Currently reading …

' "Old habits die hard. I will not promise to reform altogether. I shall, with your permission, continue to propose to you, at decently regulated intervals—as a birthday treat, and on Guy Fawkes Day and on the Anniversary of the King's Accession. But consider it, if you will, as a pure formality. You need not pay the smallest attention to it."

"Peter, it's foolish to go on like this."

"And, of course, on the Feast of All Fools." '

Dorothy Sayers
Gaudy Night

Dorothy Sayers is in my personal top 10, (along with P.G. Wodehouse, Gerald Durrell, Beverley Nichols and the aforementioned Josephine Tey). I actually would be hard put to it to provide anyone with a finite top 10, but these 5 writers would definitely make the cut.

It's been a surprisingly long time since I've read this book. Somehow I had subconsciously convinced myself that it was more recent. Perhaps that has to do with the superficial plot resemblance to Josephine Tey's Miss Pym Disposes, which I have read relatively recently. Actually the plots are dissimilar, but the settings are reminiscent.

The quoted section above is wonderful piffle, but it's more than that. It purports to say nothing, while saying a great deal beneath the surface. That's characteristic of Sayer's work. It is richly layered. It is wonderful to discover new angles every time you come back to a story.

McManus in Love

One of my nieces (when she was much younger) was helping her mom and Grandma in the kitchen. She had been chattering cheerfully away and then for a time subsided into thoughtful reflection watching them work. Eventually she completed her deliberation and whispered to her mom, "Grandma is being so nice. Do you think we can give her a little treat?"

This past week, I'd had one of those weeks and was ready for a treat? You know the kind of week I mean. A couple of days I got up late and then spent most of the day wondering why I'd bothered to get out of bed at all. So Friday night I had a special dinner and went and saw McManus in Love.

The show is based on the humorous short stories of Patrick McManus. I often have one of his books beside the bed and I'll dip into a story or two to supplement whatever else I'm reading. I am not particularly interested in fishing and hunting, but his descriptions and characterizations are so hilarious that I'm captivated.

McManus in Love is one of four shows that McManus has written for the actor Tim Behrens. Tim plays all the parts, from McManus himself to Crazy Eddie Muldoon, to Rancid Crabtree and many others. One of my favorite moments was actually after the show at the curtain call when he returned to the stage and talked off the cuff for about 10 minutes. As Tim explained, he lives in Spokane and about halfway across the state on the way to the show, remembered that he had forgotten the programs. He called his wife to tell her and she responded by asking what exactly he wanted her to do about it.

"Do you want me to drive all the way over there and deliver the programs or should I do an emergency shipment and try to get the programs to you that way?"

"No honey. Of course not!"

This, as he explained to the guys, was the correct answer in the circumstances. Marriage depends on such answers. He went on to catch us up with the current projects that Patrick McManus is working on. He also described how they met. Patrick was his advisor in a graduate level writing course, and as Tim was preparing to walk the aisle for graduation, Patrick told him he should really stick to acting. Despite this, they became great friends. At the conclusion of the talk, he explained that all of this would have been in the program, but of course we didn't have programs. What fun!

Heffalumps

Currently reading:
Trunk Road for Hannibal: With an Elephant over the Alps
John Hoyte

It's an interesting read about an interesting experiment—taking an elephant over the author's hypothesised route for Hannibal and his army. I would have been interested anyway, but the following items added to my interest.

• Side note #1: John Hoyte is the husband of Luci Shaw, the poet (and another Bellinghamster).


• Side note #2a: John Hoyte was interned during WWII by the Japanese in the same camp in China as Eric Liddell (of Chariots of Fire fame).


• Side note #2b: This is the same internment camp that is profiled in the book Shantung Compound—an exceptional book about human nature and the trappings of civilization.
• Side note #2c: This is the same internment camp where the kids from Chefoo School (later my alma mater) were interned.
  
• Side note #3: I love elephants.
  

Unfortunately, it seems unlikely that I will ever have an elephant of my own, but they are wonderful creatures and I want to visit them as often as I can. The attached photograph provides evidence that (even at a young age) I was interested in elephants. (I'm on the left.)

Three hanky event

I really have no words to describe my feelings on watching the inauguration of Barack Obama, the 44th President of the United States. May God richly bless him and his family. Protect them and guide them in the days to come. God bless America and as Tiny Tim would say, "God bless us, everyone."

Traditions (Part 2)

The tradition at our house also includes the arrival ceremony. I open the door and the cats are there to greet me. Nala greets me by the door first, and then she'll run ahead and throw herself at my feet and do the "cute and fuzzy routine" as illustrated below. When I'm done petting her and continue into the house, she tries to grab my feet so I can't leave.

When I am able to finally break free, Cleo awaits me in the kitchen for her turn. She sometimes won't even stop in one place so I can pet her, so part of my routine is catching her as she races around the house purring loudly.

Even though they're sisters, I have to make sure I distribute my affections equally to avoid jealousy and ill feelings. As kittens they engaged in kitty wars, and sometimes still do. I just have to make sure that it stays as play and intervene when feelings run high.

Cleo is a calico tiger tabby with gold eyes and Nala is creme colored hint-of-Siamese with intensely blue eyes.

