We invited Bobbie Jo and Eric over for some Easter pizza and an egg decorating party tonight. None of us had decorated eggs in the past decade, but it’s funny how the memories bring it all back, from technique to fun. Once again the smell of apple vinegar brought back the memories of Easters past, dying eggs and hunting for them. We forewent the latter but painting has always been one of my favorite parts of the holiday. 

Space was the biggest theme of the night from stars to nebulas to suns to Star Wars itself with a kit Eric brought. He produced a Yoda egg that was quite adorable. There were a few flowers and vanity eggs, too, as well as one cleverly labeled FRAGILE by John. I think he was most proud of his football and blue tractor eggs though or perhaps his salutes to Jackson Pollack. 

We had fun and I realized that the whole kit and caboodle cost us about $7.50 for a few hours of entertainment, from eggs to dye. Cheap double date night!

Well, the food cost a little more but it was good pizza followed by scrumptious cupcakes supplied by Bobbie Jo and Eric from a cupcake boutique they discovered. We quartered four cupcakes and sampled lemon, devil’s food, red velvet and buttercream chocolate. They were all good, even the frosting, which is usually too rich for me. I’d been having a cake craving so that hit the spot.

I’m cooking my first ham tomorrow since I’m hosting Easter dinner this year. We have plenty of vegetables just in case it turns out badly, but I’m hoping it turns out. I admit I’m cooking it mostly for myself since I like ham more than anyone else in the family. I don’t eat it often and I’m craving a ham sandwich on Monday. I’m opting for the crock pot since I need the oven for other potato casseroles.  

I spent this morning at Wal-Mart hunting up ingredients since I needed a bigger grocer than our usual small neighborhood one. I regretted my choice when I realized that the entire store is being remodeled—it’s not quite five years old!—and revamped into a higher scale setting, trying to compete with Target, I guess. This meant NOTHING was where it was supposed to be. So I had my Easter hunt in a different form. 

I found all the critical stuff, but the extras I wanted for the pantry eluded me. It was frustrating, but I was in a good mood. Most people were since it was still early and not too busy yet. Southern hospitality reigned with everyone asking each other, “Have you seen _____ ?” I don’t think I’ve ever had a friendlier shopping experience there, talking to more strangers than usual, each of us sharing information from our reconnoitering. However, I don’t plan to return unless I absolutely have to until the remodeling is done. I hate playing versions of Concentration while doing my grocery shopping. I need my brain for other more important tasks.

I woke up with a near migraine similar to one I had a few months ago. I don’t know why Fridays seem to be headache days, but they are this year. I spent the day battling it and then around noon the big weather came through which had part of the region scrambling for cover. 

The tornadoes were further south from us, about 20+ miles away, but still too close for comfort. I’ve heard the tornado warning sirens twice in the past eight days, but fortunately, other than heavy rain and winds, we’ve suffered no damage. Our new roof seems to be intact and nothing has hit us like it did during the heavy winds (with no tornadoes) that came through here in February. 

Still, it is sad to see the loss of a young family in Murfreesboro. A young mother and her baby are gone, a rare tornado loss, and horribly tragic. John was on the phone with a friend/coworker who was just a few streets away from where the tornado touched down. We finally heard from him again in the late evening, happy to know he is well, too. 

John was home and watching for signs that we might need to take cover, but none came. It was nice to have him here so I could be less concerned. I knew the worst was further south so I wasn’t too worried about our personal safety. That feeling, the one to take quick action and duck and cover, well, it never came. 

I still prefer tornadoes to hurricanes or earthquakes since there is warning and a greater statistical chance of survival, but they are scary nonetheless. I’ve only seen one funnel cloud in my own life, from a distance. That’s been enough for me. I’m not hoping for more first hand experience!

The weather cleared within hours, of course, and the sun even began to peep through the clouds a little by the time I had to go to the airport to pick up Gretchen and Seth. They’ve been in Greece for the past week and were definitely tired. We fed them Chinese and sent them on their way home. So all is well, all are tucked up safe in their own beds and I’m content. 

What more can we hope for?

One month from today I will be officially a year older.

Nothing too exciting there.

And yet I am excited about one of the best birthday presents I’ll have gotten in recent years.

