Wednesday, November 27, 2013

Handbag Update, or I Could Never Change Bags Every Day

I think I missed a handbag, and am actually on #5!

I purchased another one, nothing near "designer", but leather and large enough for all the necessities. I know I can buy some expen$ive skincare instead, because I DIDN'T spend the amount of money I budgeted for a good handbag, and instead, just bought a decent one. Priorities. Plus, I think it is called "maintenance"!

I am waiting for the one I'm currently using to die before using the new one. I probably shouldn't do that, as I originally retired it for showing signs of wear.

OK, I admit it is TRAUMATIC to change handbags

Thursday, November 7, 2013

Book review: Every Boy Should Have a Man

A parable. A cautionary tale. A story about what it means to be human.

By Preston Allen.

Recommended by my friend Elisa at NY Spender: http://www.nyspender.com/2013/09/book-review-every-boy-should-have-man.html

Read it!

The handbag saga, part 4

I tweeted that I went through 3 handbags in about a week.

Well, I'm now on my 4th. I didn't buy a new one, just rescued one I was going to throw away, as it was already showing too much wear.

I'm really hard on handbags - the stitching on the handle of #4 came off, and so did the handle.

The saga continues.

Monday, September 2, 2013

August/September 2013 Reading



I started reading Mr. Eddie Huang's Fresh Off the Boat in early August. Because of the 3-day Statehood weekend, I had time to finish it. I really enjoyed the irreverent writing and the author's entrepreneurial spirit. Here's what REALLY made me want to read this book: the author was an indifferent student until he read Swift's "A Modest Proposal", which really spoke to him. If you haven't read FOB or AMP - you will not regret it! The power of writing across nearly three centuries is an awesome thing. And Mr. Eddie Huang tells his immigrant family's story in a powerful way. Available from HSPLS as audio and eBook via OverDrive.


Next, I read two books on the internee experience in concentration camps in North America during World War II. While we Americans know something of this experience from the viewpoint of Japanese-Americans, we know little to nothing about the Canadian Japanese story. A Child in Prison Camp (A Japanese-Canadian in an Internment Camp during WWII) by Shizuye Takashima contains the adult recollections of a child's experiences, with some illustrations of those memories. The second book, Desert Exile: The Uprooting of a Japanese-American Family by Yoshiko Uchida, is better-written, by a professional educator-author. Both authors share this hope: that what happened to them should never happen to anyone else.
These books are next to each other on the library shelf in Hawaii State Library. A Child in Prison Camp is also available as an eBook through the HSPLS website via OverDrive.

Today is Labor Day, Queen Lili'uokalani's birthday, the first day of September.This book, Paperboy, is a slim 240 pages, a children's book about the south, growing up, living with a stutter, segregation, family. Read it and you'll experience the wonder this child feels as his world expands an he rethinks what it means to be a family. It's on my order list for OverDrive audio and eBooks for the library system.

Being a Taiwanese immigrant family in a gated community in Florida, in Topaz Concentration Camp in 1942, Memphis in 1959, read a book to travel, if only in your mind.

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

What I'm reading: May 2013

Don't you think having to give yourself insulin shots at the age of 7 - after you've learned to light the gas stove and sterilize the needle! - would make you tough?

In her unapologetic memoir, My Beloved World, Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor gives us insight on how she became the first Hispanic woman on the Court. Despite a difficult home life, she realized she had sources of "deep happiness" within her - she was loved unconditionally by her abuelita, her grandmother. You don't need to be a woman, a minority to be inspired, heartened by the honesty of her story.

And when you look beyond the story of the Nuyorican girl from the Bronx who now is on SCOTUS, you also see her mother, Celina, who escaped Puerto Rico by joining the US Women's Army Corps, started as a telephone operator at a hospital, went back to school, became a registered nurse, and eventually the emergency room supervisor at the same hospital.

Only in America? And only if you're tough, passionate women.
_____

OK, yes. The theme of this blogpost is a recurring one: passion. Also toughness, drive, competitiveness.

I'm always thinking about things I'm interested in that library patrons might find compelling as a library program. I moderated a recent panel discussion featuring 18 and 19-year old entrepreneurs, 2012 graduates of Kalani High School - go Falcons! - all of whom turned their leadership in HS robotics into 4-year full ride scholarships to University of Hawaii Manoa, where all of them are majoring in engineering. Grant Takara, Eric Teshima and Carson Wong are the owners of Bristlebots LLC, which makes educational robotics kits. They spoke confidently and well about their business. I'm going to be watching what they do in the future.

