Questions, I Have: Star Wars Episode VII

So, this is very SPOILER HEAVY. If you  don't want spoilers, then skip this post. Go read yesterday's! 

(you were warned)

Ok, we're going now. :) 

So I saw Episode VIII: The Force Awakens last week, and overall, I liked it. The dialogue was five million times better than in any previous installments, the effects were well done, the acting was solid, the music was great. I really liked the blend of old and new characters. 

THAT BEING SAID: I have a list of questions. In no particular order:  

1. Where the HECK did the First Order come from? The Sith is gone, presumably, at the end of ROTJ (Episode VI), because the Emperor and Darth Vader are dead, and "two there are", Yoda tells us in the prequels. And that's it. There's not like a Sith Training Academy. You have a master and an apprentice--and both are dead. So there's no Sith, and presumably no one to run the Empire, because I'm pretty sure the Rebellion/Republic went after them with all the Power of the Force and we saw all those parties at the end of the Reworked Episode VI, Indicating that we were free from evil, Ding Dong the Witch is Dead, Etc. 
   So...First Order. Where did you come from? 
2. We know, from the prequels, that the Stormtroopers are basically disposable clones. Well, obviously, Finn is not a clone of Bobba Fett's Dad. So are we doing like a Lunar Chronicles thing and stealing them from their parents when they're born and basically brainwashing them into being Stormtroopers? (I'm not saying that HUGE PLOT HOLES aren't a part of the Canonical Star Wars Universe, because they are...)
3. Also, Finn: When you were being trained as a Stormtrooper, what did you think you were going to be doing? Petting kittens? 
4. Why Do Rey and Luke want to get back to these crummy desert planets?! SERIOUSLY?!?!?! It's a DESERT! ( I know, I know: it's home. OK. Fine. STILL.) 
5. Why did Mark Hamill get top billing and the have precisely one scene, at the very end, with NO DIALOGUE? Also, why did he act like a Disney Princess and play the "this is all my fault, I'll run away now" card when Ben Solo/Kylo Ren Is turned....evil? 
6. Also, why is he living on Skellig Michael? Has he become an Ancient Irish Monk? 
7. Are Han and Leia divorced? Were they married to begin with, ever? If they were, does that make Han Galactic Royalty?  If they're divorced: did they have irreconcilable differences? Is there no fault divorce in this galaxy? 
8. Why do the bounty hunters want Han and Chewie? 
9. Why did they get rid off/sell the Falcon? 
10. If they knew where the Falcon was all the time, why didn't they go get it?
11. WHO is the crazy Supreme Leader Snoke? Is he REALLY a crazy huge thing, or is this like the Wizard? Pay no attention to the man behind the projection? Is he some sort of Sith derivative? 
12. Don't we NEED the Sith to balance the force? So are they really gone? 
13. Rey sure has a lot of power for never being trained as a Jedi. I mean, she almost took Kylo Ren down and he's supposed to be like, the MAN, here. (Random side note: He is MUCH more intimidating with the mask. Also, does he remind anyone else of Syndrome from Incredibles?) 
14. Which guy--Finn or Poe--is Rey going to fall for? 
15. I would've liked it if Han had said "If you strike me down, I will become more powerful than you can possibly imagine" before his son killed him. (Fathers and sons have SERIOUS issues in these movies.)
16. Who makes up the Rebellion? WHY is there a rebellion, when they won? (That connects to the first question)
17. Are there Ewoks in our future? I hope so. (This really isn't a serious question)
18. Why are the Empire/First Order weapons so FREAKING EASY TO DEFEAT? "Oh, yes, it's completely unbeatable, except for this glaring error that is easily spottable by our enemies! Ha ha! And it's basically the same problem we had thirty some years ago! (No, we do NOT learn from our mistakes.) "
19. Also, how does one turn a planet into a weapon? Without, you know, destroying said planet?  (Yes, I know the planet was destroyed at the end of the movie.) 
20. How long do Wookies live? 
21. WHY would you have Daniel Craig in a movie and not SHOW us Daniel Craig? I mean, come on, JJ! 
22. Why don't the stormtroopers have better armor after all this time?
23. Why does C3PO STILL think that everything is going to turn out badly? Come on, 3PO. Trust the humans and R2 and BB8 (who is AWESOME, by the way).
24. Is Rey Luke's daughter? I want some massive Rey backstory, here. What is going on with parents leaving her, etc. Why do parents leave their kids so much in these stories? And if Rey is Luke's daughter, then who is Rey's mom? Who was taking care of her? Because I doubt she was scavenging parts and brining them to trade as a four year old. Is she some sort of crazy collection of Midichlorians that make her magical, or something? 
25. I still don't really know what a Midichlorian is. 

