Aches and Pains

As the years pass, I find my body is less agile and supple than it used to be. When I do injure myself, it takes longer for things to heal. Little (and not-so-little) aches and pains appear with more frequency.

Not so long ago, my knees decided they just didn't want to work very well. They stiffen up easily, and if I squat deeply, I just plain can't get up. So much for lifting and using my legs rather than my back. At one point, I was having trouble walking down stairs. I began to wonder if I needed new knees. Fortunately, my knees are feeling much better, though not as well as they did 10 years ago.

Now it's my shoulders that are making themselves known.

A few months ago, I slipped on a puddle of water on the floor and wrenched my left shoulder. I also bruised my tailbone. I went down so fast I don't even remember exactly what happened. My tailbone healed, but my shoulder still hurts when I move it in certain directions. About 20 years ago, I was diagnosed with arthritis in my right shoulder. It stiffens up quickly and I have to be careful how much stress I put on it. Because of the arthritis, I use a left-handed mouse.

Actually, there are many advantages to using a left-handed mouse. Since my dominant hand is my right hand, using my left hand helps to stimulate the right side of my brain. Everyone's brains need more stimulation. And I also find I can work faster on the keyboard: I can highlight a phrase with my left-handed mouse and delete it with my right hand. Or keep track of my statistics with the pencil in my right hand.

However, using the mouse was irritating my sore left shoulder, so I switched to a right-handed mouse. Now my right shoulder is irritated, too. I'm having trouble sleeping because I sleep on my side. Either side hurts a sore shoulder.

I'm doing two things that I think will alleviate the sore shoulder situation:
1. I've asked for a computer keyboard tray to lower my keyboard at work. I noticed that I need to hold my arms up to use the keyboard and mouse. The tray is supposed to arrive and be installed this week.
2. I've already installed the software program Stretchware. This is a program I used when I worked at CMRLS and loved. Other people do too. You can set it for every 30, 60, or 90 minutes (or anything in between) and when the bell (or harp tone or something else) sounds, a box with between 4 and 6 exercises appears. Each takes 8-15 seconds to do, a total of perhaps 2 minutes. Then you close the box and go back to work till you hear the sound again. Just that brief break, stretching my wrists or arms or shoulders makes a big difference.

If only I could get something like Stretchware for the rest of the challenges in my life.

The (In)Accurate Catalog

I've been working on the MassCat catalog for about 5 years now. First 10 hours/week, then 15, and now 18. Admittedly, I don't spend all of those hours on clean-up. I import vendor-provided records, search for and import records from OCLC, and create new records. I so very much want this catalog to correctly reflect the holdings of the MassCat libraries.

Yesterday, I had a very discouraging day. I'm still on the letter "L" in my alphabetical list of possible duplicates, specifically the word "Library". For some reason, I found record after record of the electronic version of a book and the corresponding holdings appeared to be for a print version. I know from past experience that many of these libraries do not have e-books.

Most of the time, just to be sure, I send an email to the director and explain the situation. I than ask exactly what the library owns and, if necessary (which it usually is) I find the bib record for the print book and overlay the e-book record.

Yesterday, I found over 30 e-book records that I suspected were really print books. I stopped emailing after the first 10. I figure I'll find the others again. Or maybe the books will have been weeded (dream on!) and I can just delete the record.

Nothing makes me happier than finding some skimpy or weird record with no holdings. ZAP! It's gone! Never to sully my catalog again.

Other things I encountered recently: a book by Edgar Allen Poe, now correctly by Edgar Allan Poe and another by Willliam somebody. He now has only two els in his first name.

I know I'm making progress because I keep statistics. Every month I merge hundreds of duplicate records, replace hundreds of skimpy records, and edit hundreds of other records. That third category consists of filling in pages on CIP records, correcting funky characters that should be accent marks, and correcting spellings.

