In honor of my present reading material, The Professor and the Madman, this week's top ten list will address my favorite words. My reasons for choosing these words vary. Some I like simply for the way they sound. Others I chose for their definitions. Others are chosen due to the fact that their sounds and their meanings don't coincide. In no particular order, because it is just too difficult to decide, here they are: 10. ratiocination (n.)--To reason methodically and logically. I first heard this word as an English Literature student in reference to Milton's "Paradise Lost". I fell in love with this word, not just for the meaning, but for the fact that if you throw this word into everyday conversation, you tend to get some strange looks. 9. mellifluous (adj.)--Having a smooth, rich flow. The word itself is indeed mellifluous. It really just rolls off the tongue. Perhaps I like it because I myself never speak in a mellifluous manner, but rather more staccato, which is also a great word, but didn't make it onto the list. 8. philology(n.)--The study of literature and of disciplines relevant to literature or to language as used in literature. I, in fact believe myself to be somewhat of a philologist. That is, something more than a linguist (which I'm surely not), more than a theorist, and more than a lover of literature. It is all of those things. And it is fun to say. 7. lugubrious (adj.)--1. Mournful; indicating sorrow, often in a way that seems feigned, exaggerated, or ridiculous. 2. Gloomy; dismal. Just saying this word puts me in a lugubrious mood.  6. quixotic (adj.)--1. Caught up in the romance of noble deeds and the pursuit of unreachable goals; idealistic without regard to practicality. 2. Capricious; impulsive. Another word that is fun to say, it is almost a complete antithesis to the concept of "ratiocination". I wish I were more quixotic. 5. ju-ju (n.)--1. An object superstitiously believed to embody magical powers. 2. The power associated with a juju. I don't believe any comment is necessary. It's just a great word. 4.  vex (v.)to irritate, annoy, provoke.  I'm often vexed.  Not by life's usual predicaments, but by my own actions and reactions to those predicaments. 3. doppleganger (n.)--1. A ghostly double or counterpart of a living person. 2. Alter ego; double. Mostly, I love the idea of a doppleganger. So many literary works address this notion and I find it fascinating. I could have a second self wandering about the planet. How delicious it would be to meet such a person. I'd probably kill him or her. 2. cacophony (n.)--Harsh or discordant sound; dissonance. A fun word to say and actually not at all cacophonous when heard. 1. gravitas (n.)--high seriousness. I actually have to say this word with a gravelly voice. And slow: "graveeetaaas". This was a difficult list and one that is constantly in transition.

A Few of My Favorite Things... As promised, my top ten list for this week will include my favorite things. This doesn't mean my favorite song, my favorite movie, etc. It means the random things in which I take pleasure. This has been quite a tour de force in self-exploration. I had to really dig deep within myself to figure out what it is that I truly love and appreciate about life. Here goes: 10. Hats. I'm a hat girl. I have 'em all...newsboys, trilbys, baseball caps, cowboy hats, santa caps, fishing caps, players, collettes, and spays. And I wear them. That is the key. You can't have a collection of such adornments and not adorn. 9. In the same vein, I have a proclivity for collecting and wearing scarves. However, this does not extend into what the French call "foulards". That is to say, no silky, gauzy neck scarves for the summer. ONLY long winter wrap around scarves that keep me toasty...even indoors. 8. There is something both eerie and peaceful about a solitary late night drive through the desert. It took me a while to figure out that it was a favorite thing, but I love the night, I love to drive fast with no traffic around and I do enjoy being alone so there it is. 7. The soft tickling of grass under my feet and between my toes. I definitely live in the wrong place for such a favorite feeling, but every time I see a healthy blanket of green, I feel compelled to take off my shoes and indulge myself 6. I live for stormy, dark, nippy, grey, foggy days. Again, living in the wrong place for that. Perhaps that's why I love them so much. 5. Oh how I melt at the sexy sounds of a muted trumpet. And yet the the soulful resonance of a clarinet makes me question my choice for #8. Let's just leave it at really great sensual jazz melodies. 4. The smell of figs. It's absolutely the best perfume in the world. Yes, fresh baked bread, chocolate and rose petals are all nice, but nothing compares to that of a fig. 3. Breaking the rules once in a while. This is a tough one to explain. It doesn't mean breaking the law or anything that drastic, but it means doing something naughty or being unexpected. For example, laughing when you're not supposed to. I would always laugh in church. I would have terrible fits that I would have to stifle but I look back on it now and I get a kick out of such instances. But what I really mean by this is being myself. People look at me and expect one thing and if they were to stick around to observe the "real" me, they would get something quite different. I know I come off as youthful, classy, refined, serious and aloof. And perhaps I am those things, but I'm also a pretty chill chica who can cuss like a sailor when angry, listens to hard rock music, and can burp like nobody's business. So my 3rd favorite thing is not fitting into the box. 2. My blanket. I sleep with my childhood blanket. I cannot be without it. I had it the day I came home from the hospital almost 32 years ago and I will have it until the day I die. Just call me Linus. 1. I had honestly thought my blanket would be my first favorite, but I re-evaluated my choice and I have to go with....dreams. I love dreaming. I don't care if it's a good dream, a bad dream, a sexy dream, a scary dream, a recurring dream, a dream about the past or a dream about the future. It can be about something that has happened, something I fear happening or something I wish would happen. The thing about them is that no matter what they are about, they always reveal more about to myself. If it's a great sexy dream, I can savor it for days to come. If it's a tragic depressing dream, I can breathe a sigh of relief that it isn't real. I know that this is further evidence to the fact that I'm an escapist, someone who prefers a chimerical world over the practical world. But it's what keeps me going. I'm a pragmatist by day, so my nights are spent in fantasy. So, there it is, my top ten for the week. The lists, I'm sure will become less profound and more frivolous.

