Busy Bee

Just checking in to say hi since it's been awhile.

*Waves hello*

I'm keeping myself quite busy adding my final revisions, and my perfectionist tendencies mean added time editing every last line of every last chapter again, but I'm so excited to be near the end! Light. End. Tunnel. After I finish, I'm going to bed early and sleeping in late. (Party, party!) No more of this going to bed in the early morning business. (At least for a short time. Once a night owl...)

Since I'm working (nearly) around the clock, I haven't had time for much else, but I'm a sap, so Husband took me to see Letters to Juliet tonight after I squealed over every preview for the last few months. It lived up to my expectations and was the perfect romantic fix. I loved the leading ladies--Vanessa Redgrave was radiant and Amanda Seyfried was adorable. Unfortunately, it made us want to return to Italy. Now that's an idea! In addition, I finally got around to reading the Sookie Stackhouse series, and even though I'm only sneaking in a few pages here and there, I'm on book two, Living Dead in Dallas, and loving it.

Oh, and speaking of Bees, come back on Thursday for a sneak peek at Caroline's fabulous new novel! I cannot wait to get my hands on it.

Holocaust Stories: Reading, Watching, Writing

There is something so compelling to me about stories from the Holocaust. It was an event that affected millions of lives, and yet every story is different. Some are stories of survival, many are stories of loss, others tell stories of hope and an unexpected spark of kindness encountered during that dark moment in history. I think what draws me most is the intrinsic humanity of these stories. Love is universal. We have mothers, fathers, family, friends. We live in communities that are tenuously bound together by an adherence to certain commonalities, certain common rights; these stories look at what happens when those ties are severed, when rights are revoked, when humanity is lost.

I have been thinking about this a lot lately. Not only am I writing a Holocaust story, but during the past three years I have constantly immersed myself in them in order to research my novel and create a tapestry of life during that period. I go through waves of reading only WWII-era books and watching WWII-era movies. I take a break from time to time since the stories are fraught with emotion, but I still find myself drawn to them. (A good thing since I've invested so much time in this novel!)

Last weekend I finished reading Tatiana de Rosnay's Sarah's Key, which is a beautiful exploration of the importance of remembrance. The novel uses a dual narrative to follow modern day Julia as she uncovers secrets from the past, as well as following young Sarah through her tragic experience of the Holocaust. The aftermath is far-reaching and affects the families of both women. Julia's story could have been a mere sideshow, but she is a fully fleshed character and deals with her own modern issues--a husband gone astray, a pregnancy late in life, and the choices she must make along the way to move forward. I highly recommend it.

And a few weeks ago, we watched Defiance, which is a fascinating look at one small part of Holocaust history. It tells the story of a small partisan group in Poland, which survived the war in hiding, but which also fought back against the Nazis. It is an inspiring story, but I also think it's important to remember that it's one small part of the history. Many people couldn't fight back--children, the elderly--and so many others hoped that it would end soon. They couldn't begin to guess the scale of the Nazi plan or their brutality. However, I definitely recommend the movie.

Next up in the DVD queue: The Reader. I just started reading Sala's Gift, a daughter's true story of the discovery of her mother's Holocaust history. I'm particularly excited about this book because my novel is a mother-daughter story and deals with the daughter's excavation of her mother's hidden past.

To the other writers out there: what stories compel you, and are they the same stories you explore in your own writing?

The Time Traveler's Wife

I have been reading this book, and I adore it. The story is quirky, fun, and original; the romance is beautiful, unexpected, and timeless. Husband took me to the movie tonight, which I've been dying to see. I do wish they'd taken more time to develop the early relationship between Clare and Henry, but other than that I loved it...and I only cried a little. Although it diverges from the book slightly--don't all movies?--how could I resist the prospect of seeing Henry traipsing about in the nude, a la Eric Bana. Oo la la! Plus, Rachel McAdams is one of my favorite young actresses, and she was a great fit for the role. If you love a great romance in the vein of The Notebook, I highly recommend this movie. But the book is an absolute must read.

Sensory delights

The roundup:

Watching - I've been eager to see Slumdog Millionaire since I read an enthusiastic review over Thanksgiving, and Husband and I finally caught it last weekend. It was well worth the wait and definitely lived up to all the hype. It was touching, funny, sweet, sad, and beautiful.

I just found the new trailer for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. I can't wait for July!

