The Best Birthday Ever!

Hello again, readers. In case you haven't guessed by the title of this post, I had a birthday recently. I'm joining the ranks of twenty-somethings who are too old to be kids anymore but too young to grow up just yet. Tolkien accurately described them as the "tweens," or "the irresponsible twenties between childhood and coming of age at thirty-three." (The Fellowship of the Ring). Honestly, I've been feeling a little nostalgic about my teenage years lately. After all, I'll never be a kid again. But thanks to my awesome friends, Ashley, Rachael, and Heidi, it's been a birthday to remember.

It all started about a month or two ago when Heidi invited us to visit her in SE Oregon. Of course my friends and I jumped on an opportunity to see her again, but we were also excited to visit the many attractions in that area. Personally, I've never seen Oregon east of Willamette Pass, so I felt a little like Bilbo going on his quest. Only I was actually looking forward to it, and there were no fire-breathing dragons involved, ha ha.

And like Bilbo, I was shocked and amazed at what I've been missing out on all this time...

 
Example 1: Crater Lake
I can't even remember what my favorite landscape was before I saw this lake. One second you're hiking through snow drifts and hoping the view is worth getting soaked because you were lazy and didn't bother to wear proper snow shoes — and the next...well...the picture is self-explanatory. This is not photo shopped in any way, shape or form. The water is some of the bluest I've ever seen, and the mountains surrounding the lake were simply breathtaking. Those who know me can tell you that I'm not ordinarily an emotional person, but I had to catch my breath when I first laid eyes on Crater Lake. It's simply amazing. There's no other way to describe it.

Afterwards, we went from snow covered mountains to a desert town called Klamath Falls. Yes, you heard me right...desert. Am I the only one who thinks it's kinda cool that snow and a desert  terrain can coexist so close to one another? (To understand why this is cool, know that I live in a rainforest.) This isn't the only place on earth where that occurs, and it's not like the dry dry desert, but I've never seen anything like it with my own eyes before. It filled me with a sense of awe at just how much I haven't seen in this world. There's definitely a lot of traveling in my future.

The next morning, Sunday, we attended Mass in a small hermitage. First of all, I didn't even know hermits still existed, so of course I've never met one. The very word hermit made me wonder what kind of person this priest would be, and I couldn't hardly sleep the night before because of anticipation. I was surprised to arrive at the hermitage to find a lovely wooden cabin nestled amongst the woods, far from the main road. It wasn't fancy, but it was peaceful. The chapel was barely large enough to fit the priest, altar servers, and the choir, and the rest of the twenty attendees had to sit in the kitchen; but the familiar Mass made me feel right at home. The hermit priest himself was an outgoing, amiable man who did everything he could to make his visitors feel a part of the group, and meeting him makes me think of the hermit saints in a new light. I wish I had a picture to show you, but I didn't think to take one until it was too late.

From there it was on to Bend, where my friends and I spent the whole afternoon and early evening strolling through small shops along the waterfront. I didn't have enough money for souvenirs; but after walking out of two candy shoppes empty handed, pure torture, I finally broke down at the third and bought a bag of my favorite fruit candy, cherry sours...and a Mad Libs game for later that night.

For the final night of our little Odyssey, the girls and I sat around till 1am partying like only best friends do: insane rounds of Mad Libs, eating way more chocolate ice-cream and cherry sours then is good for us, watching The Princess Bride, and laughing until it hurt. Out of all the amazing things I got to see and do that weekend, I think I will remember that last night the most. After all, adventures are so much more worthwhile when you have someone to share them with. In my case, God blessed me with three someones.

Thus ended the first twenty years of my life, and boy was it fitting. I hope and pray the next twenty years are just as fruitful and full of adventure, family, and good friends. 

*the picture at the beginning of this post was taken by Heidi Maly of Aspenglow Photography and Aspenglow Blog

December 2013 - January 2014 Favorites

Hey there! Yeah, I was lazy and didn't write a favorites post for December.  But honestly, most of the things I liked about December have also been my favorites for January as well.  Here goes...


Favorite Movie: Frozen, Frozen, and Frozen again! It was a hard decision since there were so many good movies to choose from, but I thought this one sent them all home crying (except The Hobbit Part 2, but more about that in a moment.) No, it had nothing to do with the red-head Norwegian-type princess (sarcasm — I loved the whole Norwegian thing). But I digress...

