What Did You Just Finish, What Are You Reading Now & What Books Have You Brought Home Recently? (Spoilers Possible) Showing 651-700 of 1,086

[Terri]

You'll probably finish Einstein AND B. Franklin before I read either. I'm on a "Apocalypse preparedness" kick right now. Which just means I'm reading a lot of self sustainability books. I go in different directions after I've read several in one genre--before that I was reading a lot of spiritual books. And before that, historical. So it'll swing around to biographies soon. I've got a LOT of those to read! So when you DO finish, I'll be waiting to hear your thoughts.

[Terri]

One of the Biographies I have to read is about Nelson Mandela, I'm looking forward to that one.

[Miriam]

I haven't been good about entering books lately, but here are some I have read this past week:
The Vanished Man lots of info about magic and the history of magic
The Coffin Dancer
11/22/63
A Train in Winter: An Extraordinary Story of Women, Friendship, and Resistance in Occupied France
The Weird Sisters a birthday gift from my oldest sister

[Miriam]

Now I am reading Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking and I am learning a lot. Fascinating! So many unanswered questions for me about how some of the research (like on a gene for high reactivity) relates to bipolar disorder too. I may have to do some cross researching of some of the research articles (and actually BUY this book- it is a library one).

[Terri]

Miriam: What did you think of 11/22/63?

I just finished Cradle to Cradle a non-fiction book that makes you think about revolutionary ways of changing the manufacturing process from concept to finished product to it's end (or it's reuse as a viable product). Very interesting. Imagine a water bottle that when your done with the water the bottle decomposes rapidly and sends nutrients into the soil and has no toxins. Imagine the possibilities!

[Petra X]

Of the books I have recently read, my favourite(by a favourite author) was A Year In The Maine Woods. Which is a brilliant, joyful, somewhat philosophical book on living in a log cabin for year musing on the woods in a very heavily evolutionary-biology way. Plus drawings. Plus personal details often of a very humorous nature.

I also enjoyed the Steve Jobs biography.

I'm just going to look up Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things. It sounds very interesting.

[Miriam]

Terri, Cradle to Cradle does sound interesting.

11/22/63 was interesting- a neat concept, well thought out. Not sure I agree with the concept philosophically, that things are supposed to happen a certain way. But it was a fun read.

[Cheryl S.]

Terri wrote: "You'll probably finish Einstein AND B. Franklin before I read either. I'm on a "Apocalypse preparedness" kick right now. Which just means I'm reading a lot of self sustainability books. I go in d..."

I'll be sure to post something.

[Cheryl S.]

Terri wrote: "One of the Biographies I have to read is about Nelson Mandela, I'm looking forward to that one."

What one do you have? I've been looking for one on him but not sure what one to purchase.

[Cheryl S.]

Miriam wrote: "I haven't been good about entering books lately, but here are some I have read this past week:
The Vanished Man lots of info about magic and the history of magic
[book:The Coffin Dan..."

Is "Coffin Dancer" a Jeffrey Deaver? The Train in Winter one sounds interesting.

[Cheryl S.]

Terri wrote: "Miriam: What did you think of 11/22/63?

I just finished Cradle to Cradle a non-fiction book that makes you think about revolutionary ways of changing the manufacturing process from concept to fin..."

I think that is the kind of thinking that will maybe save us from ourselves and help us quit trashing our planet.

[Terri]

Miriam: Conversations With Myself.

Cheryl: I agree--that's why I found the book so fascinating. It's exactly the kind of thinking we need to do. I received a sample today from Proctor and Gamble--the new Tide Pod. It's basically a square packet (1" x 1") encased in plastic that contains detergent, stain remover and brightener. You throw it into the washer drum at the beginning with your clothes (even a High Efficiency washer). It dissolves in either cold or warm water. They are trying to encourage people to use cold water for washing because it uses less energy. Also, the packaging needed to hold the product is so much smaller it takes up less resources as well as less space on trucks--which means less gas used. The plastic is plant based, not oil-based. This all sounded great to me. The problem is, I'm not sure that the plastic used or the actual product itself are able to benefit the soil and water, or at the very least not harm them.

Which is the whole point of the book Cradle to Cradle. "Less Bad" isn't the solution. The solution requires us to create products that are completely beneficial to the economy, people, and environment. Not so easy--but my God we have brilliant scientists. I know they could do it. It will take millions probably to develop these new techniques/materials but in the end it would end up costing us so much less money.

