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Today Is The Last Day of Banned Books Week

October 4, 2008 by 2 Comments

(Snagged this list from another blog I read). Banned books week is September 27 – October 4 (under the wire – there’s nothin’ new for me).

How to play:
1: Copy this list.
2: Highlight the ones you have read (or at least remember reading).
3: Tag five people to play.

1. Scary Stories (Series) by Alvin Schwartz
2. Daddy’s Roommate by Michael Willhoite
3. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
4. The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
5. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
6. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
7. Harry Potter (Series) by J.K. Rowling
8. Forever by Judy Blume
9. Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
10. Alice (Series) by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
11. Heather Has Two Mommies by Leslea Newman
12. My Brother Sam is Dead by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier
13. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
14. The Giver by Lois Lowry
15. It’s Perfectly Normal by Robie Harris
16. Goosebumps (Series) by R.L. Stine
17. A Day No Pigs Would Die by Robert Newton Peck
18. The Color Purple by Alice Walker
19. Sex by Madonna
20. Earth’s Children (Series) by Jean M. Auel
21. The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson
22. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
23. Go Ask Alice by Anonymous
24. Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers
25. In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak
26. The Stupids (Series) by Harry Allard
27. The Witches by Roald Dahl
28. The New Joy of Gay Sex by Charles Silverstein
29. Anastasia Krupnik (Series) by Lois Lowry
30. The Goats by Brock Cole
31. Kaffir Boy by Mark Mathabane
32. Blubber by Judy Blume
33. Killing Mr. Griffin by Lois Duncan
34. Halloween ABC by Eve Merriam
35. We All Fall Down by Robert Cormier
36. Final Exit by Derek Humphry
37. The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
38. Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George
39. The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
40. What’s Happening to my Body? Book for Girls: A Growing-Up Guide for Parents & Daughters by Lynda Madaras
41. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
42. Beloved by Toni Morrison
43. The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton
44. The Pigman by Paul Zindel
45. Bumps in the Night by Harry Allard
46. Deenie by Judy Blume
47. Flowers for Algernon by Daniel KeyesM
48. Annie on my Mind by Nancy Garden
49. The Boy Who Lost His Face by Louis Sachar
50. Cross Your Fingers, Spit in Your Hat by Alvin Schwartz
51. A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein
52. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
53. Sleeping Beauty Trilogy by A.N. Roquelaure (Anne Rice)
54. Asking About Sex and Growing Up by Joanna Cole
55. Cujo by Stephen King
56. James and the Giant Peach by Roald DahlM
57. The Anarchist Cookbook by William Powell
58. Boys and Sex by Wardell Pomeroy
59. Ordinary People by Judith Guest
60. American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis
61. What’s Happening to my Body? Book for Boys: A Growing-Up Guide for Parents & Sons by Lynda Madaras
62. Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume
63. Crazy Lady by Jane Conly
64. Athletic Shorts by Chris Crutcher
65. Fade by Robert Cormier
66. Guess What? by Mem Fox
67. The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende
68. The Face on the Milk Carton by Caroline Cooney
69. Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
70. Lord of the Flies by William Golding
71. Native Son by Richard Wright
72. Women on Top: How Real Life Has Changed Women’s Fantasies by Nancy Friday
73. Curses, Hexes and Spells by Daniel Cohen
74. Jack by A.M. Homes
75. Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo A. Anaya
76. Where Did I Come From? by Peter Mayle
77. Carrie by Stephen King
78. Tiger Eyes by Judy Blume
79. On My Honor by Marion Dane Bauer
80. Arizona Kid by Ron Koertge
81. Family Secrets by Norma Klein
82. Mommy Laid An Egg by Babette Cole
83. The Dead Zone by Stephen King
84. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
85. Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
86. Always Running by Luis Rodriguez
87. Private Parts by Howard Stern
88. Where’s Waldo? by Martin Hanford
89. Summer of My German Soldier by Bette Greene
90. Little Black Sambo by Helen Bannerman
91. Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett
92. Running Loose by Chris Crutcher
93. Sex Education by Jenny Davis
94. The Drowning of Stephen Jones by Bette Greene
95. Girls and Sex by Wardell Pomeroy
96. How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell
97. View from the Cherry Tree by Willo Davis Roberts
98. The Headless Cupid by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
99. The Terrorist by Caroline Cooney
100. Jump Ship to Freedom by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier

And though I can’t figure out why some of those are banned, I have to say, part of me is looking at this like a reading list now… like I want to wade through the muddle that is the demented minds of the stupid book banning people. If you don’t want to read a book, don’t read it.

