caution--adults only

Caution! Oh my gosh...

With a title like that.....I wonder, if you're here reading my blog right now, what you are expecting?

It's just my story from book club. Or "after" book club last month.
Books play a supporting role in my short story, (so I'm completely comfortable posting on my bookworm blog ) which is true. Every last word of it.
I'm still searching for my blogging niche.... but for now am sharing my book club story from the day before Halloween.

from October 30th, 2008

Last night, after I got home from Book Club....(where we discussed the book, Tangerine--a great Junior Highish age novel ) I wandered into the family room where my husband Rich was watching TV. We visited for a moment, I am always very excited when I get home from a book club and I need to talk, and then..... (some of you might want to quit reading now---gets a bit x-rated from here on out).... I took my bra off.

Yes, it's true. I just slipped it off under my shirt and laid it on the chair... my intention was to pick it up when we went upstairs to go to bed. It was uncomfortable!!!
The girls needed to be freed. Ahhh....sweet relief!
It's a sad fact of life, but for a large breasted woman in her late 40's, the taking off the bra moment is the best moment of the day! (sigh)

I picked up my book and sat down to read for a bit.... I got sleepy. Rich got sleepy... he began to turn off lights, I followed him up the stairs...off to bed.
but, we had left behind one important piece of evidence behind....THE BRA!!!

Had it slipped my mind that my 25 year old son is now living with us again? Had it slipped my mind that he was not home and would soon be arriving?
His M.O. is to grab a snack and watch a movie or the news or something.... in the very same room where said bra was left.

I have no idea what horror he might have gone thru at the sight of that... b...r...a... just lying there over the arm of the chair. (sigh)
My mind cannot go there....poor child.
Even if he tried to go on with his life.....his routine of turning on the TV, eating a snack..... his eyes must have been drawn to the grotesque sight again and again, like one is drawn to a car accident. With every flash of light from the TV screen in the darkened room, it must have jumped out like a hideous phantom, like the boogy man in a house of horrors. (I can hear horror music soundtracks in the back of my mind).

Hopefully, when he finally went upstairs to take his slumber (and there is no doubt in my mind he went up earlier than usual), he was not bothered by nightmares.

The house was dark this morning as I walked down the stairs.. As I do every morning, I grabbed my book and headed to the coffee pot. I made the brew and then walked slowly out into the family room, turned on the light by the side of my chair and YIKES, YIKES, YIKES!!! There it was---evidence of parents who are gross and disgusting! I grabbed it and ran up the stairs, into the bathroom where Rich was in the shower and began screaming (In a stage whisper), "OMG!!! I forgot my bra!! It was just lying there on the arm of the chair, for the world to see!"
He said "so?"
I said, "Your son!! Dustin was down there!"
He said, "Well Dustin is 25 years old, I can pretty much guarentee you, he's seen a bra before."
I said, "Not his MOHTER'S! Just lying around in the living room, like we'd been.... you know."
He said, "no. I don't know."
I listed all the things I think Dustin might be going thru....disgust, annoyance, horror, fright repulsion, etc.
Rich, as supportive (ahhahaah--a pun. Bra? Supportive?) as he usually is, just laughed at me.
Kind of like the clown in a horror movie..... laugh clown, laugh!! Laugh Rich laugh!

I guess this horror I must have put my son thru is appropriate...after all....tomorrow is... HALLOWEEN!!!

*****

Photos below are:

Totally Lit (erature) Book club friends!! We're missing a few friends. We come and go, we can't all make every meeting. We Average around 8 or 9 at each meeting. I have never missed a disscusion. I think I'm the only one who can say that. We've been meeting every month since January, 2003. And I have a list of all the books we've ever read.

Our book for the month, Tangerine was a great read, if you want to give it a try.

Finding my Niche

My Thought for the day! and this is not about books!

There is just something odd about the Bare Naked Ladies sing God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen.

I was searching for something good to listen to on my Sirius radio and I came upon the Bare Naked Ladies singing... God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen. The odd part was just seeing their name in conjunction with a Christmas Carol.
I grew up with Andy Williams, Dean Martin and Perry Como, the old crooners, singing the carols .... it's just now, in more recent years, that I can listen to "country" singers sing carols.....I had to get used to that twang...some have it, don't deny it.
I mean.....country twang versus the Rat pack, smoking non-filtered camel cigarettes, drinking single malt scotch, telling lewd and bawdy on stage in Vegas Baby, singing about the birth of Christ?
How can there be any comparison!?
The Rat Packish people wore suits, so it's a given.
They sang better Christmas Carols.

I digress....again. Bare Naked Ladies singing "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"

I actually liked it very much....the way they did it. What do you call that? Their......rendition? interpretation? arrangement?
It was really good, whatever you call it . A bit different, but the same.
And it's not even new. I googled the Barenaked Ladies holiday album and saw that it came out in 2004.
I'm not even "with it" when I think I'm with it.
Just a tad bit behind the times....

