Pride & Prejudice

I just finished reading Pride & Prejudice for the first time (which is kind of surprising to me because I love the movie version {with Keira Knightly} and the Bollywood spin-off Bride & Prejudice).  Anyway, I was not a big a fan of the book as I had hoped.  I did thoroughly enjoy it, but not near as much as I had enjoyed reading Jane Eyre for the first time.  I cannot exactly pinpoint what it was about the book that dissapointed me.  Anyway, here are two of my favorite lines from the book (that are not in the movie).

Since I had dearly loved the movie, I decided to watch it again and see if maybe something in the movie could point me to my disappointment of the book.  Alas, all it did was make me dislike the movie a bit.  The flow of the movie makes so much more sense after reading the book, and sadly several sections of dialogue in the movie weren't in the book.  Plus, after reading the book all you can think is, "this scene isn't in the book" or "they don't say that in the book".  Perhaps most surprising to me was realizing that one of the most quoted lines from the movie isn't even in the book!  The "I love, I love, I love you" part doesn't surprise me as much as "you have bewitched me body and soul" part.  The "I love you" part just reminds me of that cheesy scene in Singing in the Rain....

So, there you have it - my thoughts on the movie vs. book conundrum :)  Either way, I'd encourage you to read the book AND watch the movie.

pride (noun)

1. a high or inordinate opinion of one's own dignity, imiportance, merit or superiority, whether as cherished in the mind or as displayed in bearing, conduct, etc.
2.  the state or feeling of being proud

Fernweh

In case you didn’t know, I love to travel and I am fascinated by languages.  While browsing pinterest the other day I saw a pin that said; “Fernweh – ‘an ache for distant places’; a craving for travel”.  The word intrigued me, so I decided to google it and see what else I could find.  The first link I came across informed me that the word isn’t actually English, it is German.  Their definition was different than the one I saw on pinterest, but carried the same idea: "literally, 'farsickness'; 'an ache for the distance'; wanderlust".  Since the word wanderlust linked to another Wikipedia article I decided to click on it and see what it would tell me.  Here’s what I found out: 

“The loanword from the German language became an English term in 1902 as a reflection of what was then seen as a characteristically German predilection for wandering that may be traced back to German Romanticism and the German system of  apprenticeship  (the  journeyman).” 

 

And I immediately thought to myself (as if you can think to someone else – I’m not even sure why people say that), “Do I love to travel because my ancestors are mostly (if not all) German?”  It’s kind of crazy, I always assumed I got it from my Grandmother – she was always on the go.  She always wanted to drive somewhere, or go visit someone, and had visited several countries with my Grandfather before I was born.  She’s of German descent as well, so maybe it’s a combination of the two.  I always remember her telling me, "Home is where you go when there's no place else to go."  Regardless, I found that little tid-bit of information about the word wanderlust to be fascinating.  Makes me wonder if any of my ancestors were gypsies....

*I do not own the rights to this photo*

wan·der·lust (noun)

ərˌlʌst/ Show Spelled 

 a strong, innate desire to rove or travel about.

A Smashing Success!

So my younger sister is getting married and I'm the maid of honor.  Which of course means I was in charge of planning her bridal shower.  I so wanted her to love it and I didn't want it to be chintzy or tacky.  With a lot of his side of the family coming I definitely wanted them to think it was tasteful.  So, with lots of DIY projects, and some help from pinterest, my cousins (the other bridesmaids) and I were able to pull off a lovely shower.  I'm hoping to put together some tutorials for a few of the crafts, but I figured I'd give you a glimpse of your finished product.

Guests were to write a "Date Night" idea for a Date Jar and also leave her a message for her scrapbook.

The star and lanterns were painted the same color to give the
illusion that they came as a set.



The picture frame was painted the same color as the lanterns
and the star to help coordinate everything.



I made the burlap covered H (it had her future last name painted on it).
 Maybe someday I'll get my tutuorial for making your own H finished...

My very talented cousin created the sign over the drinks table.

A coffee filter flower (tutorial found here) - everyone loved it!
Plus, it made a great background for pictures...



Tissue paper flowers and coordinating streamers -
hung from the ceiling in the center of the room

Centerpieces: burlap, kisses & mason jars

Engagement Ring favors

It was a lot of work and took a lot of planning, but everyone seemed to have enjoyed it and the future Mother and Sister-in-law said it was absolutely beautiful. 

show·er (noun)

a party given for a bestowal of presents of a specific kind, especially such a party for a prospective bride or prospective mother: a linen shower; a baby shower.

It's a "God Thing"

 Several years ago on a trip home from Japan I had an experience I’ll never forget (for more than one reason).  My flight was to leave at 10pm, so we headed off to the airport in plenty of time for me to catch my flight.  We made a leisurely stop at Starbucks (there’s not one in Miyakonojo so it was a treat) and arrived at the airport only to be told there was no flight.  You see, I misread the time that my flight was to leave (it left at 1pm).  It had long since left and I was up a proverbial crick without a paddle. Long story short, my hosts did some mad scrambling and managed to get me a flight to Fukuoka (where I then had to buy a ticket to Tokyo and then to Portland).  Praise the Lord I was able to get a ticket so I didn't have to miss my friend's wedding.   I don’t speak Japanese and trying to find a hotel at night in a strange country was a bit unnerving, but some wonderful Japanese women caught me a taxi and told me which hotel to stay in for the night.  Scared of missing yet another flight, I barely got any sleep…  Then, my morning taxi driver called is daughter at 6am (because she spoke English), just so he could make sure I got off at the correct terminal!  I made it to my terminal and it happened again...  I’d just finished checking in, handing over my passport and ticket, and had left the counter to go find my gate.  I was standing about 15 feet from the counter when the woman at the JAL counter came back up to me and said, “Today is your birthday?”  I think I simply nodded yes in response...  She then gave me a big smile and said, “Happy Birthday!”  I gave her a huge grin and said thank you, and she headed back to her post. 

 
You see, sometimes it’s the little things in life.  I call it a "God Thing" and it just reminded me that He cares and He knows - all these little "random" acts of kindness.   My taxi driver didn't have to call his daughter, he'd taken me to the airport - job done.  But he did.  The women at the airport counter had no reason to leave her desk and come congratulate me on another year of life, and yet she did.  There was also this nice man who helped me get all my bags onto the bus and off again (I couldn't have done it without him).   As I always say, Japan was my first love, and despite my crazy departure, the events just made me love it even more.  I don’t know their names and I’ll never see them again, but I’ll always remember their small act of kindness.  


mis·hap  (noun)

an unfortunate accident.