I took my charges on an outing today, the first time I've taken B anywhere in my car. We went to the public library, not only my favorite place, but a good place to look for biographies on Scott Joplin, which is what T needed.
The trip went well, but it was cold and raining when we left, so I left the kiddos under the library awning so I could go get the car. When I pulled up, T got in, I got B in her seat, and then, it began. A car was waiting behind me, making me feel nervous, as if I took more han three mintutes, and angry soccer mom would come charging out of the car at me. In my worry, I failed to notice that my seven books and my purse were still sitting in the basket of the stroller. The stroller stoutly refused to fold, but I wrestled into submition, all the while giving apologetic smiles to the driver of the car behind me.
After three failed attempts to get T to push the button that opens the trunk, I ran around and did it myself, internally swearing at his 11 year old lack of vehicle knowledge. That's when it happened. I lifted the stroller into the trunk, and six books, a book on CD and a red stamp pad fell with myriad thumps, to the wet pavement. At that moment, I was cold, wet, nervous about my imagined screaming soccer mom, and now my library books were in a wet heap on the ground. I put my head in my hands and felt the tears welling up in my eyes.
Then a car door slammed. I looked up to see a man about 30 coming my way, bending to pick up my books. He said nothing except a soft "no problem" in responce to my stammered, tearful thank you's. I slammed the trunk shut, he climbed back into his van, I climbed into my car, and both of us drive away.
Whoever he is, I hope he knows that he completly made my day and renewed my faith in people. Thanks, Library Man.
Friday, February 12, 2010
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
BOOK REVIEW: Odd Thomas
I waited to do my Monday book review, partially because I forgot, but partially because I wanted to wait until I had finished Odd Thomas by Dean Koontz. Rarely do I find a book so blessedly amazing as this one was.
The story is that of a young man named Odd Thomas. He sees what he calls the "lingering dead". Basically ghosts who still have unfinished business here or who love the world too much to move on. He also sees Bodocks, evil spirits that gather whenever and wherever they sense impending violence and carnage. After a strange visitor visits to the cafe where he works, Odd finds himself racing to stop the deaths of hundreds of people.
The book is beautifully written, managing to combine humor, love, and tragedy in a perfect balance that never seems forced. It is over 60 chapters long, and yet I never felt that it was dragging along or that nothing was happening. I laughed out loud at certain points, yelled at Odd to "Run!" at others, and, when the tragedy struck, I sobbed. Nothing recommends a book to me more than it's ability to find myself so entrenched in it's pages that I weep for the sorrows of fictional characters. To date, I have only had this happen with five books. Six now, with Odd Thomas.
This book will break your heart, but I highly recommend it to anyone and everyone.
The story is that of a young man named Odd Thomas. He sees what he calls the "lingering dead". Basically ghosts who still have unfinished business here or who love the world too much to move on. He also sees Bodocks, evil spirits that gather whenever and wherever they sense impending violence and carnage. After a strange visitor visits to the cafe where he works, Odd finds himself racing to stop the deaths of hundreds of people.
The book is beautifully written, managing to combine humor, love, and tragedy in a perfect balance that never seems forced. It is over 60 chapters long, and yet I never felt that it was dragging along or that nothing was happening. I laughed out loud at certain points, yelled at Odd to "Run!" at others, and, when the tragedy struck, I sobbed. Nothing recommends a book to me more than it's ability to find myself so entrenched in it's pages that I weep for the sorrows of fictional characters. To date, I have only had this happen with five books. Six now, with Odd Thomas.
This book will break your heart, but I highly recommend it to anyone and everyone.
Monday, February 8, 2010
Superbowl
As my beloved Chargers opted not to make it to the Superbowl this year, I wasn't insanely interested, except for the commercials, which, sadly, I missed most of due to my SIL's recent acquisition of Sims 3. It's fun, if less than user-friendly. However, to review:
Previews: The previews for Alice in Wonderland and the Wonderful World of Harry Potter have me salivating for both. The one for AIW in particular was simply lovely. The preview for Robin Hood was decent, but after having read Stephen Lawhead's Hood, I don't know that I'll be satisfied with a film rendition of anything else.
Commercials: Doritos was the victor this year, with the little kid and his order to "Keep yo' hands off my mama, Keep yo' hands of my Doritos". Snickers came in a close second, if only for the use of Betty White, who I can't believe is still as alive as she is.
