Leif The Curious

"Erikson Day is an annual observance that occurs on October 9. 

It honors Leif Erikson (Old Norse: Leifr Eiríksson), the Norse explorer who, in approximately 1000 AD, led the first Europeans believed to have set foot on the continent of North America (other than Greenland).

Because the exact date of Leif's arrival to the Americas is unknown, the October 9 date was chosen in commemoration of the Restauration's arrival to New York Harbor in 1825 carrying some of the first Norwegian immigrants to the United States." - Wikipedia

How 'bout some sillies?

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October 9 is also Curious Events Day, celebrating the strange, odd, and weird. 

If you have a questioning and curious mind, this is your day!

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A New Art Theft in France

"330-Pound Dalí-Designed Bronze Book Cover Stolen from French Museum"

"A bronze book jacket designed by famed Surrealist Salvador Dalí and weighing 330 pounds was swiped from a small private museum in Issoire, France, in an overnight theft this past weekend, Le Monde reports. Encrusted with precious stones, seashells, and cutlery, the cover is believed to have been taken between October 4 and October 5.

The jacket housed the pages of the Livre de l’Apocalypse, also known as the Book of Revelation or the Apocalypse of St. John, and was part of a 1958–61 collaboration between Dalí and thirteen other artists and writers commissioned by French publisher Joseph Forêt. Among the contributors to the volume were Bernard Buffet, Jean Cocteau, Leonor Fini, Léonard Foujita, Jean Giono, and Ossip Zadkine."

Am so very thankful to have seen with my own eyes several original Dalí pieces...not the stolen one, however...and while his surrealist art takes some getting used to, the viewer knows that the techniques and skill are amazing.

Cat Man Salvator Dalí

May 11, 1904 – January 23, 1989

So, how 'bout a few sillies?

Let's Hop!

Autumn Busy

It's Walkin' and Readin' Wednesday!

Truth!

The weather is autumn in the shade, but still summertime in the hot sun around here.

Niko has no shame.

A twofer!

Nice white jabot, kitty!

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Audiobook recommendations:

The Hurricane Wars Trilogy by Thea Guanzon

Narrated by Jeanne Syquia and Kaleo Griffith

Book #1: The Hurricane Wars

Book #2: A Monsoon Rising

Book #3: The Shattered Tempest

My two cents: War, magic, technology, found family, and imperial politics, with a helping of enemies-to-lovers-but-still-enemies.  

Action packed, based on Southeast Asian mythology, so it differs from other authors who use Norse or Greek/Roman mythology.

As I type this, I'm 50% through Book #3, and I will do nothing else but listen to this spellbinding story.

Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed

Narrated by Bernadette Dunne

My two cents: An older audiobook, which was made into a decent film, details the authors determination to pull her life together after her mother's death, and her divorce.

Walking the Pacific Crest Trail for 1,100 miles in 94 days mostly alone isn't my idea of getting my head on straight, but that's the beauty of this story: being in charge of yourself is the best remedy, despite a blisters, lost boots, hinkey hikers, and snowfall when you are in shorts.

Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss

Narrated by Christine Hewitt

My two cents: A novella really, but what a journey in a short listen!  Silvie and her family are living as if they are ancient Britons, surviving by the tools and knowledge of the Iron Age, with an archeologist and his students.  This is harsh living, made worse by Silvie's violent father.  The back-and-forth between modern thinking against the backdrop of scrounging for food and living in nature, artfully written and performed, really made me think, and think, and think some more. 

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