Anyway, that's the book in a nutshell.

[Miriam]

Terri, that looks great. I will ask my library to get it for me (interlibrary loan).

Terri, part of the problem is that the people who take the designs for saving the planet all want to make a fortune off the technology. My sister recently installed geothermal heating. It was at a huge loss to them- they are both over 60 and will never recoup the cost in their lifetime, but they believe in doing what is right, so they installed it. The solar panels they installed MAY pay for themselves before my sister and her husband have to sell their house. It was really a shock how expensive the geothermal heating was- basically it is just pipes in the ground! So the technology has to be made affordable- either by keeping the profit margins reasonable or making it so low cost that it is affordable even with a huge markup. Otherwise people just can't, not won't, switch over.

[Terri]

I've been hearing commercials now for Solar panels that you can "rent." Basically, you pay a set amount every month and it's lower than the Power Company. That way you don't have to cough up all that money up front. I've thought of doing it, but frankly, in the winter time our power bill runs around $65 and in the summer around $165. I believe the "rent" for the solar comes to $165 a month. I would like to have it though. I'm hoping when the time comes to sell our house, we can get them installed on our new house. Right now we live in a HOA and they don't allow you to do anything to the outside of your house that detracts from the uniformity of the neighborhood.

Which also means we have to have grass--a BIG pet peeve of mine. What a waste of water and space! I know it looks nice, but they feed it with fertilizer and the sprinkler send it all down the storm drain.

But yeah, I hear you. It needs to be affordable to the masses.

Course if we ever get hit with an EMP it won't matter because that would fizzle out the chips in the solar panels and they would be just as useless as the Central AC hooked into the power grid. I read a book about EMP's called and it scared the sh** out of me.

Then I watched 60 minutes yesterday and they talked about a new virus that infects computers which run our power grids. I really need to stop watching ANY news show.

[Petra X]

What are HOAs and EMPs?

[Miriam]

HOA must stand for some neighborhood association rules. Here in the states, if you buy property in certain neighborhoods, part of the contract is that you will uphold certain standards of the neighborhood. These are put in to place to "keep property values up" but in general require conformity to blandness. Typical ones are that you have to maintain a lawn no higher than so many inches, that you can only use white christmas lights and no other decorations, no lawn art or ornaments, paint your house only certain colors, have white linings on all your draperies, no recreational vehicle parking, no cars left out in the driveway, etc. I would rather die than live in a neighborhood like that, but then I have always been eccentric. My house would not pass muster in a HOA!

I have not heard the term, but am assuming EMP refers to meteorite particles hitting the earth. One of those apocolyptic theories being pushed by the media. It is a possibility, but most likely life on earth will be extinguished completely, and there will be no warning, so why worry?

[Petra X]

Miriam wrote: "I would rather die than live in a neighborhood like that, but then I have always been eccentric"

LOL. Me too. Reminds me of the song Little Boxes. One question, what is recreational vehicle parking? People coming to visit and leaving their cars outside? If so, where are guests supposed to park?

[Cheryl S.]

Terri wrote: "Miriam: Conversations With Myself.

Cheryl: I agree--that's why I found the book so fascinating. It's exactly the kind of thinking we need to do. I received a sample today from..."

Very interesting. I've seen those pods advertized and wondered about them as I am a life long Tide user, but wash only whites in hot water. I have a little motto hanging by my computer which states "Leave everything a little better than you found it" which was drilled into me as a child by my mother. I wish more companies would think about that when they are triple packaging their products.

[Cheryl S.]

Miriam wrote: "Terri, that looks great. I will ask my library to get it for me (interlibrary loan).

Terri, part of the problem is that the people who take the designs for saving the planet all want to make a f..."

Amen!

[Cheryl S.]

Terri wrote: "I've been hearing commercials now for Solar panels that you can "rent." Basically, you pay a set amount every month and it's lower than the Power Company. That way you don't have to cough up all ..."

LOL about the news shows. I turned on TV for the weather report this morning and they were talking about Israel possibly bombing Iran. Maybe because I just read "Einstein" it really freaked me out.

[Cheryl S.]

Petra X wrote: "Miriam wrote: "I would rather die than live in a neighborhood like that, but then I have always been eccentric"

LOL. Me too. Reminds me of the song Little Boxes. One question, what is recreationa..."

