eclectic / eccentric

A Note to You

2012-05-12T05:00:00.000-05:00

Obviously, I have been rather absent these past four months, posting irregularly, commenting rarely. The arrival of my little Madinut really threw me for a loop, and I haven't had the hours and hours of reading and blogging time I so very much under-appreciated prior to the whole baby thing. My little nutter is not a long-napper, rarely sleeping for more than 20 minutes at a time during the day, and when she's awake, I'm playing with her, walking with her, talking with her, and in general entertaining her ADD self.

I did want to drop you all a line (all of you still reading anyway) and let you know two things: 1) I am reading and loving the comments you leave on the posts I do put up and 2) I am still totally reading your blogs even if I'm not commenting. As a matter of fact, I've only had to hit the Mark All as Read button twice. Other than that, I've been reading your awesome book reviews, Sunday Salons, and discussion posts ~~with extreme jealousy that you have the time to be so creative and intellectual~~.

I do get some reading in from time to time. Recently I finished Joe Haldeman's The Forever War which I thought absolutely rocked. And I'm in the middle of One Thousand White Women: The Journals of May Dodd by Jim Fergus - which I am also loving. Reading has changed drastically for me as I have to catch moments here and there instead of sitting down and powering through a book in a single sitting like I used to...ahhh, those were the days. Seriously I miss those days. I do love my baby nut though. I mean, look at her...she's awesome.

I figure someday she will learn how to entertain herself, and then I will be able to get my shit together and start posting regularly again. Or you know, winter will come around again, and then my farmer husband will be able to take over for me at 5pm instead of 8pm. And maybe one day she'll go to bed earlier than 10pm (although the 10pm thing is partially my fault since I would rather she stay up late and sleep in....Trisha doesn't do 5am).

Until then, I apologize for the serious lack of sociability on my part.

House of Books

2012-05-07T06:00:00.000-05:00

I just adore this picture. I love the inside-outside hoopla going on here. Too freaking cool. And I found this picture on the same site...

How cute is that!?!?!

Link to where I saw these pictures

Book Review: Boneshaker

2012-05-04T06:00:00.000-05:00

Title: Boneshaker
Author: Cherie Priest
Publisher/Year:
Source/Format: Bought / nookbook
Date Finished: 17 April 2012
Book # 24

Series Reviews: This is the first

Buy | Borrow | Accept | Avoid

The Short and Sweet of It
Leviticus Blue built a machine to expedite drilling for gold in Alaska, but he jumped the gun and used the "Boneshaker" to poke around in subterranean Seattle. His little underground adventure collapses a few banks and releases a pocket of gas which introduces a new plague. The blight gas kills those who breathe it; some of the dead become rotters (aka zombies). To combat the blight, a wall is built around Seattle and almost everyone is evacuated to the surrounding areas which quickly degenerate into dangerous slums. And all that happens before the book begins.

The story itself is of Blue's wife, Briar, and his son, Zeke. Zeke, always curious about his absent father and intent on proving his innocence, heads into the walled off city looking for evidence. Briar follows him in. And their adventures begin.

A Bit of a Ramble
I was just not into this story. It took me forever to get through, and I have no desire to pick up the next book in the series. Please lord tell me I didn't buy all three on the nook at once. Eh, I don't even want to check.

Despite the fact that I know I didn't like the story much, I am having a great deal of difficulty explaining exactly why I didn't like it. For the most part, I think, I was just bored. And how in hell could I be bored with a book that's all steampunk and zombies? And there are AIR PIRATES people. I love me some good air pirates. Not to mention the fact that everyone else loves it. And now you are expecting some insight into why I didn't like it. But nope. Nothing. I have no idea why I didn't enjoy this one. I could fall back on the "lack of depth" comment.The various settings and histories don't really converge into one cohesive world for me, too many disparate stories and characters present themselves without any real internal logic or depth. Maybe that's why I didn't like it?

I didn't give this book an Avoid rating though, in part because while I wasn't too impressed, I didn't actually put the book down. I still wanted to finish even though continuing to read was a bit painful for me.

Question: Did anyone else find this boring?

NOTES
It sort of counts towards my Goal #2: Manage My Series (except that I bought it, adding to my already ridiculous quantity of series to read). But I don't know that I'll continue with this one.

Book Review: Fifty Shades of Kinky Fuckery

2012-05-02T12:16:00.001-05:00

Title: Fifty Shades Trilogy
Author: E.L. James
Publisher/Year: Vintage Books / 2011
Source/Format: Bought / nookbook
Date Finished: 2 May 2012
Book # 25, 26, 27, and 28

Series Reviews: They're all here

Buy | Borrow | Accept | Avoid

The Short and Sweet of It
Anastasia Steele's life changes when she interviews the enigmatic Christian Grey, a billionaire businessman with eccentric sexual preferences. Driven by a need to control the world around him, Christian is flustered by Ana's resistance to his domineering personality.

A Bit of a Ramble
Originally, James wrote Twilight fan fiction where Edward and Bella were a bit more sexually active (yeah, just a bit...like a lot from what I hear). After receiving quite a bit of backlash, she decided to rework her story into a full length novel with her own characters (no vamps). With that, Fifty Shades was born.

The story revolves around the developing love between Ana and Christian, which is slightly hampered by Christian's preference for bondage and domination (B&D) and his excessive need for control. Christian doesn't just want to tie her up, he has a whole Red Room of Pain with all the accoutrements of a real BDSM playroom.

The sex scenes are explicit, raunchy, and pretty damn hot. At first. I was all over the first book in the trilogy, enjoying the dirty quite thoroughly. While I'm not a whips and chains and swinging things kind of girl in the real world, I certainly don't mind the fantasy of it. For a girl who (now) rarely reads romance novels and even when she did, stayed in the straight-forward, vanilla sex type of romance, this was something new and exciting. But as I progressed through the trilogy, much to my surprise, I found myself getting pretty bored with the sex. Yes, yes, yes, she rolled her eyes so he wants to spank her. Oh, now she wants to push her limits a bit further and bust out some restraints and a flogger. Whatever. These two have A LOT of sex, and while it's pretty hot stuff most of the time, I think a bit less of it would have kept the excitement going throughout the whole trilogy. Then again, I recognize that I read all three back to back which probably has a great affect on the spectacle of kinky fuckery (my favorite term from the book).

I will say that I had a huge problem with Ana for most of the book. She allows things to happen to her just to please Christian. Most of the time when she is trying something new, it's not because she wants to; it's because she is afraid to lose Christian and she knows how much he "needs" to dominate her. Why in the world can't she just like it? Don't get me wrong; Christian is not raping her or forcing her to do anything she doesn't agree too. And most of the time, she does like it. But her motivation for kinky fuckery is 9 times out of 10 for him instead of for her. Ridunculous.

Which brings me to my other problem with the novel: Christian's motivations for his sexual lifestyle. Instead of just having a main character who likes BDSM, we have a man who was neglected as a child by his crack whore of a mother and sexually abused as a submissive by an adult when he was just 15. Do we really need these "reasons" for his lifestyle? Part of the plot line here is Ana's love as a cure for Christian's control issues. Then again, these conflicts increase the tension in the book, and the two do not give up the BDSM entirely.

