Self Learns Something New Every Day

August 6, 2008 at 2:23 pm (Places, Pleasures of Travel, Son)
Tags: ,

The plants self brought back with her from Mendocino seem to be surviving, if looking a little “peaked.” One of them even turns out to be a shade plant, oh happy happy joy joy.

The gardenia “First Love” which was starting to show some yellow leaves is now fully green again — yesterday self decided to pull all the budding yellow leaves off, for she knows herself too well: They make her nervous, and when she is nervous, she waters. And, because of watering in such a state of high anxiety, self has killed many a plant. So, this morning, 7 a.m., when self takes a peek at her front yard, the gardenia is all green. Self can relax.

In the wee hours of the morning, self had a dream about vampires. Attacking Martha’s Vineyard. During a garden party. Where all the women wore white lace.

Could this have anything to do with the fact that yesterday afternoon, self was frantically trying to find son and his friend accommodations for three nights in Rome? Self found a site where you could book convent and monastery stays. The rooms were austere but had private baths and doubles were going for 60 euros a night. Imagine her chagrin when son e-mailed back: His budget was 20 euros a night.

He also gave self a website to check out: hostelworld. So, self dutifully followed son’s instructions and began going down the list of hostels for Rome. And there she found that more than half of the listings were full (since son needs a place to stay on the 9th, only three days from now). And the only places left were places one hour from the city center, in campgrounds, where you could rent a “tent” (Only 11 euros a night). And when self told this to hubby (who fortunately was over the BWAH-HA-HA phase), he immediately conjured up the most awful spectacle of drug-smoking gypsies. (What is with hubby’s obssession with gypsies? Ever since son set foot on European soil, this is all she hears from him, day after day: the gypsies! The gypsies!)

And the other places that had space available had mean and surly staff, like the hostel next to the Termini train station where everyone said that the proprietress answered all queries with an angry snarl.

And the one with the awful shared bathrooms.

And the one where the neighborhood was “snatch-y” (yet another word to add to self’s already out-of-joint vocabulary) — this from a reviewer who had achieved status “Globetrotter” for posting over 30 reviews to the site.

And at that point, self decided to go with “monasteries.com” and found a monastery right by the Vatican, and this one was run by the Minime Suore del Sacro Cuore, and was only “500 meters Northeast of the Vatican.” The website required a deposit of 45 euro, which self gladly put on a card. And then, oh no, the message came back that the deposit did not mean the reservation was confirmed. For that, self would have to wait as long as three days, for the convents (many of them) had no internet and all the reservations had to be made by phone, and sometimes the monks were praying and did not answer the phone, but, after all, as the website explained, hosting tourists was not their primary purpose. Which self thought made sense. But now she has just awoken from a dream about vampires, she will not call her Paris friend today, and she wonders if in fact the monastery next to the Vatican exists or is just a figment of her imagination.

Stay tuned, dear blog readers, stay tuned.

Comments

Salutations, Dear Blog Readers!

August 5, 2008 at 5:10 pm (Calls, Conversations, Pleasures of Travel, Son, Surprises)

Self did not get to sleep until the wee hours of the morning for hubby, after spending a risible day saying BWAH-HA-HA-HA to self’s face every time she called him at work, arrived home and was suddenly overwhelmed by a premonition that son was being mugged. Yes, just as self and spouse were about to partake (at 9 p.m.) of dinner of cold roast pork, hubby declared emphatically that son was in all probability being set upon by a band of gypsies.

“Gypsies?” Self responded. “But they’re in France!”

“Doesn’t matter!” hubby said. “There are gypsies all over the place!” Read the rest of this entry »

Comments

Self Makes It to Barnes & Noble

August 4, 2008 at 9:54 pm (Books, Son, Writers and Others)
Tags:

Self made it to Barnes and Noble around noon, and that was after having watered by hand (eight buckets) and pruning her roses. A few of the leaves on her gardenia “First Love” were yellowing, the Rabble Rouser rose looked like it was quite dry, and all the roses on the Betty Boop were spent, but for the most part the garden seems to have survived hubby’s neglect.

