the truth about forever (chapter 6)

once macy was apart of the wish team for awhile she noticed alot more about wes and bert, more about the "gotcha" game. how they obviously chose random moments to do it, or how they kept count. wes was still winning , like he was when bert jumped out at macy on her first night of work. this "gotcha" game all started when wish died. they're house got so quiet, they fealt as if they would do anything just to make the constant silence thing go away. it was theyre idea of entertainment. wes noticed that macy watched theyre game so one day he decided he was going to teach her how to do a proper "gotcha" on bert. they hid in a closet at a brunch they were catering. bert went to put a coat away in the closet and out jumps wes and macy , so bert screams like a little girl and left with letting macy know that now, she's in the game, and that he's gonna get her back.  they then went on the fiish the brunch, everything went smoothly until the ham was missing. they forgot it at home on top of delias car. but to delia, it was impossible because they have a "new system". in this system each person was responsible for one thing. it just happened to be delia that was responsible for the ham. it was impossible for them to go home and get them so they called in a favor at a local butcher, so the ham crisis was averted. later that night macy turned down yet another night out and she headed home like always.
when she got home something was different , her fathers truck, the one that sat at the beach house for the last two years , was now sitting in her driveway. it was like a weird dream for her. she went inside and up to her room, the door that she always left closed was wide open but nothing in the room was messed up or moved. her mother was at work, so she knew it wasnt her. it was caroline who showed up at the house.
the next day, instead of spending lunch by herself she spent it with her mother and caroline, which, with all the tencion, wasnt that great. thingd didnt really start out rough but then caroline brought macys dad nto the conversation, she wanted to talk about the beach house, the beach house that macy and her mother havent been to in two years. she wanted to talk about fixing it up. caroline didnt wanna fix it by herself, she wanted macy and her mom to go with her, as a famiy vacation.  but, macy's mom was basically saying no, she wast even trying to let the conversation go any farther than caroline had already taken it. caroline kept taking it farther and farther, and went on the explain how macy had no life, how she needed to spend time actually being a kid, but macy went against it and said she was 'just fine" even though she knows that she isnt. finally, macy's mom opens up, she lets all of her fealing abuot theyre dad out. she tells them how scared she is, they even talked about the past and all of the things they did with theyre dad. then, she decided on possibly fixing it up.
this lunch did make macy get back to the library late. which gave amanda and bethany all of the ammunition they needed to be rude to her, they rudely told her how she was late, that lunch did end at 1. but, she , with the same attitude they had told them that it's ok, that she wasnt missed and she'll work just fine the rest of the time, and they didnt say another word to her the ret of the night.
after the library macy had a funtion with wish, which ran like always, with bumps. afterwords macy was invited to go to dinner again and for the firt time she said yes. but, kristy wasnt supprised, it was like she knew macy was going to eventually say yes.
macy's mom imporessed me, because i saw how hard it was for her to express herself, and she got over it for her children. i know personally how hard it is to pretend you arent scared, to pretend that everything is just okay. how hard it is to open up.
im also beggining to see a change in macy and wes's relationship, theyre slowly getting closer, theres deffinetly a spark between the two.

questions:
1. why was caroline so persistant about fixing the beach house?
2. why didnt macy tell her mom about jason, even after her mther brought him up yet again?
3. do you think jason will question macy about being late the one time?

quotes: 1) "my mother was fcusing on some distant point across the room, her face was completly composed, looking at her in the light falling across our able i realized that she looked tired, older than she was" pg:11o
2. "macys focused on school and her grades are excellent. she has a wonderful boyfriend just because shes not out drinking beer at 2 am doesnt mean her life isnt full" pg 109
3. "i wasnt sure what to think as i climbed the stairs, remembering how many times i'd wished my dad would just turn up at the house one day, this whole thing one big misunderstanding we could all laugh about together . one day." page 107

the truth about forever (chapter 5)

telling your mother that your no longer dating somebody that she loved is hard work, which I'm sure is why she kept quiet and didn't tell her mom about the break with Jason, even when he job at the library came up in they re conversation. Macy's mom didn't approve of the catering job. in Macy's moms eyes she was too good to work in a catering company. Macy's mom was making it a point to show that Macy already had the library job, Macy assured her mom that the library job was going to be her first priority. 

