Ponder Post: Me Before You

"What do you do when making the person you love happy means breaking your own heart?" This is the question posed on the front flap of the novel Me Before You by Jojo Moyes.

The two main characters are Louisa and Will. Louisa hires on as a caretaker for Will who is a quadriplegic as the result of an accident. Louisa comes from a financially-stressed, close-knit, blue-collar working class family. Louisa's world is very small, as is typical for those who have very little money to spare, but she is a delightful blend of whimsy paired with a no nonsense attitude. The author manages to make these two paradoxical character traits coexist believably. Will's world view has been shaped by the life experiences typical of a wealthy, white-collar, well-educated, hard-working and hard-playing family. Will was well traveled, full of cosmopolitan experiences, and highly successful in his career before his unfortunate accident. Now he is moody, bossy, and bitter about his situation. Jojo Moyes sets this stage early on in her novel.

The supporting characters are well developed and varied and complement the main characters. I enjoyed the way the relationship between Louisa and Will morphed and developed. Each helps the other to grow – facing fears, confronting insecurities, and acknowledging feelings. Yet many of their interactions were also amusing and coaxed a smile from me. A unique setting places the story in a small village, home to a castle that is a main tourist attraction and a source of employment and income for the townspeople. Not a red herring, the castle, complete with a garden maze, adds to the complexity of the plot.

This was a story that was emotionally intense in a very thought-provoking way. It contrasted the views of white-collar versus blue-collar societal classes. It juxtaposes a growing world against a shrinking one. It was an eye opener of the struggles, both societal and medical, of those with spinal cord injuries. Once I started it I could not set it aside. I recommend Me Before You as a good read.

Ponder Post: Squirrel

Back in April I took a picture of this cute little squirrel just basking in the sun on our deck rail. I zoomed in for a closeup, shot through the window of our kitchen nook, while he watched me with interest, unperturbed by my presence.

Now a couple months later I see him back on our deck, sneaking around. What is he up to? 

Destruction! Sheer and utter demolition! That is the padding on our deck swing he is helping himself to for a nest. Maybe it is not the same little guy and maybe it is not a guy but a rather a girl squirrel, but still... Now I am the one perturbed by his presence.

He/she is sure going at it. He is on a mission! And he is no longer sneaking. He is brazen about it.

Obviously this has been in process for quite a while based on the status of the swing seat. Rome was not conquered in a day nor was this seat de-padded in a day.

I guess with our extreme heat we had not been outside enough to notice. The chairs around the outdoor table had not been spared either. Half the stuffing of that seat cushion is just plain gone. Why would any critter need a warm nest in 100°F heat?

Where was Daphne when we needed her? Probably inside out of the heat. Probably nursing her arthritis after a long walk with Frank. Surely not earning her keep. Daphne clearly is not related to the Dug the talking dog from the Disney movie UP – the one whose ears prick up and whose head snaps around in a nano-second as he utters "Squirrel" at the mere proximity of one.

If you would like to see Dug in action, click this YouTube link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrAIGLkSMls

If you would like to see Daphne in action, sorry no such thing exists!

Ponder Post: Relentless

At the start of Dean Koontz's thriller Relentless I was initially a bit put off by the forced cleverness in the banter between two parents Cubby and Penny and their genius son Milo and enigmatic non-collie dog, Lassie. I adapted to the writing style and off-the-wall characters, however, and pushed onward. The premise of the novel is that book critic Shearman Waxx has panned a recent work of author Cubby and the penalty for poor writing goes far beyond just publishing a bad review. Ink on paper punishment is apparently insufficient. Non-idle threats and actual acts of violence against the author and his family ensue. This pattern had been practiced by the critic before but there was never enough data to prove his guilt as perpetrator of the violence.

