Archive | June, 2016

Lord of the Rings Series Review

27 Jun

 

The Lord of the Rings series is a high-fantasy novel written by J.R.R. Tolkien and first published in 1954/55. I never understood what all the hype was about this series until my OH got it for me and finally read it. I will admit to it taking far longer than I wanted, to get through all three volumes but that can be blamed on life and not wanting to eat and read at the same time (i mean, the book is gorgeous, I didn’t want to get anything on it!) I finally caved though when I couldn’t put it down. Hefting that through the house as I took care of the dogs, made meals, etc was interesting but the world of Middle Earth and the amount of details he put into backstories, languages, etc, was fantastic.

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I had already seen the movies (totally did it backward) but I think it helped me, having an idea of who these characters were. Normally I don’t like that, it shapes what you think about them to the degree that when they are different in the book (as they inevitably are, movies tend to take SO much license…….) but, for some reason, it helped.

I also read some about Tolkien and the parallels of himself and others in his life in some of his characters, which added a whole other layer to it.

Yes, it’s violent (it’s a WAR, man!) so I wouldn’t recommend this for young readers – unless you’re reading aloud to them and then you could skip over those bits! Other than the violence ( in the mood for some head-lopping? Gimli and Legolas keep count.), this series is CLEAN.  Why can’t more writers keep it that way?

I was watching an interview of Abhishek and Aishwarya Rai Bachan, two of Bollywood’s biggest stars recently and loved their answer when asked why they don’t kiss in their movies. “you have this intimate moment and then suddenly, snap, cut, you’re in the mountains singing and dancing. It’s a lot more interesting…I’d much rather that.”   I got so excited when he said that! People can fall in love – and express that love – without getting all physical and mucking up the whole story.

ahem. Sorry…. Stepping down off my soapbox…..

So. I so appreciate the little bit of love and romance in these stories, it’s romantic, sweet, honoring and respectful. And isn’t that the love we all dream of?

The Fellowship of the Ring – book 1 by J.R.R. Tolkien – Frodo Baggins had no idea just what he was inheriting from Bilbo that night. But soon he knew that the Ring Wraiths were hunting him and the Ring of Power that he had. The Ring that could change the future of Middle Earth. Sauron wanted it to spread his evil through the land. So Frodo, Sam and those who would help him, must destroy the Ring in Mordor – the dark land where Sauron reigned.

 

The Two Towers – book 2  by J.R.R. Tolkien – The fellowship has been scattered. Some of them are dealing with treacherous Saruman. Some are preparing for the onslaught of war against Sauron. Only Frodo and Sam are left to take the Ring of Power to Mordor. Their guide through the dangerous lands is Gollum, the sneaky creature whose mind is filled with the Ring.

 

The Return of the King -book 3 by J.R.R. Tolkien – The fight continues against the evil Sauron –  Aragorn has joined with the Riders of Rohan. Gandalf has returned and defeated Saruman.  Merry and Pippin, having escaped the Orcs,  meet the Ents. Frodo and Sam continue their perilous journey into Mordor guided by Gollum. Through it all, the armies of Sauron are massing.

Gah! Just writing the synopsis’ (or is that synopsi?) makes me want to read them all over again. I also highly recommend The Hobbit, which is the prequel. I am going to give The Silmarillion a try although I’ve been warned it’s pretty much a history book of Middle Earth.

These books are very easily attainable, I’d bet you could get them at almost any used bookstore you wander into. Or Amazon is always a great option!

Have you read LOTR? What did you think?

~Laura

 

 

 

 

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The Big Health Update

21 Jun

Well friends, I have been trying to sit down and do a COMPLETE AND AWESOME review of the Lord of the Rings trilogy but I’ve decided today to give you all some news and start a regular health update. That way I’ll be able to see if I’ve made any progress as time goes on – I try keeping track in a little notebook but this will be more detailed =) Warning, this is going to be a long post but future updates won’t be quite so in depth!

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3 weeks ago today I found out that I have Lyme Disease. I’ll share the definition of Lyme from a great little book I picked up at the library “Beware the Ticking Lyme Bomb” by Craigger Creed.

“The standard, quick explanation goes something like ‘ Lyme disease is caused by the bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi, is transmitted by deer ticks, produces a bull’s eye rash, and is usually cleared up quickly with antibiotics’. But this barely scratches the surface of the tip of the iceberg…often there are additional bacteria, protozoa, etc involved … and have been implicated in Lyme-induced skin and neurological disorders.”

