I have allowed a select few which include:
PBS (Public Broadcasting System) so that I can keep up with the world at large, and I like that they go off the beaten path of mundane news.
A regional zip line company, because I want to zip line through the falling leaves come fall (if they haven't dried up and died by the end of August).
Jennifer Haupt who sought me out because I also liked "Speaking of Faith" brought to public radio by Krista Tippett http://speakingoffaith.publicradio.org/index.shtml Jennifer says on her profile, "I write about people who find faith beyond religion and use it to change their lives, communities, and sometimes even the world. I contribute to many magazines and I've recently finished my first novel, which I found in Rwanda three years ago." Jennifer's been nothing but interesting for me and her writing about people who find faith beyond religion resonates with me.
And, oh gosh ... how could I forget I "liked" KRISPY KREME : ) Not me. I mean really, come on, who couldn't like Krispy Kreme? Besides Krispy Kreme holds sweet memories for me -- where's my secret signal ... hmmm ... I don't have one. Don't try to understand that last part readers, its an inside poke.
My latest like is Paulo Coelho. I didn't recognize Paulo Coelho's name, but he looked like a writer that I would find interesting. So far, I have enjoyed Paulo's postings. What I found surprising is that he is a tidbit of interest that joined another tidbit of interest to another tidbit of interest. How did that happen? Well, it's my habit to read. It's also my habit to read between two to four books at a time. The only book lately to break that multiple book reading habit was Stephen King's Duma Key. I devoured that in singular. After finishing that, I started Eat Pray Love and a couple of other books. After finishing Eat Pray Love, my friend practically insisted that I add Pat Conroy's South of Broad to my reading rotation. My friend is apparently a Conroy fan. I tried to resist, telling her that I was already reading a few books. She pushed it anyways, and I have been wading through its lovely but overly descriptive pages for the last three days. I will finish that book, but as will happen, sometimes I need a break from reading what feels a little too much like work and seek something else to read. So, I'm plundering my bookcase the other night, and I see The Alchemist, which I bought and read a few years back. Since I couldn't remember much about it, I settled into the leather chair by the bookcase and flipped on the lamp above me with its discrete but swingy snowman dangling from the switch (don't ask -- but here's a pic for ya)
and started to re-read The Alchemist. It wasn't until I was about a paragraph into reading that I noticed the author's name ...... PAULO COELHO. Smack! Smack right upside my interior radar ... huh ... hey ... I just "liked" Paulo Coelho on facebook. Cool. I liked him and didn't know I already liked him. I read a few more paragraphs and was slightly surprised to see this line "The secret of life, though, is to fall seven times and to get up eight" which practically jumped off the page at me. I know that may seem like no big deal, but my brain registered an immediate recognition of those words like I would if I were greeting an old friend fresh off an airplane. Guess what quote has been featured on my chalkboard beside my desk for months and months!
Well, just look for yourself ....
There it is, "Fall seven times stand up eight." A quote which I really liked and snagged from somewhere (not from Mr. Coelho's book The Alchemist) months and months ago, but never knew who originally said it. Now I do. PAULO COELHO, I must really like you!
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I'm slowly reading, "The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake" by Aimee Bender while half watching SpongeBob SquarePants reruns on TV... kind of a summer break mentally.
ReplyDeleteI rarely remember book titles - and semi-occassionally remember author's names...
Like that swinging snowman.
In September, I'm making it my mission to find out what, specifically, we are all told to "Don't Stop Believin'" by Journey. Wish me luck.
I tried to read a book by Paulo Coelho, but I could not get into it. I had written him off but you make me curious again.
ReplyDeleteI'm going to check those books out that you mentioned. I've been stuck with Egyptian and Rome historical fiction and I am getting pretty bored with it.
That quote does make me think. Get up 8.
Oh, and I have a swinging star myself! One of my favorite Xmas ornaments, but I never hung it on a tree. It's just pretty so I hang it up permanently somewhere in the house.
ReplyDelete@Nikki -- well, you may not get anything out of Coelho's writing unless you are in need of getting something out of it. I don't remember being particularly struck by "The Alchemist" the first time I read it, but it seems to be coming alive this time around only because I can now relate. I really liked Stephen King's Duma Key ... but I know his books aren't for everyone. I also really liked Eat Pray Love because she is sort of on a life quest, and I can relate to that. I also liked it because it takes you from here to there and from there to somewhere else. Now Pat Conroy's book ... "South of Broad" I'm not gonna recommend even though I can certainly appreciate his appreciation for the south and Charleston, SC in particular (his hometown). His descriptive measure is quiet lovely, but I don't find myself overly invested in the cast of characters. But hey, that's me. Two of my friends loved it.
ReplyDelete@Iggy -- You be sure to let me know what you find out come September.
Unfortunately, I often have to be reminded what a book was about if someone mentions it, even if I read it before. Not every book's story sticks with me. Some do, some don't, but I get no less pleasure out of reading. "The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake" sounds particularly sad.