This morning there were two e-mails from son: Could self please pay with her credit card for a Vatican tour that he and his traveling companion, Sean, want to take? Self examines the tour: It is three hours long, it covers the Basilica and the Pieta and the Sistine Chapel, but does not cover the Catacombs. For that, son will have to take another, more expensive tour. Hmmm . . .

As for hubby, the man was very involved in watching an exhibition basketball game between the U.S. and Russia when self walked in the door last night, fresh from her writing conference in Mendocino. He seemed mystifyingly depressed and taciturn last night and this morning but self has reached him at work (twice so far today, to discuss which Vatican tour would be the best bang for the buck, ha ha ha ha) and both times she seems to have caught him in mid-laugh. And self is not talking mere chuckles, here. She means loud, knee-slapping laughs, the kind that seem to go on and on and on, like so: BWAH-HA-HA-HA-HA !!! Will wonders never cease?

This morning, self heard the news that Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, who won the Nobel Prize for Literature when self was still in grade school, who wrote The Cancer Ward and A Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, had passed away. Also, that Christine Applegate has breast cancer. Also, that Mary Kate Olsen is refusing to answer any questions about painkillers that Heath Ledger took that may have contributed to his accidental overdose.

And self discovered that her Barnes & Noble (which is one of the better ones, as far as fiction titles are concerned), did not have any of the novels of one of self’s favorite writers, Sandor Marai (He wrote Embers), but had almost everything written by Alice Munro, including Runaway, which is on self’s reading list.

And it is hot here, so very hot (at least compared to Mendocino). And self is trying not to think too much of the start of fall classes and the tooth that’s going to be pulled on Thursday.

Stay tuned, dear blog readers, stay tuned.

Comments

1st Monday in August: Reading Linmark

August 4, 2008 at 2:08 pm (Books, Places, Quotes)
Tags: , ,

ALONG EPIFANIO DE LOS SANTOS AVENUE

Every half mile or so —
A pink sidewalk urinal.

    —- R. Zamora Linmark, The Evolution of a Sigh (Hanging Loose Press, 2008 )

Comments

Over Twenty Years Ago . . .

August 3, 2008 at 4:01 am (Places, Pleasures of Travel)
Tags: , ,

Dear blog readers, it has been over 20 years since self has been to Mendocino. It was only a year after her wedding, and self and hubby were still practically strangers (ha ha ha ha!). And why self had Dearest Mum along, Lord only knows. Except, now that she reflects a bit, self remembers that Dearest Mum, who had scarcely paid attention to self when self was growing up, suddenly discovered her second daughter around the time of self’s engagement, and then kept thinking of excuses to visit self and hubby (in their crummy first apartment), and this caused no end of tension.

Anyhoo, there we were, the three of us, in Mendocino, in Heritage House. And self remembers that she bought a beautiful ceramic pot (which she still has to this day, in a glass cabinet in her dining room, next to pots by Jon Pettijohn and Nelfa Querubin).

In Mendocino now, self doesn’t see potters. Instead, she sees a lot of glass, a lot of metalwork. Where oh where did the potters go?

One thing self seems to have forgotten is how beautiful this stretch of northern California coast is, how wild and craggy. And, on the drive up, on 128, she and Daphne passed through redwood forests. Actual forests! Where there was a kind of ghostly twilight, and giant ferns, and self felt the whole mystery of the north. What powerful magic this place must have had, for the native people who lived here.

Today, self stumbled upon a bookstore right next to the Mendocino Hotel, where the last conference dinner was held (James Houston was the keynote speaker, and a very moving speaker he was). Just across the street were the cliffs. Whenever self looked through the bookstore windows, she could see the surf. My God, she told the salesperson at the cash register. What a view you have here, you are so lucky. And the salesperson said yes, she was very lucky.

Twenty-four years ago, when self was last here, she wasn’t even a mother. She wasn’t even a writer. Look at what she has become. She is here again, after all these years, because Charlotte Gullick, director of the Mendocino Coast Writers Conference, took a chance. Took a chance on self. Will wonders never cease?

