I Always Wanted to be an Explorer

Winter Break

2012-02-10T17:58:00.000-08:00

I am turning my brain off. No, seriously, I am going to be a vegetable. Nothing semi-intelligent or understandable will come out of my mouth. From my lips will dribble utters and mumblings that will mean absolutely nothing. I am SO EXCITED!

Raise Yer Hands and Throw Yer Head Back

2012-02-02T18:51:00.001-08:00

That You'd be Reminded...

2012-02-01T19:28:00.000-08:00

I had written a rather lengthy post but deleted it. Why? Because it wasn't very good.
K.I.S.S., after all.
Observations today:
Rain brings out the best smells. And the worst, but today was only the best.
Sometimes you need a good morning to make up for the bleak/blergh afternoon.
The sidewalks along the river were very muddy today.
If you need to burp, Vanilla Coke is the way to go. Plus, it's just the best soda ever.
That's all for today.
Wait...........
God is good.
Now that's all.

Dear Bonnie

2012-01-30T19:02:00.000-08:00

Please get over yourself.

love,
Bonnie

What a deal!!!

2012-01-23T05:59:00.001-08:00

Song of the Night

2012-01-17T17:52:00.000-08:00

Class

2012-01-15T05:56:00.000-08:00

Wow, what a first week of school! From the slightly boring beginnings of American Literature to gessoing a 5x5 foot canvas, I've experienced it all this week.
Here's a breakdown of my classes for future reference:
Intro to Bible A run-of-the-mill commom core class. Extremely intelligent, soft-spoken professor. Assignments include critical essays on specific books on the Bible.
Writing for Electronic Media Small class, awesome professor. Practical lessons on writing in a job-seeking and self-promoting way that will be put to use both now and post-college. Assignments include creating a resume, CV, and website.
Drawing II Not much to say here since I have no idea what makes Drawing II different than Drawing I. Study of drawing in relation to textures and line; assignments include blind contours.
Zumba My choice for the required HPE class. Extremely fun considering I'm in there with a few friends and I'm not the worst dancer. Good workout, laugh-inducing booty shakes.
American Literature II Survery of American Lit from roughly Civil War days to present. From all accounts, a volatile professor. Hum-drum class. Assignments include weekly quizes, author presentations, and a day of teaching class.
Advanced Composition A class centered on writing in it's most writing-est form. Semester theme is "Cultures", emphasis on personal sub-culture for whole of semester. Research paper approach. Professor so much like my older brother that I really can't help but love him. Professor sadistically claims loving to put his students to hard work. Assignments include 20+ page research paper on personal subculture and weekly reader responses and writing activities.
Advanced Painting Workshop Highest level of painting class prior to senior research. At this point, I get to do whatever the heck I want, as long as I turn in a certain number of inches at three different points this semester. Professor has been advisor, painting, and drawing instructor since freshman year. Assignments include turning in a weekly summary and reader response per chapter of Art and Fear by Bayles and Orland. This class is basically fun-time for me.
There they are- the sources of my upcoming stress, sleepless night, incurable joys, and hopeful victories.

Boom Boom

2012-01-10T17:35:00.000-08:00

Bedfellows

2012-01-07T11:31:00.000-08:00

Thankful

2012-01-05T18:31:00.000-08:00

Having to go to the doctor twice in one week due to a nasty case of strep throat and pink eye doesn't exactly make one in the mood for gratitude.
However, I can be thankful because:
I have not spent money on gas for outside-the-house excursions because I haven't felt well enough for outside-the-house-excursions.
and....I can't think of any others.
But always look on the bright side of life!
and
whenever life gets you down, Mrs. Brown...

Meditations/Resolutions

2011-12-30T11:59:00.000-08:00

So we near the New Year, and 2011 will be officially over.
It was a great year for me, with living in a beautiful country for the spring semester, good experiences in school and getting to bid "Good Journey" to my brother and sister-in-law as they traveled to do God's will in the Middle East. After a painful 2009 and 2010, I'd say 2011 is one of the best years I've been able to spend.
What am I thankful for in this year of 2011?
My financial troubles
An odd one, and one that required a ton of time and a day-to-day renewal of gratitude. The fact that I am working a lot less than I used to and have had monstrous car problems made my bank account practically negative and my wallet empty. Because of that, however, I've learned the necessity of complete trust in God, the importance of financial responsibility, and a thankfulness for parents who allow me to live at home with free room/board.
Study abroad
This should come as no surprise. Those who have spent any time with me this summer, fall, and winter have heard countless stories about my time in Cape Town, South Africa and how it has changed my life. Simply studying abroad was amazing, yes. To be able to step dramatically out of your comfort zone and to live in a different environment for half a year is life-changing in and of itself. While I sure didn't plan it this way, I had just come out of a tumultuous on-again-off-again 2 year relationship before I left for Africa. While I left America with spiritual depression, emotional and physical hurt, and a heaping desire for something new, I came back to Georgia with a realization of God's infinite and all-encompassing grace, healing from my physical and emotional scars, and even more of a thirst for new things. It all couldn't have happened in a better place than South Africa. I could go on and on and on but for the sake of this list I will keep it short!
Three Rivers Community Church
Being able to have an anchor like Three Rivers has been so encouraging. Hearing a lesson every week not doused with politics and opinion makes me so excited to be able to engage in God's word. My small group is the same- fellowshipping with down-to-earth families in prayer, food (!), laughter, and bible study has been real spiritual nourishment. It's so awesome to be able to watch these families, as well, because it really sets a good model for how I want my future family to walk in the light of Christ. I love how each one of us is so human yet we all are connected by a desire to know the being of Christ and what he wants for each of us. I consider myself to be very "human" and have huge weaknesses for certain things and the stubborness to go after them, but this group keeps me in check and in focus on the things that really matter.
Running
To challenge myself in the way of running has been super hard this year. I didn't run a lick while in South Africa, but once I returned 15 lbs heavier and eating Butterfingers all the time, I figured it was time to take up running again. I picked it up pretty quickly and began training for the St. Jude Half Marathon, which I nicely completed at the beginning of this month. I have a great running partner who challenges and encourages me, so I'm lucky to be able to glean from his wisdom every long run! Running has been a huge help with my anxiety, and I welcome the life-style change.
New friends
I've brought this up before, but I need to say it again. Thank God for friends! They are like beautiful, beautiful cupcakes. Delicious and rewarding. My friends are like mocha cupcakes with rich, dark chocolate frosting swirled into perfect peaks. Mmmmmm...
Back to friends. New friends from South Africa. New friends from Germany. New friends I met in South Africa but who live "far away" in Maine, Minnesota, etc. The arrival of the new ceramics professor at school brought a new friend for me. My internship brought a whole family of new friends. The new addition to my small group at church brought a new, and fun!, friend. It's the little things in life that matter, and new friends are one of those little joys.
Ok, my entries are getting longer. I promise I'll keep the rest shorter:
Hard cider
It's a beautiful thing. Hard cider was aplenty in South Africa, equally popular as beer. I miss Hunter's Dry like I miss Josh Groban on a world tour.
Stoney
While we're on the topic of beautiful things, Stoney Ginger Beer in ZA was one great drink.
Goodwill
Where 99% of my dresses come from, and at least 75% of the rest of my clothes and shoes.

Ok, knowing all of that, how do I wish to apply my gratitude to 2012?
1. Be responsible with my money
2. Be fearless
3. Be involved in my church's Young Moms Ministry
4. Run harder
5. Be a good friend
6. Drink more hard cider (maybe there is a better way to apply that. Like...drink responsibly! that's a good one.)
6 (edited). Drink responsibly
7. Remember good times and create new ones
8. Be humble

I figure if I can make those happen, 2012 will be just as chock-full of learning experiences as 2011 was. I encourage each and everyone of you out there to do the same. Reflect on the things you've done and learned this year and meditate on them. God used the incidents in my life, both good and bad, and even the stupid ones that were results of my stupid decisions (boy are there plenty of those) to teach me something and to sharpen me. Like ultra-sharp cheddar cheese....mmmmmmm
Happy New Year!

Merry post-Christmas!

2011-12-26T07:58:00.000-08:00

'Tis the day after Christmas, and all through the house,
We sit with our books, me with my Faust.
My sister's in bed, sick with sore throat,
my brother's exploring in his cardboard boat.
Pancakes for breakfast, cooked by my dad,
mom woke up late, needed sleep she had had,
we devoured the food, licked syrup off our plate,
oh what joy it was to eat breakfast so late.
I walked to the dryer to get my clean clothes
excited to see my new underwear and hose.
To get new bras most people wouldn't be happy
but as for me I was glad 'cuz my underthings were scrappy.
My big gift was a pair of good running shoes
wearing them in a race I surely can't lose!
New bangles and bracelets and scarves for my hair,
I'll look like a gypsy, but little I'll care.
Excuse me while I go back to my book,
to the words of Goethe I'll bestow my keen look.
So Merry post-Christmas, and to end I'll say,
Merry post-Christmas, and have a good day.

The Stuff

2011-12-19T07:47:00.000-08:00

My sister and I watched this
last night. Boy was it _______ (fill in adjective of choice).

I went to Toys R Us

2011-12-14T08:07:00.001-08:00

and that made up the exploration of the day.
Here are some incredible things I found:

My Keepon: a Dancing Yellow Robot.
First of all, while I like the idea of dancing robots, I prefer my robots looking more like the robot in this:

A squishy, organic-looking robot the color of sunshine compels me to say that the "Keepon" should've been named the "Creepon" instead.

How bout Calico Critters of Cloverleaf Corner? This had me nearly in tears from an overwhelmance of adorableness.

And what about the incredibly awesome Muppet Whatnot Kit? MAKE YOUR OWN MUPPET!!!!

Those are really the only things that stuck out at the toy store.

Now, at World Market, a few things stood out:

As I figured, they didn't have the only ridiculous item I found in the store online- Marzipan piggies. They looked like whole dead pigs the size of your thumb. It was pretty disgusting, actually.
That completes Sights of the Day!

Hipster Christianity

2011-12-11T19:50:00.000-08:00

Stumbled across this blog today.

http://stillsearching.wordpress.com/

I have heard of the book he wrote called Hipster Christianity, but have not given thought to reading it until I listened to a few interviews with the author, Brett McCracken.

He says that in the book he looks at how the church is attempting to be relevant to today's subculture and discusses the consequences of that.

I am going into this book wondering how critical he is going to be on the American church and it's "dressing up" the Gospel in order to present it as palatable.

I also wonder if he addresses the new "hipster" emphasis on self and self-expression and how that can fit in with Christianity, if it can indeed at all.

I know I have my own opinions regarding the current movement of the worldly/trendy Church, so I look forward to reading the book...

NOTE: On the website http://www.hipsterchristianity.com/quiz.php I got a 76/120. Not too high...while still maintaining a somewhat fashionable hold on myself....

Dedicated to the Bristows

2011-12-08T07:27:00.000-08:00

I am excited. Why?

Because I beat the 4th episode of Angry Birds on my mom's Nook last night.
I have to admit that while I felt somewhat less of a human while I growled "Die, little piggies!" through my teeth, it felt so satisfying to see the window pop up that said "Level Completed: New High Score."

This scooter is called "Victory," which is what I shouted when I beat that level. My shout, unlike the scooter, was not Candy Apple Red, though.

Poem for Ali

2011-12-06T06:25:00.000-08:00

My friend Ali is really cool
but soon she will be leaving.
During that happy season of yule
I'll be sad and grieving.
Why, you ask, will I cry?
When Christmastime is just begun?
Because, I say, with a sigh
With Ali gone, there is no fun.

The Lost Notebooks of Hank Williams

2011-12-05T16:29:00.000-08:00

I heard Terry Gross do a bit on "The Lost Notebooks of Hank Williams" on Fresh Air sometime last month and meant to look into it. She played a song sung by Holly Williams, Hank Williams Sr.'s grand-daughter. Holly, like all of the other artists, set a tune of her making to the lyrics of an unreleased Hank Williams song. The result is a beautifully tragic hymn that I keep going back to.

Holly Williams "Blue is My Heart" from Columbia Records on Vimeo.

Rob Penn

2011-12-04T12:17:00.000-08:00

Rob Penn felt as if he had walked unawares into a stranger's family christmas photo. Their smiles, the sidelong glances at him, the slight lean forward over the table all made him question his presence, the part of his hair, the choice of the drink on the table in front of him, his right to existence. After she put her hand over his knee condescendingly he quickly excused himself and nervously but casually stepped outside.
Holding his cigarette firmly between his lip he dug in his pockets. Aside from paperclips and a pocketknife they were empty of anything useful.
Damn.
Feeling foolish, he put his cigarette away and leaned against the brick. Staring at the parking lot in front of him, he let the pictures in his mind awake. Shadows of his mistakes manifested themselves in the oily puddles on the asphalt and the chill of the afternoon gently pressed against the side of his face. Out here in the parking lot his soul was bare.
He suddenly realized that being alone was no escape from the consequences that sat at the table inside. He couldn't figure out where he would rather be- in the center of the farce or alone with his conscience. Rob supposed a jump from a bridge would be his only peace, but even that peace may be short-lived. If there was an afterlife he didn't figure he had much of a chance.
He picked at the loose thread on his sweater sleeve. She had made fun of him when he picked it out to wear. he pulled at it. The thread unwound itself from the sewn path it had formerly followed and took with it three more strands, thus creating a small and shabby hole in the sleeve.
He flicked the threads on the sidewalk at his feet.
Her face appeared in the puddles on the asphalt. The cool sun above reflected in shimmers of rainbow in the oil and in the mirage of her hair.
A loud laugh sounded from inside the restaurant.
Rob Penn went back inside.

The Spirit of Christmas: Nothin' Nothin' Nothin'!

2011-12-01T08:01:00.000-08:00

It's Been a While...

2011-11-23T11:14:00.001-08:00

And a lot has happened since that epic trip to Chicago. In fact, so much happened in Chicago that I never really got to touch on. For instance, the wonderfully melodious and heart-pattering concert by Josh Groban, the incredible collection of the Art Institute of Chicago, and the fateful night of meeting my friend from South Africa's Chicago friend, accidentally devouring a huge bowl of potato-made gnocci, puking Kermit green all in the Chicago City Transit bus and provoking a rather mad-dash evacuation.

What's happened since then? A semester of hard work, disappointments, victories, too much fun, too much seriousness, controversy, new friends, new priorities, new limits, and breaking down walls.

God has really tested my trust in Him this year after my return from South Africa. I came back with no money in my pocket and I am not much better now, but He gave me work to do so I could at least pay for the massive car problems I had.
God paved the way for my brother and sister-in-law to minister in the Middle East, and he holds them in love and safety still.
When I really needed a Godly friend to encourage me and lift me up and share in my joy and struggles He put Ali in my life. She is one of two Christian peers in my life that keep me accountable in all the ways I need to be held accountable.
Sometimes I get caught up in myself- being myself, making my art, reading my books, thinking my thoughts and forming my opinions, that I forget who I am in Christ. It is then I forget that I am a sinner redeemed, no longer bound by the chains that held me previously. I put emphasis on me instead of Christ in me. Even when it comes to forming relationships, I focus on our common ground in terms of hobbies and personality and forsake the importance of Christ in our mutual lives. I've failed in this area too often, especially when it comes to romance, and I'm determined not to do it again.
As in the past, I just keep on trucking and keep on learning.

I'm nearly done with this fall semester...a very dramatic semester at Shorter University! I can't say I'm sorry to see this semester end. We all need a breather. Shoot, don't we. Although I am looking forward to the classes I have signed up for next semester...scene painting...woot! Hopefully that will help to negate the drama I will be exposed to otherwise.

In terms of exploration, the only exploration I've done since returning from one of the world'd most beautiful countries is the GA National Fair. Don't get me wrong; the fair was pretty fun, but unless you call a bearded and braided-ponytailed man singing Three Doors Down a change of scene it wasn't much of a detour from Rome, Georgia.
Although I will say I have done a good bit of thrift store exploration. The best kind.
In January, though, an excursion will by made by Ali and myself to Ashville, NC for just plain lollygagging. I plan to make a trip to Penland Craft School to get a feel for the campus, since school won't be in session. Who knows what nonsense we will get into.

Anyway, enough about me! Boring!

MUSIC!
As far as musical exploration goes, this is about as far as I've gone in the last few months.

BOOKS!
Um, just go read Lonesome Dove. Seriously.

JOKES!
What's a shoe's favorite kind of music?

.........................

soul!
(I made it up)

That's all the exploration for now.
Cheers!

Mates of State cover Tom Waits

2011-07-23T20:30:00.000-07:00

I absolutely adore this song, so I looked up reviews of the album to see if my tastes were on mark. Not quite. Most of the reviews, including by the A.V. Club and Tiny Mixtape, leaned toward the negative. I think when it comes to covers you open yourself alot more to criticism. I have only heard the original of a couple of songs on this Mates of State "Crushes", so what I heard was generally for the first time, completely unbiased.
Of the songs I already knew, I loved their cover of "Son et Lumiere". It was beautiful and brought out the finer melodies of the track. The duo covered a song by my favorite band as well,
"Sleep the Clock Around." This cover was also great, but did not really add any sort of original Mates of State trademark sound. It's just as great listening to the Belle and Sebastian tune, the two not that dissimilar.
I was interested to see that my favorite track on the "Crushes" album was "Long Way Home" by Tom Waits. I should've known it was Waits when I listened closely to the lyrics. I will now have to go and listen to the original.
As much as I hate listening to him, I will admit readily that Tom Waits is a talented dude.
This is all I have for you regarding this album that I am currently listening to, so I hope you have a fantastic weekend.

Chicago Day 2

2011-07-13T07:46:00.000-07:00

Tuesday morning was originally set aside as my "run" day, but I kept sleeping and pushed the thought of the fitness room aside. After I finally got up (hey, it was only 8:30!) and showered, my mom and I headed downstairs to our complimentary breakfast at the Chestnut Street Café. Our blonde Lithuanian waitress served us plates of bacon, ham, tomatoes, pancakes, toast, and eggs. Oh...and of course good hot coffee!!

Farmer's Market outside of museum of Contemporary Art

After filling our stomaches with breakfast we headed back upstairs to the room to plot out the course of the day. I got hungry again (story of my life) and ate the rest of the Giordano's pizza that was in the fridge. I was to rue this decision later on because the visit to the art museum was punctuated by groans and gruesome noises from my now-sensitive pizza'd stomach.
When we arrived at the Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art we were greeted by white tents and cucumber hawkers. Yes, I said cucumber hawkers. The man in the photo above is one such seller. I walked by him four times just so I could get a slice, and ended up buying four whole ones. I ate one today and it was quite refreshing.
There was a tea stand representing Argo Tea. The table served two teas for sampling, Hibiscus and another that was green-tea-colored but not nearly as delicious as green tea. The Hibiscus tea was absolutely wonderful and bursting with ripe-raspberry and hibiscus flavor. Actually I can't say that it did taste like hibiscus, seeing as I've never eaten the flower. Hm.

The Water Works building nearby. Or at least, the old one.