I get to go see the new Star Trek movie for my birthday. It opens on my birthday!

And the buzz is good. The previews are great. I’m finally excited about a movie. I have yet to even visit a movie theatre in this calendar year. Nothing has really interested me. Truly, these days, tv is better. The writing is better. The characters are more interesting. The seating is better, too, and I can pause for food or potty breaks. 

Anyway, my true confession of the day is that I have not missed a single Star Trek movie premiere night since Star Trek 4 when I was a young teenager dropped off at the theatre by my mom to see the movie by myself since I was the only Trekkie I knew. Of course the theatre was jam-packed with fans so it was a big party even if everyone was a stranger. I never felt alone and it was a fun movie. 

I’ve attended my share of Trek conventions. I used to read the novels like crazy, graduating from Nancy Drew to those in middle school. My car in college sported a tasteful Starfleet Academy sticker in the window. Yes, I can be a full geek about Trek. Most people don’t even suspect this about me. It’s not that it’s a secret. Truth be, almost no one cares so why bother them with the information? 

But we own all the classic and TNG and Voyager eps on DVD. No, I don’t have the other series. I might break down and get DS9 someday because it was brilliant when it was good although horrible when it was bad. I finally found some stuff to like in Voyager when John kept watching it in reruns. Enterprise lost us early with its catering to teenage boys and loss of Roddenberry’s vision as much as we wanted to adore Scott Bakula as Archer. 

That said, John thought the Starfleet Academy sticker was sexy since, hey, he likes Trek, too, although he has never attended a convention, shame on him. He goes to Dragon*Con with me though where neither of us has ever attended any fragment of the Trek track, so we are really slacker fans. But I married someone who can embrace his inner geek right along with me. 

So I love Star Trek. I’m thrilled at the idea of seeing Spock, Kirk and Company again since they appear to be represented well. 

And it’s nice to have something to look forward to for a birthday. I don’t mind another year, but it’s nice to be excited for one! 

I’ve spent too much time in the last 24 hours suffering from withdrawal. Sure, I have other smaller addictions that distract me from the big one at times, but overall, my opiate is reading. 

It’s not a bad addiction to have, considering the availability of new fixes. With my Kindle and Kindle applications, it has become even more of an addiction of late, with easy access to thousands of books. 

So where are all of my books and e-readers, you ask? Right where they always are. They aren’t the problem. I’m the problem.

I’ve been looking for a new, fresh read of something I haven’t read before, something new and exciting that will engross, distract, and provide the next high.

I can’t find it. Nothing satisfies right now. I’m worried I might start detoxing soon and that won’t be pretty. 

What am I looking for? It doesn’t matter. I like just about everything as long as I’m entertained, distracted, fascinated, whatever. I have best successes with mysteries or fantasy or science fiction. Right now, with spring in the air, a touch of romance wouldn’t hurt either, but I’m tired of every book having graphic Tab A into Slot B descriptions on page 237 when I wander outside of these genres. Sometimes that stuff is found in the genres, too. I said romance, not sex. I like the dynamics of unique relationships, not the lust that propels most of these characters with no real depth to the story and/or characters because the entire objective is getting to page 237 for some titillation, not anything that is real.

I’ve been perusing discussion board after board, list after list, looking for something funny, classic, adventurous or romantic that I may have missed. Sure, it’s frustrating that most of it is in the “been there, done that” category. 

I don’t want depressing either. Which doesn’t mean I won’t accept heavy matters. Depressing for me is an entire lack of hope in humanity or our ability to be kind to each other. So much modern fiction suffers from this mindset. Or it dwells in the loner philosophy of living—can’t be happy with myself, can’t be happy with others either. Yuck. 

That’s why I prefer genres because they offer some hope usually, science fiction and fantasy by their very nature and mysteries because a resolution of some sort must be offered. Not a tidy ending, mind you, but not one that leaves a feeling of despair either. Freaks and Geeks was brilliant at that, BTW. Except for the pilot, I don’t think there was ever a tidy ending, but every episode was satisfyingly complete anyway. Did I mention that was a brilliant show?

So now I have a list and I’m going to work through it. And hope to find a fix before I go crazy. 

Uh huh.

Syfy.

Really?

