Happy New Year!

The year is over. It took long enough. So it's time for New Year's resolutions. I don't usually make them, cuz they usually just get broken two weeks into the year. But I'm going for it this year.

Here's my list:


1) Donate to charity.


I may not have a penny, but I have a ha'penny. With the economy as bad as it is, non profits really need help. I'm constantly receiving emails asking for donations. Of course I want to donate to them all, and it's actually stressful when I can't donate to every request. So this year I'm approaching it differently. If I can spend $20 a month on Netflix, then I should be able to spend $20 a month on donations. Every two weeks I'll pick a charity and donate $10. It's not much, but it gives me a chance to find several different charities that I like and hopefully narrow those down to one where I can volunteer.

2) Keep getting good grades. Duh.

3) Budget.

I'm tired of just paying tuition and bills and buying human and dog groceries, then more tuition and bills. Now that I'm in a cheaper place I'm going to set aside money for other things. Like working on my car and buying a laptop for school.

4) Keep the apartment clean and organized.

In Sense and Sensibility, the Dashwood women lose their house because of inheritance laws that ensure only a son inherits property. They are rendered penniless, especially in the eyes of male suitors, and relocate from the deceased Mr. Dashwood's estate to a cottage. Here they exist on 500 pounds a year, yet they still have a maid. Jane Austen herself lived in a similar straitened situation, especially after her father died. She eventually became able to provide income for her entirely female household (her mother, her sister Cassandra and sometimes a family friend, Marsha), but it definitely did not make her well off. The household still had a maid. The only way it would be possible is that the maids were paid some pitiful amount that is probably shocking. I did a little research, and found that servants were commonplace, worked incredibly long hours, and often slept in the attic. They were paid next to nothing, and if a maid was still considered an apprentice she was often paid nothing at all.

So I'm naming my "foundation" the Jane Austen Maids Foundation. Now if I win the lottery I already have a name, and I'll already have a list of charities.

I still don't have a maid though.

And Last

Only a few become master dragonologists. Such are reflected in the mystical dragon's eye. Their task is to conserve and protect those few dragons that remain, for who knows how many shall last another century, with the human population growing at such an exponential rate? And with them, how many more of Earth's creatures will become extinct until people start to say that they never existed at all, except in our imaginations?

Ernest Drake

From Dragonology: The Complete Book of Dragons
Candlewick Press

Christmas is here

I have one more Christmas song for you. As a child, I listened to the Muppet Christmas tape til it wore out. My mother must have been so sick of the Muppets. Of course, since we had no television, it's only now as I've been hunting for this song on youtube that I realize it was actually a TV special w/ John Denver. What a flashback watching him in these clips.

Christmas is coming
the goose is getting fat
please to put a penny
in the old man's hat
if you haven't got a penny
a ha'penny will do
if you haven't got a ha'penny
then God bless you

Way back when, even before Jane Austen's day but she would have dealt with this system also, the English monetary system was incredibly confusing. There were sovereigns and crowns and pounds and pennies and ha'pennies (half pennies, though what the point of cutting a penny in half is I have absolutely no idea) and all of them were a different monetary value. This song demonstrates the poverty of the time for certain people, as you are requested to put a penny in an old man's (presumably a beggar) hat, and if you don't even have that, then bless you.

This is the Muppets' version. God bless Miss Piggy.

Happy Holidays!

In Ms. Austen's book Emma, the main character is a young, rich, slightly
spoiled young woman. She continually is attempting to matchmake among
the few single people in her small town. Clueless is a modern remake of
the book. Emma is mainly trying to set up her friend Harriet with the
local curate (like a pastor) Mr. Elton only to have Mr. Elton propose to
her instead. In one part of the book, she and Harriet take company and
food to a poor, sick family, and in another part of the book Emma is
taken to task for her behavior to the poor spinster Mrs. Bates. In
these scenes Jane is demonstrating the importance of giving to those
less fortunate.

