Inside the Fishbowl

Lets Talk Books

Enough of the travel posts!  There is more I could write.  But I'm bored of talking travel for now. Right now I want to tell you about a few books I've read lately.

After having been bogged down in Egdon Heath, the fictional setting for Hardy's Return of the Native, and the drama of Clym Yeobright, Eustacia Vye, Thomasin Yoebright and Damon Wildeve (I only write these entire names out because I love the character names in 19th century British literature!) I have been fortunate to have chosen some really good books to read next.  Not that I don't like Hardy.  I just think I've decided that he needs to be read in the wintertime.

The first book I read was The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon.  Good, good book, a real page turner.  This book probably isn't for everyone, there is quite a bit of swearing, and some sexual situations, but if you like mystery, tortured love, old European cities (in this case Barcelona) and most importantly, literature, you will probably enjoy this book.  There is something so appealing about books about Spanish-language literature.  Perhaps it's the worldview of Spanish speaking people and the Old World that seems to be infused in every work that I have ever read.  Perhaps it's that these works seem to transcend time. Time is usually unimportant in works by Spanish-language authors.  The stories that they write could have taken place at any time.  And so it's easy to lose oneself in the story. Perhaps it's the magical realism that also seems to find itself in every Spanish author's work.  All I can do is urge you to read this book and see if you feel as drawn to it as I do.  And then fervently hope that more of Zafon's works are translated to English so we can enjoy more.  

The second book I read was A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway.  Jeremy and I are taking the kids to Paris this year during Thanksgiving.  Since my trip to Italy was enhanced so much by reading about Italy before I went, I decided to read several books about or set in Paris before we go. A Moveable Feast is Hemingway's memoir about the years he lived in Paris when he was still a struggling writer, married to his first wife, Hadley, and hanging out with the likes of Gertrude Stein, F. Scott Fitzgerald and other literary and artistic luminaries of the day.  Hemingway and I have not had the best relationship.  In high school I read The Old Man and the Sea--not a fan, though I should reread it now that I'm older.  Then years ago I picked up A Farewell To Arms, still not a big fan.  So I picked up A Moveable Feast with a little trepidation, wondering why I was subjecting myself to another Hemingway when I have several other books about Paris on my bookshelves.  I was, to put it mildly, pleasantly surprised with how much I loved this book.  It drew me in, kept me reading, and had me laughing.  After reading this book, I've decided to give Hemingway's novels another chance.  I'm going to be reading The Sun Also Rises soon.  He wrote this book in Paris during the years depicted in A Moveable Feast.  I'm hoping my affection for that book, help me to enjoy his first major work.  I'll report back and let you know.

Finally, I read a book called A Writer's Paris by Eric Maisel.  The only writing I do is on this blog, but it's fun to dream, and that's where this book comes in.  The idea behind this book is to give up your everyday life for a period of time to go live and write in Paris.  Maisel contends that even if it's only for a month, every writer should go to Paris to write.  He sets down a rigorous writing schedule (you are there, after all, to write), a tells the best places to write in the city, and most importantly, he makes the reader believe that it's an easily obtainable goal.  For me, who will be saddled with a husband and two children when I visit next ;), it just evokes a sense of the beauty and artistry of that city that reminds me of what I saw and thought and felt while I was there.  Incidentally, Maisel wrote another book called A Writer's San Francisco, in which he states, "Paris and San Francisco are sister cities. . . .They are connected by being two of the world's very few bohemian meccas.  Each is an important stop on the bohemian international highway."  No wonder why I loved Paris the minute I stepped of the plane! Though hardly bohemian myself, I love the bohemian nature of San Francisco.

So there you have it.  The three books that captured my attention in August.  Now I'm reading The Woman in White by Wikie Collins.  I'm enjoying it tremendously, and even if I wasn't I would still have to read it just to see what a writer who goes by "Wilkie" would come up with.  Happy reading in September!

