Another Mountain

I wonder why it bothers me to be motivated by a song sung by Miley Cyrus? I heard "The Climb" come on the radio, and almost as fast as I felt inspired by the lyrics I felt a flash of disdain because I realized that this motivational song about facing life's "mountains" is being sung by a kid who is barely out of the sandbox.

It does give me pause to feel that way, though. And I do like the song, regardless. I don't know what it is about her that causes that knee-jerk reaction in me. But seriously, writing her memoir at 16?


I'm tired today...

Martha, Martha, Martha

FOR THE RECORD:

Martha Stewart is full of crap. Using Vinegar in your dishwasher's rinse agent dispenser instead of a commercial rinse agent, like Jet Dry, does not work like a charm. In fact, it leaves spots like I've never seen before, spots like I didn't know could exist and makes me understand why they invented rinse agents in the first place, all over your glassware.

Point of fact.

Peaceful, Lucky Karma

I wonder about Feng Shui. I mean, I'm not really a follower, so I don't exactly know all of the rules - just the bits and pieces I've picked up from the random Oprah show, magazine article, catalogue. Yes, I said catalogue. Isn't it funny how they try to lure you into buying things by telling you how much luck, love, happiness or even peace they'll bring into your life?

Man, I really wish I wasn't a sucker for that approach.


I bought the "lucky bamboo" plant. I've owned it for over two years now. I can't place my finger on any particular luck it's brought me. Although, given my black thumb I guess it's kind of lucky that it's still alive at all. You might even say that it's thriving. I recently noticed that it probably needs to be re-potted, or something. (I hope I don't kill it in the process.)

The story card that came with it said that:

"According to Feng Shui masters, wherever bamboo is placed, good fortune is sure to follow. It's a traditional symbol of happiness, wealth and health in Asian cultures."

Maybe it's because I'm not part of the Asian culture that I haven't been overwhelmed with all of those things. Well, actually... Now that I think about it, I guess we have had some good fortune in the past two years. I mean, I think I was thinking more along the lines of winning the lottery, or something. (Although, actually buying a ticket occasionally might go a long way towards making that dream come true.)

The more I ponder the past couple of years I'm thinking, maybe I should get another bamboo plant for my bedroom. Uhh...not that I need LUCK in the bedroom, per se. (I realize that could be taken the wrong way!) It's just that several ferns and two very lovely orchids have met their demise in my attempt to add some plantish vibe to that room over the past two years. I mean, frankly, it's one of two types of plant that I haven't managed to kill. I guess for me that's probably luck enough.


Oh, and don't even get me started on karma. I fell for that one, too. I saw this cute, dainty little bracelet in a catalogue. It was a tiny silver circle on a linen string. It was really the description that sucked me in, though. I was at a particularly vulnerable moment of chaos in my life when I came across it. The "story" for the bracelet was as follows: "Karma - What goes around, comes around... Wear your bracelet as a reminder to keep the circle positive, peaceful and loving."

It's okay, go ahead and laugh. I fell for that one hook, line and sinker. You don't even want to know how much I paid for that stupid string that was constantly in my way while applying lotion, washing my hands, etc. I wore it for several months because I couldn't justify NOT wearing it, having forked over the cash for this peaceful, loving concept, right?

Unfortunately, I can't say that it brought me anything in the way of peaceful or loving feelings. Quite the contrary, in fact. I'd look at it and wonder how sanitary could a string be, really? What kind of invisible germs could be living in that string after months and months of daily wear, right? I found myself soaping up the string in the shower, as my string germaphobia grew. I mean, to be fair, it was treated. Like I said, it wasn't cheap. It was waxed, or something. But still. String.


And, most recently, we have Willie the owl. Did you know that owls are a sign of wisdom and insightfulness? I didn't either! (Until, that is, I read about it in this great catalogue I get.)