If only I could get library staff to actually LOOK at the record before they import it and make sure it actually matches what they have in hand, I'd be a VERY HAPPY CATALOGER.

The one positive of this situation is that I have lots of war stories to tell when I'm teaching cataloging workshops.

Where did the Summer go?

It's happened again. Summer has sped by in a matter of what seems like minutes.There were so many things I had hoped to do. Actually, I did many of them, but not all.

During June, I took a Spanish class. It met every Tuesday and Thursday evening for 1 1/2 hours. I would have like to continue during July and August, but M. and I had plans to go away and I would have missed 2 classes (1/4 of the course) each month.

In July, we had a mini-vacation in Lenox. We stayed at the Cornell Inn. It was lovely and the service was great as well as the complimentary breakfasts. Many of the rooms are named after First Ladies and we were in Grace (as in Coolidge). We saw A Midsummer Night's Dream performed by Shakespeare & Co. outdoors at The Mount. Outdoors is an ideal setting for this play as the performers run in and out of the trees.

The next day, we toured Chesterwood, the summer home of sculptor Daniel Chester French. Then headed back to see Cymbeline, Shakespeare's (probably) last play. While the story was confusing (so much going on) it was spectacularly performed.

August meant another mini-vacation, this time in NYC. August is a great time to go to the city since so many residents go away. Hotels have special (cheaper) rates and things are not nearly as crowded as they usually are. We saw Michael Moore's Broadway show The Terms of My Surrender. It was very much like watching a Michael Moore movie, but it was only him talking and a few simple sets that slid on and off the stage as needed.

Basically, it was a series of anecdotes, things he (and a few other people) has done throughout his life that have actually made a big difference. Like when at age 17 he entered an essay contest sponsored by the Elks. He was upset that the application form said "Caucasians only". This was 1971 and the Elks did not allow Blacks to join their fraternal organization. His essay pointed out the error of that policy and ultimately the Elks were integrated. Of course, when he told the story, it was a lot funnier.

The whole point of the show was that if a schmuck like him can make a difference by getting involved, anyone can. Throughout the 2 hours he periodically encouraged people to get involved, run for office, SPEAK UP.

Tomorrow is September 1. In a couple of weeks, M. and I are heading for Chicago to Expo Chicago at the Navy Pier. This is an international show of art and design and one of M.'s galleries will have a booth with pieces of his furniture. He has to be there to install a large cabinet and then we'll have a few days of "free play" before spending time at the show. It's been many years since I've been to Chicago and that was for a conference. I didn't really get to explore on my own.

I guess I can't complain about not doing things during the summer. But I do wish it were MUCH longer.

The Continuing Education Conundrum

A few times during the year, I give continuing education workshops through the Massachusetts Library System or the Connecticut State Library. They are generally on cataloging topics such as RDA (the new cataloging standard), MARC (the encoding scheme used in libraries), the Dewey Decimal System (do I really need to explain it?), or similar topics about which practicing library staff need to know.

But I have mixed feelings about them.

The cons:
They are a lot of work. If the topic is new or has changed a lot since I last presented, it takes a lot of time and research to put together or revise a 3 hour program.

Presenting requires a lot of energy. If I'm giving 2 workshops on the same day or one that lasts all day, and especially if I have to drive any distance, I'm wiped out for the next couple of days.

The pros:
They pay well.

There is a lot of ego gratification.

During the workshop I'm energized and feel great. Adrenaline is a wonderful thing.

For the last few years, I've been thinking that this will be my last year of Continuing Education; I'll take in my shingle and spend more time relaxing (or cleaning house). And then I get a call or an email asking if I can give a workshop on Copy Cataloging or another topic.

But something has changed.

Next week I'm scheduled to present a program on Public Speaking for Librarians and I'm REALLY PSYCHED! I'm actually enjoying reading (or re-reading) books on public speaking. And watching TED talks. And reviewing my notes. And making revisions. And thinking about examples. Maybe it's the topic.

