Tag Archives: The Glass Constellation

Unbuilding (a Book Review)

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Just finished reading a fun book, Unbuilding by David Macaulay. It’s children’s lit, but great fun. In 1989, a Saudi Prince buys the Empire State Building, has it dismantled, labeled, etc., and put on a ship to Saudi where it can be reassembled. This is the story of Unbuilding the Empire State Building. It’s full of pen and ink drawings, and if you have any budding architects, engineers, or builders in your sphere, you might want to consider the book for them. It’s available from Bookshop.org or if you don’t mind a used book, from abebooks.com. Or from your favorite indie bookstore.

I’m going to have to try his other books. Well, some of them. He’s got bunches and they look way fascinating. He’s got at least 25 listed on Bookshop.org. ranging from Castle to The Way Things Work to Mammoth Math: Everything You Need to Know About Numbers to Rome Antics. I’ll probably skip the Mammoth Math—it’s hardback, and I prefer softback /snort/. (for those of you who don’t know, I prefer letters and words to numbers and equal signs)

However, since I’m on the topic of books, when Covid hit, I attended a book launch by Arthur Sze of his book The Glass Constellation sponsored by Rain Taxi. It was via a zoom-type of program, so no one was crammed in a seat next to 100 of their new best friends, we were all given our own little “room” on a screen. Sze was maybe a quarter of the way through with his presentation, and I had already ordered the book. I’d never heard of him before that night, but that’s how impressed I was with his poetry. When my book came, it’s a compendium of several of his earlier books, all bound together with new and selected poems. I literally consumed the book withing r or 5 days. I have since added several other books to my collection, including his latest, or one of his latest ones, Into The Hush. Not only do I love the book, but I was invited to join a group of poets who will gather for 6 meetings to study the book, its poems, and do writings inspired/based on his poems in the book. 

The small group I am in (3 per group) decided to study/work on Letter to Tao Qian. Thanks to Favorite Daughter, I have The Silk Dragon II, a book of Chinese poems Sze translated, and the first 5 poems are by the Ancient Chinese poet, Tao Qian. It’s very interesting to read those 5 poems and find the references in Sze’s poem. Homework has never been such fun. 

My Winter Gift from me to me this year was Sze’s book, The White Orchard. It is a collection of some of his interviews,  essays, and some poetry. The most interesting parts to me are the areas where he talks about how he writes. He often uses disparate phrases and fragments of sentences for his lines, but all of the lines are deliberate, and in a deliberate order. Because we all bring our own stories to the ones we read, we are each given our own interpretation as to what his lines mean. Is he telling us to stop, relax, breathe, acknowledge there is evil in the world, but to spend more time on the beauty? I have started writing “like” Sze, but not like him. My mind is trainable, but I don’t want his voice, I want his style. I want to keep my own voice. I want someone to read my poem and say, “Ah, she’s read Arthur Sze!” It is very difficult for me to think in segments and fragments, but I have written a couple of poems with one-line stanzas, in disparate fragments. I am also working on a long, sectioned poem like he writes, with each section being in a different format. Those are the poems that caused me to order The Glass Constellation.

Of course, there are many poets out there I really like—the ever-gracious Naomi Shihab Nye, the late Lucille Clifton, the late Paul Monette, the effervescent Diane Seuss, and the incomparable Eduardo C. Corral. But I am in Literary Lust with Arthur Sze 😉

Imagine You Are Madame Dorion

So, I log onto YouTube and am looking at the videos on my home page, and notice a photo of buffalo in a snow storm that looks familiar, like one I took, and then I look at the words, and it IS one of my photos from when my friend and publisher of Madame Dorion put together a promo video for my book. Wow! Something from ten years ago showed up—a whole video of my photos.  On my YouTube home page. If you didn’t get it on your home page, it is here — a smidge under 7 minutes. And, if you haven’t read the book, you can find it at your favorite bookstore (they may have to order it) or at bookshop.org. Historical fiction at its finest, not that I’m biased—or bragging. By the way, the cover on Madame Dorion was painted by a descendant of Madame Dorion.

And Remember

If you don’t yet have your copy of Saying Goodbye to Thomas, you may pick up, or order, a copy from your favorite bookstore, or order a copy here, at Bookshop.org. All proceeds go to the ALS Association and End of Life Washington/Death With Dignity.

