Book Review: Chomp

Derek Badger is a reality tv star.  His show, Expedition Survival, is all about his adventures in the wilderness while battling wild animals who are out to eat him for dinner.

Wahoo Cray is a teenager whose father - Mickey - is a Wildlife Wrangler.  Mickey's the man you talk to if you want "tame" wild animals on your program.  He has trained the animals, and he takes care of them and makes sure that you treat his animals safely while they are on your program.

A few months back, the lives of the Cray family were turned upside down when a frozen iguana dropped on Mickey's head after a hard freeze and dented his head - giving him a concussion, persistent migraines, and double vision.  Since the accident, Mickey has not accepted any work, and the family's financial situation is getting dire.

When a phone call comes in from the Expedition Survival crew, asking Mickey's father to be the animal wrangler and provide them with an alligator, a snake, and a snapping turtle, Wahoo snaps up the offer without consulting with his father.  "What could possibly go wrong?"

Derek Badger really isn't the Wildlife Survival expert that he plays on tv.  He loves comfort and luxury, and doesn't like being  uncomfortable.  However, after an incident with an alligator, Derek is convinced that he can conquer anything and insists that his crew film in the Everglades with real wild animals along, so that the viewers can get the true Everglades Wildlife Experience.

Wahoo and his Dad are hired to be the animal wranglers on location, and Wahoo's friend Tuna tags along with them at the last minute, sporting a black eye that she claims came from "falling down a set of stairs", but everybody knows was given to her by her father.

What happens when the crew hits the Everglades is the stuff of nightmares:

1) Derek Badger goes missing in the middle of a storm.

2) Tuna's Dad shows up waving a gun, threatening to kill anyone who stands in between him and his kid.

Will Derek be found in time?
Can Tuna escape her father's wrath?

Women of the Bible

A few weeks ago, our church hosted Anita Gutschick, and her One Woman Show - Women of the Bible.   The show tells the tale of three different women from the Bible.  Anita tells the story of each of the women in the first person - dressed in character - with such a passion that she sweeps you into the heart of the story.  The three women we saw her perform were Queen Esther, Lot's Wife, and Rahab.  Let me tell you, it was a fascinating show.  I want to see her again.

On her website, Anita lists one thing that has stuck with me from before I saw her perform through to today - God worked - and continues to work - through ordinary people.  

As part of her performance, we set up the Narthex as a bazaar - what we imagine a bazaar might have looked like a couple thousand years ago.  Of course, ours was indoors, in climate controlled comfort, so I don't think it was as honest as it could have been!  But, we did do our best to find things that might have been in a marketplace and put them on display.

Baskets

From the spice market!

Pottery

Inside of the sanctuary, we attempted to set the stage to help transport the audience back to the time being depicted.

Rahab's area - left side of the stage.

Common table used by all of the characters. 

More character.

Queen Esther's chair.

What to Eat? Mom was right all along....

 The results from the Biggest Loser study came in while I was on break.  Did you see the story?  If you didn't, you can find the original article from the New York Times here. 

In short, the contestants from Season 8 have not only regained most, if not all of their weight, their metabolisms are now slower than they were before they began the study.  Many of the contestants find that they have to eat 500 calories a day LESS than is typical for someone of their weight and height just to keep from gaining weight.

I don't know.  Being significantly overweight, I find these statistics disheartening.  I've lost 30 pounds to date, but the thought that I might be doomed to put the weight back on has been a constant fear since I began losing weight.  This is why I changed my goals this year from losing weight to getting healthier, lowering my blood pressure, and exercising consistently.  I wanted to get away from focusing on the number on the scale.

However, I am a research librarian.  I work in an academic library, and one of the subjects we teach is nutrition.  I have the most accurate, cutting edge, up to date information on our library shelves.  I began reading through our hard copy books last year, and I've  discovered one thing: there is a LOT of conflicting information out there!  After some diligent reading, I began to notice a trend in most of the books and journal articles I was reading.  Once you cut through the high fat, high carb, low carb, low fat question there is one very common thread.  We need more vegetables in our lives.

