I Need a Hero

Christmas break means a few things for me. First, it means sleeping in until 10 daily. Blessed Utah time and catching up on all the sleep forfeited at college. Secondly, PILES of goody plates from generous neighbors that I just can't resist partaking of (I mean, really, what's the point of hurting their feelings? It's Christmas!). This last one leads to half-hearted exercise attempts (such as Yoga or Just Dance). Moving on! Christmas break also means dentist appointments (yick) since I don't have a dentist in Utah. Not looking forward to that one.

Christmas break means board games, late nights, delicious food, fun with family, and everything lovely. But I just want to pay homage to one essential aspect of my Christmas break: Austen movies.

That's right, we Cummings girls are die-hard fans of all things Jane Austen. With 9 of us in the family, are you even surprised? We are not ashamed! It's not like the Austen books are life-changing or significant, but they're entertaining and (at times) very clever. For my part, I enjoy the movie adaptations more than reading the books. And believe me, I've seen a few! I just thought it would be entertaining to post an analysis of what Jane Austen thought made the perfect man (based on her leading male characters), as well as what makes the most vile carrier of a Y-chromosome. Here goes!



Edmund Bertram, "Mansfield Park." Edmund is handsome, serious, honest, and intelligent. He's studying to be a clergyman (about the only clergyman portrayed positively in Jane Austen's books! More on that later). He has a passionate nature but is terribly bent on preserving family honor. He's prone to burying his feelings. "Tenacious willpower!"



George Knightley, "Emma." Okay, he's a favourite (trying to use the British spelling here). Extremely rational, brutally honest, not unhandsome, a defender of justice! A trifle older, but you'd never feel that when in his company. How convenient.



Henry Tilney, "Northanger Abbey." Handsome, playful, loyal to a fault! Gives up his fortune to be with Miss Catherine Morland. Also a clergyman, which makes me think I must be wrong about Jane Austen's disdain for clergymen...we'll get to that. Tilney is always cracking jokes, which makes me think he's the one I'd be most likely to fall for when...I mean if...I were to travel back to that time. Sigh!



Fitzwilliam Darcy, "Pride and Prejudice." Wow, this picture is hilarious! The google search "Darcy" brought up millions of pictures (Duh, he's everyone's favorite) but this one was too good to pass up. Darcy's proud, clever, rich, sarcastic, but passionate. He comes around. :) Who doesn't like knowing they've singlehandedly changed a man's life? Lucky Lizzy.



Severus Snape, "Harry Potter." Whoops, sorry, make that Colonel (Cristopher?) Brandon of "Sense and Sensibility." Older! Well-established. Protective. Future death eater.



Edward Ferrars, "Sense and Sensibility." Aww...who wouldn't love that boyish grin? Edward is shy and awkward but winningly sweet. Gives up his fortune and family to follow true love. A real winner!



Captain No-name Wentworth, "Persuasion." Dashing, obviously. Made his own fortune. Defiant at times, but a true romantic?

So obviously, the perfect man is either grossly rich or gives up his fortune for love of you. He's clever, playful, handsome (duh), affectionate, and loyal. Good luck in your search.

By the way, watch out for these creepers.





(Of course I don't mean Mr. Knightley!)

Blessings

I'm sitting in the HBLL right now - I managed to snag a computer. That's an impressive feat during finals week! The seat's still warm...which means somebody was probably feverishly studying here a moment ago. They'll never know that I'm thinking about them RIGHT NOW. Haha. :)

I just wanted to take a break and write down some of my blessings. This has been an incredibly busy semester - 16 credits, working during college for the first time, applying to grad school, trying to still get good grades and have a little fun in between, etc. Looking back, I really can't believe I made it this far! I was pretty worried about my workload in the beginning of this semester. But all's ending well, hence, all is well! I just know that it was because Heavenly Father helped me and my family prayed for me (I love how dad always asks, "What can I do for you?" when I call home).



(This is for Aaron, who hates Thomas Kinkade)

Two finals down, two to go! I had astronomy at 7am this morning. Gah! Here's a little miracle: my alarm didn't go off but my roommate had set hers a little earlier than usual, so I was able to scramble out the door in time to take my test. Hallelujah!

Other blessings: this has been my favorite year of college so far. I have made some of the best friends I'll ever have, and I'm so grateful to them. Coming back to my apt is like coming back to family, because my roommates are so fun and crazy! I love them. :) This summer when I broke up with Nate I was worried that this would be a hard year for me. Then I just got a feeling that I would make all kinds of friends and have so much fun! It made me so happy then, and I'm happier now knowing that has come to pass.

I love my family so much. Everyday I think about how grateful I am for them. :) We're not perfect but we grew up surrounded by so much love, and that circumstance has blessed my life in more ways than I can number. It has given me confidence and security. It has helped me help others. I just love you all.

Blessings in disguise! Like when you pray for humbling experiences. :) Oh boy. But what those experiences create in us and out of us is more important than whatever we were proud about. So even that's a blessing, and I've learned that embarrassment can be put aside by reassuring yourself of what you know. Just pull in some Egyptian mythology. One day, when your heart is weighed against the feather of truth, all will be made right.



