June Book Club Pick

Next week our book club will discuss Gail Tsukiyama's The Samurai's Garden. The other books I have read by Tsukiyama are about women from ancient Japan, so I was surprised when this book takes place during WWII and the main characters are men.

The book concerns themes of loyalty, solitude & loneliness, love & loss, beauty & truth, among others. As my friend, Jennifer, says, Tsukiyama is a B+ writer. Good enough to read, enjoy, and learn some history, but not earth-shattering.

Actual Birthday-Day

It was hard to top the fun party on Sunday, but yesterday was a pretty darn good birthday which included:

Playing trios with Lynn and Katy

Coffee and Some Crust vegan pineapple muffins with Claire

Catching up with Toni at Village Dance Arts

Claire painting my toenails

Having a private little party at the Turrell Skyspace at Pomona College with two of my favorite people....
which included amazing chocolate tortilla chips and leftover beverages from Sunday's shindig

A Thought on Turning 50

From Sunday's NY Times. If I'm in for more happiness, I don't know if I'll be able to stand myself.

On Birthday Parties

When my mom was a little girl, as one of five children, she could choose one year in which to have a birthday party. When she turned 11, she invited the girls from church and the neighborhood children for cake and ice cream.

I remember having a party when I turned 5. I don't know if I remember the party because we have a picture of it, but I had five friends come over for cake and ice cream. I remember opening presents and I laughed at the way one gift was wrapped (the guest had wrapped it herself), but it turned out to be a very cute coin purse that I really liked. I later felt very bad about laughing. I think I had at least one other party growing up, but details are fuzzy in my mind.

Tomorrow I turn 50 (!), and several months ago I decided that it would be a good year to have a party, so yesterday I ordered up some Mexican food and a birthday cake, invited my dear friends to bring a beverage, and we enjoyed the warm weather and each other's company in our great backyard. I could NOT have done this all without the wonderful help from Hal and Claire who made sure that food appeared, patio furniture was cleaned and in place, guests had people to talk to, and many more details. I feel very blessed.

Enchiladas, rice and beans from Los Jarritos, black bean and corn salad, green salad, and pupusas (still cooking inside at the time of this photo). We have lots of leftovers!
White cake from Costco. Harvey Mudd Chemistry is enjoying the leftovers today.
My friends giving me a birthday serenade!

Annual Voyagers Potluck and a Show

Kudos to Claremont High School's Musical Theater for a great production of West Side Story. Our church group had the annual potluck at our house last night with a stroll down to Bridges Auditorium for the closing night of the show.

Taking Over. . . I Think I Am

Two years back from sabbatical, and I'm slowly taking over leadership in various parts of my life. This morning I took the big box of stuff to become the Vice President for Membership of my local Orff Chapter (Inland County). I also put out the online newsletter for our board.

Last month I took over co-chair of the membership committee at church.

Last fall I became the coordinator for alumni activities in the Inland Empire for Carleton.

Now/next month I take over duties for coordinating the Elementary Instrumental Music Program for Claremont USD.

I think I'll take a nap.

Strange Week at my Alma Mater

Yes. I love my alma mater, Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota. Here are two wild events that happened there just this week. First, the Goodsell Observatory was dressed up as the world's biggest R2-D2 and made it into The Chronicle of Higher Education. Today, 529 students broke the Guinness Book of World Records to create the longest chain of spooning. See, it's not always snowing in Minnesota!

Two Good Reads in a Row!

It's a treat when I can find two good books in a row, just like I did this week. The Madonnas of Leningrad by Debra Dean has been on my read list for a while, and Jan from book club loaned it to me last month. An elderly Russian woman with Alzheimer's cannot remember her day-to-day details, but relives the art museum in Leningrad during the siege where she was a tour guide. It sounds as though it could be depressing, but the writing is tender and lovely.

Multicultural Day

Today is "The best day of the school year" at Vista - Multicultural Day. For the past several weeks, each classroom has been studying a culture and decorating their room with what they have learned. Today each student took their passport and went to two countries and an assembly. In each country they do a craft, eat some food, maybe hear some music and learn about that culture. At the end of the morning each student returns to class to pick up the flag of their culture and the whole school parades through the halls to end up in front of the outdoor stage where we all sing the three songs we've been practicing in class. This year the songs were De Colores, This Pretty Planet (by Tom Chapin) and We All Live Together (Greg and Steve).

I forgot to bring my camera, but I have this picture from when Claire's class learned about Africa in 1st grade. The elephant is supposed to be life-sized.

Let the Summer Reading Begin!

I bought The Master Butchers Singing Club by Louise Erdrich off of the $1 cart at the Claremont library last December, and after loaning it to Claire in January for her flight to Baltimore, I finally had the chance to read it. It was worth the wait! This is my second Erdrich book, and I really enjoy her writing style, her characters, and her storytelling. Every time I thought the novel was at a good ending place, it would turn another corner.

I have decided to try to read at least one book/week this summer with a goal of 50-100 pages per day. I have a long list of books to tackle!