If You Could Tell Your Younger Self One Thing…

What would it be?

I don’t always have answers for these sorts of questions, but I do for this one:

“Someday, your hair will curl.”

(I did nothing to my hair before this picture, other than wash it and let it dry.)

It’s nothing earth-shattering. But really, young me doesn’t need to worry about stressful things that haven’t happened yet, or get spoilers about good things that haven’t happened yet. But I know that at any point in my childhood, with stick-straight hair that I wished would at least be a little wavy, I would have been delighted to know for sure that my hair would develop curls as an adult.

What would you tell your younger self?

Éowyn’s Starry Mantle

They were clad in warm raiment and heavy cloaks, and over all the Lady Éowyn wore a great blue mantle of the colour of deep summer-night, and it was set with silver stars about hem and throat. Faramir had sent for this robe and had wrapped it about her; and he thought that she looked fair and queenly indeed as she stood there at his side. The mantle was wrought for his mother, Finduilas of Amroth, who died untimely, and was to him but a memory of loveliness in far days and of his first grief; and her robe seemed to him raiment fitting for the beauty and sadness of Éowyn. – From The Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkien

I’ve always loved this description of the mantle Faramir gave Éowyn. It sounded beautiful and comforting.

Then one day, years ago now, I discovered what the version designed for the movie looked like:

And I was dismayed, because this isn’t what I envisioned AT ALL.

It’s a weird shape. It has way too many “stars”. And all that beading makes it look stiff and scratchy instead of something soft and warm to wrap around yourself.

It’s beautifully made and the result of much thought and work, I’m sure, but it just doesn’t fit the description.

So I made my own.

By which I mean, I quickly made an enormous, dark blue cloak, did the embroidery I wanted around the top, and then didn’t do the rest for ages.

But some friends of mine have a Lord of the Rings-themed party every September, and last year I had an idea for a modern day Finduilas costume. I’d never felt like making a dress in the “right” style to go with the cape, but it occurred to me that no rule says I have to.

We don’t know much about Finduilas. She grew up near the ocean, and after she married Denethor, she missed her home and didn’t cope well with living so close to Mordor, and she died about 11 years later. I suspect Denethor didn’t help either; he loved her, in his way, but he’s a jerk.

So my goal for this costume was a balance between beachy and sophisticated, and I think it worked. I even had someone just know who I was, which I didn’t expect because it was fairly obscure.

I wanted to get pictures to share at the time but it didn’t happen, so I finally got some today. Thanks, Mom!

I went to a thrift store and found the perfect dress. It FIT. And was WHITE but somehow had no mysterious stains. The only thing I had to do to it was snip off its tiny cap sleeves, because they were uncomfortably tight and one was ripped (maybe they were too tight for the previous owner, too).

Then I went to Joann’s and found a little ocean-y colored, sparkly tulle, and I literally just sewed it into a long tube to tie around my waist as a belt. Turns out tulle makes for a great decorative belt; I tied it once and it just stayed where I put it. I didn’t have to constantly adjust it.

I wanted something sparkly for my hair, so I did some Googling for ideas. Apparently hair rings are a thing. You can buy them. Or you can get much cheaper jewelry wire and charms and make your own. They’re super simple, and I wear them sometimes now just because I like them.

And I did the rest of the embroidery on the cape in two days. My hand did not thank me. It didn’t end up visible in the pictures, but I put larger versions of the same stars you see at the top around the hem and a few down the opening in the front.

The movie version of the cape has too much sparkle. Mine has none and could use a little. But I still think it’s much closer to the book’s description, and I’m glad I did the work to make it.

Something Crazy

Once upon a time, I was about to turn 22. I found myself oddly distressed by the realization that I hadn’t done anything remotely crazy while I was 21. I had about a week to fix this, and I did some brainstorming.

By the end of the day, I had dyed a couple inches of my hair turquoise. I’d done some research on hair dyes and decided to dye just the bottom of my hair so that if I hated it in a couple days, I could just trim it off. I know, I’m so crazy. But it’s one of the most impulsive things I’ve ever done, and it scratched the “I NEED TO DO SOMETHING WORTHY OF MY WILD AND RECKLESS YOUTH” itch.

