Trick or Treat, Des Moines style

Des Moines is bizarre when it comes to Halloween. I've grown up with the traditions but to anyone else the customs are strange. It has been this way since the late 1930s. Last night was the night that kids go trick or treating. It is known as Beggar's Night. Since the late 30s kids in Des Moines have always gone out dressed up on the night before Halloween. Even with this holiday falling on a Friday, the tradition held. 

Apparently this was started by the head of the Parks and Recreation board in 1938. The city was dealing with terrible vandalism. Kids were being too rowdy for the staid Des Moines residents. So they made the rule that trick or treating would be done before. This actually worked, cutting vandalism significantly. And then the most bizarre tradition was added. The joke. 

Kids in Des Moines are required to tell a joke to the homeowners they trick or treat. Normally these are the terrible jokes you find on bubble gum packs or popsicle sticks. "Why did the man throw the clock out the window? He wanted to see time fly." I know I told some terrible ones over the years. I always had one joke memorized and told it at every single house. And it was a struggle to think of a joke at 7 but it was fun too. Now I love the tradition. I love that the kids stand at the door with their bags and tell silly jokes. And the adults laugh. Because it's kind. And some of them are actually pretty good. 

Since Jeff and I are in a townhouse, we don't get any trick or treaters coming to the house. We haven't had a single one in the three plus years we've lived here. So last night my little sister invited us over to celebrate the holiday. And I had a blast. Jeff couldn't go because of World of Warcraft stuff he had signed up for last week. I brought a bag of candy, some sharp knives, and a pumpkin. And Em spoiled me. 

I walked in to ham, apple, and brie crescent rolls. Mmmmm. They were wonderful and so easy to make. She had carved a small pie pumpkin earlier and made pumpkin soup. There were pumpkin seeds in the oven roasting. As we started carving, my older sister and her fiance came over. So the four of us carved four pumpkins, getting our hands gooey and harvesting seeds. I'll roast mine tonight. I made a very happy pumpkin, with a strange goofy grin. 

We drank hot chocolate and ate brownies. We got about 20 kids or so which is a pretty small number. My boss told me today that he had 80 kids at his house. We had a Morticia Adams, a Hillary, a Power Ranger, and a pug. Em answered the door most of the night. It was a lot of fun. Jeff still needs to carve his pumpkin tonight. 

Crafty

Tuesdays have become my knitting nights recently. When my sister and I first started getting together to knit it was almost always on Mondays. I knew that each week I would be busy on Monday nights. But that was back when there was only two of us. Slowly over the last year and a half our knitting group has grown. Tonight we had six people who came out, and there were three others that couldn't make it. We've gotten big. 

With the leaves starting to fall and the weather turning colder I've been in the mood to knit. I'm working on a scarf for a friend and think I'm almost finished. I'm a terribly slow knitter and this is a long scarf and it will eventually have tassles on the end. I'll try to post a picture when I'm done. I think it's the best one I have done so far. Next I plan to either make myself a hat or some socks. 

After I went home I decided that I would look at one of my sister's friends websites. She spins and dyes her own yarns, along with making all sorts of sewn items. And I ended up buying some yarn. Actually I drooled over a lot of yarn and then was disciplined enough to only buy one. But people like my sister's friend make me wish that I was more crafty. She is constantly making things. www.sewspun.com. I am constantly amazed at how she finds the time to create all of these things with two small children and a house to mind. I don't even have children and I don't make things like this. 

Here is just a sample of the yarn that she has made and some rather pretty pumpkins that she's sewn. Thank goodness she has finally opened a store. Check it out. (Mandy, I hope you don't mind that I "borrowed" some of your pictures. It was done with love.) 

I am always fascinated by crafts. One of my other favorite sites Roadside Scholar is predominately an art site but occasionally has crafts. Everything that is feature is interesting or incredible or both. I promised my sister I would find and post a picture of this cashmere elf house from meekssandygirl. (etsy name) I had seen it on the site many months ago and had been just amazed. What sort of pattern do you use for something like this? 

And lastly if you are interested in homemade gifts you need to check out Etsy. www.etsy.com. There are a number of very crafty people out there selling pretty much everything under the sun. It is well worth a look. Here is a screenshot with just some of the things available. 