If you are able to tolerate the violence and cruelty in the HBO TV series Game of Thrones to get to the deeper meaning of the story beyond, then I suppose you are also capable of reading between those types of monstrous depictions in Relentless, also. But wait. I just finished the entire book and I found that the "deeper meaning beyond", if there was one, was so hazily hidden, it was like it never emerged from the fog that enshrouds most of the later hunt-or-be-hunted scenes in this book.

I had just recently defended Dean Koontz's works to a friend by saying I liked how no matter how bad the evil, there was a permeance of good triumphing in the greater scheme of things. This book had too little of the "greater good", the "good" arrived too late in the story and, ultimately I was not really sure what the good was. The good seemed to be more of a philosophy than a grace.  I doggedly continued to forge ahead in the book, anxious and hopeful for the revelation of Koontz's characteristic message, "Aha, there is a God. Yes, there is evil in the world but good will statistically triumph." I am all for fantasy and suspension of disbelief, but the ending of this was totally unsatisfying. It was more like the author had painted himself into a corner and had to succumb to levitation to get himself out of it.

I finished Relentless because it was indeed a page turner action-wise, and each chapter was very short. The philosophy of short chapters somehow coaxes me into starting yet another. In my opinion, this is not one of Koontz's better works. I would have been wiser to devote my reading time elsewhere.

Alex's Birthday Week

My previous post was published on Alex's birthday but I noted from my photo library that I had not posted about our activities during his birthday week. Well, better late than never and for completeness here is the download or lowdown or whatever.

May 26th this year was on a Tuesday, the Tuesday after Memorial Day weekend - very unusual. Alex's birthday usually falls before or during Memorial Day weekend. Since May has 31 days and Memorial Day is defined as the last Monday in May, the earliest Memorial Day can ever be is May 25th, which is what it was this year. On Sunday of Memorial Day weekend we went to the Antiques Fair in Pleasanton, CA our neighboring town. We lucked out with a primo parking spot near the Pleasanton City Building Inspection offices and walked to Main Street where all the action was. Two locations about midway are noted. The Berry Patch where Alex picked out a present for himself (details later) and Alberto's Cantina where he practically inhaled the quesadilla we ordered for his lunch (after devouring the chips and salsa first, of course).

Extending far beyond these two midway points of interest, there were tented booths and street vendors as far as the eye could see looking both up Main Street toward the north...

and down Main Street toward the south.

Usually at these events the dogs are out in full force and Alex makes lots of friends and gets many a doggie kiss. For some reason this time the dogs were a bit stand-offish and there were not many photo ops when they were willing to meet and greet with Alex. Since local canine encounters were not of the close kind, Alex and I entered the Berry Patch, a local gift shop and toy store.

 

Immediately at the far end of the store on a high shelf Alex spotted Hoppity Socks Blue Bunny Plush by Baby Ganz. Apparently it was love at first sight.

Alex is usually not into stuffed toys but he reached for the rabbit, calling out "Raah", and clutched him close.

Alex hung on to Raah for the rest of the day. Even at lunch Frank and I had to be vigilant to keep white Raah (or should I say Gringo Raah) away from the salsa and melted cheese in the Mexican restaurant.

On Tuesday evening, May 26th, Alex's actual birthday, Frank and visited his home for a mini-celebration. Since Alex does not like cake and it is difficult to put a candle in chips, we brought donuts. Clients and staff joined us in singing Happy Birthday to Alex before he blew out a candle, grinning from ear to ear at all the attention. 

Afterward he opened a small puzzle gift we'd brought. It was a tray puzzle of the alphabet by Melissa and Doug and, as each letter was put back in place, a voice said what the letter was and what is stood for. Alex can do 100-piece puzzles but we thought the novelty of added sound would spark interest.

