Joe's Book Cafe 12

Artwork by Takehiko Inoue

Welcome back to the cafe!

Favorites from 2013

Top 5

1. Longbourn by Jo Baker
2. Benediction by Kent Haruf
3. Stones for Ibarra by Harriet Doerr
4. Tiny Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayed
5. The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey by Walter Mosley

Second Five

6. The Greater Journey by David McCullough
7. Wizard of the Crow by Ngugi wa'Thiong'o
8. Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
9. Life After Life by Kate Atkinson
10. A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki

Favorite Graphic Novel: The Nao of Brown

Three that were hard to keep off the list: Housekeeping, Song of the Lark, and How the Light Gets In

2014 American Author Challenge (kudos to Mark)

Willa Cather- January The Professor's House
Alice Walker- February The Color Purple
Cormac McCarthy - March The Orchard Keeper
Toni Morrison- April Sula
Eudora Welty- May The Optimist's Daughter
Kurt Vonnegut- June Cat's Cradle (re-read)
Mark Twain- July Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Philip Roth- August The Ghost Writer
James Baldwin- September Notes of a Native Son
Edith Wharton- October Ethan Frome
John Updike- November The Witches of Eastwick
Larry Watson- December Let Him Go

Life-changers

Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll - opened my eyes to so many creative possibilities, including wordplay
Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury - got me believing in school again after a soon-to-be favorite teacher assigned it
Charlotte's Web by E.B. White - took a typical self-centered kid out of himself and got me thinking about others; broke my heart for the first time, too
James Wright Collected Poems - midwestern poet caught me and fueled a lifelong interest in poetry
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen - read it way post-college and got walloped; started lifelong Austen fandom

Dune by Frank Herbert - got me excited about the possibilities of science fiction, and thinking about environmental effects
Dr. Strange by Stan Lee and others - this hokey, mystical comic book was my favorite as a kid, and fueled my lifelong graphic fandom
Future Shock by Alvin Toffler - he took on emerging issues like economic disparities, overpopulation and pollution; trying to look into the future fascinated me
After the Quake by Haruki Murakami - my entry into his world that started me on lifelong fandom
Remember, Be Here Now by Ram Dass - matched my youthful hippiness perfectly, still working on some of its ideas

The Chosen by Chaim Potok - for the first time, got me enthralled by lives very different from my own
Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind by Shunryu Suzuki - what a mensch this man was; still the best on this subject I've read
Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder - made me a fan of both Paul Farmer and author Tracy Kidder, and got me involved with Partners in Health
T.S. Eliot Selected Poems - bowled me over, so I felt like a patient, etherized upon a table; got the complete works later
Thank You, Jeeves by P.G. Wodehouse - fueled my appreciation of the absurd and started a lifelong fandom for this author

2014 Books

January

1. Mad Mouse by Chris Grabenstein
2. A Conspiracy of Faith by Jussie Adler-Olsen
3. Kindred in Death by J.D. Robb
4. The Professor's House by Willa Cather
5. Fantasy in Death by J.D. Robb
6. Die Trying by Lee Child
7. The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton
8. In the Bleak Midwinter by Julia Spencer-Fleming
9. Five Days at Memorial by Sheri Fink
10. Japantown by Barry Lancet
11. View with a Grain of Sand by Wislawa Szymborska
12. Moon Over Soho by Ben Aaronovitch
13. High Heat by Lee Child

February

14. A Fountain Filled with Blood by Julia Spencer-Fleming
15. Boxers & Saints by Gene Luen Yang
16. The Color Purple by Alice Walker
17. Cress by Marissa Meyer
18. The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
19. Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie
20. Stone Cold by C.J. Box
21. The Martian by Andy Weir
22. Necessity's Child by Sharon Lee

March

23. The Orchard Keeper by Cormac McCarthy
24. Indulgence in Death by J.D. Robb
25. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
26. My Dungeon Shook by Danez Smith
27. Black Boy Suite Black Boy Sweet by Danez Smith
28. Mrs. Tim of the Regiment by D.E. Stevenson
29. Little Green by Walter Mosley
30. Attachments by Rainbow Rowell
31. Lost Lake by Sarah Addison Allen
32. A Truth Universally Acknowledged: Why We Read Jane Austen, edited by Susannah Carson
33. Dream London by Ian Ballantyne
34. Prisoner of Zenda by Anthony Hope
35. Treachery in Death by J.D. Robb
36. Our Friends from Frolix 8 by Philip K. Dick
37. Burning Girls by Veronica Schanoes

April

38. New York to Dallas by J.D. Robb
39. Refusing Heaven by Jack Gilbert
40. The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion
41. Sula by Toni Morrison
42. Just One Damned Thing After Another by Jodi Taylor
43. Celebrity in Death by J.D. Robb
44. William Shakespeare's The Empire Striketh Back by Ian Doescher
45. To Darkness and To Death by Julia Spencer-Fleming
46. Vagabond Vol. 35 by Takehiko Inoue
47. A Symphony of Echoes by Jodi Taylor
48. Delusion in Death by J.D. Robb
49. A Second Chance by Jodi Taylor
50. A Constellation of Vital Phenomena by Anthony Marra

May

51. The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak (re-read)
52. The Optimist's Daughter by Eudora Welty
53. Calculated in Death by J.D. Robb
54. Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer

Ok, so our niece took us to Urth Cafe on South Hewitt in LA. We loved it. Here are some pics.



My niece and I had lattes. You can see the bird design on hers, and the flower design on mine. Mine is nearly as big as a bucket, btw. One of the best lattes I've ever had.





I had bread pudding with sliced apples and caramel sauce. Woo, so good.



They had quite a pastry selection.



We got the chocolate crown cake. By that time, our grandniece at 10 years old was getting pretty ootsy, so you'll have to use your imagination.

Wheee! I'm here! And just in time for bread pudding. Few things are more satisfying.

Hi Joe- Happy New thread, my friend. Love the Japanese artwork. It reminds me of Kurosawa. Are you just kicking back tonight or do you have plans?
Sorry about the Bulls, but Go HAWKS!!

The lattes and the bread pudding look scrummy!

>4 laytonwoman3rd: Way to go, Linda! You win the bread pudding award for first through the door.



>5 msf59: Hiya, Mark. Thanks! Aren't those great? My favorites of his are the Vagabond series, based on the life of the swordsman Miyamoto Mushashi. That's likely where you're getting the Kurosawa feel.

We're kicking back tonight. It's been a whirlwind.

The Bulls started out lousy, and it cost them, even though they came on at the end. How bout them Hawks? Wow, down 2-0, and they take it 4-2! Next is MN or Colorado.

>6 richardderus: Don't they, Richard? And they were!

ETA: IS the third of four illustrations showing up for everyone? It's fine on my pc, but not showing up on my iPhone.

I see all four.

No, all I see is the "hosted by" announcement.

Nothing in the 4th spot!

Happy new thread Joe.

Happy New Thread Joe! That Bread Pudding! Oh yes, please!

Hello Joe! Oh my, bread pudding makes me weak in the knees!

Congrats on the Blackhawks' series win! Hope the Avs make it through to face them.

Hope you're having an excellent weekend.

Using the excuse of a new thread to drop by and say hello!

OK, thanks. I changed the third illustration, as it seems like the first one was only showing up for some and not others.

>8 laytonwoman3rd: Thanks, Linda. I liked that one better, but it doesn't seem to work universally. He's got a wonderful book called Water Vagabond Illustration Collection, that is just his artwork, and has that one.

>9 richardderus: OK, I changed it RD. So you should see one now.

>10 msf59: Should be fixed, yes, Mark?

>11 GeezLouise: Thanks, Rae. Glad you were able to stop by. Hope it's been a good day in your part of the world.

>12 Smiler69: Hi, Ilana! Thanks! Bread pudding is the best, isn't it? Here you go:



>13 AMQS: Hiya, Anne! Most of us are susceptible to lack of equipoise when there's delicious bread pudding around.

Thanks re the Blackhawks. The stars seemed aligned against them when the series started, but then they got back home, got some rhythm (and great goaltending) and took four straight. Can they repeat with the Stanley Cup? That would be so cool!

We're having an excellent weekend. We're looking forward to not traveling for a while (didn't expect to be saying that one), but it's been a grand family get-together, with parts of the family we don't see as often as others. Plus LA is interesting, if one of the last places on earth I'd ever want to live.

I don't know a single LA LTer, and that doesn't seem all that surprising, although their wonderful public library, with many patrons, shows there are readers here. Our Santa Monica grand-niece is a voracious reader, currently reading The School for Good and Evil. Anyway, I digress. We've had a great time, and look forward to our return to what's supposed to be a rainy Chicago.

>14 labfs39: Hi, Lisa! Glad you stopped by - any excuse is a good one. Still hoping you join us at one of the Seattle meetups some day.

Ah yes, can now see all four images. TY

>16 richardderus: Good! Never fully understand the vicissitudes of the intergoogleweb.

Fantastic pictures. Salivating in a completely uncouth Pavlovian way... Safe travels!

>15 jnwelch: Absolutely! I'm only about 40 minutes outside the city. When do you think you will be back?

>13 AMQS: Ahem ... Go Wild!

>1 jnwelch: Love the artwork.

Hi Joe, the pictures are working perfectly for me. And I want a latte now.

Happy new thread!

Happy new thread, Joe. Are you still in LA?

Oh my, those toppers are gorgeous!

And bread pudding! My favorite!!

Happy New Thread, Joe!

Beautiful new thread here Joe! Thank you for that! I'm just popping in to say hello.. then off to work!
Boo Hiss

Hope your day is happy :)

Joe, on your latest thread. I love the photos of the Urth Cafe. That would have been something for me, too.

Thanks, everyone. We are traveling back today, so please rely on the kitchen staff in my absence. Have a good one today! Here are some lattes to tide you over, and more can be brought out.



See you soon!

Thanks, Joe and I help myself until you're safe back home.

Hi Joe- Have a safe return home. The chill and the rain will be waiting to embrace you. Lucky guy!

Happy new thread Joe! That cafe looks amazing. I'm a huge pastry and coffee fan, so it looks perfect.

I love the Latte's. I will take the one on the right in the second row!

Have a fantastic week and a nice Monday.

Oh! I always meant to get to Urth when I was living in L.A but somehow missed my chance. Darn! Looks wonderful!

Safe travels!

ETA I love the thread topper artwork!

In RL, my lattes always come looking like someone's lower intestine...

The service is MUCH better here. ;-)

Were you in the Urth Cafe in Santa Monica, CA? If so, I have been in that wonderful place! Many times.

#256 from previous thread

That is the asparagus seller statue in Schwetzegen, DE. I have been there and seen her. The Asparagus Fest is currently going on in that town. The area around there is one of the top asparagus producing regions in the world. The town plaza is a great place to have a meal, and the gardens and grounds of the palace are amazing no matter what season of the year.

Self-service today, eh? I can live with that. Some great pictures there, JOe.

>27 Ameise1: Ha! Good, thanks, Barbara. We're back, so I should be able to pitch in.

>28 msf59: Hi, Mark. I know, we thought you'd get rid of this damp, chilly weather while we were gone. What went wrong?

>29 Thebookdiva: Thanks, Abby. Hope you get to visit Urth some day - you'd definitely enjoy it. How do you like those Takehiko Inoue drawings up there? They may not be your cuppa.

>30 connie53: That does look good, Connie. Unless someone grabbed it, I'll take the one in the middle in the bottom row. Glad this worked out!

>31 GeezLouise: Thanks, Rae. We spent Monday making our way back to Chicago. LAX airport has torn up a bunch of runways for reconstruction, so we had to take an unbelievably long shuttle bus ride to the plane (people were joking that they might as well bus us all the way to Chicago), and the huge plane was "under-catered", as our sympathetic flight attendant put it, so there was no food (because she felt bad about it, she was offering free alcoholic drinks instead - kind of a screwy but well-intended idea), and it was chilly, but they forgot to put any blankets on board, so our poor daughter was feeling the chill the whole way back. (Because of the lengthy shuttle, they boarded everyone on the bus early, leaving no time for anyone to buy food in the airport, although our daughter managed to snag us some - chilly - smoothies). Anyway, we arrived fine in the late afternoon, and quickly transported ourselves to the local pizzeria for immediate slice gratification.

The detail was very impressive, but your right, it wasn't exactly my cup of tea. Sorry to hear about your travel woes, that sounds awful. I bet a warm slice of pizza tasted wonderful after all of that. The free alcoholic drinks does sound a bit screwy.

>32 Storeetllr: Hi, Mary! Glad you like the artwork up there. I'm always amazed by the level of detail he is able to convey in black and white, particularly the elements of nature like trees, water and rain.

Urth was excellent, and we highly recommend it if you get out there again. We were going to Nick's Diner originally, which apparently has quite a rep in LA, but the wait was too long. I'm glad we ended up at Urth; more our kind of place.

>33 michigantrumpet: That's why it's important to have a quality local cafe where you can hang out or pick up your latte, right, Marianne? I don't even attempt lattes at home, although I admire people who do. A pot of coffee is within my skill set, but I head here or to other local cafes for the lattes. The ones here have calorie benefits, but depend a lot on the imagination.

>34 benitastrnad: This Urth was in downtown LA, Benita, on Hewitt street. It's in the area that's being compared to Tribeca, where people are residentially taking over old industrial/warehouse loft space.

Our niece lives in Santa Monica, so I'm sure she's been to that Urth as well.

BTW, she's one of the actors in the new Amazon Prime tv show Transparent, with Jeffrey Tambor and Judith Light and others. It's a comedy/drama that plays a lot with gender and sexuality issues - Tambor is a parent transitioning to being to a woman (Trans-parent), among other things. We thought the pilot was really good, and it was the winner among a number of others. If you're a Primer, you might give it a try. She's a sweetheart, so we're pulling for her.

