Booknote: The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity

Carlo Cipolla, The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity. New York: Doubleday, 2020. ISBN: 978-03-85546478. Book publication day is 10/27/2020.

Genre: nonfiction
Subgenre: social studies, social sciences, human behavior
Format: e-book galley
Source: NetGalley

This is basically a short essay article that for some reason got turned into a book. Cipolla, an economist, presents five laws that show "stupid people can and do rule the world" (from book's description). You might have questioned that statement in the past. Nowadays readers can just read this and nod at how true it is.

The book was initially released in 1988; it was around in private edition before that, and overall, this book has been around the block. This edition is its first American (U.S.) release. Apparently the U.S. has been missing out what the rest of the world knows by now.

Anyhow, the author presents his five laws and explains each one in a short chapter. Some graphs are included, which may or not help clarify the laws. Though the author claims he is not cynical nor defeatist, the reader may end up feeling hopeless if they have any degree of intelligence as they realize the hopelessness of defeating the power of stupidity. Is there really a way to neutralize it? I, for one, am not so sure.

The book overall is an OK read. Between the second and third laws, the author writes an intermission to expand some of the ideas. I think he could have done without it as it adds little to the overall text. Overall, the argument is good, but it is a bit dry at times. In the end, a bit depressing.

2 out of 5 stars.

* * * * * 

Additional reading notes:

The Five Laws:

1. "Always and inevitably everyone underestimates the number of stupid individuals in circulation" (16). 
2. "The probability that a certain person be stupid is independent of any other characteristic of that person" (7).
3. "A stupid person is a person who causes losses to another person or to a group of persons while himself deriving no gain and even possibly incurring losses" (23). 
4. "Non-stupid people always underestimate the damaging power of stupid individuals. In particular non-stupid people constantly forget that at all times and places and under any circumstances to deal or associate with stupid people infallibly turns out to be a costly mistake" (33). 
5. "A stupid person is the most dangerous type of person" (34). This law has a corollary: "A stupid person is more dangerous than a bandit" (34). 

Book qualifies for these 2020 book challenges:

 ArcApocalypse

Booknote: The Lufthansa Heist (audiobook edition)

Henry Hill and Daniel Simone with Joe Barrett narrator, The Lufthansa Heist: Behind the Six-Million Dollar Cash Haul that Shook The World. Old Saybrook, CT: Tantor Media, 2015.

 

Genre: nonfiction, true crime

Subgenre: mob, robberies, 1960s-1970s, pop culture, airlines, New York City

Format: Audiobook

Source: Hoopla Digital via Madison County (KY) Public Library

 

This is the story of the 1978 Lufthansa Heist that modern readers and movie viewers may remember from the film Goodfellas. The book is by Henry Hill, who had some role in helping to get the plan moving along. Hill was an associate of Jimmy Burke, who is believed to be the mastermind of the heist. This was the last book that Hill worked on before he passed away in 2012. The book, to be honest, has a lot of the facts and details that Hill told before in his 1985 book Wiseguy (link to my review of the book). So if you read Wiseguy, a lot of the material in this Lufthansa book will be very familiar. Some elements from this book are also present in the film. This book, in addition to looking at the heist, looks at Hill rising in the mob with Jimmy Burke and Tommy DeSimone, starting with Hill's heist of the Air France cargo hold (a prelude to Lufthansa), and it goes through the last days of the investigation winding down after everyone else involved other than Burke and Hill are dead. The Air France heist serves to establish Hill's reputation with the mob. On a positive note, you do get some more details on certain situations not in the book, and you certainly get more depth than in the movie. Still, if you have read Hill's previous book, this may give you deja vu.

A detail that caught my attention is that the robbers that Burke led were mostly illiterate or barely literate folks, and they were not the sharpest tools in the shed either. When you keep that in mind, it is kind of impressive they managed to pull off the heist in a relatively efficient way. Well, it was efficient until they started doing stupid shit after the robbery like buying flashy stuff when they got some of the money. We also need to note that some investigative techniques and technologies we have available today were not available back then.  

The book is a blend of Hill telling stories and his co-author adding details and filling gaps to complete the story. Henry adds and pays attention to small details here and there. He can also be very descriptive at times. He is a good storyteller, a trait I am sure served him well when the film makers came to pick his brains to make the film. In addition, Hill's use of slang can be amusing at times. 

Still, there are differences from the film. In the film, you get the impression that everyone was in agreement to rob Lufthansa. In the book, we see how they hesitated, had concerns, Burke really needed to think about it, Marty Krugman, the bookie who got Hill the information he passed on to Burke, really had to persuaded Burke to take it on. Another example of differences between book and film. In Chapter 32, we knew Stack Edwards was an idiot in not getting rid of the van (mentioned in the film) but just how big of an idiot we get the details here. The guy really was a moron who did go to one of his girlfriends way out of the way to get laid and get high. Getting rid of the van should have been easy since an arrangement was made to use a certain auto junkyard to crush the van and leave no evidence. All Stacks had to do was show up with the van, and he could not even do that one thing. The rest of the crew were idiots as well as noted previously, so it is a bit of a serious miracle they pulled the robbery. Additionally, we do get a bigger picture of the law enforcement agencies infighting to get the glory and credit of the case. We do get as well more detail in the process of how Hill becomes a federal informant. The feds are disappointed that Hill cannot connect Burke and others to Lufthansa (because Burke had everyone else killed who was involved by that time). The feds grow impatient until they begin to discover that Hill certainly knew many other things, and while initially they got Burke on a basketball points shaving scheme, eventually they would be able to use Hill's testimony to get a bunch of other big convictions. Part of the issue, besides Burke having killed everyone related to Lufthansa, is that Hill was an alcoholic and could not function as well without it. But once the feds got him a bit comfortable and they learned a bit of patience, they did get a lot out of Hill.  

I listened to this book in audio. On a semi-humorous note, if they got that guy from mobster documentaries that sounds like he smokes five packs or more a day, the narration could be improved.The narrator here can be a little dry at times, though he does perform voices for different characters, sometimes with amusing effects. For example, Tommy can sound a bit more whiny at times than he likely really was. 

Overall, I liked the book. I liked it in part because I find the story interesting, and I am a fan of the film. However, if you read Wiseguy, then a lot of what you read here will be a review/revisit of those events. If you only know the story from the film though, then the book is worth a read, though I think Wiseguy is a better read. Plus the book does look at events from a different angle at times, so that may be another reason to read this book. 

3 out of 5 stars. 

Book qualifies for this 2020 Reading Challenge: 

Reading about the reading life: October 25, 2020 edition

Welcome to another edition of "Reading about the reading life" here at The Itinerant Librarian. This is where I collect stories about reading and the reading life. Basically, these are items related to reading, maybe writing and literacy, that I find interesting and think my four readers might find interesting as well with a little commentary. As with other features I do on this blog, I do it when I have time or feel like it. Comments are always welcome (within reason).

