I recently read a blog post about 'book clubs'. My first thought when I saw the title of the post was that the author was going to talk about things like the "Book of the Month Club" and such. However, she meant those groups of people who read the same book and then get together periodically to discuss the book they all read. The post somewhat maligned the selections of the book clubs she was familiar with. She didn't directly attack all such groups, but she did seem to feel that she wouldn't be comfortable with joining such a group since it was doubtful that they would be reading selections she would like. I was compelled to comment, based on my own experiences moderating such a group that meets monthly at my church (though you don't have to attend the church to attend our meetings).
I noted that I moderate a book group and offered my observation that each group is different. For one, we don't call ourselves a 'club' because we don't want people to feel excluded or that they have to 'join the club' to stop into one of our meetings.
Secondly, we read all over the map. We try to make sure that we read some non-fiction, something 'classic', and one speculative fiction (re: science fiction-ish) work every year. We're very picky with our choices in general. The selection has to be about a topic worth discussing. Our choices are usually more 'literature' than 'fiction'. Many have usually been on the bestseller listings at some point, so they're not to stuffy or difficult to get through. Plus, we have a page limitation; we try to keep our choices to under 400 pages so that most people can get through the book within the month between meetings.
We also limit our meetings to a single hour. The group is primarily for people who want to talk about books, not to socialize. If attendees want to socialize with each other, they are free to make arrangements to do so outside of our (ahem) 'sacred' hour devoted to books. We typically discuss the current selection for 30-45 minutes and then spend the last 15 minutes discussing potential future reading choices. Sometimes the selection wasn't worth discussing for more than 10 or 15 minutes. Sometimes we find ourselves still discussing it when the hour is up.
I have been with this group for over a decade. When I moved 25 minutes away from our church, my love of that group was one of the things that helped me decide to stay with that church instead of switching to the church (of the same denomination) that is less than two miles from my house.
Meeting with others to talk about a book is not for everyone. The author of the blog article that inspired this post equated such discussions with traveling back in time to her high school English class, analytically dissecting boring books that one was forced to read.
I admit to a certain amount of rebellious reticence when reading something that someone else has deemed that I 'have to' or 'really must' read the book. However, everyone in our book group has a say in what we read. If you don't want to read something that someone suggests you have the right to say 'no', but you have to offer an alternative that the group might read instead. We did this after realizing that some people would say 'no' to virtually anything others offered but rarely chimed in with alternatives. It's tough finding something that most of us might want to read, so we put the rule in place. (Several of us equate it with a management philosophy that we've encountered in our professional lives: "Don't come to me with problems. Come to me with solutions.")
If you've ever thought about joining a book group/club, but you had reservations about how the group might operate or what the group would read. There is a solution. Start your own group! Come up with a few sentences about what the group would be like and the kinds of things that they would read. Print up a few notices and tack up copies in local bookstores (especially used book stores) and local libraries. If your town has a local adult education program, you might be able to promote your group through them. If you belong to a church, they may be willing to let you use a room in their building to meet and would probably love to promote your group in their own newsletters. If you live in an area with few readers, there are tons of places online to 'discuss' books with others.
Happy reading!
Saturday, March 16, 2013
Saturday, December 08, 2012
Frightening signs of my failing mind
I have always been more than a bit cocky about my memory. Historically, I have always had excellent retention. Events, names, numbers, details of movie/book plots, etc. While not photographic, I felt that I could rely on my memory and trust it thoroughly. Until recently.
My increasing exhaustion over the last few years could, in and of itself, be eating away at my ability to remember things. However, Lyme is known for playing havoc with one's mental abilities.
I started feeling the real impact when I couldn't remember whether or not I'd taken various medications and supplements. I hated having to rely on an external management system, but I ended up getting some of those pill containers that say "A.M./P.M." on them. I try to line up all my medications for the day at the same time every morning. I've accepted this.
I rarely go to the ATM for cash or to deposit checks. Most of my banking is done online. Last week, I needed to grab some cash. When I put my card in the machine I started to enter my PIN. After I put in the first digit I wavered. I was pretty sure that I knew the second digit, but I was not certain. Each subsequent digit was even more vague in my mind. After three attempts the machine told me that my access was locked and that I would have to go into a bank to have the card unlocked.
Fortunately, the bank was still open. When I get to the teller I explained the situation. She said that she could unlock the card for me but that she had no way of telling me what my PIN actually was. I asked her if I could reset the PIN to something I knew that I would remember. She said 'no'. She did offer to have a reminder mailed to me. I agreed that it was a good idea. I cashed a check to myself for the money I needed for the next few days and went home.
The next evening, I needed to go online to pay a bill that had come in the mail. My online banking password did not seem to be working. The system offered to let me set it. I decided to go through with the reset. Unfortunately, the process involved typing in my elusive PIN!
