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It's Been A While

For those sweet few readers who have checked in and seen that I have not update in almost a month, thanks for your loyalty and patience! It's been a challenging month as my sister started chemotherapy and I have been up to No. Cal to help out with the first treatment. I'll go up again next week for her second treatment. She's doing very well, so far the side effects have been fairly mild. Her hair has started to fall out just this week so hats will be the new Fall hairdo. She's positive and upbeat and doing well. I'm doing pretty well also, still get overwhelmed by the seriousness of cancer, but having been to the first chemo treatment, I feel better. There are not so many unknowns in the whole process now and for control freaks like me, that is good. I bought a book for my sister called Crazy Sexy Cancer Tips by Kris Carr. Ms. Carr has a website about the film she made of the same name: CRAZY SEXY CANCER. I have found many helpful tips and info in this book. I also sent her the Livestrong notebook: to keep all the info in one place. The website for the Lance Armstrong Foundation has tons of helpful information and support for anyone with cancer or anyone who knows people with cancer. I hope you never need to go there. With the traveling to my sister's and also we are having work done on the house so the place is a shambles, I haven't been reading much long form material. Mostly I've been reading magazines. I did finish one book called The World Without Us by Alan Weisman. It is a fascinating read about what would happen to all things manmade if we were to disappear tomorrow. He describes how long the subways in NYC would last, how long houses, buildings and cities would last. Amazingly, it wouldn't take long for nature to take back what we've done. Except for the plastic. Oh the plastic! This book made me really see how much plastic is EVERYWHERE in our lives and how none of it will ever go away. Well, ever is a long time, but really, plastic will be here a long long long long time. I'm making small changes to reduce plastic in our lives, and it's a challenge. But as Gandhi said, "whatever you do will be insignificant, but it is very important that you do it."

New Yorker Cover

This is the October 1, 2007 cover of The New Yorker by Philippe Petit-Roulet: I love it.

More Catching Up

I realize that I start books, write about them halfway through, but never finish discussing them. The Gordon Ramsay book -- I enjoyed it very much. He clearly wrote it because it is his voice. It's pulp non-fiction and interesting to continue to learn more about how top chefs live and work. Brutal! I don't want to be one. Still working my way through the 9/11 report. It's a page turner, but daunting as there is so much information to process. The New Yorker is great for short bursts of reading. I read the "Food" issue while I was in DC. Great stories and memories. Rereading High Fidelity was fun. Like a palate clenaser. I have not reread Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows yet. I've been too busy and distracted to open it up again. But I will.

Catching Up!

I'm reading a bunch of things at once. Wait, it's been a long long time since I've written about what I'm reading. Things have been happening out here in the real world that have been quite intense and distracting. My sister has cancer and that came about quite quickly and shockingly. So I've been traveling to see her plus traveling for work. I am on my way back from Washington DC as I write this after two weeks on a movie shoot. Okay, but I have been reading. Hang on...I decided that since to load all the books I have sitting on my actual shelves at home into Shelfari would be too much work, I'm adding to Shelfari every time I buy a new book (be it a gift or something for me to read). So that's my shelfari plan. I like it and I like the little widget that goes with it. You can see what I've purchased lately and have been reading lately. Okay okay, back to the reading. I'm in the middle of Revolutionary Characters which was recommended by a friend who lives and works near/in Washington DC. My love of history, specifically American History, makes this an easy one to plow through. My recent flirtation with John Adams also helps a lot. What that means is, I almost was the VFX Producer on John Adams mini-series in 2005, but HBO put the show on hold for a year and so I had to move on. But I enjoyed learning about one of the most ardent revolutionaries and our second president through that project and it inspired me to read more about these men who changed the world. While in DC I went to see the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Seeing the documents, the actual, for real, signed by John Adams himself (et al) blew my mind. People risked their lives to write up these ideas an ideals and here were the very documents, right in front of me. It brought a tear to my eye. I'm not ashamed to say I'm a sentimental softie and quite an American patriot, in the truest sense of the word. Have you read the Constitution lately? Read it. It's not long. It's very straightforward and clear. These days, you want to pay particular attention to Article I, Section 9. Also, listen to This American Life's Peabody Award winning show "Habeas Schmabeas". And I highly recommend reading Revolutionary Characters because it gives you an insight into these men. Not gods or icons as we learned them in elementary and high school, but flawed, brilliant, multi-faceted, men. The other book I'm in the middle of is The World Without Us. The hook is, all humans are gone from the earth tomorrow (all of us, just gone) -- how long would nature take to reclaim what she had before we came along? The answer, in some cases, might astound you. The subways in NYC would be flooded within just a few days without anyone there to control the pumps. The book is more than that, the author talks about what us humans have put into nature and how hard some of it will be to get rid of. Plastics, for example. Personally, this is the first time I've really understood what plastic is and how it will be in and on the earth forever. I have been doing a good job of using my personal grocery bags every time I go shopping and therefore no longer get plastic or even paper bags. Sometimes I forget, but even then, if I can carry what I've bought without a bag, I'll not take a bag. Small changes, yes, but changes. Plastic isn't going away for a long long long time. And I mean thousands upon thousands of years. This book really opened my eyes. The World Without Us is entertaining and eye opening.

Finished One, Started Another

I finished Gordon Ramsay's book, Roasting In Hell's Kitchen, and it was entertaining. Pulp Non-Fiction. I appreciated that this book was very clearly written by Mr. Ramsay and Mr. Ramsay alone--that was his voice on the page. With his pursuit of perfection and control freak nature, his tv persona makes so much more sense. He has a passion to make great food and his number one reason to do so is for the customer, not for himself. He's fascinating and unbelievably successful and inspires great loyalty from his staff. More power to him. While I was finishing that book, I started reading The 9/11 Commission Report And it is F A S C I N A T I N G! A complete page turner. Gripping. Riveting. For a government report, it is well written and clear. I'm only on about page 40 and it starts with what happened on each flight, transcripts, technical aspects, etc. Then it moves on to the FAA and the Military and what was "supposed" to happen in the event of a hijacking. But this situation was so insane, so above and beyond just about everyone's imagine at that point, that things got very confusing. And you can't really blame anyone on the ground for doing or not doing something exactly right. So far, I can highly recommend you buy this (available at any bookstore for about $10) and give it a read. Do you think 9/11 was a giant government conspiracy? This site made me laugh -- just at the title! There is no 9/11 conspiracy you morons. There is also this article: Debunking The 9/11 Myths. Odd moment for us six years ago: Sunday, September 9, 2001, Kurt and I flew home from Boston/Logan Airport on United Airlines Flight 175. Two days later, in the comfort and safety of our living room, we watched, along with the rest of the world and my mom who was visiting just then, as the day's events unfolded. When we heard what flights they were, we looked at our ticket stubs, still sitting on a table and shook our heads about that same flight. Strange strange day.

New Books

I decided I like Shelfari better. Better graphics and I'm all about the visual. I also decided it that if I'm going to use it, that it makes sense to add to it from books I buy from now on. So what have I bought lately? Two books, one practical, one just for fun, both about food. First is Gordon Ramsay's memoir. I have to admit I'm a fan of Hell's Kitchen and also his BBC show Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares. He's loud and rude and swears a lot, but down deep there is a guy who wants the people he works with to do the very best they can and never give up. Not condoning this as a way to run things, but it certainly makes for good television. I mean, you know the guy has a big heart, offering to pay for Julia (different Julia) to go to culinary school! This looked great and I already made one recipe out of it. I used to get the magazine but since they come with so many great recipes, I had to stop it because we just weren't getting to them all. And this cookbook is just like the magazine -- great recipes, easy, fast, delicous. And it has a picture for each recipe and I like that. (I'm just like Jen this way) I'm still in the middle of my New Yorker, so I haven't started the Gordon Ramsay yet, but soon.

Internet Thingys

I have been emailed twice now about Library Thing and went and tried it. Even added a nice widget to both my blogs. I had started on Shelfari a while back but hadn't updated in months. (And put one of their widgets on this site as well. I think the Shelfari ones are cooler...) I guess the idea is interesting in an Online Social Networking Group sort of way. It's not so thrilling overall, and quite frankly, too much work! I think I'd rather just blog about them darn books. This site is my library site. I'll probably play around with them some more...I'm not an early adopter...

New Yorker

My new New Yorker subscription arrived today with the August 6 issue. I'm very pleased to have it again. It's been about six or seven years since I last took it. They can pile up, as they come weekly and sometimes issues are chock full of "just the thing I want to read." Sometimes it's a quick flipping of the pages, read a review or two and all the cartoons.

Moving On From Harry (For Now)

I read the HP and now I'm resting before re-reading it. So in the mean time, I'm re-reading High Fidelity by Nick Hornby. I was in a book club ten years ago and this was the second or third book we read. Niel suggested it and I really enjoyed it. I was not sure what the hell anyone was thinking making a movie with it all being in Chicago instead of London, but then, I saw the movie and was pleased. Jack Black such a great surprise. (I didn't really know who Tenacious D was at the time.) (Alert: music starts blasting when you click through to the site.) And John Cusack did the character justice. We own that DVD and watch it occasionally. Great soundtrack too, as you must imagine. Oh that book club! I miss it. It was Debra, Niel, Sophia, Lawrence and me. Occasionally others would pop in and out, but that was our core group. I was in the middle of the hardest job of my life and while working six days a week and too many hours, needed something that had nothing to do with work at all. And so we made a book club--Thanks again Debra! Reading the books and going to our monthly meetings was like hiking up a hot dry trail and then reaching the cool blue pond fed by a small waterfall and diving in. Refreshing to my mind body and spirit! The group trailed off after a while and I didn't need it so much anymore, but wowee, I'm so glad I had it. That book club saved my soul.

Harry Reviews

I have been reading online reviews of the book and while most don't get that specific, they are fun to read. No one I know has read the book yet so I have no one to talk to about it! The review from Lev Grossman at TIME.com ends with this paragraph: The sadness is more an instant nostalgia for the unironic, whole-hearted unanimity with which readers embraced the story of Harry. We did something very rare for Harry Potter: we lost our cool. There is nothing particularly hip about loving Harry. He's not sexy or dangerous the way, say, Tony Soprano was. He's not an anti-hero, he's just a hero, but we fell for him anyway. It's a small sacrifice to the one that Harry makes, of course, but it's what we, as self-conscious, status-conscious modern readers, have to give, and we gave it. We did and do love Harry. We couldn't help ourselves. And I wholeheartedly agree with it and appreciate that he called us all out. I LOVE these books and these characters and will read them again and again.

Finished It!

I'm not a speed reader, but I am a fast reader. I got the book yesterday around 2ish and read off and on until about 11:30. Then slept, then woke up and read from about 8:30 until about 12:30. I'm finished and I'm sad and happy and sad. Characters die, that's for sure, and when you least expect them to. Now it's time to hit the showers after my read-fest! Enjoy yours.

Media Blackout!

First I'm going to the Ho'olaule'a with Sarah. Then I'll be home to read my Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I might blog. I might not. Don't be alarmed if I don't, just reading before I accidentally see any spoilers!

Media Blackout Early?

Apparently there are already leaks of the new/last Harry Potter book. I will be working very very hard to avoid all of these things. Boy oh boy. Saturday can't come soon enough.

Reading In The Mean Time

While my breath is bated, I am reading: And I must highly recommend it. If you ever find yourself in a conversation about how television and movies and video games are rotting peoples brains, all your counter arguments are here. Mr. Johnson proposes that, in fact, the complicated problem solving required of video games and multi-layered stories of recent television shows and movies is making us smarter. Plus it will make you feel SO MUCH BETTER aboout tivo-ing/never missing Heroes and Lost and 24 and the Sopranos. If you have kids, read this and maybe you won't feel so bad about them watching as much tv or playing as many games. (All things in moderation of course....)

The Movie

I went to see HP and the Order of the Phoenix yesterday. And I know none of you will find this shocking, but I wanted more. My husband came along and he is quite the muggle in the HP world. He didn't get much of the nuance there. I was saying how I liked that they occasionally gave Ginny a look when Harry was with Cho. Kurt said, "Who was Ginny?" Books (any books) are always better than movies. Okay, maybe 99.9% of the books are better. "To Kill a Mockingbird" is just about equal. And after reading The Bourne Identity, I appreciate that they really modernized the story and characters in the movie. (The book was SO 70s in it's attitudes.) I love seeing movies made out of the books I've read, even though I'm pretty sure they won't live up to my imagination. But still, seeing the characters on the big screen is a treat and especially the Potter crew. (My favorite characters have to be Fred and George Weasley and I love the twins they have playing them.) But the loss of so much wonderful detail from the HP books is always a let down. I really wanted Ron to have some quiditch time. I won't go into any more detail. I hope some day that a mini-series gets made of each book so that people who haven't read them or don't know the books too well can enjoy the in jokes and side characters that mean almost nothing in these feature films now. Really, I'm just counting down the hours until next Saturday and the arrival of my Deathly Hallows. Go see the movie -- like I need to tell you to see it -- I think Daniel Radcliffe did a great job this time.

Harry Potter Mania (Self Inflicted)

So here is the thing. I thought I wouldn't be that crazy excited about the arrival of The Deathly Hallows. Yes, I ordered it in February from Amazon, but with super saver shipping (=free and takes days longer). Then, after finishng book six and seeing more trailers for "Order of the Phoenix", I decided that I couldn't wait. I don't want to hear spoilers, I don't want to hear details. I want to read that book and enjoy its unfolding before anything gets out. (Any so-called spoilers out on the internet now I consider simply rumors and don't pay any attention to them.) So I went to Amazon this morning and changed my shipping so that I will receive the book on Saturday July 21. My husband and I have already discussed the media black out that will occur over the weekend of July 21/22. I hear you -- geez Julia, that's three weeks away! I know. But you must prepare for these things. If I don't answer email or phone calls that weekend, do not be surprised. CAN'T WAIT!!!!111!