>35 benitastrnad: Sounds great, Benita. I'd love to get there some day.

>36 ronincats: Thanks, Roni. Glad you like the pics. I'm around now, although I sure wasn't at the hour you were posting!

>38 Thebookdiva: I figgered, Abby, thanks. Yes, there's an old saying, "Hunger is the best spice", and those pizza slices tasted delicious all right. It's run by a local family (Bartoli's), and we like to give them business anyway. We had both deep dish and thin slice, and both tasted like manna from heaven.

Joe, it's good to hear that you're safe back home. Have a nice day.

>41 Ameise1: Thanks, Barbara. We're settling back in. Work's always a bit of a challenge upon return, as things get backed up a bit, but so far it's a nice day indeed.

We were glad to see that two of the shows we saw in NYC, "A Gentlemen's Guide to Murder" and "After Midnight", got a bunch of Tony nominations: http://broadwaydirect.com/feature/and-the-2014-tony-nominees-are?utm_source=news....

Signature Theater in NYC, which we like, got the Regional Theater award - not sure how that works, since I thought that award went to non-NYC theaters, but it's still good to see.

Hi Joe- Welcome back to the grind. Sounds like you had a fine weekend away. I'll check in with you later...

>43 msf59: Sounds good, Mark. Yes, it was a fine weekend away, and we're happy to be home. No traveling for a while!

Your airport story will stick in my head when we travel to Europe in May. It's a long, long haul, even without ground trouble.

Congrats to your niece for snagging a series. I hope it lasts for a while. It sounds interesting. And your recommendations on eating in LA (and that wonderful library) might change my mind about that place, which I have avoided for many many years.

Jim and I were at the theater this weekend (how unusual) to see "The City of Conversation", nominally about the struggle between Democrats and Republicans from Reagan until Obama, but really about how political ambition and the increasing lack of civility and tolerance in that arena can tear a family apart. Well done but aggravating is the way I'd put it. Not really recommended.

The Urth Coffee shop in Santa Monica was just down the hill from my cousins house. I spent a week out visiting them and every day when I would walk to the beach I would stop and get coffee and pastry. Then on the way back to the house I would stop and have coffee and something to eat. Wonderful place with a great patio and interesting people to watch.

The weather caused us great excitement down here last night. Even though the University was not threatened by the weather the place went crazy with students trying to get to the "designated safe places" with no bus transportation. If we keep having bad weather they may eventually get the logistics right. But until then we will muddle through. Thank god for coffee.

Hey Joe! Whats new with the cafe?? Looks like your place is hopping as usual. So nice to see some things won't change. ;)

>45 ffortsa: A trip to Europe is a long haul for sure, Judy. Hope you avoid some of the bungling we experienced. We're going to apply for one of those Global Entry TSA-type clearances this summer, to at least make it easier to get through Customs.

Our niece's series currently has nine episodes lined up, and then, who knows. What a business. She's lucky in that she has a pretty steady income from voiceovers for commercials. We'll see. I used to push her around in a roller chair at my parents' when she was a wee tot; fun to see how she's grown over the years. She and her sister had their own theater company here at one point.

I know how it goes with one like "The City of Conversation". You take chances at the theater, and sometimes they pan out, and sometimes they don't. This one sounds like it falls more on the "don't" side. Fun to have fellow LTers like you and Jim who like to go a lot.

Our next one is a new production of Sondheim's Road Show, carried out by the same guy (Gary Griffin) who successfully directed Gypsy and Sunday in the Park with George and others.

>46 benitastrnad: That sounds like the Urth in LA, Benita. Lots of interesting people to watch, and I had the bonus of a running commentary on their clothing from our daughter. Lots of good-looking folks there hoping to catch on in the entertainment biz. Our niece was laughing about how in LA people will let you know you could stand to lose a few pounds, and then she gets back to the midwest and everyone's concerned about how scrawny she is - mangiare! mangiare!

I know, we all scramble when the weather gets bad, no matter how many times we've thought it through. We've tried to get necessaries lined up in our basement pantry for bad storms, tornadoes and earthquakes. The fire dept. drills us pretty regularly in our building, but if movement becomes necessary, I'm sure we'll all be relying on those few here who've been trained to get us to safety.

>47 jolerie: *nearly faints* Who is that? Is that Valerie? Where you been, old friend? We haven't seen you around these parts in ages!

What's been going on? What are you reading? How are things? Great to have you back!

Joe - I am back from my own travels and sorry to see your own were pretty calamitous from LAX. We also had a couple of bus rides in Qatar to the terminal to transfer gates and then back on the taxiways to the KL bound plane. Food, service and everything though splendid I have to admit.

Congrats on another new thread whilst I was away cooling myself off in Yorkshire.

What a story about the flying thing, Joe. It sounds horrible. I'm happy you and your family are home safe!

I think in the raggedness of traveling and visiting and so on I missed some folks up above. So here goes.

>18 michigantrumpet: Thanks, Marianne. We started handing out cafe ponchos because of all the Pavlovian salivation going on.



>19 labfs39: I'm not sure when we'll be back to Seattle, Lisa, but it's good to know you're close by. We'd like to get there twice a year, maybe Spring and Fall, but we're getting spread a little thin with all the traveling. So maybe this Fall; if not, probably March or April next year. Our favorite and only son lives there, and we miss him a lot, so we're motivated.

>20 Oberon: Glad you love the artwork, Erik. Go Wild? Big game 7 tomorrow, right?

>21 connie53: Glad we got the pictures fixed, Connie, and that you found a good latte here with the proprietor out there goofing off again.

>22 wilkiec: Thanks, Diana. We were still in LA, but flew back yesterday. Back at work now. Although I seem to be on Librarything rather than working. I'm going to here about this from my MBH and daughter, who believe I'm making it up about the working part.

>23 scaifea: Thanks, Amber! Warms the cockles of my heart to hear your praise for the toppers and the bread pudding.

What edible, burrowing bivalve mollusks with a strong ribbed shell are doing in my heart is another question altogether. But thank you re the new thread, too.

>24 mckait: Thanks, Kath! Boo hiss to the work day, we say. Hope your day is going okay, and you have a good visit with Jo.

Welcome home, Joe! The lattes look amazing. I'm a complete duffer when it comes to froth designs. I tried when I was in our Melbourne office (they have a great coffee machine in the office) and everyone received mugs of coffee with either a frothy cloud or frothy poop designs.

>51 jnwelch: Very big game 7 indeed. I am finding watching too stressful - watching the Wild give up late leads to then lose in overtime has been very hard. Two very closely matched teams.

>48 jnwelch: "Road Show"! When it was named 'Bounce', Jim and I and some maniac Sondheim fans actually spent a weekend in Chicago solely to see it. We then saw 'Road Show' when it was here in NY. Or the other way around - I don't trust myself on names.

Let's just say it's not and will never be "Into the Woods". But have fun anyway.

Well Joe, I didn't plan on being away for so long. RL got in the way in the form of a new baby and my life took a backseat for awhile..haha! But here I am, with more sleep and hopefully more sanity. :)

>52 cameling: LOL!! Oh, you got me with that one, Caro. Somehow frothy poop designs aren't the way I'd choose to start my day. Our kids are grown up now, thank you very much. :-)

I've no idea how they did the fancy latte designs at Urth, and I'm sure they've got more in their repertoire. One can only marvel and appreciate. Really tasty, too.

>53 Oberon: I know what you mean. My poor MBH, who usually loves basketball, always says to me, I hate basketball, when the tension is high at the end of a close game. The heartbreak can be tough, no doubt about it. It always helps for me in a loss if "our" team plays hard and well, and loses because the other team does, too, and just manages to come out on top. That will probably be the story in Game 7, whoever wins it.

>54 ffortsa: Yeah, we have a theater-going friend who saw it in its "Bounce" form, Judy, I think in NYC, and he was less than impressed. (He's a big Sondheim fan, too). I don't know whether you've seen a Gary Griffin-directed production of Sondheim, but Griffin has a real gift. Our friend is optimistic about, and looking forward to, Road Show at Chicago Shakespeare for that reason. I'll report back.

>55 jolerie: Best reason there is, Valerie, a new baby! Yeah, even in my dotage I remember the sleep deprivation and marginal sanity. Glad you're back in the groove and able to rejoin us. What are you reading to the baby? I used to read Aristophanes and Plato to ours (not).

Oh..all the great classics like The Odyssey, Iliad, and such, of course. NOT! ;)

Right now we are sticking with goodies like Goodnight Moon Lots of pictures and few words seems to be theme. :P

>57 jolerie: :-) Sounds just right to me, Valerie.

A number of years ago Margaret Wise Brown's son created a lifesize Goodnight Moon room at a book fair here. It was a thrill to be able to walk around in it, and my MBH performed a story there. (Yes, our kids were in attendance). It was probably too long ago - I couldn't find a photo of it, although I know the Chicago Tribune featured it once upon a time. Here's a different one to give you an idea:

So very happy that all three of you made it back to, well, anyway home, and not one of you became homicidal and used the katanas to behead the flight crew and noisy fellow fliers.

I've binge-watched MIss Fisher's Murder Mysteries, season 2, so that might have colored my opinions about your familial skills...I don't suppose a lobster-and-mac-and-cheese plate is within your powers?

They have cappucino and latte foam contests in Italy. Apparently you can do all kinds of designs on the top of foamy coffee. I'm gonna need me some of that tonight as I get to come back to the Library. The weather is being screwy tonight again and they are going to close the bus service early. I get to be on-site in order to ensure that we have somebody responsible in place.

I'll have what Richard is having. Sounds great on a rainy night.

>59 richardderus: The ones to blame weren't present, Richard, so that helps explains our katana-forbearance. I am going to make time to complain somewheres - there was more than I even described that went awry on this one.

MIss Fisher's Murder Mysteries look like they'd be fun. Yes, I believe the chef has been hoping someone would order the lobster mac and cheese. Here you go:



>60 benitastrnad: Grab a fork and dig in on the lobster mac and cheese, Benita. (Watch out for zealous RDs, though). I can imagine a latte or cappucino will help night duty at the Library. What's happening that requires that?

I'd like to see a cappucino and latte foam contest some day. Festivities midst lots of coffee sound wonderful, for starters.

Lobster mack-and-cheese! And lattes! *drools*

Lobster mac and cheese.....gack! LOL

What a travel story Joe! How come I am never on a flight where they hand out free booze?

>61 jnwelch: Oooooo! That philistine Heidi's aspersion aside, it looks like heaven on a plate. Perfect, thanks!

Lobster mac and cheese, please!! And of course, I will take a Levitation with that too. I am sure you are watching the Bulls! Just checking to see how you made it through the day, my friend.
Go Bulls!!

Ohhhhh lobster mac and cheese..........Mmmmmmmm

I should know better than to visit your thread on an empty stomach.

I ended our Cape Cod vacation last year with lobster Mac and cheese and have been thinking of it ever since.

The last two days at UA have been a logistical nightmare. It is finals week. Yesterday we did have bad storms, but today the storms were all about 50 miles south of here. We have just had a nice steady rain that started about 7:00 this evening. I am here because even though our library is open until Midnight we have students staffing it from 7:30 p.m. to Midnight. Last night the university shut down the bus service becuase the University was under a tornado warning. Both of the students who worked the late shift live on campus but would not have had a way to get back to the dorms at midnight. One of them called in and said she wasn't coming to work. Fortunately the University decided to close and our library was closed. (they kept only one open all night and closed the others.) With the forecast earlier today for another evening like last night we decided to make our own arrangements. Tonight we have one student who would have needed a ride back to the dorms. I live about a mile from campus so I volunteered to come work with him and then take him home at midnight. However, tonight is very different than last night and the buses are still running. Tornado warning was canceled about 8:00 p.m. I was here so decided to stay since I had already adjusted things. I will just take a half day off later this week.

Really, the bottom line is that the University should not shut down just becaue there might be bad weather. Everybody should just keep calm and carry on.

Lobster mac and cheese... mmmmmmmm!

I am sure that you had a great time, but it's always nice to be home, doncha think? Glad to see you here at the cafe :)

It looks like the weather is impacting a lot of people in many different ways..

>62 Storeetllr: Food of the gods, Mary, don't you think?

>63 Cobscook: *note to self: don't offer lobster mac and cheese to Heidi* Wish you had been there to take advantage of the free alcohol offer, Heidi. She didn't get any takers, as far as I could see, probably because of the early hour and empty stomachs. Our daughter had bloody marys without the alcohol, in the hope it would feel like food.

>64 richardderus: You're welcome, Richard. One way to look at it is Heidi is graciously leaving more for the rest of us.

>65 msf59: Ah, they fought hard, Mark, but Washington is just a hot team right now. Noah played his heart out with a bum knee and not much help from the front line. We were talking about it afterwards - they made it a fun season, even while most people had them in the dumpster due to injuries and trades.

Lobster mac and cheese? Sounds good to me.

>66 brenzi: Right, Bonnie? It's excellent recovery food, too. :-)

>67 thornton37814: The cafe can be quite inspirational when you have an empty stomach, Lori. Lately for some reason I've had lobster mac and cheese on my mind.

>68 NarratorLady: Mmm, I bet that was good on Cape Cod, Anne. We used to go there a lot when I was a kid. I miss it. I'll bet lobster mac and cheese in Maine (lobster country) drives locals delirious with joy.

>69 benitastrnad: Jeez Louise, that is some rough weather, Benita. Libraries closed during finals week - I'll bet that has some students in high anxiety. Although so much more is done online now, maybe it's not so bad. I know I went to the school library to study during finals to get away from distractions and focus.

>70 mckait: We are so glad to be home and not traveling, Kath! It's been great, but we're ready to be in our own home for a while, no doubt about it.

