75 Books Every Woman Must Read

Jezebel just posted the 75 books every woman must read. Here's their list (with the ones I've read in orange, plus some comments):

The Lottery (and Other Stories), Shirley Jackson
To the Lighthouse, Virginia Woolf
The House of Mirth, Edith Wharton
White Teeth, Zadie Smith
The House of the Spirits, Isabel Allende
Slouching Towards Bethlehem, Joan Didion (Didion is an amazing writer. Before her, I never read non-fiction. Her prose is beautiful)
Excellent Women, Barbara Pym
The Bell Jar, Sylvia Plath
Wide Sargasso Sea, Jean Rhys (Read this in college, shortly after reading Jane Eyre. Our whole class was in love with Rochester, and did not want to hear Bertha's slander of him. All the same, this is a truly lovely book)
The Namesake, Jhumpa Lahiri
Beloved, Toni Morrison (I actually think I've read this, but I'm not sure).
Madame Bovary, Gustave Flaubert
Like Life, Lorrie Moore
Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen (Probably one of my all-time favorites. I have read it many times, and it still brings me to tears. Also one of the few successful film adaptions - the BBC/Colin Firth version, obviously)
Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë
The Delta of Venus, Anais Nin
A Thousand Acres, Jane Smiley
A Good Man Is Hard To Find (and Other Stories), Flannery O'Connor
The Shipping News, E. Annie Proulx
You Can't Keep a Good Woman Down, Alice Walker
Their Eyes Were Watching God, Zora Neale Hurston (Awesome. If you haven't read this, read it before any other on this list. Except Pride and Prejudice)
To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
Fear of Flying, Erica Jong
Earthly Paradise, Colette
Angela's Ashes, Frank McCourt
Property, Valerie Martin
Middlemarch, George Eliot
Annie John, Jamaica Kincaid
The Second Sex, Simone de Beauvoir (I was a philosophy major in college. I read most of this, but not, technically, all of it. I was so pissed to find Borders had categorized this as Wellness>Women's Studies, and not with the other philosophy books. They still categorize it this way and, while I sort of get it, I also hate it)
Runaway, Alice Munro
The Heart is A Lonely Hunter, Carson McCullers
The Woman Warrior, Maxine Hong Kingston
Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë
You Must Remember This, Joyce Carol Oates
Little Women, Louisa May Alcott
Bad Behavior, Mary Gaitskill
The Liars' Club, Mary Karr
I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings, Maya Angelou
A Tree Grows In Brooklyn, Betty Smith
And Then There Were None, Agatha Christie (I love mysteries of any sort)
Bastard out of Carolina, Dorothy Allison
The Secret History, Donna Tartt
The Little Disturbances of Man, Grace Paley
The Portable Dorothy Parker, Dorothy Parker (I wish I was as witty as Parker. She is my literary hero)
The Group, Mary McCarthy (McCarthy is under-appreciated)
Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi
The Golden Notebook, Doris Lessing
The Diary of Anne Frank, Anne Frank
Frankenstein, Mary Shelley (Surprisingly, this book has one of the most accurate descriptions of the feelings of loss after a loved one dies that I have ever read)
Against Interpretation, Susan Sontag
In the Time of the Butterflies, Julia Alvarez
The Good Earth, Pearl S. Buck
Fun Home, Alison Bechdel
Three Junes, Julia Glass
A Vindication of the Rights of Woman, Mary Wollstonecraft
Sophie's Choice, William Styron
Valley of the Dolls, Jacqueline Susann
Love in a Cold Climate, Nancy Mitford
Gone with the Wind, Margaret Mitchell (I read this in sixth grade, and can still remember finishing it, under the covers, around 3am, because I couldn't put it down. I had heard that line "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn." my whole life, and never would have thought it could possibly be as devastating as it was to actually read it)
The Left Hand of Darkness, Ursula K. LeGuin
The Red Tent, Anita Diamant
The Unbearable Lightness of Being, Milan Kundera
The Face of War, Martha Gellhorn
My Antonia, Willa Cather
Love In The Time of Cholera, Gabriel Garcia Marquez
The Harsh Voice, Rebecca West
Spending, Mary Gordon
The Lover, Marguerite Duras
The God of Small Things, Arundhati Roy
Tell Me a Riddle, Tillie Olsen
Nightwood, Djuna Barnes
Three Lives, Gertrude Stein
Cold Comfort Farm, Stella Gibbons
I Capture the Castle, Dodie Smith
Possession, A.S. Byatt

Bump Day?

