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Saturday, June 23, 2012

Bizarre Driving

Today was one of the most bizarre driving experiences of my entire life.

So, my brother and I were heading to a friends graduation party. As we were leaving the house it started to rain. No biggie. We get 5 minutes out and it starts pouring. Like, really pouring. So bad that one of the stop lights lost power as we pulled up to it! But, hey, it's just a little rain. And we're New Englanders; a little water isn't gonna ruin our cookout plans! So we keep driving.

A minute later, I can barely see out the windshield, so we decide to take back roads instead of the highway. And then...it rains harder. So now, even going like 10 miles an hour, with the wipers on high, I can't see the car 15 feet ahead of me. At one point, my brother asked if we were even still on the road. And it just kept dumping. It wouldn't let up! By this point, it would've still been more than 30 minutes to the party on a good day, so we decided to go home and, you know, not die.

We get to a rotary and just go all the way around, so we're heading back home (it was too rainy to even see a place to really turn around!). After we called the graduate to say we weren't coming, the rain returned to a normal rain pattern....for a little bit, anyways. We drove by an accident and the sky started to do that crazy pouring thing again. So I'm driving to stay alive, going through all these giant puddles in addition to the water falling from the sky when all of a sudden, it just stops. Like, completely stops.

My brother described it as, "The wipers go down, the windshield is full of water. The wipers go up, and there's not even a drop." It was like we were in a waterfall, and just drove out of it. There wasn't even a slowing, or a sprinkle, or anything. One second we're in the worst rainstorm of my life, and the next there's just blue sky and sunshine. It didn't even feel like my own town! It seemed like a dream, or a movie.  Like we were in some weird jungle trying to survive. The only reason I know it wasn't a dream is that all the streets have giant puddles.

It was bizarre. One of the most bizarre driving experiences of my entire life. Top three, for sure. Yet, reading back over this post, it doesn't capture the danger or drama or weirdness of the whole thing. But trust me. It was insane.

Monday, June 18, 2012

"Love in Disguise"

"Love in Disguise" by Carol Cox

Aspiring actress Ellie Moore is having a rough run. Thinking she's on her way to stardom, she suddenly finds herself out of a job, alone, and nearly broke. When a little bit of eavesdropping leads to the an opportunity to go undercover with the world famous Pinkerton Detective Agency, she jumps at it. Embarking on the adventure of a lifetime, Ellie invents two opposite characters to aid in her investigation of the silver mine thefts: an aging Lavinia, and her vivacious niece Jessie. Soon enough, the man of her dreams starts falling for her alter ego, and the thieves turn their attention to getting rid of her. Will Ellie ever have the chance to reveal who she really is so they can live happily ever after?

With charming characters, mystery, and enough plot twists to keep you reading into the night, this book will delight you and have you rooting for Ellie every step of the way. This book was unlike any I've read, with the main character playing three characters! I would have liked a bit more background on Steven, and more storyline between him and Ellie actually as Ellie, but all in all, I enjoyed this adventure in the Wild West!

4/5 stars. Recommended. 

*I received this book for free from LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program in exchange for an honest review.*

Thursday, June 14, 2012

[Ir]Rational Fears

Not sure why I'm revisiting horrors from my childhood lately, but I am, so obviously I have to share with the internet. Actually, this one I thought I'd already shared, but I didn't see it anywhere on the blog, except in passing. An Adventurous Kate post I recently found made me think I should try something similar soon....So let's delve into the twisted world of irrational fears, shall we?

I changed my mind. It's not irrational. It's a completely rational fear.  I mean, come on! They're obviously all plotting against me. 

I have a fear of fish. Small fish. Especially small black fish. They're evil and I hate them and they need to go away. 
Other fish make me uneasy, but it's the little black ones that I watch closely and avoid at all costs. I thought that as a grown woman I had outgrown this fear, until several months back when I walked into our downstairs bathroom (where we have a big fishtank [yes, we're that awesome]) when no one else was home. As I approached the tank, an Evil Little Black Fish jumped out at me. I froze. My breath caught, my heart was racing, my hands we shaking. I had flashbacks to my childhood and the original Evil Little Black Fishies. I was completely traumatized (retraumatized? Is there such a thing?). After a minute or two, I was able to rationally grab the fish with a tissue and throw him back in the tank. But only because I didn't want to explain to my family why I let one of the fish die on the floor.

See, when I was really little, 5 years old little, my cousin Leah's family had these little black fish in a tank at the end of their hall. Leah was a baby and her bassinet was across from the fishtank, probably a good three feet away. So one day, and I remember this vividly, one of the Evil Little Black Fishies jumped out of the tank, across the hall, and into Leah's bassinet while she was in it! Evil Fishy....

Not really a scarring experience, you say? Well, another time, I was walking by the tank and....and....*deep breath* an Evil Little Black Fishie jumped out of the tank. At me. And it....it went down my pants. I freaked out. I started yelling and ripping my pants off. It took a while to calm me down. I remember this event clearly, I was so traumatized. My mom says that for months after I would freak out if we were around fish. That sometimes we'd by driving down the highway, me in my carseat, and I'd just start stripping and yelling about the fishies.

So, after that incident in the bathroom a few months ago, I'm obviously not over this fear of the Evil Little Black Fishies. And I've tried! I've got a little black and white fish in my own little tank. It's not so scary because he's got some white to him.  And my daddy does all the tank cleaning stuff. But the rest of them? Evil Little Black Fishies. They all wanna kill me. 

Any fears in your mind, rational or otherwise? 

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Help Prove I'm Not Crazy?

I realized I haven't posted for a while, and since I have nothing of substance to say tonight, I'm asking for your help. To prove I'm not crazy. Although, I'm pretty sure I'm not, because my brother has the same scarring memory that I do. What is it you ask? Let me share my horror.

When I was little, like, 8-ish I think, we listened to records when we went to bed. That's right, RECORDS. In the 90s. On my own little player. It was awesome. Wish I still had it. Anyways, I digress. While going to bed we would listen to records. There is one in particular that stands out in my mind because the story was terrifying. Completely and utterly scarring for life. I don't remember the whole thing, but the premise was this: 

There's a little boy (I think he was African or Indian, if I'm remembering the cover correctly...yellow background?). He's living his normal life until one day, there's a fire. And he gets trapped in the fire. And then....you hear him screaming. You listen to this little boy screaming for help, in pain as the fire burns him. Then, there's a little music, and he wakes up in the hospital blind. And then something about school? But the part I remember VERY vividly is the screaming. It's forever etched in my mind. I can hear it echoing in my brain as I write this. 

And keep in mind, we listened to this while going to sleep! How twisted is that?!

So, by now you're either horrified as well, or laughing at me because you don't believe this is real, so you think I'm crazy. But to the original purpose if this post...Does anyone know what record this is?! It's been bugging me for years! It's so outrageous, it seems like it can't be real. But why would my brother and I both invent the same horrifying story? So it must be real, and someone out there must know what record it is. Please tell me! Any scarring stories like this from your childhood?
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