How I Kondoed My Books

This is one of the most common questions I get when I tell people I've "kondoed" my house--that is, used the principles in The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up. "What did you do with your books?!" DID YOU GET RID OF BOOKS, EMILY?!?!?!?!

Yes, I did. 

(Deep breath, guys)

It took me awhile to get up the nerve to do that. If you're not a book lover, you don't understand that statement. I had no problem doing my closet--I went through it like a tornado. It was easy. Books, not so much. 

The first time I read Marie Kondo's book, I thought getting rid of books was crazy. What if I NEEDED IT LATER? So I ignored that advice. 

Then I read the book a few more times, and it became clear that books were really something I needed to pare down. If I wanted to move again, I didn't want to move a bunch of books I didn't want. I really didn't need all the books I had. (Although "need" isn't a word I use when talking about books.) Some of them I never opened again after the initial read. I kept them because they "looked good" on my shelves, or I thought I'd need the entire works of Dickens at some point. (I don't really like Dickens.) 

I was too involved with being "the girl with the big library." It was time to pare down. 

To put this in perspective--I've taken almost 15 bags (tote bag sizes) of books, board games, DVDs, and CDs to Half Price Books since my Kondo project began. I've gotten about $120 (if not more) from selling these items. My house is much cleaner. I have books I really want on my shelves. It's true--I love really every book I own. And that makes me really happy. 

In Kondo's methodology, books are second, after clothes, in the Purgeathon. So this is how I did it. 

First: I did it very slowly

I knew this was going to take time. So I started methodically. I have my books arranged very stringently. I went through each shelf, looking, first, for the low hanging fruit--the books I was keeping, but I didn't really like. Out went a lot of Dickens, and a lot of "classics", like Les Liaisons Dangereuse and a lot of Evelyn Waugh (I kept Brideshead, but nothing else). Out went books I thought I "needed" to have--ta ta, War and Peace! Goodbye, most of my Russians! (I did keep Brothers K, because that's really good, guys. But I read The Idiot once, and never again.)  

I went through each shelf, pulling the books I hadn't opened in years, and didn't like. This was the first wave. 

I did NOT put all the books on the floor like Marie Kondo suggests. If I did that, I'd have had no space to do anything in my house, and I doubt I'd have moved as efficiently and as drastically if I'd done what she suggested. I probably would've been much more slipshod in my decisions. By doing it slowly, shelf by shelf, I was much better able to see what I had, and deal with things in my own way. 

It's also important to look at where your books are. In my house, they're everywhere; I have them on end tables, coffee tables, my nightstand, etc. They can easily become part of the landscape. A great part of Kondo's method is that she insists you see things in categories, as opposed to tidying by room (a la the Fly Lady Method--start with your kitchen, etc). Be sure to really look and notice where your books are. 

Second: I let my decision "sit" for a few days

In my living room is a constant "give away" pile. I let it grow until it's four or five bags worth of items, and then I sell them. (Or give them away, as the case may be.) This allowed me to make sure I didn't change my mind about any of them, or discard anything that I was going to want later. The books sat, sometimes for weeks, in the pile, and I saw them every day. If I felt an urge to read Jude the Obscure, I could do it. (I didn't, by the way) This kept me from selling any books I really wanted to keep. 

The other important thing to remember is that most books can be bought again, if you change your mind. (Obviously, this doesn't apply to rare books! So if you have heirloom books that you don't want, really think about those because you probably can't replace them!) 

Third: I did a second pass

And a third. And a forth. As I write this, the "fourth pass" is a big pile of books and a few DVDs in the "giveaway corner".  Kondo suggests doing this all at one time, and I did--initially. But I have so many books that it really did take time for me to see and process what I really had. (I probably had, at the beginning of this, 2,000 books. That's a conservative estimate.) This played out by removing books that really didn't sing to me; things like some of Jodi Picoult's books, YA series I'd liked but hadn't touched in years, theology books that I'd "outgrown" or didn't need anymore. A lot of my art books went (books from art museums detailing their catalogues)--pretty, but they took up a lot of space, and I never really opened them. 

I also let go of any "guilt" surrounding books. I get a lot of books as gifts. Sometimes people give me books I just don't like. I do read everything I get, however. But I had limited space, and someone else might like the book better. So off it went. Or, if it was a book I "wanted" to read, like War and Peace, but I knew I was never going to read, it went. (I've tried W&P three times. I even broke down and bought SparkNotes. No go. Out it went.) 

When Kondo talks about an object "sparking joy", that's important with books. If it didn't Spark Joy, or "sing" to me, as I term it,  it was out. 

