tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post7438676781849415396..comments2024-03-22T05:18:29.555-04:00Comments on Romance Bandits: The Sound and RhythmLoucinda McGary aka Aunty Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02217492654108300014noreply@blogger.comBlogger58125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-84483357242083639462008-04-20T23:53:00.000-04:002008-04-20T23:53:00.000-04:00Caren, how I love you, let me count the ways.To me...Caren, how I love you, let me count the ways.<BR/><BR/><I>To me, skim-reading would be like sitting down to a gourmet dinner and just sniffing each succulent dish as it passes by. Or maybe chewing the food without swallowing.</I><BR/><BR/>Don't inhale. Don't swallow either. <I>(bar har har)</I>Keira Soleorehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14440213826734580889noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-52228521970575391532008-04-20T11:09:00.000-04:002008-04-20T11:09:00.000-04:00Jo, my son never did learn to ride a bike, he also...Jo, my son never did learn to ride a bike, he also has tremors and other apraxic symptoms and balance is just not his forte. Math is killing us, even though he is special ed geometry is still necessary to his graduation and we have been fighting an "F" the whole semester.hrdwrkdmom aka Diannahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12520769151419586319noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-68153053619775494052008-04-20T04:57:00.000-04:002008-04-20T04:57:00.000-04:00Jo, my younger daughter, at 14, was just diagnosed...Jo, my younger daughter, at 14, was just diagnosed with Asperger's (in addition to bipolar disorder) and she sounds very much like your grandson. Let's just say that she has a very unique way of tying her shoes, but is incredibly gifted in other areas, which include her imagination. She usually does well on tests over regular classwork and is better at science and languages than math. The minds of these kids are fascinating places!Margay Leah Justicehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15490126898758440254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-5210826272401678292008-04-20T02:25:00.000-04:002008-04-20T02:25:00.000-04:00Wow! Are you kidding, Caren! I wouldn't have ima...Wow! Are you kidding, Caren! I wouldn't have imagined you'd have a 12 year old, much less a 22 year old!<BR/>Happy b-day to him and you!<BR/><BR/>And thanks for the fun topic! It's grand chatting with you, as always! :)Fedorahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10879033776125666713noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-14566941278112921282008-04-19T23:28:00.000-04:002008-04-19T23:28:00.000-04:00Thanks for commenting today, guys. Have to have th...Thanks for commenting today, guys. Have to have the girls at church at 8:00 ET, so I had better hit the hay!<BR/><BR/>By the way, today was my son's 22nd birthday. Dang, am I getting old or <I>what</I>?Caren Cranehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12352366686017375279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-57326743582214260202008-04-19T23:26:00.000-04:002008-04-19T23:26:00.000-04:00Jo, I'll bet your grandson is great fun to be with...Jo, I'll bet your grandson is great fun to be with! For all the challenges in raising an autistic child, I think the insight you gain into how we process the endless amount of information we are bombarded with every day is priceless. <BR/><BR/>Most of us have brains that process WAY more information than we ever realize. We take so much for granted. Being able to communicate our thoughts is a huge one. Imagine having profound thoughts and being unable to speak to anyone about them? It must be incredibly frustrating for the autistic child as well as the family, teachers, etc. <BR/><BR/>We are lucky they know so much more today than they did when your grandson was born, Jo. Just imagine the strides they might make in his lifetime!Caren Cranehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12352366686017375279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-73807311911408464012008-04-19T23:22:00.000-04:002008-04-19T23:22:00.000-04:00I am shocked no one has refuted my assertion that ...I am shocked no one has refuted my assertion that the Hedge Hog is the best set of electric hedge trimmers around! Are there no fans of gas-powered hedge trimmers on board? *g* <BR/><BR/>I also have an electric leaf blower I love. I chose it mainly because it's so much quieter than the gas-powered ones. If you're going to go deaf in order to have a clean-looking driveway and pool patio, might as well give yourself a fighting chance, I always say. <BR/><BR/>I'm kind of bummed that I can't work in the yard tomorrow. I need to hack down the Rose Of Sharon and a couple of butterfly bushes, but have to go with some of my Girl Scouts to a rowing event. They are learning to crew. Should be fun! <BR/><BR/>They would never let me be coxswain, though. I'm far too tall and heavy. But man, could I give some orders! *g*Caren Cranehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12352366686017375279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-61339266042005172782008-04-19T23:04:00.000-04:002008-04-19T23:04:00.000-04:00Jo, I feel for Shannon! My dh and I have had quite...Jo, I feel for Shannon! My dh and I have had quite a few intense conversations because he cannot allow himself to defer to my sense of direction. He is