Saturday, February 8, 2020

Too much work, work, work

After the ice a couple of days ago, the snow came yesterday. I had an appointment, which I cancelled, and sat at the window, watching the snow and reading Travels in Siberia. Then thump, thump, thump and scrape, scrape, scrape, and Joe was working off my several inches of snow.

I remade my appointment, told Joe I would pay him after I got some money, "See you later!" 

"OK, honey". No, I'm not going to pull feminine rank on a probably unemployed young man who shows up and cleans my deck, steps, car and drive, and remind him my name is not honey. Well, maybe next time. What do you think.

I went grocery shopping on the way home, and Joe carried in three bags of groceries that were too heavy for me to handle, because I should have brought five bags into the grocery store.

After supper I wove a couple more towels, out of guilt, and kept reading Travels. I got up this morning with a work plan to hand. It didn't start until perhaps eleven in the morning. Travels, you know. But then I seriously wove off half a dozen bobbins of the dusty rose I'm working on now. I need a new color mixed into my stock.



That's my left shoe. I must remove it to treadle the six treadle sequence without stepping on two treadles at once. I thought my shoe was purple, but next to rose... In the eye of the beholder, I suppose.

Then, it was the new job of revamping my Facebook page, Joanne Noragon Weaver. I literally was, and remain clueless. First I deleted all the old pictures from selling in the gallery. Then I deleted all the old posts, to give myself a blank page to begin with. 

Facebook will not be so easy, because I have only one page to work with, as far as I know. But I forged on with my opening statement, and then began listing all the towels on hand. It seems they must go above, not under that statement. Bummer. 

But, I continued. For a while all the towels were under the "How to buy towels". Then, they all disappeared. I cannot find them. Tomorrow I will have another go at Facebook.

So, I ate supper and read Travels. They came out at Vladivostock, five weeks and two days in, on September 11. Frazier had to zing his readers one last time; they traveled along that river into the city that one of his great heroes had traveled in eighteen whatever; could we remember? The next morning he called his wife, who immediately said she and the children were safe. It still was September 11, 2001 in New Jersey. He and his companions had no idea.

His wife booked him on a South Korean flight, several days later, and he is boarding the plane, when I quit him tonight. Only half an inch of pages remain. Perhaps they mostly are credits. If there is much more narrative of Russian names, I'll just thumb on through and close the book.

Sadly, I could not relate to the names; could not put my head or tongue around them. Worse by far, there is no map showing their route or the names of the places they saw and camped in. My overwhelming impression is of a land of decaying, sinking buildings and trash of every description.  I cannot remember the heroes and martyrs who fill the book's pages.

40 comments:

  1. A cast of thousands, all with those triple-barrelled Russian names, is why I could never make it through the novel "Dr Zhivago" although I tried at least 3 times.

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  2. Love that dusy/dusky rose. And will sadly confess to putting more than one book aside because I couldn't keep the characters and their names straight.
    On the 'honey' front I am torn. Honey, love, dear are not my names but I am inconsistent about who I call out for their use. Really and truly I should call out everyone but I don't. Yet.

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  3. a guy who would do what Joe does could call be honey all he wanted. not like he's your boss.

    when Rocky was painting the outside of the house he kept calling the dark rose color 'pink'. It's not pink!

    and that book would numb me and put me to sleep.

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  4. I suspect that Jie was not being demeaning with the use of "Honey" and unless you find it really offensive I would let it go.

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  5. You cannot afford to embarrass or annoy the young man. His services are too valuable. (Just as I cannot afford to upset my cleaner, even when her industrial-style vacuum hits and scratches my walls).

    Reading travel books, I always keep Google Maps handy and constantly look up the places referred to.

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    1. I tried following them on google, but the various spellings left me lost as when I started.

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  6. Sad to come away with such memories of what could have been a great book. I usually keep a small atlas handy when reading such books so I can travel along. I wouldn't call out Joe on calling you honey, perhaps he learned his manners from an "old school" grandfather and is just being nice.

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  7. Being called honey has never bothered me, but then I've never had the bad luck to be called it by someone with bad intent, only by those who meant well and so I took it as intended - a kind alternative to my actual name. Maybe you could try, "You can call me Joanne!" as you would if he had called you "Ms. Noragon" instead. But it may not be a hill you want to perish on, alone with your snow and heavy bags . . . lol

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    1. Hari OM
      I was thinking pretty much the same - "My name's Joanne..." would be a fine enough response and then let it play as it will!

      It seems a kinda waste of the writer's time to have produced a travelogue and not then provided at least a basic map at front or back! I admire you for having got the back half inch &*> YAM xx

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    2. When we exchanged names and phone numbers on paper, Joe even said "We have the same name". He's just reverting to type. He is a good snow remover, however.

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  8. It sounds like a map would have been helpful. I like maps, even in novels. Part of my job was cataloging old and rare maps! I admire the weaving you do. Joe sounds like a great guy, him calling you honey is ok by me.