Fourth: I rearranged my shelves

Into the void created by the Great Purging, I moved books. Books that had been on the floor now had a place on a window ledge or shelf. So while my book numbers were reduced, it looks like I had the same amount, because there weren't gaping spaces on my shelves. And this also gave me room for new books. Because, really, there is always an influx of new books coming in. I got three new books for Christmas, and I'm sure I'll buy more with my Christmas money. So I need that extra shelf space. 

Fifth: I sold the books!

Books that I had bought at Half Price I didn't sell back to them--those I donated to various places. But books that weren't from there, along with DVDs, CDs, and Board games, went to Half Price Books. For awhile, I was going twice a month, and getting quite a bit of money along the way. There is a way to sell there that allows you to get decent money--I didn't sell things that were in bad shape; I didn't sell kids' books (You get very little money for those, unless they're really nice hardback editions), and I usually sold books and DVDs together, to get more per transaction. 

A few notes/caveats: 

Now, I'm a single woman. All my books are mine, obviously. I don't share my library with anyone else. If you have a a spouse (and kids on top of that), you obviously cannot just go through and sell all their books. Focus on your own, first. 

I also didn't hold off on the rest of "Kondoing" while I did my books. I moved through the other categories while I made third and fourth passes, and now I'm at the point where I can move on to part II of the book  (for the rest of my Tidying Up posts, search "Tidying Up" in the search bar at the top right of this page--the posts will pop up). 

For a true book lover, the very IDEA of getting rid of books is appalling. Remember--you have to be ready to do it. I decided that it was worth it to me to have fewer books in my house, but to have more order, and feel better about the ones I did have.  I can safely say that I haven't regretted any of the books I've gotten rid of, and I'm much happier to have the extra space. 

That doesn't mean that I'll never have to purge again. Hopefully it won't take as long as this has! But I'm sure that eventually I'll be removing a few more books that I just don't love anymore. But the biggest and hardest part is done. 

I hope this helps you in your own Tidying Up Process! If you have any questions, leave them in the combox. :) 

Catholic 101: The Christmas Story (Or: Why was Jesus born, anyway?)

Since it's the Monday after Christmas, I thought we'd take a brief tour of salvation history today.

Sound fun? 

(And yeah, I do mean brief. We're not going to spend 40 years with the Israelites, today.) 

Barocci, "The Nativity" 

In short: Jesus didn't need to be born. Until humans screwed things up. 

When God created Adam and Eve, everything was perfect. Adam and Eve were in a state of grace--and they would never die, either, when God first created them. 

Then...they ate that fruit. And things changed. 

As Milton says: 

Of Man's first disobedience, and the Fruit

Of that Forbidden Tree, whose mortal taste

Brought Death into the World, and all our woe, 

With loss of Eden, till one greater Man

Restore us, and regain the Blissful seat.

--Paradise Lost, Book 1, 1-5 

"God so loved the world that he sent his only son, so that all who believe in him might not perish, but have eternal life." (John 3:16)

Jesus was born to Mary, in a stable in Bethlehem, so he could die for us, and redeem us. 

We celebrate Christmas because it's the birthday of Christ--it's the beginning of our redemption, it's the Incarnation--God made man, Emanuel (God with us). But in order for us to be redeemed, Jesus has to die. He can't just come and be born. Mary knows that when she presents the baby Jesus in the temple and Simeon tells her a sword shall pierce her heart. The cross is always there.

But at Christmas, we celebrate the birth of that perfect child, the God-man, who has come and taken on human flesh out of sheer love for us. 

Christmas, really, is all about love. 

Yarn Along No. 40

OK, so remember the gorgeous yarn I have? That basketweave was JUST NOT LIKING?

I decided that I'm going to use it--but not for basketweave. 

I've decided to work up my own stockinette stitch pattern, on size 9 needles, and make a scarf for me. I love this color yarn, and dagnabbit, it's going to get used, even if it's currently 68 degrees here in Columbus and not at all scarf weather. 

It's working up beautifully. I think part of the problem with the basketweave and this yarn was hat it called for size 6 needles, and this yarn really did not like that. 

The book is for a Facebook book club. It's good but it's dense, so I have to really commit to sitting down and reading it. 

Visual Journals: My Sketchbooks

2015 brought a lot of surprises, but one of the biggest is that I found out I liked drawing. 

Until recently, I'd equated art with math--it was something other people were good at, but unlike math, it was something I could easily appreciate. I love going to art museums and fawning over the art. I've always wished I could do that. 

