Shakespeare on the Common

Every summer the Commonwealth Shakespeare Company puts on a free performance of one of Shakespeare’s plays on the Boston Common. This year’s show, As You Like It, is currently being performed at the Parkman Bandstand on the Common. As You Like It is a comedy about love, loyalty and friendship. I had not previously read or seen this particular play but I very much enjoyed it and would highly recommend it. It’s playing now through Sunday August 3rd. So, if you like Shakespeare, or are just looking for something to do that won’t cost you anything, grab some friends and a picnic and head down to the Boston Common.

The Omnivore’s Dilemma and American Portions

Earlier this year I read The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan.  When I was reading it a woman approached me and mentioned that she loved it and it had made her change her entire diet. While I haven’t gone that far, I did really enjoy the book and I do think much more about food and where it comes from.  I haven’t really changed my diet, but I’ve become aware of “agribusinesses” and what goes into our food and how it gets to us.  For Pollan, eating is a political act, not only due to our own choices, but for the ways in which the US government has regulated agricultural policy, and the energy and other resources required to get food to us. Towards the end of The Omnivore’s Dilemma, Pollan suggests that Sigmund Freud should have studied people and their relationship with food, to get a better understanding of human neuroses.  Post-Omnivore, I do find “food” articles downright fascinating.  Hot topics like globalization, the recession, obesity, and the environment linked to an essential aspect of survival that can seem routine.  Two recent articles focus on the gargantuan size of many American portions.  One is titled “U.S. Food Portions: Monuments to American Decadence?” and it tackles the growing food crisis is a global problem, and one in which the US bears responsibility.  I like to eat out and (I assume), like most people I like to think I eat healthy.  However, it’s not hard to imagine why some might blame Americans for other countries food shortages when a popular menu item exceeds your ‘healthy’ caloric intake for the day.  (Healthy defined in this case as the number of calories consumed in order to maintain the same weight).  I love red meat, and so I’m pleased to see that it can sometimes be a (relatively) healthy and delicious option.  To leave things on a more positive note, you can also read about one business school student who is committed to agricultural sustainability and had some very positive things to say about her experience at Whole Foods.  Have any of you read The Omnivore’s Dilemma?  What do you think of the food business?  And do you think Boston (like New York) will require restaurants to publish calorie counts anytime soon?

The summer of Bill Bryson

Like the title of this post explains, this whole summer (year, really) has been all about Bill Bryson for me, and continues to get better as I dive deeper into his collection of works. As an internationally-known travel writer, Bryson is both informative and hilarious, a combination of qualities that aren’t usually seen in his colleagues. I started off my obsession by reading his book on Australia titled “In A Sunburned Country.” He traveled from the city of Perth on Oz’s west coast all the way over to Queensland in the east. He was very funny, and yet scared me to death with his stories about saltwater crocs and his enthusiastic emphasis on the fact that the top ten deadliest snakes and spiders in the world all reside down under. Recently I finished his most famous book, “A Walk in the Woods,” about his adventures hiking the Appalachian Trail. Bryson was probably at his funniest while writing this book, and I would recommend it to anyone who would like to know more about why he has achieved such a state of celebrity in the writing world. I’m currently reading his book about returning to America after living in England for two decades, “I’m a Stranger Here Myself: Notes on Returning to America After 20 Years Away.” Instead of one cohesive piece, it’s a collection of columns he wrote for a New Hampshire-based newspaper, so there’s no plot. I still think he’s hilarious but I like it better when he tells a story. I recommend Bill Bryson to anyone who enjoys traveling, has any semblance of a sense of humor, and doesn’t feel like leafing through a fat reference book in order to learn something about the rest of the planet.

Is reading on the Web really reading?

Here I go again on the subject of the Internet and our changing reading habits. I just finished reading a New York Times article (yes, I read it online) (also, be warned, it’s LONG for a web article) focusing on children and teenagers and whether the reading they do on the Internet is as valuable for their intellectual development as reading books. It reports that the number of teens who read books for pleasure is down, according to surveys — but does that matter, if they are still reading for pleasure but now primarily from online sources? The article discusses both sides of the issue and doesn’t draw any conclusions one way or the other, but it’s interesting food for thought. Do you think kids get the same value from reading blogs, online fan fiction, and so on, as they do from reading novels or nonfiction books?