Apr 24, 2007

Tuesday.

I'm sitting on my floor leaned up against our living room hutch, as we no longer have a couch or an armchair. The folding chairs are too uncomfortable. I can't wait until we move.

I'm 275 pages into A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (thanks to an about-3-hour commute each day). I really, really like it. "What's it about?" is a normal question. The foreword to the book states that, "[it] is not the sort of book that can be reduced to its plot line. The best anyone can say is that it is a story about what it means to be human." I love its wanderings, I love the explanation of life in Brooklyn (just across the river from me). I love its honesty and frankness- and I'm only halfway through it. One of my favorite passages thus far:

Francie had heard swearing since she had heard words. Obscenity and profanity had no meaning as such among those people. They were emotional expressions of inarticulate people with small vocabularies; they made a kind of dialect. The prhases could mean many things according to the expression and tone used in saying them. So now, when Francie heard themselves called lousy bastards, she smiled tremulously at the kind man. She knew that he was really saying, "Goodbye- God bless you."

Today was a busy day at work which was nice. I feel like my head is a teeny tiny part above water, but that's all a part of getting adjusted, I'm sure. I had a one hour meeting this afternoon that spilled over into three hours, so I'm a bit tired. It also means that I missed the express train home. My "treat" of the night took place on the subway ride home. The man sitting next to me kept falling asleep. ON ME. After several bobs and sways of his head/body, his head came to a full resting position on my shoulder. I elbowed him (kind of gently) and he jerked upright. We didn't have any more problems. NYC makes you cringe at the touch of a stranger. Eww.

7 comments:

Missy said...

I think I check your blog right after you post every time lately. Weird.

I was going to ask you how that "first week at a new workplace" was going. I usually really dread that, but it sounds like you are doing well...

You'll probably start feeling back to normal once you move and get re-settled. Oh and the book? It's been in my nightstand drawer for too long. I need to read it.

Patrick&Kera said...

AHH, I think I would freak out. I have a hard time with people crossing my personal space bubble.

Heidi said...

Starting at a new job always makes me nervous until I get the hang of everything. I am sure you are doing great!

k. said...

It's not "easy", but it's going really well. It's sort of awkward being the new kid in school, but everyone is super nice... There's a little bit of pressure as my manager is leaving sooner-than-thought on maternity leave, so I've got to come up the curve quickly... wish me luck!

Kera, it DID freak me out. :) That's why I elbowed him (but not hard enough that he would hurt me back). Sometimes NYC is gross, but I still love it.

Bret said...

I will have to read that book. Sounds interesting...my kind of literature.

k. said...

Bret, it was voted one of the best books of the century (by the NYC public library). Seems like a winner, especially for the guy who reads all of the Pulitzer Prize winning books (did you ever read ALL of them?).

Bret said...

Certainly Not. I got a life and ran out of time.