet. I love their history. They were each other's first kiss. She was 11. He was 13. Seven years later, they meet again at the place it all began. Summer camp. How cute is that!? That's one of the things that I love most about this book. Their backstory. Their short little history.
Kate has strong beliefs. She can sometimes push people away with her judgmental ways, coming off a little too intense. But during the summer, she changes. She falls in love. She figures out where her convictions lie. She learns how to stand up for those convictions and how to be a good friend. She messed up, but she makes amends and pushes forward. She matures. In her life and in her faith.
Matt is a hot, confident frat boy. Or so he seems. But he's been hurt. He's been sad and lonely in the past, and has undergone great struggles. He turns to the girl who once saved his life - though she didn't know it - Kate. I love how they help each other heal the other's brokenness. And let me just say that what happened near the end of the book, on her porch, was so cute. And pretty hilarious at the same time. I loved it. Perfect. Matt's the best. Seriously.
Oh ! Oh ! Oh ! SPOILER ALERT! And Parker and Will are in this one. Which greatly added to my love for this book. They don't just appear for a quick moment, like Jordan and Sam, but they are truly apart of this story. In fact, Parker and Kate become close friends. So sweet. I most certainly did not get enough of Parker and Will as a couple in Stealing Parker. So it filled me with much happiness to watch their relationship and love grow in Things I Can't Forget!
I cannot wait for her fourth book, Racing Savannah. It comes out December 3, 2013. So far away! But here's what Miranda wrote about it on her blog.
"A contemporary romance set at Hundred Oaks High in Tennessee, this book is about an underprivileged girl training to be a horse jockey at a high stakes horse farm while dealing with her on-again/off-again relationship with the farm owner’s son.
You’ll get to catch up with characters from my first three books… and there might even be a wedding. 
"
"
Eeep! Girly squeal! A wedding! You know I love weddings! Who could it be?! Oh December, you are so far away... But! She also put up an excerpt from the book on her blog. Click here to read it, if you like. I did. And now I am even more excited and anxious with anticipation. Let me just reiterate the fact that I love Miranda Kenneally and her amazing books. L-O-V-E.
Monday, May 6, 2013
Safekeeping
Safekeeping by Karen Hesse
Book Description from Amazon.com:
Radley’s parents had warned her that all hell would break loose if the American People's Party took power. And now, with the president assassinated and the government cracking down on citizens, the news is filled with images of vigilante groups, frenzied looting, and police raids. It seems as if all hell has broken loose.
Coming back from volunteering abroad, Radley just wants to get home to Vermont, and the comfort and safety of her parents. Travel restrictions and delays are worse than ever, and by the time Radley’s plane lands in New Hampshire, she’s been traveling for over twenty-four hours. Exhausted, she heads outside to find her parents—who always come, day or night, no matter when or where she lands—aren’t there.
Her cell phone is dead, her credit cards are worthless, and she doesn’t have the proper travel papers to cross state lines. Out of money and options, Radley starts walking. . . .
Illustrated with 50 of her own haunting and beautiful photographs, this is a vision of a future America that only Karen Hesse could write: real, gripping, and deeply personal.
I am so glad I picked up this book from the library. I was just browsing one day, when it caught my eye. I knew I had to read it. Having finished it, I know I was right. It was a hidden treasure waiting to be found. This book is hope amidst great tragedy. An unwanted, but nonetheless necessary, journey. It shows what you can accomplish when you have no other choice but to keep moving.
With all of the imagery (through words and photos,) you can't not feel like you are there in that time. It's real. Scary real. As though something of this nature could very well happen. As though it has happened or is happening.
Radley traveled far from home. Forced to either be strong or wither away. Radley was able to find herself. She realized what she was capable of. And who she wanted to be.
Reading this book makes me remember all that I have. I should take advantage of it, rather than take it for granted. I have more than enough. I have a loving family. I have a home. I have food and clean water. I have electricity. I have safety. I am blessed day in and day out. Reading about Radley's time in Haiti, working in the orphanage, made me even more eager to go and serve in a third world country. Or something along those lines. That would be amazing to work at an orphanage. All those poor babies who need someone to hold them, someone to love them. I want to be that person.
Some of my favorite quotes:
"These fleeting moments of kindness give me hope that the world is not completely lost."
"As long as you live, it is never too late to make amends. Take my advice, child. Don't waste your precious life with regrets and sorrow. Find a way to make right what was wrong, and then move on."
"... you are so young. You have so much yet to learn, about yourself, about the world. The way you live your life now, that is how you make amends to those you have lost, that is how you honor them."
Now go. Read this book. You will most surely not regret it.
Book Description from Amazon.com:
Radley’s parents had warned her that all hell would break loose if the American People's Party took power. And now, with the president assassinated and the government cracking down on citizens, the news is filled with images of vigilante groups, frenzied looting, and police raids. It seems as if all hell has broken loose.
Coming back from volunteering abroad, Radley just wants to get home to Vermont, and the comfort and safety of her parents. Travel restrictions and delays are worse than ever, and by the time Radley’s plane lands in New Hampshire, she’s been traveling for over twenty-four hours. Exhausted, she heads outside to find her parents—who always come, day or night, no matter when or where she lands—aren’t there.
Her cell phone is dead, her credit cards are worthless, and she doesn’t have the proper travel papers to cross state lines. Out of money and options, Radley starts walking. . . .
Illustrated with 50 of her own haunting and beautiful photographs, this is a vision of a future America that only Karen Hesse could write: real, gripping, and deeply personal.
I am so glad I picked up this book from the library. I was just browsing one day, when it caught my eye. I knew I had to read it. Having finished it, I know I was right. It was a hidden treasure waiting to be found. This book is hope amidst great tragedy. An unwanted, but nonetheless necessary, journey. It shows what you can accomplish when you have no other choice but to keep moving.
