"You should never be bored. There are too many books you have not read to be bored, there are too many different countries you have yet to see to be bored. There is no excuse for being bored. It is all gone too soon- all of this beautiful sweet life - to ever be bored.” — Tony Parsons
Paulo watched his brother’s former girlfriend, if that wasn’t the wrong word, answering the phone in the front office. He thought that Ginger was still a good looking woman, but there had probably never been anything momentous about her, nothing about her that made you understand how Michael would be prepared to play Russian roulette with his family. There was nothing about her to make you think that she had the power to turn a man’s world inside out.
Paulo wondered how it could ever be worth it. To build a family – a wife, a child, a home – and then put it all at risk for the excitement of someone new. It was true that Paulo was a different man from his brother, that he had never been the cock artist that Michael had once been, and probably still was in his heart, despite his recent vow of celibacy, and perhaps always would be until his knob withered with the years.
But still – how could any new woman be worthy that degree of heartache? How could any new woman make you put your family on the line? Nobody was that good in bed.
- The Family Way, Tony Parsons.
I have yet to finish reading it, I have 65 pages more to go but I can’t help but share the above excerpt with you. It’s like Parsons took the words right out of my mouth and put them in better sentences with perfect grammar. Yes, how could any new woman be worthy of the heartache that one would cause to his family? Exactly my sentiment!
I have always liked Parsons writing since Man and Boy (mental note: gotta give the book a reread now that I have a boy of my own) and I am enjoying this one as well. There’s a reviewer on Goodreads.com who found it “cringe-worthy to have a man writing about the issues of period pains and other women’s afflictions”, because she said, “what the hell does he know”. But Parsons is very insightful; I have to give it to him. It ain’t easy to be writing about women’s heartache; of a woman struggling as motherhood doesn’t come naturally for her, of a woman with postnatal depression, of a woman dealing to divide time between being a wife and a new mother and later with her cheating husband, of a woman’s longing for a child - all sorts of heartaches only a woman could relate to. But Parsons kinda nailed it. Perhaps he had a good female research team for him or he’s just born with such perceptive.
As always when I’m reading a book, I’d pick any Hollywood stars I like to play the character in my head - one of my favourite things to do each time I start a new book. Here, the beautiful French actress, Marion Cotillard plays Cat the eldest sister, a career woman who initially never intended to procreate, then she turned 40 and was suddenly hit with a longing for motherhood. The stunningly pretty middle child who couldn’t get pregnant, Jessica is played by Mary Rose Byrne. For their little sister, Megan, a doctor who got impregnated after a one night stand with a hunky surfer after breaking up with his whiny, rich bastard boyfriend – this I’m having trouble with. The character is described as very pretty, voluptuous with smart mouth (of course) and I couldn’t decide on an actress. I keep on alternating between Chyler Leigh (very much due to her Lexie Grey portrayal) and Zooey Deschanel (because for some reason, Zooey is always my first pick for any fictions I read), although yes, neither of them are voluptuous. Hehe.
I also took the liberty to cast the supporting roles (I'm that annoying): Jesse Metcalfe as Jessica’s husband Paulo, Ed Harris as Cat’s longtime boyfriend, Ashton Kutcher as Megan’s baby daddy (she calls him that), Takako Matsu (I love her in Love Generation) as Paulo’s Japanese sister in law, Sharon Stone as the girls’ actress mother who left them when they were small for a better and child-free life and yeah, many others. Quite a star-studded movie, this one is. Ngeee.
I don’t know where I’m going with this. I initially wanted to write about betrayal. Apa terjadi? LOL. Anyways, yeah I tend to take this casting thing quite seriously and will be very disappointed when th book I like is made into a movie and I hate the actors they cast. Case in point: Hillary Swank as Holly Kennedy of P/S I Love You! Major yikes!
P/S: My views on betrayal? To be continued. Maybe. But you could have guessed lah, it's no rocket science.
'Live each day as if it's your last', that was the conventional advice, but really, who had the energy for that? What if it rained or you felt a bit glandy? It just wasn't practical. Better by far to... simply try and be good and courageous and bold and to make a difference. Not change the world exactly, but the bit around you. Go out there with your passion and your electric typewriter and work hard at something. Change lives through art maybe. Cherish your friends, stay true to your principles, live passionately and fully and well. Experience new things. Love and be loved, if you ever get the chance.
Watak-watak dibawa dengan cukup bagus. Adik Daniel bersuara sedap itu akan pergi jauh. Atilia itu memang made for musical theater lah rasanya, bersahaja dan bersuara manis macam gula kapas. Awie itu has come a looooooong way dari zaman Sembilu dia. Dia sekarang lelaki comel yang pandai berlakon teater dan sesuai dengan genre Mamat Khalid. 
Aku suka bagaimana kehidupan Lat yang berpuluh tahun penuh corak dan ranjau boleh dipendekkan dengan cukup-cukup rasa dalam masa 3 jam. Aku rasa seperti kenal siapa Lat. Ini, bagi aku, adalah penggarapan skrip dan pengarahan yang bagus. 
Aku mahu syor kamu tonton tapi ia berakhir malam ini. Malam ini adalah pertunjukan terakhir musim ini. Aku yakin ia akan ada musim kedua. Seperti Cuci, yang aku janji mahu tonton bila dipentaskan sekali lagi tahun ini. Siapa sangka, Hans itu berbakat betul di belakang tabir? 
“You can erase someone from your mind.