Tidbits: December Edition

Picture / Photo Find

Something I Did / Video I Watched Too Many Times

More like something I will do for the holidays. I love winter and am, like the next person, a big fan of cooing over plastic snowmen and candy cane floor mats. However, you won't find me sitting in front of the television, watching hours of Christmas movies. I'm just not that into them. I find them to be very corny and more predictable than most made-for-TV movies. Of course, there's always the classics - like Rudolph and Jack Frost, the lovely claymation creations that can make anyone smile. But I watch them in the summer months, or on a whim, and rarely during the time I should - this chilly month. 

However, there is one movie that I always watch, every year, ever since I was reunited with it during college. Haha, sounds epic, right. It's an animated film called The Nutcracker Prince (1990), a movie I saw when I was a child and fell in love with right away. Our VHS was lost to time and moving, just like some of my other favorite childhood things (most of which I've recovered thanks to Amazon, haha!). So now I own the DVD and thoroughly enjoy sitting down with my chin on my knees, big eyes shining. The animation style is gorgeous and fluid and the dreamlike quality to the setting just gets me every time.

Here's the description on the back of the DVD:

"The magic begins with a Christmas party at the house of aspiring ballerina Clara. Her godfather Drosselmeier brings one special gift: a nutcracker that is really his nephew, Hans, transformed into a doll by a curse of the evil Mousequeen. The nutcracker becomes a prince, who rules over the land of dolls, but will return to human form when the spell if broken. Join young Clara, whose new wooden nutcracker draws her into a glorious realm of adventure and enchantment."

Kiefer Sutherland (A very young one) plays the voice of the Nutcracker Prince - I would follow him anywhere, I think, if I ever heard his voice leak from a nutcracker's mouth, haha. The story is very mature for a cartoon; it takes the original, simple nutcracker story and takes it to the next level, bringing in an entire backstory and wondrous ending (makes me tear up and sigh). Clara, when dancing with the wooden nutcracker, even sings lyrics to the melody of Tchaikovsky's Waltz of the Flowers. That, my friends, is epic.

Now, the awesome part about all this is that someone uploaded the entire movie on Youtube. So please, if you want to enjoy an intricate, romantic, and whimsical rendition of the nutcracker story, then click away!

Quote from a Book I Love

Although I always have a huge pile of books to read, I wanted to spend a good portion of my break reading charming and adventurous stories led by very young, spunky protagonists. The more dated the story, the better. My model for finding such books is a favorite, The Little White Horse, so I tried to keep a look out for other novels that seemed to give off the same vibe. And so I came across The Aviary by Kathleen O'Dell. 

The description on the front flap does a great job at setting the scene:

"Twelve-year-old Clara Dooley has spent her whole life in the Glendoveer mansion, where her mother is a servant to the kind and elderly matron of the house. Clara has never known another home. In fact, she's confined to the grand estate due to a mysterious heart condition. But it's a comfortable life, and if it weren't for the creepy squawking birds in the aviary out back, a completely peaceful one too. 

But once old Mrs. Glendoveer passes away, Clara comes to learn many dark secrets about the family. The Glendoveers suffered a horrific tragedy: their children were kidnapped, then drowned. And their father George Glendoveer, a famous magician and illusionist, stood accused until his death. As Clara digs deeper and deeper into the terrifying events, the five birds in the aviary seem to be trying to tell her something. And Clara comes to wonder: what is their true identity? Clara sets out to solve a decades-old mystery - and in doing so, unlocks a secret in her own life, too."

I literally read through this book in day, staying up way too late to race to the ending. My eyes hurt so bad by the time I closed the book and drifted off to sleep. I didn't bother to check the time. I like how whimsical  and dusty this world is; there are secrets everywhere, and all of them kept me biting my nails. I won't give too much away, but I will say that there are ghosts. Plenty of them. And - I'd love to discuss this you've read it - I loved the ghosts so much that I wished the ending... ended a bit different. I kind of developed a crush on one of them and it was a shame to have to say goodbye and shut the book. Still, this really is a wonderful read. I'm so glad to have found it.

Here's a quote from the book:

"In spite of herself, Clara let out a scream, and then clamped her mouth shut. There, knocking on the pane with his sturdy black beak, was the white cockatoo, his sulfur-tinted head feathers raised high. 

Mustering her nerve, Clara unlatched the window and pulled it up, praying she would not frighten the bird away. But the cockatoo stood patiently until the sash was lifted, looked at Clara with his golden eyes, and pleaded in such a rich, melancholy voice that she was bound to him with all her sympathies: 

'Please? Please? Oh, please?"

