What are you all reading currently?

[Mara]

Never seen a thread like this in here before. But I'm curious what all the Cybermacro folks are reading currently.

Me, I've got a few going, including:

"On Killing," by Lt. Col. Dave Grossman. A sad and thought-provoking volume, about the psychological costs of learning to kill particularly in combat. It also presents a controversial thesis that I agree with, regarding violence in entertainment and its direct causal relationship to violence in our society.

"Am I that Name? Feminism and the category of 'women' in history." By Denise Riley. Excellent ponderance of what it really means to be a female, now and throughout history.

I'd love to hear from everyone else, if you have a chance, including all newbies!
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[garymill]

Hi Mara,

This thread is a really good idea, something different.

As the smiles show, not everything in the forums has to be serious, I am really getting a laugh out of the combinations people are creating with them. I guess after having so much chaos in the forums years ago, being serious and having order seemed terrific to me. I think to me the forums meant: that someone with a question about macrobiotics, or a health problem could post for the first time, get an answer by a few people, then someone else would ask a question, and so on.

I am now thinking why can't we have some other forum topics too that do not have to be necessarily focused on just health related ones. Even something related to politics is fair game. The key is that nobody has to enter the other forums if their interests do not lie there. Years ago Roy Collins had a video forum at the old Mountain Ark web site, he would pick a movie for everyone to watch, and then in the forum everyone would discuss it.
Here is the list of movies Roy created for it. http://www.cybermacro.com/public_html/videolist.html It brings back memories about 6 years ago trying to find the original movie art on the internet to match the movie of the week being reviewed.

So tell me your best ideas for new forums.

[Nancy]

Hi Mara,

I agree with Gary, good idea for sharing our current interests...

Currently, I cannot resist cooking from my great big tome, "Ultimate Chinese". I decide how I feel and look up a dish to compliment my y/y balance, like looking up "what to eat for dinner" (Martha Stewart, trademark) in a catalog. Fun!

I am reading two macro biographies: Elaine Nussbaum's, "Recovery from Cancer". And, David Briscoe's, "A Personal Peace".

I am reading several Feng Shui books, chiefly, "Creating Sacred Space with Feng Shui" by Karen Kingston. I am also reading, "The Sacred Kitchen" by Jon and Robin Robertson with several quotes inside from the macrobiotic community.

I am again looking at Meredith McCarty's "American Macrobiotic Cuisine". And my frequently perused "The Cancer Prevention Diet" (Michio) and "The Cancer Prevention Cookbook" (Aveline).

I am also reading several of Watchman Nee's books, a Chinese Christian from the 1930s, who was astonishingly prolific and wrote many works on deep spiritual topics.

Also, my carryall, "How to Live on Nothing", Joan Ranson Shortney.

Nancy

[Mara]

Hi Nancy,

Is "A Personal Peace" Mr. Briscoe's account of recovery from mental illness?

Thanks,

Mara

[Nancy]

Mara,

"A Personal Peace" has the subtitle, "Macrobiotic Reflections on Mental and Emotional Recovery". It is written by David Briscoe and his mother, Charlotte Mahoney Briscoe.

From the back cover,

"This private chronicle follows David Briscoe through the stages of his difficult struggle against schizophrenia and explores the healing powers of macrobiotic eating as a method of treatment for the mentally ill and emotionally disturbed." .................

This week I saw Rosie O'Donnell and another talk show guest, talking about medication for mental conditions they both struggle with. My thoughts were, "But, if educated in the universal tools of yin and yang, medication can completely be phased out..."

It's all about balance, which is why those with mental illnesses are often accurately referred to as "unbalanced".

It is amazing what knowledge of the Order of the Universe, The Unique Principle, and the Science and Philosophy of the Far East can do...

Food playing a major part...

Nancy

[Mara]

Agree with you completely, Nancy, and have been wanting to read that book for a while. Thanks for the review.

[qzw52]

Hi Nancy and Mara,

Two things:

The book has become absurdly pricey: Lowest price on amazon: $2,253.61!!

Found one copy at bookfinder.com for 42.95 under the author name of: Charlotte Mahoney-briscoe.

2nd thing:

David Briscoe is such a nice man. I called him about a year ago. I was asking his advice. When the phone was ringing I assumed a staff member or a machine would answer but instead it was David! For a second I was speechless with surprise.

He helped me and was surprised when I offered to send him a check to compensate him for the 20-30 minutes he provided for me on the phone. He was now the person who was surprised! He said, "You're kidding, right?"

I explained how it is important to compensate people fairly in how they earn money for their family. I sent him a check for $50.00 and waited month after month until finally after about 6 months he cashed the check. Which is a good thing.

I bought the book back then for a very reasonable sum, used, on the internet. I do not know why the book has escalated so very much. Maybe for someone, the $42.95 would be a good deal when you consider the book is so excellent but also because it's a lot better than 2000 dollars or so!

Dave

[quote=Nancy]Mara,

"A Personal Peace" has the subtitle, "Macrobiotic Reflections on Mental and Emotional Recovery". It is written by David Briscoe and his mother, Charlotte Mahoney Briscoe.

From the back cover,

"This private chronicle follows David Briscoe through the stages of his difficult struggle against schizophrenia and explores the healing powers of macrobiotic eating as a method of treatment for the mentally ill and emotionally disturbed." .................

