Things I Wish it was Still Appropriate for Me to Do

Sidenote: I think I've been into lists lately.

Confession: I'm now 28. And at 28, some things just aren't appropriate to do anymore. I know, I know, "fight the man," "do what you want to do" blah blah blah. But let's be honest. If you saw me doing some of these things, you would totally judge me. Totally.

Here's a partial list I've come up with of things that I would love to still do but feel like I probably shouldn't because I'm supposed to be an adult now.

1. Take naps in the middle of the day.

2. Blow huge bubbles with my bubble gum (which, OF COURSE would be the really fruity, sugary type)

3. Watch cartoons on Saturday morning (though I HAVE watched them while working out)

4. Skip.

5. Wear adorably cute, frilly dresses. (Hey mom, maybe you could smock another one for me!)

6. Eat gummy fruit snacks with my lunch every day.

7. Stick my tongue out at people when I'm mad at them.

8. Throw myself on the floor when I'm mad (I'm not sure I ever did this, but it appeals to an emotional person such as myself)

9. Wear one of those really cute blow-up inner-tubes that has an animal's head on it. When I go to the pool and the beach. Not just around.

10. G0 to the local pool and go down the water slide.

11. Play in the sprinklers.

12. Have an Easter egg hunt.

13. Finger paint.

14. Sleep with my Tigger stuffed animal.

15. Sell lemonade and rice krispy treats and cookies outside for a profit. Without a license.

The good news is that, one day when we have children, many of these things will suddenly become appropriate for me to do again (maybe not #8, but I'll let you know). I think I will SO be that mom who is more into playing in the sprinklers than her children are.

And I'm ok with that.

Really Weird Things about Me

The blog has been a little serious lately, so I thought I would lighten it up by letting you know just a little bit more about me or, rather, some of the weird things about me. It starts with this:

- I was once run over by a float in a parade.

- From the age of about 12-18, I turned my feet sideways while going down the stairs because of a book I read.

- I cry every time I see a baby being born (so far this has only been on TV. Including The Office.)

- I once broke my thumb dancing to my Disney record on my Fisher Price record player.

- I used to hate pickles and bell peppers but now love them.

- I have taken language classes in Ancient Greek, French, Spanish and Arabic.

- I used to play "Bar" when I was little.

- I love- and I mean LOVE- lima beans.

- I also used to play "Orphanage" when I was little.

And there you have it.

Of course, M just said, "You never even told me half that stuff." Oops. That's why they say you're always learning something new about your spouse, I guess. And somehow the fact that I played bar as a child hasn't really figured into our relationship until now.

Go figure.

Ok, Ok, My Ten Books

I know, I know you've all been waiting to see when I would respond to David Frum's blog challenge of naming ten books that have influenced my worldview. Honestly, I knew nothing about it until my friend Jonathan mentioned it on his blog.

This was much harder for me than I expected. There are lots and lots of books that I love (Make Way for Ducklings is at the top of that list), but I don't know if I would say they've influenced my worldview. And yet if I love them, something about them has probably stuck with me and influenced the way I think, react or act. So below are ten books that, in some way or another, have influenced me.

1. The Bible. Cliche, right? But as someone who professes to be a follower of Jesus, the Bible has deeply influenced the way that I think and feel about the world. It reaches (hopefully) into every area of my life, from the way I treat people (again, hopefully) to the way that I spend my time (hopefully) to the things I believe are worth fighting for (still hopefully!). I truly believe that from the first page to the last, this is the most influential book I have ever read. Yes, even the lists of names part.

2. The Idiot, by Fyodor Dostoyevsky. I sound really smart right now, don't I? I picked this book up while I was in India (don't ask me how that happened, because honestly I don't remember). But I do remember the amazing story of the "simple" Prince Myshkin and his willingness to fight for Nastasya despite the ridicule of others. Honestly, I don't think you can read The Idiot without thinking of Christ or a Christ-like figure (of course I think the same about the movie Moulin Rouge and people think I'm crazy). There's also an element of societal condemnation (or the condemnation of certain types of behavior in society) that I think has influenced the way that I view our current society. I'll leave that there.

3. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, by Betty Smith. Oh. my. gosh. I LOVED (and continue to love) this book. It is the quintessential coming of age story in the slums of Brooklyn, New York. In my life, this book's influence was quite far reaching, from giving me a context of what it means to grow up as a girl no matter what time period you may live in, to the realities of life in the slums. I just read this again earlier this fall and found it even more powerful than before.

4. The Magician's Nephew, by CS Lewis. The first in the "story series" of the Chronicles of Narnia, I just read The Magician's Nephew this fall (I apparently did a lot of reading this fall). It is the creation story as it has never been told before (and I won't spoil it for you so you can read it yourself!) It taught me to think of the story of creation in a completely new way, as a beautiful act of art, rather than a list of things that were made in a certain amount of time. That is literally changing my "world" "view". Ha!

5. Truth and Social Reform, by Vishal Mangalwadi. This book fundamentally changed my perception of the Christian's responsibility to social reform. I read this while studying at L'Abri in England...and really, anything you read in an English manor house is probably going to make an impression on you. The book is no longer in print, but if at all possible, get your hands on it. Mangalwadi, an Indian, writes of his struggles to figure out what his faith has to say about social reform, even as it is linked to evangelism. Absolutely essentially important to read.

6. Basic Christianity, by John Stott. Really, almost anything by John Stott. The basic fundamentals of what it means to be a Christian. Not an American Christian or a rich Christian or a poor Christian or any other ridiculous label of a Christian. He depicts the judgement deserved as no one I have ever read before, and yet also depicts the grace extended as I've never seen before, too. Rocked my world.

7. The Beautiful and Damned, by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Great Gatsby could also be up there, but B&D influenced my worldview even more. In one short sentence, B&D shows us the dangers of irresponsible living, living that thinks only of one's self. Very powerful.

8. The Decameron, by Giovanni Boccaccio. In particular, the Second Story. Anyone who knows anything about The Decameron knows that it's quite raunchy in some parts and just plain gross in others. But the Second Story, in particular, profoundly impacted my world view and my thoughts on evangelism an the reality of the Christian faith. Encouraged by his friend, a Christian, to visit Rome to learn about Christianity, Abraham (a Jew) makes the trek to the great city. What he sees, instead, is complete debauchery by the "religious". His friend-completely disappointed- approaches him when he returns, fully expecting that he'll have nothing good to report. Here's the part that gets me. Abraham responds: "Unless I did not see things straight, I found no holiness, no devotion, no good work or example or anything else in a single man of the clergy. On the contrary, lust, gluttony, avarice and worse things...for all were at their work to ruin the Christian faith entirely and ban it altogether from the world...Yet when I notice their aim is not fulfilled, but that your religion continually grows and becomes more bright and clear, it seems to me very evident that the Holy Spirit is its foundation and support, so it must be the truest and holiest of all faiths." Wow.

9. Balkan Ghosts, by Robert Kaplan. Changed the way I view the world known as "former Yugoslavia" and most of the geopolitical situations around the globe.

10. Vogue's Book of Etiquette, 1948 printing. If you want to see the way people used to treat one another and behave, you've got to glance through Vogue's Book of Etiquette. I don't know if I can say that it changed my world view, but I can say that it definitely enlightened me. Maybe one day we can return to a more civil society (without the ridiculousness of some of the customs, too)

I know as soon as I hit publish I'm going to regret at least a few of these or some of the ones I left off. But here they are. Read, ask questions and check them out yourself.

More like our Grandmothers

There's a New York Times Magazine article making its way around Facebook right now called the The Femivores Dilemma that I highly recommend you check out. The article itself is but a tiny glimpse of a neat little revival of sorts (minus big tents and people passing out) among young, hip- and oftentimes urban- families.

I have an apron just like that

The jist of the article is to tell us about a growing trend toward home-grown, unprocessed food, even-gasp- chickens. The idea is that it's not only healthier, it's also, somehow, more pure, more community-focused and less, well, consumer-driven. Like the majority of our grandmothers had, this new trend focuses on sustainable "kitchen gardens" that can feed a family, save money and ultimately allow women (and men) the opportunity to again work with their hands and bring life out of dark soil.

There is a feminist piece in the article that I won't go into (though I find it enlightening)...what is more interesting to me is this paragraph:

As I rustled up a quick dinner of whole-wheat quesadillas and frozen organic peas, I found my thoughts drifting back to our conversation, to the questions she raised about the nature of success, satisfaction, sustenance, fulfillment, community. What constitutes “enough”? What is my obligation to others? What do I want for my child? Is my home the engine of materialism or a refuge from it?

