What are you reading right now?

Riverdale, it's either on World TV or ANT TV, both PBS channels.   My tv just went down so I'll double check when the channels reprogram themselves and let you know for sure. 

I am sooooo envious and in admiration of your mother's talent.   Your mother must have some very proud memories of her experiences. 

I don't recall - did you mention whether or not you took dance lessons as well?


Golden23, I loved watching the Holmes movies.   Even if a bit dramatic, Sherlock was played as such an insightful, brilliant, if not an eccentric character.   And I never even thought in terms of Watson as a foil, which he was, and highlighted both his and Sherlock's talents.   

Jeremy Brett was I think my favorite Sherlock; he just seemed to be a natural.

GardenArtist, no I have not seen that. Is there a channel to look for it on. My mother was a ballet dancer. She was in the corps de ballet in the 1950's of the Metropolitan Opera and other places. In the 1960's she transferred to Modern Dance in California where my parents moved to in the early 60's. She taught modern dance. She taught in the studio on Hollywood Blvd that Eugene Loring had started.

Reading Arthur Conan Doyle. I have finished A Study in Scarlet, The Sign of Four and the Hound of the Baskervilles and started The Valley of Fear. Watson is such a great foil to Sherlock.

TNtechie, your current read on racism raises a lot of thought provoking concepts, and some that dovetail with current local and national issues, unfortunately.

I wonder though if the kind of racial hostility we see isn't evidenced by much earlier friction if not outright hostility between races, and/or is it part of man's desire to conquer?  I.e., and e.g., did dictators and leaders conquer other countries for territorial expansion, gains, and/or because conquered races often weren't of the same racial background?    Were conquests greed or racially based, or neither, or both?

Humans have unfortunately demonstrated such negative abilities to interact with others, and that seems over the years to have dominated history while those reaching out to help don't garner as much attention.

And, trying to avoid political issues, an example:  from what I've read, the Saudi "soldiers" have some sense of contempt toward actual combat, not aerial, but on the ground combat, and feel that others should perform these tasks for them.   I have citations for this in my database, but didn't take the time to look them up for this post.

Whites also enslave other whites; that's a nonracial issue and still is a problem.  

I think that mankind has a genetic blend of helping, but sometimes errant characteristics, such as these maniacal power grabs for land, tip the balance not only toward racial discrimination but toward more violent and powerful countrywide actions.   

Complicated issues.  


I've just finished another fascinating Cussler novel, this one addressing AI and achievement of the vaunted singularity, characterized by centuries old intents of good will compromised by contemporary greed.    It's another one of the fiction books that address the dangers of AI when used inappropriately and for gain.

Riverdale, thinking about dancing and its positive effects...

BTW, have you seen Bare Feet, with Michaela Mallozzi?
https://www.travelbarefeet.com/

Although her flexibility, adaptability and dance talents make me feel inadequate, I love to see the different dance traditions from countries throughout the world.   In fact, I've been thinking and decided to buy a new pair of ballet slippers since my feet have outgrown my existing ones.  Just putting them motivates me to work out.

What kind of dancing did your mother do?

How to be an Antiracist by Ibram Kendi; one view into racism and how to change it. Most of the ideas go completely against my libertarian views because it accepts no personality responsibility (even if only partial) for adverse outcomes. And yet there are very valid points here too.

Every policy or law is judged _completely_ and _only_ by it's outcome. So the war on drugs (with mandatory sentences) is racist because more blacks have been locked up than whites or other minorities. I disagree the laws and policies used in the war on drugs are of themselves racist; but I agree the implementation of those laws has had a disproportional racial impact. I support the First Step Act to release non-violent criminals sooner. Although a major part of the reason may very well be racist choices by the people deciding whether borderline cases are charged and prosecuted or dismissed, I firmly believe family structure and wealth are also factors. People of all races from two parent homes or with enough resources to hire a private attorney fair far better in our judicial system than people from single parent homes and working poor level of resources; having $500 to engage an attorney for a misdemeanor court appearance can make a profound difference.

So I disagree with this author's premise that the only way to end racism is to create discriminatory laws favoring minorities. Discrimination of any kind only creates more injustice. We can rework our bail laws to be more reasonable to poorer populations, but there is still a personal responsibility factor too. People who choose to drop out of high school and never develop a professional or trade skill will always make lower wages than people who spend the effort to have those skills. Women who choose to have children out of wedlock and men who choose to walk away from their children will always provide fewer opportunities for their children. Ignoring the personal choices involved in creating adverse outcomes or even worse teaching children personal choices do not matter and all their challenges are the results of being victimized is not going to solve problems. We have to work on both sides of issues to ever truly balance the scales.

