The Reading Project

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It’s probably because I’ve been reading Julie & Julia, but I’m struck with the idea of turning something I’m going to do anyway into a project.  What am I going to do anyway?  Read.  What would the project be?  Simply to do what I’ve always tried to do…read 50 books in a year.  In this case, I have the 50 books in four piles in my bedroom.  They are the books I have collected over the past five years as I worked on my dissertation.  Don’t get me wrong: I never stopped reading non-academic materials.  According to LibraryThing, I read 55 books in 2008 and 46 books in 2007.  Some of them were school-related but many were personal interest.  So, 50 books just represent a year of reading for me.

In the past, as I worked on my 50 books, I didn’t have a set reading list but simply moved from one book to the next.  Sometimes, I read books in a series (such as Sharon Kay Penman’s historical fiction set in the 13th century) but I’m definitely a grazer.  These 50 books never came under my nose I guess.  Some are very new…just purchased at the Book Exchange last week with points from my summer trade ins.  Others have been laying around for a while, as long as two or three years, and come from a variety of places.  There are four or five Wendell Berry books, both fiction and nonfiction, that came from a great book store in Lexington, Virginia, along with Drew Gilpin’s This Republic of Suffering.  There are lots of books from another great book store in Roanoke, Virginia.  And a few from Baldwin Books in West Chester, Pennsylvania.

I’ll get the whole stack in LibraryThing and tag them “unread.”  I’m going to use the rest of 2009 to finish up some loose ends and then begin on the pile on January 1, 2010.  I think I’m going to start with David McCullough’s biography of John Adams.  I’ll be on winter break from William and Mary and can curl up be the wood stove and relive the birth of America.

I’m also making a pledge not to buy any more books until I’ve read all 50 of these books.  Hmm…not sure I can do it.  Books for book group could be an exception. Why this worry over books?  My house is stuff with them, and I’m just trying to reduce stuff in general.  I’m definitely a bibliophile and my book shelves provide insight into the story of my life.  But I can’t just keep collecting.  I need to start reading.

And that’s why this needs to be a project.  Because of the fear I have that I will somehow lose track of my love of reading.  Several people have told me that they didn’t read anything for a year after they finished their doctorates.  And I do find myself often putting reading aside to engage in other activities.  I don’t want to NOT read but I find myself stymied by the books on the shelves so it may take several days for me to choose a new book.  And despite paying for Kindle subscriptions to the New York Times, the Washington Post, and several magazines, I rarely read any of them.  I’m hoping a project will help.  I’m also hoping that limiting my choices to just 50 books will make it easier to choose and read books.

What about the newspapers and magazines?  I never got into the habit of reading the newspaper every day.  I have a print subscription to US News and World Report and do glance through that, but I certainly don’t read it from beginning to end.  Then there’s the weekly education newspaper and several research journals.  The words are piling up around me and I’m feeling the pressure.  How do people find time to read a newspaper every day?  Actually, as part of my first job as a press office secretary at an art museum, I read three or four papers every day looking for articles related to art.  I did a lot of skimming.

I’m not sure where newspapers and magazines fit into my day?  Lunch time?  Take a work break and at least do some skimming?  I’m discovering that the hardest part of working from home is adopting some kind of schedule.  People with real jobs have a built in schedule but I’m a free agent.  I have projects to finish but no one cares if I work on them at 2 PM or 2 AM.  Just so I get them done.  The danger, of course, is that you can work all the time so working in things like reading the newspaper is a way to take breaks.

So, I’m pledging my self to reading.  I’ll report the results here.  Now, I’m heading to bed with a book; in this case, it’s How God Changes Your Brain.

Can’t We Do Better?

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Old Dominion Electric Cooperative is proposing to build a 1500 Megawatt coal-fired electric plant in the tiny town of Dendron, Virginia.  It will be the second largest in Virginia.  It will emit nearly 15 million tons of CO2 each year contributing to Virginia’s increasing greenhouse gas emissions.  Maybe even more frightening is the 118 pounds of mercury that will be released each year in a location just 15 miles from the Chesapeake Bay watershed.  You can learn more about this project at the Sierra Club Web site.  In interest of fairness, ODEC has their own Web site related to the project.

While ODEC will tell you that this plant is “clean,” that doesn’t mean that they have completely eliminated envinronmental threats, far from it.  I think the scariest piece are the piles of fly ash that accumulate, over 16 stories high.  In nearby Yorktown, Virginia, attempts to bury the ash led to contaminated ground water.   According to an EPA report: “Vanadium, nickel, selenium, and sulfate have been found in groundwater near the four fly ash pits. Surface water in Chisman Creek was shown to be contaminated with vanadium, nickel, and sulfate. Drinking contaminated groundwater posed a risk to the public.” Luckily for the folks in Yorktown, they could tap into the city water supply.  I doubt if the Dendron residents have that option.

