Alison DeLuca's Blog, page 16

Objects of Desire

Recently my family and I visited Seabright, an area in New Jersey devastated by Hurricane Sandy. We parked back by the river, next to a huge pile of splintered wood, sinks, clothes, furniture. At the other end of the lot, there were three houses torn off their foundations. We could look right inside through the holes in the walls - shirts still hung in closets, a fridge revealed condiments and milk cartons.

Next to one house, someone had found a collection of those ceramic houses people put out at Christmas to create a village scene. The tiny things were balanced on old mooring posts, awaiting the return of the owners.
Image courtesy of Caracas shots
As we walked around the houses, silenced by the tragedy of the scene, I found another house half-buried under sand. With one gloved hand, I dug it up and added it to the tiny collection. 

The wind whistled in our ears. The kid got hungry. We packed up and left.

It made me think about Things - Objects - the Stuff we collect. When my mother died last year and we were packing up her room, we found her old teddy bear and the photos of her sisters and grandchildren.

I was in an odd state that day - I hadn't quite accepted that my life had changed forever. Mum's last few years had been filled with the violence and horror that goes with Alzheimer's, and in order to lessen that for only a few seconds, my sister and I had started giving her presents - pretty tea-towels, stuffed animals, children's books, flowery napkins.

When I found all that abandoned stuff, I had the strangest thought: 

"Mum forgot to pack these..."

A few weeks ago we visited friends. They live in a tiny cabin and refuse to collect things. There isn't any room in their house, for one thing, and what room there is has been filled with feathers, cool-shaped pieces of wood, funky looking stones, a lovely shell - those are the things they hold precious.

Our daughter, who is the very Queen of Stuff, was taken aback. "Are they poor?" she whispered to me as we left.

"No," I replied. "They just see the world differently."
[image error] Image courtesy of Colin Jong
We returned to our house, which is bulging with things. One day the kid is going to have to sort it all out. She'll get that old bear, which I just had to hang onto. It's antique, for one thing, and by now it has been layered with love and the memory of my mum. 

And what will she do with it? Where will it go at that point? To a dump, to a box, to a careful shelf?

To sit on a mooring post by the river, listening to the wind forever?

The Nineties

This era was a challenge. What possible fashion trends had not already been thought of in the 60's, 70's, and 80's?

Oh, yeah, there was this:

WHICH APPARENTLY IS STILL A TREND WHY

I'm not kidding you when I say that whilst shopping in the mall a few weeks ago, my 8 year old and I saw a young, male, red-boxered heinie with pants carefully belted to rest just below the red cheeks of The Scarlet Bottom.
Our fella was number 2.
Kids, when they are 8, are LOUD. Even though the crowds were plenteous that day, I'm pretty certain every shopper in the mall heard my kid yell, "HEY, MOMMY - CHECK OUT THAT DUDE'S RED UNDERWEAR. WHY IS HE SHOWING HIS UNDERWEAR? HIS PANTS ARE HANGING BELOW HIS UNDERWEAR. AND IT IS RED. RED UNDERWEAR."


Neat! Now women can do it too!
There have been times when I have been embarrassed by my kid's loud voice, but this was not one of those times. I felt like doing a cheerleader flip coupled with a Siss Boom Bah. Instead, I bought her ice cream.

Then there was the Rachel:

Everyone wore that for a while. Everyone. Even those who should not have.
You're so lovely and beautiful and I admire you so much but girlfriend do not ever do this again
And the grill. Is that still a thing? I don't know... young whippersnappers.... now in my day we tried to keep the metal off our teeth, but knock yourselves out, kids. 

Boot-cut pants were in, which I liked, since they disguised my cankles. But, some people wore those pants really long, with really high heels. At some point, that look begins to resemble horse legs, and I'm talking the steeds that pull a beer wagon.
Neigh!
At that point, when we were all running around with red underwear and horse legs, the millennium ended. We're now in the noughts, and there are no fashion trends that I can see, beyond Taylor Swift's ringlets and designers refusing to create dresses with sleeves (yes, I'm still ticked about that.)
Sleeves. They are pretty. Take note, designers.
But I'm happy to be taught otherwise.

