flahute

KEEP THE MOTH OUT OF THE FLAME

When you are trying to help someone, you have to have humor, self-existing humor, and you have to hold the moth in your hand, but not let it go into the flame. That’s what helping others means. Ladies and gentlemen, we have so much responsibility. A long time ago, people helped one another in this way. Now people just talk, talk talk. They read books, they listen to music, but they never actually help anyone. They never use their bare hands to save a person from going crazy. We have that responsibility. Somebody has to do it. It turns out to be us. We’ve got to do it, and we can do it with a smile, not with a long face.

From “Helping Others,” in GREAT EASTERN SUN: THE WISDOM OF SHAMBHALA, page 180.

Anyone who knows me well knows not only that I have a fascination with words, but also love to debate … I can argue semantics for hours, much to the dismay of people around me at times.

I’m pretty sure that’s why a friend of mine gave me a book this past summer; because I was driving her crazy with my insistence on using the right words … but I wonder if she knows how much I’m actually enjoying reading it?

Sol Steinmetz’s Semantic Antics: How and Why Words Change Meaning, published by Random House, “shines a light on the often complex evolution of the meaning of words” according to Jesse Sheidlower, editor of the Oxford English Dictionary.

For example:

AWKWARD

Before 1400 there was a word in English, awk, meaning “the wrong way, backhanded,” that was of Scandinavian origin, probably old Norse afug. Though the word had fallen out of use in English by the 1600s, it survived as part of the compound word awkward, meaning “turned in the wrong direction, upside down,” literally, “toward the wrong way.” From the idea of doing things the wrong way, a new meaning, “ungraceful, uncouth,” developed, as in Shakespeare’s Troilus and Cressida (1616), where Ulysses says: “And with ridiculous and awkward action … He pageants us.” From this sense came the current meaning, “lacking dexterity, clumsy, bumbling,” applied to persons and things, as in an awkward gesture, an awkward situation. “I have not seen a more clumsy, awkward, and unhandy people.” (Jonathan Swift, Gulliver’s Travels)

Of course, when I whip out this newfound knowledge, people look at me like I’m crazy … which leaves me feeling, well, awkward.

Oh well, what’s a guy to do?

Drool-worthy porn, currently available from Amazon.com:

Custom Bicycles: A Passionate Pursuit
   by Christine Elliott & David Jablonka

Cycling has never lost its appeal. Alongside mass-produced models, the craftsmanship of handmade bespoke bicycle makers has emerged to satisfy the passion of people who ride bikes as a means of daily transport, as a sport and for recreation. This book by passionate cyclists Christine Elliott and David Jablonka is the product of a worldwide search for the most influential custom bike makers on the planet.

The result is a presentation of a wonderful collection of expertly honed, human-powered machines, built by some of the most creative bicycle makers in the world.

It highlights the range of techniques, materials, design elements and passion behind producing a custom handmade bike. It’s guaranteed to take you on the ride of your life.

Features a foreword by Phil Liggett, the voice of the legendary man behind the English-language broadcasts of the Tour de France.

The Bicycle: The Myth and The Passion
   by Francesco Baroni (Author) & Felice Gimondi (Preface)

This handsomely illustrated volume traces the evolution of the bicycle and spotlights landmarks in its illustrious history. From the first sketches in the 1490s by a student of Leonardo da Vinci to the High Wheel Bicycles that had their heyday in the 1880s, hundreds of archival photographs and illustrations depict the features of these and other early ancestors of the modern bicycle, accompanying a text that vividly recreates the excitement of each new innovation.

Documenting the advent of ball bearings and pneumatic tires, the development of high-tech racing bicycles and state-of-the-art all terrain bikes with waffle tread tires and heavier frames, The Bicycle: The Myth and The Passion examines the models and components that have been the fulfillment of the dreams of visionary inventors. Through an engaging text and vibrant graphics, readers will meet the key players in the world of cycling and gain a newfound appreciation for the colorful history of the bicycle.

My copies are on order … are yours?

As a reminder that my “comeback” still has a long, long way to go, I woke up this morning with a migraine, and am completely spent energy-wise. After calling in sick, I went back to bed and slept until noon; I’ve been up for almost 2 hours now and have still accomplished nothing other than taking a shower, before retiring to the couch and nearly passing out from the exertion.

What this is telling me is that even though I didn’t bonk yesterday, my body is not used to the exertion that I’ve put it through this weekend, and is rebelling; it needs rest to recover … rest and a better diet.

I’ve stalled out for the past few weeks on losing weight; I chalked this up to not exercising enough, but it’s very possible that I’m still eating too much of the wrong kinds of food.

Can anyone recommend any good diet books for the endurance athlete? Not so much for losing weight (although that is definitely part of the goal), but also for ensuring that the body recovers well and burns energy efficiently when exercising?

MY FIRST MEMORY (OF LIBRARIANS)

This is my first memory:
A big room with heavy wooden tables that sat on a creaky
      wood floor
A line of green shades—bankers’ lights—down the center
Heavy oak chairs that were too low or maybe I was simply
      too short
            For me to sit in and read
So my first book was always big

In the foyer up four steps a semi-circle desk presided
To the left side the card catalogue
On the right newspapers draped over what looked like
      a quilt rack
Magazines face out from the wall

The welcoming smile of my librarian
The anticipation in my heart
All those books—another world—just waiting
At my fingertips.

  — Nikki Giovanni (b. 1943)

… of a certain type, anyway. Now available for pre-order (currently $37.00) from Amazon.com.

Custom Bicycles: A Passionate Pursuit
   by Christine Elliott & David Jablonka

Cycling has never lost its appeal. Alongside mass-produced models, the craftsmanship of handmade bespoke bicycle makers has emerged to satisfy the passion of people who ride bikes as a means of daily transport, as a sport and for recreation. This book by passionate cyclists Christine Elliott and David Jablonka is the product of a worldwide search for the most influential custom bike makers on the planet.

The result is a presentation of a wonderful collection of expertly honed, human-powered machines, built by some of the most creative bicycle makers in the world.

It highlights the range of techniques, materials, design elements and passion behind producing a custom handmade bike. It’s guaranteed to take you on the ride of your life.

Features a foreword by Phil Liggett, the voice of the legendary man behind the English-language broadcasts of the Tour de France.

Picked up The Origin of Financial Crises: Central Banks, Credit Bubbles, and the Efficient Market Fallacy, by George Cooper recently.

Yeah, I know … sounds really exciting doesn’t it. But in reality, from what I’ve read so far, the book seems to do a great job of explaining how the global economy has been pushed into crisis, and offers potential solutions … one of these being that “avoiding financial tsunamis comes at the price of permitting, even encouraging, a greater number of smaller credit cycles.”

In other words, Mr. Cooper is arguing that instead of staying out of the markets when the economy is growing, but jumping in and cutting interest rates when the economy is contracting, the world’s central banks should permit some short-term cyclicality in order to purge the system of excesses, which can be accomplished by preventing excessive credit creation (which he defines as credit growth far ahead of economic growth).

This doesn’t mean that Mr. Cooper is arguing that the central banks stay out completely; when things do reach crisis proportions, as they have currently, central banks do need to intervene, but they need to be careful NOT to inflate another credit bubble.

I need to finish reading the entire book to really give it a thorough review, but thus far it’s quite an interesting read.