I Finished It

Okay, okay, I'm greedy. I finished The Half Blood Prince yesterday. The momentum was building to the amazing end and I had to just keep going. Done. So I'll wait a few weeks and decide if I want to quickly read it again right before the other book comes. Now, I know JK Rowling said there wouldn't be any more HP books after Deathly Hollows. But here are my questions: Does Harry go after and find all four Horcruxes in the last book? Seems a giant task for him seeing as how Dumbledore couldn't do it before. But maybe that is what makes Harry special? Not to mention all the help from his friends. Also, if/when Harry kills Voldemort in the last book, do they all live happily ever after in the wizarding world? (Except for those who are supposed to die.) Most importantly, don't you think Neville and Luna will get together?

Slow Reading is Hard To Do

Reading Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince slowly is really hard! It's not even July yet and I'm almost done. I think to myself, "I'll only read two chapters tonight." Then "Oh, just one more!" So I might have to just finish it and maybe read it again right before the other one comes out. Yes, in fact, I am a freak that way. Reading Freak!! Ahem. In the mean time, I thought I would read Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut. (Oh yes, it doevtails so nicely with Harry Potter!) I have never read Vonnegut and Kurt (my husband, not Mr. Vonnegut himself, who is dead. So it goes.) has been asking me to read this one for a while now. I also heard part of an interview with him talking about the book and about the bombing of Dresden. I didn't know that he had said he was the only person who profited from the bombing of Dresden (because of the book, Slaughterhouse-five). The bombing didn't affect the outcome of the war, didn't make any difference except to kill almost 30,000 people, an unnecessary massacre before the war's end. I know very little about Vonnegut's work and expected it to be difficult to get into. I was afraid it would be like Thomas Pynchon's The Crying of Lot 49 which I found to be a very challenging book to read. However, Slaughterhouse-five is easy to read. This doesn't make it simple or light. The images and feelings presented are intense and sad and brutal. It is an anti-war book, don't forget. I'm about 2/3 of the way done and am glad to be reading it. Thank you Kurt and thank you Kurt. When I'm done with Slaughterhouse-Five, I think I will pull A Man Without A Country out of my reading stack and finally read it. I bought it after seeing Mr. Vonnegut on The Daily Show (2005). Time to get to know the man and his work better.

Harry Potter Continues

Despite all the ribbing Kurt is giving me about re-reading books (what is his problem with this? He keeps saying "honey, I'll buy you a new book, I promise!" Clearly he hasn't been paying attention to the stacks and stacks of new books I have that are yet to be read. But I don't want to read them now, I want my Harry Potter!) I have finished Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (click to see the trailer for this summer's movie!) and loved it. It has been two years since I read it and I forgot all about Ron and Quidditch, all about Snape and Occlumancy lessons and the thestrals. I was going to wait a week or two before starting on The Half Blood Prince because I wanted to be able to finish it and then slide right into The Deathly Hallows. But since it won't be here until late July, I'm afraid I will read it too fast and then have to wait a few weeks before it gets here. Hi, I'm 10 years old again. But I couldn't. I had to start reading it last night. I'll try not too read toooooooo many pages before bed. Stretch it out. Funny thing -- while looking for a fun link to make out of "Half Blood Prince" I found this website called Half-Blood Prince -- The Ultimate Canon Severus Snape Site which is ALL about Snape, what he's said, what he wears, who he hangs out with and his birthday. Holy cow. I'm on the internet a lot but I forget about these kinds of fansites. I mean, I love these books too, and I can't wait to find out the truth about Snape, but wow. Oh, and if you want to play Muggle Quidditch, go here. Could be fun!

This Space is Under Construction

I switched to a different template in Blogger and now lost all my modifications. I know, I know, I should have saved the original template, but I didn't.... So please forgive the not so pretty look. I'll fix it soon!

Tag! I'm It!

Annie, the Super Fast Reader, from her website reading is my superpower, tagged me for a meme! First of all, I am so pleased that someone outside of my own family is reading this site. Second of all, I have to apologize to her since she tagged me on May 16th. The excuses are: out of town visiting my mom, didn't bring my computer, too much work to do when I got home, blah blah blog (as my friend Micah would say.) So -- the tagging/meme -- Here are the rules: 1: Each player starts with 8 random facts/habits about themselves. 2: People who are tagged, write a blog post about their own 8 random things, and post these rules. 3: At the end of your post you need to tag 8 people and include their names. 4: Don’t forget to leave them a comment and tell them they’re tagged, and to read your blog. I'm going to follow Annie's lead and write 8 random facts about me all having to do with reading: 1. The first full-length book I remember reading was Little House in the Big Woods. I was 6-ish. 2. The first time I read To Kill A Mockingbird I was in 6th grade at Lihikai Elementary school. The librarian suggeseted it. 3. I read The Shining when I was about 13 during the summer. The book freaked me out so much I had to stop reading at about 5pm every day so I wouldn't be afraid to go to sleep. 4. I joined a flicker group recently called Reading Stack. I posted three different pictures and now need to post another since cleaning my office and making a new stack! 5. I like to travel to places I read about in books, fiction or non-fiction. I like standing in the spots described and remembering the book I read that brought me there. 6. I have to read before I got to sleep. Even if it is just half an article in a magazine, it is part of my going to sleep ritual. (Ask Kurt about the stretchy dance...) 7. I sometimes find myself judging people by the amount of books they have in their house. I'm not proud of it. 8. I don't understand why men (it seems mostly men) need to take a lot of reading material in the bathroom with them. On to tagging: Brian at MacinKlotz Will at [sic] Frazgo at frazgomeanders Kira at Joe's Pila-T-Shop Carrie at Sommer Designs Micah at Shut Up I Know! It says to tag 8 people, but this is the best I could do today. Thanks again Annie! I will also do a variation on this theme/meme on my other blog: Julia in Mexico City

More Summer Reads

I am only on chapter three in More Sex is Safer Sex. I wasn't wildly inspired to pick it up again. I probably will, but not right now. I wanted to get back to a novel, but I didn't feel in the mood to choose -- so many on my shelves to choose from. Then I remembered -- the new Harry Potter comes out July 21: (I ordered mine on February 1.) I need to get caught up since it has been two years since Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince came out. So I'm backing up two books and starting with The Order of the Phoenix. I read the first three chapters last night and am pleased. I had forgotten that Harry is just PISSED OFF in Order of the Phoenix which makes him so much more interesting. Plus the movie comes out this summer and I'm looking forward to that. Kurt asked me the other day what I was reading and I mentioned that I would re-read these and he was surprised. He doesn't understand why people like to re-read books. I don't understand why you wouldn't. Granted, I only read some books over again, not all. If I find a book I really like, that takes me away to a particular place and time, I love going back there to visit. Sure, I know what the big plot points might be already, but the nuance and details always seem fresh. The parts that make you laugh out loud or cry are such a joy to experience again. I can't wait for the Deathly Hollows to come out. Can't WAIT to find out about Snape and his true calling, his true nature, his true feelings. ooooooooohhhhhhh! (Then in the last movie, Alan Rickman will probably, finally, get to really shine.)

Beach Reads

I finished Boomsday while I was still on Maui. It was fast and fun and full of interesting aspects of how politics, marketing, PR and truth sort of fit together in Washington DC and the country. It's a novel, but it could so easily be reality. The best part was that I jumped into a novel and really enjoyed being swept away by the story and characters. I haven't read a novel in a while and it's good to be back into them. When I got home, I was ready for another novel and my husband suggested I read the book he is reading for research: I wasn't sure at first, but then read a few pages and was hooked. It turned into a summer beach read, one of those long, pulpy paperback novels full of historic details and lots of characters with which to show off all the research that had been done. I enjoyed it until about the last 150 pages (it was 700 pages long). I'm a fast reader so it only took me a week or so to finish the book. But I found that after about half way I was ready for it to be done, but still wanted to know what happened. So I read faster to get to the end and didn't enjoy it as much. I love reading long books, don't get me wrong. But there something about the Beach Read that is more about enjoying the fact that there is time to spend reading, not as much about the book itself. Now I'm reading: It is along the lines of The Tipping Point and Blink and Freakonomics. I went to the bookstore yesterday (Danger! Danger!) and bought books (!) I went to buy gifts and did indeed buy 1 birthday gift, 1 thank you gift and 1 father's day gift. I also bought two books for myself. One was the above book and the other was A Good Walk Spoiled by John Feinstein. I have never played golf (I'm guessing the Tiger Woods PGA Tour game on the Wii doesn't count...) but always find the stories fascinating -- all good sports stories are fun to read. And I love listening to John Feinstein on NPR. I miss his back and forth with Bob Edwards. (Still not clear why NPR took him off mornings....idiots.....but you can hear him now on XM Public Radio. I can't, but maybe you can.) But I must continue with reading novels. I can't let myself get stuck in non-fiction. Luckily, my next beach read will be here soon. Though it doesn't quite fit what I described above as I savor each page when the books come out. I guess I better get cracking on reading the previous book so I remember where we were!

Reading and Relaxing, Relaxing and Reading

After an extremely busy two weeks of work on a special project, I am now on Maui, visiting my mom and stepdad for a small amount of R&R. I brought this book with me: As I mentioned, I haven't read a novel in ages and am already racing through it. Time is slow on Maui (a gooooooood thing) and I didn't bring my computer (blogging from mom's fab mac desktop) so reading is good. I forget how much fun it is to read when there is LITERALLY nothing to do. Well, we have to go to the post office later and then maybe to the grocery store. There is some tennis planned in the afternoon. Joy. Oh, and the book -- so much fun to read. Great detailed review, I know but for the moment, that is all that matters to me.

Reading Stack

I put this post on my Mexico City Blog as well: There is a new group on Flickr called Reading Stack. You take a photo of the stack of books on your nightstand (or wherever), upload it and join the group. Like mine: The group is like book porn.

Still April, though barely...

The good thing is, I have been writing. I have also been doing some paying work, always a good thing. I have also been reading. Not a lot! But I have been reading. Currently I'm in the middle of two books. The first one is: Have I mentioned I'm a huge Doris Day fan? HUGE. I am rivaled only by my mother. She introduced me to Doris with Calamity Jane (a comfort movie I watch to this day on VHIS -- haven't upgraded to DVD yet...) then when she felt I was ready, Teacher's Pet . Clark Gable? Doris Day? Oh yeah, baby. Oh yeah. Rent it. Tivo it. Netflix it. Whatever you have to do to get it, get it. I'm about 1/3rd of the way through this book, so more on that later. I'm also about a 1/3rd of the way through: Fascinating take on how we as a society think/sell/feel about food and food companies. More on this too... I have to get back to fiction soon. I've been on a long non-fiction streak and am missing a good, meaty story. And it's not like I don't have many books WAITING!! Que sera, sera! Oh, and when I have a moment to clean my office and find it, I will scan and post the sweet note that Doris sent me. ME! She wrote to me after I sent her a note. Okay, a fan letter. I had tears in my eyes when I pulled her letter out of my mailbox.

The Weeks Go By

I have been writing and that's good. I wrote this post for my other blog but thought it would be just fine here too as it is about reading, after all: So what do I read online every day? Some days the order varies, but generally it goes like this: Home page is: Daily Variety. We have an online subscription and I sometimes read it in depth, I sometimes just scan the headlines. Next comes my own Yahoo page. I personalized it with many sections of news, world news, business news, entertainment news, most emailed pictures, weather, stocks and political cartoons. (Today we bought stock in Applied Materials.) Generally next is my google home page to check my secondary email account there. My email newsletters go to that account. Once I've check out the world, I start in on the local and that would be Metroblogging Los Angeles. I link to their stuff from time to time. Metrblogging has many many cities on their site -- click on their map to see if you city is represented. If it isn't, you could start one up! Next comes Boing Boing: A Directory of Wonderful Things. Hard to explain what this site is, so go there and peruse at least ten or twenty articles to get a full taste of what they write about. I have learned many things about these series of interweb tubes we spent a lot of time on. Then, Consumerist. Great site about "Shoppers Biting Back." The site is updated frequently, as is BoingBoing. The comments are fun, sometimes annoying, but always interesting. That is my main set of reading in the morning. I don't read any actual newspapers, never got into that habit. During the day I'll click around to catch up with any or all of the following: dooce LAist Upgrade: Travel Better Joe's Pila-T-Shop (My friend Kira!) Sommer Designs (My friend Carrie!) not martha Go Fug Yourself And of course, my number most favorite of all time: Cute Overload! :)

Junk Food

A month between posts! Yowza. I have been reading, but more importantly, I've been writing. I'm working on two writing deadlines an have been focusing on that as my top priority. As my treat before bed, I have been consuming Candyfreak by Steve Almond. Mr. Almond is a great read and makes me laugh out loud. I also read parts out loud to my husband as I know he will A) appreciate the topic and B) appreciate the writing. My good friend (and fellow reader) Emily loaned me My life in Heavy Metal last year, a collection of short stories by Mr. Almond. Highly recommend. I got Candy Freak as a gift for my birthday. I was listening to the podcast of Wait Wait Don't Tell Me this morning and heard about a new book called Twinkie, Deconstructed (2nd title is: My Journey to Discover How the Ingredients Found in Processed Foods Are Grown, Mined (Yes, Mined), and Manipulated Into What America Eats.) I am tempted to read this book, but am also afraid to at the same time. I have probably had one or two twinkies, or bites of a twinkie, in the last 15 years. Just thinking about twinkies and their petroleum like residue makes me shudder. Blech. Maybe I'll just put the book in my cart and consider it for a later time... And lastly, I have been continuing my real estate investing education and have been reading Real Estate Investing for Dummies. Fascinating good info that we can use right away.

Shelfari

And speaking of Orpah, I read about Shelfari in the March Issue and started building my bookshelf there yesterday. I only have a few books up as it will take time. It looks like fun and I can't wait to explore more.

Current Reads

So after finishing David Bach's book, I am now the lending library to all my friends who are interested in real estate investment. It is exciting to consider this new area of investing. Our goal is to buy an income property in 2007. But back to reading: I am currently working through Wayne Dyer's Manifest Your Destiny. And I mean "working" in a good way. I'm trying not to rush through it as there is some powerful and important information in there and I don't want to miss it. Along with that on my bedside table, I have been catching up with magazines, Time, Oprah and Good. I have canceled my subscription to Vanity Fair -- well, I'll not renew -- and am considering either The New Yorker (but oh you can get overwhelmed pretty fast by that amazing weekly!) or a business/money related mag. We'll see...