 

 

 

 

•  Via Believer magazine, an account of an independent bookseller during these Hard Times of pandemic. 
• As much as I try to stay away from the politics, once in a while they sneak into my news feeds, so here are a couple of stories related to books and politics: 
• For those acting as if the GOP's overall fuckery is a new thing, well, it is not. Books about Trump have become an industry in these Hard Times, including books connecting him to the GOP's descent into outright evil. This article from LitHub discusses various books showing how the GOP has long been gone the deep end before Trump. 
• Speaking of the Trump book industry, Carlos Lozada at The Atlantic did a very brave thing: he looked at 150 books on Trump and their effect on Americans. Lozada, author of the book What Were We Thinking, is certainly braver than I am. No way I would want to read 150 books on Trump's presidency. The thing about this is we do not need another book to tell us that the GOP is and has been the right wing extremist party of bigots, misogynists,  Dominionist Christians, homophobes, xenophobes, and other assorted willfully ignorant selfish assholes. The signs have been there, and the party has been quite proud to embrace those "values" in their platform. Not to let Democrats off the hook since they have pretty much become Republican Lite, but that is another whole set of books.
  
•  Here is a cute story about a used bookstore that also serves as a senior cat sanctuary. Story via WTXL in Tallahassee, Florida.
• In possible dream jobs, this barefoot bookseller job out in the Maldives sounds good. Via Patch.com.
• Meanwhile, also via Patch.com, a Salem, MA bookstore has decided to open on weekends by appointment only due to fuckbagels refusing to wear masks in these pandemic times. I do not think they went far enough. May as well just do by appointment all week for the sake of safety, but then again, I am not the store owner. 
• A possible positive of the pandemic is that people stuck at home due to lockdowns, isolations, and/or quarantines may be doing more cooking at home, or at least attempting it. For folks who need a little help, they may want to get a cookbook or two. The Dallas Observer has a suggestion: find cookbooks you can borrow and try out at your local library. Libraries in these times still offer services ranging from being open to curbside service, plus they often also offer e-books and other resources you can access online. So feel free to check out the offerings of your local public library. 
• Via Libropatas (Spanish language), a look at a new trend in these coronavirus times: binge reading.
  

 

 

Booknote: Drive-Thru Dreams

Adam Chandler, Drive-Thru Dreams: a Journey Through the Heart of America's Fast-Food Kingdom. New York: Flatiron Books, 2019. ISBN: 9781250090720.

 

Genre: business and history

Subgenre: U.S. history, U.S. business, corporations, Americana, popular culture

Format: hardcover

Source: Berea branch of the Madison County (KY) Public Library

 

This book is a history of fast food in the United States as well as an overall history of the nation through the growth of the fast food corporate behemoth. From small mom and pop shops to entrepreneurs with varying degrees of morality and ethics to the corporatization of fast food we get to see the growth and expansion of the United States in the 20th century and into the 21st century. The author shows that fast food has become inseparable from U.S. culture. Therein lies the catch. One the one hand, fast food symbolizes everything wrong with the U.S. eating habits, health, as well as greed and exploitation. On the other hand, for many people, especially in certain areas of the country, fast food is very personal and a source of comfort and reassurance. So, how significant is fast food in the United States? 

 

"Simply put, nothing else does what fast food does as well as fast food does it. There is no other place, not libraries or gyms or the collective houses of worship, that 80 percent of Americans frequent at least monthly. And there are virtually no other enterprises that 96 percent of Americans annually embrace. Not even the internet comes close to attracting that much loyalty or participation. On a descending spectrum of American certainty, it goes something like death, premarital sex, fast food, and income taxes. The United States is and remains a fast-food nation" (4). 

 

By the way, the internet detail is crucial. The United States still has a major digital divide, and a lot of rural places lack any internet access, but you can bet they have a McDonald's and/or a Dairy Queen. That little detail says a lot about the nation, and no, it is not a good comment.

 

The author tries to balance the two extremes, but in the end, he clearly lands more on the latter. If you want the critical look at the fast food industry, you need to look for other books on that. 

The book is arranged as follows: 

• An introduction.
• 15 chapters.
• An epilogue that brings us close to today. Keep in mind, the book was published in 2019, plus this was all pre-COVID-19.

The book is interesting overall. We get to meet the big figures of fast food from their beginnings to success including Colonel Sanders and Dave Thomas as well as Ray Kroc (who, to be honest, basically ripped off the McDonald brothers when he bought them out of the business they started). These entrepreneurs, hard workers as they were, were not always nice people, something the author often glosses over. We also get stories of small people, such as immigrants, who used humble beginnings in fast food to make fortunes. It is all very Horatio Alger until you realize how they built their empires exploiting their workers, a trend that has only gotten worse over time. Plus once corporations started getting in, buying those fast food companies, publicly trading them, so on, then they really started taking shortcuts and cutting corners. On this, the author writes: 

"The arrival of corporations and food conglomerates would have a direct effect on the food itself as more profitable shortcuts and substitutions were sought" (79). 

And once that happened, the quality of the food went downhill. Even Colonel Sanders complained about KFC's quality decline, but he did sell the company so aside from bitching he could do little at that point. 

The book also looks at how the United States changed and grew post-World War II. We see how fast food adapted to the interstate highway system, inner cities, and rural areas. There are reasons many rural areas have a Dairy Queen, and though White Castle was really the fast food pioneer, it was McDonald's that went on to become the juggernaut we know today. In addition, we get stories of how fast food places go on to become community gathering places, especially in small rural areas where McDonald's may be the place to celebrate a birthday. 

The book is also an easy read. You learn a lot about U.S. history in the last century, and if you lived through parts of it, you may get a bit of nostalgia as well. The author does land on more on a defense of fast food, but he does show the industry goes hand in hand with U.S. people. It has proven to be a resilient and very adaptable industry. As the author suggests, odds are good you have some kind of fast food guilty pleasure. I know I do, and that does support the idea how fast food is entwined with American society. At this point, for good or ill (and it may well be more ill now), fast food is tied up with American society; they both go together. In the end, I did like the book. 

The book can be a good option for public libraries. It can also be good for academic libraries with strong popular culture, Americana, and 20th century U.S. history collections. 

3 out of 5 stars.

Booknote: Justice Howard's Voodoo

Justice Howard and Bloody Mary, Justice Howard's Voodoo: Conjure and Sacrifice. Atglen, PA: Schiffer Publishing, 2018. ISBN: 9780764355189.

 

Genre: arts and photography

Subgenre: Voodoo, New Orleans, religion

Format: e-book galley

Source: NetGalley

 

I knew little of Justice Howard and her photography work, but I was intrigued by this book, so I picked it up. The book showcases her photography with writing on various Voodoo topics by Ms. Bloody Mary. 

The book is arranged as follows: 

• Foreword by John Gilmore. 
• Preface.
• Introduction by Bloody Mary.
• 18 short chapters or sections on Voodoo. Topics include Papa Legba, Snakes, Marie Laveau, Voodoo dolls, and Ogoun.
• Bibliography.

At 96 pages or so, this is a very superficial book. You get a brief overview on each topic, just enough to whet the appetite. It may make you want to read more, and that can be a good thing. However, the bibliography is extremely minimal with just three works by Bloody Mary. If you want to learn more, maybe a visit to your local library is a good idea. Still, the short passages are interesting to read, and they have a nice evocative quality that may make you feel like you are in New Orleans at night.

The strength and highlight of the book is the photographs. The photos are very well, colorful, evocative. These images invite you to come closer and take a deeper look. I do wish some of the photos had a small label or subtitle as I can't always tell what concept or topic they may represent. Still, the photos are great and a good reason to get this book.

