Update

I'm beginning some charts for the Shakespeare code, and I think I might be on to something!

Wild Rover

I thought I would make it official that I am *hopefully* going on a study abroad trip to Great Britain and the Emerald Isles. AND I CAN'T WAIT!!!! I want to make sure it's really the right thing to do first, but... I jumped at the prospect. Sometimes dreams do come true. But, since I'm spending so much money on it, I think it would be foolish to just go for me. I want to go to help those around me. I want to go so I will be a better person, and can better serve. I am going so I can learn how to impact other people the way countless kind souls have impacted me. I want to make the world a better place. It all still feels like a dream, but I WILL make it to my homeland!!! I'll be a wee bit of a "wild rover" (Learning the song for the tour, and trying to figure it out on a tin whistle! Perhaps I'll get myself a nice mug of root beer soda to get me in the mood), rambling about on the countryside, but when I return with "gold in great store", it won't be solid gold, my friends, it will be the gold of wisdom.
...I can't resist the call!

"The summer time is coming, and the trees are sweetly bloomin', and the wild mountain thyme grows around the bloomin' heather, will ye go, lassie, go?"

 This lassie is GOING!


 http://youtu.be/CgsVd4-wH_A

Eilean Donan Castle- Public Domain Image

Happy Birthday, Mr. Shakespeare!

Confessions of a Pack Rat!

It's just not fair! I'm a subconscious pack rat. At heart, I'm a minimalist; when cleaning, packing, dusting, or stubbing my toe on my "precious junk" I say to myself: "Why? Why have I kept this? Why do we have stuff, anyway? It doesn't make you happy. It doesn't make you a better person. It complicates your life. I'm going to throw away EVERYTHING I own." And, with the full knowledge that I am making the right choice, I pull out a trash bag and start dumping. And somewhere, in the recesses of my mind, I start hearing myself think things like: "Your best friend from 3rd grade gave you that gum wrapper as a token of friendship! You can't throw that away!" Or: "But what if, years later, I find I desperately need this insignificant object? And then I'll regret throwing it away! ... Even though the likelihood of anyone ever needing, say, a toothpick bridge, a statue of a gopher, or perhaps a hideous pink lampshade, is probably about one in fifty billion." The other day, I was actually in a conversation with someone when I learned they desperately needed a hideous pink lampshade. See? And all I had left was regret. Shoulda kept it!

John Cleese Should Feel Proud

I found this poem I had composed in a journal from when I was nine. It's written in my mother's handwriting, because apparently I had spouted it off one night and she wanted it written down in such a way that it could actually be deciphered later on, I suppose because it demonstrates so well my 9-year-old perspective on life. I'm glad to know I've always been subject to random outbursts of poetry. I'm pretty sure if I had a "muse", it would look like one of the Marx brothers. But anyway, here it is:

You're never to young to have a good cry,
For when you are young, time will fly by,
And when you are old, your sadness will cease,
And you will watch movies starring John Cleese.

A Bit of the Victorian

When I get the urge to paint, anything will do. This was a cameo portrait I did of a family member, and was surprisingly easy- I just sketched onto a round bit of wood I had lying about, traced the lines into the wood by etching it a little, did some painting, then some shading. I don't have an image of the final product, but I antiqued the edges around the painting, and I'm planning on covering the whole thing in a gloss. Sometimes you just have to go a little Victorian.

The Irishman in the Room

I love family history work, and am very proud of my heritage. I love the rich cultures that my ancestors passed down to me in a blend. I am, as one of my professors would say, "mostly Celtic, but 3/4 German". That's not technically true, I have strong Scottish lines on both sides of my family. But I must confess, I do have an Irish side. Sometimes, my Scottish side and my Irish side don't always agree. On the outside, I like to let my Scottish pride shine, but occasionally, deep down, I still have a secret love for ballads, potatoes, and the Little People. While contemplating the trip to the Emerald Isles I'm hopefully taking this fall, I prepared a full Irish dinner the other night, complete with colcannon, "spotted dog" soda bread, and (because I am Mormon) a tall mug of root beer. I also made this delicious Chocolate Irish Potato Cake, which was worth the time it took to shave chocolate into it. The recipes were all quite simple and easy to follow; I found many of them on this website, http://www.irishabroad.com/culture/kitchen/recipes.asp, which has links to some fantastic blogs. As I was preparing the food, I was talking on the phone to a fellow-Scottish friend (who will, by the way, be a famous author someday), who asked me what I was doing. I told her I was making colcannon, and she paused, and said, mostly in jest, "How dare you?" I guess I couldn't hide the Irishman in the room, and so I mentioned that I do, in fact, have an Irish side that I am quite proud of. I proceded to defend my mother country, explaining that while I am mainly Scottish, I have a love and understanding of the Irish. She paused for a minute, decided to be open-minded, and continued with our previous conversation like nothing had happened. Listening to the Irish Tenors while munching potato cake, I felt proud of my Irish ancestors. As I hummed "Scotland the Brave" while brushing my teeth that night, I realized just how happy I am to be a Scot-Irish-Brit-Romanian-German-American. 

