And I'm back...

Hey kids. Sorry for neglecting you.
This is me attempting to make amends.
I picked up a copy of Murakami's latest novel, 1Q84.

My friends and I were talking about it the other night and I made an executive decision to make this our next book club read. I am pretty excited to dive into this one. I attempted to read The Help these past few weeks to no avail. I just couldn't get into it. Prior to that I started Infinite Jest. I am probably...1/3 in? I'm going to put that puppy on hold and focus on Murakami for now.

What have you been reading lately?

Check, Please

Radiolab (dot org) did a live performance at my alta mater this past Wednesday. Not going to lie. It was pretty epic. Topic: Symmetry. Blew my face off!


My friends and I loitered in the lobby during intermission, partially browsing at the goodies on the merch table and partially checking ourselves out in the "mirror". (There was a special mirror in the lobby that shows you what you look like from people's perspective, not your typical mirror perspective. Conclusion: a.) It was very trippy and we were all officially weirded out. and b.) my face looks slimmer than my usual run of the mill mirror reflection :)

While my friends were discussing which snack food they'd like to be I was caught off guard by the guy manning the coat check room. I hadn't interviewed someone in a while so I thought this was a good time to jump back on the saddle.

He was leaning back in his chair, eyes on the pages of his book, most likely trying to drown out the chaos going on around him. I marched over, peeked into the half-door on my tippy toes and introduced myself.


Alex is currently reading a book about LSD Psychotherapy. He's really interested in psychedelics and psychotherapy, and studied biology at UCLA. (The total opposite of what I studied when I was there).

Alex just started the book and can't put it down. The book, he tells me, talks about the studies in the 1940s and 1970s.


We somehow got on the topic of purchasing books and started to share our own stories of hoarding books, and how used bookstores are our kryptonite. He can easily walk out of a bookstore with stacks of books in each arm. "I don't even blink an eye when I buy books. It's not the same with purchasing other essentials like food or even clothing. I start to hesitate when I'm out shopping for those things but not with books." Used bookstores and the Goodwill are his demise. And he is obsessed with Amazon.com. "It's just so easy and cheap!"


The end of intermission chimes sounded so I had to be off. I asked him if he was a fan of Radiolab. He'd never heard of it before but he had been listening to the program through the speakers, then pointed overheard at the one directly over his head. "I like it. I'm going to have to start listening to it more often."

And for those interested, learn yourself somethin' fun at radiolab.org

Burger Shack

Despite having the flu, 2011 has been pretty swell to me!

Paul, one of my good friends, had won tickets to see the illustrious Jesca Hoop at the Hotel Cafe on January 12th. Gotta love winning tickets on KCRW! He was kind enough to offer me his +1. Perfect timing because I'd been meaning to hit up a show, especially at Hotel Cafe, one of my fave LA venue haunts.

We had some time before Jesca hit the stage. We decided to grab a bite to eat at the Umami Burger in the Space Twenty Fifteen complex down the street. Who knew Umami Burger would be hustlin' and bustlin' on a Wednesday night. Paul and I took up a couple stools at the bar, ordered some drinks, then opted to order our meal there, too, because we were not going to get a table anytime soon.

Toward the end of our meal I glance around the restaurant. The guy next to me (who I was convinced was a producer for the show "Chuck" because he was reading a script) had just left. That is when I noticed Tammie to my left. She just happened to be reading The Shack while finishing up her meal at the end of the bar. I lean over and ask her about her read. Tammie proceeds to explain a bit of the plot to me - a man's daughter had been kidnapped and murdered in this shack.

I automatically think that this book is about the father's vengeance but Tammie tells me that it is nothing like that. "It's more about the man dealing with this loss and great sadness. Then he experiences a spriritual awakening." And he finds it all in the very shack his daughter was murdered in.

"This is a story about family...but a different kind of family. In this shack he meets God and Jesus. What I like about this book is that things aren't as you would normally expect it to be. God isn't the being in the clouds with the white beard. In this book, God is portrayed as an older black women. Jesus is not the typical Jesus we would be used to. And the Holy Spirit is a woman!"

Tammie shares some passages with me. They describe Heaven and how it is filled with children who are simply radiating. Each child's essence is represented by different colors like auras.



