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Post by booboobrewer on May 19, 2011 14:23:13 GMT -5
He did say that--"if you're so bored, get a job."
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Post by zoar3 on May 19, 2011 17:03:49 GMT -5
^I thought he did. I don't think Maureen had a reply though in terms of why she hadn't looked for a job or if she had and was not finding something. In all of Stacey's monologues about how to prevent the divorce, she never thought to try to help her mom find work either, so I wonder if that maybe was a topic of contention for whatever reason between the McGills.
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Post by virgoscorpio on Jan 23, 2012 22:46:20 GMT -5
I love this book. It's definitely up there in the top pile of BSC books for me!
wanderingfrog, candykane and starrynight -- I especially loved reading your stories and memories related to this book!
There is so much for me to love. I love the dynamic between Stacey and her parents. I love reading about the McGills divorce, even if it wasn't too pleasant. I love hearing about Stacey's new house in Stoneybrook: the claw-foot bathtub, the funky windows and the old appliances. I also liked hearing about Ed's new apartment. I actually looked up 65th E Street and the grocery store that was mentioned on Google Maps.
I loved that there was limited babysitting involved, and the chapters that did feature the Walkers kids were cute. I love that they're really into drawing and have artwork all over their walls. Mrs. Walker illustrating children's books especially interests me as I'm a writer.
Maureen probably did think of Stoneybrook as a way to bribe Stacey, although I don't think it was the sole reason. We have to remember that even though Maureen is a parent, she is a human being, after all. Stacey had much more of an influence on her everyday life than Ed's. That's not to say that she loved her more. But Ed would be working a lot, and not home as much as Maureen. And as Stacey said it herself, she's closer to her Mom. I don't think it was necessarily a bad thing for Maureen to need Stacey and want her to go live with her. A divorce PLUS your kid leaving is probably even doubly difficult.
I laughed when Stacey starts getting fed up with her parents, especially her Mom saying, "Have fun and be careful" So the time when Maureen says that to Stacey mid-book, she responds back, "You too!" It's cheeky without being too disrespectful, but still getting your jabs in.
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Post by greer on Jan 24, 2012 16:50:28 GMT -5
Gristede's is a chain in Manhattan. Whenever I see it, I think of Stacey.
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Post by virgoscorpio on Jan 25, 2012 12:13:24 GMT -5
^ I checked out the one on the Upper West Side, which I'm sure is the same one that the McGills went to
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supprazz
Sitting For The Newtons
Posts: 2,106
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Post by supprazz on Feb 10, 2012 3:27:07 GMT -5
She knew Stacey was happier in Stoneybrook and not in New York with her friends I'm sure and wanted to take care of her and not just herself, that's why they went to Stoneybrook. I'm not so sure I agree with her bribing her to do that though I know some women are capable of acting like that to get back at their exes and it's a big mess.
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Post by Honeybee on May 24, 2012 23:19:15 GMT -5
Funny, I thought, I talk about this. I know, I read this book from the library. (last year.) A month ago. I bought it at Book Nook. So, I might re-read this book again. But skip few chapters.
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Post by Honeybee on May 29, 2012 1:20:31 GMT -5
Re-read this book. Skip a few chapters. It's my first time skipping some chapters. It was fun. Goes lot quicker.
When, they were packing. Why would Mr. McGill wanted a crystal vase? (Unless, he knows how take flowers.)
I love house hunting, when I was kid. I still do. I love looking at old houses or new models.
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starrynight
Sitting For The Kuhns
The Royal Diner of Pizza Express
Posts: 4,004
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Post by starrynight on Jun 13, 2012 12:52:38 GMT -5
^ He may not have really wanted the vase because he liked it or thought he could use it. He may have just wanted to keep Mrs. McGill from having it.
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Post by sparklymouse on Jun 13, 2012 17:05:21 GMT -5
^Yeah, it seemed like that type of divorce where they did a lot of crap back and force just to spite the other one.