So now that I've complained enough about the book, I do want to say that I do not regret reading these books at all. Despite the shortcomings, Fifty Shades is unique and different, and I enjoy unique and different. I'm happy the first book in the series was so popular, and I love that women's reaction to the series has spurred discussion of female sexuality and the difference between a rape fantasy and a domination fantasy. Too often it seems like people get the two confused, flying off the handle about Rape Culture when a book merely suggests that some women want to be dominated. Some do. And there's nothing wrong with that. While Ana could be a bit more in control in my opinion, she's still strong enough to warrant a pat on the back for the way she explores her sexuality.

Book Review: The Monument

2012-04-26T05:17:00.000-05:00

Title: The Monument
Author: Gary Paulsen
Publisher/Year: Yearling / 1993
Source/Format: Shelves / Print
Date Finished: 28 March 2012
Book # 18

Buy | Borrow | Accept | Avoid

The Short and Sweet of It
Mick Strum has been commissioned to design a memorial for a small Kansas town, but in order to do so, he roams the town, drawing people, places, and animals to figure out what sort of memorial will work for everyone. In the process, he teaches a young girl, Rocky, how to be an artist, and he teaches the town to look at themselves honestly.

A Bit of a Ramble
My description is a bit disingenuous; it sounds like Mick is the protagonist when in fact it is Rocky readers follow and cheer for. I do feel, however, that any description must focus on Mick as he is the locus of change for everyone. It is his introduction to the town which shifts Rocky's entire perception. He shows her how to look beyond the surface, to capture the essence of the object or person being drawn, and how in so doing, an artist can get at the truth.

I think that whole idea - the capturing of an intangible truth - is what appealed to me when I read this as a kid. It's such an esoteric and Deep concept, and my teenage soul resonated with that possibility. While I still feel that deep tug inside for stories like this, I'm a bit more practical and a bit less beatnik these days.

The story, however, still pulls me in. It's such a short, sweet ride, and I highly recommend reading this one.

NOTES
This counts for my GOAL #1: Read Books I Own

Madison Monthly: Three

2012-04-24T04:30:00.000-05:00

The Basics
We didn't go to the doctor this month, so I can't tell you how much the little nutter weighs or how much taller she's gotten. All I can tell you is that she is definitely bigger.

Eating and Sleeping
-She's off Zantac since it wasn't working and she's now on Prevacid. I really hate giving her pills but I hate the straining and the crying more. I honestly have no clue if it's really working; I mean, for the most part, she is just fine when eating, but every now and then, she reverts back. Poor duck.
-Every now and again, my beautiful little nutter goes to bed about 9:30 and makes it all the way to 4 or 4:30 in the morning before needing her bottle. Six-seven blessed hours of uninterrupted sleep - for her. I, on the other hand, don't go bed when she does because there's so much to be done. :) I hear that eventually she will sleep from like 8pm to 7am. I can't wait.

Behavior and Development
-She discovered her hand, and then she decided the natural place for her hand to be was in her mouth. Now she licks, sucks, and otherwise makes out with her hand. I find it amusing and actually have video of it.
-She's learning all sorts of new tricks with her neck, for instance, she recently discovered that it can both hold her head up and turn it from side to side. We are proud.
-Her newfound control has morphed into a lack of cuddle time from mommy. The nutter wants to sit up all the time, meaning I rarely get to hold her like she's a baby (unless she's sleeping). I do sort of miss this cuddly time. On the other hand, it's too cute when I try to hold her and she pushes that little chin forward and tries to sit up. She doesn't get far since her tummy muscles aren't too developed. She even sat up on her own for the first time this month:

-While she doesn't get much out of tummy time besides sleeping, she does seem to really enjoy laying on her stomach on my chest and pulling her head up to look at my face (aka up my nose). I find this ridiculously sweet, and when she finally gets her head in position to look at me and she smiles, I am in heaven. She had one good tummy time this month:

Other than that, putting her on her stomach means sleeping:

-She now, from time to time, has actual tears when she cries which is both sad and adorable.
-She still doesn't laugh out loud, but she does do this weird panting laugh sometimes when she's sleeping. I'd really like to know what she dreams about.
-She coos all the time and it's just so freaking cute. She also blows bubbles and raspberries. Again, cute.
-Along with sucking on her hand, she's figuring out more and more that they are useful tools. It's not often, but sometimes she grabs her toys and uses her hands to move them around:

Social Stuff
-She still spends every Wednesday night at her grandma's, and she spends quite a bit of time with her great-grandma as well. Lucky mommy.
-She hasn't had much opportunity to meet new people, but when she has, she's been just fine being passed around from one set of arms to the next. She did enjoy playing with her cousins at Easter.

-Speaking of Easter, she's super cute in bunny ears:

-Personally, I think she's going to be extremely social because she certainly prefers attention to alone time. She's practically ADD with her incessant need to be moved from one place to the next. Easily bored in one place, she wants to move play gym to bouncy seat to swing to your lap with you talking to her the whole time! My grandmother though did find a little trick which seems to keep her entertained for a small chunk of time....the tv. No shit people, my three month old daughter likes TV, and she seems particularly fond of The Vampire Diaries as she sat with me and watched two freaking episodes. She NEVER sits still that long. Damon's hot even to a three month old.

Mommy Notes
-Trying to work and take care of her simultaneously is killing me. I love that my job means I only go on to campus three days a week, but my job is more than just teaching a class. I have to prepare for the class, grade the assignments, deal with student problems, work on the retention committee, lead the gay-straight alliance, prepare and grade course assessments, and do all the other hullabaloo that comes with being a college professor. I may only put in about 15-20 hours per week on campus, but I put in a full 40-50 hour work week. Unfortunately, like with any other job, it's practically impossible to watch a baby and work simultaneously. People think that "working from home" means you have all this free time, but it's really no different from working in an office (and most people don't bring their children into the office). I'm going a wee bit crazy and I am definitely behind in my work. Luckily the semester is almost over, and then I will have a bit of time to figure out how I'm going to deal with this before the fall semester starts.
-I love my daughter but she really frustrates me sometime.

Her Nicknames (in order of use, 1 being most often):

Nutter
Baby Nut
My Beautiful Little Baby

Songs I Sing to Her

You are My Sunshine (the O Brother version)
Baby Beluga (I love Raffi)
Go to Sleep Little Baby (again, the O Brother version)
Amazing Grace (do you really need a link?)
Chili's Baby Back Ribs song as follows:

I love my baby nut, baby nut, baby nut; Mommy's baby nut Madison.

The Pictures

And So It Goes....TAG!

2012-04-13T05:23:00.001-05:00

Game of Tag Chicken Continues.....