Here's a fun place to book browse:

I'm glad to see you all made it safely back to Chicago after your LA adventure, Joe! Someday it will stop raining, I suppose, but that day is not today. :-)

The lobster mac-and-cheese looks fabulous, I must say! Makes my bagel with cream cheese look pretty sad.

>73 rosalita: Hiya, Julia! Yes, all safely back home. This is not the most festive weather, but at least it's not snow. I know our flowers and plants are liking it.

A bagel with cream cheese is good, but it's true it's no lobster mac and cheese. Never knew I'd crave lm&c for breakfast, but there it is.

>72 jnwelch: Venice! What a gorgeous place. I loved and enjoyed it very much. Should go there again.
Good morning Joe, I hope you have a lovely day. Here it's pouring and we soon will have 'Alta Aqua' like in Venice ;-)

I won the new Will Thomas from Early Reviewers!! Highly excited!

>75 Ameise1: Isn't that gorgeous, Barbara? You're right, it's in Venice. Did you go to the Libreria Acqua Alta? I was in Venice many years ago, but didn't know about this place. My MBH wants to go to Venice, so maybe someday we'll have a chance to see it in person. I guess the "High Water" never gets high enough to threaten the books?

>76 seasonsoflove: Oh good, Becca! I was just saying to another LTer that you and I hadn't liked the last one, Black Hand, as much as the ones that preceded it in the series, so I was looking forward to hearing more about this new one. Now I'll look forward to hearing your reaction to it!

A Constellation of Vital Phenomena: This story, based on Russia's war with the breakaway Chechneya, feels like it is set during the 1940s or 50s. It features impoverished conditions, scant supplies, a deplorably under-equipped hospital with few people to run it, a totalitarian-based military with no limits on abuse, and informers too afraid of torture to resist. But its timeline is 1994-2004. The two heroes, Sonja and Akhmed, are doctors who somehow keep the hospital running, often having to amputate limbs ravaged by mines. Sonja is skilled, Akhmed not, but he slowly learns from her. They're brought together when the Russian military forcibly kidnaps Akhmed's neighbor. Akhmed finds the neighbor's young daughter Havaa, who has run away at her father's instructions, in the nearby woods. Akhmed convinces Sonja to hide Havaa in the hospital.

The writing is superb in this debut novel, and the story emotionally compelling. Danger and potential betrayal are omnipresent. The circumstances seem overwhelming. Yet decency and kindness still persist, and those resisting are driven to preserve something for the future. I'm not sure the novel needed to jump back and forth in time as much as it did, but that does align with the disruption of life caused by a tyrannical war. Marra supplies vivid imagery and believable reactions, e.g. when Akhmed is being interrogated in a warehouse, he realizes, "He didn't want to die before an audience of stolen refrigerators." A confident smuggler supplying Sonja with necessities for the hospital explains, "I can steal the spots off a snow leopard."

The story has both sadness and moving humor, as those striving to survive and to save others make the best of their circumstances. This is a memorable and rewarding book.

Oooh...I really want to read this one and it's on my to borrow from the library list, but the waitlist is super looooooooong! Glad to see that it's not just one big tale of horrors and injustice? Those can get really hard to read sometimes. Guess I will just have to wait my turn or cave and buy myself a copy. :) Thanks for the review Joe!

If you would like to read a memoir set in Chechnya during the same years, I highly recommend The Oath: A Surgeon Under Fire by Khassan Baiev. The oath of the title refers to the Hippocratic Oath, as Dr. Baiev would treat anyone who needed medical help: Chechen, Russian, soldier, or warlord. Eventually he was wanted by both sides and had to seek asylum in the US. He still returns to Chechnya every year and performs surgery on children hurt in the war or its aftermath.

Things have changed at the University libraries. Now it is the place to go and see and be seen. Distractions abound. Nobody, or I should say very few, people seek out the quiet hidden study areas. The coffee shop and computer areas of the library are very very noisey.

Hi Joe- I loved your thoughts on A Constellation! (You should put the title in there somewhere, so we can click and thumb. LOL.) I am so glad you loved it. I felt the same way.
I am listening to a nifty little Sci-Fi, dystopian book called Annihilation, the first in a series. It's very short, less than 200 pages, which is a bonus, on top of it. I think this is your cuppa.

That's some delicious-looking bread pudding upthread, I must say.

On your last thread, I was advised (by Richard, I think) to seek out Picnic, Lightning as an introduction to the poetry of Billy Collins, so I thought I'd report back here that I read it and reviewed it. Thanks again for piquing my interest!

>79 jolerie: Oh good, Valerie. No, it's definitely not just one big tale of horrors and injustice. Constellation has a wide range that includes humor, romance and kindness. It's worth owning, for sure. You're welcome!

>80 labfs39: The Oath looks like it's terrific, Lisa. Thanks for the tip. Onto the WL it goes. He sounds like an exceptional person. I was floored by the hospital's poor conditions in such recent times in the novel, so it will be good to get factual insights from a surgeon so involved.

>81 benitastrnad: Interesting, Benita, thanks. Makes sense. Our daughter's college library at Wesleyan in Connecticut seemed more like the old-fashioned kind (e.g. the coffee shop was elsewhere), but I'm not surprised by the change you describe.

>82 msf59: Oh, thanks, Mark! You're right about the title. I'll stick it in. You and some others must have found it for thumbing, thanks.

Annihilation looks intriguing. Area X? Hmm. Look forward to hearing what you think when you're done.

>83 foggidawn: Doesn't the bread pudding look good, foggidawn? The bread pudding at Urth (>3 jnwelch:) was every bit as good as it looks.

I'm glad you picked up Picnic, Lightning, and I'll go check out your review. If you're in the mood for more, Sailing Around the Room Alone is a good selection from that book and others of his. You're welcome - it's fun to see some interest piqued in a poet, as I've found that a tough go on LT.

ETA: A poem review - I like it! Sorry it didn't grab you more than described; you may find more that are your speed in Sailing.

Here's another one of his that I like:

I Chop Some Parsley While Listening To Art Blakey's Version Of "Three Blind Mice"

by Billy Collins

And I start wondering how they came to be blind.
If it was congenital, they could be brothers and sister,
and I think of the poor mother
brooding over her sightless young triplets.

Or was it a common accident, all three caught
in a searing explosion, a firework perhaps?
If not,
if each came to his or her blindness separately,

how did they ever manage to find one another?
Would it not be difficult for a blind mouse
to locate even one fellow mouse with vision
let alone two other blind ones?

And how, in their tiny darkness,
could they possibly have run after a farmer's wife
or anyone else's wife for that matter?
Not to mention why.

Just so she could cut off their tails
with a carving knife, is the cynic's answer,
but the thought of them without eyes
and now without tails to trail through the moist grass

or slip around the corner of a baseboard
has the cynic who always lounges within me
up off his couch and at the window
trying to hide the rising softness that he feels.

By now I am on to dicing an onion
which might account for the wet stinging
in my own eyes, though Freddie Hubbard's
mournful trumpet on "Blue Moon,"

which happens to be the next cut,
cannot be said to be making matters any better.

>84 jnwelch: Oh, I'll definitely read more of it -- it's just that I need a break between books of poetry, even poetry I like. Best taken in small doses. :-)

>85 foggidawn: Understood, foggi. Glad to hear you'll read more of it. Yeah, I've built up my poetry "stamina" over the years, so I can read a lot of it, but I still need breaks. The head gets filled up - high concentration of ideas and language.

Digression: this cartoon made me think of the nefarious and idiotic Donald Sterling:

>72 jnwelch: I LOVE that photo.

Hi Joe! Happy May Day! I love that cartoon ^
and I have A Constellation of Vital Phenomena on the TBR shelves. Now, with your comments along with Katie's from a couple of months ago, I must read it.

My May to-read list is getting out of hand.....

LOL ... Love the cartoon, Joe. And yes, it made me think of that jerk Sterling too!

I rocked some French Toast with blueberry compote this morning for breakfast! And a tall glass of fresh squeezed Ataulfo mango juice.

>87 Thebookdiva: Isn't that a great photo, Abby? So cool. I want to get to that Libreria!

>88 EBT1002: Hi, Ellen! Happy May Day!

That cartoon gets me every time. Yes, do read Constellation; you'll be glad you did. Really well done.

I know what you mean about to-reads. I've got a tbr shelf at home and have overrun it this month. Kindle takes some of the blame, as now I usually have a second (or third) book going on Kindle while I'm reading a tree book.

>89 cameling: Doesn't it, Caro? Oops, you understood the words coming out of my mouth, to paraphrase Chris Tucker.

I think we need to follow your rocking lead on breakfast. Here's our version:

Booooooooooberrrriiiiiiiieeeeeeeeeees!! mmmmmmmmmmmm

>86 jnwelch: HA!!!

What Makes This Book So Great. Must-read.

Okay..it doesn't take much to convince me. You people are so bad for my wallet! :P

Off to grab a cuppa coooofffeeee. :)

Hi Joe- What a lovely start to May, eh? The weather Gods have not been smiling on us lately. Have a good one, my friend.

>91 richardderus: Glad you liked the boooberrriiieees and the cartoon, Richard. Yes, I've been seeing high praise for that Jo Walton book, and it looks like one I'd enjoy. I WL'd it, but may wait for the paperback.

>92 jolerie: I tend to open my wallet for ones I think are (going to be) really good, and Constellation qualified, Valerie. It's really well done, and I hope you have a good experience with it.

I'm still quaffing coooffffeee meself.

>93 msf59: I like taking a lunchtime walk when time permits, Mark, but this day's a headscratcher. They say this chilly weather isn't related to the Polar Vortex, which somehow makes it worse from my POV. Why did we get some other trigger for chilly weather this year, after such a long winter? Boo. I want to lodge a complaint, but there doesn't seem to be anywhere to do that. I hope work's going okay for you. This is stupid.

My view on lots of rain is: 'what falls now won't be there this summer!

Hi Joe.

Today was a beautiful sunny day here in Alabama but rather cool for this time of year. It is going to get down into the 40's here tonight. This is unheard of during this time of year in T-town.

I want a nice bowl of asperagus soup and a ham sandwich. Tonight I want that asperagus soup warm.

#91
I have had my eye on that book too. Mark talked about it on his thread awhile ago. I checked out her blog entries on the TOR web site. Some great stuff will be in that book.

Morning Joe, any chance of a doughnut?

>95 connie53: I'm fine with lots of rain, too, Connie. I do wish it would warm up, for goodness' sake.

>96 benitastrnad: It's staying cool here, too, Benita. 40s, although we're supposed to climb into the high 50s today. What a year.

Yes, I'm looking forward to reading that Jo Walton when the time comes. Soup and sandwich, here you go:



>97 Thebookdiva: Always a chance of a doughnut, friend Abby. Here are some, and see what you think of the doffle or wonut, which is catching on here.

Yes, thank you. Those look fabulous. The doughnut waffles look delicious, now I really want one.

Have a lovely weekend.

>99 Thebookdiva: Glad to hear it, Abby. I know, I want to try one of those doughnut waffles, too, now.

Someone brought in huge donuts today where I work, from a shop called Glazed and Infused. I tried (a small piece of) the maple glaze, and it was mighty good.

>100 GeezLouise: Thanks, Rae. I hope you have a lovely weekend, too. And I hope your mom is doing okay - we haven't seen much of her over on her thread.

Have you read The Book Thief? I'm re-reading it, and it's as good as I remembered.

Hi Joe- Mid-day check in. A little cool but not bad out and it's not raining.
Glad you started the Welty. Curious to hear your thoughts on that one. I am really enjoying Sheriff Longmire.

Ichhhhhblerchglurnk

(translation: I need chili cheese fries)

>102 msf59: Thanks for the mid-day check-in, compadre. I've got to get back to reading Sheriff Longmire. I know you're a ways into the series, so it's good to hear you're really enjoying the one you're on.

>104 jnwelch: Oh man of many talents, who knew you also spoke (and knew how to spell) Finnish?

Thank goodness for the translation. Here you go:

>86 jnwelch: Love the cartoon. Could be said about many in my profession as well. Sterling is a complete dope and in actuality, all the horrible things I usually wish on other bigoted slumlords. That being said, a lot of this raises some very interesting legal issues. I finally found a copy of the NBA constitution and bylaws. Seems the fine etc. are within the NBA's powers. To actually take away someone's team requires specific enumerated violations, largely to do with gambling. Being a idiot bigot doesn't seem to fall within one of those categories. Granted the version i saw was from 2012, so there might be something more up-to-date. From a larger perspective, one suspects the NBA should be careful. If you take away people's teams for private bigoted speech, it seems to me most people wouldn't be owners.

>104 jnwelch: I might *just* survive after an infusion of those. Ohhh yummmm

>105 michigantrumpet: Hi, Marianne. Yeah, first is whether he consented to the recording. Supposedly he did. I've read the same thing about the bases in the NBA constitution for forcing his sale of the team, which may not include bigotry or damage to the league's reputation. Since the owners reportedly are unanimous in wanting him out, that may be the reason it's taking this long to hear from them - they may be getting a legal assessment of what they can do that will stand up if the litigious Sterling sues.

He's an idiot, and no player will play for his team next year if he's the owner, so as a practical matter he may be without a team one way or another. Or he may decide to sue everyone in sight. I hope he just goes away without fighting it. The latest report is he's battling cancer, so that may affect all this, too.

>106 richardderus: Excellent, RD. We can bring more to your Finnish hot tub once you finish these.

>107 jnwelch: The link to the NBA Constitution and Bylaws is here

Pertinent sections, I believe, are Articles 13, 35(c) and 35(d).

