I’m in trouble (again) because someone read my recent Cactuseaters post and was scared to let her mom see “Avatar” because she thinks the 3D sensation will make her mom seasick and nauseous. For the record, I did not feel dizzy or vomitous during the movie. It’s worth mentioning, because I once saw a movie, “The Blair Witch Project,” during which five people in the audience fled the theater to throw up. Seriously. I think it was the herky-jerky hand-held camera style that did it. http://cactuseaters.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default
Year: 2010
Scolding people accidentally during “Avatar”
Good movie. But 3D can lead to social problems. You can get so caught up in the screen, and what’s going on in the movie, that you lose sight of the people sitting next to you, standing in front of you, or scooting between the aisles, trying to get to the restroom. Yesterday at the Kabuki, someone butted in front of me during an intense scene, and I yelled out, “Oh, give me a break. Get out of the way,” without realizing that I did this until after the fact. Also, I almost spilled my drink on someone. (Sorry.) http://cactuseaters.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default
My first 3D movie ever
Today is my big day. I’m going to the Kabuki Sundance Theater to see you-know-what in 3D. But I don’t know what to expect. The last time I saw anything in 3D, it was a short feature at Disneyland, starring Michael Jackson, a bunch of dancing people in space outfits and a poorly rendered “meteor” that looked like more like a giant levitating baked potato. So these are my questions and concerns. Where are you supposed to sit for the best results at a 3D movie? Are you supposed to find the ‘dead center,’ like the old Grateful Dead shows? Will the glasses give me a headache? I already have glasses. Am I supposed to put the 3D glasses over the glasses? Do I have to give the glasses back when it’s all over? Does the theater provide air-sickness bags? http://cactuseaters.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default
Signing the Cactus Eaters on Kindle –“This bespells doom.”
The other day, someone asked me what I would do if asked to sign a copy of The Cactus Eaters on Kindle. I was stumped. How do you sign a Kindle? With a Sharpie? Can you hack into a Kindle and place an electronic ‘signature’ on a book file? Or burn the author’s initials into the Kindle using a cordless Craftsman soldering iron? But as it turns out, it can be done. Check out this article in the New York Times, and find out how David Sedaris dealt with this. http://cactuseaters.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default
Read these books now
Not that these people need any of my help. But you need to read Alice Munro’s Too Much Happiness. In fact, you really need to read it twice. I love the way each character casts a shadow; Munro finds brilliant ways to add depth and backstory to characters that normally turn up ‘flat’ (crazy intruder, nasty husbands, etc.) When you’re done, clear your palate with Wells Tower’s Everything Ravaged, Everything Burned. , by far the best debut story collection you will find this year. Lavinia Greenlaw’s The Importance of Music To Girls is a lyrical memoir about the power of music. She messes with the formula along with chronology. Don’t expect another variation on Nick Hornby’s High Fidelity. Marie Brenner’s Apples and Oranges uses an unusual lens — the joys and hardships of the apple-growing industry — to examine her relationship with her brother. Francine Prose’s Blue Angel is a…
If you hate your cell phone …
…then you should read my brother’s latest blog entry on Pawprints. http://cactuseaters.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default
Coping with PTB: (Post Trail Blues), and readjusting to your life after a big hike
I’ve received so many emails about this that I will try to answer this question (with your input) in a few weeks. Stay tuned! And if you are a long-distance hiker with post-hike life readjustment experience, feel free to send in. I’ll incorporate your responses into my blog post. http://cactuseaters.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default
Kirkus Reviews: not gone after all?
I was relieved to see that Kirkus may not be gone after all, (and I’m not just saying that because they liked my book. ) We’re losing book review outlets every month, with constrictions and layoffs in the newspaper and publishing industry. http://cactuseaters.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default
Cactus conspiracy
One of you asked about the wildest email I have ever received in relation to my first book. Well, here is one standout. A few months ago, someone (here on the West Coast) said he could prove that I did not hike any of the Pacific Crest Trail, and that he was going to show up to one of my readings one day and confront me with his dossier of “evidence.” “I can’t wait to see your face,” he wrote. According to his conspiracy theory, I basically sat around on a couch all summer long and somehow convinced my loyal hiking companion, “Lois”, to hike the trail for me and ghost-write the book for me too. After voicing his theory to me, he then invited me to go hiking with him!!! I will share more from the mail bag very soon. And if anyone can prove this conspiracy theory is…
Daniel White to conquer the John Muir Trail
Be nice to Mr. Daniel White if you see him out on the JMT in a few months. Mr. White, a group leader in a computational engineering group, is setting out to do the trail very soon. “My mother bought your book for me as a joke. But I really enjoyed it,” he explained. “I’m a hiker myself, been hiking the Sierra Nevada for 20 years. I plan to do the whole JMT on my 50th birthday, coming up shortly.” Good luck to you, Daniel White. Enjoy the Rae Lakes area. Watch out for Bear Creek. Also, watch your footing up on Glen Pass. There are a couple of sketchy sections. http://cactuseaters.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default