With all of the imagery (through words and photos,) you can't not feel like you are there in that time. It's real. Scary real. As though something of this nature could very well happen. As though it has happened or is happening.
Radley traveled far from home. Forced to either be strong or wither away. Radley was able to find herself. She realized what she was capable of. And who she wanted to be.
Reading this book makes me remember all that I have. I should take advantage of it, rather than take it for granted. I have more than enough. I have a loving family. I have a home. I have food and clean water. I have electricity. I have safety. I am blessed day in and day out. Reading about Radley's time in Haiti, working in the orphanage, made me even more eager to go and serve in a third world country. Or something along those lines. That would be amazing to work at an orphanage. All those poor babies who need someone to hold them, someone to love them. I want to be that person.
Some of my favorite quotes:
"These fleeting moments of kindness give me hope that the world is not completely lost."
"As long as you live, it is never too late to make amends. Take my advice, child. Don't waste your precious life with regrets and sorrow. Find a way to make right what was wrong, and then move on."
"... you are so young. You have so much yet to learn, about yourself, about the world. The way you live your life now, that is how you make amends to those you have lost, that is how you honor them."
Now go. Read this book. You will most surely not regret it.
Lucky Charms Ice Cream: Day 52
Pains in my stomach sides and back. Playing with the kids help me forget the pain for a little while. It hides mildly. But it's still there. Threatening to worsen. Thankfully my medicine kicked in by the afternoon, so my pain slowly melted away. Which was nice.
I just finished another book about 20 minutes ago. So I grabbed my phone to log it. And saw a text from my friend. Asking me if I was reading The Great Gatsby. I told her I'd literally just finished the book I was reading and that I'd better get started on it. She's about halfway through already. I guess I need to catch up!
Food Intake
Lucky Charms - 4
Bacon Eggs and Rice - 4
Bread Butter Jelly - 3
Water
Manapua - 12
Graham Crackers and Milk - 8
Life Cereal and Milk - 4
Chips - 4
Mini Chips Ahoy - 4
Exercise
None
So I was google-ing pictures of Lucky Charms to put down in this area, because you know I love me some Lucky Charms. I've been eating them practically every day. Then I came across the most magical recipe for... drumroll please...
I just finished another book about 20 minutes ago. So I grabbed my phone to log it. And saw a text from my friend. Asking me if I was reading The Great Gatsby. I told her I'd literally just finished the book I was reading and that I'd better get started on it. She's about halfway through already. I guess I need to catch up!
Food Intake
Lucky Charms - 4
Bacon Eggs and Rice - 4
Bread Butter Jelly - 3
Water
Manapua - 12
Graham Crackers and Milk - 8
Life Cereal and Milk - 4
Chips - 4
Mini Chips Ahoy - 4
Exercise
None
So I was google-ing pictures of Lucky Charms to put down in this area, because you know I love me some Lucky Charms. I've been eating them practically every day. Then I came across the most magical recipe for... drumroll please...
Click on those magically colored letters above to see the amazing recipe from We Are Not Martha.
Yes, please!
Saturday, May 4, 2013
The Help
I finished reading The Help by Kathryn Stockett a little bit ago. Then I watched the movie for the first time. My friend let me borrow the book and DVD. I thought I'd do a combined review. But let me first warn you that there are going to be spoilers. Because, you know me, I love talking about my books! And movies.
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
There is so much that I want to say about this amazing book. I have so many favorite bits and pieces. I hope I can remember them all. I guess I'll get started. Here we go. My favorites.
Favorite supporting character(s):
Mae Mobley. Because she is so cute and sweet. Her innocence is beautiful. I love her relationship with Aibileen. How she looks up to her. How, due to her fact that her mother isn't very good at mothering, she sees Aibileen as her real mama, saying, "Aibee, you're my real mama," and then, "I'm your baby." So cute! As Aibileen says encouraging words to her, "You is kind. You is smart. You is important." Thank you, Mae Mobley, for going on Aibee's pot. And the pot in Hilly's front yard. Coloring the picture you drew of a black you. Secret stories. Listening. Being you. Playing in the mud. Being a good big sister. Loving. You precious little girl.
Celia Foote. She's the best. I love love love her. Bubbly. Loving. Color-blind heart. Sweet as pie. From Sugar Ditch. Appreciative. So kind and warm-hearted to all. Friend to Minny. My absolute favorite part of the book was when that naked lunatic was in her yard yelling about his "pecker pie," and Minny told Celia to stay inside and lock the doors and went out with a knife chasing him. She'd gotten knocked down. Miss Celia comes running out with a fire-poker and starts hitting him. Again. And again. And again. Then she took care of Minny. She saved Minny and went all crazy on that man. I love the relationship between Minny and Celia. Love. And how she and Mister Johnny tells Minny that she will always have a job with them, if she wants it. Oh yeah, I love Mister Johnny too. How he loves Miss Celia so much. Oh, they are so cute together! Beautiful, loving couple. Gorgeous! Swoon.
Favorite quotes (some of them anyways, because there are so much more):
“You is kind. You is smart. You is important.”
“That's the way prayer do. It's like electricity, it keeps things going.”
“Once upon a time they was two girls," I say. "one girl had black skin, one girl had white."
Mae Mobley look up at me. She listening.
"Little colored girl say to little white girl, 'How come your skin be so pale?' White girl say, 'I don't know. How come your skin be so black? What you think that mean?'
"But neither one a them little girls knew. So little white girl say, 'Well, let's see. You got hair, I got hair.'"I gives Mae Mobley a little tousle on her head.
