Book Review: Blue Shoe, by Anne Lamott

Here's a novel idea (groan) - I've been reading a lot lately, and I'm going to do a brief write-up of each book as I finish it.

I just finished reading Blue Shoe, by Anne Lamott. Lamott is one of my very favorite authors to read. She and I disagree on a lot, politically, and we have different understandings of God, but she is SUCH a good storyteller. My favorite thing about her writing is her metaphor. She is often beautifully illustrative, and often humorous at the same time.

Though I have read a couple of her books of 'thoughts' - personal essays, stories, etc. - and her book on writing, Blue Shoe is the first novel of hers that I've read. I could sense a lot of Lamott (as she presents herself) in the main character, Mattie. The story itself was too interesting to be trite - but it wasn't really captivating. By the time it was about halfway through, I could predict the ending.

In Blue Shoe, the emphasis isn't on a riveting plot, it's more about the quirkiness of daily life. It's the ins and outs of one woman's life over the course of a few years. It's about how you can adapt to scary things, it's about enjoying the interesting parts along the way and not getting lost in the drama.

One thing I appreciate about Lamott, and about her characters, is that she is deeply introspective, and also deeply flawed. In Blue Shoe, much like in real life, Mattie tries, she fails, she screws up, she finds joy, she finds peace and then loses it, she fights the urge to throttle her kids. Lamott puts a magnifying glass on what it means to be human, and she describes it so deeply and so beautifully that you can't help but want to embrace the characters and scold them at the same time, because on some level, you two are the same.

Favorite quote from the book: Mattie is being overanxious about something and eats too many cookies. She finds herself lounging on the couch afterward, feeling like "a boa constricture digesting a small pig." This line made me laugh out loud - because I've done the EXACT same thing and felt the EXACT same way. And haven't we all?

That's what I love about Anne Lamott.

book crossing

One of the intriguing things that the Internet has spawned is BookCrossing.com. You know them, right? I'm only mildly acquainted. I released one book into the wild, once, and I'm thinking about sending more along - either through a controlled release (giving it to someone specific) or by releasing into the wild - leaving books on their own at various sites.

The local scene doesn't seem to have too many book crossers, but it could be fun. I think Richmond is quirky enough to get into something like this. Then again, most of the people who are giving away books probably already have their favorite charity or charities to donate to.

While I lounge in limbo-land, what I've decided to do is register all my books on PaperBackSwap with a BookCrossing ID, in hopes that maybe garnering some new journal entries.  I just started with the PBS so we'll see what happens in that arena.  

Either way, these are two really great ideas that you should check out, if you're interested in reading and sharing.  I would LOVE it if there were more BCs going on in Richmond.

baby powder update

I'll have you know, Eli was not very happy to receive his baby powder bath.  He was violently cranky about it, and spent about two hours glaring at me from his chair.  Apparently he is not convinced that this is a better alternative to baths.  We'll just see about that, my fine furry friend.

the many uses of baby powder

In my never-ending quests to 1. improve my life and 2. spend less money doing so, I've done a modicum of research on various topics pertaining to simplifying.  If, for example, I can get the majority of my cleaning done with harmless baking soda, vinegar, and/or lemon juice, then I will gladly pass by a closet full of random harmful chemicals that will ultimately end up in the ground/water/ozone layer.

Most recently, I have been wanting to invade my bathroom cabinet and put the baby powder to use.  Because let's face it, I have way too much.  Which brings me to.....

A bunch of new ways to use baby powder.  I don't know about you, but I'm stoked.

Disclaimer: There are a few different kinds of baby powder.  Use TALCUM powder at your discretion, as there are some that can be harmful.  Just google 'baby powder' and decide for yourself which kind you want.  And if you just want to use up what you've got now, try not to breathe it in.  Because, surprise, the talc MAY be linked to cancer.  Just like everything else.  

The list!

- Sprinkle baby powder on your squeaky hardwood floors.  Take a buffing cloth or a broom or brush or what have you, and get it in the cracks really well.  If you have a sweet 50s ranch like I do, you have some squeaky floors.  And if these bother you, here's an awesome solution.

- If you get a liquid or grease stain on your clothing, a wall, a carpet, etc, rub in some baby powder - about enough to cover it.  Rub it in really well, let it set in for a couple minutes, and brush it away.  Keep doing this until it's gone.  I haven't tried this yet, but I've got an old grease stain on a suede skirt and I've also read that this method works on such things.  I'll report back!

- Put a small bowl or dish of baby powder in your closets or drawers to keep the must away.  You'll also smell 'powdery fresh' for the rest of the day.  You can also drop a little bit of powder in your sneakers (or your husband's!!)  I will be doing both of these just as soon as I finish this entry.  

- Sprinkle a light coat of baby powder between your bed sheets every day to absorb perspiration and prevent odor.  Ok, maybe the odor was a little much...ick... but it sure has been awfully hot and sticky the past couple of nights, thank-you-very-much-high-of-102-every-day-this-week.

- Sprinkle baby powder on your carpets, let it sit for a few minutes, and then vacuum it up.  This works just as well as the expensive stuff that my mom liked to use before she got all hardwoods, but it doesn't cost nearly as much.  Rumor has it, this will also help remove cigarette smoke smells.