Overall I really liked this one, and I think it's worth a look. 

4 out of 5 stars.   

* * * * * 

Additional reading notes: 

Do what you want: 

"You do what you want and if you do it with all you are in the time you've got to do it in, as a Zuni shaman told me, you're doing the thing that's next to God and you couldn't ask for one iota more" (7).

 

On the photos, yes, the artifacts are real: 

"This photo series houses real bones and Voodoo relics. The skulls featured are also real human skulls originally used in Santeria rituals. All of the animal remains, like the pig's heads, are real. The models are also real and I handpicked and styled them for the photos you see before you" (8).

Reason for the introduction and book: 

"I write this introduction to invite you to meditate on Justice Howard's art without preconception or judgment. Let it flow through you. I also dare you to delve deeper into the true studies on ancient religions  that need to be experienced to be understood and have never depended on the written word. I challenge you to look through the shock and chaos to find the beauty and, dare I say, purity of the art before you; and I invite you to question your own beliefs and motives when you approach Voodoo, to open the way for justice" (12).

Voodoo as oldest religion, at least to some: 

"Many scholars believe Voodoo to be the world's oldest religion. Its ancient African lineage goes way back, as far as man itself. Voodoo traveled to the new worlds with the slave trade, Voodoo is a survivor religion. Voodoo is a danced religion. It learned much upon its journey. I hope you that you learn much on yours" (13). 

 

More on Voodoo the religion: 

"The truth is that Voodoo is a religion, a philosophy, and a way of life for millions around the world. There are as many varieties of Voodoo as there are of Christianity, and they are all valid in their theory. New Orleans Voodoo is her own tradition, as are Haitian Voodoo, Dominican Vudu (Las 21 Divisions), Brazilian Candomble, Palo, Trinidad Orisha, Santeria, Obeah, and of course the Mother-- African Voodoo" (14). 

 

An observation: 

"Too long have been told what is good and what is evil so people now prefer to search for their own truth" (14). 

 

Bones in Voodoo: 

"Bones are not in Voodoo altars to instill fear or to represent darkness. Bones represent the commonality of death to all man and also solidify life remembered. They tell a story" (68). 

 

* * * * * 

 

Book qualifies for these 2020 Reading Challenges: 

 

 

ArcApocalypse

 

 

Finished Books: A Book Tag

 I found this tag over at Howling Libraries. The questions are as provided. 

Do you keep a list of books you have read? 

Yes I do. I have kept on my blog an annual reading list since 2006. Here is my reading list for 2019, which is the most recent as of this post. In each annual reading list I do link the previous reading lists so they are handy. In addition, I used GoodReads to keep track of what I have read. On a personal level, I make a note in my personal journal when I finish reading a book. I do not really keep track of books I do not finish though. 

If you record statistics, what statistics do you record? 

I record some statistics when I do my annual reading list on the blog, but those stats are relatively minimal. In other words, I do not worry about every single detail like authors' genders, age, if something is diverse or not, the politics, whatever. To be honest, I could not care less about most of that stuff. You can see the reading list I linked to above to see some of the stats I track once a year like number of books read, fiction or nonfiction, some genres, if they came from the library, so on. One detail I started tracking recently was if I finished any books started at the start of the year as a follow up from the previous year. 

Do you give star ratings for books, and if so, what do you score books out of? How do you come about this score? 

I score on a five stars rating. I explain my scale in my book review statement. As I note in my statement, I do not rate everything by stars, for example, academic books I may not rate by stars but may just recommend or not. 

Do you review books? 

Yes. The Itinerant Librarian is a book review blog. As much as possible, I try to review the books I read. 

 

Where you do you put your finished books? 

It depends. Books from the library get returned to the library. My own books go back on the book shelf once I am done reviewing them, unless the book was not good in which case it goes into the box to be weeded out of my collection.  

Do you have any other rituals for when you have finished a book? 

If  you can call it a ritual, I do track it as "read"  on GoodReads. I also make a note of it in my personal journal, which is also where I write first drafts of book reviews I publish on the blog later. 

Deck Review: Ludy Lescot Tarot

Patrizio Evangelisti, Ludy Lescot Tarot. Lo Scarabeo, 2011. (link to Aeclectic; distributed by Llewellyn in the U.S.).

This was the deck I used for the July Deck Bond challenge I posted on Twitter. Doing that gave me a chance to get to know this deck better.

The Hermit-IX

The deck comes in a tuck box with the 78 cards and a Little White Book (LWB). It's pretty much the usual Lo Scarabeo LWB in five languages: English, Italian, Spanish, French, and German. You get 12 small pages of content in English; the whole booklet is 63 pages.

The deck is the creation of young Tarot reader and esoteric student Ludy Lescot, with art by Patrizio Evangelisti based on her sketches. The LWB provides a very brief story of Ludy Lescot first learning Tarot from her grandmother, creating a deck, and spending time in New Orleans' French Quarter reading cards for those fortunate enough to find her. The LWB also provides some brief instructions on how to read Tarot. Then we get simple notes on card meanings for the Major and Minor Arcanas, which Ludy describes as "matches in the night. Don't burn your fingers" (6). For an LWB, it packs a bit of story. To be honest, I think this deck could have been enhanced with a full companion book to expand on the story the LWB only hints at. Still, you get just enough story to make you curious. The card meanings are about 2 to 3 lines of text. These are not standard Rider Waite Smith (RWS) meanings. The text does have some poetic elements with a bit of darkness theme. As Ludy Lescot tells us, "I created this deck to help people see in darkness" (5), and the LWB reinforces that. Meanings can be a bit cryptic, but that is part of the process to get you to think and reflect. While you can read the cards intuitively, I would recommend reading the LWB at least once. It does offer a good amount of information to enhance the study of the cards.

Speaking of the cards, let me say this right away: this is not a light nor a "lite" deck. This is a deck

Eight of Swords

steeped in darkness, to see in the darkness. Some images can be very shocking or disturbing, such as the Three of Swords. First time I saw the card, it was shocking, and the image has stayed with me. But a card like that is also a reminder that life can be dark, harsh, even cruel. You can't/shouldn't try to sugarcoat all things. Darkness and pain are part of life as well, and they need to be confronted and dealt with. I am good with that, but I figure people ought to know if they consider using this deck.

Evangelisti's art work is excellent. It has a Gothic element that can be dark, somber, and brooding. Figures on the cards are expressive, and you can easily see their emotions and feelings. With one or two exceptions, colors can be cold, lot of gray for instance, a bit muted. This is not a bright deck.

Having said that, this is a very good deck. I found that I can read well with it. The images offer some depth and invite you to look into them, think, and reflect. The images are somewhat within RWS but not quite. I mean, if you read RWS, you can read these cards, but you can still read them using another system or just intuitively. The images offer plenty of detail to work from. In addition, this is a good deck for shadow work. For me, this may be a deck to use when I want something a lot darker than usual, and a deck I to use in moments I want some silence and reflection. In terms of seasons, this would be a fall and winter deck I'd say. On more more note, I'd be very selective with using this deck with other people. Use it preferably with people you know have similar appreciations.The cards are 4 1/2 by 2 1/2 inches. The Major Arcana are identified by Roman numeral. Minor Arcana are identified by suit symbol (chalices, pentacles, wands and swords) and Arabic numeral. Court cards are identified by suit symbol and court symbol (Knave, Knight, Queen, and King). In this deck, Strength is VIII and Justice is XI.

