Integrity

{a guest post}

 Credit

To many people, when a person has integrity, it can mean that the person is honest, or kind, or fair, or does what they’re told. To me, when a person has integrity, they have all those things and more. I think of an honest, kind, fair, loving, compassionate, obedient, brave person. A person who will help the child with no father and stick up for the teenager being picked on in the hallways.

Integrity is not something that you just obtain out of thin air. It is something that you earn and build daily. It is something that you have to work for in order to keep. If you really do have integrity, people can sense it the moment you step into the room. The aura about you will be so filled with honesty and goodness that most people probably will not even look you in the eye.

People sometimes associate integrity with a judgmental attitude. That is false. People who are judgmental will be emotional giants, looming over you constantly, making you feel small and insignificant. But people with integrity are quite the opposite. If they truly possess integrity, they will be on level ground with you, comforting you when you feel useless.

People with true integrity make the best kinds of friends. The ones who have integrity are the people that you want to be around. They know how to lovingly confront you when you are doing, or are about to do, something stupid. They will be your rock in the midst of your storms. They can be your bodyguard when others try to tear you down. They can be what keeps you going. They are your inspiration for everyday living.

When I think of integrity, I think of my best friend. He is truly all these things and more. He encourages me to do my best, to never give up, and to live life to its fullest. He comforts me when I am sad, and celebrates with me when I am joyful. He makes me laugh when I am angry, and can instantly get me out of any bad mood I think about having.

Yes, people with integrity are so hard to find. But I think that’s what makes them so valuable. If everyone possessed integrity, we could not truly appreciate its worth. The wealthy don’t understand the wonder of nice things because they have so many of them, while the poor treasure every piece of food they can possibly salvage.

Integrity is a rare treasure that so many people do not appreciate anymore. No one can truly appreciate something unless they have never had it before. I think it is time we taught others how to be full of integrity, and how to appreciate the ones who have already mastered the art.

Credit

Alex has known Joanna for nigh on 11 years, and is banned from telling stories involving frappuccinos, because Joanna knows stories involving sparkling grape juice. When she isn't drowning in music or ag homework, she cries over Captain America: Winter Soldier with Nekodah Ashe, a Jack Russell Terrier in the body of an Akita. Alex loves Jesus more than words can say, and believes real men own 4-wheel-drives.

Thank You

So this week is Thanksgiving week, and I thought about writing some deep profound post about everything with which God has blessed me. But I have, like, 10 other drafts to finish already, and I have green bean casserole to make.

I still wanted to write a little post about being thankful, though. And I had something really nice and explanatory written out on paper, but I lost it somewhere under Mount I-Got-The-Winter-Sweaters-Out-But-Don't-Want-To-Put-Them-In-The-Closet-Yet. If I find it, maybe I'll post it next year.

Today, though, I'm just here to say two little words:

Thank. You.

I think there's only about 10 people who comment on my blog here, but I just want you 10 people to know how much you mean to me.

When I first started blogging intentionally, I was all about page views and my Google Friend Connect number. My momma was a mommy blogger, so that's all I really knew. And most of the big blogs I read were uber spiritual and/or had all this great advice, or they shared recipes. I'm not good at any of those genres; I just wanted to put some thoughts on "paper" and try to be a bit funny.

But when I joined Kellie Falconer's Literary Heroine Blog Party, it was a like a light bulb went on in my head. I found gals who liked to read books and watch movies and think about them, and nobody told them that they were overthinking them. And I realized that I could blog about books and movies, and that it was not abnormal to love Thor for his heart, and that you can have a reaction to a movie besides "dude that's cool". And these girls were so wise and such good writers, and suddenly I remembered that maybe I could actually write, too.

So I wrote. And you guys were so nice and commented. And you didn't even mind when I vented a bit emotionally. And when I read your blogs, I'm inspired to think about stuff and write about more stuff. To think that this happened in less than a year kind of amazes me, to be honest. In January, I didn't even know you people existed, and here it is November, and I refer to certain statements as "well, my friend said such and so." "Which friend?" "Well, the one from my blog."

