Infinite Summer

Join me and all the others at Infinite Summer in reading Infinite Jest this summer, between June 12 and September 22.  This works perfectly for me since I’ve been trying to wrap up my other books so I can start this one soon.  I think it’ll help me to have a group of people to read alongside since my last attempts ended after a few hundred pages.  I was hoping to start on Monday (today), before I found out about this effort, and I certainly am hoping to finish before August 15, give or take a few weeks.  So take the plunge!

Books: May

I keep forgetting to post my book log from May:

The Best American Short Stories 2008 – Ed. Salmon Rushdie, Series Editor Heidi Pitlor

A great collection.  As much as I want to join those who whine that this series always includes stories by writers like Alice Munro and Tobias Wolff, both of their stories are fantastic.  Other stories I enjoyed from this year’s include:  “Man and Wife” by Katie Chase and “May We Be Forgiven” by A.M. Homes.

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao – Junot Díaz

I enjoyed this book, but I can decide if it lived up to the hype.  I’m sure I missed a lot of the texture and depth simply because I don’t know too much about the Dominican Republic and I can’t read Spanish.

Rich Dad, Poor Dad – Robert Kiyosaki

New perspectives on finances always interest me.  This book contains a few ideas/principles and little else.  I wanted to see more practical applications.  I always feel a little squeamish about anything that teaches people how to be rich, but that’s probably a product of my upbringing.  My perspective on money is certainly expanding.  And on what some might consider a superficial level, the typesetting, proofreading, and editing of the text  are atrocious/absent.  So bad that they distract from the content.

Twitter

I’ve been reading a lot about Twitter lately.  I thought/think it’s dumb, but then I noticed how a lot of websites and literary journals use it, and I don’t want to miss out on those updates (they link to interesting articles!).  And then I wondered if I am going to be one of those people who’s joining the latest technology craze five years after the fact (think: facebook).  I’m too young to be computer and technology illiterate, although I do fit some stereotypes of old people (isn’t it normal to think 9PM is late and what is that loud racket?).  So I joined.

And I promise soon more posts and a new approach to this blog.

Lowering the Bar

I stumbled across this article titled “How Oprah ruined the marathon.”  I’m sure it outrages a lot of people since so many idolize her, but I found it interesting and funny.  Recently I was thinking about Oprah’s finishing time (4:29:??) and was amazed.  Not that that’s a great time, but it’s faster than a lot of people whose bodies are probably better equipped to handle racing 26.2, at least biomechanically speaking.

Anyways, the article goes into how Oprah created a second running boom and suddenly the marathon is on everyone’s life goal list.  I’ve always found it peculiar encountering people who say that they hate running but they want to finish a marathon.  Um, shouldn’t you pick a different goal?

Running, like writing, attracts a lot of people who think they can but settle for less than their best.  Or worse, people who think they’re good but aren’t.  And sure that sounds harsh, but it’s a shame that we’ve allowed the standards to drop.  I don’t want the Boston Marathon qualifying times to be stricter for women (as proposed in a recent Runner’s World issue) because that’s my goal time for my first marathon (though it may be over a year away, maybe more), but maybe marathons should have stricter finishing time restrictions.  If you can’t finish under X hours, then train until you can.  Is it even safe for some of these people to be out there for six hours?  I’m not against the average person attempting something challenging like the marathon, because even finishing is a big feat, but rather, I’m against the mediocrity that goes along with it.

NOTE:  One of the outraged readers of the article linked to this earlier article.  Seems like the one I posted at the top ripped off a lot of ideas and info from this one.  I like his closing:

“We feel good about creating the appearance of accomplishment (emphasis mine), yet aren’t willing to sacrifice for true gains. It’s clear now that anyone can finish a marathon. Maybe it’s time we raise our standards to see who can run one.”