Romance and Mended Hearts...

My roommates have been watching a lot of romance movies lately... I'm well known to generally detest romance films. However, I have to admit that I have enjoyed a couple... Its shocking to me more than anyone I think, which has led me to come to terms with the truth about myself...
So here is the thing... I'm secretly a romantic. Not the mushy candlelight dinner or Cinderella story romantic... I'm a romantic realist and sometimes a romantic skeptic. The problem is that I believe in this thing called love and am sick of all the stupid candy hearts, feigned chivalry, and the cliche dozen roses. I believe in really loving someone for who he or she is, despite the messy stuff and the complications. I don't believe in what is so commonly termed today as "true love". I believe in GENUINE love... a love that is anything BUT blind, yet is 100% sincere, altruistic, fiercely loyal, and utterly honest. Romance to me is my grandparents still being in love with each other after 51 years of marriage... THAT is romantic.
I've been hurt deeply and more than once, but the truth is that deep inside I am a little bit of an optimist when it comes to love and romantic relationships... I believe that genuine love can heal and mend brokenness... I believe that genuine love can do this for my heart. I have to. It gives me hope. God's love does this healing and mending, but He often uses people around us to aid in this process.
I found this illustration drawn by Sarah Wade. I liked it because, unlike a lot of broken heart images I see, the heart wasn't just sewn up once or didn't only have one Bandaid on it... it has been broken many times, but is in the process of healing... Healing occurs with genuine love. So you see, I'm not a hopeless romantic... I'm a hopeFUL romantic. I hope. I believe. I long for GENUINE LOVE.
This song below is one of my new favourites... It expresses my romantic side completely.

SUMMERBREEZE- Emiliana Torrini

It might have been a while
Since you've been loved
Like you should be loved

It might have been a while
Since you've been kissed
Like you should be kissed

And tender loving arms
Might be something you miss

Well summerbreeze is blowing through your window
And summerbreeze is blowing through your hair
And something in your eyes that you cannot disguise
Don't tell me it ain't there

It might have been a while
Since you've been loved
By one who really loves you

It might have been a while
Since you could trust
That someone really cares

When people like us
Meant to go 'round in pairs

Summerbreeze is blowing through your window
And summerbreeze is blowing through your hair
Something in your eyes that took me by surprise
Don't tell me that it ain't there

What People Will Wear in the Name of Tradition!

Kentucky Derby Hats... that in itself is nearly enough said. Haha! In a few moments of boredom yesterday, I searched through Google images looking for the most ridiculous, ostentatious, and flashy hats I could find. Here are a few of my favourites! :)

The French Do It Better!

Just one more reason why I LOVE France! Hahaha! Seriously though... Whenever my dear friend Meredith and I would go over to our host family's home to have lunch or dinner, we had to be prepared to sit down, eat, and have conversation for over two hours. It was fantastic! :)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sleeping and eating - the French do it best
By Sophie Hardach Sophie Hardach – Mon May 4, 7:37 am ET

PARIS (Reuters) – True to their reputation as leisure-loving gourmets, the French spend more time sleeping and eating than anyone else among the world's wealthy nations, according to a study published Monday.

The average French person sleeps almost nine hours every night, more than an hour longer than the average Japanese and Korean, who sleep the least in a survey of 18 members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

Despite their siesta habit, Spaniards rank only third in the poll after Americans, who sleep more than 8.5 hours.

And while more and more French people grab a bite at fast-food chains these days or wolf down a sandwich at their desk, they still spend more than two hours a day eating.

That means their meals are twice as long as those of the average Mexican, who dedicates just over an hour a day to food, the OECD's "Society at a Glance" report on work, health and leisure in Asia, Europe and North and South America found.

The Japanese, scrimping on sleep and burdened with long commutes and working hours, still manage to spend close to two hours a day eating and drinking, placing them third behind New Zealanders.

The Japanese like to spend what remains of their scarce free time watching television or listening to the radio. This takes up 47 percent of leisure time in Japan.

Turks, on the other hand, spend more than a third of their leisure time entertaining friends.

The survey showed that the split between work and leisure time within certain countries is striking.

"Italian men have nearly 80 minutes a day of leisure more than women. Much of the additional work of Italian women is apparently spent cleaning the house," the OECD said in a statement.

The OECD has 30 members. The survey covers only the countries for which appropriate figures were available.

