Author Archives: Laura Beth

10.25.16
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Getting Personal #42: My First-Ever To Be Read List (TBR)

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Image Credit: TED Blog

Thanks to a recent conversation via blog comments with Maureen, who writes the fabulous blog Sparkle, she gave me that kick in the pants to finally make a To Be Read (TBR) list of my own!

In addition, this is the perfect segue for me to get back onto Goodreads and hold myself accountable that way, too.

Now, with this post, I’m currently focused on wrapping up my 2016 Reading Challenge first, so that’s why the remaining books from that list are at the top of this list.

Ready?

Here we go!

Laura Beth’s To Be Read (TBR) List, as of October 2016:

  1. The Language of Silence, Tiffany Truitt (An awesome sorority sister of mine, and a local author!)
  2. Black Rabbit Hall, Eve Chase
  3. Gone With The Wind, Margaret Mitchell
  4. The Red Tent, Anita Diamant
  5. The Man in the High Castle, Philip K. Dick
  6. Tropic of Cancer, Henry Miller
  7. New Boy, Julian Houston
  8. The Casual Vacancy, J.K. Rowling
  9. The Hunger Games trilogy, Suzanne Collins
  10. 11/22/63, Stephen King
  11. Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, Ransom Riggs
  12. Hollow City, Ransom Riggs
  13. Library of Souls, Ransom Riggs
  14. Tales of the Peculiar, Ransom Riggs
  15. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, J.K. Rowling
  16. Quidditch Through the Ages, J.K. Rowling
  17. Music in My Heart: My Journey with Melody, Erin Falligant with Denise Lewis Patrick
  18. The Sky’s the Limit: My Journey with Maryellen, Valerie Tripp
  19. Laura Lamont’s Life in Pictures, Emma Straub
  20. Modern Lovers, Emma Straub
  21. In the Unlikely Event, Judy Blume
  22. You Will Know Me, Megan Abbott
  23. The Book Thief, Markus Zusak
  24. Lolita, Vladimir Nabokov
  25. Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption, Laura Hillenbrand
  26. Valley of the Dolls, Jacqueline Susann
  27. The Haunting of Hill House, Shirley Jackson
  28. The Underground Railroad, Colson Whitehead
  29. Brown Girl Dreaming, Jacqueline Woodson
  30. Another Brooklyn, Jacqueline Woodson
  31. The Art of Memoir, Mary Karr
  32. Loving Day, Mat Johnson
  33. American Heiress: The Wild Saga of the Kidnapping, Crimes, and Trial of Patty Hearst, Jeffrey Toobin
  34. The Run of His Life: The People v. O.J. Simpson, Jeffrey Toobin
  35. The Grid: The Fraying Wires Between Americans and Our Energy Future, Gretchen Bakke
  36. Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis, J.D. Vance
  37. A Square Meal: A Culinary History of the Great Depression, Jane Ziegelman and Andy Coe
  38. Bright Lights, Big City, Jay McInerney
  39. Bright, Precious Days, Jay McInerney
  40. Underground Airlines, Ben Winters
  41. A Good Month for Murder: The Inside Story of a Homicide Squad, Del Quentin Wilber
  42. American Girl: Ultimate Visual Guide, Erin Falligant, Laurie Calkhoven, Carrie Anton
  43. Teardrops of the Innocent: The White Diamond Story (True Colors – Volume 1), Allie Marie (Another local author!!)
  44. Grace and Grit: My Fight for Equal Pay and Fairness at Goodyear and Beyond, Lily Ledbetter

That’s all, for now!

I plan to update this list quarterly. Since this is the last quarter of 2016 (Already!), look for an update to this list in January!

Cheers! Happy reading!

Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂

10.24.16
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Book Review #19: “Go Set A Watchman”

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Image Credit: en.wikipedia.org

“Prejudice, a dirty word, and faith, a clean one, have something in common: they both begin where reason ends.”
― Harper Lee, Go Set a Watchman

This is the third book from my 2016 Reading Challenge!

I bought this book almost immediately after it was published.

To Kill A Mockingbird is near the top of my all-time favorite books – One that I re-read almost every year. When this manuscript was discovered and then published, I knew I needed to get my own copy.

I was immediately attracted to the cover. It’s gorgeous, classic, and something that I think will stand the test of time.

Please note: I will do my best to limit spoilers in this review, but this is your formal warning.

I’ll admit, I read too many articles surrounding the publication of this book in the summer of 2015 – Something I don’t normally do.

