Books 4-8

Number The Stars by Lois Lowry. A tale of two friends surviving the Holocaust. Remarkably sweet and happy for this kind of literature.

Beach Music by Pat Conroy. I still like his stories, even though I am often tempted to slash out whole passages.  Man needs a iron-fisted editor is what I’m saying. And a new plot. But still, I reread his books because I loved them so in high school and some of college.  Plus, this book has  a scene in which a schizophrenic off his medication forces his four brothers to jump off a bridge naked in front of rush hour traffic. It’s funny.

I Am Charlotte Simmons by Tom Wolfe. A reread. I like this novel, but I don’t love it. I liked it less this time than the first. I genuinely like Charlotte at the beginning of the piece. Her naivete is then endearing but becomes more and more off-putting. I think her characterization is a bit muddled. Tom Wolfe spent some time at universities researching for this work, and it shows, mostly. There are bits here and there that reveal him to not be as familiar with this world, this generation as other claimed him to be. Most of the characters end up unlikeable, sadly, save for one. Jojo has an interesting tale of redemption.

Fudge-a-Mania by Judy Blume. Another reread. Still fun.

Perfume: The Story of a Murderer by Patrick Suskind. This one left me feeling a little cold. I, as a general rule, tend to enjoy TV shows and books relating to serial killers. This one fit the bill and was well-written, but I felt no life in it. Perhaps that’s the point of course, but only in one passage did I genuinely feel the darkness of the protagonist. Mostly,  he felt like a cipher–no human or inhuman characteristics, or even any at all. Also, all the descriptions of smell did nothing for me. They were well-done I’m sure, but I didn’t connect on any level.

Christmas Vacation, in Bullets

• BOYS GOT TO STAY!
• Playing Santa is a lot of fun, but it’s tiring. Now, I understand why my parents weren’t as excited to get up at 4:20 as I was. We were awoken at 5:40.
• New Super Mario Bros. Wii is so much fun. Four people on the screen is a lot though. We accidentally kill/maim each other a lot. We’re in World 8 currently. My 2 favorite parts/things: the Toad that pops out of the chest after you defeat an enemy course and the penguin suit.
• Xander really really enjoys bones. And chocolate. We tried to keep it from him, but he is wily.
• We didn’t do something Christmas-related every night, but we got really close to it. Bonus: We watched Mickey’s Christmas Carol, which will always be my favorite version.
• It’s official: the Ball family drifts more towards staying up late and sleeping in.
• Scene It! Marvel edition is pretty hard. Mostly, because I hadn’t seen most of the movies it covered. Also, I’d not read any of the comics. I somehow still won.
• Everybody got what they wanted, for the most part. The only thing I asked for that I didn’t get was the new Star Trek DVD, which is sad. The boys  got everything they asked for!
• Caleb has determined that he wants this suit from Walmart (well, it’s a vest instead of a jacket, but sharp–pinstripe) so he doesn’t “look raggedy.”
• Josh was quite excited that his packages on Christmas morning actually said “From Santa.”
• A King Of the Hill marathon is not a bad way to ring in the new year/decade.
• One of the things the boys got from my parents were Kidz Bop CDs. I have no idea who does this song, but it’s that song “Sorry.” Caleb was listening to it, and we’d had a morning where obedience was not high on his list of things to do and his attitude was bad. So he came into the kitchen and sang to me, “I’m sorry I’m bad; I’m sorry I’m blue. I’m sorry for all the things I said to you.” MELTED HEART.
• Josh is developing into a GREAT helper.

Books #2-3

I finished two more books. I know, it’s an abmyssal pace, but there you go. I have to read another book before Tuesday (my first book club meeting), so maybe that will help jump start the pace.

#2 was The Ugly Duckling by Iris Johansen is a pretty mindless piece of thriller fluff. Not written exceptionally well, mostly thinly drawn characters, pretty thin plot too. Fortunately, it was interesting and kept my attention. Kind of like big action movies in that way. One character I did love though–strident foreign female with no sense of boundaries and a heart of gold. Sure, not original, but always fun to my mind.

Book #3 was The Giver by Lois Lowry. I’d never read this young adult novel, and I have certainly been missing out until now. I read this in one day. It’s a provocative book in terms of themes and issues the novel speaks to. Interdependence vs. independence, same vs. different, freedom, CHOICE. Is choice a right we take for granted? If we weren’t to have it, would the thought of it become dangerous? There’s also a lot of political parallels that can probably be made, and I would love to discuss those with someone, but I tend to think those conversations flow better in person. If you haven’t read this, I highly recommend it. It’s a book that can stay with you– I’m still thinking through some of the points it raised for me.