Back to the Eighties

Yesterday I wrote about 70's fashion trends that I actually wore. Today I'm talking 80's.

Apparently some of the stuff is coming back. Dude, I can deal with the neon colors and skinny ties, but here are some trends that should never return:

High hair - BIG hair is fine, and should be encouraged. But that flat spike of hair caused by Final Netting your bangs until they stand straight up needs to go to Trend Hell.
[image error] Gorgeous girl. Too bad about the fin on her forehead. Men, I wouldn't be laughing too loudly at the blond above...
Three scrunchies worn on one topknot - buh bye.

Over-the-top make up.
[image error] Actually, this is sort of fun if you're 18. I take it back - have at it, girls.
Big shoulders, especially in those dresses that look like a suit and are actually a dress. What a crime against Nature.

The spiked heel / lace ankle sock combo -I wore this. Like, not for Halloween or anything. I should be taken out and flogged for that....
Just maybe I wore these with a fake leather skirt, or those super tight waist high acid-washed pants.
*runs away*
... and for my lace gloves, which I had in white, black, fingerless, and shoulder-length varieties. 
"Which gloves should I wear tonight?" 
"Let's see - how about NONE, since it is SUMMERTIME"
YES. Now my outfit is pulled together so I can go clubbing.
Short shorts for men. Sometimes in those neon colors. 
I sympathize - I can't believe you wore them either.
Designers, I"ll put up with your Fauxhawks, your strange aversion to sleeves, but if you hand me those gloves again, I swear to the Almighty that you will be pulling back a nub.

The Seventies

I was thinking about the stuff I used to wear in the Seventies. (Do the math - I'm old.) 

There's this: Thanks to http://pintuckstyle.blogspot.com/ for the image!
And this: From http://plaidstallions.blogspot.com/ - a site you should definitely browse for a lot of fun.
... all of which looked perfectly fine to me at the time. 
And then there are the men ... but I won't subject you to anything so hideous.
What was I thinking? Was I blinded by the power of Crowds, so those fashions seemed perfectly acceptable? Or, more probably, did aliens nest in my brain and lay eggs, forcing me to think their evil thoughts?
And it went further. I picked up on some extreme fashion trends and WORE THEM.
Remember Earth Shoes? "The toe is higher than the heel, because nature intended it that way, according to Scandinavian researchers." Well, Scandinavian researchers, I wore your shoes, and wasn't I gorgeous, with my spindle-shaped legs and your sandals on my feet. And just maybe I wore them with toe socks too.
Let's not forget the "home perm," designed to change your head into a woolly puffball: Dude.
And mood rings: OK, maybe those things were cool, as long as "green finger" is a mood.
And polyester shirts: I can just smell the petroleum by-product now!
Yup, aliens, I say.
OK, I'll show you the men. Deep breath now:
From xaxor.com, found here  

Fruitify My Life

Each year, after the holidays, I reach a point where my body says: ENOUGH. Enough of the wine, the heavy desserts, the appetizers made with buttery pastry. Enough Christmas cookies. I even reach the point where (gasp) I'm a bit sick of chocolate.

I'm at that point now, and I'm fully ready to embrace fruit. Right now, a juicy orange really sounds delicious to me. Or a wonderful pear.

Or those frozen dark cherries that defrost so wonderfully in the microwave... At the risk of sounding really strange, when I found that Costco carried those things in megabags, maybe I cried. Or did Gangam Style, or something. In any case, they make me happy.

Bring on the melons, the Clementines, and apples! I just re-embraced Fuji apples after years of Galas; can't believe I forgot how flavorful they are.

I'm down for greens too, and I mean salads that are NOT laden down with dollops of dressing and a bag of cheese. Last night I had a simple salad made with crisp romaine drizzled with a tad of olive oil, and it was delicious.

