Monday, December 31, 2012

You Can Ring My Bell

New Year's tidings to our GBC group and to the others of you who check in from time to time.  I hope as you reflect back on the year, you remember fondly at least one good book, a glass of reading water enjoyed with friends, and that one thing that you did that scared you to death.  I hope you recall smiles and new journeys and pause to consider how fortunate that we all really are.

[I also hope that if you happen to be sick, you have a bell.]

May 2013 be bright, full of warm love, tender moments, lots of laughter, a few new challenges, [the Oxford comma,] and the resounding belief that anything is possible.

Happy New Year, friends. xo

Saturday, December 22, 2012

Hark, Joy, Wishing you...

Despite the craziness that is the week before Christmas, I had a few moments of genuine bliss:
  • surprising a few (former) neighbors by returning to town to join a party
  • hugging everyone at the event more than once (tightly)
  • singing perhaps a bit off key (loudly)
  • having a photo made with my favorite doppelganger of all time and still having someone confuse us when she entered the room
  • walking the streets just any way we wanted (but not loose)
  • "performing" for Joy Williams at one of the restaurants, though I only know that via someone else.  (I'm the worst to identify all the songwriters and singers here)
  • talking about life and having someone ask me aloud the hard question I've been asking myself for a year (I still don't know the answer and this wasn't exactly bliss but it was probably good for me)
  • helping the youngest member of the GBC find a chair for a gingerbread snack
  • exchanging presents (books of course!) with GBC P@1ge at 5:45 a.m. when both of us were still half asleep 
Hugs to all and Merry Christmas greetings!  I plan to take a bit of a writing break during the season but I'll be back at least once more before the calendar turns the page.  Wishing you safe journeys, peaceful moments, and lots of smiles along the way.  If you're lucky, perhaps you'll get mobbed by a group of accordion-accompanied rogue carolers who fancy reading water and singing.

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Kind-red Spirits

It's the kind of stormy morning when you want to sleep in but instead get up for a bit of yoga, present wrapping and a cafe con leche.

It's the kind of afternoon where you take a few hours off and make a road trip to sing and drink reading water with your friends.

It's the day of the week where you can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Hope your day is a good one.

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

The Seen Scene

I've already admitted I'm behind in reading, however it seems I'm not doing too terribly bad with my movie watching (over the course of 2012).  With a bit of a break coming up, I'm certain there is time to view a more.

Here's one of many (many) articles and lists to be published on the Top films of the year, courtesy of the New York Times:  25 Favorites From a Year When 10 Aren’t Enough by A.O. Scott.

How many have you seen?


Sunday, December 16, 2012

A Play on Words

If you're a like me, you're behind on your reading because you are:

  1. trying to finish up work projects before year end
  2. knitting like mad to finish a few gifts
  3. still working on Christmas cards
  4. trying to create a Christmas shopping list that is procurable from Amazon Prime
  5. all of the above

For you over-achiever, successful planner, relaxed types, just a reminder that the next GBC book is  The Night of the Iguana by Tennessee Williams.  Happy rainy day reading!


Friday, December 14, 2012

Yin Yang

A late lunch led to a late dinner which meant a drive to fill the time gap until the restaurant opened.  The drive led to an overlook and a few peaceful moments as the sun set and the moon rose.  Happy Friday.

Monte Sano State Park
November 2012

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Oh Rumi, Don't Take Your Love to Town

This morning's inspiration from Rumi in the Everyman's Library Pocket Poets edited by Peter Washington.  It's not complete as I rather favor the beginning more than the ending.

If You Don't Have*
        - Rumi
if you don't have
enough madness in you
go and rehabilitate yourself
if you've lost a hundred times
the chess game of this life
be prepared to lose one more
if you're the wounded string
of a harp on this stage
play once more then resonate no more
if you're that exhausted bird
fighting a falcon for too long
make a comeback and be strong
you've carved a wooden horse
riding and calling it real
fooling yourself in life
though only a wooden horse
ride it again my friend
and gallop to the next post

* The last two stanzas are a bit more dire so they've been omitted.


Monday, December 10, 2012

Can I Ask you a Question?

The concept of understanding someone's thoughts and motivations by the execution of a survey has been on my mind of late.  A portion of this pondering began with this NYT article "Columbia's Gang Scholar Lives on the Edge" highlighting Sudhir Venkatesh's work (and a bit of controversy).  Venkatesh's early experience included work on a research project whose leader had the request to survey those who were poor to find out how they felt about being poor. (Fairly sure Richard Dawson would have had only one answer on the board.)  He abandoned paper and instead talked with people, shadowing, learning.  These day to day interactions later emerged into books.

This morning, while reading through a NYT list of the top 10 best books of 2012 (already!?), I discovered Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo. Boo spent three years reporting in Annawadi, just outside Mumbai, capturing the stories of men, women and children.  Her book is described as "narrative nonfiction."

Walking the proverbial mile, watching, and listening.  I think it's better than a survey.

Sunday, December 9, 2012

Lazy Sunday Morning

Coffee and CBS Sunday morning.
Espresso Book Machines and Bruno Mars.
Downton Abbey and The Hobbit.

Content.

I hope you are too.

The author was running, remembering and recuperating yesterday and apologizes for the schedule miss.

Thursday, December 6, 2012

Secondhand Love

I've already shared with you that occasionally my books contain the odd boarding pass.  It seems I'm not alone in the habit.  "The Secret Contents of Secondhand Books" by Wayne Gooderham published in The Guardian highlights items discovered in the Skoob Books' warehouse of one million volumes.  (I think we'd lose some members of the GBC for weeks in there if there were reading water.)  My favorites include the tickets and a few postcards (both items personally collected as well).  The last find is unusual anywhere else outside of New Orleans.

In a semi-related note in my rabbit hole journey reading about second hand books, there's also this blog of book dedications.  Though perhaps not technically a dedication, this one had great ap-peal.

Tuesday, December 4, 2012

On the Fringe of an Irish Blessing

Happy Tuesday which feels a teeny bit like Monday which could be due to the fact I still haven't finished my coffee and I can't breathe.  (These are unrelated.)

To this end, I'll be brief today and wish you happy reading and may your meetings be shorter than yesterday.  

Sunday, December 2, 2012

Hello Tiger

Inside my Life of Pi by Yann Martel is a boarding pass to Seattle dated January 26, 2004.  I had an exit row seat.  This memory was situated at Part Two:  The Pacific Ocean.

My copy of the novel sits on the shelf beside A History of Pi by Petr Beckman.

Tonight I saw the film inspired by Martel's book and was surprised to find passages which were exact quotes from the copy I re-visited this evening.  I enjoyed the cinematography, grew sad but hopeful with the journey and anticipated the eventual question, "which story do you prefer?"

I can recite π to 15 significant digits.

I believe bananas can float.

Friday, November 30, 2012

Table for Sixteen

“I like large parties, they're so intimate. 
At small parties, there isn't any privacy"
F. Scott Fitzgerald

This is one of the few Friday photos which isn't my own but it's a great nod to the recent GBC meeting for The Great Gatsby and quite delightful for a Friday.  I wish I could have been able to join.  Hope your weekend is stellar and full of good reads.

