Therefore I Cry...

I'm not sure what is going on with me but for the last 3 days now I can't stop crying. It's so bizarre because I feel perfectly fine. Yesterday I was even happy and energetic all day long. I'm starting to look like one of those Hindu gods, except instead of leaking milk or something- I'm leak tears. It's over the most random stuff that soon spirals out of control. Like just the other day, I was at work and 2 very over-weight women wearing outrageous clothes squeezed themselves into a booth. When my eyes were finally able to pull themselves away from the hats they were wearing I realized that some of the other servers and a manager were in hysterics. I guess it would have been less funny if they had sat at a table. I just looked at them and said- "You're laughing at human beings. You know, people with feelings!" I was more shocked at their behavior then anything else. But the tears came anyway. Then I find out from my sister that her cousin-in-law's husband died a day before his 36 birthday, a day before Father's Day leaving her and their 4 children behind. Tears. To make it worse, I go and read her blog. Hysterical tears (this time). And then yesterday was Father-less Day for me. Even more tears. I look at pictures of Davey a year ago. More tears. I drive down to the grocery store and see fresh raccoon road kill and here they come again (really? Road kill? At this point, I'm really starting to worry). I watch Pride & Prejudice for the hundredth time but this time I cry when Jane is proposed to. I've never cried at that part before. I talk to my neighbors who are moving at the end of this month and the seeping starts again. We're suppose to go see Karate Kid today. I'm thinking about forgoing the make-up just in case.

Animal Cruelty

I sometimes engage in animal cruelty by doing random experiments on the dog. Before, I put a backpack on David to see how he'd look and how he'd handle it. The other day I decided that he needed a hat to go with the 97 degree weather that feels like 107 with the 80% humidity. He's such a good sport! He played along nicely but was not in the least bit amused by my idea.

I have (sadly?) discovered a new dog treat for David. All I have to do is fill a bowl with ice cubes and he becomes the happiest pup alive. The down side is that he thinks that every time I open the freezer its specifically for his enjoyment. He'd also rather drink his water out of the spicket out side then out of his water bowl.

It's way to hot outside to take our normal daily walks. We usually go around 7 PM but I'm working at night so David has to wait until I get home to go on a walk. In the mean time, I've been watching tons of movies. This is Davey's usual position during the day. He's either watching birds out the back door or watching people out the front window. I'm not sure why he likes to be on top of the couch cushions like this but the Great Dane I had as a child liked to do the same thing.

Life is so tough.

Garden Update

Here's the garden on June 1st. At this point I was convinced that the only thing that would survive would be the squash (far bottom left hand side). All the little plants look kind of pathetic.

Two weeks later (June 15th). All 3 squash seeds took and are now actively plotting how they will take over the lawn. Each leave is massive! I'm in all astonishment. The peppers and tomatoes are doing quite well also. Almost all the tomatoes are past the first rung of the tomato cages and should past the second rung by next Wednesday. I plan on pinching off any flowers that appear before they reach the third rung so that the plant will be mature enough to produce good fruit. The pepper plants are doing wonderfully well too. Only 1 out of 15 is really struggling but not enough for me to rip it out and plant a new one in its place.

Here's the first pepper of the year. When its fully ripe it will be an orange pepper, I think. Or maybe a yellow one. I can't remember. It's still pretty small and has a bit more growing to do before we harvest it and give it to the neighbors.

Here's the first jalapeno of the year. This puppy is growing fast and just started to plump out this week. I can't wait for more spicy treats to make an appearance.

I thought I would include a picture of the tree in our backyard. We never planted this little guy. As a matter of fact we mowed over it every week for almost 6 months. One day, Alex got fed up and went to dig out the "weed" and discovered that it was more of a "bush". We let it grow all last summer to see what kind of "bush" it was. Turns out that our bush is really an Elm tree and is now almost 12 feet tall.

The herbs are doing really well too. The basil was the first to come up and then the cilantro came up next. I'll start harvesting them in about 2 weeks. I'm so looking forward to eating my fill of Margarita pizza's (tomato sauce, fresh basil, and fresh mozzarella cheese). Pictures are sure to follow!

