Books

For the second time in two days, I have discovered that the book I am reading I have read before. Normally that wouldn't bother me very much -- I have read Dorothy Sayers and Agatha Christie books hundreds of times, Mary Stewart's Merlin Trilogy never fails to transport me to the realm of King Arthur and his Knights, so I know the ending, beginning and middle by heart of "To Kill a Mockingbird" or "Gone With The Wind." It's when I start reading a book, realize I have read it and then realize I cannot possibly torture myself with it again. How sad is that? And by that, I mean, I am so stuck in a rut in the genre I book I love to read that I can hardly get out of it. Fortunately, my good friend is a librarian but even her recommendations fail me. I love British mysteries of the old school -- Hercule Poirot, Miss Marple and Lord Peter Wimsey. Alas, their creators have died.

Fractals

Just discovered fractals -- well I bought a calendar last year with fractals but I didn't realize you can create them yourself. I thought you had to be a cyber-geek to do it. There's a program I just downloaded called Chaoscope which I am excited to try. There is something about fractals that appeal to my warped mind. The bending of colors, light, design, that is how I see heaven, if there is one anyway -- a place where color abounds and is light and airy. Ach! I think I need to quit while I'm ahead.

Insomnia

Insomnia is a bitch! Caffiene during the day doesn't help but I gotta get some sleep. I have a story to write for the Herald and a story to write for an anthology of quickies, plus get ready for the Landing Days meeting tonight and a thousand other things to do. One thing I must do tomorrow is clean off my desk. I need a cubicle so no one can see what a disorganized mess it is. I have magazines, notes, lists and who knows what else covering the surface of what I believe is a wooden desk. At this point, I don't remember what it looks like.
We have been eating pretty well since I don't have as many meetings to go to in the evening. Last night, I marinated chicken tenders in a chipotle marinade I got from Safeway. Grilled them on the bbq, along with tortillas, sliced some tomatoes -- I can't wait for fresh, homegrown tomatoes this summer -- and opened a bag of spring greens and voila! delicious wraps! Michael loved it and was so amazed that it all came together so quickly. He is so funny. He is a nervous barbecuer, too worried about getting the exact times on grilled meat. I just slap it on, leave it for a bit, turn it and I'm done. His dad was a great barbecuer. I only tasted his bbq chicken once but it was out of this world. When I asked my mother-in-law, Audrey, what the secret was, she said she boiled the chicken so it was mostly cooked, then Ed slapped it on the grill, slathered bbq sauce on it and cooked it until it was done. Michael is always trying to duplicate his dad's chicken but he never seems to quite get there. At least to him he doesn't. I think it tastes great! Michael grills salmon to perfection every time. It's so delish!

Started watching Arrested Development on DVD from Netflix. I had never seen the whole series or seen the first episode. Very funny and so irreverent. Love that kind of humor. The first time I saw Jessica Walter, she took me right back to "Play Misty for Me." Anyone remember that movie? It starred Clint Eastwood (my best friend in high school, Rhonda, loved Clint Eastwood and dragged me to the movie) as a disc jockey who was being stalked by Jessica Walter. She was one of my favorite actresses in the 70s but after that movie, I could not watch her again. She scared the crap out of me! She was so believable as a psycho-bitch that I thought she was one. Of course, she is probably a very nice lady in real life but until recently, I kept thinking of her as that crazy lady who tried to kill Clint Eastwood. Funny how roles can change the way you look at an actor, especially if they play crazy people. It's just so weird. I think of Anthony Perkins in the same way. I have seen him in many different roles, but Norman Bates was the one I always identified him with. No wonder actors don't like to by typecast!

Just watched Northanger Abbey on PBS -- thank goodness for DVRs! Michael and I were both a bit confused about some of it but it was still a good program. Northanger Abbey is the only Jane Austen book I have not read. I think I tried once but got bored with it or something. Might have to try it again.