Haha just kidding. I don't endorse polytheism, by the way.

I have found so much confidence and happiness in myself this year. I'm not afraid to talk to people on the phone anymore, and I'm trying to create my life instead of waiting for it to happen to me. The Lord has given me experiences that have taught me to be resilient - I still have troubles (Slightly irreverent side note: Once in a father's blessing Dad told me that my future husband loved me even now and was praying to find me. I can't deny that at times since then I've thought, "Well, pray harder!" :) but you needn't worry, it's worth the wait) but I bounce back faster than I used to, and according to Sister Applonie, that's where real progress is made.

I just feel good about my life right now. There's a lot to be thankful for, and this is one of those times when I'm actually thankful and not "thank-you-I'm-so-grateful-and-blessed-but-inside-I'm-thinking-how-tough-this-is-but-I'm-being-grateful-so-that-you-will-see-what-a-good-person-I-am-and-bless-me-more" kind of times. By the way, it is really hard to type with dashes in between every word! I can't even tell you how much that slowed me down!

Time to finish a grad school app and study for church history. I just wanted to think and type. Love to you all! Can't wait to come home for Christmas!



Also, this video is adorable.

PURE GENIUS

Every once in a while I stumble upon a music artist that just AMAZES ME. This is one of those times. John Butler Trio's "Ocean" - I can't understand what he says in the first part of the video, maybe that he used to be a street performer? Whatever his story, this is one awesome instrumental number.

What's Your Astronomy Picture of the Day?

This was the astronomy picture of the day on my birthday a few years ago. I think it's pretty sweet :) it's the space shuttle, connected to the space station, zooming over earth. At night. Lovely. :)

The Many Faces of Jane Eyre

All right, Jane Eyre has been a favorite book of mine since I was 13. I love the heroine - plain, serious, strong, righteous, steadfast. And Mr. Rochester is, of course, a regular Byronic hero - brooding, impassioned, powerful, mysterious. As far as gothic novels go, it's definitely a winner.

So guess what - there have been over twenty-seven film adaptations of this book. Twenty-seven! I have NOT seen all 27, but I have seen quite a few. Some I like, some I loathe, some I wish I could copy and paste elements out of them to make one perfect, perfect Jane Eyre movie. Sigh. The following is my diagnosis of said adaptations.



1944, starring Joan Fontaine and Orson Welles. Joan F. has a flighty, frightened style of acting (have you seen "Rebecca?") that, while effective, is NOT Jane. Also, Orson Welles just reminds me a lot of "Poor Judd" from Oklahoma. Can't really get over it!



1983, starring Timothy Dalton and Zelah Clarke. This is definitely a favorite. Timothy Dalton pretty much IS Rochester, and Zelah looks closest to how I pictured Jane in the book (though a little older). One rotten tomato: sometimes Dalton's impassioned outbursts are a little TOO Byronic for me...borderline cheesy? At times perhaps? Rarely though. Still a favorite.



1996, starring William Hurt and Charlotte Gainsborough. Seen a bit of this one. Fun fact, this was directed by Franco Zeffirrelli! He did Romeo and Juliet (the 70's version). This one's interesting...the Jane was a little too stoic for me, but I thought this Rochester was a pretty good choice. Better than the next one anyways!



1997, starring Ciaran Hinds and Samantha Morton. I've seen part of this. Okay, does anyone else think this Jane looks like Mackenzie Bezzant? Even a little? Haha okay maybe not. Anyways, Ciaran Hinds is not Mr. Rochester. 1) He has a moustache. 2) He is Captain Wentworth. 3) He has a moustache. Did I mention that Rochester should NOT have a moustache?



2006, starring Toby Stephens (Orsino in 12th night!)and Ruth Wilson. Okay, I really like this one. Visually stunning, gorgeous soundtrack, Ruth is spunky (maybe too much? In the book Jane is more sedate) and Toby does a surprisingly fantastic job! He's dark but still teases, and he's manly. The downside: Hollywood. Of course they find a way to make things sketch. Grr...




I'm curious about the 2011 version! Jane is young! Like in the book. And this Rochester seems to have a good piercing presence. Aunt Janet, have you seen it? Is it praiseworthy and of good report?

Well, I successfully postponed studying for my last final by posting something that probably makes no difference either way. :) At least the book will always be good.

Music, Art, and Science Meet

Did you know there are music scores in Braille? Check out these elaborate notations! I'm not sure I would ever be able to make sense out of them. I don't have the patience or delicate touch for it. If I were a blind musician, I would probably just try to learn everything by ear. And, chances are my music would be limited to Fur Elise on the piano. :)



Artistically speaking, being a blind musician wouldn't be so bad! You would have no visual distraction from the sound you're making - you could focus exclusively on tone and sound. I love that idea. Sometimes Sister Applonie has us close our eyes in choir as we tune up chords. It's amazing what making your ears work a little harder will do to your sound. I mean, it worked for this guy, right?