Nevermind that the new logo looks like the word Silly if you just give it a passing glance, thanks to the font choice. Seriously, that was my initial reaction at first look before I read the press release and realized oh, they’re just respelling it, not changing it to a comedy channel like a radio station that suddenly changes its format and playlist overnight. (Yesterday country. Today rap. With the same DJs, no less.) And it’s pronounced the SAME. Yeah, smart. Since we’re never going to say the name out loud or anything. 

Which is funny to me since I hardly ever watch the channel—although I should in reality be a big fan considering my interest base—since most of the shows are silly to me. Yes, that is funny coming from me since I do watch it for Eureka, which I happen to really enjoy. Eureka is silly, but it knows it is silly and thus quirky. It doesn’t take itself too seriously. 

Rather the same reason why I love Psych on USA which does happen to be my favorite channel for original shows. Burn Notice is amazing. Psych is fun. And I even found myself able to sit through Monk again this year since they stopped the stupid pattern of putting Monk in an awkward situation every episode. Monk at the circus. Monk at the waste disposal plant. Monk at a commune.   Let's torture Monk.  The last few seasons were embarrassing, but it was interesting again this year. Not a favorite, but a nice distraction when I was bored. In the end, I watch more on USA than I can ever find to interest me on SciFi/Syfy/Silly.

And now that I’ve discovered Big Bang Theory, I remember what I love about truly geek shows. Heck, Freaks and Geeks is more satisfying as science fiction than most stuff on Silly. At least the geeks are true fans. BBC has better science fiction than Silly. Everyone else has better fantasy than Silly. I don’t do horror, so I can’t judge that.

At least now I know why Eureka didn’t return for its promised January air dates. It’s being held back for the Silly launch in July, probably in fear that a SAG strike will kill new episodes of their highest rated show for the big launch just as the writer’s strike mucked stuff up last year. If I didn’t enjoy the show so much, I would just remove the channel from my viewing list. But I’m mature enough not to be Silly and spite myself to miss a fun summer show. 

And wasn’t the season finale of Burn Notice great? Next season should be fun with the change of game plans. I am so happy they aren’t prolonging the mystery like so many shows do until the series finale. (Like Monk again. So TIRED of the Trudy’s death questions after 8 years.) On Burn Notice, Michael’s problems are not solved, but they are going in a new direction and enough has been revealed to keep me from being frustrated. Give me an ending like Veronica Mars always did or apparently 24 does although I don't watch that one. Not endless seasons like Lost which I refuse to watch. Or X-Files which I never enjoyed for the same reason. 

Always one to delay watching anything, I bought Freaks and Geeks on DVD almost a year ago at a really great sale price and then never watched it. Yes, I do this. I’ve read for years how wonderful it was. I wanted to see, but I was also reluctant because I am always frustrated when good television disappears. I can’t complain too loudly right now because the last few years have been entertaining me much better than the big screen. (Burn Notice, Life, The Big Bang Theory, Pushing Daisies, I love you!)

But now that February sweeps are over and half my favorite shows are gone for several months and the ones that remain are not dependably around each week, I need some distractions at night that don’t involve my computer or reading but can include John who is as tired as me, if not more so. 

So I dug out Freaks and Geeks and we started watching it over the weekend.

Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!

It’s a brilliant show, not quite like anything I’ve ever seen and we adore it after a few episodes. I can also see why it failed miserably as a popular series. It’s too real. It doesn’t glorify or glamorize high school. It is painful to watch at times. During the first few episodes, I would pause semi-frequently, hug John and repeat, “Aren’t you so GRATEFUL you aren’t a teenager or in high school anymore?” 

The fake beer episode is brilliant. That is why I hate parties where alcohol is considered the main entertainment, then and now. John and I laughed and groaned and laughed at that one. 

The Halloween episode is just as brilliant. It reminds me of why I came to hate Halloween for several years, but have eventually reclaimed it for myself, mostly by working with the under 10 set for whom it can be magical at times. 

Freaks and Geeks is never predictable, because it chooses the reality over the hype and flummery that Hollywood usually gives us. I so relate to this series, perhaps more than any other that has ever portrayed the high school years. Wonder Years got middle school pretty well but then faltered with high school. This one gets the insane mess that high school and growing up can be. 

