Remembering Old, Favorite Latinamerican Stories

I recently started cataloguing mentally the great Latin American literature books and short stories that I read at NIU for my Spanish Business Translation coursework.

Those were modern classics that really spoke of the varied experiences and historical events in each of the countries. Well written and interesting stories that led the mind free to ponder and imagine.

Aquí está la lista de libros/historias cortas que me recuerdo, en orden alfabético. Creo que van clasificados como Realismo y Realismo Mágico. A lo mejor hubo más cuentos pero se han ido perdiendo entre la neblina del recordar.

• Aura de Carlos Fuentes
• El Almohadón de Plumas de Horacio Quiroga
• La Casa de los Espíritus de Isabell Allende
• Como Agua para el Chocolate de Laura Esquivel
• Continuidad de los Parques de Julio Cortázar
• El Coronel No tiene Quien le Escriba de Gabriel García Márquez
• El Hombre Muerto de Horacio Quiroga
• No Pasó Nada de Antonio Skármeta

Do You Bullet Journal?

I recently learned about a new way of journaling, called bullet journaling, from a friend's LinkedIn post.

This two-year old journaling technique was developed by product designer Ryder Carroll. It's intended to be simple and minimalistic, but many people are also using it as a creative outlet. It basically combines your calendar, reminders, to-do list, and life goals tracker.

Here is a video introduction from Carroll:



Each bullet journal has four main sections:

• The index or key spread - the first two facing pages with a list of the sections in the journal with the page numbers.
• Future log spread - a list of important dates by month.
• Monthly and Daily log spread - the month's dates and days of the week, as well as a daily log.
• Collections - a collection is a list of things that you're passionate about, such as movies, television shows, music, life goals, or more.

Collections are lists of reminders by category. For example, you could create a list of movies you'd like to watch this month, or favorite songs you discovered this month. When one month comes to a close, you start the next one on the next spread over - and also carry over any activities as needed.

I have always been a HUGE fan of journaling and personal organizers but have failed terribly in maintaining either habit consistently. I'm going to give this six months and see how it goes.

The basic tools I'm using to kickstart this habit are:

• Eccolo Cool Jazz graph journal with pen loop
• Uni-Ball Signo Micro 307 in black ink
• Staedtler 10 Triplus fineliner marker set

If you are interested in learning more about bullet journaling, here are some of the resources that helped me get started:

• Quarz: People are falling in love with a simple productivity system
• Bullet journal, getting started
• Lazy Genious' Collective: The Absolute Ultimate Guide
• The Art of Simple: How I Use my Bullet Journal
• Marie Claire: WTF is a bullet journal?
• Bullet Journal Joy
• Los Angeles Times: Everything you need to know about bullet journaling
• BuzzFeed: WTF is a bullet journal
• MakeUseOf: Using Evernote as a bullet journal

Tony Robbins 10 Rules for Success

1. Raise your standards
2. Be truly fulfilled
3. Progress equals happiness
4. Love your customers
5. Add value
6. Have an exit strategy
7. Be resourceful
8. Pay attention to the little things
9. Look for leverage
10. Change your mindset

Reading: Stephen King's Joyland

I enjoyed reading Joyland because it covered a murder mystery, a coming of age story and a haunting in a believable way.

The cover has a strong noir and 60s tone, which made me wonder if this was going to be a breezy, lightweight piece to read through. Overall I think that estimate is accurate.

This is a series of crime books from what I can tell. I read on Wikipedia that King wrote a previous book for this series or publisher. I further read that that first story was the basis for SyFy's Haven. Guess what I'll be looking for on Netflix soon... ^_^

This book celebrates something of Americana with the location where the story is based and acts as a backdrop for the main plot: an old time amusement park in the Northeast.

I enjoyed seeing the beach through the eyes of the protagonist, I enjoyed the approach to friendships among kids in the same age group. I like stories where the bad guy gets his comeuppance in an unusual way, usually supernatural - it reminds me of an old favorite, Tales from the Crypt.

Though this is one of those stories where we don't really discover what's the background or back story of the antagonist/antihero. Which may have brought some additional dimension to his prior crimes as they build the supporting evidence on how horrible he is.

It's always fun to see a group of kids solve a mystery, and this story was the least gruesome King story I can recall. Definitely a lightweight read, and a great entry into the world of King.

PS - my own entry into the world of King was Cycle of the Werewolf and Dragon's Eye back in the very early 1990s.

Reading: Stephen King's Mr. Mercedes

I took a little too long to write this review, because I'm now two books ahead of my reviews.

Stephen King's Mr. Mercedes is a crime, suspense kind of book which I really enjoyed. It explores the themes of sadism, terrorism and insanity.

Steven King usually leaves areas open in his books where an editor or someone can fill in elements and jargon from the day to help bring the stories to a relatable space in time for the (constant) reader.

