Unexplainable Lust

I've never been one to be up on the newest electronics. I only learned who Steve Jobs was when the second iPod nano came out. I like computers and phones, but never lust over them, or stop what I'm doing to see the latest commercial, and I definitely don't research things like that.

But a few days ago, something changed. I think I may have experienced my first feeling of lusting after an electronic object. There you have it. That is my confession.

I was watching TV and working on some project when a commercial with a cute song came on. I glanced up. There was some manila envelope on the screen. My eyes went back to my project. I looked up again, my jaw dropped and I was transfixed. I can't promise that drool didn't slip out of that dropped jaw. I had just seen the new

MacBook Air.

I want one. I really, really, really, really want one. Maybe now. I can't think reasonably when I see it. I have the song on the commercial memorized, so I never miss it again. I'm not sure how I lived without it up 'til now. I have a manila envelope! I'll line it with velvet! I just need this computer!!!

Lust. That is all there is to it!

Stand a Little Taller

I went to Jr. Primary in the Clark Ward. The Primary President was Sister Matthews, a spunky, happy lady with short red hair. I thought she was beautiful and elegant. She was so kind to me, and I felt so at home in Primary. Bishop Killian filled the role of 'Father of our Ward'. He was a local dentist and a somewhat young, sandy haired man who was very kind. I knew that the Prophet was President Kimball. I'm sure I even bore my little primary testimony that I knew he was the true prophet. This was my little church world. I was too young to understand callings. Maybe too young to really understand death even. And this set me up for a hard blow.

Within the space of a month both the Primary President and the Bishop were released and the Prophet passed away to his eternal reward. I still remember crying at all of the sudden change. How could Sister Matthews not be the Primary President anymore? She was the Primary President. The Primary President. That was her whole identity to me at such a young age. I knew she had a house on Willow Street, and that her husband kept pigs. But I figured even the Primary President had to have a place to live. And the Bishop. He too was the Bishop. He lived in a little duplex and had the only dentistry in town, but that was for weekdays and didn't ever really cross my mind.

And then the Prophet. I was a little more correct in my assumption of his role being static. I just didn't realise that death could cause change there too. To realise I'd lost these three people, and that others would just step in and take their places as if they too could do the job was hard for me. I loved these three leaders who formed my understanding of leadership and the church structure. I still remember crying. In the church building when I learned it was Sister Matthew's last day in Primary. And then again at home. The three losses were balled into one lump in my little chest as I cried for my loss.

I cried again yesterday evening and a little bit today when I discovered I had lost another staple of my church life. I don't get upset at all anymore when callings change, I've had that lesson. And, like so many, I knew this day would come, the day the news would come in that our dearly loved prophet, President Hinckley had followed his sweet wife to the next life. But I cried a little just the same.

“Now, my brethren and sisters, the time has come for us to stand a little taller, to lift our eyes and stretch our minds to a greater comprehension and understanding of the grand millennial mission of this The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This is a season to be strong. It is a time to move forward without hesitation, knowing well the meaning, the breadth, and the importance of our mission. It is a time to do what is right regardless of the consequences that might follow. It is a time to be found keeping the commandments. It is a season to reach out with kindness and love to those in distress and to those who are wandering in darkness and pain. It is a time to be considerate and good, decent and courteous toward one another in all of our relationships. In other words, to become more Christlike”
(President Gordon B. Hinckley, “This Is the Work of the Master,” Ensign, May 1995, 71).

I Don't Get It

I've reached that point in being "old" where the fashion trends are beyond me now.

As I walked across campus today to my car at lunch the snow and wind swirled. The sidewalks were slush that would all too soon turn to ice. The bottoms of my pants were wet, sucking up the slush and chilling my legs. But I had on my trusty tennis shoes-- cute little brown and pink Rocket Dogs. Then I saw something that made me very glad I had chosen practicality over fashion.

A girl in skinny jeans (and I mean the stretchy, sucked-on, don't-even-look-cute-on-skinny-people jeans) was wearing some snow boots (and I use the term loosely). She was also holding out her arms and tottering in a way that did not go with her too-cool outfit and overall style. I haven't been able to find a picture of the boots she was wearing, but imagine what would happen it the two pictures above were merged. The top of the boots, while still form-fitting and hitting just below the knee, were puffed out in 4 or 5 sections like snow boots, and even had a string to pull them tight at the top, while the bottom part of the boots had the extreme pointed toes and 3 inch stiletto heels.

Snow boots with stiletto heels.

Who designed these things? Who is so fashion conscious that they think these actually qualify for snow day footwear? I was walking cautiously in tennis shoes, and I had the feeling as I passed this girl that I could have flicked her the wrong way and down into the slush of the sidewalk she would go. In fact, I can't say that this didn't happen without my help as she shimmied along. I passed her and never knew her ultimate fate. But it seemed to me the inevitable outcome of such footwear folly.

My Neighborhood

These are the people

in my neighborhood,

in my neighborhood,
in my neigh-bor-hoo-ood.

Oh, these are the people

in my neighborhood.

They're the people that you meet
when you're walkin' down the street
They're the people that you meet each day.

