Summer Solstice Celebration

June 20, 2008 by Stefanie

Today being Solstice my husband and I both took the day off work. After all, what could be a better thing to celebrate than the start of summer? We were awoken about 5 a.m. by a not very melodious chorus of sparrows outside our window. The cats loved it. Soon there was a robin or two singing away and a cardinal too. And, to no surprise, the neighbor’s rooster had to chime in with a cock-a-doodle-do! every now and then. Yes, I have a neighbor with a rooster. Yes I live in a city. A small number of chickens are allowed to be kept. I’ve never seen the rooster, and I haven’t figured out whose house he lives at, but I do love to hear him crow in the morning and at odd hours of the day.

After lounging in bed for a while we got up for a fresh pot of coffee and breakfast, did yard work then puttered around. After lunch we headed over to Half Price Books. What fun we had there! Are you ready for the haul?

The Heart of Emerson’s Journals edited by Bliss Perry. This is a reprint of the 1926 edition. I believe Mr. Perry is a relation of Emerson’s because Bliss is an Emerson family name, but I haven’t quite figured out what that relation is yet.
Novel Beginnings: Experiments in Eighteenth-Century English Fiction by Patricia Meyer Spacks. This was a surprise and a happy find. I remember Dorothy reading it last year and had to have it.
Why We Read Fiction: Theory of Mind and the Novel by Lisa Zunshine. Cognitive psychology and literary studies. I couldn’t resist.
The Diary of a Country Priest by George Bernanos. Litlove read this one and made it sound so good it had to come home with me.
All the Names by Jose Saramago. My Bookman found this one.

As if that weren’t enough, we found ourselves in a NYRB extravaganza:

The Book of Ebenezer Le Page by G.B. Edwards.
The Dud Avocado by Elaine Dundy
Memoirs of Montparnasse by John Glassco. I’m expecting this one will have great gossip in it.
The Singapore Grip by J.G. Farrell.

What fun! We followed up our hunting by gathering our first bushel box of the season from our csa farm drop-off. How appropriate that our first box came on the Solstice. After a relaxing afternoon, I made a mixed green salad while my Bookman worked some saute magic with the collard and mustard greens, pac choi, and scallions from the farm box, adding in some crimini mushrooms and potatoes. Then we dined al fresco but were chased in near the end of our meal by a sudden downpour.

This evening will find us watching MST 3000: Attack of the Killer Shrews while enjoying a bowl of popcorn. Life is good.

Happy Solstice everyone!

Posted in Books, New Acquisitions, Personal | 16 Comments

16 Responses to “Summer Solstice Celebration”

on June 20, 2008 at 6:41 pm1 Eva

Happy Solstice!
on June 20, 2008 at 8:52 pm2 Dark Orpheus

Diary of the Country Priest. Hmm. I watched the Robert Bresson film adaptation of it, and found it compelling.

I love all your NYRB books.
on June 21, 2008 at 6:04 am3 pete

Happy Summer solstice to you Stefanie - and Winter solstice to us here in the Southern hemisphere. Enjoy the celebrations.
on June 21, 2008 at 6:13 am4 Susan

The Book of Ebenezer le Page is a marvel.

Happy Solstice!
on June 21, 2008 at 7:46 am5 Emily Barton

Sigh! More books I’ve never read that I’m sure will end up in the TBR tome. What a wonderful way to celebrate the solstice!
on June 21, 2008 at 8:20 am6 sassymonkey

We went book shopping yesterday too and, sadly, didn’t buy a book for ourselves. But we did buy two books for my boyfriend’s dad, a book for my mom, and a book for a friend. I still can’t believe I didn’t buy myself any when it’s buy 3 get the 4th free. sigh.
on June 21, 2008 at 8:54 am7 Benjamin

I’ll have to track down a copy of Novel Beginnings. Sounds wonderful…
on June 21, 2008 at 9:06 am8 Cam

Sounds like you had a great day. Wonderful that you were able to putter in the yard and gather your CSA shares on the Solstice. What better way to celebrate than to appreciate the good things of Mother Earth!
on June 21, 2008 at 9:54 am9 Courtney

what a lovely, lovely sounding day! I enjoy acknowledging the solstices as well - this winter I plan to have my first annual (yes, that’s right, first annual, I don’t care if it’s grammatically incorrect) winter solstice party…
on June 21, 2008 at 8:03 pm10 Dorothy W.

Happy Solstice! I spent the entire day outside, which is a great way to spend Solstice, although I didn’t remember what the day was until you wrote about it. Great haul there! I’m glad you found the Spacks and hope you enjoy it.
on June 22, 2008 at 6:59 am11 madwomansattic

Happy belated Solstice! Do review the Montparnasse book, I’ve been dying to read it.
on June 22, 2008 at 9:21 am12 Cipriano

What a gorgeous thing to do, to cut class and spend the day in abandoned frolic with your Love. 
As you were dining and I saw the words “chased in near the end of our meal” I thought instantly of that neighboring rooster flying over the fence in an uproar! A rooster. In a big city. And I thought I had problems with balcony pigeons!
on June 22, 2008 at 3:06 pm13 Stefanie

Thanks everybody for the Solstice wishes!

Dark Orpheus, I will have to remember there is a film version of Diary of a Country Priest and watch it after I read the book. NYRBs are addictive to collect.

Pete, happy winter solstice!

Susan, Ebenezer le Page sounds like it will be good, and with your confirmation, I look forward to reading it!

Emily, just a little tit-for-tat pushing

Sassymonkey, you must habe great fortitude to shop for books for others and not buy one for yourself!

Benjamin, hope you can find a copy!

Cam, thank you. It was a marvelous day and our first csa share of the season couldn’t have arrived on a more perfect day.

Courtney, I will look forward to hearing about your winter solstice celebration!

Dorothy, you must have sensed it was solstice even if you didn’t know it

madwoman, thank you. I will be sure to post about Montparnasse when I get to it.

Cip, being chased indoor by a rooster would have made for a fun story. More interesting to be sure than being chased in by rain! But the rooster has lived in the neighborhood for a year and has yet to come introduce himself
on June 22, 2008 at 5:43 pm14 iliana

What a wonderful way to celebrate - happy (belated) solstice Stefanie! I want to read The Dud Avocado. Have heard lots of good things about it from blog friends.
on June 23, 2008 at 10:17 am15 Danielle

Happy belated Solstice. I spent part of the afternoon reading on the porch! I really need to visit my local HPB again, but it’s probably better that it’s out of the way for me! And I, too, want to read The Dud Avocado!
on June 24, 2008 at 6:49 am16 Stefanie

Iliana, thank you! HPB had two copies of Dud Avocado. I should have gotten both of them and given one away. doh! Next time I fall upon such riches I will be sure to share the wealth.

Danielle, thanks! Sounds like you had a lovely afternoon. My HPB is a little out of the way which is good because it keeps me from going there often and it makes for fun and special destination