Irish Born - A favorite on my shelf

T

There are several Nora Roberts novels on my shelves and I may say with a smile on my face that this is without a doubt one of my favorites.  Irish Born is a combination of three books titled Born in Fire, Born in Ice, and Born in Shame.  Each story follows the thoughts, emotions, and experiences of the daughters of Tommy Concannon.  He was a father trapped in a marriage without love, but he had an undying devotion for his daughters, two he raised with his own hands and one whom he never had the privilege to meet but loved all the same.  Maggie is the daughter who came from a moment of passion and nothing more.  She was viewed by her mother as the spawn of sin, and being such could never achieve anything except in sin.  Maggie has a burning personality which draws in the viewer but does not ask for their sympathies.  She stands on her own two feet and from her furnace builds works of fierce flaming art that gives us her story.  Brianna is the daughter who came from duty.  She was her mothers fulfillment to the church and was then raised as such.  She didn't have as hard a time as Maggie in certain ways, but she too suffered.  She is the home maker who turns her inheritance into a inn for travelers and families.  Her home is welcome to all, and more importantly so is her heart.  Shannon is the daughter conceived in adultery.  She was born and raised an American, but with the death of her mother and the man she thought her father, she goes to Ireland to discover herself and the heritage she never knew.  Nora Roberts once again gives us a series which pulls at the heart yet inspires the mind.  Once again I have this yearning to go see these roaming green hills and communities of passion and stories.  If you have a moment or two, let Nora tell you a tale.  I promise you will then go to sleep with a smile on your face and a warming love in your heart.

Irish Born - Nora Roberts

I absolutely love this series.  I breezed through the first novel Born in Fire, which was intense and awesome.  Then I finished the second novel Born in Ice this morning, which was a beautifully told story that tore at my heart.  I will be starting the third novel Born in Shame this afternoon.  I won't go into the full story details until I finish the third novel because I think this series should be read all at ounce, back to back.  If you are looking for a quick and intriguing read, I suggest you stop at your nearest Barnes and Noble and pick this up.  I can't read anymore because I want to start reading.  Good Bye!

For the Love of Cooking

To me, one of the greatest experiences life has to offer is cooking.  Having food made for you is great and all, but to really work in your kitchen and prepare a meal for your family and friends to me is one of the most rewarding things you can experience in life.  A film recently came out that is based on two women and their love for food and cooking.  For those of you who know me, you know that I am a sucker for inspirational films, and this one really kicked the bucket.  The film is of course Julie and Julia.  Julia Childs chose to cook because she loved food and needed something to do now that she wasn't participating in politics.  Julie is a modern disheveled woman who is trying to finish something in her life, show herself that her life amounts to something... so she decides to cook her way through Julia Childs cookbook while keeping a blog.  Blogs are amazing tools, aren't they?  Well after watching this movie, I had this undying urge to make brushetta, which I did and it was fabulous.  I'm not going to copy the movie and cook my way through a cook book, instead I am choosing to educate myself further in preparing foods and developing my culinary skills if you will.  I'm currently living with and dating an Italian, so learning to properly handle pasta is essential.  I tried to make eggplant parm a couple of times and I have to admit that the first two batches were an absolute disaster.  The key was learning how to properly cook eggplant thoroughly, which isn't easy.  I eventually got it and now my eggplant parm is fabulous.  I'm no Italian chef, but I'm learning as I go along.  So I guess this is something we can add to the long list of things I'm trying to do in my life.  I want to improve my cooking skills.  Wish me luck, and I'll let you know how it goes.

