Coming Down From a High

Have you ever experienced a crash from a book high? You know, you finish this really great book or series and it ended how you wanted and you couldn't have asked for more. But for some reason you find yourself driving to the grocery store and thinking of the characters and what they are doing now? You're anxious about what to read and feel listless when you realize, the story is over. You keep walking back toward the bookcase, thinking you'll just read a chapter and then make dinner before you realize you finished the book already.

Then what's worse is when you've read the book before. . .like three times now. . .and it still gets to you. It's not like it's even the best book you've ever read, just a really good one with characters you love, and if you were a kid and could get away with it you might be one of them for Halloween.

This is me right now.

Tonight I'm going to start a new book that I haven't read before (I have seen the movie, however). I have to read fast because book club is coming up. I hope it cheers me up because I'm really bummed.

Then after that I will be reading a book I read in college. I loved it and now that I'm in Cleveland, I thought it be good to read it again. In my opinion, it's a must read. Especially if you live somewhere like Cleveland. I opted to buy this instead of borrow from the library because our closest Borders is closing and was having a huge sale.

Sadness abounds when a book store closes. I went to this particular Borders all the time when we first moved here. I hated living in Cleveland where I knew no one and had no place I could go and feel comfortable. The Borders wasn't in the nicest part of town, but at least it was familiar. I went as often as I could, which was usually at night after Nathan was home and could put the kids to bed. Sitting there with a book or my laptop reminded me of being back in the Logan Borders and made me feel comfortable again. When I bought this book I told the cashier this and she said that she'd heard similar stories from most of the people that had come in the store that day. I thought it was really interesting that so many people would choose a bookstore to help them find solace in a crazy city.

It's amazing the feeling we can experience in a bookstore or library. One of my favorite children series has a line that is repeated through most of its 13 books. It refers to a library and it goes, The World is Quiet Here. I love that. The World is Quiet Here.  When you are with books the world takes a backseat and only you and the characters exist. The dirty dishes, lint on the carpet, and kids begging for juice can all fade away. Ok, maybe not the toddler begging for juice, that one's a little harder to tune out, but still, I think you get what I mean.

When you're reading a book, all media is turned off. You aren't thinking about that sewing project, or the stupid game on Facebook that has sucked up so much of your time, or the fact that your toilets need to be cleaned. This is why I am anti-Kindle or any other electronic book thingy. Give me a paperback, please.

All of the thoughts that usually rage in your head, bouncing around begging you to pay attention to them are calmed and quieted when there is a book in your hands. Which is why, I think, I have such a hard time letting go of a great book. I've finished it, but I'm not ready for it to be done with its therapeutic work on me.

Not Much

So. . . . . nothing's been going on. I don't have anything interesting to post, but felt like I needed to. Sorry.

Ok, I checked our camera just to make sure nothing has happened recently and I was right. We haven't documented anything, so I guess we've been boring lately.

All I saw that is noteworthy is a picture that Nathan must have taken of the half bath. He finished it in November, just before my parents came for Thanksgiving, but we never took a picture of it or blogged about it.

So without further ado, our only bit of interesting news.

As you can see, it is a tiny half bath, but it is 100 times better than it was. We now have a toilet that doesn't announce to the whole street that someone just used it and doesn't run constantly. We now have a sink that isn't blue and dressed in a blue skirt. We now have tile in place of nasty pee stained vinyl. And we now have lavender paint instead of this. . . . with matching curtains.

So yeah. That's about it. I guess we're boring because all we've been doing lately is reading. Nathan is caught up in the Wheel of Time series and I'm reading the complete Sherlock Holmes stories and novels. So good! Just understand that if you choose to read A Study in Scarlet, Doyle is sorry for what he wrote about the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and he knows now that what he wrote about us isn't true and he should have contacted better sources for his information and before he died he gained a great respect for the Church and its members.