Browsing my bookshelf, I discovered a few books I haven't read; they've been laid sandwiched between well-thumbed novels and out-of-date textbooks for upwards of five years. I bought them on a whim and did not even afford them a cursory glance. Knowing I had several unread books, I kept buying more, almost as if the act of buying the books, the idea of eventually reading them, was more attractive than actually reading them.
This sort of romanticizing of eventually doing this and eventually doing that underscores the lives of many modern people. We buy too many books, only to not read them, buy too many clothes, only to not wear them, and buy too much food, only to not eat them. We accumulate stuff in the hopes that just collecting these things will passively lead to happiness. I'm going to do this and this and this, we tell ourselves, but never actually do them. We take the first step and stop, distracted by something else, and take one step towards that and stop.
I've hoped to break this cycle for years, stop just making plans but to also fulfill them. It's too easy to buy the book and leave it unread. In the theme of this, here is a list of books I own that I have not read and will read:
Marcus Aurelius: A Life by Frank McLynn
The Element Encyclopedia of Magical Creatures by John and Caitlin Matthews
Armies of Pestilence: The Impact of Disease on History by R.S. Bray
Lost Cities by M.T. Guaitoli and S. Rambaldi
China's Urban Villagers: Changing Life in a Beijing Suburb by Norman A. Chance
The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon
The Vampire: His Kith and Kin by Montague Summers
Medieval Wordbook by Madeleine Pelner Cosman
Happy reading!
Kins' Magical Faery Castle
Tuesday, March 3, 2015
Monday, March 2, 2015
La Belle Dame Sans Merci
A beautiful woman without pity
Henry Meynell Rheam.
One of my favorite poems of all time, this ballad was written in 1819 by John Keats. The full text is as follows:
Sir Frank Dicksee. 1902. |
Alone and palely loitering?
The sedge has withered from the lake,
And no birds sing.
O what can ail thee, knight-at-arms,
So haggard and so woe-begone?
The squirrel’s granary is full,
And the harvest’s done.
I see a lily on thy brow,
With anguish moist and fever-dew,
And on thy cheeks a fading rose Fast withereth too.
I met a lady in the meads,
Dante Gabriel Rossetti.1848. |
Full beautiful—a faery’s child,
Her hair was long, her foot was light,
And her eyes were wild.
I made a garland for her head,
And bracelets too, and fragrant zone;
She looked at me as she did love,
And made sweet moan
I set her on my pacing steed,
And nothing else saw all day long,
For sidelong would she bend, and sing
A faery’s song.
She found me roots of relish sweet,
And honey wild, and manna-dew,
And sure in language strange she said—
‘I love thee true’.
She took me to her Elfin grot,
And there she wept and sighed full sore,
And there I shut her wild wild eyes
With kisses four.
Henry Meynell Rheam. 1901. |
And there I dreamed—Ah! woe betide!—
The latest dream I ever dreamt
On the cold hill side.
I saw pale kings and princes too,
Pale warriors, death-pale were they all;
They cried—‘La Belle Dame sans Merci
Hath thee in thrall!’
I saw their starved lips in the gloam,
With horrid warning gapèd wide,
And I awoke and found me here,
On the cold hill’s side.
And this is why I sojourn here,
Alone and palely loitering,
Though the sedge is withered from the lake,
And no birds sing.
There are many myths and folklore in Britain and Ireland that relate to a beautiful woman who can drain the life from a man. The Leanan sidhe (or fairy lover) is found in Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man. These fairies take human lovers. In exchange for their life's vitality, they serve as muses. Their lovers are inspired to create works of art, but the Leanan sidhe's presence eventually brings death.
In a similar vein, the Baobhan sith of the Scottish Highlands, are known to be literal man-eaters. Called the "White Women," these bloodsuckers would seduce young men traveling at night. They would lure them to secluded areas and then invite them to dance. Once the men were thoroughly entranced, they would puncture their necks with talons, and then suck their blood. Other versions of them involve them draining the life essence or sexual energy from their victims, quite like the leanan sidhe. They are often described as wearing white or green dresses, which brings us to our next femme fatale.
Hailing from Wales, the Glaistig is tied to a small body of water. Hiding her goat legs beneath a
Brian Froud. Fairies. |
Arthur Hughes. 1861-63. |
A common theme that runs between the poem and all these mythological figures is that of a beautiful woman that lures men to their deaths. This idea is rooted in both the historical beliefs that women were the cause of many evils, and that women, despite their traditionally low place in society, were able to exert control over men through their sexuality. Keats' poem and the brief survey of female figures in Celtic folklore are just a slice of the overall view of women worldwide.
Sunday, February 1, 2015
Lipstick Swatches: Bright Fuchsias
I have a thing for bright lipstick, so much that I tend to buy the same colors over and over again. Here's a showcase of my fuchsia lipstick collection. Behold! The Color!
L to R: Revlon Flirtatious, YSL Fuchsia in Excess, Dior Rose Harpers, YSL Babydoll, UD Catfight
Revlon Colorburst Lacquer Balm in Flirtatious
This balm is in a crayon form. Unlike the original colorburst balm, this is not a stain. The lacquer balm has microglitter in it that is apparent on the lips. It has a minty scent.
Yves Saint Laurent Rouge Volupté Shine in Fuchsia in Excess
This is probably my favorite of my fuchsia lipsticks. It has a thin, glossy texture that looks shiny, but not overdone. It has a fruity scent.
Dior Rouge Dior Couture Colour Voluptuous Care Lipstick in Rose Harpers
First I need to address the scent. It is awful! I can only describe it as smelling like old lady perfume, which I'm sure will offend old ladies. I think it's floral, but I can't tell for sure because my olfactory senses shut down after the first whiff. The smell does not dissipate, and you will be smelling your lips all day. Otherwise, the color is similar to the YSL stain, but more matte.
Yeah, I know the name is silly and not very French or classy. This color was limited edition and seems to no longer be available. The color is probably the brightest and boldest of all five, which can be attributed to its glossiness, but can be blotted down. It has a strong smell of roses and alcohol. This is a true stain and can be a pain to remove.
Urban Decay Revolution Lipstick in Catfight
This lipstick as the trickiest formula to apply. The texture is thick and applies patchy straight from the bullet. I have the best luck if I use a lip brush. There appears to be a fine shimmer in it, but it is not as apparent as the Revlon lipbalm. The scent is quite faint, for which I am grateful.
So, as you can see, I have a lot of similar colors. The differences between them are a lot more noticeable in person, so I'm a little frustrated that they look the same in pictures. Both the YSL ones are probably the most unique of the colors I own. From working on this segment though, I have officially banned myself from buying any more fuchsia lipstick until I use up a few!
Saturday, January 31, 2015
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