I realized that resetting my ATM card had also reset my online banking access. I knew that I would just have to wait until the reminder form came in the mail.
When the reminder had not come four days later, I returned to the bank. The teller explained to me that the reminder would arrive 7-10 business days after I requested. ARGH! No access to my bank account, except through the lobby, until I 'rediscovered' my forgotten PIN.
To settle some of my paranoia about the state of my account, the teller printed off the last 15 days worth of activity for me. I checked it over and everything seemed in order. However, I was still frustrated with myself over the stupid PIN.
Luckily, the reminder came in the mail the very next day. When I opened the envelope and stared at the PIN I realized that I had merely been reversing the middle two digits on my first attempt the week before.
I now have a safe place to store the paper reminder. I also have it stored electronically in my password vault application (no, I'm not telling anyone what the application is). The application is becoming more and more valuable to me as I try to better secure my online identity by using varying usernames and secure and unique passwords for every site that I access. This increase in data in my life comes at an inopportune time, since my memory is becoming more and more unreliable.
I am frightened at the prospect of losing more of my mental faculties to this disease. Becoming senile has always been a great fear of mine. While the mental symptoms of Lyme are not the same as senile dementia, the overall impact to my life could end up being the same. I do not want to become mentally unable to manage my own life or engage in life on my own terms.
I seriously need to find a way to stop the progress of this disease. If I can't, I will not allow it to turn me into some useless life form.
My increasing exhaustion over the last few years could, in and of itself, be eating away at my ability to remember things. However, Lyme is known for playing havoc with one's mental abilities.
I started feeling the real impact when I couldn't remember whether or not I'd taken various medications and supplements. I hated having to rely on an external management system, but I ended up getting some of those pill containers that say "A.M./P.M." on them. I try to line up all my medications for the day at the same time every morning. I've accepted this.
I rarely go to the ATM for cash or to deposit checks. Most of my banking is done online. Last week, I needed to grab some cash. When I put my card in the machine I started to enter my PIN. After I put in the first digit I wavered. I was pretty sure that I knew the second digit, but I was not certain. Each subsequent digit was even more vague in my mind. After three attempts the machine told me that my access was locked and that I would have to go into a bank to have the card unlocked.
Fortunately, the bank was still open. When I get to the teller I explained the situation. She said that she could unlock the card for me but that she had no way of telling me what my PIN actually was. I asked her if I could reset the PIN to something I knew that I would remember. She said 'no'. She did offer to have a reminder mailed to me. I agreed that it was a good idea. I cashed a check to myself for the money I needed for the next few days and went home.
The next evening, I needed to go online to pay a bill that had come in the mail. My online banking password did not seem to be working. The system offered to let me set it. I decided to go through with the reset. Unfortunately, the process involved typing in my elusive PIN!
I realized that resetting my ATM card had also reset my online banking access. I knew that I would just have to wait until the reminder form came in the mail.
When the reminder had not come four days later, I returned to the bank. The teller explained to me that the reminder would arrive 7-10 business days after I requested. ARGH! No access to my bank account, except through the lobby, until I 'rediscovered' my forgotten PIN.
To settle some of my paranoia about the state of my account, the teller printed off the last 15 days worth of activity for me. I checked it over and everything seemed in order. However, I was still frustrated with myself over the stupid PIN.
Luckily, the reminder came in the mail the very next day. When I opened the envelope and stared at the PIN I realized that I had merely been reversing the middle two digits on my first attempt the week before.
I now have a safe place to store the paper reminder. I also have it stored electronically in my password vault application (no, I'm not telling anyone what the application is). The application is becoming more and more valuable to me as I try to better secure my online identity by using varying usernames and secure and unique passwords for every site that I access. This increase in data in my life comes at an inopportune time, since my memory is becoming more and more unreliable.
I am frightened at the prospect of losing more of my mental faculties to this disease. Becoming senile has always been a great fear of mine. While the mental symptoms of Lyme are not the same as senile dementia, the overall impact to my life could end up being the same. I do not want to become mentally unable to manage my own life or engage in life on my own terms.
I seriously need to find a way to stop the progress of this disease. If I can't, I will not allow it to turn me into some useless life form.
Sunday, November 25, 2012
You can please some of the people...
Last night I met a friend for dinner in Nashua. We both wanted to take enjoy the Nashua Winter Stroll. It's a lovely event. All the major downtown streets are closed off. Stores stay open until 10pm. Public buildings, churches, and larger stores all host musical performances. There's a tree lighting and an ice sculpture demonstration in front of city hall.
Several friends who attended said that the event was a boring bust. I had a wonderful time. Those of us who had fun jokingly said that it may have been the company they attended with. They retorted that they had no idea that there were performances going on inside the building. Seriously? Not only was there a downloadable schedule of events, but virtually every store and restaurant had a printed copy near the front of the establishment. If you didn't have a good time, you simply were not trying to!
