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Putting fingers to keys

  • Jul. 15th, 2009 at 10:29 PM
White Sox
 I love doing freelance work. It's like no-pressure writing for me--especially because I don't have to do it for a living and it's not about getting a manuscript published. It's like a bonus opportunity to learn about a new subject, do research and put pencil to paper...er...fingers to keys. There's just something about writing for the sake of writing that is calming and comforting and oh so me.
 
I don't know when nonfiction writing became fun, but somewhere between writing about my summer vacation and a critical response to Ray Bradbury's Dandelion Wine nonfiction writing became something more than just a school assignment. Talking to experts, reading reports, watching testimonies.
 
Half of you are probably gagging at this point. I live to serve.

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White Sox
 This weekend we had a roommate field trip to Georgetown to enjoy this great summer weather we've been blessed with. It was a great day for windows hopping and ice cream shakes from Haagen-Dazs.

We also sat in Francis Scott Key Park for awhile before making the hike across Key Bridge to hope on the Metro home.
 
Is it just me, or does Mr. Key look a little frightened by the tall red-head about to give him a smooch? Maybe he's just worried his wife will find out.
 
But this little outing started off with my roommate and me getting tickets to see a random play the last time we were at the Kennedy Center. We had gone to see Ragtime, which I saw in Chicago about ten years ago and LOVED, when they announced that they had discount tickets to a play that had received eight Tony Awards in 2007, including Best Musical. Not one's to ask twice when a good offer is presented, we bought the tickets knowing nothing about Spring Awakening.

I swear, this play was made for me. It is the ultimate YA novel put on stage (not that I'm recommending you take your 13-year-old to see it). Sexy and moving and powerful, it reminds you want it is like to be young and confused and totally at odds with yourself and everyone else around you. There is a subtle theme about the flow of time with the past meeting the present that I am obsessed with.
 
The set is amazing with a band (drum set, piano, keyboard, guitar, string bass, cello) at the back and audience members sitting right in the choir. The cast sings into handheld microphones and all of the set changes are done in full view. And the music...the music is just amazing. I would see it again in a heartbeat.

Life seems to always get away from me

  • Jul. 12th, 2009 at 1:52 AM
Utah
I was planning on posting about so many fun things that I did and amazing people I spent time with while I was out West, like...
Stopping by the new Wasatch Music Coaching Academy studio to visit an old friend. (Michael Jackson passed away while I was there, which was sad as his music had touched a lot of people involved in the school, myself included.)
Seeing "Hello, Dolly" performed at the Hale Center Theatre. I had never seen a musical performed on a circular stage before, so that was kind of cool. For a relatively small metropolitan area, Salt Lake City is chalked full talent.
Catching up with old friends with growing families. I've seen Angie in so many stages in her life--college student, engaged, newly married, pregnant, first time mom, pregnant again--and it's been kind of hard to be away from her for so long. Emma is growing up so fast, but I was happy to see she has inherited her mommy's passion for reading.
Reuniting the Sisterhood. While I did a lot in my time out West, I had really made the trip to see Sarah get married. It was a small wedding (less than 20 people in attendance), but I wouldn't have missed it for all the world. Sarah was beautiful and her new husband is almost as wonderful as she is, but let's face it, no one is good enough for my Sisters. I don't think I have ever met or will probably ever meet such a fabulous group of women who mean so much to me. Besides my blood-sister and mom, there are no women I love more in all the world.
Making a surprise visit to see Tammy's family. While I was living so far from my own family, Tammy's family became my segregate family. We were lucky enough that all five of her siblings and every single one of her nieces and nephews were in town when we dropped by. I love them like they're my own.
 
Okay, enough sappiness and pictures for one night. I still want to post about the 4th of July in the Nation's Capitol, including a guest appearance by my very own mom, but that will have to wait until tomorrow or the next day. Plus there are more roommate adventures in DC to share and a real, live writing update. Yes, that's right, I'm actually going to talk about writing on my writing blog. Don't die of a heart attack, y'all.