My art training was mostly art classes in school, grades K-8, which became progressively more challenging, but we didn't really learn anything about art--concepts or theories or really how to draw. It was, here's the project, do it. And I wasn't very good at it. Art seemed to elude me. I could paint ceramics decently (There was a once-a-month class at a local studio), but that was it. My art was going to have to be music and writing.

Proustian tea break!

But one day last spring, while reading Melissa Wiley's blog, I discovered Sketchbook Skool. Melissa said they could turn even serious non artists into artists. It wasn't formal. It wasn't graded. But all sorts of different artists taught students various ways of drawing, of creating art. 

So I enrolled. I learned to play with colored pencils and watercolors, how to mix colors and blend colored pencils together. I grew more comfortable using pen that couldn't be erased. (Although sometimes it still makes me nervous!) I started carrying around a Moleskine watercolor sketchbook and drawing--sugar packets, fountains, whatever. 

And I found that I liked it, even when my drawings were wonky or not very good, or not what I imagined. 

the bunkbeds at my grandma's house. I'm glad I drew this because the beds have since been dismantled. 

I've noticed that my drawings are getting better--meaning they meet my expectations. I am really happy when I manage to blend just the right color of a madeleine with my pencils, or get the shadows right in a watercolor. 

Last week, I finished my first Moleskine sketch journal. I didn't think I'd do that, when I first bought it. I thought that maybe I would really hate art and just leave it to sit in a corner somewhere, with really bad pencil marks marring a few pages. 

But it didn't. All the pages are filled. 

Now I have three more sketchbooks in progress--it's gone mad, I know. :) One is another Moleskine watercolor sketchbook, for my Sketchbook Skool classes--I like having the thick watercolor paper for that, and the larger size. The second is my Moleskine Art journal that I use when I travel. I really liked having it with me when I was in Boston and it's definitely coming to LA with me. 

from the Boston sketch pages. 

Lastly is a red Moleskine art journal that's for home. By "home", I mean drawing things around here--what I eat at Starbucks during my sketch days, drawings of my house, my parents' house, buildings around my town, etc. I'm having a lot of fun with it so far. 

I'm in no way going to be a professional artist. But drawing taps into my creativity in a different way than writing. I like to think it complements it. I'll never stop keeping my written journals, but I don't think I'll stop sketching now, either. Maybe I just need to buy stock in Moleskine, since I use their journals for both writing and drawing!

impressions of my Christmas tree. 

In 2016, I'm hoping to take two more Sketchbool Skool classes, at least--Stretching and Storytelling--and continue filling the pages of my art journals. 

What new skills did you pick up in 2015? 

Catholic 101: Advent feasts, memorials, and solemnities

Our Lady of Guadalupe shrine in the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. 

Even though Advent is a preparatory season, there's still a lot of important dates on the Catholic calendar leading up to Christmas: 

November 30: St. Andrew: The feast day of one of the first apostles, and Simon Peter's brother. This is the day to start the Christmas novena--say the prayer 15 times every day from now until Christmas Day. I love this novena. It's a wonderful way to prepare for Christmas! 

St. Andrew is the patron saint of Scotland, and was crucified in an X shape; hence the Saltire flag of Scotland, which depicts a white X over a blue background. 

December 8: The Immaculate Conception (the patronal feast day of the United States, and a Holy Day of Obligation for all U.S. Catholics). No, this does not refer to Jesus. The Immaculate Conception (declared as dogma by Pope Pius IX in 1854), according to Ineffabilis Deus (Pope Pius IX's apostolic constitution): 

 holds that the most Blessed Virgin Mary, in the first instance of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege granted by Almighty God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the human race, was preserved free from all stain of original sin, is a doctrine revealed by God and therefore to be believed firmly and constantly by all the faithful.[5]

So, yes, Catholics have to believe in the Immaculate Conception. In short, and in English, it means that Mary was, from the moment of her conception, free of original sin. Jesus, being God, didn't have original sin when he was born, but Mary, being human, would have, in the ordinary course of events. But God preserved her from it, and she never sinned in her entire life. Did she have free will? Yes. Is she a goddess? No. She was a human being, but a very special one. 

Coincidentally, this became an important point the apparitions at Lourdes--when Bernadette asked who the Lady appearing to her was, she said, "I am the Immaculate Conception." Bernadette had no idea what that meant, being a poor, pretty uneducated peasant girl from rural France--she had no idea that Pope Pius IX had declared this dogma four years earlier. Thus, when she told her parish priest what the Lady had said, it served as confirmation that Bernadette must be seeing omething out of the ordinary, because there's no way she'd have heard that term. 