A Writer Thing

Winter break usually is a strange time for writing. The semester ends with me staggering into my bed-nest of perfumed pillows, plushies, and thick quilts (I keep the ceiling fan on to pretend to simulate a cold winter night). My brain is constantly twitchy, poised for rest but not quite getting it. I called one of my friends the other day, making belated plans to spend the holidays together, and I could barely form sentences when I left a message on her machine. I listened to myself bumble and wondered if I'd ever recover fast enough to enjoy the short vacation until the next semester begins. I'm still seeing read from a lot of grading, haha.

So that leads me to writing. I'm itching to put my fingers to the keyboard and just write, write, write until I'm left hazy and smiling with a pile of words. But a ghostly headache has been following me to the laptop and after a few paragraphs, I have to give up and try to turn up the volume on my inspiration. It's different from writer's block, I think. I know how to handle that. This is probably sheer exhaustion. But I wonder exactly what I need to do to get some real rest. I've been relaxing, drinking lots of tea, wearing sweaters, gawking at the food competitions on the Food Network, and eating too much peppermint bark. 

I've even taken the air with a few wandering shopping trips. So, hmmm, any remedies to suggest? I'm sure this is only a temporary thing - I have to remember that school ended only a few short days ago, that break has only just begun. Time is strange around this time of year. Very heavy and slow. I like my winter breaks long, as long as you can stretch ribbon candy on rack. And I'm sure my writing rhythm will start up again. I just need to figure it out... or take a nap, haha.

Song I Can't Stop Repeating

"Lost and Found" by Katie Herzig

I found a great singer named Katie Herzig and I've been wondering what particular song to showcase. I've been listening to her album, The Waking Sleep, way too much in these past few weeks, but I can't say I regret it. Her music has such spirit and rhythm to it. Makes me want to write (always a good thing). One of her more well-known songs is called "Lost and Found" - and after hearing it the first time, I got major chills. It's the perfect song to listen to while writing one of my writing projects (top secret! haha). The lyrics and melody are stunning:

I know you left me standing there

Out of the calm of the coldest air

I don't believe the words you said

But I can't find the words I want

Oh, I can't find the words I want

If you were gone in another life

I don't believe I would just survive

I could feel you next to me

An escape from the world I'm in

Oh, I'm afraid of the world I'm in

...

Somebody found me here

Somebody held my breath

Somebody saved me from the world you left

If you're gonna cry my tears

If you're gonna hold my breath

If you're gonna let me see the sun you set

Oh, I am lost and found

Oh, I am lost and found

papetiers de l’ancien temps

Carl and Jeffrey are secret stationers, though anyone who saw them would think that they were just old men. They congregate with friends on the front steps of the general store, taking turns with the chess board. They wear matching sweaters in July and smoke wooden pipes. 

In his early years, Carl claims he had been a movie star. His blond hair came across horribly on the black and white screen, so makeup artists had to paint his eyebrows with thick, black ink. He almost rubbed his eyebrows right off, trying to wash away the comical arches. Carl used to play the villain, chewing on the hero's face in a bar fight and running away, usually with his pants falling down around his ankles. His face is shaped like a banana; you almost believe his story because, by now, he's lost his eyebrows for good. 

Jeffrey regales his friends with tales of his nautical adventures. He had been captain of a submarine that explored the seaweed green waters of the south. He used to wear a diving bell helmet and fish for sponges on his months off duty; he liked it when girls tried to kiss him through the glass. Jeffrey's stocky build, along with his bright blue eyes, reminds you of a faded hero. His smile is charming when he presses his lips against your hand and calls you his "little pigeon's egg." He never married. 

The two old men purchase bagels before heading home. They carry their separate bags, steaming from toasting, and pass under the streetlamps in silence. They sit opposite each other at the dinner table; the seasonal cranberry cream cheese leaks from their bagels. They lick their fingers. Wash the coffee stains off of their cups. 

Then, they sit on the screened in patio and create stationary. It's a delicate process, requiring suitcases full of pull-out trays. Carl puts on his spectacles in order to see his handiwork from the night before. His silhouette of the mayor, Mr. Hemshaw, is almost done except for the nose. He dips his pen in ink and carefully presses it to the paper.   

Jeffrey slowly stamps out a congratulatory message upon a blank, recycled paper card. The ink he chooses to press the letters in is a deep fuchsia, in honor of the head librarian's daughter. She just won an award for her science project. 

"We'll have to make more paper soon," Carl says. He creates a flourish around the the silhouette. "I'm running out of envelopes."