All I know is that I'm really happy to be doing this. No mixed feelings whatsoever. And the euphoria is spilling into other aspects of my life. While I always like leading the senior exercise class, this morning I could hardly wait to get to the Town Hall and begin. I felt great! I'm still feeling great.

Watch out world. HERE I COME!

Serious Reading

In a few weeks I'll be giving a workshop at the Connecticut State Library (Middletown Service Center) on Public Speaking for Librarians.

One may think that Catalogers (who famously sit in a back room and do not interact with The Public) don't need to spend time developing such a skill. In my opinion, ALL librarians - in fact, ALL people - need good public speaking skills. It's a requirement for a professional image and librarians always need a boost in that area.

Public Speaking has been a vital part of my career and I want to encourage any librarian (or anyone else) to become more comfortable giving presentations to groups of people.

Here's what good Public Speaking skills can do for you:
1. Develop self-confidence
2. Project a professional image
3. Help communicate more clearly
4. Build a reputation
5. Show you care about an issue

The books I've been reading (and re-reading) in preparation are

Public Speaking for Success by Dale Carnegie. This is a classic and one I always recommend. Fortunately it's been revised (the previous title was Public Speaking: a Practical Course for Business Men).

The Elements of Speechwriting and Public Speaking by Jeff Scott Cook. I really like the way this book is structured. It spends a lot of time talking about preparation before moving on to presentation and I've structured my workshop similarly.

TED Talks: the Official TED Guide to Public Speaking by Chris Anderson. This is a new book for me and I have mixed feelings about it. It began rather slowly and I considered not continuing with it. Nevertheless, I persisted and it did get better, more interesting and I found some useful information that was not included in the other books. Then, it began to bog down; I thought there were too many examples and not much difference among them. Again, I considered not continuing with it. But the last couple of chapters were the best and were really worth reading.

Recommended in the book is a talk by Julian Treasure called "How to Speak so That People Want to Listen". It is really worth viewing and I'm considering showing it to the workshop participants.

While the average librarian my not ever make it to a TED conference, anyone can attend a Toastmasters meeting. I was a member for several years and Toastmasters definitely helped me improve my Public Speaking skills even though I was pretty well experienced by then. I think the best thing about Toastmasters (like TED) is that there are people with lots of different backgrounds, not just librarians.

The "Public Speaking" I usually do involves presentations of technical information to catalogers. Toastmasters provided me with an opportunity to broaden my skills by giving speeches on a variety of topics and in a variety of styles.

I began attending meetings when I was "between jobs" hoping to make contacts and perhaps launch a somewhat different career. That didn't quite happen, but it did give me another workshop to add to my repertoire.

July 1 and the word is SMOOTH

It feels (as it does every year) that summer is whizzing by. There are so many things M. and I want to do while the weather is warm; and there are other things I want to do while the weather is warm.

There is great theater around here during the summer. We're planning to see The Foreigner at New Century Theater; Hamlet and then Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead at Hampshire Shakespeare Company; and Midsummer Night's Dream and Cymbeline at Shakespeare and Company in Lenox.

We want to invite some friends for dinner and also to have a big party, or maybe two. We have a beautiful yard with a pond and patios and decks that we love to share. It's a great place to mingle or just sit peacefully. The pond has about 19 fish (it's hard to count them, they don't stay still for long) and I saw a turtle a couple of days ago. There are lots of frogs, too.

I want to take a trip to the Berkshires (in addition to Lenox) to the Clark Art Institute and MassMoCA. I have a gift certificate to the latter.

During June, I took a Spanish class at the International Language Institute. Even though I've taken Spanish before, I signed up for the beginner's class. My Spanish is very rusty and I didn't want to feel overwhelmed in a more advanced class. The other people in my class (there were 4 others) also had some Spanish, so we were pretty much even. The teacher was great. She may be one of the best teachers I have ever had EVER. She was very young, but experienced and, obviously, very talented.

