Ireadthereforeiam: the world is my oyster

I guess I should credit this image, but I cant remember where it was from now. How's this? Just google "book art" and click on images, and its about the 4th one in :)

I love it!*

*but only if the book was broken and unreadable when it was dismembered

Read so far:

NOVEMBER:
91. Resilience, by Anne Deveson (NF, re-read)
92. The Secret Island, by Enid Blyton (kids fiction, re-read)
93. Andris, where are you?, by Ron Crosby (memoir, re-re-re-read)
94. The Winter of our Discontent, by John Steinbeck (classic fiction)
95. The Moon is Down, by John Steinbeck (classic, novella)
96. Place, Identity and Everyday Life in a Globalising World, by Harvey Perkins and David Thorns (NF, NZ, Academic)
97. The Empty Family, by Colm Toibin (short stories)

OCTOBER:
86. The Chequebook and the Cruise-Missile by Arundhati Roy (NF, interviews transcribed)
87. I Think Therefore I Am by Lesley Levine (NF)
88. The Luminaries, Elanor Catton (fiction)
89. Half of a Yellow Sun, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (fiction)
90. Heat and Dust, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala (fiction)

SEPTEMBER:
77. The Children of Men, by PD James (dystopian fiction)
78. Isaac's Storm, Erik Larson (narrative non-fiction)
79. Sula by Toni Morrison (fiction)
80. TransAtlantic, by Colum McCann (fiction)
81. Human Chain, Seamus Heaney (poetry)
82. Quiet, by Susan Cain (NF)
83. Harvest, Jim Crace (fiction)
84. Hellhound on his Trail by Hampton Sides (NNF)
85. The Time Machine by HG Wells (fiction, novella)

AUGUST:
66. A Tale for the Time Being, Ruth Ozeki (fiction)
67. Closely Watched Trains, Bohumil Hrabal (fiction)
68. The Cellist of Sarajevo, by Steven Galloway (fiction)
69. Wild, by Cheryl Strayed (memoir)
70. Raising Boys by Steve Biddulph (parenting)
71. Birds of America, Lorrie Moore (short stories)
72. The Beauty of Humanity Movement, by Camilla Gibb (fiction)
73. The Spinning Heart, Donal Ryan (fiction)
74. The Eye in the Door, by Pat barker (fiction)
75. Beowulf, translated by Seamus Heaney (classic, epic poem)
76 Tortilla Flat, by John Steinbeck (classic, fiction)

JULY:
57. The Unconscious Civilisation, by John Ralston Saul (NF)
58. Extremes: Life Death and the Limits of the Human Body by Dr Kevin Fong (NF)
59. Degrees for Everyone, by Bob Jones (NZ, satire)
60. Heart of Darkness, by Joseph Conrad (classic)
61. The Blank Wall by Elisabeth Sanxay Holding (crime)
62. How to Look at a Painting, by Justin Paton (NF)
63. The Testament of Mary, by Colm Toibin (alternative history/fiction)
64. Peace Like a River, by Leif Enger (fiction)
65. The Old Man and the Sea, by Ernest Hemingway (fiction, classic)

JUNE:
48. The Motel Life, Willy Vlautin (fiction)
49. My Name is Asher Lev, by Chaim Potok (fiction, re-read)
50. Lyrics, Paul Simon (lyrics)
51. The Great Gatsby, F Scott Fitzgerald (classic, re-re-read)
52. The ACB with Honora Lee, Kate De Goldi (YA)
53. Northline by Willy Vlautin (fiction)
54. The Accidental Tourist, by Anne Tyler (fiction)
55. Coraline, Neil Gaiman (YA)
56. Revolutionary Road, Richard Yates (fiction)

MAY:
40. Bereft, Chris Womersley (fiction)
41. The Wasp Factory, Iain Banks (fiction)
42. The Colour, Rose Tremain (historical fiction, NZ)
43. The God Boy, Ian Cross (fiction, NZ)
44. The Yellow Birds, Kevin Powers (fiction)
45. The End of the Affair, Graham Greene (fiction)
46. The Stone Diaries, Carol Shields (fiction)
47. Skios, Michael Frayn (fiction)

APRIL:
33. Excellent Women, Barbara Pym (classic)
34. Decline into Darkness, Gay Oakes (memoir, NZ)
35. The Great Gatsby, F Scott Fitzgerald (classic, re-read)
36. The Mysteries of Pittsburgh, Michael Chabon (fiction)
37. All Quiet on the Western Front (classic, fiction)
38. Regeneration, Pat Barker (fiction)
39. Safe Area Gorazde, Joe Sacco (GN)

MARCH:
24. The Reluctant Fundamentalist, Moshin Hamid (fiction)
25. Somebody Stole My Game, Chris Laidlaw (NZ, NF, rugby)
26. Looking for Lionel, Sharon Snir (memoir)
27. Pocket Book Of Dinosaurs - Illustrated Guide To The Dinosaur Kingdom, Dougal Dixon (NF, educational)
28. The Worst Hard Time, Timothy Egan (NFN)
29. Call the Midwife, Jeniffer Worth (memoir)
30. The Shock Doctrine, by Naomi Klein (NF)
31. The Gospel According to Judas, Benjamin Iscariot/Jeffrey Archer/Francis Moloney (fiction)
32. The Swiss Family Robinson by Johan Wyss (classic)

FEBRUARY:
13. Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys (historic fiction)
14. The Forrests by Emily Perkins (NZ, fiction)
15. To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee (classic, fiction)
16. Moon Tiger by Penelope Lively (fiction)
17. No Country for Old Men, Cormac McCarthy (fiction)
18. The Rape of the Lock, Alexander Pope (poetry)
19. The Plague, Albert Camus (classic, fiction)
20. Whale Rider, Witi Ihimaera (NZ fiction)
21. Odyssey and Images, Ron Crosby (NZ, memoir, my own family history, a re-read)
22. We Don't Live Here Anymore, Andre Dubus (3x Novellas)
23. Little House on the Prairie, Laura Ingalls (classic, fiction)

JANUARY:
1. Mister Pip- Lloyd Jones (NZ fiction)
2. Writer MD- edited by Leah Kaminsky (Essays, Short Stories)
3. Mayflower- Nathaniel Philbrick (NFN)
4. Quarry- by Damon Galgut (fiction)
5. Old Filth- by Jane (fiction)
6. The Sense of an Ending- by Julian Barnes (fiction)
7. Leningrad, by Anna Reid (NF, history)
8. The Memory of Running, by Ron McLarty(fiction)
9. Brokeback Mountain, by Annie Proulx (short story)
10. Lemona's Tale, by Ken Saro-Wiwa (African fiction)
11. Various Pets Dead and Alive, by Marina Lewycka (fiction)
12. What Katy Did by Susan Coolidge (classic)

Currently Reading

The Winter of our Discontent, On Equilibrium and Granta: New Fiction Special

Books Acquired 2013
Crossing them off as I read them is proving a good reminder for me to read what I get.

NOVEMBER:
(155) The Executioner's Song, by Norman Mailer $7.99
(156) Andris, Where are you? by Ron Crosby (free, gift)
(157) My Mistress's Sparrow is Dead, edited by Jeffrey Eugenides $1
(158) 100 NZ Short Short Stories edited by Graeme Lay $1
(159) The Ancestor Game by Alex Miller $1
(160) Life is so Good, George Dawson .50c
(161) Fair Warning by Robert Olen Butler .50c
(162) The Tortilla Curtain by T Coraghessan Boyle .50c
(163) The Reason of Things by AC Grayling $2
(164) Runaway by Alice Munro $2
(165) Schindler's Ark by Thomas Keneally $2
(166) The Moral Law by Immanuel Kant $2
(167) Metamorphosis and Other Stories by Franz Kafka $2
(168) The Great Wall of China and Other Short Works by Franz Kafka $2
(169) Psychology Fifth Edition by Peter Gray $2
(170) And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks by William Burroughs and Jack Kerouac $1
(171) Hegemony or Survival by Noam Chomsky $1

OCTOBER:
(133) The Luminaries by Elanor Catton $22
(134) Palace of Desire by Naguib Mahfouz $4
(135) Back When We Were Grownups by Anne Tyler $3
(136) Fire Under the Snow by Palden Gyatso $3
(137) The Boy in Striped Pyjamas by John Boyle $3
(138) A State of Siege and The Rainbirds by Janet Frame $3
(139) The Forrests by Emily Perkins $3
(140) On Equilibrium by John Raulston Saul $3 READING NOW
(141) Krakatoa by Simon Winchester $3
(142) The Chequebook and the Cruise-Missile by Arundhati Roy $3
(143) Granta: New Fiction Special (#106) $3 READING NOW
(144) Granta: Going Back (#111) $3
(145) Granta: The New Nature Writing (#102) $3
(146) Colony by Hugo Wilcken .33c
(147) Resilience by Anne Deveson .33c
(148) The Known World by Edward P Jones .33c
(149) Zoology by Ben Dolnick .33c
(150) The Caged Virgin by Ayaan Hersi Ali .33c
(151) How to Gaze at the Southern Stars by Richard Hall .33c
(152) Shipwrecks by Akira Yoshimura .33c
(153) The Mermaid and the Drunks by Ben Richards .33c
(154) A Recent Martyr by Valerie Martin .33c

SEPTEMBER:
(123) Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi $2
(124) Replay by Ken Grimwood $2
(125) Branded Nation, James B Twitchell $2
(126) I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou $2
(127) Island by Aldous Huxley $2
(128) July's People by Nadine Gordimer $2
(129) A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan $2
(130) The Bridge by Iain Banks $2
(131) Dead Air by Iain Banks $2
(132) The Magician's Nephew by CS Lewis $2

AUGUST: looks like the worst, or best??, month for book-buying so far!
(120) The Song of Names by Norman Lebrecht .25c
(121) The Secret River by Kate Grenville .25c
(122) The Children of Men by PD James $1

JULY
(111) White Gold by Giles Milton (NNF) $1
(112) The Dangerous Book for Boys (NZ Edition) $2
(113) The Ghost Road by Pat Barker $7.99
(114) Bamboo Palace by Christopher Kremmer .50c
(115) Miramar Dog by Denis Edwards $2
(116) Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh .50c
(117) Beowolf translated by Seamus Heaney (free)
(118) Brick Lane, by Monica Ali .50c
(119) Freedom, by Jonathan Franzen $1 (new!)

