Andrea and I went to the Hollywood Bowl last night – it is definitely one of our favorite SoCal institutions and one we will be sad to say goodbye to whenever we eventually leave the area.  "Cool Britannia" was the theme and the highlight was an arrangement of 5 James Bond themes performed by the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra aka LA Philharmonic.  So great – made me want to watch all the Bond movies again (in order of course and preferably in rapid succession). Also reminded me of playing 007 aka Goldeneye on Nintendo 64 with Bob in college – I played this classic game with others of course but only he and I would go so far as to hum/sing/holler the theme music (just for you Bob: bwa – da – bada – ba – da – da……). Speaking of video games – while my playing hours have declined sharply to nearly zero (mostly due to declining interest), my medical school era game addiction was/is HALO and the third installment is anticipated later this year but will only be playable on a new game system (Microsoft X-Box 360) which begs the question: will I be purchasing an X-Box 360 just so I can play the new Halo game?

Telfer found this on YouTube this morning. Too funny – enjoy.

Telfer was feeling left out of the fray and wanted to shuffle HIS iPod. Now, let it be said that he has the "big" iPod with all of the weird stuff – tons of Christmas stuff, etc. Here’s what happened when we shuffled Telfer’s iPod.

1. My Dear Country – Norah Jones
2. The Long Way Home – Mary Chapin Carpenter
3. Amazing Grace – Selah
4. Sway – the Perishers (from Veronica Mars Soundtrack)
5. Do You Hear What I Hear? Destiny’s Child (Christmas)
6. Long Time Coming – Delays (from Veronica Mars Soundtrack)
7. The Hardest Part – Coldplay
8. Goodbye is all We Have – Alison Krauss
9. The Trumpet Shall Sound – George Frideric Handel
10. Intuition – Feist
11. Gimme One Good Reason – Blink 182
12. Follow – Delirious
13. Deju Vu – Beyonce & Jay-Z
14. Eleanor Rigby – The Beatles
15. Breath of Heaven (Mary, Did You Know) – Amy Grant

We are doing this together on the couch and I risk getting smothered with a pillow, but my list is so much cooler. Poor guy, Breath of Heaven almost killed him. We persevered and maintained the integrity of the shuffle activity. (see note below)

Telfer’s Addendum: For the record it was Andrea who felt that "my ipod" was feeling left out of the current "shuffle craze" hence the above post purporting to be a random sample of what I listen to (note to self – take Christmas songs off ipod until December and consider downsizing number of female artists – in a good way?!) 

In my Harry Potter-crazed state, it might surprise you that I am attending work regularly and reading other books as well. Oh, I have my moments of daydreaming and obsessing – you can imagine (is Harry a horcrux? I want Snape to be pure evil, but I think we’ll have to see him become the martyr-figure…I think Percy is one of the for-sure dead ones…etc. etc.).

So obviously Harry is on my mind, but I have been reading a lot of other things this summer. Telfer can’t take vacation in June, July or August AND he has been studying for the Anesthesiology Board Exam that he has to take every year of his residency. He took the test on Monday (PTL) and I was again reminded how quiet I had to be for FOUR whole years of medical school. I am out of practice. Telfer finally had to put big earphones on so even if I kept chattering on about the roses and how I think I would become a mail carrier if I had to change careers (think of all the exercise!) and how laundry is my favorite household chore, he could BLOCK IT ALL OUT. So. I have read A LOT this month.

If you are looking for a summer read, here are three novels I have enjoyed in the last couple of weeks (and think! you probably don’t have to be as quiet as me while reading!):

On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan. Read this last night in bed while Telfer was snoring/flopping around next to me. A devastating miniature portrait of a young couple’s wedding night and immediate aftermath.

Then We Came to the End by Joshua Ferris – really funny, almost uncomfortably funny, work novel. For me, more like the British version of the Office (almost too much – like watching a train wreck), rather than the American version of the Office (ridiculous and funny and sweet). 

New England White by Stephen L. Carter – NNU’ers? Remember when Carter came to IDAHO and gave a lecture on the place of religion in the public sphere? Well, he has since written two great novels (first one, Emperor of Ocean Park). NE White is an academic murder mystery and an exploration of race, power, politics and gender. The plot is intricate – even in the last ten pages, I was still working everything out.

Wait, one more that I read last weekend: 101 Things I Wish I Knew When I Got Married by Linda and Charlie Bloom – I usually hate books on marriage, and the authors are definitely not writing from a Christian point of view, but this book is incredibly practical and sustainable without being dumb and obvious (example: date your mate!)

chatting
Originally uploaded by telfandrea.

Henry & Porter met for a play date on Saturday night. Porter is my librarian-friend Verletta’s dog. We weren’t too sure how they would get along as they are both males, but they had a great time chasing each other all over our back yard.

sniffing
Originally uploaded by telfandrea.

chasing
Originally uploaded by telfandrea.

tired
Originally uploaded by telfandrea.

Henry, taking a break in a puddle.