Queen Kelley

Finally, at long last, our favorite bewildering show returned Wednesday night. And finally, nearly a week later, I am sitting down to reflect on it. The two new episodes that aired last week continued the Lost trend of raising more questions than they answered. But they did offer some answers.

1. We see that Asian Dharma guy has a wife and kid. It all seems so normal until he sits in front of the camera to record one of his instruction videos (needing no script) and then begins to get visibly agitated by interruptions. That is, until he realizes his workers have found the energy field of the Island. He mentions the possibility of time travel, and we see the image of the wheel, so we know this is where Ben turned the crank. Additionally, Daniel is there! What more does Dharma guy know?

2. A few scenes later we get our first real glimpse of time travel this season, as the Island moves in time, along with the people on it. Our heroic survivors face one difficulty after another, ranging from the loss of their camp and supplies to being shot with fiery arrows. It appears that they will soon die, either of a strange sickness or attacks, if the 6 fail to return. The messianic figure of Locke is separated from the others for the majority of the airtime, meeting people like Others Ethan and Richard “the Ageless,” each of whom further define his role in saving the island. Apparently, he has to get the Oceanic 6 back and will die in the process (as we know from seeing him in the coffin). Does the concept of time travel make anyone else’s brain hurt like it does mine?

3. Sayid springs Hurley from the asylum only to put him in grave danger. Eventually, Ben comes for them both and Hurley is so freaked that he turns himself in to the cops staked outside his home, admitting to murders he didn’t commit. Kate flees to LA after lawyers come to test her relationship to Aaron (in a scene complete with a creepy dream in which Claire tells her not to take Aaron back to the Island). Sun is intent on killing Ben with Widmore’s help. Clearly, Ben’s little roundup game isn’t going as well as he planned. Will he be able to get them all to comply? If he does, what will happen to everyone? Is Ben intending to reclaim his role as Island leader? After all, what is there for him in the off-island world? And who is the butcher woman who offers to keep Locke’s body safe for Ben?

4. The show ends with a scene between Ben and the Hawking lady we’ve seen before. She says the event window has been determined and that Ben has 70 hours. “What happens if I can’t get them all?” Ben asks. “God help us all,” the woman replies gravely. Indeed.

It will be interesting, to state it mildly, to see what the show’s writers and directors have in store for us this season. I, for one, am grateful for the consistency among the characters. Consider Hurley. He’s always funny, even when he is suffering or confused or frightened. Who else but Hurley would see Ana Lucia in a hallucination? Who else but Hurley would fling a hot pocket at Benjamin Linus? Who else but Hurley would give his mom a Cliff’s Notes version of the craziness that happened on the Island? Consider Sawyer. Even in the middle of a battle for his life, he can think of new nicknames for those around him. Even in the confusion of time travel, he looks great shirtless. Consider Kate. She’s still awkward as a mom. She’s still running. Consider Jack. Like last season, he thinks he has everyone’s best interest at heart and struggles to do the best thing for all. He’s probably wrong, of course, but you’ve got to give the guy credit.

Anyone else looking forward to tomorrow night’s episode?

To my loyal friends who check my blog frequently and come up short, I thank you for coming and apologize for not updating more frequently. Somehow, this simple outlet for my writing and thoughts has suffered neglect in the past month or two. Blame it on the holidays, Facebook, or a heavy workload. All of them apply from time to time. Anyway, I hope to post more often. (I dare not say “I resolve”!)

My cyber friend and young adult author Robin Brande recently issued a challenge to us aspiring writers, especially those of us who have never truly completed a novel. In this post, Robin challenges us to write not one, but three entirely new novels by June. She advises us to choose our favorite escapist genre. What kind of book do I pick up to get away from life? When I have my few moments to dive into a story before nodding off at night, what do I choose? Robin says to put aside the book we’ve labored on for so many months, struggling to perfect it and flesh it out and finish it, and start a completely new tale in our favorite escapist genre. She says to bang out a book from start to finish with no thought to the details, then put it aside, bang out another, put that aside, and bang out a third. Then, she says, when we’ve finished three, we can choose our favorite and work to improve it.

Three novels? Three novels, on top of two kids, a husband, friends, parents, a house, The Dog Whisperer and The Office and Lost, Bible study, Facebook, blogging, church, bills, grocery shopping, a shower at least a few times a week (!), not to mention more editing deadlines and projects than I’ve had in quite a while? Three? Is she crazy?

Robin’s thought is that one of the biggest hindrances to decent writers is never finishing a project. I can certainly vouch for that. I get so caught up in what I’ve already written and what might need to come next that I lose all the wonder and excitement of writing a good story. Maybe her challenge is exactly what I need.

I don’t want to be overly ambitious, though. Not with two little ones to care for and all the other plates spinning rapidly in my life. Maybe I’ll commit to one novel. That challenge, for me, is formidable enough. I’ll simply have to set aside some 20-30 minutes a day (at the very least) to get going. I’ll try to keep you posted on my (non) progress. And I’ll try to limit my other Internet time. We’ll see how it goes….

You thought I was going to write a poem, didn’t you? Well, that’s not my forte. Still, I thought the title was fitting for my subject matter. Right now, here’s what I like about my husband, the not so shallow thinker:

1. He kissed me yesterday and said, “Do you realize it’s been ten years to the day since our first kiss?” What?! Who keeps track of that stuff? I shouldn’t be surprised, though. This is the same man who delivered a half-dozen yellow roses to me nine and a half years ago and said, “Happy six-month anniversary from our first kiss!”

2. He kicked his Mountain Dew habit through a careful plan of reduction. Impressive. I’d like to follow him and kick my dark chocolate habit, but alas, the stuff’s simply too good. And doesn’t it contain, like, antioxidants or something?

3. He now gets up at 6:00 am to walk our dogs. A few weeks ago, he and my dad watched an episode of the Dog Whisperer (another post in itself!). The King culled the tips and began teaching them to our slow-witted canines. Never mind the fact that we recently taught Butterfly to stay into her room until 7:00 just so we could sleep a bit later.

4. He reads enthusiastically to Butterfly, even when the three books she chooses are the longest in the collection and the 8:00 bedtime hour is breached.

5. He bathes, diapers, wipes, sings to, feeds, chases, swings, dances with, cuddles, constructs with, does art with, holds, and deeply loves our daughters. He also embraces, kisses, holds hands with, spends time with, goes on dates with, talks to, and deeply loves me, his wife. In short, he provides our girls with an example of the best a man can be.

6. He sincerely tries to live a healthy lifestyle. (See numbers 2 and 3 above.)

7. He makes people laugh.

8. He knows how to explain complicated information in a way that most people understand.

9. He realizes that the more we know, the more there is to know, and that applies to many aspects of life—especially God.

10. He respects what and how people believe about various things, but he is bold in presenting his own views.

11. He never says no to Marble Slab ice cream.

12. He kindly tolerates the numerous visits and gatherings that take place within my family.

13. He understands my love of books, even when I use my feet to hold the pages open while I floss my teeth before bed.

14. He believes in my dream to be a novelist. And he keeps reminding me that I need to write!

15. He still finds me interesting after seven and a half years of marriage. And I feel the same about him.

I love you, my King.