91. Read and Review 100 Books (30/100) The Lonely Polygamist - Brady Udall

'Golden Richards, husband to four wives, father to twenty-eight children, is having the mother of all midlife crises. His construction business is failing, his family has grown into an overpopulated mini-dukedom beset with insurrection and rivalry, and he is done in with grief: due to the accidental death of a daughter and the stillbirth of a son, he has come to doubt the capacity of his own heart. Brady Udall, one of our finest American fiction writers, tells a tragicomic story of a deeply faithful man who, crippled by grief and the demands of work and family, becomes entangled in an affair that threatens to destroy his family’s future. Like John Irving and Richard Yates, Udall creates characters that engage us to the fullest as they grapple with the nature of need, love, and belonging. 

Beautifully written, keenly observed, and ultimately redemptive, The Lonely Polygamist is an unforgettable story of an American family—with its inevitable dysfunctionality, heartbreak, and comedy—pushed to its outer limits.'


What a great novel... I spotted this in hardcover in a little itty bitty bookstore in Telluride, Colorado at christmas time when I was trying to escape the cold for an hour or two while Paul was skiing the slopes... the initial attraction, of course was the insight into the Mormon world... but in the end the story itself  caught me hook line and sinker. If you can get your hands on this book do it... devour it... laugh, cry and enjoy the story of the polygamist family (3 wives and all 28 children) spiralling out of control... in the end.. they're just a normal family, dealing with normal day to day issues... just in a foreign way.. 

54. Swim with a Manatee

On a super cold wintery autumn day in November (yes! I really am that far behind on my blogging right now) two adventurous Australians found themselves on a small boat on the Homosassa Springs in Homosassa, Florida  in thick wet suits preparing to dip themselves in the warm (75F, 24C) natural spring water in order to do something that you can do in only two places in the entire world... meet one of the most amazingly gentle and curious sea animals in the world face to face in their habitat... Swim with the West Indian Manatee

My first glimpse of a manatee from the boat

Words cant even begin to describe how amazing this experience truly was... from the first moment we jumped into that warm but still frigid (to me and my cold blood) water and waited for the first manatee to approach us... and approach us they did!! Being one of only two places in the world that actually allow humans to interact with wild manatees there is a very strict code of conduct that binds each swimmer to ensure protection of these curious and gentle animals

Hello there little guy!! 

While in the water you may not approach the manatee, they must be the ones that initiate any contact/interaction, you may only touch the manatee with an open hand, you must not grab the manatee, ride the manatee, or inhibit their departure nor may you chase them.. and at not time can you separate a baby/juvenile from its mother. Any and all interactions must be the decision of the manatee... with all of these rules in place we really wondered if we would be lucky enough to interact with a manatee... we shouldn't of worried....

Manatees LOVE people... They sought us out, swam straight up to us and then proceeded to almost demand back scratches... and if you where seriously lucky, and the manatee really felt comfortable you would even be presented with a yummy, blubbery manatee belly for some scratching!! It was awesome! I had this little guy follow me around the spring for 15-20 minutes... constantly swimming up to me and looking at me with his intelligent elephanty eye... and presenting his back and belly for scratching.

And the best thing (at least to this, slightly tree hugger animal loving hippy)... the interactions, if managed and limited are actually good for the manatee... and least from a scratching capacity.. you see all this human scratching actually dislodges nasty algae that becomes trapped on their skin... its manatee maintenance!! Oh and they love chewing on boat ropes... kinda like dental floss.. they wouldn't leave the  moorings alone!! 

Chew, Chew, Chew

Words cannot describe this once in a life time opportunity... I have a new found respect for this animal and could not believe how amazingly gentle, curious and beautifully strange the manatee is. I think I have found a new favourite animal and I feel so lucky the manatees of Crystal River and Homosassa Spring gave me the experience that I enjoyed... WOW!! 

91. Read and Review 100 Books (29/100) So Cold The River - Michael Koryta

'It started with a documentary. The beautiful Alyssa Bradford approaches Eric Shaw to unearth the life story of her father-in-law, Campbell Bradford, a 95-year-old billionaire whose childhood is wrapped in mystery. Eric grabs the job, even though the only clues to Bradford's past are his hometown and an antique water bottle he's kept his entire life.

In Bradford's hometown, Eric discovers an extraordinary past--a glorious domed hotel where movie stars, presidents, athletes, and mobsters once intermingled. Long derelict, the hotel has just been restored to its former grandeur.

But something else has been restored too--a long-forgotten evil that will stop at nothing to settle a decades-old score. And with every move, Eric inches closer to the center of the building storm.'


This is definitely not the type of book I would usually reach for however I was browsing Amazon's 'Recommendations for you' section and the synopsis caught me... Sitting in Denver airport with a 3 hour flight back to Houston looming in front of me, and nothing to read, I decided to give it a go.. and I'm really glad I did! 