An interesting discussion of Dopey Sterling. I think you may be a little optimistic, Joe, to think that no players will play for him next year, provided he's willing to pay them. Actually, that's also an interesting legal issue that Marianne might have insight on, whether players who are under contract to the Clippers have any avenue for voiding their contact if they don't want to play for Sterling?

How did I lose your thread Joe? I have a bad case of monkey brain!

I'm drinking a soy caramel latte right now and it is just what I need.

Have a lovely weekend my friend.

>101 jnwelch: Things have been busy around here lately so I am sure she will get back on as soon as things calm down. She is doing fine though, I have not read the Book Thief might have to check it out.

>109 rosalita: Julia That is an interesting question. One of the players today thanked the NBA for taking this action so they could just concentrate on playing basketball. This could be a law school exam question -- antitrust, contracts, due process, first amendment, employment law, wiretapping ...

The NBA has been clear they have no issue with his family, just with him. Perhaps he'll just claim "I"m an 80 year old man with health and memory issues. I'm just going to give the team to my family/wife/trust and be done with it."

I can't imagine that anyone could argue with that. He'd be away from day-to-day operations, and the owners would have to take one for the team by not getting it sold to their candidate.

Any time a capitalist is unhappy, the world is operating properly and things are better than they were when s/he was happy.

Wonut? That's one I have not yet come across. So what is it? A fried waffle or sorts? It looks delicious.

>112 michigantrumpet: I suspect that's exactly what he'll do. But just how much work do you think he's actually doing now, as an 80-year-old owner? I mean, maybe he does have an active role in everything that happens with the team but it's hard to believe. So what is the NBA's goal? Is it to right a wrong? Or is to create an appearance of harmony? Forgive me for being a teensy weensy bit cynical about their actions so far.

>115 rosalita: Well, the cynics out there have pointed out the NBA has wanted to get rid of him for years. This just played into their hands. Some have said Magic has quite an interest in buying, so this might work out nicely for him.

I suspect, this, like many things has many facets.

Do you think they will now ban Dennis Rodman for all the insanely offiensive things he's said over the years? Should he be allowed to sit on the sidelines?

I guess that's more or less my point, to the extent that I have one: Sterling has been a racist pig for years and the NBA seemingly turned a blind eye until he did something that got tremendous national attention. I seriously doubt he's the only owner of an NBA franchise who has politically incorrect views on race or religion or gender or whatever. So if it's the views that are the problem, why don't they act earlier or against others? Or is it just the publicity that's the problem? Or is it OK to be bigoted against minority groups who aren't a major factor in the NBA (i.e., Muslims, Jews, women)? If the NBA were still majority white players (like, say, MLB today), would the NBA even blink at what Sterling said? I don't know, but I wonder.

And just so it's clear: the man is a pig and I abhor the things he said and the views he holds.

Things are hopping here, at the cafe! Great food, great folks... and I'm with Rae. Happy weekend to you!

I think that the NBA owners can force him to sell. There is a clause in the by-laws where they can do it, but it has to be an unanimous vote by all the other owners. He agreed to this clause because it was added after he became an owner. I think I heard that on NPR but can't remember for sure. In any case I have the same problems with this that #117 has.

>78 jnwelch: That one is been on/off my TBR for a little while now, I think your review has put it back on ......

Wishing you a great weekend, Joe. Boy, it's close to dinner so that platter of chili cheese fries is so very tempting.... :)

Hi Joe- I made a happy trip to the library on the way home and picked up Saga-Volume 3 and the 2nd Hawkeye GN. Yah! I think I have 6 GNs stacked up at the moment. I just started Harlem Hellfighters, which is showing promise. This one is by Max Brooks of World War Z fame, plus it concerns some WWI history I was not aware of. Win, win.

I just cataloged my first graphic novel into LT. I have read them before but not bothered to catalog them.

Hi Joe, I thought you might like to know there's a new thread for book swapping: 75ers book swap

Joe, I wish you a Happy Weekend full of reading.

Joe, I saw this on FB and thought you might enjoy it :)

http://happyplace.someecards.com/30717/kids-writes-a-poem-about-how-much-he-hate...

Saturday morning at the cafe ... with my hot mug of tea, a plate of sliced mangoes and a heap of scrambled eggs on toast with farmer's sausages on the side.

Good morning, Joe! ;-)

>108 michigantrumpet: Many thanks, Marianne. I've passed it onto our interested son, too.

>109 rosalita: Right, Julia. It's not really optimism on my part; it's what the players have said. But that's what I was hinting at with the "suing everyone in sight". Could be a pitched battle on all fronts, and a complete mess. If he sued to force non-playing players to play, and won, what kind of performance on the court would he get? He'd also probably face a fan boycott, and tons of season ticket cancellations. He'd be smarter to sell. Doesn't mean that he'll go the smart route.

>110 luvamystery65: Hi, Roberta! Glad you found us. Thanks! I hope you're having a good weekend.

I'm a bit under the weather, but hopefully that'll pass. We've got some doings to do today, so improvement is required.

>111 GeezLouise: The Book Thief is an exceptional YA (not even really a YA, but that's how they sell it), Rae. If you get a chance, try the few first few pages. I think it'll grab you.

Glad to hear your mom's doing okay.

>112 michigantrumpet: Interesting thought, Marianne, on transferring the team to his wife/family. The local paper said she's no bed of roses either, having (apparently) made bigoted comment in the context of being a landlord. But she has been allowed to attend Clippers games.

Yeah, it could be a legal mess and a good law school exam question if Sterling pushes it.

>113 richardderus: Could happen, RD. I think his wife would then come under the microscope if that's proposed.

>114 cameling: It's a donut waffle, Caro. It does sound good, doesn't it. One writer called it a deep-fried waffle with icing: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-talk-huppke-wonuts-20140501,0,5310697.stor...

Foodies here are all over it. The creator prefers to call it doffle, because he doesn't want to get in the crosshairs of the cronut creator. But wonut is what's catching on.

mmm.... I think I'd like the plain glazed one in the background. This ones in the foreground look like too much chocolate for me *ducks from chocolate fans all over*

>115 rosalita:, >116 michigantrumpet:, >117 rosalita: Good discussion, Marianne and Julia. The other NBA owners may come under more scrutiny now. We'll see.

I heard a guy talk about the more subtle kind of racism that occurs these days, where folks in power think they're acting with nothing but good intentions, but continuing hidden (even to them in a lot of cases) biases cause their decision-making to keep the door closed against minorities entering leadership positions.

It's hard to believe these days that someone can be as foolish and misguided as a Donald Sterling, but of course we know he's not alone. At least this happening rekindles the discussion and gets everyone thinking about what other people in power are thinking and saying when the mike's not on.

>118 mckait: Good to see you, Kath! Yup, the joint's still hoppin'. I'm with Rae, too - hope you're having a great weekend, with some good R & R mixed in.

>119 benitastrnad: I think the concern, Benita, is that there may be no contractual provision for forced sale for being a racist bigoted idiot, even if the vote's unanimous. You'd think conduct that is harmful to the reputation and business of the NBA would be a trigger for termination (forced sale). The delay in the owners saying anything, given the likelihood that they do unanimously want him out, makes me think their lawyers are pouring over the agreement to try to confirm they can safely do it. (The current agreement is confidential, so the public hasn't seen it).

They may even be trying to negotiate with Sterling to get him to voluntarily sell. He's said he won't, so that might not go anywhere anyway.

>120 roundballnz: Yes, put it back onto your to-read list, Alex. It's definitely a worthy read. One of the best of the year for me.

>121 jolerie: You, too, Valerie, thanks. Have a great weekend. I know, the chili cheese fries are always a tempting dish.

>122 msf59: Quite a successful library trip, Mark! I liked the second Hawkeye a lot, and the third Saga is really good. Looks like the new Max Brooks is partly gn, too?

>123 benitastrnad: Good for you, Benita. I like having the gns I've catalogued in my dream library. (My library is all books I've read). Which one was it?

>124 AuntieClio: Thanks, Stephanie. I'll take a look at that book swap link after this.

>125 Ameise1: Thanks, Barbara. Botero is a hoot, isn't he? A comfortable afternoon reading - I like it.

>126 mckait: Ha! A most excellent poem about hating poetry, Kath. I hope he writes more, despite his vow not to.

>127 cameling: Good morning, Caro! If you're like us, it must feel good to be home and not traveling for a bit. Nice breakfast! You've inspired us.

Blasphemy to serve boiled Chinese hedge trimmings with that gorgeous, scrumptious breakfast.

Pour COFFEE! COFFEE!!

Ooooohhhh

yes please more please thank you please

:-)

Wow, Joe, I'm de-lurking to say, you've one of the most interesting threads!

'Great books, 'great lists.

Hi Joe. I managed to get way behind on your thread. Someday I will learn how to keep track of things properly.

Happy new thread, Joe!

>3 jnwelch: - Cafes with pastry counters are evil.... says the individual who was up at 1:00 am this morning eating a decadent fudge chocolate cake with chocolate icing and chocolate sprinkles. My coffee didn't come with a milk/creme image because I don't o fancy things like that at home. ;-)

Here to follow up with RD's recommendation for the Miss Fisher Murder Mysteries. We have just finished watching season one. We, my other half and I, both love the mysteries and I love the period costumes!

>72 jnwelch: - Intriguing book hord picture. Is that in Venice?

>78 jnwelch: - I have been eye-balling that one for some time now. Do you think it would work well as an audiobook? My physical book reading has taken a sever downturn - not time these days - but I do manage to squeeze audiobooks into my commute to work, etc.

98 - I see donuts!..... oh, wait.... I see waffles. Donut Waffles!!!

>128 jnwelch: - I stand corrected... doffles it is!

I hope you are having a lovely weekend!

AAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNND Miss Fisher drives a 1928 Hispano Suiza!!!!!!

*fantods*

>136 Sandydog1: Thanks, Steve! Love it when a de-lurker joins us at the cafe. Ain't LT grand? Connecting up with so many book lovers is an endless pleasure.

>137 connie53: When you figure out how to keep track of things, Connie, please let me know. I'm usually scrambling to keep up with LT myself. Hope you're having a good weekend.

>138 lkernagh: Hiya, Lori! Cafe pastry counters: you might have keeled over while sampling Urth's chocolate crown cake. Moist and delicious. I'm not even much of a chocolate fancier, and it wowed me. Those chocolovers with me, who would gladly order a decadent fudge chocolate cake with chocolate icing and chocolate sprinkles at 1 a.m., were almost embarrassing about it.

Yes, >72 jnwelch: is in Venice. I want to go see it in person now!

I do think Constellation would work well on audio, but the guy to really ask is Mark. I bet that's how he read it, as he's a major consumer of audiobooks.

Personally, I like doffles as the name for those donut waffles, but here the public and media glommed onto wonuts almost immediately.

I want to give the Miss Fisher murder mysteries a try. Our tv time often seems to lack sufficient size for all the good ones we hear about.

>139 richardderus: Hmm, that's a new one for me, RD, but it sure looks cool.

We enjoyed Road Show, a Stephen Sondheim musical, at Chicago Shakespeare Theater yesterday. It is set at the beginning of the 20th century, in a USA filled with promise and opportunity, where gold can be found lying in the river bottom at Sutters Mill, and there are expanses in Florida and elsewhere just waiting to be filled by someone with a bold vision. It's based on the real lives of the Mizner brothers, Wilson and Addison, the first of whom is filled with the irrepressible enthusiasm of a con man, with the second turning out to be a talented architect. A major theme is the need for artists, and con men, to woo rich and often obnoxious supporters, and how closely creating and conning can approach one another. The Mizner brothers embody this, and draw others into their tangled partnership.

Sondheim reportedly has tinkered with the show repeatedly after a poorly received debut in 2003. A friend, who loves Sondheim, walked out in the middle of its first incarnation, then called "Bounce", because it was so bad. He recently saw this version and liked it. It likely will never be considered one of Sondheim's gems, but it successfully pulls you in, and carries you on some beautiful and interesting melodies. The director, Gary Griffin, is an ace with interpreting Sondheim, and he did it again with this one. Like the first production of his acclaimed "Sunday in the Park with George", this one was produced in the theater's small upstairs space, that seats less than 200. The set essentially was a diagonal ramp, with a piano player beside it, with various items brought onto it to convert it into a saloon, a mansion, a store filled with international chotchkes, etc. Most of the 12 actors played multiple parts, with many of them also playing instruments like guitar, violin, and drum, and one deliberately off key tuba.

Tubby Addison and wily Wilson Mizner were well-cast, with Michael Aaron Lindner nailing Addison's part and Andrew Rothenberg as Wilson capably nagging, noodging and charming Addie into serial reluctant partnerships.



Both had beautiful voices, with Lindner's being particularly sensitive and affecting. Robert Lenzi was excellent as Hollis Bessemer, the ambitious rich boy who becomes Addison's vital supporter and paramour, and Anne Gunn was likewise as the brothers' mother.



The whole cast was top quality, with each also having the necessary strong and flexible voice (Sondheim must be exceedingly difficult to sing well).



I read somewhere a critic's comment that the show had only one good song in it. That wasn't our experience at all. It was filled with engaging songs that were well-delivered. It has turned into a show with charm that is well worth seeing.

Nice photos of the L.A. cafés, Joe!

Great review of A Constellation of Vital Phenomena. I have it on my Kindle, and I may read it when I'm on holiday in June.

I'm suffering from Donald Sterling fatigue, so I won't comment on that mangy dinosaur.

>126 mckait: That anti-poetry poem is brilliant.

Hi Joe- Glad you had a good time at the play and the neighborhood festivities. Hope you are slowly recovering.

Actually, I read the print version of A Constellation. I can't see any reason why the audio would not be an acceptable way to read it.

I am enjoying Harlem Hellfighters. This IS an illustrated novel and it is very tough and edgy. I think you will like it.