"Little colored girl say 'I got a nose, you got a nose.'"I gives her little snout a tweak. She got to reach up and do the same to me.
"Little white girl say, 'I got toes, you got toes.' And I do the little thing with her toes, but she can't get to mine cause I got my white work shoes on.
"'So we's the same. Just a different color', say that little colored girl. The little white girl she agreed and they was friends. The End."
Baby Girl just look at me. Law, that was a sorry story if I ever heard one. Wasn't even no plot to it. But Mae Mobley, she smile and say, "Tell it again.”
“Today I'm on tell you bout a man from outer space." She just loves hearing about peoples from outer space. Her favorite show on the tee-vee is My Favorite Martian, I pull on my antennae hats I shaped last night out a tin foil, fasten em on our heads. One for her and one for me. We look like we a couple a crazy people in them things.
"One day, a wise Martian come down to Earth to teach us people a thing or two," I say.
"Martian? How big?"
"oh, he about six-two."
"What's his name?"
"Martian Luther King."
She take a deep breath and lean her head down on my shoulder. I feel her three-year-old heart racing against mine, flapping like butterflies on my white uniform.
"He was a real nice Martian, Mister King. Looked just like us, nose, mouth, hair up on his head, but sometime people looked at him funny and sometime, well, I guess sometime people was just downright mean."
I coul get in a lot a trouble telling her these little stories, especially with Mister Leefolt. But Mae Mobley know these our "secret stories".
"Why Aibee? Why was they so mean to him?" she ask.
"Cause he was green.”
“Ever morning, until you dead in the ground, you gone have to make this decision. You gone have to ask yourself, "Am I gone believe what them fools say about me today?”
Main Characters (In three words):
Aibileen. Wise. Mothering. Friend.
Minny. Hilarious. Strong. Self-less.
Miss Skeeter. Dreamer. Driven. Unafraid.
It's movie time!
This movie was excellent. I always say that books are always better than the movie version. That's a given. They go into more detail. Because they can. Because they are a lot longer. Squeezing six hundred pages into 2 hours takes some cuts here and there. But they did an amazing job with this movie. It hit all of the main points necessary to get the message and feel of the book across.
The movie was a lot less sad than the book. It was happier somehow. The movie left out the really downcast parts. Such as Minny's beatings. They mentioned them in the movie, but didn't show it. I like that they did that. Hilly wasn't as evil in the movie as in the book. She was a snobby-nose-in-the-air-holier-than-thou, foot-stomping-tantrum-throwing white lady. Granted, she did terrible things in the movie, but it wasn't as bad at book Hilly. I loved when she was eating the pie in the movie. Classic. Miss Walters, Hilly's mom, played a much bigger role in the movie than she did in the book, that's for sure. She was more of a problem in the movie. She laughed at Hilly eating the pie, she told Hilly to read the book and that it was probably about Jackson. Miss Skeeter's mom was also less bad in the movie. They made it seem like she kicked out Constantine because the other lady told her to. Rather than it being her decision. Speaking of Constantine's daughter Rachel, now that was a big change. In the book she looks white because Constantine is half white from her father. Where in the movie, she is black. In the book, when she showed up at the house, it was the first time Miss Skeeter's mom had ever seen her, rather than in the movie how she was portrayed to be somewhat of a family friend.
I love love loved Miss Celia and Mister Johnny in this movie. They are just the sweetest, cutest couple. Oh my my. I loved the depth of Celia and Minny's friendship in the book, but I love how it was in the movie as well. They looked out for each other. Celia is so bubbly and funny. I just love her. Obviously. But you already knew that. Mister Johnny is so sweet. I love the scene in the movie when Celia cooked Minny a dinner feast and she and Johnny told Minny that she would always have a job there as long as she wanted. True thankfulness for Minny. Oh, I love them. All three of them.
My favorite part of the movie is when Minny is walking towards Celia's house, carrying bags of groceries. Mister Johnny pulls up in his car and asks her if she needs help with them. She glances over at him, and then begins to run away screaming, "Miss Celia!" throwing groceries and dropping them everywhere. And then picking up a fallen tree branch for defense. It was hilarious to say the least. So darn funny. I absolutely love it.
The movie was full of hope and love. Sadness and joy. Cries and laughter. Breaking through boundaries. Overcoming obstacles. Finding your true purpose and reason for life. Knowing who you are. What you can accomplish with a dream. We are all just people.
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
Synopsis from Kathryn Stockett's webiste:
Three ordinary women are about to take one extraordinary step.
Twenty-two-year-old Skeeter has just returned home after graduating from Ole Miss. She may have a degree, but it is 1962, Mississippi, and her mother will not be happy till Skeeter has a ring on her finger. Skeeter would normally find solace with her beloved maid Constantine, the woman who raised her, but Constantine has disappeared and no one will tell Skeeter where she has gone.
Aibileen is a black maid, a wise, regal woman raising her seventeenth white child. Something has shifted inside her after the loss of her own son, who died while his bosses looked the other way. She is devoted to the little girl she looks after, though she knows both their hearts may be broken.
Minny, Aibileen’s best friend, is short, fat, and perhaps the sassiest woman in Mississippi. She can cook like nobody’s business, but she can’t mind her tongue, so she’s lost yet another job. Minny finally finds a position working for someone too new to town to know her reputation. But her new boss has secrets of her own.
Seemingly as different from one another as can be, these women will nonetheless come together for a clandestine project that will put them all at risk. And why? Because they are suffocating within the lines that define their town and their times. And sometimes lines are made to be crossed.
In pitch-perfect voices, Kathryn Stockett creates three extraordinary women whose determination to start a movement of their own forever changes a town, and the way women–mothers, daughters, caregivers, friends–view one another. A deeply moving novel filled with poignancy, humor, and hope, The Help is a timeless and universal story about the lines we abide by, and the ones we don’t.