The Start of Summer

So I am officially in my first week of summer.  Wahoo!!!  There are a lot of things that I would like to fit into this summer, but as we all know, we never have enough time to do everything.  So in short(not really), here are my plans:

• Deep-clean the Apartment.
• For those who know me, you know that I am a bit of a neat freak.  And since I started living with Vinny, I have had to back off a bit when it comes to keeping my place tidy because Vinny and I have two completely different definitions of what clean is.  So needless to say I can't wait to get him out for a while so that our place won't have that faint odor of ass.
• Start obtaining new furniture and redecorating.
• Almost everything in that apartment was given to us, or a left over from the house that Vinny used to live at.  Being that Vinny used to live in a house of all guys, you can imagine how everything isn't exactly in the greatest condition.  But being as it was my first real place, I could not complain or really cared at the time about the condition of things.  I have maintained this residence for just over a year and I would like to make it more homey and comfortable.  This will require moving things, purchasing new things, taking down things that never should have been put up in the first place, etc.
• Getting a car.
• I will be traveling home in the next few weeks and I intend on purchasing a vehicle.  A Honda CR-V to be exact.  I'm entering my senior year of college and its about time I be able to get around on my own.  This will hopefully also fix some of my relationship issues because since I moved off campus, I have not been able to spend hardly any time with my friends and I have missed some rather great moments.  I love having my place and I would like to be mobile now.
• Study for and take the GRE.
• In order to apply to grad schooling I have to take the GRE and get the highest score I can.  I will start putting study materials together at the end of this week.  My plan is to take the exam in the beginning of July.  I will also be studying for the GRE subject exam, but I won't be taking that test until November.
• Study for senior comps exams.
• In order to graduate from CUA, I need to pass the senior comprehensive exams for English Lit majors.  Basically it is a test on everything I have learned while at CUA.  To prevent cheating and duplications of exams, every year a subject or genre is chosen to narrow down the spectrum of the exam.  My senior comps will be based on Poetry.  We were given a list of the texts in which the exams will be be based, which makes this a lot easier.  I will finish collecting the texts I don't have and start reading the lengthier text in order to have finished reading everything by the end of the summer.  I will take in depth notes while reading the texts and then will probably be discussing them here to keep my mind fresh on the topics.
• Redo the wardrobe.
• This is one of the items from my list of things to do this year.  I have to admit that I have made no progress in this area, mostly because I haven't had time to shop.  I plan on making a trip this weekend to Filene's Basement in order to get some summer basics and a few comfortable professional items.
• Get Ready for the Army 10 miler.
• A few of my friends have run in this marathon before.  We, me and my lot of friends, are doing this as a bonding experience and something extremely memorable for our senior year.  We will most likely be doing a run in the spring as well.  I loved running in high school and I staid pritty fit my freshman year of college.  It is these last two years, with moving to a desk job and away from the free gym, that I have really slowed down and not been any where near as active.  My friend Gabriel and I planned on training together this summer, but she rolled her ankle two days ago so now I am without a running partner.  I think I will run in the evenings or early mornings to stay away from the heat, plus I think running is a great way to either start or end your day.
• Reading for pleasure.
• I love reading, so studying for those tests will not bother me at all, but I have to read for the pleasure of reading too.  In between all those studies, I will also read books that I am interested in and stuff from authors that I love.  I am currently reading Nora Roberts Irish Born series.  I finished the first book yesterday and am nearly half way done with the second book.  When I have finished this series, I will read Dan Brown's latest novel The Lost Symbol, which is supposed to be a continuation of the adventures of his symbolist character Robert Langdon.  I greatly enjoyed both  The Davinci Code and Angels and Demons, so this continuation should not be disappointing at all.

 Now that I have worked that out, I'm going back to working at my full time job, which I will also be doing this summer.  For the obvious reasons of being able to pay for everything, plus I love my job.
Till later on.... Have a Nice Day!!!

Don't Look Back...Just Remember It

I must admit that I made a mistake.  For the past few weeks I have been looking back and clinging to an old idea.  Depression can do that to you.  I was looking back on something that I knew I lost, but it was for the better.  Because I let this idea go, I have been able to move forward and grow into the person that I am now.  If I had stayed with that old idea, none of this would be possible.  But the truth is, I really loved that idea.  It's one of those idea's that makes you smile just remembering it.  But I looked forward again yesterday, and realized I was only looking back at the past.  I have a lot of things back there.  Mostly sad, heart wrenching things, but there are a few special good ones.  I have learned a lot from my past, those experiences and realizations.  My message to you today is don't look back.  Stop looking at what you have put behind you.  It will only be a distraction from what you are living and achieving now.  Though don't purposely forget what you have put behind you.  Those are the things that you have built yourself upon.  Keep building.  Keep living.  It will all work out in some way or another in the end.

