exhausted: a weekend recap

Is it pathetic that I've used this title before? Seriously, I've barely been able to move since I got home around 6 tonight.

Friday, after work, I came home to just do nothing. Knowing neither of my roommates would be home made it even more exciting to plan out an evening of food, TV, and sleeping. I picked up some wine on my way home, made some dinner, determined that I was craving ice cream, and went back to the convenience store where I'd bought the wine 90 minutes earlier and bought a tub of Ben & Jerry's.

(This was all a direct result of the week I'd had. Not only was I busy at work, I managed to go out twice during the week and stay out past 2 am (Tuesday til 2, Thursday til 3). Whoops. Being hungover two out of five days is pretty bad. There were a few wasted hours early on Wednesday and Friday. Ouch.)

I woke up early on Saturday ready to do something more with my day so I went for a long walk in my hood and then came home ready to head to the beach. It was a beautiful day and I could think of nothing better than spending it worshipping the sun. Since the novelty of my bike has not yet worn off, my plans were to ride to the beach (since that was part of the reason I really wanted the bike). Despite the fact that I almost died multiple times on the way (why are there no bike lanes on North Avenue?), it turned out to be a nice way to get to the lakefront. After I left the beach (a little red due to poor sunscreen application), I continued to ride down the lakefront to Grant Park, where I heard the slightest strains of blues from the festival going on.

Despite all my activity during the day, I was ready to go out and actually spend an evening outside. You see, I have a thing for summer festivals and knowing that there was one going on in Old Town, I couldn't not go - right? My roommate and I went for a few hours, capping off the night with some delicious Mexican food and then almost falling asleep on the way home. Lame, maybe, but I wasn't really up for much more than that. Especially since I knew Sunday was going to be another exhausting day. I met my mom at 11 to check out the Printers Row Book Fair (told you I like festivals) where we hunted for movie posters and books in the sun. Following a reading by Joyce Carol Oates, we decided to get some food and check out the Blues Fest. How have I never been there before? It was fantastic. Food, beer, blues on multiple stages. I was slightly disappointed that I only got to experience a few hours of the festival, but I am making plans to return next year.

After all of that (almost 8 hours of walking around today) I collapsed on the couch, ordered some BBQ (the blues put me in the mood, I guess), and watched -sigh- The Sopranos finale.

Oh, and there's a boy I have to tell you about...

books i've been reading while not posting or reading other blogs

Here are some great book recommendations from my past few weeks of literary indulgence:

She Got Up Off the Couch - Haven Kimmel (also recommended: A Girl Named Zippy)
Another Bullshit Night in Suck City - Nick Flynn
Citizen Vince - Jess Walter
Avoiding Prison & Other Noble Vacation Goals - Wendy Dale
Housekeeping vs The Dirt - Nick Hornby (which caused me to read the first 3 books on this list)

On Tuesday, my book club is restarting itself after a 1-year hiatus. This means crappy books chosen by my sorority sisters. I'll have to continue reading from my own list.

a fest for book nerds

It finally felt like summer today. The warm temperatures, the trip to the beach, the outdoor dining and drinking - none of these had gotten me in the mood for summertime. But earlier this week I made plans with myself to attend the Printers Row Book Fair today and had a beautiful, sunny, book-filled afternoon.


Printers Row, at the northern tip of the South Loop, was filled with large tents of books: new, used, expensive, cheap, rare, popular, hardcover, paperback. Booksellers from across the city and state set up in the streets and on the sidewalks. There were stages set up in the center and southern end of the fair for author readings. Book lovers like me crowded into the tents, hovering over the books. Often the lines were two or three deep just to get up to the bookshelves. I found myself standing on tiptoe to see the titles, occasionally reaching out my hand for something I liked. I bought one used book, a $4 copy of Empire Falls. Unlike many of the other book nerds, I wasn't there to scour the racks for books. I didn't really have the patience. My trip was planned around the readings.

I had the pleasure of seeing one of my favorite writers read for the first time. Augusten Burroughs's reading was at 2:30. For me (and for other readers/writers like me), readings are like the red carpet of the literary world. It's your chance to see your favorite author up close, maybe even have some Q&A or dialogue with the mind you so admire. I arrived more than early enough to peek through the fair and get a prime spot for the reading. I ended up sitting on the ground right in front of the stage where the tall and lanky Burroughs read a story from (I assume) his new book. He talked about the show he's writing for Showtime, the film adaptation of Running With Scissors, and James Frey. He was funny and he reminded me that I should be writing everyday. Easier said than done.

After four hours of weaving through the crowd, I left with a red CSPAN Book TV bag containing my signed copy of RWS, my signed copy of A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius (I missed the Dave Eggers reading, but made it to the signing), my new used book, and a 1972 New Yorker cover suitable for framing. And now, worn out and full from veggie enchiladas, I'm enjoying summer from my couch.

A book review and some blubbering about my mom

Within 24 hours, I finished Chuck Klosterman's Killing Yourself to Live. This is what I like to do on my vacation (aside from going to the movies) - read. A lot. Depending on the book or the writing style, I can get through a 250-300 pager in a day or two. Chuck Klosterman is an easy read. It was the same with Sex, Drugs, & Cocoa Puffs. His writing is direct and all about pop culture so his books are more like long-form Spin articles than nonfiction works. And since I am someone who relates much of my life to pop culture, I am right there with him through every obscure musical reference or TV show.

I would like to sit down and have a conversation with him some time.

ANYWAY, the book's premise is that Klosterman will travel around the country visiting the places where famous musicians have died. He will try and understand what it is about dying that makes artists become even more famous - or at least known. Not to ruin the book for those of you who haven't read it, but musical death takes a backseat when Klosterman is alone in his rental car, thinking about the women in his life. The women all relate to music in some way, but this book is more about relationships than rock stars dying.

I liked it.

For me, the most relevant passage came toward the very end. I would like to quote the entire thing, but that would a) take up too much space and time and b) probably be plagiarism. So I will try and split it up into something that still gets at the very meaning of what he is saying (this is page 232 for those of you who have a copy):

"We all have the potential to fall in love a thousand times in our lifetime...But there are certain people you love who do something else; they define how you classify what love is supposed to feel like. These are the most important people in your life, and you'll meet maybe four or five of these people over the span of 80 years. But there's still one more tier to all this; there is always one person you love who becomes that definition...This is the person who unknowingly sets the template for what you will always love about other people...[they] are not inherently different than anyone else, and they're often just the person you happen to meet the first time you really, really want to love someone. But that person still wins...Because for the rest of your life, they will control how you feel about everyone else."

I say that this passage is relevant because I've been doing a lot of thinking about relationships, love (or what I thought was love), and other assorted items. I mentioned that I was feeling emotional over the past weekend, and I'm still feeling that way. There are those people, the few important ones that you meet in your life, that have this hold over you. Sometimes they disappear for awhile and you don't realize just how much they mean. Or maybe they are around often, but then you have a moment or two with them that changes everything because you see how special they are in your life. I think my mother is a perfect example. She's around all the time. I love my mother and we are very close. But it is over the past year that I've realized how sad I would be if she wasn't here. On Christmas Eve I had a dream that she died. I woke up in tears. Even writing about it now, I can feel myself about to cry. Just hours before falling asleep that night, my mom told me that she came home the night of her birthday and started crying. Because of my generous gift. Because she loves me. Because I am her only daughter, only child, and closest friend.

I promise I will get back to the nonfamily related emotions soon....