Suite Francaise by Irene Nemirovsky

With a back story as compelling as this one, the novel could easily be overshadowed but Nemirovsky's writing and vision holds its own.

As World War II unfolded around her, Irene Nemirovsky, a successful pre-war author, conceived a massive oeuvre with which she planned to illuminate the times in which she was writing. Alas, her grand vision was never to come to fruition, a fact she became increasingly aware of, due to the fragility of her own circumstances. A White Russian Jew living in France without French citizenship, Nemirovsky was arrested and deported to Auschwitz, where she died in 1942. In 1990, one of her surviving daughters discovered the novel which she had saved without reading as a mememto of her mother.

While most books which I've read about World War II dwell on the Holocaust, this book does not. Nemirovsky writes of the ordinary French and how their lives were disrupted by, first, the German invasion and, then, the German occupation. She portrays the venal and the heroic with equal objectivity. In the first half of her book, which reads more like a collection of short stories, we become acquainted with a number of Parisians as they flee in the face of the oncoming Germans. In the second half of her book, we are presented with more of a narrative about a small French town in the midst of an occupying army.

The book ends with Nemirovsky's transcribed and translated handwritten notes regarding her plans for the work and finally, with correspondence, both from the author and from third parties, regarding her situation, arrest and ultimate death.

A fascinating, poignant read.

The Jane Austen Book Club

I liked this movie.

I liked the interweaving of the romantic fluff with the tidbits of analysis of the Austen books (none of which I've read, by the way).

It made me feel smart while I was enjoying my guilty pleasure.

Smart guilty pleasure.

Even the characters who annoy you, Daniel, Prudie, win you over.

I appreciated how Prudie used Persuasion to reach out to her husband.

And, yes, it may be fantasy but even the men all became Austen fans too.

The premise is that 4 friends along with two invited strangers start a Jane Austen bookclub to distract several of them from their individual tragedies. The books then serve as the underlying narrative to the evolving relationships of the group.

Knocked Up

Definitely not my kind of movie.

Too much sophomoric humor.

I understand that the sophomoric humor served the specific purpose of underscoring the personal growth of the Ben Stone character.

But so what? It just didn't work for me.

The film had some moments but overall felt like a waste of my time.

I enjoyed the scene between Ben and Pete in the hotel room in Las Vegas. I also enjoyed the scene when Ben kicked Debbie out of the birthing room.

But that was about it.

Air travel revisited

Ok, so air travel doesn't always suck.

But even when everything goes smoothly, it's still not such a pleasant experience.

Take the Santa Barbara airport, for example. Due to its funky layout, each gate has its own security screening station. Each gate does not have its own lavatory. Due to a lack of signage, the only way to know that a gate doesn't have a lavatory is to wait in the really slow security line and then find out once you're on the inside. You are then faced with weighing your need of the lavatory against your aversion to the security process as affected by the amount of time left until your flight boards.

The Comment Box was out of comment cards. I left a comment anyhow.

We did get an earlier flight from Denver to Aspen. We arrived in Denver at 5:50 pm. The earlier flight was scheduled to depart at 5:25 pm but due to a delay (which undoubtedly was frustrating to those booked on that flight), it was delayed until 6:30 pm. Since we make it a rule to travel with only carry-on luggage, we got on stand-by while many others with checked baggage were turned away.

So, overall a smooth travel day for us but not for others.

Quintessential California?

Did a little tour of central California yesterday.








Drove over to Ojai and showed Steve Bart's Books, the world's greatest outdoor bookstore.




Drove down to Oxnard to visit the Santa Claus, relocated from Santa Claus Lane in Carpinteria.



Drove up to the Gaviota State Park turnoff where we watched a whale swim up the coast.

Drove through Santa Barbara and got a glimpse of the Memorial Day crowds.

Lots of driving, but at least it was a Prius . . .

Square dance?

Jeffrey's fiftieth birthday party, our reason for our trip to Santa Barbara, went off without a hitch yesterday.

In some odd coincidence, Chris hired a square dance caller for the party. I say odd coincidence, since my dad's fiftieth birthday party also had a square dance theme.

So now we're telling Steve that his fiftieth birthday party will have to be a square dance too.

The weather mostly cooperated although it was a bit chilly.

But no rain.

And square dancing with a bunch of Los Angelites was quite entertaining . . .

Sunny day!

At least for part of the day.

