I can read.

I thought I would be busily writing the taiko newsletter this week, but it has been scheduled later this time, so I am not.  I should be getting ready to rush to the grocery store today, but...it's cold.  I would like to pretend that I'm waiting for the ice on the streets of my neighborhood and presumably the Wal-mart parking lot to thaw.  Really, though, I'm just cold, and it's winter out there. 

Books I have read this week:  (Week, in this case, meaning since last Wednesday, not the most recent Monday, which would be yesterday.)

-The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Attwood  (Library)
-Fallen, by...um....Lauren Kate (Present from Josh)
-The Eyre Affair, Jasper Fforde (Re-read from personal stash)

I was not expecting to enjoy The Handmaid's Tale.  And I didn't.  It's not that kind of book, which I understood going in.  It reminded me a little of 1984.  Like 1984, I can't deny that it was well done.  Unlike 1984, the uncertain end is given an uplifting epilogue, which implies that there was a happy end (at least temporarily) for the protagonist.

Fallen.  What can I say about that book?  Josh bought it for me because he was amused that the cover said something about fallen angels being The Next Big Thing in fantasy lit.  Well, I can see a certain amount of aesthetic in that.  I was very open to the idea, despite the fact that it was obviously juvenile lit.  That cover secret being out, however, the attempted suspense didn't really work.  Also, it was hauntingly familiar...in a bad way.  Let's see if you catch it:

Beginning.  17year old girl at new school, separated from her formerly familiar and reasonably happy surroundings sees boy of unearthly beauty and feels herself powerfully drawn to him, despite his obvious distaste for her, which sometimes borders on hostility.  (Sounding familiar yet?)

Boy saves girl from strange accident. (Now, where have I heard that before...?)

Low on dialogue, but high on internalized obsession, Girl tries to figure out Boy.  (Yes, really.)

Girl, who claims to be super smart and on the honor roll (Deja-vu?) still shows us her total ignorance by putting herself in a completely dangerous position, forcing Boy to come and save her.  Please note that we are supposed to be cheering for this girl even though she shows little regard for rules or advice that is meant to keep her away from harm.

Boy confesses that he has secretly had an unnatural interest in Girl all along, and they decide they are in love.....based on an acquaintance of less than a week (or all eternity, depending on how you look at it).

Girl finds out that Boy is immortal....and supernatural....and that there is some bigger, scarier, superhuman battle going on that somehow....yes, it's true....involves her.

They must escape.

Umyeah.  Well, her writing does not resonate, penetrate or even gleam slightly, but it's still better than the total ineptitude of Stephanie Meyer.  However, Meyer might have the upper hand in dialog writing.  Also, there were occasionally sentences whose subject or object were unclear.  Editing oversight? 

I feel no love for the main character, and not more than a little curiosity for the male lead.  However, there is so much that was brought forward but not addressed that I am tempted to read the rest of the series just to get a few questions answered.  Not immediately, though.  Yikes.

No, I do not recommend this book.  Not even if you are 15.

However, Jasper Fforde always makes me feel better.  I like The Eyre Affair, because it presumes that I am a literature nerd.  Correctly, I need not add.

Today, Grant goes to the orthodontist.  He was home sick yesterday, which threw off my productive plans.  No big deal, really.  Sometimes you have to snuggle a little boy instead.

Today I am needing ingredients to make a new and exciting dinner in the crock pot, since I don't know what time we will get home from the orthodontist, who's office is located in Troy.

This weekend we will go to the dog show in Columbia.  YAY!  Wanna come?

I really should do something productive....

News, news, news.

Either not much is happening in the news this week, or I need to look into better ways to get news. But I am definitely glad that I know Mariah Carrey wants white kittens and doves wherever she goes. Seems to be a conflict of interests, if you ask me.

Well, do you want the bad news first, or the good? Let's go in chronological order. Yesterday my mother came over and watched Abbie while I took Grant to visit his buddy the dentist. We know our dentist very well. Grant had his first serious cavity when he was 2. You may remember that Grant had a swollen cheek from a tooth infection earlier this fall. The back molar on that side was the problem, and still is. It needs a procedure called a pulpotomy. It's the baby tooth equivalent of a root canal. They drill all the way down to the pulp, insert an antibiotic tablet, then fill it back up. He also needs 7 fillings. Dr. Dooley says that if Grant is good and still and quiet, they might be able to get all of that done on his next visit, which is scheduled for Dec. 17th. If he's wiggly or uncooperative, it will just be the pulpotomy.

More about baby teeth: They usually don't require much work. If a child Grant's age gets his first cavity, the dentist (at least ours is like this) will sometimes leave it, unless it is causing the child pain, because they fall out. He says preventing pain and retaining tooth function are the only two reasons to work on baby teeth. With Grant, who has been having bad, fast growing cavities since age 2, we have to worry about him still having enough tooth left to chew. He explained that until Grant's 6 year molars are in, he can't really consider pulling any of the teeth. For his bottom molars, there is already less tooth than filling. On the good side, all of Grant's front teeth are fine, which is unusual for kids who tend to develop the fast growing cavities. Sadly, those will be the first ones to fall out.

Abbie did not see the dentist. Her teeth are perfect.

All afternoon, I had a terrible headache. Some people have suggested that maybe I gave it to myself by worrying how much money I'm going to need to fix Grant's teeth. And pay bills. And renew the car registration. And pay for Josh's class. And pay homeowners' association fees. And make it through Christmas. Motrin and lots, lots and lots of water did not help. I stayed home from taiko practice.

But! It turned out to be the best idea. It turns out I was getting sick. I am dizzy today, and my head feels too heavy, and my headache is now a sinus one, etc., but at least I didn't share my germs at practice. My current job is to get better before Thanksgiving. Wish me luck.

Speaking of jobs, I am still looking through a bunch of work from home stuff. My savior, Missy, sent me lots to look at, and I did a lot of that until yesterday afternoon. I've only applied for one job so far, but I have my eye on several. Might take a break today and just veg.

Now, for the latest news! Our mortgage refinancing came through today! Did you know that notary republics make house calls? I drank hot cider (has vitamin C) in my own kitchen while signing the new papers. And the best best news of all is that I don't owe any house payments until January 1!!!! YAY!!!!!!!!!!

In other news, I talked to my brother yesterday. So that is all fine again. I think he is even going to call my mommy today. Speaking of Mommy, I did some Christmas spying and sent a secret email to my dad at work telling him something to get Mom for Christmas. I love it when I can do stuff like that. I hope she likes it!

We're switching to the Wal-mart cell phone plan. (I pretty much hate Wal-mart, at least in the abstract.) Josh has a new cell phone. How is it that when we are dead broke, Josh still gets new toys? We still don't know what's going to happen with my phone.

I didn't sleep well last night. Geh.

My mommy gave us a turkey. I am not really a turkey person. I am a chicken person. Josh dug out an Alton Brown DVD and tomorrow we're gonna make some turkey.

For lunch we had chicken soup and toast. It was a huge hit.

Hope you are all about to have a fantastic weekend! Sick people like me hardly notice that it's Friday, but we sure know the first sunny day in a month when we see it! Go take vitamins. Don't get sick!!!