Good Magazine

One of my Christmas gifts was a subscription to Good Magazine. And boy is it, thank you Sarah! From their website: Welcome to GOOD, media for people who give a damn We see a growing number of people tied together not by age, career, background, or circumstance, but by a shared interest. This revolves around a passion for potential mixed with fierce pragmatism and creative engagement. We sum all this up as the sensibility of giving a damn. But to shorten it, let's call it GOOD. We're here to push this movement and cover its realization. In the very first issue I found three articles that took me to some intereseting websites. The three are: Kiva Tom's Shoes Love Craft Bio Fuels Kiva sounds like a brilliant way to allow people in developing countries a way up. I read about Tom's Shoes in Time Magazine and plan to give them as gifts this year. And lastly, I would like to drive a converted diesel and have the scent of french fries follow me wherever I go. The 2nd issue is on newstands now or go to their website and check it out.

Dreams of My Own Library

I look forward to having a larger house so that I can have a library, a room filled with books, comfy chairs and bright warm light to read by. Mmmmmm. To help me achieve that goal, I am currently reading: David Bach is so much fun to read. He is straightforward and the concepts and plans are so easy. There is no rocket science to any of this, just plain, solid information on how to build wealth. I'm so excited to get started! I just finished reading Dead Center and found it fascinating. I am always curious about crime scene investigation stuff. I watch CSI religiously, and yes, I know it is a TV show and not real life -- the lighting in the labs on that show is enough to clue you in to that--someone turn on a light for gosh sake! How can anyone see anything?! Ahem. This book gives you a look into a medical examiner's life (not quite CSI, but similar) and also a deep look into NYC after the attacks on 9/11 and how hard this man and his team worked to identify remains from the World Trade Center. Fascinating and touching.

Access Books

Happy New Year! One of my goals for the new year is to volunteer my time to a worthy cause and not to just send money (though that's always a good start.) I chose this program: (click on the logo to go to their site.) Books are my things and helping kids (even a little) to have access to books in school is a great idea. I turned 40 this weekend and threw a low-key party. Instead of gifts for myself, I asked friends to bring books from the Access Books website wishlist. Many did and I'm happy to drop them off soon. Thanks to everyone who donated! From their website: ACCESS BOOKS has no paid full-time employees. Our operation has funneled almost 1,000,000 books to Los Angeles inner-city school libraries, make it school, classroom and community libraries. So many children in inner-city schools simply do not have anything to read. ACCESS BOOKS is changing that one library at a time. And quotes from students: I read three books on Saturday and I couldn't wait for school to start on Monday so I could get some more books. - 5th grade student I have to catch my breath! - 3rd grade student Check out their site and if you can help more, please do! And add a comment here about how you helped.

Where Did The Time Go?!

Yowza! I have not written in over a month and that is not ideal! Also, I have not read much in the way of "books" in over a month either. I let myself get distracted by christmas and wrapping and decorating and sending gifts and etc etc etc. But now the tree is down and the new year is on the way. Hooray for 2007! In the mean time -- I finished Heat and did enjoy it very much. It also turned up on a 10 best list (Time magazine, I think) for non-fiction. My other favorite book-Eat Pray Love-showed up on another list. I gave that book to about five people for Christmas. I look forward to reading it again soon. I received books as gifts as well and look forward to all of them. From Sarah (and family) I got these two:

Kurt received:

I look forward to reading that as well.

Mostly I've been reading magazines...and will write about that more soon! Sorry for the long delay and more to come in 2007!

Future Getting Brighter

I just finished reading this book and it made my head spin. It sort of goes along with many other books and tapes I've been reading and watching about making serious attitude changes so that I can achieve all the things I want to achieve in life. The key things (and not just from this book) are: *Be bold *Be grateful *Educate yourself on what you are interested in *Be clear on what you want *ASK for what you want (to yourself, to the world, to the universe) *Visualize having it *Be open to receiving it There is no magic. This is not rocket science. So why is it so hard and terrifying? Because you have to take a leap of faith. It can be a well planned and educated leap, but a leap none the less. And the "leap" may really just be a first step toward whatever goal you (I) want. But why is that step so hard sometimes?! Yowza. Our safety nets are so safe, even if we curse them every day. I don't want to be so "Safe" any more. I am taking the road less traveled.

Reading for My Future

This is the book I'm currently reading. It is a combo of memoir and biography as Mr. Buford relates his cooking (mis)adventures and also tells you Mario Batali's life story. But this is not the book about my future. I love cooking, don't misunderstand. In fact, I made granola yesterday then made crunchy banana muffins with said granola, both from the The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook, which I bought the other day. Tonight we are having salmon for dinner. But I digress. My future, my new brilliant career -- writing and directing. I am currently reading Save The Cat! The Last Book on Screenwriting You'll Ever Need by Blake Snyder. I am two sections in and already my mind is spinning about all the things I need to do with my scripts. Waiting their turns are also: My First Movie: Twenty Celebrated Directors Talk about Their First Film by Stephen Lowenstein and Breaking In: How 20 Movie Directors Got Their First Start by Nicholas Jarecki. My new favorite store is Writers Store. Inspiring books fill the shelves and they have lectures and classes about writing. I will become a regular.

Eat Pray Love

Love Love Love this book. I didn't want it to end, I wanted more. I envy Ms. Gilbert's writing style becaause she makes it look so easy to write. I hope my writing style is like this. I laughed often and would hand the book to Kurt to have him read sections. The description of Naples made me understand exactly what kind of city it is. And after friends who have been there showed us video, Ms. Gilbert was right on without even describing one building or street. Her honesty and vulnerability are refreshing and I never felt like she was trying to convince me of anything, just sharing some amazing experiences. Of course the first third of the book is about her living in Rome, learning Italian (for no other reason than she wants to) and eating. What could ever be wrong with that? The book inspired me to write and write better, work harder, be quieter (or not when appropriate) and live. Or as Susan Sarandan says "Say yes to life." And Pray. Whatever that means to me, pray. Read the book please.

London

More travel might mean more travel books but it definitely doesn't mean more reading! When I'm working in a different place and living in a hotel, I find I watch more tv at night in the room. Not sure why. Maybe because it is a novelty to have a tv in the bedroom as we don't at home. It is also a novelty to watch British tv shows. I did finish The Whistling Season before I left and enjoyed that very much. Ivan Doig really creates a picture of that certain time and place in Montana, early 1900's. He did do one thing that slightly annoys me--he referred to characters in this book who show up in another book (English Creek, as it happens). I guess I don't like to be taken out of the book I'm reading with a wink to his other work. Nick Hornby did it in How to be Good, referred to a character in High Fidelity. But aside from that, I appreciate how Mr. Doig treats his characters with a lot of love and respect, even if they aren't of the best character. There is a gentleness that I like, even when the people in the stories aren't being treated too gently. I would recommend it and already sent to my brother in law, who introduced me to Ivan Doig in the first place. As for Nick Hornby, I like just about anything he writes as well. Back to London and back to work...

More Travel = More Travel Books

I'm lucky to travel through work from time to time. Mexico, for example. And now more than likely, London for a few weeks to continue some work on the same project. In anticipation of London -- I haven't been there in ten years -- I bought some travel books to help out. First there is Top 10 London because while I'll be there for a few weeks, I'm working full time. And as we say in the business, "It's location, not vacation." So Top 10 works great. This brand of books -- DK Eyewitness Guides -- are my favorites. They are full of images and I respond well to images, they make me want to see more. Next is City Secrets London. We used this guide on our honeymoon to Italy and found places we might never had heard of in the more conventional travel guide. These books are highly subjective, written by historians, playwrights, architects, journalists, novelists and curators who live in the areas covered in the book. So they may point you to a tourist spot but to something you never would have known about at that spot. Lastly I bought a map of London -- Streetwise London. These maps are great, they are laminated and fold nicely. The detail is accurate and up to date. The only complaint I've ever had about a Streetwise Map was the one of Mexico City. And it is just not the company's fault. Mexico City is just way too big. I highly recommend these maps for all your future travel to major cities.

I Gave In To Temptation

I was looking for one book. Just one. And I came home with six books and two magazines. I have admitted to this problem before, so I know it's not denial. Do I need a sponsor? Here is what I bought: The New Yorker dated September 18. GQ with Clive Owen on the cover. (Oh my. Clive is kind of yummy. Oh boy.)(Sorry Honey.) Heavy Words Lightly Thrown: The Reason Behind the Rhyme by Chris Roberts This book fits right in with my love of word origins. On Beauty by Zadie Smith I have heard a lot about this book and so now I'll read it. Possible Side Effects by Augusten Burroughs I love Augusten. In a literary celebrity death match, he would beat James Frey into a million little pieces. Dead Center: Behind the Scenes at the World's Largest Medical Examiner's Office by Shiya Ribowsky and Tom Shachtman My fascination with jobs that don't get talked about much. Pairs with Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach which I read a year or two ago. Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert I read about this book before going to Mexico and knew I would buy it eventually. Then I read an article in GQ about she and her boyfriend on a walking tour through France. I didn't realize it was the same author, so that made me more excited to read this book. It also made me want to do a walking tour through France. Well, let's be honest here, saying the word "France" makes me want to go there. Or Italy. Just typing that makes me want to look up how much flights are to Italy. If my DSL were fixed, I would do it. ¡Pinche Dial-up! I digress. I love the cover of this book: And the book I actually went into the store to buy: New Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain Workbook Guided Practice in the Five Basic Skills of Drawing by Betty Edwards A new and dear friend from Mexico suggested the book, but I ended up buying the workbook by mistake. Oh dear. That means I have to go back to the store. (I'll think about that later.) Since being back, reading has been important but I also feel I have so much that needs to be expressed about my summer in Mexico. There is so much intensity and color that needs outlet. I'm not sure how it will come out so I'm exploring.

I'm Reading! I'm Reading!

And not just magazines. I have jumped into "The Whistling Season" by Ivan Doig. For the last couple of nights I have been pleasantly surprised to find myself staying up for almost an hour, reading, before I have to turn off my light and sleep. All summer in Mexico it was all I could do not to fall asleep before getting into bed! So to sit and read and read and read is wonderful. The book is good, not too far astray from what Ivan Doig normally does, which I like. I needed a comfortable way to get re-started and this is it. I almost went to the bookstore yesterday, but stopped myself. There are many many many books on my shelf waiting to be read. And the shelf I'm talking about is the secondary book-shelf in my office, not the main one in the living room. It has 40 books on it, all waiting, patiently. That's the wonderful thing about books. They are always there for you.

Real Life

Books are nice. Books are good. I miss books. I am back home in Los Angeles and after about a week and a half, I almost feel "normal" again. I haven't started reading any books though. Just easing into my magazine stack and looking fondly over the bookshelves that are patiently holding my future reads. I want to start with a biography of Frida Kahlo. A friend is loaning me her book and I look forward to that. (The same wonderful friend who left me the New Yorker in Mexico.) Settling back into real life is a much bigger challenge than I expected. Maybe because I'm still not sure what my real life is. Maybe there is a book that can help me find out. I am glad to be home. That is for sure.

New Yorker

My husband sent me a book, "Collapse," so I could read the chapter on the Mayan society, since I'm in Mexico. Well, I haven't gotten to it yet, but I will. My friend who came to visit brought it along with 2 New Yorker magazines. So I have read the New Yorker. The first issue I read, from May, seemed to have something so fascinating on every page. I think I almost read it to pieces. There was also an article about Wikipedia that she had separately given to me from another issue of the New Yorker. Plus a hilarious review of Mission Impossible III. Reading the magazine was like wading into a cool pond after a long hot climb to get there. We were in Puebla (see the other blog soon) for 2 nights and now we are back in Mexico City. I can say with some certainty that I will be home in LA in 2 weeks. I'm so happy!

Summer Reading....

....of the beach and airplane variety. If you have been reading my other blog you know my dad died and I had to leave Mexico City for a week. While I was gone I chose a book to read that was easy and didn't require much emotional or intellectual investment. The book? Angels and Demons by Dan Brown of Da Vinci Code fame. It was just what I needed it to be--a no brainer but time consuming. It is completely ridiculous and just what you want on a long plane trip or days at the beach. Now I'm back for 3 more weeks of work and long hours. I brought lots of magazines with me for those few minutes before bed. I'm also only half way through "My Life in Heavy Metal" so I'm sure I'll be into that soon. Back in MC. Check out that blog for more entries on my last 3 weeks.

Reading!

Having exhausted all the reading material (magazines) we had, I did in fact bring a book to work. Now, this is not usually "done." But on this job, it is not such a problem. I began reading My Life in Heavy Metal by Steve Almond. A book of short stories loaned to me by my dear friend Emily. Thank you Emily! Great stories. The style is very modern but not over the top, totally self-reflective modern, like Love Monkey was. I read that book a while back and while I found it sort of funny in spots, it was too much aware of how cool and ironic and self referential it was. Too much winking at the reader. I highly recommend My Life in Heavy Metal.

Not Much Reading Going On

Wow, when your wake up call is at 5 am, your ride picks you up at 6:15am and you get back to your room at about 8:30 or 9 or 9:30 and you go to bed at 10, not much time is left for reading! However, when you sit for hours on end, waiting to be called to set to do your job during the day, then you do get to read a lot. But it tends to be magazines. Which is perfect. So I have read the last two Time Magazines, the Entertainment Weekly with Pirates on the cover (and it doesn't come out until this Friday in Mexico -- Las Piratas Del Caribe) and the Vanity Fair with Hilary Swank on the cover. (Thanks Honey for bringing them down!) There are lots of other people sitting around as well -- stand ins, extras, etc. They all love having reading material as well. It's a strange life I'm leading right now. Check out Me in Mexico City for all the latest adventures (that include very little reading.)

