MQOOTD

Motivational Quote of the Day:

 "If you want to achieve greatness stop asking for permission." --Anonymous

re-post: REVIEW: Mandala by Pearl Buck

This is a little embarassing.

I originally posted this in 2012. I was quite lacking in life experience and education then (of which I still am, to a point). Please forgive this review. It's kind of obnoxious.

Mandala. Pearl S. Buck. The John Day Company. 1970. 376 pages.

Goodreads Description: News reaches the couple [Maharana Prince Jagat and his wife, Moti] that their only son, Jai, has been killed by the Chinese in a border skirmish, an inconsolable Moti send Jagat out to bring the boy's spirit home. On the journey, the prince becomes involved with a beautiful and mysterious young American woman. Thus begins the fatal attraction between Eastern and Western ways, one bound by rigid custom, the other temptingly ripe with freethinking.

I don't feel like this is a very good description of the book. I feel like it should say something like: "When the Jagat and his family encounter foreigners, the way they perceive the world and each other shifts."

Patience is key with this book. It is deceptively long, as is The Good Earth (also by Pearl Buck). The story meanders without wandering away from the main plot. Near the end of the book, the story seemed to get a little exaggerated; one of the characters begins to act unrealistically difficult; obstinate, almost.

I love the way the author uses third-person perspective in her writing. There is a motif of pigeons in this book. Right on the first page and near the end (spoiler? sorry.) In mythology and folklore, pigeons symbolize love, marital bliss, and happiness in the home. Also, there is a lovely contrast on page 264. The first paragraph ends with the word "tomorrow" and the second paragraph starts with the word "yesterday." Clever and brilliant. There is also a curious parallel between the author and one of the characters in the book. Can you find it?

There is so much sex in this book! It's not raunchy, in-your-face sex like in contemporary books; but I was still surprised at what I was reading when it finally registered in my brain. Which brings me to my next point; this book seems a little prejudiced. There is a strong undercurrent of the the theme, and forgive me for being crass, "Westerner teaches Heathen how to be human." The story talks about how Jagat has sex with his wife to satisfy his physical urge but not because he loves her. The story also mentions how Jagat and Moti don't necessarily love each other. Short and to the point, nobody in this story is in love with anyone other than a "Westerner" or foreign (the Greek girl, Greek symbolizing "education and learning"). They don't know how to love [be human] and they have to be taught by Westerner. [Despite these things], overall, I quite enjoyed this book.

re-post: REVIEW: My Father is Black; My Mother is White; What am I?

Review originally posted in 2012:
My Father is Black and My Mother is White. What am I? “John Smith.” Kindle Edition. 2012. 3 pages.

This is interesting. I am not mixed but [redacted], and they are always like “We’re black.” And I always think “You’re only half black.” And I don’t think they look mixed. To me they look Hispanic or something. This conundrum is what caused me to be attracted to this book. I often wonder why they don’t identify as half black and half white or just white. This gentleman addresses the question of why he isn’t considered white when he is equally black and white but is considered black. In this piece (it’s not quite long enough to be a book?) the author does not really answer the question he poses. But his question is definitely something to think about. This work doesn’t have an angry tone to it. I can appreciate that. This work is definitely food for thought.

2019 Update: This is a uniquely American problem. Generally, in other countries, people that are mixed race identify as ‘mixed race’ rather than ‘one’ or ‘the other’. How about this for a solution: Since, typically, a child has the last name of his father, let him be considered the race of his father as well?

This piece doesn’t answer any questions or offer any solutions. It’s just rehashing an issue that’s been going on since the birth of this country. I have quite a few opinions on this subject, but I won’t share them now; perhaps in a future post.

Coffee Tasting: Blonde Espresso from Starbucks

1:59 PM 1/13/2018

Coffee Tasting: Starbucks® Blonde Espresso

Name:

Blonde Espresso

Origin/Blend:

Latin American and African

Brew Method:

Espresso, Verismo® espressso, pour-over

Espresso is a brewing method, not a roast of coffee. Traditionally, in Italian coffee culture darker-roasted beans are preferred to make espresso, and this practice was adopted elsewhere, hence the misconception that only certain beans can be espresso beans. One can make espresso out of any beans, as long as you have the right equipment and the beans are ground to the correct fineness.
How Espresso and Brewed Coffee Are Different
History of the Espresso Machine So, light-roast espresso isn't that revolutionary. But, kudos to Starbucks for getting people excited about something that actually involves actual coffee instead of some flavor-of-the-month or brightly-colored frozen sugar-milk.
I have tried the blonde espresso [beans] multiple times in the following ways: flat white, doppio ristretto with heavy cream, regular doppio, brewed coffee [pour-over], and Verismo- brewed espresso. None of these preparations have yielded something palatable that I want to consume again. The problem is the beans/blend. It is too light and too acidic. It puckers your mouth, not in a pleasant citrus-y African coffee way; it’s just sour, like canned green bean juice. The blonde espresso is a blend of Latin American and African beans whereas the “Signature Espresso” is a blend of Latin American and Asia-Pacific beans. It would have been better to roast the Signature Espresso beans lighter, in my opinion. Even either of the regular light-roast coffees that Starbucks offers would have been better as espresso. The “green-bean-juice” note is a common characteristic in Latin American coffees, and can even be pleasant, but in this coffee it is overwhelming.

Book Review: Symphony by Jude Morgan

10:24 AM 12/16/2017

Book Review: Symphony by Jude Morgan.

Symphony. Jude Morgan. St. Martin's Press. 2006. 375 pages.

This is a revised version of a post I originally wrote in 2012.

I have to say, this book was a doozy. I liked it but not enough to read it again. It was dense and sort of lengthy (tiny font!). Symphony is a historical novel about the life of composer Hector Berlioz and his wife, actress Harriet Smithson. I was originally attracted to this book by its title, because I am an amateur violinist. Harriet becomes an actress somewhat against her will. She turns out to be a brilliant performer and becomes quite famous. Hector Berlioz sees her perform and becomes obsessed with her. He composes a symphony about her, Symphonie Fantastique. Eventually they meet. At first, she thinks he is a lunatic, but soon they become fond of each other and get married. However, their lives do not have a fairy tale ending... This was not a cheerful book. The characters (are they really characters if they were real people?) started out unhappy and ended up even more so. Harriet's family and the people in her acting company seem as if truly they are unhappy as well. Although, in the case of Harriet's sister Anne, it is very obvious. The author does well with foreshadowing (and literary devices in general). I find this interesting because the story is based on actual events. This book is clever and witty. As a musician, I could identify with Hector when the people around him were against his passion for music. I was totally rooting for him during that part of the book. I would definitely recommend this book but let me warn you, it will not brighten your day.

Coffee Tasting: Starbucks Reserve ™ Christmas 2017

Coffee Tasting: Starbucks Reserve ™ Christmas 2017

Name:

Starbucks Reserve ™ Christmas 2017

Origin:

Blend:
Hacienda Alsacia ™: Costa Rica;
Aged Sumatra: Indonesia

Brew Method

Starbucks Clover ™ Brewing System

The flavor of the Reserve Christmas is predominately that of the Aged Sumatra and then the undertones are the acidic and bright Hacienda Alsacia ™. The mandarin orange notes are really subtle, and the Aged Sumatra tastes a less herbal and more muddled and dirty. Previous years' Christmas offerings have been smoother than this one. It is probably better with, say, a little brown sugar and some heavy cream, but I always taste and drink my coffee black. Starbucks has had seasonal coffees that tasted better in my opinion and cost less.