KGR was elected deacon at my church tonight! Congrats Daddy. <3 Reminded of how proud I am to be the daughter of such a strong, wise, caring man willing to lead the people of God. :) I get a lot of who I am from him.
Well, besides that, I had a wonderful day with two of my best friends in God's house today; Little Mermaid and Miss Ninja, both of which I have no idea what I'd do without. Though I must admit in the evening service I was preoccupied with this AMAZING book...

               "Showdown", by Ted Dekker. Only three chapters in and I'm completely hooked. I've read a few of his other works, The Circle Trilogy (fantastic) and Thr3e (also fantastic. Pretty much all his stuff is absolutely fantastic.) Ted Dekker is known for his mind-bending, perspective-spinning grasp on reality and the infinite spanse beyond sanity... definately one of my biggest inspirations as a writer. Showdown circles around the spiritual realm (mainly about Satan's attempt to completely obliviate the lives of a few mortals) and is prequel and sequel, Saint and Sinner, I hear, are every bit as good as Showdown, considering it actually doesn't matter what order you read them in... Dekker's just that cool, I guess. ;)

I also find a sixty-year-old copy of The Oddessey, which I've enthusiastically sunk my teeth into, being a lover of Ancient Greek. My infatuation with Percy Jackson certainly made sure of that. I didn't know Athena turned into a man to speak to Odesseus's son! :O

A fairly good ending to a fairly normal day. Normal for now, anyway. Who knows what the week holds... (Ah, Ted always makes me feel mysterious and strange and completely numbly satisfied with darkness... it brings out the best in me, does it not?) Oh, but of course there's that moment of sickening, revolting dread when you remember school, a bothersome guitar lesson, it's Monday, for crying out loud... who wouldn't be in a foul mood...?

Sorry for the strange mess-up with the paragraph layout... I didn't know how to fix it after i inserted the cover picture... Anyway! Happy Monday!

Nightingale ~

Okay, I just wrote an entire really long post and pressed the wrong button and it deleted the whole thing and I can't get it back.
To express my anger and annoyance, this will be today's post.
Pfft.
Gale~

Alright!
So, T.D., Goldey Locks and Ladybug were running around and being goofballs as usual, and I decide to play some Christmas music in attempt to drown them out (I should know by know that this is impossible). I searched through our drawer and found a Tchaikovsky CD (I am so proud that I can actually spell that) and called to the Queen,
"Hey mum, how about Tchaikovsky?"
T.D. interprets what I said by yelling,
"MIKE WAZOWSKI!"
Oh, my sisters, I'm telling ya... ;)
It is not cold. At all. (at least for the past few days.. today was different) And Red and I are about to go crazy. No matter how much Christmas music we play, no matter how much baking we do or decorations we hang or how desperately we pray for snow, we're just not excited about Christmas. I am ashamed of myself.
I need to spend some time being thankful for Jesus is what I need to do... that'll get me excited I'm sure. :) besides, I lived for three years in Hawaii when KGR was stationed there and we spent Thanksgiving in a little cottage up on the North Shore beach every year, and every Christmas it rained. I guess I should be thankful we've had a pretty nice December. But basically the same thought always enteres my mind: "But it snowed LAST year!"
Well, I have a science test to study for... I will leave you to your various festivities.
Hey! It frosted this morning! Thanks Jack. <3
Nightingale~

"Why don't you date?"
This is a question I get, surprisingly, a lot.
It's certainly not as annoying as "Gosh, you're so tall," (Which I will not deny is true..) but after a while I'd like people to respect the fact that I see no need for a boyfriend at my young, innocent age... (pfft, innocent, whatever)
I know I posted an entry similar to this not that long ago but Christmas has once again brought it to my attention. About four of my galfriends have told me, "Oh, I wish I had a boyfriend to spend Christmas with" or "Seems like Christmas is the best time to be in love." And it truly breaks my heart to see them so upset that they don't have the full attention of a man to make them happy this season! Now they're all glum and it simply doesn't make sense.
I suppose I do get harsh on this subject, maybe because I feel obligated to guard my own heart. But guarding doesn't mean shutting every man out and huddling in a corner in fear of being in love. No. It means careful evaluating and inspecting them from behind the gate to see if they're worthy to be let in. I enjoy love; sometimes I wish I could be in love for Christmas too. I've experienced something like it before, but it usually didn't work out. Why, because I'm a kid. I don't know truly what love is, and that's okay. I need time to educate myself on it, to search it through and through, to purify it for myself. Some may argue that dating is a perfect way to do that. I understand, but I disagree. That's how people get hurt, in my humble opinion.
I've consented to sitting back, investigating and learning, and living my young teenage years free of romantic drama. That's another thing that's caused: Dramaaaaaa. Especially in love that is uneducated and premature and, frankly, self-centered.
I think we need to look at the two, ah, 'definitions' of love:
"You make me feel amazing when you're with me. I'm attracted to everything about you, and I think we should go out and see what happens."
Kay, that's typically the case in junior and senior high school. (But not always, I'm sure you'd say I'm wrong) Here's a more Christian based definition:
"I am going to commit everything I am to your well being and what I know is best for you, even if it hurts me. And even when the feelings of love come and go, I am going to be grounded and committed to you because it's a choice of love I made to you, not a feeling."
The first definition is a feeling, right? The second definition may seem not like love to you, but I believe it is. It's the first kind of love; the love God showed us when He chose not to leave us behind when we sinned. He chose to love us and do what He knows is best for us no matter how far we stray and no matter how much pain we cause Him sometimes. That's real love. The commitment, not the feeling. Because as we know, feeling come and go quicker than the wind. So, if we base your relationship with someone on these two definitions, which one do we think is going to last longer and hold stronger?
So, that is why I don't date. I'm a kid, who doesnt't know how to truly love yet, and I don't want to hurt anyone by pretending like I do.
And, lastly, in my opinion no real long-term relationship is going to work if it's not centered around Christ. Because only with Christ can we become unselfish, and a selfish love is no love at all. Seems perfectly in time for Christmas; going into these next few weeks let's reflect on the real love God showed us to begin with- sending His only Son to die for us so He could have a real relationship with us. What better example could we ask for?
But then again, dear, batty Miss Nightingale could be all wrong. If I am, I'll be sure to tell you... ;)
Thank you for tolerating that blurb of my mind. Happy cold, dreary December morning to you all. Nightingale~
  

