A Flock of Readers for THE SPARROW: A discussion in progress

A Flock of Readers for THE SPARROW: A discussion in progress

We’re a few weeks into the Read-Along of The Sparrow, so this seemed like a good time for some interim discussion. My co-host Heather J. posted a fine selection of discussion questions yesterday; I’ll respond to a few of those, in addition to sharing some of my own impressions on Our Story So Far. Links to all of the responses are being collected here; participants are asked to post their discussions before March 30, which […]

State of the Blog: It’s this baby’s third birthday!

State of the Blog: It’s this baby’s third birthday!

A message for those participating in The Sparrow Read-along: Discussion questions are posted at Age 30+…A Lifetime of Books today. You don’t have to be finished with the book to participate in the discussion, and you can post your answers any time prior to March 30 (that is the date your review should be posted). My own responses will go up tomorrow, since I have something else on the blog calendar today – read on! […]

My Friend’s in Town, or Going with the FLOW, period.

My Friend’s in Town, or Going with the FLOW, period.

Last week, Rebecca of The Book Lady’s Blog gave a glowing review to Elissa Stein and Susan Kim’s Flow: The Cultural Story of Menstruation, a book that’s intrigued me since I first heard about it a few months ago. The review led to a discussion that Rebecca would like to keep flowing (pun intended!): “(T)he conversations that followed both in the comments section of my post and on Twitter were fun and informative. And I […]

Sunday Salon 3/14: Halfway through the Book-Buying Ban!

Sunday Salon 3/14: Halfway through the Book-Buying Ban!

I’m not including a formal Bookkeeping Status Report section in this post, but I’ll give you a quick update, in accordance with Unfinished Person‘s efforts to keep me honest in meeting the aims of the Sunday Salon: I am making good progress with my re-read of The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell, as part of the Read-along I’m co-hosting. Read-along-ers, please don’t forget the “in-progress” discussion Heather J. is hosting at Age 30+…A Lifetime of […]

I’m back – just in time for the Week-End Review!

I’m back – just in time for the Week-End Review!

Question of the Week: “Where have you been for the last couple of days, Florinda? What’s going on?“ I know, I know…I’ve been AWOL. Sorry, y’all! I’ve got a few posts in the works, but none ready to go up just yet, and I just haven’t been able to carve out the time to write much this week, so I decided I’d skip a couple of days rather than toss up a placeholder post. I’m […]

Get in Line for Weekend Assignment #310: I’ve Got a Line on You!

Get in Line for Weekend Assignment #310: I’ve Got a Line on You!

This week, Karen‘s question is concerns our feelings about one of those things that, like death and taxes, is an unavoidable fact of life for just about everyone: Weekend Assignment #310: Nobody likes standing in line, generally speaking, but sometimes you have to wait around to get what you want. Are you one of those people who avoid lines as much as humanly possible, even if it means doing without? Or do you accept the […]

A short hair-story of faking it

Quite a few years ago, I spotted some chestnuts for sale in the produce section of the grocery store and thought, “That’s my hair color.” My stylist at the time agreed, and told me that he had clients who paid good money to get it. Despite that, I decided to experiment with highlights shortly after I turned 40. I’d recently lost a significant amount of weight, I’d never played with my hair color before, and […]

Sunday Salon 3/7: The Festival is coming! The Festival is coming!

Sunday Salon 3/7: The Festival is coming! The Festival is coming!

April 24-25, 2010, at UCLA The books, the authors, and the book bloggers are coming to the largest public book event in America – will you come, too? Last year, the LA Times Festival of Books was the site for a great first-time meet-up among a group of book bloggers from all around Southern California, and a few from further north who came down for the weekend. In a crowd and in various combinations, we […]

Week-end Review, 3/5/10: Links from across the Blogiverse

Week-end Review, 3/5/10: Links from across the Blogiverse

Question of the Week: Do you have a Social Media Policy? Some bloggers have developed and posted their comment policies, but this is a bit more wide-ranging: Do you have a Social Media Policy? Amy posted hers, and I’m thinking I’ll follow her lead with one of my own. It will become part of my “About Me and My Blog” page (yes, I have one of those now), and I’ll post the whole thing once […]

Book talk: *Janeology,* by Karen Harrington

Book talk: *Janeology,* by Karen Harrington

Disclosure: I bought this book for my personal library. *Purchasing links in this review go through my Amazon Associate account. Janeology Karen Harrington (blog) Kunati Inc. (2008), Hardcover (ISBN 160164020X / 9781601640208) Fiction, 256 pages Opening Lines: “I stared at my attorney as he began his defense that I did not share the blame in the murder of my son. That I was not neglectful in leaving my two children in the care of my […]

Commenting Commentary (Weekly Geeks 2010-7)

Commenting Commentary (Weekly Geeks 2010-7)

The current Weekly Geeks topic is one dear to the hearts of most bloggers, and one that I obsess over to a ridiculous degree – COMMENTS! Well, to be fair, I obsess a lot more about getting them than giving them – I don’t think I do so badly in the latter department, if I say so myself. It’s also rather timely, since as you may have seen, I recently installed a new commenting system […]

Tuesday Tangents – and it really IS Tuesday!

Tuesday Tangents – and it really IS Tuesday!

I really like movies, but as you may recall if you’ve been reading here for a while, I’ve grown to really HATE Oscar Week, which has come to signify my Annual Traffic Nightmare. My office is one street north and about four blocks west of the Kodak Theater. As it gets closer to the Academy Awards, more and more streets in the area will be closed off in preparation for the ceremonies, and the street […]