Well, after reading Swamplandia!, Geek Love, and Mechanique, I think I'm good on circus/sideshow novels for a long time. (Of the three, I'd recommend Swamplandia! first.)
Another book of note I've read of late includes Zazen, which, yes, I did pick up at the store based on its cover, never having heard of it or its author. I highly recommend it to anyone who loves or hates hipsters, and to anyone who likes near-future sci-fi - although, really, it isn't.
I also read a pair of books that made a nice set, quite unintentionally. Almanac of the Dead takes place primarily in a variety of Arizona and Mexican locales and is in many ways a document of the effects of colonization and resistance on indigenous cultures. It's not a summer beach read. Giant, an older book, is about rich white cattle ranchers in Texas. While the locale and methods of colonial exploitation are different, Giant shows us the same forces at work in Almanac, but from the other side. (Almanac shows some rich white guys too, but they are all either drug/weapons dealers or in bed (usually literally) with them - the cattle ranchers occupy a higher notch in the social order.) Together, you can see why the descendants of the characters in Giant might want to ban writing by an author like Silko.
By the way, I had never heard of Edna Ferber, author of Giant, but she won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction back in the day.
Monday, June 11, 2012
Sunday, June 10, 2012
South Mountain Reservation for the win
While I've had some charming rambles in city parks, thus far I haven't been particularly overwhelmed by the proper hikes I've done in the greater NYC area. This all changed yesterday when I experienced the South Mountain Reservation in Millburn, New Jersey. It was, naturally, a hike that was pretty rather than one that offered major drama - it's not the Grand Canyon - but it was consistently pretty, with quite a few surprises along the way.
The 5.2-mile loop hike is easily accessible via NJ Transit, and it's a good one for novice hikers. The hardest part occurs straight out of the gate, when you have to head uphill on the Lenape Trail. Survive that, and the first major reward is an overlook of Millburn. The overlook is probably much better in winter, but there are two interesting markers at the spot: One for where George Washington supposedly stood, and a rather enigmatic memorial to a friend of the park.
The trail continues pleasantly around the top of the "mountain" to Hemlock Falls, pictured above. This is the midpoint of the trip and a nice spot for lunch. You can take a set of stairs above the falls, although there is nothing spectacular up there.
The return follows the Rahway "River" (more of a creek, really). The trails widens and eases up, but don't think the return trip will just be a trudge. The river widens into a pond and just after that is an abandoned pumphouse.
Buildings like this are usually sensibly locked up so no one hurts themselves and sues. Not this time! I was squeeing with glee to discover it was open and I could wander around, trying not to fall through the rotting floor, to my heart's content.
After that is an old bridge shored up enough for pedestrians, then a dam. Not long after, you end up where you started.
On the weekends, trains run from Penn Station once an hour, so you have to time it carefully (and note that fare is $8 each way). The vehicularly endowed can choose to drive, of course. Either way, this hike is a genuine hike that takes full advantage of the land it is sited on.
The 5.2-mile loop hike is easily accessible via NJ Transit, and it's a good one for novice hikers. The hardest part occurs straight out of the gate, when you have to head uphill on the Lenape Trail. Survive that, and the first major reward is an overlook of Millburn. The overlook is probably much better in winter, but there are two interesting markers at the spot: One for where George Washington supposedly stood, and a rather enigmatic memorial to a friend of the park.
The trail continues pleasantly around the top of the "mountain" to Hemlock Falls, pictured above. This is the midpoint of the trip and a nice spot for lunch. You can take a set of stairs above the falls, although there is nothing spectacular up there.
The return follows the Rahway "River" (more of a creek, really). The trails widens and eases up, but don't think the return trip will just be a trudge. The river widens into a pond and just after that is an abandoned pumphouse.
Buildings like this are usually sensibly locked up so no one hurts themselves and sues. Not this time! I was squeeing with glee to discover it was open and I could wander around, trying not to fall through the rotting floor, to my heart's content.
After that is an old bridge shored up enough for pedestrians, then a dam. Not long after, you end up where you started.
