Disappointed in Carl Hiaasen

About fifteen years ago, a friend recommended author Carl Hiaasen. I've been hooked ever since I read that first book, chuckling aloud through subsequent volumes. His satires on developers in Florida are witty and almost believable. This is fiction that educates.

I was eagerly anticipating his latest book Squeeze Me, but it's not his best work. I almost think a Carl Hiaasen clone or wannabe wrote it in his style. I found the prose blunt and heavy handed, devoid of subtlety and nuance.

Hiaasen pokes fun at our current POTUS and his followers. I'm certainly not a fan of 45 and am baffled by anyone who could support a narcissistic, vindictive bully. Perhaps Hiaasen is just too angry to camouflage his feelings. After the first couple of chapters, I actually considered not finishing the book; just returning it to the library where, I know, there is a waiting list.

But being the somewhat OCD person I am, I did read to the end. I found myself chuckling aloud despite my criticisms. Perhaps I became accustomed to the revised style.

One very bright spot was the return of the character Skink. He made a brief appearance toward the end with his typical shenanigans.

On the home front, not much has changed. I continue down the alphabetical list of potential duplicates. I've arrived at "The eighth ..." I'm enjoying being able to go into the office once a week. Perhaps I'll increase it to two days. 

As the weather gets cooler, all of the things I've been able to do outside will slowly come to an end: exercise class of Fridays, inviting friends here for dinner on the screened-in porch, eating outdoors at local restaurants, events on the Town Hall lawn. I'm trying to stay positive, though I've never been a winter person. Snow is okay as long as I don't have to shovel it or drive in it. 

It's still October and I'm already waiting for April.

Health, Wellness, and Nostalgia Television

 Breathe through your nose, not your mouth.

In my journey to learn more about my body and how I can improve it, I read Breath: the new science of a lost art by James Nestor. I learned a lot of things about one's breath, some of it quite unbelievable. According to Nestor, a few people have discovered how to cure their scoliosis; improve the performance of elite athletes; and spend time naked in sub-zero weather, yet melt the snow around them just by using different breathing techniques.

Nestor traveled to lots of different places, talked with lots of different people, read extensively and participated in multiple experiments concerning breathing. 

While this was somewhat interesting, much of what he describes is pretty extreme (he admits that), and limited as to the number of people it affects. Somehow, this book didn't excite me and I was not sure how useful it might be to me or the average person, though I wouldn't mind using my breath to keep warm instead of oil or electricity - much cheaper.

However, the Epilogue (which summarized his findings for the general public) and the Appendix (which summarized the different types of breathing and the purpose of each) were the best and most useful parts of the book. Here are his recommendations: Shut your mouth; Breathe through your nose; Exhale; Chew; Breathe more, on occasion; Hold your breath; How we breathe matters.

Very quickly: the nose filters and warms the air we breathe. Breathing through your mouth lets nasal passages deteriorate, helps raise blood pressure and promotes snoring. Exhaling completely helps clean out the lungs and allows more air in. Chewing helps strengthen the jaws. The other recommendations are more complicated to explain. You'll have to read the book.

Nestor also explains that acute problems often need the attention of a doctor or other medical professional, but good breathing techniques can alleviate the chronic problems from which so many people suffer.

Life has its lighter moments, as well. One of my favorite television shows was the Odd Couple with Jack Klugman and Tony Randall. I've just finished watching the fifth and final season. It ran from 1970 to 1975. Perhaps the best part of the show is seeing the fashions from the early 1970s. Egad! Wide ties, garish colors, short skirts. 

Sometimes it's hard to believe people actually dressed like that.

New Books, New Authors, Lots of Reading

Because of Wowbrary and the emails I receive every Wednesday from my local library, I've learned about a lot of new authors. I see what's just arrived and with a click of the mouse I can request the book. Hatfield Public Library has been doing curbside pick-up for a while. It's quick and easy. I don't really mind not being able to browse in person, because I can browse the Wowbrary list.

In the last week, I've finished two new books in record time. They were both gripping thrillers that I had trouble putting down. Both were British, which is not my usually my favorite due to my unfamiliarity with the culture and the slang. However, that was not a problem at all with these books.

The first was The Safe Place by Anna Downes. The second, The Dilemma by B.A. Paris. I recommend both.

Obviously, I've been reading a lot. I've also had a spurt of energy/motivation and have been doing other things as well. In the last couple of weeks, nearly the entire house has been thoroughly dusted and vacuumed, both bathrooms thoroughly cleaned, kitchen sinks (I have two: one for food prep, one for dishes) scoured, plants watered, and a bunch of other things. I realize if I just clean house for an hour or two a day, that's a lot of cleaning, but it's not overwhelming.

As the weather cools down, I'm wondering what's going to happen, how everyone is going to cope with not being able to spend most of the time outside. I guess we'll all find out.

Back to the Office

For the last six months I've been bemoaning the fact I cannot go into the MLS office. I miss my familiar routines and the structure they provided. Sometimes I feel adrift and the result is I don't do much of anything useful. Yet there are so many things I'd like to do. Mostly housework and yard work. Well, not really LIKE to do, but that need to be done.

I've finally been given permission to go back to the office and I'm finding my familiar routines are no longer familiar. They feed quite odd. I need to pack a lunch, and make sure information stored on my home computer is sent to my work computer. 

I have to plan my wardrobe for the day since it's Friday and the senior exercise class will be meeting in it's new location outdoors on the lawn of the Town Hall. I could just go to the office in my t-shirt, sneakers and baseball cap, but this is my chance to wear real clothes even though no one else will be in the office to see me.

I could almost resume my pre-COVID-19 routine, but I'm not sure I want to. I've gotten used to not having to plan my day because I'll be gone from home and need to bring things with me.

