Table with a View

Friday reminder to celebrate moments of relaxation and 4th birthdays.  Best wishes to our growing youngest reader and hope you all have a happy Friday!

Pura Vida
Costa Rica, February 2014

Stock and Barrel

Sometimes there are a series of events that come together to select your next read:

• Super early alarm
• Icy roads
• A new entry into your top 3 scariest cab rides of all time (and the only one without heat on a 9 degree morning)
• Super long security line
• No coffee
• Super long screening line
• Have I mentioned coffee?
• Train ride to the farthest terminal
• Five minutes before boarding and you need water and breakfast 
• Still no coffee and I would not recommend the Greek yogurt protein bar
• Two minutes before boarding and connecting to free Wifi
• One minute before boarding and selecting the first three books that were <$6.00 on the Kindle suggestions for you (well, actually you select three of the four; not quite sure how that 4th one made the list)

The Wolf of Wall Street is underway.  Thus far I'm relatively certain my business program would not have selected this as required reading.  

There's a Chair in My Shower and Would you Pass the Salt

Tonight's journey was the time equivalent (and in this order) of the last 17% of The Book Thief, 47% of Love Poems, and A-S on the iPod alphabet self-DJ-ed song list.

It has been a real treat the last two weeks to be able to devote a bit more time to leisure reading.  

Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand.  Just read it.  Then tell me you read it so I can talk with you about it.  If I've seen you lately, I've probably already told you about it.  I am in awe at Louis' journey (and at the various WWII statistics gleaned from the book that I did not recall from pre-science days).  Ms. Hillenbrand does a very nice job with the novel and serious props to her reference list.

The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion.  This was a fun read after the more somber novel above.  Geneticist seeks wife.  Must answer screening questionnaire in order to qualify.  If you have a series of questions you pose to potential suitors [Do you live at home?  Do you have a job?  Do you think it's appropriate to have a concealed weapon at the dinner table?* ], then I think you'd enjoy this book as a light spring/summer addition to your list.  I won't speak to the Genetics portion of the novel, because well, I tend to do that anyway.

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.  I've already admitted that I had a difficult time at the beginning of this novel but I read the last half of the work in large sections, uninterrupted.  Despite the fact that I really knew better than to finish it in a public space, I did anyway.  I was desperate to know what happened, even if the price was a public tear down the cheek.  Liesel, Max, Hans, Rosa, Rudy, I loved you all.  

So, I'm not sure what's next though I am due for the We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves GBC selection for March.  Hope you are enjoying the weather and stealing away a few moments for a book.

*Author's Note:  Some questions appear after very awkward moments at the dinner table.  

65 is Alive

It is too pretty to stay inside and read.

I hope you were out enjoying the warm sunshine and rewarded yourself with a little nap.

There's plenty of time for books once the sun goes down.

Spring is coming.

Sky Fall

I read on the plane yesterday as long as I could keep my eyes open.  This was quite an effort since I was out rather late the previous night:

     a) singing karaoke
     b) dancing in the street
     c) grabbing one last star gaze
     d) all of the above

Tonight's goal is to get to a more regular circadian rhythm via the aid of one long run up a really big hill and a glass of reading water.  I'll also try to sneak in a few more chapters of The Book Thief as I think I'm the only one in the GBC that hasn't read it.  The writing style threw me just a bit at the beginning (which might have been a direct result of the list above) but I'll settled into the routine oscillating between bold and standard.

It's got me thinking about the color of the skies.

Pura Vida

Full reviews when I'm typing on something that's larger than a piece of bread. I've finished Unbroken and moved to The Rosie Project (which will likely be done today).

When not reading or running on the beach, I've been reminding myself just how fortunate I am.  Zip lining at night above a canopy of trees and below a bed of stars is just as magnificently awesome as you would think it would be.

Snow Place Like Home

Surprise Snow
February 2014

"The snowfall, which he witnessed out of the corners of his eyes - furious, wind-whipped flakes against the windows - struck him as infinitely beautiful"

Snow Falling on Cedars -  David Guterson (p5)

Today's Friday photo was from my front steps. Hope you have a lovely weekend full of surprises.  