The last part of the day which is nice since it meant the day ended on a bright note.

For more reason than one.

See, we had dinner at Trattoria Vittoria to celebrate Julie, Jeffrey & Steve's birthdays.

Yum!

We ate there when we were here in January so I was muchly excited to hear that we were going back.

An excellent meal with much liquid imbibement so at the end, we ditched the car and took a cab back to Carpinteria.

Now, that was an experience. The cabbie made me wonder if it wasn't better to drive drunk. Jeffrey was calling him Travis Bickle which forced me to reveal my lack of cool quotient and inquire as to the identity of Travis Bickle.

Since, you probably don't know either, rather than making you google him, I'll tell you. (Aren't I nice? Just paying it forward since Jeffrey told me.) He's the Robert De Niro character in Taxi Driver.

Not that I've seen Taxi Driver but at least I'm familiar enough with the movie to get the cultural reference.

It never rains in California? Yeah, right.

Contrary to Albert Hammond's song, it does rain in California.

I know. It rained on me.

Although, in the interest of fairness, I guess I do have to admit that it's been 48 years since it's rained here on Memorial Day weekend.

But, in the interest of it's all about me, I haven't been here for any of those 47 rain free Memorial Day weekends, so they just don't count.

It's kinda chilly, grey, overcast . . .

Since Jeffrey's expecting 60+ people for his 50th birthday party and since the plan is to have a square dance on the front patio (it's a large patio), the weather could be an issue.

Not to mention the fact that I'm here and I should have good weather on my vacation.

Sheesh!

Air travel

sucks!

Actually, it wasn't so bad today but it sure wasn't great.

As we watched the 7 am Frontier flight take off, we learned that our 7 am United flight was delayed because our crew wasn't available.

Why weren't they available? The rumor was that they overslept. Someone suggested that they had been partying in Aspen last night. The gate agent tried to make it sound like they were stuck in Denver due to weather but that alibi had all kinds of holes in it, especially since they showed up before any flights landed.

By the time they did show up, the winds had picked up to such an extent that we now had a weather hold.

Tail winds. Can't take off in Aspen if they're too high.

So we were 3 hours delayed, an hour and a half of which was spent sitting on the runway. Our Santa Barbara flight was also delayed out of Denver so it still looked like it might work but no, when the winds finally dropped and the pilot gunned it and got us off the ground, it was too late.

Not to worry, though, we got on the next SB flight, which had been full but wasn't any longer (other delays in other cities?) and thus we arrived in SB a mere 3 hours late.

Not bad considering that it's a holiday weekend and DIA was a mob scene . . .

Memorial Day Weekend

Off to Santa Barbara.

As we were driving around town tonight and I was noticing how town's getting busier (off-season is coming to a close), it occurred to me that this will be the first Memorial Day weekend since 1998 that I will not have spent in Aspen and the second since 1996.

I visited Aspen for Memorial Day weekends of 1996 and 1998 and then moved here Memorial Day weekend of 1999.

I've always enjoyed noting the differences each year. When I came in '96, Aspen was just about a ghost town. There was only one restaurant open as I recall, the long defunct Silver City Diner (replaced by the recently defunct Blue Maize).

When I came back in '98 with Susie, I'm sure that I sounded like a broken record, talking about how much more was open.

The next year when I was here with my dad, who had helped me move, the difference was even more striking.

Now it has gotten a bit passe, how busy Memorial Day weekend has become. Used to be that all the businesses which closed for off-season reopened in early June. Now they're mostly re-opening May 20th through 23rd.

And for the first time in 10 years, I won't be here. Odd.

Two years?

Yesterday was my two year anniversary of blogging.

476 published posts since Saturday, May 20, 2006 (889 if you count all my blogs).

144 here so far this year (which must mean that we're on the 144th day of the year since I haven't missed a day this year - yay me!).

But, who's counting? Oh right, I am.

Ok, back to your regularly scheduled program . . .

America America by Ethan Canin

Yet another book which I received as part of LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program.

This one, I can enthusiastically endorse.

Canin spans early 1970s through post 9/11 America, or more specifically western New York. But not as much the economically depressed western New York of Richard Russo novels (although it does play a role), as the wealthy, powerful, politically connected New York State which factors into national presidential elections.

