Reading
I’ve gotten way behind on updating my Reading page, the little summaries of books that I finish. When I switched over to Squarespace 6, the formatting of that page got jacked up, meaning I have to redesign it. In the interest of killing two birds with one stone, I’m going to wipe out the existing Reading page and begin posting…
Fun With Nursery Rhymes
My nearly eight years as a stay-at-home parent have been filled with humorous moments that come with being the rare dad who is with his kids all day. Random kids who come up and start telling me about their potty habits. Boys who mistake me for their dad because I’m the only guy around. And, my personal favorite, kids yanking…
Lendle And Amazon
I had a nice long rant half-drafted, and then it got shot down. Tuesday, Amazon removed API access for Lendle and several other Kindle book lending services. That killed these services as they rely on access to Amazon databases to facilitate sharing amongst users. Amazon said they removed access because the services did not aid Amazon in its primary mission:…
Reader’s Notebook, Early January 2011
ESPN columnist Jim Caple kicked off his book blog this week. Coincidentally, I just finished the first book he highlights, George Dohrmann’s Play Their Hearts Out, a terrific, numbing look inside the world of “grassroots” basketball, the name now used for what used to be called the AAU circuit. Dohrmann focuses on one coach, Joe Keller, and his prodigy, Demetrius…
Post Holiday Gift Ideas
I imagine some of you have gift cards for the iTunes Music Store, Amazon, or other entertainment/book stores burning holes in your pockets. Since I’ve burned through a lot of music and books over the past year, here are some recommendations for some ways to spend that virtual cash one some real gifts to yourself. Albums Really you can just…
Reader’s Notebook, November 2010
A bit of a light month, between my pseudo-novel writing and basketball season beginning. I’ll probably match my November total by Monday. Badasses: The Legend of Snake, Foo, Dr. Death, and John Madden’s Oakland Raiders – Peter Richmond. This is a terrific look back at the legendary Oakland Raiders teams of the 1970s. It explores their entire history up until…
Reader’s Notebook, October 2010
I slowed down a little last month. Not much, though. The Shallows – What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains – Nicholas Carr. The internet and high tech are changing the way we access information. And anyone who spends even a little time surfing the net has stories about how their attention span seems to be shrinking, or how…
Reader’s Notebook, September 2010
I was in the zone. I was crushing books, knocking them out at better than a book-a-week pace. Then I ran into a wall. I still got some things done last month. The 80-Yard Run: A Twenty-Week, Coast-to-Coast Quest for the Heart of High School Football – Theron Hopkins. A buddy who is deeply involved in high school football recommended…
Reader’s Notebook, August 2010, Part 2
And now the books of August. Star Wars: The Lost Tribe of the Sith – John Jackson Miller. These sucked. They were actually four small mini-books strung together to tell another story in the endless Star Wars novel world. They were free, so I figured what the hell. Sometimes you get what you pay for. There was nothing compelling about…
Reader’s Notebook, August 2010, Part 1
August was a busy month, reading-wise. I threw a wrinkle in my reading, as well, so the month gets two Reader’s Notebook posts. In Part 1, I discuss why I read what I read. Part 2 will cover the books themselves. I’ve begun running into the big downside of the Kindle: the expense. I had been rolling through books so…