As someone who has taught a variety of subjects (including cataloging and exercise), I know that the first few times can be rough, no matter how well you are prepared. Smooth is the best way to describe her. She transitioned smoothly from one topic to another. She introduced new topics smoothly. On the rare occasion she did not know a word, she smoothly looked it up on her laptop. She was fun and friendly and the class was fun and friendly. We talked a lot (the whole point of learning a new language) and she was very fun and friendly  - and yes smooth - as she corrected our pronunciation or verb endings.

Because of so many other things going on during July and August, I am not going to register for Spanish, but I am looking forward to another class in the fall. While I'm looking forward to taking Spanish again, I hope fall does not come soon.

It's June again!

Finally! Until last week, the weather was mostly cold and rainy, but then there was the heat wave and the last couple of days have been clear, dry, and refreshing.

Well, this is New England - noted for its variety of weather. Isn't that why we live here? So we won't be bored with beautiful sunny weather day after day?

June is the month of anniversaries: M and I were married 6 years ago, began living together 26 years ago, had our first date 28 years ago. It's been an adventure living with M. and sometimes I wonder how I got myself into this situation. But then I remember it's because I wanted some variety in my life and I need help with that. If it were up to me, I'd have nothing but smooth routines - a little like that perpetually sunny weather described above.

June is the month of my birthday. This is a big one - another decade. Fortunately, I'm not nearly as upset about turning 70 as I was when I turned 60. I have lots of positive role models much older than I: most of the people in my exercise class and also M. I think he keeps me young.

And June is when I was laid off from my job in 2010. Shortly after that, I began this blog as I was looking for another job and, as it says in the tag line, maybe another career. I've found both.

Fortunately (wow, that's the second time I've used that word in this post), I'm old enough to collect Social Security and can afford to work only part-time. After many, many different part-time jobs during these 7 years, I've settled into being the MassCat Cataloger - probably the most perfect job for me I could imagine. The work can be tedious, but it's only part-time. I might go crazy if I had to do it 40 hours each week; I can manage 18 hours.

And then there's my exercise class. True, I don't get paid to lead it, but if I were the entrepreneurial type (which I'm not), I could develop those skills into something to produce income. I do get several free meals each year from the appreciative organizations for whom I volunteer.

Sounds as if things are pretty sunny after all.

I'm Really Beginning to Dislike Laura Ingalls Wilder

It's not really her fault. Nor is it the fault of Mark Twain, Charles Dickens, or William Shakespeare.

They all wrote LOTS of books and LOTS of companies published those books, often LOTS of times (revised edition, updated edition, abridged edition, illustrated edition, etc.) That makes sorting out the duplicates from the different editions rather difficult. Where's FRBR when you need it?

I'm still at the beginning of the letter L in my alphabetical list of possible duplicates - that's the beginning as in books starting with the word Laura. I'm hoping when I get further along, and get to books starting with the word Little, many of the duplicates of Little House on the Prairie will already be cleaned up.

Trying to come at these from a variety of different direction - and finding different things along the way - I did a search on the one word Laura, then Ingalls, then Wilder.

Since Gene Wilder only died last year, most of his death dates were not filled in. I did learn that at one point, it was thought he was born in 1935, but he was born in 1933. And his birth name was Jerome Silberman. That all came from the Library of Congress Authorities. The Authority Files have so much more information in them now.

And I found a book of poems by Melville Cane called Wider Arc which had the incorrect title Wilder Arc. That has been corrected.

Every time I merge records, upgrade a record, correct a record, I get a real feeling of satisfaction and think of people using MY online catalog and finding what they need.

It's time for my annual review. Instead of listing what I've accomplished during the last year and what I hope to accomplish during the next, I'll just hand my supervisor this blog! :-)

Ugh! Computer problems

Without going into details, we had some major computer issues that resulted in a complete wipe-out and restore. I've been depending on my computer at work to do some basic things like e-mail and renewing my library books.