Pets and other Animals

{Warning: I'm up on my soapbox for this post}

I was out of cat food so after dinner tonight Jeff and I went to the pet store. As usual we fawned over the kitties waiting for adoption, played seek with the hiding lizards, watched the birds, and were amused by the small rodents. I both love and hate the pet store. I love that everything there is for the comfort and joy of animals. I hate the idea that some of the animals there won't find a home. Tonight was obedience night so there were a lot of dogs roaming around the store. I was in dog heaven. 

I left the store thinking about pets and the "other animals". The American Pet Product Manufacturing Association estimates that we will spend $10.5 billion on pet products and services here in America in 2008. Dogs will go to daycare or the groomer. Cats will get expensive toys that they will shun for tissue paper and hair ties (I'm not speaking from experience or anything here :-) ). Dogs and cats will get elaborate Halloween and Christmas costumes. Heck some animals get massages and psychotherapy. There is a story out there in the news that Ricky Gervais's dog got Botox. 

I'm not saying that we can't love our pets. I know I love mine. But I'm an animal lover. I also love the deer that live in the creek near my house. I feel sorry for the raccoon that met its end on the road the night before. And I watch with sadness as new housing developments go up and more wild land is plowed under to make way for movie theaters and strip malls. I don't understand how we (as a society) can have such love for our pets and such apathy for the rest of the animal kingdom. 

October 4th is World Animal Day. The day, which was started in 1931, celebrate the animal kingdom as a whole and our relationship with animals. There was little notice of the day in the press. With a quick Google News search I found 76 mentions of the day, 10 of which were from the US. Pakistan actually had more mentions of the holiday. The news actually has very little good things for animals. The current administration is attempting to rewrite the EPA guidelines to allow businesses and other government agencies to determine whether their projects will injure the environment. That's a little like asking the coal burning power plant if maybe they shouldn't build because the plant could destroy some wetlands. I have a hard time believing they will care. 

The World Wildlife Fund, one of the largest conservation organizations in the world, had a budget of $160 million for projects and administration. That is only $10.3 billion short of the pet product market. We hunt animals, conduct research on animals, confine animals for meat, cage animals, and destroy animal habitat. The hardest thing for me to understand is the apathy we as a society feel for these creatures. I read a story recently about a huge wildfire in Florida. The reporter happily reported that no one was injured. There was simply no mention of the hundreds upon thousands of animals that lost their lives. We simply don't notice them. 

I'm pointing the finger at myself recently. I have been meaning to join the World Wildlife Fund or the Humane Society for a long time. That, by the way, is not just for pet animals but for all animals. I certainly can't say I helped at all on October 4th. Instead I flew home from a cruise. Talk about expanding my carbon footprint. But my eyes are starting to open. I look at the ever expanding city and wonder what will happen to the wild places. I wonder how people can ignore the damage we have done to diverse ecosystems. And I wonder how long we can justify population growth at all costs and in the same breath talk about culling wild animal populations. But that is a rant for another day. I'll leave you with these. Some beautiful images to remind you how incredible our natural world is. May we learn to love our animal neighbors.

Reuters/Beawiharta photographer of this newly hatched Green Turtle

Getty Images/Paula Bronstein photographer of this unemployed elephant and his mahout

 Reuters/David Moir photographer of this 3 week old Tapir. 

Hiking, Beauty, and Shock

This weekend has been a rollercoaster of emotions. Stress was the name of the game on Friday. I had a project for work that I had been working on slowly for an outside client. Outside requests always end up being back-burner requests to staff requests and I hadn't had a lot of time for this one. So I was shocked when Friday morning I got an email from the requester saying that they needed an answer that day. I bought myself a pop upstairs and buckled down. I have to admit I was sweating it. But I was able to get it done. Just in time to go home and set up for my bridge party. The party at least went well. But the last minute cleaning was stressful. 

Saturday was perfect. One of those days in October that you can't believe aren't early September. The weather was beautiful and I decided that we simply couldn't stay inside. I conned Jeff into going hiking with me. Right before we were heading out the door my older sister called to see if we wanted to go hiking. We ended up meeting at Saylorville Reservoir, after some mild road issues, and walked through the mud and woods in what turned out to be one of the more enjoyable hiking treks I've taken in a while. We crossed brush filled ravines, sinking sands, and scaled bluffs. We topped it all off with margaritas and mexican food for lunch. A perfect day. 

