Why, Yes! Tomorrow IS Friday!

And hallelujah for that.  I know from reading this blog it is easy to believe that we suffer through the week and only live for the weekends.

That's because it is true.

Some parts of the house are put together and somewhat good looking.

Some are not.

This is the bedroom for the next few weeks months.

I'm completely ignoring all the "not" areas in order to study.  T minus two weeks until the GRE.  And then I'll celebrate finishing it by leaving the country for 10 days.  In a way I dread it and in a way it just can't come fast enough.

I'm practicing timed essays.  My goal is 2-3 essays a day at only 29 minutes each so that I get used to writing in a hurry and it won't throw me off on D Day.

But it is easy to get distracted.

Lucy is no help.

Since I apparently have nothing useful to say, I should sign off.  G is nerding it up tonight so I have hours and hours to watch smut TV study.

What is the Point of Marriage? And Why Should I Care?

Our latest Literary Society read:

The Meaning of Marriage by Timothy Keller with Kathy Keller

G is not in our Literary Society but I thought it only fitting to work him into this picture.  :)  Considering the topic and all.

I have said this before about other authors and will now say it about Timothy Keller:  if you have never read any of his works, drop what you are doing, hire a sitter for the kids, go out and buy all his books and read through them ravenously.  Immediately.  Do not pass Go; do not collect $200.  He has been called the C.S. Lewis of our time and I agree with that description.

In the early 1990's Keller presented a series of sermons about marriage in his church.  Since then it has become one of the most sought-after and requested series he has ever done; and this is in a church of primarily young, single New Yorkers.  They refer to it as "The Marriage Tapes."  Due to an incredible amount of requests, he decided, with the input of his wife, to write this book.

Keller presents the Biblical view of marriage: it is a God-created institution designed to fully implement the strengths of men and women while also, through its redemptive qualities based upon Jesus' example of sacrifice, growing each person into a more complete version of themselves.  This is not to say that single people are incomplete.  This is not to say that divorced people are either.  This "completion" is based upon the effects and power of marriage and does not exclude in any way those that are not married.  God has plans for each individual; not just couples.  In fact, Christianity was a revolutionary religion in ancient times in that it gave both men and women freedom to live single lives rather than rely on the "idol" of the family unit and the necessity of having children.  It liberated individuals.  It would be a shame, and would miss the mark, to now view marriage as some sort of spiritual goal or elite fulfillment for Christians.

He uses modern studies and Biblical examples of why living together does not guarantee a successful marriage (and that these marriages result in divorce more often than marriages in which the people do not live together before); why sex before marriage is not only wrong, but why it is a harmful idea; how our culture has come to view marriage solely as a vehicle for happiness and personal fulfillment; how marriage should be our number one (earthly) relationship priority, meant to supercede our relationships with both our parents and our children.

Keller has a gift for conveying complex and controversial issues in a way that is academic and spiritual without being preachy, condescending or patronizing to non-believers.  Besides Philip Yancey and Anne Lamott, he is one self-proclaimed Christian who I would recommend to non-Christians.

Enjoy!  Happy Reading!  And Happy Marriage!

Tips for an International Vacation

Most of you devoted readers (all 2.5 who I know of!) have considerable experience with international travel, so it's not like this is new to you, but in anticipation of our upcoming vacation (T MINUS LESS THAN THREE WEEKS), I thought I'd write about important things to consider when traveling to another country.

In late August we are going to Hong Kong and Singapore.  This trip will be unique for both of us: first time in Asia (albeit extremely Western-friendly, but still), and first time in such big cities with different cultures and laws.  {Note to self: Do not jaywalk in Singapore.}

Why these places?  Well, it's time to add the Asian continent to our list, and both cities seem so intriguing, while remaining manageable in a shorter timeframe.  Because of our work, the long Africa vacation was an anomaly; this vacation needed to be closer to one week than to two.  We can reasonably explore both cities and fit in travel time and jet lag recovery before going back to work.

Prepping for this trip is a breeze compared to Africa, but there are still many ducks to get in a row before flying out.  Just for fun, here is our list.

MUST HAVES

*antibiotics, just in case

*probiotics, to help with digestion

*Pepto Bismol tablets, ditto (every morning with breakfast like clockwork.  Trust me, it does the trick.)

*passport

*all necessary shots (and shot records!)

*face masks (yes, really.  Because of fires in that general area, we may need them in both cities.)

*camera

*battery chargers

*outlet do-hickies to convert the electricity in different countries (FYI, Asia is different from Europe; Africa is different from both.)

*band aids

*Purrell

*Painkiller (for us it's Ibuprofen)

*books & music for entertainment on plane (cannot stress this enough for long flights)

*comfy shoes

*layered clothes - always

*U.S. embassy contact information

*Alert your credit card company of the specific countries you will be in


NICE TO HAVES

*money in the local currency before you enter the country.  If possible, predict how much you will need for special tips (guides, drivers, bribes if applicable, waiters, etc.).  Have a good grasp on the exchange rate (England = sucks!, Zambia = miraculous!)

*snacks/food in case we get in a culinary bind.  (G in Africa = a culinary bind).  Travel-friendly and customs-friendly foods are the best, such as CLIF bars and packaged pretzels.  Fruit is not a good idea when crossing country lines because of agricultural restrictions.  Not even dried fruit.

*cell phone (not going to happen on this trip)

*laptop (not going to happen on this trip)


TIPS

*Pack only the minimum amount of clothes you think you will need and only fill your suitcase half full to allow room for souvenirs and unexpected purchases (hmmm I wonder why we have so much crap in our house!!!!!).  For example, G and I always take 4 suitcases and only pack a bit in each one.  They are usually more full on the return flight, and we spread out all of our goodies so in case some of our bags get lost, not all of our stuff is gone.

