GUEST POST!

My guest post for Shaylynn's Tolkien Month got published on her blog this morning!  Eeeee!  I'm super excited - this was my first guest post ever, and on Shealynn's Fairy Shop, which is a long-time favorite of mine.  It was one of the very first blogs I ever discovered!  I am honored.

Check it out here, and be sure to read the rest of the Tolkien Month posts as well.

*blows dust from keyboard* (alternate title: complaints about schoolwork)

That title is metaphorical, actually.  My keyboard is used everyday and is never dusty.  But my *new post* button would definitely be dusty if was actually real and not just a combination of pixels.   I'm not gonna apologize about not posting for ten days, so if you wanted to hear that you can just skedaddle.  It's not happening.

September is a really busy month, apparently.  I figured it would be no different from August, but I was wrong.  You know the saying - "good grades, social life, blogging, and enough sleep: pick two."  (Well, maybe it doesn't go quite like that....)  September seems like it's going the month of good grades and social life.  BUT, I am working on my first guest post ever, which is awesome and scary.  It's a proof of my lack of time, though, that I only get about two sentences written at a time before I remember that I really need to answer the study question for English 11 because I have to do that and English 12 before the end of May, or I haven't done American Government for three days and I need to catch up, or...well, you get the idea.  Whoever said twelfth grade was the easiest is a LIAR.  DON'T LISTEN TO THEM.  It's really, really stressful.  You're welcome. 

Well, I'm off to clean stuff and write some of my guest post and watch babies.  Happy feast of the Nativity of Mary, by the way.

Someday Lists

Lately I've been saying a lot of things like "before I die I'm going to ---" or "someday I'll ---".  So I decided to just make bucket lists.

Why plural, you ask?  Well, because being the pessimistic practical person that I am, I have two lists.  The first is stuff I could conceivably do, if I set my mind to it, and the second consists of things that are improbable or  practically impossible - and, also, things that I forgot to add to the first list.  Oh, and by the way - I hate the name "bucket list".  I prefer to call them "someday lists".  And I don't care if you think that's cheesy, either, so there.

This is the "attainable" list.  (made with Pixlr)

I was going to write out the "impractical" list with Pixlr as well, but I got lazy and busy and stuff, so it's just gonna be in regular text:

 - direct a movie based on an undervalued, movie-less book. 

 - Be an epic, dedicated, real librarian.

 - Be an awesome Catholic, modest singer who single-handedly starts trends of nice skirts and reading Chesterton and being a lady.

 - Become a bestselling, awe-inducing poet or novelist or essayist.  I'm not particular which it is, though novelists are more universally enjoyed than poets or especially essayists.

 -  Go skydiving or some other extremely scary foolhardy activity.  (In real life I've too much sense for this, plus I don't crave such thrills.)

 - Meet somebody and become friends with them, speaking in a British accent the whole time.  They will always think I'm British, and then one day when we've known each other for years I'll casually tell them I'm American.

 - Perform in the kind of play that one pays to see.  (Preferably Shakespeare.)

 - Memorize an entire book.

 -  Give an interview.

