What I've Been Wasting My Time Watching and Reading and Bible post

Warning.  This post contains no vintage and a whole lot of TV and movie talk.  I swear I need to make another blog to just focus on my thoughts about what I watch and read, but I can barely keep up with one blog as it is.   And after writing everything down, it was about the size of a book, so I decided to split this post into two parts. Maybe somewheres down the future I will create a new blog, but for now its a once a week post.  I know there are some people somewhere out there that read what I write:)  Alrighty, so here we go in this weeks episode of What Caitlin's Been Wasting Her Time On:

 

 Firefly (2002)

This show was created by Joss Whedon, otherwise known as the master of all sci fi awesomeness...also creator of Buffy, Angel, Dollhouse, and internet phenomenon Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog.  Firefly is my very favorite show he created, but sadly this masterpiece only lasted about 14 episodes:(  Joss Whedon has a way of finding practically unknown but fabulous actors that all have great chemistry with one another, and his show (for the most part) are mostly about family.  Firefly is what you would call a space western, if you can imagine such a thing.  It takes place in the far future, obviously, after earth had been used up and the people went to terraform other planets and galaxies.  In the first episode there was a unification war that was focused on the creation of a central government called The Alliance to rule all of the different colonies.  The main character, Malcolm Reynolds (charming charming charming), fought in the war but against the unification.  After the war he is left defeated and faithless.  He, along with Zoe, a corporal he fought with, now run a transport ship "Serenity".  Zoe, who is like an amazon woman,  is married to the Wash, the pilot who is the light hearted and funny one of the group.  There is Jayne, the "public relations" muscle arm of the group.   Inara is a companion.  Basically it is a legalized prostitute, but they kind of make it  into an artform.  She rents a  shuttle from Serenity, to conduct her business, but is still a part of the crew.  There is a lot of sexual tension between Mal and her.   A lot. And Kaylee rounds out the crew.  She is the mechanic and also the heart of the ship.  She's like everyone's little sister.  They make a living transporting things, whether legally or illegally, and staying on the run from the Alliance.  In the first episode they land on a colony and pick up a few passengers to make some more money, 2 of which become permanent characters.  There is Shepard Book, the religious one of the group.  Then there is Simon.  Simon is probably my favorite character if I had to choose.  He is very young, but a brilliant doctor who came from a very rich background.  And he risks everything to save his little sister, River.  River is practically a genius, but a little crazy.  One might say schizophrenic, and shows signs of psychic capabilities.  When she was 14, she was invited to a government learning facility where her family thought they would  nurture her abilities.  However, they kept River, and all the other children, separated from their families and did experiments on them.  Simon gives up his future in medicine to risk infiltrating the school to save River.  He does, and smuggles her out in a cryogenic chamber which he brings aboard Serenity.   After this happens, everything about Simon is basically defined by River.  Every move or decision he makes, he has to think of his sister first.  Some things happen, which I won't go into detail about, and Malcolm discovers her hidden in the chamber.  From there, Malcolm decides to keep them on, since Simon is a  brilliant doctor, and the rest of the series, and movie, is about the whole crew staying on the run from the Alliance, while still trying to make a living.  This is about as realistic sci-fi as you can get.  Besides them living in space and different planets, the worlds are very grounded in realism and there are no crazy space monsters that are trying to take over.  And even though it is in the future, on some planets, you feel like you are watching a Western, and others you feel like you are watching a Victorian era show. A+

Legend of the Seeker Season 1 (2008)

This show is kind of made of awesome.  It is based loosely on a book series called The Sword of Truth by Terry Goodkind which a few people on facebook recommended me reading...so expect those books to pop up in the next few weeks when they come in at the library.  Each episode is kind of epic in its own right.  It must have cost a lot to film.  It is shot in New Zealand, which I mean, come on.  We all know that land is gorgeous, from what we've seen in Lord of the Rings.  Am I right?  The soundtrack is absolutely stunning, and the costuming and set design for each episode is fantastic.  So the story, though I may make it sound convoluted, goes a little like this:  One day a mysterious woman, Kahlan, is running away from D'Haran soldiers (the baddies) and Richard, a farmboy (the extremely well built goodie), sees her.  She gets trapped at the edge of a cliff, and Richard rushes in to save her.  But she doesn't really need help because she is a confessor.  If she grabs someone's neck and looks into their eye, she can "confess" them and make them do her bidding.  She can also tell if someone is telling the truth or not, but that doesn't make an appearance until later.  Anyways, she confesses one of the soldiers, blah blah blah, Richard and Kahlan get away.  Richard obviously has a lot of questions, about what he just saw, but she doesn't answer them.  He runs home and asks his father, he explains some but sends him to an old man, named Zed.  Zed is a wizard, and Kahlan also is looking for him and tells him that it is time for the Seeker to come.  Guess who the seeker is...yep your right.  Its Richard.  But, he doesn't have a clue that he is the seeker or what the seeker is.  There is a prophecy about the seeker that he is the only one who can bring down Darken Rahl (the evilest baddie of all and ruler of the D'Harans).  Along with being kind of just all around awesome, he gets to read some ancient language that others can't read, and he gets a sword called the Sword of Truth that he can use to defeat evil.  Basically from here, Kahlan, Richard, and Zed set off to defeat Darken Rahl.  The evilest baddies is played by Craig Parker.  If you are a LOTR geek like me., he played Haldir in the first two movies.  Each episode is kind of self contained, but contribute to the larger picture.  There is a lot of character development, which I have come to love in scifi/fantasy shows, a little romance, though there is complications, and a lot of interesting characters that come along.  Kahlan is a very strong female character, with a lot of power, but can be very vulnerable as well.  Richard is very smart and cunning, very brave, and very very charming.  And Zed is a freaking giant of a wizard, and tends to be the comic relief, but is very much the fatherly influence in the group.  Some of the acting and dialogue is a little cheesy at first, the first few episodes take a while to get going, but once it gets into the meat and heart of things, it takes off in a whirlwind and you won't regret watching it.  The ending is kind of epic.  A-