^I tried "Lupulin Maximus" last night. Strong, hoppy and tasty. I think it is 9% ABV. It's from O'So Brewing company out of Plover Wisconsin.

#131
I had a lovely brunch this morning. A cheese and onion omelet with (sorry Richard) Irish Breakfast Tea and some strawberries from the farmer's market yesterday morning. I think that the tea picture a few postings up would be a little weak for me, but a strong black tea with milk is perfect for brunch.

The graphic novel was the first one of the new Wonder Woman series. I had to work late on Friday night since it was the last day of finals and wanted something quick and female affirming. What I have to wonder is why are Wonder Woman's sidekicks men? But the series is young - we just got volume 2 - in the library so maybe it will change. Lots of Greek mythology in this series.

>140 jnwelch: I now tackle the threads with the most new posts first! That is working to some extent.

>145 benitastrnad: Ohhh that sounds good! (with the obvious exception)

Good proprietor, may I please have a mixed-cheeses and onion omelette with {heinous insult to palate elided over} coffee and fresh strawberries? Perfect light meal for any time!

>144 msf59: Looks tasty!

>141 jnwelch: Joe: I'm delighted to hear that Bounce has a new life as Road Show. I saw the original in D.C. and remember very much enjoying Richard Kind as Addison and being thrilled to see Jane Powell as the mother. I would never walk out on a Sondheim show because even the least of them are entertaining but it was clear that the show needing tinkering.

If Road Show ever shows up in Boston I'll be in the audience. Thanks for the review!

Joe, I've been meaning to tell you that umpty years ago, Don and I went to see the road production of Assassins. We thought it was a lot of fun, but so many people got up and walked out. I think the language was a little over the top for some.

Catching up here has been fun, Joe. I am hoping to read A Constellation of Vital Phenomena this month. I am 13th in line for 3 books, so we'll see. Guess it depends on how fast the ones ahead of me are.

>142 kidzdoc: Good to see you, Darryl. I know you had a tough week. Enough of the mangy dinosaur - I like that.

Thanks re the review. Yes, I think you'll enjoy reading Constellation, and get a lot out of it. I look forward to hearing your comments on it.

>143 msf59:, >144 msf59: Harlem Hellfighters sounds intriguing indeed. I would think Constellation would be good on audio. Whoever did Life After Life could pull it off for sure.

Lupulin Maximus? New to me. I'll look for it. It is remarkable how many good beers are out there. I had a Leinenkugel Hoppin' Helles at the neighborhood party, which was tasty, and someone's Black Porter but I got distracted as to whose.

Starting Monday with a meeting. Arggh. Back in a while.

Good morning, Joe! Monday morning meetings should be against the law. Once a month we have an all-staff meeting from 8:15 to 9:30 Monday. Cruel and unusual punishment, for sure.

Good morning Joe! Hope you had a great weekend. It's back to the regular week long routine for me which includes feeding, changing, entertaining and napping my kids. Sounds repetitive?? It is, but I don't mind it.....much. ;)

>145 benitastrnad: Gotcha, Benita. I want to try that Wonder Woman gn revamp. It's getting a lot of positive buzz.

That breakfast sounds delish. I'd travel a long way for a well done cheese and onion omelet.

>146 connie53: Thanks, Connie. Yeah, that's the way I do it, too, although as you say ('to some extent") it's still a challenge with our loquacious group.

>147 richardderus: I'm glad you asked, Richard. I may have the kitchen staff whip up one of those for the proprietor, too.



>148 drneutron: It does, doesn't it, Jim? Count on Mark to scout out the tasty ones.

>149 NarratorLady: Hi, Anne! You're welcome for the Road Show review. Good to hear from someone who saw it in its early incarnation. I imagine our reaction would have been similar to yours. It's in good shape now, IMO, and I hope you get a chance to see it in Boston.

I bet Richard Kind and Jane Powell did a nice job in it. As a digression, Richard Kind lived in our Chicago neighborhood when he was with Second City. Our apartment had gotten burglarized while we were away camping, and the burglar wasn't caught. But a few days later Richard Kind spotted him up on the roof of the building next to ours, and called the cops. Sure enough, they caught him with trash bags of loot up there (ours unfortunately was long gone). When we congratulated and thanked Kind on the street, he characteristically threw up his arms, making muscles, and proclaimed himself "Crime Buster!!" Cracked us up.

>150 AuntieClio: We've not seen Assassins, Stephanie, and sure would like to. I know it got a lot of Tonys in its year. Yeah, Sondheim doesn't go to the lowest common denominator with his word play, and we like that.

The one I'd really like to see live is Company. We saw it on PBS and loved it.

>151 DeltaQueen50: I'm glad you had fun catching up, Judy. We've got an entertaining group of patrons at the cafe, don't we?

A Constellation is worth the wait. I've certainly been there, waiting my turn on the library queue. I'd heard enough good things about it (particularly from Mark), that I bought it at the Elliot Bay books meetup in Seattle.

>153 rosalita: Ain't that the truth, Julia? It's bad enough coming in on a Monday after a fun weekend, but then to start with a meeting?! Cruel and unusual punishment, all right. I will say the guy leading it has some charm and cracked some jokes, making it less painful than it might have been. There's a lunchtime meeting coming up, too - gods help us.

>154 jolerie: Hey, Valerie! My goodness, it is nice to have you back on the LT campus.

A tip of the hat to you. We were with a number of couples with young kids Saturday night, and we are so glad to have feeding, changing, entertaining, and napping ours behind us. Not that we didn't, like you, love those days. But it's a good feeling to have them all growed up, happy and employed. Plus we love being empty nesters.

I've often said to my MBH, I wish we could somehow keep each day along the way. Our two were (in general, with a rare exception here and there) a treat to raise.

I know what you mean! I wish there was some magical way to just revisit certain moments that go by way to fast. Then, I could go back and just cuddle them a bit more and smell that sweet newborn smell or rock them to sleep just one more time. All in all, I look forward to when they are older and more independent, because that means I'll have more time to myself, but there are those moments you wish you could live through just one more time, minus all the hard stuff..haha!

minus all the hard stuff..haha! Yes, indeedy! Especially health-related. Those were difficult, sometimes scary, and I'm glad to never repeat them.

I know just what you mean with the health-related stuff. I'm glad we don't have to go trough those things anymore. My kids are 31 and 28. But there was other stuff to tackle. Love stories gone bad, studie stuff and some money problems. But they are doing better now. (keeps fingers crossed)

BTW, Hi Joe!

There are a lot of moments which are worth to memorise but there are also moments I'm glad that they are behind us. Sometimes I'm really happy to have one grown-up and one still at home.

Hi Joe, I hope everything is fine at your end? waves

Hi Joe, have a superb week.

>159 connie53: I know what you mean, Connie. My MBH and I were just talking about how it never really ends - which is fine, I might add. We're glad both of ours still look to us for advice and support, even as they get older.

My elderly dad got a kick out of telling me that now he gets to be the child and I get to be the adult. So maybe we'll get to that point, although it's hard to imagine right now!

>160 Ameise1: Yes, Barbara, that says it well. We surely miss having one at home. We're lucky one (our daughter) lives fairly close. Having our son a long ways away in Seattle is hard, although we talk to him on the phone all the time.

Everything is fine on my end, thanks. It's been busy recently, and having yesterday to just hang out was a great restorer.

>161 GeezLouise: Good to see you, Rae. Thanks. I hope you have a superb week, too. Seems like it's hard not to with that lovely clan of yours and the nice part of the country you're in.

Joe, in honor of the discussion of doffles/wonuts in the cafe earlier, here's a "review" from the folks behind the NPR quiz show "Wait! Wait! Don't Tell Me". http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2014/05/05/309760553/sandwich-monday-the-wonut

>163 rosalita: LOL! Holy moley, their puns are worse than mine! Thanks, Julia.

It's a wonderful day here in Alabama. I am thinking that some grilled asparagus and shrimp would be perfect with a Sidecar. Got any of those in the cafe?

I forgot - I got busy yesterday and made the Pizza Rolls recipe from King Arthur Flour. They are delish! Tonight it is off to the grocery store to get asparagus to cook for the wine club meeting tomorrow night.

>156 jnwelch:: Great story about Richard Kind, Joe. He was so good in "Bounce" that I was sure he'd end up in a better show on Broadway some day but he most often works on TV. I highly recommend "Assassins" and I'm sure a production of "Company" is bound to show up in Chicago. I've lost count of how many productions I've seen (it gets updated in subtle ways as time passes) but the first time was with Elaine Stritch, an unforgettable experience.

Very quiet in here today... I expect that it will be hopping again later :)

>165 benitastrnad:, >166 benitastrnad: Glad to hear you're having some good weather in your part of the country, Benita. We're heading there, with it supposedly getting up around 80 tomorrow.

Grilled asparagus, shrimp, and a Sidecar sound good - we'll time jigger it your way.



Mmm, pizza rolls. Have fun at your wine club meeting.

>167 NarratorLady: Glad you enjoyed the tale of Crime Buster, Anne. Richard Kind seems like a great guy. Yes, I'd think he'd do well on Broadway, too, but he does seem to like the TV work.

I'll look for a production of Assassins, and you're right, Company is bound to be done here. Elaine Stritch! That must have been quite an experience.

>168 mckait: We're waking up slowly, Kath. I've been in la-la land since I (sort of) woke up, but the coffee is starting to get me re-acquainted with what appears to be reality.

Morning Joe- Looks like a nice day out there. I am enjoying a day off and hopefully spending a chunk of the afternoon, deep in the books. I should finish the Harlem Hellfighters. It is very good, but dark & angry. How these black soldiers were treated is appalling. This part of WWI history is completely new to me.

Yes, I know a little about the WWI story just from reading about the book. Sounds terrible, but good for Max Brooks for featuring it like this.

It does look nice out there. I'm going to get out at lunchtime. Enjoy the day off and the chance for quality reading time!

Interesting quote on racism by Neil Degrasse Tyson, one of our greatest scientists:

“I was an aspiring astrophysicist and that’s how I defined myself, not by my skin color. (But) people didn’t treat me as someone with science ambitions. They treated me as someone they thought was going to mug them, or who was a shoplifter. I’d be in a department store and the security would follow me. Taxis wouldn’t stop for me. I was just glad I had something to think about other than how society was treating me.”

This stuff still happens today. In fact, it still happens to Tyson. He was recently at a store and when he and a white man walked out, the alarm went off. Tyson got surrounded by employees and accused of shoplifting. By the time everything got worked out, the real shoplifter was long gone. In the talk, Tyson laughed it off as a lesson on how to shoplift. Be white and walk out at the same time as someone who is black. But, really, it's an example of that "hidden" racism - assumptions about people based on their skin color.

Joe, how are you today? waves

>172 Morphidae: Oof. Terrible, Morphy. And I've been watching him on Cosmos - he's excellent, as always. It's even stupider when you put it in the large context he's talking about on Cosmos.

Good for him for keeping a sense of humor about it (a lesson on how to shoplift). Maybe you just have to. There are lots of other examples (e.g., DWB -driving while black). It sure would tick me off. We all hate having assumptions made about us, and knowing you're likely to face this one a lot, and that you never know when it might pop up, has got to be really tough.

>173 Ameise1: I'm doing fine, Barbara, thanks. Getting near closing time at the workplace, and I've got only a few pages left in The Optimist's Daughter, which I'll read on the train. So I won't complain. Hope all is going well for you. *waves back at Barbara*

>174 jnwelch: The thing is, I don't think you can grow up in this society and not be racist (or other -ist) to some extent. We all make assumptions about people based on what they look like. I know I make instant assumptions about people when I meet them for the first time. There are some thoughts and feelings that occur automatically. But what makes me different from someone like Sterling is that I know that those first gut reactions are WRONG. They are a product of my upbringing and society and I don't base my actions on them. Or at least I try my hardest not to.

>175 Morphidae: I learned through the people in my bookclub to not judge on the first sight. We are but a few (perhaps the number of core people is only 20 or so) but we have a gothic guy and girl, a gay couple, a transgender and very different ages (from 20 up to me: 61). I know I would not have been quick to talk to some of them in the pre-bookclub days without my bookclub experiences. But now I talk to all kind of people without thinking about what they look like. It helps a lot getting into such a multi coloured club.

>175 Morphidae: Right, Morphy. I think the other key is mixing it up - getting to know people from a lot of different backgrounds. Supposedly a big reason we're making progress on LGBTQ issues is because we all have someone (or someones) in the family, or know someone (or someones) who fits that and we know is a perfectly decent person. Daughters like Mary Cheney and celebrities like Ellen DeGeneres, and so on. We need that to happen more with race divisions. That's one of the reasons we like my MBH's Young Chicago Authors program so much. Kids from a lot of different backgrounds gather to learn writing and performance skills, and get to know one another. The number one benefit they all talk about is the community they develop.

I was lucky, in the sense that I grew up in a mixed situation in Ann Arbor, and it's continued since then. I don't have the same first reactions you do, but I bet at some point I did. It's probably rooted in our tribal history, or something like that - there's us, and there's them. More to the point, I agree, if you make instant assumptions, but know they're wrong (or it's wrong to make them), that's huge, and gives a way to go forward. Give everyone a chance to be who they are, and you'll get the same spectrum you get regardless of categories - some will be awful, some will be wonderful, and all the gradations in between.

Thanks for your thoughtful comments on this. It's important, and not easy.

>176 connie53: Yes! That's it, Connie. Mixing with folks from different backgrounds makes a huge difference, not to mention makes life much more interesting. It's one of the reasons I'm drawn to living in a big city. Oddly enough, I don't want to be surrounded just by people with my kind of physical makeup and background. I'll bet even LTers who aren't like me in that regard have a related perspective, as they expand their thinking through their reading and maybe other means.

