i heart libraries

a library is a place of solace, where the sound of fingers clicking on keys, the turning of a page in a newspaper, and the distant murmur of a study group are carried into the cavity of the building. you hear it all at muted decibels. coffee shops are a second favorite of mine- perhaps because i love the smell of coffee [acid reflux keeps me in tea] and being able to pretend that i am not completely eavesdropping on nearby conversations. but i so am. ;-)
when i go to a library, i take it all in: the musty smell, the sounds bouncing off the walls and floor, and the light carrying dust particles drifting in from the windows. i don't read the paper, or small-fonted, pictureless books, no no. you'll find me in the travel section, nose-deep in another country; in the cookbook section, wading for healthy alterations to traditional desserts [this year i'm making pumpkin crumble cake insteadof the cheesecake]; or in the art books, gazing at ansel adams. the seats haven't been replaced since the library's addition in the early '70s, so i think about the vinyl in my first car ['82 chevy impala, aka the mother ship] as i squnch down for a little reading. it is so peaceful, i might doze...

jack made a deal

in 1999, i took in a new roommate to my much-coveted large, top floor dorm room. she was a sweet girl, and a recently converted neo-pagan. at the time, i could not have cared less. halloween was an extremely important holiday for her, so i decided to study up in efforts to understand where she was coming from.
a month later i came to Christ. i don't see this as coincidental.
here's the 411:
jack made a deal with the devil to have immortality. the devil gave jack a hollowed-out turnip with a candle in it to see in the darkness. jack fooled the devil, and the devil has been after souls ever since. people began putting out lit hollowed gourds on their porches to keep the devil away. now we carve pumpkins.
the celtic calendar ends following our october 31st, so that the beginning of november is a new year. for a culture worshipping nature, including the moon and stars, the change to something new is austere. they believe that on all hallowe's eve the line between life and death is blurred, so that ghosts and spirits can carry on in the human world on that night. for this reason, people placed foods at their doorsteps and remained indoors to keep safe from the spirits. now we dress up as spirits and go knocking on people's doors. for all of those doubters who say that Christian holidays are pagan/Hallmark, this is literally a pagan holiday. the root of the matter is important to know. in opposition, november 1st is all saints day, which i do celebrate.

i've got nothing against getting dressing up, having festivals and bazarres, and giving children candy. do you remember the fishing booth at the halloween fair? someone behind the sheet would tug at your line like a fish biting a hook, and then you'd reel back the line and find a treat on the end! man, part of me will always be a child. awesome.

lost in a daydream

the sun is setting low in the sky these days, and it makes me sa-leepy! i've been reading another dry textbook for a paper due on tuesday, and listening to mae. i would for just about everything i own rather wander the world, photograph everything, write about it all in poetry and novels, and create desserts that would make anyone smile. guess that's just me- lost in a daydream. the teachers in grade school would send me to the resource lady to have my hearing checked more often than some of the other kids... apparently i wasn't paying attention to their dry, formulaic ranting. huh.