I wrote a letter to the Dendron city council this morning that I will share here.  I would encourage you to do the same, especially if you, like me, live within the 30-mile radius that has been identified as the “zone of concern” by health experts.  We need to make it so hard for companies like ODEC to build old technologies that their only option is to start looking into alternatives.  Surely in a rural community, biomass makes some kind of sense.  ODEC could be on the forefront of the movement towards cleaner alternatives but has chosen instead to prey on a small community in the hopes of not meeting much opposition as they continue practices for which the health dangers have been known for decades.

Here’s the letter:

Dendron City Council
c/o The Town of Dendron
2855 Rolfe Highway
Dendron, Virginia 23839

Dear Honorable City Council Members:

I am writing to ask that you deny Old Dominion Electric Cooperative’s application to build a coal-fired electric plant in your town.  While I understand that it is hard to turn down jobs and money, I believe they are small compensation for the environmental and community disasters that will occur if this goes forward.

My husband and I visit Surry often.  We pass through Dendron on our way to pick blueberries at Drewry Farms.  It is a lovely community.  I have trouble imagining where 2,000 workers would even stay.  And, I certainly can’t imagine the huge piles of fly ash that will loom over the homes.

I have also worked with the Surry County schools, and I’m concerned that this plant would be within 20 miles of the school campus.  I’ll simply remind you that coal-fired electric plants are one of the nation’s largest sources of air pollutants that damage cardiovascular and respiratory health and threaten healthy childhood development.

I’m sure ODEC has painted a rosy economic scenario and said little about negative environmental and community impacts.  As a neighbor who is also within the 30-mile radius of the plant, I ask you to consider the other side and tell ODEC that you wish to preserve your community and the environment.

Travelogue: Salisbury

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Had a leisurely breakfast and then took the ten-minute walk to downtown Salisbury.  We found the cathedral and spent time wandering through its transcepts and chapels.  The cathedral also houses one of the best copies of the Magna Carta.  I was a little disappointed in my pictures but you just can’t do justice to these amazing buildings.


Travelogue: Church Yards and Abbeys

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We spent our last night in Wales at the Baskerville Arms Hotel in Clyro, walking distance from Hay-on-Wye.  The hotel takes its name from the Arthur Conan Doyle story and some believe he drew his inspiration from stories in this area.I took an early morning walk through the church yard.  We had been seeing them along the drive and walked through a few with their old trees and grave markers.  This one was lovely with ivy covered stones, the view of the Welsh hills beyond, and the old village houses on all sides.

Then, it was ruined abbey day.  We started at Tintern Abbey, along the Wye River.  It’s amazingly well preserved despite the lack of a roof.  The interpretation is very good; they really help you visualize what it looked like in the 12th century.  It wasn’t crowded and I found myself waiting for the monks to come from the chapter house.  Took time to read Wordsworth’s poem out of the volume I bought in Hay-on-Wye the day before.  We had lunch at the little tea room across the road.  Despite having beautiful weather to see the Abbey, it started to rain and hail so we stayed for an extra cup of coffee and I had a slide of Banoffee Pie.  Then, it was a quick dash to our car and on to Glastonbury.

The weather was awful as we cruised the motorway.  Rain, then a little snow even.  We wondered if it was worth heading to Glastonbury but we persevered and by the time we got there it had stopped raining and the sun came out.  Glastonbury is where the monks found the supposed grave of Arthur and Guinevere and I felt like I had to make the pilgrimage.  Of course, it might have just been a 12th century hoax to bring money to an ailing community.  The site is marked even though the stone and remains are gone.  Glastonbury, like most abbeys including Tintern, was basically torn down during Henry VIII’s disolution.  All the good stuff–windows, lead, decorations–were taken and sold.  There is little left of Glastonbury but it is still an impressive ruin sitting right in the middle of town.

Because of its ties to Joseph of Arimathea and Arthur and Merlin, Glastonbury has turned into something of a new age town.  Lots of magic shops and flyers advertising healing and tarot readings.

We made it into Salisbury without incident.  We are staying at the Rokeby Guest House, an Edwardian brick house which is just a ten-minute walk to the city center.  We made the walk last night to eat at Harper’s Restaurant.  Had a lovely supper and today we are ready to explore the cathedral.

Travelogue: A Rainy Day in Wales

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We headed down the coast from north to south Wales on a rainy, dark day.  We stopped at the Trefriw Woolen Mills for some shopping.  I managed to find a few things…a couple sweaters on the sale rail that were hand knit and a lovely bag.