From Bernadette's testimony: 

"I went every day [to the grotto] for a fortnight, and each day I asked her who she was–and this petition always made her smile. After the fortnight I asked her three times consecutively. She always smiled. At last I tried for the fourth time. She stopped smiling. With her arms down, she raised her eyes to heaven and then, folding her hands over her breast she said, 'I am the Immaculate Conception.' Then I went back to M. le Curé to tell him that she had said she was the Immaculate Conception, and he asked was I absolutely certain. I said yes, and so as not to forget the words, I had repeated them all the way home.

December 9: St. Juan Diego, who saw Our Lady of Guadalupe. 

December 12: Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe

Detail of Our Lady of Guadalupe mosaic--Dominican St. Martin des Porres is second from right

Mary appeared to Juan Diego four times, beginning December 9, 1531, at Tepeyac. She spoke in Juan Diego's native language and asked that a church be built on that site in her honor. When he went to the local bishop, he (like most bishops and priests in these accounts) asked for a sign. On December 12, Juan Diego saw Castellian roses at the foot of Tepeyac, which weren't indigenous to the region. He filled his cloak (ilma) with the roses, and presented them to the bishop. However, the roses weren't the only miraculous thing--the interior of the tilma was imprinted with a picture of the Lady as she appeared to Juan Diego. (For technical information about the image on the tilma, see this Wikipedia article.) 

the original tilma in the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Mexico City, Mexico. The basilica is the most visited Catholic pilgrimage site in the world, and the world's third-most visited sacred site. 

She is much loved by the Mexican people, especially indigenous Mexicans, and in the Southwestern part of the United States.  

December 13: St. Lucy/Lucia. An Italian saint dearly loved by Scandinavians. It's customary to make St. Lucia buns on this day. YUM! :) St. Lucy was a roman martyr who brought food to the people imprisoned in the catacombs, wearing a crown interspersed with candles to light her way down the dark passageways. 

December 14: St. John of the Cross, Carmelite. 

December 17: The O Antiphons start. You probably know these as the verses to "O Come, O Come Emmanuel". 

December 25: Christmas Day--start of the Christmas season. Immediately after Christmas, we have a few great feasts, so I'll put them in here. 

December 26: Feast of St. Stephen, the first martyr

December 27: Feast of St. John, the "disciple whom Jesus loved", apostle, and writer of the Gospel of John and the Book of Revelation. He is the only apostle to have died a natural death. 

December 28: Feast of the Holy Innocents--the babies Herod the King killed as he tried to find the "newborn king of the Jews". The Coventry Carol memorializes this event, as well. 

December 29: Thomas Becket, bishop and martyr; born in London in 1118, he became chancellor to the King of England, but was exiled by Henry II, in response to his defense of the rights of the church against the state. After returning to England, he was murdered in 1170 in Canterbury Cathedral, (site of the pilgrims' destination in The Canterbury Tales, by the way.) 

Sunday After Christmas:  The Feast of the Holy Family--Mary, Jesus, and Joseph. 

January 1: Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, and a Holy Day of Obligation in the United States. 

Yarn Along No. 39

OK, try number three on the basketweave scarf! Ha! Well, I'm about to go for try number three. So here's just a nice picture of the needles and the yarn. Again. And my Advent book, which I adore. 

The biggest problem for me here is that you can't mess up, because of the pattern. If you drop stitches or something, the entire pattern looks off. So I have to be especially careful here. 

And since it's also Jane's birthday, here's some of my favorite Jane knitting things: 

Happy Birthday, Dear Jane!

Happy 240th birthday, Miss Austen! 

Obviously, we all must celebrate appropriately (watching the 1995 Pride and Prejudice would be a good start), and rejoice in Jane's birthday. 

Jane was born on December 16, 1775 to Rev. George and Mrs. Cassandra Austen of Steventon. She was the second youngest of eight children: James, George, Edward, Henry Thomas, Cassandra Elizabeth, Francis William (Frank), and Charles John. Frank and Charles became naval admirals, and James and Henry became clergymen like their father. (Edward was adopted by a wealthy family that needed an heir, and had no profession.) Henry was Austen's favorite brother, and he became her literary agent later in life. Of course, Cassandra was Jane's best friend. 

While Jane did accept one proposal of marriage, she reneged it the day after, and remained unmarried her entire life. Cassandra was engaged, but after her fiance died, she lived with Jane and her mother for the rest of her life. (Rev. Austen died in Bath in January 1805.) The Austen women were financially supported by Jane's brothers, and eventually Jane's own income from her books must have certainly helped their financial situation, at least a bit. 

Most of Jane's novels were written and published while she lived at Chawton Cottage, from 1809 until her death on July 18, 1817. She is buried in Winchester Cathedral, and her books have been continuously in print since 1833. 