Favorite supporting character(s):
Mae Mobley. Because she is so cute and sweet. Her innocence is beautiful. I love her relationship with Aibileen. How she looks up to her. How, due to her fact that her mother isn't very good at mothering, she sees Aibileen as her real mama, saying, "Aibee, you're my real mama," and then, "I'm your baby." So cute! As Aibileen says encouraging words to her, "You is kind. You is smart. You is important." Thank you, Mae Mobley, for going on Aibee's pot. And the pot in Hilly's front yard. Coloring the picture you drew of a black you. Secret stories. Listening. Being you. Playing in the mud. Being a good big sister. Loving. You precious little girl.
Celia Foote. She's the best. I love love love her. Bubbly. Loving. Color-blind heart. Sweet as pie. From Sugar Ditch. Appreciative. So kind and warm-hearted to all. Friend to Minny. My absolute favorite part of the book was when that naked lunatic was in her yard yelling about his "pecker pie," and Minny told Celia to stay inside and lock the doors and went out with a knife chasing him. She'd gotten knocked down. Miss Celia comes running out with a fire-poker and starts hitting him. Again. And again. And again. Then she took care of Minny. She saved Minny and went all crazy on that man. I love the relationship between Minny and Celia. Love. And how she and Mister Johnny tells Minny that she will always have a job with them, if she wants it. Oh yeah, I love Mister Johnny too. How he loves Miss Celia so much. Oh, they are so cute together! Beautiful, loving couple. Gorgeous! Swoon.
Favorite quotes (some of them anyways, because there are so much more):
“You is kind. You is smart. You is important.”
“That's the way prayer do. It's like electricity, it keeps things going.”
“Once upon a time they was two girls," I say. "one girl had black skin, one girl had white."
Mae Mobley look up at me. She listening.
"Little colored girl say to little white girl, 'How come your skin be so pale?' White girl say, 'I don't know. How come your skin be so black? What you think that mean?'
"But neither one a them little girls knew. So little white girl say, 'Well, let's see. You got hair, I got hair.'"I gives Mae Mobley a little tousle on her head.
"Little colored girl say 'I got a nose, you got a nose.'"I gives her little snout a tweak. She got to reach up and do the same to me.
"Little white girl say, 'I got toes, you got toes.' And I do the little thing with her toes, but she can't get to mine cause I got my white work shoes on.
"'So we's the same. Just a different color', say that little colored girl. The little white girl she agreed and they was friends. The End."
Baby Girl just look at me. Law, that was a sorry story if I ever heard one. Wasn't even no plot to it. But Mae Mobley, she smile and say, "Tell it again.”
“Today I'm on tell you bout a man from outer space." She just loves hearing about peoples from outer space. Her favorite show on the tee-vee is My Favorite Martian, I pull on my antennae hats I shaped last night out a tin foil, fasten em on our heads. One for her and one for me. We look like we a couple a crazy people in them things.
"One day, a wise Martian come down to Earth to teach us people a thing or two," I say.
"Martian? How big?"
"oh, he about six-two."
"What's his name?"
"Martian Luther King."
She take a deep breath and lean her head down on my shoulder. I feel her three-year-old heart racing against mine, flapping like butterflies on my white uniform.
"He was a real nice Martian, Mister King. Looked just like us, nose, mouth, hair up on his head, but sometime people looked at him funny and sometime, well, I guess sometime people was just downright mean."
I coul get in a lot a trouble telling her these little stories, especially with Mister Leefolt. But Mae Mobley know these our "secret stories".
"Why Aibee? Why was they so mean to him?" she ask.
"Cause he was green.”
“Ever morning, until you dead in the ground, you gone have to make this decision. You gone have to ask yourself, "Am I gone believe what them fools say about me today?”
“Write about what disturbs you, particularly if it bothers no one else.”
“They say it's like true love, good help. You only get one in a lifetime.”
"We are just two people. Not that much separates us. Not nearly as much as I'd thought.”
"We are just two people. Not that much separates us. Not nearly as much as I'd thought.”
Aibileen. Wise. Mothering. Friend.
Minny. Hilarious. Strong. Self-less.
Miss Skeeter. Dreamer. Driven. Unafraid.
It's movie time!
This movie was excellent. I always say that books are always better than the movie version. That's a given. They go into more detail. Because they can. Because they are a lot longer. Squeezing six hundred pages into 2 hours takes some cuts here and there. But they did an amazing job with this movie. It hit all of the main points necessary to get the message and feel of the book across.
The movie was a lot less sad than the book. It was happier somehow. The movie left out the really downcast parts. Such as Minny's beatings. They mentioned them in the movie, but didn't show it. I like that they did that. Hilly wasn't as evil in the movie as in the book. She was a snobby-nose-in-the-air-holier-than-thou, foot-stomping-tantrum-throwing white lady. Granted, she did terrible things in the movie, but it wasn't as bad at book Hilly. I loved when she was eating the pie in the movie. Classic. Miss Walters, Hilly's mom, played a much bigger role in the movie than she did in the book, that's for sure. She was more of a problem in the movie. She laughed at Hilly eating the pie, she told Hilly to read the book and that it was probably about Jackson. Miss Skeeter's mom was also less bad in the movie. They made it seem like she kicked out Constantine because the other lady told her to. Rather than it being her decision. Speaking of Constantine's daughter Rachel, now that was a big change. In the book she looks white because Constantine is half white from her father. Where in the movie, she is black. In the book, when she showed up at the house, it was the first time Miss Skeeter's mom had ever seen her, rather than in the movie how she was portrayed to be somewhat of a family friend.