Jeffrey sighs. "The Sheep Festival is coming up soon, right? Maybe we can make some paper then. It's a miracle that so many people can be distracted by sheep shaving contests." 

Carl leans back in his chair and looks out at the converse behind their house. The lone light bulb above their heads make everything seem yellow. The trees are merely shadows. Animals cry out in the night. The old men continue their work and reminisce about the old days where they wore monocles with their tops hats and sang with the bards about poetry. Their jobs, for the longest time, have been secret. Create paper. Create stationary. Send words out into the world without your names. Let them fly. 

November is almost over already. How shocking, right? I had to make a break from my NaNo adventures to try out a small story - even though you can tell I don't need a break. My awesome little word count bar on the side of this blog shows that I'm very behind. I highly doubt I'll come close to reading the beloved goal of 50k, haha. 

Still, though, I'm going to try.There's nothing like a little competition to keep the words pouring! 

Photos from We Heart It. 

Shopping Oddities

November in Florida. I woke up to the steady fall of rain outside my window. The clouds were so thick that I stumbled around the kitchen in darkness, searching for the toaster. I curled up on the couch with my toast and listened to rain. I wondered if the whole day would be like this, a blanket of evening spilled over to block out the morning sun.

But, as with any rainstorm here, it magically cleared up before lunchtime. 

I decided to abandon my castle of papers and step out into the humid, hot day. I had a flyer from Jo-Ann's with an array of ridiculously cute holiday paraphernalia. Staring at the big-eyed gingerbread men and grinning snowflakes, I knew I had to leave my work nest to see these things for myself. I'm not a big holiday knick-nacker, but these were worth it. I left my red pen at home, haha.  

This is the first time, in this blog's history, that I'm reporting on a shopping trip. So if it's awkward, please let me know, haha. 

Holiday Owl Doll

I've been looking for a folksy owl doll for over a year now. A college friend had a very cool owl doll she left in her dorm room; sometimes I'd sit it in my lap while we worked on our literature homework together. This owl doll is pretty cool because it's design isn't dependent on winter. Sure, it has the floppy hat and a snowflake stitched to its butt, but overall, this owl could strut down the street in any season.  

Gingerbread Man Spatula

This is it. This is specifically what I saw in the flyer that I knew I had to have, haha. I mean, since when do spatulas look like this? It makes me want to cook. I'm the queen of the microwave, in most cases, though I love a good cut-and-bake treat once in a while. I'm hoping that this lovely, smiling cookie might convince me to crack open a recipe book. 

Powerpuff Girl 10th Birthday Perfume

In an entirely different store, I found this Powerpuff Girl perfume... which caused me to geek out. 

I'm a big cartoon fan (as most of my readers know), and I remember this show being just one of the cartoons I watched with baited breath until its end. I think Bubbles is still my favorite, but I've discovered I'm more like Blossom, haha. I don't know if that's a good or bad thing. 

The perfume smells great. It's refreshing and has a lemony undertone. I can't find much information about this perfume, so I don't know what the "10th Birthday" part means. Is it the ten years that the show ran or is it... representative of a ten-year-old's birthday party? I hope it's the first one. 

Have you been shopping lately? Find anything strange, lovely, or surprising? 

Tidbits: November Edition

Picture / Photo Find

Something I Did

About a week ago, I participated in a school reading called 6x6 that showcased six graduate students and six undergraduates. Writing a small piece to read for that has been both exciting and challenging; I ended up drawing inspiration from Sleeping Beauty and added quite a twist to it in the spirit of Halloween. 

Most everyone dressed up for the event and that made it more exciting. My favorite costume of the night was a couple who dressed up as bacon and eggs - they ended up winning the costume contest. The night was magical in the sense that we were at risk. A storm was brewing all day, all week, really, and we were lucky enough to have a pocket of relief where the rain decided to back away until our last speaker finished her words. The air was muggy, thick with mosquitoes. We sat outside and listened to the readers as they approached a torch-lit stage. The place was a treasure of a coffee shop called Felicitous - newly opened and already bursting with charm and excellent mango tea.

Although rain clouds lingered, just waiting for the perfect moment to pelt us, I still kept my black pea coat buttoned tight. Who cares about sweating in late October, right? I loved my costume. I was a reveur for The Night Circus. I have to admit that no one recognized me, but I'm sure, if this book makes it to film, everyone will be going to the movie theater wearing nothing but black and white clothing - with a spot of red. 

