Ballatar, Man that's Where It's At.

Scott & Jacqueline are probably the best

tour guides a Midwest girl visiting Scotland could ask for. 

They took the mister and I on a jaunt

 through the Ballatar countryside.

And let me tell you, it was definitely a walk

I'll remember for always.  

 

For one, we met the most

perfect little black cat who was mesmerized by Jacqueline.

I mean look at them, they're kindred souls.

...and for another, 

these two brothers.

You know you're in for an adventure

with these guys.

We wandered past these horses 

at the beginning of 

our walk and I could just imagine 

Grandpa Johnson saying,

"Golly, they're pretty."

and he'd be right.

We walked and we walked.

 

We managed to get distracted 

along the way by

brave Scott marching up a very long

gravel driveway and knocking on the door

of a very closed art gallery.

It kind of felt like when you're a little kid

and you knock on the neighbor's door and run

off and hide really quick.

 

We got back on track by walking 

safely across this rickety bridge.

 

Upon crossing, we entered this foggy forest...

...and got to to admire some very Scottish animals.

Near the end of our walk, we noticed

this bouquet of flowers that had been tossed -

and wondered what sad story

brought them there.

After all the walking, we enjoyed some tea and goodies

in the cutest little shop.  Then, we went

to an even cuter bookshop, where I found - are you ready for this?

a book entitled Scottish Love Poems. Oh, heck yes.

Ballatar, man- that's where it's at.

I'm putting this place on my "Do this Again" List.

  

The Social Animal, By: David Brooks

I'm a big fan of non-fiction, especially when the topic is socialogy

in one form or another.  The Social Animal by David Brooks was

a little different than the typical non-fiction books I read though because

it's written around a fictional couple, Harold and Erica.

  It works.  It makes it that much more enjoyable to read.  It was an intriguing 

journey that we can all relate to.

Here are the passages that I found most interesting:

"We all have a certain manner of scanning a sea of faces.  

For example, most people's gaze will linger on a 

redheaded person in any crowd because we are naturally

drawn to the unusual."  (p. 76)

"Anthropologists tell us that all cultures distinguish colors.

When they do, all cultures begin with words for white and black.

If the culture adds a word for a third color, it is always red." (p. 150)

"People in progress-prone cultures live to work... People in 

progress-resistant cultures work to live."  (p. 154)

"Many chicken farms employ professional chicken sexers.

They look at newly hatched chicks and tell whether the chicks

are male or female even though, to the untrained eye,

the chicks all look the same.  Experienced sexers can look at eight

hundred to one thousand chicks an hour and determine their gender

with 99 percent accuracy.  How do they figure it out?  They 

couldn't tell you.  There is just something different about the males

and females, and they know it when they see it."  (p. 241)

"Our perception of the world is a fantasy that coincides with reality."  

-Chris Frith, University College, London (p. 350)

"We work harder to avoid losses than to achieve gains."  (p. 378)

This Side of Paradise

This Side of Paradise

The Room

One Saturday I had to work a split shift.

Silly me.  I forgot my book at home.

(I read a lot at work in between customers.)

So, on my break I ran over to the nearest store-

which happened to be K-Mart and 

took a quick look in the book section.

This is the one I decided to buy.

I don't want to give too much away.  The book is

written from the eyes of a five year old little boy named Jack.

Jack's no ordinary boy.  

He was born and grew up in Room with his Ma.

To make life easier, Ma tells

Jack that Room is the world.  

TV is imaginary.  Outside is outer space.
No windows.  Just Skylight above.

As eerie as this concept is-

we know from watching the news 

that a story like this isn't entirely imaginary.   

It's actually happened before.

There are creeps out there that make

stories like this a reality for innocent victims.

This one is a thought-provoking read.

I'm trying to get the mister to read this one - 

He said maybe after his zombie book. ;o)

Video inspired by the book on Room's website.

Flapper: A Madcap Story of Sex, Style, Celebrity, and the Women Who Made America Modern

I checked this gem of a book out from the local library, 

Flapper: 

A Madcap Story of 

Sex, Style, Celebrity, and the Women 

Who Made America Modern.

