Where Did I Leave My Glasses? A Book to Remember

Martha Weinman Lear's lamentations on memory failings - normal memory failings - are somewhat long-winded, but her conversational style is engaging and her book is packed with enough well-researched findings to make it worth the reading time.

On its surface, the 2008 release Where Did I Leave My Glasses? is reassuring. Most of the frustrations we experience are "normal." Nagging questions like,  what's his name, when did I find out about that, and where did I leave my glasses? are to be expected as we age.

Sorry, the truth hurts.

And (spoiler alert!) Lear includes no surefire remedies and frankly, her advice is anything but sexy: There's no magic bullet, not even Ginko biloba, and the best diet advice is this: A heart-healthy diet is also a brain-healthy diet." See? Ho-hum, boring stuff - we know that. (Why most of us eschew the advice is another matter.)

The bottom line: human memory is a strange and wondrous thing. Understanding the difference between procedural, semantic and episodic memory* and realizing most of your "where are my glasses" moments are episodic means you don't have much to worry about. Well, no more than the rest of us do.

Happy reading, whateveryournameis.
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Memory primer: 

Procedural memory = remembering how to walk

Semantic memory = remembering what walking is

Episodic memory = who was I walking with, and what was her name? 

What R U Reading and Do You Know Who Wrote It? Ghostwriters, Probably

A lot of titles and professions in the business world are misunderstood. Most of them, I would argue. That said, if you ever meet a copywriter with a big chip on his or her shoulder, I hope you'll cut him or her (OK, me) some slack.

Most copywriters can also be called "ghostwriters," and although neither is a particularly lofty title, in our information-laden world, writers of all ilks* deserve some extra... consideration, for starters. (More compensation, too - but I'll leave that topic for another day.)

This post appeared earlier this year on my blog about business writing.

What Do Copywriters Write? Everything

In the past six months or so, I've written about employment placement services, OSHA regulations,
e-parking apps, replacement windows, agricultural dust control products, hand-crafted jewelry
landscaping services and bulk mulch products, mobile pet grooming services, PeopleSoft implementations, escape room games, marketing automation, keratin hair straightening processes,
online accounting services, floral arrangements, appointment-setting software, lead paint remediation products, snow plowing and ice management techniques and a variety of medical conditions, surgeries and treatments, and reimbursement systems affecting both patients and providers.

Over approximately the same time period, my work has also appeared in three Forbes blogs, The Huffington Post, and a couple of other places I just can't mention.

I've written policies and procedural manuals for employees of companies where I've never been employed - and not just written, as in wrangled someone else's words, but written as in created and developed the policy (after discussions with several company principles or department head) and then written, for stakeholder approval. I have not written public policy but, many a hired-gun copywriter has. Sorry if that ruins your romantic notion about politicians and other public servants but hey, they're busy people. (Do you have any idea how much time it takes to raise enough money to run for office?)

My point? Information is a tricky thing. Regardless of the expert's name on an article or the name of the publication, it's quite possible the piece you're reading was written by a copywriter with a basic journalism degree in his (or her) back pocket, a fairly small balance in his (or her) bank account, and a whole lot of secrets.

Ghostwriters are not in the Fake News Business

This is absolutely not intended to be a jab at journalism, public relations, corporate information, business blogs or any other form of writing. Quite the contrary. Journalists are trained to research, investigate, interview and quickly disseminate information - real, helpful information. Not "just the facts," but the facts plus context.

As always, I highly recommend reading a lot, and thinking even more. And hey, tip your bartenders and copywriters. They're both generally undervalued in the professional world.
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*Like copywriters, ilk is a word that doesn't get a lot of respect.       In fact, many modern spell-check programs don't recognize it. (Merriam-Webster does.) I love how internet retailer Woot uses ilk in an ad for a bag that's definitely not elk.

As long as I'm rambling, I should point out that Woot is a company that appears to "get" copywriting and all that other mumbo-jumbo. Again, that's probably fodder for a whole different post. 

Fun with Words: Thanks, CJR and TSA

I'm a word-lover, so two articles from Columbia Journalism Review made me smile this week -

What do 'recombobulation' and 'binary' have in common? Well, at first you might think, not much, other than the fact that CJR recently wrote about both.

On further review, however, there may be a little more to the relationship. I've been discombobulated and I have to say, I believe it is a binary thing. Either you're combobulated or discombobulated. Based on personal experience (and a poor grasp of chemistry), I think it's something like being either solid or liquid. Frankly, I find it nearly impossible to be in both states at the same time.

Apparently, the Transportation Safety Administration now recognizes that collecting your carry-ons, shoes, and other assorted atoms and grouping them into a tighter bundle takes some time. And space. So there.

Recombobulation Takes Time. And Space. And Good Reporting. 

