I got two new books today: The Unbearable Lightness of Scones by Alexander McCall Smith (it's the new entry in the 44 Scotland Street series) and Roses by Leila Meacham (described by Amazon as a "delicious doorstep novel" in the tradition of Colleen McCollough). I am looking forward to reading both. Next weekend I am traveling north, with a pit stop in Danvers, MA and then continuing up to the wilds of Maine to visit a friend...
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I just read one of those "kindred spirit" entries on another blog. Caro at The Caro Zone was saying how she can't seem to get into fashion - hates high heels, is befuddled by accessories, etc. I feel the same way. I like to wear sneakers, can't stand shopping for clothes, and to compound my problems, I gave a bunch of my clothes to Salvation Army when I was pregnant and they looked impossibly tiny. So, I have very little that I can wear - unless I want to put on maternity clothes that will gape in the chest and stomach. And yet, it is very liberating to not have many clothes. I can be the bookish frump I am at heart. I just finished Beat the Reaper , which wasn't exactly literary, but clever. It's about a doctor who used to be a hit man. And it was written by a dude who went to my college. Yay! Now I've started Run by Ann Patchett. It took me a few pages to get into, but I do like it. The latest craziness - I was considering getting a tattoo, and I blogged...
I tried to watch I Could Never Be Your Woman - for the sole reason that I like Paul Rudd. People. Do not watch this movie. It is bad for your health. It was direct to video for a reason...and I am never watching a movie in that genre again. I am currently without a book I love. I am reading Beat the Reaper, which is good enough, and waiting for a book to come out from my favorite authors. The newest Anne Tyler (speaking of favorite authors) was very good, if bittersweet, but I finished it a while back. I did end up getting hooked on the coffee. For some reason, I always want it at 10 am...so E and I are heading to Starbucks...imminently.
Coffee and books
So I'm heading back to Manhattan tomorrow. I think I'm ready. I need more recommendations for my Netflix queue. I've been reading The Epicure's Lament by Kate Christensen. She is fast becoming one of my favorite writers. I also developed an addiction to skinny vanilla lattes at Starbucks during this vacation. The past two mornings, I actually needed them, because I slept poorly due to car music. Last night, I slept well so I don't actually *need* it. Am on the fence about whether to get them or not. Someone told me a long time ago that good skin depends on not drinking coffee...probably a vain reason to fight the addiction...but hey, it's bad for your blood pressure too.
Yay!! I am in Miami!! I love the art-deco colors, the turquoise ocean, the coral buildings. We lucked out, getting a 3-bedroom, but only having to pay for a 2-bedroom. There is Internet access everywhere (unlike some years, when I had to go out in the hall to play online). This more than makes up for some misfortune with the plane. When we got to Miami, all our luggage emerged on the conveyor belt...except for E's stroller. Slowly, everyone else's luggage came out. Still no stroller. So we found out that the TSA seized the stroller, examined it, and then kindly sent it to Miami on a later flight. We waited around for said flight to arrive. When the stroller came, it seemed dirtier and smellier (though that might have been my imagination). I noticed the compartment under the stroller was empty except for a couple of bedraggled Gristede's receipts. This means they confiscated the Phil Collins liner notes (No Jacket Required) that E stowed under there months ago. I wonder if P...
Okay, I am ready for some warmth. I admire those who enjoy outdoor winter sports, but I am not one of them. It is so forbidding and grey outside. On the plus side, I picked up some books for my trip: The English Major by Jim Harrison (slightly folksy, funny, and maybe wise) Ms. Taken Identity by Dan Begley (seems to be chick lit, though written by a man) The Epicure's Lament by Kate Christensen (who just doesn't seem to go wrong; her novel Jeremy Thrane seems to be hard to find, though. I'll have to get it on Amazon.) What are you reading? Also, I am girding my loins, readying for battle, pick your own metaphor, with regard to bringing E on the plane. I've never done this before. He tends to throw up on long car rides; hopefully this won't happen on a flight. I will also need to bring bottles for him. I've heard vague stories about having to drink from the bottle to satisfy security. We'll see...