Technically, Willie is a Christmas ornament. I thought, however, that he'd be a great reminder to be wise and insightful if he was hanging in my kitchen window on a daily basis. I envisioned this cute, tiny little guy unobtrusively hanging in my line of sight while I peacefully washed dishes, gazing out at the view, appreciating life, etc. Sounds good, right? Well, I thought so...

Then he arrived. In a limo. Well, not a limo so much as a REALLY LARGE BOX. I did pause for a moment to wonder, why such a big box for such a tiny little owl? Well, let me tell you what, people. That picture of Willie from the catalogue is quite misleading. Those delicate little pine boughs he is hanging from must be on an old growth, humongous tree. He's pretty enormous, and not at all what one would call "unobtrusive" hanging in the window. In fact, I'm pretty sure my husband had to reinforce the curtain rod before hanging him from it.

Okay, okay. I might be embellishing just a tad, but the end result is the same. Compared to what I thought I was ordering, he is huge. But, never one to give up on a dream, he IS hanging in my kitchen window. He is a reminder to me that a really wise person ALWAYS looks at the measurements before ordering something from a catalogue. Plus, he gives the kids one more thing to make fun of me for. Thankfully, they never really knew the real story of the bamboo or the bracelet. Some things are not meant to be shared with your spawn.

You might wonder why I was inspired to write about this today. (Or maybe not, if I'm as transparent as some say.) It turns out that when you are the type of person who makes purchases of the above nature, your name gets on a list. You have no idea how many catalogues I get with items promising peace, luck, karma, happiness, etc. And so many of them are so tempting, really.


I saw this great necklace. Here is the story: "'There is no way to happiness, happiness is the way….' A Zen koan—a paradoxical statement meant to promote enlightenment—becomes even more powerful when engraved on a Möbius strip, itself a paradox."

I mean, really. How freaking cool is that?

At the end of the day, I'm raising two teenagers. (With the help of an amazing, wonderful, supportive - and let's get down to brass tacks, not running for the hills yet, husband.) But still, I need all of the help I can get. And if a stupid string bracelet, or a paradoxical necklace helps at all...

I haven't decided if I have convinced myself that I should or should not get the necklace, but one thing did just occur to me. I think I'll go double check the measurements. Those are a lot of words to cram onto the tiny little delicate thing I'm envisioning around my neck. My luck it will turn out to be the size of a dinner plate.

Thanks, Willie... ;)

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

I really enjoyed this book, although I don't think I can say that I loved it. I'm not really sure why, which is kind of strange. I think I really loved certain parts of the story, but I guess if I had to say, I think a tiny bit of the magic was lost when they were sewn together to make the whole. At least, for me.

I loved the sisters, and really loved the relationship between Rosaleen and Lily. I think my biggest issue was with the incident that kicked the whole story off. I had a hard time believing that Rosaleen would have dumped her icky spit on that man's boots. I know gaining the right to vote would have been huge to her, but I don't think it would have brought about that remarkable of a change in her wariness towards white men of that nature.

Overall I really enjoyed the book. I would love to read a sequel and hear all about Lily and Zach's future.

P.S. I still don't think Lily killed her mother, accidentally or otherwise. I think T. Ray did it.

P.P.S. I LOVED the movie.

Beach Music by Pat Conroy

Oh, how I loved this story. It has to rate in my Top Ten. (Although, to be fair, there are probably a good 25+ books that I will list in my "Top Ten" when they come up...hehe.) I loved the epicness of it. I am a "need to know more" kind of person. I really loved that, if at any point during this story you wonder something about any of the characters or happenings, you can almost be certain that at some point during the story the author will answer that question for you. So fulfilling not to be left wondering!

