Tag Archives: reading

Embarrassing Dog Stories: Poo and Poetry

April 3, 2014 Terri Peterson Smith Leave a comment

Dogs. If you love them, you’ll appreciate the stories that follow. If you don’t like dogs or

What? Me digging? I haven't been digging. Spring for dog-lovers. — What? Me digging? I haven’t been digging. Spring for dog-lovers.

are an extremely fastidious person, you should stop reading now and wait for my next post, which will undoubtedly be more literary and appropriate. However, when such great stories come my way, I must share them. I thought this was going to be an April Fool’s story, but it’s true…

The weather is warming up here in Minnesota and a winter’s worth of dog poo is thawing out of the snow right now. Cleaning up that nasty stew of poo is an annual ritual for local dog-owners, and the other day my friend who has two Golden Retrievers raked up three huge bags of dog poop. Because you don’t want such foul things festering in your garage, she put the bags by the garage door waiting for garbage day. The following day (not garbage pick up day) the bags disappeared. She couldn’t figure out what would have happened to them…..

until she saw the receipt from a local charity thanking her for her donation.

Of course, I’ve been repeating this story all over, which has led to other people telling me their embarrassing and slightly gross dog stories. I heard one from a friend in NYC. Her German shepherd died and the only way she could only think of to get it to the vet was in a large roller bag. She was held up on the street and the robbers took the bag! Surely, that’s the definition of karma.

Please, please, send me any great embarrassing dog tales you have. Click below to send your comment. I love to hear (and share) them.

And now, because you may be grossed out, because you came to this blog expecting something literary, and because April is National Poetry Month I’m going to elevate our discourse by sharing a dog poem by one of my favorite poets, Mary Oliver, from her book Red Bird.

Percy and Books
Percy does not like it when I read a book.
He puts his face over the top of it, and moans.
He rolls his eyes, sometimes he sneezes.
The sun is up, he says, and the wind is down.
The tide is out, and the neighbor’s dogs are playing.
But Percy, I say, Ideas! The elegance of language!
The insights, the funniness, the beautiful stories
that rise and fall and turn into strength, or courage.
Books? says Percy. I ate one once, and it was enough. Let’s go.

Ideas for Book Clubs

How to Build a Better Book Club

March 17, 2014 Terri Peterson Smith 1 Comment

Sheila DeChantal is a fellow book fanatic who lives in Brainerd, Minnesota. She reviews books and frequently shares the antics of her book club on her blog, Book Journey. It always looks like they’re having so much fun, I asked Sheila to share of a few of their activities, ideas for what makes a successful book club, and how to connect with books beyond the typical book club meeting.

Tell me a bit about your book club. Our book club, “The Bookies,” started in August of 2001. I had worked with the same group of people for over 10 years and I thought it was sad that we hardly knew each other. (Granted there were 300+ people working there and I did not want to know them all… ha ha!) I put up a sign one day in July on the time clock with a book title – Dance Upon The Air by Nora Roberts, and invited people to join me at a local restaurant in four weeks to discuss this book. Nobody said a word to me about it… I very well thought I would be at the restaurant alone but the day came, and two of my co-workers showed up and we discussed the book. The next month, three came… and by the end of the year we had eight, currently we have 17 members.

When we first started the Bookies we had a few choice authors that we recycled through the group until finally we began to branch out… new authors… new genres…. Now we read all over the board, mostly fiction, but occasionally non-fiction and every October we read a classic.

What ways does your group get involved with books beyond the typical books- and-wine discussion? As the group became bigger I learned that the old ways no longer worked for us. We were no longer at the size where casual book conversation at a restaurant table was going to work. For one thing, it was harder to get everyone on topic. Also, in restaurants it became difficult to hear one another and I feared that our laughter or discussion might interfere with the other patrons’ experience. We started meeting more at homes and only go to a restaurant occasionally.

It also became important to go beyond just the standard book discussion so we started cooking food that goes with the book. At first we all brought something but, as you can imagine, it was way too much food. Now we assign two people to main dishes, two people to sides, and one to dessert. If we can make something that refers to the book, all the better.

