Book Report: Like Everybody Else

By Barbara Girion. I couldn’t find a lot of information on her, she didn’t achieve Judy Blume status, but I think she is still alive. I did see that she wrote “Misty and Me”, I remember reading that and will tr6 to find it somewhere.

I was looking for something last week and found this book in a collection of books I had saved from childhood. I’m not sure why I saved this, I do remember liking it but it wasn’t a favorite. I won’t say how old the book is but it cost $1.95! The inside has my name in cursive and the back page I filled out my name and address for some read for MS thing- never sent it in I guess.

Why I liked this as a kid: it was a good story about the student who flies under the radar, sort of. It’s about how as kids we want our parents to be like all of parents, at least we think so. Also, it introduced me to Bat Mitzvahs, I’m sure I had heard of them at the time but it was not well known to me as a Catholic kid.

What I remember: I remember the mom being a workaholic and comments about her being a starving artist. Not sure why that has stuck with me but it did. I remember starting her a new school, I was about a year younger when I read it and I looked forward to starting middle school. Also, they talk about iced tea with mint in it and I love that.

Summary. Samatha is an only child about to start middle school. Her mom has written several children’s books but has just finished an adult novel. Sam’s best friend comes from a larger, more traditional family, with a mom who today would be described as a “trad wife”. When Sam’s mom’s boom comes out it creates a scandal as it is risqué and an embarrassment to Sam. Throughout this, Sam is trying to navigate life as a new middle schooler and find her voice.

What changed while reading it as an adult. First, I didn’t realize that the mom’s book dealt with affairs. That is scandalous, or was at the time. In the book her best friend’s older brother is a surrogate brother to Sam. I remember it being sweet but in reading it now it’s a bit creepy as he talks about her filling out. Not what the author intended, I’m sure but it hits differently now.

It makes sense that I identify and understand the parents more now than when I read as a child. Even though I don’t have kids I know that there is a struggle between being the stay-at-home parent and the working parent. Each both jealous yet critical of the other. Similar to those who have kids and those who don’t.

Sam talks about how she thinks of parents all being the same. I have said that before, we think of parents as homogenous units, not individuals. This is a theme in the book and I related to this more now.

If my memory is correct I bought this book during the summer. My friend and I went to the mall with her mom. I showed her mom the book and she said “Oh, great. You can read that over the summer”. I went home and read it all night, staying up later than I should have. I’m not sure if I finished it in one night. The crazy things I remember.

Happy reading.

Popcorn

What’s your go-to comfort food?

Boring old popcorn. The kernels get stuck in my teeth but I love it.

I love air popped or stove popped. Just a little bit of coconut oil and truffle salt. Occasionally I will make caramel popcorn. Movie popcorn is okay but no extra butter.

It’s filling and I can have a lot of it for fewer calories than chips. I like making it on the stove, I feel like a pioneer woman. The oil and salt make a nice savory flavor, it just tastes good.

There is also the fact that as an adult I can have just popcorn for dinner. It’s not the most well-rounded meal but that’s the comfort part.

I don’t like bagged microwave popcorn, except when I travel. Somehow it tastes better away from home. It has to be the natural kind without butter. Then I like Skinny Pop and the kind in the pink bag, I forget the name.

Having popcorn as my comfort food seems so bland, but sometimes comfort is bland.

Someone once said “It’s impossible to eat popcorn without looking like you are in a popcorn eating contest”. I laugh at that every time I have popcorn.

Fifth Grade Book Report – Blubber

I’m thinking of having a book club where we read books from our childhood. Young adult novels. Discuss the book as usual but also discuss what we remember and why the book was chosen. I’m starting to go back to some I remember. Last week I read “Blubber” by Judy Blume.

I’m not sure if I have the original, I found this at the dollar store. This version has a bland cover, I guess that’s what I get for $1.25. I remember the cove4 being green with a girl on it.

The book is about bullying. I don’t remember that being so bad when I was a kid. It was awful, straight up bullying. The girls are mean. I absolutely remember bullying when I was a kid. I was a target at times, when I wasn’t I sat quietly and maybe laughed a little. I didn’t stick up for the bullied kids, I was too scared. Not proud of that but that was me.

This was a Judy Blume book that bridged the gap between “Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing”, talking about childhood antics and “Are You There God, It’s Me Margaret?” – which talks about puberty.

What I did remember is that the protagonist, Jill, was a skinny kid who had weird eating habits. I remember her wishing she had worn her heavy sweater for weigh in day at school. I was not a fat kid but I was a little chubby. I guess I had body issues back then. Also, do they weigh kids in school now? What about hearing and vision tests? Do kids get those red pills to show where your teeth had plaque? Was it weird that they did that or is it good?

