I definitely knew what Henry Alford was talking about in his essay, "You never know what you'll find in a book" in Dec 21, 2008 NYT Book Review. Books become a receptacle not just for the ephemeral thoughts of the writers but for the physical relics of the book owner. I have often inherited, when buying a used book, not just the book but receipts, notes, and bookmarks. And because of my promiscuous reading habits, my bookshelves have become a purgatory of bookmarks.
Here are some other things I found in my books: postcards; pressed flowers; letters; post-its with notes sometimes relevant to the subject ("review integration by parts!") and sometimes not (a first draft of a really bad poem); class notes; essay assignments; sleep diary entry; drawings; and my letters to o-chem.
And why not? A book is a marvel of engineering that holds a surprising number of things. Books are prefect for preserving and hiding (from self and others). So why not take advantage of these storage spaces? Here are a couple of things I am planning on putting into books:
1. Perfume samples in large textbooks: You know, those folded papers that hold the scent, usually found in fashion/women's magazines. I figured if I put them in my large (usually science) textbooks, I'd make the reading of thick textbooks a more pleasing experience. Some of these textbooks go on and on for a thousand pages or so and they don't treat you like a human being with feelings. Besides, reading a science textbook is more like reading a magazine than a book: The reading material is not linear on the page because you constantly have to consult the illustrations (figures); there are columns of writings; and pictures and graphs abound. At least the Women's or fashion magazines are lovely to read because the colorful layout is visually appealing and there is a whiff of something nice every time a page is turned. Now of course good magazines don't smell quite nice due to the lack of perfume samples (The New Yorker, for example) and some magazines are too saturated with the samples resulting in a crowded elevator smell. But the point is, maybe adding a little scent to the textbooks will make reading those books more fun.
2. Notes to the next owner of my books: I also thought about making the process of leaving things for the next owner more incidental than accidental. I think I should write a brief note to the next owner of the book. I guess something like , "Hey you, I am the previous parent of this book. The fact that you have this book probably means I am now dead. I loved this book so very much and I hope you enjoy it too." And if I ever get really famous, this person can get super rich by selling the copy on ebay.
05 March 2009
03 March 2009
the notepad technique
Even though I obsess about reading, I am a pretty inefficient reader. I envy my friend shee, who reads super fast.
My problem seems to be intruding thoughts. It's too noisy in my head even when I read. And any reading material spins out a web of thought all fascinating and entertaining to me but causes me to slow down to a grinding halt with the book. A sentence later, same thing happens. My mind is like a nagging child who won't let me read.
So I started employing the notepad technique: I have a little notepad with me when I read and when there is an intruding thought, some related to the reading some not, I jot it down and move on. My mind does protest--I have to think those thoughts NOW! But I assure her that the ideas will be there to obsess over after I finish reading so please leave me alone with my book or now.
This method once helped me in college when I had too much on my mind and had trouble studying. I hope it helps me become a more efficient reader as well. The danger of course is having too many notebooks where my thoughts and lists proliferate. I feel I spend more time planning than living.
My problem seems to be intruding thoughts. It's too noisy in my head even when I read. And any reading material spins out a web of thought all fascinating and entertaining to me but causes me to slow down to a grinding halt with the book. A sentence later, same thing happens. My mind is like a nagging child who won't let me read.
So I started employing the notepad technique: I have a little notepad with me when I read and when there is an intruding thought, some related to the reading some not, I jot it down and move on. My mind does protest--I have to think those thoughts NOW! But I assure her that the ideas will be there to obsess over after I finish reading so please leave me alone with my book or now.
This method once helped me in college when I had too much on my mind and had trouble studying. I hope it helps me become a more efficient reader as well. The danger of course is having too many notebooks where my thoughts and lists proliferate. I feel I spend more time planning than living.
12 February 2009
spring
Casually, shee and I commented that the worst must be over. It was Saturday and I went from two to one layer of down. And yesterday, we hit 60 degrees and it was bright. I predict we'll have a stretch days when it'll be freakishly cold, but yes, the worst must be over.
As I was trading my one layer of down for the pink spring coat yesterday, I thought about a couple of other trades I am making.
I will soon be shedding Middlemarch. Yes, I am still reading that, but I read seven other books in the process, so there. It's a lovely book, in fact one of my favorite. But it's long and bulky. The book is also white like the snow. And I think my reading spirit would be lighter after I am done with the concerns of Middlemarch. I found it unbearable at times to read the book because it was so poignant, piercing and true. I think, though I like the book a lot, I am ready to trade Middlemarch for a lighter, springy, sit in a park and read in the sun kind of a book.