So, for shedding light on the under-appreciated word combobulation, I thank CJR (and TSA).

Now, back to binary. It seems a little odd that there can be so many meanings, don't you think? Does that mean two really isn't enough?

Think about it. And if you like words and wonderful writing (reporting, too) maybe consider supporting CJR.

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Speaking of words to love, remember sniglets? Since they appeared in the 1980s, they've been upgraded.

Three Fun Fiction Picks

When it comes to reading quirks, I have a few.

I like to read nonfiction during the day, and fiction at night. I like to read lighter fare during the warmer months; there's something really nice about reading deeper stories curled up on my couch under a blanket.

Oh, and I like dead characters.

Below, three fictional diversions I've enjoyed in the past few weeks. (It's been hot, so these books are on the lighter side.) What about you? What are YOU reading? And won't you share a few titles and your opinions? Contact me using the comments below or leave a message on my Facebook Page about dogs and books and stuff.

Be Frank with Me 

When a smart and dear teacher-friend mentioned how much she enjoyed this title, I immediately requested it from library. (Hi, Tracy!) The 2016 release is built on some lovable and looney characters and I loved the dialog. The story wasn't nearly as strong as the people author Julia Clairborne Johnson created, but hey, it was fun spending time with them.

The Whole Town's Talking

Another 2016 release, and similarly full-of-good-characters-but-light-on-plot book that I heartily recommend. Especially if you like dead characters. This one's by Fannie Flagg; the author who was responsible for Fried Green Tomatoes. As you'd expect, then, good characters and great conversation. Even from the grave.

Conclave

My dad recommended this; how could I not read it? From Robert Harris, whom the Irish Times says "out-camps" Dan Brown, comes an intriguing (but I remind you, fictional) look inside the Vatican during a Conclave in the not-too-distant future. I saw one plot twist coming...but the other took me quite by surprise. Fictional, yes; campy? I'm not sure. I like to think the author was sending a message. I'd love to hear your interpretation!

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And if you don't want to interpret, how about a full-on review? I'm ALWAYS open to guest posts! Get in touch by commenting below or leave a message on my Facebook Page about dogs and other stuff that makes me happy. 

Is Too Much from a Good Author a Bad Thing?

Maybe there is such a thing as too much of a good thing. I loved The Secret Life of Bees; liked The Invention of Wings very much, and ... enjoyed The Mermaid Chair.  While I'd call each a good book by a solid author (Sue Monk Kidd), I'm ready for a different flavor at this point.

There's still a title or two from Barbara Kingsolver I haven't read, but I think I need a different voice, a different sort of book entirely. Maybe it's time for me to heft a real Hemingway. Or phone a friend...

Looking for Fiction Recommendations

I"m working my way through three or four nonfiction titles at the moment.  (OK; always.) What I need is the escape/relaxation read.

I tend to read nonfiction in the daytime, and fiction (to unwind) at night.

So fellow page-turners, what recommendations would you share?

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Have a suggestion but don't want to reply here? Please post on my Facebook page. Thanks! 

Gifts for Grads - Books are Easy to Wrap

Let's face it, when it comes to great gifts for High School and College Grads, "money" is the right answer.

But how imaginative is that? When you want to include a thoughtful little something for the graduate, consider a book that won't feel like another assignment, but that will engage the graduate's gray matter.

Here, three suggestions. Got other ideas? Share them in the comments or on my Facebook page!

Great book for any female graduate, public health or medical school graduate: The Immortal Cells of Henrietta Lacks

(Yes I know it's a new HBO movie. Yes of course the book is better. Also, remember - should said grad be celebrating with a little getaway, she'll incur no data charges when reading an actual book.)

Perfect gift for the grad with an entrepreneurial bent, but without a plan: Life is Good - The Book

An excellent pick for either a high school or college grad - and under $20!

Excellent idea for a college grad with an interest in plants and biology: The Cabaret of Plants

Lots of big words, even more fascinating info. Note: not for the kid who had to repeat biochem. 



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Consider this your friendly reminder: 'tis the season to stock up on graduation cards, money and/or gift cards, and thoughtful gifts -- that are easy to wrap and make you look smart. Books might even help the graduate find his or her way to health, happiness, enlightenment, or at least, a job. 

If that sounds a bit unlikely, remember - books are easy to wrap. 

Enjoy graduation season! 

The Book You Should NOT Give to Mom on Mother's Day

Don't get me wrong; I like Marie Kondo's neat and tidy little book about tidying up. Great advice. Short and sweet. Packed with great advice, gentle yet persuasive prodding. It's a book almost any mom could love. BUT, don't.

That really wasn't big enough to make my point. 

BUT, don't. 

It's the wrong thing to give mom on Mother's Day. 

Take my word on this. You can thank me later. 