Up in the Air (2009)

Up in the Air is a George Clooney movie.  I am not a George Clooney fan at all.  I do not understand the world's obsession with him.  I liked him on ER, about 16 years ago but that was about it.  I think he seems like a perfectly nice man, but thats it.  There is nothing mystifying about him, that I can tell, and I definitely don't like his politics.  Anyways, this movie is about a guy who works for a company that other companies can hire out to fire people.  George Clooney's character is very good at his job and is constantly flying to business across the country to do just that.  He meets Vera Farmiga's character on one of his trips and they form a non committed relationship.  Anna Kendrick's character joins the company and brings fresh ideas on how to make the job more grounded and based at home by firing people over webcam instead of in person.  She follows George Clooney's character around and he tries to convince her that there needs to be a personal connection with people.  I can say that I enjoyed this movie enough to watch it the one time that I did, but I would be okay if I never watched it again.  B-

A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)

I love A Streetcar Named Desire, but it is not exactly what you would call light fare. I tend to like movies directed by Elia Kazan...East of Eden, On the Waterfront to name a few.  And it introduces us to one of the greatest actors of all time.  So basically, if you don't know the story, Blanche (Vivian Leigh) is a fading southern belle, who has gone through some sort of trauma and it has left her in a crippling mental state.  She goes to visit her sister pregnant Stella, and finds that she is married to Stanley (Marlon Brando), a unrefined young man who has quite a temper.  He is quick to anger and slightly physically abuses his wife.  Blanche's expectations and way of living do not please Stanley and he slowly creeps into her mind and tears her apart emotionally.  When Stella leaves to go to the hospital to have her baby, Blanche is left alone with Stanley, and there is no limit on what he might do.  This movie is emotionally exhausting, though the ending I do not feel is realistic if you have done any sort of study on the cycle of abuse.  That being said, Marlon Brando lights up the screen with his portrayal of Stanley Kowalski and it is worth it to just see that.  A- 

Fame (2009)

Fame is a remake of an 80's movie about a performing arts school about kids who supposedly are super talented in their respective fields.  But this movie focuses on so many kids that there was practically no character development.  It was filled with cliches, and I couldn't tell you one thing about any of the kids that make them special.  And the girl with supposedly the outstanding voice that you don't hear everyday...meh.  I wasn't impressed. C-

Mistwood, by Leah Cypress

Mistwood is a book about shape shifters so I kind of expected to fall in love....but I didn't.  It takes place in medieval times and it focuses on a prince (Rokan) who searches in the Mistwood for the shifter.  He finds her at the beginning of the book and binds her to him.  The shifter (Isobel) is immortal and always serves the true king.  He brings her back to the castle and has her hide as a noblewoman.  She forms human emotions and thoughts and she loses (for a bit) her ability to shift.  She doesn't remember her past life helping the previous king, but slowly remembers and untangles a web of deceit and mystery.  I did not really enjoy reading this book.  It focused too much on plot and not enough on character development.  I didn't really feel any sympathy for Isabel's character at all.  She is supposed to be the reluctant hero that we need to feel for. and root for.  But I don't feel anything at all.  No sorrow for her plight, or happiness when she uncovers truths.  Rokan, for being the alpha male lead, is never really described in a vulnerable or accessible light.  The only character that was slightly interesting was Rokan's sister, Clarisse, who is kinda evil and manipulative.  I'm glad I just rented this from the library.  C+

Prophecy of the Sisters, by Michelle Zink

Prophecy of the Sisters takes place in 1890's New York.  It begins with a set of twin girls, Lia and Alice, burying their father who has died mysteriously.  A mysterious marking appears on Lia's wrist, but she tries to hide it.  She has a boyfriend, James, whose father is a bookkeeper of sorts.  He uncovers a mysterious book that tells about a prophecy of sisters where one is the guardian and one is the gate...translated into one sister has the power to bring Samhain to earth, and the other sister has to use her powers to keep the others power in check.  So, this is a serious, or supposed to be, subject for a book, but it just felt on the whole...not serious enough or not pressing enough for me to really care about the one sister who can bring Satan to earth.  Lia is the character we are supposed to identify with and care about, but the way she is written, she is so distant and emotionless, that I don't really care which sister is which, or what the keys are, or how they can get to the spirit world...blah blah blah.  And there was no passion between her and James at all.  I won't continue this series.  C+  

Bible Readings
Well last week, I worked my way through 2 Samuel and I just want to focus on two events: David and Bathsheba, and David and Mephibosheth.  
2 Samuel 11: 2-4; 14-15

"Late one afternoon, after his midday rest, David got out of bed and was walking on the roof of the palace. As he looked out over the city, he noticed a woman of unusual beauty taking a bath.3 He sent someone to find out who she was, and he was told, "She is Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite."4 Then David sent messengers to get her; and when she came to the palace, he slept with her"

"So the next morning David wrote a letter to Joab and gave it to Uriah to deliver.15 The letter instructed Joab, "Station Uriah on the front lines where the battle is fiercest. Then pull back so that he will be killed."