Photo Credit:  Michael Emrick
The Mad Platter Restaurant, Nashville, TN
October 2012

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

"The World is Ahead"

I remember the cover of my first The Hobbit book.  I think I purchased it from one of those magazines at school where you could buy three books for a few dollars and everyone's books delivered on the same day like one gigantic bookworm Christmas in the spring.  I'm pretty sure I still have my copy but one of the downsides of sorting your bookcase loosely by genre, book type, and height is that you really can't lay your hands on a book quickly when you want to write about it in the few moments you have before departing for the office.  There is a chance it's with my sister.  She liked The Hobbit too.

Today the Peter Jackson film premieres in New Zealand, and I'm pretty sure this will be on my viewing list.

Monday, November 26, 2012

The Truth is Out There

The Mystery of Edwin Drood by Charles Dickens would make a fascinating book for GBC discussion.  The novel has been attempted to be finished by various persons at least three times and is currently the feature of a musical at Studio 54, Drood.  The novel was intended to be completed in 12 installments however only six were published, leaving the disappearance of Edwin Drood to remain a mystery.  Wiki has a pretty thorough entry but I'd suggest holding out to read the story and draw your own conclusions   

Saturday, November 24, 2012

Table the Motion

How did you spend your post-holiday Saturday?  Mine was divided into little segments of activities;  some were dedicated to chores and others to pleasure.  My run was a bit of both.  Some moments were stolen away for reading little articles.  I even took a test.  The Guardian's Thanksgiving thinking: feasts in fiction quiz was quite fun, despite the fact that my score was akin to my dressing, a tad underwhelming.  I'm sure you could fare better.

Friday, November 23, 2012

A Day Off but On

Yesterday was a day of prepping, tasting, adjusting, cooking, sipping a glass of reading water or two, and being thankful for family and friends.  The highlight of the day included a special visitor from the GBC.  We spent most of the evening chatting so I hope you'll forgive my miss to post anything yesterday.

So this morning, both GBC P@1ge and I wish you a Happy Thanksgiving weekend.  True to club form, we both have our cup of coffee (cafe con leche); she's reading a book and I'm thinking about reading while typing.  In this calm moment, I think I can say that we're both happy and thankful.  I hope you are as well.


Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Alt Life of Pie

There's a small little coffee shop near the house which serves "Biscuits & Gravy" on Fridays and homemade beignets on Saturdays.  It has live music on occasion, a half a dozen tables and is connected to a used book store.  Coffees run the gamut and I've a fair bet that there are a numbers of teas.  The menu is on chalkboard so the items can be changed on a whim or as ingredients allow.  As I'm sitting on the floor, having a coffee and tapping away on my little laptop, I am pondering what it would be like to spend the day sifting through books and infusing myself with caffeine rather than the full day of meetings that begin in one hour.

Sunday, November 18, 2012

List it Off

Just a reminder that you have a few very short days for the following:

  • Finish The Double Bind by Chris Bohjalian for GBC Book Club
  • Determine if you have space and/or the emotional capacity to attempt to brine a turkey
  • Squeeze five days of work into three
  • Make progress on your "Swim the English Channel" competition
  • Co-organize a relay
  • Clean the house
  • Catch up on all your overdue personal correspondence
  • Determine what you want to accomplish the last 45(ish) days of the year
  • Breathe
  • Remind your multi-championship winning co-workers that your alma mater is undefeated (okay, that might just be me)
Hope you've had a delightful weekend and that you're continually reminded (like I am) of the many things for which to be thankful and in which you find joy.

Friday, November 16, 2012

Sweet Home...

Chicago, IL
October 2012
Sometimes when you're out running, it's good to turn around and have a different look.  If you're lucky, you'll have your camera.

Hope your Friday is lake luster.

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Never Stop

It was one of those days that didn't stop from the moment that the alarm went off, through one cup a coffee, a quick cold run with inadvertent ending through sprinklers at 34 degrees on to two more cups of coffee, straight through a series of meetings, standing lunch, emails, coffee, reports and then finally before you know it you're standing in Target just before closing buying dinner and a bottle of reading water.

It must be the type of day which inspired The Bad Plus.  (It is a music month, isn't it?)

Monday, November 12, 2012

Sounds Like...

It's Monday.  It's raining, and for those of you who don't have the day off (like me), you might want a little melody to get you moving.  NPR's All Things Considered will do the job with its flashback to 1972 and this number one hit by Adriano Celentano.  The story behind the song is rather entertaining but you will absolutely lose three minutes and forty-five seconds if you start the video.  It's mesmerizing.  It reminds me of something Madonna may have thought about doing in one of her videos with a slight hint of Paula Abdul if Ms. Abdul was going for stark and Italian.  The melody?  I'm afraid it just may be with me for the rest of the day.

Saturday, November 10, 2012

Please Stand By

The scheduled Saturday blogging has been interrupted by a seventy degree day in November, party baking, and early evening perusing for airline tickets.  The normal programming schedule will resume Monday.

Hope a nice weekend!

Thursday, November 8, 2012

A Quick Note

If October was poetry month, this month is shaping up to be music month as I am finding my inspiration from songs, new bands, and a bit of live music.  I've even had my hands on a piano, but haven't found the "key" to this renewal.  Autumn in full force? Training for fun rather than racing? Suppressed desire for caroling?   Someone quoted yesterday that you always remember the way that people make you feel.  Maybe there's something to that, but I'm trying not to think about it too much.  (That side of the brain is always way too active.)

What's inspiring you today?

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

Send Your Vote To College

It's my first Presidential election where I'm not voting in my home state.  In reviewing the sample ballot last night and reading "Turn Ballot Over," this may also very well may be my first paper ballot.   (Don't get me started on the 22 races with only a single party represented.)  One of the things I will miss this election is seeing my GBC neighbors standing, smiling, and waving at the very long poll lines.  As a throwback, here's a little reminder to vote from School House.

Rock the vote, y'all!

Sunday, November 4, 2012

I'm Smitten

I'm already a fan of her blog, so I'll go ahead and endorse Deb Perelman's new book, The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook.  For an introduction to the book, check out this NPR interview from November 1st.

Hope your Sunday was filled with a bit of cooking or, like mine, finding a shelf (or several) for all your cookbooks.

Friday, November 2, 2012

Let's Hear it for...

New York,
December 2010

"New York, concrete jungle where dreams are made of
There's nothing you can’t do,
Now you're in New York
These streets will make you feel brand new,
the lights will inspire you,
Let's hear it for New York, New York, New York"
          - Jay-Z, Empire State of Mind
 Friday love to the Big Apple and neighboring cities affected by the storms.

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Stormy Night

October is turning out to be the month of quotes and poems.  This morning, the news reminded me what it was like to arrive back to my house two days after the flood, and then two years later, arrive to my apartment the day after the tornado.  The aftermath can be as overwhelming as the event.  Eleanor Roosevelt was on my mind, so for Tuesday inspiration:

“You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, 'I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.' You must do the thing you think you cannot do."
       - Eleanor Roosevelt
       You Learn by Living: Eleven Keys for a More Fulfilling Life
       Source: GoodReads

I'm a fan.  Good luck to you facing big fears and post-storm waters today.

Sunday, October 28, 2012

Fall In Again

“Life starts all over again when it gets crisp in the fall."
- F Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby

A reminder that this month's GBC read is The Great Gatsby.  Hope your weekend was fall fabulous.

Friday, October 26, 2012

Today's Friday photo an eclectic mix of items at a celebration of love.  I'll use GBC P@ige's selection of this Rumi quote to intro:

"Lovers don't finally meet somewhere.  They're in each other all along."

