(W)Holy Householding - a few thoughts from 3:30pm to 3:55pm

Householding . . . holding a house together in every sense of the word is tough stuff.  Chasing three kids around to soccer games, swim team practice, piano lessons, math tutor sessions and playtime with friends and cousins keeps me watching the clock.  Plus, then the five year old feeds himself and the dog chocolate ice cream for lunch.  Why am I always behind with the dishes?  And, don't talk to me about laundry - I think I could love laundry, if I didn't hate it so much.  Remember to pay the cell phone bill as they have already left two messages and that darned $39 fee to reinstate really stinks.  CHECK!
Love the idealized clean entry way in "Traditional Home" mag - at least I paid attention to the cover - too bad that as I type this there are snow boots, someone's undies, 37 pairs of shoes, a naked barbie and overdue library books cluttering my tiny entryway.  WELCOME to my house!  OK, don't forget to renew books - I have this thing with library books (love to check them out, hate to return them) I know - completely crazy possessive over books.  
Oh poop, it's 3:40pm and I haven't even thought about what's for dinner -- must pull out trusty panini maker!  Send 3 vital emails re: my church calling.  Call to organize fireside evening for combined two wards - don't forget to order mint brownies for refreshments.  
Edit 14 pages of latest chapter, enough for today!  Will have complete by Thursday, not today as originally planned, but hey, my 84 year old grandmother is in town and I don't know how many more days I will have with her.  Oh, thank you Mr. Mailman, you did bring me Toby Stephens in Jane Eyre via Netflix today!  Maybe I will put that in the ol' DVD player tonight when the kids are in bed - no guilt if I promise to switch the laundry at least twice, right?  Note to self - make children do at least two chores today, they are old enough to help.  Double poop - put away all winter clothes on Saturday when it was a balmy 69 degrees, now only have summer clothes to wait out the inevitable April snow storms that dumped 4 inches on my budding daffodils Saturday night.  Gotta run . . . carpool is calling.
Resolved: Tomorrow my son will not watch more than one hour of PBSKids.  And, will not eat ice cream for lunch.  
How do we hold it all together??? Lots of love, patience and no expectations of perfection.  

Chapter Five Update

I told myself, "This chapter should be a cinch!"  I'll keep it short and sweet and to the point.  I can discuss female patronage during late antiquity and tie in the objet d'art used for personal adornment and veneration in a straightforward and concise way . . .  I can even keep my pages to a reasonable number, somewhere around 30!
Why do I lie to myself???  I still have to cover two gold medallions and add in some text on Helena and I am already at 40 pages!
On the bright side of things, I only have one chapter left to write and I vow that it will be shorter.  Another lie?  Probably.
I don't even want to think about writing my conclusion - I want it to be 5-6 pages at most.  I am seriously considering coercing some of my friends, family and colleagues to read my finished draft chapters and holding a contest where each one submits a single page summing up my dissertation.  They could win very valuable prizes for their entries and I could at least have some examples of concisely written summations.  
This is a great idea!
So, if there are any readers whatsoever to this blog . . . stay posted, you may have a chance to chime in as well.   


On a complete tangent, I finally watched the movie Secretariat last night . . . if you are going to run a race, run at it with everything you've got.  All in all, I'd say '73 was a pretty good year!  Inspiring!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cS4f6wiQJh4&feature=related

Pull Out the Red Pencil

If you want to be a good writer, you need an great editor!  Or editors!
Sharing my pages has always been an intimidating experience because I am met with these dilemmas:
1.  My subject matter is not always an easy read and my topic is somewhat specialized, thus the need for an informed reader.  
2.  As hard as I try to be concise and maintain clarity and meaning when I write, I am still prone to "wordiness" and need an objective thinker to help hone my verbiage without losing my authentic voice.
3.  The best editor is an honest editor -- someone who can help cull the masterpiece from the study sketches.  This process requires a not only a creative thinker, but a patient one as well.
4.  I don't want to bore anyone or waste their time!  So, sometimes I hesitate to ask . . . go ahead, ask anyway!  If I think what I am writing is interesting, chances are others will too.
5.  TRUST!  I have to fight my personal fears of inadequacy.  I acknowledge that what I am writing is imperfect, thus the need for an editor in the first place.  
Nevertheless, I am willing to share my work, and I am fortunate enough to have peers and mentors to share it with!
I am very lucky to have an excellent PhD panel with a great supervisor and advisors.  Additionally, I am happy to count as friends some very talented wordsmiths who ALSO know more than I do about late antiquity AND are willing to help me excavate the best results from my writing.  
To each of you, I say THANK YOU!  Your efforts on my behalf are not only benevolent, they are REAL EFFORTS for which I am truly grateful.

Ordinary Aesthetics

Sensitivity to aesthetics can become second nature if you attune yourself to it.  I am naturally drawn to truly beautiful things like an internal flame.  I side with Plato - Real Beauty is inextricably connected to the Good, and the Good with God.  
As I have pondered the beautiful things in my life I am content.  I am grateful.  I want to cultivate this sensitivity in my children.
In a world fraught with ugliness in attitudes, morals and behaviors, it is hopeful and refreshing to acknowledge goodness and beauty.


Today, I want to acknowledge Japanese civility as a source of good and beauty.

"Fall down seven times, stand up eight"

~Japanese Proverb

And . . . no pushing!

Winston Writes for Me

My Dog Winston writes for me!
Can't you see how lovely he looks illuminated by computer backlight?  
He can construct a perfectly clever turn of phrase without blinking an eye!


Alright, I admit to a little exaggeration here, but have to acknowledge that Winston does help me write.  At least he keeps me from being too lonely while I write. He sits at my feet, sits on my lap, gives me tender little licky kisses.  He adores me, even when my efforts at scintillating insights fail miserably.


Sometimes I relish being alone with my thoughts, but there are times when the inertia of academic loneliness is really hard to bear.
I don't mean to sound dramatic or overly Emo here - but the fact remains that there are times when I feel like a community of one.  


I am grateful for friends far and near who are willing, even if my ramblings don't suit their fancy, to listen, read and comment on my thoughts and pages.  My most sincere thanks goes out to them today!  

Signs Along the Way

You know you are in Britain when even the signs are prim and proper.

Jeeves, I knew there was a reason we decided to forgo the Bentley and 

opted for the Smart car!

 Even the bothered neighbors across from the pub are polite!  Thank You!

 No one would stoop so low as to say: KEEP OUT!

The Queen kindly requests that you refrain from treading upon the royal lawn.

 I can't even figure out which side of the car I am meant to be on, let alone figure this one out.

 Tee hee hee!  I get it, but -- Tee hee hee!

Gotta love the formality!

And then you go to France and find the signage either

 

Really disturbing or

Super cheesy - but hey, in their defense, the French are really good at cheese.

Blooming Inspiration

I adore purple irises.  They are bold, beautiful, regal and inspiring.  This morning I stopped by my local floral shop to pick up something for a friend and noticed that they had 10 stem bunches of purple iris! 

Voila!  The inspiration that I needed for the day.  
Usually, all I need to banish mental dullness is a small token - something simple and beautiful to generate all kinds of creative thoughts and motivate me into action:
Baking my luscious chocolate cake from scratch
Sunday afternoon walks
A tiny box of really amazing chocolate
Finding the perfect accessory on sale
The smell of rain
My scratchy purple plaid Scottish throw blanket
Reading books with my children
A long nap in crispy sheets
Real letters in the mail 
I am just grateful that today the inspiration was irises.