Many elements bring the story to a realistic version of today, including the crazed tweens and a boy band, which is a recurring element in at least one other book. I also enjoyed the role of the Internet in this particular story as a tool for evil.

The antihero here was developed in a way that you could find out what he was like when he was young, and you had equal parts pity and disgust towards his actions.

This story reminded me a little of The Red Dragon by Richard Harris. Very interesting in the sense it made you revisit that old question, is it nature or nurture which brings people to be the way they are or do the things they do. And another antihero who is looking to evolve beyond his current state.

Great writing, as always, with believable, relatable characters and good descriptions with enough room for the reader to fill in the blanks in his or her mind.

Reading: Stephen King's Revival

I recently treated myself to my first paperback in a long time, and of course, it was a Stephen King book.

Revival is very well written from a description and atmosphere perspective. The usual first person format from King is believable and relatable. My issue with this book is the slow uptake and disappointing climax, which seemed far-fetched in relation to the tone in the rest of the book.

All around, the tactile nature of holding a paperback and King's expert storytelling and writing made for a very enjoyable reading experience.

I couldn't put the book down and was able to read it in a span of 24 hours.

I already pre-ordered his next book and downloaded a couple of recent ones that I haven't gotten to yet, from Amazon.

Reading: Jane Fonda's My Life So Far

A month or so ago I read Jane Fonda's autobiography, and enjoyed learning more about a very dynamic woman.

I've always known Jane Fonda as the lady my mom listened to in the 80s as she exercised. Though, back then, her voice was in Spanish (we lived in Mexico) on the LPs and cassette tapes.

It wasn't until later years that I learned that she had suffered with body image and eating disorder issues. So that made her much more relatable to me.

I hadn't really seen many of her movies, just Barbarella and 9 to 5. Maybe a couple more but they obviously didn't stick in my mind.

She was a bit infamous in the US, among some groups, for her anti-war phase.

The book is arranged chronologically from her earlier years up to the present. It was fascinating to see how dysfunctional many of her relationships have been, and what important lessons she feels obligated to share to women everywhere, who may also fall prey to the same thought processes.

Her book is part therapy and part biography. It's very interesting seeing how she put others, especially her male partners, ahead of herself and regretted it from the beginning. It's also interesting seeing how she copes with guilt of being an absent mother. All important elements in how people grow and develop mentally and emotionally.

I enjoyed the writing style, the tone, the advice, and her story. I am looking forward to watching her Netflix television show with Lily Tomlin (Grace and Frankie).

Reading Update

I finished reading, or rather listening to several great audiobooks:

The Color Purple

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

Sookie Stackhouse Mysteries a.k.a True Blood (on book #4 right now)

Book Update

I've been going through quite a few audio and print books recently:

• Killing Lincoln, Bill O'Reilly
• What the Buddha Taught, Jack Cornfield
• Killing Kennedy, Bill O'Reilly
• True Food: Seasonal, Sustainable, Simple, Pure, Andrew Weil
• The Book: On the Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are
• Heads in Beds, Jacob Tomsky

I'm currently listening to The Design of Everyday Things, Donald Norman, while reading the paperback The Tao of Pooh, Benjamin Hoff.

Next on the reading queue is the paperback The Ti of Piglet, Benjamin Hoff.

Another Reading Update

I just finished speed-reading "Back to Eden" by Jethro Klass (1949, updated 1988). This is a great, thick softcover focused on explaining and exposing the benefits of a more natural, back-to-the-earth diet and lifestyle. Some of the recommendations (such as low fat milk products) are currently being questioned in nutrition and health circles, but otherwise all around it's an enjoyable primer. I personally was surprised to find a section in the book about all sorts of health remedies from wild growing plants. This can make a very useful primer for someone who is into foraging.

I also started listening to the audiobook of Inferno, by Dan Brown. This is another sequel (the latest) under the Robert Langdon series of books. It's been hard getting into it at the very beginning but it's catching steam. For once, instead of hiding plot information, we're discovering it along with the protagonist and his (of course) female companion du jour. The World Health Organization is a piece of the puzzle, and who exactly plays the role of the evil doer is still not crystal clear yet. Let's see how it goes.

Reading Update

I just finished listening to the Audible audio-book of Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief by Lawrence Wright. It was a fascinating, if a little subjectively negative approach to the religion of Scientology.

I enjoyed learning the history of the religion as well as some of its tenets and organizational processes. I was surprised to learn that Clearwater and Tampa Florida are two of its national "epicenters," with the other major one being California.

I disliked the skewering of character and church individuals by the author and by church dissidents, and some of the church's own harsh and relentless attacks towards church dissidents.