Talk about getting into the spirit of a book! The Bookies demonstrate their fashion sense and as well as their sense of humor by occasionally dressing up in era-appropriate clothing for their book club gathering. In this case, it was in conjunction with their classic read *Giants in the Earth* (a prairie saga by Ole Rolvaag) and they met at an 1800s cabin owned by one of the members.

And, we dress up whenever we can. The first time I mentioned dressing up I remember driving through town in a yellow taffeta prom dress afraid of being pulled over. I was sure I would be the only one dressed up but when I arrived I was thrilled to see that most of us participated. Last winter we read Garlic and Sapphires , about a food critic who dressed up differently to see how she was treated. We also dress up frequently for the classic. When we reviewed Cleopatra, the Bookies were surprised to see their host dressed up as… well, Cleopatra. Every July we have a Queen event where we dress up in formal wear, eat and compete for the royal throne (which is a toilet spray-painted gold and bedazzled). You can find pictures for most of our crazy book club stuff on my blog under For Book Clubs Only.

We have had a few authors skype in and we have gone to movies together for books we have read. Due to our busy schedules it is hard to get us all together to do anything that takes more than a few hours, although we try.

Is there an example of one trip or outing that you’ve done related to a book that you most enjoyed? I am going to have to go with the “Wine and Words” event [a dinner and author event that raises funds for the Brainerd Public Library]. The Bookies filled two tables and had quite a presence at the event. It was fun for us to dress up for real and not because we were imitating a book or era, although while I type this I think that could be interesting! It was fun to meet the authors.

Why do these extras? The extras have bonded us together as a group. As the group became bigger I knew I had to do something to bring it above and beyond your average book club to hold their interest. Amazingly, it worked and it was not a one person thing; they all got into it! We have had some very emotional reviews and by doing this, it does bring us deeper into the book. Often I hear from people or receive comments on my blog that they are envious of our group and wish they could find such a group of book lovers. As much as I love my group to my toes and think they are so AWESOME for what we do together – I think other groups could do this too. Do not be afraid to add the little extras. It may take a while to catch on but it is the extras that get people talking about the books outside of the group. Start something new and I hope it catches like wild fire.

Any tips or examples for organizing book-related activities? Just go for it! My advice is think outside the box and pull in the extras that make the books come alive. If you can go somewhere as a group, even if it is a movie to expand the book, do it! If you can actually visit a place mentioned in a book, don’t miss out! Last year we read a book centered around the Glensheen Mansion in Duluth, MN. We are trying to find a time when we can all go tour it as a group. One of the girls in our group is taking a trip to Italy this fall with her husband because of what she read in an Adrianna Trigiani book. The books make us want to fully experience the settings.

Anything else you want to add? Our group now has a wait list. Last year we decided we were just getting too big so we capped it. I hate doing that. I wish we could accommodate all book lovers! There are other book clubs in town, in fact there are many! I think the difference is the extras. Our group has so much fun together that others want in on that fun.

My advice? Dig into those books. Be The Book.

Massachusetts

It’s Summer in My Mind: Dreaming of Cape Ann, Massachusetts

March 6, 2014 Terri Peterson Smith 9 Comments

Sea breezes wafting over my bare skin, the smell of salt air, warm sun, gentle waves lapping on the shore….

In complete contrast to my last post on the Lake Superior ice caves, I’m presently traveling to a warm weather spot, at least in my mind. I’m pondering plans for summer travel and looking fondly at my pix from last summer on Cape Ann, north of Boston, Mass.

Known as "Motif #1" to artists, this building is a Rockport icon. — Known as “Motif #1” to artists, this building is a Rockport icon.

Minnesota is beautiful in summer, but there’s just something captivating about New England that time of year and Cape Ann, known as Massachusetts’s “other cape” is a great place to experience it– in Gloucester, which is still a fishing town, and just to the north, the village of Rockport which has, for the most part, shifted from fishing to tourism. Rockport is so darned adorable that on visits there my husband requires a periodic dose of ESPN to counteract the charm overload.