The Wet Desert

  • Jun. 24th, 2009 at 11:18 AM
White Sox
 For the first time it what seems like forever, I crossed the country in--get this--an airplane. I think in the past year I have been doing more traveling by car than in the past ten years combine, so it was nice to be able to sit back and not be responsible to arriving to my destination on time.

 
I don't think I had ever been to Dallas before, but I didn't see much of it other than out the window and at the airport. Maybe next time I'll be able to meet the Ewings or a rich oil sheik.
 
And of course it was in the 80's with clear skies when I left Virginia at 8 a.m. only to arrive in Utah during a massive downpour and 60 degree weather. All I packed was short sleeves and flip-flops. Good thing I have a wonderful friend who brought me a jacket when she picked me up from the airport.
 
This trip is really for my friend's wedding, but I'm also trying to see as many people as possible while I'm out here, and I've been lucky enough to see a lot of friends, including my book buddy, Jaleh. I've been staying with her family for a couple of days, and it's been like one big slumber party. She also has two little kids, so it's been fun to play with them and see how much they've grown in the past year. And of course, we managed to sneak in a book signing.
 
 
Syndey Salter has been a great source of encouragement and support for me, so I was excited to be able to show her a little support as well. Her book My Big Nose and Other Natural Disasters is a fun read for any teenage girl. I haven't read Linda Gerber'Death by Denim books yet, but she was kind and funny, and I can't wait to see what they're all about. And Jaleh was excited to meet NYT bestselling author Aprilynne Pike and get her copy of Wings signed.
 
You ladies may not be local authors for me any more, but a huge part of me still resides in Utah. Thanks for letting us hang out with you for awhile!

Hooray for failures!

  • Jun. 11th, 2009 at 11:04 PM
White Sox
I received my first rejection letter today, and it was actually a good experience. I'm not just saying that because you're supposed to keep your chin up when you're down and all that. It really was a good experience.

I got a very nice email (it was an electronic submission), not a form letter, telling me that she liked my writing, loved elements of the story, went "around and around" with her discussion, but ultimately turned down the manuscript. I emailed her back thanking her for her kind words and asking if she would be willing to receive queries from me on future projects, and within seconds she had emailed me back saying she would be happy to look at other things from me.

Overall, I think I had stilled myself for feeling totally dejected and receiving a form letter telling me thanks but no thanks. I know that selling a historical fiction manuscript will not be easy, and this is probably the first of many "no"s I will receive in the coming years. But if this is what it is like to be rejected, I think I am ready to have it happen some more.

Ask me about it again in five years when I have a pile of 100 rejection letters for three different novels and I will probably feel differently.

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A Wright Start to Summer

  • May. 24th, 2009 at 12:24 AM
White Sox
My roommates and I kicked off our summer adventures with a day-trip out to Pennsylvania with a friend to see a couple of Frank Lloyd Wright houses, but we ended up doing a lot more than just walking through old houses.
 
Not only was the drive spectacular, but we also listened to some tunes that took me back to the day before Gwen Stefani was a solo artist and no one knew what a wonderwall was but everybody had one. (Yes, I am going to re-live middle/high school by going to the No Doubt concert next month.)

Our first stop was at the Kentuck Knob house, the largest of Wright's Usonian homes. Of course the architecture was flawless and the grounds were beautiful--I would expect nothing less from a FLLW home.
 
After touring the house and walking through the sculpture meadow, we had a picnic lunch. We couldn't have asked for more spectacular weather for a holiday weekend as it was sunny with a sprinkling of clouds yet only in the hight seventies with a decent breeze, which made me especially glad that Corinna and I brought out ball gloves so we could play catch. Holy cow am I out of practice!
 
We then drove the ten miles to see Fallwater, a.k.a. the Bear Run House. What FLLW fan doesn't want the opportunity to see that modern marvel? I have wanted to see that house since I was about ten years old, so I was a little giddy by the time we got there. I took almost 100 pictures, but I will spare you all my pathetic attempts at artistic photography and just post a picture of some fine looking chicks instead.
 
