[Cos]Playin' it Up

Ok... as previous posts show... I really like costumes.
Alice, Hobbits, Sherlock, Moonrise Kingdom, Lizzie Bennet Diaries.

 But I thought I should give you an update of some costumes and cosplay lately.

For Halloween, some friends and I decided on going as Fantastic Mr. Fox characters.
Even despite the "What does the fox say?" craze, this Wes Anderson inspired look was a fun one to pull together. 

[Foxy - mask, tie, vest, blazer, tail]

[Mr. Fox, Mrs. Fox, Ash Fox]

[Inspiration: Foxes on the right]

A few weeks later was the Doctor Who 50th anniversary special (extensive post here).
For the house party with friends, I went as Amy Pond from "The Impossible Astronaut"

[Amy: plaid, denim, sharpie necklace]

[inspiration]

The next night, Rebekah and I went to a showing in Seattle.
She rocked it as Rose from "The Idiot's Lantern" (1950's ;) and I went as the 11th Doctor.

[11 & Rose]

 I even found myself an Amy from "The Impossible Astronaut" episode - perfect!

[11 & Amy]

December brought with it the Hobbit and, being that Bob wanted to see my costume, I threw an "Unexpected Party" at work.

[Hobbit: ears, vest, green blazer, cloak, Lothlorien Leaf, handkerchief.]

[The ears :]

And then, this past Sunday, Sherlock returned to PBS.  So, my flatmate and I hosted a costumed premiere party.
I knew right away, I wanted to go as "The Woman."  And no, not because of that.

[Irene Adler - dress: black, eyeliner: blue, lips: blood, earrings: diamond, hair: classic twist.]

[Irene Inspiration]

Somewhat last minute, not only did my brothers come, they brought their A-game as Moriarty and Sherlock - the gents in Irene's life.

[Moriarty: Westwood, Irene: Azagury, Sherlock: Belstaff]

So... those have been my costume adventures the last few months.
I'm looking forward to more soon.  Any reason for a costume. :)

Which are some of your favorite characters or costumes?  Who do you like to dress up as?

Reading 2013

Well, if you're interested in the past, here are lists from 2011 and 2012.

The List:

1	Return of the King - JRR Tolkien*
2	The Fault in Our Stars - John Green
3	Great House - Nicole Krauss
4	Five Dysfunctions of a Team - Patrick Lencioni  (nf)
5	The Time Traveler's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
6	Gone Girl - Gillian Flynn
7	Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald*
8	Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins*
9	Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins*
10	Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card
11	Ender's Shadow - Orson Scott Card
12	London War Notes - Mollie Panter-Downes  (nf)
13	Speaker for the Dead -Orson Scott Card
14	Shadow of the Hegemon - Orson Scott Card
15	Shadow Puppets -Orson Scott Card
16	Name of the Wind - Patrick Rothfuss
17	The Wise Man's Fear - Patrick Rothfuss
18	A body in the Library - Agatha Christie
19	Stardust - Neil Gaiman
20	Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone - JK Rowling
21	Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - JK Rowling
22	Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - JK Rowling
23	Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire -JK Rowling
24	Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - JK Rowling
25	Lady in Waiting - Jackie Kendall  (nf)
26	The Book Thief - Markus Zusak
27	Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince - JK Rowling
28	Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - JK Rowling

   29 The Crowd, the Critic, and the Muse - Michael Gungor  (nf)

* indicates a re-read
(nf) indicates non-fiction

General trends:


// I read longer, though fewer books.  I set a goal of 40 books in 2013.  Don't think I'd conjectured the average length of each books would be 435 pages.  You can see below for one of my spiffy graphs.  This shows trends in average number of pages per book and per month over the last 3 years:

// I loooove sci-fi and fantasy [obvi].  I started 2013 by finishing off my re-visit to Middle Earth and another quick trip to District 12, but this only set the stage for journeys into the Enderverse, the Four Corners, Gaiman's Fairyland, and the wizarding world of Harry Potter.  I fully recognize I'm a late (very late) comer to Harry Potter, so I won't even bother "recommending" it, Neil Gaiman speaks for himself, but, a few words on the other two series.

I wrote a formal review of Ender's Game as part of my 31 days project, but here and here are thoughts I shared while reading the 1st book.  I can't recommend Ender's Game highly enough, but I'd also suggest it's parallel novel Ender's Shadow and direct sequel Speaker for the Dead (an anecdote of which I shared here).  I've forayed further into Shadow series, which is a fascinating political and psychological saga.  I'm hoping to finish the Ender Quartet, which I hear is highly philosophical.  Card's fiction is a thought-provoking delight.

