My Book Is On TV!!

This post was written in response to a writing prompt for  RemembeRED from The Red Dress Club. This week's prompt is as follows: 
TV is something that people either watch a lot of or have definite feelings about. This week, we want you to think about tv show from your past. Maybe you watched it, maybe you didn't and it was just something that everyone else talked about.

What feelings does the show evoke? What memories does it trigger?


Stories. They are my passion. Whether I hear them, read them, watch them or create them - at all levels I have always loved them. This is the story of when I first began to understand that a story can be more than just words in a book.


It was 1986. I was ten years old.


I loved the Mets, the outdoors, playing softball, my family (especially my six-year old brother), and I loved books.


My school was involved in the Troll Book Club. When we got a catalog I'd come home with my favorite selections circled to show my parents and begin the ritual of begging for books. This is how I got The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary. When I read the book I was captivated - it was fun, hilarious and I loved Ralph. The book was such an adventure. I told my brother about it explaining how this little mouse would ride around on a little motorcycle and I would see his eyes light up. "I can't wait until you can read this!" I would tell him. At school we'd talk about it too. We all loved Ralph.

Of course, in the bumbling brightness of childhood all things fizzle and new things captivate. Ralph was remembered, but no longer center stage. Then, a little more than a week after the Mets World Series win, my brother and I shuffled down to the basement to watch the ABC Weekend Special. That week's special was called "The Mouse and the Motorcycle"!
 

I had never seen a book becoming a movie. On the screen I saw my visions, my imagination, the pictures, the movements - all there to share with everyone. My brother could now share in this fantastic story with me. He understood what I loved about it, he could SEE how Ralph could ride a motorcycle - not a BIG one like people ride, but a mouse-sized motorcycle.

I yelled up the stairs to my parents. I told them they had to come down and see it as I held the book in my hand. I flipped through the pages as the movie went on - I couldn't believe it was happening - the words had become pictures. 

My parents were amused by my excitement and told me about all of the other movies I had already seen that were books first: ALL OF THE DISNEY MOVIES, The Wizard of Oz,  and even TV shows like The Little House on the Prarie!


How did I miss this? Every time I had seen a book with a movie title, I thought the book was made after the movie - I had it backwards! This was wonderful! As I sat with my book on my knee, imagining all of the universes I had visited through my pages coming to life on the screen, my brother sat on the floor with a toy motorcycle zipping it through the legs of the chairs, the table and throughout the house.

"It's just like you said, Nicole!" He was right, because it was just like I had imagined.

My book came to life. Someone read the book, imagined Ralph and then MADE HIM - not like Beverly Cleary did, which was the first act of creation, but made a physical, photograph-able, talking, moving form of him - just like when I drew him, but 1,000 times better! And, according to my parents, this was happening all the time.


One thing was for certain: I would never read a book the same way again.

One Tiny Tower Takes Over My Day!

In the eighth grade, when graduating from junior high school, I won the award for "Most Diligent." At the time, I didn't know what the heck it meant until the teacher explained it while presenting it - I'm a hard worker. This is pretty much true.

They don't, however, hand out the awards on that day pointing out your greatest weaknesses. That honor was left to my college professor who taught me Spanish for three years - she had me pegged. She called me "La Princesa de Procrastinacíon." I may work hard, but there are times, in between, when I am hardly working.

Today was one such day.

Diligence 
 
I woke up bustling with all types of energy - I packed up three bags worth of stuff to get picked up by a donation truck tomorrow (you should definitely check out www.vvapickup.org if you are in the US and have stuff to donate!). Then I took off all of the blankets and sheets from the guest best for washing (I actually needed help with this one - sheet and blankets make me dizzy, thank you IIH). Finally, I shredded a ridiculous amount of paper using our shredding machine, it took about 45 minutes (that's a lot of paper!).

Crash 

Of course, after 45 minutes of shredding machine noises, my head was out for the count. I needed to lie down... This is not in any way a method of procrastination, mind you, this part is a medical necessity. If you know anyone with Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension, then this sudden, overwhelming, "I can do no more..." springing up out of no where is not foreign to you. It is what I chose to do next, when the world stopped spinning, my head stopped pounding but my energy level was screaming, "You better NOT try to get vertical yet!" that lead to the procrastination of the day that I am so famous for.

Burn

I grabbed my iPad, with every intention to continue reading my book Kafka on the Shore when something else entirely caught my eye: Tiny Tower. I don't know if it was last week or the week before, but as my husband was watching Attack of The Show I overheard Kevin Pereira review a FREE iPad APP that was reminiscent of Sim Tower. My husband paused the show, looked at me and said, "Did you hear that?"

"Yes, and I don't know if I should listen any more!"