I have it on very good authority that when you give this particular title as a gift to the woman who has spent your whole life cleaning up after you, she is likely to use it immediately - to smack you in the head. 

You're welcome. 

Wild & Wonderful: Discoveries on the Trail

So it took me a few years to get to the 2012 bestseller, Wild, by Cheryl Strayed.

Like most autobiographical memoirs, Strayed's first book has had a few dubious readers - Vanity Fair dug a bit deeper into her encounter with a reporter from The Hobo Times, for example. I was more interested in a list of some of the things that didn't make the final cut of Wild, however.

And while the 2014 movie had many fans, it had a fair number of disappointed viewers as well. (Look, the book is always better than the movie.)

Anyway, it was another title I couldn't put down, meaning I ignored my family for several hours in order to read it. In other words, great book to take on vacation!

#DefinitelyRecommended

Happy reading! 

Gotta-Read List for 2017

YipppEEEEE!!! I'm a-l-m-o-s-t cleared a path (figuratively) to some reading time. I plan to dig in to Wild by Cheryl Strayed this weekend. 

What about you? How's your 2017* must-read list looking? Anything you've checked off, or added, recently? What's the best book you've read so far this year? 

Here are a few others on my Gotta-Read List in 2017:

Ellen Dunham-Jones,  Retrofitting Suburbia

The Emperor of All Maladies by Siddhartha Mukherjee

How We Learn by Benedict Carey -- and a speed-reading recap! 

The Mermaid's Chair, by Amy Monk Kidd


*hey, let's not judge. Technically it's still the first quarter of 2017...

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Want to read something funny and light? Try my essay collection about dogs, life, and other things we generally can't control. Reviewers say it's "laugh out loud funny" and it's under $7. Take a look, you might enjoy it! 

Hemingway's Girl - Hemingway for Beginners?

I thoroughly enjoyed this breezy novel about life on Key West during the depression, a time that sucked a lot of air out of the years between WWI and WWII. But even then, life and love went on, and Hemingway did his thing.

Don't Judge a Book By its Title

When some of Ernest Hemingway's novels were assigned reading (way back when), I'm sorry to say they didn't appeal to me. So - silly as it may seem - ordinarily I would've dismissed this book on title alone. But a recommendation can be a powerful thing, and when a friend raved about the book, I decided to give it a try. Sure am glad I did. (Thanks, Hannah!) 

Now, to be clear, the book is not by Hemingway, but a novel about a young girl's fictional friendship with the author, known to many as "Papa." Like all good historical fiction, bits and pieces of history (actual, not alternative, facts) are plentiful throughout the book. Still, generally, reading anything by or about Hemingway isn't a big draw for me. The good news is that Erika Robuck may have changed my mind about her muse, or perhaps more accurately, reminded me that one's tastes in literature (and life?) can change in a decade or two. Or three.

Florida and the Great Depression

The setting was as vital to the story as the characters, and while I've done some research into what life was like in Florida during WWII, I have read and studied very little about the years leading up to it so learning a bit about that era was a bonus. We may bemoan the current state of politics and worry about the economy, but oh, we've come a long way, baby.

Hemingway, who trained as a newspaper reporter, was no saint. (And no, that was not necessarily redundant). This novel includes his penchant for fighting, drinking, and extramarital affairs.

Key West Setting and Ohio Appeal

The stretch of land (islands, really) that comprises the Florida Keys is golden, grand, hot, sticky, and sunny, almost always. In other words, an appealing setting for an Ohio reader, especially during a gray winter. But I like the nod that the author gave to our often-overlooked change of seasons: 

"God, you haven't lived until you've seen the leaves change color up north.  ... The best part of the snow is the silence. It muffles the world. You've never heard such silence as a nice batch of snow makes."       ~ Erika Robuck, Hemingway's Girl (c) 2012

Who Will Enjoy this Book? 

Fans of Hemingway might - or they might not. Personally, I think it may be a "gateway read" that could convince a non-fan to read some of his works, again, years after they were listed as required on a class syllabus. Whether you're a Hemingway fan or not, this title is an enjoyable light romance and well-written work of historical fiction.

Although it's not a YA, per se, it is appropriate for advanced readers in middle- and high-schools. (Meaning I'd rate it a PG.)

 

I have also reviewed A Moveable Feast -- about his first marriage -- and didn't like it much either. But, you can be the judge.

Are you a Hemingway fan? Have you ever read his works? I'd love to hear from you! I welcome comments here, and on my Facebook Page.

Life is Good, The Book

Life is Good: The Book by Bert and John Jacobs
Published by the National Geographic Society
(c) 2015
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I'll admit I didn't want the book at first. I assumed it was a collection of feel-good stories, pithy quotes and cute line drawings and nothing very substantive.

I'm glad I read it!