Don't worry, there won't be any spoilers here; but I do have to say this is probably the most wonderfully heart-wrenching movie I've seen from Disney in a while. The relationship between Anna and Elsa was beautifully developed, and there were several times I found myself choking up singing along with the music in the theater. As an older sister myself, Elsa was my favorite character, but I challenge you to watch this movie and then tell me you don't feel like giving Olaf the Snowman a "warm hug." Overall, I think this is a movie sisters should watch together, doesn't matter what age they are; because beneath the music and the lights, it's about the powerful love of two sisters who would do anything for each other.

If I asked really nicely, do you think Disney would hire me to play Anna as a day job?

Warning: the next portion of this movie review might contain a few spoilers.

In a close second comes The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. This movie would have made it to first place, but I do have a few reservations. One: I thought the script writers could have made it just as long while including more of the book. Namely, I was hoping for a longer Beorn scene, and seeing more of the spiders/Mirkwood might have been nice. Two: I don't remember Tauriel being anywhere in the LOTR universe. I haven't read the Silmarillion, so don't come after me with pitchforks if I'm wrong. I'm just thinking in terms of The Hobbit. She's pretty awesome in her own right, and she's adorable with Kili, but I feel like her presence pushes the boundaries of a story that's already a far cry from the book. However, I'm not going to complain about Legolas, because technically he would have been there seeing as he was Thuranduil's son. Tolkien just didn't know it yet since he wrote The Hobbit before The Fellowship of the Ring.

Now for the good things — if you're not watching the movie expecting it to be exactly like the book, it was pretty dang good. I loved how they included the story thread with Sauron (aka The Necromancer), and I think Thorin's and Bilbo's characters were much more relatable for the audience this movie targeted. I suppose it was like a grown-up's version of the children's book Tolkien wrote. My only hope for the next movie is that they don't swerve from the storyline any more than they already have. Although this movie was exciting and fun, as an author I wouldn't want someone taking that many liberties with my work either. I'd say it earned four stars.

Favorite Song: Okay, okay...I'm done talking about movies now. I'll be brief when it comes to music. These past two months, I've been kind of addicted to this group I found on YouTube called The Piano Guys. If you haven't heard of them yet, here's a link to one of my favorite songs, a cover of Titanium.

And this post would not be complete if I didn't mention Who I'd Be and I Know it's Today from Shrek the Musical. The production was actually pretty fun, and the actors did a good job of portraying their characters. At first I wasn't too keen on the guy who played Shrek, but I realized why they chose him the second he opened his mouth to sing. These songs will make a little more sense if you watch the whole musical on Netflix or YouTube.

Favorite Gloves: Really, these Good Girl/Bad Girl Fingerless Gloves just plain awesome. They keep your hands warm, look cool, can be dressed up or down, and they're so comfy. Nearly two months later, I still build my girls' day out look around them. If you want a pair, here's the link to the Etsy shop I bought them from, Xtremities. There are options for guys too ;-).

And that concludes the December-January Favorites post. In case anyone is wondering if I plan on blogging about other stuff besides...well...stuff, then don't worry. I do. These are just things I wanted to share my thoughts about. Once a month, I also plan on trying to write a book review, so keep an eye out; and there will be plenty of posts about places to visit in Oregon since I plan on travelling this summer. It's all part of Katharine's Korner.

Until next time....

Christmas Eve in My Hooooometoooooown...

When I think of Christmas Eve, I usually think of Norman Rockwell-ish scenarios. Trim an elegant tree with an assortment of store-bought and homemade ornaments. Bake perfectly formed/decorated Christmas cookies, some of which are set aside for Santa's midnight snack. Old time carols on the radio. Everybody smiling. And best of all...no glitches.

Well this isn't the Rockwell house — it's mine. Therefore, in honor of families everywhere, in lieu of the Christmas cards I forgot to send, I'd like to share the activities of my family this holiday season. This is how Christmas is done in "my hometown."

The Christmas festivities usually start a week before, when we pull all the decorations down from the attic and distribute them in the living room/dining room. This is relatively easy and fun...until we pull out our two Christmas tree angels. You see, the tree has always been my favorite decoration, and my "decorating goal" has always been to find the perfect tree topper. Last year, I did. The only problem is...my youngest sister HATES it, and she's got red hair/a temper too. Well, this year it wasn't a problem, because I didn't argue with her after I realized I could put "my angel" on the piano and look at it every day while I practice. Crises one averted...but I still think mine looks better.