But I did. Then I downloaded it. I have been strong enough not to touch it, not to try it, not even to peek. That was, of course, until today. You may be wondering why. Well, it is quite simple, you see: Sim Tower came out in 1994, the same year I started college. I'm not claiming it is the only reason I won the title "La princesa de procrastinacíon," but it is definitely one of them. In my first year of teaching, I forced myself to DELETE and UNINSTALL the game from my computer and LOSE THE DISC.

This is the top of my Tiny Tower.

Needless to say, I did continue to listen and got lost in my tower world for hours. I was on a mission - to build more floors, create great apartments, work so that all my bitizens could have as close to their dream job as possible! As I was working toward upgrading the elevator systems and building a better restaurant so the bitizens could have some variety in their meal choices, I heard a voice, "Ummm... it's already 7:30. When are we going to have dinner?" Oops. It was the husband - you know, from real life!

Here's a snapshot of my "BitBook". It's the FaceBook of the Tiny Tower world. This gives me a perspective on who likes their job, who might need to be evicted and how I'm doing in the eyes of bitizens!

 I had to stop. I had to cook. Then I realized I didn't even write today either! So I am here now, but you can tell what I am thinking about can't you? I'm worried about my bitizens! I need to build my tower. I need a better elevator system before I go to bed tonight!

Therefore, I am off! My Tiny Tower awaits and my bitizens might be hungry - I have to make sure everyone is stocked up! I am hoping this is some passing fad that will burn out quickly with me, without the need of any intervention services, but I will keep you apprised of my progress either way.

My virtual playground - for FREE!

Is there some game, or activity, that has the power to sweep you away from the time/space continuum and simply play your day away?

How do you deal with it and continue to lead a normal life?

My June in Review: Movies

We love the movies. As I recently wrote on my food blog, one of the reasons I frequent our local CostCo is simply to get the discounted movie tickets (that may sound ridiculous, but $7 per ticket beats $12 per ticket any day of the week!). We don't do bars, clubs or lounges - we do movies. It is just one of the many reasons that the summer rocks for us! While our summer movie season officially began in May, I will share with you here, the films we saw this June.

X-Men First Class

This is easily my most pathetic review of the month. I fell asleep. It was not the movie's fault! I was pretty sick the 48 hours preceding going to the movie. I didn't even sleep the night before. However, when my husband asked if I could make it to a showing at 11-something at night, I said yes. Silly? Absolutely. Worth it? Without question! My husband really wanted to see that movie all day and when we waited hours for his brother to join us, only to be stood up  (for a girl, of course!), I knew I couldn't let him down too.

As I battled for consciousness I did really like what I saw. I love how our own history intertwines with the X-Men's development. My husband loved the movie. I was surprised by this because as the comic book purist in the house, I thought the changes in the X-Men mythos would be too much for him to bear, but it seems I have been softening him on these restrictions over the years. I can't wait until we get this movie on DVD so I can watch it all the way through!

Super 8

Stephen Spielberg, J.J. Abrams and trailers that had me reminiscing of The Goonies?!

I was so. incredibly, AMPED. for this movie to come out!

And that, ladies and gentlemen, was the mistake. The movie was good. I enjoyed it. I even had some fun while watching it. But as I walked out of the theater I couldn't stop myself from saying, "SOMEthing was missing... I have no idea what it was, but I needed something more." That's it in a nutshell. There's no one to blame but me, though. I expected the moon, the movie delivered some stars instead - they were beautiful and sparkle-y, but all I was thinking was where's my moon? Some day I will write a whole entire post about movie expectations...

I haven't talked to anyone else who saw the movie besides my husband, so I am left wondering what the general consensus of things might have been.

Green Lantern

Um... yes we see pretty much all of the comic book movies that are in the theaters! There was much trepidation over this one: Could Ryan Reynolds stop goofing off long enough to play this character? My husband was dubious. I heard that Mr. Reynolds was a major Green Lantern fan and I felt that was reason enough to believe he would take this seriously. Well, the verdict is in and Ryan Reynolds gets two enthusiastic thumbs UP! Green Lantern was a lot of fun and, I think, a good set up for a sequel. As much as I wanted to see a movie with Sinestro as the villain, there is simply no way to do that character any justice without giving him some ample time as a Green Lantern. So, in short, I consider this film one pretty good prequel to the real action to come!

Cars 2

Since I am not entirely sure I have had the opportunity to make this clear anywhere else on this blog, I will take a moment right now:

I LOVE PIXAR.

Disney rocks, but PIXAR rocks my socks off. I never miss a Pixar film in theaters and I own every one put on DVD. I am letting you know this so you recognize a forehand where any bias may stem from.

We went to see Cars 2 on opening night at an 8pm showing.

This. was. classic.

