Lars and Theo have an adventure

Lars and Theo, the dynamic feline duo, got to spend some time outside under the great blue sky. Lars scouted the parameter of the yard; Theo chased butterflies in the grass.

And then. Theo spotted another. He was huge and covered in shaggy, dark fur. He was in the next yard and he was staring right at Theo. Theo arched, puffed, and stood his ground. The great expanse of fluffy grass with bugs and smells and joy was his and he was not going to let some brute beast (presumably with terrible breath) intrude.

Theo and the big beast bristled and stared. When the beast could wait no longer, he bounded towards the small orange cat. Theo, full of instinct and thrill, suddenly found himself in a precarious new situation.

It all happened so fast. He was stretched and uncomfortable, but he was safe.

Lars didn't want to take his chances on the ground either and quickly followed suit, finding shelter nearby.

The beast's human came outside and apologized. We quickly dismissed the apologies, chuckling at the predicament. The boys cried while we waved and snapped pictures. The first time chased up a tree by a dog deserves to be documented, of course.

When the offending threat was back inside, Lars was the first to head south.

Theo needed some more coaxing.

And then, just like that, both boys were back on the ground and the area was reclaimed.

All without a firetruck ladder and daring rescue. We'll save that for another adventure.

confessions of a bookworm

I haven't been writing much. I guess I needed to clear some space in my head and let others do the talking for a while, as evidenced below.

Oh heyyyy excessive YA novels. Let's just say I have been curled up many a'night on the couch in the last two months. Don't worry, I didn't read all of these in two months. Just eight of them. Yeahhh.

It started with my flight to New York in March. I needed a book to read so I grabbed Divergent on a whim from Target. I know that these dystopian novels are just "so trendy right now" (please read in a snooty voice) but I am fully on board with this trend, hook line and sinker. It started with the Uglies series when I was in high school. Then along came Hunger Games (OBVI), the Matched series, and Enders Game (one of the original dystopian novels that they are now likely ruining with a blockbuster movie).

Once I read Divergent, I got myself a library card because why buy books when I can get them for free, yo? As much as I love my full bookcase, I hate the thought of collecting all these books to only read them once or twice. My library card is now has a special place in the front pocket of my wallet along with my driver's licence and debit card. The privilege!

I think my library card definitely fueled my obsession. All of sudden, I could check out three books at once and greedily devour them... for free.

My feast:

1 >>> Divergent and Insurgent by Veronica Roth. ***
Honestly, the plot is kind of cheesy and I could never get past that. The utopian society was too stereotyped and I never felt completely absorbed in the story. Nevertheless, a fast plot and decent characters. The 2nd book got better and I will probably still read the 3rd when it comes out.

2 >>> Pulse by Patrick Carman. ***
This was the only book I hadn't found on Amazon first and saved to my list so I had no expectations. The plot took much too long to get to the point, but the ending has some good surprises. Not sure if I will follow along with this series or not.

3 >>> Enclave and Outpost by Ann Aguirre *****
You guyssss. If you read any of these books, PLEASE MAKE IT THIS SERIES. I have begging and pleading with my all of my friends and acquaintances and anyone around me who breathes to read this. Bethany told me yesterday she started Enclave and it brought me so much joy that I wished she lived closer so I could make her some cupcakes. Did I just promise cupcakes to anyone who reads this? Yes, I think so. The plot is so, so good and I fell madly in love with the characters (and perfect after my recent NY trip!). I would wake up in the morning and think about them. Miss them when I wasn't reading. Cry and laugh and tremble in fear with them. THAT is a good book. When I finished these two books I couldn't start reading again for a couple weeks because I wanted to savor the story and starting another book felt like cheating on Deuce and Fade and Stalker. I didn't title this post confessions of a bookworm for nothing, ya know.

4 >>> The Fault of Our Stars by John Green *****
When I started getting the itch to read again after Outpost but still couldn't bear to start another dystopian novel, I read this one. It's a modern day love story, mixed together with adolescence and cancer. Since I said cancer, no one is going to be surprised when I say keep a box of tissues nearby. I think I cried through the entire last third of the book, covering my face with the book so Jason wouldn't ask what was wrong. It's poignant and funny and beautiful. Read it.

