Grey Gardens

Adam introduced me to another of his 'film picks' last week and I have to say it was the best one yet.  We saw the documentary Grey Gardens made in 1975 by the Maysles brothers.  It is a look into the lives of mother and daughter Edith Bouvier Beale and Little Edie Bouvier Beale, relations of Jackie O, who were living in a squalid estate in East Hampton.  It was a vouyeristic look into the lives of this once prominent society family, much like some of the books I have recently reviewed (see Wendy Burden's Dead End Gene Pool and Ivana Lowell's Why not say what happened?)  Grey Gardens could be equated with the worst episode of Hoarders (complete with cat urine).  It is truly enlightening to see how others live behind closed doors.  I went on to watch the movie version starring Drew Barrymore and Jessica Lange, which very closely resembled the documentary.  I don't know which version I enjoyed more.  Upon further research I found this blog has amazing photos and background information.
People are fascinating creatures and it's always interesting to get a glimpse into other's lives.  A much tamer look can be found in the January 2011 issue of Marie Claire, which profiles international womens' lifestyles including how much they spend on shoes!  The article by Lea Goldman 'What it costs to be me' is on page 82.  A look into my life is certainly not as interesting as the women in the article.  My weekender for this weekend would be:  $6.00 for 2 loads of laundry and $12.00 for dinner with my daughter's Girl Scout troop on Saturday night.  Ok, maybe I'm not quite shattering the librarian stereotype!

Fragments of Marilyn Monroe

Fragments:  Poems, intimate notes, letters by Marilyn Monroe is a new book composed of snippets of the star's writings.  I loved all the photos between chapters which show her reading.  It seems uncharacteristic of the public persona of Marilyn Monroe, but she enjoyed leisure reading and expressing her thoughts on paper.  I was highly impressed by some of the titles that were found in her 400+ volume private collection (I suppose if we believe they were all read by her - I mean, sure, War & Peace may be on my bookshelf, but it doesn't mean I've read it).  A great deal of intelligence and critical thinking is shown by her introspective letters, poems, and organized lists, but like the 'Jekyll & Hyde' personality Monroe herself claimed to possess, these fragments also reveal her delicate emotional state and self-doubts.  The great aspect of the book's format is that the reader can see the documents in their original format, but read their text (typed on the opposing page) without having to decipher Monroe's script and scribbles.  This is a look past outward appearances to the real heart of Marilyn Monroe.

The Passage

You know the feeling when you are halfway into a book and you're not really sure you want to invest any more time in reading the rest?  That was how I felt about Justin Cronin's The Passage.  This book sounded great in the pre-pub summaries, and there is a really neat accompanying website Enter the Passage. This epic (over 700 pages) was exciting in the beginning, but quickly turned monotonous.  The reason it is so long is that Cronin tells this futuristic tale of viral beings in excruciating detail; at times with no need to do so.  The list of characters is also long, with detail and introspective views into their lives so that the reader really feels connected, but then characters are taken with the virus and the reader has to make friends with a new cast of characters.  I believe I was about 450 pages into The Passage when I decided I really didn't care what happened next, I just really wanted to know how it would end.  I read the 300 odd pages between this point and the end without much enthusiasm, only to find the ending to be unfulfilling and I realized I could have skipped to the last sentences to figure it all out.  This was also extremely heavy (another strike in my book - I prefer my workout time to be separate from my reading time).  I know there were several nights that I was pulling for the extra blanket at the bottom of the bed only to  find it weighed down by The Passage.  I struggled with this book, both physically and emotionally.  My opinion:  Wait for the movie.

A Motley life...



Tattoos & Tequila book jacket



I haven't yet read the acclaimed autobiography Life by Keith Richards, but am interested in doing so.  Instead this weekend I quickly breezed through the years of hard rock, partying, and drama that is Vince Neil's life.  His story, written with the assistance of Mike Sager (I personally think he must have done more than assist), is titled Tattoos & Tequila.  The lengthy subtitle sums up almost everything between the covers, 'To hell and back with one of rock's most notorious frontmen'.  As with other celebrity biographies that speak of addictions, the events described by Neil are at times comical and stupid and at other times, just plain sad.  Sad in the way that no one's life should be so controlled by substance abuse that quality of life becomes non-existent and so little care or responsibility is taken for one's actions.  I've previously read The Dirt, Neil Strauss' biography of Motley Crue, and although the unruly behavioral episodes described are of the same ilk, the stories in The Dirt were far more enjoyable.  But then I suppose it was difficult for Neil to recall with specificity the many blackout periods during his years of fame.  Of interest to any Motley Crue fans who remember when their music was good (and you have to be over 30 to remember that).