Little Rock, AR
October 2012
Happy Friday!

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Bundle Up

I found this experiment to be brilliant, both from my supply/demand economic model part of the brain and from the other bit that loves to read.  The Humble ebook Bundle opened October 9th and ran through yesterday.  Six books bundled together with a bonus six books if you donated higher than average.  In all, 84,189 bundles were sold and this graphic from the HumbleBumble.com site makes me happy.  This Alison Flood story from the Guardian gives a few other highlights.

Source:  HumbleBumble.com



Monday, October 22, 2012

The Mountaintop

Last night I read the final pages of While the World Watched by Carolyn Maull McKinstry and Denise George.  It is the kind of book that when you finish, you are not ready to begin a new title just yet.  Ms. McKinstry, then fourteen, was present at the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church during the September 15, 1963 bombing.  She lost four friends that day and the book chronicles her journey through the Civil Rights movement in Birmingham and on to the activist and spokesperson she is today.  These struggles in the 1960s were just before my life began, and I'm certain were quickly glossed over quickly in my American History books, if mentioned at all.

The imagery of the harsh realities left me stunned with the reminder that men were so harmful to other men, woman, and to children.  As many of you know, the journey was a long one, and for Ms. McKinstry continued through 2002 when she testified in the case of one of the suspected bombers.

The book includes historical context and quotes from a number of speeches from Dr. Martin Luther King and President John F Kennedy.  Throughout the novel, there is always hope.  One of my marked passages includes this quote from Princeton professor, Dr. Cornel West,
"You cannot lead the people if you don't love the people.  And you can't save the people if you're not willing to serve the people." (Kindle Loc 2693)
I hope your week is off to a kind start.

Saturday, October 20, 2012

One Smile at a Time

It's amazing what eight hours of consecutive sleep can do for a person's spirit.  Even when awakened unexpectedly  (at 6:30) by the neighbor who has a voice like Brad Garrett, I still smiled.

With a wonderful (cooler) day ahead,  I plan to step outside and find a familiar bridge.  I know this will make me smile too.

Hope your Saturday finds ways to make you smile and lift your spirit.  I think we all could use a bit of that.


Thursday, October 18, 2012

Words Will Wait

I hope you will forgive the poetry twice in one week.  Today's a funeral day for a member of my team and this section from Kevin Young's Eulogy (Poets.org) helped me find a few words.

*

Do not weep
but once, and a long

time then
Thereafter eat till

your stomach spills over
No more! you'll cry

too full for your eyes
to leak

*

The words will wait

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Death and a Funeral

Bits of this poem have been repeating through my head since I heard the news last Friday that a dear friend had lost her mother.  Yesterday when I received news of the death of another friend, I came back to the lines.  The opening stanzas are included below with the full text available at Poets.org.  

Do not go gentle into that good night 
by Dylan Thomas
Source:  Poets.org
Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.
...


Sunday, October 14, 2012

Freedom...You Gotta Give for What You Take

Thanks to CBS Sunday Morning, I found a new place to visit on my next trip to the Big Apple.  In a little less than a week, FDR Four Freedoms Park hosts an open house and talk as part of Archtober (month-long celebration of architecture).  The park was conceived over four decades ago and was designed by Louis Kahn just before he died.  It formally opens the 24th of this month.

If you missed this morning's segment, Michael Kimmelman's article gives a great overview.

Happy Sunday.

Friday, October 12, 2012

Up See Daisy

I didn't see a chicken, so I'll go with the eggs.

Daisy eggs and butter in cast iron
July 2012
Rocket City

This is the Friday photo one selects if they have had a really long day, are drinking a glass of reading water to unwind and are still awake on Friday when their day started early Thursday.  They may also be trying to manifest eggs and toast which, when made, would not set off a smoke detector.  Sadly, the eggs have not yet appeared.

Hope you have an egg-sellent Friday.

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Birmingham

Last week I used my Kindle's lending library to pick up While the World Watched: A Birmingham Bombing Survivor Comes of Age During the Civil Rights Movement by Carolyn Maull McKinstry.  The story is set in 1963 and since both time and place are not too far from my current locale, I was moved to read the novel.  I am just a few chapters in and already fearful for the event I know is to come.  I have a feeling that next time I'm visiting the town, my view won't be quite the same.




Monday, October 8, 2012

Yoga-to Believe

"The yogic journey guides us from our periphery, the body, to the center of our being, the soul.  The aim is to integrate the various layers so that the inner divinity shines out as through clear glass"
                    - B.K.S. Iyengar, Light on Life, p3.

Congrats to our GBC P@1ge for achieving her Iyengar yoga certification.  We are so proud of your journey!

Namaste.

Saturday, October 6, 2012

As You Wish

Last night on the way home from the office, I heard this interview with Mandy Patinkin on NPR's All Things Considered.  Was he tired of uttering his oh so famous line?  No.  It still makes him smile.  Me too.

This week my sister had sent me a link to this Think Geek shirt.  Yesterday morning, I suggested to friend that she use a "to blave" line in a wedding speech.  All roads lead to Wesley?  So last night, I settled in to watch the movie during it's 25th anniversary year and pondered in which box my 25th anniversary book was packed.

Thursday, October 4, 2012

Cat Gotye Tongue?

On the odd occasion, it is completely worth it to drive four hours to go to a classic venue to hear two artists that you've never heard of and one whose work you loosely know.  You'll be tired, but you'll also be amazed, happy, moved by the melodies, and find that small piece of something wonderful.

Advanced planning for ample espresso the next day highly recommended.

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Stealing Home

Math + baseball = a great afternoon and as it turns out, a pretty good book.  Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game by Michael Lewis was my second holiday read last month.  I sped through this novel like a runner stealing bases, except of course, an Oakland A's runner.  It was head above heart, math versus tradition, and a completely unorthodox approach to a sport I remember from my youth on AM radio in the basement folding laundry with my mother.  And yet...

the principles of Billy Beane sounded quite like the strategy from Viva B (MBA flashback).

"Know exactly what every player in baseball is worth to you" (Kindle Location 3149) read to me like BATNA.

"Know exactly who you want and go after him" (Location 3150) sounded to me like a man who had a BHAG.

I have a great deal of respect for instruments of change, particularly when their methods are against the norm.  Even if you're not a sports fan or strategy buff, it's a lot of fun to read a David vs Goliath (A's versus Yankees) tale and wonder if our protagonist's theory has any "bases."

Author's note:  One of her few regrets is not utilizing Chicago baseball tickets in the summer of 2006.  She still hasn't visited the stadiums.

Sunday, September 30, 2012

Sunday Night Lights

The past three days have been a blur of movement.  It's nice to have a moment of quiet relaxation before the weekend winds down completely.  (It also lets my muscles recover from a race and moving heavy furniture.)

Hope your weekend was filled with lots of great moments and perhaps a small glass of celebratory reading water and a nap.

Friday, September 28, 2012

If a Tree Falls in a Forest...


Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul alike.

      - John Muir from The Yosemite (1912), page 256.
      (Source: Sierra Club)

Today's Friday photo a glimpse of tropical rainforest and sea, a place where nature could heal.  Happy Friday!

Northeastern Australia
Late August/early September 2012 

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Call a Spade a Spade?