Canin plays out his story in jumps and starts, switching between three periods in the life of our protagonist, Corey Sifter, his high school years, his college years and his present day. As we move between these three spans, Canin parcels out tidbits which in the end allows the protagonist and the reader to fashion a likely solution to the central puzzle of the novel.

Canin is often oblique in his development of the narrative but this refusal to lay it all out for the reader works to emphasize Corey's journey from impressionable young yard boy to powerful newspaper publisher.

Altogether, a gripping, thoroughly enjoyable novel about politics, power, noblesse oblige and tragedy.

From the back cover:

From Ethan Canin, bestselling author of The Palace Thief, comes a stunning novel, set in a small town during the Nixon era and today, about America and family, politics and tragedy, and the impact of fate on a young man’s life.

In the early 1970s, Corey Sifter, the son of working-class parents, becomes a yard boy on the grand estate of the powerful Metarey family. Soon, through the family’s generosity, he is a student at a private boarding school and an aide to the great New York senator Henry Bonwiller, who is running for president of the United States. Before long, Corey finds himself involved with one of the Metarey daughters as well, and he begins to leave behind the world of his upbringing. As the Bonwiller campaign gains momentum, Corey finds himself caught up in a complex web of events in which loyalty, politics, sex, and gratitude conflict with morality, love, and the truth.

America America is a beautiful novel about America as it was and is, a remarkable exploration of how vanity, greatness, and tragedy combine to change history and fate.

About the Author
Ethan Canin is the author of six books of fiction, including the story collections, Emperor of the Air and The Palace Thief, and the novels For Kings and Planets and Carry Me Across the Water. He is on the faculty of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop and lives in Iowa, California, and northern Michigan.

Tour d'Apple Pie

Back in October of 2006, I was whining about how I could no longer get fried hot apple pies from McDonald's.

Well, it appears that I'm not the only one who misses that delicacy.

According to AOL, McDonald's fried hot apple pie is among the top 10 of the top 25 things they wish would make a comeback.

But, even better, according to Motley Web Surfer, there are still places where one can get fried hot apple pies.

And even better than that, some are in the US.

The list as of last night from Motley Web Surfer is copied below. Heck, I'm going to be in California next week, Florida next month and Chicago in August. I just might have to do the Tour d'Apple Pie.

Mötley Web Sürfer	Location	Comments
Tom	Minneapolis Airport Lindbergh Terminal	Thanks Tom!
Michael N.	Beijing, China All McDonalds	Fried apple pies everywhere! Micheal has the pics to prove it.
Justin B.	154 Mass Ave. Boston, MA	Near Berklee College of Music. Thanks Ben & Justin!
Lex	North Pier Mall 435 E. Illinois St. Chicago, IL 60611	Fried apple pies in Chi-Town.
Todd W.	Hong Kong, China All McDonalds	Fried apple pies everywhere! Go early, go often.
David B.	McCormick Place South Lake Shore Dr. Chicago, IL	They should have a convention for fried apple pies. Thanks David!
Scotty P.	Chengdu, China	1 Billion people can't be wrong! They even have pineapple pies.
George & Joanne	2300 Harbor Blvd. Costa Mesa, CA 92626	Corner of Harbor and Wilson.
Shinji	10207 Lakewood Blvd. Downey, CA 90240	The last original McDonald's still standing.
Chief Mötley Web Sürfer	Wal-Mart 1600 S. Mountain Ave. Duarte, CA 91010	Make sure to ask for fried, because they also serve baked.
David G.	Germany (Augsburg & Munich)	Thanks David!
Ryan's wife	Dublin, Ireland	Muchas gracias (in my best Irish accent) to Ryan and his chica bonita.
Al Falfa	Greece	Every store has the fried pastries. At least the Europeans got one thing right.
Paula	1 Southland Mall Hayward, CA 94545	Located in the Southland Mall.
Todd & Wendy	Wal*Mart 325 East Makaala Hilo, HI 96720	Located in the Waiakea Center. Thanks Todd & Wendy!
Dave	Aina Haina Shopping Center Honolulu, HI 96821	Thanks Dave!
Christina	1214 South Kihei Road Kihei, HI 96753	Stop by on your way to Wailea.
Todd W.	Hong Kong, China All McDonalds	Fried apple pies everywhere! Go early, go often.
El Chris-o	Ipanema, Brazil	Get your dessert here if you can distract yourself from all the half-naked women on the beach.
Robert & Joyce	Lexington, TN	Fried apple pies, Rocky Top style.
Dan W.	Manchester, NH	Hit the Mall of New Hampshire for your fried apple pie goodness.
Paula	5501 Overseas Highway Marathon, FL	Stay afloat on your way to Key West.
Urmil	Capitol Court Milwaukee, WI	Fried apple pies, Dairy State style.
TJ	Westfield Shoppingtown 3030 Plaza Bonita Road National City, CA	Get 'em while they're hot.
Jim L.	Phillipines	All Golden Arches in this country have the crunchy, sugary goodness.
Joe	Wal*Mart 4501 Rosewood Drive Pleasanton, CA 94588	Just off Highway 580.
Joe	1004 Stoneridge Mall Pleasanton, CA 94588-3217	Near Highways 580 & 680.
Dale	Wal*Mart 19100 Murdock Circle Port Charlotte, FL 33948	Near the 41/776 Intersection.
Bill	Downtown Mall Food Court Qatar	Our first entry from the Middle East.
Lex	Wal*Mart 12549 Foothill Blvd. Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91739	Just off Interstate 15.
Robert	Cherryvale Mall Rockford, IL	Do you know Jim from Rockford? (Inside joke for Illini fans)
Lex	Horton Plaza San Diego, CA 92101	Corner of Broadway and G.
Garrick	San Jose Airport Terminal A San Jose, CA 95110	Located near gates A6 and A7.
Jonathan	1315 3rd Street Santa Monica, CA 90401	On Third Street Promenade.
Robert & Joyce	Savannah, TN	Fried apple pies, Rocky Top style.
Bob	Seoul, South Korea	All McDonald's, including the airport.
Thomas	Tampa, FL	Look for "original apple pie" on the menu.
Mike E.	91400 Overseas Highway Tavernier, FL 33070	Watch out for hurricanes.
Rueben	Wal*Mart 1540 W. Foothill Blvd.. Upland, CA 91786	Near Historic Route 66.
Tracey	West Dundee, IL	Thanks Tracey!