*Try to learn the top cultural issues in advance.  I'm not a researcher, so I leave this to G and our travel agent.  But regardless of who does it or how it happens, we make sure to learn the do's and don'ts before leaving the U.S. (Note to self: night markets in Hong Kong will so not be like night markets in Waikiki.  Be careful and be smart.)

*Stay aware of any travel warnings or U.S. State Department alerts.

*Talk to people who have visited these countries before (or bombard your travel agent with questions).  What off-the-beaten-path things do they recommend?  What typical touristy things do they say are not worth your time?  What are the safety concerns?

*Try to blend in.  Sometimes it is possible (London!) and sometimes it is not (Zimbabwe!), but do what you can so that you will not stand out or become an easy target.

*Make a list of presents you need to buy.  This is important because we are Type A and usually use our annual vacation as a way to get Christmas presents for our family/friends.  Since we can't take our phones (our usual list keepers!), and since our brains are so rattled on long trips, we make a list on paper in advance.  This way we remember our important peeps.  :)

Happy Traveling!

Simple Sunday Brunch

Yesterday a couple of my weekly happy hour peeps came over for a simple brunch/house warming party.

They are tall and blonde.  I am not.

The menu:

*Mimosas {duh}
*Donuts {!}
*Warm Goat Cheese Salad
*Fruit Salad
*Hash Brown Casserole

We don't have an air conditioner and I was wondering if it would become stifling, but with all the windows and most of the doors open {and those cool, refreshing mimosas!} it was comfortable enough to sit and chat for hours.

Meanwhile G was on his way back home and I made sure he knew how much I had missed him:

Let's get through Monday as fast as we can.  Deal?

The Little Book with the Chic Lit Title

Confessions of a Readaholic:

I picked up The Man of My Dreams last week to read in between my Literary Society reading and GRE studying as kind of an entertainment break.  About ten pages into it I was like, I think I've read this before.  

Yep.

I'm getting old.  And possibly suffering from early onset Alzheimer's, but I re-read it anyways because I love Curtis Sittenfield's writing.

I have probably done a book review on it before, too, who knows!  But here we go again.

The Man of My Dreams by Curtis Sittenfield

With the exception of American Wife, Sittenfield's protagonists are young girls who are introspective and analytical to the point of being almost unlikeable.  Similar in some ways to her first book, Prep, this book centers around Hannah as a fourteen year old girl who is weathering the storm of her parents' divorce.  The book follows her through college and into her early twenties as she navigates the challenges of growing up and trying to figure out complicated relationships, especially those with boys.

Although Hannah is not entirely likeable, she is not entirely unlikeable either, and I appreciate her complexity and how deeply Sittenfield digs into her head and shows us what she is thinking and how her thoughts are affecting her actions.  We do this so much in our own heads that it is a pleasant (interesting) escape to get into someone else's head for a while.

Sittenfield's writing is dead-on, just superb.  I think I have mentioned before that she is one of my favorite authors.  She has such a subtle (natural?) way of writing descriptions and dialogue that capture the nuances of real life, how people really think and really talk to each other:

"Allison says, 'You know what I was kind of thinking about while I was asleep?  Remember the Mexican restaurant we used to get that seven-layer salad from?  Mom would pick it up for us if she and Dad were going to a dinner party or something, but actually in no way was it a salad - it was like sour cream on top of cheese on top of beef on top of guacamole.'

At the same time, Hannah says, 'Yeah, that was good,' and Allison says, 'It's amazing how unhealthily we ate when we were little.'

'It did have lettuce,' Hannah says.

'Barely.  And that beef was nasty.  I can't believe I ever ate meat.'  Allison and Sam now eat almost exclusively organic food, and this, Hannah realizes, must be the subtext of Allison's comments - the miracle of her growing up to be such a wise and authentic person in spite of a childhood spent chowing on pesticides and hydrogenated oils.  There are products Hannah didn't even know you could by organic versions of until she saw them in Allison and Sam's apartment: ketchup, say, or pasta."

Not to get all Fem Nazi or anything, but it is nice to read such deep descriptions of female thinking.  It is not all puppies and sunshine and period cramps and which purse should I take with me today.  Hannah's thoughts are often negative and scathing, but are also genuinely curious, as objective as one can be as an individual, and she's so earnest.  Sittenfield has commented in interviews that readers and reporters often say things like, "Yes, the protagonist is clearly smart, but is she pretty?"  or, "Isn't it disturbing that a girl would think such things?"  Sittenfield says that no one would ask such questions of a male character, and I think she's right, and it is somewhat disappointing that this pseudo-sexist paradigm is still an undercurrent in our society.

I would recommend this book as an easy and entertaining read that will also make you think.  I would use bigger and more descriptive vocab words from my GRE studying, but I can't remember any of them and need to go get donuts now.

Happy Reading!

{It is worth noting that 99% of the pictures I put on this blog, unless otherwise cited, are my own via Instagram.  Always with the Instagram.}

Ladies and Gentlemen, the Library!

Before

After

It still needs a bit of work.  We need to figure out what to put in the vaulted space on the wall between the shelves and the ceiling; it needs some color or something.  Maybe our honkin' geese picture (pun!).

Some of my faves

TGIF, people (hostage situation)

G made a crucial mistake.

He went out of town for the weekend and left me alone with his nerd stash.

Boy is he gonna regret that.