Shimmering Threads

Because sometimes it's important to recount the awesome blessings woven into the tapestry of life...

(via pinterest.com)

Sarah won a 2nd Blogoversary giveaway in which she won not 1, but 5 prizes!!!

Daniel and I are going off to the deep South for a month to work on several primary campaigns (long story! :) I'm not sure how much blogging I'll be able to get in, but I am thinking about opening an FB page to keep updates going. :)

Abigail is visiting and we are having a deal of fun, such as Being Pounced in bed, and giggling over the smell of each others hands. :P (Lemon and soap and Mexican? :P)

On Monday I've got an elaborate Box Hill plan with Morgan and Katie who I haven't seen enough of this past year. We're going wild. ;) Actually, we're going historical. It includes a photo-shoot, and a picnic! :)

My cousin Matthew was in an accident today and escaped unhurt, except for some glass shard-cuts. (Huge praise here!)

I got to go shopping for several clothing items I need for my trip, and spent a shocking amount of money on myself. ($91! I felt awful till Mama assured me it was okay--I never spend money in that way.)

And while I was shopping I got two pairs of shoes for under $20.00! (Score!)

Levi is learning to say "no" and "what's that?"

We've had beautiful, wonderful, magical thunderstorms the past several nights.

The moon is nearly full.

(and I have black beetles dropping down my back from the ceiling! Ew.)

Goldberry hijacked my Summer Reading List and made me very happy. :) More on that in another post.

Dombey & Son in a hardback, illustrated edition came to my house wrapped up in brown paper and string via the Abigail post, from said Goldberry, and made my heart go pitter-patter-flutter. <3

I've been using Tresemme "Touchable Softness" shampoo and my hair feels marvelous.

What are your "shimmering threads" for this week? :)

In a Major Pickle.

"Oh nonononono. This is bad. This is bad. This is very very bad." 

-Said in a Flynn Ryder voice.

I made this button to efficiently express my feelings on the subject of today's Supreme Court developments. I'm in the depths of despair. :P What are your thoughts? It's a pickle, ain't it?

*I truly would love to hear your thoughts. If your opinion differs from mine I'd love to hear from you too, but please keep your comments kind and thoughtful. We don't need to start a Civil War over it. ;)

Only a Novel (!!)

My darlings and dearests--I have a good news and a hugely exciting thing to tell you! My good friend, Miss Amelia Dashwood has just self-published her first novel: Only a Novel. From what I've heard of this book, it's a grand mash of tongue-in-cheek, heartwarmingness, Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, and old-fashioned charm. I mean, come on peoples, even the title is a Jane Austen nod! Perfection!

I have not read the book in its entirety, but I have read enough snippets of it to definitely tantalize me and make me want to read it ASAP! :) And the good news I spoke of? She is giving away a copy of Only A Novel to one reader of her blog! So do, please, go over to Amy's blog and tell her how proud you are of her, and how much you'd love to win a copy of this dee-light-full not-so-little novel!
(or if you would rather not enter, you can always buy it here.)

Movie Night: My Favorite Wife (1940)

After spending the weekend with the Taylors, I have come home with a pocketful of memories such as:

• Trying not to be dumped off my raft in the pool
• Picking blueberries
• Looking at BJ's awesome blue truck
• Experiencing a growing fondness for country-music
• Singing at the piano with Abigail playing
• Staying conveniently out of the way while Abigail and Daniel enjoy tete-tetes
• Watching fireflies
• Eating plums off the tree
• Playing badminton
• Being gifted with a whole bag of books to read this summer! (Thanks Goldberry! :)
• Laughing late into the night

And lots more. But one amazing thing we were introduced to this trip was the 1940 romantic comedy: My Favorite Wife.

I give you the plot, as described by Wikipedia:

After seven years, lawyer Nick Arden (Cary Grant) has his wife Ellen (Irene Dunne), missing since her ship was lost, declared legally dead so he can marry Bianca (Gail Patrick). It turns out however that Ellen was merely shipwrecked on a deserted island, and has been rescued. When she returns home, she learns that Nick has just left on his honeymoon with his second wife.

Dunne and Grant--cue the happy sighs

I love old movies, but I seldom have a chance to see them. Mostly because we don't own any. But that's a nuance. I laughed my head off all during this movie. The plot is just too absurd, the acting adorable, the ending perfect. I had always had the impression that Cary Grant was a heart-throb, dramatic, tall-dark-handsome sort of actor. Maybe he is in most of his movies (is he?) but in My Favorite Wife, Grant comes across as lovably confused and dithered.