Sunday was a great day until about half an hour ago. We had a late breakfast at IHOP, and then settled into some serious World of Warcraft playing. The wind howled outside, gusting to up to 50 miles and hour. It even took out some power lines. But we played, for most of the afternoon and I finally hit 70. The magical level that is as high as I can go. I can now start instancing with the rest of the guild. 

After I reached eye strain I did laundry, cleaned the house, and went through the forty or so magazines that I needed to weed through. I looked through travel magazines and pulled out pages of places I wanted to go. I pulled out pictures that intrigued me. And I pulled out articles that I will (at some point) read. And as I was going through I noticed a strange humming sound coming from outside my window. I looked outside to find an ambulance parked at my neighbor's house down the way. I thought about going out and then figured I would just be in the way. But my neighbor Jeanne called me, shortly after. 

I guess one of my neighbors killed herself this weekend. I'm in utter shock. Now the woman had been unemployed for a long time, she had suffered an injury that caused her constant pain, and she was dealing with a frustrating lawsuit that she filed. So I'm not sure why I'm shocked but I am. And now I can't help but think that I could have done something. This is not a neighbor I was friendly with but perhaps something would have helped. I've been blessed in my life with a feeling that nothing (that I've encountered so far) could make me want to commit suicide. It seems like such a permanent solution to temporary problems. But then again I've been blessed. And I don't really know how to deal with this. I'm shocked and saddened and in some ways a little guilty. I just can't shake the feeling that I had this great weekend (even with the news that I didn't get two of the jobs I applied for) but she had a terrible one. One that caused her to take a step that can't be undone. I'm blessed is all that I can think. I'm blessed with an incredible husband, a wonderful family, great friends, and my health. This is a reminder for me, and  hopefully for others, to remember how lucky we can be. Any day alive is far better than....well I don't even want to imagine that. 

Pain, Pain. Go Away

I woke up this morning to find that moving my arms alone would sent spasms of pain down my back. It is never a good morning where the simple act of eating breakfast is accompanied by grimaces and groans. So I wisely climbed back into bed and called for a sick day. I slept for a good part of the day, talk with friends through facebook and read a book that had been sitting on my shelf for a long time. It was a good day. 

The pain however did not make it a great day. Sitting in an upright position for any length of time is difficult. I can bend my head easily to the left but trying to do that on the right and my body tightens and I'm in serious pain. And all this makes me wonder whether I should have had surgery a year ago. 

In February of 2007 I was in Turks and Caicos with my family and I got certified for scuba diving. I came back with a pretty card that said I could do it any time I wanted to and a very stiff neck. In May I went again, this time to Bull Shoals, Arkansas. It was a wonderful weekend but again this time I came back with a seriously enflamed neck and the fact that my arm went numb every time I leaned forward. I put off going to the doctor but finally went at the end of summer. I had an MRI and found out that a disc in my neck was herniated. The radiologist later told my dad that it was one of the largest herniations he had ever seen. I was somehow not comforted.

Now I have a family history of disc problems. My mother had one and ended up using traction to get hers back in line. My brother came within days of surgery for his. So I knew enough to be dangerous. My doctor suggested a surgeon. I ignored him. Now I wonder how smart that was. I read up a lot on herniation surgery to find out that most of the time it only treated the symptoms. And that I had just as great a chance of being in pain after the surgery than I did before. The numbness had gone away and after a year of recovery so did the pain. 

A majority of the time I am perfectly good. I don't even have to baby my neck all that much. But every couple of months, particularly in periods of stress, the pain returns sometimes more vicious than the last. Today is bad. I could hardly move. Tomorrow I'm sure I'll be back at work, doped up on muscle relaxers and pain pills. But it does make me wonder. And grimace. 

New Book

So I ended up in Barnes and Noble this weekend. Ever since my sister got laid off from Borders I've been patronizing the competition. I went in to pick up the Graveyard Book and walked out with a new children's book. I love those silly, colorful, fun stories that make me go Awww and What? at the same time. 

That's what I found with Berkeley Breathed's new story Pete and Pickles. This adorable story is about Pete, a very predictable pig who finds a huge rather impractical elephant hiding in his bedroom. Pickles is an unhappy circus elephant that needs to be saved. Thus starts a friendship that features cliff diving (sort of), Russian acrobats (sort of), and Italian love songs (sort of). The story turns darker when Pete decides that he's ready to go back to the predictable life he had before. The story has a lot of color, a lot of funny scenes, but the ending is very different. There is one page that is simply dark, almost tough, and Breathed uses the tension well. The beginning of the book and the end seem to match even with color choices but the middle is all fun. A cute story with a wonderful ending. 

