It is a truth universally acknowledged...

"The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel, must be intolerably stupid."
Jane Austen


Something else I've been doing this summer is reading. A ton. Like more than usual. I attribute this obnoxious amount of time spent reading to the obnoxious amount of time that I've spent at the beach this summer. Because, seriously, even people that don't like to read love to read at the beach. 



I've read two books recently that I wanted to recommend...


1. Out of the Silent Planet - C.S. Lewis.


Great book. Somewhat disturbing, extremely enlightening. It's about a man that is kidnapped by two scientists and brought to the far-off planet of Malacandra. To me, the book is about viewing our world from the eyes of another, viewing our ultimate depravity as a fallen species. It's not allegorical like so many of C.S. Lewis' books, but it has plenty of spiritual symbolism to satisfy you, if that's what you're looking for. If you read it, let me know. We'll talk, analyze, etc.


"'It is because they have no [God],' said one of the pupils. 'It is because everyone of them wants to be a little [God] himself,' said Augray. 'They cannot help it,' said the old sorn. 'There must be rule, yet how can creatures rule themselves? Beasts must be ruled by hnau and hnau by eldila and eldila by Maleldil. These creatures have no eldila. They are like one trying to lift himself by his own hair.'"


This quote probably won't make any sense to you if you haven't read the book, but it's basically saying that humanity generally tries to do things on our own, without God's assistance. We make ourselves into little gods, believing that we can handle things alone, and then we are confused when we are unable to succeed. 




2. Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen (duh)


This novel is what this post is really all about. I've been itching to write about it.


There's really nothing to be said about Pride and Prejudice that hasn't been said already. To say that it's one of the most well-known, well-read books in all of literary history is an understatement. I read it for the first time last summer, and now I'm going to make it a tradition to read it every summer, just like so many have done before me. 


I'm not gonna lie, I didn't really like the book the first time I read it. I had seen the movie a thousand times, bought the soundtrack so when I read the book, it was out of a sense of obligation. I read it, checked it off my list, and moved on.


But, wow. 


The second time around..... fantastic. 


It was so good. I laughed out loud at Elizabeth Bennet, rolled my eyes at Kitty and Lydia, and wished that Mr. Darcy could be mine. It's full of wit, wisdom, feeling, love. It's the ultimate love story, because it's not simply fluff. It's about flirting and challenging the status quo; it's about a man being shy and appearing to be a tease; it's about a woman being picky about her husband; it's about an obnoxious mother wanting nothing but the best for her children.

"Elizabeth, having rather expected to affront him, was amazed at his gallantry; but there was a mixture of sweetness and archness in her manner which made it difficult for her to affront anybody; and Darcy had never been so bewitched by any woman as he was by her. He really believed, that were it not for the inferiority of her connections, he should be in some danger."

"In vain I have struggled. It will not do. My feelings will not be repressed. You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you."

"A girl likes to be crossed in love every now and then. It gives her something to think of."

"I cannot fix on the hour, or the spot, or the look or the words, which laid the foundation. It is too long ago. I was in the middle before I knew that I had begun."

I think it's safe to say that this book is one of my favorites.

Thank you, Miss Austen, for this work of art.

Clums.

Previously in the life of Clumsy Kim...

So a lot's gone down since I last saw you...

1. I went absolutely wild on senior trip and got a feather extension in my hair. Woohoooooo!!! It's slightly less rebellious than a tattoo or an extra piercing, but to each his own.

2. I got so sunburned that my skin felt similar to that of a desert-habitat iguana. Or leather. Take your pick. Either way, it was completely gross.

3. I saw Pirates of the Caribbean 4. I was slightly disappointed, but I was expecting to be, because what is POTC without Will and Elizabeth??? I am not ashamed to say that I have a deep-rooted love for Orlando Bloom; I have a t-shirt from Limited Too verifying this, as well as his life story magazine. Pirates was just not the same for me without him. Even though the love affair of the missionary and the mermaid was a close second to that of Will and Miss Swann.

3. I've turned into a runner. It's the new me: I run, I wear baseball hats, and I blog.

4. I've learned a lot. About my friends, people that I thought were my friends, about myself. I've learned that I will be disappointed by the ones that I love, but I've also learned not to wear my feelings on my shoulders because the ones that disappoint me will, for the most part, be the very same ones that encourage me in everything that I do the very next day.

5. I've gained closure. And y'all all know how much I've been searching for that.

Shout out to my SeaPrize girls. Love y'all more than words can say.

Clums.

They don't call me clumsy for no reason.

Alright, so at the beginning of this little adventure I call blogging, I told you that I was a clumsy girl (thus the blog name). I also promised you a little glimpse of my clumsy moments. Well, today's your lucky day. I had three. And all of them involved my sister, Darby.

