AuntieClio Reads in 2014 - Page 8

Pacifica, CA

Hi, I'm Stephanie.

This is my second year with the 75ers and am really happy getting to know more of you. I live in Silicon Valley and am a photographer with an online shop and write an advocacy blog called Party of One for empowering girls and women. lunisea.photography is now on Facebook

I also designed the 75ers t-shirts, etc. More of which you can find out about here Be sure to get yours so we can spot each other in a crowd.

These threads are where I'll keep lists and slice and dice the data said lists generate.

Running total

Monthly reading lists:
January reading list
February reading list
March reading list
April reading list
May reading list
June reading list
July reading list
August reading list

Counters:
ROOTS - aiming for 50 read and out of the house



Last year I read 104 but I'm keeping my goal to 75 in 2014.



Emptying and reshuffling some of the many boxes of books I own

Mysterious Box 38:



And as they go out, so too do they come in.

2014 Running Total
(updated at the end of each month)

2014 Total Books Read: 69
2014 Total TIOLI Books Read: 69
2014 ROOTs: 35

2014 Digital Read: 9
2014 Goes: 35
2014 Loaner:
2014 Stays: 25
2013 Undecided Status:

2014 Fiction: 53
2014 Non-Fiction: 16

2014 New Book Categories:
Tudors: 3
60s: 1
Beats: 1
Women: 3
History: 1
Politics:
Religion:
Spirituality:
Photography/Creativity: 7
Business/Marketing: 4
Fiction (Familiar Author): 36
Non-Fiction (Familiar Author): 6
Thingadingy: 6
Other: 7

2014 Books Bought: 29
2014 Gifts: 67
2014 Downloads: 20

Best/Most of 2014
Best of January:
The Color Purple by Alice Walker
I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak

Most Fun of January:
Aloha From Hell by Richard Kadrey

Best of February:
Dust by Hugh Howey
after the quake by Haruki Murakami

Most Useful of February:
The Wizard of Oz and Other Narcissists by Eleanor Payson

Most Interesting of March:
Who Am I This Time? by Jay Martin

Best of March:
Dune by Frank Herbert
Nation by Terry Pratchett
Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan

Best of April:
Just One Damned Thing After Another by Jodi Taylor
A Second Chance by Jodi Taylor
The Robber Bride by Margaret Atwood
Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood

Best of May:
The Story of Lucy Gault by William Trevor
The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
My Name is Red by Ohan Pamuk

Best of June:
Maus I, Maus II by Art Spiegelman

Most Fun of June:
White Fire by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Childs
Redshirts by John Scalzi

Best of July:
Cannery Row by John Steinbeck
A Trail Through Time by Jodi Taylor

Best of August:
Howl and Other Poems by Allen Ginsberg
1/2 The Doomsday Book by Connie Willis (This story about 1348 England was really good. The rest, not so much)

Proposed Rules of Engagement

1. To read what I already own


2. If acquiring new books they must fall roughly into the following categories:
   
   
   
   • Tudors (especially Elizabeth I)
   
   
   • Beats
   
   
   • Psychedelic 60s (mostly 1967-1970)
   
   
   • Women (a rather large category, but in spirit, means women who fit into other loosely defined categories)
   
   
   • Religion/spirituality (particularly early religions)
   
   
   • If fiction, must be by someone I have already read (trying to avoid starting new series by new authors)
   
   
   • Politics (but mostly in terms of other loosely defined categories)
   
   
   • History (most non-fiction will be history, meant to be collective for books which don't fit in other loosely defined categories)
   
   
   • photography
   
   
   • business/marketing
   
   
   • Space Program (Apollo)
   
   
   
   
3. 75 in 2014 is the main goal, not TIOLI


4. Books cannot be purchased simply to fit a TIOLI challenge.

Mysterious Box Count

Mysterious Box 36 - Done


Mysterious Box 38 - in process

Mysterious Box 38 - 31 books

Adams, Douglas - Life, the universe, and everything (goes) (March)
Adams, Douglas - The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (goes) (March)
Adams, Douglas - The Restaurant at the End of the Universe (goes) (March)
Allende, Isabel - Eva Luna (stays) (June)
Allende, Isabel - The House of the Spirits (re-read)
Aristophanes - The Acharnians, The Clouds, Lysistrata (re-read)
Atwood, Margaret - Alias Grace (April) (Stays)
Atwood, Margaret- Cat's Eye (April) (Goes)
Atwood, Margaret - Robber Bride (April) (Stays)
Buckland, Raymond - The Witch Book: The Encyclopedia of Witchcraft, Wicca and Neo-Paganism (Pearl Ruled) (June)
Chaikin, Andrew - A Man on the Moon (re-read) (June) (Stays)
Coel, Margaret - The Shadow Dancer (re-read)
Herbert, Frank - Dune (stays)(March)
Herbert, Frank - Dune Messiah (goes) (March)
Herbert, Frank - Children of Dune (goes) (March)
Herbert, Frank - God Emperor of Dune (goes) (April)
Herbert, Frank - Heretics of Dune (goes) (April)
Herbert, Frank - The Jesus Incident
Herbert, Frank - The White Plague (Pearl Ruled) (June)
Herlihy, James Leo - Midnight Cowboy
James, P.D. - The Children of Men (re-read)
Kinnan Rawlings, Marjorie - The Yearling
Lane, Roger - Murder In America: A History
Le Mee, Katharine - Chant: The Origins, Form, Practice, and Healing Power of Gregorian Chant
Orwell, George - 1984 (stays) (March)
Peters, Ellis - Hermit of Eyton Forest
Pipher, Mary - Reviving Ophelia (re-read)
Steinbeck, John - Cannery Row (stays) (July)
Tannahill, Reay - Sex in History (stays) (August)
Thurston, Carol - The Eye of Horus (re-read)
Turow, Scott - Presumed Innocent (goes) (June)

Authors new to me in 2014:
Alsanea, Rajaa
Achebe, Chinua
Catton, Eleanor
Gardner, Erle Stanley
Coetzee, J. M.
Ghosh, Amitav
Godin, Seth
Guy, John
Hearne, Kevin
Kostova, Elizabeth
Le Guin, Ursula
Martin, Jay
McCloskey, Deirdre
Miles, Barry
Mukherjee, Bharati
Pamuk, Orhan
Payson, Eleanor
Sagan, Carl
Sloan, Robin
Spiegelman, Art
Stabenow, Dana
Stephens, Walter
Tannahill, Reay
Taylor, Jodi
Trevor, William
Turow, Scott
Turtledove, Harry
Willis, Connie
Yousafzai, Malala
Zafon, Carlos Ruiz

Completed July Reading
63. (G)(F) The First Rule by Robert Crais - TIOLI #6. Read a book set somewhere you have been on vacation (Los Angeles)
64. (S)(F) Cannery Row by John Steinbeck (Mysterious Box 38) (Californian author) - TIOLI #11. Read a book that centers on People, Places, or Things (Rolling challenge) (PLACE)
65. (G)(F) A Perry Mason Omnibus by Erle Stanley Gardner (gift) (Californian author) - TIOLI #19. Read a book whose author is from a country that competed in the 2014 World Cup (US)
66. (F)(D) Fuel to the Fire by David Staniforth - TIOLI #4. Start a series and continue if you want
67. (S)(NF) Ginsberg by Barry Miles - TIOLI #14. Read a book where the author has only one A in his/her name
68. (F)(D) A Trail Through Time by Jodi Taylor - TIOLI #11: Rolling Challenge Read a book that centers on People, Places, or Things
69. (G)(F) How Few Remain by Harry Turtledove - TIOLI #13. Read a book by a living author who is older than you are (b. 1949, 65)

---

New to the Stacks:
93. The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid (gift) (Thank you Mark!)
94. The Gifts of Imperfection by Brene Brown (gift) (stays)
95. The Martian by Andy Weir (gift) (stays)
96. Old Man's War by John Scalzi (gift) (September) (goes)
97. The Ghost Brigades by John Scalzi (gift)(September) (goes)
98. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz (gift)
99. Trapped by Kevin Hearne (gift)
100. Tricked by Kevin Hearne (gift)
101. Enchanted Inc. by Shanna Swendson (gift) (Thank you Tina!)
102. Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami (gift)
103. Hounded by Kevin Hearne (gift)
104. I Thought It Was Me by Brene Brown (gift)

New Digital:
A Trail Through Time by Jodi Taylor (gift)

July Total Books Read: 7
July Total TIOLI Books Read: 7
July ROOTs: 3

July Digital Read: 2
July Goes: 3
July Loaner:
July Stays: 2
July Undecided Status:

July Fiction: 6
July Non-Fiction: 1

July New Book Categories:
Tudors:
60s:
Beats:
Women:
History:
Politics:
Religion:
Spirituality:
Photography/Creativity:
Business/Marketing:
Fiction (Familiar Author):
Non-Fiction (Familiar Author):
Other:

July Books Bought:
July Gifts: 13
July Downloads: 1

Proposed August Reading
Lincoln's Dreams by Connie Willis (gift) - TIOLI #2: Read a book with a Top 50 Event listed in its Common Knowledge section (American Civil War) COMPLETE
The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings (Mysterious Box 38) - TIOLI #23. Read a book that was on your shelf unread when you joined LT and remains unread to this very day
Shadow Dancer by Margaret Coel (Mysterious Box 38) - TIOLI #18. Read a book in which one (and only one) word in the title contains a suffix (er)
Doomsday Book by Connie Willis (gift) - TIOLI #17: Read a book featuring time travel and is not written by Jodi Taylor COMPLETE
Sex in History by Reay Tannahill (Mysterious Box 38) - TIOLI #10: Read a book with a title that is also catalogued by a different author (Gordon Rattray Taylor) COMPLETE
Bellwether by Connie Willis (gift) - TIOLI #19. Read a book that you told someone you would
Murder in America by Roger Lane (Mysterious Box 38) - TIOLI #12. Read a book which has a word (only a noun, verb or gerund) from the title in the final chapter (murder)
The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami (gift) - TIOLI #9: Read a book that starts with "The" then 1, 2, 3 or 4 words after in rolling order (3)

Completed August Reading
70. (G)(F) Lincoln's Dreams by Connie Willis (gift) - TIOLI #2 - Read a book with a Top 50 Event listed in its Common Knowledge section (American Civil War)
71. (S)(P) Howl and Other Poems by Allen Ginsberg - TIOLI #5 - Read a book whose cover image contains text only--no pictures or images
72. (D)(F) Second Star by Dana Stabenow - TIOLI #1 - Read a book with a two-word title, with each word beginning with the same letter
73. (S)(NF) Sex in History by Reay Tannahill (Mysterious Box 38) - TIOLI #10: Read a book with a title that is also catalogued by a different author (Gordon Rattray Taylor)
74. (G)(F) Doomsday Book by Connie Willis (gift) - TIOLI #17: Read a book featuring time travel and is not written by Jodi Taylor

---

August Total Books Read: 5
August Total TIOLI Books Read: 5
August ROOTs: 2

August Digital Read: 1
August Goes: 2
August Loaner:
August Stays: 2
August Undecided Status:

August Fiction: 3
August Non-Fiction: 1
August Poetry: 1

August New Book Categories:
Tudors:
60s:
Beats:
Women:
History:
Politics:
Religion:
Spirituality:
Photography/Creativity:
Business/Marketing:
Fiction (Familiar Author):
Non-Fiction (Familiar Author):
Other:

August Books Bought:
August Gifts:
August Downloads:

*smooch*

Howdy

Glad your birthday dinner was lovely!