The most amazing Jenners and I are engaged in what is clearly becoming a never-ending game of Tag Chicken. A game initially begun from a simple meme which has now evolved into well...this. So without further ado, her questions for me:

How do you know my uncle and why are you crying out his name? We met at a Jenners Adoration Seminar. He's my sponsor.
Would you rather have chocolate fingernails or the ability to achieve orgasm whenever you sneeze? Sneezing orgasms as long as I don't have to orgasm upon every sneeze. That could be uncomfortable in certain situations such as holiday dinners with the family and like teaching and stuff.
Would you rather have the flexibility of a gymnast or the stamina of a marathoner? Pffftt.. I already have both baby. Okay, seriously, I think I'll go with the stamina because the flexibility is easier to achieve.
Would you rather attempt to swim in lime Jello or liquid cheese? I think I just threw up a little in my mouth over the idea of swimming in liquid cheese.
If you won a 5-minute buying spree at a bookstore, what section would you head to first? Art. That way I could buy a crapton of really expensive books and return them for a an even larger crapton of novels.
Don’t you think the Oscars should go back to only have 5 best picture nominees? Yes. Yes I do. I am personally offended by the change.
Can you distinguish between your baby’s different cries or is that just a myth of motherhood like I think it is? I can totally tell the difference - she has three types of cries: the one I think is kind of cute, the one I find annoying, and the one that makes me not like her.
For what music group/artist would you be willing to camp out all night to get tickets for their concert? (That was a difficult sentence to write using correct grammar and I think I failed.) The Beatles, you know, if it was like 45 years ago..But since that's like a totally cliched answer, I'll also say that I would camp out all night to see Lady Gaga as well.
Do you think it is unfair that Angelina Jolie gets her ENTIRE name in “Brangelina”? No because her hotness factor is off the charts and she deserves the honor.
If you wrote a memoir, what would the title be? Holy Fantabulous Batman! Or maybe... Life in the Dreaming
Are you really OK with devoting 1/10th of your blog posts to this game of tag chicken? Absolutely. :)

11 New Questions for Jenners

Should a calendar start on a Sunday or a Monday?
Which is the more likely new wave in cosmetic surgery: the application of freckles or the removal and replacement of perfectly healthy teeth?
What is your most idiotic fear?
What is the worst show on television today?
Sweater vests on women: dork, chic, sexy androgyny, or what?
Would you rather: Eat all the chocolate you wanted without taking in any calories or Run as far as you wanted without getting winded?
Graffiti: Art or Vandalism?
If you absolutely had to choose one, is it more crucial for YAL to have more positive portrayals of : gay characters, female characters, or characters of color?
What is the sexiest part of a man?
What is the worst thing you can call a person?
Is our obsession with this little game of tag indicative of deep-seated emotional problems?

Novel Options for Intro to Lit

2012-04-11T04:49:00.005-05:00

I'm on the search for a novel for my Introduction to Literature course, and since I use a particular publisher, the entire world of literature is not open to me. Plus, I like to choose books I haven't read before. Browsing through the selection I do have, I found the following titles as possibilities for next year:

One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
The Night Trilogy by Elie Wiesel
One Thousand White Women by Jim Fergus
The Forever War by Joe Haldeman
Bedlam by Greg Hollingshead
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert Heinlein
Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett
I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith

I would love to hear your thoughts on these novels, so I can make a decision on which to include!

Book Review: The Dollhouse Murders

2012-04-10T05:28:00.000-05:00

Title: The Dollhouse Murders
Author: Betty Ren Wright
Publisher/Year: Scholastic / 1985
Source/Format: Shelves / Print
Date Finished: 7 April 2012
Book # 23

Buy | Borrow | Accept | Avoid

The Short and Sweet of It
Amy, twelve years old and searching for independence, finds a dollhouse in her aunt's attic, a perfect replica of the house her father grew up in, and the dolls are trying to tell her something, to reveal a secret long-kept, a secret about their murder.

A Bit of a Ramble
Spoiler Alert. I just hate it when whodunit has never been mentioned before the big reveal. To me, a mystery should be one you can solve while reading, but this story has a culprit never even hinted at throughout the entirety of the book. That just drives me crazy. End Spoiler.

The mystery here is intriguing: Years ago, Amy's aunt comes home one night to find her grandparents murdered and her brother (our protagonist's father) hiding in a closet. No one was ever arrested. Now, the dollhouse is trying to reveal the truth behind the murders. This isn't some missing jewelry type children's mystery; this is some serious stuff. And I appreciate that in my middle grade fiction.

The real heart of the story to me, though, is the subplot involving Amy and her brain-damaged sister Louann. Amy's mother expects her to watch her sister Louann, to spend time with her, a lot of time, like every day a lot of time. Amy wants her own life though; she wants her own friends, and she feels like Louann scares people away because of her difference. In order to get a break from Louann, Amy moves in with her Aunt Claire for a bit. Her mother and Louann make her feel very, very guilty about this. The "Am I My Brother's Keeper?" story is nothing new, but despite my single child status, I somehow connect to stories like this. I can feel Amy's frustration at not having her own life, her embarrassment about her sister, and her guilt about that embarrassment and frustration.

While I was a bit disheartened by the lack of explanation of Louann's brain-damage - she was just born that way - I did appreciate her growth as a being separate from her sister throughout the book. Amy wanted time away from Louann, but Louann almost needed it without knowing it. Her time away with an adult with a mentally challenged daughter (or niece, I can't remember right now) does a world of good for her. She is challenged to learn how to do things on her own, to try new experiences, in a way her family does not. It's not that her family doesn't love her and want her to be strong and independent; it's that their guilt and the habit of taking care of her prevent them from seeing her true potential. What's odd about everything I'm saying here is that I get all of this out of a subplot. I almost with there was more on all of this instead of on the murder-dollhouse-mystery.

Overall, this is a worthy read, and I and Madison enjoyed it during our middle-of-the-night feedings.

When I first read the author's name, I could not figure out where I had heard it before. A quick Google search solved my confusion though as Wright as also written: The Summer of Mrs. MacGregor, Christina's Ghost, Ghosts Beneath Our Feet, Haunted Summer, and Too Many Secrets, all books from my childhood which I still have on the shelves. No wonder I recognized the name.

This Book Around the Web :: Check out the Book Blogs Search Engine for more reviews

Question: Does anyone know of any middle grade books that deal with a situation like Amy and Louann's?

NOTES
This counts for my GOAL #1: Read Books I Own

Book Autopsy

2012-04-09T04:46:00.000-05:00

This is so cool, and you should definitely check out Brian Dettmer's other works. Actually, here's a couple more for you:

Pretty sweet right?!?!

Madison's Minis

2012-04-06T04:52:00.001-05:00

I don't read children's books. I do read YA and middle grade fiction. A lot of it. But I don't really read picture books. Until now. After all, while I am absolutely positive that Madison loved me reading The Magicians, Wild Irish Girl, The Giver, and Canyons out loud to her, she will probably be a bit more impressed with the following books being as they have pictures and don't use words like monochronicity*:

Oh the Thinks You Can Think and The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss
Personally, I have no recollection of reading any Dr. Seuss as a child. I honestly don't think there was a single Seuss book in my childhood collection. I am making up for that now with my daughter. I fully intend on acquiring the entire Seuss collection over the next few years. These two were my first purchases, and I adored reading them out loud to Madison. She's much too young to appreciate the stories, but I was smiling the entire time.**

Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
This is another common childhood book that was not part of my own (I swear not deprived) childhood reading experience. I think what most surprised me about this one is how short it is; I want to see the movie now just to see how they fleshed it out. My favorite part of this story is the idea inherent in the tale that children can use their imaginations to work out their own intense feelings. Love it.

And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell
I want to make sure I expose my daughter to as much diversity as possible. My hope for her future is a complete acceptance of those different from her, and I think the books I expose her to will go a long way in helping with this. Outside of the whole diversity issue, this is just a good story, too freaking cute. It is the true story of two male penguins who raise their own baby, and again cute, adorable, ridunculously delightful.

The Duke Who Outlawed Jelly Beans and Other Stories by Johnny Valentine
I absolutely adored the stories in this collection of five fairy tales featuring children with gay parents. They aren't the best written stories or the best illustrated, but something about their simplicity and lack of sophistication appealed to me. Each story features gay parents, and in some way deals with diversity: a girl dressing as a boy to get a job as an eaglerider, a boy kissing the frog prince and bringing him home to his two dads, a young girl who steals an ogre's boots to save one of her moms, a boy tricking a dragon to bring treasure home to his two moms. Gay parents and strong children. Good stuff.

