It happened to us this summer

Some nightmares can become reality...

The places you'll go!

July 4, 2014

Ordinarily, Devyn has strong opinions about what we will do and about where we will go, but not on the fourth of July. On this day, it mattered only that Devyn be allowed to read The Fault In Our Stars by John Green.

Please, play something else...?

I actually don't find the image creepy and, for the most part, Molly has enjoyed this book as it models social rules; but, when pressed for more information, she insisted, "Giraffes don't SKIP!"

The ethical treatment of books

I actually try to keep track of the conversations between Molly and me that I find funny or cute or surprising.

While watching one of her favourite documentary-style shows about art and architecture tonight, I sensed her agitation and then I heard it:

Molly:      That's not right, Mum! That's NOT right.

Me:         What's not right?

Molly:      They're turning unwanted books into works of art... People should respect books!

I know that I was a reader at her age (7), but I don't recall having such a strong sense of justice regarding the treatment of books.

Writer at work

I am usually very insistent that the girls only play after school because I don't want them to watch television (or to use an iPod, iPhone, or iPad); however, after school, Devyn wanted to transcribe the notes of the first chapter of her story. I just can't be responsible for derailing a writing career!

Sure. Why not?

Molly has insisted that I read Frankenstein to her. Though she is well accustomed to the Gothic elements in some nineteenth-century poetry, I worried that Frankenstein would be just too frightening for her; however, I grabbed a tattered, vintage copy of a version adapted for teens and, well, she loves it. It definitely isn't intended for seven-year-old children, but I'm not concerned.

We are slightly more than halfway through, but our reading has been slowed by the fact that she asks me to reread certain chapters that she likes. For example, she truly enjoys the chapter in which Victor Frankenstein successfully imbues the body that he has created with life -- using electricity. (Such an important part for many reasons.)

I like watching Molly, from the corner of my eye, revisiting the chapters that we've just finished.

Everywhere

Our front yard, and beyond, is covered in thick ice that resists any tool but a pickax and has been for at least one week (but I suspect longer).

No matter where you look, there is ice or snow covering ice. 

Admittedly, the ice and its effects -- quite beautiful.  

Still, I can't hide the fact that I am desperate for spring and, in spite of my rational self, I keep hoping that the nearest prognosticating rodent will not see his shadow.

Next up

Douglas Adams: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (John Carnell / Steve Leialoha) - a graphic novel that I've always wanted to read.

Super Why?

It's one show that I really don't mind the girls watching (though Devyn is not very interested in it) because, as Molly told me today, "It teaches you about letters and how to spell."

More Sherlock...but 'tis the season

I always have a graphic novel on the go, and right now it is The Hound of the Baskervilles (illustrated by I.N.J. Culbard and adapted by Ian Edginton).

January

We often go for long drives in the countryside, even during winter, on the weekends.

This weekend, I snapped a couple of photos from the car as the scenery quickly passed out of sight.




When I saw them, I immediately thought of Molly's school assignment from early December: she'd had to choose a book or a poem about winter to read to her class. Eventually, she chose January by John Updike.

The days are short,
The sun a spark
Hung thin between
The dark and dark.

Fat snowy footsteps
Track the floor,
And parkas pile up
Near the door.

The river is
A frozen place
Held still beneath
The trees' black lace.

The sky is low.
The wind is gray.
The radiator
Purrs all day.

from
A Child's Calendar by John Updike.

Sherlock

Two years is a lengthy hiatus for a television series that you really enjoy, but the wait is over for the fortunate (BBC) Sherlock fans in the UK. Yes, the third series began on New Year's Day. For them. The viewers in the UK.

I think "overjoyed" captures my reaction upon learning of the show's actual return dates. After all, watching Benedict Cumberbatch's Sherlock and Martin Freeman's Watson is such an enjoyable experience.

Admittedly, I was a latecomer to the show (and, okay, to some sort of Cumber-[collective]), but I quickly caught up during a Netflix binge on series one and two only to discover that series three wasn't even a rumour yet back then.

So, yes, Sherlock is back, and, as it happens, Sherlock is also free (in a sense).

According to the LA Times (12/30/13) now all elements of most of the stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (except those which appeared in the US in 1923) are in the public domain, and the characters of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John H. Watson are free of copyright.

But here are the details: New Sherlock Holmes Mystery...(LA Times, 12/30/13).