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Where I Reveal A Love For Fried Dough that JUST AIN’T RIGHT

October 3, 2008 by 1 Comment

For our local high school, it’s been homecoming week. A few weeks ago, The Princess’s school sent home a note saying that the first graders would be singing “God Bless America” before the game, so hey, on to the calendar it went: Homecoming Game.

Remember, this is a small town and people generally follow one of two paths: a) Never Leave, or b) Leave And Never Come Back. Or if you’re wild and crazy like me and Hubby, you’ll leave, swear you will never in a million years go back to that little corn-growing hick town… and then you’ll go back. Homecoming games are really no different than any other Friday night game at the high school – remember, a lot of them never left.

I try to never go to games – and not just because the football team never wins or because I get a little nostalgic for my short little polyester skirt. I avoid them because running into my past constantly gets a little bit too much. I can take it occasionally, but for every Friday home game? Um, nope.

But today we had to go. We went early for the Homecoming Parade (to which I say, WTF – we didn’t have a freakin’ parade for homecoming when I was in high school!), then ventured to the high school parking lot where they were serving free hot dogs and popcorn and food for everyone (my tax dollars hard at work, y’all. Hot dogs. We can’t get a community recycling center, but dangit, processed meat byproducts for everyone!). Standing in line for the (ugh) hot dog, I heard someone calling my name. I turned around. My old high school cheerleading coach. Heeeeeeeeeeeeeey. There’s a face I hadn’t seen in awhile.

I sat on a hill with The Princess watching her eat her hot dog and people watching (hooray for big sunglasses!), seeing face after face that I recognized. I then led The Princess to the spot where she’d be meeting her teacher and classmates to prepare to sing – then it was like bullseye – face after face of people I went to school with. Including a girl I cheered with, only recognizable because she was wearing one of our cheer sweatshirts… from SIXTEEN YEARS AGO… with her name on it. Now, I’m a packrat. I’m a pretty bad packrat. But I’m fairly sure I tossed my sweatshirt better than ten years ago. Then again, if I didn’t see her name screen printed in that megaphone on the back, there is no way in hell I’d have known who it was. NO. WAY.

While I was with the girls, Hubby was on an IMPORTANT MISSION. To fetch for me an elephant ear. I love elephant ears – they go against everything I believe in, healthwise, but there is seriously nothing better. It was amazingly greasy, sugary, and cinnamon-y. I shared (a little bit of) it with Hubby and Pumpkin, but that sucker was history within minutes, and I have to say, I’m reasonably certain I would knock small children out of the path if they interefered with my getting an elephant ear. So so so wrong. Come to find out, like the hot dogs and popcorn, my elephant ear was free. Free. (Had I known that prior to eating it, I’m sure it would have tasted that much better).

We left The Princess with her teacher and Hubby and I took Pumpkin to find a seat. I ended up two rows in front of my BFF’s ex-hubby, who either didn’t notice or acknowledge me (that’s alright, I didn’t acknowledge him either), sat through a painful marching band rendition of Joan Jett’s “I Hate Myself For Loving You” before my kid came out on the track to sing.

And there was such a huge group of first graders, I couldn’t see her. Every picture I took is just this giant mob of little kids. Fun. After her performance, I had to walk over to the end of the field to get her – and seriously had one of those weird flashback moments of walking on that track on Friday nights before football games (yes, I loved cheerleading – and that is why I was MOST SCHOOL SPIRIT 1994). I passed my senior year boyfriend as I walked down the track – walking in opposite directions, we smiled and said hi and kept walking like it was an everyday thing (Funny isn’t it, how for a time someone seems like your whole world and then life happens and they are just extras in the background?).

Now that I’m home, I am in a near vegetative state from my massive fried dinner. That’s alright though. Typically a maybe once-a-year treat, I won’t get this gorged, stuffed to my gills feeling for at least twelve more months.

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A Friday Fill In…

October 3, 2008 by Leave a Comment

A Friday Fill-In…
My answer is in bold.

1. October rocks because my birthday is in October.
2. Snakes scare me!
3. Leaves are falling all around, it’s a damn good thing we don’t have any trees so we don’t have much raking to do.
4. My favorite horror movie is (Oh my god, do you know how long it’s been since I’ve seen a horror movie? I can’t even fake it!).
5. Road trips with my BFF = good memories.
6. It was a dark and stormy night so I curled up on the couch under a blanket, reading a good book.
7. And as for this weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to watching The Princess sing at the high school homecoming game, tomorrow my plans include taking the girls to swim class, and Sunday I want my mom to watch the girls for a bit so I can CHILL OUT.

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Thursday Ten, Coffee is NOT A Food Group

October 2, 2008 by Leave a Comment

1. Despite my consciously thinking, “I better eat lunch before guitar lesson, I better eat lunch before guitar lesson…”, guess what I didn’t do? Um, yeah. I hit the Starbucks on the way home, and I’m reasonably sure that cappuccinos aren’t anyone’s definition of healthy lunch (but it’s skim milk in there – so… dairy…?).

