Book Review

In response to my sister's rave reviews, I determined that the next book I read would be a T. Jefferson Parker mystery. I quickly contacted Amazon and told them to send me California Girl. I didn't realize that my parents have the book in their vast mystery library, but I can spend $7.99 on a book, right? Amazon was swift in getting the paperback to my front door. This all went down a week ago. I was all set.

The cover art is pretty good, with a girl's (I think) body either floating in water or running in the park. I can't really tell. There's a blurb on the front from the Wall Street Journal that says, "A gripping, atmospheric saga... an unforgettable book." High praise!

On the inside back cover there's a photo of Mr. Parker looking kinda early 1990's style. All in all, he looks like someone who could write an interesting book.

Okay... I haven't read it yet. Not a word of it. I actually haven't even read the entire description on the back cover. I haven't had time to read lately. That's astonishing, as I was reading a book every one-to-two days only a few months ago. I just have lots of stuff to do. There's Simon and my job (I manage to work part-time from my pc at home), and Summer Theater is starting next Monday, and I have been working on script and music issues. The most I can do with California Girl is look at it. Soon, though, I should be able to squeeze the first chapter in.

I have read the last line of the back cover description. Here it is: "And no one will emerge from the wreckage unscathed." Not too shabby.

I've Got a Wiggle Monster

In just this last week my sweet little Simon has become a little wiggle monster. He can't stop moving. He's starting to creep when we put him down. He spins around and rolls and grabs everything he can reach. Nothing and no one is safe. When I pick him up, he swivels around to check out what's going on behind him. When I put him down on his changing table, the first thing he does is roll over and start playing with the back railing. It's getting really hard to change his diaper, and I have to use the safety belt when I take a few steps away, lest he plunge to his doom in a fit of squirming. And he's constantly babbling. His current favorite sound is "dah." He talks all day, and last night when I put him back down after his 2 a.m. feeding, he kept himself up for about ten minutes just talking away.

My main function these days is carrying out Operation Fatten Up Simon, and my job has gotten so much harder. He's burning more calories than ever, and he is so busy interacting with the world it's hard to get his attention when I'm feeding him. He loves to eat, but he loves to move more I guess. It's sometimes hard to get him to stop talking long enough to take a bite. I take my opportunities when I see them, so I try shoving spoonfuls in whenever his mouth is open. This often backfires, as he likes to talk with the mouthful and spit it out in the process. When I breastfeed him, he takes frequent (every 5 seconds sometimes) breaks to twist his head around and see what's going on. This results in sprayed milk, which is why I sometimes call him Milk Face. Annoying.

It's Britney, Bitch

No, seriously it's not. I just wanted to be like all those other blogs who post about Britney. Except I don't have anything bad to say about her. In fact, for the first time ever I find I find myself kind of liking her. It's all the crazy that she is. She's a spectacular mess.

The only problem is I have that damn song of hers stuck in my head. Here's a better version ("Gimme Gimme Shoes"):

Ladies & Gentlemen... The Ugliest House I've Seen

It's a few streets away from my parents' house and I've been meaning to take a photo of it for at least a month. Today I finally remembered to bring the camera and do it. These people PAINTED THE STONES BLUE. I've never seen anything like it. Click the picture to see it in its full-size glory.

Important note: Taking photos of a house while the owners are home can make you feel like a stalker. Be quick.

If this is your house, I apologize.

Random Odd Crap In My Purse

* Gift summary from my 2nd baby shower (yes, from October)

* Three sample packs of Pledge Multi Surface wipes ("This wipe cleans it all!")

* A receipt from the Kaiser pharmacy for Orajel, from April 22. And Simon's still not teething.

* A note from 9/7/07 that says "Good last name: Thogmartin"

* A tampon. Odd because I haven't needed one for well over a year now.

* A note quoting Laura from 5/19/05 that says "Grr... Last-minute transsexuals."

* An appointment card from my OB/Gyn dated 7/13/07.

* A note with an idea about making yarn (with a spinning wheel) in fast food shades, like "MacDonalds Yarn," and "Taco Bell Yarn."

* A note quoting Michael from 9/13/07: "The future's so hot I gotta wear shorts."

And I'm not taking any of these things out of my purse. They must all stay there and keep me company on trips away from home.

Ready To Go

Our pool is finished and it's so much better than before.



Now we can go swimming without pool paint rubbing off on us!

I Bought a Baby Scale

So I can more obsessively monitor Simon's growth.