More mutterings

Goodbye :: Hello

Cage :: imprison

Buddy :: pal

Magic words :: So Mote It Be!

Library :: books

Fall in love :: risk worth taking

Tense :: stressed

Work! :: play!

Empty :: full

Heat wave :: tropical

Another voice I'll miss...

Known for his provocative material, most especially his Seven Words You Can’t Say on Television, George Carlin died yesterday of heart failure. He was 71 years old.

My personal favorite stand-up comedian; His poignant, irreverent and humorous observations will be missed by many, myself among them.

What a character! (A review)

Recently, I had the opportunity to read my very first Bernie Rhodenbarr mystery, of which I was delighted to find that there are 11 novels and one short story which feature this burglar, written by Lawrence Block. Bernie is so endearing, you almost forget he’s a thief. Although late to the party, I began at the beginning, with “Burglars Can’t Be Choosers”.

In this story, we are introduced to Bernie, the type of guy who works alone because he finds the profits to be higher, and the risks a whole lot lower, but neither is he the type who is beyond a rare work-for-hire job. This one’s simple, really. Break into a posh East Side apartment, grab a blue leather box, deliver it to his mysterious employer, and collect an easy fee.

But – nothing is ever that easy.

As soon as Bernie gets to the apartment, things begin to go wrong; First, there IS no blue box. Then, there’s the police. And, the dead body. And, of course, the murder accusation. What’s a burglar to do?

Now, on the run and trying to stay anonymous on the streets of New York, he holes up in a friends apartment to figure out what IS going on, who is setting him up, and why.

This was truly a delightful read! Bernie’s first-person narrative is crisp and witty, and the dialogue is hilarious. The plot may be highly improbable, but that makes it even MORE entertaining.

I chose to read this book now, as Mr. Block’s celebrates his birthday on June 24th, and thus, qualifies as my June selection in Becky’s “Celebrate the Author” challenge.

Becky has asked that this month, we participate in a little “group meme”, and answer a few questions about this wonderful reading challenge;

~ What has been your favorite book that you've read for the Celebrate the Author challenge?
My favorite of the lot has been Alice Hoffman’s “The Probable Future”

~ What has been your least favorite book?
That’s a bit harder, in that I’ve quite enjoyed them all so far, and many of them have been part of series that I follow. I suppose my least favorite so far has been Asimov's "The Gods Themselves"

~ What one author or one book would you suggest to other participants?
Well, I’ll rule out those that are in the middle of a series, because I know many people like to start at the top, so to speak, so I’ll recommend "Burglars Can't Be Choosers", for a light, summer read.

~ Have you discovered any new authors along the way?
Both Isaac Asimov and Lawrence Block were new-to-me authors.

~ Would you be interested in participating in this challenge again next year? Why or Why not?
I would, as this has been a lot of fun; gives me an opportunity to “celebrate” along with some of my favorite authors, and at the same time, perhaps find a new one to add to my favorites!

Midsummer reflections

Litha (Summer Solstice)

Sun is high in young summer sky
Lush and green is grass in the lea
Meadows are full of faeries on wing
As celebrate we, longest day

‘Tis midsummer time and the holly king
Is soon to take his crown to reign
A fond goodbye to the oaken king
Surrendering his light domain

With forest sprites and elves commune
Best offer them sweetened treat
Then dance delighted beneath the moon
And frolic in summer’s heat


The sun babe grows in Mother’s womb
Awaiting birth as turns the wheel
Enjoy us all the fauna’s bloom
And revel in childhood zeal

The land be blessed with glorious fruit
To feed and nourish summer souls
With food of spiritual pursuit
The Gods our gratitude extol

While golden glowing rays of sun
And breezes warm seek to soothe
Through lushest fields of grasses run
All dim disquietude remove

Bask in days while light is long
And leisure lingers unsurpassed
Sing with glee a bacchanal song
A forward glance to Harvest cast

Our Goddess now we shall embrace
Endeavor turn wrong to right
God of Holly slips into Oak God’s place
On this, our summer solstice night

*poem found at RisingStones

~ May Your Summer be Blessed ~

Snippets of Americana (a review)

I’m sure you all know that June 21st marks the beginning of summer, but did you know that the 23rd is National Columnist Day? Established in memory of the day columnist Ernie Pyle was killed in World War II, The National Society of Newspaper Columnists created it to recognize the importance and value of columnists, everywhere. So, in commemoration of this day, as my selection in the “Every Month’s a Holiday” challenge, I have recently read through “Charles Kuralt’s American Moments”, a collection of his brief television essays, and the project Kuralt was working on before he died.

