If there's anything the Internet needed, it's more pictures of cats.
Monday, January 31, 2011
End-of-the-month distraction!
One week ago I started my bookstore job. It's been marvelous so far, and I wish I could relate to you all the cool stuff I've learned, but (a) there's far too much to tell and (b) the handbook warns us against disclosing store procedures and policy. So until my blog posts have worked their way through both Corporate and my lawyer, I'm going to be pretty mum about my job. I will try to keep my faithful readers occupied, however, starting with this picture of a cat with a Far Side mug:
If there's anything the Internet needed, it's more pictures of cats.
If there's anything the Internet needed, it's more pictures of cats.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
From Georgia With Love
Just as a head's up, my brother has started a blog about his travels to the Former Soviet Republic of Georgia, Sweet Saqartvelo Brown. He's there to teach English.
You should all check it out and follow his blog. There's sure to be some post-communist hilarity!
You should all check it out and follow his blog. There's sure to be some post-communist hilarity!
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Oh yeah, and I've been published
2011 is turning up Peter.
Just a few days ago I had an essay published in the latest issue of Electica Magazine. You can follow a direct link to my article here. This is my publishing debut and is just another example of how sometimes hard work can pay off.
Take a look at some of the other stuff in Electica, too; you'll be pleasantly surprised.
Just a few days ago I had an essay published in the latest issue of Electica Magazine. You can follow a direct link to my article here. This is my publishing debut and is just another example of how sometimes hard work can pay off.
Take a look at some of the other stuff in Electica, too; you'll be pleasantly surprised.
Requiem for the Zoo
When I restarted this blog in June, I figured I'd be writing about my experiences at the zoo through August. October, at the very most. Somewhere around Halloween, when I was still scooping ice cream at the dairy store, I resigned myself to the fact that I would be at the zoo indefinitely, possibly through the summer of 2011.
All that's changed. After being called off from work on account of weather one too many times, I decided to search for another job...and found one. At a bookstore.
I handed my application in and was called on the very same day to schedule an interview. Two days later, after the interview, I was told to expect to wait two weeks or so to hear if I'd been given the position. Just 48 hours later, I got a call offering me the job. Now that's turnaround!
Next Monday I start at the bookstore. I will be doing an assortment of tasks, including working the cash register, restocking the shelves, and sorting the used books customers want to sell. I've always considered books my passion and looked on my high school library job as an ideal workplace for someone with my tastes. Perhaps this job will be even more meaningful, because customers at a bookstore want to keep what they find for much longer than three weeks.
So: "Wandering As A Cloud" is undergoing its third thematic shift in as many years. From England, to the zoo, and now to a bookstore. I will keep you updated.
Note: the picture is a rare look inside the Beloit College Library stacks. It's the only photo of bookshelves I own, but I knew I took it for a reason.
All that's changed. After being called off from work on account of weather one too many times, I decided to search for another job...and found one. At a bookstore.
I handed my application in and was called on the very same day to schedule an interview. Two days later, after the interview, I was told to expect to wait two weeks or so to hear if I'd been given the position. Just 48 hours later, I got a call offering me the job. Now that's turnaround!
Next Monday I start at the bookstore. I will be doing an assortment of tasks, including working the cash register, restocking the shelves, and sorting the used books customers want to sell. I've always considered books my passion and looked on my high school library job as an ideal workplace for someone with my tastes. Perhaps this job will be even more meaningful, because customers at a bookstore want to keep what they find for much longer than three weeks.
So: "Wandering As A Cloud" is undergoing its third thematic shift in as many years. From England, to the zoo, and now to a bookstore. I will keep you updated.
Note: the picture is a rare look inside the Beloit College Library stacks. It's the only photo of bookshelves I own, but I knew I took it for a reason.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
The Best Books of 2010
Happy New Year!
According to Shelfari, which I use to keep track of my reading, I read 45 books last year (holy crap!). In recognition of this fact, I am going to move away from the zoo for just a moment and list my favorite books of 2010. These are not necessarily books that came out in 2010, but books I read in the calendar year:
1.) The Yiddish Policemen's Union by Michael Chabon. (Incidentally, the book that convinced me to write my own novel)
2.) Seven Years in Tibet by Heinrich Harrer.
3.) Monster of God by David Quammen.
4.) The Tenth Parallel by Eliza Griswold.
5.) The Monster of Florence by Douglas Preston and Mario Spezi.
6.) The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz.
7.) Lady Sings the Blues by Billie Holiday.
8.) Apples Are From Kazakhstan by Christopher Robbins.
9.) Polio: An American Story by David M. Oshinsky.
10.) The Spy Who Died of Boredom by George Mikes.
And now, for a little reading analysis: of those books, only three are fiction (Chabon, Diaz, and Mikes). This is roughly in line with my own reading habits, which involves mainly nonfiction (especially history). According to Shelfari, I read 19 fiction books and 26 nonfiction books.
I think this also aligns with the American public as a whole, which tends to favor nonfiction. I'm not sure what the reason for this is, but I think it has to do with people preferring subjects they already know something about, and not having to get invested in a book with unfamiliar characters, plot, and symbolic imagery.
According to Shelfari, which I use to keep track of my reading, I read 45 books last year (holy crap!). In recognition of this fact, I am going to move away from the zoo for just a moment and list my favorite books of 2010. These are not necessarily books that came out in 2010, but books I read in the calendar year:
1.) The Yiddish Policemen's Union by Michael Chabon. (Incidentally, the book that convinced me to write my own novel)
2.) Seven Years in Tibet by Heinrich Harrer.
3.) Monster of God by David Quammen.
4.) The Tenth Parallel by Eliza Griswold.
5.) The Monster of Florence by Douglas Preston and Mario Spezi.
6.) The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz.
7.) Lady Sings the Blues by Billie Holiday.
8.) Apples Are From Kazakhstan by Christopher Robbins.
9.) Polio: An American Story by David M. Oshinsky.
10.) The Spy Who Died of Boredom by George Mikes.
And now, for a little reading analysis: of those books, only three are fiction (Chabon, Diaz, and Mikes). This is roughly in line with my own reading habits, which involves mainly nonfiction (especially history). According to Shelfari, I read 19 fiction books and 26 nonfiction books.
I think this also aligns with the American public as a whole, which tends to favor nonfiction. I'm not sure what the reason for this is, but I think it has to do with people preferring subjects they already know something about, and not having to get invested in a book with unfamiliar characters, plot, and symbolic imagery.
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