Once the house is decorated, then the real fun begins...last minute shopping. I'm telling you, I think it happens every year. I swear up and down that I will have all my shopping done before this time, and every year that plan always falls through. So it's off to the mall to brave the traffic and pray that the things you actually want are still there. But as scrooge-like as this paragraph sounds, I would be lying if I said I didn't enjoy it. Something about the adrenaline rush as you realize you have finally done it again,  against all odds, doesn't get old. Seriously, I feel like a sugar plum fairy godmother at the end of the day.

But not all Christmas festivities are work. Some are almost magical...such as Fezziwig's Jig.

In case you don't know yet from reading my blog, facebook page, etc... I love Jane Austen, and I love excuses to dress up and dance. So Fezziwig's was like a Austenite/cosplayer's dream come true. A Christmas ball where you get to dress up in the fashion of the regency era, dance, play games and pretend you're in the middle of a Charles Dickens or Jane Austen novel? Yes please! Well, not all the dances were from that era (something tells me Cotton Eye Joe and the Virginia Reel were not widespread in England then), but that was all right. By that time, we'd all had lots of Regency dances and were more than happy to kick up our heels before the party ended. This was the first year my friends and I went, but it's definitely a tradition now.


Finally, Christmas Eve arrived. My family was planning on going to see Frozen later in the day (more about that in my December Favorites), so I tried to wrap all my gifts that morning right after I woke up. But I sat down to find that the bag of Christmas bows I'd bought was empty! Knowing I wouldn't have time to get any more if I wanted to make Christmas cookies for gifts with my sisters, I ended up wrapping everything just in paper. Maybe I'm a little nit-picky, but I do like to dress up gifts when I wrap them; so when I walked into my room to find this...you can imagine my initial thoughts. At least it only took me a few minutes to see the humor and laugh before my sisters came into the room, ha ha.

When the gifts were wrapped and the cookies baked and the kids were all in bed, then came my favorite part of Christmas Eve. Every year since my parish priest came to my church, he has held a candlelit High Mass at midnight on Christmas morning. Between September and December 25th, my church choir practices hard to sing Christmas Carols in harmony; and it's not completely vain for me to say that it does sound like a choir of angels since it's a team effort.  I would put a picture of the altar and manger scene here, but I was a moron and accidentally left my camera at home.

But even though all the lights and music and beautiful things are fun, the infant Jesus is what this silent night is all about. It's not wrong to enjoy the festivities of the season; but kneeling at the altar rail before the tabernacle and the infant statue is the most peaceful, serene moment of the holiday. Presents and parties and colorful decorations don't compare with the happiness that comes when you just spend a few minutes contemplating the meaning of the day...Jesus' birthday...the day the Divine Messiah was born.  This is Christmas.

So as I sit here writing this post, eating the last of the candy from my stocking and sipping my third cup of coffee, I want to wish you that same peace on this great season. Merry Christmas and God bless us, every one.

Now I'm going to see if there's any more perfect Christmas cookies left.

November Favorites

Hello out there, I haven't posted anything for a while because life has been pretty crazy of late. But I'm currently snowed in, which gives me lots of time to surf the internet and watch Netflix write a new post. So here I sit, with a pile of St. Nicholas Day coins (or what's left of them) beside my computer, music playing in the background, and snow falling softly outside the window. What more can a girl ask for?

Since I haven't really been doing anything besides working, writing, and Black Friday shopping, I'm going to steal an idea from a blogger friend of mine and give you a November Favorites post. Hopefully you enjoy this random list of things and/or little memories that stand out for me from last month.

Favorite Memory
First off, my favorite memory...getting the Hades scared out of me two days before Thanksgiving. My Aunt asked me to pet sit/house sit for her during Thanksgiving week, and my friends and I were planning a couple nights of bachelorette fun starting that Tuesday. Well, my friend, Rach, texted me that morning and apologized, saying she couldn't make it after all. Oh well, life happens, right?