I mailed your book today. :)

I figured out Harry. I had to join Rowling's website (Pottermore) to read it. It took some time & was more of a hassle than I had anticipated, but hey. It's JK!

So, I had to search for it, but I finally found it. It's written as a newspaper article by Rita Skeeter. It was too short, but fun to read!

New thread! New Thread!

Glad your birthday turned out to be an upper, Stephanie!

I read the Potter article (more accurate description than a story) too.

Impressed by your stats!

Randee and I went to Califia Cafe for dinner tonight. It was started by the chef for Google.

We had:
Duck Dumplings - fresh ground duck, shiitake mushrooms, ginger, scallions, sake, sesame oil. Served with dipping sauce.
These were amazing, no picking of anything off to make them palatable.

Crispy Pork Belly Buns - sous vide house-cured pork belly, red-miso aioli, pickled habañero peppers.
Once we figured out which color sauce had the habaneros and dispensed with it, these were fantastic. A sort of deconstruction of Chinese Pork Buns.

Guanciale Burrata Pizza - Zoe's cured pork cheek, burrata cheese,
tomato sauce, fresh oregano
BORING, bland, the burrata was slimy because they put it on the pizza cold. How can pork cheek be bland?

Rating: Would go back for the duck dumplings and pork belly buns. Would try other things on the menu. Do not recommend the pizza.

For dessert, ice cream from Tin Pot Creamery. Let's just say that we should have started here. This is gourmet, handcrafted ice cream at its best.

Randee had: lavender blueberry swirl and salted butterscotch
I had: lavender blueberry and peach zamble (peach cobbler) with berry compote topping.

So going back repeatedly.

Oh, holy moly, that ice cream sounds amazing!

Oh, Duck Dumplings sounds gorgeous. Happy New Thread, Stephanie. I like the photo in >1 AuntieClio:.

>18 AuntieClio: That ice cream does look good.

Happy new thread, Stephanie! And I missed your birthday! Sorry about that - happy belated birthday to you, dear! Your dinner sounds yummy (well, not the pizza), and the ice cream sounds positively decadent!

New Thread AND another Birthday! Many birthday blessings my dear!

"...lavender blueberry and peach zamble (peach cobbler) with berry compote topping."

Oh my. I had a Pavlovian visceral reaction to THAT! *wiping drool from keyboard*

I missed your birthday but I'll drop off some belated good wishes anyway.

I really need to read Cannery Row

>12 richardderus: Richard, sweetiedarling, apple of my eye (or somethinglikethat), you will be sent a signed, numbered, limited edition of a postcard featuring my photography. 'cause you were the first to drop in on the new thread.

>13 luvamystery65: Hi Roberta :-)

>14 TinaV95: Oh hi Tina, thank you. I'll keep a look out for it. I will get to the Harry Potter article this weekend. Thanks for the directions.

>15 Berly: Berly! Happy to see you! Happy to see you! :-)

>16 ronincats: Hi Roni. Thanks.

>17 JDHomrighausen: Hi JD. Thank you. There's no Aramaic or Hebrew in the lot of them, but one does what one can. :-)

>19 scaifea: Amber, it was so fantastic. There were lots of families with kids so we got to tease them. One little boy got cookie monster ice cream and came over to show us his cone. They make a little smiley face on it! When we pointed this out and commented on how cute we thought it was, he just looked at us as if to say, "duh!"

Anytime I get $5 I think I can spend on a luxury item, that's it right there.

>20 Ameise1: Barbara, the duck dumplings were amazing. And thank you. :-)

>21 thornton37814: Lori, fantastic ice cream.

>22 Crazymamie: Mamie! All is forgiven. Thanks for popping in.

>23 michigantrumpet: Marianne, I know right! I'm scheming to find a reason to drive to Palo Alto and go back. When my ship comes in, I want one of each and two of the lavender blueberry swirl!

>24 SuziQoregon: Hi Juli, thank you. The more I read Steinbeck, the more I love his style.

At 55, I still get birthday money. Yay for birthday money. I was given explicit instructions to spend it on a treat. So I went to see Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix at the IMAX Dome in downtown San Jose. I had enough left over for popcorn and soda. Plus, I had the entire row to myself. What fun!

Also, this was my reward for getting my ass out the door to do laundry. I hate that.

Stephanie, I wish you a wonderful weekend.

I hear you about laundry, my friend! For the first time in WEEKS I was entirely caught up on every stitch of laundry in the house -- not a thing needed to go in the machine. That is until we undressed for the day! Then it startled all over again.

Happy weekend!

>27 AuntieClio: I did laundry last night, but I forgot to go back to my bathroom to gather stuff so I accidentally left out a pair of PJs and a washcloth and towel that I'd intended to launder. Oh, well. It will wait until the next time.

Saturday *smooch*

Errands run, including some groceries for Don. I think it's time for a piece of cake and a nap. :-)

Also doing the laundry, dishes marathon today. I vote for cake, nap, cake!

Fuel to the Fire by David Staniforth - TIOLI #4. Start a series and continue if you want

Ptui ... this should have been a thumping great read what with the wizards, and the dragons, the girl disguised as a boy to survive in her world, and then the girl finding the small breakdown in the border between worlds, and the evil emperor who tortures handmaidens for fun ...

It shoulda been fun but it really wasn't. It became predictable what with the girl is discovered to be a girl and then falls in love, the son who takes over the dragon training because his father is injured, the mother who loves the girl like a daughter, the prophecy what can't be unraveled ...

It could have been fun despite the spelling and grammatical errors. And it might have been fun if not for all the things listed above and the horrible, horrible cliff hanger.

On that other reader social media site, the only place I could find any information about the author, Staniforth states "‘Fuel to the Fire’ has been sitting on my hard-drive since 2005 waiting to be released. " It should have stayed there.

>1 AuntieClio: WOW...no words for the beauty of this photo!

I am going to a tapas place for lunch tomorrow and I think I need to try anything that comes this way, "Prepared in a smoked paprika wine butter sauce."

Oh dear, Stephanie.

1. I missed your birthday!
*sobs quietly*
May this year be one of your very best.

2. You cannot possibly be 55. Can. Not.

3. Somehow I hit a wrong key and red-x'ed your thread. Geez! Here I was, wondering where on earth you were...

4. Great photo at top.

5. You are amazing with your statistics. I can barely manage to number the books I read. Barely.

Have a peaceful Sunday. xo

ETA: Just caught up with previous thread. I'm so sorry about Don. It is very hard, almost impossibly hard. Thinking of you.
{{{Stephanie}}}

ditto what Gail said above regarding Don.

Yummy, tapas and books with Scott. :-)

Here is my haul:
The Gifts of Imperfection by Brene Brown
The Martian by Andy Weir
Old Man's War by John Scalzi
The Ghost Brigades by John Scalzi
The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz
Trapped by Kevin Hearne
Tricked by Kevin Hearne

And just to make you all a mite jealous, my copy of The Martian is signed. (No, he was not at the store when we went.)

>28 Ameise1: Hi Barbara, I love the ant pushing the bubble of water. Thank you!

>29 michigantrumpet: Marianne, right? urgh? I liked doing laundry much better when I didn't have to schlep it somewhere. Not that having machines in the abode made me like doing laundry, it just made it easier.

>30 thornton37814: Lori, oh *owch*

>31 richardderus: Richard *sunday smooch*

>33 Berly: blergh ... and I took your suggestion for cake, nap, cake :-)

>35 Whisper1: Linda, thank you! That was a great day.

>37 Matke: Gail, I'm still accepting birthday wishes. And yup, 55.

Oh noes! The dreaded red X!! I'm so glad you found me again.

>38 Whisper1: xoxo

Boy do I have stories to tell!

There's a chain of sandwich shops called Togo's, which started in San Jose, CA. They make sub like sandwiches and are pretty good. I'm on their email list, so every year I get a coupon for a free sandwich to celebrate my birthday. Print the coupon, take it in and present it before the expiration date, get my sammich when I buy a soda. How hard can that be?

The manager at one shop wouldn't allow me to get my sandwich because it was before my birthday. He said I had to go in on my birthday. Nowhere on the coupon does it say this. It just says, "Happy Birthday Stephanie" and has an expiration date of the 15th, a week after my birthday.

The sandwich maker is a young man with enormous dimples and a beautiful smile, and he just stops in mid-sandwich when he hears this. I politely disagree, and the manager repeats that I have to go back in on the 8th. I ask him why if it was meant only for my birthday there was an expiration date. He had one of those "uh oh, I'm in trouble now, better start tap dancing" answers.

"Well, I disagree," I say again, and shrug.

The manager replies with, "Oh you come in on the 8th and I'll give you a free soda too."

I know there's no way he's going to remember he said that and shrug it off. Meanwhile the sandwich maker is standing there looking like he feels really awkward, so I ask him to go ahead and make the sandwich and I'll pay for it.

Besides being hungry anyway, I did this because I didn't want the poor kid to have to deal with the awkwardness of tossing a sandwich he started because his manager was too much of an idiot to just give me the sandwich.

So yesterday, I stop at a different Togo's to get my sandwich. No one batted an eye, except to ask for my ID to verify that I really was the person for whom the coupon was meant. A few minutes later, I was out the door with a free sandwich and a soda.

The first shop? Lost my business for good. The second shop? Will continue to get my business whenever I'm in the area.

Beautiful mild weather today in downtown Mountain View, CA. Perfect for meeting a friend and enjoying some good food and conversation.

Scott and I met at Cascal for tapas. Oh. Dear. God. I need to start making money so I can go back repeatedly.

The completely wonderful:
Crab & Shrimp Tostaditos: Crisp tortillas topped with fresh crab, shrimp, chipotle aioli, guacamole and crema

Fresh Watermelon Salad: watercress, marinated cotija cheese, citrus herb vinaigrette
Just bring me the entire watermelon!

Ahi Tuna Tartar Ceviche: Fresh diced Ahi tuna tartar, diced pineapple, cashews, spicy sesame soy vinaigrette, guacamole, daikon sprouts
Really, just keep it coming until I swoon from happiness

Scallop Ceviche: Scallops, coconut and lime sauce, marinated diced mango, Serrano chiles, pickled red onion

The meh:
Brazilian Shrimp & Rice Croquettas: Green rice, rock shrimp, cilantro, green onions, jalapeno pepper, dende oil, jicama and green apple salad

Wild Mushroom Empanadas (3) - With Manchego cheese and truffle oil
nice light crust ... but ... meh

Nearly perfect:
Pumpkin Spiced Bread Pudding: Made with fresh pumpkin, spices, served with a bourbon caramel sauce and house made vanilla ice cream
Scott and I are both wild about bread puddings, and this one was nearly perfect except the bourbon caramel sauce was a little burned. It was not inedible, but kept the dish from being the success it should have been. Hopefully, a word with our waiter, Christian, telling the cook to ease up a bit will put things right for other customers.

The service was fantastic. There was live jazz guitar. What a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon!

After lunch, we strolled down a block to the used bookstore. Because, as has become our tradition, Scott buys books for us after our meal. Today was all about me.

As we walked to the register to check out, I noticed the cashier maintaining her cool as she told the customer that the non-fiction section took up nearly the entire store. What was the customer looking for?

Oh, biographies and autobiographies. Celebrity? Politicians? What specifically? Oh, please go right ahead and browse sections x & y.

