The stuff of my thoughts

So clearly I've been neglecting this blog (among other things, 
admittedly). I have been reading, but I feel the old habits creeping back....I'm a little all over the place with my choice of books. I picked up The Stuff of Thought by Steven Pinker and began where I'd left off. The idea of this book is really interesting to me: Pinker discusses how we think by examining the way language affects our thoughts and vice versa. I had seen this one in the bookstore a long while back. Luckily, my fellow book-loving friend, Kim, gave it to me for my birthday a few years ago* (see footnote). I dove right in, but inevitably, got distracted by something flashier (an Antarctic tale, no doubt). But the time had come to return to Mr. Pinker and so I did. For about two chapters. :-S There are few people out there who would find this book appealing, and I would most definitely (and willingly and gladly) consider myself to be one of the them. But, and this is a big but, I had some serious issues making it through Chapter 3. Pinker, in order to contextualize and explain the theory of conceptual semantics, compares and contrasts it to three other theories related to how we store language in our minds, namely Extreme Nativism, Radical Pragmatics, and Linguistic Determinism. *snore* Now, I'm all for some hot and heavy discussions about how language is learned, used, stored in the mind, etc., but this was a bit much even for me. I powered through the chapter, thinking that he was setting the stage for the more interesting discussions, those referred to on the book jacket as "curious, inventive, fearless, naughty" (New York Times Book Review) and "engaging and provocative" (Los Angeles Times).....but fifty pages later I was still stuck in the Humes and Kants and Chomskys and .... this was when *I* started snoring. He'll get there and I'll love it - it'll be a total nerd-fest for a language-geek like me. However, for now, The Stuff of Thought has been pushed from my thoughts and stuffed back in its place on the shelf of Cheryl (with the rest of Team Language, of course). 


*Thought a "foot"note was appropriate because I clearly put my foot in my mouth on this one. Kim asked not too long ago what I was reading. I started on a oh-my-goodness-this-horribly-boring-and-dry-book-about-language-by-that-guy-Pinker-I-like rant....only to pause and realize that she had, in fact, given me this book. Hopefully my sheepish look and apology undid the damage. I will add that she quickly reminded me I wanted this book and had been lusting after it for months (while awaiting the paperback copy). True, true! I did want it, I do want it, I will read it, and goshdarnit, I will enjoy it! Thanks again, Kim! =D


And now, having been re-inspired by Trish and her captivating and very entertaining blog, hot chocolate, hot date, I can focus on boring you regularly with my (unusually) interesting reads. [Notice how my modifier is *not* dangling, thank you very much!]


Up next, something quite......POLAR, of course! :-)


TTFN


PS: I'm asking myself over and over why I didn't buy the *entire* exploration/polar section at the bookstore before beginning this quest. I'll have to ration these delicious delights as I only have a few. I really need to learn how to think ahead...argh. 

What do anarchy, cross-Canada hikes and Mars have in common?

Nothing. Except that's what I've been reading about. :-) I guess I'm way overdue here. Just because I haven't been blogging doesn't mean I haven't been reading. In fact, I've been so enthusiastic about reading lately that I'm doing the "try-to-keep-my-eyes-open-for-just-one-more-page" thing every night (but really only managing to stay up until 9:30).

Back to Ham on Rye. If you like reading about looking up girls' skirts, fighting on the school yard, and dealing with severe cases of acne, well I have the book for you! Not much in this one that I could relate to, especially considering I've never been an adolescent boy. Nonetheless, it forced me to give a thought or two to the concept of anarchy. I've always understood the political meaning of anarchy, but I'm now starting to see anarchy everywhere. The two books by Bukowski that I've read are prime examples. The main character, Henry Chinaski, just doesn't care about anyone or anything. He's entirely disjointed from any community or group in society; he refuses to live by rules, his or otherwise. And I can't relate to that. It does nothing for me. So, I'll cross this one off my list and retire it to the shelf to collect dust.
(Confession: I still have *no* idea what the title means.)





After Ham on Rye I needed something totally different. I reached for a Pierre Berton I bought not too long ago, My Country. It's a collection of interesting stories from Canada's history. I decided to read one in between each book. The first one was about a race (on foot) across the country back in 1921. "Four men and one woman walked a distance of 3,650 miles from the Atlantic to the Pacific in a race that has never been copied or equalled." Did you know about this?? I sure didn't. And to think I used to call Canadian history boring - I take it back! It took them about 135ish days. Pretty remarkable. It was quite refreshing after struggling through pages and pages about acne treatments during the 1930s in my previous read. I'm especially looking forward to Chapter 9: The Franklin Mystery! (I can see you rolling your eyes at my inexplicable polar obsession...)

And so, after tackling something new, I decided to go back and rescue one of those poor books that only got half-read.....my first choice was easy - Packing for Mars by Mary Roach. (For those of you who have heard my gross rants about cadavers, this is the same *hilarious* author.) This time she's looking at space and space travel. I remember giving up on this one when I got to the chapter about sending dogs into space - a not-for-Cheryl (NFC) topic. In the (what I've now discovered to be) typical Mary Roach style, there's a chapter on going the bathroom and one on sex. My brain is filled with interesting space facts and other random tidbits thanks to her tangential footnotes. For example, because there really isn't any 'gravity' under water, dolphins usually need a third participant to, let's say, direct traffic and help the other two get the "job" done, if you know what I mean! Kinky.

