Black Rabbit Ink

Happy Thanksgiving!

A Macy's Thanksgiving Day blast from the past. Have a great holiday!

 

 

Frigidaire Refrigerator Ad 1957

Frigidaire Refrigerator Ad
Originally uploaded by saltycotton

I love old ads. They're quirky and nostalgic and awesome. And a lot of them can be found on Flickr. Some are so kitschy they just have to be shared. So I present you with this Flickr gem!

Pink appliances, 27 ice cubes in 4 - yes folks, 4! - seconds, and TIARAS.

So many, many things to love about this Frigidaire ad from 1957...

Happy Halloween! Motorola Halloween Newspaper Ad / Vaseline Hair Tonic Ad

Motorola Halloween Newspaper Ad
Originally uploaded by Neato Coolville

It's an ad, but all of the cartoon characters almost make you forget that! Very fun little bit of Halloween nostalgia. My pick would be Lil' Orphan Annie.

Vaseline Hair Tonic Ad 1947
Originally uploaded by Neato Coolville

It looks like this poor boy is getting his dating advice from the redheaded gal's little sis. Or maybe it's his little sis. Either way, she convinced him that dressing up like a ghost and scaring away Jean's other boyfriends is the way to go. Silly little sister! All Jean wants is a guy with a nice head of hair - slathered in Vaseline Hair Tonic.

Love the graphics in this one!

Both found on Flickr.

Quote of the Week

"Where there is no imagination there is no horror."

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

My New Favorite: Cornell Woolrich

 
Well, folks, another Halloween is upon us. For children everywhere, it means a night of sugar fueled fun. For a classic film connoisseur like me, it means good old scary movies on TCM.  Specifically Val Lewton’s movies.  More specifically, Cat People. But I digress, because this isn’t a post about Val Lewton’s screenwriting and producing genius or the mesmerizing images he conveyed in brooding black and white. No, this post is about someone else, whose name caught my eye recently as I watched The Leopard Man again. That name was Cornell Woolrich.

I think his name originally caught my eye because Woolrich made my brain go to Woolworth’s, the now long gone five-and-dime store from my childhood, which took me back momentarily to a bin filled with discounted issues of Dynamite magazine (because for some reason that’s all I ever remember getting at Woolworth’s back then). Returning from my brief jog down memory lane, I noticed that Cornell Woolrich had actually written the novel The Leopard Man was based on (Black Alibi). And suddenly I wondered what else he had written.

Turns out, a lot. He was, in fact one, of the best crime writers around in the early part of the 20th century, in a league with Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler. He also wrote several stories and novels that were turned in to really great movies, including Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window (based on Woolrich’s It Had to be Murder). So of course I immediately wanted to read some of his work. Like, at that moment.

Thank you Kindle store!

Pickings were slim. Only a few choices. But one of those was Four Novellas of Fear. I immediately purchased it and got lost in the first story, Eyes that Watch You.  An old woman, rendered paralyzed and mute by an accident, overhears her daughter-in- law plotting with a lover to murder her son. Without being able to speak or move, can she possibly save him before it’s too late, and how?  Sooo suspenseful. I was hooked.

I can’t believe I had never read any of Woolrich’s work before now. If you like hard-boiled detective novels, or film noir, or a good double cross or two in your fiction, I highly recommend you give Cornell Woolrich’s work a try. Good, good stuff.

 

Fun With Vintage : 1936 Mother-Daughter Crisco Creamed Ad

1936 Mother-Daughter Crisco Creamed Ad
Originally uploaded by captainpandapants

Creamed twice? Halloween mincemeat pies shaped like pumpkins? Digestable? Yummmmmm.

Found on Flickr.

Another Thought on Diaries

Digital or classic hard copy?

See, I love digital books and magazines. In a lot of cases, I prefer them now because, if they are right there on my iPad I am more inclined to find a moment to read them. I have so many magazines stacked up around my desk, unread and forgotten, that it’s pathetic. I guess I just get easily sidetracked with the actual magazine. With the digital versions, for whatever reason, it’s really simple to browse the latest issue of SmartShopper through my Zinio app.

But…

I have decided to begin the madness of recording the minute details of my days again, in all their cringe-worthy glory, and purchased a journal app to do so. I’ve found it’s not quite the same as an actual honest to goodness diary.