Of course I was ready to bite someone's head off on the drive home, getting up at 6:30 a.m. on a Saturday, driving 450 miles in one day and spending so much time in the sun will do that to you. But the trip was well worth putting up with the east-coast drivers. Plus, driving those back roads in Pennsylvania can be a lot of fun.
 
Who knows where our next summer adventure will take us, but you can bet I'll have more travelogs to come.

Save 'Screen on the Green'

  • May. 22nd, 2009 at 6:17 PM
White Sox
I remember my first summer in Washington , DC , when I was a 23 year-old intern and the amazing summer adventures we had. Inner tubeing down the Shenandoah Rive, cliff-jumping along the Blue Ridge Parkway, kayaking in the Tidal Basin, concerts and plays, museums and House debates. But one memory stands out from all the rest, a simple memory. A picnic with friends at the steps of the Capitol Building while watching Catherine Hepburn in Bringing Up Baby. And now that I have returned to DC as a professional, I might never have the opportunity to create new memories with a similar activity.

Every Monday night during the summer, Thousands of movie lovers gather with blankets and picnics, waiting for the sun to go down on the National Mall for "Screen on the Green"--classic Hollywood films shown under the stars in the shadow of the Capitol dome. But recently, HBO,a longtime co-sponsor of the movie night, announced it was canceling "Screen on the Green" due to lack of a funding partner.

When I heard the news, I was devistated. Seriously, I have been looking forward to attneding "Screen on the Green" for six months.

To save ‘Screen on the Green’, we need to find new sponsors. And even if you don't live in the DC area but would like to help me keep one of my favorite summer activities alive, click here to see how you can help. You can also join our facebook group here.

Don't let me and the 75,000 other Washingtonians who attend "Screen on the Green" every summer down.

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Hello, manuscript, what you knowing?

  • May. 17th, 2009 at 10:02 PM
White Sox
I feel like I am living in this haze at the moment. After spending over a year focusing so hard on getting one manuscript ready for marketing, I am ready to move on. That's right, I've started something totally new. And totally different.

While working on my last manuscript, I never really stop working on other projects, but some characters had louder voices in my head than others and so I had to get their story written before I could really concentrate on what anyone else was tell me. So I've been really worried that for the past few months, things have been kind of silent up there. I tried pulling out some old things to work on to see if those characters would start talking to me again. I wrote some short stories hoping to invite someone new to take up residence. I even started researching for a new non-fiction piece in order to call up some voices from the dust. But nothing was really coming alive for me.

Then a couple of kids moved in and wouldn't vacate the premisses. So now I have the voice of this sixteen-year-old girl echoing in my head, and I can't stop typing the most amazing things she is whispering to me. She and her best friend have an incredible story to tell, and though it's completely different from anything I have ever written or ever attempted to write, I feel blessed that they have chosen me to tell their story.

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This is for you, Sheri!

  • May. 12th, 2009 at 10:08 PM
White Sox

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater... debuts August 1. Preorder today!

For years, Grace has watched the wolves in the woods behind her house. One yellow-eyed wolf--her wolf--is a chilling presence she can't seem to live without. Meanwhile, Sam has lived two lives: In winter, the frozen woods, the protection of the pack, and the silent company of a fearless girl. In summer, a few precious months of being human . . . until the cold makes him shift back again.

Now, Grace meets a yellow-eyed boy whose familiarity takes her breath away. It's her wolf. It has to be. But as winter nears, Sam must fight to stay human--or risk losing himself, and Grace, forever.

(Re-post this and leave a comment here letting Maggie know you are a member of team Raving the Pen!)

A New Baseball Classic

  • May. 8th, 2009 at 11:58 PM
White Sox
Mudville Mudville by Kurtis Scaletta

rating: 5 of 5 stars
Life is full of defining moments, and baseball is no exception. From Walt Dropo’s 15-hit run, to the immortal plays of Tinker to Evers to Chance to learning how to eat a hotdog (mustard and NO KETCHUP!), Mudville breathes new life into baseball legends and tells a great story along the way.

