Now we're cookin'

From: ldavid@____
To: ldavid@___
CC: annerutledge2010@______
Sent: 3/28/2014 3:48:40 P.M. Central Daylight Time
Subj: Brain/Food: need help on two choices

Dear Brain/Fooder,

For our five Brain/Food gatherings this summer, we now have three certainties for July and two uncertainties for late June and mid-August. So I'm seeking your frank responses, if you have strong reactions pro or con, as we edge toward the last two decisions.

The certainties: on July 10 we'll show Baz Luhrmann's movie of The Great Gatsby to anticipate EMFA's Gatsby-era gala musicale two days later. On July 17 Kristi Dahm will talk about Winslow Homer's watercolors to inaugurate a plein air painting weekend. On July 31 we'll have a new adventure: Harriet Power and Bob Hedley will lead a discussion of Nina Raine's 2010 play Tribes ($7.60 or less at Amazon). They'll ask some volunteers to rehearse and read a few scenes too, under Harriet's internationally acclaimed direction. Tribes dramatizes an argumentative family with a deaf son whose new girlfriend is going deaf. It raises unsettling questions about how people talk and listen in various tribal hierarchies.

Now to the decisions I need your help to make. First, for August 14, Rick Freeman and Peter Hodgson are keen to lead a discussion of Tolstoy's The Death of Ivan Ilyich and Confession, in a new Peter Carson translation, and I like that idea a lot too. Each text is about 100 pp. of big print, not difficult to read, and both raise what Peter calls "intensely interesting questions" about aging, rethinking one's life, lots of issues. Carson's translation of both texts comes in one hardback, available for $17 at Amazon, and Rick says it's cheaper on Nook or Kindle.

I'm excited about discussing Tolstoy's late narratives, but I'm not sure whether to do it as a regular gathering or as an extra. If more than 15 of you tell me you'd be likely to come on August 14 (right now 8 say yes, though a couple of those seem a little dutiful), then that's what we'll do. If it's likely to be a smaller group, we'll do it as an informal gathering in somebody's house. Rick and Peter even say they'll be reading War and Peace this summer, in the Pevsear-Volokhonsky translation, and I might read it too.

Not that there's anything wrong with that.

The potential downside of saying yes: if Tolstoy becomes the subject of our final gathering, that means no Brain/Food discussion of a more contemporary novel this summer. Right now Mohsin Hamid's How to Get Filthy Rich in Southeast Asia is the closest to a front runner, though it got some mixed or negative responses too. A new possibility is Richard Ford's novel, Canada. I've received mixed or negative responses along with enthusiasm for Penelope Lively's Moon Tiger, Adam Johnson's The Orphan Master's Son, Donna Tartt's The Goldfinch, Sonia Sotomayor's My Beloved World, Jeannette Haien's The All of It, Jennifer Egan's Look at Me, Henry James's What Maisie Knew, and Amor Towles' Rules of Civility, among others. Given the iffyness about all these possibilities, settling on Ivan Ilyich and Confession is fine with me. The question is whether that's okay with many of you. So please let me know: would you be likely to come to a Tolstoy Ilyich/Confession discussion on August 14, or would you pass on it? If you'd rather not, what book would you prefer?

The second decision: for the opening movie on June 26, the current front runner is Sarah Polley's quasi-documentary about her mother, Stories We Tell, with only a couple of of responders who say Don't want to see it again or Rather not. The other two strongest possibilities: Spike Jonze's Her or Short Term 12, about a damaged yet resilient young woman trying to connect with more damaged foster home transients. Its sometimes quiet dialogue may warrant subtitles, which weren't available on our Netflix disk. Another strong contender is The Past, by the Iranian director of A Separation, which we showed at Brain/Food a couple of years ago, though The Past is a little over two hours long and its plot ambiguously darkens. Some Brain/Fooders don't want movies or books that are "too depressing"; others like edge. Several responders suggest showing Twenty Feet from Stardom, though a few others think it's too slight or there's not enough to talk about. Other suggestions that haven't yet been squashed: Blue Jasmine and Incendies.

If you have strong responses yea or nay to the Tolstoy session on August 14 and/or to what movie we should see on June 26, please let me know. If you've told me already, no need to tell me again. If you have other movie or book suggestions, it's not too late to mention them. Summer can't come too soon --

David

March 31 deadline

The below is from the EMAA website.  Please note the March 31 deadline is not applicable for summer internships at the Treetop Diaries.

The EMAA is gearing up for summer 2014.

                                                                         Check out the Summer 2014 Schedule tab for important dates

The following positions are open for application.

                                                                          Application deadline is March 31st 2014

                                                Athletic Director – to facilitate and oversee the EMAA athletic programs

                                               3 Assistant Athletic Director

                                              Editor/The Tree Top Eagle

                                              Water Carnival Commissioner

                                               T-shirt Shop Manager

                                               Sailing instructor

The Eagles Mere Tennis Center will be seeking:

                                             EMTC manager

                                            EMTC assistant pro

                                            All applicants should submit a resume and 2 recommendations to:

Elizabeth Scheff, EMAA Program Director

elizabethscheff@me.com/119 Troutstream Drive/Vernon Ct 06066

Please feel free to email or call 860-872-1668 with any questions.

Long trip

Whew, that was a long trip to Walmart!  You'd think I went all the way to Montoursville and back!

