New Website (Again...)

Even though – or maybe because, this blog is still just a baby project, I’m moving to a new website. Many of you know I’m very concerned about what is connected with my name on the web. The obvious next step was to own my name in the most basic way possible, and so you can now find this blog at cassieirwin.com.

Right now, the site will be home to just this blog. Over the next few months, I will work to develop it into something a bit… more than that. I anticipate that will be a long process, with a lot of little bumps and tons of new information. (Exciting!)

As I am fairly certain all of you readers are people I have gone to brunch with at least once in my life (or would – hello Tumblrs!), I know you’ll be patient with updating your Google Reader or favorites bookmarks for me. And I appreciate it. A lot. Thank you all so much for reading and commenting on my little mini-adventures this summer.

I’ll be back with a post on urban kayaking later this afternoon!

Meiko!

I seem to listen to primarily male singer-songwriters, broken-hearted and angsty young men. Damien Rice is a favorite. Sufjan Stevens. Mumford and Sons. More Damien Rice. Even more Damien Rice. Sometimes I need a break, though, and my friend Jason is replete with recommendations for female musicians to listen to and through him I have found some very lovely music. A few months ago, I asked very specifically for something I could listen to at work... not too sad, not too happy...and a female, please... and he recommended Meiko.

I listened a few times, here and there. I liked it. But listening to music at work is not the way to give a new artist a fair shot. I couldn't tell you any specific songs I liked; I certainly didn't retain any lyrics. It fades into the background for most of the day (which is how I listened to Lana Del Rey on loop for 8 hours without realizing it last week). 

A few days ago, a friend offered a free ticket to the Meiko show at Lincoln Hall. I know that name! I thought, looked her up on Spotify and instantly remembered that, yes, I like this. So I jumped at the ticket and headed the beautiful Lincoln Hall venue Wednesday night for what turned out to be one of the best shows I've been to in months. 

Meiko is just seriously so adorable. I can't help it - I'm a little in love with her. She was phenomenal live. I'm just waiting for a live album to release because it was so much better than a studio album. That sounds terrible but I mean it as a compliment. She has a lovely voice and was just on all night. Great music, super charming - I was swooning, I can't deny it.

She was so sweet and genuine and accommodating at the merch table. I picked up a super cute t-shirt, snagged her autograph, and yet somehow resisted from just putting her in my pocket and taking her home (that's how we talk about about things that are adorable, ok). Just a wonderful night all around.

Both of her albums are great but I am looping The Bright Side like crazy - happy, upbeat, cheerful songs that are guaranteed to make you smile. She loves love, y'all! And it's fun!

And yes, I asked her where she got her dress and then I bought that dress. We're surprised? (No, we're not.)

WordPress 101

On Tuesday, Sabine and I took an introduction to WordPress class with Nicole Crimaldi of Ms. Career Girl through Dabble. (Whew - lots of moving parts there.) This class was $25 but Sabine and I signed up during a "bring a friend" special so it was really just half that for both of us. I had literally never looked at WordPress before, but assumed that there was something above and beyond about it that would require a two-hour introduction class. Turns out, WordPress is not hard. WordPress is actually really easy to use. WordPress seems kind of fun to use. However, this class was still a great experience and I do not regret going at all. If I did it all over again, I'd do it the same.

Nicole gave us a great overview with signing up for WordPress, yes, but so much of this session was discussion about how to use blogging for whatever your purpose. There were participants who were starting small businesses, some just looking for more information for the mental knowledge bank (me), and others unsure of the next step but ready to move on to something else. And it was amazing to hear Nicole's story of fighting back against a job that made her unhappy by working really hard and really smart. It was motivating.

Additionally, she had great tips on how to grow your blog's readership and how to think strategically about SEO and keywords. I would say most of the participants were interested in how to monetize their blogs, which makes sense if this is for your business or part of your side hustle. For me, my blog is just part of my web persona, if you will, but I am very interested in creating a healthy and interesting presence on the web. While I am really not concerned with monetizing my web presence, I would say it still falls into a "side hustle" category, and these tips were great.

I was thrilled with the class and thought it a great night. The space was comfortable and inviting. Nicole was engaging and interesting - and inspiring. I'm happy to add her to a list of entrepreneurs I admire. I feel ready to really make this blog something to be reckoned with (haha - that sounds intense). It'll be a little bit, here and there, but by the end of the year, there will be some big changes here. That's the best thing about these Dabble classes - they truly do give you a taste of something new, and empower you to take off from there. Money and time well spent.

Recommendation: If you're new to blogging or social media or just less comfortable with tech, take WordPress 101. If you're all set with figuring out how to set up your blog, do that, and take Nicole's Start Your Side Hustle class on Tuesday (8/14).

Sneaking in Some Austen

While this weekend was primarily dedicated to naive wonderment and baby-steps in programming, I found plenty of time to sneak in bursts of Jane Austen.

pride and prejudice

I pushed through my fatigue and read quite a bit more of Pride and Prejudice. Currently, Mr. Collins is in town and has his heart set on Elizabeth but I have not yet gotten to the proposal. I believe I stopped in the midst of Wickham's well-spun yarn of Darcy's betrayal and his own admirable forbearance. I owe P.D. James quite the apology for my expression of distaste at the amount of time spent on Darcy's thoughts in Death Comes to Pemberley. I posited that this was in sharp contrast to Austen's Pride and Prejudice, but it is not true! Much more space is dedicated to the inner thoughts of Mr. Darcy as he recognizes and fights his infatuation with Elizabeth Bennet than I had recalled. I have become so accustomed to the BBC miniseries that it holds sway in my mind as to the truth of Pride and Prejudice. While the adaptation is certainly the story of Elizabeth Bennet, the novel is much more equitable in its dedicated space. This is a delightful discovery and I am supremely enjoying this re-reading. I am so glad I didn't truly quit!

emma

With a bottle of white wine already chilled, I was quite agreeable to Anna's suggestion that we watch the Gwyneth Paltrow-led adaptation of Emma on Saturday evening. This is another of my favorite Austen adaptations and though I had not seen it years, it lived up to my nostalgic expectations. Paltrow is a fantastic Emma and the cast is littered with esteemed British actors. I am happy to say I have not yet seen a disappointing Austen adaptation - though I am sure they exist, so I tread into these waters carefully. I also discovered that Anna owns a copy of Clueless, and so...

