Well-Mannered Frivolity

I'm a Virgo. What's your sign?

It's going to crush me

My TBR pile has taken on a life of it's own. I don't know if I'll be able to plow through it or not.

South of Broad by Pat Conroy

John the Baptizer: A Novel by Brooks Hansen

Chocolat by Joanne Harris

The Red Tent: A Novel by Anita Diamant

Her Fearful Symmetry: A Novel by Audrey Niffenegger

Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue: The Untold Story of Englishby John McWhorter

My Name Is Asher Lev by Chaim Potok

Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage by Alfred Lansing

I Am One of You Forever: A Novel by Fred Chappell

Angry Conversations with God: A Snarky but Authentic Spiritual Memoir by Susan Issacs

Life of Pi by Yann Martel

Sleeping Naked Is Green: How an Eco-Cynic Unplugged Her Fridge, Sold Her Car, and Found Love in 366 Days by Vanessa Farquharson

Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life by Anne Lamott

Belong to Me: A Novel by Maria de los Santos

A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: What I Learned While Editing My Life by Donald Miller

These are just the library books I have in my posession. A few of them are two week books. Most of them are 4 weekers that I can renew for another 4 weeks. I also have about 10 or so books on hold that haven't come in yet. I think my eyes are bigger than my brain.

And what am reading right now, you may be asking yourself? Neo-Nazi manifesto "The Turner Diaries." The Turner Diaries sickens me. Look for a review on the Sunday Salon.

Wendy

Poor, neglected Mark

I have started to ease my way back into bible study. I decided a good starting place would be the gospels. Whenever I get a notion to read the gospels I always start with Matthew. I've read Matthew about 25 times. I once did a Beth Moore study, Jesus The One and Only, on Luke. If you are familiar with Beth Moore then you know that I am intimately familiar with Luke's words. I was reading John with my small group when I was hospitalized for depression 2 years ago, and I brought my bible with me to the hospital. Let's just say that I got really deep into John. I realized that I don't think I have ever read Mark all the way through, so I thought that would be a good starting point.

Last night I read the parable of the sower. I think I am guilty of being the seeds sown in among thorns.

"They are the ones who hear the word, and the cares of this world, the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful." Mark 4:18-19

I am very easily swayed by the cares of the world. I worry that people will look down on me for being a Christian. I hide it. I do not bear fruit.

I want to be the person in Mark 4:20

"But these are the ones sown on the good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit: some thirtyfold, some sixty and some a hundred"

I wrote a post about praying about a year and a half ago. A very prominent blogger, someone that I really admired left a comment making fun of me for praying. I never blogged about praying again. I cared more about what someone I will never meet thinks about me than I cared about myself. I don't want to be like that anymore.

Wendy

Help! They're out to get me!

On Monday I asked if anyone had any questions about me, and while I had no takers on the blog, I did  on Facebook.

Dale, my old high school German class comrade, wants to know what conspiracy sites I frequent.  Well, I'm not going to publicly share the sketchier sites because I don't want to give them publicity, but I will share my all around favorite--

www.d*program.net (remove the * I don't want them tracking me down )is a good all around site. Fairly bipartisan in their wingnut theories. They crackdown pretty hard on Obama, but they also have a tab at the top of the site labeled "Bush&Nazis" . You can get your basic info on 9/11 deception, FEMA work camps, swine flu, and, of course, the NWO. They also frequently feature my secret boyfriend #3, Ron Paul. If you are looking for heavier stuff just checkout some of the links on D*progam's side bars. You won't be disappointed. 

Wendy

Tuesday Teaser

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

"She liked anything to do with family. If she heard there was a cockfight in hell, she'd favor it as long as the whole family was involved."

I Am One of You Forever: A Novel by Fred Chappell

Wendy

Monday Confessional

I stole this idea from Rachael. It's only been 9 days and already I got nutin' to blog about.

1. We gave up caller ID to save money. I don't miss it nearly as much as I thought I would. Now, every time I answer the phone it's like a little tiny surprise party.

2. I spend waaaay too much time reading.

3. I go the the library as many as 3 times per week. I worry that the librarians think I'm a weird-o.

4. I dropped out of NaNoWriMo, but I have started a book.

5. Writing an actual book scares the pants off me.

6. I am addicted to A Book A Day.  I check it every night at midnight just to see what Angie has read for the day.

7. I don't like to go places by myself, which works out fine because one of the kids is usually more than happy to go with me.

