Books That Have Had an Impact On Me

My roommate recently wrote a note on Facebook about the books that have impacted her life so I decided to do the same thing.

1776 by David McCullough

Yes, I love American history but the main reason I love this book is because it's a true story of a man and his army who try again and again to overcome such overwhelming odds. After suffering defeat after defeat against the British, the Continental Army was able to pick up the pieces and move on and, in the end, succeed.




Harry Potter by JK Rowling

This is going to sound cheesy but these books illustrate a great story of good vs. evil. It's the story of a young boy who wasn't really extraordinary in any way except one: he was the only one who could defeat the evil wizard, Lord Voldemort. He wasn't blessed with any amazing abilities. He wasn't even spectacularly clever. He just had the courage to do what was necessary and what had to be done in order to overcome evil and save those he loved. (Judging by the number of times I've read these books, they are probably my favorite books of all time.)


Persuasion by Jane Austen

This is the story of a woman who experienced serious disappointment in her life. While much of the disappointment was brought on by her own decisions, she had been dealt a rather difficult hand. But the heroine of the story learns that while things may not happen to us according to our own timetable, the things we want to happen will come in time if we simply follow what we believe to be right and hope for the best.




The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexander Dumas

This is a fascinating story about revenge. The main character in the novel was falsely accused and spent many years in prison for a crime he did not commit. After he escaped from prison, he made up his mind to take revenge on all those responsible for making his life miserable. Through study and careful plotting, he achieved his goal. But when all was said and done, the satisfaction he expected to feel after ruining all these lives was nonexistent and he found that bringing others low did not bring him any higher.



We Were Not Alone by Patricia Reece Roper and Karola Hilbert Reece

This is the amazing true story about an LDS family living in Berlin during WWII. There were many struggles and trials that the family had to face, but there were also many miracles that occurred because of the individual members' faith and their diligence in keeping the commandments of God.




Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine

This is the best version of the Cinderella story ever written, but it is also a wonderful story about sacrifice and courage. By sacrificing the thing she wanted most to save the lives of others, Ella later gained everything and more. (That's not much of a review, but it's a great and complex storyline that I could never do justice to here.)





The Kaleidoscope Season by Sharon Downing Jarvis

This is a coming-of-age story about a young girl named Emily Jean who was brought up by her grandmother because of the untimely deaths of her parents and her twin sister when she was just a baby. Her grandmother was a devout Protestant Christian and sent the LDS missionaries away whenever they came to call. Emily Jean yearned to know her mother and father, but her grandmother rarely spoke of them because Emily's father had been a Catholic. But after several events that turned Emily's rather controlled life upside down, Emily realized that the message she needed to hear was taught by the LDS missionaries and from them, she learned the wonderful truth that she would be able to see her family again someday.

There are many more books out there that have affected me, but this blog post would have to be about a hundred feet long for me to do every one of them justice. All I can say is, keep reading! There is some great stuff out there!

Bags Unpacked, I'm Ready To Go

I'm back at BYU for my Junior year of college. I'm not going to lie; I wasn't too excited about coming back this year, but now that I'm here and all settled into my apartment, I'm starting to get used to the idea. But there will always be things that I will miss about home.
I'm going to miss:

• reading books for pleasure
• seeing the green hills of the Bay Area during the wintertime
• good internet service
• snow-less winters
• having my own room
• close proximity to family
• our amazing shower and good water pressure
• my parents' huge movie selection
• going to my home ward
• friends from home
• having a large gum supply
• storage space
• no homework

I'm back in good ol' Provo and dealing with everything else that comes with it.
I'm not looking forward to:

• ice-covered sidewalks
• a jam-packed fridge
• homework
• my custodial job
• a tiny kitchen
• horrible internet service (which is miraculously working right now)
• only seeing family on holidays
  
• having almost no TIME!

As more of my roommates start coming in, I'm getting more and more happy to be back. I just want the year to start so that I can get into a routine that works for me. And while a lot of the things that come packaged with returning to school seem a little daunting, I am excited to be back at BYU and to see what this next year has in store for me. Wish me luck!