Tebow: The whole world just needs to knock it off with the whole Tebow thing. I didn't see the halftime show, but the controversy leading up to it was preposterous. To all the Anti-Tebow Ad people - Shut up. CBS can show whatever they want when they are the ones airing the Superbowl. They are a television station. They aren't required to be non-partisan, and Tebow's mother is certainly entitled to her freedom of speech, and the church which funded the commercial is free to spend their money however they want. To all the Pro-Tebow Ad people - Shut up. Gloating over this woman's freedom of speech is not classy. If a Pro-choice woman had done what she did, you wouldn't be talking about her freedom of speech, you'd be yelling about how inappropriate it is for someone to push a political agenda during the Superbowl.
The Saints - Well played, Gentlemen. Well played.
Previews: The previews for Alice in Wonderland and the Wonderful World of Harry Potter have me salivating for both. The one for AIW in particular was simply lovely. The preview for Robin Hood was decent, but after having read Stephen Lawhead's Hood, I don't know that I'll be satisfied with a film rendition of anything else.
Commercials: Doritos was the victor this year, with the little kid and his order to "Keep yo' hands off my mama, Keep yo' hands of my Doritos". Snickers came in a close second, if only for the use of Betty White, who I can't believe is still as alive as she is.
Tebow: The whole world just needs to knock it off with the whole Tebow thing. I didn't see the halftime show, but the controversy leading up to it was preposterous. To all the Anti-Tebow Ad people - Shut up. CBS can show whatever they want when they are the ones airing the Superbowl. They are a television station. They aren't required to be non-partisan, and Tebow's mother is certainly entitled to her freedom of speech, and the church which funded the commercial is free to spend their money however they want. To all the Pro-Tebow Ad people - Shut up. Gloating over this woman's freedom of speech is not classy. If a Pro-choice woman had done what she did, you wouldn't be talking about her freedom of speech, you'd be yelling about how inappropriate it is for someone to push a political agenda during the Superbowl.
The Saints - Well played, Gentlemen. Well played.
Friday, February 5, 2010
Have You Read It?
If you haven't ever read A Voice in the Wind by Francine Rivers, you should. Go buy it. Or get it from the library. Something. Just read it.
I don't often cry from books, but even on my fifth or sixth reading of this one, which it is, I still cry at least seven different times. The characters are so perfectly real and alive that you feel as if you are reading an account of true events rather than a work of fiction. Not just true events, but events that happened to a dear friend, which is what Haddassah, Marcus, and even Julia, terrible, petulant Julia, become as you read the book. I know the end of the story, which comes in the second book, An Echo in the Darkness, but I still cry at the end of VITW. It gets me every single time.
So yes. Read it.
I don't often cry from books, but even on my fifth or sixth reading of this one, which it is, I still cry at least seven different times. The characters are so perfectly real and alive that you feel as if you are reading an account of true events rather than a work of fiction. Not just true events, but events that happened to a dear friend, which is what Haddassah, Marcus, and even Julia, terrible, petulant Julia, become as you read the book. I know the end of the story, which comes in the second book, An Echo in the Darkness, but I still cry at the end of VITW. It gets me every single time.
So yes. Read it.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Can I Just Say..
Stephen Lawhead is slowly becoming my favorite author. I am currently in the middle of Hood, and it is blowing my mind. In a good way.
Sadly, however, when asked by T, my oldest charge, what I was reading, this is the conversation that ensued:
T: Whatcha reading, Ms. Rai?
Me: Hood. It's a reworking of the story of Robin Hood.
T: Who? (side note: WHO!?!?!?!?!)
Me: Robin Hood.
T: *blank stare* (at this point, panic is rising in me)
Me: Robin Hood...you know, legendary hero..."rob from the rich to feed the poor"?
T: He STOLE from people!?
Me: *sigh*
People ask me why I want to be a teacher. This is why. Because kids don't know who Robin Hood is.
Sadly, however, when asked by T, my oldest charge, what I was reading, this is the conversation that ensued:
T: Whatcha reading, Ms. Rai?
Me: Hood. It's a reworking of the story of Robin Hood.
T: Who? (side note: WHO!?!?!?!?!)
Me: Robin Hood.
T: *blank stare* (at this point, panic is rising in me)
Me: Robin Hood...you know, legendary hero..."rob from the rich to feed the poor"?
T: He STOLE from people!?
Me: *sigh*
People ask me why I want to be a teacher. This is why. Because kids don't know who Robin Hood is.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Followers!
Five people follow my blog. I'm actually quite thrilled about that. It satisfies the needs of the attention whore in me.
Observations for today -
- The Diva Cup = Woman's greatest invention. It's not gross, I promise.
- Eight months is the awesomest age on a baby. B (my charge) is basically the coolest kid ever.
- I've read over 6000 pages this month...well...not this month. Last month...the one that ended two days ago. That's a heckava lot of pages. That's a dissertation...times 3...or 6. How long is a dissertation?