Nick Arden (Cary Grant) does not love his new wife, Bianca, but after 7 years he figured it was time to remarry. His new wife, Bianca, is cold, haughty, beautiful, and affected. You've gotta feel for him, and no one can suppress an "Awwwww!" when Nick catches sight of Ellen in the lobby of the hotel he's just checking into with Bianca. It's adorable. And awkward for poor Nick. He's in ecstasies over finding his wife again after 7 years, but he's also just married another woman. So why doesn't he just tell Bianca his first wife has come back? Well, it's not quite that simple...and that's where the comedy comes in. I promise you'll laugh really hard.

That awful leopard robe! :D

Why I love this movie:

The good, old-fashioned, 1940's values. While a modern filmmaker might have had good chances to turn this into something scandalous, the directors of this film kept it funny, clean, and heart-warming. They played the awkward scenes of Nick having to hold two rooms at the hotel (one for Bianca, one for Ellen) lightly and playfully without going into all the things a modern movie might have.

The children in the film, too, are so cute and precocious, and at the end...well...I can't tell you. But it's very very heart-warming indeed. :)

Any Cautions?

The hotel manager comes to reprimand Nick for staging an intrigue in his hotel, obviously inferring that Nick is doing double-duty with two different women.

After Nick grows suspicious of the man Ellen was shipwrecked with for 7 years, Ellen pretends she is going to marry him after all, and leave Nick for good. (This is null and void, however, because all the time it was just a ploy to get Nick to assure her he stills loves and wants to marry her.) The classic values bit is played sweetly in the scene between "Adam" and "Eve" (the shipwrecked man and Ellen) when he asks Ellen to marry him and she replies: "I did not wait seven years only to lose my resolve in three days." :) *points for Ellen*

Quotables:

Ellen: "Oh, by the way, how was my funeral?"Ma: "Lovely. Doctor Blake preached a wonderful sermon."
Ellen: "Oh, I wished I'd been there."

Nick Arden: "I came here with my wife..hum...my bride, really. Now my wife, not my bride...my wife...why should I bore you with details?"
Hotel Manager: "I won't be bored."
Nick Arden: "Listen, it's just as simple as A,B,C."
Hotel Manager: "Don't tell me you got someone in B too?"

Nick Arden: (discussing with Ellen how to tell the children she's their mother and isn't drowned after all.) "Would it help if I wrote them a letter?
Ellen: "Oh, that would be nice, yes. 'Enclosed, please find your mother.'"

Nick Arden: (Making excuses as to why he wants to stay at the cabin with Ellen and the children instead of "thinking it over.") "I had a flat tire...I was just driving along and...ssssssss!"

a great big boizelling day :)

"An adventure is just an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is just an adventure wrongly considered." -G.K. Chesterton

Just a usual day...just the usual run of errands...

At least that's what I thought. Sarah and Leah were headed out with Daniel to do lawns. Dad was working another job. Mama and the rest of us needed to cash a check in VB and then do a Walmart & Sam's Club run. Yes, it was a tremendously hot day, but that's nothing unusual come summertime in Virginia.
Mama has been having me do all the driving--lots of practice makes for perfection, right? ;) But today she needed to dictate a grocery list and besides: she had a hunch she ought to drive.

Boy, am I glad she did.

We hadn't been long on the highway when there was a terrific jolt and a heart-clenching CHUNK-CHUNK-CHUNK-CHUNK-CHUNK!! We held our breath and prayed.Mama limped the van over to the side of the highway. Turns out the belt in our tire had busted and sheared off the entire driver's side step of the van. Yeah. How does that happen?
Six kids and a Mama on the side of the highway in temperatures that would melt the coldest constitution. Surely that's a cause to rouse chivalry? Pity? Okay...at least a stare as you drive by? Nope. Apparently not. Though Dad was on the way after Mama called him, not a single car stopped by (or even slowed down) in the hour and a half that we were sitting on the side of the road.

Not a one.

In an hour and a half.

And we were hardly out of country-territory where the art of gentlemanly-ness is still practiced, albeit with a sweat-stained t-shirt and a can of beer in hand.