JUNE
(102) Sum by David Eagleman $1
(103) Degrees for Everyone by Bob Jones $1
(104) The Calendar by David Ewing Duncan $2
(105) Apricots on the Nile by Colette Rossant $2
(106) Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys $5
(107) The Lord of the Rings- trilogy, by JRR Tolkein $2
(108) Double Vision by Pat Barker $2
(109) Black Holes and Baby Universes by Stephen Hawking $2
(110) Isaac's Storm, by Erik Larson $2

MAY
(89) The Rules of Engagement, by Anita Brookner .50c
(90) Lyrics 1964-2011, by Paul Simon, NEW! $21
(91) American Pastoral by Philip Roth $2
(92) The Other by David Guterson $2
(93) Closely Watched Trains by Bohumil Hrabal $2
(94) The Hours by Michael Cunningham $2
(95) Love and Other Impossible Pursuits by Ayelet Waldman 50c
(96) Where Angels Fear to Tread by EM Forster 50c
(97) The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James and $2
(98) The Waves by Virginia Woolfe $2
(99) American Gods by Neil Gaiman (free)
(100) From Oslo to Iraq and the Roadmap by Edward W Said (free)
(101) My Name is Asher Lev, by Chaim Potok

APRIL
(66) All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque $5
(67) What is the What by Dave Eggers $9
(68) The Unconscious Civilization by John Raulston Saul (NF) $8.30
(69) The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ by Philip Pullman $8.30
(70) Indignation by Philip Roth $8.30
(71) Songs of Enchantment by Ben Okri $8.50
(73) The Human Stain by Philip Roth $8.50
(74) How Late it was, How Late by James Kelman (Booker winner) $13.50 (most expensive 2nd hand book so far!)
(75) Sugar Street by Naguib Mahfouz $9
(76) Cosmopolis by Don DeLillo $9.50
(77) The Accidental Tourist by Anne Tyler $1
(78) Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S Thompson .50c
(79) The Regeneration Trilogy by Pat Barker .50c
(80) Sula by Toni Morrison .50c
(81) Arthur and George by Julian Barnes $3
(82) The Colour by Rose Tremain $3
(83) In the Heart of the Sea by Nathaniel Philbrick $3
(84) Good to a Fault by Marina Endicott $3
(85) The Accidental by Ali Smith $3
(86) Falling Slowly by Anita Brookner $3
(87) Skios by Michael Frayn $3
(88) Our Kind of Traitor by John LeCarre $3

MARCH
(40) The Antelope Wife by Louise Erdrich $2
(41) Under the Clock, Tony Harrison .50c (poetry)
(42) Tales from the Arabian Nights .50c
(43) Time's Arrow, Martin Amis .33c
(44) Aleutian Sparrow, Karen Hesse .33c
(45) Looking for Lionel, Sharon Snir .50c
(46) March, Geraldine Brooks $2 (Pulitzer Prize Winner)
(47) Used and Rare, Lawrence and Nancy Goldstone (from mum)
(48) The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
(49) The White Woman on the Green Bicycle by Monique Roffey (shortlisted Orange Prize 2010) $6.33
(50) Kings of the Water by Mark Behr $6.33
(51) The Emigre by Joan Brady $6.33
(52) Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez $4
(53) The God Boy by Ian Cross $4
(54) The Lemur by Benjamin Black $1.75
(55) The Tale of Troy (Puffin Classic) $5.92
(56) Black Beauty (Puffin Classic) $5.92
(57) The Hound of the Baskervilles (Puffin Classic) $5.92
(58) The Eye in the Door by Pat Barker $12
(59) The Gospel According to Judas by Benjamin Iscariot and Jeffrey Archer $3
(60) In America by Susan Sontag $3
(61) The Mysteries of Pittsburgh by Michael Chabon $3
(62) Starbook by Ben Okri $5
(63) Wolf Hall by Hillary Mantel $4 DNF
(64) Anne of Avonlea a Puffin Classic edition $3
(65) How to Look at a Painting by Justin Paton $5

FEBRUARY
(21) Family Matters, Rohinton Mistry (Booker shortlist 2002) $4 (given away)
(22) Offshore, Penelope Fitzgerald (Booker winner 1979) $2
(23) Infinite Riches by Ben Okri $5
(24) Tulip Fever by Deborah Moggach .50c
(25) Fosterling by Emma Neale .50c (got rid of)
(26) The Rape of the Lock by Alexander Pope $1
(27) An Uncommon Reader, Alan Bennett $1
(28) The Spy Who Came in from the Cold by John le Carre (Penguin Modern Classic) $4
(29) Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver $5
(30) Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson (Puffin Classic series that I collect) $4
(31) The End of the Affair by Graham Greene $4
(32) The Irresistible Inheritance of Wilberforce by Paul Torday $4
(33) Lord of the Flies by William Golding $5
(34) The Famished Road by Ben Okri (Booker winner 1991) $2
(35) Astonishing the Gods by Ben Okri $2
(36) Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner (Booker winner 1984) $2
(37) Anne of Green Gables by LM Montgomery $2
(38) The Time Machine, HG Wells $8
(39) The Red Pony, John Steinbeck $3

JANUARY
(1) The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai $4
(2) The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes $4
(3) The Quarry by Damon Galgut $4
(4) The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon
(5) The Body Artist by Don Delillo $3
(6) Old Filth by Jane Gardham $4
(7) Sexing the Cherry by Jeanette Winterson $3
(8) Lemona's Tale by Ken Saro-Wiwa $3
(9) Life and Times of Michael K by JM Coetzee $4
(10) Dirt Music by Tim Winton $1
(11) Voss, by Patrick White .50c
(12) Brokeback Mountain by Annie Proulx .50c
(13) Hans Andersen's Fairy Tales $6
(14) What Katy Did, Susan Coolidge $6
(15) The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery (as pressie) $3.63
(16) The Interrogator's War by Chris Mackey with Greg Miller (free)
(17) At One with the Sea by Naomi James (free)
(18) The Railway Children by E. Nesbit $4.95
(19) Kim by Rudyard Kipling $6.40
(20) The Swiss Family by Robinson, Johan Wyss $6.50

BOOK 91
Resilience by Anne Deveson (re-read)

I read this book about 8 years ago now. I read it the first time as I had read the authors account of her son's journey with the mental illness Schizophrenia (Tell me I'm Here). It was very touching and perceptive and well written. This book is also all of those things. More than being just about resilience though, it is a memoir of her later life, and an account of the death of a friend.

The author appears to have done everything and achieved so much in her life. Yet, she doesn't brag about her obvious intellectual prowess. She has a strong sense of social justice and has worked in various roles that allowed her to explore these themes as well as to be part of the solution. This book is really a philosophical musing on life, its difficulty, and on how it is that people overcome huge odds and adversity. 4 stars.

I guess it is now ok to show how early I am up and about in Malaysia. Congratulations on your new thread, Megan.

Nice new thread, Megan! Are you offering your visitors oysters on the half shell, oyster stew or oyster po' boys? I'll take an order of each, if you please.

ETA: Nice review of Resilience.

I found your new thread pretty early, Megan (not as early as Paul, though)! Yay, me. :-D

Hi Megan- Congrats on the "Oyster" thread. You will always be our Pearl! Hope your books are treating you well.

Hi Megan, I'm so sorry to hear about your grandfather but everything else in your life looks awfully exciting. I love the image at the top of your new thread. Very cool indeed. I finished reading about your neighbors in Hokitika and a mighty fine novel it was.

Megan, The Winter of Our Discontent really struck a chord with me when I read it last year. John Steinbeck is one of my favorite authors, too. I'm glad I had a nudge to read some of his lesser known works with the year-long Steinbeckathon last year.

I'll pass on the oysters but your thread is as shiny as a newly formed pearl!

ETA: I bought my first Lego mini figure! I got some kind of Ninja guy with a ray gun. My 6-year-old grandson will love him. I did some research and the librarian is from Series 10. My purchase was Series 11 so I didn't have a chance!

Any more news on your grandfather?

Steinbeck .... the love affair continues :)

Happy new thread! Love the images - but have mixed feelings about stuff made with books. As you said... as long as the book had served its purpose.

I love Steinbeck. I need to re-read a few. My oldest is starting to read some for school and it's fun to read along sometimes. I remember East of Eden as a stunning experience when I was in HS.

>6 PaulCranswick: hi Paul! Lucky #1 visitor, you score the highly sought after first place spot. And win.....all the power and the glory that goes with it. :)
I was late in starting a new thread as had barely realised November had arrived.

>7 kidzdoc: hm, Darryl, I don't actually like oysters. I would like to try a po'boy though, so would be happy enough to eat one of those even if it did have oysters on it :)

>8 rosalita: well done Julia, good finding :)
Wilbur says he is a "good-looker" as he always manages to find little toys that he loves at garage sales or op-shops. It cracks me up, turns out you are a good-looker too!

>9 msf59: Aw Mark! That is a lovely thing to say! hehe. *blush*
Books are treating me very well, today I finished 2 (The Winter of our Discontent and The Secret Island which I had been reading by the chapter to Wilbur). And then I realised I had forgotten to log my dads book, which you remember me mentioning that I had edited the proof of a while back, so I added that to this month too. Which makes it look as if I have already read 4 book this month! One a day!

>11 Donna828: Hi Donna- I just loved The Winter of our Discontent, I just finished it a few minutes ago. It is a very very clever and smooth read. I read my first Steinbeck last year (maybe the year before, it was The Pearl), and I was blown away by his style. I am so glad that I still have so much more of his to read!
Good work on following up so fast on the Lego mini-figures! And A+ on your homework :)
Watch out you don't get addicted- it is pretty exciting finding out what you have bought!

>12 roundballnz: the love affair continues :)
It sure does, Alex :)

>13 nittnut: hi Jenn :) I have so many of the larger volumes to read. This is both good and daunting, as I find loooong books a bit of a commitment and a gamble. It all stems from my need to finish books that I start.

BOOK 92
The Secret Island by Enid Blyton (kids fiction, re-read)
I read this chapter by chapter to Wilbur in the evenings.****spoilers**** He was very concerned about the childrens' parents having disappeared and was so excited to have reached the end of the book. Not so much for the happy conclusion, but for the fact that "he" had read such a long book! It was a favourite of mine as a child. 4 stars

BOOK 93
Andris, where are you? by Ron Crosby
(touchstone being brand new, is maybe taking some time to settle in?)
This is the family story of my father (the Andris of the title) and the events that led to his journey from Latvia to New Zealand as a small child in the aftermath of WWII. I proofed this edition and managed to find a few mistakes and suggested a few additions. *yay* Royalties will be forthcoming I am sure (haha, yea right). A wonderful family record for me, and the same text as my dad's earlier coffee table book called Odyssey and Images. 5 stars


BOOK 94
The Winter of our Discontent by John Steinbeck

The back of this book talks about Steinbeck retuning to "the social themes that made his early work so powerful". I love that social themes are the point, and that I feel so immersed in the world that Steinbeck created here.