We entered the museum after buying the cucumbers, sipping the tea, pointing at the hippies, and purchasing bags of yummy trail mix.
The museum featured Mark Bradford as it's main artist exhibit, and Mark Bradford's art featured in my brain at the end of the tour as my least favorite body of work viewed at the museum. I just got bored with his stuff. I know it's totally offensive to say that, and I guess I get what he was trying to say, but I just got bored.
I was ecstatic to see that there was a nice Joseph Cornell exhibit going on. I have been fascinated with the idea of boxes and opening boxes and the whole idea of what we choose to see so I've looked at quite a bit of Cornell's stuff. Not exactly the line of idea I am currently following, but one must always study what's been done before!
There was also a neat section that the museum devoted to one artist or group of artists per week to kind of showcase their goods, so to speak. This week was Golden Age. They publish a bunch of awesome material and literature that is definitely worth checking out. My favorite was a book of poetry (?) by a guy named Asher something that I am hoping I can eventually find on the website.
Also, this is interesting.

The sundeck (technically the 18th floor) of the Seneca

After the museum, which did I mention was free on Tuesdays? we went to Moody Bible Institute. If you don't know anything about Moody, go here.
We were led on a tour by a nice guy with an unfortunate sense of style. After hearing my mom's love for the radio station and especially for a certain show, The Chris Fabry show, Jordan (for that was his name) took us through the auditorium and past the school of music to the elevator and up we went to the broadcasting floor where we saw the Chris Fabry show being produced live as we spoke!! Of course, Mr. Fabry does his show live from Arizona, but his whole production team is here in Chicago at Moody. My mom looked through the glass and waved at a girl named Trisha and a guy named Something Something the III. She "knew" them from hearing Mr. Fabry mention them over the air.
Moody Bible Institute is able to provide free tuition for all of it's undergraduates and graduate students due to the donation-based money that rolls into Moody each year. Jordan said that actually the bulk of Moody's financing comes from the 10 buck-a-month pledgers. Interesting to see what your "small" actions can help to build and support!

Moody Church, about a mile down the road from the Institute

After experiencing both the Museum of Contemporary Art and Moody Bible Institute, I was pooped. I blame most of the lack of energy on Mark Bradford. Curse you!

We made our way slowly but mostly surely to our hotel on Chestnut St, stopping by a Walgreens so I could buy my supper - some Lucky Charms and some milk.

My mom and I watched a really cool show that I'd never seen before called "American Pickers" and I knew right away I wanted to be friends with those people.

Then I fell asleep.

End of Day 2.

The John Hancock building, which stand just a few addresses down from us

Day 1 in Chicago

2011-07-12T07:27:00.000-07:00

Yesterday my mom and I arrived in Chicago to mild balmy weather and cerulean skies. After getting CTA directions from a nice elderly lady with a cardigan and a lazy eye, we were helped further by a mustached police officer who gave us a huge transit map that later came in handy. We somehow made it to our stop correctly, but were confused as to which direction to walk in order to catch the right bus. What did this mean? Into the nearest Starbucks for Java Chip Coffees of course!!!! While my mother cleaned out the chocolate from her teeth, I got directions from the barista, and away we went...

We hopped on the bus, and my mom insisted I ask the driver if we were on the right one.

We weren't.

We hopped off the bus and found the right one and arrived at Mies Van der Rohe Ave, where two blocks away our hotel waited.
I guess I should really call it a motel since it was one story and all the room entrances were on the outside. But we only found one roach, so I guess it was worth the deal!

No, really, it was a hotel, and a vintage one at that. And had 18 floors. It's The Seneca, and it's a nice change from the backpacker's I stayed in during my week of travels in South Africa.

The above image is the first to greet us as we walk out the Seneca doors to explore the city!!!

Our first destination in exploration? Giordano's Pizza! We sat down in a booth in the corner and came face to face with our menu, which listed all of the choices of their world famous stuffed pizza. Because, as we all know, Chicago-style pizza means deeeep dish.

Roger Ebert looks over my mom's shoulder as she scanned the menu items.

That's why, in order to avoid cross looks thrown your way, you should not order a thin crust pizza.
But that is what we ordered (with cheese, mushrooms, onions, and black olives, to be exact) and it was probably the best pizza I have ever had. The cool round taste of the olives, the thick and lumpy cheesiness, the the perfect edge the onions provided, and the mild juice of the mushrooms complemented the thin and beautifully crunchy crust and left me wanting

Taking the 137th bite

more more more!

As much as I enjoyed the pizza, I tried to eat with a brisk pace so that we could make it back to our hotel room for the new episode of "Hoarders." We still had the Navy Pier to go to, and at this rate we would make a good-timed tour and be back with plenty of minutes to spare before the show started.

A hastily-taken photo of the girl at the table across from us. She turned to stare at us about every 5 minutes. Either she thought we were crazy or she knew we were totally awesome. Or maybe I just had the air of somebody famous.

At the Pier, we walked past a lot of dinner cruise ships. They looked pretty swanky, and had names like The Oddessy and The Anita Dee. None had the real pirate-garb thing going on like the Tall Ship Windy, which looked like a for-real pirate ship (just use your imagination to replace the American flag with a skull and crossbones).

The Tall Ship Windy

We admired the pirate-y hawker at the ticket stand but continued walking. I begged my mom to let us dine again at the Jimmy Buffet restaurant, but she got embarrassed and walked a little faster ahead of me. Guess she has a lame-ness radar, too! I knew I had to have gotten it from somewhere.

She did pause enough to snap this photo of myself sort of underneath the restaurant sign

We finally walked past the funhouse and steps leading up to the ferris wheel and finally arrived at The Smith Museum of Stained Glass. The museum is completely free and open to the public. The glass panes that were on display were absolutely gorgeous. Interesting to think that many of the elaborate and colorful pieces stood above some wealthy person's door or staircase.

Detail of a Tiffany stained glass piece

The museum had a good number of gorgeous Louis Comfort Tiffany pieces. Many of them featured beautiful muses, but innovative floral-inspired panes were abundant, as well. Alphonse Mucha's "Four Seasons" also showed up in an unnamed artist's pane series. Mucha happens to be a favorite of mine, so I was pretty happy to see it.

After the pier, we caught the bus and hurried our way back to be in our room at 9 o'clock so we could watch Hoarders. Bad luck, I forgot we are on Central time now. An hour late.

My mom goes to bed pretty soon after the awful news of our tardiness, and I attempt to watch some program on sugar candy on Food Network. I keep falling asleep, so I crawl into our king-size bed and

fall asleep.

End of Day 1.

Travel Goals of the Future and Not-So-Future

2011-07-03T06:00:00.000-07:00

One thing that living in South Africa taught me, as I may have mentioned before, is that beauty exists in the land around you. Being in Cape Town by the clear and colorful harbor and with the ever-looming Table Mountain watching over me it was very easy to believe that I was surrounded by beauty both natural and man-made. I began to realize during my time there, however, that though beauty may be a bit more obvious in some locations, others have just as much to offer through character and history. This thought started a firestorm of ideas and potential plans to not just explore places exotic, but the land surrounding me at home- my backyard, so to speak.
Shortly before I left Cape Town to come back to Georgia, I made the decision to dedicate the year after my college graduation (probably following my extra semester during the fall of 2012) to traveling the US. My goal is to travel and explore (albeit breifly, if I want to touch all in one year) all fifty states. With this ambition in mind, a good bit of my current and upcoming paychecks are going straight into my savings account.
While I am waiting until that blessed day post-graduation, in the meantime I want to do what I can. What can I afford at this point in the realm of traveling that allows me to keep my savings account untouched and intact?
The answer to that is simply local. I have weekends and holidays to get to know my state a little better. They have a saying in South Africa, "Local is Lekker", "lekker" meaning "good". Well, Not only do I really wish I had a bumper sticker that said that, but I also want to live it out!
Reading more about Farmer's Markets and eating healthfully local is becoming more of a priority for me, but I also just want to understand what exploring "local" means.
I have a wonderful book called "A Literary Guide to Flannery O'Connor's Georgia." I got it at the monastery near Conyers, a place I encourage everyone to visit! (p.s. It took me three tries to spell "monastery" right. C- for me...) The book highlights the places in Georgia that were meaningful to O'Connor. I am figuring, if I really want to start looking more at my home state, why not pick up my book and start? The book starts out at Savannah, which is where Flannery was born and spent a few years of her childhood. I've been to Savannah briefly, but it was filled with karaoke and rollergirls, so I don't really count that weekend. What this means, is I have to start planning a weekend trip to Savannah!
Wish me luck!

Last days in Cape Town

2011-06-27T09:34:00.000-07:00

Last day at the CIEE office
Ronell and I

Daddy Q (director of CIEE, the study abroad program I was a part of) and I

Resident Life Director Earl and I

Mugove, Kamilah, and Thabisile

dear Mugove and I

Thabisile, me, and Mugs

Me and Rachel (South African and preparing to spend next semester in Amsterdam!)

Bianca and I (she loves Chuck Bass, whoever that is)

Cookie and Coolia's 21st birthday party

Glam and her South African sister Tarryn

Alex (Miss E and Ann's dog)

Harry (Miss E and Ann's other dog)

My brain and tongue just met, and they ain't friends so far

2011-06-26T14:23:00.000-07:00

I realize that nothing has been written about my journey home from Africa, and nothing has been said about my two weeks here back in America. Truthfully, the whole past month has been of an emotional kind that has me mute.
On the taxi leaving Jenny's for the last time, I began telling Archie, the cab driver, how much Jenny meant to me over the semester. I had to stop talking after two minutes because I realized tears were sliding down my cheeks and my voice was breaking. On the plane home I closed my eyes and slept. That was at least a break from the turmoil in my heart and stomach.
Seeing my family waiting for me at the airport gave me a weird sense of relief, as if I was unsure of who I belonged to. On the way home I was caught between making jokes and referencing South Africa. I wondered if it would be like that for a while.
The first few days were a haze of strong emotions and jet-lag. By Thursday I was ready to see my best friend and on Frid I was ready to see two more friends. On Sunday I was excited to go back to my church, the place I'd missed the past five months. When I arrived I walked straight into hugs with the people I cared most about. After the service I stood around with a few other 20-somethings and realized that I will have to make friends here. I also realized that when anyone asked me how South Africa was, all I could really say was, "Amazing," because I had a story to tell but I hardly knew them and I knew all they were expecting was a one-word adjective. A girl I met at church this morning summed it up when she said, "It was amazing and so much more, wasn't it?"
On the second Monday after I got back I slid into a babysitting gig, which kept me busy mornings and afternoons. I applied at two different places and tried to think of more I wouldn't mind being employed by. I couldn't think of any. I determined to be picky for this month and next month to be more liberal in my job-search.
It's now Sunday night, the second Sunday after my arrival in America. It is around midnight in Cape Town, but only 6pm here. I sit at my desk, wishing I could have a few glasses of wine and some good books. I suppose I could indeed have both now, but it's raining and I lack the motivation to drive out in the bleary weather.
I am torn between talking and not talking, communing with people and keeping to myself. I have a feeling that I will not think of much this semester but my work, and truthfully that bothers me not at all. Last semester had me thinking in many different directions, all of which were far from beneficial to my "art," if one could call it that. I have new ideas and am aware of the things I need to work on both in art and in myself.
I am single, and think I will remain so for a good while...my heart is in no shape to be picked up by another guy. This will probably be the best thing that could happen to me right now. I have travels to save up for, friends to make, books to read and ideas to write, things to make and opinions to be formed. What does my American semester hold? Not change, really, but maybe growth instead.

Written on a Very Blustery Day: A Letter to My Brother

2011-06-06T01:35:00.000-07:00

Dear Seth,
I am sorry I didn't call yesterday- I am currently without a phone card, so next time I talk to you it will be from Georgia. I hope your birthday was wonderful! On your birthday I went to a craft market, bought a jigsaw puzzle, and studied for my exam this morning (8:00am! And it didn't really go so hot...) and went to bed. I did think of you a lot during the day, and wondered how you were spending your 24th birthday. (You are 24 now, right? I can never remember how old you are, 67, 80, 14...)
I have been waking up every morning the last week and a half with tears in my eyes. Isn't that so dramatic? But certain moments of the days bring tears to my eyes because I know I will leave this place so soon. So each morning when I wake up I think, This will be my last Sunday (or whatever day) in South Africa! And then I get all teary. But I know when I get home and see everyone I will be supremely happy. I have been having anxiety dreams about coming home. Most of them feature me being picked up by one of our parents and then taken home with the air of an every-day happenstance. One dream I had was awful- Mama picked me up and when I got home I kept crying because I had such mixed emotions and Mama got annoyed at me. Then Daddy called from work and said that if I didn't straighten up they would kick me out and I could find somewhere else to live! As unlikely as that is to happen (what's the probability? 1 to 9 million?) it still made me very upset. And last night I had a dream that I came home and Sam was the only one who was happy to see me. I even went and hung out with my friend from school, Anna, and she acted like South Africa was no big deal. In my dream, that is. I guess I am afraid that no one will be as excited to see me as I am excited to see them, or something. It's all gotta be the subconscious! Bless Freud's heart.
And of course I have to tell you about all of this, because they are my dreams. After all, "tell them anyway, and you can make it up as you go."
Thanks for being the best brother I could ever have thought possible. You have been such a strong friend through the years and even now I look up to you as an example of a great person I wouldn't mind resembling (not physically, that would be strange and I like being a girl). I have learned a lot about what it means to have a relationship with Christ by watching you walk with Him throughout the years. Even as a 12 year old you were quite a faith-force to be reckoned with! I will always remember the day we walked around town and you pretty much witnessed to everyone we met on the street. I thought it was really weird but at the same time I was secretly really proud of you. Your desire to know God and your desire to cultivate the mind He gave you is so encouraging to me. I especially value your willingness to show your doubts and low-points in your faith.
I will always be jealous of your inherent ability to charm people and your gift of gab, but then again I am glad I possess neither quality, because maybe it would make this strange unspoken competition between us even worse. Hardy har har. Some of my favorite memories involve our times together. The time I saw you make the basket when you threw the basketball from the opposite corner of the court...facing backwards. And of course when you hit the high note that one time in Bohemian Rhapsody. I remember with fondness the mornings and afternoons at the kitchen table "doing schoolwork" when Mama went out to the clothesline. Schlick-Flop. You getting so mad at me...a lot! But especially when I made my Katie Kiss'n'Giggles kiss you and when I kept dying during The Return of the King video game. I have also gotten mad at you- when you called me a "poser" (never mind that I was!) and when you made me play Time Splitters 2 or tried to get me to sword fight. Speaking of swords, I still have a dimple in between my knuckles from where you handed me Sting blade-first. Sigh, sometimes you are so smart. So many memories, but it's such a drag to constantly exist in a state of nostalgia! Moving forward...

I am so thankful to have you in my life, and I am so grateful that you have brought another great person into my life in form of your wife. You guys continue to inspire me, frustrate me, humor me, encourage me, and love me no matter what. I look forward to our lives as adults together...our childhood was awesome so our adulthood should be pretty cool, too, right?
After all,

It's hammer-time to go homePlate of cookies and cream pie am the walrus-ty bike wheel of fortune teller window-cleaner than a pen-nie phwang, and niiii-womMommy, daddy, and sister mary mother of god, father, son, and holy ghost and the darkNes-quick-silver and gold coins are shinKnees and ToeOh say can you see c d e f geomeTree roots on a rock that hot dog.

I love you, and you really make it hard for me to find a friend if I go by the proverb "A friend sticks closer than a brother."
love,
Bonnie

Bonnie's Favorite Spot in Cape Town

2011-06-01T02:16:00.000-07:00

For some reason, this remains my favorite spot in Cape Town. I love stepping out every morning, afternoon, and evening and seeing through the house and tree beyond to the quite majestic glimpse of Table Mountain.

One More Thing

2011-05-30T04:06:00.000-07:00

I forgot to mention that I quit D.H. Lawrence. I stopped halfway through Sons and Lovers and didn't even bother to get very far into Lady Chatterly's Lover because they both were so BORING. BORING. Boring.

Almost that time....

2011-05-30T02:32:00.000-07:00

Cookie and I went out for tea the other day. Cookie's picture looks very dramatic and lovely, and mine looks silly because though I am sticking my pinky out, I am not even holding the tea cup properly. Ah well. Tea is tea!

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This is a picture of Jan Smuts. He was a very prominent person in SA history. Go look him up. He also has a bird on his head, which made Kailee and I giggle.
This is the National Art Museum. Kailee and I spent the afternoon there viewing this dude's work. It was all pretty awful. Kailee and I gasped at the painting shown below, and I illegaly took a covert photo of it. It belongs in Chattanooga's Hunter Museum of Art's section devoted to racist black commercial imagry. The painting isn't necessarily commercial, but man is it pretty awful.

A little boy kept trying to do a headstand (?) on the lawn in the Company Gardens. You may notice the reclinging figures around him. The lawns are known affectionally to me as the "Nappie-time Grounds." Everyone and his uncle either makes out on the lawns or falls asleep. Today it was fall-asleep day.
After the atrocious art museum visit, Kailee and I ate at Royale, which produced the best burger I've eaten in a very long time. We then shared a milkshake (which Kailee is pointing at) which was made of Smarties and Bananas. Smarties are not the tart candy that we eat in the US, but a sort of version of M&M's, but with a thicker candy coating. Shortly after this picture was taken, a man came up and asked for money. This is completely normal, and since Kailee and I had chosen to eat outside we were asking for interruptions from beggars. We shook our heads to the negative and waited for him to leave. Instead of walking away however, he reached out his free hand (his other hand held an unpeeled orange) and attempted to pick up the bit of banana I dribbled from my spoon onto the table seconds earlier. After about 10 slow and agonizing seconds of the banana repeatedly slipping out of his fingers back onto the table, he finally gripped it between his pointer and thumb well enough to pop it in his mouth and walk away. The moment was so awkward and painful to watch that Kaile and I were quite helpless afterward. It's one of those things where we were able to say "Only in Africa," but I can't help but feel sad that indeed this kind of thing happens every day. In fact, just weeks ago Kailee and I were eating pizza, inside this time, in Rondebosch and 5 different beggars came into the restaurant to ask for money. For a while in the beginning I would give money, once I even bought groceries for someone, but I was struck with a very strong feeling of realization soon after. I knew that I couldn't afford to keep giving rands out. I went through quite a period of confusion over what to do. In the end, after much prayer over the issue, I decided that first I was called to be here in South Africa, and as such I needed to use my resources to support myself. I still can't help but feel like it sounds selfish, but I know that now at this time in my life it was what God wanted for me.

Tamara and Chelsea in Langa playing da instruments.

Cookie and I being all percussion-y and such. This was in Langa, a township nearby. We met with Chala (sp?) and had a braii with him. Chala is in the center of the photo below. The drumming took place in the Arts Center in Langa.

I was pretty excited when I saw this in the Arts Center. While I was taking a photo of it, a man came up and asked why I was taking a picture. I explained to him that I had been studying some of his photos in one of my classes this semester. He was very impressed that I knew who Peter Magubane is. I felt a little puffed with pride when he intorduced me to his friends saying, "She knows who Peter Magubane is !" and asked me tons of questions regarding my birthplace and why I was here in South Africa.
The facade of the Arts Center.
Lobo and Cookie. Lobo stayed with Cookie's great aunt in '85 as an exchange student. Cookie was able to track him down and meet him in Langa. Isn't that beautiful? Lobo from Langa, South Africa comes to Minnesota, America and stays with a lady 26 years ago. 26 years later, the lady's great-neice comes from Minnesota, US to Langa, South Africa and visits Lobo! I thought it was great.
This is my friend Mugove and me poring over the June edition of SA Rugby magazine. The picture was too good to resist posting here!

