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tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32928962925672122020-08-29T03:47:20.343-04:00überfrauA blog of whatever I'm doing nowAnnhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-52126462358363879392020-08-16T18:16:00.004-04:002020-08-16T18:20:37.725-04:00don't say it

Do you know the feeling of being aware of something that you can't tell anyone? Not that you can't express it -- the words are there, accessible, and specific. No, it's that it's too precious to express -- the way you can recognize a loved one's footsteps approaching because of the way they shuffle their feet, the way your children gesticulate when telling stories, or your best friend's quirky penmanship that results in capital letter Es in the middle of words. Being aware that you are aware will change it. These are the things that, once expressed, will cease. May you have many of these things to ponder, and may you keep them to yourself. Sometimes things not expressed are said the best.
Annhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-55697708471889304092020-01-01T10:33:00.001-05:002020-01-01T10:42:26.278-05:00A New DirectionOver the course of time, I have had quite a few different blogs with different themes and styles. My domain (www.uberfrau.net) is up for renewal. I thought about not renewing it because I haven't updated this blog since April. In the end, I decided that I'm too sentimental to let it go. I've had this website in all of its various forms for about 20 years.

As you can tell (see posts below), I gave up summarizing books back in April. I decided quickly that I preferred reading to summarizing the books in writing afterward. The entire process of writing my thoughts on the books was slowing down my reading pace! As soon as I finish a book, I have another one or two lined up to read next. Stopping to summarize and offer my pithy (I wish) thoughts was a drag.

On average, I finished a book every 4.93 days in 2019. Some of these were audiobooks (they still totally count), but most were not (I say that because audiobooks don't really count - lol). Some people read many more books than this, but others ask me how on Earth I manage to read that many books. So, I'll tell you some of how this is accomplished:

I am a quick reader.

I always have at least two books going at once. It seems to help my pace if one is fiction and the other is non-fiction. That way if I get burned out on one, a complete change tends to kick start me again.

I frequent the library -- weekly trip at least.

I wake up early to read.

I read instead of watching TV. I do watch TV, but some of what used to be TV time is now reading time.

Sometimes I read on my lunch break.

I have a reading buddy. Together we read 28 books this year. We take turns picking books so it never gets stale.

I listen to people for recommendations and get on rabbit trails.

I don't usually let myself trudge through a book I am not enjoying.

I keep a paper journal of my reading -- book ideas, books I've finished, notes.

So, where does überfrau go from here? I'm not sure. I know that I won't keep summarizing everything I read. I also know that I won't keep up with documenting every vacation, event, remodel, fitness attempt, etc. But, I do like to try new things. And I like to document progress. So, stay tuned. You never know what you'll find at this blog.

Please notice my new and evolving side bar (look right) that has new links.

Annhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-48734274834390489042019-04-25T19:33:00.001-04:002019-04-25T19:33:36.578-04:00The Collected Schizophrenias

As far as diagnoses go, there's nothing more frightening that schizophrenia -- at least in my book. Some could argue that cancer is scary -- it is certainly a tyrant, but schizophrenia's symptoms can be so unpredictable, bizarre, and varied that is scares me more. In addition, people with schizophrenia may not even know they are ill, which makes any kind of treatment very challenging.

As a person trained to work with people with disabilities, I have been taught to use "person first" language. Did you notice above I said, "people with schizophrenia" and not "schizophrenics?" This is evidently a rule you can break if you are a person with schizophrenia as Esmé Weijun Wang is. She makes the point in the book that even the language we use about the disease shows that we fear it -- there is no adjective for cancer that relates to people. So, you may say that someone has cancer, but you wouldn't say that they are cancer or even cancerous. But, you may say that someone is schizophrenic or bipolar.

This fascinating book takes us through her history with schizophenia in a series of essays. We learn about Cotard's Delusion where the person with the delusion believes that they are already dead. And Capgras Delusion where the person believes that their loved ones have been replaced with an identical impostor or very-convincing robot. While rare, these things happen! And these people are sometimes involuntarily committed, which the author finds mostly unhelpful due to some unspoken rules about commitment, namely that the committed is never to be believed.

In general, I was captivated by the book, and I finished it very quickly. In the end, she gets into some theoretical concepts about schizophrenia possibly resulting in psychic abilities or connections to other (possibly meaningful) realities, which I could have done without. However, I would recommend the book to anyone looking for first person perspective on living with schizophrenia.

For those keeping track:
-I got this book from my public library through the process of wandering around the new non-fiction section until I found something that looked interesting.Annhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-63488270772366129542019-04-25T19:03:00.002-04:002019-04-25T19:04:14.572-04:00Holy Envy

I am a religious person. Being spiritual (and not religious) is something that people take pride in. Religion has a bad name, and I get it. I wish I could say that I'm one of those people who is spiritual and not religious -- that I'm in a relationship with God, not a regimen. However, the fact remains that I am religious to matter how you define it. I'm routined. I'm predictable. I find comfort in schedules. I'm religious about my morning routine, my diet, my favorite baseball team, and my worship of God.

While I have chosen what I believe to be the most meaningful and true path to God (and I'd be happy to share why I believe this to anyone who asks), I do respect other attempts at the same. Even though I do not necessarily believe that these are legitimate ways to God, there is something to learn from each path. Holy Envy, written by an ordained episcopal priest, is about respecting each path and learning from other religious traditions.

I didn't take notes on this book because it was an audiobook and I was driving during most of it. I remember being inspired in parts and dismissing other parts as odd or not useful. For the most part, I enjoyed it and learned a few things. I believe I left with more questions than answers, and that is OK.

For those keeping track:
-I read this book as part of my two-person book club
-I listened to the audiobook format on my Hoopla app
-I originally heard about this book on NPRAnnhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-25308699296717715372019-04-25T18:48:00.002-04:002019-04-25T18:50:26.137-04:00Thrillers -- Not My Thing

When it comes to television shows and movies, I like thrillers. Not horror; that is totally different. Thrillers are usually focused on some psychological torment of the main character. I haven't read very many thriller books, and maybe this was just the wrong one.

Just One Look by Harlan Coben was a book I stumbled upon on Facebook where some mutual friends of mine were discussing the book. It wasn't directly recommended to me; I picked it up because their discussion about it was interesting to me.

The story centers around a woman who had been injured at a stampede at a rock concert a few years earlier. After her husband disappears, we realize that nearly all of the major players have something to do with this concert. As events transpire, the reader follows her struggle to put all of the pieces together while questioning the meaning of it all.

In my opinion, this book was mostly keeping track of one character after another, and in the end, I finished it, but I didn't really care.Annhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-77120039737427827382019-03-30T12:05:00.000-04:002019-03-30T12:05:40.456-04:00The Not-Quite States of America

I listened to a fascinating book recently -- The Not-Quite States of America by Doug Mack. This book was about the United States territories. As a lover of non-fiction books, I considered this the perfect type of book for entertainment purposes because it covers a subject of which everyone is aware, but about which very few people know. However, as a book club book, it was lacking because the contents resulted in the learning of facts, rather than discussion points -- though there were a few.

Prior to reading this book, the only things I knew about the territories is that they existed, that Puerto Rico and Guam were two of them, and that my co-worker has a heck of a time at the local license branch with people understanding that her husband from Puerto Rico is able to get a driver's license.