On the weekends, trains run from Penn Station once an hour, so you have to time it carefully (and note that fare is $8 each way). The vehicularly endowed can choose to drive, of course. Either way, this hike is a genuine hike that takes full advantage of the land it is sited on.
Friday, June 8, 2012
There but for the grace of dog
I wasn't a fan of this blog post on telling would-be grad students not to go to grad school, because I think it unfairly conflates giving realistic advice with victim-blaming. But I did like this quote:
"What, prey tell, are those would-be English PhDs supposed to do? Journalism? Ha! We know they can’t do law school! Publishing? Not even worth joking about. Secondary school teaching? Not now, after NCLB/Michele Rhee/budget cuts/TFA/Scott Walker have all had a go at teachers."
Not that long ago, it was generally agreed upon that if someone had a college degree and was even marginally able to get along in society, they'd be able to make a decent living. There was no guarantee of riches, but you'd be able to own a car, eventually buy a home (at least if you didn't live in New York), and have kids. Now, even The New York Times recognizes that only half of college grads are finding jobs that require a diploma.*
What about the traditional professions - law, medicine, clergy?
This morning, Inside Higher Ed reports on the dismal job market for law school graduates. The market for clergy is even worse -
two graduates for every position, although there are positions open because the churches are tiny and can't afford to pay anyone. Physicians are actually doing all right, although there are fewer rich-doctor positions than there were in the past.
You might say, in that case, forget college. Before you do that, look at this chart.
So you can be a doctor, and there are still jobs in the sciences. Of course, while it might work for any one person to go into those fields, they can hardly absorb the entire supply of unemployed and underemployed Americans.
In this environment, it might make as good economic sense as anything else for a young person in need of work to say, "I'm chucking it all and surfing in Bali." At least, that is, if they don't have student loans. Or, "I'm going to go Occupy Wall Street." **
We're in a new era of constant insecurity, so anyone who tells a young person, "It's your own fault for going into creative writing/law/whatever," should be whacked with a large stick and summarily stuffed into an anti-aging machine to be forced back to the age of 18. And if that's not enough to depress you, go here.
Something is going to have to give, but I don't know if it's going to be Occupy grown large, the education credential bubble bursting, or a crisis of consumer confidence.
* Let's ignore, for the moment, the shakiness of defining jobs that "require" a college degree, and let's just assume that jobs that ask for them actually do require skills learned in college.
** Except, interestingly, for this generation there doesn't seem to be the kind of generation gap that would fuel protest. That's a whole other other post.
"What, prey tell, are those would-be English PhDs supposed to do? Journalism? Ha! We know they can’t do law school! Publishing? Not even worth joking about. Secondary school teaching? Not now, after NCLB/Michele Rhee/budget cuts/TFA/Scott Walker have all had a go at teachers."
Not that long ago, it was generally agreed upon that if someone had a college degree and was even marginally able to get along in society, they'd be able to make a decent living. There was no guarantee of riches, but you'd be able to own a car, eventually buy a home (at least if you didn't live in New York), and have kids. Now, even The New York Times recognizes that only half of college grads are finding jobs that require a diploma.*
What about the traditional professions - law, medicine, clergy?
This morning, Inside Higher Ed reports on the dismal job market for law school graduates. The market for clergy is even worse -
two graduates for every position, although there are positions open because the churches are tiny and can't afford to pay anyone. Physicians are actually doing all right, although there are fewer rich-doctor positions than there were in the past.
You might say, in that case, forget college. Before you do that, look at this chart.
So you can be a doctor, and there are still jobs in the sciences. Of course, while it might work for any one person to go into those fields, they can hardly absorb the entire supply of unemployed and underemployed Americans.
In this environment, it might make as good economic sense as anything else for a young person in need of work to say, "I'm chucking it all and surfing in Bali." At least, that is, if they don't have student loans. Or, "I'm going to go Occupy Wall Street." **
We're in a new era of constant insecurity, so anyone who tells a young person, "It's your own fault for going into creative writing/law/whatever," should be whacked with a large stick and summarily stuffed into an anti-aging machine to be forced back to the age of 18. And if that's not enough to depress you, go here.
Something is going to have to give, but I don't know if it's going to be Occupy grown large, the education credential bubble bursting, or a crisis of consumer confidence.