Screen Cleaning

Sitting at a computer for close to eight full hours a day can really get to you. I know because I do it. I have a really old screen too-- nothing flat about it-- this thing is huge!

Occasionally I use the "degauss" feature to get some of the static-ness out, and save a little bit of the wear on my eyes. I have no idea what "degauss" means, but I like to believe it helps. I remember now my mom told me you are supposed to look away from your screen every 15 minutes. It is really good advice. But just like the vitamins I'm supposed to take, I always forget it. Maybe now would be a good time to improve in both those areas.

If you have a screen that could use some cleaning, please check out this utility for screens. It should make your screen look much better! Oh, and don't forget to take your vitamins!

http://www.linein.org/media/screenclean.swf*

(Thanks Eric for passing this along!)

*Sorry the link apparently is not good anymore-- but it was a cute video of a little pug puppy licking glass, as if he were "cleaning" your screen. Sorry it is no longer available!

Snow, Like I Remember It

Utah feels like Utah again! It's been really cold, and now it's snowing-- really snowing, with snow accumulating on the ground in the valleys. This is the Utah I remember growing up in.

I can still remember growing up in a small Utah town, and every morning in the winter jumping out of bed, making a wish for a moment and then parting the curtains, hoping to find big piles of snow covering the bushes outside my bedroom window. There was no greater joy than seeing that sight, and consequently many days of disappointment when it didn't come.

Winter was happy and magical then. I didn't have to worry about driving in it. I had marvelous pink and grey moon boots for sloshing through drifts. And I had every hour free from 3pm until dark to play in it.

I generally struggle now in my adult life to see snow and winter as I did then . Today though it is a holiday. I have no plans to drive anywhere soon. And I'm snug in my mom's house visiting for the long weekend. I have a good book to curl up with and there is plenty of hot cocoa in stock.

When I looked out my window this morning I had just one beautiful, chimerical moment evoked by the yard and trees full of snow, and I think, with a little effort, I can make it last.

Protesting with Art

Graziano Cecchini is a political activist in Italy. But his style of protest is unique, to say the least. Last year he and others dyed the water in the famous Trevi Fountain red to protest, "expenses incurred in organizing the Rome Film Festival and symbolically referred to the event's red carpet". The monument was not damaged, but officials were unhappy.
This week this creative protester has struck again. Cecchini and several others poured 500,000 red, green, yellow and blue plastic balls down another famous Roman site, the Spanish Steps. (see the video)
"Cecchini, interviewed at the scene, told Italian TV newscast TG5 that he uses 'art -- if we want to call it art -- to stress our malaise.'" The cause of his malaise this time was the situation in Burma and the hardships of the people there under the rule of the military junta.

This protest cost Cecchini $30,000 to orchestrate, plus whatever fines the city imposed. City officials stated that people should not use stunts like this, at the cost of the city, to get media coverage.

All I have to say is, I like his style.

And, hey, it got my attention.

The Museum of Bad Art

I recently came across the site for the Museum of Bad Art. Their motto is: "Art too bad to be ignored" and their mission is "To bring the worst art to the widest of audiences." Located in a basement in Dedham Square, MA, this fascinating little piece of museum culture has been around since 1994, and has a permanent collection of over 400 pieces. One of which, Lucy in the Field with Flowers, is shown to the left.

One of my favorite exhibits, that I would dearly have loved to have seen, was set in a local car wash and described thus:

Through the miracle of plastic, MOBA presented a shrink wrapped exhibit in a Drive-Thru setting for the harried art lover on the go. Aside from the obvious advantages of the Drive-Thru Gallery, Ethan Berry, MOBA's conservator, believes that the car wash's hot wax may be integral to saving some of the more fragile pieces in the MOBA collection for posterity. Says Mr. Berry, "Like linoleum on a floor, or the heat shield on the space shuttle, a patina of hot wax can go a long way towards protecting the art."

Fabulous! The art is bad and the conservation is bad. Everything about this museum is bad and is the in-your-face opposite of required norms of proper museum protocol. Even better, they only accept unique and original bad art into their collection-- nothing cliche or kitsch. Not usual bad art, only really bad art. (Sorry Thomas Kinkade, I'm not sure even you have a chance at this gallery--but I'm sure knowing your art is all over the country in people's bathrooms and kitchens on Glade brand candles brings you solace).

I can't wait to visit Massachusetts to see this little gem of a museum. In the mean time, I am going to work on a submission--I've always wanted to have my work shown in a gallery, and this just might be my chance!

I'm Philip Pullman-- Pay Attention to ME!!!

As promised, here is my take on Phillip Pullman.

Recently there has been an outcry against Philip Pullman and his trilogy, His Dark Materials, the first book of which (The Golden Compass) has recently been released as a movie. I thought at first it was just the same group of zealots who are still outraged at the "evil" that is the Harry Potter series. Then I discovered it was a wider group of concerned folks.

I read the books long before the movie was even produced, and before the emails warning good Christians about this evil book and the movie started circulating. And I liked it alot. I thought it was engaging and fun and even well written for the most part. And I guess when the doddering old man called God was killed, I didn't even bat an eyelash because it was ridiculous to me, and I knew that God is a completely different being. There are so many made up characters that this part actually faded into the backdrop of fantasy for me. You may be shocked to know that I still believe in God even after reading the entire series and seeing the movie.

