Monthly Archives: August 2008

Dogs on Thursday: Millie & the Pool

By monnibo | Published: August 21, 2008

Millie cannot decide how she feels about the water. She is so intrigued by it, and wants to go in… but won’t go in willingly. Also, the pool sides are far too high for her to climb out on her own so when she falls in, she freaks out and you have to hoist her up out of the water. We think it might be that 1.) she can’t wade in because by the second step, she’d be in over her head; 2.) she can’t see very far down — we can tell by how stressed she gets when you dive under water. I wonder if she’d love the ocean or if she would be scared of the waves? She’d probably like a lake. Either way, she loves pool toys and biting things and then running away and destroying them. One time she got a bit of a pool noodle and there were little pink bits of noodle all over the camp!

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Favourite Henry Photo

By monnibo | Published: August 20, 2008

I’ve not got much to say about Henry this week… it’s difficult to come up with new and exciting things to tell each week! I must try harder. For now, I’ll just share my favourite photo of Henry & I. It’s when he was about 8 or 9 months old. Happy Whiskers on Wednesday!

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Teaser Tuesdays: Dirty Job

By monnibo | Published: August 19, 2008

“Another weekly book meme” you moan… Well not really; I don’t think I plan to play every week, but my book right now would lend really well to a good tease! TEASER TUESDAYS ask you to: Grab your current read. Let the book fall open to a random page. Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12. You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given! Please avoid spoilers He got off at the end of the line, bought a Wall Street Journal from a machine, spread out the Journal to protect his trousers against oil stains, then got down on his hands and knees and screamed into the drain grate, “I have been chosen, so don’t fuck with me!” When he stood up again, a dozen people were standing there waiting for the light to change, looking at him. “Had to be done,” Charlie said, not apologizing, just explaining. A Dirty Job by Christopher Moore

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Mamma Mia!

By monnibo | Published: August 18, 2008

I was having a pretty crappy Friday so my best friend and I went to the movies together. It was a perfect way to cheer me up — I found myself grinning through the movie (Mamma Mia! if you hadn’t already guessed). I really recommend it! It’s fabulous; I’d love to see the stage performance. I have a soft spot in my heart for musicals; I was raised on The Sound of Music and The Fiddler on the Roof (double tape VHS movies kept us kids quiet). Nowadays I keep Phantom of the Opera and The Nightmare Before Christmas close to my heart. All the cast choices were great. Stellan Skarsgård (aka Bootstrap Bill from Pirates); Colin Firth (aka Mark Darcy from Bridget Jones); Julie Walters (aka Molly Weasley from Harry Potter); Christine Baranski (aka Mary May Whovier from How the Grinch Stole Christmas); and Pierce Brosnan (of James Bond fame). This is the first movie I’ve seen with Pierce Brosnan where I haven’t completely disliked him (he’s usually a chauvinistic pig, I didn’t like him as Bond). The actress (pictured here) who plays Meryl Streep’s daughter is really great, and they look so much alike! It’s hard to believe it’s the same actress (Amanda Seyfried) that played the stupid popular girl in Mean Girls. I adore Meryl Streep and I couldn’t keep my eyes off of her — she is absolutely amazing in this movie. She was absolutely glowing — and so gorgeous too. Can I age like her [...]

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A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah (book review)

By monnibo | Published: August 17, 2008

This was an amazingly written story of Ishmael’s childhood in Sierra Leone. It really opened my eyes — I didn’t realize that child soldiers, hopped up on drugs and other things, were forced to fight and kill just to stay alive themselves. Ishmael Beah’s story is a moving account of his life, beginning when he was twelve and had to run from the rebels as they burned villages and killed families. After being separated from his family, friends, and all others he knew, he was eventually recruited into the army — being told he could either join the army, or hide from the rebels and die trying. Ishmael spares no details as he retells of his time in the army as a Junior Commander and eventually, his release from the army and difficult rehabilitation in a UNICEF centre. Ishmael Beah has an amazing, distinctive voice. It’s absolutely astounding how much he went through, and I am really glad I got a chance to read this book. It’s worth your time. I cannot believe that someone — a child — went through this and was able to come out so positive. During the book, Beah is so resilient and goes through so much, just to stay alive — knowing that ultimately that is what is important. New York City, 1998 My high school friends have begun to suspect I haven’t told them the full story of my life. “Why did you leave Sierra Leone?” “Because there is a war.” “Did you [...]