Some Magic and a Dam

Today is the birthday of Mozart's The Magic Flute. It was one of the last operas that Mozart composed and was first played on September 30, 1791. Here is the Magic Flute Overture, which I happen to really really like: =D



September 30, 1935 was the dedication of the Hoover Dam.

This Dam took about five years to construct and 112 deaths occurred related to the building of the dam. There were 112 deaths associated with the construction of the dam. Included in that total was J. G. Tierney, a surveyor who drowned on December 20, 1922 while looking for an ideal spot for the dam. He is generally considered to be the first man to die in the construction of Hoover Dam. His son, Patrick W. Tierney, was the last man to die working on the dam's construction, 13 years to the day later. There was also a 5 day period where 14 deaths occurred due to a heat wave.

In spite of the death toll of those who helped to build the Hoover Dam, this giant structure has performed it's duty well for over 70 years. There are controversies surrounding the dam, however, and it has had a negative impact on the Colorado River Delta and on several species of animals who had been dependent on the yearly flooding that the dam stopped.

Extra! Extra! Read All About It!

Today is a newsy blog post. =) I have several things to share with you, my dear readers.

First off, I am leaving in one week to go to Florida! My grandparents live right near Clearwater Beach, and I'm going to go visit them for awhile. =)

You'll never guess which airline I'm flying. =D

Also in the news this morning: I have a new commenting system. After seeing this post by Eden, I decided that I should take a look at Disqus. In short, I saw what I liked and I liked what I saw, so I followed the insanely easy steps for getting Disqus onto my blog. =D

Also... I had been unaware of the new Blogger editing layout until yesterday when I was messing with my blog.  How did I miss out on this? It makes pictures and *everything* so much easier! If you have a blogger blog and haven't switched over yet, I would encourage you to do that. You would go to the Settings tab and scroll down to Global Settings  where you can select the editing style you want.

One more thing: I'm adding a couple of pages to my blog, so go check them out if you want to. One page is a short biography of my life. I might make it a little longer... why don't you read it and tell me if you think it's too short, too long, or perfect length?

Just because I'm posting two posts so very close together, please don't ignore my youtube Tuesday post. It's pretty cool, if I do say so myself. =D

Youtube Tuesday - Earth

This past weekend I watched Disneynature's movie Earth with my family. Although it is environmentalist and evolutionary, I really enjoyed it. The filming and time lapse were AMAZING, not to mention that it's *so* cool to see all of these creatures right from my living room!
One of my favorite parts was the small segment with the great white sharks. Totally awesome. *LOVED it* I'm going to see if I can find that particular segment and post it along with the trailer.





=D Is that amazing or what? I cannot believe the air that the second shark catches! *awesome* This footage is basically the same as what is used in Earth, but it is actually from a BBC production and the narrator is different... but that's okay, you still get the idea. =)

In spite of the wrong worldview that is expressed in Earth, I am eager to see the other movie that came out this year. This one is called Oceans and is also by Disneynature. I'll share the trailer below.

Corrections =}

I realized this morning that I forgot to use any links in my Fallapalooza post, so I fixed that little problem. =D

I was also told that I was supposed to pick ONE Jane Austen book and then pick a character from that book. I picked the book I would like to watch take place, but the character I would like to be is from Persuasion rather than Emma. I just thought I'd clear up any confusion there.

Alsoooo... "What does the journal picture have to do with Jane Austen?" That, my dear friends, is the letter in which Captain Wentworth offered himself again to Anne "with a heart even more [her] own than when [she] almost broke it eight years and a half ago."

The funny thing about this post is that none of these problems were brought to my attention via comments from people who follow my blog. =P It was from facebook comments or family members. =)

Toodle-loo!

Messing Around With Some Pics

Hey, everybody! Friday night a friend of my family's had a fifties themed birthday party. It was so much fun to get dressed up for it, and I decided to try for an old hairstyle, too. I'm afraid my hair was a little more 40's than 50's, but I'm not 100% sure. I had a bazillion bobby pins in my "bangs" because I had a *lot* of hair to roll up. Okay, maybe not all that much, but compared to just curling some bangs under it was a lot. Here are a couple of the pictures I took:

Here I am at 18 and a half years old and wearing lipstick for the first time. Maybe the last time, too. =)

For Us History People

I don't have time to do a whole post on this topic, but it's interesting enough that I thought I should at least mention it.

Twenty-seven years ago today was the biggest prison escape in British history. Thirty-eight prisoners escaped from H Block 7 of the Maze prison. One of the guards died of a heart attack due to the massive escape and twenty others were injured by the escapees.

Over half of the men were recaptured within the week. You can read the whole story here.

The H-blocks of the Maze Prison:

Fallapalooza Blog Party

Two of my fellow bloggers, Lindsay and Haley, have joined up for the Fallapalooza Blog Party, and I figured I should give it a go, too! =) A couple reasons for this would be

1. I love fall. It's my favorite season!
2. I like to blog, and blog party quizzes are quite fun!
3. I always loved the Sugar Creek Gang series, in which is a character called Snatzerpazooka... and Fallapalooza reminded me of that. =D

Anyhow, on to the quiz!

1. Ring! Ring! You receive a phone call from a national sweepstakes organization saying that you have won a life-time supply of your favorite beverage!! What would that drink be?

Right now I'd say Knudsen's Apple Cider

2. If you could live in a Jane Austen novel, which book would you pick? What character would you be?

I think I'd pick to live in Emma because I just love the characters and the difference between who they are and who they are perceived to be. The character I would pick to be would probably be Anne Elliot because it just makes me happy how Captain Wentworth never forgets her and never stops loving her.

3. What is your theme song, that favorite song that absolutely matches you?

I can't say that this song "absolutely matches" me... but you could say that (part of) it is my theme. =)

4. You are trapped on a deserted island. Your only supplies are the clothes you have on, and a box with five things in it. What are those five things?

1. A bottle of water
2. A big bag of trail mix or some other snack
3. A book to read
4. My iPod
5. Chapstick

5. Chocolate or Caramel?

Must. Have. Chocolate.

6. Vacation! If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?

Pemberley or Prince Edward Island

7. If forced to do one of the two, which would you do: sky diving or scuba diving? Why?

Scuba diving. I love ocean creatures! (For the most part, I guess)

8. Favorite TV show, and why?

What's with all the hard questions? I have a hard time picking favorites. Either Sue Thomas, FBEye or Adam 12. Sue Thomas because I love FBI type shows and it's the only one I've found that's clean. I also love learning sign language from the show. Adam 12 because I love cop shows, old shows, and I just really like how it's based on stuff that really happens in a cop's life. Not to mention **ahem** I kinda think Kent McCord isn't bad looking. LOL

9. Are you a coffee and donuts sorta lady, or a tea and scones type of gal?

Ewww... no coffee, thanks! I'll go for tea and scones any day.

10.The time machine has finally been created, and you are the first to be able to use it! What era would you travel too?

Soooooo tough, this one. Probably Elizabeth Gaskell's time or the 1930s-50s. =D

11. What is the last movie you watched?

The Inheritance

12. Ding-dong!!! Your favorite actor/singer/celebrity is at your front door! Who would it be?

I don't know that I have a favorite. =)

13. What was your absolute favorite toy as a baby?

As a baby... Probably either my stuffed bunny or my stuffed poodle. I had both with me all the time! (I still have the poodle, and I think my sister has the bunny)

14. What types of blogs do your like best? (examples: DIY, cooking, journal, ect.)

Personal blogs that tell about everyday life

15. What is your favorite Bible verse, your "life verse?"

Isaiah 25:1

**All images are courtesy of Google. =)

New Hairstyle!

Sorry my head is at such a weird angle in these pictures. I was trying to get the computer to take a picture without getting lots of glare on my glasses.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

My haircut was based off of the girl's hair in this movie poster: (Nothing like basing your hair off of a movie case you see at a thrift store! hehe)

Now I just need to get some highlights. (I actually am considering it...)

Even with highlights it'll look different. My hair after the haircut is basically in two layers... Seriously? I gave the gal the picture and said, "Do this." Her hair looks like it's more than two layers to me... At least in front. Oh, well. I think I like it anyhow.

Looking to the Future

The near future includes an awesome giveaway courtesy of Lindsay! Go have a peek and enter for the earrings! [Don't enter for the scarf, though... I want to win that. ;)]

This year has really flown by, and November is just around the corner. Have any of you ever heard of NaNoWriMo (NATional NOvel WRIting MOnth) or maybe even participated? I heard about it last October and gave it a go. I actually met my goal and wrote a novel! I'm thinking about giving it another shot this year, though I know it will be slightly more challenging because I'm 18 now and have to write a minimum of 50,000 words.

If you are interested in NaNoWriMo, please visit either their Young Writers Program or their Home Page. If you decide to do it, feel free to add me (ramblinrose506) as a friend on either site.

