The Last Lecture

I am in the midst of reading Randy Pausch's book, The Last Lecture. In many ways it is a quick read, written in a conversational style. However, this book should not be a quick read. It should be eaten slowly so one might savor every bite. It contains the life stories and life lessons of an incredibly inspiring man.

The author, Randy Pausch, was diagnosed with Pancreatic Cancer; he was given three to six months of health in late August 2007. Pausch was a well-known professor at Carnegie Mellon prior to his diagnosis. After much consideration, Pausch decided to give a last lecture at Carnegie Mellon which was the inspiration for the book. The Last Lecture is full of inspiring wisdom and strength. I can't say enough about the book; suffice it to say that I heartily recommend The Last Lecture.

Here are a few of my favorite quotes from the book:

"Experience is what you get when you didn't get what you wanted. And experience is often the most valuable thing you have to offer."
"Brick walls are there for a reason. They give us a chance to show how badly we want something."
"Time is all you have. And you may find one day that you have less than you think."
"Everyone of us must decide: Am I a fun-loving Tigger or am I a sad-sack Eeyore?"

Pausch was invited to give the charge to graduates at Carnegie Mellon this year. Here is his speech, courtesy of Youtube and Carnegie Mellon.

Collage Kit: Sample 2

This is another sample of a collage made with the "Fire" collage kit. Soon to be posted on my Etsy store -- watch for more details!

Book Review: Offbeat Bride

I just finished reading the book Offbeat Bride: Taffeta-Free Alternatives for Independent Brides by Ariel Meadow Stalling. I was excited to read the book as I enjoy the Offbeat Bride website. However, I found the book rather disappointing. I was hoping that this book would provide ideas for brides who don't want a McWedding. However, most of the book is simply Stalling's sharing about her own wedding experiences. Having recently become engaged and started the search for various wedding paraphernalia, I understand Stalling's distaste for the Wedding Industry and the cookie cutter wedding/reception. However, I do not agree with the author's approach to the independent wedding. Perhaps it is simply a personality clash. Unlike Stallings, I do not intend my wedding to be a symbol of my declaration of independence from the self-proclaimed sovereign Wedding Industry (or society). In my opinion, weddings should be a communal, joyful celebration which binds the community together. The author does not promote good communication skills among brides and their families; she encourages brides to hide details that their families might find offensive until the day of the wedding. While I believe that couples should plan weddings and reception that reflect their personal interests and beliefs, they should not at the cost of distancing their loved ones. The "F--- you" approach to weddings (and life in general) can only get you so far. (That being said, the level of cursing in this book is distracting and irritating.) Basically, I think Stallings encourages a Bridezilla approach to alternative weddings.

The Perfect Summer Day...

Today my sister Mandy and I spent some time outside simply enjoying the beauty and splendor of our natural habitat. It was a gorgeous day! We brought a bowl of cherries with us and entertained ourselves seeing who could spit cherries the farthest. Mandy read her book while entertained myself writing away. We throughly ourselves sunbathing in our own backyard.

A New Etsy Product

Recently, I started musing on how I could share the joy and wonder I experience through the creation of art. I thought I'd make some "collage kits" so the public can make their own beautiful creations. I will be selling these kits at some point in my Etsy store. My idea is to have a kit representing the elements of Earth, Wind, and Fire. I have not completed putting together these kits, but here is a sample of the Fire kit.



A beautiful sampling of papers.



Bobbles and various notions.



A sample collaged card.

Wordie: Eliot's "Little Gidding"

This wordie is composed of the words from T. S. Eliot's "Little Gidding" (No. 4 of the Quartets), IV.

Wordie: Design

What I Try to Remember...

Almost a year and a half ago, I was diagnosed with a chronic disease called Ulcerative Colitis. I had been struggling with pain, exhaustion, and frustration. At that time, I wrote a list of things I to try to remember. Since then, the list has hung in my bedroom. I thought I'd share with you an abbreviated version.

View setbacks as opportunities to grow. By striving to overcome difficulties in your life, you will gain strength, virtue, and character.

