the great gatsby

watching the trailer for the new great gatsby movie this morning i was reminded of how much i loved this book. reading it in 10th grade i discovered for the first time how you could dissect a novel. how the colors could mean more than just their color and the characters could represent ideas bigger than themselves. it was our first research paper and it sparked inside me that same love for words that eventually led me to major in English in college.

i'm excited to see how baz luhrmann, in his typical opulent style, represents this classic on screen. and i most definitely want to reread the book this summer. summer seems like a perfect time to get lost in that world.

also: this version of leonardo dicaprio is the closest i can remember to the leo that all those girls fell in love with on the titanic. am i crazy or do you agree?

why i need the church.

"I come here to be reminded: you have sinned; you are forgiven; God is present; God is risen; God is with you. You have new life." - Lauren Winner, Still: Notes on a Mid- Faith Crisis


As I sat in church yesterday for the first time in three weeks, I thought of this line in Lauren Winner's latest book. I too am in need of that reminder. There are seasons where travel and holidays take me away from that gathering of His people. And I don't always realize what I'm missing while I'm gone. It's nice to have a break, but too long apart and I begin to realize how much I need that rhythm. How much I need those reminders.

Yesterday was hard. I don't always want to hear what God has to say to us. I don't always want to know what my responsibility is as His child. I don't always want to honor and obey a calling higher than my own.

But I'm grateful that there are those in my community who do honor and obey. They continue to push me forward with their faith and their honesty. As easy as it is for me to believe that we can do it all on our own, I've lived just long enough to know that's all a lie.

So here's to the church. Here's to God's people, gathered together, reminding one another that, "[we] have sinned; [we] are forgiven; God is present; God is risen; God is with [us]. [We] have new life."


*small plug (though really i receive nothing if you read this): If you want to read more about how God designed the church to meet our needs as Christians, check out this great book written by the senior pastor of the church I attend - The Gift of Church. The cover makes it look super cheesy, but it's a very thought provoking and encouraging book.

why i love the internet - no. 01

It's spring and that means two things, the recently remodeled Fulton Street Farmer's Market has opened and rhubarb is in season. I had way too much fun for 8:30 in the morning this past Saturday, strolling through the market with my roommate Kristen. We ran into a handful of the many people she knows in town and had a delicious breakfast from What the Truck. In an attempt to eat seasonally, I came away with a pound of rhubarb, among other things. The only problem is that my favorite rhubarb accompaniment, the strawberry, is decidedly not in season.

Wondering what I should do with this beautiful red fruit (root?), I sought the pinboard of my friend Sara (sidenote: you know you're a child of the 80s if you have at least 3 friends named Sara(h), right?), who had brought a delicious rhubarb cake to one of our book club meetings recently. From the at least three or four rhubarb pins residing near the top of the page, I chose the recipe for Whole Wheat Rhubarb Muffins. This morning was a perfect time for attempting this fairly simple recipe. I subbed greek yogurt for the sour cream and they turned out wonderfully. A perfect accompaniment to a glass of iced coffee.

So, why do I love the internet? Because when I posted to Sara's pin a little thank you for sharing the recipe, she commented back a couple hours later that she had some in the oven right now. Serendipity. Shared Interests. Connections that wouldn't normally be made. This is why I love the internet.

in my daydreams.

in my dreams this picture looks better. maybe instagram is like everything else in life, simple is better. instead i complicate things with tilt shift and blur out the most important details.

in my dreams, i blog every day. and i document the pieces of those days because i recognize that they are gifts and i want to remember every detail. i believe that God works in small ways and that sometimes we don't realize it until the small ways have added up to a big event. but i know i'll never notice the small if i don't write it down.

in my dreams, i have it all together. i wake up rested. i go to sleep knowing i've accomplished everything i set out to today.

in my dreams, this all sounds less like overly dramatic whining and more like a plea to find common ground with others who don't have their every moment figured out. in reality, it's a little bit of me trying to explain that somehow i've failed at the whole blog every day thing. but i'm not going to stop attempting altogether.

here's to a better reality tomorrow. and cuter pictures of jack the dog.

which is not to say that today's reality was bad, but more to say that i go to sleep every night striving for a better tomorrow. is that okay? or is that just being discontent?

finally friday.

it's finally friday, which seems unfair to say when you're coming off a vacation. however, i didn't come back overly well-rested and i certainly haven't gotten lots of rest this week. so despite the fact that someone is shooting off fireworks (i hope) in the 'hood, i'm hoping to set in early. that means that instead of sharing one of the great stories i have planned for this space, all i have for you are a few links i found around the web this week.

sweet infographic: what you should snack on.
eating tips: how to avoid gmo's at the grocery.
business talk: really good branding advice.
a recipe i'd like to try: mexican rice.

happy weekend.