Well, the time is nearly at hand. The minutes are ticking, the hours are rushing past, the days amount to the little bit of two weeks we have left before boarding the plane and beginning the slow but sure journey home. How do I feel about the close proximity of my departure to America? I feel bittersweet. I am ready to come home and begin work. I am looking forward to seeing my friends and family. I am excited to go fishing. I know I need to work and look for a job for the school year. I am happy to know that home means going back to Three Rivers Community church. All of these things make going home wonderful.
I am sad though because of the things that I will lose. The ever-present Table Mountain. The intense Cape Town wind of the summer and winter. The beautiful wire and bead creations sold in the craft markets and by the roadside. The almost surreal beauty of the University of Cape Town's campus. My house in Newlands with Jenny and Pooh Bear. Agonizing over crosswords and watching the evening news with Jenny. Our back garden. Listening to live bands at Zula and drinking Hunters Dry (there's apparently no Hunters Dry in the US). Having adventures with my friends here. Being able to travel just a short distance and seeing some of the most beautiful scenery in the world.
Things I won't miss? Having to take a cab everywhere, the money really adds up. Having to make sure I'm home by 5 o'clock, because it gets dark and I want to arrive home alive. Having to walk most places with another person for safety's sake. The fact that the final exams at UCT count for 50% of your final grade. My odious Word Power tutor. Shakespeare. No internet at home. The fact that the house down the road from us got robbed 5 times. In 1 month. The screwed-up politics.
But all of these things I mentioned above contributed to my stay here, and for that I will be grateful for them. Even the screwy politics and cab fare. God had a plan for me being here. I worked hard studying and learning and living here, and that has made me realize so much about not just myself, but life, and living life. I doubt I will ever be the same girl who left Rome in January to come here. I was anxious, selfish, and broken-hearted. Not to say I'm none of those things now, but I have become aware of a lot of other things in life than charming but fatal boys and uncertain futures. Those things concern me no longer. In fact, the very nature of my uncertain future pushes me in live my life even harder. I know I can't determine what God wants me to do for my future, so I will do what I'm supposed to do- let Him play it out. As for the boy part, I wonder sometimes when I will end up in another relationship. I hope not too soon, because I still feel more like a child than ever. And I think it will take a good long while before someone will be able to put up with my two extremes of goofiness and contemplation. But that doesn't bother me. As long as I can work, play with kids, read, and travel a bit, I think I'll be doing just fine.

Dinner and Getting Ready (or Vice Versa)

2011-05-21T07:07:00.000-07:00

Last night was our Farewell Dinner hosted by the CIEE program. It was mostly a party for the "houses" as opposed to the "homestays" but the semester has taught us homestay kids to expect such! It was fun nontheless. The night held dancing and really, really good food. Roast lamb with delicious sweet gravy, soft bread rolls, spinach and feta lasagna, cauliflower, cream and spinach stuff that was really good, lots of red wine, butternut soup, cream puffs, chocolate mousse, various flavors of icecream including one wayward bowl of chocolate that nearly rolled across the table when Kailee and I requested it be passed to us, malva pudding, and yummy cream puddings. So, so....just really...good.

I mean, really.

Also, we danced, which was kind of funny, because I danced, and that is always kind of funny. I also asked Glam if my teeth were full of spinach when they were, in fact, deliberately full of spinach. Sometimes middle school jokes continue to be classic.

We went out to Stones afterward, which is a club in Claremont. It was alright, not really my scene. The dj had weird hair that was gelled up in all directions. Kind of reminded me of "There's Something about Mary." I played foosball with Glam, and we sucked at it horribly. I mean, it was pretty bad. Then we all said goodbye and went home! Then I slept nicely and woke up nicely and read the rest of "Bitches' Brew" by Fred Khumalo and then went to the library with Jenny. I was going to recommend the book to my brother, Teddy, but I realized that unless you have spent a semester reading and studying African literature, the genre can be quite disturbing at times. The violence in the literature that I've come across is very terrifying, especially since one is aware that life was very much like that just a mere decade and some years ago.

I got a D.H. Lawrence book- it contains 4 of his novels. I've never read him before, it should be interesting. I have heard many things about Lady Chatterly's Lover. Hmm, we'll see if I manage to get through it.

Oh, and school is finally somewhat over. I just have exams left, which of course I am nervous about but c'est la vie. I am very happy to be finished with school. It got rather stressful toward the end, and it was then that I felt the most homesick. A night usually went like this: "I am sick of writing this paper! And I have 4 more papers after this! I want to go home!"

But now that it's passed, I am not really so ready to get home. I am trying to take advantage of the time I have left here. There are a few more things I want to see, a few more places to visit, more pictures to be taken. But I suppose that is the whole thing of life, isn't it. Always so many things to be done, that can never be finished!

Anyway, here are the pictures from the CIEE dinner!

Miss E and I! I try to no avail to strike what is termed a "sexy pose".

Before we all get ready!

Glam and Ann!

Ready to take CIEE dinner by storm. Ha.

Me and Joni (I look sort of funny-looking in this picture...)

Miss E got a hold of my camera....silly Miss E

Cookie showing off her African dance moves

Glam and me!

Glam, Cookie, and Miss E

Oh yes, this is what I call classy table decoration. Baby formula tins and beer bottles. Are you sure I'm not in the South?

Coolia, me, Cookie, and Blondie

My dear friend Kailee and I

Me and the ever-awesome Ashley

Alyssa and I

My house and garden

2011-05-21T06:56:00.001-07:00

I realized I haven't put up many pictures lately of my environment, which Jenny told me the other day was a bad thing. She said that it's important for my family to form a picture of where I am living. It's a little late in the semester, but hey, better late than never!

Miss E and Handsomeness

2011-05-09T06:05:00.000-07:00

I sat at my computer downloading articles for my research paper and really had to go to the loo. I needed someone to watch my stuff for me while I ran the errand, so I recruited my friend Miss E, seen on the left in the picture below.

When I got back, a Microsoft Word document was in the task bar. I opened it and read this:

"BONNIE WINSTEAD IS REALLY COOL
BONNIE WINSTEAD GOES TO SCHOOL
SHE LIKES CHEDDAR POPPY-CORN
WHEN IT’S DONE SHE IS FORLORN
BONNIE WINSTEAD.

By a secret admirer…… "

And that is when my long-held belief was confirmed: that Miss E is one of the coolest people I know.

I have a lot of research to do. My paper is a study of South African mourning through the art of William Kentridge, writing through the lens of Freud's theory on mourning in his essay, "Mourning and Melancholia." There are so many articles on literature analyzing it with Freud's work that it takes hours to read through it all to see if I can use any of it for my paper. I really need to spend more time with it.

And that is why I am writing a blog post!

I went to the rugby game at Newlands this Saturday past. The game was intense and frustrating, the Stormers fumbling in all the wrong places and slacking their defense at the wrong times. They lost, to state the obvious. But as usual, I enjoyed the good rugby game and the good company I was there with.

Sunday was Mother's Day in America as well as South Africa. I spent the day with Jenny. We had fabulous Balti curry chicken and rice and stir-fry for lunch and I made a berry cobbler for dessert. It was a nice afternoon. I spent the rest of the evening reading through more articles I pulled off the internet the day before. I found some really good papers on children's literature and children's lit. illustration. Nothing to do with any of my schoolwork, but I found it highly interesting. I would love to end up writing kid's books forever, but we'll see what "the Big Guy Upstairs" has in mind.

After chatting with my mom and saying goodnight to Jenny, I huddled on the couch wrapped in a blanket and flipping through the tv channels. I came across the movie "Ghost" right in the middle of the best love scene ever. I knew it was a sign for me to watch the rest of the movie. How can you resist "Unchained Melody" playing in the background? Swoon. Patrick Swayze was just one of that type of men who commands you to be attracted to him without even really classifying as "handsome". Some people just have that charm. I think it's better than actually being good-looking. Kind of like Daniel Day Lewis. Not categorically handsome, but highly stricking features make him super attractive. I also think the same thing about Jeff Bridges.

Now that I am on a role, I may as well make a list.

My List of Highly Attractive Actors

1. Gregory Peck

2. Daniel Day-Lewis
3. Paul Newman (only below DDL because I prefer dark hair to blondes)

4. James Dean

5. James Caan

6. Jeff Bridges

7. Al Pacino

NOTE: And when I was 12ish really thought all the band members of Suede were really attractive, but most of all Brett Anderson, the lead singer.

8. Patrick Swayze

9. Andy Garcia

10. Peter Grant of the Stormers (not really an actor but get over it)

I didn't include Marlon Brando because he did not survive the ultimate test of handsomeness- that your looks must age well with you! I did include James Dean because, well, he never really had much of a chance to grow old.
Also, apologies for all of the Godfather cast additions. I didn't do the casting, blame it on Coppola!

The one who wasn't on the list because he transcends the list is none other than my one and only Josh!

Picture, pictures, pictures.

2011-05-03T05:35:00.000-07:00

This is Cookie and Dan. This was Dan's first night to hang out with us, and I think we may have scared him away. Shame, he was a nice guy. They are playing with Gianni's cane. Gianni was someone else who came along to Zula with us and he has a broken foot.

Me, Cookie, and our friend Coolia. I am calling her Coolia because she is really cool. Her name is not really Coolia, though. Just in case you wondered.

Femke and her friend Michelle (I am pretty sure that was her name...). We literally bumped in to one another while walking opposite directions on Long Street. If you don't remember, Femke is the totally awesome Dutch girl I hung out with on the Garden Route. She ended up in C-town for a few days and I was super glad to see her for a few minutes. I unfortunately lost my wallet that night, so the next week was pretty low-key for me, so Femke and I didn't get much chance to hang out later.

This is Ruth, a smart British girl who was staying with Cookie's host family for a bit while she was here in Cape Town doing volunteer work. She was full of life and added a factor of cuteness to our little V and A Waterfront adventure band.

The Waterfront

The V&A Ferris Wheel! I didn't ride it.

Ruth, in the usual confused European way, thought the mannequins were real and tried to politely introduce herself. Needless to say, they all lined up to meet her.

Meanwhile, Erica met some really nice people with abnormally large heads.

Silly Ruth!

Belated Birthday post

2011-05-03T03:12:00.000-07:00

My cupcakes came out of the oven wonderfully flat yet tasty. They were the cause of mush laughter once Jenny came in and saw them. Sigh. I can never get it right.
Me, Jenny, Jorge, and Andy. Jenny, Jorge, and I aren't too photogenic, I'm afraid. Andy gets by alright.
Rachel made a wonderful robot cake for me! It was so cute- and it was my favorite kind: carrot cake!

This is the famous Pooh. The one who barfed on my floor what seems like so many months ago. He and I have become friends, though, and he allows me to employ him as a fuzzy footrest when reading.

These are pretty much the only pictures I've taken. I think Jorge took some more, but I will have to dig them up. Oh well. This year's birthday was pretty much the best thing ever! I seriously believe that all birthdays henceforth will just go downhill from here.

Morning

2011-04-21T00:20:00.001-07:00

Whatever the next song is on my iPod (on shuffle), I will post at the end of the blog!

I just wanted to check in and say that I get to go to another Stormers game in two weekends! Woohoo. Go Peter Grant!

Last night I had dinner with a friend of mine, Roman. From questions of love to politics to James Dean to religion, our conversation was top notch. Roman is an awesome guy and I will be saddened when he goes off to London soon. Roman is one of those people I've had the privilege of meeting here in South Africa who just really inspires me. He got his MBA and worked for 8 yrs in London and then realized he hated accountancy. So he came back to Cape Town and started up with photography, something he really enjoyed. I just think it's great the way people who are already settled into some sort of career or type of life, realize that they're not doing what they really want to do, pack up and take a risk on something they love. It's one of the most inspiring things to me.
My own life- if I didn't have Christ, what would it count for? The only thing in this life worth doing is listening to God and taking a risk when he demands it. What else would you have to show for your life? The reason we're here is to bring glory to God, so I imagine that's what I'll work toward, and who knows what kind of adventures that will bring!

I need to go finish my Word Power homework now. If I finish it soon, I may have a few minutes to grab a coffee and a donut before class!
See ya!

The Long and Winding Weekend

2011-04-19T04:23:00.000-07:00

Hi guys, I had not realized how long it'd been since I've written an update on my life here until my dad called my attention to it.
The whole of last week was just a wad of stress concerning two giant papers that were overdue and lack of time to catch up on all the reading I've been lax on.
On Friday I finally turned in everything I was supposed to get done, and so I was looking to celebrate/unwind/have fun by going out to a place on Long Street here in C-town called Zula. It's just about my favorite place to go and have fun because they always have good, quirky music. I couldn't find anyone to go with me and it was getting later and later so I just stayed home and watched "What Happens in Vegas," which actually isn't that horrible of a movie. I thought it had a pretty cool point at the end.
On Saturday I read. I read when I woke up and read through lunch and read all afternoon. I'm working through Country of My Skull by Antjie Krog, which is a nonfiction account of a journalist covering the hearings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, a committee designed to provide a platform for victims and perpetrators of apartheid to tell their stories. It details the stories of torture that the individuals went through, in their own words. A whole day of this gruesome and disturbing imagery can really wear you down emotionally, as you can imagine. I wanted to quit reading many times, but I really feel like the reading of this book had the same purpose as the TRC- which is to expose yourself to the horrors that the people have gone through in order to understand the importance of mourning in our society. In order to mourn, people need to tell their stories, and people need to listen to them. I had to take tea breaks from time to time and rest my head in my hands, attempting futilely to understand the magnitude of the atrocities committed under apartheid rule. When talking about it with other South Africans, I come across a lot of defensive arguments like, " Well at least we didn't enslave them like you did." Whoa whoa whoa, we cannot think of evil in terms like that. Evil is evil. Accept your mistakes and move on, don't defend them. They claim they speak out of loyalty to their country. If that is the case, shouldn't they accept the responsibility of the country and seek to move past the mistakes they've made? I feel like this happens sometimes in the States as well, but it's not as widely spread, maybe because apartheid happened so recently.
While I was reading, I got a text message from Tom, a friend from the Garden Route. "Are we going out tonight?" he asked. "YEEEEEEEEEEEEES!!!!!" I replied.
Not really, but I did reply in the affirmative, and we made plans to meet at Zula. When I got there I had a nice little conversation with the guy at the entrance taking the entrance fee. He was reading "Blood Meridian" by Cormac McCarthy. I confessed that I've only read "The Road" and "All the Pretty Horses." He said "Meridian" was his second to read- he's finished "No Country for Old Men," which he said I absolutely must read asap. We discussed South African literature and both though that McCarthy and J.M. Coetzee shared similar ways of writing.

Tom brought along his friend Roie from the backpackers- a chap from Israel. It was really nice to be able to hang out with two highly attractive guys and listen to these South African hillbilly psychedelic bands play. Tom and I had an argument on whether the bass player was a cop or a pilot. I won the argument! He was a cop. With a mustache, of course. Roie is a very funny, intelligent guy who just finished his mandatory military service in Israel. We had fun dancing and trying to dance well. HAHAHAHAHAHA excuse me while I reflect back on myself dancing.
Afterward I went home and went to bed.
The next day found the sun shining and the wind stilled. It was a beautiful day- possibly one of the nicest I've experienced. I spent the afternoon at Camps Bay with Roie. Camps Bay is a beautiful beach with so many cute restaurants lining the shore. I did get pictures of the sunset, but of course I forgot to bring my camera and camera cord to school today, so you will have to be treated to those later on.
I will probably be checking back in during the weekend, because it is Easter weekend so I have a few more days off. Cookie and I are planning to do ultra-touristy thing every day of the break! Will keep you updated!
Cheers!

This song below is a stirring anthem of someone who is burned out on the apathetic society we live in today. It's kind of depressing. But I do like it, especially the bit about having a "parade." I have always wanted to have a "hobo parade," a parade where one dresses down with one's friends and marches underneath the streetlights armed with a shopping cart and a bottle of whiskey. I heard about the hobo parade from a fellow WFMU lover, who has annual hobo parades that she says are super fun. I wouldn't drink the whiskey. I don't really care for whiskey. But it apparently is all the rage with hobos, or at least that is what I've heard.
I would love to have a hobo parade here in Cape Town, but I am way too scared of what would happen if we dressed as hobos and marched down the street at night. Probably not good things would happen. I will wait until I find myself in a place where I am familiar enough with the territory that I feel comfortable donning my rags and pushing my buggy.

Anyway, back to the song- it has language that is strong in some parts. Just a warning, make your own decision.

Rugby.

2011-04-10T06:39:00.000-07:00

The rugby game was good...NOT. The Stormers lost 6 to 19. I was very sad. However, I am proud that my favorite, number 10: Peter Grant*, scored by a nice kick. But even in spite of Grant's rugby talents the team just couldn't gain their footing.
But I did see a horrible haircut:

And I did have fun with Thomas and Jorge.

*I promise that I first liked him for his rugby playing and not because of his ruggedly good looks, which I became aware of much later.

Moms that Truly Care, Color their Daughter's Hair

2011-04-09T04:55:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to let you all know, since I am aware that every last one of you has been sitting wide-eyed and fueled by Red Bull on the edge of your seat since yesterday's blogpost about my declaration to color my hair, that it was a success. My hair is red. Not green, not purple, not burgundy, not streaky brown and red, but red all over. No roots showing, no chunks of the faded strawberry color I previously sported, just plain red, exactly as it's supposed to be. Needless to say, I am rather proud of myself. I will admit though, that the process just wasn't the same without my mom. when I go back, I will continue to relinquish myself to her hurtful hair-coloring hands as she pounds the dye into my weak strands. Why? Because it's a bonding experience, something not to be missed, an act I only take upon my lonesome self here in Africa simply because she cannot fly to here to join me. Thank you, Mom, for all that you do.
I will also say that the coloring was a nice pick-me-up. I have been feeling all this past week the heart-heaviness of being an American who misses her family. I owe it to the fact that I have been supremely overwhelmed with homework and a bad cold, which culminates into a tired state of grumpiness that even I found hard to combat. I bought Frosted Flakes (the only sugary cereal Pick 'n Pay had that really mirrored my American sugar-sensibilities) and ate half the box for dinner, and the rest for breakfast the next morning. Looking in the mirror every morning found me gingerly fingering my hair, uselessly attempting some sort of style. My shorts felt too short, my t-shirt too sweaty, my feet got too dirty. It was just one of those weeks.
Coloring my hair, in a wacky way, has helped to improve my overall perception of myself at the moment. Isn't that silly? I acknowledge the complete silliness of it, but I will admit it all the same.
I am actually off to a rugby game in about an hour. I made a quick stop here at the internet cafe after I went to the Craft fair in Rondebosch. I bought two pieces of jewelry for a good friend of mine and finally- the special thing for my mom that I've had my eye on all semester. I finally found the perfect manifestation of it, and I am very, very excited. I also bought lunch for myself- a nutella and banana crepe, homemade. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.
Anyway, it was pretty yummy.
That is all I have to say today. Say a prayer for Jorge, he flies back to Brazil tomorrow. We are going to celebrate his time here by weeping and cheering wildly at the game tonight.