Trying to Be Artsy

Since I don't have a job this summer to take away any of my free time, I've had a lot of opportunities to try my hand at some more painting projects. I've made quilt squares using fabric paint before, but I've been focusing more on making wall-hangings this summer. Here are a few samples of my work:

These first paintings are based off of Mary Engelbreit drawings. These next ones are paintings I did of flowers that I took pictures of at the Berkeley Rose Garden:

I've still got some painting techniques I have to work on but, for the most part, I like the way these ones turned out. I think I probably have way too much time on my hands, though.

The Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave

I think many of us look back at the year 1776 as a glorious time of change and patriotism for the United States of America. In reality, the year the Declaration of Independence was written and signed was far from the triumphant and victorious period of American history that we learn about in our high school history classes. It was a time of uncertainty and betrayal, a time when the fate of the 13 colonies was not at all clear.
The spirit of the troops started out high at the beginning of 1776 after the successful defense of Boston and the Continental Army's taking of the high ground on Dorchester Heights. But after a few months of making preparations to defend the city of New York, the British Army planned a very successful surprise night attack on the spread-out troops of the Continental Army. The battle, which became known as the Battle of Brooklyn or the Battle of Long Island, was a crushing defeat for the colonists and for General Washington. After the Continental Army left New York, they were defeated in several more battles, including the capture of Fort Washington by the British in which over 2000 Americans were taken prisoner.
People, including many of Washington's generals and closest friends, began to question his capability. The morale of the army was very low. Hundreds of soldiers deserted the army in the winter of 1776 because of lack of warmth, shoes, adequate clothing, and hope. Many of the British believed the conflict to be over and that the colonists had finally come to their senses. In the midst of one of the darkest hours in our nation's history, the character of America's leaders such as Nathaneal Green, Henry Knox, and especially that of the commander-in-chief, became apparent. After being chased across New Jersey and into Pennsylvania, Washington knew that it was time to deliver a blow to the Redcoats. On Christmas Day, the exhausted and severely weakened Continental Army crossed the Delaware and outsmarted the 1500 Hessians stationed at Trenton. It was a major turning point in the war.
David McCullough, the author of the book 1776, said this of Washington:

"He was not a brilliant strategist or tactician, not a gifted orator, not an intellectual. At several crucial moments he had shown marked indecisiveness. He had made serious mistakes in judgment. But experience had been his great teacher from boyhood, and in this his greatest test, he learned steadily from experience. Above all, Washington never forgot what was at stake and he never gave up."

I have gained a new appreciation for just how miraculous the surrender of the British Army six years later was. It is amazing to me that men and boys of all ages that had absolutely no military training were able to defeat the disciplined and supposedly invincible army of the British Empire. I'm thankful to all those who put their lives on the line to protect this country and help to spread freedom across the world. May we all be like Washington and never lose sight of what is truly important to us and never give up when challenges come our way.

Happy 4th of July!

Completely Pointless but Kind of Fun

So I got this idea from another friend's blog. Here's what you do. You pair your name with one of the bolded words below and type it into Google. For example, George needs or Bob loves. Then see what kind of sentences are highlighted in the results that start with your name and the word or phrase you typed in. These are the sentences that I found for my name:

1) Celia needs to find a way to fit between these two generations.

2) Celia looks like your average 3rd grader.

3) Celia says, "Make a hat your crowning glory."

4) Celia wants nothing more than to be with her beloved, Colin. (Hahahahahaha!)

5) Celia does not like her aunt and her aunt appears not to like Celia.

6) Celia hates winter and has been dreading its arrival, but tonight she barely feels the cold.

7) Celia asks for a new traffic light to be installed.

8) Celia likes Brian. (That's really the best one I could find for that one.)

9) Celia eats high school kids. (That's really what it said.)

10) Celia wears heavy robes that disguise her scales and posture and employs magic if further disguise is necessary. (I got a laugh out of that one!)