8. I have a small shrine to Edge on the bookshelf next to the computer. It consists of 2 action figures, his autobiography, a poster, is 3 disc DVD set, 2 trading cards, and a metal trading card box. Okay, maybe it's not so small.

9. I love a good conspiracy theory. I read so many conspiracy websites that the CIA probably has a trace on my computer. That reminds me, I better reinforce my tinfoil hat so the government satellites can't follow the tracking chip they put in my fillings.

10. I know most of Weird Al's songs by heart.

Give me something to blog about. Ask me a question in the comments section. I'll answer anything. I'm an attention whore. Really, I am.

Wendy

Sunday Salon 11-08-09

This week's book is Half Broke Horses: A True-Life Novel by Jeannette Wells. Wells is the same author that brought us the wonderful The Glass Castle: A Memoir. Half Broke Horses is the story or Wells' grandmother, Lily Casey Smith. She has written in the first person narrative through the voice of Lily. The book starts off with a very young Lily saving her younger sister and brother from a flash flood by hauling them up a tree and keeping them there all night, and it ends with the birth of her granddaughter, the author, Jeannette Wells.  Through Lily's voice we experience WW1, The Great Depression, and WW2. Lily is a horse woman, cattle rancher, pilot, bootlegger, and school teacher, all while raising two children. I almost didn't finish Half Broke Horses because of the way Lily treats her children and the children she teaches. She has no problem beatin' the tar of them. I tend to be tenderhearted toward children. I don't even like to raise my voice at my own. But my mom, who read the book before I did, told me to stick it out, and I'm glad I did. It turned out to be a really great book. I would highly recommend Half Broke Horses. Now I want to read The Glass Castle again.

Irrelevant fact-The whole time I was reading the ranching parts of the book I couldn't help but picture scenes from The Pioneer Woman which is just plain ridiculous. Lily was hard and leathery and kinda mean. Ree, the pioneer woman, is just as pretty and sweet as the day is long. I guess the cattle looked the same. I mean, how different can a herd of cows look? And Lily's husband, Jim Smith, and Ree's husband, Marlboro Man, are both big, hard working cowboys, gettin all sweaty working horses and cattle and mending fences in their chaps.......whew! I got a little overheated there for a minute. Maybe it's not so ridiculous after all. I don't know. What do I know from cowboys? All I can tell you is that Half Broke Horses is a wonderful book. Run out and read it. Now.

Wendy

Two babies

Once upon a time there were two little babies. One was conceived in December of 1993. The following February his mother carelessly discarded him. She always thought he was a little boy. She named him Daniel.

After having there beautiful girls the mother conceived another baby. This baby wasn't meant to be, and 8 weeks after the baby had been conceived it slipped away. The mother always felt this baby was a boy too, but she never named him. It was too painful.

After about a year the mother found herself pregnant again. She was over the moon with happiness. At 8 weeks she found out she was carrying twins. At 20 weeks she found out they were boys. At 35 weeks she gave birth to two perfect, identical little boys. She named them Will and James. They were the light of her eyes.

The mother felt like those first two souls weren't ready to be born. They were scared, so they decided to come into the world together as a pair. That is the story the mother tells herself when she cannot sleep at night. It comforts her.

The end.

Wendy

What I learned from my purple bracelet

Okay, so I didn't make it 21 days. A few times I made it a little over 21 hours with out complaining, gossiping, being sarcastic, or cussing. It was the sarcasm that undid me. Sarcasm is the mainstay of my communication style. Without the sarcasm I just didn't feel like me. Plus, the bracelet was a little uncomfortable, and it was annoying to keep changing from wrist to wrist.

The purple bracelet also started to make me feel kind of superior and legalistic. When I would hear others complaining or gossiping I would start to feel like I was better than those people. Surely that is worse that actually complaining or gossiping myself. Pride is an ugly thing. It goeth before a fall, or something like that. I don't like to fall.

I did, however, learn a few things. I learned how to be more patient. I learned that I pretty much bitched and moaned constantly. I learned that my language had gotten a little too, shall we say, salty. So, I wouldn't say the project was a total bust, but I am glad it is over.

Wendy

Dave Barry on Craig Ferguson

Dave Barry was on Craig Ferguson pimping his new book the other night. In case you forgot to DVR it like I did, here it is for your viewing pleasure. (If this post is coming through on Facebook the video will not show up)

I love Dave. He is one of my heroes. We here at Casa de Friv are so excited that he has written another book in the Starcatchers series--Peter and the Sword of Mercy (Starcatchers)

Wendy