I looked at the cashier and made some joke about not asking for the book with the blue cover, and she just grinned. This customer had asked for the non-fiction section and then treated the cashier like she was the dumb one. Then the cashier proceeded to tell us about the two times she's actually had customers come in and ask for the book with the blue cover. We grinned and left, Scalzi, Hearne and Diaz tucked into my backpack.

A few doors down is a Books, Inc. A smallish bookstore which sells new books. I was on the hunt for Brene Brown, a Ph. D. at University of Houston College of Social Work who specializes in shame and vulnerability. Her work is powerful and I have been wanting to get some of her books for quite some time now.

I stepped into the Science Fiction section, no doubt distracted by the shiny, shiny covers of aliens and whatnots. There, I found the second in a series of John Scalzi. And while I was trying to remember Andy Weir's surname, Scott went to the self-help section and found Brene Brown.

As I was walking up to the counter, there, like a shining diamond lit by the heavens opening and a heavenly chorus singing, was a signed copy of The Martian. Yes, you book warblers you (I'm looking at you Jim and Richard), part of my birthday gift is a shiny new copy of this book you have dubbed as near perfect.

So as we were laughing, we noticed the non-fiction questioner from the first bookstore in line. And she is holding a copy of The Goldfinch. My very inside voice said, "Uh ... you do know that's not non-fiction, and not a biography or auto-biography right?" My outside voice kept its cool until we were outside the store and headed to my car.

"Scott, did you notice ...?"

"Yeah, and that's not non-fiction either."

*snicker*

What a truly lovely day. What a great week this has been. I require more of this in my life. I'm building a list of restaurants I will revisit or visit for the first time with good friends and conversation.

A great day after the not-so-great sub shop person. Smart move to change locations.

Okay, I want tapas. Except it's bed time.

What a great day! And I just finished The Martian tonight! I thoroughly enjoyed it. Great story with lots of adventure and humor (okay, and math)! If you enjoy it half as much as the lunatics (Who shall go unnamed) who have been raving up and down the LT threads, then it will be a hit. Totally jealous it is a signed edition. : P

I can't believe that the sandwich guy wouldn't give you the sandwich?! Wha?! When I get into a situation like that, I think I probably make things worse, because I can't help but laugh (usually pretty hysterically) at how absurd the person is being. *sigh*

Just dropping a star, not quite caught up but yay for the ( finally ) free sandwich and WOOT for the Martian..

Oh, and belated happy birthday!

A good week to ya, Stephanie!

>48 scaifea: Me too, Amber. How can one take these loons seriously? Although I certainly would change locations, as Stephanie wisely did.

Hi, Stephanie. Sounds like a wonderful week. I loved your description of the bookstore visit. We definitely got "it has a blue cover" requests when I worked at one. One time we even had two people working on a movie being filmed come in and ask for "two shelves worth of hardcover books". Background for some scene. Once we determined the length of the shelves and that they didn't care what books, we packed up two shelves' worth of our most expensive. They blinked not, paying and arranging for pickup.

I loved The Martian, too. Richard posted a Youtube video of the author talking about the book that I liked a lot - it began as something to entertain readers of Weir's blog, and had quite an interesting journey to publication.

Made me smile to see Cannery Row as your best of July so far. Such a great book.

Perfect, perfect birthday celebration. *smooch*

What a great couple of days, Stephanie! You were due!

Yay for more good days!

Hi!

>46 Matke: It's easy to get angry when things like that happen, but it solves nothing. And really, they're on the losing end, because he's lost my business and if all my LT friends lived in the area, none of you would go there either! :-)

I am plotting and scheming on going back. Well, I just have to ask Scott because he said we could go back anytime I wanted. Really, I could have ceviche, watermelon salad, and bread pudding until I looked like someone from a Monty Python movie.

>47 Berly: I will try to remember to scan the autographed page of The Martian. Weir's signature doesn't really look very much different from Don's.

>48 scaifea: There was a lot of eye rolling and laughing once I got into my car. And then even more when my sister-in-law and I talked about it later.

>49 mckait: Hi Kath! Thanks for dropping by.

>51 jnwelch: Joe, wow! Two shelves of hardback books, no expense spared? Do you know what the production did with them after they were done?

>52 richardderus: *smooch* It was a pretty great week.

>53 ronincats: Thanks Roni. I really was due wasn't I?

>54 TinaV95: Hey Tina, thanks!

>55 Berly: Hi yourself Berly!

Tonight was the last night of the free coupon food, so I headed out to Armadillo Willy's for a barbecue sandwich. I got to pick, so it was the tri-tip for me. Fries and a soda, a comfortable place to sit and plenty of room to read. Verra verra nice.

And now I'm back home to cogitate over this week's Mara class homework. Last week was all about who I am and why I'm the right person to build the business I want to build and what is that business. This week is all about who my customers are and how to find them.

Lots of interesting answers coming up. I've had to really dig deep for this class. And some of it I don't understand, and I'm okay with that because I know when I figure it out (with help), it will be great.

Me, with the redoubtable Allen Ginsberg, portrayed in his livelier days.
Taken at the Beat Museum, North Beach, San Francisco, CA

Ginsberg by Barry Miles - TIOLI #14. Read a book where the author has only one A in his/her name

To say Ginsberg is a hero to me would be like saying chocolate tastes good. Both true statements, but also understatements. Barry Miles' autobiography just cements this status for me.

Miles makes it clear that he worked for Ginsberg for several years, and knew him socially before then, when Ginsberg walked into the bookstore in London Miles worked in, looking for a place to stay. In some ways, it is precisely this friendship that makes Ginsberg an informative read. It is also because of this friendship which allows for Miles to get in deep, and to pull no punches when the flaws and foibles of the people in this book come boiling up.

There's no real true new ground covered here, but Miles lends a more friendly, "insider," look to Ginsberg's life than other biographers.

One notion this book solidified for me is that without Allen Ginsberg, there would have been no Beat Generation, no Poetry Renaissance in San Francisco, and someone other than William S. Burroughs would have been dubbed the godfather of the punk rock movement.

Although Jack Kerouac was the first published of the core group (Burroughs, Ginsberg, Kerouac, Corso and Cassady), it was due to Ginsberg's efforts that his friends got published. He shopped their manuscripts around mercilessly, convincing publishers these writers were genius and needed to have their voices heard. I have quibbles with some of those voices "needing" to be heard, but that's personal taste, which cannot be measured objectively.

The thought that Naked Lunch and On the Road might never have been published is intriguing. What would the world of literature would have been without these seminal works of the Beat Generation?

Whatever problems people had with Ginsberg, and there were many, they all agreed that he was gentle and kind, and generous, both of spirit and pocketbook. He seems to me to be the only writer of that generation bent on learning about himself, expanding his knowledge of the world and spirit of the world. He was ever expanding his consciousness by experimenting with drugs and traveling the world to learn of other peoples and cultures. Ginsberg's motivation to dig deep led to his activism and advocacy on behalf of a number of causes including equal rights for homosexuals, legalization of marijuana, fights against censorship and the Vietnam War. He often got himself in political trouble with his forthright opinions and was expelled from Cuba and Hungary for his views.

I'm sure there is much he probably regretted throughout his life, but he worked so hard to overcome with love and openness, that he really can be seen as one of the angels.

Weird Al Yankovic's new video, Word Crimes is delightful.

Aha! Okay, so you *are* a Ginsberg fan!

I enjoyed the Weird Al video - thanks for pointing it out.

My claim to fame: He momentarily sat on my lap during a concert.

>57 AuntieClio: Isn't that something, Stephanie? Books as a movie prop, expense no object. We got a big kick out of it, and it was a nice infusion of cash for the husband and wife store owners. I don't know what they did with the books afterwards, but I sure hope they had somebody take any not snatched up by movie workers to a library or used bookstore.

>61 scaifea: Amber, yup. I read Howl and Other Poems at least once a year.

>62 streamsong: Janet, Weird Al in your lap? Was that weird for you?

>63 jnwelch: Jim, What movie companies do sometimes is just insane. I'm hoping those books found a good home when they were done with them.

Happy is the Auntie who receives the phone number of her 11-year-old niece and is given permission to call and hear the sunny voiced Mary Tyler Moore of her heart.

Who gets to giggle over favorite ice cream flavors and hear exclamations of wonder of white stallions trotting in the acreage to the delight of a young girl.

Happy is the auntie who reassures her niece that vanilla is too a flavor and it's all right to like it, especially when it comes to ice cream.

Happy is the auntie who hears I love yous and sends them back, who remembers the tow-headed girl held in her arms who refused to stop hugging or lift her head from my shoulder.

My troubles are not gone away, but they are lighter because I have this blessed young woman in my life.

Oh, and blessed is the auntie who receives a gift certificate for books.

Isn't it wonderful to have such a lovely niece. hugs xx

>67 Ameise1: It truly is, Barbara. We had our longest conversation ever tonight, and I was so delighted with her. Things are tough in her household right now, and I love that I can be a stable loving adult who can express my love unreservedly. I don't know who's more excited to be able to text and call, Jena or I. :-)

Stephanie, you're fantastic. It's so important for a teenager to have a close adult to speak to.

>69 Ameise1: Aww thanks Barbara! She's so adorable I can hardly stand it. This morning she texted me just to say good morning! How sweet is that? She is going to text when she gets ready for bed, and I am going to call and tuck her in. :-)

HAH!!!!! I have a place to get dressed for and go to Tuesday morning! For money!!! For at least three months!! And it's only 10 minutes from home. Kermit the Frog!!!

ETA: And I didn't even have to interview!

Thank you Tina!!! Enchanted Inc. by Shanna Swendson (gift)

>45 AuntieClio: loving this discussion about the book store visits. Methinks that woman should have been directed to the reference area -- to look up the definition of non-fiction.

>71 AuntieClio: Hooray!

>71 AuntieClio: SUPERMEGAULTRAYAY!!!!!!!!!!!!

Three different people today told me that I looked the least stressed I'd ever looked, one even said I looked happy.

"Yeah, for someone who doesn't know how she's going to pay her rent in August, I am unreasonably happy."

And then several hours later, BOOM! There it is.

So so happy for you!

One friend told me he was relieved and I was able to keep myself from saying, "YOU'RE relieved?"

*deep happy sigh*

I want to go out and do something but that would mean getting dressed in outside clothes and I don't know where I would go. Plus I'm still broke for at least another 10 days, so I still have to watch my pennies. But holy ... !!!!!!!!

Congratulations!!

Excellent!

Congratulations, Stephanie. I wish you a fabulous weekend.

Holy guacamole!

Stephanie, I'm thrilled that these two wonderful things, the niece contact and the job (hurray!) happened for you this week. Plus the book shopping and the lunch...

Let's hope that this is the start of a permanent upswing in your life!

(((Stephanie)))

Great news, Stephanie. Congratulations on the new job and all the positive things happening - you deserve it!

Watched a really great Swedish movie called "Sound of Noise" last night. It's about 6 drummers who commit rebellious acts of percussive music around the city and the tone-deaf detective who catches them. The detective comes from a line of talented musicians, his brother is the renowned conductor of a symphony, which brings all sorts of embarrassment and discomfort to the detective. I would have given it 5 stars, but there was one particular detail that wasn't explained which aggravated me to no end.

About 10:30AM today, this text message arrived, "Hi Auntie SEA, you can call me now."