Comments

Opportunity: Kroc Institute for Peace Studies Fellowship

August 2, 2008 at 3:27 pm (Opportunities)

Visiting Research Fellows Program 2009-10. The Kroc Institute Visiting Research Fellows Program seeks to bring outstanding researchers focused on peace research to the University of Notre Dame for all or part of the 2009-10 academic year. Fellows conduct research and work on their research projects while fully participating in the life of the Institute; explore collaborations with other researchers in their area; interact informally with Kroc Institute faculty, staff, and faculty fellows in the broader Notre Dame community; and present a lecture about their research early in their residence. Junior fellows receive a stipend of up to $20,000 per semester; senior fellows receive up to $25,000 per semester. Housing is provided in furnished Institute apartments at no cost. Fellows have office space, library and internet access, and document retrieval services. Publications that result from research or writing conducted at the Kroc Institute should acknowledge the Visiting Research Fellows Program. The selected fellows are expected to collaborate with the Institute’s permanent faculty and research staff on research related to an existing Institute emphasis. Accordingly, applicants must apply for a fellowship in one of these four substantive areas:

(1) The practice and theory of peacebuilding (local, regional, and global), including the origins of armed conflict as they relate to peacebuilding;

(2) The role of global norms, networks, and institutions in the prevention of armed conflict (including projects on economic sanctions, ethics and the use of force, humanitarian intervention, and globalization, social change, and social movements);

(3) The comparative study of peace processes; and

(4) The role of religion (especially Christian-Muslim relations) in conflict and peacebuilding.

A complete application consists of the two-page application form (which can be found at the following Web link: http://kroc.nd.edu/visiting_fellows/visitingfellows0910.shtml) ; a curriculum vitae; a research proposal (maximum ten pages) that concisely describes the research project, including the sources and data that will be used and the analysis that will be performed, and that clearly identifies the link between the proposed research and the existing area of emphasis at the Institute; a bibliography; and two letters of recommendation. Selection criteria include evidence of academic excellence, clarity of the link to existing research emphases, and anticipation of lively participation in the intellectual life of the Institute. Applications for residence in 2009-2010 must be postmarked by November 15, 2008.

Comments

Mendocino, Day 2 — Or Is it 3?

August 1, 2008 at 11:56 pm (Food and Drink, Places, Pleasures of Travel)
Tags:

Self’s hosts are wonderful, and have provided her with a most fluffy bed. There are plenty of reading lamps scattered about the room, and books like Alice Seybold’s The Lovely Bones, Tony Hillerman’s The Great Taos Bank Robbery (both of which self has not read) and Anthony Bourdain’s vastly entertaining Kitchen Confidential . But, anyhoo, self hasn’t had much time to read, for every day she teaches a morning workshop and then stays through lunch to sit in on some afternoon sessions.

From her window, self can see down into a garden filled with nasturtium and bright red and yellow flowers. How self loves the gardens here; this afternoon she stumbled on the Mendocino Farmers Market, and it was a very wee market, but full of the most gorgeous plants. Self bought something called a “Chinese foxglove,” with beautiful reddish leaves and lavender flowers.

Sitting in the neighbor’s backyard is a small orange dinghy. Farther away, self can glimpse the sea.

Self is still reading Marilyn Krysl’s Dinner with Osama. The first story was wild, and it took her a while to sink into the language. But now she is on the last story, and it’s about the Sudan. Plus there’s this priceless quote on p. 112: “In my mother’s closet, the numbers of pairs of shoes my father gave her rivaled Imelda’s.”

This morning, self had breakfast at a bakery so tiny she doesn’t see it listed on any of the websites about “Places to Go” in Mendocino. She was attracted by the great mounds of white flowers and fuschias growing around the narrow lane leading to the bakery. Inside, just off the display area, there was a large kitchen with at least four women darting around with great energy, involved in — what else? Baking. Self had a ham and spinach quiche and continued reading her students’ manuscripts. The story she was marking up was a neat one: science fiction with a satirical edge, something about a Quiggly Macaroon and how she loved walking down hallways and was mad at X’s.