when Macy showed up to work at the library to work Bethany and Amanda were shocked. they knew about the break, Jason didn't tell them though, a mutual friend of theirs and Jason's "spilled the beans". Macy assured them that it wouldn't effect her concentration and she just went on her day , being ignored by them Like always. when Macy got home her house was quiet like always, he mother was in her office, like she is everyday. Delia called not too long into the silence. Delia called because she was short handed and was hoping that Macy would go and help her out. Macy had nothing to do so she agreed to work, Delia gave her the directions and Macy left without a word to her mother. Macy had a hard time finding it and when she did find it she ran right into a giant pot hole. Wes came out with his truck and helped her out of it, though Macy was shocked that it was Macy in the car, he wasn't expecting her.  they talked about the sculptures a little bit and then Wes left and Macy went straight to Delia's. Delia and Macy were in the garage making finger sandwiches when Delia brought up wish. wish was Wes and Bert's mom. she made the catering company, but a few years ago Delia ended up taking over because wish had passed away from breast cancer. wish was young, only in her 30's, her early 30's. Delia brings out all of her feelings that go along with wish passing on, Delia's feelings all relate to Macy though. Macy knows how it feels to lose somebody so close because she lost her dad.

emotionally, this book yanks at my heart a little, as it would to most who have lost someone so special or important to them. in a way the book makes me smile because, even with wish gone Delia has learned to cope and share happy memories that she has about wish. though, the book does shock me in a way because i didn't expect the author to openly bring emotions out, because its such a touchy subject. however its a great thing that the characters can open up like that to each other, i envy them for that. because the sculptures were mentioned a few times i think that they're going to somehow come into play soon, i think that Wes might even let Macy into that part of his world. 

questions:

1. why might delia be so open with her emotions? do you think she feels comfortable talking to macy about this? why or why not. 

2. why didnt wes automatically mention that he did the sculptures? might that be a hidden part of his life? why or why not.

3. how come macy didnt open up about jason to her mother? why is she so pesistant about wrking at the library? 

quotes : 

1. "he blinked, seeming to be confused, then shook his head "nothing.i jsut thought maybe, um, youd seen it before or something, there are a few around town" page 90

2."im so srry, delia" i told her "really" she looked up at me, a piece of bread in one hand " am too" then she smiled at me sadly" page 95

3. "it felt so werd to be on the other side, where you were the one expectd to offer condolences, not receive them. i wanted me "sorry" to sond genuine because, it was"

the truth about forever (chapter 4)

Macy followed the wish van hesitantly to a mansion not to far away. for a minute Macy contemplated getting out of the van, when he did she got about half way there and decided that maybe she should turn around, but she couldn't, she had already caught by Kristy.  Macy and Kristy officially met on the way up the hill, introducing themselves. they were holding up a conversation about where Delia was, but Macy had a hard time concentrating because she was distracted by 2 long scars running along both sides of Kristy's face. Macy could barely look away,  she felt bad for staring so much. but, Kristy didn't seem to notice, and if she did she didn't care, or so it seemed. i would assume she's used to everyone staring. Macy found Delia at the top of the long driveway, she was waiting for all of the caterers to bring everything up. when she finally noticed Macy she was surprised, she didn't expect to see Macy at all, let alone that soon. Macy asked about the job offer, instead of saying yes, Delia gave her the keys to the van so she could bring it up to unload everything else. when they got into the house they gave Macy the rundown. they told Macy which people were gobblers and which were grabbers. the gobblers will clear your whole tray if given a chance and the grabbers stand by the doors so they get first dibs at the food. they gave pointers about what to do if a gobbler wont let you move on. Kristy said just to step on they re feet but Delia said that was inappropriate, that all you need to do is find a quick exit. most of the night went fine minus a few glitches, like when somebody spilled wine on Macy, or when the bride was upset because the napkins had "..." instead of ".", to the bride "." meant there was doubt in the relationship, where Macy then pointed out that the dots might not mean that there is doubt, they could be saying something about all of the endless possibilities of the future, which just made the bride more upset for some reason. after the party they were packing up when a van pulled up. Bert got out of the drivers side and Wes got out of the passenger side. Bert then went on to proudly announce the van as the "bertmobile". where they all noticed that the "bertmobile" is actually a former ambulance. after getting over the thought of Bert driving an ambulance she introduced Macy, officially. Wes went to talk to Delia about something and had a run in with Macy, the kind where they both go the same way to try and get by each other, after a moment they got by each other sharing a hello and a goodbye. they (Kristy, Wes, Monica and Bert) tried to invite Macy out for the night but she said no.

questions:

1. why did Macy change her mind about taking the catering job?