Pros to a digital diary: green – no trees died in order to document how awesome your butt looks in skinny jeans; you can add digital pictures; most require passwords so you still have privacy; convenient and very portable if traveling; simple to navigate if you need to go back and look something up

Pros to a physical diary: click sound as key turns the lock; is in your handwriting, not Arial 10 pt; can stuff mementos like flowers and notes in it; can be passed down to future generations (if that’s what you want); can’t be accidently deleted; more personal experience

I can see the benefits to both, but I can’t see which is a better format. For me, I’m going with digital for now because, as I said, my iPad is my best friend these days. Something seems to be missing from the overall experience, though.

Here’s a Question

Is it ok to sell, buy, and/or read another person’s diary?

I came across several on Ebay the other day. A few of the ads included excerpts, and one or two really intrigued me to the point that I almost bid. But I didn’t, because at the same time, I felt a little slimy. I was reading someone else’s most personal thoughts. Someone else’s pain, happiness, dreams. Granted, these were older diaries and the authors were more than likely no longer with us. Does that make it right though?

Take me for instance. In Junior High and High school I would write religiously in my diary. Anything I was happy about, or wanted, or confused about, or did went into that book. And even now, I would be mortified if anyone else ever read all of those words I scribbled so furiously onto those pastel shaded sheets of lined paper. In fact, in a round of embarrassed madness in college I decided the best thing to do would be to get rid of it.

But I couldn’t just throw it out where any random trash collector or dumpster diver could discover it. I had to destroy it. And I did – at least half of it. Hundreds of memories shredded, gone, ripped away forever. Then, it jammed and I couldn’t get it unstuck. I decided it was the diary gods, stopping me before I could finish the foolish deed. So now, I have half a diary shoved on a shelf in my closet (shhh – don’t tell Big J) that I sometimes want to read again, but. Just. Can’t. And the thought of someone else reading it in, oh, a hundred years or so makes me cringe.

Diaries are intensely personal. They offer an intimate glance into someone else’s life and time. A first hand account of World War II through a young teenage girl’s eyes, for example, is very enticing. Or a young boy’s struggle to live as his family makes the trek West during the Depression.

But does that make it ok to stick your nose into someone else’s business? Thoughts?

You Tube: California Dorks

Shoes

Recently,  Mr. Smartypants was at the beach with Big J’s mother. He rinsed the sand off of his feet at the outside shower and then totally walked off without his sandals.   She assumed he would, y’know, put them back on his feet. He somehow concluded that she had picked his sandals up. And off both of them went - back to the car, back to the house, none the wiser until they stepped out on the very, very hot driveway.

Now, that explains how that particular pair of sandals came to be left all alone along the boardwalk to that particular beach. But I wonder what happened to them after that? They were never taken to the lost and found, which was only a few feet away. Were they trashed? Buried in the sand? Snatched up by seagulls? Or did someone find them and think “hey, these are just my size”?

Which got me thinking about something I see often: the Odd Shoe. I see them all of the time, tossed along the side of the road or abandoned in the dirt near a sidewalk. Alone, forgotten, lost. And my curiosity starts going into overdrive.

How did it get there? Why was it left there? What happened to the other one?  Who did it belong to?  Were they upset when they noticed it was gone? Did they even notice it was gone?

Scenarios start popping into my head; some funny, some tragic, some unrealistic, and none right. All leave me wanting to know more.

Years ago, I was in a writing competition and the prompt was something like “a ratty old tennis shoe on the side of the road”. I turned that into a ghost story about two boys (one who had lost his shoe, of course) and won.  Sometimes inspiration sometimes comes from the most mundane things.

The next time you see a shoe on the side of the road, don’t dismiss it. That shoe has a story to tell. You just may never know what it really is. But it’s fun to imagine, isn’t it?

Quote of the Week

"The writer should never be ashamed of staring. There is nothing that does not require his attention."

Flannery O'Connor

Bookshelf Review: ROOM

Title: Room: A Novel

Author: Emma Donoghue

From the back cover:

To five-year-old-Jack, Room is the world....

It's where he was born, it's where he and his Ma eat and sleep and play and learn.  There are endless wonders that let loose Jack's imagination-the snake under Bed that he constructs out of eggshells, the imaginary world projected through the TV, the coziness of Wardrobe beneath Ma's clothes, where she tucks him in safely at night, in case Old Nick comes.