****SPOILERS****
Ethan has a dilema. His family money is long gone, and his children are anxious to have more of everything that will restore their status in the community. They are surly teens, and a bit of a disappointment to their dad, who prides himself on his honesty and his integrity. His wife, Mary, is supportive of Ethan using a little of the money she has inherited to invest in some business deal that she prefers to leave to the men. Ethan has a series of thoughts that turn to realisations and decides to set aside his integrity for a minute, join the masses and make himself some cash. Meanwhile his children are entering a nation-wide essay competition to profess their love for their country.

The last 50 pages or so reveal the consequences of his acts, and give Ethan the chance to face himself, and to see if the "himself" he sees, is someone he wants to be around. 4.5 stars

Ooh, I don't think I've ever been called a "good-looker" before! I'm happy to be in good company with young Wilbur.

Happy new thread! Enjoyed your reviews, too. I think Steinbeck's The Winter of Our Discontent is a terrific book, but the critics of 1961 hated it. The nasty jibes he took over that book led him to stop writing FICTION altogether.

edited to add important word!

I love your new thread title :-)

>16 rosalita: you know you have gone too far though, when you go about saying to people "I'm a good-looker, ay!?" :)
I say take all compliments if and when offered.

>17 richardderus: ah ha! RD, now I know what you were alluding to earlier. I am wondering if I ought to upgrade it to 5 stars, as I have been thinking about it a lot. What did those nasty critics say back then anyway? And where are they now that Steinbeck is considered one of the greatest authors of all time?

>18 norabelle414: thanks! It's safe to say I am feeling positive about life right now :)

This is the one favorable major review of the book from 1961.

Most found its lack of redemption, and its seeming lack of condemnation of Hawley, to be disappointing. I don't see those things in the book at all, and was left bumfuzzled by the criticism. I can't be in the head of an adult of the era, of course, having cut my cultural teeth on Vietnam and Watergate and Norman Mailer and Norman Lear and Gore Vidal.

Dunno. The Nobel he won the next year must've felt pretty durned good.

Just catching up Megan and excited to hear about your potential plans to return to studying (social geography sounds really interesting) and sorry to hear the news about your grandad's poor health.

I still haven't read any Steinbeck but I will.... one day.

RD: ...and the gradual debasement of his honesty is absorbing and rather shocking to watch. It all happens to so effortlessly.
Hey- that reviewer from 1961 stole my thoughts! Thanks for the link. Maybe the angry reviewers were so disgusted with his pointing out that dishonesty had become the norm. Because they themselves could not face it.

Heather: nice to see you here! I am excited too, I have an appointment with the head of post graduate studies tomorrow to talk my way in to the geography honors course. *fingers crossed*
You could start with a little Steinbeck...he has lots of short novels. I have read The Pearl, Tortilla Flat, Of Mice and Men and Cannery Row. I would possibly recommend them in that order too.

Megan, my goodness! I'm sorry about your grandfather's stroke and the lack of up-to-date information. That's hard for all of you and especially for your father. Y'all take care of each other.
Love that opening image!
Love oysters!
Don't LOVE Steinbeck, but I respect him a lot if that's O.K.
Knock the geography man dead tomorrow!

CURRENTLY READING

Yay, I am the only soul on LT who has catalogued this book- I feel special :) So special that the touchstone is still waking up to the idea. Its title is: Place, Identity and Everyday Life in a Globalizing World. By Harvey Perkins and David Thorns.

As part of getting revved up to study I have sourced some good books. I have a kind soul in Iowa posting me a dream book (very excited about this one). I just got the above book from the library, and have requested that they purchase Social Justice and the City by David Harvey.

Seeing as these are all books that I might read anyway, I feel I am on the right track with my intentions to study this area.

I have yet to hear more about the job I was looking into at a Book Distribution Company....I am keeping all doors open and will accept whatever feels right if/when it happens.

>23 LizzieD: Hi Peggy!
I have to say I am shocked that you are not in love with Steinbeck. You know when you love something so much you think that everyone must? hehe, that is the case with me. But I respect your right to have your own opinion, big of me huh? ;)

Knock the geography man dead tomorrow!
I have to say, I read that and though...that is a little too much persuasion! lol
But I do intend to make my case well. I took a peek at my grade average and it is slightly below what is required to get in to Honors. The Student Advisors have sent a form to the Geog Dean called the "Waver of Pre-Requisites Requisition" form. Now you know you're in trouble when they need that.... But I am confident as our University has lost a lot of students since the earthquakes and they are *ahem* desperate for funds.

For my geography class I had to take for the GIS certificate program I told you about earlier the assigned text was a book called Why Geography Matters by Harm DeBlij. It was somewhat US centric but extemely interesting in how it discussed the effects of geography on social issues.

How exciting to be considering a job that has to do with books! Sounds like a dream come true to me!

It all stems from my need to finish books that I start

LOLOLOL. I think that may be something we all have in common...

>26 Cobscook: hm, interesting. I am looking at all kinds of books now that are text-booky. I am thinking about just reading whatever I can get my hands on that is related, to broaden my knowledge.
I haven yet to hear about the book job....I dont want to stalk the business owner, but I am getting impatient to see if he'll at least meet with me like he said he would :|

>27 nittnut: I just feel like I am not doing the author justice if I dont give their book a good chance. It has led to me reading entire books out of a sense of obligation though, and me getting very little out of it other than frustration and a sense that I tried!

Met with the uni guy...they'll have me! Yay! My grades were high enough to get in to a post-graduate course and they are able to accommodate my interest area. Only one problem then....(apart from childcare)...that they guy I talked to was a bit of a jerk. And he'll be overseeing my study.
It was only one comment that had me worried. We were discussing having young kids and how it changes you. He has young kids too, and said (he actually said) that his wife was getting dumber and dumber being at home with the kids. EEK.

Consequently I am looking into studying at the other local university. Just in case there is a super-lovely-friendly-person in charge there. It is the same distance away from my house, but into the countryside, so less stressful driving. And although they are a farming/land use university, they are very green (in practice and in study) so they might be able to accommodate me.
Rash?!? Me?!!?

So glad to read that you are going to take that wonderful mind of yours and give it some food for thought. You go, Megan!

>29 LovingLit: he actually said) that his wife was getting dumber and dumber being at home with the kids. EEK.

Can I just say Megan, that you do not want to be studying under this moron under any circumstances. These people do still exist in society but they should have no influence whatsoever on people who are actually trying to learn something. Geesh!

Tui: thanks! I have always seen my reading as "self-directed learning"...but to have my yearning for learning legitimised by an educational institute....that would be great!

Bonnie: I know. It was totally inappropriate. What I had said before he came out with his gem, was something like "I cant wait to sink my teeth into something intellectual, sometimes I feel like I go quite a few days between intelligent conversations".
He seemed more keen on getting me to sign up, than on talking with me about what it actually involved.
*disappointing*
But I am still pursuing my course of study!

A roller coaster morning it would seem Megan. What a jerk! Or at the very least one with a tongue that needs cutting out. SWMBO doesn't work and is sensitive to any comments she may feel disparages her role or capabilities. It is funny because I have a habit with the children and with friend's children of quizzing them on capital cities and world history. She is always the most enthusiastic participant shooting up her hand like the teacher's pet and declaiming "I Know!, I Know!". Apart from her being the perfect soul mate and real driving force in the family, it is at times like that I am reminded why she is the one!

See whether, exercising discretion, you can get another tutor in place of that Bozo. Even as a joke it is wholly inappropriate for a first meeting.

Maybe it was inappropriate for him to say but I've heard and read numerous women saying the same thing about themselves. It's usually while experiencing two or three busy years at home raising toddlers.
When I was involved at Playcentre where we encourage parents as educators and educate the parents about children's development and behaviour management, play theory, leadership and group dynamics, most women were appreciative that they could get a second chance at educating themselves.

Paul: I had 2 double shot coffees back to back after my meeting this morning (circumstantial rather than therapeutic) so I was ready to take on the world! Consequently, I have started the ball rolling on looking at post-grad studies at Lincoln University, also close to home, but oddly for a "farmers Uni" having more Human Geographers than the Uni I did my under-graduate degree at.
So worth looking into even if just to eliminate it. I have set up a meeting there to discuss my eligibility to enrol.

SWMBO doesn't work and is sensitive to any comments she may feel disparages her role or capabilities
I know how she feels, Paul. There is a real cultural problem I think. Women staying home as primary caregivers should be afforded the greatest respect and support, as we are giving up a lot sometimes, and doing the hard yards with shaping the children to become good and productive persons with strong emotional intelligence (hopefully). And I actually mean mainly women too, as stay-at-home dads get so much more credit for being just that. Even though I really admire dads as primary caregivers...I still say they get preferential praise for their role.

Kerry: I've heard and read numerous women saying the same thing about themselves
I was definitely one of them! In the early years, the breastfeeding made me cognitively impaired- I'm sure! Or was it the lack of sleep that went with it? lol- all memories now thank goodness (mostly). I am lucky that I haven't had to work, so have been able to use my evenings to read, which I label self-education.
And I haven't had the kids' days heavily scheduled so have been able to use those time for adventures like beach visits, walks, museum, library and catching up with friends who would sometimes indulge me in a philosophical/political/intellectual, or at least an emotional discussion.

ah! Here you are :) I misplaced you for a minute or two. I am not being very vigilant this week... sorry .

About your interview. Can you ask to have someone else oversee you? IS he an advisor or something? It's funny, I had a discussion with a patron yesterday who used to be a bank executive. She chose to stay home to raise her kids. This of course raises her in my esteem. She told me a story about going to a bank with her grandmother to help her open a checking account. In pre-business conversation it came up that she worked in banking, but when she replied to the question of which bank with none now, staying home with my kids, the woman helping them actually began to speak differently to her, as if she suddenly "lost IQ points" . TERRIBLE.

What is wrong with a society ( human beings ) that does not value the positions of child raising and home making? It shows the ignorance of those making the judgement.

You are a great mom, and that is going to be very important to your children one day. Even more important than it is now...

I am not a stay-at-home mom, nor in fact a mother, but it raises my hackles when I hear people refer to such women as "not working". Even I know nothing could be further from the truth!

Kath: it only takes a minute to misplace someone around here.
It is a widely held belief that stay at home parents are just cooks and bottle-washers. It just so happens though, that some one can be a chef and a dishwasher and also have brains! haha. I like to think so anyway.

Julia: Someone asked me my profession recently, and I said "full time parent". They looked at me wryly....I don't know why as I was totally serious. It is hard work, but that is not to say that other jobs aren't hard too.

Other jobs might be difficult, but absent nuclear-launch capabilities, no other job is anywhere near as important.