1. Did y'all know that MiGi's in Homewood is a very tiny store? It's not only tiny, but it's extremely cramped. I mean, they cram more clothes into that place than in the salvation army. Its shelves are overflowing with expensive dresses and blouses, and they simply did not think to put adequate space in between the racks of clothing. There is hardly any room in there to even WALK! Seriously, if you are wider than a beanpole, I would suggest you wait outside. Anyway, I was there today for the first time with the Darbster, and I, being the unexperienced MiGi's shopper that I am, sadly underestimated the space allotted for my head between the end one of the racks of clothes. When I turned, it slammed me in the eye. The natural reflex for such a blow is to step away from the dangerous object (which, in this case, was a clothes rack... very hazardous), but no, to do so will only result in you slamming the back of your head into another clothes rack. Like I said, cramped space. Don't go into MiGi's and say I didn't warn you.

2. Tonight, in honor of my graduation, my family ate dinner at one of my favorite restaurants, Outback. Twas delicious, but that goes without mentioning. What does, however, bear mentioning is that Darby and I split a meal, which is never a good idea because we both really like our food, and we tend to get a little stingy about it. My mom was offering me to give me one of her AWESOME croutons from her salad, and she handed it to Darby to give to me. (I think you can already tell where this is going.) Darby attempts to pop the crouton into her mouth, and I leap to steal it from her before it is too late. I knock the crouton out of her hand, but I also knock over her glass of water in the process. So I was fat and wet. The lesson learned from this one? Don't share croutons with your sister; you'll only be disappointed.

3. Third, and probably clumsiest, occurred after dinner, in my room, on my bed. Darby was doing that obnoxious "I'm not touching you even though I'm only an inch away from your skin" thing, and I had had enough. I mean, there's only so much a girl can take. So I slapped her on the thigh. Hard. And her natural response was to kick me. Off the bed. (What is with these darn reflexes??) Not only did I tumble off the bed, but I hit my elbow on the bedside table. So I'm ending this day with three more bruises than I had yesterday: two on my FACE (just in time for my graduation ceremony tomorrow), and one on my elbow.

So now you've gotten two things out of this blogpost: A glimpse into The Secret Life of a Clumsy American Teenager and the knowledge that I have a sister! She's always complaining about never being mentioned in my blog. Well, be careful what you with for, Darby. Cause you never know, you could be portrayed as a crouton-snatching, sister-kicking shop-o-holic.

Like this.

Or this.

But Darby's pretty cool in real life, I guess.

Yeah, we make a cute couple.

Ultimate.

1. Four Years - Jon McLaughlin
I will always love Jon and I will always be jealous of his wife.

2. Long Live - Taylor Swift
BY FAR the greatest song on the Speak Now album.

3. Goodbyes - Savannah Outen

Love this girl. Another shout out to Lucy Caboosey for introducing me to countless youtube stars.

4. Good Riddance (Time of Your Life) - Green Day
I just love this song.

5. Seasons of Love - Rent
Rent... changed my life. Changed my perspective on music, changed my appreciation for the arts. Just... changed me.

6. For Good - Wicked
I dare you not to cry.

7. White Houses - Vanessa Carlton
This one goes out to my best friends... You know who you are. "We promise each other it's til the end..."

8. Stop This Train - John Mayer
Nuff said.

9. Time to Remember - Billy Joel
My dad introduced me to this song when I was just a little tot. It's great, and I can see it becoming a favorite on senior trip. You know, the beach imagery and everything? Whatever.

10. Nothing Short of Thankful - Avett Brothers
Avetttttt.

11. All Good Things - The Weepies
This one's a little depressing but I love me some Weepies.

12. I Hope You Dance - Lee Ann Womack
In case you didn't know, a somewhat past middle-aged administrator at my school sang this at our senior chapel last week, and my friend ABBEY WINDLE danced to it. Abbey will be getting a blogpost all to herself someday; she deserves one. Cheesiest song ever written. But very applicable here.

13. Ocean Avenue - Yellowcard
Straight from my wannabe alternative dayzz.

14. Brave - Idina Menzel
I just want to be her.

15. Faithfully - Journey
Yes, the gLee version. Is there any other?

16. Wake Up - The Arcade Fire
Great band, great song.

17. Postcards from Far Away - Coldplay
Even though this one doesn't have words, I love it, and I think it's appropriate here.

18. Turpentine - Brandi Carlile
Sad, but true. This could be us in a few years...

19. That Year - Brandi Carlile
In case y'all didn't know, Brandi wrote this song about her friend from high school who committed suicide. It's about being too cool for school, and therefore hurting those you love the most. After an encounter with suicide last year, it is my prayer that no one else that I ever meet feels this way, and that if they do, that I won't turn my back on them. "For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in."

20. Wish You Well - Katie Herzig
For every high school relationship that didn't work out.

So there you have it. The Ultimate Graduation Playlist. I should charge you for the greatness and the sappiness of these songs. There are probably many that I'm forgetting, and if so, let me know and I'll add them. Cause I love me some good ole-moping and soaking in misery about this part of our lives coming to a close.