Everything in this part of the country is really old, like 1600s old, hence the charm, and the ocean has been the focus of life here for hundreds of years. So before you go, you’ll want to break out a couple of classics of seafaring literature to enhance your appreciation of the area’s maritime traditon. They include Rudyard Kipling’s Captains Courageous, a story of cod fishermen who work between Gloucester and Newfoundland; Sebastian Junger’s The Perfect Storm about the ill-fated Gloucester fishermen of the Andrea Gail; and Mark Kurlansky’s The Last Fish Tale: The Fate of the Atlantic and Survival in Gloucester, America’s Oldest Fishing Port and Most Original Town. For more area literature, see my post about nearby Dogtown.

But put down your book. There’s plenty to do on the water such as kayaking, stand-up paddling, and whale watching. And, if you’re a seafood lover, stroll down Bearskin Neck in Rockport to Roy Moore’s lobster shack. Eat it on the deck in back or take it out for a beach picnic. Last year, there was a lobster surplus so we felt it our duty to help alleviate that problem. Also, the Red Skiff gets my vote for the world’s best fish chowder.

Like any resort community, Rockport has its share of art galleries. Some of the best are on Main Street where you’ll also find Toad Hall bookstore and another gem, The Shalin Liu Performance Center, where a giant window with a view of the harbor serves as a backdrop for the music. As you can imagine, the area abounds with charming inns, B&Bs and homes for rental.

Cape Ann is one of the destinations in my book, Off The Beaten Page: The Best Trips for Lit Lovers, Book Clubs, and Girls on Getaways where you’ll find many other ideas for getaways year-round.

Uncategorized

Ten Literary Trips for You and Your Valentine

February 11, 2014 Terri Peterson Smith Leave a comment

ID-10018648 — Book + Trip = Happy Valentine

When it comes to Valentine’s Day, sometimes women just have to drop a few hints to help their sweeties kindle a little romance. Though well-intentioned, those boxes of chocolate you received mid-diet and the ill-fitting lingerie didn’t really cut it. If he wants to rack up the romance points this Valentine’s Day, tell him to to take a page from your book club and give you the gift of a literary adventure together: wrap up a book that you both will read with a romantic little note promising a trip related to the book. Now that football season is over, isn’t it time to do something you want to do?

The great thing about this is it means he’s venturing into your territory. But, it might be a little scary for him. You’ve probably noticed that he makes a quick exit to the basement or runs off to the local sports bar whenever the book club meets at your house. He scurries away to avoid all that talking, sharing of feelings, and general estrogen overload. So how can he expose his sensitive literary side without having to turn in his “man card?”

Rest assured, these don’t have to be high-brow or girly outings. The secret is to find a book topic that interests both of you, then think of a place to go where you can experience the subject of the book in person. Books have the power to bring people together over common ideas. When you travel together, even to a destination in your own town, you also bond over new, shared experiences. Literary travel offers the best of both, with a chance for couples to talk, share ideas, and most importantly, laugh together.

Here are a few reading-and-travel pairings to inspire your Valentine getaway:

For Beach Lovers–Read: Skin Tight, Bad Monkey or or any of Carl Hiassen’s zany books about life in southern Florida. If you’re golf lovers, check out Hiaasen’s The Downhill Lie: A Hacker’s Return to a Ruinous Sport, his hilarious commentary on golf. Go: South Beach, Miami, Florida.

For Baseball Fans–Read: Bernard Malmud’s The Natural or Michael Lewis’s Moneyball Go: Take in a spring training game together.

For Those Interested in Native American Culture– Read: Laughing Boy: A Navaho Love Story by Oliver LaFarge Go: Santa Fe, New Mexico. It doesn’t get more interesting or romantic than Santa Fe.

For Music Lovers–Read: Cash: The Autobiography; Blues All Around Me by B.B. King; or Girls Like Us: Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon and the Journey of a Generation by Sheila Weller (or a biography of any favorite musician) Go: Mosey down to Austin, Texas. SXSW (South by Southwest) Music, Film and Interactive Festival is March 7-16 this year, but music abounds in Austin any time of year. Be sure to try a little two-steppin’.