On Sunday, we had to watch Clueless! It has easily been ten years since I've seen this film, but it also lived up to expectations. I was a bit wary as we started it that it would be one of the films you loved in your adolescence but upon later viewing seemed cheesy and dated. It is not the case at all here. First, it is an excellent modernization of Emma - the key plot points are all there, but manipulated just enough to make them plausible for a 1990s teenager. The script is smart: the jokes are clever and stand up to the test of time. The only thing that really dates this film is the fashion and the music, and those are two things we love to look back on with rosy nostalgia.

I am happy to report that Jane Austen made my weekend quite enjoyable. I will surely owe her more gratitude as Pride and Prejudice provides me tiny moments of escape during this busy, busy week.

Cassie Learns to Code: The First Three Months

I've alluded to my limited pool of patience and when it comes to doing something, I have practically no skill at making myself wait. So, though I said I would not take on another project until I wrapped up Summer of Austen, there just was no stopping me on my new project: Cassie Learns to Code. This is one project that will certainly take more than three months, so we'll just call this installment The First Three Months.

Last week, I signed onto Codecademy after a five month break and have now spent probably twenty hours over the last five days learning JavaScript. I spent most of my Friday night (fun night!) making flash cards so I could study vocabulary while on the bus, watching tv, whenever. My notebook is slowly filling up with scribbles as I process more conceptual information, e.g., figuring out why a semi-colon is used, not just when.

What, you didn't spend your Friday night studying?

This weekend has been full of mini-triumphs and some anecdotal evidence that this is something I can learn. I am a huge fan of the way Codecademy is structured - a combination of teaching, learning by doing, and poking around to find the answer. It's a community and everyone is excited about coding!

I took this screenshot on Saturday after finishing an exercise successfully: fairly quickly and without having to look elsewhere for definitions or hints. Several things started to come together in my brain here - the whole if/elseif/else concept, the aforementioned eureka moment on semi-colons, and a more thorough understanding of functions.

This morning, Sunday, I flipped through my flash cards while procrastinating on the whole get up and get going thing. Within ten minutes, I had to abandon that plan and pull out a notebook to start jotting down questions and musings. Tiny bits of information are starting to form complete pictures in my brain AND I'm able to use my current professional position to put things in context.

After running errands (and finally getting in to a Ballerina Bum class at MaZi), I came home to work out a problem. I didn't want to launch into another lesson; I'm afraid of moving through concepts too quickly and not letting them percolate in my brain long enough. And though it took a little bit of trial and error, I did this today without use of note cards or Codecademy's (very helpful) glossary.

I'm not delusional. This is all very basic, I know, but there is nowhere else for me to start than getting down the basics. You may be concerned (er, mildly interested) that this will take time away from Summer of Austen and Project Ukulele and that might be true. I find the busier I am, the better I am at managing my time, though, and I made significant progress with Pride and Prejudice this weekend. (And tomorrow I will write about how happy I am I stuck with the book.)

This is certainly a multi-year, maybe a lifelong, project but three-month chunks seem like a great way to document and measure my progress.

Up next: WordPress 101 with Nicole Crimaldi and Dabble, Tuesday evening.

Slowly but Surely with the Ukulele

Quite unexpectedly, the ukulele has become quite an effective form of stress relief. Learning to play an instrument, even something as "simple" and basic as the ukulele, is proving to be a challenge for me. A good challenge! I haven't at all been frustrated, since that first night. I just keep strumming away, over and over again.

The nights I pick up this tiny and light tool, I start with an hour or so of chord drills. And in those first five minutes, it is always rough. The instructions do not move quickly enough from my brain to my fingers. After ten minutes, I'm getting from D to G and then to F and back again easily enough; it's starting to feel routine. I always start from the beginning, the easiest chord drills, and strive to tack on and master one more each time.

When I feel good about all of that, usually after an hour or ninety minutes, I begin working on a song. My initial goal for Project Ukulele was to master "Moon River" - the project was basically inspired by that touching scene in Breakfast at Tiffany's, after all. My learning-the-ukulele song has been Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah", though. We briefly practiced it at the end of the Dabble introductory class, and I know the song so well I don't need to worry about lyrics and chords, just chords. That level of familiarity makes it easier for me to "feel" the chord changes and strumming patterns, too. I work on that for, easily, another hour or so and then retire for the evening.

When I started this project, I really did think I would pick this up pretty quickly and after three months, I'd be able to pull out a song upon request. It's a lot more work than that, and I'm surprisingly pleased with this. Being able to sit down and focus on something for two to three hours at a time has brought a lot of little interesting aspects to my life.

First, this time has proven invaluable to my brain. I am obviously using a different part of my brain than I use during the day, and though I am no scientist, I wouldn't be surprised if there is a plethora of research about how letting my brain rest, while still actively using another part of it, makes my entire brain stronger. I feel well rested and sharper during my work day, and calmer and more relaxed in the evening.

I am also becoming an even more patient person. It has not always been a strength of mine, but in the last five years or so has become something I have actively strive for - to be patient with people and with things (i.e. the train). It's becoming more and more just an initial reaction, to just wait a moment and let things work out or fall into place. This is something I always got from dance and working out, and I'm surprised that something physically inactive brings the same benefit to my day.

That said, the ukulele is indeed a poor replacement for ballet class. And now that I'm mobile again (albeit weak and slow), I need to get back in the gym and the studio. I'm not keen about sacrificing much of my ukulele time for that, though. I really feel like I need both in my life now and finding a new balance will be key to this. So, I'll do as I always do and come up with a schedule for the next few weeks - to allocate reasonable time to both while still finding time to watch The Daily Show (and the Olympics!)

Preview: I cannot officially start it until I wrap up Summer of Austen - two projects seems to be about the limit right now - but the next project will focus on learning some basic programming. I'm looking at a few different approaches, probably a combination of a few methods. I think this will be a fun one to blog about, too! I am finding that I like it, a lot, for many of the same reasons I like the ukulele and kayaking: stress relief, new skills, and accomplishment.