Quote from a Book I Love

To go with what I mentioned just above, I think I've become a reveur after finishing The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. The book is stunning with its whimsical imagery that surprises you with its vivid nature - a few times while reading, I couldn't help but gasp at such lovely lines. It's so easy to get sucked into this world of black and white, caramel popcorn, and dueling magicians in love. Reveur in French means "dreamer," an appropriate name for the fans of the circus in the book. They wander the enchanted tents wearing their spots of red. I'd love to be one of them. I have got to see that ice garden. When it came down to it, I had a hard time choosing an excerpt, so here's literally the beginning of this shiver-inducing novel:

"The circus arrives without warning.

No announcements precede it, no paper notices on downtown posts and billboards, no mentions or advertisements in local newspapers. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not.

The towering tents are striped black and white, no golds or crimsons to be seen. No color at all, save for the neighboring trees and the grass of the surrounding fields. Black-and-white stripes on grey sky; countless tents of varying shapes and sizes, with an elaborate wrought-iron fence encasing them in a colorless world. Even what little ground is visible from outside is black or white, painted or powdered, or treated with some other circus trick.

But it is not open for business. Not just yet." 

Fun fact: there's a free online game that anyone can play - you get to wander around the circus, stumble upon mysteries, and sometimes interact with the characters from the book. I'm kind of addicted, haha. 

A Writer Thing

Sooo... NaNoWriMo. Who's participating this year? I totally am. I can't help it. I tend to fall for challenges, especially when it comes to writing. I get a rush and ideas flood into my head like falling stars. So National Novel Writing Month, in which one must write 50k words, is the king of challenges. And I can't refuse. 

What's really remarkable is that you discover how much time you do actually have during the day. On busier weeks, I find myself tapping away at the keyboard late into the night, but when a brief reprieve hits, I surprise myself by writing a paragraph or two between grading or answering emails. After NaNoWriMo, I'm usually more productive because I get into a time-groove. I know when I can write, what precise music I must listen to and what font is the kind I won't cringe at when I stare at a page. 

My first time NaNo-ing was last year and I failed miserably. It was almost a precursor to Birdcage Girl in that I tried the same kind of bite-sized, fragmented chapters. But I had too many characters at once and wrote out of order (so not good for me), so that I ended up with a tiny mess at the end of the month. I'll be lucky if I'm able to salvage anything from that project. But this year feels different. 

Photo by Dream Bean. So inspiring!

I'm posting my NaNo novel on Figment for this run; it's called Olivia. Basically, it's a strange kind of retelling of the fairy tale called "Diamonds and Toads." Please read it if you're not familiar with it - it's a quick tale. And I say strange because, in edition to the elements found in the original, I'm including silent film, dime museums, real estate, and pratfalls. It's been so much fun already - I love discovering my characters' secrets along the way. Here is a teaser of my project, just for fun:

And so, the fairy said: “You are kind and pretty, so I will give you a gift, Olivia. Whenever you speak, flowers and jewels shall fall from your mouth.”

Olivia bowed her head and twisted her hands. “Thank you,” she said. A diamond slipped from her lips and clattered on the sidewalk. 

To anyone attacking NaNo this year, remember to stick with it, no matter how hard it gets. I don't think it's call about winning, but more so doing. It's hard to write. Truth. So producing something, while working alongside other writers and sharing the journey is just priceless and a feel-good event. I'm cheering you on.

Song I Can't Stop Repeating

"Elements" by A Fine Frenzy.

I've got nothing to say except that this song sends me sprawling across an ocean in a rickety, but loyal boat. I love A Fine Frenzy, but only recently purchased the newest album. I'm so glad I did. Each song really is a gem.

"If the sea should swallow up my house

I will turn the rooftop inside out and the wind will be wailing

But I will be sailing faster

Oh the elements I do not fear but I fall apart when you appear

'Cause you are the greatest

The greatest disaster"

Video I Watched Too Many Times

Okay. Seriously. You need to go buy The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore on iTunes right now. Do it, haha. My intense love for all things Buster Keaton had led me to discovering this. The main character, Morris, is inspired very much my the late Buster Keaton. It is remarkable to see his expressions match and the way he moves his body during sequences (and the slight nod to One Week with the trashed house). I do have an inevitable Buster Keaton post to make, where I will likely talk about this short film again, bur I still couldn't dream of putting another video in this section for this month. The animation is amazing and, if you love books, this film will make you smile and cry. I was tearing up at the end. It's superb.  