So what we have here is David giving into lust and taking what is not his.  I read this on a site and it sums it up perfectly: "He saw, he sent and inquired. And he took."  How many of us are overtaken by temptation.  Bathsheba was the temptation, and David gave in.  David desired her, but he did not have to take her.  When we desire something, we have two options:  we can leave the desire as it is, pushing it aside, or we can act on the impulse and give into temptation.  And David, a man after God's own heart gives into impulse and sin and commits adultery. Although awful and unimaginable, I think this is a perfect example for saying that humans are not perfect creatures, no matter how much we strive for perfection and holiness, it is unattainable because it is in our nature to sin.  This is not permission though, or free for all to sin in whatever way you see fit because you know that you will ask for forgiveness later...it just doesn't work that way.  And to top it off with David, after Bathsheba finds out she is pregnant from him, he tries to cover up his original sin with another sin by arranging for Uriah's (Bathsheba's husband) death.  I don't think David really recognizes his wrong until Nathan arrives and tells him the parable of the Rich Man with many sheep stealing the only sheep of a Poor Man to  feed himself.  When Nathan tells David that he is the rich man in the story, David immediatly acknowledges his guilt.  Isn't that how it is in your life.  You are sinning, but you try to hide it and then it just becomes a part of your life.  And, it is not until someone else points it out to you that you realize your sin and guilt.  It is important to have accountability in your life.  No one is perfect, and you need friends of faith to help build you up.  But what can we ultimately learn from David and Bathsheba.  For me, I think that we can learn that when we are willing to admit our wrong, our guilt, we are forgiven through God's grace and unfailing love.

2 Samuel 9:7

“Don't be afraid,” David said to him, “for I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan. I will restore to you all the land that belonged to your grandfather Saul, and you will always eat at my table"

 So, Jonathan had a son named Mephibosheth, but he was crippled in both feet so he couldn't walk. David doesn't really owe him anything, but because he is Jonathan's son, David shows great concern for him and provides for him through unconditional love.  One of my favorite bands, Leeland wrote a song based on this story.  It is called Carried to the Table.    And instead of me trying to write some sermon that no one but me will understand, I am going to copy what Leeland said about the inspiration for the song, because I think it sums things up perfectly:

"Inspired by the story of Mephibosheth, a man blessed by David in Second Samuel, Leeland Mooring explains. “We’re broken people. We have sin in our lives and we outcast ourselves from God’s kingdom. But God’s love is constantly chasing after us, kinda like how David sought out Mephibosheth. I think when we are taken in by God’s love, we are brought into his kingdom and brought to his table. We’re saved by grace. No one can see that we are hurt because we’re covered by the blood of Jesus. That’s so relevant to us even now.”"

LYRICS
Wounded and forsaken
I was shattered by the fall
Broken and forgotten
Feeling lost and all alone
Summoned by the King
Into the Master’s courts
Lifted by the Savior
And cradled in His arms

I was carried to the table
Seated where I don’t belong
Carried to the table
Swept away by His love
And I don’t see my brokenness anymore
When I’m seated at the table of the Lord
I’m carried to the table
The table of the Lord

Fighting thoughts of fear
And wondering why He called my name
Am I good enough to share this cup
This world has left me lame
Even in my weakness
The Savior called my name
In His Holy presence
I’m healed and unashamed

You carried me, my God
You carried me

 Oh, and I changed my blog signature to Time Lark to go along with my etsy store, so if you see that, it's me.  I might change it back to Caiti.  We'll see.  I feel like its more of a play on Doctor Who (Time Lord) than anything.

Movies, Books, and Bible Reading

In this episode of what Caitlin's been wasting her time on, we have some quality entertainment for you (in my opinion).
Movies

Ponyo
I love Hayao Miyazaki movies.  I have ever since my parents taped the version of Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind (renamed Warriors of the Wind)that they had on HBO when I was like three years old and they butchered the entire thing.  He was also involved with Spirited Away, which is probably the movie most people have seen that involves Studio Ghibli.  Anyways, he/they make super fantastic, fantasy movies.  I like his movies because they are smart childrens movies that have messages for adults too.  The movies all share similar elements like a very strong female (usually young) lead, magic, there is always some sort of flying element, and there is usually an environmental and anti war message (those last two I'm not crazy about, but I get over it).  Well, Ponyo is probably the youngest and childish movie he has made, but that is not to say it is not worth seeing.  The story focuses on a young goldfish princess who escapes from her father (some wizard or spirit of the ocean) and finds refuge with a 5 year old boy.  She finds the strength to turn herself human with her father's magic and stays with the boy, but it causes a horrible imbalance in the world.  The two commence on an adventure to save the world from being destroyed and to save Ponyo from changing back into a goldfish.  Disney's releases of these movies annoy me a bit because they only use celebrity voices that you would know, and I find it slightly distracting.  Whatever happened to employing voice actors that can actually act in an animated movie.  This seems a difficult feat for well known live action actors, and I hate it when I can recognize their voices because that is all I see, not the character.  But don't let this minor quibble stop you from seeing these beautiful movies. B

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince
If you haven't noticed, I kinda love Harry Potter.  I have since I started the reading the books back in 7th grade (yes that was before they became an international smashing success).  I think the movies just keep getting better and better.  The acting, the cinematography, the story lines improve with each installment.  I know a lot of people do not like this book/movie the best because it focuses more on relationships and on back story rather than progressive action, but I really like it.  Both book and movie are full of character development (my favorite thing) and you get to learn a lot about Tom Riddle/Voldemort.  Sad thing in this movie is that they only show two back flashes, when there was a plethora for them to choose from, there was a random burning of a house that is kind of important that never happened in the book and only succeeded in pissing off a family's Christmas, and the ending is seriously lacking in action that should have been there.  And, no Jason Isaacs (Lucius Malfoy), one of my favorite actors.  Sad day.  But it is the most mature of the movies so far. A-

Wind at My Back Season 2

I first learned of this show about 10 years ago when the Hallmark channel or whatever it used to be called replayed them along with Dr. Quinn and Christy, some of my other favorite shows.  Wind at My Back is done by the same company that did the Anne of Green Gables miniseries and Road to Avonlea that used to play on the Disney channel back when they played quality shows and movies.  Wind at My Back follows Honey Bailey and her 2 sons, Fat and Hub, and her extended family.  It takes place in the 1930's Great Depression in Canada.  It deals with their struggles during this time financially, emotionally, raising a family, etc.  It is not too serious, every episode has a slight light feel, but that is not to say it is paltry or unimportant.  But, if you enjoyed Road to Avonlea or Anne of Green Gables at all, you will enjoy this super adorable serious, and there is some awesome clothing and hair inspiration in it too! A-

