Ode to Mesa

Well, this is it. I'm leaving tomorrow morning, only to return when the sun radiates relief and the kitchen smells like pumpkin pie. To answer the questions I have already answered dozens of times: Yes, I'm excited. I'm living in bowen hall at Heritage. It's old but right by campus. I'm rooming with Emily Kleinkopf, majoring in English, and of course, since everyone has pounded this into my head, I'm expecting to have lots of fun.

The truth is that, although I am excited, I'm also a little apprehensive, and there are lots of things I'm going to miss about my hometown. As I was thinking about Mesa, my thoughts were coming out somwhat poetically, so I decided to jot them down. It was a quick draft and It's a little cheesy, but it describes how I'm feeling, so I'm posting it anyway. Enjoy. :)

I’ll miss this.

I’ll miss walking outside a cold building into the blistering heat

wearing flip flops outside in february and sweaters inside in june

dancing in the sudden, brief rain that interrupts a sunny day

I’ll miss strolling down main street with a friend and a camera

staying home on fridays to be with my sister

singing 2 hours a day with the people I love most

I’ll miss the saguaros amongst wildflowers in spring, dried grass in autumn

the families of quail that run across my yard each June

the smell of orange blossoms that invades my nose on a spring day

I’ll miss Mesa

The desert is beautiful because it’s my home

Some say they could never belong here. I say I will always belong here

I’ll miss this.

Goodbye Mesa! Don't change too much while I'm gone. Keep my family and friends safe and well for me. :) I'll be home for Christmas!

Love,

Lauren

I'm old fashioned

I love the moonlight. I love the old fashioned things...

If these phrases hold no meaning for you, go look up the song "I'm Old Fashioned" on youtube or a music website. It's an old jazz standard so there will be dozens of artists that have recordings. I recommend Ella Fitzgerald, but listen to more than one if you have time.

The fact that I absolutely love this song is just one example of how old fashioned I am. I realized recently that in many aspects of pop culture, I prefer an older or more vintage style to a modern one. I would rather listen to Billy Joel than Jason Derulo. I would rather read A Tale of Two Cities than The Lightning Theif. I would rather watch old episodes of Star Trek than new episodes of Glee. And as far as fashion and decorating are concerned, the vintage look wins ever time. Let's face it, unless we are talking about food, pajamas, or special effects, old stuff is always better.

Okay, maybe not always. I love a lot of the more current music, books, and TV shows as well, and although I love vintage style clothing, it's not like the clothes themselves are actually old.

I guess the more accurate statement would be that I'm multi-generation fashioned. Too often, the media (and the public) gets so excited about the newest hit that they forget about the old classics. People with such a narrow focus miss out on the myriad of good entertainment that is available to them. So this is my message to the world: next time you buy tickets to the newest hit movie, check out what the Metropolitan Opera will be broadcasting in HD at the same theather. Next time your looking up your favorite song artist on the internet, look up some of the artists that inspired them. Next time you check out the latest pop fiction novel from the library, pick up a classic that has withstood the test of time.

Every generation has its good and bad culture, but over the years, we can hope that the worst of it dies out, leaving only the best books, movies, and music for our senses to enjoy.

Think about it.

An Exercise in Being Social

In my family, we have social people and not-so-social people. I fall into the not-so-social category. It's not that I particularly dislike talking to people, I just don't go out of my way to speak with people whom I will probably never need to know beyond a superficial level. This is especially the case at work. Besides having a generally unfavorable attitude about my job (I wouldn't call it a bad attitude - I think I put up with removing staples and scanning for 4 to 6 hours straight fairly well), I tend to have the idea that since I will probably never see most of my co-workers after I leave for college, there's no need for me to make friends.

My mom, on the other hand, falls into the "social" category of my family. She loves the people we work with and could tell me something significant about each of their lives. I realized that I can't learn to love people if I never even get to know them, and I can't be the kind of person I want to be if I don't learn to love people. So what did I do? I decided to put my mom's approach to the test.