just stubborn, though. *g* Oh, okay, we're a whole house full of stubborn! Our poor children got a double dose. The most mule-headed children in the universe! Of course, they got it from their daddy. *eg*<BR/><BR/>Tell Shannon I feel her pain!Caren Cranehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12352366686017375279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-30136480508928583262008-04-19T23:01:00.000-04:002008-04-19T23:01:00.000-04:00Beth, that's a great example! I have the same prob...Beth, that's a great example! I have the same problem with some of the grosser things I've read. The picture is in my mind for-ev-er. Ack! <BR/><BR/>When someone I know prefaces a story with a comment like, "If you don't like booger talk, don't listen to this", I have to cover my ears and give them a "la, la, la" until I'm out of earshot. <BR/><BR/>The image of Stimpy's booger garden (which he showed off one time on Ren & Stimpy with the tagline, "I picked these myself!") has haunted me all these years!!Caren Cranehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12352366686017375279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-42658603684858559862008-04-19T22:08:00.000-04:002008-04-19T22:08:00.000-04:00Caren, I may have mentioned this before (or at lea...Caren, I may have mentioned this before (or at least thought it LOL), but you remind me a lot of my oldest daughter Shannon. She has the highest spatial intelligence I've ever seen in a woman. Must get it from her dad. <BR/><BR/>It's funny to watch her and her husband because she NEVER gets lost and he does quite frequently, but he's just stubborn enough not to listen to her. You'd think he'd learn, huh?jo robertsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16824237193217632098noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-32453713905407805712008-04-19T22:03:00.000-04:002008-04-19T22:03:00.000-04:00Dianna, my grandson also is autistic, 10 yo, and c...Dianna, my grandson also is autistic, 10 yo, and can't tie his shoes. I think with shoe-typing, it's the idea of missing the window of opportunity. He just barely learned to ride a bike. <BR/><BR/>He's high functioning (Asperger's), but has a highly imaginative inner life, is the highest reader in his mainstreamed 4th grade class, but the lowest in math skills. Very disparate abilities. He's a little high maintenance and intense, but of course we think he's wonderful!<BR/><BR/>They are fascinating little guys!jo robertsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16824237193217632098noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-68388211476963538282008-04-19T19:08:00.000-04:002008-04-19T19:08:00.000-04:00Great topic, Caren! I'm a true reader and I'm very...Great topic, Caren! I'm a true reader and I'm very visual in reading and in life. I often picture things in my head - which is why I hate it when someone tells me something I'd rather NOT see like when Grandma Mazur in the Stephanie Plum novels starts talking about sex *ggg*Beth Andrewshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01204356784898045866noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-65494945633120073012008-04-19T16:56:00.000-04:002008-04-19T16:56:00.000-04:00Okay, here is a completely unsolicited and probabl...Okay, here is a completely unsolicited and probably unwelcome rave: the Black & Decker Hedge Hog electric hedge trimmer is the best hedge trimmer I've ever owned! <BR/><BR/>If you're like me and the bushes you trim could probably benefit from a chain saw, get the Hedge Hog. It eats through those suckers! <BR/><BR/>I have become quite familiar with mine this afternoon and will no doubt be spending more time with it in the weeks to come. Now, if they'd just invent something that will go behind me and pick up the trimmings...Caren Cranehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12352366686017375279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-51384985844324316172008-04-19T16:53:00.000-04:002008-04-19T16:53:00.000-04:00Dianna, that's interesting about the unfocusing yo...Dianna, that's interesting about the unfocusing your eyes thing. I've done that when searching for four-leaf clovers, just search for the ones that don't fit the pattern. But it's something I've learned to do. My mother can look at a patch of clover, lean over and simply pluck a four-leafer. It's natural for her!Caren Cranehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12352366686017375279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-89010746270653890092008-04-19T16:52:00.000-04:002008-04-19T16:52:00.000-04:00Oh, Anna, I wish I had seen the adaptation of the ...Oh, Anna, I wish I had seen the adaptation of the Linda Howard. I have noticed the same thing with adaptations of romance novels. Kick up the action so it's actually <I>interesting</I>. Otherwise, it can be dull to watch people angst, no matter how fascinating it was to read!<BR/><BR/>Interesting you mentioned The English Patient. That is my bff's absolute favorite movie of all time. I liked it well enough, but wasn't as swept away as she was. I typically have trouble with adulterers and people so selfish they will betray their country to save one person. But that's just me. *g* I loved Kip and his little side romance with Juliette Binoche. Of course, then they separate and who knows if they'll ever meet again?