Sunday Salon: Potpourri

Well, it's been quite a week. I'm still pinching myself, and every once in awhile I say out loud: "President Obama" because I do so like the sound of that!

I haven't been in the Salon for a couple of weeks. I'm on a bit of blog/meme overload, between book blogs and photo blogs, many of which happen on the weekend. But I've missed TSS, home of my very first meme.

I've been reading a lot - up to my 10th book for the month and will likely read 2 or 3 more. So far in January I've read:

• Oscar and Lucinda by Peter Carey
• The Road Home by Rose Tremain
• Amy and Isabelle by Elizabeth Strout
• A Year of Mornings: 3191 Miles Apart by Maria A Vettese and Stephanie Congdon Barnes
  
• The Night Watch by Sarah Waters
• The Flying Troutmans by Miriam Toews
• Open House by Elizabeth Berg
• Tree Crazy by Tracy Gallup
  
• Everybody Needs a Rock by Byrd Baylor

All of these have been high ratings - 3.5 - 4.5 out of 5. I've especially loved The Road Home, The Night Watch and The Flying Troutmans. I'm zipping through The Bonesetter's Daughter and Ship Fever this weekend and hope to get another Orange Prize read in before the end of the month for Orange January. Most of these books so far fit into one or more of my challenges; The Bonesetter's Daughter fits into 3 of the 6 categories for What's in a Name: a profession, a body part and a relative (though I can only use it for one) PLUS it's an Orange Prize short lister. PLUS it's my book group read for the first week of February. I do love to multi-task.

Also! I'm hosting another book tour this next week - Friday January 29th come check out Ingrid E. Cummings and her new book The Vigorous Mind: Cross-Train Your Brain to Break Through Mental, Emotional and Professional Boundaries. Wow. Just memorizing that title should increase your brain power! It's likely to be an interesting discussion. Check back in a few days for more information. Edited to add: this has been postponed; will probably occur in February. Stay tuned for details.

Here's hoping you're having a wonderful weekend. Happy Australia Day to my friends down under. And Chinese New Year is tomorrow - we are entering the Year of the Ox. President Obama (YES!!!) was born in the Year of the Ox, 1961. Here's what Wikipedia has to say about the characteristics of an Ox; I think this describes him to a T:

The Ox is the sign of prosperity through fortitude and hard work. This powerful sign is a born leader, being quite dependable and possessing an innate ability to achieve great things. As one might guess, such people are dependable, calm, and modest. Like their animal namesake, the Ox is unswervingly patient, tireless in their work, and capable of enduring any amount of hardship without complaint.


Ox people need peace and quiet to work through their ideas, and when they have set their mind on something it is hard for them to be convinced otherwise. An Ox person has a very logical mind and is extremely systematic in whatever they do, even without imagination. These people speak little but are extremely intelligent. When necessary, they are articulate and eloquent.

People born under the influence of the Ox are kind, caring souls, logical, positive, filled with common sense and with their feet firmly planted on the ground. Security is their main preoccupation in life, and they are prepared to toil long and hard in order to provide a warm, comfortable and stable nest for themselves and their families. Strong-minded, stubborn, individualistic, the majority are highly intelligent individuals who don't take kindly to being told what to do.

The Ox works hard, patiently, and methodically, with original intelligence and reflective thought. These people enjoy helping others. Behind this tenacious, laboring, and self-sacrificing exterior lies an active mind.

Ox people are truthful and sincere, and the idea of wheeling and dealing in a competitive world is distasteful to them. They are rarely driven by the prospect of financial gain. These people are always welcome because of their honesty and patience. They have many friends, who appreciate the fact that the Ox people are wary of new trends, although every now and then they can be encouraged to try something new.

It is important to remember that the Ox people are sociable and relaxed when they feel secure, but occasionally a dark cloud looms over such people and they engage all the trials of the whole world and seek solutions for them. Also the Ox people are all caring and loving but at times when you mess with them they will tear out in anger.

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