March 2: Oscar At Last

Me and the boys

As you can see by the picture, I have finally obtained the Oscars I won last Sunday night.  I haven't won these trophies for quite a few years, so I'm quite happy.

I will not go into detail about how I got the Oscars.  Let me just say, there was no kicking or screaming.  No extortion.  No bloodshed.  No nudity.  No song and dance number.  No threats.  No defecation on the carpet.  It was a painless mission.

Now that they've been in my possession for close to three hours, I still have a warm, fuzzy glow, and I haven't had any alcohol at all.  If I happen to pee the bed tonight, I'll know I have a serious problem that needs medication.  I actually thought of having a victory drink tonight, but the strongest thing I have in the house is orange juice.

I will be taking these guys to bed tonight.  They may be gold and hard and a little stiff...OK, I'm not going to finish that statement, because there's just no way to end it gracefully.

Saint Marty is overcome.  In the words of Sally Field, "You like me.  You really like me."  In the words of Dustin Hoffman, "Look, he has no genitalia."

Just one more look before we retire

March 2: Fragments, Past, Wrestling

He turned upon the Ghost, and seeing that it looked upon him with a face, in which in some strange way there were fragments of all the faces it had shown him, wrestled with it.

This little wrestling match occurs at the end of Scrooge's time with the Ghost of Christmas Past.  The last scenes this Spirit shows him are quite painful, and Scrooge has had enough.  The pain and loss of his past overwhelms him, and Scrooge turns on the ghost and physically battles him.  Scrooge forces the specter to leave.

I think we all have moments in our past we wouldn't want to re-experience.  I can think of quite a few myself.  I can't imagine a ghost that has fragments of all of the people from my past who've hurt me.  It's a truly terrifying prospect.  I wouldn't be afraid of the ghost as much as the psychological pain.  Obviously, Scrooge has not made peace with his past at this point in the story.  I don't think I've reconciled myself to a lot of my experiences , as well.  I'd be doing some ghost wrestling myself if I were Scrooge.

I ain't 'fraid of no ghost!  Uh, yeah, I am...

This morning, I'm trying to get a lot of work done.  I have a great big pile of tasks to complete.  None of them, however, has to do with the ghosts of my past.  Thank God.  I'll leave the ghosts for tonight, when I'm used to those kinds of darker moments of reflection.  Sometimes the ghosts of the past can be more terrifying than the ghosts of future.  And there ain't no Ghostbuster you can call.

Take Saint Marty's word for it.

March 1: Book Club, Another Unexpected Expense, Shoot Me Now

I'm sitting in my living room right now.  The Book Club meeting broke up a little over an hour ago.  Everyone had a great time.  The food was really good, as well.  An artichoke, chicken, and bacon pizza.  A foot-long meatball sub sandwich. And my ginger pears for dessert.  I think everyone liked my pears.  I made a whole pan of them, and there were only three left at the end  of the night.  I thought they were pretty tasty.

I found out this afternoon that I have to spend $175 to get my daughter's iPod touch fixed by Apple.  That's still cheaper than buying a brand new iPod to the tune of $300.  So I just have to back up her information on iTunes and then send the iPod  in for repair.  I' ve never done anything with iTunes previously, so this is going to be a really big challenge.

It's just another unexpected expense.  Just shoot me now before I start worrying.  I still have a mortgage  and car payment coming due tomorrow.  Shoot me.  Please.

Saint Marty says, "You can't squeeze  blood from a turnip."  He doesn't know exactly what the means, but it seems like an appropriate moral to conclude with.

Maybe you can get blood from a turnip...

March 1: Alone in the World, Book Club, Ginger Pears

"Mr. Scrooge it was.  I passed his office window; and as it was not shut up, and he had a candle inside, I could scarcely help seeing him.  His partner lies upon the point of death, I hear; and there he sat alone.  Quite alone in the world, I do believe."

There are several darker passages in A Christmas Carol that don't get much attention.  This passage is one of them, I think.  The speaker is the husband of Scrooge's former fiancee, Belle.  It is many years past the Christmas Belle broke off her engagement with Scrooge.  Scrooge has turned into the miser we all know, and he is, as the passage above indicates, alone in the world.  Quite alone.

It's a glimpse of Scrooge we don't get very often, one that encourages sympathy and compassion.  That "quite' in front of the word "alone" is terrifying in its finality and certainty.  It depicts Scrooge as a man with no friends and no family to speak of.  A man cut off from the human race.

I don't like to be alone very much.  I like having people near by, to joke around, to share my thoughts, to listen to my problems, to celebrate in my joys.  The only time I crave isolation is when I write.  I don't want distractions then.  But, for the most part, I have more in common with Scrooge's nephew, Fred, than with Ebenezer himself.

A great read, folks!

For instance, tonight, I 'm hosting my monthly book club.  People will be showing up with food and books in hand.  We will sit around, laugh, eat, and talk.  It's one of my favorite nights of the month.  This month we read the short story collection This Is Not Your City by Caitlin Horrocks.  It's a great book, and I'm looking forward to talking about it.  I'm also trying out a new recipe.  Ginger pears.  I've never made it before, but it sounds really good.

My book club is made up of family and some of my best friends.  I love seeing each and every person.  Some months, we talk about the book a lot.  Some months, the book is just an excuse to get together and eat.  I'm not sure what kind of month we're going to have this time.

One thing's for sure, though:  Saint Marty will not be quite alone tonight.