Ireland and Friends

For the past few weeks, I've taken the bus with an adorably stylish gal. I'm convinced she's just about my age. And! She boards the bus where I transfer and we both exit at the same stop. And! She works in my office building. Is there a way to strike up a friendly conversation without coming off as creepy?

Now and Then took sometime to grow on me. Through the first few chapters, Anna's (the main character) lawyer street cred came up. Again. And again. And again. She's a lawyer, I get it. But then she and her nephew time travel to pre-famine Ireland. And her past (um, future?!) doesn't matter much. So that's when Sheehan's build up kinda made me eat my words. She emphasizes Anna's law background because it doesn't come in all too handy in her time travel trials. And so, because Anna has always depended on her legal eagleness, she's forced to reevaluate herself.

Talk about a chance to start over. New friends, new man and a clean slate? What's not to love? Oh, that's right, stuck in a time that's not your own separated from the only person you know.

Oddly, while Anna's found herself kicking it with the commoners, her nephew's time travels landed him (same time zone) at a richie rich estate. After falling in love with a kitchen lass and becoming a champion wrestler, he thinks he's got it made. But we know things aren't always that neat and tidy, right?

Sigh. After reading Now and Then, I wanted to become a travel writer, book a ticket to Ireland and get a dog. In that order. I've never been to Ireland but it's been on my list forever.

A few years back, my wonderfully awesome Grandparents (chilling above at my college graduation) celebrated an anniversary by spending a month in Ireland. When they came back, they referred to fries as "chips" and insisted that we call to-go food "take-away." Aren't they the coolest?

Full disclosure: I received a gratis copy of Now and Then from the lovely folks at Avon/Harper Collins after a friend of Sheehan's contacted me to see if I'd be interested in reading the novel.

What I Love

Last week, the BF and I climbed up a hillside for our engagement portraits with our good friend and super talented photographer Meg Perotti. I am swooning over these images. Of course, books played a large part in the production.

A preview:

See the full set over at Meg's blog.

Bee Funny

For quite some time, the on board broadcast of bus monitors has been limited to weather or live maps showing bus locations. Completely acceptable, right? However, as the smarty pants bloggers over at The Bus Bench noted a few months back, the monitors are no longer silent. We riders must listen--and watch--a variety of uninteresting, and sometimes offensive programming. It wasn't until this morning that I actually sat up and paid full attention. I was happily reading Now and Then when suddenly I heard an eerie laugh track. Looking up, I saw the source.

A paragraph long story about a husband and wife trying to arrange a night out. And then screen flashed to a new, equally long paragraph. The couple has a cat. The cat must be locked out while they're away. Next screen, a cab rolls up. Apparently, a paragraph is required to explain this difficult concept.

So what was this nonsense all about? After eight screens of build up, a punchline! Jokes! Unfunny, ridiculously long, dated, offensive jokes! The jokes found on popsicle sticks are more entertaining.

Sidenote-- When I told this story to the BF, his eyes lit up.

BF: What do you call it when a girl bee is being bad?

Me: I dunno, what?

BF: Miss-bee-hive-ing

Me: *eyeroll

BF: raucous laughter

Have you heard any good jokes lately? What's making you smile this week? For me, it's thinking about all the yummy Thanksgiving grub!

Full disclosure: I received a gratis copy of Now and Then from the lovely folks at Avon/Harper Collins after a friend of Sheehan's contacted me to see if I'd be interested in reading the novel.

More full disclosure: One Halloween during my early 20s, I dressed up as, ahem, a "miss-bee-hive-ing" bee. Some might have called it a slutty bee. Alas.

Loose Ends

That dastardly mouse is no longer an issue. We'd taken the expected measures: setting up traps, keeping the kitchen spotless--I have a bit of a gluttonous confession. We have not cooked a meal since Halloween. That's right, we've been out to eat every.single.night this month. It's heavenly.

But I digress. So, a few days ago, the BF found evidence of a scuffle between a small animal (mouse) and a quite larger one (our 16 pound tabby).

I should have given her exterminator skills more credit.

Next week we return to cooking. Let's hope I remember my way around a stove.

Current read is Now and Then by Jacqueline Sheehan. Time travel, the East Coast, lawyers, Ireland, wrestling and one-armed heroes. More soon.

In the meantime, what are your thoughts on time travel in novels, movies, shows, etc? Love it? Hate it? If you could travel back, or forward in time, where (or when?) would you go?

Full disclosure: I received a gratis copy of Now and Then from the lovely folks at Avon/Harper Collins after a friend of Sheehan's contacted me to see if I'd be interested in reading the novel.

Cartoon image from Tom and Jerry Online.

Douse the Mouse

The BF's latest attempt at vector control:

Special thanks to "Production Assistant" Gabby for letting us borrow one of her toys.

Updates soon!

A Happy Home

Why hello, there! We (me!) have been quite the busy little bees at Chez Booking it Bus Style. Wedding planning, domestic issues (new cat litter woes), loads of new books and on and on. Oh, and we may or may not have a mouse kicking it incognito in our kitchen. Darn Gabby's previous owners for declawing her.

She's so vicious, right? Anywho...

Finished up Reading Lolita in Tehran some time ago. I really need to be more selective in my bus literature. See, as I've mentioned before, I'm quite the cry baby. So, imagine the waterworks on overdrive while finishing up such emotional heaviness in public.

When the BF and I saw Where the Wild Things Are, I complained that I didn't like seeing emotional movies in the theater because I prefer to get my cry on in private. Brilliant gent he is, he countered, "Movies are designed that way. To create a shared experience. Doesn't it feel richer to go through that journey with a large group rather than by yourself?" Touche philosophy buff. Moving on...

I adore books that deal with themes of home; Reading Lolita in Tehran is all over this. Throughout the memoir, the Tehran of Nafisi's youth and the Tehran she lives in duke it out. It's so fascinating to see her generation struggle with the current regime; they're fighting for a society--and home--that no longer exists. At the same time, her students are battling for wholly different reasons.

Books like this really put things into perspective. My complaints and woes are downright silly compared to the hardships endured by the real people in Nafisi's work. Interestingly, as I was thinking this, I came across what would turn out to be one of my favorite passages.

"Why is it that stories like Lolita and Madame Bovary--stories that are so sad, so tragic--make us happy? Is it not sinful to feel pleasure when reading about something so terrible? Would we feel this way if we were to read about it in the newspapers or if happened to us? If we were to write about our lives here in the Islamic Republic of Iran, should we make our readers happy?"

So why is this book--not a novel, but a memoir, so enjoyable to read? Is it wrong to feel grateful and even happy while reading this? The writing is so beautiful and tear inducing. Painfully enjoyable, you might say.

Back in Black

A Halloween I will not soon forget. I'm trying to convince the BF to write a guest post. We shall see.

In the meantime, on Saturday, my dear friend (and wedding photographer!) Meg hosted a super stylish Halloween bash. Costumes were a must and of course the BF and I racked our brains to come up with something fun. The inspiration:



The execution:

How'd we do? And how did you celebrate? Any good trick-or-treating loot?

Costume images by Meg Perotti.