Bend and Not Break

I'm a bit off schedule for writing these days.  I've slept in five places the last five days so there have been a few days where I wasn't certain what day it is, including today. At least I've always had my luggage.

The airplane time has given ample opportunity to dive more into Unbroken and I'm completely hooked.  The book is a long one (512 pages according to Amazon sources) and I'm at the 50% mark.  As the story evolves and the reader continues to learn more about Louie's life, I don't think s/he could remain untouched.  There were several moments on the plane where I had to close the reader for just a second to regroup before moving on so I didn't have another Seven Pounds* moment.  I can't wait to finish it and I'm rooting desperately for a happy ending.

*The author wasn't familiar with Seven Pounds and opted to select this film on a transatlantic flight to Europe.  Airline attendants fondly remember her as the person who was sobbing in the seat and kept asking for napkins.  Fellow neighboring passengers likely dismissed her as crazy.

Two Words

It was a big treat to see the GBC grouping this weekend and catch up on life over a bit of reading water.  I was very fortunate to see a number of dear friends, one of which managed to succinctly create a story-telling image with the art of the two-word phrase.  Nod to KR for inspiring this little arrangement.

Pinewood
Business Plans
Cheese Curds
Snowy Lands

Outside painting
Housing sales
Machu Picchu
Haircut tales.

Interstate blanket
Toasts galore
Big hugs
Wine Store.

Honey Coffee
Presents Exchanged.
Big discussions
Life rearrange.

Pizza toss
Dinner party
Running hugs
All hearty.

What Does the Fox Say?

This week's treat has been reading Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What do you Hear? to a sweet girl for her bedtime story.  Though my noises for all animals were a little lacking, she didn't complain.  [What exactly does a hippopotamus sound like?  No clue really, but I tried to sound confident.]  This book was promptly followed by a Star Wars series.  She was a young woman of discerning tastes.  I like it.  Incidentally, Jedi light saber noises are also a little easier to command.

The next morning, I had to turn down the opportunity to read as I couldn't quite manage a book AND drive a minivan [for the first time ever] at 8:00 a.m. pre-coffee.  This was a little difficult to explain to three toddlers but I did get to practice some Kaizan "Why" root cause.  [Toyota, did you ever expect that to happen in a Honda?]

Here's hoping your Friday contains no Storm (troopers) or large animals waiting to hiss in your ear.  May the force be with you.

We Built this City on...Galileo

This town has no shortage of engineers, physicists, and people who like love math.  It is always such a treat to ask someone what they are reading because I will frequently walk away with a title that's new (and nerdy).  Yesterday's new addition to the book list was Our Mathematical Universe by Max Tegmark.  It was featured on NPR's Science Friday and you can find a review here by The Guardian's Brian Rotman.  It might make a nice "addition" to your list as well.

Mirror, Mirror, You're the Wall

Sometimes when you travel, you get upgraded to a corner room.  In that room might be the most enormous wall mirror you've ever seen (which makes you ponder that "upgrade").  But on the mirror, there's a quote.  And you take a picture because you want to remember it.  You won't be able to post the picture because in order to get the quote, it's at a slightly awkward angle (and it's your room).  So for Monday, in its original formatting (ALL CAPS) from the ceiling to the floor:

IF

TRAVEL

IS

LIKE

LOVE,

IT

IS,

IN

THE END,

MOSTLY

BECAUSE

IT'S

A

HEIGHTENED

STATE

OF

AWARENESS,

IN

WHICH

WE

ARE

MINDFUL,

RECEPTIVE,

UNDIMMED

BY

FAMILIARITY

AND

READY

TO

BE

TRANSFORMED.

THAT

IS

WHY

THE

BEST

TRIPS,

LIKE

THE

BEST

LOVE

AFFAIRS,

NEVER

REALLY

END.

-

PICO

IYER