There was one significant character detail, surrounding Atticus, that was a bombshell. To me, it came completely out of left field, especially given the events from Mockingbird.

It’s so significant, that I choose to not reveal it here.

However, after I bought the book, I tried to shelve that bombshell and read it with an open mind.

It took me over a year to sit down and read it, but better late than never.

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Go Set A Watchman reintroduces the characters of Atticus, Calpurnia, Hank, and Scout, now referred to as Jean Louise Finch. Lee takes us along for the ride with Jean Louise, as she travels from New York to her hometown of Maycomb, Alabama. She visits for two weeks every year.

I could see how the passage of years had changed everyone, and not necessarily for the better.

I was immediately immersed in Jean Louise’s world. She’s 26 now, and I saw the image of Scout fading and her womanly image forming throughout the book.

Having always enjoyed historical fiction, I appreciated Lee’s take on a typical Southern town, struggling to accommodate the black community and start to accept their burgeoning civil rights. The NAACP and Brown v. Board of Education are prominently mentioned, giving me the impression that the story is set after 1954.

Lee paints certain scenes so well that I felt like I was right there, listening to the local gossip in the livingroom during the Coffee. I could hear the train whistle. I could almost smell the marsh when Hank and Jean Louise go for their swim at Finch’s Landing.

At first, I sympathized with Jean Louise. She’s grappling with visiting her hometown that is struggling with so much change, while trying to keep her wits about her. The same condition that killed her mother has now killed her brother, Jem. She is horrified by her father’s actions at a Citizens’ Council meeting in town. She begins to lose her faith in everything that she thought she knew.

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Most of the time, I wanted to keep turning the pages. It’s definitely a dramatic novel, exploring Jean Louise’s actions and reactions to her hometown and all the changes around her. She’s changing as a woman, as a daughter, and as a friend, plus trying to adapt to the world that is in flux.

However, toward the last section, it felt like Jean Louise’s two weeks in Maycomb were more like two years. There was so much dialogue, along with multiple large chunks of inner monologue and stream-of-consciousness, that got very muddy and tough to wade through.

To make sure I was following along correctly, there were several times where I had to pause and re-read some lengthy passages, and I didn’t appreciate that at all.

Also, there were several instances where the speaker or character wasn’t clear, and I had to review the previous passage or even the whole page of text to see who was being referenced. It was immensely annoying, frustrating, and made my head hurt. I kept reminding myself that the main focus of the novel is on Jean Louise, but, as a reader, it’s no fun having to try to figure out the character from page to page.

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Overall, Go Set A Watchman is a decent sequel to a landmark novel such as Mockingbird. It clearly illustrates the struggles of the time, and how a 26-year-old woman would potentially adapt to so many changes in a short time period.

It has several excellent qualities – Love, family, friendship, morals, and balancing acceptance. I believe it accurately portrays the attitudes of those white, and black, of the time period, in the troubled South. It was an intriguing novelization of the deep South that made me consider how I would react if I had been in Jean Louise’s shoes.

However, it felt about 75 pages too long. Lee could have done without multiple pages of Jean Louise’s murky thoughts and memories. By the end, some of her outbursts and interactions with others appeared overly dramatic, immature, and frustrating. It was almost too heavy with her characterization, and I found myself wanting more of other characters, particularly Atticus, Hank, and even Calpurnia.

It’s a decent addition to my bookshelf, but not one that I will constantly praise and applaud for years to come.

3 1/2 out of 5 stars.

Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂

10.21.16
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Getting Personal #41: Declaring My Love for Podcasts

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Image Credit: Capterra Blog

“If you want to stand out as a leader, a good place to begin is by listening.”

– Richard Branson

This little purple app on my iPhone makes me deliriously happy:

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Image Credit: support.apple.com

Podcasts are certainly not a new thing to me. I had to create a three-part series for my Advanced Broadcast Production class at Longwood in the spring of 2011.

It was certainly interesting, but given that I hate / absolutely loathe the sound of my recorded voice, it was a challenging assignment.

Then, fast-forward several years.

For my personal phone, I upgraded from a non-smartphone to an iPhone 6 almost a year ago.

About a month into this new experience, my wonderful husband officially introduced me to the Podcasts app, and I haven’t looked back.

As I started playing around, I discovered that National Public Radio (NPR) had a lot to offer. So, I started there.

It was information overload. There were way too many to choose from!