Reading - In need of a light, humorous read, I picked up a copy of An Arsonist's Guide to Writer's Homes in New England, which fits the bill so far. The narrator is a self-deluded, quirky character who accidentally burned down Emily Dickinson's home and many years later inadvertently sets himself up to be blamed for other fires. At first it was a page turner, but now that I'm halfway through it, I'm struggling to empathize with the character. I find myself simultaneously laughing at him, while constantly feeling the urge to smack some sense into him. I'll report back when I finish the book to let you know if it's a recommended read.

Listening - I picked up the new album by The Fray just before my holiday and I've been listening to it on repeat (as I do when I'm obsessed with a new CD). The only competition right now is the rain pouring down outside in sheets. The sound is soothing, until Drew needs to go out for a pee, and then it sounds like the soundtrack for a horror film!

Eating - I've been cooking from scratch a lot lately, which is unusual for me. I cook probably 5-6 nights a week, but I usually make simple dishes that require little planning and work. Last week I prepared five homemade meals as well as a batch of no pudge fudge (box) brownies! I felt inspired to be creative with the ingredients sitting in our cupboards and here's what I came up with:

*Spicy Thai coconut chicken noodle soup
*Coconut macadamia pancakes (I made these in honor of pancake day, which I've never celebrated, but all day the news talked about pancakes and it made me hungry for them!)
*Crustless Quiche with red pepper, tomato, cheese, and basil
*Whole wheat pizza with prosciutto, roma tomato, and basil
*Baked (Light!) Macaroni and Cheese with sweet peas

Not to brag (too much), but they all turned out really well, which is not the case for all of my kitchen experiments. Tonight I plan to try a Thai-inspired stir fry with the remaining coconut milk.

So. What have you been watching, reading, listening to, and eating lately?

Revolutionary Road

I finally finished reading Revolutionary Road yesterday and immediately made Husband take me to the movie, which I've been dying to see.

I loved both.

Kate and Leo were fantastic, of course, and the other actors filled their roles perfectly.

Yates delicately portrayed the complications and nuances of human relations, which the movie managed to reflect. In the book he also captured the interplay between character and circumstance as well as the experience of encountering the dissipating dreams of youth. I'm not sure I can write a review that will do the book justice, so let me just say that I highly recommend it to everyone.

One Month

...until Christmas! I'm holding off on decorations until December 1st at the very least, but I'm proud to say that I'm nearly done with my Christmas shopping. I find it so much easier--on my stressload and my wallet--to spread out the shopping and finish early.

This weekend felt like an early Christmas present what with the release of Twilight the movie and the return of Jack Bauer with the 24 'movie'. I also met a friend from my summer online writing class in San Francisco Friday night, which was lovely. We went to hear our instructor read and talk about her book, The Witches Trinity. I was greeted with a fireworks display when I arrived at the Ferry Building, and although I'm still not sure why, it was quite festive.

The Twilight movie was not quite as good as I hoped, but still entertaining, and given their budget constraints it was impressive they were able to capture so much. 24: Redemption also didn't quite live up to the 24 standard, but it was satisfying and I'm eager to begin watching season 7 in January.

As for the shopping I haven't done...I'm off to do some last minute Thanksgiving grocery shopping and desperately hoping I don't get mobbed. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday everyone!

Reading, (writing), and watching

I'm in one of those funks where I'm reading four books at once and all very slowly. I'm still reading The Grapes of Wrath, and in fact still enjoying it, but my attention span is short. I also started Stephen King's On Writing, and since I'm now halfway through, that may have something to do with my slowing progress through TGoW. (I'm also reading I Was a Child of Holocaust Survivors as part of my ongoing research, along with The Thyroid Solution for answers to my health questions.) Maybe it's the arrival of autumn. Darkness encroaches earlier in the evening and when I wake the light has not yet filled my room.

Do you find your reading habits change with the seasons?

Perhaps the surfeit of yummy new television shows is related as well. Last year's new fave, Life, has returned in all its quirky entertainment. I'm still testing out 90210 and Lipstick Jungle, and I've added House and Bones to my viewing repertoire. Sheesh. I never used to be such a TV girl, but it's so relaxing in the evening when I'm tired. Hopefully a few shows will fall by the wayside as the season progresses.

This weekend we went to see The Duchess, and I thought it was very well done. I really enjoyed the movie, even if it was a bit sad. I'm endlessly amazed by Ralph Fiennes's ablility to enbody such savage roles, particularly the most evil characters (Voldemort, Red Dragon, Amon Goeth), although this character was complex, awkward, and cruel rather than evil. And Keira Knightley was lovely, as always.