Today was a bad day and I just need to vent. Sometimes we all just need to vent to someone and this is my "someone". Some people vent to others and receive sound advise, words of wisdom, or perhaps just an understanding ear. Me? I rely on myself and my writing to ground me. Maybe Friday the 13th really is a cursed day. Maybe I'm just emotional right now. I'll be brief as I hadn't planned on writing today. What set this horrible day in motion is that my dog had to go to the vet today. We discovered Tuesday that Dante's brow above his left eye had swollen quite a bit and we thought that he and our other dog, Moses, had gotten a little rough. His face continued to swell and we knew that he had been bitten by something. It turns out he was bitten by some sort of spider, but the vet had thought it was a snake at first. We are so lucky that Dante didn't die. Thank God he's young and healthy. Relationships with pets are strange. You never really realize how much they mean to you until they are gone. Here are my beautiful boys (Dante on the left with the white patch and Moses on the right:

And here is a computer painting I did of them:

These computer paintings have become one of my favorite hobbies. I do them on an internet site. I started doing them a few months ago and I'm addicted. I hadn't done any in a while because I couldn't get into the site, but now that I'm back online, I'm doing a bunch. I love my boys. Aren't they cute? Even if they're blue....

This blog is going to be about movies. I know I usually write about books, but movies seem to be more accessible to most people. My inspiration for this blog comes from one movie in particular. Last night I watched "Lars and the Real Girl". It is exactly the kind of film I love. Lars is very much a person "on the outside", as I like to call it. He is not "normal" or in any way conventional. But what the fuck? Who is? That's my philosophy anyway. The thing is, people are so scared by the abnormal. They are so quick to label different as crazy. If that were the case, I would've been committed a long time ago. I enjoy the quirks in people. I enjoy the beauty of those who are unique, who catch you off guard, who are so very unexpected. So Lars, in all of his oddity and "insanity" finds that people really do love him and are willing to accommodate those endearing quirks. If only humanity were really so compassionate, accepting, kind and altruistic. This film gives me hope that there will be people who watch the film and open their minds and hearts and stop judging based on their own fears. And who would've thought Ryan Gosling would become one of the best actors of our time? Just wow. And any movie with Patrica Clarkson is not to be missed. That woman has so much class and I swear I could just listen to her talk all day. What a wonderful, rich soothing voice she has. In ways, "Lars.." reminds me of "Juno". I hadn't known what to expect about "Juno" and didn't think I was a big fan of Ellen Page, but I fell in love with the movie and with her. In ways (aside from the pregnancy) Juno reminds me of myself when I was a teenager. She's quirky, yet accepted; ostracized yet admired; too mature for her own good; gives off the air of not caring what others think, yet deep down wishing to be understood. It's refreshing to see that such a small, offbeat little film can really make it big and find a large audience amongst all the grotesque Hollywood blockbusters churned out by the large studios every year. Thank God for films like these and the people who make them. I also recently watched "Mad Money" and "P.S. I Love You" and really enjoyed them both. Diane Keaton in "Mad Money" is hilarious and I do love me some Queen Latifa. What a beauty she is! As for "P.S. I Love You", I cried. I can't believe I cried! I never cry in films, but it sort of reminded me of my own life: A wonderful man who loves his wife so much even though she may not think she deserves such love. She struggles with the idea that he was always the "perfect" one, the one who everyone liked and she was always the stick in the mud. And when she loses him, she realizes that she might not have let him know how much she loved him and appreciated him. I love Gerard Butler. He is on my list of sexiest men in Hollywood and of course Hillary Swank is flawless as usual. It's a cute film, moving, yet not overly sentimental. I recommend. Which brings me to my lists....I love lists. I love people who love lists. Here are two lists of films I recommend. Best Film Per Decade 1920s: "The Big Parade" 1925. I discovered this film a few years ago when I got really into silents and pre-code films. It stars John Gilbert (Garbo's former flame) as an American soldier fighting in WWI. He meets a young French woman, the adorable Renee Adoree, and falls in love. What I so love about this film (besides my obsession with all things WWI) is the subtle acting on Gilbert's part. What he does so well is bring a quietness of emotion and subtlety to his acting that was so abnormal for silent films. Acting had to be big and emotive in order to make up for the