I just finished reading my first book by J.D. Robb - Brotherhood in Death. I think it will be my last. I didn't like it for a variety of reasons. However, being an OCD-ish type person, I did read the entire book.
The first thing I didn't like is that it's set in 2060 and for whatever reason, I'm just not that interested in futuristic literature. The second thing is that I couldn't see the purpose for setting the story in the future. It didn't add to the plot except that the detective could use a voice command to ask her computer to perform a search on a given set of criteria. She could also use a voice command to turn on the lights 10% or 25% or however bright she wanted them.
I also didn't like the writing style of the dialog. It seemed a little forced, as if it had to be different because this all takes place 44 years from now. For example, a computer is always referred to as "comp", a witness is a "wit". All of the characters talk on what I can only assume is a cell phone with video (or "vid") capabilities called a 'link. The specifics of the 'link (or what it is an abbreviation for) are left to the imagination of the reader. When Lieutenant Eve Dallas of the NYPSD (the S is never defined, but according to Wikipedia is Security) gets caught in traffic, she goes "vertical" - but again, no details.
The story takes place in New York City sometime after the Urbans. The Urbans are never explained and even Wikipedia did not have any information about it or them. Admittedly, I only did a very quick search. Still I shouldn't have to hunt down details like that.
Eve is foul-mouthed. I regularly use expletives, but Eve goes way beyond my comfort zone. She's just not a person with whom I can identify, and I think that is something I look for in pleasure reading. I much prefer Kinsey Millhone, V.I. Warshawski, and the lawyers at Rosato and Associates. I live vicariously through them.
I've just begun a thriller: Find Her by Lisa Gardner. While pretty brutal (Brotherhood in Death was also pretty brutal), I'm already finding this book much more to my taste.
Sunday, March 13, 2016
Tuesday, March 8, 2016
Funky letters
The English language doesn't have any accent marks except on the words that have been borrowed (or should that be usurped since I don't think we're going to return them) like facade (which should have a cedilla since it is French) or Noel (which should have an umlaut, but you rarely see it with one). In the library world, accent marks are called diacritics.
Now that we have word processing programs, those diacritics are often automatically added by the computer software (but not in Blogger, I guess, since they did not pop in).
Since libraries often have books (and other materials, of course) in languages other than English, and usually have books (and other materials) written by or acted by people with names that require diacritics, you'll see many cedillas and umlauts as well as acute or grave accents, and rings (which I thought was called an angstrom but, according to Wikipedia, that is a unit of measure). Depending on the software a particular library uses for its catalog, these accent marks may or may not display correctly.
When bib records are transferred from one program to another (such as Koha, which is used by MassCat), the correct coding for those accent marks may or may not be transferred correctly.
One of the things I do at work is to look for funky characters (that's letters, not people). As I scan the list of brief records looking for duplicates and misspellings (remember the Portuguese Picket Dictionary?) I look for misplaced symbols like ? or @ in the middle of words. That usually signals there should be some sort of accent mark over or under or through a letter. Often I can tell what it should be, but since all of these programs translate the codes differently, I'm not always sure.
Fortunately, it's easy for me to correct these - what should I call them? - mis-translations when I find them. I actually have a word document with all of the different possibilities of letters with accent marks. I simply copy and paste over the offending symbol. Or if it's someone's name and I'm not certain what it should be, I go to WorldCat.org, search the part I do know, and copy and paste the correction.
If only all of life's problems could be solved so easily.
Now that we have word processing programs, those diacritics are often automatically added by the computer software (but not in Blogger, I guess, since they did not pop in).
Since libraries often have books (and other materials, of course) in languages other than English, and usually have books (and other materials) written by or acted by people with names that require diacritics, you'll see many cedillas and umlauts as well as acute or grave accents, and rings (which I thought was called an angstrom but, according to Wikipedia, that is a unit of measure). Depending on the software a particular library uses for its catalog, these accent marks may or may not display correctly.
When bib records are transferred from one program to another (such as Koha, which is used by MassCat), the correct coding for those accent marks may or may not be transferred correctly.
One of the things I do at work is to look for funky characters (that's letters, not people). As I scan the list of brief records looking for duplicates and misspellings (remember the Portuguese Picket Dictionary?) I look for misplaced symbols like ? or @ in the middle of words. That usually signals there should be some sort of accent mark over or under or through a letter. Often I can tell what it should be, but since all of these programs translate the codes differently, I'm not always sure.
Fortunately, it's easy for me to correct these - what should I call them? - mis-translations when I find them. I actually have a word document with all of the different possibilities of letters with accent marks. I simply copy and paste over the offending symbol. Or if it's someone's name and I'm not certain what it should be, I go to WorldCat.org, search the part I do know, and copy and paste the correction.
If only all of life's problems could be solved so easily.
Monday, February 29, 2016
Foot in Mouth
Sometimes, I don't quite know what to say.
You know those awkward moments when someone has said something and you want to be supportive or witty? It is those times when I have, on occasion, said something stupid. Or perhaps, even a little hurtful.
I'm not a mean person, just not as witty as I'd like to be. Of course, a few hours later, the exact right phrase - or something close to it - sometimes pops into my head. Why couldn't it have arrived earlier?
