Home From Massachusetts
Readers, the quest was not in vain: I have my student visa.
For God. AND FRAAAAAAAAAAANCE!
*Charges into battle, a la Joan of Arc*
Ah-ha, I'm still not quite over my trip to Massachusetts - just got in last night, at midnight Eastern Standard Time. Still a bit tired, but as soon as I got home I recognized two things: One, I had my student visa and passport in the mail, and two, we have blueberries and blackberries and that's most of the ingredients for blueberry cobbler. (I know, you'd never guess.) Spent the day relaxing, doing all the things I couldn't do in Fall River. Gosh, does it feel good. Man.
... This is going to be a long entry.
Also, I got a review on 'Ollivander Children' that said "Why does this have so few reviews? This should be one of the top stories on this site!" My jaw literally dropped when I saw that. I am too happy.
So, um, you may be wondering about my visit to Massachusetts? Yes? Please? I hope? And that was pretty good, on the whole. I cannot say how glad I am that I went, to help Mom, cheer her up, so that she doesn't have to say goodbye to her childhood home alone. And I had a worse reaction to seeing my grandmother than mom did - the first day, Christmas Eve, I was actually crying because Sittou didn't recognize us. She was like in another place, talking to people who weren't there, who've been dead for years. That was sad, but that was also the worst day - after that she did seem to recognize us somewhat, though she was confused.
But David Copperfield with Wee Little Daniel Radcliffe makes everything better. That happened to be on TV on Christmas and Mom and I rejoiced. (And Mom got to watch a Castle episode - one of my favorites - and she liked it! That was great.)
We also got to see a LOT of my family - I learned there are too many Michaels in the connection, that there is something about Sassy Gay Cousins that has a way of putting a girl at ease, that roasted Red Pepper hummus is delicious, and that I have a wonderful family in Massachusetts. We went to two Christmas parties (one held 4 days after Christmas) which were both so lovely and fun. It was great.
And I got to see all my cousins except one. Leila looks great, fresh back from Jordan. And I got reacquainted with the baby cousins, the new generation - Sam (who is SO smart), and Harry (what a little philosopher, tried to convince me I was not, in fact, sick) and Presley (I wanted to take him home with me) and little Namirah, I met for the first time (who is the cutest thing ever, and I am so sorry I couldn't hold her even a little. See below.)
Also, Fall River has shown me the secret strength of the Iowa Writer's Workshop: When you have nothing to do, writing and reading increase exponentially. In short, BOREDOM. I wrote something in my diary almost every day - that's unprecedented - but all my entries were very thoughtful, having to do with writing; and I accomplished work in original and fanfic areas, and I READ a LOT.
I finished Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress, a classic Pygmalion story in a new setting (Mom loved it, I thought it was very good)
I started Snow Falling on Cedars (A present from Julia, off to England), The Princes of Ireland (a Secret Santa gift), I Shall Wear Midnight (My birthday present), Middlesex, and People of Book (which, along with Balzac, were books left with us by my aunt.) I'm enjoying all of them, but I'm really falling in love with People of the Book., which was unexpected - I had just been thinking, "Except for Midnight, there's no book I'm loving, really burning to finish." Surprise! What a good surprise, though.
And it's all very grown-up literature, after all the kid's lit I've read, it's a nice change. And so good to read just for fun.
Also, after Christmas my immune system capitulated again! I got an awful cold, which made the flight back to L.A. unpleasant. I don't get it; this makes three times I've gotten sick since summer. I've never gotten sick this frequently before. *sniffle*
Mom, Auntie, Cousin Leila and I met at the JFK library (after we said goodbye to Sittou), and had lunch there, but first we walked through the museums. Mom and I both started crying in the rooms dedicated to the assassination of JFK, RFK, and Dr. King. It's really sad. But lunch was good, and I got a little present for my host family! (A pen. It's a starter present. I'm not from Boston, after all.)
A side note: Ari Shapiro, who guest stars with Pink Martini on their album 'Joy To the World,' has a voice that is too delicious to listen to. I'm pretty sure Hebrew prayers, Chinese New Year songs, and Hannukah carols aren't meant to be this... sultry.
