I Voted

Last night an hour before the polls closed, the husband and I walked the dogs and I popped in to vote. Really, it's the best time to go...no lines at all which was NOT the case in the morning.

Here's some things I learned about voting in NYC:

1) They don't give out "I voted" stickers. Aww. It's the little things, really.

2) And I've never voted via levers and toggles. Seriously, check this out (photo taken from this blog):

Are you kidding me? How old school is that? First you pull that red lever all the way to the right to start voting. Then you flip the toggle/switch thing to check who you are voting for. Finally you pull the red thing back to the left to cast your vote. Wow. I'm glad I watched this guy's video (he's from my 'hood) before I went so I would know how it works.

Regardless of which candidate won, I am just excited to see what the next four-year term brings.

Even the puppies are excited (we were non-partisan in picking out the toy...they just liked the elephant..):

Random - NYC Street Scene

Taking a photo in the middle of a New York City street can be pretty fun. Just make sure you have the little "walk" sign or things could get messy.

The Golden Compass

I picked up a paper back copy of The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman a while back for a dollar at the Housing Works Book Fair. I mean it was a dollar. And I had watched the movie a while back so I thought, what the heck. I read a portion of it during my meager attempt at the 24 Hour Read-a-thon so I had to finish it up.

It's a great story. I think I ruined it though by watching the movie first. But from what I remember of the movie, I think they did a good job. Although I really can't remember how the movie ended. And the book's ending really sucks you into wanting to read the second book in the trilogy. I guess that was the point, right?

I do have one problem. I'm not sure what age group this is intended for but sometimes I thought the wording and vocabulary was way beyond what I think kids normally use and understand. If your kids have read the book, is this the case?

Anyway...I'm not going to sum up the book. Check out the movie if you don't want to read the book.

Still Alive

I'm just popping in to say that I'm still alive even though I've been slacking on posts. I caught one of those fun fall colds and am apparently WAY allergic to something. So it could be a food (eggs, wheat, soy, gluten, etc) or the mold in our walls from our upstairs neighbor. The fun thing about apartment living in NYC...having your upstairs neighbor's toilet run for THREE YEARS before something busts and water starts leaking down our walls. Fun stuff. Another fun thing...trying to tell your Super (who does NOT speak English) that painting/plastering isn't good enough and that the dry wall needs to be replaced. Sigh. Does anyone want to trade places with me for a while?

Good news: I got tons of cool photos from our Auburn trip, our trip to Schenectady/Albany, and a few book reviews.

Also good news: My family is so cool.

My sister got us an early Christmas gift (light down comforter) which I am LOVING since it's officially freezing here in NYC. It definitely makes getting up in the morning more difficult but that's ok.

AND my brother sent me a hardback copy of What Happened to Anna K. which I've been really wanting to read. Yippee!

AND my husband bought me an assortment of flowers since I've been feeling less than well. He is so thoughtful. AND brought home a Blue Ray version of The Nightmare Before Christmas (which I'd never seen before) which we watched last night.

Ok maybe things aren't THAT bad :)

Brooklyn Bridge Walk

It's definitely Friday and I'm definitely not wanting to be at work right now. So I'll do a little more reminiscing about my first trip to New York City. Click here for another post from that trip. I was reminded by Click. The Good News about the fun experience of walking over the Brooklyn Bridge. We were staying at a hotel in Brooklyn and decided to walk to Manhattan Island instead of taking the subway.

Here's the start of the walk/bike lanes:I like the flag on the bridge...very patriotic:

And there are a lot of New York City sites you can see from the bridge, like the Empire State Building:The Manhattan Bridge:
The Statue of Liberty:For some reason I thought the Statue of Liberty would be bigger...and more isolated. It's kind of surrounded by industry.

I also liked the way the suspension wires look in the photo (yes, that's my husband in white taking a picture of me taking a picture...we're dorky like that):And finally the walk ends on Manhattan Island near the Woolworth Building:
Hope you enjoyed the short walk!

Weekend Update

Ok, I know it's Friday but I'm looking forward to the weekend. The husband and I (and the pups) are heading out of town for a bit of fun/work. My husband has to take his FE exam (eight hours long!) while I get to loll about in Albany/Schenectady and do my thing. Then we're off to celebrate after he's done. Yippee!

Odd notes:

--I'm excited to see Albany, a town I've never been to because I'm an unabashed fan of this song (you can't make fun, I grew up with that song)

--Schenectady...seriously...I thought I had it rough living in (and trying to spell) Winnemucca when I was little

--Fellow New Yorkers: What happened to Autumn?? It is FREEZING here now. Sigh. I'm stubbornly refusing to wear my winter coat...but have resorted to wearing a hoodie under my jacket...sigh

--Fellow New Yorkers: What is there to do or see in Albany/Schenectady?

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan

A big thanks to Books. Lists. Life. for sending Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See to me.

How to start this review. This book was completely touching and a bit heart rendering. Bittersweet. I liked it.

The story is narrated by Lily, an old lady looking back on her life in 19th Century rural China. And while Lily had other relationships, this book is about her relationship with Snow Flower, her laotong or "old sames". It's basically an arranged friendship...more than a best friend. A laotong is supposed to know you more than your husband or family knows you. And the relationship will last a lifetime. And while they are often together in the story, when they are apart they communicate through a secret form of women's writing called nu shu. They record in nu shu their lives most important moments on a fan which they treasure.

So the book follows the girls through footbinding (an intense section of the book which often made me queasy), arranged marriages, births, deaths, and just life. So while the book is a great picture into 19th Century China...it's really about relationships. And those inevitable regrets that some women often find having looked back on a lifetime.

Lisa See's writing really is beautiful and her research amazing. I loved reading the back portion of the book about her travels to rural China, meeting one of the last women who went through footbinding and wrote in nu shu. Lisa See's newer book, Peony in Love is about Lily's grandaughter Peony. I'm going to have to check that out soon.

And because I love book covers and these are so beautiful:

Also Reviewed by:
S. Krishna's Books
Serendipity
Bloody Hell, It's a Book Barrage!

Girls Just Reading

Devourer of Books
Reading Derby
Book Haven
Trish's Reading Nook
Books. Lists. Life.
The Biblio Brat
A Striped Armchair
Book Nut
Historical Tapestry
Fyrefly's Book Blog
Today's Adventure
A Bookshelf Monstrosity