I passed this house on my walk home last night -- that stained-glass fanlight over the front door caught my eye and I had to take a photo. It must look amazing from the inside.
It reminded me of one I photographed several years ago, in a house in St. John's Wood that was a fixer-upper, to put it politely. That house was subsequently sold and it has undergone a massive renovation. I believe the fanlight is still there, but it's harder to see now because it's behind an outer door that's pretty much permanently closed.
Wanna see something really stressful? Watch Season 2, Episode 6 of "The Bear," the episode titled "Fishes." It's about chef Carmy's family at Christmas. Basically, they're Italians and they talk very intensely and talk over each other, and the talk gets louder and louder and the wine is flowing and pretty soon things get quite heated. It's unlike anything I've watched on TV. Great performances by actors including Bob Odenkirk and Jamie Lee Curtis, but positively painful. Dave loves "The Bear" but about midway through he exclaimed "Jesus!" and tuned it out -- he just couldn't take the intensity. I found it weirdly exciting and riveting but it did ramp up my stress levels, so much so that I snapped at Dave afterwards when he was scrolling through clips of political pundits on his Facebook feed. "After that show," I told him, "I can't stand all that talking. I need you to use headphones."
Am I a prima donna or what? Sometimes I worry that I'm becoming hard to live with. And work with.
Speaking of work, I found this discarded paper cup in the shelves yesterday. I'm not crazy about people leaving a cupful of water on a bookshelf, but they're not breaking any rules. I did like the design on the cup -- very '60s retro.
In all seriousness, I am trying to lighten up about behavior in the library. It appears I must learn to shrug more things off. Kids are kids, and while I was told to be strict when I first started this job way back in 2013, things have changed now. We appear to be entering an era of looser restrictions. I have mixed feelings about the effects this may have but Lord knows it will be easier on me, and I would love the opportunity to be nice rather than scoldy. Did you ever see the movie "Risky Business"? Remember Joel's friend's mantra: "Sometimes you gotta say, 'What the f*ck!'" That's going to be my new motto. I may get it put on a t-shirt. (Oh, never mind -- it's already there. Written in duct tape, no less.)
Here's this morning's garden bird -- another blackbird, complete with the peaceful sound of falling rain. Turn up the volume and enjoy!
Blackbirds always sound so happy - although they are probably just staking their territory!
ReplyDeleteI am surprised the blackbird felt like singing in this awful rain that we have at the moment! ( At least it's not snow!) Not looking forward to a wet dog walk soon!
ReplyDeleteYou may have been a bit sharp, but after an intense film or book you do need time to digest it.
ReplyDeleteA beautiful fanlight. I would bet that the rest of the house wasn't bad...but just one small feature like that can change the feeling of a whole place, even somewhere quite plain.
Looser restrictions yes, maybe, but that has to come with responsibility on the pupils' side as well. It sounds as if it could make your job easier and happier if you get that.
It's wonderful to hear the birds in the garden, I also thought about it a few days ago but I can't upload a video to the blog.
ReplyDeleteAs long as there are children who want to read books, the rules can always be changed in their favor.
I love the sound of the blackbird in the pouring rain. Not a fan of the looser rules in the library.
ReplyDeleteI'm becoming a big Bob Odenkirk fan so I'll have to check that out.
ReplyDeleteI can't imagine you being hard to live with or hard to work with! Seriously. Teenagers are just the worst sometimes so I can understand you getting pissy with them, though. They probably deserve it.
ReplyDeleteWhere are you watching The Bear? I've never heard of it so it must be a streaming service I don't get. I'm a Bob Odenkirk fan.
I have a friend who is Italian and from a large family. When I was a child I went to her house a few times. Her family was very big with 8 kids, everyone talking at full volume and arguing. In my house when people were yelling it was a danger sign. Tim and I were invited to a family celebration a few years back. Her brothers and sisters are all grown up now with grownup children too. Everyone was talking and arguing and carrying on as we ate. I really felt very anxious.
ReplyDeleteI have a hearing problem that may or may not be getting worse. What I know is that if there is a lot of background noise, I cannot hear. My pet peeve is trying to watch TV and Tim comes in and starts playing with his cell phone.
I feel like a big ol bitch lately. Tim is going to a friend's house for the super bowl. Last night I roused from the depths of my crankiness to say I really couldn't do it. I just realized he is a very loud non-stop talking Italian.
