30somethingandsearching

I have a cold.  I think my mom was the carrier monkey and gave it to me.

She takes care of my uncle and he has been sick, so I think she gave it to me.

When I got home from the restaurant the other night (the one with the rude people), I suddenly had a weird feeling in my throat, but I sometimes get that from having bakery products, so I thought maybe that was it.

I woke up through the night every time I swallowed because my throat hurt. 

Then yesterday I started with the sneezing.  Today I feel blah.  I’m drained and achy.  Therefore, I will be holding off with the blog posts until tomorrow. 

Last night I went to dinner with a friend.  I was doing a mystery shop, so it was free for the both of us.  Yes, I do mystery shopping, though not as much as I used to.  Now I pretty much only do it for free meals.

Anyway.  While we were there, 4 people came in and sat at the booth behind us.  They were loud and annoying, but that’s pretty common.  We hear music and assume it’s their phone’s ringtone.  Nope.  They had their ipod playing throughout the remainder of my visit.

This was not a high-end restaurant, but it was a sit down restaurant, not a frickin cafeteria.  I am occasionally shocked by the ignorance of people.  They were playing this music, which they shouldn’t have been playing at all, loud enough to make it difficult to converse with my friend.

She was tempted to pretend her baby kicked causing her to throw her drink over her shoulder, but we left instead.  No one from the restaurant said anything to them either.

I said on yesterday’s post about banned books that I would talk about banned children’s books today.  I will try to get to that later.  A friend had a family emergency and asked me to watch her toddler, so I will try to get to it later.  If not, that will be for tomorrow.

Tonight is the season premiere of Brothers & Sisters on ABC.

Most people watch Desperate Housewives leading into Brothers & Sisters, but I never got into that show.  Partly because it was the thing to do and I tend to stray from the pack when it comes to following the leader.  Partly because I have been trying to cut back on TV.  New shows mainly.  I am a confessed TV addict.

I did tune into Brothers & Sisters from the beginning, though.  Mainly to see the legendary Sally Field.  I was hooked though.  The show follows a wealthy family living in Ojai, CA with as much dysfunction as the rest of us.  Scandals and codependency up the wazoo.

The death of the father revealed he had had an affair producing a child.  Somehow, the wife and mistress come to have a relationship, though strained and the children become friends with their new sister.

There is the high-strung sister, Sarah, who faced infidelity from her husband and is recently divorced.  There is the staunch Republican sister, Kitty, in a Democratic household who is an advisor to a politician running for President.  She ends up marrying him.  There is the happily married brother, Tommy, handling a division of the family company with the father’s mistress.  His wife was expecting twins and lost one.  She leaves because she can’t handle the pain and he has an affair with his new sister’s friend who is his assistant.  There is the gay brother, Kevin, who is an attorney and has gone through a few relationships.  There is the youngest brother, Justin, who is a war veteran dealing with the PTSD and drug addiction.

Last season we found out that the new sister really is not their sister at all.  At the same time, the youngest brother realized he has feelings for her beyond that of a sibling.  They find out that there is another sibling out their somewhere, which means dear old dad had more than one affair. 

Kevin had a commitment ceremony with his boyfriend Scotty just weeks before California passed the law to allow Gay marriage.  I am curious to see if they get married or simply maintain the status from their commitment ceremony.

If you have not seen this show yet, check it out.  It is full of drama, yes, but it is done in such a realistic manner with humor and kindness, with the love and dysfunction of an average family that it is hard to resist.

