Posts filed under 'Culture'
Swell read
It’s rare that I will read a book and it so moves me that I will push my friends to borrow it from me. Sure, I read plenty of books and if asked for recommendations, there are a handful that with some thought I’d suggest, but to be pushing the book into a girlfriend’s hand and say “You have to read this,” that’s not an everyday occurrence.
And ironically, the premise of Still Alice didn’t interest me initially. I knew it was about a woman suffering from Alzheimer’s and I didn’t think I’d relate to it or that it’d be a topic I’d be particularly interested in reading for enjoyment (besides researching and reading about lots of health topics as it is every day, it just seemed depressing). But the glowing praise on its back cover (“A work of pure genius” and “A masterpiece…”) was enough to convince me crack it open.
Still Alice is Lisa Genova’s debut novel and it’s simply stunning. Saying that it is vivid and eloquent hardly does it justice. The book takes you inside the experience of Alice (a Harvard professor) as she becomes increasingly forgetful and disoriented, and her viewpoint as her life evolves with her Alzheimer’s diagnosis and treatment.
And yes, it’s frightening, and you’ll be contemplating whether early-onset Alzheimer’s is something you will suffer from one day – but even if you have hypochondriac tendencies, I still think you should read this book. You’d be doing yourself a disservice by missing out on its beauty.
P.S. Genova so gorgeously depicts Boston that I’m hoping to return there someday soon for a visit. My first and only time there was back in university when I was more interested in picking up a Harvard sweatshirt and checking out Starbucks (which was not yet on every street corner in Canada).
4 comments February 24, 2010
Be happier — by looking forward to a vacay
I’m dreaming of getting away from this dreary grey weather and the daily grind. And so I was particularly intrigued by a new study published in Applied Research in Quality of Life that found that it’s in the time leading up to a vacation that those going away are happier than non-vacationers. Once you’re back home from vacation, your happiness isn’t boosted — although there is a slight rise in your happiness levels for the first two weeks your back home if your vacation was particularly relaxing.
And so I’m throwing myself into planning a vacation in the next month or so. The pic above is now the wallpaper on my computer, and here are just some of the travel essentials I will be packing.
1. Sennheiser‘s brand new PXC-250 II improves on its patented NoiseGard technology to cancel out ambient noise, helping you drown out that crying baby seated behind you on your four-hour flight. (Plus, I think these headphones would be mighty handy escaping the surroundings on public transit every day, too — dude next to me on the streetcar yesterday was drinking a 40-oz beer. For real).
2. And what will I be listening to on my PXC-250 II’s? The new This American Life iPhone app is just $3 and you get access to all of their archived episodes (dating back to 1995!), not to mention view sample clips of the TAL TV show. A girlfriend and I were chatting about how we are both majorly crushing on host Ira Glass, he’s just so everything — funny, intelligent, witty…sigh.
3. I often don’t pack beauty tools like tweezers when I go away…and then inevitably find myself with a broken nail or that one errant brow hair that glares out at me whenever I look in the mirror. My Tagalongs Handywoman’s Kit ($12) solves both of these problems. It comes complete with scissors, knife, tweezers, nail file, toothpick and pen, all packed into a kit barely bigger than a credit card.
4. Somehow tweezers seem too fussy to bring with me on a trip, and yet I do make space in my luggage for a candle — just makes the hotel room a little homier. My new favourite? The Citrus Verveine travel candle ($20) from San Fran-based company Elizabeth W. Could be because I’m a little Vampire Diaries-obsessed lately…although the verveine would keep Damon Salvatore out of my room — maybe I should consider a different scented candle. :)
5 comments February 22, 2010
Puss ‘n a latte
"Will you love us less when you start going to cat cafés?"
I love cozy little coffee shops. And I love cats. And because of that, even though I have two cats at home, this new trend in Japan kind of appeals to me (I’m the type of person who will pet every cat and dog I see on the street).
3 comments February 22, 2010
A gift for me (and you, once you tune in)
Yesterday, I had a look at my holiday shopping list and I’m happy to report that for once I managed to stick to what I’d budgeted – most years, my Christmas shopping ends up being more like “One gift for this person, and two for me. And isn’t this necklace just so perfect, too? I must pick one up for myself!”
This year, the only gift I got for myself involved making a cash donation to This American Life. I’ve been listening to TAL’s free weekly podcast for a year now. This American Life is from Chicago Public Radio — yet more proof that all good things come from Chicago (Have I mentioned yet that I love, love, love Chicago?). Each week the radio show features a theme and a few stories based on that theme. David Sedaris, Sarah Vowell and David Rakoff (Canucks will definitely want to search the website archive for the very funny episode #065 “Who’s Canadian?”) are just a few of the contributors who’ve been featured on TAL.
Smart, insightful, at times funny, and at other times sad (a recent story was so gut-wrenching that I had to pause it to collect myself, and finished listening to it another day after I’d emotionally steeled myself), the podcast is one of the best parts of my week and always leaves me yearning to be a better storyteller.
And while the podcast is free, TAL still needs to cover the cost of the bandwith and so when host Ira Glass asked for donations, I knew exactly what I wanted for Christmas.
Subscribe to their podcast if you’re not already a listener. Do it. Now. Right now. Really. (Even if you hate it — although you won’t – what have you got to lose? It’s free.) www.thisamericanlife.org
1 comment January 13, 2010
Can I sing my way slim?
I’ve been exercising a lot lately. My vocal cords, that is. I got Band Hero (aka the funnest game ever) for Christmas and have been belting out Duran Duran and Taylor Swift for days. Which got me curious as to whether singing will help me burn off all the Sugar Plum cocktails (a drink I’ve been mixing at home since I discovered it at Grace restaurant — a delish mix of prosecco, white grape juice and a tiny splash of pomegranate juice served in a sugar-rimmed flute) I’ve been downing over the holidays.
Alas, sadly, the answer is no. According to a 2005 study, singing is not the solution to slimming down, and might even be linked to a predisposition to weight gain. Gulp. Looks like I’ll have to pull on my sneakers for some speedwork after all.
Add comment December 29, 2009