For Wine Lovers–Read: M.F.K. Fisher, Musing on Wine and Other Libations Go: Explore the vineyards of California’s Napa and Sonoma counties. For fans of another type of grape, The Grapes of Wrath (which has absolutely nothing to do with wine), take a side trip to the National Steinbeck Center in Salinas.

But lit trips don’t need to be far from home. Here are a few ideas to whip up a little romance with a book-based adventure no matter where you live.

For Art Lovers–Read: Dance Me to the End of Love, a “picture book for adults” that combines the poetry of Leonard Cohen with the art of Henri Matisse. Tres romantic. Go: Visit an art museum. If you live in Minneapolis, the Minneapolis Institute of Art is featuring “Matisse: Masterworks from The Baltimore Museum of Art: February 23-May 18.

For history buffs–Read: Assassination Vacation by Sarah Vowell (or ask a librarian for tips on great books about your local history) Go: Visit a local historical society, battlefield or landmark

For Animal Lovers–Read: Temple Grandin’s Animals Make us Human or Julie Klan’s Love at First Bark: How Saving a Dog Can Sometimes Help You Save Yourself Go: Attend a dog or cat show, or volunteer together at an event for your local humane society or animal rescue group

For the Outdoors–Read: Cheryl Strayed’s memoir, Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail Go: Take a hike

For people who love to cook–Read: My Life in France by Julia Child Go: Take a cooking class

Or wrap up a copy of Off The Beaten Page: The Best Trips for Lit Lovers, Book Clubs and Girls on Getaways with a note promising a trip to any of its 15 U.S. destinations.

Keep in mind, ladies, if he starts to feel a little panicky in this bookish territory, it’s okay for him to fortify himself with a quick dose of sports stats on his phone. Just don’t overdo it.

France

A Tour of Hemingway Haunts in Paris

February 4, 2014 Terri Peterson Smith Leave a comment

There are certain aspects of Paris that have always captured my imagination, most of them in some way related to literature. The French Revolution, for example, fascinates me, a fact I trace back to middle school when I read Dickens’s A Tale of Two Cities. Charles Darnay, Sydney Carton, Madame DeFarge and her nasty band of peasant rebels all made Paris seem real to me long before I had an opportunity to actually see it. Then, Victor Hugo’s Hunchback of Notre Dame and Les Miserables added to my panorama of Paris.

From Victor Hugo, fast forward to the Jazz Age of the 1920s, when artists and writers swarmed to Paris like bees to honey. If you saw Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris, you have a feel for the era when American expat writers such as Hemingway and Fitzgerald lived in Paris but seem to spend more time carousing than writing. That was about 90 years ago, but you can still see most of the places that Hemingway describes so beautifully in A Moveable Feast. The book is a virtual guidebook to the places he found most remarkable when he lived in Paris with is first wife, Hadley in the 1920s (and with subsequent wives later on).

The story goes that, in the 1950s, a trunk full of notes on his first years in Paris turned up at the Ritz Hotel. That gave him the raw material to write A Moveable Feast. So, take a little stop at the Ritz, near the Place Vendôme, especially at the hotel’s Hemingway Bar. During the Liberation of Paris in 1944, Hemingway considered it one of his first duties to “liberate” the Ritz bar and order martinis all around. Here at the Ritz, Hemingway asked Mary Welsh to become his fourth wife. The hotel is closed for renovations but will open this year. CoCo Chanel lived at the Ritz and one of the rooms in the Imperial Suite re-creates one of Marie-Antoinette’s rooms at Versailles.

The apartment where Hemingway and his "Paris Wife," Hadley, were "very poor and very happy." — The apartment where Hemingway and his “Paris Wife,” Hadley, were “very poor and very happy.”

If, like most of us, you lack the Versailles-level budget required to stay at the Ritz, consider staying in the Contrescarpe neighborhood where Hemingway lived in the 1920s. Be sure to pause at 74 Rue de Cardinal Lemoine where he and Hadley lived from 1922 to 1923, “the Paris of our youth, when we were very poor and very happy.” He describes their apartment:

Home in the rue Cardinal Lemoine was a two-room flat that had no hot water and no inside toilet facilities except an antiseptic container, not uncomfortable to anyone who was used to a Michigan outhouse.”

