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Tedy! Youk! Martin!

1 Sep

As if there wasn’t already enough going on in the Coolidge Corner general area today, Tedy Bruschi was doing a book signing at Brookline Booksmith.

I may not be a huge Patriots fan (at least not as big as I am a Red Sox fan), but you gotta love a guy who battles back like Bruschi has.

And hey, I love a good book signing.

So I waited in the line — which snaked down Harvard St. and about halfway up Green St. — for an hour and got my book signed.

And it was pretty cool to see everyone walk out of the store with a big grin, relating what inspirational words he told them. Tedy shook my hand, signed the book, and gave me a little smile.

Not a bad way to spend a Saturday afternoon. Continue reading →

Harry Potter and the Raging Hormones

19 Jul

Like so many others, I’ve been eager to see how the Harry Potter series would end. And now that I’ve finished my advance copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows, I have to say I’m shocked. Shocked! I can’t believe J.K. Rowling had the nerve to have Hagrid admit his love for Hermione on page 72, when the story had barely begun. But who knew they’d make such a perfect pair? I loved the scene when they go on their first date to Tinkerdoo. Harry being overcome with jealous rage seemed the obvious reaction to it all, and when he overdosed on Butter Beer and Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans, I knew that couldn’t be good. Voldemort didn’t stand a chance. Anyway, the book’s awesome, just like the other six were. I just sort of wish J.K. Rowling hadn’t done that whole thing with Hedwig and the Angry Inch. Kids shouldn’t be exposed to fringe art like that. At least not until they’re twelve years old.

But seriously, happy Harry Potter Day. I have no idea how the series will end — in fact, the only book in the series that I’ve actually read is the first one (I tried to read the second but couldn’t get into it). In fact, I’ve only seen the first and third movies too. I just don’t have much interest in the series. That said, I do love the Saturday Night Live skit from a few years back where Lindsay Lohan played Hermione. So in honor of the release of the final book, I thought I’d post it here for your weekend viewing enjoyment.

Catching Up

9 Jul

After a few days off, here are a few quick items that weren’t significant enough for posts of their own:

Real estate porn: I’m starting to really enjoy this whole buying real estate thing. Every Sunday I try to hit up a few open houses to see what’s out there, and it’s fun to see the nice kitchens and views and cleaned up bathrooms and stuff. Equally fun (though also frustrating) is seeing the places that sound nice and are photographed well, but in actuality are dumps. Who are they kidding?? And then there are the places I walk into off the street because there’s an “open house” sign out front, only to find it’s way out of my price range. Ha! Either way, it’s all good and worth seeing just for comparison. And one day, one of these nice kitchens will be mine. Then, I suppose, I’ll have to cook. But first things first.

All junk: I’d like to spend, like, two minutes in the mind of a spammer. What good is it to send out all your messages for discounted software and “enhancement” drugs and all that other crap on a holiday weekend, when it’ll just get lost amongst all the other junk emails of the sort? I got close to 100 of these messages in my work email box between Friday and Monday morning. And I moved them all into the trash.

In their place: I’m so far away from being married that sometimes I can only look at my married or engaged friends and laugh at some of the things they do. Like when my engaged friends register for “silly” stuff I know they’ll never use. For example, one of my friends registered for, like, 20 bjillion placemats. And not just the same kind, but, like, six of one kind, a dozen of another, and 15 of another. How many times has this couple eaten dinner together at home recently? Let’s just say that everytime I call them at 5:00 (the time they say they’re eating dinner) they’re not home. And I know this friend will enjoy that I’m making fun of him publicly. Still, I look forward to the day when he tells me the dinner placemats actually got used.

No Dice: Halfway through the season and I’m still not impressed with Dice-K. He lost again on Sunday. Six runs and 10 hits in five innings. That’s no ace. As for the whole team, I’ll worry about them when the second place team (be it Toronto or the Yankees) make it within five games. Until then, much as I’d rather they be dominating everyone, I can’t get upset that they lost the series this weekend. The season’s on cruise control.