Death Comes to Pemberley... and I Resurrect Pride and Prejudice

Just five days ago, I gave up on re-reading Pride and Prejudice. And I was totally okay with that. And if this was your project, and you did that, I would not judge you at all.

But I can't quit.

Maybe I just needed an Austen break. Maybe reading Death Comes to Pemberley reignited my drive. Whatever it was, I realized this morning that I just could not compromise on my original plan for this project.

So, I'm back on board with Pride and Prejudice. With a little over a month left, I have quite a bit of reading to do. Luckily, my little introverted heart needs a break from all the socializing and coast-hopping and is screaming for me to just have a couple nights in to relax.

But let's go back and talk about Death Comes to Pemberley. This novel picks up the story of Elizabeth and Darcy, six years later, happily settled at Pemberley with two beautiful children and a happy life punctuated with, of course, family drama here and there. Though she is not particularly welcomed to Pemberley, Lydia shows up in the middle of the night before an annual ball, and plunges our favorite characters into a murder mystery.

I was happily impressed with the continuity of story. It felt seamless, often referencing small plot points from Pride and Prejudice. At times, though, I felt that James challenged how I understood these characters. Elizabeth became less romantic and mused on how financial considerations impacted her past decisions. Charlotte is suddenly less sympathetic and a bit devious. And Darcy is now quite thoughtful and romantic! I don't know that these characterizations are wrong, and I might also be far too influenced by the BBC adaptation, but it just felt "off" at times to me.

I also have very little interest in reading contemporary mystery novels. While this retained the language and writing style of Jane Austen, there were too many features of modern storytelling that frustrated me. For example, the same details, around the events of the murder in question, were repeated numerous times. Occasionally, this was done to illustrate how one person's recollection varies from another, or to introduce a small piece of information not previously known. More often, though, I felt like I was suffering through another three-page retelling of "what happened that night" without any payoff.

Yet, this was a quick read and it was fun. The requisite twists were surprising, though not shocking. I didn't feel any compulsion to keep reading as I do in my best experiences but I did not have to force myself to get through the story. I certainly do not feel any worse off having read it, if that's a recommendation at all.

Verdict: if you love pride and prejudice, it's a cute read; good for beach days or rainy weekends

De-Booted!

Those readers who also have to deal with me in person know that for the last six weeks, I've been awkwardly walking slightly off-balance in an effort to let a stress fracture heal. Actually, if you've been reading the blog, whether you know me or not, you know this - because I've used many opportunities to elicit pity by mentioning this dreaded walking boot ruining all my summer plans.

Summer's best fashion accessory - really.

Well, I paid my dues. I wore the boot. I took my calcium supplements. I stopped working out for six weeks. My left calf muscle has atrophied into just a remnant of its former glory. But my six weeks are finally over and I am de-booted!

I have six more weeks before I can hope to be back to where I was six months ago. This week, I'm only allowed to engage in "normal, everyday" walking activities. And then it's a few weeks of physical therapy and a lot of finger-crossing that my bones are strong. By mid-September, I should be back to my five to ten hours of dance each week.

But first things first - just normal, everyday walking, and I"ll try it out in Boston. Yes, another weekend trip to Boston. This time: walking through the Common, of course, a housewarming party, a kayaking trip, suppertime reunion with my favorite botanist (or are you a phrenologist now?), and much more! What happy and lucky timing that this trip occurs now, the day after the de-booting!

I will miss being able to pre-board my flights, though.

Quitting Pride and Prejudice

I have quit my rereading of Pride and Prejudice.

I just can't do it. I read this book about a year ago. I've seen the BBC and Keira Knightley-led adaptations countless times. I just cannot read this book again, not right now. It's a good book; I love it. But it doesn't feel fresh to me at all right now and I found myself dreading reading in general because of the obligation. And that's not the point of this, at all.

I tackled two Pride and Prejudice-related tasks last night though: reading P.D. James's Death Comes to Pemberley, which has started off wonderfully, and watching The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. This book is really quite delightful. James retains much of Austen's language and cadence, which really makes it seem like a proper sequel. The plot is quick enough (in sometimes stark contrast to Austen's, um, patience with her plot development); I expect to be through it before the end of Friday. It's very obviously something done by someone who loves Jane Austen and Pride and Prejudice, which in itself is rather endearing. The web series next mentioned is a sort of modern twist on Pride and Prejudice. I'm pacing at about two videos a day; they're short and pretty cute. 

I may not reread Emma either.

Disappointments abound, but as long as I get through all the new-to-me Austen works, I'll be satisfied with my endeavor.

Who Has the Better Summer? Round 2: Stuff To Do

Wisconsin is where Chicagoans go to escape the city in the summer but it's also where I spent my first 24 summers. The novelty that city slickers find in small town Wisconsin is just my normal. But after a few summers in Chicago, this feels normal too. So which is better? If you had to spend summer in just one place, which promises a better summer: Chicago or (my) small-town Wisconsin?

Summer Festivals
In my hometown, we have two summer festivals really - Walleye Weekend and the fair. The first is at the large park on Lake Winnebago and has formed around a three-day walleye fishing tournament. I know it better as the weekend we eat all kinds of fried food and watch the younger ones in the family play soccer. Just like any other summer festival - terribly unhealthy but delicious food, beer, bands, and the real purpose is something no one pays attention to. The fair is, of course - the fair. Come on. Carnival rides, animals in a large barn-type thing (um, I've been informed it's just called "a barn"), and more fried food and beer.

In Chicago, summer festivals are much more compact - just a few blocks of space, at most. They're typically not free; they're suggested donation-admittance. Of course, here you'll also find your fair share of fried foods, but many festivals are held in celebration of some heritage and so you'll get a sampling of new foods too. Chicago's festivals are so phenomenal though because there is literally something for everyone all summer. Lincoln Square's Maifest (like Oktoberfest in spring!), Printer's Row Lit Fest (used books for sales, author talks and readings!), and Wicker Park Fest (hipsters and music!) are a few of my favorites. And there are several fests every weekend, so it goes without saying if you have nothing to do - you're wrong, there's something to do.