Look forward to some of the best space facts in the next instalment. TTFN

Book the 1st...

Ham on Rye by Charles Bukowski
Fiction
Book #1
Estimated reading time: 2 weeks
Estimated time spent on shelf: about 3 weeks (it's a new one, not much dust yet!)

So I'm sitting here listening to some classic rock and drinking a glass of wine....and thinking it's about time I got going on my blog! I was busy this past week trying to book the flights for (what I've now just dubbed) European Trifecta 2012 and dealing with the fancy new online component of my class. (Notice there's no mention of the thesis...ack!) But now it's back to the important stuff...

I officially started my quest last week after my first post. I did spend some time perusing the shelves, wondering where to begin. After a suggestion from a friend, I decided to go with Ham on Rye. I had never heard about this book, or Charles Bukowski for that matter, until recently. Apparently Bukowski is one of the big writers of the 20th century [source needed - ha!], a fact which sure made me feel dumb for not having heard of him. Anyway, I picked up two of his books a while back: Ham on Rye and Post Office. I tied into Post Office right away. It was a quick read and actually pretty funny. It's a random story all about some dude and his life as a post office employee (and the stupid stunts he pulls). Considering my previous Bukowski experience went well, I thought Ham on Rye would be a good place to start (I'll leave the phonebook-sized Russian history saga for next month). And I must admit that once I found out my boy James Franco is writing a screenplay of it, I had to check it out.

As I was browsing the shelves last week I came across a little gem I was given. It's a lovely bookmark with a picture of two horses rubbing noses *puke*. The caption reads: "Love knows no bounds." Further examination of said bookmark revealed additional laughable treats, such as the tiny metal horseshoe attached to the fancy black tassel, the choking hazard warning, and the price tag. Seems as though my dear friend paid a whopping $3.49 for this inspirational treasure. I've just decided that Chief and Shua (the names of the two horses, according to the back of the bookmark) of the historical herd Sulphur Springs shall keep my company on my journey.

Now I'm off to contemplate whether my skimming of Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad counts as "reading", or if I have to force myself through that beaut again. TTFN

The Shelf of Cheryl begins...

One of my favourite moments has to be when I get to pick which book to read next. Usually for me this process starts even before I finish my current book. I often find myself craving something quite different than what I've just read, usually alternating between fiction and non-fiction, historic settings and utopian societies, the completely f-ed-up and the depressingly uplifting. I like to have a good stash of books on hand, ready to go, just waiting to be read. They sit on my shelves, looking pretty, hoping to be picked next. When it's time to dive into something new, I plunk myself down in front of my bookshelf (or book stacks as is the case these days), scan through the titles and wait for one to pop out at me. Lately, however, the books seem to be much more appealing in the store than in the wee confines of my apartment. This is causing quite the problem! My usual pool of unread novels, biographies and potentially dry history books is growing, the book budget's been blown, and there is no end in sight.

While the stores are growing, my previous reading stamina (i.e. my determination to finish a book NO_MATTER_WHAT) seems have disappeared. It all started the summer of 2009. A friend and I decided to join a book club, a sensible choice as we both love reading and discussing what we read, in order to expand our horizons (and maybe to meet some interesting men - ha!). This meant I needed to abandon the book I was reading at the time, Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi. I was about two-thirds done and just *just* starting to enjoy this book...but, it was cast aside to make way for The Jade Peony by Wayson Choy (an "award-winning best seller"). My book club adventure had begun! Little did I know that I would *not* like this book, nor would my book-club-partner-in-crime (in fact I don't even think she finished). Out the window with the book club - and with my book-finishing determination. It's been a never-ending battle since. I read 15 pages of this and 60 pages of that. I start off with enthusiasm and gusto....and it fades as soon as something flashy catches my eye at the book store.

My solution: a vow to read each and every unread book that collects dust on my shelf. 

To no longer ignore the neglected, to pursue the abandoned, to rescue the cast-aways and to boldly go where I have never gone before. How many are there? I'm too tired to count now and entirely too excited to get going to tackle that tonight (stay tuned!). Surely there are enough to sufficiently distract me from a certain doctoral dissertation that *isn't* writing itself. Once my mission has been completed, I will allow myself to return to the sacred sellers of books and start over. So book-buying-friends beware, for from now on, Cheryl will look but she won't buy!

And now here I sit, gazing at The Shelf of Cheryl, wondering what I should pick up next. Nothing is overly appealing, despite two or three hefty purchases this month. An upcoming trip to Russia has me feeling somewhat obligated to explore the "Russian" section, but my eyes are wandering away from the revolutionary and communist tomes....to the tales of polar exploration....to the discussions of language and the brain....to the classic novels I never read in high school....to the never-heard-of-before impulse buys. Where will I begin?