The Old Man and the Sea - 12/10/2007

We meet again, Mr. Hemingway. This time, it was a more fortuitous meeting.

Funny that I read two books, back to back, dealing with men stuck out at sea. "The Life of Pi" is often compared to "The old Man & the Sea."

Here we meet an old man, past his fishing prime. He has lost the young buy who was apprenticed to him, but he's not angered. He understands that he is old. He is old and poor and living in Cuba. He sets out one morning with the rest of the fishermen and ends up going far out to sea, being pulled by the larges Marlin he has ever seen. He considers it a battle of wills, that lasts for days and days. He respects this fish and knows in the end, he (the man) will win out.

I enjoyed Hemingway's writing this time. The old man has such a strength of character. He is a good man and you can feel it in his words and actions. He reveres things that the younger generation takes for granted or mocks. He is no longer proud in the sense of being stubborn. He is proud is being quiet, meek, and with a strong belief in his relationship to God, the sea and this fish, his brother.

He succeeds and also fails. I cringed at his return and all that happened, but I was glad he got home and everyone saw what this old man did - something they could never do.

Patella Expands - 12/06/2007

This weekend, David is sitting in the loft, playing Call of Duty 4 on-line. It's late and I am laying on the couch in the loft. I could go to bed, the bedroom door is 5 feet away. But I don't see David much except on the weekends, so I feel bad going to bed (he's a night owl). I compromise and lay on the upstairs couch with a blanket and pillow.

David's got his head set on and is talking to the guys on-line that he is playing with. I slip in and out of consciousness. Then I hear:

"Damn it. Negroes killed me!"

Huh??

I pop open an eye. I look at him and say "Honey?!? Why the heck are you saying 'Negroes' on-line?"

David stops, stares, and then starts laughing, hard. "I just got it!," he exclaims. He says it again to me: "Negroes." and then he spells it out: K. N. E. E. G. R. O. W. S. Knee Grows. One of the guys he is playing with has the screen name of Knee Grows.

And it took David a couple of hours to figure it out.

David's screen name? Lard Tub.

Life of Pi - 12/06/2007

Another BFF selection.

This book was given to me by my Bff Jill Wendy. (Does anyone get why I always say " Bff Jill Wendy?")

Wendel kept asking me had I read it, had I read it. I was almost hesitant. It's a "popular" book. I don't want to go with the flow. Some recent popular books have been a let-down to me.

If you do not want SPOILERS, STOP NOW! This is your one and only warning.

This is a terrific book, go figure. The writing is fluid. I enjoy reading writings in English of people in other countries (when done right, Mr. Hemingway!). I can feel India in Pi's thoughts and speech. It permeates his actions and I like when a writer can do that.

Pi Patel is a young Indian Hindu living with his family in a Zoo, owned by his parents. He sees the beauty in every animal in there. He sees their purpose, their souls, and has great respect for them. He sees God in everything around him. His love of God is so great, he decides he wants to practice Hinduism, Christianity and Islam, much to the chagrin of the 3 religious leaders of the three religions he practices. When confronted by all three men, he shyly states that all he wants to do "is love God." In college in Toronto later in life, he double-majors in Zoology and Religion. Can anyone see the irony there? Science vs. Religion?

The author describes Pi's life in school (his name is Piscine which means "Pool" in French, and is forever called "Pissing" by his classmates. He changes his name to Pi, while in their upper schools - like high school here I suppose.) While in high school, his parents decide to sell the zoo and its various animals and move from India to Canada. After the details of the selling of animals to various zoos around the world, they embark on a Japanese cargo ship, some animals in tow, towards their new life.

As his parents and brother sleep, he walks to the surface of the vessel. It is sinking. In the melee, some officers throw him into a large lifeboat, atop a zebra with a broken leg. The lifeboat ends up in the sea. As he is floating, he sees Richard Parker and is ecstatic. He whistles and yells encouragement to Richard Parker. Hurry, Hurry! You can make it to the lifeboat, HURRY. As Richard Parker approaches the lifeboat, Pi FINALLY asks himself "What the hell am I DOING??" You see, Richard Parker is a Tiger.

The rest of the book deals with the animals that are in this life boat. An evil hyena, a female orangutan names Orange Julius, the zebra with the broken leg and the groggy Richard Parker, who hides under the tarp, still groggy from the effects of the tranquilizers given to him for his trans-Atlantic voyage.

The hyena begins to dispatch with the animals - the zebra first, then the orangutan, whose head he pulls off. He does not know Richard Parker is under the tarp. Pi tries to find provisions on his side of the lifeboat, which he finds under the tarp near Richard Parker.

Eventually, Richard Parker awakens and kills the hyena.

