tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-78068321151506531782024-03-21T12:07:06.762-07:00WanderingsStories from my walk through the world and my walk through lifeJessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.comBlogger75125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-14198376010976158812010-02-19T01:23:00.000-08:002010-02-19T01:23:33.214-08:00From the Bookshelf: Hush, Hush by Becca FitzpatrickI've gotten a serious windfall of books since Christmas time. Check out all of my new lovelies:<br />
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Plus I just scored an ARC copy of Jeanette Walls' <i>Half Broke Horses</i> at my writers' group meeting tonight for answering a book trivia question. Sweet! I am having a smidge of anxiety though because -- seriously, when am I going to have time to read all of these?! <br />
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If this were last August, I'd rip through all these bad boys in two weeks, but with Archer and devoting more of my free time to writing I'm thinking it's going to take considerably longer than that. That's OK though, I'll take my time and enjoy them all.<br />
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Here's what I'm in the middle of tearing through right now (thanks to my awesome NBC book exchange elf <a href="http://crystalsbookblog.blogspot.com/">Crystal</a> who sent this to me):<br />
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The prologue got me interested. France, 1565. A creepy dark angel appears in a graveyard and extracts an ominous promise from an unsuspecting man. There is talk of Nephilim, a legendary race of half mortal, half fallen angels.<br />
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Sounds good, right?<br />
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The first few chapters, however, felt a little too familiar. Fast forward to present day Maine and meet our heroine, Nora Grey (No relation to Meredith, by the way). A mysterious, smoldering new guy stares at Nora and makes her feel uncomfortable in Biology. Nora enjoys driving her beat up old car. Nora lives with her single parent. It's rainy and foggy all the time. <br />
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<i>Twilight</i> with angels anyone? <br />
The similarities were eye-roll worthy, but apparently not enough to make me stop reading. It just seems like a shame that an otherwise well written and creative book had to fall back on this formula. <br />
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I'm about halfway through now and I'm officially sucked in. The author has done a really good job of slowly ratcheting up the tension and it's getting hard to put down. The dialog is good and I like the characters, especially Nora's sidekick and instigator Vee and her fruit color wheel diet. I'm intrigued by what's going on with Patch, though I'm not an especially big fan of the name (says the girl who named her main character Malady). Is he the dangerous stalker in the ski mask or is he Nora's protector? And what about Elliott? Gah!<br />
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I'll give you my final verdict on this one when I finish. For now, I've got to get to shut eye so I can get some more reading and writing in tomorrow. Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-48202046266295544712010-02-04T23:36:00.000-08:002010-02-04T23:36:33.904-08:00Pardon My DustSince I'm making a fresh start, I'm giving the old blog a little makeover. Apparently Stacey and Clinton don't do blogs so I'm on my own here and not so savvy with all of the XML and HTML codes. Please excuse the mess while I'm experimenting. Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-45458585636284379892010-02-03T02:45:00.000-08:002010-02-03T02:45:36.970-08:00Remember Me?Hello. <span style="font-size: x-small;">Hello</span>. <span style="font-size: xx-small;">Hello</span>.<br />
Anybody out there? <br />
Any chance anyone is still reading? <br />
I know, I know. It’s been a while. OK, a long while. OK, so almost a year, but here I am, back with something to say again. <br />
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So what have I been up to since you last heard from me? Well, for starters, a little less than a year ago I took a pregnancy test. Two pink lines. I was excited. I scared out of my ever loving mind. And wishing I’d had just one more glass of wine before my nine month hiatus. But anyway, to make a long story short, last November Archer was born and now it’s hard to remember what life was like before him. By the way, I love how we use the passive voice to talk about birth, as if there weren’t 20 hours of labor and 2 hours of pushing involved on the part of his mother.<br />
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Part of the reason I kind of stopped blogging was that a lot of my life was consumed by all of the new things that came with pregnancy- praying that I wouldn’t vomit in class, seeing Archer’s heartbeat for the first time, trying to find shoes that would fit my swollen Shrek feet, planning our babymoon getaway. The truth is I didn’t want to blog about all of that. No, that’s not entirely it. More like I didn’t want to jinx it. My mom had something like five miscarriages, both in the early and late stages of her pregnancies. Even though I had the sense that everything would be fine, there was still a niggling superstitious part of me that was very careful about putting it all out there. Just in case. <br />
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The other part - I got bored with my blogging subject matter. I started this blog to share stories about walking the Camino de Santiago and my other travels, adventures and general nerdy hijinks, but since I started traveling less, I started blogging less. Then I thought maybe I’d go the book blog route, but that just wasn’t working for me. I felt like I’d kind of painted myself in a corner and the fun leaked out of it. <br />
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So, I just let the blog lie fallow for while, but I think it’s time to grow again. <br />
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Instead of trying to make this a Travel Blog or a Book Blog or a Mom Blog or a Writing Blog, I’m taking a more holistic approach this time. One thing that used to scare me about having kids was this notion that I had to trade in so much of what made me me in order to be a mom. I feared that I could <i>either</i> ____________ <i>or</i> be a mom. I could <i>either</i> hike the Inca Trail to Macchu Pichu, have time to snuggle with my husband, spend time writing and planning challenging lessons for my students, have time to watch Lost, read stacks of books and still play Balderdash with my friends on the weekends <i>OR</i> be a mom. <br />
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Not that things haven’t changed, but for the most part, my fears were unfounded. Something Paul helped me realize is that giving up your identity in order to become a mom is a choice. I may not be able to spend hours on end writing in a coffee shop everyday, but I can write longhand in my notebook when I’m feeding Archer or steal a few minutes here and there. We still go out to dinner with our friends. Paul and I even went to watch New Moon a week after Archer was born. I get to have this amazing little person in my life and I’m still perfectly capable of having an intelligent conversation without a single mention of poop or spit up. <br />
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I’m still learning and I know it won’t always be easy. There will be growing pains and sacrifice, but I hope you’ll join me as I try to replace the OR with an AND.Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-79301546530312339592009-02-22T22:39:00.001-08:002009-02-22T22:39:54.886-08:00Bitter is the New Black by Jen Lancaster<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27126.Bitter_is_the_New_Black_Confessions_of_a_Condescending_Egomaniacal_Self_Centered_Smartass_Or_Why_You_Should_Never_Carry_A_Prada_Bag_to_the_Unemployment_Office?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img alt="Bitter is the New Black : Confessions of a Condescending, Egomaniacal, Self-Centered Smartass, Or, Why You Should Never Carry A Prada Bag to the Unemployment Office" border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167867717m/27126.jpg" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27126.Bitter_is_the_New_Black_Confessions_of_a_Condescending_Egomaniacal_Self_Centered_Smartass_Or_Why_You_Should_Never_Carry_A_Prada_Bag_to_the_Unemployment_Office?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">Bitter is the New Black : Confessions of a Condescending, Egomaniacal, Self-Centered Smartass, Or, Why You Should Never Carry A Prada Bag to the Unemployment Office</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14577.Jen_Lancaster">Jen Lancaster</a><br/><br/><br /> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/27376171?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review"><h3>My review</h3></a><br /> rating: 4 of 5 stars<br/>I have read Jen Lancaster's blog off and on for a while now and I like her snarky no holds barred sense of humor. <br /><br/><br /><br/>I was also a victim of post 9/11 layoffs so I could empathize with some of the things she went through. I also think this is a book a lot of people in our country's current economic situation could appreciate as well. I have to say though, I was impressed by Jen's industriousness. I did OK on unemployment until after graduation the next spring, but after that I'm pretty sure I was depressed and sleeping in while she was up at 7am making calls and applying to every job posted on Monster.<br /><br/><br /><br/>This book really could have been just one big funny rant, but I was pleasantly surprised at the depth of it. The earlier chapters cracked me up, but for me it was the balance of humor and the humility, the lessons she learned over the course of her unemployment that brought resonance to the book. Not that I didn't enjoy her 'fat girl at the Chicago Marathon Health Fair'episode and her commentary about the 'Russian Army' building the house next door. It was just that I also liked seeing how she and her husband Fletch supported and took care of each other in the hard times and the way she swallowed her pride and took a greyhound bus to see her mom when she was in the hospital. <br /><br/><br /><br/>Overall, I really enjoyed this book and look forward to reading her other work. <br /> <br/><br/><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/142817-Jessica?