Month: November 2008

I’ve been meaning to read Warrior Girls: Protecting Our Daughters Against the Injury Epidemic in Women’s Sportsby Michael Sokolove for a long time. When I first saw that the book was excerpted in The New York Times Magazine my heart plummeted, which you’ll understand in a minute.

The book takes a look at the horribly high incidence of ACL injuries in female athletes — they experience this injury eight times more than men. He asks the tough question of why do women get hurt more than men? It’s not an easy issue to tackle. Sokolove makes it clear that he believes in the benefits of Title IX but that women need to be looked at as different athletes, not just smaller, lighter men.

His theory that overspecialization too early makes sense. Instead of playing a different sport a season, girls are playing the same sport all the time. They aren’t cross training, and their bodies start to break down. He takes a peek into the world that is highly competitive youth female sports, but it’s just a peek.

That’s why this is not the book I wanted it to be, which, as a criticism, isn’t exactly […]

Those of you who followed my last book a week series might remember my post about Emily, my dog, that had to do with one of the books in the series. My gal turns seven on November 30, and I wrote up a post about her on my other blog.

If you’re an animal lover — especially a rescue animal lover — you might want to check out the new book Saved: Rescued Animals and the Lives They Transformby Karin Winegar. I’m not including it as part of this series, but it is a fine piece about how saving animals can save yourself. If you know anyone who’s thinking about getting a new pet and waffling on the shelter issue, give them this book. It could change their minds.

Here’s Emily’s shelter picture:

It was taken three years ago back when she was too scared in the shelter to eat. Can you imagine that someone hit this dog? So very sad. So very glad I found her.

I read The Green Year: 365 Small Things You Can Do to Make a Big Difference(Pub date Dec. 2) by Jodi Helmer because I interviewed her about “green” holidays and one very green lady for an article I’m writing for The Philadelphia Inquirer. I started flipping through the book about a half hour before the interview, and finished it later that night.

It’s an easy read, which is a good thing for this kind of book. I write quite a bit about green topics, and I run into a lot of people who think that it would cost way too much money and time to switch over to a green lifestyle.

That’s why Jodi’s book is a perfect way to get into a greener life, or give your own green ways a tune up. It’s 365 ways to be more planet friendly and, yes, you can do just about every one in one day. That’s also why it was a quick read — it’s one item per page, and they don’t walways fill the page.

Now, when I started in, I figured I was a green smarty pants and had already done at least 75 percent of the […]

I was sent Lost in the Museum: Buried Treasures and the Stories They Tellby Nancy Moses back when I was working on a piece about holiday coffee table books for the Philadelphia Inquirer. Even though it’s not a coffee table book, I held onto it anyway because I thought it might be interesting.

And interesting it was. Moses, the former executive director of the Atwater Kent Museum of Philadelphia, looks at museum “stuff” — and not just any stuff. She told the stories behind nine items that are kept in the vast vaults of American museums but rarely seen by the public. And since a majority of the items are Philadelphia connected, I knew at least of the museums if I hadn’t visited them, and could add them to my “to do” list as I have with the Physick House.

It might seem strange that museums wouldn’t display all of their objects, but who has the space. The Philadelphia Museum of Art opened a new building and still doesn’t have enough space to showcase their collection. Plus, launching exhibits costs money, money a lot of museums don’t have.

The most interesting items to read about, […]

Confession: I have never done karaoke. Never. I’ve had opportunities, sure. It’s not like I’ve been to a karaoke bar. The closest I’ve come to participating was on a trip to Atlantic City two years ago when I said that I might be interested in karaoke-ing at Planet Rose with another writer, and then I bailed to go to bed early. At a round of Terry-Oke (karaoke that’s run at the Jersey Shore by Terry O’Brien), I didn’t sing but was reportedly the first person to ever get up and dance. The song was “That Thing you Do.” How could I not? It’s a great song, but I didn’t want to sing it.

I don’t think I’m a terrible singer, either. I had vocal parts in two high school musicals (no, not THAT High School Musical, but Grease (1997) and Bye Bye Birdie (1996) as performed by Haddonfield Memorial High School). I don’t karaoke because I have little to no desire to get up in front of an audience and sing because of a mortal fear that I’ll be terrible and some other 20-something writer will be out in the audience making fun of […]

Here we are. Again.

Like when I started this blog on October 2007, I’m taking on another “52 books in 52 weeks” project because of a break up. I won’t go into details except to say this: the story of the relationship’s demise could be told three ways — his version, my version, and what really happened.

So it’s time to get on with it. How?

Step 1: Remove all pictures and mementos. This also includes unfriending each other on facebook and unfriending his friends who added me while we were in the relationship.
Step 2: Eat an awfully unhealthy meal — for two reasons. First, nothing comforts a broken heart like cheese that comes in powder form (sorry, Michael Pollan). Second, I lose my appetite in such situations, so a high caloric meal to kick things off at least puts some fuel in my body.
Step 3: Reclaim space. This meant reconfiguring the elements of what had been his temporary office in my spare room. I now have a the library I’d always planned for that room:

This room will change — it still needs another coat of paint, but it’s a start.

Step 4: Clean. I’ve started […]

Hello to anyone still reading this blog! It’s been a very very long time since I finished my 52 Books in 52 Weeks project. Well, guess what?

It’s starting all over again.

The reason? Same one for starting the series the first time around.

So check back soon for another 52 selections from the wonderful library and mind of Jen A. Miller!