In addition to her writing, she was an excellent piano player and dancer. She often traveled to visit her brothers and assist their wives with their children, and in the delivery of her nieces and nephews, and of course she had duties in her own home, which she shared with her mother and Cassandra. 

While Jane said her writing was, "the little bit of ivory on which I work with so fine a brush", she has become an integral part of Western Literature. Harold Bloom has placed her among the greatest Western writers of all time, and there is a wealth of writing about her, her life, her family, and her novels. 

Her work may not be as stormy as the Brontes', or as social conscious as Dickens', but her fine pieces of ivory have certainly brought pleasure to many people over the past century and change. So, happy birthday Jane!

Which austen novel is your favorite? 

Food Stories: Chocolate Gingerbread

When I have friends visit during the holidays, I like to make a dessert for us to eat while we're visiting (even if I'm not making an entire meal). The Guinness Cake is usually called into service here, but when I want to mix it up (and be seasonal), I make Nigella Lawson's Chocolate Gingerbread. 

This seems like a no-brainer, putting chocolate and gingerbread together, right? But this was the first recipe I'd ever seen for it, and it was definitely love at first bite. It's very simple to make (it's baked like a cake, in a 9X13" pan), keeps forever if properly stored (I just finished the batch I made Thanksgiving weekend), and isn't ridiculously sweet. The chocolate chips are a lovely surprise, because people aren't expecting them, but they add an extra little burst of chocolate flavor. People always ask me for this recipe once they've had a taste. 

What's your favorite Holiday Treat to Bake? (Or eat!)

Chocolate Gingerbread

from Nigella Lawson's Feast

For the cake: 

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter

1 c. + 2 tbsp. dark brown sugar

2 tbsp. sugar

3/4 c. golden syrup (Lyle's is a brand you can find at most stores now), or light corn syrup

3/4 c. molasses

1/4 tsp. ground cloves

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

2 tsp. ground ginger

1 1/4 tsp. baking soda

2 tbsp. warm water

2 eggs

1 c. milk

2 c. all-purpose flour

1/2 c. unsweetened cocoa

1 c. semisweet chocolate chips

For the frosting:

2 c. confectioner's (powdered) sugar

2 tbsp. unsalted butter

1 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa

1/4 c. ginger ale (NOT DIET)

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and tear off a big piece of parchment paper to line the bottom and sides of a 9x13" pan. (This is why that one piece in the photo has sort of a wonky edge--it's the way the batter set up with the parchment paper.) 

In a decent-sized saucepan (I always use my big dutch oven because I know it can hold everything), melt the butter along wit the sugars, golden syrup, molasses, cloves, cinnamon, and ginger. In a cup, dissolve the baking soda in the water. Take the saucepan off the heat and beat in the eggs, milk, and soda in its water. Stir in the flour and cocoa and beat with a wooden spoon to mix. Fold in the chocolate chips, pour into the lined pan and bake for about 45 minutes until risen and firm. It will be slightly damp underneath the set top. That's how you want it. (An inserted tooth pick will also come out clean.)

Remove to a wire rack and let cool in the pan. Once cool, make frosting.  

Sift the powdered sugar. In a heavy-based saucepan, heat the butter, cocoa, and ginger ale. Once the butter's melted, whisk in powdered sugar. Pour frosting over the top of the gingerbread. Once set, lift from the pan and discard the paper. (If you do this first--before frosting--the frosting. gets. everywhere. Trust me on this.) Cut into pieces. 

Catholic 101: Why did God Make Us?

This is the first chapter in the book we use in first grade, and it's the first question we ask the kids. 

We usually get some pretty random answers, but "love" always figures in. And that's true. 

The official answer?

God created me to know him, love him, and serve him in this world, and be happy with him forever in the next.

That's it. That's why God made you. 

He made you to know him: to realize He is God; to know about His Son, Jesus, and His work of Salvation; to know Him in his church and in His sacraments. 

To love him: To pray to him, to give him the devotion he is due, to follow his commandments. 

To serve him: To "be his body", as St. Terese of Avila wrote. To serve our neighbors, to demonstrate Christ's love to the world, and to do the work he gives us to do well and cheerfully. 

That's the basics. 

Be happy with him forever in the next: To live with him in Heaven forever. 

Our goal in life? To be saints. (Everyone in Heaven is a saint. Side note: dead people are NOT ANGELS. If they are in Heaven, they're saints. ANGELS ARE DIFFERENT!) 

We get to be saints by knowing, loving, and serving God. 

All of the Church's doctrines, sacraments, rites, rituals, ceremonies, and hierarchy as designed to help us achieve this goal. 