Now I know there are five territories administered by the United States -- American Samoa (I also learned how to pronounce this), Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. There are slight differences between each of them as incorporated territories, unincorporated territories, and commonwealths. If people are born in certain territories, they are United States Citizens while others are considered "nationals," rather than citizens.

I found it interesting that there is a general lack of concern/interest in the territories by residents of the 50 states. The author describes it like a type of forgetfulness. These territories were acquired in different ways throughout the years, but are generally attributed (by the author) to the phase of American history that was obsessed with manifest destiny and empire building. At this point, the USA has acquired them and generally forgotten about them. On the same token, the residents of the territories seem to have an irresolute attitude toward the USA. The author visited each territory in preparation for the writing of the book and found that most residents don't seem to have an opinion, or there are strong contradictory opinions as to whether each territory should be independent, fully incorporated as a state, or remain in the current arrangement.

In general, the book was a repository of cool and interesting facts about the territories -- population, languages spoken, history of native people, food and customers, odd ways they interact with the USA, etc. As a small takeaway, I learned that regular US postage rates apply to the territories. Something a little more substantial is how the book forced me to reflect about what the purpose is of these territories, which seems to often end up with a military consideration.

For anyone keeping track:
-This book was read as part of my two-person book club
-I used the hoopla app to borrow this book in audio from my local libraryAnnhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-12156953243258696812019-03-30T11:15:00.002-04:002019-03-30T11:21:50.203-04:00Follow the Leader

Various challenges at school have prompted my kids to do quite a lot of reading lately. It started with the local library hosting a Battle of the Books challenge for fourth graders. My son's school decided to assemble a team. As part of this challenge, he was given a list of books to read, all of which were out of his comfort zone. Prior to that time, he only liked to read non-fiction books -- Guinness record books, books about caves, Weird But True books, etc. During his preparation for the challenge, he read and re-read the five recommended books and even talked to me about them.

Later, the library hosted a Family Battle of the Books, but we were not able to participate due to travel plans. However, we decided to read one of the books -- Because of Mr. Terupt. What a good book, and good material for kids to read and process.

The book is written from the perspective of several kids in Mr. Terupt's class. Each student has some issues to work through, sometimes with family and sometimes with each other. The book takes us through the meaningful ways in which Mr. Terupt is able to see to the heart of the problems and help them work through their issues.

Lots of things to process and heal -- family grudges, bullying, resistance. I am so glad that I decided to read this since discussing these issues with the kids will come easier in fictional character form. Even if they haven't experienced these issues so far, it will be helpful for them to have this book under their belts as a vantage point for how typical childhood issues may play out in their lives and in the lives of their friends and classmates.

I hope to continue to follow my kids as they lead me toward good book recommendations. By the way, my son's class won the Battle of the Books.

For those keeping track:
-I got this book from Marion Public Library
-This book was recommended by my sonAnnhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-4211532331641040072019-03-24T17:22:00.001-04:002019-03-24T17:25:05.184-04:00The Road by Cormac McCarthy

Since this book won the Pulitzer and has been made into a movie, it is likely that most people are already familiar with it. However, I was a little late to the game on this one. The Road is a post-apocalyptic story of a father and son trying to survive. They try to beat winter by heading south while attempting to do so without being noticed by others, some of whom have turned to cannibalism to survive. It's bleak.

The manner and style of writing is unique as there are no chapter delineations, no quotation marks, no character names, and infrequent apostrophes. In that way, the style of writing mirrors the unfolding of the story -- going and going with few interruptions, going south, getting to the end, stunted conversation. Just survive. Get through. Simplify things.

I found that I moved quickly through the book, which is the opposite of what happens when the chapters are long. Instead, this had no chapters but frequent spaces or gaps in the text, which made it seem OK to stop reading anywhere. This is a freedom I don't usually afford myself.

The relationship between father and son is touching, especially as a parent. However, being a parent likely made this book a little more difficult to swallow because of the hard truth of the dire situation the characters faced.

In case anyone is keeping track:
-I borrowed this book
-This book was recommended to meAnnhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-84570111641282949402019-03-16T16:01:00.000-04:002019-03-16T16:10:40.928-04:00First Audiobook of the Year

these bottles are supposed to represent the chemistry in the book :)

When I was in college, I could always justify spending money on books. Perhaps it was the expensive textbooks that numbed me to the cost. In any case, I decided that books were educational and I should never feel guilty about buying them or having more. The expense was justified for reasons of education, but also for reasons of comparison. The money I spent on books gave me a much better feeling than when I spent money on fast food or tchotchkes. The irony of the situation is that now that I have more money, I am reluctant to spend it on things I can get for free. In college, had I not realized there were libraries?

That preamble explains why I "read" my first audiobook of the year! The Flavia DeLuce books that were recommended to me were available for free through my library's Overdrive app. The book, A Red Herring Without Mustard, was delightful as an audiobook. In fact, I am uncertain as to whether I would have liked a print version as well. The narrator did a great job, and I really got into it. She did adult voices as well as male and female voices. She even used a different voice as narrator vs character (Flavia is the narrator).

For those of you who don't know, Flavia DeLuce, is an 11-year old sleuth/detective/chemist. While this is the only book in the series I've read, I gather that her shtick is to play dumb, act like a normal 11-year old, and run around solving mysteries and doing chemistry. She accomplishes this through equal amounts of manipulation and bravery.

The story isn't a thriller, but it also isn't predictable. The reader spends a lot of time getting to know the character and her backstory. I won't write about the mystery itself as I wouldn't want to ruin it, but if you can get your ears on this book, I would recommend it.Annhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-23176779178599191912019-03-16T15:41:00.002-04:002019-03-16T15:42:48.198-04:00Permission to Quit

I reserve the right to quit a book. Yes, I have Clarissa syndrome (in early remission). This is where I trudge through a book even though it is long and dull. Sometimes, that doesn't even have to be the reason. Sometimes, I finish reading books that were not remotely similar to how I thought they would be or how they were described to me. I am slowly being cured, and I have a goal this year to quit at least 13 books. Of course, if I find all of the books to be compelling, I won't quit them. But, with as many as I start, I think 13 would be the minimum quit number.

You may have noticed that I am keeping a sidebar list of "Abandoned Books," which will help to keep me accountable for this goal. Also helping me to let is this article, which was sent to me on Twitter. I found it amusing to read about why that blogger chose to quit the books on her list (I, too, quit Ulysses once. Why do I own it?)

This post is for all of your weary readers out there. Stop torturing yourselves. Let's all agree to start a Marie Kondo thing regarding our reading time. If it doesn't bring you joy or compel you, chuck it.Annhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-51913493581405141122019-03-16T15:31:00.001-04:002019-03-16T15:31:16.821-04:00Radical Candor by Kim Scott

When it comes to work, do we really want to know what our co-workers think of us? The answer for Kim Scott in her book Radical Candor is yes. This book is full of guidance on how to function as a productive team. The bottom line in successful teams for her is to care personally and to challenge directly. If you care personally without challenging directly, this will lead to what she refers to as ruinous empathy. In other words, what good is caring about someone, if you don't ever say what needs to be said? If you neither care nor challenge, you demonstrate manipulative insincerity, and people can see through that instantly. If you challenge directly without caring, you display obnoxious aggression. Nobody wants to work for or with this person.

