Nov062009
Book Club Time Again
Filed under books by Kim at 2:52 pm on Nov 06 2009
I’m so lucky. Blessed. Whatever word you want to use for it. I like the word blessed, because it takes out the chance part, but then it puts in the god part and I don’t much buy into that. I’ll try to think of something better. Anyways.
Even though lately I don’t really show it, being late and never reading the book and updating the web page only sporadically – I love book club.
Back in 2001 I was 4 years out of college and casting about for intellectual stimulation after spending a few years chasing … other kinds of stimulation. I was reading books but no one had read the books I was reading, or I was only reading certain kinds of books, and I needed more. I sent out an email to a few friends trying to cajole them to read a book along with me. A few people took me up on it. And now look where we are!
Periodically I take stock. 83 books. 9 years. 1,215 baby carrots. Wait, what? Thankfully in between the brownies and dough-wrapped cream cheese someone usually brings some baby carrots & hummus. We’ve had as few as two attendees and as many as… I’ve lost count, maybe 15, back in the day.
Members have come and gone but we’ve settled in to a familiar group, now all having read many books together and knowing each others’ tastes and having at this point countless in jokes – what’s that about having two colons? Where would we shove with Patricia Cornwell’s nonfiction efforts given a chance? Why do I consistently fail to read Todd’s suggestions? And of course, why can’t we have two votes???
The web site I built for Peril Book Club, one of the first I ever built, I wrote in pico. It still pretty much exists as-is, and shows my amazing table skills (a level of coding skill I never surpassed). I named it peril because Jack hosted the mailing list on his server, peril.org, back before we had an LJ community. After 9 years I’m still too lazy to build in links to amazon or wikipedia for the various books.
I actually think about, at the times I am contemplating the future, if someday I wanted to move, experience another part of the country or the world. I think about how far I would be away from my parents and stuff like that but I am not kidding when I say that I think about how I would have to leave book club. I’ve had book club longer than Jack. I can depend on book club. I’ve only ever “missed” two, and those we made up later.
Monday night is book club. Meetings are open as always, though it’s been a while since we had a new member “stick”. We’ll discuss Mistakes Were Made (But Not By Me) and eat carrot sticks or possibly potstickers, so I hear.
1 Tracyon 06 Nov 2009 at 3:00 pm
I’d like to try to come again sometime! I’d say now that I’m not getting up so early for work because I’m not teaching, but the baby part puts a damper on it.
Sorry again about the Cornwell suggestion 😉
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Kim Reply:
November 7th, 2009 at 11:56 am
Well, I would say bring Lilian, but different parents have different threshholds of wanting to do that. I promise Lilian is always welcome at book club! It’s just late for her I reckon.
But we would really love to have you at book club.
I don’t think anyone blames you for Cornwell – many of us voted for it enthusiastically!
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2 Jenon 06 Nov 2009 at 3:37 pm
Book club is awesome, and I should thank you again for it! I can’t believe it’s been nine years. It’s one of my favorite things in the whole world.
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Kim Reply:
November 7th, 2009 at 11:57 am
Me too! It probably wouldn’t exist without you as an original founding member!
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3 TAOon 06 Nov 2009 at 8:57 pm
Wow, that sounds like fun and so long running! The idea of potstickers doesn’t hurt either.
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Kim Reply:
November 7th, 2009 at 11:58 am
It is fun! Especially when we don’t all agree about the book.
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4 Meganon 07 Nov 2009 at 8:40 am
I want to come! But I teach dance on Monday nights. Maybe I will come in the summer when class is out, if you’ll have me.
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Kim Reply:
November 7th, 2009 at 11:59 am
Oh, it would be awesome to have you. We’ve been on Monday nights forever now, so I don’t think that will change, but we don’t have an attendance policy or anything – you could join us whenever you are available! If you want, I can put you on the mailing list which I sort of keep up with to make announcements about what book we will be reading and where we will be meeting and stuff.
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5 Telfon 07 Nov 2009 at 10:40 am
I’m gonna have to be pedant here and say, blessed does not need to have religious connotations, it can just mean:
4. characterized by happiness or good fortune “a blessed time”
5. bringing great happiness or good fortune
And certainly when I say “I’m gonna bless (fill in the blank with house related individual) out” it does not mean I am going to do something sacred.
Unless I were part of some outlawed Indian strangulation cult. Which I’m not. Yet.
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Kim Reply:
November 7th, 2009 at 12:00 pm
Good! I like those definitions better! I just think people don’t know about them, like me!
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Telf Reply:
November 7th, 2009 at 12:48 pm
Well, I could bring up “nonplussed” while I’m at it, but I will spare the world yet another rant on that.
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6 Genieon 07 Nov 2009 at 12:14 pm
I need a book club here locally. Maybe I should try to find one or start one.
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Kim Reply:
November 7th, 2009 at 12:23 pm
I bet you could find a good group of locals for a book club! You should definitely start one. I may be biased.
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7 Moiraon 09 Nov 2009 at 11:50 am
I am so very thankful for book club. You attract such great, bright people, and while I have other loose groups of friends based on other interests, I don’t identify with them nearly as strongly. Thanks and see you tonight!
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