The Anthropologists

 The Anthropologists is on the list of favorite books of 2024. Written by Ayesegal Savas, this book is on Barack Obama's favorite books of 2024. I read it and I just don't see the appeal. The book is a series of discussions or outings by an immigrant couple living in New York City. The couple tries to see their neighborhood and local park as if they were anthropologists. They have one friend in city but few others. They keep in close contact with their parents, siblings, and grandparents back home. They spend years looking for a larger apartment. What frustrated me is that nothing really happened in the story. The married couple spend more time making fun of their friends and acquaintances than anything else. This book was more like a short story instead of a novel in my opinion.

 

Every Day Is A Gift

 Yesterday I walked by one of those free little libraries in Mechanicsburg and opened the door. Inside I found an autobiography of Tammy Duckworth called Every Day Is A Gift. Born in Thailand, she grew up with her American father and her Chinese/Thailand mother plus a younger brother. For a long time her father supported the family well. After the Vietnam war ended, jobs for her father were few and hard to get. Tammy, her father, and her younger brother moved to Hawaii where they were almost homeless. Her father was a veteran and sought help from the American Legion. They applied for food stamps, reduced lunches at school, and got housing. To make ends meet Tammy and her brother would bring food home from school. Her father wouldn't settle for a menial job. One day, in tenth grade, Tammy got frustrated. She told her father off and the next day she got a job hawking cruise flyers in Honolulu. She also sold roses to people in cars on the street. She graduated from the top of her class in Honolulu. Her family moved to Virginia to be near her father's family while she went to school in Washington, D.C. Eventually she joined the ROTC. She wanted to be a helicopter pilot. Not unusually smart, she had to work hard for her grades. While in Iraq flying Black Hawk helicopters through combat zones, her helicopter was struck by an RPG. She nearly died and became a double amputee. While recovering at Walter Reed hospital in Bethesda, Maryland, she became an advocate for other veterans. To this day she is a dedicated public servant. I enjoyed reading her story and I finished the entire book in one afternoon.

 

 

Colored Television

 I quickly read Colored Television written by Danzy Senna. Set in Los Angeles, this is a current novel about a family trying to get by. Jane is an author who had great success with her first book and little success since. She is married to Lenny who makes no money as an artist of abstract paintings. They are the parents of an 8 year old daughter and a 6 year old son who is on his way to being diagnosed as on the spectrum. Lacking money for rent, they house sit for richer couples that they know. The kids are used to moving. Jane has been working on her second novel for 10 years and getting no where. She decides television is where it's at and pitches a television series about mulattoes making life work in the city. This is a dark comedy. I enjoyed reading about this pair of inept parents.

The Winter People

 I am not sure why I read a horror/mystery book set in Vermont. Desperate for literature I guess. I didn't really enjoy The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon. She probably wrote a perfectly good horror/mystery book but this is not my genre.

Living On The Creek

 I am staying in Pennsylvania with Offspring #1 and his family. They live in a brick house bordering a creek. Every morning I look out at the creek through the kitchen window. The creek flows from left to right. Lately there have been pentagrams of ice flowing to the right. Some of the ice shapes are a yard across. Others are smaller. By noon the ice has melted. Yesterday a group of a dozen buffle head ducks were splashing and throwing up water in the back yard. As they gradually moved to the right they were followed by a crowd of thirty Canadian geese. This morning an angler was out there fishing. Sometimes the angler was in the blue boat and sometimes the angler was wearing waders next to the blue boat. All evidence points to fish being in the creek in the back yard. Sometimes the flock of geese will leave the creek and park themselves in the large sloping lawn to rest and eat grass. Living on a creek is a real treat to those who like nature.

