New England Patriot

Hi All!
Finally back from New England, I am. I love visiting up North, especially since one of my best friends is there, but I have to say, after the torrential monsoon they had while I was there, and the cold weather, it was all I could do not to kiss the ground when I stepped off the train in Virginia again. The 75 degree weather hit me like a warm blanket! I had a nice vacation, though, and the time to relax was wonderful. Of course, I'm a firm believer in relaxing every day, not just on vacation days.
While we were there, we went to an aquarium. It was fun, since I haven't been to one since high school. The Baltimore Aquarium is the best! The part I remember was the entire building that was one big fish tank, and you walked from floor to floor on carpeted walkways, looking at the fish the entire time. I remember it was dark near the bottom, so when you stood there looking a shark in the face, you felt like you were at the bottom of the ocean, yet you could breathe and were completely dry. And, if you were me, you were with your girlfriends and could not stop laughing about whatever boy you had a crush on at the time. We laughed ourselves silly on those trips, on the bus we took to get there. This aquarium that I went to on Sunday was neat, but not as mesmerizing as Baltimore. Still, it was fun to see the sea animals.
We saw seals and sharks being fed (not together!), saw jellyfish (cool but harsh stingers), and I saw my favorites, sea horses. My friend Lynn is a museum director of education, so she always takes note of how the displays look and how the guides are. It's funny to go with her to museums becuase by God, if it isn't done right, she'll point it out! I love perfectionists. Being one myself.
I also took 'Memoirs of a Geisha' on the train to read. So far, this is an excellent novel. The author uses a lot of really unique and wonderful metaphors in his descriptions. As you may or may not know, metaphors are my favorite writing device. That and allegory, and symbolism. My impression of The Geisha has always been that she is a high-class prostitute. But as I read, I'm not sure that's accurate. I hope not, because I have a hard time having any respect for a prostitute. I'm too much of a feminist and a modern-day woman to really understand subservient and submissive women. I don't really understand that type of behavior, in any situation. If my life were threatened, I still wouldn't be submissive. Too much fire in the belly, as the saying goes. So I'm having a bit of a hard time with the submissive nature of the Japanese women in this novel (set in the 1930's Japan). But the central character does have fire herself, so I'm hoping she'll come out on top. I haven't seen the film yet, but it's there from Netflix so that'll be next I suppose. We'll see how it compares.
A film I DID see over the break was 'King Kong.' Unless you're a guy or you just love gorillas, I'd say you could give this one a miss. Way too long and dull for the first hour and a half. I love Naomi Watts, but all she had to do was act shocked and yell a lot. We (my brothers and I) loved King Kong as kids (who didn't? If you had brothers, that is), and I did think he was cute, ol' Kong, but the CGI was very obvious and the Kong vs. Dinosaurs plot was ridiculous. Dinosaurs??? In 1933 New York? Or whatever island they went to? Sorry, Peter Jackson...loved your work in Lord of the Rings...but this wasn't the best.
I also saw 'The Constant Gardner,' which led me to ask, "Where was the gardening, and how was it constant?" haha This was a political thriller set in Africa. It was slow to start, but did gain my interest by the end. It wasn't a typical American thriller, though. It was more like an independent film that almost seemed shot on home video. Ralph Fiennes is still nice to look at though. *sigh*
The last in my triumvirate of films I saw was 'The Legend of Zorro.' Now, this WAS the typical American action thriller. Basically, Antonio Banderas and Catherine Zeta-Jones running around kicking the bad guy's a** for two hours. It was entertaining, at least. I think filmmakers sometimes need to not try so hard to have 'twists' in films, and focus more on character. I love twists more than anybody, and I always write tons of twists into my novels, but with these generic action movies, you can predict what the twist will be. It's asking a lot to see originality much anymore, I suppose.

So it's good to be back. Hope you all are well, and remember: If you have fire in your belly, try Tums. ;)

Aquarium Notes
1) Saw huge sea turtles, which Lynn loved. She loves turtles of all kinds. I think anything bigger than me is kind of scary.
2) Speaking of scary! Had the BeJesus scared out of me by a stingray that floated right in front of me while I was staring intently at a shark. Dude! Do NOT startle somebody when they have the eyes on a shark!
3) Sat in the dark room and stared at the lighted jellyfish, who were in a sort of tube. Such delicate-looking creatures, they are. Interesting how the delicate ones can hurt the most.
4) I wanted to take the little sea horses home with me. They're so cute, you just want to say "Awwww!!!" all day.
5) We enjoyed the seals, who were entertaining and well-trained. But still, the animal-rights activist in me wanted to ask the trainer, "How would you like it if people made you do tricks and clapped at you all day?" They seemed perfectly happy and well-cared-for, the seals, but still. I guess I don't like to see anyone dominate another, even an animal.

Have a great day!