* Let's ignore, for the moment, the shakiness of defining jobs that "require" a college degree, and let's just assume that jobs that ask for them actually do require skills learned in college.
** Except, interestingly, for this generation there doesn't seem to be the kind of generation gap that would fuel protest. That's a whole other other post.
Sunday, June 3, 2012
Pelham Bay Park hike
Executive summary: There are three reasons one might do this hike. One, you want to prove once and for all that you are impervious to poison ivy. Two, an eccentric billionaire will pay you $1 million to complete every hike in AMC's Best Day Hikes Near New York City. Three, someone you loathe with every fiber of your being has been begging you to take them on their first hike.
Full report: Since I spent part of Saturday volunteering at Van Cortlandt Park, I figured I should make it a Bronx weekend by doing a hike up at Pelham Bay Park. Granted, it would be short, but it made the cut in the Best Day Hikes book, whereas nothing at Van Cortlandt did - and I thought Van Cortlandt was rather scenic.
I made the mistake of following the book's instructions to the park instead of Google Maps'. The Bee-Line 45 did not stop at the park as I had been promised, and I had to get off a mile later and walk. This ended up not being as bad as I expected (no sidewalks, busy road), as I was able to pick up an unnamed trail until I got the trail I was aiming for. As a horse trail, it had muddy spots, but surprisingly few horse poops.
The Siwanoy Trail was utterly wretched. It was incredibly overgrown, so it was less of a hike and more of a game of Dodge That Plant. Many of those plants were poison ivy. It is evident that maintenance has not been done in a long time, and the trail is not worth hiking until it has. Amazingly, I saw four other hikers, none of whom looked as if they were enjoying themselves.
The highlights of the scenery are the views of the lagoon and marshes, but you could see those instead by driving to the Bartow-Pell Mansion and strolling around the grounds. I did pop by for a free carriage house tour (the main house costs $5). The trail itself is flat and, as I may have mentioned, a slog.
I did end up skipping out on a brief bit of the trail, as it didn't look any better and the weather was getting worse. I decided to follow Google Maps out, which made me walk a mile away from the park in the opposite direction, which thankfully had bike and horse paths. It also started raining. Have I mentioned my allergies were acting up, too?
The hike, in sum, was a real bust. If for some reason you do feel compelled to hike at Pelham Bay Park, stick to the other trails. I don't know if they're good, but they can't be worse.
Full report: Since I spent part of Saturday volunteering at Van Cortlandt Park, I figured I should make it a Bronx weekend by doing a hike up at Pelham Bay Park. Granted, it would be short, but it made the cut in the Best Day Hikes book, whereas nothing at Van Cortlandt did - and I thought Van Cortlandt was rather scenic.
I made the mistake of following the book's instructions to the park instead of Google Maps'. The Bee-Line 45 did not stop at the park as I had been promised, and I had to get off a mile later and walk. This ended up not being as bad as I expected (no sidewalks, busy road), as I was able to pick up an unnamed trail until I got the trail I was aiming for. As a horse trail, it had muddy spots, but surprisingly few horse poops.
The Siwanoy Trail was utterly wretched. It was incredibly overgrown, so it was less of a hike and more of a game of Dodge That Plant. Many of those plants were poison ivy. It is evident that maintenance has not been done in a long time, and the trail is not worth hiking until it has. Amazingly, I saw four other hikers, none of whom looked as if they were enjoying themselves.
The highlights of the scenery are the views of the lagoon and marshes, but you could see those instead by driving to the Bartow-Pell Mansion and strolling around the grounds. I did pop by for a free carriage house tour (the main house costs $5). The trail itself is flat and, as I may have mentioned, a slog.
I did end up skipping out on a brief bit of the trail, as it didn't look any better and the weather was getting worse. I decided to follow Google Maps out, which made me walk a mile away from the park in the opposite direction, which thankfully had bike and horse paths. It also started raining. Have I mentioned my allergies were acting up, too?
The hike, in sum, was a real bust. If for some reason you do feel compelled to hike at Pelham Bay Park, stick to the other trails. I don't know if they're good, but they can't be worse.
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