[Nancy]

Dave,

That must be an erroneous print mistake on Amazon. The book is out-of-print and no doubt can only be found by resellers (used books sellers) on various online bookstore websites.

Probably would be a good idea to contact David Briscoe at Macrobiotics America online. Put Macrobiotics America in the searchline to find his website. I'm sure David can make available copies for macrobiotic people who want to buy the book.

It would be better to put the proceeds right in David's pocket.

Nancy

[garymill]

It just so happens I have found out, that Square One Publishers besides bringing back and updating many of the out of print macro books by Avery, will be doing the same for Japan Publications. Japan has not published for about 5 years now, and they had put out many macro titles including David's book. So it is quite possible that you may very well see this again in the future.



Gary

[Nancy]

I just received a reply from Patriot Books, who posted the selling price of "A Personal Peace" (as a used library book) on Amazon for $2,453.78.

Their response was, "That was an oops. Thanks for pointing it out."

Anyone wanting to e mail David Briscoe (the author) about the availability of "A Personal Peace" his website is www.macrobioticsamerica.com. If enough are interested, he may decide to self-publish his book, or opt to use a publishing house again.

Otherwise, scout the used booksellers sites and wait for a good price. At present, the book is out-of-print, but it does become available, reasonably priced, when someone wants to sell their used copy.

I bought mine on Amazon for $6.88.

Nancy

[JanetM]

Here's another question - do you pile many different books beside the bed and read a bit of each, perhaps swapping between books in any one sitting? Or are you a one book beside the bed person and only ready one book at a time?

I have always been facsinated by how my Mum reads books. She doesn't read them from beginning to end. She jumps. Usually she reads the first chapter then the last chapter then one in the middle and so on until she generally gets the drift of the story and stops reading it! I find that really amusing!!

Janet

[Mara]

Hi Janet & welcome to Cybermacro!

Though I try to just focus on one book at a time, lately there has been so much good reading material sent my way, I am doing the pile-up thing. But I'm trying hard to finish one right now, because I don't like being too distracted.

But when school is in session, you can bet for sure I'm reading a few volumes and texts at once, out of sheer necessity!

[Nancy]

Hi Janet,

I have piles of books all over my house. They end up in the living room piled in front of the couch (I read during commercials), piled across the living room, in and out of the book shelves, and on the dining room table. At the moment there is a messy pile on the floor next to my computer. I have a rolling stand by the bedside, TV on top, which usually gets piled with books. Rather than clothes on my bedroom closet shelves, there are books. I also have a book truck in the hall that I can roll around, right now it is piled to the maximum (probably 300 books).

In my un-Feng Shuied home office a corner of the room has possibly 10 stacks of books piled up to human height. This room is a fright. Some of the piles have fallen over. Maybe I will do something about it today. When I was a teenager and started to accumulate books in my clothes closet, my Dad asked me, "Why do you have all these books?"

I then became a Librarian.

I have been in the field of education for the last 14 years, but would like to return to librarianship. The good jobs are highly coveted in my city. It was always a stress free, congenial environment, of intelligent people. I worked at universities and was well taken care of.

I read probably 25 books at once, , as my attention is directed to one or the other. Some I read cover to cover. The best time for this is nightime, before sleep.

It is a wonderful luxury.
Nancy


:Hillary20

[JanetM]

Nancy - I love it!! Your description of your house made me laugh and laugh - I can just imagine what your house must look like!! I am also a piler of books much to the dismay of my husband. He likes the house nice and orderly, I myself like it with "texture" - lots to look at, comfy chairs with interesting things like books, magazines and poetry, sculptures, rocks, flowers..... I would like to have a library in my house one day with floor to ceiling bookshelves and a wooden ladder on wheels, and this library will have PILES of books too next to the comfy reading chairs .

My piling of books and magazines is perhaps due to the fact that I generally am interested in so many things I like to flip between books. Perhaps I also get a bit bored reading just one at a time. Perhaps I've been a student for too long and have been forced to read when I really didn't want to so I'm being a little chaotic and rebellious with my reading?? Not sure why, I just know that I love my piles of books and that my husband will never understand but that ok with me! Its great to have different people in the world isn't it? Lets rejoice in our differences. I once heard there are two different sorts of people in the world - pilers and filers. I'm definately a piler

Its been really lovely to chat with you

Janet

[JanetM]

Hi Mara

Thank you for your warm welcome! Don't you just itch when you have lots of great things to read? I find it very difficult to read one book at the time at the best of times but when this happens its impossible for me! Despite my piling book tendency and my love for and great joy for reading a bit of everything, I do envy people who can sit and read one book at a time and FINISH it! I have developed a bad habit now of just not finishing any book I'm reading. I find I normally stop at around the chapter 4 or 5 - just before half way through. This is begining to frustrate me particularly when people start talking about the book and I feel inept to join in the conversation because I just haven't read enough of the book. This has just happened to me regarding the "life of Pi". I started a book club with friends to "shame" me into finishing books but my friends often didn't finish the books either (they all have babies) so that didn't really work. Now I have piles of health books next to my bed and I seem to be using them more as reference material rather than reading materials so they are very much being swapped between depending on the topic I'm looking into.

Great to chat with you Mara and good luck with your study - by the way what are you studying?

cheers, Janet