Merry Christmas To All

Merry Christmas to you all, dear ones!

For the first time since we started having kids many years ago, we don't have anything to assemble tonight. No "batteries required" or "some assembly needed." No dollhouses or train sets. They've graduated to Wiis, books, and cameras. I can say all this because they don't read my blog! Kind of sad to be past that stage, but the upside is that Sweetie and I get a few extra hours of sleep, which is nice too.

Drummer Boy just got back from Las Vegas where he played with the band for BYU's bowl game. Finally, after four months, all four of my children will be sleeping in their beds here at home, which is the best present I could ever ask for. He'll probably stay in his apartment for most of the holidays (rather than share a bunk bed with Kitty Boy), but I'll try to entice him to stay as much as possible.

I hope your holidays are just as sweet and you get exactly what you want most.

XOXOXO

The Best of 2009 Cont'd.

Best Books I Read

1. Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society--Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows
This is an amazing book. So well written, funny, sad, engrossing, educational. Can't recommend it highly enough.

2. A Year In Provence--Peter Mayle
I don't know why, but I love nearly everything Provencal and I have for years. I've never been to that part of France before, but I'm dying to go. This book is a sort of love letter from a British ex-pat to his adopted home in southern France. Affectionate and funny with amazing descriptions of the most delicious food. Very fun to read.

3. The Whistling Season--Ivan Doig
This is a beautifully written coming-of-age story set in Montana in 1909. It's funny, sad, mysterious, and, again, so beautifully written. I loved this book.

4. These Is My Words--Nancy E. Turner
I wasn't so sure about this when I first started reading it. I couldn't quite get past the writing style of the main character (it's all in journal form), but as she ages her writing changes as well. I ended up really loving it and feeling like I knew these people so well. It's an amazing story that made me a little more confident in my own resourcefulness and tenacity.

5. Listening Is An Act of Love--Story Corps
I'm a huge fan of NPR (National Public Radio) in general and look forward to Fridays when a new installment of Story Corps is broadcast. This is a collection of some of their most memorable recordings. While I laughed out loud at some, others actually made me cry. It just reinforces my belief that everyone's life is fascinating.

The Best of 2009

I'm going to start a new tradition here. CNN, Time, Newsweek, even People all have "Best of the Best" lists for all kinds of categories, both useful and stupid. In the spirit of the holidays, I'm starting my own list. I'm even going to get a little crazy with font colors. Woo! Living on the edge!

Best Music

1. Sweet Disposition--The Temper Trap
Love, love, love this song. Fell in love with it the first time I heard it in "500 Days of Summer". Love affair has lasted longer than some relationships.

2. Winter Song--Sara Bareilles w/ Ingrid Michaelson
Reflective, a little sad, hypnotic. Perfect for snowy days when the holidays have you a little down. Well, at least I feel that way sometimes.

3. Sick Muse--Metric
Emily Haines has a great voice, and who can resist lyrics like, "Watch out Cupid, money is a sick muse, pull your little arrows out and let me live my life"? Their other stuff rocks, as well.

4. The Resolution--Jack's Mannequin
Love his voice, empowering lyrics, just hits me the right way.

5. Hologram--Katie Herzig
Great song. She has kind of a little-girl voice, but not in an annoying way. Could be the anthem for online dating.

Best Places I Visited

1. Smart Home--Museum of Science & Industry, Chicago, Illinois
If you thought going green was impossible, you haven't caught the vision. From using no-low VOC paints to passive solar to choosing different materials when you upgrade your countertops, this place had it all. Plus it was modern, comfortable, and fabulous.

2. MUNY Opera--St. Louis, Missouri
The MUNY is a national treasure, or it should be designated as such. An open-air theatre with Broadway musicals every week during the hot St. Louis summers, this place is the place to be for the near-suburban St. Louisan. I grew up going there and still do whenever I get the chance. Something about seeing the women in their pretty sundresses and the men in their polos and khakis makes the world seem more civilized and hopeful.

3. Sundance--Provo, Utah
I've been there dozens of times, in all four seasons, and love it more every time. It's beautiful, peaceful, rejuvenating, and fun. Skiing in the winter, hiking in the summer, lift rides up the mountain, gorgeous cabins and condos to sneak off to, open-air plays to attend, amazing food. Thank you Robert Redford!

4. Grant Park--Chicago, Illinois
The park where I fell in love with Chicago and my husband. Home of the Art Institute, Buckingham Fountain, Taste of Chicago. Lovely place.

5. BYU--Provo, Utah
Surprise! BYU has a gorgeous campus. Lots of trees, wide sidewalks, flowers, interesting buildings, nice people, and an amazing number of cultural and athletic activities. From foreign films to nationally ranked football to killer jazz, BYU can fill many a dull day and evening and turn it into something fun and memorable--without spending a fortune.

Best Restaurants

1. Steak 'n Shake--Midwest U.S.
Okay, the food is good but there are lots of better places, I'm sure. I love the whole diner theme, the fact that my parents ate there in high school, and their hamburgers. We love this place. Burger Supreme in Provo has the closest hamburger-goodness I've found around here.

2. Ted Drewes--St. Louis, Missouri
Ted Drewes has been on Route 66 in St. Louis since 1941. It's a tradition for many locals to head there after a Cardinals game, MUNY outing, or any other reason at all. We go every time we're back home.

3. Chunga's--Provo, Utah
OMG. The best Mexican food in The Valley (that's Utah County-speak--short for Happy Valley). Love this place, and they're so nice there.

4. The Bombay House--Provo, Utah
I love Indian food. The first time I ever had it was in London and it was so spicy I thought my mouth was on fire (Flames! On the side of my face!--Clue). The Bombay House is much more user-friendly, though they'll make it as hot as you can stand it if you'd like.

