Good reads and quick reviews...

Long Quiet Highway: Waking up in America by Natalie Goldberg

Background: While at Utah State I took 'Opinion Writing' from Nancy Williams and it changed my world. Nancy had us read "Writing down the Bones" by Natalie Goldberg (a book about writing practice) and it opened up a whole new realm of writing to me....loved, Loved, LOVED it. Spoke right to me and helped me put into words why I love to write. So when I stumbled upon "Long Quiet Highway" at my new favorite used bookstore it was a no-brain purchase. "Long Quiet Highway" is Goldberg's personal memoir about growing up lost and eventually finding writing and Zen to be her solace. I found her pathway to writing more interesting than Goldberg's personal experiences with Zen, but still loved the book. However, if writing's not your thing, this may not be an overly inspiring book for you.

Catch me if you can by Frank Abagnale Jr.

Background: It's a Saturday night and C and I were waiting for some friends to come over when we stumbled up this movie with Tom Hanks and Leonardo Dicaprio about an amazing con artist that neither of us had seen. We got completely sucked in and hurried and popped in a tape to record the rest when our guests arrived. As luck would have it the tape stopped recording before the movie ended. PANIC! Don't get me wrong, we had a great time with our friends, but as soon as they left we rushed to Hastings to rent "Catch me if you can." Loved it. Easily one of the best movies either of us had seen in a long time.

Fast forward a week and we found ourselves again at our little bookstore when I happily stumbled upon the book "Catch me if you can". Frank Abagnale's true story, which takes place in the late sixties, of being one of the most successful and youngest con artists in America is amazing - and the movie only shows a small portion. America was more innocent and naive then, more so than we now could ever imagine. He was quite the criminal, don't get me wrong, but you can't help but cheer for him just a little. Perhaps it's the awe that he ever got away with what he did, or the loneliness he found along the way. Either way, it's a great story.

Meet Eugene Collins.....

Introducing Eugene Collins.....
Eugene and I volunteer at the same after-school program. The biggest difference? I'm a 27 year old white LDS female who grew up in Idaho and graduated from college. Eugene's an 80 year old black Baptist preacher born and raised on a Texas farm. But friendship came easily and when I was recently hired to free-lance for a local publication I knew who would be my first story.









Here are a few of my favorite Eugene quotes:





"Carry yourself in a way where you respect other people- when you respect other people you will get respect."

"I believe I'll be rewarded in heaven- it's one of those belief things- you believe what you believe. Believe that this bad world don't owe you nothin'. Give yourself, give some of your time to God instead of the devil you know. If I can just be that light, for these kids, set up on that hill that they can see it you know- then that's all I would like to be. If the kids can say 'I remember that old man and he was pretty good.' "

"Color don't mean nothin' to me - you know- cause everybody is somebody in my life- regardless- that's the thing."

"When I came up you couldn't go to restaurants through the same door that other colors did. All that's changed now - where all men are created equal and everybody's the same now. That's what I've seen and I think it's the very best thing that could have happened."

"Anybody can be somebody."

"I've seen it [Martin Luther King's dream] come true. That's just the way I think God wanted it to be for everybody to treat one another the same."

"I might be the color black, but I'm not a black preacher. I preach to everybody."

"Continue your goals, your higher goals you know - regardless of what people say or think about your- reach for your higher goals and you'll make it. "

"I have the energy to keep on goin' because I don't stop. I don't give up. That's it - never give up."

Caverns and Yes Bronwyn, there is a cactus...

In our attempt to take full advantage of the world around us C and I headed south to the Natural Bridge Caverns today.....70 degrees, 99 % humidity and all the stalactites and stalagmites you could imagine. Our little camera certainly doesn't do this underground world justice.
YES BRONWYN, there is a cactus.....

Conversation with Bronwyn a few days before moving to Texas (it should be noted that this conversation took place as I was trying to get Bronwyn to go to bed...she sure knows how to wrap her auntie around her little finger!)

B- No Auntie Hil, don't go!
H- Bug, I need to go and you need to go to bed.
B- But I love you so much Auntie Hil. I want you to hold my hand.
H- I love you too Bug. I'll stay for just another minute.
B- No, but Auntie Hil I want you to stay at Uma's house all day.
H- Oh I will sweetie...I'm going to sleep here too and I'll see you when you wake up.
B- No, but I don't want you to move to that new house in Cactus.
H- *sniff sniff* I have to honey, but you can come visit me there.
B- When I come visit you I don't have to go to the doctor's right?
H- No sweetie you won't have to go to a doctor. You can just come visit me and play...I'll even have a swimming pool.
B- But Auntie Hil when you are done in Cactus you can come back here?
H- Yes sweetie I'll come back. *more sniffs*

This pic's for you bug....
(Note: There are many cactus...er cacti...in the wildlands of Texas...this potted plant seemed a more friendly picture companion.)