It’s all about the percentages. There’s a one in a billion chance that it will rain 8,030 consecutive days in a little town in the Dakotas, but with more than a billion towns that have existed on the earth, Moundville is the town that gets drenched. And it’s proof-positive of percentages that the rain started just in time to cause a rain-delay in the bottom of the fourth inning of the big game between Sinister Bend and Moundville. It has nothing to do with an old Indian curse or even the long-standing rivalry between the settlers and the natives, at least that’s what Roy McGuire would like to think.

So when Roy comes home from baseball camp to find his room invaded by his new foster brother, a descendant of the now-flooded town of Sinister Bend, Roy puts forth a worthy effort to make room in his life for Sturgis. But Sturgis doesn’t make himself easy to love or even like. While the boys finally connect with Sturgis playing pitcher to Roy’s catcher, there is still the issue of the unfinished game and Sturgis’ past standing between them.

Roy McGuire is my new favorite catcher—sorry, A.J. You know I will always love the 2005 White Sox, but I’ve got to make room in my heart for the up-and-coming players—and Moundville is my new field of dreams. Full of humor, great plays and characters that jump off the pages, Kurtis Scaletta has created a defining moment in baseball literature. And you don’t have to be a baseball fan to enjoy the romance of the game and feel a connection to the players that you hope both win and lose the big game.

(And you know this book is good when a White Sox fan gives it five stars even though the Cubs win the Cross Town Classic that Roy watches. At that moment I knew this was a fantasy novel.)

View all my reviews.

Around the world in eight hours

  • May. 3rd, 2009 at 12:30 AM
White Sox
 Today I went to Trinidad and Tobago, Uzbekistan, Australia, Korea, Zambia, Venezuela and the Bahamas. No really, I did.
 
Okay, so I went to those embassies, and technically an embassy is considered foreign soil. And being on all that foreign soil was pretty cool.
 
With the different music
and textiles
and culture
and art
today was a fantastic adventure. Next year I was to go back and see some of the EU embassies.

Living the good week

  • May. 1st, 2009 at 11:44 PM
White Sox
 A lot of people post a Friday Five, and I realized I have never done that before. This was a really good week, so I could probably post a Friday Fifteen or even Fifty, but that would be a really long post. And it's getting late, and I'm getting up early.
 
1. Music, music, music. I downloaded Melinda Doolittle's new CD Coming Back to You, which has some pretty good tunes.
 
2. I also finally downloaded a modern Cajun CD that was featured on NPR a few months ago--Cow Island Hop by Feufollet. Their female vocalist has an incredible voice that make me dream of being back on the bayou.
 
3. I went to a concert for a local high school that had a bunch of student's release a CD. [info]goadingthepen's son played an acoustic set as well as performed with his band Only on Fridays. These kids write and produce all of their own music, and it will make you wish you were that cool in high school. You can download their CD, Salmagundi: A Collection of Things, on iTunes.
 
4. I got an ARC of Bennett Madison's The Blonde of the Joke in the mail. (Thanks Bennett!) I haven't had a lot of time to read, so I'm only 75 pages into it, but I can't get it out of my head. The main character fascinates me, and I can't wait to find out how everything comes together.
 
5. My new bathing suit came in the mail. Yes, I was brave a bought a bathing suit online. And it fits perfectly. And doesn't look half bad on me. And didn't cost me a fortune. I haven't gotten a new suit for almost five years, so I'm excited to take this one out for a test swim. Now it just has to stop raining and get warm again.
 
What a great week. In the past seven days, I got to see my little brother, heard some great music, got a fabulous un-birthday present book in the mail and got summer clothes. Plus, the Sox are first in their division, and tomorrow a bunch of us are going to the open house on Embassy Row. Summer is just around the corner, and life couldn't be better.
 
