Those Rainy Days

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I love days like today. I just got home from my ceramics class (i'll write more about that later) and the rain is pouring down like cats and dogs. I keep looking out my window, staring at the grey sky and hazy light. I'm not sure why I love rain so much. Maybe I'm in love with the sound of it?

Anyhow, when I opened the door to my house, I immediately ran up to my room, got under some soft blankets and curled up with my laptop. Yes, I have things to do-- like read my biology summer reading assignment and such. But for right now, I'm content just laying here, watching a sleepy-day movie, and feeling snug as a bug.

I'm taking this time to relax from a wonderful, yet hectic life.
Today couldn't be better
-loni

July Book Reviews

King Peggy: An American Secretary, Her Royal Destiny, and the Inspiring Story of How She Changed an African Village

By Peggielene Bartels and Eleanor Herman

The title literally says it all. This book was required summer reading for my university's honor's college and once I got into the thick of the narrative, I felt entranced. It was an interesting story about a woman who lived with one foot in America and the other in Africa. It starts when Peggy receives a phone call in the middle of the night, telling her that the ancestors have chosen her to become king of an small Ghanaian fishing village called Otuam.  Although the majority of the story was dedicated to Peggy's struggle with corrupt officials, I loved the pages describing the beautiful Ghanaian traditions. I also thought the writers did an incredible job of conveying Peggy's inner struggles, just by giving the readers a glance into her crumbling Washington DC apartment. Even though the book "info dumps" a lot of African history when possible, it taught me a great deal about a culture different than my own. I highly recommend this one. 

Gardens of the Moon

By Stephen Erikson

I have to admit, it took me a really long time to get through this one. In fact, I reread many chapters just to make sure I had gathered the massive information that the author was throwing at me at any one time. But despite how much time I spent on it, I have to say that this books is captivating. The author weaves many characters and story lines into a intriguing story that ties itself together at the end. Erickson leaves trails of clues in every page, starting with the very beginning. I should probably clarify that I am very new to the fantasy genre. The only other fantasy series I've read in the past is Game of Thrones. So as a novice, here is my two sense: read some other fantasy before getting to Gardens of the Moon. It is very intelligent, moves at a fast pace, and at the end -- becomes a page-turner. However, if you don't have anything to compare it to, than the novel wont be as enjoyable. I've already started the second book in the series and can already tell that I wont be disappointed.

Bossy Pants 

By: Tina Fey

After two serious reads, I was glad to read Tina Fey's silly, yet somehow inspiring memoir. There were some really funny moments crafted into the narrative that made me laugh out-loud. One thing I didn't like, however, was that Tina Fey put herself down a lot in the book. I know on some level she was doing it for comic relief and wasn't actually being serious, but it got old very quickly. But despite this, I loved Tina's writing style and her very honest voice. It's fun to finally put a story to the face I see so often on TV. 

Oriented

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I'm not sure if I mentioned this before, but this fall I'll be packing my bags again and heading off to university. It will be another brand new adventure; one with a clean, blank canvass. 

Yesterday I attended the Honors College Orientation. I got out of the car and joined the masses of other nervous freshman who had labored over their outfits just hours before. I did my best to make friends (I think I was successful there) and even let myself out of the shell I always seem to be hiding in. 

However, throughout the whole day, a single thought kept rolling over and over in my head: Something has changed. 

I've always thought of myself as a little-bit behind. When other kids my age went to parties, I preferred to stay home and chat with my Mom.When my friends went shopping for cute clothes at all the trendy places, I found myself still wearing the same old outfits I had always worn. Even while in Israel, I was reluctant to go to bars (which is perfectly legal there) with all my new friends. 

It wasn't that I disagreed with going to parties, buying cute clothes or having a casual drink at the bar, it was just that all of those things were beyond my comfort zone-- and I needed the extra push. 

While at orientation, I felt like I was seeing two movies simultaneously in my head. The first movie was dedicated to the person I was this time last year. I watched her interact with others and eat her lunch and do all the corny activities led by orientation advisers. 

The other screen was the present me, the real life reality show that is my life. 

And to be quite honest: the movies playing on those two screens were 100 percent different. 

The present me had this underlying sense of calm the whole day through. The present me went through that lunch line and didn't care what others thought about the items on her plate. The present me didn't constantly compare herself to everyone in the room. And most importantly-- on orientation that day, the present me didn't over analyze everything she said, did, or didn't do. Instead she just...went with it. 

I thought about this a lot on my way home from the university. Maybe I'm not so behind anymore? 

I actually think that, on the flip side, I'm ahead in a lot of ways now. 

This time last year, I  left the world I've always known, and experienced a life where I constantly had to push myself and struggle with challenges. I was independent in a country, for all intensive purposes, I was a stranger to. That, my friends--- is something I feel I can be proud of. 

In some way, I know that the old me- the person I was before this whole adventure, would have been alright going straight to college. But I can finally see with clarity why taking that year was so important; why it added to my life in so many ways.

I no longer feel like I'm the only one who just "doesn't get it"

The truth is...there is nothing to get! If you have confidence and respect for your self, than everything will fall into place. I truly believe this. 

- Loni