Can I just say right now that I hate the popularization of the word "bump" to indicate pregnancy? I guess I can.

This has to be begging for a lawsuit. Wednesday, May 21st, Baskin Robins is celebrating "Bump Day" with a free 3oz soft-serve cone for expectant mothers with this coupon. Their site says it is for expectant mothers only.

Are they going to question any woman who tries to claim it without a readily-apparent "bump"?

Random Thoughts

1. Can someone tell me why Hanes decided to go with a campaign filled with homo-erotic undertones? I never got Kevin Bacon & Micheal Jordan playing grab-ass, and I really don't get Cuba Gooding Jr. "inadvertently" yelling embarrassing, easily-misinterpreted things like "I'm wearing your underwear!"

2. I have planted a ton of seeds this year. My miscalculation was that a) I might remember where I planted them, b) that I might remember what I planted and c) that I have the patience to wait for seeds to grow. Now I just want to go buy more flowers and plant them because waiting for seeds BLOWS.

3. This American Life is on-demand with WOW cable. Season 1 stops being available today. :(

4. WOW's DVR sucks ass. Way worse than Dish Network's. But I hated Dish Networks DVR so much, that it almost makes the craptastic WOW one ok. Like, if I can't have Tivo, I REALLY can't have it.

5. Our old Tivo died this weekend. :( RIP Barry. (I named my Tivo Barry. I don't know why. Possibly because we got the Tivo not long after we got Hank and Barry was one of the names I considered for Hank).

Fashion 911

I have a fashion emergency.

I am going to a black-tie gala on Friday. I didn't realize it was black tie until yesterday. I bought this dress from Macy's. I got really lucky. It was like 65% off plus yesterday was the last day of a friends and family event where any customer in the store qualified as friend & family and I got an extra 20% off.

It's not quite so neon, more of a kelly green, really.

My problem is shoes. And a purse. I was thinking I would wear the hot hot hot and so comfortable white patent leather pumps that I wore at my wedding. But, I also just ordered these from Zappos.com. I also have a white patent faux-leather clutch.

Here are the big questions:

1. Is white shoes with a white purse just too much?

2. Is a white patent clutch just no good to begin with? I love it, but sometimes, I am a little tacky.

3. It is supposed to rain on Friday. I have a black trench, but I know that, if it is raining, I will be cold. Is it ok to wear a bronz-ish wrap? It's a fake pashmina, but it isn't super-fancy. Sometimes I wear it with jeans. It is a for-serious black-tie deal - Mr is renting a tux. I don't want to look out of place.

4. What the heck do I do about accessories? Necklace? Earrings? Arg!

Dear readers, if you are out there, please help me. I'm a fashion moron when it comes to myself.

ps - the shoes may be a moot point. I ordered from Zappos, but they've stopped advertising and guaranteeing free overnight shipping. They claim that most customers will still get it overnight, but they only promise 4-5 business days. This will be the topic of another post, soon.

New and Improved (maybe)

I have a new look! I'm trying to get back into the habit of blogging regularly, and writing more focused posts. I started a good one yesterday, but then Blogger decided to be a butthead and wouldn't let me upload pictures. So, that should be up soon.

The guy in the banner is my first-ever sock monkey. I had a bunch of extra fabric from hemming some drapes, and I wanted to find a pattern to make a bear or something for a friend's baby shower. Instead of a bear pattern, I found a sock monkey pattern. The banner monkey was my test run and the much-improved second monkey was given to my friend. I'll add pictures soon.

Interesting Choice

So, Mr sent me a link to some shoes on Zappos.com. I found their description rather odd:

• Make an alternative fashion choice in the Chukka-Kan.
• Leather upper.
• Lace-up, half boot style.
• Stitch detailing on the front and around the midsole.
• Rubber sole. Placed here due to endless situation.

Check out that last point again. Any idea what that might mean? It seems like someone in the description-writing cave was feeling a little blue that day. For what endless situation might a rubber sole come in handy?

Post-Bridal Confusion

Not about the wedding or marriage itself, of course, but of the bridesmaid dresses. I really tried to pick generally flattering and possibly-useful-again dresses. But I know that all brides say that. I was feeling pretty good about my dresses. I thought all of my friends looked lovely and were kind of happy with them. Then I read this on Jezebel.

Mavis is my only 'maid who reads this blog, but anyone else who wants to comment, this is the style of dress:

The center dress is the style, the left-hand one was the body of the dress and the right-hand one was the trim. There was a more flattering style that I was going to choose, but it was over $300 and that seemed a bit excessive.