2. why did Macy leave after the wish van and not before?

3. what happened with the run in with Wes?

quotes:

 1 "the girl looked at me, then at the driveway again. i kept noticing her scars, hen trying not to, which seemed to just make it all that More obvious" pg63

2. "you did great macy...just great" pg 79

3. "finally i stopped moving, and he was able to get passed me "sorry about that" he said smiling, and i felt myself flush for some reason as i watched him disappear around the van"

the truth about forever (chapter 3)

 its hard to walk into a job where you aren't welcome, but Macy managed to do it. Bethany and Amanda were the two girls that worked at the library with Jason. they never liked Macy, never accepted her as Jason's girlfriend. so, it was only natural for them to not like the fact that Macy was filling in for Jason. they were cold to Macy, they didn't let her answer any questions. they basically only let her tell people where the bathroom was, it was her house on part nights all over again. the only reason Macy stayed there and worked there was for Jason. she told Jason she was going to do it, she didn't want to go back on her word. when Macy confronted Jason on how they have treated her in the library he pretty much just brushed it off letting her know that she needs to pay more attention to her job and not make things so personal. 

Macy's room her house is the only bedroom that faces the road, also the only room to have a tree right next to it.  this tree just happened to be perfect for sneaking out, which is exactly why it got used so much. it wasn't Macy who used it so often, it was Caroline. Caroline was the wild child, she snuck out, partied, came home and slept in Macy's bed. that was basically they're relationship. when Macy's dad died Caroline barely came home at night, and when she did she just came right through the front door, as if she didn't care what could happen. not long after her sister graduated she got married, to a man named willy. it was kind of love at first start. 

Jason and Macy weren't as committed as Macy thought. in they're last email exchange Macy told Jason that she loved him, he felt that they were  getting way too close and serious way too quick. Jason wrote to her as if he were he were a business man, not a boyfriend. it was actually what he was going for, he was trying to sound cold. he ended up telling Macy that he wanted a break in they're relationship, until the end of the summer at least. he basically broke up with her through an e-mail. Macy, not expecting this was out of her own mind, or felt like she was, so she got in her car and left. Macy just drove around until she saw the wish van. so she followed it, wondering if she should have taken the hob at the catering company. 

the newest characters, Amanda and Bethany, only play a short role but it makes a big difference. if they wouldn't have treated her rudely she wouldn't of had to seem so clingy and confront Jason, though nothing she could have said would stop the breakup, only prolong the situation. 

this chapter upset me. i don't think its very fair, or even right for that matter to break up with somebody over an e-mail. especially seeing as he was so cold about it. his email had almost no emotion, like Macy was a complete stranger.

questions:

 1. why was Macy so broken up about losing Jason?

2. why does Macy stay at the library? why doesn't she stand up to Bethany and Amanda?

3. why did Macy follow the van?

4. why didn't Macy ever sneak out?

quotes:

1. "im just tired", i told my mom now, she smiled nodding that she understood "tommorow will be better" " page 49

2. "after my dad died , she sometimes didn't come home at all" page 52

3. "macy!good girl! keep it up, your doing great" page 41

4. "from that morning on, running changed for me, it didn't matter how good my times were, what records I'd planned to beat just days before, there was one time I'd never beat, so i quit"

the truth about forever (chapter 2)

   Macy's perfect, or so it may seem. after her father died he was something that they just didn't talk about. feelings didnt get resolved or even let out. Macy and her mom tried pulling of the "I'm perfect" act so nobody could or would see through them. 

