#Reverb12: Days 5 & 6

I was traveling for work yesterday so this is a double post.

Day 5: Independent. How have you supported an independent business this year. Small, family owned = beautiful.

I picked this prompt because I was on my way to my bookclub meeting. I go to a bookclub at a small local bookstore in Newton, MA called Newtonville books. I've been a member of that bookclub for years and when I finished grad school in 2009 my one promise to myself was to re-join bookclub. They have added a non-fiction book club as well so in February I'll be doing that one and reading 'Moby Duck'. I always like to mix a little non-fiction in my fiction so there you go.

Do you have an independent bookstore that you enjoy? Did you know that if every person bought 1 book for every 3 that they buy at an small bookstore (versus Amazon) that would help support that area bookstore? Just 1 out of 3. Come on now. You can do it. Buy a pair of socks on Amazon instead. Or some ice fishing gear.

Day 6: Invention. What invention were you grateful for this year?

I'm grateful for a handful of things I use daily. Heated seats, satellite radio, heated mirrors on my commute into work. Remote start for that 30F night where I'm leaving a warm yoga studio. Airplanes for saving me an 8 hour drive for a work trip. My iPhone for making it so I really don't have to tote my laptop around for work trips (hard to babysit a laptop when I'm by myself at a trade show). My TiVo for making me have no idea what is on when and what day of the week (a good thing, I'm out of town for a few days and everything is waiting for me).

What is an invention that would be nice to have?

Something to make all of the boutique hotels I stay in (often in buildings from the early 1900s) not have the rooms be 1000F. It makes it hard to sleep. Hard to get dressed up all fancy. And the dial on the wall to control the heat is all a sham. Thank goodness the windows open or else I'd be a big sweaty mess to each conference. LOVE this style of hotel and supporting an Independent business (there's that word again). I just hate the temperature thing. It's not very green of them to have the heat jacked up.

Another invention I would like is a bike path that goes along rte 9. Some days it would be nice to consider biking to work. There's no way to do it without getting killed, sadly.

That's it. I'm pretty content with all of my other devices and innovations. :)

Reverb11, Day 4: Learn

2011 was another year that I was not in grad school (finished in 2009) so I enjoyed being part of my book club once again at Newtonville Books. My promise to myself when I graduated was to re-join book club and start reading for fun again.

Years ago I learned that everything is in balance if I'm reading each week. I also enjoy reading magazines (particularly when I travel for work) and I also read the Boston Globe (on actual paper!) each work day since my office gets delivery. If I'm taking time to read each day even for a little while it is a nice break from staring at the computer all day.

It's strange though--I have not been to my library for a while. I guess it is because I'm not around on weekends all that often. I was thinking about getting a library card at our town in Maine. There's something special about small town libraries. They are a dying breed in this economy, sadly.

In book club we're already into 2012. We're reading The Tiger's Wife for our January meeting. What book in 2011 made you not only learn but really think? For me it was 11/22/63. Stephen King's latest and one of the Top 10 Best Books of 2011 (New York Times). I highly recommend reading it.

Famous People Have Frayed Pant Bottoms Too

Last night I went to my first Celebrity Book Club. This is held at Newtonville Books once per month and is run by a local celeb. I decided to go this month because I really enjoy Steve Almond's books. He wrote one of my favorites 'Candyfreak' and also 'Which Brings me to You' (this one is about a couple that met hooking up in a coat closet during a wedding and decided to get to know each other the old fashioned way--through letters).

The way we ended up arranging the chairs put me 1 chair away from Mr. Almond. This gave me time to observe random things. I could not help but think, wow...he just looks like a random guy in a hoodie with frayed bottoms to his pants just like any other human. There was something about him though. To me he had that 'writer look' and he also used big words when he spoke (if I was not sitting so close I would have jotted them down to look them up later). He did not use big words to show off, he's just someone that really LOVES to read.

The book we discussed is one of his favorites. Almond explained he read's 'Stoner' (by John Williams) several times per year. He admits he picked it up during college thinking it was a book about drugs and totally fell in love with it. He pretty much salivated over one of the book club participants holding up an original pre-print copy from 1965 (it was a BC professor that did a review on the book back in the day).

'Stoner' is worth a look. It's so beautifully written. The funny thing is that I did not really think all that highly of the book until around 1 hour into our discussion last night. Taking a second look and hearing what a room full of people thought helped re-shape my opinion of the book. It also made a difference in the way I perceive Almond himself. I always thought of him as an amusing guy that lives in the People's Republic of Cambridge that really enjoyed candy. I've met many authors over the years at book signings, library events, and Books and Brews at Newtonville Books. Something about sitting down for nearly 2 hours with an author I like was really something that stands out from the other book-related events.

Famous people (the smart ones) really are just like us. They put their frayed-end pants on one leg at a time.