On Beauty

I finished reading On Beauty by Zadie Smith last night. I could not put it down until I was finished even though I had to get up at 5:00 this morning to drive my mom and grandma to the airport. It was so good. I cried through several portions of it, mostly because of the relationship between Howard and his wife of 30 years, Kiki. He had cheated on her, and she couldn't decide whether or not to forgive him, and so their relationship just kept vascillating between love and hate. And even though he had cheated on her, his love for her was so palpable, so real. He didn't really want some stick thin person, he wanted the reality of his wife whom he knows and who knows him. And this saddened me on a couple of levels because I feel like I will never have that sort of relationship with another person of the opposite sex, and also because even a love like that could not resist infidelities. If we are supposed to be with one other person for our entire lives, why is it so hard to find and stay with this person?

On the plus side, I have had a wonderful Christmas so far. I spent a lot of family time, we went shopping and downtown Chicago to see the Nutcracker, which was amazing. The costumes and scenery were splendid. Now I am at Sarah's house in Rockford where we are having fun watching movies and playing Settlers of Cattan (of which I have won 3 out of the last 6 games, Sarah has won 2, and her brother has won 1). I only have this week left, so I am trying to relax and enjoy it before heading back to the grindstone next week.