This book is not your normal suspense novel - It incorporates great deals of symbolism - I loved how Koryta wove in the imagery and symbolism of that one big life changing 100 year storm... it helped to illustrate the impending doom facing both the protagonist and the two towns... The book builds just like a violent summer storm. 


If you're a fan of suspense/thriller novels or books that have a supernatural undertone , then you really should give 'So Cold The River' a read!! 

91. Read and Review 100 Books (28/100) Midnight Bayou - Nora Roberts

'Declan Fitzgerald had always been the family maverick, but even he couldn't understand his impulse to buy a dilapidated mansion on the outskirts of New Orleans. All he knew was that ever since he first saw Manet Hall, he'd been enchanted and obsessed with it. So when the opportunity to buy the house comes up, Declan jumps at the chance to live out a dream.

Determined to restore Manet Hall to its former splendor, Declan begins the daunting renovation room by room, relying on his own labor and skills. But the days spent in total isolation in the empty house take a toll. He is seeing visions of days from a century past, and experiencing sensations of terror and nearly unbearable grief sensations not his own, but those of a stranger. Local legend has it that the house is haunted, and with every passing day Declan's belief in the ghostly presence grows.

Only the companionship of alluring Angelina Simone can distract him from the mysterious happenings in the house, but Angelina too has her own surprising connection to Manet Hall a connection that will help Declan uncover a secret that's been buried for a hundred years.'


Occasionally its nice to read something a little bit lighter, something that you don't really need to think about and that is just entertaining and allows you to switch off at the end of a hard day... but you dont want something that is simply smutty trash (I'm really not the Mills and Boon type) Nora Roberts fits this niche to a tee... well at least for me!! Midnight Bayou was a very entertaining read however it seemed to end very abruptly - there felt like there was quite a bit of undeveloped potential.. however as said for a book that I just wanted to read and not think about at all it worked perfectly... And since we've actually been to the Antebellum Plantation that this one is based upon (Oak Alley) I had no problem at all in visualising Manet Hall and the surrounding swampy bayou!! Just what the doctor ordered at the end of a laborious day on site keeping people safe!! 

19. Spend at least 24 hours in 10 states (6/10) - Florida

Paul and I had some 'forced vacation' in December.. his two weeks due to the company we work for not allowing people to carry over annual leave from year to year, meaning he was clearing the last of his 2010 leave entitlement... time he still had due to the drilling Moratorium in the Gulf of Mexico; my entire anticipated month or so off (from December 4 at least) due to my employer not applying for an extension of my work visa in time.. and so I was waiting on the US Government to re-approve and re-issue my work visa so I could legally return to the office (and as of Jan 1, still I wait...) So in early December I convinced the husband, that it would be a sad and frustrating thing indeed to make me sit around at home for the next month or so pretending to be a good little housewife, and that to ensure I didn't become some desperate little housewife, it would be best for us to use this time off constructively.... by travelling somewhere we've always wanted to go... after much wheeling and dealing the destination was decided.. we where heading to the happiest place on earth... Disney World, Orlando Florida.

Due to the late nature of our decision we had two options... pay $700 each for the privilege of flying cattle class or jump in the car and road trip the 16 hour, roughly 1000 miles.. guess which one we chose?

After driving through Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama we finally arrive in Florida!! 

First stop on the Florida experience was Homosassa, one of only two places in the world where you can swim and snorkel with wild manatees who migrate up into the natural hot springs to stay warm during the winter months. It was a freezing cold day when we jumped in the toasty warm water to cuddle and scratch these amazingly large but gentle and curious creatures... manatee belly scratches... a once in a life time experience (will elaborate more on this in a separate post) 

Hello there little fella

We decided to spend our first day in Kissimmee, Florida (center of the universe for theme parks) at Disney's EPCOT (Experimental Prototype Community Of Tomorrow) the more grown up Disney park mainly because of the evil anticipated weather forecast for the day... rain, wind, cold... ick!! The theme park consists of two areas; Future World, where you can explore, innovative applications of technology, or at least applications that were innovative back in the 80's and 90's and the second area; World Showcase, where Disney has 11 pavilions representing the culture and tradition (or at least the Disney interpretation) of Mexico, Norway, China, Germany, Italy, USA, Japan, Morocco, France, United Kingdom and Canada... yes soooo inclusive!! 