Oh yes, number six. I finally got up my nerve to start sending my manuscript off to agents. Okay, so I've only sent it to one thus far, but it still feels good to be moving forward with the process.

Toll Booths and Fire Proofs

  • Apr. 26th, 2009 at 9:33 AM
White Sox
Do you have any idea what 4:30 a.m. looks like? Dark. I have stayed up that late before, but I don't think I've ever seen it from the other side.
 
 
My little brother is leaving for Hawaii in a few weeks (he's in the Navy), and this was his last weekend-day off before he leaves. I wanted to be able to spend a little more time with him, but it ended up that I wasn't able to leave until early Saturday morning. It kind of is a beautiful drive, after it gets light enough to see, anyway.
 
 
Six hours. The 365 miles from my house to my brother's takes six hours, and $24 in tolls. It's because of all the bridges. (Don't tell Delaware, but I didn't have enough cash on me to pay the toll because I hadn't realized there wasn't an exit before I could stop at an ATM, but the attendant assured me because I stopped, I will only get a bill in the mail and not a ticket.)
 
 
Even the Jersey Turnpike is beautifully green in the spring.
 
 
That is until you get within spitting distance on NYC. Then all you get is smog and concrete.
 
 
Wave to New York!
 
 
By the time I crossed the George Washington Bridge into New York State, it was almost 9 a.m. and I was feeling totally lonely. There's only so much Carbon Leaf you can listen to before you need real human interaction. It didn't help that I was passing through Yonkers when Green Day's "All By Myself" came on my iPod and I began thinking about that play "Lost in Yonkers."
 
 
Thank heavens my roommate was awake and talked to my until the Connecticut boarder.
 
 
How do you know when you've finally reached Connecticut? The beautiful day turns into a misty midnight. Form that point, the fog began to lift and my parents talked to me until I got within ten miles of my brother's house.
 
 
I only had about twelve hours to spend with my brother because he had to report on base at 7:30 a.m. the next morning, but we made the best of our time. We went to the Book Barn, this great used bookstore with outbuildings full of books. (This picture is from the Book Barn's website because I forgot to grab my camera.)
 
 
Of course we also ate New England seafood and walked along the Mystic harbor. (Sorry, this picture is from last fall because, again, no camera.)
 
 
But probably the most fun was being able to meet a bunch of my brother's buddies from the boat. Everybody was getting together this weekend for one last hurrah before being shipped out, so I got to meet a bunch of the people my brother is always telling stories about and have become his family out here. I'm glad I got to meet so many of them before they go 5,000 miles away. We finished off the night with a bonfire and goofing off.
 
 
I'm really going to miss my brother because, let's face it, I might love an excuse to go to Hawaii in the next three years, but unless I come into an unexpected inheritance from a long-lost, third-great-aunt's exhusband's cousin twice removed, that is one expensive trip to take. So today I will enjoy the quiet New England spring and get some writing done, drive six more hours, spend $24 more in tolls, and be glad for the time I could spend with my little bro.

The Eagle Has Landed

  • Apr. 21st, 2009 at 7:47 PM
White Sox
Mission to the Moon: (Book and DVD) Mission to the Moon: by Alan Dyer

My review


rating: 5 of 5 stars

This has to be the coolest book I have read in a long time. Last year I thought I had hit space-exploration gold with Team Moon: How 400 000 People Landed Apollo 11 on the Moon, but Mission to the Moon puts Team Moon to shame.

The book itself is a feast for the eyes. Not only is it a collection of the choicest NASA archival photos, but it tells a great story as well. It balances history with modern science, moon-myth with lunar technology. The past and the future collide to explain how the lunar program has developed and where it is going in the years to come. It's like reading an encyclopedia with all the facts but still holds the excitement of going to Cape Canaveral and seeing the American space program in action.

But the jewel of this book is the DVD it comes with. It splices together old NASA reels along with some period documentaries. While it shows Neil Armstrong's famous first steps, it also talks about lift-off, the equipment left behind, splash-down and debriefings. The extras on the DVD go on to document the Apollo 13 disaster (or miracle), astronaut training from the beginning to the present, Earth Rise and some goofy footage of the Apollo 11 crew.