NOTES
This counts for my GOAL #1: Read Books I Own

*My apologies to the word monochronicity. There is nothing wrong with you, and I would be proud if you were Madison's first word. It's just..well, you are a bit too advanced for her.
**I love reading to Madison despite her complete indifference to the event. After all, she wants me to keep talking to her like all the time, but damned if I don't run out of things to say, and reading out loud, no matter what the book, obviously, really helps with this.

Interview with Ernest Cline

2012-04-04T04:47:00.000-05:00

The winner of the 2011 Independent Literary Awards for Speculative Fiction received its fair share of positive reviews from bloggers, and I must admit, it was one of my most anticipated reads this past year because of those reviews. Many a blogger listed it as a favorite read of the year.

Sheila from Book Journey, Jill from Fizzy Thoughts, Jen from Devourer of Books, Jenn from Jenn's Bookshelves, and Kathy at BermudaOnion's Weblog all exclaim the awesomeness of this novel, and many more bloggers share in their excitement. Heather from Raging Bibliomania has this to say: "Breathtaking and highly original, this action-packed novel will have readers cheering, even as they marvel at the virtual world that’s being constructed around them." Jenners from Life...with Books agrees saying: "Filled with adventure, close calls, suspense, murder, secrets, humor, romance, friendship, pain and a bajillion references to 1980s pop culture, the book is a kick to read." And Sandy from You've Gotta Read This breaks it down for us simply, saying: "This puppy rocked my ever-lovin' geeky 1980's mall hair heart". Mine too, Sandy; mine too.

As the Director of the Speculative Fiction panel, I am lucky enough to have the opportunity to interview Ernest Cline, the ingenious author of Ready Player One. I, along with the rest of the panel, came up with a few questions, and Cline was awesome enough to answer them:

Writers often say that dystopias are not about predicting the future, but about magnifying and commenting on aspects of the present. Which aspects of our world influenced your world building? What social and/or political concerns made it into the novel?

In creating the OASIS, I was trying to imagine what the Internet will have evolved into thirty years from now, while also examining our society's current addiction to social networking sites, streaming movies and music, and immersive online video games. As for social or political concerns, I did do a lot of research about climate change and Peak Oil, and where those two forces might lead us if we continue on our current trajectory. But I purposefully didn't delve too deeply into those issues, because my main goal was to write a fun, engaging adventure story.

To what extent do you think the future you created could become real? Do you think we will one day live our lives in a virtual reality like OASIS?

Climate change and Peak Oil are definitely real, and I think both are going to have a serious impact on our civilization over the next thirty years. But I don't know if things will get as bad as they are in the future described in my novel, because you can never rule out human invention and ingenuity. We might discover a source of cheap, clean, abundant energy later this year and that would change our whole future. I hope something like that happens, but the alternative outlook is pretty grim.

And yes, I think all of our currently technology is headed towards the creation of something like the OASIS. Here in the West, we already live most of our lives inside the womb of technology, surrounded by it at all times. Most of us carry a handheld computer in our pocket that connects us to a global computer network at all times. Thirty years from now, our relationship with technology will probably be even more intense.

Are you a gamer? If so, what are your favorite games and how did they influence the plot?

Yes, I'm a lifelong gamer. Video games, board games, roleplaying games, you name it. Classic arcade games are my favorite, along with old Atari 2600 games (my first home game system), and so Ready Player One is full of references to them. But I love more recent games, too. I was addicted to EverQuest for awhile, until I went cold turkey. And I still have a weak spot for first-person shooters like Quake and Half-Life 2. My most recent gaming obsession is Star Wars: The Old Republic, a new MMO from Bioware.

So, uh, what sort of fashion were you rocking in the 80s? Tight rolling your jeans? Jelly bracelets? Were you more Phil Collins, The Cure, or Motley Crue? Maybe Grandmaster Flash?

I wore pegged acid-washed jeans and put way too much product in my hair, just like everyone else. As for music, I was really into Van Halen and Def Leppard, before I discovered brainy nerd rock like Rush, Devo, and They Might Be Giants. (I still love me some Van Halen, though.)

What movies do you think best represent the 80s?

That's a tough questions. I could probably list about thirty movies that define that decade - and most of them are mentioned in my novel. But for a dose of pure uncut 80s culture, you can't really beat the six John Hughes teen classics: Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Pretty in Pink, Some Kind of Wonderful, and Weird Science.

Inquiring literary minds want to know: what are you reading right now? and what’s the last really great book you read?

At the moment I'm reading "And So It Goes," a biography of Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. The last great book I finished was Stephen King's 11-22-63. It's a gripping time travel tale by one of the world's great storytellers. Good stuff.

So what’s next? Any new and amazing ideas percolating in that brain of yours?

I'm working on a coming-of-age novel about growing up as a total geek in the Midwest during the late 1980s, and how video arcades and fantasy roleplaying games helped me survive a twisted adolescence. I'm also adapting the story as a screenplay that I plan to direct someday. But I need to finish the book first.

Well, I, for one, can say with 100% certainty that I shall be reading it.

Thank you so much, Mr. Cline (I totally call you Ernie in my head) for participating in the interview, and for writing a book that I can visit again and again.

Because I can't stop talking about Cline and his novel, I feel a need to give you a few more notes:

You seriously must visit Ernest Cline's website, which is tons of fun. Seriously, I spent a giant chunk of time reading and exploring the site, and I highly recommend you head over. His page of people who inspire him is downright inspiring in itself.

The 2009 movie Fanboys originated in Cline's brain. In the film, a group of Star Wars fanatics embark on road trip to fulfill a terminally ill friend's request: the request? To infiltrate Skywalker Ranch and steal the rough cut of Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace months before its release.

Cline has three more movies in the works: Ready Player One, Thundercade, and Buckaroo Banzai Against the World Crime League.

Cline drives "a Time Traveling Dimension Hopping Knight Riding Ectomobile called ECTO-88". It's one sweet ride.

You can also check out this interview and interviews with the other winners over at the Indie Lit Awards!

Book Review: Among Others

2012-03-31T05:16:00.000-05:00

Title: Among Others
Author: Jo Walton
Publisher/Year: Tor / 2011
Source/Format: Tor, ILAs / Print
Date Finished: 18 January 2011
Book # 3

Buy | Borrow | Accept | Avoid

The Short and Sweet of It
Morwenna and her twin sister were raised by their insane mother who is also a witch. Recruited by fairies to prevent their mother from amassing too much power, the girls fight and in the process Morwenna is injured and her sister dies. And then the story begins....

A Bit of a Ramble
I was very excited when this book made the short list for the Independent Literary Awards; after all, I had heard such wonderful things about the book from various bloggers and I adored the cover. And I must say I was not disappointed. But I was surprised.

It's not often I read a story where so much nothing happens. The plot of Among Others is very difficult to pin down. More than anything, this reads like an insight into a character, not a "story". Of course, this is in part due to the structure of the novel which is written in a series of diary entries. The real story has already taken place by the time the book begins. What readers get here is the aftermath, the healing. Mori, the protagonist, ran away from her mad mother to live with a father she had never met who quickly sent her away to a boarding school where, honestly, the most exciting thing that happens is she joins a book club at the local library.