Little House on the Prairie Miniseries
I watched the miniseries Disney made based on the first two books of the Laura Ingalls Wilder series.  I have to say this is far superior to the 70's TV show.  Definitely not as syrupy and sweet, though still a fine example of family fare.  It is very well acted and chronicles the family's difficult journey to the Prairie, setting up a homestead, and fighting off the Indian attacks.  It is more serious that I expected from Disney and the soundtrack is very high quality.  I definitely recommend it if you enjoyed the TV series, enjoyed the books, or enjoy movies about a journey or family.B+

Gigi
This is the first time I have ever watched this musical, and by chance caught it on TCM this week.  Gigi is dubbed the last great traditional musical MGM produced.  MGM also made My Fair Lady, and Gigi has a similar feel.  It takes place in 1900 Paris.  Gigi (Leslie Caron) is the main character, a young adolescent girl, about 16, who is very carefree in spirit.  However, she is being groomed by her aunt and grandmother to be a courtesan, and they are teaching her things like how to eat cold lobster properly, how to choose a proper cigar, etc.  Very important things, I assure you.  The young man in this story is Gaston (Louis Jourdan), a playboy of sorts and all the papers follow his every move.  Gaston is becoming bored with his lifestyle and finds refuge in his time he spends with Gigi, who at first, enjoy a more younger sister older brother type relationship.  But as the movie progresses, Gaston begins to think of Gigi as something more.  The songs are cute, the acting is fantastic, and the story is great, though I am surprised at the references to sex in this movie.  For the 50's, its pretty shocking to me, though extremely tame in today's standards.  A-

Peter Pan
I love anything to do with Peter Pan, and/or Tinkerbell.  That includes Disney's Peter Pan, Tinkerbell movies, Hook,  Peter Pan the musical and Finding Neverland.  This version of Peter Pan I definitely think is the best.  It is far darker than any I've seen, the acting is superb, and the filming/cinematography is gorgeous.  And, Jason Isaacs as Mr. Darling/Captain Hook?  Yes please.  I tend to be very critical of child actors, as I've said before, but I think all the children pretty much hold their own against the adults.  And the soundtrack is pretty much magical.  A+

Books

The Demon's Covenant, Sarah Rees Brennan
This is the second book in the Demon's Lexicon Trilogy, and it just keeps getting better.  The first one is one of my very favorite YA books.  The writing is fun and sharp.  It is never dull, and the dialogue makes me laugh out loud at times.  It centers around 2 different sets of siblings.  There is Mae (older sister) and Jamie (younger brother), and Nick(younger brother) and Alan(older brother).  Obviously, it deals with demons, but also evil wizards.  There is not much I can truly say about this plot without ruining the first book, but I can say that Nick and Alan are very good at getting rid of demons and wizards, which is how they first meet Mae and Jamie.  The main focus of both books is love.  Not just romantic love (though that does make an appearance), but more love of family.  Mae and Alan both go to extreme lengths to protect and save their respective siblings, and its book like these that I love most.  It also reminds me quite a lot of Supernatural, which can only be a good thing in my mind.  A+

Iron King, Julie Kagawa
This is one of the first books that focus solely on the Fae, or more commonly known as fairies.  The main character, Meghan, is 15, almost 16, and lives with her mother, step father and half brother.  When she was younger her father mysteriously disappeared, leaving practically no trace to follow.  Her step father has raised her but hardly notices her, same goes for her mother. The only one at school who really likes her is her best friend, Robbie.  On Meghan's 16th birthday, she finds out her brother has been kidnapped and exchanged with a changeling, and that her best friend is actually a fairy, and that she is more connected to his world than she realizes.  This book reminds me a lot of Jim Henson's Labyrinth movie, which I quite enjoy.  It is not boring in the slightest, and the two male leads, Robyn and Ash (prince of the Winter Court) are quite charming and very well written.  They are each given their own unique personality.  However, my problem with this novel over all is the main character.  This is girl is pretty much as dumb as a box of rocks, is gullible, and is pretty weak. She annoyed me to no end.  So, by all accounts with me not liking the main character, I shouldn't like this book at all.  However, with all the other elements, Meghan's annoying nature is canceled out and I plan on reading the next one in the series. B-

Bible Reading
Joshua 7- 2 Samuel 1
Basically what I have been reading is the story of David.  How he started off as a shepherd in his father's fields, to the slayer of Goliath, to Saul's right hand man, to Saul's most wanted, to being King.  There are just a few points I want to touch on.
1 Samuel 18: 1-4

"After David had finished talking with Saul, he met Jonathan, the king's son. There was an immediate bond between them, for Jonathan loved David. From that day on Saul kept David with him and wouldn't let him return home. And Jonathan made a solemn pact with David, because he loved him as he loved himself.  Jonathan sealed the pact by taking off his robe and giving it to David, together with his tunic, sword, bow, and belt"

 First off, don't we all yearn for a love and bond with someone as strong Jonathan and David's was.  It is a pure and unbreakable relationship, and one that you can not deny was God designed.  Jonathan was exactly what David needed in his life, and at every step he provided something else to him.  David, at first, needed a genuine friend.  And then, later on, he allowed David to escape from his father's wrath.  Critics of Christianity try to pervert Jonathan's love of David, and honestly it makes me sick.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  And, from the beginning of this chapter, when Jonathan gives David his clothes and weapons, we know that this is just the beginning of putting David ahead of himself.  And is that an implication to David being King, I see as well?

1 Samuel 18: 7-9

This was their song:
"Saul has killed his thousands,
  and David his ten thousands!"

This made Saul very angry. "What's this?" he said. "They credit David with ten thousands and me with only thousands. Next they'll be making him their king!" So from that time on Saul kept a jealous eye on David.

