Wednesday Hodgepodge

1. Thursday (September 22) is the first official day of autumn in this part of the world...how will you welcome the season? I know some of you have been celebrating way too early, but it's official now so permission granted. House Beautiful recently listed ten ways to make your home smell like fall (you can read the list here) What's a scent you love this time of year and how will you add it to your home?

  I absolutely love Fall but somehow it seems to have arrived way too early and I am in season denial about right now. However, since I love Fall I have been attacking the kitchen and filling the house with apple pie bars, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin cookies, and apple cider brown sugar cupcakes.  Yes my friends, I love fall desserts!

2. Apple pie or pumpkin pie? Apple cake or pumpkin bread? Warm apple cider or a pumpkin spice latte?

  Concerning all of those questions, I prefer apple everything. Why, you might wonder? Well because it tends to taste cleaner and fresher, almost crisp, in most scenarios.
 

3. Do you suffer from what is sometimes referred to as an afternoon slump? What helps ward it off before it hits and/or tell us what helps you shake it off once it's here?

  Yes, sometimes I suffer from an afternoon slump, so what I do to ward it off is simple, I go to my living room and crochet like a mad woman. Especially in my slump am I quite productive!

4. Ladies-how have your friendships with women inspired you or made you a better person? For the men here today- how have your friendships with men inspired you or made you a better person?

  Friendships, are undeniably a blessing. My friendships have served to brighten days. Though I cannot point out just one particular thing that my friends have done to inspire me. You can rest assured that they have helped to make me life sweeter.

5. Are you a people pleaser? If you said yes, do you think that's a good or bad thing? If you said no, do you wish you were more of a people pleaser?

  I am not sure what exactly I am. Do I try to be as pleasant to people in general? Yes. But I'm not sure that overexert myself to please them though.

6. The seasons are a-changin'...share a favorite song relating in some way to change (not necessarily seasonal change, it could be change of any kind).

   This is a song by Billy Boyd, it was generally made for LOTR (Lord of the Rings) Funny side note,  the first time I saw LOTR I though it meant laughing on the roof. Since the song is just so beautiful that it made me cry (twice, I shouldn't have watched the video again) but I had to share it anyways. It does not specifically say change but it implies it so therefore.... I'm choosing it to share today.

                        

7. What do you wish would never change?

  My life with my family, I love being surrounded by all of them so it's a little hard to accept that someday my siblings will all be going their separate ways and we'll have to grow up. Growing up really stinks sometimes. Now if you'll excuse me I think I go upstairs to jump on my bed, and do various other age defying acts.

8.  Insert your own random thought here.

  Did you know dead butterflies smell like rotten seafood? It is a horrid surprise. I suppose I just assumed that something so beautiful had to smell of rainfall, flower petals, and honey. Not like rotten seafood...

Asparagus

    These past few days I have been reflecting back on the A-Z challenge I had participated in. and decided to review my blogging idea list for the challenge to see the options I never wrote about and today I decided it was time I delve into it and choose one of them to share here.

  When I was a very young girl, (I'm guessing anywhere from 3-5) My parents had needed someone to babysit me and so after one of my relatives agreed I was dropped off at their home and my parents went to wherever it was that they were going.

  The relatives in question were very nice and caring people, and I always had fun around them, except for the time I am now telling you about.

  Though I don't remember a single other thing from that day, I vividly remember lunch. There we were, all seated around the table in their sunny dining room. My bare feet were swinging merrily under the wooden table. After bowing our heads in silence for grace, my dear Aunt got up and went about preparing my lunch. She placed a small dish in front of me. I timidly scooched forward in my chair and peered into the little dish. Whatever name grownups might have for the grayish green glop that resided in that dish hardly did it justice. I wrinkled up nose and stubbornly refused to take a single bite of whatever that earthly abomination was.

  My Aunt, though quite pleasant and kind would not tolerate me not eating my food so she rose from the table and hovered over me and told me quietly but firmly that I had to eat at least one bite. Quite grumpily I took one small bite and almost keeled over at how horrendous it tasted. "It's asparagus, it's good for you" she coaxed further to absolutely no avail.

  Seeing she couldn't get me to eat any more of it she removed my dish and scurried off to the kitchen. When she returned I was even more horrified. She had taken that glop of canned, mushy asparagus and stirred a bunch of crumbled crackers into it and mashed everything together. The moment she said I'm supposed to eat it now I knew there was no hope left for me and I was left to do nothing but shove spoonful after spoonful of awful, dripping with slime asparagus and cracker blobs into my mouth.

  Even though that day was so dark to me back then, the memory now serves to only bring a smile to my face. But, if I have to be completely honest I have to say that to this very day I can't stand asparagus, whether it's roasted, grilled, fried, and especially canned.

