Read it: Christine Falls by Benjamin Black

This was a pretty good mystery from Irish writer John Banville ( winner of the Man Booker award for his novel The Sea) writing under the pseudonym Benjamin Black. This is not a typical whodunit mystery but a peel back the layers type mystery (thanks to Lazygirl's review on goodreads.com for highlighting the difference). This is a pretty quick read. Black gives the plot lots of interesting twists and turns as Quirke, the main character unravels the mystery that involves him without him really being a part of those who know the truth. There are lots of surprises. I guess I was a little disappointed in the final 50 pages or so, but I think that is more because I was expecting a typical whodunit, not something that involves so many people. Also I wonder if the whole "mystery" could have been avoided with a little forthrightness, instead the plot feels almost sitcom like. I almost feel like this could be consider just general fiction.

Petted it: Junior, the Elizabeth Taylor of the dog world

Yet again, Junior has injured himself. This time it is a torn toenail that is bleeding and painful. I tried to trim it myself, but he yelped and then was shaking (sad and cute at the same time) which required me to give him reassuring hugs "there there, there there". I am perfectly prepared to perform a tracheotomy if needed. I am pretty sure all I need is a ball point pen.
Today is Junior's estimated birthday (he is 45 according to the weight/ year chart at the vet's) , nothing like a trip to the vet. Luckily, he only got the nail trimmed, not as far back as where it is broken. The tech also trimmed the rest of his nails. Junior got a day at the spa for his birthday!

He is worth it though. Yesterday he played gentle giant with Lily (our friend Tom's little girl). She loves petting Junior and he loves being petted. In many circles, Junior is known as the Mr Darcy of the dog world. He is also a super genius and as proof:


Junior prefers standing in two rooms at once, if that isn't brilliant, I don't know what is. Junior, smartest dog ever!

Read it: A Golden Age by Tahmima Anam

I judged a book by the (beautiful) cover and boy, am I glad I did! This is an excellent first book by Bangladeshi born writer Tahmima Anam. Anam delivers a powerful story about Rehana and her young adult children trying to survive during the liberation war fought against Pakistan. Anam does a good job capturing the strong bond between mother and child as she becomes as involved in the liberation of Bangladesh as her children. This story is very moving and has a surprise ending. It is the first in a trilogy, I look forward to more from this new author.
(you probably cannot tell from the picture but the design on the front has a layered, stamp look---it is really pretty)

Read it: Dearly Devoted Dexter by Jeff Lindsay (audio book)

This was the most gruesome thing I have ever read/listened to on audio. I wanted to tell Jerry about it but I just couldn't, it was that disturbing. It was suspenseful to the very last minute. The reader on this audio book is also really good. I may even like him more than the actor who portrays Dexter in the Showtime series (Michael C. Hall). I have a feeling the show may not use this plot for the show. I cannot imagine how they would pull it off....

*I tried to go see There Will Be Blood tonight using a free preview pass. I invited lots of people to join me. We got there only to find out that the movie did not come in...d-oh! The good news is we can use the pass for the movie in the future and they are going to mail us two passes for any movie.

Read it: Happiness is an Inside Job: practicing for a joyful life by Sylvia Boorstein PhD

This is the first time I have ever read a "self-help" book, however, I do think I picked a good one. I just liked the title, and was unsure what the book was about. I really enjoyed it and it has helped me tremendously. I like(d) to dwell on things a little too much, especially things I have no control over, sometimes constantly re-living the past, or imagining the future, anything but living in the present.Sylvia teaches you why and how to avoid this through Buddhist concepts. She is good at explaining things and gives really good examples to illustrate. The book is well written. Sylvia teaches and when reading the book I feel like she is speaking to me. I feel like this book has made a big impact on me already. I will probably read more by her, read similar books or re-read this one. Many of the things she talked about I naturally do. I think you can choose to be happy even when life throws you challenges.

The cold is getting better. I canceled my doctors appointment this am. I still have a few days to go I think, but feeling 100% is on the horizon! I am also happy that I will not need to take an anti-biotic.

Read it: The Innocent Man by John Grisham

I had been wanting to read this and finally made time for it as a book club selection. I am usually not a big Grisham fan (pretty indifferent, I guess) but I do like my non-fiction. This story is really compelling as he follows the life of Ron Williamson, an all-American small town boy whose only dream is to play major league baseball. Williamson is drafted to play but things don't go as planned. He turns to drugs and alcohol to assuage his lost dreams and mental illness (bipolar). He (and his friend Dennis Fritz-sentenced to life) spent 11 years on death row for a crime he did not commit.
The Innocent Man addresses the American justice system in a fact-based, thoughtful book. Whether or not you are for or against the death penalty, it is not hard to see that the judicial system constantly mocks justice with corruption, prejudice and inefficiencies.

What I also find is heartbreaking is the many years Ron spent getting inadequate care for his mental illness. Part of it you can definitely blame on the system (not being kept on meds while being incarcerated, being over medicated by prison staff, being taunted by prison staff, etc) , but also with mental health problems that is just the nature of the beast. It is very difficult for families to cope with adults who suffer from mental illness and get them the help they need.

