DC

Finished David Copperfield Tuesday night after some pretty intense reading sessions. I aimed to try to be like Agnes and seek out the good in others. Perhaps that's more of a Dickens attribute. Not overlooking the faults or eccentricities of people, but allowing those things to build their character rather than pit it against them.

I failed after mere hours of this resolve. Wah, wah. I failed again the next day.

I am trying to turn these failures into more of a progression into the right direction. Maybe one day I'll hit that sweet spot where my irritation/annoyance/self-awareness won't even be triggered at all and I'll become this amiable woman whose thoughts can match her outward appearance. For now, I'll be happy discouraging my (sometimes, inconvenient) expressive face.

In any case, I'm glad I finished and am excited to take on my next novel. No more Dickens intimidation for me!

In Between

I feel like I have conquered the events of the last two weeks only to confront the challenges of the next four weeks which seem to laugh in the very face of the weeks that came before it. Laughing with impunity. I might even suggest a hearty guffaw.

Everything will happen, oh, tomorrow. But tonight, I feel an eerie calm before the storm. If I could even deign to acknowledge, I might even contend this feeling to be boredom.

The husband and I were supposed to watch the second season of Downton Abbey only to find that it is no longer available on PBS. We got as far as the first episode. So instead tonight's entertainment was a lively IM'ing to my current Comcast representative which ended irresolutely and some yummy gingersnaps. I can't muster the strength to complain.

Davy

I spent most of Monday and Tuesday night with the endeavor to finish David Copperfield tonight for a book club that is actually next Wednesday. Oops. The blog must sometimes suffer to hopeless literary pursuits. I reached page 488, so the absence in memory was not rewarded nor punished. I am definitely developing a crush on Dickens as I admit to initial reluctance on my part to even broach the famous tome.

It seems like the biggest thing I'm taking away from the story is that personal quirks sometimes matter very little on a person's character. The villains seldom twirl a convenient mustache. The handsome scholar may prove less than heroic. All the while, young David Copperfield observes and learns.

Anyway, something for me to think about when I next meet someone new.

Law and Order: Acting Reel Unit

Pretty much every time I stay in hotels, I inevitably watch at least four episodes of Law & Order. Perhaps this is more a reflection on my vacations than anything, but this video cracked me up.

My People

Mo Ryan tweeted an article in the Huffington Post asking why television, even good television, often has a blindspot when establishing real, genuine female relationships.

The article admits the Leslie Knope/Ann Perkins relationship on Parks and Rec is a good example of relationships between women that don't need to be catty or competitive. The topics of conversations are not solely male centered.

The article made me think about what other female friendships I admired on tv and if I thought there was a shortage. So I'm going to run down a list of some of my favorite shows (past and present) noting the female series regulars and their relationships with each other (I'll exclude Parks and Rec as it's already been noted, but Leslie also has a great relationship with April).

Red Balloon

The husband's good friend invited us to Memphis for St. Patrick's Day. If we weren't gearing up for our NZ trip, I would be incredibly tempted. I love the idea of spontaneous vacations, just going somewhere because it might be fun. It asks me to be more adventurous than I tend to be. How often do I just do something? No premeditation. No second or third thoughts. I wish I could say more. Perhaps I just need to dip my toe into the waters.

When we go to New Zealand, I kind of want to allow time for adventure. A few days of wandering just to see where we go.

Joan

I forget myself sometimes. A song, a story, a glimpse of something else and I'll be transported into a somewhere distinctly not here but not totally there either. Made up conversations in my head. Daydreaming. A rusty use of imagination. Joan as Police Woman is a great source to meander. I love the song, "Flash". And of course, I was obsessed with "The Magic" last year.

I know that I'm inherently the same, but I marvel at certain character traits I've picked up and those that I've set down and misplaced. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised to miss talents I failed to nurture. Quirks I never appreciated. Why are certain things harder now?

Perhaps my focus should be on what I've gained now. How glad I am to have survived some periods of my life more or less whole, full use of all my appendages. Happy even. The anxiety that's plagued me this past couple of weeks is gone now and I don't mind enjoying this nice bit of calm for however long it lasts.

Shell Game

Neil Gaiman tweeted a link to Shell Game, a Kickstarter project from Molly Crabapple. Her goal is to raise $30,000 by March 27th.

From her webpage:

Shell Game is an art show about the world financial collapse, and the people who have risen up in protest against it. I'll create nine giant paintings about the different parts of the collapse and the global movement fighting back (including Goldman Sachs, Greece, and Occupy Wall Street), but filter them through my lens of burlesque, surrealism, satire, and symbolic animals. Then, I'm going to rent a storefront in New York city, rig it out like a gambling parlor, and invite the city and the Internet to check it out for a week.

Her first painting, the Great American Bubble Machine is amazing. I can't wait to see the other eight paintings.

Closeted

I spent most of this weekend watching Downton Abbey. I finished season one and the first episode of season two. I want to wait until after I finish the season to really comment on it, but I'm enjoying the show so far.

Vulture just posted a new 7 minutes in Heaven with Paul Rudd. Though the Kristen Wiig and Amy Poehler are my favorites, this one is great too.

Slowhand

I recently finished the audiobook of Eric Clapton's autobiography, Clapton read by Bill Nighy. I was reminded how candid and fair I thought the book portrayed his life. His focus was almost completely on his addictions and his music. He learned guitar by listening to a piece of music he loved, practicing the piece over and over until his copying matched the record.

I love hearing a cover redone in a creative way that still stays true to the music, but is a new interpretation. I guess that's why I've been listening to so much James Vincent McMorrow lately. He does a wonderful cover of Steve Winwood's "Higher Love" and Chris Isaak's "Wicked Games". Homeboy even covers "Whip My Hair"!

Though not a cover, I adore his song, "We Don't Eat". Definitely music to warm my heart.

Spoilers

I've a lot of things on my mind lately and been feeling a little overwhelmed. My first inclination is to bury my head in whatever sand I can find and wait it out. The husband has been re-watching Doctor Who. The wonderful, raggedy Doctor who saves the world just because he loves humans so darn much. The Doctor sees the problems, the conflicts, the insurmountable odds and he overcomes them. I wish I could gather everything into a wide net and place them on a shelf to sift through one by one when I find a spare breath. But there is no Doctor today. No one to save me from the monsters. I suppose I just need to gather up my courage and save myself. So much harder this way :)