Smoked meat anyone?

Oooooh the month of September has been treating us well. Why it's even cooled down into the 80's this week and we've been able to turn off our air conditioner at night and open the windows. Bless it. Ike traveled to the East of us leaving us with hardly a few drops of rain. Other highlights have included a fun little outdoor market and walking along the river. Of course nothing compares to C transforming our barbeque into a smoker and smoking some delicious ribs. Impressed? Indeed.

R-E-A-D....

With my love for movies, music, t.v. and magazines it may be hard to believe that I do indeed also read books. True story. To prove it (and by prove it I mean just for fun) I thought I'd start doing quick little reviews on what I've read recently. Then should anyone be interested in picking up a book recently read by me...well then it will be easy to do so. I welcome your comments, words of agreement, disagreements, and other such banter.

Breaking Dawn By Stephenie Myer: I feel no real need to talk much about this book because everyone I know who wanted to read it has done so and we've talked in length about it. Bottom line, I see things through. From book one I was invested in the characters so there was no turning back. I enjoyed knowing more about the characters and their story...but this, the fourth book in the Twilight series, for me wasn't as good as the previous three. Fun enough...a little on the long side.

BOOM! By Tom Brokaw: I L-O-V-E-D this book (kudos to C for the stellar Christmas gift). If you like biographies, history, and more specifically the amazing dynamic and progress that was the 1960's you'll enjoy this book. Brokaw interviewed figures from the 60's from Vietnam vets to musicians, politicians to hippies, feminists to civil rights protesters and so on. Reading the different perspectives on the 60's via different people and thus different stories and opinions was, for me, the perfect way to learn more about this influential time period. Amazing stories and points of view...the good and bad that came from a generation so different than their parents is also addressed. I loved it. The 60's have always fascinated me. I've always said that had I been alive during that important decade I would have gotten in all sorts of trouble marching for Civil Rights. I also think I would have made a decent hippie with my guitar...though I could have never pulled off the long hair.


Music of the moment:
Ride by Cary Brothers
Pretty much everything by Schuyler Fisk (Faves: From where I'm standing, Paperweight, Songs that say goodbye, I'm giving up) Also listen to her here.

Meu Brasil Brasileiro!

Today is Brasil's independence day and we've been celebrating for a few days with sweet Brazilian food and tunes. Enjoy some fotos of the land and people we love....ahhh....saudades....

Music of the day/week/month....we'll see...

Months ago I was talking to my life-long friend Camie. I was telling her how I missed writing (at the time I wasn't yet back in the writing game). She encouraged me to blog and told me how enjoyable and validating it can be to just put your ideas, thoughts, and moments out there. Her words rang true to me and MONTHS later I followed her advice.

Thus far the blogging has been fun.....a bit like a travel log or journal. So now I'm going to add something new...some of my loves, interests, ideas, thoughts. Why? Because I can...and those of you who check blogs as regularly as I do will read whatever I write.

So here we go:

I (understatement) LOVE music. Here's the music I can't get enough of this week:

Frank Sinatra- Seriously I don't know how many times C and I have listened to 'ole blue eyes this week. Who doesn't love old big band/swing/jazz tunes? Okay some of you out there don't love it...but I dare you to give it a try. It makes me smile without fail and makes me wonder why we as a society gave up fedoras and boas so easily.

Maria Taylor- If you love indie/acoustic/folkish music like I do (again if you don't...I dare you to try....) you MUST give Maria Taylor a listen. Check her out here and listen to Clean Getaway, Good Start, Tell Me, Leap Year, Lost Time.....okay they're all fantastic. Beautiful.

Enjoy.

Tuesdays with Hil and C.....

C and I have a new Tuesday tradition (and no it's not to eat a BLT...though that's not a bad idea and the two are kind of related....). Every Tuesday San Marcos has a local farmers market...year round because as previously mentioned it never gets very cold here. So every Tuesday we plan to support our local friends and buy their tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, peaches, and other bits and pieces of healthy goodness.

This Tuesday we added another piece to our Tuesday tradition puzzle. We found a new bookstore called "Books in Demand" where no book is over $5. Hello dream! The books are used, but in really good condition. You can bring books to trade in or sell and everyone benefits with the fabulous prices. On Tuesday C and I bought three books for the sweet price of $4.87.

Now our Tuesday tradition will include both the farmers market and bookstore. Jealous? We're only an airplane away!

(PS Happy Birthday to Tyraysha! Te amamos MUITO nossa amiga querida!)