I'm Special

BoingBoing.net directed me to this site with all kinds of book and book publishing statistics. Here are some eye-opening ones (I simplified the list for this post): Who is Reading Books (and who is not) One-third of high school graduates never read another book for the rest of their lives. Many do not even graduate from high school. 58% of the US adult population never reads another book after high school. 42% of college graduates never read another book. 80% of US families did not buy or read a book last year. 70% of US adults have not been in a bookstore in the last five years. 57% of new books are not read to completion. Most readers do not get past page 18 in a book they have purchased. 63% of adults report purchasing at least one book during the previous three-month period. (Most were probably exaggerating). 53% read fiction, 43% nonfiction. The favorite fiction category is mystery & Suspense, 19%. Of the top fifty books, fiction outsells nonfiction about 60% to 40%. Fiction peaks in July at 70% but nonfiction reaches almost 50% in December. 55% of fiction is bought by women; 45% by men. Thirty percent of Americans surveyed by the Harris Poll say they would rather read a book than do anything else; twenty-one percent said watching TV is their favorite activity. That's the good news. The bad news is that only 13 percent selected "spending time with family." Each day, people in the US spend 4 hours watching TV, 3 hours listening to the radio and 14 minutes reading magazines. 70% of Americans haven't visited a bookstore in five (5) years. Customers 55 and older account for more than one-third of all books bought. People reduced their time reading between 1996 and 2001 to 2.1 hours/month. 2001: per capita spending on books per month was $7.18. Only 32% of the U.S. population has ever been in a bookstore. The time Americans spend reading books. 1996: 123 hours 2001: 109 hours 1996 to 2001 Consumer spending on book rose 16% Unit sales dropped 6% (Readers spend more and purchased fewer books) 2001: Households purchasing at least one book 56.5% The mean age of book buyers 1997: Age 15-39: 26.5% of the books bought 2001: Age 15-39: 20.8% of the books bought 1997: Age over 55: 33.7% of the books bought. 2001: Age over 55: 44.1% of the books bought

Reading?

Sleeping is more like it. I got through the end of Oprah for July, which was all about reading. I have read a but further in "Are Men Necessary?" and it is very interesting and thought provoking. It reminds me of an essay I wrote about 4 years ago. The Baby Thing By Julia Frey April 2002 Early in 2001 I overheard a work colleague on the phone with his wife. She screamed at him to come home as she couldn't handle it alone with their new baby anymore. He looked sheepish. I woke up the next morning and had an amazing epiphany: I don't HAVE to have children. The four years previous to 2001 I had spent counting all my possible fertile time remaining and it wasn't adding up well. "Let's see I'm 31, haven't even met a decent man, that could take 2 or 3 more years, that makes me 34. We meet, date for 2 years, get married, then I'm 36. Well, we've just gotten married, we can't rush to have kids, we have to be alone together first. That makes me 39 or 40 before we even start to try. What if we want 3 kids, that means I'll be 46 for the last one. THERE'S NO TIME!!!" Realizing that it wasn't required of me to have children clearly came as a huge relief. Not long after the big epiphany, I discovered the man of my dreams. There I was in October 2001 at my own wedding shower: I made my friends promise "no silly games." Fine, they said, the only rule was to answer one question from the group before each gift is opened. Easy. --Next question! --When are you having kids? --Well, we have discussed it and we aren't sure if we are having any. We might, but if we do, it won't be for a while. Dead silence and blank stares. I have never heard this particular group of friends be so quiet. I laughed, secure in my self-aware state of non-impending motherhood. Cut to seven months later: I'm crying on my husband's shoulder, in bed, "I'm so confused!" We've been married six months (my first, his second, no kids), I just turned 35 and am beginning new paths in life. Suddenly I am surrounded by the hot story of Spring 2002 "Women and Careers and Babies -- You are too old to have kids!" or "Why did you waste time on a career when you should have been pregnant!" Now I'm supposed to feel bad because there could only be 5 years of fertility for me? If we even want kids. We are both on the fence about it and in no great hurry to decide. Why was I so confused now? I had been so sure before. Part of me wants to have a baby, it looks so fun. I run the "Baby Trailer" though my head - you've all seen it: "In a world where ovum are fertile and sperm can swim -- A woman misses her period!" Then come the images: The woman tells the happy news "We're having a baby!" The yucky but heartwarming bouts of morning sickness. The big belly shot: wife with hands on her back, sticking belly out. The rush to the hospital, husband freaking out, wife calm. Doctor: "It’s a Boy!" Dissolve to baby on Mommy's chest, both parents crying. Grandparents oohing and aahing at the nursery window. Cut to 2AM feedings, first steps, first words, first bike… You've all seen this trailer and there is nothing bad about it -- it's a hit, a summer blockbuster! Everyone lines up. Hey, I like a good blockbuster myself. Lately my tastes seem to be going toward the tiny art house film by some little known, but brilliant, Tibetan filmmaker. This trailer consists of silent images of searching, lush exotic landscapes, loneliness, dazzling colors, insight, quiet joy. The audience for this type of film is not large. There is no marketing campaign, no full-page ads in the Calendar Section or billboards on Sunset Blvd. It was a hit at a tiny film festival in Seattle. The most this film would get is a quick blurb in the free weekly paper. I suddenly had a hard time separating my desires. Do I want to have children but am just not ready? Or do I not want children but feel I must because I am bombarded by societal marketing schemes that tell me I do. If my husband and I have children, our decision and my motherhood life path will be instantly accepted, no questions asked. Family and friends and society will breath a sigh of relief -- Ahh, finally, a baby, that's easy and comfortable. Children are a well understood and acceptable direction in life for any woman. My sudden confusion about the baby thing became clear not long after that tear filled night. The focus of my decisions in life didn't have to be so narrow. The baby thing is not about deciding to have one or not. It is about deciding what I want for my life. Powerful forces are pulling me in amazing new directions. Instead of giving birth to babies, I want be pregnant with ideas and spirit and joy. I want to give life to screenplays and books and my own inner life. The choice isn't just "I'm not having children." The choice is about having a bigger life. Maybe having children is too small for me, too regular. It is not disrespect for people who do. I am in awe of people who have children and raise them well. That's miraculous. But it's not for me now; I have other miracles to create. That decision should be honored just as highly, not seen as a second choice. It takes courage to make your own rules and not follow the crowd. No matter if for thousands of years the crowd has been making babies. I want to take the road less traveled in life; maybe there will be a baby at one of the rest stops. And if I have traveled a little too long and can't create my own, we'll adopt.

New Links

Scroll down and check out the new links.

Good Quote

"I would be most content if my children grew up to be the kind of people who think decorating consists mostly of building enough bookshelves." Anna Quindlen I've been going between Are Men Necessary and Oprah magazine (July) for the few minutes before I fall asleep every night. I wake up at 5 most mornings for work so every minute of sleep is precious. But so is reading since it makes me feel normal, so far away from home.

My Sub-Blog

So I'm posting photos, roughly, randomly. The site is: Julia in Mexico City. Have fun. J.

Day Off in Mexico City

I brought one guide book to Mexico with me since I'm working, not on holiday. It was a quick grab and now I wish I had more time to choose. (or was in a better book store.) This one is for all of Mexico and does have a big section on Mexico City, but it is still quite light in the details department. A colleague here said he found an english bookstore, so maybe I'll check it out in my minimal downtime and find a better one. The other book I carry with me every day is my Spanish/English dictionary from high school. It comes in very handy. My spanish is improving every day. I try to speak spanish most of the time but get really stuck on verb tenses! Frustrating. Yet I still get my message across and mostly understand what is being said back. I have learned how to say "please speak more slowly." I finished reading Ask The Pilot and still recommend it highly. I started to read Are Men Necessary? by Maureen Dowd and have only read the intro before falling asleep last night. I look forward to more. My pick up time this morning is a very civilized 9am. So I am going to set up a new blog for my photos from Mexico City. I was going to pile them in here but thought better of it. By the way, I love when you use the spell check on blogger -- it always shows you the word "blog" as wrong!

The Merri-go-round has stopped...

....for a few months, anyway! I'm now in Mexico City and will be here for a while. I have brought a stack of books with me for the few moments I have between working and sleeping. To catch up: I read The Bourne Identity. It was very late 70's. I liked the movie version a lot better. At the Montreal airport I bought "The Devil Wears Prada" and whipped through that right quick. It was funny and brutal and I want to see the movie. Well, I actually bought the book to read because I figured I wouldn't get a chance to see the movie for a while. Great summer book. At LAX, in between checking in all my bags and crying on my husband's shoulder, I bought (he bought for me) a magazine (Newsweek with Johnny Depp on the cover) and a book called Ask the Pilot by Patrick Smith. Good/easy/funny book about all things flying. I laughed out loud a few times. The book comes from his column at Salon.com which is here. I'm almost done with this book and will then move onto something else.......but I'm not sure what yet. I'm also reading Entertainment Weekly with Superman on the cover. Later I'll post some photos from Mexico City. It's all about color here. Hasta Luego.

Mexico City!

I'm off to Mexico City on a work adventure. I'll be there until September some time. I'm excited but also sad to miss summer here with my husband and our good friends. And I had just planted the tomatoes! Bummer that I'll miss them. I went to the bookstore to get a book/map of Mexico City and did I leave with only that? Oh no. Nope. No way. I bought a new journal (just coming to the last pages of my current one), a couple of cool notebooks for the job upcoming and also a copy of The Whistling Season by Ivan Doig. You may recall that I have on my "reread/never give away" shelf a copy of his book English Creek. I will probably take the new book (and a bunch more books) with me when I go down to Mexico. I'll be working like mad, but reading before bed, even just a few pages, is a must. Hasta luego.

Hi, I'm Julia and I'm a Bookaholic.

Hi Julia. Yesterday I went to Borders to buy one book as a gift. I came home with that gift and also with six more books! Do I have a problem? I guess if my problem is I love to read, it's not a really big problem. But still... ...Nevermind. Here is what I bought: *The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum *Foucault's Pendulum by Umberto Eco *Casual Lex (An Informal Assemblage of Why We Say What We Say) by Webb Garrison *The Automatic Millionaire Homeowner by David Bach *Lies At The Altar (The Truth About Great Marriages) by Dr. Robin Smith *You're Wearing That? (Understanding Mothers and Daughters in Conversation) by Deborah Tannen I started reading both Casual Lex and Bourne Identity yesterday. Casual Lex is a fun book about word/phrase origins. Good fun. Bourne Identity is great summer, no brainer reading and quite different from the movie (which I liked a lot.) What I like better about the movie is that he doesn't force Marie at gunpoint to help him (as he does in the book) and so when she does, they are on the same side. I have only gotten a few chapters in but I suspect that even after holding her at gunpoint and threatening her life, she will decide that really, he's okay. I like the movie version better. Foucault's Pendulum was recommended by good friends after we went to see the Da Vinci Code. I look forward to that. The others are books that I heard about on Oprah (Lies at the Altar), NPR (You're Wearing that?) and because I bought his first book (Automatic Millionaire Homeowner) and he's on Oprah. I like David Bach. Very down to earth, common sense.

Back To The Books

I know, I know, this is a blog about books, not travel or movies or sock monkeys. (For actual sock monkey sites go here or here or here.) I brought two books with me on the trip. One that I had already started and read a little of on the plane. The other was more apropos to the location -- My Life in France by Julia Child with Alex Prud'Homme. Julia moved to Paris with her husband in 1949, she was 37 and didn't speak french or know how to cook very well. She fell in love with the city, the people, the language, the food. Before I read this book I knew very little about Julia Child except that she was into french cooking, wrote a large and formidable seeming cookbook (Mastering the Art of French Cooking) had a PBS cooking show and that Dan Aykroyd did a great skit on SNL about her that we can all picture and hear in our minds... Her story in this book inspires me a great deal. She was 37 when she came to Paris learned to speak french and learned to cook traditional french food. She was passionate and gutsy and jumped in with both feet. I am a great believer that people have the capacity to change and grow and learn at any age. Julia is a great example of that. She was put into a situation that was foreign and probably a little frightening -- new country, new city, new language, new culture, new food -- and just gave it her all and then reaped huge benefits that she never would have imagined. She didn't even own a TV when she was ON TV for the first time! Reading this book (and having just been in Paris) also made me want to try some of the recipes in her great book. Two recipes that are right up top are Garlic Soup and Moules -- Mussels. I love the mussels! I'll report back. (I know I know, it is also not a blog about cooking...)

I *Do* Love Paris In The Spring

Especially when there are good friends and family to meet and spend lots of relaxing time with! Ah Paris. We had a truly relaxing vacation in Paris. It was my 5th visit and my husband's 2nd so we didn't feel like we HAD TO SEE THINGS!! We rented an apartment in the 5th and boy was the location even more amazing than we anticipated. Having our own place was really nice. We could come and go as we pleased and could spend a little less money by having breakfast and some lunches in the apartment. We slept late and went to bed late. We ate bread and cheese and drank lots of wine. We also took lots of pictures. But instead of the usual pictures of us in Paris we decided to take along our Sock Monkey and so you can all live vicariously through him. Here are two pictures of Sock Monkey In Paris.

Back From Cleveland

Hello Gentle Reader, Sorry for the over 3 week delay in posting. I was sent last minute to Cleveland to work on a movie. Here's proof: Unfortunately I didn't get to go to an Indians game, but a friend got me a hat. It came in handy for standing in the sun all day. I didn't get to read much either since we were working long hours, as you do on a movie set. 14 hour days plus I was moonlighting a bit and doing a budget on another project. I figured, hey, if I'm busy and away from home, might as well be even busier and make a few more bucks. The euro is pretty brutal against the dollar right now, we need all the help we can get before we go to Paris (Next week!). I did take a couple of books with me, but the only one I ever cracked was The Mother Tongue by Bill Bryson. And I barely cracked it every night. I would read about 2 pages and fall asleep. I have mentioned this book in early posts as it is on my re-read often/never give away shelf. I do loan it out from time to time and love to buy it as a gift for people. Fascinating stuff that somehow never gets old to me. I got home late on Sunday night and a few days later my husband went to the book store and bought a few things for himself. (Research on current scripts he's writing so I'm not at liberty to say what they are...) He kindly bought a book for me as well Mind over Back Pain: A Radically New Approach to the Diagnosis and Treatment of Back Pain by John E. Sarno. I have been annoyed by back spasms about once or twice a year for the last ten years. It's painful and scary and annoying and frustrating. I have seen MDs and Chiropractors and acupuncturists and physical therapists. No one can do or say anything that will cure what ails me. I had an MRI last September and have a herniated disk at L4/L5. You start asking around and suddenly you find out: Who doesn't have a herniated disk?! NPR had a series of stories on the back and they also said things this man says in his book. They key thing being that even though a back spasm hurts, it is not doing any harm. (It's only serious when your bowels begin to be effected, then you have to get your herniated ass into the hospital.) The premise that Dr. Sarno presents is that most back (and neck and shoulder) pain is caused by tension and stress. The physical manifestations are real, of course, but not because your spine is mis-aligned or there is a disk bulging. Many people live their whole lives with herniated disks and never know it, never feel pain. It has given me great food for thought and I am going to look into his theory even more. Does that mean I will stop exercising and doing core work? Heck no because my stomach muscles are looking good. Now, I just need to lose about 30 pounds so you can see them....