However, the evil machine is now up and running. Perhaps I should be careful about using abusive language with it. I don't want to jinx anything.

On a more positive note, M. and I just returned from a 2 week vacation in Spain and Portugal. Traveling with M. is not easy. He refuses to be part of any tour, go anywhere anyone else wants him to go, or do anything anyone else wants him to do. He's very independent.

As a result, we spent 1-3 days each in several different towns or cities: Ubrique, Spain (where we visited friends), Ronda, Spain (where we spent an afternoon at an archaeological dig, Malaga, Spain (where we visited a sculptor M. had met via the Internet and we also saw some major Semana Santa processions), Huelva, Spain (which was a mid-point between Malaga and Lisbon; we were driving), Lisbon, Portugal (where we boarded a plane to the island Madeira), Madeira, Portugal (where we visited friends who used to live in Hatfield), back to the Lisbon (where we had to stay overnight because of the flight schedules), and then to Boston. From there we took a Logan Express bus to Framingham and then drove home. Whew!

We don't travel a lot, so this whole "living out of a suitcase" thing is awkward. I'm someone who likes security and routine. For 2 weeks I did not have either.

The weather in Spain and Portugal was warm and sunny. We arrived to chilly drizzle. The last two days were more like our vacation, but today is rainy and the same is predicted for tomorrow.

Well, this is April (as in showers).

I'm so looking forward to those May flowers.

I always feed sophisticated ...

... while reading a book by Donna Leon.

Commisario Guido Brunetti and his wife Paola are elegant. Their family sits down to lunch every day. They even have wine at lunch

Donna Leon's prose is elegant. Her detailed description of Venice, Italy; traveling along the canals; looking at the architecture are all elegant.

While I read the books (the one I just finished is Quietly in their sleep), the ambiance begins to permeate my body and I feel elegant, too. I want to sit at a cafe and sip wine; I want to cook and serve elegant meals; I want to have stimulating intellectual conversations; I relish life.

Despite the fact that there are crimes being committee - usually murder, but lots of other things, too - this series is just plain elegant.

Leon's  descriptions of Venice are so thorough that, before visiting the city, friends of mine read several of her books and took copious notes. They felt they could actually find their way around by following in Guido Brunetti's footsteps.

Italy is a country about which I've heard many good things. Everyone I know who has been there loved it. Perhaps one day I'll have the chance to visit Italy and, specifically, Venice. I'll be sure to read (or maybe re-read) Donna Leon's books so that I know the best places to sit and sip wine and be elegant.

Book: Bland Ambition

If you think that the happenings in Washington D.C. today are anything new and different, reading Bland Ambition by Steve Tally will likely change your mind. It seems that not much has changed in our nation's Capitol since 1789.

This political satire includes brief biographies of the men who held the position of Vice President of the United States of America. The subtitle reads: From Adams to Quayle - the cranks, criminals, tax cheats, and golfers who made it to Vice President.

Dan Quayle (remember him? He's the one who said he wished he had taken Latin in school so that he could communicate better with the people in Latin America.) is the person who inspired this book. Unfortunately, it was written during the Bush/Quayle administration, so that we don't know Tally's opinion of Al Gore, Dick Cheney, or Joe Biden.

Tally sometimes sacrifices clarity for humor (I wasn't always sure, without doing further research, exactly when an event occurred), but the facts themselves are all accurate. I've read lots of political biographies and Tally's descriptions square with what I know - even if his interpretation is somewhat unique.

I found this book most useful in gaining perspective on Washington politics today. I sometimes worry about our country and it's current atmosphere of anger and vindictiveness. I keep reminding myself and other that we survived the administration of Richard Nixon. It's a relief to know we've survived a whole lot more, too.