Point Chicago.

Camping
This one is easy. You can't camp in Chicago. Point Wisconsin.

Lazy Summer Porch Drinking
Yikes, this is harder. There are not many porches in Chicago. We have a back staircase that has a landing which we could theoretically put out one, maybe two, folding chairs and drink some beer. The view is lovely - the roof of the apartment building next door or into my neighbor's kitchen. But Chicago has some pretty amazing local breweries that give perfect summer beer options - nice and light, crisp and a bit fruity.

Eh, you can buy Goose Island anywhere now. Wisconsin has New Glarus, big backyards, decks with grills and plastic kiddie pools. Point Wisconsin.

Outdoor Dining
It feels unfair to even write out a comparison here. There is no comparison. Point Chicago.

The Lake
Contenders: Lake Winnebago and Lake Michigan. I realize much of Wisconsin has access to Lake Michigan but we're talking about my Wisconsin. My small-town Wisconsin has Lake Winnebago. A lake I've never swam in, maybe once canoed in, and often mocked. That said, I've only been to a Chicago beach once and certainly did not go in Lake Michigan. Tied.

Oh no, tied overall. Who guessed that would be the case? Truly, the winner is usually wherever I am not. When Chicago is too hot (and dirty), I crave a Wisconsin summer. And when Wisconsin gets boring, I itch to be back in Chicago. Luckily, it's easy to go between the two.

Watching Sense and Sensibility

Friday night, AVH tolerated my intermittent commentary and watched the Emma Thompson adaptation of Sense and Sensibility with me. Overall, I absolutely enjoyed it. The adaptation of this very long and tedious novel was extraordinarily done, keeping all the major plot points and adding just enough extras to make up for some of the things Austen left out of the novel (ahem, a certain engagement scene).

I have a few thoughts though:

• Hugh Grant as Edward Ferrars did nothing to convince me that he and Elinor were a great match. Maybe I'm too much like Marianne but I wanted to see a certain indescribable spark of chemistry on screen. Just a touch of romance underneath the surface.
• I felt even more, after watching the film, that Marianne wilted at the end of the story. It didn't come across to me as growing up, but resigning herself to a tolerable life. And while this was probably very much the case in many real scenarios, I just felt sad for her at the end.
• The secondary characters (particularly Margaret, Mrs. Jennings, and Mr. Palmer) were delightful!
• Emma Thompson is flawless and was indeed a perfect Elinor, just as I expected.

I know many people love Sense and Sensibility and I don't wish to take that away from anyone. I think I've been spoiled by my immersion in two other Austen novels: Pride and Prejudice and Emma. I intend to write much more about my love of Elizabeth Bennet and Emma Woodhouse as I launch into those titles. I'll just say that my literary preferences were formed in my youth and that is likely why I did not connect with Sense and Sensibility in the same way.

For most of the summer, I've felt like I have so much time to get through Austen, but it turns out that my three months will expire on September 8th - and that is only 47 days from now! I started Pride and Prejudice again last night and intend to finish that this week and then read Death Comes to Pemberley while traveling this weekend. There is much reading yet to be done and I haven't even started my historical research or touched any criticisms! August will necessarily be an Austen-heavy month (and this means I should probably stop buying other books).

Maine Coast Adventures, Part 3

I cannot think of a better time to publish a blog post than at 5 p.m. on a gorgeous, summer Friday evening. This one will have the most readers of them all! Oh well.

Sunday in Maine started early early early. Like 4 a.m. early. We sleepily headed back up Cadillac Mountain for something that you really just don't get to see every day - the sunrise. From a mountain top. On an island. In the Atlantic. Wingman was chatty, everyone was a bit shivery, but when the sun rose? Wow. I got all weird-historian on Caitlin and wondered aloud how it would have felt to see something like that before, you know, we knew about science and how that all works. No wonder we had a sun god - it was pretty terrifying and impressive. And I spent a good ten minutes writing the scene for being the first person to see a sunrise (what is that blinding ball of fire oh my god why is there now a black spot everywhere I look?!)

After a three hour nap, we indulged in blueberry pancakes (blueberry everything!) and coffee before heading to the Bar Harbor Farmer's Market. See, we needed to stock up on some easily transportable and super delicious local food for later that evening.

We spent the afternoon perusing shops, participating in a free beer tasting at Bar Harbor Brewery (seriously, they have everything on this tiny island), and then taking in the "Indians and Rusticators: Wabanakis & Summer Visitors on Mt. Desert Island 1840s-1920s" exhibit at the Abbe Museum. This was really extraordinarily done. I was quite impressed (and a bit winsome for missed career opportunities - that is right in my preferred academic era). 

But honestly, the highlight of the day, the apex of the trip, was our sunset sea kayaking trip. Walking boot be damned, I was going kayaking! So, sure, I was pretty nervous - the ocean is a bit intimidating. But after about an hour or so, we had this down. We were basically pros, paddling our kayak to the front of the group, CMM steering that thing like she drives a kayak to work everyday, and expertly landing on the beach for our snack break.

Terrible photo - delicious food. You win some, you lose some.

I maintain this is because CMM and I are both oldest children. We take direction well, learn quickly, and excel at pretty much everything. (Also apparently modest about our awesomeness.) I certainly got some real satisfaction from mastering how to paddle without splashing everyone in our group with gallons of water, and feeling the power of pushing that paddle through the water, and propelling our kayak forward. It's no surprise that I'm already set up with some kayak "lessons" here in Chicago, huh? I don't think it will compare to sea kayaking, but at least I can work on my form.

Kayakers! We'll see you next summer when we're leading out twice daily trips of our own.

One evening ice cream trip later and Maine kind of ended there. On a sweet, sweet note. I left around 9 the next morning, made it back to Boston around 3 p.m. and spent the late afternoon, early evening at Marina Bay - dinner and drinks with a new friend, discussing the life woes we Millennials have as we start to become full-fledged grown-ups, and admiring a new skyline. A skyline that impressed, and perhaps inspired, me more than I anticipated.