So, I'm sure this seems a bit odd, but I mean it as nicely as possible. Thank you for taking the time to read my posts and commenting and emailing. It means a lot to me. Some of you (you know who you are) have no idea how much you've helped me. As as wise person I know once wrote, "DO NOT ever let people tell you that "internet friends" are not "real friends."

I pray God blesses each of you richly, and that you have an abundance of things to be grateful for this Thanksgiving.

Credit

Pumpkin Dump Cake aka Man-Catching Cake

Have I mentioned that I don't like to cook? Well, actually, cooking's okay, but I hate menu planning. With a passion. Don't tell my mother. Just kidding: she already knows this very well.

Anyways, I'm sharing a recipe today, because we only have 1 week of pumpkin-eating left, and because this is one of my favorite desserts: pumpkin dump cake.

(Also known as pumpkin dump, or pumpkin butt cake. Don't ask; it's a long story.)

I like to refer to it as my man-catching cake, although the only thing I've caught with it are old ladies at church and my gal pals. I guess I'm using the wrong bait in the wrong pond. Whatever the flip that means.

But, hey, if you catch a man with it, please, let me know. I could totally switch ponds. If you already have a man, well, then, perhaps this will keep him in the aquarium. And if you're a man fishing for women, then, uhm, I have no advice, because I don't fish in that pond.

Wow. I should probably stop with the fishing metaphors. Here's the recipe (which originally came from someone named Terri Lehan):

4 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon maple extract [this gets you Thor; vanilla extract gets you Captain America ;-) ]
3 1/2 cups pumpkin (this is a 20-21 oz. can)
1 can evaporated milk

Mix all of this together and beat until smooth. Pour into a greased 9x13.  Sprinkle spice cake mix over the filling (1 regular box). Drizzle 1/2 cup melted margarine or butter over this. If you like nuts, you can sprinkle 1 cup chopped pecans over top. Bake at 350 for 50 minutes. (It's amazing warm.)

The Hurtful Games

I have this bad habit of avoiding books and movies that are dark and sad. I am perfectly content to only read about marshmallows and unicorns. I'd rather not be sobered down, or have to pop my glitter bubble of happiness.

 It's bad, though, because those dark books or movies make me think the most. Wuthering Heights was like that. Schindler's List and The Book Thief were 2 others. (Oddly enough, I actually wanted to read those.) I carefully avoid We Were Soldiers and Saving Private Ryan when the boys have them on.

Well, The Hunger Games series is like that for me. I haven't read the books (yet), but I watched Hunger Games and Catching Fire in one night to get ready for Mockingjay Part 1. (Since my job  is sending me to an early, free screening, I thought I'd take advantage of that, and jump on the Katniss Kraze.)

I knew the stories were sad. I knew people died. But I STILL spent the entire 4+ hours curled up in an upright fetal position on the end of the couch. Just ask my best homie. I believe her exact words were "I'm surprised you didn't use the WHOLE box of Kleenex."

In my head, it went down something like this. (You can insert "moved to tears" about every 4 scenes.)

Hunger Games: 

1. Everything's grey. This is sad. I wanna watch something else.
2. I like Gale.
3. I like Peeta.
4. Katniss is great.
5. Haymitch is interesting.
6. Not sure I like Effie Trinket
7. Well, you are definitely not my Mr. Bennet. 
8. THAT'S A BIG NEEDLE.
9. I like Cinna.
10. Not as gory as I expected.
11. I think I like Caesar.
12. I love Gale.
13. I love Peeta.
14. RUE.
15. Cato. Ooh.
16. I love Effie.
17. I love Haymitch.
18. Katniss is amazing.

"Well, that was rough. Let's have a cookie."

