Cindy Sauer
asked: Why a dirndl? Does it have to do
with your German ancestry? :-D
Hehe. I have been pondering this question for a week and I’m
still not sure how to answer it. But, I’m going to try anyway.
To me, dirndls are the height of femininity. They’re
beautiful, and stylish, but also simple and unassuming. They can be made
inappropriate (as can anything) but for me, they are the picture of innocence.
There’s something about a dirndl that makes me feel beautiful. It makes me feel
more girly, more sweet, more innocent, more pure. Not that I’m not those things
in other clothes. I just feel it more in a dirndl.
I don’t know that it has anything to do with my ancestry. I
didn’t even know they were a German thing when I started liking them. They were
just wonderful, and beautiful, and I wanted to make dozens and dozens of them.
Then I learned they had a name a history and were like a legitimate thing. Which
just made them more awesome.
Unfortunately, I don’t have any pictures of ones I’ve made,
but if you want to check them out, I do have a Pinterest board devoted to them:
And, totally random, but the position of the knot on the
dirndl’s apron indicates her marital status: if it’s on the left, the girl is
available; on the right, she’s taken, either married or engaged; in the back,
she’s a widow (though, this is also how waitresses wear them, so if your
waitress has it tied in the back, don’t assume she’s a widow); and in the
front, though many nowadays think it’s an indication of confusion on the girl’s
part (like she’s not sure if she’s entirely available or not) it traditionally
means that the wearer is a virgin.
So, if you go somewhere wearing a dirndl, make sure you
wearing your knot in the proper place!
Harpley
asked: Have you ever written any
Christmas stories? If not, do you have any favorites to read
According to the search function on my computer, I have used
the word “Christmas” in four of my stories. In an unfinished novel called Scripted my main character, David, says,
“They haven’t seen each other since Christmas.”
In The Crimson Banner,
Jack notes that Melinda reminds him of his little sister on Christmas morning.
In an idea I have, which I’ve only written two or three
scenes for, my character, Raven, mentions not really knowing her cousins, even
though she sees them every Christmas.
And, lastly, in Where
the SOREM Hid the Prize (the third Kit Parker Book), a piece of Kit’s
narration is her complaining about something happening over winter break. She
notes that she had more important things to do, one of them being planning the
perfect Christmas.
So, I guess that would be a no. I’ve never written a
Christmas story before. Ever. And, I probably never will. I’m not the kind of
person who is really into holidays. I love getting to see my family and eat
yummy food and stuff like that, but really, you can do that any day.
Plus, any other day, there’s mail.
There’s no mail on Christmas.
That said, there are a few Christmas stories I do love. O.
Henry’s Gift of the Magi is gorgeous and
wonderful and I would be totally wrong not to mention it here because it’s a
classic and O. Henry’s awesome and more people should read him. (Not just that
one story either. If you haven’t read anything other than Gift of the Magi or The Ransom
of Red Chief you need to go read something by him right now).
The only other Christmas story I can say that I have read
and really loved, and that actually did something to me, is The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara
Robinson.
If you have not read this story, you need to. It really
opened my eyes to the magic of the Christmas story, through the eyes of those
hearing it for the first time. It’s a wonderful book about the power of that
story and about how it can change even the wildest of kids. Beautiful,
beautiful story.
In fact, I need to find my copy and read it again. It’s not
very long at all (I read it out loud to Mom and it only took an hour or two)
but so much is packed into that story, that it’s really a great read. I would highly
recommend reading it. It’s well worth it.
And, of course, there are Christmas movies. Two, in particular
that are watched every year.
Shop Around the Corner,
while technically not a “Christmas” movie, comes to its climax on Christmas, so
we always watch it then. We have it on VHS, so it’s kind of fuzzy (just some
added snow XD) but it’s a classic in our house. It stars James Stewart and
Margaret Sullivan and is the original You’ve
Got Mail. But, it has James Stewart in it. So, it’s better <3
The other classic we always watch is White Christmas. I always forget how much I love that movie until
we’re watching it. I have seen it more times than I can count (once in
theaters! :D) but still it never gets old. Vera-Ellen, Danny Kaye, Bing Crosby.
What’s not to like? It’s perfect and a must watch every year for us.
And, that’s about as Christmassy as I get.
There you have it! If you have a question you would like to
ask, make sure that you send it in for next week! And, in the meantime, I shall
hopefully see you all on Monday! :D
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