Disposable cameras are not "cute" and will give you terrible pictures. 

If you ever forget your camera on vacation, buy a new camera.

I may have rushed through this a bit, but frankly - I kept great travel notes and this trip was so important to me, that I'm a bit selfish with those thoughts and feelings. Suffice to say that I fell in love with Mt. Desert Island, and fell harder still for Boston (sure, three trips in two months might have helped with that).

This weekend: look forward to some Jane Austen updates, confirmation that I am practicing the ukulele, and a countdown of getting out of this walking boot and into wearing both shoes of a pair again (7 days!)

Maine Coast Adventures, Part 2

I've neglected you, my robust audience close friends and family, but there is a secret project in the works. If it comes together, it'll make an appearance here soon and become a good project to pick up when Summer of Austen wraps up. If it doesn't result in anything, I'm running through ideas, including: tile mosaics, making my own stationary, and making my own candy (all good options).

Saturday started off the only way a Saturday morning in Maine should start: Lobster Eggs Benedict at 2 Cats, so called because there are cats - real cats and pictures of cats, everywhere. And from there we were off, and my notes from Saturday are brief and disorganized. My notes appear below in italics and any memories they triggered follow.

Early morning - off to Sand Beach... Reading, and chatting on the beach, leaving before too crowded. 
Ah, yes, that was our first destination! In the early, single digit hours of the morning, we arrived at Sand Beach, the one sandy beach on the island, spread out a blanket and pulled out our readings - a book for CMM and the latest issue of The Atlantic for me. I wanted to read Slaughter's "Why Women Still Can't Have it All" piece in print form and this was the perfect time to do it. We took reading breaks to watch young children and teenagers tempt their hardiness in the cold Atlantic water. And as the beach started to fill up, we packed up and headed back to pick up Wingman.

Drove all around Acadia - up Cadillac Mtn, Seal Harbor, Naturalist's Notebook, Caitlin's stomping grounds last summer, Lower ___ Pond, those gardens.
Yes, clearly I was trying to cram a lot of memory triggers into very short notes. I remember writing this out at the very end of the night, after a long day and facing an early-morning wake-up. As a reminder, this trip to Maine was tinged with the frustration of being in a walking boot and that affliction ruling out any chance of real hiking. So CMM drove us to the top of Cadillac Mountain so I could still see the views, and then gave me the best driving tour of the island anyone's ever had. Through the lovely gardens (below), to a wonderful lookout where I marveled at the Rockwellian views. Everything I saw was augmented with interesting anecdotes and history from my dear friend. Oh, and it's Lower Hadlock Pond, too - I looked that up, and the short stroll there counts as my "hiking in Maine."

Pretty gardens... I did not take enough pictures, I know... sigh... 

Rest break w/Julie and Julia. Dinner at _____ - so fresh scallops. That play, Fully Committed - so good!
The driving tour was sucking some energy away and we took an afternoon rest to watch Julie and Julia - which I had not seen (though I read the book a few years ago), but thoroughly enjoyed (due primarily to the genius of Meryl Streep). We prettied up and headed out to dinner - and CMM will have to remind me where, but the scallops were local and the best I've ever had, the wine was crisp, and the blueberry basil sorbet was divine. We then went to see the Acadia Rep's staging of Fully Committed - a play so good that I'll only tell you to see it, if it's ever staged near you. To tell you any more would take out so much of the pure delight we had in experiencing it.

The stars!
My last note for Saturday and, yes, it's been a long time since I've seen stars like that. This is why we go camping, sleep outside, go nature-y on vacation. Those stars...

Part 3 - the last piece - tomorrow, I promise.

Maine Coast Adventures, Part 1

Another of my resolutions this year was to go somewhere in the US that I have not yet been. And pretty quickly, it became apparent that place should be Maine, specifically Mount Desert Island: Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park.

Early on the 4th, I fled the cruel Chicago summer heatwave for the welcoming weather of the East Coast. Sure, I got to Midway three hours early, but it was an air conditioned utopia compared with my breeze-free apartment. With my closest Boston friends out of town, when I arrived, I truly got to pretend as if I lived there (a tourist tip from BKJ). Three trains and 1.5 miles of awkward walking-boot travel later, I was comfortably settled on the Cambridge side of the Charles River, waiting for fireworks and surreptitious champagne toasts.

The fireworks were, of course, amazing. The warm summer rain that started in synchronization with the first fireworks was welcome and just inconvenient enough to create a good story. After all the sparkles and boom!s, we headed back to the Chateau and discussed how chance affects evolution and whether intelligence is a good or bad thing for human survival (...only in Boston) until 2 a.m.

The next morning, with no alarm clock (because who needs one on vacation?), I took my time waking up and readying for the next leg of my trip: a four hour bus ride to Bangor, Maine. And that was much better than expected - the bus more comfortable and the trip more beautiful than I had hoped. I read Christopher Camuto's Time and Tide in Acadia most of the way, which easily increased my anticipation for "nature!"

CMM picked me up in Bangor and we made the hour-drive to Bar Harbor, listening to This American Life at first, and then pointing out landmarks. After a lovely dinner - my first lobster roll of the trip, it was time to call it a night. I was tired from traveling all day and my host had to wake up early for work the next day.

Friday rolled around and I woke early while CMM got ready for work and then alternated between light dozing and finishing Austen's Sense and Sensibility. By 11 a.m. though, I was out the door and started on my first journey, The Shore Path.

This path is a little less than a mile (good for my awkward walking) and provides lovely views of the rocky shore and the unattainable and gorgeous houses on the waterfront.

The end of the path, where I paused to take my one and only work call of the trip, brings you back into town. From there I meandered through the shops of Main Street and Cottage Street before heading back to Friday night's dinner spot for my second lobster roll (what? how often do you get lobster that was caught right there just that morning?!)

Lobster Roll at Side Street Cafe in Bar Harbor, ME.

After a short rest, my favorite canine and I headed out for another walk - to visit the sand bar to a neighboring island. It was high tide, as I suspected, but I thought it worth a view so I could compare on a subsequent visit during low tide. You know, you see a town differently walking a dog. And that was another very perfect part of the trip. (Come on, isn't he just the prettiest dog?)