According to the ALA, “the “10 Most Challenged Books of 2007” reflect a range of themes, and consist of the following titles:

1) “And Tango Makes Three,” by Justin Richardson/Peter Parnell
Reasons: Anti-Ethnic, Sexism, Homosexuality, Anti-Family, Religious Viewpoint, Unsuited to Age Group

2) “The Chocolate War,” by Robert Cormier
Reasons: Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language, Violence

3) “Olive’s Ocean,” by Kevin Henkes
Reasons: Sexually Explicit and Offensive Language

4) “The Golden Compass,” by Philip Pullman
Reasons:  Religious Viewpoint

5) “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” by Mark Twain
Reasons:  Racism

6) “The Color Purple,” by Alice Walker
Reasons: Homosexuality, Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language,

7) “TTYL,” by Lauren Myracle
Reasons: Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language, Unsuited to Age Group

8) “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” by Maya Angelou
Reasons:  Sexually Explicit

9) “It’s Perfectly Normal,” by Robie Harris
Reasons:  Sex Education, Sexually Explicit

10) “The Perks of Being A Wallflower,” by Stephen Chbosky
Reasons:  Homosexuality, Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language, Unsuited to Age Group

Off the list this year, are two books by author Toni Morrison. “The Bluest Eye” and “Beloved,” both challenged for sexual content and offensive language.”

I will be honest in saying I have not read all of these.  I have read and adore some.

“The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” is one of my absolute favorite books.  Yes, it addresses racism, but what is wrong with addressing a real issue?  Mark Twain was one of the world’s most prolific writers.  He wrote a beautiful story looking at racism and an adventure between a grown man and a young boy.  You can separate the two issues, if you read closely.  As much as the relationship is about race, it is about the one-sided views of a child and it is about people needing each other.

“The Color Purple.”  The reasons being homosexuality, explicit sex and language.  Firstly, we don’t ban films that use offensive images if it is an intrinsic part of the story. Secondly, if homosexuality, explicit sex and language are so offense, should we then ban all the Harlequin romances?  They are full of such things.

“I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings.”  Seriously?  This is Maya Angelou’s life.  We should ban the telling of someone’s life because it was violent and tragic?  I know that looking at things that are in this book are difficult.  Yet they happen.  They are real events and this is a true story.  I think that banning a true story of a woman’s life is an insult to her and a slap in the face over all the things she dealt with.

“The Bluest Eye” and “Beloved” had been on the list and then came off.  I have read both.

“The Bluest Eye” is incredible and yes, there is racism, but again, should it be ignored?  Should stories about the way some are made to feel be removed from the shelves because it makes you uncomfortable?

“Beloved”, yes sexually explicit, but one of the most interesting stories about life after slavery.  I read this in college.  I found this to be one of the best books to analyze.  So much can be gotten out of this book.  I know a lot of people did not like it or get it.  I know some just saw the film and I can tell you as much as Oprah thought she was honoring this book, she strayed from it immensely.  If you had not read the book, the movie made no sense.  But I digress.

My point being that you can find something offensive in anything you read if you look for it.  From the greatest of classics to current favorites to off the wall tales.

A friend had her book banned in some southern states because she wrote about ghosts.  A children’s book about a young girl and ghosts titled “Lily’s Ghosts” by Laura Ruby.  I read it and enjoyed it.  I did not see what was so controversial, but it was banned from some libraries.  Tomorrow I will look at some of the Children’s books that have been banned over various controversies.

If we take away books, we take away creativity and imagination.  Hitler tried to control what information Germans received.  Keep that in mind if the urge to have a book banned ever takes you over.  There is a great book called “The Book Thief” about a girl in Nazi Germany.  Read it.

Celebrate Banned Book Week by reading books that have banned, support such books by writing to those trying to ban them and keep an open mind.

I was forwarded this email and I thought it was not a bad idea to pass it on.

I copied the text as is, with the exception of the areas I mark EDIT. Only the areas marked EDIT are my words and thoughts, the remainder is written anonymously.

1. Tip from Tae Kwon Do :

The elbow is the strongest point on your body.  If you are close enough to use it, do!

2. If a robber asks for your wallet and/or purse,

DO NOT HAND IT TO HIM.  Toss it away from you…  Chances are that he is more interested in your wallet and/or purse than you, and he will go for the wallet/purse.  RUN LIKE MAD IN THE OTHER DIRECTION!