The story touches on everything from the horrors of the holocaust to the antiwar movement in the 60's, as well as the experience of an American living in Rome, and life in the south, in general. In fact, I very much felt like the south was a character in the book, and I loved that. In many ways, the book is all over the place and somewhat hard to follow, for some, as a result of that. (That being determined by the feedback given by some of the members of my book club when I selected it for us to read.) Personally though, I loved having all of that back story and rich detail. There weren't many blanks in this story that weren't eventually filled in. It is a long one, at over 800 pages. Interestingly, I read that the author's original submission was twice that length. I find myself wondering what was cut, and wishing I could get my hands on it...hehe.

There are certain elements of this story that rang slightly hollow to me. Jack's parenting, for one, seemed very unrealistic at times. It was hard to believe that Leah wouldn't be a spoiled rotten brat if he'd really raised her from birth in the way it was depicted in the story, instead of the way-too-mature, insightful and thoughtful 11 or 12 year old she was written as. And the whole screenplay storyline seemed a bit too contrived and just crammed in as an easy way to tie everything up with a bow in the end. That having been said, my love for the story was in no way diminished by those slight details.

I loved Lucy. I loved the relationship and love between Lucy and Jude. I loved the interactions between the brothers. I was horrified by both George and Ruth's Holocaust stories. George's, in particular, really made me think. I always think of Holocaust victims as, well, as devout I guess. I believe he described his family as sort of barely practicing Jews. The equivalent of only going to church on Easter and Christmas, for instance. No matter what his experiences would have been horrifying, but to be targeted because of his religion yet not have his faith to fall back on seemed to raise it to an even higher level of horror to me. Which, I suppose, might have some small part to play in how emotionally broken he was by it.

Anyway, I can't say enough how much I loved this book and how highly I recommend it to any and all. To date, this is the only of Pat Conroy's books I've read, but I have definitely placed the rest on my "to-read" list as a result of how much enjoyment I got out of this story both times I read it!

On a related note, I find Pat Conroy to be pretty interesting himself, especially after reading that parts of this book were somewhat autobiographical. I think this is a pretty short and concise bio of him, for anyone else who might be interested. This one doesn't mention that parts of Beach Music are autobiographical, but I did read that elsewhere. It's kind of obvious, once you are familiar with his story. Anyway, for what it's worth... :)

Storage & Organization

It's that time of year again. I crave organization in every corner of my life. I'm like the persistent dog chasing his tail when it comes to pursuing that dream. Someday, come hell or high water...you get the picture.

Anyway, today I'm tackling my youngest, Emily's, stuffed animal infestation. I can't stand it anymore. In fact, I can't stand in her room at all because, seriously, good luck finding an unoccupied piece of floor! I'm browsing Amazon this morning, searching for the perfect stuffed animal storage solution when I come across the classic stuffed animal storage hammock:




Now this isn't just any old hammock, mind you. This is the Extra Large DELUXE Pet Net. I mean, seriously, tell me that doesn't make you drool? I'm no newbie when it comes to storage and organization solutions, though. I have to question how effective that thing would really be when faced with the previously mentioned infestation. We're talking Webkinz, Beanie Babies, Shining Stars, Build-a-Bear's, and stuffed animal mutts leaking out of every orifice that bedroom has available. I'm not sure the pet net, deluxe or otherwise, is up to the challenge, so I decide to check out the handy dandy customer reviews. Right away I come across the one that I think probably sums it up best, and in such an eloquent way that I was inspired to blog about it:

"This piece of crap held about four stuffed animals before falling off the wall and dropping some out of the front. Extra large compared to what? A barbie hammock?"

Priceless.

That having been said... I'm still desperate, so still considering giving the thing a try. I swear. There's a fortune to be made in trying to figure out how we Americans can continue to over-indulge our children while still managing to cram all of that over-indulgence into a 12x12 bedroom in a neat and organized fashion. If only I had the time!

Check it out!

This is very cool. I came across it accidentally this morning. The ability to browse millions of LIFE Magazine historic photos, dating all the way back to the 1750's, via Google Images.

LIFE Photo Archive

They should do more to make people aware of some of the cool stuff available on their site!