For nearly thirty years, Kuralt – sometimes referred to as the “Mark Twain of television” – entertained and delighted us with his “On the Road” reports, his anchoring of CBS’s “Sunday Morning”, and his books (“On the Road with Charles Kuralt”, and “Charles Kuralt’s America”) were both best-sellers. He was the recipient of many honors, including thirteen Emmy’s and three Peabody’s, and his distinguished career included 37 years with CBS News. Mr. Kuralt died on Independence Day, 1997.

As I said, “Charles Kuralt’s American Moments” is a collection of his stories of America, given in what were to be ninety-second long broadcast’s; a brief but lasting impression of his views on the American spirit and the people who create it. From the Cape of Disappointment in Washington State, to the deer of the lower Keys of Florida; from Mr. Ralph Woodside, who repairs victrolas in his Georgetown, Mass. workshop, to Naomi Lewis, the postmaster in Ochopee, FL., the smallest post office in the country; From the gargoyles that guard the streets of Manhattan to the 10-year-old jazz musician “Trombone Shorty” of New Orleans; little bits of Americana that are sure to charm and delight you as only Mr. Kuralt could do.

(please see my sidebar for next month’s “holiday” celebration)

So, I said

Unconscious Mutterings (#34)

Purchase :: buy

Squeaky clean :: innocent

Blended :: mixed

Wednesday :: Morticia, Gomez & Uncle Fester ("The House is a Museum, When people come to see 'em, the really are a scre-am, the Addams Family")

Function :: reason

Look down :: look around

July? :: Independence Day

Raspberry :: marguaritas

Assertive :: outspoken

Cracker :: old-time, backwoods, Southern white folk

Sunday forever altered

I’m not what one would call an average television viewer, in that I don’t generally know who’s been voted off the island, or what heroics McDreamy may have preformed this week. But, if I’ve accomplished a certain goal with this blog, then many of you may not know what a big ‘political junkie’ that I truly am. For the past decade at least, every Sunday morning, along with so many others, the Mister and I tuned in to view Mr. Tim Russert, political analyst, managing editor & moderator of “Meet the Press”, and to hear his hard-hitting questions and balanced interviews (If its Sunday Morning, It’s ‘Meet the Press”)

I found him to be the most unbiased, most balanced and most fair of all the political commentators. While always being very respectful and level-headed, he managed to somehow get right to the heart of the subject, and ask the questions out loud that so many other journalists seemed to skirt around so vaguely. I don’t oft agree with Sen. Kennedy, however in this instance, I think he is spot-on with his assessment that “"With a reasoned voice, a sharp mind, and a fair hand, Tim took the measure of every Washington official and those that sought to be one."

And now during these election campaigns, when we could use his voice of reason and determination the most, this nation has lost one of the best and brightest in that arena. My sincere, heart-felt condolences are with his family, friends and loved-ones.

I know that my own Sunday mornings will never again be the same.

Passing time

Well, I just realized its been some time since I’ve actually posted anything to my blog, so I thought I’d post a quick update, and catch up some….

What HAVE I been doing, instead?

~Reading – I have tried to keep up my challenge reviews, but I’ve also been reading just for the joy of it! I took the opportunity to read another installment of Kelley Armstrong’s series, titled “No Humans Involved”. Of course, as is always the case with these, I enjoyed it completely. Last night, I finished AJ Hartley’s second novel, “On the Fifth Day”, which I enjoyed, but I must admit, not as much as his first one (“The Mask of Atreus” was one of my favorite reads of last year). The storyline, while interesting, took some dead-end turns that I wasn’t sure why they were included at all, and his “take” on the “intelligent design crazies” left a bad taste in my mouth. (Granted, this may be only his character’s POV, but it still made me uneasy.) Having said all that, tho, I still enjoyed the story and found it highly entertaining. I’ll definitely look forward to reading his next novel.

~Watching movies – yes, we’ve been seeing some good ones from Netflix, lately. We watched an animated version of “Beowulf” recently that I thought was perhaps one of THE best adaptations of this story I’ve ever watched. Beowulf has long been a favored tale of mine, ever since being “forced” to read it in 10th grade, and much to the chagrin of the Mister I’m sure, as I want to see/read every adaptation I can get my hands on! This one is a “must-see” for anyone who is as addicted to the tale as I.