This holiday season, if you're still looking for some last minute
giving, may I suggest the following amazing charities. You don't even
have to worry if you're giving a green gift, since money can always be
repurposed.

I received a Happy Holidays email the other day from Joinmyvillage.com,
a site which I've mentioned before. It is an initiative sponsored by CARE, a
wonderful nonprofit which helps women and girls around the world.
General Mills cereal has agreed to match donations to joinmyvillage.com
to assist women in 75 African towns to start and keep small businesses.
In the email, I noticed that there is a lot of money unlocked, but not a
lot of actual donations. I found 10.00 somewhere today to donate.
Hint.

If you knit or crochet, you can make an afghan square (just use your
scrap yarn) and mail it to Warm up America, who stitches together
squares from everywhere to make blankets for the homeless. Website
Warmupamerica.org.

The winners of Rachael Ray's Mutt Madness were announced on her show
today (though there were no actual losers). The two charities were
Angel's Gate Hospice (http://www.angelsgate.org/)and Last Chance Ranch (http://lastchanceranch.org/). Angel's Gate works like a human hospice, by taking in sick and handicapped animals and making sure they live comfortably for however long they have left. Last Chance Ranch takes in abused and neglected animals, and rehabilitates them so they can be adopted. These are incredible places and well worth the giving.

Please please adopt if you're getting a new pet. This is very important, as both of the animal charities have animals pictured who have spent their entire lives in cages being bred again and again. Please adopt, but if you're going to purchase, make sure that you meet both parents preferably and see the living conditions. This will stop any purchases of puppies bred at the infamous puppy mills.

And for now you can adopt Dominic the Italian Christmas Donkey, who helps Santa every year since the reindeer can't navigate the hills of Italy. Happy holidays!

Hippo for Christmas.

Here is one of my favorite Christmas songs. It is sung by an 11 year old girl named Gayla Peevey, recorded back in 1953. Jane Austen would never have heard this song, obviously. I can't even try to tie it in with her. Though there's not much mention of Christmas in her books, now that I think of it. Now I'm going to have to go back and read them all over again just to see. Shucks.

Silly Nonsense Story, Part 3

Leila the Dragon entered Diedrich the Unicorn’s Flower Shoppe and set her purse down on the flower strewn counter.

"Diedrich, what has happened in here?” Leila asked.

Diedrich the Unicorn sighed. “I’m in the middle of moving the shop,” he replied. “It’s very stressful. Look, my horn is shedding.”

“Oh dear,” said Leila, edging her purse away. “Moving where?”

“The shop two doors down became vacant. It has far more space and I can expand the stock. I’m almost done, thank goodness. It’s looking beautiful, but I’m exhausted.”

“I can’t wait to see it,” said Leila.

“I’m planning a re-grand opening for next week,” said Diedrich the Unicorn. “Make sure you’re there! What can I get you today?”

“Princess Charming is coming for dinner,” said Leila.

“I have just the thing. She loves out of the ordinary arrangements, in offbeat colors,” Diedrich said. “What color is your table scheme?"

http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2167/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=1783

Petition for polar bears!


http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2167/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=1783

Buy nothing

NothingTM
Shopping is a buzz, an energy, but it uses energy too, all the energy needed to make all the things we shop for. So if you've got to shop but want to see the global temperature drop, buy the green thing that took lots of love to create but zero energy to make. Shop your sustainable heart out and Buy NothingTM.

Cut and paste the following link to purchase.

http://www.dothegreenthing.com/amazero?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=2009-11-23+24th+November+email

Center for Biological Diversity Press Releases

Take action for polar bears here:


http://www.savethepolarbear.org/


watch the television ads by clicking on this link:

Center for Biological Diversity Press Releases

You don't own me

I've always loved this song, especially as it's from the 60's, and the second wave of feminism was merely a splash on the beach. Here are the lyrics from http://www.lyricsdepot.com/lesley-gore/you-dont-own-me.html, and a performance by Ms. Gore herself. My favorite version is by a little known punk band (with a female singer of course) called Jack and Jill that Pandora played for me on my girl!grrl!girl! station that I created for myself. That was not available on youtube though. Enjoy!