Now that I’ve settled into a regular routine, I love listening to these episodes in my car. I almost always play at least one episode to get me through the drive to and from work, five days a week. My commute is roughly 30 miles, and it takes anywhere from 35-45 minutes to get to and fro (sometimes longer), so these anecdotes have definitely kept me entertained!

Here’s my current podcast playlist (alphabetical order):

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Out of this list, there’s seven that are produced by NPR, and I love all of them.

Ask Me Another and Wait Wait … Don’t Tell Me! both satiate my game show and trivia palates on a weekly basis. I’m actually hoping to get on both programs, at some point.

I love learning about history and cool stories – Most of these podcasts give me that fresh feeling every week!

The Nerdist is hilarious – I love the cast of characters that Chris Hardwick gets to interview! The best part is I get to pick and choose what I listen to, and when I want to do so. Recently, he’s interviewed the likes of Neil deGrasse Tyson, Mayim Bialik, Summer Ash, and Sarah Jessica Parker!

Several of the podcasts that I subscribe to have a “seasonal” format. Embedded, Invisibilia, and Serial have done this. It’s like a TV show – They produce a certain number of episodes, and then take a break to prepare for the new season.

It can be frustrating at times, but I know these men and women are hard at work and dreaming up even bigger things!

I’m always looking for new or interesting recommendations. If you have any podcasts that you crush on or love to listen to, I’d love to hear them!

Also, here’s a thought:

  • If you were to dream up an idea for a podcast, what would you do, and why?

Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂

10.20.16
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Tag #14: “Peculiar Children Book Tag”

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Image Credit: azquotes.com

At the beginning of October, I was tagged by the great man at The Green Onion Blog! Thank you so much for the nomination!

I love his posts – They’re so nerdy, and geeky, and awesome! Please check him out!

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Here’s the link to the original post:

Ready?

Here we go!

Abandoned House – A book you once abandoned but then gave another chance and ended up enjoying

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Image Credit: amazon.com

The Vacationers by Emma Straub.

This was relatively recent. My “Aunt” Lucy let me borrow this book in 2015, but I could not settle down and get it into it, which bothered me. But, I decided to set it aside, and I’m glad I did. I picked it up again earlier this year, and now Straub is one of my favorite writers. I can’t wait to read more from her.

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Vintage Photographs – A book you would have loved to have seen illustrations in

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Image Credit: amazon.com

The Paris Wife by Paula McLain.

This was the first true book review that I ever wrote. It’s one of those stories that immerses you in the time period. In this case, it’s the 1920s and it’s the novelization of Ernest Hemingway’s first wife, Hadley.

As I was reading, I was imagining Paris, the Alps, and other fascinating scenes. The words were very vivid, but I found myself wanting a few illustrations here and there.

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Loop – A series you wouldn’t mind reading on loop; Back to back to back

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Image Credit: amazon.com

The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling.

Hands down. I know certain people have given it flack, but I have a few friends who I know will agree with me. I own the entire series, and most recently, I read The Cursed Child in August.

Next up (Eventually) – Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and Quidditch Through the Ages.

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Peculiar Children – A character’s ability that you desire to have for yourself

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Any of Wonder Woman’s powers.

She’s always been an inspiration to me. I haven’t read many comic books, but I have seen the TV adaptations (Lynda Carter was awesome, and still gorgeous to this day), and most recently, Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice earlier this year.

Gal Gadot is just awesome in my eyes, and I absolutely cannot wait for Wonder Woman in 2017!

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Miss Peregrine – Your favorite character that is a leader

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Image Credit: en.wikipedia.org

Andrew “Ender” Wiggin from Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card.

I remember dreading this book when I found it had been assigned for my summer reading going into 9th grade. Ugh, science fiction?! Yuck!

Boy, was I wrong. I could put the book down! Ender is transformed into a bonafide leader, and it’s impressive. Because of my love of this book, I eventually want to read the rest of the series.

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Jacob – Your favorite story where a regular kid discovers an extraordinary world

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Image Credit: en.wikipedia.org

Skeeter Phelan from The Help by Kathryn Stockett.

This is one of my favorite books. Plus, I thought the movie adaptation was very well-done, Emma Stone was a good choice to play Skeeter. Although not really a “kid” in the book, Skeeter quickly finds herself immersed in the world of “the help” – The black maids in her Mississippi community in 1963.

If you haven’t read it, I highly recommend it. Writing about it here makes me want to re-read it soon!

