The Visible Woman...January 8, 2001

It's hard to get up because it was hard to get to sleep at a reasonable hour. FFP goes off to workout and I feel a little bad that I'm not going as well.

My day isn't as productive as I'd like. There are meetings that, while useful, are not useful in relationship to the time they consume. One wonders if one couldn't accomplish the same thing with e-mail. Or if we didn't have personnel changes that necessitate bringing people up to speed. All companies are like that, I think. Most as bad or worse than mine. And we are doing some radical things, I think. Only possible here in this place at this moment. I hope.

I've learned to put work aside, turn it off, walk away and tend to myself. So I go home and walk the dog with SuRu and Zoey. We walk up and down Rosedale streets in the dark with flashing red lights on everyone but little white Chalow. The lamp on her leash is supposed to illuminate her but before the walk is over those batteries sputter. And Chalow takes off after a couple of young gals jogging with a scrawny little dog. And breaks the lock on the leash. I tell you, eXtreme dog walking is hard on the equipment.

A guy sees Zoey's race lights and says, "Is that a laser collar?"

"Yes," SuRu says, confidently.

My parents didn't have all that many books growing up. I enjoyed reading about Anne Fadiman's parents' library. (She also mentioned Diana Trilling in her book.) Probably I'm not a writer. Then again...Anne doesn't know me, either! It's really funny how much I felt in tune with her essays although my experience was so very different. One things certain: your parents don't have to have a lot of books for you to become a reader. In fairness, it was only money stopped us having books. My parents don't have a lot today but they have some and they read and reread them and reading is important to them. And the first thing they did in their new house was make sure they got the newspaper. OK, maybe they don't get The New York Times andThe Wall Street Journal as well as The Austin American-Statesman.

FFP's parents don't have a lot of books either. Certain no 7,000 volume library like the elder Fadiman's had. But our parents saw to it that we got a modicum of books. And the opportunity to go to the library. You should really read Anne Fadiman's book if you love books. But you should see the actual experiences she had as just one way to learn to love books.