Head still spinning
This has been an incredible day, worthy of a list:
I'll even do a book review at long last.
It's been an exhausting read, but I've almost finished The Journey of Theo by Catherine Clément. It's the story of a boy who is gravely ill, and while his parents worry, his aunt decides to take him on a trip around the world to get acquainted with different religious beliefs. Theo has been raised without a religious background, so he starts as something of an empty slate, and ends up seeing something to admire in all religions. He listens to people, both priests, rabbis and other religious professionals, but also to ordinary people who are living in accordance with their faith, even when they experience doubts.
Obviously, I enjoy the theme of the book, and it's interesting to get a closer look at religions I know next to nothing about. I'm a bit doubtful about the way of telling this story, however. It's a thick book, and a somewhat exhausting dive into all the major religions of the world, with pages and pages detailing the different rites of some religions, and a sort of quarrelsome subtext in the form of Theo's aunt, Marthe, who is cast in the role of a doubting Thomas, but is nonetheless drawn to the mystery cures she makes Theo try. There's a feeling of emotional distance throughout the book, which may well be a translation issue (French is very different from Finnish, grammatically, historically, and culturally), but whatever the reason, I never feel like I'm really getting close to any of the people. It is a good book, and the themes of tolerance and unity are important, but I think it could use a little more heart.
So, that's today. I hope very sincerely that tomorrow will bring more rest and less surprises. The laptop willing, I'll see you then!
- I woke up in the middle of the night, freezing to the point of shivering. Please turn the thermostat up, already!
- My mom's computer apparently broke down completely
- I had to cancel that dentist's appointment, because I've gotten myself a cold at not the ideal time, to say the least, and I actually got another appointment for October, after the moving house, which will be so much better
- I took the bus to the housing center, and got dad to give me a ride the rest of the way, because he called me about having found cardboard boxes for packing my stuff when I move (this is a rare thing nowadays, stores don't hang on to them like they used to)
- The housing people said that my situation is definitely top priority, so likely I will get a flat in time, or at least quite early next month (this was the point where things took a turn for the better)
- We drove to get the cardboard boxes, or some of them, and I found some very inexpensive tea and a nice teapot for brewing loose-leaf tea
- I stayed at my folks for the day, and got the grant application,budget, and schedule done (this goes to show you that there's nothing you can't accomplish while not being distracted by the internet)
- To top it off, when I got back home, after a scrumptious dinner of chicken and saffron rice, I plugged in mom's laptop again, and now it works without any hitches:). It must have had a case of temporary insanity, kind of like I did, when I thought it had broken down for good.
- I found the elusive lop-eared bunny in Fairyland (an adorable Facebook game) after trying for it for a couple of months
- I got an offer for a faster mobile internet device for no extra charge, if I continue using the same operator, and I said yes.
- I summoned up the energy to improve on the schedule, and wrote the application and schedule on the laptop, and sent them off. One less thing to worry about tomorrow
I'll even do a book review at long last.
It's been an exhausting read, but I've almost finished The Journey of Theo by Catherine Clément. It's the story of a boy who is gravely ill, and while his parents worry, his aunt decides to take him on a trip around the world to get acquainted with different religious beliefs. Theo has been raised without a religious background, so he starts as something of an empty slate, and ends up seeing something to admire in all religions. He listens to people, both priests, rabbis and other religious professionals, but also to ordinary people who are living in accordance with their faith, even when they experience doubts.
Obviously, I enjoy the theme of the book, and it's interesting to get a closer look at religions I know next to nothing about. I'm a bit doubtful about the way of telling this story, however. It's a thick book, and a somewhat exhausting dive into all the major religions of the world, with pages and pages detailing the different rites of some religions, and a sort of quarrelsome subtext in the form of Theo's aunt, Marthe, who is cast in the role of a doubting Thomas, but is nonetheless drawn to the mystery cures she makes Theo try. There's a feeling of emotional distance throughout the book, which may well be a translation issue (French is very different from Finnish, grammatically, historically, and culturally), but whatever the reason, I never feel like I'm really getting close to any of the people. It is a good book, and the themes of tolerance and unity are important, but I think it could use a little more heart.
So, that's today. I hope very sincerely that tomorrow will bring more rest and less surprises. The laptop willing, I'll see you then!