    Macy's mom would throw these cocktail parties so she could build her business. she made the designs to build these perfect homes. it was something both Macy's mom and dad started. during the party it was Macy's job to basically make sure everything ran smoothly. Macy would point everyone towards the bathroom, open doors and when the crash in the kitchen happened she was the one to go check on it and make sure everything's OK, but it wasn't. upon the crash everything was chaos.   the catering team was down one and the women in charge was very pregnant and had her toddler with her as well because her babysitter canceled. food was late and some even fell to the floor making the mess of a kitchen even worse. Macy, being nice like she is, helped with taking food out of the oven and putting other stuff into the oven. she was keeping cool under pressure, up until her mom came into the kitchen to convey how upset she was about how wrong the night was going.  the catering company decided it was only fair to cut the bill in half, after this exchange of conversation the night ran as smooth as could be. not too long after Wes came into the kitchen needing ice, because he's the bartender.

after all of the party guests left Macy's mom said a quick goodnight to Macy and went to her office. Macy then went up to her room and out her window to her little roof. while she was on the roof she heard a conversation between Wes and Bert, Bert just happens to be Wes's younger brother, he also works for wish, the catering company. they were talking about Macy and her father. Macy thought Bert was going to say something about Macy seeing her father die but he didn't. instead he mentioned the fact that Macy's dad was the old middle school coach. it kind of made Macy's day because finally he was known for more than just dying and she was finally known as "Macy, the daughter of the coach" instead of "Macy, the girl who saw her dad die"

the characters are nearly the same, Macy and her mom still play a huge part, except, now, there's Delia, who is the pregnant caterer. Wes, the bartender and Bert, wes's brother and the caterer.

so far the book is still interesting, upbeat almost. this chapter doesn't jump around as much as the first, its all basically about the party, though it does seem as if they're putting more effort to including Wes than anything.

questions:

1. why might the author pay so much attention to Wes?

2. why does Macy's mom have an attitude in the kitchen? (besides the party going bad)

3. why did Bert say "there are no accidents" ? what might he mean?

quotes:

1."he looked at me, his expression serious "there are no accidents" he said"      pg 24

2. "once that had meant early track practice and long afternoons perfecting my back flip at the pool, but this summer, I'm working"

the truth about forever (chapter 1)

blog intro
the truth about forever was written by Sarah Dessen. I chose this book because i have read books by Sarah Dessen in the past and I love her style, she tends to write about teen love. when Sarah Dessen writes she includes a lot of detail. i don't know much about her but i do know that she is a "new york times best seller". reading this book i hope to learn more about her style or even a new style if she mixes it up.

                                                              chapter  1
in chapter 1 Macy queen is introduces as the girlfriend, the track runner, and the girl who saw her father die. things seem to be progressively getting worse for macy. first, her father dies. macy, on a routinely basis would get up and go run with her dad early in the morning. one morning he went to go wake macy up and she said she didnt want to go, she wanted to sleep. not even five minutes later macy was running out the front door, but it was too late. macy's dad was already lying on the driveway, nearly dead. then jason, macy's boyfriend, has to go off to summer camp, which is really hard on macy because she's used to spending all of her time with jason, she doesnt really have any friends. macy , while jason is away has plans to take over his spot in the library. 
everyone in Macy's house has a different way of dealing with her fathers death. Macy, kept quiet, not crying or anything that was expected of her. Macy would collect the boxes of products that were supposed to be her fathers. each item claimed to make everyday life easier, which is why her father loved them. boxes were coming months after her fathers death, even when her mom would call and tell them to send no more. Macy however, kept each and every box, even when her mom tried to throw them all away. Macy's sister, Caroline, she cried, and cried, and cried. Macy's mom did busy work. anything that didn't make her face reality. she was organizing everything from cabinets to closets.
when it comes to Macy, i admire her. she's very strong. i can relate to her in several personal ways. I'm not too fond of Caroline though, but to be fair, i don't know too much about her yet, just that she's an emotional wreck, and that she seems flighty, as if she'll disappear at any moment. macy's mom, she's like a wall. she seems to push everyone away. 
i questions the fact that she, as in the author, jumps around a lot. she talks about one subject, and quickly jumps to the next and back to the last. so far though, this is a good book. well written. it adds a few twists and turns that keep you wanting to turn the page. personally, i think Jason might come home early and spend some extra time with Macy. 

questions:
1. how did the death of macy's father effect her? 
2. what is macy's relationship with her mom like so far?
3. why does macy blame herself for her fathers death?
4. in what way are macy and her mom alike?
5. what is Macy and Jason's relationship like? is it what Macy wants? what she expected from the start? 

quotes:
1. "my dad died. and i was there, this is how people knew me" pg6
2. "i kept thinking back to that I.O.U. , wondering what it was he'd picked out for me" pg16