                                             3. If you are ever thrown into the trunk of a car,

Kick out the back tail lights and stick your arm out the hole and start waving like crazy.  The driver won’t see you, but everybody else will.  This has saved lives.   EDIT: I am adding this because it is good to know.  Newer model cars are required to have a pull in the trunk to release the latch. End Edit.

                                         4. Women have a tendency to get into their cars

After shopping, eating, working, etc., and just sit (doing their checkbook, or making a list, etc.  DON’T DO THIS!)  The predator will be watching you, and this is the perfect opportunity for him to get in on the passenger side, put a gun to your head, and tell you where to go.

AS SOON AS YOU GET INTO YOUR CAR , LOC K THE DOORS AND LEAVE.

If someone is in the car with a gun to your head DO NOT DRIVE OFF, Repeat: DO NOT DRIVE OFF!  Instead gun the engine and speed into anything, wrecking the car.  Your Air Bag will save you.  If the person is in the back seat they will get the worst of it .  As soon as the car crashes bail out and run.  It is better than having them find your body in a remote location.

EDIT: A tip from personal experience, I have programmed my remote key unlock to only unlock the driver’s side unless I hit it multiple times.  When I am alone, I feel safer knowing only my door is unlocking. End Edit.

                                                       5. A few notes about getting Into your car in a parking lot,

Or parking garage:  A.) Be aware: Look around you, Look into your car,  At the passenger side floor , And in the back seat

                                         B.) If you are parked next to a big van, Enter your car from the passenger door.  Most serial killers attack their victims by pulling them into their vans while the women are attempting to get into their cars.  

                                        C.) Look at the car parked on the driver’s side of your vehicle, and the passenger side… If a male is sitting alone in the seat nearest your car, you may want to walk back into the mall, or work, and get a Guard/policeman to walk you back out.

IT IS ALWAYS BETTER TO BE SAFE THAN SORRY. (And better paranoid than dead.)

                                  6. ALWAYS take the elevator instead of the stairs.

Stairwells are horrible places to be alone and the perfect crime spot.  This is especially true at NIGHT!

                                                         7. If the predator has a gun and you are not under his control,

ALWAYS RUN!  The predator will only hit you (a running target) 4 in 100 times; and even then, it most likely WILL NOT be a vital organ.  RUN, Preferably in a zig -zag pattern!

                                    8. As women, we are always trying to be sympathetic:

STOP!!!  It may get you raped, or killed.  Ted Bundy, the serial killer, was a good-looking, well educated man, who ALWAYS played on the sympathies of unsuspecting women.  He walked with a cane, or a limp, and often asked ‘for help’ into his vehicle or with his vehicle, which is when he abducted his next victim.               

 9. Another Safety Point:

Someone just told me that her friend heard a crying baby on her porch the night before last, and she called the police because it was late and she thought it was weird. The police told her ‘Whatever you do, DO NOT Open the door.’  The lady then said that it sounded like the baby had crawled near a window, and she was worried that it would crawl to the street and get run over.  The policeman said, ‘We already have a unit on the way, Whatever you do, DO NOT open the door.’   He told her that they think a serial killer has a baby’s cry recorded and uses it to coax women out of their homes thinking that someone dropped off a baby. He said they have not verified it, but have had several calls by women saying that they hear baby’s cries outside their doors when they’re home alone at night.

10. Water scam!

If you wake up in the middle of the night to hear all your taps outside running or what you think is a burst pipe, DO NOT GO OUT TO INVESTIGATE! These people turn on all your outside taps full ball so that you will go out to investigate and then attack.  Stay alert, keep safe, and look out for your neighbors!

Today begins Banned Books Week .

I learned about Banned Books Week from Wildaspie.

No, this does not mean a week to ban books.  It is a week to celebrate the freedom to read.  The freedom of speech we hold dear. 