- Rub some powder (about the size of a quarter maybe) loosely all over your hands to help the rubber gloves slide on faster.  Maybe I'm the only person on Earth who still uses these...but still.  And when you pull them off, rub the rest of the powder into your hands.  It acts just like hand lotion!

- Rub a little bit of powder on a necklace (or glop of necklaces) that's all knotted up.  The powder acts as a lubricant and it's much easier to work the knot loose.  (Another tip, use a couple of needles to work it loose.)

- If you're at the beach, rub baby powder on all the places where wet sand is sticking.  The powder dries your skin and the sand comes right off.

- Freshen up musty old books.  Dust some powder in the pages, let the books stand up (like you'd stand them on a shelf) overnight and then brush (or shake of you're reckless) the powder out.  Same goes for playing cards - toss them into a baggie and add some powder...shakey shakey, and bam!  You've got some (dusty) fresh playing cards!  Clean up the mess with a couple of good shuffles.

- Insect repellant!!  Sprinkle baby powder in the places where the ants and roaches like to enter and roam.  Sprinkle it with a heavy hand all around the outside of your house to keep them away.  Something about the talcum that the buggies don't like.  Another thing you can try is this amazing stuff called diatomaceous earth.  That's the only thing that kept our ants and earwigs at bay.

bad dreams

I had really bad dreams last night.  As usual, this set of bad dreams had to do with tornadoes.  We were all living in a place something like VCU only it wasn't so close to downtown... and these enormous tornadoes kept brewing and tearing everything up.  In this one, I lost track of Eli.  NOT a good feeling.

Last time I had dreams like this, there were tornadoes all over Virginia that night.  I'm not sure if there were any last night, though.

thankful

Five things I'm thankful for, today:

1. The water cooler at work. I can get in my daily recommended dosage of water while at work, I feel better, I get to see my coworkers more because I'm ALWAYS having to go to the bathroom, and it doesn't even cost me a dime.

2. RVABlogs. Seriously. I don't have nearly the force of opinions that many of our bloggers do, but I love reading about all the different opinions and happenings in our great city. It's a shame that I am totally NOT into foodie blogs, though, because there are good ones here.

3. Richmond Habitat ReStore. Seriously, this place is awesome. They have all kinds of great stuff at a discount, it's wonderful. Especially for me, who can only handle small projects. Imagine anything you'd need to do just about anything for/around/in your house. Chances are, they have it. Paint, tiles, wood, casters, landscaping bricks, furniture, washers/dryers, cabinets, everything. All of it is donated, and all of it goes to a great cause. And I can shop there guilt-free, knowing that I'll probably be able to get a half can of paint or stain when really that's all I'll need - and not have to deal with leftovers. I plan on visiting there this week to pick up the wood and hardware (and maybe stain!) to build a home-made yarn swift. Lord knows I don't have 70 extra dollars sitting around to buy one!

4. My car. It's a 2001 Toyota Highlander and I've had it since it was new. My mom gave it to me as a gift (high school graduation/turning 18). She also covered some of the maintenance while I was in college. It's held up well these 7 years/100,000 miles, and I'm hoping I can keep it going for many more. Seriously, no complaints.

5. The Petite Pet Inn and Spa. Eli and I went there for a doggie luau and it was great to introduce him to a social life. I think he made some good steps toward being less afraid of the world there and I hope to be able to go back from time to time. Now if only I could find my own social life!!

major yarn itch

Lately I've had a major urge to buy yarn. No particular reason, other than finding several new and old projects that I really want to get underway. Everything is so tempting!

I have a small stash of natural fibers and a medium stash of acrylics, most of which are years old. I've offered to do a bunch of knitting for the rescue - some dog blankets to send to new adoptions and some sweaters etc. to try to sell online and at various functions. I decided to do some initial stash-busting and I took out a few balls of some really chunky yarn. I made Eli a small blanket from this yarn once, and he seemed to like it, so I figured it'd be a good way to knock out 3 big balls and move on to greener, less squeaky pastures.

My initial plan of action is to alternate projects - one for the dogs, one for humans. I altered this plan a little bit because right now I'm in the middle of 'two for the dogs' because it'd just be easier to bust out these two blankets from these three balls. So now that I'm about halfway done with the second blanket, I'm thinking ahead as to what comes next. I've got it down to two choices.

One is a 'market bag' - I recently acquired via a yarn swap a skein of 'second time cotton' - a recycled yarn generated from cast-offs in 'the fashion industry,' whatever that is. It's a great thing, I think - might as well take scraps and work them together into something useful. This is something knitters love, after all. It'd be a relatively quick knit - three or four hours worth. I could work on it on and off for a week and have it done, or bust it out over a weekend, no sweat.

The other is a black short-sleeve cardigan. I actually legitimately need one of these things. It'll take a while to make, though. I ordered the yarn for it online from a discount yarn site - 6 balls of yarn for about $18, including shipping. Not bad for a much-needed cardi. I couldn't buy it for less. It'll be a significant time investment, though - and I haven't made anything like it before so it might take me a while to work on it. I'm torn between working on a dog sweater first (learning about piecing and buttons and assembling sweater parts) - or heck, finishing this ugly sweater I began in February - and my general excitement for working on the project.

Decisions! Wants vs. needs! Planning vs. caprice!