I Don't Believe David Archuleta Is The Lord's American Idol, But I Love Annette Lyon's New Book

A young woman practically just barely out of her teens raising a son as a single mother, struggles to overcome tragedy, gets an education, starts a career and eventually buys her own business with hopes of providing well for her son. She then meets a good man, and after several encounters sometimes poignant, sometimes comedic, falls in love with him, and he with her, and now she has to make peace with the ghosts of her past to find lasting happiness.

Sounds like a plot for a cable channel drama? Or perhaps a starting premise for a weekly show on network TV? No, it's not, but isn't the theme so contemporary that it could be the story of the woman who lives two doors down from you, right now in 2009 instead of a character in a Mormon historical novel set in the 1880's?

This fascinating character was what/who kept me reading Annette Lyon’s new book “Tower of Strength”. This character is Tabitha, a woman so ahead of her time that she is timeless and thus relevant. Not your typical damsel in distress, waiting for her prince to sweep her off her feet (even though she wears flowers on her hair :-D). Rather she has smarts, courage, independence, and occasional spunk. She is someone I want to identify with, and be like, even though she is from a time full of women whose lives I would not wish for myself or my daughter.  I want to emulate their strength of character and the depth of their faith, but I do not want to live stifled by the physical and social limitations of their time in history. It is against this historical backdrop that Tabitha becomes a character so interesting I read a Mormon historical novel for the very first time ever. And can you tell I liked what I read?

I have never read Mormon novels before Annette's book. Nah. In fact, I stayed away from Mormon novels. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with reading them per se, but I just refused to read them. Maybe I’m an oddball, or maybe I’m just not that kind of Mormon. You know the kind who thinks David Archuleta is the Lord’s American Idol (and don't get me started on The Osmonds!). The same kind who thinks the BYU Cougars are the Lord’s football team (Hello! People, did you even go to BYU?) , and Mitt Romney was the righteous choice for president whose divine destiny was frustrated by the evils of men, and reading Mormon novels with blatant Mormon themes written by Mormon authors is righteousness to the max because it keeps you untainted by the world unlike novels by non-LDS authors. Okay, I exaggerate. Maybe there are really no Mormons who are that way, but I’ve met a few who are pretty close. That kind of Mormon scares me. You see for me, there’s the gospel, and there’s the Mormon culture. Not the same things. Refusing to read Mormon-themed novels was maybe my way of ensuring I do not confuse my faith with the culture.

Then one day, Annette asked me to join her book blog tour. I profusely thanked her and told her I was excited. I was. Truly I was. She is an award winning author and she is asking me to read her book and write about it? I was honored, but I was also worried sick. What if I have nothing good to say not because it's an awful book but liking or not liking a book is subjective? What if I’ll think it’s cheesy and all-warm-and-fuzzy-ooohwey-goohwey? Would I lie to keep everyone happy, or would I tell the truth and make everyone hate me?

That turned out to be such an unnecessary trepidation. I speed-read through her book in hours not just becasue I'm a speed-reader since grade school but I was riveted and somewhat surprised. ANNNETTE’s BOOK IS GREAT! It is so well written it melted away my prejudice against Mormon novels and allowed me to enjoy a genre I’ve never tried before. I liked it so much I am recommending it to the book club an RS leader has asked me to organize and start for our ward. To whet your appetite for the book, here’s a video trailer. Go ahead and watch if you have not already.




To save you some time, I’ve turned off the COMMENTS for this post because I’d rather you go here to buy the book.

And if you want to know more about Annette go stalk her here.

"Mental Junk" Drawer: Bloggernacle, FaceBooking With My Bishop, Etc.

Lisa from AwayFromItAll suggested in the past to link my Mental Junk Drawer post to Friday Fragments at Half-Past Kissin' Time so I'm doing it this week... ENJOY!

I want to give my props to Heidi of Dunhaven Place, famous blogger and successful author of the Miss Delacourt Speaks Her Mind novel who honors me with her blog visits now and again. She let me know that my previous post made it to the Bloggernacle at Mormontimes.com. I was really touched that she made time to inform me despite her crazy blogging life (have you read this post? whew!) I would have never known about the nod from Bloggernacle had Heidi not told me because I would have never thought to look. I mean, com'on! Me and my post? Getting some love on Bloggernacle? I'm not being falsely modest when I say there cannot possibly be an acknowledgement more unexpected. And I would have never thought of searching for any kudos floating out there for me, so "Thanks Heidi!" It would have been a shame for me to miss such a feel-good moment. I've never met Heidi in person, but I am not surprised by the kind gesture. Her identical twin sister lives down the street from me, and she is one classy lady. Since as I said they are identical twins it goes without saying Heidi must be a classy lady, too.

