Vromans Bookstore Blog

I know I’m supposedly reading the Wheel of Time (and I am, I promise!) but a year straight of epic fantasy is sometimes just a little too epic for me. So I’ve been taking breaks, mainly to re-read other things that I know are specifically not epic fantasy. However, I picked up The Boy Who Couldn’t Sleep and Never Had To on a friend’s recommendation (and also off his night stand), read the first five pages, and was hooked. As he so deftly put it, “about five chapters in… and just realizing it is the novelization of my inner monologue”. Which is pretty much true. I kept finding myself going “Yeah! That’s EXACTLY right!!”

For anyone who has ever felt like a nerd, geek, or dork, or has been called a “really good draw-er”, this book should ring true. It is being called a “coming of age” story, and I guess it is, although I’d call it more of a “finding your place” story; none of the characters become adults, per se, but they do find out that in college, everyone is as into something as they are. Darren is an engaging narrator, and Eric’s inability to sleep has some interesting side effects. The end left me sad, but with a distinct sense of closure; something I have a hard time finding in book endings, and love when I do. I don’t want to tell you too much more, but if you’re looking for a quick, engaging read, this is a novel worth picking up. If nothing else, flip through and look at Darren’s (Pierson’s) drawings, and remember your days of nerdy world-building. Assuming you had them (I certainly did).

Reminds me of/Other awesome books: Perks of Being a Wallflower, Feed, Catcher in the Rye

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Well, Kathleen Norris (bestselling author of Amazing Grace, Cloister Walk, and the new Acedia & Me) thinks so. She said that this is possibly the best bookstore in the nation. Her words, not mine (although I, of course, am in total agreement!).

She had some very interesting things to say about acedia tonight, (acedia is a slippery word; the closest I can get to a definition is that it is kind of a hybrid between sloth and depression, where everything just seems so futile and difficult that you simply stop trying). One of the things that grabbed my attention was her observation that in the 30’s, the word was tagged by the Oxford English Dictionary as out of use, but it was picked up again post-WWII. I thought it was very curious that the word wasn’t used during the Great Depression, but once a devastating war was over and people went back to normal, boring, every-day life, they needed it again.

That, in turn, reminded me of an incredibly interesting class I took in college, called Ritual and Play. It was in the art history department, but almost all of the readings we did were about play theory, and we spent a good month trying to define both ritual and play (which we eventually kind of failed to do). One of them that really struck me was an essay by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (yes, I could at one point pronounce it, no, I can not anymore), related to his book/concept, Flow. Flow is the state you enter when you lose track of time, when you are so utterly absorbed in something that you forget where you are. It is when someone is trying to get your attention for like five minutes, but you totally ignore them because you simply must keep doing whatever you are doing.

It occurred to me as Ms. Norris was explaining acedia that possibly it is the opposite of flow. If flow is caring so much about something you can’t stop, acedia is being unable to start, unable to enter flow. Flow doesn’t have to be fun- it can even be something as un-fun as taking a test, as long as you are very focused on that test. I often find myself entering flow when I’m writing a paper (or even this blog post- see?? It’s been half an hour! Where did that go??). So maybe acedia is anti-flow, the inability to “get into something”. Ms. Norris suggested fighting it by taking on small tasks- something that you can complete, and likely something that you’ll enter flow while working on.

Either way, it makes me want to read more on acedia and more on flow, and see what conclusions I can find. Certainly both things that are going on the list. We’ll see.

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I’m still working on fully switching into Webmaster/Blogger mode (and still handling my old workload until we hire a new me in the Promo department), and therefore I’ve been formatting e-mails all day rather than composing delectable blog posts. However: I am determined to blog weekly, no matter what I’m doing. Ideally every day once I’m caught up. So, for your reading pleasure, the (now slightly out-of-date) blog I wrote to get myself the job in the first place.

Enjoy.

You may have heard around Pasadena or seen in the LA Times that the Pasadena Playhouse is closing. Camelot, their final show (incidentally based on The Once and Future King), ended last weekend mid run, leaving subscribers out of half the season they paid for. Debts and the failing economy finally took their toll, and despite a record season a few years ago, the Playhouse had to make the tough decision to cut costs and shut the doors.

For now.

According to their website, they’ve received a huge volume of condolences and offers of support, including a widespread interest in donating and helping out monetarily. Nothing is set up yet, but I’m sure if something does get started, Pasadena will know. It didn’t take long for the news of the closure to filter through, so I doubt efforts to save the theatre would be ignored (at least, my optimistic side hopes not), especially considering that people cared enough to go out of their way and pledge support.

Despite the obvious tragedy of losing one of the greatest, most landmark arts organizations in the city (heck, it has a whole district named after it!), I see a few positives.

1. It’s not necessarily gone for good. Everyone involved in the theater has made it pretty clear that the Pasadena Playhouse has made it through plenty of rough spots before, and they’re all optimistic that things will get sorted out. They’ll have as much time as they need to try and fix their money troubles, and if/when they DO re-open, I’m sure their loyal audience will return in droves.
2. They might be able to re-open debt free and stronger than ever. The current incarnation of the Playhouse opened with a huge debt on their plate, and they have been chipping away at it for years. Imagine what they could do if they didn’t have that debt (or at least not as much).
3. It draws attention to the plight of the arts and of independent businesses over the last few years. I mean, it’s terrible that we had to lose something so integrally Pasadena, but lots of people are talking about it. Word is out. In the last few years, the Playhouse dealt with smaller charitable donations and audience sizes, just like many other arts organizations and independent businesses. Hopefully Pasadenans will get it now: support your favorite things, or lose them.

I plan on remaining hopeful, and helping out if and when I can. Sounds like a lot of people share that view, including the people most involved in putting the Pasadena Playhouse back on its feet. So… good luck, Playhouse people!

There you have it! Hope it was good Monday reading, even if it’s old news. Things to look forward to in the coming weeks: Thoughts on genre, e-books, and dinner with J. S. Foer!

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