The Notebook

Those who know me really well, know that I am nuts about, Nicholas Sparks. I've read every single one of his novels. Some of them, more than once.  ....Wait, that isn't so. I haven't read, The Wedding. The Wedding is going to be in paperback this summer. Maybe I'll buy that and take it to the beach. Hah! As if I'd have time to read a book and watch Stephen? Nah, I'll wait till this fall when he's in school. I had planned to read it last fall, when it was released...but if you've been reading my journal for a while, you know how hectic our school year was.    

My Twin-Friend and I are going to see The Notebook for our birthday!  She and I have been trying to make it a tradition to go out to dinner and a movie every year for our birthday. Darn it, for the last two years in a row, I was too sick. Now that I am better, I am looking forward to finally celebrating our birthday in our so-called traditional way. I told her the other night that unless she had any objections, I had a movie suggestion. She immediately agreed, The Notebook is the one to see this year. We have the same taste in books and movies. So, sometime soon, we will be in the cinema sharing popcorn, cokes and a box of Kleenex. My review of the book would take entirely too long to write, so if you're interested, you'll want to follow the link up there.  All I will say is, the "notebook" itself, is a reflection of the couple's relationship. A journal kept over the years. It begins with the man's character telling the story from the age he is now. You will be taken back in time when their love was young, in the 40's. He speaks of the obstacles they overcame. Including, being torn apart by her parents who felt the boy wasn't good enough for their daughter, and a second time, by the war. And, a 3rd time... I won't get into. You'll have to read the book or see the movie. I simply don't have time. [sorry]

Just to whet your appetite, here is an excerpt from The Notebook::  

 :chapter one:  

Who am I? And how, I wonder, will this
story end?
The sun has come up and I am sitting by a
window that is foggy with the breath of a life
gone by. I’m a sight this morning: two shirts,
heavy pants, a scarf wrapped twice around my
neck and tucked into a thick sweater knitted by
my daughter thirty birthdays ago. The thermostat
in my room is set as high as it will go, and
a smaller space heater sits directly behind me. It
clicks and groans and spews hot air like a fairytale
dragon, and still my body shivers with a
cold that will never go away, a cold that has
been eighty years in the making. Eighty years, I
think sometimes, and despite my own acceptance
of my age, it still amazes me that I haven’t
been warm since George Bush was president.

I wonder if this is how it is for everyone my
age.
My life? It isn’t easy to explain. It has not been
the rip-roaring spectacular I fancied it would be,
but neither have I burrowed around with the
gophers. I suppose it has most resembled a bluechip
stock: fairly stable, more ups than downs,
and gradually trending upward over time. A
good buy, a lucky buy, and I’ve learned that not
everyone can say this about his life. But do not
be misled. I am nothing special; of this I am sure.
I am a common man with common thoughts,
and I’ve led a common life. There are no monuments
dedicated to me and my name will soon be
forgotten, but I’ve loved another with all my
heart and soul, and to me, this has always been
enough. .......
 

And it gets so much better. ::sniff, sniff: Now I need a tissue. Talk amongst yourselves... Keep this in mind; this is NOT just a love story. Romantic as it is, it goes much deeper than being an everyday love story.  

 [Before I go, our reservations have been made! Florida, here we come! We will  be spending my birthday on the beautiful, sugar-white Pensacola Beach! Whoohoo!]  

Have a happy weekend!