Susquehamma Art Museum

 

Last week I visited the Susquehanna Art Museum in downtown Harrisburg. I was the only customer that morning. The museum has free parking in the back (a rarity in Harrisburg). The first floor has an admission desk, a small museum store, and a few exhibits several of which are displayed in the vault. The museum used to be a bank and they still use the vault. Upstairs was a display to textile art. Jordan Nassar is one of the exhibitors. He does textile art which looks to me like complicated tiny cross stitching. Most of the works are by him along but one giant piece is a combination of his art with textile art that he designed and commissioned from other women artists in Palestine. Beside that is a collection of quilts from the American Folk Art Museum. Some of the quilts are from Pennsylvania. Some name the artist. Some are from the early 1800's and the artist is unknown. Here is a picture of one of my favorite quilts labeled "The Rose."

Book Of The Little Axe

 Lauren Frances-Sharma is the author of Book Of The Little Axe: A Novel. I just finished reading it today. The story starts out in the late 1700's in Trinidad as the English are taking over for the Spanish in colonizing the island of Trinidad. A father of a boy and two girls is trying to make a living as a farmer and a blacksmith. He makes quality axes. He makes things for the Spanish such as handcuffs but he doesn't realize, or he doesn't want to realize, that the people wearing those handcuffs he made are from Africa. The father is from Africa too. His younger daughter, Rosa, is rebellious. She is not satisfied working in the kitchen or making healing salves. She prefers to work with the horses and run the farm. At first her father encourages her to be a rebel. Later, as it becomes unclear if black farm owners can keep their property, he changes his mind about Rosa. Later, in the 1830's, Rosa is living in the Crow Nation in Montana. Rosa is still tall, still a rebel, and still trying to survive in a changing landscape. The book was long with lots of tragic consequences. 

More Or Less Maddy

 I am a big fan of the writing of Dr. Lisa Genova. She takes case histories from her patients and crafts them into a fictional story much like Maddy in the book about bipolar disorder called More Or Less Maddy. Maddy is a college student living on her on for the first in New York City. She grew up in Connecticut with her older sister, brother, mother and step-father. She has trouble keeping up in college and goes to the student health center to get a pass for taking exams later. The physician writes her a script for an anti-depressant. Taking the medicine culminates in a period of manic behavior where she believes she will help Taylor Swift write her autobiography. Although her mother never said, her father had bi-polar disorder too and that is why her mother left him. Over the next few years Maddy struggles to accept her diagnosis. Her mother tries too hard to control the disease which only makes things worse. I enjoyed reading about Maddy. Her older sister's character feels undeveloped and  trite. I suppose a doctor would focus on the illness rather than the people without illness.

 

An Adventure

 

Last weekend I was going to go for a walk. My plan was to walk the sidewalks in this suburban neighborhood. Grandgirl #1 had a better idea. She knew a path that goes behind the town houses, along the creek, under a bridge to an ice cream store. Isn't taking grandchildren out for ice cream on my job description?  I think it is. So we took off. She wasn't entirely sure of the path and it took us 50 minutes to get to the ice cream shop. Once there she had to sample 3 flavors before making her decision. I had a child's scoop of Dutch chocolate. As we walked along the river I saw patches of water cress. I suggested we bring a rake and bucket next time and make something out of our foraged watercress. Then I looked it up on my phone. Watercress can contain liver flukes and other bugs. I am not sure how many industrial areas this creek goes through but I do know the Purina Dog Chow factory isn't too far away. We decided to leave the water cress for other people to forage. We did have a nice adventure though.

Mini-golf

 Today there was a birthday in my family so the five of us went out to lunch for sushi. After lunch we headed to Trindle Bowl in Mechanicsburg to play mini-golf. I was not expecting glow mini-golf. The course was very dark. Black light illuminated our clubs and balls. Considering how dark it was and how my cataracts need taking care of, I did okay.

Bye, Baby

 I read Carola Lovering's novel, Bye, Baby, via audio book as I traveled east from Minnesota to Pennsylvania. This is a story about the friendship between two women. Both Cassie and Billie narrate the story. They met as young teens in the summer and became friends. The story ends when they are in their mid 30's.  Billie had issues at home. Her mother was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer disease. Her mother also had a skeezy boyfriend who looked at both Billie and Cassie with lecherous eyes. Cassie had a loving mother and father and an older sister. Cassie was heavily influenced by her manipulative, rich, snobby grandmother. Billie helped Cassie and Cassie helped Billie but at the same time they were helping themselves. Billie is a serious student. Cassie is on her way to being a gold digger. Will their friendship survive? This was an interesting book. Cassie, as a gold digger and annoying influencer on Instagram, was one sided. Billie's character was better defined and more relatable. 

