Grillo Center Labyrinth

Grillo Center Labyrinth
Meander and Meet....designed by George Peters and Melanie Walker of Airworks For more information contact Susan at susan@well.com

Sunday, June 03, 2007

Saturday Morning Walkers - June 2, 2007

Hi everyone,

We had a fantastic walk yesterday, courtesy of Barb. She mapped out a whole new route in South Boulder - it is hard to imagine that our group of walkers hadn't covered every square mile of that area during our training for the 3-Day but this was new to all of us - Barb, Mary, Christie, Laila and me! Of course, we followed up with our monthly planning meeting and coffee date. I'll be leading next week (more on that later in the week), Christie is taking June 16, Jan is taking June 23 and Laila may take June 30.


BOOK REPORT

Laila: reported on two books this week -

One is Holy Cow: An Indian Adventure by Sarah Macdonald - this is a memoir about Ms Macdonald's time spent in India - Laila loved the book but has taken India off her list of "must -go-to" places!

From Publishers Weekly
Australian radio correspondent Macdonald's rollicking memoir recounts the two years she spent in India when her boyfriend, Jonathan, a TV news correspondent, was assigned to New Delhi. Leaving behind her own budding career, she spends her sabbatical traveling around the country, sampling India's "spiritual smorgasbord": attending a silent retreat for Vipassana meditation, seeking out a Sikh Ayurvedic "miracle healer," bathing in the Ganges with Hindus, studying Buddhism in Dharamsala, dabbling in Judaism with Israeli tourists, dipping into Parsi practices in Mumbai, visiting an ashram in Kerala, attending a Christian festival in Velangani and singing with Sufis. Paralleling Macdonald's spiritual journey is her evolution as a writer; she trades her sometimes glib remarks ("I've always thought it hilarious that Indian people chose the most boring, domesticated, compliant and stupidest animal on earth to adore") and 1980s song title references (e.g., "Karma Chameleon") for a more sensitive tone and a sober understanding that neither mocks nor romanticizes Indian culture and the Western visitors who embrace it. The book ends on a serious note, when September 11 shakes Macdonald's faith and Jonathan, now her husband, is sent to cover the war in Afghanistan. Macdonald is less compelling when writing about herself, her career and her relationship than when she is describing spiritual centers, New Delhi nightclubs and Bollywood cinema. Still, she brings a reporter's curiosity, interviewing skills and eye for detail to everything she encounters, and winningly captures "[t]he drama, the dharma, the innocent exuberance of the festivals, the intensity of the living, the piety in playfulness and the embrace of living day by day..--he drama, the dharma, the innocent exuberance of the festivals, the intensity of the living, the piety in playfulness and the embrace of living day by day."

Laila's other recommendation is Love Without End by Glenda Green

Book Description
For almost two thousand years devoted believers, mystics, innocents, and even non-believers have reported to have near-to-life, fully perceptual, visitations with Jesus Christ. In 1992 He appeared to Glenda Green and spoke with her daily for almost four months. The expressed purpose of their visit was to paint His portrait, but nothing in the history of her career as an artist or university professor had prepared her for the life transformation that was about to take place. During this time, they spoke…as friends do, of many wonderful things—both miraculous and practical. Nothing would ever be the same. Her penetrating report of this experience is sincere, unbiased, and free of religious contrivance. In many ways her perceptions provide a bridge to the new millennium.
Never before has language or a state of consciousness been present to examine the nature of such a miraculous occurrence as well as to develop the profound implications of it. Here is a brilliant glimpse of eternity, rich with practical applications to life. These messages are sparkling and direct with great contemporary relevance, Imparting in every way the impact of Divinity in communion with a thoughtful and well educated woman of our generation. Amazing answers are given to more than 300 penetrating questions.

Rae just finished The Emperor's Children by Claire Messud - she really liked this one and recommends it highly

From Publishers Weekly
Marina Thwaite, Danielle Minkoff and Julian Clarke were buddies at Brown, certain that they would soon do something important in the world. But as all near 30, Danielle is struggling as a TV documentary maker, and Julius is barely surviving financially as a freelance critic. Marina, the startlingly beautiful daughter of celebrated social activist, journalist and hob-nobber Murray Thwaite, is living with her parents on the Upper West Side, unable to finish her book"titled The Emperor's Children Have No Clothes (on how changing fashions in children's clothes mirror changes in society). Two arrivals upset the group stasis: Ludovic, a fiercely ambitious Aussie who woos Marina to gain entrée into society (meanwhile planning to destroy Murray's reputation), and Murray's nephew, Frederick "Bootie" Tubb, an immature, idealistic college dropout and autodidact who is determined to live the life of a New York intellectual. The group orbits around the post"September 11 city with disconcerting entitlement"and around Murray, who is, in a sense, the emperor. Messud, in her fourth novel, remains wickedly observant of pretensions"intellectual, sexual, class and gender. Her writing is so fluid, and her plot so cleverly constructed, that events seem inevitable, yet the narrative is ultimately surprising and masterful as a contemporary comedy of manners.

WEBSITE OF THE WEEK - this is the site that Barb and I have used to map out our walks - it is really well done and fun to use - www.mapmyrun.com

PODCAST OF THE WEEK - Broadcasts of talks at the New York City 92nd Street Y - it is an amazingly dynamic place that draws highly regarded and diverse speakers and programs - http://www.92y.org/content/direct.asp?adsource=hpcolumn_direct -
Here's a brief history and description of the 92nd Y from their website -
http://www.92y.org/content/about_the_y.asp

VOCABULARY WORD OF THE WEEK offered by Rae -

atavism \AT-uh-viz-uhm\, noun:1. The reappearance in an organism of characteristics of some remote ancestor after several generations of absence.2. One that exhibits atavism; a throwback.3. Reversion to an earlier behavior, outlook, or approach.
Occasionally a modern whale is born having sprouted a leg or two -- a genetic throwback known as an atavism.-- Douglas H. Chadwick, "Evolution of whales", National Geographic, November 2001
Read avidly in Europe and the United States in the 1890s, The Female Offender argues that women criminals are atavisms or throwbacks to earlier evolutionary stages, marked by physical anomalies such as coarse features.-- Nicole Rafter, "Breaking the Codes: Female Criminality in Fin-de-Siecle Paris", The Women's Review of Books, October 1, 1997

COOKING AND FOOD REPORT

A few good recipes this week:

Panino di Proscuitto e Fontina from Giada di Laurentiis - great for a lunch or light dinner - I served it with tomato soup (out of a can!) but it would be good with a salad - http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_25162,00.html?rsrc=search

Chicken Parmigiana from Bobby Flay - (time-saver tip - ask the butcher in the meat department to flatten the boneless breasts for you - should be a free service and one less hassle for you!)
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_25162,00.html?rsrc=search - (another tip, I have been known to use a favorite jarred marinara sauce instead of making it myself - Rao's is a bit pricey but oh so good!

Balsamic Barbeque Sauce from Giada di Laurentiis - I made this to accompany the ribs below - great combination
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_36958,00.html

Dry Rub Ribs - Memphis Style from Dave Lieberman
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_36115,00.html?rsrc=search

Have a great week!

Love,
Susan

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