What rd said...

I wouldn't swap with SWMBO let's put it that way. She does have dear Erni to help around the place but I thrive on my work and would miss it terribly if I couldn't go to it. The kids would quickly send me stir crazy if I was forced into dealing exclusively with them. At the moment I am the good cop and Hani very much the bad cop in the family and I like it like that thank you very much.

RD: nice

Kath: what I said to rd....

Paul: sounds about right. Bad cops are the ones who tell it like it is +10, and good cops can pare it back to "like it is +1". Between the two the kids get the message in the end. haha. That would make me the bad cop in this house :)

I thought it was Lincoln you were referring to, better pick if you ask me ....... Sadly have heard similar stories coming out of Canterbury might be a cultural thing there.

Alex- hm. Interesting. The more I have been looking into this, the more info I am getting that is in that vein. I am meeting with the Lincoln folk tomorrow and from email contact alone feel more supported there already :|
That is so interesting about my old University. They were a cocky bunch back in the day, but I thought that it was just me and my shy retiring tendencies back then that made me think that.

Hope meeting #2 is better. Go Megan!

Thanks Kath! I hope to gather as much info as possible and have it all at hand if and when a decision must be made. Which will be after I hear about this book distributor job that I have yet to hear about.....*impatient*

Finally we have word from Latvia, the doctors say my grandfather is not expected to hold on for too much longer. They say that they were surprised at his strength in living this long after his stroke.
Luckily my dad is driving over from the coast this morning for business next week, so he can have some of us nearby for when news comes.

I have a newfound appreciation for how truly difficult the stay at home role is! I know I'm not looking after young ones, but I am truly tired at day's end trying to find a job, keep the house up, plan dinner, clean, cook, etc. I feel like no body understands that I'm really very busy, but I'm as busy now as when I was "working." So, I offer a big huge kudos to all full time parents out there!

(((Megan))) My thoughts & prayers will be with you & your family for dealing with your grandfather's illness. My love to you...

Hi Tina, Thanks for your hugs! I appreciate it :)
Busy-ness is funny isn't it- I am now so used to having such tightly-packed daylight hours that if I get 10 minutes to get something done, I do it in 5 and then something else with the other 5!
My lovely other is in a band, two of the work full time and are very busy outside of wok hours, the other two are unemployed and have little scheduled stuff in their lives. Yet it is always them who cant make it, or are late, or who pull out at the last minute. I reckon, the busier you are the more you manage to fit in. It is weird.

It's the structure issue. With structure comes discipline, and that breeds an attitude of responsibility.

Sad news re: grandfather. I hope his passing is easeful.

Congratulations on getting in to the program you wanted!

ERK! to the guy who thinks his wife is getting dumber staying home with the kids. Impossible. My brain is taxed to the limit (and it's a pretty good brain) on a daily basis dealing with the needs of three young humans with vastly different needs. So far today, I got up at 4 am with the 7 year old who has not adjusted to the time change, solved a wardrobe problem for the 9 year old, managed to oust the 15 year old (who stayed up until 2 am) from bed and get him ready for school, drive them all to school because they missed the bus, come home and do my own work, while also preparing dinner and cleaning house. Then they come home and you have to negotiate homework and music lessons while being treated to an one sided philosophical discussion with the teenager of whether God exists and why there is any point in following rules when it's just my opinion anyway (one sided because as any smart mother knows, there is no actual point in responding to this stuff) and how consequences are just a way of forcing people to do what you want... all the while, maintaining a calm and nonjudgmental demeanor. My secret weapon today? Thinking about going to see the new Thor movie. Sad but true. And fairly effective...

This, as all you other moms know, takes brains.

Sorry to hear about your grandfather. It sounds like he is a very strong person.

>50 richardderus: With structure comes discipline
Nail, head: direct hit!
My mum is funny too, she is retired, happily, and once wondered aloud if she would have time to come in and catch up with me on a Tuesday, as she had people coming over to her place on a Thursday. Her rationale being that she had to "get the place ready". :)

>51 nittnut: lol
Oh the things I have to look forward to!
And I thought trying to negotiate with a terrorist talk rationality into a toddler impossible. I remember fondly my teen years, and how I was always right, and how no one got me. ;)
You day sounds.....full!

Re: my grandfather.....he is strong. I guess you have to be to have lived through the loss of your family, the death of so many friends and relatives and the horrors of living in Soviet-then German- controlled Latvia, plus a gulag......he came to love the peace and tranquility of his garden and was so content working on it for his food supplies. On the night of his stroke he was out in his garden checking things as there was a storm. It looks like he collapsed during the storm, and was left there some time til morning and the daily visit from his son (my half-uncle). I wish we could get more frequent updates on his condition, but my Latvian rellies have their buys lives too I suppose.

Megan I've just read the story in today's DomPost with your Dad and explained to my husband how we are friends (you would think he would REMEMBER that I had met you for breakfast 2 years ago!!!!). Lovely article. I hope your grandfather isn't in any pain and your Dad is over in Christchurch soon so that you're together.

I can just see your Grandfather pottering around in that countryside wonderfully photographed by his son and captured in the book I cherish. I hope he has a lovely big garden wherever it is he is going to. xx

I would never have survived raising my 4 kids without some serious structure. And they are better for it. I am often baffled by moms who sort of let things happen, instead of controlling them. There is a tv commercial where a dad talks about how his little girl will only wear a princess dress. After a week, he persuades her to wear a sheriff costume so he can wash it. Eww. And really? Who is in charge? Kids need to learn that early. sigh. I am sorry that your grandfather is so ill, and join rd in wishing him a peaceful passing and gentle journey for his spirit..

hugs

Totally agree on giving kids structure. They thrive on it. A key for us was consulting with each other and giving them a unified POV. Not going to get from Parent A what Parent B said no to.

I am so sorry to read about your grandfather, Megan, and hope that he's being lovingly cared for.

We had a saying at work: if you want something done, ask a busy woman. I would have loved the opportunity to stay at home with my lads but it wasn't an option.

So- Grandfather Voldemars died last night, peacefully and quietly and if I'm honest, thankfully. He wouldn't have wanted to hang on too much longer I would have thought. My dads Latvian-speaking friend received the call, so we went up to her place to call relatives, and have a toast to an amazing man.

>53 cushlareads: hi Cushla- I had forgotten that his article (re: the new book right?) was going to be in the paper, and my lovely other was flicking through the Saturday Magazine and said- hey! There's your dad!. haha, the kids got a blast from it, seeing his photo in the paper :)

>54 PaulCranswick: thanks Paul :)

>55 mckait: I know Kath- I hear people say things like oh I had to do this or that with/for the kids...I'm thinking had to? Really? I am all for some form of choice being given, but iin my house both choices end up in an outcome I wanted anyway. I love that trick ;)

>56 jnwelch: Joe- that is genius. We are still working on that. I remember my mum always saying "Ill talk to your dad about it and we'll see", and my dad always saying "OK, that sounds alright"! :) About the same as what happens here.

>57 tiffin: thanks Tui
I would have loved the opportunity to stay at home with my lads
I do appreciate the time I have had here with the kids. I never could figure out how mums of really young kids could manage work and home with such little sleep and so much to always do!

mrsdrneutron stayed at home with our son while he was growing up. Well, "stay at home" is definitely an odd turn of phrase. Between the running of the household, volunteering at school, church stuff, etc, she wasn't home much at all. :) She eventually became the organizer of the main high school band fundraiser selling boxes of fruit - yep, she was the fruit lady - which directly led to her current job running an accountant's office once the son went off to college. Nothing dumber about her!

I'm very sorry for your family's loss. I believe that you are absolutely right, and that your grandfather was ready to move on... a sad time for you, I'm sure. hugs

Megan I'm sorry for your loss too and thinking of your family. What an amazing life he had.

I'm very sorry to hear about your grandfather. My thoughts are with you and your family.

>59 drneutron: exactly! There is so much stuff to do, and so much that you can do with the relative freedom of operating your own schedule at home. It is what you make of it, and without those who are able to "stay home" and go out and volunteer at schools etc, it'd be a much less rich society for all (and I dont mean monetarily).

>60 mckait: thanks Kath- I do love a good virtual hug :)

>61 cushlareads: thanks Cushla, by all accounts he was a real good sort, a dry sense of humour like my dad. I suppose humour can be genetic...it feels weird to miss someone that I have only met once. But his existence plays a big part in who I am today.

Megan, I'm skimming through, trying to catch up. I'm pleased that you got into the program and befuddled by the admission guy's comment. Even if he was trying to express sympathy (rather than contempt) for a full-time parent's need for conversation with adults (and my friends with toddlers occasionally reference this need), it sounds like it landed wrong. If you find a lovely-and-friendly admissions counselor at the other local university, at least you'll have choices to make! I think it's exciting that you are going back to study and it seems that your interest is in social justice related concerns? I'll try to follow along a bit more closely as you get started.....

I am sorry to hear about your grandfather's passing. Quietly though he may have gone, and perhaps with a touch of mercy, I know you will grieve his departure. Take good care of yourself.

>62 Cobscook: Heidi- thanks so much. Wilbur (5) is having trouble with the details. When my dad got up this morning (he stayed at our place the night), W asked him "do you know that your father died?". My dad replied, that yes, he did. W asked me if he had a drink of water before he died- it's funny what they wonder about

>64 EBT1002: hi Ellen. I did end up going to see the other university in my city (well, its just outside the city but on account of me being on the outskirts of the city anyway, it is as close). The Postgraduate coordinator there was wonderful. She seemed very interested in my needs as a student, rather than just wanting to get me in the door.
So Lincoln University looks like a goer. They have plenty of scope for study choice and a lot of outs if I want to pull the plug at various stages. *excited*
My poor old dad, he never was too interested in making a show of emotions. I am sure he is taking it hard, but as he said he was grieving from the moment we got the first news of the stroke 10 days ago or so.

Sorry to hear about your grandfather, Megan.

>66 SandDune: thank Rhian. It is kind of you to say.


THIS book is proving very intellectual/academic/conceptual and I can say in all truth that it is kind of putting me off! It is very frustrating as I am reading it slowly to make sure I understand it (and I am), but I cant help but feel like the authors are using a lot of long fancy words to say not much at all. And what they are saying is glaringly obvious for anyone who can think, at all. So.


THIS book, Autobiography (whaaaat? No touchstone?) by Morrissey, I got for my lovely other for his birthday (auspiciously the same day as my grandfather died)...ie: yesterday.
Anyway. It is a new book. An autobiography, yet published as a Penguin classic. Interesting! I wonder whether the gist of it is, that he wanted the book to be accessible price-wise, and so convinced the publishers to publish a new book under that series. Does anyone know?
I suspect he'd quite like the kudos as well.