On their evaluation forms, people wanted to know more about investing, marketing, and crowdfunding. So I picked up The Kickstarter Handbook: Real-life Crowdfunding Success Stories. There's an interview of Matt Haughey, creator of crowdsourced news site MetaFilter!!! Reason enough to read this!

What I'd like to do a program with folks who've already done this: Gida Snyder of Naked Cow Dairy, Kathy Sills of Aloha Pops, Bryan Silver of Team #3008 Kalani Robotics.

Does anyone out there in cyberspace think this is a good idea?



Friday, March 8, 2013

Otis has left the Neighborhood

We hadn't seen Otis, this pug with personality, in quite a while.

Here's when we last saw him, and when we first met him.

He and his owners have moved to a different neighborhood, the elderly lady who fed the cats has passed away, and others have taken over that chore.

We'll miss them all!

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Not about books! Favorite Bath Washes

When it comes to fragrance, I often enjoy it more in the shower instead of in the forms of eau de toilette, eau de parfum, lotion or cream. I'm not a fan of soap - bars that melt in the shower, no thanks. My skin is really dry, and I prefer body washes that come in flip-top bottles. If you like girly florals, these aren't for you, but here are two of my current faves:

Nuance Salma Hayek Prickly Pear Hydrating Body Cleansing Gel. Phew, that's a long name! I have that bottle next to my laptop right now, as I need to refer to it. The wording on this gel says it's non-irritating, not tested on animals, paraben and sulfate-free. Allergy-free? Hmm. With passion fruit, rice bran oil and aloe - these ingredients are about halfway down.

How does it smell? Clean, green, faintly fruity. It has a unique texture - clumps of aloe-like gel that work up to a moderate amount of lather. A pleasure to shower with, and affordable at 10 ounces, about $6 on sale at CVS. I like it so much, I bought a second bottle!

Tocca Cleopatra Body Wash with olive oil, honey and calendula. The top notes are grapefruit and cucumber (which is really faint to me) and also a bit of floral. The texture of this is really thin, but a little goes a long way.

If you don't like the remains of a slick on your skin, you won't like this - I love it! And after rinsing, the fragrance remains. Pricey at 8 ounces for $18, but you're worth it! Available at Sephora. It's luxurious, it's from Italy! If you really want to spoil yourself, get the body cream - so yummy. Tip: the EDP smells different.

What do you like to clean up with? Bubble bath? Ivory soap?

Wednesday, February 6, 2013

Topless Neighbor Sighted

However, in the cooler weather of a Hawaiian winter, she's neither topless nor bottomless. She's even been seen wearing glasses! Since she's an older lady, we conclude that she was fed up with the heat/humidity of summer in her apartment which affected her judgment. Based on our keen sense of smell, she is still hitting the kimchi. Hard.

Sunday, February 3, 2013

February 2013 Reading

I finished Amy Jo Martin's Renegades Write the Rules. I learned two things from it: 1) Twitter can become one of your communities 2) You can give someone a chance to engage, but they often don't. See pp. 149-151. In my case, a business I felt did not fulfill its contract with me did not follow through.

I'm reading Sir Terry Pratchett's Dodger, about a Victorian England street kid who becomes involved in something much bigger than his usual activities. The writing is splendid - just carries you along - such a pleasure to read good writing! And he meets Charles Dickens in the first few pages! I recommend it! BTW, I love Sir Terry's eyebrows; may he rest in peace.

Side note: so many friends, relatives have passed away in the last several months. A longtime family friend and a fellow librarian at the end of last year. My aunt early this year. Some lived a good long life, others an unexpectedly shortened one.

Have you lost anyone special? What are you reading?


Monday, January 7, 2013

January 2013 Reading

Finished "Salvation of a Saint" by Keigo Higashino. Kusanagi is sort of a Columbo who needs help from academic Yukawa. Low key murder mystery police procedural. I could see where it was going right away, but still enjoyed it. Read it! I'll be returning it on Monday.

Still reading "Renegades Write the Rules" by Amy Jo Martin, who uses social media in her PR work. She's not the best writer - in fact, I'm tempted to edit her writing! - but the name-dropping is interesting. We'll see if I finish it.

What are you reading?