American Dreams
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- Wednesday, April 25, 2012
~ This is an interesting essay I wrote in my Essay Writing course my junior year of college.
It is Thanksgiving Day 1996, and the U-HAUL truck is backed into our tiny one-car driveway, back open, nearly full with everything my family has collected the 14 years we have lived in this house. My brother and I, young and excited, help our parents by carrying the light boxes into the garage so that they can load them into the truck. Above us the sky threatens to rain on our parade at any moment. We continue to help my parents, making a game of every moment, while we spend our last moments in that home.
All 11 years of my life have been spent in this three-bedroom, 1,248 square-feet home. The grey-bricked, pale-blue and white trimmed structure was the first home my parents owned together. They moved in September 1982 and rented it until they purchased it the month I was born in 1985. The small, cozy rooms house not just furniture, but our memories.
What Girl Scouts means to me …
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- Sunday, March 11, 2012
I joined the Girl Scouts in fall 1991 as a Brownie Scout in Troop 466 and never looked back. When I graduated from high school in 2003, my troop (now #262) was a combination of three troops. There were five of us, from three different cities and each of us went to a different high school. We were quite the bunch, and Girl Scouts for us was “social hour” and volunteering in our service unit, churches and community.
On this, the Girl Scouts of the USA’s 100th Birthday, I feel extra proud to be a part of something that does so much for so many girls and women (and men). The Girl Scouts is more than just selling cookies, as many outside of the organization perceive it to be. It has provided me with so many opportunities that I would not have had otherwise, I met some of the best friends I will ever have in my life, and it taught me a lot of things about being a strong, confident women.
I want to reflect on some of my memories of being a Scout …
Chocolate Chip Cookies
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- Sunday, March 04, 2012
So this weekend is a "free" weekend; i.e. I'm not in Little Rock, nor did my boyfriend didn't come up. I love these weekends. Not that I don't enjoy spending time with "the boy"; it's just nice to only have to entertain myself and be on my time and move at my pace. There is usually a point during these weekends where the loneliness settles in, and I miss having someone around. When you get used to that, it's weird for there to not be someone around, especially if you've been on the go for several weekends on end.
Anyway, I woke up yesterday about 5:30 a.m. or so, but dozed off and on until 8:15 when I determined it was definitely time to get up. I ventured out at 10 a.m. and spent some money at Target, Kohl's, Old Navy, Best Buy, Penny's, and "baby" Wal-Mart. Generally, about this time every year I like to buy some new clothes and weed out some old ones - I've yet to do the weeding. I ended up with a new pair of black pants, a few tops, a new cardigan, a skirt and a dress.
"Little Black Dress"
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- Wednesday, February 29, 2012
I really enjoyed "Little Black Dress" by Susan McBride. It was a quick, page-turning read. This story is about three women, two sisters and a daughter, and a little black dress. Each chapter alternates between Evie and Toni's point-of-view. Evie's point-of-view takes place during the 1960s, while Toni's is current day.
Evie's sister, Annabelle, is the first of three women to experience the power of the dress, which when one of them puts it on, fits perfectly and shows them a brief vision of the future. This aspect of the story is somewhat reminiscent of "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants".
I think this book has a good message of forgiveness and being there for your family even if you have hesitations, fears or "better" things to do. Definitely check this book out if you get a chance!
"One Day"
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- Saturday, January 14, 2012
I would definitely call "One Day" one of my favorite books. It was very well written and covers one day, July 15, in two peoples' lives over the course of 20 years. I found myself really enjoying the way Nicholls' described what they were doing and how their emotions. I am glad I didn't read this book nearly as fast as I usually read books, because I think I absorbed it better.
This book takes place in England. It's always entertaining to read books that take place over there because I learn all sorts of new words - next time I'll make a list of these words and share them with you.
Other than new, "British" words, I think there is a lot a reader can take away from this book. What those things are, I might still be wrapping my brain around those. It's definitely a book about appreciating who you have in your life and not taking them for granted; about living your life and making the most of it.
I bought the movie version this morning and plan on watching it tonight. I am anxious to see it and compare it to the book. Hopefully, I won't be disappointed! I'll keep you all updated on that.
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I just watched the movie. It was a very good adaptation of the book. They didn't change or leave out a whole lot, which is always good. However, I think I got more out of it having read the book ... having read more of the feelings/emotions of the characters throughout the story. I did tear up watching it, whereas it didn't hit me as much in the book.