The rest of the book deals with the psychology of animals and how Pi must "train" Richard Parker to believe he (Pi) is still the alpha male. The author describes Pi's long, arduous journey. Supplies run out, so he begins to fish and collect rain water. He continues to pray. He feed Richard Parker, he prays to God.

After seven months, seven!, and several grueling adventures, they finally wash ashore in Mexico and Richard Parker runs into the woods forever.

The Japanese company comes to interview him after he has been hospitalized.

and here is where the story gets weird.

He tells his story to the men, which is basically the story we have been reading. The Japanese men do not believe him. Over & over he tells them what happened. They think he is insane. Pi asks them if what they are looking for from him is a believable story. When they agree, he tells a different, shorter story. A story about survivors on the boat. His mom, himself, a cook and a Chinese sailor with a broken leg.

The cook terrorized them. First he cut off the broken leg of the Chinese sailor and used the flesh as bait. When the sailor died, he stripped the flesh for bait, and ended up eating it. Pi's mom and the cook fought bitterly, to the end, where the cook decapitates Pi's mom. In the end, Pi kills the cook.

What are we to believe? Is the zebra really a Chinese sailor? Is the cook the hyena. Is his mother the orangutan? Is Pi really Richard Parker, who kills the hyena? What are we to believe - that a man can survive 7 months on a ship with a Tiger? Or with a cannibalistic cook? Can your faith in God allow you to believe the Tiger story or the human one?

I, for one, am staying with the Tiger story.

Of Mice and Men - 12/04/2007

John Steinbeck's "Of Mice and Men" is a very small book. My copy is 106 pages and is about 7" x 4". Tiny book. Another one in my "Classics To Read Before You Die" thing I am doing.

You all know I LOVED Steinbeck's "Grapes of Wrath." That book was my "Cry the Beloved Country," Aunt Joan. Loved it. So I was not hesitant in reading another Steinbeck work.

Of Mice and Men deals with two men in around the 1930's who go from ranch to ranch, living a hand-to-mouth existence. There's "small and quick" George and Lennie, huge, powerful but with the mind of a child. They are not related; they just grew up in the same town and George took care of Lennie after Lennie's guardian died.

The relationship is a sweet one. George is ever-frustrated, ever-patient with Lennie, who cannot for the life of him remember anything past 5 minutes. George takes care of Lennie and protects him from himself; Lennie has gotten into trouble in the town they just fled from. Lennie is so child-like, he panics when he is yelled at, and CLINGS WITH ALL HIS MIGHT to whatever it is he is holding on to. This powerful man who broke all the fingers in a man's hand panicked as he held on to a girl's dress in town and frightened her into yelling "rape". It was so pretty, he just wanted to touch it. They fled.

Everything he touches he hurts. The mice he picks up in the fields, the puppy he squishes to death. George tries to help him, but eventually Lennie gets himself into a situation on their new farm where his fear and panic causes him to kill a human.

The final chapter, with George and Lennie by the pond, discussing for the 100th time, their pipe-dream of owning their own stake, living "on the fatta the lan'" is so sad. By rote, George recites the same dream, the same words, the words George knows deep down don't mean a thing. As he recites these words, George knows what must be done, knows it in his soul. The rest of the workers cannot understand his feelings or his hesitance, but he does what he knows he must.

The ending came out of the blue for me, never having read it. So abrupt. C'est la vie. Such is life.

Touched - 12/01/2007

I was talking with Tampa-Sister today. I just called her to see what was up with her & hers. We discussed kids, potty training (kill me now), home sales, and got around to Christmas. I told her that this year, we decided that financially, we were not prepared to buy gifts for the 13 or so people on his side and the 10 or so on my side. This is not counting us and the kids, AND the fact that both David and Jacob have December birthdays. It's too much. I also told her about my paring down the Christmas card sending.

She said she and her mom (my step-mom) were talking about me this week. About how I am so good at seeking people out, seeing how they are, taking care of people, knowing what they need and being there for them. She said the way I am is a gift from God. That most people are not blessed with it and I should not let others ruin it for me. She knows people don't appreciate things much or say so, but she said she & her mom were discussing how special I am and wondering how the heck I do it. I was getting a lump in my throat and thanking her. I especially liked her "Don't let others ruin it for you" thing, because it is so true. Wanting validation and not getting it is a tough and embittering thing. Expecting people to validate what you do can set you up for huge disappointments. I am just trying not setting myself up for more, but I am also not letting myself become embittered (I hope). I want a shiny, happy world full of 1800's values, I suppose.


