madameblogalot

Shelly recently posted her “hit or miss” list for September. My list is nowhere as long, but I thought it would be fun to post my own hit or misses.

I’ve only seen a couple of movies this month, which is really more than I do most months! Both were hits for me. Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None, 1945 version. It differs from the book, but overall it was pretty good. My daughter liked how they explained the mystery better than it was done in the book.
We also saw Journey to the Center of the Earth. Although it was cheesy in several places, I was ok with it and thought it ended up being a good movie for our family to see together.

As for books, maybe the only one I finished this month was And Then There Were None. I enjoyed this book even though I knew how it was going to turn out (I read the teacher’s literature guide before reading the book.) That did somewhat spoil it for me, but not too much. There were even a couple of spots where I got a little confused, in spite of knowing “who done it”.

I always enjoy reading Reader’s Digest. I have not read everything in it yet, but that is part of what I like about it. I can enjoy pieces and chunks without having to finish it. I also finished reading the General Instruction of the Roman Missal. Some friends of ours are Catholic and gave this to me to read through to try to understand some of what goes on in their worship services. We will likely try to attend Christmas Eve mass with them this year. This text was hard for me to get through and I only read small parts at any given time.

I am still reading The Singer Trilogy. It is not hard to read, just hard to find the time. I am enjoying it so far and want my son to read it when I am done.

So for the most part, my reading and viewing this month have been “hits”.

My son found a towel in his closet the other day. There is a date on this towel. He found it amusing that the date corresponds with this week’s date, Sept. 3. I showed him why the towel is dated. We had painted his feet and he had walked all over the towel leaving his foot prints. (This corresponded to a shower curtain we had that was a “paint splattered” design.) He compared his foot now, fourteen years later, to the foot prints he made as a little guy.

My son and I have been chosen to be “extras” in a commercial tomorrow! Now this is not just any old commercial. This is an Adidas commercial! And we will get paid to go watch some of the Houston Rockets! The pay is very small, but it’s only a few hours and my son is so excited!! It will be fun!

We were able to do something similar a few years ago. My son, daughter and I all went up to be extras in a gas station commercial. It was at Minute Maid Park and it was the entire day! We had to be there at 5:30 am and left about twelve hours later! But with free parking, free food and snacks and getting paid and the fun we had, it was worth it. I must say that I am glad this shoot starts at noon and only lasts three hours!

I found an activity that I want to do! I came across this description of a new kind of race, Urban Adventure. There is one coming to Houston next month and I’d really like to attend. I found this description of the Urban Adventure and it really appeals to me and my family:

“Description-Adventurers receive a series of clues to solve which will lead them to various locations around their city. They have to get to each location and once there, may have to solve a further challenge.
- - - - -
Course Info-Challenges may be simple problems like solving anagrams or crosswords, or may be something completely different. The common theme is that they are designed to maximize the fun of the event. Once they have solved the clues and completed the challenges, adventurers have to get to the finish line to claim their prize.”

So far I have not been able to access the website or the sign up sheet. I did send an email in hopes that I can get more information and sign us up!!

I have been so disgusted by all the candidates running for president this year. I have been really scared by the outlook of the prospects. Why, I think maybe my dog Sheba could do just as good a job as some of those out there on the ticket! Of course, I say this facetiously, but I guess someone must have overheard and taken it a bit too far!

Sunday night after church, I walked out to my car and noticed something up against the windshield. I looked at it, saw what it was, and was unsure who put it there and why. It was a record of a group from the college I went to, only several years before I attended there. I brought it home to my husband, thinking someone had told him to listen to it. Knowing there are a few folks who went to the same school, he narrowed down who had given this to us.

As I was showing it to him, my son looked at it and said, “Oooohhh, I know what this is. It’s a record! I’ve never seen one before! It’s so BIG!”

My husband and I looked at each other and did have to laugh. My son asked his sister if she knew what it was. She said “yeah, a record disc.”

My son is anxious to listen to it. I think we may have my sister’s stereo in the attic, and it has a record player on it. The kids can’t get over the size of the record and how now days that much info can be stored in a space almost the size of the hole in the middle of the record!

Yesterday, we went scuba diving in a lake just north of Huntsville, TX. This lake, or really two lakes, is known as Blue Lagoon. It was made just for divers so there is no need to worry about boaters. We drove up and spent nearly the entire day at Blue Lagoon. When we got there, the attendant said they were nearly full and there were no shelters available. We did not realize you could reserve these ahead of time or we would have (though we are still not 100% clear on if individuals can reserve these or only dive classes.)

We drove around to where our instructor had recommended us to go. It was pretty full but we found a vacant spot. Just as we got everything unloaded, a group came saying they had reserved this spot. (It was not a sheltered area) So, we threw everything in the truck and parked in the shade and started unloading. We decided we would just put everything in the water and leave it at the edge between dives. This worked out pretty well, but luckily, the group in the shelter next to where we were was just finishing up and gave us their shelter!

The water was warm, calm and pretty clear (though as the day wore on, visibility grew less.) Even though they were full, we found it not to be a problem. We never felt too crowded by other divers or swimmers (you can apparently go to just swim.) We were in a really nice spot to play and swim between dives. The kids (and us) had fun swimming, snorkeling and jumping off the rocks.

The lake is really pretty and was a great place for us to get in some good practice and gain some confidence in our new adventure.

*the pictures are too big to post here. if you want to see photos of the lake, please look here…

I stopped by Merry’s place today to see what was new. And I found this great new online quiz. Some of these are pretty cute, but this one is one I thought many of you on my blogroll would enjoy! And I love the result!! I just finished re-reading this book a couple of months ago, watching the movie with my son, and now it is on his required reading list for this summer!

You’re To Kill a Mockingbird!

by Harper Lee

Perceived as a revolutionary and groundbreaking person, you have
changed the minds of many people. While questioning the authority around you, you’ve
also taken a significant amount of flack. But you’ve had the admirable guts to
persevere. There’s a weird guy in the neighborhood using dubious means to protect you,
but you’re pretty sure it’s worth it in the end. In the end, it remains unclear to you
whether finches and mockingbirds get along in real life.

Take the Book Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.

As for how descriptive of me it is, well, perhaps. I would not really call myself “revolutionary” and I don’t know if I’ve changed many folks minds, but I do question authority sometimes and I have taken my share of flack. I do try to persevere. I am not so sure about the weird guy in the neighborhood, but I do know that it is worth it in the end! As for finches and mockingbirds getting along, I think it is essential!

If you want to play along, just go take the short quiz (six questions with over sixty-four response possibilities) and post what book you are.