Today was my first full day off in I'm not quite sure how long. I must say, having a model for a roommate is certainly an excellent motivator to look pretty and not simply lay around with three-day-old unwashed hair and two-day-old underwear. Because my roomie is one of those people who can go out all night partying, come home, collapse on her bed without washing her face or brushing her teeth, and wake up the next morning merely looking sexily disheveled. I, on the other hand, had better wash/rinse/exfoliate/moisturize and/or put my hair in a ponytail when I wake up to even come across as halfway Homo sapiens. Her mascara smudges smolderingly under her eyes in an Adriana Lima-type way, my face just looks like a racoon dating service ad. Her hair is all wavy and full, a quarter of mine will be plastered to my head while the other three quarters just looks stringy and frizzed.
Where was I? Oh right, looking good.
So I finally got up and into the shower at approximately 7pm, after first watching my advance-copy DVD of Ice Age 2 (hooray for stealing the gift bags at the DVD release party! There was also a snowglobe and a little sabertooth tiger keychain that was promptly resting next to my snowboard bottle opener and Borders keycard), burning through my weeks old Netflix of La Femme Nikita: Season 1 (Michael, you sir, are no Michael Vaughn. Alias totally should've had a Walter character though. Imagine some Kris Kristofferson fiddling with machine guns and calling Jennifer Garner 'Sugar' every five minutes. Hee.) and even motivating my ass to plie my way through Dance Workout on the Fitness channel.
Ok, side note. That was the longest run-on sentence EVER. Onward.
I get all prettied up in model-casual: some khakis that make my gi-normous-for-this-town 36 inch hips look slim, a GAP black tank top and a mid-thigh length black tie-fastenedsweater my mom gave me plus some bangly things around my wrist and my favorite long beaded necklace. Apparently when clubbing no longer holds any appeal, I get prettied up to celebrate any occasion to be around any Other People, even when that means the bookstore.
Yes, my old friend Borders. How I've missed your New-Book mixed with Overpriced Coffee Drinks topped with real gingerbread-men cookies smell.
What I Read (and Bought):
Twentysomething: The Quarter Life Crisis of Jack Lancaster by Iain Holllingshead. The author immediately made me think of
CupCate's Iain, and I have to admit that ever since diving accidentally into a
Lauren Henderson novel, I've had a severe lusting for all British authors. I'd think better of the novel if it didn't make me associate it with a
John Mayer song, but since I firmly believe in the existence and suffering involved with the phenomena surrounding being twenty-five, I'll let it go.
Essentially the "author," Jack Lancaster, who writes in the first person, somewhat reluctantly agrees to keep a diary to attempt to give his life a little direction and meaning.
"But only fat women, politicians and psychos keep diaries!"
"Well call it a narrative account, then!"
I find it hard to believe that a 25 year old in today's techbased world would actually take the time to WRITE a diary using actual writing implements, but perhaps Iain thought writing book about writing a blog would be taking it a step too far. At least with Bridget Jones, there's precedent about writing about a diary. And speaking of, yes, I did have to ignore the little inevitable popups of Bridget Jones's vocabulary, but at least the author manages them with the right amount of "Yeah, I can't believe I can't think of a better phrase for this situation either. Dammit."
The book made me crack up (silently, of course, I AM in a Borders) and then cry (ok, almost cry) within the same ten minutes. Yes, those ten minutes came about three quarters of the way into the book, but the whole novel was good enough to make me buy it and take it home. If anything is going to warrant further study, it's a novel that uses the phrase 'crapulent piece of crap" on the first page I opened to.
What I Bought But Haven't Read in Ages:
Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
I remember reading this book about 12 years ago when I was still with Original Geek Boyfriend and really enjoying it. Seeing as how I remember it being fabulous, I bought the nice looking hardback cover and am looking forward to reading it in the comfort of my own home.
What I didn't Read Due to Time Constraints But Am Looking Forward To Doing So:
I admit, I was browsing for Ender's Game (note alphabetical similarity in authors' names) when this caught my eye. I'm a sucker for a nice cover graphic on a meaty looking hardback.
Why does that sound dirty to me? No sex in months? Right. Yes. Moving on.
