my reading schedule has been hampered as of late by a few too many projects scheduled at once, and then allergies and stuff. these are the 2 books i remember reading since my last “book of week” entry! both excellent.

the geography of bliss prompted lots of discussion in my book club, including creating a fantasy world tour of at least iceland, scandinavia, the netherlands and butan. some of the other countries mentioned in the book were hotly debated for inclusion in our tour. for instance, india and thailand didn’t get my vote: too hot!

i just finished what the dog saw. malcolm’s books and essays are always thought-provoking and a joy to read. stand outs in this collection of essays were:

the one about the inventor of the birth control pill – the one fact in this essay that hit me on the head is this: some scientists contend that biologically, women’s bodies were designed to be lactating or pregnant at all times and are actually not meant to menstruate every month as modern women do. and this may be the reason we modern women have so many female health problems and cancers. huh.

the essay entitled “late bloomers” – genius is not just for 20 year olds, and, dang, my early career could have been a lot easier if i’d have figured out that patronage thing back then!

the “something borrowed” essay exploring the varying degrees and [mis]conceptions of plagiarism and intellectual property. these pages had a date with the copy machine for my college students this upcoming winter term. the late bloomer essay was on that date also.

according to eaarth: making a life on a tough new planet we’ve fundamentally compromised the natural systems on the planet, and there’s no turning back. this book is, at first, humbling and depressing. and it was the perfect read this week with all the weird weather here in portland. one hour it’s warm and sunny, the next it’s dark cold and hailing! according to eaarth, this kind of weather is here to stay.

stick with this book though and the author outlines different ways in which we can survive the new world we’ve created. most of it centering around local economies and communities. yeah!

actually, a more accurate title for this post would be “book of several weeks ago”… but i’ve been busy with work, lucy, and teaching and have fallen behind on blogging. apologies to the 3 of you who follow this blog on a regular basis!

i’ve read 4 books now within the urban farming genre, the new strain of DIY brought upon a lot of us by necessity, so most of this book felt redundant and left me craving the better written ones i’d read previously. that is, until i read the pig section. many people, myself included, have participated in gardening and the entire lifecycle of edible plants. novella takes life -cycle and -sustenance a step further, and explores it fully.

the lengths she went to to keep her pigs happy and well-fed [nightly dumspter diving among them], and then learning to use every last piece of the pigs after slaughter [including learning how to cure the meats from a master chef, making disgusting-sounding head cheese] and the countless ways in which she participates, honors, and thoroughly understands these lives she raised and then ended in order to nourish her own was/is respect-worthy.

now, if you know my artwork, you understand that muscle, bone and flesh don’t hold much appeal for me – as subject-matter or sustenance, living or dead.

dawn recommended the elegance of the hedgehog last week, and as luck would have it a friend had it and lent it me.

my favorite quote:
“Personally I think there is only one thing to do: find the task we have been placed on this earth to do, and accomplish it as best we can, with all our strength, without making things complicated or thinking there’s anything divine about our animal nature. This is the only way we will ever feel that we have been doing something constructive when death comes to get us.”

second favorite:
“In Japanese “wabi” means an “understated form of beauty, a quality of refinementmasked by rustic simplicity.”

i got this little gem a few weeks ago and have been enjoying it a little at a time in between everything else going on. the byline is “affordable, sustainable nesting skills”. all handwritten and drawn, this little book is amazing.

i incorporate home made cleaners and gardening in my life already, but the chapter on homemade body care and first aid is a revelation. i bought my copy at buy olympia / land, and then bought a small stack of them directly from microcosm, the publisher, for gift giving this season.