Heather’s Neighborhood

...for this "holy crap I'm addicted" book post.

Let's talk about three things:  Twilight, New Moon, and Eclipse. 

People, I got the first book a week ago (they're easy reads, but short they are not--500 to 600 pages each) and within an hour of finishing it raced out to buy the next two.  I just finished the last a minute ago, and rather than do the wise thing and go to bed, I feel that geeky yet undeniable urge to bloggity blog blog.  If you're planning on reading the books and you don't want anything spoiled, you might wanna ignore this post.

Twilight had me pretty much from the first chapter.  It was glorious.  I'm still not sure exactly what it is about this book (and the others) that captivates me (and everyone else, apparently) so much--because I can see how I might have read books like these at another time and been utterly annoyed with them.  But, like every other person with a uterus (and some without), I instantly fell in love with lusted passionately for enjoyed the character of Edward.  The crash scene mostly did me in.  I never once felt uninterested while reading this book.  ...Not sure what else to say, honestly.  Fantastic.

Loved:  Edward, Edward and Bella, the mystery and intrigue!
Not So Much:  I would love to know how many times the words "eyes" was used--good gravy.  I recognize the necessity and the lack of another word, but man--it was like, three times a page.

As I said, I rushed out to buy this and Eclipse immediately after finishing Twilight.  I had a busy weekend though, and was a bit slow starting it, but was loving it during the chances I did have to read.

And then:  Edward left.  And Jacob entered the picture.  And I patiently waited for that whole situation to correct itself--100 pages, 200 pages, 300 pages without Edward?  (I'm not sure I'm overestimating that, either.)  Aside from my favorite character's absence, I impatiently waited for everybody to figure out the werewolf business; pardon my harsh criticism, but I thought it was poor writing to clue the reader in so early and then draw out the characters' confusions.  (Then again, maybe it just felt like it was so long as I was irritated with no vampire lovin'.)  Making the situation worse, I couldn't get on board with Jacob.  I didn't dislike him, I just had no interest in him, and thought Bella's intense interest was a bit forced maybe.  I dunno.  I did not enjoy the book from the moment Edward left to the moment he returned--just like Bella!  Hey-o.

Loved:  The intensity of the scenes in Italy--holy crap, those chapters were superbly done.  I couldn't read fast enough to satisfy my brain!!  Also, Alice, who became even more adorable in this book than before.
Not So Much:  Bella's codependency, lack of Edward, Jacob, seemingly unnecessary drama creation and drawing things out much longer than need be

Ah, Eclipse.  I went into this book fearful, not knowing what to think.  Twilight had sparked in me a love for a new series, something I've enjoyed only once in recent years (Harry Potter, natch), but then New Moon planted some serious seeds of doubt as I wondered if the next two books would follow in its path of... annoying me.  I was pleasantly surprised to find it didn't.  As with New Moon, though, I felt I was in a constant state of suspense (a good thing!)--this book was not so predictable, at least not for me.  I was very pleased with it as a whole, and almost feel like it's the best book in the series so far, though I'm not sure it tops Twilight in terms of how much of the warm fuzzies it gives me.  I do have some issues, not specifically with the book but with things it brought to light in terms of the series as a whole, but I'm getting quite tired here and I think my thoughts are incoherent enough without me going on a thoughtful rant.

Loved:  Alice more than ever, Edward more than ever
Not So Much:  Bella's low self-esteem--after three books, I get it.  Stop talking about how inferior you are to everything.  Cheer up, emo kid!  (I still like Bella, but I can only handle that kind of self-deprecation so long before it overpoweringly annoys me.)  Also, I can't help but feel that Bella's reluctance towards marriage is... strange for her, at least, for her relationship with Edward.
Loathing So Intense It Warrants Its Own Point in Bold:  Jacob.  A thousand times, Jacob.  Holy crap.  I'm pretty sure I've never been so aggravated with a protagonist in the history of any book ever.  What an obnoxious, immature brat!  I'm not sure what the Twilight fan base is like, but from what I understand there are some die-hard Jacob fans out there, and I just can't see it.  If you threaten to kill yourself/let yourself die so that the person you supposedly love will feel miserably guilty and risk things with the person that she wants and needs to be with in the vain hope that maybe she'll pay you attention, you fail at life.  Here's my harsh moment:  when they made it seem as if he'd been killed, I felt nothing.  Sorry if I'm offending the Jacob-ers, but seriously... the kid needs to grow the eff up.

Now all that's left is to wait until August 2nd...

This song basically epitomizes everything I love about Ben Folds Five.  I'd love to upload it for you, but I can't seem to locate the CD that has it--to the best of my knowledge, it was only released on a CD called No Boundaries:  A Benefit for the Kosovar Refugees.  I bought the CD for Pearl Jam's version of "Last Kiss," then a few years later after my musical tastes had broadened I discovered rare tracks from a lot of artists I had grown to enjoy over, including BFF.  This song remains one of my favorites from the band and for whatever reason, it's just one of those songs that always gets me. 