Location, location, location

So I'm on my (almost*) weekly drive with Mom. It's grey and foggy and you can barely see 50 yards into the surrounding fields. As you reach the top of a hill it's possible to discern a ghostly image of the sun peering through, and straight above a hint of lightness and the blue of a clear sky. Then as the altitude drops, the greyness increases. Finally, we come up a rise and the mist disappears completely. The sun is shining. The view is unobstructed all the way to distant peaks. It's hard to imagine that seconds before we were in a world of gray and now we're in a world of brightness and clarity.

We picnicked** just beyond the summit of Steven's Pass with frost coating the trees above us and a friendly crow on the adjacent snow bank watching our every move. Eventually, he realized he wasn't getting any crumbs, so he swore at us and flew away. We continued on to Leavenworth, and then turned back for home.

As we reached the lowlands the mist over-took us again. When we came out of the grocery store, it was almost dark and there seemed no possibility we would see any sunset colors. However, in the final stretch as we came up out of the river valley to the summit of a small hill, the world opened up into a brilliantly colored sunset with views all the way to the distant mountains.

So and but anyway...there you have it, and stuff.

* Almost weekly, not almost drive... :-)
** For those of you who are duly impressed at the hardiness of our family, I hasten to mention that we picnicked inside the car. We're from sturdy pioneer stock, but we have our limits.

Currently listening to ...

Funky Gene's
Gene Harris Quartet

Wow! The tune Nice 'n Easy swings so hard that it's almost unbelievable, (even when it's the greatest jazz piano player of all time). Argufy if you want. It's the truth.

I had forgotten about The Children of Sanchez. I did a version of the song when I was in college. Even though this version is instrumental it still packs an emotional punch, but of course the lyric tells the whole story.

Without dreams of hope and pride a man will die.
Though his flesh still moves, his heart sleeps in the grave.
Without land man never dreams 'cause he's not free.
All men need a place to live with dignity.

Take the crumbs from starving soldiers, they won't die.
Lord said not by bread alone does man survive.
Take the food from hungry children, they won't cry.
Food alone won't ease the hunger in their eyes.

Every child belongs to mankind's family.
Children are the fruit of all humanity.
Let them feel the love of all the human race.
Touch them with the warmth, the strength of that embrace.

Give me love and understanding, I will thrive.
As my children grow my dreams come alive.
Those who hear the cries of children, God will bless.
I will always hear the children of Sanchez.

Recipe books

So I went to get some recipe books tonight. I found a great one with 50 Indian curries, including beautiful illustrations. For future reference, don't shop for recipe books before you've had your dinner. It was an interesting experience that I don't think I'll repeat. I came home and had some amazing leftovers for dinner so the wait was almost worth while.

Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday Dr. King. Some of us haven't forgotten. May freedom ring.

Music update

Currently listening to:
Cool Yule
Louise Rose

Louise is one my favorite piano players, one of my favorite singers, and one of my favorite people. I actually listen to this album all year, and especially in the last few days it has been part of my personal sound-track. Even when I am not actively listening, I find musical passages from the album wending their way through my brain. She book-ends the album (first and last track) with a wonderful solo piano rendering of In the Bleak Midwinter which is profoundly moving. She lives and plays in Victoria B.C. (one of the greatest cities in the world). It's a great tragedy that she is not better known. Y'all have been told! Her albums are available from her web-site at http://www.lrose.com/.

Note to self: Make plans to hear the Victoria Good News Choir again.

Traditions

During the holiday season, I've been thinking about traditions. Some of my traditions might be considered odd. For instance, our family has Thai food for Christmas dinner when we get together, (although we usually also do the more traditional options with inlaws or friends).

We are busy establishing traditions at my house. Every night as soon as I go to bed, Cleo comes in from wherever she is in the house and curls up by my feet. It doesn't matter what important sleeping she is doing. There are priorities, after all. She purrs intensely, and I am required to shift around and skritch her under the chin. I have suggested that she move closer to the head of the bed, and she steadfastly refuses to cooperate.

The other tradition we have established is in the morning. When she has determined that I am really getting up, she goes in the shower stall and waits for me to go in there. She expects some serious attention before I am permitted to continue my ablutions. There have been a couple of mornings she narrrowly escaped a drenching, but she always leaves before the water hits the tiles.

The attached picture is when she was still a kitten, but you get the idea. It doesn't get better than that.

Cheerio, Alan

False advertising

"I passed through a little town called Pine Mountain, which seemed to have everything you could want in an inland resort. It was attractive and had nice shops. The only thing it lacked was a mountain, which was a bit of disappointment considering its name. I had intentionally chosen this route because Pine Mountain conjured up to my simple mind a vision of clear air, craggy precipices, scented forests and tumbling streams—the sort of place where you might bump into John-Boy Walton. Still, who could blame the locals if they stretched the truth a little in the pursuit of a dollar? You could hardly expect people to drive miles out of their way to visit something called Pine Flat-Place."

(Currently reading)
Bill Bryson
The Lost Continent: Travels in Small-Town America

I can't unconditionally recommend Bill Bryson's books, but if you can get past the crudity of some his prose, he really is insightful and funny. Check him out. Cheerio, Alan

Welcome

This blog is an experiment in communication. I'll give it a try and see how it goes. For distant friends this can be a way for us to stay in touch. For those of you I see more frequently, we can still share some experiences and thoughts. Cheerio, Alan