On Why I Don't Post Enough and Creative Writing Prompt #7

Oh, Hello there. What did you ask? Oh yes, I'm doing fine. Yes, I'm still alive.

Well, I haven't written because I'm a very busy person. Homework is, after all, a bigger priority, right? (very true, writing is more fun...) I've also been dealing with some writer's block lately. I do have a creative writing assignment in class this week that I'm going to publish here when I finish!

Anyway, none of the above is very true. I've been gone because I'm lazy.

A definition: lazy means hopelessly obsessed with Sherlock Season 3 and forgetting about my poor blog. I would do a "review" of Sherlock, but I'm not going to. At least not yet anyways.

Hmmm.... well, the writer's block part was somewhat true. And I do have a story about my hobby that I'll share soon!

I guess I'll finish with a creative writing prompt and a verse that encouraged me this week.

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(This prompt is from my Pinterest, but I can't get the picture to show up in the window. Go figure.)

Writing Prompt #7 - Write about the most beautiful smile you've ever seen.

The most beautiful smile, some say, belongs to the one that has seen pain, and yet, still smiles. Charlotte certainly didn't think so right now. It had been a week. The house was so empty without him, knowing he'd never come back. He couldn't, after all. Charlotte's best friend, her husband of 48 years, was dead. Heart attack. Her heart broke when his did. The tears that rolled down her face today were ones of desperation, fear, and utter loneliness.

Her tightly clasped fist opened to look at his miniature photograph in her locket again. Kenny at eight years old, dressed up in a nice suit for Sunday church. Charlotte's vision blurred again as the necklace clinked on the floor. I hate this, her mind whispered. I hate him. Why would he do that to me? Charlotte shook herself and stood up. No, She argued. I love him; it wasn't his fault he died.

Ever so slowly she gathered the courage to walk to their room. She stopped at his closet, hands shaking. Kenny's last words to her resurfaced. "When I.... die, look on... the top shelf... of my closet... It is my... last... gift to... you. I... love you." He had said, his quavering hand on Charlotte's check. A week later, she was still afraid to look. Pushing back her doubts along with the closet door, her eyes rested on a box on the highest shelf.

Charlotte gently took the box down and set it on the floor, sitting down next to it. She lifted the lid to find all sorts of memorabilia contained inside. Several photos of Kenny, apparently not at his greatest moments.  Charlotte had teased him about those childhood photographs before, so he had hidden them from her. Several letters were also in the box from her when Kenny had served overseas in the military. She pored over every word that had been written by her years ago. Now the tears were ones of nostalgia, and love.

The very last thing she pulled out puzzled her. A red ball with an indent on one side. What is this? Why did he keep it in here? A note was taped to it. "Don't stop laughing. From the first day I met you, I loved your laugh. Keep laughing for me!" Charlotte's eyes widened as she flipped back through the pictures. One of young Kenny as a clown for Halloween. The ball in her hand was on Kenny's nose in the picture. A grin spread over Charlotte's face, and she dropped the picture as she giggled like a schoolgirl. The most beautiful smile, some say, belongs to the one that has seen pain, and yet, still smiles.

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A verse for you today... Proverbs 4:23, NLT - Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.

It's a short verse, but I read it this morning and it really impacted me. It is really a self explanatory verse and I should be putting it up somewhere that I can always see it. I'd rather learn the easy way.

Thanks for reading this blog, guys! I love to hear that people enjoy it. See you next time! (Hopefully sooner than last time...)

-M.



Latest drawing;)

   Here is the hilarious and cute drawing, that took a while for me to finish. but it worked out better than I thought it would!:

Isn't it adorable?;) And if you haven't seen any of the pooh movies, well then all I can say is you are missing out!! 

   

   This wallpaper is so that you can compare and contrast between drawing and actual picture. (here is the extremely small wallpaper that I drew the picture from! I had to look at my iPod screen the whole time)

Let me know if I did a good job!

