Beauty is Pain

Moving in together has certainly been a learning experience - especially for Kurt who now gets to witness all the steps it takes for a woman to get ready. Every once in awhile he'll watch me and make comments. Like Friday for instance, when I was painting my nails and he stated, "I'm going to die if we don't open a window." Not too dramatic. Today, though, was the best. I was curling my eyelashes and, when he saw what I was doing, asked me to do his. I'm aware that most men, including Kurt, regard eyelash curlers as torture devices. But I didn't expect his reaction. Before I even got near him, he backed up and said "Ow!" When I responded that I didn't even do anything yet, he said "It's scary!" I have to wonder if this is why men don't preen as much as women do. Maybe they just don't handle "torture" as well as we do.

We went to a friend's wedding this weekend at Grounds for Sculpture in Hamilton, NJ. It's an outdoor sculpture garden in the middle of a large corporate park. It's the last place on Earth you'd expect to find something so beautiful and cultured. I think that's part of the appeal. The ceremony itself was breathtaking. It took place in a little garden with statues all around. It was sweet and unique - they released butterflies before saying their vows while Japanese tourists peered in and snapped photos. At the reception, there was a photo booth which I LOVED. I love the cheesy, goofy pictures that come out of those things. There really should be more of them in public places. I think they bring out the best in people.

Right now, as I'm typing, Kurt is watching Whale Wars. I have to say, this show makes me very angry. It's about a boat of people that go around terrorizing whaling ships. First of all, terrorists are terrorists in my book, no matter the cause. It's just not the way things should be done. They disgust me, frankly. Second of all, these whalers are hunting whales LEGALLY! These anti-whalers are so self-righteous that they don't seem to realize that THEY are the ones who are in the wrong. I understand their point - that hunting whales is sad, and it definitely should be regulated. But the thing is - it IS regulated, by international law. These whalers are hunting whales for food, just like the people who catch crabs or fish. It would be different if they were hunting endangered whales, or poaching. But they're not. The people on this ship throw chemical "bombs" onto the whaling ships, plant their people onto the whaling ships and claim the whalers are holding them hostage. Then proceed to call the press and make them seem like the bad guys. People like this really get me fired up. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for the regulation of hunting and guns and I believe we should work to conserve wildlife and the environment, but this is going too far. There are ways to get things done, ways to change laws and people. This is just not it. There are also so many other things in this world we should be focused on - legal whale hunting is not one of them.

On my nightstand:

I finished The Secret Life of Bees and it was amazing. I can't wait for my book club discussion! Please go read it if you haven't already.

I'm now on All We Ever Wanted Was Everything. I have to say I'm not impressed so far. The cover is awesome. I love it, but so far, that's about all I love. It's taking me awhile to get into it and I'm just not that patient anymore. I'll stick it out and maybe it'll surprise me. I'll let you know. But I've realized that since I started working at Random House and because I now read so many books (at least one a week), I'm much more critical than I ever was. I can count on one hand the number of books I've put down without finishing. I HATE not finishing a book. I always think it'll get better. Maybe the next page will hook me. Or the next. Most of the time, my hopes are dashed when I get to the last page and am still disappointed. But since starting at RH, I have developed a more critical eye. I guess it's to be expected. Here's hoping All We Ever Wanted Was Everything is everything I want - a good book. I'll update when I finish.