I didn’t care so much for Russell Banks’ “Lost Memory of Skin,” and I probably wouldn’t have checked out had I read the synopsis first. It was the subject matter that bothered me, not the writing. The writing was straight-foward and fine. So I hesitated briefly before I gave it only two stars, but then I remembered that these reviews are entirely subjective, and I didn’t enjoy the book all that much because the subject matter is squicky no matter how well Banks writes about it. It did, however, make me think about the importance of showing your children sincere, focused love and attention, lest they grow up to be dysfunctional outcasts.
Monthly Archives: January 2012
Experimenting with food, fingernails and fashion
We didn’t get a chance to see my brother and sister-in-law over the holidays, so they came over last weekend to exchange presents, watch the Lions game and knock a few things off my Mighty List:
- On Saturday I made sizzling rice soup. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t quite what I wanted it to be. The broth was a little too heavy but not quite flavorful enough. The rice, though, sizzled beautifully when it hit the soup. I’ll try it again.
- I tend to wear a T-shirt and jeans every day, and one of the items on the list was the rather nebulous “Upgrade my wardrobe. (Fewer T-shirts).” On Sunday, Carrie made good on her pledge to help out with that particular item. We went to the mall, where she made me try on every article of clothing at Lane Bryant. And then in an overly extravagant bit of birthday/Christmas gifting, she bought me a bunch of stuff.
- Carrie had also expressed an interest in fulfilling the Get a Manicure item on my list, so we also did that at the mall. She picked a lovely deep purple for my nails, and I chose a dark, dark, dark blue for hers. It was my very first manicure, and I liked it. Even though I promptly smudged the nail polish in the process of trying to free a shopping bag from the wheel of my chair. I’ll probably try it again sometime. I like having fancy hands. (That sounds vaguely Clampett.)
None of that explains, though, what that “What I Wore Wednesday” button sitting up there is all about. It’s about this: Just because my wardrobe has seen some upgrades doesn’t necessarily guarantee that I’m going to change my T-shirt-wearing ways. So in the interest of accountability, I’m going to (try to remember to) take a picture of what I’m wearing every day. And I’m going to post it here on Wednesdays and link it up to The Pleated Poppy’s linky thing.
This project is likely to give me fits for two reasons: 1. T-shirts. They are so tent-like and comfortable; and 2. I will have to take pictures of myself and put them on the internet. This is not a prospect I savor. I don’t like pictures of myself in general, and full-body pictures are absolutely the worst. But I feel like I probably need some accountability on this dressing better idea, so here were are. And here I am, Sunday through yesterday:
