Simply Me

Some West Wing goodness

No, I'm not renewing my West Wing Wednesdays...still can't take the risk of Warner Brother's chasing me down!  I am though sharing this excerpt from Rob Lowe's new autobiography "Stories I Only Tell My Friends."

I shied away from this book for the first few weeks after it was initially released. I have had a big crush on him for a some time and I didn't want to learn from his own mouth that he was a complete jerk or something. Obviously, even if he was a jerk, he wasn't likely admit to it, right? Well, suprisingly enough, he hid nothing. He made no excuses. He wrote a tell all book with out being too invasive of the lives who meshed with his along the way. At the same time, he really wrote from the heart about his early life and his early acting life...the good, the bad and the very ugly. 

I found this book to be a great read...an easy read even. I am very happy I picked it up after all.  One of my favorite sections was obviously the one where he talked about being on "The West Wing." It confirmed some things I already thought I knew and gave me insight (from his perspective) on things I did not. The absolute best part for me was where he described listening to the show's opening theme music. I find that music to be utterly amazing and nearly perfection. I couldn't explain to anyone why though. I could not explain why that particular bit of music moved my heart and soul the way it did. 

Mr. Lowe, though, wrote it for me:

Excerpt from "Stories I Only Tell My Friends" by Rob Lowe

Book Review: Night Road by Kristin Hannah

I had to write about this book the minute I finished it. I didn't want to lose any of the thoughts rushing around in my head as I digested what I just finished.

This book is one of friendship, love, tragedy, loss and reward. Of giving of one's self so fully as to deny your own needs. Of losing one's self in grief and pain so completely that you lose sight of the blessings you have right in front of you.

I almost didn't finish this book. I could see where the story was headed. Someone was going to die. I wasn't sure who, but I knew it would be one of the teenagers in the story. I didn't know if I wanted to invest myself in this story only to find myself grieving over the loss of a character I had come to have a "soft place" for in my head.

The whole idea that I would be come so closely connected to a fictional character is so ridiculous in my mind. Be that as it may, I've done exactly that while reading so many books along the way. I really wish I didn't get so emotionally wound up about things like this. I wish I didn't have such an intense emotionally based psyche. I wish I could be reserved and even keeled like so many I know. It's embarrassing to be around other people and get so moved by something that I end up with tears coursing down my face.

The good news is that I pushed forward anyway and finished the book. I will admit that I didn't see exactly how the story would unfold. Someone did die. The twist that followed was wholly unexected. It literally made me gasp outloud. What follows is a lesson in how not to deal with grief and pain. Thankfully, because it's how I like for a book to end, we get to see the characters come through to the other side. Not unscathed but together. As it should have been all a long.

Thank Mrs. Hannah for providing me a lovely story that will be with me for some time to come. May it help myself and others look around us to see the things we've been pushing away and bring us to a place of peace and hope.

Book Review: The Other Life

At the risk of sounding like a broken record here, this book was yet another home run recommendation from my fellow blogger, Charlotte. If you haven't yet checked out her book review blog, you really are missing out! I have yet to read a book that she's reviewed/recommended that I haven't thoroughly enjoyed.

"The Other Life" by Ellen Meister has an intriguing plot:  what would you do if you learned you had a parallel life? One you could turn to when your "real"  life became too hard to bear? Would you risk leaving the ones you loved in this life to see someone in your other life who is gone in your current life? 

This is the struggle that the main character, Quinn, faces. She is facing a tragic decision. She longs for her mother to be there to guide and to console her, but her mother is gone. The opportunity to escape to the life of the road not chosen presents itself. As Quinn struggles with the pain in her current life, she fights the urge to escape when the opportunity presents itself.

Ellen Meister does a masterful job of spooling out this story at a perfect pace. She brilliantly writes about Quinn's struggle to stay in the present life. You find yourself questioning what you would do in this situation. Who hasn't wondered about where life would have lead if you had made different decisions along the way?

I will definitely be searching out other books written by Ellen Meister. I've found another author who is on my "must read" list.

Review time: Water for Elephants & The Proposal

I just finished listening to this audio book:

 

Published in 2007, I've heard many people give this book great reviews. I had a misconception regarding the subject matter, so I avoided it. I finally broke down a couple months ago and used a credit on Audible.com to put it in my library. It still took a while before I put it on my MP3 player and then yet a little longer to actually start listening to it. I'm here to say I was an idiot for not listening/reading sooner. 

The book is told by the same character, Jacob, from two different points in his life. Both as a 24 yr old and a 93 yr old. The audio book brilliantly used different narrators for the different times. Not to give too much away, but the story centers around a small traveling circus during the depression. Some of the harsh realities of such an environment are exposed and no punches are pulled. Some of the details are graphic and gruesome. At the same time, these details are done with a light touch that serves to enhance the story and not to just be gruesome from greusome's sake.

If you haven't read this yet, I urge you to grab a copy or download an audio file. You will quickly be entranced by this tale. Guaranteed!

Now, on to my movie review:

As with books, sometimes it takes me a while to get around to watching popular movies. As I waited for my daughter to return from a late night out (side bar:  I learned that I can't go to sleep knowing one of my children is not home yet!), I used our Wii to connect to Netflix and started browsing instant view movies. 