As I'm writing this, I'm worried you may think the book boring because of a lack of action, but it's far from it. I was riveted by the three levels this story had going: the tale of witches and fairies, the coming of age of our main character, and the consistent focus on science fiction-fantasy novels. This is not a heart-pounding thrill ride, but rather a quiet stroll, a walk at dusk complete with profound thoughts and reflection.

I really must direct you to Carl's review of the book over at Stainless Steel Droppings and Ana's at things mean a lot for true reviews. They artfully state what I would love to say, and I highly recommend reading their reviews.

Madison Monthly: Two

2012-03-29T05:11:00.004-05:00

The Basics
On March 24, Madison turned two months old. Her doctor visit on March 27 had her weighing in at 12 lbs. 1 oz., measuring 24 1/4 inches in length, and in general being a tall, solidly built but not chunky baby.

Eating and Sleeping
She had a rough month with eating, struggling and straining through about 50% of her feedings. While eating, her back would arch, she would shake her head side-to-side, her face would get all red, and she would cry. I was convinced she had an acid reflux problem, so on March 11, I called the doc. Turns out she has GERD - fancy acid reflux. And man oh lordy does that make a girl scream. As for how mommy is handling the screaming...well, about 50% of the time I feel bad for her and the other half of the time I feel bad for me. She's on medication now, Zantac, and that will hopefully solve the problem.

Sleeping was going well for a while; she was out for 5-6, and twice 7, hours of sleep at night with nary a whisper. Unfortunately, having GERD has messed that up a bit due to the discomfort of laying on her back. Now we are back to feeding her every three hours, even at night. And to make it even more fun, we now have to hold her in an upright position for 20-30 minutes after a feeding if we want her to go back to sleep easily.

Behavior and Development
She smiles much more often these days; although I'm not convinced she's always smiling at me or anything I may be doing at the time. More often than not, I think she's smiling for her own reasons like she's nicely full (which my mom and grandma call "fat and full") or pushing out some serious farts. She is having reactionary smiles these days though, and they are the most precious thing ever. I did manage to capture one of those reaction smiles on camera!

She's definitely my gassy baby, continuing to belch loudly and proudly before, during, and after her feedings, and of course, she still manages to fart throughout the day. I think the gassiness is related to the stomach problems which are also causing her eating difficulties and acid reflux.

She follows objects with her eyes, but only when she wants to, and that's not often. She's got her own stuff going on, and she doesn't see any reason to watch that silly rabbit travel back and forth.

She's moving her head more now, gaining control over its bobbleheadedness. She still occasionally winds up face down on the blanket during tummy time, but she can now get herself out of it by turning her head in one direction or the other. We did have some concerns that she was always laying with her head turned to the right. She sleeps that way all night long, and more often than not during the day she's laying on the right side of her head. She's developed a nice flat spot on her head, and now we are actively encouraging her to turn her head the other way. The funny thing is she doesn't seem to mind. So why in the phat was she not doing it on her own to begin with? Crazy nutter.

Social Stuff
Sleepovers at grandma's are becoming rather commonplace much to everyone's delight. Every Wednesday, the Baby Nut stays at my mom's so that I don't have to worry about her before going in to teach. I have to admit that while I absolutely love not having the responsibility of a baby, I do miss her for a few seconds now and again throughout the night. I even am having a bit of difficulty sleeping with her gone which is both odd and ironic. Odd because I am not worried about her at all. Ironic because it's my only chance to get any real sleep and I can't.

Mommy Notes
I'm still something of an emotional crybaby, getting all teary eyed at movies, books, tv shows, and even the occasional commercial. I am also a megahotbox, sweating even when it's only 65 degrees in the house. I wouldn't say I've adjusted to having a baby in the house, but I'm at least on my way.

Her Nicknames (in order of use, 1 being most often):

Madinut
Nutter
Baby Duck
Baby Nut
Nutjob
Goofer
Goofnut
Fussbucket

I've pretty much stopped calling her Little Miss Nasty, My Crazy Baby, and The Squirm Button probably because they are too many syllables. :) Brian continues to call her The Squirm Button as it's the one he came up with, and he feels it's "nicer" than most of my nicknames. I also rarely call her Sweets anymore for an unknown reason (okay, it's the screaming. it's the constant screaming).

The Pictures

Madison and her dolly Pablo getting their sleep on

She can be flirty....

She can be sleepy...

She can be upset...or wait is this contemplative? Distraught over the state of the world today?

She can be hardcore

But she's always cute

Tag! Jenners Shall Not Win!

2012-03-26T05:32:00.000-05:00

Yet again, I've been tagged by Jenners. Let the games begin...er...continue. I Shall Prevail!

Have you ever thought of giving up blogging? Just this past month I thought about it. With the Nutter taking up so much of my time, I considered deleting the blog since I wouldn't be able to put so much time into it. Then I figured..what's the big deal if there's only a post or two a week?
Would you rather cough butterflies or sneeze rainbows? (I heard this on my son’s radio show so don’t blame me.) Are you kidding? Sneeze rainbows for sure.
What book/s being released this year are you most looking forward to reading? There are books being released this year? :) I'm terrible about keeping up on new releases, but off the top of my head, I'm pretty sure a new Alexia Tarrabotti novel is coming out. Gotta love that Parasol Protectorate.
What surprised you most about becoming a mother? Even though you know on some level that babies are a lot of work, it's still quite surprising how very very much work they are. She's just so freaking needy...
Which do you prefer: dogs or cats? Snakes.
What is the last movie that made you cry? Considering I've been rather hormonal for months now, I cry at commercials. For real cry though would be Schindler's List.
What is the last book that made you laugh? Ready Player One by Ernest Cline!
Would you rather spend a week in New York City or a week in the mountains in Colorado? Definitely the mountains. I'm a big fan of hiking and climbing and in general playing outside in woodsy mountainy areas. And since I live in the middle of farm-centered flatlands, I rarely get to do it.
Can you quit a book you’re not enjoying? If so, what is your secret? I never could until a few years ago. Once I started blogging, it really hit me how many books there are out there to read. Why waste time?
How are you liking 11/22/63 by Stephen King? (I see you are reading it now or soon will be.) Good stuff baby. Time travel, conspiracy theories, mixing fact and fiction: these are all things I like.
Do you think you will stop and not answer these questions so I can be the winner of our little game of tag chicken? Never. This game shall go on until you cry uncle. Now cry uncle.

The 11 Questions that Will Make Jenners Cry Uncle

If you had to devise your own system of torture, what would it be?
Panty Hose: Damn my legs look awesome or Damn that's uncomfortable?
Is it better to tell your child there is no monster in the closet or that the monster is a friendly one (or you know, the third option: that it really is there and it really does want to eat you?)?
Are jeggings acceptable in public?
What is the most destructive thing you have ever done to a book?
What are your thoughts on cliffhanger endings?
Paranoid People: Crazy or Smarter than the rest of us?
What would be the most awesome thing about living in the Old West?
What's more annoying: people who apologize all the time or people who never apologize?
What's the best book for a new mother to read (is asking for real advice cheating?)?
How long do you think we can keep this up?

Book Review: The Magician King

2012-03-24T05:29:00.000-05:00

Title: The Magician King
Author: Lev Grossman
Publisher/Year: Viking / 2011
Source/Format: Publisher / Print
Date Finished: 19 February 2012
Book # 8

Series Reviews: The Magicians

Buy | Borrow | Accept | Avoid

The Short and Sweet of It
Quentin has what he thought he wanted - he is a king of Fillory - but he is still unsatisfied and soon finds himself embarking on another quest. If he doesn't succeed, he may lose everything.