Wild thing: I’m really looking forward to the movie adaptation of Into the Wild, which is a book I’ve actually read. Granted, it was a few years ago, but I remember really liking it, and the film’s trailer looks really promising. Speaking of which, I expect to have finished Cabin Pressure by week’s end (only 25 pages to go). That’ll be the second book I’ve read in three months. (That’s right, two books in three months. Go me!) Next on the reading list: The Year of Living Biblically, by A.J. Jacobs. It’s not out till October, but A.J. himself sent me an advance copy (with a personal note and everything) because I interviewed him a few years back to promote his last book. Yaaaaaay, A.J.!

Under Pressure

24 Jun

One thing I’ve come to really like about traveling is that it gives me a couple hours to get deep into whatever book I’m reading.

(Yeah, look at me, turning into a regular bookworm.)

This weekend I flew to New York for my second cousin’s bris, and by the time I landed back in Boston Sunday night, I was more than halfway done with my new book, Cabin Pressure, by Josh Wolk. Continue reading →

I’m All Out of Love

7 Jun

Almost like a birthday present to myself, Thursday I finally finished reading Love Is a Mix Tape.

I say finally, but it only took me a month to read (which, believe it or not, is really quick for me).

As I’ve said before, I don’t read books. It’s not that I’m against the medium, but I just don’t seem to have the patience for anything longer than a typical magazine article. And maybe it’s because Mix Tape is written by Rob Sheffield, a contributing editor at Rolling Stone, but damn if I couldn’t put this book down. Continue reading →

Love Is … a Good Book

9 May

I don’t read books. People ask me all the time, “What’s the last book you read?” And my response is always “I don’t read books.” It’s not that I don’t read. In fact, I devour magazines on a weekly basis — Entertainment Weekly, Rolling Stone, Esquire, Improper Bostonian, etc. But I’ve never had much patience for or time to devote to books. Of course, this hasn’t stopped me from accumulating quite a library of books that I hope one day to read. So every time I go on vacation, I bring one with me, but I never get that far (it’s happened recently with Franz Wisner’s Honeymoon with My Brother and Steve Almond and Julianna Baggott’s Which Brings Me to You). I think the last book I read from start to finish was Dave Egger’s A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, and that was, like, six years ago.

So why am I mentioning all this now? Well, I don’t want to jinx it or anything, but I may just be on the verge of finishing another book: Rob Sheffield’s Love Is a Mix Tape. Rob is a contributing editor at Rolling Stone (he writes the “Pop Life” column) and he’s been a commentator on MTV and VH1. The book is Rob’s memoir about he and his late wife, Renee, who had nothing in common but a love of music, and Rob tells the story by using the various mixes he made for her (or she for him) as a uniting theme. As he writes, “Every mix tape tells a story. Put them together and they add up to the story of a life.” I’m sure years from now I’ll be able to remember certain times of my own life based on mixes I’ve made (and not just Xmas ones). That’s the idea behind the book, and given that it takes place in the early 90s, the lists of artists on the tapes gives the book a definite sense of time and place. There’s even a chapter devoted to the weekend Kurt Cobain died.

Basically, Mix Tape is a love letter to Renee and to music, and whether you’re a romantic, a music lover, or just like good memoirs, the book is great. It’s written in a conversational tone, making it fast-moving and, at times, hard to put down. At the end of each chapter, I found myself eager to read just one more. Usually I struggle to finish chapters and can’t wait to put down the books. I found out about Mix Tape when it was excerpted in GQ in the January 07 issue. I don’t usually get affected by books or magazine articles (other than those that make me laugh), but I found myself tearing up a bit reading the excerpt.

It’s been less than a week since I picked up Mix Tape, and I’m more than halfway through. I’d be surprised if I wasn’t done with it in another week or two (not being on vacation anymore and all). I wish I could write a more convincing recommendation than this is. But suffice it to say, any book that gets me from start to finish has to be good. If you go to the book’s web site you can read an excerpt and decide for yourself if it’s worth picking up.

Update, 6/8: I’ve finished the book.

Booked

20 Sep

Back in the day, I was an avid reader of Swing magazine, which was published by Ralph Lauren’s son David and aimed to inspire twentysomethings to be active members of society (or something like that). In one issue, there was a profile of a young writer named Brad Meltzer, whose new book The Tenth Justice was getting good buzz. Brad was being hailed as “the next John Grisham.” Being a young writer myself, I was inspired by Brad’s success and decided to go to a book reading/signing and meet him in person. When the time came after Brad read from the book, I stood up and asked him a question about his web site and the character sketches, which I enjoyed. Or maybe it was a question about the movie rights, which had just been sold. Or actually, I think I asked two questions.