2. Obnoxiously Proud Mama Moment: Of the three groups established for reading in The Princess’s class, she’s in the highest one. Aw yeah. I’m insanely proud of her – I read constantly, and love that she’s loving it (Hubby hates reading, so there was a 50/50 shot there).

3. Project Runway last night. Sigh. Where to start? Well, you can read my recap here. Otherwise? Man. I wasn’t enthused with it – how about that? How come at this point in the game, no one can make a gown that doesn’t suck? Despite her generic dress last night, I’m rooting for Korto. Girl broke my heart crying on the Runway last night, and I’m usually immune to that stuff (Kenley, I’m talkin’ to you).

4. Soooo, the VP debates are on tonight. (And that’s all I’m gonna say about THAT!)

5. Latest music purchases: “Light On” by David Cook and Taylor Swift’s cover of “Umbrella”. First of all, skip Taylor’s “Umbrella”. It’s about 90 seconds – not the whole song – it’s cute, but… not really worth it because it’s not the whole song. The new David Cook single… it’s alright. Lyrics-wise, I love the verses but I don’t adore the chorus. Someone told me it sounds like an 80s generic ballad, maybe like it ran away from the Footloose soundtrack. Yeah, I guess I can hear that in it (it’s the chorus. Really. I don’t love that part).

6. I’ve gotten so few work emails today that I would think my email was broken if I wasn’t getting so much of the gobbledygook (Cooking.com? Why? And those crazy Red Envelope e-blasts… wait. I like those!). Oh, and the Systems Admin messages that keep reminding me I have until October 12 to change my password. Got it.

7. Just in case you were counting and keeping track – my birthday is two weeks from today. Add it to your calendars, and celebrate appropriately wherever you are. Don’t worry, there will be more reminders. I love my birthday. You should love it too.

8. Fall has come on hard here in Michigan. It’s been gray for days – with moments of sun through it all. When I left for guitar lesson, it was 57 degrees. Coming home, 54. So, no, it’s not warm. Not even a tiny bit.

9. Halloween is coming up. I hate Halloween. Pumpkin wants to be a dalmatian, and some awesome folks on Twitter have given me suggestions for places to check for costumes (I’ll be checkin’ Costco tomorrow) and even how to make one. I am not the crafty costume-making mom. If I actually make a costume, know the whole world will get knocked off its axis – it will be a life-altering experience. Seriously.

10. Still working on reading “The Story of Edgar Sawtelle”, which is one of Oprah’s picks. I’m about halfway through. I’m actually pleasantly surprised. I almost cried at one point in reading last night. But then I remembered my heart is made of rocks and I moved on without emotion. Really, it’s one of her better picks in awhile. Or so I’m guessing. I haven’t read one of her picks since they were a little lighter (“She’s Come Undone” by Wally Lamb is still one of my all time favorites). It’s definitely worth a try – particularly if you are an animal lover – as it has A LOT to do with dogs. Really.

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Me, Myself, and I…

October 1, 2008 by Leave a Comment
  • I am counting down til my birthday.
  • I am loving that the weather is cooling off and that I may have to pack up my flip flops for the year soon.
  • I am not, however, looking forward to the snow.
  • I don’t really subscribe to the theory of retail therapy with one exception – underwear shopping. It’s insane, but that’s why I could go two months without ever having to wash delicates – and it would have been longer but I recently decided I maybe had too much underwear and threw a bunch away.
  • I will never donate underwear to Goodwill.
  • I don’t have a whole lot of patience.
  • I wish I did.
  • I either have very odd dreams or I don’t remember them at all.
  • I try to be kind even when I don’t feel like it – and it’s probably a little obvious.
  • I don’t think there’s any shame in the fact that half the feeds on my Google Reader are not related to news, science, politics or otherwise “intelligent” type topics. Somedays I just want to laugh and be entertained. And when I say someday, I mean most days.
  • I am currently reading one of Oprah’s Book Club picks and while it’s slightly better than some of her recent picks, it’s still an Oprah pick. I’m not ready to walk away from it yet, but I have a pile of books on the etagere in my living room that I think I might rather be reading.
  • I cut my hand opening a jug of white grape juice last night and it hurts way more than it reasonably should.
  • I have no idea how I cut myself opening grape juice, by the way.
  • I am not sure what to take a picture of for my 365 today. I took a picture of my calendar so far – obvious choice, right, as it’s October 1. Ehhhhhh. I figure the internet at large doesn’t need to know that I have a dentist appointment on October 14 (ooh, better get on that flossing!).
  • I am rambling.

There – completely useless information for you. Happy Wednesday.

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