At its heart, I believe these are deeply spiritual questions, questions that I wish the American church in particular would take more seriously. These are questions, as we have budgeted and cut and downsized and budgeted again, that M and I are taking a long, hard look at. What is fulfillment? What is enough? What do our lives say are the answers to these questions? While we can't literally have a kitchen garden (but will be planting tomatoes and some herbs on our itsy bitsy back staircase), how do we make decisions that reflect our belief that our worth is not found in the things we possess, the restaurants we eat at or even in the neighborhood we live in? How do we live responsibly, not because it's "cool" right now, but because we believe it's part of our Christian calling? How can we encourage others, others who strive and strive to reach the top of that ladder or make that extra million or whatever it might be, that these worldly pursuits, while they may be golden, are fleeting? Do not read this as a condemnation of enjoying trips or food or homes or what have you- but do see this as a condemnation of the Gospel of More Stuff.

I don't know the answers. Even still, I know these are all questions worth asking.

Eastern Comfort?

This past weekend, M and I finally took the plunge and paid the majillion dollars to go to the world-famous Chicago Art Institute.

It was worth the majillion dollars.

First of all, you can come in and out all day. That means that you aren't held captive to eat their ridiculously expensive and probably bland food. Instead, you can go to Five Guys. (Yes, it exists here. Believe me.) That also means that you can park in the metered "2 Hour Parking" and just feed the meter every, you guessed it, two hours. And save yourself the majillion and one dollars you would pay to park in a garage.

The Art Institute is phenomenal. Check out my pictures on Facebook for an idea of all the amazing art. But there's one thing in particular I want to bring your attention to.

Chinese pillows.

Yes, Chinese pillows.

"Those aren't pillows!" you're thinking. Well, you're thinking wrong. They might look like big lumps of stone (which they probably are). But they're not. They're pillows. Don't believe me? Here's my proof:

The little description claims that these "supported the neck while sleeping and allowed an often elaborate hairstyle to remain intact during the night." Hmm. Two points to make here: one, how freaking long is your neck that one of these things fits comfortably underneath it?? And two, I'm from the south. Don't tell me about "elaborate hairstyles". Have you seen Steel Magnolias? Or any Dolly Parton video? I'm just sayin'.

I mean surely they didn't find these things comfortable, did they? A hard stone under your head? I can imagine they were as comfortable as getting your hair shampooed in a salon every night. For eight hours. Didn't they have feathers they could stuff in cotton and call it a real pillow? Or use their arm? Or a rolled up floor pad or something? Anything softer than...a stone?

Eastern Comfort. Nothin' like it.

Hello, Cupcake

In the late summer of 2006, my office was having a small party for something or another. Though I am usually a big baker, for some reason (which I don't remember now), I bought cupcakes for our party at the grocery store. You know what I'm talking about, right? Those sometimes oddly-colored concoction that are half cake and half icing? And you start shaking after eating one because of all the sugar?

Yeah, one of those.

At the time, one of my co-workers, MG, took a cupcake up to her office, maybe to eat it later, maybe to look at it...I'm not sure why exactly. And there it sat.

And sat.

And sat.

And.....sat.

Molding, right? Going through some process of decolorization, surely.

Nope.

That's right. Nothing happened. Nothing. When I left in August 2009 (THREE YEARS LATER) the cupcake- while maybe slightly smaller- looked exactly the same. In fact, MG and I were just emailing today and she told me the cupcake remains, just as before. Like God, the cupcake never changes.

Mmmm. Go getcha one of those.

I take back everything nice I said about Spring

Spring, I'm beginning to loathe you.

You flirt with me with your 55 degree weather. Your "jacket-less" days. Your blue skies.

Then you dump what seems like 20 inches of rain, cold temperatures and strong wind on me.

Oh, and did I mention the cold you gave me? Why is it that EVERY TIME you show your little face, I get sick? And end up wanting to cut my head off because it hurts so bad every time I cough. But I can't stop coughing or sneezing because of that horrible stuff in my throat. Awesome, Spring. Just awesome.

I hope your fairer cousin, Summer, gets here soon.