Listen and Learn

Thursday Book Group

NONE
by nobody

whoops!

(I mean, how many people actually read this thing anyway?)

The book I was going to read was super boring. I will have to read it at a later boring date.

So halfway through the week I switched to 

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.

That will be for next week. (or whenever I finish it)

As for this week...

I'll write about a few things I learned.

The other day at work, Saul, my co-worker (so mature) that sits across from me started laughing a sneaky laugh.

So I said, 

"Saul, that was kinda creepy"

He said he was listening to a comedian while working.

I thought "hey, that's a great idea! I'd like to listen to a comedian as well"

But then... 

I decided to listen to general conference talks.

I listened to five in one day. Some old, some new.

But I was much happier at the end of the day.

I felt the Spirit during the day and that was great. 

I may not remember exactly what was said because I was working at the same time. 

(even if I did have to stop working for a sec to take some notes!...sorry work, if you're reading this)

Well, I learned again that 

God loves all of His children.

He wants us to be happy.

We should have hope always.

I have to give up my anxiety and 

l e t G o d t a k e c a r e o f t h e l i t t l e t h i n g s.

It works!

This has been the happiest week I've had in a long time.

I went to my personal trainer (ouch, my stomach muscles are sore)

I actually have washed my face both morning and night 

(I realize this was gross to not have done before)

I've been trying to go to bed with a smile on my face, but it usually fades because I can't sleep unless my face is relaxed.

I'm happy and that is all.

Here is my new theme song:
I can't wait to see them live on May 10th! 

I'm dreaming of The White City

Thursday Book Group

The Devil in the White City

by

Erik Larson

This week was a good read. It was all fact. 

Many creepy facts.

It starts in the 1890's and describes The World's Fair of 1893. 

They made it into The White City.

I learned many interesting facts about how disgusting Chicago was during this time.

Most all of the dead animals went into the river that flows through Chicago.

Gross.

Luckily it is a lot cleaner now. (or is it?)

It focuses on the director/main architect of the fair, 

Daniel Burnham.

It also focuses on the first known serial killer in America,

Herman Webster Mudgett. 

a.k.a. Dr. H.H. Holmes.

a.k.a. creepiest man that ever lived.

Here is something he said...just to TRY and grasp his intense creepiness.

"I was born with the devil in me. 

I could not help the fact that I was a murderer, 

no more than the poet can help the inspiration to sing."

Ah! 

Anyway, it follows both of their lives.

So many things went into The World's Fair of 1893. 

Even Mudgett's hotel, that he specifically built to murder

women that came to the city alone.

It is estimated that he killed more than 200 people.

He was very slick. 

He didn't get caught in Chicago.

It wasn't until he was tracked down in Philadelphia for insurance fraud that detective Geyer finally started unveiling all of the heinous acts Mudgett committed.

Burnham built the White City with the help of many architects from Chicago and New York. 

I definitely will not go into all the detail...

but here are a few things that came about 

because of the World's Fair:

-The Ferris Wheel (it never faltered...worked on the first time around and held 2,000 people!)

-Shredded Wheat

-Cracker Jack

-Creepy serial killer

(he hearted Jack the Ripper)

Side Note:

I went on a Jack the Ripper tour when in London, and he was kinda scary.

Psychopaths maybe aren't too normal.

But I wonder if they think they are?

Interesting.

Anyway, The Devil in the White City is a history must read. 

It has lots of facts, but tells it in a story type of way.

Lots of depressing things happened leading up to the fair, but it provided America with a happy place to go in a time when many banks were failing and many people did not have jobs.

Unfortunately, it later burned.

I would have loved to see the city that set the stage for the American future.

I would not have loved to see the inside of Mudgett's 

"World's Fair Hotel"

Super wish this was still in Chicago.

It's still a marvelous city.

Go Cubs!

Next Week:

Guns, Germs, & Steel

by

Jared Diamond

Strange as strange can be

Thursday Book Group

The Stranger

This week I read The Stranger, by Albert Camus. 

Originally written in French, 

this version was translated by Matthew Ward.

"The Stranger" is a stranger to all.

To himself.

To us.

To his neighbor.

To his neighbor's dog.

To his girlfriend.

Let me introduce you...

His name is Meursault.

The whole book is written from his perspective, yet we do not delve too deeply into his mind. 

I wanted to believe he wasn't telling us everything that was going on up there, but he was.

At the beginning his "Maman" passes away and the story continues from there. 

He meets a girl the day after his mother's funeral.

Eventually,

She asks him if they are going to get married.

This is his account of how it went down:

"That evening Marie came by to see me and asked me if I wanted to marry her. I said it didn't make any difference to me and that we could if she wanted to. Then she wanted to know if I loved her. I answered the same way I had the last time, that it didn't mean anything but that I probably didn't love her. 

'So why marry me, then?' she said

I explained to her that if didn't really matter and that 

if she wanted to, we could get married. 

Besides, she was the one who was doing the asking and all I was saying was yes. 

Then she pointed out that marriage was a serious thing. 

I said, 'no.'

She stopped talking for a minute and looked at me without saying anything. Then she spoke. She just wanted to know if I would have accepted the same proposal from another woman, with whom I was involved in the same way.

I said, 'sure.'

Then she wondered if she loved me, and there was no way I could know about that. After another moment's silence, she mumbled that I was peculiar, that that was probably why she loved me but that one day I might hate her for the same reason. I didn't say anything, because I didn't have anything to add, so she took my arm with a  smile and said she wanted to marry me. 

I said we could do it whenever she wanted."

Long quote, but it basically sums up his personality.

He says yes, no, sure, and adds little to most conversations.

Just a bit of a floater.

His neighbor, Raymond hits the girl that supposedly cheats on him.

They go to a beach with Marie and 2 other friends. 

The girl's brother finds them and comes after them with a  knife.

Raymond comes back with a gun and Meursault takes it from him so he doesn't do anything stupid.

The brother and his gang go away.

Meursault goes for a walk on the beach without realizing he's walking back to the same spot they just fought. 

The brother returns.

Meursault has Raymond's gun and shoots the brother.

He ends up having a trial, etc. 

**I won't give away everything!**

He barely shows any remorse 

and is never sure if he did it on purpose.

He blames the heat.

He only shows an opinion towards anything right at the end. The preacher talks to him of God, but Meursault doesn't believe in God.

He snaps and starts wailing on the preacher.  

He let's us know that life really has no meaning because we all are going to die in the end. 

He says this, "I had been right, I was still right, I was always right. I had lived my life one way and I could just as well have lived it another."

What a sad way to live life...

I like to believe life does have meaning, even though it might seem pointless to live it one way or the other. This book showed me that it's important to give our lives meaning instead of walking around with no real conviction.

Sorry to break it to you Meursault, 

l i f e  c a n  b e  h a p p y !

In the end, "The Stranger" remains a stranger to me.

I'm fine with that.

Side note:

I actually read this book in 2 days and decided to read another before the week was up.

"The Ordeal of Change"

I won't talk about it too much because it's not on my list!

Just wanted to remember one quote.

"Words shape thought, stir feeling, and beget action;

they kill and revive, corrupt and cure.

The 'men of words'-priests, prophets, intellectuals-have played a more decisive role in history than military leaders, statesmen, and businessmen."

How true. 

The saying 

"sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never harm me"

should be true, but mostly isn't.

Words can do a lot more damage or a lot more good to one's soul than any broken limb.

For an uplifting video on words,

view this.

Next week:

The Devil in the White City

by

Erik Larson