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">View all my reviews.</a>Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-55108642827235642932009-02-20T00:53:00.000-08:002009-02-20T01:07:11.157-08:00Writing AngstArgggghhh! <br /><br />My level of frustration is reaching a frenzy at the moment and I am really tempted to just give up and go to sleep. I am being nominated for an Outstanding Teaching by Part-time Faculty award and my portfolio is due tomorrow. Everything is pretty much in order except for my Teaching Philosophy and Statement of Focus. Its wordy. Its filled with abstract mumbo jumbo. My sentences are too long. There's no conclusion to speak of. Blech! I just keep going over and over it and the words are refusing to bend to my will. <br /><br />I am so steeped in it that I am having trouble getting perspective. And its way past my bedtime. I'm just praying that I'll get some divine flash of inspiration sometime in the next 5 minutes while I can still keep my eyes open.<br /><br />On a happy note, it looks like this is my 100th post. At least there's something happy to boost my ego.Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-42804901747381462292009-02-08T22:36:00.001-08:002009-02-08T22:46:52.933-08:00The Geography of Bliss: One Grumps Search for the Happiest Places in the World by Eric Weiner<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="%3Ca%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/044669889X?ie=UTF8&tag=multicultur05-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=044669889X%22%3E%3Cimg%20border=%220%22%20src=%2251b7KygQQ0L._SL160_.jpg%22%3E%3C/a%3E%3Cimg%20src=%22http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=multicultur05-20&l=as2&o=1&a=044669889X%22%20width=%221%22%20height=%221%22%20border=%220%22%20alt=%22%22%20style=%22border:none%20%21important;%20margin:0px%20%21important;%22%20/%3E"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 139px; height: 209px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNAuV6g-kNqx3uHgQYH2hrf6WJgGwgF6uISiDuiWcTOct2Uj3j9K98uuNhLWf0S41Aey4V3OayiJ1uec48x1FckH6VOGaVk-JEzUXnv-7FCKMwm1cpDswResirgFZSO9FMmJCsdfatKpOP/s320/The+Geography+of+Bliss.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300685204016951570" border="0" /></a><br />This is the first non-fiction book I have read in a long time and I think this is one I will go back to again and again. The premise of this book sold me immediately- Eric Weiner, a long time NPR foreign correspondent realized that he has spent the bulk of his career traveling to rather depressing, unhappy places and decided, for a change, to seek out the happiest places in the world. His journey first takes him to The Netherlands to meet with the world’s foremost happiness researcher and then on to Switzerland, Iceland, Qatar, Bhutan (where the government actually measures GNH – Gross National Happiness), Thailand, Great Brittan, Moldova, India and then back home again.<br /><br />I bought this book over a year ago in hardcover (gasp!) because I just had to have it <span style="font-style: italic;">right this minute</span>, but alas I got onto a big fiction kick and it sat on my shelf patiently waiting until now to find its way into my hands. However, I think my timing was serendipitous because it seemed that every time I picked it up, something I’d just been thinking about popped up in the pages. After my husband and I were watching Lost and discussing who the real Jeremy Bentham was (Jeremy Bentham was the name John Locke used after leaving the island) and who shows up in the book that very same night when I sat down to read? Yep, question answered. Bentham, incidentally, was famous for his utilitarian principle “the greatest happiness for the greatest number.”<br /><br />One thing I loved about this book was that it was full of passages and observations that really gave me food for thought. My copy is full of dog-eared pages and lines I’ve gone back to and jotted down. My favorite section was the bit about Iceland entitled Iceland: Happiness is Failure where Eric explores the link between the act of creating and happiness. Apparently in Iceland there is not such a negative stigma attached to failure which encourages a culture rife with creativity. One Icelander quipped that they would probably erect a statue to the one person who in Iceland who had not written a novel or poem or song. Here’s a passage from that chapter that especially resonated with me:<br /><br /> “There’s no one on the island telling them they’re not good enough, so they just go ahead and sing and paint and write. One result of this freewheeling attitude is that the Icelandic artists produce a lot of crap. They’re the first to admit it. But crap plays an important role in the art world. In fact, it plays exactly the same role as it does in the farming world. It’s fertilizer. The crap allows the good stuff to grow.”<br /> <br />Imagine how much more we might achieve in America if we, as a culture, weren’t so afraid of the ramifications of failure. I could sure use some time in Iceland creative boot camp.<br /><br />My one disappointment with this otherwise thought provoking and very well written book was that the section on America seemed a bit rushed. It offered stories only about Miami and Asheville, North Carolina which hardly seemed representative of our entire country. But then, I wondered if any city or state might have been able to capture the essence of America. Probably not.Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-45169873245232944692008-10-01T07:56:00.000-07:002008-10-01T08:13:45.805-07:00Keeps Me On My Toes!Yesterday was one of those days.<br /><br />I've got a lot going on in the next couple of weeks and I think my brain overload is starting to catch up with me. Here's my funny story from yesterday (at least it seems funnier in hindsight).<br /><br />I get to school nice and early feeling very prepared for the day, sip my coffee and take my time doing some writing in my car. I get ready to walk to class when I discover I've left the bag with all of my teaching materials at home in the living room. And I've only got 12 minutes before class starts. I start to panic but realize I don't have time, only 11 minutes left now. This is <span style="font-style: italic;">very</span> out of character for me as I am usually super meticulous about checking that I've got everything I need. So I ran to my office, scrounged up another copy of my text book and quickly printed and copied some materials and luckily was able to wing it with my students none the wiser. If it had been any other class on any other day, things wouldn't have turned out nearly so well. <br /><br />This must have jostled my brain out of its normal routine because I actually had a very productive and creative day after that.Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-24404596277224732008-09-05T21:15:00.000-07:002008-09-05T21:41:09.095-07:00Author Q & A with Dalia SoferBack in July I participated in the online book club discussion for <span style="font-style: italic;">The Septembers of Shiraz</span> by Dalia Sofer over at <a href="http://everydayiwritethebook.typepad.com/books/">Everday I Write the Book Blog</a>. I loved the book and was very excited when Gayle posted that she was doing a Q & A with Dalia and asked for reader questions. <br /><br />Well, she selected a couple of my questions and here is and excerpt of what Dalia had to say. There is a spoiler in the last line of the first question if you haven't read the book.<br /><blockquote><br /><strong style="font-style: italic;">Q. Shirin's narration was especially compelling and I couldn't help wondering how much of what we saw through her eyes was very closely based on your experiences. I'm dying to know if you actually stole and hid files.</strong> <p>A: Alas, Shirin’s sections are largely imagined—I did not steal any files! But that state of bewilderment and confusion is one that I remember very well. And the passage about absence being very close to death came from a sensation I developed at that time.</p> <p><strong style="font-style: italic;">Q. Sofer means writer in Hebrew - is this a pen name or a family name you grew into?</strong><br /><br />A: Sofer is my actual surname. My father is originally from Iraq (and the story goes that my ancestors were biblical scribes!)</p></blockquote><p></p>I also asked a few more (the one about her writing rituals and adjustment to life in Israel and the US after she and her family fled Iran), but you'll have to read Gayle's post <a href="http://everydayiwritethebook.typepad.com/books/2008/09/qa-with-dalia-sofer-author-of-the-septembers-of-shiraz.html">here</a> for the full interview.Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-27169159335611431462008-09-03T23:25:00.000-07:002008-09-03T23:59:15.768-07:00Inside the Readers' Studio Meme<span class="post-labels"> </span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><strong><span style="font-weight: normal;">I wasn't tagged for this meme, but I liked the questions so I'm jumping in anyway.</span><br /></strong></span><div class="post hentry uncustomized-post-template"><a href="http://libraryqueue.blogspot.com/2008/08/inside-readers-studio-meme.html"></a><h3 class="post-title entry-title"> </h3> <div class="post-body entry-content"><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><strong style="font-style: italic;">What is your favorite word?</strong> My favorite word that I've stumbled upon recently is quiddity. It means the essence or "whatness" of something. I also like preternatural and verisimilitude.<br /></span></p> <p><strong><span style="font-style: italic;">What is your least favorite word?</span> </strong>Satisfied. The origin of my dislike for this word is rooted in someone I know regularly eating 2 bites of popcorn and a sip of diet coke in place of a meal and saying, "I'm so satisfied!" Blech. Years later I still cringe.<br /></p> <p><strong><span style="font-style: italic;">What turns you on (creatively, spiritually or emotionally)?