I am George--the real George

I am in the middle of a novel by Caitlin Macy--The Fundamentals of Play. I am literally in the middle. Page 145 of 289.

The book has been lying, spine up, open to page 145 for weeks. I am just not interested. But I feel I've invested to much to give up now.

I don't like the characters: George (who also narrates), Chat, Harry, and Kate. The very names reek of pomposity. I think I might like George... but I like the real guy. The actual person Caitlin Macy went to school with. He is me--I think. A "too nice" guy who, I am certain, will get screwed by page 289--and not in a good way.

He is the only guy in the story you can root for to get good-way screwed, but he never will, because he's not exciting enough for Caitlin--or Kate. Kate likes the bad boys. Not the bad, bad boys... but the Wall Street and yacht club bad boys. The rich-brat jerks.

Early in the book, I found it easy to forget that George was the narrator--it feels like a girl is telling the story (which, of course, she is). But when Caitlin writes Kate, the story feels right--makes sense. It makes sense when she writes Kate, because Kate doesn't make sense. She feels complex; real. George, on the other hand, makes perfect sense--and is therefore not real. I know this because--well... he is me.

Coffee, irregular

I am still experimenting with a new burr grinder and a coffee press. I don't have it down yet--and it's especially hard to judge now that I have run out of cream. I am not used to black coffee, so it is hard to say if I've done it right. I am certain that my coffee doesn't come close to Old Crown Roasters' consistently delicious brews.

A pourover brewer is en route. Maybe that will help.

Meanwhile--back to today's coffee. I've messed it up, somehow. The first few sips seemed okay--while it was still piping hot. After it cooled for just a minute or so, it became sour. Very nasty.

Googling "why does my coffee taste sour?" brought up top listing, faqs, which points to a site called Merlo Coffee. There it explains, "All coffee makers are designed to only be used for the maximum. I.e. no half plungers, no half stovetops!" (yikes... an exclamation point--danger) So, maybe that is my problem--I have been using a relatively large coffee press to make only a single cup of coffee. But I have gotten some decent results as well as some poor ones--so there must be more to it than press size.

Shrug. I am, for now, at a loss.

Across the Universe: Romance, history lesson, musical.

As a romance, Across the Universe is unspectacular. Why did Jude find Lucy so attractive? She was blonde, I guess.

As a history lesson, it is trite.

And as a musical, it is, well... a musical. Which is to say it is sometimes fun, and oftentimes embarrassing--kind of like a crazy mom.

On the plus side, the film does feature covers of and references to one of the great bands across the universe.

I write

Today I sent out some mail. I made some coffee (a nice Ethiopian with blueberry nuances). I rummaged through the cupboards, looking for food.

After deciding that I had nothing suitable for breakfast, I walked down to Cindy's Diner (Cindy and John were at their grandson's wedding and the diner was closed, said a paper sign hung in the door). I returned home and verified that I was correct and that, indeed, I did not have any food suitable for breakfast. I decided to hold out for lunch. 

I made some more coffee. I called Grandpa Bill. I did the laundry. I opened the windows. I watered the plant (yes, plant--singular).

Around noon, I walked down to the Chinese take-out place. I returned home and enjoyed some dumplings and hot & sour soup while I watched Across the Universe (see review in next post).

I basically did nothing all day. But these things, to me, were significant.

I've been ignoring, or delaying, many of the things I did today. Returning phone calls, doing laundry, opening windows--walking--these are the activities of people who do things. I am a person who merely exists. Many nights, at about 8:30 PM I start to wonder if I would be too ashamed of myself to just go to bed then, instead of trying to come up with something else to do that I probably am not going to enjoy all that much anyway.

So what makes today different? Well, yesterday I had lunch with another guy in the IT department. Our discussion landed on weekend activities. When it was my turn to share, I had to think--"I watch a lot of movies," I said lamely.

I watch a lot of movies. That was all I had.

Here I was talking to this IT guy, a validation analyst--who, based on his job description, should be a pretty boring guy. But this guy, first of all, works longer hours than me. He doesn't usually get holidays off, and his job is way more stressful than mine. He should be exhausted all the time. But his weekend activities include swim meets with the kids, baking bread, CAD moonlighting, and farming. Yes... the guy is a farmer!--a bread baking farmer who spends time with his family. "I watch movies--pleased to meet you."

So, I've decided to do some things. Don't get me wrong; I will still be watching movies--let's not get too radical. But I will also do these little things that people do--go for walks, open windows, chat with friends. And, to my point: I've decided to start a journal--a blog, to use the parlance of our times--and here it is.