Beauty and the, uh ...Beast

Once upon a time, there was a mink farmer* who had three beautiful daughters. The oldest daughter was really great at making the pelts shiny, so she was known as 'Beauty.' The second daughter was especially good at scraping the guts off the pelts, so she was known as 'Stinky.' And the third daughter was particularly good at catching the minks, so she was known as 'Sneaky.'"

One day, the mink farmer noticed he was running out of mink, so he got ready to go into the woods to set traps. The traps he set were special because the minks' feet need to stay in tact for their fur to be valuable. Women who wear fur coats (or who did when it was socially acceptable to do so) think it's extra special to have all four feet still attached. In order to bait these special traps, the farmer used elderberries because everyone knows no mink can resist an elderberry. He went out into the woods to search out elderberries and ALL the elderberries had already been eaten by the mink out in the forest! So the man kept searching and searching.

He came to a castle in the middle of the forest and walked around it. On the far side of the castle, the mink farmer came to a bush full of gorgeously ripe elderberries! He started picking the berries off the bush and putting them in his pouch. After he had picked all the berries he could find, he turned around to leave and what did he see but a beast that had a mink's head! The man was, of course, frightened, especially when the mink beast began to speak.

"Why have you picked all my elderberries? I have waited and waited for those berries to be perfectly ripe and I was going to pick them tomorrow night at the height of the full moon, when they are the best," the mink beast said in a great and scary voice.

"Um... I was picking them to catch mink for my fur trade," the man answered, trembling.

"You are one who catches my mink children for fur? Go home and bring me back of your children so that I may have her pelt. If you do not, I will eat you right here."

The man hightailed it away from the castle and ran all the way home to his daughters. "Daughters, one of you needs to sacrifice herself for the family." He explained about the mink beast and said, "I have to take care of the other two daughters, so one of you needs to go." He really was a very selfish man.

The oldest daughter, Beauty, volunteered to go back to the mink beast thinking that she could appeal to his mercy. Well, she couldn't. The mink beast ate her. The End.

*No animals were hurt in the telling of this story.



I wish I could have transcribed the way Morgan told it. I tried to get the various details, but some of his wording was so exquisite. So here's my attempt to stay true to the feel, at least. Isn't he a born storyteller? :)

Music and a teaser

A friend passed this piece of music on this evening. For your enjoyment:



As for the teaser, my husband told me his version of Beauty and the Beast tonight. It was a little different than the usual. I'm too tired to write it fully right now, but it started "Once upon a time, there was a mink trapper who had three beautiful daughters. The oldest daughter was really great at making the pelts shiny, so she was known as 'Beauty.' The second daughter was especially good at scraping the guts off the pelts, so she was known as 'Stinky.' And the third daughter was particularly good at catching the minks, so she was known as 'Sneaky.'"

Are you intrigued?

:)

September Challenge

The challenge for September - The first comic strip published in an American newspaper was on September 11, 1975. (According to several sources none of which I'm sure are accurate. What does it mean by comic strip, for one...?) However, we'll just take that date to spur this month's challenge which is to read a comic book, graphic novel, or a manga book. (I'm not sure if I'm using "magna" correctly, but forgive my ignorance. I've never actually read one before! Anyway, you know what I mean!)

As for reporting August, I have little to report. I was traveling and, uncharacteristically, I read almost nothing on my trip. Although I didn't quite finish all the books for the challenge, I'm taking points anyway since how many kids never finish their summer reading? :) Not that I know about that. I always finished my summer reading. (No, really. I did. I'm a reader and a bit of a nerd.) ;)

So for my non-fictions:

"Covenant Hearts" by Bruce C. Hafen - I really did finish this one. And it was excellent. I highly recommend it.
"Promptings or Me? Recognizing the Spirit's Voice" by Kevin Hinckley - Another excellent book. I will finish this one soon, but seeing as I read over 200 pages of nonfiction books (in addition to "Covenant Hearts") I'm going to go ahead and count this one as it is "most finished." I know, I know. Cheating here.

School book:

"Don Quixote" by Cervantes - Again, didn't actually finish this book, but got quite a ways through it. Probably could pass a teacher's "did you read this summer?" exam on the book. :)

Other:

"Howl's Moving Castle" by Diana Wynn Jones
"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - J.K. Rowling

I love J.K. Rowling for her Harry Potter series. I know some disagree with me, but I think that series is one of the best ever written. I love, love, love her characters and writing style and plot and symbolism and brilliantness in tying everything together and... Well, there's not much I don't love about the books. But more than anything, her characters. As one who tends to read books for characters and their relationships, the Harry Potter series is pure joy. I could write an essay and maybe I will. For myself. Hm... There's an idea.

Anyway, here's a sweet cloud picture.

Bwa ha ha!

It's the hat that really gets me. :)

Something Beautiful

Quilting Give-away

Quilting looks very fun to me, probably because I love fabric so much. My sister-in-law is a great quilter and has been encouraging me to learn how. I just learned about a give-away on the site 1 Choice 4 Quilting. I thought I'd pass it on if any of you would be interested.

August Challenge

The challenge for August it is back to school time. Read a book from either a summer reading list (high school, of course,) or this link.

As far as my report for this past month, it kind of stinks. But for good reasons generally.

The book I read for a place I wanted to visit was set in Lyme. It was "Remarkable Creatures" by Tracy Chevalier. It was a very interesting book about two women in the 1800s who were fossil hunters. And I have to say that I want to go to Lyme even more now...

For my nonfiction books, I read The Book of Mormon (start to finish) and 150 Power Foods by the editors of the Martha Stewart Magazine.

Read a few more books, but mostly was busy with other things this month.

Happy reading in August!