The Bus Driver

 Yesterday was the last day of school for the week. My grandgirls had Valentine's parties with juice and cookies and Valentine's Day cards. Both had decorated containers full of Valentine's Day cards and treats and presents. As the school bus rounded the corner near their home their bus driver asked, "Hey, is your Grandma in town? Is that her yellow car?" This is the same bus driver that toots her horn at us when we walk to school. It's nice to be known.

Three States Per Day

Saw this neon sign at a Mexican restaurant in Youngstown, Ohio.

 Yesterday I drove from Minnesota, through Wisconsin, and into the suburbs of Chicago, Illinois. Today I left Illinois, drove through Indiana, and into the suburbs of Youngstown, Ohio. I left early because Chicago was expecting a 3 inch snow storm. I didn't see any snow but for the last hour of my drive I experienced a light rain. In my hurry to get through the 460 mile trip I took the turnpike which cost me nearly thirty dollars in tolls. Tomorrow I am only going in two states and the mileage should be only 270 miles.

The Half Moon

 Mary Beth Keane is the author of The Half Moon; a contemporary novel about married life in a small town. The married couple are Malcolm and Jess. Malcolm's dream was to own a bar called The Half Moon. His dream comes true. Jess' dream is to graduate law school and become a mother. She is a successful lawyer but she and Malcolm have fertility issues. They live is a small town within driving distance of New York City. One winter weekend a snow storm shuts down the city and they are left to figure out what are the important things they want together. I enjoyed reading this story about a nice guy like Malcolm and a strong female character like Jess.

Before And Again

 Barbara Delinsky wrote the novel Before and Again. Published in 2918, this book tells the story of MacKenzie Cooper. After a tragic accident in Connecticut, MacKenzie leaves town and heads to a small Vermont town where she works as a make-up artists and makes clay kitchenware in her spare time. She changes her ;name to Maggie Reid to avoid the notoriety she thinks she has. A friend's 16 year old son gets into trouble for hacking computers. The publicity from that puts her anonymity at risk. Maggie is lacking in a lot of things but she is loyal to her friends. I enjoyed reading this large print edition (oh, the joys of getting older).

 

 

Tits, Boobies, and Loons: Are Ornithologists Okay?

I picked up this book, Tits, Boobies, and Loons: Are Ornithologists Okay? at my local library. This is more of a picture book than a book book. Each page has a drawing of a bird with it's common and scientific name and then a comment about how inappropriate the name is. This took me 5 minutes to read and I have to say it was funny. The author is Stu Royall.

The Path Between The Seas

 I finally finished the 590 page book about the Panama Canal that I borrowed from the free library on the Norwegian Joy. The Path Between the Seas by David McCullouogh is a history book about the Panama Canal that included arguments about where to place it. Some people wanted Panama. Others wanted Nicaragua. Nicaragua has a natural lake that would make construction of the canal easier in some respects. Many people (most had never visited Panama nor Nicaragua) were very influential in the decision where to place the canal. Finally, the frequency of volcanoes and earthquakes in Nicaragua was crucial to using Panama. At the time Panama was part of Colombia. The United States supported an uprising to create a new country of Panama. The book starts out with the French attempt to build the canal. When their efforts failed, reputations were tarnished including Gustav Eiffel (Eiffel tower) even though his involvement was secondary. France left their trains and digging machinery which the Americans used when they took over the effort. History books can be dry and this one is dry in spots. I found it fascinating how the Panama Canal led to medical breakthroughs in the prevention and treatment of yellow fever and malaria. I felt bad to learn of the unfair work practices for the workers of color.

