Crimson Bound by Rosamund Hodge

TrishLeave a comment

It’s such a relief when the second book of an author you love turns out to be excellent.  Cruel Beauty immediately became one of my favorite books, and now that I’ve read Crimson Bound, I can trust that Rosamund Hodge is going to be an author I can trust to create beautifully haunting worlds of remade fairy tales.

I love Hodge’s darker spins on classic stories and the incredible amount of creativity she infuses into her story.  Although undeniably Little Red Riding Hood, the necessary elements of seductive danger and innocence stolen are laid on top of a rich fantasy world of sometime-France and faeries.  It is so good.

One of my favorite things about Hodge’s romances is that she refuses to play into “happily ever after” tropes where good wins and bad loses.  Although there is definitely pathos to the end of her stories, Hodge insists that there is good and bad in all of us.  It is when her characters accept their badness and cling to their goodness that the plot starts moving.  People fall in love with each other’s whole self–there is no fairy tale princess here, just broken people needing and loving each other.  This is exactly the kind of romance I like to read.

I cannot wait for her next book, and I encourage everyone to read both this and her first book, Cruel Beauty, as quickly as possible.  Continue reading →

There Are No Adults in Disney World

Trish3 Comments

It has been thirteen years since the last (and only) time I have been to Disney World.  My aunt and cousin wanted to spend our one day in Magic Kingdom, and I agreed, despite my memories of it being a little boring.  I wanted to indulge in my love of travel in Epcot or maybe enjoy the shows in Hollywood Studios, but they promised Magic Kingdom would be worth it.

IMG_5599It was fun enough.  We rode famous rides like “Peter Pan’s Flight” and “It’s a Small World.”  I couldn’t shake my adult cynicism, however, and I made my mom listen to comments about the subtle racism of a majority-white puppet world.  I liked the puns made by the “Jungle Cruise” operator (“What is the scariest plant?  BamBOO”) and I enjoyed climbing through “Swiss Family Treehouse.”  But nothing had awakened my childlike glee since boarding the ferry that took us from parking lot to theme park.

Nothing, that is, until we avoided the mid-afternoon heat by escaping into seated, air conditioned shows.  “Is Mickey’s PhilharMagic like Fantasia?” I asked.  “Yeah, kind of,” my cousin lied.  We put on our 3D glasses, and my heart exploded.  Continue reading →

New Travel Page!

TrishLeave a comment

I over-organize and over-share, so it was only a matter of time before I created a page that lists my trips in reverse chronological order.  You can find it by hovering over the “Travel” icon at the top of my page until the drop box appears, then selecting “Recent Trips.”

I like this page because it erases the US/international travel dichotomy I had previously established on my site.  There are beautiful places and cool people to meet in my own country and throughout the world, and I want to honor them equally.

I also like being able to see the number of places I’ve visited in a year and the months in which I tend to travel.  With this information I can get statistic-y and self-aware.  For instance, I have done a lot of traveling in 2015, and the year is only half over.  This directly coincides with my move from Texas to Illinois, and a frantic upswing in “I need to see as many things as possible before I leave!”  And based on three years worth of data, it looks like March and July are my preferred months for traveling.  Also easy to dissect, because at until age 27, I was still a student, and spring break/summer are prime times to take off on an adventure.

I hope this page is handy for some of you.  It definitely is for me!

A Better Set of First Date Questions

TrishLeave a comment

BuzzFeed recently introduced me to the the existence of @firstdateqs, a Twitter account where people are revolutionizing first dates.  Throw out questions about careers and families of origin and ask the truly important ones, like, “Do you think birds hear their own voices and are like ‘ugh is THAT what I sound like?'”

I’ll be honest, I would be super impressed by a guy who brought his creativity A-game to the restaurant.  So, just to practice, I thought I would answer a few.  Continue reading →

The Gifts of the Jews by Thomas Cahill

Trish1 Comment

I’ve always thought of Western civilization beginning with ancient Greece or Rome.  But Thomas Cahill convinced me to take a historical step backward and consider the impact of the Jewish story as the true hinge upon which history turns.  Prior to the Jews, pagan religions viewed the world as cyclical, repetitive, and uncontrollable.  When Yahweh intercedes in the life of Avraham (then Yitzchak, then Yaakov), the unveiling of a monotheistic religion changes everything.  History becomes linear, and a relational God that interacts with humans creates the possibility of real change and human responsibility.

Anyone interested in history, culture, or religion will find this fascinating.  Cahill is a phenomenal writer, working his way through history with just enough time to appreciate what happens without dawdling.  His adherence to Hebraic terms (like the names of the patriarchs above) gives readers enough space to view the story with new eyes.