Trying to keep up

I have my "Booking thru Thursday" questions lined up. I have not been participating in this weekly meme, but I have been asking my original Friday Friend forum what their feelings are about these questions. I'll post them here. Even tho the FF's are not bloggers, they love to see their names on a blog...it's the little kid in them.

I am feeling very unorganized, and that bugs me. Yes, I have been busy, but not more or less so than anyone else. I just haven't been blogging.

I am not a book reviewer, nor a great cook...like most of the blogs I follow, I just like to read. Everything. So, I read. And I like to cook, so I cook. And I like to read blogs from Bloggers who read more than I (who knew?) and cook more than I. They review and recommend and interview and write (very well), and then they post and...well, I read them. I enjoy them.

I'm not sure I have found my blogging niche---yet.
But I will, I'm sure...someday.

Anyway, the FF's (some of them anyway) thoughts on book questions.

On October 16th, the question was:
"What tomes are waiting patiently on your shelves


and some of the answers from my original FF forum were.....

from Sally in PA:
Waiting patiently: A walk in the Woods (Everytime I hike the Appalachian Trail, I come home and a non hiking friend says: Have you read A Walk ... I own it, but no, I have yet to read it. Hillary Rodham Clinton's It Takes a Village, Eat, Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert, Last Child in the Woods, Broadsides from the Other Order(a book of bugs) by Sue Hubbell. No fiction. sorry. And I guess I'm spending all my free time outdoors and can't read about the outdoors. I believe Eat, Pray, Love is a book on religion. I found it in a health food store in the yoga section. One of my friends said "I" needed to read. She wasn't partial to it, but I would be!!! Whatever that means.

from Barb B in AZ:
The Mermaid Chair-----Sue Monk Kidd (I actually have many that I keep moving to the bottom of the pile, as I always find something I want to read NOW and figure those can wait when I'm really desperate).

from me/debbie....the October 25th question also came and went..
“Name a favorite literary couple and tell me why they are a favorite. If you cannot choose just one, that is okay too. Name as many as you like–sometimes narrowing down a list can be extremely difficult and painful. Or maybe that’s just me.”

from Barb in Buckeye (AZ) again:
I like two authors who are married and each write books with separate characters------they are Jonathan and Faye Kellerman.

from Sally in PA:
Katz and author Bill Bryson. A couple of schmucks hiking the Appalachian Trail. I'm half way done and I have never laughed out loud so much, or read so many portions of a book to Matt. He hardly has to read it himself. A Walk in the Woods is absolutely the funniest read.

from me/debbie:
Sally was pleasantly surprised that I had read the book.....and that I had heard or known about the Appalachian trail. She didn't know of any west coast equivalent... that would be The Pacific Coast Trail, from Mexico to Canada, the boarders anyway.
I know tons of things. LOL
Sally's right....it was a funny read. I love Bill Bryson.


from Lisa C in NV:
Okay,

I get it now, literary couple. Defined as two fictional or autobiographical couples from a BOOK. I get it.

I panicked, and here lies my true confession that I thought you wanted me to name two together-type people that WROTE books.

I was alarmed, panicked and aghast. I thought I'm gonna really have to ramp it up for this book club. Arrrrrgh. Ha!
How many literary writing couples do you know off the top of your head? I was feeling totally unenlightened, because I certainly wouldn't have to narrow down the list, I can't MAKE a list of literary (writing) couples! You, being so well-read and knowledgeable, may probably name many, but I was stumped. Masters & Johnson?? Whew, the other interpretation sounds much better.

Okay, after that diatribe - I'm too distressed to come up with a favorite literary couple. I agonize over ordering off a menu, I'll have to change my train of thought. I'm laughing at myself now, and if you really are looking for a literary couple, I'm sulking.

Then we jump to October 30th......
Are you a spine breaker? Or a dog-earer? Do you expect to keep your books in pristine condition even after you have read them? Does watching other readers bend the cover all the way round make you flinch or squeal in pain?

from Gina in NV:
Never a spine bender, can't stand that. However, I have been known to dog ear and am actually trying to get myself out of that habit. Mostly I will dog ear a paperback. I try never to de a hard bound book, but have slipped once in a while. I NEVER dog ear a borrowed book, just my own.

from Jolina in NV:
No - only from use - I broke many spines in text books.
Or a dog-earer?
OMG No
Do you expect to keep your books in pristine condition even after you have read them?
Yes!
Does watching other readers bend the cover all the way round make you flinch or squeal in pain?
I don't like it. This is one of the reasons I have to really like you to share my books - can't stand it when someone bends the corner of my books!

