Blog Buffet: Such variety! Choose one, or read it all!

Just put a bowl on my head and spin me ‘round…

I got my haircut. It was done on a bit of whim… so sometimes I like it, sometimes I wish I still had longer hair. Now, of course, I never want to cut my hair again…! Haha. No, I’m really okay with having it short. When the hairstylist lady asked me how short I was thinking, I said “chin length.” She told said, “That’s pretty short, you know” and I said “Yeah, you’re right. Maybe I won’t, then.” But she ended up cutting my hair so that it looks chin length, which I’m still getting used to. Oh well. It’s only hair. I’m hoping it will grow fast for the wedding so I can have it at least shoulder length or something. Oh vanity, vanity…

New Music!

I bought ‘Hymns of Repentence’ by Fr. Apostolos Hill. It’s beautiful! This particular CD has Lenten hymns in English, and it’s so beautiful! It’s a good way to have a little Lent year-round (God knows I need it!).

Halloween: A Farewell to Charms…

These days I’m a bit sad about Halloween. It used to be such a happy, exciting time for me growing up. My priest was telling us how when his family drives by a local Halloween warehouse, his three year-old can’t keep his eyes off the dancing skeleton robots and spooky decorations. They have to tell him “Don’t look at that, Anthony.” What’s sad is that I’m the same way.

After 21 years (okay… more like 18) of celebrating Halloween (I’d start making decorations and planning my costume in AUGUST), I’ve been programmed to stare at Halloween displays and house decorations. Steve and I just went for a drive this evening and, out of intrigue, he drove me past a house that is known for its yearly Halloween decoration display. Huge, inflatable figures of pumpkins, a witch, a Frankenstein, orange and purple lights everywhere… the child in me smiled with glee! But my heart was convicted: look at what this has turned into…! Look at how death has been made cute.

I even saw a huge, inflatable Winnie-the-Pooh dressed in a Count Dracula outfit (BTW, what's with the light-up, inflatable figurines this year? They're everywhere). Now there’s an oxymoron. I doubt that A.A. Milne even celebrated Halloween… but Disney on the other hand ;) But still, here I am at 21 years of age (almost 22!) and I’m struggling with grinning ghouls, the Peanuts Halloween special and glowing jack-o-lanterns… good thing this will all be over soon!

Field Trip

My Baroque and Rococo class went to the Portland Art Museum today! It was great to see so many paintings in person! Normally I’m so bored with work from the Baroque period. And to some degree I still am. You see, I can’t stand inaccurate depictions (or at least Westernized, non-iconographic depictions) of Biblical scenes. The Virgin Mary and baby Jesus always have blonde hair and blue eyes, surrounding with baby putti angels. The disciples are always wearing what used to be modern Italian or French fashions instead of historically accurate Jewish garments. And the setting is always some classical plaza with Roman architecture in the background. ANYWAY… enough with that rant. The paintings that I did see today were very beautiful to see in person, albeit the occasional biblical painting. The colors were so vibrant, and the skill which these artists possessed is just mind-boggling! I wish I could have stayed longer.

Oh yeah! How could I forget?

This past weekend Fr. Anthony Coniaris was the guest speaker at our parish's women retreat. He spoke of priorities and parenting. I really enjoyed him and listening to what he had to say. I figure it's never too early to start preparing for parenthood and praying for future offspring (if the Lord wills). If you're Orthodox and you're not familiar with Fr. Anthony, check your bookshelves! You might be surprise to find one or two of his works in your spiritual reading collections, and he is the author of numerous books and the founder of 'Light and Life' publishing.