San Francisco--Part 3

I couldn't do these bookbinding trips without the support of Jeremy.  He encourages me to leave him alone with the kids for long weekends three or four times a year.  He is almost as excited for me as I am to take my classes.  He takes fabulous care of the kids.  This time he was going to take them on a very short backpacking trip for the weekend, but he was sick.  And he didn't complain once about being sick and having to take care of the kids.  Finally, he had the house nice a clean when I came home.  I am one lucky girl, indeed!  Thanks, Jeremy!  I love you!

And now to end this San Francisco series, here are a few of the straggler photos from the trip.  

Not the prettiest building in The City but it's my first destination after leaving the airport--the PG&E building on Beale Street.

 

In the plaza outside of my dad's building are ginko trees.  I love the shape of the leaves!

Lines of motorcycle parking are everywhere.

The Federal Reserve building along market street.  

My favorite used book store in Berkeley.  Shakespear & Company, named after the famous bookstore in Paris that was a favorite hangout of Hemingway, Ezra Pound, F. Scott Fitzgerald and other members of the Lost Generation.  I haven't been there for years, though it used to be a must see whenever I returned to the Bay Area.  I bought The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway.

San Francisco--Part 2

The San Francisco Center for the Book. There are only a few places like this in the country.  I feel so lucky to live so close to one of them.  Of course close is a relative term, and I am usually the only student who comes in from out of state.  This time there was an incredibly talented bookbinder named Sabina, who came from Ashland, OR.  Her work was incredible, but nothing that I can even begin to aspire to here in Utah where bookbinding offerings are limited. 

I was enrolled in two classes that were part of the Center's historical bookbinding series.  The first class was titled, "The Ideal Sketchbook" based on the books that William Wordsworth used to write his poetry, and "The Ideal Album" based on Victorian era photo albums.  Both classes were amazing.  The teacher, Dominic Riley, was amazing. He's a bookbinder from the Lake District in England, with an impressive resume.

In bookbinding, when one is sewing a block for a hardcover book, there are only so many ways it can be done.  The variety comes in the little techniques that each binder uses, and in the different kinds of casings that can be made.  I learned so many new techniques and used so many new materials with these classes. It was exciting, and of course, expensive, as I now have an order waiting at Talas for around $50.  It's waiting because I can't decide if new bookbinding tools and supplies fits into my little craft diet or not.  (Incidentally I tend to think they do, since I need to be able to make the books I made last weekend again, and soon, so I don't forget how!  Is that justification, or truth?)  Some of the techniques I learned this go 'round are slitting paper with a knife to form a signature out of a single sheet of paper, using a pair of dividers as my primary measuring tool, how to use mull and jaconet, and what materials to use on a rounded spine and a little bit of tooling on book cloth, which was really cool!

Another thing that I love about going to the SFCB is the diversity of people that can be found there.  In my first class there was a man who worked as a carpenter, a man who laid dry stack stone walls, a professor at UC Davis, a woman who worked in a wildlife center, a real estate agent, a student, a professional bookbinder, a nurse, a woman who worked for a NPO, but whose dream it is to have her own letterpress studio and me, a stay at home mom.  The couple who were from Davis--the professor and the wildlife center worker--were on their way to a Pagan wedding.  The man who laid stone walls learned baking from Zen Buddhist monks after he left his stressful, and dissatisfying job as a film producer.  Wonderful!  And only in California!  Where else could you hope to find a bakery run by Buddhist monks?

I can't wait until my next trip.  As of now it's unplanned, but I know there will be more.  I had this fancy to take my kids to California for a month next summer, hire a nanny for that time, and just blissfully take classes.  Isn't that a nice dream?  For now I think I'll have to stick to the odd weekend class.  There's only one thing I wouldn't do again.  I wouldn't leave my entire tool box there, which I did this time.  I'm waiting patiently for it to come back to me.  But you'll never hear me complain, not really.  It's my absolute favorite thing to do--go away and play artist for a few days.  It fills the soul.