I first watched the latest episode of Pillars of the Earth from STARZ (and if you haven't watched this series yet (it's a miniseries), you really are missing something special). I still had time to kill, so I picked "The Proposal". I *love* Sandra Bullock. I love her in romantic comedies. Ryan Reynolds is cute and funny too, so I wasn't surprised when I found myself thoroughly enjoying this very predictable movie. Following the classic romantic comedy equation of:  ENEMIES in an AWKWARD situation DISCOVER that they actually find each other ATTRACTIVE and ultimately FALL IN LOVE. 

What is it about "....living happily ever after" that gets to us on such an emotional level that we're willing to ignore obviously ridiculous plot lines and enjoy such movies to the point of crying tears of happiness for the ending that we all knew as going to happen the minute the first credits appeared on the screen? I don't know what it is, but I know I enjoyed this movie and I cried at the end. And I would recommend you watch it too. You don't have to cry if you don't to :)

What are you reading today?

I'm listening to:

This is probably the most intense book I've read in years. Had it not been an audible book, that normally would require two credits on Audible, that they were promoting heavily by offering it for only one credit...I probably would have passed it by. It's not my typical style of book. 

Thank goodness for the idea of breaking out of your comfort zone once in while. This has been a truly captivating story. It's not an easy read. It's a post-apocalyptic era book with a twist. The twist will make you happy that *we* only have to worry about Al-Qaeda!

This review by Stephen King is partly to blame for me picking this to read:

"Every so often a novel-reader's novel comes along: an enthralling, entertaining story wedded to simple, supple prose, both informed by tremendous imagination. Summer is the perfect time for such books, and this year readers can enjoy the gift of Justin Cronin's The Passage. Read fifteen pages and you will find yourself captivated; read thirty and you will find yourself taken prisoner and reading late into the night. It has the vividness that only epic works of fantasy and imagination can achieve. What else can I say? This: read this book and the ordinary world disappears."--Stephen King

It sums up for me exactly how I've felt about this book as I've read (listened). In fact, I think I may have enjoyed this more because I've listened to it versus read it. The narrator of the story initially annoyed me. It seemed he was over doing it with the dramatic play of his voice. But after a time, I realized it fit perfectly. After almost 40 hours of listening, the book would not have been the same without Scott Brick.

I need to give fair warning though. There is no coincidence that Stephen King gave it a review. This book graphically gives life to some very horrific "scenes". It is NOT for the faint of heart. It is not "lite reading" by any stretch of the imagination but it *is* highly entertaining as well as captivating. If you'd like to find out more about this book, check out this review page on B&N:  LINK

I just learned this is the first of a trilogy of books. I'm glad I found out before I got to the end! I imagine there will be a bit of a cliff hanger ending and I would have been quite upset I think!  I hope we don't have to wait too long for the next one.

Have I finally found the magic combination?

Casey really dislikes reading. Unless it's a guide or Pokedex book that tells him all the various and sundry details of his beloved Pokemon characters. I don't expect him to become someone who loves to read above all else. I just would like him to pick up a book every few days in *addition* to his video games!

I've been mulling over various plans to get him to do some reading. I've left him alone since school ended a month ago, but now it's time to come up with something.

First, I tried bribery. He desperately wanted an old Pokemon game that you can only buy used and then sometimes it's not even possible to find it. We did manage to find a copy from a reputable seller but he was short because of the shipping cost. I agreed to cover the shipping in return for some reading. He initially agreed with great enthusiasm. That lasted about 15 hours. It didn't help that the game came literally the next day from when we ordered it. 

Today, I struck upon another idea. What if I could match up a book on his "to be read" list to one I could find in an audio version. Either through audible and/or the library. I just discovered our own county's digital download service. It happened to have the book he had on hand and had agreed to read:

We have several of this series, purchased at school book fairs. He and I read the first two in the series together and out loud. 

It took some work figuring out how to get it on his MP3 player but once I did, he jumped right on it. So far he's listened/read 5 chapters today! His agreement is to have the book finished by the first of August. Having these downloads from the library helps in that they "go away" after x number of days. I'm going to start compiling a list of other books to do the same. We'll try to use the library system as much as possible, finding books that we know are on the library's eSystem AND in the regular book circulation.

 

He even found a t-shirt with a pocket to hold the mp3 player :)

I'll be keeping my fingers crossed this is just the first of many books in his future. 

 

First Day 2009

We did it! We made it through Day #1 and Day #2 of the School Year 2009-2010. I've been in pins and needles about this because of my son's entry into Middle School. 

School is not his thing. 

Organization is not his thing. 

Paying attention to get and keep pertinent details is not his thing. 

Dealing well with change is not his thing.

These are just a few of the things that make moving on to Middle School a daunting prospect in my eyes. I worry more about this kid than is necessary, I know. Far more than I ever have for his sister. Not that she doesn't need to be worried about...she does, but over different and fewer things. God was smart by giving us our "easy" child first!

The good news is that Day #1 and Day #2 are both history and we have made it through. There's still many days to come yet, but these first potentially traumatic ones are done and we can take a minute to breathe and relax.

Here's a few snaps from yesterday morning:

I'm in the middle of backing up one EHD to another so I can't get to the first "First Day" pics for comparison.