Just in case any of you, my readers, have had the misfortune of being on the receiving end of one of my feeble attempts, I sincerely apologize. Please know that my less-than-appropriate comment was not due to my dislike of you, but to my less-than-razor sharp intellect.
I'm trying to practice simple statements. Something like "Oh, I'm sorry" or "Gee, that's too bad. I hope things work out" or "I'm glad for you." Perhaps those comments are a little trite, but at least they won't get me into trouble.
You know those awkward moments when someone has said something and you want to be supportive or witty? It is those times when I have, on occasion, said something stupid. Or perhaps, even a little hurtful.
I'm not a mean person, just not as witty as I'd like to be. Of course, a few hours later, the exact right phrase - or something close to it - sometimes pops into my head. Why couldn't it have arrived earlier?
Just in case any of you, my readers, have had the misfortune of being on the receiving end of one of my feeble attempts, I sincerely apologize. Please know that my less-than-appropriate comment was not due to my dislike of you, but to my less-than-razor sharp intellect.
I'm trying to practice simple statements. Something like "Oh, I'm sorry" or "Gee, that's too bad. I hope things work out" or "I'm glad for you." Perhaps those comments are a little trite, but at least they won't get me into trouble.
Saturday, February 6, 2016
Aging Knees
For the last couple of months, my knees have been making themselves known. I'm aware of them all of the time. At one point, they were so sore I had to walk down stairs backwards. Not good!
The way I usually treat problems like this is to use the affected joint, but gently. I stopped using leg weights during exercise class. (I was using 5 pounds on each ankle.) I stopped crossing my legs when I sat (which I couldn't do anyway because it was so painful). I used a neoprene brace on the more painful knee, but that didn't seem to help - and besides, it pinched. When sitting at my desk at work, I was careful not to have my legs at a funny angle and to stretch them regularly. I also tried to get up and take short walks down the hall more frequently. I learned that walking was good but standing was not.
I'm now happy to report that my knees, while not 100% are definitely much better. A couple of days ago (before the snow) I walked down to the end of my road (1 mile) and back (1 mile uphill). The next day, my knees were feeling better than ever.
I think I'll have to be careful of my knees for a very long time, but if I do I can avoid knee replacement.
The way I usually treat problems like this is to use the affected joint, but gently. I stopped using leg weights during exercise class. (I was using 5 pounds on each ankle.) I stopped crossing my legs when I sat (which I couldn't do anyway because it was so painful). I used a neoprene brace on the more painful knee, but that didn't seem to help - and besides, it pinched. When sitting at my desk at work, I was careful not to have my legs at a funny angle and to stretch them regularly. I also tried to get up and take short walks down the hall more frequently. I learned that walking was good but standing was not.
I'm now happy to report that my knees, while not 100% are definitely much better. A couple of days ago (before the snow) I walked down to the end of my road (1 mile) and back (1 mile uphill). The next day, my knees were feeling better than ever.
I think I'll have to be careful of my knees for a very long time, but if I do I can avoid knee replacement.
Monday, February 1, 2016
Sally Field and the movies
Remember the television show Gidget? What about The Flying Nun? Both starred Sally Field. I didn't watch either of them regularly, but I rather liked Sally Field. I've seen her in several movies over the years.
Now at 69, Sally has a wonderful new movie, Hello, My Name is Doris. M. and I saw it at the Palm Springs Film Festival last month. I've been recommending it to everyone I talk with.
Sally plays Doris, a 60 something woman working as a bookkeeping at a company in New York City. She's single and lived with her mother on Staten Island in a house full of "stuff". Her mother has just died, her brother is pressuring her to clean out the house and sell it (he owns half), and Doris is in a muddle. A new manager arrives at work (some 20 years her junior) and shows Doris kindness. She immediately develops a crush on him. What follows is funny, sad, and very real as Doris learns more about herself in a few days than she has in the past 60 years.
Most fun of all was that Sally Field and co-star Max Greenfield were there. When the film ended, they went up on stage, talked about the movie and answered audience questions. One of the things Sally said that resonated with me is that our image of ourselves is often (always?) much younger than our chronological age. I'm only a few months younger than Sally, but my internal age is somewhere in my 40s. She also commented on how few good, starring roles there are for "older" women. How true.
Please go to see Hello, My Name is Doris. I know you will like it. Doris' outfits alone are worth the price of admission.
Now at 69, Sally has a wonderful new movie, Hello, My Name is Doris. M. and I saw it at the Palm Springs Film Festival last month. I've been recommending it to everyone I talk with.
Sally plays Doris, a 60 something woman working as a bookkeeping at a company in New York City. She's single and lived with her mother on Staten Island in a house full of "stuff". Her mother has just died, her brother is pressuring her to clean out the house and sell it (he owns half), and Doris is in a muddle. A new manager arrives at work (some 20 years her junior) and shows Doris kindness. She immediately develops a crush on him. What follows is funny, sad, and very real as Doris learns more about herself in a few days than she has in the past 60 years.