San Francisco--Part 1

I returned from San Francisco on Monday afternoon. I had a fabulous time taking two classes at the San Francisco Center for the Book with Dominic Riley, who was a great teacher!  Dominic is a bookbinder from England who comes to The Center once a year to teach.  I am definitely planning on returning next summer to take more classes from him!  I learned so much!

But before I talk about my classes, I wanted to post photos from my free day in The City. It's no secret that I love San Francisco.  From the smell of eucalyptus when I stepped off the plane at SFO, to the incredible weather, to the towering buildings of the financial district, to the little neighborhood cafes in the Mission, I love it.  One of my favorite places is the Ferry Building Marketplace.  I think it's one of the most photogenic places in one of the most photogenic cities in the country. Whenever I visit Northern California I never fail to go there.  Mostly, the draw is Miette, my favorite bakery, for their macarons and pots de creme.  But there is so much to look at, so many great things, that I'd go there even if Miette (tragically) closed its doors.

So, here is a little photo tour with my photos from the Ferry Building.  I hope you enjoy, and someday, I hope you go!

Taken from across the street--The clock tower and palm trees

Does this count as a self portrait?  These are my feet on the glass brick walkway that follows the Embarcadero.  I love how weathered the glass is--a combination of foot traffic, and salty sea air.  I also love the coloring of this photo.  It's kind of washed out, but the cool colors are perfect for a photo featuring glass.

I finally got brave and took pictures of Miette.  I've been afraid to do that for years, but finally got up the nerve and of course, nobody said a word.

Across and to the left of Miette is a beautiful flower stand with the most gorgeous arrangements.  Here are some sunflowers.  I just love the three different types all mixed together in this bucket.

Directly across from Miette is a little market that sells farm fresh produce.  Look at all of those tomatoes!

The signage in the Ferry Building is one of the things I love most.  Cowgirl Creamery is a famous local dairy that gets all kinds of national attention.  And don't you think the cast iron mushroom to the side of the mushroom sign is so cool? 

This pretty little rooster mosaic, was directly across from the Sur la Table.  Each support pillar has a mosaic on it.  Some have to do with farm life, and some have more oceanic subjects, like fish and crabs. 

The only thing that could possibly make the Marketplace any better is a farmers market, and they have one!  Unfortunately it's on Tuesdays and my trips generally occur from Friday morning to Monday morning. 

I hope you enjoyed my little photographic tour of the Ferry Building!

On A Break

Surprisingly, I don't mean that I'm taking a blogging break.  On the contrary!  I hope to be blogging more than usual.  Why, you wonder?  Because I won't be spending so much time buying craft supplies.  My mom was here last week and we spent a lot of time cleaning and organizing my studio.  We brought all of the stuff that remained in my old studio downstairs and put it all away, and then we also organized my two (yes two) overflow closets.  And while I won't go so far as to say that she was disgusted by the sheer volume of stuff that I have, she did issue me a challenge that I have decided to accept--to not buy any craft supplies until the end of November, when we get home from Paris.  (Mom, do the supplies that I buy in Paris count?)  It was embarrassing how much of what I have was purchased for a project that I didn't finish, or worse, didn't even start.  So, from now until November, I am only allowed to buy what I absolutely need to finish things that I've started and largely completed with supplies that I already have.  A good example would be if I run out of eyes for my amigurumi.  The entire thing would be made from yarn that I already have.  If a project requires a purchase of something more than, say, $5, or something that can't fit into, say, a baby food jar, I have to do a different project.  This is going to be difficult, considering I am going to San Francisco this weekend and had already planned a trip to Flax in The City and probably to Arch as well.  I suppose I will just have to practice my look but don't buy skills.  I'll compensate by buying macarons and a pot de creme at Miette.  Retail therapy or eating.  I have a feeling that two things are going to get a little thicker during this experiment--my wallet and my waist!