Last week, I went "shopping" for the first time in six months. My 15-year old sneakers were falling apart and I bought a shiny new pair. Yesterday, I went to the dentist to have my teeth cleaned. On the way I stopped at one of my favorite clothing stores and bought a new skirt at 50% off. I could wear that today in the office, though that's more changing than I would usually do. 

One thing I've learned in my 70+ years on this earth is that life is full of surprises. I could get used to that, but I don't think I really ever will.

Back at the Beginning

 Most of my job is spent working from a spreadsheet: a list of potential duplicates in the MassCat catalog given in alphabetical order. However, the program used to spot duplicates, doesn't recognize initial articles. I am now reviewing titles that begin with the word "The".

There are a lot of them.

In a way, it's a little discouraging. It's taken me years (six? seven?) to slog my way through the alphabet to arrive at the letter "T" - only to end up back at "A". Actually, I'm at "B". I feel like Alice in the looking glass: I think I'm going toward something, but in reality, I'm going away from it.

Actually, it's not that bad; it's more ironic.

After five months of working from home, I've finally developed a sort of schedule. I try to do my MassCat work on Monday, Wednesday and Friday like I did in the "old days". That gives me two full days plus the weekend, to do other things like housework or yardwork or just sitting around reading.

But as of last week there has been a change: I'm leading my exercise class again! This is sort of an experiment. I'm leading it once a week and virtually. The first week, we used Microsoft Teams because that is what the Town Hall uses for it's meetings. However, only 3 people managed to log on. And I could only see myself in a tiny box which kept disappearing. In a meeting, seeing oneself in a tiny box is no big deal, but I need to know that I'm lined up so that exercisers can see me and what I'm doing. 

This week, we used Zoom, but after 35 minutes of what was supposed to be a 45 minute class, the program shut down leaving me in mid leg lift. The plan now is to schedule 2 half classes (upper body, lower body), one right after the other and consider the time in between as a break. Beginning tomorrow, there will be an outdoor class in the park next to the Town Hall.

As happy as I am to be back (even virtually) with my class, I now have to review my work schedule. Given that I don't much like to do housework other than dishes or laundry, I could always give that up. But who else will clean? My housekeeper has not been here since mid-March. 

I miss her as much as (maybe more than) my exercise class.

Earrings in the Age of COVID-19

It's been a full five months since Massachusetts shut down due to COVID-19. I've learned some things  I never would have thought of if I hadn't spent so much time at home.

Since, basically, every day is the weekend in terms of going out and about, I'm always dressed in my "play clothes". Reading posts on Facebook, it appears everyone else is too. Pre-COVID-19, on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, I'd get up and dressed to lead my senior exercise class. After class, I'd go to work at the office. Because I'd be seeing people all day long, I'd want to look my best. That meant clothes without stains or holes, a little make-up, and earrings.

I love having pierced ears. I got my first set of holes while I was an undergraduate at UMass. My ear lobes became infected and I let them heal, which meant the holes closed. My second attempt had the same result and I resigned myself to clip-on or screw-on earrings. A few years later, I went to an ear piercing clinic and had hypoallergenic studs shot through my lobes. Finally! I could wear pierced earrings as long as I was careful about the quality.

When I finished library school, I treated myself to a second set of holes in my ear lobes. It was 1976 and two holes was pretty radical. I've been wearing 2 sets of earrings nearly every day ever since. I usually fill the lower hole first and choose a set of dangling earrings. Then I find 2 studs for the upper holes. Usually the studs are the same, but not always. If my outfit has several different colors, I look for studs with those colors. Choosing just the right earrings is serious business. If I don't go out on a particular day, I usually don't bother with earrings.

Enter the age of COVID-19, when I'm now mostly at home. After a few weeks, I realized, I hadn't worn earrings in a long time and I was afraid, even after all these years, that my holes would close. I now try to wear earrings every few days. I choose 4 studs. After all, who wears dangling earrings while cleaning the bathroom?

But when I go out, I revert to my former habit of 1 set of danglers and 2 studs. That has turned out to present another problem. 

When I first started wearing a mask, I used a bandanna with a batik design. It was very pretty, but I found it inconvenient to tie it and untie it if I was making multiple stops. And no one could see my carefully chosen earrings. I switched to a mask with loops that go around my ears. Now people can see my earrings, but I have to be careful putting the mask on an off as the ear loops can catch on my earrings.

In all of the literature I've read about coping with the COVID-19, no one has yet addressed the issue of wearing earrings with a mask. Am I the first to encounter this phenomenon?

Tackling the Letter T

Here it is July 7 and I'm still working from home.

I'd like to be in the MLS office, but the administration is being very cautious about opening the offices. I appreciate caution. I'm also looking forward to being out and about, even just a little.

M. and I have been carefully venturing out. We've met with friends (no hugging) at outdoor venues, shared take-out meals, and on one occasion actually ate dinner around a dining room table with 4 other people. We had planned to eat outdoors, but it was pouring rain.

Fortunately, no one I know personally has become sick with the virus. I know others who have friends, relatives, or neighbors who have contracted it. I know of two who have died. I've been watching the data on confirmed/probable cases in Massachusetts. I'm happy to live in an area that has relatively few. Most of my close relatives live in the eastern part of the state which is more densely populated and more vulnerable.

As much as I miss working in my cubby in the office, I miss my exercise class more. I'm still getting exercise, perhaps more than in the Healthy Bones and Balance class, but I miss the people. They're my friends. And even though we're not close, there is still a connection that I find comforting.

Back to the title of this post. Yes, I've finally reached the letter T. It amazes me that I still find duplicates and incomplete records that begin with earlier letters. Why haven't I found them before now? Clearly I will never totally finish cleaning up the MassCat catalog.

When I finish with Z, I'll start with A again.