</span> </strong> Gratitude, reflection, a thoughtful gesture from my husband, traveling, being outside in 85 - 90 degree weather with a nice breeze, experiencing a new place for the first time, being near mountains and nature, especially rivers, and coffee and a comfy chair at Borders<br /></p> <p><strong style="font-style: italic;">What turns you off (creatively, spiritually or emotionally)? </strong>a dirty or cluttered house or workspace, bad breath or other noxious smells, people chattering away loudly on their cell phones about personal problems in otherwise quiet public spaces<br /></p> <p><strong><span style="font-style: italic;">What sound or noise do you love?</span> </strong>The sound of a river, wind in the trees<br /></p> <p><strong style="font-style: italic;">What sound or noise do you hate?</strong> honking horns, shrill whistling, chewing noises and the gait of every narrator's voice on PBS programs<br /></p> <p><strong style="font-style: italic;">What is your favorite curse word? </strong>I'm good for a well placed s$#t or f&$k from time to time.<br /></p> <p><strong><span style="font-style: italic;">What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?</span> </strong>writer, paid traveler/explorer, lady of leisure, flying trapeze artist?<br /></p> <p><strong style="font-style: italic;">What profession would you not like to do?</strong> I think one of the circles of hell may require making telemarketing or sales cold calls for all of eternity.<br /></p> <p><strong style="font-style: italic;">If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates?</strong><span style="font-style: italic;"> </span>Welcome home.<br /></p></div></div>Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-31928159922312513412008-08-11T20:42:00.000-07:002008-08-16T23:04:42.177-07:00You'll Get More Than 1,000 Words From These PicturesI think I'll try my hand at Weekly Geeks (a weekly challenge hosted by Dewey at <a href="http://deweymonster.com/">The Hidden Side of Leaf</a>) #13, although I am a week late. This week's theme was author photos so here are the men and women responsible for creating my favorite casts of characters:<br /><br />Any guesses? <br /><p>1. Photos of your favorite author(s).</p><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjCmOzObp6XvO4fc22VF3YL7zYjLxUIuZsn9R8GzbCARHdeCQ7AAdGWrYcKN2zIKwfY9BoNiK3jQDsST4XEgt6-WdyMJMz-DBgHRpGz8uTwDaOw2bFAWviO3jP2lywdDLmmJnOGe99D5mp/s1600-h/1+1.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjCmOzObp6XvO4fc22VF3YL7zYjLxUIuZsn9R8GzbCARHdeCQ7AAdGWrYcKN2zIKwfY9BoNiK3jQDsST4XEgt6-WdyMJMz-DBgHRpGz8uTwDaOw2bFAWviO3jP2lywdDLmmJnOGe99D5mp/s320/1+1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5233474893370888322" border="0" /> </a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtBPk1B17VN413tnN8VNrnYgHl0dAgPK_NDVI3fmK3nvRyKxSt4Q5PcUmvaxDzuesMklBkLYMbCOvMq1eqrHJEdwj-AFJjMxiA-Q1Ho7mLo7wg-pZ0adMChdUnNPfcH13XMiUB4K6cD3li/s1600-h/2+2.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 129px; height: 162px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtBPk1B17VN413tnN8VNrnYgHl0dAgPK_NDVI3fmK3nvRyKxSt4Q5PcUmvaxDzuesMklBkLYMbCOvMq1eqrHJEdwj-AFJjMxiA-Q1Ho7mLo7wg-pZ0adMChdUnNPfcH13XMiUB4K6cD3li/s320/2+2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5233474895776597218" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga2IjaOGxdhfjmuVoxCHDtKOn5XdgGOa8p1HxnFfcV9bfnWyNjOVMsuIYGsJQ1eXTnHt6Tbe99-DaiVTc4ilctRCdAwdhPfNJHJlhtkwZUI5cs8ifTxjL0R6eih5sMlvNnLnQsOBw3P85e/s1600-h/3+3+3.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 117px; height: 175px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga2IjaOGxdhfjmuVoxCHDtKOn5XdgGOa8p1HxnFfcV9bfnWyNjOVMsuIYGsJQ1eXTnHt6Tbe99-DaiVTc4ilctRCdAwdhPfNJHJlhtkwZUI5cs8ifTxjL0R6eih5sMlvNnLnQsOBw3P85e/s320/3+3+3.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5233474895334443362" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1rN11DZQ6mJMdAbpRcnXZWnXVurxWHvSTVjF0BlZO1x865v5XFGjZT_ztSMhiyy4yJh4yc2jVb5qWjKTn3pMMOmgnQ0gNYWnSXmDVFY6yHBI4hG8Z8JV2baSWw4Dca7dB0MXZ-X46V98l/s1600-h/4_1106.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 162px; height: 169px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1rN11DZQ6mJMdAbpRcnXZWnXVurxWHvSTVjF0BlZO1x865v5XFGjZT_ztSMhiyy4yJh4yc2jVb5qWjKTn3pMMOmgnQ0gNYWnSXmDVFY6yHBI4hG8Z8JV2baSWw4Dca7dB0MXZ-X46V98l/s320/4_1106.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5233480800988237362" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7YTcsuZqCe2fCqaKdXf92abxf0JEXY7YZvk1l-W6k7l22-ydafyXeh6ZG9AeawK4FjYXuGKWCo6tIj8iQNLQTFTBIwpFcO-5M3ce0Qpe3fBm2LnHFf7K6m3QscZrPsyVCy1DEeUeVkE1H/s1600-h/5.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 206px; height: 202px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7YTcsuZqCe2fCqaKdXf92abxf0JEXY7YZvk1l-W6k7l22-ydafyXeh6ZG9AeawK4FjYXuGKWCo6tIj8iQNLQTFTBIwpFcO-5M3ce0Qpe3fBm2LnHFf7K6m3QscZrPsyVCy1DEeUeVkE1H/s320/5.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5233474943798432722" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXJ4yZwDS2rb7haLiQ1vgJzV6Si_cz0ooTaDp4500Fgvbfo7BfnLTe8OAhwcbzl2oGc-Nb1lBmJ5pK2KcwSsq4da71THRMnNC5BvKwH20MEt2aXHsFy0eUT37YXYFQlrCTNtYAd3a1LWmH/s1600-h/6+6.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXJ4yZwDS2rb7haLiQ1vgJzV6Si_cz0ooTaDp4500Fgvbfo7BfnLTe8OAhwcbzl2oGc-Nb1lBmJ5pK2KcwSsq4da71THRMnNC5BvKwH20MEt2aXHsFy0eUT37YXYFQlrCTNtYAd3a1LWmH/s320/6+6.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5233474949902347938" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkvB-nkhIflDqwt_BKNgDlX7HS4_Sq_tXd-U3ACIQhb6ZHju0cpCDF9mNgt0l5v4tjPriiAE3mjbsPZxAD4bjbP7YfyDoPKkcJuMZYLKs3rs3YCJDdKY9LlopddPOHd4GWsHWcN3jyaEap/s1600-h/7+7.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 167px; height: 207px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkvB-nkhIflDqwt_BKNgDlX7HS4_Sq_tXd-U3ACIQhb6ZHju0cpCDF9mNgt0l5v4tjPriiAE3mjbsPZxAD4bjbP7YfyDoPKkcJuMZYLKs3rs3YCJDdKY9LlopddPOHd4GWsHWcN3jyaEap/s320/7+7.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5233475963798841922" border="0" /></a><br /><br /></p><p> 2. Photo(s) of the author(s) of the book(s) you’re currently reading.</p><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkvB-nkhIflDqwt_BKNgDlX7HS4_Sq_tXd-U3ACIQhb6ZHju0cpCDF9mNgt0l5v4tjPriiAE3mjbsPZxAD4bjbP7YfyDoPKkcJuMZYLKs3rs3YCJDdKY9LlopddPOHd4GWsHWcN3jyaEap/s1600-h/7+7.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 167px; height: 207px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkvB-nkhIflDqwt_BKNgDlX7HS4_Sq_tXd-U3ACIQhb6ZHju0cpCDF9mNgt0l5v4tjPriiAE3mjbsPZxAD4bjbP7YfyDoPKkcJuMZYLKs3rs3YCJDdKY9LlopddPOHd4GWsHWcN3jyaEap/s320/7+7.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5233475963798841922" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyTyiKTZqTIfONwRF2eZpFGY0ggjr6TGT_tsx5-uMIyP5TEp8wREo8-wx9aeQgBUIJEdMzs4FbOdnt3BCJCFdz0z4faO4ptqfbxm9h810ECMVgvYAsWidDiS5JYfoIJ1FXW8852KA7_Nbx/s1600-h/8.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 207px; height: 207px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyTyiKTZqTIfONwRF2eZpFGY0ggjr6TGT_tsx5-uMIyP5TEp8wREo8-wx9aeQgBUIJEdMzs4FbOdnt3BCJCFdz0z4faO4ptqfbxm9h810ECMVgvYAsWidDiS5JYfoIJ1FXW8852KA7_Nbx/s320/8.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5233475969521520962" border="0" /></a></p><p><br /><br /><br />3. I'm combining a few here : Photo(s) of any author(s) you’ve met in person (even very briefly). Any photo(s) you may have of yourself with an author.</p><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz8GcD1BbuaMyjQ8uL6nosI9vLleV-GL5rfOQnPPhFNBO4EXM5eXThsNVbu4el5t1S63ylQ5BwYB6jN_WFOxohptt9RgOepjHxGc1iX9Aw3ekykpchqIGCkemAgR_GeKtfltjyjRgifX7M/s1600-h/9+9.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz8GcD1BbuaMyjQ8uL6nosI9vLleV-GL5rfOQnPPhFNBO4EXM5eXThsNVbu4el5t1S63ylQ5BwYB6jN_WFOxohptt9RgOepjHxGc1iX9Aw3ekykpchqIGCkemAgR_GeKtfltjyjRgifX7M/s320/9+9.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5233475977805511122" border="0" /></a></p> <p>6. A photo of the author of the book you’ve most recently finished.</p><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTPrf2F6Cm_jW2MZqacBR1P8j0jB1JZ5J879TTJwOS-CKjI7JEtg8wJMKZSawJlFMl8Jgf2JvIHYUR-Q_lcj1P7LJa38OrGJ8BLruWSyiUU6JDpQnB6Z_tRnAOcjB33oFXzIVegpLxV3hp/s1600-h/10+10.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 180px; height: 262px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTPrf2F6Cm_jW2MZqacBR1P8j0jB1JZ5J879TTJwOS-CKjI7JEtg8wJMKZSawJlFMl8Jgf2JvIHYUR-Q_lcj1P7LJa38OrGJ8BLruWSyiUU6JDpQnB6Z_tRnAOcjB33oFXzIVegpLxV3hp/s320/10+10.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5233475971927042898" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEyj7SnWNiKnWQ5_5LwBigQ1xsOJBMtWwZ7JvKAD2gsAaSj7d2K_I2wzL-0UiB5FiPKI1BMhX0Bfb1L3WAb333H-z3XcrIgLUa3Pmeww5Us5aRc-6gF3Ys1YRyuXGMw_zGZd92RZdcDScG/s1600-h/11+11.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 282px; height: 202px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEyj7SnWNiKnWQ5_5LwBigQ1xsOJBMtWwZ7JvKAD2gsAaSj7d2K_I2wzL-0UiB5FiPKI1BMhX0Bfb1L3WAb333H-z3XcrIgLUa3Pmeww5Us5aRc-6gF3Ys1YRyuXGMw_zGZd92RZdcDScG/s320/11+11.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5233477881921524594" border="0" /></a></p><p><br /></p>Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-69599524356139300412008-07-30T18:01:00.000-07:002008-07-30T19:04:01.786-07:00Book Review: The Septembers of Shiraz<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0061130419?ie=UTF8&tag=multicultur05-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0061130419"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 227px; height: 342px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS2GNZmNdcHRRswhOLqCqqxRf2-36cnIBfNzy2sKADcmQJxrNuZex1OmKKCDYmKF_gG3zPBfZUuy2OGK2gyaUYLhTXLYF5Z7BKl-V6qrgMeGvH4qbhhbebvsuKDfoYl3EjC_hfecwyDp74/s400/The+Septembers+of+Shiraz.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5223433339480256402" border="0" /></a>Personally, I have always preferred getting my history lessons in story form.<br /><br />I don’t know about you, but when I would sit in history class and the teachers would pontificate about timelines and wars and facts and figures, the Middle Ages, 1776, Napoleon, serfs, Galileo, 1893, Presidential assassins,1602, it would all blur together for me and sound like it was coming from the teacher in the Peanuts’ cartoons. Even though I was interested in learning about history, I could only get the vaguest ideas of the events to stick with me, dangling precariously from my cognitive map like a used post it note.