 

Come And Get It

 Kiley Reid is the author of Come And Get It. This is a novel about a resident assistant living in a dormitory at the University of Arkansas. Three female students are featured in this tale about shaky boundaries between a resident assistant and her students. Through a thin wall the students and the resident assistant spy on each other by listening to each other's conversations. A visiting professor asks the resident assistant for help in interviewing students. Without the students nor the resident assistant's knowledge or consent, the professor uses the details of their lives in writing an article in a fashion journal. When all this comes out lives are ruins and reputations are shattered. I enjoyed reading about the characters in this novel.

 

The Woman In Me

 I listened to Britney Spear's autobiography called The Woman In Me. Britney herself reads the prologue but the rest is read by a very slow reading woman. The voice sounds childish and innocent. Britney, like many other people, was born into a poor, dysfunctional family. Her family had very little money until she started winning contests and appeared, with Justin Timberlake, on the Mickey Mouse Club. From then on Britney was a meal ticket for her parents and her younger sister. Britney loved to perform and she loved to please people. These two personality traits led to her being taken advantage of by her parents. They took advantage of her financially and emotionally, going so far as to lock her up in a mental institution and forcing her to go to AA when she didn't even drink. Her father was an alcoholic. He is the one who should have gone to AA. Luckily Britney got out of the situation. The credit for this success goes to her fans who started wearing shirts that read, "Free Britney." This was a very sad tale. In some ways she is still an innocent child.

Hang The Moon

 Years ago (maybe a decade?) I read The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls. I loved the book and I loved the movie too. I also liked this book called Hang The Moon. Again it is the story about a dysfunctional family with a strong female lead. Sallie Kincaid is the daughter of Duke Kincaid, the man who runs the local town. The whole area in Virginia gets by making and selling moon shine during Prohibition. When Sallie is 3 her mother is killed during a terrible argument between her mother and the Duke. Now that she is eight, her father has remarried and has a son. Sallie tried to help Eddie. Eddie is timid and smart. He is not at all like Duke and Sallie who are brave and boisterous and athletic. Sallie tried to help Eddie but this results in an accident. Eddie is barely scratched but Sallie is banished from the house until she is 16 and her step-mother dies from the flu. The story of how Sallie manages her life is interesting. The plot is very convoluted and I didn't think all those secrets were necessary to the plot. If the book is ever made into a movie I'd watch it.

Spare

I read two autobiographies lately. One was Spare by Prince Harry. Harry was born into wealth and privilege yet he complains about his lot in life. The death of his mother, Princess Diana was devastating for him. Instead of the family pulling together to support each other, his family positioned themselves for favorable outcomes in the future. Although he is called "my darling boy" by his father, his father and Camilla willingly throw him under the bus as an irresponsible and politically incorrect buffoon in order to increase their own ratings. Reading this book made me glad to be born into a non famous family. I agree with Harry about the morally corrupt Rupert Murdock and his newspaper practices that are illegal. Rupert's newspapers have talented lawyers that allow them to get away with crimes by only paying out money and never admitting to fault. Harry refers to himself as a spare as he will not be heir to the throne. Maybe he should count himself luck on that point.

 