To jump start my little retail diet, I thought I'd show you the things that Jeremy brought me back from his trip to Japan at the end of July.  They're among the things that I will be trying to use up in the next several months.

First fabric.  I'm telling you, this man must love me because he ventured into a fabric shop in Tokyo simply because I expressed regret that I couldn't go to Japan with him to go fabric shopping.  Now, mind you, I would never go to Japan just to fabric shop, but I would fabric shop while in Japan--a lot!

Aren't these great?  He even bought me two coordinating patterns.  I can't wait to design a purse out of them!

Second paper.  Of all the things I might have expected him to buy me in Japan, paper was the most likely.  I know he supports my paper buying habit because he carried paper all over Italy for me.  And he bought me a huge stack when he went to India last summer.  His trip to Japan produced some of my favorite papers, but only because I love, love, love Japanese paper, and not because he has ever made a bad choice with paper for me.  Jeremy knows me well, or he has good taste, or both.  He always gets me great stuff.

There were a few other non-craft related items that I thought I'd include, since I'm talking about Japan.  He bought me these Lotte chocolate covered almonds and macadamia nuts.  

If you are ever anywhere that carries these, buy them!  You will not be disappointed.  He also bought me some Hi Chew candy.  I love these!  

They're so chewy and wonderful.  He brought back a new flavor that I've never tried.  Kiwi.  Yum!  Again, if you ever see these when you're out and about buy them.  You, and your kids, will love them.  And if you want to know where you can get these locally, try an Asian market or World Market (you may also know this store as Cost Plus), though the ones that are made for the Japanese market are slightly better than the US version.  Finally, he brought me back some macarons--the Parisian variety.

Yet another testament to how committed Jeremy is to fulfilling my every wish, because he thought it was completely ridiculous to go to Tokyo to buy French pastries. But he did it anyway.  The effort was very much appreciated! 

Sadly only the Hi Chew remain to see my through the long days of buying drought ahead of me.  

Finally, Jeremy bought me a Blythe doll.  These are actually very big in the crafting world.  But don't worry I won't be going and making any crocheted clothes for my little retro girl.  I love that he found one that's actually cute and not freaky looking like some of them can be.  

So, thanks to Jeremy I have a good lot of stuff to work with, snacks and a sweet little doll to keep me company.  Now, off to get busy!

Picking and playing at Grand Targhee

To make a long story short, the Grand Targhee Bluegrass Festival was amazing!  We are not bluegrass fans, or even country music fans.  It didn't matter.  The music was completely enjoyable, the atmosphere was fantastic--so family friendly, and the surroundings couldn't have been better.

The first thing that anyone should know is that bluegrass musicians are incredibly talented.  They also don't play their instruments, they pick them.  The traditional instruments of bluegrass music are all stringed--acoustic guitar, banjo, fiddle, upright bass, mandolin and a resonating guitar. (Thanks wikipedia!)  These musicians are usually multi-instrumentalists as well.  

For a while we were on the fence about the festival.  We'd seen bluegrass bands at Bonnaroo, but it wasn't until we saw the Dan Tyminski Band added to the lineup that we knew we had to go.  We saw Dan Tyminski at the Grand Ol' Opry when we were in Nashville this summer and simply loved him. Actually, many of you have probably heard him sing.  Remember that song, "I Am A Man of Constant Sorrow" from the movie "Oh Brother Where Art Thou?"  Even if you didn't see the movie, you probably heard the song.  He sang it.  Anyway.  

One of my favorite things about the festival were the thunder showers that brewed all day long and finally broke each night as the sun set.  When it started raining we quickly gathered the kids and our blanket under our huge beach umbrella and sat there cozy and warm while the band on stage continued to play.

Of course we were nervous about how Alex would do.  His sensory integration disorder makes new experiences very difficult for him.  Crowds and loud music are not the greatest thing for him.  The first day of the festival wasn't so great.  He and I left for the middle part of the day.  He needed a break and a nap.  The second day was much better.  Alex behaved beautifully.  