 This is what they sang in the streets, that David was a better warrior than Saul, and Saul became jealous.  Forget money... jealousy is the root of all evil.  Jealousy makes otherwise good people, ugly on the inside.  It makes people hate others because they have what the other person does not have.  Jealousy causes people to not be happy.  If you are jealous of someone you are saying you are unhappy with something about you.  Jealousy can take hold of you very easily and color your every move and word.  Is this something you struggle with?  Because I know I do.  I've even flat out told friends in the past that I am jealous of them.  It's not something I'm proud of, and honestly I struggle with it a lot.  And its not really about just one thing.  It is a whole lot of little things that I wish I could have but don't.  The past 2 weeks or so, I have been sort of in a slump or funk or whatever you want to call it.  I'm not really sure why, or even what my true reasoning for it is.  I've just had this really negative attitude and been short tempered and all around grumpy, and I feel at least part of it is because of me wanting a different life/situation than what I have, even though I live a perfectly great and fabulous life.  I've been praying lately for God to give me the strength to help me curb my jealousy and to help me to see the joy in what I do have.  I have so much to be thankful for, I get embarrassed at times with this issue, but it is just one of the many struggles that I live with daily.
1 Samuel 30: 6

David was now in great danger because all his men were very bitter about losing their sons and daughters, and they began to talk of stoning him. But David found strength in the Lord his God.

 I believe this happened when the Amalekites invaded where David and his men had been staying.  I love that David alone found strength in the Lord.  Here they are in this desperate situation where everyone thinks they have lost their entire families, including David.  And what does everyone do?  They blame David.  And what does David do?  He turns to the Lord and looks to Him for strength and knowledge.  How awesome is that?  If you were in that situation, would you be able to not freak out and rely solely on God?  I hope I could say "yes" that is exactly what I would do.  However, knowing me, I would probably freak just a little and then pray about it.

And lastly, our sermon today in church was about poverty.  And at first, it honestly felt like I was back in my social work classes learning about poverty and what we, as social workers and government workers need to do to help.  Here are some of the statistics I hope I wrote down correctly:
Of those in or applying for Low Income Housing:
83% are single Mothers
46% of those single mothers are 18 years old or younger
80% live on about $1,200 per year
and, 36% of those considered low income could not find adequate housing for themselves
Now are those statistics shocking to you?  Because they were for me.  I thought our pastor was going down the path of saying how the government needs to help them, how we need to help the government, which is all I basically heard all 4 years of college.  However, I was pleasantly surprised.  Right off the bat, I am going to say I will not apologize for my politics, and I do not hide my views on things very well.  I think the government pretty much does jack squat.  I don't think any of their programs truly help or get to the root of the problem.  And, I do not believe it is really the government's business to get involved in these type of affairs.  The government should not make me charitable.  Me, as a Christian, should feel and want to be charitable.  I as a Christian should want to give back to God...and in turn to those in need, as a response to our faithfulness.  I (me personally) need to give back what God has given me.  Christians should be the agents of change in the poverty problem.

Sewing Peek, Book Reviews and Bible Post

Alright, so after saying I was going to do my Bible post like 4 posts ago, I am finally getting around to it, not that many people really read it. 

But first, I have been working on 2 different dresses this past week and this week. 

This is a 1940's pattern that I've seen pop up all over the internet.  My pattern I got came with the vintage fabric though, so that's pretty awesome.  I really like the feel of it and the look.  At first, I wasn't sure if I was going to like the lace on it, but I love the way it turned out.  Full pictures will come sometime later.

And, I finally got my second shipment of the red and cream striped fabric in, from the pattern that I royally screwed up laying out.  Yay!  And boy is it heavy.  Full pictures will also come later

Book Reviews
Not too many books these past 2 weeks. 

City of Ashes, by Cassandra Clare:  This is the second book in The Mortal Instruments Series, and it is definitely an improvement from the first book.  There is hardly a dull moment in this book, you meet a few more characters, most notably Isabelle and Alec's parents.  Jace's snarky sarcasm literally makes me laugh out loud. There is a lot of conflict, inner turmoil and forbidden romance. A

City of Glass, by Cassandra Clare:  This is the third and latest book published in The Mortal Instruments series, but it is not the last.  A new one comes out in April I think, and the spin off series set in Victorian England came out a few weeks ago.  This is the epic end of the Valentine saga part of the series.  There is some tragedy, some betrayals, and some long awaited reunions.  It leaves alot of questions unanswered, but also ties up alot of loose ends, and I am definitely excited for the continuation of the series and the new spin off.  Books like this one, I like to savor and take my good old time reading so I can enjoy every moment I have with it.  Jace is definitely one of my favorite boys from YA books.   Here's a preview of the gorgeous cover.  Don't you wish all books had awesome kick butt covers like these? A+

The last book I read is called Undressed: The Naked Truth About Love, Sex, and Dating by Jason Illian.  It was pretty good, not the best relationship book I have ever read, not the worst.  Everything he wrote about in terms of dating was all Biblically based, not just his personal thoughts and beliefs, which was nice to read.  But a lot of times, reading books like these, it feels as if he is writing towards teens and not adults.  Christian adults need books to read about things like this too.  Oh well.  It was entertaining.  B

Bible Readings: Numbers 8:15-Joshua 6
My more profound things to say will come with the next Bible post, but here are my thoughts on what I have read last week and this week. 
Numbers 25

"While the Israelites were camped at Acacia Grove some of the men defiled themselves by havings sexual relations with local Moabite women.2 These women invited them to attend sacrifices to their gods, so the Israelites feasted with them and worshiped the gods of Moab (...) The Lord issued the following command to Moses: Seize all the ringleaders and execute them before the Lord in broad daylight, so his fierce anger will turn away from the people of Israel...So Moses ordered Israel's judges, "Each of you must put to death the men under your authority who have joined in worshiping Baal of Peor."