We also had the opportunity to see “The Brave One” with Jodi Foster. This was an excellent movie, however, I’m still not “quite” sure what the ‘point’ was….it’s okay to be a vigilante, cause the police can’t extract ‘justice’? While I was happy with the cops decision NOT to implicate her, I felt a sort of disappointment that she was able to “bend” his resolve in that way. I don’t know…while I was satisfied with the overall outcome (especially that she got her dog back) I was left a bit perplexed by the message it was trying to convey – other than, “don’t be a victim – be a survivor.” Which, is a good enough message, I concur.

~Canoeing – we actually took our “new” canoe out on the intracoastal for a few hours. Since it’s literally been a couple years since we’ve gone, it took us both a bit to get back into a rhythm of paddling effectively, but once we did, it was a fun trip. And, the fact that the launch is, literally, at the end of our road, not much preparation is involved – just get the boat on the car roof, don’t forget the paddles, and we’re off! It’s a great way to spend a summer afternoon, and I imagine it won’t be SOO long between trips, this time.

~Gardening – well, watering & hoping, is more accurate. I haven’t really “planted” much lately, but my gladiolus bulbs have sprouted, and I’ve been anxious for the blooming to begin!

~Crittering– I’ve been spending much time just playing with and enjoying the zoo crew. We’ve been experiencing some thunderstorms recently, and because Ms. Murphy is deathly afraid of all things loud, I’ve been trying to console her that the sky is NOT falling….I don’t think she buys it, tho. With the summer upon us, they have been spending less time running & chasing, and much more time lying directly in from of the floor fan. And, just FYI, ice-cubes are a cheap and tasty treat at our house! (Murphy is addicted, and will stand and bark at you for HOURS to get one…or two, or the entire tray!)


And, that about sums it up. The good highlights, anyway. We DID have to fork out some cash to register Blu (our Isuzu Rodeo), even tho the motor is out and we haven’t been driving it (obviously), some(busy)body in the neighborhood didn’t like it sitting out there, so it was either register it, or tow it away. That’s $40 I could have found several better uses for, but what’ya gonna do?!)
Plus, the mister’s back has been giving him problems again lately. There’s really nothing I (or anybody else) can do for it, but I feel bad about it, anyway. (Pain = sleeplessness = Mo’s worrying about his 50 min. drive to work every morning.)

But…overall, we’ve been enjoying the summertime, so far, and expect to continue to do so! I hope your summer is shaping up to be a splendid one, as well!


Until next time…

'Tis the season (a review)

As my second selection in Maggie’s Summer Southern Author Reading Challenge, I decided to give a read to Carl Hiaasen’s first novel, entitled “Tourist Season”, (and, what a dichotomy it was from McCuller’s “view of the south”, lemme tell ya!)

I’ve been reading Hiaasen for years, ever since I laughed out loud reading “Sick Puppy”; Since then, I’ve also enjoyed “Skin Tight”, “Native Tongue” and, more recently, “Skinny Dip”, but I feel that none of those works were nearly as dark, nor as ambiguous (as far as who the antagonists really are) as was this first novel he produced.

The tale begins when Sparky Harper, head of Miami’s Chamber of Commerce, is found dead, stuffed into a suitcase with his legs cut off and a toy rubber alligator lodged in his throat, and that IS just the beginning... Now Brian Keyes, reporter turned private eye, is hired by the Miami Sun’s editor to track down his missing ace reporter, Skip Wiley (from Jimmy Buffett’s “The Ballad of Skip Wiley” off his “Barometer Soup” album, which is based on this character) What follows is a caper that will mix football players, Shriner’s, politicians, and police with a group of fanatics, a smart and sassy beauty queen, and one very hungry crocodile.

Like all of Hiaasen’s work, this is a hilarious and over-the-top satirical look into Florida’s seedy under-belly, the greedy land developers and the “welcome-to-our-beaches-now-go-home” attitude towards the tourists, but I think this one stands out for me as one that not only makes you laugh, but it makes you think. (Clearly, he is NOT advocating terrorism or kidnapping or murder, but the “cause” gives us pause, and the ending certainly leaves one to wonder a bit about who the “bad guys” really are.) Entertaining AND thought-provoking; what more could a reader want?