My church is going on a trip to Israel in the spring, and I initially thought that I should go out and get a job right away to try and make money for said trip. Right now I'm kinda reconsidering. What do you think? Would you go on a 10 day trip just for the experience even if you didn't know any of the other travelers all that well? Should I go for it, or should I wait until I have enough money (supposing this ever happened...) to take a friend?

Also in the near future is (I hope!) a trip to Florida to visit my grandparents. I would be traveling alone, but I have no problems with that. I love traveling! =D I have been looking at ticket prices today and I just need a confirmation from my grandparents on the dates I'm looking at. It'll be loads of fun!

What do you have coming up in your future?

Jane Eyre Married Mr. Rochester

Not one person who read my blog or my facebook seemed to know what my last post was about. Sorry for the confusion... I just thought that more people would know what I was talking about. =D

So... the quote is from Jane Eyre. It's a rather famous quote, and I happen to love it. After everything that Jane went through, it just makes my spirit soar when she is finally able to say, "Reader, I married him."

A true love story, for sure!

Happiness in Four Words

Sing Once More

My youth group is going through Ephesians right now. Here is the passage that we looked at on Sunday:

And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.

My youth pastor used an excellent picture to describe "singing and making melody in your heart." Singing is a result of being filled with the Spirit. The Spirit gives us so much inner joy that it overflows. He explained that it's like a musical. Your heart is so full of praise that it spontaneously floods out into song. Of course, the difference between this and musicals is that the songs we sing are praise songs, not songs about the hills being alive or singing in the rain or any other number of things.

How often does your heart overflow with praise? How often does mine?

Keeper of Promises

And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: and I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

Know what this is? It's a promise straight from Heaven. A promise made many years ago. A promise that is still being kept. God promised to bless those who bless His people and to curse those who curse His people.

On September 15, 1935, German Jews were deprived of citizenship in Nazi Germany when the Nuremberg Laws were enacted. At the same time, Germany's flag was changed to the "black spider" which symbolized cruelty and terror to many who saw it.

From Wikipedia:

On the evening of September 15, 1935, two measures were announced to the Reichstag at the annual Party Rally in Nuremberg, becoming known as the Nuremberg Laws.
The first law, The Law for the Protection of German Blood and German Honour, prohibited marriages [...] between "Jews" (the name was now officially used in place of "non-Aryans") and "Germans" and also the employment of "German" females under forty-five in Jewish households. The second law, The Reich Citizenship Law, declared those not of German blood to be Staatsangehöriege (state subjects) while those classified as "Aryans" were Reichsbürger (citizens of the Reich). Between November 1935 to July 1943, thirteeen implementation ordinances were issued dealing with the enforcement of Reich Citizenship Law that progressively marginalized the Jewish community in Germany.

The actual law:

The Laws for the Protection of German Blood and German Honour
(September 15, 1935)

Entirely convinced that the purity of German blood is essential to the further existence of the German people, and inspired by the uncompromising determination to safeguard the future of the German nation, the Reichstag has unanimously resolved upon the following law, which is promulgated herewith:

Section 1
Marriages between Jews and citizens of German or kindred blood are forbidden. Marriages concluded in defiance of this law are void, even if, for the purpose of evading this law, they were concluded abroad.
Proceedings for annulment may be initiated only by the Public Prosecutor.

[...]

Section 3
Jews will not be permitted to employ female citizens under the age of 45, of German or kindred blood, as domestic workers.

Section 4
Jews are forbidden to display the Reich and national flag or the national colours.
On the other hand they are permitted to display the Jewish colours. The exercise of this right is protected by the State.

Section 5
A person who acts contrary to the prohibition of Section 1 will be punished with hard labour.
A person who acts contrary to the prohibition of Section 2 will be punished with imprisonment or with hard labour.
A person who acts contrary to the provisions of Sections 3 or 4 will be punished with imprisonment up to a year and with a fine, or with one of these penalties.

Section 6
The Reich Minister of the Interior in agreement with the Deputy Führer and the Reich Minister of Justice will issue the legal and administrative regulations required for the enforcement and supplementing of this law.

Section 7
The law will become effective on the day after its promulgation; Section 3, however, not until January 1, 1936.

This is was only the beginning of the persecution God's chosen people were about to face at the hands of Hitler and his regime. In spite of everything the Jews went through, God was still faithful to His promise: "I will curse them that curse you."

Hitler and many of his top officials committed suicide, were brutally murdered, or were executed. The German people lost control of almost everything they had gained in World War Two. The years of fighting and persecution ended with the enemies of God's people hanging their heads in shame.