Disney's Food & Wine Festival

The time has come when my brain caves in, when red pens make scars on my fingers and I can't seem to figure out what day it is. It is the end of October. The next month is so close that I can almost taste its smokey scent. I'm not ready to slam down the gas and go speeding into the end of this school year, but it's gaining on us. So what is there to do to calm the nerves? Well, if any of you have been following my long enough, you know that I'm a huge Disney fan. Especially of the parks. Considering that I live a short distance from Disney World, it seemed only appropriate that I drown my stress in good food, plastic utensils, and large crowds. So me and the 'rents embarked on our official romp at Epcot to enjoy the Food & Wine Festival. 

The festival is a bundle of fun, drawing in food enthusiasts, chef celebrities, and excited Disney regulars to enjoy some great food that, until this moment, seemed only visible on the other side of the television set (aka Food Network). I've been going to the parks for years and have traversed the many country-themed booths. However, this year was the year we'd really focus on the festival itself. 

Some new stuff this year included little things. On the picture on the left, of the Ireland booth, you'll notice a stand under the armpit of the plaid-shirt guy. That's a brand-new utensil dispenser! Instead of awkwardly snuffling around the booth, knocking over the fork holders, all you have to do is find the utensil of your choice and press the red button. Like one of those put in a quarter and turn the dial dispensers, the utensil of your choice comes clattering out. It was pretty fun and I totally wasted a lot of plastic by doing that at every booth we stopped at. Luckily, Disney has not, as of yet, thought of charging a quarter for said utensils. That's good. Let's keep it that way, haha. 

There was also a new exhibition called Discover the Cranberry:

Can you believe it? Right in front of the big fountain (on your way to  the World Showcase) Disney placed a cranberry bog. Just like on those cranberry commercials where the two guys stand in the bog. There's totally one here. It was pretty sweet to see. And the sign is funny too - warning you not to climb into the bog or eat from it, haha.

Here's a photo I took from Germany's miniature train village. One of my first posts on this blog was about the village and how it changes, even in subtle ways, throughout the years. Check it out here. For the Food & Wine Festival, a few booths were put up, including some people enjoying food on those tables and a musician playing under that vined canopy.

To top it all off,  checked the weekly schedule (only handed out one week at a time, so you never know who's coming) and found a delightful surprise. I'm a big Food Network fan, even though I confess I don't cook much myself. But I'm more than familiar with all the shows and so my heart almost popped out of my throat when I saw Robert Irvine listed in that day's event listing. Woah. I've seen his shows for a while now, but his new one, Restaurant Impossible, has be gasping in awe. He was scheduled to give a culinary demonstration (of which you must pay for in order to eat said food he makes) and then a book signing after. That's it. I knew I'd be visiting the festival center to see him (I'll talk about that later in the post). 

Foods I Ate:

We skipped lunch completely and just wandered about, trying anything that seemed or smelled remotely delicious. And here's what we tried (and, 10 times of 10, loved). 

Grilled Lamp Chop with Potato-Goat Cheese Salad and Shiraz Reduction Australia  Booth

Canadian Cheddar Cheese Soup Canada Booth

Lobster & Scallop Fisherman's Pie Ireland Booth *My Favorite*

Warm Chocolate Lava Cake with Baileys Ganache Ireland Booth

Calamari Salad with Fennel, Smoked Paprika and Olive Oil Portugal Booth

Lamb Slider with Tomato Chutney (Half eaten by the time I fished my camera out, haha) New Zealand Booth

Seared Scallop with Kumara-Red Curry Puree and Apple Radish Salad New Zealand Booth *Second Favorite!*

Shrimp Cake on a Sugarcane Skewer with Singapore Noodles Singapore Booth

The Robert Irvine Experience

Or not. When we arrived at the festival center, a long line was already zig-zagging around. I suppose I should have expected that, but, ah well. Still, I could hear his British accent floating through the air - he wasn't yet done with his demonstration. I wriggled through the line and went to see Robert Irvine as he stood on a small stage with two hosts, talking about what he had cooked up. The people who paid to have wine and food were sitting at tables near the stage, while the rest of us (and I wasn't the only one) stood outside the little stage area and gawked. 

He looks just like he does on TV... a point that, no matter how many times I do see someone from television, is still is surprising.

Here's a bit of video I took when Mr. Irvine was speaking about his experience with Restaurant Impossible. I apologize in advance for the low volume and shakiness - I was standing a good distance away, haha. But it should come up clear enough, I think. 

I had feeling this would be true, considering the time, but I couldn't stay to wait in line. The middle of the afternoon had bloomed with hot weather cranky babies in strollers. With a bright and early school day awaiting me, and much work to do beforehand, it was time for me to go home. Yet still, I had a great time at the Food & Wine Festival. If you happened to be around before it ends, you shouldn't definitely go. You won't regret it :)