Saturday Mornings

Reading. Books. Joy. When I was young, from 9 to about 13, I read and read and read. I was a reading fool. (These days I just read and read.) I remember reading on my school bus. The afternoons were best as we were the last stop and so about 6 of us had 20 minutes and the entire school bus to ourselves. I usually sat away from the other kids and read, knees propped up against the seat in front of me. On weekends, I read and read some more. My mom used to tell me to go outside. "It's a beautiful day!" Hello, it's Maui! It's ALWAYS going to be a beautiful day. Of course I played with friends in the neighborhood a lot, went swimming, played hide and seek, the usual. But most Saturdays my favorite thing to do was to have lunch at home. I would make a bowl of Saimin (aka Top Ramen) with a hot dog chopped up into it (just in case there wasn't already enough salt) then take that bowl, sit on the floor at a coffee table and eat my saimin and read my book. Read Read Read. My warmest memory is waking up on Saturday and Sunday mornings. Usually I had a book on my nightstand, marked from where I left off the night before. I would wake up and the first thing I would do is reach for the book and continue reading. No getting up to pee, no breakfast, no nothing. Just start reading again. And if it actually was raining? HEAVEN! I would turn the lamp on and just read some more. This memory is so cozy and warm and precious. What luxury that was. I felt rich and safe and my soul was well fed. These days there is no reason why I couldn't do that. But somehow there are other distractions first thing in the morning. Meowing cats demanding to be fed. Someone to meet for breakfast. My husband's warm wonderful body. Reading is fundamental.

Fahrenheit 451

Last night we went to see the movie "V for Vendetta" and while I felt it dragged here and there, overall I loved it and wish more people would see it. It is not at all how they market it to the masses. It was another thing that really made me feel like I'm not doing enough to fight injustices. At one point early on, Evey wakes up in V's house and is surrounded by books in her room. Great teetering stacks of them, like there just wasn't any more room for them anywhere. This made Fahrenheit 451 (by Ray Bradbury) pop into my head. I read it about a year ago for the first time and was floored at how prescient Mr. Bradbury was. The book was published in 1953. It is a short intense book and I HIGHLY recommend it. It will also make clear to you why Michael Moore titled his movie "Fahrenheit 911." READ THIS BOOK. Here is what I stole from Amazon about the book: In Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury's classic, frightening vision of the future, firemen don't put out fires--they start them in order to burn books. Bradbury's vividly painted society holds up the appearance of happiness as the highest goal--a place where trivial information is good, and knowledge and ideas are bad. Fire Captain Beatty explains it this way, "Give the people contests they win by remembering the words to more popular songs.... Don't give them slippery stuff like philosophy or sociology to tie things up with. That way lies melancholy." Guy Montag is a book-burning fireman undergoing a crisis of faith. His wife spends all day with her television "family," imploring Montag to work harder so that they can afford a fourth TV wall. Their dull, empty life sharply contrasts with that of his next-door neighbor Clarisse, a young girl thrilled by the ideas in books, and more interested in what she can see in the world around her than in the mindless chatter of the tube. When Clarisse disappears mysteriously, Montag is moved to make some changes, and starts hiding books in his home. Eventually, his wife turns him in, and he must answer the call to burn his secret cache of books. After fleeing to avoid arrest, Montag winds up joining an outlaw band of scholars who keep the contents of books in their heads, waiting for the time society will once again need the wisdom of literature.

T-Shirts are Reading Material, Right?

Last summer in the Richmond Virigina airport I saw a guy in a t-shirt and the t-shirt said: T-SHIRTS ARE SO OVER. I loved that so much.

Magazines are Reading Material, Right?

So. Um. Yeah. I have gotten no further than about 50 pages into "Broken For You." I have read People Magazine -- shocking I know!!!! -- I was flying to Seattle and wanted really mindless stuff. I got it. I read the April Oprah, which had good thought provoking articles about beauty/inner beauty. I need help in that department. I read the April Martha Stewart Living, but MS Living comes across as so cold to me. I like Sunset better. I get a subscription to Sunset and only buy MS Living at airports. MS Living does have very very pretty pictures. I can't focus. I can't concentrate. Luckily, Disc 2 of Season 1 of Project Runway will be waiting for me when I get home in it's happy red envelope Simple pleasures.

I Love LA

Disclaimer: This has nothing to do with books or reading. Traffic reports in LA are really entertaining. This morning I heard: "Slow down on the 10 west connector to the 405 north due to a collision and fist fight."

Inspiration

I'm restless. I can't just sit and read. I can't focus. My brain starts going off in different directions. I thinks part of it is that I want to write, create, publish, produce. I'm feeling like I'm in a limbo of my own making. I'm not walking my talk. I'm stretching and warming up, preparing to walk my talk, but not actually walking. Over the weekend my husband and I saw a screening of "Grand Canyon" then a Q&A afterward with Lawrence Kasden. It was good, inspiring. He is the kind of writer and film maker I would like to be. I feel his style is along my lines of character and mood. So seeing him and hearing him talk about how he works was encouraging and frustrating all at the same time. The encouragement rubbed up against the part of me that feels like I'm not doing enough to achieve my creative goals. Sunday afternoon I was watching random tv and saw "Chefography" on the Food Network about Ina Garten and Giada DiLaurentis and how they got to where they are. It wasn't so much about the food but the passion for what they do. That also got me fired up. If I say I'm passionate about film, filmmaking, film writing, film directing, then what am I doing in this FX day job? Yes yes, paying bills. Okay fine. But at what point is that just an excuse? At what point am I going to get over the fear and move forward? Ah, yes. This is a good place to point out (remind myself) that: "Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear - not absence of fear." Mark Twain. and then also to remember: "You block your dream when you allow your fear to grow bigger than your faith." Mary Manin Morrissey Both of them are saying Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway. My brother-in-law and I talked about these concepts once and he said "Faith and fear can't exist at the same time." And I feel that is true to some point. But now I feel more sure that they can, you just have to make sure the faith is stronger. (I pictured a game of whack-a-mole right then....) It's not like I'm not writing at all. I am working every morning on my novel and that feels good. There is a flow, even if it is only a half hour or 45 minutes of actual writing. That is more than I was doing in February. I just want instant results, instant gratification. I have a hard time being patient. Monday!!!

Fits and Starts

I started to read "Broken For You" last week. My mom gave me this book, having enjoyed it very much. It seemed like a good one to go onto next for solid time passing (not wasting, passing) enjoyment. And yet....and yet....I just can't seem to get myself going on it. I find I am more easily distracted by the internet here at work. It has been fascinating as I have never spent this much time actually looking and linking and following so many threads. I like it but it is not quite my thing for ALL DAY. I did print out and re-read an old script I haven't looked at in two years. I'm almost done reading it and feel like I could do an okay rewrite on it in the afternoons. I would like to give it a shot and have a couple of people read it. I think only my husband and a few others actually read my first drafts five years ago. Last night on The Daily Show Jon Stewart interviewed Bart Ehrman about his new book called Misquoting Jesus -- The Story Behind Who Changed the Bible and Why. It looks fascinating and I would like to read it.

Merde

I have just finished "A Year in the Merde." An amusing novel of a British guy who moves to Paris on a one year contract at a food company and adventures of a sexual, cultural and business nature ensue. It was fun, gave me a few insights into Paris because clearly this writer experienced many of the things the main character did. Now in my bag for work is the book "For Her Own Good." by Barbara Ehrenreich and Deirdre English. I'm looking forward to this one very much. Again, I am quite grateful that my job doesn't take away from my reading pleasure. I feel I'm back on the reading track or train or bus some sort of conveyance. Reading is fundamental.

Good pulpy reading

(For some reason my date/time buttons are gone from this "create post" page. I started to write this yesterday and finished it this morning, March 2.) So I started at page 80 and finished the book yesterday (Silence of the Lambs). A very slow day at work. I'm grateful for the job I have. Today I'm going to start a new book, but there is actually more work today that I need to do first. I brought "A Year in the Merde" with me today. More Paris appetite whetting.

Silence of the Lambs

I love the movie. I have never read the book, so I started it this morning. I have a feeling I will whip right through it. I'm on page 80 already.

Borders

So last night we went for sushi -- yum -- and then went to Borders because there was a gift I needed to buy and we had gift certificates and coupons. So why not? What did I buy? Let's see: Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris YOU: The Owner's Manual : An Insider's Guide to the Body that Will Make You Healthier and Younger by Michael F. Roizen For Her Own Good : Two Centuries of the Experts Advice to Women by Barbara Ehrenreich Night by Elie Wiesel Plus the latest Real Simple magazine. When will I break down and just get a subscription?

Travel Bookstore

I love bookstores almost as much as I love reading. I also love travel bookstores. The funny thing is, if I don't have a trip planned, then a travel bookstore is almost too much to handle. Overload. But when we do have something scheduled, then it is a blast. Especially for somewhere new. A couple years ago when we were planning our honeymoon, we spent time at our #1 favorite bookstore. While finding great books on Italy and Portugal, my husband also bought Lonely Planet: Trans-Siberian Railway. This was a surprise but I think we read the whole thing and then put that adventure on our list of things to do. Vladivostok to Moscow on a train sounds wild and fascinating and great. So many things to do! Our other favorite travel bookstore is Traveler's Bookcase. (The website is not very deep.) It is not quite as comprehensive as the CA Map and Travel store, but it is cozy and has great writing accessories, journals, etc. Not to mention it rates highly due to its close proximity to Joan's On Third. The staff at both bookstores are always very helpful and friendly. And next door to the Traveler's Bookcase is the Cook's Library. Also overwhelming, but great for so many different kinds of books on cooking, not just cookbooks. Yesterday we went to the CA Map and Travel and you may find it hard to believe, but I bought a couple of books. I bought a new guide book for Paris called Romantic Paris by Thirza Vallois and Juliana Spear and a memoir of sorts called A Year in the Merde by Stephen Clarke. Fortunately, I have been to Paris enough times that this trip for me will be more about hidden spots and quiet streets more than the D'Orsay and the Eiffel Tower. So a book like Romantic Paris looked like a great start. I wish there was a volume of City Secrets for Paris. We used City Secrets for Florence, Venice and the towns of Italy and had a blast seeing things we probably never would have with a conventional guide book. City Secrets are great addendum to regular travel guides. Can't wait.

Books N Bunny

One of the best cats to ever grace the earth.

Paris Continued

I have continued to read the Paris book we got from my mom. It is just relaxing and dreamy to read about how to be a writer in Paris. I am so tired from this job that I can manage about 10 pages per night in it. Then I fall asleep with narrow Rues and Blvds dancing in my head. Oh I can't wait to go.

Paris

My husband and I are going to Paris in May. Hooray! My mother, the great mom who always bought me books growing up, sent us a book called "A Writers Paris: A Guided Journey For The Creative Soul" by Eric Maisel. I started reading it almost the minute I opened the amazon box. The only problem with this book (I'm on page 25) is that it makes me: a) want to be in Paris now b) want to stay in Paris longer than we will be (11 days) and c) makes me want to buy an apartment there so we can go back and be regulars to all these great places any time we like. Okay, I'll be completely honest and say that I want to own an apartment there anyway. Rome too. This is not a fantasy, this is an intention. Thanks Mom!

Still very little reading!

Holy Cow. I'm in the middle of "The Thin Man" still. I have read a few magazines -- TIME was interesting with their cover story on Google -- but other than that, it is dry out here in book reading land. I do have a long weekend coming up, so I will hopefully get some serious relaxing/reading time in. Does it count if I'm watching "Bleak House" on PBS?

No Reading!

Holy cow. Full time job makes reading tough! Yowza. I have read a few magazines (Los Angeles, Real Simple, Time), but not much in the way of books. I did start reading "The Thin Man" and am enjoying it, though it is more hard boiled and noir than the movies. I bought it to read because we watched the set of DVDs my husband bought me for Christmas. It is just mindless reading for now. I have not been back to "Oh The Glory of it All." Not sure if it is the book or the job or how tired I am or what.

Reading Myself

I am reading through an old journal. Senior year in college. It is fascinating to compare what happened in my life vs. what I actually wrote about in detail, or at all. I came across this gem from November 1988. I was at the airport waiting for a flight home for Thanksgiving vacation. I wrote: "The guy next to me has a portable lap computer that he is using at present. Ugh. That would be like having a phone in my car. Don't know if I could ever do it." "Lap computer." I love it. I googled "laptop 1988" and found this.

Time Flies/James Frey

Hello! Well, it's been a week since I wrote oh so briefly. I have been getting used to my full time job -- it's amazing after 6 years you forget how tiring it is to be at an office all day. Even though I certainly worked hard when working at home, there is a completely relaxed nature about it. There are cats to snuggle, mail to read when it comes, tv to watch at lunch, etc etc. I'm getting used to it. I am still reading "oh the glory of it all." I'm finding it a bit of a slog, though I'm not sure if this is because I'm so tired at night (and getting up early) or because I don't feel compelled to keep turning pages. I'm definitely going to finish it and I'm looking forward to it, but it's slow going. I keep looking at the other books in my office, all neatly stacked, waiting to get read. I haven't even purchased any new ones! So much to read. Now, regarding James Frey and his book of exaggerations. When the story first broke, I didn't think much about it. It sounded like one incident that he blew up to make him look more like a cranky dude than he really was. It didn't feel like it permeated the rest of the book. But now after more and more comes out that he seriously changed or made up, I'm really bummed. I didn't watch the Oprah where she cut him to ribbons. I couldn't do it, I was too uncomfortable. I will give him a couple of points for showing up. I understand when you are writing memoir that you have to make up actual conversation, but the gist of it and most of the words need to be true. I also understand changing people's names and perhaps a few locations to protect identity, but not inventing new things altogether. I was moved and amazed by the book when I read it years ago. (Way before Oprah ever got a hold of it....hee hee) I am sorry to know that much of it could not be true. Would it have moved me less if I read it as fiction? Probably not. It's not such a unique story that the fact that it is *real* makes it better. Angela's Ashes really took me somewhere. I don't know if I could have read it as fiction -- it's so depressing that I was more invested in knowing that little Frankie finally got out and was able to write the book and be successful. Will I stop reading memoirs? Heck no. Will I still write one? Probably.

