Book Group and a Mysterious Pain

I went to book group last night in which we discussed The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards. We had a lovely selection of nibbles and then could either make tacos, taco salad, or burritos from an assortment of ingredients. Everyone liked the book, but it did promote interesting debate. It is the story of a doctor in 1964 whose wife goes into labor during a snow storm and he delivers their twins with the assistance of his nurse. The daughter is born with Downs Syndrome and he makes a fatal mistake in believing their lives would be better if she were institutionalized. He sends the baby off with the nurse and tells his wife that she died. The book deals with the consequences of this decision.

I have a severe pain in my left shoulder and down my left arm that has become increasingly uncomfortable. It began last week but today has been miserable. Hard to say if it is stress, arthritis, or something else altogether.

Because I had finished The Memory Keeper's Daughter, I was able to start Murder in Chinatown, the latest by Victoria Thompson. I've waited a year for this one and would really like to savor it, but I'm already 1/3 of the way thru. I should have it finished by tomorrow...unless I go see Harry Potter.

Tallying Up

The results of a week-end with nothing in particular to do. The only shopping was a brief stop at Publix. And it is scarry!

Pedicure $25.00 + tip $30.00
Oil change and car wash $63.00
Movie and snacks $18.00
Chinese take-out $14.00*
Trip to supermarket $35.00
Brief visit to eBay $40.00
Tank of gas $37.00
Book from library 0.00

Total $237.00

Yikes! I'll have to carry my lunch all week to fit in a trip to see Harry Potter.

Paris Je'Taime

A friend and I went to see this yesterday and I highly recommend it. If you've not heard, it is a series of shorts by different directors...love stories set in Paris. Eighteen stories, sweet, sad, bizarre and all with amazing performances.

My favorites included the young English couple in the cemetery looking for the grave of Oscar Wilde, the Cohen brothers tale with Steve Buscemi, the vampire story with Elijah Wood, the old married couple with Bob Hoskins. There is the bittersweet tale of a nanny who abandons her own child at day care to tend for the infant of someone else. And the older couple saying good-bye with Ben Gazzara and Gena Rolwands. But the most poignant is the story of a man who has fallen out of love with his wife, ready to leave her for his mistress, when they discover she is dying.

The best line from the entire movie...In pretending to be a man in love, he became a man in love.

Now I must vent. Do you remember when the matinee price of a movie was $4.00 and was for movies showing before 6:00. It really hasn't been that long ago. The matinee price kept going up, and the last matinee I saw was $6:50. Still for movies showing before 6 p.m. Yesterday, the movie showtime was at 3:05. The matinee price was $6.50....FOR MOVIES SHOWING BEFORE 3:00. How can you possibly charge $9.00 for a movie that starts at 3:05? The good people at Regal Cinemas may have just seen the last of me for a while.

Hello Carmac!

How Could This Happen?

I stopped by the Food Lion near the office this morning. I was feeling frisky
and decided to bring my co-workers the makings for root beer floats. First, they were out of Diet A&W. I picked up a 2 liter of regular A&W and a 2 liter of the store brand diet root beer. Then I picked up some Solo cups and a cheap scoop before heading over the the freezer section of the store. And guess what? No vanilla ice cream?! No vanilla bean, no sugar free vanilla, nada. Bryers, Mayfield, Purity, Blue Bell, and the store brand and no vanilla. How does a supermarket not have vanilla ice cream?

So I put everything back and headed into work...no treats today!

Fireworks, Sunday Gravy, and George Clooney

I went with a couple of friends on Tuesday night to see Ocean's 13. It was good...not gread. Quite forgetable. Better than the last, not as good as the first. But George Clooney looked good. So did Brad Pitt. And Ellen Barken. Wow!

Oh! and great previews! I really want to see Vantage Point. It looks like the kind of movie that will make my leg jiggle all the way through it.

Yesterday I slept in...I didn't get up until 6:30. I was at Publix by 7:30 and I purchased the things I needed to make Sunday Gravy. My lack of ethnicity has started to grate and so I've decided to become Italian. I used Vita Grecco's recipe and let it cook all day. I ate about 6:30 last night and it was excellent. And I'll have more today for lunch, and tomorrow for lunch and ....

Bookgroup tonight and we are discussing my book, so I dug in last night to read it. Red Leaves by Thomas Cook. What a downer! So well written, but the topic is heart-breaking. Eric Moore is an average guy who as made a nice life for himself. A happy marriage with one teen-aged son who is, like most teens, sullen and quiet. When the child his son was babysitting turns up missing, Eric's world falls apart.

And finally, last night my neighbors celebrated the birth of a nation by getting drunk and setting off fireworks...outside my window. Luckily, I had taken precautions yesterday and soaked my grass. I wonder about the mentality of someone who will ignite fireworks in a residential neighborhood in the midst of a drought. Hmmmm.....

Traffic

The day before a holiday. Traffic should be light, but it was rather heavy this morning. Lots of out of state plates. My guess is folks headed for the gulf.

I admit that I drive far too fast. But I've been trying to slow down some and save a little gas. And I always slow down in the construction zones. I pass through one construction area each day on my way to and from work. There is one of those signs on the side of the road that flashes your speed as you pass by...I knew that I was going too fast at 70, but then a gold Impala with so many Mardi Gras beads around the rear view mirror it had to limit visibility flew past me at 98 mph. What was the blond bimbo driving this thing thinking?!

Then, in the quieter portion of the trip, past the mall and into a more rural area, I noticed a two toned car in my rear view mirror. The left of the car was lavender, the right was robins egg blue. It was coming on fast. I was in the middle lane, it was in the left so I felt safe, until he seemed to be aiming for me. Twice. Eventually he found whatever it was he was looking for in the floor of the car, managed to get control of the vehicle, and moved on.

I got to work a little grayer today.

BTW--what is the deal with the Mardi Gras beads lately? I see more cars with them draped over the rear view mirror...from three or so to 30 or more. I remember the trend from when I was in my twenties but I hadn't seen them in years. Why the resurrection of such an annoying trend? They make noise and get limit visibility. OMG! I've turned into a grumpy old lady. How long until I start complaining about the youngsters and their music?

Beauty Shop

Not a hair salon, an old fashioned beauty shop. I took Mom Saturday to have her hair done. She got a cut and a perm and caught up on the gossip. She was, possibly, the youngest patron there. And her walker was not alone in the corner. I remember the days of going with her to have her hair set on Saturday, reading the trashy magazines and drinking soda from a returnable bottle. Quite a trip back into time.

Then, today Dad called me at work. I was terrified. But he just wanted my opinion on something. Seems the big stereo my dear sister and I gave them for their 25th wedding anniversary has become a nuisance. It is big with tall speakers, a turntable and a dual cassette. I think it may be Pioneer. Anywho, Dad wants to get rid of it, but doesn't want to hurt our feelings. He asked if I wanted it. I do not. I assured him that the fact it is still in good condition after 25 years and that they did get pleasure out of it for most of thse 25 years was enough for me.

Now what my sister will say....