You don't have to be a space nerd to love this book as it appeals to both the novice and the expert alike. If you like history, or if you like science, this book is a great interactive choice for middle-grade readers. And for parents, you could not ask for a better comprehensive product for your money--it is worth three times as much as Simon & Schuster is marketing it for.

View all my reviews.

Memory Lane

  • Apr. 19th, 2009 at 11:39 PM
White Sox
I was taking a trip down memory lane today on Goodreads. With her hundreds of book additions every day, Tamora Pierce got me thinking of all the books I read back in middle school, so I started thinking about all of the books I loved back in the day.
 
Ann M. Martin--Yes, I was one of those girls. I read every single Baby-Sitters Club book, and when I was too little to read those books while my sister was reading them, I got all of the Baby-Sitter's Little Sister books. I have also read some of Martin's more powerful stories like Ten Kids, No Pets, and more recently, I was blown away when I read A Corner of the Universe. I remember my fourth-grade teacher reading Ma and Pa Dracula to our class, and I think I still base every vampire book I read against the myths Martin established in that book. Ann M. Martin was a staple of my childhood reading.
 
Pamela F. Service--Service was really my introduction to science fiction. After reading A Being of Two Minds, I think I went to the library and checked out every one of her books. A few years ago I went on a quest to find a copy of Weirdoes of the Universe Unite,a cooky story of misfits from mythology who gather to save the world. Because the book had been out of print for probably ten years or more, I finally found a used copy for sale online--it was the best 99 cents I have ever spent. Her post-apocalyptic version of Arthurian legend even influence my minor in college.
 

Caroline B. Cooney--The Face on the Milk Carton was probably the first "romance" novel I ever read. It's not really a romance novel by any stretch of the imagination, but it talks about the main character's decision to have sex, or rather not to have sex. And I think every girl in my seventh-grade class set their VCR to record Kellie Martin play Jennifer/Janie, because who didn't want to see Becca Thatcher play the lead role in a made-for-TV movie? (That was long before her character got killed off on ER but at the same time she was playing Christy.) I tend to turn my nose up at "serial YA fiction," but really, I read just as much of it when I was younger as kids do now.
 
Beverly Cleary--I always tell people that Cleary saved my life, and that is no exaggeration. I moved half-way though sixth grade and was very lonely and depressed. Then I read Dear Mr. Henshaw and my life changed. For the first time, I could put myself in the shoes of a character and realize I wasn't alone. I proceeded to read every other book Cleary wrote back in the fifties and fell in love with the California Dream when I readThe Luckiest Girl and wished that I could be the Sister of the Bride

I mark time with the books I read. I remember certain events in my life in relation to the books I was reading at the time--my dad lost his job at the same time Ramona Quimby's father lost his, our family vacation to Washington, DC, happened the same summer I read my first Mary Higgins Clark book (Stillwatch, which happens to take place in the very city we were visiting), and I remember the Easter of 1993 like it was yesterday because that was when I got the boxed set of the Anne of Green Gables series. I think I have been obsessed with books a lot longer than I realized.

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Peanuts and Cracker Jacks

  • Apr. 18th, 2009 at 1:42 AM
White Sox
Okay, so I didn't have peanuts nor Cracker Jacks, but I did attend my first ball game of the season. I'll tell you, I didn't feel too hopeful going into this game as the Marlins are the top seated team in all of MLB while the Nationals are dead last. The Nats, however, game me hope through the first eight innings, and then it just fell apart at the end.
 
 
The fun of attending baseball games actually has very little to do with the end score. It's all about getting behind a team and cheering at their good plays, booing bad calls and yelling at visiting team fans who won't shut up. It's about the smell of roasting hot dogs, the sound of thousands of frantic fan, the sight of the crystal-blue sky and the feel of adrenaline pumping past your ears at a million miles an hour. It's about talking stats with one friend while admiring the posterior build of the catcher with another friend.
 