You Don't Own Me

Artist: Lesley Gore (peak Billboard position # 2 in 1963)
Words and Music by John Madara and David White


You don't own me, I'm not just one of your many toys
You don't own me, don't say I can't go with other boys

And don't tell me what to do
And don't tell me what to say
And please, when I go out with you
Don't put me on display, 'cause

You don't own me, don't try to change me in any way
You don't own me, don't tie me down 'cause I'd never stay

Oh, I don't tell you what to say
I don't tell you what to do
So just let me be myself
That's all I ask of you

I'm young and I love to be young
I'm free and I love to be free
To live my life the way I want
To say and do whatever I please

A-a-a-nd don't tell me what to do
Oh-h-h-h don't tell me what to say
And please, when I go out with you
Don't put me on display

I don't tell you what to say
Oh-h-h-h don't tell you what to do
So just let me be myself
That's all I ask of you

I'm young and I love to be young
FADE
I'm free and I love to be free
To live my life the way I want


Transcribed by Ronald E. Hontz
ronhontz
worldnet.att.net
****************


Having a Jane moment: For her time, the idea that her heroines turned down marriage offers because they wanted to marry for love (ex. Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Collins, and Jane herself with a proposal from a well off neighbor) instead of security was a radical idea. Elizabeth Bennett would have liked this song.

Haiku for an afternoon nap

teddy bear pillow
hot high sun, heavy eyelids
snoring smiling dream

Silly Nonsense Story, Part 2

When Leila the Dragon entered the village, she saw two of her friends, Jake the Dog and Lars the Dog. Jake the Dog had found a flower to sniff that he could reach, and Lars the Dog was racing in circles around the village green.

"Hello," said Leila.

"Hello," replied Jake. Lars jumped back in alarm.

"Oh, it's you, Leila," he said in relief. "Hi!"

Jake the Dog sighed at his friend's jitteriness.

He shook his head. "I'm not sure how I got stuck with him."

"Excuse me, Mr. the Dog," said a passing bicyclist. Jake wiggled out of his way, while Lars jumped back, startled again.

"What will I serve for this dinner?" Leila mused to herself. "I know! I will ask Jake the Dog. He is the oldest and wisest being in the village."

When asked, Jake merely smiled. "Leila, dear," he said, "you may serve whatever you like and would eat yourself. Princess Charming is a lovely human being and will appreciate whatever you choose, and Christopher Charming is a horrible human being who will complain no matter what you serve. So do not choose your menu to please him."

My Personal Ad

Short, quirky, not really older woman looking for slightly younger man.
Must be willing to dress up occasionally as Mr. Darcy (Pride and Prejudice) or Captain Wentworth (Persuasion). Hopefully will not like moonlit walks on the beach due to the inevitable presence of man who should have his shirt on ogling young
girls in bikinis. No blondes please, prefer at least 5'6" or taller. Vegetarian or at least very tolerant of vegetarianism. Should like to read, and not want children. Ability to watch endless hours of crime drama required. Looking for someone willing to go dancing, cuddle, and yet be willing to give me space when needed.

Silly Nonsense Story, Part 1

Leila the Dragon, wearing her bright blue hat and carrying her pale pink purse, was skipping merrily down the road when she passed Lucy the Chicken's coop.

Lucy the Chicken poked her head up from gathering her grain and asked, "Where are you going, Leila the Dragon?"

"I'm going to town to buy flowers, Lucy the Chicken," replied Leila the Dragon.

"A special occasion?" asked Lucy.

"Princess Charming is coming for dinner!"

"Oh, how exciting!" exclaimed Lucy. "But is she bringing her horrible brother?"

"Yes, unfortunately Christopher Charming is coming too," sighed Leila.