Truth be told, they all make pretty amazing cake.

The Makings of a Darcy

"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife."
It is also a truth universally acknowledged that a single woman in possession of a good library must be in want of a Mr. Darcy. Fitzwilliam Darcy must be, hands down, the ultimate romantic hero of classic literature, simply because he is so attractive to women from any era, age in life, class, nationality, etc. To put it shortly, we love Mr. Darcy. What is it about him that is so perfectly wonderful? From the beginning of the book, I am swept away by his mysterious charm. As I was last re-reading the book, I found myself pondering exactly what makes up a Darcy. Here is what I came up with. To become a Darcy, one must:
1. Be good-natured as a child. As Mr. Darcy's housekeeper tells Elizabeth, his being a pleasant child helps ensure his being a pleasant adult.
2. Own an estate like Pemberly. Elizabeth herself nearly admits to marrying him for his estate. And when you have a place like this (Photo courtesy of http://janeausteninvermont.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/pemberley-photo.jpg), what girl could resist?Seeing how inheriting an estate is a bit out of the question for most would-be Darcys, the best one can do is make one's dwelling place as much of a Pemberly as possible.
3. Always follow "The Code". Darcy is moved by a high sense of honor that is what endears him most to Elizabeth. Set your standards high, then stick to 'em.
4. Invest in a Darcy wardrobe. Now, I'm not saying wear cravats and waistcoats all day, but definitely nix the baggy pants and the punk hipster look. Go for classy, whenever possible. In fact, buying a Victorian riding cape is always a good idea.
5. Write long letters. Those of us who are obsessed with Pride and Prejudice simply cannot resist a good letter writer. Darcy, by the way, is noted as a long letter writer in the book. Not only is it an excellent literary technique for the author to use, letters are just more romantic.
6. Learn to work well with animals and children. Darcy is an excellent horse rider, probably owns a few good hunting dogs, and is the perfect older brother to his sister, Georgianna. On a side note, being able to swim through a lake after riding twenty or so miles on horseback is an added bonus, particularly if you happen to look like Colin Firth.
7. Secretly be a good dancer. Of course, Mr. Darcy would never admit it, but he is usually the finest dancer at any ball, though perhaps his public manners leave a bit to be desired.
8. Don't give up easily. Remember, Elizabeth said no the first time Darcy proposed. He never is clingy, desperate, or mopey, but he certainly never completely gives up on Elizabeth. His secret: always being there in the right place at the right time. As a side note, I love watching the 6 hour BBC series just to watch him watch her. He spends a good hour's worth of the series just staring at her from the corner of the screen. This would probably really creepy, were the part not played by Colin Firth.
9. Don't give your respect too freely. Darcy's self-declared vice is that his good opinion, once lost, is not easily regained. This, as Elizabeth so properly says, is fault indeed, but not one that could be laughed at. Darcy, while being able to bite his tongue, is obviously not the type of person that could be friends with a Wickham or a Lydia. While this proves some embarrassment to Elizabeth at times, it makes his respect for her all the more precious.
10. Fall in love with an Elizabeth. Too often, those who are Darcy-material fall for girls who are less than Elizabeth. This leaves the Elizabeths of the world to be paired with Mr. Collins figures. There are Elizabeth Bennets out there! Go find them!
Finally, anyone aspiring to the role of a Darcy simply must read the book, Pride and Prejudice. There are very few books out there that will give you a better insight into the female mind. This is how we think! It's like getting a guided tour. It's really worth the investment.
And, if Mr. Darcy is not really your thing, you could always try being a Colonel Brandon (Alan Rickman as a role model is a must), or my personal favorite, a Mr. Knightly.

It's really no wonder that I'm still single...