 
The boom of the fireworks, the crack of the ball against the bat and the silence of 20,000 people holding their breath during that last desperate play. For the love of the game and for the love atmosphere, I could sit in a ballpark every day through September (keep your fingers crossed for October) and be happy. Nothing could have welcomed in Spring quite like attending a baseball game. Win or lose, may there be many more to come before Fall.

America's Favorite Past Time

  • Apr. 14th, 2009 at 1:38 AM
White Sox
Baseball season is once again in full swing. And I am planning to catch a couple of games this summer. Being in DC offers both good and bad elements to baseball season.

Bad: The Nats are a terrible team. I don't plan on attending any games they will win or even come close to winning.

Good: Tickets are dirt cheap. When you already know the outcome of the game, not many people are willing to pay in excess of ten bucks for a ticket.

Bad: The Sox are in the American League while the Nats are in the National League. This means I won't be able to see the Sox play this summer as I won't be going to Chicago until Labor Day when ticket prices will be well out of my range.

Good: My neighbors have the MLB channel and have promised I can actually watch games. They think my obsession with the Sox is highly entertaining, so they will more than likely spend most of the game watching me watch the game.

Bad: I won't be able to watch the games with my dad, sister or brother.

Good: I will have plenty of excuses to call my dad, sister and brother to discuss plays, stats and standings.

The life of a baseball fanatic has its ups and downs, but mostly it's just about the love of the game.

For every-day girls with every-day issues

  • Apr. 9th, 2009 at 11:14 PM
White Sox
My Big Nose & Other Natural Disasters My Big Nose & Other Natural Disasters by Sydney-Louise Salter Husseman

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars

I approached this book a little differently as I read it aloud with my roommate, and I can't imagine having read it any other way. It was so much fun to read this book with a friend and be able to share our own stories of poor self-image, lousy boy experiences and horrific summer jobs. We could totally relate to this book, and not because we had experienced some trauma that had a profound effect on our lives, but because we are every-day girls who deal with every-day life.

Jory Michaels has a problem, and it's as plain as the nose on her face, mostly because it is the nose on her face. Her two best friends have emerged from their ugly-duckling phases and are now beautiful, confident young women ready to take senior year by storm. Her little brother Finn is a soccer star two years her junior who managed to score a date to senior prom when he was still a freshman. Her mom is perfectly proportioned, her dad is a workaholic and everyone around her knows where they are going in life. If only Jory's massive shnoz and perpetual virginity would stop getting in her way.

Her summer plan includes finding summer employment to pay for a nose job, discovering a passion and having sex. But it won't be that easy when she is a horrible driver and the only job she can find is delivering cakes. Not to mention that when water skiing, yoga, soccer, reading and classical music fail to perk Jory's interest, she begins to run out of things to become passionate about. Then her best friend starts hanging out with the guy she has been crushing on for twelve months, six days and however many hours, and the only boy who seems to be taking any notice of Jory is a juvenile delinquent with a super-snout of his own.

Sure there are times when I wished Jory would shut up about her nose and get more supportive friends, and don't even get me started on her superficial mother. But isn't that how life is? We get fixated on something so securely that we can't see past it and we let it rule our lives--that is part of human nature.

At a time when YA fiction has been flooded with books about beautiful, aloof, perfect girls, Sydney Salter has written a heartwarming books about an ordinary girl with ordinary problems yet managed to make an extraordinary novel. Full for laugh-out-loud funny moments, hide-under-the-covers embarrassing moments and call-your-mom-to-tell-her-you-love-her moments, My Big Nose stands out from the crowd.

View all my reviews.

Bridges and books—the perfect combination

  • Apr. 6th, 2009 at 11:32 PM
White Sox
I didn’t think I looked like a New Yorker—I don’t have the posh stylings of a Manhatten diva, nor do I have the big hair of a flashy girl from Queens. But I must have some look that screams “City Girl!” because, despite the iPod that was permanently embedded in my ear and my horrible hair thanks to the hair dryer I left sitting on my bathroom counter at home, four people stopped me to ask for directions. Yes, four. In two days. Maybe I just look approachable? Or maybe I walk with confidence? Really, I only knew where I was going because I was constantly referencing my new cell phone’s GPS feature—God bless you Verizon!