Catching Fire:

1. I love Gale.
2. I really don't like white roses.
3. President Snow is Satan.
4. I love Peeta.
5. Poor Gale.
6. Oh, Prim, you're so brave now.
7. I really love Effie Trinket.
8. Ah, Haymitch.
9. Johanna, we have words for girls like you.
10. I'm not sure about Finnick.
11. That dress though.
12. I love Cinna.
13. I am Effie Trinket.
14. CINNA.
15. I really like Finnick.
16. I like you now, Johanna.
17. No, not Beetee....
18. PEETA.
19. I knew I liked you, Plutarch.
20. Oh, Beetee.
21. Gale.
22. HER. FACE.

These stories are sad. And I know they're not hopeless in the end, but the whole situation is so dark and rough that it feels hopeless.

I've wondered if I'm taking them too seriously. But isn't that what Suzanne Collins intended? For us to think about what humanity is capable of? I don't know. I'm waiting to watch Mockingjay Parts 1 and 2 and read the books before I come to a sincere conclusion, but at this point, I feel like I need a security blanket.

Which, for this particular evening, was X-Men: Days of Future Past. Because nobody dies in that one, haha. And my favorite Beastie boy is alive. And Wolverine gets his Jean back.

*rebuilds bubble of happiness*

Maleficent (2014)

I am trying something new here. I'm not technically a movie critic, but I do know how to pay attention to a movie and think about it. Which sounds like a movie review to me. Plus, I was really curious about this one. I had heard what a great casting Angelina Jolie was, so I got super excited when my best homie rented it for the weekend. We ended up watching it twice, which is when I got the idea to write a review. So here goes nothing.

 Credit

Guys. This is a good movie. The more I think about it, the more I like it. It's funny, sad, sweet and nostalgic, and it really turns the old story on its cheery little head. Not that it's all dreary, or evil wins, or anything like that. It just makes you second-guess everything you thought you knew about Sleeping Beauty.

The set design and costumes are gorgeous. (Okay, honestly, I can't tell the differences among the various types of animation or CGI or live-action.) But it was all perfect in my books. Aurora had some of my favorite costumes.

 [this is the only shot I could find of this one.]

However, I also thought Maleficent's brown gown was elegant, in its own simply way.

 [there's a shot of it at the end that makes it look much prettier.)

The score was very good. Lana del Rey's "Once Upon a Dream" was weird and creepy and odd and ugly. But the rest of the music was beautiful, and you could hear multiple nods to the original movie's soundtrack. Part of me wanted a sing-over of a cheery "Once" for when Phillip and Aurora meet, but I suppose it didn't matter, because as soon as Phillip came onscreen, the best homie and I busted out singing it ourselves.

Drat. I just got a fresh coffee, and it completely derailed my train of thought.

Ah. Storyline. Plot. Thing. Right. The whole story was amazing. In short, Maleficent is to Sleeping Beauty as Wicked is to The Wizard of Oz. I won't spoil anything, but the events of Maleficent's past really kinda justify the rest of her actions. There's a couple of interesting plot twists, too.

And then we have the characters. There are wooden balrogs here, folks. Not even joking.

See? Totally balrogs.

Prince Philip: Awh, he's a cute little baby. And he looks like he belongs in a boy band.

I really liked that, in this movie, Philip and Aurora look their ages: innocent 16 year olds. Totes adorbs.

The 3 fairies: Basically, every time you see them, LOL.

 
They made me a bit sad, because the original fairies were silly, but they didn't seem that dumb. These seemed flat-out stupid. But maybe it's because they didn't get many lines or much screen time. They were pretty hilarious in spite of this, though. Oh, and look, Maria Hale has blue hair....

 
Diaval: WHAT a surprise. I wanted more Diaval. He's a sidekick who is more than a sidekick.

I love how he roots for Philip and Aurora, and I want a Maleficent 2, where Diaval becomes Queen Aurora's Prime Minister or something.

Aurora: She was very sweet and pretty, just like Aurora should be.

My brothers couldn't get over the fact that she looked like Danielle Bradbery (from The Voice, season 4).

Her character wasn't super fleshed-out, but then she wasn't really the point of this movie.