I am a fan of that t-shirt and the fact that it's done in duct tape fan is even better. We used to have a tv program here called the Red Green Show. He was a big believer in duct tape.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.imdb.com/title/tt0101177/
Oh, I DO remember that from Risky Business! My friend Sue and I saw the movie together and we adopted that mantra whole-heartedly.
ReplyDeleteWhat an interesting idea- that you can suddenly change your librarian tactics. Sounds like an interesting experiment at the very least.
Glen and I could not get through one episode of The Bear for that very reason- it stressed us out horribly. We're much happier on the Northern Exposure level of non-chaos.
I love your blackbird in the rain.
I'm definitely getting more "shirty" as I get older. It's annoying to me and all who know & love me. Ha!
ReplyDeleteRelaxing a bit may not bring about mayhem . So what I always told teachers. Take a deep breath and lower your voice an octave and you'll be surprised at the change.
ReplyDeleteI so get it about the phone noise, dennis is deaf so has the volume exceedingly loud , watching facebook shite. He has only just discovered facebook so the love affair is fresh and new and loud and frequent.It sounds like a good change going on for you in the library- less ogre, more Steve.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the birds songs- Lovely!
One of my art teachers told me that when he first moved into his house in a very Italian neighborhood, he thought the neighbors were constantly fighting, very stressful. Then he found they were just chatting over dinner!
ReplyDeleteI don't have Hulu so I cannot watch The Bear. Everyone gets a little anxious some times so don't beat yourself up about it.
ReplyDeleteHope you enjoy the changes in your library schedule. You've always done a great job of working with the students. I remember how well your talks on books have been received. Just be yourself, Steve. You're great!
I love the birds and the rain. We are supposed to get some rain again later today. I hope it sounds that peaceful.
ReplyDeleteI have friends that talk over each other all the time. It drives me nuts. Every now and then I'll say something to bring the volume down.
I don't watch TV much, so I'll never see that show, but I'll admit I've always had a bit of a crush on Jamie Lee Curtis.
ReplyDeleteI loved hearing your blackbird! I was taking a video on my walk this morning and captured some Wood Ducks squealing in the background. I was thrilled!
Enforcing rules is never easy and rarely well received. Relaxing rules makes everything easier. (Your life at work just became easier...Yes!) If someone crosses the line, just escalate the issue and let them decide how to go forward. Loud, over zealous people in a group make me uncomfortable and I look for an escape.
ReplyDeleteThe Bear just sounds awful. I think I'm giving that one a miss, plus I have no idea where it's streaming, being very new to the world without cable. That fan light is gorgeous, very nice.
ReplyDeleteJim and I used to go to the library years ago. Then later on we went in and were stunned by the noise level, and the paucity of books. They seem to have shifted to a system where you order the book and then go pick it up. So much for browsing shelves looking for something new and interesting. Yep, I'm an old person!
My older daughter keeps recommending "The Bear" while boyfriend tells me to watch "Beef." Neither one sounds like my style at all. My mom's family was culturally Italian so I can relate to that scene. Holidays could get quite loud!
ReplyDeleteYour progression towards becoming a grumpy old man is going along very nicely. Being a grumpy old man can be quite satisfying.
ReplyDeleteI had some Tampa friends that were Cuban-Italian that were very animated over dinner, so much so, that I expressed concern and was told not to worry. That was normal and as long as they were smiling and laughing everything was fine and come on back...In my house that level of noise meant something else entirely and it took awhile for me to relax. As far as working in the lower school, you may like it. I've had college kids throw up, I've found all sorts of disgusting stuff so if you are finding cups consider yourself lucky.
ReplyDeleteRisky Business is a great movie, I have it somewhere in my usb collection. I have never seen Bear and probably don't want to.
ReplyDeleteI clicked back to see the other stained glass window and both are so beautiful and I like those old green tiles too.
We loved The Bear and can't wait for the third season. I remember that episode. very intense.
ReplyDeleteI would hate to have to be the behavior police on a daily basis. it would make anyone cranky which probably carries over to the homelife.
That episode is amazing and deserves every award nomination I hope it will get in the next round. It was so intense but fascinating and yes, when it's done, you've been through the ringer. We have a couple more episodes in the season but wow -- not much could top that.
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