So, everyone's doing this "top 100" BBC book list, or other lists, and I decided that I wanted a list that would both reflect my own views of the literary canon and concurrently make me feel good (aka, only books I've read on it). We'll call it . . . THE NEB LIST: TOP 50.
1. The Bible
2. The Qur'an
3. The Iliad and The Odyssey
4. The Aeneid
5. The Divine Comedy
6. Beowulf
7. The Canterbury Tales
8. The Complete Works of Shakespeare
9. Pride and Prejudice
10. Emma
11. Sense and Sensibility
12. Jane Eyre
13. Great Expectations
14. A Tale of Two Cities
15. In Memoriam, A.H.H.
16. Hunchback of Notre Dame
17. Anna Karenina
18. Madame Bovary
19. The Three Musketeers
20. The Secret Garden
21. The Jungle Book
22. The Picture of Dorian Grey
23. The Importance of Being Earnest
24. Howard's End
25. A Handful of Dust
26. To the Lighthouse
27. The Years
28. The Village in the Jungle
29. Things Fall Apart
30. The Lord of the Rings
31. The Chronicles of Narnia
32. The Strangers
33. The Glass Menagerie
34. Our Town
35. The Scarlet Letter
36. The Great Gasby
37. The Old Man and the Sea
38. For Whom the Bells Toll
39. The Grapes of Wrath
40. Watership Down
41. Ender's Game
42. 1984
43. Lord of the Flies
44. Till We Have Faces
45. Confessions (Augustine)
46. The Pilgrim's Progress
47. Institutes of the Christian Religion
48. Idylls of a King
49. Middlemarch
50. Paradise Lost
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
No Place Like Home
I'm Going Home This Weekend!!!
After all the craziness and emotionalness of the past few weeks, I have been left with a strong desire to see my family. Of course, I almost always want to see my family (and I've been hoping to take a weekend and visit them for awhile), but the last few weeks just gave me a little nudge so that I'm actually going! I'm so excited. My mom and I are planning to go shopping for a pilate DVD because the doctor told me I should try pilates (my spell check is saying that's wrong. huh. can you not pluralize "pilate"?), and I think we're going to invite my cousin Joy and my aunt over. I'm very excited!
Also, I just discovered that DA Carson is preaching on Sunday. I really like DA Carson's stuff (the little I've read and the lots I've been told about), and it will be so neat to hear him preach. Also, I'm hoping to see Ian and Lydia at church and catch up with them.
I love the Twin Cities so much. When I have kids, if I'm not raising them overseas doing missions, I would love to raise them in the Twin Cities. Sure, the cold isn't so great, but there is so much culture and art, and I'd love to raise them in Bethlehem. Though, I've slowly developed a preference for smaller churches over the years. And my family is in Minnesota, and it would be nice for my kids to grow up near my parents. Haha-I'm talking like I'm actually going to have kids anytime soon. And like I can actually predict what my future will look like.
I have started to really want to have kids, though. I'm at a point where I'm happy to be single, but I really do want to be a mom someday. I think grad school has helped me realize that as much as I love academia, I don't want teaching and research to be my entire life. I want to raise kids to love Jesus, and I want to show Jesus to the world in whatever community I'm a part of. Right now, though, God has given me a great opportunity in grad school, and this is what I'm called to do. So, I will do it to the best of my ability, and let it prepare me for what will be an important--but not most important--part of my life. And when God decides it's time for the whole marriage-and-kids thing, that will be great, too.
I think I should go study.
After all the craziness and emotionalness of the past few weeks, I have been left with a strong desire to see my family. Of course, I almost always want to see my family (and I've been hoping to take a weekend and visit them for awhile), but the last few weeks just gave me a little nudge so that I'm actually going! I'm so excited. My mom and I are planning to go shopping for a pilate DVD because the doctor told me I should try pilates (my spell check is saying that's wrong. huh. can you not pluralize "pilate"?), and I think we're going to invite my cousin Joy and my aunt over. I'm very excited!
Also, I just discovered that DA Carson is preaching on Sunday. I really like DA Carson's stuff (the little I've read and the lots I've been told about), and it will be so neat to hear him preach. Also, I'm hoping to see Ian and Lydia at church and catch up with them.
I love the Twin Cities so much. When I have kids, if I'm not raising them overseas doing missions, I would love to raise them in the Twin Cities. Sure, the cold isn't so great, but there is so much culture and art, and I'd love to raise them in Bethlehem. Though, I've slowly developed a preference for smaller churches over the years. And my family is in Minnesota, and it would be nice for my kids to grow up near my parents. Haha-I'm talking like I'm actually going to have kids anytime soon. And like I can actually predict what my future will look like.