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Emma – A fierce and fiery character

Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins.

Katniss, to me, is the premier definition of fierce and fiery. At least, in terms of modern young adult (YA) literature.

This is by far my favorite recent trilogy. I will be re-reading it shortly, as part of my 2016 Reading Challenge!

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Millard – A book that seems to be invisible but needs to be read by more people

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An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser.

I first stumbled upon this book in the Chesapeake Central Library when I was senior in high school. I was researching F. Scott Fitzgerald at the time for a critical English paper, so I didn’t check it out at that time.

However, I found myself researching it online and became more intrigued. Shortly after graduation, I remembered this book and checked it out. It was a fascinating tale.

Dreiser is a good writer who excelled for his time, at the turn of the 20th century. Writing about this makes me want to read it again!

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Olive – A book that you bought that floated to the top of your TBR

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Image Credit: amazon.com

Harry Potter and The Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling, John Tiffany, and Jack Thorne.

This is the most recent book I bought, and I immediately wanted to start reading it, even before I got out of Barnes & Noble!

Judging that I flew through the edition within 48 hours, it didn’t stay on my TBR for very long!

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Hugh – A book that stung and caused a lot of feelings

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Image Credit: en.wikipedia.org

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green.

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I finally read this book, but it hit me hard. No spoilers, but it reaffirmed how precious life is and how anyone in your life can be taken away in an instant.

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Enoch – (NO SPOILERS) A book character that you would bring back to life

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Image Credit: en.wikipedia.org

Cedric Diggory from Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.

I won’t spoil anything, but I’ll bet you dollars to donuts that most of you know what I’m talking about here.

I cried buckets of tears.

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Bronwyn – A physically strong character

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Image Credit: DeviantArt

Gamora from Strange Tales and Guardians of the Galaxy.

She’s aggressive, strong, and feisty. I loved her character in the Guardians of the Galaxy film, and I’m so excited for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 in May!

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Hollowgasts – A book you read that felt like an experiment gone wrong

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Image Credit: en.wikipedia.org

Allegiant from the Divergent trilogy.

I really, really wanted to like this one. I loved Divergent and Insurgent, but as I mentioned in my book review of the trilogy, I couldn’t wrap my head around the back-and-forth of the different perspectives.

This was such a fun tag! It took me a long time to get this published – I wanted to publish it right after I was tagged, but life got in the way. It’s hard to believe 15 days went by between posts!

What do you think? I’d love to hear your responses!

Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂

10.18.16
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Commentary #44: My Life as a PBS Kid

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Image Credit: quotesgram.com

As a child, my parents didn’t pay for cable TV.

They still don’t have it.

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Image Credit: HD Guru

So, my main source of entertainment, in terms of television, was PBS.

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Image Credit: pbskids.org

There are so many shows that came to mind when I was creating this post. I wanted to share a few of them with you, and how these shows have impacted my life.

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Arthur (1996-present)

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Image Credit: en.wikipedia.org

I read the Arthur books in school and from the library. Reading Rainbow featured one of the books as well. When the show premiered in September 1996, I watched it every day, like clockwork. In the beginning, it was on after school, paired with Wishbone.

Many of these shows have found new life on YouTube and other streaming services (Netflix, etc.) It’s exciting to be able to watch them again.

It’s interesting to watch some of these shows as an adult. With Arthur, I learned about friendship, families, school, reading, and being a kid.

This is one of the few shows for kids that has explored tougher / more adult topics as well – Divorce, bullies, lying, cancer, and even a touch of religion since Francine’s family is Jewish.

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Barney & Friends (1992-2009)

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Image Credit: en.wikipedia.org

I almost hate to admit it, but I loved the purple dinosaur and all his friends when I was little. There’s a picture of me on the porch of my parents’ house dressed as Barney for one Halloween – It must have been 1992 or 1993.

However, thinking back, the show taught me a lot of good things – Friendship, sharing, kindness, helping others, and so on.

Will you find me showing it to my kids? Not likely. It didn’t take long for the voices, and especially the songs, to get very annoying and corny!

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Ghostwriter (1992-1995)

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Image Credit: en.wikipedia.org

When I was old enough to watch Ghostwriter, it was in its later seasons. However, I loved the show. It’s set in New York (Brooklyn, specifically), and I loved seeing the team work together to solve the mystery at hand. I remember finding an old composition notebook and creating my own “casebook” to follow along with the show.