This promise of God's is pretty major. It involves an entire nation! But what I find mind-blowing is the fact that He remains equally faithful even to His more "minor" promises. "I will never leave you or forsake you." "I will supply your every need." "My grace is sufficient for you."

It's pretty neat to look and see God's fulfilled promises in history, but it's the everyday ones that mean the most. When I look at them and see how faithful He is, all I can do is be awed.

My God is an awesome God!

Judge Not

As human beings, we're all tempted to be judgmental. Many of us find ourselves yielding to that temptation much *much* more often than we want to admit.

"Does she not realize that wearing clothes like that totally draws attention to how fat she is?"

"Does he ever think before he speaks? He probably just offended someone!"

"They are so dumb to be doing that. Don't they realize how good they've already got it? Why try to improve perfection?"

Etc. etc. etc.

That's why this post kinda hit home for me. Because I've been in the Judging Shoes waaaay too often in my own life. Especially in the area of judging other people who should be like me, but aren't.

For example: For a (brief) amount of time, I was in a homeschool book club. I was really eager to get involved because the only friends I had who were my age were online. To have friends in person just thrilled me. A Homeschool Book Club seemed like the best way to find people who were just like me.

The day of the first meeting, I put my Jane Austen, C. S. Lewis, and a couple of biographies into my book bag, made sure my long jean skirt and my blouse were wrinkle-free, and headed to the library. I was met by... a girl with a boy haircut who was wearing almost nothing. Another girl dressed in tight black with dark makeup, etc. A boy with Harry Potter books and other awful reading selections. I waited. The whole first meeting, I kept thinking that someone would come in late and be my bosom friend.

Nothing.

I was stuck with a bunch of pretenders. Home schooled kids who wanted to be in that awful group called The World.

On the outside I was friendly. I talked with them, I read with them. On the inside, though, I judged. After each meeting I mentally went over what was wrong with them. I didn't realize until after the club had disbanded:

The problem was me.

Judge not that ye be not judged.

Mr. Collins vs. Mr. Darcy

Darcy wins.

I discovered the first picture on Friday when I was looking for pictures of Mr. Darcy, and it just made me laugh. It didn't fit the mood of my post, though, so I saved it for today.

Heroes

I wrote this poem a couple of years ago and thought I would share it today.

Heroes

An image I’ll remember when my memory is gone

The heroes in the picture, immortalized, live on

The flag of a great country

Raised on the somber plain

The faces of the heroes

Born in a nation’s pain

In the rubble of the towers

All was dead and gray

But from those heaps of rubble

Champions rose that day

Years from now the memories

Will still cause tears to fall

But so will many heroes come

To stand up brave and tall

At every fall we rise again

Taller than before

The spirit of America

Lives on from shore to shore.

The picture does not belong to me, but the poem does.

A Moment for Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy

I love the 1995 BBC presentation of Pride and Prejudice. I know that there are many people out there (including two of my best friends) who will disagree with me on this: but Colin Firth seriously is Mr. Darcy. So when I discovered - quite by accident - that today is Colin Firth's 50th birthday, I just had to share some celebratory pictures with ya'll.











Yup. He's Mr. Darcy, all right. =D

Happy Birthday, Mr. Darcy!

A Post on Devotion

I managed to forget to read my blog feed for awhile, so I got somewhat behind. But as I finally finished catching up with everything this morning, I found a post that kinda made me think. How often am I guilty of being more devoted to good things than I am to my Lord?

Little Things

• I've been thinking about rereading When God Writes Your Life Story by Eric and Leslie Ludy. If I do this, would any of you be interested in my doing a weekly chapter-by-chapter review? Or even reading the book along with me?
• I read a quote yesterday in my quote journal that has had me thinking... "The life of a Christian is not defined by three or four big decisions, but by hundreds and hundreds of small choices made along life's road." The little things DO count!
• Earlier this week Seth was reading aloud to me, and I discovered a little problem. He has this habit of reading only the left side of the page! For some reason the right side just escapes him or doesn't catch his interest or something.
• I filled out an application to work with Grand View Ministries this coming summer. I really hope it'll work out! I have always wanted to work at a camp.>
• Right now I have junk all. over. my room. Poor Erica is kinda suffering as I go through it all. Do any of you have a clue what 5 or 6 years of accumulation adds up to? I have thrown away an incredible amount, organized a bunch, and still have loads of stuff that I'm just not sure what to do with.
• One week from today I'm going to be playing offertory at my church. I had less than two week's notice, too! Lovely. Anyhow... I'm planning on doing a somewhat easy arrangement of Brethren, We Have Met to Worship. Maybe I'll record it and load it onto YouTube.
• Speaking of that song, have any of you seen Sheffey? LOVE that movie! And the music when everyone is coming to the camp meetings is awesome! If you haven't seen it, you really should get your hands on a copy. It's the true story of an amazing circuit ridin' preacher named Robert Sheffey.
• Thanks for all of your lovely comments! I love you guys! And sorry I was so down about blogging a week or so ago. I promise I'm not quitting on ya'll!