Who am I to say no to such a command? Jena was at a friend's house last night when I sent her a text so we didn't talk. This morning she was so apologetic about it, so I said, "no, it's fine, I'm glad you were having a good time."

Lovely phone call with a close friend who had the universe deliver in a big way for her last week. We spent a lot of time talking about how blessed we have been with positive happenings lately.

Extremely lazy day today. Making plans to get ready and into the rhythm of having a regular early schedule. No more naps or late night reading for me. I must make sacrifices in the name of paying the rent. :-)

Stephanie--Congratulations on the job front! And I am glad you and your niece are having such fun together. Your joy is just shining through. : )

I think I need a bit of a lie-down, just spent a good hour going through the website of the educational institution I am to start working for tomorrow.

I am EXCITED!!!!

Took Jess to the train station this morning and she asked if I was nervous. I'm not very, truly not ... I can do this job, was doing it for three years before the layoff. Contemplating some language barriers with a very diverse student population, mostly from China and Japan (or so it appears). I am excited at the prospect of having steady income again.

I am also excited that my commute will be ~15 minutes instead of the behemoth 45 - 60 previously. It looks like there's no squabbling over parking for staff, and no frickin' shuttle to fray my nerves.

Also, downtown means places to eat, drink, go, do and see. It appears to be just a few blocks from the IMAX I go to for Harry Potter movies.

Not quite a year ago I said I wanted to go back into high tech, and that I wanted a year off. This does not mean I'm giving up my advocacy or my photography, only that now I have a steady income while I figure it out. The universe has been paying attention. :-)

It's a giant xerox machine...you got your proof...

Stephanie, I've been away but it looks like I got back just in time to add my hearty congratulations to everyone else's. Wonderful news about the job and about your niece, too. I'm very happy for you, and I know this will lead you on to bigger and better things.

How completely precious is it that Jena and I read to each other tonight? She said that she stays up until midnight (!!!!) (repeat after me: she is not my child, she is not my child, I am not her parent) that she would text me earlier in the night because she thought that might be too late for me.

I read a couple of paragraphs from the Ginsberg biography, being very careful to avoid things and to explain others as we went along. It was just a couple of paragraphs about him going to Tel Aviv in the late 1980s. I was able to explain in very broad terms that there had been a lot of fighting going on over there, and if she watched the news with her parents she might have heard something.

It was also fun to figure out how to explain to an 11-year-old girl living in rural podunk South Dakota who Ginsberg was and why he was important to me.

I made her promise that if anything I said or did wasn't of interest to her, she was to tell me. That I wouldn't be mad. So as I'm reading, I'm asking her if this is interesting and her voice just lit up, "YEAH! It really is."

*swoon*

Thank you all for your good wishes. I feel like a complete shirker for not answering each and every comment, but I find I have nothing of value to add except this: Thank you for your support and encouragement, you have all made this easier.

Okay, NOW the nerves show up. Had a dream that I couldn't find my clothes and was going to be late but, of course, couldn't find a phone that worked or remember the agency's number so I could call and say I was going to be late.

A few minutes ago, the agency called and my heart leaped. "No, nononononono," my heart cried. I have to stop there on the way in and fill out some paperwork.

So, start time late enough for me to get up and ease into my morning. Breakfast had, glass of water drunk, now on to finishing making lunch and getting dressed.

Feel like I need to cry, but I know I got this.

>90 AuntieClio: New job nerves rot on ice, don't they. So glad you know you got this!

I'll be anticipating hearing all about your first day this evening!

Ready ..... set..... oh wait don't go quite yet, papers to fill out

Who wouldn't have a bit of adrenalin going?

Good luck! Dazzle them like the gem you are!

Anxiety dreams are a bummer, but they are just that -- a way to get rid of some excess energy and anxiety.

Hoping all went well today. It may take a couple days to get into the swing of things, but it will happen.

Happy Days! Happy Days!

Sending good wishes ...

Heartiest best wishes on your first day f of an excitiing challenge. Take the fullest confidence in the fullest confidence which so many of us here have in you. Sure it will turn out great. xx

Oh, I'm loving all the good and exciting news here, Stephanie!! WOOHOO!!

I stirred the pot today. Things with the employer are fine, just doing verification letters for the Registrar's office as needed, which means I get paid for hanging out when they have no letters to do. Sweet :-)

But .... when the recruiter called this morning, he told me I needed to update one form. Turns out, I need to update the whole lot of them and since I was starting an assignment this morning, I HAD to fill out most of them which made me late to work. I still have a folder of forms to complete and drop off tomorrow morning.

The parking situation really makes me mad because I was not told. ITU does not provide validation, or pay for temps. I have to pay every day I come to work. Right now, paying for parking is a hardship for me. So I asked for a dollar an hour raise to cover the expense. I just think it's ridiculous that I have to pay for parking to come to work, especially when so many businesses in downtown validate or pay.

I got a really terse, "Call when you get off work and we'll chat" reply.

I am the QUEEN of free sandwiches from Togo's!!!!! Free birthday, buy one get one free yesterday, and on Thursday, another freebie! I'd like to thank the universe for keeping me fed this month. :-)

Just stopping by to say I'm thinking of you.

Good luck with the paperwork and the parking situation! Sending good vibes.

More books added to Mount TBR. Slowly, oh so slowly I am building a lovely completist library of Murakami. And I want Iron Druid in paper form so I can share with Randee.

Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami (gift)
Hounded by Kevin Hearne (gift)
I Thought It Was Me by Brene Brown (gift)

Well. :-)

Paperwork all sorted. Timesheet sorted. Plus raise in pay to cover parking expense (no one at the agency knew about the parking situation and were almost as appalled as I was about it).

So far today, I've been catching up on email, Mara class, and LT.

Have done exactly one letter for work. Also, I have work email.

Feeling much better about the entire situation. Just need to hang on until the first paycheck arrives.

Wonderful! Glad to hear they were copacetic about covering the parking! That was somewhat unexpected on my part. You are on a roll, between work stuff, Togo sandwiches, and book haul.

>104 ronincats: and there is a Togo's right downtown on the way home so I can just buzz by to get my sammich tomorrow night! Aside from adjusting to the new hours, it's all good now. (I'm still struggling with going to sleep at an earlier hour so I can wake up reasonably to get to work on time.)

Thought this might go well on your sun visor.

Perfect! xoxo

The actual client has been fine. I'm left to my own devices, which include my iPad for music and a book. :-)

And now that I have what I need to operate from the agency, I think we're done with them for a while.

The Moose That Roared by Keith Scott - Pearl Ruled.

ETA: I may Pearl Rule this one. Just realized last night that I am not enjoying the book even to close as much as I enjoyed Rocky & Bullwinkle. Was too tired to swap it out for another one last night.

I'm glad you've got everything sorted out and you are settling in to the new job. I remember when I went from working part time to working full time, it was quite an adjustment mentally. Apparently my brain had been used to spinning down into hibernate mode after 4 hours. :-)

>110 rosalita: Julia, yeah I'm going through that hibernation cycle. "What do you mean I have to stay awake? I've been upright for a few hours now. I demand a nap!" Unfortunately I'm at the back of a wide open office, facing everyone else so nodding off would be highly embarrassing and not advised.

At least I was smart enough to start the retraining process a few days ahead of time, although the napping did not help I'm sure. But I lurves me naps. :-)

Over the summer I sit at our office's reception desk (our student workers all abandoning us to go home, the ungrateful wretches) and I hate being out in the middle of the room where everyone can see me, compounded by not necessarily having enough to do (at least work that I can do at that desk). It's always a relief to retreat to my cubicle over the lunch hour and hunker down in (semi)privacy.

We need to make naps at work a thing!

Oh the students at the last place I worked were constantly asking what we were doing for break. They didn't understand why we would burst into laughter. Sometimes they would come back for Fall quarter and ask, "So how was your summer?" Uhhhhh .... I worked and tried to get caught up on all the things I couldn't get done while school was in session.

There was one faculty member who would come to me and regularly bitch about not having enough vacation time and how she was digging her feet in so she could take her kids to ... Hawaii, Disneyland, some other cool place. I just thought, "Lady you are bitching to the wrong person. I would love to be able to afford Hawai'i again."

We get at least one call every week from someone who wants to know if we're open during summer break. Uh, yeah. Of course we also get students are peeved that advisors don't have appointment hours in the evening or on Saturdays. One of them wanted to make a date to meet the advisor for happy hour!

>114 rosalita: LOL ... I just have a hard time imagining how they think that sort of behavior is okay. Of course your advisor isn't available in the evenings or Saturdays, they have lives too. And happy hour??? WTF?

I was just commenting to someone that the conversations in the Registrar's office, especially with regards to the international students are eerily similar to where I worked before. "Oh, I can't attend because I didn't fill out important government form? Nobody told me." (*puppydogeyes* Please do it for me.)

Working with international students is very interesting, for sure. You can say "no, I can't do that" over and over and over and over and they will just keep asking until you want to scream. It took a long time for me to figure out that in many of their home countries, that's just how bureaucracy works — the bureaucrat says no repeatedly and then eventually says yes. So they don't realize that for us, if we say no we can't, that means that no, we really can't.

Mind you, understanding where they're coming from doesn't make it any less infuriating to deal with!

>116 rosalita: Oh yes, gotta love that. "But what if I completely rearrange my schedule and take classes out of order and take a bazillion Incompletes so you don't expel me?" No, for the 7,000th time you are getting expelled because of reasons .... I sat in on so many meetings with students with this exact kind of conversation. I was actually surprised there weren't attempts at spreading some green around.

Ah, the "The Rules Don't Apply to Me" syndrome amongst students. One of the things I demonstrably do NOT miss about academia...

When I worked at the Beaver Falls library, I had to buy a parking pass each month. It cost 20$ I think? And the parking was restricted to only certain areas a walk around the block from the library. I was making minimum wage and working part time, so I hear ya!

Just getting the job here, where I can walk the .5 mile to work was like getting a raise. And now, I will be getting a bit of a raise when I start my new job description on Aug. 1. Better yet. Hopefully I will get a decent number of hours, and it will really make a difference.

I would love to go to Hawaii! I have never been. I planned to go once a while back... my aunt invited me and we had plans to hike and volunteer at a cat shelter while there. Unfortunately, she was diagnosed with a virulent form of cancer and that never happened.

It sounds like a great job, iPad and book included? wow... enjoy!

>118 scaifea: Ah yes, entitlement. No, I don't miss interacting with the students either. The axiom, "I love my job, just not the people" applied to a lot of us.

And it is worth the block+ walk in this wretched humid warmth and the money for parking every day just to not have to take a shuttle with a misogynistic driver. I just keep repeating to myself, "The walking is good for me. So are the stairs."

>119 mckait: I really have no room to complain. I basically have my dream job, getting paid to do my own thing.

I brought a pillow to sit on today because the chair they gave me is old and should be tossed and puts my behind to sleep because the cushion is so hard.

If you ever get the chance to go to Hawai'i, go! :-)

Abe Books now presents The Weird Book Room where you can find such titles as How to Date a White Woman, How to Poo on a Date: The Lover's Guide to Toilet Etiquette, and Teach Your Wife to be a Widow.

Mind you, all week I've only had access to Word templates for work. No access to anything else except a browser, and I don't care. But I did find it highly amusing when I was standing at Matthew's desk asking him about a class listing and he pulled up the very same software my last place was trying to implement when I got laid off. In fact, that software was why I got laid off because it would do my job. Hah! I say again, Hah.