King Stefan: Well, the casting director gets 1000 accurate points, because he looked a whole lot like the cartoon king.

 
But his character was quite interesting. I think he was inspired by Lady MacBeth, for reasons I can't explain without spoilers. The actor made him very believable.

Maleficent: Spoiler: She isn't evil. Haha. Maybe you suspected that.

Really, Angelina nailed her. Her performance during the christening scene was uncanny. Every other sentence or facial expression during that, I thought, "Wow. That is exactly Maleficent." And her acting was more than believable. In both scenes where she had to be heartbroken, she broke my heart. And, again, no spoilers, but I was rooting for her in the end.

Oh, and there's nothing inappropriate in the whole thing. No language, no sensuality, no gore....it was a nice change of pace.

Well, did my review miss anything? You guys really ought to go rent this. It's amazing. Like I said, I want Maleficent 2.

Chocolate Movie Tag

I'm trying something new here. I've gotten tagged for all these neat blog tags floating around, and one of them gave me an idea. I was tagged for the Chocolate Book Tag, and I thought it would be fun to do a Chocolate Movie Tag. I'm answering mine with movies I own.

Dark Chocolate (a movie that covers a dark topic):
Hotel Rwanda (2004) (AKA why I liked Don Cheadle before he was Iron Patriot)

Credit

This is a sad, but hopeful story about the Rwandan genocide in 1994, and Paul Rusesabagina's efforts to stop the killings. Parts of it are scary, but nothing is gory or overly suggestive. It reminds me of Schindler's List: there's so much hate going around, but one man does everything he can to save as many people as he can.

Credit

White Chocolate (a light and humorous watch):
Mirror Mirror (2012) A hilarious retelling of Snow White, with the goofiest Evil Queen I've ever seen.

 Credit

Snow is perfectly innocent and charming, but smart and brave. And the dwarves have some of the best lines: "Love is someone passing me the potatoes." "Do you think she's enjoying this? Yes, I think she is. Darn." The prince is wonderful and adorable, and Sean Bean is the perfect as the King.

Caramel-filled chocolate (a movie that makes you feel all gooey inside):
This is the perfect description of Austenland (2013).

Every Austenite needs to watch this movie. It's about Jane Hayes, who is 30, single, and unhealthily obsessed with all things Austen (but mostly Mr. Darcy). So she goes to the ultimate Jane Austen resort in England. And deals with her Austen fetish. And gets a lovely British man, aka JJ Feild, aka MR TILNEY!!, in the end. His whole profession of love makes my heart fall out of my chest EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. 

 
Milk Chocolate (a movie with a lot of hype that you're dying to watch):
Well, I read The Book Thief (2013), but I haven't seen the movie yet. I loved the book, so I figure I'll like the movie too. 

 Credit

Wafer-less Kit-Kat (a movie that surprised you):
Snow White and the Huntsman (2012)

I loathe Kristen Stewart, so I avoided this one for two years, even though I love Chris Hemsworth. But we found it at a pawn shop for $2, and I was curious, so we tried it. Wow. I liked it so much that I watched it twice in one week, which is rare for me. Kristen seriously lacks in the business of facial expressions, but if you ignore her, the rest of the movie is great. The plot line is pretty great, the design is grand, the villain is a little empathetic (but still oh-so-evil), the dwarves are funny and sad at the same time, and then there's the Huntsman. Oh, my. Brooding, rough, angry, sad, prickly, feeling, generally in need of a hug......reminds me again why Chrems Hisworth is my current favorite male actor.

 "I wasn't worth saving, that's for sure. She did so anyway. And I loved her so much. I loved her more than anyone or anything. Then I let her out of my sight and she was gone. And I became myself again. A self I never cared for."

(On a barely related note, do you know how fun it is to own a copy of Snow White and the Huntsman? You can say mildly inappropriate things like "Sorry I'm late; Chris Hemsworth was stuck under my passenger seat." Or "Will it bother your driving if Chris Hemsworth sits in the center console?")