I was mentally bemoaning the un-novelism of it all. I mean honestly--here I am, a perfectly single and unattached young lady, and now would have been the ideal time for a mechanical-savvy, charming stranger to stop by and give us a hand. But I guess mechanical-savvy, charming strangers are a little in awe of a big blue van full of kids. Maybe my curse of looking too capable raised its head. Let's face it girls...I just can't pull off The Damsel in Distress, unlike some people. (*glares at Abigail*)
Grace had similar ideas to me, though hers took the shape of something along these lines: "Hey! United Steaks of America Motorcycles--we need help changin' a tire!" (yes--that's what she howled at every motorcyclist passing by.) To add insult to injury, we happened to have pulled off the highway right over top a nest of yellow, biting, creepy horseflies. They invaded the van like an Egyptian plague. Thus, the conversation in the van ran along these lines:

Grace: "It's boizelling hot out here!"
Mama: "Sit down."
Everyone: "There's another one!" *slap!*
Me: "Benjamin--for the last time--get buckled."
Everyone: "And another one!"
Grace: "We're gonna be stuck here till Fourfin-July!"
Mama: "Benjamin--get buckled!"
Benjamin: "I found a bag of apples back here--we forgot to take 'em outta the van last time we shopped...can we eat one?"
Grace: "UNITED STEAKS OF AMERICA MOTORCYCLES--we need help changin' a ti-re!"
Everyone: "Look! There's more coming through the window!" *slap! slap!*
Grace: "Send us some A/C, Lord!"

(Have I mentioned lately that Grace could make a living doing stand-up comedy? Yep. She could.) Eventually Dad came (bearing Gatorade, no less!) to rescue us off the side of the road. We were oodles  happy. :) Then he took us to lunch, and we were oodles happier. But that still didn't change the fact that we hadn't done any of our shopping. But we got to the bank and deposited our checks, and all was very good and tidy...till we got back onto the highway.
Somehow we'd missed the warning that Monsoon Season was happening at exactly 3:30 PM on June 22, 2012 Literally inches and inches and inches of water, punctuated by thunder and lightening piled on top of each-other. We barely got to Walmart and Sam's. When we did, we split. I took Benjamin and Abby and shopped Walmart while faking a British accent. It was epic. Anna and Mama and the youngerest ones did the Sam's Club shopping.
And I had to shop for a bathing suit. You've no idea--or maybe you have--how hard it is to find a bathing suit that fits in all the proper places. (namely la bust) But I got something that'll work for now till I have time to make my own swim-suit. (Which ought to be happening fairly soon. :) Once that happened and we paid for everything, it was time to go. We braved the monsoon (getting soaked) and loaded groceries. We braved the monsoon (getting soaked) and headed home. We braved the monsoon (getting soaked) and unloaded groceries.

Adventurous shopping trip, no? :) 

I loved every minute of it.

a lesson in grammar. :)

Although I'm not the world's best grammar-ist, I do have a beef about the use of "well" and "good," and I like my family to use the words properly. Nothing grates on my literary ear as much as someone saying, "Oh yeah--I was doing good until..." or "That really tastes well." *shuddering*
But I got a little over-ambitious in trying to teach the proper usage to Grace. (Age 5) Our conversation went something like this:

Me: "Gracie. You know the words 'well' and 'good?'"
Grace: "Yeah."
Me: "You say 'I'm doing well' but you don't say 'I'm doing good.' But you can say 'This food is good.' and you wouldn't say 'This food is well.'" (I am already a tad confused at this point.)
Grace: "Why?" (looks confused too)
Me: "Because that's proper English."
Grace: "What's proper English?"
Me: "The way you're supposed to say things."

A few minutes later and I decided to see if any of my slap-dash lesson stuck with her....

Me: "So Gracie...what's proper English?"
Grace: "Um....I'm not allowed to say I'm doing fine?"

Yeah...I guess 5 years old is a bit too young to teach proper grammar. :D

diy dizziness. :)

All right...so I admit that I'm a D.I.Y. fan. I have hardly ever done any one of the amazing ideas I've seen, but I hope to soon. :D Lately I've seen lots of inspiring ideas on Pinterest.com. Here are some of my favorites!

Just a headband, a lace applique, and a bit of fabric stiffener. Beaucoup d'elegance!

I have also been thinking of doing a headband like this, but with some of the peacock feathers I have in my room. (they are just sitting in a big bouquet right now--pretty, but useless. :)

Homemade finger paints! I've gotta make these as soon as Levi gets a little older. :)

These adorable candle-holders are made by soaking cloth doilies in a sugar-starch and then forming it around a blown-up balloon. Once the doilies dry, pop the balloon and there you have it! :)

Turning a colander into a lampshade! The reflections are awesome. :)

What a cool idea for natural, leafy art! So easy!

A place to use all that loose change lying around? Oh yes. :)

Awesome idea: Draw designs with Elmer's glue, let it dry, and then paint the whole thing one color. :)

This is an epoch in the life of Me. Look at that and tell me it's not brilliant! A fork bent into a picture-holder!

Melting crayons onto canvas. Wild, but beautiful! This would be adorable for a modern children's room, wouldn't it? I think I'd like to do it, just to melt the crayons and watch them dribble. :D

Paper birds & birdcages. Simply adorable.