This show made me want to put together my own group of friends to solve cases. It also teaches about reading, writing, friendship, family, struggles in middle school, and diversity. I loved that every member of the team was an individual, but they also worked as an awesome team.

The entire series is on YouTube, and I find myself re-watching it once or twice a year. I’ve also dreamed up a little bit of fan fiction from time to time.

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Reading Rainbow (1983-2006)

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Image Credit: en.wikipedia.org

Reading Rainbow has always been one of my favorites. I’ve always loved LeVar Burton’s personality, and I figured out pretty quickly that he played Geordi on Star Trek: The Next Generation.

I’ve always loved reading, and this show made want to read all of the books that were featured – The books that were the centerpieces of the show, and the books that the kids profiled at the end. I wanted to be one of those kids!

I still remember the Russell Memorial Library having special Reading Rainbow stickers on the book covers. The show was funny, entertaining, and showed how reading show literally show you the world.

I haven’t found many full episodes by way of YouTube, but Netflix has the first full season. I hope they’ll add more!

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Sesame Street (1969-present, now partnered with HBO)

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Image Credit: en.wikipedia.org

Sesame Street has been my long-standing favorite show. Big Bird was my favorite when I was younger. I even had three stuffed versions of him – A small, a medium, and a large that talked with a pull string.

Seeing a mix of new and classic episodes, songs, and shorts on YouTube, it’s fascinating to see how this show has stood the test of time. There was a lot of flack last year when the partnership with HBO was announced. Initially, I didn’t agree with it. But, having researched it, I see why PBS did what they did. I’m still not 100 percent okay with it, but I see the strategy behind it.

This show has so many life lessons mixed in with shapes, colors, and counting. I learned about friendship, family, helping others, good manners, patience, problem solving, and more.

Though not a major character on Sesame Street, Kermit the Frog has been my new favorite Muppet for a while now. Big Bird is a very close second. Cookie Monster, Grover, and Telly round out my top five.

There’s even a fun spin-off series on YouTube called The Furchester Hotel that takes Elmo and Cookie Monster across the pond! It’s adorable and I think it’s great.

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Where in Time is Carmen Sandiego? (1996-1997)

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Image Credit: en.wikipedia.org

I had almost all of the computer games, and I remember eagerly watching the kids travel through time to catch Carmen. I found myself applying some of the history I learned from the show in middle school, high school, and even college!

In college, I was so excited to discover that most of the Time episodes, and almost all of the Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? episodes (1991-1995) are in full on YouTube.

It’s amazing how I subtly learned geography and history with these two shows. I remember watching more of Time than World, since World was ending around the same time as Ghostwriter. Like Arthur, Wishbone, and ZOOM, this one was a daily after-school show for me if I was able to. 

I dreamed of being a contestant, but I was too young to try out, and it ended before I turned 10. I loved the concept. Recently, I found myself dreaming up some fan fiction about both shows, so I may put those on paper here soon.

Re-watching a lot of the episodes as an adult, I’ve learned a few new things. It’s been awesome to keep learning after all these years. World just celebrated its 25th anniversary!

Plus, I’ve marveled at how crazy the 1990s were – That multi-media computer system!

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Wishbone (1995-1998)

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Image Credit: sidereel.com

This is another show that focused on reading, but it has an adorable Jack Russell terrier that dresses up as the characters and takes you through the book! Awesome!

I wanted to be Samantha, and have best friends like Joe and David. I even wrote an extensive fiction work for my first-ever creative writing class in college that was basically extended fan fiction of these characters, after the show ended and they started high school.

Like some of the other shows mentioned, the entire series is on YouTube, and I’ve loved re-watching them over the last few years.

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ZOOM (1999-2005)

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Image Credit: en.wikipedia.org

This was such a cool show. I was a super-fan for the longest time. I even printed everyone’s photos from their website and made my own posters. Yeah, I was that kid.

I loved that it had real kids doing awesome things. I remember making a lot of the crafts, and some of the food. I didn’t have a big group of friends to play a lot of the games, but it was fun to think about.

Some of the seasons are on YouTube, but not all. I’ve found parts and pieces of the first three seasons, and I hope that all of them will eventually be posted. It’s been fun to travel down memory lane!

This was another show that I really wanted to audition for, but then my mom helped me realize that Boston was a long way away from Chesapeake. That was a big bummer!

Regardless, I loved this show. It ended when I was a junior in high school, but I still watched it religiously. I didn’t tell many of my friends, but I still thought it was cool.