As it so happens, that Tuesday was also my first night alone in a house by myself.  My friend, Ashley, would be joining me later, but I wasn't supposed to pick her up until 8:30; and it got dark long before then. Now, I'm not afraid of the dark, but I'd heard stories of strangers breaking into houses which they knew only had one person occupying it — especially when that one person is a girl. Therefore, I locked all the doors and windows and closed the blinds so that no one could look in and see who was staying there. Might be overcautious, but I wasn't taking the chance that I would be that one random girl who gets mugged and robbed for whatever reason. Personally, I blame Rach's boyfriend, who likes to reference the movie Taken when Rach and I talk about travelling. Ha ha.

Anyway, about 7:30, someone knocked on the door, and the dogs started barking. I wasn't expecting anyone; and, as far as I knew, nobody knew I was staying there. But everyone who would be welcome in the house knew my Aunt was gone for Thanksgiving. So, I had no idea who was on the other side of that door, and my only weapon would have been a kitchen knife if it was mugger. Needless to say, my heart jumped into my throat, and the only thought running through my mind was "how do I take this person out if they're a bad guy?" Seriously, I was running through every bit of advice I've ever been given on how to make a mugger hurt.

I opened the door, being careful to stand where the HUGE golden retriever I was pet sitting would get to the stranger before he could get to me, and I peeked outside. It was Rach, throwing her arms open and shouting "Heeeey! Surprise!" I was too relieved it was her and not a stranger that I didn't even think to be mad.

Instead, I did what any good friend would do. I helped Rach scare Ashley when we went to pick her up. One for all and all for one, right? Right.

By the way, I'm never watching Taken now.

Favorite Song
Well, now that I've used up so much space with my tale, it's time to mention a song that this list wouldn't be complete without. Waiting for Superman by Daughtry has to be my favorite song right now. The part where it says "He got stuck at the Five and Dime, saving the day" especially touched me. Just because Superman hasn't shown up yet (and I think this goes for a lot of single ladies) doesn't mean he's not coming ever. He just got "held up a bit," doing God's will. You will meet him in God's own good time. That's my interpretation of the song, anyway.

Favorite Movie
Thor 2: The Dark World. Not only is Thor just plain awesome, Loki isn't bad either. I won't put any spoilers in this post, but I will say that it had a much stronger storyline than the last movie. Not to mention, the brotherly bond between Loki and Thor is much more developed. It's sort of like Thor 1 was the prologue, whereas Thor 2 is the actual novel. Or maybe 1 was the prequel to 2. You get the idea.

Favorite Scent
Okay, this is not a section that's going to appear on every favorites list, because I hardly ever wear perfume. But last month I did splurge and buy a small bottle of "fragrance mist" from Bath and Body Works (apparently there's a difference between mist and perfume *shrugs shoulders*). It's called Cranberry Twinkle, and it is oh-my-gosh good. The scent is very light, not at all overpowering, but it's not so light that you can't smell it two minutes after you put it on. Two or three squirts in the general area of your neck will ensure that the smell stays for a long time. It's sort of a sugary cranberry aroma. You can smell like Christmas without smelling like a bad pine air freshener or a cookie all day long. It's not that expensive either, $6 for the 3oz bottles. Like I said, I don't wear it a whole lot; so that's the perfect size for me, and it will last for a while. Okay, now I'm done sounding like a commercial — I just had to put that in there for all my girl friends.

Okay, I think that's it for November. Honestly, I haven't had much time for more. Hopefully December will be even more fun. And, of course, I'm still going to blog about all the extra things in my life I think you might enjoy hearing about. Merry Christmas!

Wordstock 2013

So, about a month or so ago, I got a text from my friend and fellow writer, Ashley, telling me all about this book festival in Portland, Wordstock. Of course, I was really excited to begin with; but when I found out that Maggie Steifvater and Cinda Williams Chima were going to be there, I knew the plan was set. The Scorpio Races and the Heir Series are some of my favorite modern books, and actually getting to meet the authors was too rare an opportunity to pass up.

The plan was that I would meet up with my friends, Ashley and Rachael, at my church after mass on Saturday, and we would head to Portland from there. Simple, right?

Well, the night before the Wordstock trip I decided to stay up until midnight, writing after I got home from a friend's house. Sleep is pretty overrated after all, right? I'm young, and I can handle missing an hour.