I started by making general small talk to each person that came into my little copy room. I would ask them what they were working on, if the had any big plans for the weekend, etc. I must admit, small talk is the reason I'm not more social. I hate it. It's tiresome and superficial. However, I've realized through my little experiment that small talk is often the dreadful but necessary first step to getting to know someone.

Progress was slow at first. The only change I could detect in my experience at work was that I had to put up with a lot more pointless conversations. I didn't feel like I was good at this whole "being social" thing and was ready to give up when I had a conversation that completely changed my outlook. Lucy came into the copy center at the usual time. I already felt like she didn't really like me because I always seemed to be using the copier when she needed it, but we talked anyway. The conversation started out like small talk. We talked about my plans for college and she asked me what I was planning on going into.

"English," I said.

"Oh, do you want to be a teacher?" She replied.

"That's my current plan," I confirmed.

"My mother was an English teacher," Lucy said, and continued to tell me all about her mother. She was a teacher at a school in Mesa when she decided that she wanted to know what it felt like to be a minority. She requested a transfer to a school in downtown Phoenix that at the time, enrolled about 1% white students. Lucy told me several stories about the things her mother did for her students. She gave these poor, black and Hispanic students their first experience of receiving mail. She let them all touch her long hair, but only if she got to touch each of their heads in return. She impacted her students' lives in a way that I can only hope to emulate someday. When the conversation ended, I was not only amazed and inspired, but my attitude about people in general had changed. Some people will seem callous when you meet them. Small talk will be tedious when you first begin. But every now and then, you have a conversation like the one I had this week, and that makes "being social" worth all the effort.

It's the little things

I spent today appreciating the little things in life. In order to help you all love life a little more, I have come up with a list - things that make life a little better just because they exist. You're welcome.

1. Skype
Seriously, it's the best thing since buttered toast. I know, I never thought something would come along that could compete with buttered toast, either, but that day has finally come.
We skyped (can skype be used as a verb?) with Markie and Tucker last night and it was awesome. We got to see Markie's dorm and meet her roommates and watch everyone's facial expressions. Haha. So much better than that old school telephone idea.

2.Breathtaking Views

This is where I work now (the shorter ovalish building in the middle)
The view from the lobby looks like this

Ok so it doesn't look exactly like that, but it's still pretty spectacular. My job is as boring as ever, but the occasional glimpse outside definitely makes it a lot more bearable.

3. Orange trees
I was riding my bike this evening, and as I got closer to the orange grove, the air got at least 5 degrees cooler and it smelled summery - like orange blossoms but a little less sweet. Heavenly.

4. Eating PB&J with a spoonSometimes the bread just gets in the way. You probably think I'm weird, but I promise, it's better than in sounds. Seriously, try it. Yummm.

5. The song "You Got Me" by Colbie Cailat
It's on my playlist to the right in case you want to listen to it right now - which you should because it will make you happy. :)

Your turn! What little thing did you appreciate today?

feuling fire

I just finished the second book in the Hunger games series. It's called Catching Fire (I had a picture which I apparently got from an unhappy internet source that goes around deleting photos off of blogs that 8 people follow).

The next book doesn't come out until August, and this book's cliff hanger ending definitely leaves people hungry (or thirsty, or burning, or dying) for more. Almost everything I wrote about Hunger Games also applies here. The plot is action packed and intriguing, though I must say that Collins does set it up to be rather predictable. I guessed, to some degree, the endings of both books, partially because the author left a few prominent clues, and partially because I knew that no sensible writer would kill off too many main characters. Not in this genre, not with another book coming, and certainly not if she wants to have her books made into movies. But the fact that you have a vague idea (or maybe just a definite hope) of how the events will end up doesn't make you any less anxious to get to the end. The only thing that frustrated me was that the main character, Katniss, didn't catch on to the clues that seemed so obvious to me. It's not that she's stupid (she most definitely is not), she is just so stubborn and passionate that she is blinded to the truth. And to be fair, it would have been remarkable if she had figured everything out, considering how many other things she had to worry about. :)