The challenge is to attempt radical candor, which is where you care and challenge. In this way, you produce an environment that is ideal for teamwork, growth, and accomplishment. The book goes on to explain ways that this can be achieved with personal examples sprinkled throughout. Overall, it was a good read, but focused a lot on the business world, which doesn't seem to always translate a small government office. The other work related book I read this year had a similar vibe.

There were some takeaways for me as a new manager:

Checking in with people is my job. Avoidance, whether intentional or not, is disastrous.

Praise is no good unless it is specific, and nobody knows what you're thinking until you say it.

Ask for feedback from others before you start dishing it out.

Keeping "dirt under your fingernails" is a very effective way of showing you care.

A manager should actively look for places to let go (choose battles).

Always be wary of only getting good news -- it probably means you don't know the full story.

Listen

In case anyone is keeping track:

-I got this book at the Marion Public Library

-This book was recommended to me
-I read this as part of my two-person book club

-The book has a website
Annhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-50976000001760581742019-03-04T18:34:00.001-05:002019-03-04T18:34:33.555-05:00Schooled

When I was a kid, the term "schooled" was used to describe a situation wherein someone was handily bested by someone else. For example, when Larry Bird would make some of his pass or shot fakes and the defender would buckle his knees and fall down, Larry would "school" this individual by easily notching two points. The inference is that they were taken to school and shown how it is done -- this applies mostly to sports analogies, but it doesn't stop there.

I finished Educated by Tara Westover over a week ago, but I couldn't bring myself to summarize it. I still don't think I can summarize it very well, but this is my attempt. This book is about Tara's childhood. She grew up in rural Idaho and didn't go to school. Even the family's attempts at home schooling were described as feeble and fleeting. She had no birth certificate. There were many unhealthy and manipulative family dynamics, both in religious and basic interpersonal terms.

Tara was independent, but craved the acceptance of her parents and siblings -- most of all she craved education. She would see the school bus pass by her house and want to join the other kids in the classroom. She found moments in her life to sneak away and read and write.

Eventually she got an education, and it changed everything. Through her insecurities, ignorances, fractured family relationships, and crises of faith, she emerged victorious -- broken and repaired perhaps. She equated her education with a conversion experience, and in the end, she schooled all of her doubters.

In case anyone is keeping track:
-I got this book on recommendation by Bill Gates
-I read this book as part of my two-person book club
-I had to wait a fairly long time for this book to become available at Marion Public Library, and someone had it on hold after me

Annhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-71039240953212304372019-02-26T18:07:00.001-05:002019-02-26T18:07:06.972-05:00Travels with Charley

Maps are not reality at all -- they can be tyrants

We don't take a trip; the trip takes us. John Steinbeck wrote Travels with Charley in an attempt to traverse the countryside with his black French poodle contemplating whether there is anything that makes America distinct and if things had changed since the time he started writing about America (twenty years prior).

Mr. Steinbeck related that part of his reasoning for taking the trip was motivated by the ageing process. He sneered at the idea of taking it easy later in life just to die slowly. "My wife married a man; I saw no reason she should inherit a baby," he says.

His trek started in Long Island and ended up taking him through almost 40 states. While he took a lot paper and even a typewriter along with him, he acknowledged not using it much and the book reads more like a book of reflections rather than a journal giving specifics about the trip.

Differences were noted and discussed between each region, with some threads of similarity throughout. He rightly noted that all Americans have more in common with each other than the Welsh do with the English even though they live in closer proximity than is possible with many parts of America and even though they have been living near one another for a much longer time period. He attributes this to the restlessness that is common to all Americans -- we move around, explore, and interact.

Montana was his favorite state, and Texas seemed to be his least favorite. One of the last observations he had in the book was related to how clever humans are -- clever enough to split an atom, but not clever enough to live in peace with each other.

Travels with Charley was published mid-1962 and reached #1 on the New York Times Best Seller List.

In case anyone is keeping track:
-My mom recommended this book to me
-I found this book on my bookshelves at home
-I didn't realize it was a non-fiction book until I started reading it
Annhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-32584863933865346022019-02-16T19:28:00.002-05:002019-02-16T19:36:31.004-05:00Death by Meeting

I wish this was my conference room

Before Christmas I interviewed for a new job. The role for which I was interviewing had more responsibility and would require me to flex a bit more leadership muscle. At that time, I began to ask for recommendations from people who read books on leadership. I was not able to finish the first one I started because it was largely based on political examples from the 1980s. While I am sure the concepts are still relevant, the context made it difficult for me to digest.

Death By Meeting was the next one I tried. This is actually a fiction book that describes itself as a leadership "fable," which is designed to show you the ways that meetings can go wrong and how to better handle them. A lot of the book goes through best practices on structuring meetings and the purposes and values of different types and lengths of meetings.

Like dominoes falling, a series of events occurred after my interview in December that resulted in me eventually accepting the role of area supervisor, which was not the original position for which I interviewed. As area supervisor, I will be conducting monthly meetings with the team. However, the structure suggested in this book will not be possible for me to implement due to the schedule and locations of the virtual staff members. Even though I will not be able to execute meetings as outlined in the book, I still believe there are some good takeaways to remember in order to make meetings tolerable and productive. For those interested, the author suggests having a five minute standing (literally) check-in style meeting at the beginning of each work day. After that, he suggests weekly tactical meetings that have no agenda and last no more than 45 minutes, monthly strategic meetings where only 2 major topics are hashed out in detail for a maximum of about 2 hours, and quarterly off-site meetings that last for longer periods of time and get into greater detail.

For a book with the title Death by Meeting, you may assume he would advocate for fewer or shorter meetings. Instead, he advocates for more productive and focused meetings that result in fewer emails after the fact (that can and usually are misinterpreted). Good meetings will also cut down on what he calls "sneaker time," which is required in order to walk around and talk to everyone individually later about something that wasn't covered sufficiently in the meeting.

Conducting my staff meeting next Friday will be a new experience for me at the office, but I have facilitated meetings in the past when I was leader of Harvest of Talents. Perhaps I should have read this book prior to that!

In case anyone is keeping track:
-I got this book from the Jackson Library at Indiana Wesleyan University
-This book was recommended to meAnnhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-18181252230934111622019-02-10T17:43:00.000-05:002019-02-10T17:43:24.680-05:00A Lot of Sorrow; A Lot of Hope

Reading is for learning -- that's what I've always said. I watch television and movies to have fun and zone out; I read books to learn something. Until recently, this has taken the form of mostly reading non-fiction as I understood it to be more educational than fiction. But, I was wrong. A Thousand Splendid Suns is a novel written in 2007 and set in Afghanistan.

This novel takes the reader through the head spinning actual historical scuffles in Afghanistan in the years prior to and slightly after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Most of it was regrettably unfamiliar to me, but the putting faces and names to these events (though fiction) helped me to learn about these events in a way that I never would have without the fictional setting.

Much of the book was horrifying -- brutality, violence, oppression. Last year, one of the books I read dealt, in part, with the statistics surrounding women's rights and education (See Factfulness by Hans Rosling). While neither Factfulness nor A Thousand Splendid Suns is about the topic of women's rights, they synergestically formed a foundation for me of how bleak and hopeless society can be when women are oppressed and uneducated. Stifling powerlessness was conveyed in these pages when the women in the book were not allowed to leave their homes without a man, laugh, or make eye contact.

