Rose of No Man’s Land

This summer I’ve been reading Michelle Tea’s new book, her first novel, Rose of No Man’s Land. It’s about a young teenage girl named Trisha who is a bit of a loner and has a really strange family. Her sister lies to get her a summer job at the most popular store in the mall "Omigod!". The girl that used to work there, Kim, tried to kill herself and so Kristie, Trisha’s sister, tells the owner that Kim and Trisha were friends which is not the case. Then Kim’s real friends come in and reveal the truth about Trisha. At least Trisha met someone (her summer goal was to make a friend) before she was fired, Rose. Trisha steal’s Kim’s cell phone from under the desk and she and Rose recieve a phone call from "xxx". "XXX" turns out to be a drug dealer and from there the girls get into all sorts of trouble. The book was amusing and slightly disappointing. I liked it, but not as much as a Francesca Lia Block book.  I think Michelle Tea is now my second favorite author.

Sense and Sensibility

In the first couple of chapters of this book, the author
tries to introduce you to the Dashwood family. It explains how the older Mr.
Dashwood brings his son and his grandson’s families into his home but only
leaves a fortune for his grandson. Then the younger Mr. Dashwood passes on and has
his son promises to take care of his wife and three daughters (Elinor, Margaret,
and Marianne). Also during the first few chapters you get the sense of the
three girls finding marriage.

Before Mrs.
Dashwood and her daughters move to her cousins, Elinor starts to find comfort in
a man named Edward Ferrar. This man seems plain to Elinor’s sisters but she is
till very fond of him. But after they arrive at Barton cottage Elinor and Marianne
begin to fall for two other men. Elinor falls for Colonel Brandon and Marianne for
John Willoughby. However both of these men have to go away to London for a good bit of time and leave the two girls heartbroken. However, shortly
after Wiloughby by leaves, Elinor finally receives a short visit from Ferrar and
during this visit she is still confused by his aloof emotions. Lucy Steele, a
distant relative then reveals that she has been engaged to Edward Ferrar for
four years secretly because Lucy has no fortune.

Elinor and
Marianne then go on a trip to London with their relatives, Lucy and Mrs. Jennings. Marianne is excited to see
Wiloughby but Elinor is apprehensive about possibly seeing Lucy and Edward
together. Marianne is devastated when Wiloughby keeps avoiding her when there
is great talk about their ‘engagement’. But after she finally sees him, he is
rude to her and the next day sends her a letter informing her of his engagement
to another woman.

Colonel
Brandon visits Elinor to discuss Marianne’s situation and then proclaims that
he was once deeply in love with a woman but she was married to his brother so as to ensure her fortune for the family. She
disappeared shortly after they divorced. Colonel then found the woman dying and
promised to take care of her three year old daughter. Wiloughby placed her in
school and visited her periodically. Brandon then tells how this girl is the girl that Wiloughby is engaged to!

The girls
also get a visit from their brother John. He tells Elinor that she should marry
Colonel Brandon but she assures him that she has no intentions of doing so.
Lucy then visits and brags about Edward’s favorable behavior to her at a party.
A servant suddenly announces the arrival of Mr. Ferrars, and Edward walks into
the room. He looks immediately uncomfortable after realizing that both Lucy and
Elinor are in attendance. Marianne, who does not know anything about Lucy’s
claims of an attachment to Edward, expresses her joy at his arrival.

Mrs.
Jennings then reveals, after a visit with a friend, that Edward and Lucy have
been engaged for over a year. Elinor then tells her sister.  Marianne is amazed at how calm Elinor remained over the last
four months. John Dashwood visits his sisters again and tells them how Edward
mother knows about the engagement and he has refused to break it off so now
Robert will get all of her inheritance.

Before
Marianne and Elinor leave London, Colonel Brandon visits them and tells then how
he is going to give some of his inheritance to Edward so he can support
himself. Before returning to Barton the
girls go along with the Palmers to their estate in Cleveland.
When they arrive at Cleveland,
Marianne takes several, long walks in the evenings and
catches a violent cold and Colonel then volunteers to bring Marianne back to
Barton to get better. Just before the expected arrival time of Mrs. Dashwood
and Colonel Brandon John Willoughby comes to offer Elinor an apology for his
behavior toward Marianne. He tells her that he always knew that he could never
afford to marry Marianne and did not appreciate love when he first became
attached to her. He confesses to marrying Miss Grey for her money and will
forever hold Marianne in the highest regard.

Willoughby asks Elinor to communicate his confession to Marianne and request her
forgiveness. Mrs. Dashwood and Colonel
Brandon arrive at Cleveland and are
relieved to learn of Marianne’s improved state. Mrs. Dashwood tells Elinor that
on the long carriage ride from Barton to Cleveland,
Colonel Brandon confessed his love for Marianne. Elinor
tells Marianne of Wiloughby’s confession on a walk one day and Marianne feels
much better knowing that his abandonment of her was not the final revelation of
a long-standing deceit, but rather the result of his financial straits. They
then receive news that ‘Mr. Farrars’ has married Lucy. This news distresses
both Elinor and Marianne. Soon after though, Edward arrives and the girls
confront him about the news. He then says that they are mistaken. Robert has
married Lucy. Within the next three hours, Edward proposes to Elinor and she
accepts. Elinor and Edward live together at Delaford and invite both Marianne
and Colonel Brandon to visit often, in the hope that the two will form an
attachment with one another. Their plans is successful, for the Colonel and the
younger sister later become engaged and move in with Elinor and Edward at
Delaford.