William Stafford Challenge

Today, 16 February 2026, is the 31st day of the William Stafford Challenge. The Challenge goes from 17 Jan to 17 Jan (his birthday, and we write a poem a day), on the 17th of January, I had written 22 poems, having started on the first of January. By this morning my number of poems written is currently 68. More will come this day, I am sure. 

Now, they aren’t all good poems, though a couple are, but they are all seeds to go back and edit, revise, and have good poems emerge. 

A fond memory of my road trip through the Southwest a couple years ago. The tall skinny ones are saguaro cactus. It was warm. Blessedly warm.

Be Happy, Be Well, Be Safe

Too Much Cancel Culture?

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Weather in the Tries: Rain for Sunday, looks to be cloudy with sun breaks throughout the week, high of mid-low 60s until 68 On Thursday, going down to 55 after. Nighttime lows mostly in 40s, but next Saturday heading into 30s.

Hey! Thanks to all of you who contacted me to see how I was feeling. By the time you read the blog I was considerably better, perchance if you read it in the afternoon, I was back to my normal curmudgeonly self.

Boy Howdy! Have we gone overboard on Cancel Culture or what?

I agree it’s sometimes hard to separate the good guys from the bad guys, and what do we do when a bad guy is really, really talented somehow?

Years ago, I became in literary lust with a particular author. He wrote prose, he wrote poetry, and as far as I know, he still does. Good stuff, at least the stuff I read. And then it came out that he also used his fame and glory to molest women, that he used his fame and glory and higher status to his benefit, but not anyone else’s.

I immediately cancelled him out of my life. But I couldn’t toss his books. I just couldn’t. a) I’d invested too many dollars in them and b) I’d invested too much time and c) they were just too darned good. 

Life isn’t black and white. There are many shades of gray between the black and the white. Why should I give up good writing, something I enjoy, just because? Besides, he doesn’t come home to my house, he goes home to his house, his wife, his kidlets. But it’s hard to separate the Art from the Artist.

Take Thomas Jefferson. Please. I’m finding it very difficult to find any socially redeeming qualities about him. Yes, he was a fantastic writer of fiction. Read our Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Aren’t they beautiful? Well, if you belong to the dominant caste, I guess they are. But if you belong to a lesser caste, they ain’t.

Speaking of the dominant caste in this country, what is it the White Supremacists say? If you have a bucket of white paint and put a single drop of black in it, it is no longer white? Well, they need to get their DNA done. All of us are at least 3% African American, and many are more. All of our ancestors walked out of Africa at one time or another.

And the Aryan Race? According to Wikipedia that is “a debunked historical race concept which emerged in the late 19th century.” Some were pale, many were darker brown. Oh, my. It’s an interesting article, check it out. But then, the term “Race” is a human construct. It’s one way for the dominant caste to keep the subordinate castes subordinate.

But, back to Jefferson. He did write beautifully. And he did recognize his own hypocrisy. But from what I’ve read he did not free his slaves when he died, except for Sally Hemmings. He did not free his children by her, because he was in such horrendous debt, but he did allow them to “walk” and often asked trusted friends to help, especially with his daughters. Some of his sons helped build the college they would never be allowed to attend. I’ve also read in several places that his sons were unmistakably his. At least Washington freed his slaves on his death.

I wonder what threat or inducement Jefferson used on Sally to get her to return to slavery, for she was legally free when they lived in Paris. She could have left him at that time, there was help. I wonder if she thought she loved him. Once she got on the ship heading west, she was doomed. He owned her siblings, at least some. Perhaps they were the price she paid. He is said to have said that Sally had sons, he didn’t.

Something like twelve of our early presidents owned people. And then, we have President Abraham Lincoln who said, “As I would not be a slave, so I would not be a master. This expresses my idea of democracy. Whatever differs from this, to the extent of the difference, is no democracy.” (Definition of Democracy, August 1, 1858?) Surely, there are some socially redeeming qualities to those 12. They knew it was wrong, some freed their slaves on their deaths. I wonder if any of them kept families together?

Enough of my ranting. I had ancestors on both sides. No wonder I’m conflicted!

Photos of the Week:

Fall is arriving. Bateman Island from my back yard. Note the fog by the water.

Curb maker. The concrete goes into a bin (my technical term) and gets extruded as a curb. You can see one across the street. No forms to build or remove. Kinda fun. But still not as excited as the Road Eater from a few weeks ago.