There are so many universal themes in this book -- forgiveness, motherhood, sisterhood, what "home" means, family vs political vs religious ties. My summary of these themes would not do the book justice. All I can say is that they were beautiful -- like a splendid sunrise. This book is a great read, and it touched me. I highly recommend it. The name of the book comes from a 17th Century poem about Kabul, Afghanistan. I'll end with the part quoted in the book:

One could not count the moons that shimmer on her roofs,
Or the thousand splendid suns that hide behind her walls
In case anyone is keeping track:
-I read this book as part of my two-person book club
-I got this book from Marion Public Library. They have two copies.
-This book was recommended to me, but I can't remember by whom. Let me know if it was you.

Annhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-78501765613908149262019-02-02T11:13:00.002-05:002019-03-16T16:10:59.722-04:00Cold Shower Required

this picture is supposed to depict me trying to read this book without touching it

Lady Chatterley's Lover by D. H. Lawrence -- I see now why this one was once banned material. When I decided to read this, my thinking was that it was about time for a novel, and I was in the mood for a classic. I got out my tablet and searched on the Hoopla app for a classic (Hoopla is free for me using my public library card - kudos to Marion Public Library). I had heard of the book, but I didn't know anything about it and had never seen the movie. From the title, I considered that there would likely be a love affair. However, as a classic, I figured that the descriptions and terminology would be somewhat veiled and vague, perhaps in the mode of Clarissa, which took 900 or so pages to eventually lead the reader to infer that the protagonist had been raped.

So, let me say this: This book contained the most descriptive erotic encounter(s) that I have ever read in my life. Furthermore, I have to give credit to the author for being able to write about this with not only precision, but emotion. The book made me very uncomfortable, but I am bad at quitting books.

I kept reading because I felt that the descriptions were necessary (if a little over the top) to portray one of the major themes of the book, which is that it takes both the mind and the body to be truly fulfilled. (I also thought each time that each description was probably the last). There are different types of fulfilment presented in the book, both in what is described as well as what is left out. In one touching scene, Lady Chatterley is visiting a new mother and is captivated by the infant child and its relationship to its mother. As she is unable to have children with her husband (he sustained a war injury), this is presented as one type of fulfilment that she feels she will never have. Furthermore, Lady Chatterley's husband seeks fulfilment in his writing and his work as a coal baron -- and she seeks fulfilment in other men.

As I reflect on this book, it is clear to me that these ways in which the characters sought fulfilment were not promoted or demonized by the author -- they were just means of showing how each person seeks their own satisfaction. As the characters fulfilled themselves in various ways, the readers see the consequences for everyone else -- Mr. Chatterley's position as a coal mine owner posed him against the working classes. Lady Chatterley's desire for physical fulfilment meant that she would cause emotional pain to both her husband and her lover's wife. Dissatisfaction also occurs regularly in the book -- almost whimsically as the characters each seem to resent each other and even themselves as they seek their own means of satisfaction at the expense of others and the fulfilment derived from solitude -- at times they resented what they obtained afterword even though they felt compelled to seek it in the first place.

In the end, I think each reader is left to draw their own conclusion about whether the hedonism involved with self-fulfilment is worth it or not. I didn't change my mind about any of this, but it did give me a chance to think about these things and reinforce what I already knew -- there can be fulfilment in work, exercise, projects, learning, parenting, hobbies, and even solitude -- and none of them have to or should be bothersome to anyone else. Additionally, one type of pleasure can even lead to another -- when you take care of your body, even your mind feels better and more energetic. This, in turn, leads to the mental desire to be involved in more activities, thereby benefiting your physical body in return.

As I prudish tendencies, I do not think I would recommend this book to anyone -- just read my summary and take it from there.

In case anyone is keeping track:
-I read this book on my tablet (as an ebook) via the Hoopla app provided by Marion Public Library
-I chose this book by browsing through the classics sectionAnnhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-4732651597500174832019-01-29T20:59:00.000-05:002019-01-29T21:02:33.024-05:00Impossible Owls

In general, essays are long enough to make a point, but short enough to make for easy reading. Unlike short stories, they don't require me to suspend disbelief in order to feign concern for characters, nor am I left to make up my own denouement just for the sake of making it short. A collection of essays isn't necessarily cohesive, yet it requires its readers to consider whether it achieves some continuity.

Impossible Owls by Brian Phillips is a collection of essays on various topics. Right away, I was dismayed to find myself reading an essay based on the Iditarod because I am perpetually cold and Brian Phillips is a good writer. If you're ever hot on a summer day and need a little psychological relief from the summer oppression, pick up this book and read the first essay for its description of the setting.

The other essays were about sumo wrestling, extraterrestrial visits to Earth, Russia, tigers, television, the British royal family, and the fascinating story of Lydie Marland.

Coincidentally, the chapter about Russia gave a succinct summary of The Overcoat by Gogol, which is the book and author heavily referenced in The Namesake, which I read earlier this year. I also read a book about coincidences! There were no indications ahead of time that these books were related in any way. Originally, I planned to read The Overcoat, but Mr. Phillips's synopsis made that unnecessary. In order for my reading to suggest other reading, I will likely choose a different title by Gogol in the future, possibly The Nose.

In many ways, continuity is achieved in this collection. The essay about the royal family being admired from afar is contrasted with the essay about Lydie Marland where she is temporarily admired from afar and then watched with disbelief and horror as her life takes a series of odd turns (this is described as the "new cannibalism" where your private life is exploited and can happen in people we idolize as well as people we shun). There is also a nice contrast in his description of the vast undeveloped territory in Alaska vs the dense urbanism of Tokyo. Obviously owls are a part of the cohesion as well -- I remember them being mentioned in all but one essay. When they appear, it is with mystery and wonder -- in dreams or as omen bearers. In the end, we were cautioned us against constant learning without getting the whole picture with Lydie Marland's disjointed magazine clippings and diaries as an example. It's only possible to keep learning and to try to synthesize information, which is something the author stretches us to do in this collection of essays.

In case anyone is keeping track:
-I got this book from the Marion Public Library through my method of standing in the new non-fiction section and looking for something interesting
-I read this book as part of my two-person book club
-3/8 books I've finished so far this year have been written by people named Brian or Bryan

Annhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-60026897605485540562019-01-21T20:43:00.003-05:002019-01-21T20:43:31.754-05:00The Church in Exile

I first encountered Brian Zahnd in 2014 after I watched a debate about Calvanism online. Brian was representing the side that argued that unconditional predestination is incongruent with the way God is revealed in the Bible. Although I haven't watched that debate in almost five years, I remember thinking that Brian made some great points and came across well. I've been following him on twitter ever since. Since that time, he has written a few books, but I have never felt compelled to read any of them until now.

Postcards from Babylon was just released a week ago (1/14/19). The book's main thesis is that America is more of a modern Babylon than a modern Israel. Brian cites many examples from history and the Bible to support his position. His views are based largely on Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, which he refers to throughout the book. That sermon was not easy to hear at the time it was delivered, and should make modern American Christians reflect whether we are living up to its words and mandates.

Mr. Zahnd quotes Stanley Hauerwas several times in this book, and Resident Aliens seems to be this book's prequel in some ways. This book will not be comfortable for many readers, especially if you have come to conflate modern Christianity as an arm of American politics. He asserts that "every western power after Constantine has at some point succumbed to the Siren seduction of empire and has conflated Christianity and nationalism into a single syncretic religion."

