I watched the famous BBC version of "Pride and Prejudice" this week. I'm a big Jane Austen fan, but I think I like "Mansfield Park" and "Emma" better than "P&P". At least in this version, I have a hard time understanding Mr. Darcy's character. I think the shift between obnoxious and rude to kind and down-to-earth doesn't make sense. His coldness and pride during the early scenes (at the country dance, etc.) are not excused by his later acts of generosity and kindness in rescuing Lydia (and, by extension, the Bennets) and admitting his deception (re: Jane) to Bingley, as well as his friendliness to the Gardners.
So I find "P&P" less satisfying than "MP" and "Emma", because the heroes of the latter two are so clearly excellent characters from the beginning. I didn't feel this way when I read the book "P&P", so maybe it's just something about how Colin Firth portrays Darcy?? I guess we're just supposed to believe he was transformed by his love for Elizabeth. Or perhaps that he is just painfully shy and awkward around anyone he doesn't know. But yikes! He is even rude when talking to his friend about Elizabeth at the country dance.
I can't believe I'm saying this, because my dh had the same complaint about the movie "French Kiss" - the hero has been supposedly transformed by his love for the heroine, but what about his track record? How do we know he is truly reformed? When Steven complained about "French Kiss", I accused him of being utterly unromantic, that he just didn't get it! Now I'm making a similar complaint about "P&P". Maybe I just think Kevin Kline is cuter than Colin Firth. Am I that shallow?
Friday, December 31, 2004
Thursday, October 28, 2004
Krispy Kreme & Proverbs 31
We went to Krispy Kreme this morning. Did you know that you get 6 free glazed donuts and a drink in a travel coffee mug on your birthday, for free? My son is eight years old today! Eight! It's hard to believe that he is eight already. Eight years ago, I held a tiny wide-eyed newborn, and today I watched him scarfing down donuts with his friends. We're having a Lord of the Rings party for his birthday. I expect lots of running around with swords, pretending to be orcs and hobbits and elves. He wants calamari and pizza for his birthday dinner.
Speaking of Krispy Kreme, it's pretty gutsy of them to have the machine on display like that, in this Atkins-crazy world. A Krispy Kreme donut is pretty much the polar opposite of healthy food, yet the place didn't lack for customers, and my friend tells me that the other location nearby is even busier. Which explains why, despite all the bestsellers about healthy diets, Americans are getting chunkier and chunkier.
We seem to tolerate a lot of contradiction in our lives, a disconnect between what we know or believe and the way we actually behave. When I worked at McDonald's as a teenager, a lot of people would come in and order the typical burger and fries, and an ice cream sundae, and a DIET COKE. Yeah, that'll help.
But I have become aware this week (again) how much I am not living out what I truly believe. We were studying Proverbs 31 in Bible study, and the one thing that really struck me about the infamous Proverbs 31 Woman is that she is consistent. She has her priorities, and she has actually organizes and plans her life so that she does what she is.
I have lots of good intentions and can talk a good talk, but I give myself plenty of excuses to explain why I don't keep my house clean enough to invite newcomers to lunch after church, and I feel too overwhelmed to babysit for someone in need, or have the new neighbors over for dinner, and why I have lost 3 pounds instead of the 12 I need to lose, etc.
I guess that will be my New Year's Resolution: less talk, more rock.
Speaking of Krispy Kreme, it's pretty gutsy of them to have the machine on display like that, in this Atkins-crazy world. A Krispy Kreme donut is pretty much the polar opposite of healthy food, yet the place didn't lack for customers, and my friend tells me that the other location nearby is even busier. Which explains why, despite all the bestsellers about healthy diets, Americans are getting chunkier and chunkier.
We seem to tolerate a lot of contradiction in our lives, a disconnect between what we know or believe and the way we actually behave. When I worked at McDonald's as a teenager, a lot of people would come in and order the typical burger and fries, and an ice cream sundae, and a DIET COKE. Yeah, that'll help.
But I have become aware this week (again) how much I am not living out what I truly believe. We were studying Proverbs 31 in Bible study, and the one thing that really struck me about the infamous Proverbs 31 Woman is that she is consistent. She has her priorities, and she has actually organizes and plans her life so that she does what she is.
I have lots of good intentions and can talk a good talk, but I give myself plenty of excuses to explain why I don't keep my house clean enough to invite newcomers to lunch after church, and I feel too overwhelmed to babysit for someone in need, or have the new neighbors over for dinner, and why I have lost 3 pounds instead of the 12 I need to lose, etc.
I guess that will be my New Year's Resolution: less talk, more rock.
Wednesday, October 20, 2004
I don't have a real job either, Mrs. Bush!
Teresa Heinz Kerry said that she doesn't think First Lady Laura Bush has had a "real job". Ouch! Later, she apologized, after supposedly being informed that Mrs. Bush had in fact worked as a teacher and librarian before marrying the future president in 1977. Still, Mrs. Kerry was certainly aware at the time she made her first comment that Mrs. Bush has been a homemaker and mother for 20+ years. This is, according to Mrs. Kerry, not a "real job".
