Tag: books

Photo by Joe WilcoxSep 6, 202410:12 pm

Heatwave Reading

The Summer’s hot days have finally arrived in San Diego. Official high yesterday, according to my phone: 34 Celsius (94 Fahrenheit)—although the thermometer in the apartment complex’s courtyard read 38 C (100 F). Well, all the cement makes quite the heat island, so that is unsurprising.

This morning, the mercury touched 33 C (91 F) before thin, high clouds provided some relief. Forecasted high for tomorrow is about the same and scorching like yesterday for Sunday. We don’t have air conditioning, by the way. Fans provide plenty of relief, as long as breeze outside blows indoors. Unfortunately, winds are light, and air is muggy.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJun 10, 202410:08 pm

Big Book Bounty

When I was in high school, my cousin piqued my interested in a Dutch novel published in 1968 that debuted in 1973 translated into English. Every few months, over the past three years or so, I looked for a copy to buy, but prices are generally exorbitant; the book is out of print.

Where Were You Last Pluterday? by Paul Van Herck is satirical science fiction at its comically cringiest. The absolute absurdity of American politics and cultural currents triggered my curiosity about how-true-to-life had the hilariously nonsensical story become. Something about our reality of the absurd was once science fiction. I had to know: How prescient is the 50-year-old-plus novel?

Photo by Joe WilcoxApr 20, 20249:58 pm

This is No Fairy Tale

Third weekend of the month means the book sale room is open at my local San Diego Public Library branch (University Heights). My wife and I stopped briefly by, but we didn’t stay long. The crazies, as I call them, are all over the place on Saturday mornings, loading up massive amounts of books into bags and boxes.

Based on the choices, such as physical condition, the early birds appear to be buying books to resell. (Can you say Amazon?) We checked out with two DVDs for Annie and one Aesop’s Fables for me behind some dude paying more than $90—at standard price of buck-a-book, the number is obvious.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 29, 202410:47 pm

Doll and Books

Because Cali overtook my lap—and I let her—posting is later than planned and topic changed. Please pardon another black-and-white Featured Image—from Leica Q2 Monochrom. Vitals, aperture manually set: f/4.5, ISO 200, 1/3200 sec, 28mm; 1:01 p.m. PDT, March 26, 2024. Composed as captured.

I came upon the doll and collection of reference books—put out free for the taking—while walking along Madison Ave within the corridor where North Park wedges between San Diego neighborhoods Normal Heights and University Heights.

Photo by Joe WilcoxNov 23, 20239:36 pm

The Immeasurable Value of Books

The third weekend each month, the book sale room opens at the University Heights branch of San Diego Public Library. Of course, I would forget and come happenstance while walking somewhere else on Sunday about 90 minutes before closure. Inside I went, searching for older titles to take home.

Current cultural, progressive values are imposed all about us, with the greatest casualty being history and how the past is revised and censored to match these same norms. The Telegraph gives good example with Nov. 20, 2023 story (headline and dek): “Roman emperor was trans, says museum. Elagabalus will be referred to as she after claims in classical texts that the emperor asked to be called ‘lady’. Except: “Some historians believe these accounts may simply have been a Roman attempt at character assassination”.

Photo by Joe WilcoxNov 3, 202310:19 pm

The Big ‘Little Library’ Renovation

Whoa, something changed with the LittleFreeLibrary located on Campus Avenue in University Heights. You probably wouldn’t recognize that this is a less-decorative rendition of the one shared in October 2021. But size still commands all other curbside lending boxes situated around the San Diego neighborhood.

My wife and I first spotted the renovated enclosure on Oct. 10, 2023, while walking along perpendicular street Monroe. The Featured Image and companions come from Leica Q2. Vitals, aperture manually set for all: f/5.6, ISO 100, 1/320 sec, 28mm; 11:20 a.m. PDT.

Photo by Joe WilcoxOct 21, 20239:19 pm

Big Book Sale Surprise

My wife asked about going to see the San Diego mural from my Oct. 18, 2023 post, so today we walked to the alley between El Cajon Blvd and Howard Ave. along 30th Street in North Park. She took first photos; I shot some refreshers.

From there we headed West along Howard towards Sprouts market to buy bananas and organic whole milk. The University Heights Public Library book sale room opens into the grocer’s parking lot—and it was open. So we ventured inside for a surprise.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJul 21, 202310:01 pm

Should I Go Back?

The last time I ventured into the University Heights branch of San Diego Public Library, the elderly lady greeting folks and completing their purchases evicted me. She insisted that I wear a face mask; I responded that the county had ended SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus 2)/COVID-19 mandates. She demanded. I refused and captured the moral ground. She won the war, because my butt got booted.

The third Saturday and Sunday of the month are this weekend, and the book sale will once again be open. Should I go? Here’s the thing: later that same day, Oct. 15, 2022, I returned with Leica Q2 to take the Featured Image. Not until tonight, when taking time to finally process the photo, did I realize that no one shopping for books wears a mask!

Photo by Joe WilcoxJul 16, 202310:02 pm

One Book to Rule Them All

I don’t run the hamster wheel on Amazon Prime Day, spinning round and round searching for deals and opportunity to needlessly spend more money. But hours before the annual (so-called) sales event ended, on July 12, 2023, I came upon one intriguing item among the many suggested discounts flooding my RSS feeds (If you don’t know what RSS is, return to TikTok and resume running the mouse maze to nowhere).

Need I say, since you can see what from the Featured Image? I don’t collect books, but having something tangible and non-digital to read is always smart. You got grid down scenarios, because of summer heat or threat of cyberattacks, for example. What if Russia-Ukraine escalates to global war? I will want something to read while waiting to die from radiation poisoning during nuclear winter.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJun 25, 20238:38 pm

Remembering Something Special for Outdoor Readers

A decade ago, Amazon temporarily set up an outside reading lounge at Westfield UTC in La Jolla, Calif. The Featured Image is one of several that I captured using iPhone 5s on Nov. 9, 2013. […]

Photo by Joe WilcoxMay 4, 20239:06 pm

Bye Bye Books

You would think with so many LittleFreeLibrary boxes about the neighborhood that the owner of these books could deposit them in one. That person is learned, presumably at a local college, or pretends to be. Maybe smarty sees that the extra energy to walk a few blocks is wasted when curb depositing is quicker. Dunno and don’t really care but gotta speculate.

What a collection of titles, too. Let’s start with “how to use Tarot spreads” for “effective crisis communication”. Or “I’ll grant you that” “what happens on campus stays on YouTube”. Use “pre-sausion” and “the culture map” to locate “the CEO next door”.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 18, 20239:50 pm

Ode to a Good Day

“She talked” is how our daughter’s nurse greeted me today. That statement upfront is so I don’t bury the lede. But behind it are several tumultuous days of disappointment and progress.

Consider this the third installment about our adult child, who suffered oxygen-deprivation following an incident that receives no explanation for now. “Our Family Emergency Revealed” and “From Intubation to Extubation” are parts one and two, respectively. Because my Facebook is deactivated (since July 2019), this post means to update relatives and any one else interested in following the saga.