Elle Effect Photography

it’s so silent outside. snow-covered roads, neighborhood daydreaming in a relaxed daze. so beautiful. so peaceful. so quiet. so lovely. God was clever when he created snow- it’s one of his tools to stop a busy world. all plans are up in the air for tomorrow- no one knows what’s going on. no school or classes, apparently. for me, it’s just a bit of studying and reading of a new book i received in the mail from amazon today. the irresistible revolution by shane claiborne. finally. a must-read. i’m pretty excited. later on, i’ll see if i can actually get out and drive; put my 4-wheel burb to the test. we’ll see.

tonight, i’m writing and painting. writing a crazy summary on a crazy essay that made me laugh. it’s called, “the female body” by margret atwood. stop thinking what you’re thinking- it’s not what you’re thinking. anatomy? nah, thrown out the window.

more like a

physical
sensual
relational
emotional
factual
conversational
satirical prose.

it showed her view of a more ignoble woman, ignoring many facets of the endearing woman.

for humor, she adds vulgar touches throughout.

blunt.
very blunt.
i like that about it.
that’s how i am.

it showed how much power the woman has when she spoke of us being able to release the pressure of national debt. haha.

she says a woman is packed in all together in one package while man has slight connection between right and left brain- woman leads from the heart, man leads from the head. [you decide what to believe on that subject.] men just seem to miss it while women have fifty-million things flying through their mind all at once. and finally, toward the end of this seven-sectioned essay, the man comes to the conclusion that he is missing the female body. what a revelation.

in both sections five and six, she almost completely paints a woman as being promiscuous and emotionless. interesting. i wonder if that’s how she views herself.

i love how she, in section four, paints a conversation between husband and wife concerning their daughter owning a barbie. she never says, “barbie” but it’s plain to see.

“He said, I won’t have one of those things in my house. It gives a girl a false notion of beauty, not to mention anatomy. If a real woman was built like that she’d fall on her face.
It’s not just the pointy plastic tits, it’s the wardrobes. The wardrobes and that stupid male doll, what’s his name, the one with the underwear glued on. She said, better get it over with when she’s young. He said, All right, but don’t let me see it.

Then

She came whizzing down the stairs, thrown like a dart. She was stark naked. Her hair had been chopped off, her head was turned back to front, she was missing some toes and she’d been tattooed all over her body with purple ink in a scrollwork design. She hit the potted azalea, trembled there for a moment like a botched angel, then fell.

He said, I guess we’re safe.”

I couldn’t resist. I laughed. So did my Mom. So did Alli. Who wouldn’t? Well, maybe men.

Overall, I just enjoyed the style of writing. She wrote it like you would hear a typewriter click, click, click. It had rhythm. I relate- since I write like that often. Choppy. To the point. Hello!

Maybe I’m getting too into this, I don’t know. But I’m enjoying it. Most of our class hated it. Probably because most of our class are guys. That’s it. That’s got to be it.

Anyway, I’m back to painting again. I hope to finish it tonight. I’ve taken periodical pictures of the process for you to enjoy. It’s pretty neat. While painting it, I think I’ve overcome the fear of the unknown- almost completely. [Since it's about that and all] Now, I just feel like I can’t wait to see what happens next. You know, like when you’re reading a good book- one of those where you can’t sleep until you finish the next chapter. And the next. And the next. One page at a time. It’s pretty exciting. At times, I have to put the book down, attend to duties and responsibilities, then pick it back up. It’s a process. I don’t want to rush through reading the book, but that itching feeling of moving on remains. So, it ends up being this hystarical dialogue between my heart and mind- my mind keeping me in check of what I need and should be doing while my heart wanders and dreams and strengthens and longs and… you get the picture. All the while, staying grounded in faith, in hope and in love- in God. It’s a beautiful thing, really. A crazy thing. Just life.

This morning at my sports therapy I got a word of wisdom. My sports therapist, Cindy, has become a friend. I love it; she’s wonderful. Anyhow, she said bluntly- “Lauren, you’re talented- that’s plain to see. But, you have a tendency to get wrapped up in it because of the constant pressure you’re under from every side. Expectations, responsibilties, etc. But through and in all of it, don’t loose the passion of your youth. You have so much in you. So much to give. So much to offer. Don’t become weary in doing good and just enjoy life- enjoy life, Lauren. You have an incredible purpose. Don’t loose heart.”

Wow. God can speak through anyone. I’ll end on that note. :]

yay for strumsticks.

and ghetto headphones.