I also remembered that Jill’s dad was a tax attorney. My nerdy 9 year old brain was intrigued by this occupation and I asked my dad, an accountant, what this profession was. While other kids were aspiring to be astronauts or professional athletes I wanted to work with numbers. I did it! In your face, classmates who haven’t been to the moon or don’t have a national title. Is that bullying?

As I was reading the book last week I remembered most of the plot. (Obligatory spoiler alert) Jill suddenly becomes the girl that the lass bullies. I. The end she tries to put the popular girl in her place and befriends the new girl. This is around the age that kids shift friendships as the develop mentally and physically.

I was interested in the character of Jill’s mom. She seemed to have depression, probably undiagnosed at that time. She smoked, which was unhealthy but still common back then. I would love to read more about her and I wonder what inspired Judy Blume to write her that way. Actually she may have talked about it, I forget.

At the end of the version I read, Judy Blume talks about the story and the inspiration behind it. It was based on a story from one of her kids. Queen Judy (she is book royalty) discussed the bullying- again , something that didn’t register for me as much as a kid.

I was surprised at how differently this book hit me. I didn’t like it as much as I did as a kid. I really hated the bullying and had a hard time being sympathetic to Jill. The book was good but my feelings about the characters changed and it made me uncomfortable.

Any good children’s book recommendations?

Rules are NOT made to be broken

What bothers you and why?

I’m a rule follower. A classic hands in the steering wheel at 10 and 2 (I know that’s not a thing anymore) rule follower. I’m an introvert and an accountant, it’s in my nature. So I don’t like when people don’t follow the rules.

13 items in the 12 or fewer lane, grr. Driving in the breakdown lane, I pray the police are there. Trying to get on the plane in group A when you are group B, get out of here. I could go on.

Some of these things don’t personally affect me so why do I care? I feel that if we all followed the rules life would be better. We would have more peace. It’s naive and stupid but it’s how I think.

The thing is I will break rules. I drive over the speed limit, not by much but I can push it. My reasoning for breaking rules may not make sense but they do to me. My guess is that others have reasons for breaking rules, it just doesn’t make sense to me.

What does bother me and is inexcusable is people who get caught or are called out for being jerks then fight about it. If you are wrong or called out then apologize.

Also, don’t park your car illegally in a handicap spot or a fire lane, even if someone is in the car. That’s just inexcusable.

I’m fun at parties, I swear!

Go to girl

What are you good at?

I’m not the best employee but I’m usually respected. I am not sure if I seem approachable or appear smart but I’m the person people go to for questions.

At work I get a lot of questions; mostly related to my job, but some not. Once someone asked me the policy on gift giving for a baptism. I was working on the policy manual for the company and I thought she was asking what gift the company gave for a baptism. I guess I looked holy or they thought I was a reasonable gift giver.

I’ve embraced this role at work and I try to help others when I can. I will point them in the direction they need and tell them to come back to me if they are not getting an answer. It is a good way to appear indispensable at work and I encourage those I manage to do the same. Be helpful but stay in your zone.

I am also the person who gets asks directions or assistance at stores. To the point where they get mad if I say I don’t know or I don’t work there. I don’t know which aisle the anchovy paste is, perhaps someone wearing a shirt with the store logo could help.

One of the stranger times I was a go-to person was during an emergency. People were asking me what I was going to do when the trains shut down. Someone asked about being able to drive on a blocked road. It was confusing and somewhat upsetting, like I wasn’t able to process my own confusion without having to handle some else’s. It wasn’t until later, when I watched the news, that I realized some security personnel were wearing bright yellow jackets, exactly what I had been wearing that day. I looked helpful and dressed the part.

Mr. Rogers said to look for the helpers. I’m proud that I am one and I know he would be as well.

How can I help you?

It takes a village

Share a story about someone who had a positive impact on your life.

I had a wonderful family and loving parents and I don’t take them for granted. But friends parents were the surprise impact for me. Not just one parent but several parents.

Yes, there were the jerky parents that made me grateful for mine. For the most part, though, my friends had nice parents who stepped up to help out. My dad died when I was young, having a single mom who worked made it difficult for rides. Other parents would take me home without question or guilt. They cheered me on and asked me about my school experiences just like own children. As hard as it was losing a parent, I felt so much love from those who didn’t have to.

As an adult I get it. You want to help other kids, especially your children’s friends. I was also a polite child and they probably figured I was a good friend to have around. Making children feel at ease and that they are not a burden is so important. Some adults have a knack for this and we are lucky to have them.

It does take a village to raise a child. Sometimes we just have to be good villagers, that’s all.

I still get to see some of these parents and it warms my heart to now have a friendship with them. Those who have passed on are still in my heart.

I know the prompt was for one person but I make the rules!