I love love loved Miss Celia and Mister Johnny in this movie. They are just the sweetest, cutest couple. Oh my my. I loved the depth of Celia and Minny's friendship in the book, but I love how it was in the movie as well. They looked out for each other. Celia is so bubbly and funny. I just love her. Obviously. But you already knew that. Mister Johnny is so sweet. I love the scene in the movie when Celia cooked Minny a dinner feast and she and Johnny told Minny that she would always have a job there as long as she wanted. True thankfulness for Minny. Oh, I love them. All three of them.
My favorite part of the movie is when Minny is walking towards Celia's house, carrying bags of groceries. Mister Johnny pulls up in his car and asks her if she needs help with them. She glances over at him, and then begins to run away screaming, "Miss Celia!" throwing groceries and dropping them everywhere. And then picking up a fallen tree branch for defense. It was hilarious to say the least. So darn funny. I absolutely love it.
The movie was full of hope and love. Sadness and joy. Cries and laughter. Breaking through boundaries. Overcoming obstacles. Finding your true purpose and reason for life. Knowing who you are. What you can accomplish with a dream. We are all just people.
The Help movie trailer
Thursday, April 25, 2013
5LL: Day 41
Been listening to an audiobook on my phone called The 5 Love Languages of Teenagers: The Secret to Loving Teens Effectively by Gary Chapman. I've been wanting to work on my relationship with my sisters and I figured it couldn't hurt to listen to this. It's been very helpful and though-provoking. It's also making me scared for when my children (future children) are teenagers. Scary. Haha
Food Intake
Granola Bar
Water
Graham Crackers
Milk
Rice, Chicken, Cheese
Chips and Dip
Apple
Orange
Macaroni Grill Leftovers
Almonds
Exercise
Walking 30 min
Washing with two 5lb weights 30 min
Food Intake
Granola Bar
Water
Graham Crackers
Milk
Rice, Chicken, Cheese
Chips and Dip
Apple
Orange
Macaroni Grill Leftovers
Almonds
Exercise
Walking 30 min
Washing with two 5lb weights 30 min
This is the cover.
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Books and Possibilities: Day 39
I finished two books yesterday. One of them being The Help by Kathryn Stockett, which I will probably do a separate post about because I loved it so much. Today I went to the library to get even more books. I love books. sigh.
My sister has been reading tons of books lately as well. I pick up a bunch from the library I've read and think she'll love. She reads them. And yes, loves them. She's becoming like me. In my need to read. It's pretty awesome. She even started logging the books she reads. Not in the crazy obsessive way that I do it (in my planner, with dates and times and places,) obviously, but just writing them down on a piece of paper. Next I have to work on my youngest sister. She is so not a reader. But hey. Anything is possible right.
Food Intake
(lots of things)
Exercise
None
My sister has been reading tons of books lately as well. I pick up a bunch from the library I've read and think she'll love. She reads them. And yes, loves them. She's becoming like me. In my need to read. It's pretty awesome. She even started logging the books she reads. Not in the crazy obsessive way that I do it (in my planner, with dates and times and places,) obviously, but just writing them down on a piece of paper. Next I have to work on my youngest sister. She is so not a reader. But hey. Anything is possible right.
Food Intake
(lots of things)
Exercise
None
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Because I Am Furniture
Because I Am Furniture by Thalia Chaltas.
It took me about two and a half hours to finish this book. I devoured every single page. I couldn't put it down. And I didn't want to.
Here's the book description written on the book's cover flap:
SPOILER ALERT! Sort of. Maybe. So go read the book :)
I have way too many thoughts running through my mind right now. They are racing a mile a minute due to the amazing-ness of this book and the rapidity of which I finished it. I love Anke. (Pronounced Ahn-Keh.) Her journey is incredible. Through the pain, she finds her own strength. And voice.
This is the very first page. And I was hooked...
This is one of my favorite parts of this book. Anke is ready. To truly speak up. Here she's talking to her sister, Yaicha.
"Every day,
every day he rips you open,
chips off pieces week by week,
till a few years from now you are not even a
mouthful of sawdust.
A drawn-out killing.
Well, I'm tired of all of us doing nothing.
He has to be stopped."
"Nobody can stop him."
"Nobody can stop him?
Good.
To him I have always been
Nobody."
And I LOVE this. Oh, her words! Her descriptive, beautiful words!
Staring into the starred darkness
makes me feel
stronger,
a simple truth.
With all the
dizzy galaxies
hot gases
dust at the speed of light
neutrinos running through
everything,
no matter how powerful someone is
here on Earth
they are just as small as me
to the vast greatness of
outer
space.
Here's the book description written on the book's cover flap:
ANKE'S FATHER IS ABUSIVE. But not to her. He attacks her brother and sister, but she is ignored, forced to be an invisible witness in a house of horrors. Believing she isn't worthy of even the worst kind of attention, Anke feels about as significant as the living room sofa. Until she makes the volleyball team at school. In a sport where you have to yell "Mine!" to play the ball, Anke learns for the first time how to make herself heard. As her confidence on the court builds, she finds a voice she didn't know existed. And it's not long before she realizes that if she can make people hear her while she's playing volleyball, then maybe she can be heard at home, too.
Author Thalia Chaltas leads you straight to the heart of Anke's darkly complicated world in this devastatingly powerful novel in poems.
SPOILER ALERT! Sort of. Maybe. So go read the book :)
I have way too many thoughts running through my mind right now. They are racing a mile a minute due to the amazing-ness of this book and the rapidity of which I finished it. I love Anke. (Pronounced Ahn-Keh.) Her journey is incredible. Through the pain, she finds her own strength. And voice.
This is the very first page. And I was hooked...