P.S. Lo siento for the awk spacing on the track list and video. I tried to fix it for like 30 minutes, but to no avail.

Good memories are all I have.

Well, internet, it's been a fun ride. Senior year has been amazing. And tomorrow, with the exception of one last ap exam on Wednesday, it will all be over.

I honestly can't believe it. It seems like yesterday that I walked into Briarwood Christian High School for the first time as a student, completely terrified. I remember exactly what I wore. A red Lacoste shirt, sear-sucker capris, and rainbows. I remember realizing about halfway through the day that I practically blended in with my backpack, which was the exact same color as my shirt, and I remember being absolutely mortified at the idea that people might think that I had planned such a thing. How far I have come.

I also remember being asked to homecoming that same day, the most exciting moment of my life up until that point. I remember the second day of high school, where I informed people of my homecoming date like it was my job. I was so proud. And my dress? Y'all, the dress that I wore to my freshman year homecoming dance has yet to be topped. 

It's funny how memories work. The things we remember. I look back on my life, and all I can see are snapshot moments that come together into a collage of the past seventeen years. If I were to tell you what these snapshots were of, they would probably mean nothing to you. But I, on the other hand, find meaning in these memories and take comfort in them, because they are proof to me that I have lived a full life thus far. I have few regrets and so many things to be thankful for. And my only hope is that I can take these memories with me as I go out into the world, and that while I'm out there, I can make more memories to add to my collage. I pray that I will take advantage of the opportunities that I have been given, of the opportunities with which Briarwood has provided me. Because I haven't come this far to slow down now.

So. May 9, 2011. Bring it. You too, May 15.

I'm ready to make some more memories.

Clumzz.

You rock, don't change.

We joke about it, but I seriously considered writing that in several yearbooks today. We all know that "you rock, don't change" is typically a generic cliche that you only write when you don't know what else to write, a cop-out... but honestly... when you're signing yearbooks for the last time, what more can you say?

Why don't we all just pull a Gordo?

By far the sweetest yearbook note eva. And it used a cliche! So they're not so bad after all!

Clums.

dear osama.

Ughhh. So I'm still not really satisfied with the appearance of my blog right now, but I will, in the words of the British government, "keep calm and carry on," because my blog readers need me!


Hey, I'm just giving the people what they want.


In other news...


Did y'all hear that Osama Bin Laden is dead?


I know I'm a little late blogging about this humungous event in history, but c'mon, guys. My blog didn't look cute.


While this event is a huge deal and it's awesome for our country and USA all the way and Obama-rama, etc, you get the picture, I was thinking about the smaller things when I found out about his death. Like the friends and families of the men and women who were killed in Afghanistan and on September 11, 2001. I can't imagine their relief when they heard the news of Bin Laden's death. I can't imagine the finality of it. I can't imagine the good night's sleep they must have had, finally feeling a sense of closure, finally being able to release their grief.


The reason I'm thinking about this at all is because of a book by Chris Cleave that I read earlier this year called Incendiary. It wasn't my favorite book by any means (it's central story is about an adulterous woman that has to live in the aftermath of her husband's and son's deaths at the hands of Osama Bin Laden), but it did give some really cool insight into the mind of a grieving mother who, obviously, isn't perfect, but feels and hurts and bleeds just like any other grieving widow/mother/adulterer would. The book is written in the form of an unread, unsent letter to Bin Laden, and I just thought I would share a couple of quotes from it. So that you can attempt to imagine the relief that these family members are feeling. And so that you can feel blessed for the safety of your own family.

"Dear Osama they want you dead or alive so the terror will stop. Well I wouldn’t know about that I mean rock ‘n’ roll didn’t stop when Elvis died on the khazi it just got worse. Next thing you know there was Sonny & Cher and Dexys Midnight Runners."

"I wonder, did you celebrate when you heard my boys got killed? Did you turn on the radio and hear them say a thousand and three dead? Did you put down your mouth over the rocks and kneel down to pray? I prayed. I prayed for the deaths toll to go up to a thousand and four and take me too."

"People thought it was the end of the world. But the world didn't end. So they rebuilt the city in 3 years, stronger and taller. London is a city built on the wreckage of itself, Osama. It's had more come backs than the evil dead. It's been flattened by storms and flooded out and rotted with plague. Even Hitler couldn't finish it off. Death nor flame was like hell, my grandmother said, just one endless sea of flames. But we built on the rubble, and we kept on coming like zombies. I am the city, Osama. I am the whole world. Murder me with bombs and I will only build myself again, and stronger. I'm too stupid to know better."

Wow.

Depressing, yes.


But if that doesn't instill some pride for your country and some gratefulness for your family... 


God bless America.


Clums.