<br /><br />But put <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/0553296981?tag=multicultur05-20&camp=0&creative=0&linkCode=as1&creativeASIN=0553296981&adid=13B3GS8H30MZFSKX3BP3&"><span style="font-style: italic;">The</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">Diary of Anne Frank</span></a> or <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/0439783607?tag=multicultur05-20&camp=0&creative=0&linkCode=as1&creativeASIN=0439783607&adid=0JBKDFRXT3VMTM0TD56Q&"><span style="font-style: italic;">My Brother Sam is Dead</span></a> (about the Revolutionary War) in my hands and bam - mental Super glue. All of the sudden, instead of seeing a blurry blip on the time line and a passage that made my eyes glaze over, I could see history through the eyes of a young girl, who like me, kept a diary, missed her friends and both loved and got annoyed with her family members. I could see through her eyes that the Holocaust meant that innocent Jewish families like hers had to go into hiding and hold their breath, hearts racing every time they heard a knock at the door wondering if this was the time they'd be caught and taken to the gas chambers of the concentration camps. <br /><br />In <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0061130419?ie=UTF8&tag=multicultur05-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0061130419"><span style="font-style: italic;">The Septembers of Shiraz</span></a> by Dalia Sofer, Isaac Amin and his memorable cast of family members, though fictional, were able to have the same sticking effect on me. The book transported me to 1980s Iran after the fall of the Shah when wealth was punished and none of rules of the old regime applied. In this tumultuous time, rare-gem dealer Isaac Amin is arrested and jailed by the Revolutionary Guard, falsely accused of being a Zionist spy. After his disappearance, his wife Farnaz searches anxiously for him while he endures months filled with isolation and torture and the rest of the family must deal with the lives they have always known being pulled apart piece by piece. <br /><br />The book was artfully written. Dalia Sofer's narration has a quiet power that kept the pages turning and she does a great job of capturing the subtle contradictions and gray areas inside of us all. The narration comes from all four members of the Amin family: Issac, Farnaz, their nine year old daughter Shirin and their son Pariviz who has been sent to New York for college to avoid his being drafted into the Revolutionary Guard. I liked the changes in narration - Isaac who escapes the tedium and terror of prison by letting his mind drift to his younger days in Shiraz when he was a poet and idealist; Farnaz, who has numbed herself to the world and tries to carry on and hold the family together in Isaac's absence; Parviz, lost, alone and indifferent in New York with a futile hope of a relationship with his extremely religious landlord's daughter, and Shirin, trying to make sense of her father's disappearance, losing friends on the playground and boldly taking a risk that might save someone's life, but could also land her father in even more trouble. I felt particularly drawn to the parts from Shirin’s point of view and found myself wondering how much of the story that we saw through Shirin’s eyes came directly from the life experience of the author who fled Iran with her family when she was only ten.<br /><br />One interesting thing that stood out to me is that the book is written in the seldom-used present tense. I love the immediacy this adds to the story, connecting someone like me, who has grown up in the US and been fortunate enough not to experience the horrors of watching my beloved homeland and family fractured and cleaved apart by the tyrants of an unstable government, to the events that took place in Iran after the fall of the Shah.<br /><br />I also think the Sofer’s use of the present tense reflects the fact that the Amin family’s lives have been severed from the tranquil days of their lives before the revolution. With their pasts like a distant dream and their futures uncertain, they have no choice but to live day to day in the present moment.<br /><br />I really enjoyed this book and while its not action packed, the force of the story propelled me forward and really kept the pages turning. It also definitely brought this period of Iranian history to life for me. I'm looking forward to reading more from Dalia Sofer in the future. Thanks to <a href="http://everydayiwritethebook.typepad.com/books/">Gayle at Everyday I Write the Book Blog</a> and Harper Collins for putting this book in my hands and hosting the great <a href="http://everydayiwritethebook.typepad.com/books/2008/07/online-book-club-the-septembers-of-shiraz-by-dalia-sofer.html">online book club discussion</a> earlier this week. If you are interested in more from the author, check back on Gayle's site for an upcoming author interview. <br /><br />***<br />Fun fact: <span style="font-style: italic;">Sofer </span>means <span style="font-style: italic;">writer </span>in Hebrew. I wonder if that is a family name that she grew into or if she took it on as her pen name because of its meaning.Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-54589758086124703512008-07-24T17:36:00.000-07:002008-07-24T18:30:07.640-07:00Beginnings<p style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://btt2.wordpress.com/"><img src="http://btt2.files.wordpress.com/2007/04/btt2.jpg" alt="btt button" /></a></p> <p></p><p>Suggested by: <a href="http://when-books-tell-a-story.blogspot.com/">Nithin</a></p> <p style="font-weight: bold; text-align: center;">Here’s another idea about memorable first lines from books.</p><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><p style="font-weight: bold; text-align: center;">What are your favourite first sentences from books? Is there a book that you liked specially because of its first sentence? Or a book, perhaps that you didn’t like but still remember simply because of the first line?</p><br />I am going to answer today, but concede to my laziness and be brief. I'm going to go with the excuse that brevity is the soul of wit (well, it is isn't it?).<br /><br />I have to admit that, "Call me Ishmael." doesn't really do anything for me, but my favorite first line that I can recall from memory comes from a book I haven't even read yet, is not a classic and has nothing to do with a whale.<br /><br />Here goes:<br /><br />"Dear Carrie Bradshaw,<br /> You are a f***ing liar."<span style="display: block;" id="formatbar_Buttons"><span class="down" style="display: block;" id="formatbar_CreateLink" title="Link" onmouseover="ButtonHoverOn(this);" onmouseout="ButtonHoverOff(this);" onmouseup="" onmousedown="CheckFormatting(event);FormatbarButton('richeditorframe', this, 8);ButtonMouseDown(this);"></span></span><br /><br />to which I respond:<br /><br />Dear Jen Lancaster,<br /><br />You crack me up. I love <a href="http://www.jennsylvania.com/">your blog</a> and I can't wait to read <span style="font-style: italic;">Bright Lights, Big Ass.</span> Let's drink some mojitos and be best friends. And promise to <span style="font-style: italic;">never ever </span>read <span style="font-style: italic;">Moby Dick</span>.<br /><br />Irreverently Yours,<br /><br />Jessica<br /><p></p>Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-28300581870910391182008-07-22T14:31:00.000-07:002008-07-23T08:39:23.075-07:00Book Review: Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0618711651/105-4715595-4926000?ie=UTF8&tag=multicultur05-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=1789&creativeASIN=0618711651"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsS2Jy_h7Xbfuri9S-qCvSdOYwSiFQePAJb1NjmPnulqR6QcsMrf_o5ZkdoJb_kAHfC_oejQpl6JOsbMUqTfgkWuT90UnKwXaCzthkZP1NwvB-u5QjjB0O9wUkOEr4yAgkP6uGBFcvggYB/s320/Extremely+Loud.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5204065660302756050" border="0" /></a>It has been an extremely long time since I have felt myself so drawn into the world created by a fiction writer and felt so emotionally involved with the unlikeliest of characters, nine-year-old Oskar Schell, a boy whose Dad was killed on 9/11 and his Grandparents, German immigrants whose lives were forever changed after the bombing in Dresden. <br /><br />I have read so many novels in the earlier part of this year that I wanted so badly to be touching and thought provoking but they all fell short, except for this one. <br /><br />This is a short summary from the book jacket: "Oskar Schell is an inventor, Francophile, tambourine player, Shakespearean actor, jeweler, pacifist. He is nine years old. And he is on an urgent, secret search through the five boroughs of New York to find the lock that fits a mysterious key belonging to his father, who died in the attacks on the World Trade Center."<br /><br />Besides Oskar and his grandparents, I also loved the characters Oskar met along the way, like one hundred and three year-old Mr. Black who has a giant card catalog with a card for every person he ever met, each one labeled with one word that describes their essence.<br /><br />I think Jonathan Safran Foer is one of the most talented young writers I have ever read. His detail and lifelike mixture of humor and sadness made the characters leap off of the page and right into my heart. I rarely listened to audio books before this one, but I picked it up on a whim and really enjoyed the performances.Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-34641813435369168652008-07-17T12:59:00.001-07:002008-07-17T17:18:33.247-07:00Booking Through Thursday: Vacation Spots<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNA0CvJ9xJXbk6t41EoFAgg9kDjY8Yu1x93rBmIj99PTgVp5MRcrNhvs8zrcUs8lofD_gu3qnJaV8o61fL3x7om-wFAl34YeY5ccnBXG6NBYVJ4gTAxCyxhBGbYGrXO-u9yCLxDRYzgxVa/s1600-h/Booking+Through+Thursday.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNA0CvJ9xJXbk6t41EoFAgg9kDjY8Yu1x93rBmIj99PTgVp5MRcrNhvs8zrcUs8lofD_gu3qnJaV8o61fL3x7om-wFAl34YeY5ccnBXG6NBYVJ4gTAxCyxhBGbYGrXO-u9yCLxDRYzgxVa/s400/Booking+Through+Thursday.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5224077814138929250" border="0" /></a></div> I've been reading other bloggers' weekly <a href="http://btt2.wordpress.com/">Booking Through Thursday</a> posts for a while, but this will be my inaugural BTT post. This week's question is:<br /><p style="text-align: center;"><strong>Do you buy books while on vacation/holiday? </strong></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong>Do you have favorite bookstores that you only get to visit while away on a trip? </strong></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong>What/Where are they?