Comfortable Reading isn't always Satisfying

Mostly comfort reads and movies for a long goodbye...

Winter's Child by Margaret Maron - comfort reading at its best, however I forgot it at work one night and almost moved on without finishing. But for me, this was like crying and eating potato chips after the Supple Scientist left town.

Angeline by Karleen Bradford (YA)- so unrealistic, and I can't believe it's Canadian. I love Egypt, and I love this kinds of historical fiction. But this is watered down YA. She becomes a concubine, and the initial meeting with the sheik isn't even described. She discreetly becomes pregnant without so much as a kiss...

The Children of Men by P.D. James - I couldn't get in at the movie theatre, so I gave up and read the book, which is at times cheesy, unrealistic, and contrived, but I can see how it would make a great movie, and Clive Owen can't hurt. Regardless, it's utterly captivating and hard to put down in the way that some apocolyptic tales are...I enjoyed it.

The Squid and the Whale (DVD)- A very disturbing father figure, so real it almost hurt to watch this incredibly snobbish Brooklyn baby boomer academic novelist as he nearly destroyed his son with self-preoccupation and bad advice. There is also an uncomfortable scene featuring a boy rubbing against a bookshelf in the library and wiping the ensuing bodily fluids across the book spines. Beware. (the above picture depicts the boy in question, his crazy father, his cheating mother, and her soon to be boyfriend- his tennis instructor)

Earth (DVD)- now my favorite Deepa Mehta movie ... tragic and powerful, richness of characters, beautiful but simple cinamatography and the lovely soundtrack make it a great movie to take you away from the present. I watched it one weeknight sitting in the darkness, a few candles glowing, and the lights on a myriad of freighters beckoning on the horizon.

A little RANT

1. Traffic gridlock. Turn around and try another route. Still terrible. Awful people speeding up slow lane and cutting in. Awful people in slow cars, I guess all BMW's have that tragic problem going up hills. Late, late, late.

2. Called ahead to let staff know I'd be late. Left message. The person who checked it, did not pass on this knowledge to the other info. deskstaff. No one knew where I was.

3. I could not find the class I was supposed to visit at a local school. Spent 20 minutes filling out visitor forms and searching. Empty class, empty library, not in the gym, teacher across the hall was veryunfriendly and unhelpful (jealous maybe?), not in computer lab where they should be. Aha. Teacher forgot. Teacher librarian told me that I should really send reminders. In a perfect world...During my longest stint of full time teaching, I only had one visitor. The local RCMP officer. Only one brave enough?

4. Could not find necessary bookclub supplies at the Zellers on my lunch break. I suceeded only in setting off the alarm and purchasing chocolate. The alarm situation was stressful. The chocolate situation was calming, but guilt inducing.

I happened to be carrying a large suspicious computer bag, stuffed with books and school visit supplies. They asked me to walk through it several times. Disturbing nearby coffee drinkers (who chooses to drink coffee at a table in the mall under the glowing Zellers sign? - well, old people) I almost had to dump my belongings for the store manager, I even flashed my library nametag. This humiliation was witnessed by one other library staff member who casually walked through the gates while I was explaining (didn't even stop to help me!) and a storytime mother and child crew.

I just want to go home and crawl into my bed. Alas, 2.5 more hours....

Stiff Librarian
(in fact that might be my next blogline) - not as in dead. Simply, uptight and bent out of shape.

3 reasons I need to sign up for a self defense class...

It's been a while wee blog of mine. I've had so many postings tumbling around in my thoughts at work lately, but no opportunity to write. I'm enjoying a rainy Sunday afternoon snuggly nestled on my bed, pillows, blankets and a few glowing candles as I look out on a misty view of the water. Only the dull thud and whine of the ceaseless 'ol down south blues on my neighbor's stereo intrudes...Fine, even nice in small measures...but ugh. Supple scientist is back to Europe, and the 100 day countdown to our reunion and my move to join him begin. In the meantime... a few notes from the workplace...

Creepy Perv #1

I blogged about this fellow in April. He has been a problem- his last name is SANFORD if I ever go missing. I know this is a breech of my blogger anonymity, but I don't care. I've taken it lightly up until recently, but it crossed the line when I saw him at the mall on my lunchbreak and he began calling me by name, taunting me for ignoring him, drawing the attention of other people. I don't need some thirty-something-year old guy who dresses like an 18 year old gangster shouting me down in public. Yeesh. Comments like "you've got some body" and "are you single?" are in library fare for him. The creepy part is that he comes back even after being stonewalled and even when I say "that is not appropriate" - he knows it's wrong, bothers me when I'm alone, avoids me when there are other librarians present, seems agitated on occasion, sometimes talks in third person, muttering to himself, uses everyone's personal names, moves upstairs or downstairs depending on my location, and now comes to the library for hours every single day! I won't talk about it anymore right now because that's a waste of thought, and it gives more power to this already very aggressive person! I simply will not be bothered!

Hair-Puller

We have a fellow who is severely disabled, and comes to the library with a companion. He was at one time banned basically for pulling hair. Coming up behind a person and grabbing, pulling them backwards and on the the floor, refusing to let go. Apparently this happened to 3 or 4 people including a librarian. All of the incidents were very traumatic and involved ripped hair. Well he's back!! I am to "keep an eye on him" most "particularly when the library is busy!" Um...okay.

Lecherous Polygamist

I met a man the other day who has 17 children. He volunteered this information. Yes, he has been married 5 times. He didn't indicate if any of the marriages were concurrent. He seemed a genial, old charmer with a sparkle in his eye and lots of compliments for a young female librarian like myself. I don't mind the old guys...but when he started talking about his youngest child (I thought he was too old for a little one!!) and then how special she was after having so many...!! He also told me that she asks him to read the Bible each night, and asked me if I was familiar with the Bible. He also in the course of the conversation asked me my age and if I had any children myself or planned to...
Good grief. Looking for wife #6?