My allergies are doing a number on me. Spring and fall are always the worst. It makes me look forward to cold and snow because then no more allergies for six months. And of course Mondays always make everything worse. Have I provided sufficient excuse for a chatty mix-and-match kitchen sink sort of post?
I am now entering the third week — or is it the fourth? Can’t remember and my ability to count seems to be broken — of the self-paced T.S. Eliot course. I am loving it! It makes a difference to have three other people to discuss it all with too. It keeps me motivated and makes it generally more fun. So far we’ve learned a bit about Eliot’s biography, about naturalism and modernism. We’ve read and discussed “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” and “Sweeny Among the Nightingales.” This week is “Portrait of a Lady.” The lecturer, Victor Strandberg, is very good. The lectures usually clock in from 15-30 minutes, short and to the point. Strandberg knows his stuff and I find him to be a congenial sort of fellow. It would definitely be a pleasure to take an in-person class from him but since that will never happen, this is the second best thing. So thus far, T.S. Eliot is a success.
In fourteen days the Coursera class Plagues, Witches, and War: The Worlds of Historical Fiction begins. A few have signed up for it and I sent out emails to those I remembered mentioning they were taking it. If you are signed up and I missed you or if you decide now to sign up, send me an email (email link to the left in the sidebar) and let me know. We’ve got a wiki we are going to use for discussion and information sharing and I’ll send you an invite. It is not a public wiki so no one gets to lurk! I’m really looking forward to the class especially since I have Bring Up the Bodies asking me for attention. Who knows, the class might provide a whole new perspective and dimension to reading historical fiction.
Now some goodies I have accumulated from library newsletters.
- The 20 Stages of Reading.
- Ultimate Literary Calendar. It’s got a bookish event for every day of the year. Of course I had to look up my birthday and find that it is the day Winston in 1984 begins his diary. Somehow I had forgotten about that. Bookman’s birthday is the same day that paperback books were originally introduced.
- Have some laughs over 25 Jokes Only Book Nerds Will Understand. For some reason numbers 4 and 5 crack me up. As does 10 and 16, 21, 23 and you get the picture.
- Some good news from the National Endowment for the Arts. Their latest survey finds that more than half of American adults read a book for pleasure in 2012 (via Library Stuff). The percentage of adults who read what the NEA defines as literature — novels, short stories, poetry and plays — is down from 2008 numbers (the last time they did the survey). This is being reported as “bad news.” I don’t think it is. What I think is bad is that the NEA persists in such a narrow definition of what “counts” as literature. Other findings in the survey: More women (64%) read than men (45%). The largest group of readers are those between 65 – 74. And, very sadly, the number of people who read poetry for pleasure is less than 7%. Clearly National Poetry Month has not been effective in getting people interested in reading poetry. Sigh.
My brain tells me it is time to cease thinking for awhile. I will try to get it charged up in time to think of something to write about tomorrow!
Sorry to hear you are dealing with allergies but I had a good laugh with some of those links you posted – thank you, I needed that today after a crazy work day! I especially loved the Lynda Barry one. I could totally relate to that🙂
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Really enjoyed 20 Stages and the book nerd jokes. I agree that the book reading figures in USA seem not too discouraging. In UK a depressing survey with grim news that visits to public libraries have dropped sharply – I guess this has to do with the cuts and I just hope that a revival is possible.
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Ian, aren’t they great?I hope the powers that be don’t use the drop in library visits to make a case for more cuts to libraries. That would really be terrible. I will keep my fingers crossed for a revival.
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Iliana, thanks! misery inducing as they are though, it is true they make me very happy for cold and snow! Sorry you had a crazy Monday but I am glad the links provided amusement!
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On my birthday–Dylan Thomas arrives in NYC for the first time. Sort of blah that one. Sorry to hear you’re under the weather–knock on wood–I am lucky as I generally can get by unscathed during allergy season and I truly do consider myself fortunate seeing how others suffer! Your class sounds like fun–now I might have to reconsider….did I tell you I am taking an online/distance Cataloging class for work? It’s all through Blackboard and begins next week. It should be interesting–I need it in my job since all our cataloging (or most of it) is done at the point of order thanks to OCLC’s workflow. It’s going to be pretty cool this weekend–maybe you’ll get a little freeze to help stifle all the ickiness in the air!
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Danielle, Hmm, I’ve not read Dylan Thomas, maybe his arriving in NYC had a big impact on his writing? Thanks for the good wishes. My allergies aren’t as bad as some, at least they are seasonal for the most part and the ones that aren’t I can generally avoid. It is unfortunate though that fall, my favorite season, always gets messed up because of them. No freeze in the forecast for at least 7-10 days but we are supposed to get cold rain so that will help temporarily. You are so lucky to be allergy free! I hope your online cataloging class goes well. All my library school classes were conducted in Blackboard which for the most part was a pretty easy system to use.
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Oh pooh to the allergies, how unfair! The jokes are good though. I feel compelled to tell you about the birthday card I bought a friend, which has a lady in Regency dress and bonnet sitting before a gentlemen at his desk, and he’s saying ‘Well we like the plot, Ms Austen, but all this effing and blinding is going to have to go.’ Lol!
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Litlove, my allergies could be worse so I am thankful they aren’t. Glad you enjoyed the jokes. And what an excellent birthday card you found for your friend!
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The Bears are horrified. That nice Miss Austen might never be asked round to tea again!
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I’m behind on T.S. Eliot. I read Sweeney which I didn’t understand AT ALL until I got my hands on a breakdown of the poem – after which I re-read it and enjoyed it much more. I have not gotten to the lecture yet. I’ll try to get that done in the next couple of days. I did sign up for the Plagues, Witches and War series, and since I read a lot of historical fiction, and looking forward to it. Love the fall, but I also suffer from allergies. I sympathize totally.
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Grad, I was wondering where you had disappeared to and figured you we busy but would pop back around🙂 Sweeney was a puzzler, wasn’t it? I managed but for the part where he gets hit over the head and robbed. Even after the lecture I had a hard time seeing it, but eventually it sunk in. Sent you a wiki invite for the historical fiction class. I hope your allergies aren’t too bad!
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Sorry about the allergies. We are all sending our best wishes. I am slightly disconcerted to discover that I share my birthday with James Bond. Does this mean that I should start practising my spying skills or will it be sufficient just to order a new Aston Martin?
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Alex, thanks! We have now begun three to four days of off and on rain so there will be temporary relief. You share a birthday with James Bond? I think you should just go for the new Aston Martin, you are less likely to be shot at that way🙂
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Sorry about your allergies. Hope they are settling down now. Love the idea of that TS Eliot class. I don’t know where you find the time to do everything you do though.
My birthday is not very exciting (for me) – the first book-of-the-month selection in 1926. I presume that’s some American literary tradition?
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whisperinggums, thanks. They are still bad and I expect they will remain so until we finally get a frost. This kind of thing makes me glad for cold weather. The T.S. Eliot class is wonderful and I am managing to squeeze it in between other things.
Oh the Book-of-the-Month Club was huge! It was for a time the arbiter of literary taste. To have your book be the BOMC selection was an honor. It was sort of like having your book chosen for Oprah’s book club, except BOMC selections tended to be more wide ranging and literary.
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