"But what will you serve?" queried Lucy. "You know how squeamish you are about meat, dear."


-----
I will be using this silly story as part of my word count in the NaNoWrMo. That means November is National Novel Writing Month (website in places to go area). No one said it had to make any sense. Jane Austen may not have wanted to take part in something like this. She wasn't a public writer, often hiding her work under letters to family so the servants wouldn't see it. But that was partly due to the stigma still associated with women writers during her time. Now she may have cheerfully gone to the write-ins. She would most likely not have been writing about dragons and chickens though.

Websites from The Color Purple and Miss Teen Earth posts.

The Color Purple: www.colorpurple.com

Earth Pageants, Beauties for a Cause: www.usearthpageants.com

Central Florida Future: www.centralfloridafuture.com

Clean the World Foundation: www.cleantheworld.org

The Color Purple

I should be writing a paper right now on how the brain relates to juggling. You read that right. Instead, I went to my village, Sitolo, on joinmyvillage.com and unlocked my donation for the day. And now I'm working on this instead.

One of my friends had free tickets for The Color Purple yesterday. When I heard free tickets, I pictured the seats for the opera I went to free: I should have brought binoculars. Or the half price deal for the ballet: Not quite binocular seating, but close.

Then we found our seats yesterday, and I sat there with my mouth open for probably two minutes. They were literally about 7 rows back, and not far from center. It was amazing, as was the whole play.

I went in wondering what Alice Walker would think about making The Color Purple into a musical. Before we go any further, Alice Walker DOES have something to do with Jane Austen. Alice Walker, Jane Austen, Gloria Steinem: these are all members of my personal pantheon of goddesses...I mean, cool women to admire. Yeah, that's it.

Oh, and any mention of John Cusack from here on out is acceptable, too. He stars in my favorite movie, which has not yet been made. It is a Jane Austen modern redux (think Clueless, Bridget Jones) starring John Cusack.

So back to the play. The actor playing Celie could show her character's character with minimal effort, like the awkward swing of a hip when trying to dance. The actor playing Sofia was brilliant, and I would have to say almost larger than life. The comedic and musical elements smoothed some of the more depressing moments I remember from the movie, and there was some mad talent involved in bringing this book/movie to the stage. The who's who in the playbill is a who's who of the dancing and acting world in general.

The only issue I had was the African dance right after intermission. Maybe I was just tired of sitting there for the last 15 minutes, maybe my knees hurt, maybe I needed my afternoon nap. But there was just something off. I know it's simply an interpretation of what an African dance looks like, adapted for the stage. But somehow I doubt that a front handspring by an African male wearing a purple thong is even close to authentic.

Overall, I'm sure Ms. Walker is not disappointed. And it left me looking for my copy of The Color Purple to reread, since it's been years. But I seem to have checked it out when I read it, since there is no copy among all those books cluttering my place. So it's on my reading list. Again.

Miss Teen Earth

Most people I know have experienced the feeling of losing interest in the shiny new journal. The one that caught your eye at the bookstore, and you vowed that you were going to start writing again and keep it up this time. So you splurge on the beautiful journal, carry it carefully home, write three entries and then leave it sitting on the shelf with all the other journals you bought over the years.

This blog was in danger of becoming one of those journals. Shiny new free blog, with all the shiny new gadgets to enter and fiddle with, clever (to me) idea, and then nothing for the last week. Until I read the student paper today, optimistically called The Central Florida Future.

I’m joining the environmental Mean Girls today. I apologize to anyone I’m going to be mean to in this post. Also, remember that as I write this I’m sitting on my derriere in the library at a computer in a long row of computers that sit, turned on, for long hours every day using who knows how much energy.

With these caveats, let’s let ‘er rip:

In an article entitled “Miss Teen Earth gives back” author Amy Simpson tells us about Ms. Jolie Schamber (jolie means pretty in French, by the way) who states “ ‘I finally reached my goal. It was kind of the one thing I was really working towards’ ” (Simpson, 2009, A3). Ms. Schamber recently won the crown of Miss Teen Earth. Good for her. This pageant, “aside from the usual swimsuit and gown contest” includes “other specialized events and qualifications, such as a ceremonial tree planting, long interviews and a speech about the environment” (Simpson, 2009, A3). Wow.