<BR/><BR/>She also loves the book which I TRIED to read, I promise! Dull, dull, dull. Again, the bff adored the book. Our tastes in books are quite different. *g*Caren Cranehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12352366686017375279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-13701228800058354702008-04-19T15:37:00.000-04:002008-04-19T15:37:00.000-04:00I think the thing that amazes with my son is there...I think the thing that amazes with my son is there are some things he is absolutely brilliant, but he can't tie his shoes. He can play a video game and beat it (just for the record, I can't even get past the first level of a child's video)but when asked how much I pay for groceries per month he said 30.00. You never know what is happening inside his head, he has "parroting" down to an art. It took me a while to catch on (yes, mom can be and often is slow)I was all excited thinking he was initiating conversations until it dawned on me he was listening to conversations between me and whoever and then coming in the room and talking about the very thing we had been discussing. He is very clever in his own way. It is fascinating the way his mind works, or as best I can tell his mind is working, sometimes he just throws me for a loop. Patrick is considered mid functioning.hrdwrkdmom aka Diannahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12520769151419586319noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-74803504905678490212008-04-19T15:19:00.000-04:002008-04-19T15:19:00.000-04:00Caren, it did help in the school work and it helpe...Caren, it did help in the school work and it helped when I was in customer service big time, I could read through comments on an account like a house afire. <BR/>I do have a tendency to read faster when I get to exciting parts in a book and I have had to back up a couple of sentences. Like I said before it kind of "sounds" like static when I go so fast I read it wrong. It is really kind of weird now that I think about it.LOL<BR/>It is a case of just retraining yourself. I can read through work documents in a matter of minutes but depending on the book it might take me a half hour to read three to four pages, or more exactly where I am in a book. <BR/>It does help working with the numbers, another thing I have learned to do is basically "unfocus" my eyes when searching for a particular number or set of numbers. It just jumps right out at me.hrdwrkdmom aka Diannahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12520769151419586319noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-49131216603465805982008-04-19T14:47:00.000-04:002008-04-19T14:47:00.000-04:00Caren, I'm most definitely an immerse yourself gir...Caren, I'm most definitely an immerse yourself girl. Which is why I too hate most films of books I've liked. The English Patient was an exception but that's because while they took the skeletal structure of the story and the characters, the movie and the book are completely different and have completely different aims. Movie - grand romantic drama. Book - meditation on colonialism. I generally love the BBC adaptations, though, because as you so perceptively said, they unwind at the pace of reading, almost. And they include all that detail that often a movie has to imply or gloss over quickly. I think a screenplay is usually about 100/120 pages, isn't it? I'm currently on a book that's 900 pages! Of course one will offer a richer, more detailed experience, unless the screenplay is VERY good!Anna Campbellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06695579361323275316noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-82142684607118070992008-04-19T14:40:00.000-04:002008-04-19T14:40:00.000-04:00Ooh, Shannyn! That rooster is a handful! Treat him...Ooh, Shannyn! That rooster is a handful! Treat him right and he always comes back to visit. Ask Fedora! And Kirsten - define 'familiar'. Bwahahahahaha!<BR/><BR/>Caren, I think you and TICD have a point about romances. People who aren't really readers always ask me when my books will be movies. But I can't see either becoming an effective movie (oh, that I should have the chance to knock back an offer, though!). The most important action is internal, emotional, cerebral. Well, apart from the sex! And movies rely on action to make their point. I've even noticed when they do adapt a romance, the emotional arc gets simplified or cut to the point sometimes of nonexistence and they either punch up or put in new outside action. Makes it a completely different experience (just watched the adaptation of Loving Evangeline by Linda Howard, so this is something high in my mind at the moment). In the book, those characters are struggling with really big internal issues and that's the main focus. The suspense plot is really a strategy to get them together emotionally. In the movie, the suspense plot was far and away the major element of the story.Anna Campbellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06695579361323275316noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-41672168599045475962008-04-19T12:26:00.000-04:002008-04-19T12:26:00.000-04:00Suz, does that drive people you know nuts? 'Cause ...Suz, does that drive people you know nuts? 