On the Calculation of Volume - I, by Solvej Ball. Pub 2020. Translation by Barbara Haveland, pub 2024. On the Calculation of Volume - II, by Solvej Ball. Pub 2020. Translation by Barbara Haveland, pub 2024. I found these when looking at the Booker International list for 2025. I was interested as a time stories... Continue Reading →
Item #32: Fridge magnets
Most people use the face of their fridge* as a kind of bulletin board, photo album, directory, and home for miscellanea: kids artwork, school and vacation photos, take-out menus, business cards for plumbers and electricians, bills, brochures for events, timetables, mementos, oven mitts, note pads, recipes, utensils. While most of those items are ephemeral or... Continue Reading →
Item #31: Robyn Mug
In a holiday tidy-up of my desk, I repatriated some mugs from their roles as pen-holders to their proper place in the kitchen cupboard. This one I call the Robyn Mug for obvious reasons. The mug comes from one of those paint-your-own-pottery places called Crankpots (the Vancouver location is no longer operating). As a team... Continue Reading →
Item #30 – Cru menu
This piece of paper is a treasure for two reasons – the event and the location. Cru Restaurant was a favourite for several years and for even more reasons. The ambiance – comfortable, intimate, not too loud, not too large – made it a treat to go for dinner. The menu and wine list were,... Continue Reading →
The President’s Hat, by Antoine Laurain. Book report extra #7 (2022)
The President's Hat, by Antoine Laurain. Pub 2012. Translation by Gallic Books, 2013. This is a wonderful semi-modern fable of the power of talismans over fate, luck, and confidence. The titular president is François Mitterand, President of France from 1981-1995, and he was well known for his sartorial elegance, especially his scarf and the also-titular... Continue Reading →
Item #29: Salt Rock
Today brought a few reminders that I’m way behind on my 100 objects project. The second occurred when I looked back at my list so far and saw that it seemed that I’d missed a number in my inventory, resulting in a review of all items and several trips down memory lanes, cul-de-sacs, and back... Continue Reading →
My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean
Annual #tellastory day and Pop’s birthday, and so another pop tale. I don’t recall exactly when it arrived in our home, but at some point when I was young, Pop acquired a banjo. He would spend hours in the evenings and weekends plinking and plunking away, often playing along with something on the stereo or... Continue Reading →
Good riddance, 2020
Like most people I'm sure, I'll be glad to flip the calendar from 2020. I started this blog in 2010, at the end of (for me) a tumultuous year. 2020 has been less personally challenging but still no picnic. I tried for a few years doing a year-end sum-up of things that made me laugh/cry/get... Continue Reading →
The Goldfinch, by Donna Tartt. Book report #15 (2020)
The Goldfinch, by Donna Tartt. Pub 2013. I've had this book for a while now, a recommendation from a friend. It has been avoided due to its size - >700 pages - and that it is a "check-out" book (as in, one that I frequently see amongst the pulp fiction collections at the grocery store).... Continue Reading →
Item #27: Grapefruit spoons
Prior to 2007, I had never seen such a thing before, didn’t even know they existed. These quirky little things are grapefruit spoons, designed for citrus aficionados who like to scoop their fruit with ease. My grampa was such a one. He was a man who took care with his appearance – almost always appearing... Continue Reading →
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