Of course I also want to thank Emily W. Jensen for selecting my post. It made me feel like maybe I don't --you know--stink up the blogging world. "Emily Jensen aggregates topics of interest found around the bloggernacle in her column “Bloggernacle Back Bench,” which appears on MormonTimes.com on Tuesdays. She also compiles a list of blogs she likes every weekday." ... So I'm feeling a bit legit right now :-) I'd say since she picked my post about my mother-in-law and made Mom in effect "famous" then Emily might have just secured my place in Mom's will. Mom says she has none but just in case! You never know what's under mom's mattress.

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Okay. Big decision I made this week. I opened FaceBook and what did I see? Well, I wish it was pop-corn popping on the apricot tree, but No! It was a friend-request on FaceBook from my Bishop (pastor) !!!! Don't get me wrong. We have a very nice bishop. I have not known him long enough because we came from pieces of 2 wards (congregations) that were carved out and attached to another ward when our stake (diocese?) was re-zoned. He and his wife seem like such nice folks. But still! My bishop on FaceBook? As my friend? And did I say he came from my mother's ward and knows my mother very well? What if he tattles on me, or bishops me around on the internet? I had to think about that friend-request. I thought --- can I still say things like "Hugh Jackman is a hottie-patootie" to my friends if I know my bishop can read such non-sense? Hmmm. Should I be inhibited in my own space and feel like I have to always be in good girl mode? But if I ignore his request, next time I see him in church would be AWK.WARD. Arrrgh! What's a girl to do???? Well, the girl felt she didn't have a choice but to click "confirm" and is now Facebook friends with the Bishop. I tell myself it's not going to be uncomfortable at all. I'm sassy but wholesome (says my friends). Bratty but nice (says my husband). And if Bishop W can read me say "Hugh Jackman is a hottie-patootie," then there's a chance I will also see his non-bishoppy side, right? Maybe he'll slip and say something like, "That Angelina Jolie is --insert cheeky description here--!" So I think Bishop W should be the one watching out :-) Yay!

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Obama's gaffe. Tsk! Tsk! I say forgive the guy for his joke on the Special Olympics. You can't hold him responsible for what he says without a teleprompter. Plus he did some good this week like his e-harmony-ish video for Iran. I totally expect the Iranians to now give up their nuclear program, and start dancing on the streets while singing "Age of Aquarius". If they don't and start bombing Israel instead, then at least Prez Obama can say he gave the e-harmony strategy a chance.

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Have you seen this amazing dancing bird? He sure made his owner proud and made her a YouTube sensation. What a great pet. I looked at my dog, Jake, as he lazily flopped himself at my feet and asked, "What have you done for Mommy lately, Jake?" He just gave me that "I'm too cool to be used"-look (same look my son sometimes gives me). That's it. I'm switching you to the cheap dog food, you spoiled brat. Anyway, enjoy Frostie the Dancing Bird shaking it to Ray Charles.

Celebrating The Irish On St. Patrick’s Day, Also Known As Weasel-ing My Way Into My Mother-In-Law’s Will

I have always wanted to give my mother-in-law some bloggy love, but never felt like I had the opportunity to. For some time now I have wanted to post about her and celebrate the wonderful person that she is here in my blog, but I just didn’t think I could do it on any of her special days, such as her birthday, or on mother’s day because she has sons and daughters and grandchildren (all related by blood, not just by marriage) who are bloggers. I didn’t want to detract from their tribute to Mom by doing my own thing. It just seems rather obvious that I’m trying to get a cut of the inheritance improper. It’s like the mother of the groom getting too involved in the planning of the wedding reception. It’s okay to a certain point, but you can go too far and start stepping on the bride's and bride's mother's toes.

However, St Patrick’s Day is open season for honoring the Irish, so this is the day I pick to honor my mother in law. Because she is Irish. Not the kind of Irish who descended from some passenger on some ancient ship which docked in the New World and whose children and grandchildren married Norwegians, Italians, Cherokee Indians, etc. but a hundred years later the descendants still claim to be Irish, because they like the happy-hour at Irish pubs? Or it's cool to be Irish on St Patrick's Day? No. She is not that kind of Irish. She is the born in Ireland kind of Irish, the kind who actually grew up in Ireland and has a Belfast-accent, got married (to an Englishman) in Ireland, lived in Ireland and gave birth to the first three of her six children in Ireland. Yes, that’s the kind of Irish my mother in law is. So since St. Patrick’s Day is the day we celebrate Irish traditions, then it is the day I celebrate and honor my favorite Irish: my mother in law.

My husband's mom is the best mother in law you can wish upon any daughter in the world. Believe me I know what I’m talking about. As a kid I lived through the carnage and devastation of World Wars III, IV, V, etc., which broke out between my mother and grandmother (my dad’s mom) throughout my grandmother’s life. Both women were wonderful women except to each other and they love me, and I love them. But do you know how difficult it was to have two people I love despise each other? I grew up dreading the thought of ever having a mother-in-law of my own. So when I say I have the world’s best mother-in-law, I am somewhat of an expert on the subject.