We have recently heard rumors of Governor Sarah Palin wishing to ban books in Alaska.  I will not speak to whether she did or did not.  That is not what this post is about.  It is about the fact that throughout history, many individuals and groups have attempted to ban books for various reasons.

There have been times when books were burned in protest.  Some find certain books offensive for a multitude of  reasons.  Either they don’t want to read it, they don’t want their kids to read it or they are fearful of what may come if others read it.

As a book lover and someone with a BA in English Literature, I have a passion for books and words.  Thereby, I have a passion for the freedom of speech.

I feel that if you don’t like it, don’t read it.  If you don’t want your kids reading it, monitor your children.  Just like music, television and movies, you need to be careful of what your own child is doing.

Tomorrow, I will list the 10 most challenged books of 2007

My car is being held together with tape and dirt.

Well, not all of it.  I do have tape holding some things on.  It seems to break down a little more all the time.

My car was bought new in 2001.  My first new car.  All my other cars were only a few years younger than I was.

I was very excited to have a brand new car.

Not long after I bought it, I started having issues with the tires.  Every single car I have ever had has had issues with the tires.  I think I need to pray to the tire gods and make some kind of offering because it is really quite ridiculous.

To this day, I have issues with the tires.  They leak.  I have had them sealed, but that does not please the tire gods.  The rotors have rusted and I have had to have them repaired.

I have had to have the brakes replaced.  Did I mention I only have 31,000 miles on the car?

Two years ago, my front passenger window decided not to work anymore.  I couldn’t roll it up or down.  Yet, it would just fall down.  Especially if I hit a bumpy patch of road.  I would have to manually pull the window up.  Not fun in the cold and snow or in the rain.

I had that repaired after about a year of driving like that (it’s not cheap to fix).

A year ago, the back passenger window decided to boycott me too.  I think the tire gods and the window gods got together and decided they don’t like me, because shortly after that, the front driver’s side window decided not to work.

It wasn’t so bad because the front driver’s window did not just fall down like the other window does.  I went through all of last winter and much of the summer with the windows like this.  Then, suddenly, the front driver’s window decided to fall down too.  So, every time I get out of the car, I have to pull up the front driver’s window and the back passenger window.

Very annoying.

When I get an extra grand, I will have them fixed.

Wednesday, my turn signals started to freak out.  The turn signal gods must have decided to hate me too.  Either them or the wiring gods.  Not sure.  I think I will make an offering to both just to be sure.

The turn signals sometimes work, sometimes don’t.  It is random.  They will work perfectly fine, then maybe slowly, then not at all, then only if I jiggle the handle.

Between the time and cost of the praying and offerings and the ultimate cash to fix all these things, I am going to need my own government bailout.

Any tips for fixing such issues?  Any advised offering to car gods?  Motor oil is the obvious, but there might be some other more prized offerings….any tips would be greatly appreciated.

I love going to the butcher.

I know it is a dying business.  Not many butcher shops exist.  Not the way they used to.

So many people just get their meat at the grocery store, but there is a big difference in the meat.

Butcher meat is fresher.  But forget that.

Why do I love going to the butcher?

It smells SOOOO good!

The butcher I go to is an Italian family-owned place on the Northwest side of Chicago called Joseph’s that has been in business for a few generations.  They make their own focaccia.  They make sandwiches and breaded vegetables.  They marinate a lot of cuts of their meat. 

It smells so delicious when you walk in.  All those spices mingling with the baked breads and cookies. 

I grew up going there for meat.

The butcher knows us.  He knows whose birthday it is based on what we order.  They always have the best cuts of meat.  I have never had a steak from them that wasn’t the most tender.  Even if the cook (usually my step-dad) over cooks it, it is delicious.   Mmm, mmm, mmm.

Can you tell I went there today? 

My mom spoke to my godmother Saturday night.  My godmother has a trip planned to China for two weeks with her husband and some friends.  They are doing one of those tour trips, so the whole thing is planned and scheduled.