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Post by zoar3 on Sept 28, 2012 17:03:08 GMT -5
I've only apartment-hunted a few times in my life, all in the same (much smaller then) town that I went to college. I do remember literally making an appointment to check out a unit during a brief stay in the area. Otherwise, I've always needed to look into listings ahead of time and/or call property managers. I know Stoneybrook has many magical qualities (a lot of which is why I'm one of its biggest fans). However, did it seem odd to anyone else that Maureen on the spur of the moment drove the 2 hours, taking a chance there would be a listing she was interested in? It also sounded like she literally bought a newspaper, briefly scanned the vacancies, and then hired Ms. Keller to show her and Stacey what was available. The whole thing sort of happened in a whirlwind! I do enjoy reading about the experience though and loved how Mr. Kishi had to go see for himself that Maureen was truly parked out front. Too bad the two of them never exchanged any greetings.
At the beginning of this book, pages 12-13, Maureen and Ed are talking about how M feels Stacey was healthier in Stoneybrook. Ed flippantly tells Maureen "to move, but that he's not going to commute." Stacey has overheard this and goes to Laine's for comfort. When she comes home, maybe an hour later, her parents announce their divorce. I wonder if as Stacey said, her parents had considered moving back to CT to save their marriage? I also loved how Ed seemed to genuinely love Stacey and was affected by her decision to live with her mom. I only wish they had not lost that closeness. I know most of you are not Ed McGill fans, honestly neither I am all that much. In his "early" days I like to think he was/could have been a good person for Stacey.
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Post by candykane on Sept 28, 2012 19:49:05 GMT -5
^ I agree, there were lots of things wrong with the house-hunting process in this book. It wasn't what I experienced at all when looking for a house. I sure didn't phone up a real estate agent and meet with them that same day, and the agent didn't conveniently have a bunch of houses in my price range all ready to show me the same day either. It sounded like all the houses the Maureen looked at that day had no one living there. I looked at houses that were vacant, too, but others had people still living in them and those people were supposed to make arrangements to not be there when we came through. Some of them didn't bother to leave, which was kind of annoying. It was awkward to walk around looking in all the rooms while they were sitting there. At one house, our agent flung open a bedroom door and someone was in there asleep.
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Post by zoar3 on Sept 28, 2012 19:59:11 GMT -5
^I think it just happened too quickly for my liking. Not quite (by any means) shades of how Sharon came back to CT (I'm guessing she must have made a solo trip to Stoneybrook or had her parents do some house hunting for her) but similar. Didn't they also only see 3 or 4 houses? For such a big decision it would seem like Maureen might want to be better educated on options. If she was dead set on Stoneybrook, perhaps (if she and Ed had to cancel their lease on their NY apartment as quickly as they did) she could have either stayed at a motel for a week and/or commuted a couple times while staying with the Cummings in NY. Meantime, Stacey could have lived with her Dad and possibly had more of a chance to figure out her decision. I will always "thank" Maureen for involving Stacey in the house-hunt, unlike a certain Sharon (and Richard, because he never asked MA about moving to the farmhouse) Spier we know. ETA: How rude of that agent. I hope the person was a sound sleeper. That completely would have freaked me out waking up to some strange people like that!
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Post by candykane on Sept 28, 2012 20:16:24 GMT -5
I don't think our agent realized someone was in the bedroom, but the closed door should have been a clue, lol. When we got there one person was home, doing stuff in the kitchen, and she said nothing about anyone else being there. I saw the closed door and thought "not opening that" but our agent just went on ahead! We also looked at a house where the owners just went and stood in their backyard until we left, and one house where they apparently forgot we had an appointment and woke up to us knocking on the door.
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Post by virgoscorpio on Sept 28, 2012 21:12:27 GMT -5
I've been on both ends of the renting spectrum: wanting to rent and having people wanting to rent the place you're currently in. One time, the landlord failed to tell us of an appointment and woke us up early on Saturday morning WHILE we had friends over (asleep on an air mattress in the living room). They also walked in on my sister and her husband asleep in their bed.
I do think there is a SLIGHT accuracy to Maureen's experience with Stoneybrook reality. Just because I moved to a small city myself, and I think it would be really easy for me to call a number in a phone book and get some help with checking out homes. I see realters numbers around all the time here. Plus, because it's a small city, they probably appreciate the work/feedback (as in, it would probably be less essential to book an appointment).
I LOVE this book if only for the house bits. I love the descriptions of the houses and the new home that Maureen and Stacey pick.
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