Next up: a post recapping this past year! Stay tuned.
For God. AND FRAAAAAAAAAAANCE!
*Charges into battle, a la Joan of Arc*
Ah-ha, I'm still not quite over my trip to Massachusetts - just got in last night, at midnight Eastern Standard Time. Still a bit tired, but as soon as I got home I recognized two things: One, I had my student visa and passport in the mail, and two, we have blueberries and blackberries and that's most of the ingredients for blueberry cobbler. (I know, you'd never guess.) Spent the day relaxing, doing all the things I couldn't do in Fall River. Gosh, does it feel good. Man.
... This is going to be a long entry.
Also, I got a review on 'Ollivander Children' that said "Why does this have so few reviews? This should be one of the top stories on this site!" My jaw literally dropped when I saw that. I am too happy.
So, um, you may be wondering about my visit to Massachusetts? Yes? Please? I hope? And that was pretty good, on the whole. I cannot say how glad I am that I went, to help Mom, cheer her up, so that she doesn't have to say goodbye to her childhood home alone. And I had a worse reaction to seeing my grandmother than mom did - the first day, Christmas Eve, I was actually crying because Sittou didn't recognize us. She was like in another place, talking to people who weren't there, who've been dead for years. That was sad, but that was also the worst day - after that she did seem to recognize us somewhat, though she was confused.
But David Copperfield with Wee Little Daniel Radcliffe makes everything better. That happened to be on TV on Christmas and Mom and I rejoiced. (And Mom got to watch a Castle episode - one of my favorites - and she liked it! That was great.)
We also got to see a LOT of my family - I learned there are too many Michaels in the connection, that there is something about Sassy Gay Cousins that has a way of putting a girl at ease, that roasted Red Pepper hummus is delicious, and that I have a wonderful family in Massachusetts. We went to two Christmas parties (one held 4 days after Christmas) which were both so lovely and fun. It was great.
And I got to see all my cousins except one. Leila looks great, fresh back from Jordan. And I got reacquainted with the baby cousins, the new generation - Sam (who is SO smart), and Harry (what a little philosopher, tried to convince me I was not, in fact, sick) and Presley (I wanted to take him home with me) and little Namirah, I met for the first time (who is the cutest thing ever, and I am so sorry I couldn't hold her even a little. See below.)
Also, Fall River has shown me the secret strength of the Iowa Writer's Workshop: When you have nothing to do, writing and reading increase exponentially. In short, BOREDOM. I wrote something in my diary almost every day - that's unprecedented - but all my entries were very thoughtful, having to do with writing; and I accomplished work in original and fanfic areas, and I READ a LOT.
I finished Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress, a classic Pygmalion story in a new setting (Mom loved it, I thought it was very good)
I started Snow Falling on Cedars (A present from Julia, off to England), The Princes of Ireland (a Secret Santa gift), I Shall Wear Midnight (My birthday present), Middlesex, and People of Book (which, along with Balzac, were books left with us by my aunt.) I'm enjoying all of them, but I'm really falling in love with People of the Book., which was unexpected - I had just been thinking, "Except for Midnight, there's no book I'm loving, really burning to finish." Surprise! What a good surprise, though.
And it's all very grown-up literature, after all the kid's lit I've read, it's a nice change. And so good to read just for fun.
Also, after Christmas my immune system capitulated again! I got an awful cold, which made the flight back to L.A. unpleasant. I don't get it; this makes three times I've gotten sick since summer. I've never gotten sick this frequently before. *sniffle*
Mom, Auntie, Cousin Leila and I met at the JFK library (after we said goodbye to Sittou), and had lunch there, but first we walked through the museums. Mom and I both started crying in the rooms dedicated to the assassination of JFK, RFK, and Dr. King. It's really sad. But lunch was good, and I got a little present for my host family! (A pen. It's a starter present. I'm not from Boston, after all.)
A side note: Ari Shapiro, who guest stars with Pink Martini on their album 'Joy To the World,' has a voice that is too delicious to listen to. I'm pretty sure Hebrew prayers, Chinese New Year songs, and Hannukah carols aren't meant to be this... sultry.
Next up: a post recapping this past year! Stay tuned.