And of course our spot right next to a dry stream didn't hurt on the Alex front.  Rocks are among his favorite things.  He started quite a collection, thanks to Jeremy's genius idea to have him pile them on his chair and then put them back again.  Brilliant!  We managed to stay the entire day, missing only the band that played when we took the ski lift up the mountain to have a look at the Tetons. 

The view was gorgeous, and we got the added bonus of being able to throw snowballs in August!

Kaitlin did well, too.  She liked the music, having her face painted and the cute boy who sat next to us the first afternoon.  She showed off and danced for this guy for at least an hour.  Luckily he and his sister were getting a kick out of her, so it wasn't too embarrassing.  But I do wish we'd had our video camera.  It would have made great blackmail footage for the future.

All in all it was a great weekend.  We were in a place we loved, with the people we loved, doing something that gives us great joy.  Once again I was able to see how our children thrive in a rural setting with room to run and jump and be kids.  Who would have thought that I, a city girl, would ever consider with happiness the idea of owning several acres in the middle of nowhere?  Oh, and that's not an announcement or anything--just a dream that Jeremy and I share.

Whew, I didn't expect for this to be such a photo heavy post.  I hope it didn't take forever to upload!  I went a little camera happy this trip--I took nearly 400 shots in 4 days, which is 200 less than I took in Paris in 9 days.  That just goes to show who my favorite subjects really are, doesn't it?  

Photo within a photo

If there are any readers out there who have not checked out my friend Michelle's husband's blog Take Out Photo, you really should.  I can attribute my love-bordering-on-obsession with Paris to Marc. Were not for him I would never have gone there with my girlfriends, and would not be going there again at Thanksgiving.

Each month Marc has a monthly special--a photographic challenge that he posts and invites readers to participate in.  My summer has been so crazy that all of my intentions to post have come to naught, but this month I couldn't resist.  My entry for August's theme, "Photo within a photo" is unconventional, at best, and completely irrelevant at worst.  I'm sure Marc didn't think any of these would show up as an interpretation, but I couldn't resist.  When I saw these photovoltaic panels on top of the mountain at Grand Targhee Ski Resort last Sunday I knew they would be my contribution.

I might look for something else to do when I go to San Francisco on Friday.  We'll see if anything pops up.

Testing, testing. . .

I'll return to my regular illuminating posts soon, but now I'm just testing my feed.  If you receive notifications about my blog updates through some sort of bog aggregator, would you leave a comment telling me if it updated with this post?  I think my feed is broken.  Thanks!

A Little Bit of Paradise

One of our favorite places on earth is Driggs, Idaho.  It is a small town with a collection of ramshackle houses that surround a downtown area currently experiencing a rebirth.  It is a skier's town, which explains the appearance of the houses, many of which sit on their sizable lots in varying states of doneness.  Some of the houses proudly display the particle board that should be covered with some sort of siding or other finishing material.  Some have made it a bit further toward being completed.  They have been covered with Tyvek and that black paper, evidence that at one time wood siding was part of the plan.  Nobody in town really cares what their houses look like as long as the snow is good and they have enough money to buy a lift ticket.

On the outskirts of town there are houses that sit on multi-acre lots, luxury condos and farms.  It is a beautiful place.  It's a place where the houses do not have air conditioning units because it never gets hot enough to need one.  Those who have suffered through a Utah summer know the value of such a place.  It's a place where rivers snake across farmland, horses and cows roam freely in the mountains and big box refers to the container your snowmobile came in, not some store selling everything under the sun.  Life slows down here in Driggs.

We entered the Teton Valley at the beginning of a spectacular thunderstorm that we couldn't help but pull over and watch a little.  The kids, until now, had been begging to get out of the car.  Now, they were happy to sit there watching the as the double rainbow disappeared with the setting sun and lightning struck the ground of the valley around us.  But it was getting late and we still needed to stop at the grocery store for supplies.