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  9. Finding someone who will do the snow, and carry in groceries for me without demanding payment right then and there could call me honey anytime. He sounds like a nice man. There are situations where being called "honey" would not be alright, but I think in this case I'd be glad that nice man was there and not take offense where none was meant.

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  10. Joe sounds a lovely lad...and sounds like he appreciates and cares about his elders. One to be cherished!

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  11. That Russian habit of using everyone's first and middle name stymies me every time. Why can't they all be Alex, or George, or Stan?
    Love that shade of purple.

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  12. I can commiserate about the names. I am reading the sixth book in a series set in old Germany. In this particular book they are in a town named Oberammergauer. My mind has to pronounce tha name every time I see it and it wears me out.

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  13. I'll forgive Joe for his use of "honey." Years past when working in doctors' offices I was addressed as honey, sweetheart, and the like. I always said under my breath "I'm not your sweetheart, honey, etc." but most of the time I don't think they realized the terms of endearment they were using and were just habit for them to do so.

    betty

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  14. My 13-year-old granddaughter now addresses everyone (including me) as "Bro". Why? It seems to be the latest in-thing amongst her group of friends.

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  15. Maybe Joe hasn't figured out what to call you and so does the "honey" routine...no matter why I'd let him call me anything reasonably polite for all that he does!! BTW I'd be falling asleep over that book even if it came with maps and pronunciation guides!!

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  16. This new towel color is just beautiful! (As are your shoes! They look very comfortable!) I used to read Stuart Kaminsky, a Russian author, who wrote about a very sharp detective. This detective had a bad leg, but worked out every morning so was extremely strong. They called him "The barrel" because of his shape. Loved his books... another Russian I admire is Helena P. Blavatsky, or "HPB" as she was known. I would so have liked to have met her and been able to speak with her. Fascinating woman who was born before her time.

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  17. You are doing better with Travels in Siberia than I could do. It sounds like you are about through it and then you can start something fresh. I am glad for you that Joe shows up to help out with shoveling snow and such. It can be difficult to find help like that.
    You are sure going to town with your weaving! I love that rose color. Be careful if you have to get out in the snow and ice.

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  18. Maybe Joe is a young man who grew up in a family who had older people that were loved and respected and calling them Honey was a sign of affection and high regard. I was taught to never call my elders by their first names...that was considered very rude. I think things a lot of you and cares about your safety.Mary in
    Colorado

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  19. I am going to look for that book.Thank you Joanne.

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  20. I too love travel books Joanne, especially from that part of the world but I do agree that keeping tabs on who'e who with those foreign names is a nuisance to say the least.
    As to Joe and 'honey' - I have it here too. In the space of two or three minutes my butcher called me honey, sweetheart and darlin'. And worst of all with my friend W is when waiters when we eat out ask us 'what can I get you guys!!!'

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    1. No! Not in England! Especially in the Dales. My heart breaks.

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  21. Lol at least Honey is better than Duck and Hen!
    Duck from an English friend and Hen from a Scottish friend.
    And of course down here all men call each other Mate!

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  22. I mentioned the Colin Thubron book In Siberia in my comment the other day. When I read it I noted: Some parts of Siberia sound like Northern Europe before civilisation, just after the ice age. Others sound like life after civilisation ends.

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    1. I didn't mention: Russia runs on bribes. Frazier is standing at the ticket counter to get his return ticket his wife purchased. The clerk went through the stack, slowly. NO TICKET! Sergi pushed the bribe across the counter; the ticket was there.

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  23. I prefer honey to ducky but neither is preferable. When you pay him maybe you could suggest he call you Joanne. He may not realize he’s doing the honey thing.

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  24. Well, I think I'd let Joe call me "honey" all he wanted. Perhaps "Miss Honey" would be better. Like Ellen said- he's not your boss.
    You have a lot of fortitude to finish that whole book. I'm sorry but it sounds dreadful.

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  25. Well, at least he didn't call you "lil' lady"! In my working years, I heard that often. It was easier to just smile and go forth.

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  26. Some books are just like that. Losing threads and tracks and names and I just hate no maps for those travel books.

    XO
    WWW

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  27. Good luck with Facebook
    I tried, but link doesn't have a page.

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  28. You may like Dervla Murphy's Through Siberia by Accident. A good and readable travel writer and very human, my favourite actually. I started in Vladivostok. The accident is a bit like yours which put her on a train instead of a bicycle for the journey.

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  29. You are more industrious than I to tackle Facebook. I lurk out there with a closed page, but that's it. Their privacy settings confound me, so I just don't engage. Years ago I was reading something and realized half way through that I had confabulated the (very similar) names of two characters. Had to start over to separate them.

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  30. there are worse things that Joe could have said, Honey is just fine.I am having the same difficulty with names in a book as you are having- Finnish names, I am confused, It is a good book so far though. Deep River. I love the soft color you are using in your new towels, lovely.

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  31. I too think the towels are closer to purple than they are to pink. It's a lovely colour.

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  32. Imagine coming out of a journey like that and then learning about 9/11.

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