I just googled it as it was made into a film. It is "I'm Dancing As Fast As I Can"

Garden artist, I loved Dancing on My Grave. There is another book about dancing with a striking title. Maybe it will come back to me. I have a book in my car that is a new release about a dancer. Maybe I will post about it. My mother who is 89 and in terrible shape was a very serious dancer in her and my youth. I wished I had stayed with it.

Gershun and GA - both your choices look interesting to me. I have just finished reading all Dorothy Sayer's Peter Wimsey books.. She was an Oxford graduate and also wrote a variety of other books. I have one of hers referring to classical education "The Lost Tools of Learning" on my list for reading when I feel like something more serious.

I discovered Amazon's megapacks -wonderful prices - and have started on "The Great British Detectives" which begins with Sherlock Holmes. "It is an old maxim of mine that when you have excluded the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth."

CWillie, thanks for that reference.   That sounds like the kind of book that would capture me and I'd end up reading it compulsively nonstop just to find out what happens.   It also captures the threats of a world which was so precipitously dangerous in so many ways, in which people's lifestyles for years were compromised and influenced by a demented tyrant. 

And it would take me out of my realm and allow me to completely forget what's going on in the world today.  

I've put it on my list; that gives me another excuse to go to Barnes & Noble! 

I tried to find the novel I read of a woman blazing new trails in medicine in a male dominated world, but can't find it.  I swore it was on one the shelves the last time I looked.

But I did find a few others that are well worth reading again:

Dancing on my Grave, by Gelsey Kirkland, who relates the sad tale of her mental and physical challenges while dancing with the incomparable Baryshnikov, in the equally incomparable Balanchine's company.   While she's seen in public as an exceptionally talented dancer, in private she faced a host of medical and self image challenges, but prevailed in the long run.  

https://www.nytimes.com/1986/11/15/arts/books-out-of-pain.html

I won't deny that my view of Balanchine was somewhat shattered by her experiences, but I can also understand that a master such as he could have the personality she describes.

Mao's Last Dancer, by Li Cunxin, another intense true story of a Chinese man, forced into ballet by a totalitarian regime, the challenges, physical pain, and his ability to conquer them and survive while eventually escaping the tyranny inflicted just before and during Mao's reign.

https://www.penguin.com.au/books/maos-last-dancer-9780143574323

Now, all I need is a week or so of intense snowstorms that keep me confined inside so I can just read.

Thanks for sharing the information on The Nightingale.

CWillie, just out of curiosity I read that review you mentioned. Read cute?

Man, what a pill she sounds like. If she's got that much time on her hands to spend dissecting a book like that maybe she should consider trying to write one herself. Maybe she has. Based on her trivial comments I doubt that her writing skills would come up to par either.

I read the reviews of the Nightingale as well. People either loved it or hated it. Mind you I read them after reading the book.

I like to make my own mind up about things. So don't follow reviewers choices about books, movies or anything media related.

I loved the book.

Here you are GA

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21853621-the-nightingale

I don't think that the book is my style but I did enjoy reading the incredibly detailed one star review posted by Read Cute.
(PS, most people loved it)

Gershun,

I tried to find your previous post on The Nightingale but was unsuccessful.  I read a book with I believe a similar title a few decades ago.  It was about a woman who was one of the first medical doctors in a field of almost all men.   What was your book about?

EmmaQuinn,

I don't think I've read any of the anti-utopian novels since college, and only then b/c of course requirements.  I found them unsettling.  Given some of the things that are happening today, I'm afraid I might find them even more unsettling.   

I've seen a few of the Divergent/Insurgent series, which I guess would be considered more dystopian than anti-utopian (lots of "ians" in this type of literature!).    They were difficult to watch, and frightening to consider.

TNTechie, I noted that you read The Roman Republic, and that it's not referred to as The Roman Empire.   It's been decades since I've read any history on that period, but as I recall the issue of whether or not it really qualified as an Empire was one that was debated among scholars.

Did the book you read address this?

That reminds me of all the books I bought during college, with the intent of spending retirement winters reading them while sipping hot chocolate and wrapped up in a quilt.   I'm still waiting for that time to arrive.   

But more relevant are the changes in international relations, reconfiguration of countries, the wars that have been fought, and the advance and change in literally all aspects of life by technology.     Those books truly will be "historical" now.

I just completed The Nightingale, the book I mentioned the other day. What an awesome book!

If you get the chance, you should definitely read it. Expect to bawl at the end.

I'm taking a break from adventure novels and reading Adm. McRaven's Sea Stories.   Although so far the experiences he relates are on land, his writing and adventures provide insight into how he eventually ended up in Special Ops.    It's an interesting glimpse into his life.