This apartment is where Hemingway wrote The Sun Also Rises, the book that made him famous. Below it is a shop that used to be a bal-musette or dance hall. It appears in The Sun Also Rises as the bal where we first meet Lady Brett. (Rest assured, you don’t have to live like a starving artist in this neighborhood. If you can book far enough ahead, try the Hotel D’Angleterre where Hemingway once stayed.) Wander Place Contrescarpe, a rough old square packed with cafes and apartments that couldn’t have changed since the 1920s. Take a morning stroll through the Marche Mouffetard (prime time is Saturday and Sunday morning), a fantastic market with produce, cheese, wine and just about anything you’ll need for your own feast, a picnic by the Seine or in the nearby Luxembourg Gardens.

Strolling among the "bouquinistes" along the Seine in Paris. — Strolling among the bouquinistes along the Seine in Paris.

If you walk downhill from Hemingway’s apartment on Cardinal Lemoine you’ll come to the Seine where you’ll see the famed expat bookstore, Shakespeare and Co., and across the street, Notre Dame Cathedral. From here, you can follow the steps of Jake and Bill in The Sun Also Rises as they circle the Île St-Louis. The stalls of the bouquinistes–sellers of antique books, magazines and a bit of tourist trash–line the walk along the river. Hemingway used to stroll here and chat with the booksellers. “I would walk along the quais when I had finished work or when I was trying to think something out. It was easier to think if I was walking and doing something or seeing people doing something that they understood.”

He adds, “With the

Hemingway might be surprised to see his book “A Moveable Feast” among the books sold by “bouquinistes” in Paris.

fishermen and the life on the river, the beautiful barges with their own life on board, the tugs with the smokestacks that folded back to pass under the bridges, pulling a tow of barges, the great elms on the stone banks of the river, the plane trees and in some places the poplars, I could never be lonely along the river.”

You won’t feel lonely in any of the many famous cafes along Boulevard du Montparnasse, either. Okay, they’re pricey and popular with tourists, but worth it if you want to sample jazz age cafe life. The Closerie des Lilas, for example, at 171 Boulevard du Montparnasse is a lovely cafe where Hemingway wrote and Scott Fitzgerald read him The Great Gatsby. La Coupole, at number 102, is a vast art deco brasserie, brightly painted by Brancusi and Chagall.

Finally, to really get the swing of the Paris of Hemingway’s era, wander the medieval lanes of the Latin Quarter where you’ll find the great jazz club Le Caveau de la Huchette at 5 rue de la Huchette. Though it wasn’t around during Hemingway’s time, it surely has much of the era’s joie de vivre. In Le Caveau’s ancient vaulted cellar you’ll find a dance floor, a swing band, and people dancing like Mexican jumping beans on a hot skillet. Sit back and watch Parisians enjoy la belle vie or join in the dancing. It’s your own moveable feast. As Hemingway concluded, “There is never any ending to Paris and the memory of each person who has lived in it differs from that of any other.”

Children and reading, Uncategorized

What Children’s Book Turned You On to Reading, Or Travel?

January 23, 2014 Terri Peterson Smith 3 Comments

It’s National Reading Day. I believe we should all celebrate by taking the rest of the day off to read more books. If that doesn’t work for you, I want to share a great article from Charles Blow at The New York Times called “Reading Books Is Fundamental,” a follow up to my previous post. It brings tears to my eyes when he talks about his first experience buying something for himself–a book. “That was the beginning of a lifelong journey in which books would shape and change me, making me who I was to become.” It also brings tears to my eyes when he talks about how few people read books today.

Was there a children’s book or series of books that made you a dedicated reader? A life-changing book? Was there a book that made you wish you could go explore the story in person? Share your favorite children’s book below in the comments section.

