How could I have missed this?

I don't know if you have read any of Wally Lamb's books before, but they are simply heartbreaking and heartfelt. In case you don't remember, his previous books were She's Come Undone and I Know This Much Is True.

In She's Come Undone, we meet Dolores Price who has dealt with a severely disappointing life, filled with abandonment, rape, and abuse by self medicating with FOOD. While none of these things are laughing matters, Wally Lamb makes lemonade out of lemons and this is an engaging and entertaining read.

In I Know This Much Is True, Dominick Birdsey is one of the brothers who make up identical twins. His brother Thomas is a schizophrenic who at one point in the book, slices his hand off. But Dominick is the central character in the book which explores self denial, self discovery and the wreckage left behind every dysfunctional family. It is a little imposing at 928 pages but the language, dialog and humor are worth it.

While researching this blog I found that he taught a writing class for incarcerated women and wrote a book, or editing one, that compiled their stories. Couldn't Keep It to Myself and I'll fly Away are composed of essays written by the women inmates of a maximum security prison. These are next on my reading list.

In case you hadn't noticed, both of these titles are based on song lyrics, so when I saw the new book, I was "looking" for the music attached. It finally dawned on me....Amazing Grace.

The new book is about a teacher who was present and "survived," in a manner of speaking, the Columbine School Shooting. Never quite recovering, she retreats to her husbands small New England town where the story continues on a different but connected vein.

Again, not a pretty topic, but I am looking forward to reading something new by Mr. Lamb. It has been 8 years I think, since his last book. I guess you can call him the opposite of James Patterson. I am sure this book will be worth the wait.

Hearing Bells

10:57 am. I pull into the parking lot of the FWISD Professional Development Center and lock my car. I will only have to make this drive one more time since the semester is almost done. It has been a tough class. Nothing has worked out well for the class or my students. It has been an eye opening learning experience for me but I am tired and looking forward to the class being over.

Have you ever noticed how sound is different at different temperatures? It seems that sound gets muffled in the heat. Maybe it is the moisture in the air that causes the sound to lose some of its edge. They become muted by the humidity.

Not today though. It was cool and crisp and quiet. I walk across the parking lot in downtown Ft. Worth and I am aware of the noise my boot heels make on the paved surface. I can hear a gang of grackles in a tree at the end of the block. I hate those birds. They don't have a song, so much as they have the noise of a broken fast food speaker. I can hear the sound of traffic but my boots still serve as the central soundtrack.

11:00: I think to myself, "Ha...I am almost right on time!" and then I hear it. The church on the corner has a bell tower that rings out marking the hour. I stop and listen. Being a city girl I have grown up in neighborhoods that have many churches. One intersection in Philadelphia has 3 churches...one Irish Catholic, one Polish Catholic and one Greek Orthodox. Each church was built by construction workers of that parrish and then attended by their family, friends and descendants. They all had bell towers and I grew up with this familiar sound. I stop and listen.

As the bells finish, I start to open the door of the building but then they start again. They ring out a tune and I smile and tears spring to my eyes. I am a sap. I stay outside to hear the end of the song. My class will wait for me.

Missing Teen

Please click the link HERE.

Never noticed....

You know how you see something all the time and never notice...

On my way to teach class this morning I noticed the sign for the Fort Worth Zoo....

Get it.... F.....W....?

Sometimes I worry about my brain function.

Sorry River....

But this was too cute...so I thought I should post it.

Gee...and I thought my cat was vocal....

Isn't it pretty?

If you look a little closer, you will see that this tree is made of Mountain Dew Cans. You can click HERE to see the step my step version of it...

In a Fowl Mood

You know those days when you wake up and you just KNOW it is going to be a bad day?

That is today.

I don't know why.

I did a lot of spring cleaning this weekend; watched a funny movie with Fred; read a good book; took a bath; almost took two naps (Mad walked in during both of them to see if I was alright, which startled me awake and then made continuing the nap impossible); had a couple of good beers; went out to breakfast.

All in all a very good weekend. I did not complete laundry, but I never seem to anyway...so no HUGE surprise.

So anyway...woke up this morning and kids were complaining about school, and no socks and no pants and then Fred, Madelaine and I did the dance around our too small kitchen, packing lunches and making breakfasts....the usual crap. By this point I had a headache and realized that the day is not looking so good.

Now I am at work and preparing for storytime. Some days I find that storytime makes everything better...sometimes it makes it worse. I am not sure what today will bring. I guess I can always hope.