(Editing by Robert Woodward)

Don't Tell Me

Don't call me gorgeous
Don't say I'm perfect
Don't tell me you love me

I know deep down its all a lie
But sometimes I'm so foolish
I may forget and believe you

Don't call me gorgeous
Don't say I'm perfect
Don't tell me you love me

It never lasts
You'll always change

Tell me the truth
I'm the one on your mind
For today
I'm the one you'll use to feel good
For today

So don't call me gorgeous
Don't say I'm perfect
Don't tell me you love me

But if this isn't the case
If you really feel something
Please, I beg you...
Simply stay with me
Don't speak a word at all

DAS
4/17/09

Bridges and Propriety

I realized yesterday that there are merely three weeks left until commencement, in which I will walk across a stage before a sea of eyes, shake hands with the president of my university, and receive (at least in theory) my degree: a Bachelor of Arts in English with an emphasis in literature and a Bachelor of Arts in history. With that in mind, I sat down this evening pouring over invitations and envelopes trying to figure out the best way to word names and addresses. I realized there is a ridiculous amount of decorum that goes into sending an invitation. First, there are two envelopes. The invitation goes into the smaller one. The small envelope is then labeled with the informal names of the person(s) or left blank. It is then placed into a larger envelope facing so that the informal name is facing the flap side of the large envelope. Then the larger envelope is addressed quite formally such as "Mr. & Mrs. John Smith". None of the words in the address itself may be abbreviated (thankfully, taking French helped me remember how to spell "boulevard"). Whew! I'm sure I'm missing something, but that is about as fancy as I am going to get.
I'm incredibly busy trying to get everything together and ready to leave APU. I find myself with a similar feeling to how I felt when I graduated high school and was preparing to move out of home, or how I felt when I left France after I had studied there for a semester... ready to move on, but not ready all at the same time. See, I know that this is a different event from high school graduation in the fact that I didn't have to be completely out on my own and be a full fledged adult, or different from when I left L'Abbaye de Pontlevoy because I knew what to expect once I got back home. Still, the feeling is similar. It is as if I am crossing a rickety wooden bridge that holds up just long enough for me to go over to the opposite side, but won't let me go back. Yes, I'm being nostalgic, but it really is true. Right now I'm coming up to that bridge and stepping on the first rotting old board. The trouble is, I can't see where that bridge is taking me this time... I honestly have no idea where I am going to be six months from now--where I'm going to be living, what I'll be doing for work, or how I'll pay my bills. It's nerve racking to say the least. People say to me (and I say to myself), "Dani this is a fantastic time to just completely trust the Lord and let him surprise you!" Well, I'm trying very hard to trust Him, but I really would rather like a hint. I would at least like to see the other side of the bridge I'm stepping onto!

Childhood Memories Revisited

I was elated today when I was finally able to find a video clip of the old PBS math show Square One on YouTube today! I never watched for the math, of course... LOL... I only watched because there was a specific sketch that I enjoyed called "Mathnet," which was set up like a mystery/detective story. Agents Monday and Friday were always on some case and I loved to watch to see it resolved. I watched it when I was about 7 or 8, but even at a young age I loved detective stories and a good mystery. I've embedded the clips of the Square One theme song and also a "Mathnet" sketch. ;)



Another show that involved a deal of detecting and "investigative" work was "Where In the World Is Carmen Sandiego?" I watched this between the ages of about 8 and 11. My parents bought the different games for our family PC and I practiced my detecting skills while learning my geography (a much easier area for me than math!) and about different cultures. The rain reminded me of the show because I wore a trench coat. Any young person of my generation who ever watched the show or played the computer game knows that Carmen Sandiego always wears a trench coat (although mine is khaki and hers is red). LOL...

Otto Von Bismarck and His Namesake City...

Alright, so this blog really has absolutely nothing to do with 19th century German Chancellor Otto Von Bismark with the exception that I am talking about the capitol of North Dakota which was named in his honour. This evening on Channel 7 ABC News, the weatherman showed the "weather map" on the screen. I couldn't help but notice the temperature in Bismarck, ND, which happened to be 9 degrees.... NINE! Last week, a city in ND was 22 degrees BELOW zero!
These observations have led me to ask the important question:
WHY WOULD ANYONE LIVE IN NORTH DAKOTA?!
Perhaps only rich people should live there so they could live there in the summer and come south in the winter... "Dakota Geese", we could call them... I think this is a very crucial question that people need to think over... LOL....