If you care to hear it, check it out here; just search "Leather Jacket" and make sure it's by Ben Folds Five.

Had a dream that you were in
The leather jacket that didn't fit
Until we split in two

Half of you turned into glue
And half of me latched onto you
Under the summer moon

All for a leather jacket,
We were so indecisive
We hadn't really thought it through
'Cause we were so in love and,
And things like that don't happen,
And things like that don't slip away...

But sometimes they do.

Also missing from my apartment:

iPod #1.
iPod #2.
A spare key.

This is fucking ridiculous.

Edited to Add:
Despite the fact that I try to keep them to a minimum on Vox, I'm not taking out the f-bombs.  Moments like these are why people need obscene language.  Sometimes "gosh darn it!" just doesn't cut it.

First of all, let me have a moment of sort of humor and say:  Poor Benjamin.  That iPod is having a worse year than I am.  And William H. Macy the iPod is just a babe; he's much too young to be out in the world alone.

I've decided that thieves are disgusting.  In fact, at the moment I'm mostly just appalled with people in general.  What consoles me is the exceptionally nice police department of Montevallo, who were kind and comforting on the phone and in person, and my parents, who had to console me yet again for something like this.  But it makes me sad that people exist who can simply take another person's things--including a key to an apartment, meaning they obviously intend to take more--and feel no remorse.  How?  I cannot fathom it.

Here's what else I cannot fathom:  this person obviously knows what I look like and/or what car I drive, since nobody's been trying to get in my apartment while I'm here.  You cannot know how tempted I am right now to drive away, park a street over, and watch to see what happens.  Hell, I'll set my webcam up to record anyone who might come in the door. 

I can't leave my apartment until my locks are changed, which means I'll at least be missing my church job tomorrow if not my library shift as well.  Fortunately I have the nice and handy parents, who'll come change my locks even if my landlady is unable to.  But I just... I'm so.  Very.  Angry.  And I literally feel ill.  I burst into tears as soon as I realized everything that was gone, and mostly I just want to curl up in my bed and cry some more.

I dare the person who stole my shit to come into this apartment right now.  I feel completely confident that I could smack them silly without even wrinkling my pajamas.  That's how much ass I'm prepared to kick right now.

I just needed to vent a little, but really I can't focus on anything long enough to say anything worthwhile on here.

The only course keeping me from graduation is piano--I'm making up for the three semesters of piano lessons that were spent on guitar instead.  A summer of piano, and then BAM!  I have a music degree.  Exciting, yes?

Except I has a battle, and it is not a battle I'm winning.  (And I'm not talking about my battle with the urge to use lolspeak all the time.)  It's called Chopin's Ballade No. 3 in A-flat, and it's mostly destroying me.  I'm about 6-pages into the total 13-pages, and out of those six pages I can play 1/2 of one decently. 

Sight-reading is my serious weakness, which makes the process of working through a piece as massive as a ballade even slower and more laborious than it is already.  Because of this the good news is that most of those 6 pages are already memorized; the bad news is, I pretty much can't play anything till it is memorized.  This is why my piano lessons are typically characterized by really weak starts in the semester followed by surprising bursts of progress towards the middle of the term.

Here's a video I love of the Chopin Ballade No. 3--if nothing else, because the man's adorable and knows how to choose a coat (seriously, nothing is sexier on a man than tails).  But you know, also because he's amazing.  Home boy should be a conductor--look at those facial expressions!  He's into it!

If you enjoy that video, you'll find all four of Chopin's ballades as performed by this cat are posted (and were played back to back?  omgwtfbbq mental endurance).  No. 4 is quite possibly one of the most impressive compositions for piano of all time, in my not-so-expert opinion (but I'm pretty sure most people would agree).

Alright, I've watched some Chopin, I've chowed down on the local gas station's chicken sandwich ("Clux Delux--More Clux for Your Bucks!"), I've blogged... all that's left to do is--gulp--practice.

Hey!

I've been reading!

It's that delightful time at the library when ABSOLUTELY NOTHING HAPPENS and one is able to spend the better part of a shift reading.  ...I LOVE IT SO MUCH.

So, as if you cared, and as if I was actually maintaining what started out to be a music-and-literature-themed blog, here's what I've been reading.

