Agatha Christie

Agatha Christie is one of my favorite authors, right up there with Hemingway and Irving and Fitzgerald and though I hate to admit it, Anita Shreve. I remember the first Agatha Christie book I ever bought, Hallowe'en Party, at a garage sale. I don't remember exactly the story line, although I know that someone dies from cyanide, which I learned is extracted from apple seeds. 

(I was in fifth grade when I read this book, and I can tell you that each and every time I have eaten an apple since, I think about how the seeds [though it would take literally hundreds eaten in one sitting] can be used to create cyanide). 

Anyway, Christie was a prolific writer and I've decided to read her novels in order. From the beginning, which happens to be the very mysterious, The Mysterious Affair at Styles. I'm about eight books in, and I'm rediscovering some books I've read and some that I haven't. In between I'm reading others, like The American Heiress, which is pretty good. If you're a Downton Abbey fan, you'll enjoy The American Heiress. 

Bree & Brian's Engagement Party

Two of my very good friends are getting married in April of 2013, so we decided to host an engagement party to celebrate. Bree and I both went to Alabama together, but it wasn't until she moved to DC for a job that we met and became friends (and roommates for a year). Brian is also a good friend of mine, and I forgive him for choosing to be a Florida Gator instead of having the good sense to be a Georgia Bulldog; he is from Atlanta, after all.

I do have to tell one of my favorite stories about this couple... back in the summer of 2009, Bree and Brian had been dating for quite a few months. We went to a party and were having all sorts of a good time. Bree looked at Brian and said, out of the blue, "I think this may be our last hurrah." Bree thought she was being humorous, Brian did not see the humor. I told Brian that I'd give him a ride home; unbeknownst to him, I also told Bree that I'd give her a ride home (to our house), so I somehow got them both in the car at the same time, forcing them to speak to each other. Halfway home, at Dupont Circle, I also told them I wasn't moving the car until they performed a Chinese fire drill. I like to think that the combination of ridiculousness and my stubbornness kept them together that night. Wink wink.

via Meredith

New York Wedding

Over the weekend, some friends and I embarked on a road trip to upstate New York to attend Jordan and Mike's wedding. Two random facts: Utica, New York, is the farthest north within the United States that I've traveled, and Jordan and Mike decided on Utica because it's the halfway point between their two families. The small towns and fall foliage along the way were beautiful and made for a scenic drive. 

We drove about half of the seven hours on Friday night so we wouldn't be rushed on Saturday and could do fun things like visit North Star Orchards. 

  

  

Amanda, Brooks, me, Caitlin at the Corn Maze

It was a great weekend spent with dear friends, and most of all, I'm happy that I was able to be there for my friends as they committed to spend the rest of their lives together. 

Amanda, Caitlin, me, and Brooks before the wedding

Mike and Jordan

Jordan and Mike

An Open Letter to Pumpkin-Flavored Seasonal Treats

AN OPEN LETTER TO PUMPKIN-FLAVORED SEASONAL TREATS.
BY ILANA PLEN

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Dear Pumpkin-Flavored Seasonal Treats,

So you’re back. You just come waltzing into town like nothing has happened, like nothing has changed. Don’t look at me like that. You’re the one who left for a year with no explanation, no warning. No note. And I’m just supposed to be okay with that?

Well, I’m not. A lot has changed in the last year. I’ve moved on. I tried going vegan, did you know that? Of course you didn’t. You know why? Because you never bothered to call and check in. I had a fling with peppermint in December, but that didn’t last long. I never really got over you.

Do you know what it was like for me after you disappeared? I was a wreck. I couldn’t get out of bed; there was nothing to look forward to. I started visiting the places we spent time together, on the off chance you might be there. But no matter where I went, the fact was that you were gone. Worst of all, it seems that I was the only one who noticed. Signs advertising your presence remained up. Commercials encouraging me to consume you in mass quantities flooded my television and haunted my dreams. You were everywhere and nowhere, all at the same time.

If I had realized how temporary your presence in my life would be, I would have done things differently. I would have cherished the time we spent together more. I would have taken more pictures. I would have told you I loved you each and every single day. If only I knew it was all going to end, I would have planned ahead. I would have stocked up. If only.

But like I said, things are different now. I’ve changed. I’m strong now. I’m not the same girl who needed you, yearned for you and cried when you weren’t around. I am an independent, self sufficient woman, who refuses to be tied down. Especially to something that can’t handle hanging around for more than a three month period of time. So screw you, you commitment phobic piece of crap.

You’ve got a lot of nerve coming back here. How dare you look me in the eye? Do you think I’m dumb? Do you think I don’t realize that since you’ve come back, you’ve flirted with every person you pass on the street, tempting them with your elusive charms and intoxicating scent? You jerk. You big jerk. I trusted you. I thought we had something special. And now you’ve gone and thrown it all away. Again. God, I’m stupid. I’m so stupid. I hate you. I really, really do.

Wait. I’m sorry. Maybe I’m being too hard on you. I don’t know. I’ve put so much into this relationship already. Maybe it’s better to just try again. A blank slate, so to speak. It’s still early in the season. We still have time; we can still make it work. What do you say? How about a drink? For old time’s sake? But please, whatever you do. Don’t ever leave me again.

I love you,

Ilana Abby Plen

TGIF

I am SO happy that September is almost over. Normally, I like September just fine; cooler weather, falling leaves, college football and pumpkin spice lattes are all good things in my book. However, the past few weeks have been difficult in many different ways, and I'm glad that they are over.

This weekend I taking a road trip with some friends to upstate New York to attend Jordan and Mike's wedding. Jordan and I met at my previous job, and he and Mike moved to Baltimore last year so I don't see them nearly as often as I'd like. This will also be my first trip to New York that doesn't involve Manhattan, so it should be a fun weekend all around. 

Mike and Jordan

Jordan and Mike

The Casual Vacancy

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There is a certain kind of book written by a certain kind of author that prompts a certain kind of exasperation: “No matter what I say, fans will buy this, read this, worship this. (Please do not throw bricks at my window.)”

I didn't write that sentence, but I'm glad that Monica Hesse did, since I couldn't have stated it better myself. I loved the Harry Potter series, and I look forward to reading more from J.K. Rowling. In her Harry Potter books, she is adept at telling an adult story through the words of children and adolescents; the language may not be particularly elegant or compelling, but she conveys tone and mood through straightforward prose. As such, I'm excited to read her newest work, The Casual Vacancy, an adult book actually written for adults that was officially released today. The reviews have been lukewarm, which isn't surprising after the Harry Potter phenomenon. A criticism that I've noticed repeatedly is that there are no spells or plucky sidekicks in Vacancy; the characters are real this time, and as such, flaws and cynicism can't be charmed away with a simple wave of the wand. I can't wait to read it.

The Red Tent

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For one of my book clubs (I'm now in two) we read The Red Tent, by Anita Diamant. The novel is historical fiction, based on the rape of Dinah from the Book of Genesis. I'll be honest, my Bible-knowledge is not what it should be. I was familiar with the story of Dinah, but about halfway through The Red Tent, I went back to my Bible to read the historical account. I appreciated the way Diamant took one page of text and filled an entire book, staying true to both the culture of the times and the original telling of the rape of Dinah.

That said, you don't have to be a Biblical scholar, or even a follower of the Judeo-Christian faith to enjoy this book. At its core, it's the story of a young girl as she comes of age and learns from her mothers and her sisters about the ways of the world and what it means to become a woman at a time when women were treated as a lower class. Initially, I thought the book may be a bit dry, but it was richly woven with anecdotes told from the first-person perspective of Dinah.