Anyway, Brad left a good impression on me that night, and when he came out with his next book a year or two later, I went to that signing too. Of course, just like I had done at Brad’s first reading, I stood up and asked a question when he opened things up to a Q&A. Brad remembered me, and later he wrote something nice in my book, thanking me for coming back.

Long story short, Brad is one of the nicest writers I’ve ever met, one of the real good guys, and that’s why every time he’s in town with a new book, I make a point of going to his readings/signings. And yes, every time I also ask him a question, and every time Brad remembers me (tho not necessarily by name) and writes something really cool in my book. So I’ve followed his career over the years; I own all his novels (plus the graphic novels Idenity Crisis and Green Arrow: Archer’s Quest) — though admittedly, I haven’t read them all — and I watched Jack and Bobby, the WB show he created two seasons ago. (And a fun fact is that he was Real World: San Francisco cast member Judd Winick‘s roommate in college.)

I tell you all this because Brad’s in town today (Wednesday) to promote his sixth novel, The Book of Fate, which has been getting some great reviews and debuted at the top of the New York Times Bestseller list last week. The book’s a thriller set in Washington, D.C., about an attempted presidential assassination, the secret society of Masons, and all kinds of other stuff. He wrote it with some research help from former Presidents Clinton and Bush. I’m not doing a very good job of selling the book, so I encourage you to check out Brad’s web site, where you can learn more about it. Brad will be reading from Fate at Brookline Booksmith in Coolidge Corner at 7 p.m., and if you’re free, he’s worth listening to, meeting, and reading. Just thought I’d do my part and give him a plug here. Look for me. I’ll be there.

Please Click Here

5 Jan

An old friend of mine from my summer camp days, Doug Gordon, who I’ve mentioned a couple of times on this site, has written a book called The Engaged Groom. Many of my friends are already married (some with child or children), but perhaps there are some out there reading my site who are newly engaged or close to being engaged. If so, check out Doug’s book. If you’re already married, be a pal and click on the link for Doug’s book anyway. And if you’re not even close to being engaged, please still click on the link for Doug’s book. (It’s a contest. If I refer enough people to the web site for his book, Doug will send me an autographed copy.) And if you’re interested, Doug did a chat yesterday on Boston.com. Here’s a link to the transcript.

TGIF

11 Nov

Some miscellaneous things that are on my mind today:

Sorry, neighbors: I hit snooze for a solid hour and a half this morning. That, after waking up in the middle of the night and sleeping on my couch for what must have been four hours. When the radio went off at 6:15, blaring from my bedroom, I darted off the couch, ran to go shut it off … and then proceeded to fall right back asleep.

Bagel basics: I’ve long thought that only Jewish people should work at bagel places. Before anyone gets all uppity that this is some sort of racist, reverse anti-Semitism thing, hear me out: When was the last time you had a good sandwich at Finagle-a-Bagel? Really. A good, well-made sandwich, where the ingredients weren’t just slapped together (in excess) and the bagel wasn’t burnt, etc. Too often, I feel like bagel sandwiches — whether they’re with cream cheese or turkey or whatever — are put through like some disorganized assembly line and made without much care for their quality. I take my bagels seriously (despite the fact that I still go to Bruegger’s regularly). Jewish people know from bagels. If Jews were making the bagel sandwiches at Finagle, they wouldn’t screw them up. Go to any bagel place in Florida. You’ll see.

This could have been worse: Nicole Richie was on the Today show this morning. At the risk of sounding like an old man triple my age, what a well-spoken young lady she was. Who knew?! Apparently she has a book out that’s “a novel a novel a novel a novel a novel a novel” — it’s repeated six times on the cover to underline and highlight the fact that even though characters closely resemble former aquaintances (i.e.: Paris Hilton), the book is not based in reality. Whatever. I’m still not going to read it.

T things: So if the T isn’t crowded and I’ve got plenty of space in the back of the train to stand, why must people come all the way back and crowd me? There’s plenty of room for them elsewhere. And in related musings, is anyone who rides the B Line happy? I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone on that line smile. On the C Line, people are talking to each other, laughing — I mean, it’s not the love train by any means, but at least the general mood of the riders is happier.