Sometimes, I sort of wish I had that kind of elaborate "dream" or "vision" of what my wedding would be, just so that I could see how far my friends would go for me. Then, I think about my friends. One of the things I love about them is that almost all of them would take me aside and calmly tell me that I'm delusional if I thought they would put on a hoop skirt for me. Some of them might even slap me if they felt it was called for. They're feisty bitches, and I love them.

Google Analytics

To the person searching for "ann curry nipples:"

What the hell were you looking for?


And I wonder what in my blog prompted google to send you here?

Christmas Dreaming

Christmas was lovely, even without a tree. We got up fairly early - I don't know if I've shared before, but I am what you would call and "active sleeper." When I dream, I frequently move around a lot and talk. Christmas morning started for Mr at 6am when I woke him up with my sobbing. I dreamt that someone had gotten chocolate all over my wedding dress. It was very, very real and devastating, though I don't know why. I know that, in the dream, the wedding was over, so it wasn't like it was ruined before the big day. I had actually been toying with the idea of reselling it.

I don't think my dress is symbolic of anything other than the fact that I spent most of the day on the 24th looking at pictures from our wedding. I'm working on making an album for my mother-in-law. Plus, there was nothing on TV in the morning, and I watched part of one of the wedding shows on Style Network or WE TV or something.

Those shows are interesting to me, and they got me to reflect on our wedding a bit. Now, I have to say, that I had a blast at our wedding. The only thing that went "wrong" was the limo driver getting lost. Even that didn't bother me too much, since I was just so happy to be getting married. It was almost a little bizarre how happy I was. I remember sitting in the limo, knowing that I should be upset with this knucklehead, but also knowing that I was the bride and they couldn't start without me. As long as we got there, it was ok.

In retrospect, there were a lot of things that happened that could have "ruined" the day for me, and would have for many of the brides on reality shows. The limo was late picking us up and got lost, but there were other things. The programs weren't handed out the way they should have been, the priest never said "you may kiss the bride" so we didn't kiss after saying our vows. They didn't have the readings for my readers, even though I had given it to them, so my brother never saw what he was supposed to read until he was up there, reading it. We would have been without it altogether, had not one of my aunt's been really on the ball. We started an inadvertent receiving line after the ceremony, which shorted our picture time even more, so we missed out on some pictures. No one told my grandma to hang around so I have no pictures of me with her.

The florist, despite numerous reminders from me, made my bouquet huge and in a plastic holder-thingy even though I explicitly said I wanted it hand-tied and the same size as my bridesmaids. The cake decorations were also in a terrible plastic/doily looking thing. My mother-in-law took the right boutonniere off of him after the ceremony and put on the rose that his grandfather was supposed to wear but didn't because, well, grandpa doesn't do anything he doesn't want to do. She claims it was labeled "groom" and he backs her up (even though he knew that he was supposed to be different and not the same as his guys, because he was there and helped make the choice of his flower. He said he just figured something had changed). So, in the pictures after the ceremony, he has a white rose in his lapel and during the ceremony it is a dark red calla lily.

In many of the pictures, my in laws are looking at one of the aunts who was hanging around instead of the professional photographer we hired. My aunt who fancies herself a photographer followed us up to the golf course and then, after I politely said that was enough, proceeded to help herself to the champagne and strawberries set aside in the little room we were supposed to wait in before being announced.

The reception hall initially had a sign up that said "Congratulations Rita & Mike!" Mr's name is NOT Mike. His grandmother corrected them and they actually tried to argue with her.

So, lots of things didn't go the way we planned. But it was all ok. Because what mattered was that we were there. All of those other things? They're just amusing anecdotes. Sure. I wish everything was perfect and amazing. But, you know what? It was. Even with all of that stuff, it was just perfect. Sure, I wish Mr had the same flower on his jacket throughout the day. But we got married, we danced a lot, the cake was delicious, and our pictures are fantastic, even if there are some shots we didn't get.

The point is, on a lot of the wedding reality shows, these people act as if the world is ending because their flowers are not what they pictured, or they only have cream and not off-white chair covers. I'm saying that if you are focusing on the details of your wedding instead of the actual wedding, then you should take a step back and think about why you're getting married in the first place.

I had meant to write about Christmas, but I got a little sidetracked. I'll come back to Christmas tomorrow.

The End is Near

Which means that Hawai'i is near. Which is a very, very good thing.