There are a few books that have stood out for me during this research.

The Plant Plus Diet Solution.  I started reading this book back in April, just before the Biggest Loser study was released.  Fascinating, absolutely fascinating look at the state of the American Diet, and the misinformation that we are being fed about what is good for us, and what is not.  The author focuses on common misconceptions about what people THINK they should be eating, and what they SHOULD be eating.  She backs up her claims with solid science and journal articles.


(Stop laughing Mom, I know you've been saying that all of my life, and you didn't have to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars going to school in order to know what was right all along...)

The last book I just finished plowing my way through was the "Hormone Reset Diet".  Yet another doctor telling us that we as a nation have drifted too far away from our food heritage.  Instead of eating fresh vegetables, we are eating processed foods full of chemicals and sugars that are slowly killing us from the inside out. 

(Once again Mom, you were right.  Eat more veggies.  You can't get enough veggies.)

I read By Any Greens Necessary last year. The title alone says it all.  We - okay me - need to eat lower on the food chain.  More veggies in my diet.  A lot more vegetables.

I've been working at getting vegetables into me more consistently this year.  I'm still not going to shout "OH BOY KALE!" the next time I go to the farmer's market to pick up stuff for the week, but I'll make a point of getting it.  I don't think I'll ever be shouting for joy over the prospect of a kale salad quite the way I do over freshly roasted Asparagus, but I'll work at it.  I really will. 

Oh, and one last thing each and every book had in common:  We don't get up and move our bodies often enough.  We need to get up and move more, and get more exercise.

Wait a minute - didn't our mothers always tell us to go out and play?

Once again, our mothers knew right from the beginning what the answer to good health was.  We need to listen to our mothers more often.

Book Review- The Sleeper and the Spindle

Not quite a graphic novel, not quite a storybook, this is a crossover between the two.  Neil Gaiman's words are framed beautifully by the illustrations so masterfully drawn by Chris Riddell.


You might think you know your Fairy Tales, but this Fractured Fairy Tale will keep you guessing up until the very last page.  As you read through the story, you will find familiar stories and faces that take the story into some very unexpected places!

This Young Adult Novel is worth your time!

I have a complete, professional review written on my YA Literature Blog, found here: 
http://librarynut-booksforteens.blogspot.com/2016/05/the-sleeper-and-spindle.html 

Weekly Wonderings

I had an interview at work yesterday.  This interview was for an "upgrade" if you will.  The position requires a greater knowledge of copyright law than I have.  I've spent the last few weeks going deeper into copyright law, fair use, and their applications.  I feel like I have a good working knowledge of it now.  Is it enough to get the new job?  Who knows?  I feel that I interviewed well.  So now, I wait.  No matter who is hired, I enjoyed going through the process.  And I learned new stuff, so that's a win, right?  If you're ever looking for some fantastic eLearning courses, the American Library Association has a plethora of relevant material on a multitude of subjects.  Thank you ALA for all you do for us!

The geese are intrigued with the book drop.

I've been scurrying around the house, attempting to get space cleaned out for middle child who comes home from college for the summer next week.  Problem is, I still haven't really gotten youngest child's stuff settled away from when she moved back home from college at the end of the first quarter.  I honestly don't know where everything is going to go, even though I have gotten rid of a lot of crap in the house.  I just don't seem to have enough space for college kids and all of their stuff.


I got a ceiling fan (mostly) installed for Mother's Day.  I bought the fan for myself last year, just before Mother's Day with my Christmas money.  So, after a year of sitting in a box on the floor, installation has begun.  It's going into the master bedroom, and should help alleviate the stagnant air problem that we have in that room year round.  Husband got the holes cut into the ceiling, the ceiling supports installed, and the junction box put in.  I might very well end up hiring an electrician to come in and finish up the installation.  No matter who finishes installing it, I really want it working before the summer heat settles in.  Our bedroom is brutally hot and humid during the summer - even when the a/c is cranked way down.