On the writing front I have little to report. The second draft is progressing along at a snail's pace. I've taken a step back to refine a few selected chapters, but I'm inching along with the editing on Chapter 8. I'm hoping to turn the tide this week and find a new reserve of energy to carry me through this edit.

Now this looks good

Revolutionary Road, the novel by Richard Yates, has been on my wish list for awhile, but I think I might have to bump it up in the queue so I can read it before this movie comes out!

Nights in Disappointing Movies

This weekend we went to see Nights in Rodanthe, which as my friend described it, was a bit crummy. Don't get me wrong, Diane Lane and Richard Gere were great, but the storyline veered from romantic and hopeful to melancholy and dreery.

I'm not opposed to heart-rending romances, but there has to be some sense of reality to justify the gloomy tone. The Notebook, for example, was fantastic even though the ending made me weep. (No laughing!) Titanic and Romeo & Juliet are also obvious choices. My favorite is Love, Actually. Husband and I rewatched it last night and it's not all sappy, happy love, though there is some of that. Andrew Lincoln's character falls in love with his best friend's wife. Alan Rickman's character strays from his wife, Emma Thompson, and jeopardizes their history and their marriage. My own novel is sad, but it's a story set amidst the chaos of the Holocaust, so any rampant gaiety would be artificial.

*Spoiler Alert*

Basically, I didn't see why Richard Gere's character died. It did nothing to advance the story or the plot. And even more importantly, it seemed far-fetched that there would be two natural disasters in one movie. A hurricane in North Carolina, I buy, but the same man getting stuck in a mudslide in South America months later? Nope, doesn't work for me. Finally, wild horses are NOT a suitable replacement for Richard Gere. Was that supposed to be the redemption for Diane Lane? She tells him she'll never see the horses in Rodanthe, but as he promised, she does. Pah! At the very least she could've met a substitute Gere, say Pierce Brosnan or Harrison Ford.

*Swoon*

I was catching up on blog reading tonight, when I got a little distracted over at JJ's. She mentioned her admiration of a certain lovely film star, who happens to be one of my faves, and I found myself looking at my desktop wistfully.
















Wait, what was I saying?

Hiiii Ya!

"Everybody was kung-fu fighting...dink da da dink da dink dink dink...those bears were fast as lightning..."

I took Husband on a movie date night and let him choose any movie he wanted (with the tiny request that he not choose the Hulk movie). I knew what he'd choose, but I played along nonetheless. After I sent him the list of movies playing, he called excitedly and asked, "Do I really get to pick any movie?"

"Yes, of course," I said with a knowing smile. "What do you want to see?"

"KUNG FU PANDA!"

I knew it!

Husband's two great loves are cheesy action flicks and animated movies. (Oh, and can I add his third great love, macaroni and cheese, since he just berated me for not picking up another box of his favorite weekend lunch? Anywho...) The Simpsons occupy a special category all their own for him. You cannot imagine the childish glee when he finally heard "Spider Pig" in its entirety.

My favorite part of the movie? Hearing the aha ha ha of all the little kids in the theater harmonizing with my giggling husband. Oh, and the line at the end: "I figured it out...kuchikoo!"

He loved all the slow-motion shots and also appreciated Po's intense love of food since he shares it. Taunt him with some mac n' cheese and a bottle of Mt. Dew and he'd learn kung-fu in no time.

Sex and the City post

*long dramatic sigh*

(Excuse me while I get all girly on you...)

Let me just say I loved this movie. I missed these characters, their quirky commentary, and of course their shoes, clothes and purses. There were little annoyances with the character's actions and choices, sure, but I love their friendship with each other. A lot of shows portray women in competitive relations with each other rather than portraying the wonderful relationships women can develop. I love that these women stayed with each other through all the trials of the years.

I wanted to meet my girlfriends last weekend for cosmos and an opening night viewing, but our plans fell through so I didn't see it until yesterday. It was worth the wait though, and I may even drag husband down to see it again. (Poor thing will have to endure the estrogenfest, but don't feel too sorry for him. Although he'll complain a bit, he'll secretly enjoy it, especially the scene with Charlotte's catastrophe in Mexico. Omg, I'm cracking up just remembering the scene and Carrie's comment about it [edited for spoilers], "Sweetie....I think you're done this year." ;)

If you enjoyed the series, I highly recommend the movie. Enjoy!

