I read all the time. Every time I leave the house I have a book on me, so delayed trains, waits in doctors offices, waits in any lines - none of this bothers me, because I have my book.
But I also have learnt that there are some books I don't want to read, even though everyone else is reading them (Da Vinci Code being one that springs to mind.) I had an interesting insight the other day when discussing theatre vs film, and how in film, the director can control where you look by where s/he points the camera, but in theatre you can look anywhere you like, and it makes for a different experience. I used to think books, like film, had more control, because you had to read what was there, but then I realized that people skim, they read the end first, they miss bits, they read out of order. The do all sorts of weird and mysterious things and the author can't control for it at all, so books are more like plays when it comes to the audiences focus, the audience can do pretty much as it wants.
And then I came across this - Danial Pennac's bill of readers rights which spoke to me:
1. The right to not read
2. The right to skip pages
3. The right to not finish
4. The right to reread
5. The right to read anything
6. The right to escapism
7. The right to read anywhere
8. The right to browse
9. The right to read out loud
10. The right to not defend your tastes
I'm with him!
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Thursday, June 7, 2007
plastic culture
What do I consider the opposite of good people doing quirky things?
Celebutants.
I never really got Paris Hilton, I mean she didn't do it for me, what ever glamour she was spreading I couldn't see it. So I always felt out of the loop with her - when the press reported on her, I just turned the page. No rage there, if people want to know, let them. And we all have the cause celebre's we like - I used to follow stories on Diana, Princess of Wales. I loved to see pictures of her, and frankly, in the beginning, she was just a debutant who married well, so really, what's the difference.
But this getting out of jail free card. Because she cried. Because she had to be alone with her thoughts for 2 whole days before she broke. Because she can't read? What's with that?!
I was never part of her posse but now I actively despise her. And I want my revenge - just like in the wonderful film Dangerous Liaisons with Glenn Close, I want the same ending, where her fellow elite punished her by hissing as she came to the Opera and forcing her to leave. I want her to be rejected and ignored. Because I feel that people who put themselves so far up above the masses, that laws don't apply to her, that drink driving, which kills people, doesn't apply to her, that putting her lights doesn't apply to her - and why don't any of these women have drivers? What is their problem. I want the world at large to become bored with them and their problems and give them no more attention. Only then will I be satisfied. Let's ignore the bitches, because nothing else is going to stop them!
Celebutants.
I never really got Paris Hilton, I mean she didn't do it for me, what ever glamour she was spreading I couldn't see it. So I always felt out of the loop with her - when the press reported on her, I just turned the page. No rage there, if people want to know, let them. And we all have the cause celebre's we like - I used to follow stories on Diana, Princess of Wales. I loved to see pictures of her, and frankly, in the beginning, she was just a debutant who married well, so really, what's the difference.
But this getting out of jail free card. Because she cried. Because she had to be alone with her thoughts for 2 whole days before she broke. Because she can't read? What's with that?!
I was never part of her posse but now I actively despise her. And I want my revenge - just like in the wonderful film Dangerous Liaisons with Glenn Close, I want the same ending, where her fellow elite punished her by hissing as she came to the Opera and forcing her to leave. I want her to be rejected and ignored. Because I feel that people who put themselves so far up above the masses, that laws don't apply to her, that drink driving, which kills people, doesn't apply to her, that putting her lights doesn't apply to her - and why don't any of these women have drivers? What is their problem. I want the world at large to become bored with them and their problems and give them no more attention. Only then will I be satisfied. Let's ignore the bitches, because nothing else is going to stop them!
Friday, June 1, 2007
Other Blogs
So, MUG - Manhattan User's Guide - which sends me emails every day, and has a pretty good hit rate in terms of me reading them- sent me one with this blog. Without even reading it I know I'll love it because it's called I hate duane reade. And the sad truth is, I'm just disappointed that I didn't label a topic with that charming title myself. Because I am one of the converted. I had no intention of joining the cult, had no history of animosity, only came to these shores 5 years ago, but DR has done it's utmost and now I too belong - I hate Duane Reade with a passion that is personal. I don't know what they do to their staff but they are the most miserable, surly, unhelpful people you are likely to meet. That company really needs to do something fast. I will even go to my extortionate local pharmacy rather than go to DR. Not that DR is any cheaper...
Another blog that was funny and interesting was ranting about grammer and clarity, which is one of the quirky, almost old fashioned one might say, things that I care about. I mean I swear like a sailor, or probably worse than a sailor - there is no word I will not use, no phrase that has not passed my lips. But I like sentences that flow, words that follow each other in the appropriate order and I love puns. So I'll visit this is not a sentence again.
Another blog that was funny and interesting was ranting about grammer and clarity, which is one of the quirky, almost old fashioned one might say, things that I care about. I mean I swear like a sailor, or probably worse than a sailor - there is no word I will not use, no phrase that has not passed my lips. But I like sentences that flow, words that follow each other in the appropriate order and I love puns. So I'll visit this is not a sentence again.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)