It can be interesting to reread books we first read years ago, sometimes age and life experiences completely change your perspective.

Now I am re-reading the book Fahrenheit 451 for the second time, the first time I read this book when I was young. Impressions are twofold. For reading in adolescence, during the formation of a person - this is it. However, as an anti-utopia, this book is more suitable for acquaintance with this genre. Bradbury does not delve into the very essence of the problems, he only calls them. But basically the book is interesting. Who did not read, I advise you to read. Have a good day!

Just finished The Roman Republic: A Very Short Introduction by David M Gwynn, part of a 600+ book "Very Short Introduction" series from Oxford University Press. Each book I have read in this series is 150-250 pages, well organized and easy to read with a lot of major points/characters you can follow up on in more detail if you wish.

If you want a good laugh, read Bill Bryson's "The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid." It's all about his upbringing in Des Moines, and I honestly laughed until I cried. Almost all his books are hilarious, but this one is the best in my opinion.

Don't get the audiobook, however. Bryson reads it himself, and as he's lived in England for 40+ years now, tales of an Iowa upbringing told in a British accent sounds really, really odd.

I'm reading everything on this forum lol and the Time travellers wife AGAIN as my grandmother is wandering in and out between here and her bedroom with a billion questions each time . No point starting a new book hahaha . Mama says " hello" .

I'm reading The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah right now. A fabulous book. I'd highly recommend it and most of this author's work.

I love to read cooking blogs, craft sites, and I listen to a fantastic local station for the blind that tons of sighted people listen to as well. It’s fiction and non fiction, plus newspapers, magazines, medical journals, etc. National best sellers and terrific local authors too.

You can stream it if you want...

wrbh.org

GA, I recently stumbled across some information about the huge energy costs of the cloud and the obscene monopoly of amazon, these modern technologies are not benign. I doubt most people have ever wondered about what and where the clouds actually is and I how vulnerable these facilities are to natural and targeted disasters.
When it comes to land line phones, there has been a big push in my area to upgrade to fiber optic service and guess what, that means the phone lines do not carry current the way copper does. And of course most modern landline phones are cordless, so they always need electricity.

There’s two good things that come to mind about phones. My mom doesn’t want to learn how to use one but she can dial 911 on any cell phone whether there is service or not.

Also, they are providing cell phones to homeless people now so they can keep current, stay in touch with family members and call police for assistance if they need it and other reasons

All the time I read old novels and wonder how different a plot would be with today’s technology and instant access to a phone.

charlotte

Charlotte,

I had heard rumors that cursive writing wasn't being taught in schools.  I didn't believe it at first, but thinking about it, I can believe it now, although I think it's beyond horrible and ridiculous.

I do understand that many people don't write or print any more and only use tech devices, which in my opinion is counter intuitive to addressing climate change through reduction of energy demands.     I only need pencils, pens and paper to write.    There are energy costs to create them, but at least paper an be recycled.    Devices need batteries and SIM cards, the former needing to be charged, replaced and eventually recycled....more electronic junk piling up, and not as easy to recycle as paper.

Malaysia and China no longer take plastic.   I don't know who still takes electronic junk.   So now we have people relying solely on something that increases energy use.  I'm actually surprised that phones are stlll used, especially land lines. 

And what really frosts me about that is that it cuts seniors out of potentially vital communication links.   None of the companies pushing to eliminate land lines has offered any serious alternative to being w/o power for days, such as during storms, blizzards or other disasters.   The only charging method other than having generators which are very costly, would be a solar charger.  But in the winter, how often does the sun appear?  

How does a senior who only has a chargeable phone and not a land line call for help when the phone battery runs down?  

In addition, more tech use creates the need for more permanent storage, and cloud hacking has already occurred.   Someone who scribbles would be safer than someone storing information in the "cloud"!

I think that learning through tablets, especially if children don't have glasses with blue light protection, is a harder, less safe and different way to learn.   I can't imagine taking geometry or econ courses and having to draw graphs and geometric problems on a tablet.   It's so much easier on paper.  

Thinking back also on math courses, writing and working problems on paper is so much easier than using a tablet.

It wouldn't surprise me if this method of learning, which I don't think is intuitive, could result in children being misdiagnosed with learning disabilities.   I don't think I could learn that way.  And I like old fashioned classes with interaction between students and teachers.    There are too many people, IMHO, who don't know how to interact with other human beings.   

And from what I've read, there are more issues of adjustment with younger people than there have been in the past.   Perhaps that's b/c they interact with battery operated devices instead of real human beings.  

I still truly believe that the new method of learning is harder, and less helpful.   

