Thursday, July 13, 2006

Jane Eyre weather and narrative addiction


Karen and me on Sunday

Midway through July already! We’re getting those summer thunderstorms these last few days—Jane Eyre weather, I call it. You are especially fortunate on afternoons like that if you have a gothic novel you’re working through—or Poe. Poe would do.

I recently bought the complete Poe from the bargain racks at Borders. Lucky me! Actually, I need to stay out of Borders altogether. I always walk out of there with stowaways… this weekend it was the Best American Short Stories from 2001 (which I picked up because it was cheaper than the 2005 edition) and The Life You Save May Be Your Own, which is about Flannery O’Connor, Thomas Merton, Dorothy Day, and Walker Percy. Augh! I couldn’t put it back!

And the last tagalong was a new address book, specifically for all my crazy Calvin friends who are determined to spread to the corners of the planet. I need email addresses and birthdays and mailing addresses all in one place! As it is, I have about seventy scraps of paper floating around my room with important information on each one.

While I’m still thinking about books, here’s the “currently being read list”: Peter Pan (Barrie), Treasure Island (Stevenson), The Undertaking (Lynch), Mudhouse Sabbath (Winner), Best American Short Stories of 2001 (ed. Kingsolver), The Solace of Leaving Early (Kimmel), Jane Austen, A Life (Nokes), and The Tempest (Shakespeare). And I’m soon to start Blue Like Jazz (Miller) with my wonderful friend Karen.

At what point am I just insane and not an “avid reader”???

But I do love the variety. I’m not reading them all on top of each other—mostly right now I’m reading Solace of Leaving, which is excellent. Highly recommended. And then of course, I’m also working at a bookstore, which means when things get slow, I grab something new, lean against a shelf, and pass the time that way.

Meanwhile, when I sit down to write, I have this dilemma: Do I work on Novel Idea A or Novel Idea B? One of the five short stories I began Monday morning? Or one of the two essays I need to start working on? Perhaps a writing exercise? It’s a little overwhelming, but it’s a blast…

I promise I have been doing more than reading, writing, or selling words. Last Sunday I got a chance to have some coffee with Karen before she left for Chicago (home). She’ll be back for school in late August, and I’m hoping for chances to explore St. Louis together. The art museum in the fall? Sign me up. Anyway, Karen brought scones with her—homemade!—and we caught up with summer plans and summer craziness. She’s so much fun. Seeing her makes me miss my other Calvin pals!

...Which is why it’s great that this coming Sunday, I’ll hit the St. Louis Zoo with Laura, one of my roommates from last year. I haven’t seen her since late May, and I need to see her pictures (and hear more stories!) from her semester in Spain. I’ve really missed seeing her and chatting between study sessions. Sunday will be wonderful.

And in the meantime… I need to catch up on my reading!—jl

Posted by Jenn Langefeld on 07/13 at 09:28 PM
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