Thursday, April 29, 2010

said it better myself

I did a Google search for this "game face" icon and came up with my old LiveJournal!  I got a kick out of this post, which sums up exactly how I am feeling again, right now, thanks to Stanley Cup Fever.


The text reads:
"WeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeSIDweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeSIDihatetheRedWingsandwe'regoingtogamesevenholdontoyourhats!!!"

Sunday, April 25, 2010

Desert Dust - SOMEBODY'S HEART IS BURNING

Somebody's Heart Is Burning: A Woman Wanderer in Africa Somebody's Heart Is Burning: A Woman Wanderer in Africa by Tanya Shaffer
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A lovely, lyrical little book that accurately spills the gut-wrenching moments travel can create.  Shaffer describes the lives of African travelers and African natives without complaint, without dramatizing the conditions and with an almost loving reverie for the involuntary reverie of their lifestyles.  Sadly, the author's note at the end points out that her trip, taken in the early 90s, was pre-AIDS epidemic.  She hints that now she would find a very different scene before her.

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Love in the Library: COMMITTED

Committed: A Skeptic Makes Peace with Marriage Committed: A Skeptic Makes Peace with Marriage by Elizabeth Gilbert
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I found this book very fulfilling.  Gilbert is an engaging writer, and her perfect self-deprecation takes the edge of her neuroses.  And neurotic she is - far more than I could ever be. I really enjoyed learning the history of various marriage customs, the thoughts (or simple acceptation) of different peoples worldwide. The American story of Gilbert's own ancestors was especially touching, as it mirrors some of the hard-working immigrant panache that my grandparents exhibited.  Ultimately finding peace, Gilbert brings her readers full circle into know that everyone can accept love and even marriage.  You just have to find something in it that works for you, even if it's something no one else has ever found.

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Sunday, April 18, 2010

We are Timeshare People Who Play Bingo

23 years ago, my parents bought a timeshare at Orange Lake Country Club in Kissimmee, Fl.  We used to pile into the huge blue station wagon and make the 24-hour drive from Upstate NY every April.  As we got older, it became every 2 years.  But it's still the best vacation ever.  $1 t-shirts, every chain restaurant known to man, old folks driving golf carts... what else is there?

We used to hit all the theme parks every trip.  Now we average about 1 park per trip, and spend most of the time lying by the pool (me) or golfing (Dad).  Good thing too, since Disney World is about $100/day now, and Universal is even more.  I'm saving my pennies for the next trip, when the Wizarding World of Harry Potter will be open!  (We could see the spires of Hogwarts from the parking garage, but that was it.  Boo.)


Deals on frosty drinks and poolside bingo (complete with hilariously un-understandable Asian bingo caller) are amusement enough to get me through a week.  I even won $70!  And I am really, really tan right now.  Mostly it's just fun to hang out with my parents.  I haven't lived at home in so long that I forget what it's like to come and go from their "house", find the fridge stocked with the same lunch I ate in 10th grade, and to discuss The Amazing Race in real time.  And there are vacation highlights too, like the bi-annual Valcich family pilgrimage to Margaritaville.


My mom and I got massages, and my dad and I spent a day riding the roller coasters and seeing the animals at Busch Gardens.  I got up and went to sleep early every night, finished 3 books, ate popsicles and watched a few hockey games with my dad.  I even got to spend a great day with Jamie Pschorr and an evening with Lilla Ferenci.  All in all, it was a great, warm, fun and completely relaxing week.  I wish every week could be vacation week!

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Shiver (literally) - GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Millennium, #1) The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I would have given this 4 stars if someone had told me how gruesome it was going to be.  Like an episode of SVU or a Dennis Lehane novel... I am not sure I needed some of these mental images.  My edition also contained the first few pages of "The Girl who Played with Fire", which starts out even more explicitly horrible.  So there's that.  Otherwise, I thought the mystery was great and I really enjoyed the characters.  The writing is just austere enough to constantly remind you you're reading something Scandinavian, which I'm glad was not lost in translation.

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Saturday, April 10, 2010

Inspiration - STONES INTO SCHOOLS

Stones into Schools: Promoting Peace with Books, Not Bombs, in Afghanistan and Pakistan Stones into Schools: Promoting Peace with Books, Not Bombs, in Afghanistan and Pakistan by Greg Mortenson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

What an inspiration, and told with a real nod toward the endless hard work done by these incredible people.  Some success, some failure, and a lot of honesty.  The whole thing makes you wish you could do more than write a check in support of their efforts, but details exactly why that's not possible.  I really enjoyed his detailing of what works and what doesn't for the typical NGOs, and seeing how the CAI is able to get around/beyond so much of what a big aid organization faces.  Their intentions are good, but I enjoy hearing from a 'bootstraps' type of guy what can be done by few that cannot be accomplished by many.  A wonderful read.

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Wednesday, April 7, 2010

April showers bring...

... another installment of Justin's Blog - Tomato Race!  Mostly, I report that my plant is growing like crazy cakes.  It's time to research when the plants need lattice to continue growing upward.  We may need to think about moving the pots off the basket, but I'm worried they won't get enough sun on the ground.

I cannot wait to eat my homegrown tomatoes!

Monday, April 5, 2010

Get the Popcorn - ALTAR OF EDEN

Altar of Eden Altar of Eden by James Rollins
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

All-out action and lots of fun.  I really enjoyed this one!  I give it the "Paul Walker movie" stamp of approval.  It would be completed ridiculous, of course, as it features giant man-eating alligators and Neanderthal-esque human children.  Riiiight.  But still...

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