I made the mistake of saying, "Oh, I've used that."
"Oh, you worked in higher education before?"
And, I am being polite, because as far as they are concerned I'm a nice widdle temp, "Yup." But inside, "Duh, it's only on my resume."

But, I am nice and besides, who cares if they remember me or not? I emphatically do not want to become a permanent fixture there.

As I walk back to my table, I try not to giggle. I refuse to even list that software on my resume because it is such c******f*** to implement and use, and I do not want to work for people who use it. Also, I kinda figured the worksheets and "unofficial transcripts" they've been handing me to turn into letters came from this database. Which means, they haven't figured out how to use the merge function either.

I love being emotionally detached from all the bs and being able to walk out the door not caring about anything that happens inside. So long as I get my money, it's all good.

And here it is, FRIDAY! I like that I get to say that now. :-)

How Few Remain by Harry Turtledove - TIOLI #13. Read a book by a living author who is older than you are (b. 1949, 65)

I really wanted to like this alternate history about what would have happened if the South had won the American Civil War. It seemed like a good idea to read How Few Remain, because I know very little about the Civil War (or, if you're a Southerner, the War Between the States), and so wouldn't get too ticked off if the author got something egregiously wrong. So while the history resonated true to me, there was too much to keep up with. And a very anti-climactic ending.

Using the incident of lost plans that could have won the war for the South, How Few Remain instead imagines a reality in which the South did win. This causes what we now know as the United States to be split into two countries, the United States and the Confederate States, where slavery is still legal and encouraged.

10 years after the War of Secession, the CSA buys Sonora and Chihuahua from the Empire of Mexico for a trifling amount and the government of the USA loses its mind and declares war ... again. Soon, the entire continent is enmeshed in wars and skirmishes involving Britain, France, and Canada supporting the CSA. The USA just stands on principle, and a perverse hope that being anti-slavery will be enough to win the war, this time for sure. Which, you know, that trick never works.

So Sam Clemens never becomes Mark Twain and stays in San Francisco as editor of a newspaper so he can report on the idiocy of the US government, and the British warships in the bay bent on blowing San Francisco to smithereens. Abe Lincoln survived his time in office but was not re-elected since now, everyone blames him for the loss of a war which has torn the country in two. Abe tours the North and its territories lecturing to any audience that will listen that labor is akin to slavery, and workers need to stand up for better working conditions. Frederick Douglass lives in Rochester, NY with his wife and son and writes stirring articles and speeches for the freeing of the slaves. Theodore Roosevelt owns a ranch in Montana territory and pays the expenses to form a regiment of volunteers ready to serve their country by beating the Canadians back across the border. The Mormons are up to no good in Utah Territory, taking advantage of the war to insist on living by their religious laws which allow polygamy, against US law. And ... oh right, I don't remember which general winds up in the newest states in the Confederacy working with the Apaches and Mexicans against the US incursion. And then the Apaches and Mexicans have a good ol' time killing each other.

What the heck any of this had to do with this war was really sort of beyond me. And as time went on, and I kept reading to see how Turtledove was going to resolve this mess, it became clear that nothing was going to be resolved ... ever. Was the point of the book that war is pointless? Or that the Civil War, in any history, was stupid? Or ... I don't know ...

Too many characters, too many subplots, salacious incidents which don't really drive the story and, my pet peeve, incorrect history about Christmas trees. I don't recommend this to anyone.

>122 AuntieClio: "...I love being emotionally detached from all the bs and being able to walk out the door not caring about anything that happens inside. So long as I get my money, it's all good."

Sing it, Sister! It's a lucky person who can say something like that!

Happy Friday!

>125 michigantrumpet: Marianne, it also helps that "been there, done that, still have the scars." Plus, being a temp helps.

I've been thinking a lot about how much has changed in me to get to that emotional point. I used to be very hurt and upset if people didn't acknowledge me and didn't understand why some people think temps are lower than pond scum. Now? I don't care. As long as they're not actively hostile. In fact, I prefer no one pays attention to me unless it's work related.

David, one of the guys that gives me work, mentioned he was from Portland, OR and I asked about Powell's. I got a really lukewarm response from him about it. I just smiled and said, "You're not a reader are you?"

"I mean it's a nice place to hang out."

As some tv character might say, "bored now."

I mean it's a nice place to hang out. ?????

Really? Talk about a hostile work environment! *snort*

>127 michigantrumpet: LOL! IKR? I just wanted to get up and pat him on the head.

Oh right, free food. Last night I went to yet a different Togo's to get another free sammich. Everyone in line had a coupon for a free turkey and avocado sandwich. Unlike everyone else, I bought chips and a brownie to go with. So yay! Free food.

My goodness! I've just come up for air. How has your day been, dearest? I got a new Kindle book. It was an agreeable read.

>130 richardderus: I think I remember reading something about that.

I actually had work to do this afternoon :-) And I got a different chair so my behind doesn't hurt so much. Plus ... grocery run for next week's brekkie and veggies to go with lunch.

HOT ... I am not enjoying this weather

I threw caution to the wind yesterday and stopped at TJs for my grocery run last night after work. I'm finding their fresh produce to be competitively priced with my favorite chain grocery, and often TJs has larger quantities for the same price.

*sigh* it is so satisfying on a hot day (current 92F) and enjoy some truly luscious cherries. They are expensive but damn, sometimes the stomach wants what the stomach wants and must be appeased.

I am finding myself more and more surrounded by generous hearted people willing to help. The cashier at TJs and I traded stories about being so broke that nothing else matters except to look for spare change. When I winced at the cumulative price, he leaned over and whispered, "I'll do anything I can to help you, do you want to put some of this back?"

No, I decided. Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead. I accept the consequences if there are any. Crossing fingers that my first check does indeed hit direct deposit on Tuesday.

I modeled Marianne with someone asking for change as I walked out the store. He was so nice and so ... I just shrugged, "I just started a new job and I know how it feels to not have enough money to even contemplate taking the bus."

Things could have been so much harder than they were. And while I'm still not out of the woods completely, things are soooooo much better than they were a week or so ago. Now it's, "I just have to hang on for a couple of more days" instead of an indefinite period of time.

I'm also grateful to the pharmacist today for working with me to solve the problem of my running out of meds two weeks early. The doctor wrote the refill prescription wrong, and since I would have run out over the weekend and not been able to contact my doctor in time, the pharmacist was able to sell me another two weeks, but I had to pay out of pocket. Which is okay, because it's a generic and very inexpensive. Still an unexpected expense, but believe me I would much rather go hungry (or something) and have my meds. Again, grateful I didn't have to make that choice.

Don is doing fairly well but is bent upon sharing every gross thing his body is doing. Including showing me an abscess I didn't want to see, touch or even know about. The things I do to make him happy. :-)

Oh, and a handwritten letter addressed to "Auntie SEA" from my niece who apparently loves me bunches and oodles and really misses me. Ditto child, ditto. :-)

Pardon me now, there's a time traveling historian demanding my attention.

Yay for understanding people and wonderful nieces! And then, oh no!, you are one of THOSE people reading THAT book!! I can't, not yet. Don't tease me.

>132 AuntieClio: ...and the evidence mounts...

>133 Berly: Resistance is futile. You will be assimilated.

>133 Berly: I blame Richard.

Sounds like a good place to be in, Stephanie!

My alarm went off this morning and my first thought was, "Why is my alarm going off?" A couple of seconds later, "Oh right, work."

I now have an in basket on my table, and was comfortably busy for the first couple of hours today.

Stephanie, may your karma continue to return to you the good that you have done for others. Your job came in the knick of time and sounds like a non-stress-inducing way to tide you over until something permanent comes along. May the good books continue, too. Have a wonderful week!

Oh, once you have an inbasket, your one step away from getting your name on a box in the mailroom! So glad that the job is not creating hair-raising amounts of stress and is in fact giving you some much-deserved peace of mind. I remember that feeling so well!

>134 richardderus: and the more determined I am to continue the work, I like the way I feel (emotionally) these days.

>136 ronincats:, I'm in a great place now. I am not gonna complain about work since they are basically paying me to hang around until they need letters generated. So I get to read and hang out on LT. It's most definitely not a place I want to work on a long-term basis but it's fine for short-term.

The rest of life is great! So looking forward to my first paycheck :-)

>138 Donna828:, Thanks Donna.

>139 rosalita: Julia, just no ... not at this place. I don't even want people to know my name. ;-> The HR person introduced himself at lunch, telling me when he was walking new hires through he didn't want to just say, "Oh and this is the Registrar's temp." Very nice.

No, no, nonononononono, not Bear 2.0. That bitch!

A Trail Through Time by Jodi Taylor - TIOLI #11: Rolling Challenge Read a book that centers on People, Places, or Things

There's nothing I can add to the praise being heaped on the fourth installment of The Chronicles of St. Mary's. Still historians making fun of techies, and techies making fun of historians as they work together to jump through history. Only to observe ... ahem. As Rocket J. Squirrel would say, "That trick never works."

There's some serious mayhem going on in A Trail Through Time and Max and Leon pull through it, only to leave us in limbo again.

To say anymore would be to spoil this lively adventure which revolves around saving St. Mary's in one of the timelines. Explosions abound. Yup, I loved it and already crave the next episode.

Yay! And there's more where that came from! *bighappygrin*

And now I'm the proud owner of a monthly parking pass and plotting a TJs run tonight.

So grateful!

>144 AuntieClio: *applause*

(Except the TJs part, shopping is the Devil's Own)

>145 richardderus: I don't have refrigerator, lunch, or pantry fairies so I have to do the shopping or my tummy will rumble loudly and disturb my officemates.

Hah! On the day I wanted to finish my book, I got handed a big project to work on. :-) Again, it's something I'm really good at so I'm actually happy about it. Plus, I am fancy now with a second, much larger monitor. They have impressed me with the level of technology on this project. It's file auditing but everything's electronic.

Well, it looks like things are going well for you right now... and that's great news!

That was such a good St Mary's!! I loved it so much :)

Carry on with life being kind..

Dual monitors are the best thing since sliced bread. Before I got a second monitor more or less forced on me, i couldn't figure out what I would ever use it for. Now I would seriously fight you if you tried to take it away from me.

>149 rosalita: Julia, aren't they? At my last job I had to fight tooth and nail just to get a monitor that wasn't old and decrepit. Forget getting a big one, and heaven forfend I should ever ask for dual monitors. This morning my manager said he was going to IT and get them to hook up the second monitor right away so I could do my job more effectively. Such a difference from the previous den of ineptitude. If I had room for dual monitors at home, I would have them.

>148 mckait: Kath, I'm sorry life isn't being kind to you. Would you contact Jodi Taylor and ask her when book 5 will be available? :-D

I like to tease Tomm about the 3 (!) ginormous monitors he uses in his office. Charlie and I started buying him over-sized office supplies for his birthday and Christmas to go along with them...

Steph--SO glad the job is going well, not to mention the reading. I have book #4 and it is near the top of the pile. Happy Friday!

Lincoln's Dreams by Connie Willis - TIOLI #2: Read a book with a Top 50 Event listed in its Common Knowledge section (American Civil War)

   

Lincoln's hands modeled by sculptor of the statue at Lincoln Memorial
picture from Annie Leibovitz's Pilgrimage

This was very entertaining and easy to read. Jeff is a historical researcher for a writer of Civil War novels. One night he meets Annie at a party given by his boss. Jeff's college roommate, Richard, now works at The Sleep Institute and studies dreams. The author has begun to obsess over Lincoln's dreams and asks the roommate to come to the party so they can talk. Roommate brings Anie who is, ostensibly, under his care.