"I have not failed. I have just found 10,000 ways that don't work." -Thomas Edison, before inventing the light bulb.
This may be the best quote I've heard yet, besides "I've got a feeva... And the only prescription is more cowbell." It will be something I remember every time I mess up or try and not succeed...
My weekend was fairly uneventful, besides The New Jerseyers coming down to see us Saturday. THAT was a fun and much-needed visit, I'm telling you what. Now the stockings are hung and we're breaking out the Christmas decorations, CDs, and candles. :) Ah, this time of year NEVER lasts long enough. AND, I'm starting to worry that this year we might not get snow. :O One of my friends, SpiderBen, in Texas, got snow the other day and it was sixty degrees here, pouring rain... not fair.
So, what did you guys think of that chapter from my last post? Ya like it? Please, feel free to tell me which of those novel suggestions you would like to hear more about and I'd be happy to write a little of one of them. Though I'm not sure how free I'll be to blog and write in the next few weeks... I'm sure we'll be plenty busy. Plenty to write about, of course, but not plenty of time...
Before KGR kicks me off the laptop, GIRLS, please check out a website/blog/Facebook page called Project Inspired. It's created and run by a former model, Nicole, I believe that's her name, who found Jesus and gives all kinds of advice about beauty tips and keeping yourselves pure and a heck of a lot of information about God and life that I've found immensely helpful. She's pretty cool. :)
A very merry December month to you all, and may yours be colder than mine's been so far... :P
God bless,
Nightingale~   

Hoorah for Saturdays! And guitar lessons! And VISITING FRIENDS FROM NEW JERSEY!
Aunt Pippa, Uncle Viking, Cousin Redhead Snippet and Cousin Mancub are driving down as I type. It's been a while since we last got together. I missed them.
I suppose there isn't much to say besides I need names for my novel. Here's the rough draft of chapter one for you. Feel free to comment your ideas?