Since I've heard only good things about this book and I knew they were making/had made a movie, I decided to check this book out to myself upon checking it in from someone else.  Excellent choice, me!  I loved the storytelling in this dark and heartbreaking book.  Some of it--a lot of it--can be very upsetting to read, but I would recommend this to anyone.
I saw this book dominating Amazon's #1 seller spot for a long time and thought it odd that I had no idea what it was, but after reading The Kite Runner I knew I had to check it out (uh, literally).  As it turns out, I enjoyed this one even more--I literally just finished it ten minutes ago.  As with The Kite Runner, this can be tough (as in, disturbing) to read, but just demonstrates what I consider to be some fantastic storytelling.  Even more so with this book, though, I connected with the characters, deeply cared about them, hurt for them.  Another book I'd strongly recommend.
I saw this ages ago at Barnes and Noble, was intrigued by it--and then forgot all about it until my mom surprised me with it a few days ago (way to go, Mom!).  Absurdly silly cover featuring a picture of the author aside, I'm really enjoying it so far.  The book consists of different sections, each of which discuss similar case studies of people who have had unique psychological (and physiological) experiences with music.  I've only made it through the first section so far (which deals with people haunted by music--blargh, some scary stuff in there, especially for a musician... imagine hearing the same loud, high note, over and over and over all day long), but this book makes my inner psych-major-wannabe happy.
Since my only experience with Kurt Vonnegut so far has been through a short story ("Harrison Bergeron")--and uh, since this book was conveniently at the circulation desk when I got to work--I thought, what better way to become more familiar with the author than through a collection of short stories and whatnots?  I haven't started this yet, but I'm looking forward to it.

(In other news, I've learned that reading multiple books from multiple genres rather than focusing on one book at a time silences that nasty habit my brain has of narrating my life in the voice/style of whatever writer I'm reading.  ...Someone wanna do a case study on that crap?)

I have three books lined up to read next, assuming the library doesn't yield some other distracting treasure--which, of course, it will.  Coming soon!

Because I bought the book at a garage sale and it's been sitting in my car for two months...

Thanks to the rising costs of... everything... Brian and I were forced to jump into our next travel purchase, for him to come visit and see me graduate in early August.  We managed to snag a round trip flight from LAX to Birmingham and back for around $303--one day before United starts implementing bag charges for the dates of his travel (whew).  The cheapest we managed to find flights out of Ontario (a closer airport) were just over $350 (through Southwest), but by far most flights involving Ontario were between $400 and $450--and higher.  Gone are the days when we could miraculously secure a roundtrip for $200-300, I'm afraid, and it's only going to get worse...  Sigh.

Brian and I recently discovered the magic that is Skype, a calling service that is free between Internet users and has some terrifically stable video stuff as well (we used to use Yahoo Messenger, but calls usually dropped at least once during long conversations, webcams froze quite frequently, and it just generally ate up a lot of system resources--we could barely do anything else but talk on Yahoo).  I had nothing but praise for this new and wonderful service, which anyone in a long-distance relationship (or even anyone who is temporarily away from loved ones) should check into.  I did notice that the day I downloaded and installed Skype, I was unable to check my university e-mail account, as it just kept refreshing itself over and over again, but since that crap is pretty glitchtastical anyway, I thought little of it.

Until today, when I decided to continue my exploration of Internet phenomena that I'm way behind on and downloaded StumbleUpon.  After a few minutes of Stumbling, I realized that any websites using Shockwave Flash (ending with an ".swf") were not functioning properly--either not bothering to load at all, or sometimes it seemed refreshing over and over again, as before. 

I did the thing Firefox users dread; I opened Internet Explorer.  And to my horror... everything that wasn't working in Firefox worked in IE.  Cue Darth Vader:  Nooooooooooo!!!!

An hour of frustrated battling with my computer and I was no closer to a solution:  I had every necessary plug-in (and probably some unnecessary ones) downloaded and fully updated, as well as the latest update of Firefox.  I downloaded all the "recommended" updates for Windows (I try to stick to the "important" ones, but I figured what the hell)--no dice.  Remembering that my original problem started the day I downloaded Skype, I thought I would have to do the unthinkable:  choose between my beloved Firefox and my new love, Skype.  Joie's Choice, you might say.  (If you wanted to make a moderately offensive reference.)

And then I noticed the little turd of a plug-in Skype automatically installed on my Firefox browser.  I do not need phone numbers on web sites highlighted, thought I!  I can recognize them myself!  Was this the source of my problems, this little unwelcome browser parasite?

I disabled the plug-in, crossed my fingers... and successfully logged into my university e-mail without constant refreshing of the page.  Success!

I was unable to find a known issues page on Skype's website, but a Google search found a lot of other people annoyed with the same problem.  I left a comment on a help page that explained what the plug-in was, so hopefully that will get through to somebody, if they don't already know it.  Fix it!  Or at least give a warning!  Or don't have the plug-in install itself!

Still, my love for Skype remains unchanged.  I hope that it and Firefox may now live in harmony forever with their new friend StumbleUpon.

I just experienced that exhilarating moment in the world of vending machines:  You put your change in.  You make your selection.  You press the button.

And two beverages come tumbling down.

I'm not sure if this is more exciting in the practice rooms, where double the caffeine is always a good thing, or at work, where on a slow day winning a second drink is cause for celebration and victory dance.  But I was reminded of that scene with Sid at the pizza place in Toy Story, and I couldn't resist declaring "DOUBLE PRIZES!!!" as I strutted off with my gifts from the vending machine gods.  They have been generous and merciful to me this hot summer day.

I'm married and back online.  More to come later.