 Standing in front of the big golf ball / round pineapple EPCOT thingy 

EPCOT was probably a little more dated than it should be, the rides and pavilions looked just a little old and tired.. one of the most telling activities was 'Spaceship Earth' - the ride inside the big golf ball / round pineapple thingy.. which describes the communications journey that the human race has taken over their existence.. the ride slowly picks up pace, beginning with prehistoric cavemen fighting for survival and eventually learning to communicate basically, on to the Egyptians who invented the written language, Phoenicians who invented the alphabet... Ancient Greece... Rome... Jewish and then Islamic Scholars... Christian Monks... The Renaissance... The development of the printing press.. newspapers... LARGE computers and then suddenly BOOM... you're in a quick scene from the matrix.. with 0s and 1s flying everywhere and the ride is over... they set the scene so well in the beginning and then rush through the ending.. has nothing happened in human communication since 1980 and the discovery of the internet??? Oh well, I guess the big golf ball is only so big after all right??? 

Scary leafy Stitch outside of Spaceship Earth

After a couple of hours of exploring Future World and with the weather beginning to turn, we decided it was time to head across to World Showcase... My favourite country?? Mexico!! We found this gorgeous little tequila bar inside the pavilion and treated ourselves to a couple of margaritas and chicken tostadas.. Paul had a jalapeno margarita and I had a hibiscus margarita... YUM!!

Enjoying and adult beverage at La Cava del Tequila in the Mexico Pavilion 

Next stop on the Theme Park Extravaganza?? Universal Studios! Another theme park that is split into two different parks; Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. We decided that we could do both parks in one day... after all its the middle of the week and the nasty weather (sub zero temperatures in FL!!) will keep some people away... Right???... Indeed! 

Meeting the Cat in the Hat

Now this is what I expected when I thought I was going to a theme park!! My favourite parts?? Having the Cat in the Hat hit on me; when I approached the character for a photo he put his arm around me and proceeded to purr right into my ear the entire time!! Bad Pussy!! The Wizarding World Of Harry Potter; OMG how fricken cool is this place?!?! Its a miniature Hogsmeade complete with a Honeydukes for all your candy needs (Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans anyone??), Ollivanders, where if your lucky your wand may choose you, an Owl Post, where you can post an actual letter and it will arrive at its destination post marked Hogsmeade! And a Hogs Head and Three Broomsticks where you can wet your whistle with a butterbeer (mmmm butterbeer... creaming soda with a frothy foamy butterscotch cream on top... a delicious sugary nightmare!!) And I haven't even mentioned the rides yet!!! 

Is it too early in the morning for a Butterbeer?? Never!!

The Flight of the Hippogriff is a cute little kiddy rollercoaster, The Dragon Challenge is aa double rollercoaster with some super awesome twists and turns BUT the real drawcard is the state of the art, groundbreaking, Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey.. talk about game changing!! It was so awesome I made Paul come back at the end of the day for one last ride!! 

Hogwarts Castle at night - Home of the Forbidden Journey Ride 

My other favourites? The Incredible Hulk Coaster; you go from like 0 to 60 mph in 5 seconds before zipping thought multiple barrel loops... The Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit, you get to pick the music you listen to during the ride and it begins by literally hoisting you upwards at a 90 degree angle before dropping you straight down.. gulp.. and the Simpsons Ride... a newer style interactive rollercoaster which entirely tricks you the whole way through... Yes I'm a coster convert!! 

KrustyLand - Universal Studios of Florida

Final stop on the trip.... Magical Kingdom, Disney World!! And although I had originally come all the way to Florida specifically to visit this one theme park.. after spending the day before at Universal I kinda had reservations about Magical Kingdom... its blasphemous I know but lets face it Universal is more thrill ridey and Disney is more cutesy right?? Yup, pretty much!! But it was still a wonderful day out

Disney World!!

The only problem with Magical Kingdom?? I felt like I needed to steal someone's child to get the full effect... very cutsey, very geared towards little ones!! It was great to finally get to ride 'Its a Small World' see the tea cups and the Dumbo ride.. Space Mountain was actually really cool and would of been groundbreaking when originally opened however the lack of neck support on a pitch black rollercoaster was a little jarring and the Pirates of the Caribbean ride was good although a little disappointing (apparently its been adjusted from its original to be more politically correct.. after all pirates wouldn't rape and pillage... they steal pies and kisses right?!?!) and I'm absolutely amazed they haven't taken advantage of all of that space in the Disney Castle and placed a ride or attraction inside it (guess it was built in the days before they did those sorts of things) All in all it was a cute day and I'm glad we braved the crowds to experience the happiest place on earth... just wish I had of had a little one to share the joy with... if only for the day!! 

Country Bear Jamboree 

Would I go to Theme Park, Florida again? Sure... but only in the summer so I could take advantage of all the water rides and water parks... then again perhaps next time we should head to California to also take advantage of Knotts Berry Farm and see some different parks?? OR perhaps we should head to Ohio to Cedar Point, the largest rollercoaster park in the US... maybe :D