Have you ever done this after reading a book?
10 years ago
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'House Lust' You HAVE to read this book!
Comments (28)I've been thinking a lot about this lately, not having any idea there is actually a book that addresses it. We sold our home at the top of the market in late '05 after having updated it to reflect some of the HGTV trends of the day. We purchased a home built in 1977 with outdated bathrooms and gold and blue shag wall-to-wall in the upstairs bedrooms. Obviously that wall-to-wall needed to be replaced since it was 30 years old, but what I've realized is how silly it is to turn my home into a showplace based on how it might benefit potential resale value one day. I've read many times on this and other forums (but this one is particularly bad for it) some condescending and even downright snotty advice from people who perhaps unwittingly give off the impression that not only would butter not melt in their mouths, but that they would sooner run naked over hot coals than cook an omelet on anything less than a Wolf or Viking range. Don't get me wrong--I do enjoy living in a nice home, and my home is indeed a nice one. It's just not one that is currently or will anytime in the near future be tricked out with granite, stainless, 'hardwoods' (because 'hardwood' is no longer in fashion; it's 'hardwoods' in the plural or we all might just as well go with the horror commonly known as laminate), or a marble counter in the bathroom topping a trendy but completely impractical vanity. I still enjoy home improvement projects--at least, I enjoy the result--but these days I seem to be looking at the most cost-effective way to update rather than the one they would do on any number of HGTV shows. I think it might actually be a bit more fun than throwing money at the biggest, shiniest/most matte model of modern design I might come across. Granite, soapstone, marble, inexplicably vast expanses of reflective stainless? They are great. I enjoy coming across them here and there. However, one place I am unlikely to come across them is here in my very nice, certainly above average, structure that has truly become home to my family. I will continue to enjoy tweaking things and decorating my 31-year-old home, and I will enjoy the process as well as the result....See MoreHave you ever been insulted about reading?
Comments (54)When I was in my 20's, single and working in an office, a co-worker picked up the book (Oscar Lewis' La Vida)I was currently reading, looked at the price, and asked in a loud voice "You paid $-- for THAT?) She had announced earlier that she and her husband had just purchased an expensive new car with all the bells and whistles. Differenct strokes. . . When my boys were young I would read aloud to them during dinner. Great for the diet! I would stop in the middle of a exciting passage, and leave the book on the table while I cleaned up the kitchen. It was fun to see which boy got to the book first to take up to his room and finish that chapter. I've never worried that my boys, now 38 and 40, would not be readers. They're both still single and have very active lives, and I was pleased that on one weekend day each called me from the city they happened to be visiting, one to tell me he had met an author of a book we both loved, and the other to announce he had found an old book I had been looking for. Reading aloud has so many benefits. Years ago my late brother, who was 15 years older than I enjoyed reading each other passages from Robert Paul Smith's Where Did You Go? Out. What Did You Do? Nothing. For those that may not remember this lovely little book there are passages about how a child spends his idle time, including the wonders of the empty lot nextdoor. This book sparked conversations about how my brother and I each looked at our childhood experiences from different angles, and without a doubt, brought us much closer together. I certainly will treasure those times. I see I've strayed from the original topic of being insulted about reading, to more speaking in defense of reading. Sorry about that, but I guess defense of an action naturally comes after an insult....See MoreWhat is the scariest book you've ever read?
Comments (104)Rosefolly, I totally agree about The Road being depressing. Terribly depressing, and terribly annoying in its writing style. I fear, though, that reading a lot of apocalytptic scifi has rendered me somewhat immune to the scariness of that particular book. However, looking back, after reviewing some of the old comments here, I remembered that Poe's "The cask of Amontillado" and (I may have the title wrong) "The Black Cat" were so horrible that I try not to recall their contents and have practically succeeded in the case of the latter story (remembering only that it was horrible). But decades ago, I had a year of teaching English at a girls' school, during which I unfortunately had to take up "The Cask...," and now much more of it than I like has taken up residence in my long-term memory! I avoid reading anything by Poe. [Edited the next day to echo Woodnymph's "I have avoided McCarthy's other books as well." Oh, I sure have done that, too!] Also awful (for me, though I know it is highly-regarded by some) was Where the Red Fern Grows). It started out pleasantly enough about a boy and his dogs, but there are some horrific gory scenes that I would never want to expose a child to. I detested The Day No Pigs Would Die, too, for the idea behind it. Again, I am sure many people would disagree with me. Fairy tales and some other children's stories can make me feel sad--like The Little Mermaid and The Little Match Girl--but not scared. Sci-fi is also not generally scary, although many episodes in the Lord of the Rings were enjoyably scary. So I offer the latter book, and--I just remembered another thoroughly enjoyable book that was also scary, The Thief of Always by Clive Barker--for the reading pleasure of Jennmonkey, who started this thread nearly 12 years ago. It was a shock to see that ancient date! And Kathy t: Oh, yes, I remember the scariness of Cape Fear, even though it was decades ago that I saw it. Very scary--partly because you knew it could happen; it wasn't just a fairy tale or fantasy....See MoreAnyone ever read the book "The Ransom of Red Chief"?
Comments (27)DH gives me a copy of the O. Henry awards for short stories every year. I adore short stories. It is beyond my favorite form of literature. I appreciate the condensing that must take place to make a good short story. For me the shorter the better. This past year had some really good ones. His own work was often soft but the awards can be really fantastic. I am a fan. I get multiple short story books at Christmas. I enjoy the traditional character of the O. Henry award stories. A really good short story is reduced to its essence. An astonishing to me really good writer of shorts is of all people Stephen King. I do not read his novels. His shorts are too searing. He doesnt win awards because he is so prolific. Politics in writing....See More- 10 years ago
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