People have different limitations, so do not compare your capabilities (or incapabilities) to others'. Your life is not made of limits, but of freedom. Focus on what you can do, rather than what you are unable to do. Your individuality is specific and unique. Offer the world your individual gifts and talents. Live your life abundantly.

Everything will work out, maybe not the way you originally planned, but it will resolve itself. View the situation with long term vision. This will often make the present clearer. Be patient. Things often take longer than we think they should.

Transcend yourself and love one another. Love is not a feeling, but a continual choice to work for the beloved's ultimate happiness. Love means giving a continual self-gift freely.

God never gives us more than we can handle. He always provides the necessary grace.

Build one another up; do not tear down. Do not worry what others think of you. They are probably worrying about what you think of them. Live confidently, knowing that you were created with intrinsically unique qualities.

God loves you more than you can possibly imagine. He is always with you. Prayer is a mutual conversation; remember to shut up.

An Etsy Preview

Here's a little preview of my Etsy store.

My Etsy Store

I would like to announce that I will be hosting the Grand Opening of my Etsy store, Soul of a Rose, on March 1, 2008. On that date, I will be offering great sales on beautiful homemade cards and stationary. I will be posting a direct link soon. Also, I will try to post some previews of my merchandise.

In the meantime, please check out Etsy for lovely homemade items!

Illustration Friday: Theory

Illustration Friday: Theory, originally uploaded by soulofarose.

This is my submission for Illustration Friday's theme of "Theory." Pictured here is Jacques Derrida, the well-known twentieth-century literary theorist. "Différance" is a word that Derrida coined; it is a complicated concept/word that I will not attempt to explain here. In any case, the word "theory" reminded me of this great theorist.

The writing that serves as the background in this image is actually a portion of the work of Derrida. Thanks to this page, I was able to get the French as well as the English translation of Derrida's description of différance.

I hope you enjoy!

The Sea

A Slight Change of Plans...

Well, a great deal has happened in the past few months. I will not even try to catch you up on the news. Quick summary: first I was very busy, then I was very sick, and am now not so very busy. I was forced to take a semester off, a medical leave of absence to recover. This has been a trying period, not only the whole getting better bit, but the absence of academia and friends (proximity-wise) has been rather difficult for me.

So. What have I been doing with all this free time? Well, not too much as of yet, but I have been crafting some great plans for the next few months. All shall be revealed in good time.

In the meantime, here are some photos of what I have been "cooking up" literally. It should be noted, that while I was enduring the "very sick" part of my recent past I was on a clear liquid diet. I was also taking medication that made me excruciatingly hungry. I began watching the Food Network religiously as well as reading as many cooking magazines as I could lay my hands on. When I finally was released from the hospital, I began to cook. Here, for your perusal, are some of my recent culinary creations.



This is a chickpea salad with a homemade white wine citrus dressing.



This is my version of vegetarian "ribs" with sage risotto (Mom's creation) and some honey-balsamic roasted root vegetables. The "ribs" are made with seitan, marinated with my own special recipe of marinade and then simmered in a pot and served with some of the marinade on top. The root vegetables were really fun to make; the sweetness of the honey contrasted nicely with the balsamic vinegar. This was also my first time preparing, cooking, and eating parsnips -- quite an enjoyable experience.



This is the infamous Angel Food cake I attempted to make. My mom, sister, and I all took turns beating that batter for an hour and an half until it finally whipped into peaks. I ended up killing our little hand-held beater (it had lived a good long life of over twenty years). Thus, this cake was very precious as a beater had sacrificed its life to give birth this dessert.

I have recently been reading T. S. Eliot’s essay Tradition and the Individual Talent. The essay discusses the connection between the concept of tradition and innovation in the arts. I especially liked this passage:

“To conform merely would be for the new work not really to conform at all; it would not be new, and would therefore not be a work of art…. But the difference between the present and the past is that the conscious present is an awareness of the past in a way and to an extent which the past's awareness of itself cannot show….” (5, 6)

This part of the essay reminded me of what my friend Alex had been telling me about Ara Pacis, an example of very modern architecture in Rome. Ara Pacis is a stark white, geometrical building surrounded by the many warm-colored buildings along the Tiber. It had been argued that the building does not match its surroundings. Seen through the context of Eliot’s Tradition and the Individual Talent, Ara Pacis is actually “traditional” in the fact that it breaks the conventional mold.