This is one of my favorite parts of this book. Anke is ready. To truly speak up. Here she's talking to her sister, Yaicha.
"Every day,
every day he rips you open,
chips off pieces week by week,
till a few years from now you are not even a
mouthful of sawdust.
A drawn-out killing.
Well, I'm tired of all of us doing nothing.
He has to be stopped."
"Nobody can stop him."
"Nobody can stop him?
Good.
To him I have always been
Nobody."
And I LOVE this. Oh, her words! Her descriptive, beautiful words!
Staring into the starred darkness
makes me feel
stronger,
a simple truth.
With all the
dizzy galaxies
hot gases
dust at the speed of light
neutrinos running through
everything,
no matter how powerful someone is
here on Earth
they are just as small as me
to the vast greatness of
outer
space.
Monday, April 15, 2013
The Ivy: Day 31
Last night (or more like this morning actually, since it was after midnight...) I finished reading the fourth (and I believe final) book of The Ivy book series. I loved it. Perfect ending. Just so good. Callie and Gregory. Makes me smile :) I borrowed all four books from the library. I LOVE LIBRARIES!! The books were written by Lauren Kunze with Rina Onur.
Food Intake
Fudge Stripes Cookies
Hamantaschen
Chicken Pot Pie
Panda Express - Leftovers [Chow Mein, Mushroom Chicken, Orange Chicken]
Exercise
None
Here's a picture of all of the books.
On my kitchen counter.
Pretty, right?
Food Intake
Fudge Stripes Cookies
Hamantaschen
Chicken Pot Pie
Panda Express - Leftovers [Chow Mein, Mushroom Chicken, Orange Chicken]
Exercise
None
Driving home...
Thursday, March 21, 2013
Tired Reader: Day 6
Today I mostly read and slept. A nice chill day. I'm currently re-reading The Host by Stephenie Meyer before it comes out in theaters next week Friday. Which btw I'm so stoked for! I read it back when it came out, about five years ago. So I'm getting refreshed. I love this book. When I read it, it became my favorite book for a while. Until I read... The Hunger Games. Four years ago. And now that has been my favorite ever since. So good. The best. Okay, getting off track. The Host. I'm very excited. I can already see the small changes in how the movie differs from the book, but it looks like it's going to be good for the movie. And can I just say how excited I am about who's playing Jared? Max Irons. He's beautiful. When I saw that he was playing Jared, I was like, "Yes!" Because the leading man can make or break a movie. Just saying. Ok. I'm good.
Food Intake
Small sliver of Butter Mochi
Smoothie - [Mixed Frozen Fruit, Banana, 1/3 cup Strawberry Yogurt, 1/3 cup Fat Free Milk]
Water
3/4 cup tuna
3 Hard Boiled Eggs
2 tsp Mayonnaise
Baby Spinach
1 Tbsp Sabra Roasted Pine Nut Hummus
Banana
Water
Quizno's Regular Broccoli Cheese Soup
Quizno's Small Chicken Bacon Ranch Flatbread
2 Saltine Crackers
Exercise
None
Food Intake
Small sliver of Butter Mochi
Smoothie - [Mixed Frozen Fruit, Banana, 1/3 cup Strawberry Yogurt, 1/3 cup Fat Free Milk]
Water
3/4 cup tuna
3 Hard Boiled Eggs
2 tsp Mayonnaise
Baby Spinach
1 Tbsp Sabra Roasted Pine Nut Hummus
Banana
Water
Quizno's Regular Broccoli Cheese Soup
Quizno's Small Chicken Bacon Ranch Flatbread
2 Saltine Crackers
Exercise
None
Here's a trailer for The Host!
Have a soulful day!
Saturday, March 16, 2013
I'm Ready!
It's funny. I feel like I've been trying and failing, trying and failing, trying and failing. At getting back to how I was. In August 2011 I decided that enough was enough. I was tired of being overweight. I was tired of hating the way I looked. The way I felt. I was tired of complaining and not doing anything to change. So Phylicia and I decided that it was time to do it. Lose the weight we wanted to lose. So she created this "contract." A contract that laid out the rules and terms for our weight loss competition with one another. I doing weight watchers. She following Naturally Thin/Skinnygirl book. John Hancock. Signed. Done. I signed up for Weight Watchers Online on August 2, 2011. It was a Tuesday. I kept to my targeted food points. I went to the gym basically everyday. In three months I lost about 45 pounds. I maintained through the holiday season. And on March 2, 2012, I reached my goal weight. I honestly could. not. believe. that I had done it. I was happy. But at the same time, I knew that I still wanted to lose a lot more. Get fit. I set a new goal weight and tried to continue on the path to a better me. But I lost myself along the way. Somehow I just stopped trying. I couldn't get myself to keep track of my points. Mind you, I was still working out. But as most of you know, it doesn't matter how much you work out if you are eating badly or too much.
I moved back to Hawaii late October 2012. Just living. Not focusing on what I was putting in, or exerting out. And although I haven't weighed myself, I can see it. My belly is slowly but surely coming back. My jeans don't fit as nicely as they used to. And I hate it. I hate that I am doing this to myself. No one is shoving the food down my throat. I am doing this all by myself. But I don't want to beat myself up about it anymore. Like I did back in August of 2011, I need to just to it. Be disciplined. Somehow. And. Get. 'Er. Done. Be responsible. Be focused. Be the me that I want to be. And I can't wait 'til tomorrow. Or the next day.
I don't have Phylicia to make a contract with. So I am going to make one with myself. I'll come up with it and post it here on my blog.
Am I scared? Definitely. I'm scared that I will fail again. I'm scared that I am not strong enough. And maybe I'm not. But I will never know unless I try. Put myself out there. Lean on God to give me the strength. Pray that He instills in me a disciplined spirit. I pray that I can treat my body like a temple. Take it seriously. Because this is my life. My body. I am in control of me.