The characters in this series are quite likable, which is a selling point for any book or movie. Or at least the ones you are supposed to like are. I guess by the end you hate some of them, love some of them, pity some of them, and simply respect some of them. You could say Collins has this manipulating your emotions thing down to a science. The best part about the characters, though, is that they are relatable. Except for maybe President Snow and a few minor characters, no one is completely one sided. All of the primary characters have significant virtues and major flaws. My favorite character is Peeta because I think I can relate to him the most. He hates the capitol as much as anyone, but he's not a fighter. Instead, he uses his artistic and verbal skills to stage his own form of protest.

Alright, I'll stop babbling. In my effort to not give away anything, I've probably made this post totally incomprehensible to anyone who hasn't read the book. But since I'm really just doing this for my own pleasure, I don't really care. Sorry readers - this blog has never really been about you. Most blogs have never really been about you - unless the writer is really entertaining or somewhat vein. Sorry to burst your bubble. Have a great day. Read this book.

P.S. I promise I'll write a review of Jane Eyre eventually, I'm just putting it off because I know it will take a lot longer to write. In the mean time, read it because it's one of my favorites. Also I might post something about my mundane life eventually, too.

So I'm running on 2 hours of sleep right now

No, I wasn't up all night partying. No, I wasn't sick. I was reading Hunger Games (my picture of it had been deleted. Look it up if you care to see the cover)

Yup, hunger games until 4 in the morning. Just to give you an idea of just how irresistible this book is, I'll give you a little recap of my day yesterday.

1)I get home from work at 4ish and decided to start reading the book all of my friends were raving about at about 5.

2) I read from that point until 4 the next morning, only taking a couple hours off to eat dinner and go to baptisms at the temple.

3) I breathe a sigh of satisfaction and go to sleep.

It was a wonderful 11 hours of my life. :) The book is a decent length (about 400 pages), but it's a breeze to get through. There isn't a dull moment in all its 400 something pages, and since it's a children's book, it's very easy to read. It's the perfect book if you want to be entertained without thinking too hard.

But Hunger Games isn't just a trivial thriller, either. The story takes place in a society that is not only completely totalitarian, but oppressive, cruel, and savage. The people are powerless against the Capitol, which outwardly portrays a life of ease and luxury, but inwardly contains a government that will shoot people for hunting for themselves, and kill children for sport. So, although the storyline is geared towards the action-loving reader, there is an element of political protest as well. Throw that in there and all of a sudden you have a novel that is not only exciting, but a little bit thought provoking as well. Plus there's a little romance, which I'm a sucker for (but what girl isn't, really?)

Basically, I loved it and I can't wait to start the second one. Hunger Games is such a quick read, it is definitely worth the time. I highly recommend it. To everyone. Really, go read it now. K Bye. :)

a Book blog

So I have decided that my blog deserves a purpose. Not that writing about my rather mundane life won't be meaningful, but for my reader's sake, I want my blog to be something more. Plus, since I'm majoring in English, I can blog and tell myself I'm doing homework. :) So this is my proposal: my blog will be a book blog. As I read books for classes or just for fun, I'll tell you what I think - Was it entertaining? Was it meaningful? Did I love the symbolism? Or was it the imagery that really got me? I'll be writing about books like these

-we really have most of these books in my house. Seriously, the same books, leather bound with a ribbon book mark and everything :) -

and books like this

I'll continue writing about my wonderful, mundane life, too, for those of you who aren't as obsessed with literature as I am. I like to think that somebody cares about my life. If not, at least my mother will read those posts. :)

And if you are wondering about a certain book that I haven't posted anything on, leave a comment and ask me. I'll let you know what I think (if I've read it) or what I've heard (if I haven't).

I think this is a good idea. It'll give me the chance to reflect on what I read and express it in a somewhat coherent way. Great practice, lots of fun for me, and hopefully somewhat helpful to my book-loving friends. Good thinking, Lauren. :)