The Cubs clinched the season Saturday making it possible for them to be in the World Series.

My godmother’s husband and son are huge Cubs fans.  He told her that if they Cubs continue to do well, he is not going to China.

Even though it is already paid for and not exactly cheap, he would rather stay home and pay an arm and a leg for tickets to see the Cubs play.

She told my mom that while she doesn’t mind going without him since she knows some of the other people, she would hate to waste the ticket.  She was thinking about people that she could take with her.  For each one there was some reason she figured they couldn’t go.  Work, passport, getting that much time away. 

My mom told her I could go with her.  Since I am still job hunting, I have no prior commitments for the end of October.  My mom also knows that I would love to go to China.  My godmother was so happy.  She was thinking of her girlfriends and her daughter, so I hadn’t occurred to her. 

She is happy to know I would be available, but she is secretly hoping the Cubs lose so her husband can go with her.

I would love to go.  I don’t know how I would handle two weeks with her.  I also am not too keen on traveling in a group on a schedule, that’s not my thing, but a free trip is a free trip!  I do hope to have a job by then, though, so I might not be as available as she is hoping.

Let’s see how the Cubs do first. 

About two years ago, I entered a contest on a local news channel website.  The contest could win me a laser hair removal treatment package.  I was hoping for the package, but I got a call telling me I had won a gift certificate.

I had been thinking about the idea of laser hair removal for a while.  I’m the perfect candidate, fair skin and dark hair.  I had done my research and had spoken to some dermatologists who perform the treatment.

I went in for a consultation with the company from whom I had won the gift certificate.  I was curious as to how much the certificate was for, excited that I had actually won something and skeptical, because, well, that’s my nature.

The woman I met with was very sweet and explained the process.  I listened as if I had no idea what the criteria was.  She asked me areas of interest and I told her, of course, I’d like to have everything done, but it would depend on cost.  She told me I had won a $300 gift certificate.  She gave me prices on packages and individual treatments.

I told her I’d have to think about before forking over that kind of money.  She gave me all the information, price quotes (which only last for a few days, of course) and my gift certificate.  It took me a couple of days to make up my mind.

I opted for the underarm laser hair removal treatment.  It was the cheapest and the smallest area to try.  With the gift certificate, I saved about 40% off the total price and paid about $450.00.  A certain number of treatments were included in the package and then a guarantee that if hair came back, I could come in any time after that.  I was told, on average, 6 to 8 treatments would be what it would take to finish the hair removal.  Also, I would have to wait 6 weeks between treatments for the different hair growth cycles.

A bit more information than I needed about how hair grows, but I was eager to begin.

They were really sweet that first treatment.  They took a photo of my underarms for their before and after file, covered my eyes and slathered some gel on.  They did a test patch to see if it was painful.  Apparently, a lot of people find it painful and, I was told, have hit the estheticians.  I didn’t find it painful, but then again, I didn’t find my tattoo painful either.

I went to the appointments religiously anxiously awaiting some reduction of hair growth.  After 6 treatments I started to see a bit of reduction.  Keep in mind, I was told 6 to 8 treatments usually took care of it all.

A year and a half later, I had about 40% reduction.  It’s been nearly 2 years now and I am at about 50% reduction.

I am still waiting to see if this actually will work.  The treatments are really easy and don’t take long.  I’m usually there 20 minutes max, but I have to drive out to the suburbs to have it done.  That’s usually all I am going out there for, so it’s a bit inconvenient.

I had friends tell me that they were interested in doing it, but would wait to see how it went for me.  They are still waiting.  I think I discouraged people more than anything with the amount of time it is taking to remove the hair.  I am sure each case is different, but this seems excessive.

I recently saw on the Today Show that there are new handheld home devices for laser hair removal.  I’m thinking about getting one and trying it out on my legs.  If I do, I will let you know if it is any more affective than the professional version.