All the walking around didn't do my chronic pain any good at all. I was extremely sore for at least the last two hours I was walking around. I had my cane with me, but it didn't matter. Anyone else would have left when the pain got severe, or would have opted not to attend an activity that was destined to guarantee an excruciating outcome. However, I have modified my life style so much already over the last few years that I stubbornly refuse to detach myself completely from things I enjoy. I do make some compromises but sometimes I refuse to give into the plaintive voices of the various pains that intrude on my life.
One of the things I needed to take care of this weekend was writing up an announcement for my church newsletter regarding the upcoming titles selected by the book group that I moderate. I've been with this group for a decade. There are six core members, with a few others who move in and out of our orbit.
Our reading choices are all over the map. Our primary focus is literary fiction, but we usually pick up a classic, a science fiction, and a non-fiction title throughout the year. We try to keep our selections under 400 pages, so that everyone can finish the book in a month. We used to have a hard and fast rule that the book had to be "in print" and "in paperback" so that the book was easily available to most who wanted to participate.
Last month we picked a relatively current novel that wasn't available in paperback. When we selected it, the folks who were present decided that it was fine to pick a hardcover as long as it was available in the library since several people never bought the books but always got them at the library. When we met to discuss the book, it turned out that a few of our library-folks hadn't been able to get the book from the library because it had been so popular.
There was some discussion that we should probably avoid "brand new" books since that would make it tough to get them at the library. Our October book had only been out since the end of July. Someone suggested a book for January that had also come out at the same time. The library-folks guessed that it would be fine by then. The state library system has seventeen copies, plus another four in large-print.
For most of my tenure with the group, I have been the primary person recommending books for us to read. More than half the time my choices are shot down. Some of the people who shoot down my choices occasionally make suggestions of their own. So long as we have choices that most of us want to read, I don't care who makes the suggestion.
I tend to recommend titles that are available as audiobooks, since that's the primary way that I 'read'. Once or twice, I have suggested a book that I knew was only available in paperback because it sounded like a good read and worthy of discussion. That last part is sometimes a challenge as well. Just because a book is an enjoyable read, doesn't mean that it will spawn a good discussion.
Last week I suggested another relatively new book for February. Four people chimed in that it sounded like a good choice. This morning, one of the library-folk, Carol, said that it sounded good but that it might be too new to get from the library in time. I decided to check the state library catalog for the book's status. There were seven copies within the system and all were currently checked out.
I founded myself simultaneously bummed and annoyed with the situation. Carol had a point. The book came out in mid-October. February would only be four months after publication. However, here's where my annoyance kicks in. Carol has never suggested something for the group to read, and she didn't offer an alternative this time. So I found myself responding quickly with a bit of venom, which I tempered in the end to hopefully open up the discussion and engage the group in deciding its own operating principals going forward. Here are the questions that I asked and the final point that I made:
Several friends who attended said that the event was a boring bust. I had a wonderful time. Those of us who had fun jokingly said that it may have been the company they attended with. They retorted that they had no idea that there were performances going on inside the building. Seriously? Not only was there a downloadable schedule of events, but virtually every store and restaurant had a printed copy near the front of the establishment. If you didn't have a good time, you simply were not trying to!
All the walking around didn't do my chronic pain any good at all. I was extremely sore for at least the last two hours I was walking around. I had my cane with me, but it didn't matter. Anyone else would have left when the pain got severe, or would have opted not to attend an activity that was destined to guarantee an excruciating outcome. However, I have modified my life style so much already over the last few years that I stubbornly refuse to detach myself completely from things I enjoy. I do make some compromises but sometimes I refuse to give into the plaintive voices of the various pains that intrude on my life.
One of the things I needed to take care of this weekend was writing up an announcement for my church newsletter regarding the upcoming titles selected by the book group that I moderate. I've been with this group for a decade. There are six core members, with a few others who move in and out of our orbit.
Our reading choices are all over the map. Our primary focus is literary fiction, but we usually pick up a classic, a science fiction, and a non-fiction title throughout the year. We try to keep our selections under 400 pages, so that everyone can finish the book in a month. We used to have a hard and fast rule that the book had to be "in print" and "in paperback" so that the book was easily available to most who wanted to participate.
Last month we picked a relatively current novel that wasn't available in paperback. When we selected it, the folks who were present decided that it was fine to pick a hardcover as long as it was available in the library since several people never bought the books but always got them at the library. When we met to discuss the book, it turned out that a few of our library-folks hadn't been able to get the book from the library because it had been so popular.
There was some discussion that we should probably avoid "brand new" books since that would make it tough to get them at the library. Our October book had only been out since the end of July. Someone suggested a book for January that had also come out at the same time. The library-folks guessed that it would be fine by then. The state library system has seventeen copies, plus another four in large-print.