Tammie was nearing the end of the book. "I am actually taking my time and reading it slow because I don't want the book to be over!" She really loves how the book is so unexpected. "The book really makes you question what you think you know. I like how it challenges me. I've never read a book like this before." She also enjoys the peaceful nature of the story. It's not scary at all, she tells me. Another overall theme that really resonated with her is that "life just is and you do what you can with it."

When asked about what she typically reads, Tammie shares that she doesn't normally read fiction. "I heard the author on a radio talk show. He was talking about the book so I decided to check it out."

Visit Tammie's site & blog at the Mosaic Quilt Studio

A lil' Reading and Relaxation

A handful of us trekked out to Lake Arrowhead last week for a little getaway at our friend's parent's lake house. And we took the opportunity to celebrate my annual Friendsgiving feast!

Hours before the cooking and eating a few friends perched lounged out on the deck and read the day away! A sight to behold indeed!

Westside Book Bound

Could that have been my poor attempt with a play on "Eastbound and Down"? Yeah, you know it. Friday night found me wining and dining on the West Side. (OH NO!) After dinner at Sushi Karen my friends and I made our way over to Bigfoot Lodge West for my friend's coworker's birthday bonanza. I had only been to Bigfoot Lodge East I was pretty excited to finally sample the West Side counterpart.

I love bar doormen. They are, for the most part, super chill and easy to talk to. What I love even more is if I spot them reading on the job. I caught Zack with his book pants down as we were getting ready for him to inspect our IDs. He had his book propped open on the podium at his post, complete with mini lamp clipped on the edge.

After getting a glass of wine I interviewed him over the smoking patio fence. Zack usually tries to read at work. "Makes the night fly by faster when I read." I even commented on his little set up with the lamp and all. "I got it at an airport...comes in handy."

Zack's reading Echo Burning by Lee Child. He calls it "throwaway fiction" that follows an ex-military cop who tackles bad guys who get in his way as he tries to save the damsel in distress. Justice! Sweet, sweet, justice!



Zack is really into contemporary noir which led me to talk how I enjoy that genre too, especially LA noir. Then I went on a tangent about John Fante. (Man, his stuff is good).

His favourite book? A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole. When I told him that a handful of people have told me that they also considered this one of their faves he opted to pick another book!

"I'm going to go with Still Life with Woodpecker by Tom Robbins." The book has every from aliens, redheads, bombs, a love story, and a pack of Camels. (Ciggies). Adding this to my Goodreads list? Don't mind if I do!

I had enough time for one more question because throngs of people were starting to trickle in. There was a pregnant pause when I asked Zack what his own book would be about if he had a chance to write one. "I think it would be an autobiography where I would take lots of liberties."

Mmmmhmmmm

Bloody Awesome!

I just finished yet another episode of Dexter. Season 4, Episode 11 to be exact. Yes, I am late to the game. For years I refused to watch this show. I don't actually have TV so I am a bit particular of the shows I get sucked into in DVD form. My time is precious, right? So the shows I get into better be worth my while!

Enter Showtime's "Dexter". I am officially OBSESSED! I am catching up on episodes but not enough to watch the now-running Season 5. I would have to wait for DVD anyway because of the lack of tv/cable in my abode.

One of my coworkers just started getting into the show, too! B is still on Season 1 so bond over the maiden voyage, however she went a step further and picked up a copy of the first book! B was so intrigued by the show that she was compelled to pick up the first book in the series by Jeff Lindsay (mastermind behind one of my latest vices).


On our way to lunch B and I started chatting it up about the episodes she watched the night before. Then, as if placing her best poker hand on the table, she whips out the book from her purse. "Can you believe it? I got this for really cheap on Amazon! And in great condition."

The book, she tells me, is pretty faithful to the show, or rather the other way around! Neat that she is watching and reading Dexter at the same time. I should ask her if it's weird in any way.

I asked to thumb through the book when we were finally seated at the restaurant and it looks like an easy read. I don't think I've ever watched a show/movie before reading its literary predecessor but I may want to start with this series? Maybe throw in the Sookie Stackhouse books (True Blood)?

EDIT: Spoke to B this morning and she told me that she just finished Season 1 last night. She will continue to read and soon finish the book even though she already knows how it ends. I asked her what the similarities or differences were, if any. "It's all very similar, as I said. One thing I did notice is that that dialogue, key phrases, and Dexter's "inner-thoughts" are scripted verbatim from the book. I really liked that."

Have you ever read a book after having watched the movie/show first?

Is there a TV show based off a novel that you enjoy? Would you/have you read the books/comics that started it all?