Hello readers - meet Wingman, the dog who convinced me to get a dog asap.

CMM returned home and we popped out to dinner (no lobster roll this time, ok), drinks at a narrow  bar, and wrapped up the evening with a show at ImprovAcadia. A pretty fantastic day, it was an auspicious start to a vacation where nothing could go wrong. No - that's not foreshadowing, nothing went wrong!

Saturday and Sunday brought all that nature I had been anxiously waiting for, and provided much material for Part 2.

Blog Recommendation: If you like beautiful nature writing, so much so that it warms your cold, city heart to trees and flowers (but not too much to birds), then check out 3rdcoastfieldnotes.tumblr.com.

Sense and Sensibility... and Disappointment

I finished Sense and Sensibility - I fought through to the end while on vacation in Maine late last week. And I was never so glad to finish one book and start another as I was once I moved from this to The Art of Fielding (for another book club meeting I didn't actually make it to - shocker).

If you have not read Sense and Sensibility, and do not desire to read blatant spoilers, please do not read further. I will summarize with this: I do not recommend reading it unless you also have a desire to read all of Austen's novels for yourself. It's slow and you will not be entertained. In fact, you may feel quite dissatisfied at the end. I certainly do.

Okay, it was fine. At this point, I'm comparing my experience to what I know of Jane Austen: a first read of Northanger Abbey, a few reads of Pride and Prejudice and countless journies through Emma. Sense and Sensibility. Going up against these reads I have loved, this just did not capture my attention nearly enough. I felt like I knew exactly what was going to happen - I did not have any moments of surprise, save near the end when Austen demonstrates that indeed Colonel Brandon pines for the obnoxious Marianne. And when Edward finally proposes to Elinor, Jane Austen keeps all the details a secret from us! We read through all these pages of insufferable detail in which I was frankly unconvinced that Edward was worth Elinor's attentions to get to this (emphasis added):

How soon he had walked himself into the proper resolution, however, how soon an opportunity of exercising it occurred, in what manner he expressed himself, and how he was received, need not be particularly told. This only need to be said;- that when they all sat down to the table at four o'clock, about three hours after his arrival, he had secured his lady, engaged her mother's consent, and was not only in the rapturous profession of the lover, but, in the reality of reason and truth, one of the happiest of men.

NEED NOT BE PARTICULARLY TOLD?! Are you kidding me?! Why does Jane Austen hate me? 

I trust that the film adaptation will be much better and that Kate Winslet will inspire me to love Marianne and Emma Thompson will prove to be a perfect Elinor. But if I don't get a proposal scene, I'm done. 

Well, done until I move onto Pride and Prejudice, a title with so much adapted material, I shall be happily inundated with Austen for the rest of July.

Verdict: it wasn't for me, i don't recommend it, but do what you want

Who Has the Better Summer? Round 1: Summer Storms

I'm in the midst of my sixth summer in Chicago and starting to feel the twinges of homesickness that always pop up along with the sudden summer thunderstorms and tornado warnings. Chicago, like the rest of the Midwest, has severe summer weather, but not often enough for my taste.

I lived in Milwaukee briefly last year and was kind of lounging around listening to the news one morning, when I heard something about a "water spout on Lake Michigan." And a moment later, I realized, I live on Lake Michigan! (Literally - my apartment was across the street from the lakeshore.) And sure enough, a glance out my window was enough to see something completely new (to me) and fascinating.

Photo from the National Weather Service and WISN Studio via mlive.com. 

Read about the water spout here.

Severe summer weather captivates us because we're so close to but rarely ever in any real danger. (Please note that I do not live in Tornado Alley and while we have had our share of devastating tornadoes, they are rare.) And we're regularly reminded of the power of nature, of weather, in a Wisconsin summer. We crave and relish the summer thunderstorms while keeping an ear out for the sirens ushering us to the basement.

When severe weather strikes in Chicago, it's just not the same. I've never really lived somewhere with an enclosed porch. I've certainly never lived somewhere with more than a pocket-sized view of the sky. The ramifications of severe weather inconvenience us more in the city than they did in small-town or rural Wisconsin. Chicago thunderstorms inspire annoyance long before any sense of awe.

It's storming. It'll take me 45 minutes to get home by train/bus. Do I wait out the storm at work? Do I want to be on the train during the worst of the storm? Will I have to wait for the bus long? 

It's all much more tiring than fascinating when a thunderstorm strikes Chicagoland. Point Wisconsin.

What do you think, summer storms: yay or nay?

U-could-lele Class: Review

Last week, I took a super-basic introductory class to the ukulele. It was truly basic; the instructor didn't even flinch when I asked exactly how I'm supposed to strum (do i use my thumb... okay, she's using her nail... and now there's a pick... what is happening?) I was pretty frustrated for maybe the first hour of the class. Even though I went into it with low expectations, my brain just is not accustomed to not being able to do something. 

Slowly but surely though I started to kind of figure out what was going on. And that is 100% because the instructor, Frank, was fantastic. As a former high school music teacher, he was perfectly patient and attentive, able to pick up on everyone's learning style and offer appropriate feedback all around. He arrived at the space early and tuned everyone's instrument (remember: super beginners here) and set a very easy, calm atmosphere for the class.

Frank paced the class perfectly - it really felt more like I was hanging out with a friend of a friend, just learning the ukulele on a lark, which is really the best environment for someone who maybe gets a little anxious and worked up about things not going according to plan. (The "plan" being that I'd leave the class able to play the ukulele!) A small class (kind of Dabble's thing) allowed us to all feel comfortable with each other and to receive personalized attention from the instructor.

There's no reason someone like me, with no musical experience, should be able to just "pick up" the ukulele, I know. But with the foundation of this introductory class, I can commit to teaching myself. I left the class confident that I can spend the next three months practicing chord drills and tip-toeing into playing an actual song. 

Frank provided packets of useful information - chord drills, chords for popular songs, diagrams for different tuning, and then emailed that information to us all the next day, too. So, I am truly prepared to try to teach myself how to play the ukulele! Note: Hallelujah is a great song to use to learn with just four or five chords and it probably being something you've heard a hundred times or so.