5 >>> Under the Never Sky and Through the Ever Night by Veronica Rossi ****
When I was finally ready to get back into a wrecked Utopia survival story, I read these two. Partly because Under the Never Sky was about to expire from the library and I had already renewed it once and felt bad about all the other preteens on the waiting list. Look, you will get side eyes from the elderly librarian lady who checks your book out when you get this. Yes, ma'am, I am nearly 25 years old but reading a book whose cover is a handsome young man with a partially un-buttoned shirt in front of dramatic swirls of light (who by the way looks nothingggg like how I imagined Perry). Once you get past the cheesy covers, this series is really good! Not five star because I never felt the amount of emotion I did from Ms. Auirre's books, but the plot is fast, unique, and interesting. And the characters are pretty great.

6 >>> Next up on my list: Daughters of Smoke and Bone, Reached, and Delirium. Do you have any good books to share? I would love nothing more.

changing seasons

Growing up in Arizona, we had some semblance of seasons but nothing compared to the Midwest. I've now seen all four: summer's sticky glow, the explosion of autumn fireworks, winter's steadfast bite, and the springtime flutter of new. 

God has now firmly planted me in this place where I am constantly reminded of the transitions of life. I've been pondering this lately. How the seasons, in their perpetual cycle of change, are still tethered to a rhythm year after year. The Creator's weaving together of consistency and change. 

It's the strangest thing to me: I fear the rhythm, and yet I also fear disrupting the rhythm. Daily life can feel dull and constrictive – the repetition of day and night and night and day. Jobs, chores, obligations. Weekdays, weekends. Putting my head on the same pillow each night and waking up on the same pillow each morning. Nothing inherently bad, but at times defeating on repeat. 

And yet. And yet, when something threatens my daily rhythm – that rhythm that feels like an slowly growing tightness in my throat – my body instantly sets off alarms. I panic and prickle with fear. My senses throw me into tunnel vision and all I can think about is the Change. The Change becomes this constant companion, this hill that seems to be pulling me downward, this expanding balloon in my mind.

Slow to adapt to change. Jason's answer when asked on a reference form about my weaknesses. Seeing it written out like that gives me no room to hide from the fact. Has it ever been spelled out to me like that before? I think I have known this for a long time, but lately how it has settled in among my bones. Among my muscles and sinews and joints runs this vein of pulsing fear, fueled by the simple, unavoidable turn of life.

Fear that nothing will change, and fear that everything will change.

Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

Matthew 6:25-33

I have a feeling at some level, I will always be a slow adapter to change. Those words will always quicken my pulse and uncomfortably tug at my heart. I'm determined to speed up my adaption process, but today the Spirit is gently reminding me that only by seeking Him will I ever find any true peace.

A city in motion

NYC '13 from Emily Lunt on Vimeo.

It's been a while since I went to New York - almost two months! But I finally got together a video of the random clips we took while there. So glad I can have these little snippets to always remind me of a really grand and poignant week in my life.

The energy and motion of the city was exhilarating. I kind of loved the subways, as dark and dirty as they were. In most places, public transportation unfortunately separates those with money and those without. But being in NY, it is a necessary way of life and you could find just about anybody on the train. Down there in the tunnels, it felt like equal ground.

These streets will make you feel brand new

What's even more annoying than a blog post about someone's vacation? A post about how excited someone is for their upcoming vacation! Let's do this.

And for the record, I love vacation posts. Others and my own. Multiple ones even; remember when I wrote not one, not two, not three not four, but FIVE blog posts about my Christmas in St. Louis?! And I wrote four about Chicago. Looking back, was this many posts and pictures needed? Probably not. Will this many posts be needed for my next trip? Yes. A wholehearted yes.

Because I'M GOING TO NEW YORK!!!!

I am not even going to apologize for using four exclamation points because hellooooo. H-e-l-l-o.

It is a city I have always dreamed of visiting. One of those bucket list vacations that always seemed like one day it would happen but also that it really would never happen.

And then a wonderful thing happened. My dear friend Thomas, in pursuit of his dreams, landed a fancy big boy job (at Lucky magazine, nbd) in NYC.

This is Thomas, because this pictures needs to be on the internet as much as possible.