As a seminary student, I view the Bible almost exclusively through the eyes of application:  what can we learn from its stories?  The Gifts of the Jews broadened my appreciation, helping me to see that history itself was changed by this unique people group.  Continue reading →

You Don’t Have to be Fluent in a Language to Communicate

TrishLeave a comment

I hate learning foreign languages.  It necessarily makes you feel dumber than a three-year-old, and there are few things I hate more than feeling dumb (maybe pulling teeth  or horror movies).  But there is one huge benefit:  with a grasp on only a handful of phrases, speaking in a foreign language forces people to be more intimate and vulnerable.

I like to use words to my advantage, spinning out sentences that make me seem self-effacing or funny or smart.  The more I say, the less it really means.  But when I’m in Mongolia, I cannot say, “You didn’t have to do that!”  I can only say, “Thank you.”  When I’m in Senegal, I cannot say, “That dress is really flattering, and wow!  Your hair!”  I simply say, “You are very beautiful.”  When I’m in Greece, I cannot say, “I really appreciate what you did for me, that was great!”  I have to say “I love you.”  Continue reading →

StumbleUpon Sunday (8)

TrishLeave a comment

StumbleUpon is a giant collection of the best pages on the Internet.

StumbleUpon is a great way to lose hours of your life.  Luckily, I braved the Internet vortex so you don’t have to.  This week I found these especially interesting websites:

  1. Down the Rabbit Hole We Go! 300+ Mind Expanding Documentaries
    I’m not nearly as into documentaries as I should be, but this list includes links to view these films for free, so…maybe this is my time!
  2. The 5 Craziest Ways Famous Actors Got Into Character
    This Cracked article is fascinating and hilarious, covering Tom Cruise to Robert De Niro.
  3. Decoding Food Expiration Dates
    Via video or text, this site has a few simple tips and examples on how to know when your perishable foods are spoiled.
  4. Drawing Between the Lines
    Clever drawings of characters escaping their notebook-lined prisons.
  5. Painting Timelapse Collaboration with a Toddler
    I love these videos of toddler scribbles transforming into artwork with the help of a painter’s touch.
  6. You Fell Asleep Watching a DVD
    Hahaha!  This is genius!
  7. The ‘Man Who Flies for Free’ Says These are the 3 Best Websites for Airline Deals
    I bookmarked this so hard….I hope he’s right!
  8. Disney Princesses in Accurate Period Costume
    Sleeping Beauty’s is my favorite.
  9. The 50 Best Kids’ Movies to Watch as a Family
    Self-explanatory and handy!
  10. Perfectly Timed Picture of My Firework
    A week late, but wow!  What a cool picture of a firework’s trail as it leaves the ground.

Mumford & Sons: Below My Feet

Trish5 Comments

I have all-time favorites when it comes to Mumford & Sons:  “Hopeless Wanderer,” “White Blank Page,” and “After the Storm.”  But there’s one song in particular that I always forget about, and when I hear it I always say, “Oh YEAH, I love this!”

“Below My Feet” is a catchy enough song.  When the chaos drops out at 3:35 and the chorus grows in intensity, I have never yet been able to keep myself from punching my steering wheel in time to the beat.  But what I really love are the lyrics.  Continue reading →

Fill These Hearts by Christopher West

Trish4 Comments

Ten pages in, I knew Fill These Hearts would be at the top of my favorite books lists.  Few other Christian books feel so human; West is deeply in touch with the longings of humanity as well as our hope.  Every sentence went straight to my heart, and I found myself excited to live, excited to be human, excited to admit my desires in hope of my destiny.

The main premise is that we all have universal longings–for meaning, for companionship, for eternal ecstasy and bliss.  We know we want those things, and we know that this life so rarely fulfills us.  In the face of thwarted desire, West suggests that we react in one of three ways:  1) the starvation diet, wherein we pretend we don’t care about those desires, 2) the fast food diet, wherein we try to fulfill our desires through unhealthy means, and 3) the banquet, wherein we lean into our desires and let them point us to God and his goodness.

I used to fall into the starvation diet category, miserable but in control.  I was leery of people who indulged in their desires and arrogantly called them “sinners.”  The past few years, thanks to mentors, books, and counseling sessions, I am learning to embrace the banquet mindset.  I’m so glad West wrote this book (which embraces both theology and pop culture–my favorite!) to give language to my emotions.  More than most books I’ve read, I hope everyone reads this one!  Continue reading →

Memories of Woodland

TrishLeave a comment

I spent the majority of my first eighteen years at Woodland Baptist Church.  For better and for worse, it is the place that has most shaped me into the person I am today.  Now that I’m back for six months, every hallway and classroom reminds me of something from my past.

After my half day at kindergarten, I went to Woodland and hung out in the supply closet while my mom worked as preschool director.  One particular day I found the colored paper, and my burgeoning creative genius decided to cut them, twist them, and staple them into nonsense shapes.  Thrilled by my abstract accomplishments, I gave one to the church secretary, one to the pastor, and one to each of the preschool teachers.  Because they were kind, they complimented me.  That was a bad move on their part, because I made fifty more.  Continue reading →