Then, it was on to Criccieth Castle, along the coast.  It should have been just a 20 minute drive but we ran into the world famous Snowdonia Marathon.   We followed the runners along with lots of other traffic for almost an hour.  And a hardy lot they were as they plowed along through gusty winds and driving rain.

The rain let up as we reached the castle although the wind continued.  I was determined to see a Welsh castle, one used by the Llewelyns so my father and I trudged up the hill.  While there seems to be some controversy about the castle’s origins, CADW, the Welsh historic trust (it means “care” in Welsh), seems sure that it was built by Llewelyn ap Iowerth and then added onto by his grandson and successor Llewelyn ap Gruffydd, who had been imprisoned here by his half-brother Dafydd as they fought for control of Wales.  It was prehaps the most stunning of the castles even though it was in the worst shape.  The wind whipped around us as we looked over the castle walls out to Tremadog Bay.  We had a real sense of the wildness of Wales and its long history.

We ended our day at North Headborough, a bed and breakfast located on a farm near Haverfordwest.  It is located on a small holding complete with sheep and chickens.  I had my first English breakfast.  We got back early and enjoyed just relaxing in the lounge.  South Wales is just beautiful with its rolling green hills lined with hedge rows and dotted with sheep.  I took a walk around the farm and watched the sun rise over the hills.

Travelogue: Pembrokeshire

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The south of Wales seems a little less wild than the north.  We explored St. David’s peninsula, beginning with Pembroke in the north and then St. David’s, Britain’s smallest town, in the south.

Pembroke Castle is known as the birthplace of the Tudor Dynasty.  Of all the castles we visited, it is the most restored with floors in the towers that can be reached by the winding stone stairs.  There were extensive exhibits on both the history of the castle as well as England itself.

From Pembroke, we headed north to St. David’s to visit the cathedral and the ruins of the bishop’s palace next door.  Our drive took us along St. Bride’s Bay and we stopped at Solva for lunch.

The cathedral is lovely.  It is built on the site of a monastery originally built in the 6th century.  Tradition says that St. David was born in the town in 5oo AD.   The cathedral became a popular pilgrimage site during the middle ages.  Throughout its long history, it has been attacked by Vikings, nearly destroyed during the Reformation and almost abandoned in the 20th century.  We wandered through its chapels, appreciating the tombs of nobles and knights as well as its treasury of church relics.

Behind the cathedral are the ruins of the bishop’s palace.  Built by Bishop Gower in the 13th century, you can see the remains of large rooms and imagine how it must have looked when the bishop lived there.  It is quite picturesque and well sign posted.

We went into the tiny town of St. David’s and had tea at The Sampler Tea House. We haven’t had official tea yet so this was a nice way to end the day.  There was a warm fire in the cozy shop, which featured embroidered samplers, and we ate cucumber sandwiches, scones, and Bara Brith, traditional Welsh fruit cake.

Travelogue: Hay on Wye

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I am something of a bookaholic so friends recommended that I visit Hay-on-Wye, the book store town.  It made a nice stopping point between south Wales and Salisbury.  We arrived around noon and started with a lunch at the cozy Blue Boar pub.   The town has new and second hand bookstores throughout its winding, narrow streets. There is also an extensive “honesty” bookstore…basically book shelves around the castle that offer paperbacks for 30p and hardbacks for 50p.  I picked up Paul Theroux’s The London Embassy from those shelves.  I bought an old copy of Wordsworth in another story.  It seemed appropriate since our visit to the Lake District and Dove Cottage.  Also found an anthology of poetry about London in another shop.  Finally, I couldn’t resist The Secret Diary of Anne Boleyn that I found in the book store located in Hay Castle.

Travelogue: North Wales

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Today was castle day on the trip.  We started with Conwy Castle, located just a few minutes away from where we are staying in the seaside resort of Colwyn Bay.  The town of Conwy has its wall in tact and the castle was built by Edward I in the late 13th century as part of his plan to subdue Wales.  We arrived just in time to take a guided tour.  Neil, our tour guide, was fabulous!  I learned more about defending castles than I had ever known.  He also added to my knowledge of Welsh history and the rocky relationship of England and Wales.

We ate lunch across from the castle then strolled into the center of town to see the statue of Llewelyn the Great, who almost succeeded in uniting Wales against the English.

From Conwy, we crossed the Menai Strait to Anglesey to visit Beaumaris Castle, the last castle built by Edward I.  It was never completed but offers fabulous views of the town and the straits.  Our lessons from the morning helped us understand what we were seeing.