Eight Things

My friend Buttercup tagged me with this... and I left a bunch of her answers in because they totally applied to me, too! =D


8 Books I've read recently (or am reading)...
1. The Bible
2. Lady Carliss and the Waters of Moorue by Chuck Black
3. Farraday Road by Ace Collins
4. Swope's Ridge by Ace Collins
5. A Young Woman's Call to Prayer by Elizabeth George
6. Pirates of the Carribean: Curse of the Black Pearl by ... I can't remember.
7. Through the Fire by Shawn Grady
8. Rose Daughter by Robin McKinley... that was awhile ago, but I LOVED it! In fact, I ordered a copy last week so I can have it for my very own. =)


8 Songs or Albums I listen to all the time...
1. See You Tomorrow - John Powell
2. So High the Price - Steve Pettit
3. The Look - Steve Pettit
4. Everlasting God - Steve Pettit
5. I Stand Redeemed - Ron and Shelly Hamilton
6. Press On - The Wilds
7. Secret Place - Ron Hamilton
8. Jack Sparrow - Hans Zimmer

8 Things I love...
1. my Savior
2. my family (church family and online family included! =D)
3. my books
4. thrift stores
5. libraries/bookstores
6. youth group
7. camp
8. writing!

8 Things I've learned (or am learning) this year...
1. to listen to the Holy Spirit
2. the power of prayer
3. patience is *VERY* neccessary when little brothers are involved... in anything!
4. that I am a bit more like Mr. Woodhouse than I thought... weddings DO change one's social circle more than I like. =P
5. if I want comments on my blog... I should comment on other people's blogs. SHOCKING!
6. it isn't a good idea to look at the stuffed animal section in the thrift store... my elephant collection is awfully big now! (which is good and bad at the same time)
7. parents are *still* unpredictable
8. not all new movies are bad

8 Favorite online hangouts...
1. Facebook
2. Google Reader
3. Swagbucks
4. Twitter
5. Blogger
6. Narnia website
7. Narniaweb
8. Narniafans (No theme there, right????)

8 Projects I need to work on...
1. my quilt that I started... let's not say how long ago
2. the apron that I'm making
3. a poodle skirt!
4. the boxes in my closet YIKES
5. getting a job
6. being a better friend
7. my offertory for next Wednesday
8. My unfinished novels

8 People I think should do this...
You! (Never knew you were 8 people, did you)

Youtube Tuesday - Letters to God

I watched this movie with my family on Saturday night. It was really good! I wouldn't have a problem with recommending it to anyone.

God Lives in Arizona

As I'm sure all of you are aware by now, I spent almost a month in Arizona earlier this year. It was awesome! One thing that I noticed awhile after I got home was that it seemed like God suddenly wasn't as involved in my life. What happened? Did I leave God in Arizona?

I started to think about it and I realized what had happened. While I was in Arizona, it was pretty easy to pray and do my devotions because I had plenty of time. But after I got home, I gradually slacked off. But why? There are still 24 hours in a day! The difference was my easy access to computers, the internet, TV, and my bookshelves. I allowed these things to take up so much of my time that God got pushed to the side.

My books and movies and internet friends aren't *bad* things on their own, but I made them wrong. I put them above my personal time with God. So this week I'm setting some rules for myself. Rules that will keep me from opening a book or logging in to facebook before I've taken care of the more important things in life.

Maybe by the end of the week I'll find that God lives in Colorado, too.

Prayer Requests

Hello everybody! I have a couple of prayer requests for ya'll. Here they are:

My dear friend Mary has a little sister named Sarah who is going through some health issues right now. She was having seizures on Monday and is still in the hospital. Sarah is three.

Also, a dear lady from my church found out that her son was just killed in Iraq. He has a wife and two or three children (I'll check the number and get it right...) that he's left behind. A praise in this situation is that he did know the Lord.

Do any of you have prayer requests? Feel free to email them to me at ramblinrose506 [at] gmail [dot] com.