There was a short piece on the news about Morrissey's autobiography a few weeks back. Morrissey wanted it printed as a classic of this imprint: http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/10/16/uk-morrissey-autobiography-idUKBRE99F0Q...

>68 kiwiflowa: thanks for that!
It instantly struck me as odd, that a new book, by a song lyricist, would be published as a Penguin Classic. I definitely think that there is space for the odd odd-ball publication though.

Megan- I am so sorry to hear about your grandfather passing. These things are never easy. Big but gentle hug, to my friend!

Safe journey home, Grandfather Apse.

*hugs* to you and dad.

Brava to induction lady at Lincoln University, too! THAT is how it's done, Doctah Sistah Maudie.

So sorry to hear about your Grandfather - sounds like it was a loving peaceful end though whish is probably what we should all wish for ourselves and family.

#58 Work + little kids = parental zombies. And it never ever lets up - not that it does for any parents, whatever they do! But there is a lot of negative stigma out there still for working parents which took me by surprise (one of my clients who, it turns out, thinks my child being in nursery is 'appalling). Sorry - prob should delete that all - the weekend has been unrelenting and I want to weep when I think about work in the morning.

Mark: thanks Mark. We are trying to think of something to write to be read out at his funeral. Writing is hard!

RD: thanks :)
May he be at peace for ever after- the hardships he has had means he has earned it I reckon.

Bekka: dont worry about deleting a good old rant! I love a good rant. "One of your clients" should keep their opinion to themselves I reckon! That is just mean thinking they can cast aspersions on your life and choices. In my experience it was better (and safer for both our sanity!!) for both mother and child for child to have some hours in daycare!

This morning has been very exciting!
There are very few places in the Christchurch area that would be as inconvenient to get a blown tyre as inside the Lyttelton Tunnel. It is nearly 2km long, and of course, I was equidistant from both ends when I got one.



The nice man from tunnel control came to my rescue with flashing lights just as I was scanning for an emergency telephone, and crawling along with my hazard lights on. He had already stopped traffic both ways, and drove beside then behind me at 5km/p/hour to the end. This seemed to take many many minutes *cringe*.

Wow, I thought- what prompt assistance! As it turns out he was coming to retrieve a brick from the carriageway.....a brick which I probably hit to make my tyre blow. He couldn't not confirm that, and I didn't see one, but the clunk was pretty loud. So yes, it is possible that I did shit a brick ;)

The knight in shining armor was very kind and friendly, he asked me a few times driving next to me if I was OK. I couldn't figure this out, as I was completely fine. Yes, 10,000 vehicles use the tunnel every day, but what could I do? I just drove slowly, and was thankful he was there to confirm I was doing the right thing. Afterwards he said that I had done all the right things, and had handled it very well. He mentioned that since the earthquakes he has had a number of people freak out in the tunnel, to the point of hysteria. I guess he had me pegged as something other than a cool cucumber :)

he has had a number of people freak out in the tunnel, to the point of hysteria
Well I don't know about 'to the point of hysteria' but I think that situation would have caused me to get at least half-way freaked out! Sounds like you were incredibly calm to me!

>74 LovingLit: *faints*awakes in hysterics*faints again*

My very very worst land-based nightmare...being trapped in a tunnel. Add sharks and I'm a dead thing. Well done you.

Rhian: the thought of earthquakes in that tunnel was enough to keep me out of it for many months. But Im OK with that now. There were a lot of people very anxious about being enclosed anywhere since the earthquakes here.

RD: So if I am to make a list of things that scare you it would be (in order)
1- Charles Dickens
2- Tea Party politics
3- tunnels
4- sharks?
Close?

PS when you come visit NZ, do not go to Kelly Tarltons Underwater World. They have tunnels under water with sharks swimming above. Probably Dickens literature in the tea rooms too....

I am off on holiday this weekend! Me and W are going on a road trip to Nelson.
I have been busy this week with so many things that I have barely been reading...it doesn't help that I have little or no interest in any of the 4 books I have on the go. :(

I did accomplish a few things though including writing something to be read out at my grandfather's funeral which is this weekend. I also made a traditional Latvian dish of bacon rolls (Piragi) to....what? To feel closer to him I guess. They tasted great, so I will make more today to drop some of at my sisters place.

I did 3 yoga classes in 3 days. Two of them were free which was irresistible and one was my usual one. I saw a movie called Thanks For Sharing which was brilliant, and I succeeded in finally finding a costume for W's school production coming up (aaaw!). Phew.

Right! Off to get coffee :)

Nice Megan! Happy to hear that you have a nice weekend coming :) Those book funks.. they sort of tip you off balance don't they? They do me. I lean on my reads, and if none of them are working... ooops!

The tunnel story is terrifying to me. ( But I'm okay with Dickens :)

Wow! Good job in handling the flat tire in the tunnel! That sounds like a nightmare situation to me. I hate long car tunnels too.

>77 LovingLit: And cats.

>78 LovingLit: YAY!! Sounds like a wonderful getaway!

Hey, home the weekend away was great fun, sometime to re group after the news .....

So was wondering if we are interested in doing the down-under "from my shelves thing" again this year ???

Okay, Megan, that tunnel doesn't sound like any fun under ordinary circumstances. *shudders*
A flat tire in there sounds horrible. I bet it's a common place for panic attacks!

Lincoln University sounds like a good fit. Of course, I think they are lucky to have you -- and I'm thrilled that they have a flexible approach to education. Congrats!

>79 mckait: hi Kath- I hadn't realised I had a message from so long ago just sitting there all that time.
I am still deep in my book funk....so much so that I started The Moon is Down in an attempt to wrench myself out of it!!

>80 Cobscook: thanks! It is a fun story to tell anyway :)

>81 richardderus: Hi RD, It was a wonderful getaway! Thanks. Now I am experiencing the flip side of that, the post-holiday come-down. Yikes, it has been a rough landing.

>82 roundballnz: Hi Alex...sometime to re group after the news .....
The news? If you mean sport results of any kind, I am afraid I am very out of the loop. Any hints?
I have thrown my hat in the ring for the (now) worldwide Xmas Swap, being run by Cameling/Caro. I am not sure if the deadline has passed for getting on that train.....I'll come back with a link.
eta: I see you already found it!

>83 EBT1002: Hi Ellen, the tunnel seems ages ago now. See what happens when you drive 700 kms in 3 days and dont go online for those days?
I wold hate to be in a headspace where I thought I might have a panic attack....let alone the thought of having one in a tunnel! EEK.

Book Haul!



.50c each :)

Nice haul of books! I have life is so good. Hope your road trip was great.

Hi Megan- Good to see you reporting back. What are your thoughts on The Moon is Down? I think it is a completely different kind of Steinbeck book, but a gem, never the less.
Let me know when you are going to start Tortilla Curtain, I've been meaning to get to that one for ages.

Sorry to hear about the ongoing book funk. I will say that when it's me in the funk.. I try not to stress over it and I read fluffy soft books if I can. Hope it passes soon.. Glad to see it isn't keeping you from finding future reads :)

Boo hiss book funk! The rest of the week will bring you only amazing and absorbing reads *whammy*

Hi Jenn: i have read Life is so Good a while ago now, I thought to read it again quickly then give it to my dad for Christmas! Clever huh?

Mark: I am about 10 pages from the end of The Moon is Down and it is very wonderful. Different, yes. I was interested to read something different from him, as his themes and settings are very similar from what I have read so far.
Tortilla Curtain I suspect I grabbed as it reminded me of Tortilla Flat, and as it is a lovely Penguin edition, which I am partial to :)

Kath: I had a bath last night to give myself uninterrupted reading time, and it worked I was relaxed. Loved the book and the experience if reading it. The last time I did that I nodded off a bit and dropped the book in the bath!! Only for a micro second, but still....not something to repeat :)

RD: ooooh, goody! An RD whammy. I love them. *appreciated*

BOOK 95
The Moon is Down by John Steinbeck (novella)

The exact location of the setting of this book is kept a secret, as the more important message is the theme of brutality and tyranny that come when a powerful nation occupies a not so powerful nation. We can guess that it is Northern Europe, though and that the tyrant is Nazi Germany.

I was interested to read in the introduction to this book, that it was disseminated as a tool for allied propaganda during WWII. That it was so effective as such was quite thrilling. The story itself does come over as quite simplified. The message contained within though, is pure and basic. That free people cannot and do not want to be oppressed. That they will fight for freedom any way they can, and that eventually they will get it even if it is through death. A great story with a great story behind it, and a nice change of scenery from Steinbeck's usual stage. 4 stars

The Moon is Down was my first Steinbeck and I was really impressed and have since read a few of his other books. The copy I read had an introductions which explained that it was propaganda and how it was illegally printed and distributed in German occupied areas which was just as fascinating to read.

Aaah, I'll always remember my first Steinbeck too :) (It was The Pearl)
People mimeographed copies off to distribute secretly....imagine!!? I wonder if people would take photos of pages now on their iPhones and fire them off and about that way? I hope never to be in the position where I seriously have to think about how to distribute propaganda secretly. Ya gotta love freedom!

The level of fear people have to live with when their country is being occupied or is at war is something that I can't imagine.

mmm, I think that every time I hear about Syria on the news. Families, like mine, wandering about hungry and frightened all the time. It is a hideous proposition. I so appreciate my 4 walls and what they represent. (even if they did wobble last night and get my heart racing!!)
eta- heart instead of heard :|

Hi Megan. When you stop and think about countries that are occupied or are part of a civil war it's certainly hard to imagine. I watch the news reports of Syria especially, and just shudder at the images but as far as actually imagining myself in that situation I just can't do it. It seems fictional. And yet it's real. And depressing.

Hi Bonnie-
..imagining myself in that situation I just can't do it.
I avoid TV news for just that reason. As much as I like to know what it going on, be informed etc, I feel like exposing myself to too much hardship and suffering is simply not good for my mental health. There are plenty of images out there that I cannot now un-see and it hurts my heart too much sometimes. I prefer to get my "news" in words so that I can pretend that what I am imagining cant possible be real.

I think The Pearl was my first Steinbeck too, followed by the Red Pony. Both read, way way back in grade school, when I was a snot-nosed kid.

Mark, you were a snot nosed kid?
I had you pegged for a suave gent your whole life! :)

Well, thank you, but I was a snot-nosed kid, but at least I was one that liked to read.

All caught up here, Megan! The tunnel affair sounds horrific - you handles it so much better than I would have. And so thrilled to see that you enjoyed The Moon is Down. I read that one for the first time last year with the Steinbeckathon group and loved it. You are reminding me that I need to get back to Steinbeck - my first book by him was Of Mice and Men, which I have reread many times since I was first exposed to it in middle school. My favorite so far, though, is The Grapes of Wrath...*sigh*...

