Day after Day it Reappears...

I've mentioned before that I grew up as a child of 80s music. One of my all-time favorite songs was "Overkill" by Men at Work. Great song, great lyrics.

Years later, the television show Scrubs resurrected both the song and Men at Work's lead singer, Colin Hay, when they had him sing "Overkill" throughout one episode. It still is stuck in my mind. And now it can be in yours!

Movie Review: "Precious"

Wow. Even with all the hype, this movie still knocked me for a loop.

Precious boasts Oprah Winfrey as one of its executive producers, and this film definitely has an Oprah-like feel to it. But don't take that comment as a disparaging remark.

Clarice "Precious" Jones (film newcomer Gabourey Sidibe) is an overweight, illiterate teenager, pregnant with her second child and growing up in Harlem in the late 1980s. She lives with her unstable, abusive mother (Mo'Nique) and routinely dreams of being beautiful and famous while her life is falling apart around her.

Her pregnancy causes her to get kicked out of high school and sent to an "alternate" school run through Each One, Teach One. And it is there that Precious finally starts to learn, both how to read and write and, more importantly, how to love herself. But her mother isn't going to let her meal ticket go that easily.

This movie packs a tremendous emotional wallop and deals with some very tough subject matter. And while you think you may know what will happen, quite often the film leads you in the opposite direction. Lee Daniels did a phenomenal job directing this film, which is based on the novel Push by Sapphire.

The acting is absolutely phenomenal. In her film debut, Sidibe has an uncanny way of imbuing Precious with a radiant light even as she is dealing with emotionally and physically harrowing situations. And Mo'Nique gives a performance straight out of the "what dream roles are made of" playbook. Nothing you've ever seen her in before can prepare you for the rawness of this portrayal. Mariah Carey eschews her usual, shall we say, glitter, for a subdued (and well-acted) role as Precious' welfare case worker, Paula Patton shines in the somewhat-stock character of the teacher who helps Precious triumph, and Sherri Shepherd and Lenny Kravitz show up in small roles.

I'd expect Precious to show up in a number of Oscar categories come the spring. And deservedly so. This movie is heavy but well worth the emotions you'll feel watching it.

Book Review: "A Friend of the Family" by Lauren Grodstein

I first heard of Lauren Grodstein's A Friend of the Family when Amazon selected it as one of the best books of November. Since I'm a big fan of books about family dysfunction (quiet, you), I was quite eager to read it. And I'm pleased to say that once again, Amazon didn't steer me wrong. I thought this book was terrifically compelling and well-written, and devoured it really, really quickly.

Dr. Pete Dizinoff is an internist living a fairly idyllic life in suburban New Jersey. He and his wife, Elaine, who met in college, have a close relationship with college friends and their families are bound together quite closely. If there's any blip on the screen of their lives, it's their son Alec, who in his teenage years and early 20s struggled with a number of issues, including a firm direction for his future. But Pete is determined that Alec will succeed.

And then Laura Stern, eldest daughter of the Dizinoffs' best friends, reappears, after being gone from New Jersey for a significant period of time following troubles of her own. Laura takes an interest in Alec, who is about 10 years her junior, and this interest troubles Pete a great deal. Pete becomes obsessed with trying to get Alec back on the path he wants Alec to follow, at any cost.

I found this story intriguing because I'd imagine many parents might feel—and act—the same way Pete did when faced with this same situation. And although many of Pete's actions made his character a little less sympathetic, when taken together with the history Grodstein provided for his character, it all seemed very natural. The ripples that a few stones like these can make in so many lives really fascinated me. I'd definitely recommend this book, and I'll check out Grodstein's earlier fiction as well. It will be interesting to see if this one gets made into a movie...

Book Review: "What the Dead Know" by Laura Lippman

It's 1975. The Bethany sisters, 15-year-old Sunny and 11-year-old Heather, head to the Baltimore-area Security Square Mall one Saturday. And they're never seen again. Apart from the usual crank calls and shakedowns, no information is ever found about what happened to the Bethany sisters, leaving their parents at a great loss.