Swordfish Plaki

Being a pescatarian (that's a vegetarian who also eats fish - though I do admit to sometimes eating chicken), I'm always on the lookout for fish recipes. I especially look for recipes that are fast and simple so that I can make them after work and still eat at a reasonable hour. I hope they will also be delicious, not only for M and me, but in case we have company for dinner. Many of my friends are really good cooks and I don't want to embarrass myself by serving a blah meal.

This is a recipe I found in the local newspaper. It met the criteria for fast and easy and turned out to be quite tasty. I served it with roasted potatoes.

Swordfish Plaki
2 8-ounce pieces of swordfish
lemon juice
salt & pepper
1 large onion, sliced
2-3 large tomatoes
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup chopped parsley
1 small cinnamon stick
2 Tablespoons fresh dill
1 teaspoon honey or sugar

Wash fish and sprinkle with lemon juice, season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a pan (large enough to hold the fish in one layer) and cook the onion slices for 5-6 minutes. Add tomatoes, parsley, dill and cinnamon stick. Season lightly with salt. Cook gently for 10-15 minutes. Taste and add honey or sugar if it is too tart. Add fish pieces and spoon the sauce over them. Cover and cook gently for 10-15 minutes or until fish is opaque. Serve hot with parsley or dill to garnish.

Bon appétit!

Two Women in New York City

Molly Murphy emigrated from Ireland in the late 1800s under awkward circumstances; she was running away from a possible criminal charge. The landowner's son had tried to take advantage of her and she fought back. Fearing for her freedom and maybe her life, she left.

Now it's the early 1900s and in this seventh novel of author Rhys Bowen's mystery series, Molly (who started a detective agency early on) is very busy going undercover as a street urchin, an extra in a Broadway play, and a mental patient. She has fun and quirky friends that help her get into (and, fortunately, out of) difficult situations.

Reading about Molly and the early days of the city is fun and interesting. The historical details seem accurate. This particular story took place in winter and now I'm looking forward to one that happens in warmer weather.

Just a few year later, in the 1920s, Lillian Boxfish arrived in the Big Apple. Of course, it wasn't called that at the time.This is a title that was listed in Wowbrary - a service to which the my local Public Library subscribes. Every Wednesday morning I receive an email that lists the new books, DVDs, etc. that have arrived at the library and I can reserve whichever one(s) interests me. This one did.

The story takes place on New Year's Eve (winter again) 1984 and 85-year-old Lillian has a dinner reservation at her favorite neighborhood restaurant. Lillian loves to walk around New York, even at night, even when it's cold, and she ends up taking a long stroll from the Murray Hill area where she lives to Wall Street, to Penn Station and ultimately back home. Throughout the evening, she remembers different roles of her life (career woman, friend, wife, mother, ex-wife, mental patient, and many others) and has some unusual adventures along the way. This book is a delight to read.

Take a walk with Lillian sometime soon. You won't regret it.

The Letter L

As I continue on my journey through the alphabet in search of duplicates in the MassCat catalog, I recently reached the letter L.

The duplicate report sorts oddly, however; it ignores initial articles regardless of language. Therefore, the first several titles began with L' or La. I've come to understand the sorting idiosyncrasies of the Koha system and I just proceed as usual: I enter a distinctive word in a keyword search, sort by title A-Z, and look for things that need fixing.

The Koha system in general and the MassCat system in particular were upgraded a few weeks ago. Besides a slightly different display, which I like, there is a major difference that makes my job easier.

When merging duplicates, the procedure is to highlight all possibilities and put them into a separate file, a list called RecordsToMerge. They are still available to view in the main catalog, but in this other file I can view them side by side. Then I go into that list, choose the two I want to look at, check carefully to make sure they are, in fact, exact duplicates, and merge them. The operative word in the previous sentence is "two"; I can only look at two records at a time. Usually that is not a problem, but sometimes there are three, four, or even more possible duplicates. In those cases, I choose two, view them, merge; choose two more, view them, merge, etc.