- I have the best librarians. I went to the library yesterday, accompanied by my husband, who NEVER goes to the library, but took the opportunity of sneaking kisses in empty aisles, which made me feel like we were in high school. It was not a bad feeling. Anyway, we were getting ready to leave, and one of the librarians walks by and says to me "They sang your song on the Grammys last night, and I thought of you!" I don't need to ask which one. My name is Rhyannon, only one letter different that the title of the Stevie Nix song "Rhiannon". What astounded me is that this woman, who sees hundreds of people a day, remembered not only my face, but my name, and rememebred it enough to want to let me know that Taylor Swift and Stevie Nix did a duet of my song on the Grammy's. Hows that for making a girl feel special?
Observations for today -
- The Diva Cup = Woman's greatest invention. It's not gross, I promise.
- Eight months is the awesomest age on a baby. B (my charge) is basically the coolest kid ever.
- I've read over 6000 pages this month...well...not this month. Last month...the one that ended two days ago. That's a heckava lot of pages. That's a dissertation...times 3...or 6. How long is a dissertation?
- I have the best librarians. I went to the library yesterday, accompanied by my husband, who NEVER goes to the library, but took the opportunity of sneaking kisses in empty aisles, which made me feel like we were in high school. It was not a bad feeling. Anyway, we were getting ready to leave, and one of the librarians walks by and says to me "They sang your song on the Grammys last night, and I thought of you!" I don't need to ask which one. My name is Rhyannon, only one letter different that the title of the Stevie Nix song "Rhiannon". What astounded me is that this woman, who sees hundreds of people a day, remembered not only my face, but my name, and rememebred it enough to want to let me know that Taylor Swift and Stevie Nix did a duet of my song on the Grammy's. Hows that for making a girl feel special?
Monday, February 1, 2010
BOOK REVIEW: Elfland by Freda Warrington
I finished Elfland by Freda Warrington earlier this week, and it has to be said that it has renewed my faith in the fantasy genre. Fantasy has a tendency to be sappy and eye-rollingly laughable. Elfland is neither.
The basic premise is we share our world with a much older race called Aetherials. Many of them have chosen to live on earth in a human form, but they can travel between their world and ours by way of lychgates throughout the world, and every seven years, by way of The Gate. At the opening of the book, Lawrence, the Aetherial Gatekeeper, senses a great threat behind the Gate, and seals it and all the lychgates, allowing no one to come in or out. Rosie, Sam, Jon and Lucas, four young Aetherials, are trying to find a way to open the gates without allowing either world to be destroyed by the evil that lurks within.
The story is complex, but in a way that reminds you of real-life stories. Life is never just one storyline, but many that weave in and out of one another, each one affecting all the others. Elfland is this way. The complexity is at times confusing, but not overly so, and the story is comprehensive enough that no one story feels as if it was undertold. The world Warringotn creates is rich and tangible, making you wonder if Elemental beings really do hide out in the trees and under rocks. The characters have their faults and their victories, and no one, much as in life, is exactly how they seem on the surface. The characters deal with drug abuse, infidelity, murder, questionable sexuality, incest and unclear motives. Warrington manages to fit all this into a book that is under 500 pages, without ever being overwhelming. It's a great read, though not a quick one. Set aside several days or even weeks, depending on how fast you read, before picking up this book.
This week I also read: World War Z by Max Brooks, I, Robot by Isaac Asimov, Sloppy First by Megan McCafferty, Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
The basic premise is we share our world with a much older race called Aetherials. Many of them have chosen to live on earth in a human form, but they can travel between their world and ours by way of lychgates throughout the world, and every seven years, by way of The Gate. At the opening of the book, Lawrence, the Aetherial Gatekeeper, senses a great threat behind the Gate, and seals it and all the lychgates, allowing no one to come in or out. Rosie, Sam, Jon and Lucas, four young Aetherials, are trying to find a way to open the gates without allowing either world to be destroyed by the evil that lurks within.
The story is complex, but in a way that reminds you of real-life stories. Life is never just one storyline, but many that weave in and out of one another, each one affecting all the others. Elfland is this way. The complexity is at times confusing, but not overly so, and the story is comprehensive enough that no one story feels as if it was undertold. The world Warringotn creates is rich and tangible, making you wonder if Elemental beings really do hide out in the trees and under rocks. The characters have their faults and their victories, and no one, much as in life, is exactly how they seem on the surface. The characters deal with drug abuse, infidelity, murder, questionable sexuality, incest and unclear motives. Warrington manages to fit all this into a book that is under 500 pages, without ever being overwhelming. It's a great read, though not a quick one. Set aside several days or even weeks, depending on how fast you read, before picking up this book.
This week I also read: World War Z by Max Brooks, I, Robot by Isaac Asimov, Sloppy First by Megan McCafferty, Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
