Beloved Benjamin Is Waiting by Jean E. Karl

When I was growing up I was a voracious reader – a hobby I try to keep up with to this day. I went to the library regularly to check out everything from astronomy books to young adult novels.

One day I remember hunching down in the H-K author section looking for S.E. Hinton books and whatever else caught my eye. With the title, Beloved Benjamin Is Waiting, this book definitely caught by attention. Then I read the jacket flap and was intrigued. I took the book home and read it (I think I got it out a lot!) and have never forgotten it.

Over the last few years I became obsessed with the idea of reading this book again and I finally bought it used through Amazon last month. It is out of print, so used is the only way to get it now. I was really wondering if it was as clinically awesome as I remembered it being. If I re-read books that I found great as a kid I usually find them oddly lamer than I recalled. I guess that’s the sophistication of being grown up. And the true genius you must employ to be a young-adult novelist. But this book is still completely amazing!

Quick plot synapsis from the Amazon page for this book: Hounded by a gang of kids after her mother’s disappearance leaves her on her own, Lucinda hides in the abandoned caretaker’s house in the local cemetery where she makes contact with intelligent beings from another galaxy.

This leaves out the fact that Lucinda is only 11 years old. This book always haunted me, and after reading it I think I know why. The ending leaves you wanting more. You want to know more about what becomes of Lucinda, what becomes of her family, what becomes of the caretakers house… everything.

This novel was originally published in 1978. And, by the way – I’m not the only one who enjoyed this book so much they remembered it into adulthood. Just look at the comments on the Amazon page! And check out this book if you get a chance (haha- get it? check out this book)- I highly recommend it. English Major Approved!

A Vintage Salute To Halloween

Thanks to The Vintage Halloween Group on Flickr! (all these pics should open in a new window)

I just love seeing other people’s old costumes. This kind:

http://flickr.com/photos/jff123/2965445329/in/pool-vintagehalloween

These look really scary, actually!

http://flickr.com/photos/swapatorium2/2939111830/in/pool-vintagehalloween

http://flickr.com/photos/swapatorium2/2961202577/in/pool-vintagehalloween

I love how our old plastic smock-y costumes with the bad-eyehole/no breathing-hole masks always had pictures of whatever-the-costume-was-supposed-to-be on the chest. Because everyone knows the Creature From The Black Lagoon had a picture of himself on his yellow T-shirt!

http://flickr.com/photos/swapatorium2/2939034152/in/pool-vintagehalloween

This one is awesome. The TV in the background rules. So fifties!

http://flickr.com/photos/afropix7/2929084742/in/pool-vintagehalloween

Costumes in the fifties really were quite scary!

http://flickr.com/photos/illtakeyourphoto/1809553940/in/pool-vintagehalloween

Halloween 1978:

http://flickr.com/photos/neatocoolville/1712526148/in/pool-vintagehalloween

I love this stuff!

Digger The Dog

Ah, Christmas 1975… it’s hard to believe since I was only 2 years old then , but I remember it! Well, I remember one thing about it, really. I really reaaalllly wanted a Digger The Dog toy! I remember asking for it over and over and over again. I loved this thing. I had a real dog that was my best friend, but it wasn’t enough, I needed a plastic pull-dog with no discernable special feature other than a Sherlock Holmes hat!

I must have seen it on TV or something. It was probably this commercial that got me, because it seems really familiar. “Diggah” is Obviously Awesome and a Must-Have Item if I ever saw one! Sh.t I really loved all those Romper Room toys (but that is a story for another day)!

And I got it! I couldn’t have been happier (but you can’t tell here since I covered up my face!)!

My Digger is long since gone. I think it went in a garage sale in the late 80s or early 90s. Don’t get me started on the things I wished I’d saved!

So, B and I are in a Rescue Mission store the other day for shiz and giggles – we like to look there for bargains and/or fodder for Project Absurd. We were standing in front of the toy section, which naturally looked like Hurricane Rose Marie hit it, when something caught my eye. No way! Could it be? I dug through the naked Barbies, filthy stuffed animals and rogue puzzle pieces and fished it out… and it was! A vintage 70s-era Digger The Dog! I was beyond ridiculously excited. I hadn’t seen one of these in person in.. oh, 20 years or more?! Sure, he’s missing his tail and was dirty, but otherwise was in perfect condition. He was mine for $2.99 and it was Christmas 1975 all over again! I cleaned him up at home and he know adorns our stereo. I heart Digger!

Amalgamation

I want to be witty and funny in a post to balance out yesterday’s depressing update (and as usual if you want to read my private stuff just leave me a comment and I’ll give you the password – it’s private only to foil sploggers).