It's no good trying to figure out which side of the political aisle the author represents. The fact is that, like Hauerwas, he attempts to be separate from the culture -- like an Israelite in exile in Babylon. He favors peace, life, forgiveness, and healing.

My views may never completely line up with the author's, but he certainly made me think about my loyalties and what really matters -- God's kingdom.

This perspective doesn't mean we have to have a disdainful antagonism toward America any more than it meant Daniel had to have a disdainful antagonism toward Babylon. But it does mean we must always be prepared to spend a night in the lion's den if our allegiance to national interest comes into conflict with our allegiance to God's kingdom -- and we should operate from the assumption that from time to time these allegiances will come into conflict.
 For those keeping track:
-I bought this book using the Kindle app for my tablet
-I heard about this book on twitter
Annhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-63520379434018768832019-01-20T19:38:00.003-05:002019-01-20T19:38:40.455-05:00The Improbability Principle by David J. Hand

The Improbability Principle by David J. Hand attempts to explain (as the subtitle tells us) why "coincidences, miracles, and rare events happen every day". This book caught my attention because I find myself wondering about this topic a lot. As a person with quite a few odd coincidences to my name, I find myself making theories about why some of this has happened.

Prior to reading this book, I made some guesses about what I thought might be included in this book. While my little theories were not stated so nicely, I am happy to report that many of them appeared here -- and much more was included that I didn't see coming.

Written by a professor emeritus of mathematics, this book was less of a narrative than I would prefer. I found myself zoning out when specifics of the numbers were discussed and rejoining the party when the summary was made regarding the relevance of the numbers. The author uses many examples of tossing dice -- certain types of dice (I never realized there were so many), certain combinations of dice, certain numbers of dice throws, etc. It became a little tedious for me on that point. But, other, really interesting points were made, which I will summarize here:

Part of what makes it look like coincidences occur more than they should (in our perception) relates to the way the human mind looks for patterns. There are times when we attribute more to a scenario than it warrants due to our tendency to see patterns, to generalize, to count near hits as hits, and ambiguity in the starting point.

Sometimes coincidences happen because something simply is going to happen. After considering the billions of different things that could happen, it is only natural to assume that some of the things will make for odd connections of interrelated players. In fact, given enough tries, we would expect that something coincidental would eventually happen and it would be even stranger if nothing of this nature ever occurred. "With truly large numbers, any outrageous thing is likely to happen." With this, you can think of the bell curve. While outliers are rare, the tails extend in each direction due to the fact that there are some cases of the extreme nature.

In a nice little twist, I noticed several coincidences while reading this book:

Monday night, when I took my son swimming, we made a detour stop on the way home at the Jackson Library and noticed a book on the new book shelf about coincidences.

This book mentioned several concepts that I became familiar with while reading Future Babble last year. I believe it was that book (and this one) that discussed the fallacy of the "hot hand" in sports.

Our inability to accept what we believe to be an unlikely coincidence has led to several wrongful convictions, which dovetails nicely with a book I read earlier this year.

This book also mentioned Daniel Kahneman. I read one of his books in 2017. This would not be unusual if I had read all books of one type, but my reading choices are quite varied as you can see from my 2018 list.

In case anyone is keeping track:
-I borrowed this book from a co-worker.
-This book was recommended to me.

Annhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-4555925967143147002019-01-17T20:36:00.000-05:002019-02-16T19:37:09.075-05:00What's in a Name?

The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri is a novel about a culture, a family, a boy growing up and growing into his name, and his lovers. It's a book with an omniscient, third person narrator that switches perspectives. It was said in the book that the purpose of reading is to travel without moving an inch. This novel embodies that sentiment rather well. I will try to be as vague as possible for those who want to read this book, but you may want to return and read this later if you ever plan to read this one.

The story follows a couple's life in the United States after their arranged marriage in India. As can be expected, they are awkward in getting to know one another, getting to know a new culture, and facing parenting together while they try to retain their cultural identity for their children. The book's title comes from this couple's struggle to name their firstborn, a son. The family custom dictated that the maternal grandmother would name the child, but circumstances prevented it. The couple chose what they thought was a temporary name, and always reserved the right to choose a "good name" later. Their parenting false start (so to speak) was magnified by American culture's lack of understanding of the process by which Bengalis typically name their children, and was a source of confusion and resentment by the boy as he attempted to life a typical American life.

As we travel through this novel without moving an inch, we see simple but meaningful glimpses into life as a Bengali. Food was chosen as the representative picture of this post because I believe it is showcased well in this book. We don't just learn about how foods are prepared and what the various dishes are called -- we learn the way that the Bengali culture partakes of the food and approaches the role of host -- always full plates for everyone, days of advanced preparation, and being ready on time all seemed to be emphasized. This is contrasted with the somewhat modern, last-minute, laissez-faire, serve yourself, whatever goes kind of hosting that American families demonstrate (at least as was demonstrated in a wealthy family represented in this book). One style was definitely favored by the author, but the unfavored method wasn't demonized, instead it was described in such a way that it felt hopelessly shallow. It felt indulgent without meaning and that nothing uncomfortable was allowed, which can never be truly genuine.

Ashima (the mother in this book) is described in the first few pages as making some kind of a puffed rice, Indian street fair food that sounds like an exotic version of Chex Mix. I simply have to try it sometime, and I think this recipe is my best bet as an approximation. Our lives are marked by food celebrations, and it serves as a link to our culture, our family of origin, and sometimes our deceased loved ones.

Readers are left to wonder about the best approach to marriage. We have an example of a very strong arranged marriage. We see several great things about this -- the slow familiarity, the dedication. We also have examples of failed relationships that were not arranged. But, we also experience relief that there is a way out of bad relationships in modern American culture. In this, the author showed readers what it is like to have cultures clashing and the difficulty endured when trying to merge the best parts of each.

After Clarissa, I will never again accuse a book of moving too slowly. However, it could be said that there were some dull times in this book. Nevertheless, the author's style is captivating and descriptive. She allows you to feel textures and see details -- simple and profound details that attract you to the characters and settings. It's quite a feat when I can say that I was very rarely confused in this book, and is spared me from a terribly twisted, mind bending ending.

In case anyone is keeping track:
-I read this book as part of my two-person book club
-I found this book at my local GoodwillAnnhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-19439387229094887392019-01-14T17:43:00.002-05:002019-01-14T17:43:38.565-05:00Stranger In This Land

Resident Aliens by Stanley Hauerwas and William Henry Willimon is subtitled "Life in the Christian Colony." The book discusses the nature of the church and its relationship to the surrounding culture (Wikipedia). This book was originally published in 1989, but still felt relevant to today's concerns with how the modern church should operate.

While reading this book, I spent an inordinate amount of time trying to decipher the perspective of the authors. In some cases, some pretty conservative stances were outlined. At other times, the perspective seemed liberal. My quest to determine which team the authors were on serves to makes what I believe to be one of the main points of the book -- that the world, and specifically politics are taming the church. Why should political terms even define the church? The authors address the issue of their receiving constant questions about their political affiliations in the last chapter. I can see why these questions are asked -- we are used to framing our understanding of churches and denominations based on how they line up with modern American politics, which is backward.

This book shows that the church is a colony in the middle of alien culture and should not be judged politically by how well it works to the advantage of the world. It's not enough to be for peace and justice because even unbelievers are for those things. If those platitudes are our ace in the hole, we have been tamed by the world. Jesus was not crucified for saying things that made sense to people -- his views were (and still are) radical. As such, the authors point out that the church should not be seen as simply running errands for the world. This leads to burnout and unrealistic expectations of ministers.