Giggles and Girly Time

A week ago Husband surprised me with a Thursday night date to go see In Bruges, which ended up being the funniest movie I've seen in ages. It's been awhile since I've laughed that hard. The humor was admittedly shocking in parts, but I loved the mix of dry humor with in-your-face absurdity. Artistically the film was beautiful as well, with stunning screen shots of the namesake city. I just thought I would mention it here because I highly recommend the film.

Tomorrow morning I leave on an early flight to Portland,where I will be spending the weekend with friends to celebrate my best friend's bachelorette party. Sure there will be drinks and all that jazz, but in our true style the highlights will include the many coffeeshop visits (especially if the rainy forecast holds), hours spent perusing Powell's, arguably the best bookstore in the US, and manicures followed by an afternoon of high tea. Bliss.

Ciao until next week!

Enchanted ebay walks

I hope everyone had a lovely weekend. Things have been very exciting around here...for instance, I won my first ebay auction tonight! It was SO stressful. Sheesh. I knew there was a reason I search for good deals online, and then simply whisk them to my cart. Unfortunately I've been trying to find a special present and I couldn't find it anywhere else, so I had to suffer the heart-pounding last minutes of bidding. But I won. Yay! It's never been so exciting to have to finalize my payment details online.

On Saturday I forced husband to see Enchanted with me and it was wonderfully witty and sweet and just so funny. It's a perfect date movie, and I bet the boys will enjoy it more than they would think. Husband did.

And finally, I'm moving a little slowly today after dragging an old friend all--okay, not quite all, but pretty darn close--around San Francisco. The weather was beautiful for a January in SF--but as Twain famously (did not) say "the coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco." We began in Union Square, marched through Chinatown and Little Italy, down the hill past the cable car turnaround to Ghiradelli Square where we enjoyed some free chocolates and an exceptionally long line for warm chocolaty drinks before heading toward the beach and walking through Fort Mason and along the Marina to the Palace of Fine Arts. We continued on until we reached Lombard Street, then walked through Cow Hollow and eventually up the very large hill until we crested and looked down on 'the crookedest street' before moving on. At this point, we knew the direction we should head, but we were walking into unknown territory, so we overshot our turn by more blocks than I care to admit and ended up showing off some less-interesting areas before walking down Market back to Union Square and on to a well-deserved and unfortunately unfilling, but very tasty asian-fusion dinner.

McEwan on writing

There is a wonderful interview with Ian McEwan over at Borders. He discusses making Atonement into a movie, but he also discusses the process of writing the book itself and even more intriguing to me, his life as a writer. The interview is a little long, but it's well worth a look.

You can't imagine how relieved I feel to hear Ian McEwan--one of my favorite writers--say that writing is a daily struggle for him and that sometimes he actually doesn't like it. Phew!

Maids and Atonement

If I'm ever rich, the first thing I'm going to do is hire a maid to clean my home. Who needs a bloody sportscar when you can't go anywhere on the weekend because you have to stay home and clean your flat? Of course, if I'm rich I'll have an actual house too, and then I'll have even more need for the maid. (One guess what I'm doing today...)

Speaking of rich, lovely hubby took me to see Atonement last night. (Um, I mean Atonement is rich, not hubby). I loved it. It stayed very true to the book, but did a great job of interpreting it for the screen. Keira Knightley and James McAvoy were brilliant, as was the young girl who played Briony. I forgot how hard I cried when I read the book, so I was blinking hard to keep back the tears - I couldn't ruin my eyeliner! I highly recommend the movie to anybody who likes romance, World War II pics, or McEwan's novels. Even if you don't like those things, I still recommend it. It was fabulous.

A Few Things

The past few days have been interesting. Here are just a few notable things:

It was supposed to rain all weekend, but instead it was 80.

On Friday I saw a man towing a ski boat. Literally. He had a harness wrapped around his waist, and he was pulling the boat through our parking lot, and then he pulled it out onto the main street, turning left and blocking the middle of the road while he negotiated the corner. Two buses waited for him to finally tug the boat over to the side of the street, but after they passed him, he kept trudging down the street going who knows where.

Yesterday I had a horrible 'junior high' flashback moment. I was supposed to meet some girlfriends for brunch, but when I arrived, they were nowhere to be seen. The organizer apparently canceled with everyone but me. Having been stood up, I ended up calling husband crying on the street in front of the restaurant. I even wore a new cute outfit for the occasion. Hmph. Darling hubby rescued me and took me to my favorite breakfast place, and because the weather was nice, we sat at an outside table with Drewser, which was lovely. Then he sent me to the bookstore to treat myself to a new book. Claire Tomalin's Jane Austen: A Life ought to do the trick.