</strong></p>I knew I was going to love Washington D.C. when I looked out my hotel room window. Against the backdrop of old brick buildings, historical landmarks and the hustle and bustle of crowds of intellectuals and politicos I could see not one, but two bookstores. We don’t have many local, independently owned bookstores in Las Vegas so I have trouble resisting a peek at the stacks of places like Kramer Books & Afterwords Café on Dupont Circle in D.C., which also happens to have a killer lunch menu and a bar inside the bookstore. It just doesn’t get much better than that. <br /><br />But while I do love to browse through bookstores while traveling, I don’t often make book purchases away from home for several reasons: A) Its one more thing I’ll have to lug around with me. B) Its very likely I can get it cheaper on Amazon, and the main reason C) l hate to have a stack of more than two or three books at home waiting to be read. If I accumulate too many, by the time I get to them I have usually lost interest because I am excited to read something else. <br /><br />There are two exceptions I can think of:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">¿Dónde esta Harry Potter?</span><br />When our overnight train pulled into the station in Madrid at the end of our Camino last summer, I was on a mission. I had to limp all the way, but I was determined not to leave Spain without a copy of the newly released Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, in English. I’d tracked down an English language bookstore that was holding a copy for me and after about an hour of being lost, we found the address listed on their website. Only when we got there, the building was empty. Frustrated but undaunted, we called our friend Jeremy back in the US, the only one of our friends who could possibly be up at 3am and he graciously looked up the bookstore’s phone number for us. We called and found the new location a few blocks away and I had my Harry Potter for the plane ride home.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">When in Stratford</span><br />It seemed almost sacrilegious to leave the idyllic English countryside town that gave birth to Shakespeare without some work of literature. Though ironically, what I picked was not a book of sonnets or a comedic play involving a woman disguising herself as a man but <span style="font-style: italic;">The Importance of Being Earnest</span> by Oscar Wilde.Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-37580136708717859462008-07-13T19:07:00.000-07:002008-07-13T22:56:31.365-07:00Cover Love: Judging a Book By Its CoverI’ll admit it. I am a sucker for a good picture. Whenever I go to a restaurant and open up the menu I am instantly wooed by the dishes that are accompanied by pictures. At <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">BJ</span>’s, the picture of grilled chicken pasta with its vibrant green <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">broccoli</span> and delicate shavings of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">parmesano</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">reggiano</span> gets me every time.<br /><br />Book covers sometimes have the same ooh-look-something-shiny! effect on me. Out of the massive volumes of books stacked floor to ceiling in my local bookstore shelves, some always seem to draw me over for a closer look.<br /><br />Here are a few that have caught my eye in the bookstore lately:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/044652901X?ie=UTF8&tag=multicultur05-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=044652901X"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5zDa0a4FGYFy_OMEKdbtjfd3MgDR1r7BpTSfwtCQl4ubIWH_przzyubbydf1PPPMPbUa5C_HFBt3HIVBJ9M8vTUa7yJwqHKgBKK4UWdrzcAbm7meaOUqoGFvxy8HONgpN7xO7g-RaIdmC/s400/Made+in+the+USA.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5222686008645222882" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0307383032?ie=UTF8&tag=multicultur05-20&link_code=as3&camp=211189&creative=373489&creativeASIN=0307383032"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXvmrPrnngwKv0qNg2S3oNqJpCgSkuzWd3ORkdsyfg9ubus1y0tcRIF3iQgRjaF5civ55vXtTUp4oqsEOMoMdgg6EAniYCe_j2_3b2HvwVHuc7G-BPkZD0WsOElUevMBGEFmTIWDae5L18/s400/The+Long+Walk+Home.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5222686010082091954" border="0" /></a><br />Maybe it’s my marketing background, but although great cover art does not always portend a riveting and well written story, I think its <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">OK</span> to celebrate the publishing companies giving an author a great package to help promote their work.Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-40890509376158168842008-07-09T17:59:00.000-07:002008-07-09T19:02:29.273-07:00Giveaways GaloreJust wanted to share a few great book related giveaway opportunities I've come across in the last few days:<br /><br /><ul><li> <a href="http://thekoolaidmom.wordpress.com/2008/07/01/my-first-ever-giveaway/">*In the Shadow of Mt. TBR</a>'s writer is hosting her first giveaway ever. Visit her site to enter for a chance to win a $20 Borders gift card.</li></ul><ul><li>*Marie at the <a href="http://www.bostonbibliophile.com/2008/07/giveaway-arc-of-sarah-addison-allens.html">Boston Bibilophile</a> is giving away an ARC copy of Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen. I just discovered Marie's blog a few weeks ago and I love it. She seems to post several times a week and her reviews are detailed and insightful.<br /></li></ul><ul><li>From the Garden Spells cover: <div style="text-align: center;"><blockquote>In a garden surrounded by a tall fence, tucked away behind a small, quiet house in the smallest of towns, is an apple tree that is rumored to bear a very special sort of fruit. In this luminous debut novel, Sarah Addison Allen tells the story of that enchanted tree, and the extraordinary people who tend it.</blockquote></div></li><li style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0553590324?ie=UTF8&tag=multicultur05-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0553590324%22%3EGarden%20Spells%20%28Bantam%20Discovery%29%3C/a%3E%3Cimg%20src=%22http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=multicultur05-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0553590324%22%20width=%221%22%20height=%221%22%20border=%220%22%20alt=%22%22%20style=%22border:none%20%21important;%20margin:0px%20%21important;%22%20/%3E"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWyVpocfa_yruPvsGMFOKJ1BXlden2Bd2asCp_CV0SM98hInCEey33cvfw3coeeiU6ieQPKfkTa2xDQ55lXK8rLlRWHG4EjIrqLDsn2VcDfqeCCjsxuV83UXX96WraU-8yKxE29j1PMkzp/s320/Garden+Spells.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5221188220730034866" border="0" /></a></li><li><br /></li><li>*The audiobook version of Paulo Coelho's <a href="http://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0061122416?ie=UTF8&tag=multicultur05-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0061122416%22%3EThe%20Alchemist%3C/a%3E%3Cimg%20src=%22http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=multicultur05-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0061122416%22%20width=%221%22%20height=%221%22%20border=%220%22%20alt=%22%22%20style=%22border:none%20%21important;%20margin:0px%20%21important;%22%20/%3E"><span style="font-style: italic;">The Alchemist</span> </a>is available for free download on iTunes this week. Just check the main page for the free download icon.</li><li> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0061122416?ie=UTF8&tag=multicultur05-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0061122416%22%3EThe%20Alchemist%3C/a%3E%3Cimg%20src=%22http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=multicultur05-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0061122416%22%20width=%221%22%20height=%221%22%20border=%220%22%20alt=%22%22%20style=%22border:none%20%21important;%20margin:0px%20%21important;%22%20/%3E"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwaGbGnyA0gC-yAhYob1Gq8usz5pImPhu2tjZG-VRFWZJHND3hsRFDUFYREKS1J903tmsb0tmQAbCh9Drymobpdu2x979HNiJCFVBr0iOFUGWxOiN465mzTsZqZi1KnOrBhNhyphenhyphenUxBlazlV/s320/The+Alchemist.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5221192918356479378" border="0" /></a></li></ul>Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-84775334107156405682008-07-08T20:00:00.000-07:002008-07-08T21:46:04.866-07:00A Little Something HumorousI love when I learn something new from a textbook I'm teaching. <br /><br />For example, did you know the that word <span style="font-style: italic;">humor</span> actually comes from the Latin word for <span style="font-style: italic;">liquid</span>?* Kudos to you if you're a crackerjack at dead languages, but I had no idea. Apparently the story goes like this: Hundreds of years ago, when people still agreed that the world was flat, it was commonly thought by the noted philosophers of the day that one's personality traits were determined by the balance of the liquids in one's body. Unbalanced liquids = unbalanced personality = strange or odd. So instead of being used to describe things like <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_Vowell">Sarah Vowell's</a> nephew referring to cemeteries as Halloween parks or <a href="http://www.comedycentral.com/colbertreport/index.jhtml">Stephen Colbert's</a> version of the news, <span style="font-style: italic;">humorous </span>once referred to someone who was a few sandwiches short of a picnic basket. For example the contestants on <a href="http://www.vh1.com/shows/dyn/flavor_of_love_3/series.jhtml">Flavor of Love </a>Season 3. <br /><br /><br />OK, enough with the Latin lessons, but speaking of textbooks, my summer session class starts up next Monday. That means today I am hard at work lesson planning as well as casting aside my hate-affair with talking on the phone to find the best mortgage loan for our new house (Yay! We're getting a new house! Boo! We have to pack. A lot. Quickly.). <br /><br />I have been in seriously in denial that summer vacation is in fact almost over for me. This is going to put a serious cramp in my new habit of reading until 2am. And lounging around in my pajamas until its time to change into my gym clothes in the afternoon. But in all honesty, I can't complain. I love working with my students and seeing someone who arrived knowing only very basic English progress enough get into the best Hotel Management School in the country. Teaching allows me to work autonomously, be creative and get better every day. And it lets me have a summer vacation in the first place. So, yeah I guess I'm pretty lucky. <br /><br /><br /><br />*From <span style="font-style: italic;">World Pass: Expanding English Fluency Advanced </span>by S. Stemplski, N. Douglas, J. Morgan and K.L. JohannsenJessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-24176526517817421222008-07-02T17:03:00.000-07:002008-07-02T17:21:17.379-07:00Lost Girls BookIn book and travel related news (my two favorite subjects), I am thrilled to see that <a href="http://lostgirlsworld.blogspot.com/">The Lost Girls</a> have landed a book deal (with Harper Collins, no less!) to write about the year they took off to travel the world. If you haven’t already heard the buzz about the Lost Girls, here is a little background, but I highly recommend checking out their blog for yourself to read about their incredible journey and check out their tips if you are dreaming of doing something like this yourself someday: In 2006 best friends Holly, Jen and Amanda traded in the comforts of home and steady jobs in the competitive New York media world for giant backpacks, sometimes seedy hostels, guidebooks and the chance at the adventure of a lifetime. <br /><br />These are truly girls after my own heart. From the moment I discovered their blog, which happened to be when I was in the throes of planning my own Camino adventure last spring, I was intrigued and inspired. When I wasn’t researching backpacks, lightweight sleeping sacks and a place I could purchase a contraption that enables women to pee standing up in the middle of nowhere, I spent a lot of my spare time reading through their archives. <br /><br />From the time they touched down in Peru, bought funny looking hats and hiked the Inca Trail right up to the end of their journey in Australia, the girls shared stories and pictures of their adventures on their blog, kindly allowing us to live vicariously through them. I find their writing style savvy, polished and extremely accessible, like hearing the insider point of view from a best girlfriend who also happens to be a kick-ass writer. <br /><br />I love their spirit and their courage to dare to do what most people only dream about. And of course, the fact that they wrote about it. Jen, Amanda and Holly are truly a testament to the idea that if you want something badly enough, with enough drive, determination and sacrifice, anything is possible. So I wish them the best of luck with the book, which I will anxiously await. I hope they sell millions of copies and inspire many others to take a chance on their own dreams.Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-18581020129107546402008-06-30T21:57:00.000-07:002008-07-01T00:31:43.412-07:00Crossing the Finish Line<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3g-2JLkMMIx0E9L7XRI9OTpgMdDJZUafrjO-bNFbwvYEo06bY9gVc_rgswwYL3lbmAKG6YarkAlfBlOxdGbAunyjeQIfr-aDNVljz_8f5hpObpLSgLR0cARAM_ClHEcNh_J3EKbQHaRQ9/s1600-h/winner_socnoc-2008.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 252px; height: 189px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3g-2JLkMMIx0E9L7XRI9OTpgMdDJZUafrjO-bNFbwvYEo06bY9gVc_rgswwYL3lbmAKG6YarkAlfBlOxdGbAunyjeQIfr-aDNVljz_8f5hpObpLSgLR0cARAM_ClHEcNh_J3EKbQHaRQ9/s320/winner_socnoc-2008.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5217906156648738194" border="0" /></a>I did it! I have already spewed out almost all of the words that reside in my head onto my keyboard today in order to cross the 50,000 word finish line, so I'll be brief. Just wanted to share my excitement. I'm really grateful to the New Zealanders over at <a href="http://www.kiwiwriters.org">Kiwi Writers</a> for letting this eager American participate in their challenge. This year a total of <span style="font-size: 150%; font-weight: bold; color: rgb(250, 144, 53);">2,635,755</span> words were written collectively by 143 participants. Sharing my daily progress and knowing there was a whole group of other writing hopefuls clattering away at their keyboards in the winter weather of the southern hemisphere helped me immensely in getting to my daily word goals. As did lemon-lime Gatorade, piles of Oreo cookies and the unfailing support and encouragement from my wonderful husband. <br /><br />Here's the button with my final word count below:<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguvFlDIBKkVyCfK_ws2azBjSwftcuDdotA0K7_Lc_0AMu8tCWxy9uOa1ePziOLvNbHPkJi7xxpolqUXNRFCPlk7NWwZEAK9lVEbNNgPlfpjkA3ujjPhmM9K7NyzyPB8lh12E3sKorf2fKP/s1600-h/progworm_socnoc-2008_jnaomicline.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 196px; height: 97px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguvFlDIBKkVyCfK_ws2azBjSwftcuDdotA0K7_Lc_0AMu8tCWxy9uOa1ePziOLvNbHPkJi7xxpolqUXNRFCPlk7NWwZEAK9lVEbNNgPlfpjkA3ujjPhmM9K7NyzyPB8lh12E3sKorf2fKP/s320/progworm_socnoc-2008_jnaomicline.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5217906187745031554" border="0" /></a>Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-21973688865024738892008-06-25T14:20:00.000-07:002008-06-25T14:40:08.633-07:00Book Review: Stern Men by Elizabeth Gilbert<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23204.Stern_Men?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px;"><img alt="Stern Men" src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/photo.goodreads.com/books/1167391862m/23204.jpg" border="0" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23204.Stern_Men?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">Stern Men</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/11679.Elizabeth_Gilbert">Elizabeth Gilbert</a><br /><br /><br /> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/24362966?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review"><h3>My review</h3></a><br /><br />Here is fair warning: If you are looking for a book to fill the hole left by <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Eat-Pray-Love-Everything-Indonesia/dp/0143038419/ref=pd_bxgy_b_img_b"><span style="font-style: italic;">Eat, Pray, Love,</span></a> reading <span style="font-style: italic;">Stern Men</span> is like trying to shove a square lobster trap into that round hole. It doesn't quite fit the bill. <br /><br />I <span style="font-style: italic;">really</span> wanted to like this book. After reading<span style="font-style: italic;"> Eat, Pray, Love</span> last summer I was eager to read some of Elizabeth Gilbert's earlier works so my first pick was Gilbert's first novel, <span style="font-style: italic;">Stern Men</span> set on two fictional islands off the coast of Maine. I thought it would be a pretty sure bet that I would love almost anything the Elizabeth Gilbert set down on paper, a bet I was disappointed to lose with myself with my mixed feelings on her debut novel.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">What this book does well: </span><br /><br />You can almost smell the salt air and you can definitely feel the boredom and the generations of animosity between the people of Fort Niles and Courne Haven Islands. Gilbert knows how to paint a gritty and lively picture of the backdrop for her heroine Ruth and the cast of characters around her. <br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Where it falters:</span><br /><br />Descriptions of the history of the islands and the families living there seem to go on for days. They overwhelm the brief pockets of action in the story. It plot ekes forward at a painfully slow pace. <br /><br /><br /><br />When I listened to Elizabeth Gilbert speak last year at the Book Group Expo in San Jose she cited Charles Dickens as one of her favorite authors and a big influence on her work. His influence was apparent in her stylistic choices for <span style="font-style: italic;">Stern Men</span>. If you like sweeping prose descriptions that go on for fistfulls of pages filling you in on on every detail of backstory, this book may win you over. However, if you are looking forward to something actually happening, you might want to settle in and get comfortable because you might have to wait for a while.<br /><br />The book does seem to pick up and redeem itself in the last 40 - 50 pages or so, Elizabeth Gilbert's confident and original voice that I'd been waiting for seemed to resurface and shine through to bring the story home. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/142817?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">View all my reviews.</a>Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-51416759367442254702008-06-23T01:26:00.000-07:002008-06-23T01:34:35.424-07:0050,000 WordsAll right, I’m outing myself today. This month I have been committed to some serious writing, just not in this blog. I was feeling a little tentative (and like I might throw up) about mentioning it before I began. I had some serious doubts and some days when they completely paralyzed me – what if I discovered it was just too hard? What if it was too cumbersome? Too soul sucking? I wasn’t sure what to expect. I wasn’t sure I’d be able to rise to the occasion, but I knew I’d regret it if I didn’t at least try to find out.<br /><br />So… for the past 21 days I have been pounding away at the keyboard participating in a little something called <a href="http://www.kiwiwriters.org/my/challenge/site/">SoCNoC </a>(Southern Cross Novel Challenge), New Zealand’s answer to <a href="http://www.nanowrimo.org/">NaNoWriMo</a> (National Novel Writing Month), but taking place in June, which happened to be in a more convenient month for me.<br /><br />The challenge: write a 50,000 word rough draft of a novel in 30 days and live to tell about it.<br /><br />The idea is not to edit as you go – quantity trumps quality in this round, the editing starts when July rolls around. Well, here I am in week 4 of my challenge and as of today I have written 36,002 words (that’s 63 pages single spaced!) of my required 50,00.<br /><br />I’ve always harbored the secret desire to write a book. If I don’t at least try, I’ll never know if I can do. And wouldn’t that be a worse failure? (That’s what I try to tell myself every time I’m so sick of writing and just want to quit.)<br /><br />I let my writing drift off into the background while I let the business of growing up and finding my way in the world take precedence during my college years and beyond. When I did that, I forfeited all of that prime sucking time in my youth that usually needs to come before the brief flashes of brilliance start showing up in the vast haystack of words that I produce. So now is as good a time as any to jump in the mud to<br /><br />So, like the Camino de Santiago that I am writing about, this month has been a formidable challenge. I am walking out into the wilderness not knowing what to expect. I have a lot more clothes to choose from this time around, but the goal I want to achieve is the same, get to the finish line no matter what obstacles jump in my way.