Though knowledge to the contrary, I am beginning to think that "equinox" is Latin for "you won't sleep for a week."  The bustling combination of work, travel, too much coffee (never!) and a stack of bedside reading are still encroaching on a restful nice long sleep.  And did I mention the boxes?  I t also seems that Virgo has changed houses which according to my recently googled horror-scope means that I will too.  (+1 for internet accuracy).  And then there's the training...

In a sleep deprived, waiting for the coffee to perk haze this morning, I read this NYT article by Sarah Lyall on Abbey House Gardens and laughed heartily at the image of naked gardening, particularly when thinking how yesterday morning I dead-headed roses after my morning run and picked up a thorn.  (Apparently every rose has one.)  I see the practicality of those clothing-option warriors but I do tend toward the sunburn and a place for holding the shears.

Monday, September 24, 2012

Toss-n-Turn

If I had known that I was going to enter a sleepless night season, I would have taken a longer nap yesterday.  I also would have more heavily pondered sleeping on the plane (but reading was just too tempting).

This morning in my coffee craving haze, I'm trying to find the upside.  I took a bit of inspiration from Beth Orton in her interview with Tim Adams published in The Guardian that her sleeplessness (from motherhood) allowed her to "make connections that I maybe wouldn't normally make."  The article also contains a great quote about limitations which might just become my Monday mantra.

Ms. Orton played the Belcourt in Nashville last week and from accounts I've read from those who were able to attend, the show was most excellent.



Saturday, September 22, 2012

Fall In

Last night's dreams were particularly crazy.  I wonder if it is the change in season or being back in a place that felt for such a long time like home.  I think best not to delve too much into the human psyche before a latte.

The GBC meeting this week was particularly grand so I'll again borrow GBC P@1ge's description of the evening.  I wish I could have joined.  Book club > budgets.  [Names modified to protect the knights of the reading water.}
We could have not asked for a more perfect evening for our last meeting of the summer season. With the official start of fall only a few days away, we certainly got a preview of the coming season with crisp air, a cool breeze and dishes made from K1m and T1m's share of the season's harvest. Baba ganoush, goat cheese and K1m's homemade red pepper jelly got things off to an incredible start, and that was followed by an assortment of salads featuring cabbage in one, black beans in the other, whole wheat orzo in another selection, and finally a leafy green medley. All delicious. I know my description does not do them justice...you'll have to follow up with our wonderful hosts for more details. And last, but not least, there was an apple crisp made by our always-charming host E! The greek yogurt and fresh nutmeg were the perfect touches for this yummy dessert.
Now to the book...The Sea The Sea. As Bob wrote earlier, it wasn't necessarily a pleasant read, and our protagonist was not exactly a lovable guy, but we all agreed that Ms. Murdoch has a wonderful way with words. And, as always, inability to finish the book in no way impeded our ability to discuss the book. Not an easy book to get through for most folks, but Mr. H managed to read it in two days. He said that rainy weather helped. Perhaps it made him feel as if he was at the sea the sea.
I agree that rainy weather helps my reading save the first day of the week.  Rainy days and Mondays always get me down.  (Cue The Carpenters.)

Thursday, September 20, 2012

"You Maniacs"

Thanks to xkcd, I learned about Scott McCloud and the infinite canvas.  This led to a brief moment of zen during lunch on a day when my brain maxed out it's CPU and had a much too heavy for Wednesday storage load.  A rocket, a ship, a pyramid and a penny (just to name a few)...oh my!

Sad and wonderful, indeed.

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Poet and Did Not Know it

My desk these days has a different view.  Still west-facing, I see a bit more sky, today's rain, and the odd adventurous bird or two.  Do new views make you think of things differently?  Or is it that a new view makes you think of different things?

For a different view on poetry, check out "Poetry's Cross-Dressing Kingmaker" by Mark Oppenheimer published a few days ago in The New York Times.  This articles highlights Stephen Burt "whose reviews bring poetry to the masses" [MO, NYT].  It's a delightful morning read with your coffee, particularly if you already have a particular disposition toward poetry and if you, like him and W.H. Auden, think "it's best just to ignore bad poetry." [MO, NYT]

Sunday, September 16, 2012

First in Line

Work > play this weekend so I hope to rectify that soon with a little reading before retiring for the night.  I still have not managed to track down how I ended up with the Outlander by Diana Gabaldon but tonight I've learned this is the first in a series.  As with everything else right now, one [book/day/hour/insert suitable measure] at a time, and we'll see how it goes.

Friday, September 14, 2012

G'day

As a music-loving tourist, one of the first things I wanted to see in Sydney was the Opera House.  After a few days, it became akin to a game to determine from how many vantage points I could take a photo.  The answer:  a lot.  Here's day one of my eventual 360-degree tour.  Happy Friday!

Sydney Opera House
August 2012

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

And Then There Were Six

The Man Booker shortlist was announced yesterday and though Bring up the Bodies by Hilary Mantel is getting press as a favorite, I'm still partial to Swimming Home by Deborah Levy.  Sadly, this was a book I was not able to purchase for my trusty Kindle so destiny likely brings a paper copy.  Though not keen to read another book about a lighthouse immediately, I do still have The Lighthouse in my list.  The winner will be announced the 16th of October.

Hope your week is progressing better than expected and that the cooler weather brings an extra smile or two your way.

Monday, September 10, 2012

Fall Reading

I am trying to get into the mindset of a "fall back" as the September calendar rolls forward.  I'll gladly accept the cooler nights and temperatures which are gently falling during the day.  For the darker mornings, I may need a bit more coffee (and additional motivation to get running).

As a reminder, these are the upcoming reads for your autumn and winter pleasure:

    September 18: The Sea The Sea by Iris Murdoch
    October 16: The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
    November 20 : The Double Bind by Chris Bohjalian
    December 18: The Night of the Iguana by Tennessee Williams

Hope your Monday is off to a cheery start.  Happy reading!

Saturday, September 8, 2012

It's My Island

I started The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman as I thought it would be a nice complement to my journey to Australia (the book's setting, though it had me by nearly 100 years on the date).  In the end, the described isolation reminded me more of last year's visit to Maine that my journey down under, but I could see that in less populated areas than my journey, it could definitely seem like man and island are one (to contradict the expression).

The book moved well for me.  I was captured by the struggles of Tom and his wife maintaining a "lighthouse life" on the island and too felt wonder when the boat bearing a dead man and a baby washed ashore.  What would happen next?  I could not quite guess the story line (which is a plus in my book...so to speak).  [Don't worry, I'm not giving too much away here.  Nearly every review I saw gave this tidbit away and this critical event happens pretty early on in the novel.]  I read the book nearly in one sitting (with my seat belt securely fastened in the unlikely event of turbulence).

So what did happen?  Of course, I can't spoil that, but I will say the last few chapters left me a bit disappointed as the author seemed to want to tidy up the bits which perhaps should have been left to dangle.  Admittedly, this could have been my dark brooding rather than a reader who likes to know all the "what happened".  I would give the book a shot, but perhaps more a "borrow" rather than "buy."

Have a great weekend!

Thursday, September 6, 2012

Thursday Verse

It's been a rather surreal day.
I hope your week has been rocking.
It's been a longer time recovering
From the last flight docking.

A review still pending
When back to the norm
Meaning sleep in the night
and during day a fair form.