Modern Ruins

I first saw Shaun O'Boyle's photographs of Modern Ruins: Portraits of place in the Mid-Atlantic region while visiting the booth of the Penn State University Press at the PALA annual conference in Lancaster last month.  After a brief look, I thought this collection highlighting the Mid-Atlantic regions 'architectural sacrifice zones' (as termed by Geoff Manaugh in the introduction) would be of interest to PCL patrons.  The book is divided into four sections of buildings:  institutions (featuring psychiatric hospitals), steel (with photos of Bethlehem Steel's facilities), coal (an industry introduced as the foundations of 'hardy and industrious Pennsylvanians'), and arsenal (with stunning images of Bannerman's Island, near Cold Spring, NY).  This collection takes the reader to the present state of the past and is relevant to those who appreciate black and white photography, local history, and the progression of deindustrialization of the region.  I highly recommend browsing this new acquisition.

Work off that Turkey!

Do you have a plan on how to make it through the holidays without putting on weight?  PCL has a great selection of DVDs to keep you active when the weather outside turns frightful.  Here's my take on several I've tried:

Ultimate Tae Bo - this is a long, intense workout that will have you dripping with sweat, and in great appreciation of Blanks and the crowd who works out with him on this DVD.  I can't keep up with the speed, but this one is fun and you know you're burning calories.
Yoga Meltdown with Jillian Michaels - Did you think yoga was relaxing?  I didn't think so of this Jillian Michaels version.  Watch out for some of these moves.  I did more than one face plant during this workout.  I'm not writing off this one (or yoga in general) off yet, though.
Fashion your body with Pilates - I really like this workout, but even after months of Pilates, I can't make the moves look as easy and smooth as on this program.
Leslie Sansone's walk and kick - This is a bit easier than some of Leslie's other walking-at-home routines, but I was expecting more aggressive kicks tae bo style.  This is great if you're just getting started in an exercise routine.  I love Leslie's workouts for raising the heartrate and getting the body in motion.
Dancing with the stars cardio dance - This DVD looks so fun...however it was laughable as I tried to do these steps.  Despite good directions from the dance instructors, I am hopelessly uncoordinated.  Consequently I cannot Cha Cha or Samba (sigh).  But I have learned how to untie my shoelaces by stepping on my own feet.


No hula for me...

 Island Girl Cardio hula - This is a fabulous concept and looks so easy.  I suppose it would be if I had any coordination.  I'm not ready for the islands.
Invitation to Dance: Line dancing - This was so much fun.  Even though I could only coordinate about half the moves, this was the only dance DVD I thought I might have an iota of potential with.  I'll be working with this one over the Thanksgiving holiday.
Keep your routines interesting and varied and stick with it through the holidays...you'll be able to have another slice of apple pie or a few more sugar cookies without gaining a pound (who really cares about turkey anyway?).

Why not say what happened?

Ivana Lowell's memoir Why not say what happened? reminded me of another I have read lately (See my blog entry on Wendy Burden's Dead end gene pool).  The elements in both titles are similar:  an heiress from an eccentric family, old money, no strong adult figures, boarding schools, trans-Atlantic moves, etc.  Lowell's memoir suggests the Guinness family curse may have preordained the family to alcoholism (more likely the Guinness ale) and personal tragedy.  Lowell relates her tale of childhood in drafty English manor houses, dinners with the Queen Mother, childhood abuse, and her stepfather's (the poet Robert Lowell) sudden death.  The Guardian claims it is poorly written, but I found it intensely engaging and couldn't help but reading on to see what would happen next.   Although many of Lowell's life experiences are beyond the average reader's experiences, this memoir is a fly-on-the-wall look at how the other half lives has always been and I feel this genre continues to be popular with readers.
If this sounds like something you'd like to read, you might also like:
Dead End Gene Pool by Wendy Burden
Fierce by Kelly Osbourne
Uncharted Territori by Tori Spelling