Recreational vehicles are things like boats, camper trailers ,motorcycles, three wheelers etc.

[Cheryl S.]

In my area my big pet peeve is not just huge lawns but people who live in the country who insist on mowing the ditches between their homes and fields and the road. Ditches are for drainage not beautification in my book. The gas expended, the emissions from the mowers and destruction of habitat are criminal. It seems many retired gentlemen enjoy getting out there with their machine and roaring around for a couple hours as a good way to pass the time when going for a good long walk would be better for all concerned.

[Cheryl S.]

Finished "Einstein" and I'm not only in awe of the man himself but of the author who did such a masterful job of telling his story. Gave it 4.5 stars even though my eyes did glaze over a bit through some of the passages on math and physics. I was aware of Einstein's intellect but had no idea about his sense of humor and humanity. I'm very glad I read this book and how some of Einstein's core beliefs resonated very deeply for me.

[Terri]

Cheryl S. wrote: "Finished "Einstein" and I'm not only in awe of the man himself but of the author who did such a masterful job of telling his story. Gave it 4.5 stars even though my eyes did glaze over a bit throu..."


Cheryl: I'm so glad to hear it is good! I've always wanted to learn about Einstein but I was unsure which book to read. Then someone told me that Walter Isaacson was an excellent biographer so I put it on my wishlist at PBS. I've read quotes from him in the past that gave his view on God. Unfortunately, since they were out of context I was left wondering if he believed in God or not. Is that in the book? Just curious.

[Terri]

Cheryl S. wrote: "In my area my big pet peeve is not just huge lawns but people who live in the country who insist on mowing the ditches between their homes and fields and the road. Ditches are for drainage not bea..."

That's just nuts!

[Terri]

Petra, Miriram and Cheryl:

HOA - Home Owner's Association. In our valley in California almost every neighborhood within the suburbs is part of an HOA. Only in the country are you free of them. This was my first encounter with an HOA and we didn't really know what the heck we were getting into. The bad thing is you can't fight them legally, their Regulations/Rules are airtight. And the "Board" seems to always attract people who like to be "in charge" of what other people do.

They actually put in their monthly newsletter that it was against the law for kids to ride skateboards in the street or on the sidewalk. My younger son was an avid skateboarder at the time so I was infuriated. I did fight with the Board on it and managed to let them know we wouldn't be adhering to the rule. (They can fine you several hundred dollars for a infraction.) I even got a letter from the Sheriff's Department stating it was NOT against the law and since the HOA do not own the streets or sidewalk (the city does), it isn't a rule that can be enforced. The head of the board was so pissed off that he told me if I was stupid enough to let my kid ride a skateboard in the street, he deserved to get hit. It was quite ugly. They still kept putting it in the monthly newsletter to scare other parents, but they left my kid alone. I could go on about the HOA, but I think you get the picture.

And yes, if where you live provides plenty of housing that is not part of an HOA then you are one lucky duck.

[Terri]

EMP: Electromagnetic Pulse. Apparently we are quite vulnerable to this kind of attack but nobody in the government talks about it. Sigh. I'd never even heard of it before I read One Second After--but it's been a premise used in many books, movies and games.

It's real. There's been tons of research done on it. Basically, if a nuclear bomb (you only need one) is detonated high enough into to atmosphere at the right coordinates (for the U.S. it would be above Kansas) the EMP caused by it would wipe-out all of our electronic gizmos within the continental U.S. That includes cars (they have computer chips now), the electronic pump that brings water to our cities, lights, phones, etc. We would be propelled back to the 1800's without any appropriate skills to deal with it.

Let's face it, not many of us know how to kill, drain, pluck and cut up a chicken--let alone a cow. Most of us don't have enough food and water to last us a year while we attempt at growing new food for ourselves. Medicine would run out as there would be no factories running to keep supplying the general public. Not to mention the fact that various components are brought in from places around the globe. People like Diabetics would die in the first six months without their medicine. I could go on and on but I won't.

Read the book if you want to learn more. It was discussed by Congress as they were being informed about EMP's. Scary sh**.

[Petra X]

Not being rude, but sounds like further fringes to me... Ok for dystopian fiction but it ain't ever going to happen because if 'they' detonate a nuclear bomb, the way things are set up, the opposition will explode theirs almost immediately afterwards. Then we will all be fried along with our electronics and that's that.

