A Terror and an Aphrodisiac June 26, 2017

Awesome. As always, powerful characterizations so quickly. Definitely left me wanting to read more.

Serum

I could see her from the end of the block. She was sitting on the sidewalk under the yellow-orange street lamp, next to a pile of white rubbish bags from the nail salon next door. There was something white sticking from her mouth, bigger than a cigarette. A thermometer maybe. And she was holding an ice pack over her eye. It was fresh, which meant Abdul had probably given it to her. I could see him as I approached, peering out the window of the shop, making sure the crazy white girl with the black eye was okay on the street.

He smiled and waved when he saw me coming.

“It’s all right,” I called through the glass. “I’ll take care of her.”

Abdul Suleiman was the 50-something owner of the Halal market under my apartment, and my landlord. He had a sloping bald head with an arc of black…

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Pedants are Assholes June 21, 2017

This is the best analysis I’ve seen of what’s going on with pedants and trolls.

Serum

I need to be better at handling them. I don’t even take my own advice and end up making things worse. It’s just so damned hard.

To be clear, pedantry is not disagreement — although any disagreement automatically opens a lot of ground for pedantry. Someone is not being pedantic simply because they have a different opinion or are making a contrary argument. The point at which a discussion is jointly entered, most kinds of explanation are fair game.

Pedantry is also different than teaching, although the pedant always claims that’s what they’re doing. Like any good troll, they hide behind the ambiguity of language. But there is a clear difference. Teaching is student-focused, where the most important person in the exchange is the learner. Extra steps are taken to explain it in terms they can understand, and any failure of understanding is assumed first to be the responsibility of…

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Rebecca Solnit: The Loneliness of Donald Trump | Literary Hub June 19, 2017

Agree about that last line.

Shannon Turlington

This is another fabulous essay by Rebecca Solnit: The Loneliness of Donald Trump | Literary Hub. That last line is devastating.

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“Fan”tastical Friday: Helen Keller June 17, 2017

I’ve long been a fan of Helen Keller’s too. Her story is inspiring, and her own writings so thoughtful and kind, despite the harshness with which she had been treated at times. Amazing woman.

A writer & her adolescent muse

I’ve never really gave much notice to the term “fandom” until I looked up the meaning of the word in a dictionary:

-“the state or condition of being a fan of someone or something.”

This definition made me chuckle as it sounds like something out of a psychology textbook.  So, I looked at what Wikipedia had to say:

-“a term used to refer to a subculture composed of fans characterized by a feeling of empathy and camaraderie with others who share a common interest.”

Meaning, you can be a “fan” of not just individuals or movies or a particular kind of music; but, also of an ideal, an interest, motive, etc..  I think you get the idea.

I suppose now that I’m thinking (oh, so dangerous) I am a fan of multiple things.

For today, I will focus on one of them.

Women with great inner…

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Taking a day off, with Ferris June 6, 2017

I adore this film, and must now watch it again.

Damian Trasler's Secret Blog - Do Not Read!

I just found out it’s been 31 years to the day, since Ferris Bueller’s Day Off was released. We watched it on Saturday, part of a renaissance of 80’s movies we’re going through since Middle Weasel took part in the staging of “The Breakfast Club” at her High School.

I missed Ferris the first time around, not catching it until the release on VHS, and even then it didn’t really connect with me at the time. Ferris is cool, he’s popular, and he’s skipping school. More than that, it’s easy to believe he’s bullying his friend Cameron. Cameron wants to stay home and be sick, but Ferris needs a ride and has no car. He cajoles Cameron into driving over, then gets him to impersonate Ferris’ girlfriend’s father so that she can be sprung from school too. Finally, Ferris persuades Cameron to let them take his father’s prized Ferrari on…

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In praise of short books… June 2, 2017

Shannon Turlington

Lately, I’ve very much been appreciating the short book. In fact, I have tentatively come to the conclusion that a novel’s perfect length is between 250 and 350 pages.

It’s not that I don’t love big, fat, epic novels. In fact, I count several of them among my favorite reads: Lonesome Dove; The Passage trilogy; Anathem; The Stand and It. Perhaps it’s a side effect of growing older; as my time here gets shorter, my patience for long books wears thin. Or perhaps it’s because I’ve noticed that long books seem to be what’s expected these days, and I always appreciate those who buck the trend.

I’m a believer in the idea that boundaries can help foster creativity. The short form of the novel challenges the writer to be succinct and on point, to be deliberate about every choice, to tell the story in the most direct and pared-down manner possible. And…

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Summer Learning at the Orange County Public Library May 25, 2017

Yay! Looking forward to all of these things!

Friends' Matters

Summer is fast approaching, and that means it’s time for Summer Learning at the Orange County Public Library! This year’s theme is “Build a Better World,” and the Friends are proud to sponsor many fun and engaging activities at the Library over the summer, for learners of all ages. It all kicks off Saturday, June 3, beginning with a 5K walk and fun run on the Riverwalk at 8 a.m. Then head over to the library from 9 a.m. to noon for a sign-up registration party, with activities for kids, folk music, snoballs, and more.

Over the summer, you can enjoy local author panels, family yoga, an ice cream social, and National Dance Day. Read great books, of course, and find out how you can make a difference in your community and library by volunteering. For more information, visit the library’s website.

The Friends will sponsor two author panels over…

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