Annie's been having vivid dreams for over a year, and as she tells Jeff about them, he realizes that she's having Robert E. Lee's dreams. Richard is a stand in for the many theories (circa. 1987) about dreams; they're just the mind taking out the garbage every day, they reveal some deep, deep trauma that is too difficult to be faced while conscious. To Richard, they can never be prophetic or part of the Jungian collective subconscious.

When Annie leaves Richard's place and asks for shelter with Jeff, it's revealed that Richard has been trying to drug the dreams out of Amy, to no real great effect. Thinking Amy just needs a safe place away from the doctor and his drugs, Jeff takes her along on a research trip.

Of course, things get complicated. Richard leaves nasty phone messages on the answering machine threatening Jeff about Annie. The author, Broun, has become so obsessed with Lincoln's dreams that he very nearly goes off the deep end and chases dream "specialists" throughout California. Amy's dreams get more intense and Jeff, convinced she is actually having Robert E. Lee's dreams, loses sleep and nearly his sanity trying to keep her safe.

There's far too much reliance on the technology of a remote controlled answering machine (this is 1987, after all), not a good enough explanation for Richard's anger, or for the sudden obsession Broun has or why he keeps changing his current book even though the galleys have been sent to the printer.

There's no answer as to why Annie is actually having these dreams, although the theory is interesting and one I would have liked to have explored a bit more. Are dreams really just the mind taking out the daily garbage? Or do they mean something? Can they be prophetic? Or merely banal, filled with wishful-thinking?

Lincoln's Dreams was good, solid, weekend entertainment.

Hey there Steph!

>132 AuntieClio: There's some good karma coming your way, that's for sure! I don't know that you were modeling me, but it certainly made me smile.

Things have been very hectic here. How hectic, you ask? I haven't EVEN started Book 4 of St. Mary's Chronicles!!!

>155 michigantrumpet: Oh, Book 4 is so good! You have a wonderful time ahead of you, Marianne.

I've read others by Connie Willis, Stephanie, but not Lincoln's Dreams, so I'll look forward to your take on that one.

I read Lincoln's dreams. IT was good, not wonderful, good though.

Oh holy moly I'm tired. Thought I'd get caught up here and I cannot keep my eyes open! After getting up to get to work early, running errands, and stopping to deliver groceries and chat with Don. I'm just plain t ah red.

Good afternoon! Wishing you a loverly weekend with plenty of rest and books.

I just recently added Lincoln's Dreams to the TBR pile courtesy of PaperBackSwap.com, but haven't read it yet.

Hey Stephanie! It's been awhile since my last visit, and boy did I have a LOT of good news to catch up on here! It's wonderful to see all the good stuff that's been going on for you. I'm very pleased to read all of it!

I just "reviewed" St. Mary's 3 & 4 tonight as best I could! There's just not much you can say without spoiling everything! I gushed effusively enough I think. If there is still anyone left who visits my thread that hasn't started the series, I'm hoping they'll be convinced now. I need book 5 ASAP!

>152 scaifea: Hah! I like that.

>153 Berly: Berly, read faster!! :-D

>155 michigantrumpet: Okay, that's just wrong to be so busy you can't get to St. Mary's #4. Wrong, I say!

>156 jnwelch: & >157 mckait:, I liked Lincoln's Dreams, it was really interesting but the ending disappointed me somewhat.

>159 Berly: Thank you! I almost literally slept all day. Finished the first book of the month, and have gotten a few chores done. Whew!

Tomorrow (Sunday) is laundry and put meals together for the week day.

>160 ronincats: Roni, I'll be interested in knowing what you think of Lincoln's Dreams once you read it.

>161 TinaV95: Tina! I'm glad to know I'm not the only one who cried through parts of St. Mary's #4. And yes, we need #5 NOW. :-)

I'm glad to hear that the new job is going well and even becoming more interesting!

So whatcha cooking today? My strategy is to (try) do one or two multi portion meals over the weekend, plan on eating them a couple times during the week and freezing portions. I'm gong to try out this one today: http://www.budgetbytes.com/2013/07/sweet-chili-chicken-bowls/ I've tried a couple of her recipes in the last few weeks and been happy with the results.

Just waving: HI!!

>164 streamsong: Janet, I don't so much cook as assemble. This week's lunches will be:
fettuccine with clam sauce, shrimp, alfredo sauce, and fire-grilled asparagus mixed together. Components courtesy of TJs.

Breakfasts are fruit, nuts and yogurt.

I make 'em ahead of time and portion them out. That way, all I have to do is reach in the refrigerator and get little containers of goodness to put into my lunch box.

>165 connie53: Hi Connie! How nice to see you!

>154 AuntieClio: I have read enough of Willis' books by now to just accept that she has a fetish for plot points that rely heavily on missed messages and impeded communication devices. It's probably my biggest complaint about her books, which I quite like otherwise.

>168 rosalita: I'll consider myself warned.

   

Sex in History by Reay Tannahill (Mysterious Box 38) - TIOLI #10: Read a book with a title that is also catalogued by a different author (Gordon Rattray Taylor)

Sex in History is a cultural look at how attitudes toward sex developed at different stages in history. Definitely not salacious - although there were pictures I had to cover up while reading at work - Tannahill's work is thorough and easy to read. Obviously, she can't cover everything in one volume, but there's enough here to understand the cross-pollination of ideas and the heavy, real impact various religions had on sexual attitudes.

I found this farily easy to read and very interesting, and would recommend it to anyone interested in cultural history.

I've updated my spreadsheet of books available to a good home.

>51 jnwelch: wow- Joe, 2 shelves of hardcover books for the background of a set!!? Talk about spending, I am convinced the same look could have been achieved from a thrift store!

>144 AuntieClio: TJs? (it's the little things that stump me) :) Is it a chain grocery store? Big? I am interested for some reason.

I loved your post (>132 AuntieClio:). You sound like someone who knows how to be grateful for the little things. I am too! Lately on fb I have seen a bunch of grateful messages....do three things each day for 5 days...you might have seen it too? A few of them contained things like - booked flights to the Pacific Islands, and - booked a weekend away in Sydney (from NZ....a grand wouldn't cover a weekend there). And I was grossed out by it! Here is little old me being grateful for a car-port with enough fire wood in it for all of winter, and for the hot water that conveniently comes out of my taps....sheesh. Sometimes I think I live on a different planet from the people I went to school with.

It's great to come back to your thread and see how well things are going for you!

I love the idea of leaving work at work. Makes life geometrically easier, doesn't't it?

I hope your good fortune continues!

xxoo

>172 LovingLit: In buying hardcovers by the shelf for background in the movie, they seemed motivated more by "need it right now" than cost considerations. Which was good for us as booksellers, of course. Maybe the director (or set designer) had a sudden inspiration?

>172 LovingLit: TJs is Trader Joe's. It's a chain of grocery stores in the US which are ... filled with yummies that can't be found in regular grocery stores. They are kinda gourmet, but not as upscale as Whole Foods (another grocery chain that began as a "health food store" and has earned the nickname "Whole Paycheck"). My workplace is about halfway between both the TJs and my grocery store so it's easy for me to pop in to TJs because it's pretty much on the way home. One has to be careful though, or one could find all sorts of things one doesn't remember placing in her cart.

And thank you (re: >132 AuntieClio:). I have a friend I've put on ignore on Facebook a couple of times because all he does is bitch about not being upgraded to first class, or how the first class lounges are not up to spec, or how he got into first class but there's an annoying person next to him. And he'll say how grateful he is to get to go to .... Santorini, or some other spectacular place. Yes, be grateful for that but how about being grateful for the job and investments which allow you to rack up those miles?

He's a software engineer with years of experience so our salaries are as far apart as the Grand Canyon. One night we were standing around after dinner talking about money and I told him how much I had been making at my last job and how that just hadn't been enough to put me ahead. He looked at me and said, "But that sounds like so little." Uh, yeah, duh. Especially compared to what he's used to making.

He will also make decisions about my money by saying things like, "Oh I wasn't sure whether I should invite you to dinner because I wasn't sure you could afford it." I think that's my problem, not his. And while, I don't expect people to pick up the tab for me if we're eating out, he's never once offered.

And the gratitude meme Facebook should be banned. Those things are private, or should be. If I want someone to know I'm grateful for something, or them, I will tell them in private. I've seen too many, "Oh I'm grateful for all these people who have helped me do something ..." but have left out someone who is equally or more important to that achievement. I think it's just a way to thoughtlessly hurt people while showing off.

okay ... sorry ... rant over.

>173 Matke: Gail, so happy to see you poke your head in.

Yup, leaving it at work is where it's at man. ;-)

And speaking of good fortune, my brother just let me know he's going to be in the area this weekend and wanted to know if I wanted to have dinner on Sunday night. Uhm .... yes?

Hey, Stephanie, have a great week. Sounds like you are looking forward to dinner with your brother.

>175 AuntieClio: :)
Rants are good!
I get what you are on about too. Most of my actual circle of friends from school have gone on to well-paid careers and I balk at paying $9 for a glass of wine at a bar, they will happily spend $100 in a night. *different*
I love that episode of Friends where Phoebe/Joey and one other? have a drama at a fancy dinner that Monica and Ross have arranged. At the end they divide the bill even though the 'poor' ones have ordered water and the cheapest thing on the menu. I have been burned like that before, and it is tough!

Hello there, Steph. Following up a bit on your rant.

So, a little question for you. There is a group of us who have hung around together for a few years and the check is always just split among us. Recently on person has come on some tough times. The next dinner, I took her aside (away from everyone else) and offered to toss in her share for her. She was upset about this and I've always wondered to have handled it differently.

I've always thought it was better to ask and be told, 'No Everything is fine.' than to not ask at all and be thought insensitive to what someone else is going through.

I love her company and would have hated the idea of her not being there. We've all tried to plan more cost effective outings so there is less pressure on everyone.

>179 michigantrumpet: Marianne, I would be delighted to have someone pull me aside and ask me privately if I want/need help, when they know I've hit tough times. Usually, if I feel I can't afford to join in, I'll say I can't go. What you did with your friend was thoughtful, sensitive and caring. Was she mad at you for asking? Or for assuming she needed it? It's tough where money is concerned, people can be very proud about it. I have been too proud to ask for help before.

I do agree asking and being told "everything's okay" is preferable to not being sensitive.

>178 LovingLit: Megan, yeah been there, done that too. Now I speak up and ask for a separate check. We ran into this at my last place a lot, and since I'm perpetually broke-ish, I refused to go unless there were separate checks. Mostly I just turned down the invitations. Then I got a reputation as anti-social, to which I shrugged my shoulders. Lots of people think introverts are shy and anti-social. So I just let them believe what they wanted.

I really want to change the broke-ish part. A LOT. :-)

>177 ronincats: Roni, yeah I like my brothers. And, there's more than a bit of schaudenfreude involved because our dad also lives in the area, but he is not the one asked to dinner. Dean sneaks in and out, and I am asked to promise not to tell anyone besides his family that he was in town. In case you missed it, our parents are terrible people. Oh, plus he pays :-) I think tapas are in order again.

>180 AuntieClio: The change in her circumstance has made her more moody, which I suspect may have contributed to the hurt feelings. Thoroughly understandable, of course.

