I'm on a non-fiction bender these days. Aside from the occasional foray into fiction about the end of the world as we know it (see below), I've spent most of my time reading stuff like The Signal and the Noise by Nate Silver and Quiet by Susan Cain. The first book makes a good case for why no one should ever pay attention to anything a TV pundit says; the second book helps explain why TV pundits don't care that what they say is wrong as many times as it is right: extroverts just need to talk; it doesn't matter if it's nonsense.
Fixation With The Undead
We saw the movie and then read the book World War Z. But I lost my interest in fantasies about life-threatening dead people about half-way through the Zombie Survival Guide.
I don't think I need to steep myself any more in the lore of the living dead and expressed some puzzlement about the phenomenon when chatting with some folks at work.
"Vampires," I said, "and zombies. What is with the cultural obsession with the undead?"
"Immortality," responded the person I most frequently anonymously quote, and I think they're right.
Tree Predictions
The Signal and the Noise helped me appreciate that, when I predicted the demise of the trees in front of our condo whose roots had been so severely hacked by the workmen installing the new bike lanes on Sherbourne, I should have said there was a 40% chance they would be dead by spring.
As for the sudden collapse of 20% of the 120-year-old silver maple tree in the Allan Gardens with the burl at its base that looks like an owl's head - I sure didn't see that coming.
Question for the Ages Overheard at the Corner of College and Yonge
"Who made it the law that you're not allowed to masturbate just because you have a girlfriend?"
Finally, Good Advice on a Hand-Written Sign
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| This sign went up two Fridays ago. |
Good advice, but it sadly came too late:
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| This lock went on this morning. |
Thanks for reading! Have a great week!
Karen
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