I love that your book club has had such an effect on you in this regard. What a great way to bring folks from different backgrounds together to discuss a common interest.

“Up home we loved a good storm coming, we’d fly outdoors and run up and down to meet it,” her mother used to say. “We children would run as fast as we could go along the top of that mountain when the wind was blowing, holding our arms right open. The wilder it blew the better we liked it.”

“At their very feet had been the river. The boat came breasting out of the mist, and in they stepped. All new things in life were meant to come like that.”

“You know, sir, this operation is not, in any hands, a hundred percent predictable?"
"Well, I'm an optimist."
"I didn't know there were any more such animals," said Dr. Courtland.
"Never think you've seen the last of anything,”

There is some beautiful writing in The Optimist's Daughter by Eudora Welty. In it, Laurel, the daughter of respected Mississippian Judge McKelva, travels from her home in Chicago to a New Orleans hospital to join her 71 year old father before a critical eye operation. Laurel is a somber woman who still misses her husband, killed in World War II. She has to deal with the judge's new and younger wife Fay. Fay is a piece of work, childish, brash and totally self-centered. From her point of view, the operation unfairly impinges on her happiness, and because she can barely stand having the judge lie there in recovery, she eventually makes the bad mistake of shaking him . Fay already is trying to erase any memory of Becky, the Judge's deceased first wife, and now she and Laurel go to battle.

Fay is three-dimensional, if awful. There is an uproar, and a lot of comedy, when her family shows up. We learn about Becky and her childhood in West Virginia, and Laurel's growing up with the judge and Becky, as Laurel looks back. A main theme of the book is Laurel, by having to stand her ground against Fay, finally coming to grips with her life and moving beyond the sad loss of her husband.

This novel was very good, although it didn't wow me. I suspect its fans were able to give larger dimensions to this small story than I was.

Interesting comments here. I completely agree with you, Joe; the more people you meet from different backgrounds, especially in the formative years, the less likely it is that you make stereotypical assumptions about them. I grew up in Jersey City, NJ in the 1960s and 1970s, which at that time was one of the most diverse medium sized towns in the US (and it largely remains that way today). My family attended a Lutheran church that was comprised mainly of first, second and third generation German Americans, along with a sizable minority of African Americans. The elementary school affiliated with the church was more diverse, and our closest friends and neighbors, both mine and my parents, along with those of my aunts, uncles and cousins who also lived in J.C., were that much more diverse (I remember one guest at a Thanksgiving at my aunt & uncle's house mentioning proudly that our gathering felt like a meeting of the United Nations, as their neighbors from Ireland, Greece, the Dominican Republic and (I think) Iran came over after they had finished eating and brought food from their homelands).

On the other hand, my relatives from the Midwest, who grew up in segregated communities in Ohio and Michigan, thought that my brother, my cousins and I talked and acted "white", and they were initially uncomfortable around us and our friends of other backgrounds until they got to know us and them. I've also met whites from the Midwest and rural Pennsylvania (particularly classmates from medical school) who said things to me like "you're not really black" or "I didn't know black people could be like you". These comments were meant to be complimentary, even if they were stated awkwardly, and I took them as such, but IMO it still reflected a profound ignorance on their part, due to their limited exposure with people who were different from them and the prejudices that they learned while growing up.

Nice review of The Optimist's Daughter. Eudora Welty is at the top of the list of American authors I want to read in the near future. I'll probably buy the Library of America edition of her Complete Novels later this year.

>179 kidzdoc: Thanks, Darryl. I agree, I'm really enjoying the discussion on a tough issue.

Your upbringing sounds just right to me; that lack of insularity in the formative (or even later) years does seem to make a big difference. "You're not really black" or "I didn't know black people could be like you" speaks to that. Of course you are and lots are. (We could have a whole 'nother discussion on "black"and "white", or whatever, given that so many are from interracial backgrounds now. I suspect down the road that's going to be treated differently).

I mentioned liking the YCA program - blacks from the south side get to meet and get to know blacks from other parts of the city, and Hispanics, and whites of various flavors, and Asians, and so on. And they pour out their hearts to each other in their slam poetry. It's very moving, and they all change and grow, in a good way. At the same time the subject matter can be horrifying - guns, violence, abuse, deprivation, loss to drugs, powerlessness. But talking about it, sharing it, seems to be liberating, and leads to more thinking and discussion -and creativity - for the performers and their audience.

Thanks re the review. I'm glad I've finally read Eudora Welty. This one didn't make me want to race out and read more, like I experienced with my first Willa Cather or Murakami, for example. But I do feel I need to give her another chance. I'll look forward to hearing what you think of what you read later this year.

>175 Morphidae: "We all make assumptions about people based on what they look like." You are absolutely right about that. Yesterday, while doing a stint at the reception desk in our offices, I dealt with a man who initially made me a little uneasy. He was black, a little "shifty"-looking (eyes moving a bit too much, I think), wearing a long coat on a warmish day, and there was the top of a paper bag sticking out of one of his pockets. There were valid reasons to be wary, but "black" should not have been among them. Was it? Well, I'm afraid I just don't know. He introduced himself as a client of ours, told me why he was dropping in, and within seconds I was talking comfortably with him; he didn't appear to be on anything, or to have been drinking, which were my immediate conscious concerns when I first saw him. We all have some vestiges of the "fight or flight" instincts and what triggers them may be beyond our control, to some extent. It bothers me when people say "I'm not racist BUT..." and then go one to tell you what they think they know about black people or Chinese people or whomever. What they're really saying is "I don't want you to THINK I'm racist, but here's why I really am, at least a little bit." I really hope this is becoming less and less acceptable at some fundamental level, and not just as the appropriate and "correct" public face of things.

Upbringing and diversity in community is interesting to think about. Growing up in SE Florida there was a lot of diversity - a good third of the students in my schools were black - but my upbringing was extremely racist, i.e. to my father every minority was called its worst epithet (blacks were n-words, etc.) My mother thought the same way only her language was different. So I didn't have any positive experiences with minorities as friends or part of my community, only negative ones (being mugged, sexually intimated, beat up by girls.)

Once I moved up here to Minnesota, the diversity dropped way down. It's white bread up here. So I haven't made any minority friends and have only had one minority co-worker (who I got along with very well.)

Maybe it's no wonder I have a knee-jerk reaction to minorities and still struggle with those assumptions.

Contrast that with LGBT. My best friend in high school was gay. I've almost always had a gay friend, including now. I have lunch with him once a month. I wept when Minnesota passed the Equal Marriage Law because he could finally marry his partner.

I don't have those knee-jerk assumptions about LGBT.

It seems it's all about what you are exposed to.

Hi Joe- I enjoyed your thoughts on The Optimist's Daughter. I'll have to give that one a try at some point. I think you should give her stories a go. I wonder if that is where her strengths lie. I am glad you joined us for this month's AAC.

Have you read Pnin? I am really enjoying it and it does feel like a "Joe Book". Plus it is only 140 pages which is a bonus.

>178 jnwelch:: I read The Optimist's Daughter last year Joe. Eudora Welty was on my list of authors that I've never read but felt I should. Didn't this win the Pulitzer or some other big prize? I know there was a reason that I chose to read this one instead of another of her books.

I was surprisingly underwhelmed but perhaps I had too high expectations going in. I agree that Fay was the most vivid, realistic character despite being over the top and I was disappointed that I couldn't seem to connect with Laurel since it was her story. Also, when I'm aware of the writing style I find it's akin to admiring a film's cinematography: it usual means the story hasn't grabbed me.

>181 laytonwoman3rd: Good thoughts, Linda. For me, it's attire and demeanor - in a city you've got ill-intentioned folks of every stripe, and in NYC I automatically put my wallet in my front pocket, to make it harder to take by whomever. (Surprisingly, I don't do that in Chicago - maybe I trust my instincts more here). That seems to fit the reaction you describe. Nothing wrong with being careful, in my book, as long as you're able to adjust like you did.

Yeah, the "I'm not racist" stuff is hard to bear. As soon as you hear that, or someone generalizing about a race or religion or gender preference, you can bet it's not going to be good. The other one that gets me is the hapless overcompensation, where someone over-enthusiastically celebrates his or her connection with the person of another race or religion or gender preference, as if this is a rare and extraordinarily wonderful thing. I know it's well-intended, but it makes for a lot of discomfort. Let's just be normal and respectful, right?

I really hope this is becoming less and less acceptable at some fundamental level, and not just as the appropriate and "correct" public face of things. Amen to that, Linda.

>182 Morphidae: That makes sense, Morphy. Kudos to you for overcoming your parents' views and difficult early experiences. Lots of folks never do. Plus you're accomplishing it in a white bread area, which seems even harder.

It's good that LGBT or LBGTQ (some are adding "Questioning" now) is not an issue for you. That one took me a little while, as I didn't grow up with it. I played sports, and was ignorant - it wasn't talked about way back then. Now I can see, of course so-and-so was gay, and I'm sure others who weren't so out there were, too. A guy I knew well and goofed around with a fair amount, who was very close to another friend, turned out to be, and that was hard for my friend, until he adjusted. Anyway, that was more like dealing with a new and foreign idea, which soon enough was a "who cares." Part of what goes through my mind, maybe because I've read a lot of sci-fi, is aliens would think we're so absurd. We all look alike from that perspective anyway, and the many ways in which we conjugate may be imaginative, but hardly worth the weight we too often give them.

Neil deGrasse Tyson, who sees it all from the beginning of time to now and beyond, must sit there some days and just ruefully shake his head.

The one I'm learning more about is transgender, as a couple of our son's friends fit in there. There's a different grammar that my MBH and I struggle a bit with, but it doesn't seem to matter to them as long as our arms and minds are open.

>183 msf59: I haven't read Pnin, Mark, so it'll be good news if you end up recommending it. I haven't read Nabokov, as I just can't get myself psyched to read Lolita, even though both our kids say it's good. Pnin might be a good place to start.

Yes, I love these challenges, like the AAC you put together. There's something motivating about reading with a whole bunch of folks, and it, and others like the Steinbeckathon, have got me reading books and authors I've wanted to get to, but otherwise haven't. I do think I'll try some of Welty's short stories at some point. You know short stories aren't my favorite writing form, but so many times (most recently, I think, with Volt and The Miniature Wife and Other Stories) it doesn't matter - they're just plain excellent.

>184 NarratorLady: You totally nailed it as far as my experience, Anne. I was surprisingly underwhelmed with The Optimist's Daughter, but maybe had too high expectations, Fay was vivid but I couldn't seem to connect with the low key Laurel, and I admired the writing style. I hadn't thought about it, but that is akin to admiring a film's cinematography, which usually would mean the story hasn't grabbed me.

It did win the Pulitzer, which had me scratching my head a bit. I know it has its fans, and there must be those it grabs. I suspect it also is "larger" for some readers than it was for me.

Thought you might enjoy a new breakfast location added out back:

Wow, Joe, that's GORGEOUS.

Yes, but I've got some reservations about eating outdoor with so many trees around! Bugs!!!

Save me a seat! :)

>187 Ameise1: Doesn't that look great, Barbara? I'd love to start the day right there.

>188 connie53: One of the benefits of the cafe, Connie, is we're virtually bug-free. :-)

>189 jolerie: You got it, Valerie. I'm still happily surprised to see you out and about on the LT campus! Good to have you back.

>190 jnwelch: good to hear, Joe. You can save me a seat too. ;-))

Joe, I join the day start with you :-)

Thanks Joe! Definitely have hopes to keep up with all the threads including my own this year. Ambitious, but it's worth it!

>191 connie53: You got it, Connie!

>192 Ameise1: Excellent, Barbara. It cheers all of us up when you're in attendance.

>193 jolerie: It is worth it, isn't it, Valerie? It can be a little overwhelming sometimes, I know, as we have folks from all over the world conversing together. But how great is that?! We're lucky to live in a time like this one.

We've got the buffet set up, and can bring out more as needed.

>194 jnwelch: :-)

Good food and great discussion. It's always a nice day at the cafe Joe.

Hi Joe- It got pretty warm out there, this afternoon. I think it hit the high 80s. No complaints out of me though. I've been waiting for some warmth.

I also recommend Lolita. Sure, it's an uncomfortable read at times and you will squirm but the writing is gorgeous and much of it plays like a black comedy, to me anyway. Actually, he needed to write something lighter, while finishing up Lolita and started writing Pnin.

Oh my goodness...the food...the food. I want it! Can you tell I haven't had supper yet?? :)

>194 jnwelch: *drool*

Wow! Hi Joe... I'll be there for breakfast!

>178 jnwelch: Much better picture of Eudora Welty than is on the book I am reading Selected Stories of Eudora Welty. She has such a sour face on my cover I'm hesitant to pick up the book. However, I am brave and have found I'm loving her stories.

>186 jnwelch: I'll join, as long as I'm virtually free of fear of heights :-)

>195 Ameise1: Good to see your smiling face, Barbara. :-)

>196 luvamystery65: Thanks, Roberta. That's what we aims for. We can all use a relaxing break in a cafe. I liked that discussion, too. I like it when we can take advantage of our connections across the country and the globe to get different perspectives.

>197 msf59: Yeah, it felt pretty good out there, didn't it? Rainy today, but still good temps. I'm one of those who loves the sound of rain. I had our back door open for breakfast this morning to take advantage.

The premise of Lolita creeps me out, big surprise. I saw some of the James Mason movie and, yeesh. Maybe some day. Starting with Pnin might be better for the likes of me.

>198 jolerie: Dig in, Valerie! There's plenty where that spread came from. :-)

>199 Thebookdiva: We'll have a staff member bring a poncho over, Abby. It is an inspiring sight, isn't it?

>200 -Cee-: Looking forward to it, Cee!

