October Wrap-Up

So, I could tell you that in October I:

-Wore the new sweater I knitted
-Carved a pumpkin with one of my friends (using another friends' pocketknife) while drinking apple cider
-Baked a chocolate cake with a friend and basically drew people like moths to a flame into the tiny student kitchen and sat on the windowsill while we talked about musicals with one of our chaplains
-Drank tea
-Had a PSL for the first time ever
-Took many pictures of fall-colored trees
-Listened to much of the City Between series, which is perfectly spooky for October
-Read Beowulf, again, perfect for October. Also, Anne of Windy Poplars. More on that in a moment.

And thus, it would sound like I had a perfectly aesthetic October.

But okay, some context.

-Wore the new sweater I knitted because it started to be in the 20s (at least, with windchill) in October and this is not allowed
-Carved a pumpkin with one of my friends (using another friends' pocketknife) while drinking apple cider and being so exhausted that no one could tell if I was having fun or not because I was staring into space a lot
-Baked a chocolate cake with a friend and basically drew people like moths to a flame into the tiny student kitchen and sat on the windowsill while we talked about musicals with one of our chaplains while no one mentioned the fact that the cake was kind of a hot mess (although it was delicious)
-Drank tea (mostly caffeinated and drunk out of a thermos, to get me through the day)
-Had a PSL for the first time (ditto, also, I thought it would be black tea and not coffee for no good reason)
-Took many pictures of fall-colored trees until my camera broke
-Listened to much of the City Between series, which is perfectly spooky for October because I spent double digit numbers of hours in my landscape architecture studio each week frantically trying to meet my deadline(s) and I needed something to listen to while regretting the fact that fall was slipping by outside my windows
-Read Beowulf, again, perfect for October. Also, Anne of Windy Poplars. More on that in a moment. Those books took possibly too long to read because I was SO BUSY I had very little reading time

So. Even if blogs are not Instagram, all is not always what it seems.

Which is not to say I had a bad month. It was great, possibly the best reading October I've ever had in terms of slightly creepy autumnal books, and with many blessings. I just wish I'd had more time to enjoy it while not on deadline and freaking out about finishing my mylar and coloring. Such are the pitfalls of hand-drawing landscape architecture plans...but I'm not looking forward to moving to digital rendering either, so. *shrug*

(Also, cuffing season (which I did not realize was a thing) is in full swing at the Newman Center, and it's simultaneously hilarious and driving me absolutely insane. Like! You people! Are babies! WHY IS EVERYONE DATING ALL OF A SUDDEN??!)

Fun Quotes:

Student during a debate: "Who you callin' organic?"

Another student on the other side during the same debate: "Sometimes you just get an itch that nothing but Chili's can scratch."

TA: *slumps down in chair, hand over face, laughing the laughter of the dying*

Ray: "Weebles wobble but they don't fall down...just like cerebellum disfunction!"

Lewis: "I've resolved string theory and quantum mechanics while you were talking about your emotions and music."

LA TA: "It's just like malpractice, but with the ground instead of people's organs."

LA TA: [about trying to not get hit by cars while crossing streets] "Just stare [the driver] straight in the eye...but don't do that if you have any fear in your heart."

Mark: "What is there to eat on Green Street that would be okay to feed to someone made in the image and likeness of God?"

Mary: "It's like selling your soul to Google!" *pause* "Oops."

Worth Reading...

...if you want a cozy fall read

Anne of Windy Poplars by L. M. Montgomery 
This is possibly my favorite of the Anne books, partially because a lot of it are her letters to Gilbert (I am a sucker for epistolatory novels, and especially when they involve love. Basically, everything Sarah Seele would hate), partially because of all of the wonderful people within its pages, and partially because of the extreme autumn/winter vibes, which persist in my mind despite the fact that a fair amount of it really does take place in spring. And then there are the hijinks of the Pringles, and the stories of the Tomgallons, and really it's just a fun cozy book, perfect for curling up with. (Not that I got to do that, of course...most of my reading of it was between classes. XD)

...if you want a really unique fantasy

The Theft of Sunlight by Intisar Khanani 
I read Thorn by the same author a couple of years ago and really enjoyed it, and on a whim decided to pick up the sequel and was extremely glad I did! I think it's the best new fantasy novel I've come across in a really long time. It's got slightly Islamic vibes (which I appreciate, despite indications to the contrary, mostly because I took a really awesome class on Islamic gardens and architecture last year), has a unique magic system, an MC with a great relationship with her family (including plenty of sisters!! and also a cousin, if I remember correctly), who's also disabled (she has a club foot) and the way the disability is written is incredibly good--it's brought up as often as it would be an issue for her, so the reader never forgets it, but the reader also isn't ever allowed to see her as less-than. It's incredible. Plus, there's the mysterious thief with an extremely functional moral compass who pops up when he's least expected, and the tax clerk who's invaluable in crime investigations. It's just beautifully crafted and gripping all the way through. Also, I had forgotten a lot of what happened in the first book, but that didn't matter for my enjoyment at all. (I will note that there is a cliffhanger, which means that I'm now reading the third book in the series, and enjoying that one, too. There's a lot of themes of justice and what that means, which I absolutely LOVE.)

...if you like really wide-lens full-life stories

The Good Pilot Peter Woodhouse by Alexander McCall Smith
I'm not always a huge fan of Alexander McCall Smith's work, but I found a copy of this book, and it was WWII fiction, and my mom loves McCall Smith, so I thought I'd give it a go. (The things that make me read books sometimes... *shakes head*) It's definitely not told in a traditional manner--things jump back and forth a bit, and it's kind of tell-not-show in a lot of places, and it covers a lot of ground both in time (quite a bit of it takes place after WWII) and space...but it also tells the story of a beautiful connection between families and emphasizes the humanity of both sides, and does all of this in a really beautiful way somehow. Many extremely lovable characters pop up, including my favorites, the farmer who Never Ever Wants To Stop Farming, and, of course, the titular character, Peter Woodhouse, who happens to be a dog. But also a good pilot. For the answer to this apparent paradox...well, read the book. ;) In sum, it was an unexpectedly delightful read, even if it wasn't your typical WWII book. 

...if you like epic poetry

Beowulf tr. Seamus Heaney 
I hadn't planned on rereading this one after reading it in high school, but my book club suggested it, and I'm really glad they did, because I fell in love with it all over again. (I think the general conclusion I'm coming to is that I just really love epic poetry? Song of Roland, Idylls of the King, Aeneid, Ballad of the White Horse...yeah.) It's just...a beautiful epic poem, the story of bravery and courage and what it means to grow old, and what it means to trust God, and what it means to be a good man. The narrator is delightfully subtle, and the characters are...shockingly well-drawn for a piece of poetry that's like a thousand years old. WIGLAF. THAT KID. I love him so much. He's basically Beregond before Beregond actually existed, and is just great. There is also much epic combat, ripping of limbs, &c, so...be warned. I'm extremely biased in my translation choices towards the Seamus Heaney version, because he does an EXCELLENT job with the poetic rhythm (I honestly would love to make my hypothetical children memorize it, and I think the rhythm would help). But apparently Tolkien also has a translation that I'd like to read at some point, perhaps, so. That's on the table as well. ;)

What have you been reading this month? Have you gotten to drink apple cider and carve a pumpkin? Are all of your friends inexplicably pairing off? Tell me everything!