<br /><br />Wish me luck. I’ll keep you posted – 50, 000 words, June 30, I can see you in the distance.Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-9626907494118114362008-05-22T12:03:00.000-07:002008-05-26T15:15:01.996-07:00Boston: Along the Freedom TrailDid you know that Paul Revere had 16 children? 16?! I can see my Paul’s eyes light up and the corners of his mouth curl upward involuntarily as I tell him this bit of trivia I picked up walking the Freedom Trail and paying a visit to Paul Revere’s former home in the North End of Boston last week. I tell him not to get any ideas. Besides, only eleven survived to adulthood.<br /><br />With Paul tied up in conference sessions for the large part of our first few days, I set out to explore the old cobbled streets of Boston’s history on my own. I was surprised to find that Boston was a relatively small, compact city that was very easy to get around with a combination of the T (Boston’s subway system) and a good pair of walking shoes.<br /><br />I started off my journey on the Freedom Trail, which begins in the lovely Boston Common park and snakes around the city for 2.5 miles connecting the dots between many of Boston’s significant historical sights.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL-tng3w717RoJ_yt9ER3qi5OkVtjyFI3UwVJinxSkhPT9Hlo_gjn5lGQM8QLEXGF01aVEj-wZbBX6zGGV_cS_rBcNfY_G-0V63cS5hBfGn58OvuuXYL2J-4OxgoG7jmf-p6eRwp9p_08y/s1600-h/Freedom+Trial+Marker.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL-tng3w717RoJ_yt9ER3qi5OkVtjyFI3UwVJinxSkhPT9Hlo_gjn5lGQM8QLEXGF01aVEj-wZbBX6zGGV_cS_rBcNfY_G-0V63cS5hBfGn58OvuuXYL2J-4OxgoG7jmf-p6eRwp9p_08y/s320/Freedom+Trial+Marker.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5203291763030591618" border="0" /></a>Walking along the red brick trail was also a good way to get my bearings in the city. There are may tour groups that lead guided expeditions along the trail, but I opted to download the <a href="https://store.thefreedomtrail.org/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWCATS&Category=5">audio tour</a> ($15 to download) on the Freedom Trail website so I could take it all in at my leisure and pause at the interesting spots or fast forward through the long boring bits if I happened upon any of them. <br /><br /><br />Here are some highlights of places I stopped and fun facts I learned along the way on my first day in Boston:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Faneuil Hall</span>- Boston’s first central marketplace. This is a lively area for shopping and eating and watching live street performers. There is a whole building full of nothing but gift shops. I was in heaven.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr_BuZxM_lSWen-FevZ24ZNTRsJyd0bMq1h1eMxg9opX3SN9YNcXjRLwvNkFi0MuWgrpduZ-ac98V9lMCMtTSVJpxgBvA3N8tm-c4UDkzuaUYqWcsmp2F2MinT6YazKYJBVFr2uKL5uqhl/s1600-h/Fanuiel+Hall.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr_BuZxM_lSWen-FevZ24ZNTRsJyd0bMq1h1eMxg9opX3SN9YNcXjRLwvNkFi0MuWgrpduZ-ac98V9lMCMtTSVJpxgBvA3N8tm-c4UDkzuaUYqWcsmp2F2MinT6YazKYJBVFr2uKL5uqhl/s320/Fanuiel+Hall.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5203291784505428146" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Inspiration for the Scarlet Letter</span> – Tucked away In the King’s Chapel Burying Ground is the headstone of Elizabeth Payne, who is rumored to be the inspiration for Nathaniel Hawthorne’s heroine in the Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne. Hawthorne probably passed through the graveyard on his way to work at the Custom House. Her headstone bears a coat of arms featuring 2 lions and a half of what looks like a stylized letter A.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The site of the first public school and the Old Corner Bookstore<br /><br /></span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Old State House</span> – I got to stand under the balcony where the Declaration of Independence was read to the people of Boston for the first time. <br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Old South Meeting House</span> – where some 5,000 people gathered to protest the tea tax and after a secret coded proclamation from Sam Adams (who, incidentally, I learned was pretty hopeless as a brewmaster despite his other talents) sent the group of protestors to the harbor to dump multiple shiploads of tea into the water in the event that came to be known as the Boston Tea Party. <br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Paul Revere’s House</span> – When Paul Revere purchased the house it was already 90 years old. Walking into the old building with a fireplace in every room to keep the family warm in the winter, you feel distinctly like you’re inside one of those funhouses where everything is tilted and crazy things happen like balls rolling uphill and water running sideways. I asked the docent who offered her services if I was imagining things. She said no, its even more uneven upstairs. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJramrSbYR6wn9mLUXEfs8sICDP8M_Rm-XAZkIFjWBOT905f3sgelNMwcg3M6EyOgzM0JZb9gNyQn8SSRXYW5xNeX1QMUJQHOM70KjEmH4J5NN5-U_s0Cx7tF3M-4yBPdihH_2bRAktYNg/s1600-h/Paul+Revere%27s+House.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJramrSbYR6wn9mLUXEfs8sICDP8M_Rm-XAZkIFjWBOT905f3sgelNMwcg3M6EyOgzM0JZb9gNyQn8SSRXYW5xNeX1QMUJQHOM70KjEmH4J5NN5-U_s0Cx7tF3M-4yBPdihH_2bRAktYNg/s320/Paul+Revere%27s+House.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5204809836401232098" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Old North Church</span> – The famous site where Paul Revere was to hang lanterns – one if by land, two if by sea, to warn the people that the British were coming on the night of his famous midnight ride. This is one of the landmarks I was most excited to see. Although I am a little embarrassed to admit this, its role in the movie National Treasure had a little something to do with that.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzcu7_meH1uthiAo6oC5nP8fv0XMRkmmxawSOiUqQReMUAKiKuZWLX4EKYF8xwbFFMS8I13KBeMaagjd5zP4K58J7GhU9vzfVV-FJdKcOa7MwGdoMdgw5Xs1FsTIMxdj3WTRldmwqauTMw/s1600-h/Me+Old+North+Church.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 373px; height: 248px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzcu7_meH1uthiAo6oC5nP8fv0XMRkmmxawSOiUqQReMUAKiKuZWLX4EKYF8xwbFFMS8I13KBeMaagjd5zP4K58J7GhU9vzfVV-FJdKcOa7MwGdoMdgw5Xs1FsTIMxdj3WTRldmwqauTMw/s320/Me+Old+North+Church.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5203291797390330050" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYhcSS6leww0kjVpM_MVA1xGwy875ln1LlI75SZZ9xGpbOIljiO1ZCKzW3Cu7_vhmZyBCnI4-quQDObdC-Ioj4GOBqKyMsb9yGWqTQdYsdrEmI0vNigKcKGxVCQP4PwbV0766_e_Sbxvps/s1600-h/Old+North+Church+sign.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYhcSS6leww0kjVpM_MVA1xGwy875ln1LlI75SZZ9xGpbOIljiO1ZCKzW3Cu7_vhmZyBCnI4-quQDObdC-Ioj4GOBqKyMsb9yGWqTQdYsdrEmI0vNigKcKGxVCQP4PwbV0766_e_Sbxvps/s320/Old+North+Church+sign.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5204809840696199410" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNMhytkFZ3MUsk2HD9tiOcwV4r8tzft3_NjnS8ovZQSn-o4GdwdzQvvqqDWAIIOc5O0eS-chH3CXMX6p34fziad49RgC8S_UwXcvXHW9A6RQ1OvCC-6oxQObTfdQXAgajRp2i47ZybEZsz/s1600-h/Old+North+Church+Inside.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNMhytkFZ3MUsk2HD9tiOcwV4r8tzft3_NjnS8ovZQSn-o4GdwdzQvvqqDWAIIOc5O0eS-chH3CXMX6p34fziad49RgC8S_UwXcvXHW9A6RQ1OvCC-6oxQObTfdQXAgajRp2i47ZybEZsz/s320/Old+North+Church+Inside.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5204809849286134018" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinJ8CQ1Uqd9mbtnI3Jqu9Ny9Bzxz15EcxjvDA_QOFrVNj9PD0xZK1mHdRt0QQQyIlOSw-lt4-KEIcr2WvK_IrG-dZ5nUqtrUDl2UBk9pHB8k0sRvxefPe-utpyj9PTjijuEYNYoFQNyt6C/s1600-h/Old+North+Church+Pew+Boxes.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinJ8CQ1Uqd9mbtnI3Jqu9Ny9Bzxz15EcxjvDA_QOFrVNj9PD0xZK1mHdRt0QQQyIlOSw-lt4-KEIcr2WvK_IrG-dZ5nUqtrUDl2UBk9pHB8k0sRvxefPe-utpyj9PTjijuEYNYoFQNyt6C/s320/Old+North+Church+Pew+Boxes.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5204809853581101330" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXGNpfvSCYRYj7_2j0Nf4EWGAwlHm3nIP0zgmz7X-doDBMrx_MbZSPinYEbtdKSuR7_efUKhnlLwlGh8kpflz7ZbOiUOlDZ_FMRgUBmLcpiaO2Yw1gPzqH_aq2QGedX4U6EF5FRghzplqj/s1600-h/Boston+Harbor.JPG"><br /></a>Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-54065972603851473982008-05-05T23:55:00.000-07:002008-05-06T00:01:51.346-07:00Now That She's Back in the BlogosphereI know I have been MIA from the blogosphere the last couple of weeks. <br /><br />You know when you get a message from a friend who you haven't talked to in a long time. You're so excited to talk to the person, but you keep putting it off because its been so long that you need a good long time to sit down and give the them all the juicy details of what you've been up to. <br /><br />Well, I kind of feel like that. Except I haven't had a good long time for dishing in a good long time. And its almost midnight and I have to be at school at 8 tomorrow and probably stay until 8pm. So it's not looking good for the full scoop, but for any of you who are still checking back after I've gone missing for the last few weeks, I just wanted to say hi. <br /><br />Here are few things I have done since we last chatted:<br /><ul><li> Spoke at a professional conference for the first time in Sacramento</li><li> Visited Michael, Jenny, Noah, Josh and David (my brother-in-law, sister-in-law and nephews) in Vacaville</li><li>Spent time with Lai, one of my best friends, when she came to town from Macau for the week<br /></li><li> Went to my friend Heather's bachelorette party</li><li> Logged some major hours house shopping over the last few weeks </li><li> Put an offer in on a house we really like yesterday - I'm very excited since this will be the first home Paul and I have picked out together </li><li> Started to prepare for study week and finals -only a week and a half to go before summer vacation!</li><li> On a sad note, visited Maw Maw, my grandmother-in-law, in the hospital on two occasions after she took a couple of spills at my in-laws house.</li></ul> I probably forgot some, but that's the quick and dirty. I hope to resume the weekly blogging again soon. Just think of it like all the TV shows returning after the writers' strike.Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-27586795930779310532008-04-07T23:58:00.000-07:002008-04-08T00:19:56.125-07:00Save the Drama for ….the Popular Kids?I was in every play in high school from my sophomore year on. I remember how excited I was to get cast as the lead in my first play over Starr <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Easterday</span>, a really outspoken senior who, frankly, I was a little bit scared of, and had been acting a lot longer than me. As it turns out, despite my oh so convincing audition, I had a long, long, long way to go before I got even kind of watchable. That first audition was my ticket into the high school drama world though. No matter how big or small my part, I loved every crazy four hour rehearsal and even the constant angst-filled asides from the really intense kid. I made friends plus I got to flirt shamelessly with all of the cute clever boys, most of whom inevitably turned out to be gay.<br /><br />I went on to play a sickly sweet flapper girl with a serious crush on a guy named George and the maid in <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=mABOPXgQa0sC&dq=you+%22can+t%22+take+it+with+you&pg=PP1&ots=OnYQM4M5R9&sig=9pDEF0COUwcnWIJbz3Cy5gHp6qk&hl=en&prev=http://www.google.com/search?q=You+Can%27t+Take+It+With+You&sourceid=navclient-ff&ie=UTF-8&rlz=1B3GGGL_enUS228US229&sa=X&oi=print&ct=title&cad=one-book-with-thumbnail#PPT1,M1">You Can’t Take It With You</a>. In the script the character was supposed to be black, but I gave her an Irish accent. Sometimes. I was the stage manager in <a href="http://www.answers.com/topic/gammer-gurton-s-needle"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Gammer</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Gurton</span>’s Needle</a> with a monologue that ended with “God Save the Queen! Huzzah!” You can never say that too many times. I was the understudy for one of the princesses in <a href="http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&id=3z0ECxW7s8sC&dq=love%27s+labour%27s+lost&printsec=frontcover&source=web&ots=NbkPUTE7KD&sig=6OdZfMSH4gl_z2kWF014n3kPvZs#PPR13,M1">Love’s Labour’s Lost</a>, my favorite Shakespeare comedy ever, and would have gotten to go on when one of the princesses ran away from home with her boyfriend had her costume not been a size 2. In my very last performance as the celebrated fashion designer Bibi Cavendish in a <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=KP2-9lkeqx4C&dq=while+the+lights+were+out&pg=PP1&ots=PxO2ng1pyH&sig=YgxFc_ryTTcb2loxKTIqrM0YP0U&hl=en&prev=http://www.google.com/search?q=While+the+Lights+Were+Out&sourceid=navclient-ff&ie=UTF-8&rlz=1B3GGGL_enUS228US229&sa=X&oi=print&ct=title&cad=one-book-with-thumbnail#PPA4,M1">British murder mystery</a> I actually felt confident in my improvement. Even my Mom, who came to every performance and kindly encouraged me through my mediocrity couldn't hide the hint of surprise in her voice when she said “Jessi, that was actually really good!”<br /><br /><br />What can I say? It takes a while.<br /><br />So it hit me the other day, with the High School Musical movies capturing the rapt attention of all of the teens and ‘<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">tweens</span> of the nation. Are <span style="font-style: italic;">all </span>of these kids now trying out for their high school musicals?<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGuVkJZrgkv9hWIN6mw695kS2B-rJR34WDHT1WeFSdD2fTYKSTVpxXyL09P4NLvoqRUd7EfqKU1LFk3tNEiE5Yks0dPeahUnsd-8CLji-9tp_celf2FKr7E1xIv8eoJLmKHnmgqEjXFhdd/s1600-h/HighSchoolMusical_Jewel.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 228px; height: 230px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGuVkJZrgkv9hWIN6mw695kS2B-rJR34WDHT1WeFSdD2fTYKSTVpxXyL09P4NLvoqRUd7EfqKU1LFk3tNEiE5Yks0dPeahUnsd-8CLji-9tp_celf2FKr7E1xIv8eoJLmKHnmgqEjXFhdd/s200/HighSchoolMusical_Jewel.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5186768302384214002" border="0" /></a><br />Instead of drama being the place for marginal kids who are drawn to acting because its not so mainstream, I wonder if stages are now being overrun by the would be cheerleaders and football players. And think of the competition… I might have edged out Starr <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Easterday</span>, but I don’t know if I ever would have gotten the chance to get on stage with 20 mini Vanessa <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Hudgins</span> running around. It would be pretty sad for all of those kids who are hopeful and whole-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">heartedly</span> ready to make complete fools of themselves in the quest to get better like I was to miss out on their chance.<br /><br />Any high school drama teachers out there who have seen a massive influx of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">auditioners</span> of late?Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7806832115150653178.post-77391171417902815272008-04-04T18:46:00.000-07:002008-04-04T19:30:23.166-07:00Wandering Mind? Try Accessorizing.It seems that the times I want to focus the most (especially on writing) are the exact times that my mind goes all Lord of the Flies on me and decides to run wild …<br /><br />Its like some mischievous six-year-old kid in pigtails has taken over my thoughts. One who has forgotten her daily dose of ADD <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">meds</span> and traded her healthy tuna sandwich and carrot stick lunch for 10 <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Oreos</span>, some pixie sticks and a pack of Ding-Dongs. Did I ever tell you I had a cat named Ding-dong? Yep, when I was a kid. And she has a sister cat named Esprit, but they both got sick and died a few weeks after we got them. Wait. Wait, where was I? Oh, yes focus and concentration. That’s right.<br /><br />So imagine my delight when, in the midst of my brain toggling at will between the best way to explain gerunds and infinitives, wanting to go to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Hong</span> Kong, contemplating the benefits of the pigeon pose in yoga, researching about <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Harajuku</span> girls in Japan, preparing for my first major conference presentation and thinking about throwing out the chicken that has been sitting in my fridge for 2 weeks, I come across the concept of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hachimaki"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">hachimaki</span></a>, a Japanese symbol of absolute concentration and dedication to the task at hand.<br /><br />My first thought was, I’<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">ve</span> got to get me one of these!<br /><br />The <a href="http://www.jun-gifts.com/specialcollections/headbands/headbands.htm"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">hachimaki</span></a>, a thin cloth headband sometimes bearing an encouraging slogan, is tied around one’s head when the wearer wants to signify a shift into a state of focused thought and energy. Picture Mr. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Miagi</span> and the Karate Kid. A student might wear one when studying for a grueling exam. Pilots wore them when heading into battle.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDPkJv7096cO9teXOiE8p4oWsQnTgxjw_MIe9dNrhUTzT2NzEECbCYfy2-Vb-7jOE-2_oyOReSr3XgiZjJuZkD5z6n0RRkxvA4XY9Mi4usjRBWpIKA7QpxgyB5sxpvHH_-OB6NNEPlPtzi/s1600-h/Hachimaki.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 151px; height: 216px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDPkJv7096cO9teXOiE8p4oWsQnTgxjw_MIe9dNrhUTzT2NzEECbCYfy2-Vb-7jOE-2_oyOReSr3XgiZjJuZkD5z6n0RRkxvA4XY9Mi4usjRBWpIKA7QpxgyB5sxpvHH_-OB6NNEPlPtzi/s200/Hachimaki.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5185574039482920930" border="0" /></a>Martial artists and Sumo wrestlers sport them in competitions. I can just picture myself walking into Borders, preparing to dedicate myself to whatever writing task I’m working on and pulling out my <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">hachimaki</span> and chopping through a brick with my hands on the coffee bar before sitting down to concentrate.<br /><br />I first came across the concept in a book I’m reading called <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/search?ie=UTF8&keywords=Japanland%3A%20A%20Year%20In%20Seach%20of%20Wa&tag=multicultur05-20&index=books&linkCode=ur2&camp=1789&creative=9325">Japanland: A Year In Seach of Wa</a><img src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=multicultur05-20&l=ur2&o=1" alt="" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important;" border="0" height="1" width="1" /> by Karin Muller. Karin describes the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">hachimaki</span> as "a symbol of intent - like pinning your New Year's diet to your sleeve and wearing it to brunch the next day."<br /><br />While certainly not a magic cure for the wandering mind, the idea of a tangible, visible reminder of my intentions is appealing to me. I think most of us have rituals that serve as the psychological doorway into a state of concentration and dedication, whether we’re aware of them or not. Closing the office door. Going for a run. Going to a special room or place outdoors. Listening to guided meditations or praying or practicing yoga. Driving around with the windows down singing “I Will Survive” off key until your voice goes hoarse. Tying on a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">hachimaki</span>. Do you have any type of custom that moves you into hard work or creative mode?<br /><br />I usually get out of the house and head to a place where I’m surrounded by books and/or coffee when I want to focus. Even though I already have some kind of ritual in place, I think I might find my own pink silk version of the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">hachimaki</span> to add to my repertoire. When the little girl in my brain is tugging me away from my endeavour, with her "Didn't you want to watch <span style="font-style: italic;">all</span> of the old episodes of Lost today?" and "Maybe you want to check your email for the 14th time? Oooh! Ooh! What about Spider Solitaire?!" maybe it'll help remind me to put her on mute and keep focused on my intentions.Jessicahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03681972776455438121noreply@blogger.com0