Hair

My hair and I have not always gotten along with each other. For most of my adult life (and indeed, for most of my childhood too) I have had a hair stylist - someone to serve as mediator between me and my hair. I got my first perm in fourth grade. Eventually (which is to say a decade later) I realized that rather than giving me thick, wavy hair, perms made me look like a poodle. A poodle with fine, thin hair. In college, I switched my focus to hair dye. I wanted to be a red-head. Eventually (which is to say five years later) I realized that red hair dye fades so much that my roots never looked much different from the dyed parts. I was paying more money than I care to think about to dye my shower water. When we moved to the Chicago area, I still had a stylist, because I couldn't quite shake the notion that my hair was unusually bad and needed really expensive attention to make it acceptable. But when that stylist tried to convince me that highlights and lowlights were just what I needed to make my hair seem thicker, I stood firm and refused.

Moving to CollegeTown was the tipping point. We cancelled Netflix, found the cheapest internet plan possible, got rid of our cell phones. We were making all of these changes for financial reasons that turned out not to be that hard to live with. How could I possibly justify a $40 haircut? So I went to Great Clips. And overall, it's been good. Some of my cuts have just been serviceable, but one of my haircuts there ranked among my best haircuts ever.

Which brings me to last Sunday, when the only angst I felt about heading to Great Clips was over the fact that I never have anything to talk about with the 20-year-olds who work there. I dropped in without an appointment, like I always do, and I told the first-available stylist the same thing I always do: "I'd like a bob, about jaw-length. A little bit of layering to add some volume." She asked, "Do you want it to be shorter in the back and get longer as you reach the front?" Other stylists there had done a little bit of that kind of shaping, with no ill effects, so I said, "Maybe a little, but honestly, I just want a bob that I can comb in the morning and not worry about."

By the time I could sense how short she was making the layers in the back, it was too late. I told her one more time, "I really just want a bob," but the damage was done. The back of my head was way, way layered. The front came to two sharp points. Staring in the mirror once I got home (she didn't give me a hand mirror to look at the back the way they usually do), I figured out who it was that she was trying to make me look like:
People, that's Posh Spice. If you've been reading this blog for any length of time, and especially if you've met me in real life, you know that I am not Posh Spice. I am nothing like Posh Spice. The Husband? Nothing like David Beckham. And yes, I do consider that a good thing.

I absolutely couldn't deal with the long pieces by my face, so I cut them. From the front, it looks like I got the plain old bob that I asked for. Looking in the mirror, with pieces of fine, thin, dishwater blonde hair in the sink in front of me, I realized who it is that my hair is actually capable of resembling:
I am self-aware enough to know that in most areas of life, I am way more like Beezus than Ramona. But hair-wise, I'm Ramona all the way. And honestly? In pretty much all areas of life, I'd much rather be a Quimby than a Spice Girl.

How many have you read?

So Betsy Bird, who writes one of the awesomest children's literature blogs on the interwebs, did this insane project wherein she invited everyone who wanted to to contribute their top 10 list of children's novels. She then compiled all the results - assigning each books points so that if a book was #1 on someone's list it got 10 points, #2 got 9 points, etc. - and posted them bit by bit until she had listed the top 100 children's chapter books. This is, of course, already an insane amount of effort, which she compounded by providing an absolutely fascinating amount of quotes and history and book covers for each of the books. (There is still time, by the way, to participate in the poll for top 100 YA novels being compiled by a different blogger with whom I am less familiar, but who is clearly also awesome.)

At any rate, I am not one to waste the prodigious efforts put forth by others. (Nor am I one to be completely creative with their efforts - I "borrowed" this post idea from the blog A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy, who in turn copied the list from TeacherNinja.) So here is the full 100. The ones in bold are the ones I've read. I added annotations to the ones about which I felt strongly.

I've read 79. How 'bout you?

100. The Egypt Game - Snyder (1967)

99. The Indian in the Cupboard - Banks (1980)

98. Children of Green Knowe - Boston (1954)

97. The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane - DiCamillo (2006)

96. The Witches - Dahl (1983)

95. Pippi Longstocking - Lindgren (1950)

94. Swallows and Amazons - Ransome (1930)

93. Caddie Woodlawn - Brink (1935)

92. Ella Enchanted - Levine (1997)

91. Sideways Stories from Wayside School - Sachar (1978)

Not only did I read this one and More Sideways Stories, but I also read (and absolutely freaking loved) Sideways Math from Wayside School. I heart logic puzzles. I blame that book for my strange desire to get a math minor to go with my English major.