I'm completely infatuated with the 1920s and the flapper attitude.

Joshua Zeitz focuses a big part of this book on F. Scott Fitzgerald & Zelda Sayre.

I knew very little about the couple that embraced the decadent 1920s 

lifestyle more than this couple.  Their love story isn't perfect.  But, boy is it a love story.

The flapper was the new independent woman who got to do things that up until

then only men got to enjoy - like having a job, drinking, smoking, and staying out all night.  

The nightlife sounded just grand with jazz as the music of choice.

The arts were a huge part of this generation as well.

Fashion as we know it was born with Coco Chanel at the forefront.

Colleen Moore, Clara Bow, and Louise Brooks were the actresses that portrayed 

the flapper in the movies.  Even the movies were new in the twenties - 

the first films with sound were recorded then.

But, as we all know the fun didn't last that long and the 

Great Depression was just around the corner, which

makes the 1920s seem even more romantic - doesn't it?

The Nanny Diaries

Just finished reading The Nanny Diaries.  

I haven't seen the movie yet.  (But, I can't wait to see it now - I wish it was on Netflix.)

The main character just goes by the name Nanny - she's a hoot.

After reading this book, I realize that I could never ever deal with the stresses

that come along with being a nanny for the super wealthy in New York.

It's a sad tale really - but, it had me laughing all the way through too.

The Male Brain

The Male Brain

Louann Brizendine, M.D.

Just a little while ago, I read the companion to this book, The Female Brain.
I had to giggle a little bit because this book is quite a bit shorter
in length.  But, that's beside the point.  I read this book in one sitting.
It was just that fascinating. So, here's my favorite random newly acquired 
knowledge the the male brain:

"Some scientists believe human males have retained beards and facial hair, even in warmer climates, in order to make them look fierce and hide their true emotions." (p.39) 

In spirit of beards around the world --> Check this out. beards around the world

"Liesbet Ruytjens and colleagues in the Netherlands compared the brain activity of seventeen- to twenty-five-year-old males and females as they processed the sound of white noise and as they processed the sound of music. The female brains intensely activated to both the white noise and to the music. The male brains, too, activated to the music, but they deactivated to the white noise. It was as if they didn't even hear it." (p. 41)

Now, I get it.  That's why the mister's so good at tuning me out sometimes.  Blame it on the wiring.

"Researchers have shown that teen boys begin to be repulsed, not only by the proximity of their mother's body, but also by her smell. The scientists speculated that this may have evolved as a protection against inbreeding." (p. 48)

Poor moms out there.  That stinks.

"Researchers have reported that men want an average of fourteen sexual partners in their lifetime, while the women said they wanted an average of one or two." (p. 67)

Very interesting.  I wonder how close these ideals match up to folks actual number of sexual partners.

"Researcher at the University of California found that it takes the male brain only one fifth of a second to classify a woman as sexually hot - or not." (p. 68)

That fast!  Really?  So, all the prepping for first date is all for one fifth of second!  Hardly seems fair.

"...Most men have no reason to feel insecure about their penis size. The average penis is much larger than it needs to be. According to researchers in England, the average erect penis ranges from 5.5 to 6.2 inches. Compared with other male mammals, relative to their females, it's super-size." (p.69) 

And here's the map to size worldwide (if you're interested). --> Yep, I found this interesting too.

"Research shows that dads behave differently with their babies not only when the moms are away but also when the moms aren't watching. And infants notice the difference too. One study showed that when Mommy, Daddy, and baby were all together, there were fewer interactions between Daddy and baby. And when fathers were alone with their babies, their playtime was much more spontaneous." (p. 86)

Daddies are just too cute with their babies.

"Mother Nature has purposely wired the state of loneliness into the human brain to cause pain so humans will avoid it...In today's modern world, researchers are finding that...loneliness can be as detrimental to your health, in the long run, as smoking." (p. 119)

This seems so obvious.  But, I didn't know it was just as bad as smoking. 

"For unknown reasons, married men live 1.7 years longer than single men." (p. 120)

My Year with Eleanor

My Year with Eleanor

A Memoir by Noelle Hancock

First off, I love the cover design of this book.  It's fun & whimsical. Bright

blue & bright pink are an excellent combo.