Ten Things ~ Fave Actors

  I hardly think I am the only person that gets that insanely bubbly, warm and fuzzy kind of feeling by watching their favorite of very favorite actors doing what they do best in all of that person's favorite movies. I have collected quite a list of favorite actors over the years so having to make a list of only ten of my favorite actors kind of posed as a problem to me but I have eventually picked my favorite of favorite actors to name in this post.


  My Favorite Actors. (Just a note, I have listed them in random order, it would be too hard to summarize which is my favorite actor from all of my other favorite actors, if anything that I just wrote made sense.)

#1. Viggo Mortensen ..... First of all to explain his name, (which I happen to love saying) he is of Danish origin so that explains that. Why is he one of my favorite actors? Well he is a pretty awesome actor and always takes the movie-watcher on a very surreal journey. He truly becomes Aragorn, for example.

#2. Martin Freeman ..... Need I truly give a reason?

#3. Sean Astin ..... He is an undeniably magnificent actor and somehow he makes me feel all of his 'acting' emotions right along with him. How many actors can do that?

#4. John Rhys-Davies ..... Now this one is obvious, he is a riot to watch and never fails to bring a smile to my face. (He is Welsh by the way.)

#5. Billy Boyd ..... He is also an insanely good actor, you know it's kind of hard trying to think of different ways I can compliment all of these actors. (He is Scottish.)

#6. Dominic Monaghan ..... Naturally I couldn't possibly list Billy Boyd without putting Dominic right beside him. (He is German, born to British parents.)

#7. Lee Pace ..... He played Thranduil, and was insanely epic in his own right, My mom actually abhors the person he portrays but she just doesn't appreciates his graceful malice like I do.

#8. Lily James ..... I like her best for her role as Cinderella, breathtaking really. (She is British.)

#9. Rachel Khoo ..... Though she is not technically considered an actor, she was a TV personality and was far too awesome to overlook. Besides I absolutely love her on her former shows Rachel Khoo's Kitchen Notebook, and  Little Paris Kitchen.(She is British.)

#10. Julie Andrews .....  I have to be honest and say that I thought there were two famous Julie Andrews up till just a few moments ago when I discovered that both my beloved spunky governess in The Sound of Music and stately former queen in Princess Diaries are both played by Julie Andrews. Yes, I am momentarily at loss for words. (She is British.)


  Somehow this list left me feeling empty, it feels completely barbaric to list only ten favorite actors, but you know the saying, "You made your post, now post it." Actually I just made that up but whatever, it works.

Bits and Bobs (Yes that's a British Phrase)

  I know I have slacked on blogging lately but I have a relatively good reason why. You see I have been busy with school, French studies, and lots of writing, just not here on my little blog.  Even though I don't have enough information on a single subject to give you a delightfully long and juicy post, I have have a sufficient amount of information on multiple subjects to give you a delightfully fluffy post consisting of Bits of Bobs.

  If you are wondering what is up with my strangely confusing choice of wording today, I have a very simple explanation. This morning after school I watched several re-runs of Good Eats. Need I say more? In fact I could give you lengthy paragraphs on how Curry is actually only a stereotype Indian food but I shall refrain.

  Now because I went and named this post "Bits and Bobs" before I even started writing I suppose it only makes sense that I should now divulge some Bits and Bobs of information from my life.

  A few weeks ago my second cousins came over to visit and everyone (other than my Mom and Diane who stayed home to prep dinner) went down to a nearby trail to hike. The vehicle that we were using as our means of transportation (My Dad's F-350) didn't have enough room to fit everyone inside so my second cousins, Eldon, and I were left to climb into the back of the truck. It doesn't sound like much of a problem at all, and actually kind of even sounds like fun, right? WRONG!! I was wearing a black skirt so having to hunch in the back of a dirty truck surrounded by a bunch of your guy second cousins was no picnic trying to remain properly ladylike. Once we left for the trail I thought I would be fine but naturally I wasn't. The wind was strong so my hair came out of its neat little bun and starting flying all over my face making that I couldn't see a thing, and because of all the excessive wind, my cheeks were flapping around like an old hound dog.  Besides that all of those guys I spoke of earlier immediately launched into a lengthy discussion of what kind of truck they prefer, and how many horsepower they guessed a certain truck had and other utterly boring factoids.

  Yesterday while walking to our barn across the road I stepped on something on the grass that popped like a large pimple. Curious, I crouched down, pulled the grass apart and went screaming all the way up to the barn after seeing I had just squished a little frog.