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

A Prism, Three Bases, and a Ring

I managed three books while I was on holiday., and number four has progressed 18% (Kindle math).  It's been ages since I've had the pleasant indulgence of that many novels in a short two week span.  A few of these even  made me forget that I was in economy seating with a 24 hour (one way) travel schedule.  Those earned an extra "+"

Expect reviews soon (translation: when I have had more than 3 hours sleep) of:

The Light Between Two Oceans by ML Stedman
Moneyball by Michael Lewis
The Newlyweds by Nell Freudenberger

My current read is Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. Ever since I began, I've been trying to remember who recommended this title for me.  I wonder if you too have had the line "If I could turn back time" continually playing in your head or if it's just my jet lag 

Monday, August 27, 2012

The Old Woman and the Sea

It's my Friday photo...a little late and a little early.

Though I can't quite remember the art piece, phrasings from this description have stayed with me.  I hope you have had a good week and I'll be back to normal (?!) after Labor Day.  Cheers!

Museum of Contemporary Art
Sydney, Australia 2012

Monday, August 20, 2012

Victory from De-Feat

I have no idea why this excerpt appealed to me so much.

This is what my brain is trying to tell you while my heart says, "Yes, you do."  Cold Feat by Andrew McCarthy is slated to be published next month.  Soul-searching, traveling, challenging, and picking the wrong book sometimes at the right time.  Hope your Monday is off to a good start.

Author's note:  Forgive me these next few weeks if my posting schedule is a bit off.  I've got some soul-searching, traveling, challenging, and reading a few (wrong or right) books in my future.

Saturday, August 18, 2012

I Tri-ed #240

Today's writing has been briefly delayed by a triathlon and a long nap.  I'm fairly certain this is the most supportive book club in the history of all book clubs.  I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Things I learned today that were not in any of the books I read in prepping for the day:

  • You might awake to pouring rain.  In this case, one should go back inside to apply sunscreen.  If you don't, your back might look like a Rubin vase
  • Timing chip = left side
  • Sometimes life doesn't give you a warm-up.
  • When your alarm is set for 4, you will awake at 3 and start thinking about the swim
  • You may accidentally end up in a faster swim heat
  • Despite being better than average at math and having keen memorization skills for numbers, you will forget where your bike should be racked
  • There are no instructions for removing your neighbor's handlebars from your back wheel spokes
  • You will smile when a 10 year old passes you
  • You will smile when you pass an 18 year old
  • You may forget to drink water on the bike
  • You will hug the first person you see when you cross the finish line.  Thankfully, I happened to know the person removing my timing chip so it wasn't so strange.
  • The body markings are a challenge to remove.
So here's to tri-ing something new, setting goals, facing fears, and being just a little bit crazy.  Have a great weekend!

Thursday, August 16, 2012

Light at the End of the Tunnel

It's a challenge to garner enough reading material for a yet undermined amount of time.  When I was in France for a month, I had nearly a dozen books.  I think I read two, maybe three.  There were other times on holiday that I could go through a book nearly every two days.  (Perhaps there is a reading water correlation in the mix?)

I stumbled across The Light Between Oceans this morning courtesy of Amazon cookie tracking and their SEO.  It's ML Stedman's first novel and while I assumed the author was male, I was pleasantly surprised to see "her" on the author's page.  The reviews include "heart-breaking", "barren couple", "baby", "isolation" and "return" which were enough to hook me into a Kindle download.  I'll admit the Australian setting played its part as well.  Here's a link to a recent Q&A with The Day, though if you like plunging into a novel not knowing too much, I'll suggest that you refrain from reading to the end as it hints to a key plot event.

Good luck with your end of summer reading selections!

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

What do you Mean?

With the Olympics and my own personal voyage, I someone missed the Long List announcement of the Man Booker Prize at the end of last month.  Occasionally a baker's dozen, this year we have a proper list of twelve.  My first click (no surprise to some of you) was Swimming Home by Deborah Levy.  The site's descriptive "Set in a summer villa, the story is tautly structured, taking place over a single week in which a group of beautiful, flawed tourists in the French Riviera come loose at the seams."  Count me in (when Amazon has stock).

In another award-winning news, GBC T1m celebrates another 365.25 days around the sun.  We wish him a day filled with sci-fi books, board games, great food, and family hugs.  Cheers!

Sunday, August 12, 2012

Always Look on the Bright Side of Life

Most of us are into music as well as books.  It's the go-to for exercise company, the necessary for clearing your head, traveling soundtracks, and the impromptu kitchen dance.  The Olympic ceremonies have done a fine job of reminding me of a few favorites and NPR gave me this link to the Six Songs of Me.  Six easy questions and endless possibilities for a playlist.

Friday, August 10, 2012

Full Tank

My mantra of late has been "I am a fish" but I found this exhibit to be rather sharking.
Atlanta Aquarium, "The Wall"
June 2012

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

Zero.  I've read none of them, well read none of them from cover to cover.  Finnegan's Wake I've skimmed.  Was it Honors English?  I'm certain it had to be either a class or some brief intellectual foray during my year of volunteer/travel/learn/run/develop worse puns.

This morning I discovered "The world's most difficult books: how many have you read" posted by Alison Flood and referencing this list from the Millions.  I'm certain that at least a few of our fellow GBC members have managed a couple of these titles.  Stein I can understand making the list.  After all, I compared another of her works to a half-marathon which surely was not the intended consequence.  (At least, I don't think she was a runner).  I would have included a Joseph Conrad to the list.

So, how many have you read?

Monday, August 6, 2012

"It's a Wheel!"

"For several thousand years people supposed that the earth was a great platform surrounded by the sea to an unknown distance; and that the sun set in the sea and rose out of it."

Opening line from Astronomy without Mathematics by Sir Edmund Beckett, Sixth Edition (revised for the results of the transit of Venus).  Published 1876.  My particular copy was "Obtained by William Brown in the Examination of Science Classes held May 1877".  It was noted as the "Queen's Prize."

Well done, Curiosity.   

Saturday, August 4, 2012

New Cycle

I don't know how the week passed so quickly.

My reading time has had an inverse relationship to my biking.

I hope to be back in gear before long.

Thursday, August 2, 2012

Up to the Sky...

I need to pack at some point in the near future.  With this self-acknowledgement, I've noticed that I have become one of "those" who still have unopened boxes from the last move.  Some are this way because I have been in a smaller space and I have too many kitchen items.  One box is still taped because I haven't had the heart to face the memories.  Maybe I'll visit it the move after this one.

Maybe.

In the winding down period before the winding up, I feel the chaos and this Al Kennedy piece felt at times as though he stepped inside my own head to find his words.  In "The Chaos of Writing:  Still hitting the keyboard after all these years," he notes, "Almost half my life has passed before my eyes. It was dusty. And creased."  He's moving as well and has had to deal with the emotional side of packing that creeps in beside the practical.  You're in the midst of a box, and stop short to look at a photo, listen to a CD, pause to remember, sometimes to cry.  What to keep?  What to rid?  How in the world did I end up with so many [insert slightly embarrassing admission here]?  Endings and beginnings swirled up in cardboard and whatever adhesive you happen to find.  Holding it together is always the hardest part.

Kennedy says, "Onwards".  Come what may, always, ever, and back again.

Monday, July 30, 2012

Pickup In Aisle 5

If you have ever been enamored (or trapped) by someone on a plane, The Newlyweds by Nell Freudenberger might draw you in.  Freudenberger notes in this Guardian interview that the inspiration for the book was, in part, drawn from her plane encounter with an engaged couple en route to Rochester.  An excerpt of the story, or more accurately, the original story (which grew to book) was published in the New Yorker in 2010 with the book launching the first day of May 2012.