This book was inspired by a quote from Eleanor Roosevelt.

"Do one thing every day that scares you."

What a great idea for a memoir.  Noelle Hancock is a 29 year old woman

who is just let go from her high end job when the book begins.

But, instead of being defeated - she begins a year of conquering her fears.

She does really scary and thrilling things, such as swimming with sharks,

stand up comedy, skydiving, & mountain climbing.  It's a book that

is quite a journey.  The author seems timid in the beginning.  By the end of the year of fear,

she's ultra confident and radiant.

I like the little snip-its in the book about Eleanor Roosevelt too.  Now, 

I want to read her autobiography as well.  She's another great woman in

history who I don't know nearly enough about.  Plus, I just love the green dress

she's wearing on the cover of this book. (I have a thing for green dresses- 

but, that's a whole other topic.)  

:0)

 

My Life in France

Just finished reading My Life in France by Julia Child.

I'm not a cook at all.  So, I wasn't sure how I would like a book mostly about cooking.

I loved it!  Julia Child is so cool.

I liked the stories of Julia and her husband Paul traveling the world.

The Childs could never quite get their Christmas cards out in time.

So, I think it's fabulous that the Childs made Valentine's Day cards their thing.

I have the very same problem!  I always buy Christmas cards way early and somehow

procrastinate long enough to where it's just too late to mail them out.

Here's my favorite card they card they made.  

 

Julia's Stellar Advice 

"I don't believe in twisting yourself into 

knots of excuses and explanations over the food you make."

"Usually one's cooking is better than one thinks it is. 

And if the food is truly vile, as my ersatz eggs Florentine 

surely were, then the cook must simply girt her teeth 

and bear it with a smile-and learn from her mistakes."

"This is my invariable advice to people. Learn how to cook-try new recipes,

learn from you mistakes, be fearless, and above all have fun!"

2 Tid-Bits I Found Interesting

1. Judith Jones was Julia Child's editor.  Judith Jones is also the person who got Anne Frank:The Diary of a Young Girl published.
2. Julia Child said there were more redheads per square meter in Norway than anywhere else she had ever been.

Broken for You

Just finished reading Broken for You, by Stephanie Kallos.

Now, I don't want to give too much away - but, this was a heartwarming book.

A little predictable - but, that's okay.  Sometimes, a happy ending worth it,

It features a mansion filled with antique items.  Every item has it's own unique story.

It's also about creating an unconventional family created out of unexpected  friendships.

Also, a really cool old lady named Margaret Hughes (the matriarch) was one

of the main characters who I absolutely adore.

I think this is the first book that I've read that 

was written in first, second, and third person point of view.  

It would switch around from chapter to chapter.

So, that was neat.

One last thing, lots and lots of breaking dishes in this book 

for a purpose - which sounds so liberating.  I'd like to try it..  I break a lot

of dishes - but, it'd be fun to have it be intentional and not because I'm just a klutz.

So, if you have time check it out.  It's a good read.,

The Female Brain (I've got one of those.)

"The Female Brain" written by Louann Brizendine, M.D. was full of interesting info.  I thought I'd post some of the most interesting things (in my opinion) from this book:  I'm pretty sure I read most of these passages aloud to Stuart as I was reading the book - because I found it so fascinating.