Six of Cups

Overall, I really like this deck. For me, not an every day use deck, but it is a very good one for certain times such as darker parts of the year, shadow work, or you just want something different and/or a contrast to light decks. It is one I recommend, and it is one I am glad to have in my collection. As I mentioned, this is one I wish had a good book to flesh out the story.

4 out of 5 stars.

Reading about the reading life: October 4, 2020 edition

Welcome to another edition of "Reading about the reading life" here at The Itinerant Librarian. This is where I collect stories about reading and the reading life. Basically, these are items related to reading, maybe writing and literacy, that I find interesting and think my four readers might find interesting as well with a little commentary. As with other features I do on this blog, I do it when I have time or feel like it. Comments are always welcome (within reason).

 

• Boing Boing highlights the e-book site Standard Ebooks, which basically takes out of copyright works and puts them in a quality format (or at least an improvement over Project Gutenberg's plain text). May be worth a look. 
• Tor has an article on "a brief history of Mexican Horror Comics."
• MensPulpMags wrote back in July about their reading in Western, pulp, and some other genres. A lot to look at here. 
• With the COVID-19 pandemic, some people are documenting their experience in diaries and journals, and Notebook Stories takes a look at that. I've made small notes here or there my personal journal about it, but I wish I could write more. I think I still have some time to do a blog post on the experience so far down the road.
• Shelf Talk blog highlights that this year is 100 Years of Agatha Christie and her works. From her works, I've read The ABC Murders and Murder on the Orient Express a while back. I've also recently watched film adaptations of Murder on the Orient Express. I watched the 1974 with Albert Finney as Poirot back in April and the recent 2017 film with Kenneth Branagh portraying Poirot along with his epic mustache back in August. Watching those two films have made me want to read the novel again, so I have Murder on the Orient Express checked out from my local public library to reread soon. By the way, I also watched the 1982 film adaptation of Evil Under the Sun back in August. That one has Sir Peter Ustinov in the role of Poirot. 
• Speaking of anniversaries, Paulo Freire's Pedagogy of the Oppressed is 50 years old now.  Story via J-Stor Daily. This is a book I read when I was in education school as an undergrad studying to be a school teacher. I have reread it since, and I do keep a copy handy.
  
• Book Riot featured a piece reminding people why librarians are NOT child care. This is a must read for every parent who dumps kids in their public library and hope for the best. One of my previous workplaces, we found unsupervised kids in libraries, cops got called in, and then the parent had to deal with the cops and prove that yes, that kid was their kid. 
• Via the Literary Saloon, an announcement that Alberto Manguel donated his library to the Center for the Study of Reading in Lisbon. Manguel is one of those authors with a love of books that just makes you love books too. 
• If you like cookbooks, maybe this database of 5000 historical cookbooks may be of interest. Story via Open Culture.
  

Some Spanish language items, via Lecturalia: 

• On the benefits of rereading books. 
• A brief history of the Real Academia Española.
• An article on Agatha Christie's anniversary.
  

 

Media Notes: Round up for September 2020

This is a somewhat random selection of the movies and series on DVD and/or online I watched during September 2020. This month I am going to start trying to rate movies, similar to how I do books, on a 5 stars rating, see how it works. Starting in September, I wanted to watch a bit more horror to get in the mood for fall season and Halloween. The highlight this month, if you can call it that, is that I did watch the full Wishmaster movie series.


Movies and films (links to IMDB.com for basic information unless noted otherwise). Some of these I watched via TubiTv.com or other online source. The DVDs come from the public library (unless noted otherwise). In addition, I will try to add other trivia notes, such as when a film is based on a book adding the information about the book (at least the WorldCat record if available):

• Chicago Overcoat (2012. Crime. Action. Mobsters). Brief plot description: "The fates of an aging hitman and a washed up detective become entwined when one last job leads to one last chance to settle an old score." Frank Vincent stars as the aging hitman looking back at how the old days were and doing his best to make a living in the new days with new guys in charge. He is long retired from being the deadliest hit man in Chicago. However, when a mobster puts out a contract on some union officials to silence them, Lou, the hit man, is given the job, and he hopes he can use the money to finance a new start somewhere else. However, two detectives start getting close, and Lou has to prove he still has what it takes. This is a somewhat slow drama as it is revealed that the men Lou has to kill are all part of a larger conspiracy that even includes city officials and the police department. The movie is somewhat slow but the pace picks up at the end leading to a pretty explosive ending. I'd say not too bad, worth a look. It is interesting to see that it is the bad guy, the hit man, that we find ourselves rooting for. We also get some small roles with Stacy Keach, playing a retired cop friend of the cop trying to catch Lou, and Armand Assante playing the imprisoned mob boss who orders the hits. There is something to be said for experience. If I had to rate it, 3 out of 5 stars. Via TubiTv. 
• Gotti (2018. Crime. Drama. Biography). John Travolta takes a turn at portraying the Teflon Don John Gotti. The movie also looks at Gotti's relationship to his son, Gotti, Jr. Stacy Keach gets to portray Neil Dellacroce, the family underboss and mentor figure to John Gotti. The movie goes a bit back and forth between Gotti's rise and his eventual time in prison where he is suffering the cancer that eventually takes his life and his son comes to visit. This film emphasizes more the family side of Gotti, especially his relationship with his son Junior. It does have some gruesome moments, but overall, the film considers more the family, as in his personal family. Part of that is reflective of the fact the film is based on John A. Gotti's book Shadow of My Father. So the film does a lot to soften John Gotti, de-emphasize the horror that he truly was. Overall, the film was mostly OK. Travolta did well given what he was working with, adding just that bit of psycho he can add now and then in his work. The film uses news footage in parts to add detail and authenticity to the film, and it also uses music here and there to give a sense of time. I think I like the 1996 HBO film with Armand Assante in the title role (I watched this one back in March 2020), but this one was interesting. I may out of curiosity seek out the book. 2 out of 5 stars. Via DVD from Madison County Public Library. 
• Wolf Cop (2014. Horror. Comedy). Plot description: "The worst cop on the force in a small town wakes from a late shift crime scene to find a pentagram carved on his chest and a beastly transformation." Horror comedies are not necessarily a favorite of mine. I like my horror dark and serious, but once in a while I will take a chance on a horror comedy. I heard a bit about this movie from various folks on social media, so decided to take a chance. Sgt. Lou Garou (yea, I noticed the name too). is an alcoholic cop who pretty much does not give a shit that one wonders how the heck he made it to be a deputy sheriff in the small town of Woodhaven. After an incident call in the middle of the night in the woods, Lou wakes up at home with vague memories and a big pentagram cut on his chest. Eventually turns out he has been turned into a werewolf, and it seems there is a reason for it; the reason appears to be some shapeshifters need his werewolf blood to keep their power. The one thing being turned seems to accomplish is that Lou takes a bit more interest in police work, as well as trying to solve his own "case." The premise is decent enough. However, first part of the movie is fairly slow, and the humor is relatively minimal. The horror elements are somewhat toned down, since it is a comedy. The werewolf effects are decent. However, pace picks up about halfway through the movie when Lou transforms, and he decides to clean up crime in the town. . . as only a werewolf could. Catch is pretty much most of the town are shapeshifters, so is there anyone Lou can even trust? Overall, cheesy movie that makes decent late night fare, especially for Halloween season.Via TubiTv. There is a sequel turns out, Another Wolf Cop, which I will try to find. Rating? 2 1/2 out of 5 stars. I liked it but to be honest I do not see the big deal a lot of people make out of it.
  