I finally, finally finished the last of the big doctors appointments now that I have celebrated my 14th annual 36th birthday.  Everything has come back normal, with the exception of two new moles that are sending me off to a dermatologist.  I've never been so happy in my life to be told I'm normal!  Hey, even better, my numbers have improved across the board!  (I'm not thrilled about the moles, but hey, once they're gone, they're gone.)

Have you found a farmer's market yet?   I hit up a small one over the weekend.  Strawberries, spinach, rhubarb, asparagus, and beets.  OH MY!!!  We had a strawberry spinach salad this weekend, along with strawberry rhubarb cobbler, and gently stir fried asparagus, and roasted beets, and I made a fried egg sandwich this morning with spinach and onions and had fresh strawberries as a side dish - oh, my word.  I have been a positive vegetable glutton this past week.  I just can't get enough spinach and kale. 

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver: Food Waste (HBO)

A sobering look at Food Waste in America.  I can't put it any better than he can.  It's staggering, when you think about how much food we throw away.  When you've got some time, watch this.  It will make you rethink a few things. 

My College Bucket List

I have my recent bucket list posted on the side of my blog.  I've been slowly chipping away at it over the years.  I knew I had another bucket list that I had written when I was in college.  I had been searching for it half-heartedly for the last few months, and I found it last week.  It was in a spiral notebook, filled with stuff from my college days.  Musings about school, future plans, current events, and this list.

Talk about a trip down memory lane.  Looking back through that notebook was a wonderful walk back in time.  I enjoyed remembering who I was 30 years ago and seeing the direction that I wanted my life to take.  You know, it's funny, but life happens in the midst of all your plans.

I wanted to share this list with you...  I enjoyed remembering where I was and what I wanted to do.  It's nowhere near where I am and what I'm doing now!

This list was written when I was in college during the 80's.  Looking at the things I had written before and after - most of which was dated - I'm thinking it was written in '86.

1) Hang out with Martin Short
Hello, this man is amazing.  I adore him, and would love to spend time just chatting with him.  I'd love to hear his world view!  Martin, if you're ever in the Baltimore area, I'd love to treat you to lunch somewhere and just chat for a while about life, the universe, and everything!  I've had a wild crush on you since 1985.)

2) Go Hot Air Ballooning
This would be so cool... Maybe for an anniversary I can talk my husband into it.

3) To bicycle/train ride around Europe
I still haven't been to Europe, but I would still love to ride the train around Europe and see the countryside, getting off at various points of interest all over the continent.  Even better, since I set this as a bucket list item back in 1986, the Berlin wall is gone, and Eastern Europe isn't quite the same as it used to be.  Oh,wait - could I ride on the Oriental Express? 

4) Go to Canada
Still haven't been, still want to go.  I've got a list of places I want to see: Novia Scotia, Prince Edward Island, The Canadian Rockies, Banff, Vancouver British Columbia, and the area around Niagra Falls.

5) Go to Australia
Need to get there.

6) Get my PhD before I'm 30.
Wow - talk about optimistic!  I'm 50 now, and earned my Master's Degree 3 years ago.  That took a lot longer than I thought it would, and NOW I really don't want a PhD.  I'm content with my Master's Degree, and I really do enjoy my job!

7) Go see Baryshnikov dance.

8) Get back into my music.
This was actually a new year's resolution back in 2013.   I used to play bassoon & flute back in high school, and I sang in college. When I wrote this goal back in the day, I intended that to mean my bassoon or flute.   I don't ever see picking up a bassoon or flute again, but I do love to sing.  Singing is so much more portable!  I've been singing in the church choir since 2013... I'm an alto, and I'm always thrilled when I come in on Wednesday nights for practice and Sunday morning to sing.

9) San Francisco
I went with my husband for our 10th anniversary.  It was awesome!  What a beautiful city!

10) Learn to Dance
Husband and I have taken dance lessons in the past.  I love my husband dearly, but he has no sense of rhythm and two left feet.  Swing dance lessons are absolutely painful with him.  We keep trying, though.  We have three kids who will eventually get married, and if any of them decide to have dancing at their reception, we will dance!


Isn't that a wonderful list full of optimism from a 21 year old?