Happy day to you, and much lack of tunnel-flat-tiring.

Mark: true. Snot-nosed kids who read are much more pleasant than snot-nosed kids who dont :)

Mamie: The Steinbeckathon group is what initially turned me on to Steinbeck- even though I didn't read one for any of the group reads for it! At our High School there were 2 English classes, the other one read The Grapes of Wrath.

RD: thanks. I have not headed back to the tunnel as yet. Not yet.

I am having heaps of fun today getting together a few boxes of books to sell next weekend at a fundraiser for a Sound Gallery that has just opened up (like an art gallery but with noise to hear instead of art to see). I am excited! I get to make piles of books, rearrange them, look at them, flick through and remember them, and put them in boxes :)
Plus, in a week and a bit, I will get to sit behind a table with them on it, and collect $$$ for them, all the while people watching and chatting and being toddler-free! :)

Nice review of The Moon is Down, Megan which I haven't read as far as I can remember (which is normally pretty far).

How was Nelson?

Hi Paul-
Nelson was great. I went to 3 craft breweries in one day. Consequently I am on day 4 of a fruit and vegetables (and coffee) only detox ;)

Your movie list on your new thread reminded me that I am now in an established pattern on seeing a film after my yoga on Tuesday evenings. The last three weeks I have seen...
- Captain Philips (loved)
- Thanks for Sharing (love LOVED)
- The Butler (really liked)
Tuesday nights are cheaper here, $11 vs $17 so I am all over it.

I cannot believe I am onto day 5 of a 5-day detox! I have been sooooo gooood.
*pats self on back*
My rules were to eat only fruit and vegetables (and a coffee a day), but on day two I added some daily protein (eggs or tuna). I have also cheated with a couple of oat cakes, cous cous, some processed tinned tomatoes/red kidney beans and a few bites of things I was cooking for the kids: just to test if they were cooked though.
I definitely have more energy and a new repertoire of vegetarian dishes!

BOOK 96
Place, Identity and Everyday Life in a Globalizing World, by Harvey Perkins and David Thorns

This is an academic text. It looks to me like various papers patched together, mainly as the chapters all contain an introduction and conclusion, with further reading tagged on too. It makes for tough reading as the most basic simple ideas are heavily conceptualised, which to me seems pointless. It is almost as if so much is being said, in such a complex way, about not much.

Every idea that can be has been referenced, which is of course distracting to a lay-reader. My bone to pick here is that some of the referenced ideas are so broad and, dare I say it- obvious, that they are surely common knowledge by now.

In NZ, as in many other countries, there has been a series of moral panics over the years (Soler, 1989).

Young people see these forms of communication {mobile phones} as 'normal' rather than new (Besser, 2004).

Not exactly revolutionary thinking, imo.

However, the book discussed some very interesting topics and gave me a good re-introduction to academic writing. I was very interested in the section on neo-liberal politics and sustainability. Discussion on the "dumbing down" of a society that is focussed on distractions like consumption, sport and mindless TV viewing was also fascinating to me, in that it captured some nebulous thoughts I have on that topic and articulated them for me.

It may be only 185 pages, but they pack those words onto those pages like there is a worldwide paper shortage. 3.5 stars.

"I went to 3 craft breweries in one day." Am, I hearing you correctly? That is sweet! I do not think I have done 3 in one day. You go girl!
Have you read Alice Munro or have any of her books in the stacks? She has quickly become one of my favorites.
Congrats on the detox! Yah, for more energy!

Mark, it is sweet!
All within biking distance from my friends place too. McCashins (which had a market, bouncy castle and pizzas), The Sprig and Fern and a Craft Beer place that sells all kinds of beers, called the Bel Aire. :)
Alice Munro I have never read and own nothing of :(

"Alice Munro I have never read and own nothing of.." Poor little Megan. Maybe someone could take care of you at Christmas time. If you didn't live across the globe I would drop a couple on your doorstop.

Oh, Megan, I've been so far behind. My belated condolences, please, on the loss of your grandfather. It's a sad thing to see that generation go.
The university jerk? I pity his poor wife. If she should snap and hurt him, you can testify on her behalf at the trial.
CONGRATULATIONS on your acceptance at the university. Lincoln, however, sounds like the real deal, and I hope you go for it!
Glad you loved your Steinbeck!
I should detox. It would take a month.
My love for The Luminaries never grew, and I'm frustrated and glad to be through it.

Mark: Alas, woe is me and my lack of enlightenment with regards to Alice Munroe (who is not to be confused but always is with Alice Walker....author of The Colour Purple). I shall WL an Alice Munro from the library asap!

Peggy: thanks so much for visiting and doing such a thorough catchup! I did feel a little sad again today when I was looking at international Christmas cards to send, and came across my grandfathers address in my address book. That first split second I went "oh, I'll have to get that organised to send with a photo" and then remembered....no. I wont have to at all.
You have reminded me to get on with my list of things to do to get into Lincoln properly....I got a little complacent after I got the nod :)

My first Steinbeck was East of Eden, which was on my parents' shelves, and I didn't like it at all. May have read it at the wrong time in my life. Next was Of Mice and Men, and that, of course, was a gooder. Last year's Steinbeckathon was chock full of ones I liked, The Moon is Down among them. My faves were Cannery Row, Sweet Thursday, and Grapes of Wrath.

Hi Margery, blowing through.

Joe: For some reason I wasn't ready last year to commit to a year of Steinbecks, but now I can look forward to his entire back catalogue, at my leisure. Cannery Row is the only one I have read from your faves, it reminded me a lot or Tortilla Flat, in name and in theme. I liked the two equally, I think.

RD: hello back. Check out my book haul! *exciting*

BOOK HAUL

The Reason of Things by AC Grayling (philosophy)
Runaway by Alice Munro (found one!)
Schindler's Ark by Thomas Keneally (another Booker Winner to add to my collection)
The Moral Law by Immanuel Kant
Metamorphosis and Other Stories by Franz Kafka
The Great Wall of China and Other Short Works by Franz Kafka
Psychology Fifth Edition by Peter Gray (text book)
All $2 each.

Excellent haul, Minerva! Excellent!

Why thank you :)
I also got The Yiddish Policemen's Society for a friend, as having hated it, I would never sully my own home with that book. She will like it though, as she loved Kavalier and Clay.

Very nice haul there .......

Why thank you :)
Lincoln Scouts fundraiser book sale. Cant go wrong. We went last year too and Wilbur said on the way "I wonder if I will find a Star Wars book again". Woah, good memory kid!

It's shaping up to be a beautiful Sunday here, 26degC and my lovely other has his work social club (and that thing is biiig) family picnic today.
We are talking Father Christmas, lolly scramble, running races, games, BBQ picnic lunch, beer, wine and fun. The kids have been looking forward to it with fervour.

And I am finally into reading again. That book funk was persistent! After half way, The Empty Family by Colm Toibin has finally grabbed me. I shall finish it today and report back :)

Happy Sunday everyone!

Have a great Sunday .... i do think summer has arrived & suspect its going to be another hot/dry one

Happy Book Haul!
Happy Picnic
Happy Reading! Ms. Margery Minerva!
Oh....do you know/know of a NZ photographer named Ian Rushton? I'm using his pix of West Coast NZ as my current desktop, both because they're gorgeous and because I was reading *Luminaries* and hoping for inspiration.

I shall Loftily Ignore your unpleasant comments upon The Yiddish Policeman, as it was a darn good read for me. Kavalier and Klay, OTOH, I couldn't enjoy.

I'm already thinking of a re-read of The Luminaries. I so enjoyed my time in Hokitika.

Yah for finding a Munro. Boo for dissing Chabon. Like RD, I was a fan of that one too.
There was something unsettling about the Empty Family. I liked some of the stories though.

Alex: yup, here's hoping! Today was grand. The kids are, as I type, running back and forth under the sprinkler in very little clothing.

Peggy: Ian Rushton I have not heard of. But as my dad said 15 years ago, every man and his dog are running around with a camera these days. :)
The West Coast of the South Island is so rugged and beautiful, seriously gorgeous and intense scenery.

RD: yikes. I salute you, your Loftiness :)
For me- reading The Yiddish Policemen's Society was an unpleasant experience. I barely got it. Kavalier and Clay I still intend to read, for reasons I barely understand.

Mark: I diss because I care. Me and Chabon have tried, but flogging a dead horse wont help anyone, this is why I have but one more of his on my list. (see above)
The Empty Family.....I am on the last story- well into it. And it is fairly disturbing, but I guess that's life. Not MY life, but some people''s lives....

Currently I am (post healthy eating) sampling a pint of my lovely other's darkest dark ale. Maybe it is a stout? Either way, you wouldn't shine a Nordic laser through that beer, it is so dark.

Jealousy abounds at an obviously lip-smacking stout.
Not jealous of you having to try to read Immanuel Kant

Some people like to rave and rant
Some people are obtuse, others indignant
Some authors it is a struggle to read
Some authors can cause an internal bleed
Some can manage him, but I'm sorry Immanuel, I can't.

Have a great what's left of Sunday and I hope you don't have too much of a headache on the morrow. xx

Oh dear, I foresee a tricky read ahead then, do I? Thank you for your lovely Ode Against Kant. :)
Ah well, at least it'll look good on the shelf!

No headache on the morrow, have already had a cracking good meal, and am on the waters. And its not even 6pm! I know when to say when.

I cant believe I forgot to announce last week that Wilby caught his first fish! We went fishing when we were away in Nelson, on my friends tin boat, the Kawai were biting and he caught his first ever fish. :)
His little friend was very kind and stated after he had caught two and Wilby none, that he was going to stop fishing until Wilbur caught one. He's a really sweet boy.

The second shot is all the fillets ready to go in the hot smoker. There are two layers. Delicious!

Well, look at that little fisherman! Is that his fish at the bottom of the pic? It looks like a good-sized one!

Congrats to Wilbur on his first fish! Great photo, too!

I'm glad you picked up a Munro, Megan. I've only read The View from Castle Rock but, like Mark, I'm singing her praises. I hope you enjoy the one you snagged.

Julia: that is his fish on the chilli bin (cooler) lid at the bottom of the picture. He didn't want to hold it up as it was too slimy :) He also claims the one I caught as his own.

Ellen: I have only learned about Alice Munro recently, and wonder where she was all my life seeing as she is hardly new. But that is information isn't it- you don't know it til you know it. Runaway has an introduction by Jonathan Franzen, so that pleased me too.

Hi Megan, happy Monday to you. :)

Hooray for Wilbur's first fish!