As for the Kingkiller Chronicles by Patrick Rothfuss, I did my best to give it a proper review here.  Name of the Wind, Rothfuss's incredible novel debut gripped me from it's earliest pages and once he sets up the frame narrative - there's no going back.  Both it and its sequel, Wise Man's Fear, are innovative fantasy while maintaining some of the familiar qualities I love most about series like Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter (though intended for a more mature audience than either of those series).  I finished these two in August and yet still find myself wondering about the characters as if they were lost friends.  I eagerly await the 3rd and final installment!

All that said, I have enjoyed indulging more in my love for sci-fi, fantasy, and the wonderful spots where they blend.  It's saddening that these are so often relegated to niche literature in academia... but that's a thought for another post.  I have loved these literary journeys and I'm looking forward to a few more in 2014.

// I only just realized looking back at this list that I didn't read a single pre-1900's book this year.  Gatsby, published in 1925, is the earliest novel on the list.

My teenage self would be appalled.  My 23 year old self is rather thrilled.

// Another theme that emerged in my reading habits was learning more about WWII.  Not facts.  Stories.  It was the focus of London War Notes and The Book Thief, but it crept up in plenty of other books too.  London War Notes (passage here) was a heart-breaking and beautiful bi-weekly column written for the New Yorker by an American living in London throughout the war.  Interestingly, The Book Thief, though fictional, was a harrowing tale of "the other side" - how many Germans experienced the war.  As a side note, I think it would be very interesting to read The Book Thief in conjunction with The History of Love.  But these contrasting perspectives make it obvious how unnecessary and tragic the war was - not for one side or the other, but for humanity. 


As for 2014, I'm excited to announce that I'll be taking part of Jon Acuff's "Empty Shelf Project."  I've already cleared the decks and have some books in the wings - so look forward to filling it up! 

I thoroughly enjoyed my literary wanderings in 2013.  More than finding new friends, I found new parts of myself.  These stories lent me courage where I was running low, joy in some dark moments, and love - so much love - for other people.  I couldn't really ask for much more.

Have you read any of these?  What were some of the trends or highlights for your reading in 2013?

"That's it.  If I take one more step, it'll be the farthest from home I've ever been."

I'm discovering, this is what it means to be a writer.

While many focus on the introspection required to write and write well, I'm discovering that to write is to leave home, leave the familiar of one's own thoughts.  Each thoughtfully-crafted piece of writing - be it prose, poetry, essay, fiction, non-fiction, etc. - each piece takes me further into the wild.  After finishing one, I find myself contemplating where I am, what these surroundings are.

To identify as "a writer" is to accept a nomadic imagination.  One that is never "home," only settling here or alighting there before taking off to explore the next place.  It often means leaving people behind (or at least, characters who have become dear friends).  I think it's why so many writers feel restless, the "hopeless wanderer" syndrome. 

I think this is one of the reasons I feared becoming a writer for so long.

Being that we're at the half-way point of the year, I've been reviewing some of my journals and blog posts.  And it struck me that I had no goal to "write more" this year or anything of the sort.  It's just been a season where I can't. stop. writing.  I've given up, waved the white flag, and surrendered.  Yes, you were all right when you claimed me or labeled me as a writer.  I was afraid, so I hid.  But looking back at a full journal, blog posts, and draft posts I need more emotional distance from before publishing (or more courage... take your pick) - I see there's no more hiding it. 

But what I've written thus far, the things I'm about to attempt, they've taken me on a journey far from what was comfortable.  And if I take one more step, it'll be the farthest from home I've ever been.  I'll have crossed into the unknown, unsettled territory of my consciousness.

Until the day when, like so many of our favorite characters, there is the final homecoming.  "A far green country under a swift sunrise."  The writer's journey proves its worth in it's memories and in the field of our imagination... but only when we cross the threshold to that home we never knew but were always searching for does the creator find their pearl of great price.

This is the hope I hold onto.

Signed,
A writer

"Well, I'm back."

Hello!  Happy New Year, again.  I feel like I've been away for a while.  Between Christmas festivities and having my dear friend Kristina visiting [post forthcoming],  I've only had time for the brief word / picture, but nothing very substantial.  Hoping that changes now that things return to their quieter routine :)

I wanted to share the results from books read last year.  After a personal best at 53 books in 2011, I thought I'd challenge myself with 60 for 2012 - ha!  Well, 2011 was very much an "on" year for reading.  My schedule was rather conducive to it, I took some great courses, breezed through 2 fantasy/sci-fi series (The Auralia Thread and The Hunger Games), was introduced to what good contemporary fiction looks like (thank you History of Love), and came across a host of other good books... mostly shorter books. 