• "To the observing eye, the brains of females and males are not the same. Male brains are larger by about 9 percent, even after correcting for body size. In the nineteenth century, scientists took this to mean that women had less mental capacity than men. Women and men, however, have the same number of brain cells. The cells are just packed more densely in women-" (p.1) Really?  How cool is that?  Different packaging - same product.  Kind of like how a box of wine doesn't look nearly big enough to hold that many bottles of wine.
• "All babies were thought to be hardwired to gaze at faces... Girls, not boys come out wired for mutual gazing... Over the first three months of life, a baby girl's skills in eye contact and mutual facial gazing with increase by over 400 percent, whereas facial gazing skills in a boy during this time will not increase at all." (p.15)  I had no idea that was a girl thing.  Neat.
• "Passionately being in love or so-called infatuation love... shares brain circuits with states of obsession, mania, intoxication, thirst, and hunger... The brain circuits that are activated when we are in love match those of a drug addict desperately craving the next fix." (p.66)   I've certainly experienced this myself.  But, it feels somewhat better to know that there is a scientific explanation. 
• "Rejection, it turns out, actually hurts like physical pain because it triggers the same circuits in the brain." (p. 75)  Oh boy does it ever.  And I just thought I was being a drama queen.  
• "Researches have shown that when women do engage in extramarital sex, they retain fewer sperm from their main partners (their husbands, in many cases) and experience more copulatory orgasms during their trysts, retaining more semen from their lovers... Women are no more built for monogamy than men are." (p. 88)  Scandalous!  Think of how many papas out there who aren't really poppa after all.  This is soap opera material. 
• "Between six months and the end of pregnancy, fMRI brain scans have shown that a pregnant woman's brain is actually shrinking ...gradually returns to normal by six months after giving birth." (p.100) Yikes!  That doesn't really seem fair- does it?  Something to look forward to if I ever get a bun in the oven, I guess.  (And don't worry Stu, I'm not the woman on page 88.) 
• "New mothers lose an average of seven hundred hours of sleep in the first year postpartum." (p. 105)  Geez - this is a crazy amount of sleep to just vanish. 
• "It is commonly believed that men leave their aging, chubby, post-menopausal wives for fertile, younger, thin women. This couldn't be further from the truth. Statistics show that more than 65 percent of divorces after the age of fifty are initiated by women." (p.147)  And again I was fooled.  I totally thought this statistic would read the opposite. 
• "The female brain is only half as likely to be wired for same-sex attraction as is the male brain. Therefore men are twice as likely as women to be gay." (p. 185) Something I never put much thought into- but interesting nevertheless.

So, I would recommend this book.  I'm sure you would find other details of the book to be interesting as well.  It was certainly entertaining.

Planet Yuck

This is from awhile ago.  Back when Stuart and I thought that it would be great to create a children's book for charity.  Stuart, of course, was the writer and I was the illustrator.  We created the book entitled Planet Yuck - with our little alien named Lenny.  I remember it was a lot of fun - but, we we should have given ourselves more time to complete book.  We are both very good at underestimating the time it takes us to complete projects.  Here's a couple of the photos we took of our book before it was auctioned off.  (We were so relieved that someone bid on it and got to take it home.)  Hopefully, this summer we will be inspired to create another book.  Now, my wheels are beginning to turn.  I've been attending a lot of baby showers lately and I think a home-made book just may be a gift that might not necessarily be on the 10 page gift registry but would be loved all the same.  We need to study some binding techniques to give our books a more professional feel - last time we used a scrapbook because we were short on time.  So, if anyone out there has any recommendations on constructing a book - please let us know. :0)

Farewell Borders

I can't believe it.  Our local Borders is closing.  I never thought this day would come.  Alas, I have many great memories just roaming aimlessly through the store loftily admiring all the lovely books.  Stuart and I went through the store one last time last night to bid farewell.  We were there for hours, painstakingly making our decisions on what our final purchases would be.  

My Picks

Broken for You, Stephanie Kallos

The Female Brain, Louann Brizendine, M.D.

My Life in France, Julia Child

The Nanny Diaries, Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus

Stuart's Picks

American Gods, Neil Gaiman

Animal Farm, George Orwell

Frankenstein, Mary Shelley

Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue, John McWhorter

After we finish reading these books - which I'm sure will take a bit - it's either a thirty minute drive to Barnes & Noble, trips to the library, or giving in to technology and purchasing a Kindle. 

But will the Kindle do to bookstores what the iPod did to record stores?  One of my goals in life is to one day have a library in a big house of my own (hopefully a big Victorian house- but, we'll see).  Bookshelves to the ceiling, so you need a ladder that glides effortlessly from one end of the shelf to the other (Just like in the movies).  I sure hope the day never comes when printed books become obsolete.  The day when you can't rush home from the bookstore and open the cover for the first time, smell the ink, and flip through the pages of a really good book. 

Farewell Borders - you will be missed.