In this mode, I always go overboard and buy something a bit too adventurous - kale, or parsnips. I love both, but am I really going to prepare and roast parsnips? No. As for the kale, supposedly it makes a great smoothie... Maybe I'll go back to that aisle and get some. and some beets while I'm at it.

At this point, my body is gasping for fresh air and exercise, after weeks of hunkering over wrapping paper and leg of lamb. I'm all about carrot juice, not eggnog. Bring on the green tea, not the champagne. Obviously, my system just wants a detox.
[image error]
It all sounds a bit scary and dreadful, but honestly that fruit tastes delicious. The Clementines are like a fresh burst of orange on my tongue, and my husband and I have eaten most of the Fuji apples that I bought - oh - three days ago.

Carrots! How could I forget carrots? And I mean real ones, not the machine-lathed substitutes. They seem to take ages to peel, but the flavor in soups is unforgettable. And of course I'm not above buying the baby carrots; just maybe I ate a whole bag while I was editing the other night.

Yup, it's time for color and contrast in my diet. We'll just see how long this phase lasts.

How I Got it All Wrong or, Pocahontas

Last night my kid watched the movie Pocahontas, the Disney version. She came across it by accident, on Netflix, as I surely would have never chosen that film to show her.
Yup, gorgeous. But real? I don't think so.
Why not?

Well, let's start with the serious disregard of history, plus the demeaning of a princess's act of kindness and courage turned into a ploy to save her boyfriend. Plus - a one-shoulder dress that just happens to showcase the girl's body .... mutter.... Lovely though she is, and I do think that Pocahontas is one of the prettiest Disney Princesses ever, the movie was on my Do Not Watch Ever list.

But!!!
The real Pocahontas, in England. OK, girlfriend was still gorgeous.
My kid loved it. LOVED it.

I mean, she kept stopping the film to research what really happened, plus she couldn't wait to find out the end. I've tried to get her interested in the Disney Princesses, to no avail, and it just figures that the one I never showed her captured her interest.

So, Mom is being all PC, and kid is simply enjoying a movie.

There are some things I can take away from this:

1. Kids love history and facts. Once I told my daughter, "Parts of this actually happened" she was enthralled. While I was all excited about Tangled, she was more interested in finding out about Captain John Smith (who did not look like that in real life, FYI, kid.)

2. Kids are going to love what they love, and parents simply can't stop that. Sure, I can provide guidance along the way, but at the end of the day Miss Thing is her own person.

3. My daughter was critical of the music in the movie. "Look, mommy - now even the willow is singing." Not every movie has to be eventually turned into a stage musical, Disney.
What Captain John Smith really looked like. That's very different, now, isn't it.
4. MUST POCAHONTAS HAVE A PERFECT MODEL'S MOUTH AS WELL AS LONG LEGS AND HAIR DOWN TO HER BUTT? REALLY? REALLY? AND HE HAS A CLEFT CHIN AND BLUE EYES.... argh - Obviously, I still have issues with this movie. Does that mean I forbid my daughter's watching it? In the end, I have to say No. Hopefully, I can provide some real historical content soon.

5. *SPOILER ALERT* The ending is really, really sad. No, I'm not talking about the movie - I'm talking about what happened for centuries afterwards. That's the main reason why I didn't want to watch Pocahontas - it makes me too depressed.

Still - back to the main point - my kid really, really loved it. And that, I suppose, is all.

Steampunk for Sale

A quick announcement :

My book, Crown Phoenix: Night Watchman Express, is now on sale for 99 cents on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Smashwords.

Pick it up now and feed your Kindle!

(Kindle buy link to the left, or use the live links above.)

New Classics

Over at The Indie Exchange, Terri Long et al are discussing New Classics.

Here is a list of classic reads that they have shared:


Ten Classic ReadsThe Drowning People – Richard MasonThe Bell Jar – Sylvia PlathNorwegian Wood – Haruki MurakamiWuthering Heights – Emily BronteMemoirs of a Geisha – Arthur GoldenWe Need to Talk About Kevin – Lionel ShriverAll But My Life – Gerda Weissman KleinI Am David – Ann Holm1984 – George OrwellWidow for One Year – John IrvingI have read six of the above, and I look forward to reading The Drowning People, We Need to Talk About Kevin, All But My Life, and I am David to the TBR list. 
I'd replace Norwegian Wood with Kafka on the Beach myself, but of course these lists are very arbitrary. At the risk of repeating myself ad nauseum, I'd love to see the Indie book the Prospect of My Arrival and (sic) added as new classics. 
What books are on your modern classics lists?