And for all of us Southerners....

Iced-tea Popsicles! Pure genius. :)

I feel a string of craftiness coming on! :) What are some of the DIY's you are going to try? :)

to love at all is to be vulnerable.

"To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything and your heart will be wrung and possibly broken."

-C.S. Lewis.

The Lord has been teaching me much in the last month or so. :) Some of the lessons are only half-learned, some of them still on the road ahead. But I am learning one lesson that--though it is still fresh and raw and a tad painful, I felt that I needed to share.

I speak of loneliness.

You see, this issue didn't come in the manner I was accustomed to seeing it in. It didn't come from watching yet another period drama and wishing I had a guy of my own. It didn't come from watching other friends' romances and wishing dismally for my own. No. It sneaked in at a back door. It came from an unexpected source.

It came in through one of the greatest joys of my life.

Bet you didn't see that coming, did you? By now I know you're wise to the cause for my loneliness. Yes, the Lord began putting His finger on this subject when Daniel and Abigail started a courtship. I prayed so so hard for a courtship between them. I had long nights of mental agony over the possibility of it not happening. The Lord blessed our family with the exciting news. Daniel and Abigail were officially starting a courtship. I was ecstatic. (and still am.)

But something unexpected began seeping in. Loneliness. The realization that something was going to change, whether I liked it or not. Daniel and Abigail have each other now, and though they both love me as much as ever, it is natural and right that I should take a back-stage seat and let them sail out of the harbor and onto the open seas.

And that was hard for me. I'm a passionate little creature and those I love, I love with a fierceness un-matchable. It made my heart ache fiercely to realize that I had to love them enough to let go.

That was the first lesson. I weeped a little weep over it one day and the Lord asked me clearly: "Are you willing to do this for me? Are you willing to be left behind? Because I need you here for now. Not out on the high seas. That is for them. This day I want you in the harbor, working among the docks."

Ouch. Lesson One choked down and swallowed and saved for a later date when I might need it again. I tried to let go completely. Of Daniel, of Abigail. Of my own need to feel loved and to have a special place in someone's heart. I thought I had let go. I really did. And then came the first, beautiful weekend Abigail and Daniel spent together as an official "couple."

It was hard for me.

Hard enough that I pinched myself repeatedly and scolded myself for being a selfish girl and then felt like bursting into tears every half-second. I was confused. Hadn't I let them go out to sea? Wasn't I content to stay in my harbor? What was wrong with me? Was it jealousy?

My eyes widened at this idea, but as I examined my heart I found (to my great relief) it was not jealousy. It was misplaced love. I love Daniel so much and I love Abigail so much that I was...well...to sound quite dragon-ish, I was hoarding them.

My Lord and I had another conversation on the subject:

"Lord, I love them so much! It is hard to let them go!"
Do you love them?"If this isn't love than I don't know what is. It hurts enough."
But do you really love them? Because I've given you an example of true love...love is patient, love is kind, it does not envy it does not boast, is it not proud, it is not rude, it is not self-seeking...

By this time I knew where the conversation was going, and I tucked Lesson Two away beside Lesson One. I was getting quite a collection, you see. I asked Jesus to help me love Abigail and Daniel the right way. To love them selflessly and to rejoice in this beautiful answer to my prayers. My heart was more cheerful and I felt that the serenity I'd tacked onto my face was becoming natural and unforced. But I suppose I still had rather more of the coal than the diamond about me because God was not quite finished. He's a Trinity, after all, and likes to give me gifts in threes....(actually, most of my best friendships in my life have been threesomes. Odd, that!)

Yup. Lesson Three still to be learned. He has sent one of my dearest friends to work at a camp all summer long--something she's prayed about for a long time. Since they began attending another church, I seldom see two of my other long-time best friends anymore. There is still no knight on the horizon.

I began to grumble within myself:

 "Lord, You're taking away my dearest friends and companions! You're changing everything I love so well as it is! What is it You are trying to teach me?"
Do you remember our conversation, my dear child?"Yes," I admitted.
And do you not remember that I have asked you to stay behind? His voice was not harsh or exacting, only gentle and grave.
"Yes." 

By this time I couldn't stand to be downstairs amid all the hubbub. I had a headache. It was about 10:30. I said my good-nights and hurried to get ready for bed, turned out the light, and took up the conversation again. (This time with some tears thrown in for emotional relief. I'd been needing a good cry.) "Lord...it does seem a very hard lesson to learn...being left behind. Why is it that You want me to be alone?"