I took E to the pediatrician today to get his last and final swine flu shot (thank God). Now he is fully inoculated against anything that might strike. Except he has to get more vaccines in late January - the ones kids usually get at 18 months. He is now 19 months, but the holiday month (holimonth) was too packed to do anything about it. Yesterday I watched Confessions of a Shopaholic. It was one of those Netflix instant movies - you can watch it on your computer right away, and you don't have to send anything back. I thought it was quite entertaining. The preview had turned me off, making me think it would be a bunch of brand-name dropping ("You speak Prada ?" says Becky to Luke), but it was a cute story, though fairly different from the book. If you like chick flicks, or pink, or Clueless, I would recommend it. I did a tarot card reading today and was startled to get 2 cards that seem to be directly contradictory - the Star (considered the most optimistic of the cards)...
I'm getting a slight case of cabin fever. Think The Shining. I'm not really in an abandoned hotel high up in the Colorado mountains, but it is cold enough to make going outside an unattractive prospect. I'd really like the temperature to be in the 30s one day. I don't think that's too much to ask for. I finished Chemistry for Beginners last night and really enjoyed it. It followed another five-star read, In the Drink. Now I've started a light-as-air Jane Austen spin-off that I am also enjoying, but I want to make the trek to the Union Square Barnes & Noble to get the new Anne Tyler (one of my favorite authors). Today I made pancakes from scratch and they were quite good, though a little salty. The recipe called for half a teaspoon, which didn't sound excessive; but I didn't add banana, as you were supposed to, since I didn't have it. Perhaps the salt was meant to cut the sweetness from the banana.
So I started a book called Chemistry for Beginners by Anthony Strong. It's an unlikely mix of romantic comedy and scientific experiment. Once I adjusted to the dry, witty British voice (and one of the worst first pages on record), I started to enjoy it. It's wretchedly cold here in NYC. I am always keenly aware of the weather, as I walk everywhere in it. Today was actually not as bad as yesterday...weather.com keeps explaining that the temperature is in the 20s, but feels like it's 10. The wind calmed down and now I can move around. I'm going to Miami January 13-19. It will be great to get away from the cold, but out-of-NYC boredom may set in...oh, who am I kidding, it will be beautiful.
I'm finishing up a book called In the Drink by Kate Christensen. I have one chapter left, but I'm putting off reading it. I don't really want it to end. I just finished off the Stonyfield Farm (or something like that) banana pancake batter that my mother gave me at Christmas. I'm not sure where to find another in New York. So I'll probably make pancakes from scratch tomorrow, for the first time in years. Gasp! I took a quiz on Facebook to see what breed of dog I am. Turns out I'm a golden retriever. It seems like a good result.
I'm not sure how to sum up 2009. It was a strange year in some ways. We spent the first half of the year crammed into a one-bedroom apartment as we waited for a two-bedroom. We finally got one, and it was beautiful. The living room is big, though we have no terrace. Frankly, I was relieved not to have one. It seems like a big hazard with a baby. A couple of good books I read this year were Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger and The Great Man by Kate Christensen. Did anyone come up with an interesting New Year's resolution?
The ghost of Christmas...snafu.
It feels so ILLICIT to blog on Christmas! But here I am... As it turns out, we never did catch a train to Boston. Ended up in a car. Which we might do from now on, anyway. The train doesn't seem to be working out. Tempers were running high in Penn Station, as train after train was delayed, canceled or "combined." Combining two sold-out, late trains is a recipe for disaster. One woman crumpled to the floor in front of the ticket counter, screaming, "I KNOW I HAVE A TICKET! I JUST CAN'T FIND IT! THIS IS THE WORST DAY OF MY LIFE!" Four cops surrounded her, each with a gun, but they seemed more amused than anything. Poor woman. It does seem like one of "those" Christmases. My present for my sister failed to arrive on time. E woke up in the middle of the night, wanting soy milk, and got upset when D accidentally gave him whole milk instead. He decided to stay up till 4 (am) as punishment. I am allergic, as I often get in Massachusetts (maybe because the...