Room is home to Jack, but to Ma, it's the prison where she's been held since she was nineteen-for seven long years.  Through her fierce love for her son, she has created a life for him in that eleven-by-eleven-foot space. But Jack's curiosity is building alongside her own desperation-and she knows that Room cannot contain either indefinitely....

Told in the inventive, funny, and poignant voice of Jack, Room is a celebration of resilience-and a powerful story of a mother and son whose love lets them survive the impossible.

Review:

Before I even begin this review, let me say one thing – ROOM is going to break your heart, over and over again. I was hesitant to begin this novel, afraid that the darkness of the subject matter was too much to handle. And at certain points, it almost was.

Our narrator for this story is 5 year old Jack, a little boy whose whole life has been spent in an 11 X 11 shack.  This device could be a tricky - even gimmicky – one to pull off, and occasionally it is a bit difficult to sort out Jack’s thoughts and blunt observations.  The story begins with Jack telling us how he was “four last night going to sleep in Wardrobe, but when I wake up in Bed in the dark I'm changed to five, abracadabra”.  Jack’s world is small. Just him, his Ma, and the things in their room. It is the only world he has ever known, and he’s happy to spend his days playing games with Ma or watching Dora the Explorer. But there are several things in his world that he doesn’t understand, including why he can't have a dog or why he has to go to sleep in Wardrobe before Old Nick arrives at night.

Donoghue subtley reveals the sickness of the situation through Jack’s reflections. We know the horrible reality of what is going on as Jack hides quietly in the dark of the closet and counts the creaks of the mattress after Old Nick enters ROOM. We know that Jack’s happiness in his little world, the only one he has ever known, is a sharp contrast to Ma’s pain of being taken away from hers. We know Ma is desperate to escape, willing to do whatever she (or Jack) has to do to save both of them before it is too late.

The novel is weighted more towards psychological suspense than graphic details. The plot is simple but powerful, leading to a drastic turn of events that make Jack question which is better: the world Ma created for him or one that has left both of them far behind? Most of the characters are solidly written and realistic, although a couple did come across as one-dimensional and perfunctory. There are a few portions of the story that seem to be bogged down by excessive dialogue, but overall the novel’s pace is quick.

I do wish there had been more background on Ma’s life during those years where she had to survive alone, after her abduction and before Jack was born. Seeing what her character had been like before she became “Ma” would have really rounded her out. But the story is told from Jack’s POV; it makes sense that we would not be privy to this information because it is not something Jack would know.  However, Donoghue does provide a few clues to this time that Jack picks up from Ma’s conversations with others, including one very poignant twist to Ma’s story.

Is this novel disturbing? Yes. Don’t let that scare you. There is a lot of light in its darkness. Once you’ve entered Jack’s world it will be hard to leave.  This story is one that will haunt you long after you’ve finished that last page.

ROOM will be available in bookstores September 13, 2010.

You Tube: Mary Poppins Remix

So hypnotic and sweet. Can't. Stop. Watching.

Hi. It's been a while.

So my dad died.

He had been ill for a long time. The last 8 months were the worst. I won’t go into details, but it was very difficult to watch my larger than life father shrink closer to death each day. And for a long time now I’ve been in an emotional tailspin. One that left me more willing to lay on a couch watching music videos with the Princess than to do anything, I dunno, creative and proactive. Which is a really bad place to be, not only because you become this sad little lump molding the couch’s leather cushions into the shape of your ass, but also because three straight hours of MTV Hits is not beneficial to anyone over the age of 19. It’s like you can actually feel your brain cells floating off into some vapid black hole of dumb.

I tell you all of this in a slapshod attempt to explain the spotty posting over the last year (+ or – a few months).  And to let you know that the plan is to start posting regularly again. Or at least more than once or twice every three months. And I might be merging this blog with another, so some of the upcoming posts may seem out of place at first. But I haven’t really decided on that yet.  Just a heads up.

Ok, I think that’s all I wanted to say for now. Um, so, if you’re still out there...

Thanks.

Quote of the Week

"My characters surprise me constantly. My characters are like my friends - I can give them advice, but they don't have to take it. If your characters are real, then they surprise you, just like real people."