For most of my tenure with the group, I have been the primary person recommending books for us to read. More than half the time my choices are shot down. Some of the people who shoot down my choices occasionally make suggestions of their own. So long as we have choices that most of us want to read, I don't care who makes the suggestion.
I tend to recommend titles that are available as audiobooks, since that's the primary way that I 'read'. Once or twice, I have suggested a book that I knew was only available in paperback because it sounded like a good read and worthy of discussion. That last part is sometimes a challenge as well. Just because a book is an enjoyable read, doesn't mean that it will spawn a good discussion.
Last week I suggested another relatively new book for February. Four people chimed in that it sounded like a good choice. This morning, one of the library-folk, Carol, said that it sounded good but that it might be too new to get from the library in time. I decided to check the state library catalog for the book's status. There were seven copies within the system and all were currently checked out.
I founded myself simultaneously bummed and annoyed with the situation. Carol had a point. The book came out in mid-October. February would only be four months after publication. However, here's where my annoyance kicks in. Carol has never suggested something for the group to read, and she didn't offer an alternative this time. So I found myself responding quickly with a bit of venom, which I tempered in the end to hopefully open up the discussion and engage the group in deciding its own operating principals going forward. Here are the questions that I asked and the final point that I made:
- If we stick to the "paperback" rule, are we assuming that library copies will be readily available at that point?
- Do books need to be available in e-reader format?
- Do books need to be available from Audible?
- If we ditch the paperback rule, how many copies of a book need to be available in the GMILCS system with how many months lead time to assure that the most people in our group will get the chance to read the book before we meet?
- We do want to make sure that we're reading things that are accessible to the most people. But, we also want to make sure that we are reading things that sound interesting to the most people.
- Library readers: PLEASE SUGGEST BOOKS YOU THINK WOULD BE GOOD FOR THE GROUP!
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Vegan Thanksgiving
Since I'm trying to be kind to my liver while I pump it full of even more supplements this week, I'm eating vegan, and avoiding processed foods as much as possible on top of that. That means that a lot of my traditional Thanksgiving foods will be missing today. So, I'm trying to make some foods that are interesting or treat-worthy. I plan on making a variety of things that I can munch on for the next couple of days, just like a 'normal' Thanksgiving.
- Cranberry Sauce (I will be using some raw sugar to help thicken/set it)
- Roasted Squash w/Cardamom
- Roasted Brussel Sprouts
- Salad
- Chantarelle Mushrooms, sauteed with garlic, parsley, and onions in butter (Must be 'butter', after all these are Chantarelles!)
- Red beans and red rice, Caribbean style (except that I'm using red rice)
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Preparing to wallow in the 'ick'
Last Sunday and Monday I felt utterly awful. Headache, nausea, intestinal weirdness, and general 'ick'. I had been taking two new sets of supplements for several days and suspected them. So, Monday I did not take them. Tuesday, I did not take them. By Tuesday afternoon I almost felt like me again. Wednesday, I did not take them. I was definitely back to being me.
On Thursday night, I added the least suspicious supplements back into my routine. Friday and Saturday as well. No 'ill' effects. So, yay.
The other supplement that I held off on is recommended for liver support/detox. I initially took 2 in the mornings on an empty stomach (well, except for the other 6 pills that I take in the morning on an empty stomach). With all the drugs and supplements I am taking, and the fact that I may actually be experiencing some toxicity from the die off of the Lyme bugs, I do need to help my liver along. Unfortunately, if the liver does its job it will spew some toxins into my system so that they can make their way out.
My naturopath warned me that if the Lyme started dying off, I could feel worse before I felt better. So, I am hoping that last week's episode was a good sign. However, I couldn't afford to be as ill as I was last Monday for the rest of last week. So, I've decided to reintroduce the Vital Nutrients Liver Support II (with Picrorhiza) into my system this week. This morning and tomorrow morning I will just take one of them. From Thursday on I'll go for two pills.
To help my system deal with the potential flood of toxins, I decided that I needed to detoxify my diet as much as possible. So long as I have an appetite, I will be eating fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts and whole unprocessed grains. This means that I will be cooking for myself a lot, and hopefully eating a lot of raw food as well.
Since I do need to 'work' today and tomorrow, I need to keep taking my Adderall to stay productive and focused. However, to give my system a break from at least one drug, I plan on staying off all amphetamines for the holiday weekend. I had plans to join some friends on Thursday, but decided that it was better not to 'plan' on doing anything this weekend. There are things I want to try to do. but that will all depend on how I end up feeling. At the very least I'll probably be sluggish and feeling a little 'ick'. Though I am mentally prepared to feel utterly wretched.
While planning on making myself ill may not sound like a great way to spend Thanksgiving weekend, if this helps rid me of the Lyme buggers I will have something to be thankful for.
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