the rumor of a good time

I am kicking back with the window open and the breeze coming in, baby monitor humming quietly next to me, listening to Junot Diaz’s reading at a conference in Key West earlier this year.  I am fat and happy, baby, at least for now.

The semester ended last week.  Two A’s and an A minus, is my prediction.  The A minus (and the professor/adviser it comes from) is frustrating, but I’m on vacation, yeah?  It’s old stuff now.

“Vacation” – okay, it’s a short vacation, over tomorrow at 4pm, but it’s a vacation nonetheless.  Yesterday was my one and only day-on-my-own, at least from 10am to about 5pm.  {Oooh, yuck, self-important white guy asks Diaz a question and talks about a “great” stopover in Santo Domingo.}  I took myself a movie (Baby Mama – stop it, Tina Fey is my imaginary girlfriend) and out to eat.  I am a good date.  I would totally put out for myself.  I had intended to start the garden – I have dreams of fat, red tomatoes and completely obscene melons – but decided to get away from the house instead.  Good choice.  It was a great day, made even better by my finishing a great book (The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, hence the mp3 I’m listening to).  I have a twenty or so book reading list for this summer, most of which will have to wait until this next class ends in late June, but I am raring to go.

So, it’s been a while.  What have you been up to?  Since last week I’ve been watching Sox games, trying to do yoga again, making plans.  Here’s some stuff I’ve liked:

PaperBackSwap.  Makes me feel like I’m buying all these books, when I’m just spending a couple of bucks on postage.  Highly recommended for the poor and not so poor folk alike.

Cease to Begin – Band of Horses.  I’ve spent all my (J.’s) Pepsi Bucks (or whatever they’re called) on getting this CD, one song at a time.  One song equals two 12 packs and a big bottle of Pepsi, and I’m about 7 songs in.  I hope J. has enjoyed the drinking as much as I’ve enjoyed the listening.

Elmo’s World.  No, I’m sorry; that’s what G. has been liking.

Reusable grocery bags.  I’m experiencing “save our world” fatigue, but the reusable bags make a hell of a lot of sense and are good for pretty much anything, even that which is outside the grocery realm.  Toys, towels, you name it.   The disposable, plastic bags seem kind of vulgar now.  I suppose a lot of what we do/consume/use now will look the same way in a few years.

Poutine.  Because sometimes you just need to put duck gravy over fries made in duck fat then add some cheese curd for good measure.  Happy mother’s day, indeed.

Junot Diaz.  I read Drown over a decade ago and loved it, then looked for his next book constantly.  And hopelessly.  Lucky for me, I didn’t hold my breath.  It came out last year (and won crazy prizes) after 11 years.  I think a combination of an other, abandoned idea, depression, working, and an ability to be distracted that rivals even mine contributed to the long delay.  Anyway, the book (the Oscar Wao one I mention above) was one of my favorites of all time by about page 10.  I want to describe it but have a hard time pulling it down into a few sentences.  There is nothing really to say except please go buy it and read it and tell everyone you know to do the same thing.  It’s the most alive story I’ve ever read, and you’ll learn something, too.  Like Dominican history.  And how to say pussy in Spanish.  There’s an interview with him here that I enjoyed, and the reading I was recently listening to can be heard and/or downloaded here.  If you have no idea what I’m talking about, check out his Wikipedia entry or look at the Amazon entry for the new book.  If you do know what I’m talking about but haven’t read the new book – Yunior appears.  Enough said?  The title of this post, by the way, is one of the many things he mentions that can distract him from writing.

Okay, G. is awake so it’s time to move some ass and be a mom again.  It’s a nice day; it will be fun.  But vacation starts again when the kids are asleep (by 8pm), so the beer and feet up and next book on the list aren’t far behind.

~ by other on May 14, 2008.