Leave The Driving To Us

During my cruise vacation I used a variety of modes of transportation]. I got a ride to the airport in a Subaru. I took a plane, a bus, a cruise ship, a bus, another bus, a van, a glass bottomed kayak, another bus, several tourist boats with fabric covers, a ferry, a rented SUV, and more buses. When the vacation was over I was not interested in flying from Miami to Minneapolis. So I took the Greyhound back. Greyhounds are not like as depicted in old films. They do not pull up to small town diners where you can get coffee, a cheese burger and a slice of cherry pie. The Greyhound stations have vending machines that often don't work. Some won't take cash. Some won't take cards. Some won't take bills; only coins. Healthy choices are not available in vending machines. Some Greyhound stations have bathrooms. The station in Miami had an operable men's room but the women's restroom was locked most of the time. The bathrooms vary in cleanliness. Some of the buses had WiFi and electrical plug-ins and some did not. I arrived at the Miami airport Greyhound station a little after midnight. My bus left at 9 a.m. I was planning to sleep in a metal chair. At 3 a.m. it was announced the station was closing until 4 a.m. I was advised to wait in the airport rental car lobby. I tried that. Between the noise of other customers, the floor cleaning machine and the floor waxing machine (which was as loud as a Harley with loud pipes), I barely got any sleep. I went back to the Greyhound station. Nine a.m. came and went with no Greyhound. I double checked my ticket. My ticket was for the next day. I could not do this another 24 hours so I changed my ticket to this day. The Greyhound desk staff was friendly and helpful. Now my bus left at 3 p.m. I had lunch (a salad) from a food truck parked down the block. Chickens were everywhere in Key West. Chickens were also in Miami. This handsome rooster was expecting a hand out but got nothing from me. 

 My bus left at 3 p.m. We stopped at Orlando and some other towns in Florida. All was going well until midnight. We were outside Gainesville, Florida when someone in the back yelled at the driver that a man was having a seizure. The driver, unwilling to stop, asked if he had seizures before. The two women asking her for help got frustrated. One woman said, "You don't understand. This is a 911/emergency type of situation here." The driver sent her assistant back. The assistant was an older man. He returned to the front and told her, "He seems okay, I don't know." The ladies in the back protested. The driver pulled over and dialed 911. She spoke to the 911 operator.

Using her microphone she asked the sick man, "Have you ever had seizures before?" 

He said, "No."

Next the driver asked him, using the microphone, "Have you ever had a heart attack, stroke, or transischematic attack?"

In my head I am thinking this is a major HIPPA violation. The man, wisely, did not answer. The Greyhound driver announced that she was calling 911. I can see why she made that decision. We waited ten minutes. Another passenger said she had first aid experience and would check on him. She checked on him. She said he seemed okay but he was warm. Someone else in the bus said, "We are all warm. Please turn the AC back on." An ambulance arrived. Two paramedics came on board and went to the back of the bus. Two more paramedics arrived and walked to the back of the bus. A total of seven paramedics arrived and walked to the back of the bus. Five of them left. Two of them stayed. They asked reality orientation questions. He answered them. Who is the vice-president of the United States? He refused to ride in the ambulance. The paramedics left and we proceeded. This took about 45 minutes.

Twenty miles down the Florida highway we come upon flashing lights. The time is after 1 a.m. and I am still awake. We see smoke. We smell smoke. The young couple across from the aisle across from me quit making out. The young man says, "This smells like a wood fire. This does not smell like an electrical fire. This does not smell like a machinery fire. This smells like a wood fire. Someone is having a wood fire along the highway."

 I look at him and ask, "Are you a fire fighter?"

He answers, "Yes, I am a fire fighter."

 Makes sense to me. We continue our Greyhound journey.

We arrived in Atlanta at 10 a.m. My connection to Chicago left at 10 a.m. I missed my bus. I got another ticket that left at 3 p.m. Another guy on my bus named Mike also got another ticket but his wasn't until 10:30 p.m. We spoke about our troubles. Mike is thin. He smokes KOOL cigarettes. He has a smoker's cough. His hands tremble. All his luggage fits in one shopping bag. I watch his bag while he goes outside to use the internet WiFi from the Greyhound bus and smoke a cigarette. He watches my stuff while I walk around the block at the Atlanta Greyhound station. I come back. He asks, "Did any of those guys hassle you?"

I answer, "No, they left me alone but this is a sketchy area." I wish him well on his journey.

When it is time for me to go I show my ticket to the Greyhound employee. We are actually boarding a Flex bus, not a Greyhound bus. I ask the employee if my luggage should go under the bus. He indicates it can go under the bus or above the bus, it does not matter. My luggage goes under the bus. This Flex bus has no Internet. I try to conserve the battery on my phone but the link between Atlanta and Chicago is a long one. I was smart to bring my crochet hook and some yarn. We stop at a gas station for 15 minutes. I am back on time. We are all back on time except for one chubby black guy. He is hanging with the staff from another Greyhound bus. Our driver honks. Our driver starts driving away without him. Finally he quits talking and runs to the bus. Our driver scolds him saying he made us all wait. The guy says, "My apologies!"