Ever since, then, though, I've wondered as to the best way to handle things. I do believe in asking and letting people make their own decisions. And yet, while we try to do reasonably priced things for everyone, there have been times where we have splurged on a super-fancy night out. I recall some of the others hadn't been asked because we didn't want to make them feel bad for not being able to afford it. Always a conundrum as to what to do.

Thanks for your perspective, Stephanie.

>182 michigantrumpet: I always appreciate being asked and allowed to make my own decision. To me, being asked means I am wanted. Then, it's up to me to decide if I can afford it or not. And I am not shy about saying, "Nope sorry, would love to but can't afford it." I know this is difficult for some people and I don't know how to get around that, because if I'm not asked because someone thinks I can't afford it I feel like they're making decisions for me. Even if they're well-meaning decisions. And yup, it's a conundrum. Maybe just explaining, "I want you to know you're welcome, but if you feel you can't go, please tell me. Don't feel obligated." While you're not responsible for their reactions, I think it's wonderful that you are aware there might be an issue and want to be sensitive.

goddess love the geeks :-) There's a database geek standing in our office talking to my manager about running reports and he is so enthusiastic and keeps explaining things and is loud. I think I'm home.

^ haha!
I am like that whenever I come across an enthusiastic student/professor. My current one (prof) keeps bringing up topics during class, then sighing and before moving on says "ah, it's so fascinating". I am gleeful in my agreeance.
;)

>184 AuntieClio: That is AWESOME!!! :) I just literally smiled hugely at that post!

As far as the broke-ish convo, when I was out of work, I wanted to ignore all invites because of money. So, either I'd beg off or I'd just ask if we could go somewhere cheap-ish. Luckily, I have wonderful friends who are very understanding and accommodating.

I think money is a really hard topic period. But when times are tough??? Geez, it's super killer then.

>186 TinaV95: My close friends are really good at saying, "Let's go out and go someplace inexpensive." Or "C'mon it's my treat." And then there's Scott where it's just a given he's buying and then taking me book shopping.

And I have always believed that sex and money change everything in any kind of relationship.

I love that on Thursdays there are a group of men who add a tie to their usual button-down shirts. So adorable.

Back to auditing files today and just came across a piece of letterhead from a bank in India whose tagline is "Where every individual is committed." That gave me a giggle.

>189 AuntieClio: I've certainly worked at places where every individual, if not actually committed, probably should have been!

>190 rosalita: Truth in advertising ... :-)

A friend is happy things are going well for me at this job because everyone at the last one did need to be committed. Her words were, "NOTHING is going to be as bad as that last place."

As I pulled into my driveway last night I realized I wasn't getting home pissed and frustrated all the time. Now when I get home I'm tired but content. I don't dread coming into work anymore. And my biggest ailment is being tired. The last place literally broke me in many ways.

It is such a pleasure to share in your journey back to a life worth living. It's amazing how much the surroundings where one spends so many hours can make a positive difference!

*smooch*

>192 richardderus: *happysmile* *smooches*

>191 AuntieClio: What a lovely feeling that is!

Happy Friday, dear one. Wishing you lots of rest, smiles and, of course, good reading!

>195 michigantrumpet: Thanks Marianne!

I wanted to celebrate with Pineapple Upside Down Cheesecake so Jessica and I went to dinner at Cheesecake Factory after work last night. Good lord what a circus! It was 7PM and the wait was 45 minutes (actual time) and getting out of the parking lot and onto the freeway (at 9:40PM) was like trying to get on the freeway during commute hours. Next time I get a craving, I'll try to hold on until we can go at a time when not everyone else is out.

Randee and I were supposed to meet for ice cream today but when I got up, my landlord had turned off the water coming out of the hot water faucets, so I couldn't shower. The plan to get out and do some errands when the hot water was fixed fizzled because I wound up sleeping most of the day.

Tomorrow, errands that didn't get done today, laundry and dinner with my brother at Cascal, the tapas place. After I might "sneak" down to the used bookstore.

Jessica shared lots of gossip she had gathered about the last place we worked and I am so glad we're not there even more. Just .... appalling some of the things going on there. Yet another reason to celebrate!

Hi Stephanie, I wish you a lovely Sunday.

It sounds like life is looking up as you're enjoying your job, your friends and a bit of bibliotherapy.

I hope this next week also brings you many smiles.

>197 Ameise1: Lovely Barbara, thank you :-)

>198 streamsong: Janet, things are most definitely better.

Dinner tonight with my brother was watermelon salad, paella, and pumpkin bread pudding with bourbon caramel sauce. We sat outside and enjoyed the cooling air of downtown Mountain View. He is a bigger introvert than I am, not given to talking much. But tonight .... he talked my ear off! I was amused and gratified. Both in our 50s we have become comfortable inside our skins, and thus, more comfortable with each other. What a lovely evening.

Decided not to go to the bookstore tonight. Fortunately, I'm not about to run out of anything to read.

Ahhhh... another smile while catching up on your thread. You are sounding so much better! Finally somewhere where you feel a bit more at home and appreciated is SO nice! And to read about a nice and comfortable dinner with your brother? There's just no price tag for that!

>201 TinaV95: Hullo Tina! awwww .... thank you :-)

So far the only issue I am dealing with is trying to get all the pieces to fit into the new schedule. If only everything was that simple.

I have a really cute selfie of Dean and I, but I promised it wouldn't get posted on any social media, so you're just gonna have to trust that it's cute. ;-)

Shit, Robin Williams is dead. Preliminary reports are suicide. It's early days yet, but I found this great article which discusses depression and why people often commit suicide when they're depressed, as was probably the case with Robin.

I love a good story. The best books tell them in a way that captivates the reader, and not only takes them for a breathless ride but makes them think. Over the years I have read so many books, and like all of us, some have been utter tripe and some have been practically transcendental. The best characters are those with depth, whose flaws aren't hidden from view, nor their best traits immodestly trumpeted from the heights.

Growing up I read everything I could get my hands on, some of it wildly inappropriate for a youngster, of either gender. Some of it probably inappropriate even for adults, come to think of it. One of the few good things to come from my family was an exposure to books and music. My brothers and I could think of nothing better to put on birthday and Christmas wishlists. And in those days, the gift giver had to have a good idea of what the recipient had already read and was interested in. They had to go to a bricks and mortar bookstore and lay their hands on the books themselves. Gift certificates weren't common, and there was no such thing as wishlists on the internet.

Books were my safe haven, the one activity that was guaranteed to meet with approval. "Where's Stephanie?" "Oh, she's somewhere with her nose stuck in a book." Anything else, no matter how tame or usually acceptable often got me in trouble, inexplicably. But books, they were blankies, teddy bears, and bullet trains to mysterious places all in one.

My first memories of books more "adult" are of science fiction and mysteries. Heinlein, Asimov, Conan-Doyle, Christie. There for the taking, on the shelves at home. I could reach up and pick any book, take it into my room, close the door and be in my own world.

After a while I began to learn what was "good," and what wasn't. I still read it all but I could see the difference. The themes weren't so obvious to me. I didn't know from racism or sexism, unless it was really overt with name calling and violent actions.

Over the years, I returned to some of my favorites only to find my tastes have changed. In some cases, drastically.

I can recognize the impact Robert Heinlein had on generations of writers, and I know he's an important writer in the halls of science fiction. But .... brace yourselves ... I think he's a sexist hack. (The same goes for Spider Robinson, whose Callahans books I once devoured but now think the same of.)

With my warped sense of sex and love, what I saw the proponents of open, free, love and sex wanted, most of the time, was just sex wrapped up in the shape of love without the responsibilities and duties that came with it. Heinlein's women were whip smart scientists, and were okay with sex with anyone and everyone, but they still paraded around naked, or nearly so, serving cocktails to the men who ogled them around the pool. I see Spider Robinson, and several other authors, as direct descendants of this tripe.

So. I had high hopes for Dana Stabenow's Second Star (free on the Kindle). Women are making inroads into the science fiction genre. Have been for decades, thanks to pioneers like D.C. Fontana, who still had to hide her gender behind those initials.

Second Star is the story of Star Svensdotter, project manager for Ellfive. Star's in charge, and the mission is to get the thing up and working in time to receive its first wave of colonists in a few weeks.

Star is, no doubt, a strong, smart, capable woman who can give the command to send failed assassins through the air-lock into space with only a little inner turmoil. Star can also love passionately, both familial and romantically. And Star has had pretty lousy luck with men, until she meets Caleb, the purported new head of security for the colony.

Stabenow's descriptions of how romantic relationships on this colony work made me wince. Especially her description of how Star and Caleb wind up together. It's too romantic, too perfect, too .... just too much. And all her romantic couples are like that. This is not to say there isn't strife in the relationships but they're all so perfect, and work through the issues quickly, with love and fondness. There aren't any rough edges. Each person knows exactly what to say to get their point across and soothe the ruffled feathers of the other and go on about the business of being the perfect Stepford loving couple.

bleah ....

Admittedly, I am not a science person, not by a long shot. I am besotted with the space program, but I don't know a star cluster from a graviton pulse. And I'm okay when the science (and math) go over my head, I expect that. But honestly, I skimmed so much of the science in this book I wondered if I had accidentally downloaded some sort of Space Colony 101 textbook.

There are shades of Heinlein all over this book. Brave, strong, smart women leading people into perfectly executed skirmishes against the political bureaucracy from Stabenow's version of Washington D. C. who want to sabotage all of Ellfive's hard work and take it over for themselves. Understanding doctors, professionals of every stripe. All perfectly compassionate, understanding, loving, and capable. And oh so there for each other in times of trouble.

again bleah

The alien ... yeah, don't get me started on that.

And, of course, having gone back and re-read the introduction to Second Star, I see now that this is an absolute tribute to Heinlein. That would explain why I had uncomfortable Heinlein vibes as I read it. I'm not sure how I missed it the first time I read the intro.

Anyway ... if you like Heinlein, don't read Dana Stebenow, read Heinlein. He was better at this than she is.

For my hard-earned book money, John Scalzi - who considers himself a writerly descendant of Heinlein - has taken the worn out tropes and turned them into tales of true equality and is better at relationships. I loved Zoe's Tale for that reason and am looking forward to getting into Old Man's War any month now.

>204 AuntieClio: Nice discussion of your early love of books!

>204 AuntieClio: What an interesting meditation on writers, writing, and reading. *smooch*

I love your essay on your evolving relationship with books, Stephanie! Very thoughtful and interesting. I'm sorry the book that prompted it was such a dud, though.

I ate up Robert Heinlein's sci-fi as a boy, Stephanie, and now I have your reaction - sexist hack. He did try to overcome that with ones like Friday, but I still can't go back and read him.

Stranger in a Strange Land remains interesting and readable, if dated, seems to me.

I enjoyed your description of growing up with books. We had lots of good mysteries and sci-fi around, too, when I was a youngster, and I started with Doyle and Christie, too (and Tey and John Dickson Carr), and for sci-fi it was Jules Verne.

Old Man's War was one of the best sci-fi-ers I've read recently. Did you read Red Shirts? At some point I want to give that one a try.

>208 jnwelch: Joe, oh yes I read Red Shirts and found it highly enjoyable. It's very amusing and fun. The three codas at the end add a really nice layer to the mix. Read it, enjoy it, laugh ... 'cause Auntie sez ;-)

Have you read Zoe's Tale or The Android's Dream?

>209 AuntieClio: I haven't read either of those, Stephanie. I did read the first two sequels to Old Man's War, and then I stalled out.