[Cheryl S.]

Terri wrote: "Cheryl S. wrote: "Finished "Einstein" and I'm not only in awe of the man himself but of the author who did such a masterful job of telling his story. Gave it 4.5 stars even though my eyes did glaz..."

There is quite a bit about his religious beliefs and I found them resonating with me. I don't want to spoil your enjoyment of the book so I will say no more!

[Cheryl S.]

Terri wrote: "EMP: Electromagnetic Pulse. Apparently we are quite vulnerable to this kind of attack but nobody in the government talks about it. Sigh. I'd never even heard of it before I read One Second After-..."

I have heard about this in the past although didn't know many details. Having just read the book on Einstein I remember one of his statements which was--if there is a WWIII with atomic weapons I know what will be used to fight WWIV--rocks.

[Cheryl S.]

Terri wrote: "Petra, Miriram and Cheryl:

HOA - Home Owner's Association. In our valley in California almost every neighborhood within the suburbs is part of an HOA. Only in the country are you free of them. ..."

I'm glad you stood your ground. It's hard to live in a place that won't let kids be kids.

[Terri]

Petra X wrote: "Not being rude, but sounds like further fringes to me... Ok for dystopian fiction but it ain't ever going to happen because if 'they' detonate a nuclear bomb, the way things are set up, the opposit..."

I hear you Petra. I probably wouldn't have given it much thought except for Congress discussed it and even did research on it (with committee's and scientists of course--using those easy tax dollars) and in their findings they recommended that every American read the book. That got my attention.

[Terri]

Cheryl S. wrote: "Terri wrote: "Cheryl S. wrote: "Finished "Einstein" and I'm not only in awe of the man himself but of the author who did such a masterful job of telling his story. Gave it 4.5 stars even though my..."

Oh good! I'm glad I can looking forward to reading his viewpoint. Fascinating man.

[Terri]

Cheryl S. wrote: "Terri wrote: "EMP: Electromagnetic Pulse. Apparently we are quite vulnerable to this kind of attack but nobody in the government talks about it. Sigh. I'd never even heard of it before I read One..."

LOL! I agree with that opinion!

[Cheryl S.]

Started "Benjamin Franklin and am having more trouble getting into it than I did the book on Einstein. It's good but the writing doesn't seem to be at quite the same level. I think Ben came out before E and perhaps the author improved his style in between.

[Terri]

Oh, good to know Cheryl. It's on my shelf waiting for me to be in my "historical figures" book mode. :) I do know two other people who read it that gave it five stars so I have hope that it will turn out to be a good overall biography. I think it's interesting to watch a biographer grow in their craft. Disappointing though when they are not read in chronological order. :)

[Miriam]

Sorry to be out of the loop so long, but thanks for answering Petra's question about RVs and kudos to Terri for fighting the HOA about skateboarding.

Guess I was off on EMP as to what it was, but still a doomsday scenario. Not sure if I want to read about something I have no ability to control. No point in worrying about it. Then, I am not sure I want to live to be 100 anyway!

[Terri]

Yep, yep, yep. For some reason, LOVE reading a good end-of-modern-life story--but only if it gives you insight on how people overcome their obstacles. The One Second After book made me think about a lot of things that I CAN do to provide for disaster (not of the EMP variety of course). All I can say is, I want some chickens! Can't you just hear what the HOA would say about THAT?!!!

[Cheryl S.]

Had to give Ben a rest. I don't do so well when I read the same type of books back to back. I was interested enough to go back to it, but not right now.

[Terri]

I usually read a bunch of similar books in a row (non-fiction history, biography, green living, sustainability, apocalyptic) and then I won't pick the subject up again for another six months. The ones that are hardest for me to be in the mood to read are the really light reads. I don't know why, but if a book doesn't move me emotionally or crack me up I'm usually not interested. Which means I generally do not read Romance or tea cozy type books.

[Cheryl S.]

Terri wrote: "I usually read a bunch of similar books in a row (non-fiction history, biography, green living, sustainability, apocalyptic) and then I won't pick the subject up again for another six months. The ..."