Entertainment:

Alas no new movies or series. And, no, my love of K-Drama has not made me even a wee bit curious about Squid Games. Have any of you seen it. Whatcha think?

Books: Remember, if I finish a book, I review it here.

O.M.G!!! I finished reading The Glass Constellation by Arthur Sze. What a fantastic book. I loved it. I am in deep literary lust! There wasn’t a single poem in the book (560 pages) I didn’t love. Some I loved more than others. I am in awe of his long poems where sections are numbered. Shucks, I am in awe of him!  If you don’t want to make a long-term commitment, don’t buy this book, but buy one or two of his smaller ones. Go to your library and check one out.   

I also got some other reviews up for books (novels) I finished a couple weeks ago—A Day Like This: A Novel —by Kelley McNeil, Peace of Music (Book 1 of 3) —by Denise Kahn, Swimmer in the Secret Sea —by William Kotzwinkle.

“I am naturally anti-slavery. If slavery is not wrong, nothing is wrong. I can not remember when I did not so think, and feel.” April 4, 1864 – Letter to Albert Hodges 

The two Lincoln quotes are from Abraham Lincoln’s Quotes on Slavery. 

Poor Sammy Brave Dog. The Zombie Leaf Warriors keep attacking him to eat puppy brains. Leaves have fallen off the trees, and the wind skitters them across the parking lot, or down the sidewalk, and he doesn’t like them at all! I suppose if I was his size and that close to the ground, and dried leaves blew in my face, I wouldn’t like it, either. He sends pupkisses to you all!! And Auntie Lenora sends virtual and socially distanced hugs to each and every one of you ;-)cancel culture

The Almost Chinese Incident

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Weather in the Tries: Well, we get more Hot weather from low 90s to 102 for the highs and down in the 60s for the lows. Unless, of course, that butterfly in Beijing starts doing the Salsa with his buddies.

The Almost Chinese Incident:

My mother’s name was Verona “Vera” Mae McBrayer. Then she married Daddy and added Good, then a few years after their divorce she met and married Lyle G. “Sandy” Sanderson. I put all the names there in case someone says, “Hey, I used to know someone like her.” Who knows, maybe it is. Was. Whatever.

Mom always loved all things Chinese, starting when she was a kid. (By the way, there may be a pop quiz worth 100% of your grade by the end, so pay attention to all these disparate parts.) When a child she found a nearly perfect Chinese red teacup and saucer at a garage sale for a dime. I say nearly perfect because the glaze had cracked all over and only the encrusted dirt held it together. She loved that cup and saucer. I was seldom allowed to look at it as I might get greasy eye marks all over it. I was never allowed to touch it!

By the time she learned to draw and paint, she was copying the Chinese style of art. She loved cooking Chinese food. That was her primary hobby, and during WWII when she couldn’t buy water chestnuts, she learned to make her own out of new potatoes! (Peel them, slice them, soak them in sugar water for an hour or more.)

As she could, she collected Chinese and Asian artifacts. Beautiful things of carved stone. She collected art. She collected friends. After I moved out of the house, she decided to take Chinese language lessons and enrolled at the Chinese Benevolent Society in Seattle for same. She became the first, and possibly the only, European woman to be elected secretary of the Society. And she met people, including the Chinese Consulate and his wife and entourage.

Now, mom and Sandy lived in a very nice house, I’m guessing 1920s architecture, and the kitchen was large with glass doors on all the cabinets. Mom loved to cook, and as noted above, loved to cook Chinese food and she and Sandy had the Consulate and group to the house for dinner one night. Mom was in the kitchen cooking. The Consulate came in to talk to her. That was fine, she enjoyed the company, but then he started looking in her cupboard. Mom’s back stiffened. Two things my mom couldn’t stand—people getting into her things, and people insisting on helping her cook.

He opened the cupboard door. Mom debated whether that was worth an international incident. Then, he touched her most prized possession in the whole wide world—her cracked glaze teacup. He not only touched it, he had the temerity to lift it and the saucer out of the cupboard. Mom looked at the knife she was just slicing veggies with.

“Vera, may I have some silver polish and a rag, please?”