There are a million reasons why I love my mother in law also known as my Mom (my mother is known as my Mama), but here are just a few of the major ones:

1. Mom raised a wonderful son to become a loving, supportive, thoughtful, considerate, devoted husband---my husband. The kind of husband who irons his own shirts, goes grocery shopping, takes care of the dog and the kids (not necessarily in that order), takes his turn at cooking, cleaning the kitchen and other house work without feeling emasculated. The kind of husband who often lets me sleep in on weekends, and even brings me breakfast to bed, then makes a bath for me. The kind of husband who tells me I work hard all week, too, so he’ll take care of me because he wants to and he can. That kind of husband was once a boy being raised by a mother. A good mother. The mother who became my mother-in-law.

2. Mom is someone who loves being a Grandma. She lets me be the parent and never interferes with how I am raising her grandchildren. She is enjoying being Granma so much she has no time to worry about my parenting skills. She is a fun Granma and her grandchildren love her. They enjoy talking to her on the phone and are very excited when she comes to California to visit. I am truly grateful that they have her in their life, someone who loves them unconditionally, someone who is genuinely interested in who they are and who they are becoming, someone who dependably holds that warm blanket of grandmotherly love and security around them.

3. Mom treats me like her own and taught me how to make “sody-n-taty” (soda and potato bread) so my family can enjoy a complete Ulster Fry,--that's the extended family's (my husband and kids included) favorite Irish breakfast. Well, favorite breakfast. Period. I am really honored she taught me because, first of all, I am one of those women who are culinary-challenged. Second of all, I am Filipino and do not have a drop of Irish in me to make me a natural at making “sody-n-taty” and Ulster Fry. But my mother-in-law taught me anyway when I asked her to. This is what Ulster Fry looks like. It is sinfully yummy so I secretly call it the Cardiac-Arrest Fry. Secretly because I don’t want to ruin my husband's and children’s enjoyment of their full Irish breakfast by thinking of cholesterol. We don't have it often so it is always a treat and it's okay for treats to be swimming in cholesterol-rich fat :-)

4. Mom is my role model for “growing smart, not old”. She loves to learn new skills. She is better at using the computer than a lot of women her age that I know. I love it when Mom calls me at work to ask me to walk her through a feature of a Microsoft Office program because she needs to learn it to complete a new project. Or when she calls my husband to ask him about installing and using her new computer video-editing software. I am impressed and amazed that she is not one of these stubborn “mature citizens” who think that technology is the curse of humanity and are disdainful of new ways of doing things. She is simply just one of the girls, an active participant in the family’s popular hobby of blogging and was even on FaceBook before me. How cool of a Mom/Granma is she!

5. Mom has a wonderful sense of humor. Dad (my father in law) may be the recognized stand-up comic/entertainer of the family, but Mom is just as witty and pretty darn funny. Mom is my role model on how to deal with life’s little irritations with humor. The last time she and Dad came to visit, Mom had a problem with her leg and had a hard time getting in and out of the car. It seemed like there was a big ritual to get her in and out. Dad had to literally lift her legs over and out of the car for her to get up. It started to make me feel depressed that Mom had to deal with this problem until I heard and saw Mom laughing her head off because she managed to make her husband’s task of lifting her “frozen” legs out of the car a cheeky affair. Pretty soon they were both giggling like silly teen-agers in the back of my car, and I was like, “Mom! Dad! You are on my driveway! The neighbors might start wondering what you are doing in the backseat of the car! Sheesh!”

I can go on and on with this list for awhile, but I’m sure you don’t have the time. If I made you curious about my mother-in-law, visit her blog here (Irish I’s). It’s a family blog but I don’t think she’d mind, and it's not private.

And if you haven’t had enough Irish for the day, here’s my half-Irish husband visiting his Mom’s birthplace last summer with our quarter-Irish :-) daughter, in front of Dunluce Castle near Port Rush.

(For more photos from the trip to Northern Ireland click here.)

How about you? Do you get along with your mother-in-law or is she your monster-in-law?

I'll Dance Around The World!

Someday Alan and I are going to do what this guy did. Alan, the proper man that he is, probably won't do the goofy dancing part (except when we get to Papua New Guinea then, heck, I'll make him !) Someday --- when we finally make it out of the financial rubble inflicted by feeding, clothing, sheltering, socializing and college-educating our kids---we'll travel the world!

It's good to have dreams... It makes growing old, retiring, and turning into the "old people" at family gatherings bearable :-) Just as long as I can dance around the world before then, so I'll have plenty of memories to occupy my time as I maneuver my walker or sit in my rocking chair at the nursing home.

Oh, yeah. My husband says I have to get over my extreme distaste for flying and digging my nails into his arm when there's turbulence before we can do it. I forgot about that. Hmm. I'll make it happen. I know I can. Plus we're already off to a good start. Between the two of us we can already check off about a dozen of the places they show on this clip. So, "Hello, USA. Hello, World"!