What's funny is this. My sister and my cousin begged me to drive them to Jack-in-the-Box and 7-11. So me being the amazing older sister/cousin that I am, I agreed. As I sat in the car, parked outside 7-11, watching YouTube videos as I waited for those girls to come out, I saw one of my old friends from high school. He came over to say hi and how I've been etc. Then he asked if I was still paddling and that he would be this summer. The girls got back into the car. We drove away. And on that drive home I thought, "I'M READY."I want I NEED to get back into shape. I would want to look the way I do now and paddle. Not with this belly back in action. Not that I'm necessarily going to paddle or anything, but it's the mere idea that's changed me. I don't know. I don't know. I don't know what I am going to do. I don't know if I will succeed. But I promise you that I am going to try. I am going to try with all of me. And as I sit here, typing this incredibly long blog post, listening to The Piano Guys, I feel determined. More determined than I have been in a long time. And that feels good. It feels great. I don't want this to be a fleeting feeling. So each day I will remind myself.
So I've been reading a lot of books recently. One of them is called Food, Fitness, and Faith for women that is about how God has a plan for me and for every aspect of my life, including (but not limited to) my food, fitness, and faith. I am doing this as part of a group. It's an easy read. Simple. To the point. Scriptures. Quotes. You should check it out if you feel like you need a little extra boost. As amazing as this little book is, I feel like I have just been reading, but not really following it. Not really living it. Which is not going to help. Obviously. Can you see why I struggle. Even the best sound advice won't help if you're not in a place to receive and follow through.
But I've also been reading quite a few Young Adult Novels I borrowed from the library. It's funny how when there's a topic on your mind, everything jumps out at you as related to your thoughts. For example, this one book I read was called The One That I Want. A typical tale. Girl sees boy. Boy sees girl. Girl likes boy but thinks boy likes another girl. Boy likes girl but thinks girl likes another boy. A little drama, but they end up together happily ever after. But this one had a little twist. Girl used to be 50 pounds heavier. Now she's hot, and finally meets this guy. Her insecurities get in the way. Even though he obviously likes her for her. Okay, the point is, there were good points in there. #1: On page 81, she's asked how she lost all the weight. She mentions how it was explained to her in mathematical terms. If you take in more calories than you burn, you'll gain weight. If you take in less, you'll lose weight. So she got on the internet, figured out how many calories she was burning a day and then added up what she was eating. - You see. So simple. Math. I like it. Just gotta do it. Like Weight Watchers points. #2: On page 82, she mentions another thing she was told to ask herself, "Am I hungry? Or do I just want something to eat?" - Great questions!! I LOVED that. My new thing to ask myself. Check. #3: Also on page 82, she mentions that she hasn't gone on a weird diet. She just eats less. "And no cobbler, ever." - You can eat. Just don't over eat. And sometimes you need to know your danger zones (ie, cobbler) and JUST DON'T GO THERE. #4: On page 83, she exercises too. - So if you limit what you eat AND exercise, well, you are good to go. So yeah. I loved the boy and the girl together (obviously,) but I took away far more that the cute little love story. I took away obvious tips and reminders to living a healthier lifestyle, and to lose the weight.
Another YA novel I recently read, entitled Revenge of the Girl with the Great Personality. I know right. Saying a girl has a "great personality" can sometimes kill. Haha. I love it. So her little sister a beauty pageant girl (like Toddlers in Tiaras,) and she's in this world, surrounded by people beautifying every little thing, and judging, and she doesn't feel beautiful. Then one day she puts on make-up, wears nicer, well-fitting clothes, and now guys are suddenly into her. But even before this, you can see how, even though she has a great body, she watches what she eats, watches her calorie intake, doesn't indulge. In fear of becoming like her overweight mother. The book doesn't delve into weight loss and such topics. But I like what she realizes in the end. how she says, "I'd rather be single and myself than try to fit into a mold of a person that I'm not for a guy", "...the only way for me to be truly happy is to be myself..." and how she's glad she went through what she went through because it made her a stronger person, and made her realize what's important. I like how she ends by declaring "I, Lexi Anderson, am proud to say that I do, indeed, have a great personality. And it's only a matter of time before the Beautiful People will be wishing they had great personalities too." I like that. Being happy with who you are. Who you want to be. Not being who others want you to be. And I want to be healthy and fit for me. For myself. To feel good about myself. This isn't about others anymore. Though for most of my life, it was (but that's a whole 'nother story.) So I decide. I want this. For me.
Thirdly and lastly, I recently read a YA novel, called Burn for Burn. The first book in a trilogy btw. And one of the girl's backstory is this. She was a fat kid. One day a new boy came to her school. Teased her. Everyone followed suit. She was bullied so bad. But when they were alone, they were like secret friends. Then one day it all came tumbling down. He pushed her. Hard. She fell. Hard. Into the water. She went home and. Oh, I totally don't want to get into all the heavy stuff. But after that, she moves away. Loses the weight. Looks good. Moves back. He's in trouble. I'm not going to go into detail about this book. I just thought it interesting how all these books relate to the crazy thoughts going on in my head pertaining to weight loss, body image, etc. So I just thought I'd share. Throw it out there.
I'm excited! I'm ready! Wow, that was a lot of words. Here's something fun. No words. It's my current favorite from The Piano Guys. What Makes You Beautiful. :)
I moved back to Hawaii late October 2012. Just living. Not focusing on what I was putting in, or exerting out. And although I haven't weighed myself, I can see it. My belly is slowly but surely coming back. My jeans don't fit as nicely as they used to. And I hate it. I hate that I am doing this to myself. No one is shoving the food down my throat. I am doing this all by myself. But I don't want to beat myself up about it anymore. Like I did back in August of 2011, I need to just to it. Be disciplined. Somehow. And. Get. 'Er. Done. Be responsible. Be focused. Be the me that I want to be. And I can't wait 'til tomorrow. Or the next day.