Of course, since then I've read up on Pullman. I believe he is a rather pompous man, to say the least. He was trying to create a modern Paradise Lost with this series. He thinks he has the ability to create characters with depth equal to great masters of the past such as George Elliot and Henry James. Please. It was a fine series, but to compare yourself with those authors? C'mon Phil, you're no Milton.

His famous quote is as follows:

"I've been surprised by how little criticism I've got. Harry Potter's been taking all the flak.... Meanwhile, I've been flying under the radar, saying things that are far more subversive than anything poor old Harry has said. My books are about killing God."

Hey, hey, look over here! I'm killing God! I'm the evil one! My books are what you should be scared of! Pay attention to me!!!!!

Philip Pullman-- an arrogant man, who doesn't think there is a God, but who wrote some interesting fantasy books.

And that ends the attention I am giving him!

My Top Five Books

This is not a list of the top five books of all time. The thought of making a definitive list like that seems impossible and wrong. Even with constant reading no one could ever read all the books ever published and therefore there is no way to assess the five best books ever.

More frightening still would be a list of the top five books I personally have ever read. I've read a good number of books. I love reading. I love books. But to choose only five out of the many tomes I have come to love? I cannot do it. So this is also not a list of my all time top five books.

I am going to attempt, however, to list the five best books and/or book series I read personally last year. It is the best I can do, and gives me a chance to recommend some pretty good reads if you are short on them. Not the best books written in 2007, mind you. The best books I read in 2007. Narcissism at its best.

So, without further ado:

Shiloh's Top Five Book Choices Out of the Books She Read in 2007!

*Note:The list has no particular order.

1)The Golden Compass Series by Phillip Pullman.

If you aren't into the fantasy stuff, don't worry, I'm not either. Except that I find myself reading books like this and Lord of the Rings and so forth. So maybe I am into it. Except I don't wear a medieval cloak to work or harbor ideas of finding the last unicorn when I hike to Stewart Falls. Anyway, despite the terrible outcries of the evil books that deny and kill off God (of which I will write in my next post), this series is fun. It has good characters, is engaging and though provoking. I was slightly disappointed with the ending of the 3rd book because it felt very thrown together in a 'hmm-what-should-I-do-now-to-end-my-trilogy' kind of way, but overall very good reading.

2) And There was Light by Jacques Lusseyran.

This is a book that will make it onto my life list of favorite books of all time. I already want to read it again because I could feel the depth and meaning oozing out of the pages as I read and I know I missed alot without feeling overwhelmed as I read. It is the story of a 15 year old blind boy who helped lead an underground French resistance movement during the occupation of Paris during WWII. This man understood life and people. He saw light in the way it is supposed to be seen I believe and he lived by values and morals in a way that makes you want to be better. He knew friendship and giving and hope, and describes it in the most beautiful language. My only regret is that I couldn't read it in the original French.

3. The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis

In this book Lewis takes us into one of his dreams where he is a place like Hell and gets on a bus to a place from which one can get to Heaven. If they will give up their sins and pride. The narrator observes different characters and the small petty things they hold onto that keep them from progressing. Each is greeted by an angel like being who will guide them, if they are willing, onto the mountains. As you might expect, the book is absolutely illuminating and makes you wonder what you would be caught holding onto if you were in the same situation. This book was my first introduction to George MacDonald, who portrays the narrator's guide. In life MacDonald was Lewis' mentor, and Lewis credits MacDonald with any success he found. Which leads us quite nicely onto...

4. The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald

In a volume that shows where Lewis' idea for a set of books for children with underlying Christian themes came from we have this lovely book for children about a Princess, her friend Curdie and the goblins who live underground. The Princess finds her great great grandmother living in the high attics of the manor house where she lives and this good woman gives her a ball of the most fine thread ever woven. As long as the princess uses the thread when she needs help, it will always guide her to safety. My favorite part is where she follows the thread into a pile of rocks and then starts digging through them. I know I stop at the rocks alot of times and curse my luck. This is a great book, and easy to read. It has a second part, The Princess and Curdie, which I hope to read in 2008!

5. The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale

This is one of the best written books for juvenile readers I have read in awhile! The old tale of the Goose Girl is modified and turned into a wonderful tale by this talented author. There is a fairy tale ending, but not without some real life struggles, real life growing up and real life sacrifices made first. I love the way Hales deals with language and the way the Goose Girl can speak to birds and learns to speak in other ways too. I couldn't put it down. There are two companion books to this one that I also hope to pick up this year!

6. The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis

Hey-- this is my list. I can have six books on my list of the five best if I want to!!! After all I already slipped in two extras by compiling The Golden Compass into one entry, even though there are three books! So since we were up to seven anyway, what is to be hurt by doubling things? I know everyone else on the planet already read these when they were kids, but I missed the boat somewhere. So, late though it may have been, I picked up these lovely books and read them all in a row. It was wonderful! Even if you are among the number who read them as children, I suggest you pick them up again-- you won't regret it!