I’m so tired I can’t find my wits!

I was reading up on ANA tests again today and came upon the fact that ANA results can be false positive if you’re on The Pill. Oh my freaking god. If I’m going through all this torture again and it’s due to this, my 4th bc pill in as many years… I’m gonna, I’m gonna… ARRRGH!

Things are About To Happen at work. In that “no one knows what the f is going on” kind of way. Tomorrow should be informative and either a relief or extremely upsetting. I can hardly stand myself waiting.

I got a new cell phone. It’s totally gorgeous:

I am massively in love with this phone and my plan. At work they refuse to hook my department up to the internet. With this baby and my plan I have foiled all that. Now I can live in the 00s and check CNN or the weather or even myspace whenever I flippin want to! So, ha ha!

I’ve been desperately looking for a Halloween costume but I can’t decide on anything. I tried this bit of awesomeness on at the Hallween store next to our complex:

So, because this costume would RULE in our circles, naturally it didn’t fit. Which brings me to a bitch fit about Halloween costume companies. Apparently, they think every woman is a playmate with a perfect and unnaturally thin bod. As I’ve said MANY times before, I am not fat. I’m curvy, though. This style doesn’t come in any size over Large. I take at least an XL to get over my chest. I also have a long torso. Consequently this getup barely covered my ass. SO DISAPPOINTED.

I did try on and enjoy this little number at a different store:

And it did fit perfectly and looked AWESOME. My husband didn’t seem to care for it. What the picture doesn’t show is how very VERY bright it actually is. I didn’t care, though. I dig it and still may get it.

Except we suddenly realized yesterday that we have nowhere to go on Halloween night anyway.

(sigh)

Like, the 80s are totally back!

So I was at a mall last weekend and decided to stop in Forever 21. This store has a history of having cool clothes that are always sold out in my size. Seriously, I envy tiny chicks – mostly because they always get to have clothes available when they want to shop. I’m not fat – I’m the same size as everyone else. And everyone else beats me to the racks! When when when will stores figure out they need to order more larger sizes and fewer smaller sizes? You’d think they’d get a clue when all the clearance merch is size 0!

Well, while I was grumbling around Forever 21, I made a shocking discovery. The 80s are totally back. I saw this trend coming a few years ago, yes. But it’s shocking that (a) it’s still here (b) it’s more pervasive than ever (c) this is upstate NY (does that mean the trend is dying it’s natural death? oh probably) and (d) the 80s trend covers the best and worst of my 6th & 7th grade years er, I mean 1984-1986.

What got me in the store in the first place is a Duran Duran T-shirt with the cover of the Rio album on it that I think I’ve wanted since 1984. It’s not on the website, and they didn’t have my size (in 2 different Forever 21 stores) so I can’t show it to you. Nor can I show you the T-shirt I did end up buying - a Stones one with a zebra-print tongue logo (not on the site and I don’t feel like taking a picture).

What shocked me the most was (sit down, folks)…

STIRRUP PANTS!

What the…? I mean, I knew leggings were desperately trying to forge a comeback, but stirrup pants? In 7th grade I had a bitchen purple pair. I remember even at that age the stirrups annoyed the living shiz out of us all and we almost never ended up wearing them in our shoes all day. They were so irritating on the feet. This one won’t last.

Speaking of leggings – animal print leggings were in the store. Including this leopard pair!

Need more proof? How about these photos from the Forever 21 site?

You get the idea. Actually, redoing the 80s fashion seems like it could be fun. If only I weren’t about to turn 35! I’d feel totally dorkalicious wearing stirrup pants now! Hell, I was dorkalicious wearing them then!

And the 70s? If you’re looking for 70s yumminess I suggest you look no further than the dress department!

HELP SAVE SWINGTOWN!

Fridays at 10 p.m. on CBS

Please help save this show! If you love it like we do – sign the petition and save Swingtown from cancellation!

SIGN THE PETITION TO SAVE SWINGTOWN!

Thank you!

Protected: Two Things…

This post is password protected. To view it please enter your password below:

Password:

GraphJam – Rock On!

This is my new favorite website! (opens in new window – sorry if some of the pics below don’t work, can’t figure out why – they look good in the editor then don’t load on the page!)

A sampling of the graphs you can enjoy there:

more graph humor and song chart memes

more graph humor and song chart memes

more graph humor and song chart memes

more graph humor and song chart memes

more graph humor and song chart memes

more graph humor and song chart memes

more graph humor and song chart memes

more graph humor and song chart memes

more graph humor and song chart memes

Ok, ok…enough… I’ll stop now.