The illustrations though are what grabbed my attention. Breathed makes Pete silly in a straight laced sort of way. He is trying so hard to be serious that it just is laughable. There is an early scene with him watching TV. He is sitting there with a bow tie and a blank expression that TV watchers get. The emotions on the face of Pete and Pickles really tell the story. There is one sad scene with Pickles at the circus that is enough to break your heart. Pickles is a wonderful character, even if she's not the best houseguest. The combination is fun and the illustration will make anyone laugh out loud. 

One big fat weekend

So last night I did what most people consider the most embarrassing thing they can do. I split my pants. Yeah a huge rip that simply can't be fixed. Thank god I was at home when I did so. This morning I realized that I no longer have any jeans that fit me. (cry) So this morning, after a small but tasty breakfast, I went out, with my wonderful husband, to go shopping for jeans. 

Now next to swimsuits, there is nothing I dread shopping for more than jeans. Nothing ever fits right and it's hard finding a color and style that I enjoy. I used to like the stretch jeans. They offered a bit of nylon? elastic? woven into the fabric to make them more  form fitting and more...well...fitting. I won't buy those again. This is the third pair I've split of stretch jeans. Any non-stretch ones just wear out the knees. You think I would have learned by now. 

Well sad to say I've gained some weight (cough, cough) in the last three years. It was scary. I had to go to sizes that I don't even like to consider. I had to shop in sections I hoped to never walk into again. And I wondered what had gotten me to this point. Nearly daily trips to the vending machines? Quiet nights in front of the TV? My general lack of discipline when it comes to sweets? Any and all of the above seems to be the answer. 

So I dragged out my old notebooks, selected one, and am keeping a food journal again. It is the only thing that has ever worked for me. We'll see how it goes. But if I go up one more jeans size, I'm pretty sure I'm going to throw a tantrum that would make any two year old proud. 

Viewings and Readings

I have been watching movies and reading like a mad women. Today I read a half a book and listened to half of another. I watched two TV shows and a movie. I still have two books that I need to discuss from my trip. I don't even know where to start. So I'll just cover today.

Years ago I had read a book called Towing Jehovah, an incredibly funny book about the death of god. The story goes that god dies and his body falls into the Atlantic Ocean. The vatican wants the death hushed up (can you imagine the anarchy). The atheists want the body destroyed because it meant that he actually existed. So a sea captain is hired to take a tug boat out, retrieve god, and drag him to the Arctic for interment. The author James Morrow mixed just the right amount of humor and satire and seriousness to make it a fantastic book. I don't recommend it out to people (for fear of offending them) but I loved it. So when I was in a book store and found City of Truth by the same author I had to pick it up. This is actually a novella but I would think it would read fast even as a novel.

The story follows Jack Sperry who lives in Veritas (latin for truth). In Veritas no one can lie. The population has been "brainburned" to be incapable of lying. The process, which is described, does not sound fun but it makes citizens sick if they ever think of lying. This makes conversation a little more interesting when married couples tell each other that they are interested with sleeping with other people or two people at work must be truthful about how much they hate each other. Morrow creates a fantastic disutopia. And I love a disutopia story.

When Jack finds out that his son has a incurable disease he sets out to find a group of Dissemblers (liars) who can teach him to lie to his son about his impending death. This is where the novel goes a bit strange. Jack is taken to Satirev (veritas spelled backwards) which the dissemblers have created as a city where lies are possible. I guess I was hoping for the wonderful traveling bands from Fahrenheit 451 where the people memorize poems and stories to keep them alive. Instead Satirev is a fantastic place where pigs fly and snow is hot (the lies used in the brainburning process). I was hoping to see artists and poets and actors who have banded together to create an artist paradise.

The ending is sweet and tender and the disutopian society that Morrow creates is fantastic. Much of the earlier dialogue is painful but funny in it's truth. I love where Jack is asked to create a reference letter where he discusses the candidates flatulence problem and his toady nature. The conversation between him and his wife are blunt, hurtful, and strangely funny. And the images of the brainburn will live in my mind for a long time. A fascinating idea of a society. I wish he would have spent more time there.

