Archive for April, 2009
April 16, 2009 @ 12:37 pm | Filed under:
Books Let me count the books.
After Scott left for the day, I found this on my pillow.
’Cause I’d said I was dying to read it.*
Yup, he’s a keeper, all right.
*Updating this with a Q-and-A from the comments, lest all my readers think Scott has lost his mind!
Q: “Was it a hint that the house was messy, was it exactly what you wanted, or was it a way of saying it´s ok honey, I love the house just the way it is?”
A: The answer is B—it was just what I wanted. 
The book actually isn’t about housekeeping at all; it’s a collection of Nick Hornby’s “What I read this month” essays from a literary magazine called The Believer. Hornby has published, I think, three volumes of these essays, about a year’s worth collected in each book, and this one is the newest one. I recently read his first collection, The Polysyllabic Spree, and I loved it and have been eager to read this new one–which is so new that it isn’t in our library system yet. Scott knew all this and treated me to the book, which he secretly bought when he was shopping for Rilla’s birthday book the other night.
He went to the Springsteen concert in L.A. last night, first time he’s gone without me in three tours, but we didn’t think it would be a good idea to bring a 3-month-old along so I passed on this one. After Scott left for L.A. yesterday, I walked into our room and found this little surprise waiting on my pillow. Is he a gem or what? Leaving me some Nick Hornby so I won’t be lonely in his absence?
April 16, 2009 @ 7:35 am | Filed under:
Family With all the Susan Boyle links everywhere, it’s not surprising I’ve got the Les Mis soundtrack playing in my head. Turns out it can be really distressing to one’s husband and children when one absentmindedly belts out “I Dreamed a Dream” while washing the breakfast dishes. And not just because I’m no Susan Boyle or Patti LuPone.
“I had a dream my life would be
So different from this hell I’m living…”
Whoops! Sorry, guys. It’s just lyrics. I don’t really think we all live in a yellow submarine, either.
We were in Barcelona. I can’t believe it’s been a year.
My Barcelona journal. Hooray for blogging because I’d never have written all that down otherwise.
“It was a glorious experience. I had no idea what a jewel Barcelona is. While Scott worked (poor thing), I soaked myself in museums, architecture, Gaudi. Everywhere I turned there was art. Our evenings were spent in the company of some of the world’s best comic book artists and writers, and I thoroughly enjoyed the long and lively discussions that lasted until the wee hours of the night. We slept little and laughed much. I fell in love with La Sagrada Familia, Gaudi’s cathedral-in-progress. Really truly in love, in the way that means I will be carrying it around in my heart for the rest of my life.”
You can say that again.
April 15, 2009 @ 7:22 am | Filed under:
Baby,
Photos Huck thanks you very much!
(Those shoes, I could die!)
April 13, 2009 @ 7:01 am | Filed under:
Family I took a little blog break for Easter. Meant to leave you with a pretty picture on top, but forgot and what you got was Hugh Laurie. Ah, well. It’s a nice face.
I can’t believe we’re halfway through April already. Slow down, life. Not that we’ve been excessively busy. Pretty mellow here of late, really. Last week all our usual activities were canceled for spring break. We hung out at home, played lots of Legend of Zelda, made pizza (thanks again for the help—I think we’ll make another one for dinner tonight), worked and played outside in the yard. The younger kids went on a drawing jag and filled up the house with pictures. I made about ten different plans to tackle cleaning and organizing projects, and spent my spare time reading instead. And playing Hex Empire. WARNING: Do NOT click on that link. It will take you to the most addictive time-suck on the internet. It’s like the board game Risk, but without out those little plastic troops skittering across your table. Dangerous. Marvelous. Consuming.
This baby is the smilingest baby ever. He loves to be sung to and gazes up with huge blue eyes and that awesome wide gummy open-mouth grin. How do you DO that? he seems to be saying. Those incredible sounds you make. I could listen all day! It’s like magic! It’s so—so—so overwhelming. I can’t look at you anymore. In fact, I think I must cry.
Is today the 13th? Jiminy crickets, the child is three months old already. I must have blinked again.
April 9, 2009 @ 12:30 pm | Filed under:
Television 
Did anybody see it coming?
(Warning: We’ll be spoiler-ing in the comments.)
April 8, 2009 @ 8:33 pm | Filed under:
Books,
TBR …faster than it shrinks.
One step forward, two steps back, so the saying goes. Only in this case it’s: one book behind me, half a dozen ahead. I finished Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict today, about which more later, maybe (I didn’t love it), which was one of the fourteen books from the TBR stack I shared in March. But after a stroll through blogland today, I find I have added (gulp) six more titles to my library hold list.
Tomorrow I’ll come back and add links to where I read about these. For now, in the last minute before LOST, a quick list:
The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey (but of course!). (That link goes to the series website, which has fun puzzles and games, including a Morse code tutorial. Adding it here for my kids’ easy access.)
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin (read this many moons ago, inspired to reread by a Theodora Goss blog entry, which visit was inspired in turn by Sarah of Knitting the Wind) ***Updated: Scott just IMd me to say we own a copy. I thought we did but I couldn’t find it. Not that I really put my all into looking, if you know what I mean.***
Company of Liars by Karen Maitland (you had me at Canterbury Tales + thriller). (But WHO is you? I’ve searched my Reader and can’t locate the link.)
What Happens on Wednesday by Emily Jenkins (just read about this on Nina’s blog two minutes ago)
Uglies by Scott Westerfield
And now I’m off to see what Sawyer is reading tonight.* Maybe I’ll need to add something else to my list.
*Whoops, I forgot. No Sawyer last night. Good Ben stuff, though!
…she thinks baby talk sounds like “google ga-ga.”