What a Beautiful Day!!!

What a beautiful day!
The birds are singing,
The breeze is humming,
The sky is shining!

What a beautiful day!
The trees are green,
The flowers seen,
The critters keen!

What a beautiful day!
My heart is leaping
From love worth keeping!
With joy it's seeping!

What a beautiful day!
My soul is song!
There is no wrong!
And I feel young!

What a beautiful day!

Lucky Jim... or not so lucky

There is a lingering frustration that one gets when reading Lucky Jim.  You can not put your finger on just one thing that bothers you, but it is instead the combination of it all.  Jim Dixon is a crass young idiot who hates his job and is forced to endure it because he, like many young idiots, decided to take the easy way out when it came to his education.  He's angry at the world, when the truth of it is, it's his fault that he is there in the first place.

In Kingsley Amis novel, Lucky Jim, the attitudes and circumstances on the Angry Young Men is brought into light... or is it?  These young men, like Jim Dixon, when given the opportunity of equal education as set by the government in Europe way back when.  These fellows didn't get to attend the high ranking prestigious schools of the upper class though, they were sent to the newly made Brick Universities, as they were nick named, for the in take of all the new want to be scholars.  For those who graduated from these Brick Universities, they were not taken seriously or had any easier time getting a job.  They were outcasts in a cultured traditional society.  If you want to know more about these fellow, I suggest you look them up.  It should remind you of our current southern public educational system... a joke amongst respectables.

The inner plot of the story is a battle between Jim Dixon and the Welch family.  With Prof. Welch, the battle deals with Dixon's place at the University and whether or not he is a capable teacher, not forgetting that Welch is complete;y ignorant of the world and prefers a life of music and social gatherings for his constant amusement.  With Bertrand Welch, it is over the heart of young Christine.... and the pride of who is the more modern fellow.  Bertrand is the new artist, a pompous bloke who prefers to wear french pointy hats instead of something that actually serves a purpose.  Then there is the psychotic Margaret.  I don't want to spoil that twist so please feel free to read the book.

The question of interest for some scholars is whether or not Lucky Jim actually has a happy ending.  In my quick opinion... I say yes.  It is the last laugh factor.  For my fellow sinicals, Lucky Jim doesn't have to say a word to the Welch's.  Instead a laugh is the worst possible vengeance, and gives way to a light hearted ending.

So if you are interested in a quick read and lame British humor... I definitely suggest Lucky Jim by Kingsley Amis.