Happy day: Today is Veterans Day. So who has it off? Only the post office, it seems. And also in related musings, I was in Shaw’s last night and saw “Happy Veterans Day” cakes. Do you really wish people “Happy Veterans Day?”

Bad TV: I’d care more that it’s Sam who dies on Reunion if only I liked any of the characters on that show. It’s a good premise, but not one of the six characters is compelling enough to make the show watchable. Basically, the only reason I do watch is because it supposedly takes place in Bedford, NY, which is where I grew up. Supposedly. That’s not the Bedford I know. The characters would have gone to Fox Lane High School (not Bedford High) and the hospital would have been Northern Westchester Hospital (not University Hospital). Just fyi, in case you’re curious.

Behave or be gone: I really liked this story from Wednesday’s New York Times. I think Dan McCauley, owner of a coffee shop in Chicago, has the right idea. “Part of parenting skills is teaching kids they behave differently in a restaurant than they do on the playground,” he says. It’s easy for me to say since I don’t have kids, right? But the same goes for movie theaters. Bad thing is, of course, it’s not just children: too many adults treat the movie theater like it’s their living room. It’s my biggest pet peeve — after people who don’t know the correct way to ride an escalator, of course. (If you’re going to stand, stay to the right and let the rest of us pass.)

Summertime: Got an advance copy of UB40‘s new CD, Who You Fighting For?, in the mail today (it’s out January 24). Yes, those guys are still around, and with this album, they’ve got a return to form. (And I’m not just saying that because the British Mojo Magazine said it first.) I have the CD on while I’m working and it’s making me forget that it’s, like, 40 degrees out and that I dug my cold weather coat out this morning. At least mentally, summer’s already here.

No day but Tuesday: Got my invite yesterday to see an advance screening of Rent next week. Can’t wait. Especially now since Jeff Wells has posted such a huge rave about the film on his site, “Hollywood Elsewhere.” Jeff calls himself a “not-very-hip type,” something I can identify with if I know what he means, and he, like me, saw the show in 1996 when the original cast was still in it (I also saw the original cast in London, if you’re interested). I’ve been listening to the movie soundtrack for a couple of months now and like it. I’ve also seen clips, but they cause me to be a bit reserved in my enthusiasm. Jeff Wells gives me hope today. Look for my review of the film mid next week.

Yaaaaaaaay A.J.!

1 Oct

For as long as I’ve been an active reader of magazines, I’ve been a fan of A.J. Jacobs. As far as magazine writers go, he’s one of the best.

I first became aware of A.J. when he was a writer for Entertainment Weekly. A.J. would write some of the funniest articles EW published, including one where he spent, if I remember correctly, 24 hours watching TV and documented the experience. (Something like that.) Long story short, when I went for a job interview at EW in the summer of 1996, part of my excitement came from the fact that I might get the chance to meet A.J. On my way out of the office, after blowing my chance to work for my favorite magazine (one of the worst job interviews I’ve ever given), I passed by his office. The door was closed. Oh well.

A.J.’s made quite a career for himself. He is now an editor at Esquire and he’s kept on writing some of these stunty-type articles. A month or two ago, he outsourced his life by hiring two assistants in India, and turned that into a great article. And actually, he turned one of his ideas into a whole book: The Know-It-All: One Man’s Humble Quest to Become the Smartest Person in the World, which came out about a year ago and is now available in paperback. It’s a great, very funny book — and I don’t just say that because I got to interview A.J. (!) and he told me it was. It’s an easy, quick read and I highly recommend it. (You can read an excerpt of the book here.)

Anyway, A.J.’s at it again. According to CNet, he’s written a story about Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia that invites readers to post entries and edit others. Call it “the people’s encyclopedia.” Essentially, since the theory is that the Wikipedia readers can collectively rid the site of errors better than a small group of editors could, A.J. thought he’d put his story — which intentionally included a bunch of mistakes about the site — on Wikipedia and see what happened. Brilliant. I love it. This is classic A.J. Jacobs.

The story is going to appear in Esquire‘s December issue. You can get a good idea of its final version by clicking here. Good stuff. Check it out. And hey, help a brother out by buying his book next time you’re in your favorite book store.

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