Daybook No. 114

Outside my window::

cloudy, but I saw dandelions the other day. DANDELIONS! In December! probably because our weather has been a lot more like spring than winter, lately--we've had a few deep frosts but it hasn't snowed yet, which is weird. Normally we've had at least one snow here by December. 

Wearing::

Jeans and a scoop neck "dark cherry" colored top, my St. Dominic medal, and my watch. Bare feet, which is appropriate because I'm watching a movie about St. Francis as I write this. 

Reading::

All the Advent books, and Communion with Chris: according to St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. I also read Rosemary, a book about the Kennedy's oldest daughter, who had intellectual disabilities, and who was lobotomized by her father in the 1940s. The book was pretty well -written (I had quibbles with the author's "explanations" of some Catholic things, but that's par for the course...), and you can't help by feel sorry for her and the rest of her family, who didn't know what had happened to Rosemary until it was done. 

Listening to:

The Hamilton CDs (again)--and some of my Advent CDs. I might have to put in Messiah for today and tomorrow, since tomorrow is the Immaculate Conception (a Holy Day of Obligation for Catholics), and the first part of Messiah is perfect for this. 

Goal setting:: 

Last week I did a lot if Powesheets work--goal setting for the New Year, and I'm pleased with what I've done so far. This is always an illuminating process for me. I'm on the actual goal setting steps now and I'm working on that part pretty slowly because I want to make sure that I'm setting the right goals. 

In one of the Advent books I'm reading, Come, Lord Jesus, Mother Mary Francis talks about the "dream the Lord has of [you.]" I want my goals to reflect that dream. 

working on the Powersheets last week!

Tyding Up::

This is hard because everything is so topsy-turvy with the Christmas decorations being out, and moving things around.  But I'm hoping I'm on the last "purge" of books and DVDs, and that I can have a whole post about the process in early 2016. 

Creativity::

I'm on the fourth week of my Sketchbook Skool Seeing class. I have to tell you, last week was hard. We were talking about continual line drawing and I was terrible at it when I first started. But by the end, I think I managed to do some decent work: 

lemon, pear, and bottle of olive oil. 

This week, it's nature drawing, with is hard because it's December and there's not a lot of "nature" around. :) But I'll try to catch some of the squirrels and draw them for this week's assignment. 

From the kitchen::

Tonight I'm trying a new Nigella recipe--a chicken "tray bake" (meaning it's baked on a tray--clever, eh? :-P), with fennel and a citrus marinade. Tomorrow I'm making stew, because YUMMMM, and it's a feast day, so winner right there! 

Plans for the week::
ENT appointment today (I actually like seeing him, he's a great doctor.) Sunday is jam packed with CCD, our catechist meeting (we have one quarterly), and our Lay Dominican meeting, where a few members will make their life promises! (I did that last December) It's always exciting when that happens. 

This person is taking a trip to California in January to be on TV!

Answer: WHO IS ME!!!!!!!!!

Yes, guys, I am SO excited to tell you that after my Boston audition, I am going to be a real live Jeopardy contestant!!!

I got the call last night. After I got out of Mass, I saw I had messages on my phone, and one of them was labeled "Culver City." I knew then what it was about. (Jeopardy! is filmed in Culver City, California.) 

So I flew over to my parents so that Dad could help me with phone translation, and, after I told the lady on the phone that no, I'm not running for political office; no, I haven't committed a felony in the last two months (since they last asked me that), and no, I haven't done anything else nefarious--I got the news , officially!

All I know right now is that the taping is January 26/27. California in January sounds nice. I will, of course, share more news as I get it! But right now I'm just basically TOTALLY EXCITED. I've also never been to California so this is a "nice little holiday treat!" (as they say on The Family Man.) 

Catholicism 101: The Liturgical Year and Advent

In the Catholic Church, the new year starts on the First Sunday of Advent--this is the year we change reading cycles and when the circular liturgical calendar starts anew. (A "reading cycle" is one of the three Sunday cycles of readings--A, B, or C. Year A focuses on the Gospel of Matthew, Year B on the Gospel of Mark, and Year C on the Gospel of Luke. The Gospel of John is sprinkled throughout all the cycles, and is always the Gospel for Good Friday, for example. The daily lectionary [for daily Mass] goes on a two year cycle.) 

The seasons of the Liturgical Year are: 

1. Advent
2. Christmastime
3. Ordinary Time
4. Lent
5. The Triddum-- Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday
6. Easter
7. Ordinary Time
8. Advent 

Each season has its particular colors and emphases. Advent, for example, has a penitential flavor, but it's not as severe in Lent--it's more a sense of preparing joyfully for the coming of Christ in the Incarnation. What can we do to make ourselves ready for His appearance? Lent has more of the penance we think of as penance--being sorry for our sins, giving things up, etc. Advent's penance is slightly different, even though both seasons are purple in liturgical color, and purple stands for penance in church parlance. 

