This busy (for me) week

On Wednesday, I had my 6 month teeth cleaning.  Not fun, but lots of clean teeth afterwards. 

Friday night I went to see Penn & Teller perform.  I'm not sure what I expected, but it was an interesting and fun show.

To start with, it was held at the Route 66 Casino.  I've only been there once before, a whole bunch of years ago.  Which meant I'd forgotten it's 17 miles (or so) west of Albuquerque.  It's not in the middle of nowhere, but you can see the middle from their parking lot.  Essentially it was set up to provide food & gambling for people who stop at their truck stop for gas.

I do have a bit of a gripe about their auditorium.  The seating needs to be 'raked' a bit more.  It's flatter than it could be & means it can be hard to find a clear sight line to the stage.  I managed, but it was an effort.  It helped they had a couple of large screens on either side of the stage.  But I didn't want to watch them on a screen, I wanted to watch them on the stage.

The show was part fun and part a discussion of Penn & Teller's philosophy regarding illusion, sleight of hand, putting on a 'magic' show and life.  The pace is leisurely.  I enjoyed it and am happy that I've been able to see them live.  They do include audience participation which was amusing (since the jokes were on other people).  Note:  they're not 'cruel' to the audience participants, but they do joke around.  It's fun to see them do a trick and then show you how they do it.  Teller did a sleight of hand involving a lit cigarette, a pencil and a fake lighter.  He did the trick, then did the trick showing you exactly how it's done, and then faked you out doing the trick again.

I was disappointed because they didn't do their usual meet-and-greet after the show.  The casino is a casino, after all and so they have slots almost up to the front door of the auditorium.  I have a couple of books written by Penn and was hoping to get them signed.  No luck there.  Rats!

Tomorrow is the biannual ABQ main library's clear-the-shelves book sale.  $5 per bag of books - you get to pick the books from the tables they've set up.  LOVE it!

I know.  For many folks, this would not be a busy week.  I'm not most folks.

Papillon

"Up In The Clouds?"

For the longest time, I thought Cesar was a 'shrub' cat.  One who liked to be low down.  For example, he took a nap wedged under a chair on the floor.

So imagine my surprise to find his new favorite nap place is about 6.5 to 7 feet off the ground on top of a bookcase.

Of course, to get up and down, he has to use a shorter bookcase and knock a few books off onto the floor.

The things we do for our pets.  ;)

Papillon

Chocolat Pour Vous

Several weeks ago I was browsing the used books at Goodwill.  I spotted a nice copy of Chocolat by Joanne Harris.  Although I have not seen the movie, I had heard good things about it.  I decided to buy the book.

I found it to be a fun read.  When I was done I took it to work and asked a coworker if she'd like to read it.  She said she had seen the movie and liked it.  She thought it would be fun to read the book.

Today she brought it back and said she had enjoyed it very much.  She said it had taken her the better part of the week to read it because she doesn't have a lot of time to read at home (family concerns).  Her only current chance to read is when she's riding the bus to work.

The even-more-fun part of this?  Because the bus she takes to work is used by other coworkers, there's a consistent group of people who ride the same bus every day.  Several other women saw what she was reading.  Two of the women - one had a copy of the movie and brought it in for the other to watch.  A third woman asked my coworker if she (third woman) could read Chocolat now that my coworker was done.  Since the book is mine my coworker said she did not feel comfortable loaning out my property. 

Me?  I said what the heck.  It's not like I bought the book brand new especially for me.  Let's get folks reading!  I told my coworker to let the third woman read the book.  All I ask is that she use a bookmark and not fold the pages to mark her spot.

Unleash the books!

Papillon

An Odd, Yet Readable, Book

I recently finished reading a rather unusual and slightly odd book.  The title is Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children.  It's a novel by Ransom Riggs.

It starts out with a family tragedy which severely affects 16-year-old Jacob.  He ends up journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales.  There he discovers the ruins of the aforementioned. home.  He begins to learn more about the home and 'peculiar' children. 

One interesting part of the book concerns the photos used as illustrations.  According to the chart at the end of the book, the photos were not created for the book.  Instead they are odd and weird and unusual photos that have been found at flea markets and antiques malls and yard sales.

I'm not sure if the author found out about the photos and created the story to fit the photos or if he started creating the story and found about the photos and used them as additional themes.  In any case, it's a very effective device.

Papillon

Feeling Good

A week or so I was making my weekly trip to Goodwill to see if I could find any good books to read.  One of the books I found was a copy of Horatio Alger's Ragged Dick.  It's been a couple of decades since I last read any of Alger's books so I thought 'what the heck' and bought the book.

When I bought the book I noticed it had markings indicating it was a part of the Albuquerque library system.  I didn't think much about it because libraries periodically cull their files and sell the books they know longer want to keep.  I figure this was one such book.