A Bit of a Ramble
I must admit that the following "review" probably won't make a lot of sense to anyone who hasn't read the book. But there you go. I did at least try to minimize any spoilers.

The story alternates between the present, with Quentin et. al. on a quest to prevent the old gods from taking back the magic, and the past, with Julia fighting to become a magician after her rejection from Brakebills (which happens in book 1). The back and forth, I must admit, was a bit annoying at first, but by the middle of the book, I was getting into Julia's story more and more. Quentin's story isn't all light and airy, but Julia's is downright dark. Dark is intriguing.

Quentin does fascinate me as a person though. He has specific ideas of what will make him happy, but he is continually dissatisfied. In the first book, he was convinced magic would do the trick. Then he believed Fillory was the thing. Maybe being a king of Fillory? How about going on a quest? How about saving the universe? Nah. Nada. I am very interested to find out if Quentin's search for happiness will ever come to fruition.

Now let's forget about Quentin and think about the female characters. I read a few reviews which complain that the females in the novels are presented as weak, and then I've read a few which exclaim how kickass the girls are. Both opinions are valid. There were times in the novel where the female characters do feel a bit victimish with bad things happening to them, mostly involving sex in some way, shape, or form. But the times when the girls really come through, I think, far outweigh their victim status. Even when they are the butt end of some pretty nasty stuff, these ladies seem to pull through, rather stoically, and they take what comes to them, if not always perfectly, at least with less whining and poo-pooing than Quentin.

So now when does the next book come out cuz I'm really interested to know where all this is going....

This Book Around the Web
(let me know if I missed yours)

Sophisticated Dorkiness; Jenn's Bookshelves; Unabridged Chick; Linus's Blanket; The Book Lady's Blog; books i done read; GalleySmith;

NOTES
This book was on the short list for the ILAs

Book Review: A Monster Calls (2)

2012-03-22T04:37:00.000-05:00

Title: A Monster Calls
Author: Patrick Ness
Publisher/Year: Candlewick / 2011
Date Finished: 30 September 2011
Source/Format: Bought / Print
Book #: 74

Buy | Borrow | Accept | Avoid

The Short and Sweet of It
Awesome.

A Bit of a Ramble
My love for Ness's Chaos Walking series pretty much ensures I will read anything that man writes, so when I heard about A Monster Calls, it went on the wish list immediately. I even defied my book buying ban to get my hands on it (although I am proud of the fact that I held out for a few months at least).

I have to say though that even without Ness's name attached, I probably would have bought this one anyway. Ever since reading Brian Selznik's The Invention of Hugo Cabret, I've had a fascination with books which include extensive illustrations. A Monster Calls uses numerous illustrations throughout and they are done in a wonderfully creepy, gray scale style:

Aren't these just beautiful pieces of art?! I loved looking at these pictures and spent a great deal of time gazing at them, letting my imagination wander.

The story is just as wondrous. Truly unique, the tale features three stories from the monster which reveal important truths but not ones typical for a fairy tale. I was so impressed with these stories: the way they worked together to complement the main narrative and the way they revealed humanity and not a pat moral. Because I myself am big on not spoiling the plot, and I honestly believe this is one tale which you need to know very little going in, I'll stop there.

My final thoughts on this one revolve around something rather embarrassing. I want to preface this by saying that I am not a crier. Seriously, I can only think of a few stories, whether books or film, which made me cry: Schindler's List and Braveheart are really the only two that spring to mind. With this one, there were a few moments, I was getting teary and one where I wanted to bawl like a baby. The worst part is that I was in Barnes and Noble while reading, smack in the middle of the cafe, so I had to force back the tears and try to keep my face from doing that horrid, tense, smooched up look one gets when trying not to cry.

So my advice is to go now and buy this book, but try to read it in private, so you can indulge in a bit of weeping.

NOTES
I republished this review as it won runner up in the Speculative Fiction category for the ILAs!!!

Book Review: Ready Player One

2012-03-21T05:04:00.003-05:00

Title: Ready Player One
Author: Ernest Cline
Publisher/Year: Crown / 2011
Source/Format: Crown / Print
Date Finished: 22 January 2011
Book # 4

Buy | Borrow | Accept | Avoid

The Short and Sweet of It
James Halliday, the eccentric, 80s obsessed, creator of OASIS, a virtual reality used the world over, left his entire fortune to the person who can win the devilishly clever game he created within OASIS. Years later, Wade Watts discovers the first clue. And the games begin.

A Bit of a Ramble
First and foremost, may I just say how much reading this made me miss World of Warcraft. I stopped playing some time ago when I could no longer justify the monthly fee based on my availability to play (freaking work and sleep and family and the such not). I still hope to some day resurrect my character and start playing again. *sigh*

The world Cline has created is relatively miserable. Poverty is rampant with people going hungry and living in trailer parks where the trailers are stacked on top of each other. But who cares about all that when most of the people live their lives in OASIS, a virtual reality of infinite possibility. Oh, World of Warcraft, how I miss you....

But to the story... Fantastic. Seriously. I devoured this book, all 372 pages of it, in two sittings. I was totally engrossed beginning to end, and honestly I am a bit sad that it's over. This will definitely go down as one of my favorite reads of the year. Fast-paced action, intriguing characters, unique plot line, and then there's the awesomeness of continual 80s references. I was born in 1980, so while I can't make the claim to have truly LIVED the 80s, I was certainly alive and cultured by the 80s. Geek. Nerdgasm. Non-stop action. Technology. Nostalgia. I'm so freaking geeked by this book I can't even articulate properly. Okay, pause, breathe.

I could sit here and tell you more about the exhilarating plot or the unique characters or the complex setting, but instead I'll let you experience it all on your own. Now go read. Or maybe you should listen. I hear the audio version is fantabulous which makes sense as it is narrated by Wil Wheaton. And that choice makes perfect sense as who better represents 80s geek culture?!?!

NOTES
Received from Crown for the ILA Short List
Won the 2011 ILAs for Speculative Fiction

Indie Lit Award Winners!

2012-03-20T13:11:00.001-05:00

The results are in for the winners of the Independent Literary Awards. Huzzah! And with no further ado....

Biography/Memoir

Winner: Little Princes by Conor Grennan
Runner-Up: Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother by Amy Chua

My Notes: I own the winner (yay me!) and someday soon I hope to read it. As for Battle Hymn, I'm not sure I could handle it. The whole premise kind of gives me the creeps.

GLBTQ

Winner: Nina Here Nor There: My Journey Beyond Gender by Nick Krieger
Runner-Up: Huntress by Malinda Lo

My Notes: I haven't heard of the first, but I do find it interesting: "This candid and humorous memoir of gender awakening brings readers into the world of the next generation of transgender warriors and tells a classic tale of first love and self-discovery." The second I, and most of you guys, have heard of.

Fiction

Winner: Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones
Runner-Up: Dance Lessons by Aine Greaney

My Notes: Am I completely out of the loop here? Obviously I am because I haven't heard of either one of these books. But check out a shortie over Silver Sparrow: "Set in a middle-class neighborhood in Atlanta in the 1980s, the novel revolves around James Witherspoon’s two families—the public one and the secret one. When the daughters from each family meet and form a friendship, only one of them knows they are sisters."