Lit Travel for Kids, Uncategorized

Why You Should Love Children’s Books, Even If You’re Not a Child

January 16, 2014 Terri Peterson Smith Leave a comment

The ABC of It: Why Children's Books Matter at the New York Public Library — The ABC of It: Why Children’s Books Matter at the New York Public Library

If you love to read, chances are you were lucky enough to have someone who read to you early in your life. I remember how special it felt to cuddle up next to an adult and open the pages of a book and listen to the stories. Like Marco, the young fisherman in my favorite book, Dr. Seuss’s McElligot’s Pool, who gazed into the pool and imagined all sorts of

You never know what fabulous things you’ll find when you open a children’s book.

fabulous creatures, I felt like there was just no telling what you might find in in the pages of each new book.

Reading leads to a richer life, beyond imagination and entertainment. Children who are read to become skillful readers themselves. Skillful readers do better in school. In fact, if you want your children to do well on their SATs, make sure they read a lot. Even more basic, reading plays a crucial role in brain development and language skills. As I mentioned in a previous post about the children’s literacy program at Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis, studies show that low reading skill and poor health throughout life are clearly related.

Finally, the stories that we read at an early age connect us to each other, set the stage for our curiosity about other people, other places, and open us to the larger world. For children’s reading advocates it’s intuitive, but scientific studies have recently shown a link between reading and empathy. That’s why I’m excited that that Minneapolis author Kate DiCamillo has been named a National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature. The author of Because of Winn-Dixie and The Tale of Despereaux will work to raise awareness of issues related to reading and children’s literacy. She recently told the PBS NewsHour, “I want to remind people of the great and profound joy that can be found in stories, and that stories can connect us to each other, and that reading together changes everybody involved. …Story is what makes us human.”

But enough of the serious stuff. Children’s books are fun, even for adults. When I was in New York City in December, I got a chance to literally wander through the pages of several classic children’s books in a terrific exhibit at the New York Public Library. On display until March 23 their exhibit, “The ABC of It: Why Children’s Book Matter” draws on the library’s collections to present literature for children and teens against a sweeping backdrop of history, the arts, popular culture, and technological change. They’ve created an Good Night Moon room, which was clearly a favorite with the young adults I saw

A walk into Good Night Moon at NYPL brings back memories of reading to my own children.

wandering the exhibit. According to NYPL, “The books and related objects on view reveal hidden historical contexts and connections and invite second looks and fresh discoveries. They suggest that books for young people have stories to tell us about ourselves, and are rarely as simple as they seem.”

If you’re in or around New York City anytime soon, the fabulous Morgan Library will feature The Little Prince: A New York Story January 24 through April 27. You can read more about the Morgan Library in my Literary Walking Tour of Midtown New York City and in Off The Beaten Page: The Best Trips for Lit Lovers, Books Clubs and Girls on Getaways.

As W. H. Auden wisely observed: “There are no good books which are only for children.”

Florida

Dreaming of Warmer Places and New Literary Travel Adventures

January 8, 2014 Terri Peterson Smith 2 Comments

Dreaming of balmy weather and tropical sunsets in Miami Beach, Florida.

January. It’s the same routine every year. The relatives go home, the last toasts to the new year have been made, and I’m feel slightly blue–partly because my kids have left and partly because it’s been crazy cold here in Minnesota. It didn’t get above -11 on Monday. I’m talking Siberia cold.

Though it’s a bit of a letdown when the holiday frenzy is over, the quiet time of January provides a time to reflect on what I’ve done over the last year, new things I’d like to do this year, and after enough procrastination, to get fired up to do a few of those things. Since it’s been too frosty to go out, I’ve had plenty of time to hunker down and “reflect” (okay that’s my word for not getting to work). I looked back at the first post I made on this blog, which was called “Book Club Traveler” then, and I’m glad I took the time to revisit it. I always have giant lists this time of year of all the things I wish I had accomplished, a lot of “should-have-done this and why-didn’t-I-do-that,” things I need to do now. But looking back a couple of years at those first days of blogging, I’m feeling pretty good, optimistic even. My goal was to encourage readers to take their love of literature to the next level and actually travel to the places they read about. I concluded my first post with: “So, this blog will explore the places where literature and travel intersect, how to escape with a good book and understand the places we travel, with or without a book group, through the eyes of authors who have gone there before us. Let’s get out of the living room and hit the road.”