There is no mention of any requirements that the swimsuit and gown be made from recycled materials, such as old gowns found at Goodwill and then remade. No mention of animal testing or ingredients in the makeup worn by Ms. Schamber and evidently the retiring Miss Teen Earth who is crowning her in the picture. There is a mention of “ ‘hidden judges’ ” by Schamber, who states that the contestants “ ‘had to be on [their] toes’ “ (Simpson, 2009, A3). Evidently the judges were watching for poor grooming, unladylike behavior, and whether plastic water bottles were thrown away in the garbage and not the recycling bin (not a quote from the article). There is no mention of how or of what the huge glittery crown is made. No mention if the pageant was held in one of the new “green” hotels popping up, which though they may not be perfect are much more energy efficient than most pageant venues that I remember.

Yep. I was Miss Oregon USTA when I was eight. USTA stands for United States Twirling Association. I was a twirler and a pageant contestant. ( Is there an AA for ex pageant participants?) The year before I was the Junior Queen of the Timber Carnival, which was the big summer event in the small town in which I grew up. In the article the pageant director, Evan Skow, is quoted as follows: “the system is really designed to take the word ‘competition’ out” (Simpson, 2009, A3).

From personal experience: Puh-leaze.

However, there may be a couple of positive things to be gleaned from this article. For one, my Developmental Psychology professor, Dr. Hollister, stated during a discussion of these pageants that the general wisdom is that after the age of ten, young women may be able to make up their own minds about taking part. I wanted to quit when I was ten, which seems to back this up. Ms. Schamber evidently started at 14 (Simpson, 2009), which implies that she is taking part in pageantry of her own volition. Also, it’s not all bad that a young woman may show some signs of caring about the environment. Maybe this bit of involvement will lead to more awareness by her about the glitter and its impact.

Ms. Schamber is now a spokesperson for Clean the World Foundation, a non-profit which recycles soap and shampoo from hotel chains to donate to developing countries. She has also participated in a lake cleanup and will be planning an environmental event at the university (Simpson, 2009). I made sure to rinse out my Coke (full of sugar and preservatives) cup and drop it in the plastic recyclables.

Of course, in the same paper there is an article on an alumni who started a business on campus to take the car wash to the car in the parking lot or garage, armed with nothing but a green cleaner and one bucket of water. With these he can wash a whole car with less water than people use to brush their teeth (Renzulli, 2009). Talk about earthy. I nominate him for Mr. Adult Earth.

Long post, I know. One more thing: Jane Austen, of course. She was on a very tight budget, especially after her father died. And she lived in a time where after a dress was worn out, the fabric and lace was saved to use on another. Bonnets were pulled apart and refashioned into a “new” one. Meat was not a staple at every meal, and produce would have been grown locally. She wins my personal Ms. Earth Writer crown. Though she would not have known what to do with it.

Sources:

Renzulli, Kerri Anne. Alumnus starts car-washing service that comes to you. Published in The Central Florida Future November 5, 2009, p. A2.

Simpson, Amy. Miss Teen Earth gives back. Published in The Central Florida Future November 5, 2009, p. A3

Send Halloween e-cards, fight extinction!

Check out the link in the post below to send Halloween e-cards to friends and support biological diversity at the same time.

Center for Biological Diversity

Center for Biological Diversity

Painting with words

One Sunday my friend Kali and I were sitting in a local bookstore flipping through magazines, and she found one on artistic blogging. That was the motivation for joining the blogging world. There's not much of a map for traveling around in this world, and it's easy to get lost. But I have discovered some amazing blogs. And it's all so beautifully visual. For example, check out intothehermitage.blogspot.com. But I'm not that visually creative. When I color, I color inside the lines. Even when I knit, I tend to follow a pattern.