I could almost hear Him laugh. I could almost see Him smile. Rachel, He said, am I not large enough to replace everyone? Abigail, and Daniel, and Maryanna, and Joanna, and Morgan and Katie and all the rest of them? I am the Lord of the Universe. Can't I fill the holes they leave in your life? Can't I fill them so you don't even know they are there, or ever had been there? Depend on Me. In Me and only in Me is true joy, and affection and Love. I am all you need.

His voice in my heart quieted me, dried my tears, and lulled me to sleep. Lesson Three. Learned for real this time. 

I share this with you, hoping you know that I'm not perfect. I've not arrived. For all I know there's still a Lesson Four ahead. Okay. I'll even confess that the last conversation related...yeah...(up there ^) only transpired last night.

It's that new. 

It's that fresh. 

But it's that important.

 I share these things with you because I know that some of you girls are in a similar spot. God is leading you in a quiet path of seeming loneliness. New relationships aren't happening, and old ones are changing. Fact is, you aren't even sure you want the change if it hurts so much. You see the beautiful things the Lord is doing, and yet it hurts so much you aren't sure if the old shabby things weren't the best after all. Recently on Google+ I posted this status: (Yes, vanity! ;) 

Learning to let go of How Things Were is the only painful part of receiving the gift of How Things Will Be...there is always that little moment of panic when one begins to wonder whether the old ways were pleasantest after all. But the Will Be is the real joy, the real end...everything else is just shamming about and Pretending. 

I hope this post encouraged some of you, boosted a spirit or two, and did a bit of good. But if it didn't do any of those things and if I am the only one who can relate, I know one thing. It was good for me. Thanks for reading. :) 

                       Love,

                              Rachel

My life as a musical :)

I have had this idea (and have been longing to do it) for ages. So welcome to a Musical of my Life. This is a post full of songs (broadway, movie, etc.) describing my life for the past month or so. :) Ready?

^ That referenced much of what I do, not the fact that I don't believe my life has begun. :)

And because the weather has been so absolutely gorgeous this past week I've been humming:

Change "greenbeans" to "weed-things" and you'll about have it. :P We've done a deal of delving out our plants from the carpet of weeds that have quickly overtaken the garden. :D

Daniel & Abigail (and me being dramatic in the background... ;)

And so, because like Eponine, I have no one of my own, Abigail has given me this advice... ;)

But it didn't seem to be working, so she thought she'd give me another tip:

But it was all rather exhausting, so I decided to go the easier way and just sing to him before going off to get my beauty-sleep.

In other news, there's been a deal of this: (because of sailing ships.)

And, of course, anywhere and everywhere I go, you'll have a bit of trouble getting my attention because likely I'll be...

In short, this last song pretty much perfectly sums up the emotions and events of the past month or so. :)

I hope you all enjoyed this post! I had fun making it. :)

Summer's a time for reading

"I am simply a 'book drunkard.' Books have that same irresistible temptation for me that liquor has for its devotee. I cannot withstand them." ;)

-Lucy Maud Montgomery

 Inspired by a post on Living on Literary Lane, I thought I would give you girls a peek into some of the books I hope to add to my Have-Read list this summer. Unlike a lot of families, summer has never been a season where we do what we want when we want it all season long. There have always been projects to do and places to be. But there are some moments quiet enough for reading. And today, when the world is mad and merrily blue and green; when I thank the Lord there is such a thing as June; when the temperature hovers perfectly around 74 degrees; I begin to think of the poet's wish:

"Oh for a book and a shadye nook ayther in a'doors or out!" :)

That being said, here is my prospective library:

The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien

I read the whole Lord of the Rings series when I was about 11, and since have re-read The Hobbit and bits of The Fellowship several times. However, I don't remember all the little details and I thought it high time I re-read the series in its entirety. After all, the Hobbit movie comes out December 12, and I want to be well-up on my lore.

The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Funny, that of all the Sherlock stories I've read, I've never actually read this book. Doubtless because of its great length and I always seem to already be in a book when I think of it. But as soon as I finish The Fellowship of the Ring (which I'm half-way through) I plan to start reading it. I feel like being "deliciously scared" as one friend put it, and I must set myself straight on the true details, after having watched "The Hounds of Baskerville" from the BBC's Sherlock series, in which they took numerous liberties.

The Railway Children by E. Nesbit

This is one of my all-time-favorite books for children, and I have a great interest to read it for the third (or fourth) time, as I am writing a children's book and wish to be re-inspired. :) I also hope to read The Treasure Seekers, Five Children and It, and several of her other books. We only own the first title, however, so though I put all of them on my birthday list, I'm not certain if I'll get a chance. (And our library is ridiculously empty of all good titles.)