U-could-lele: An Intro the Uke was offered through Dabble, a wonderful Chicago start-up you should all check out. Other class topics include: knitting, career advancement, stand-up comedy, craft beer, fencing... you name it, you'll find it! (You can also find Dabble in Milwaukee and Denver.)

Have you learned any new instruments as an adult? Any other new skills you had to really work at in the beginning?

Starting Sense and Sensibility

Both Summer of Austen and Project Ukulele took a back seat to another exciting adventure as I traveled to Boston last week to attend and celebrate my friend's successful defense of his dissertation. Congratulations, Dr. Dan!

Necessary champagne celebration! 

(Photo by Kristen P. via Facebook, as I managed to leave Boston without any pictures... again.)

While a flight is surely a perfect time for reading Austen, I needed to finish Lisa Randall's Knocking on Heaven's Door, in the hopes of establishing some sort of very basic understanding of physics. And it worked! On a very superficial level, I understood what Dan's research is about and was able to more fully appreciate his contribution to science. (So very proud of my friend.)

I found a little time for reading in Boston, while I was forcing myself to stay awake until dawn in sheer terror of a bird-size insect that had made its way into the house. That kind of free time demanded lighter reading and I dived into yet another Sookie Stackhouse novel (a series which I'm not even a little embarrassed to say I love).

And when my next chunk of free time popped up - five hours in Boston's Logan International Airport, it seemed much more pressing to re-watch some season six episodes of Doctor Who ("The Curse of the Black Spot," "The Impossible Astronaut," and "A Good Man Goes to War"), and then the first two episodes from season one of Bored to Death. (Note: that show makes me want to live in New York City, but not Manhattan - Brooklyn is so pretty.)

Okay - I boarded the flight (thank you, pre-boarding because of the boot) and finally resigned myself to starting Sense and Sensibility. Why was I fighting it? Maybe I knew how slow it was going to start. I'm only 15% or so in (oh Kindle, already shaping how I talk about books) and I'm so annoyed. Too many Dashwoods to keep track of. 

However, interspersed in this (I'm sure very important) novel set-up text are some moments of the Jane Austen I met in Northanger Abbey.

On every formal visit a child ought to be of the party, by way of provision for discourse. In the present case it took up ten minutes to determine whether the boy were most like his father or mother, and in what particular he resembled either, for of course every body differed, and every body was astonished at the opinion of others. (Jane Austen, Sense and Sensibility)

Oh, Jane Austen - speaking universal and persistent truths. How little social interactions have changed!

I'm pushing to finish this by Friday night so Anna and I can watch the Emma Thompson adaptation before it leaves Netflix Instant. 

Project Ukulele

Originally, I had assumed I'd only take on a new project after I finished one. And then my doctor sentenced me to six weeks in a walking boot to heal a stress fracture (that I had made significantly worse by "working through the pain" for several months). I'm taking my recovery seriously - better six weeks of no activity (even if it's the absolute best six weeks of the year to be a Chicagoan) than several more months of pain, or possible injury beyond repair.

As one of my most significant hobbies has been dance and dance-fitness, I now have an overwhelming amount of free time available. I love to read and I have been doing so much reading and writing - but my brain needs a break. From the written word, at least. (I have not given up on Summer of Austen! I'm starting Sense and Sensibility on my flight to Boston tomorrow night.)

I don't want to get too carried away with overlapping projects - and I realize not every undertaking in my life is a "project," but this one is worthy. Project Ukulele. Tonight, I will take my first ukulele class, really my first music class since compulsory elementary classes. The extent of my musical instrument experience is a four-month stint with the violin at age ten and the permanently etched memory of how to play "Mary had a Little Lamb" (3, 2, 1, 2, 3, 3, 3, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3...).

I was going to write in this paragraph about how nervous I am. But I'm really not. I watched some YouTube videos last night and practiced the basic chords. I have no doubt that the instructor and other participants will be lovely, welcoming people. (I'm taking the class through Dabble, a lovely Chicago start-up.) And if it doesn't go well, if I can't play the ukulele even after hours and hours of practice? All I've lost is somewhere around $60 and some time - worse things have happened.

Project Ukulele has a specific goal: "Moon River." (You recreate your favorite movie scenes and I'll recreate mine.)

It's not an overly ambitious goal, and I might not-so-secretly hope I can master the song in something closer to a month. But it's so new to me, I have no idea!

I make no promises for the quality of my singing though. Here's a sneak peek (ha, kidding - she's fantastic.)

Review of Northanger Abbey

I am not going to provide a long or detailed summary of Northanger Abbey. As I read this book with absolutely no idea what it was about, I recommend you do the same. If you desire a summary, read on...

Catherine Morland is the heroine of Austen's story, a sweet and naive girl of seventeen who ventures on her first extended stay from home with her friends, Mr. and Mrs. Allen. In Bath, Catherine and Mrs. Allen, after some delay, find society with which to pass their time. Catherine is adopted as a confidante by Isabella Thorpe, who turns out to be taken with Catherine's brother, James. Before long, James and his friend John Thorpe, Isabella's brother, arrive in Bath, and John is quite taken with Catherine. Catherine has no romantic interest in John Thorpe though and, as Isabella is busy in her annoying courtship with James Morland (wherein she consistently denies being interested or noticing the interest of her suitor), Catherine turns to Eleanor Tilney for friendship.

Incidentally, the young Miss Morland is rather intrigued by her new friend's brother, Henry Tilney.  This attention does not go unnoticed and everyone, except for the object of affection herself, recognizes there is competition for her attention. Catherine's naivete leads her to thinking everyone wants to be her friend and no one would employ trickery to woo her away. She, somewhat annoyingly at times, believes the best in everyone's intentions, despite the clarity to the reader that the entire Thorpe family is meddling in her affairs. Finally, she somewhat figures out Mr. Thorpe is trying to woo her and shuts him down. (Thanks, but no thanks - and he does come across as kind of creepy.)