My wedding is fifteen days and a wake-up (as my dad would say) away. I have no idea how it went from months and months away to OhMyGodItIsF'ingTOMORROW, but it did, and I was a little taken aback. I made a big list, Mr finally saw the urgency of the matter and pitched in, and we're well on our way. I've picked the readings for the ceremony, my mom found musicians for the ceremony, we met with our band leader, I booked pre- and wedding-night hotel rooms, confirmed the flowers, and made an appointment with the priest. I'm getting a test-drive of my hair-do on Saturday just before Mr & I go pick out his ring. Shit is MOVING.

On one hand, I'm kind of stressed because, um, it is so very soon. On the other hand, I do not have to power to create time, so I also have a moderately-zen "there's only so much time in the day and so much I can do in a day" sort of approach. I would like to have my immediate family over for dinner Thursday night, since most of them have not seen my house, and I would like to host a brunch Sunday for the rest of my family, but all of that requires planning, which requires time, which I do not have.

I've also developed a zen attitude towards my weight. I've gained some of the weight that I had lost back. Not a ton, the dress still fits, but I don't know if I'll wear the bikini I bought for the honeymoon. I mean, I am NOT a bikini girl, but I wanted to be for the honeymoon. But, and here's where the zen comes in, I can't lose five (or ten, or fifteen, if we're counting was I was hoping to lose) pounds in fifteen days. Not going to happen. It will be fine. My dress ROCKS and is loverly. As for Hawai'i? Mr seems to dig me, and I probably won't see any of those people again, so either I'll be brave and wear the bikini, or I won't and I'll wear the one-piece. Or I'll compromise and wear the bikini but won't ever take my cover-up off. Regardless, there will be alcohol in pineapples and I will be happy.

Oh yeah, and I just found out I passed the Masters' Exam. I am officially a smarty-pants!

Like a Fool

I was going through my copy of “Preparing the Roman Catholic Liturgy: A Workbook for Engaged Couples,” looking for the appropriate readings for our wedding ceremony, and I found this:

Matthew 7:21, 24-29

Jesus said to his disciples: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the Kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.
“Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock. And everyone who listens to these words of mine but does not act on them will be like a fool who built his house on sand. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. And it collapsed and was completely ruined.”

I couldn’t help but feel a connection to the words “The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. And it collapsed and was completely ruined.” Our house is built neither on rock nor sand, but perhaps there’s a lesson here. I'm not sure what that lesson is. Sure, there’s a message about following the teachings of Jesus, but I think the choice of metaphor is interesting. For us, the metaphor is the reality. “The rain fell … the winds blew and buffeted .. the it collapsed and was [partially] ruined.” Fortunately, we have insurance, and someday they might even pay us something that will hopefully help fund the rebuilding efforts. We will rebuild, not on rock but also not on sand, and hopefully, that will be ok.

Things I Wanted to Tell You

1. Julia Quinn's novels are like crack for me. I bought two more of the Bridgerton series, planning to read them later. Like, when I'm done with the 10,000 pages I have to read for the MAE exam and my upcoming summer class. I've already finished one and grabbed the second on my way out the door this morning. I wish I lived way far away so that my train ride was hours and hours long, because I CAN'T STOP READING. I love them. I know that I need to do other stuff, but I can't not read these when they are in my reach. It is all I can do not to read it at my desk, at work.

2. I've applied for a new job that I really, really, really, really want, bad. So bad that I called my old boss, made nice, and asked if she had any connections. She did, but who knows how solid they are. Cross your fingers for me.

3. I need to remind myself that, in publishing, summer Fridays are 1/2 days, so the contact that I emailed about the potential new job will NOT respond, no matter how many times I check my email.

4. We're putting carpet tile in the basement this weekend, which will allow us to finally unpack completely and set up a nice house. After that, we have to paint the kitchen, stairs, hall, and living room and we will be presentable for the world. Not that I ever invite anyone over anyway, because I am a person who likes to be home alone, but you know. I could.

5. I really want this job. I feel a little nauseous and I have a headache because I am worrying about it so much.

6. Prepare yourself for the return of the Girl's Guide to Sports. If no one sends me questions - recordstorerita@hotmail.com - I will choose the topics myself. You won't know the difference, though, because I will fake questions. Maybe. I haven't really decided. I have several column ideas, and I want to get some in the bag and decide on a regular schedule.

Kids Say the Darndest Things

So, Mavis wants something to do at work. You know, besides her job. Whenever I am too busy to blog, I have a million ideas of things I want to remember to say here. When I have time - which, actually, right now I do not - I can think of nothing to say. But, I didn't want Mavis to be bored and forced to actually work - what would she do if she started turning in things before deadline? She might be forced to work MORE. And I just can't be responsible for that.