The problem is, a high percentage of people do not have the bull’s eye rash, or any of the other rashes that indicate they have recently been bitten by a tick that is sharing Lyme with you.

Lyme has earned the nickname “The great Imitator” because it acts like so many other medical conditions. The bacteria, Borrelia, are spiral shaped spirochetes that are marvelous at hiding and disguising themselves, making it even harder to diagnose. The symptoms are many, and seemingly unconnected to each other.

Lyme is very complex, and I don’t have the ability, or the knowledge, to delve deep into it here for you. I recommend the above book for a quick, light read as well as the book that I have just started, “Why Can’t I Get Better?” by Richard I. Horowitz, MD. for a more in-depth look. Let’s suffice it to say that when I go down the list of symptoms I have most of them. Which puts me squarely in the ‘chronic Lyme or Late-Disseminated Lyme stage.

Overall health: I am thankful to finally have a diagnosis (!!) although I am still trying to wrap my head around that fact. strong reaction to new treatment (more on that in a minute). Memory has gotten worse the last month-odd.Skin has broken out and stayed bad past 2 1/2 weeks. Sleep is still spotty. Am able to keep the house decently clean, huzzah! and able to walk the dogs/play with them every so often.

Treatment: my naturopath has me taking Samento (aka Cat’s Claw). I have been on it 10 days and right from the start, this stuff is POWERFUL. you start at one drop a day, for 3 days. then 2 drops a day for 3 days and so on til you get to 30 drops a day. I wasn’t too concerned about it, totally do-able.  But this stuff hit me hard about 2 hrs after taking it – made me feel like I had the flu, all achy and tired and stuck on the couch. Yesterday I called my dr, and I’m stopping taking it for a week. Should take that long for the reaction to go away. Then i’ll start it up again and take it for a few days (3 drops a day), and hope the reaction doesn’t come back. if it does, I’ll have to take something else to kill the infection. A list of everything I’m currently taking will be at the end of this post.

Migraines: Except for last night when it hit a 9, they haven’t reached an 8 in a few weeks. When they do get severe, they don’t typically last longer than a few hours. Still pain daily that tends to stay around a 6. Gets worse in evenings/weekends (poor OH!). Still get worse when in a busy/loud/bright environment.

(sorry the picture is blurry but to give you an idea.. 8 =intense, pain is severe. talking and listening are difficult. 6= distressing. think about pain all the time. give up many activities because of it)

letter to the weary

Digestion: Hasn’t been that great lately. It does better when I stay away from heavy foods (aka bread!) and of course, any of my allergens. (gluten, dairy, eggs, beef, cranberries, sugar)

TMJ:  Is in direct proportion to pain level of migraines. Hasn’t been popping as much lately although I have started clenching my jaw during the day as well, causing teeth and jaw to ache frequently.

Mood: Has stayed good, even after going off of chinese herbs for it (cannot remember the name right now). Sometimes i get very irritated/angry for the dumbest thing (past what is normal for me). So, still some room for improvement.

Brain fog/Memory: has gotten worse this past month. Struggling to remember names/titles/things I’ve always known. Not able to focus for very long (example: can watch a tv show but movies are too long) Haven’t been able to get my brain to ‘work’ so haven’t written very much on novel.

Sleep: Have to take either a melatonin or Theanine every night in order to sleep. Do have to rotate them every few nights for them to work. Wake up at least twice in the night. When on Samento, was taking naps that were a few hrs long most days.

Daily Vitamins/Pills

Prescription: Clonidine. Averaging 2 a day.

Magnesium. Calcium. D3. Olive Leaf Extract. Basic B Complex. Fish oil. = 1 a day

Ribofalvin, 2 a day. Evening Primrose Oil, 3 a day.

2 weeks every month – 1 each – Horse Chestnut Extract and Chaste Tree Berry

Have gone off of Cordyceps to see if energy drops.

There you have it. The fact that I am vastly better than maybe 3 months ago is encouraging but pain is still a daily, severe fact of life in this household. I want to go through a list of Lyme symptoms and share them with you soon, as some of them I never realized were symptoms and not just something that my body did. Who knows, if I had told my doctor about them 10 years ago, maybe we would have been able to diagnose this and i wouldn’t have progressed to this point.

Thanks for stopping by and getting all the way through this post!

