Things

... I am reading: 
I just finished The Truth of All Things by Kieran Shields. Like many of the books I've read this year, it was just meh. My hopes were too high, I think. It's a Victorian era mystery with ties to the Salem witch trials. It's very Sherlock Holmes. Next on my list is The Book of Jonas by Stephen Dau. My hopes are low. Let's hope I'm pleasantly surprised.

... I'm listening to: 
Fiona Apple and Rhett Miller are the only things playing in the car for me these days. Fiona's new album is very much in the vein of Extraordinary Machine, with cheerful, chirpy melodies over darker drums. There's almost a tribal feel to some of the songs, which is weird, sometimes funs and sometimes, according to the husband, "disturbing." Mike actually bought me the album as a present, so for once we have the packaging, which I have to say is pretty cool. It's made to look like a composition book and the lyrics are "written" in it, along with doodles and drawings presumably by Fiona herself. (My 14-year-old self swoons.) (My 31-year-old self kinda does, too.) The Boy thinks it's amazing. He's been carrying it around everywhere. He also likes a few of the more tribal-y songs -- it's the drums, I think. Pretty sure the husband is a bit troubled by this development.

As for Rhett Miller, well, let me just say, he's on my List, so I'm a bit biased. But I really love this new solo album, The Dreamer. It's very country, twangy, and he's got some great female voices -- Rachael Yamagata and Roseanne Cash -- accompanying him. I love his lyrics because they tell a story AND they're catchy and clever, a combination that doesn't always happen. The whole album is good, but in particular this one track, Picture This, keeps getting me all choked up. It's the part where he sings about kids crawling up legs as we kiss. I just ... that's us, my family, right now.

Anyway.

... I'm writing: 
I'm freelancing again for SparkPeople, which shares content with Yahoo! Shine. Some of the topics I've covered lately include sunscreen tips for kids, keeping kids moving on rainy days and getting kiddos to bed when it's still light out.

At my day job, the newspaper, I write a weekly column. Usually, it's very local so there's absolutely no need to talk about it here, but I wrote a Father's Day column about my dad I'm pretty proud of ... though I have to admit, I almost didn't publish it. I expect you all to read my self-absorbed musings. I wasn't sure if any of our readers would care about my dad and me. Surprisingly, I got lots of compliments and conversation about this one though.

... I'm watching: 
We've started both Game of Thrones and Friday Night Lights thanks to Twitter. It's too soon to tell what I think of either, though I will say the husband and I, who have read the Game of Throne books, are a bit disappointed in a few of the casting choices. (Why does Jaime Lannister look like a '90s-era soap opera star!?)