I finished that over lunch. I spent most of today working on a company database so it required almost no thought. So in order to make the day a bit more enjoyable, I listened to the first half of The Graveyard Book from Neil Gaiman. Neil, on his book tour, recorded himself reading each chapter from the book. These are now available for free on his website at www.neilgaiman.com/p/cool_stuff/video_clips/the_graveyard_book_tour. If you have not read Neil Gaiman you need to. And if you have read him but never heard him read, you need to listen to these. Not only does he have a beautiful voice, but he does the voices of the characters. I'm hoping he records the audiobook for this book. I'll buy it. The Graveyard Book tells the story of Nobody Owens, a young boy who ends up growing up in a graveyard, cared for by ghosts.

The two shows I watched were both episodes of How It's Made which I have become a huge fan of. Both Jeff and I watch it whenever we catch it. I'm always fascinated by what types of things are handcrafted and what are made by robots and machines. Today we watched how crayons, kayaks, carbon fiber cellos, and braille typewriters are created. I'm not sure I'll get into a kayak again, but I will definitely have more respect for the amazing amount of work that goes into a cello. Crayons were a lot of fun. Almost all the work is done by machine although they sense when crayons are bad (loose wrapper, broken).

The last thing I did before going up to my library to write was to watch the newest version of Pride and Prejudice. Now before I get arguments, yes I still agree that there is only one movie version of Mr. Darcy. This young man certainly played a passable Darcy. He had the smoldering looks and the haughty glare down perfectly but he was still no Colin Firth. I was surprised by how much I actually enjoyed the film. My only real flaw was the ending although I understand that the British version had a different ending and one I would have liked more. I normally hate movies of books I've loved. And I truly love the book. It lists as one of the few books that I have read four times and counting. I'm sure I'll read it many more times.

Keira Knightley was a good Elizabeth Bennett. There were several scenes that really made the movie for me. A scene where Elizabeth and Darcy hold hands for dancing early and film and then he walks away flexing his fingers was beautiful. A scene at the ball in Bingley's home is wonderful as Elizabeth walks towards the camera and we can see Darcy step through the scene and pause to watch her. They remind me of my favorite scene in the BBC version. It is a simple scene where Elizabeth is talking with Georgiana. She has just saved her from an incredibly embarrassing moment. She looks up and meets Darcy's eye. There is so much said in that glance. Those are the kinds of scenes that make these movies so perfect. I once wrote a paper about all the implied things that simply aren't said in Jane Austin novels. The time was so prim and proper that emotions and ideas must be passed in more subtle ways. A gentle touch of the hand. A lingering look. Wonderful stories and a surprisingly good movie.

It's been a productive day for me. Now to listen to the last of the Graveyard Book, try to write something worthwhile, and maybe play some Wii with Jeff.

Adam Rex and Halloween

The leaves are falling fast now and the nights are getting pretty cold. I have pulled out my wool socks. All of this means that it's fall. And with fall comes Halloween. I'm actually in the mood for the season this year. Normally I dread fall because of what follows it. This year I'm really excited for the cool temperatures and the beautiful fall colors. And to celebrate the upcoming holiday I have purchased Adam Rex's books on monsters.

I make it no secret that I absolutely adore Adam Rex's work. I started by reading The True Meaning of Smekday and went out to buy everything he's illustrated or written. The next one that ended up in my home was Pssst, a cute little story about a little girl who's trip to the zoo turns into a shopping trip with an unusual ending. Rex tells the story through words and pictures but it is his fantastic illustration that keep you coming back for more. Everywhere you look on the page is a fun little detail. The humor is sometimes silly, sometimes dry but always fun.

Adam Rex has two books about Frankenstein filled with hilarious poems. In his first book in the series, Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich, he gives us poems about how the Phantom of the Opera can't get familiar tunes out of his head. Poems about the invisible man getting a haircut, the creature from the black lagoon who goes swimming too early after eating. My favorite is a wonderful poem about how Dracula has spinach in he teeth and no one knows how to tell him. All the poems are different but all of them are hilarious.

The new book is Frankenstein Takes the Cake. This is possibly even better than the first. In this one we follow Frankenstein as he gets married to his bride. My favorite pages have the Headless Horseman as he writes a blog about people wanting to eat his head, and why he wants people to stop copying his look. Please take note that those are not illustrations but pictures. Adam made the head and photographed it. Adam writes a wonderful little poem about Medusa and her problems in school. Even the dust jacket and the inside pages have jokes. They are everywhere. The thing about Adam is you have to read everything: signs, copyright information....

