An Exact Replica of a Figment of My Imagination: A Memoir

An Exact Replica of a Figment of My Imagination: A Memoir by Elizabeth McCracken

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I laughed while reading this. Yes. I laughed out loud while reading a book about someone's miscarriage. I'm not a cold-hearted uncaring person. But, Ms. McCracken's recount of her sad loss includes the ups and downs of a pregnancy in an alien land, rural French countryside. The great anticipation and the unconditional love an expectant mother felt are clearly captured. However, I was anxious while reading the book because there was no surprise that the most heartbreaking end will come.

I'm sure mothers everywhere worried about their unborn child during those nine long months. For me, the thought "what if I did this, it could harm her like that...." An Exact Replica extend that worry to the umpteenth level. Ms. McCracken continued to ask herself, "did I do this, and my baby died." Where can one go from there? Ms. McCracken laid out how she's coping in this funny sad book.

[ad#adsense-1]

Cinderella Ate My Daughter

Cinderella Ate My Daughter: Dispatches from the Frontlines of the New Girlie-Girl Culture by Peggy Orenstein

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Cinderella Ate My Daughter confirms everything that I believe in. As a worried mother who's raising a little girl in the current commercialized and sexualized environment, it is nice to have an authoritative figure putting all my concerns on paper. But, Ms. Orenstein didn't give any 'how to' suggestions to prevent the ills of the current society. I don't think it's her intention with this book anyway.

I do appreciate all the research Ms. Orenstein put into this book. The efforts and details that guided her inner conversation throughout the book also registered in my own inner discussion.

[ad#adsense-1]

I was a Bad Patient

This is my open letter to the Mister.  "I'm sorry.  I was a terrible patient"

Let me explain why I needed to apologize.   I recently had to undergo oral surgery.  On the scale of 1 - 10 (1 being a paper cut, 10 being a triple bypass) my oral surgery fell around a 5 in my opinion.  I was anaesthetized without needles, just some powder under the tongue.   That was cool.  But it gave me a false sense of lucidity during that time.  (Note to self for next time, do not update Facebook while going under).

Anyway, the Mister had to drive me there, wait around for a few hours, drive me home, put me to bed, help me to the bathroom, pick up my prescription, and take care of whatever I needed while I sleep of the anaesthesia.   During my hours of sleeping, half waking, half mumbling, one of the Mister's duties was make sure I take my med according to schedule.

Of course, I had to be difficult.  Not that I meant to be.  But, in my semi-state of consciousness, I wanted to know what kind of drugs the Mister was giving me.  I wasn't satisfy with his answer "this is what the doctor prescribed."  I wanted to know what it was for, why was I taking it, what was it going to do to me.  Everything someone who was not a doctor or a pharmacist would have no clue.  I did remember the Mister taking out his iPhone to look things up.  Oh, I'm sorry I made him do that.  What's worst, I threw a paper bag with the prescription across the room.  My tantrum at that time matched anything my little girl can muster.   The Mister had the wisdom to walk out and let me sleep it off/pass out.  He did come back later and I did take the meds as I'm suppose to.

In my defense, even in my most lucid state, I hate drugs.  I don't take aspirin or cold medicine or anything that I believe to only mask the symptoms.

In any case.  E: thanks for being patient with me, even though I was such a bad patient myself.

[ad#adsense-1]