I have started to really want to have kids, though. I'm at a point where I'm happy to be single, but I really do want to be a mom someday. I think grad school has helped me realize that as much as I love academia, I don't want teaching and research to be my entire life. I want to raise kids to love Jesus, and I want to show Jesus to the world in whatever community I'm a part of. Right now, though, God has given me a great opportunity in grad school, and this is what I'm called to do. So, I will do it to the best of my ability, and let it prepare me for what will be an important--but not most important--part of my life. And when God decides it's time for the whole marriage-and-kids thing, that will be great, too.
I think I should go study.
Friday, February 13, 2009
Thursday Stuff
My last week has been a little crazy. It started off with a whole "recovering from the flu" frenzy of trying to get stuff done, and then I had a (very) minor "What am I doing with my life!" wish-I-were-overseas crisis. Also, I have a couple of friends who have some tough stuff going on in their lives, and it's hard to watch them hurting and know that all I can do is pray and leave it in God's hands.
Today was both one of the worst and best days of the week for me. I went to the internist (the appointment I set up in November finally came!) thinking that I'd just get a referral to yet another specialist who would either take forever to give me a diagnosis or say they had no idea. I've kinda gotten use to that routine. However, I was praying that God would just give me an answer today, and he did. After talking with me, the resident I've been seeing went to consult with the supervising doctor who came back and said, "Well, all your symptoms match chronic fatigue syndrome," and gave me some suggestions for how I can adjust my life in order to have some more energy. I did some research when I got home, and it turns out, reading the symptom list for CFIDS sounds a little like reading the story of my life (for the past six years). Also, while I'm always going to have to be really careful about reducing stress, getting lots of rest, and keeping my exercise to a moderate level (no more marathon plans ), doing those things should help me feel a little bit better. I have to admit, my feelings have been a mixture of "yay diagnosis!" and "I'm likely going to live with this for the rest of my life." I'm really not looking forward to the possibility of a lifetime of episodes like the ones I've been having for the past few years, but I am really happy to have a name to give to them. Also, I'm trying to look at this as an opportunity to trust God with what he's doing with my health. My body is his temple, a gift given to me so that I may worship him with it, and he knows best how I should use it to bring him glory.
The doctor visit was one of the low points of my day. However, this afternoon, something amazingly happy happened. I've been going through all sorts of tough decisions about whether to stay in my apartment next year or not, whether to get a roommate or not, etc., and today, after a phone conversation with my landlord, I figured out that I don't have to move next year!! I'm so happy I don't like moving at all, and I really do love my apartment, weird pipe noises, train outside, and stinky parking lot included. It's so cute, and I've worked so hard to make it nice, it would have been sad to have to move after just one year. And, now, I don't have to. Also, I was worried that the person I had talked to about living together would be left alone, but it turns out that she just found out that she can live with some girls from her rowing team!
Today was both one of the worst and best days of the week for me. I went to the internist (the appointment I set up in November finally came!) thinking that I'd just get a referral to yet another specialist who would either take forever to give me a diagnosis or say they had no idea. I've kinda gotten use to that routine. However, I was praying that God would just give me an answer today, and he did. After talking with me, the resident I've been seeing went to consult with the supervising doctor who came back and said, "Well, all your symptoms match chronic fatigue syndrome," and gave me some suggestions for how I can adjust my life in order to have some more energy. I did some research when I got home, and it turns out, reading the symptom list for CFIDS sounds a little like reading the story of my life (for the past six years). Also, while I'm always going to have to be really careful about reducing stress, getting lots of rest, and keeping my exercise to a moderate level (no more marathon plans ), doing those things should help me feel a little bit better. I have to admit, my feelings have been a mixture of "yay diagnosis!" and "I'm likely going to live with this for the rest of my life." I'm really not looking forward to the possibility of a lifetime of episodes like the ones I've been having for the past few years, but I am really happy to have a name to give to them. Also, I'm trying to look at this as an opportunity to trust God with what he's doing with my health. My body is his temple, a gift given to me so that I may worship him with it, and he knows best how I should use it to bring him glory.
The doctor visit was one of the low points of my day. However, this afternoon, something amazingly happy happened. I've been going through all sorts of tough decisions about whether to stay in my apartment next year or not, whether to get a roommate or not, etc., and today, after a phone conversation with my landlord, I figured out that I don't have to move next year!! I'm so happy I don't like moving at all, and I really do love my apartment, weird pipe noises, train outside, and stinky parking lot included. It's so cute, and I've worked so hard to make it nice, it would have been sad to have to move after just one year. And, now, I don't have to. Also, I was worried that the person I had talked to about living together would be left alone, but it turns out that she just found out that she can live with some girls from her rowing team!
Thursday, February 5, 2009
365 Days
This time last year, I was enjoying the 80 degrees of an unusually warm day in Tennessee. No idea that within five hours, I'd be rushing into the bathroom before a tornado threw a tree through the window of my friend's apartment, injured other Union students, damaged most of the buildings on campus and destroyed over 2/3 of student housing.
I remember the sound of the buildings being torn apart around and above me and the glass shattering. I remember being so scared that one of my friends or roommates had been killed. I remember feeling so helpless, and I remember the relief I felt when I finally got ahold of Russ and he said that Bonnie and I could spend the next few nights with them.