• Wishmaster (1997.  Fantasy. Horror). Plot description: "A demonic djinn attempts to grant its owner three wishes, which will allow him to summon his brethren to Earth." I remember watching this back in the day, so when I saw Tubi had it available, I decided to see if it holds up. Wes Craven was executive producer, and the film has a pretty good cast of  actors in smaller roles including Robert Englund, Verne Troyer, Tony Todd, and Ted Raimi among others. Part of the fun in a movie like this is spotting them in the film. Andrew Divoff portrays the djinn. Story begins in Persia, 1127 B.C. where the djinn is granting wishes to the sultan. Lucky for him, a sorcerer manages to imprison the djinn in a precious red stone and save the kingdom. From there, we go into the modern era, where an accident unleashes the djinn once more in the U.S. The stone makes its way to an auction house, where Alexandra accidentally wakes the djinn. The djinn now has to get her to make her three wishes, and in the meantime, unleashes various horrors, using the fear of the victims he grants wishes to in order feed himself and get stronger. This is a pretty well made horror film that builds up nicely, scary but also fun. It is not a comedy; it is the kind of twisted humor a good horror movie has. Here we see a lot of the humor in how the djinn twists the wishes of their victims. The Houdini reference was a good twist for example. Also Divoff really does a great job portraying the djinn with charm as well as malevolence. The special effects are pretty good too. Overall, it is still a pretty good horror movie combining horror, suspense, and a bit of twisted humor. If you have not seen it, I'd say consider taking a chance. If I am rating it, 4 out of 5 as I really like it. 
• Wishmaster 2: Evil Never Dies (1999. Fantasy. Horror.) Plot description: "Evil has been summoned once again when, during a botched art heist, the Djinn is freed from his gem prism by a burglar named Morgana. Fearing for the fate of humanity, Morgana seeks the aid of her former lover, who is now a priest, to combat the Djinn." Holly Fields plays Morgana, and Andrew Divoff is back to play the djinn. After the robbery, Morgana manages to escape. The djinn, awakened, needs to collect souls as well as get Morgana to make her wishes. Baffling the police, he allows himself to be captured, charged with the robbery, and put in prison. But this is just part of his plan to get those souls. Prison is full of guys who would love to have a wish or two granted. This time, the djinn needs a 1001 souls, so prison gives him a head start. Meanwhile, Morgana tries to get her former lover, an orthodox priest, to help her. He is reluctant, but he goes along. Once he runs out of souls in prison, he manages to get out, gets involved with a Russian mobster, and then gets into a casino, what better place to find souls wanting wishes, right? This direct to video sequel just is not as good as the original. Divoff still plays the djinn well, but he just does not have much to work with here. The wishes he grants are just not as humorous nor gruesome. The most gruesome is the casino scene at the end, and by then, well, too little too late, and even that was not that big a deal. It just lacks the entertainment of the original, which is a pity. The premise in this one had potential, but they just did a pretty poor job executing it. The first one is enjoyable. This was pretty blah. 1 1/2 out of 5 stars is being generous. 
• Wishmaster 3: Beyond the Gates of Hell (2001. Horror. Fantasy). Plot description: "The evil Djinn is back at again, this time wreaking havoc on the students of Illinois' Baxter University." Since TubiTv had the whole series, I am continuing to watch these. Setting as mentioned is a university, and to be honest, for starters the college students are mostly the typical vapid bimbo girls and manly boys also fairly vapid that in a regular slasher movie you can't wait to see them die off. In others, there is no substance. The blonde protagonist girl, who wakes the djinn, has some trauma from her childhood, which we know will be part of things when the djinn arrives i.e. something the djinn may use to tempt her. A new actor portrays the djinn (the human form); in the djinn form, he does look a bit different than before, so I honestly wonder if this is a different djinn (if that is intentional or not). Also note the stone is found in a location not connected to the previous two films, so I could see this as a different djinn. A small detail to wonder over in an otherwise very boring and poorly scripted film. The acting is seriously bad and painful as well to watch. In addition, there is no buildup, no suspense, the woman pretty much tunes into knowing the djinn's plan, researching, so on. Not that it matters given the overall ineptitude of the whole plot, and to add to it, this djinn is just seriously underwhelming, plus pretty much breaks the rules established in the original. I will give it one thing: the way the djinn explains the Trojan War was an interesting story. In the end, this was bad, and anyone involved in making it should be shunned.  A 1/2 star out of five is being generous with this tripe. Skip it.  
• Wishmaster 4: the Prophecy Fulfilled (2002. Horror. Fantasy). Plot description: "This time, the Djinn unleashes his undying love for a beautiful woman in his final attempt to unleash his brethren from Hell." Well, made it to the fourth and final (I hope) installment of the series. I managed to watch it so you don't have to. John Novak, who played the djinn in the third film, returns for one more run (though a different actor plays his human form), so I am keeping the expectations low. Film starts with young couple who just bought a house, fixer upper from looks of it. Again, your typical young people that in the slasher movie you can't wait for them to get killed The scene then moves on and the film takes us to three years later from the opening. Apparently the couple is having a rough time; the man had an accident, and the couple is suing. The lawyer she is working with hands her a small gift, a box that turns out to contain the jewel with the djinn, and we go from there. Not exactly an impressive introduction. The special effects have also gotten cheaper over the time of the films; they look pretty cheap, especially the djinn. The djinn remains much like in the previous movie, more thug not seductive and subtle as in the first film; they pretty much forgot any of the rules they set up in the first film, and this is no exception to that.. However, the wishes executed look a bit better than the third film. Looks like they put in a bit of effort this time. The pace moves quicker as the djinn, in the form of the handsome lawyer, gets Lisa to make two of her three wishes with ease; she has no idea who he is. She makes her third wish, very casually, but it is not as simple as it may seem, and it puts the djinn in a bit of a spot. Her third wish? She wishes she could love him as he really is (she is feeling lonely, her boyfriend has been bitter all this time, you get the idea). Djinn seems to have gotten a soft spot for her, so he delays granting the wish, but his djinn brethren demand he fulfill it so they can be free. The idea is a bit farfetched; actually seriously farfetched, a djinn having feelings for a human. To complicate things, a hunter also awakes upon the third wish to try to find the Waker (the girl) and kill her before the djinns are freed. The plot is a bit ridiculous, but it is a better effort than the third film, though that is not saying much. Even with some added nudity, there is no saving this film, and its ending was pretty much fairly lame and unsatisfying. So, a bit better than the third film, but that is not much. I'd say watch the first one and stop there. If I have to give it something, 1 1/2 out of 5 stars.
  
