6 things I learned in May

I always look forward to reading Emily Freeman's  "Things I learned this month" (recently changed to "Things I learned this quarter") posts, so today I'm linking up to share a handful of things I learned in May.

1. Death by cow is more likely than death by shark. 
A friend just told me this. I was a little incredulous, but it's true. Sharks kill on average 5 people per year worldwide (1 per year in the US), while around 20 people per year are killed by bovine attacks. Who knew cows could be so lethal? The funny thing is, this has zero effect on my love of hiking through picturesque alpine cow pastures or my trepidation when it comes to swimming in the ocean. Check out more interesting shark stats here and here.

2. I love road tripping solo on backroads with no GPS and only a road atlas to guide me.
I visited Liza at her new home in small town South Carolina a couple of weeks ago, and while I loved spending time with her, I also loved the adventure of the road trip. South Carolina is gorgeous, and I enjoyed myself listening to music and following signs from one quaint town to the next. I only got lost twice, and I much prefer getting lost in a relaxed sort of way to having an aggravating GPS telling me what to do every two minutes.

3. "Acting is telling the truth under imaginary circumstances." 
I stumbled across this quote by Emma Watson last week, and it has provided much food for thought. Not only is this true of acting, but of what good literature accomplishes as well.

4. Someday I want to name my house.
I've always thought that would be cool, but I'm horrible at coming up with names for things. But names are important, and where I live is important, so I wherever I settle will probably end up with a name. Montreat, the tiny community in the Appalachians where my grandparents live, is gifted with residents who know how to name their houses. Some of my favorites: "Nooks and Grannies," "Cram a Lot Inn," "Windy Wildflower," and "Aslan's Pause."

5. I have separation anxiety from my books.
I went on a couple of weekend trips this month, brought several more books than I actually opened on each one, and regretted not bringing others as soon as I headed out of town. My dad bought my whole family kindles years ago, exasperated by the weight all of our books added to the load on family trips, but I forget that the kindle exists most of the time and hands-down prefer hard copy. Which is kind of a problem, what with my family's itinerant lifestyle.

6. "The Lord's timing is seldom early, but He is never late."
Someone mentioned this in conversation, and it's a truth that I have been holding on to and seeing proved true recently.

What have you learned this month? Share in the comments below!