I remember the stomach ache and head ache I had for three days following the tornado. I remember not being able to eat or sleep well for days. I remember when I finally allowed myself to cry. I was at China Pan with the MKs. They were talking about the people in the hospital and how injured they were. While the MKs went to Walmart, I got into the truck that Russ and Hether had let Bonnie and I drive and broke down crying, and then drove around Jackson praying out loud and telling God how hard it all was.
I remember how wonderful and faithful God has been throughout this past year. For a few months before the tornado, I had been leaning on Psalm 46: "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling." I remember waking up after a few hours of sleep the morning after the tornado. I remember opening a Bible and reading those verses in a whole new light and understanding in a whole new way what it meant that God was holy, all-powerful, and good. I remember how God provided for me in amazing ways, working things out so that I could live with Russ, Hether, Natalie, and Isaac, helping me find a car in a single week, giving me friends who gave me clothes, books, gift cards, and other gifts to help me make it through the semester. I remember how shocked I was to hear that the firemen expected to find 70 people dead when they arrived at Union, and yet no one died. And I still see how God has used the tornado to shape who I am. Life is so precarious, and God is so awesome and good. I could die at any moment, and so could the people around me. I want to use whatever life God has given me to glorify him and help others do the same. I want to show his love to a hurting world, and I want to spread his fame through the nations.
I remember the sound of the buildings being torn apart around and above me and the glass shattering. I remember being so scared that one of my friends or roommates had been killed. I remember feeling so helpless, and I remember the relief I felt when I finally got ahold of Russ and he said that Bonnie and I could spend the next few nights with them.
I remember the stomach ache and head ache I had for three days following the tornado. I remember not being able to eat or sleep well for days. I remember when I finally allowed myself to cry. I was at China Pan with the MKs. They were talking about the people in the hospital and how injured they were. While the MKs went to Walmart, I got into the truck that Russ and Hether had let Bonnie and I drive and broke down crying, and then drove around Jackson praying out loud and telling God how hard it all was.
I remember how wonderful and faithful God has been throughout this past year. For a few months before the tornado, I had been leaning on Psalm 46: "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling." I remember waking up after a few hours of sleep the morning after the tornado. I remember opening a Bible and reading those verses in a whole new light and understanding in a whole new way what it meant that God was holy, all-powerful, and good. I remember how God provided for me in amazing ways, working things out so that I could live with Russ, Hether, Natalie, and Isaac, helping me find a car in a single week, giving me friends who gave me clothes, books, gift cards, and other gifts to help me make it through the semester. I remember how shocked I was to hear that the firemen expected to find 70 people dead when they arrived at Union, and yet no one died. And I still see how God has used the tornado to shape who I am. Life is so precarious, and God is so awesome and good. I could die at any moment, and so could the people around me. I want to use whatever life God has given me to glorify him and help others do the same. I want to show his love to a hurting world, and I want to spread his fame through the nations.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Past Week in Brief
Oh, where to begin! Ok. First, birthday. Good birthday. I had lunch with friends, then the RUF people went out to Mexican with me and I got to wear a giant sombrero and get free ice cream, and then a couple of us hung out and ate cake at my apartment. Yummy Hy-Vee cake. So good. Anyway, birthday was a good day, and all my friends and the people who called and texted me made me feel special and loved.
Saturday, Josh, Julie, Hunter and I went to Cedar Rapids for Red Robin. So wonderful! It was really fun to hang out with them, and afterwards, we went to the teacher store so that Julie could buy stuff for her classroom. That night, I wasn't feeling so great, so I hung out at home and watched Stranger than Fiction, thinking that it was a funny movie. But no. Turns out, it's a really good movie, but really serious.
Sunday I got the flu and spent the day running between my couch and the bathroom. It wasn't fun. I thought I was getting better, but then tonight, I ended up feeling super sick all over again. So, I haven't really eaten anything significant and kept it in my body for four days, and I'm starting to feel all moody and stuff because of it. No fun.
Anyway, that's a quick update on the life of me. I'm going to try to go to bed now and hope I get some sleep tonight.
Saturday, Josh, Julie, Hunter and I went to Cedar Rapids for Red Robin. So wonderful! It was really fun to hang out with them, and afterwards, we went to the teacher store so that Julie could buy stuff for her classroom. That night, I wasn't feeling so great, so I hung out at home and watched Stranger than Fiction, thinking that it was a funny movie. But no. Turns out, it's a really good movie, but really serious.
Sunday I got the flu and spent the day running between my couch and the bathroom. It wasn't fun. I thought I was getting better, but then tonight, I ended up feeling super sick all over again. So, I haven't really eaten anything significant and kept it in my body for four days, and I'm starting to feel all moody and stuff because of it. No fun.
Anyway, that's a quick update on the life of me. I'm going to try to go to bed now and hope I get some sleep tonight.
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