~E

Sun screen, Books, and THE SHACK

   Hey! It's E here. Well I have been sick for the past week (and still am) so I apologize for not posting anything. I will hopefully make up for it in the next few weeks! In this post I just feel like talking about a bunch of random stuff! Namely...things that are simplex...hopefully. I'm not quite sure how that's going to work;)

   I figured that I would start with sun screen! Why sun screen? You ask? Because it really is a great invention! Just think about it for a moment...(a little bit longer than that)...it's a simple lotion that you rub (or spray) on your skin to protect it from a specified form of non luminous radiation, otherwise known as UV rays, or the Sun! Isn't that crazy?! And we all take it for granted! (at least..I know I do) just imagine what would happen if sun screen had never been invented! To think...all those people enjoying a day at the beach, only to go home with ugly red welts on their skin! (Ok, that's not the best picture to have...but I'm sure you get the idea!) I think that sun screen is simplex, how 'bout you?

   Mirrors are also cool, and yet so very simple! Glass, Metal, and a Frame! That's all that a mirror is! Amazing isn't it? And yet a mirror shows you a whole different world! A completely different way of looking at things! And yet, everything that you see in a mirror is just the reverse of the real thing! So simple and yet complex. I always have wanted to be able to go inside of a mirror and see what it's like....I wonder....

   Ohh dont get me started about books! Too late!..Books and their mysterys. When I walk into a library, I sometimes feel sad. I'm sad for the books that never get read...the ones that sit, almost droopy like, just collecting dust because no one reads them. And I love the feel of a old book that's been read time and time again, so that the cover is worn and the pages have marks on them from years of fingers passing over each word. I love the smell of old books, with yellowing pages, so fragile you're almost afraid to touch them. If only I had more time...to be able to read all the books in the world! Both good and bad...the stories of people, their struggles  and victorys, conveyed through ink. New books are just as good...to open the cover of a brand new book that has never been read since being printed. The cover crackles quietly and the pages inside are crisp and white. The black letters are firmly pressed to the page, lined up like little soldiers, some round and fat and others tall and thin. Oh the joy of poring over words that tell a fantastic story spun and woven through an authors hand is so incredible it's hard to put into words. If books were ever banned from being read I don't think I would be able to live. And somehow eBooks just aren't the same.....well I'll stop there before I go too far..though feel like I could continue on forever about books!

   The last thing is God. But I don't know if He is simplex, maybe...hmmm. I know that everytime i try to figure him out, I  just get more Confused!  I'm currently reading a book right now (big surprise) that's called 'The Shack' by William P. Young.

   I'm nearly fininshed with it, and I have to say it is truly an amazing book about God and His mysteries. If you know me, then you would probably know that I say many books are amazing, but this one is phenomenal! And if you do know me please don't hesitate to ask if you can borrow it! The books summary goes something like this:

   Mackenzie Allen Philips's youngest daughter, Missy, has been abducted during a family vacation and evidence that she may have been brutally murdered is found in an abandoned shack deep in the Oregon wilderness. Four years later, in the midst of his Great Sadness, Mack receives a suspicious note, apparently from God, inviting him back to that shack for a weekend.

   Against his better judgment he arrives at the shack on a wintry afternoon and walks back into his darkest nightmare. What he finds there will change Mack's world forever.

   In a world where religion seems to grow increasingly irrelevant THE SHACK wrestles with the timeless question: Where is God in a world so filled with unspeakable pain? The answers Mack gets will astound you and perhaps transform you as much as it did him.

   This book has definitely made me stop and think things that I've never considered before. It has shown me again that God is truly a mystery that i'll never understand!! It reminds me of a verse in Revelation. In it God is speaking, and he says: 'I am the alpha and the Omega,' says The Lord 'the one who was, who is, and who is to come. The almighty.' I hope that if you read this book, you really will be changed by it. 

 Here are two reviews:

   “THE SHACK is the most absorbing work of fiction I've read in many years. My wife and I laughed, cried, and repented of our own lack of faith along the way. THE SHACK will leave you craving for the presence of God.” -Michael W. Smith, recording artist

   “Wrapped in creative brilliance, THE SHACK is spiritually profound, theologically enlightening, and life-impacting. It has my highest recommendation. We are joyfully giving copies away by the case.” -Steve Berger, pastor of Grace Chapel, Leipers Fork, TN

   Well I guess that's all I've got for today! have a wonderful Super Bowl weekend and don't eat too much junk food!;)

~E

   

On Recent Movies

Hi all!

