Set yourself free

Featuredthe author as a confident 20 year old. (1969)

The author, Mark Edward Jabbour, age nineteen, crossing East Maroon Creek, fifty years ago today. It was August of 1969 and I was camped on the east fork, across the water from the paved road, via my 1946 Willy's Jeep. I was spear fishing wild trout. It was summer break between my freshman and sophomore … Continue reading Set yourself free

The Time Bind: Work-family balance

This is a review of the 1997 book The Time Bind: When Work Becomes Home and Home Becomes Work. It was written by professor Arlie Russell Hochschild over the course of seven years, based on her research of a Fortune 500 company in the rural midwest in the early nineties. What I want to do here … Continue reading The Time Bind: Work-family balance

You Are What You Read

is a quote from the 1998 movie You've Got Mail. Is that true? Joe Fox (corporate big box bookseller) says that to Kathleen Kelly (independent bookstore owner) as they banter in this RomCom that is now historical fiction. [It describes the incipient impact of the internet.] The film was an adaptation of an earlier film (1940) … Continue reading You Are What You Read

Time Bind 2023 update

Time Bind is a book I'm currently reading (when I can find the time). The book was written by Arlie Russell Hochschild published in 1997. It's a sociological study of the then demand characteristics of work/home/life balance. It's fantastic, real journalism that foreshadows, but doesn't come close to realizing the bind we're in now. We … Continue reading Time Bind 2023 update

Ally McBeal: Smash or pass? Love it or leave it?

Ally McBeal was a serial TV show on Fox from 1998 to 2002. Do you love it or leave it? Is it a smash or pass? Each season was 20+, one-hour stories, with a regular cast of characters, mostly. Some characters would 'disappear' over the course of years, and be replaced by new ones. In … Continue reading Ally McBeal: Smash or pass? Love it or leave it?

Lucy’s Legacy: A review

Lucy's Legacy: Sex and Intelligence in Human Evolution (1999) is a book written by Alison Jolly (1937-2014) about that which the title indicates. Moreover, the book is one of the most intelligent, thoughtful, amusing, detailed analysis of who we are. Which begs the question: Why isn't it more widely read and cited? The answer is … Continue reading Lucy’s Legacy: A review

Drinking Writer Man and Mt. Washington

is a long story. But today I was reminded of it as the news stated that the temperature on Mt. Washington in New Hampshire was 47 degrees below zero. The wind-chill adjusted temperature was 108 degrees below zero. This is thought to be a record for the lower forty-eight. Okay. I recently bloggedabout my time … Continue reading Drinking Writer Man and Mt. Washington

Book Tropes In Real Life

Book tropes are many. As also is the trope in film. But how-about in real life? This post was inspired by Sheri Dye's post at Read Betwixt Words. Of course I've twisted it because that's who I am and have always been. I'm incapable of following directions or answering questions without adding something of my … Continue reading Book Tropes In Real Life