So, Mrs. Bush, don't feel bad. I don't have a real job, either! Just frittering away my time keeping house, raising and homeschooling my son, serving nutritious meals to my family, reading aloud countless books, and talking in the various high-pitched voices of my son's ever-growing family of stuffed animals. Not one foundation or endowment to show for it. What a waste.
So, Mrs. Bush, don't feel bad. I don't have a real job, either! Just frittering away my time keeping house, raising and homeschooling my son, serving nutritious meals to my family, reading aloud countless books, and talking in the various high-pitched voices of my son's ever-growing family of stuffed animals. Not one foundation or endowment to show for it. What a waste.
Tuesday, October 19, 2004
Where do I start?
Hugh Hewitt asked bloggers to chime in on this question: Why vote for Bush and what's wrong with Kerry? To which I say, Where do I start?
To be fair, I knew I would vote for President Bush's reelection at the same time I decided to vote to elect him in the first place. Observing him during his first term in office has only reconfirmed that decision, and watching Sen. Kerry blah, blah, blah his way through the campaign has simply given me another reason to vote for Bush: he's not Kerry!
That George W. Bush shares my Christian theology is a primary reason that I support him, but it's not like voting for someone because he roots for the baseball team as I do. Everyone has a theology (what they believe about God), whether they know it or not, and our theology shapes our view of the world and everything that happens. President Bush believes that there is great evil in the world, and that the solution for evil is not more tax dollars or a new government educational program, with public service announcements on TV and sappy, overbearing afterschool specials to drive home the message. No, there is some evil which must be simply confronted, and if need be, destroyed. The innocent must be defended at all costs, and if the president of the United States isn't called upon to defend his people, then what is he supposed to do? All the infrastructure, social policy, and economic growth we can imagine can be gone in an instant if our enemies succeed in what they would dearly like to do. I believe George Bush understands this, and I do believe that John Kerry does not.
John Kerry thinks that summits will somehow solve everything. We will have a summit, invite everyone, and talk. I think he's been watching too much Dr. Phil. You can't work things out with a group that is bent on your destruction. I'm not saying that we should ignore the international community, or that the U.S. is always right and other countries always wrong, but I think Kerry goes too far in wanting to please other countries (especially Europe), so we can all "get along". Vote for Kerry if you'd like to see another dozen years of U.N. resolutions. As a parent, I know that you have to make sure your word means something, that if you threaten a consequence, you'd better follow through. President Bush does not equivocate; he means what he says, and does what he says he will do. Senator Kerry can't even bring himself to state a preference between the Stones and the Beatles, lest he offend a potential constituent group. In the same debate, he can miraculously appear to be on several sides of the same issue. How can he command allegiance from our allies, or respect from our enemies?
On other questions, too, Pres. Bush has demonstrated moral courage. He stands up for the unborn, the most defenseless among us. John Kerry waivers and flip-flops, claiming to oppose abortion but refusing to vote to ban the most brutal of procedures (partial-birth abortion).
Why vote for Bush, and what's wrong with Kerry? Don't get me started!
To be fair, I knew I would vote for President Bush's reelection at the same time I decided to vote to elect him in the first place. Observing him during his first term in office has only reconfirmed that decision, and watching Sen. Kerry blah, blah, blah his way through the campaign has simply given me another reason to vote for Bush: he's not Kerry!
That George W. Bush shares my Christian theology is a primary reason that I support him, but it's not like voting for someone because he roots for the baseball team as I do. Everyone has a theology (what they believe about God), whether they know it or not, and our theology shapes our view of the world and everything that happens. President Bush believes that there is great evil in the world, and that the solution for evil is not more tax dollars or a new government educational program, with public service announcements on TV and sappy, overbearing afterschool specials to drive home the message. No, there is some evil which must be simply confronted, and if need be, destroyed. The innocent must be defended at all costs, and if the president of the United States isn't called upon to defend his people, then what is he supposed to do? All the infrastructure, social policy, and economic growth we can imagine can be gone in an instant if our enemies succeed in what they would dearly like to do. I believe George Bush understands this, and I do believe that John Kerry does not.
John Kerry thinks that summits will somehow solve everything. We will have a summit, invite everyone, and talk. I think he's been watching too much Dr. Phil. You can't work things out with a group that is bent on your destruction. I'm not saying that we should ignore the international community, or that the U.S. is always right and other countries always wrong, but I think Kerry goes too far in wanting to please other countries (especially Europe), so we can all "get along". Vote for Kerry if you'd like to see another dozen years of U.N. resolutions. As a parent, I know that you have to make sure your word means something, that if you threaten a consequence, you'd better follow through. President Bush does not equivocate; he means what he says, and does what he says he will do. Senator Kerry can't even bring himself to state a preference between the Stones and the Beatles, lest he offend a potential constituent group. In the same debate, he can miraculously appear to be on several sides of the same issue. How can he command allegiance from our allies, or respect from our enemies?