Bonnie

Saturday's just a day away

2011-04-08T04:36:00.000-07:00

This morning found me waking up from a dream about Miss Halcombe, a character from "The Woman in White" by Wilkie Collins. I have been reading the book for about a week now and have made it practice to read from it before I go to sleep every night. It's much more relaxing than doing homework, obviously, but occasionally I find myself in my dreams furthering the end of the chapter I read previously. It's a bit confusing, actually, because when I take up the book again I always feel like I am starting behind what I've actually already read.
Anyway. I have had a rather rough go of it while trying to finish two papers that were due this weekend. For some unaccountable reason I've been writing and processing my thoughts much slower than normal, which is both frustrating and tiresome. I wrote all day Wednesday, I wrote all day Thursday, and I wrote this morning, and now when I leave here and go home again I shall write some more. I will have to turn in both papers a day late, but my professors are just going to have to be patient and trust that the end result will merit my slowness. Especially since I am now at a point where I finally feel as though I understand exactly what I am trying to say in each of these papers, I don't mind a low opinion of myself from the professors because I am pretty sure that I will be forgiven when they see that my slowness was not because of apathy, but rather because my brain just took a little longer to crank a good idea out. At least, that is what I am hoping will be the case. I am not in possession of the same charms that has my brother Teddy on the good side of his professors, but I can at least be diligent and show it, charm or no.
I took a break from writing the papers* and walked to Clicks beauty store to buy hair color. It's been since January since I've colored my hair. I was pretty ok with not coloring it at all until I got home in June, but you know, there comes a time when you know you just don't look your best and you actually care about it. The dangerous part is that I am coloring it myself. Those who know me well tremble with me. We shall see how it turns out, and I will post a picture as soon as I can to prove that it was a 1)success 2)disaster.
Tonight I am hoping to meet up with some people I met last week on the G-Route, but who knows what will happen. Tomorrow I will most likely write, go to the craft market, eat, eat some more, and then go to rugby. Sounds like a plan, eh? A day I am definitely looking forward to.
Jorge leaves us this Sunday. We are all sad, because a month is just enough time to get to know the surface of a person. We began to know Jorge just a little, and he is such a nice, solid, funny guy that we all loathe to see him go...and miss the chance of getting to know him still more!
That's all for today, wish me a good weekend and I will do the same for you.

*my papers are on Mourning Apartheid through Contemporary Art and The Doctrine of Poetic Impersonality Adopted by T.S. Eliot. These aren't necessarily my titles, just the basic topics. Woohoo! They are pretty interesting, I think.

Garden Route

2011-04-05T04:39:00.000-07:00

My adventures on the Garden Route were some of the best times I've had thus far. I met so many great people and had so many memorable moments. Here are some photos- they speak for themselves!

The Baz Bus, method of travel during the week!Buffalo Bay

Wakeboarding in Knysna Lagoon!

Hiking the Knysna Heads

Tom and Robyn looking on as Oli helps Jean down

Knysna Waterfront

Female serval in Tenikwa Wildcat Center

Femke and I

Cheetahs cuddling! I was tempted to join them.

"Peter" and I at the Tube 'n Axe in Storm's River

Nice German girls- born in South Africa, moved to Germany, now back again
Robyn and Noma in the township club
Femke and an admirer

Vibrant grasshopper in Storm's River

Getting geared to zipline! Naomi, Robyn, Noma, me, and Femke

Little garden in S River

Home of the highest bungy in the world!

On the way home

garden route 2ish

2011-04-04T02:34:00.000-07:00

I'm back in Cape Town. It was such a fantastic week that I really did not want to come back, but now that I am back I don't mind....nice comfy bed last night...in a room by myself! I kept waking up expecting to see other bunks around me. I will get some pics up tomorrow, as well as a more detailed account of what went on in the fabulous holiday of Bonnie. Cheers

garden route 1

2011-03-29T03:50:00.000-07:00

Arrived in Knysna yesterday evening and immediately went with other lodgers at the Backpacker's to the Spar to pick up meat for a braai. The braai was pretty much awesome. There were three Brits, two Canadians, one Taiwan-born, KwaZulu-Natal-raised doctoral candidate/tour guide, a Dutch guy, one German, one Irish, two Jo'burgians, and one American (me!). There was also the very lovely staff member, who kept the vibe positive to the max. After the braai the evening is a mix of the pub, the English girl wielding a stick, and the Irish girl proclaiming that she had just become a grandmother. I got into music arguments with the above mentioned staff member, but he still impressed me by singing every single word to every single hit song that came on over the speakers. Me and P, the German, mostly just laughed at all the drunk people and had further discussions on pop culture -the likes of Rhianna, Katy Perry, and Lady Gaga [we had the same opinion on Rhianna, mixed opinions on Katy Perry (me: she's terrible and that's that. him: but, she does write her own songs.) but stood united in our appreciation of Lady Gaga]. We all came back to the lodge and gathered in the lounge area. P and I continued our music discussion (it went on to hip hop and the top three overrated rock bands in his opinion) and the others mostly sang and discussed Jean's new grandchild. This brings me back to now, which is lunchtime. I've been hanging around chatting with people and I am now ready to get off of here and explore Knysna more. Cheers, Bonnie

This Week

2011-03-27T04:24:00.000-07:00

Thank you to everyone who sent me a birthday card. They are all stuck up on the walls of my bedroom and they make me very happy just looking at them and remembering the awesome people back in the USA.
Speaking of birthday, mine was completely great. Wonderful braai, wonderful people, wonderful night. Don't have a lot of time to go into detail, but expect the 411 and pictures once I get back from the break.
Speaking of the break, I leave tomorrow morning for my splendid solo adventure. I bought a more appropriate backpack for the US equivalent of 20 bucks. I've been looking around all afternoon for a rain jacket and have had no luck or they're too expensive. Oh well.
Be in prayer for me this week!! I will chat with you guys soon.
Cheers,
Bonnie

Thoughts of Jesus, lovers, guys in tank tops.

2011-03-24T06:07:00.000-07:00

This song is beautiful and a favorite of mine. The only thing that irks me about this particular video of Andrew Bird is that he is wearing a tank top, and a pet peeve of mine is when guys wear tank tops.

"There will be snacks"...of course this song is a favorite of mine.

I read this verse this morning: Hebrews 13:8
"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever."
It struck me particularly because in Bible study at the Davis' (American family) we discussed the many sayings of Jesus in the New Testament that challenged the traditional perception of him, focusing on the verses in Luke 12,
"49 I have come to set the world on fire, and I wish it were already burning! 50 I have a terrible baptism of suffering ahead of me, and I am under a heavy burden until it is accomplished. 51 Do you think I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I have come to divide people against each other! 52 From now on families will be split apart, three in favor of me, and two against—or two in favor and three against."
The point that was made is that the thought of Jesus coming to bring division puts a lot of people in tension since it seemingly differs so much from the Prince of Peace theology taught.
The truth is simple, however. Though some words of Christ, including these, seem to create conflict in our perceptions of God, they serve to give us a truthful picture of what the gospel really is. In the passage in Luke mentioned above, Jesus speaks the complete truth of the gospel in proclaiming the radical weight it carries. The Gospel is supposed to be divisive, supposed to be controversial, that is intrinsic to the Gospel and what God has planned!
It just got me thinking as I read the verse in Hebrews this morning how little our brain capabilities are. When verses like the ones in Luke set our heads spinning, why are we so surprised to hear this side of Jesus when we claim to know him? Hebrews states that Jesus "is the same yesterday and today and forever." So straightforward. He has always put forth difficult truths. He has always comforted. He's always been just. He's always extended grace. He's always been the only one. He's always loved us. Always.
Why then are our lives journeys of perpetual turning over stones and uncovering spiritual truths about the person of Jesus Christ? Because our minds simply cannot grasp the whole of God. As a child we cannot grasp the full weight of grace, and as we grow into adulthood if we truly seek to know God we still are overwhelmed by the glimpses of Jesus we get day-by-day. He has always been like this, though. He is the same, always. Never gaining more grace this year, a little more might this season, a bit of anger here, a bit of peace here. He has always possessed these qualities that we discover as we grow closer to Him. It boggles my mind that there can be a singular person that literally will take a lifetime to know and yet still not be able to fully grasp the weight of said person. I am more overwhelmed that Jesus remains the same even as I change night and day over and over again. It proves how so very human my mind is. So small and changeable. I am just grateful that our minds are such that we can at least catch glimpses of God as we mature. I suppose it would be like Moses when he requested to be exposed to the fullness of God. He wasn't even able to face even the bit of God that he was shown. As humans we are simply not capable to witness the full glory of God. I guess that gives us something to look forward to, hey?
As I near my 21st birthday, I think. I think a lot. About a lot of things.
I was thinking this morning as I mused over getting to know God and my limited capabilities as a human how much like a lover this all was. I suppose marriage is designed to imitate Christ and his relationship with the church, and as I get to know Christ I understand what that means a little more, I think. When you are in a relationship with someone, you can love the hell out of them (which Christ literally does with us) but still be unable to know that person the way you wish to. You simply cannot know all aspects of that person, not over a day, nor a month, nor 50 years. You learn to know them through the experiences you go through together and apart, the way they love, the way they communicate, the way they behave. And your knowledge of the other is so changeable- as a human we change from day to day and you can never bank on your loved one remaining exactly the same throughout your relationship. You wouldn't even expect that of yourself, it's just not reasonable. Even so, imagine loving someone who does remain the same. Even though you change, mature, de-mature, run away, return, anger, cry, develop new ideas or beliefs, discard them, be lazy, work harder, get happier, gain weight, don't wear makeup, go on a diet, sleep later, write more, etc etc etc the lover remains exactly the same, and their feelings toward you change none.
It fills me with a singular sort of peace when I realize that is exactly what we experience in a relationship with Christ. It gives me chill bumps to realize that while I sought and ran after the other kinds of (earthly) loves a far greater love was right there happening to me and I ignored it. I would think that ignoring such a person would be impossible, but then again humanity certainly has their darker sides in spite of the fragile nature of their brains.

Change the number to "21" and this is a pretty relevant song to me right now!

p.s. !!!!

Movies and Trip preparations

2011-03-23T03:56:00.000-07:00

Miss D and I have been so in tune with watching great movies that we've begun a tradition of always having something on hand to view every night. Unfortunately, we broke the record of quality films just two nights ago when we rented "Wuthering Heights" with Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche. I was looking forward to the movie because of the two beautiful people in the main roles of Catherine and Heathcliff. I have never read the book (gasp!). It has always been one of those that "I'll read someday" but it just never appealed to me as a must-read. It seemed too...tortured love for my taste.
Anyway, the movie did NOTHING to make me want to read the book any more than before. It was absolutely horrible. The characters were supremely unlikeable (even Juliette Binoche!!) and the way they arranged the storyline played out like some sort of soap opera. I just really did not think it was well put together at all, and just felt no pity at all for any of the characters.
So to get my mind off of the unlikeable movie, I rented the BBC miniseries (with Toby Stephens and Ruth Wilson)of Jane Eyre that came out a few years ago. I've seen it before, and it is one of my very favorite "movies" ever. The cinematography is top-notch, the storyline consistent, the characters excellently cast and played, and it did great justice to the book. "Jane Eyre" also happens to be one of my favorite novels, anyway.
We've watched the first disc's worth of episodes. Tomorrow night we shall finish it off. I hope Miss D loves it as much as I do.
Yesterday was spent getting details together for my big trip next week. I am going by myself, which means the planning all falls on my shoulders (gasp!!). I've booked two out of three accommodations needed for the week, just merely awaiting a response from the third. I'll be staying in some pretty inexpensive backpacker's lodges, so that will be an experience I've not really had (unless you count the Greenpoint NY YMCA, which I sort of do) so I am very excited.
I am more excited about going on the trip alone. To take my own pace, to explore what I want to explore, to talk to people, that is what I am looking forward to more than anything. My itinerary is basically this: Travel to Knysna, then to Plett, then to Storm's River Mouth, then back again. I would love if I had more than 7 days so I could travel to more towns along the Garden Route, but I would rather spend alot of time in fewer cities than rush through and make the individual towns a blur.
If you are in Cape Town and have a backpack I can borrow, that would be awesome. My backpack is more of a bookbag, and is small and narrow. I need something alittle more substantial.
That's all for today.
Cheers

Saw this the other night

2011-03-21T06:02:00.000-07:00

And it was incredible.
Grossly disturbing to the point of me muting the tv and turning away during a couple of scenes (those who've seen it know which ones I am talking about), it was nontheless a stunningly well-made movie.
Watched the second one, which was as well-made but wasn't as riveting. I haven't read the books, nor do I really want to, after the knowledge of just how graphic things get. I've heard they're good, and that's enough for me.

Quicksand

2011-03-18T03:24:00.000-07:00

I don't think Smith was necessary, but I do really like this song.

A favor to ask

2011-03-17T03:55:00.000-07:00

Please, I have a favor to ask of you.

There is a certain person of authority on campus who reminds me of someone and it is driving me absolutely batty trying to figure out who. I know he reminds me of a villain or unlikable character from a movie or book.

Someone who is youngish, soft and pudgy, with pale skin and dark hair. The type of person I like to call a "fungus" man, soft and slightly moldy looking. His voice is high-pitched and he articulates his consonants very well.

I find him extremely loathsome for more than one reason, but that is not why I wrote about him.

The favor is this,
Can you think of someone who I could possibly be reminded of? I know that my abhorrence of this guy can't be all him, surely it's transference of feelings toward someone, fictional or otherwise, similar.

Thanks ahead of time.

P.s. I am really serious about this. I dislike this person so much that I feel like walking out of the room or glaring at him or even pushing him whenever I have to go to his tutorial. This is not reasonable at all and the strength of my feelings interests me greatly. Also, it would really help not to be distracted by unwarranted feelings of anger during the tutorials. Please help, maybe when I know who he reminds me of I won't dislike him so much.

p.s.s. Those who know me well know that there are few people whom I abhor. In fact, the only ones I can think of living currently are Heather Mills and Nicholas Sparks.

Weakness

2011-03-16T05:27:00.000-07:00

It's Wednesday, which means it's Song of the Day Day, or the Day the Song of the Week Appears! Wednesday was chosen for this task because, unlike Tuesday (cough), Wednesday falls in the middle of the week and the middle of the week is when people need a middle of the week pick-me-up.

I will admit that I could never ever hope to top Teddy's own post yesterday (also I love Kevin Corrigan), nor will I try to. Sibling rivalry? Pish.

I was looking around for info on the Gnomio and Juliet flick and came up with the official movie song, which is a peppy-paced song by Nelly Furtado and Elton John. Barf. I will spare you the atrocity of the song.

Instead, here is a nice song by The Smiths.

I picked this song because it has the name "Shakespeare" in the title, and I happen to be in a class called "Shakespeare and Co." and a seminar called "Global Shakespeare." I like both the class and the seminar, but I like the seminar better. I really like the way it leaves my brain buzzing. Why do people see the need for booze? I say you can get cray-cray from learning.
I think there should be a SchoolHouse Rock song about that!
In my seminar we write response papers every week. Sometimes my papers are good, sometimes they are great, sometimes they fall short. However, I feel that through it all the quality of my titles has remained consistent. I just need to find a way to permeate that into the body of the texts.
Whenever I am called upon in class, or I raise my hand to raise a point, I feel like most of the time my words end up jumbling together in long, complicated sentences that exercise circumlocution rather than providing intelligent arguments, i.e. I seem as if I am full of hot air. My academic security wavers day-to-day, and it is a source of frustration for me.
Even in this insecurity in my brain-power, I find again that need for dependence on someone Other. "Other" being God and really only Him. Humans just don't provide the level of peace and wholeness of being that is found through Christ. I been plagued by horrible dreams lately that have severely affected my sleep at night. I will wake up in the middle of the night almost in tears and clenching my teeth. I am usually so highly upset that it takes shutting my eyes tightly and praying myself to sleep. I've learned to deal with these situations better and better each time, turning the bad thoughts to conversations with God, analyzing them and determining to conquer them. It hasn't lessened the force of the dreams, but little by little I wake up the morning afterward with a renewed contentment in the knowledge that I am nothing and can do nothing without Christ's strength.
It's quite a blow to realize how helpless I am, actually. I have always been of an independent nature (it dates back to our ancestor John Winston, who after his arrival in America, changed his name from the British "Winston" to a new and independent "Winstead") and have always preferred to do things my way, myself. It has proven to be my downfall, and I now kick myself in the rear every day to remind myself that I must "die to myself" in order that Christ may live in me.
As I read in my devotions today,

"It is good that you recognize your weakness. That keeps you looking to Me, your Strength. Abundant life is not necessarily health and wealth; it is living in continual dependence on Me. Instead of trying to fit this day into a preconceived mold, relax and be on the lookout for what I am doing. This mindset will free you to enjoy Me and to find what I have planned for you to do. This is far better than trying to make things go according to your own plan." - "Jesus Calling" by Sarah Young

And,
"Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. ² Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. ³ For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. " - Colossians 3:1-3

Source of Laughter on Long Summer Nights

2011-03-14T04:45:00.000-07:00

I spent the best weekend ever in Ocean View. Ocean View is a community made up of coloured people who were forced out of Simon's Town in the late 1960's under the rule of apartheid. The website for S-Town says this,
"...in 1967, Simon's Town was proclaimed a White Group Area and over the next few years the coloured people, whose family ties sometimes went back to the very early days of the Town's growth, were obliged to move away. Their houses in and behind the Town fell into disrepair and a lot of them were eventually bullozed flat: thus was part of Simon's Town's quaint attraction lost. The Historical Society's efforts in preventing such destruction were to no avail, yet at the same time "Studland", Admiralty House, St Francis Church, "Ibeka", Palace Barracks and the Martello Tower were all proclaimed National Monuments."
The couple I stayed with said that some of the coloured families had to leave most of their furniture outside their new houses in Ocean View because they were so much smaller than their own houses in Simon's Town. The furniture eventually ruined because of the rain and weather.
Regardless of the horrible circumstance that brought them here, my family were quite content in living in Ocean View. It was their home now, they said, and it was where all of their family was now. Harboring no resentment, my family lived, loved, and braai'd in the community.
The couple lived in the house that was built by his father 17 years before. A lovely house with a pretty ginger cat that slunk around the hallway, it was filled with noise from the son and daughter-in-law and their three little girls, aged 8, 3, and 1.
As you can imagine, I had a blast playing with the girls all weekend. After a giant breakfast on Saturday morning, the eldest girl took me and my co-student to a farm in town. The farm was called Imhoff Farm and featured a petting zoo (with bunnies and chickens!!!), camel rides, snake park, play areas, and loads of really nice shops. I bought a pair of wrap-around pants. You put them on like a diaper and tie them up! I promise they are so comfortable! More so than a diaper, I imagine.
After coming back from the farm, we ate mini-pizzas, meat pies, and chicken and veg samoosas and then went to the beach. The water was freezing but I gathered up my courage, bit my lips, and ran out into the waves with Aakifa, the 8yr old. I nearly screamed with the cold, but eventually it was all good because I couldn't feel the cold owing to the numbness of my body. Walking along the shore harvested no seashells as I had hoped, but instead plenty of good conversation with my American house-partner.
When we got back, our Ma had fixed us hamburgers and more snacks and plenty of juice, and we sat and ate with already full stomachs, wondering how on earth we would be able to stuff our face at the forthcoming braai.
Night fell, and people arrived at the house, all related somehow or another to Ma and Pa, our host family. We all sat outside on couches and chairs, a rug underneath our feet, and the tv propped up on a table against the side of the upholstery shop Pa ran. Cricket was on all day, but I paid no attention to it. I still don't know the rules and I still don't think it looks so fascinating. At least not a nice as rugby, which has all those lovely big men jumping and tackling and being ground into the dirt. Anyway.
Chicken and ribs were braai'd (yummm) and salads were prepared, and chips and nuts and biltong and chocolates were set out in bowls. There was such an abundance of food one wondered whether it was bad manners to fill one's plate multiple times. It wasn't, because I had a few more ribs and corn on the cob.
What was for dessert? One of the most underrated desserts out there- Waffles and icecream!
Such a delicious night. We chatted and ate with the family. They were all so kind to us, and included us in their jokes, some of which we didn't get due to the explicit nature of them (i.e. some dirty jokes in the Afrikaans language)and the next day, Sunday, we all met again by the roadside as the community gathered and braai'd together to watch and cheer the cyclists on in the Cape Argus Cycle Tour.
It was such a lovely time that we really felt sad to leave. I hope I can visit them again. And I really loved their cat. I have the scratches on my arms to prove it.

here is a laugh.