I got enough positive feedback on the concept and enough comments like, “I wish my book club would do that,” that I gradually I came to believe that the concept was worthy of a book. And, as a result, Off The Beaten Page: The Best Trips for Lit Lovers, Book Clubs and Girls on Getaways (Chicago Review Press) came out last May, hence the new name of the blog. The book features 15 U.S. destinations with essays, an extensive reading list, and a detailed itinerary for each. People always ask what was my favorite destination. In January, my favorite getaway is South Beach/Miami, Florida. I’ve written several posts about that trip like this and this. It was just arduous doing research there as you can see from this video. Notice that no one is wearing bulky sweaters or long johns.

However, if you’re dreaming of Florida right now, but not exactly getting there as soon as you’d like, pick up any book by Carl Hiassen for a crazy look at south Florida, especially Miami; Susan Orlean’s The Orchid Thief; Peter Mathiessen’s Shadow Country about the Florida frontier; or Karen Russell’s Swamplandia! I’m snuggled in with new books to read and dreaming up potential new adventures for the year based on those books. One benefit of travel and reading is that even if I’m home in the deep freeze, I can conjure up previous tropical sojourns to warm my heart if not my fingers and toes.

Uncategorized

How Americans Talk: Soda, Pop, Coke

December 3, 2013 Terri Peterson Smith Leave a comment

I always laugh when I hear how differently people speak in each part of The United States. Truly, we are like many countries in one, each with a wildly distinctive world view, food, music, and a unique vocabulary and way of speaking, especially here in Minnesota, where I live.

Colin Woodard explains how this came about in his book American Nations: A History of the Eleven Regional Cultures of North America. He says, “There isn’t and never has been one America, but rather several Americas.” Consequently, he says, “Any effort to ‘restore’ fundamental American values runs into an even greater obstacle: Each of our founding cultures had its own set of cherished principles, and they often contracted one another,” which explains so many of our political difficulties.

However, as a traveler, these differences make visiting the various regions of the U.S. a real cultural experience and a lot of fun. So pick up your soda, or pop, or Coke and enjoy this video from The Atlantic on the way we Americans talk.

France, Lit Travel for Kids

Vincent Van Gogh in St. Remy, France

November 26, 2013 Terri Peterson Smith 5 Comments

At St. Paul de Mausole near St. Remy, France, you can see exactly what Vincent Van Gogh saw and painted.

The gnarled olive trees, irises, lavender, and bright sunshine…Entering the Monastery of St. Paul de Mausole in St. Remy de Provence in southern France you have a feeling that you’ve seen this place before. That’s because you have.

Van Gogh's room is reproduced at the asylum in St. Remy, France, where he lives and painted over 100 paintings. — Van Gogh’s room is reproduced at the asylum in St. Remy, France, where he lived for a year and painted over 100 paintings.

This is the “maison de sante,” not far from Arles, where Vincent Van Gogh went to rest and recover his mental health in 1889, not long after the famous incident when he cut off his ear. He stayed here roughly one year and during that time he painted anything and everything in his surroundings–143 oil paintings and more than 100 drawings including two of his most famous masterpieces, Irises and The Starry Night. The fabulous thing about visiting St. Paul de Mausole is that photos of the paintings and and information about them appear where they were painted. So for example, a photo of “Les Oliviers,” which is now in the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, is posted right in front of those olive trees. You feel a little chill when you see exactly what he saw and how he interpreted it.

The imposed regimen of asylum life gave Van Gogh a bit of stability: “I feel happier here with my work than I could be outside. By staying here a good long time, I shall have learned regular habits and in the long run the result will be more order in my life.”

You’ll enjoy your trip more if you read up about Vincent. Irving Stone’s fiction classic Lust for Life provides a general knowledge of his story. But scholars continually interpret both his art and the health problems that may have been at the source of his mental illness. Most recently, Van Gogh: The Life by Steven Naifeh and Gregory White Smith offers a very readable portrait of Van Gogh and puts forth the idea that rather than committing suicide, Van Gogh was murdered. Traveling with kids? They’ll want to read van Gogh and the Sunflowers by Laurence Anhold.

Off The Beaten Page Travel