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Books and smoke.
May. 4th, 2008 08:45 amLovely little article in the Guardian about E.M. Delafield. I love E.M. Delafield. Her books go in and out of print (at the moment some of them are in print) and in particular I hold a deep fondness for her Provincial Lady books. It is written as a sort of diary of a upper-middle-class married woman in rural Devon (first book was written in 1930) and all the minute and often amusing details of her life. There is a beautiful touch of satire and nostalgia to the books. And there is such a universal appeal and sympathy. From her constant balancing act with dealing with the bank and bills to never coming up with the right quip at the right moment. The throwaway comments are such a scream. I gave my Mother a copy of the first book a number of years ago and found it to be very funny and also it hit so close to home. I like to suggest these books to anyone wanting something light, engaging and deeply empathetic.
I finished reading the latest Maisie Dobbs book, an Incomplete Revenge. While it isn't the strongest of the series; I do like how the main character is changing and evolving throughout the books. I am not quite sure what I want to read next. I need to look through the pile. I might go for something a little less sad. Or maybe I will dive into something vast and emotionally complicated. Like Stendahl or something.
Essay by David Sedaris about "finishing smoking". He mentions the shift in the culture when it comes to where smoking was done. I suddenly recalled how the first half of my childhood you could smoke in the social hall after Mass. It was a cloud of blue smoke among the crappy coffee, Tang and pineapple upside down cake. Then it switched to smoking/non-smoking tables so that one side of the hall was slightly smokier than the other half. Of course it went to non-smoking completely so all the smokers were standing outside one door in particular. I am old enough to remember when we visited my Mother in the hospital after she had my brother Tom -that you could smoke in the hospital. They had these old-fashioned ashtrays that looked like something Edward R. Murrow or Jack Paar would have on their shows. When I was in Junior high and high school (being a small town it was all on one campus) we had a smoking area. It was kind of an interesting situation in that originally there was a spot on campus to smoke. (a little gravel area with an area to stay dry when it rained) Then it moved to just on the other side of this small wall -so it was technically off-campus. But by one foot. Kids would stand out there and smoke in the morning, on breaks, at lunch and after school. Teachers and the principal would kind of monitor things. Standing around and talking to the kids and reminding them not to wait until the last possible second -because they would get an unexcused tardy. Then about the time I left the smoking area was moved about a block away. I will have to ask my brother and sister what the smoking situation is like for kids now. Maybe they all have given up smoking, since apparently kids now all do prescription drugs. It is funny to recall all the places that people used to smoke.
I smoked very casually in high school -like a number of my peers. Usually late at night, maybe at parties or hanging out at the beach. As addictions go, it didn't really take. Which is fine, because I never cared for the scent. Booze on the other hand I immediately liked, but that is another story.
Maybe I wasn't smoking enough. hah.
My Mom told me how she went from being an occasional smoker to full on addicted when she got into doing theater. Back in the bad old days when you could smoke in theaters. She said it was something to do while you waited to go on stage. It didn't require concentration and could be easily put down and picked up again.
She quit a very long time ago but I suspect she really hasn't quite finished as she has said on more than one occasion that when she is in her 80s she might take it up again. She said, "What's it going to do at that point? Kill me?"
Hee. I like her sense of humor.
I finished reading the latest Maisie Dobbs book, an Incomplete Revenge. While it isn't the strongest of the series; I do like how the main character is changing and evolving throughout the books. I am not quite sure what I want to read next. I need to look through the pile. I might go for something a little less sad. Or maybe I will dive into something vast and emotionally complicated. Like Stendahl or something.
Essay by David Sedaris about "finishing smoking". He mentions the shift in the culture when it comes to where smoking was done. I suddenly recalled how the first half of my childhood you could smoke in the social hall after Mass. It was a cloud of blue smoke among the crappy coffee, Tang and pineapple upside down cake. Then it switched to smoking/non-smoking tables so that one side of the hall was slightly smokier than the other half. Of course it went to non-smoking completely so all the smokers were standing outside one door in particular. I am old enough to remember when we visited my Mother in the hospital after she had my brother Tom -that you could smoke in the hospital. They had these old-fashioned ashtrays that looked like something Edward R. Murrow or Jack Paar would have on their shows. When I was in Junior high and high school (being a small town it was all on one campus) we had a smoking area. It was kind of an interesting situation in that originally there was a spot on campus to smoke. (a little gravel area with an area to stay dry when it rained) Then it moved to just on the other side of this small wall -so it was technically off-campus. But by one foot. Kids would stand out there and smoke in the morning, on breaks, at lunch and after school. Teachers and the principal would kind of monitor things. Standing around and talking to the kids and reminding them not to wait until the last possible second -because they would get an unexcused tardy. Then about the time I left the smoking area was moved about a block away. I will have to ask my brother and sister what the smoking situation is like for kids now. Maybe they all have given up smoking, since apparently kids now all do prescription drugs. It is funny to recall all the places that people used to smoke.
I smoked very casually in high school -like a number of my peers. Usually late at night, maybe at parties or hanging out at the beach. As addictions go, it didn't really take. Which is fine, because I never cared for the scent. Booze on the other hand I immediately liked, but that is another story.
Maybe I wasn't smoking enough. hah.
My Mom told me how she went from being an occasional smoker to full on addicted when she got into doing theater. Back in the bad old days when you could smoke in theaters. She said it was something to do while you waited to go on stage. It didn't require concentration and could be easily put down and picked up again.
She quit a very long time ago but I suspect she really hasn't quite finished as she has said on more than one occasion that when she is in her 80s she might take it up again. She said, "What's it going to do at that point? Kill me?"
Hee. I like her sense of humor.