Getting wrapping paper

I will be off to Walmart's today to get wrapping paper for the graduation presents that The Blogging Eagle will give to all the 2014 graduates.

Graduation head start

We are interested in a graduation head start too.  We would like to give all graduates a free one year subscription to the Treetop Diaries.

From: tiseye@mailstation.com
Sent: 3/15/2014 2:11:37 P.M. Central Daylight Time
Subj: from Edwina

Am trying to get a head start with 2014 graduations that are fast coming up.

I already have a short list of children/grandchildren that will be graduating,
starting in May and continuing through June, but thought I would reach out to
everyone on my "email blast list" so you can send me information on those who
will be graduating from high school and/or college.

For high school graduates - I need name, name of high school, date of graduation
and where they will be going to college.

For college graduates - I need name, name of college, date of graduation and what degree
was obtained.

Your help in this would be appreciated so I can line up all the information for my
Eagles Mere columns.

Thanks, Edwina

Rumors not true

The rumors are not true.  I am not selling the Treetop Diaries to the Treetop Eagle.

Interviewing for summer interns?

Hey, you don't think Blogging Eagle is off interviewing sweet young things for summer internships at the Treetop Diaries, do you?

Where's Blogging Eagle?

Blogging Eagle has gone missing for a couple of days here.  Shame on Blogging Eagle.

How's my sense of humor?

http://youtu.be/slk7yCySQ3s#aid=P9hs0tsbjvI

Room to grow

It's amazing how much goes on in so small a place as EM.  We managed about zilch reporting about this venue last summer.  Maybe our horizons can expand in 2014.

We found this too

There's a lot of rummaging that can be done in the remnants of the old website.  Here is:

The 2012 birthday present

Salvaging archives

We dug into our old stuff and found this fun, tongue in cheek entry filed under "Sports Week Archive."

Lake swim 2010
 

Lake swim ends at the ladder (not shown) that is on left side of this dock.

Type of canoe used in canoe race
 

 Lake run turns up from Laurel Path shortly before this wooden footbridge.  Bike race goes across the adjacent road bridge on the road.   

Lockers sometimes used to change attire between nail driving competiton and cannonball splash.

 No doggie paddle event in sports week, sorry
 

 Many years ago the village clock might have been used to time the lake run and the bike race.
 

 Do not look for any sports week results to be posted here:
 

 This bench at outlet pond is not in high demand for viewing sports week events:

The Regatta is not part of sports week.
 

Tee hee, nor this either:
       

The pinkie people eater

Perfect

Did you already get this from Edwina?

http://wnep.com/2014/03/01/eagles-mere-a-rich-history/

 

Will this work?

The below link dispatched many a rain spoiler sky in the summer.  I don't know how it may work during a spring Snow In.

http://youtu.be/kjxSCAalsBE?t=2m31s

From JB on 2/4/13

Last year, JB sent me this pic of his car's outside temp thermometer on February 4, 2013.  Consider it filler pending my receiving your youtube song video requests.

 

The Great March Snow In

The Great March Snow In moves us, humbly, to suggest a youtube song video marathon, for however long it lasts.  If you are breaking up your furniture to throw in the fireplace to keep warm, and you still have an Internet connection, please send us requests for your viewing and listening pleasure.  Just give us the youtube link in an email, or leave it in a note on the Comments entry.  If you don't give us something, well, you may remember Jessica from the old website.

http://youtu.be/oM-Gg5YwBNY

Remember this?

This was a headliner in last summer's Labor Day weekend youtube song video marathon.

http://youtu.be/X9H_cI_WCnE

It should have been played in the 2012 Labor Day weekend marathon to
commemorate the 2012 T-shirt, but there was not a song video marathon in 2012.

I'm keeping mine

From: tiseye@mailstation.com
Sent: 3/1/2014 8:23:40 A.M. Central Standard Time
Subj: EM Museum needs your help
From: ____@______
Subject: Info Request
Date: March 1, 2014 8:44:09 AM EST
Hey Edwina
Would you mind sending out this request for information please (I'll get in touch with you re: your copies of Directories when you return):
As part of an ongoing research project on Cottage history, the Eagles Mere Museum is in need of the following information:
(a) Copies of “Title Search” documents of property/cottage records. The Museum has two Abstracts of Title (Title Searches), both for Eagles Mere Park Cottages: Section 5 lot 1 – 1951 Boak family, and Section 3 lots 7, 9, & 11 – 1955 Treneer family.
(b) Copies of very early Eagles Mere Park plan of Section and Lot numbers. The Museum has the May 1969 lot plan which is corrected to 1972.
(c) Copies of any Chautauqua land maps showing lot boundaries, if any
(d) Copies of Realtor rental listings of cottages. The Museum has Kehrer’s numbering plan of rental cottages circa 1930 and listings for 1929, ~1949-58, and 1977. The Museum does not have any numbering plan for Eagles Mere Park rental cottages.
(e) Copies of Eagles Mere Phone Directories. The Museum has 2004-2014.
If you have any of these items that you would like to donate to the Museum OR that you would be willing to either send legible copies to the Museum and/or loan to the Museum for copying, please contact Jack Leo at _____@aol.com or PO Box 302.

The below are all I've got, and I'm hanging on to them!

Water Carnival 2015

It is too soon to think about Water Carnival 2015.