Fast forward several years, and I’ve kept it up pretty frequently since impulsive day. Now I usually do a thick stripe behind one ear, which mixes in well with braids and ponytails. And at some point I switched from turquoise to red; I like that the red blends nicely with my natural hair color, especially as the dye starts to fade. Because I do actually quite like my hair. I like the color. I like that it got wavier as I got older. (This happened to several people I know, and I wish someone had told me it was a possibility, because as I kid I always wanted my very straight hair to have some wave. Now it’s pretty much exactly what I wanted.) But I enjoy this way to add some creative interest.

Today I dyed several thick strips of hair. This is the most I’ve ever done at one time. While I didn’t dye all of it, I did enough to make the overall impression much more red. I am enjoying the results.

And I like this picture of myself.

(FYI, If you happen to be looking for hair dye, I recommend Manic Panic. It’s what I found in my original research, and it has served me well. It lasts quite a while but eventually washes out. And I’ve never noticed it damaging my hair.)

Small but Good Choices I’ve Made in My Life

Things that seemed fairly inconsequential at the time that have had lasting pleasant and useful consequences.

• Listening to the Yellowcard album Paper Walls
• Liking the Facebook page UPS Dogs The cuteness never ends. Highly recommended.
• Trying green tea
• Buying an AUX cord for my car I actually need a new one now. It’s wearing out.
• Letting friends talk me into watching superhero movies
• Buying stilettos Being able to walk in them makes me feel super cool.
• Dyeing my hair I currently have a streak of red down the right side, and I really like it.
• Checking out a ukulele from the library
• Getting an extra pair of headphones to keep at work
• Trying this chocolate chip cookie in a mug recipe I rarely actually bake the cookie. Usually I just eat the cookie dough.
• Reading a chapter of my Bible every day I’ve since moved up from just one chapter, but it was a good start.
• Joining a Narnia forum
• Attempting NaNoWriMo for the first time
• Picking up the book The Mystery of the Stuttering Parrot at a yardsale
• Looking up yoga videos on Youtube

Living on the Edge for Homebodies

We don’t all want to climb Mount Everest. Some of us need adventuresome friends around to occasionally drag us out of our comfy chairs where we’re snuggled in a blanket, drinking tea, happily reading about other people climbing Mount Everest.

But sometimes our adventuresome friends are busy when our lives need a little shaking up. What then? Where can we get that, “This is so different and dangerous,” feeling?

• Eat spaghetti while wearing a white shirt.
• Go to McDonald’s at 10 at night just to get out of the house. Or at least contemplate the possibility.
• Sit in a different chair and gain a new perspective on your living room.
• Try a new show on Netflix. Maybe even in some genre you don’t usually go for.
• Knit while riding in the car. Especially with those dangerous double-pointed needles.
• Rearrange your closet or kitchen or the like so you won’t be able to find anything for ages.
• Paint your nails a very bright color. If you’re going to go out and don’t want people to see it, stick with your toenails and then wear socks and shoes.
• If you want to be a little more daring, dye your hair. You can do it at home.
• Find a recipe for something you’ve never made and get cooking.
• Build a fort with blankets and pillows and maybe your dining room table. Spend the day in it.
• Listen to some different music than your usual.
• Mix up outfits. You know the shirt and pants you always wear together because the first time you wore the shirt you wore those pants with it? Find a different pair of pants.
• Similarly, go to a restaurant where you always get the same thing and order something you’ve never tried.
• Take down your knick-knacks and replace them with some that you’ve been storing because you don’t have room to display them all.
• Download a new game on your phone.
• Go for a drive and get lost, but take a GPS so you can find your way home again when you’ve had your fill of adventure. Make sure you have enough gas.
• Order takeout from the other Chinese restaurant. Because there’s always some other Chinese restaurant.

Random Pictures From My Phone

Because sometimes I end up with some strange things.

From a children’s book about David and Goliath. I was a little concerned.

My hair was doing cool things at some unearthly hour of the night, so I took a picture.

Reorganizing decorations at work. Things happened.

New job at the library! I’m staff! I GET TO GO BEHIND THE DESK!!!

I found that hat. I don’t know why it exists.

Mr. Green was weirdly attractive in this Clue game.