So here are two books that are perfect for the upcoming holiday. I recommend them to both kids and adults. Kids will love the humorous rhymes, and adults will love all the cute references and inside jokes in the pictures. I don't often tell people that you have to buy books, but you really do need to buy these. If you do pick up his books and enjoy them, also check out Adam Rex's blog at http://adamrex.blogspot.com.

P.S. The actual titles of the books are

Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich and Other Stories You're Sure to Like Because They're All About Monsters and Some of Them Are Also About Food. You Like Food, Don't You? Well Alright Then.

and

Frankenstein Takes the Cake Which is Full of Funny Stuff Like Rotting Heads and Giant Gorillas and Zombies Dressed Like Little Girls and Edgar Allen Poe. The Book, We Mean--Not the Cake.

Yeah even those are hilarious. I love this man's work.

To see how he made the Headless Horseman's head, check out this amazing blog entry on the always wonderful 7 Impossible Things Before Breakfast.

http://blaine.org/sevenimpossiblethings/?p=1398

Mrs. Frisby versus Mrs. Brisby

I loved the Secret of NIMH as a child. I watched it over and over. I had the movie storybook. It had cute talking animals that were intelligent and civilized, what more could I want? To be completely truthful I think my young mind had a bit of a crush on Justin, the captain of the guards. Bear with me, I was young. I had always meant to read the book but never seemed to get around to it. It was similar to so many of those books that I should have read as a child but didn't. 

So this past week I picked up the book and finished it in a day. The book actually is called Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O'Brien. The character is changed to Brisby in the film. Like the Wind in the Willows, this book is a treasure. The story is engaging, the characters are likable, and the description of the farm and the rats is even more vivid then the film. This is book I would recommend. As a children's story it has some interesting themes of animal experimentation (although not portrayed as a terrible thing in the book), stealing, civilization, and the power of knowledge. 

I decided after finishing the book that I should watch the movie again. I own it so after the Boston/Tampa Bay game I popped in the DVD. And about halfway through I knew it was a mistake. The film is awful. Seriously terrible in comparison to the book. The book offers a more realistic view of the rats, a realistic view of the other animals, and the biggest difference there is no magic. If you remember the mouse's home is finally moved by Mrs. Brisby using the "sparkly" that Nicodemus gave her. In the book there is no magic amulet. There is no annoying crow character. The character of Jeremy, the crow is wise and sensible, except when it comes to shiny things. 

The character of Mrs. Frisby is also very different from the character of Mrs. Brisby. The character in the book is driven to heroics. She may not be the bravest mouse but she knows what she has to do and does it. She thinks constantly of her children and uses her worry for Timothy as a strength. The character in the movie is instead simpering, afraid, and pushed into situations. She is not brave and seems very helpless. She is often pleading for help. The character in the book helps herself and often attempts to help the rats. 

The plot between the book and the movie shares some common elements but the majority of it is different. There is no Jenner looking to overthrow the rats society. Jenner and his comrades have left the colony a while ago and do not return in the book. This drama between Nicodemus and Jenner makes up the majority of the second half of the film. The plan to leave the rosebush is similar but the thought that has gone into it is different. The book goes more into the history of the rats after they escape from NIMH and how they started using tools. And the end is tragic and wonderful at the same time. 

I was shocked and saddened watching this movie. The book is a treasure and the movie turned it into a slapstick comedy and a magical fantasy. I actually came away thinking that maybe the movie shouldn't have been made. This is unusual. Normally the first version of something tends to be my favorite. For books and movies, if I see the movie first I normally like the book and movie equally. If I read the book first it is always better. One of these years I'll remember to just read the book. 

Venting

I'm cranky this morning so bear with me. I'm trying to decide if hitting my neighbor would be worth the jail time. I'm getting close to saying that it is. I live in a very quiet neighborhood and love it for that reason. I'm surrounded with single middle-aged women who keep their places up and go to bed at a decent hour. I'm surrounded by trees and a creek and I'm still in the city enough to make the commute good. 