The couple's story:  Bangladeshi woman meets New York man via dating website.  Online courtship ensues.  Woman leaves all to become American wife.  Even the "average" marriage has material for a book (or a reality show) but this more extraordinary beginning certainly gives lit potential after "I do."  The New York times review can be found here.

Moral of the story:  don't talk too much to the person in the seat next to you.  You just might emerge a protagonist.

Saturday, July 28, 2012

Not Chasing Cars

I can change a tire on a bike.
Nearly though ran over a tike.
Exhausted body but mind still races.
Grateful today for the quiet places.  

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Lady Meets The Tramp

Thursday discovery:  Vamp&Tramp, Booksellers, LLC

It's located not so far away.

They have miniature books, broadsides, and hand-made books.

I haven't discovered a title which wasn't lovely.

Blank Book * by John Hastings and Our Secret Garden by Paul Johnson were among my favorites.

* Author's note:  the link is to the general page, you'll have to scroll for these titles.  (It's worth it.)

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

To Infinity...

Yesterday, we lost Sally Ride and today would have been the 115th birthday of Amelia Earhart.  As a young  girl growing up in the middle of nowhere (or so it felt) America, these were women left an impression on me.  Though never aspirations of becoming a small plane pilot (I wanted a spaceship), I was mesmerized a few years ago in Connecticut when I stood in the hanger which housed one of Earhart's planes.  (I was on an interview so had to play it cool but all I really wanted to do is walk around, touch everything and take the book on the coffee table which gave a history of women in aviation.  I resisted.)  If you too have a fascination on the "rest of the story", The Earhart Project is documenting its expedition to Hawaii in search of wreckage.

I'm sending a Tuesday salute to all the strong women with crazy dreams, both those I know and those who came alive only in books.

Sunday, July 22, 2012

Good Will Hunting

A reminder that next month's GBC read will be The Hunting of the Snark by Lewis Carroll.  A scan of Goodreads gave me:  witty, surreal, and entertaining.  With Mercury still in retrograde, this may just be exactly what we needed.  In addition, this book has been cataloged by the Gutenberg project so here's the link for a free read.

Happy weekend reading, walking, studying, biking, sleeping.  May you also find a bit of rest.

Friday, July 20, 2012

Up in Arms


Rosie
July 2012

This Friday photo inspired by my intense need for caffeine this morning after a very full work week.

Now if I could just finish a Rube Goldberg device to re-fill it...


Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Cool Runnings

For those of you who have been destined to write a short story about the odd lives of the people in the GBC  neighborhood or some other random topic of choice, here is your chance.  Oh, did I mention that you had to have been living in the UK for the last three years?  Don't worry, there is always 2015.  

The Costa Book Award has a twist this year in that the entries will be anonymous so the novice writer can be paired "page to page" with the more experienced (and perhaps well known) entry.  As I read the news this morning, I wondered it the bookish Brits had been affected by the spirit of the Olympic games.  Maybe?

Regardless, all pens welcome.  

Monday, July 16, 2012

A Funny Thing Happened...

"It's been proven by history: all mankind makes mistakes." - Captain Sharp, Moonrise Kingdom


I was in the mood for a Mark Twain anecdote this morning but in the end, decided this takeaway from last night's movie would do.  I received a James Thurber quote from a friend this weekend which stirred up memories from an American Humor class I had in college.  I own a slightly underlined, highlighted, and marked "USED" paperback copy of The Thurber Carnival.  The text has red dots next to the items we reviewed in class.  I did not sell this book back to the University because the cash return was not equal to the chuckles I got when revisiting the pages.

Saturday, July 14, 2012

To Err is Human, To Forgive Design

Because I'm a nerd and I once lost a letter-grade to a carport design because I didn't account for "snow load" (in Tennessee), I am compelled to let you know about To Forgive Design by Henry Petroski.  Reviews in NYT, WSJ, and The Independent give me a hint that I would enjoy reading about a build and the lessons which often accompany doing something wrong.

Thursday, July 12, 2012

Take It for Grant-ed

Did you ever wake up perhaps just a bit earlier than normal and manage to squirrel away all the extra minutes you managed to create on various tasks around the house: eating, coffee, laundry, uploading photos to the site of a PR guy who actually thought you knew what you were doing with a camera, and the odd ironing?  Then, did you ever find yourself with just a few minutes to spare and wonder whatever in the world could you possibly include in the GBC blog?

Then...you remembered that one GBC member had an extraordinarily fine day yesterday which ensures she will remain in the neighborhood happily for several more books to come?  Congrats GBC K1m on the grant (and thanks for the inspiration of the day)!

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Post It Note

A reminder that the next meeting of the GBC is soon approaching, however I think there would be hardly a soul who has not managed to make it through the summer read, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins.

I'm betting the odds are ever in your favor.

Sunday, July 8, 2012

If you Can't Stand the Heat...

The heat and the lingering summer illness has evaporated my writing creativity along with my water.  I'll pause today in an attempt to gain momentum on In Cold Blood while also baking a batch of cookies.  Batter Up.


Friday, July 6, 2012

Tri-Cycle

Today's Friday photo is a quote from astronomer, mathematician, and "Flagstaff famous" Percival Lowell.  The words are inscribed on his mausoleum at Lowell Observatory.  At 7,200 feet elevation, even the mundane act of taking this photo made me feel connected to the cosmos.

Lowell Observatory, Flagstaff, AZ
June 2012

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

In 1776 II

Happy 4th of July!

Hope the corn is as high as an elephant's eye

And you manage to stay cool with temps that are sky high

Monday, July 2, 2012

Where Art Thou?


Gateway to Gallery of Lost Art

"The Gallery of Lost Art" launched today.  It is an online exhibit sponsored by The Tate and Channel 4 featuring currently 20 works (lost, stolen, or even ephemeral) with a new item added weekly for the next half year.  At the time, the exhibition will be considered complete and we'll have a half year to enjoy before it too expires.

Saturday, June 30, 2012

Symphony, Chocolate, and June

Euonymus fortunei
'Silver Queen'

Celastraceae
(Staff-tree family)

American bittersweet.

"Its rootlike holdfasts enable it to climb on any rough surface." 
    The Book of Outdoor Gardening p. 472

June, you were bitter.

And sweet.

Thursday, June 28, 2012

Book NYC

A friend of mine was recently in NY and we spoke about our love of Strand Books.  Once upon a time a boyfriend's brother worked there, and on a trip with him to the Big Apple around the year 2000 (aka the end of the computing world), I discovered one of the most beautiful places in the city...if you like books.

One of the site's features is "The Author's Bookshelf" and today I wanted to share Nora Ephron's list.  You will have read at least a few of these.  [Jane Austen alert.]

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

I Remember...


      Arms wide open

      Swirling, turning

      Head back, laughing

      Eyes bright, twinkling even

      Debating, explaining, listening.

      Laughing, loving,

      Loved.

Peace and big love from the GBC to one of our own.

Sunday, June 24, 2012

En-titled to be Wrong

People would likely stop talking about the HBO series when I mention my current read if I would manage to get the title correct:  In Cold Blood (not True Blood).  Apologies, Truman Capote.  I blame my recent fever.  This book has been on my shelves at least five years and has never been read.  The combination of the heat and my recent illness spurred me to lift it from its horizontal position (library overflow) atop a variety of other novels and in doing so, continues my habit of "real book" after e-book.