I am also shifting from one-skein knitting to cardigan knitting. That signals to me that the warmer days are coming when I have no incentive to produce massive amounts of hats, scarves and mittens to adorn myself as well as protect myself from the cold. Now come the lazy, unhurried knitting of the time consuming lace projects or cardigans. I bought the 101 Luxury Yarn One Skein Wonders book, a concrete proof that the knitting weather is changing. There are lots of lace patterns there that'll keep me knitting very slowly, and frogging frequently. And who cares? it's the summer. I am not in any hurry to wear any of these things...
Another very attractive book, which I will get closer to the summer is:
French Girl Knits
They have patterns for things that I imagined as a non-knitter for things that I would make if I knew how to knit. In other words, a perfect, dreamy book. There are lots of lace patterns for cardigans. Lace + cardigans = lots of very slow knitting in front of the teli, wacthing House in an air-conditioned room. I like lace knitting. You get a very hole-y diaphanous stuff that makes you feel slightly more feminine than jeans.
Ah so I am getting excited about slow knitting. I am shedding middlemarch. We've come to a full circle; the spring is here. sorta.
As I was trading my one layer of down for the pink spring coat yesterday, I thought about a couple of other trades I am making.
I will soon be shedding Middlemarch. Yes, I am still reading that, but I read seven other books in the process, so there. It's a lovely book, in fact one of my favorite. But it's long and bulky. The book is also white like the snow. And I think my reading spirit would be lighter after I am done with the concerns of Middlemarch. I found it unbearable at times to read the book because it was so poignant, piercing and true. I think, though I like the book a lot, I am ready to trade Middlemarch for a lighter, springy, sit in a park and read in the sun kind of a book.
I am also shifting from one-skein knitting to cardigan knitting. That signals to me that the warmer days are coming when I have no incentive to produce massive amounts of hats, scarves and mittens to adorn myself as well as protect myself from the cold. Now come the lazy, unhurried knitting of the time consuming lace projects or cardigans. I bought the 101 Luxury Yarn One Skein Wonders book, a concrete proof that the knitting weather is changing. There are lots of lace patterns there that'll keep me knitting very slowly, and frogging frequently. And who cares? it's the summer. I am not in any hurry to wear any of these things...
Another very attractive book, which I will get closer to the summer is:
French Girl Knits
They have patterns for things that I imagined as a non-knitter for things that I would make if I knew how to knit. In other words, a perfect, dreamy book. There are lots of lace patterns for cardigans. Lace + cardigans = lots of very slow knitting in front of the teli, wacthing House in an air-conditioned room. I like lace knitting. You get a very hole-y diaphanous stuff that makes you feel slightly more feminine than jeans.
Ah so I am getting excited about slow knitting. I am shedding middlemarch. We've come to a full circle; the spring is here. sorta.
10 February 2009
more self-help adventure
Ah... so it turns out, the title of that self-help book about interpersonal relationship is "how to WIN friends and influence people," not "how to MAKE friends and influence people." Now I find it a little creepy that there exists a manual for winning and influencing people. But I am going to try it anyway because the "how to stop worrying..." book was so good. And if I am truly honest with myself, I guess I would like to know how to win and influence people!
06 February 2009
self-help books
To combat excessive and persistent anxiety, I bought myself:
How to Stop Worrying and Start Living
by Dale Carnegie.
To my mortification, about three other people, whose opinions I do care about, joined me on the trip to the bookstore. I explained that this is the first time I am getting a self-help book because I've gotten desperate about my anxiety. Thankfully, my friends were nonjudgmental. However, Arthur pointed out that I need the How to Win Friends and Influence People badly. This is not the first time someone told me about that book. Mel confirmed my suspicion that it's not a good thing when multiple people recommend that book to me.
But the point is, I realized I had inadvertently lied to my friends for it was NOT my first time buying a self-help book. In fact, looking at my reading history, I consult a self-help book quite often. The book, It's all too much: an easy plan for living a richer life with less stuff, really helped me with decluttering and organizing my things. And my last entry in this blog was kind of a review of a self help book about graduate school.
So am I one of those people now who head for the prominent self help section at Barnes and Noble? Please tell me I am not one of them... When I was there with Shee a couple of weeks ago, I saw a waste of good shelf space devoted to cheesy and colorful books for illiterate and lonely people. There were way too many chicken soup books for distinctly afflicted souls. When a salesperson came up to ask if I needed help, I wanted to ask if there was a section on anxiety self-help books. I chickened out and asked instead if the self help books were organized by subject or author.
Okay, so it seems I am the judgmental one. I admit it. Ironically though I am kind of sold on self-help books. The "Stop worrying and Start living book" was amazing and it not only helped me to feel less anxious, but made me a better, happier person. I thought the book was going to teach me how to stop worrying, but it somehow hit at all my issues from interpersonal relationships to insomnia. Now I am actually starting to accumulate a list of self-help books to read.