Again, we strolled into town, this time to find the sarcophagus of Joan, the wife of Llewelyn the Great, which is in the Beaumaris Parish Church.   I found myself wandering through another lovely churchyard then looking at spectactular stained glass windows while the organist practiced inside the church.

We returned to Colwyn Bay and I took a walk along the water.  We had a lovely dinner at the Rhos Harbour Bistro.

Travelogue: More Lake District

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Waiting for the LaunchAfter a breakfast of porridge and toast, we headed out…started in Keswick where I took the Keswick Launch around Derwentwater, the most photographed of the lakes.  I had some idea of getting off at Lodore to go see the waterfalls, but somehow missed the stop because I didn’t realize they had skipped the first dock on the map.  Oh well…you can see the old hotel and waterfalls from the lake so all was not lost and I got wonderful views of the lake district from the bow of the boat.  Lots of folks were heading out for hikes.

I got back into town with time to kill before meeting St. John's Churchyardmy folks, so I poked around the St. John’s churchyard, vaguely looking for the grave of poet Robert Southey, but mostly enjoying the solitude.

Next stop was Grasmere…this time to visit the Wordsworth family graves in the churchyard of St. Oswald’s.  Then, thanks to a tip from a friend, we stopped into Sarah Nelson’s for gingerbread.  Just a tiny shop next to the church.  We also had lunch in town right next to the bridge over the River Rothay.

Castelrigg Stone CircleWe had time so decided to check out the Castlerigg Stone Circle.  It is the oldest circle and one of many that can be found in this part of England.  It was crowded with a school group so we snapped a few pictures and then wandered across the field to look at sheep over the stone fence.  We had one of those great accidental moments:  we missed the stone circle the first time and found a pottery where we were just going to turn around.  Instead, we bought mugs and vases and chatted with the owner, Jan Burgess.

From there, we headed south along the lake to the Ashness Bridge with its beautiful view across the lake.  We continued south over the dramatic Honister Pass.  Just huge mountains and sheep on either side.

Check out more Lake District photos here.

Then we had one of those not-so-great accidental moments.  We managed to hit a rock and flatten two tires on the car.  We flagged down a passing motorist who was unbelievably helpful.  He and his wife drove into the next little town for a pay phone–no cell service out in the fells.  He came back to let us know that the Royal Automobile Club was on the job.   And, sure enough, some time later, a chap showed up to let us know that he had been in touch with our rental agency and they were going to exchange the car for us.  Unfortunately, it meant having to drive to Newcastle, about 90 minutes away.  As we sat in the car waiting for the tow, it got dark and then rainy and then windy and it was oddly exciting, if a little scary, to be stuck there.  But, no worries, the two truck driver appeared soon after and we took a lively ride with him to get our new car.  It was fun to chat with him about politics (the English are sure Barack Obama will be the next president) and sports and the ways of the world. We were tucked into our beds at the farm by 2:30 AM and I’m trying not to think how much it might cost.  Mostly, we’re thinking about how nice and friendly everyone was!

Travelogue: Getting Into the Lake District

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I am settled into the lounge at the Sunnydowns Hotel in Colwyn Bay, North Wales.  I’ve been without Internet access for a few days so will try to get caught up with the trip.  Photos are busy uploading in the background while I type.  It’s been a busy couple of days…

We left Stratford on Tuesday, heading for the Lake District.  We knew it woBridge over the Lancaster Canaluld be a long driving day but planned a few stops, including the various potteries in Stoke-on-Trent.  We hit up Wedgwood and Royal Doulton for deals on china.  Once we got past the bigger cities like Manchester and Liverpool, we stopped for a late lunch along the Lancaster Canal.  We saw houseboats just like those on the Avon River in Stratford.

The landscape began changing the further north we traveled.  Hills lined with stone walls and littered with sheep rose from the road.  Then, the mountains appeared.  Finally, the road came alongside Grasmere Lake.  Dove CottageOur last stop of the day was Dove Cottage in Grasmere, the home of William Wordsworth, and the place he wrote many of his most famous works.  He was visited by all his friends here including Samuel Taylor Coleridge and Thomas DeQuincey.  The house is furnished with original furniture and cases are filled with memorabilia like his ice skates, dishes, and spectacles.  Excerpts from his sister Dorothy’s diary for the dates of our visit were lying on the table in the entry room, which originally served as the kitchen.  I don’t want to gush too much but it was pretty amazing to be standing in his study, imagining him writing Daffodils after coming in from the garden.

We drove north into Keswick and found our way to the Scales Farm, a lovely B&B along A66 with gorgeous views of the fells.  We ate a pub dinner–fabulous steak and ale pie–at the Salutation Inn in Threlkeld and watched the local pool club play.