Indecisive

I must admit that I am rather disappointed in myself for not keeping to this blog as originally intended.  The truth is though that I have been writing.... I just haven't felt confident enough to post my rambles recently,... and even some of my rambles really shouldn't be posted in the first place.  So in need of a motivater, I have decided to set some timed goals for myself that I will need to reflect on plus a side project that should get my creative juices flowing.
First there is the better living goal...
      In high school I was the fittest I think I will ever be in my life(hopefully I can change that.)  Since coming to CUA, I must admit that I have become good friends with the couch and reclining work chairs of which I have had constant access to these last three years.  I am proud to admit that I didn't suffer from the freshman 15,... more like freshman 5, and have kept a decent weight and composure till I moved into this apartment last May.  Since last May, I have slowly backed on extra cushioning thanks to my new life transition to a desk job and the lack of ability to work-out around my apartment because it just really isn't a good idea.  But now that spring and summer are coming back around, and I am in desperate need of some sun, I have decided to start running again.  While being a member of my high school marching band, I had the access to the schools track basically at all times.  It made running at any time... easier.  I loved running then and I still love it now, I just haven't been as devoted to it because of dancing and trying to graduate,etc.  So, the goal I am setting is for the next six weeks...  By the end of six weeks, I would like to have reached within 5 pounds of my high school weight (if that is still possible), and restore my physical endurance  levels back to where they should be.. for a girl like me.  My comparison is that I would like to be able to march a ten min. show without breaking a sweat till the last min. or so.... I know that might be hard to relate to, but my fellow bandies will know what I am reminiscing over.
Second is the new style goal...
     The thing about me is that I have never really seemed to fit into my age group... unless forced to.  For as long as I can remember, people have told me home mature I am, how I looked older than I really am, how I have an aura about me that makes me seem like an elder or wise woman, etc.  I have both loved and hated these comments.  I liked that I was able to stick out, but I disliked the lack of connection I have had with my peers.  There are a few from high school that I have remained closely connected with, but it wasn't till I got to CUA that I really found persons of my same caliber.  I still stick out amongst my peers here, but I have developed the reputation of being a sort of hard ass about everything.  I am extremely critical and am willing to question anyone about anything if I am not convinced about their arguments or beliefs.  This in combination with the fact that I have maintained a job since my sophomore year of high school makes me a  bit of a professionalistic personality.  Being a college student, you can't help recall dressing like a college student.  To put it plainly, I am sick of it.  I know that I am much more than I appear, and I would like to be able to present myself in attire that will hopefully close the gap.  If I were in TN, I would seek out the help of my sisters Olivia and Abbey, but sadly I am not in TN.  So I am stuck trying to put together a style on my own.  I know what I am looking for, the problem is that it will require almost a complete change in my wardrobe.... which actually is a marvelous idea.  Logically I can not do this all at once, so this will also have to spread out over a period of time.  My goal is that by August 15th, I will have replaced 60% of my closet with professional and semi professional attire that fits my personality.  In that 60% there will be a combination of seasonal attire that can mix without complication of seasonal storing.  I really hate my storage bins and am looking forward to tossing them eventually.
Finally the side project...
     I am a reader.  I have always been a reader.  Ask my mother.  With my extensive reading, I have come to love and hate, like and dislike, understand and confuse several topics and writers.  What I want to do is start discussing the books I am reading.  These books might be for class or for personal enjoyment.  The point of this is to help prepare me for taking the Literature GRE subject test and for my senior comps exam.  The only way I am going to be able to recall all of the multiple titles and characters and topics is if I am discussing them and comparing the on a regular basis.  For my intensive narrative class, we are having to post to every week and blurb about our current reading... what parks our interest, what bothers us, what were confused about, if we have a revelation, etc.  I will be posting my comments from there to here and the other way to try and make things more interesting.
So yeah.  That is all have to say for right now.  Tomorrow I want to address the book Lucky Jim by Kingsly Amis.  We have finished reading it in class and I want to discuss it a bit more because I do not think we through dug through the novel enough.  It was more like settling and I hate that.

Spring Break 2010

S

So did I do anything spontaneous this Spring Break... absolutely not.  I instead decided to embrace the peace and quiet.  There was a bit of a rough start to it due to the new neighbors, but after that, things got much better.  Of the 8 days that made up my break, I went to the office for 4 and worked at home for the rest.  I spent three afternoons walking around the city while the weather was good.  I went to my favorite store... Barnes and Noble... got a coffee, and walked around looking at books for a few hours.  I got the 7th and 8th books in my vampire series, another Nora Roberts series (2 books), a work-out book, and two GRE books, one for the general test and one for the Literature subject exam.  I cooked absolutely delicious meals, while being extremely health conscious.  And gave my apartment the deep down spring cleaning it deserved.  I'm pretty proud of myself.  I sort-of wish that I could have hung out with my friends or did some out on the town nights, but I guess I'm not that type of girl.  I enjoy the solitude and the peace.  Don't get me wrong, I like doing all the other things, it's just nice to have the peace and quiet.

For the Love of Dance

 

So the truth of it is... I really love to dance.  I have always loved to dance.  It's my weakness really.  You don't have to get dressed up to go out dancing, you actually don't even have to go out, but dressing up is fun too.  Since I started dating Vinny, I have had to dance less, because he just doesn't like to dance.  It hurts sometimes to think about it, but I still have my tricks.  Like going out to group formal events.  There is always someone who is willing to take me around the floor.  But FYI, long dresses can be hard to do any free style mixes.