I think In Cold Blood might have been a GBC read from years past.  If so, I'm catching up.  We'll see how it goes.  Hope you have managed to avoid the heat of the weekend and made time for a little couch reading.

Friday, June 22, 2012

Energy Drinks

Realize deeply that the present moment is all you ever have...Always say "yes" to the present moment.
      - Eckhart Tolle from Practicing the Power of Now


In Search of a Vortex in Sedona, AZ,
June 2012

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

The Show Must Go On

The downside of searing throat pain is that you cannot sleep.  The bright side (cue Monte Python) is that you can spend an entire evening in bed to finish a book.  In this case, it was Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen.

I had no expectations for this read and will admit was, at times, surprised (and perhaps blushed) with our author's frankness in setting scenes. (I am sure it is still far from a popular 50 book in the spotlight.) Like the author (previous to her writing this novel), I have no recollection of having ever been to the circus. [It could also be that I am suppressing a memory which includes clowns. I'm not a fan of clowns thanks to reading It perhaps a bit too young but that is another story.] The characters, the work, the risk, and hope of reward became vivid to me as I hit "Next" on the Kindle (which is admittedly not the same as saying "turned the page" but we have to let go a little of these). I was eager to know how Marlena would make out and whether or not Jacob's story would "fair" a happy ending. Until reading the author's notes, I completely missed the Biblical parallels. A quick search leads me to believe I was not the only reader to do so.

In the end, this novel was perfect travel reading. The noises of children, animals and those occasional plane smells drove me deeper into the book and added a bit of 3-D enhancement to the story threads. I did find the anecdote about Edison and the elephant disturbing, but I'm trying to chalk it up to knowing history better arms us not to repeat it.

Author's note: Side effects of throat pain sometimes include bad puns, disjointed, jumpy texts and insertion of personal parenthetical anecdotes.

Monday, June 18, 2012

Home is Where You Are

It turned out that when my younger self thought of taking wing, she wanted only to let her spirit soar. Books are the plane, the train, and the road. They are the destination, and the journey. They are home.
            Anna Quindlen from How Reading Changed My Life

Saturday, June 16, 2012

Did You Pack the Trunk?

In the mad rush of last minutes items (and perhaps celebratory sparking reading water), I was at a loss for books to download for weekend reading.  I have a personal objection to the price point of $12.99 for an ebook (ahem, Amazon) and their lenders reading library failed me on any of the more recent items from my book list.  So I searched for Seabiscuit (only purchase) but fourth down from the list from the search was (and I don't understand the SEO behind it) Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen.  With apologies to Reece Witherspoon, I did not recall a movie, and I could not have told you at midnight anything about the book's premise, however I went with instinct and borrowed the book.

I started the book early the next morning and was surprised to find myself reading back-to-back novels on circus life. The story is unfurling like a hot air balloon filling and I am not far enough through the tale to give fair review...only to say that I'm hooked. 

Thursday, June 14, 2012

They Say It's Your...

It's crunch time (aka the moment I remind you that you should be finishing your monthly read).  How's your progress on Down the Garden Path by Beverley Nichols?  Mine is akin to Pilgrim's Progress but hopefully yours is better.  I will spend time this evening abusing my Amazon one-click to load up the Kindle for weekend reading.

In the interim, here are 13 June reasons to be happy:

  • Swimming (finally)
  • Cookies in the mail
  • Garden tomatoes
  • Random photo ops
  • Plane flights where no one interrupts you
  • Lattes
  • Fried eggs in the shape of a daisy
  • Long bike rides
  • Frozen Yogurt with kiwi
  • Rocking the impromptu presentation
  • New (and old) knitting projects
  • Getting caught in the rain at the end of the day rather than the beginning
  • Finding the thing you thought you'd lost

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Momentarily

I needed something from The book of Awesome today.  Neil Pasricha's selections of 1000awesomethings can be pretty inspiring and never fails to make me smile.  I flipped through the book and the website nodding to myself that the moments noted were pretty good (fresh cut grass, burst of cold air on a hot day, perfect pancake stack) but they weren't exactly what I was looking for.

Then I saw this #1 entry and I thought, "that's very close...but not quite."

So what about #2:  Remembering how lucky we are to be here right now?

Yes.
Life is so great that we only get a tiny moment to enjoy everything we see. And that moment is right now. And that moment is counting down. And that moment is always, always fleeting.

You will never be as young as you are right now.

So whether you’re enjoying your first toothpicked turkey cold cuts and marveling at apples from South Africa, dreaming of strange and distant relatives from thousands of years ago, or staring into the blackness of deep, deep space, just remember how lucky we all are to be here right now.

                             - Neil Pasricha, 1000 Awesome Things

Sunday, June 10, 2012

It's Not a Tuna

...or maybe it was.  I spent the day at the aquarium with two young girls who reminded me that life is more fun when you laugh, sing off-key with heart, ask for entry for the show you don't have tickets for, be fearless, and take lots of pictures.  

So long girls, and thanks for all the fish.

Hope your weekend went swimmingly.  

Friday, June 8, 2012

Crossing that Bridge

I think memories can be more haunting than cemeteries.  Today's Friday photo was taken on Memorial Day.

World War II
Greeneville, TN, Memorial Day 2012

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

He(y)-la

I'm fairly certain Monday's flight was the first early morning transit that did not include a nap.  The culprit:  The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot.  This was a GBC read from early last year that I finally purchased over the Christmas shopping holiday from Parnassus Books in Nashville.  Eighteen months later I pick up the book on the way out the door.  After boarding my flight, I was immediately drawn into the Lacks' lives and by the time I connected and landed, I was to the halfway mark in the book (aka the photo section).

The familial dynamics and the impact on DNA studies had me torn between the progress of science and its cost.  The story is particularly interesting in light of my current day job and my closer proximity to Tuskegee (whose 1932-1972 syphilis experiments were unknown to me until this read).  The return flights allowed me to both finish the story and let other passengers see my "soft side" with a tear (or two) as the book drew to a close.

Better late than never as they say, so if you too were delayed on the GBC schedule, I highly encourage you to pick up the read.

Monday, June 4, 2012

Flying High

Best things about early morning flights:
  • tarmac naps
  • reading on the plane
  • scoping out what other people are reading on the plane
  • perusing the airport bookstore
  • imagining yourself to be on a trip anywhere you'd like (until you land of course)
Hope your Monday flies by.

Saturday, June 2, 2012

Swooning June

Two days in the 70s to begin the birthday month = gift from the Universe.

On the menu for the weekend:  running, biking, swimming, dining, brunching, #readingwater-ing, and catching up on a few reads.

With this morning's (okay, noon-time) coffee, I paired this Yahoo (don't judge) news article on the 40 year anniversary of the "napalm girl" photo via @barelywashed on Twitter. Powerful story.

Hope your first June weekend is lovely.  

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Unbroken

If you're following me on Twitter, you've already heard me mention Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand. This NYT review highlights much of the story and presents an overview in a far better way that I could do so (particularly in 140 characters).  The CBS Sunday Morning segment which aired last Sunday is linked below.

Hope you enjoyed your Memorial Day weekends and are feeling resilient moving in June.