It can be the recession of course. I read in the paper that people focus more on self-improvement during bad economic times. It can't be that these books contain novel jems. In fact the worry book told me things I already knew or things my parents, teachers, and friends have already told me. The book, though captivating and somewhat well-written, was not literary. So what is it about (good) self help books that actually allows me to help the self?
I came up with two things:
1. It's much easier to hear things (sometimes) from a total stranger who will never see you than from earnest friends and a loving family.
2. Reading these books delude me into feeling that I am making progress towards helping the self when in reality I am further procrastinating doing something about my flaws by reading.
Okay, those two things are rather cynical. I guess I don't want to accept that I am destined to watch Dr. Phil in two years. But I have to admit that some of them actually help. The worry book is awesome. Try it. Reading self-help books is probably a better way to cope than reading depressing poetry anyway.
How to Stop Worrying and Start Living
by Dale Carnegie.
To my mortification, about three other people, whose opinions I do care about, joined me on the trip to the bookstore. I explained that this is the first time I am getting a self-help book because I've gotten desperate about my anxiety. Thankfully, my friends were nonjudgmental. However, Arthur pointed out that I need the How to Win Friends and Influence People badly. This is not the first time someone told me about that book. Mel confirmed my suspicion that it's not a good thing when multiple people recommend that book to me.
But the point is, I realized I had inadvertently lied to my friends for it was NOT my first time buying a self-help book. In fact, looking at my reading history, I consult a self-help book quite often. The book, It's all too much: an easy plan for living a richer life with less stuff, really helped me with decluttering and organizing my things. And my last entry in this blog was kind of a review of a self help book about graduate school.
So am I one of those people now who head for the prominent self help section at Barnes and Noble? Please tell me I am not one of them... When I was there with Shee a couple of weeks ago, I saw a waste of good shelf space devoted to cheesy and colorful books for illiterate and lonely people. There were way too many chicken soup books for distinctly afflicted souls. When a salesperson came up to ask if I needed help, I wanted to ask if there was a section on anxiety self-help books. I chickened out and asked instead if the self help books were organized by subject or author.
Okay, so it seems I am the judgmental one. I admit it. Ironically though I am kind of sold on self-help books. The "Stop worrying and Start living book" was amazing and it not only helped me to feel less anxious, but made me a better, happier person. I thought the book was going to teach me how to stop worrying, but it somehow hit at all my issues from interpersonal relationships to insomnia. Now I am actually starting to accumulate a list of self-help books to read.
It can be the recession of course. I read in the paper that people focus more on self-improvement during bad economic times. It can't be that these books contain novel jems. In fact the worry book told me things I already knew or things my parents, teachers, and friends have already told me. The book, though captivating and somewhat well-written, was not literary. So what is it about (good) self help books that actually allows me to help the self?
I came up with two things:
1. It's much easier to hear things (sometimes) from a total stranger who will never see you than from earnest friends and a loving family.
2. Reading these books delude me into feeling that I am making progress towards helping the self when in reality I am further procrastinating doing something about my flaws by reading.
Okay, those two things are rather cynical. I guess I don't want to accept that I am destined to watch Dr. Phil in two years. But I have to admit that some of them actually help. The worry book is awesome. Try it. Reading self-help books is probably a better way to cope than reading depressing poetry anyway.
29 January 2009
grad school experience
I knew there's a book, a good book, about everything, but I have been having trouble finding one about grad school. But I did find one a couple of weeks back. If you are considering grad school (academic), check out:
Getting what you came for
by Robert Peters
It's more of a breadth than a depth book and despite what the author claims (multiple times!) I think the book isn't of value to current grad students (except maybe for comic relief). The book is best suited, in my opinion, for people contemplating grad school to get some basic info on admissions and the experience so that they can better decide for themselves if grad school is right for them. Of course there's no substitute to actually talking to grad students and professors, but I find that grad students are in general rather bitter and professors too positive about their chosen profession.
The book also has great advice, though nothing earth shattering, on grad school admissions and how to plan your years in grad school so that you are focused, efficient, and most importantly, graduate. But the chapter on getting an academic job is weak and dated. In fact, I was disappointed there wasn't a lot of info on how academic hiring process works and how best a young PhD can get that elusive assistant professorship.
Even the revised edition was published in 1997 so the info on technology is quaint. But all in all, the writing is good and there's great value in unveiling academia for anyone considering grad school.
Now if you are considering riding out the recession by going to grad school, please don't. Other than it being a really bad idea, you will make it difficult for me to get in. If you are, however, considering going to law school (not that that's such a good idea either), check out:
Law School Confidential
by Robert H. Miller
That's a fantastic book for a prospective (or even current) law student.