As I was going to St. Ives...

2011-03-10T06:11:00.000-08:00

Yesterday morning started out a little strangely, because when I woke up I realized that I had fallen asleep sometime in the realm of 9:30pm the night before on top of the articles I was supposed to be reading and writing about. I trudged to Claremont and caught the Jammie, as I wasn't feeling up to making the trek by foot to campus. On the ride I read the rest of the article and developed a headache. I blame the haughty intellectuals who are trying to pry open my brain to tear out everything I've learned so I can start anew. It's a painful process, this learning business.
In my African Lit. class shortly afterward I informed my friend E that the best cure for her grumpiness (apparently this was "grump" day, not "hump-day") would be to come with me to my house to hang out. She agreed.
On the way to my house I ate Nik Naks out of the bag and a huge gust of wind knocked the Nik Naks out of my hand and scattered the cheesy puffs all over the adjoining garden to the walkway, completely emptying my bag of chips, and emptying my heart of all happiness. E patted me on the shoulder, and after a moment of silence, we rode on.
Once we arrived at the house, I mixed some squash (NOT the vegetable) and made a nice cool drink and we sat on the living room floor and turned on VH1 while we read the school newspapers (not UCT's, actually, E goes to Bates College and they've sent her all the issues of their student paper she's missed.)
The song came on, you know the one, the only one it could've been, that's right, it was
Total Eclipse of the Heart, by Bonnie Tyler!
the funny thing about it was that As it came on, before the first notes began to tinkle, I laughed and said, "Meatloaf!" half-jokingly. E laughed.
Then, as I saw what the song truly was, I got really excited and was like, whoa! The same guy who directed Meatloaf's videos directed this one!!! E was impressed that I knew that.
Thanks Mom.

We had a braai last night for all the homestay students. When I say "we" had a braai, I mean that CIEE had a braai and one of the host families hosted it (imagine).
It was super awesome! We had really yummy rice and bobotie (one of my favorite foods here) and some sort of meat something that was also tasty. For dessert there was delicious brandy pudding and icecream! And throughout the dinner, of course, there was booze-a'flowin'.
I was so excited to introduce Miss D to the other parents and students. All my friends have heard lots of stories about living with Miss D, mostly stories involving how much I love chatting and hanging out with her. It was really lots of fun. Our director and academic director were there, as well, and as always it was great to talk to them. I really am thankful that I decided on coming here through this program, because they give such a great support system and, from my end at least, they seem to truly care about the students.
The night ended (unfortunately) with a drive home and homework to finish.
And by the way, Teddy doesn't get that cd because he didn't read the directions properly. How's that for teaching, Teddy?****
Cheers for now,
bonnie

***if you (the reader) EMAIL me the correct answer, I will make you a wacky cd of SA music and such. Here is the question: How many wives does Jacob Zuma have?

Missings, peoples, jokes...

2011-03-08T04:17:00.000-08:00

With some hard work, sweat, and alot of candy, I managed to get the souvenir that my older brother, Teddy, asked me for. And then I realized it was the wrong age.

Darn you, Teddy!

I went to Green Market Square the other day and purchased a really cool African beaded belt for myself (what makes the belt African? Because it's bought in AFRICA, duh)and two TOP SECRET things for my sister Bessie. Yay! Now I just have to find something for Teddy, Hazel, Mom, and Dad. I really miss my family. I think it's a good kind of missing, though. It's the kind of missing that surges through your whole body in form of a kind of intense ache that brings with it a sharp and rolling burst of happiness. It's the feeling that comes along with the knowledge that you are wholly loved, and that you return that love with an equal wholeness. It's a knowledge that, though you wish more than anything that the ones you love could be here and now and experiencing the things you are able to, you are blessed by an amazing support system and you look forward to the joy you will feel when you are able to see them again. Because I am already looking forward to that.

I hope you enjoyed the pictures I put up yesterday. I was pretty excited about finally being able to give you a glimpse of my life in it's physicality. There are so many more I could put up, and so many more yet to be taken. I have been meeting so many wonderfully vibrant people, in school and elsewhere. I have been able to chat multiple times with Zissou, my poofy-haired time travel conversationalist; Coco, my beautiful SA fellow English major, Janine, the CIEE receptionista, and of course my American friend Cookie. So many more people have been so lovely here, and I hope that in the coming months I will be able to count them as good friends.

Tomorrow there will be a braai for the homestay kids, of which I am one, of course. I am looking forward to introducing Miss D, my host mom, to all of the other kids. I have a blast living in her house- just the other day we completed a crossword together. I have always been slightly jealous of my brother and mom's ability to sweat so little over newspaper crosswords, so I never really tried my hand at them. Miss D has shown me the joy, though, and now I look forward to the newspaper more than ever! I have also been informed that the crossword puzzle is a good cure for insomnia, so I keep a copy by my bedside just in case.

I miss Sam so much. I have all of his cards he's sent on my wall. "What is a boxer's favorite drink?"*

That's all for today, cheers,
B

*first person to email me the correct answer gets a souvenir from Mama Afrika.

Foto Fontasy (It Tastes Real Good, Like Good Food Should)

2011-03-07T03:48:00.000-08:00

Nelson Mandela and me in Kirstenbosch Gardens.

My class timetable.

Me and Cookie had a fabulous brunch with the lovely girls from the Service Learning Program!

I am pointing to a poster that is heralding the coming of Josh Groban to Kirstenbosch Gardens! Alas, this poster was at least 7 years old.

My school!

My garden

Corners of my room.

Cookie, E, and me at soccer game.

This is Stoney and me.

Peanut Butter Chicken

2011-03-01T04:36:00.000-08:00

This weekend was a really great one, filled with beaches, brunches, and lovely outdoor concerts.
My friend Cookie (I like the whole pseudonym thing) and I shared rusks (best thing ever) and Stoney.
I don't have alot of time to blog today- I have a nice big list of errands I need to run- but I wanted to say that I had a good lunch today.
I was sitting in my Word Power lecture, opening a Tempo candy bar (I spent the majority of my African Lit lecture drawing all of my favorites foods in the margins of my notebook paper- icecream in a bowl, icecream in a cone with chocolate chips in it, cupcakes, milkshakes, toast and jam...so I was hungry for something sweet) and preparing for the scrumptious chocolate and shortbread taste I was about to enjoy. Next to me sat a guy of small frame, neutrally dressed yet with academic edge, eyebrows knit intensely, curly rusty-brown hair so big it would rightly be called an afro. After I said "hello" he asked if that candy bar was the only thing I've had all day. I don't understand why he asked that, I can only imagine that I must've been eating the chocolate with some gusto. I gave a "harrumph!" and informed him that I ate all the time, and that the candy was simply to hold me over until lunch after the lecture. I proudly showed him the plastic container in my backpack that contained the avocado sandwich I'd made that morning. He obviously wasn't impressed. He began to talk about his favorite places to eat on campus and then mentioned a new shop. "Apparently it's better than the place where I usually eat. I'll show you after class."
And that's how I came to be in an interestingly academic discussion on the paradoxes of time-travel while eating a really cheap, delicious meal of veggie rice and peanut butter chicken.
We began by speaking about opinions on what the greatest invention of the past 2000 years is, and he mentioned the computer. Of course, that got me started on what is considered to be the first sort of computer- the counting machine - which is a form of automata from the mid-17th century. The topic of conversation went from my gushing about the history of automata to the obvious explanation of the Turk (the Chess Player) which we found to be linked to a computer that is set to be the greatest computer system ever called "The Turk" in the Sarah Connor Chronicles. Interesting, hey?
Definitely a highlight of the day. Discussion of Back to the Future? Any time!

A Sad Solitary Life

2011-02-25T22:12:00.001-08:00

Oh sad life, Sad mind, sad thoughts that completely played with the timely details of a would-be lovely hike.
I got the times mixed up and thought I had to meet at 7:30am, not actually arrive at the place at 7:30am. So my ride left at 6:45am.
No Disa for me today. Cry for me.

A Small, Unfortunate Face

2011-02-24T05:53:00.000-08:00

Guess what, guys?
This Saturday morning I am waking up bright and early to go on a hike up Table Mountain...TO VIEW THE RARE DISA FLOWER!
Jah, with the ZooBot society. I am excited about the possibility of making friends. I mean, I have a few Amurcan friends, but I really am interested in building relationships with actual South African students. It's harder than it seems, but with the start of my seminars, I think it will be easier than it has been the last couple of weeks.

The seminars are basically like specialized topic groups attached to the lectures. So for my Shakespeare and Co. lecture twice a week, I have a seminar called "Global Shakespeare" twice a week. For Modernism, I have a seminar on T.S. Eliot and in African Lit I have a seminar on "Literary Representations of Mourning During and After Apartheid."

This week is the first week of seminars, and today the second day of seminars. I am very excited about my particular groups- they are going to be very challenging and mind-broadening. In my Global Shakespeare course, there is a scary girl named "Babra." When she walks into the room the lights dim and my eyelids droop on account of her rather aggressive negativity. Her attitude is enormous, and she feels the need to contradict every opinion or idea brought forth by the teacher or another student. This rather defensive characteristic of hers is unfortunately highlighted by her very small face set on a rather normal-sized head, a contradiction itself in physical form. (NOTE ADDED LATER: Due to some guilt feelings on my comments on the girl's facial size in proportion to her face, I wish to add that I too, suffer from a lack of balance. My head, you see, is too small for my body. I did not wish to put Babra down in any way, I just felt like the description kind of fit the overall vibe of her character.)

There is not much to report today, other than the fact that I am in South Africa. (!!!)
Also, I have had two Stoney's today to drink and the ginger keeps making me burp.

Cheers,
Bonnie

Seth please for the love of God and all things holy make me a cd and send it to me

2011-02-21T23:15:00.000-08:00

Here are songs that have been mercilessly making their cycle round on my iPod

"Delicious" by Catherine Wheel

"Someone Else's Song" by Wilco

"Where is My Mind" by The Pixies

"Misunderstood" by Wilco

"Wrecking Ball" by Dead Confederate

"Zebra" by Beach House

Basically most of the same songs I've always loved. Add to those the usual mix of Camera Obscura and we're all set. Also My Morning Jacket has been pretty regular.
Thanks to my brother for some music. Thanks thanks thanks.
Oh, and I love Beach House. And Seth, I don't like Dum Dum Girls at all, or Best Coast. Nice try, though.
Wilco is an interesting band. I think I would not have liked them at all a few years ago, and in truth I barely cared for them last year. It's funny how tastes change with the weather, and some with age, and alot with experience. I feel like I am turning into a mellow music gal...oh god...I am turning into a 30-something year old woman....Keep the Dave Matthews band away from me please...I want to retain some sort of edge (yeah right)
Seth please send me cds.

2011-02-20T21:59:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I went to church right down the road from me- Claremont Baptist Church. I was interested to know what a Baptist church in SA was like compared to an American Baptist church. As it turns out, they are not much different.
The pastor was named Peter Smallbones, which I thought was kind of a pirate name. ("He may be a small'un, but beware ye Peterrr Smallbones! He'll whip a knife o'er yer hamstrings and tie yer shoelaces togetherr!") The message centered around the Christian's need to view the Father from the perspective of a child. It was good teaching, just kind of short. Maybe because I am used to Mitch Jolly's teaching, which isn't short...
The worship was led by a rainbow'd guitar strapped bearded guy with a nice smile. He was painfully soft-spoken and sweet, and consistently changed the tempo of the songs throughout the singing of each and leaving the band on their toes.
I honestly wasn't taken in by the service that much, but afterward I went and introduced myself to Pira-er, Pastor Smallbones. He was a friendly, caring person who, when he found out I was American, exclaimed that I must meet one of the two American families in the church. He led me to a large, long-haired and smiling lady who grabbed both my hands when I introduced myself. Her name was Gail, and she and her husband moved from Memphis to Cape Town roughly twelve years ago so he could teach at the Baptist seminary in town. She immediately began questioning me about where I was from, where I went to school, and where I currently lived. Turns out that she was familiar with Rome and Shorter College (now University), and had some family herself further down south Georgia. She has 4 kids, the youngest named Samuel (of course I got excited and told the boy that my younger brother is named Sam). This Wednesday I am to be picked up by Gail and fam and spend the evening with them. The church college student group meets at their house that night, so it will give me a chance to meet more students, South African students, regardless of whether I decide to stay at that particular church or not.

I slept terribly last night, being tormented by extremely realistic dreams dredging up unwanted thoughts. I woke up at 3:00am, wide-eyed and heart-heavy. I lay there, wondering if I could go back to sleep without worry of the dreams again. Almost as soon as I gave a sigh, words began pouring into my mind. The Lord is with you, he is mighty to save. He will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing. Oh Zephaniah.
The words He will quiet you with his love became I will quiet you with my love circled in my head over and over until I fell asleep again, deeply this time.
I would like to say I slept without incident until my alarm went off at 6:30am, but alas, I was woken up again, not by the voice of God or by nightmares, but by Jenny turning my light on and explaining that the dog, Pooh, has gotten sick all along the hallway and into my room. We covered the sick with newspapers and went back to sleep, Jenny to her unsick'd room and I with my covers over my nose!

UPDATE:
I opted out of the Wine society and joined the Biological Society instead. I know it sounds funny, but they go caving! And go on nature hikes! And their table during the society fair was really pretty. Don't worry, I asked if one had to have biological skillz to join and they said naw. Fingers crossed!

Do yourself a favor and google Kirstenbosch Gardens. That is where I spent my Saturday. We happened to be there at the same time as a wedding was taking place. We sat on the grass and spied on them. It was so beautiful- everyone was dressed in traditional African garb and after the ceremony they walked through the gardens singing along with a drummer's beat. It made me so happy, I wanted to go and hug the bride myself! I got pictures, so of course at some point you will be able to see if for yourself.

That's all for today,
Cheers
Bonnie

Sweet sticky stuff and Amazing Grace

2011-02-17T03:26:00.000-08:00

My time in South Africa (three weeks this past Tuesday!) has been so great thus far! I love putting on my slip-slops (flip-flops) or takkies (sneakers) and setting out on my half-hour walk into Rondebosch, where the UCT campus awaits me.
Last night was especially wonderful, as Andre made for us a Brazilian dessert.

Andre's Brigadeiro

Empty a can of condensed milk into a hot pan, add a little milk

Throw in a spoonful of butter

Pour chocolate powder to taste

Stir stir stir till it becomes as thick as Nutella!

As you can imagine, it is super sweet. It is really delicious with bananas mixed in.

I wanted to share an entry I made in my journal this morning.
It seems like simply being away from my normal situations and distractions are teaching me things about myself every single day. I think because my heart is more open and vulnerable ("A broken and contrite heart, O Lord, You will not despise") God is being heard all the more plainly. A veil is being lifted- the old, extravagent love I once bore for my Father is being rediscovered. Love begins to fill every aspect of my day-to-day living and experiences...reading a good book has become like reading a love letter. In a book by Shannon Etheridge, the author says,

"His world, my world, is overflowing with personal gifts from a personal God who loves me like no other can. Look around your world, and notice how certain aspects of God's creation seem to have your name written on them, as if God is saying, 'This is for you, especially from Me.'"

It's alot like being dated, I suppose....except instead of the constant nagging question of "Will he love me tomorrow?" there is a peace to be found nowehere else but in the unconditional love of Christ.
That whole thing with Hosea and his whore-wife? Totally seeing that whole bit in the Bible clearer than ever. While God uses Hosea's unconditional love and pursuit of his wife to parallel His own love for Isreal, it's also a beautiful reflection of God's hot, passionate, relentless, grace-filled pursuit of us.

"Anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone, a new one has begun!" 2 Cor 5:17

Happy Post-V-Day

2011-02-15T05:05:00.000-08:00

Hope everyone had a nice Valentine's Day! Mine was pretty great, went to my first day of classes! They went splendidly...Modernism at 8:00am is a bit much, but I'll settle in. Shakespeare sounds completely awesome, I am super excited about more Willie!
I came home shortly after noon and took a super nice nap. I ended the evening by going to a gig with a new friend. Yay for new friends! And gigs! Check out Shotgun Tori on facebook- she is super talented, and very nice and lovely, as well. A highlight of the evening was definitely standing in a huddle on the rooftop swapping "stalker" stories and pondering the potential for the next genre of stalker-film.
Anywoo, hope the week's started nicely for you!
Cheers,
B

Geezlike

2011-02-13T04:57:00.000-08:00

I spent the majority of the afternoon yesterday fixing my camera. I made a copy of the broken piece with a bit of plastic from some surfers' discount card they gave out at school and wedged the piece near the memory card slot of the camera. It worked! Oh my genius.

Now that I've got a working camera, I have to get pictures up, right?

I walked all over campus around noontime and took lots of beautifulish pictures. Since it is Sunday it is very quiet around campus, only a few students strolled the walks. I am now sitting in Cocoa WahWah, a nice little cafe on Main Rd in Rondebosch with the aim of posting some pictures. But alas! My laptop is sD compatible, not xD like my memory card. I hope I brought my computer-to-camera cords with me...

It's ok, though! Here is your bone! A picture I got yesterday with my webcam! (thanks family for the vday gift!)

Yesterday I convinced Jenny to take me to the library. She ended up leaving with a library card and two books for herself and three for me. I got Shakespeare, Joseph Conrad, and TS Eliot, all for classes tomorrow.

NOTE: There are girls at a table directly behind me who keep laughing and one of them has got the shrillest, loudest laugh. I actually turned my hearing aids down ALL THE WAY so I wouldn't hear them. Come on, people, indoor laughs, indoor laughs. By the way I just ate a bacon, egg, and cheese toasted sandwhich and drank a vanilla chai shake and both were supremely delicious, even though I generally dislike bacon, egg, and cheese sandwhiches. END NOTE.

After that, I convinced Jenny to take me to a craft fair in Rondebosch Park. You have never seen so many homemade pies in your life. Mince, rhubarb, other stuff, chicken stuff, etc etc. I bought a giant bag of homemade rusks, a tea biscuit I had never had previously. I went home and had tea (Rooibus is delicioussss) and dipped my rusks in the tea and it was so wonderfully fantastic. I mean, really. Rooibus tea and rusks. Do it.

