"The Yellow Wallpaper"

I just mentioned this story by Charlotte Perkins Gilman in my previous entry, and had to find it and read it again.

If you've never read the story, try to find it in a collection, because it is one of the freakiest and creepiest stories you'll ever read. And I do mean creepy (if you read or have read the story, you'll know what I'm talking about). I first read it when I was in high school, in an anthology of short stories...if I recall, it was an old book, and I wish I still had it. The pages were rather yellow, which was fitting.

The woman in the story is suffering from a "nervous condition," and she and her physician husband lease a country estate for a period of time, in an effort to give her a little rest and ease her stress. She and her husband stay in the large upstairs bedroom:

It is a big, airy room, the whole floor nearly, with windows that looks all ways, and air and sunshine galore. It was nursery first and then playroom and gymnasium, I should judge; for the windows are barred for little children, and there are rings and things in the walls...

I never saw a worse paper in my life...

It is dull enough to confuse the eye in following, pronounced enough to constantly irritate and provoke study, and when you follow the lame uncertain curves for a little distance they suddenly commit suicide--plunge off at outrageous angles, destroy themselves in unheard of contradictions.

The color is repellent, almost revolting; a smoldering unclean yellow, strangely faded by the slow-turning sunlight.

It is a dull yet lurid orange in some places, a sickly sulphur tint in others.

No wonder the children hated it! I should hate it myself if I had to live in this room long...

There is a recurrent spot where the pattern lolls like a broken neck and two bulbous eyes stare at you upside down.

WOW, I'd forgotten how awesome this story is, and how much I loved it. Who knew that a writer could make wallpaper so freakin' creepy?!

Quiet, cold, and blustery

It's been a quiet day at Nutwood, as well as in Spottersville. All the little elves are busy with their little elfin duties!

No elves here--we're just hunkering down trying to keep our asses from freezing off! Criminy, it's cold out there! I was happy to stay inside all day, but Ken braved the frigid temperatures to go get a haircut, and he was nice enough to stop at the store and pick up a few things. The tuna steaks are marinating (I'm doing blackened tuna again--we both liked it quite a bit), and I'll be roasting some asparagus, too. Mmmm!

Our friend Kimberley called and we discussed Vegas plans. They are happy about the Boneyard tour (where Vegas signs retire), cool with the Brazilian steakhouse (I think Kim said they've actually eaten there before, unless she was talking about Brazilian steakhouses in general), and they're really looking forward to a fun break after much craziness with their teaching duties. There is also much craziness in Vegas, but it's a fun kind of crazy, and I think we're all looking forward to some of that!

I'm in a quiet, reading kind of mood, and I finally finished the latest Stephen King collection of short stories, Just After Sunset. I had put it aside to read a couple of other things, and since it was a collection of stories, it was easy to go back to it. My favorite in the collection was "The Things They Left Behind," about those who perished in the Twin Towers...and those who survived. I thought it was a very poignant piece, and it is obvious that 9/11 had a profound effect on King, as it did the rest of us. If you like King, these are fun and sometimes thought-provoking stories. Nothing that really spooked me, but I'm kind of hard to spook anymore, especially through a story or a book. Probably the spookiest story in this collection was "N.," which was my second favorite. It had a definite Lovecraft feel to it, exploring how thin the veil between different worlds can be. It also used the letter as its base, i.e., letters written, notes taken in a psychiatrist's office, newspaper stories--I've always loved that form for a story or novel. It seems that it's a little more mysterious, letting the reader in bit by bit on the story, as well as an intimate glimpse of the writer's (the writer in the story, that is) state of mind.

King also included an afterword in which he talks about the stories and his thoughts, and I always enjoy that. He mentioned OCD several times, and while I forget which story included this reference, he also mentioned the short story "The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. I was thrilled to see that, because it remains one of my favorites stories of all time. Is anyone else familiar with it? Lori? I have a copy of it downstairs, and I might have to read that again.

My next book is one from our book club, Loving by the English novelist Henry Green. I'm very behind--this was October's book! (I've already read November's, though.) I also have December's book, but I think that's going to be more of a January book for me! I keep thinking I'll get caught up at some point, but it hasn't happened yet!