Most fun of all was that Sally Field and co-star Max Greenfield were there. When the film ended, they went up on stage, talked about the movie and answered audience questions. One of the things Sally said that resonated with me is that our image of ourselves is often (always?) much younger than our chronological age. I'm only a few months younger than Sally, but my internal age is somewhere in my 40s. She also commented on how few good, starring roles there are for "older" women. How true.
Please go to see Hello, My Name is Doris. I know you will like it. Doris' outfits alone are worth the price of admission.
Sunday, January 24, 2016
Workplace in Transition
The MLS building has been sold and the new owners have begun moving in. Most of the MLS-west staff are telecommuting and those of us remaining are now very "cozy" in one office. I will likely be doing some telecommuting myself during the next couple of months until we move into our new offices at the Pot Pourri Mall in Northampton.
I'm very happy about the new location. It's closer to home. It's closer to just about everyplace I might need to go after work. It's closer to restaurants, banks, drug stores and super markets. I can actually walk to all of these places from the new office. This transition has taken a long time - first to find a buyer for the building and then to find a place to which to move. I'll be glad to be settled in the new space.
The only negative is that during the summer months I'll no longer have to pass Golonka's farm stand on my way home. Golonka's has the VERY BEST corn on the cob. Since I've been working at MLS, I've bought 2-3 ears of corn nearly every Monday, Wednesday and Friday during corn season. Fortunately, Golonka's is not far away - just a few miles north on Routes 5&10.
In the meantime, while at work I continue to correct typos and merge records. I'm still on the letter F.
I'm very happy about the new location. It's closer to home. It's closer to just about everyplace I might need to go after work. It's closer to restaurants, banks, drug stores and super markets. I can actually walk to all of these places from the new office. This transition has taken a long time - first to find a buyer for the building and then to find a place to which to move. I'll be glad to be settled in the new space.
The only negative is that during the summer months I'll no longer have to pass Golonka's farm stand on my way home. Golonka's has the VERY BEST corn on the cob. Since I've been working at MLS, I've bought 2-3 ears of corn nearly every Monday, Wednesday and Friday during corn season. Fortunately, Golonka's is not far away - just a few miles north on Routes 5&10.
In the meantime, while at work I continue to correct typos and merge records. I'm still on the letter F.
Friday, January 1, 2016
Acorn Squash
Winter is the time for - winter squash.
While I love just about all winter squashes, M. is not that fond of them. That requires dressing them up to make them more palatable to him.
I love acorn squash baked with just a little butter and brown sugar, but I also like more elaborate dressings. Several years ago, I discovered a recipe for stuffing acorn squash with pineapple, roasted walnuts, dark rum and pumpkin pie spices. That's what I use whenever I make acorn squash.
Recently, I found another recipe which I like even better. Here it is. This makes enough for 4 people, but I halve it.
Cinnamon Apple Stuffed Squash
2 acorn squash, cut in halves, seeds removed
3 Tbsp unsalted butter
3 cups diced yellow onion
2 celery stalks, diced
3 cups diced apple, cored and seeds removed (about 2 large apples)
1/2 cup dried cranberries
2 Tbsp maple syrup
1/3 cup water
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Pinch each salt and black pepper
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place acorn squash halves face down on a rimmed sheet pan or baking dish and add 1/2 inch of water to the pan. Bake squash for 40 minutes
While the squash is baking, heat the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and celery and saute for 5 to 10 minutes until soft. Add the apples, cranberries, maple syrup, water and cinnamon; stir well and cook another 5 to 10 minutes until the apples begin to soften. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat.
After the squash has baked for 40 minutes, remove from the oven, turn them cut side up, and fill each with apple stuffing. Place back into the oven and bake another 15-20 minutes until the squash is tender. Serve warm.
Yum yum.
While I love just about all winter squashes, M. is not that fond of them. That requires dressing them up to make them more palatable to him.
I love acorn squash baked with just a little butter and brown sugar, but I also like more elaborate dressings. Several years ago, I discovered a recipe for stuffing acorn squash with pineapple, roasted walnuts, dark rum and pumpkin pie spices. That's what I use whenever I make acorn squash.
Recently, I found another recipe which I like even better. Here it is. This makes enough for 4 people, but I halve it.
Cinnamon Apple Stuffed Squash
2 acorn squash, cut in halves, seeds removed
3 Tbsp unsalted butter
3 cups diced yellow onion
2 celery stalks, diced
3 cups diced apple, cored and seeds removed (about 2 large apples)
1/2 cup dried cranberries
2 Tbsp maple syrup
1/3 cup water
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Pinch each salt and black pepper
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place acorn squash halves face down on a rimmed sheet pan or baking dish and add 1/2 inch of water to the pan. Bake squash for 40 minutes
While the squash is baking, heat the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and celery and saute for 5 to 10 minutes until soft. Add the apples, cranberries, maple syrup, water and cinnamon; stir well and cook another 5 to 10 minutes until the apples begin to soften. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat.
After the squash has baked for 40 minutes, remove from the oven, turn them cut side up, and fill each with apple stuffing. Place back into the oven and bake another 15-20 minutes until the squash is tender. Serve warm.
Yum yum.
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