Why I Disliked Pattern Recognition

Both the book itself and the main character seem to think that they are more interesting and profound than they actually are. While Jess interpreted Cayce as being very lonely, I never got that. She seemed really content being alone. I mean, she clearly had emotional issues, but none of that seemed to stem from her lack of social interaction. And in fact, she was constantly interacting with people, but not very well face-to-face.

And for someone that seemed to retreat into her own little self-absorbed world, she certainly had no trouble making friends. In fact, everyone she meets (save for 1 or 2 characters) seem instantly struck by her, willing to bend over backwards for her.

But the part that really messed with my mind is not how quickly others took to her, as it was how quickly she seemed to cultivate relationships of trust with people she had just met. Having a stranger pick up a key to the apartment she's staying in, allowing people she distrusts or barely knows into intimate settings, and starting romantic relationships out of... what seems like nothing. I just would have believed her character more if I didn't feel like I was constantly trying to reconcile her tough chick loner lifestyle with her wishy-washy awkwardly pubescent actions. That is how I view Cayce: she reacts like a self-absorbed 15-year-old girl to everything, but is actually leading an amazing (frankly unbelieveable) life.

As to the plot of the book... I feel like the parts I was really interested in were rushed and poorly explained. Like, everything that happened in Russian, and the character development of the minor characters. The parts I really didn't care for dragged on endlessly. For example, everything mentioned about her father and mother... that all was meant to be compelling, and I just found it horribly boring. As though I was having 9/11 thrown in my face every 20 pages, to say "See, this is interesting and important because it happened around 9/11." No, it's not, and frankly, I feel as though the book would have been less choppy and more intriguing without the reference.

And my final complaint is that a lot of elements feel forced or thrown in as after thoughts. I would have been happier if Cayce was not with a guy at the end of the book. I feel that relationship was a wonderful platonic one. But that in an effort to show that Cayce has gotten over all her hangups, the author felt some compulsion to give her a boyfriend. It doesn't fit for me (again because I can't reconcile her lifestyle with her behavior). The whole Russian mob element is like a game of whac-a-mole. References keep popping up, but it feels like there's no fluidity to that element of the story.

It's information overload (9/11, Russian mob, espionage, viral video, Japan, London, Paris, etc. etc.) But the story is underwhelming in the end. I feel like I was forced to watch it from the point of view of the person who was least conscious of the elements outside their own head. And for me, it is irritating to watch a self-absorbed person have amazing adventures that they do not seem to appreciate.

I'm sure I had other more coherent arguements, but it's 2am, so to bed.

Supplies and Demands

I currently have at work:
4 staplers
2 planks of wood (of unknown origin)
2 ink cartridges magenta and cyan - (from printers long gone)
1 soda spill in the fridge (from many weeks ago)
and no supervision.

Day three is rocking my socks.

Ringing it in

I decided that my blog was not pink enough, so I'm trying out this background.

Also, since it's the new year, I thought I should write the ol' "What I plan to change this year" blog post.

So here's what I want to do:
1) knit more/better - and hopefully log my projects somehow
2) get a job - obviously
3) be chill
4) be healthy - Doesn't everyone do this?


Number 1 just means I might occasionally post some pictures that no one cares about on this newly pinked blog. I think you all can deal. First up will be either the sweater or scarf that I have been working on.

Number 2, I have one interview this week so far. Hopefully, as people come back from vacations more positions will open up.

Number 3 is something that goes beyond just attitude. It's something that I've been working on for the past year actually. I expect too much of people and I am too easily offended by perceived slights. So I'm trying to be less consumed by 15-year-old girl mentality. But in addition to this, it's also about not feeling like I need to have plans or like I need to be responsible for other people's good time. It also means not announcing my emotions as soon as I have them. I just want to be more easy going.

Number 4 - Good food, good exercise, good sleep. We should all strive for this. I plan to make it a reality.

I think four items are enough things to work on for now. If I have time today or tomorrow, I might draw up a list of 12 concrete items to incorporate into my daily activities. Then add a new one each month. (I did this 2 years ago, but tried to do it weekly. It's a lot to take on in a year.)

So anyway, happy new year, everyone. My year is already off to a fantastic start and I hope that all this positive energy and happiness continues.

As if the news wasn't upsetting enough

Dear Google News,

I question how liberal you are being with the term "entertainment" recently. While I encourage you to stray from stories about starlets, television pilots, and the like, I can't say that I understand how four stories about the weather and a story entitled "Going Green for Hanukkah" managed to acquire the "entertainment" label.

Just let me know what's going on. Thanks, googs.
Kristen

Hearing impediment

I've been babysitting my 3-year-old triplet cousins a lot lately. And one of them talks a lot. However, he seems to have the weirdest speech impediment in the world. Basically, every word begins with an H or a W.

"Hi want a huice hox" (I want a juice box.)

"Haclyn hoke hit while hoo her hin hair." (Jaclyn broke it while you were in there.)

"His his hammy hinks hoom." (This is grammy Zinck's room.")

It's one of the least fun games in the world to play - figuring out what consonant sound is supposed to be at the beginning of each word. So I spend half my day repeating back what the child is saying to make sure that I understood him correctly.

Water bored-ing

For those if you who don't know how a sump pump works, basically water enters the house and it is drained into a hole. When the hole gets to a certain level, the pump turns on and pumps the water out of the house. So my assumption when I hear the pump, which is located just outside my room, turn on is that good things are happening. Even if it turns on every 10 minutes, as it did last night.

Around 3am, I was informed otherwise. You see, instead of pumping the water outside, our sump pump is set up to pump the water into a large bucket on the porch. After two pumpings the bucket needs to be siphoned off...

THIS IS A TERRIBLE SYSTEM!

But had I known about it, I would have alerted someone to the overactive pump. Instead, we have a flooded basement.

Mud Pie

Job hunting is hard, but every now and then humor creeps in to make it fun.

Tonight, while I was looking up candy shoppes in Massachusetts, hoping desperately to find someone who was hiring, I came across a company that makes erotic cakes and candies. Since 1976 (our country's bicentennial), Sweet-N-Nasty has been New England's Exclusive Creator of Erotic Cakes and Sweets. (I quote their website, of course.)

If you look at the cakes and if you know my work, you might say, "Kristen, this is beneath you." I might agree. But there's something very tempting about the idea of being able to go to my high school reunion and declare, "I decorate penis cakes for a living."

I wonder, could this be used as a stepping stone perhaps? Could I bring a new level of artistry to S-N-N cakes? Would they even want me? (They do not seem to be hiring right now anyway.)

And what's worse: to work at the dirty cake shop or to be rejected from the dirty cake shop?