A Hitch-hiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

I have heard so much about this book (so much that is hilarious and laughable and amazing) that I am bent on reading it. Sarah has long tried to hold it at our library, but for some reason the person who has it out has not returned it for months on end, and even after we get hold of it, Sarah will have to read it first. :P

Hard Times by Charles Dickens

The only Dickens book I own that I have not read. It is not thick, and therefore I think I can manage it fairly quickly. I haven't heard much about it and therefore am not expecting it to be the most amazing example of Dickens I'll ever read, but it is a goal of mine to read all of Charles Dickens' books, and so I will read it and enjoy it, I'm sure. :) I also want to read Our Mutual Friend and Martin Chuzzlewit, and Dombey & Sons, but again, our library is negligent in the care of classics-loving people like myself.

The Silver Branch by Rosemary Sutcliff

I've heard so much about this book too, and it seems it helped teach Jenny Freitag how to write as she does. I don't know where I'll get hold of a copy, but I would love to read this book this summer. :) I read The Eagle of the Ninth by Ms. Sutcliff and really enjoyed that, so I have high hopes for The Silver Branch.

Revision and Self-Editing by James Scott Bell

This title is a re-read, and strictly to help along with my writing, which I'm still pegging away at. I have  found this book to be a must-have for all aspiring writers, and I am interested to read some of his other titles in his series of books for writers, including The Art of War for Writers and Conflict & Suspense. 

In other news as to Can't Tell Where I'll Find It, I would love to read Arthur Ransom's Swallows & Amazons. I know you can read it on projectgutenburg.com, but I hate reading on a computer. I will never own a Kindle. Well, now from my book-list, you can tell what you can get me for my birthday (pssst! July 20, people!) if you want. I also accept Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com gift cards. ;)

What titles are on your Summer Reading List?

sail away

Daniel got back from iGovern East on Saturday night. Abigail Taylor hurried up Sunday afternoon to see -us- him. ;) I had heard about the OpSail and Harbor Fest going on in Norfolk, and so I convinced Daniel and Abigail to take Sarah and I to the shores of the Elizabeth River to see all the tall-ships and sailing ships. It was a sight I will not soon forget. I was so glad that Sarah had her camera on her this time! She took many great pictures, some of which I've showed you below. :) I nearly lost my head with the sensation of travel and foreign-ness and novelty that came with standing in the presence of 51 ships from all the four corners of the earth.

Crazy-writer-girl ;)

I was taking research notes for Scuppernong Days--one of my new projects--and it was such a blessing to be able to see all these ships and get so much hands-on inspiration. :)

But of course I could not keep entirely to historical research. I did a great deal of people-watching, which is one of my most favorite things to do in public.

♫"I'm just people-watching, watching the people watching me!" ♫

I watched them.

I watched them...

I watched him...

And many others. :) I also amused myself by rating the ships on their courtesy, cleanliness, etc. The Mexican naval-training ship won for courtesy. They had immaculately-uniformed sailors positioned at the bottom of the steps down into the ship to help the ladies. :) I held my notebook in my right hand and grasped the rope-line in the other. "Let me help you!" one of the little, smiling middies said. I smiled and shook my head, being rather too laden with notebook and rope-line to hold onto his hand.
His face fell and he looked very sad indeed. "Please let me help you!" So, because of his pleading (or his charming insistence ;) I let go of the line, switched the notebook to the other hand, and let him escort me onto the deck. :D

Deep water...!

Chillin' in the hammocks. These things were way too comfortable. I'm thinking of resigning my bed and becoming a nightly sailor-ess. ;)

Rope knots!

"Course-sail, topsail, top-gallant sail, royal sail, sky-sail. " (from the bottom-up)

The love-birds & co.

Sarah & I

Ze beach-bum.

We only visited 7 of the 51 ships along the shore, but the ones we visited were beautiful! I must admit that I had strong thoughts of booking passage to some far-off country just so I could enjoy the ships a little longer--the breeze blowing on the castle, the billowing sails, the lines of taught rigging....it was amazing, and I know I shall never forget it. As it is, I wrote 7 pages about it in a letter to a friend, so I'm afraid it will become posterity. ;) My favorite ship as far as courtesy goes, was the Mexican ship. They won in that category. The Gloria from Columbia won as far as over-all-favorite ship, counting in sailors, look, flag (gigantic awesomeness) and music. :D The Indonesian ship was my least favorite. There was something very sinister and creepy about it, carved all over--as it was--with heavy flowers in dark wood.