Full Time Job Delay

So I got a full time job again. Well, it's full time for three months anyway. I have to come to an office for the first time in six years. The shock has not worn off yet. I know I'll get used to it (it's only been five days) but it is a shock. In the mean time I've been doing just a little bit of reading. I bogarted one of the books my husband got for christmas, Oh the Glory of It All (by Sean Wilsey). It is sort of a perfect get away from the stress of a new job and new schedule. Mr. Wilsey creates this world that seems quite awful on one hand. I'm only about 100 pages in (it is 496 pages) and I hope that the poor guy has had years of positive therapy. His parents are a bit wacko -- not that this has stopped most people in the world from growing up well -- but his parents are rich and famous and wild. I find myself willing him to act or react to his parents in different ways. It reminded me of reading Angela's Ashes and thinking "Don't do it Frankie! Don't give your father the money! Don't let him drink any more! Make him come home! Tell someone, do something!" Now, Mr. Wilsey didn't grow up dirt poor, far from it. He grew up rich in San Francisco in the 80's. But that parental screw up being witnessed by the child is so harsh and so hard to read. More as the pages go by... The book is a memoir and I've been thinking a lot about how the memoir world has been rocked by the James Frey scandal. I'll write more about that later, but what I really want to know is, Why is Larry King still interviewing people on TV or anywhere???? The guy is kind of an ass.

Nothing To Do With Books

Okay, it's a blog about books, but hey, it's my space... My favorite commercial is here. Something about the utter banality of the office setting, the workers themselves and the hot tune. Enjoy! If you don't understand why this is funny, that's cool. Please come back for the book chat.

Reading, Tarot Card

As mentioned, on my birthday I had my annual tarot card reading. The woman I see for my tarot card readings does a 10 card spread using the Aleister Crowley Thoth Tarot Deck. My cards came up as follows: Heart -- The Heirophant Threshold -- Death Feet -- 7 of Cups Right Hand -- The Emperor Head -- Prince of Wands (inverted) Left Hand -- 6 of Wands Work/Creativity -- Queen of Wands Relationships/Environment -- Queen of Disks Hopes/Fears -- 8 of Swords (inverted) Outcome -- Knight of Swords (inverted) Let me interject something here about tarot cards. I see tarot cards as objective input from another source. The cards present ideas that perhaps I had not thought of or considered. I don't see them as telling my future or my fortune. Merely an alternate point of view that I can take in and consider for myself. I don't do or not do anything just because the "cards say so." I don't give my power away to a deck of cards (or star charts or runes) and neither should you. It's called Free Will people! Back to the blog post at hand... The reading inspired and excited me very much. It spoke to many of the issues I was already working on and helped to reinforce ideas I already had. The cards are beautiful as well. My three favorite cards from this reading were: The Queen of Wands The Queen of Disks The Prince of Wands (Since I don't know HTML well enough to line these pictures up with the appropriate name, they arranged themselves. Luckily, you can read their titles.)

If you want to ask me more about tarot cards or this reading or anything about my experience, please do. I won't spend more time on this reading here. I am just so excited about the new year and new opportunities and new attitudes for me.

My Birthday!

I think age is a very high price to pay for maturity. - Tom Stoppard Today is my birthday -- yes Friday the 13th. I was born on a Friday as well. I take it as a most auspicious sign. In regard to reading, I had a tarot card reading today. I was read to, you might say. Brilliant awesome reading. I will put more detail on it next time I post. I have to get ready for a nice b-day dinner.

Magazines

I've been getting through Rereadings slowly, reading one essay every few days. It's been a slow read because each person's story about their important childhood book makes me remember back to other books that I read and held close. (Not just the Little House books!) I have also been reading magazines as they come in. Vanity Fair is one of my favorites. It has such a great blend of politics and celebrity and gossip and history. If you don't already read it, I recommend picking it up from time to time. And don't be put off just because Lindsay Lohan is on the cover. Time Magazine this week was also very inspiring. There was a special section dedicated to "How to Sharpen Your Mind." There were various articles about the brain and how to keep it sharp, how it works, what food is best, getting sleep, etc. My favorite article was about creativity. Francine Russo interviewed R. Keith Sawyer who is the author of the new book Explaining Creativity: The Science of Human Innovation and what he talked about was very exciting to me as a recently discovered creative person. The last question and answer sums it up:

Q. What advice can you give us nongeniuses to help us be more creative? A. Take risks, and expect to make lots of mistakes, because creativity is a numbers game. Work hard, and take frequent breaks, but stay with it over time. Do what you love, because creative breakthroughs take years of hard work. Develop a network of colleagues, and schedule time for freewheeling, unstructured discussions. Most of all, forget those romantic myths that creativity is all about being artsy and gifted and not about hard work. They discourage us because we're waiting for that one full-blown moment of inspiration. And while we're waiting, we may never start working on what we might someday create.

Books = Safety Zone

I love books. (This should be obvious by now.) I am not the most critical of readers. Like Stephen King, I am a fan of books (and movies), not a critic. Books are a transporting device, one that was built early in my life. Reading was a safe place in a sometimes scary world. Books have always been more comfort than education. How did I become a reader? Not exactly sure. What is the nature v. nurture argument? Some people are born readers and some are not. Parents can have some influence, but not totally. My next oldest sister and I grew up together and she is not a reader and I most emphatically am. (Hard to shop for her sometimes because I'll find a book that I think she would love, but never buy it for her because I know she probably won't read it.) Both my parents were/are readers. They divorced when I was five. My dad got remarried very shortly thereafter and my mom got remarried 10 years later. My stepfather is a reader, my stepmother is not a reader. My next middle oldest is a reader. Voracious. She reads like a starving person presented with the first food they have seen in days. I thought I was a fast reader, but she is lightning quick. You have to send her boxes of books to keep her well stocked in books, not just one or two. I was born pre-disposed to read, but then had influential readers to model while growing up. As the youngest I looked up to all my sisters (I have 3 half sisters, all older) for something. I looked up to my middle oldest sister the most for reading. I wanted to copy everything she did and how she did it. I remember clearly watching her take an apple or a pear from the kitchen with a paper towel, grab the book she was reading and recline on the carpeted floor in a sunny spot. She would lay on one side with one leg stretched out and the other bent to hold her position. She would hold her book open with one hand (that was holding her upper half up) and eat the apple or pear with the other while reading. If I knew how to draw or paint, that is exactly how I would capture her, in that position. She looked happy and absorbed and nothing could move her from that spot until she was ready to move. I copied her point for point. Fruit? Check. Paper towel? Check. Book? Check. Sunny spot on carpet? Check. Commence reading! In our father's house, this was a very safe place to be. If I was reading, nobody bothered me and I was safe from whatever darkness might be lurking. Reading in that house somehow put a bubble around me, a place where I could take off my armor and relax a bit. And within that bubble I could go places and see things and experience a different life. I could never be faulted for reading. Reading looked good, not like just watching tv. I was safe. And I could read and I loved reading and that was even better. But the safety zone was always temporary. A precious hour or two maybe because day inevitably turned to night and that meant putting armor back on to join the very immediate world of my father's house again for dinner. Thank god for books.

Back to School

I'm not even in school (and if I were, I would be excited about going back, I love school) but getting back to "real life" after the holidays has been really tough. It would probably be a little bit easier if I had a job and an office to go to, but alas, I don't. I have to make my own work for the time being, get back into the mind set of "work" so when I do get a job, I'll be ready. Also, I'm getting back the momentum of writing, getting notes from my story partner on a script, starting a rewrite. I went to the bookstore to get new calendars. I found two (one for the kitchen -- sunflowers, one for the office--Paris) and as I was standing in line -- I swear, I didn't mean to buy new books -- two books jumped out at me. (And both were 50% off, so how could I refuse?) The first is Webster's Dictionary of Word Origins. I love word origins and could spend hours looking stuff up. Since I can't afford (money and space) to buy the OED, this will do for the moment. The other book is the Little Black Book of Poker. We love to play poker and this is a handy book for coming up with new games when it is your turn to deal. My husband knows all kinds of games "The name of the game is Touch Football...." and I'm just learning new ones. Now I have a handy reference so I can call up games like "Follow the Cowboys" and "Chicago" and "Have a Heart." I like this game -- very brutal. You play it like 7 card stud and if a player is dealt a heart, face up, he may take a card from any other player. The player whose card was taken does not get a replacement card. Can't wait to try it out. In the mean time, what am I reading? Not much. I have been reading bits and bobs of things. I read a few chapters/essays in the travel book "There and Then" and a few in the book "Rereadings" -- both of which I'm enjoying very much. I can't seem to settle down to start a novel or a new non-fiction. I think once I get back into the swing of the new year I'll be digging back into stuff. I'm also suffering a bit from ANTI-Seasonal Affective Disorder. It is January. It is California. It is 81 degrees today. I hate that. I would like to have some semblance of seasons where I live. I grew up in the tropics and need to live in LA for the work I do, but I wish I could have more seasons. No, I don't need to live in Minnesota, I'm not into that kind of harsh season. Just some cloudy cold weather during winter. Is that too much to ask? I lived in Seattle for a year and that was the perfect amount of seasons. Trees turned color in the fall, there was a little snow in the winter, spring arrived in a riot of colors and styles, summer lasted until late at night. Nice. Merry New Year everyone.

New Year's Eve

I had a bit of a post-christmas malaise along with a nasty sinus infections this past week. I couldn't bring myself to start a new book. I did read a few pages of the travel book my husband gave me, but it hasn't latched on quite yet. What I did read was Little Town on the Prairie and These Happy Golden Years by Laura Ingalls Wilder. These books are like potato chips to me, I can't read just one. I did have to skip The Long Winter though, it was too depressing to read just then. I even went to Dutton's bookstore yesterday after seeing my chiropractor and DIDN'T BUY ANY BOOKS!!! Shocking, I know. I did buy some stationery and two magazines. I was also looking for alphabet rubber stamps, but didn't find any. (Sorry mom.) I bought GQ because Jack Black was on the cover and I find him very funny. (Haven't seen King Kong yet, don't know if I ever will.) The other magazine I bought was Found #4. Have you ever heard of this magazine? Someone bought the book for us last year for Christmas and we were fascinated. At first it seems sort of strange and you think, why would I find any of this interesting, it is all just trash. Then 20 pages have gone by. Hard to explain, just check it out. Happy New Year to you all.

12 Days of Christmas

I am very grateful for the book bounty in my life. Today in the mail I got two more -- yay! I love the 12 days of christmas. Gould's Book of Fish -- a Novel in 12 Fish by Richard Flanagan Team of Rivals -- the Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln by Doris Kearns Goodwin Thanks to my brother and sister-in-law and also to Amazon for letting us make wish lists!

Nog n' Blog

Merry Christmas! We had a wonderful morning of gifts, thank you one and all for the amazing things under our tree! And books! I got more books as gifts -- hard to imagine, I know. My husband received (and so I hope I can borrow): Oh the Glory of It All by Sean Wilsey --he got this from his mom and it looks like a great memoir (and you know how I love memoirs...) A Man Without a Country by Kurt Vonnegut --received from a friend, we had a copy already, so our original copy can go on the birthday pile, I already have an idea of who it could go to. Napoleon Dynamite, the Complete Quote Book --from good friends who may or may not have even seen the movie yet! Clearly, they are tired of hearing us say it all. Bad Cat by Jim Edgar --from my mom to my husband, funny book. The website is here. Look at it now! Sorry, I know it's Christmas, didn't mean to be so pushy. Do whatever you like. I need to interject a malasada update here -- My husband also received 2 packages of malasada mix from my sister! He is a happy happy camper! We'll have to find a large vat of hot oil somewhere soon. Back to books... The books I received are: There and Then The Travel Writing of James Salter --from my husband, we love traveling together and can't wait to do more! Fast Talking Dames by Maria DiBattista --also from my husband, about the awesome women in movies in the 30s and 40s -- Jean Harlow, Carole Lombard, Ginger Rogers, Myrna Loy, Rosalind Russell, etc etc. I don't know if he meant to put them together, but he also gave me the 6 DVD set of The Thin Man series. AWESOME! Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts --from my mother who is currently reading it and loves loves loves it. I look forward to digging into it as well. Julie and Julia -- the cooking memoir previously mentioned on this blog as well as an updated edition of Julia Child's How to Master the Art of French Cooking --from other good friends who clearly have real jobs and are too busy to read my blog. I have the utmost respect for them and how hard they work. I know we have an ancient copy of the cookbook, so having a new one to mess up will be great. 700 Sundays by Billy Chrystal --from my sister. We both love Billy, she more than me even. Another memoir...always good! The Spirit of Yoga by Cat De Rham and Michele Gill --from my mother as well. Cat De Rham the daughter of my mom's friend and neighbor across the street. It has been a lovely day so far. Tonight we have a small dinner with good friends across town. Merry Christmas to you all, dear readers, and the very best in 2006!