Poor mom. Not only was he holding her most prize possession (hint: higher value than me, I’m sure) now he wanted to polish it? To take a chance and dislodge that cracked glaze? How big an incident would it be to use the knife and rescue her prized teacup?

She handed him the polish and a clean rag, and even managed a smile. He started working on the bottom of one of the pieces. Smiled like a Chinese Cheshire Cat and said, “Hah! I thought so. Ming Dynasty, silver inlay. Now, you finish polishing after we all go home.” He carefully put her cup and saucer back in the cupboard, then went on with his conversation.

Mom’s back relaxed. Dinner was a success! Imagine, buying a Ming Dynasty cup and saucer, in perfect condition, for a dime! Imagine thinking that tarnished silver was dirt!

I had totally forgotten this story until a couple days ago. 

After mom died, Sandy remarried, and then Peggy died, and he chanced upon his grade-school sweetheart, Emma who was also widowed. They married and had a few years together before he died. Now you may recall that Mother had collected several artifacts. When she died, they were to go to the Chinese Museum in Seattle. I’m not sure if it was Wing Luke or the Seattle Asian Art Museum, but I think the latter. I was never told for sure, only that they were donated, and forgot about them. Until some time after Sandy died when Emma contacted me to return some of my mom’s things. I saw a couple other items in the house and recognized them, but figured Sandy had bought them for Mom, and figured he’d give them to Emma. And they were in a good home and being enjoyed.

Well, as happens, Emma died a while back, and her daughter called and brought several items that were Mom’s, including the few pieces I’d seen in the house earlier. Very few pieces, the museum must have taken 90-95% of the pieces she donated. So now I am trying to get my little apartment re-vamped and organized to make room for all the new stuff including the model of the Junk. She loved that Junk. I think when the house is rearranged, it will find a home on my Chinese Altar table.

Photo of the Week:

Mom’s prized Junk. The case is 30″ x 34″ by 14″

Gracious: I saw something on my window and looked. A baby, or small, bat was climbing down the screen. I went outside to see and couldn’t find him. Tiny, he was scrunched in the corner of the screen and window. Somehow, he’d gotten inside the screen, between it and the window. I managed to get the screen off, and he flew away. THEN I thought of my camera. Sigh. Why was Bat out at 3:00 on a sunny day?

Entertainment:

Netflix: Still enjoying my Korean series, Hospital Playlist. And have started Sense8. If you liked the Matrix movies, I think you’ll like this series, though so far, I haven’t been given the choice of a red or green pill. But there are drugs, and I can pretty much guarantee that what you see isn’t what was there. Great fun. Directed by the Wachowskis (Lana and Lilly). Written by J. Michael Straczynski.

Books: Remember, when I finish a book, I review it at Rainy Day Reads.

Finished Dead Heat —by Patricia Briggs. Number four in the Alpha Omega series. Took me two days to read it only because I started reading it at night, in bed. Would you do anything to live forever? There’s a price to pay for that, you know. You get to say ‘goodbye’ to too many people as they grow old and die. Joseph was an old man, dying. His father wanted Joseph’s best friend to ‘turn’ him, make him a were like they are. But the Morrock has said no one can be turned against their will and live. Dad pleaded with his son, but his son refused. Dad pleaded with son’s best friend, Charles, son and enforcer of the Morrock. Tricky, tricky situation. Throw an Omega into the mix and just be sure the cinch is tight, because you’re heading off on the ride of a lifetime.

I am still reading Calling Bullsh*t: The Art of Skepticism in a Data-Driven World —by Carl T. Bergstrom / Jevin D. West. Am still reading The Glass Constellation by Arthur Sze. Two good books going on at the same time. I think Auntie Lenora is going to get little else done but reading for a few hot days 😉

Writing: The Bride’s Gate and Other Assorted Writings, An Eclectic Reader for Eclectic Readers. is just about complete and ready to go to be proofread. At this rate, it should be available in plenty of time for Christmas. You can buy for gifts, for yourself and friends. 

Quote of the Week:

“It’s easy to forgive the mistake from others. But it’s hard to rebuild the trust that has been destroyed.” —https://www.searchquotes.com/quotes/about/Friendship/

OK, I lied about the pop quiz. Too hard to collect all the answers, then give a grade. Sammy says I’m a pushover. What can I say? Have a great week, stay safe, stay cool, stay hydrated and we’ll see you again next week. Honest. Trust me.