I don't have Phylicia to make a contract with. So I am going to make one with myself. I'll come up with it and post it here on my blog.
Am I scared? Definitely. I'm scared that I will fail again. I'm scared that I am not strong enough. And maybe I'm not. But I will never know unless I try. Put myself out there. Lean on God to give me the strength. Pray that He instills in me a disciplined spirit. I pray that I can treat my body like a temple. Take it seriously. Because this is my life. My body. I am in control of me.
What's funny is this. My sister and my cousin begged me to drive them to Jack-in-the-Box and 7-11. So me being the amazing older sister/cousin that I am, I agreed. As I sat in the car, parked outside 7-11, watching YouTube videos as I waited for those girls to come out, I saw one of my old friends from high school. He came over to say hi and how I've been etc. Then he asked if I was still paddling and that he would be this summer. The girls got back into the car. We drove away. And on that drive home I thought, "I'M READY."
So I've been reading a lot of books recently. One of them is called Food, Fitness, and Faith for women that is about how God has a plan for me and for every aspect of my life, including (but not limited to) my food, fitness, and faith. I am doing this as part of a group. It's an easy read. Simple. To the point. Scriptures. Quotes. You should check it out if you feel like you need a little extra boost. As amazing as this little book is, I feel like I have just been reading, but not really following it. Not really living it. Which is not going to help. Obviously. Can you see why I struggle. Even the best sound advice won't help if you're not in a place to receive and follow through.
But I've also been reading quite a few Young Adult Novels I borrowed from the library. It's funny how when there's a topic on your mind, everything jumps out at you as related to your thoughts. For example, this one book I read was called The One That I Want. A typical tale. Girl sees boy. Boy sees girl. Girl likes boy but thinks boy likes another girl. Boy likes girl but thinks girl likes another boy. A little drama, but they end up together happily ever after. But this one had a little twist. Girl used to be 50 pounds heavier. Now she's hot, and finally meets this guy. Her insecurities get in the way. Even though he obviously likes her for her. Okay, the point is, there were good points in there. #1: On page 81, she's asked how she lost all the weight. She mentions how it was explained to her in mathematical terms. If you take in more calories than you burn, you'll gain weight. If you take in less, you'll lose weight. So she got on the internet, figured out how many calories she was burning a day and then added up what she was eating. - You see. So simple. Math. I like it. Just gotta do it. Like Weight Watchers points. #2: On page 82, she mentions another thing she was told to ask herself, "Am I hungry? Or do I just want something to eat?" - Great questions!! I LOVED that. My new thing to ask myself. Check. #3: Also on page 82, she mentions that she hasn't gone on a weird diet. She just eats less. "And no cobbler, ever." - You can eat. Just don't over eat. And sometimes you need to know your danger zones (ie, cobbler) and JUST DON'T GO THERE. #4: On page 83, she exercises too. - So if you limit what you eat AND exercise, well, you are good to go. So yeah. I loved the boy and the girl together (obviously,) but I took away far more that the cute little love story. I took away obvious tips and reminders to living a healthier lifestyle, and to lose the weight.
Another YA novel I recently read, entitled Revenge of the Girl with the Great Personality. I know right. Saying a girl has a "great personality" can sometimes kill. Haha. I love it. So her little sister a beauty pageant girl (like Toddlers in Tiaras,) and she's in this world, surrounded by people beautifying every little thing, and judging, and she doesn't feel beautiful. Then one day she puts on make-up, wears nicer, well-fitting clothes, and now guys are suddenly into her. But even before this, you can see how, even though she has a great body, she watches what she eats, watches her calorie intake, doesn't indulge. In fear of becoming like her overweight mother. The book doesn't delve into weight loss and such topics. But I like what she realizes in the end. how she says, "I'd rather be single and myself than try to fit into a mold of a person that I'm not for a guy", "...the only way for me to be truly happy is to be myself..." and how she's glad she went through what she went through because it made her a stronger person, and made her realize what's important. I like how she ends by declaring "I, Lexi Anderson, am proud to say that I do, indeed, have a great personality. And it's only a matter of time before the Beautiful People will be wishing they had great personalities too." I like that. Being happy with who you are. Who you want to be. Not being who others want you to be. And I want to be healthy and fit for me. For myself. To feel good about myself. This isn't about others anymore. Though for most of my life, it was (but that's a whole 'nother story.) So I decide. I want this. For me.
Thirdly and lastly, I recently read a YA novel, called Burn for Burn. The first book in a trilogy btw. And one of the girl's backstory is this. She was a fat kid. One day a new boy came to her school. Teased her. Everyone followed suit. She was bullied so bad. But when they were alone, they were like secret friends. Then one day it all came tumbling down. He pushed her. Hard. She fell. Hard. Into the water. She went home and. Oh, I totally don't want to get into all the heavy stuff. But after that, she moves away. Loses the weight. Looks good. Moves back. He's in trouble. I'm not going to go into detail about this book. I just thought it interesting how all these books relate to the crazy thoughts going on in my head pertaining to weight loss, body image, etc. So I just thought I'd share. Throw it out there.
2 Timothy 1:7 NIV
"For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love, and self-discipline."
I'm excited! I'm ready! Wow, that was a lot of words. Here's something fun. No words. It's my current favorite from The Piano Guys. What Makes You Beautiful. :)
You are beautiful!
I love you!
Have a splendid day!
Smiles and hugs from me to you!
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