"Touched," Buffy Season 7, Episode 20

There's a (Slight) Chance I Might Be Going to Hell - 11/29/2007

I put a hold on this book and got a call from our local (insert banjo music here) library that it was there. I go to pick it up....and it's a book on cd. Ooops. I did not realize I held the wrong one.

This was my first foray into audio books, can you believe it? Me, book psycho nut has never put a book in her cd player. WHY NOT?? A 35-40 minute drive to work whizzes by with a book to listen to (although I do miss my Mix Morning Update Time.)

BE BACK SOON. MY DAUGHTER WANTS TO PLAY CATCH AND HAS ASKED ME LIKE 10,000 TIMES IN A ROW.

I'm back. A day later.

This is Laurie's first novel. Her other books were compilations of her newspaper articles based on her life. This book SCREAMS Laurie Notaro. The main character and husband are basically her and her real husband, with a little bit of changes. It's fine. She's funny and congratulations to her on her first fiction foray.

Mae Roberts moves to a small town in Washington state where her husband has gotten an assistant professor's position at a local college. To say the town is quirky is an understatement. To say that Meg has bad luck is A REAL understatement. She tries SO hard to make friends, and fails miserably. Several times, I said "Oh PLEASE." at the things she did and the things that happened to her.

If you've never read Laurie Notaro's work, you may think her writing style is odd, sarcastic and sometimes trying too hard to be funny. She grows on you. The story is NOT a great work of literature by any means. It's cute, sometimes cringe-worthy, and sometimes laugh-aloud fun.

Hey, does this count as a book I've read, if I didn't read it?

Into the Woods - 11/26/2007

This book was sent to my with my Soap order from my friend Amy at The Foil Hat.

Written by Tana French, who reminds me of an angry elf and whose back cover photograph gave me the wiggins, is a mystery? Detective book? A Whodunnit set in Ireland. The main character is a man who at age 12, was found in the woods, terrified, covered in blood and with no memory as to what happened to his 2 best friends out there in the woods behind the housing development in Ireland where all 3 kids lived. Fast forward 20 or so years to this man, now a Murder detective (no one knows who he is; he is using his middle name as his first name now) who investigates another murder in the same woods.


For the first few chapters, I found the author's writing very...verbose. I vacillated between totally thinking she was a stuck-up word snob, and wishing I could write that way. I think it got better as I read, or I got more used to it.


The character, Ryan was very well-written and his partnership with Cassie, a female detective was great; something we all wish we had. Then towards the end, his character pretty much goes bonko after an incident with his partner Cassie and his actions are just so out of character, especially how their friendship was portrayed; I wanted to smack the snot out of him for how he treated her and was mad at him for it.


The case itself was weird and I did not guess who it was. I was hoping for closure, but then again, I don't want it. I want happy endings but then get mad if the story is too formulaic (Great Expectations) and I can predict what is going to happen, so I am usually fine with an ending that leaves things unresolved. (Joss Whedon hates happy endings and has destroyed me forever on them).


I liked the author's writing style when she was relating Ryan's flashbacks and memories; they were really alive with color and "senses". I also found that it was more "American" than Irish. I did not really get a European feel reading this, and that was a bit of a bummer, as I tend to really like European/British writing and movies.


I enjoyed most of the book. Even with creepy elf lady staring at me.

Great Expectations - 11/21/2007

I had to read this book in high school and remembered NOTHING about it other than there was a boy named Pip and something about a convict and an old lady, that's it. I can't remember ever having read any other Dickens novel either other than "A Christmas Carol", but that's not saying much, considering my memory, and so I don't know if this sort of writing is his...forte' or modus operandi or something. Meaning, I found the book to be very formulaic. Is it that I am a 21st century jaded person? Possibly. But when I can predict everything that happened (and no, not because I remembered, because I truly did not), then I consider it formulaic. This books give meaning to "It's a Small World After All."

Everyone knows everyone else. Pip's encounters, over and over and over, are with the same tight-knit group of people; lawyers, clerks, rich crazy old ladies, cold beautiful girls, annoying town folk, escaped convicts. Really, how small is the England of old I think my main problem with the story is that I found no sympathy for Pip. Yes, at first, you feel sorry for him with his over-the-top sister who treats him and her husband Joe like the bane of her existence. She is mean, she puts on airs and she was a nag. You feel his terror at having met a convict and being threatened with death if he does not feed the convict. Joe and Pip had my sympathy, but then I start to notice a change in him when, by request, he goes to visit Miss Havisham, a rich eccentric lady who has not changed her clothes or cleaned her room since she was left at the alter on her wedding day by a swindler who took her money and broke her heart. After visiting her dilapidated mansion and meeting her beautiful ward Estella, he hates his gruff hands, he's embarrassed by his small house, by his mean clothing and mostly by Joe, his brother-in-law and best friend who has been nothing but wonderful to him. When Pip receives his "windfall" and is to have "Great Expectations" from an anonymous benefactor, he just becomes this insufferable fool and snob. He looks down on his town, he looks down on Joe and their nursemaid Biddy, who takes care of his sister who has been incapacitated by an intruder.

