red skies...

the air quality in southern california for the past week has been worse than usual. it is of course due to the terrible fires going on in our area. the strong winds that fueled the fires have stopped, but with no wind to blow the smoke and ash away, it has settled in the valleys. everything has a fine layer of white ash. the air smells like smoke. during sunset, the sun literally turns red.

could you imagine losing your home in a fire? it's true that homes can be replaced, and that you can always start over again. but how hard would it be to watch your son's bedroom burn down? or the garden where you spent so many hours planting and turning the soil? or all the future plans you had? a few days ago i was watching the news coverage on the san diego fire and there was a newscaster covering the fire in one of the threatened neighborhoods. after a few moments it suddenly occured to me that he was watching his own house burn. he pointed out the diningroom where his family used to sit together, and the bedrooms, and the porch. the whole time he was describing his home, he was being whipped by the wind and his voice was shaking with emotion. what a terrible thing to witness.

it made me look around my apartment and wonder what i would do if i only had five minutes to evauate. there isn't enough time to load all of your dvds or clothes. you can't disconnect your tv or your expensive surround system to take with you. what would i take with me? what makes one thing more important that the other? i pray that i may never have to evacuate, but we never do have any control over things such as this.

juno

i haven't seen this movie, it doesn't come out until january but it looks good. it reminds me of the show 'freaks and geeks' which was an awesome show. :)

some of my favorite movies...

while you were sleeping

this is one of my favorite movies and always will be. it's probably the cutest movie ever.

amelie


the life aquatic with steve zissou


the goonies

of course! they filmed it in my home town.

reign over me


love actually


forest gump

fool-proof fool.

my brother is moving down to southern california the first of november, and my sister and mother are driving down to help him. this would be the first time my mom would be coming down to visit since michael and i got married. we saw her and my dad last august when we drove up to oregon for our vacation.

so, i am trying to keep our apartment as clean and cute as possible. why? so that my mom can see the capable and (definitely) grown-up woman i have become. so she can see how well i tackle work and wifehood and responsibility. OF COURSE. how have i thought to achieve this? well, i bought scented candles and watered and rearranged my plants. i bought two pilgrim figurines that look uncannily like my parents. also, my idea is to keep the light really soft and dull so she doesn't see the mysterious stains on the dining room carpet.

i am confident about my plan.

leaves are changing...

i have had this blog for the past few months and, after numerous tries, haven't written any entries (this should tell you something about my personality). i would love to tell you that at the age of 23 i am no longer as timid as i was as a girl; no longer as self-conscious. however, as i get older i have actually become more aware of things to be self-conscious about. i spend so much time trying to perfect this image of myself for others; this organized, elegant, intelligent facade. the problem is, it causes me to distort my real self.

it really is a losing battle. i don't think anyone has thought of me as the complete and well-balanced person i try to make them think i am. ;)