This Isn't Man-Made?!?

What? Are AOL users really this uninformed?
This is disturbing.

What a good idea

Susie posted about checking her credit report for free online so I decided to check mine too.

I went to Experian.com and filled out a lot of personal data but when they asked me for my credit card number, I started to get a bit leery. I mean, here I am giving perfect strangers all the information they need to steal my identity.

So, before I clicked OK, I started to read all the fine print and found that I was signing up for some sort of "offer." Not what I had in mind.

The Experian website was good enough to provide me the information on how to get my free credit report without signing up for any sort of "offer" by going to www.annualcreditreport.com.

Just to be safe, I googled annualcreditreport.com and found the FTC website which put the government stamp of approval on the Annual Credit Report website.

So, off I went. The Annual Credit Report website is nice since it allows you to get your free credit report from all three credit bureaus, Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. You enter the bulk of your information once and then the Annual Credit Report website takes you to each of the credit bureau websites in turn. Each credit bureau website asks you a few additional questions and then, presto, there's your credit report.

After ascertaining that all was in order and that there weren't any surprises, I printed mine to Microsoft Office Document Image Writer so I could save them to my computer.

Now, I need to check Steve's . . .

What a great idea or Where can I sign up?

I haven't even heard the Talk of the Nation segment yet, but I'm all for it.

Electronic GPS monitoring of teenagers. Cool.

The New York Times did a story on it too.

I love gadgets, especially techno gadgets.

I think a GPS bracelet would be just thing to round out Rachel's fashion accessories.

I'm sure she'd totally agree.

Now if we could just come up with one that tracks homework . . .

Photo Credit

test

I am playing with my new toy and testing to see how well it gets along with Blogger. They seem to be playing together well.

Change in topic or I'm a wimp

I was going to write about what a negative impression Ron Paul made on me today during his appearance on Talk of the Nation.

But as I was searching online for an image to use, it dawned on me that by doing so, I might be unwisely venturing into territory best avoided.

There are a lot of people online who are very strongly in favor of Ron Paul. My dislike of Ron Paul is no where near as passionate. I definitely feel absolutely no need to engage in any sort of debate with Ron Paul supporters.

So, I'm not going to talk about how I had to turn the radio off in irritation.

Or about the fact that I'm definitely not buying Paul's book.