I like words.

Words can be sarcastic, witty. "It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife" (Pride and Prejudice). They can be sharp-edged and capable of cutting: "Lady Bertram did not like at all to have her husband leave her; but she was not disturbed by any alarm for his safety, or solicitude for his comfort, being one of those persons who think nothing can be dangerous or difficult, or fatiguing to any body but themselves" (Mansfield Park).

Words are powerful.

Words can be heavy, like a brick dropping on your foot. Words can be light, like the shade of blue in the early mornings this time of year in Florida, or like the cotton candy that melts in your mouth and leaves you running your tongue over your teeth to catch the sugar flavor.

You can jump into a bucket of words and make them overflow. But if you throw words at someone, throw them gently. They can really hurt.

Jane Austen and pets

I was checking my email and Barnes and Noble are advertising the Nook, which is a new ebook reader. The page showing on the Nook just happens to be the first page of Pride and Prejudice.

Then again, there was also an ad for Sarah Palin's new "future bestseller". Yeesh.

There's a display in the UCF library as you walk in with images of Cuba. One picture shows a woman in her doorway. She doesn't look happy. What I noticed was the heavily barred window with the nondescript medium sized tan dog standing on the inside of the window looking out through the bars at her.

What do this dog and Lars have to do with Jane Austen?


Nothing.


There's not much in the Jane Austen literature to suggest pets were a part of her life. During my trip to England (my self arranged Jane Austen tour, that is) there were no descriptions of any pets in any of the Jane Austem museums or homes that I visited. Dogs do have cameos in the A&E version of Pride and Prejudice, but I am pretty sure that this is a cinematic decision, and the dogs are all large and mostly likely working dogs. Plus, they are only shown at the homes of the people w/ money: Mr. Bingley and Mr. Darcy. In Mansfield Park there is the only mention of a pet that I can recall in any of her books. Fanny Price goes to live at the home of a very rich relative, and his wife is constantly asleep w/ her pug in her lap. When the family is trying to convince Fanny to marry Henry the cad, she wakes up and states that Fanny can have a puppy from pug's next litter, which is more than her own daughter, Maria, received. The comment is completely out of the blue and has nothing to do with the discussion. The implication is that she approves of Fanny marrying Henry more than she approved of Maria's marriage.

That this ridiculous situation is the only time Ms. Austen writes about pets suggests that they were a novelty, frivolous, and a luxury only for the rich. She herself did not have money to spare.


But I think pets are far from ridiculous. Everyone should have something to pet, and studies (which I am not going to cite for you) show that having a pet can reduce stress. So I have to disagree with her. Sorry, Jane.


But please remember to adopt, and spay or neuter.

Little Drummer Dog

I found out yesterday that I've been approved for another apartment. So now I will be packing and sorting (along w/ school and work). I will be leaving the last place I lived with Jake. It's been 10 months and I still miss him. I remember the first time I went to Petsmart to buy food just for Lars, about a week later, and the poor cashier asked how many dogs I had. I couldn't answer. But it may be time to admit that I have just one dog, and his name is Lars. I have one dog named Lars. I have a dog.... sigh.