Yeah, I saw some off-putting photos of Ms. Welty. This one does her some justice. I'll have to look for that sour-faced one - what was the publisher thinking? I'm glad you're loving the stories. I think that'll be my next stop on my Welty tour, when the time comes.

>201 wilkiec: Bug-free and fear of heights-free, yup, count on it, Diana.

I hadn't thought of that issue, but I can see what you mean. Looks like we'll be up there in the treetops. Reminds me of a treetop walk we did in a rainforest in Australia, which was really beautiful.

OK, today's breakfast is set up.

Joe, the breakfast looks marvellous, I'll take it as a lunch. I hope you have a lovely day.

Morning Joe- Hopefully, the rain has stopped. Not bad out here at all, temps-wise.
I'll be starting the 4th Dept Q book. Looking forward to the gang.

Are those quiches? I love quiches! thanks Joe.

>203 Ameise1: You got it, Barbara. Should work well as a lunch - good way to handle the time difference. Hope you have a lovely day, too. Happy Friday!

>204 msf59: Ha! I was just over saying something similar on your thread, Mark. Yeah, pleasant temps, and I hope the rain holds off for your work day. It was really pounding down early on here.

The third Dept Q is another really good one. Series fan Roberta was a bit disappointed by the 4th, but like her, I'll read it for the advances in the characters' stories.

>205 connie53: I love quiches, too, Connie. You're welcome!

Here are some mini-quiches for sampling:

I made a biblio-blunder- I started book 4 in the Dept Q series. Oops!

Nice, snacks for this evening, lovely.

>207 msf59: A biblio-blunder! At least you 'fessed up. We'll adjust the record accordingly, Mark. Now I'm really looking forward to your reaction, as Roberta has given me some doubts about the 4th one.

>208 connie53: Snacks for the evening - and I hope a lovely evening it is, Connie.

Thanks, Joe, so far so good!

>178 jnwelch:
“Up home we loved a good storm coming, we’d fly outdoors and run up and down to meet it,”

Wow.. that quote grabbed me. We used to refer to my great grandmothers house, where I spent a LOT of time as a child, as up home And we did the same, always went to greet the storm, if not run to meet it :) I still do, I just can't help myself...they fill me with a huge rush of energy, then let me float slowly down to enjoy the lively air all around me. I do love storms!

Interesting discussion on the race issue. I am always still surprised when I hear someone make race based remarks. I just don't get it. Same with LGBT, or religion.. etc. How on earth do you judge a persons by these things? Or by physical ability? I have seen many people gnored because they are in a wheel chair or a walker, where someone will address questions, comments to the person they are with... so rude! WE all want to be noticed,

My upbringing was..well, I sort of brought myself up from age ten. My ( step) grandfather was a terrible racist. I spent a lot of time with my grandmother, and she just liked everyone. I never understood it with him. But, he was a product of his time, I guess. Still. I have been judged on appearance. It's no fun, and I'm glad that my brain works differently. My sister claims to be "color blind". She swears she never notices if a person is black ,white or blue. To me, that is a failure to honor the rich background we all have. We are none of us just one, we have all of our ancestors lining up behind us.... I wouldn't like to be dismissed in that way, either. I guess we are just all what we are.

I, for instance.. am tired. It has been a long day. And I have not read an Eudora Welty that I remember, although it appears that I have, at least once.

>211 mckait: You and me both, Kath. I love storms. We'll sit out on our front porch and enjoy them while staying dry. As kids we used to get a huge puddle at the bottom of our hill on the cross street (not much traffic back where we were) and we'd love to wade in it during storms - we were shrimpier, but it sure seemed deep.

I love your POV on the various prejudices - it doesn't really make any sense, you're right. Good point about those with disabilities. I was just reading an article about how it's really only recently (with some exceptions, like Ironside) that we've begun to see disabled people portrayed regularly on TV. I've seen the rudeness of ignoring the person in a wheelchair, and I can imagine it with a walker. (My mother refused to use a walker, and I never understood it - maybe this is part of why!)

I also agree that "color blind" ain't right, either. Our rich backgrounds - yup. It's all part of who we are. Take people one at a time, don't generalize.

I guess we are just all what we are.

I, for instance.. am tired.

LOL! We'll treat your tiredness with all the respect it's due. We've got a comfortable chair ready for you.



A Welty you read but don't remember - she may not be an author that resonates with you.

Such interesting conversations on your thread, Joe!
Being a 1st generation Canadian, I actually think I had it pretty good growing up. Looking back, there were the few odd moments where people made remarks about what wore, or what I ate, but I grew up in an area that had a huge population of minorities, mainly Asians, so I never truly felt alone... I do remember thinking that I wish my mom would make me PJ sandwiches or that I had jeans.. (I didn't my first pair until I was in grade 6?!?!), but now as an adult, I am darn proud of my heritage and that is something I want to pass onto my boys. I am excited to raise them with a blend of their immigrant roots (so they don't forget their humble beginnings) and the Canadian culture they are growing up in now. One thing I hope they are thankful for is that they have parents who are both fluent in English. Having to translate for your parents during all those years of parent-teacher meetings was awkward (speaking from experience). :D

>202 jnwelch: Joe, I am completely with you on Lolita, there is no way I will read that.

>212 jnwelch: Joe and Kath, a lot of the discrimination against visibly handicapped people and/or homeless people can be attributed to how uncomfortable someone feels when confronting the "imperfection" of another. "There but for the grace of ..." Also, tribal "us" vs. "them" (the different).

212/215: jnwelch and Auntie Clio. The nuns wouldn't let us go near it many moons ago (surprise!) and when my book club chose to read it, I passed. Even though many people have highly recommended it, I can always think of something I'd rather read.

>215 AuntieClio: I'm glad you mentioned homeless, too. I didn't think to. I agree that too many people don't see the homeless..sad. Very. Being invisible is one of the worst things you can be. I try to be aware. I don't ever want to make anyone feel invisible.....not ever. We all matter.

Joe- The Purity of Vengeance begins well. It's nice to visit the gang again. Pnin was excellent. Just your cuppa!

Beautiful evening out there!

>217 mckait:, Kath we have an enormous panhandling problem in the Bay Area. I feel guilty every time I avert my eyes, but I cannot help. I would rather give to organizations which help because so many are scammers and do who knows what with the money.

One panhandler in San Francisco rattled his cup at me in anger because I didn't drop anything in.

I see them but making eye contact or engaging in any way is not a good idea.

>194 jnwelch: This thread is getting to be painful. My doctor has me on a trial gluten- and dairy- free regime. Oh, for a croissant!

Oh, I love the quiche!!

One of the things I miss about the Midwest is the thunderstorms. In the farmhouse where I grew up, my room was the only room on the second story, built above a kitchen addition on the back of the house, and it had 17 windows. It could get pretty icy in the winter, but, oh, it was the best possible place to view the lightning during thunderstorms.

It has always bugged me that we describe people in terms of race (color). For instance, she was a mouthy black woman or a large black man. Nowadays we don't say she was a stuck-up yellow woman, or a big yellow man. It is only with Blacks that we use the color to describe the person. Perhaps if we dropped that color descriptor we might get more equal treatment of people.

#221
Being out in the Flatland in a thunderstorm is a wonderful experience. I miss it.

>206 jnwelch: - I see what looks like mini quiche made with phyllo pastry..... I must try that sometime! I love quiche with a pie crust base but phyllo pastry has become a recent favorite of mine.

Happy weekend, Joe!

Morning, Joe! Just chiming in to say that I'm enjoying the conversation here, although I've nothing intelligible to add...

Joe, I wish you a fabulous weekend.

>226 Ameise1: Ooohhh...that is gorgeous.

Happy Weekend Joe!

>227 laytonwoman3rd: Thanks, Linda.

>213 jolerie: Thanks, Valerie. Very interesting. I can't imagine having to translate for my parents at a parent-teacher conference. That's one of those blessings it never even occurred to me to appreciate. Yes, I'm sure you can feel how lucky your kids are to have two parents fluent in English.

I do envy bilingual households. I'm decent but rusty in Spanish.

I agree with you about making sure the kids understand and appreciate their roots. Ours go back mostly to Scotland and England for me and Russia for my MBH, but both sides have been in the U.S. long enough that it's really their U.S. ancestors that we've made the kids aware of. They do know that their great-great grandfather on my side was a sailor who liked to drink and gamble. He married a strong woman who somehow got him from Pilsdon, England (near Dorchester) to a farm in Iowa where there was no ocean, drinking or gambling. She straightened him out, and they raised four boys who did well in life, including my grandfather. All schooled together in a one room schoolhouse.

In my father's view, this was part of a tradition of very strong women in our family. My MBH fits that tradition, too.

I'm sure your kids will appreciate learning about their heritage, including your first generation immigrant stories. It should help them understand who they are and where they come from, and to think of themselves as part of a larger family going back in time. Rich histories, as Kath said. Many quite difficult, if you go back far enough, and some where you don't have to go back far at all to find that.

>214 AuntieClio:, >215 AuntieClio: Thanks, Stephanie. Yeah, I can respect that he did it well, and that many people get a lot out of Lolita, including both our kids, but no thanks.

I know what you mean about visibly handicapped people - there's a sympathy (there but for the grace of god), a grappling with what to say and how to say it, and so on, and a foreignness to their experience. I think Kath has it, which is to be straightforward and respectful; no one likes to go unnoticed, to be treated as if they're not there. Our son is excellent at that. He had a wheelchair bound roommate in college, whose muscular atrophy also made his speech difficult to understand. They became good friends (still are), and Jesse got him involved in what Jesse did for fun in a no-nonsense, straightforward way. More than once I've had the pleasure of learning from our son and his sister, and this was one of those.

>216 NarratorLady: As usual, you and I are on the same wavelength, Anne. (Although my radio didn't tune to nuns). It's been highly recommended to me many times, and I can always think of something I'd rather read. Mark is convincing me to give Pnin a go, so at some point I'll report back on that one.

>217 mckait: Yeah, lots of homeless here, too, Kath. I try to be respectful and not treat them as invisible. I do share others' concern about where the money's going to go if there's no supervision. We have a newspaper here called Streetwise that qualified homeless people sell and keep a portion of the proceeds. The organization oversees them, and addresses health and education and many other issues. Other cities have the same kind of thing under different names. I'm more comfortable giving money to Streetwise vendors for that reason, although I'll make exceptions, especially if they're elderly.

Some time I'll tell the story of my first exposure (coming from a small town) to someone asking for money on the street. The guy scammed me, and I found out in a way that still makes me laugh.

>218 msf59: That was a beaut last night, Mark. Pretty nice today, too.

Good to hear on Purity of Vengeance. Your enthusiasm has convinced me re Pnin, and I put it on the WL.

I finished Calculated in Death (another good one), and I'm over halfway through Annihilation - the biologist is in the lighthouse, reading old journals. It reminds me a bit of that old computer game Myst, the way you're in a mysterious local, sorting out its significance and rules in bits and pieces.

>219 AuntieClio: Lots of panhandling here, too, Stephanie, and I've seen it in SF. We give to organizations, too, where we know the money's being put to good use, like the Greater Chicago Food Depository, a terrific organization. I know what you mean about the scamming. I don't have a lot of patience for those who try to con me with the story about how they just need a couple of bucks to buy a train or bus ticket, or their wallet was stolen, etc. Could it be true? No. It would take a bit to explain it, but the whole set up always is off, and it's always the same.

I have to admit, I probably roll my eyes with those. But generally I agree with Kath - I do think you can acknowledge those asking and politely decline. That's what I do. Many are going to be vets (unfortunately) or have legitimate fall from grace stories. I know there's a need to be careful - for example, someone I work with got stalked by a woman he helped, and it got a bit messy. But acknowledgment and respect are doable.

There's of course a bigger story here that others probably can comment on - helping people get off the streets, into housing, and employed, with proper healthcare.

>220 labfs39: I could handle gluten-free, Lisa, as there's a lot of tasty gluten-free food, but dairy-free for me would be tough. Lactose-intolerant? I think our Karen (maggie1944) stays away from dairy, too.

In your honor, here are some (truly) gluten-free and dairy-free mini-quiches. We can probably substitute for any of the dishes you see here, so I hope it's joyful rather than painful for you.



>221 ronincats: I love the quiche, too, Roni.

17 windows at the back of the house, all yours! That sounds like a kid's dream come true. I'll bet it was the best place ever to watch the storms and the lightning.

I'm hoping our newly redone room at the back of our house, which now has big bay windows, will be a bit like that. In the city we're not going to have the wide open vistas, but it still should be a good view in a storm, unless the windows end up rain-filled. We'll see.

>222 benitastrnad: Yeah, I know what you mean, Benita. The color thing is weird. I just saw a Key and Peale last night where they went into that - an African-American Green Falcon costumed character kept being called the Black Falcon, and he couldn't convince the rest of the team it was a problem, even after he upset the Asian and the Native American team members by calling them Yellow Falcon and Red Falcon. Yellow and red have pretty much fallen out of daily lingo (although there's still a high profile battle over Washington's football team being called the Redskins), but black stays in. So does white. Michael Jordan (a Chicago hero) recently admitted he hated whites growing up in North Carolina, until he learned better. "Basically, I was against all white people."

He got suspended from school at age 14 when a girl called him the n-word and he threw a can of soda at her. At that time NC reportedly had more KKK members than the rest of the states combined. How would we view white people?

There's a lot of unfortunate history behind "black" and "white" that we're having to overcome. The same is true for yellow and red. I like your idea of dropping the color descriptors entirely.

>223 benitastrnad: We do get wonderful storms in the flatlands, Benita. One of my favorite things here. My MBH and I have an amusing adjustment to make when we visit hilly Seattle. We could've used a ski lift to get to our son's old apartment. Seattle has plenty of rain, but doesn't get the great, showy storms like we do.