Hey Megan! I am not sure that summer will every come to Melbourne - we get a tantalising taste one day, and the next it's back to 16 degrees C. Meant to be improving this week before a cool spell next week. I think Munro falls into a category that, until she received the Nobel, just wasn't high-profile here in the nether parts. It is one of the joys of LT to hear so much about North American writers which otherwise would have passed me by. On the other hand, I think the US misses out on many British authors for similar reasons - blame the publishers!

Jenn: thank you!
My lovely other had the day off, so he tackled (not literally)_ Lenny while I went shoe shopping. It has been 2 years since I got a new pair, as I had been waiting for the surgeries before I paid up for new shoes. So I managed to find a comfy pair and am happy. I also happened to spot a fun green dress so snagged that as well. (I go shopping so little that it pays to buy when I see).

Prue: I hate to think of what authors I might be missing out on! Yikes. Thanks the good heavens for LT ay!?
Yesterday it was 26deg C here, and today its raining and cool. Fickle would cover it.

My new dress :)

Yah, for Wilbur's first fish, ( I am grinning broadly). And yah, for Megan's new dress, (winking broadly)!

Mark: I was grinning broadly when W caught his first fish too! That is a real milestone as far as I am concerned. Anyone can get a haircut or get teeth, but it takes a lucky kid to get to go fishing and catch something.
As for the dress, I fear it looks better without me in it!

I'm not caught up... but it looks like great kids, good books and new clothes. Carry on with the goodness :)

All right! Fish and shoes!!! AND a sassy new dress (which I'm sure is even better with you in it)! What's next, woman!

Successful shopping trip, yay! Love your green dress, Megan : ).

Trying hard to catch up on some threads today, Megan.... I'm so sorry to hear of your grandfather's passing. My belated condolences. I hope your dad is doing okay.

Congrats to Wilbur on his fish and YOU on a really cute new dress!

So happy for Wilby's first fish! A lifetime interest just might be born.

Pretty green dress. Unlike Mark, I won't be calling you a broad. :-P

Awww congrats Wilbur! Good to get him hooked at an early age.

FYI, pun was completely intentional ;)

Kath: goodness abounds. I have reset my eating as well, with my fruit and vege only from last week I now think twice about cramming in chocolate or packets of biscuits at a time :|

Peggy: What's next!? Um, Christmas is next :)
I plan to bake my Traditional Latvian Iced Christmas Biscuits again, and bake them in the truck load I will.
Also, I want to get some leg warmers to wear with my new frock. Call me crazy, but I think I can pull it off!?

Nancy: thanks- I actually dislike shopping so was very pleased that I got it over with so quickly, and with 2 purchases :)

Tina: thanks Tina. My dad reckons he did his grieving at the time we heard his father was so unwell, I am sure he is still going through it though, but as he is back at his place now it is only by phone that we chat.

RD: W and his little friend spent nearly an hour fishing off a little pier, with sticks and wool. They were so cute and innocent :) And funnily enough they did almost catch a crab!

Bekka: Now my lovely other will have to take him again. He loved it so much.
We have heaps of nice spots to go fishing nearby, but I have not seen as many fish biting as when we were in Nelson recently. They were jumping out of the water!

I know I've been reading too many spooky books for Halloween when I think, "The fish were jumping out of the water? OMG, WHAT'S LURKING UNDER THE WATER????"

LOL!
You have definitely been spooked out by Halloween reading! If there had been something in the water, I would have been the first to go as I have a slight uneasiness in being in a small water craft, a hundred metres from the shore.....
My biggest, and most irrational fear is a huge multi-tentacled deep sea squid. EEEEEEW.

Bravo to Wilbur and his seafood adventures. Lenny will soon follow I'm sure. The nearest I have ever come to catching crabs is.....oh well that's another story. xx

Paul, he bravely tried the smoked finished product too. And declared it disgusting. But at least he tried it!?
More about this other story, it sounds like it might have legs!

Love the green dress!
Do you know the song "If I Had a Million Dollars" by Barenaked Ladies. It mentions a green dress. ;-)

Lovely dress, Megan! I am sure it is a stunner on you!

Ellen: I do know that song! Weidly, I do. My older cousins ex-boyfrined moved to Canada and kept in touch with me as a young teen-ager. He sent me a cassette tape of the Barenaked Ladies when I was 13, and I felt very special having music that no one at school had heard of. Now anyone can have music that no one has heard of, but then? lol

Prue: thanks! The dress thanks you too. It was initially $169, but discounted to $50. I can handle that price for a Country Road dress! (it's only my SiL who will recognise it as last seasons)

Wow Megan that is my type of dress - discounted to less than a third of its original price. The green will suit you no doubt too.
My crabs story doesn't really involve me but a guy close to me so I better not spill the beans in case his wife stumbles upon these words and as she thought for years that a shared towel caused her discomfort.

LOVE Barenaked Ladies and all their songs. I like the dress too but most of all I love the sweet little fisherman Megan.

I'm afraid I'm with Richard and Mark on the question of Michael Chabon. Loved both Yiddish Policeman and Kavalier.

Love the new dress! Did you get shoes to match? If not, that's up next...

My son only listens to music nobody has ever heard of. Sometimes he finds good stuff. :)

Paul- you sound like you have interesting friends :)
My lovely other thanks his lucky stars he "got" me, as we both hate shopping for clothes and malls with a passion. He knows he could have "got" a (defacto) wife who ewas a big spender :)

Bonnie: I am actually (definitely) going to read Kavalier and Clay one of these days. It that wows me, I shall reconsider my opinion on Chabon, but if it doesn't (like all his others haven't) I will remain indifferent at best. I have said this before, that I have given him a jolly good try :)

Jenn: maybe the black flat-soled sneakers would suit the dress? And some leg-warmers? lol- If there is one thing I know, it is how to dress down an outfit!
Re: your son....have his friends heard of the stuff he is listening to? I know practically zip about "the music of today". It just dawned on me that my music collection has barely been added to in the last 10 years. I have added my lovely others collection to my own, but his are old too!

BOOK 97
The Empty Family by Colm Toibin

I was unable to feel much for this book through the first half. Although the writing was lovely, the stories told couldn't carry me along. But, about half way the stories changed from family relationships to sexual relationships. The excitement and promise that a new relationship holds is what got me interested. Although the sexual part of the more often than not gay relationships was fairy graphically described, it didn't come over as sleazy and it offered me a window into lives I have no experience of.

The final story is a lot longer than the rest and had the makings of a novel all its own. It describes the forbidden relationship between two Muslim men living in Barcelona. They are involved in a scam whereby they are working off the cost of passage home in advance of the actual trip. They are living in overcrowded shared rooms, and are at the mercy of their boss who controls every aspect of their lives. When the boss comes across two men in an intimate situation, he reacts violently which of course is the source of much fear and uncertainly of future for the men involved. Even though this story didn't end the way I expected or wanted, it was a special portrayal of cultural dislocation and dislocation within culture. This story I rated 4 stars, but the entire collection 3.5 stars.

whew ... all caught up ... you've been busy!

Megan - Hani likes to spend but as I do too I can't really grumble about it.

Megan, the Colm Toibin sounds interesting. Although it sounds like it has somewhat the same problem that I felt "TransAtlantic" had, which was starting way too slowly. Maybe if I read it I'll just skip to the good parts. :-)

Hi Stephanie: yup- busy in bursts. Evenings are good, even if I am often so tired I fail to get my hour of reading in.

Paul: You are a match made in heaven then! Like me and my lovely other :) We always "ask" each other if we can buy something, knowing full well the other person will not only agree, but often encourage the purchase.
Hani will have any ammunition on spending that she needs with a glance at your book piles!

Julia: I would stick with the final story in the collection if I were you (called The Street), maybe also the one about the death of an elderly aunt called The Colour of Shadows.

In my quest to latch on to something good, it seems I am reading all the the following books at the moment:



I think my aim should be to NOT start another book until I have at least finished half of these.

Wow, Megan, how do you juggle so many books at the same time? The most I've ever read at the same has been 4 books.

Hi Megan. It is awhile since I visited. I'm so sorry about the loss of your grandfather.

I love Wilbur's question to your dad.

All good wishes.

My first Steinbeck was The Red Pony which I read for 9th grade English. We analyzed that book to death! Luckily, I had to read The Pearl the following year and enjoyed that much more.

Great job Wilbur on the fish!

Next time I am in Monterey, I will take pictures for you Steinbeck fans. :-) It's just a couple hours south if me.

Caro: I have been reading the Penguin collection of American short stories for over a year, the Paul Kelly one I started and then have not looked at for many many months. And the others I am juggling. My first-grab is The Piano Teacher at the moment. I take it with me when I go out in case there is a minute to read. There often isn't seeing as Lenny is a runner, but I live in hope.

Linda: hello! How are you feeling? Thanks so much for coming by my thread :)
Thanks for your consolations re my grandfather. I appreciate it.

Hi Heidi: The Red Pony I have in a big book of short Steinbeck novels, also as a little hardback. But I lent that to someone and cant seem to get it back :)
I am very very good at lending books out and sometimes feel a bit stressed at the thought of them languishing, unloved, at someone elses house!

Stephanie: what a great idea! I would love to see some photos of that area. Although, a couple of hours is still a couple of hours. Do you go there much? (if so what for?)
Don't mind me, I am just being nosy. :)

Megan, I don't go often. Usually it's been to the aquarium with friends and family. But I have been meaning to go to see the Steinbeck stuff and need to go on more field trips with my camera. So I figured getting pictures for you might be the push I need to get out more. Obviously, it's right on the coast and there are many things to do and see.

If I am very good today and get at least one unit of homework done, I am going to take off for the coast sometime tomorrow for a photographic field trip. I love being there, I just don't love going there.

Oooh, that does sound fun. I love photographic field trips. I have never been on one unfortunately. My father being a photographer, I was forced as a child to sit for what felt like hours on end while he sought out shots. But myself? Not yet. :)

#162 - I wasn't aware of that particular Keri Hulme (The Bone People is one of my favorite novels). So it's short stories then? Is it good? The only other book I have by her is Te Kaihau/the Windeater, so this is wildly exciting for me!

I almost started Offshore the other day too, and may read it in December. I really liked The Bookshop, but that's all I've read.

>170 DorsVenabili: it is short stories. I have read part of the first one so far. (Lenny fell asleep in the car while I was bookless, and I happened to be near a library, so I popped in and grabbed it to read in the car). It is typically (from my experience with The Bone People) evocative and dialogue driven. I think.

Offshore is plain inexplicable. I do not get it, at all, so far. I am over half way through and wish I had the balls to ditch it! But I will carry on, as it is my goal to read every Booker winner one day :)

Congratulations to Wilbur on his first fish! And it seems as though he is mastering the art of telling fish stories already, by claiming your catch as his own.