It was sunny and in the 70s today. Tomorrow is supposed to approach 80. Then we plummet back down to 40s & 50s with rain for another week if the forecast holds true. Anyway, I spent the morning on chores and then spent a chunk of the afternoon on the phone with Val. 

I’m not grateful for Alex Bell’s invention every time the phone rings. Most of the time, it’s an interruption and a nuisance, especially with the telemarketing calls we can’t stop thanks to having a business number. AT&T forces us to have a business line in our home in order to use the internet at the level we do for our business. John has to upload and download at various hours and works from home some days. It’s annoying and overly expensive, but we manage. 

I remember watching a Canadian miniseries many years ago about Bell, called The Sound and the Fury. It wasn’t necessarily great television, but I loved it. I wish it was available on DVD in the states. One of the best scenes was perhaps completely fictional, but has stuck with me ever since my first viewing. Bell sits in his office and the phone rings, interrupting his concentration and his patience. He rips it out of the wall or throws it down or something similar. Anyway, I wonder if he, too, found his invention a convenient nuisance at times?

Days like today, when I can talk to a distant friend and every day when I can work from home, communicate with others around the world, connect in some ways better with those far away than those down the street, well, I’m grateful for Bell and the other less famous inventors who got us here. 

Val and I hung up, both feeling better, both feeling loved and accepted, both happy with our lives. I love living in the modern age. Most of the time.

Most of all, I'm grateful for my friends, the ones with whom the love and acceptance is unconditional and dependable.  What blessings they are!
 

Another reason I love my Kindle. Free books!

I discovered five titles temporarily free that may or may not interest me. Actually, one I already own in paper, so it’s just a backup reading source. 

Assassin’s Apprentice by Robin Hobb

Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson

His Majesty's Dragon by Naomi Novik

Blood Engines by T. A. Pratt

Settling Accounts Return Engagement: Book One of the Settling Accounts Trilogy by Harry Turtledove

These deals tend to last about a week, like last week’s free offering of Deanna Raybourn’s Silent in the Sanctuary. It’s back to regular price now.  Even if you don’t have a Kindle or iPhone app yet, I think you can still order them and store them in your digital library so they are available if and when you get your own Kindle. 

Coolness! There is now a free Amazon Kindle application for the iPhone. Which means I can read any of the books I’ve purchased for my Kindle on my iPhone, too. How great is that? I have access to hundreds of books on my little phone, removing my need to always carry a Kindle with me. The phone is also backlit so I can read at night if in a pinch.

Anyway, I love how carrying books with me is becoming easier and easier. Who cares if I’m enslaved to Amazon for it all? They’ve done more to increase and improve my reading pleasure in the last 12 years than any other company. I learn about more obscure titles. I can order just about any book I want. I can afford more because they have better prices. I’ve also earned more by linking to them through SurLaLune, supporting much of my research and book habits thanks to them. 

We have a new roof. I told John it was his most expensive birthday present ever! Not exactly what he dreamed of, but it will protect all of his other worldly possessions for a while, so not bad.

Anyway, we’re happy with it. It only took a day from tear down to put up and the color—almost an exact match of our previous one—is nice. It’s a charcoal with hints of red, cream and blue that blend with our brick and siding. It will take a little getting used to the architectural shingles, but I think they look better. I’m just used to seeing a smooth roof, so a layered one is a double look alteration.

In the end, the roof cost us $600 and some change. That doesn’t include the $100 quick fix with the tarp and the interior painting we will have to do to fix the leak damage. I’m really hoping we won’t have any more leaks for the duration of our remaining time in this house. However long that may be, I don’t know. 

This adventure turned out to be more blessing than curse with almost an entire new roof—which we needed sometime this year—paid for by insurance. Our new whirlybirds are shiny and I don’t hear anymore squeaking, so that is really nice. I may be able to stay upstairs and not require music or white noise to avoid hearing the high pitched squeals. I bet the neighborhood dogs are probably happier about that, too.

John stayed here and did all the dealing with the roofers, so I just had to be inconvenienced by the pounding and wondering if men were watching me through the windows. It was nice not to have to worry about it. 

We ended up having a later dinner at Red Robin with Janie for John’s birthday. It was Janie’s first visit and she enjoyed it. Johnukah is over for another year. It was pretty successful and we are all pleased in the end.