Definitely not Accounting

What’s your dream job?

As much as I love my job I think that my next career would be something with kids or helping people.

I don’t have a dream job per se but there are things that I would love to do. It would not be sitting at a desk all day. I would like to perhaps have a job where I could use the assistance of neurodivergent and/or intellectually challenged individuals. I have thought about working at a school to help kids. I’ve considered a career in personal training for those who have not been exercising.

Working in the corporate world does not have a lot of satisfaction or feeling of working for the betterment of the world. I would love to have a switch at some point to do something completely different. Of course my friends who do such jobs dream of a less chaotic career such as accounting.

My real dream job though, being filthy rich!

Cross country

Think back on your most memorable road trip.

I drove cross country in my 20s to start a new life, or at least a change.

The journey started with my aunt and her friend. We had 2 cars and 3 drivers. My car was packed with my stuff, ready for my new adventure. It was nerve wracking, exciting, and actually boring at times.

I had driven as far as the Midwest in the past so going through some of the other states was a thrill. Kansas was beautiful, different from other parts of the Midwest I lived. New Mexico was barren but reminded me of the movies with the tumbleweeds and heat coming off the road.

My aunt and her friend stayed in Colorado so I had a few days of traveling by myself- my first time staying in a hotel by myself. I felt like a real adult. I had a near accident in the mountains of Colorado, it’s a story I still tell to this day.

Coming into my destination in California was once again exciting and scary. What was going to happen next?

I stayed there for 2 years. In some ways I wish it had been longer but the memories I have makes it feel like it was longer. It’s funny how a place can feel that way.

I kept a journal of my trip; recording my miles and gas and the stops,we had. I have a few pictures but this was before smart phones, in fact I borrowed my sister’s flip phone for emergency.

Looking back I am so proud of myself for having the guts to do it. I’m proud to have the memories. I’m also really proud to say that I drove cross country. Twice, since I drove home when I returned. I little less exciting but still an adventure. Oh, and by that time the ac had gone in my car so that was adventurous!

I would love to do it again some day, even just part of the country or visit places I have never been. And in a car with ac.

The Door Knob

Last year my family and I were in Spain. We rented an apartment (I’m sorry to the locals that we are doing this). It was a building probably done in the mid 20th century and it had a European appearance (duh). The door to the apartment had the knob in the center of the door. My brain immediately thought of “Family Affair”.

“Family Affair” was a show in the mid-to-late 60s about a bachelor who raises his brother’s children after the brother and his wife died in an accident. They live in a huge NYC apartment (with 2 big doors that have knobs in the middle) with the “Gentleman’s gentleman” Mr. French.

The show predates me but I remember it being on in syndication when I was a kid. Though I think it was in at odd times so I probably only saw it when I was home sick. I used to refer to it as “Buffy and Jody”, the young twins on the show. Like most kids, I was fascinated by shows and movies that featured kids. How did they get those jobs? Where did they go to school?

I would see the actors in other shows or movies. I heard their voices on cartoons and my Jungle Book record – Mr. French’s voice could not be hidden. As I grew older I heard the tragic stories of the child stars. As an adult I read a biography by one of the actors. The show remained in my memory but not in the same way as some others.

Recently I watched it again. I should say I watched most of it for the first time since I didn’t remember much of it. I figured that I would catch an episode or two but I was hooked. It hasn’t aged well, there are definitely some problematic parts of it but every show has that. At the core it is a sweet show and some funny moments.

Like everything else, it hits differently as an adult. The idea of the children losing their parents is gut wrenching as I lost a parent at a young age. I can identify with the adults and their need to drop everything to care for the children. Watching the child actors, knowing their fate is unnerving and uncomfortable.

It’s funny what sights trigger one’s memories. A simple door knob brought me back to my childhood.

Is their a favorite show from your childhood that often pops in you head?

Manga

What is your favorite place to go in your city?

The North End, Boston’s “Little Italy”. The food is fantastic and it has an old world charm about it. I try to go there at least once a year. I was there a couple months ago for a work event and walked through there. I’ve had a few jobs within walking distance, it reminds me of the days of having lunch in the big city.

I don’t go into the office much but when I do I’ll walk around the area, even walking a longer distance to get to the train station.

One year for my birthday I went there alone. I had a fight with my boyfriend and didn’t want that to ruin my day so I went into Boston, sat at the bar and had a nice dinner and glass of wine by myself. It was sad but I was proud that I didn’t give in to him.

The dessert places are amazing. A cappuccino and sweet treat after dinner ☕️ , take a walk around the block in between dinner and dessert.

If you’re ever in Boston I highly recommend the North End. Find a small restaurant (they are all small) on a side street. Bring your appetite.

Yum