However, when I got home I noticed there was nothing on the book to show it had been pulled from the stacks by the library.  So I went out on the official city website and checked the library's catalog.  They had the book listed, but also said there were no available copies.  Normally if a book has been checked out, the catalog will show this.  So their notes meant they had no copies in the system. 

So I read the book and then took it to the closest branch library and put it in the book drop-off.  Tonight when I checked, voila!  They now have one copy of the book listed in their records - ready to be checked out.

I'm not sure how the book ended up at Goodwill.  So I did Good will a favor by buying the book and supporting their efforts.  I helped out the library by returning the book so they don't have to buy another copy - saving them money.

I'm feeling good.  Two good deeds in one fell swoop!

Papillon

Books and the Occasional Scammer

Twice a year the Albuquerque Main Library holds a 'clearance sale'.  You can buy as many books as you can stuff into a brown grocery bag - no limit on the number of books or the number of bags.  It's a great deal, especially if you're buying hard covers.  Heck, it's a good deal even if you're buying paperbacks.  This year I managed to fill 4 bags.  Woohoo!  Lots of good reading in my future.

For about elebenty-seven years, the price has been $3 per bag.  However, I guess as the result of inflation and budget cuts, the Friends of the Library decided that, starting with today's sale, the price per bag would be raised to $5 per bag.  They've had this information on their website since the last sale in November 2010.  It was also on signs all over the sale area.

Everything went fine until I went to check out.  There was a nice short line with only one woman ahead of me.  As I get into line, the woman's total comes up on the cash register - 8 bags for $40.  The woman immediately recoils in horror.  Why such a high total?!  The cashier (a small elderly woman) explained the change in price.  The customer immediately went into Evil Cheapskate Customer mode.  She had checked the price on the Internet and therefore the library had 'no legal leg to stand on'.  (I'm not making this up, she actually said those exact words.)  The cashier asked what website Evil Cheapskate Customer (hereafter referred to as ECC) had gotten the information from.  As expected ECC was unable to give her a name.  Instead she kept ranting about how she should be charged only $3 because that's what it said on the Internet.

She was so busy ranting and making life miserable for the very polite cashier that she didn't hear the disparaging  comments that the lady in line behind me and I were making (under our breath) concerning ECC's conduct.  I was also running several very pleasant revenge fantasies in my head.

I did comment to ECC that the Internet is full of erroneous information and is not an infallible source, especially in light of the fact that she'd gotten the information from a website NOT run by the Friends of the Library.  ECC dismissed me with an imperious wave of her hand.

Finally, the woman responsible for the content on the Friends' website walked over and said that their website has had the accurate information since November 2010.  That the Friends are responsible for the information on their website and NOT for any information on a website over which they have no control.  ECC eventually backed off and allowed them to finish the transaction. 

We all breathed a sigh of relief as ECC walked away.  The funniest part - apparently ECC is either incredibly cheap or an incredibly slow learner or is a persistent scammer trying to rip off the Friencs of the Library.  Because the library lady said ECC pulls the same or a similar stunt every single year at every single sale for the past 10 years.  It makes my head ache just to think about it.

Anyway, all's well that ends well.  I got my four bags of books home without giving myself a hernia.  The cat worked his nose overtime smelling all the interesting smells.  There is lots of yummy reading in my future.  Life is good.

Papillon

Another Recommendation (Actually Two)

I just finished reading the book The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio by Terry Ryan.  It's about how her mom raised 10 kids (with very little help from her alcoholic husband) using 25 words or less in corporate contests.  For those who don't remember, after World War II a lot of companies helped drum up product sales by sponsoring contests where consumers bought their products and then sent in proofs of purchase along with entry forms.  The consumers would dream up catch phrases or advertising slogans for the companies as an integral part of the contest.  If the judges liked your entry - you could win big prizes (trips, cars, cash, etc). 

Evelyn Ryan (the prize winner mentioned in the title) won a large number of these contests.  Not only did she win, but quite often did so in a very timely fashion.  Her son's bicycle was irreparably damaged in an accident.  A short time later, a bike arrived from a contest Evelyn had entered.  Ditto for the family toaster. 

I recommend this book, it's an interesting read about a woman who found a way to rise above all adversity in her life.

I also recommend the movie based on this book (it stars Julianne Moore and Woody Harrelson).  I saw the movie first.  Usually I prefer one treatment or the other - in some cases I really like a movies, but not the book and vice versa.  In this case - I really liked both the movie and the book, just about equally.

Papillon

A Glitter of Unicorns?

As has already been mentioned, I love going to places like Goodwill & looking through their used books.  Most recently (yesterday to be precise), I found a book edited by Bennett Cerf.  (For those too young to remember him, he was a publisher, lecturer, columnist, toastmaster, and TV personality.)

The book is Bennett Cerf's The Sound of Laughter.  It was published in 1970 and there is a fair amount of humor in it that is rather dated or is what would now be considered politically incorrect.

