Bruises

I've found that I am reading. Like a lot a lot lately. I don't think I've read this much since I was in high school and I could find time in the summers between basketball camps and babysitting. I feel like I could never have enough good book recommendations.

And on Tuesday, I stumbled upon a book entitled Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer. Literally stumbled upon it in a magazine where I heard about it because it was being turned into a movie. All it said was that the book was about a boy who lost his father on September 11th. (Author's Note: Bruises is the title of this post because the boy gives himself bruises and I myself bruise easier than a peach. We have a connection.) I was intrigued by this description of the book, no ryhme or reason as to why though. So I picked it up from the library on Wednesday. It was one of the best books I have read in my life. It made me cry (hard to do, if you know me). It made me laugh. It made me wonder. It made me think really hard about life. Life in so many different forms.

I really cannot sing enough of its praises. I loved this book. Imagine my surprise then on Friday when I looked on Facebook and saw that my alma mater, Michigan State University, had just announced that they, in partnership with the City of East Lansing, had chosen this book, my book, as their book selection for the 10th anniversary of One Book, One Community. Here's the link for more info (Author's Note: Although this article was published on March 23, which was Wednesday when I had just started to read the book, I was not aware of their selection until Friday when I saw it on my Facebook.): http://news.msu.edu/story/9105/

I could not believe my eyes when I saw that this book, the book I had randomly heard about on Tuesday, began reading on Wednesday, and had fallen in love with on Thursday, was now going to be read by my school and former home for the past 4 years. It was a sign, I know somehow it just was. How could this book not be a sign? Too weird a coincidence not to be. The fact I had randomly heard about it, had read on a whim, and then saw the connection with my alma mater. It was a sign. How could this book not be a sign??

I really cannot pin down the theme of this book to share with you. Only that it was just an incredible piece of art. That is how I would describe it, as a piece of art. There are even pictures scattered throughout the book. But the characters and the story's words are the art. I know I was meant to read this book at this point in my life. I just know. Have you ever had an experience like this? I mean, you go about everything in your life and then one thing leads to another and you just know you were meant to read, feel, or experience a certain thing? It is an incredible thing. Intangible to describe.

One phrase has stuck with me from the novel. I cannot stop pondering its meaning. Its almost haunting me really. I'm going to work on doing this.
Starting now.
Hello world.

"You cannot protect yourself from sadness without protecting yourself from happiness."

~ Extremley Loud & Incredibly Close 

Jonathan Safran Foer

pg. 180

Fortuity

At how many points in your life have you or someone you know come to find he or she in a circumstance where it can all be summed up in one phrase, "Really?" Now I say phrase as opposed to a word because of the question mark at the end of it. The question mark implies a certain emotion behind it. The emotions can range from awe, bewilderment, sarcasm, annoyance, disbelief, questioning and the list goes on and on.

Now I can remember quite a few times my last semester of college (actually like more or less a year ago this time of the year) where all I could say was "Really?" Well my friends, here I am 12 months later grasping for this phrase again.

Ok, so now that I have everyone thinking about their "Really?" moments, I'd like to pause before I explain myself and give a brief update. These days I find myself in the carpool shuffle, the library, Starbucks and networking for jobs. I've been nannying and doing make-up to earn a living and trying not to become too lazy. Although between the novel The Help and Chelsea Handler's books, I am enjoying my free time. Enough is enough with all the recess that February brought, I am working hard on finding a new position and am going to actually go to the gym more than once a week...

But ok, really? Here's the short version of my "Really?" story. Met a guy last May on one of my last nights at the Michigan State bars, we'll call him Mr. Tri.  Mr. Tri and I continued to talk all summer via text, Skype, phone, etc. Until one evening in October where our phone conversation ended perfectly fine. I text him the next day, get no response. A week later I text him one more time, still no response. At this point, I'm like ok well he's not into this anymore. Time carries on and I'm basically annoyed at why we stopped talking, but figure it's cause there is a new girl in Mr. Tri's life. Facebook tells me he's still single, yet you never know. Now its January 2011. I write happy birthday on his Facebook and use a nickname I had for him (let me remind you this is the first time I've reached out to contact him since October). After getting no response from Mr. Tri, I un-friend him from Facebook to free myself of the situation. Two points to me!

And here we are in March. No contact really at all with Mr. Tri in 5 months. Not going to lie, I've been in a guy dry spell. My supposed flirting skills are in a rut and it's also because because I haven't really been pursuing that aspect too. I've been trying to focus on the job and life thing (supposedly). But this weekend after a taxi ride where I tried to be nice and share a ride, with a 30 year old medical student and his drunk comrade grilling me on my dating life, all while I am desperately looking out the window waiting to get to the station, and then having them ask to take me out to I-HOP the next morning, I was checked out. Needless to say, I gave that taxi driver a very lucky Shamrock green bonus for driving fast.

I go to check my email for the first time in 2 days and there in my inbox is a message and request from LinkedIn. And who is it from? No other than Mr. Tri. Over 5 months with nada and then this. The message was brief and ended with "Sorry I'm an idiot..." Oh, really?

To close though, I'd like to end with a sense of fortuity. A fabulous word meaning: an accidental occurrence, an instance of great luck or great fortune. It's almost like another way of saying kismet (my namesake for this blog). I am going to focus on my fortuity in the rest of March. It's been real already 2011. I'm off to the library probably scouring the shelves on more books on finding your "self", career advice and the last Chelsea Handler novel. I may also be visiting Borders and getting the new book entitled Manning Up: How the Rise of Women Has Turned Men into Boys by Kay Hymowitz. See you in the self-help aisles...