In the spirit of thankfulness and good eating -
have a happy day and hug those cutie little ones...

>172 kidzdoc: Darryl, I fear he will take after my father in that regard! He is always telling tall fishing tales :) He was truthful though in talking about catching a salmon that was heavier than Wilbur as a baby, that was cool.

>173 -Cee-: thanks Cee!
Wilbur has atta-leddics day (athletics day) at school today. He announced to our neighbour yesterday that "tomorrow is going to be the best day ever cos I have got atta-leddics day at school and am going to do the far jump". HAHA, the far jump! I guess he means the long jump.

*****HAPPY THANKSGIVING USA-ites*****

Have a fab holiday and I hope you don't get caught in the mega-storm!!

Hiya, Megan. Thanks for the Thanksgiving wishes. We're taking it easy here in the (kind of) center of the U.S., without storms, after lots of good food. We're going to walk some of it off soon. Hope you're having a good one today.

I hope Wilbur's atta-leddics day goes well :)

Joe: walking off the big celebratory meal is one of the things I love about big celebratory meals. I hardly ever do it though! So good on you.

Kath: haha, thanks :)
I went to watch the tug-of-war and the running races. I am proud to say that I was a member of the winning team for the parents tug-of-war. And Wilbur came second in his running race. Year 0 boys were up first so thank goodness I didn't have to sit through all the 5 year old races!

Presently I am busy watching the Book Depository half hour sales, and have bagged myself 2 already! Mind the Child: the Victoria line for $4.60 and The Great Degeneration by Niall Ferguson for 58% off!........actual price $13 ish :)
This format is addictive, which is, I suspect, their plan.

I am much more a fan of their "10% of anything from your wish list" deals .... these 24 hour things often happen mid week when I am at work ....... no rest for the wicked :)

Alex: I have only come across a 10% off WL sale once, and I missed the deadline :(
But anyway, 10% is not enough discount for me, I love the mega discounts! At my work, I am allowed to tell my underlings to go to their rooms if they disturb me on my book shopping missions. Just one of the perks :)

Hi Megan- I wish I was off today, after a gluttonous holiday, but no such luck. I guess I will just have to walk off some of that food & fine ale.
Have a great weekend!

BOOK HAUL
(if you can call 2 books a haul, I mean- I'm no Paul C!)

And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks by William Burroughs and Jack Kerouac
Hegemony or Survival by Noam Chomsky

$1 each at the Sonic Garage Sale, a fundraiser at a sound art gallery that I was selling books at today. I made $60. And was very pleased that the Wizard of Chch purchased a dvd off me! (a film called I Shot Andy Warhol)

Megan, Please let me know what you think of the Burroughs/Kerouac. I'm not a big fan of Burroughs but am curious what a collaboration with Kerouac would read like.

I have never read any Burroughs, Stephanie, but I have read Kerouac and liked it. I will certainly report back when I read it! I was very impressed with the book as it is a lovely edition.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xL8rE9DT4g#t=186

You asked about Black Friday, this is an example....

Oh. Dear. That was very unpleasant, and quite saddening. Normally I would be unable to watch as my computer is too slow to see video, but here at my sisters for the day I can see, and guess what? I kind of wish I didn't see now!
That is a sad sad scene.

I agree. Sad, disgusting.. the personification of greed. Home is the place to be on Black friday.

Tut, tut, not only Paul C is a rampant acquisitioner. Paul S for example is only a few books behind me. Katie as always add a zero to the number she's read. Linda, John, Luci, Ilana and, well, Megan are amongst the many others who glory in adding stories.

Wilbur I trust was a star in the far jump. xx

Be interested to see what the book by Keri Hulme is like considering her low profile after The Bone People.

Hi Megan- I am not sure you saw my little pathetic post up there^ I never considered you one of the neglectful ones. One of those nefarious types, who rather not be bothered. Okay, I will stop and take a deep breath...
I hope you are having a terrific weekend, O' Nefarious One!

That is a mental video of Black Friday. Whoa, sad indeed.

>181 msf59:/189 Mark! I read and appreciated your first post, and then promptly neglected to reply. Thank you for bringing that to my attention, I would have hated to have left you unanswered for all eternity!
I am glad you got to walk off your gluttonous activities! I need to start walking for health again. I am nearly there as bought a pair of sneakers (more fashion than for walking) but once worn in they'll do for longer walks around town too.

>187 mckait: yup, Kath. I am not impressed by that sort of grabbing, pushing and complete lack of regard for ones fellow human beings. Imagine what people from the 1890s would think of that sort of society!

>188 PaulCranswick: OK, Paul C. You can try to make others seem like the big book buyers. But you have to be up there :)
So far, the Keri Hulme book is much in the same style as the Bone People was, I have hardly got too far though.

>190 lit_chick: Nancy- right you are. It is a hideous display of greed and consumption.
*trying to forget I saw it*

As someone who lives in a very large urban area people flock to on vacation, etc. I am appalled at what people in my area will do to get the so-called bargains. There are several Wal-Marts around and I refuse to go in any them because of their business practices. How sad it is that people think it's all right to hurt others, even kill others, for the sake of a $10 piece of junk. The whole thing is insane. Which is why I stay inside.

I feel much better now...thank you. Snickers softly.

Megan, I am hoping we hear more soon about your educational endeavors. What an exciting time for you. And shoe shopping! I'm glad you found something comfy for your feet and that fabulous green dress. I have avoided the stores like a plague because of the manic shoppers. I love ordering online and getting 'surprise' packages on my doorstep. I have a master list of purchases made for the grandchildren so I don't get too carried away. As far as books and current reading go, all I can say is that variety is the spice of life. You've got a little bit of everything going with short stories, classics, and...how to make gravy? That one intrigues me.

>192 AuntieClio: is that "Black Friday" stuff on the news? I mean, is it a news item that thousands flocked to Wal Mart (or wherever) and fought over bargains? I wonder if it is broadcast as an exciting shopping day for many, or as a sad indictment on humanity.

>193 msf59: *there there*
:)

>194 Donna828: hi Donna.
My educational endeavours are stalled as the courses have not yet been confirmed for next year. I have enrolled though, and purchased my official transcript from my old university, in order that it can me viewed and assessed for appropriate grades :)
How to make gravy refers to a Paul Kelly song. A lovely one as it happens. Here it is.
The first mention of gravy is at about the 2 minute mark :) (it does provide tips, if you are interested)

#195, oh yes there are news stories about people mauling each other at the local "big box" store for bargains. There are stories about people camping out for hours, even days waiting for the stores to open with their Black Friday specials. The tone is ... conflicted. We Americans are being encouraged to go out and spend, spend, spend while at the same time those who do go to extremes are poked fun at. It's not just Wal-Mart at which this happens, but it holds a special place in our hearts because it's easy to make fun of the people who shop there and be appalled at their business practices. I have friends and family who participate, but they don't behave as hooligans. Myself, I refuse to even acknowledge Black Friday exists as something other than a reason to stay home.

Stephanie, that is so interesting.
I am a notorious shopper-hater. I dislike malls (I have always felt edgy being in one), and the act of needing something (like clothing or shoes) always hangs over me for ages before I actually go and get something. I do like second hand clothes shopping though, for 2 reasons: the shops are small and mostly empty of shoppers, and the act of recycling pleases me. Of course I so buy other things and have been known to particularly enjoy buying books, stationery and kids presents.:)
I would certainly be with you in staying home on that of all days!

Megan,
I worked with a lady who wouldn't order online because she refused to pay shipping, she would rather drive all over the place to get what she needed. I told her I didn't mind paying shipping since it meant I didn't have to leave home, except to go to the post office to pick things up.

Which makes me sound like a hermit, but I have more productive ways to spend my time than shopping. And I don't understand the penchant we have for "going shopping" as a past time.

Thanksgiving is a 4-day weekend for lots of people and it's my firm opinion that no one should have to work who doesn't have to. And no one should pander to the retailers who see this as an opportunity (they invented Black Friday) to entice people to overspend. Over the years, the store openings have been creeping earlier and earlier. Years ago, a store opening at 6AM was unusual. But now there are stores opening on Thanksgiving afternoon.

I read a story today about a woman who had been in line at 4:30 for a store opening at 6AM. The store had $98 tvs for sale and the first random however many people in line got wristbands so they could take a tv home that day. She was complaining that she should have gotten a wristband because she was in line at 4:30 and, even though they were offering vouchers for the same tv to be redeemed when the store had restocked, was incensed she would have to wait until the store got more stock.

One of the security people told the checkers to close their registers to stop the flow of traffic out because people who didn't have wristbands were taking tvs anyway. This gave security time to get to the registers and check for wristbands.

I am always appalled when I hear these stories. Of course, it's not just the retailers who are at fault, if people came to their senses and stopped going, this nonsense would abate.

Stephanie: I don't understand the penchant we have for "going shopping" as a past time
My first realisation that shopping was seen by many as a hobby came when I was working to support people with disabilities in employment. I was at a high school class room and on the wall were posters that the kids had done about themselves. Almost all the girls listed shopping as a favourite hobby. I was shocked. I mean, I am slightly naive I suppose, but still. Consumption as a past time is so far off my radar.

I just finished The Piano Teacher by Elfriede Jelinek last night, this was after 2 or 3 nights in a row of trying my absolute hardest to stay awake and read for a few hours and failing miserably. This is no reflection of the book though- it is incredible. I will save the review for my next thread though, a I am still mulling it over in my sweet innocent little brain. Yikes, this book is full on.

#171 - Offshore is plain inexplicable. Oh, no! I'll probably read it anyway, but good to know.

#200 - Strange! I put this on my wishlist this morning, as it was a Goodreads recommendation, because I'm reading Faces in the Water (I'm not really sure what the connection is, but whatever.) Anyway, I'm glad you appreciate it, because I've read a few scathing reviews. However, it describes rather well to me, so I'm going to give it a whirl.

Hi Kerri-
Faces in the Water explored mental illness, a tortured soul and a tough life, and the Piano Teacher could be said to explore the same.
I saw your name on the recently added section of the book page, I was glancing for who I could discuss this book with. It is quite full on.
Offshore- feels boring compared to what I have just finished, but it might jut be that it is subtle where The Piano Teacher is explicit!

Megan, I took a bus tour of San Francisco about a year ago and as we drove through Union Square (huge shopping mecca with an enormous Macy's) the driver (male) asked what a woman's favorite thing to do. When a meek voice from the back said "shopping," he went on to say that this was the perfect place for women because of the shopping. Smart ass that I am, I said "well, not all women like to go shopping, some of us like to read and (holding up my camera) take pictures."