Jorgy: The Life of Native Alaskan Bush Pilot and Airline Captain Holger "Jorgy" Jorgensen, as told to Jean Lester

I received this book as part of the Early Reviewers program on LibraryThing.

Otherwise, to be honest, I probably would have never even come across it, let alone bought it.

And yet, I started this book on May 8 and finished it on May 12. It was certainly not a chore to read.

The book is very earnest, if a bit amateurish. Told as a series of anecdotes, it reads like a book of short stories with a common theme.

Jorgy Jorgensen is definitely a remarkable individual who overcame long odds to rise to a well respected position in his chosen profession. The book conveys his laconic voice well although, to some extent, it is a victim of his accomplishments in that, even when Jorgy's not bragging, the book seems to be.

The book holds obvious appeal for fans of aviation and those interested in the behind the scenes stories of the Alaska bush. While I am neither of those, the book held my interest quite well too.

From Jean Lester's website:

This book is the autobiography of an Inupiat man, born in an isolated mining community, having only an eighth-grade education, who amidst a frontier mentality of conqueror superiority, surpassed the prejudice of his time to become a legendary aviator. Early aviation, the Alaska Territorial Guard, segregation, the DEW line, the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, and the Trans-Alaska Pipeline were part of this exciting and tumultuous time in Alaska's history. Boom and bust, exploration and exploitation to such an extent no one could have imagined or anticipated, was Alaska when Jorgy was growing up and flying. Jean Lester brings her talent for capturing the voices of her subjects to bear, vividly relaying Holger "Jorgy" Jorgensen's wry and laconic tales of his life in the northern air.

Photo Credit

New toy

The FedEx man brought me a new toy today.

A Blackberry Pink Pearl.

So, I've been rather preoccupied and don't have much to say at this late hour.

I will say that, so far, I love the Blackberry's email and browsing capabilities and its size.

But, as of right now, I still like the Palm Desktop software better . . .

We'll see if my Blackberry replaces my Palm.

Happy Mother's Day to me

For Mother's Day, I got doors.

This is a good thing.

You know the advice to men to never buy anything with a plug for their wives for Christmas, Valentine's Day, birthday?

Well, this isn't the same.

In my house, Rachel has a room she can go into and close the doors (her bedroom), Steve has a room he can to into and close the doors (his art studio) and I have a room that I can go into that has no doors (my office).

This just doesn't work for me when I need to be separate. I have no where to go where others can't follow.

So, today for Mother's Day, Steve bought me doors.

Never mind that they were too big for us to bring home so they're going to have to be delivered.

Never mind that they are 4 inches too wide and 2 inches too tall for the opening to my office.

Never mind that they don't have door knobs or even pre-cut holes for door knobs and we don't have a way to drill holes for door knobs.

Nope, none of that matters. We will figure it all out.

What matters is that I'm going to have doors!

Photo Credit

PostSecret Two Weeks Ago

I wrote about seeing Frank Warren of PostSecret in Fort Collins two weeks ago on April 26, 2008

The next day, April 27, 2008, he posted this postcard on PostSecret.

This sticker issue has been a bit of a controversy for PostSecret.

He spoke about it at the event we attended. Basically, his position is that he posts the secrets as they reach him. If some of the artwork falls off or if the USPS adds their sticker, that's what he receives and that's what he posts.

A fair number of people disagree as evidenced by the postcard pictured and by the topic in the PostSecret forums (which I can't find right now to add a hyperlink but in looking, I discovered that tomorrow's secrets are already up and they made me cry).

I have two thoughts on the topic. One, I can see his point. If you start altering the postcards, where do you draw the line? Two, even if I didn't agree, it's his deal. He started PostSecret. He's in charge. He makes the rules.

It rather amuses me that people get so het up about it.

VISA's response

Here's the response from askvisacorporate@visa.com to my inquiry regarding how to lodge a complaint against a merchant who has a minimum transaction amount:

Thank you for writing about an issue with a merchant that accepts Visa payment products.

Visa merchants are not permitted to establish minimum/maximum transaction amounts, even on sale items.

If you have experienced this situation, please notify the bank that issued your Visa card. Banks have access to the appropriate Visa rules and regulations as well as to the Notification of Customer Complaint forms which may be used by the bank to document and file merchant complaints.

You can find your banks’ contact information on your credit card statement or on the back of your Visa card.

Thank you for writing.

Visa Webmaster

My original query was:

How do I lodge a complaint against a retailer who won't allow me to charge a purchase under a certain amount of money?