On other questions, too, Pres. Bush has demonstrated moral courage. He stands up for the unborn, the most defenseless among us. John Kerry waivers and flip-flops, claiming to oppose abortion but refusing to vote to ban the most brutal of procedures (partial-birth abortion).
Why vote for Bush, and what's wrong with Kerry? Don't get me started!
Geography and Hiking
I grew up in central Florida. The predominant geographical feature there is lakes. Since you can't see lakes from a distance in a flat place, though, there is little to give you a sense of where you are. You see houses, street corners, those disgusting nuisance slash pine trees, some beautiful oak trees. That's all you see.
Now I live in the Valley of the Sun, metropolitan Phoenix. When I look out my upstairs bedroom windows to the west, I see the White Tank Mountains. To the north and east, the Hedgepeth Hills are visible when I step outside to check my mail. Driving around on the freeway, I see many landmarks: Four Peaks, Camelback, downtown Phoenix. It's amazing how living in a more geographically diverse (i.e., not flat) region changes my perspective. Driving across town in the evening, I see Piestewa Peak framed by the setting sun's orange glow, and I remember hiking to the top of it with some friends last winter (an amazing feat for a Florida girl). Glimpsing the mountains on the south side of the valley makes me think of friends who moved there, to a tiny town, several months ago. Having all these visible geographical landmarks is somehow comforting, stabilizing. They tell me where I am, and remind me of where I've been, and where I want to go. When I hike to the tops of the peaks in the Hedgepeth Hills, I can see taller mountains to the north, and I know that further on, beyond my gaze, are the beautiful San Francisco Peaks, and a forest which was our winter playground last year.
I love hiking here. I never hiked in Florida; traipsing through the muggy, buggy woods as a Girl Scout cured me of that. But here, I could hike every day. The rugged, arid terrain doesn't seem welcoming at first. It can be daunting for a novice hiker. (Let's not even mention the rattlesnakes and scorpions right now, okay?) But somehow hiking into this wilderness of cactus and creosote bush makes me feel more rugged, too. Before we moved here, I didn't know that cacti bloom. Now I delight in spying a ring of flowers on a small, barrel-shaped cactus. Bending down to get a closer view of them under a sheltering creosote bush, their pink, girly color defying the dull, gravelly colors of the trail, I am encouraged. They are at home in the desert; I can be, too.
I am addicted to the peaks, to the feeling of sitting down on a rock and taking a swig of water while I take in the panorama below. If the hike has been difficult, like Piestewa Peak, the rest at the summit is even sweeter. I did it! I'm not an athlete - actually I'm such a klutz that the first time we went hiking in AZ, I tripped on some rocks at the parking lot at the base of the trail (!) and tore up my knee and my good jeans. But I keep hiking. Down into washes, over ridges, even climbing over boulders sometimes. To get to the top.
Now I live in the Valley of the Sun, metropolitan Phoenix. When I look out my upstairs bedroom windows to the west, I see the White Tank Mountains. To the north and east, the Hedgepeth Hills are visible when I step outside to check my mail. Driving around on the freeway, I see many landmarks: Four Peaks, Camelback, downtown Phoenix. It's amazing how living in a more geographically diverse (i.e., not flat) region changes my perspective. Driving across town in the evening, I see Piestewa Peak framed by the setting sun's orange glow, and I remember hiking to the top of it with some friends last winter (an amazing feat for a Florida girl). Glimpsing the mountains on the south side of the valley makes me think of friends who moved there, to a tiny town, several months ago. Having all these visible geographical landmarks is somehow comforting, stabilizing. They tell me where I am, and remind me of where I've been, and where I want to go. When I hike to the tops of the peaks in the Hedgepeth Hills, I can see taller mountains to the north, and I know that further on, beyond my gaze, are the beautiful San Francisco Peaks, and a forest which was our winter playground last year.
I love hiking here. I never hiked in Florida; traipsing through the muggy, buggy woods as a Girl Scout cured me of that. But here, I could hike every day. The rugged, arid terrain doesn't seem welcoming at first. It can be daunting for a novice hiker. (Let's not even mention the rattlesnakes and scorpions right now, okay?) But somehow hiking into this wilderness of cactus and creosote bush makes me feel more rugged, too. Before we moved here, I didn't know that cacti bloom. Now I delight in spying a ring of flowers on a small, barrel-shaped cactus. Bending down to get a closer view of them under a sheltering creosote bush, their pink, girly color defying the dull, gravelly colors of the trail, I am encouraged. They are at home in the desert; I can be, too.
I am addicted to the peaks, to the feeling of sitting down on a rock and taking a swig of water while I take in the panorama below. If the hike has been difficult, like Piestewa Peak, the rest at the summit is even sweeter. I did it! I'm not an athlete - actually I'm such a klutz that the first time we went hiking in AZ, I tripped on some rocks at the parking lot at the base of the trail (!) and tore up my knee and my good jeans. But I keep hiking. Down into washes, over ridges, even climbing over boulders sometimes. To get to the top.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
