What I've been reading.

House, by Tracy Kidder. I had never heard of this 1985 book before, but picked it off a library shelf while browsing. One of the best works of narrative nonfiction I've ever read. An upper-middle class couple, Jonathan and Judith Souweine, hire a freshly minted architect, William Rawn, and builders, Apple Corps, to build their new house in Western Massachusetts. Original NY Times review here. Google allows for some updates. Rawn has gone on to bigger things. Jonathan Souweine, a politically active local lawyer, is now recovering from cancer. Having had some small dealings with contractors and the like, parts of this were instantly familiar to me.

 

Class: A Guide Through the American Status System, by Paul Fussell. This is something I've been meaning to get to for a while. A taxonomy of class in America, from top-out-of-sight down to upper-middle, through the proles (high, middle, and low), and on down to bottom-out-of-sight. Some things have changed in the 16 years since this has been published. Is it characteristic of the upper-middle to have a small, outdated kitchen? I would say no, but you know -- this is probably just an instance of "prole creep," so there. Fussell does explain it all. Thankfully, Jeanne let me stick two bookcases in our living room, which count for 16 class points just by themselves, and help mitigate the presence of our tacky, tasteless (yet awesome!) giant TV somewhat.

 

Rationalism in Politics and Other Essays, by Michael Oakeshott. An interesting counterpoint to the Fussell, actually. The main essay I found simultaneously profound and shallow. The profound bits were the first 15 pages or so - but the vagueness that followed (how does he see politics as working, exactly?) I guess are symptomatic of the skeptic. How does Andrew Sullivan, the blogger/writer, reconcile Oakeshott with Barack Obama's view of partisan politics as roadblock to the One True Solution? This puzzles me to no end.

A step forward.

Human safety trial begins on vaccine for type-1 diabetes, at Children's Hospital here in Pittsburgh.

Walk Score.

Walk Score calculates nearby amenities and scores your property from 0 to 100 for walkability. This could be pretty useful for deciding where to move. In my case, at least, Walk Score only confirms what I already knew: 95, baby!

Do not pass go.

In a hurry to comply with the recent court decision declaring that U.S. paper currency discriminates against the blind? Print your own multicolored money here! You can pay me later.

What I've been reading.

Watchmen, Alan Moore.  Maybe I've spent too much time away from comic books, but heck, I'm going to come out and say it. The ending required too much willing suspension of disbelief. I was perfectly willing to buy Captain Manhattan's time- and space-traveling abilities, but I guess I draw the line at psychic powers, especially as the result of genetic engineering. Still, excellent work. Incidentally, it is charming to me that wikipedia's page on Watchmen is, in fact, longer than the page on War and Peace.

 

Frankenstein, Mary Shelley. David Lodge's book Changing Places made famous the parlor game of "Humiliation," in which players name great works of literature they have never read. You win by admitting to never having the most widely regarded work.  For me, Frankenstein was probably, um, somewhere in the top 20 or so of my potential Humiliation admissions. But hey, Victor Frankenstein was a weak-willed jerk! Not that this was an unintended impression for the reader to have. But he seemed Hamlet-like in his willingness to let his indecision and self-absorbed agonizing lead to others' suffering (a young girl in particular -here, Justine instead of Ophelia). Anyway, in the end, probably more remarkable as a novel of ideas than as a novel of characters or action. Still, worth the time.

Diabetic athletes, cont.

I somehow missed this news a couple of weeks back, but the Denver Broncos' 25-year-old quarterback, Jay Cutler, has just been diagnosed with Type-1 diabetes.  Evidently he's wearing an insulin pump for now, but uh, Jay, I would seriously consider switching to shots for the season. Getting sacked by a 350-pound defensive lineman could, I imagine, send your infusion set/catheter somewhere deep into the recesses of your body. You don't even want to know, dude.

Free comix!

Saturday, May 3, is free comic book day! Stop by your local purveyor of fine graphic novels and/or other illustrated material and get yours!

The Diabetes Dictionary.

Part One. Part Two. If you've ever had a twilight zone high or a gusher, you'll identify with this guide to jargon.