That’s all I have! This was such a fun post.

Did you watch PBS?

Did you watch any of these shows?

Do you have any favorite memories of these shows?

Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂

10.03.16
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Getting Personal #40: “Blue Morpho Butterfly Swarm, Brazil” (Reblogged)

Another breathtaking photo from Just Wunderlust! I love butterflies, so when I saw this notification pop up in my email this morning, I knew I had to share it.

When you see a butterfly, what does it mean to you?

To me, a butterfly symbolizes peace, tranquility, and strength.

Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂

10.02.16
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Adventure Time: Scottsburg, VA Edition (Round 5)

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Image Credit: pinterest.com

Every September, Al’s mom’s family has their annual family reunion in Keysville, Virginia. Conveniently, Keysville is only about 45 minutes from the Vardaro farm in Scottsburg!

Al and I took Friday, September 16th off from work, and drove the truck up to the farm. We left around 8:00 a.m., and stopped at the Hardee’s in Emporia, Virginia, which is roughly the halfway point. The typical drive from Hampton Roads to Scottsburg is about three hours. It’s a nice, relaxing drive. You basically take Route 58 West all the way there. When you reach South Boston, you turn on to Route 360. Once there, it’s only about 15 more minutes.

We spent Friday with Mom and Dad at the farm. Lunch was delicious. We explored the farm, saw Scooter the horse, and fished!

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Scooter’s so pretty!

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The cows next door were out and about!

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Scooter was very interested in Al’s camera!

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I will never get sick of this view. Absolutely gorgeous!

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Al caught a 14 1/2 inch bass!

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There was a harvest moon rising. I thought this photo I took was pretty cool – The power line is slicing the moon in half!

I got up early on Saturday and went out to fish with Mom.

I FINALLY CAUGHT MY BIG BASS!!

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Fifteen inches!

I was able to avenge the bass that took the best fishing lure on Memorial Day weekend. I was so excited!

Saturday was also the day of the reunion. We left the farm around 10:15 a.m. to get there at 11:00. Uncle Bill and Aunt Susan live in Keysville, and they always reserve the fellowship hall of the United Methodist Church. It’s always a good time!

This year, there were about 25 people, which was larger than the last few years. It was smorgasbord of food!

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The food was on two 8-foot tables. Sixteen feet full of goodness!

We also celebrated Uncle Joe’s birthday. Mom Vardaro is one of four kids – Joe’s the baby. Brenda brought a cake, and we all sang Happy Birthday. Then, great-uncle Herbert presented Joe with a gorgeous, solid gold pocket watch that has been in the Chambers family for nearly a century. It was a nice presentation, and several people shed tears. Joe promised to keep it in the family as long as possible.

After the reunion, we drove home and relaxed. Almost everyone took a nap!

Around sunset, we moseyed out again. We built a fire and enjoyed s’mores!

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The skies are always beautiful!

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The “guard donkey” that keeps an eye out on the cows. There were baby calves this time!

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Scooter was posing!

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I caught another one! It was so exciting!

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Campfire!

It was a wonderful weekend. It’s a nice escape that’s only a few hours away!

Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂

10.02.16
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Getting Personal #39: “The Truth About Toxic Relationships” (Reblogged)

Carla’s post about toxic relationships is spot on. I sincerely appreciate her writing about this, since this topic is something I have been struggling with immensely, for a good while now.

No names mentioned, but seeing this post this morning makes me feel so much better, and so much less guilty.

Thank you, Carla!

Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂

10.01.16
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Commentary #43: Thoughts On “Making A Murderer”

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Image Credit: elitedaily.com

Holy wow.

It took a long time, but over the course of a Friday night in September and most of today, I was able to plow through all 10 addicting, spellbinding episodes of Netflix’s hit documentary, “Making A Murderer.”

When it was released in December 2015, I remember being intrigued from the get-go. It sounded like a fascinating story.

Fascinating, well, is just one word.

The story of Steven Avery, intertwined with the stories of Teresa Halbach and Brendan Dassey, takes you deep into the community of Manitowoc County, Wisconsin, bordering Lake Michigan.

With this post, I’ll try to summarize the entangled network of the cases, the intrigue, the mystery, and the questions.

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The Averys are a family that have never been liked or been highly regarded by local law enforcement. They run a huge salvage yard in the county that spans for acres and acres.

Steven was the most well-known of the family to the police. As a teenager, he was charged with a few petty crimes – Burglary, petty theft, and cruelty to animals.

