The Legend of the Bayberry Candle

One of my favorite things about the holidays is the variety of traditions carried from one generation to the next. Whether it is something as universally recognized as hanging Christmas stockings or eating pork and sauerkraut on New Year's Day for good luck or something more family specific like wearing certain socks on Christmas Day or banging on pots and pans at midnight on New Year's Eve to scare away bad luck and evil spirits, we all have something that we do at this time of year because it is tradition. In many cases the origin of these traditions has faded into obscurity leaving the action to stand on its own as reminder of times gone by.

At New Year's Eve for as long as I can remember my family has burned a bayberry candle for good luck in the new year. To this day the spicy and woodsy scent of bayberry makes me think of being home for the holidays. As a kid I never wondered where the tradition came from and just took it for granted that this was what everyone did on New Year's Eve. It wasn't until I went away to college that I realized that the traditions I grew up with weren't necessarily universal and became curious about their origins.

Dungeons & Dragons Twitch Streamer Fails Save Against Sleep

I've been playing Dungeons & Dragons for a few years now and can honestly say that this is not an isolated incident. In every group there will be that one valiant adventurer who, though the spirit is willing, will find that the flesh is weak and fail a real life save against sleep. I'm not ashamed to say that I have fallen asleep during a gaming session that has run too long for my stamina; I'm just glad it wasn't broadcast to the internet at large!

A Musical Dream Come True

So last month an old friend from high school, Keith, took me on a bus trip to New York City for the day to surprise me with a show on Broadway.  The only other time I've had that pleasure I was still in high school and it was a class trip with the gifted program to see Les Miserables, so I was extremely excited. The surprise aspect was that I knew I was going to see something but didn't know what until we we turned the corner onto the street the theater was on.

The Bibliophile Emerges From Her Attic

Greetings Earthlings, and any friendly extraterrestrial types who might be monitoring the Internet! I'd like to welcome you to From The Bibliophile's Attic. I'm the Attic's resident Bibliophile, Jenni.

The first things you're probably wondering are: “What exactly is The Bibliophile's Attic?” and “What is coming from it?” The simplest, and least helpful, answers to those questions are in order “This blog” and “The posts on this blog”. With the obvious out of the way the answers become much more useful.

• The Bibliophile's Attic is the nickname I attached to my bedroom as a child since it was small and right underneath the roof. I spent most of my time growing up sitting in that room enjoying the many adventures found between the covers of books since there weren't many kids my age in the neighborhood growing up. The love of books I developed then has never left me!
• As for what is coming From The Bibliophile's Attic, I've found that I've managed to stuff that little room full of so much more than just books over the years. My love of books expanded to include Graphic Novels/Comic Books, Manga, Anime, and Movies, as well as simple joy in words themselves. I'd like to use this blog as a way to bring those passions “out of the attic” as it were and share them with others.

Some of the features I have planned are:

• Reviews of Books, Graphic Novels, and Movies
• Comparisons between Books and their Movie or Graphic Novel adaptations
• News from the world of Books, Movies, and Anime
• Informational posts on various related topics

I hope you'll join me! If there is anything you would like to see, or think didn't work particularly well, please feel free to leave a comment! I can't guarantee to reply directly to every post but I'll do my best to address any ideas you might have.