Drop Dead Healthy

I've been trying to read more non-fiction recently. It's my New Year's resolution that I'm starting kinda late. I've been in a rut lately and I thought the best kind of non-fiction book would be one about self improvement. So, I picked up Drop Dead Healthy by A.J. Jacobs.

Although Jacobs gets called 'the king of shtick lit' I enjoyed his book immensely. I got the sense that he too thinks our culture's obsession with exercising and dieting is a little warped. Not to mention our relationships with daily toxins and plastics among the many other things that are bad for us. But for the sake of his belly and a book contract he gave it a try and sets out to be the healthiest man he can be. Over the course of 2 years he examines almost every body part in his quest to reach health nirvana. He doesn't just join a gym he tries Cavemen workouts. Which as a women I can't see myself doing. I guess I'd be too busy getting dragged around by my hair.

Jacobs advocates a plant based diet. He tries juicing and a raw diet. He tries to quit sugar which studies have show is as addictive as heroin. He gets so desperate he asks his wife to write out a cheque to the American Nazi Organization telling her to send it if he cheats. He talks a lot about things I already know but don't actually do myself. I admit, I don't sleep enough, or eat a plant based diet, or take the stairs. But it's highly entertaining to read about a man who lives his life by the health obsessed rules.

I did learn some neat tricks like using a smaller plate with a small fork or chewing my food more per bite. I'm willing to admit that the way I approach my food is unhealthy. And I'm finding myself adopting Jacobs' chewdaism when I'm eating alone. I'm also intrigued by the idea of a treadmill desk and wonder if my employer would be supportive of such an idea. The book also touches upon how dependent we humans are on our brains. I'm convinced my brain is a muscle and if it grows flabby from disuse it does't matter how many sit ups I can do.

"WHO defines health as a state of emotional, mental, and physical well-being." (168)

For my next non-fiction book I'm going cerebral and reading The Brain That Changes Itself by Norman Doidge. I'd love any recommendations to help me in my next non-fiction choice. Perhaps something on emotional health?

Caine's Arcade

This video has been making the rounds and I'm sure a lot of you have already seen it but for those of you who haven't please watch.

Caine's Arcade is a wonderful story about a 9 year old boy and his imagination. Bored at his dad's work Caine created an arcade out of cardboard. He didn't get a lot of attention until Nirvan Mullick created a Facebook invite and got as many people as possible to make Caine's day. Nirvan also produced this short film about the whole experience. Donations have been flooding in for Caine's college education. Imagine what he will build.

What inspired me most about this story is the kindness that Nirvan showed towards Caine and his family. Sure, Nirvan is getting a lot of attention from his film and Caine's Dad is probably seeing an increase in business at his shop. But what counts more than anything is the support and belief that these people had in Caine. The look on that boy's face when he and his Dad pull up to their shop is priceless. And it was amazing to me that Nirvan was the only customer who showed any interest in this boy's creation.

It's amazing to think of all the people and creations we pass by in our daily routine and take for granted. It doesn't take much to slow down and appreciate the world around you. It only takes a little more to recognize greatness and give it the push it needs to become something bigger.

Caine inspires me to think bigger and let my imagination bloom. Nirvan inspires me to see the greatness in others and use the tools I have (such as Facebook) to share that greatness with others.

What inspires you?

The Virgin Suicides. Good movie, better book.

Jeffrey Eugenides, Illustration by Dan Park

My love for Jeffrey Eugenides grew to new heights this fall when I read The Marriage Plot. I'm sure I wasn't the only one who had waited with bated breath for 9 years after his Pulitzer Prize winning Middlesex.

I loved The Marriage Plot as well as Middlesex but I soon realized I had never read The Virgin Suicides. Sure I had seen the Sophia Coppola film when it came out in 1999. But in order to call myself a true fan I needed to backtrack and read the book that started the Eugenidi-mania.

There are certain themes that Eugenides never fails to leave out of his books. The books all take place in his beloved suburbia of Detroit, Michigan. There are often Greek-American characters (to a lesser extent in The Virgin Suicides). And there is bound to be a character or two suffering from varying degrees of depression. Eugenides was born in Detriot to a Greek family and has talked about his own bouts with depression in his numerous interviews. It makes the average reader wonder how autobiographical his books really are?

The Virgin Suicides is one of the those books that effects you so strongly you begin to take on the character's idiosyncrasies. I'm not saying I wanted to throw myself out of a window but I had this overwhelming sense of malaise that I couldn't quite pinpoint.

The book is told from the point of view of the neighbourhood boys many years after the tragic events depicted in the book. And although the book is told through the men's experiences the reader gets a vivid picture of what it's like it be teenage girls living a sheltered life in the 1960s under the watchful eyes of their religious parents. What I enjoy the most about Eugenides is his ear for the female voice. I was much more interested and invested in the girl's psyche than the boys even though the boys do suffer in their own right.

The real trouble doesn't start until after the youngest daughter, Cecilia commits suicide by jumping out her bedroom window and falling on to the fence below. The 4 remaining sisters get pulled out of school, have their rock 'n roll music taken away and eventually get put under lockdown.

What I found really fascinating was the way the community reacted and tried to cope with the initial tragedy. The school administration did their best to talk about depression and teen suicide at school, but ultimately failed. The neighbours did what they thought best and dug up the offending fence. Even the family's priest made his customary visit to the house and was stunned but the state of the place. What everyone fails to address is the infectious sadness that seems to be oozing out of the house and its inhabitants. And it's the communities failure and fear that could be argued what spurs on the remaining deaths.

It's not so much a book about depression or suicide but the mysteries and opression of adolescence. My favourite character is the over sexualized Lux who looks for the love she does't get at home in the "love" of her teenage counterpart. She also has a heavy hand in what happens to her sisters in the remaining events of the novel.

I highly recommend this book but warn you that you might need a pick me up afterwards. And if you know any teenagers perhaps its a good book to read together and prepare for some serious talking sessions.