Sunday, all the lights are shining…

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving break. Kenn and I decided to make sure our kids would be as hyper and over-stimulated as possible and planned a ton of fun things for them. On top of it all, we made the last-minute decision to adopt a dog on Monday. Normally, I don’t recommend spontaneous decisions of that magnitude (caring for an animal is a big responsibility, of course), but this dog is so sweet and well-behaved. He came pre-named, as he is already seven months old. His name is Xander, which is awesome because of Buffy. Haley, you know what I mean. He’s a beagle mix and house trained, and he is so affectionate. Also, he is a bed hog. And he  must sleep in the middle with his legs all stretched out. I will be posting pictures at my earliest convenience.

Anyway, back to the craziness. Wednesday, our family went to the movies– we saw Disney’s A Christmas Carol in 3-D. The boys liked it, although Josh (our oldest) did comment that parts of the movie were “a little intense…for younger viewers.” After that, Josh & Caleb went to spend the night with MaMa and PaPa (my parents) to help them decorate for Christmas. Thanksgiving, we did lunch at my parents’ house and dinner at Kenn’s parents. The plan was for the boys to spend the night with his parents (which they did) while Kenn and I did some shopping Black Friday. We were even going to brave Toys-R-Us at midnight, but I started feeling sickish, so we bought some of the deals online and delayed going out till about 9:45 Friday morning. We still got everything we had on our list, though. That evening we were going to put up our tree, but once we got everything out, I discovered a piece of the tree was missing (part of the base…not an easily covered up part). So we ended up putting out the rest of the decorations and the stockings and calling it a night. We’ll be getting a new tree sometime this week, and I plan to have it put up the night we get it. I’ve been wanting to decorate since before Thanksgiving, but Kenn is traditional in his no Christmas decor before Thanksgiving. I try to accommodate, as I am nothing if not an awesome wife.

Saturday. The main event for the kids. Hollywild’s Holiday Lights Safari. They have a ton of lights and light displays, but we come back every year for two reasons. One: the safari part. You roll down your windows and (if you’re lucky and it’s not crazy crowded) deer, zebra, water buffalo, and more come up to your car for you to feed. I have a great picture from our first year of a zebra with its head in our car. Awesome. Two: The Walk. Bounce houses, slides, feeding baby animals, getting your picture made with Santa, roasting marshmallows, hot dogs. I delight in feeding baby goats. And big fat pigs. Seriously, the boys look forward to this every year. We don’t get Christmas Day with our kids, so this is our big Christmas tradition. I mean, we still do Christmas when they come back from their mom’s house of course, but this is our big deal. I left my copy of the boys’ picture with Santa at my mother-in-law’s, but as soon as I get it, I’ll post it for you. It’s good, even if Santa looks slightly wasted. He wasn’t. I don’t think. Who knows? I’m just glad my mother-in-law didn’t climb into his lap as she threatened  she would multiple times.

Today has mostly been a home day. We slept in since we didn’t get home till about midnight. Leftover turkey and ham sandwiches, grits, spaghetti and meatballs (Chef Boyardee, what what). Sunday is a fend for yourself type dinner at least, usually. Obviously, Kenn or I make sure the boys eat, but it’s almost always a microwaveable item. I had to work this evening, so I have tomorrow off as well. I plan on cleaning the house and watching Love Actually for the bajillionth time.

How was your holiday?

While sitting at a computer that doesn’t have the software I need…

Next week is Thanksgiving. I’ve never really been all about Thanksgiving itself. Don’t get me wrong; I’m excited about next week, but mostly because of the break in normal. It’s the big grand opening of the holiday season. And the holiday season is full of breaks in normal. There’s 3 or 4 different parties at work alone.  Also, there’s a big parade and gigantic sales the next morning. Hell, I’m going to be AT a store at 4 a.m. This is shenanigans at their finest. The boys recently made their Christmas lists, and so Kenn and I are going to six different stores to get items that are going to be majorly discounted. I think it’s six. Anyway, I know lots of people would hate to get out in the madness of Black Friday, but I love the hustle and bustle of it all. And the Christmas music. I mean, sure, I’m already listening to it, but it’s everywhere after Thanksgiving. Ah, it makes me want to watch Love Actually (my favorite Christmas movie).

One of the things I’m doing this holiday season is trying to do one different Christmas activity everyday in December. Cookie baking, watching The Grinch, reading The Night Before Christmas…I really want to make memories for Josh & Caleb.  Any suggestions?

In other news, I recently joined a book club in Greenville. We’re meeting one Tuesday night  in December at Books-A-Million and discussing Geek Love  by Katherine Dunn. I’m excited because it gives me a chance to think analytically about what I’m reading. Also,  the book club will help me in my quest to read 100 books by Nov.  2010.