And then, my wonderful friend Marisa, seen here in dramatic Elizabeth Bennett style (coined by the clever brain of Thomas – also I promise I will post one of her face, but I really like this one):

read my mind and declared a NY trip. Done. All in. So. There.

Jason was able to work things out nearly perfectly so that he could fly to Washington, DC for a class trip the same day Marisa and I fly to NY and then he will meet us two days later (after a delightful and oh-so-classy trip on a greyhound bus) and spend the rest of spring break in NYC.

The four of us spent last spring break together in California, and I'm just so darn excited to take the East Coast with these folks this year!

Also, planning a trip to the country's biggest city is um, a little hard.

So many choices! So many exciting and wonderful things to experience! If you have been to New York and you are reading this now, please tell me what to do. Every detail, step by step. I will love you forever.

#NY13, I'm so ready for you (after I spend a week of dramatically procrastinating packing and then going into full-on panic mode in a furious flurry of packing the night before). Whew.

A winter Saturday

You hear that Arizona? It's still winter here and I'm feeling a little cooped up while you all seem to be posting pictures in your swimsuits beaming into the abundant rays of sunshine.

Ah well. It's been a quiet Saturday, just how I like it. Getting things done, relaxing. Pondering some big decisions, and praying praying praying.

I got a new lens, FINALLY. And so I take a multitude of boring pictures as I try to get the hang of things. Someday (soon please?!) I will get the hang of shooting in manual. It's a sloooowww process.

Can we talk for one moment - just one! - about how my kitten can hardly be called a kitten anymore?! They grow up much too fast folks. When I was baking today, he chased dust in the kitchen for an entire hour. He raced from one side of the room to the other, jumped, leaped, and raced some more. I really hope my future kids can entertain themselves this well.

Jason as always has been studying. I call this outfit business on top, party on bottom.

I made cookies for a friend as well as a kind neighbor. It feels good to bake but then get rid of them!

Tonight Jason's school is having a fancy gala where the teachers are known to get a lil tipsy. Awwkward. But if I get to see my lover in a suit, it's all worth it!

And finally, a little song that seems to be our theme song here in Iowa.



Happy Saturday!

Well, hello.

It’s been quite a while since I blogged and now that I’m writing this, I feel a little silly. There’s something quite silly in general about writing a blog, but as silly (yes I just said silly too many silly times) as it sounds, I wrote a love letter to Jason for Valentine’s day and I realized how much I miss writing, so. Here I am.

Partly why I have been neglecting my little corner of the internet is because I have other outlets for creativity (mainly, my work and well, instagram) and I didn’t have the time nor the desire to blog. One of my jobs, which is temporary, will be ending soon so it feels like the perfect time to reunite, my dear blog and I.

I do realize though that I need to reflect and put down my experiences somewhere; otherwise they float around in my head for a while and then slowly disappear. Lessons seem to stick better after a healthy dose of reflection. I’m making a 2012 memory book now and have enjoyed going through my blog and remembering the good and bad of that year. Blogging does take some work and time, but I do appreciate it in the end.

I’ve been growing a lot during my stay in Des Moines. It seems as though my time at ASU was a time to discover myself, but this move has been all about throwing myself in completely unfamiliar territory and putting all my college self-discovery to the test.

I had gotten comfortable with my life in Arizona, but that comfort has been thrown off. Sometimes life feels like this cycle of a new phase of discomfort followed by gradual re-orientation and newfound comfort, only to be started over when a new phase of discomfort strikes. There have been many days where I feel an itch beneath my skin… this unfamiliarity with my new life and this new person I have become. Of course I am still Emily, because whatever decision I make I will still be my own self, but this self is slightly different. This self is a little less sure of herself, a little more doubtful and timid. My future feels like a garment of clothing that’s a few sizes too big and I am still growing to fit into it but in the meantime it’s baggy and rubs against me in ways I’m not used to.

I’m on this path of soul-searching and trying to figure out my place in this world. I long to know more, but I’m also reminded that the less I know, the more I trust. My God is master of the entire universe, and yet his love for me is all-consuming and complete. I know He will lead me through the darkness and unfamiliarity with his steady hand, one step at a time.