stuff i like: dvd edition

Since we don't have TV channels in our house (yes, on purpose), everything we see is via DVD. Netflix is good to us. The only down side is that we are a season behind on everything. (Please don't tell me what happened on Lost!!)

Here's some stuff we have seen lately and liked:

The John Adams HBO miniseries on DVD. It was good, based on the McCullough biography that I always meant to read. Well acted, kind of refreshing to see a founding father who was really kind of a schlub. I mean definitely not the whole package like Jefferson or Washington - this guy was brilliant and passionate but also unpopular and had many public failures. But a smart wife.

Also really liked "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly". It's a true story of a man who is paralyzed everywhere but his left eye. Sounds boring, but it is not. A very good film.

We're also on the third season of The Wire (thanks Judy, Paul & Amanda for getting us hooked!) which is sooo good... complicated and intricate and rewards close viewing. Well written and acted, those HBO shows continue to spoil us... (common refrain in our house: "well, it's no 'Rome', but...")

Also like Weeds, the theme song makes a good lullabye for the little one. Plus we feel like good parents when we watch it, just by comparison.

Stuff I Like: Literary Version

In an effort to stake out a bit of this space for non-baby related topics, here's a few books that are on my nightstand:

Operating Instructions: A Journal of My Son's First Year by Anne Lamott.
This book is a must-read for any new parent. Especially during those first tough/crazy weeks. Here's a quote I like, on wishing she knew God's plans for her:

"This other way is so hard. It always reminds me of the man who has fallen off a cliff but managed to grab onto a weak vine. Holding it, watching it begin to come loose, he looks up toward the top of the cliff and cries out for help. Suddenly, a deep booming voice from the sky says gently to him, 'It is all right, my son. I am here and will never let harm befall you. Just let go of the vine, and fall into my arms. I will catch you.' The surprised man thinks about this for a moment, looks down at the ground thousands of feet below, then up to the ledge above him, clears his throat, and asks, 'Is there anybody else up there?'"

King Dork by Frank Portman
I'm reading this for the second time, it's one of those books that has a good plot and all, but almost doesn't need it because it is just so much fun to read. I probably need to remember to read this again when Stella is a teenager. Chronicles the idiocy of high school, plus an aspiring rock band, plus a mystery.

The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
I like to think that by not reading it for a while I am emulating the time-traveling husband, who pops in and out. I was reading this while pregnant until I guilted myself into reading some baby/parenting books. I will get back to this one though.

The Pilot's Wife by Anita Shreve
An Oprah selection, borrowed from a friend when I was hungry for a new book. Then I realized the whole book is about a woman whose husband has died. I almost have to put it in the freezer, can't bear to read much more.

Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace
This is a book that I will never finish. And if you think less of me for saying so, let's see you try it! There is just one other book in this category of things I will never finish, and be ok with it: The Idiot by Dostoyevsky. I can live with that. The footnotes alone on this thing will kill you!

If you have any good book suggestions, especially ones that can be read in 15 minute increments, let me know!