Broulims grocery is a little bit of the urbane in Driggs.  If you're a reader of this blog, you know how I feel about olive bars, and Broulims, in rural Idaho, has one.  They also have a lobster tank--one is not limited to fresh trout here.  But lobster was not on our menu for this trip.  We wanted food that the kids will eat so there's nothing to throw away or pack home with us when we leave on Monday.  So we headed to the produce section for bananas and apricots and blackberries, and then on to the cereal aisle for breakfast foods and fruit snacks, and finally we bought the fixings for peanut butter and honey sandwiches.  And that's all we need to feed us breakfast and dinner for four days.  Life is simple here.

We don't generally come to Driggs with nothing to do.  This time we're here for the Traghee Bluegrass Festival at Grand Targhee Ski Resort.  Ever since Bonnaroo we have been desperate to hear live music.  We went to a free concert in Salt Lake City a few weeks ago, but it didn't measure up.  Nobody was there to hear the music.  We have high hopes for reliving on a much smaller scale our experience at Bonnaroo.  But then, we do have our kids, and nothing is the same when children are around.

The festival began yesterday at 4:00.  We ventured up the mountain, but soon decided that we were not well equipped to be there where the thunderstorms of the previous day continued with force.  After ten minutes we headed back to the car and drove back down the mountain in search of umbrellas and rain gear--no easy task in a town where the sentence, "Let's go down to WalMart," means driving for almost an hour to Rexburg.  The outdoor store didn't have anything.  They're still stocking summer wear for children.  And then we decided to go to Broulims.  We walked in, and and the front of the store they had little folding camp chairs with umbrellas attached.  Perfect!  And they were only $10, which made them even better.  I don't say this often, but yesterday I was grateful for China's manufacturing dominance in the world.  We also picked up some beach umbrellas.  All of these are probably not the best for heavy rain, but for thunderstorm-type rain, they should be perfect.  When we left Broulims we took a family vote to see if we were going to return to the festival or go home.  I was outvoted, so we didn't go back to the festival.  Instead we went to sample Tony's pizza (very good), and then we returned home for the night. Kaitlin and I set up on the porch to have her first lesson in Go Fish, and then, when the sun broke through the clouds and we were sure it wouldn't rain anymore we sat on the steps and blew bubbles, threw a blanket out on the grass and read our library books and then took a walk as the sun went down.  It was a truly beautiful day.

Here are a few pictures from our walk.

Today we're off to listen to music.  The card game will come with us, the bubbles will come with us, and the little umbrella chairs that Kaitlin has been begging to sit in.  We will eat our peanut butter with creamy honey and listen to banjos as long as the kids will behave.  We will probably take some time out to hike around a little if the mud isn't too bad.  And hopefully tonight we will be able to look at the stars while being serenaded by premium bluegrass music.

A Little WIP

Sorry for the less than meaty posts this week.  It's a busy week as I prepare to go on vacation with my family, and then have my mom come for a visit immediately upon our return.

Here's a picture of my little butterfly girl sans wings.

Don't you love the one braid?  Don't worry she'll get another!  Though it would be funny to make one with only one braid or a really bad haircut to commemorate the first time a child cut her own hair.  That's never happened in our house, and I hope it never does.  Though I'm pretty sure Alex would be the one to do it and not Kaitlin.  That girl (literally) doesn't go to the bathroom without my permission.

And to give you further evidence of my yarn geekiness, here is my bright idea for the week.

Do you recognize this?  It's an apple container from Costco.  It's perfect for holding all of those little bits of yarn that are always getting tangles up in my yarn basket.  But the most geeky thing has yet to occur.  I'm going to use my Japanese screw punch to punch holes out of the top to feed the yarn through.  Then I'll never have to open the container, and all of the yarn will stay right were I want it.  I couldn't be more thrilled.