The response is perhaps a bit toothless, but I guess I can always wave the email in their faces . . .

Black Girl/White Girl by Joyce Carol Oates

This book called to me a few weekends ago when I was browsing at Tattered Cover in Denver.

I had forgotten my first encounter with Joyce Carol Oates.

When Steve saw what I had bought, he was surprised. He reminded me that I had read his copy of a Joyce Carol Oates novel (neither of us could remember what it was) and had not liked it.

At all.

Hmmmm.

As it turns out, the offending book was We are the Mulvaneys.

When I told Steve what the book was that I didn't like, he asked me what I thought of this one. I replied, "I liked it better than the last one."

Not a rousing endorsement.

Don't get me wrong. Black Girl/White Girl held my interest. I read it in 2 days.

I found a lot of truths in it about relationships between the races.

I was struck by how unlikeable the black girl of the title, Minette Swift, was.

I liked how the subplot about Genna and her father slowly took over and became the plot.

I found parts of it unreasonably obtuse. There was a little too much mystery and opaqueness surrounding Genna's memories of incidents during her childhood and her dealings with her parents while at the same time her memories of her time with Minette were crisply focused.

Black Girl/White Girl is not an uplifting book. Nobody in it is or ends up happy.

Yet, all that being said, I'm glad I read it. I guess that means I'd have to give it a thumbs up.

From the back cover:

In 1975 Genna Hewett-Meade's college roommate died a mysterious, violent death partway through their freshman year. Minette Swift had been assertive, fiercely individualistic, and one of the few black girls at their exclusive, "enlightened" college - and Genna, daughter of a prominent civil defense lawyer, felt duty-bound to protect her at all costs. But fifteen years later, while reconstructing Minette's tragic death, Genna is forced to painfully confront her own past life and identity . . . and her deepest beliefs about social obligation in a morally gray world.

Black Girl/White Girl is a searing double portrait of race and civil rights in post-Vietnam America, captured by one of the most important literary voices of our time.

Credit Card Minimums

You may not know this (it seems like a lot of people don't) but having a minimum charge for credit card charges violates a business' merchant agreement with VISA and MasterCard.

I don't run into minimum charges very often but have twice in the last few weeks.

One, at ZG Grill, I already wrote about.

The other happened today at Rocky Mountain Pet Shop.

Personally, I think that credit card minimums are counter productive. Yes, VISA or Mastercard charges a percentage but as far as I'm concerned, the cost is more than balanced by the increased opportunities to make a sale, the efficiencies realized with deposits occurring automatically each day, the convenience of not having to keep and/or make change and the ability to capture revenue immediately.

I did read in yesterday's paper that ZG Grill, along with its sister restaurant, Crust, has been seized by the State for Colorado for nonpayment of taxes. Karma? Or really just another example of shoddy business practices. (I complained about Crust here.)

Today's episode at the Rocky Mountain Pet Shop was over $3 worth of dog treats which I didn't really want since I have plenty here at home. I was making a bit of a guilt purchase, having gone into the store and taken up the salesman's time. When he wouldn't take my credit card, he let me off the hook. But more importantly, he lost a sale (wouldn't a reduced profit be better than no profit) and he lost a customer. While I don't shop there frequently since their prices are kinda high ($20 for a bag of Greenies which I can buy elsewhere for $12), I do shop there.

Or I should say, did shop there.

I came home and researched online how to lodge a complaint against a merchant who is violating his/her merchant agreement by requiring a minimum purchase. According to Bankrate.com, you can email VISA at askvisacorporate@visa.com or call MasterCard at 800-300-3069.

On a more positive note, I have to give kudos to Mondo Cafe in Moab which took my credit card uncomplainingly for a $2 coffee purchase. They were so nice about it that I left a $1 tip.

Photo credit

I'd get my ass kicked

Traveler IQ Challenge

Steve found this game on the Brasov Daily Photo page and he rocks.

I watched him play for a while and all I know is that I'd suck at it.

He's made it Level 10 twice. (edit, now's he's made it to Level 11 out of 12)

I'm in awe.

What to say?

Kinda at a loss as to what to talk about today . . .

Could talk about the fact that I happened upon my daughter hanging out this evening with a bunch of her classmates, all of whom were smoking except for her and one other (yuck).