I finished "Rebecca" and now I am reading "Jamaica Inn." It seems like it is going to be almost as good as "Rebecca," although Du Maurier's desciption of an albino seems a bit inaccurate.

Classes tomorrow! And I can sign up for volunteer efforts tomorrow, as well. I have my heart set on working at the TB hospital, but we'll see how things work out.

This morning I went to Jubilee Church with Rachel. It's really great- if it was closer I think I would go there every Sunday. They also served rooibus afterward. :) There is actually a Baptist Church near my house. I've heard it's quite "conservative" which makes me nervous mostly because I am unsure of what their definition of "conservative" is. I am most likely going to visit there next Sunday. We shall see....

There have been a few dark mornings that came about through nightmares from the night before. Nightmares right now usually consist of painful memories whirling and spinning through my mind like some sort of torturous roller coaster. How appropriate, then, was the teaching this morning at church- all about the true grace of God. Where would I be, otherwise?

Andre leaves for Brazil this Friday. This makes me very sad. He is very friendly, funny, and supremely good-hearted. I really wish I could've gotten to know him longer and better. He, Andy and I sat the other night and watched How to Train Your Dragon. I fell asleep at the beginning, but I mean, it was still lots of fun.

Pray for me and my academic balance, and for the volunteer/missions opps, and for the people I interact with. I have come across some very strong-minded Christians with great faith in God, but have also interacted with people who claim a separation from Christ for whatever reason- "I don't need God" "Bible is fallible because it's written by fallible human hands" "I used to be a devout Christian but no longer"

the same things I heard at home from some people who were close to me.

If a person claims the lack of a need for God, the only thing that can ever change their heart is, of course, the only thing that can ever change anyone's heart- Christ. Other excuses can be broken down easily, but I feel like the toughest one to deal with is the "I just don't need God" card. Maybe because it strikes too personally for me, I am not sure. Unlike some, though, I find I need God more than ever. No one else would I cry out to during my dark nights, nor to whom I would confess the desires of my heart. I've learned lessons the hard way, and I am determined not to let anything or anyone take His place again.

Cheers,

Bonnie

Ow

2011-02-09T05:07:00.000-08:00

I am really sunburned.
Also, I joined the Student Y society (sort of like South Africa's BCM) and the Wine and Culture society. You get to be involved with cool Bible studies and fellowship with other students in the Y, and in the Wine soc. you get to learn how wine is made, how it's tasted, etc etc. Should be fun! Fun in the classy sense, don't worry.
Tomorrow Rachel and I are going to hit up some more museums, yay! Yesterday I went to the Art museum and it was really awesome. Small, but full of great pieces.
Cheers,
B
p.s. I do miss my cousin, and I am so happy to hear that I am apparently a topic in the infamous "grapevine". I also had a strange dream last night that I rode on a crocodile through the river, so you weren't so far off, Jeremy. One thing I can't wait to see when I get home- those lovely cinderblocks.
p.s.s. Found out that one can never escape hillbillies. There is a version found here of Afrikaan people called "Boxbourgians" (people from Boxbourg.)
p.s.s.s. Oh my goodness "Rebecca" is soooo good. I am halfway finished with it and madly inlove with it.

Hello from SA

2011-02-08T00:34:00.000-08:00

I am currently sitting in a computer lab waiting for my friend Erica to get to campus so we can look at the society tents. There are literally hundreds of societies here and they are all trying to recruit people to join. The societies range from a Wine Society to a Catholic Society to a Linux Appreciation Society. I am keeping my hand from signing up for anything until I find either a Book Society or a Disney Movies Society. Wish me luck.
On the plane from London to Cape Town, I got my camera out to play around with it (it was, well, a really long plane ride) and discovered that it was broken. Not in a major way, just a little flap broke off that has to be detected by a sensor in order for the camera to function. So, I am going into week II without a camera to be had. Of course, there are many camera shops around and I will eventually purchase a camera to last me my stay, I just haven't gotten around to it yet. This means that all the places I've visited in the last two weeks will have to be revisited so they can be photographed meticulously. Just kidding. But probably. Throughout my blog, until I get a camera, I will add "insert picture" in all the places that warrant a descriptive photograph, so you the reader will be forced to use your imagination.
The UCT campus is absolutely beautiful! (insert picture)
I think my leg muscles have strengthened dramatically over the last days. Por ejemple: On Saturday I missed the shuttle to campus, so I walked about 40 minutes to my destination. Once there, my friends and I hiked up to Table Mountain to Rhodes Memorial, and then up further to the Blockhouse. Later that evening, I figured out that the Jammie Shuttle (the free UCT transport service) stopped running to my area at 2:00pm that afternoon. So I walked home again. I got home and Jenny, my host-mum, remarked on both the sweat on my brow and the extreme dirtiness of my Chaco-wearing feet. They were pretty gross. (insert picture)
My first week here consisted of orientation orientation orientation. And then the second week consisted of...orientation! The second week was voluntary, because I accompanied my housemate, Andy, to his "official" UCT orientation.
This week is a free week, so yesterday and couple of girls and I went to Kalk's Bay, a nice beach with a yummy fish and chips place called Kalky's. There is an abundance of really cute stores and even a Rare Books store! The beach was super nice and filled with surfers galore. The scenery....was nice. (insert picture)
Last night was one of the best nights, though. Andre (my Brazilian housemate), Andy (my Joburg-ian housemate), and I ate ice cream and Moon Pies (my gift to my host-mum) and then ended up in the living room watching Spongebob Squarepants. Afterward we found ourselves in the kitchen, each person in a different corner, chatting for a while. We have now made a joke that every night at 10:00pm we will meet in our corners in the kitchen and chat!
This morning I rode with Andy to campus and after checking my email, discovered I had a package waiting for me at the CIEE (program that facilitates me coming to SA) office. It was a package with Valentines cards from my family! I cried a little.
I am also chewing the Bubble Yum they sent along.
So far things are going well. My updates of this blog should be pretty consistent from here on.
I don't miss home, I don't miss anything about the States or Rome or even Georgia. I do wish my family were here to experience the things I am seeing. I miss Sam and Anna alot, and I talk about Seth and Julie too much. And of course if I could I would chat with my parents every night.
I am happy here right now, and I hope it will continue for as long as possible. I know once school starts next Monday there will be a nice schedule and rhythm to my days, so I am looking forward to that.
Cheers,
Bonnie

The Manfriend and his Art

2010-10-24T19:53:00.000-07:00

Ok Party People,
I have a Manfriend. What's a "manfriend", you might ask.
Well, a manfriend is sort of like a "boyfriend" but differs in many respects. I'll give you a short five-point comparative list, the tip of the iceberg, if you will.

1. GIFTS
Boyfriend:
Brings flowers
Manfriend:
Brings chicken sandwich

2. KISSING
Boyfriend:
Leans in for a kiss
Manfriend:
Picks you up off your feet

3. WORK
Boyfriend:
"Hard work" means mowing the lawn
Manfriend:
"Hard work" means spending hours upon hours splitting wood and then finding more things to do

4. ALCOHOL
Boyfriend:
Drinks Smirnoff from time to time
Manfriend:
Drinks straight Bourbon from time to time

5. CHIVALRY
Boyfriend:
Opens door for ladies, is polite to old people, glares at rude people if necessary
Manfriend:
Opens door for ladies, old people love him, beats up rude people if necessary

That, my friends, is a very, very condensed version of the master list.
To get to my point, I have a manfriend. His name is James. James is and has been one of my most favorite people for some time now. James also happens to be a very talented artist. He is an extremely hard-working individual who can throw a really, really mean whiskey cup. No kidding. Just look at these teabowls: http://www.roswellclaycollective.com/JAD3.html
James has gotten together with a bunch of other talented ceramic artists to create a Woodfired Teabowl exhibit, curated by James himself. He is not your average Shorter University undergrad, that's for sure.
I have had the pleasure to meet a few names on the artist list and pretty much wanted to be their best friend immediately. Ian Childers is my professor at Shorter and someone I look up to alot and I value the artistic advice I get from him. AJ Argentina seemed like a really swell guy when I got the brief chance to chat with him at the last anagama firing, and I totally have a crush on his beard. The same could be said of Micah Cain. Davis McNeal quickly became one of my favorite people during the time I spent with him during the anagama firing. I have heard great things about the others I haven't met, and I'm sure they're wonderful people, as well. Well, not totally sure, but at least their work is awesome. :)
If you are in the Atlanta area, please feel free to stop by the opening! It's October 29. All the info can be found on the website. Totally drop in and see the awesome pottery. For those not in Georgia, check out the website http://www.roswellclaycollective.com/thumbnails.html
It's totally awesome, no?

Radio Gaga

2010-08-04T16:13:00.000-07:00

good grief

2010-07-28T14:13:00.000-07:00

2010-07-12T10:28:00.001-07:00

Discover Simple, Private Sharing at Drop.io

...the future....

2010-07-10T15:10:00.000-07:00

I love this. I miss New York. I am keeping my fingers crossed that I will be able to land an internship with Scholastic in NYC next summer. If I can, I think it'd be really really cool if I could crash with someone in the city for the summer. I'll have to use my "connections", which means getting in touch with people I know live there and seeing if they know anyone willing to rent out a room, a couch, or a place to hang my hammock. Is it a stretch? Perhaps.
Worst case scenario: Nothing will work out and I have to live in Rome and skate with the Rome Rollergirls, which would be hecka-awesome. :)

Mission Internship-Summer-2011

2010-06-28T08:01:00.000-07:00

I am currently on the lookout for internship opportunities for summer 2011. I will be in South Africa all spring, so I am trying to get as much settled, as far as a summer internship goes, as I can before January. I posted this on the Friends of Tom forum this morning and copied it down below:

Hey guyzes,

I am going into my third year of college and am looking for internship opportunities for next summer. I know it's basically a whole year away, but I want to go ahead and get as much figured out as I can before January, which is when I will be (God willing) studying abroad in Cape Town.

I am a double major in English and Fine Art. I am looking for an internship that fits either one of my majors in some way, I'm not picky. What I am looking for in an internship is the chance to live away from home, to learn from someone/people already somewhat established in the art or writing world, and just to gain more life experience while learning what I may want to do in the future. Ideally, I would love to be able to hang out and help out with one person or a small network of creative people who genuinely care about what they do.

I am an average college student in that I am unsure of what I want to do as a career, but I am not too stressed about that- I feel like I am the type of person who has to exuberantly embrace learning many things before I am able to find something that truly clicks with me. I am excited about the pains and joys of life, in general.

Originally, I was looking exclusively at interning/living/working in NYC, but now I think it would be beneficial to be open-minded. Wherever I end up interning, I figure I will find a job to support myself for the summer, find a room to rent or a generous person to let me crash for two-ish months, and use my free hours to do whatever I can do as an intern.

Typing this all out makes me think I'm shooting for the stars, but I think it's completely possible, and I am super determined to do this.

Here is why I am posting this:

Firstly, if anyone has any advice for me whatsoever, as far as anything I've written above, please vocalize.

Secondly, if anyone has any connections or ideas about where I could intern or live or work, I would be so appreciative. I mostly trust all of you guys and your ideas.

Thirdly, I am trying to get together two resumes/portfolios, one for my English work and one for my art work. If anyone has one they could send my way so I can get an idea on how to set mine up, that would be incredibly awesome. And if you have advice on what to include, doubly appreciative. DM me for my email or such.

I have been thinking about this a ton, and the FOTs are the first people that popped in my mind when I knew I needed some advice on getting started. You guys are awesome, and I would love and appreciate your thoughts.

Please let me know if you have any ideas!
Thanks!

Bonnie

Bowing her head over his...

2010-06-01T19:25:00.001-07:00

...kissing the words she could not utter.
-Anaïs Nin

Inanimate Object pt 1

2010-05-25T08:35:00.000-07:00

I am working on a story about a girl (ok ok, it's sooo autobiographical. Pshh.). The story about the girl is pieced together by the viewpoints of different inanimate objects in her day-to-day life. Below is the first object. I am aware that it needs many revisions, at this point I am just trying to get my basic idea on paper. Give me feedback, I am not sure if I pull it off well.
(story edited 1:18am 5/26/10)
*************************
She pushed me, slowly at first, then with more exerted force. I rolled on the faded, speckled red carpet past the rows of shelves, each calling to us- their bringer of completion, their deliverance. She is my motivation, the source of my loyalty to my work. I am the bearer of all their prodigal sons. Except instead of receiving a feast, we get soundless thanks in the form of the wayward child welcomed back into the straight, stiff, but ever immortal fold. We leave them behind, empty-handed, to dock, to await the next load of pilgrims returning to the native land.
The mood tonight was different. Instead of the usual soft handling and respectful placement, her eyes seemed dulled, blind, as if she were completely inside herself. Her breathing was steady and her hands moved with heavy precision as she gathered the books. Hair fell to the front of her forehead when she bent down to arrange the materials I held. Her manner was uninspired. Her touch to the dear friends we had yet to return was usually akin to that of a mother tucking in her child to bed; tonight it was comparable to a game of Tetris.
I was confused as we continued rolling past the shelves. I ignored their silent greetings and focused on her. She began to put the books in their rightful places, her motions halting and expressionless. Her arm stopped just short of the shelf and the book in her hand didn’t grab hold of the surface adequately. She didn’t notice and let go. The book swished and its hardcover slapped the ground at her feet. She didn’t stoop to pick it up, I am not sure she even noticed the fall. The moment was packed with intensity, every soldier on that shelf stared gapingly at the girl.
I wanted to yell at her, to shake her shoulders, to slap the apathy off her sullen face so that she could get back into the work-mode in which she usually thrived. Instead, I stood by silently, enduring the helplessness one feels when one’s loved one refuses to communicate. I begin to feel impatient at her seeming inability to move. She stared at the shelf in front of her but her face registered nothing. The book lay still at her feet.
I had just determined to attempt to make some sort of action to break the tension and retrieve the poor fallen soul, which I knew was impossible for me but it’s the effort that counts, when I suddenly felt rain. Warm, slowly dancing drops began to splash on my back. I looked down at myself and was surprised to see the wetness upon creamy metal. When I looked back up at the girl, I almost expected the books all around us to shed similar rain, all at once invisible to her and ceaseless to me. The drops of water jumped from her eyes and ran off her chin, falling to hit my surface before absorbing into nothingness.
I was frozen. Second by second passed as a snail, I watched almost voyeuristically as she slowly sank to her knees, eyes open and downcast, tears continuing their tide into her lap. Her hands lay limply on the floor beside her. I wanted to touch her fingers, to let her know she was not alone. My body was stiff, however, and I stayed where I was with cold acceptance. Her jeans soon had dark splotches all over the inside of her thighs where she sat Indian-style. The tears kept flowing.

*******************************

Also, is it emo? I want emotion, but not cheesy emo. Thank you.

Don't Want the Sun

2010-05-18T20:01:00.003-07:00

Discover Simple, Private Sharing at Drop.io

It's funny...

2010-05-18T10:44:00.000-07:00

...how nature always seems to mirror the condition of one's soul. Of course, this is merely because as the viewpoint of a person changes, their eyes see things differently. This is why I suddenly see the world as something fragile, developing into a sort of shabby, cracking beauty. It's hard to imagine a time when I will be truly happy. Most of my life has dealt with things I want not being in accordance with God. If that is the case, one could say that God has been the source of my unhappiness. If I keep choosing God then, I am choosing not to be happy. However, I have to trust in my faith, because as long as I keep things outside of that, I am just as unhappy as I am when I give in to things I want that are not in accordance with my faith. It seems as though my world will always be one fraught with fragility and confusion, because no matter where I turn, I am faced with myself.

A Moment

2010-05-14T21:04:00.000-07:00

“How old is Ewan?” I ask politely.
“Oh Ewan is 32,” he said, fixing his black-rimmed glasses and pushing his hair back from his face.
“Ok,” I murmured, carefully penciling in the numbers 3 and 2 inside the tiny white boxes. “And his date of birth?”
“Uh, July--“ His eyes popped and his hands jumped to his face. “Oh my god, Ewan’s only 31!”
I chuckled as he shook his head and moaned. “Oh He would just have a fit if he knew! I cannot believe that I said he was 32!”
“It’s ok,” I sympathized, tempted to reach out and pat his shoulder. “He’s not here, he didn’t hear you!”
He threw his hands up and rolled his eyes. “He would just have a fit! Oh I cannot believe I said that.”
“Well, don’t worry about it. He’s not here, so he didn’t hear you.” I looked around. “Unless he has a recorder rigged up somewhere out here!” I laughed.
“Oh, no, he doesn’t,” he gasped and laughed. Shaking his head, he exclaimed for the third time, “He would just have a fit.”
As I finished filling out the rest of the form, he explained. “All last week I kept teasing him about being 32, because his birthday is coming up. Oh He would just be beside himself if he heard me say he was 32!”
On my way down the steps, a black cat ran past my legs. “Oh!” I stopped to look at the feline. “What’s his name?”
“Cherubino,” he answered, watching the cat wash his paws.
The name echoed familiar. “What’s that from?”
“The Marriage of Figaro,” he said. “We had a cat before this one named Figaro, he was named Figaro when we got him, so when we got this one we named him Cherubino.”
I nodded.
“But what we didn’t realize is that the first cat was actually named after the cat from Pinocchio.”
“Well, I am sure that the cat in Pinocchio was named after the opera, so you’re in the clear.”
We laughed and I waved goodbye as I walked down the driveway.

"Fairytale"

2010-03-19T21:38:00.001-07:00

Yet another treasure found in the pile of notebooks: a fairytale I wrote when I was about 9 or 10. Here goes!

Once upon a time, there was a very beautiful princess who had a very cold and hard heart. In the kingdom next to it there was a very hideous and ugly princess who had the softest and warmest heart anybody could ever have.
The beautiful princess' name was Annette. The ugly princess was named Grace. Annette's father, the king, was friends with Grace's father, another king. Annette and her father went to visit Grace and her father. Annette liked to visit Grace so she could get a chance to make fun of her bent back and her twisted fingers.
When Grace heard that Annette and her father were coming to visit she fled to the woods. When she was almost in the thickest part of the woods she saw an old, ugly woman.
"Could you lead me to the center of the forest, dear?" asked the old woman. "Of course I will!" Grace answered. So Grace led the old woman to the center of the forest.
Suddenly there was a CRACK of lightning and the old woman had turned into a fairy!
"Grace," said the softest and sweetest voice Grace had ever heard. "Grace, I have seen the way Annette and other people have treated you. I have looked through your ugliness and saw kindness. You shall be beautiful from now on! I will give Annette a chance when the time comes, though."
Then she vanished.
"Oh dear!" thought Grace as she waled home. "I wonder if I am beautiful. I wonder what Father will say."
When she got back to the town she noticed that all the people, especially all the young men, were staring at her. Grace remembered how before the people tried their best not to stare at her. She remembered how her true friends didn't care that she was ugly. They loved her for who she was. And her father, oh how kind her father was! Loving, caring, and compassionate. To him, she was worth more that all the treasures of the world could amount to. She knew as she walked to the castle that he would be content that she was finally happy.
The castle guards admitted her, smitten by her radiant beauty. She ran to her father, how her recognized her she had no idea. He hugged her and told her that she was and would always be beautiful to him.
Annette was suddenly nice to her. Grace tore away from the crowds and went on to bed, worn out by the excitement of the day. Annette had heard that Grace "turned pretty" in the forest, so she went out there, thinking "If that girl got pretty here, then why shouldn't I get even prettier?"
She kept walking until she saw the really ugly woman, who said "Could you please walk me to the center of the forest?" Annette backed away.
"Get out of my face, old woman! Ugly people like you should be gotten rid of in a proper fashion." She started to walk away, but she heard a CRACK of lightning and saw in place of the old woman a beautiful fairy!
"I gave you a chance, Annette," the fairy said. "But you blew it, babe, and you're right, ugly people like you should be gotten rid of in a proper fashion." With a flip of her wand, a huge bear came out and ate the doomed Annette.
Annette's father was happy to be rid of his motherless stepdaughter. He ended up being a good friend of the fairy, while Grace, her father, and her true friends led a charmingly beautiful life.
THE END
written by Bonnie Elizabeth Winstead

Drawings from Days Past

2010-03-19T20:48:00.000-07:00

Came across these as I cleaned out old papers- found in the same nook as my previous "The Dare" story. I'll be posting these as I find them- these posted below are but a small portion of the trove. It gives me hope to look through these because I realize that even though it may seem like I'm not getting anywhere, I am constantly improving- even if it is a little slow.