Technorati Tags: janeausten, senseandsensibility

The Scarlet Letter

The Scarlet Letter was one of the worse books I ever read. It’s about a woman named Hester who commits adultery and must wear a scarlet a stiched on her dress at all times. She does not reveal who the father of her daughter, Pearl is but you find out in the book. Her husband from Amsterdam, Chillingworth also shows up and tells her that he will be staying in town until he finds out who Pearl’s father is. Reverend Dimmesdale is Pearl’s father and because of the secret he grows ill. Chillingworth is a doctor and takes care of Dimmesdale. I really just hated the storyline to this book and how it read.

The Celestine Prophecy

One of the last books I read for this year was The Celestine
Prophecy by James Redfield. This book is an adventure book about people being
united and finding spiritual enlightenment. I’ve been describing the spiritual
enlightenment as the "Alex Grey Way"
to my friends so that they will understand that it is about energy.

The book starts off in the states with the main character, John, feeling
restless with life. (The book does not actually say his name but it is John in
the movie.) Then his old friend, Charlene, calls him and tells him about a
manuscript. In this manuscript there are insights. Charlene reveals the first
one to John but in order to find out the others, he goes to Peru.
When he gets there the man he met on the plane is captured and then he meets Wil
who takes him on this journey to learn the 8 insights and find the 9th.

On this journey John meets many people; each at the right time to help him
learn the next insight. And, throughout the whole book the characters rely on
their instinct and do not take coincidences for granted. The journey is
dangerous due to the government not wanting the manuscripts revealed. So, many
people do get captured and some are even killed.

This book was a good book. I loved the idea of all of the insights. I also
liked the adventure part of it. I thought that this book managed a good balance
of the different aspects a book should have. Apparently there are two more
books following this one. I can’t wait to read the next one.

Technorati Tags: TheCelestineProphecy, JamesRedfield, 9Enlightenments, PeruAdventure, AlexGreyEnergy,

Dorothy Parker

Last night I read a short book with three of Dorothy Parker’s short stories in it. They were Big Blonde, The Sexes and Dusk Before Fireworks. All three amused me equally. I really liked the “reality” in them. The women characters and the way they thought or acted was very realistic. The way that she portrayed relationships was also very realistic.

Dorothy Parker was a critic, satirical poet, and short-story writer. She started her career as Vanity Fair’s drama critic and moved on to the New Yorker’s theater and book reviewer. She published many books throughout her time and even wrote some films for Hollywood. She also wrote two Broadway plays.

After researching her biography and finding out that she was a “Jersey Girl” I think that explains the realistic humor in her books and stories.

Technorati Tags: DorothyParker, BigBlonde, ShortStories, Poems, Movies, Plays, Critic, VanityFair, NewJersey

Frozen Pizza vs. Homemade Pizza

Recently I started making my own pizza from boboli bread and packaged sauce. There is something about one of them that tastes kind of weird but I do like to put my own toppings on them. My favorite one is red peppers. I used to really like mini frozen supreme pizzas. I think that either are ok though. There’s a pretty good article at slashfood.com about which frozen pizzas are better.

Technorati Tags: pizza, frozenpizza, homemadepizza,

Oscar Wilde’s Portia, Written in the Lyceum Thetre

I marvel not Bassanio was so bold
To peril all he had upon the lead,
Or that proud Aragon bent low his head
Or that morocco’s fiery heart grew cold;
For in that gorgeous dress of beaten gold
Which is more golden that the golden sun
No woman Veronsese looked upon
Was half so fair as thou whom I behold.
Yet fairer when with wisdom as your shield
The sober-suited lawyer’s gown you donned,
And would not let the laws of Venice yield
Antonio’s heart to that accursed Jew-
O Portia! take my heart; it is thy due:
I think I will not quarrel with the Bond.

Goth Subculture

Today I read a good article about goths. I don’t think I’ve ever read anything that actually portrays gothic people for what they really are and not what the bible thumping christians think they are. Goths are very intelligient and in my mind a lot more classy than some subcultures. Most the goths I know are such intellectual people and when I’m trying to carry a conversation with them, I just can’t follow because they have very big vocabulary and after a conversation I always learn something I didn’t know. It was just definently a great article.

Technorati Tags: goth, subculture, portrayal

Oscar Wilde Poem From Ave Imperatrix

For not in quiet English fields
    Are there, our brothers, laid to rest,
Where we might deck their broken shields
    With all the flowers the dead love best.

Fors ome ar by the Delhi walls,
    And many in the Afghan land,
And may where the Ganges falls
    Through seven mouths of shifting sand.

And some in Russian waters lie,
    And others in the seas which are
The portals to the East, or by
    The wind-swept heights of Trafalgar.

And thou whose wounds are never healed,
    Whose weary race is never won,
O Cromwell’s england! must thou yield
    For every ince of ground a son?

So I thought this poem was a good one to post today. It is about war and what a sad thing it is to have people die in it. It is also about how a lot of war is pointless in some ways. And how it is ridiculous to have to bury people because they died in a war.

Technorati Tags: OscarWilde, FromAveImperatrix, war, death

Risks for ‘goth’ Youths

In an article from WebMD titled Safety Riskes for ‘Goth’ Youths you hear of a survey done in Scotland that states that most of the youths who catagorise themselves under the ‘gothic’ subculture have admitted to doing bodily harm to themselves.

I don’t really think that this is surprising. But I also don’t think that this is only something seen among ‘gothic’ people. I do however know that most peolple that get into the ‘goth scene’ are into blood and gorish things.

The part about the survey that states how many admitted to trying suicide doesn’t surprise me either. But what does surprise me is that it’s supposibly less common in other subculture identified youths. Honestly I think that the only reason that the rate is half and half with ‘goths’ or whatever is because there are less of them. But if you were to do a survey of all the people that tried to kill themselves I bet that there would be just as many in most subcultures.

Technorati Tags: suicide, goth, cutting, harm, subcultures,