May's Reading List

I'll admit it. I'm a weak-willed individual, especially when it comes to books. I finally broke. Caved in. Capitulated. I read the Twilight Series. There's more... I did it in 5 days. Yeah, I'm a little obsessive/compulsive when it comes to sequels, trilogies, and series. I insist that the series be complete before I begin so that if I find I enjoy what I'm reading I don't have to wait 9 months for the next addition. Think of it as delayed instant gratification. The down side is that I'm never a part of the first wave of excitement. With that said, I'm guessing that you've all already read the phenomenon but if you haven't then be warned: spoiler alert!

Of course, Twilight was the first. I found it interesting and fast paced. The teenage romance was almost a bit much for me, but whatever. By the end of the book I was fed up with the whole "stay-away-from-me-cause-I'm-dangerous" stuff, and okay, I get it- Edward is beautiful, but it was still interesting, fun to read, and I was hooked.

I liked New Moon. I have to give to credit to Stephenie Meyer- I think she did an amazing job describing the all consuming pain of a lost love. I couldn't help but smile when she used up an entire page for just the word "October" and then followed with the other months. What a brilliant move because I've been there and there just aren't any words for that kind of depression when for a brief period of time you stop existing but keep breathing. I finished this one in a mere 5 hours. Good thing I had the next one by my side.

I loved the action in Eclipse but by this time I'm getting a little frustrated with Bella for being Bella. And when she breaks Jacob's heart for like the hundredth time at the end- I'll admit it- I cried a little for Jacob. This one took me a little more than 6 hours to read.

I took a little longer to read Breaking Dawn because I knew the story was over after this and I wanted to drag it out a little bit longer, not wanting it to end. I loved hearing Jacob's voice in the book, especially since I thought he was the most realistic character out of all of them. I was absolutely breathless when he imprinted on Renesemee. I was waiting for the imprinting thing to happen during the last book and for him to finally become the Alpha. I'm with my brother-in-law on this one- I really, really, really wanted to read all about a knock-down drag-out fight and watch the Volturi destroyed or at least disbanded a bit. I wanted to see all those so-called "dangerous" vampire powers played out that I had been reading about for the last few days but instead I got nothin'. Nothing but a truce and another Stephenie Meyer style introduction into another character and another possible show down followed by the words "The End". Booo! But it ended just as it was suppose to with a happily ever after for Edward and Bella, Jake and Nessie. I hope the movie does the book justice.

And then...

I know, random, right? I suppose Science-fiction is Science-fiction but still, how could one go from a lovey-dovey teenage vampire romance to.... this? I don't know what to say other than I am a sucker. Don't let the movie fool you (but you Twilight lovers already knew that didn't you?) this is another one of those cliche cases where the movie is nothing like the book. Somehow they were able to take a few names and one or two small events in the book and turn it into a movie of sorts. It sadly didn't do the tiny 200 page book justice. It's an interesting thought if you take the idea of a having a permanent military to the next level. What happens when you create a civilization and economy that is dependent on military? I'm not talking about the military governments that we already have. I'm talking about a democratic military government where your citizenship depends on if you serve in the military. It's an interesting idea and Robert Heinlein does a really good job.

And then this book may seem even more random but oddly enough, it ties perfectly into the last 5 books.

Brian McLaren proposes an interesting theory. Perhaps, we are not so far away from what Robert Heinlein wrote about back in the 1960s. Perhaps, we are a part of a suicidal social machine that is running out of control, consuming our natural resources at an alarming rate, dumping destruction in its wake and forgetting that every person regardless of his nationality, race, gender, religion, or country affiliation is important, worthy of love, respect, and is to be taken care of. Isn't that part of what the draw to Twilight is all about? We all want to be loved and taken care of unconditionally in a way that has no bounds and yet is healthy and sustainable. Isn't that what Jesus wanted for us too? McLaren's book is fascinating and has undoubtedly changed the way I see people and the message of Jesus to the world.

I'm not sure what I'll be reading next month. I'll be starting on Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand today. I've put it off a little too long. I'm hoping to get in some historical works and maybe a little more classic literature too. I'd love to hear about what you've been reading. As I said before, I'm a bit of a sucker and easily swayed! :)