So, what should be different about the church and where do we go from here? This was the hard part for me. I feel like I enjoyed a lot of lines from the book, cherry-picked from here and there, but I have yet to assimilate some of the information. I think this is one of those works that has to marinate for a while in order to apply it to my life or my understanding of my worship community.

I have some general ideas:

shun tribalism as it is a form of paganism that promises results of some kind without involving Jesus

evaluate my motives for doing good works (ethical sentimentality?)

support my minister in his real job and don't expect him to spend all day running errands for the world

consider how I can submit myself to the church community without expecting anything in return

attempt to recognize the implications (for myself and others) of the fact that "our worst sins arise as our response to our innate human fear that we are nobody."

In case anyone is keeping track:

-I got this book from the Jackson Library at Indiana Wesleyan University. Unfortunately, it was very marked up from prior readers, which distracted me from making my own inferences from the text. There were highlights, pencil marks, pen marks, and circled words on nearly every page.
-This book was recommended to me
Annhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-65737704060076173452019-01-11T22:55:00.000-05:002019-01-14T17:37:20.605-05:00Creepy Crawlies

Never Home Alone by Rob Dunn is a work of popular science non-fiction that is not for the faint of heart. In this book, we learn about all of the critters that live alone side us in our very homes. We also learn whether there is a purpose for their existence and what the consequences may be for us if they did not exist.

I joke with people that I thought bacteria were mythological creatures until I married a microbiologist who was able to set me straight. Of course, I knew they existed, but I liked to live as if they did not. A nonchalant stance toward microbes combined with my husbands practical approach, results in me having a pretty tough stomach as far as learning and knowing about the microbial life in our midst. I have head knowledge that the vast majority of microbial life benefits the human race and so I am able to accept this. But, by all means, do not read this book if you are freaked out by terms like biofilm, bacteria, gut microbiome, fecal transplant, fungus, toxoplasmosis, etc.

If you can get past all of that, you are in for a treat -- somewhat of an educational wake up call for how we typically operate.

We learn with this book that there are heat loving bacteria first cultured only in hot springs living in most of our water heaters -- and also coming in contact with us through our shower heads. While that may cause you to feel unsettled, this particular bacterium was used to develop modern PCR techniques without which is used for a variety of laboratory procedures including DNA tests and diagnoses for genetic disorders. The bacteria are helpful.

We also learn that the pests we are most repelled by are not the ones we should be concerned about. For instance, cockroaches do not make people sick. They are an allergen for some people, but that is the extent of it. They do not carry disease. Same with spiders. Spiders are nearly always our allies, keeping more harmful pests at bay such as flies and mosquitoes, both of which are known to cause disease. The author even advocated for deliberately placing social spiders in restaurants and public markets for sanitation purposes.

Much of the material presented here runs counter to instinct, which is why it is an important to be aware of its contents. It is important to remember that clean never means sterile. We are not able to wash off all bacteria from our hands with soap and water -- and antibacterial soap is actually less effective than regular soap. The purpose of hand washing is to wash of recently-squired bacteria, not to strip our hands of their natural flora. In fact, the riskiest places for disease and infection is where there is no competition, which is why hospitals are so prone to outbreaks of this nature -- there is no bacterial biodiversity. It is also important to know that pesticides make cockroaches thrive, and that we are as likely to be sick from the bacteria we lack as from the bacteria or parasites we have. In fact, out of all the bacteria, viruses, and protists in our homes, only 100 species are known to cause infectious illnesses (there are 80,000 types of bacteria alone).

There is no need to go to the ends of the earth -- rainforest, hot spring, Antarctica, desert, or tundra to find unique species with unknown potential to assist with technological advances. These species exist in our homes -- bacteria, arthropods, spiders and others that may not be known to science. Even if they are known, they have not been studied sufficiently. The author made a great point that, when we see a critter in our home, we never assume it is unique or helpful. Instead, we only consider how we can get rid of it. Meanwhile, scientists have not come close to cataloging all of the species of arthropods in our homes, and one of them harbors a bacterium that has now been shown to be able to break down lignin, amounting to a huge advancement in bio-remediation.

Most people reading these things will feel disgust, but the author attempted to convey a sense of awe at the unseen world around us. It worked for me.

For anyone keeping track:
-I found this book at the Marion Public Library via my method of staring at the new non-fiction books until something strikes me
-This book was read as part of my two-person book club
Annhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-4168205654609641372019-01-08T17:02:00.001-05:002019-01-11T23:05:46.736-05:00Mind Bender

If you ever discover that what you're seeing is a play within a play, just slow down, take a deep breath, and hold on for the ride of your life.

-Jack Handey's Deep Thoughts

You are currently reading a blog post about reading books, and the particular book being discussed today is a fiction book about itself. This post is about Atonement by Ian McEwan.

As someone who is a fiction novice, this one was almost too complicated for me. I read a brief synopsis online before diving in, and it was described as metafiction, which means that the book occasionally gives references to itself. I was more than half way through before I remembered this description and had to think about what that meant for this book.

The first 75% or so of the book is in third person and there is no distinct narrator. It is not discernible right away as one of the main characters because this person seems to be able to give equal perspective to everyone else. Only when manuscripts were discussed regarding the characters did I realize that the book I am reading is actually purported to have been written by one of the characters, which was fully realized at the end. This may seem patently obvious to experienced readers of fiction, but to me this was an entirely new phenomenon.

The book is supposed to be about the concept of atonement (hence the title), but I am not sure that the fictional author pulled it off. For one thing, we are left not really certain if the contents of the book describe the reality of the story or the atoned reality put forth by the fictional author. For another thing, writing a fictional narrative about atonement is not the same thing as making amends (making up a fake story to atone for real lie doesn't seem quite equal). It seems to me like everyone suffered a worse fate than the narrator, and her life in her own head (and the fictional narrative alternate ending) was sufficient atonement for her as far as she is concerned. Unfortunately, that is not the way reality works. Of course, nothing about this book was very close to reality. I am currently evaluating writing done by a fictional author rather than what was done by Mr. McEwan as the actual author of this book.

This book was met with critical acclaim, and I can only assume that I am missing something or else the style was surprising enough to be new and exciting to the readers.

Interesting tidbits here:

The book mentions Clarissa in more than one spot and it seems to be using some themes from that book, though in an accelerated pace. (In case you missed it, Clarissa was one of the books I read in 2018). For instance, in Clarissa, the protagonist's stubbornness for virtue keeps her estranged from her family and she constantly asks for them to consider her plight and allow them to offer their favor to her anew. In this book, there is also family estrangement and resentment based on behavior. Both contain stubborn individuals who are not willing to recant their positions. On this note, I must not be the only living person to have read the tome, and Mr. McEwan describes it as weeks of boredom with a loathsome heroine with death-fixated virtue. There are also rapes in both books.

Atonement also intersected in a neat way with Just Mercy, which I just finished. In that book, we hear stories of people who have been wrongfully convinced, and that makes up the bulk of Atonement regarding the need for atonement, based on sending someone to prison with false testimony.