8-9 years old:

This one has made me giggle a lot:

At this point my drawings were mostly narrative. I had a pretty good imagination.

10 years old: Illustrating the index in my Bible.

11-13 years old: Daydreaming fairytales all over the church handout material. (I was a huge nerd. I drew a lot of elves. I know.)

14 years old, still using church handouts:

I drew LOTR characters all over a calendar. Sigh.

The Dare

2010-03-17T15:35:00.000-07:00

I was cleaning out some old papers last night and I came upon this:

"The Dare"
by
Bonnie Winstead
age 11

"Creeeek!" went the steps as Sarah waled up to an old house in the woods. "I'll show them I'm not afraid of this old house," said Sarah as she remembered the deal she had made with her friends.
Sarah would get five dollars if she went inside the house and sat down for twenty minutes. "Who would be scared of this house anyway? It's just an old ugly house!" But inside, Sarah knew her bones were shaking!
When she reached the door, she hesitated, then turned the knob. But, as soon as she opened it she screamed for she had come face-to-face with a skeleton! She took one look at the skeleton and fainted dead away.
"Ooooh," she said as she awakened on the porch. "I must have hit my head." Then she looked around. It was getting dark and rain was falling. "I guess I'll have to stay here longer than I planned," Sarah said. The door was still open and the skeleton still there. She walked inside slowly and quietly. The room had two chairs and a very small coffee table. In the corner of the room stood a grandfather clock. "Spooky," Sarah said. Then she walked slowly over to the coffee table. On it lay a dusty book. Sarah picked it up and started flipping through it. One page caught her eye. It said, "I was alone in a house when the grandfather clock struck twelve." Right below it was a picture of a young man who had on a gold necklace with a ruby in it.
Sarah remembered something about the skeleton. She ran over to the skeleton and, sure enough, the skeleton was wearing the same necklace as the man in the book! Sarah sucked in her breath and then let it out in short gasps. "Ok," she said. "How'd this guy's necklace end up on a skeleton?" Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of eleven long gongs coming from the grandfather clock. "Ohhh no, in one hour I'll probably end up like the guy in the book!"
Sarah felt her eyelids drooping and soon fell asleep in one of the chairs. She was awakened suddenly by TWELVE long gongs from the grandfather clock! She sat there a moment, startled. Her hand flew to her chest. She looked down and whispered, "How can this be?" For around her neck was the same gold necklace with the ruby in the center. Then, Sarah let out a terrified scream......
The End

A Clever Title Here That Says Something About Embarrasment

2010-01-09T13:48:00.000-08:00

I decided to go to Starbucks this afternoon to get myself out of the house. A red-eye was ordered and after I paid I went and found a nice private spot in the corner of the shop to hook my laptop up and quietly online shop for school things.
I waited for them to call out "Redeye" so I could walk over to the bar and pick up that piping hot cup of salvation and go about my business.
After what seemed to be an eternity with no coffee in sight, I moseyed shyly up to the bar and stood there with what I hope was an accusing yet forgiving expression on my face. The barista continued mixing her frappes and lattes while I watched patiently. Finishing with a dollop of whipped cream which was immediately smothered in caramel syrup, she held it out to me and said, "Deborah?"
I blushed and shook my head. Why did I blush? I think I was embarrassed that she thought I was Deborah. Excuse me, but I'd like to meet the college student of average college student age named Deborah. A middle-aged woman came up and gladly took the drink with Deborah written on it. I intelligently assume she was Deborah.
I hesitantly ventured, "I'm just checking on my, um, redeye?"
She yelled to the back. I always thought that yelling was off-limits in coffee shops, but I guess I was wrong.
The guy who took my order pointed to the cash register. There was my coffee, as it had apparently been sitting for the last 20 minutes. I apologized (for what, I have no idea- they're the ones who neglected to tell me that the coffee would be placed unceremoniously by the register instead of the usual "Coffee Drink Name Here!" at the bar) and they made a fresh cup for me.
So I sat down in my corner and opened my laptop. After logging into their wifi system, I found out that there is a process you have to go through in order to use their internet. One of the steps (the first step, in fact) is to go to the register and purchase a Starbucks "Rewards" card, whatever that is (why do you have to buy a reward? That makes no sense to me) and then register the card number to their website, which allows the user 2 hours of free wifi in any Starbucks per day.
I was 1. Refusing to buy a "rewards" card
2. Too embarrassed to go back there after being called "Deborah" and having my coffee neglected.
So I piddled around on my laptop. "Piddled" meaning "Playing on MS Paint and Word." I had an hour to kill in that coffee den of horror before my friend with whom I was to meet for a pastry arrived.
My paint creations are mostly terrible, except for a pretty nifty Corel Paint Pro rendition of Mikhail Baryshnikov's fabulous legs that is now my desktop background.
Here is what I wrote while I waited. I don't know if I'll ever finish it. It was entertaining, at least.

PROLOGUE

Once upon a time, there was a very wicked king. So wicked, in fact, that he ate little girls.
But before you gasp in horror, let me assure you that this cannibalistic Excellency didn’t just eat any little girl- he had his own list of requirements for each urchin to meet before the unfortunate child became his tasty meal.
He used to eat little boys, but he found that they were too lean and liable to fight back madly, so for the sake of his royal well-being he put off devouring the young of his particular species (which is to say, Male.)
Little girls were perfect. Well, of course not all little girls were perfect, which is why, I say once again, the Most Honorable Ruler had a list of dietary preferences. His Perfect list is as follows:
1. Must be no older than 10 years old (when they begin to lose that soft coveted fleshiness that tastes oh so good with Royal dumplings and duck)
2. Must be fair of skin and rosy of cheek (Since the fair-skinned are the majority of skin-tones in the kingdom, the Equality-Minded king felt he should encourage more diversity by equaling out the variations in skin-color)
3. Must be of good hygiene and manners (A naughty or impudent child is usually bitter-tasting; no amount of spices or herbs can overwhelm the prevailing taste of sauciness)
4. Must be curly-headed (Straight hair tends to find its way into the Most Gracious King’s soups and cause the Most Excellent Highness to sputter and cough when it catches in the Royal Throat; curly hair has been found to be the easiest to swallow and digest)
As you can see, His Utmost Appetite is not teetering on picky. HOWEVER, many Terrible and Inept Servants have lost important tools (specifically their heads) by failing to follow the Gracious and Merciful King’s instructions accurately. One in particular, Billy Bob Joe, not only failed to follow the Perfect and Orderly Orders of King’s Meals, but he had the Impudence to attempt to STEAL the little girls from the Little Girls Who Have Been Picked By the Honorable King to Be Eaten House. Right before his execution he was questioned as to his motives for this Ultimate Treacherous Act Against the Completely Better-Than-You King. Can you believe what he said?
He insisted that he was RESCUING the wee gals! You can imagine the uproar this caused in the king’s court. Many Refined Lords and Ladies wished to teach this Offensive whippersnapper a lesson his pea-brain wouldn’t forget. (Well, I guess he would forget it, since their plan was to behead him. That’s neither here nor there.) But at the hour of his execution, he was nowhere to be found.

THIS is his story.

Goods schmoods

2009-12-08T16:53:00.000-08:00

Today we went to McKay's, a used bookstore in Chattanooga. I say bookstore, but it actually contains rows and rows of cds, records, and movies, as well. I spent a long time perusing the shelves of books, not even making it to the dvd section. Here is a list of things I bought, excluding the books I bought as Christmas gifts, in order by price:

$12.00 Anyway Anyhow Anywhere: The Complete Chronicle of The Who- Andy Neill and Matt Kent
Hey, it seems interesting enough. :)

$10.00 South Africa: The Rough Guide
Since I am (Lord willing) going to study abroad in the fall in Capetown, I figure I definitely need to read up on the history and culture of S. Africa. I've already gotten a ton of books from the library on the country.

$8.00 Pictures at a Revolution: Five Movies and the Birth of the New Hollywood- Mark Harris
I was browsing the film criticism section (where I find tons of really interesting books I'll start but never finish) and picked this book off the shelf. The subject sounded pretty grabbing, but after some thought I put it back. I walked to the next section and then I froze- what was the author's name? I went back and pulled the book down, noticing this time that the author was Mark Harris, a journalist that writes the segment of Entertainment Weekly I really enjoy- "Final Cut" (I think that's the name...). He always presents neat and thoughtful writings on the entertainment industry.

$5.00 The Ottoman Centuries- Lord Kinross
I don't know if this guy is a "lord" or if his name is "Lord." Regardless, I think the Ottoman Empire is one of the most captivating histories to study. Ever.

$3.00 Sahara- Michael Palin
I've read this before and watched the BBC program and LOVED it, as you well know if you've read earlier posts. Now I OWN the book, which is even better.

$2.00 Forbidden Knowledge- Roger Shattuck
I've read this book before and found it compelling. I can't really think of a good way to describe it, so here is a ready-made:

(Amazon.com Review) An intellectual tour-de-force, Forbidden Knowledge is a study of the ethics of literary and scientific inquiry. Shattuck first approaches his subject indirectly, conducting an engaging tour of Western literature: Adam and Eve, Prometheus, Milton's Paradise Lost, Goethe's Faust, and Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. He then uses these tales to address the moral questions raised by mankind's tendency to search for dangerous knowledge. He contrasts J. Robert Oppenheimer's acceptance of guilt for the atomic bombings with Edward Teller's dismissal of the same. In his own field of literary criticism he argues against the neutral analysis of immoral works as "pure literature," illustrating his point with a critique of the Marquis de Sade. Forbidden Knowledge is a stimulating and forceful intellectual argument against moral relativism, as well as a practical approach to difficult ethical problems, from genetic engineering to pornography."

$0.75 The Virgin Queen: Elizabeth I, Genius of the Golden Age- Christopher HibbertI am a sucker for books about Elizabeth I. I find her very fascinating. I also find the "virgin" part improbable.

$0.75 Once Upon a Time: Behind the Tale of Princess Grace and Prince Rainier- J. Randy Taraborrelli
Besides having the opinion that Grace Kelly was the epitome of classiness and beauty in 1950's Hollywood, I think her marriage to Prince Rainier of Monaco is either really romantic or really un-romantic. I can't ever decide.

$0.75 My Name Escapes Me- Alec Guinness
Sir Alec Guinness? An autobiography?
I say a winner.

I also got 3 other books, but since they are gifts I don't want to post the names. One was $8.00 and two were $5.00.

I got a good batch of books! Woohoo!

Reminince of Jacobites

2009-11-04T20:50:00.000-08:00

A little while ago, I was mentally listing off favorite books I had read as a kid. Most of them were classics, like A Tale of Two Cities, Great Expectations, and anything else by Charles Dickens. I also loved Moby Dick, A Wrinkle in Time, and all the Wonderland books.
My favorite of these was probably A Tale of Two Cities, in which the character Sidney Carton fascinated me. I was around 10 or 11 and thought he was the best tragic hero in the history of history.He was not my very favorite literary character, though, oh no. This honor belongs to a character that enthralled me, frightened me a little, wooed, and braved his way into my heart.
His name is Alan Breck, and he is Robert Louis Stevenson's hero in his novel Kidnapped.
The funny thing is, it has been so long since I've read the book that I can't really remember specific details about the plot or even why exactly Alan was on the run from the law.
I need to read the novel again, and see if I fall in love with Mr. Breck all over again.

Bought a Old Stack of "The New Yorker" for 10 cents.

2009-10-20T17:25:00.000-07:00

Sam is my 5 year old brother. He confessed that he was scared of the dark due to monsters. I taught him a song I always sang when I was little and got scared. It goes like thus:

When I am afraid I will trust in You, I will trust in you, I will trust in You,
(repeat)
For God, You keep me safe.

Sam laughed. He repeated the song in a monster voice. After I glared at him, he sang in a robot voice. Beep boop.
The he made up his own versions:

"When I am afraid I will
Put my head under my shirt and look at my belly button
Because God is good."

This one he made me repeat each line after him:

"When I am afraid
(when I am afraid)
When will God sleep with me and
(when will God sleep with me and)
Bonk my shoulder
(bonk my shoulder)
and then He will
(and then he will)
Bonk his head
(bonk his head)."

I wonder if the belly button song really works?

The Sheep Convention

2009-10-18T06:13:00.000-07:00

"Sheep are absolutely everywhere - they seem to totally overrun the city.
Either they're very very fond of sheep, or there's some sort of sheep convention.
It's most odd, I've never seen so many sheep in one place in all my life.
And I'm a bit of a sheep man.
Oh...I like them...just in a...aesthetic way.
All their little fluffy tails, bummy bits..." Turns from the camera, laughing.
- Michael Palin on the train ride from Dakar, Mauritania to Timbuktu

Michael Palin is the coolest man ever. I'm currently watching his Sahara travel program that aired on the BBC a few years ago. If there ever was a man I want to meet and shake hands with, it'd be him. Full of wit, charm, and the utmost affability, he always [seems] to make the best of every situation. My readings of his books and diaries (I strongly recommend his Python Diaries, they are a really neat insight into not only the word of Monty Python, but also the Frost Report, Do Not Adjust You Television Set, and others. It also gives you a fascinating picture of the man himself. After all, these were his diary entries from the early to late 70's!) confirm my belief that he has got to be a very nice person.
He's the only Python to still be happily married to his first wife. The others have married, affair'd, divorced, girlfriend'd, etc. Although, technically, Terry Jones is still married to his first wife, Alison. He lives, however, with his girlfriend, and they have a daughter.
There was actually an interesting bit in Python Diaries about one of Palin's bits on Saturday Night Live (of which I can find no clips anywhere- can anyone help?). It contained a conversation between Palin and John Belushi that took place in their dressing room. John Belushi said, if I remember correctly, "I don't f*** anyone but my wife," and the dialogue that followed went along the lines of both agreeing on marriage fidelity. It was always a scene that stuck out to me for some reason.

Drawing a Brain is Not Easy.

2009-09-29T13:31:00.000-07:00

In my Creative Writing class, we are writing a short story. I have been having quite a case of writer's block, and thus found the writing exercises we did week after week incredibly awful.
---
I had an incredibly awful time with it, which was surprising because my imagination never fails to come up with something. And these exercises are not even that difficult-sounding.
After slogging through them, we were/are required to get the basis for our short story together. I groaned. I felt like a failure, pretty much.
Then things began to change.
The air got brighter, my walks brisker, and I grew more alert to my surroundings and the friends around me.
I started noticing things, at first subconsciously, then deliberately.
The sky is vivid.
I can smell barbeque, very faintly.
Her hair is falling out of her ponytail.
The leaves are crispy and make a crunchy noise like potato chips when I walk on them.
The vending machine is half empty, with the top three shelves void of snacks, but Butterfingers and peanut butter crackers are still there.
The apple is soft on its sides.
Her handwriting is slanted.
His voice cracks slightly.
Her face is shaped like an oval mirror.
I think it was because my emotions got kinda funky due to a little bit of heartache. Or maybe it was because I began to immerse myself in painting and my artwork. Or maybe because I started up running, and was forced to feel the wind against my face every morning?
I walked with my friend Sarah one day, and her bobby pin fell from her hair and into the crack in the sidewalk.
For some reason, this image stayed in my head, and I decided that it would be so funny if there was a guy named Bobby Pin (or Penn). Then I decide to name a character "Robert Penn."
That takes care of that.
But what would the story be? So I've got a man. What's his story? Why should I write about him?
The other night, I talked to a friend on the telephone. We spoke for around 3 hours, and in that conversation I got all the remaining components of my story. It was like all of the sudden all these thoughts swirled in my head and I knew I just had to put them into my character.
name:
Robert Penn is kind of an oddball. He's funky, but it works.
route:
One day when he was twelve he sat at the kitchen table doing his homework. The window was open and a breeze touched his nose with smells of falling red leaves. His grandma put a pan in the oven and stepped over to the counter, taking off her oven mitts. "Just remember not to take route 95," she said.
obsession:
He pulled the strap tighter and double-checked the camera mount. The driver watched him warily, twisting a toothpick between his thin lips.
"Are you sure you've got permission to do this?" he asked for the third time.
"Do you want to see the letter again?"
He shook his head and waved his hand as he walked away from the front of the black engine. "Naw, I 'spose it'll be alright."
Penn stepped down and gazed up at the video camera. This would be the 5th ride, and his fabricated letter of permission from the railway-line had yet to be questioned thoroughly.

So far, just bits and pieces. But I feel confident that if I talk to certain people again, the rest will come. I'm beginning to like this Robert Penn and his fascination with trains. I hope it turns out well...I just have a lot more scenes to gather

My Daring Group of Jewel Recoverers

2009-08-26T19:58:00.000-07:00

I came home from classes to be told be my younger sister that today in her literature studies she was required to write up a list. What kind of list? A list of 13 people she would take with her on a dangerous mission to recover some stolen jewels. This sounded so intriguing to me that I couldn't resist coming up with a list of my own, conforming to the same standards she wrote by. I told her I didn't want to know who her accomplices were; we would compare lists in the morning over breakfast.
Here is my list (in order of which I thought of them; not necessarily by rank) note: I edited #2 from Caractacus Potts to McGuyver, at the ingenious suggestion by Dave.:
1) Captain Cook
Here's your man for perilous adventure- and if we find the need to travel by sea, he can expertly guide us through the seven seas on his ship!

2. McGuyver
'Cus he can make anything out of anything, duh!

3. Gopher
from "Winnie the Pooh"
In such cases that we require explosives and/or tunneling.

4. Sherlock Holmes
Not only can Holmes' analytical brain point us in the right direction of the stolen jewels, he also has a mean left hook.

5. Mata Hari
Exotic and dangerous, Mata Hari will come in handy if we need to seduce any bad guys.

6. Teddy Roosevelt
"Walk softly and carry a big stick." Need I say more?

7. Riley
from "National Treasure"
Every group must have an adorable computer genius. We may meet computers on our mission...computers that may need to be hacked into. Riley's the man for the job.

8. Aragorn
from "The Lord of the Rings"
Possible group leader of the expedition. Aragorn provides the wisdom and strength required of a leader...and he's pretty outdoorsy. What if we were to get lost in the wild?