With the new upgrade, I can now choose ALL of the records at the same time. I can only see two at a time side-by-side, but it's easy enough to select which one I think is the best (because the new display gives me more information), and then compare that record with the next, and the next, and the next, by clicking on the different tabs. When I'm sure they are all exactly the same, I click on the "merge" button and - poof! - they are now one.

This feature is especially helpful with the collection of a member library that previously used a very simple online catalog. These simple catalogs required each item have its own bib record even if it was a 20 volume set of an encyclopedia. The records read "Blah, blah encyclopedia, vol.1", "Blah, blah encyclopedia, vol.2", "Blah, blah encyclopedia, vol.3",etc.

What I can do now is find a good record for the 20 volume set, overlay the record for volume 1, put all 20 records into the RecordsToMerge list, and merge them into one record with the click of the mouse. Then I get to record 19 merges on my statistics sheet. That's the best part!

My Beatnik Phase

My first introduction to Beatniks was the character Maynard G. Krebs from the television show The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis. He was funny, had a goatee, spoke using the Beat vocabulary, played the bongos - in short, did the things Beatniks were supposed to do.



I was a little young to be a Beatnik myself. I was only 9 when Allen Ginsberg's poem Howl was published. I was sort of a Hippie and I've always had a curiosity about Beatniks. While perusing the MassCat catalog looking for things to fix, I noticed the book Women of the Beat Generation and promptly requested it. It contains 40 short biographies of women who wrote during the 50s and early 60s and excerpts of their poetry and prose. Some of the women were wives (e.g. Carolyn Cassady) or daughters (Jan Kerouac) of notorious Beatniks. One was Diane di Prima. I liked her writing style and was curious to learn more about her. I then requested Memoirs of a Beatnik. The book is fiction, though based on her life. It is also pornographic. I would not classify it as erotica as it's too blatant, but it is well written.

The main character, who has the same name as the author, dropped out of college at 18 and moved to Manhattan where she had a lot of sex, smoked a lot of marijuana, spoke using the Beat vocabulary, lived communally, had a lot of sex, sometimes lived on the streets, wrote poetry, and had a lot of sex. While the stereotype of the Beatnik is dressed in black, Diane usually word blue jeans.

As I was reading her book, I kept wondering about the difference between Beatniks and Hippies.They appear to have a lot in common. Both were anti-establishment, supported free speech and free love, listened to music and used a lot of drugs.

The differences, I think, are mainly in style. Color was important to Hippies, the more the better. And bell-bottomed pants, the wider the better. Music was important to both. Beatniks preferred jazz while Hippies liked rock. The instrument of choice was also different. Beats banged on bongo drums while Hippies played the guitar. The Beat movement was based around literature, both poetry and prose. Hippies  sometimes read the psychedelic literature of Carlos Castaneda, but writing didn't have the same importance.

To round out my recent Beatnik experience, I borrowed the DVD Howl. This docu-drama is about Ginsberg's poem, the obscenity trial that followed, and interviews with Ginsberg (played by James Franco). The scenes flip back and forth from one to the other.

I have never read On the Road by Jack Kerouac, but that's on my list. How can I consider my Beatnik phase complete without reading that Beat classic?

As I said earlier, I was sort of a Hippie. I wore the clothes and the long, straight hair, smoked my share of marijuana and participated in other Hippie doings. Sometimes I think "Those were amazing and exciting adventures" and other times I think "How could I have done that?" Overall, financial security and basic comfort was important to me; I always had a job and an apartment.

I remember in the early to mid 1970s going to see the musical Hair which was playing at UMass. The music was great as were the costumes. And the cast "dropped trou" at the end. I also remember afterward thinking the play felt very dated. The Hippie years were over.

Self-Help Books

It was the tagline "Letting go of bad habits, guilt, and anxiety around food" that led me to request the book Food Freedom Forever by Melissa Hartwig.