Today was one of those almost humorously bad days. I guess sometimes you have to laugh. This morning, I lifted E out of his crib and bent my knees to lay him down on his diaper-changing pad, all the while supporting his 27-lb weight; you could almost hear my back snap. I've done this move about a million times, but I must have done it too fast today. For a moment, I lay on the floor, unable to move. Then I dragged myself into the tub. Next up: the train to Boston was due to leave at 12:03. I got to Penn Station, only to find that all the trains were delayed. Someone near me said that her mother called Amtrak and was told our train would not get to Penn Station until 2:15 (at the earliest). The board just said "Delayed" across the board with no estimated arrival times. I figured the girl had no reason to lie, and she left the station. I did too. Bad judgment call...the train ended up arriving around 12:47 (as we found out later). We missed it. So now we are taking a 7 pm t...
As I type this, E is chatting into my iPod. He seems to believe it's a phone. Recently, I discovered Kate Christensen . Of course, I'd seen The Great Man in stores many times, but I was put off by the fake New York Times article at the beginning of the story. Once the actual narrative starts, though, it's great. I'm glad I finally gave it a chance. The main characters are all at least 74, and portrayed very differently than the elderly usually are. After I finished The Great Man , I started reading Trouble by the same author. And after that, I hope to read In the Drink (her first novel). Tomorrow I hop on a train to go to Massachusetts for Christmas...anyone else traveling for the holidays? I hope you have a good one.
So I've made a dent in my Christmas shopping. Now I just have to get gifts for my sister's three boys, aged 17, 13 and 11. I haven't a clue what to get them. They are all into sports, and the oldest one wants a car. Unfortunately, that is beyond my means. I revived my Netflix membership, which I had canceled after I had E. I saw Firelight , which a friend recommended and I enjoyed. It was sort of a mix between Jane Eyre and The Piano (without the gruesome elements of the latter). I also saw An Education in the movie theater. It was about a 16-year-old (who turns 17 in the course of the movie) and gets mixed up with an older man (who looks to be all of 38). I liked it right up till the ending. Instead of a happy one, it was of the punch-in-the-gut variety. The screenplay was written by Nick Hornby and it was intelligent and nuanced...but oh, that ending. May I mention that I hate New Year's? It's got to be my least favorite holiday of the year. There's just somet...
I can't believe it's December already. As a high school friend said on Facebook, the dreaded "holimonth" is now upon us. And I have the stress of selecting 8500 presents for my immediate family. Did I mention that I hate shopping? And I'm not good at it? I'm hoping to do it all online. My sister and I already agreed not to exchange, unless we see something that is really suited to the other. But that is just a drop in the bucket. I would love to eliminate presents altogether...but I fear that is Communist.
Hi! I woke up early for no reason. So you get a book post from me. Over Thanksgiving break, I read: Cleaving: A Memoir of Marriage, Meat and Obsession by Julie Powell. Considerably darker than its predecessor, Julie & Julia. The focus has moved off of Julia Child and onto her (real-life) affair. Unbelievably, she thanks both lover and husband in the acknowledgments. Waiting for You by Susane Colasanti. Unapologetic yet intelligent teenage fluff. If you like YA fiction, this will hit the spot. And those were all the books I brought with me...so I started reading The Help by Kathryn Stockett, which was at my mother's house. I'd been put off by both its length (444 pages) and seemingly hackneyed subject (race relations in 1960s Mississippi). But it's a lot better than I thought it would be. I only have 100 pages left.
So how was your Thanksgiving? A few interesting things happened on mine. First, my brother became obsessed with his deep fryer. He retreated to the basement and started frying everything he could find. His son would bring up more and more fried goodies. I couldn't bring myself to eat them. But they were fascinating to watch. He deep-fried Twinkies, a Snickers bar, a piece of pepperoni pizza (no one wanted to go near that one), and an ice cream sandwich. Apparently if something's cold, you only fry it for 35 seconds. E.g., fried ice cream. A sad thing: E was playing on the stairs at my brother's place, and although my mom and sister were watching him, he took a tumble. He got a little bump and I was really sad. Thankfully, it's all gone today. An odd thing: as Mom was pulling out of my brother's driveway, I suddenly became aware of screaming faces behind us, in a parked car. They were convinced my mother hit their car. But nobody in our car felt any impact. Mom was a...