 Later the chubby black guy orders chicken at a gas station. He is not quick enough. The driver makes him leave without his chicken dinner. The chubby black guy is not happy. Magically, at the next stop, a chicken dinner is delivered to the bus stop for him. How did he do that? I don't know.

We drive through Georgia. We pick up people in Indiana. Chicago has two Greyhound stations. I get off but it is the wrong one. I'm glad I asked. I would hate to be stranded in the south side of Chicago.Inactivity can lead to swelling of the feet and legs. My feet and legs started swelling yesterday. Now my legs are really swollen. I could not find the jeans in my suitcase so I am still wearing shorts with yoga pants underneath. My swollen legs are stretching my socks and yoga pants. My driver says, "You need more clothes. It's cold in Chicago."

 We arrive. I thank the driver for getting us here on time. My next bus is already boarding. I don't even have time to urinate much less charge my phone. My next driver is tall and handsome. He is scolding a man for not having patience. I show my ticket. He says I am in seat 8B. The people he is scolding tell me, "You have a seat! Get on the bus!" 

I say, "Okay, I will get on the bus. I am new at this so I need assistance." I find my seat. I am seated next to a man spreader. His foot is on my side. From Chicago to Saint Paul I am in contact with his foot, his thigh, and his elbows. I find him to be very irritating. Also I am grumpy so maybe it's me not him.

I ask, "Is there electricity?" The electricity is on his side. He plugs in my phone. I am so tired I try to sleep. After an hour I hear a thud and I hear the man spreader say, "Shit." That was the sound of my phone falling to the floor. I know that but I don't care. I stay semi-asleep. When I wake up my phone is missing. My white charging cord is there but no phone.

I wake him up. "Where is my phone?"

He reaches under the seat. "Here is your phone." He hands me my charging cord too. By this time the sleep and food deprivation has moved my personality to the grumpy side. I am a grump. At 7 a.m. we come to the Wisconsin Dells MacDonald's. I have been without my morning coffee for days. I am going to have a coffee. 

 Our grumpy driver says we will be here for 20 minutes. He says we should not wait 15 minutes and then try to make an order. We should make an order immediately.

I attempt the McDonald's computerized ordering system but there is no way to ask for an egg McMuffin without meat so I wait at the counter for a staff. My man spreader seat/mate says, "Miss, I don't think anyone is going to take your order. Do you want my help in ordering at this station?" He is being nice but after he's been man spreading all night I am not taking in any niceness from him.

I respond grumpily, "No I will wait here." We all wait a long time.

With great pride I pick up my order before he picks up his. I swallow my egg mcmuffin. My throat seems to have trouble coordinating a swallow. Whatever, this is a meal. Almonds and cheese sticks are not enough After living on snacks I needed a meal. I carry my coffee to the bus.

Do I need coffee? No, I can live without coffee. I don't get a caffeine withdrawal headache. Am I happier with coffee? Yes, yes I am happier with coffee. We cross the Saint Croix river into Minnesota. All the passengers are looking at their phones or sleeping. I grumpily think to myself that this is scenic. Open your eyes and look out the freaking window. This is amazing scenery. I keep those thoughts to myself and look forward to getting off of this bus.

We arrive at Union Station in Saint Paul. Offspring #2 is already here waiting for me. I find my way to the parking area. Offspring #2 has a coffee waiting for me.

I am done with Greyhound. Thank heaven!

Lessons learned 1. Greyhound is affordable transportation but maybe not the best way to travel the country south to north. A shorter route is preferred. 2. I don't need coffee but I am a happier person with some form of caffeine. 3. I need to sleep in a bed at night. Chairs don't cut the mustard.