The women in my neighborhood are great. The young man across the street though makes me think that homicide should be justifiable. I'll just say that I'm cranky this morning because I'm living on three and a half hours of sleep. His party started yesterday morning at about 11 a.m.. My rule is that there is no problem with parties during daylight hours or during the early evening. I finally went out there at 3:30 a.m. (yes 15 hours later) to tell them to take it inside the house. They were sitting out on the porch with music going, talking and laughing. I was polite saying that they needed to either wrap up or take it inside and close the windows. I told him that I had my windows closed and still couldn't sleep. He informed me that it was his property and that they could talk although he would try to keep it down. I informed him that if I felt that I had to come out there again I would simply call the cops and they could handle it. Needless to say he's not my favorite person today. It seriously makes me think that moving might not be that bad. 

Sorry just had to vent.

David Sedaris!!!!

There are a couple modern authors who I absolutely adore. These are the people who I will read everything they write. I pick up their new book before the reviews even start coming out. David Sedaris is one of those people. His writing is full of clever autobiographical stories that can manage to be both funny and touching at the same time. 

So when my little sister said let's go see David when he comes to Des Moines I jumped at the chance. She bought tickets for herself, me, my older sister, and my mom. It would be a girls night. I was geeking out all day thinking about getting a chance to see him. Now I've seen plenty of published writers read their work but no one that I absolutely adored as much as David Sedaris.  Since I was already downtown I walked over to the restaurant we were going to, Azalea. Mmmmm. This place was fantastic. I had the lamb with pumpkin orzo and it made me weak in the knees it was so good. 

We got to the Civic Center to find David already signing books in front. I stopped by to have my copy of "Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim" signed before the show but they were no longer letting people into the line since the show was starting soon. 

David came out to a quiet stage to read a chapter from his new book "Engulfed in Flames". It was  great story covering three very different train trips he had taken. The audience was laughing hard. I was alternating between laughing and gasping. It's tough to sit next to your mother when the writer is telling some off-color jokes (part of the story). 

His next story was a piece he had just written recently about his book tour. Some parts were so funny that I had tears rolling down my cheeks. Everyone in the audience was in stitches. David read a section from someone else's book, an author he was promoting that was hilarious. I'm going to have to pick up the book. After reading sections from his journal he opened it up to questions and was done. It was the largest applause I've ever heard for a writer and he deserved it. I had expected him to be shyer, or perhaps just stumble more. He was charming. 

After the reading I lined up with the hundreds of people waiting to have their book signed. It was a seriously long line and a slow moving one. David spent time with everyone in that line. He asked questions about them, told stories, and generally was sweet. I stepped into line at about 9 when the performance ended. I texted Jeff to say that I would be home by 10:45. 

As I stood in line I alternated between reading and thinking up witty and clever things to say when it was my turn. I ran  through a ton of different things that needed to be said. Like "I love your work and thank you for writing." "You have such a wonderful voice in your stories." "Please be my mentor" (throwing myself on my knees). All of these things passed through my mind in the two hours I was in line. (yep you read that right. And I wasn't even the end of the line) 

So when it was finally my turn I walked up. I had my name written on a piece of paper for him. He made a comment about my name, which I failed to follow up on. All of my best laid plans were gone. I stumbled, mumbling about how his hand had to hurt. He assured me he was fine. He drew me a funny cat inside my book, which is actually a very decent drawing. I answered questions about having a cat and what its name was. And then I stood there blankly, all thought out the window. I was a total fangirl, tongue tied and sweating. I politely thanked him, gathered my book and walked away. It was then of course that I remembered everything I had wanted to say. Things like "Thank you for writing. These stories are wonderful, touching but funny", "I've read all your books", or even "Great performance, you had tears rolling down my face". But all I said was that his hand must hurt, that he drew a better cat than I did, that I had a cat, and that I'd come with my sisters and mom. And of course I walked away thinking what a huge dork I am. Do you ever wish you could rewind time? 

The Conch Republic

In the olden days Key West was the home of writers, pirates, divers, and artists. Strangely enough little has changed. Key West is an interesting mix of beautiful and tacky. When we stepped off Enchantment of the Seas we wandered into a sanitized tourist area selling ice cream, t-shirts, and cheap magnets. We skipped this area quickly. I would learn that those are standard areas wherever the boats dock. The first thing you see as you leave the dock area is this building. Once used as a customs house, this beautiful building is now used as an art museum. 

Yes the sculpture in front is several naked women dancing around a clothed young man laying on the ground. Jeff described it as every young boys fantasy. 

The main street on the island is Duval Street. The street is lined with houses, beautiful restaurants, tacky bars, ritzy art shops, and shops selling crude t-shirts. Duval is the party street of Key West with a couple beautiful spots mixed in. This bar called Willie T's was on Duval Street. Patrons leave dollar bills on the walls, ceiling, and even trees. 

