Day Two as a Human Book

Posted on February 27, 2016 by Mary Beth Frezon

I had a good time during day two as a book in the Human Library. We were so well cared for – tshirt, lunch, beverages and snacks, gift card and cake! Thanks to all the organizers. I had great conversations with readers and many other books. Amazing stuff. If you ever have the chance to attend a Human Library I hope you’ll seize it!

My last reader of the day was my Mom – who drove herself over and did the same sort of flailing around I did when I arrived on Friday. But she got there in time and we had a nice chat about blogging. Then I skipped the closing cake and took her over to Karen’s Quilting Shop so we could fondle a bit of fabric and then we had dinner in Averill Park at Lakeview. A good time was had by all. Thanks Mom!

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Looking out in February

Posted on February 27, 2016 by Mary Beth Frezon

A line of grey blur
Across the winter Berkshires
Concealing nothing.

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Human Library at Williams College

Posted on February 27, 2016 by Mary Beth Frezon

Back to Williams College today for part two of the Human Library. Had an interesting day mostly spent talking to other books about their topics and how they came to be on the shelf. I’ll just say that there are some very brave books available to tell you about their lives and the courageous things they’ve done as well as fascinating history books and other genres.

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Entering Mordor

Posted on February 25, 2016 by Mary Beth Frezon

Maybe one does not simply walk into Mordor, but today it sure felt like a bunch of us were driving into it.

It was bright and sunny and 55°F when I left home this morning. Bright blue skies, puffy clouds after a night of deluging rain, thunder and lightning for several hours. The Kinderhook was way out of its banks.

As I got closer to the Hudson, the slant of light changed. I could see a rim of clouds ahead with slices of light hitting the top of the hills behind Guilderland. If I was going to invent a gadget for the car it would be a camera that I could direct with my eyes, to take a photo of what I’m looking at, without having to do all the steps. Look, “Click”, done.

Anyway, black black black ridge of clouds with a fairly dark gray ridge above it. And big ploppy drops of rain falling out of them both. All the headlights came on and the windshield wipers.

I pulled into the very wet parking lot and sat a moment watching people run into the mall and then I grabbed my stuff and did the same. Spent part of the morning remembering my trip to Mordor last year.

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What are they doing with their hands?

Posted on February 24, 2016 by Mary Beth Frezon

Oh the research we do*. (And this is why I donate to Wikipedia)

It was also a gesture of formal submission or pledge of allegiance of man to man or as a diplomatic gesture. The gesture would indicate submission by kissing the signet ring (a form of seal worn as a jewelry ring), the person’s symbol of authority. The gesture was common in the European upper class throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. It started to disappear in the 20th century, to be replaced by the egalitarian hand shake.

but wait there’s more! At the bottom of this page it lists all SORTS of things you might do to show something towards another person:

Friendly gestures: A-OK Air kiss Applause Cheek kiss Dap Elbow bump Eskimo kiss Fist bump Hand heart Handshake Hand wave Hat tip High five Hongi ILY sign Kiss Liberian snap handshake Namaste Pound hug Shaka Thumbs signal

Gestures of respect: Adab Bow Curtsey Gadaw Genuflection Hand-kiss Kowtow Kuji-in Mano Mudra Namaste Prostration Sampeah Sembah Schwurhand Wai Zolgokh

Salutes: Bellamy salute Nazi salute Raised fist Roman salute Scout sign and salute Three-finger salute Two-finger salute Vulcan salute Zogist salute

Celebratory gestures …

* In an on-going NYTimes review of this season’s Downton Abbey, there were various tidbits of information categorized under repeated headings and the one I like best and plan to adapt is “I Google so you don’t have to:

I Google so you don’t have to: Mr. Wackford Squeers, the villainous one-eyed headmaster in Dickens’s “Nicholas Nickleby.” (And if Bertie’s mum is such a fright, maybe Edith is better off in the long run?)

Department of other stuff:

except I think I’ll do “I wiki so you don’t have to” or whatever is needed.

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