JRR Day

Tolkien was born this day in 1892. He did so much that was amazing - invented an entire world, for example, along with maps, languages and mythology that went with it. His books are The Classics of his genre (which he also pretty much invented!) and his characters live and breathe as much today as when he invented them.

I first read Tolkien when I was eight. I found an old copy of The Hobbit somewhere and picked it up. After that, I was lost in a world of songs, adventure, and underground caves where a creature had lived for years, looking for one Precious item.

I loved Smaug's treasure and how the Hobbit - Bilbo Baggins - evolved from a peace-loving elderly gentleman into a first-rate burglar. I loved the names - Oin and Gloin especially. And let's not forget Gandalf - a character so real, so amazing, that he has reappeared under different names in many different fantasy series and books.


It took much longer to get into Lord of the Rings. It was so solemn after the riotous Hobbit, and Tom Bombadil nearly finished me off. Plus, there was the constant lack of food ... it seemed the only thing that Sam and Frodo ever had on them was tobacco. Reading LOTR invariably made me hungry.

Plus, the lack of female characters made me itchy. Sure, there was Goldberry and Galadriel, but what did they do besides dispense high-brow wisdom and look lovely? It wasn't until the movies came out and I saw that Eowyn was a character to take my breath away that I went back and finally read the trilogy. 
Maps - glorious maps
But that was a product of the times, and Tolkien's writing is amazing. Here are a few of my favorite quotes:

"Pity? It was pity that stayed Bilbo's hand. Many that live deserve death. Some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them, Frodo? Do not be too eager to deal out death in judgment. Even the very wise cannot see all ends."

“I wish it need not have happened in my time," said Frodo.
"So do I," said Gandalf, "and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.” 

“The world is indeed full of peril and in it there are many dark places.
But still there is much that is fair. And though in all lands, love is now
mingled with grief, it still grows, perhaps, the greater.” 

“If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.” 

“Still round the corner there may wait
A new road or a secret gate
And though I oft have passed them by
A day will come at last when I
Shall take the hidden paths that run
West of the Moon, East of the Sun.” 

Sable City or, It's Going to be a Good Year

Why is 2013 going to be so freaking great? I just discovered a new fantasy series to love, and there are FOUR OF THEM. And a fifth is in the works.

But here's where I get all 2AM promo spot on you - Wait! There's more! The Sable City - the first book by M Edward McNally  - is free.

FREE. As in, no money at all, for a long, wonderful read with maps (have I ever mentioned how much I love maps?) and amazing characters.

Now, here's my deal with fantasy. I need to have some urban tie in or some serious characterization going to engage me. If the action is all some heavily-muscled dude holding up his longbow and shouting, "By the mighty beard of Thredmund, I shall defeat thee!" then I'm out of there.

Ditto if the women are all gorgeous warriors who fight in G-strings and bras. Please.

However, the main character, Tilda (short for Matilda) Lanai is real. I was engaged right away when she took a spill out of a fourth floor window during a training exercise and sloshed her way back up to the gym to complete the fight. No less exciting was the following scene, where she tries to calm a wounded horse with an apple.

Plus, one of my current characters is called Matilda, so I Love Her Now.
Map! Map! *swoons*
The other character that I've met so far, a dwarf known as Block or Cornerstone (since he resembles a cube,) is amazing as well. He is tough as nails, and when he must select someone to help him on a long quest, he thinks of his student, Tilda. His grudging selection of the girl is perfectly done.

I'm hoping to come back with a promo for the series, but I'll check in from time to time to let you know how The Sable City is coming along. It's a long read, so I am charging up my Kindle for a long winter's coze.