Years later, a woman is involved in a car accident on a Baltimore highway. Disoriented, she flees the scene of the accident, only to be caught by a policeman. And then she claims to be Heather Bethany. But she doesn't want to have to go to jail for the accident, nor does she want to have to tell her story to the media.

This book was a really gripping read. There were so many twists and turns I really didn't know what was going to happen, and I certainly didn't expect what did. Laura Lippman created some fantastic characters and a very compelling story, so even when I found myself confused—or when the multiple narrators and the flashbacks slowed the story down a bit—I definitely wanted to keep reading. I felt she captured the anguish, ambiguity and frustration that parents of missing children feel, along with guilt at wanting to get on with their lives.

I'd always heard good things about Laura Lippman's books, so I'll definitely try another.

What I'm Thankful For...

Back in my soap opera-watching days, I always used to cynically chuckle when the various groups would gather together in Port Charles or Salem or Oakdale or Springfield for Thanksgiving, and make melodramatic pronouncements about what everyone was thankful for.

As I've grown older, I've realized how much it means to be thankful for what I have, as well as what I don't have. And while there may not be a crowd around to listen to my pronouncements of gratitude, they mean a great deal to me all the same.

I am thankful for the health of my friends and family.

I am thankful for the love and support of my family and friends. To know that I have others in my corner makes every difficulty a little less daunting.

I am thankful that my dog, Zeke, is healthier than we thought he'd be, and that we can spend yet another Thanksgiving together.

I am thankful for two amazingly adorable nephews. The wonder they experience at life's simple things thaws even my jaded heart.

I am thankful to have found the love of my life 7+ years ago. I can't imagine my life without you.

I am thankful to have people who challenge me and push me to be better than I ever thought possible. I cannot believe I'll be running a half-marathon next weekend, but I am thankful for the health and stamina to do so.

I am thankful for the ability to dream and hope. Far too much of life is spent focusing on reality, so aspirations are magical.

Most of all, I am thankful to have a job and a roof over my head. Especially at this time, there are too many people in this world who have neither or lack at least one.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.

A Musical Gem for You...

I'm an unabashed child of the 80s. There's probably a song that can evoke a memory at every turn. This song, Alison Moyet's Invisible, doesn't necessarily evoke a good memory, but the song is too amazing to shy away from a little awkwardness. (For those of you who are 80s neophytes, Moyet was the lead singer of Yaz, one of my favorite 80s Brit pop bands.)

Check it out. Hopefully it doesn't cause you any particularly evocative flashbacks...

B AZ U R

When driving to work the other day, I found myself behind a car with a license plate that read "B AZ U R." (I took this to mean "Be As You Are" and not "Be Azure," as the car wasn't blue.)

Over the last several days I've started to view that as a pretty clear directive.

The other night at my cousin's wedding someone told me I looked "so much better" than before.

Now, over the last 18+ months I've become pretty fanatical about what I eat and I exercise quite a bit. And I'm pleased with the progress I've made.

Could I be buffer? Sure.

I took the "so much better" comment in stride because it was meant as a compliment, but the remark certainly instigated a bit of soul-searching. I know that I was unhappy with how I looked prior to starting my fitness and diet program, but when someone tells you that you look "so much better," you can only imagine how others saw you previously.

I was depressed and happy simultaneously for a while. I knew I should be pleased that someone recognized all the effort I've put in. And I feel better as well as look better, so how can I lose?

But it's like when someone takes you in confidence by badmouthing another person—you think to yourself, gee, if that's what they say about this person, what must they say about me?

And then I remembered the license plate. As bizarre as it may sound, the more I thought about that unconscious message, the more I realized that I'm the only person that needs to be happy with me. And while that chore is sometimes a bit harder than it should be, the path toward self-esteem is a little less rocky than it used to be. So "being as I am" isn't bad at all; in fact, it's so much better than before. That's a pretty good place to be.