So here he is. Once I've figured out more of this technical stuff, and get more batteries for the digital camera there will be more pictures in the album in the previous link. His story is this: I was working at the vet, and this woman brought in this 6 month old puppy (claimed he was pure Chihuahua, but we knew better) because he was vomiting etc. The doctor felt his stomach and took x-rays and found that he had coins in his stomach. She tried to get him to vomit them up throughout the day, but determined that surgery was going to be necessary the next day. The woman couldn't afford any of his care, not even the x-rays. She signed him over so we could find him a home, and I agreed to adopt him. He did end up vomiting the coins over the night. Turns out there was a quarter, a dime, a nickel and several pennies. It was the pennies that were harmful: they were so pitted that it was obvious a lot of the zinc was in his system. After blood transfusions and chelation medicine (special ordered and picked up from a human pharmacy) he finally pulled through. He needed a new name though, and one of the lab guys stated that since he had all that metal in his system and therefore being heavy metal and all, he should be named after Metallica. So I chose Lars Ulrich (the drummer, of course) and Jason Newsted (yummy!). The lab guy said I couldn't put those names together but I said he was my dog now, and so yes I could. So his name is Lars Jason. He's a Chihuahua mixed with something, maybe terrier. He can destroy toys designed for "powerful chewers" that are much bigger than he is. He actually likes to wear the hoodie I knitted for him. There are no dog clothes on the Metallica site, although even if there were, I'm sure the guys in the band do not want to know there is a Chihuahua named for them.

He's been healthy ever since, though we have been going through a rough patch lately. It's been decided that he may all of a sudden have become allergic to something in his regular treats so he's been deprived of treats for a couple of months now. I found a great website, bbbonz.com, which is all organic and vegan treats. They have cat stuff too. Lars' Yule wish, though he may not know it, is their three month supply of treats. I will be submitting him for their taste testing squad also. It's a great site.

Nobody Knows

My fascination with Netflix is no secret. I can see anything. In the last month, I've reconnected with my childhood with Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, saw an old Emma Thompson/Kenneth Branagh flick (Dead Again, don't recommend it), and traveled the world with movies made in Japan, India, and about Argentina. The Japanese movie, Nobody Knows, was about four children who are basically abandoned by their mother and the oldest boy tries to keep them together and surviving. This would be horrible in America, but in Japan, with the emphasis on family, this would be completely unheard of. Supposedly it's based on a true story. It's an amazing movie, but hard to watch. The pivotal moment seems to be when he's in the store paying bills and the machine keeps asking which account he wants to put money in. He buys a video game instead. Gradually all the services are shut off. But it's hard to blame him. He's only twelve, and presumably wants to be a child.

The Indian film is directed by Gurinder Chadha, who did Bend It Like Beckham. She's quickly becoming my director to watch. It's an Indian musical interpretation of Pride and Prejudice called Bride and Prejudice. Overall, fun! Lalita is not as likeable as Elizabeth Bennet, but changing Mr. Collins' name to an Indian Mr. Kholi was a great touch. Definitely a worthy addition to the Jane Austen film genre.

Michelle showed me that you can get exercise videos and TV shows also. I'm on the third season of Wonder Woman (quote: I've got the best idea since women's suffrage). Netflix is my friend. I think I'm addicted.

Nick Hornby

I was looking at my movie collection the other day and realized that evidently I need to break down and read a Nick Hornby book. I was never interested while I was shelving them- they seemed to be aimed at guys, ya know about sports and stuff. But I own High Fidelity (John Cusack!) and About a Boy. I've also watched the English version of Fever Pitch, (Colin Firth!) about rugby, and the American version, about baseball, is next in my Netflix queue. Obviously, I have overlooked reading material, and so my next reading goal will be a Nick Hornby book. Maybe there's something new since my bookstore days. The basic plot: loser guy (whether or not he realizes it) wakes up and realizes other people exist. The epiphany is usually helped along by a woman. Of course.


OMG! It's Jane.
What does Nick Hornby have to do with Jane Austen? Colin Firth, duh. He's the ultimate Mr. Darcy, and he's in the English Fever Pitch. Silly question!

The first one

You used to be able to write books as if they were journals. Been there, done that. Read it also. Take Bridget Jones' Diary, for example. Nowadays, though, if you're going to develop a character, you have to think about what she would blog. But if Bridget Jones had blogged instead of keeping a diary, then Mark Darcy would have know much earlier how much she hated him and there would have been no story. I have always wondered why anyone would need to blog and have everything just hanging out there for everyone else to see. But it's time to plug my nose and jump into the 21st century. I hope I don't drown. I figure if no one reads this, it's just like a journal anyway.