Like many people, I respond to life's stresses by eating. When I'm happy, I want to celebrate with a hot fudge sundae; when I'm upset, I want to console myself with a box of chocolates. And when I'm eating something that tastes good, I don't want to stop, even when I'm no longer hungry. Though I've been better in recent years, food cravings can be an issue for me.

I'm not sure I'm ready to undertake the Whole30 eating plan, but reading this book gave me a lot of insight and many ideas about approaching eating. On the Whole30 program, for 30 days you "reset" your metabolism by totally eliminating grains, legumes, soy, alcohol, dairy and added sugar. "Added sugar" includes honey, maple syrup, steevia, etc. but the sugar that is naturally included in fruit is okay. After 30 days (there is some flexibility in this plan; if you feel like you need 35 or 40 days, do it), you re-introduce one of the food groups (e.g. non-gluten grains) for a few days and observe how you feel. Did your skin break out? Do you have gas? A headache? More energy? If so, your body is reacting to this food. Take notes. Stop that food and re-introduce another, perhaps dairy, and observe your body and mood again. Keep doing this with all of the individual food groups - which will take another 30 days or so. Now you have a good idea of how your body reacts to different foods and to different amounts of a food. The author has a gluten sensitivity, but has found she can eat ONE cupcake. More than one does terrible things to her gut. Other foods may have no effect one way or another.

Once you know the effect different foods have on your body and mood, you can make wise decisions on what to eat and how much to eat because you know what will happen. And because you're eating mostly natural foods with no additives, food tastes different, tends to be more satisfying and there are fewer cravings for sugar. Sounds good, but does require at least a two month commitment.

As I said in the beginning of this post, I'm not ready for this program yet, but the book itself has a lot of good information and is actually fun to read!

I don't usually read two self-improvement books in a row, but I was caught off guard and the only other book in my "to read" pile was Spark Joy by Marie Kondo. There are several books at the library waiting for me, but given the limited library hours during the holidays, I haven't had a chance to pick them up.

I'm a pretty neat person and don't have a lot of clutter, but I'm always interested in other ideas to keep order in my life. Like Whole30, the KonMari method uses a specific approach. Most people start de-cluttering one room at a time. KonMari says to de-clutter by type of item and begin with clothes.

Bring all of your clothes into one place; then you can see exactly what you have. That makes sense. Most of my clothes are in the closet next to my bedroom, but I have off-season clothes in the closet in the spare bedroom and outer wear in the closet near the front door. Instead of looking for things to eliminate, focus on what you want to keep - which is anything that "brings joy". Take each piece of clothing (she recommends starting with tops), hold it, hug it if necessary, and feel if it brings you joy. If so, keep it. Maybe the article of clothing is worn, it brought you joy once but no longer. In that case, thank it for it's excellent service and let it go. I can truly say that most of my clothes bring me joy.

Like Whole30, there is flexibility in KonMari's program. She recommends hanging clothes in your closet going up from left to right (long stuff on the left, shorter stuff towards the right). I have found a way of hanging my clothes that works well for me. Certain types of clothes are hung together (e.g. long sleeved blouses, short sleeved blouses). When I wear an item and rehang it, or wash an item and rehang it, I put it on the left. That way I know I wore that item most recently. The next time I go to choose a short sleeve blouse, I first go to the right-hand side as that is the item that has been hanging there the longest. If I don't want to wear it, I work my my leftwards. The result is that if something stays on the right hand side and I keep passing it by, it no longer "brings joy" and I seriously consider finding a new home for it.

While Spark Joy was not quite as much fun to read as Food Freedom Forever, I found lots in both books to incorporate into my life. And I actually found the motivation to do a few things I've been putting off.

I think what I like best about both of these books is that 2 young women have found success doing something they like. Both are consultants or coaches of the methods they've developed and both have now written more than one book. I am not an entrepreneur, but I'm so happy when I learn what others have been able to accomplish.