Atonement had a character whose sicknesses seemed overplayed -- "selfish affectation" as it was referred to in The Woman In White. You are meant to feel pity and a little disgust for the person with inconvenient (or convenient?) migraines when she spreads guilt and confusion when she actually engages with others.

In case anyone is keeping track:
-I picked up this book from my personal shelves and have no idea where I got it originally.

Feel free to share your thoughts on this book if you've read it.

Annhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-38944085225153039172019-01-05T14:17:00.000-05:002019-01-11T23:06:44.973-05:00Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson

According to the subtitle, this is a story of justice and redemption, but it is also a story of obstacles and brokenness. In this book, we get a gloomy picture of our justice system and the many ways in which has room for improvement.

For an example, visit the Innocence List -- a web page listing all people freed from death row. These are not people whose sentences were reduced to life in prison. In order to get on this list, a person has to have been convinced, sentenced to death, and subsequently been acquitted of the crime that placed him or her on death row (or had all charges dismissed by the prosecution or been granted a complete pardon based on evidence of innocence). It's a little scary.

This book contains 16 chapters that detail the work of the author in justice reforms of various kinds while focusing on one case in particular in a back and forth fashion (every other chapter). The story that grips the reader is that of Walter McMillian. You can probably figure out by now that this case is one of those that you'll find on the innocence list. Even though I've just committed a major spoiler, there is still so much in this book that you'll want to know about. I was incensed at some of the things this book revealed.

Some examples:

I didn't know that judges could (and commonly do) overrule jury decisions for life in prison by imposing the death penalty. This is typically done by elected judges that want to appear to be tough on crime. See chapter 4.

The electric chair sounds absolutely awful, and I had no idea how many executions were botched or done ineffectively by this method.

I was under the impression that when a person decides to represent themselves, it usually goes poorly. However, the way that some public defenders were represented in this book makes me think that it couldn't possibly be worse! Several examples were given about people being convicted when their defender really didn't present any evidence or arguments.

Walter McMillian and state's witnesses were held on death row prior to being convicted!

Many, many examples of racism in the system -- anecdotal examples such as making the black people enter the courtroom last and having the black attorney strip searched when entering the jail, and statistical examples regarding minority children receiving disproportionately harsh sentences for non-homicidal crimes.

In the end, I have a lot of respect for this author and the work he has done as the executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative. As a Christian, I resonated most with his statements about our "common humanity" as part of chapter 15, which was a succinct summary of original sin. As Mr. Stevenson says, "You are more than the worst thing you've ever done." The quicker we can own up to our own weakness, the sooner we won't feel the need to cast stones at each other.

In case anyone is keeping track:
-I got this book from Marion Public Library

-I read it as part of my two-person book club

-This book was recommended

Annhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3292896292567212.post-9741287784527210972019-01-01T18:37:00.004-05:002019-01-01T20:46:02.430-05:00the beginning

I made a Facebook post today listing the books I read in 2018 -- 40 total. I didn't set a goal at the beginning of 2018 to read a lot of books -- it just happened. But, I intend to have a goal for 2019 to make more notes on my books because, surprisingly, people on Facebook had questions for me about the books -- how to choose, procurement methods, reading strategies, etc.

Welcome to place you will find information on the books I'm reading -- my thoughts, major impressions, take-aways, maybe even why I decided to quit reading a certain book (I need to work on that). Don't expect full-blown book reviews -- I'm not that kind of reader. I am sure I miss major themes and theses, and I even forget characters' names at times.

Things to note:
-I often read books with a friend, and those will be labeled "book club"
-I am only an amateur fiction reader and have enjoyed non-fiction more throughout my life
-I am open for recommendations, and I keep a list, but I may not ever get to them

This blog is mostly for myself -- to remember what I've read and be able to refer to it easily, but if you're interested, feel free to follow along.Annhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com


text:
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bilingual resume examples Your correspondence doesn't have to be expansive, however nevertheless, it has to be true. Essentially, a pay letter functions the goal of briefing the company around your worthiness to your work profile. To make sure your correspondence sounds sincere, you've must highlight you know the need for the use of the work… Read More »

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Kim Director (born November 13, 1974) is an American actress.
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text:
The Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens is excited to present National Geographic Photo Ark Founder and Photographer Joel Sartore on Sunday, Nov. 17 at 6 p.m. in the Lazzara Performance Hall at the University of North Florida.
During this one-hour engagement, Sartore will share stories of Photo Ark species endemic to the north Florida area and his journey in creating the Photo Ark. Tickets are $20 and include a General Admission ticket to the Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens. Zoo Members may purchase a ticket for $5, with proceeds going directly to conservation.
This event also marks the opening date of the "National Geographic Photo Ark" exhibition at the Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens. It will highlight 56 of Sartore's images and provide visitors with the unique opportunity to come face to face with animals from the National Geographic Photo Ark, an ambitious project committed to documenting every species living in the world's zoos and wildlife sanctuaries. In addition to creating an archival record for generations to come, this project is a hopeful platform for conservation and shines a light on individuals and organizations working to preserve species around the world.
The National Geographic Photo Ark will be on display at the Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens until March 1, 2020 and is included with General Admission. More information about the exhibition and tickets to the speaking event at UNF can be found at PhotoArk.JacksonvilleZoo.org. National Geographic Photo Ark fans are invited to help save wildlife and their habitats by taking the #SaveTogether Pledge, and visiting NatGeoPhotoArk.org to learn more about the project.
(Please follow instructions for required photo credit.)
About Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens
For over 100 years, the Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens has aimed to inspire the discovery and appreciation of wildlife through innovative experiences in a caring environment. Starting in 1914 with an animal collection of one red deer fawn, the Zoo now has more than 2,000 rare and exotic animals and 1,000 species of plants, boasting the largest botanical garden in Northeast Florida. The Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens is a nonprofit organization and a portion of every ticket sold goes to the over 45 conservation initiatives Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens supports around the world, and here in NE Florida. JZG is proud to be an accredited member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. For more information, visit jacksonvillezoo.org.
Contact: Morgan Purvis • 904.757.4463 • cell: 863.286.9095 • email@example.com
Janet Wesley • 904.757.4463, ext. 210 • cell: 904.472.3699 • firstname.lastname@example.com


text:
Mumbai woman gangraped in Delhi, locked up, forced to drink alcohol
17 April 2016, Nirapad News: A 26-year-old woman from Mumbai was locked in a flat in central Delhi's Old Rajender Nagar, forced to drink alcohol and then allegedly gang-raped by two men on the intervening night of Thursday and Friday.
One of the suspects, a contractor, has been caught by the police, but the other one is still at large. The absconding accused is believed to be an executive engineer in a municipal body, police sources said. The detained contractor was known to the victim. Senior police officers, however, refused to share details about the suspects saying that would hamper their probe.
Sources said the woman received injuries in her private parts and is undergoing treatment at a city hospital. She is also being counselled by an NGO. The accused had allegedly forced her to have unnatural sex with them, a police source said. A case of gang-rape has been registered at the Rajender Nagar police station.
In the FIR, a copy of which is with Hindustan Times, the woman has said that she was staying at a rented accommodation in south Delhi's Safdarjung with another woman. She had moved to Delhi around seven months ago.
According to the woman's complaint, she had met the contractor, Manish, on Facebook while she was in Mumbai. Manish befriended her and they started chatting over the social site. Soon, the two exchanged their mobile numbers. A few weeks later, Manish proposed marriage and asked her to move to Delhi, the woman said.
"Manish assured her that he would take care of all her expenses after which she moved to Delhi," said a police officer. On Thursday, the FIR says, Manish called the woman to his Old Rajender Nagar flat to discuss their marriage plans, as she had been putting pressure on him for the past 3-4 days. She was in a room when Manish's friend arrived and started forcing himself on her.
"The woman protested and told Manish about it. Manish in turn verbally abused her and they together forced her to drink alcohol. The two then took turns to rape her. The woman managed to escape from the flat and called the police control room. She was heavily drunk when a police team met her on the street," the officer said.
The medical examination of the woman confirmed that she was gang-raped, the officer said.