(Blind Egyptian Musician, 15th century Wall Mural)

Music for the deaf is a little trickier. How does one make an art form based exclusively on sound accessible to those who can't hear? Well guess what! I found out about some awesome technology this week! There's a program that makes visual representations of musical pieces. This video is made by someone who does a bunch of these "animated scores", if you will. My favorite is Debussy's Arabesque No. 1. It's so much fun to watch! The intervals are pretty good for computer software! And the rhythms are right on. Maybe this is a way the deaf could experience music! And who knows, maybe in a couple hundred years this will be the way everyone learns music. You really should watch at least some of it. My favorite part is 4:28 to the end. And everything else.

BYU Student Section Flash Mob Dance

Kansas State's student section surprised the crowd by doing a flash mob dance during one of their Basketball game's time outs. A week or so ago, the BYU athletic department sent out a training video for OUR VERY OWN surprise dance. My thought process was, "no one's going to do this, I'm not going to try to learn it" but boy was I wrong! The special day came and everyone was at the game hours early practicing! I learned it as quickly as I could. It was AWESOME. The crowd was totally surprised and we stole the show! Here's a video. I'm the one in white...haha just kidding. It's a little hard to see the dance moves because there's 5,000 of us! Beat that, Kansas State!


Oh by the way...we WON the championship! :)

Disneyland!

Nate and I drove to California over President's Day weekend to go to DISNEYLAND! It was nice to get out of Provo. We stayed with his parents in Irvine, which was only 15 minutes away! We stayed for 10 hours at the park both days we were there. It rained both days (ALOT), but we were well stocked with umbrellas, Gatorade, and Famous Amos cookies and hence had a fabulous trip. The pictures below were snapped between torrents.



Outside Sleeping Beauty's castle. It's smaller than the one in disneyworld, but...dare I say it? I think I like this one more! There's something so rustic and charming about it. I couldn't stop staring at it every time we walked by.




Outside the haunted mansion. Is it weird that this ride still gives me the creeps? We went on it twice, and that was quite enough.



This was taken in Tarzan's treehouse. I think around the corner is the huge plastic leopard Sabor that roared in my face and made me very frightened.



We caught a 3-D show (love the glasses), "Captain EO", which Nate insisted on seeing because of all his "fond childhood memories" of it. I had no idea what I was getting myself into. Apparently George Lucas, Michael Jackson, and Steven Spielberg all teamed up to make this little classic. It was...well, I think it falls (along with Australian Musk Sticks and 2001 A Space Odyssey) under the category of "something you have to experience once but need never endure again". Basically Michael Jackson flies his starship to a planet full of creepy TV-cable people and uses his magic musical powers to turn them all into colorfully clad dancers.

Here's a short clip, for your viewing pleasure :)



Strange, no?



GORGEOUS flowers we found in California Adventure during one of our sunny hours. I had to take a picture. I think its my favorite of the lot!



At the end of the day - wet, exhausted, stuffed with cookies, and very, very satisfied.

We got a lot done! We went on Indiana Jones five times, Tower of Terror five times (3 too many for me), Matterhorn (an abominable snowman roller coaster - my new favorite!) 4ish times - a note on that one, we got to skip ahead in line 4 times because we only had two people! Woohoo! Space mountain 3 times (what an amazing ride), Soarin' twice, Peter Pan twice, Pirates of the Caribbean twice, and pretty much everything else at least once. Yet somehow we never did make it to It's a Small World...

Must You Keep Left?

Master Yoda does a voice recording for the TOM-TOM gps system.

Ice Castles at Midway!

This weekend Nate and I drove up to Midway to see the Ice Castles! It was a genuinely fun and NOVEL activity, which can sometimes be hard to find in Utah County. My roommate told me about these icicle-house things that some guy makes every year using pvc pipes and water pumps, so, naturally, we had to go.



The scene was gorgeous.



Nate's "Not-a-nutcracker" smile. I like this picture more than the other one of us together, but he doesn't.



The light is all natural! Just kidding. :)



A close-up.



My freakishly long tongue was parched.



The white witch, empress of the lone islands, is probably just around the corner.



Aww...



Sweet, no?



We had fun picking out our favorites.



This one was my favorite. It reminds me of Atlantica from The Little Mermaid.

It was quite awesome, and definitely worth 5 dollars. They say it keeps growing week-to-week, as the icicles melt and freeze and re-melt and re-freeze. (If Pete and Re-pete are on a boat, and one falls off...) :) haha anyways, I'm happy to say we found something new to do on a Saturday night. If you know of any other oddities to visit in Utah, let me know! I'm all ears.

Engrish

I love this website. It's all about the funny mistranslations that occur around the world. Oddly enough, most of the mistakes (at least the funnier ones) arise from translating Chinese/Japanese/other Asian languages. As those languages have SO many characters, mistakes are understandable. And hilarious :) here are a few favorites. Check it out.