From Bath, Catherine journies to Northanger Abbey with her new confidante, Eleanor. To our young heroine, Northanger Abbey is awash is mystery and... perhaps a tragedy? A scandal? Catherine's consumption of popular novels has sparked in her an imagination which is unsupported by all but the smallest details. It is so much like today's teenagers and their Twilight Justin Bieber fantasies that the reader often pauses to muse on the expected old saying: the more things change, the more they stay the same.

Ultimately, because it's Jane Austen, a few small scandals do arise and more than one person, including our heroine, is truly impacted. But they are small bumps in the road to a happy ending. 

Really, Jane Austen has written something of a soap opera here, though the quality of writing and our appreciation of classic literature elevates it to a "romantic comedy." Don't get me wrong - I loved it. The plot moved quickly, and while twists were pretty easily anticipated, there is genuine delight in the protagonist's constant surprise at finding out the blemished truth about the intentions of her acquaintances. Catherine Morland is adorable and identifiable. Who among us did not have daydreams rooted in literature or film in our teenage years?

One of my favorite aspects of the novel are the pages in which Austen breaks the wall and talks to us directly. The historian in me was delighted to learn there was something of a cultural debate going on about the appropriateness or intellectual level of novels. My summer is proving to be busier than anticipated, but I am hoping to dig into this a bit more in the near future. Isn't it amusing to think that Austen's level and intent of writing was demeaned by her contemporaries but now revered? 

Verdict: You'll tear through this Austen novel quickly, beach read worthy

Reading in 2012, June Update

One of my resolutions this year is to read 52 books, one per week. I have not done well with the one book per week aspect, but I've kept pace pretty well overall. We're finishing up our 24th week of the year and I have read 28 books (with three in progress). (Disclosure: four of those books were started in 2011.)

I know I still need to write about Northanger Abbey... the thing about book reviews, even informal reviews on blogs, is that you don't just write it. You have to sketch it out, think about it, do some research. I don't expect that even when I get around to it I will do a very good job with Northanger Abbey, but I hope it's decent and I hope I get better... and I hope I get going.


Goodreads profile: cassie on goodreads

Reading Northanger Abbey

Note: As I move through this project, I will write and publish posts as events unfold. But at this point, I have already finished Northanger Abbey and am about to start Sense and Sensibility. Posts will be more frequent now, to catch up.

The conversation about annual readings of Jane Austen novels fresh in my mind, I started Northanger Abbey on a whim Friday morning. All I knew about this novel, going into it, was that it had been made into a BBC miniseries which popped up in my Netflix recommendations all the time (presumably because of my viewings of Downton Abbey).

I was immediately struck by the humor. Jane Austen is sarcastic, y'all. I had no idea (which leads me to believe I have not been reading Emma very closely and that I will find it an entirely new experience this summer). I am going to credit my repeated viewings of BBC's Pride and Prejudice for developing my interest in actually reading Austen instead of skimming through for plot points.

Anyway... Northanger Abbey is, essentially, the story of a young, naive protagonist with a proclivity for creating fanciful daydreams while remaining blissfully unaware of some of the more obvious and actual plot developments in her own life. Catherine leaves home for an extended stay in Bath with her friends Mr. and Mrs. Allen and encounters all the exciting things a young girl should on her first stay away from her family: new friends, unwanted romantic pursuit, seemingly disinterested but very desired love interests, and something of a scandal (or two) for good measure.

In many ways, I feel like this is the first Austen novel I'm truly reading. Will this become my new favorite or will this improved comprehension and appreciation extend through the rest of my readings? I don't have any desire to replace Emma as my favorite novel, but I won't deny it if it should slip down the rankings a bit. (Well... this is all a bit premature.) 

I spent the rest of the hot summer weekend reading about Catherine's small adventure whenever I could. It's fair to say I was addicted to Austen this weekend, though I did not let her tempt me into staying home from all the summer street festivals Chicago is famous for. 

Happily, I finished the book Sunday evening, which is above all other days, my favorite time to finish a book. (What a satisfying end to a fantastic weekend!) I was a bit sad though to finish the story. The ending is remarkably rushed compared to the length dedicated to the first part. Catherine's time in Bath takes up nearly two-thirds of the tale, despite the title. 

Felicity Jones as Catherine Morland in the BBC's Northanger Abbey.

I am quite interested to see how the BBC adapted the novel for the screen as so much of the story takes place in the protagonist's own inner musings. Of course, this miniseries is no longer available on Netflix Instant View. Hopefully the library will have this available. (Or I suppose I will just have to purchase it - sadder things have happened.)

Summer of Austen Begins

When Clueless came out, DMC (my then-very-best-friend) and I were the very first people at the local theater for the very first showing. (This surely betrays my age a bit since we were allowed to go alone and did not need chaperones.) Of course, we then spent the entire summer quoting the film (as if!) and pining for a closet like Cher’s. 

Oh, how I wanted that yellow plaid skirt!

And so it came to be that my first Jane Austen novel was Emma. Truly, I did not fall in love with the book upon this reading. I’m not even certain that I finished it. This is not a story of an adolescent love affair with the love affairs of Jane Austen’s imagination. But I’ve always held on to the book, and I did re-read it sometime in college - at which time, I guess liked it.

And then I read it again. And again. And somewhere along the way, I realized that I truly love this book. Recently, I exaggerated to a friend that I read Emma every summer, in August. That’s not entirely true (confession!) But I have read it several times, and typically in the late summer: those hot, lazy days when reading in your home with the curtains drawn to plead for some kind of relief from the sun is about all you can manage to do. The idea of reading Austen annually triggered a romantic curiosity though, and an idea - surely, reading any Austen novel in the summer is an enjoyable way to pass the time.
And so begins my first three-month project: Summer of Austen. I have read Emma, of course, and Pride and Prejudice (though I’ve seen the BBC miniseries countless more times than I’ve read the novel). I have not read any other Austen novels though and really know little about her life and contemporaries, beyond common popular knowledge.

I will immerse myself in Austen for the next three months: her novels, film adaptations, biographies, contemporary and current reviews and criticisms. I will read (and watch) with the eye of a historian, an amateur literary critic, an easily amused hopeful romantic.
First up: Northanger Abbey.