• The Story of Tea: the History of Tea and How to Make the Perfect Cup (2007. Documentary). Description: "Take a journey into the history of one of the most refreshing, alluring, and ancient of drinks, tea!" This was a nice and very basic documentary that goes over the history of tea, types of tea, and how to make your own cup of tea. For advanced connoisseurs, this may be too basic. But if you know little of tea, or you just want to learn a little bit at leisurely pace, this is a good documentary. I liked it. I'd say 3 out of 5 stars. Via TubiTv.  
• 1917 (War. Drama.). Plot description: "April 6th, 1917. As a regiment assembles to wage war deep in enemy territory, two soldiers are assigned to race against time and deliver a message that will stop 1,600 men from walking straight into a deadly trap." The two men get to cross no man's land and then through German lines to get to the objective, and hope the colonel in charge will actually obey the orders, for, as one soldier tells one of our heroes, "some men just want a fight." This is a slow building drama. Don't go in expecting lots of explosions and action. It is not that kind of movie. But it is a well made drama that captures the essence of trench warfare and its destructiveness during World War I. A strength of the movie is in the attention to the small details and the sense of desolation and dread the environment created. It does have some moments that make you go "oh please" or "really?" As I said, it is a bit slow with some of those "oh really?" moments of convenience, but it is worth watching. Technically, it is well made. I liked it. If I had to rate it, 3 1/2 stars out of 5. Via DVD from Madison County (KY) Public Library.
  

Television and other series (basic show information links via Wikipedia unless noted otherwise). Some of these come in DVD from the public library. Others may be via YouTube, which, as noted before, I keep finding all sorts of other old shows in it, often full episodes:

• Midsomer Murders (1997 to present, still going. Mystery. Crime. Detective. British series). I commented on this series in the July 2020 roundup.  I continue this month from Season 5 onward. Via TubiTv.  
• "Ring Out Your Dead" (Season 5, Episode 2). Plot description: "In the village of Midsomer Wellow, someone is killing off the bell ringers of the parish church, in the week before a big bell-ringing competition. One young woman on the team is even shot dead in the churchyard on her wedding day." As we start, we get a lot of small town gossipy stuff: an adulterer husband caught by the wife, a village old man who seems to be in everybody's business, and a guy who apparently owes someone a lot of money and is trying to hide it, and all that the morning after someone is killed in the church and tossed into a well. By the way, not everyone is thrilled with the bells' noise. Then the adulterer is killed, but not before we get a glimpse of him banging some bored rich woman, which apparently is somewhat of a common theme in this series and other British mysteries: rich old ladies (and some not so rich) bored and finding some young stud to take the boredom away. It's a cliche by now. And before anyone gripes, well, it does take two to tango. In this case, the rich woman trying to seduce, or at least flirt with, Sgt. Troy right after stud muffin was murdered looks tasteless and pathetic to be perfectly honest (hey, I am fine with whatever two consenting adults do, but this as I said, looks just sad). Meanwhile, the bell ringer leader is an obnoxious perfectionist obsessed with the competition even as others are dying around him. Fuck them, there are bells to be rung, competitions to win. To be honest, he is the guy I was waiting to get shot.  By the way, who knew "competitive" bell ringing could be so cutthroat? And because it is Midsomer Murders, the police, Troy in this case, break into someone's home at least once without a warrant, which is by now standard procedure. In the end, here is the thing, ridiculous as the whole bell ringing thing is the motive is some good old across the generations revenge. Still the episode was a bit on the ridiculous.
  
•  Gordon Ramsay's F-Word (2005-2010. Reality. Cooking. Food magazine. British series). I commented on this in the July 2020 roundup. Continue on with the second of five seasons.  
• Season 2, Episode 7. This time his amateur brigade are three brothers and one of their friends from Birmingham; compared to the lady doctors these guys are not good at all. The pigs he is raising with his children have one more week before they are sent to the slaughterhouse. In the issue highlight, Gordon looks at how a U.S. signal crayfish has become an invasive species in Britain, so fight the invasion he is advocating for eating more of them. Meanwhile, Giles the posh food critic looks at pimping snacks (and yes, the website for it still exists as of this post). Janet the journalist and foodie looks at sustainable cod farming. Overall, pretty interesting topics in this episode.
  
• Season 2, Episode 8. The big highlight is it is time for Gordon to send the pigs to slaughter, and he does get a little emotional since they've been raising them all season. A warning note: they do show the slaughter process; it is relatively humane (Gordon took the pigs to a small local abattoir), but still if you are sensitive this may be a part to skip. They do the pig's scene at the end of the episode, so if you wish you can watch everything else, the stop at the end of the restaurant cooking. Gordon reveals something interesting and that is that up to this point he himself had never been to an abattoir (British word for slaughterhouse by the way) up to that point, despite that he has cooked so many different things. So it was a learning lesson for him as well. The scene was handled well, serious, straightforward. It is a lesson for us as well to see where the food we eat comes from. The amateur brigade are all ladies this time, farmers' daughters; they did better than the guys in the previous episode. Janet looks at sustainable British veal. Gordon's cooking lesson is with snails this time.
• Season 2, Episode 9. This is the last episode of Season 2. The main dish at the restaurant is pork, the pork Gordon and his kids raised during the season. The lady doctors return as they got the best score during the season to cook with him one more time. On an observation, overall seemed the female teams did better than the males overall. Part of it I think it is that men often came with attitudes and macho posturing, one or two wanting to argue even and Gordon would not put up with. The ladies usually came in, listened, took direction, and often paid attention to detail. Moving along, for the highlight, Gordon takes the pigs to a local butcher to help prepare them for the meal, and from leftover parts, he makes sausage at home with the kids. Gordon then serves the sausages in a barbecue at his home with family and some guests.This episode packs a lot as he cooks a lunch with a British comedian, and later on he has a segment where he goes spear fishing for sea bass. He does cook what he catches right there on the beach. There is also one more segment where Gordon looks at butchers, including visiting a college where they teach a butcher's course. For the challenge, Janet and Hugh are challenging Gordon in making a dessert. Oh, and then there is Gordon's chef cookbook amnesty, where he encouraged people to send him cookbooks they considered crappy. Some he shredded, others he turned into toilet paper, so on. and we find out who are the top three authors. It was a bit of good humor. Overall, a very good ending to the second season. 
• Season 3, Episode 1. New season, new challenge. This time, the amateur brigades are competing for a chance to cook at the end of the season in Gordon's Claridges restaurant. The brigade in this episode are four Eton guys who as Gordon points out likely have not worked a day in their life; they are basically rich kids who are somewhat insufferable. Since TubiTv is missing episodes from the series, I had to find this one elsewhere. YouTube worked this time. Gordon's theme this time is about fast food, as in just because it is fast food does not mean it has to be eating out or pre-made, so he is teaching people how to make quick meals. In one of the segments in this episode, he goes up north to dive for king crabs, all the way to Norway. As for his home, this time he is breeding lamb, so he went to a farm, picked out some sheep to breed and then the lamb produced he will raise in his home. In this episode, the brigade guys were quite bratty to be honest, but the rest of the show was pretty good.
  