This isn't the first time something like this has happened in terms of Israel turning against God, as I wrote about before, and it certainly isn't the last, but what I have begun to realize is that there is not much room for forgiveness in the Old Testament.   I feel like for the most part, my church, as with probably most churches, focuses on the New Testament and we talk a lot about forgiveness through Christ.  Christ's shedding his blood on the cross is the price for the forgiveness for our sins.  Well, Christ obviously hasn't made a presence yet where I am in my reading, so judgment was swift and unforgiving.   I'm not saying the punishment and outcome isn't justified, for turning against God, but it does seem astonishing, when all we have known is absolute forgiveness if we ask for it.

Joshua 2:1-5 abbrv.

"1 Then Joshua secretly sent out two spies from the Israelite camp. He instructed them, "Scout out the land on the other side of the Jordan River." So the two men set out and came to the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there that night. 2 But someone told the king of Jericho, "Some Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land."3 So the king of Jericho sent orders to Rahab: "Bring out the men who have come into your house, for they have come here to spy out the whole land." 4 Rahab had hidden the two men, but she replied, "Yes, the men were here earlier, but (...) 5 They left the town at dusk. I don't know where they went"

This is just a quick note, but Rahab I have always known was a prostitute, but in a note in my bible it says prostitute -or- inn keeper.  err?  Inn Keeper is quite a bit different than prostitute, I'm just saying.  This is my short opinion on this.  Women are not mentioned without purpose in the Bible.  It just wasn't the way of the culture, so you know if a section or an entire chapter is devoted to tell a story about a women, she is going to be pretty important.  Her strength and courage is absolutely undeniable, which she is rewarded for by being saved from the massacre.  My question though, is why did she decide to hide the men in the first place? When they are foreigners, people she should probably be scared of, people that are trying to destroy her city.  What led her to lie for them and risk her life for them? 

Judges 2:10-12

"After those people had died, their children grew up and did not know the Lord or what he had done for Israel.11 So they did what the Lord said was wrong, and they worshiped the Baal idols.12 They quit following the Lord, the God of their ancestors who had brought them out of Egypt. They began to worship the gods of the people who lived around them, and that made the Lord angry."

So, another generation of Israelites died, and their children basically turned away from God, if I am reading this correctly.  This just reminds me of nowadays where the parents and people my own parent's age seem to be strong Christians and faithful to attending church, etc, but their kids and people my age think they know better and don't need all that stuff, blah blah blah, so they fall away from the church.  I think it is heartbreaking that this is such a common pattern in today's society, especially with half the media seeming to mock Christianity.  That probably makes even more people turn away.  Am I wrong in saying this?  I feel like I just had a conversation not to long ago with someone about this, so it was funny that I happened to read that passage when I did.

That's it for now.  I missed a few days in my reading so I have like 60 chapters to catch up on.  I'm not really freaking out about not being on target though, because I'd rather go slow and actually comprehend and meditate on what I am reading than rushing through and be no better off in knowledge and understanding than I was before.  Now I'm off to tear off two sleeves off a shirt that I put on the wrong side.  Man I love it when I do that.

Sewing Update and Bible Reading

I finally got back into the swing of things sewing wise and have had, thankfully, a (relatively) successful week so far.  I got about 5 different dresses cut out, but I still have a lot more to sew before the end of summer.  Yikes!  I better get cracking.  I did have a minor set back though.  At the beginning of summer, I got this gorgeous, really nice quality red and cream gabardine that I had in mind for a certain 50's dress.  I finally got around to it this week.  Yay! However, I usually lay my fabric out to cut on our kitchen counter because its the only place long enough to do that.  But, with the size of the skirt pieces and the width of the fabric (60 in), I had to lay the entire piece of fabric out on the floor, unfolded.  Bleh.  I hate when I have to do that.  And here we come to the lesson of the story kids.  Always make sure all your pieces are pinned or you have enough room for everything before you start cutting.  You would think the amount of time I have been sewing I would know that by now, but no, I still have to be told that.  In fact, I believe I had a similar problem not too long ago... yeah.  It takes me a couple times for something to really sink in.  So, as you probably guessed, I ran out of fabric.  I got everything cut out, with the strips on the bodice going up and down, and the stripes on the skirt pieces going side to side, but didn't leave enough room to even get half of the last skirt piece cut out.  Stupid me. 

But, thankfully, they still had it on the website I found it on, so I didn't panic for long.  Yay!  So it is on its way, along with a few other fabric pieces that I did not need, and it will be made shortly. 

 I also am starting to sew my first mail order pattern, and let me just say they are not one for picture diagrams or instructions.  Jeesh.  I thought normal vintage patterns were bad compared to current day ones.  Nope.  They are a cake walk compared to mail order patterns, so we'll see how it turns out. 

And, I finished a blouse today!  Yay!  I have been working on this blouse for about 1 month now, so I thought it was time the poor thing was finished properly.  I don't usually use bias tape to finish the neck and bottom edges, but I thought it was a nice contrast for the fabric this time. 

And this is my deer caught in the headlights look, lol.  What a horrid picture, but it is the only one I have of the blouse untucked, so you can see the rounded edges with the binding.

BIBLE READING
Alrighty, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Today I read Exodus 29-Numbers 8:14.  I have to say, and I'm sure most Christians agree, these are not the most exciting or engaging scripture passages to read.  All they are accounts of all the rules the Israelites were required to follow.  So, yeah, this is probably going to be the shortest amount i will ever write.  However, at the end of Exodus, Moses asks God to show himself to Moses, and instead of refusing, God replies in Ex 33: 21-23 :

The Lord continued, "Look, stand near me on this rock. As my glorious presence passes by, I will hide you in the crevice of the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by.Then I will remove my hand and let you see me from behind. But my face will not be seen."

 How awesome is that.  I mean, it's God.  The Almighty, Awesome God and instead of laughing at Moses or refusing or doing whatever he could have rightly done to him for asking, he allows Moses of seeing his back as he goes past.  Can you imagine the trepidation, the fear, the exhilaration and the wonderment he must have felt.  Wow.  I know I should probably have more to say on all of the commandments and rules they had to follow, but I will be honest, I had to force myself to get through these chapters this week.  They were just incredibly dry and dull and some of the things they did back then were just so outlandish compared to nowadays it just made me smile at the differences between us.  But, hopefully now that I am almost to Deuteronomy it will get better and pick up and I will actually be able to post something enlightening here.