I had a lovely lovely time and if ever I get a chance to go sailing, I might just brave seasickness to go! :) (we topped off the afternoon with steak fajitas as Plaza Azteca. Oh yeah! ;)

Movie Night: Jane Eyre (1983)

As I write this review I am in the middle of watching the movie I review. I speak of Jane Eyre. Not that horrid 2011 version that started in the middle of nowhere and ended much the same. No. I speak of the 1983 version starring Timothy Dalton and Zelah Clarke. For some reason I know hardly anyone who has seen this film. Long has it tortured me, having Jane Eyre on VHS, for we having no VCR player. But then my cousin, Emily, got the movie for her birthday and I was in ecstasies. (Okay, so I partially was the cause of her getting the movie--I recommended it to my aunt. :D)
Where to start? Where to start? I suppose with a plot synopsis. This will be a difficult movie to review without peppering this post with spoilers, but I will do my best.

Jane Eyre follows the life of the girl by the same name--from her dark, cold childhood at Gateshead Hall and Lowood School, to her coming to Thornfield Hall as a governess, Jane shows considerable pluck, passion, and courage. Thornfield is  a strange house indeed, as Jane soon learns. From the mad sewing-woman: Grace Poole, to Mr. Rochester himself (Master of Thornfield Hall) there are secrets abounding--secrets that threaten to upset Jane's hopes of ever being loved and accepted.Will Jane find happiness in the end, through all the difficulties that are thrown in her way?

There. That is the best I can do at a synopsis, as there are some major events that would be plot-spoilers if I mentioned them. :P

This movie was made in 1983 so I will warn you--the costumes are horrid and the filming horrider. At times it looks like a stage rather than a movie. But the singular thing about Jane Eyre (and the thing that has endeared this version to me more than any other I've seen) is the passionate, riveting acting. Timothy Dalton and Zelah Clarke are such amazing actors that they could have been standing on a sidewalk and given just as good of a performance. Costumes and setting didn't matter. All you see is them.

--Her--

Zelah Clarke as Jane Eyre is astonishing. (in a good way.) She owns the character in a way that makes you think she really is Jane. There cannot be another Jane. All other attempts have been impostors and that is all. Zelah Clarke gives Jane a certain sweetness that I felt drastically missing in the other version and bits I've seen. Yes, she has had a difficult, stern childhood. Yes,she is wronged. (again and again) But she has not been embittered. Zelah's portrayal of Jane is winsome, grave, and ineffably sweet to counter the necessary strength and passion of her character. She is perfection. (And she has adorable dimples.) But beyond all this, perhaps the best part of this Jane is that she so stinkin' tiny. I'm guessing she is no taller than four and a half feet. So that when we come to Mr. Rochester...

"Are you dumb?...stubborn?...ahh....you are annoyed."

--Him--

I have heard that Timothy Dalton is best known for being James Bond. Excuse me while I die of painful laughter. I know him as Mr. Edward Rochester and only as Mr. Rochester. *Tosses laptop to the side to watch proposal scene and will be back later* Oh my goodness. My heart is melting. Entirely. Gah!
Ahem. Back to business. Timothy Dalton played Mr. Rochester's rugged, passionate, not-entirely-tame personality very well. He has an unearthly look about him anyway that lends itself to his Rochesterian-ess.
Physically, there is this pushmepullyou business going on in my mind that only increases the ideal of Timothy Dalton as Rochester. He is plain and ugly and he is tearingly handsome. He is intimidating and he is gentle. He is kind one moment and practically bites Jane's head off the next. It is this pendulum effect that makes him so fascinating. But one of the curious things about Jane Eyre is that Mr. Rochester is not exactly heroic. At least, not till the end. But we don't speak of that. All you need to know is that Jane--her  virtue and heroism and loyalty--makes for the real "hero" of this story.

--Them--

The emotion, passion, wit, and drama between Jane and Mr. Rochester (especially between this version of the famous couple) never ceases to delight me. And in this version, Jane is so tiny and Mr. Rochester is so strong and tall that it plays up ever more the big heart and virtue that is Jane's. I mean girls--one of Mr. Rochester's hands is nearly enough to cover Jane's entire head. He messes up her hair every time he crushes her in one of his huge, rough hugs. It is hilarious and touching and perfect. You know how there can be...well..(for lack of a better term) chemistry between two actors? It's here. It's here big time. In fact, given that they had 5 and a half hours to play it out, I think that they became Jane and Mr. Rochester.

Cons:

Without giving too much away, there are a couple things I should mention as cautions. One, the little girl Jane comes to Thornfield to educate is never explained. Is she Mr. Rochester's illegitimate daughter? Truth is, he himself doesn't really know. That's thing one.