  Do you know what my friends? I feel victorious because I have finally finished The Fellowship of the Ring but 'ere break of day' I had started reading The Two Towers. Who am I kidding, I don't feel victorious, I feel helpless. As much as I love Lord of the Rings movies, and I do enjoy a lot about the books, they are heavy, slow reading.

  On the subject of school I have an interesting tale to tell. My Vocabulary Professor, upon looking at him, appears to the average person as a normal, middle aged, kindly, guy. So picture this. There I was at my desk, notebook and pen in hand, ready to become the next genius of the century, and he begins his half hour lecture. He opens his mouth and begins yapping about Procrustean people, factotums, and various other horrors I truly don't care about. You know how the average person gestures with his hands for emphasis while speaking? Well he starts talking about how his teaching will broaden my mind and then BAM!! His legs bend, and he half lunges, half squats. Not sure if that really just happened I straightened my back and opened my eyes a little bigger and then BAM, once again his head disappears from view. One hundred and eighty five times did he bounce across his classroom. I wasn't sure I could possibly stand another one of his cardio sessions this school year but then he goes and says his love for words first began when his father read "Lord of the Rings" to him as a boy, and then my friends, all was well and I shall continue enjoying his class.
 

Beauty, It is Found on the Inside....

   Though I am pretty much known for writing things on the "fluffier" side, considering that recently a few negative things were said to a person very dear to me I have decided to bring up the subject we have all heard about time and time again, true beauty is found on the inside.

   I have a few pretty solid beliefs about what beauty looks like and because I have the opportunity as of right  now, I shall tell you what I believe...

   There are plenty of different opinions on what is considered to be really pretty, but have you ever noticed that the girl with braces, braids, and a lisp  but is always smiling and offering a kind word to every person she meets, she cares for everyone and has quite the reputation for being sweet tempered and friendly, is really beautiful. The beauty in her soul oozes out and to anyone who knows her, sees only beauty. She lights up other people's lives where ever she goes. While on the other hand the pretty person has a vulgar tongue, bitter heart, and doesn't think twice before saying something hurtful. When worded bluntly like that it is quite obvious who the most beautiful person is and too many people forget what true beauty looks like.

   My Mother, in my eyes is very beautiful, not because of her physical appearance but because of how she cares for all of my siblings and I, and always has a ready smile for my Dad when he comes home from work, she makes a wonderful listener and advisor, she cares for us, always helping us through every trouble we might be having, and has quite wisely (with the help of my Dad)  taught us all about God so that when anything ever goes wrong we can not only turn to our parents but to God as well. Her laughter, her love, her kindness, and really everything that she is, makes her one of the most beautiful people in the world.

   I have developed a list of how I view people.

It doesn't matter how thin a person is if she doesn't have a big heart.

It doesn't matter how sweet a person looks if their words are rancid.

It doesn't matter how much a person diets if she doesn't restrict her tongue.

It doesn't matter how clean-cut a person is if God views her soul as dirty. 

It doesn't matter how often a person works out if she stores bitterness within.

It doesn't matter how stunning a person looks if she sports an ugly, displeasing attitude.

   And always remember that God made you just the way you are and in His eyes you are viewed as beautiful, and in heaven you shall be as exquisite beings.

Awk+Awe~July

  I am a few days late with my Awk+Awe post, but for a relatively good reason.
  On Monday we started school again so I have been very busy with Inductive reasoning in Geometry, and various other atrocities.

  Some how I didn't really have any awkward moments this last month so in place of Awkward, I will have "Awful" instead.


Awful

Sitting down to Geometry with high hopes that are immediately bashed when the phrase "Inductive Reasoning, Egyptians/ Babylonians" fills the computer screen.

(This is not as awful as it is creepy) Turning around outside to see a cat's brilliant green eyes glowing out of the darkness.

Having to go to bed at 9 so that I can get sufficient sleep, it's like constant crunch time around here.

Burning my thumb while removing Blackberry Cobbler from the oven.

Having only half of my earbuds actually working. (It makes for a terribly strange experience.)


Awesome

Finding out that some of my favorite french songs are sung by the Chipmunks.

Getting to walk out onto our waterfall ledge with Diane.

Watching "The Avengers" with one of my friends.

Discovering a pretty amazing, relatively unknown french artist, Louane

Being evaluated in my French studies and being told I am now 24% fluent.

Finally being happy with my handwriting.

And last but not least, I didn't really know what to mark this as because it wasn't awesome, it wasn't awkward, and it wasn't awful... Walking about a mile to deliver mail to our Amish neighbors. (Their little boys that had been playing outside and leaped through their windows when they spotted us coming. It was one of the funniest sights ever!)

Sticky Notes