However, I have run across some items that I like.  Here's one:

"Almost everybody knows that lions travel in prides, that pups come in litters, that elephants en masse are referred to as herds, and that fish navigate in schools.  But you'll have to dig into James Lipton's unique book An Exaltation of Larks to find that in their time and fashion, good folks have referred to an ostentation of peacocks, an impatience of wives, an unction of undertakers, a sneer of butlers, a twinge of dentists, a tantrum of decorators, an indifference of waiters, a descent of relatives, a no-no of nannies, and a babble of barbers.  If the game appeals to you, you might strike out on your own."

I may just have to see if I can find a copy of Lipton's book.  It sounds rather a hoot (of owls?).

So what sorts of things can you come up with?

Papillon

Book Junkie

"People say that life is the thing, but I prefer reading."  Logan Pearsall Smith

"No furniture so charming as books."  Sydney Smith

"There is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book.  Books are well written, or badly written.  That is all."  Oscar Wilde
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Hello, my name is Papillon & I'm addicted to books.

There's no getting around it.  I am.  And I enjoy it to the hilt.  The name of my latest fix is The Devil's Boarding House by M. William Phelps.

Interestingly enough, it's about America's deadliest female serial killer.  Someone I had never heard of before - a woman named Amy Archer-Gilligan.  (It's rather ironic that her first name is based upon 'ami', the French word for friend.)  She & her first husband (the Mr. Archer portion of her last name) started a small nursing home in the early 1900's, at a time when those sorts of facilities were not entirely common.  (The author says they may not have been the first to open a nursing home as a privately run business, but they were certainly early innovators in the field.)  The problem was, they eventually needed a fairly consistent number of incoming patients.  And the only way to ensure that & to have the space available was to regularly get rid of the old patients.  Attrition due to normal old age wasn't fast enough.  Mrs. Archer-Gilligan decided that the easiest & fastest way to do this was to feed arsenic to the patients she wanted to get rid of.  She also decided this was the best route to inheriting from her husbands (yes, both of them) as well. 

It was an interesting read.  Also, given the subject material, kinda creepy & a bit morbid.

In a rather ironic twist, several decades after all this took place, the storyline was used as the general basis for first the Broadway play Arsenic & Old Lace, and later the movie starring Cary Grant.  In the play & movie, the method used to poison the victims was elderberry wine.  Mrs. Archer-Gilligan preferred plain old-fashioned lemonade - with a real kick to it.

One interesting side note - at about the same time as people started to get suspicious concerning the deadly Mrs. Archer-Gilligan, the east coast was going through one of the worst heat waves ever (to that date anyway).  People were actually going mad from the heat.  (Mrs. Archer-Gilligan could not claim that as an excuse for her actions.  She just wanted the money.)

Papillon

Random Thoughts

There's no specific theme today...just some random thoughts.

First off, the 2nd family of finches has flown the coop.  I wrote about them earlier, the ones who've been nesting in the tummy area of my cat-shaped wind chime.

It always seems to work that way.  I see them day after day - the babies getting bigger & bigger & then one day I go out & they're all gone.  I suppose there's a metaphor in there somewhere.  It's interesting that I never see them practicing flying.  One day there are three babies in the nest & the next day - none.
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I see on the calendar that Friday, June 25th is Take Your Dog to Work Day.  Trust me, do this only if the dog is well & truly housebroken.  There are some 'presents' that are never meant to be shared.  Dog poop & piss rank right near the top of that category.  Your coworkers will be truly appreciative.
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I love buying books.  It's even better if they're on sale.  And I don't just mean at the chain bookstores.  Some of my best 'scores' have been at secondhand bookstores.  Example:  I've found some autographed copies.  Books signed by Hedda Hopper (oh, go look her up), the Horse Whisperer (whose name has just flown out of my head), and several others.

Equally fun are autobiographies by people I've never heard of but who turn out to be delightful to read about.  Example:  Anna Russell - she was originally training to be a classical musician.  However that didn't work out & she became very popular in the 1950's & 60's as 'the queen of musical parody'.  She spoofed classical music - sort of doing what Weird Al did with pop & rock music.  It's a very funny read.  She did a summary of Wagner's 'The Ring Cycle' - taking several days worth of opera & condensing it down to 20 minutes.  It was totally accurate & showed how absurd the plot of 'The Ring Cycle' is.  Opera lovers adored it.

I'm currently reading an autobiography by Catherine Drinker Bowen - Adventures of a Biographer.  It's a series of essays on what she loved about being a biographer of such people as Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr & Tchaikowsky, among others.  A couple of things make this book fun -- it's a first edition.  It also looks like it was a reviewers copy because there's a card inside that says not to release any reviews prior to the book's release date.'

For me, looking through secondhand book sales is rather like searching for treasure.  Sometimes I find treasure & sometimes I find nothing much.  It's fun & ultimately serves to help stretch my mind.  Keep the little grey cells active & well fed.

Oh, and let's not forget the large softback copy of the entire Chronicles of Narnia that I snagged for just $1.00!  Woohoo!

Papillon