My trip started off with me waking up, bleary eyed, and realizing that was I running late for mass...by about an hour.  Even if I jumped out of bed and sped to the church I wouldn't make it on time. However, if I hurried up, then I could be there at the end of mass, so problem solved. Therefore, I skipped breakfast/coffee, threw on some makeup and an outfit I'd laid out the night before (the one smart thing I did before going to sleep), and was just about to head out the door when I realized I didn't have any directions to the Oregon Convention Center (nothing like planning ahead, right?). So back to my room it was, and I quickly jotted down some directions from Google maps on a piece of paper. Then I put some gas in my car and made it to the church about five minutes later than I meant to; but that's okay, because I found out the mass was longer than usual that morning. Besides giving Ashley a panic attack (she thought something terrible happened when I didn't show up on time), everything was going great.

After that, things went pretty smoothly. We drove in my lean, green, speed machine (my affectionate, yet sarcastic title for my 1999 Saturn) all the way to Portland, with the radio blaring as loud as it could without completely drowning our voices. By the time we'd parked in the Convention Center's parking garage, my excitement was reaching full capacity.

At first, in my naïve state of mind, I thought I could carry all the loot I'd be getting from the different publishers/vendors in my arms...ha! After no more than half an hour, I realized I couldn't possibly do without one of the big red tote bags being sold by the entrance. So many publishers, editors and distributors! My stack of papers, business cards, catalogues and whatnot made my shoulder hurt after a while.

 



But even if you're not a writer, there is still plenty for you to do and see. Many publishing houses in the Northwest had a selection of their books for sale, and authors are coming and going all day long. If you want to attend the event next year, check out the list of guest authors beforehand, and my guess is that you'll find at least one you know. And, to my surprise, there were even events for the children. I think I counted about thirteen very realistic Star Wars cosplayers walking around the festival, complete with Chewbacca, Han Solo, Princess Lea, Darth Vader and Boba Fett (forgive me if I spelled his name wrong...I'm a nerd-in-training, ha ha).

Finally, about 2pm, my friends and I found a nice little spot in the corner of a coffee shop next to the exhibit hall, and we settled down to kill time with our drinks. We were trying to decide what to do about dinner when...guess who walked into the shop. Cinda Williams Chima! She ordered something, and I had the crazy idea that it might be fun to ask her if she wanted to sit with us. I wasn't freaking out fan-girling...yet...but the idea wouldn't quite let go. It was just coffee. She had no obligation to sit with us, but it might be fun if she was willing.

While Ashley and I were deliberating the idea, Rachael was an angel and asked for us. And...Cinda said yes! For an hour and a half, all four of us sat and talked about pretty much everything to do with the writing life and a little bit more. Before we went out separate ways, she was nice enough to let me take a picture with us in it, so I will always have photographic evidence that this really did happen, haha. After she left, Ashley and I just looked at each other and...yeah...then we fan-girled.

Eventually, we decided to walk two blocks to Red Robin for dinner, and we made it back just in time to be first in line for the book signing. Ashley and I had both bought a copy of Dream Thieves and Enchanter Heir earlier that day (I actually lucked out and got the last copy of Enchanter Heir), and we were ready to have them signed by their respective authors. But come to find out, they were sitting on a panel first, so there would be an hour long wait before the signing actually took place. That was all right. We welcomed the chance to sit and rest our feet near the signing table while we waited. There was a yoga and video game convention going on at the same time, so there was no lack of things to see.

However, just as our hour long wait finished up, a lady wearing a Wordstock badge walked out of the exhibit hall, gathered up all the signing things and walked straight back inside. I quickly ran over to the two women guarding the original table only to find out that the book signing had been moved at the last minute. So, we entered the hall...and found a looooong line of people waiting for their chance to meet the different authors. We ended up being the last to have our books signed by Maggie and Cinda, but it was worth the wait.

Overall, it was an awesome day. As I drove my speed machine home, trying hard not to slow down traffic, I couldn't help thinking about how blessed I was to be given the chance to enjoy this adventure. I didn't know I would be writing a blog post this time, so there aren't many pictures; but next year I will make sure it's recorded properly. Wordstock 2014 had better save a spot for me, because I'm going to be a regular from now on. *Two thumbs way, way up*

Hello out there!

Wow...I've got a blog. This is not something I thought I'd be doing a year ago, but when does life ever go as planned? That's why it's an adventure, and I hope you enjoy hearing about mine.