But if you left out the meat and sauce, wouldn’t you just have macaroni and cheese?

Sometimes Bella sleeps with her head under the curtains.

The library was getting rid of this book. Wonder why.

I think I was trying to take a picture of my hairdo. I don’t know what happened to result in this selfie.

This is from a book of Bible stories I use in my nursery class. I like it because it includes stories other than the ones you always see. But sometimes the pictures are very strange.

As opposed to Only Slightly Religious Friendship Bracelets?

Look at those satisfying numbers.

And here we have a picture from a questionable coloring book. Thankfully the two-year-olds don’t care.

Stuffed animal fell off the bed, got trapped, and stared at me disapprovingly.

Look at the cute dog.

Who named this pattern?

This was in a middle school. That third line. I was so pained.

Back to that questionable coloring book. Not only do we have the very strange people, but they left out a few important parts of the story…

?????

From an excellent book called Recess Warriors. Highly recommended.

This is apparently from a Sherlock Holmes play. I love how you can always tell who is Holmes and who is Watson, and I love how well this sums up their relationship.

I’ve been cleaning my room lately. I found some unopened mail…

New boots! They were originally $100 dollars. I got them for less than nine. It was most satisfying.

 

I have no control over which of these pictures will show up on Facebook with the post. That might be interesting.

Spontaneity

Yesterday I was feeling an urge to do something irresponsible and rebellious. Such an urge isn’t as uncommon as you might think, but usually I end up smooshing it. But I didn’t yesterday. Not completely.

I may have fallen a little short of irresponsible and rebellious, but I did end up with what is probably the most spontaneous decision I’ve ever made, and now the bottom four-ish inches of my hair are turquoise.

I did it myself, and I didn’t really know what I was doing, so there’s a spot in the middle that didn’t get as covered as I wanted, but if I do it again, I will hopefully be able to correct that.

I probably feel a whole lot cooler than I actually am, but I’m enjoying the results.

What Not to Wear

I’ve been on a What Not to Wear kick lately. My brother commented that it really doesn’t seem like my type of show, and he’s right; for the most part, I much prefer fiction. And the first time I heard about the show, I didn’t think it sounded like something I would ever like. But I do like it.

In case you don’t know, for this show, people nominated women in their lives who dressed… shall we say… badly. The hosts, Stacy and Clinton, would throw away their entire wardrobe, teach them how to dress better, and give them money with which to purchase a new wardrobe in New York City.

The clothing part is interesting, but my favorite is the part where they have professionals do the woman’s hair and teach her how to do her makeup. It tends to make me teary. Because this is when, for the most part, the women get it. They learned a lot with the clothing part, but when the hair or makeup stylist turns them around to see themselves in the mirror, they are usually astounded.

Oh. I am beautiful! I am valuable! I am worthy of the time it takes to take care of myself!

Should your only value come from your looks? No. Certainly not. No one on the show tries to say that. But God created your body. That alone should give it value. And recognizing that value can be life changing.

Haircut

I got a haircut last Friday.

To those of you who don’t know me in person, that probably seems like a very trivial thing to blog about. Surely lots of people got haircuts last Friday. But that was my first haircut in almost eight years. So it’s not really trivial to me.

My hair had been down past my waist. Now it’s about to the middle of my back. I wanted to wait to get it cut until I could sit on it, but it hadn’t actually gotten longer for two or three years. The ends were too old and brittle and kept breaking. And it had gotten to the point that I couldn’t leave it down for a day without it being a pain to brush out the next morning – those damaged ends again. So I gave in.

I discovered when looking for ideas about long haircuts that people do not know the definition of the word “long”. If someone’s hair is slightly past their shoulders, it’s supposedly considered long. I’m sorry, but no. Just no. I was rather amused.

Now, you’d think that when you get six or seven inches of hair chopped off, your roommate at least would notice. Nope. I even had to point it out to her. *Sigh* Oh, well.

I wasn’t sure I would like it. Thursday night I kept deliberating about it. I liked my long hair. But it’s still long, and long enough that I can do things with it, even though it feels incredibly short to me. And it’s nice that all the dry, damaged ends are gone. So I think I’m glad I did it. Even though it was one of the most impulsive decisions I’ve ever made.