Thankfully, Bitch PhD has provided me with some material. She recently wrote about her son's fashion advice here. Definitely worth a quick read.

Her son's advice reminded me of a similarly offensive, yet funny, comment one of my cousins made to me.

This particular cousin is about ten years younger than me. We were at my parents' house during a family reunion. It was summer in Georgia, so I was wearing a little summer dress that was kind of fitted. It was the summer after my freshman year of college, where I had gained the requisite 15 (ok, probably more) pounds. I was never, ever thin, but I had been in better shape. My cousin, who was about 8 at the time, looks up at me and says "You're chubby. But you're cute!"

Um... thanks? I think she truly meant it as a compliment. She was, and still sort of is, stick-thin, as is her mother. Most of my family is pretty athletic, and I think she was genuinely surprised to see someone "chubby" who she really thought was cute. Though I knew she really thought she was giving me a compliment, it was really hard not to punch her cute little face.

There are more (lots more) funny things kids have said here. Enjoy. But, be forewarned, there's a lot here and it is very entertaining, so if you have something that needs to be done, you should do it first.

Happy Birthday To Me!

My birthday present from Hank:

Mr took me to Gibson's to celebrate. We finished off an awesome steak dinner with the Big Banana Dream Cake. I don't know if you can really get the sense of proportion in this picture - it was taken with my cell phone - but that piece of cake weighed about four pounds and could feed a small village for at least a couple of days. I'm hoping to finish it off this weekend. Note: the piece of cake is almost as tall as my wine glass, and probably a good solid eight inches across.

iCraziness

I went at lunch with a friend from work to the Apple store on Michigan Avenue. He was going to wait in line for the iPhone, and I wanted to get a shuffle. I've wanted a shuffle for a while and figured I should get it before the whole world went nuts for the iPhone.

I have an iPod, but it is a really old one - huge by today's standards, two-color screen - and I want one I can run with easily without dropping it. Hence, the shuffle.

All Apple stores are closed today from 2-6 in preparation for the release of the iPhone at 6. We tried to leave earlier but got stuck with work, and I didn't get to the store until 1:45. The line was already out of site and an Apple employee and a security guard were manning the door. So, we walk up, and she tells us they're already closing. I told her I knew what I wanted, and was hoping to beat the crowd, and she just said they were already shut down. Instantly, I'm f'ing pissed. Now, I know that's a little ridiculous. My timing sucks. But I didn't want to go to any Apple store this weekend, and I really wanted the damned thing. My friend repeats that I know what I want - just a shuffle (which I had left out) - and a manager overhears. They call me back. I get the shuffle. The Apple employee apologizes.

*phew* for a minute there? I was afraid that my love of Apple might be tainted. I mean, I have never really had a negative customer experience there, and I have always loved any product they've produced. It would stink if their Next Big Thing ruined my love of them. It would have made pining over my friend's new iPhone really tough.

The upside of him getting an iPhone is that I will be getting a new Razor. True, everyone on the planet has had one for like two years, but I haven't, I hate my phone and I really didn't want to give T-Mobile any more money. He got a free Razor for switching to AT&T, and won't need it after he gets his new toy, so I get it (I'm paying him a little something, though he is so nice he wouldn't take much). So, I'm happy. Woo-hoo! New toys for me!

He's currently waiting in a line that, when I left him at the back of it, stretched from the front door, around the corner, down the block, around that corner, and about 1/2 way down the next block. Granted, they have parts blocked off, so no one is blocking streets or alleys, but man. I couldn't do that. Of course, I'm happy with a new phone that is two years old.

What I Learned Last Night

margaritas+no food= bad

Sorry, Rabbit

My apologies to the bunnies. They were not responsible for the flower carnage. It was some sort of nocturnal, evil creature. Probably a raccoon. The good news is, the mulch we put down seems to have convinced them to torture some other garden. Or, there are no more flowers left on the dahlias and they went to find greener pastures. Either way, the garden is making a recovery, woo!

Some Letters

Dear Bunnies,

Aren't the new flowers pretty? Mr did such a good job laying out the flower bed with the white and purple petunias (I think...) and the dahlias. I love dahlias. They're so pretty, with the big round flowers with a million perfect petals. And these dahlias are such a rich, beautiful red.