Could talk about how I'm the cool mom but really only because I have one of the good kid daughters (can't imagine what I'd be like if she wasn't).

Could talk about the forlorn looking older couple who called me over to their car this evening to inquire where they could grab a bite to eat having just arrived in Aspen in off season (the list was rather short).

Could talk about the gorgeous spring day that just concluded (affording me an opportunity to walk around town for a while after work).

Could talk about my lovely fire in my lovely chimenea last night (which still makes me feel like a bit of an outlaw).

Could talk about the cool rhinestone belt which has been added to my husband's wardrobe (he's sure he's never owned anything with rhinestones before).

But, instead, I'll just leave you with all these tantalizing little nuggets . . .

Planetwalker by John Francis

John Francis stopped using motorized transportation after witnessing a 1971 oil spill in the San Francisco Bay. He stopped talking several months later. As the subtitle says, 22 years of walking, 17 years of silence.

The book I read was the Advance Reader's Edition, published in 2008 by the National Geographic Society.

There's another book by the same name and the same author but a different publisher (Elephant Mountain Press). It was published in 2005 and based on what I found on Amazon, the beginning of the first chapter is the same in both. So, I don't know if I read the same book, a slightly different book or what.

This book is a conundrum.

I found it provocative. As I was reading it, it provided fodder for several interesting conversations, for example, as we took a roadtrip to Moab or as I considered Rachel's Vow of Silence day.

Francis is very matter of fact throughout the book. He readily acknowledges his detractors and his own doubts but then just moves on to the next topic. The book appears to be largely drawn from his journals so at times there are disconcerting gaps in time and places where the narrative simply fades away.

I found myself struggling with the question of how much is enough as Francis allows people to transport his pack for him on his treks and sends gear ahead via mail. Francis touches on these questions later in the book, in the form of recognizing but not resolving the issue.

Francis never pretends to have the answers but reading about an individual who managed to earn a bachelor's degree, a master's degree and a Ph.D. at three different universities, all while walking across the country and not talking, provides for some very thought provoking opportunities to question one's own journey.

Roughing it

Steve needed a picture of the recently destroyed Dewey Bridge so on the spur of the moment yesterday, we decided to roadtrip to Moab.

The only real flaw with our decision was our timing.

This is a spring weekend in Moab. Spring weekends in Moab are not known for being deserted, although it is the desert.

Which is why most people who like to go to Moab like to go in the spring.

Before it's summer.

Cause it's hot in the summer in the desert.

So, being that it's not deserted in Moab on a spring weekend, motel rooms are very difficult to come by on the spur of the moment.

Luckily for us, we have a friend who just built (or is still in the process of building) a cabin approximately halfway between Moab and Grand Junction.

Once we figured out that there was going to be no room at the inn, we called Mark and he graciously allowed us to stay in his home away from home.

Although a bit cold (the desert can get very cold at night and the cabin as yet has no insulation), it was quite comfortable and served our purposes well. Much better than trying to sleep in the car on the side of the road or trying to drive all the way back home last night (Aspen being four hours from Moab).

Thanks, Mark!

On the road

We're on the road to take pictures in Moab. I'll be back tomorrow.

Silence is golden

I'm reading an Advance Reader's Edition of The Planet Walker by John Francis right now. In 1971, John Francis took a vow of silence which lasted 17 years. As he explains in his book, the main impetus for his silence was to avoid arguing about his decision several months earlier to no longer use any form of motorized transportation.

Along the lines of there is no such thing as coincidence, today Rachel is participating in The Action in Africa Vow of Silence Day. This means that she can't speak all day long.

Woohoo!

Now, anyone who knows Rachel knows that, like her mother, she has a contrary streak. Actually, as her mother, I think I can safely say that her contrary streak is worse than mine (although I might be just a bit biased).

Rachel loves to argue. She is hardwired to argue even when she can't speak. This morning, she was unhappy about the fact that it was snowing and when I told her to get over it, she tried to argue with me silently using a dry erase board.

As I cut her off, the parallel between the result of her vow of silence and John Francis' vow of silence, the inability to argue, smacked me upside the head.

Of course, when I pointed it out to her, she wanted to argue with me about it.

I also told her that I thought it would be a fantastic idea if she did the Vow of Silence Day once a week. I limited it to once a week in the spirit of not being greedy.

She didn't like that idea either.

In the alternative, 17 years would be kinda cool, too . . .

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