Mystery

Winner: A Trick of the Light by Louise Penny
Runner-Up: Fun and Games by Duane Swierczynski

My Notes: A Trick of the Light by Louise Penny is a Chief Inspector Gamache novel, the eighth in the series. I cannot start another series. I cannot start another series. I cannot start another series.

Non-Fiction

Winner: Lost in Shangri-La by Mitchell Zuckhoff
Runner-Up: Berlin 1961 by Frederick Kempe

My Notes: I've been meaning to read Lost in Shangri-La since I first heard of it. Berlin 1961 is a new one for me, but I should probably read it as I know nothing about the Cold War.

Poetry

Winner: Catalina by Laurie Soriano
Runner-Up: What Looks Like an Elephant by Edward Nudelman

My Notes: I very very rarely read poetry, so I probably won't pick these up...but I'm betting they are awesome because the people on this panel are awesomely into poetry.

Speculative Fiction

Winner: Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
Runner-Up: A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

My Notes: You should definitely read both of these. As this is the category I was a part of, I feel very confident in the awesomeness of both these books. So go. Now. Go and read them.

Quick Pics from The Day of the Big Ick

2012-03-11T14:14:00.000-05:00

The Day of the Big Ick aka the day Madison was born:

I apologize for the horror that is me in these pictures, but in my defense, I had just spent 8 hours pushing a 7lb 14oz baby with a 13in head out of my nether regions with no drugs to dull the pain. There was sweat involved. :)

Tag! I'm It! Again!

2012-03-08T05:31:00.000-06:00

I was tagged once before, so be sure to check out my answers to those questions too! But here we go on the questions Jenners laid down. She freely admits to tagging me so I am stuck in an endless loop of tagging.

Rules
1 You must post the rules.
2 Answer the questions the tagger set for you in their post and then create eleven new questions to ask the people you’ve tagged.
3 Tag eleven people and link to them on your post.
4 Let them know you’ve tagged them!

What’s the most played song on your iPod? (or CD collection if you’re old school) :: Okay, this is a bit embarrassing, but the most played song on my iPod currently is Enrique Iglesias's "I Like It". Yeah, I get crunk up in the club.
What do you miss most about your childhood? :: The lack of responsibility. Absolutely.
What is your favorite poem? Can I say The Odyssey? Does that count? :)
Without thinking too much, what are 5 of your favorite books of all time? (Just list them as they come to you … don’t think!!!!!) :: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Good Omens, Rebecca, The Monk, Inferno,
What was the last book you read? Tell me about it in 5 words or less. Room and Boredom. Dark, mystery, blood, bar, dreaming,
Can you define irony and give an example? (This is self-serving as I’m struggling to do this with my son. I will so steal your answers if appropriate.) :: Instead of giving my own, I thought I would provide a link: http://theoatmeal.com/comics/irony
If you were forced to change your name, what would you change it to? :: My Lady High Mistress
What author/TV show/movie/book/celebrity, do you have absolutely despise and avoid at all costs? Jersey Shore and anything like it. Sweet god that's just devastating.
What movie was actually better than the book is was based on? :: I know they exist, and I know I've read/seen some, but damn they're eluding me right now. I bet The Notebook was though. I mean watching two hours had to be better than reading it. Right? And True Blood may be better than the Sookie books...Eric, oh my Eric.
Beatles or the Stones? :: Beatles
What is your favorite quote? Ralph Waldo Emerson's "The invariable mark of wisdom is to see the miraculous in the common".

My Questions

What is the proper ratio of donuts to milk?
What is the proper book to read while waiting at the DMV which will fully express your disgust with the whole situation?
If you absolutely had to give one or the other up for life, would you choose to give up books or your car?
Does an author's personality have any affect on whether or not you read his/her book?
Eric, Lestat, Edward, or Count Dracula?
Would you rather have a mansion or a private jet?
What book would you recommend to be placed in every prison cell (a la Bibles in hotel rooms)?
Twins by yourself or quadruplets with a nanny?
Austen or Bronte?
Which finger is most important and why?
TV or movies?

And the Tagged
Jenners at Life...with Books That's right. If I'm stuck in a loop, so are you.
Kim at Sophisticated Dorkiness
Judith at Leeswammes' Blog
Amy at Amy Reads
Heather at Raging Bibliomania
Stephanie at Reviews by Lola
Darlyn at Your Move, Dickens
Vasilly at 1330v
Megan at Leafing through Life
Jenny at Jenny Loves to Read
Kelly at Book Dirt

Book Review: Before I Go to Sleep

2012-03-07T06:24:00.000-06:00

Title: Before I Go To Sleep
Author: S.J. Watson
Publisher/Year: Harper / 2011
Source/Format: TLC Book Tours / Print
Date Finished: 27 February 2012
Book # 10

Buy | Borrow | Accept | Avoid

The Short and Sweet of It
Christine wakes up in a strange bed next to a man she doesn't recognize. Every morning. Her life is a mystery to her as she suffers from amnesia after a horrible accident left her incapable of retaining new information or remembering much of her past. But now she's keeping a journal, trying to tie together the events of her life and find out what happened and why her husband is lying to her.

A Bit of a Ramble
The premise, an inability to make new memories, has fascinated me ever since I watched Memento, a well constructed film directed by Christopher Nolan. Like Memento, Before I Go to Sleep focuses on the construction of reality when the protagonist can't see cause and effect. And both film and book have their characters rely on notes to get them through (tattoos in Memento and a journal in Before I Go to Sleep). Where the two really differ is that Memento brutally shows how truth is practically impossible for someone with retrograde amnesia while Watson's book offers hope. Christine's journal really allows her to work her way through a mystery to get at the truth of her life.

Getting at that truth was tons of fun. Gathering the clues and piecing everything together along with Christine kept the book moving at quite the clip for the most part. The repetitive nature of the story - necessitated by the whole memory loss thing - did lose my interest enough towards the center to allow me to get distracted by the impracticality of the whole thing. I guess I'm more pessimistic about the possibility of someone suffering from amnesia of this sort actually making sense of her life. And then there's the journal. After all, with the amount of writing that woman did in her journal, plus reading it and processing it the next day, she clearly did not have time to actually do all of the things she writes about.

But those are small complaints that really were only an issue for a chunk in the middle where the story wasn't quite progressing as fast as I would have liked. Overall, I enjoyed the story and it certainly captured my interest to the point where I didn't have any trouble reading for long stretches of time.

This Book Around the Web
(let me know if I missed yours)

Check out other reviews of Watson's thriller

NOTES
Read and reviewed as part of a book tour for TLC

Book Review: Room & Boredom

2012-03-05T05:42:00.000-06:00

Title: Room & Boredom
Author: Matthew Sturges, Bill Willingham, et. al.
Publisher/Year: DC Comics / 2008
Source/Format: Shelves / Print
Date Finished: 28 Feb 2012
Book # 11

Series Reviews: This is the first

Buy | Borrow | Accept | Avoid

The Short and Sweet of It (from DC Comics)
Welcome to the House of Mystery! Filled with peculiar, otherworldly characters from all walks of life, this series from Matthew Sturges (JACK OF FABLES) and Bill Willingham (FABLES) focuses on five people trapped in the reality-warping House of Mystery, a supernatural bar where tales are the legal tender and only the finest storytellers are patrons! But how – and why – they're stuck inside is all just a little piece of the puzzle in this first volume, which collects issues #1-5 of the all-new acclaimed series and special bonus material.