2012 turned out entirely different.  I began the year with Clarissa.  That alone should count for something.  But I also spent time with modernist poetry.  Reading and attempting to understand the Wasteland doesn't feel like reading a whole book - but it sure takes effort, more effort for me in a lot of ways. 
But then I graduated.  And it wasn't like "Whew! I've graduated, I want a break from the books" - far from it.  Rather it was, "I've finally graduated and can get around to all of the coffee dates I've been putting off."  Throw graduation parties, catching up on sleep, and job applications on top of that and it didn't exactly translate into reading as much as I'd like.  But then in July I re-entered Middle Earth... now I'm just 30 pages from sailing away from it  [too cheesy? meh].  Could I have read the "Concerning Hobbits Tetralogy" faster?  Sure... but spending the last 6 months roaming from the Misty Mountains to Mordor has washed me.  It's clarified the way I see life.  It's made me laugh and cry countless times.  It's provided a great connection with my boss :)  It's made me feel the total nerd that I am--complete with hobbit ears. 
It's made me realize that I am a hobbit and that this life is an unexpected adventure.  As of 3 weeks ago I had finished "Mount Doom" and, yes, I've been busy, but part of me wasn't ready for it to end.  I know that tears await me at the Grey Havens.

But I feel ready now to bid the Shire goodbye, and tonight I will.  Though statistically it means I've read only 8 novels since graduating (32 total for 2012), it's been a gift.

Now I have the books of 2013 calling my name.  There's a whole stack already by my bed that I can't wait to dig into.  It's a "farewell" to Tolkien, but it's a "hello" to Green, Kraus, Niffenneger, and countless others.

2013 - I can't wait to crack your cover!

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Updated so you can see the full list:

1	The Rainbow
2	Othello
3	Macbeth
4	Katherine Mansfield's Short Stories
5	Clarissa
6	King Lear
7	To the Lighthouse
8	Measure for Measure
9	Waterland
10	The Winter's Tale
11	History of Tom Jones
12	Atonement
13	The Tempest
14	Man Who was Thursday
15	A Severe Mercy
16	Sign of Four
17	Poems of TS Eliot
18	Metamorphosis
19	Trials of Socrates
20	Six Characters in Search of an Author
21	Protagoras
22	Gorgias
23	Mrs. Dalloway
24	Bald Soprano
25	Endgame
26	Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
27	The Archivist
28	Woman in White
29	The Hobbit*
30	JRR Tokien - Biography
31	Fellowship of the Ring*
32	Two Towers*

Key: 
*re-read
___ read for school

Do you know what's torture? Going to the dentist.

No! Not for the reasons you're thinking. Torture is your dentist bringing up Chesterton, Tolkien, Lewis, Eugene Peterson, a couple novels, the beauty & wonder God created around us - and not being able to say anything because his hand is in your mouth!!

:/ :)

"On Fairy-Stories" by J. R. R. Tolkien

Some of my favorite quotes so far...

"For it is man who is, in contrast to fairies, supernatural... whereas they are natural, far more natural than he."

"For the trouble with the real folk of Faerie [land] is that they do not always look like what they are; and they put on the pride and beauty that we would fain wear ourselves. At least part of the magic that they wield for the good or evil of man is power to play on the desires of his body and his heart."

"The magic of Faerie is not an end in itself, its virtue is in its operations: among these are the satisfaction of certain primordial human desires. One of these desires is to survey the depths of space and time. Another is (as will be seen) to hold communion with other living things. A story may thus deal with the satisfaction of these desires... and in proportion as it succeeds it will approach the quality and have the flavour of fairy-story."

"All that is gold does not glitter,

Not all those who wander are lost;

The old that is strong does not whither,

Deep roots are not reached by the frost.

From the ashes a fire shall be woken,

A light from the shadows shall spring;

Renewed shall be blade that was broken,

The crownless again shall be King."

- J. R. R. Tolkein

This has been on my heart lately. A line or two has been whispered to me while I'm walking from class to class or to a bus stop.

"Not all those who wander are lost..."

There is hope. There is hope even when there seems to be no hope.

Post-modernism says there is no hope. Toni Morrison (an author I've had to read) says there's no hope.

But there is hope...

"From the ashes a fire shall be woken,

A light from the shadows shall spring..."

Maybe it's just because it's late fall--and Tolkein was just meant for fall. I don't know.

But I do know that there is hope. I do know that the post-modernists got some of the questions right, but most of the answers wrong. I know that academia has de-throned Christ in every way. But I also know that "the crownless again shall be King."

The night may be dark, the light may be bleak. Post-modernists may be king of the hill, but God wins the day. They may say what they like and try and pervert all that is holy and good. They may drink deep draughts of bitterness and anger. They may even force me to listen to their complaints and their perversions for 205 pages... but there is still hope.

I think I'm saying this "aloud" to remind myself more than to inform anyone else. I also think this turned into something much more deep and melancholy than I intended, especially since I only intended to post those two stanzas and leave them be.

Alright, I'm going back to finish my response paper.

Wish me luck...

I hope you have a splendid evening. I plan to yet =)