Weekend plans — Mt. Laundry, cook up a mess of beans, go to the park, find a crockpot mac n cheese recipe for work Thanksgiving meal

Book #1: Naked

Yesterday I read Naked by David Sedaris. This was the first work of Sedaris’ I’d ever read, and I enjoyed it. Naked is a collection of short memoirs from his unconventional life. Sedaris has a biting, snide wit, and he is quite transparent (or NAKED, get it?) with his peculiarities and idiosyncrasies. The memoirs range from his memories of a string of teachers visiting his mother to discuss his propensity for licking light switches and make various high pitched noises to the last meal he shared with his parents as his mother is dying from cancer. My favorite, however, is the trip to the nudist colony. Naked is not too fluffy and not too heavy. Recommended.

Starting my list

I was looking my list earlier this morning, and I realized that there’s no reason not to start today. I’ve been waiting–partly because a lot of the items on my list require me to do so. But I don’t have to start the 100 books in a year on Jan. 1. Sure, it’s less conventional to begin a year long project on November 13, but I don’t always care for convention. So, today, I begin my book project. I plan to post on each and every book, mostly because it forces me to write on here.

Next one to get crossed off is going to be watch a sunrise. Gotta pick the morning.

The List

One of the pages I’ll eventually have on this blog is a list of all the things I want to do in my lifetime. I think it’s important to have goals for my life. As I’ve been thinking about what I’d like to experience and accomplish, I’ve been reading other people’s examples of “bucket lists.” And I realized that, while there’s so much I want to do, I’ve been able to experience so much in my life. I think it’s positive and affirming to occasionally think about everything I’ve gotten to do rather than spend a lot of mental energy focusing on what I’ve haven’t done already. So, here’s my already done it list.

• Traveled to New York, Pennsylvania, D.C., Illinois, Maine, Florida, Massachusetts, Mexico, the Bahamas, Budapest, and Vienna (and driven through a lot of other states). I’ve also been to GA, NC, TN, WV, and LA.
• Spent a summer living in a European city (Budapest, summer 2002)
• Used all kinds of public transportation– ferry, subway, tram, taxi, bus, plane, train
• Seen original works of Van Gogh, Monet, Manet, Rembrandt, Klimt in person
• Riden the largest Ferris wheel in Vienna (and presumably Austria)
• Gone snorkeling
• Gone on a cruise
• Built a house
• Seen the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, the Liberty Bell, the White House, The Washington Monument, the Capitol, the Lincoln Monument, the Vietnam Monument Wall, the Korean Monument, the Holocaust Museum, and the Smithsonian (one of the museums)
• Sailed around Kennebunkport, Maine, ate fresh Maine lobster
• Visited Harvard University
• Walked the Freedom Trail and visited Faneuil Hall in Boston, saw a Red Sox game, ate in the Cheers restaurant
• New York City: saw a taping of the Today Show, sang in St. Patrick’s Cathedral, saw a Broadway show, went to FAO Schwartz, visited Bloomingdale’s, visited Julliard, went to Time Square, went to a Yankee game, been to the Empire State Building, saw Ground Zero, visited the UN and sang in front of a statue of a large naked male
• Riden on a  horse-drawn carriage
• Gone ice skating and skiing
• Visited a private island
• Gotten married
• Had a short-lived hate site dedicated to me.
• Put together a frog skeleton
• Stuffed a mouse
• Seen RENT on stage
• Gotten a tattoo
• Budapest: been to the Parliament, Fisherman’s Bastion, Heroes’ Square, Buda Castle, St. Matthias Church
• Played Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy
• Examined and changed my political beliefs
• Eaten part of a cow’s second stomach
• Sang karoake– on a cruise ship, in a bar, in a Chinese karoake place in Budapest
• Gone putt-putting, to Chick-Fil-A, and the Anderson race track in formal wear
• Been in a play and a musical
• Ran from the cops
• Been mistaken for a Chinese lady
• Been in the newspaper and on TV
• Swam in the Atlantic ocean

So, sure, some of these aren’t huge accomplishments. But I guess I just think it’s helpful to look back over my life thus far and think that I’ve done some pretty cool stuff.

Hello world!

I actually like the over the top post title. HELLO WORLD! It’s so fabulous.

So, some of you know that I used to have this other blog that in recent years was only sporadically updated. I’d have the best of intentions, keep up for a day or two or even a week, and then nothing. Frankly, I started that blog when I was younger and in a different place in life, and I could never make the transition that happened in my life happen on the blog. Also, because of who read, as I changed in recent years, I’ll be honest–I felt constrained. The young woman who attended NU is just a lot different to be frank. And I don’t think those difference are bad, but perhaps some people will.

See, occasionally, I cuss. (Or curse. Which is preferred?) Not every other word, but mostly every day. And I never felt comfortable typing shit or damn or anything. So here we are. Staci, with more cussing (or cursing). If you don’t read, that’s cool.  But I hope you do.

[Side note: my hang up with my old blog was exactly that... my hang up. I'm not trying to blame anyone else, nor am I am drama-filled and flouncy towards anyone.]