reading
Wednesday, September 22, 2004
the red hat club
when we went to the harry connick, jr concert this summer, there was a whole group of ladies wearing red hats. curiousity got the better of us and we asked them “why the red hats?”
apparently these ladies are part of a 50’s and over social club. their bonding fact is that they wear red hats, and other than that, they do whatever fancies ‘em. it was pretty cool, sorta eccentric, and extremely adorable!! it looked like they were totally enjoying life. =)
so today i went to the library, and i was searching for a book called “tears of a giraffe” by Alexander McCall Smith. couldn’t find it where it was supposed to be shelved, but right in its spot was a book titled “the red hat club” by haywood smith. i picked it up solely because i remembered those lively ladies… and now that i’m at home with it, i’m loving the “warning” written by jenny joseph, which is written in the place the forward usually is. and it’s so gonna be me =)
"When I am an old woman I shall wear purple
With a red hat which doesn’t go and doesn’t suit me.
And I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves
And satin sandals, and say we’ve no money for butter.
I shall sit down on the pavement when I’m tired
And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells
And run my stick along the public railings
And make up for the sobriety of my youth.
I shall go out in my slippers in the rain
And pick flowers in other people’s gardens.
You can wear terrible shirts and grow more fat
And eat three pounds of sausages at a go
Or only bread and pickle for a week
And hoard pens and pencils and beermats and things in boxes
But now we must have clothes that keep us dry
And pay our rent and not swear in the street
And set a good example to the children.
We must have friends to dinner and read the papers.
But maybe I ought to practise a little now?
So people who know me are not too shocked and surprised
When suddenly I am old, and start to wear purple.”
Sunday, September 19, 2004
The curious incident of the dog in the night-time / Mark Haddon
i found this book through amazon - it was on a list of recommended books if you liked the da vinci code.
the curious incident of the dog in the night-time incorporates math, which i think is the bonding feature of the two books. however, this story is written from the point of view of an autistic boy who is brilliant at math but has eccentricies in other areas of life. one of the things i liked about it was that the chapters, or journal entries, were numbered by prime numbers - it started at 2, and went to 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, etc. small things like that are scattered throughout the book and i found it a fun read. since it’s written from the boy’s view point, it’s a rather easy read, but it is insightful and has math gems hidden all through it. i think you might like it!