St. Denis is a lively place. With all the clients in the family room at once, it was quite cacophonous. Alex's new roommate Chase was playing his music (not all that softly). Wheel of Fortune was echoing from the TV in competition with the Chase's music. Jamie was calling out letters at the top of her voice so we could be sure to hear that she had picked the "right" ones. Becky and Jacqueline were verbally vying with each other to bend our ear telling us story after story. We thought Alex was so clever and learned so fast since he put each letter of the alphabet in place lickety-split, as fast as he picked each of them up. We could barely hear the sounds emanating from the puzzle as Frank and I struggled listening to figure out what each letter stood for, but Alex did not seem to mind. He added his cheering each time the puzzle voice announced a successful piece placement. What a zoo! But surely a happy zoo! Alex's official birthday bash at St. Denis was scheduled for Friday night. Clients from the sister home would be there as well. Just think. We could do this all again with twice the partiers and at even greater volume!

Birthdays with Alex also have a more mundane aspect. His natal anniversary is the trigger for annual evaluations at his home, his day program, and the regional center that monitors his care. Friday was three of those meetings back to back at the facility for Mission Hope Day Program. It is kind of neat though to walk in and see Alex's name up on the bulletin board for a May birthdays. I snapped a quick cell phone shot.

Friday night was Alex's official birthday bash. St. Denis sure makes him feel special and loved. Head staff member, Baby, cooks Alex's favorite foods for the party. The menu was Spaghetti, pizza, and Lumpia, Filipino eggrolls that she makes by hand and Alex positively inhales. Knowing Alex does not like cake, they tried a cheesecake instead. I love their novel way of protecting it from Alex's fallout when he vigorously extinguishes his candles. They buy a cake with a plastic dome cover, melt the base of each candle, and meld them to the dome.

When you think of it, the practice of blowing across a cake that everyone shares is not very hygienic for anyone. This is a great solution. The cheesecake noted that Alex turned 29.

After singing Happy Birthday, Alex insists everyone count to three, "1 – 2 – 3", multiple times before he relishes blowing out those candles. The lightly sprinkled (ok – maybe mildly splattered) dome can then be removed and the cake devoured by all, safe and unscathed. By the way, cheesecake was an excellent alternative. Alex loved it!

Alex opened two gifts afterward, a new light weight jacket from St. Denis...

... and a new bowling ball bag from Frank and me.

The box is quite large but that is how Amazon shipped it. It made for a lot of curiosity and anticipation among Alex's housemates as they awaited Alex's opening it. He needed a bit of convincing to abandon his old bowling bag but it had literally falling apart at the seams. So ends the celebratory week for Alex's 29th birthday.

So now I am officially caught up. Next year, Alex turns the big Three-Oh. Oh, my!

  30!!!

Ponder Post: The Secrets of Midwives

I picked up this novel on an impulse since it was pasted with NEW and 7 DAY checkout stickers and was displayed prominently on the table near the library entrance, indicators of supposed desirability. I succumbed to the lure and did not need seven days. I read this 300+ page book in one day, it was so engaging. The title caught my eye and its first review on the back cover was by Liane Moriarty, who wrote the Husband's Secret, which I thought was excellent. I gave my opinion about The Husband's Secret in my April 10, 2015 post.

The Secrets of Midwives by Sally Hepworth centers around three generations of midwives – youngest midwife daughter Neva who herself is pregnant, mother Grace, and grandmother Floss. In a style than appears to be popular in today's literature, at least in the books I happen to read recently, each chapter is written in the voice and from the point of view of one of these three women. It explores the mother-daughter bond and relationship very well. It has intense scenes of delivering a baby, many different ways. Maybe it appealed to me since Robin is in her final month of pregnancy, but it has other content as well. It has romance but it is not a romance novel. It has suspense but it will not give you nightmares. It has settings in different eras but is not a lesson in history. It has some tongue in cheek humor but it also has human pathos. I felt the male characters were a bit underdeveloped but maybe it just felt that way because they were in contrast to the main three vivid female characters.

It is a relatively new book. The hardcover came out in February 2015. In truth I do not think it would appeal to men, both because of the topic and because of the imbalanced development of the male characters but I am glad I stumbled upon it. It is a good read. If I told you more, I'd be revealing too many secrets!