One of the things I was not prepared for in Key West was the chickens. There are chickens everywhere and they walk around completely free. Here is a very large rooster wandering around the main streets of Key West. This is actually one of the parts I really enjoyed about Key West. 

One of the things that every tourist has to do in Key West is to take pictures at the Southernmost point. This marks the southernmost point in the continental U.S.. We were no exception. It is surrounded by three homes which claim to be the southernmost house. 

I didn't get any picture of Hemingway's house, which is a major tourist destination. Or any of the famous light house in Key West. But I did get these two last pictures. The first is some fun graffiti I found on a street corner. 

And the last is my favorite sign. Danger Falling Coconuts. 

Losing my Sea Legs

If there was ever an indication that I should have been a sailor it is this. Two days after getting back and I'm still trying to lose my sea legs. My head is still very much "at sea". Sadly not figuratively. Literally. When I sit for any length of time I can feel the ship rock and move beneath me. A pleasant feeling when you are at sea. A little more disconcerting when sitting at my desk at work. My body is clearly geared towards being at sea. The little bits I read on this say it is normally and hopefully should go away within the week. Until then I'll be bobbing along with the tides.

The trip was wonderful. I absolutely loved the boat and being at sea. Here is a picture of the front of the boat. To fully capture the length of the boat took four pictures. When people tell you these boats are huge they mean it. See how much it dwarfs the building to the right.

We started the trip in Fort Lauderdale. Of all the places we went to this was the most beautiful. We stayed in one of the oldest hotels in the city, Riverside Hotel, which is along Las Olas Boulevard. The boulevard is full of wonderful shops and restaurants. It is very much the trendy spot for the city. Here is the hotel and a little of Las Olas.

The first night Jeff and I walked all the way down to the beach (about 2.5 miles) and back along Las Olas. As you get closer to the beach, the street becomes broken up by canals. There are mansions everywhere and the yachts get bigger and bigger. The street ends at A1A, a scenic byway along the beach made famous by none other than Vanilla Ice. (yes I know the lyrics to Ice Ice Baby)

For the first time in my life I got to wade in the Atlantic Ocean. Here is a picture of Jeff down on A1A.

We mostly bummed around Fort Lauderdale and ate at some fantastic restaurants. We ate outside everywhere we could. One lunch we had included a one footed pigeon who stole french fries right off Jeff's plate. We ate breakfast at a little place call Le Bonne Crepe which had wonderful scrambled eggs with whatever you wanted mixed in. This was my first experience with dogs joining their masters for outdoor dining. I guess that is pretty typical down there. You eat outside and the dog sits at your feet. Something that wouldn't fly up here.

The next day we wandered the other way up Las Olas and ended up at the Science Museum. We got there around opening time so Jeff and I were able to play with the hands-on gadgets, something we don't normally get to do. Here I am trying to create big bubbles.

The animal section of the science museum made me sad though. There was a terrified looking possum with no where to hide. The hardest part was a strange looking fish in a tank with two lobsters. It looked like they had been cutting little chunks out of his face. The volunteer told us he had some sort of fungal infection and had been quarentined. He seemed to plead with us to let him out. It was really hard. The rock exhibit they had was breathtaking though. Malachites, calcites, and quartzes that were colorful and good specimens. Jeff and I were the only ones looking at them. As the afternoon went on, the museum filled and we had to leave. The noise was deafening. I felt bad for both the animals and workers.

The next day we boarded the boat. I can't even begin to describe how huge this boat is. 11 floors of ship and about 2 football fields in length and you still would probably underestimate the size. And it was beautiful. Marble and tile and mirrors and glass. I had heard it described as a floating resort and that matched well. The staterooms were small but well fitted. There was more than enough storage for the two gigantic suitcases we had. The main dining room was opulant and the centrum (grand atrium) was for lack of a better word grand. The solarium (adults only pool) was quiet and still and spa-like. I spent a good chunk of time reading there.

I'll spend some time in my next post talking about Key West and Cozumel. I'm at work but I wanted to get back to blogging. This last week was strange. I didn't have access to the internet or even any real news. It was a complete disconnect. I read two books on vacation and wrote more than I have in the last year. I'll post more on each later. I have reviews to do and more.

{Edit: other pictures will be loaded this evening, after I get home.}