Monday, May 28, 2012

Memorial Day

White headstones.
Women's names on the back and men's on the front.
Wars ranging from the Great War to Afghanistan.
Small flags placed one foot from the right.
A POW/MIA flag flying just under the US Flag.

A clear blue sky and a feeling of being lucky and thankful.



Saturday, May 26, 2012

A Moment's Change

Welcome to Memorial Day weekend and the official beginning of summer (for anyone still near the academic arenas).

In memoriam of those lost and of those who will spend time this weekend to honor them, I've taken the first stanza from "The End and the Beginning" from The Poetry Foundation.  (The remainder of the poem can be accessed via the title link.)
The End and the Beginning
    by WISŁAWA SZYMBORSKA
After every war
someone has to clean up.
Things won’t
straighten themselves up, after all.

Thursday, May 24, 2012

One Small Step

Breakfast, coffee, Guardian news sweep, Neil Armstrong....wait, what did I read?

"Notoriously reclusive Apollo 11 astronaut Neil Armstrong gives video interview to Certified Practicing Accountants of Australia"

My Rocket City locale, math and science brain, and high probability of a plane ticket to Sydney obliges me to share this news.  If you'd like to listen to the full interview (and I'd recommend at a minimum Part #3), the CPA Australia links to the four episodes can be found here.



Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Down to the Letter

I give credit to @WendyMonday for discovery of "Letters of Note: Correspondence deserving of a wider audience."  Those of you that know me know I am a fan of letters and have a random collection floating about in shoe boxes, stacks, and one very full Pottery Barn case taken from the Tammy Wynette spelling song (apologies for the inside joke).  The site is a collection of letters, postcards, or any written media which can be authenticated.  I offer a nod to Shaun Usher for his selections.  Later this year, the collection of correspondence will be assembled into a book.  This will sit on my shelf alongside My Faraway One.

My favorites thus far are my discovery post (and intro to the site) "I Love My Wife.  My Wife is Dead.", a letter by Richard Freynman to his wife.  I've lost track of the number of times I've re-read this letter.  I'm also a fan (like many others) of  "I Like Words" a letter to Hollywood from Robert Pirosh.  The opening line includes "buttery".  How can you resist?

Sunday, May 20, 2012

With the Greatest of Ease

This weekend was fully dedicated to finishing Geek Love by Katherine Dunn.  Going into it, I thought (foolishly) that the book would focus on the apparent differences of Nerd v Geek but I quickly learned of the Austrian/Hungarian reference of "Gecken" which gave way to "geek" which loosely translated in the circus world can also encompass people who bite the heads off live chickens.  (I'm a nerd.)

The reader learns quickly that the Binewski family is created, like cultivated roses, to be different, unique, and extraordinary.  Since our narrator's mother was a willing participant in drugs, chemicals, disinfectants (I may be exaggerating with this one but not by far), and the like, the roses by any other name, well...were geeks.  The novel twists a bit through Olympia's tale (pun intended) giving the reader details where sometimes not wanted and leaving other bits to the imagination.

I won't spoil the story for you but I heartily recommend that you add this to your reading list though I can't promise you will think the same of redheads, sideshows, dusting large jars or aquariums.

Hope your weekend was a great one!

Friday, May 18, 2012

Wingspan

This was nearly me Saturday (minus the wings and add a helmet and hiking pants).  Your Friday photo originates from a walk around a sculpture garden post my half-day of hang glider training.  Hope your Friday really takes off.

Chattanooga, TN
May 2012



Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Play Nice. Play Often

“Let us read, and let us dance; these two amusements 
will never do any harm to the world.”
― Voltaire


On this day in 1717, Voltaire was imprisoned in the Bastille.  He never stopped writing and I suspect never stopped dancing.

Monday, May 14, 2012

My Kind of Town II

Enter Monday and the mad dash to complete book club books of the week.  For those of you who are ambitious, ahead of the game and happen to be Chicago lovers (like me though I am still in the mad dash category), consider adding City of Scoundrels: The 12 Days of Disaster That Gave Birth to Modern Chicago by Gary Krist.  NPR reviews here.

Sunday, May 13, 2012

Don't Turn this Mother Out

This morning I raise my coffee mug to all the women in my life:  mothers, aunts, sisters, women who have had to make tough choices, and to the single ladies with bright bold dreams.  Cheers and may the rain wash away any doubts or dreary thoughts.  You are fabulous. 

Thursday, May 10, 2012

Mawage is wot bwings us togeder tooday

A special shout out to my parents who today have been married longer than the number of years remaining in my life (statistically speaking).   I've admired your laughter, your hugs, and your treating each day like a gift (or a really bad joke).  Happy Anniversary!

                  [cxvi]
            William Shakespeare from
            Sonnets, Songs, and Poems
      edited by Henry W Simon, 1951 edition

Let me not to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments.  Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove:
O, no! it is an ever-fixed mark,
That looks on tempests and is never shaken;
It is the star to every wandering bark,
Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken.
Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks
Within his bending sickle's compass come;
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,
But bears it out even to the edge of doom
   If this be error and upon me proved,
   I never writ, nor man ever loved.

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

May Showers Bring New Powers

If you are like me, you're already wondering where May has gone.  In fact, most of the first third of the year has gone by in a blur of swim, run, work, teach with a small amount of knitting, sewing, and reading thrown in.  And if that weren't enough, you're trying to learn a road bike.  I suspect at least a few of you are in the same boat though your oars may be a bit different.

You have about a week to power through the next month's read for the two book clubs you are pacing.  (Or that could be just me.)  Good luck this week and take a moment to pause (or just hideaway, read, and buy a plane ticket somewhere nice).    I'm beginning to advocate the latter.

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Train Bound to Nowhere

This is the type of book that I tend to mention only on sunny days, a book that I'm sure would require Kleenex and a few glasses of reading water nearby. A Train in Winter: An Extraordinary Story of Women, Friendship, and Resistance in Occupied France by Caroline Moorehead has been added to my book list.  Perhaps the only detail the title omits is the Auschwitz location.  This Washington Post review secured its addition.



Friday, May 4, 2012

All Hands on Deck

Idle hands can sometimes be glove molds.

Architectural Artifacts, Chicago
April 2012

Show of hands of anyone else who thinks this display is mildly creepy?

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Come Sail Away

I was feeling a bit more "art" than "book" today so perusing The Guardian led me to Lone Twin which led to The Boat Project.  Inspired by GBC K1m's gift of yarn and GBC T1m's homemade wind chimes, I want to create something.  (Admittedly though, I don't want to build a yacht.)

In just a few days (the 7th), a boat made completely of donated items will be launched from Emsworth.  For a video overview, check out this link.  Art meets science.

Best wishes to the team smooth sailing.

Monday, April 30, 2012

Put Me in Coach

I have my eyes on summer.  I've given up hope for any semblance of remaining spring (and cooler weather) and with Saturday's bbq, my palate has turned to summer cuisine.  Enter How the Hot Dog Found Its Bun: Accidental Discoveries and Unexpected Inspirations That Shape What We Eat and Drink by Josh Chetwynd.  As journalist, baseball player, and attorney, I suspect he may have learned a thing or two about the dog.

If that book doesn't have you sliding for home, perhaps consider his book released in 2011, The Secret History of Balls: The Stories Behind the Things We Love to Catch, Whack, Throw, Kick, Bounce and Bat.

Mr. Chetwynd has a (long) way with words but the books seem just quirky enough to add them to my book list.