We didn't realize it, but we stumbled into a fantastic playground - everyone else but us had their children with them (of course!). The kids were so great! As the trailers played they "ooo-ed" and "aaahhh-ed" at The Smurfs, Winnie the Pooh and MY FAVORITE The Muppets! Throughout the movie there were little sounds of excitement here and there until about an hour in when, for reasons beyond me at the time, all of the children starting talking all at once. Then it stopped. I couldn't help but laugh! I thought it was because there was a lull in the driving action on the screen - when we finally left the theater and saw what time it was (well passed 11!!), I realized the "uproar" was probably the "right before bedtime groggy" battle being waged by many all at the same time!

Anyway, back to the movie. My husband had heard bad reviews, so we were skeptical - could this be Pixar's first fail? We didn't think so. We both enjoyed it. BUT, and there is a but here (unfortunately) we don't have kids, and after reading some opinions from some mom bloggers I finally see where this movie may have missed the mark. It has violence in it that we have not seen in these movies before. Although the original Cars audience may have grown up and be exposed to violence in other media outlets, their younger brother and sisters and other new Cars audience members do not go to Pixar films to be exposed to violence. Also, the movie may be a bit long for younger audiences, so double-check the time before you take the family out for the after-dinner movie!

What films did you see this June?

Do you have any opinions on the one above? I'd love to know what you thought!

Leora

Another piece from the Writer's Toolbox archives. I played the "protagonist game." There are four wheels: one with protagonists, one with a goal, one with obstacles, and one with an action. Each wheel is spun and then, using the four choices you must write for the allotted amount of time. When the time is up, the writing is done. Here's how it went for me:


 
February 17, 2009

Protagonist: Leora, who loves to visit Israel

Goal: to be the strongest

Obstacles: Don, the jailbird

Action: gets special training

The sweat dripped down past Leora's brow and into her eyes - she had been on the treadmill for a straight 45 minutes non-stop. It was about time that one of the gym trainers should come over and tell her to either slow down, stop to get a drink of water, or simply be blunt and tell her to get off so one of the impatient super-moms could get a chance to squeeze their workout in before their little rug-rats made a scene in the play area. Leora wished she was in Israel again, Americans seemed so plastic, so fragile, so shallow.

She was ten years old when she took her first trip to Israel. The sun, the sand and the community were all wonderful, but what Leora loved the most was getting to know her "foreign" family. She couldn't believe she had gone ten years without ever meeting her maternal grandparents, her two aunts and Uncle Hymie. Her cousins Brenda and Leo were unlike her "American" cousins; they seemed to have a depth to them and a strength that was unmatched by those she had grown up with. Leora did not have a lot of friends back in Brooklyn, she considered herself a "shy girl," and did everything she could to avoid being picked on each day: the strength she saw in her foreign family members was not only something she wanted to emulate, it was something she needed to emulate. Since that first trip, Leora took every opportunity possible to return and over the last seventeen years that amounted to over twenty trips, with another one planned for this summer.

After a glare from Lydia, the gym manager, Leora got off the treadmill, stretched and made her way over to the showers. She planned on running once she got home anyway, she could never get a full workout in this place, not what she needed. She felt weak, although her physique would be enough in any debate to let that argument fail. No matter how much she ran, swam or worked out, Leora still felt like that weak little girl fighting not to be picked on. It was a ridiculous notion at her age and with all her experience: she was 27 years old, a graduate of the New York City Public School system, with honors, a graduate of City College with a B.A. in Jewish Studies and a minor in Sociology and, to top it all off, for the last five years, Leora was working the streets as a beat cop for the NYPD after graduating "Top Jock" of her female Academy cadets. Leora had no reason to feel weak, no reason to think she was weak, but it was never enough for her to be strong; Leora needed to be the strongest.

As Leora left gym she was annoyed to find she had missed two called from Josh, her new partner from work. He was cute, confused and way too excited about his new job - she remembered those feelings, but that didn't make them much easier to deal with. He probably saw some story about a pickup on the news and wanted to know her opinion on the way it was handled, what she thought he should do in that situation and then he'd probably want to bounce a couple of ideas about how this crime could have been prevented off of her; this kid had no idea how to take a day off. She decided to just call him back without even listening to his voicemail, "Hey Josh, what's up?"

"Did you read the blotter today?" of course. Leora wasn't surprised: shop-talk.

"No, I try to actually take the day off, Josh. You know there is such a thing as burn-out, you need to be careful," she tried to put her mentor tone on, but was pretty sure some of her aggravation was leaking through.

"No, I know, Lee, I know I've got to take the time, but this is different. They picked up Don last night."

"What?" Leona heard the anxious tone in Josh's voice, but still had no idea what he was talking about.

"Lee," Josh continued, exasperated, "two weeks ago... Don, Donny, Gutu... the shitbag that we collared outside of O'Malley's..."

Leora paused.