5. Ikea--Worldwide
Who knew? Well, anyone who has been to Ikea knew, I guess. They have great food! I love their salmon, Swedish meatballs, chocolate cake, lingonberry juice--you name it. It's a fun place to eat when we're in the area, and especially when we're shopping there.

Best Movies

1. The Met--Live in HD
If you love opera, are interested in opera, or think you might or should be, do yourself a favor and start with this. These are live broadcasts, straight from the Metropolitan Opera in NYC. I understood what I was watching so much better through this format. The voices are divine, the costumes gorgeous, the sets ingenious, and I learned so much from the interviews and tours between acts. It really spoils you and makes college productions a little less enjoyable, but it's worth every penny.

2. Harry Potter & the Half-Blood Prince
I completely agree--the end was disappointing and anti-climactic. But any summer with Harry Potter is a good summer, in my opinion. Except for that, I thought it was a very strong entry.

3. 500 Days of Summer
I really enjoyed this movie, and loved the music. I think Zooey Deschanel is lovely, too. My husband didn't like it particularly--maybe it's a chick thing.

4. Julie & Julia
I adore Julia Child and have made no secret of this fact. I found the Julie Powell character to be annoying and self-absorbed, but I love Julia. And Meryl Streep playing Julia is a pretty fair consolation for not having the real woman. Made me want to cook and bake like crazy.

5. Cranford, North & South, Wives & Daughters
I saw all three of these Masterpiece Theatre mini-series this year and love them as I love my Jane Austen movies. Fabulous, beautiful, romantic, funny (surprisingly funny, actually). I love Elizabeth Gaskell and hope her books are as accessible as the films are.

Things I'm Looking Forward to in 2010

1. The Lightning Thief--February
This was a great series of books by Rick Riordan, and the first movie looks really fun.

2. Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows--November
What an amazing book this was. Nonstop tension and action from the first page on. Hope the movie lives up to it.

3. La Push, Washington--July
Can't wait to head back up to "our" cabin on the ocean for a week of Olympic Peninsula gorgeousness and a few days in Seattle. Had St. Louis obligations the past two summers and didn't make it up, but we're really hoping for 2010. Unless my sister gets married, which will take precedence, of course.

4. My first 5K--May
My goal is to run the 5K in the Provo City Half Marathon on May 1. I have my work cut out for me so I don't completely embarrass myself and my family, but I can do it.

5. All the great things that haven't even crossed my mind yet. 2009 had lots of surprises, both welcome and un-, but it could never be said that it was a boring year. Bring it on!

Writer's Block, Blogging, and What To Give The Neighbors

Sorry I've been MIA lately. I've written so many posts in the last few weeks that I've deleted--they just weren't "working" for me on some level. Frustrating, but I couldn't click on "Publish Post" in good conscience. I'm sure they were brilliant in their own way (that's always my hope), but I honestly don't remember much about them at this point--they were that forgettable.

When I taught writing a few years ago, one of my main rants was the need for voice in the kids' writing. I wanted to know who wrote their story or essay without ever looking at the name at the top of the page. Grammar, punctuation, sentence structure--these are all important elements. But the risk is that over-attention to technique can result in sanitizing the writing to a point where the personality of the writer is either too subverted or missing altogether. My writing is like my piano-playing: the main idea is there, but the way I execute it is unique to me. Tempo, dynamics, and fingering are highly subjective in my opinion and I take a lot of liberties with my music. The same goes with writing.

I read a lot of blogs, many of people I know, more than a few from those I'm not likely to ever meet. Of course, there are lots of approaches to blogging. One is to treat it as an online journal, chronicling the daily comings and goings of one's life. Another is to keep extended family updated on Johnny's first tooth and Mary's potty-training escapades (the little tyke!). Ugh. All little kids are cute and annoying and surprisingly alike. No new parent wants to believe that, but it's true. I tend not to visit those blogs--just aren't my thing. Cooking blogs are awesome, and I have some good ones listed on the sidebar at my other blog, Ambrosia. I have a huge collection of cookbooks in my kitchen that I like to get ideas from, and those in blog-form take up a lot less space.

I don't know how I would describe this blog. I suppose it's more personal essay, if I had to pin it down. It started out as practice for me. Since I was forcing small children to write in their journals daily, I felt I should at least write once a week or so. It has definitely been therapeutic for me. Seeing things in print often makes something obvious to me that wasn't before, even if I read it months and months later. Sometimes especially if I do. I had no idea that my posts and playlists were saying what they turned out to be saying to me until nearly 18 months after I started this blog. There it was, screaming at the top of its lungs, and I couldn't hear it at all. Someone else heard it before I did and pointed it out. A completely different person heard something else entirely, just as loudly. Both truths were exactly that--dead-on true. I suspect that this will repeat itself in any number of contexts, which is a very intriguing thought. It's almost like cryptography, isn't it? Magical in its own little way.

Things have calmed down considerably for me, at least immediately. Of course there is that little thing called "Christmas" coming up that I haven't paid a whole lot of attention to yet. I'm told the children will be traumatized if I again wait until the 23rd to put up a tree, so I really should address that. We had a discussion at work about "neighbor gifts"--cookies, Sprite, dish towels and the like. I typically don't do anything at all because I'm never that organized, though we do often manage something around New Years Eve when things have died down a bit. I liked my mother's approach. She stuck a bottle of Scotch in the mailbox for the mailman and called it good. I doubt our mailman would know what to do with it here in Utah County, but it might be worth a try.

Drive safely in the snow, enjoy the holidays, and thanks for reading.