lack of dialogue, but Gilbert is so natural, not to mention handsome. And I'm blown away at the cinematic scope of the film and special effects. Such shots could be found in films today and still not carry the impact they do in a film made 80 years ago. 1930s: "Gone With the Wind" 1939. Of course I have to choose this film as it truly may be the best movie ever made. For so long, I've thought "Camille" with Greta Garbo was the best 30s film, but I have to consider the film as a whole and not just the acting (of which Garbo is sublime in this film). The problem is, the script and cinematography just don't compare to that of the Margaret Mitchell adaptation. And Vivien Leigh is indeed phenomenal as Scarlet. I can literally watch that movie once a week and still love it every bit as the first time I ever saw it. It's truly an epic film and should not be missed. 1940s: This is difficult. There are so many great films of the 40s. But, as with GWTW, I chose a movie of which I never tire: "The Philadelphia Story" 1941. With a stellar cast of Katharine Hepburn, Cary Grant, and Jimmy Stewart, it is utterly flawless. The hilarity of the script and acting tends to overshadow the fact that the movie is actually beautifully filmed. The black and white seems ethereal in its quality. The camera work and lighting should not be taken for granted as they are masterful. 1950s: Hands down "Some Like it Hot" 1959. Funniest Movie EVER! There are just too many great things about this movie. It must be viewed several times in order for all the subtle innuendo to be recognized. It really pushed the envelope with that script. And Jack Lemmon...what can I say? I actually don't know if I enjoy him as a comedian or a dramatist better, but this is by far his loveliest performance. 1960s: "Sound of Music" 1965/"West Side Story" 1961. This truly is a toss up. Both musicals are too fantastic. The thing is, I love both movies for the same reasons. The music never gets old (there's actually one song in each I don't care for. SOM: "Climb Every Mountain". WSS: "Cool Boy"). They are both light-hearted and funny in parts, but also deeply dramatic and disturbing. Great acting. I do have to say though...as much as I love Natalie Wood, I don't like her as a Puerto Rican lipsynching to operatic musical ballads. So, whereas SOM wins a point in the acting department, WSS trumps the other in choreography. With performers like Russ Tamlyn and Rita Moreno in WSS, there is no comparison for the dancing in SOM. Best musical number--SOM: "Sixteen Going on Seventeen". WSS: "America". Hmmm.... I just realized, both characters named "Maria" have a song named after them. 1970s: I hate the 70s in terms of film. This was tough because I pretty much skip that decade when I watch movies. I hate doing this, but I'm gonna have to go with "The Godfather Part II" 1974. I'm a much bigger fan of DeNiro that Pacino and since DeNiro is the star of Part II, I must choose it. Plus, I really enjoy the early life of Vito in the 20s and all the the Sicilian landscape and language of II. 1980s: "E.T." 1982. This movie just holds so many special memories for me that it's really more of a sentimental pick than anything. Although, it was quite innovative film making for the time, so it does have many qualities of a truly great film. I recently watched it with all my nieces and nephew an it was so wonderful to watch their first reactions to the story as well. I shall never forget it. 1990s: "Silence of the Lambs" 1991. Yes. I'm a sicko. I'm actually obsessed with this film. I was 15 when it came out and everyone started telling me I looked like Jodie Foster. That was just the beginning of many years to follow of people telling me I was her twin, requesting that I say "Doctor Lecter" in that backwoods Virginian accent and asking for my autograph. I still get it sometimes today, but not as much as back then. I never saw the resemblance, although I'm beginning to now ( I do see the Natalie Wood resemblance though). Anyway, back to the film. I don't even need to mention the acting, which is superb. This film, in all it's aspects captures the creepiness of insanity. I don't think of it as a traditional horror flick because it never goes for the cheap/gory thrill. The horror of the film is not in the grotesque fantastical manioc killing of random people (as in "Friday the 13th" or "Nightmare on Elm Street" films and their ilk) but in the shocking reality that this sort of thing does happen in real life. That people are monsters and many walk around this earth among us as if life is not sacred. 2000s: Although the decade is not over, I wonder if there will be a film that can live up to "Moulin Rouge!" 