"Chapter One

"The hooded figure pulled his slippery cloak tighter around his shoulders as he moved in step with the huge beings in front of him. The swords strapped to their sides glinted in the bright light that seemed to come from all around them. It was hard to see the rest of their features because of the violent glow they gave off... Harder still for the dark figure who shuffled silently with them. He kept a safe distance from the enormous, silver, transparent wings on their backs, which swayed as the beings took their wide strides. The angel's golden heads towered at least as high as two of the cloaked spirit, facing forward, as they kept walking towards the Great Hall.
There were people everywhere- children, adults, teenagers, all parting and falling silent when he passed. The man recognized many of them; almost each and every one. But now he kept his gaze on the blinding golden street beneath him, refusing to focus on the reality. The cloak was beginning to slip; he knew it wouldn't be long before it would disappear completely. This was the moment he hated most, yet he relived it every day.
I could not begin to describe to you the building the man walked into with the angels. Everything was violently clear, yet blindingly bright. That was all it was- light. There were so many grand hallways and domed ceilings... The man knew them all, every inch of the palace he remembered. Now he loathed it.
The deeper they moved into the building the more dread had begun to build in the hooded figure's chest. He could feel the light penetrating his skin like needles, digging into him with every step. His cloak of darkness was almost gone. His feet felt heavy, his mind buzzed louder and louder, the light searching him, as if trying to find one bit of love in him. But there was none.
The man felt hollow, his skin, his muscles, his very bones feeling ripped at, clawed through. Layer after layer of his black soul was being peeled back, revealed to the terrifying light which tried to cleanse him, searing, melting...
Then it was over. His cloak was gone, his dark protection vanished. He felt utterly raw, vulnerable, exposed. The huge wings on his own bare back were spread to full length. They were pure, deepest black, tipped with a strange light. Only it was not light at all now; what had once been beautiful lines of light were now pale, golden shadows. He stood in the huge, indescribable Hall, the colorful dome above flooding the smooth floor like a rainbow. The angels in front of him kneeled low. This man did not.
He could not have looked up if he was willing to. The light burned his eyelids, searing far beyond his skin now. The very flesh and faces of the angels radiated the blinding light from simply being in the Lord's presence. One by one the angels unsealed scrolls and their low voices boomed as they gave reports.
What's the point, the man thought. He already knows it all.
He felt the Son's eyes on his face, but did not say anything as the guardians continued with their readings before the Lord. He refused to look up.
His skin screamed, his mind seized up and went numb. The light was pain to him.
"Lucifer," a calm voice said. It came from in front of him where the Throne was, but it echoed and buzzed in the back of his skull. The Son had finally spoken as the angels separated to reveal him.
"What is your business here?" the next voice asked. The Creator's voice this time. It sent a ripple through Lucifer's mind that made him want to crumple for a split second- then he got his mind back. He would not bow before Him, not now, not ever. Lucifer's wings twitched, the gold on the ends flickering.
"Do we not go over this every time?" Lucifer muttered in a voice barely audible. His own voice sounded distant. His fists clenched, trying to ignore the pain that now sore at the very soles of his feet. Then he gritted his teeth and muttered, swinging his head. "I have been walking back and forth upon the earth, blah blah blah."
The Son's eyes bored into Lucifer's face, his thoughts quietly turning themselves over. He knew His Father's glory was tearing at him.
"I come asking permission. The one called Ivy."
The words rang in the huge hall, where the many people that were in it stirred. Everyone knew of the one the Devil had spoken of. The Lord often spoke praise of her, how she followed He and the Son so devoutly.
Jesus shifted slightly in his throne, but not a thought of worry crossed his mind. He looked carefully at the stiff, dark figure that stood on the golden floor in front of him. He was like a black bird against a cloudless sky.
"You have chosen poorly, Lucifer," the Father said quietly. "Ivy is my beloved and she knows it. Would she so quickly turn away? I doubt."
A smile barely flickered on Lucifer's twisted face. "Let me try her. Did I not win with Job in the end, when I convinced his fools of friends to tell him to curse you? I swear it, she will fall the same."
The Father did not reply so quickly. Jesus could barely hear him let out a pitied sigh.
"Go, then. But you will not lay a hand on her physical condition."
With that Lucifer's wings quivered. He backed away from the throne and soon he was out of the Great Hall, out of the palace, his dark robes returning, his confidence and defiant fire reigniting in his blackened heart.
This one, he thought to himself as his cloaks familiar weight reappeared on his shoulders. This one will be fun.
The streets under Lucifer blurred as his cloak swirled around him, the pearly gates appearing, a horribly soft smile creeping up on his face. It grew and grew, wider and wider until it turned into a low laugh. Yes, this will be fun, he thought again. He pulled his cloak over his head once more, back in the protection of his lies. The only thing visible before he disappeared completely from Heaven was his poisonous smile."

As you may have guessed, the novel will be about Satan's attempts to destroy a young woman named Ivy Beauregard. Should prove interesting. Other possible novels I could start: "Time", "Cora's Stars", "The Puppeteer" and "The Mythkeeper Chronicles". Which sound most interesting? Feel free to tell!
Have a wonderful Saturday all. :) Mine should be fun.
Gale~

P.S. Best part of today may be the HARRY POTTER MARATHON! *victory dance*

I think my trusty notebook is trusty no longer.
I, like anyone else, have a habit of writing my emotions down and releasing my anger by just scribbling what's going through my head. I also, like anyone else, did not expect three younger sisters and a KGR to come and flip through and read it to my own Queen.
The first entry had been written when I was in a particularly bad mood, whether from simply not getting my way or being extremely aggravated by a previously mentioned family member. I had said several things I probably shouldn't have risked being made public and now the Queen is in a ruthless and rather sad mood no doubt, because of my stupid actions. I suppose I have a lot of praying and thinking to do on how to make it up, considering that entry was written over a month ago and the Queen's attitude really has improved quite a bit since then.
On a higher note, I'm thinking out a plot for a most recent novel idea. I think I have the main story; it's a modern retelling of Job's situation. If I get enough views on this post I'll publish the very rough draft of the first chapter in my next entry. ;)
I fell asleep wrapped in the softest, most gentle moonlight last night, which left it's elegant beauty in the morning hours: there's a pretty layer of frost outside.Tons of inspiration that I'm hoping to scrawl into something, I always do...
And, as I should've known, Mistress Shrop has plenty of cloaks... I don't think she'll be needing another one from her measly apprentice. :) So, I'll make one for my trusty sidekick Peanut Butter instead. I hope I can get the pattern, make the cloak and send it in time for at least New Years... she does live in Paradise, after all.
A very blessed December morning to you all. :)
Gale~