Skip to main content

Reflections on Lent, Kittens, Libraries, etc.

So I gave up Youtube for Lent, but I'll get to that in a second. First of all, Shiloh Rules is over and the performances went wonderfully. Secondly, I am in denial of finals week (finals week? What finals week? What on earth are you talking about, voices?) And thirdly, this is National Library Week. I am celebrating this week dedicated to America's libraries by tweeting twaiku -- twitter haiku in 17 syllables and 140 characters. For example: "The boy is embarrassed / to be at the library-- / and then he sees her." The twaiku contest is hashtagged #nlwtwaiku and the prizewinner gets a $50 Amazon gift card (which the winner will, of course, use to buy books).

 But back to Lent.

 In the past, I've given up chocolate, soda, fast food, and makeup. One year I decided to write a poem for every day of Lent -- I produced a few haiku and a weird poem about roadkill, but I soon discovered that Lent vows kinda go the same way as New Year's resolutions. You tend to forget them after a week or two. But I gave up YouTube for Lent this year; I've kept to it despite the at times horrendous temptation; and I honestly think it was not a good decision. I'll even go so far as to say it was a bad decision. This has been one of the most depressing Lent seasons of my life (whether related to YouTube deprival or not). Which I suppose is sort of the point, but still.

 Oh, well, I guess I shouldn't complain. Maybe a more depressing Lent means my life will be proportionally more cheeful after Easter. But then some things about Lent are just absurd. For instance, the Presbyterian church didn't technically even start celebrating Ash Wednesday until the 1970's. Even today many Protestants think of Lent as a "Catholic thing." And did you know that the only reason you can't say "Alleluia" (or hallelujah, take your pick) is because a long time ago some people decided it sounded too pretty for such a serious, depressing season in the Church year?

 Being honest with myself, though, giving up YouTube has gotten me more into the spirit of Lent...even if I haven't been to a single church service since starting college. (Don't tell my dad.) I use YouTube to watch videos about humor, current events, movie trailers, music, A Very Potter Musical, and of course adorable kittens (don't judge me). Basically I decided to give up a very large chunk of "things that cheer Laura up after hours of school and rehearsal." No wonder I'm feeling down, right?

 Still, here we have an interesting philosophical question. By giving up YouTube, I have realized how much I really use it as a kind of music and humor therapy. I have Pandora, but it's not the same as watching Dudamel conduct Danzon No.2 (many <3 to Dudamel, and to that eargasmic piece). Therefore, I will never take YouTube for granted again and when I permit myself to return to it after Easter, I will be that much more appreciative. The question is: if I actually use YouTube to enrich and enjoy my life, would God/Jesus rather I did not give it up? Or would they rather me be gloomy because I can't watch/listen to adorable kittens? Ok, ok...but in all seriousness, wouldn't God want you to enjoy life? Rather than plunge into a mini-depression every Lent season? Perhaps someone should check suicide statistics for the 40 days of Lent. Or is said mini-depression supposed to make you enjoy/appreciate life more by comparison?  Are you supposed to realize that some people have no interest in Dudamel or eargasms or have never seen a cute kitten in their lives?

 I think we can conclude from this that I gave up something harmless for Lent; that watching YouTube in moderation will not destroy my soul; that YouTube is not as frivolous as I probably thought it was when planning my Lent; God likes kittens; Lent should teach you some kind of lesson, whatever the hell it is; and you should not take little, frivolous, harmless things like YouTube and kittens and Dudamel's hair for granted.
In other news, I auditioned for the one act plays this term. *fingers crossed*

Comments

  1. KirstenThu Apr 14, 05:02:00 PM CDT

    hahaha I love reading your posts so much Laura :) they make me laugh

    ReplyDelete
  2. LauraMon Apr 18, 01:12:00 PM CDT

    Haha. I just re-read this one and it made me smile. :) Thanks for reading, as always! :D

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Comments make me happy, so leave lots! :) I will usually reply to each one, so click Notify Me to read my replies.

Popular posts from this blog

Kiffe Kiffe Tomorrow by Faïza Guène, a YA Book By A Young Author

Review time! Kiffe Kiffe Tomorrow is a young adult novel by a young adult, so I was very interested to read it. There's also a #MuslimShelfSpace tag going around, and this review is a nod to that. The idea is that there's been a lot of stereotypes and anti-Muslim sentiment spread around, so buying and boosting books about and by Muslims can help educate people and break down harmful stereotypes.  The author is French with an Algerian background, and  Guène  wrote Kiffe Kiffe Tomorrow when she was in her late teens. Although the novel is not autobiographical, she shares many things with its main character. Doria, like her creator, is the child of immigrants and lives in poor suburban housing projects.   Guène   wrote that she realized girls like herself weren't really represented in books, and felt that Kiffe Kiffe Tomorrow was a way to tell the stories of people in the suburbs who are ignored by the elites of French literature. Plot: Life Sucks, Until...
2 comments
CLICK TO READ ON >>

Review: Hemlock Grove, ep. 1 and 2

Hello! I'm back from my blogging hiatus. I've been on a horror kick lately, and most recently, I watched the first two episodes of Netflix's Hemlock Grove. I'm a bit late to this series, but for what it's worth, here's my review. I have some...issues.  Pacing It's based on a novel, and you can tell. Once the show introduces something that might be interesting or lead to tension and conflict, it snatches it away like a precious plot-gem that it doesn't want you to see. There is way too much exposition and filler. The plot hangs together pretty well, but not much really happens. Case in point, it should not have taken two whole episodes to find out Main Character is a werewolf. Especially since everyone seems clued into this fact and accepts it as truth -- except the viewers. Then suddenly Rich Boy is asking if he can watch the transformation like it's understood that Poor Kid Main Character is a werewolf. No warning, no lead-up, nothing. ...
Post a Comment
CLICK TO READ ON >>

King Arthur Sucks.

I wrote a review of The Greenstone Grail by Amanda Hemingway , in which I applauded the book for being the first Arthurian adaptation I had read that I didn't despise. I mean, how could I? Despite the book's other problems, it had aliens riding motherfucking dragons!!! Aliens! Dragons! Parallel universes!  After reading my review, one of my friends asked me why I hate Arthurian legend so much.  Well.  Perhaps one of the reasons I liked The Greenstone Grail 's take on the Holy Grail myth was because it was so different.  Most Arthurian adaptations fall along the same lines. It's the same damn story told almost the same damn way all the time. But  The Greenstone Grail took place in modern times, borrowing from the Holy Grail and Arthurian myths without making it so central to the plot that there was no room for other stuff like imagination.  Say whatever else you want about this book ( and believe me, I did ), it had imagination. Its main character c...
2 comments
CLICK TO READ ON >>