It's good that you have confidence in your grandson; children (and adults) still need that human interaction and support.

Garden Artist,

Did you know they don’t teach cursive in school anymore? At least not here in California. They issue tablets to kids from 7th grade on to do their homework. When I try to help my grandson with homework, I can’t find an example of math problems. Just a video tutorial.

If I try to research the problem on my own and come back to him, his work is leaps and bounds from where I left off.

This poor kid, I used to punish him at home when teacher said he had a bad day and didn’t do anything. I thought he was screwing around in class but he was literally DOING NOTHING! ADHD was diagnosed.

He left that school in second grade. The principal had a “zero retention” rule or he would’ve been held back. They didn’t know he was left handed until he changed schools. Oh my gosh.

It would be sad except he just doesn’t care, which is sad in itself. Not even grandma has been able to spark any interest in learning.

But there is hope ahead! He has had a you Tube channel since he was 8. He learns all the video skills just by breathing it in. He is 15 now and I think he will find a place for himself in this world just fine. I’m crossing my fingers.

He doesn’t like reading anything or having to write at all. So very different from me. I don’t think he even watches movies anymore. The world comes in games or ten minute videos to him. Brave new world.

charlotte

When I worked in commercial real estate I met a lot of contractors. Met a guy who went to work in Saudi Arabia building at Aramco. We have written for about 8 years. He sends me photos of various stuff around the country. I get stamps and new currency they issue. Interesting to see the dresses the women wear under their robes. Very colorful, stylish and European made.

GA,

Your posts always make me smile 😊.

Okay, that settles it. I wasn’t as smart. You were so wise to keep your letters. I am envious. I wish I had. Oh well...

I have not read that but it sounds fantastic. Do you have a favorite style of gardening? I don’t. I like formal and informal gardens. Some people feel that formal gardens are too ‘stuffy.’ I personally disagree and feel they can be quite relaxing. I also happen to feel that a beautiful field of wildflowers are just as beautiful.

I absolutely agree about the psychological benefits of nature. For me, it’s a garden or water, any body of water. Maybe I was a mermaid in a past life, hahaha. I love plant life in water as well.

Also music, music can also transport us into a different realm.

NeedHelpWithMom, here we go on another of our reminiscing ventures, segueing back in time to days when there were so many reasonably priced, rewarding, challenging and fascinating activities!

I too remember the thrill of getting the mail and seeing an air mail letter with a stamp from another country.   I've saved all my Japanese correspondence as well as that with others from other countries.  I know that in my father's attic is a box of correspondence with my German friend, and others who I've probably forgotten.

These are really, truly, such treasures.    My German friend made little gifts, including ones from wheat straw.    I cherished them and kept them (until the wheat straw cross was stolen when my house was burglarized).    I have an assortment of Japanese items upstairs in my studio; it'll be like exploring when some day I go through and sort things out.  

I too am captured by the beauty of Japanese gardens.  The serenity they create is so soothing, and so beautiful.   I'd recommend a Japanese garden trip or book before I'd recommend any mood altering medication!

And on that subject and off thread, have you, or anyone else here, ever read the English Garden magazine?  

https://www.theenglishgarden.co.uk/about-us/

It's not a DIY kind of magazine, such as Country Gardens, or Better Homes & Gardens, but rather one of splendor and tradition, featuring well known English historic sites and massive (and often professionally designed) masterpieces.   

The English take gardening to a new level.  And of course I'm captivated by David Austin's extensive rose hybridizations.   

Interesting observation that writing to strangers may be dangerous today.  I hadn't thought of that, but it's certainly true.   The Internet and especially social media have opened new avenues for unstable, malcontent and just downright dangerous people to expand their reach.  

With e-mail correspondence, one can always close out an account if someone dangerous  tries to initiate a relationship.   But from what I've read, there are far too many young people resorting to social media for companionship, and becoming subject to predators with nefarious intentions.

You mentioned writing to servicemen.   One of the attic treasures also discovered were my parents' correspondence during WWII, and just after I was born.   They were sooo emotional.  It was strange to think how the my birth and that of my siblings changed their lives; it's not really something most people think about in terms of being the little one who changed their parents' lives.

During the Gulf War, some folks I knew and I wrote to military, some in country.   That was quite an experience; through mail I met some interesting people.

I'm glad you had a good school experience, but it's sad to learn of the intolerance for students of different levels of ability.    At all levels of society, here and abroad, tolerance for people with differences is an aspect that needs to be pursued and cultivated (except amoral people).

We too explored our area, with never a though as to encountering people with malicious intent.   We were sooo free, something not even adults can always feel these days.