*I promise, promise, promise, LOTR review will get up by the end of the month!*

~Laura

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Book Review – May 2016

1 Jun

Happy June 1st! May was an interesting month – doctor visits, a wedding, tons of birthdays and my parents came for a visit! I also wrote a LOT more than I have in the past few months so I am proud of that and am planning on keeping the momentum up! My first draft is getting closer to being finished! eeek! I’m so very excited.

bkrvwmay2016 Because of the excess writing, I haven’t been here on SGL as much and I’m sorry! I’ve missed it but if I hope to get published….. priorities! It’s also why I haven’t read as many books as normal either, I’ve started taking my book (mainly the 10-lb Tolkien one) to bed with me and reading until I just can’t stay awake any longer!!

To Be a Jew – by Rabbi Hayim Halevy Donin – Donin did what no one else had at the time, he put together a book, simply stated, on how to daily live the Jewish life. Including the blessings to be read, why certain things are done etc, it’s a stand-alone book to guide you in following the Torah.

~I Finally finished this book! It’s absurd how long it took me to get through it, especially as it’s  easily understandable. I do plan on reading it again, and it is one of the main books we pull out when we have a question on specific blessings, or what the traditions for a festvial are. A must have in your Jewish library.

The English Garden – Gail Gaymer Martin, Diann Mills,  Jill Stengl and Kathleen Y’barbo  – In these four short stories, we see how the garden can hold the key to peace, quiet and sometimes even love.

~A Woman of Valor – Marston Hall was to be Helen’s new home in 1631. She was to take care of three children who would test every bit of patience she had. But she found that being around the horseman unsettled her every bit as much as the children did. Will time in the garden help each see the beauty in each other?

~Apple of His Eye -Sarah’s only escape from social demands is the Victorian garden behind her parents’ home. But when she meets and falls in love with the orchard keeper, more than the flowers keep her coming back. How will these two find a future together ?

~A Flower Amidst the Ashes – During World War 2,Corporal Margaret Walker meets a handsome Royal Air Force pilot who slips past her defenses with beautiful drawings of gardens. Will she allow love to grow when she’s already lost so much?

~Robyn’s Garden – Robyn regularly has a group of disabled children over to learn about nature as they help tend the garden. But then a handsome American arrives, and takes something she can’t afford to lose. Will she be able to learn the hard lesson of trust, before it’s too late?

~These stories are well-written and heartwarming. As usual, I wold love them to be longer and more in depth. The first one is probably my favorite, perhaps because of my experience with working with children. It’s also fun that they progress through time, starting in 1631 and ending in modern times. 

Captivating by John and Stasi Eldredge – Your heart matters! It has gotten pushed aside and wounded through the years, but the longings of being in a great adventure, being the Beauty in a tale and part of a wonderful romance, were all put there by God. He is the Hero our hearts are longing for and will help us be the woman we long to be – a woman that is captivating.

~I read this right out of high school with a group of friends and learned so much from it. It’s only taken me YEARS to pick it up again but it’s fun to see the same things standing out to me and hitting home as I’m in a completely different place in life. I highly recommend this for any woman!

Lights of the Veil by Patty Metzer – Mere hours after meeting her nephew, her late sister’s son, both Erica and Betul are kidnapped and taken to India. Back in the place of her birth, Erica meets Prince Ajari who helps her, and then tells her he is Betul’s uncle. Desperate to not let Betul be taught to be Hindi, but raised in faith of Christ, as her sister wanted, Erica is caught between the charisma of Prince Ajari and keeping Betul safe. Will the light of Christ pierce the blackness, and free both Erica and the Prince?

~This is an absolute favorite of mine! I know for sure that I’ve reviewed it here before but one can never get enough of this novel! I am currently halfway through it – which means I want to read it all the time to get to the end but I don’t want to get to the end!! It’s a real problem folks. 

The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint Exupery – I reviewed this HERE, check it out!!

The Two Towers book 2 of the Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien – The fellowship has been scattered. Some of them are dealing with Saruman. Some are preparing for the onslaught of war with Sauron. Only Frodo and Sam are left to take the Ring of Power to Mordor.

Return of the King– book 3 of Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien – The fight continues against the evil Sauron –  Aragorn has joined with the Riders of Rohan. Gandalf has returned and defeated Saruman.  Merry and Pippin have met the Ents. Frodo and Sam continue their journey into Mordor

~Okay, if you’ve read, or know anything about this series you know this is the shortest synopsis of each book. But, I am planning on reviewing the series as a whole once I finish Return of the King. So, this is only to whet your appetite! 

What are you reading lately?

~Laura 

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