11) Celia was arrested for murder and by the winter of that year she had been convicted and hung.

12) Celia loves to travel and is always dreaming of new destinations and adventures.

So try it out. It doesn't take long and it might hand you a few laughs!

Movie Lines!

So I decided that I would write down some of my favorite movie lines and you guys can try to guess what movies (I guess TV shows too) they are from. I picked these lines because they have all come up somehow in everyday conversation.

1) "You can talk...Oh, I'm so glad!"

2) "What the...how long has that been there?"

3) "I can't remember a time...before you started telling that story."

4) "These are my best shoes!"

5) "Is it secret? Is it safe?"

6) "What's the matter with these scissors?"

7) "I want some chicken giblets!"

8) "You pervert!"
"Klinger's not a pervert."
"How do you know?"
"'Cause I'm one and he's never at the meetings."

9) "One tisp?"
"One teaspoon!"
"Oh, one teaspoon, of course!"

10) "Who's he?"
"I don't know...must be a king."
"How do you know."
"He 'asn't got [crap] all over 'im."

11) "She doesn't really know me."
"That is one instance in which fate has blessed her."

12) "She fell in love Generalisimo Franco!"
"You don't know that!"
"Well, who else could it have been? It was probably the late 1960s."
"People do stupid things in foreign countries."
"Yes, they buy leather jackets for much more than they're worth but they don't fall in love with fascist dictators."

13) "The fun has arrived!"

Alright, if I think of more I'll post them.

25 Things About ME!

So I have been tagged a lot on Facebook to make a list of 25 interesting things about me. So I guess I'll do that on here, except let's make it 20 things for now:

1. My least favorite noises are chewing sounds. I can't stand it when people chew gum or food with their mouths open. I cringe every time I hear it. (The sound of people swallowing also fits into this category.)

2. I love movie lines! My family can have an entire conversation in movie lines if we want to. "What the...how long has that been there?" or "What's the matter with these scissors" often comes up in everyday conversation.

3. I whistle and hum a lot. Sorry, I don't mean to be annoying. It's just what I do.

4. I am absolutely terrified of bugs. Small, big, hairy...you name it, I'm afraid of it.

5. I love cooked broccoli with cheese sauce! If someone told me I could never eat anything but broccoli for the rest of my life, I would be OK with that.

6. I love all kinds of music. I love Oldies, Country, Classical, Pop...I just love music! (However, I hate rap, heavy metal, and music with whiny voices.)

7. My dream vacation is to go back east and see American historical sites. (Of course, I would never pass up a trip to Europe.)

8. My favorite weather is partly cloudy. I love the lighting when a small cloud covers the sun for a little while!

9. I can read a certain book, listen to a certain song, or watch a certain movie several times before I get tired of it. But once I do get tired of it, I can't read, listen, or watch whatever it is for a few months.

10. I love to make crafty things. My favorite projects in school were ones that involved posters.

11. I'm not very good about sharing my feelings with other people. If I'm angry or sad about something, I usually just hold it in. I don't really consider this to be a good thing.

12. My favorite Disney movie is Sleeping Beauty...Prince Philip, lines such as "One tsp?", and great music...It couldn't get any better than that.

13. I like to think right before I go to sleep. It's one of the reasons why it usually takes me forever to fall asleep. I just have so much information swimming around in my brain. (Do they have a medication for Restless Brain Syndrome?)

14. I love songs that are in minor keys.

15. Before I die, I want to write at least one children's book, one teenage book, and one adult book. I don't care what critics say about how good literature should never be overly didactic; my books will all have excellent morals.

16. I don't like milk. If I have a a really rich piece of chocolate pie, water quenches my thirst just fine.

17. I no longer have my tonsils. I got them out when I was one and a half or something because they were way too big and they made me snore like an old man.

18. For some reason, dark blue is the color I'm most comfortable in. I wear dark blue a lot.

19. I love learning about the American Revolutionary and Civil Wars.

20. I have a knack for remembering people's faces. I have a hard time with names.

Well, I hope you all feel more enlightened now than you were before.