By The Shores of Silver Lake

I have a cold. Bummer. Luckily, I don't have to work right now so I'm able to relax and rest and do a lot of reading. Last night my voice started going and I felt whimpery and needed something cozy to make me feel better. I immediately went to my Little House collection and pulled out "Silver Lake" to read. The middle section is about their winter on the prairie, alone in the Surveyor's House. They had been living in a shanty all summer. Laura describes the shanty: The new shanty stood alone by the lake shore. It shone yellow in the sunshine; a little house almost lost in the grasses and its little roof sloped all one way as if it were only half a roof ... Everything must be unpacked and the shanty made ready before noon ... From the company store, Ma bought yards of bright figured calico for curtains. They made a curtain and they hung it across the shanty, shutting the bunks behind it. Then she made another curtain and hung it between the bunks so there were two bedrooms, one for her and Pa, the other for the girls. The shanty was so small the curtains touched the bunks ...Then in front of the curtain was the room to live in. It was very small with the cookstove at the end by the door. Ma and Laura placed the drop leaf table against the side wall, before the open front door. Mary's rocking chair and Ma's they put on the other side of the room. The floor was bare ground, with humps of obstinate grass roots in it, but they swept it clean. "This is another kind of little house only with half a roof and no window," said Ma. "But it's a tight roof, and we don't need a window, so much air and light come in through the window." Imagine what Laura is describing in your mind -- maybe you see a nice cozy cabin. I always did until I went to a model shanty in Minnesota and it is TINY. Imagine the smallest bedroom in your home and that is how big the whole thing is. With a dirt floor and 6 people living in it. Granted, two of them are little kids, but still. No windows. Dirt floor. Then they get a chance to live in the Surveyor's House for the winter. It must have been like going to the Ritz Carlton compared with the shanty as Laura describes it as "that house, that real house:" It was a big house, a real house with two stories, and glass windows. The door had a china knob....This house had board floors. Laura looked at the large front room ...The surveyors had left their stove! It has six lids on top and two oven doors... Spaced on the wall behind it were three doors. All of them were shut. Laura tiptoed across the wide floor and softly opened one door. There was a small room with a bedstead in it. This room had a window too. Softly Laura opened the middle door...Steeply up in front of her went a stair...She went up a few steps and a big attic opened out on both sides of the stairs. It was twice as big as the big room downstairs. A window in each gable end lighted the whole empty place under the roof. That was three rooms already...She opened the third door. There before her eyes was a little store. All up the walls of that small room were shelves, and on the shelves were dishes, and pans and pots, and boxes and cans. All around under the shelves stood barrels and boxes. (The pantry was packed with food: flour and cornmeal and salt pork and beans and soda crackers and canned fruits and vegetables, coffee and tea.) The story was that the surveyors had filled the house thinking a bunch of them would be there all winter, but they decided to go back east. Laura's father agreed to stay there the winter to be caretaker. They spent the winter comfortable and safe and well fed. I have read this series many many many times, as you know from previous posts. This particular house stands out because it was so large and special for them all. I imagined it was really big, I mean compared with a shanty, of course it would be huge. In 1997 I took a road trip through Minnesota and South Dakota and followed highway 14 the "Laura Ingalls Wilder Historic Highway" -- no fooling, that is what all the signs say under the number 14 sign -- and it was fascinating. Yes, I'm a history buff and a huge fan of this woman and her story. I got to DeSmet, SD and the first thing I did was have a tour of the surveyor's house. After knowing the above description almost by heart, I was really excited. Once inside, I was floored by how small it was. I think the whole thing was not much bigger than my living room, though two stories. I live in a small house, by today's standards (950 square feet). When you are there, you can only take a guided tour, so I couldn't linger in the house, soaking it all in. I wish I could have stayed longer just to sit and be quiet in that house I had read about so many times. Sitting at home in LA with Christmas tomorrow, it felt cozy to read about their big christmas dinner of jackrabbit and stuffing and potatoes and gravy and dried apple pie. I have so much to write about regarding these books. They hold some magical power over me. I want to go back to Minnesota and South Dakota and Wisconsin and Missouri and see all the little houses (well, the sites anyway, as most of the actual houses are gone now.)

clarification

My friend Sarah is dear and I've known her since I was about 9 or 10. She's not old, our friendship is. Just making that clear.

First Book Gift

We celebrated Christmas early with good friends and Kalbi Ribs on Tuesday night. YUM! The pre-christmas Kalbi dinner is in its second year and we feel it will become a tradition. A very relaxed evening of non-holiday food and good friends and a gift exchange. The lovely gift I got that night from my old and dear friend Sarah was a book! Fancy that. The book is Mother-Daughter Wisdom : Creating a Legacy of Physical and Emotional Health (by Christiane Northrup). I am looking forward to reading it. Thank you Sarah!

Distracted by Christmas!

The time gets away from me. Most of the gifts were purchased, it was just the wrapping, shipping, labeling, delivering, etc etc etc that got a bit nutty. Now the week slides nicely along until Sunday. The tree is up and pretty and Mouse (who you saw earlier) is snuggling nicely beneath it, waiting for Santa to bring her more food. I am still in the middle of Stephen King's On Writing. I spent most evenings over the week getting caught up on magazines. I do look forward to a return dip into his book. A friend and loyal reader and my blog inspiration recommended this great book, (Freakonomics : A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything). I have already read it and found it fascinating. The authors, Steven D. Levitt, Stephen J. Dubner, take data and look at things that most people haven't looked at with the same data. For example, did legalized abortion bring down the crimes rates 20 years later? Also, when you look at the numbers, backyard swimming pools are more dangerous than guns. In similar veins, I recommend The Tipping Point and Blink, both by Malcolm Gladwell. Now I'm off to buy stocking presents for my lovely husband.

Stephen King

On the plane home I started to read On Writing by Mr. King and got half way through. It's been years since I read it and I just love it. I feel like he is just chatting with me, telling me stories and how he feels about writing. It is funny and true. And I mean true in that he doesn't pull any punches, he is not precious about anything. He tells it all how he sees it and doesn't apologize for any of it. This guy is so smart. He is also inspiring to this young writer.

Photo Credit

Home again in Los Angeles and realized I didn't credit my mother for the malasada photo! Ungrateful daughter! Thanks Mom for a fine photo and an even better visit. I know this trip will be part of a book some day.

Back to Los Angeles

I began to read "Talk to the Hand" and am about half way through it. I don't think I'll take it with me or finish it. Ms. Truss is a fun writer to read. I think this is a good guest room book. For the plane home I'll be reading In Style Magazine -- good no brainer reading. I will also have handy Stephen King's book "On Writing". I will need some inspiration to get back on my writing habit once I get home. After that I will have to recheck the bookshelves and see what is next. By the way, my husband is now hooked on Malasadas. We got some fresh and hot from Home Maid Bakery in Wailuku this morning. Oooh, they were ono-licious! Lighter and smaller than Tex's. Maybe I need to start a Malasada blog...nevermind.

Reading on Maui

It has been a week since I've written and quite a week. We arrived on Maui last Friday and had a relaxing weekend, then went to the Big Island where it was tons of driving and visiting. I saw people and places I hadn't seen in years. And ate yummy ono food that I haven't eaten in years. Malasadas! Mmmmmmm. In between all the driving (it is a Big Island after all) I did manage to finish reading Teacher Man by Frank McCourt. I enjoyed it though it didn't have the depth and punch of Angela's Ashes -- what could? But reading his story of teaching and "what am I doing with my life" musings all the while knowing he would be writing his Pulitzer Prize winning book after the teaching career was over is nice. I got caught up with his frustrations and trials and errors of teaching, feeling like "yeah, how are you going to expand your life like you want?" and then pulling back to real life and remembering that he is a very successful writer. Now I think I will move on to Talk to the Hand: The Utter Bloody Rudeness of the World Today, or Six Good Reasons to Stay Home and Bolt the Door (by Lynne Truss). This was one of four books my mom had waiting for me here. The other three were "Broken for You" which I will now take off my Amazon wish list, "The Sunday Philosophy Club" by Alexander McCall Smith and "Saving Fish From Drowning" by Amy Tan. I have never read any Amy Tan -- Yes, shocking, I know, I never read the Joy Luck Club. The weather is beautiful and it is always nice and easy to be home on Maui. I am looking forward to being home in LA and getting ready for Christmas. This will be the first year we will have a tree in about 3 years. We are usually off to other family member's houses for the holidays. I love having a tree and a fire in the fireplace and christmas music on the stereo. My favorite Christmas album? You'll have to click here.

Amendment to the Travel Reading List

I forgot I also wanted to bring (and so I shall) On Writing (by Stephen King) . I have read this before, but a few years ago. Now that I am writing in earnest (have started a novel, a short story and a script in progress....) I would like to re read it. Even if you think you don't like Stephen King just because of his genre, this is an excellent memoir as well as lesson about writing. I highly suggest reading Stephen King's essays on pop culture in Entertainment Weekly. He only contributes about once a month, but dang, I could read him every week. Smart, funny, sharp guy.

What I'm Taking to Read

For the plane I'm taking the December issues of Real Simple and Oprah magazine, plus this week's Time magazine. I'm also taking Teacher Man, which I have already started reading (even though I'm not finished with Love My Rifle More than You). In the suitcase I have Love my Rifle as well as Julie and Julia for my mother. I went to pick it up off the floor (where it sat next to the wrapped gifts to also take with us) and discovered that our cat, Mouse: had hurled onto the book at some point during the night. Apparently the book made a prime furball hurling target. Or Mouse had secretly read the book and this is what she thought of it. Either way, kind of annoying to have to wash off a book to read. I know I will probably not finish all I have brought to read as we will be busy, but I always need back up, so I'm also taking Hypocrite in a Pouffy White Dress (by Susan Jane Gilman) and Rereadings, the book I bought last night. I'm also taking the script I'm in the middle of rewriting, though I have already told myself this is a holiday and no pressure on writing until I get back. So there it is. What I'm reading on my holiday. We'll see what I get through. Aloha.

Oops! I Did It Again...

So there I am, buying more books as gifts for family and friends and what do I do? I buy a book for myself. Oy! I am unstoppable! What was the book? Why a book about reading of course. Rereadings : Seventeen writers revisit books they love (edited by Anne Fadiman) More soon, I have to go to sleep as we are going to Maui tomorrow. What am I taking to read? I'll answer that when I'm done packing tomorrow. Good night. Sweet dreams.

12 Steps

I have addiction in my family. Mine manifests in book buying. I can't stop. I dropped off about 100 books to the Downtown Women's Center in Los Angeles this week. There were about 40 books from my shelves and about another 40 from the friends who came to the book exchange. They books were well received at the center and I was glad about that. So maybe my addiction is not such a bad thing in the long run. So what did I buy today? Well, there I was outside Duttons' in BH and so I had to get Teacher Man : A Memoir (by Frank McCourt). He was on AirTalk (hosted by Larry Mantle) yesterday and I just loved hearing him talk. Especially when he used the word "bullshit" in the middle of a story and didn't flinch. He's real. I also bought Are Men Necessary? (by Maureen Dowd) after hearing her on Fresh Air earlier this month. I look forward to them both.

In Between

I went Christmas shopping at Barnes and Noble yesterday. Of course I won't tell you what I bought as someone who will be receiving might be reading this...It was hard not to buy all kinds of books for myself. But I was on a mission, and mission accomplished. Okay okay, I did buy myself one book: Why Do Men Have Nipples? Hundreds of Questions You'd Only Ask a Doctor After Your Third Martini (by Mark Leyner and Billy Goldberg) I wanted to sit and have a coffee and chill out and read something. So I grabbed it at the last minute from the "grab me at the last minute" shelf by the cash register. I got myself a nice egg nog latte and sat and read. The book is amusing and interesting, but really much lighter than I anticipated. The writers seem to enjoy their own writing more than anyone else. They created two kinds of interstitials in the book. One introduces each chapter and involves the two writers at a party, creating the scene that leads to the type of questions for each chapter. The other is a series of instant messages between the two of them as they are working. I read half the book yesterday and stopped reading both of these interruptions after the first of each. I just want the guts of the book, stop distracting from it! It is a good coffee table or bathroom or guest room book. Lightly informative, lightly entertaining. After I got home, I was talking with my mom and told her I was bringing Julie and Julia home with me for her to read. She said, "Oh! I was going to give that to you for Christmas!" Oh well. I guess she'll have to find something else for me to read as a gift. (Check the Amazon wish list.....)

Just Finished/Just Starting

Good Morning! Last night I finished reading Julie and Julia : 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen (by Julie Powell). I enjoyed it immensely. Ms. Powell, a first time author, captured so well the coming of age saga of someone turning 30.* She was married, living in New York City, an aspiring actress and temp. She got a wild hair and decided to cook every recipe in Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Volume One within a year. She started a blog about it and got covered by many news outlets, including CBS and the NY Times. She did it just to do it. Just to have something to do, something bigger than herself. Having been through the pre-midlife midlife crisis myself, the "What the hell am I doing with my life?" crisis, I understood exactly what she was going through. Ms. Powell writes of her frustration and lack of focus with absolute truth. And plenty of "Fuck!"s along the way. Plus, she throws and breaks things and yells when whatever she's trying isn't working and it is SOOOOO FRUSTRATING! I have had computer smashing desires on plenty of days. That's real life, baby. I am also inspired by her actual writing. That this project unexpectedly turned into a book that is now selling nicely. That before her blog, she hadn't written before. (At least she doesn't mention that she has.) Next on my bedside table is Love My Rifle More Than You: Young and Female in the U.S. Army (by Kayla Williams). I heard about her on NPR and really look forward to her story. Along the lines of up to the minute modern war, my husband and I both recently read Generation Kill (by Evan Wright) Mr. Wright is a reporter and was embedded with a platoon of First Reconnaissance Battalion Marines. Part of the subtitle is "the new face of american war." The war in Iraq is so immediate, instant, in fact, that reading a book like this, with soldiers still over there fighting, is hard to fathom. The book puts you right on the streets, right in the humvees, right in the fighting. It is strange to read and go on with my regular life, as though there is nothing really going on, no actual war to fight. When Naked in Baghdad (by Anne Garrels) came out, I read it immediately. It was a different kind of "you are there" story about the lead up to and the beginning of the Iraq war in 2003. Reading it only a year or so after the time frame she writes about already felt so far removed from when it happened. And yet, watching a war every day on tv, while it is actually happening, gives me a strange sense of almost non-history. It is happening right this second, there is no "history" to it yet. That will come later. Good book, though, highly recommend. *On turning 30: Personally, I loved turning 30, I had no issue with it. At the time, people around me were telling me I should be having an issue with it. I don't understand why getting older is such a drag. Thank god I am who I am now, not still 22 and clueless and out of touch with myself. I'll be turning 40 in little more than a year. Yahoo! I just keep learning and growing and getting better and better, what on earth is wrong with that?