I did not buy them and plant them as food for you. Please stop eating my flowers. While I'm sure they are delicious, they haven't even been in the ground for a week yet. They're annuals, so they won't be back next year, and you're really ruining my enjoyment of them. Aren't you supposed to love Hostas?

Please notice the massive hostas lining the garage and the front walk and in various other places around the yard. Feel free to eat the hostas as much as you like. They're awesome! Plus, they came with the house and I'm not crazy about them. Please, eat the hostas. Give my Dahlias a fighting chance.

Thanks,
Rita

Dear Dude who works out a lot,

Wow. You must be at the gym all the time. It's clearly paying off, what with your massive pecs and rippling biceps. I wish I could spend some serious time in a gym, but I'm having a hard time finding one convenient to me. But I digress.

I think you're dedication to your health is impressive. I like that you're putting your best foot forward, however, I think maybe in your gym obsession, you have lost sight of the ultimate goal: to look good in clothes.

I know. You spend a lot of time working on those pecs and delts and whatever, and you want people to know that you are in top physical condition. However, wearing a polo three sizes too small makes the wrong impression. See, when I saw you, the first thought I had was "wow. He works out a LOT." Had you been wearing clothes that fit you, I would have thought "Wow. That guy is hot." See the distinction? You want people to think that you are just really put-together and attractive, not that you spend all your free time working out (even if that is the case). Trust me, clothes that fit will not hide your physique. You'll still look strong, but you'll also look sharp - a total package.

Best,
Rita

Dear Ladies who commute,

Doesn't the walk from the train suck? My office is a little over a mile from the train, so I know it can be a hike. This, however, is no excuse for those shoes. I know you don't want to trek all over downtown in high heels. Even if your office is only two blocks from the train, I understand. Hey, maybe you never wear heels. That's cool too. But please, please, stop wearing those ugly "comfortable" shoes. Just because they are black leather does NOT mean that they are office-appropriate. Really, there is no situation where those are appropriate.

See, you don't have to wear the shoes you walk to the office in while you're in the office. You see all those ladies in nice suits or slacks with sneakers on? They don't wear them in the office. They have another pair of shoes, something really cute that goes with their outfit, but isn't so great for long walks, tucked into their bags. They get to the office and they change their shoes. They change back before they walk to the train to go home. It's a great system. Try it.

Ta,
Rita

Hiatus

Hank wants you to know that if this were his blog it would be way more interesting. He'd bring you fun stuff everyday, like this picture of him and the only toy he hasn't completely destroyed. See how sweet he is? It's no wonder I'd rather sit on the couch with him than work.




It's finals time. I have to expand a unit plan and write a research paper on The Divine Comedy.

In the meantime, I won't be posting, though I keep having ideas of stuff to write, because I don't want to write the stuff I have to write.

The unit plan is coming along. I'm supposed to expand a plan I already did, which shouldn't take long because I did more than I was supposed to the first time around. However, I've discovered that I can't just half-ass it, probably because I recognize that I very well might teach this unit plan sometime in the near future.

The research paper has me worried.

Expect something slightly more interesting after the 13th (when the last of it is due).

In the meantime, check out my new glasses! (comic-book style).


You can't really tell, but the frames are sort of amber. I think they're groovy.

Some Late Commentary

So, not long after my last post, Rosie quit The View. I'm so disappointed in her. Her feelings are hurt, and she's letting it get in the way of her job. I mean, it was obvious to everyone that everyone involved was glad she was leaving at the end of the season. But, they all seemed to be dealing with it fairly well. She should have completed her obligation. I think it is kind of sad that she couldn't have held a debate with Elizabeth (who could seriously use a nickname! "Elizabeth" is just too long) about their opposing beliefs without it turning into an argument about who is being a bad friend and whose feelings are hurt. I'm sure the media scrutiny isn't easy, but it seems like Rosie was the only one I ever heard using terms like "fat, mean, lesbian" to describe herself.

I had other stuff I was going to say, about a lot of other topics, but I still have to write something about the Paradiso. Heaven is so boring, I swear. Thirty-three cantos and not a thing I want to talk about. Hell was so much more interesting.

Coming soon: Pictures! I am going to take pictures of the finished bathroom tomorrow - I've decided to wait until someone buys the nice towels for me off the registry, so I'm putting up pictures with our old non-matching towels. Also, we got bookshelves for what will now be referred to as "The Library" because, that's where I'm keeping my books. This is the first time in my life that I have had more shelves than books and it's AWESOME. Of course, this too will change once I go back to my parents' house in June and send the rest of my books back to myself. I'm so excited to have them all together again!