Another facet of this dualistic thinking is the mix of Christianity and Roman symbols throughout the city. Many of the Roman monuments were Christianized during the Middle Ages when the popes were trying to erase the pagan memorials. The home of the Mother Church was built upon the great pagan city. Roma celebrates the synthesis the old within the new, the pagan within the Christian. The above picture is an ancient obelisk with a statue of (what I believe) is St. Peter on top. This illustrates what Eliot described as “This historical sense, which is a sense of the timeless as well as of the temporal...together, is what makes a writer [or any artist] traditional..” (3)

“No poet, no artist of any art, has his complete meaning alone. His significance, his appreciation is the appreciation of his relation to the dead poets and artists.” (4)

Some musings from a hopeful traditional…

For pictures of Ara Pacis, click here.
To read Tradition and the Individual Talent, click here.

Sketch of a Horse

horse sketch
Originally uploaded by soulofarose.

This is a sketch I did at the on the fountains at Piazza Navona for my art class. (I confess, I did some basic editing on Photoshop before I uploaded it.)

Illustration Friday: Sprout

Illustration Friday: Sprout
Originally uploaded by soulofarose.

Please click to view larger image.

Marseille, France

From Marseille

From Marseille

We just got back from Marseille, France this morning. We had a whirlwind adventure in France, starting early on Friday morning (our flight left at 7:30AM) and ending back home in Rome early this morning (our flight left France at 6:25AM). We used Ryanair which offers some of the cheapest flights in Europe. Marseille is a Mediterranean city, built around a harbor. There are open fish markets in the mornings and the harbor is full of multitudes of boats. We arrived in Marseille at about 10:30AM and since we couldn't check into our hotel until 2:00PM, we decided to explore the city.

Our first stop was the Church of St. Vincent de Paul. We didn't know this at the time, but St. Vincent spent some time in Marseille before his conversion. It was comforting to see a "familiar face." I felt like St. Vincent was taking care of us.

We then decided to head towards Musée Cantini. Afterwards, we went to the Musée d'Histoire de Marseille. We managed to translate some of the information into English. Amy remembered quite a bit of her French which was a big help getting around the city. Most people in Marseille do not speak English, but are patient with tourists. I kept trying to speak Italian (which made me happy that Italian is becoming more of a habit, but it was the wrong language for this city!)I would say things like, "Si, oui. Grazie, merci."

The next day we began the morning with a stop at a local pastry shop. I instantly fell in love with almond pastry. Heaven in a bite! After consuming our breakfast, we visited Chateau d'If, the island where the Count of Monte Cristo takes place. The sun was luminous, blindingly bright and warm. The water was enchanting and exhilarating. I can not use enough adjectives to describe the island. It was a intoxicating place, magical and serene. We explored the castle and then sunbathed on the rocks. We had to take the ferry back to Marseille (unfortunately).

The literal summit of our trip was Basilique Notre Dame de la Garde which is 161m high. We were rewarded with spectacular views of the city and mountains. Later that evening we heard mass in French at the Basilique du Sacré-Coeur and cooked up a delicious dinner (soup, couscous, "vin," and serious amounts of chocolate.)

Marseille was an interesting comparison to Roma. There is much more ethnic diversity in Marseille, maybe because it is more south as well as being a large port. Amy and I enjoyed a nice meal at local Indian restaurant. People in France are equally clueless about lines as Italians. It seems to be an European epidemic that people act like kindergartners lining up to receive free ice cream any where lines would be routine in the USA. Dogs walk off leash up and down the streets in Marseille and France.

Marseille hosts a large fishing community and is surrounded by the sea. I loved watching the boats, hearing the gulls and waves. The colors of the homes reflect this nautical feel; the colors are cooler in general than the warm pinks, corals, and yellows of Roma. This magical port is a beautiful, enchanting little city.