Grisham does a great job stepping back and giving people a look at the big picture. I think knowing that the injustices suffered were part of the system is an important part of the book. Also, I think if the injustices were an anomaly, I would probably be less interested and outraged.
Grisham does a fair job writing this, not great but straightforward. I feel like he did the same job anyone else would do, but being John Grisham got some instant recognition.

My cold feels like it could be easing up some. I have an appetite for food with flavor and to celebrate Jerry is making Chicken Parmesan. I have a doctors appointment in the morning but who knows, maybe I will be able to skip it. I look forward to being less couch-ridden, however it did allow for some quality reading time:)

Irrigated it: my nasal passage

I have had a cold for exactly one week. In desperation I decided to try out a neti pot. I heard of this before and my friend Skip and co-worker Linda swear by it. I have used saline nasal spray in the past, especially during the winter months when the air is dry (ok, when it is not in the low 70s). I love the neti pot. Something was very unsettling about pouring water in my nose. I thought about those times at the pool when I was a kid and got chlorinated water in my nose , not pleasant. But this is awesome. It is warm and then once the saline finally makes it through, you can blow your nose a lot. I even found an old Barbie shoe I shoved up there when I was 5...well, not really...but I did find gold!
My mom and my niece went to Paint a Pot (one of those ceramic you paint it pottery places that my 7 year old niece has been dying to go to forever) today. I wish they had a neti pot to paint: Out , out damn snot!

Read it: Chocolat by Joanne Harris

I had to read this for work. It was ok. Better than what I imagine the movie to be, but then again, how bad can a movie be if it has Johnny Depp in it. The books was told from the perspective of several main characters. This really got tedious sometimes, not adding to character development or furthering the plot. Many times I wanted to put it down but....
I also found the ending a little confusing and that stinks because I had to suffer through to get to the ending.

Watched it: Jane Eyre

Jerry and I watched Jane Eyre on PBS. I think it was a really good adaptation of the book. It is hard to cram a story into 4 hours and they did a good even handed job. The only problem I had with the movie is the actress who portrayed Jane Eyre....really not attractive....
Jane Eyre was not supposed to be a looker but come on! She was like Jerry's girlfriend on Seinfeld who was pretty except in certain light...that is the way she looked all the time. I thought maybe it was her circumstance that made her eww but, nope , even when she was happy she was not attractive. Usually they cast someone who is really pretty but then downplay their looks until it is their time to shine.
Rochester was really handsome and fiery. And the love scenes were pretty intense!
I look forward to seeing other adaptations in the future (maybe not the one with George C Scott as Rochester)

Watched it: 3 movie weekend

Friday night we rented Ocean's Thirteen. It was good. I guess the best thing about it (other than George Clooney, the best thing of anything starring George Clooney) was Casey Affleck. In the movie he was supposed to sabotage some dice in a South of the Border dice factory, instead he led the workers in a revolt. It was entertaining and worth watching, especially if you like heist movies. ~recommend~
Saturday I saw Atonement with my friend Stacy. I read the book by Ian McEwan on her recommendation and loved it. The movie was an excellent representation of the book. James McEvoy is quite the hottie (no George Clooney, of course, that would be impossible). One of my favorite things about the movie was the music. Often they turned a monotonous sound (like the sound of a typewriter) into the beginnings of intense music. I also like how the delicately handled a not so delicate word that plays a big part in the plot, very clever--it was never once uttered, but it still had a huge impact. We both thought reading the book is a good idea before watching the movie. ~highly recommend~

I have been on the couch ever since returning from that movie with the worst cold ever.
Really it is bad. I haven't had a fever, but I feel wretched. Really bad sore throat and stuffy nose. While Jerry and Scott watched football, I watched Waitress upstairs. It was cute. Keri Russell's cohorts in the movie were hilarious. It made me want to bake a pie! ~recommend~

Read it: Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen

This as a quick, entertaining read. Garden Spells is a first novel by Asheville native Sarah Addison Allen (click on her name for her excellent website including recipes mentioned in the novel). Her novel is very reminiscent of Alice Hoffman with lots of magical realism. The main character, Claire, is a caterer who prepares food using flowers and herbs from her special garden (the book includes a back of the book glossary of uses for different flowers). Her and her family are known for their special gifts but this is more of a burden in a lot of ways. Everything changes when her long lost sister returns home.
I look forward to checking out Allen's next novel!

Celebrated it: Happy New Year

Wow, another year. I almost went to bed last night at quarter till midnight, I forgot about ringing in the new year. But , I made it and we kissed. There were lots of fireworks in the area last night. We could see and hear them from our front porch. That was a pleasant surprise.

No resolutions this year except my usual: refer to the bathroom as the "terlet". This has been my resolution for a few years and it is a good one. Pretty low pressure...the resolution not the terlet....