My Audible Queue

This is a great book if you are interested in reading about the complex psychological and emotional needs of people in leadership roles, and those who pursue religions in a fanatical way. It's scary how absolute people's surrender can be when it comes to following individuals in a position of authority, or towards a religion's tenets. Especially, when an outsider can clearly see logical and safety flaws in some of the traditions and processes.

With this book under my belt, finally, I'm hoping to move to something a little less creepy and emotionally involved.

I'm now very much looking forward to finishing listening to Stone's Fall by Ian Pears, it's a drudgery of a long book, which favors melodrama and the suspense created by slowly revealed plot points over a solid plot and story narrative.

Next on my reading/listening queue will be The Mystical Kabbalah by Rabbi David Cooper.

Reading Update

All right. The biggest shocker in The Lost Symbol is that Robert Langdon *does not* sleep with the heroine.

Now that I completed that book, phew, I've moved on to a non-fiction piece. I tend to enjoy non-fiction much more than fiction anymore.

I'm currently listening to the Audible/audiobook for "Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief" by Lawrence Wright. I've always been curious about Ron L. Hubbard and Scientology ever since I spotted the earmarked and well-read copy of Dianetics on my mom's bedside table when I was a kid.

When I heard about this book, just this week, I knew the time had come to start reading up about Scientology in some way, shape, or form.

Is the coverage in this book negative or objective? This book is a good general overview, but while the author did a bit of interviewing and reading/research, he clearly exhibits a rather negative tone and perspective towards "The Church" and its founder.

It's a fascinating book thus far because Hubbard, in his early years, dabbled in the military, black magic, womanizing, and mental illness. I particularly like the  post-war mental illness angle, and discussion of social mores and social roles during the 1950s-1970s and their impact on Hubbard's mental health.

I look forward to seeing on what note the author chooses to conclude the book.

Reading Angels and Demons

I picked up Dan Brown's Angels and Demons on Audible. I'm a little shocked at how horrible this reads (listens?). I'm pretty sure it's not the voice actor, but rather, the writing.

I'm at around chapter 20 and we have only been given a preposterous lesson in halidron colliders and protons, a lot of gibberish about religion and a priest physicist. No real plot development AT ALL.

It's so disappointing to still have a dead body in a freezing-cold room upstairs waiting to be taken care of. Mr. Langdon seems quite the ponce when he barely raises an eyebrow while getting airlifted out of his country into Switzerland with no passport. This has absolutely no resemblance to real life.

My suspense of disbelief ain't taking any of it. I hope the book gets better, or gets to a point. Hopefully, sooner than later.

Finished Reading Hannibal

Yesterday I finished listening to the book Hannibal by Thomas Harris (and narrated by the same) on Audible.

I found this book to be disappointing and rather morbid. I definitely liked the other two books and the movie based on this book better.

The one, really great part about this audiobook was having the best possible reader, the book's own author. That was a real treat.

Reading: Silence of the Lambs

Just finished listening to Red Dragon on Audible, so, of course, I bought Silence of the Lambs right away. Can't wait to see how it goes :) It's one of my all time favorite movies.

Good series to listen to. Not sure how I would react to the books if I was reading them rather than listened to them. But it's a great way to fill in empty commutes with something interesting.

Reading with Audible

I am really, really enjoying my commutes ever since I started up listening to books on Audio on Audible about two weeks ago. Time seems to fly whenever I'm driving now.

I'm listening still to Red Dragon this week. It might be a longer book than I anticipated. The voice over actor does a great job as narrator (not so much when imitating characters) and the story is interwoven with an amazing set of experiential detail.

For example, a scene where a blind character notices the layout of a strange house by the noises (clock) and knows where a window is by feeling the residual heat on the kitchen floor from the afternoon soon coming in through...just amazes me. This ability to focus on enough detail to paint pictures in the reader's mind shows a writer who has worked out, seen in his mind's eye, what happens. The planning out of details, the descriptions, and the way people, events, and things dovetail is just awesome.

Of course, this is a gruesome crime book, so the topic itself is quite interesting. The story switches from one group of protagonists to the antihero, and back. You are moved out of your comfort zone and back again before you realize it.

I have a faint memory of having watched Manhunter, the movie based on this novel, a couple of years ago because William Petersen was in it (starring as Will Graham). I am definitely going to look this movie up again when I'm done "reading" this book. I may even look up the recent movie, Red Dragon, just for good measure. We'll see.

Reading: Red Dragon

My second book on Audible is a fiction book titled Red Dragon, by Thomas Harris and read by Alan Sklar.

I was a huge fan of the Silence of the Lambs movie when it came out in the early 1990s, and have been trying to work up the nerve to watch all the movies in the series--which I think I may have by now. I figured I should read the books as well, since the story and characters in each of the films is so compelling, different, and entertaining--well, at least to me.

I also picked a fiction book because I really did not enjoy the last non-fiction book I heard, Wheat Belly, and needed something completely different.

