how you spend your time is...

reading these…

Administrator — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 18:56:54 +0000

Housesitting at Anne’s and rummaging through her and Davide’s bookshelves. Delightful browsings and heavy readings.

Short stories by Paolo Bacigalupi: Calorie Man and Yellow Card Man. Interesting science fiction.

The Rest is Noise by Alex Ross: wonderfully written and fascinating history of classical music. I’m browsing it now. I’ve already listened to it on CD.

Teaching Genius, about Dorothy DeLay, a brilliant violin teacher at Jiuliard and Aspen and etc. Fascinating description of her teaching style and the whole world of music students.

The Indian Clerk by David Leavitt. Just started this. So far, I’m entranced. It’s about the world of math at Cambridge when Ramanujan was discovered by GH Hardy.

I go to sleep each night with a lovely dose of The Thames and Hudson Manual of Typography. Beauty, precision, words… What better way to drift off into dreamland.

I’ve got a few books I brought from home, but am distracted by what’s here.So, Maureen Corrigan’s excellent “Leave me Alone, I’m Reading,” Tove Jansson’s dark & intriguing “The True Deceived,” and Karen Tei Yamashita’s “I Hotel” are languishing beside my bed. Alas…

I love that feeling when my brain bumps out of itself with new ideas and recombinations of old ones. Extreme pleasure!

The dreaded Christmas

Administrator — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 07:08:21 +0000

Suddenly I feel the pressure to buy gifts. And there are too few days/hours in which to do it. Ouch!

The Big Edit

Administrator — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 23:28:13 +0000

Yikes. I’m going to have my photo portfolios reviewed in 2 weeks. I was lucky to get selected at the SPE West conference for a student review. The only catch is: I don’t have a portfolio! So, I’m in a bit of a panic immersing myself this weekend in a Big Edit of my photos. Scary but good.

Back at work!

Administrator — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 16:14:43 +0000

At Google for a few months of writing. Surreal.

back to work!

Administrator — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 12:58:06 +0000

Today I return to the indoor corporate grind. 4 days of contract tech writing every week. How will it go?! The $ is appealing, but the loss of freedom and free time is daunting.

A new month, a new perspective

Administrator — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 16:12:00 +0000

Today is devoted to managing massive amounts of poison oak. So far, I’m winning, along with predisone, atarax, ativan, and baggy clothes. And a lot of sleep.

Can’t sleep

Administrator — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 10:58:33 +0000

One of those nights when distress /stress wake you up and your brain is stuck is a bleak place. No point lying there, so I got up and read. Wonderful book: “Let’s Take the Long Way Home.” About friendship. Cried a bunch.� Always grounds me to cry.

Those we lose…

Administrator — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 04:11:23 +0000

Sometimes the friends and family members we lose have a much bigger impact on us at their early death than they seemed to when they were alive. Why is that? Perhaps because of the finality. Perhaps because we may find ourselves regretting that we had fallen out of touch or had left something unsaid. Sad.

an A in Anatomy!

Administrator — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 18:07:07 +0000

Just checked my grades from last quarter and I found out that I got an A in Anatomy & Physiology. Got a B last quarter, so I’m pleased. Hooray!! It’s more about learning how to study than learning more stuff. Studying requires certain techniques to do well. I had it down in high school, but lost track over the last several decades out of school.

not home, but “at home”

Administrator — Sat, 02 Jul 2011 19:59:14 +0000

I’m house sitting in the hills near Santa Cruz. So peaceful, so wooded. I love it here. Yes, I am starting to find that I want/need things that are at my home, but it’s so lovely being here.

Also, it’s great fun since my absent hosts (cycling in the French Alps) have many books on my To Read lists and several others that are truly interesting. Geri has a bunch on photography and Liza has many about Asia. Very cool.

This gig only lasts until next weekend, so I’m treasuring it as I can!