9. Phileas Fogg
If it weren't for his dashing-ness, I'd say Fogg was too similar to Caractacus Potts to be in our group. On second thought, Fogg was a pretty smart fellow who possessed a lot of knowledge. If we need to travel by air, I hear this guy's a hot air balloon pro.

10. Clarice Starling
Focused on getting the job done, Starling would be a good shot with the bad guys. Teamed up with Holmes, Starling would prove to be a great analytical force, as well.

11. The GraveDigger
I know it's a monster truck. This doesn't deter me.

12. Dumbledore
Provides wisdom to the others' determination and eccentricities. He also knows some pretty useful spells.

13. Paul the Apostle
Paul would make everyone mad at us, get thrown in prison, and continue to be a loudmouth. But we'll all love Jesus more!

Thus concludes the list.
If I labored a little longer, I could have come up with more appropriate people, I am sure. But this is a nice start. And something fun to do when you've got no homework and don't want to be with people. I would love to hear who other people would take on their dangerous mission. Maybe this should be a project!

Recentness (in process)

2009-08-17T19:34:00.000-07:00

I realize that I still have not gone over my trip to New York.
The NY trip was very exciting for me for many reasons.
1. This trip was going to be the first and the furthest that I had taken completely independent of my family. No, cousins do not count.
2. It's kind of a big city.
3. I would get to meet some real live FOT. Live. And in person.
And in every way the trip didn't disappoint.
:::Day 1:::
Once we landed at LaGaurdia we waited outside for a cab. A uniformed man who stood outside near the cab terminal offered us the use of a limo instead. After a little haggling and figuring, we stood at riding in a limo costing about the same as taking the taxi, so we complied and were escorted to a shiny black stretch limo. It was my first limo ride, and it was a little exciting for me to be able to experience it in none other than New York City.

Our hotel room was small and modern-looking. There was a painting on the wall that showed a lady CRYING. This confused me. What could be less comforting and welcoming than a girl crying?
Plus, she wore garish red lipstick.
We went straight out of our room and onto Times Sq., to which our hotel was very close. A real life New York City hotdog was eaten, and the Hershey and M&M's stores were explored.

We then rode the subway to Canal Street, where we bought some illegal goods.
I decided where we would eat dinner that night: A place out on Pier 66 that supposedly had a pretty view of NJ. We walked there, much to the grumbling of my cousins, and it was a nice long walk by the Hudson.
The restaurant was worth the walk, the food was excellent and the people were super nice. And did I mention the view was spectacular?

:::Day 2:::
Wednesday was a day of nerves for me; I was meeting FOT's Forrest and Andrew for lunch. Before lunch comes breakfast, though. And an apple I had. We then walked all around Times Sq. again.

When lunchtime came around, Forrest met us and we walked to the restaurant of choice, Say Cheese. Andrew was to meet us there. We met, and upon entering the eatery the owner came up to us and apologetically admitted that one of her ovens broke. We provided a few words of comfort and moved to the diner down the street. The food was pretty good but the service wasn't.
Andrew was to give me a little tour of NYC that was Bonnie-friendly (i.e. books, music, curiosities). Lunch was fun, and it was great being able to meet the esteemed Forrest.

The cousins decided to go to a place called Francine's Attic or something- it is not NY specific and I have completely forgotten the name- oh well. Anyway, they decided to part ways with us. So Andrew and I went on our merry little way. The heavens opened up and poured forth rain, so we had a bit of fun running and getting soaked. I was embarrassed because my umbrella dripped inside The Strand, even though they had provided a baggie to keep the water off the floor. Oh no! The bookstore employees must not think of me as a careless, casual book-observer who doesn't care if she drips water all over the place, wetting the corners of the tomes. So I stuffed the umbrella, wet baggie and all, into my purse, taking a soggy messenger bag over the scorn of a bookstore employee. Now, The Strand was a magnificent place in which I could have easily spent hours.

And the picture is only the basement of the store.
Our last stop of the evening was The Upright Citizens Brigade to see the live broadcast of WFMU show 7 Second Delay. Possibly the best $5 I've ever spent.

The tour went wonderfully and I still can't thank Andrew more for being so nice and patient.
After that, I walked to TGI Fridays to eat with the cousins. I had a Jack Daniels burger, which was very yummy.

:::Day 3:::
The next morning we went out for breakfast at a little place called Bean and Bagel. Or Bagel and Bean. Either way, it was very affordable. I had a smoothie, a banana, and two pieces of toast. And a cup of coffee.
It was during breakfast I realized that I had not visited one art gallery or museum since arriving. Granted, we were only there for 3 days, but I felt guilty at not visiting some of the art institutions.
I confessed my worry to Tasha, Holly, and Julie, and they assured me that it would be alright to them if I spent the afternoon apart from them at the MoMA. We decided to go on to Soho, then split from there.
We went to Soho in search for a costume jewelry store that I had heard of. Unfortunately it was nowhere in sight; my thoughts conclude that said store no longer exists in that area.
We did, however, find the Scholastic Store!

I got to see a dear friend of mine. A friend who provided laughs during many a tough time. A friend who is also...a Captain who wears only underpants.
You got it- Captain Underpants!

After that, we split up and I walked to the subway to make my way back to MoMA ground.
I enjoyed walking through Soho, it was nicely kept and on the quieter side.

I found the subway and rode back to where we came from, then proceeded to make my way to the museum.
I found the museum with no problem, and walked up to the very top floor, planning to work my way back down to the ground floor. I also hoped that by the time I got to the ground, it would be 4:30, the time I was to meet FOT Matt at the entrance.
It was a lot of fun getting to see very good paintings. It was neat to see the famous paintings too, although did you know that Dali's Persistence of Memory is actually a tiny painting? I didn't either, until I saw it. Actually, you know what? I don't think I did see it- I think I noticed its smallness in a Sister Wendy art history documentary. So disregard the fact I said it was in the MoMA. I don't think it is.
Before I met Matt I had enough time to browse the museum store, which had truckloads of cool stuff. I bought a drainstop that had a boat made out of a map attached to it, so that when you plug the bathtub drain, you automatically get a little toy floating boat with it!

In The Aeroplane Over the...

2009-08-16T11:17:00.000-07:00

Last night, I had a dream.
In the dream, I am famous. I am making an appearance at Walt Disney World, for what reason I am not sure. Probably just because I am famous. Anyway, in the dream I find myself in a room crowded with adults and children alike. I am sitting at a table facing everyone, much like an author at a book signing, although to my knowledge there are no books on the table. My mom is hovering over my shoulder, talking incessently, but for whatever reason I can't understand anything she is saying. The room is very noisy, all of these families and couples socializing and creating a hum and buzz in the air.
note: I think that the WDW reference comes from my reading of Jeremy's blog that day, which chronicles his earlier experience in the Land of the Mouse.
All of the sudden I am aware that I am talking on my cellphone. It is Pastor Josh, a regular caller on The Best Show on WFMU. He is telling me that my designs were due. He never clarifies what designs these are, although somehow I know that they are for his church.
note: I think that the Pastor Josh reference comes from the practice of listening to the Best Show podcasts as I fall asleep. In the episode of that night, PJ called in.
Then, I hear a voice saying,
"When you get finished with that, I would like to talk to you!"
I look over and
it's Zach Galifianakis! And he wants to talk to me!
On the phone meanwhile, I tell PJ "Oh my gosh- Zachary C. Galifianakis wants to talk to me!"
note: I do not know what Zach G.'s middle initial is. I do not know what "C" stands for. Although I think it might have something to do with a crude Jeff Mangum joke I read earlier that day.
I end the call and turn to talk to Zach. But then the dream morphs into a weird run-away adventure where I am a kid riding this:
But then the dream goes crazy and incredibly disjointed, as dreams are wont to do.
But it was nice to wake up with the scenario of almost speaking to Zach Galifianakis fresh on my mind!

There is No Way I'm Looking for a Boyfriend.

2009-08-09T21:37:00.000-07:00

It has been a while since my last dip into the blogging pool (I cringe as I write that, too), so I think I will take the next coupla posts to tell a little about my summer, while you can pretend to care.

For a week in July I worked at Camp Discover, which is a pretty nifty camp for teens in foster care. My experience with camp was pretty awesome- I was a coach, which meant that I got to hang out with 3 other girls and be their mentor. We stayed in some nice suites in the "dorms" of Berry College. Berry catered our food, and it was really awesome food! I ate an apple or a banana at every meal! It was great.
My girls were pretty great. I got the vague feeling that they probably thought I was a little strange, but it must've been in a good way because they were always sweet to me.
It's great because we still get to talk to them outside of camp, and be involved in their lives as a mentor. I am totally plugging YFC and Camp Discovery...here!
The weeks following that were pretty non-eventful, I think. If something awesome happened then it must've not been too awesome because nothing is coming to mind.

Then after that, I went to New York City!
That was fun. I had lots of fun, it was a great trip. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
I went with my cousins and a cousin's sis-in-law. We flew standby and caught the 8:20 am flight on Tuesday morning. I chose to leave on Tuesday instead of Monday so that I wouldn't have to take off work Monday night. I had also requested we take the first flight out to Atl on Fri morning so I wouldn't miss work that afternoon...but that's a story for another day.
We rode in a plane [nothing] like this one:
We got on the plane and I sat by Tasha, my oldest cousin. We both slept despite Tash's sis-in-law, Julie, in the row behind us hitting up the cute guy she found herself seated next to rather loudly. From all accounts, my other cousin Holly slept mostly, too. But I can't say for sure. Because I slept the whole way.
Upon our landing we immediately went outside and waited for a cab. But no! Lo- a limo proved to be the same amount as a taxi! And it also had the advantage of being way classier. Duh.
We rode to the hotel- called the "Dream"- in our fancy limo, and I restrained myself from taking pictures from inside the car looking out the window. Heaven forbid anyone think I was a tourist, even though the only New Yorker who could see me was the suave driver. Me and my touristic scruples.

2009-07-26T20:06:00.000-07:00

Tonight my sister and I did "Face Aerobics", which was a very...unique experience.

70's Schmeventies.

2009-07-06T19:45:00.000-07:00

My parents are going to a party this weekend, and it has been my job to create a playlist that includes the best songs of the 70's for said party.
Wait, let me rephrase- my mom picked all of the songs and asked me to actually burn them onto a disc. Tech-savvy, she is not.

I want to go to the beach so badly.

I asked a friend of mine to go on a daytrip with me to Tybee Island on Wednesday. He refused on account that he is broke. I said I'd drive, that he needn't worry about money. He insisted that he would never allow me to pay. I said it'd be an early birthday present, because he has never ever been to the beach. He said "I don't take gifts."
This made me sad and my feelings were/are still hurt.
So, no beach.

Discover Simple, Private Sharing at Drop.io

I feel bummed.

My family leaves tomorrow for FL. A whole week by myself. I hope my address isn't on here- I definitely don't want to be visited by any creepers. Except for you, Rebecca. Of course.

To add to matters, I found out last night that one of my professors isn't coming back this-coming semester. He was my favorite professor of my freshman year, and he was supposed to teach my Creative Writing class in the fall. He was such a hipster. I really liked him! This makes me sad.

What am I going to do all week by myself? The same things I always do. Scientific equations, cooking, documentaries, traveling, and podcasting.

UPDATE: The beach trip may happen. The friend called and said he's reconsidering. WE SHALL SEE!

Bedtime.

2009-06-22T20:24:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I feel as if I am in a funk.

Here is some Mates of State:

Discover Simple, Private Sharing at Drop.io

It is called "Drop and Anchor" and it is off their Ep All Day.

Ted Leo and The Pharmacists

2009-06-16T19:28:00.000-07:00

Then...Ted Leo took the stage.
As he set up his guitar and stuff (I'ma instrumetadummy)I asked him (as we stood directly in front of the stage) if he could play "The World is in the Turlet". If you are unfamiliar with this song, let me give you the history in a sentence- During an episode of the Best Show, Tom had the listeners call in with song lyrics that they made up- which Ted Leo and The Pharmacists took during the show and made into a song that they played at the end of the very said show. Here's the song:
http://drop.io/theworldisintheturlet
Anyway, he didn't get to play the song. But he did say that he would try.
The show was great. I took lots of video. You should watch them to see a little taste of how awesome they are.
Seth and I got the honor of meeting Ted after the show. Ted has now got my vote as the Nicest Guy Ever. Seriously. Top-Notch.
But enough fawning.

EDIT: My FOT friend Spoony made a good point on Twitter- "It's impossible to fawn too much over a guy who's that talented and friendly."
You know what? He's right!
Ted Leo is great! I had a crush on him before the show, and after I got to meet him the crush factor rivals that of my love for Josh Groban!
*cue audience's "whoaoah!"*

EDIT: More vids.
Watch his guitar smoke in this one:

Titus Andronicus

2009-06-13T20:13:00.000-07:00

This past Thursday night I had the pleasure of attending a concert at the 40 Watt in Athens with my brother. Ted Leo and The Pharmacists was the band we were there to see, and opening for them was Titus Andronicus and All The Saints. I had been waiting anxiously for this show for the past 3 months, so I was well-prepared: camera battery charged, memory card in place (yes, I have forgotten my memory card on many unhappy occasions), sturdy purse (or "satchel"), some cash, hair pulled back, comfortable shoes on. I am also aware that my description sounds like I am going on a daytrip to the zoo, but I assure you that this was not the case.

My brother and I went ahead and bought our t-shirts (and stickers!) and made our way to the front. There was a scant crowd when All The Saints came on the stage (and they came without any introduction or greeting whatsoever; it was like a "we're here" with a wall of guitars and determined percussion), which was kinda sad considering how great the band was.
The bass player had a nice beard. I wanted to get a picture of him, but I am always too chicken to use the flash on my camera (it's so...bright!) so what pictures I stole of him were really too dark to make out.

BTW what is it with Athens and nice beards? Almost all the guys there had beards. All the nice beards were distracting to me. I kept thinking, "Now that's a beard! My husband will have one like that!" Sometimes I feel creepy.

We introduced ourselves to the lead singer and told him we enjoyed the show. He was very cordial and introduced himself as Matt. Hello Matt.
When Titus Andronicus came on the stage, I immediately recognised the lead guy as the bearded dude I passed on the street earlier and had written off as "beard too bushy."

Titus Andronicus was so great. Their music is great and a lot of fun. Here is a video of them that I badly took:

I also have a few Ted Leo videos, but I will post those later. It has been taking me a while to get them all uploaded. When I do get them uploaded, I will give you a minute-by-minute account of the night following the stage-leaving of Titus Andronicus. Not really, but I do have more to say, so brace yourself for some boringness, some pictures, and some nice highlights.

"Snake" by Winstead, Pruitt, and Davis.

2009-06-08T20:35:00.000-07:00

An Illustration on How Snakes Might Be Dumb.

Once upon a time, there was a snake.

This snake was born without a brain.

For some reason, in the place of a brain, his skull was filled with eggs.

Everyone wondered why the snake was so so dumb.

What they didn't know was that the snakes had eggs for his brains. and they were hatching into frogs.

The poor snake died because the frogs ate him.

THE END.

Felipe movie 1

2009-05-29T07:41:00.001-07:00

I have decided that for a few minutes a babysitting session, I will get video footage of Felipe's cuteness.
Here is the first installment.

A Letter to a Friend

2009-05-15T21:03:00.000-07:00

Hey babe.
I was reading Don Miller's "Blue Like Jazz" today, and he was talking about how sometimes it is so much easier to be genuinely oneself around one's non-Christian friends than one's Christian friends. I started thinking about that, and you know what? I think he is right. The Christian culture is hard to live in as a flawed individual. I actually keep myself from sharing my problems with a lot of my Christian friends because I know that they will berate me. I mean, think about it, I would totally make some of my friends blush if I really bared my soul to them. I know that keeping these things to myself only hurts me, but I honestly don't see any reason to share my feelings/desires with someone and have them look at me as if I'm a horrible Christian. You know? It is way easier to be around non-Christians because I know they won't judge me based on my shortcomings. After all, Jesus embraced the sinners and taught love to everyone. That is how He won believers to His name- by loving them, not judging them. It is time for the Christian culture to get back to that!
I just wanted you to know that you are one of the only Christian friends of mine around which I can truly be human. There may be a coupla Pinnacle girls (Rachels and Sydney D.) that I can truly be human around, but I know fo sure that I can be me- God-loving yet seriously flawed, holiness-seeking yet inherently carnal, goofy yet completely sanity-questionable :) and you won't ever judge me for it. I just want you to know that I appreciate that more than you can know. Thanks for everything. Your friendship and love has strengthened my own relationship with Jesus.
And I know I am never affectionate, so I hope this doesn't freak you out too much.
:)

PSA

2009-04-26T22:31:00.000-07:00

From now on, I am calling my friend Rebecca "Tzeitel".
*Sings* Ya ha deedle deedle, bubba bubba deedle deedle dum.
All day long I'd biddy biddy bum!

Where Do We Go?

2009-04-23T09:34:00.000-07:00

I got Camera Obscura's new album, My Maudlin Career. The first time I listened to it I was in my car, on my way to school. The album starts off with a song called "French Navy", and the moment it started I found myself rolling my windows down and dancing. Yes, it's that infectious! I would post the mp3, but I am on the work computer, so apologies for not being able to share the joy. You can listen to it on iTunes, however.

Speaking of iTunes, my iPod had to be restored the other day. It was "corrupted."
I was pretty pissed for a few minutes, because a lot of the songs on my iPod were not on my computer. But then I thought to myself, What good is it to get angry? Just because my music will not be as readily available for a day or two? So yeah, I quit being a big baby about it. I haven't had time to put all my music back onto it, but now my iPod has exactly 5 albums on it- Camera Obscura's
My Maudlin Career and Biggest Bluest Hi Fi, Luxury's Health and Sport, Andrew Bird's Andrew Bird & The Mysterious Production of Eggs, and a mix by James which I call James'.
All in all, it consists of 67 songs. It's not been a rough go like I expected. I have missed a few bands, though. I am a tough woman, however, and I can do without!
At least until I reconfigure my iTunes tomorrow.

I need to read my Bible more. I was doing really well about reading it this semester- about twice a day. But lately I have been skimping a bit, and I can definitely tell the changes. I usually read my Bible before or after I go on a run, and since I haven't run really in about a week, I have skipped some pivotal reading moments. Reading my Bible invigorates me; Reflecting on God's word and how it applies to me makes me excited each day, and definitely helps through the crappiest of days. When I don't take that time each afternoon, I feel blah, and my week ends up feeling the same. It's because I need reminding of God's love and will for my life.

Someone once said "My God is the same as your God; mine just drinks a lot more beer."
Personally, I find this quote pretty awesome. I don't know if this is "sacreligious" or not, but whatever. The problem I do have with that mindset is that it puts God on a pretty casual pedestal. While I don't necessarily believe in wearing "Jesus" t-shirts (we are fallen, so how can we possibly be the best representatives of Jesus' name? Let our love show through our speech and actions, not our sleeves) I do believe that God requires some major love and respect.
How does respect play out in our day-to-day lives? In dealing with people at work, school, and within our family, do we show our respect not only for them personally, but for our Creator? This is something I have been thinking about a lot lately. I really need to work on having a greater measure of respect for my fellow man, but more importantly for God, and the way I show respect to God is the way in which I deal with people and carry myself.
Also, I know that spending time in the Word will help me to accomplish this more. :)

So, I'm gonna go back to my music now. Fare thee well until then,