A Bit of a Ramble
Stories within stories within stories. That's what I get from this first volume in the series. We have the overarching narrative involving the main character, Fig, and her journey to the House of Mystery, the house from her dreams which she's been obsessing over for much of her life; Fig's story includes some clearly awesome characters, only clearly awesome because 1) we don't know anything about them, except they are the Conception which is a cool name; 2) they float across the ground, dragging their toes; and 3) it looks like they have to be touching each other to stay tethered to Fig's world.

But we also have the story of the five (including Fig) bar patrons who can't leave the House; this story includes a masked character in a carriage who is the only one who can get the trapped residents out of the house. And finally we have the stories the bar patrons tell, which cross between fact and fiction and involve multiple worlds. Awesome.

It's not just the story that drew me in. The artwork is fantastically dark and detailed:

The randomness of some of the inclusions in the frames really got me. For example in the first picture above, what is up with the flying shark? Who knows? It's just part of the world. The inclusion of beasts and people and images in general that aren't directly discussed in the story is something I really appreciate. They add to the vision of a world separate from the story; they suggest that the story taking place is just one within a larger world, and I like that.

I don't have the rest of this series on hand, but I am definitely interested in reading the rest.

Question: Has anyone else read this series?

NOTES
This meets Goal #1: Read Books I Own and Goal #2: Manage My Series

Teaching Notes: Ideas Needed

2012-03-02T05:17:00.001-06:00

I am about to go back to work, and I must admit I am woefully unprepared. Maternity leave is not an opportunity to create new and innovative lesson plans like I thought it would be. :) And so I am appealing to you, my lovely friends and readers. I am teaching the following books in my Intro to Lit class:

Nylon Road by Parsua Bashi
Logicomix by four awesome people
Ghosts by Henrik Ibsen

If you have suggestions for elements to focus on, activities to complete in class, projects to assign, or discussions to have, I am all ears! Lack of sleep has severely decreased my ability to think creatively, so any help is much, much appreciated. What are some projects you found effective and enjoyable from college?

I am also teaching Intro to Film, and I believe I will be using the following films:

Pan's Labyrinth
Dr. Strangelove

I need at least three more films, and if you have suggestions, let me know. I could use some good short films that are available on YouTube as well if you know of any. I also, obviously, am looking for teaching ideas for these films as well, so bring on the awesomeness!!!!

And one more time for the begging...HELP!!!! :) Love you guys.

Madison Monthly: One

2012-03-01T05:18:00.001-06:00

The Basics
On 24 February 2012, Madison Paige officially celebrated her one month birthday by going to the doctor. She is now 9 lbs. 14 oz. and 22.5 inches (+2 lbs and +1 inch from birth). That puts her in the 90th percentile for height, and the 70th for weight. She's my tall skinny baby (takes after daddy, clearly).

One Week

One Month

Eating and Sleeping
She is one odd duck. I've heard that babies take naps during the day, like two hour sleep fests which allow mommies and daddies to either get things done or take naps themselves. Not so much my little nutjob. She "wakes up" between 7am and 9am, depending, and from that time on she is awake until her next feeding (usually between 11 and 12:30) and then she has her Big Nap, a whopping 10-17 minutes. Then she is up again for the next few hours before fading in and out of sleep from 7pm to 10pm, ten minutes here, five minutes there, 20 minutes here, etc. Finally, she eats her last bottle before an ever-changing "bedtime" (10pm-midnight). Then for the next 8 hours, you just never know what will happen. Every now and then, she'll actually sleep for 4-5 hours; twice she slept for 6 hours straight!!! Most of the time though, little miss piggy only makes it 3 to 3.5 hours between feedings. She's a hungry badger. This strange nighttime routine coupled with the no-day-naps is exhausting.

Speaking of all those bottles, Madison eats anywhere between 3 and 6 ounces, totally randomly, with no correlation between quantity of food and hours between feedings. She'll have 6 ounces back to back 3 hours apart, and then break out with a 3 ounce feeding followed by a 4 ounce feeding 5 hours later. Who knows? Like I said, she's my little nutjob.

Behavior and Development
My favorite face so far is one I can't capture on camera. It goes too fast, and there is no way to predict when it will happen. She raises her eyebrows, which wrinkles her forehead, closes her eyes, sticks out her chin, and purses her lips. It's the most ridiculous face ever. And I love it.

All of her faces are absolutely adorable though. I have particular fondness for the face she makes when she gets super-excited over getting her sootie (pacifier). Her mouth makes an O and she sort of shakes her head back and forth really fast like she's having a mini-seizure of excitement. Or, you know, like a rabid dog with a bone...

She is one serious stretcher and mover. Sometimes spastic, sometimes languid, her movements are always entertaining. Right now, her movements don't have "intent", meaning that when she hits the guitar hanging from her gym, she doesn't really mean to do it. But from time to time, what she's doing does seem to have a purpose. For example, sometimes when I put the bottle in her mouth, her hands will press against my arm as if to hold it in. Or she'll slide her hand against her cheek and follow through to her mouth to push the sootie out of her mouth.

While she's gained some control over her neck, she's still a little bobblehead. She can pick her head up when laying on her stomach, but damned if you know where it's going to end up. Facedown is definitely an option.

She smiles every now and then, and she even laughed once. I know, I know, but she seriously did. She may not have meant to, but she most certainly laughed. It was hilarious and made that 3am feeding wonderful.

She loves bath time and just lays there with this half-drunk look on her face while I pour water over her, soap her up, wash her hair, and then rinse her off with the faucet. She is one seriously content baby, not even crying when her diaper is being changed or she is being dressed. Good stuff.

Social Stuff
Madison spent the night at her grandma's for the first time on Thursday, Feb 23...primarily because Mommy was going batshit crazy. Instead of going out and hanging with friends, I stayed home, had a Vampire Diaries marathon, and got a bit tipsy on a bottle of wine. Good stuff. Oh, but wait, this is supposed to be about Madison's social stuff.

She's still young enough that being passed around from person to person to total freaking stranger is no big deal. Both of her grandma's and her great-grandma have had multiple opportunities to babysit, and she is a perfect little angel (according to them of course).

Mommy Notes
I am exhausted, and I have to admit that a few times in the second and third weeks, I was actually crying in frustration (primarily at night time feedings when Fussbucket would not go back to sleep). I've gotten over the random crying, mainly because I've decided that calling my mommy to come watch HER GRANDCHILD WHO'S DRIVING ME CRAZY is a perfectly acceptable thing to do. And both grandma and baby absolutely love their time together, so everyone's happy.

I am amazed that I've gotten nothing done on maternity leave. I had this huge list of things to do - organizing around the house, a ton of crap for work, a list of books to read. But nope. Nada. Instead I've spent every waking minute (well, almost anyway) changing, feeding, rocking, bouncing, cooing at, bathing, dressing, and otherwise dealing with Miss Madison Paige Dandurand. The Madinut.

I keep trying to explain to my little nutjob that I am not "that type of mommy"; you know, the one who loves her little precious bundle of joy with an obsessive, idealized 1950s mom kind of attitude. I don't find the stuff that comes out of her cute, and I'm more likely to be pissed at the excessive crying than worried that something is wrong with her. I crave alone time something fierce, and I do not believe that watching tv while holding her is the same thing as watching it by myself. But I do love her. Like a lot, a lot.

Her Nicknames (in order of use, 1 being most often):

Nutjob
Madinut
Goofnut
Fussbucket
The Squirm Button
Sweets
Little Miss Nasty
My Crazy Baby

And now for some more pictures....

It's exhausting being her.