The four weeks of Advent  are broken into three "purple" and one "rose" week--the rose vestments and candles are to remind us to "rejoice" as St. Paul tells us in the second reading of the Third Sunday of Advent. It's called "Gaudete" (rejoice!) Sunday. ("Rejoice in the Lord always! I say it again: rejoice!") 

In Advent, we focus on preparing ourselves for both Jesus' first coming--in the Nativity--and his Second coming at the end of the world. How can we live Advent well? There are tons of books written about that. But a key thing is to remember that it is a time of preparation--it's NOT Christmas. The tree shouldn't go up on Dec. 1 and come down on the 26th. The Christmas season, in the Church, lasts from Christmas Day until at least the Baptism of the Lord in January--and in some churches, like mine, the old traditions are upheld, where there are forty days of Christmas, ending on Candlemas (Feb. 2), which is when our parish creche is put away. I love this tradition and I've adopted it in my own house. But however long you celebrate Christmas, remember that Advent and Christmas are two distinct seasons. 

{P,F,H,R} 10

Linking up with Like Mother, Like Daughter

{Pretty}

Christmas tree at a local restaurant. 

An ornament wreath made by my friend Sarah

beautiful, clean ice!

[Funny}

Mel found gluten free beer at Hofbrauhaus!

{Happy}

Working on my 2016 power sheets with a cup of peppermint tea and the Three Good Fairies. 

{Real}

This is what's left behind after a puck hits the glass, going at the speed of a slapshot. Yikes! 

Daybook No. 113

Outside my window::

Grey and cloudy. This is helped by my tree, which is glowing in the corner, and the Joy candle I have lit on my counter. I don't mind rainy days and this is a good day to get things done after the holiday weekend. SO much goodness happened, which I'll be writing about below--but suffice to say, I don't mind a rainy day today!

Wearing::

a Pure Barre sweatshirt, Athleta workout capris, and....flats. Yeah. This outfit is AWESOME, right? :) I'm going to be working out shortly, and since I'm hanging out around the house, does it matter what I wear? Well, OK, probably. But  don't care. :) 

In the CD player::

Renee Fleming's Christmas in New York, alternating with Part I of Messiah. And yes, Adele 25 is sitting on my counter, waiting to be heard.

Reading::

Cinder (again), and my crazy stack of Advent devotionals: 

Come, Lord Jesus is my FAVORITE devotional for this time of year. SO much wisdom, so much to pray about. 

Writing::

NaNo is over and I'm not even going to ouch Tempest until January. It is, though, tentatively the first book of a trilogy, so I've done some note taking and brief preliminary planning about those two books. I'm not pressuring myself to write anything substantial in those for awhile, and I'm sort of afraid to until I do Tempest edits. Suffice to say I have a vague idea of the content of those books, but that's all it is right now--a vague idea.

Also working on the new Catholicism series I talked about yesterday.  While I teach first graders, don't think I'm going to use first grade vocabulary and write like you are first graders, lovely readers. We'll use "big people" words and concepts. 

Tidying Up: 

I think I have just about reached the "click point" the book talk about--where you know how much of a thing you need. and you enjoy having. There are a few more books and movies that can go (this is like the fourth round of purging in that area), but I think I'm at the point of saturation. Yay! I didn't think I'd get here when I first started, to be honest. 

The second part of the book talks about finding places for everything. This is another hard thing for me because I have things that I need (like, Duct Tape), but where does it go? (It's too big for the junk drawer, it doesn't fit in the tool box, etc.) So that's what I'll be working on next. 

Since I've decorated for Christmas, there is some chaos around here, because I have to move furniture to put up my tree. But it's all good. 

Thanksgiving::

I had a great holiday. Did you? I hope you did. Thanksgiving day was in the high sixties here, so we got to hang out on the deck and enjoy the warmth before dinner!

And yes, that's my sister, who came up from Houston to surprise me! She's here until tomorrow. We've had a LOT of fun while she's been here--she helped me decorate my tree, we went to the Penguins/Jackets game with our brother, and we all (us siblings) had a great meal last night at The Barn, one of our favorite local restaurants. Since Mel lives in Texas now, I don't get to see her nearly as often as I used to, and it's always fun when she comes up! 

I also had a great day with my friend Sarah (who made that GORGEOUS wreath two photos up). We had lunch and talked on a rainy Saturday while her husband watched the OSU/Michigan game with some of our friends. She's another friend I almost never get to see, and not nearly as much as I'd like. 

What was the best part of your Thanksgiving Weekend?