...Great, now I can't think of that book without the word 'meaty' or the phrase 'beast with two backs' going into my head. And here it's supposedly a perfectly good story of two chinese half-brothers, one born to the Emporer's wife, the other to the Emporer's mistress, so it's a whole Prince and the Pauper deal with a filial twist. That poor author has no idea that the description of the result of months of labor on his part will forever be sullied and degraded in my sick and twisted mind.
Bah. I'm still going to read it.
What I Haven't Read Yet But Totally Will:
The Stolen Child by Kevin Donohue
I saw the cover for this one when I was putting back Brothers on its rightful shelf (I was attacked by a bout of shameful guilt when the Greeter Guy at Borders walked around us layabouts asking if we were still reading the books on the little tables in front of us, and gathering up the excess novels, presumably to put them back on the shelves. One of the apparent regulars said he would do it himself, to which the Greeter Guy responded with a 'Thanks James' " Whoops. I didn't even think about putting the books back myself til then. But essentially I'm one of those damn people in clothing stores who go in, try on ten outfits with no intention of buying them, then leaving them crumpled on the floor of the dressing room. I understand it's the sales peoples' job to put the clothes back, but repeated activity from the same people must get old. Anyway, I resolved to put my unbought books back myself from now on. And see what happens? Found another book for my mental wishlist!) and liked the title enough to read the inside cover description.
Apparently it's about a boy who wanders off when he's a child and finds faery folk, who replace him with one of their own and take him into their family and rename him. Having always fancied myself a changeling when I was younger (Thank you Zilpha Keatley Snyder), I'm looking forward to reading this one as well.
In any case, returned my Brothers, looked longingly at a huge and sparkly copy of Complete Book of Mythology (Christmas!) (Side note, went to Amazon to try and find a link to this book, but I must have the name a little off because I can't find it. Need to go back to Borders to pick it out before it vanishes forever from my mind), bought my Twenty Something and Ender's Game while smilingly noting that Greeter Guy, who I've seen almost every time I've come into Borders, was glancing over to see what books had actually caught my attention enough to buy instead of dismissively leaving on the table for him to put back (No more! I will end my selfish ways!). Exchanged playful banter with Greeter Guy that yes, indeed, I do Buy Books occasionally, walked to Bank of America where I was informed by one of two nice-looking guys, upon asking after the remote chance if one of them had a pen?, that apparently I don't need to sign checks in order to deposit them. Deposited the $14k from my parents and my grandparent's trust fund for help with the new car I desperately need to buy (Seriously, my car needs not only an oil change, but I stop every other day at the gas station to fill up the slowly-leaking front driver side tire. And there was that incident where the radio/cigarette lighter didn't work until I turned on the air conditioner. Which also doesn't work, by the way, and hasn't since I inherited the car from my dad.).
I will attempt to update this past week's events in blog form, as there were three auditions, a HELLISH cheap-lobster-night at work that it seems every cheapass in Beverly Hills simply Must Hit, a pretty damn fun Ice Age 2 DVD Release party (Ray Romano is tall! Chandra Wilson is short (and the *sweetest* woman!)! Mike from Desperate Housewives is adorable! Amy Yasbeck is a careful mommy! I'm going to stop using exclamation points eventually!), and a good meeting with my Manager. Oh, and crazy Stock Boy that I had the misfortune of asking help from during my first and possibly-but-not-likely only time of going into Whole Food
Comments
I don't even know what to say about your roomie, lol.
Enders Game!!!! I loved that book, think I read it when I was a freshman in highschool...Such a good book...
I always love your book posts. Because I convince myself that I am actually going to check out some of your recommendations. I mean, I can never drag my lazy ass to the book store, but I feel accomplished and like I have goals during the time that I read your posts, so that is at least something, right?
One of these days I am going to venture beyond the stuff on my bookshelves that I read and re-read. Over and over.
Ohh, I love Chandra Wilson...can't wait to hear about your DVD release party experiences. (Since I must live vicariously through someone who, you know, doesn't live in a place where nothing exciting happens. Ever.)
P.S. Ender's Game is every bit as good as I remember it being.