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Player is allowed to use stealth moves to defeat enemy. You are a street bandit who does work for several bands. This is the scene when our player gets busted, there is a little improvement in this busted implementation. The game follows the story of a criminal named Claude who was betrayed by his girlfriend in a bank heist and begins to work his way up the crime ladder of the city before confronting her. Fun mini-games to play free when you are not following the main story.Next
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is an action-adventure video game. The Players complete missions—linear scenarios with set objectives—to progress through story. And also some times i can hear people speak. Cover system also found some improvements as compared to its previous version. Liberty City is composed of three boroughs: Portland, Staunton Island, and Shoreside Vale; the islands are unlocked to players as the story progresses.Next
It is potential to have several on the go missions running at one time, as a few missions have need of players to remain for further instructions or incident. This game was developed by and was released on 30 th September 1999. This game draws inspiration from most of the earlier Rockstar titles such as Midnight Club, Red Dead Redemption, Manhunt and Max Payne 3. It provides an open world environment to be explored by the player. The revolves around Tommy Vercetti who is a Mafia hitman released from the prison being captured due to their involvement in drug dealing. Player can roam around the city; he can walk, climb and can jump across the restrictions. Cars also hold to the ground a bit better.Next
Just read this article or go straight ahead and use the links provided one above and one below to get to the links page that you are here for. Instead of the old method of choosing through weapons, a Weapon Wheel is added. The city has been divided into three districts or you can say levels. Missions and gameplay are quite entertaining too. It is an open world adventure and contains elements of racing, third person shooter and open world play. With the notable improvements in the general gameplay, the improvement with the weapons, characters, cars and more, you will not have any troubles in making the most out of your game experience. Concluding One thing is for sure you will not be disappointed while playing this we can assure you that much.Next
This is the sixth title in the world acclaimed Grand Theft Auto series. Installation Guide Video is also on bottom of Next page. It is developed under the banner of Rockstar North for Microsoft Windows and other mainstream platforms. In this game you can also get missions from different gangs and you have to be very careful and smart enough before taking a mission from a gang as the other gangs may find you in their bad books. The police seek players to leave the desired area. He is a war hero, after his retirement he comes to New York to get a secured life.Next
You can even kill and rob people and shops for kicks! The action-adventure game takes you to the city of San Andreas, where you have all the freedom to do whatever you want! At the start of the game, players can only discover the first island—unruffled of Dukes and Broker—with all other islands unlock as the story progress. The games introduce a shift to a more sensible and detailed style and quality for the series. Grand Theft Auto 3 System Requirements Check out the minimum system requirements of Grand Theft Auto 3. This is one of the best Top down 2D games with amazing storytelling. An online multiplayer form is built-in with the game, allow up to 32 players to connect in both co-operative and gung-ho gameplay in an amusement of the single-player setting.Next
The main character is a thief in this game. You can freely wander around the city, steal cars, cut off pedestrians and fight the police. Niko Bellic comes to Liberty City to have his American dream. Click below Button and Wait For Few Seconds On Next Page. Just come to my website to download gta 5 for pc. The pc game is played in a third-person perspective on the world and candles walk or with the vehicle.Next
This is the way to and there is no need to explain more about it. The game was released to a universal acclaim, with scores of 96 and above on GameRankings and MetaCritic. It has an only single-player mode. To make your progression, you have to complete the missions and many side missions that come in your way. The gameplay is fast and looks like an arcade, with the result that appears when you kill people and damage vehicles. Dive deep into the life of the thugs of San Andreas.Next
Just like its predecessor characters are highly detailed. The Grand Theft Auto series has always been our favorite and now again, when Rockstar is here with yet another amazing game from the series why wait? Steal expensive cars, rob banks, and roam the open world set in and around the city of San Andreas and Los Santos. Put the fictional Liberty City featured on New York City , the single-player story goes after a war veteran, Niko Bellic and his effort to escape his past at the same time as under pressure from loan sharks and mob bosses. Its original edition was originally released back on the 17th of September 2013 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. You can have multiple active jobs running at a given time, the number of jobs that players are waiting for instructions or events. The auto aim and cover system which help you during attacks in fixing your target and saving yourself from damages. Like Grand Theft Auto 1 game is played from a top down perspective with 3D objects.Next
Harvest benefits with all kinds of shadow work for hire, concluded in their own way. The game gta vice city free download for pc features various gangs which makes frequent appearances in the game and some of them are necessary part of the storyline in gta vice city free download for pc. The 2 nd district has been made for the people to live, a residential area you can say plus it has also got a prison for the criminals. Like if you die in any mission, you will get a quick chance to play that mission from last check point that too without losing the weapons that are earned during your journey. Complete linear mission scenario players with goals through the story to progress. Grand Theft Auto 2 is one of the best Top down 2.Next


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Landlords can now apply for a newly available fifth month of Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (CECRA). Extension of the joint federal-provincial/territorial program was announced late last week to offer the 50 per cent subsidy of qualifying tenants' rent for August.
"As a lot of small businesses across the country are gradually and safely reopening, further support is needed for those businesses hardest hit," acknowledged federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau. "We've listened to the concerns of small businesses and we are extending the rent relief provided through the CECRA by an additional month."
Approved recipients or landlords who have already applied under the original eligibility criteria — which required documentation to show tenants suffered a minimum 70 per cent decline in revenue during April, May and June — will not need to submit further proof for July and August. However, the CECRA extension is not automatic. Commercial landlords will have to reapply by September 14.
Meanwhile, new applicants can opt in for three, four or five months, but they will have to meet the original August 31 deadline for registering and supplying required documentation.
"By extending support for commercial rent at the same time most of the province is in stage three, the province of Ontario is helping more businesses get through this challenging period so they have an opportunity to recover and welcome back their customers," said Ontario Minister of Finance Rod Phillips.
Business advocates note there are still more than $2 billion of unallocated CECRA funds available, based on the number of tenants confirmed for assistance thus far. As of July 30, it's reported that 63,000 qualifying businesses or not-for-profit organizations had been collectively approved for about $613 million worth of commercial rent relief, while the program administrator, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), continues to work with large landlords to process applications for more than 20,000 additional recipients.
Given the volume of untapped funds, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) urges more flexible rules to enable a broader range of distressed businesses to qualify. Failing that, the organization calls on provincial/territorial governments to step away from the joint program and, instead, directly disburse their share of the funds within their own jurisdictions.
"We are concerned Canada's finance ministers are waiting to see if more landlords apply for CECRA before the application deadline at the end of August. That would be a big mistake. Businesses that need help cannot wait that long. Rent relief needs an overhaul now," CFIB executives Laura Jones and Corinne Pohlmann wrote in a July 27 letter to the federal and provincial/territorial finance ministers.


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