Snickers (a movie you're going nuts about):
(Well, I haven't stopped talking about Avengers: Age of Ultron for the last 3 weeks, but I don't own that because it isn't out yet. BOO.)

This one's complicated. Winter Soldier and Days of Future Past were AH-MAZING, but I don't own those. Yet. ;-) The movie that I go nuts over would be Thor: The Dark World, because it's the only Thor I own.

See, he has a special place on the dresser next to the brain sister.

Unfortunately, it wasn't as mind-blowing as those other two, but that isn't Hemsworth's fault, it's the director's. It is the most beautiful Thor movie, though, and I think it Thor, Loki, and Jane show some good character development in it.

(Ah, yes, darling, but you would make a good man AND a great king.)

Hot Chocolate with Mini Marshmallows (a movie you turn to for comfort):
Pride & Prejudice (2005) Definitely comfort viewing. 

I literally carry my copy around everywhere in my craft bag, so I always have it if I get the urge to watch it. I love how Austen romances are founded on discussions and character, and not touchings and feelings. And while '05 does leave out some good Lizzie/Darcy word-battles, I get the idea. And every one of my friends own this movie, and we all love it. And Matthew MacFadyen is adorable. And it isn't 6 hours. And the music is so calming. (I go to sleep with it.) Comfort viewing. 

A Box of Chocolates (a franchise you feel has something for everyone):
I was gonna say the MCU, but then I remembered a family favorite. Ma and Pa Kettle (1947-1957)

 
This was a series of 10 movies about a well-meaning backwoods couple with 15 children. The characters were introduced in The Egg and I, and became popular enough to merit their own series. They are just clean simple fun. I grew up watching them, and Pa and Ma's lines are standard parts of family discussions. (It's most funny because my grandpa is a dead ringer for Percy Kilbride, but my grandpa is anything but lazy.)

 
So, what say we discuss movies? I'll start by tagging just four people:

Hamlette at Hamlette's Soliloquy
Hannah at The Daisy Tree
Rose at The Best of Classics
Kara at Flowers of a Quiet Happiness

Crying Yourself to Sleep

I hate crying. 

Well, to be more specific, I hate sincere crying. I don't get embarrassed if I tear up over finding a deleted scene from Thor: The Dark World. And I wasn't ashamed to wipe away some tears after watching A Walk to Remember for the first time. 

But if you hit me verbally in my weak spot, or if you make me really angry, I fight the tears. And I hold it in as long as possible, which usually lasts until bedtime.

Because crying shows that part of you has busted. It shows you're weak. It makes you vulnerable. So if you fall apart by yourself in the dark, then you don't have to explain or justify yourself to anyone else. You can sob and blubber and reason and second-guess yourself right to sleep, without bothering anybody else. Right? 

Well, not exactly. For starters, I can count on one hand the times I have cried myself "to sleep". There was the time or two or three when my parents were fighting. Or when my best friend's dad died of cancer. Or when my sister-in-law lost her dad. Or when I just wanted to cuddle with my dog one more time. And the last time I cried myself to sleep, it was over something so stupid I can't even admit it. 

Furthermore, if I cry myself to sleep, I'm not actually blubbering or reasoning to myself. Because I know Jesus, and better still, Jesus knows me. 

Which is my whole point. Do you know how reassuring it is to have a Listener like Jesus? 

If you pour out your heart to someone else, even your best friend, they will never completely understand the whole situation. Because we humans can't see the whole scope of a story, we will always have a skewed perception. Even when we try to judge a person or their actions fairly, and we try to empathize with them, we still can't really understand. 

But God understands. He sees every action, every motive, every consequence. He listens to what we say, but He knows how we truly feel. And when we can't even string 5 words together in a sentence, He still knows exactly what we're trying to say. You don't have to explain yourself, you don't have to apologize for being snotty, and you don't have to feel guilty for being confused. 

That both comforts and humbles me immensely. The omnipotent Creator, our all-present Comforter, my perfect Saviour listens. 

To me.