I like to mix some lite reads in between the heavier stuff or lengthy memoirs. When I was in college I had a lot of psych courses back to back and had to read a lot of true crime lit for a couple of the classes and found myself descending into a dark hole. Ever since then I tend to mix things up more. I'm still interested in that type of reading but just can't immerse myself in it. Wouldn't it be boring if we were all the same?

[Terri]

Cheryl S. wrote: "Terri wrote: "I usually read a bunch of similar books in a row (non-fiction history, biography, green living, sustainability, apocalyptic) and then I won't pick the subject up again for another six..."

Absolutely! I remember taking Psych courses and how they made me feel. I was sure I had half of the illnesses we covered. I remember when I found out schizophrenia shows up in your early 20's I was terrified that it would happen to me. We had to watch film on one guy who was perfectly normal until his early 20's and the pressure of college sent him into a tailspin and full blown schizophrenia. What's funny is it doesn't run in my family or anything but I was terrified. I swear that whole year I was a total hypochondriac.

[Miriam]

I remember, and later found it in my notes, thinking that when the professor/MD was talking about Bipolar Disorder (called Manic-depression back then) that I noted,"This doesn't sound that crazy. It sounds like me!" Then three years later I was diagnosed. I somehow couldn't put his description together with what I was dealing with, since I had been that way from childhood and he described it as something that happened in early adulthood (I was a 16 year old freshman, so wasn't an adult yet!). I also don't have the full blown highs, just mild periods of rapid thoughts, lots of goal directed activity and highly sexual feelings (but not actions- my mom had gone that route and I swore not to!) so maybe that was part of why it didn't connect.

I will read a romance only if I cannot find anything else to read. They really depress me. But I am compulsive about reading, so will occasionally end up with one.

[Terri]

My niece is bipolar and she was diagnosed at four. Before her, I always thought it was something that crept up on you later on. So much to deal with at such a young age--and when you were a child Miriam, that wasn't something that was routinely diagnosed.

[Miriam]

Nope, until the 90s, kids were always diagnosed with "reactive depression" blaming situations for their problems, and giving talk therapy ala Freud which was worthless. I was so glad that my kids benefited from good care. At least until we got to Iowa City. The University of Iowa College of Medicine is GREAT in almost every field EXCEPT Psychiatry. They are absolutely AWFUL in psychiatry and especially child psych. I had horrible experiences with them. Great in everything else!

[Cheryl S.]

Terri wrote: "Cheryl S. wrote: "Terri wrote: "I usually read a bunch of similar books in a row (non-fiction history, biography, green living, sustainability, apocalyptic) and then I won't pick the subject up aga..."

LOL. I felt like that too and my family has no hx either. I do know of a family of 3 boys and 3 girls where 2 of the boys became schizophrenic in their early 20s. The 3rd boy is a good friend of my oldest daughter and he shared with her how he felt like he had a sword hanging over his head for many years for fear he would have it happen too.

[Cheryl S.]

Miriam wrote: "I remember, and later found it in my notes, thinking that when the professor/MD was talking about Bipolar Disorder (called Manic-depression back then) that I noted,"This doesn't sound that crazy. I..."

I don't mind reading romantic novels if the characters are well drawn and there is a good story. I enjoy reading about strong female characters. The ones I can't stand are the "poor little helpless me, how did I get into this mess?"

[Terri]

Cheryl S. wrote: "Miriam wrote: "I remember, and later found it in my notes, thinking that when the professor/MD was talking about Bipolar Disorder (called Manic-depression back then) that I noted,"This doesn't soun..."

By Romance books, I mean Harlequin types. I LOVED The Thornbirds, Gone With the Wind, A Woman of Independent Means, A Woman of Substance,Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All, etc. But of those I only felt that The Thornbirds was mostly about the romance. The other books inform you on History and each of the women are incredibly strong characters.

[Terri]

Cheryl S. wrote: "Terri wrote: "Cheryl S. wrote: "Terri wrote: "I usually read a bunch of similar books in a row (non-fiction history, biography, green living, sustainability, apocalyptic) and then I won't pick the ..."

I cannot imagine what he must have gone through. Waiting for the years to roll by so he would know he was free of it.

[Petra X]

I just finished Madame Bovary which I found deeply affecting and Delusion: Growing Up in an Amish Jewish Cult which wasn't. If anyone is interested I reviewed them both.

I don't like Harlequin type romances either but I also loved Gone with the Wind and the Thornbirds. The Thornbirds was a really good tv series when I was a kid.