Sewing Today and First Bible reading

Before I get to the real point of this post, if anyone is interested in seeing our production of Godspell, I posted it on megaupload:

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Today was a pretty successful day for me, sewing wise.  I finished cutting out a blouse that will go well with my navy suit, and I started sewing the skirt.  How do people finish there seams, those of you who sew?  I try to stay true to the time periods and stitch two rows of stitching and then use the pinking shears, but as soon as I wash something, it starts to fray something awful.  So I think I am going to start using a three step zig zag to finish the seams, but I want to hear what everyone else does. Spill it!

 When ever I have a skirt, whether it be alone or part of a dress, I always pin all the sides together and then sew instead of pinning each side and sewing the seam separately.  For me, it seems to save time.

I don't usually dress up for work, which I hate, but really, it would be quite silly for me to be dressed to the nines to go to work in a warehouse.  Besides the fact that I am the only girl who works there (at a file shredding company)...yeah. That's all I am going to say on that one.  But today was just one of those rare days that I could not bear to put on pants or shorts again...bleh.  I honestly don't know how people who wear current day style clothes do it.  They always seem so tight and constricting, and very very unfeminine and uncomfortable.  One thing that I still buy new in department stores or chains is skirts.  So that's what I wore today.  I got this skirt, I believe, my freshman year of college, and it has remained a faithful go to for days I want to look semi cute and presentable.  I don't know if it shows up on the picture, but it is like a rainbow bleeding into each other, with this gorgeous black and gold swirl, feathery design throughout the entire thing.  So, yep.  It's a rare, modern look for me today.

Alrighty, and onto my first Bible reading post (a few days later than I had planned).  I didn't get any complaints or protests in my last post, so I am going to go ahead as planned.  Now first, I must say that I have never actually read the entire Bible.  Sure I've heard Bible readings every Sunday from going to church, done Bible studies, especially after going to a Christian University.  But I have never actually made it all the way through to the end.  Therefore, I am using this small space as my accountability.  I know most of you will most likely skip over these posts each time, but for the few of you who are interested, here you go:D

These are my readings from Saturday and Sunday: Exodus 1-15;15-28.  Now, I forgot my page full of notes at work (yes I do get my Bible readings done at work), so this will be very quick, and I will wait to do Monday and Tuesdays readings until Thursday when I get my notes back.  So anyways The Exodus.  Brings reminders of The Prince of Egypt...a childhood favorite movie, I think I will have to watch it this week to see what they got right/wrong, since the book is fresh in my mind.  This week probably won't be too terribly profound, probably just a lot of questions and confusions.  Bear with me.  And just so you know, my Bible is a side by side NIV/Message translation.  So Ex 1: 9-10 says 

 "He said to his people, "Look, the people of Israel now outnumber us and are stronger than we are.10 We must make a plan to keep them from growing even more. If we don't, and if war breaks out, they will join our enemies and fight against us. Then they will escape from the country"

 What I don't understand right off the bat, is that if the Israelites outnumbered the Egyptians, how in the world did the Egyptians have enough force to make them their slaves without a war or uprising.  I'm sure it is as simple, for lack of a better term, as what happened in Hitler Germany, but still.  That is difficult to wrap my mind around. 

Something else I have trouble wrapping my mind around is how little respect the Egyptians had for the sanctity of life.  This is something of a passion of mine.  No, I am not one of those people that think bombing abortion clinics is the right way to go.  Nor do I attend protests.  My fight is more inward, and I tend to be a prayer warrior for the sanctity of life.  So when I read Ex 1:15-17

Then Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, gave this order to the Hebrew midwives, Shiphrah and Puah:"When you help the Hebrew women as they give birth, watch as they deliver.s If the baby is a boy, kill him; if it is a girl, let her live." But because the midwives feared God, they refused to obey the king's orders. They allowed the boys to live, too.

Yeah.  This wasn't new reading to me.  I knew it happened, but still, everytime I read it I am slightly taken aback.  How can one man order the destruction all Israelite male babies and not feel any guilt?  Praise God for the strength of the midwives for refusing to follow his orders, but then we find out later that Pharaoh said in Ex 1:22

"Then Pharaoh gave this order to all his people: "Throw every newborn Hebrew boy into the Nile River. But you may let the girls live." 

Then Exodus chapter 2 begins the story of Moses we all know.  His mother hid him for 3 months.  I cannot imagine the fear and trepidation she must have felt during that time.  Also, I wonder how many other mother's tried to hide their children from the Egyptians.  And then, she makes a basket for him and lays him in the river.  Pharaoh's daughter finds him and decides to adopt him.  She hires Moses's real mother to nurse him.  Wow.  All I can say is divine intervention.  Moses was destined for greatness, and God intervened in his life to allow him to live. 
Now for questions and thoughts:  Did Moses know he was a Hebrew as he was growing up?  So Moses killed a guard who was beating one of the Hebrews, which if I am to be honest, awful, but he was trying to help his people.  Then the next day he tries to stop two Hebrews fighting each other and this is what he get's thrown in his face: Ex2:14

The man replied, "Who appointed you to be our prince and judge? Are you going to kill me as you killed that Egyptian yesterday?"

I think this is the beginning of showing the Hebrews in a selfish, whining, and arrogant light.  Yes, they went through a terrible thing being enslaved in Egypt, and having the mass genocide taking place against their newborns,  but Moses was trying to help them and that is what they say to him?  And that just the beginning.  After they are allowed to leave Egypt, it just gets worse. After Moses leaves and witness the burning bush etc., I think he has legitimate fear in Exodus 4:1

But Moses protested again, "What if they won't believe me or listen to me? What if they say, `The Lord never appeared to you'?"