Blind Contour Drawing: Learning How to See

In my sketching class, we have had to do several blind contour drawings. This is a basic assignment designed to help one’s eye/hand coordination. Blind contour drawing is accomplished by tracing the outlines of a subject without looking at one’s paper. After sketching ten or more garlic cloves without achieving any satisfactory results, I was frustrated. I knew I could have drawn decent-looking vegetables if I had been able to see.

My homework assignment reminded me of a book I had read several years ago. There was a quote by a famous artist inside the front cover. I have since forgotten the artist’s name as well as the exact wording of the quote. It was something to the effect of, “In order to draw an apple, you must look at the apple as if it were first one you had ever seen.” I mused over this quote as I sat staring at my finished garlic sketches. Obviously, they were not proportionate or even aesthetic. The sketches looked like “impressions” of garlic. However, I had discovered the garlic in a new way. I had realized details about the garlic that I never would have noticed otherwise. When we started sketching statues yesterday, I tried recapturing that new vision and sketch according to sight and not to preconceived conceptions.

Living in Roma is like creating blind contour drawings. Suddenly (or so it seems), I am on a new continent and learning a new language, culture, and lifestyle. I am learning all the basics, outlining the subject. Later on, I can start filling in the contours with shading and details.

Besides this metaphorical and metaphysical musing, I have been keeping busy with other activities. I went on a tour to St. Peter's Basilica last night with my theology class. I learned a lot about all the individual altars and mosaics within the Basilica. There are only two frescos inside all of St. Peter's. The rest of the images are all mosaics! What I love about the Catholic religion is all the symbolism and imagery. St. Peter’s is overflowing with artwork and sacred relics. It is really a storehouse of spiritual and aesthetic wealth. Quite overwhelming, but heartily enjoyable. Afterwards, my friend Amy and I bought gelato, an amazingly addictive habit. I had hazelnut, bacci, and nutella flavored gelato. It was awesome!

Anyways, I must run along and do a little homework. This is after all, study abroad. Not sketch, eat gelato, philosophize and write abroad. Or so they say.

Taking the Time to...

Today my friends and I went to visit the Vatican Museums. We spent several hours going up and down twisting, winding staircases and passageways. Much to Amy's dismay, we were unable to find any secret tunnels or the like. We did find the "School of Athens" fresco by Raphael and a room full of Fra Angelico's frescos. Surprisingly, the Vatican also boasts paintings by Salvador Dali and Diego Rivera. Of course a world-renowned museum should have pieces reflecting the modern art movement, but it was still surprising to find these painters among the Baroque and Renaissance artists.

We stopped on the way home from the museum at the fresh market. We have been told that the market is one of the freshest and best in Rome. I love it. Vendors line the streets every morning with fresh produce, dried herbs, cheese, meats, and, of course, many different wines. My poor pronunciation of the word “funghi” (“mushrooms” in Italian”) made the vendor think I was ordering a kilogram of fuji apples. Today we are making a potluck dinner at our apartment. We are making risotto, chicken, and green beans. I’m looking forward to a feast of delicious food, friends, and fun.

It is customary that all stores are closed for a few hours between the hours of 12 and 4 in the afternoon for siesta. Only touristy stores are open on Sundays. These Italians know how to enjoy life. The only buy the best food from the fresh markets. They take time to relax from daily tasks.

I’ve growing accustomed to the European lifestyle. By only taking 12 credits and not participating in any campus activities, I am left with quite a bit of time. I was just looking back at my calendar from this past semester. I usually had between five to 12 meetings a week besides working part-time and taking a full class load. I’m living in the moment of every day and enjoying it heartily.

To see more pictures from my adventures, visit my Picassa web album.

Illustration Friday: 80's

80s copy
Originally uploaded by soulofarose.

Since I was born in the late 80's, I really don't know anything about the culture of this decade. All I could think of was Relient K's "In Love with the '80's" song.

"I am gonna wear a pink tux to the prom/
live without a care/
cause you threw it away to fall in love with the 80's"

This is my first time drawing over a photo with photoshop. I used a lot of different brushes and transparent gradients. The stock photo is from stock.xchng.com.