>210 jnwelch: Android's Dream is extremely goofy and basically starts with a fart joke, which threatens to start an intergalactic war. Lots of fun for when you don't want to read anything too serious.

I think Zoe's Tale is a tangential part of Old Man's War.

What a lovely tale regarding books Stephanie.

Short version: Regardless of what happens with ITU, I will not be working with the temp agency who placed me after this assignment is complete. I was lied to ... the original recruiter told me 2-3 months temp to hire. This is not the case. It is temp only project work (which I'm fine with) but was for 2-3 weeks. Fortunately, my manager asked to extend me through the end of August, he had no idea I was expecting to work at least through September.

There are other things going on I won't talk about right now, things with ITU and the work itself are good.

I'm just horribly disgusted with the agency.

What a terrible thing to do, Stephanie! It must have been quite a shock when you realized what had happened, though better to find out now than on your last day when you thought you had another month or more to work. I don't blame you a bit for being fed up with that temp agency.

>214 rosalita: Julia, all I could think of was how mortifying it would have been to leave on Friday thinking I had work on Monday, only to show up and be told I was no longer needed. So yes, grateful for finding out I have work for another couple of weeks. There would have been WORDS. There still might be.

There probably should be! If you are sure in your own mind that you will never want to use that agency again I think you should let them know exactly what you think of their tactics.

>216 rosalita: Julia, it's been a year of horrible customer service, including no assignments until this one. So yeah, I'm done. At this point I'm thinking about an "exit interview" with someone at the office which placed me at ITU, in addition to letters to everyone I can think of throughout upper management at corporate. I am beyond pissed with this agency. And it's unfortunate because I've worked with them several times in a span of nearly 20 years. But over the last four or five, I have heard horror stories and my own just reinforces that it's time to move on.

Stephanie, I'm so sorry to hear what happened to you. It's absolutely disgusting. Such people don't work for people in need. I keep my fingers crossed that everything will be sorted out well for you. xx

Doomsday Book by Connie Willis (gift) - TIOLI #17: Read a book featuring time travel and is not written by Jodi Taylor

Steph... What a rotten deal, with the work thing.... I'm so sorry.

I did confirm with my manager that I am expected to come back in on Monday. whew

Here is a concrete example on how the universe provides what you ask for. One of the women in my office was saying she needed sugar, so I held up my baggie of miniature Reese's cups and offered to share. "No," she said, "I want .... like a cookie or something."

As she was saying this, in walked someone who was checking to see if she wanted a cookie from whatever place he was going to get stuff.

This afternoon was hard. I burst into tears a couple of hours before the end of the day and could not stop. I kept leaving the room to have my cry and get it out of my system so I could keep working.

The utter fear of going back to having no money and no steady income in a couple of weeks became quite overwhelming. I most emphatically do not want to go back to that. The stress of the contretemps with the agency, and the realization that I might be back where I started a month ago, in a couple of weeks got to me.

However, I am still surrounded by light and love. As I was sitting on the couch in the hallway, Leslie from HR stopped and asked what was wrong. And then insisted we talk after her meeting.

What I haven't shared yet is that there is a position I applied for in the Registrar's Office before Office Team even called me for the assignment I'm on now. My first interview was last week. The feedback has been very positive and all indications are that there will be a second. In addition, today was the last one for one of my co-workers. (I don't even remember applying for the job.)

But I overheard some things that set my insecurity off. That they had made an offer to someone and were negotiating salary. And that there would be a second interview with someone next week. I don't feel like I'm in a position to be asking for more details, and something inside collapsed.

When Leslie and I finally got to talk and I gave her the edited for tv version of my life over the past year, and the nonsense with the agency on Wednesday. She reached out and touched my arm and said, "They like you. They really, really like you."

Then she told me that a few days after I started, a couple of weeks before I had even met her, Matthew had said he "had a really good one" working for him now. That he really liked me and I was doing good work. I have been asking the universe for this job and, until today, had felt it was mine already.

I am so comfortable there, and can see good changes are happening to make ITU a stronger, better work place. Application of things I learned about behavior (my own and others) at the last place are being used. Once I learned about two years ago I was an introvert, some of the trying to fit in behaviors stopped. I allowed myself to be the quiet, observant person I truly am.

So I go to work, I sit at my table, plug into my music and do my work. I observe and take things in. And, somehow, people are noticing me and greeting me and being friendly. Every day, someone new comes into my orbit. I didn't know life worked that way!

To be clear, I'm happy being left to my own devices, when people don't ask me for lunch or include me in conversation, I do not take it personally. I do not sit and mope wishing they would include me. I just do my own thing and am happy.

It's beginning to feel like I belong at ITU, like I've come home in some way. Yes, there are big problems, but the people I encounter are trying to solve them in a reasonable manner and aren't making them worse because of ego or some other dysfunctional personality trait. They want strong, competent people who can think and work through problems, who can collaborate and think about process and procedure. They want someone just like me.

None of that kept me from getting scared this afternoon. I was doing everything I could to hold back the tears so I could keep working, everything I could to use the energy from being scared and turn it into what I call an "ask" of the universe. My notebook came out, "Please," I wrote, "I am scared of going back to where I was just a short month ago. I don't want to worry about rent or bills or anything again. I want this job, at ITU. I want the one I interviewed for. I want this salary plus benefits. I want to work here."

The upshot of this nearly interminable soap opera you're reading is that Leslie basically took me by the hand and listened. Then decided to take it upon herself to work with my manager next week to find a position for me. "They really like you and your work, and we should find a way to keep you around."

She and I walked to the parking lot together and I felt lighter. Felt hopeful again. Was thankful to have these caring, compassionate people put into my life at just the right moment to hear my story with no judgement and promise to do what they can to help me.

And when the job finally comes through, and I can really start moving forward financially, you will all probably hear my joyful cheers around the world.

Thank you all for listening, and for being with me through this rocky journey.

{{{{{{Stephanie}}}}}

>223 AuntieClio: Isn't it amazing how, when you expect nothing except what you provide, you get so very much more?

*smooch*

Leslie sounds like a great person. I love that she took time to sit and listen to you and to give you the assurance that your manager and other people at the company like and appreciate you. I certainly hope things will work out and if your manager and the company value good people, they will find a position that will be suitable for you just so they can keep you contributing to the company's growth and success. You are in my thoughts and prayers and I am certainly looking forward to the jubilant cheers when you receive positive news! {{{{{hugs}}}}}

>205 thornton37814: Hi Lori! Thanks.

>206 richardderus: *smooches*

>207 rosalita: Julia, thank you for the compliment. The thing I did take away from Second Star was thinking about what I like and what I don't, and how I got there.

>208 jnwelch: Joe, You don't know how relieved I am to have someone else say they think Heinlein is a sexist hack. I've been in the closet, so to speak, with that for so long because his fans can be really virulent when he's criticized. I'm just not up for that sort of interaction. Read what you want, and if you're taken with it, great! If not, move on to something else. My reading preferences are not better than someone else's.

>212 Whisper1: Hi Linda, thanks! Glad you popped by.

>218 Ameise1: Hi Barbara! It looks like things will work out, it's been a really tough week but as I am frequently reminded, things do work out in the end.

>220 mckait: Thanks Kath, it still burns after a couple of days.

>224 ronincats: Thanks Roni! :-) *hugs*

>225 richardderus: Richard, I am perpetually surprised at the goodness that comes to me from unexpected places. Gavin deBecker wrote in one of his books about fear that if one can imagine it, then it probably won't happen. At the time I was thinking about the negative, but just realized it applies equally to the positive. I couldn't imagine someone from HR stopping to calm a TEMP down. I've spent so much time being stratified that it just never occurs to me that people reach out because they are caring and compassionate to others, regardless of status.

>226 cameling: Thanks Caro. *hugs*

>223 AuntieClio: I wish I could give Leslie a great big hug for being so kind to you and recognizing your value as a person and as an employee, Stephanie. My own internal thought processes veer naturally toward the negative and I am trying very hard to overcome that, so to hear stories about good things happening to good people makes me very, very happy. xo

Hoping that things work out so that you can stay working there, Stephanie. Thinking of you.

What Amber said, Stephanie. Go Leslie! There are some awfully good people in the world. I hope you can get to some stability and non-worry about rent and bills.

>232 rosalita: It's so easy to go to the negative first isn't it Julia? Some day, when appropriate, I will give Leslie a big hug for you. :-)

>233 scaifea: Thanks Amber!

>234 jnwelch: Thanks Joe, being able to let go of those particular worries would be a most excellent benefit.

It was a very non-productive weekend. Meals were not prepared for the week, laundry was not done. After last week's chaos I just couldn't anymore. Recognizing this put me at a deficit for the week, I just let go trusting that I'd figure out a way to make up for it.

This morning's plan required re-calibrating as I discovered that places and roads were under construction. I was up and dressed, and in the car, I refused to give in to that little voice which kept trying to convince me to hang it up and go back home. I was only a few minutes late and have been safely ensconced behind my computer auditing files and trying not to itch too badly when I see how badly some of the documents are written or how disorderly the files themselves are.

A case could be made for a permanent document control person ;-)

Here's a funny comment for you all:
My SIL and I were discussing last week's events and I said, "I don't know what I'm doing to draw this chaos to me but I want it to stop. I want off this ride."

She replied with, "I'm too short for this ride, let me off now."

I love my family :-)

Stephanie, you continue to impress me with your resilience and willingness to work through your fear. Having spent a week entertaining my Mom and Stepdad, I haven't had a chance to comment anywhere, but please know that very positive thoughts have been coming your way.

I came across this quote yesterday, and thought I might share ...

"All my life, I had been a bell, but I never knew this until I was lifted and struck." ~Annie Dillard

Keep your head up, dear, and working on identifying and celebrating those unique strengths of yours. No matter what, you have support and friends here.

>232 rosalita: Julia, I walked into Leslie's office after work yesterday and caught her as she was leaving. "My friend Julia asked that I give you a big hug for her for being so nice to me on Friday."

She hugged me and said, "It was my absolute pleasure." :-)

They are preparing for a site visit from the WASC accreditation committee on Thursday so everyone is a little preoccupied at the moment. Having been through this with APA (American Psychological Association) at that last place, I know how important this is, and how difficult preparation can be.

>237 michigantrumpet: awwwww thank you Marianne. There are days when I don't feel very resilient. Of course, that's just my little voice trying to convince me that having any fear is weak. And that sitting on the couch in the hallway crying is just the weakest of the weak. Most of the time, I can beat it back by remembering that voice lies and that it's okay to feel fear and cry my way through it. It's tough sometimes.

I hope you had a splendiferous week with your Mom and Stepdad.

And, as always, thank you for your support and encouragement.

Currently Reading

Shadow Dancer by Margaret Coel (Mysterious Box 38) - TIOLI #18. Read a book in which one (and only one) word in the title contains a suffix (er)

There is a plus-sized goddess at work who wears the cutest clothes, so I stopped her and asked where she bought her clothes. She is going to send links to "hook me up."

I wear the equivalent of jeans and t-shirts, double-knit black pants and tops. Maybe there's a wardrobe upgrade in my future. :-)

>238 AuntieClio: Awww, I'm glad you gave Leslie a hug from me! I love happy endings — and I know you haven't gotten there yet but it feels close and I hope it comes soon.

And if the plus-size clothes links look promising, please share them here. My standards are considerably below "goddess" level but after losing 50 pounds I feel like I've earned a little treat. :-)