It's a bonus that Red Dragon features investigators and crimes/crime scenes, since that's another genre that I appreciate in television, video game, and film, but haven't really read much of it in books, as of yet.

I just started the book on Monday, while commuting to and from work, and I'm enjoying it quite a bit already. Although, the narrator sometimes reads some of the dialogue with the wrong intonation for particular phrases, and some of his accents for some Southern characters is a little far fetched, it's not too terribly distracting from the story. Well, most of the time, anyway.

I really like how Thomas Harris takes mini detours into interesting background information and descriptions, while not losing the main thread of the story--or losing the reader. He gives enough detail to paint a little bit of a fuller picture in the mind of the reader, as the plot progresses, but leaves a lot to the imagination as well.

Reading: Wheat Belly

Last week I started listening to a book on audio in my car on my commute to and from work. I signed up on Wheat  Belly, by cardiologist William Davis. The audio book is read by Tom Weiner.

Audible and obtained a copy of a book I heard about,

I'm never an extremist when it comes to food, diet, and health, so I was coming into the book with a huge grain of salt. It turns out I was right to do so.

Althouth Mr. Davis has extensive data on the prominence of diabetes, celiac disease, and other health issues plaguing our modern day society in the US, he doesn't show clear data linkages between wheat, wheat belly, and health. In addition, he keeps referring to wheat and whole grains when in reality, after listening/reading far enough into the book, he's actually referring to processed foods that claim to contain wheat and whole grains. It's an important distinction.

There is a lot of build up against the whole grain diet recommended by government health agencies, when in reality he should have focused more on the individual's role in their own health. It's important to have a balanced diet, and if one focuses solely on processed, packaged foods (which claim to contain whole grains but it's just flour) then there's going to be a strong imbalance.

The thing I found the most tedious to listen to was the innumerable "guilty" or "bad" foods listed throughout various chapters.Or the sometimes gross symptoms that come along with major illnesses such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, or gluten sensitivities.

The main reason I listened to this book was curiosity over this gluten-free fad that seems to have taken over the US over the last couple of years. I honestly can't say that I'm buying into any of it, but I'm glad I made the decision last year to avoid processed grains and foods in general, as much as possible.

All around, listening to books on my commutes has made the commute itself seem like it's flying by, and I enjoy being able to take care of some personal development or catching up to my reading list, anyway, while I'm at it.

Reading: Game of Thrones Update

I just finished reading book five in the Game of Thrones series, and I'm as annoyed as ever at the cliffhangers.

I knew he would end up attacking and/or killing favorite characters...when you have that many characters, you just know some need to go. I can't believe I've been reading this stuff since September? October? Gah.

There's a chapter, based on Theon Greyjoy, from book 6 (The Winds of Winter) on George R.R. Martin's website, and it has some serious typos at the very beginning. I can see how the editors really polish his writing into what we end up seeing on the page (or e-page, in my case).

We don't know when this next book is coming out, though I've read it may be at the end of March. I think they're pacing the books and series at this point, using the excuse that he's rewriting and writing both book six, and the final book (seven) and it's taking some time. Love predicting publisher's demand creation tactics--very a la Don Draper.

PS - Am I the only one who thinks that Daenerys is a Typhoid Mary? Everyone wants her dragons and to ride the coattails of her right to the Iron Throne, and yet she brings misery and destruction everywhere she goes.

Reading for Comfort and Joy

Back some years ago, a friend from high school gifted me a copy of Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy, by Sarah Ban Breathnach. Because it approaches topics gently and in an uplifting manner, I've recently begun reading it again to help in my winter blahs self-treatment regime.

Oddly enough, the page I read each day, or a couple of pages if I'm behind, is/are usually very a propos to what happened to me or what I'm feeling.

It's no small coincidence that this author's work follows in a similar vein to that of Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way. These types of books are drawing me big time lately.

Abundance and The Writer's Way are about taking stock of what overwhelming things we're feeling and experiencing, acknowledging them, taking some steps to correct/change those things within our control, and hopefully moving forward with renewed vigor.

Abundance is a daily affirmation book where you have one page to each day of the year. Topics range from simple joys like reading to more complicated topics such as managing one's grief.

I've taken to reading Abudance then segue to my daily journal. Sometimes, I don't feel like journaling, so I just let the lesson absorb into my unconscious--or I'm still negotiating some stuff that I'm going through. But it can serve as a great springboard to journaling.

Each day is kicked off with a great quote about the day's lesson. I sometimes copy those quotes, or meaningful sentences in the day's lesson onto my blog because I really like them.

Whatever your flavor this holiday season, if you suffer from even a mild case of the winter blahs, reading uplifting books a little bite at a time can really count as an important baby step in a "better" direction.

Here's to uplifting comfort and joy during this season, and always.