 - Travel the world over and see every amazing thing I've ever wanted to.

~~~

Do you have a bucket list?  What's on it?

Homeschool Tips from a Setonite

via pinterest

Since I've just started twelfth grade (woohoo!) and I know most of you are starting the school year about now as well, I thought I'd share some homeschooler's "helps" to get one through the agony.  I am by no means a whiz at schoolwork, but over twelve years of torture I've had time to discover some helpful little tips and tricks.  I daresay they're mostly common-sense, but since that particular quality is sadly lacking these days, I don't think anyone will notice.

• Music.  This doesn't work for everyone, but most people will find that there's maybe just one subject that gets done faster or more easily when they're listening to music.  Personally, I need music for subjects that don't take up much brainpower, because if my brain isn't occupied, I get antsy and am likely to just stop doing whatever it is.  I also need music for subjects that frustrate me and for things that I can hardly force myself to do.  (At this point you might be wondering what I do without music.  Wellll.....precious little.  A grand total of two subjects out of seven, to be precise.)  Now, I know tons of people already listen to music while doing schoolwork, but here's the thing: a lot of them listen to the wrong kind.  Face it, most popular music isn't going to help you think.  Sorry darling.  Now, of course everyone has their preferences, but as a rule, calmer music is better, and instrumental is always good.  That doesn't necessarily mean classical, either, though classical is a good choice.  Personally, I like Enya, Mozart, and string-quartet versions of more upbeat songs.   
• Location.  If you're easily distracted (like me), the revered dining-room-table method is probably the worst choice.  There are always people walking through, yelling in the next rooms, and talking to you when you're trying to work.  Not to mention that eventually your family forgets you're there and thus unwittingly lets you eavesdrop on various conversations.  NOT that I would know anything about that.  *whistles*  Ideally, I think the best thing to do is to change your position for different subjects.  If you always do a certain subject in a certain place, simply going to that place will make your brain prepare for the subject.  For instance, I do math and logic in the dining room (no, I do not follow my own advice), English on my bed, Literature sitting in my rocking chair, science on the couch, and everything else at my desk (which is really a dumpster table, but don't tell anyone).
•  Food and drink.  One, eat breakfast.  I never do (hate that meal) and then I'm sitting with a math book at ten o' clock about to faint.  It's not conductive to understanding or efficiency.   Two, find out if caffeine really helps at all.  I drink black tea every morning, but it's more to stop hunger than to help me work.  Caffeine can do more harm then good where school is concerned, because it makes you jittery and easily distracted.  Some people are still helped by it, though, so find out what it does for you personally.  Finally, I've discovered that a snack or drink in the afternoon really helps with that 3 o' clock slump.  I haven't tried it in the winter yet, so I'm not sure what would be best, but during the summer I would get a glass of iced tea, juice, a cookie, or some other little thing (often sweet) to nibble or sip while I worked.  It really helped, especially because I always feel a need to occupy my brain whilst I eat or drink.
• The black hole of procrastination.  I refer to the internet.  This is the biggest no-brainer ever, and yet no one can resist it.  If you can't use sheer willpower (and it's harder than it sounds), just disconnect your computer.  Then that little orange fox (or whatever, dependeding on which internet service you use) is no use, and you are forced to work.  If for whatever reason you can't do that, a lesser solution is to just visit all your pet sites at a stated time.  That way you've seen all the updates and you don't get that curiosity in the back of your mind to check what's new on Pinterest or see if there are any new posts on your favorite blogs.  This isn't a perfect solution because, besides the fact that you've given in to the temptation, you still tend to get lost in the intricacies of blog links or youtube videos and lose track of time, with often disastrous results.  Bottom line, you're gonna have to expend some willpower no matter what, but there are ways to minimize it.
• Bribe yourself.  "If I finish this essay today, I'll watch an extra episode of _________ later."  Or "I'll have a nice dessert after dinner."  Or whatever it takes.  I must confess that I have been known to give myself the reward even if I don't complete the task.  Don't do that.  Just...no.  It's ridiculous.  You only get the prize if you do the work. And, speaking of indulgence, celebrate your perfect scores.  I remember one of the only times I got 100% on a math test, my mom called my dad and told him, and he brought me back a little fairy craft as reward when he came home that night.  That was in....probably seventh grade.  Now, as a highschooler, you don't expect prizes, and I'm not even saying you should buy yourself something.  Just, tell your family, do a happy dance, and eat a cookie.  Cookies are good for everything.
• Tell others about what you're doing.  Seriously, this helps.  If you discuss your book analysis with your mom, a sibling, or anyone whom you see very often, you'll get more interested in it yourself.  Plus, they'll often ask you how it's going, and then of course you want to give a favorable answer, so you work on it more and make a better effort than if no knew but you.  If you're lucky (and it doesn't annoy you too much), you can convince someone to nag you about a despised subject or assignment till you do it.  I've tried numerous times to get my mom to force me to work, and she just WON'T DO IT.  Hopefully you have someone more cooperative.  *glares*

Well, hopefully something in that gave you some ideas.   Good luck with the school year!  Say a prayer to St. Thomas Aquinas when you're stuck.  He's the patron saint of scholars.

The Essence of Charity

A couple of days ago I came across an extra-beautiful meditation in the book Divine Intimacy, which, as you may remember, I have posted about before.   This one is about the essence of love of God, and I thought it was pretty amazing.  Some of it could apply to human love as well, I think, tying in with that one post I wrote about true love.  But, leaving that aside, it's just lovely.  Read and see:

Meditation 255: The Act of Love

p. 762-763

"To love a person is to desire his well-being.  We understand, therefore, that the essence of love is in the act of the will by which we wish good.  This does not take away from the fact that the act may often be accompanied by sensible affection, making our love both an act of the will and of the sensibility.  Nevertheless, it is clear that the substance of real love is not to be found in the emotions but in the act of the will.  Charity does not change our manner of loving, but penetrates it, supernaturalizes it, making the will and the sensibility capable of loving God.  Yes, even sensible affection can be engaged in the act of supernatural love; God does not despise this humbler and less lofty manifestation of our love for Him, because He has commanded us to love Him not only with our whole mind and our whole soul, but also with our whole heart.  All our powers---intellectual, volitive, and affective---are engaged in the act of love, and yet the substance of this act is not found in the feelings but in the will.  Therefore, when our emotions are cold in our love of God, and we "feel" nothing, there is no reason for us to be disturbed; we will find less satisfaction in our love---for it is much more peasant for us to feel that we are loving---but our act of love will be equally true and perfect.  Even more, lacking the impetus and pleasure which come from our feelings, we will be obliged to apply ourself more resolutely to the act of the will and this, far from harming it, will make it more voluntary, and therefore, more meritorious.  Precisely because the substance of love is in the act of the will that wishes good to God, in order to make our love purer and more intense, Our Lord will often deprive us of all consoling feelings; we will no longer feel that we love God---and this will give us pain---but in reality, we will love Him in the measure that we will with determination what He wills, and want His good pleasure and delight above all things.  Besides, it is not [always] in our power to feel love but it is always in our power to make voluntary acts of love; it is always in our power to wish good to God, striving with all our strength to live for Him and to please Him."

Photograph by me, edited with Picmonkey.