Pip journeys to London thinking Miss Havisham is his benefactor and just.....spends money and becomes more of a snob. He, never having anything in his life, is in debt now. His spending is out of control. He is sent to Mr. Pocket, Miss Havisham's relative, to get educated and become a gentlemen. His scant visits home involve him completely ignoring Joe, Joe's wife (his sister), his good friend Biddy and being condescending to the town folk. In London, he meets a lovely character named Wemmick who is ALL BUSINESS at work with a lawyer, who happens to be Miss Havisham's lawyer, and at home is a wonderful, caring, eccentric man. Pip pines away for Estella who is just cold and calculating, having been brought up by the heart-broken Miss Havisham to BE cold and break men's hearts.

In the end, he finds out who his real benefactor is, and everyone ends up being acquainted to each other in some ridiculous form or another (this guy is her dad, and his partner broke the other woman's heart and this maid is really her mom and yada yada yada) and it's just a bit over the top.

Pip loses his fortune, has to go home with his tail between his legs and eventually gets a job with his best friend, who he secretly funded when he had money. He meets Estella again in the end, newly widowed, and you get the idea that maybe they will get together. This was not Dickens original ending. He wrote Estella remarried after being widowed and their having a chance meeting on the street. Pips remains alone. Critics and readers hated the ending and he was asked by his publishers to write a newer ending with a little bit of hope to it, which is what he wrote. I am sorry to the Dickens lovers out there, I did not like this one. One more off my Top 100 Classics to read.

Say it Ain't So, Joss! - 11/19/2007

I was Googling Joss (which sounds kind of pervy, but isn't) and came across this interview on MSN about Senor Whedon.

Main points: "Ripper" is STILL not a go. Fox needs to get off their butts and let the BBC use the Tony Head/Rupert Giles character already, before Tony....gets along in age. Oh, don't get me wrong, Tony is still the hottest 53 year old out there.

but eventually, even *he* won't be able to stand up to his moniker of 'Ripper'.

Also, no Serenity sequel. What?

To quote Spike, "Is everyone here very stoned?" Why NOT a sequel? When the DVD is released in December 20, 2005 and by January 15, 2006, you've made 9.1 MILLION dollars (in less than a month), you've got something there.

I have not had a Whedon fix in a while. No big-screen "Wonder Woman" now either. But wait, what's this I hear? Another Whedon series coming to tv, AND starring a Buffy Alum? Don't play with my emotions Joss. This had better be on the air and soon!

Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes, Knees and Toes - 11/19/2007

The inventor of the annual female exam MUST have been a man. Who else could come up with this stuff? Men, just turn around. Click the "back" button. No need to go further. Women plumbing is not for you.

I call this my "annual overhaul." I work in a place where the all the equipment gets checked and serviced every time it goes out the door, but once a year, the motors must also have an "annual overhaul." On the calendar at work, it said "Kaaren in late; Annual Overhaul."

I have never been a fan of this exam, but have never really had any horror stories. I have been blessed with really great doctors. I have two actually that I use; my regular practitioner (who I call Egon)

and my OBGYN, who I will call Theresa, as she is a saint. They are in separate offices. Egon's staff are the ones who did Jake's toe. My OBGYN was booked through December, so I scheduled my appointment at my regular doctor's office and got the new nurse to do the job.

The new chair almost had me laughing aloud. It was a regular old chair and next thing I know, it's an inverted U and I'm all over the place. It was possibly the best annual exam, as far as these go. I felt not a darned thing. And the new nurse practitioner was SOOOOO NICE. She gets an A+.

Let's fast-forward to this morning. I have another exam to do. This one involved drinking 32 ounces of water before arriving. I did so, got to the office early, and sat in the waiting room. And waited. And Waited. And Waited. I would like for you to measure out 32 ounces of water, drink it in a half hour period and then not pee...for 2 & 1/2 hours. I was crying, really crying, in the waiting room. I felt like such a fool, but I have never had my bladder this full in my LIFE. I was hyperventilating. I was convincing my self to be calm, while also convincing myself to forget this crap, cancel the appointment and just go pee. It was the worst feeling I have ever had.

The receptionist saw me crying and said "We'll be right with you." Five minutes and I am in the exam room. Fifteen MORE torturous minutes and I am finally allowed to use the rest room.

Go, drink 32 ounces. Let me know how it goes for you. *gag*