90. Sarah, Plain and Tall - MacLachlan (1985)

89. Ramona and Her Father - Cleary (1977)

In which Ramona's dad loses his job, and 6(?)-year-old Ramona's awareness of the situation is wonderfully presented. Beverly Cleary is pretty much a genius.
88. The High King - Alexander (1968)

87. The View from Saturday - Konigsburg (1996)

86. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - Rowling (1999)

85. On the Banks of Plum Creek - Wilder (1937)
The only thing I remember about this book is the fact that they lived in a house that was dug into the ground. That blew my mind. Still does, in fact.

84. The Little White Horse - Goudge (1946)

83. The Thief - Turner (1997)
Full disclosure: this is one of two books that I read specifically because they appeared on the list.

82. The Book of Three - Alexander (1964)

81. Where the Mountain Meets the Moon - Lin (2009)

80. The Graveyard Book - Gaiman (2008)

79. All-of-a-Kind-Family - Taylor (1951)

78. Johnny Tremain - Forbes (1943)

Had to read in 5th grade. Yuck.
77. The City of Ember - DuPrau (2003)

76. Out of the Dust - Hesse (1997)

75. Love That Dog - Creech (2001)

This book made me weep in the break room of the library where I was working at the time. I am not a public weeper. Definitely worth the humiliation.
74. The Borrowers - Norton (1953)

I had totally forgotten about this book, but I absolutely adored it as a kid.
73. My Side of the Mountain - George (1959)

72. My Father's Dragon - Gannett (1948)

71. The Bad Beginning - Snicket (1999)

70. Betsy-Tacy - Lovelae (1940)

69. The Mysterious Benedict Society - Stewart ( 2007)

I'm not convinced this belongs on this list. Time will tell, I suppose.
68. Walk Two Moons - Creech (1994)

67. Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher - Coville (1991)

66. Henry Huggins - Cleary (1950)

I know for a fact that I read this, but I remember none of it.
65. Ballet Shoes - Stratfeild (1936)

64. A Long Way from Chicago - Peck (1998)

63. Gone-Away Lake - Enright (1957)

62. The Secret of the Old Clock - Keene (1959)

The book was included in the list as a representative for the whole Nancy Drew series. I must say that while I read Nancy Drew, if I were going to include a series not for literary merit, but for sentimental impact on one's life, it would totally be the Baby-Sitter's Club. Nancy Drew has the whole longevity thing going for her though.
61. Stargirl - Spinelli (2000)

60. The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle - Avi (1990)

I bought this book at a Scholastic Book Fair at my school, and tried many times to read it, but never made it very far. Sorry, Avi.
59. Inkheart - Funke (2003)

58. The Wolves of Willoughby Chase - Aiken (1962)

57. Ramona Quimby, Age 8 - Cleary (1981)

56. Number the Stars - Lowry (1989)

55. The Great Gilly Hopkins - Paterson (1978)

54. The BFG - Dahl (1982)

53. Wind in the Willows - Grahame (1908)

52. The Invention of Hugo Cabret - Selznick (2007)

51. The Saturdays - Enright (1941)

50. Island of the Blue Dolphins - O'Dell (1960)

Had to read this in 5th grade. Blech.
49. Frindle - Clements (1996)

48. The Penderwicks - Birdsall (2005)

47. Bud, Not Buddy - Curtis (1999)

46. Where the Red Fern Grows - Rawls (1961)

45. The Golden Compass - Pullman (1995)

44. Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing - Blume (1972)

43. Ramona the Pest - Cleary (1968)

Do you remember that Ramona had a doll named Chevrolet, because she thought it was a beautiful name? Ramona is the best.
42. Little House on the Prairie - Wilder (1935)

41. The Witch of Blackbird Pond - Speare (1958)

40. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz - Baum (1900)

39. When You Reach Me - Stead (2009)

Amazingly high on the list for such a new book. I loved it pretty intensely, but it will be interesting to see whether it remains beloved.
38. HP and the Order of the Phoenix - Rowling (2003)

37. Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry - Taylor (1976)

36. Are You there, God? It's Me, Margaret - Blume (1970)

We must, we must, we must increase our bust! Also, menstruation was way more complicated before they invented the concept of sticky back pads.
35. HP and the Goblet of Fire - Rowling (2000)

34. The Watson's Go to Birmingham - Curtis (1995)

33. James and the Giant Peach - Dahl (1961)

32. Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH - O'Brian (1971)

31. Half Magic - Eager (1954)

This is the other one I read because of this list, and I've got to say that I highly recommend it. I would have adored it even more when I was 9.