In 1985, Steven was arrested for the sexual assault of a woman. Despite his insistence of his innocence, he was convicted, and sent to prison for 32 years.

In 2003, Steven was exonerated after 18 years. He was released from prison, thanks to help from the Innocence Project. Their tireless work was amazing to see.

Steven was arrested again, in 2005, and charged with the murder of Teresa Halbach. Teresa was a photographer for Auto Trader magazine, and was at the Avery’s salvage yard to take photos of a minivan that Steven wanted to sell. After that, Teresa disappeared.

The sheriff’s department and volunteers find Teresa’s Toyota RAV-4 on the Avery property. Blood is found in the vehicle. Areas of the property are excavated to discover burned bones, all fragments. The key to Teresa’s vehicle is found in Steven’s bedroom.

After Steven’s arrest, he claimed officials framed him, since he had filed a $36 million civil lawsuit against the county and several county officials after his exoneration. In 2005, it was still pending.

As the case heads toward trial, there are accusations of evidence tampering, and significant conflict of interest with the county investigating the case.

—

Simultaneously, Steven’s nephew, Brendan, was accused of being an accessory to Teresa’s alleged sexual assault and murder on the Avery property. He was sixteen at the time. He was known to have lower cognitive function, being enrolled in some special education classes in school and reading on a fourth-grade level.

Two investigators interview Brendan multiple times, even going to his high school to talk to him during school hours. Even though he was a minor at the time, his mother was never present for any of the interviews.

In the videotapes, it appears that Brendan is being coerced into eventually confessing to his involvement. The investigators appear to ask questions that force Brendan to admit his involvement in raping Teresa and witnessing his uncle Steven murdering her. On tape, he appears to admit that he helped stab her with a knife, and then the police indicate that Teresa was also shot.

However, Brendan later writes out a full timeline of the day in question. According to the written statement, Brendan came home from school, played video games, and ate dinner. In his own words, he states that he did not go over to his uncle Steve’s house, at all.

—

As the episodes flow, almost seamlessly, we see the roads up to their trials.

I won’t reveal the outcomes of their trials here, but I will say that the results were not what I expected.

It was fascinating to see both trials play out in a series of one-hour episodes. It was addicting. It was gut-wrenching. It was difficult to hear the account of what this man and this teenager allegedly did to this young woman, over and over.

Seeing the media coverage and their involvement made me realize how tough that work ethic is. The press conferences appeared to never end. The blending of the lawyers and attorneys for both sides was almost intoxicating.

Personally, I thought the filmmakers did an excellent job of showcasing both the prosecution and the defense. It was amazing to see all the work and research and presentations that were put into Steven’s and Brendan’s trials.

As a paralegal student, I was excited to see the potential work that I could be doing unfolding in front of my eyes. Besides excited, I felt a mix of emotions – Preparing for a trial, any trial, is complicated and stressful. The work that I will do one day can literally make or break a case for the client.

—

Overall, this series grabbed me by the collar and never let go. I wanted to marathon it all at once. Once the end credits started rolling, I wanted to click “Next” and not stop.

I feel terrible that the Averys were targeted by county officials for years. It appears that Steven always had a target on his back. He was wrongfully imprisoned for 18 long years. He, unfortunately, was not innocent until proven guilty.

However, with that said, the twists and turns of this series has left me unsettled.

Is there still justice in this world?

Is anyone still innocent until proven guilty?

Do we need to pay closer attention to law enforcement in terms of conflict of interest, bias, evidence tampering, and so on?

—

I feel it’s worth mentioning here that Steven and Brendan are, and Teresa was, white. Almost all of the main players / characters involved in this story are white. While watching, I wondered if it would have been a different story if a different race, or races, was involved in these cases. I say all of this carefully, considering the hotbed of emotions that has surrounded race relations and police involvement.

—

As stated in the series, we may never know what truly happened to Teresa Halbach.

However, the stories of Steven Avery and Brendan Dassey continue.

In July, Netflix announced that a second season was being produced.

As recently as August 12, new developments in one of their cases have made national news.

It was another twist in a long, winding road that’s lasted over 10 years now.

I’m eagerly looking forward to what Netflix releases as the second season. I’m also watching the news more closely these days, interested in any shred of information on the case in question.

This series was a different, addicting spin on a true-crime story that spans multiple families, law enforcement agencies, and zeroes in on a small Wisconsin community. Like much of the nation, I’m on the edge of my seat now, where I can hardly wait to see what happens next.

Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂

10.01.16
by

Getting Personal #38: October Goals

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Image Credit: quotesaddicts.com

Here are my goals for the month of October!

  1. Prep the house for our first overnight visitor!
  2. Donate blood!
  3. Plan our Halloween costumes!
  4. Decorate the house for fall!
  5. Clean up the clutter and plan my office space!
  6. Recap my 44 for Bill Movement participation.
  7. Celebrate birthdays – Mom’s and Mia’s!
  8. Read at least two books on my 2016 Reading Challenge list, and publish those book reviews.
  9. Join the Portsmouth Public Library.
  10. Read through Megan’s cookbook, and try at least two of her recipes!
  11. Sign up for a pen pal through Geek Girl Pen Pals.
  12. Get ahead with my Trial Prep & Discovery Practice assignments.
  13. Get excited for our wedding anniversary getaway!

Here’s the breakdown:

Prep the house for our first overnight visitor!

  • Right now, the plan is for one of our good friends to come visit our house during the weekend of October 14th. I’m so excited!

Donate blood!

  • As this post goes live, I’m at church volunteering at the blood drive. It’s easy to remember – We host blood drives on the first Saturday of every even-numbered month. This time around, there’s a delicious pancake breakfast that’s made by the local high school’s field hockey team as a fundraiser!
  • I’ve struggled with anemia since I was diagnosed in college. I take a daily multivitamin with 100% iron, and I also try to eat a well-balanced diet of iron-rich foods (Red meat, dark leafy greens, whole grains, and a handful of other interesting foods). Usually, since you can give blood every 56 days (eight weeks), I’m able to give a pint and then miss a drive. I was able to give in August, but fingers crossed I can give today!

Plan our Halloween costumes!

  • We had this discussion a few days ago in the car. In the past, we’ve dressed as similar characters or part of a team. We’ll keep hashing out ideas!

Decorate the house for fall!

  • A local woman paints designs on plastic pumpkins, so I asked for one with a stylized “V” and one with the Green Bay Packers logo. They look amazing, and I can’t wait to put them on the front stoop!
  • Pinterest is both a blessing and a curse!

Clean up the clutter and plan my office space!

  • This coincides with prepping the house for our first overnight visitor, but I’m itching to clean out the clutter in my future office space and plan it out!
  • We have a lot of empty boxes laying around that need to go in the recycling bin.
  • Since my parents handle the nut orders for Mom’s PEO chapter every fall, they’ve put us on notice for the sawhorses and plywood in our garage. We want to get it cleaned out, anyway, so one of us can finally put our car in there!

Recap my 44 for Bill Movement participation.

  • I’m not quite done with my letters, but you’d better believe there will be a post here when I’m finished!

Celebrate birthdays – Mom’s and Mia’s!

  • My mom’s birthday is in the beginning of October, so I’m hoping we’ll celebrate with dinner as a family, and maybe a movie!
  • Our future niece, Mia, turns 11 this year. We have a few gifts lined up for her, and we can’t wait to give them to her!
  • I also want to get better at sending birthday cards and the like to my relatives. My Aunt Marny’s birthday is at the end of October, and I definitely want to send her a birthday card on time this year!

Read at least two books on my 2016 Reading Challenge list, and publish those book reviews.

  • I feel so far behind! I’m about halfway through one of the books now, and I’m motivated to keep that train going.

Join the Portsmouth Public Library.

  • Finally! Better late than never. Accomplishing this will definitely help me with the reading challenge!

Read through Megan’s cookbook, and try at least two of her recipes!

Sign up for a pen pal through Geek Girl Pen Pals.

  • It’s absolutely happening this month! I saw a few Facebook posts from Kristian about her pen pal, and I want those feelings, too!

Get ahead with my Trial Prep & Discovery Practice assignments.

  • At this point, we’re almost halfway through the semester. If I can concentrate for 3-4 hours per weekend, I’m confident that I’ll ace my midterm and get ahead with my work. I want to fully enjoy our wedding anniversary getaway in mid-November!

Get excited for our wedding anniversary getaway!

  • We’re headed toward the mountains of Virginia in mid-November. I’m getting more excited every day! It’s hard to believe that we’ve been married for almost a full year!

That’s all I have for October!

Thank you, readers, for all your comments and encouragement! You have no idea how much your words mean to me – They keep me going!

Do you have any goals for this month?

Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