Getting what you came for
by Robert Peters
It's more of a breadth than a depth book and despite what the author claims (multiple times!) I think the book isn't of value to current grad students (except maybe for comic relief). The book is best suited, in my opinion, for people contemplating grad school to get some basic info on admissions and the experience so that they can better decide for themselves if grad school is right for them. Of course there's no substitute to actually talking to grad students and professors, but I find that grad students are in general rather bitter and professors too positive about their chosen profession.
The book also has great advice, though nothing earth shattering, on grad school admissions and how to plan your years in grad school so that you are focused, efficient, and most importantly, graduate. But the chapter on getting an academic job is weak and dated. In fact, I was disappointed there wasn't a lot of info on how academic hiring process works and how best a young PhD can get that elusive assistant professorship.
Even the revised edition was published in 1997 so the info on technology is quaint. But all in all, the writing is good and there's great value in unveiling academia for anyone considering grad school.
Now if you are considering riding out the recession by going to grad school, please don't. Other than it being a really bad idea, you will make it difficult for me to get in. If you are, however, considering going to law school (not that that's such a good idea either), check out:
Law School Confidential
by Robert H. Miller
That's a fantastic book for a prospective (or even current) law student.
19 January 2009
book anxiety
When I feel anxious, I feel there must be a reason why I feel anxious. My mind is particularly good at finding something to ruminate about. The mind searches and sticks on to some minor thing like Velcro and no matter how mismatched the magnitude of my anxiety and the tiny thing I am obsessing over, it's virtually impossible to get unstuck. Well, my anxiety over books is a bit different. It's more of an ongoing anxiety. It's always there to some extent: sometimes I feel it acutely, sometimes dully. Anyway, I feel anxious that I will run out of things to read.
Okay, I need to explain this. I am not worried that I will read everything ever written or everything ever written that is worthy of reading. It's more like I am worried that I will find myself on the train without anything to read because I finished the book I was reading. Then I will have to actually bring myself into the real world and possibly interact with other human beings. So I always have something to read with me: books, newspapers, magazines. I worry about this before leaving the house: do I have enough pages on me? And I worry about things like: are my reading material the right size, are the pretty, do i feel comfortable with it today and does it go with my outfit?
Another one of my constant worries involves the ratio of read and unread books on my bookshelves. Having too many unread books makes me feel guilty. I start having thoughts like: why aren't I reading more? Am I lazy and unproductive? But when there are too few unread books, I worry that I will read all the books I own and then what will I read? What will I look forward to reading? And when all the possibilities in unread books, some of which will be wonderful and some undoubtedly disappointing, are gone, will I die?
Of course the optimal ratio or read to unread books is subjective and highly dependent on my mood. When I feel tired, there seem to be too many unread books on my shelves and ohmygod I have so many other books I want to read and there are just too many books to be read. But when I feel unusually productive and hopeful, I feel as if I will run out of things to read in a week.
So I worry on and on about the ratio. I can alleviate my anxiety in many ways but the best one for now is to get more books. That may result in higher percentage of unread books, but I'd rather own books and play with them and anticipate when to read the books than to worry about running out of the pages to read. Much better to be lazy and unproductive than to lose the possibilities, I think.
Thanks to Natalie for helping me out: the Russian lit books you sent me are fabulously beautiful to look at. I look forward to reading them and I enjoy fretting over just when I will read them.
Okay, I need to explain this. I am not worried that I will read everything ever written or everything ever written that is worthy of reading. It's more like I am worried that I will find myself on the train without anything to read because I finished the book I was reading. Then I will have to actually bring myself into the real world and possibly interact with other human beings. So I always have something to read with me: books, newspapers, magazines. I worry about this before leaving the house: do I have enough pages on me? And I worry about things like: are my reading material the right size, are the pretty, do i feel comfortable with it today and does it go with my outfit?
Another one of my constant worries involves the ratio of read and unread books on my bookshelves. Having too many unread books makes me feel guilty. I start having thoughts like: why aren't I reading more? Am I lazy and unproductive? But when there are too few unread books, I worry that I will read all the books I own and then what will I read? What will I look forward to reading? And when all the possibilities in unread books, some of which will be wonderful and some undoubtedly disappointing, are gone, will I die?
Of course the optimal ratio or read to unread books is subjective and highly dependent on my mood. When I feel tired, there seem to be too many unread books on my shelves and ohmygod I have so many other books I want to read and there are just too many books to be read. But when I feel unusually productive and hopeful, I feel as if I will run out of things to read in a week.
So I worry on and on about the ratio. I can alleviate my anxiety in many ways but the best one for now is to get more books. That may result in higher percentage of unread books, but I'd rather own books and play with them and anticipate when to read the books than to worry about running out of the pages to read. Much better to be lazy and unproductive than to lose the possibilities, I think.
Thanks to Natalie for helping me out: the Russian lit books you sent me are fabulously beautiful to look at. I look forward to reading them and I enjoy fretting over just when I will read them.
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