• Season 3, Episode 2. The amateurs are firemen this time. Their starter dish is foie gras, not an easy thing to cook (well, easy if you know what you are doing) with arugula and rhubarb. Firemen are known for being able to cook for their peers at the firehouse, however, as we see here, that does not necessarily translate into success in the fast paced kitchen of F-Word. The main course was a ribeye with artichokes, which did look quite good (and I do not even like artichokes). Janet looks at eating horse meat, which they do in France but not so much in Britain. At the time, there were panics over bird flu and mad cow disease, so the segment is looking at meat alternatives. She visits a French horse farm where the horses are raised free range; these are really big horses by the way. She picks out a horse for slaughter and preparation. On a note, while eating horse meat is legal in Britain, due to their sentimentality over horses, it is hard to get the meat and usually it has to be ordered from abroad, which she did (they sent her the meat via post from the horse she chose). With the help of a restaurateur who cooks it, Janet makes a meal with the horse meat. Overall, this was interesting, but I can see where some viewers may be sensitive about the topic. The deal is the horse meat contains much less fat than beef and good in Omega-3, so nutritious, which makes an argument for it.She decides then to get other people to try it, except of all places she goes to a horse track to offer samples. Yea, you read that right, a horse track. Even the police had to come out in case anything happened. Still, she did manage to get plenty of people to try it. As for the lambs, they are six weeks old now and can leave the farm to go with Gordon to London. Oh, and Gordon even helps one of the firemen propose from the kitchen. Overall pretty good episode, definitely better than the previous one with the Eton boys. 
• Season 3, Episode 3. By the way, a small new detail in the third season is he walks in with the main ingredient for the main meal, for example, he brings in a giant halibut fish at the beginning of the episode, which will be used later on.The brigade this time women from Lancashire; three of them sisters; the fourth sells septic tanks. They are very confident, hard working, but not always very attentive (one of them keeps burning the toast that goes with the starter at first). The episode also features James May of Top Gear, who will do the recipe challenge, and Gordon gets to fly in a jet with pilots of the RAF, and then he cooks for them in the segment of good fast food. He also goes hunting with a bird of prey, a golden eagle, to hunt for hare. Hares are quite big, so a falcon is a bit too small to hunt them. He then makes a hare fricassee with a chocolate sauce. This was quite interesting to me both how they caught the hare and him later cooking it for his children. As for the lambs he is raising, they are doing great but they are quickly devouring the lawn, so  new grass needs to be found. Overall, the episode was pretty good with some good humor from the brigade, who did very well.  
• Season 3, Episode 4. The amateur brigade are Eastenders, three women and a man. The women are sisters. Janet this time looks at how foie gras is made comparing French traditional foie gras with ethically made foie gras, which is made in Spain with free range geese and no tubes shoved down their throats. David Gest is a guest. In another segment, Ramsay goes hunting for deer. Alex James challenges in the recipe challenge.It was a nice episode; the brigade was not as good this time; teamwork was an issue for them.
• Season 3, Episode 5. Four real estate agents are his amateur brigade this time. They are quite clumsy, even for amateurs.They can cook at home, but in the restaurant it's like they got two left feet. The sheep move to a new pasture (they do eat a lot and need to be moved now and then). One of the ingredients on the menu is "black pudding" (which is what I would call a sausage, so throws me a off a little when they say pudding and I expect, well, what we call here pudding. I am learning). The black pudding does look pretty good. In one of the segments, he takes his son hunting for rooks (a bird). In part so he can make rook pie, a very old British recipe not really done these days. The birds are pretty much considered a pest because there are so many (probably not many people eating them as they once did). The guest challenge with Chris Moyles was fun. Mr. Moyles eats out a lot; orders a lot of curry for delivery. So Gordon places a delivery order to the same place, and while it arrives, he will cook the same thing within 20 minutes, to show Moyles he can cook at home more. The segments in this one were interesting, but the amateur brigade were quite bad to be honest. Still overall enjoying the show.
  
• George Carlin: Carlin on Campus (1984. Comedy. Stand up). His 1984 performance at UCLA. This show "includes The Prayer, Consumer Hints, Cars and Driving #1, A Place for My Stuff, Newscast #4, Embarrassments and several award-winning animated segments." It is a special from the 1980s, so much of the humor is related to the time period, including humor around AIDS, which was blowing up in the 80s, and the Tylenol scare. The special features some classics, such as his stuff routine, which is a favorite of mine. This one also has some nice and amusing animations too. Overall, the special combines some humor based on the time and some humor that remains pretty universal. His pacing is a bit slower initially, not so much that rapid fire he often does, but once he gets warmed up he is very good. Overall this is an entertaining special and a good look at Carlin's early work. Via TubiTv. 
• George Carlin. . . It's Bad for Ya (2008. Comedy. Stand up). Description: ". . .Carlin's Emmy-nominated 14th and final HBO special from March of 2008 features Carlin's noted irreverent and unapologetic observations on topics ranging from death, religion, bureaucracy, patriotism, overprotected children and big business to the pungent examinations of modern language and the decrepit state of the American culture." He starts the routine with advantages of aging (he had turned 70 by this point), and to be honest, he makes it sound pretty good. Then moves on to the death humor. He does have a great sense of timing as well as transitioning from one topic to another. By now, he has the routine well polished. The humor is good, and his observations on point. By the way, his points about the illusion of rights is spot on, even more so in these Hard Times. There is a reason he was the thinking person's comedian. A good special overall. Via TubiTv.
  

 

 

Booknote: Tarot Healer

Leeza Robertson, Tarot Healer: Using the Cards to Deepen Your Chakra Healing Work. Woodbury, MN: Llewellyn Worldwide, 2020. ISBN: 9780738763767.

 

Genre: nonfiction

Subgenre: Tarot, chakras, self help, cartomancy

Format: e-book galley

Source: NetGalley

 

In my cartomancy journey, I am always looking for good books on Tarot and cartomancy. I'll admit that other than knowing there is a concept of chakras, I came to this book with no real knowledge of what chakras are or what they do. However, I've read and liked books by this author, and I was curious, so I took a chance. I got to learn some new things. I will mention that while you do learn a bit about chakras, the book does assume some prior knowledge. 

The book is arranged as follows: 

• Introduction.
• A chapter for each chakra. Seven chapters total.
• Conclusion.
• Recommended reading list. 
• Bibliography.

In the introduction, the author lays out her roadmap, goals, and makes sure we understand the text does not substitute for medical advice and information. After that, we get a chapter focusing on each chakra. Each chakra chapter has the same structure of seven sections presenting the main issues of each chakra. Each chapter also features exercises to do along with your Tarot deck including spreads. Note that if you read Tarot, and you do not read reversals, there will be reversals here, and the author has a reason for that. I don't usually read cards in reversed/upside down positions (though I can often sense if I need to read a card as a reversal), so the author's use of reversals was not an issue for me. In addition, the author encourages use of journaling; journaling is something I find useful in my own Tarot journey, so I am glad to see it at work here. She also encourages you to use other Tarot books to supplement your learning as needed. 

 A strength of the book is the author's well organized and nurturing teaching style. Even with the very minimal idea  of what a chakra is when I started, I felt I could read, do the exercises, and learn. I can definitely see myself taking time to do the exercises, and I can see how it could deepen my knowledge of Tarot. She takes you step by step, encouraging writing, reflection, and thinking along the way. I read the book through for this review, but this is a book to patiently work through with journal and Tarot cards in hand. 