30. Winnie-the-Pooh - Milne (1926)
29. The Dark Is Rising - Cooper (1973)

28. A Little Princess - Burnett (1905)

27. Alice I and II - Carroll (1865/72)

26. Hatchet - Paulsen (1989)
25. Little Women - Alcott (1868/9)

24. HP and the Deathly Hallows - Rowling (2007)

23. Little House in the Big Woods - Wilder (1932)

22. The Tale of Despereaux - DiCamillo (2003)

21. The Lightning Thief - Riordan (2005)

20. Tuck Everlasting - Babbitt (1975)

19. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Dahl (1964)

18. Matilda - Dahl (1988)
17. Maniac Magee - Spinelli (1990)

16. Harriet the Spy - Fitzhugh (1964)

15. Because of Winn-Dixie - DiCamillo (2000)

14. HP and the Prisoner of Azkaban - Rowling (1999)

13. Bridge to Terabithia - Paterson (1977)

Perhaps the only book that we read in 5th grade that I enjoyed. It made me weep in public, too, though. Then again, the Muppets Take Manhattan made me weep in school as well, so maybe the whole "I'm not a public weeper" is something of a self-deception.
12. The Hobbit - Tolkien (1938)

11. The Westing Game - Raskin (1978)

10. The Phantom Tollbooth - Juster (1961)
The other book that may have contributed to my eventual math major. Word play, number play, excellent plot. Plus, did you know that Norton Juster is an accomplished architect? Kind of makes you feel like a loser, no?

9. Anne of Green Gables - Montgomery (1908)

I loved this book the way Melinda loved Little House on the Prairie. Megan Follows as Anne in the movies was my Half-Pint. I knew who Colleen Dewhurst was because she played Marilla Cuthbert, and I was excited when she guest-starred on Murphy Brown. Yes, I was 8 or 9 at the time. Yes, I was kind of a weird kid.
8. The Secret Garden - Burnett (1911)

7. The Giver -Lowry (1993)

6. Holes - Sachar (1998)

5. From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler - Koningsburg (1967)

Can you believe that at the library where I work, this book hasn't been checked out since 2005? It's in tip-top shape. And yet I refuse to weed it. You just don't weed the Koningsburg.
4. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe - Lewis (1950)

3. Harry Potter #1 - Rowling (1997)

2. A Wrinkle in Time - L'Engle (1962)

1. Charlotte's Web - White (1952)
I didn't think I was emotionally invested in this list until it was down to the top 5, and I realized that if this didn't top the list, a piece of my soul would die. This is probably my favorite book ever, and so well-written. E.B. White's essays for grown-ups are also amazing.

Looming in the home

Update: If you are looking for more information about the Spears loom, I ended up writing a post that contains a bit more substantive information about the loom.

I first tried weaving when we were still living in the Chicago area. I have knit for 8 years or so now, and I love it and find it soothing, but somehow weaving was different. For whatever reason, I connected with on a deeper level. Maybe it was because I learned how to weave from a woman, in a room full of women, whereas I learned how to knit from the internet. Whatever the reason, I had a sense of doing something that women have been doing for centuries and of being connected to those women. It was all very Womyn Power, in a way that I hadn't ever experienced before.

Fast forward last Thanksgiving weekend, at a gas station in northwest Indiana, where I arranged to meet a woman from Craigslist. For the sweet price of $30, I got a Spears Weaving Loom, Size 4. It's vintage, from the 60's or so, made in England, and it even came with an instruction manual. Here it is:

I'm not going to get into the problems with tension, yarn breakage, and the like that I experienced. ("The like" being a phrase which here means "brief periods of white hot rage and hatred for that stupid loom and stupid yarn and stupid me, followed by longer periods of drinking and crying, followed by moments of joyous self-satisfaction at my genius in problem-solving".) I am just going to say that while I quite like the yarn I picked, it probably wasn't the best for what I wanted. There was at least one point at which I was sure I wasn't going to finish the (damned, stupid, evil, wretched) scarf.

One difference between weaving projects and my other crafty pursuits, though, is put-away-ability. The loom does break down to fit in a box about the size a board game, but not until either the project is finished or I've decide that I'm not going to finish the project. I can stuff a frustrating piece of knitting in the back of my closet for years, but the loom, she taunts me. And since I have more than enough things dwelling in my head to make me feel bad about myself, I decide to prioritize finishing up one of the things dwelling in the physical realm.

All of which is to say, "Ta-da....."


For the record, there will be a next time for the loom and me. With luck, it will involve less cursing than last time.