More about the birds

Sunday, March 31, 2013

Literature love: a new series

...And by new series I mean something that I may not continue but would still like to have a go at it.

I guess that's what all "new series" are at first conception anyway, right?

Well, as many of you know, I am a fanatic over literature and all things books...especially all things 19th century, so I thought it would only be fitting that I reccommend some of the things I've been reading lately..which is a lot of things! The first list of books are all within the Victorian/Romantic era so for those of you who are fed up with modernity, this one's for you!

Literature Love: Victorian Era


1. Bram Stoker's Dracula. This novel is truly an interesting and creepy read. NONE of the films do it justice or interpret it correctly. If you've never read it, you should. And for those of you concerned with the dark or evil represented it, spoiler alert, good wins and it's satisfying.



2. Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Don't let the movies fool you, this book is LEGIT. It is full of intrigue, danger, life, death and the struggle between faith and science.You will be surprised by how attached to the creature you get!


3. Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre. By far one of my favorite books and love stories, this is all about a girl who goes through unimaginable things, falls in love, encounters danger, and follows what she knows is right through it all. Ladies, if imperfect but passionate dudes are your thing...than look no further. Rochester is where it's at!


4. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. You simply must read these. If you liked the movies or the show (as I have emphatically declared love for) then you will be pleasantly surprised by how the dialogue is taken almost completely from the books. They speak as we do! If you like this, then you must continue on with The Hound of the Baskervilles, A Case in Scarlet, and more!


5. Thomas Peckett Prest's The String of Pearls. This story, which was originally a penny dreadful that came out in installments, is the original (or mostly original) story of Sweeney Todd. Don't expect the musical or film, it's its own bird, but it is quite worth the read!


Do you have Victorian era novels you love? What are they? And if you read any of these, let me know how you liked them!

Have a good one,

~B~










































Friday, March 15, 2013

Life lately via Instagram

Hello dearies,

(anybody catch the Once Upon a Time Reference??) Hope everyone is doing well!
A lot of fun things have transpired in the last few months and instagram always aids me in showing you. These go back to January (further proof that my blogging has suuuuucked as of late) but hey, living life is better than writing it, right? Be in the moment...that's my advice.

So here is our life through instagram as of late!


Januray 2013: we got a Keurig! I am the only one in our home that drinks coffee so it made no sense to make a pot and then have most of it go to waste. SO we gathered up our gift cards and spent a whopping $30 on this little beauty. Pretty cool, huh?
February: I made hot chocolate from scratch. This is not particularly monumental as this was a very rough trial making it, but my favorite movie HAPPENS to be Chocolat, so I felt I owed it to the film to give it a go.
In December (I knoooow, its late) we saw The Hobbit and I died. A-MAZING.
February: I co-hosted my first (and probably only) baby shower for my dear darling friend, Lindsey! She now has a bouncing baby born on March 10 :)
We recently discovered that we can have the comforts (besides warmth) or a fireplace without the hassle of cleaning one. If you have Netflix, search for Fireplace For Your Home. We now go to sleep to it.
Spring has sprung! And oh it feels good. The South always gets sun early.
Sister Sarah (Toby's sis) came to town in February. We had a good time watching SNL, The Office, Community and laughing until the wee hours of the night. Miss her already.
In my Literature for the Adolescent class we ready the new Young Adult novel Meant To Be (which is so cute and fun to read). Luckily, the author of said novel, Lauren Morrill, lives in Macon so we got to meet her.. Lovely lady and super inspiring.
Of course I had adventures with Tobes.
With all the craziness...we still found some time to relaaaaaax.
Finally got a new tea kettle. Love it. And also cleaned my kitchen,
 

That's all she wrote.

~B~

Sunday, March 10, 2013

Spring Cleaning for Passover

Well, it has been far too long!

I apologize for the lack of posting these days. School and life and all that jazz got the better of me. Paper deadlines and endless reading can wear on a lass. But, nonetheless here is a post!

So for many of you, you are embarking upon the season of lent. That is a beautiful time of reflection and purging in order to see what God can make better in your lives. For those of you doing this, more power to you and I respect you! As for me and my family, we are soon entering the season of Passover that is coming up in a couple weeks. As some of you know, from previous posts like this one, Passover is one of my very favorite holidays....I think it's my MOST favorite holiday. It's not only about my favorite story in the bible (Moses and the Exodus) but it is the new year for the Jewish people and represents spiritual deliverance and freedom. It just don't get better than that, folks!

So, in preparation for this season, we gotta get ready. What does that entail? Glad you asked.
During this time we:

1. Remove "leaven" or anything with yeast from the house. In a spiritual context, leaven represents sin or all the ugly things we hold onto in life. By removing it from the physical house, it makes us reflect on what "leaven" we have in our own spiritual houses. Like lent in some ways, we take this time to purge ourselves of anything that hinders us from being close to God with a physical act of obedience.

2. Clean, clean clean! Part of this time of year is cleaning out leaven, but also just junk! This week was my spring break (hallelujah!) and I cleaned our entire apartment for most of it. It was hard, but man was it worth it. As I went through each room, I prayed that God would do the same in us...clean us up and make us new. I know He will honor that...because He's good :) It felt amazing to do it...and for you health nuts out there, cleaning with vinegar, water, a little soap and some essential oils (rosemary in my case) is the most amazing thing ever. Oh the smells....

3. Do your homework. Now, this one is a personal one for me. Every year leading up to Passover I read back through Exodus and the story of God's deliverance. It has always been my favorite story because I so admire the faith it took for Moses to stand in the face of adversity and trust God when it looked terrible. I need this faith in my every day life and I don't have issues like saving a million people from Egypt! So I use the time up until (and during) Passover to study, pray, and practice my faith.

The cool thing about these holy days for me is that they are a total joy! I have never felt like I HAD to do them...the minute I feel like that it wouldn't be right. God's appointed times are not obligations but a total blast...at least that's how I feel. Every bit of it has meaning and makes me feel valued and loved by my heavenly papa. I love it.

Hope you all are doing very well and I'd love to hear from you! Have a great week!

~B~

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...