Thing two is that there is a "fortune-telling" scene. Of course the gypsy turns out to be one of the familiar characters in the movie and a sham-performance, but there is the suggestion that some of the characters would have believed  a "real" fortune-teller.

Thing three is the definite, indisputable fact that this movie is eerie in places. I can't explain why. It's all part of the Unmentionable Secret, but it has to do with a singular, blood-chilling laugh and very mysterious happenings in the house. (It is all natural causes--no ghosts, haints, or chillin' things. ;)

Pros:

You are in tears by the end of a Certain Scene where Jane must make a heart-wrenching decision between purity and virtue and the only love she has ever known. She makes the right choice, and you are reeling by the end. Seriously, it's the most intense scene you will ever watch in a movie. It really makes you think whether you would have the fortitude. I promise you'll be weeping if you have any heart.

Again, I cannot spill the beans all over the carpet, but everything ends just as it ought. If Charlotte Bronte had lived in the world of today's modern story-lines, Jane Eyre would probably have turned out to be just another compromise. But with a turn of Bronte's pen, she put everything right.

The ending is not entirely, perfectly, un-markedly happy, but it ends as it ought. It ends right, and that is all one can wish for. :)

Quotables:

*ahhhh* this movie is so full of brilliant quotes and you know what? I could only find one (an entirely random one, at that) online. Rats in a poke. I suppose you will have to watch it yourself to experience just the best of the best dialog in movie history! (Pssst! The proposal scene is the best *ever*. If you want to watch the film entirely out of order, you can watch the scene here.)

Oh my stars and stockings!!!

I just made the most astounding, hilarious, amazing discovery ever! *Oh my heart, stop beating so triumphantly!* ;)
I was looking for an old post of mine (about my Dickens cook-book: Shake me up, Judy) to write another post (about another gift I'm doing) when I came across a 9 second clip from BBC's Bleak House showing the infamous "Shake me up, Judy!" scene wherein Judy shakes her grandfather Smallweed up. We always quote that scene. "Shake me up!" is our circle's lingo for "I need you to crack my back pretty please." ;)
Here's the clip, and tell me if you found it quite as astonishing as I:

Did you get it? Did you? Watch it again. Who does Judy remind you of? Anyone? I saw her again and my mind immediately flew to Sherlock. Molly Hooper. The girl that fans speculate might have helped Sherlock pull the whole dying-before-Watson's-very-eyes gag. I couldn't rest till I ferreted it out for myself.

And know what? I was right.

I was right!!! Hahaha! Judy Smallweed is Molly Hooper.

Or to put it properly, they are both Louise Brealey. Brilliant. I feel so smart and clever. This made my night. :)

...nose to the grindstone...

I am editing. Isn't editing fun? (Said half in earnest and half in tears)

amazing courtship article

Hey girls! I read this awesome article on Young Ladies Christian Fellowship and thought I'd share it with you all. It's called "Courtship: Dispelling the Myths."
In my own experience with seeing courtships among my friends and acquaintances I have seen many of these myths in play and it has hurt me to see so many people hurt in these ways. I pray that this article blessings you as much as it did me! :) Here's a sneak peek (click the links to read the rest of this insightful, wise post.):

I’d like to state right here, for the record, that there is no such thing as a “failed courtship”. A courtship that doesn’t end in marriage is not a failure. It is a myth that “courtship should always end with a couple becoming engaged”. Because courtship isn’t a commitment, it’s an acknowledgement. Or, at least, that’s the way it should be.

Umbrella-time!

Who ever heard of God holding an umbrella over a certain spot? I'm not sure, but all I know is that while we were getting absolutely torrential, tropical-storm-style rain, Dad, Sarah, Leah, Benjamin, and Justin W. working on a belated sod-job forty-minutes away. All afternoon I was feeling terrible for them--the girls especially have been so willing to work out with Dad while Daniel has been away. I ran around the upstairs shutting windows and sopping up the puddles and stood at the window praying for them while the wild wind blew the rain in sheet across the field. I began to have vague thoughts of making a parody of "Edinburgh after Flodden..." it might go something like this:

"Dribble-patter, Dribble-patter,

Hark! 'Tis raining down the street

And the green fields and the orchard

Bear the rain in scurrying sheets."

-"Virginia when it's Sodden"

But I digress. I ran downstairs and helped Mama with dinner and a little while later she called to check in with Dad. There had been not a single drop of rain over there, and we had 2+ inches just standing in puddles around our yard! Isn't that such a blessing? I was so happy for them--they've really needed to get this job done so we can get paid for it. :D Not to mention the fact that the rain brought in a much-needed cold front; the air feels so clean and delicious!

What was your miracle today? :)