Two Entrepreneurs, One Story

Bert and John Jacobs founded the Life Is Good company by selling t-shirts from a beat-up van. It was before "angel investors" were all over Twitter, before eCommerce was available as a free plug-in for your Wordpress site. The company's start-up phase lasted years. The van was a mess.

In those hustling, hard-working years, they knew they had something...they just didn't know quite what.

   "From the start, we saw the T-shirt as a great vehicle for communication. What you say on the outside says a lot about who you are on the inside. We just needed to figure out what we wanted to say." [p. 62]

They figured it out at a keg party.

It's About Optimism

I won't spoil the how-the-Life-is-Good-company-found-its-niche story, but I will say that you should never underestimate the importance of having awesome friends and parties. The original slogan and drawing that became Life Is Good really was born in a "meeting" of the minds - AKA a late night with lots of friends and beer.

Also, while the company sells t-shirts, the value has more to do with the message on them than the cut, color and (super-soft) cotton they're made of.

Two Entrepreneurs, Many Stories

To their credit, the Jacobs brothers share much but not so much that it's all about them. The book is well-crafted because it shares many related stories, all of which support the whole. And, I have to say some of my initial, pre-conceived notions about the book were accurate. It's packed with graphics, lists and cute pictures. But in a good way - they are not filler, but part of the story.

The Boston Connection

I should've seen it coming, but I didn't. Near the end of the book is a section, just about five pages recounting, recounting the horrible sadness when bombs went off near the finish line of the Boston Marathon, on Patriots' Day, 2013.

I've had little connection to city where I was born most of my life, but in the past five years or so I've worked regularly, creating and managing content for a marketing firm in Boston.

Managing content is usually a matter of planning and scheduling. Posts are created ahead of time to cover holidays and other special events. But when the world stops, the internet keeps going...and it becomes a place where people turn for news, escape, sanity, solace...whatever they need. So while I was horrified, worried about and hurting for people I worked "with" but only via email and phone lines, and feeling helpless (what could I do?!) i was also trying to help by sharing appropriate nuggets (do we really NEED a Facebook post today?) and more thoughtful blog posts as time went on. Reading about how Life is Good employees gathered together in the immediate aftermath would have been a little painful for anyone; for me, it hit a tad close to home. The good news, of course, is that because the company is built on optimism, the Life is Good team had a little extra resilience.

The follow-up, describing how the company responded with the Nothing is Stronger Than Love design (seen above, on the keyboard where I typed about the bombings) is a textbook example of good PR and good business.

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Who would enjoy this book? 
It's a good business story; might make a good gift for a recent grad trying to find his or her way in the (corporate world); is easy to read (like on an airplane or beach vacation!) and would certainly be of interest to almost anyone in the Boston, MA area. 
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Full disclosure: I bought the book because I need to upgrade my wardrobe. Most of my t-shirts come from my kids' sports teams and...well, let's just say some of them are ready to move on to the great rag-box in the garage. The book was advertised as part of a T-shirt & book promo package at the Life is Good website, and I'm happy with both my new shirt and the book. If you just want the book (it makes a nice gift!) you can save some $$$ and pick up the book, by itself, from Amazon. 
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Read any good books lately? As always...guest reviewers are welcome! Get in touch in comments on this blog or leave a message on my Facebook Page, Dumb Things We Say to Dogs. 

Best Books of 2016?

Chris Fralic's list of the "best" business books of 2016 brought some titles to my attention that I feel I really must read. (And made me feel behinder than ever on my 2R list....)

While each entry on his list didn't pique my interest, A Torch Kept Lit, Great Lives of the Twentieth Century sure did. One reviewer describes the book by William F. Buckley, Jr. as "52 obituaries devoted to luminaries from various walks of life—politics, the military, espionage, the world of arts and letters—as well as less prominent but cherished family members and friends."  

As you've probably realized, Fralic's best books of 2016 list didn't include only books that were published last year. Several were new titles, others (like the Buckley book) were published years ago. 

I'm not especially quick to jump on new releases, as there are so many books...and copyright date really has nothing to do with quality! 

At the moment I'm reading Life is Good - The Book ((c) 2015). It's optimism and the entrepreneurial path, as followed by Bert and John Jacobs, founders of the Life Is Good company. It's not quite what I expected -- and that's OK. More about the book later. 

Now, I'd love to hear from you -- what was the best book you read last year? What are you most looking forward to reading this year? 

Please comment below, or get in touch through my fuzzy Facebook Page, Dumb Things We Say to Dogs. 

Happy reading, all! 

What, no time to read? 

Have you tried a speed reading course? 

I took a class years ago, and am still reaping the benefits. 

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When I'm not reading, I'm writing. Copywriting, that is. If you're looking for a Marketing Content Manager, you might want to see what I do. I call it Writing That Works.