So God tells Moses to go back to Egypt and tells him to perform these miracles, but then he says Ex4:21

And the Lord told Moses, "When you arrive back in Egypt, go to Pharaoh and perform all the miracles I have empowered you to do. But I will harden his heart so he will refuse to let the people go.

 Why?  God really confuses me these next couple of chapters.  I don't understand why he hardens Pharaoh's heart.  Not only the first time Moses pleads with him, but every time after that after every plague, God also hardens his heart. And then, as Moses is making his way back to Egypt, it says in Ex4:24 that Moses and his family had stopped for the night and God was about to kill him until his wife circumcised their son.  Uhh??  Why would God want to kill Moses, who he has chosen to deliver his people? 
After the plagues, which, can you imagine the terror and panic that ensued during that time?, Pharaoh finally let the Israelites go, it says that 600,000 men left during the Exodus....which I am assuming does not include women and children.  That is bigger than most cities.  Can you imagine evacuating a humongous city now?  The last thing I am going to say, since this is turning out longer than I had planned, is come back to writing about the Israelites.  Yes I know I was making fun of them by saying that they whine alot and complain and don't listen (golden calf idol, gathering more manna than they were supposed to comes to mind), but this is the beginning of their persecution that sadly has not ended.  The Jewish people have been one of the most persecuted and prejudiced people in all of history.  3 big things come to mind: Exodus, WWII Hitler Germany, and current day middle east practically hates Israel and the people there.  Thats it.  I know nothing I wrote was terribly profound, but these writings probably won't be.  It is meant for me to get my questions and confusions, and thoughts out there.

Garage Sale

A few days ago I was trolling along on Craigslist and stumbled across a yard sale only about 20 minutes from my house with promises of vintage and retro things.  So obviously, I got very excited and left with my mother as soon as I got home from work.  I found a few good things, but most of the hats and dresses they had, and a Navy jacket from WWII, had obviously not been cared for properly and had tons of moth holes and tears in them.  That made me sad.  But I did find some 50's glasses, a makeup case, 30s/40s shoes, and a knitting pattern book filled with great dress and sweater patterns.  Now if I only knew how to knit....hmmm

I also cut out three things this week that I am going to start working on.  A few weeks ago my mom went to a garage sale and found about 7 yards of this navy blue fabric (unsure of what it is) that has a nice random thread texture to it.  I had enough to cut out a three piece suit from a reproduction pattern from Simplicity

I think that will come in handy when I finally start substitute teaching this year. 

A few weeks ago, I was hanging out with some friends, and one of them took pretty pictures, though I don't technically remember that night very well, I did wear a 60's wrap skirt I made.

I think I am going to start making a list each week of movies I have watched while sewing, cutting out fabric, or doing  tailor tacks, because I am pretty sure that there will be some sort of trend or commonality to them.  Well we'll see.

This week, I watched: Newsies (love love love it), Secret of NIMH (childhood favorite), Beauty and the Beast (one of the best Disney movies ever), Serenity (best sci movie I have seen, but watch the TV show first, you won't regret it), and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (my favorite Harry Potter book and movie).

And lets see.  I am going to get those stupid things listed in my Etsy store tonight if it kills me.  Goodness me, it has taken me forever to get those up, but the past few weeks I have been busy with Godspell that sucked up my life, haha.

And if anyone is interested, I think I am going to make a list of the books I read each week and grade them.  I read a lot, like probably 3 or 4 books a week due to the nature of my job, however, most of the books I read are urban fantasy or sci-fi, so I am not sure how popular those books will be with my readers lol.

First, I finished Frostbitten by Kelley Armstrong.  This is the 10th book in the series Women of the Otherworld.  Whereas I love Kelley Armstrong's young adult series, I only mildly tolerate most of the books in the adult series because almost every book is a different narrator.  The series deals mostly with necromancers, witches, half demons, and werewolves.  The books in the series that deal with the werewolves are my favorite, while the other ones are sort of hit or miss.  Frostbitten does follow the werewolves, but it had so much more sexual content in it than the ones I had read before, I honestly do not know if I will continue the series.  It is common for urban fantasy books to have some sexual content, some more than others, but I can honestly say I have never read it this bad before.  C+

I also started reading the Mortal Instruments series again by Cassandra Clare.  These are young adult books, but they are so well written and take place in this massive environment that reminds me of the feel of Harry Potter.  It is definitely not an intimate story like most YA books are.  The first one is called City of Bones.  I'm a sucker for covers, and I know you aren't supposed to judge a book by a cover, but this one is just so lovely I will admit that I would have read it even if I hadn't known anything about it.  The first one is a little boring at first, some explanations of things that could have been written in about a paragraph took pages and pages to read, but the characterizations are just wonderful.  I guess that is what I focus on most.  Yeah action is fine to read but if there isn't any character development to be seen I don't see the point in reading the book.  The basic plot premise for this is the main character is a 15 year old girl, Clary, who lives with her mom and has surrogate father of sorts, Luke, who is her mom's best friend.  One random night she goes to a dance club and suddenly is able to see this group of three teenagers called shadowhunters that her best friend cannot see. When she follows them further she sees them attacking this seemingly innocent human, but is really a demon.  The three teens figure out that Clary can see them, which is not normal,  and she gets drawn into their world and discovers things about herself that she never knew.  A-

And last but not least, my uncle became a father for the first time, and I could not be more thrilled for him.  She is just the most beautiful thing ever, not that I am biased or anything.  Here's Rachael Jane:

Oh, and I finally started a plan to read the Bible in 90 days.  If all goes according to plan, I will be done just before Thanksgiving.  I hope it won't offend my readers, but I sort of would like to post a little something each day about what I read.  Not anything too deep or anything, unless I am led to, but just something new that I didn't know or random thoughts I had while reading.  Unless I get major protest about this, I plan on starting to write a post tomorrow.