2001. Baz Luhrmann is the ultimate film maker and this is the ultimate film. It has everything and encompasses the audience in it's storytelling. Comedy, tragedy, romance, music, great costumes, great acting, great sets, clever dialogue and references, special effects, beautiful lighting and cinematography. It is the epitome of a spectacle and it is spectacular. Some people are put off by it at first because the beginning is so over the top, quirky, fast-paced and confusing, but that is exactly what is needed to convey the mood of the times. Turn of the century in Paris was all of those things. And it's as if Luhrmann dares his audience to stick with him through the journey on which he is about to take you. And stick with it you must, because it is worth it. Ok, that's that list. Now a brief list of my favorite foreign films in order to No. 1. I'm not an avid viewer of foreign films, but I do watch them more than the average Joe and these are the best--in my opinion. 10. Jules et Jim (France 1962) /Les Diaboliques (France 1955) toss up. 9. The Piano Teacher (France 2001) /Swimming Pool (France 2003) 8. 8 Femmes (France 2002) 7. Nathalie...(France 2003) 6. Cinema Paradiso (Italy 1990) 5. Don't Tempt Me (France/Spain/Italy/Mexico 2001) 4. Trois Coleurs: Rouge (France 1994) 3. A Very Long Engagement (France 2004) 2. Life is Beautiful (Italy 1997) 1. Malena (Italy 2000) And since I love lists so much, I will be including a top ten list every week in my blog. :)

I realized that I got so wrapped up in the Literature and penny finding stuff in my post yesterday that I hardly included any "life" stuff. I'm just so excited to be back on the computer, since I've had absolutely no access to it for over a month. Ah! I can breathe again. Just kidding. I've actually been occupying my time with much more productive projects. I'm reading more, doing more crossword puzzles, going on bike rides, attending a Bible study and a book club, hence, the reading more. So, as I mentioned, I just got back from a trip to Cleveland. Although non-Clevelanders enjoy referring to my hometown as "The Mistake on the Lake", I must ask of such nay-sayers, "Have you ever been there?" I love Cleveland. There are so many wonderful things about the city. I'm actually from a suburb called South Euclid, which is about 30 minutes south of downtown. The outer parts of Cleveland like Cleveland and University Heights, Shaker, and Chagrin are so charming and truly beautiful. While I was there, the weather was warming up and the landscape was lush and green. Flowers were in bloom, there was a slight breeze, and the air smelled fresh and floral. Here in AZ, there is nothing like it. Sure, we have trees and plants and flowers, but there are no rolling hills of grass or the occasional deer that passes through one's back yard. True story: The house where we stayed is in a suburban neighborhood, but there are woods behind the house. On my last day there, I enjoyed watching a family of deer as they walked through the yard and the youngest decided to take a long nap under the tree just outside the window. During my 10 day trip, we took a drive out to the lake and enjoyed the sounds and smells of the surf. It was such a peaceful, restful day, a nice break from all the hustle and bustle of reuniting with family and friends. My family also took a trip to Little Italy. Back at the turn of the 20th century, my great-grandfather (my grandmother's dad) was quite a wealthy businessman in Cleveland. He owned an apartment building which still stands today. Here are my mom and me in front of it: Once my brother arrived in town, we made our way down to the "Flats" for the annual Rib Cook Off. That night, we took in an Indians game as we are all huge fans. We also spent a thrilling and exhausting day at Cedar Point. As I mentioned before, it was exhilirating to become a kid again, but it really took a beating on my body and by the end of the day, I could barely move. And even though I'm still recovering a week later, it was totally worth it. Brandon and I had a lovely dinner at Pier W, the coolest restaurant in Cleveland. It actually hangs out over the cliff and the whole restaurant is windows so you can view the water, the boats, the Cleveland skyline, etc. And the food is to DIE for. Of course I have to plug the best pizza place in the COUNTRY, my Aunt Frannie's famous Italian Restaurant, Geraci's. People travel far and wide for her pizza, have in Fed-Exed to them across country and rave about it to friends in other states. Of course we had a couple meals there and I gained some weight just from her pizza alone, but my aunt just keeps the food coming, for like hours. And you can't possible say no to such an angel of a woman as my aunt. We travelled to Put-in-Bay one day. As a child growing up there, I never knew there were hundreds of islands out in Lake Erie so it was such a delightful new adventure to take the boat out to one of them one day, attend a wine tasting at a local vineyard there and spend a nice relaxing day enjoying the charm of the tiny town. My great-great aunt turned one hundred while we were there so there was, of course, a big Italian bash. I could get into the whole family tree, but it is just way too confusing. But basically, even though my grandparents (my grandfather being a LoSchiavo and my grandmother being a Roberto) have both passed away, there were members from both sides of the family there. It's really crazy. Everyone is named Joe or Frank, and Martha or Marie. It's