She’s already been to Moody’s Organic Coffee Bar, on Lansing (Must remember to bring home a pound of the organic coffee before she leaves), and tried some raspberry and chocolate ice cream from a small shop across the street (No wonder self’s jeans are so tight this morning). She’s dined at the Hill House and perused the menu of Cafe Beaujolais. She saw a sign advertising healing therapy and massages, and was so tempted to give it a try but decided that she had too much to do.

Years ago, before self had even had son, she came here with hubby and Dearest Mum. And Dearest Mum, always brimming with ideas, said, “Why don’t you rent a cottage here for the summer and write?” Ah, what a lovely idea, but self has a feeling that a summer rental would be quite beyond self and hubby’s fragile household economy. That will have to wait until she sells a book to a big publisher and gets a hefty advance. Or lands herself a grant. Neither of which seem to be even remotely within the realm of possibility, at the moment.

Stay tuned, dear blog readers, stay tuned.

Comments

Headlands Coffeehouse, Fort Bragg

August 1, 2008 at 12:14 am (Places, Son, Writers and Others)
Tags: , ,

5:08 p.m., Fort Bragg — in a coffee shop called Headlands, sipping frozen caffe mocha. Fellow writer Andrew T. was already here, writing on his laptop, when Daphne and self waltzed in, looking for sustenance after a few hours spent exploring area thrift shops.

Self tried on blouses in all kinds of shiny metallic fabric! And bought a blouse that was electric teal! And bought the sweetest blue flannel nightgown! And Andrew tells us there is another neat shop just down the street, called Tangents!

How gorgeous is the day? The sky is absolutely blue (self would like to say “cloudless”). All the colors of the street jumped out at self with a hard-edged clarity. The thrift shops were full of interesting smells and musty oddities that brought self back to a memory of looking at a glass cabinet where her long deceased grandfather stored his collection of clay pipes.

Two perfect days in a row. Did self luck out or what???

Read the rest of this entry »

Comments

Thea Ivens Had This Great Idea

July 31, 2008 at 4:01 am (Opportunities, Other Sites of Interest, Writers and Others)
Tags:

And that was, in her own words, “to connect, participate, collaborate, and create an audience for Filipino American artists and strengthen the diversity in the field of arts.”

And so she created this website: Filipino American Artists Network, which as far as I can tell she runs single-handedly.

And the website has a Fil-Am artists calendar which is called “FilAm Events.” Check it out here:

www.filamartists.com/2008/07/06/filam-calendar/

Better yet, post a listing.

Stay tuned, dear blog readers, stay tuned.

Comments

Upon Self’s Arrival in Mendocino —

July 31, 2008 at 12:03 am (Calls, Son)

Self had barely made it out of the city when she got the news: son had tried using his credit card, and it didn’t work. Naturally, this left him quite out of joint, and he called home. As luck would have it, hubby had persuaded son that he did not need both his debit and his credit card, that one of them would suffice. And he actually made sure that son took the debit card out of his wallet and left it at home (under the impression that if son had both, he would go bananas and start charging expenses right and left — ah, how little the man knows sole fruits of self’s loins!) So, you see the problem. Anyhoo, hubby seemed completely animated by the dilemma, in fact he appeared more animated than self had seen him in months. Hmmm, self thought to herself, must make it a point to leave home more often!

And then, upon perusing her e-mail (What joy, self’s host has wireless), she saw a friendly reminder from Yahoo Calendar that she was scheduled for a tooth extraction, a few days after getting back from the Mendocino Coast Writers Conference. This is something self has successfully avoided thinking about for six months. But, there’s no getting around it. (Sigh)

Then, something from brother-in-law about Dearest Mum’s bank account. Which self thinks she can just pass over without reading, for now.

Also, an e-mail advertising very fun music festival in Garden Valley. Where the heck is Garden Valley? Self has to read the fine print before she learns it is “45 minutes north of Boise, Idaho.” How did self get on this mailing list?

And, finally, a reminder to get self’s grades in for her UCLA Extension class, which officially ended today.

Stay tuned, dear blog readers, stay tuned.

2 Comments

« Previous entries · Next entries »