Michael bought two new trees today -- another Leyland cypress and, big surprise, another Japanese maple. This one is a weeping tree. My husband is obsessed with Japanese maples. We have only five of them but our little backyard is getting quite full of trees. Thankfully, he is willing to plant the cypress in the front yard. I want him to plant the staghorn sumac I bought a couple of years ago in the front as well but he is fighting me on it. He thinks it has an ugly shape but I don't care, I want that damn tree in the front. Our front yard could use some curb appeal. Especially the color of the house -- federal gold is not my favorite color and it is really ugly looking. Plus, the white trim is starting to peel -- looks like the person who last painted it didn't believe in primer 'cuz there is nothing underneath the peeling paint. And a lot of the trim is coming off the house on the ends. Might be dry rot. Oh, joy!

Dark Shadows

     Since Dark Shadows first appeared on ABC in 1966, I have been fascinated by the show. I loved all that Gothic soapy stuff -- the vampires, the werewolves, the witches, ghosts and other creatures. When it went off the air, I was so sad. No more Barnabas Collins or Julia Hoffman, no more Elizabeth, Roger or Angelique. After school television wouldn't be the same. Of course, somehow I survived.
     Fast forward to about the 90s. I am home sick one day and lying on the couch, flipping through channels. What do I find but Victoria Winters, getting off the train in Collinsport, Maine. I couldn't believe it! There was my favorite soap, on the SciFi channel for an hour Monday-Friday. I was once again hooked.
    I did see all the goofs that I didn't remember seeing before -- it was the early days of videotape, I believe and edits were hard to do -- the funny scenes where one of the actors couldn't remember his or her lines, the furtive glances at the teleprompter. But I didn't care; it was Dark Shadows, man! I was so excited.
    When the revival series came to television in 1991, I made my poor husband watch it with me. Neither one of us was too impressed and we were surprised that it was soon cancelled. For me, it was the fact, that to me, no one can play Barnabas Collins except Jonathan Frid; and well, maybe Johnny Depp.
     Back when I was watching it on SciFi, I decided to do some research on "where are they now?" with the Dark Shadows actors. I discovered a whole world I didn't know existed -- fan fiction sites, actor sites, discussion groups (on Yahoo groups alone, there must be about 25 or more), show sites, you name it, it's out there. There is even a festival, now in its 27th year. I started joining discussion groups and found a few kindred spirits out there who still love the show; despite its age and sometimes questionable storylines -- remember the Leviathans? Barnabas comes back from 1897 (lots of time travel and parallel world stuff on the show. It was great!), he brings back this box with a bunch of snakes on top. Inside the box is the entity soon to be known, as the entity ages, as Joseph the baby, Alexander the six-year-old, Michael the teenager (boy, he had some major hormone issues going on) and then Jeb, the adult. It was the worst storyline and got so confusing at one point that the folks who made the show had practically a half hour show to clarify what the heck was going on.
     I have also met, in person, a number of these fans. And by and large, they are all good people, leading ordinary lives, working ordinary jobs, with kids and houses and all that goes with it. But we all share something in common -- our love of Dark Shadows. Not everyone is old like me -- I was 9 when Dark Shadows first hit the airwaves -- some are young people who have discovered the campy fun of the show. I went to a Dark Shadows festival in Anaheim, Calif. in 2002 and met a number of the stars from the show. Most were very gracious with us rabid fans -- I never met more patient people in my life. Those folks like David Selby and Kathryn Leigh Scott, Marie Wallace and others must get very tired of people talking about Dark Shadows -- after all, it went off the air in 1971 -- must you would never know it.
     I also met my crush -- Jonathan Frid -- when I attended one of his one-man shows in 2001 in Crawfordsville, Ind. The show was terrific and he was nice to us crazy fans, too. I told him I was from Hermiston, Oregon, where we grow the best watermelons and potatoes in the world -- he didn't seem too impressed. LOL
     Enough for tonight.

Oscars night. I almost forgot and didn't start watching until 6:30. There are a lot of movies that I need to see now -- The Young Victoria, Avatar, The Hurt Locker, just to name a few. Disappointed Meryl Streep didn't win the Oscar, but then again, neither did Helen Mirren, who my brother has a major crush on. He always did like older women! James Cameron looked really disappointed he didn't win for best director or best picture -- but the exciting this is that for the first time, a woman director won! That is so exciting and a big step for women everywhere!