Where we go on the east coast (NYC, Boston, Wash, D.C., etc.) doesn't pose the same problem with adjusting to being off the flatlands. LA either, although it's got some hills and inclines.

>224 lkernagh: You may well be right about the phylo (is it phyllo?), Lori. I'm used to running into that with spanokopita, yummy Greek spinach pie.



>225 scaifea: Hi, Amber. Glad you're enjoying the back and forth. Me, too. What a community we have here on LT!

>226 Ameise1:, >227 laytonwoman3rd:, >229 Ameise1: Linda's right, Barbara, that is gorgeous! Beautiful color and texture. Thank you.

I hope you have a fabulous weekend, too. Ours is off to a good start. My MBH performs tonight at a local venue, and then again at a different one Monday night. She has to be "off book" (totally memorized, no paper) tonight for a long one, so she's uncharacteristically nervous about that. She'll be terrific, as always.

Tomorrow's Mother's Day here, and our tradition is that our daughter and I will take her out to breakfast and then be her "garden slaves", helping her get the garden in order. We're hoping the rain holds off.

This reminds me I wanted to post a photo of my Mom, who passed away four years ago.



That's her with our Dad, who's now 91. They were married for 63 years, and were quite a team.

Joe, I keep my fingers crossed for your MBH's performance. I'm sure she will be brilliant. What a lovely photo of your parents.

ow

loved the tentacled american, thanks!

ow

>234 Ameise1: Thanks, Barbara. I'll report back, and I'm sure she'll bowl them over, per usual. I was just telling my dad that this is the 4th in a row that the person or persons producing the show have asked her to be the first performer. I think it's because they know she'll get it off to a good start.

That photo of my parents is taken at a restaurant up in northern Michigan we used to go to while on vacation. I'm glad you like it. I miss that lady.

>235 richardderus: Thanks for stopping in between ows, Richard! Please return to a state of restful comfort (to the extent possible). The tentacled american insisted on visiting you - you seem to have quite a way with them.

Sending lots of healing thoughts your way.

Hi Joe, lots of interesting conversations going on here as always. Hope you're having a great weekend. So cool your parents were together for 63 years! Wishing you a rain-free day tomorrow for your slaving duty!

>237 Smiler69: Ha! Thanks, Ilana. We must be psychically connected - I was just over on your thread commenting on The Adoration of Jenna Fox. My dad feels very lucky to have met her (he was on a naval assignment in nowhere near big water Ann Arbor - pretty unlikely) and to have been married to her that long. We were just talking about it.

I hope it is rain-free tomorrow, as Debbi enjoys the gardening and having us help her so much. If not, we'll probably take her to a movie of her choice, so that ain't all bad.

What a lovely photo of your parents, Joe.

Happy Gardening tomorrow!!

Joe I read Lolita last year and it took me 5 months to get through it. Problems I had with it were the subject matter, then to make matters worse both H.H. and Lolita were unsympathetic. I don't know if Nabokov wrote Lolita like that to gain sympathy for H.H. but it just made the novel worse for me. Then there was these endless (seriously endless) road trip descriptions of the landscape. Painful. Very painful. Yes there were parts of the book that I could see that Nabokov is a brilliant and descriptive writer but Lolita is not for everyone. No book is.

Have a wonderful weekend Joe.

Happy Saturday, Joe! I love the picture of your mom and dad. To be married for more than 60 years is a true gift. How lucky they were.

>232 jnwelch: - Well, it says phyllo on the package I have but I know filo is also appropriate so I don't see the difference between phyllo and phylo. ;-)

I love spanokopita and baklava!

Oh, what a lovely photo of your parents! Thanks for sharing it with us, Joe.

>219 AuntieClio: I guess it's much different for me, I live in a wee little town where homeless people just pass through or everyone knows them... makes a difference :)

Morning Joe! Java and a veggie omelet, please!

I love the photo of your folks! A nice loving tribute. Spoil Mrs. Joe today! She deserves it!

Ha! Mrs Joe! I love it.

Hope you all have a wonderful day - I love the garden slave idea, too.

>240 luvamystery65: Lolita is not for everyone. No book is.

Great comment Roberta!

I'm not sure what that says about me, but I read Lolita when I was 16 the first time and really loved it. I've been meaning to reread it ever since and have the audiobook version of it narrated by Jeremy Irons (who was in the film version), which I think I'll put higher up in the stacks now I've been reminded about it.

#248
That version of Lolita is the one I listened to. It was well done, but I thought the novel was meh. I don't understand what all the hubbub is about. It really didn't interest me and I kept listening to it because I thought it was one of those books I should read. Now, if people ask, I tell them yeah I read it and think it isn't that big of a deal. It certainly isn't graphic, and that always disappoints them. Just goes to show, how the reputation doesn't live up to the expectation.

Love the photo of your folks. Good luck with the garden slavery today! Hope the weather cooperates.

Speaking of the local charities - I donated food to the Mail Carriers food drive. That is extra work for them and it can be quite a walk back to the truck if you have just as much, or more, to carry back was you did when you took your bag and started walking. I appreciate them doing this and all that donated food stuff stays local.

I am also one that didn't get Lolita. Lowest rating I gave to a book, ever.

I also want to let you know that I blame you for the fact that I order A Constellation of Vital Phenomena. ;P
Hope you are having a restful weekend, Joe.

Well done Joe for putting the photo up of your late Mom. I am sure MBH will appreciate the help that husband and daughter have rendered today.

I am another a little reticent about reading Lolita given a fundamental revulsion of paedophilia.

>239 connie53: Thanks, Connie. They made for quite a couple.

The gardening worked out well. The rain held off until late in the day, so we had plenty of time to get dahlias and daisies and fiberoptic grass (I think that really was its name) and more planted. My MBH still managed to do most of the work, even with her garden slaves and the furry Sherlock there willing, but maybe less able.

>240 luvamystery65: That fits for me, Roberta. Thanks for letting me know. I'm going to try Pnin per Mark's suggestion, and see where that leaves me.

>241 GeezLouise: Thanks, Rae. It was a wonderful weekend. You'd enjoy hearing my wife tell stories, and she performed one Saturday night. It was excellent, as was the whole program. We had some good goof-off time, and some productive gardening time. Hope you had a wonderful one, too.

>242 rosalita: Thanks, Julia. It was a good Saturday indeed.

Yes, they made for quite a pair. He adored her, and she loved him dearly, even though he annoyed the heck out of her at times. Sounds a bit similar to my own marriage, now that I think about it. We're going to be at 33 years of marriage in August, and that 63 years together my Mom and Dad had seems doable, if she doesn't chuck me out the back door at some point.

>243 lkernagh: Yeah, I spell it tomaytoe, and you spell it tomahtoh, but it's the same darn fruit (they are fruits, right?)

>244 scaifea: You're welcome, Amber. Glad you like the photo. I really liked the way my Mom dressed in later years - comfortable slacks and jackets. My Dad's dad liked to wear bow ties, too - it didn't pass down to me.

When my Mom passed away, we were surprised to learn that she actually was an elf. She had covered her elf ears up while alive, but you can glimpse them in this photo. It explained so much. Magical powers, capricious nature, fascination with shoes, the whole bit.

>245 mckait: Yeah, good point, Kath. It may be different for me, too, Stephanie. If the homeless person is aggressive, like the one you mentioned, you've got to be careful. We didn't talk about it before, but here and I believe in a lot of parts of the country, there are a number of mentally ill people on the streets. So that's part of the equation, too. It can be dangerous or unwise to engage, for sure.

Here, panhandlers are mainly polite, and I believe it has to do with market forces. They tend to set up in places downtown where they see many of the same people multiple times, as so many are commuting to and from work along set paths. If they're rude to someone, that's likely the end of getting any possibility of getting money from them. And they may turn off others who hear them.

One way I think of my money is as a vote - I'm supporting their being where they are, doing what they do. I'll never give money on the train, for example, because I hate someone coming in and trying to take advantage of us all being unable to leave. No way. It's against the law anyway, but you still have ones who try it.

>246 msf59: We spoiled Mrs. Joe as much as possible, Mark, and she also had the furry Sherlock giving her love. We took her to a tapas place for brunch, on seasonsoflove's suggestion (Cafe Ba-ba-ree-ba), and that was a big success. Our tops were mini crepes, pancakes, french toast, and potato egg and onion tarts (? - not sure if tarts is the right word, but that's the idea), manchego breakfast potatoes, and the creme de la creme were these buttermilk waffles with warm bananas and caramel sauce, that we had as a kind of dessert at the end.

Speaking of which, we'll time jigger you some java and a veggie omelet. Hope Mrs. Mark had a wonderful Mother's Day, too! Please give her our best.



>247 -Cee-: We had a great day with Mrs. Joe, Cee. She seemed to love it from beginning to end. I got her the first season of The Big C on dvd (her suggestion, that she happily forgot). She's a big Laura Linney fan, and rightly so.

>248 Smiler69: I thought Roberta put it really well, too, Ilana. I can't imagine reading Lolita at 16. I was more into authors like Ray Bradbury at that age.

>249 benitastrnad: Makes sense, Benita. Yes, it is one of those that we're expected to read, seems like. That often is a strike against a book for me, as I have this guy inside who resists being told what to do. (Stubborn, says my MBH). I do know both my kids thought it was well done, but I don't see reading it in my future. I suspect my reaction would be much like yours - meh - if I got over the creepy premise.

>250 SuziQoregon: Thanks, Juli! The weather cooperated, and we had a good, albeit hot, time in the garden. The unexpected heat (low 80s, but that cranks up when you're hauling and digging and so on) wiped us out for a while afterwards! Most importantly, the Star of the holiday had a great time.

>251 benitastrnad: That sounds good, Benita. We don't have anything like the Mail Carriers food drive. Maybe Mark has it out where he is. We do have a local food pantry around the corner that has drives, and we'll buy food for it - but we can walk it over. The Mail Carriers food drive seems like a cool way to do it, although extra work for the carriers, as you say. I"m sure they're glad to do it.

>252 jolerie: Wow, sounds like your reaction to Lolita was similar to mine to The Sound and the Fury, Valerie. That's the strongest reaction I've heard yet. This is interesting for me, because before this the only people I've known who've read it speak highly of it.

It was a restful and good weekend. My MBH gave a surprisingly relaxed (she had been unusually nervous leading up to it) and well-received performance Saturday night, and we gave her a good Mother's Day on Sunday.

She performs again tonight, but this is one she feels she's got well under control.

Hope you like Constellation! I imagine you will. As I mentioned, it's based on fairly recent events, but has a feel of being further back in time. I think it will last well with readers.

>253 PaulCranswick: Yeah, I share your revulsion at the underlying theme of Lolita, Paul. Blecch.

Glad you like the photo - she was a pistol. Sharp and complex, and very active with community organizations like Planned Parenthood. My dad had always planned he'd go first, so he was lost for a good while. But he's doing pretty darn well now. Still talks about her all the time.

My MBH was very appreciative of the help her daughter, the furry Sherlock, and I gave her yesterday. As I now no doubt will drive her crazy in some way, I hope the glow of yesterday will last for a little while.

>251 benitastrnad: I always put a bag out for the Mail Carriers' Food Drive too. As we live on a rural route, the carrier doesn't have to do any walking outside the truck, so I fill a large bag very full. In town, where the carriers walk a good bit of the route, I think people often only put a couple cans or boxes out to go easy on them. It's a national event, always on the second Saturday in May.

>255 jnwelch: Joe, it's great to hear that MBH's performance went so good and that she could relax on Mother's Day. Wow, this veggie omelet looks yumie.
I hope you have a wonderful start into the week ahead.

I predict that your comment about your mother's elf ears may come back to haunt you in a few years...

A good number of the homeless people in Atlanta are very aggressive, belligerent and sometimes violent. I used to go to Centennial Olympic Park on days off to read outside, but after several unpleasant episodes I've stopped going there. One man cursed me out while I was talking to my mother on the phone ("I'm talking to you, m*****f*****! Get off the g**d*** phone!!!"), which freaked her out, and another threw coins in my face after I gave them to him (I gave him what I had in my front pocket, as I refuse to take my wallet out of my back pocket anymore after one of them tried to grab it). I've been verbally assaulted a few other times as well, when I refused to give them anything, and I've seen them scare away families picknicking on the lawns, while the park police stand in the distance, apparently doing nothing. I've also found many of the homeless people in San Francisco to be the same way, although not nearly as bad as those in Atlanta.

On the other hand, all of the homeless people I've encountered in London have been pleasant and appreciative, and I'm glad to give money or food to them.

>258 Ameise1: Thanks, Barbara. So far it's been a good start to the week, without emergencies. I like easing into the week whenever possible.

>259 kidzdoc: You may be right about the elf ears, Darryl. My sisters and I have joked about it, but if my mother's connections in the elf world hear about it, I may get a visit. I'll keep you posted.

>259 kidzdoc: Yikes! It's bad when you won't even go to a park because of the unpleasant aggressiveness. I haven't gotten to Atlanta enough to contribute on that. I haven't run into it in San Francisco, but it sounds like I've just been lucky.

Your experience in London tallies with my market forces idea. Driving your "customers" away with belligerence and sometimes violence isn't Sales 101, but mental illness and frustration probably play a role, and maybe other factors, too. London and the Midwest also have more of a politeness tradition than some other places.

We're always going to have some folks who reject the norms and live outside of what we take for granted in daily life, but it would sure be good to see the numbers go down, and to see those who are unwillingly living that outsider life given a realistic chance to get back in the mainstream.

New cafe is open. Come on over!

>255 jnwelch: Joe, Governor Reagan cut money to mental health funding when he was in office in California. We've never been the same.

>262 AuntieClio: Yeah, we had that here, too, Stephanie. I think it happened in a lot of the country, as money got tighter.