My trip to New York City this weekend was all about books. Traveling alone meant I could actually sit in cafes and parks and write whenever I wanted, and I think I filled half a pocket notebook with the most random story ideas and research notes. I wanted some me-time to read a few of the books that have taken over my desk as well as make a quick (ha!) trip to my book Mecca—The Strand—because their book bags are the perfect size with the perfect give, but after four years of constant use and abuse, my old bag deserves a long, quiet retirement. Check out all the loot I got.



Really, this trip was just a poorly veiled excuse to meet my online book buddy Lisa McMann. While there were tons of people at the Books of Wonder event, I did have a chance to actually talk to Lisa for a while. We’ve been exchanging book recommendations for years now (I can’t believe it’s actually been years), so I couldn’t pass up the chance to meet her in person. But after a couple weeks on tour, Lisa had been smiling so much it looked like it actually hurt. When I asked if we could get a picture, I told her smiling was not necessary. It’s too bad the first picture was so blurry, because we looked fierce.


Only I’m not such a good actress, and I totally lost it for the second picture and ended up with crazy eyes.



I also wanted to spend some time in Brooklyn on this trip. It is no secret that I’ve had a preoccupation with that borough since reading A Tree Grows in Brooklyn in high school. But my previous trips to NYC have been with people who don't share my odd little obsession. I have now eaten, shopped and explored a couple little corners of Brooklyn, complete with a hike across the Brooklyn Bridge.



I am a happy tourist, I mean, just look at that bridge-blown hair and squinty eyes. Can't you just tell that I have wanted to walk across that bridge for ten years? I am such a nerd.

Mini parking spaces and summer concerts

  • Mar. 22nd, 2009 at 12:39 AM
White Sox
 Part 1: Mini parking spaces
 
I am a city driver. Growing up in the Chicagoland area has made me kind of an aggressive driver who knows how to get in and out of tight spaces. So when a few friends from Utah came to visit this past week, they got to see my city driving skills in a whole new light. They experienced Beltway traffic and the parking lot that is I-66. They white-knuckled it as I merged using 10-foot ramps and whipped around city streets. But the thing that made one friend truly horrified was the parking. And Tammy, being Tammy, took pictures of some of my parking jobs.
 
I thought Tammy was just about ready to have a heart-attach when she saw me back into these teeny-tiny spaces, and the one on the left wasn't even all that bad as there only had a raised walkway on one side. She also couldn't believe I was willing to attempt parking between two concert posts like the one on the right. (Don't ask what Misheal and I are doing in this picture, because I have no idea, but it was hysterical at the time.) And that doesn't even touch all the parallel parking I had to do. I guess in a city where real-estate is such a hot commodity, you don't waste it on parking garages, a truism a country-bread girl from Idaho fond intriguing.
 
Part 2: Summer concerts
 
There is noting that says summer so much as music. I got my tickets to the NIN and Jane's Addiction tour, and I'm still hoping to find a group who wants to see Crue Fest 2 so I don't have to spend a fortune on tickets but can get the group rate. (I have to admit, I'm not so much a fan of Motley Crue as I am obsessed with Theory of a Deadman.)
 
Least you think I'm a total heathen and my mother didn't raise me to enjoy polite society, I'm also seeing Ragtime for the second time, and I'm hoping to catch a play at the newly remodeled Ford's Theatre. Then there's also Screen on the Green to look forward to, where the city puts up a jumbotron in front of the Capitol and people come to watch old movies on Monday nights. And of course my mom and sister are coming for the 4th of July concert as well.
 
I'm so excited for all the activities what will be going on this summer! I just hope I don't put myself into the poorhouse trying to do them all.

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Kathryn L. Gaglione

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