a headache to go to those things. As more and more relatives continue to pass on, I have less to remember though(as I can't really keep up with which children belong to which of my dozens of cousins). There were some things that I wanted to do that I didn't get to, like the art museum again, which I guess has been closed for 3 years. I did get to go once a few years ago, but I always enjoy going to see art whenever possible, and Cleveland's is a top notch museum. I wanted to visit the botanical gardens, as it came highly recommended. I spent some time in the area though and wanted to have a nice meal at The Inn on Coventry, but they were closed when I got there. Ah well. Probably for the best anyway. As everyone in Cleveland knows, I would move back there in a heartbeat. There was a concern for a while that the weather wouldn't be good for my health, but as I recently discovered that I never had Lupus in the first place, that argument is futile. Yes, I still have the fibromyalgia, but that isn't exacerbated by the weather, and there's actually a holistic doctor in Cleveland that has cured fibromyalgia patients of the disease. I might have to make another visit soon to see him, but in the mean time, I'm reading his book and recognizing a lot of symptoms and learning quite a bit. I loved feeling "at home" again while I was there. I've never felt AZ was my home and that there was really any reason to stay here. I don't know. Maybe someday I'll find myself back home again.

Wow! It really has been a long time since I posted, as a friend recently reminded me. I honestly didn't think anyone was reading my boring drivel. My life has been really crazy lately, but as I previously promised, I will try to stick to the original purpose of this blog, literature and finding pennies. With some "life" stuff thrown in occassionally. ;) Let's start with the pennies. I just returned from a trip to Cleveland, my home town where I found a lot of change on the ground. I think people there must not care or pay attention to all the coins they discard. As for the trip, it was wonderful seeing old family, friends and places I used to visit. Fun, restful and a bit melancholic. Oh well. I did get over to Cedar Point, the best amusement park in the world where I became a kid again for a little while, but also felt old, as my body cannot take all the pounding entailed on those huge roller coasters. I found so much change on the ground that day. People need to empty their pockets before they go whipping through the air in every direction possible. Literature...since I last wrote, I've read a couple of books. I'm just finishing up One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gael Garcia Marquez, the same author of Love in the Time of Cholera. I've thoroughly enjoyed the journey I've taken with the characters. I've loved the quirkiness, the passion, and yes, the melancholy of the characters. Each character is so unique yet very familiar to me. I do, however, wish I had read the book for a class or book club or something since the actual act of reading has felt very much an act of solitude itself. The characters are so engrossed in their own lives and their own minds that no one understands each other, or cares to. I find that to be the unfortunate circumstance of my own existence sometimes as well. I also read Fire in the Blood by Irene Nemirovsky. I recently joined a woman's book club and that was the assignment. Although I didn't think much of the book (it would make a good movie though), I was fascinated by the author's story and how the book came to be published. Nemirovsky died at Auschwitz and the manuscript was found and completed years after her death. I do recommend it for someone who enjoys a light, easy read involving passion and scandal. Before that I read What is the What? by one of my faves, Dave Eggers. I LOVED this book. I adored his autobiography A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius so much that I decided to read everything I can find by him. This latest award winning book was such an important story. I think everyone should read it, even if you don't consider yourself a reader. It's an easy read in terms of technicality, but a difficult story to stomach emotionally. Valentino Achak Deng is a true hero and his story needs to be shared. Thank you Dave Eggers for bringing this story of struggle, pain, triumph and hope to the masses. On my recent travels to Cleveland, I stopped in at a wonderful little bookstore in a part of town called Larchmere and picked up a few books. Dave Egger's You Shall Know Our Velocity, Zadie Smith's (another HUGE fave) On Beauty, Joyce Carol Oates's Black Girl/White Girl and my next read The Professor and the Madman, a true account of the gentlemen who compiled the Oxford English Dictionary. I'm so excited. Future reading includes Vikram Seth's A Suitable Boy, Ian McKewan's Atonement and the Zadie Smith book. I love, love, love Zadie Smith. Highly recommend White Teeth to everyone. This young woman is a genius! That's all for now. I'll keep posting all my future literary adventures!