May 22, 2020 at 7:48 pm (Books, Conversations, Personal Bookshelf)
Tags: COVID Reading, Fridays, humor, novel, reading lists, science fiction
Last night, she read the last page of Hidden Valley Road, and was so moved. The family imploded, the strain was too much. But running through it all was the indomitable will of three women: the mother who produced six schizophrenic sons, the youngest daughter who endured sexual abuse, and the scientist who studied schizophrenia and kept such meticulous notes that even when her study was shelved, another set of researchers found her observations invaluable. It was such a perfect ending. Self cried!
Self is back to reading about the adventures of Jim Holden and his plucky crew. Must say, it was a relief to be back with the familiar characters of The Expanse. She can now see the absolute value of a fiction series. You get vested in the characters, of course you do. Even though she didn’t admire Caliban’s War as much as Leviathan Wakes, it had a truly thrilling back half.
Anyhoo, this installment begins with a jaw-dropping action prologue (of course) before re-uniting us with the crew of the Rocinante:
Amos had spent thirty grand during a stopover on Callisto, buying them some after-market engine upgrades. When Holden pointed out that the Roci was already capable of accelerating fast enough to kill her crew and asked why they’d need to upgrade her, Amos had replied, “Because this shit is awesome.”
Stay safe, dear blog readers. Stay safe.
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May 21, 2020 at 4:28 pm (Books, Conversations, Family, Food and Drink, Personal Bookshelf, Recommended)
Tags: COVID Reading, humor, nonfiction, reading lists
There were a few Galvin children who did not develop schizophrenia, Michael being one of them. When his mother was in her 80s, he agreed to assume some of the responsibility for her day-to-day care.
Hidden Valley Road, p. 288:
He soon learned that however frail she might have been, Mimi was still in charge. He would offer her Kentucky Fried Chicken for dinner, knowing how much she loved it, and she would refuse, saying she’d had it the night before. He’d make spaghetti instead, and she’d say there was too much of it.
“It got a little confounding,” Michael said. “I almost dumped it on her head.”
Stay safe, dear blog readers. Stay safe.
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May 5, 2020 at 9:12 pm (Books, Recommended)
Tags: California, humor, memories, nature writing, reading lists, San Diego
Mama’s Last Hug: Animal Emotions and What They Tell Us About Ourselves, p. 80:
- This was how I first learned this species’ typical sounds and other forms of communication, and also how to act like an ape, which is really not that hard given that humans are essentially apes.
Just for fun, a picture of self at the San Diego Zoo, probably circa 1980?
The bag she’s toting is a Louis Vuitton knockoff from the Philippines.
She had a number of those, if she recalls correctly.
Stay tuned.
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May 5, 2020 at 7:49 pm (Camarote de Marinero, Conversations, Filipino Writers, Food and Drink, Women Writers, Writing)
Tags: historical fiction, humor, novel, The Philippines
In Pampanga, mekekeni.
In Tagalog, parita ka.
And in Castilian:
Señores, vengan aca.
Vengan pangasi,
Venga kudkuran,
Venga bibingka, guinataan
Suman sa Imus
Tinapay sa bombing matabang!
Matias could not help laughing.
“It is about eating bread, and rice cakes, and all good things. Sleep well, Matias,” Father Salazar said.
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April 30, 2020 at 6:24 pm (Dearest Mum, Family, fpj-photo-challenge, Links, postaday)
Tags: Cee Neuner, humor, Redwood City
- This week you can post anything that stimulates or delights your sense of touch. It can be thorns on a rose, a soft baby’s face or tree bark. — Cee Neuner
Self decided to take pictures for this post:
Her neighbor Claudio collects old pieces of wood and turns them into bird feeders. This is all about texture:
These furry slippers were a gift from Dearest Mum. Even though it’s not cold in self’s house, she wears these slippers every day:
For dusting her computer screen:
Thanks for a really fun prompt, Cee Neuner!
Stay tuned.
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April 22, 2020 at 4:55 pm (fpj-photo-challenge, Links, postaday)
Tags: Garden, humor, inspiration, Redwood City, spring
The Tuesday Photo Challenge is ANIMALS!
Self doesn’t have a pet, her beloved beagles died long ago and she forgot to re-fill the bird feeder, so all the animals for this post are gardening “ornaments” — mostly whimsical little things she picked up in garage sales.
What a fun prompt!
Stay tuned.
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April 15, 2020 at 12:08 am (Books, Conversations, Personal Bookshelf, Recommended, Women Writers)
Tags: bestsellers, humor, novel, reading lists
Self began reading this book right after she read the collected short stories of Ernest Hemingway, how she does not get whiplash, she doesn’t know. Things get even more whiplash-y when she begins the next book on her reading list: Outlander.
P. 163: How is Liane Moriarty going to pull all these threads together? She has the ENTIRE Kindergarten Mommies routine down pat.
But there has to be something about this book MORE than just a satire on Kindergarten Mommies, because it did become a huge US bestseller (Self keeps forgetting it’s NOT set in America: the characters don’t speak Aussie patois. They don’t even curse! Not even the bad ones)
“Where’s Jackie today, Jonathan?” asked Gabrielle. The mothers were all mildly obsessed with Jonathan’s wife, ever since she’d been interviewed on the business segment of the evening news a few nights back, sounding terrifyingly precise and clever about a corporate takeover and putting the journalist in his place. Also, Jonathan was very good-looking in a George Clooney-esque way, so constant references to his wife were necessary to show that they hadn’t noticed this and weren’t flirting with him.”
Too. Funny.
Stay tuned.
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April 1, 2020 at 12:01 am (Books, Conversations, Recommended)
Tags: Brideshead Revisited, COVID Reading, England, English writers, favorites, humor, novel, Oxford, reading lists
Brideshead Revisited, Chapter V
“Members?” asked a stout woman, in evening dress.
“I like that,” said Mulcaster. “You ought to know me by now.”
“Yes, dearie,” said the woman without interest. “Ten bob each.”
The club is hot, noisy and disagreeable but the boys are extremely flattered when, “without its being ordered, the waiter immediately brought a plate of eggs and bacon.”
They immediately fall to.
“That’s another six bob,” said the waiter.
The dialogue is absolutely delicious.
Stay tuned.
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March 31, 2020 at 1:03 pm (Books, Conversations, Family, Food and Drink, Surprises)
Tags: Brideshead Revisited, England, English writers, humor, novel, reading lists, satire
“You are fond of wine?”
“Very.”
“I wish I were. It is such a bond with other men. At Magdalen I tried to get drunk more than once, but I did not enjoy it. Beer and whisky I find even less appetizing. Events like this afternoon’s are a torment to me in consequence.”
“I like wine,” said Cordelia.
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March 28, 2020 at 3:08 am (Books, Conversations, Recommended)
Tags: advice, English writers, Fridays, humor, novel, Oxford, reading lists
Book One, Chapter One:
- ‘Change your rooms.’ — They were large, with deeply recessed windows and painted, eighteenth-century panelling; I was lucky as a freshman to get them. ‘I’ve seen many a man ruined through having ground-floor rooms in the front quad,’ said my cousin with deep gravity. ‘People start dropping in. They leave their gowns here and come and collect them before hall; you start giving them sherry. Before you know where you are, you’ve opened a free bar for all the undesirables of the college.’
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