However, wear and tear things such as bent covers or pages - or water damage because we are reading by the pool or in the tub just means the book has been used and enjoyed. That is OK.

from me/debbie:
then it jumps to November 13th......
If you usually buy your books, tell me why. Why buy instead of borrow? Why shell out your hard-earned dollars for something you could get for free?

from Shelly in NV:
I never bought too many books until I started work. As you can guess, it was a money thing. Until then I always borrowed books from the library (and from my friends!). Now I buy books. Mostly it's easier to just order them online (it's way too easy with the "you might like this" helpful hint) and I get impatient at the library...just taking the time to look through all those books. I keep quite a few of the books I read but if I don't really like them I give them to the thrift store.

from Cherrie in WA:
Most of the books I buy are non-fiction, and craft type books. these are books I like to take my time with or refer back to. I used the library a lot more when I was going to school, for references I had no desire to keep after the course was complete.

from Gina in NV:
I only buy if its a series I have been reading and collecting, OR and this is the main reason is because most of the time I don't want to wait for my turn so I buy it instead. I'm impatient!

from Sally in PA:
Why do I buy books? Because I can't get them read in the library's allotted time. Because I will forget to read it if it is not my bookshelf, or beside my bed in a basket. (my bedside basket is smaller than yours, and includes my three journals! Because after I read it I can give it to others to read. Most people I know won't go to the trouble to get it themselves. Night and Walk in the Woods are already out of my possession. They were two great books. Night because it is so important and Walk in the Woods because it is so funny. I also buy books for my family, so they can loan them to me to read!! But if they own them, hopefully, they will, too.

from Theresa B in WA:
I have many books that have a permanent home on book shelves in my home. I bought them because I love them. Most of them are non fiction books. Crafts, gardening, sewing, cooking, doll making, entertaining, decorating, nutrition, and other things of interest to me. I worked at the Public Library in The Dalles, Oregon for a couple years. I was turned on to a lot of these books there. I'd check them out, read them, return them, and go to the local book store. I would have them order the book for me, they ordered from Portland and I would have it in 2 days. I don't read fiction books over again once I have read them. But over the years, I have discovered that owning non fiction was great, because no matter how many times you read it, you learn something new that slipped by the first dozen times. I love fiction books and read many of them. but when I read one over it is the same every time. I don't pick up any new knowledge for them. We go to the library every 3 weeks and each check out books, I get all of the fiction that I can for free there. The ones that the Library doesn't have, I order from the book club, or buy at Barns and Noble

from Bev (also my mom ) in WA:
Well, I have a Bible that I bought. Your father and I both buy books instead of going to the library, but sometimes they are used books.

from Jolina in NV:
this is the eternal question at my house. Why buy when you can borrow? Since Mike's mom worked at the library, he never understood why I bought books. He's quit asking! Before book club, I wouldn't have said anything specific, except I love to own books. I like borrowing yours, Debbie, but don't like to borrow much from our library. Seems they never have what I want. Now, I buy because it's the book club pick.

from Diana in NV:
I usually go to the book store and get books from the .20 cent table. Then I pass them on to my parents who pass them on to Battle Mountain.I read the cover of the book and if it looks interesting I buy it.

Booking Thru Thursday on Sunday

*** I'm going to put this answer on my blog. For my answer for Booking Thru Thursdays. It's a bit late, but......***

I don't think I've ever gotten a book as a gift...that was life-changing. Oh, I guess the question was....was it memorable, or notable?
I don't think so.
I usually buy them before I can get them as a gift.

But let us see what the rest of the Friday Friends have to say....
(not ALL the rest of them, because 3/4 of them didn't answer)

from Barb in Buckeye:
I was seeing a great guy in Seattle and he took me on a very special lunch to a wonderful restaurant and gave me the book "Gone With the Wind", which I had barely mentioned at one time as being my favorite book ever.And I think that's the only time I got a book as a present! Unless you count the Xmas Mike gave me a Fred Meyer gift card so I could go buy a whole bunch of paperbacks. I had such a good time in their book dept.!

from Georgann in San Leandro:
It was either God' Men or The Good Earth by Pearl Buck given to me by a teacher. I then continued to read many of Buck's novels. I may have read all of them. She became one of my favorite authors. Saw her in person in the early sixties.

from Sally in Phoenixville:
Gone With the Wind. When my daughter found out that I had attempted it twice and not finished it, I soon received it as a gift for Christmas. I suppose I forgot to mention my lack of desire to see or read it. When your kid buys you a book, you have to read it. I did manage to read it sometime that year. Loved it, but probably won't do it twice.

from Ashley in Meridian:
My grandparents Mamaw and papaw gave me my first bible for my first communion and I still have it. They even wrote a message and signed my book.
Whenever you give a book as a gift you should always sign and date it so the person always knows who gave them the book I think it makes it special

from me/debbie:
I'm sorry to say, that I have never ever read "Gone with the Wind", and I have no desire to either. I've never watched the movie either.

FOUND IT (whew)

My plans for this weekend......