We watched The Lives of Others Saturday night and I think it may be the best movie I've seen in a long time. It was fantastic. I highly recommend it.

Amazon Jane Massage

My amazon package arrived; I went to see Becoming Jane; and for our anniversary lovely husband got me a massage, which was yesterday. All in all it was a lovely, relaxing, productive weekend. We cleaned most of Saturday, which wasn't enjoyable, but very necessary because I find writing at home is most frustrating when the apartment is messy. My Jeff Buckley cd arrived from Amazon, so the cleaning was more enjoyable with Grace as background music.

I loved Becoming Jane. I know it's a very loose fictional interpretation of Jane Austen's life, but it was a good story. Though I left the theatre a little depressed that this woman who wrote the most wonderful love stories never found her own love story. It was a beautiful film and Anne Hathaway and James McAvoy did a splendid job. Now I want to reread some Austen novels. I read them all last summer and recently the urge to reread Pride and Prejudice and Persuasion started nagging me, but I've been putting it off until I finish some of the books in my to be read pile. We'll see how long I hold out.

Massages are a strange thing. You lie (mostly) unclothed while a stranger touches you and it's supposed to be relaxing. I have to give myself a peptalk every time I get a massage because I have a comfort bubble and I don't like strangers entering that bubble. Plus, as much as I like the idea of spas, they always make me uncomfortable because they feel like a members-only club and I'm not a member. The last time I had a massage was when I quit my job in April 2006 and it wasn't the best experience because the therapist used so much pressure it hurt me--including running her elbows down my back (OW!)--and with my Anglo-American-Protestant politeness, I felt it was better to suffer through the pain than to say anything. I thought maybe she was using pressure points that hurt when pressed, but afterward feel relaxed. Not so much. This time I asked for a gentle massage and highlighted my neck and shoulders as tender zones to avoid the crazy elbow massage. For the most part this massage was a much better experience, but there was one moment where she had the back of my neck in a strong vice grip that left me wondering what the hard pressure massage felt like and once again my politeness kicked in so I suffered through it hoping it was a pressure point and the pain would be over soon. After the massage I felt very relaxed and light as I drove home. Husband and I went for a long walk with Drew and grabbed coffee, but the longer we walked the more my shoulders, back, and neck began to hurt. I don't know if it's true that massages release toxins in your muscles, but it sure felt like it last night. I had flu-type aches by bedtime. This morning I feel a little better thank goodness. Hopefully all that relaxation will seep into my muscles as I work today. Speaking of work, I should scuttle off now...

Harry Plopper

Whether you're a fan of the Harry Potter books or not, I think it's clear that J.K. Rowling has written characters that children and teens can look up to more than the usual celebrities that they idolize. The bookish Hermione, for instance, is intelligent, witty, and never worries about her weight. The celebrities of this generation keep making the news with their drunken driving, cocaine toting, pantiless wearing ways, and though I rarely opine about celebrity happenings, after watching another story about Lindsay Lohan's second arrest for drunken driving and possession of cocaine, I couldn't help myself. There are, of course, celebrities doing admirable things, they just don't make the news doing them. Okay, rant over.

Speaking of admirable characters, the Simpsons movie comes out in two days! ;) Husband is a huge fan and I'm trying to figure out if I can take him this weekend while we're home for a wedding. I think it's going to be too whirlwind, but he would be so excited. He walks around the house singing, "Spider pig, spider pig, does whatever a spider pig does." Bless him. In the newest ad, Homer tells Marge, "he's not spider pig anymore, he's Harry Plopper." Flash to the pig adorned with a little lightning scar. Ha! Now that is entertainment.

Driving Lessons recommended

Watched Driving Lessons last night. Loved it. Rupert Grint has grown so much as an actor. It's funny to think of him with his chubby little cheeks in the first Harry Potter movie and now he's grown up into quite a good actor. I loved the awkwardness of his character Ben. You really feel for the poor boy. And Rupert's first onscreen kiss! Laura Linney plays his religiously zealous mother perfectly, and Julie Walters shines as a has been barking mad actress. I highly recommend it. Brilliant acting, but it's worth it alone for the gorgeous scenery shots of England and Scotland. (*sigh* And now I want to go back!)