As I mentioned, the book does assume some prior knowledge of chakras. She gives enough to those of us with minimal knowledge, but if you are like me, consider getting a good book on chakras. Because of that, I was a little disappointed the author did not include a book on chakras in her recommended reading list nor in her bibliography. A title or two could have been helpful. She also mentions doing work with crystals, so again, keep a crystals reference book handy if needed. Do note that using crystals to work with this book is optional. 

Overall, I really like this book, and I would like to try at least some of the exercises out. I do recommend it. 

4 out of 5 stars. 

* * * * * 

Additional reading notes: 

How the author describes the book: 

"Think of this book as a self-study course, one that combines the energetic healing work of the chakra system with the healing energy of the tarot, and although this is not your normal tarot book, you will have plenty of fun with the cards along the way and may even learn a few ways to read the cards differently. This book, in essence, is a book to add to both your energy healing library and your tarot resource library. It is a book that takes you on a journey through your seven chakras and helps you get to know yourself and your body better" (2). 

The author asks us to select a couple of decks to use in the book, although not too clear on why since it seems one deck may be enough. She writes, 

"This will help ground your healing work and make you more comfortable with integrating the tarot cards into your healing journey" (7). 

On journaling: 

"Journaling plays a major role in the healing process, and I recommend you dedicate a journal just for the work you do in this book. Your journal will become an extension of this book and will be the place you collect the information you will need for each of the chakras and each of the issues inside the chakras. You will be using your journal for automatic writing, affirmations, problem-solving, and guided writing work. I advise you to not skip or skim over the journal exercises in this book, but instead, sit with all of them, take your time, and be present with the journal work" (7).

 

* * * * * 

This book qualifies for the following 2020 Reading Challenges: 

#ArcApocalypse

Signs the economy is bad: October 2, 2020 edition

Welcome to another edition of "Signs the Economy is Bad" here at The Itinerant Librarian. This is the semi-regular (as in when I have time and/or feel like doing it) feature where I scour the Internet in search of the oh so subtle hints that the economy is bad. Sure, pundits may say things are getting better, but what do they know? And to show not all is bad, once in a while we look at how good the uber rich have it.


Once more, it is Friday, and it is a new month. My four readers know it is time once again to see how bad the economy is doing. This week it is mostly miscellaneous news, but we do have some interesting individual things also, so let's get on with it.

Rural News

• Out in rural Nebraska, food insecurity is getting worse due to the pandemic. Story via NPR.
  

 

Meanwhile back in the US colony

• There is some serious gentrification going on in Rincón, Puerto Rico. Story via Latino Rebels. To be honest, I have heard the theory before that overall the U.S. plan is to gentrify the island so as to make it unaffordable to the locals, then turn it into a rich white people playground. This story just seems to exemplify that.

 

The Bad Economy  Around the World

• There are more than six million unemployed in Peru due to the pandemic. Story via Telesur.
• In Ireland, 114,00 or so jobs in hospitality are at risk. The hope is the government stepping in to help. Story via Spirits Business.
  

In Other News of the Bad Economy

•  Parents who have lost jobs in the pandemic are struggling also with child care. Story via NPR. Can the U.S. help these people? Probably. Will it choose to do so? Signs point to no. 
• Food insecurity in the United States is getting worse, and NPR has a look at the numbers. 
• A recent survey in Arkansas finds that any gains from declines in poverty are lost now due to the pandemic. Story via Public News Service. 
• Meanwhile in the leisure and hospitality industries: 
• Disney is laying off 28,000 or so workers from its park in California. Story via Al Jazeera.
• NPR reports on other layoffs in the hospitality industry where the workers are losing what little job security they thought they had. 
• Movie theaters are reducing hours or just flat out closing for days at a time due to the bad economy and the pandemic. Story via JoBlo. This is one that I have a hard time having sympathy. Movie theaters have pretty much become obnoxious places where people are allowed to behave like animals in a living room, so to be honest, if they all went bankrupt tomorrow and closed permanently I would not shed a tear. I gave up going to movie theaters years ago because of that bullshit they casually allow. COVID is not making me anymore sympathetic. Just put the movies on some films on demand model and put them out of their misery. 
•  Another bunch of motherfuckers I have little sympathy for is publishers, who again are whining that libraries are taking sales from them, story via Publishers Weekly, this time e-books. One, libraries do buy their merchandise, and for e-books it is often highly overpriced because of said whining (no, we cannot buy e-books for 99 cents from Amazon like regular people do; publishers basically gouge libraries on price then have the gall to bitch when we still buy their stuff and lend it as libraries do), and two, they conveniently forget that library users are often their best customers. 
• The approach of the winter season is not good for small businesses. Story via Al Jazeera. The big deal in the U.S. is that many small businesses like mom and pop restaurants, music teachers, and others could do things like outside seating to keep business going. With winter approaching, outside seating option is lost. 
• If you gringo thought you had it bad, consider yourself lucky if you can still go see a doctor if you get sick, or heaven forbid, get COVID-19. Mexican migrants in the U.S. often cannot afford to see a doctor (or they may not be willing to do so out of fear), so they are turning to home remedies to treat COVID-19 symptoms. Story via Telesur.
• Via The OASG, an interesting piece predicting that the 2020 holiday shopping season is going to be very unusual. For instance, Halloween candy came out much earlier, and Black Friday may not quite be the same. As the old saying goes, we live in interesting times.
  

 

Uber Rich

•  The Pendejo In Chief has had a rough week between the revelation that he is basically a tax cheat (or at least a very unethical tax avoider) and the clusterfuck of the debate thingie this past week. Have you ever wondered how a guy who has declared bankruptcy multiple times and is in debt up to his eyeballs manages to still be wealthy? Well, Al Jazeera has an explainer article detailing how his tax stunts do not change his billionaire status. By the way, Trump is not the only billionaire who does this sort of thing. 
• Being affluent does not mean you could not go hungry as people in rich Bethesda, Maryland are facing serious food security issues. Story via NPR. Yea, those wealthy people driving the fancy cars are having to drive over to the food banks. 
• On the other hand, if you have some money to burn, you could consider investing in your own whiskey collection (story via Maxim), or if you want a pre-made collection, the largest private whiskey collection is about to go on auction, and it could fetch up to $5 million (story via Spirits Business). Meanwhile, I will be over here sipping my cheap whiskey.
  

 

Booknote: Haikus for Jews

David M. Bader, Haikus for Jews: For You, a Little Wisdom. New York: Harmony Books, 1999.  ISBN: 0-609-60502-X.

Genre: poetry

Subgenre: Haikus, Jewish, humor

Format: small hardback

Source: The discards shelf at Hutchins Library, and it is headed back there to pass it on.

This is a cute collection of Jewish-themed haikus, or chai-kus, "so called because of their high chutzpah content." Jews and Gentiles alike can enjoy these good kosher haikus. The book has a short foreword by the author and then we get to the haikus, almost 90 or so. The humor is light and simple, with a bit of Jewish wisdom and wit. The book is a short and quick read that may make you smile. In the end, I liked it. 

3 out of 5 stars. 

Here are a couple of haikus from the book as a sample: 

"Hidden connection--

starvation in Africa,

food left on my plate" (54). 

 

"Heimlich. Is that a

Jewish name? I wonder as

a diner turns blue" (100).