'Cause my husband gloms onto accents like that and it's fairly insanity-inducing for me. *g* <BR/><BR/>Interestingly, though, he is TERRIBLE at languages. I, on the other hand, pick them up quickly and easily. Even after 10 days in Switzerland, he couldn't remember the names for common things like the railway and bathroom in German. I got tired of having to tell him a million times what every sign said! *g*Caren Cranehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12352366686017375279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-48616176079571634522008-04-19T12:24:00.000-04:002008-04-19T12:24:00.000-04:00Jo, I'm sure the spatial intelligence thing is typ...Jo, I'm sure the spatial intelligence thing is typically stronger in men. However, in our house, I have keener spatial intelligence than my husband (who has a master's degree in electrical engineering). <BR/><BR/>My father and grandfather did carpentry and I totally "get" how things work together. Trusses, statics, strength of materials and all that mechanical jazz. My husband doesn't have that. He has an incredible capacity to think through very complicated systems and keep it all straight in his head. Me, not so much.<BR/><BR/>I am not very visual, but I remember how things are oriented in relation to each other. I know if something has moved or shifted, but couldn't necessarily tell you what it was. I can look at a map and remember how all the streets are oriented in relation to one another. I also have a great ability to take what I know of existing roads and project where they come out. I love to find alternate routes everywhere - it drives my husband crazy! <BR/><BR/>For him to use his GPS, he HAS to have a street address. Without it, the GPS is pointless. The coolest thing to me was standing on the top of a mountain in the Interlaken region of Switzerland and getting an aerial view of Interlaken, Lake Thun and Lake Brienz on our left, then the mountain valleys that led toward Kandersteg and Adelboden, respectively, on our right. It gave us a complete orientation of the region we had been touring for a WEEK in about two minutes. Amazing!Caren Cranehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12352366686017375279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-25963051773383107422008-04-19T11:58:00.000-04:002008-04-19T11:58:00.000-04:00Dianna, since you're son is autistic, it's no wond...Dianna, since you're son is autistic, it's no wonder he can't "picture" what he's reading. Autism is incredibly fascinating. I think they have learned more about how the brain works studying autism and Alzheimer's than any other way. Brain science is SO COOL! <BR/><BR/>Okay, that doesn't make it easier to deal with, but it IS fascinating. One of my friends has a profoundly autistic son and one has a son with Asperger Syndrome. Two totally opposite ends of the spectrum, but the parallels and challenges of each are interesting.<BR/>I hadn't thought about the picturing words connection there. This has turned into quite an educational topic!Caren Cranehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12352366686017375279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-5694216253081389402008-04-19T11:56:00.000-04:002008-04-19T11:56:00.000-04:00Caren, Nora's Irish series really brought home thi...Caren, Nora's Irish series really brought home this hearing the books to me. When she was in the Irish character's POV I heard Ireland, even in the description of the land and countryside. When she was in the American's POV, it sounded very American.<BR/><BR/>Probably why I love Scottish set historicals, especially if the writer manages to actually find the Scottish cadence in their writing, like Sandy Blair does. AND OMG...the Johanna Lindsey book that starts out with a thick brogue between three clansmen...I was talking with an accent for days!Suzanne Ferrellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05761579189372602292noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-80402657867863804262008-04-19T11:52:00.000-04:002008-04-19T11:52:00.000-04:00Dina, that's really interesting. I never in a mill...Dina, that's really interesting. I never in a million years would have thought of listening to the movie soundtrack while reading the book. That is a cool concept! I'll bet that would have really jazzed up 'Cold Mountain'. That was a book my husband adored that I found slo-o-o-w and highly unsatisfying in so many ways. My husband, though, is both a man and a history buff, so he was in Heaven! <BR/><BR/>Yep, the soundtrack could have helped that one. Thinking of Jude Law couldn't have hurt, either. *g*Caren Cranehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12352366686017375279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-47430194471584123992008-04-19T11:49:00.000-04:002008-04-19T11:49:00.000-04:00Suz, that's awesome that you hear all the voices. ...Suz, that's awesome that you hear all the voices. I do too! Especially the accents. I've read a couple of J.D. Robb's recently (love those) and Roarke is so delightfully Irish! Eve has a flat, NY-inflected voice, thanks to her many years in NYC. Peabody is pure midwestern. <BR/><BR/>I don't enjoy being "read to", either, Suz. I never thought that was why, but maybe it's just that the voice they choose doesn't match the voices in my head. I like that! <BR/><BR/>I think, too, books on tape are hard for me because there is no pause for me to process what I heard. I'm not primarily an auditory learner - I'm a bit visual and auditory, but prefer and kinesthetic component. So, sitting in class listening to a lecture with a teacher who writes on a chalkboard while I take notes is OPTIMAL learning environment for me. I was a teacher's dream!Caren Cranehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12352366686017375279noreply@blogger.com