"Lee? He threatened you. He was back in Brooklyn last night and, if they still have him he's still here," it was quickly becoming obvious that Josh was worried.

Leora needed to reign him in, with only two months on the job it made sense that he still took every threat to heart, but this boy needed to grow a thicker skin, "Josh, listen to me carefully, " she paused for effect, "stop reading the god-damn papers. Stop taking every-fucking-thing every wacko says to us to heart and for the love of god let it be."

Josh was confounded, "But I..."

"Enough Josh. Go do something. Do something that has NOTHING to do with you being a cop. Give yourself the night off and I'll see you in the morning."

"Lee?"

"What Josh?" it took everything in Leora not to hang up on him right there.

"I don't like this guy."

And that was it. She hung up on him. Poor Josh, so much like little weak Leora from elementary school, maybe he should be sent off to Israel. Even so, he did have a point, there was something different about Don - the way he waited for Josh to be off interviewing a witness, the way he turned on her, looked her in the eye and pushed his body up against her as he spewed out the words that had, as much as she didn't want to admit it, haunted Leora ever since, 'Pretty Officer Carter should watch her steps in B-Town. Donny owns this place, Donny knows her face and Donny's real good at e-rase.'" As she relived the moment, Leora felt the goosebumps rise up her back.

My June in Review: Books

I realized a couple of days ago that I did not write about any of the books I rad in the entire month of June! I talked them up quite a bit in real life and in other forms of social media, but somehow missed sharing it on Rivera Runs Through It. So, without further adieu, here is th short list of my June reads:

2030: The Real Story of What Happens in America by Albert Brooks

This novel caught my eye with its subtitle of "what really happens in America." Isn't that intriguing to think about - this country in the year 2030 if we keep going the way we are going? I was hooked. However, when I read the brief description of the book and saw that cancer was cured and that led to good news for part of the population, and a nightmare for the rest, then I was sold. I wrote a complete review as a guest post on the Creative Boomer blog, since the Baby Boomer generation plays a pretty prominent role in the story as it is told. For more details about what happens in this book and how I felt about it, check out the post Creative Boomer: Is 2030 the new 1984?

 

Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott

  

This book was recommended to me by a family member who knows about my attraction to young adult novels. She warned me that this story was different than the others we had both read and discussed in th past, but it was a "must-read." She has never, ever steered me wrong, so I dutifully obeyed.

This book, in a word, was haunting - and this is from an avid Stephen King fan. It was told from the perspective of a girl who was abducted and living in captivity. I didn't realize how on-edge I was throughout the entire book until reading one sentence just broke me down to tears. It was a very good book, but not an easy one for me to read at all. However, it is recommended for reluctant readers. This always baffles me, but my husband (the English teacher) vouches for the fact that many students, in his experience are drawn to these types of stories when they normally show little interest in other offerings!

Invincible #80 by Robert Kirkman

Comic books have been one of the hardest things to get back into since my vision got all screwed up with my crazy disease (Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension) - reading them in print is impossible and downloading them is sometimes no better, but always expensive (especially if my husband is buying the SAME issue in print!). Even so, I've been wanting to get back to comics for awhile now and when my husband sad that DINOSAURUS returned in issue 80 of Invincible, I knew I had to download it!

My husband and I agree, DINOSAURUS should totally run for President. He is a bit extreme with his techniques, but both times he has appeared in Invincible, his ability to take action to clean up the messes we have made for ourselves, is equally admirable and frightening. He is a mysterious character with no origin story (as of yet...), but one the Riveras want t-shirts of!

 

Excuse Me, My Brains Stepped Out by Pandora Poikilos

The last book I read in June was written by a blogging buddy of mine. This novel was special read for me, as the protagonist, Anya, was diagnosed with the same disease as I have (Pseudotumor cerebri is another name for Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension). The book captured much of what one goes through when diagnosed with a rare disease (or any disease, for that matter) and the type of perspective-shift that can come from it.

I was impressed by this book not only for its content, but also for its technique of delivery. In my review on Amazon I likened the book to that of Sandra Cisnero's House on Mango Street, which, if you haven't read it - it s a series of short stories from the perspective of one character that seem completely inconsequential on their own, but taken together, give you a complete vision of the character and her environment. When reading Pandora's book I was, at first, in the same mindset as I shifted from chapter to chapter, thinking, "They don't seem to connect," until, the pieces started to fall together... until the story of Anya came to light. Really cool. Great book, I recommend it!


So that's pretty much it! I did a lot of recovering (June is not going in the record books as one of my healthier months this year), writing, TV watching and some movie going in June, too, so four books (well, three and one issue of a comic) is not too bad. We'll see how July stacks up against this!

Have you read any of these books? What are your thoughts?

What books did you read in June? (I am ALWAYS looking for new reads!!)