Again, humble apologies for the lack of posts. At the moment, academic achievements are higher on my priority list than blogging. But thank you for reading anyway!

Well, here we are almost 1/12 of the way through the year! Only 11 months til Christmas! (Seriously? Where'd the time go???) I really haven't been to the theater in a while, but I thought I'd give my opinion on the past few movies I've seen.

There will probably be SPOILERS ahead. Just a warning.

#1 - Gravity

This movie is vast. It's really a simple setting, and a simple plot. Reminds me of Kaleidoscope by Ray Bradbury. It's really just two people attempting the impossible journey back to safety. 

Yet it's incredibly impacting. The visuals are stunning. The cast (of two people) carry the movie incredibly. The little amount of dialogue used tells of a bigger story. The inescapable meaning in life, in this enormous universe, shine through, as does the beautiful quality of hope. That's really what this movie is all about, is hope. 

Content-wise, there's some unnecessary language and the initial violence is pretty scary. (For me, anyway. I do tend to get scared somewhat easily.)

#2 - Frozen

I can't even talk about this movie without getting emotional. Seriously. What can I say that hasn't been said? Okay, a few things. They may have been said before though. 

First - the music is a-maz-ing!!! Every number is well made and the voices they have on the cast are top notch. I do wish that they had made a final number during the resolution, maybe a reprise of "Do You Wanna Build a Snowman?" 

Second - the characters are extremely lovable. It was easy for me to identify with both Anna and Elsa, even Kristoff. And admit it, Olaf completely steals the show. 

Third - the story. I did NOT want to see this movie when we went to the theater. Within five minutes I was completely drawn into the lives of the characters and the plot that followed. It was predictable, up until of course evil Hans betrays poor Anna! I didn't really see that coming.

Content-wise, there's really no issues at all. The lessons mixed in, about not marrying the guy you just met, and the importance of family, are wonderful too. I honestly think Disney has finally produced another movie that will be among their most popular for ages to come. 

So, there's my modest observations on those two movies. If any of you have movies that you want me to share my opinion on, let me know! 

I'm planning to have a new creative writing prompt up by the end of the week, so look forward to that! See you all later!

-M.

World's Most Difficult...

I did it. 

So, this looks like an ordinary puzzle, right? Well... First off, it's a picture of Dalmatians. That makes it pretty hard in the first place, right? There's 529 pieces, so it's not huge, but it is a considerable size. 

It's double sided. The second side is rotated 90 degrees. The pictures are the SAME. 

Oh, and the pieces are all cut to the same shape. 

And if you didn't already think THAT was hard enough...

(Wait for it...)

When you have a normal jigsaw puzzle, you can feel along the edge to find out which side is the bottom. Not this one. The designers made one cut vertically, then FLIPPED the puzzle over and made the horizontal cut from the other side!! It's impossible to tell which side is which. I mean, seriously?!?

So, yeah, I'm kind of bragging, I guess. Cause I finished it. (Does happy dance around room)

This puzzle is named (quite appropriately, in my opinion) "World's Most Difficult Jigsaw Puzzle." Yep. That's literally what it's called. 

It took around 20-25 hours total to completely this puzzle. (Over the course of a busy month!) Luckily, all of the things the designers did to it came with a few advantages. 

Because it's cut on both sides, you can divide the center pieces into "left" and "right" categories. 

I also discovered early on that every center piece (minus one diagonal row) has a sister piece that matches on both sides. Most of the time solving was spent matching pieces up. (Or rematching because the box was bumped)

I had to solve the puzzle in two halves because the surfaces I was using weren't big enough. 

I finished it. (Sighs in relief) I think I'll take a break from jigsaw puzzles for a while. Well, there's my random story for the day! See you later!

M.