Holiday Reading

What do you plan to read during the holidays? It's not like summer beach reading, I know, but there tends to be long plane flights, hotel or guest room stays, and free indoor time (especially if you live or are going somewhere cold) during these holidays. I will have quasi-beach read time coming up because we are going to Hawaii in early December to visit family. (Hawaii itself is RIDICULOUSLY expensive at Christmas.) We have very little planned, so I'm looking forward to lots of early morning beach walks: and lots of reading time. All this interspersed with grocery shopping with my mom and cooking a lot. Maybe a little bit of poker. We'll see. No pressure. Just going to chill. So what am I taking to read? I don't know yet! More on that later.

Books and Movies

I wrote a little bit about books being made into movies earlier. I think most people agree that the books are always better. The two films that I think lived up to the books that inspired them are To Kill a Mockingbird (by Harper Lee) and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (by Ken Kesey). Have you seen them both? Have you read them both? Mockingbird is on my Re-Read shelf and I just read it again recently. Cuckoo's Nest I read in high school. I have not read it since then. It's a tough read, heartbreaking. It might be interesting to read again now, as a grown-up or whatever I am. I'm thinking about this because we went to see Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire on Friday night. It was fine and entertaining and all. I like seeing the Weasley kids on screen, especially Fred and George. But how can you take a book that is 734 pages long and write 150 pages of script? There is so much good stuff that gets left out. Of course you can't put it all in. I know that. Seeing the movie makes me appreciate the book and J.K.Rowling even more. (J.K. Rowling is only 2 years older than me and for some reason that makes me glad -- not sure why!) Oy, I'm just rambling here.....more coherent stuff soon.

Thanks

Thank you Brian for helping me add a bell and a whistle. You are a blogger's best friend.

Bookstores

Part of what I love about being a reader is going to bookstores. Amazon is a godsend, don't get me wrong. I buy the majority of my books from Amazon. However, nothing can replace the joy of standing in a large room full of books, row after row after row. Be it bookstore or library, being surrounded by books I have not read is heaven. I love to browse tabletops and shelves and aisles full of books. Table tops especially. My fantasy bookstore would be one where all books are facing out so you could see the full cover. Cocking my head sideways to read spines in not an ideal way for me to browse. But I'll do it! My favorite book store to go to is Dutton's Bookstore, either Brentwood or Dutton's Beverly Hills. The Brentwood store is like going to a private home. There are three different rooms and one of them has a coffee bar. The building is a bit older and funky. Funky in a quirky way, not a yucky way. Like your favorite winter jacket-cozy, lived in, dependable. I pre-ordered and picked up "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" from there when it came out, years ago. I was so excited to go and get it. I sat down in the coffee bar and ordered a latte and read the first couple of chapters. I loved the whole experience. Dutton's Beverly Hills I found by accident. I started to see a new Chiropractor in BH and the parking structure is underneath the bookstore. This Dutton's is like a new dress that you love so much you wear it to everything. Shiny and new and bright and lovely. When I'm on the east side of town, Los Feliz or Silver Lake, I like to stop into Skylight Books. SB is a smaller, independent store just down from Fred 62 -- one of my favorite places to eat ---ooooh I love that Ty Cobb Salad, I could eat it all day. For convenience, my neighborhood Barnes and Noble helps when I need a fix, when I need to touch books. Very handy. Handy like a Starbucks.

What I'm Reading Now

I just finished reading Prep by Curtiss Sittenfeld. Talk about teenage angst. The main character fascinated me and I wanted to see how it ended, but golly it was so not happy. And I don't mean in a drug taking, lost weekend, we are young and have no future kind of way. I got impatient with it. Okay. Here is what I'm trying to spit out. While I did have some teenage angst (it comes with first crushes and zits) I actually really liked high school. A lot. And I wouldn't consider myself in any way popular. I saw myself as square square and square. So while in some instances I could relate to her experiences, I got impatient with it all too. Or does that mean I'm really a grown up now? Hard to say. I would recommend it though. Now I'm reading: Julie and Julia : 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen by Julie Powell This book started as a blog by Ms. Powell and if she really is a first time writer, she had something going on from somewhere before. So far I'm enjoying their life as young marrieds in New York, adventures in moving, cooking and 9/11. P.S. Happy Birthday Dor Dor!

"Emptying" The Shelves

I'm going through my shelves, pulling out books to exchange and give away. I pulled out 51 books that I'm ready to pass on. I have read them all except two. I started to read three or four others, but just couldn't get past the first few chapters. One of those was "Reading Lolita in Tehran" by Azar Nafisi and I really wanted to love it because it's about books and reading and teaching books in a dangerous way. It's about books and knowledge being more powerful than a government. I think. I haven't read it. I might try listening to it on tape some day because there was something in the author's style that was difficult to move through on paper. It didn't flow for me. Anyway, 51 books are gone from the shelves but you would hardly notice.

A Quote from the Current Book I'm Reading

Quote from Prep by Curtiss Sittenfeld "Cross shrugged. "You'll be okay." There was something in his shrug I envied -- an ability to prevent misfortune by choosing not to anticipate it." Words to live by: Prevent misfortune by choosing not to anticipate it.

A Note on the Type

And by that I mean my typing. The great thing about being out of school is that I don't have to hand in papers with all the very particular notations, footnotes, etc etc etc. I'm not great with grammar and do count on the spell checker mostly for typos, but I do spell stuff wrong from time to time. What I want you to know is that while I respect the official, old school, strict ways of citing books and authors and notes and blah blah blah, really, I don't worry about it on this blog. I just want to rave about books (and maybe rant here and there). No apologies, but do know that I am aware of my possible shortcomings in this area. My caveat now complete, let's move on to more books!

My Amazon Wish List

(The holidays are coming...) Some (but not all) of the books I have on my Amazon wish list: Team of Rivals : The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln by Doris Kearns Goodwin This one is most recently added. Doris was on The Daily Show recently and I heard her interviewed on Fresh Air today. I have not read any of her previous work but something about this story and her personality make me want to dive into all 944 pages of it. Did I already mention I love history? I did and I do. YOU: The Owner's Manual : An Insider's Guide to the Body that Will Make You Healthier and Younger by Michael F. Roizen and Mehmet Oz Dr. Oz is often on Oprah and I like his enthusiasm and expertise. He seems also to be open to ideas outside of straightforward traditional western medicine. Always good to hear. There is a quiz at the beginning of the book about what you know about your own health. I'm curious to take the test and see how on or off I am about my health. Complaints and Disorders : The Sexual Politics of Sickness and For Her Own Good : Two Centuries of the Experts Advice to Women by Barbara Ehrenreich, Deirdre English I love Barbara Ehrenreich's work. Have you read Nickel and Dimed: on (not) getting by in America? What a great, brutal, honest, harsh look at the working poor. Her most recent book, Bait and Switch: The (futile) Pursuit of the American Dream was also eye opening. So the above titles seem like they will be fascinating, especially the "expert advice" -- can't WAIT to read that. It will be a gut-buster. Probably totally depressing in its reality, but funny none the less. Looking forward to it. Broken for You by Stephanie Kallos My mom recommended this one and it sounds like a great read. A Crack in the Edge of the World : America and the Great California Earthquake of 1906 by Simon Winchester Simon (I call him Simon, for no good reason) also wrote "Krakatoa" (among many other books) and I was riveted. It spanned topics from history of the region to politics, geography, geology, plate tectonics, rise of muslim extremism and oh yeah, a giant exploding volcano and subsequent tsunami. I heard him interviewed on NPR over the weekend and I couldn't wait to read this new book. The Pencil : A History of Design and Circumstance by Henry Petroski This kind of book is right up my alley. First of all, history. Second of all, quirky history about things you NEVER think about. (Well, I think of them often and am glad there are books to read about them.) Third, more random factoids to stuff in my crossword puzzle addled brain. I read Mr. Petroski's book The Book On The Bookshelf and really loved it. Did you know that books were chained to bookshelves in libraries because they were so valuable? Along the same lines (quirky history) I read a similar book called Salt a World History by Mark Kurlansky. Lots of history, but not enough quirky good writing to keep me riveted. What's on your Amazon wish list?

Recently Read

Had some family in town over the weekend, got a bit distracted, but now I'm back for updates. What I have read recently: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee (see previous posting) In Her Shoes by Jennifer Weiner (also a major motion picture in theaters now) I enjoyed the movie, and I wanted more, so I read the book. I wanted more detail on the Grandmother/Shirley MacLaine character. The movie had more about her than the book did. It was an entertaining read, good "chick lit" if I can be so bold/rude/cliche. The Prize Winner of Defiance Ohio by Terry Ryan (another motion picture in theaters now) I heard Terry Ryan on NPR a few years back and was fascinated by her mother's story. I heard they were making a movie with Julianne Moore and decided I would see it. It's not deep. It's a bit corny and it is sweet in that predictable kind of way. There was one scene that did surprise me because it didn't go in the traditional movie way you thought it might. I appreciated that originality but wished there was more. But hey this is a blog about books, not movies. (I LOVE MOVIES, but this is not that blog. That blog would be a full time job...) I bought the book to get more insight into the contesting lifestyle that Mrs. Ryan lived. Her whole life was pretty hard and how she stayed so positive for so long is amazing. Even more amazing is the real life ending after her husband dies -- his secret that he kept for her. That was totally Hollywood --but actually real. Never Have Your Dog Stuffed by Alan Alda I love Memoirs. I love biographies. I love true stories about real people, real characters. (In another post I'll go into more details on this topic.) I like Alan Alda. I didn't really know much about him except for his role on MASH and more recently his hosting job on Scientific American Frontiers. I didn't realize how much writing he has done. I didn't know his father was a relatively famous actor (forgive me I'm under 40 and grew up on a rock in the Pacific.) The book is a fun read, makes me want to have more conversations with him.

Comfort Books

In November I'm hosting a book exchange. I wanted to clean out my bookshelves as I needed room for more and thought why not have many friends do so and then we can all get together and trade books. All leftover books will go to charity. This way everyone makes space and everyone gets new books. Brilliant, I think. So I have to go through the books and pull out the ones that are ready to move on. There are plenty of books that will stay, of course, dictionaries, travel guides, artbooks, histories, etc. There are other books that must stay as well. Books that get read and re-read. Some of these books are: To Kill a Mockingbird (Harper Lee) Persuasion (Jane Austin) Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austin) Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte) The Harry Potter Series (JK Rowling) English Creek (Ivan Doig) The Mother Tongue (Bill Bryson) The Wolves of Willoughby Chase (Joan Aiken) The Little House Series (Laura Ingalls Wilder) Harpo Speaks (Harpo Marx with Raymond Barber) Calvin and Hobbes (various) (Bill Watterson) These are comfy books. Like your almost worn out PJs. Your old college sweatshirt. A big bowl of pasta. Mmmmm, comfy. There are lots of books on the shelf that I haven't read yet. And sometimes there are moments when I have a lull in reading (like when my magazines have piled up and I'm working through them) and I stand in front of the shelves going "hmmmm....what to read, what to read....nope....nope...why did I buy that?.....nope....hmmmmm" and then I see To Kill a Mockingbird or English Creek and all is well. The dusty, worn book comes down for a few days of snuggling. The travel books are great for daydreaming and remembering. Even if we have been to Tuscany or Paris or Rome already, they are kind of souvenirs on their own. I like to see where a travel book falls open, or where the pages are falling out. There are times when I am feeling at odds with myself, my career, or I feel restless and moody and nothing will satisfy. This is when I turn to the Little House series. Depending on how I feel, I choose a book in the series that reflects the mood. I have read these books so many times, and they never let me down. It is like stepping back to a simpler time in my life, when I didn't have to worry about incomes and mortgage and retirement funds. These books are the comfiest of the comfy. (More about Little House in another post.) What books do you read again and again? What comforts you?

Currently Reading

The two books I currently have book marks in: "Kiss My Tiara: How To Rule The World as a SmartMouth Goddess" by Susan Jane Gilman and "Prep" by Curtis Sittenfeld Soon I will learn to create links to these books at Amazon and elsewhere, but now, time to read a bit more ("Prep") and get some sleep. Oh, don't forget -- if you use Amazon's search engine: http://a9.com and you are signed in as an Amazon member, you will get a discount on purchases. More Books!

Welcome to My Bookshelf

Recently an acquaintance and I were talking about books. She asked "Do you read?" I looked at her for a moment thinking, what a ridiculous question, of course I read, but then I understood her true meaning. Before I could answer she continued, "Are you a reader?" "Yes," I said most sincerely, "I am a reader." I have been reading since I can remember. I can't claim to be like Scout -- reading since I was born, according to Jem. But I can claim to have a nose in a book since I was at least 7. The first real grown up books I remember reading were "Little House in the Big Woods" and "Little House on the Prairie." They were a gift, from a grandmother? An Aunt? That I don't recall. These books were a magic machine. I was transported to a place that was foreign to me -- the frontier of America in the 1870's. Pioneers, covered wagons, territories, Indians, blizzards, what crops, the Prairie. What on earth was a Prairie? I grew up in Hawaii. Ocean, warm sand, no winter, the Tropics. I wanted to go to that place, THE PRAIRIE. (I eventually did when I was 31, but that's another story for another day.) I was hooked on books. My mother would take me to the one real shopping mall (Ka'ahumanu Center) on our island (Maui), with the one real bookstore (Walden Books). Every time we went, I was allowed to get a book, sometimes more than one. Any other store that sold anything else I might want -- toys, candy, clothes, shoes, whatever -- they were off limits unless it was back to school time or I paid for it out of my allowance. Books were the great indulgence my mother seemed happy to pay for, no strings attached. To this day, no matter what my budget, books are always on the list of "always okay to buy" along with food and electricity. I am fortunate enough with income that I can buy books whenever I want. I only hold back when the To Read pile is awfully high (like it is now). Books! Books! Books! Oh god I love them. I won't go on all night. I just wanted to start this. My plan? Just to share what I'm reading -- what I have read, what is on the To Read pile coming up. Whatever else comes up, that will be a wonderful surprise. Happy Reading. Julia