It's not as windy/nasty as it was yesterday morning and that's something for which I am thankful. I'm pack-less again today, since I have enough at work to keep me nourished and feeling warm.
I'm going to do the annual "read with kids" session over at a nearby school today so I'll be away from the desk for a few hours and that will make me happy, also. I used to read on a near-weekly basis with a kid in PS 12 before we moved downtown. His name was William and I really liked him because he was enthusiastic and good-humored and wanted to be there. We'd read books about whales (his choice) and for a while there the two of us could've been marine biologists (I really did get quite knowledgeable). But that has passed now and the kid must be about 13-14 now. I hope he's still reading on his own because he had a lot of potential. What we'll be doing today is just an excuse to give the kids cookies, but it beats sitting at my desk.
Speaking of reading, I finished The Garden of Eden Monday night and it ended pretty well. One big similarity between this book and This Side of Paradise is that, of course, there are women whose mental health slowly decline. I liked the book, and although it's about a writer, there is a lot of good advice in there for us, not just as writers but pertaining to all walks of professional life. I wonder if having 4 wives is what forced Hemingway to off himself? There's a movie of it that'll be coming out this weekend but I doubt we'll be able to find a theater where it'll play. He has two lovers in the story but it doesn't get as over-the-top, physically, as you'd think.
After reading really dense work, I like to catch up on my fraternal pastime, comic books. Yesterday I read the first Hitman tpb and Punisher War Zone: Resurrection of Ma Gnucci. Both are by Garth Ennis, or as I like to call him: Garth "greatest living comics writer and no one can touch him" Ennis. I liked both of them of course. My gripe with Punisher was that after reading all those stories on the MAX imprint, it's tough to match the shock value from there.
Today I'm reading book 10 of Ex Machina, which is one of the very few current titles I make it a point to buy. It's just so consistently good (Vol. 9 was acceptable, at best. They jumped the shark in that one, I'm afraid, as the writer and artist injected themselves into the story). There's the right blend of action, socio-political commentary, realistic art (and some gore) and morality and that's why it's appealing to me as an adult. I may have written about this before, but I was turned on to the book during the first month's of its release back in the Fall of 2004. I was temping at a kitchen designer's in East Williston and found there was a comic shop a few blocks away. The clerk gave the full recommendation and since it was on the Wildstorm imprint, I knew it'd be worth the couple of bucks. The dork at the register was right (I should talk -- we all remember what a whore I felt like when I'd work Wednesday mornings at Cosmic Comics in 2004 & 5) and I've kept up with the series since then, but stopped buying single issues after #10.
The problem with riding in weather like this is that it's going to get tougher to get motivated. It happens each Winter. A small part of me feels as though it's not worth the time and effort but that's only a small part of me. I do feel very much in-control, however, and there is a powerful feeling that accompanies the end of the ride. I barely had to stop today and that's probably why I was able to get to the building a few minutes early.
Today I listened to select tracks off Ozzy's Black Rain: "Not Going Away," "I Don't Wanna Stop," "11 Silver," "Civilize the Universe" and "Here for You."
It's energetic enough to provide a soundtrack for the ride without being too deep and I don't need to manufacture any anger to get moving.
Thank you for reading.
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