Laurell K. Hamilton

On E-Books

There’s been quite a debate in recent years on whether e-books will replace printed books. At BookExpo America (BEA), going on right now in New York, the topic was discussed in its Opening Plenary session yesterday. The subject, the Value of a Book, brought up many good points (from a publishing perspective) by publishers and authors regarding compensation rates and markets for digital publishing, as well as the future of books in general, printed or digital (read some examples here).

Which got me thinking about which side I (as a reader) would choose in a battle between e-books and printed books. Now, I’m one of those people that loves holding a book, letting the scent of crisp copy and type invade my nostrils as I turn each page. I love being able to walk over to my bookcase and gently tap my fingertip over the tops of my books as I search the titles for the one I need. I love the memories a printed book can provide, such as when I pick up my well-worn copy of Rebecca and remember the day my Gran gave it to me.

E-books don’t allow you to do any of these things. So what is so great about them?

I used to ask that too. I had downloaded Kindle books to my iPod Touch and quickly learned that the Touch’s 3.5” screen is really tiny when it comes to reading a novel. It’s do-able, definitely, but after a chapter or two I sometimes had a headache. I had a few books on my Adobe Digital Editions account that I tried to enjoy but let’s face it, it’s not easy to nestle in and get comfy for a good read with a 13” laptop balancing on your knees. E-readers were so much money and seemed like one more gadget to add to my life. And, honestly, e-books aren’t that much cheaper (if at all) than printed books, so if I bought one it was because I a) was too lazy to go to my bookstore and b) was catering to my need for instant gratification and couldn’t wait for the book to be shipped to me from an online store.

And then came the iPad.

I know, I know, there are a lot of people not impressed with Apple’s latest toy. But, so far, I only have one complaint - the wi-fi kicking out  sporadically. It sucks when I’m on Ebay or checking my Gmail and I have to log out and reconnect to the Internet. Although I have gotten rather quick with the whole jumping into settings and clicking the wi-fi on then off then on again trick. But unless you are actually in the process of downloading an e-book, that doesn’t matter because you don’t need the Internet to just read. So here’s the kicker – I’m actually reading more now that I have my iPad.

Huh?

I was a little confused when I realized this. I didn’t particularly love e-books, so why was I reading so dang many of them? After contemplating this, I’ve come up with several different reasons. First, I usually have my iPad with me at all times, so taking a fifteen minute break to read is much easier. I don’t have to go find the book on my shelf or carry it with me in the car, it’s already right there in my hands.  Second, the 9.7” screen makes reading easy and screen brightness is adjustable. No squinting to see the words. Third, there are several ways to download books (Kindle, iBooks, Kobo, etc) so I can start reading immediately.

But this isn’t anything new, really. Other e-readers do all of this already, right? Hey, I’m not trying to say the iPad is the best thing out there. Unlike the Kindle or Sony Reader, it is not a dedicated device just for reading. And, folks, that brings me to the fourth reason why I’ve grown to enjoy the convenience of e-books: multitasking. Being able to check email, surf the Internet, play a game or two, and then squeeze in a few chapters of whatever book I am reading all on the same device, whether I am in my car or walking around my house, has actually freed up a lot of my time. Which means more reading time. You can see where I am going here.

I know I sound like I’m trying to plug the iPad. I’m not. I’ve never owned a Kindle or any other e-reader, so implying that the iPad is the best thing out there wouldn’t be based on a fair comparison. The iPad is just the tool that has enabled my recent reading resurgence. The point here is that it (or any other e-reader) combined with e-books has made reading more accessible for me.

E-books have their own perks, their own little nuances, that make them a valid format for reading as well. They shouldn’t be discounted because they can’t be touched or put on a bookshelf. In fact, that could be an argument for why e-books are good. They take up less living space than printed books and allow you to have your entire library in the palm of your hand.

But my heart still belongs to printed books. They’re easier to share with friends. They bring back forgotten memories. They provide something to physically hold and dog-ear and pass on to others. They look really nice sitting on a shelf or a coffee table. They will, I hope, be here for a very very very long time.

Final Verdict (for now): E-books are a great way to squeeze some reading time into a busy lifestyle. However, they can’t replace printed books, anymore than the taste of real sugary sweet tea can be replaced by tea made with Splenda. They might be a close substitute, but they can’t truly replace the enjoyment of the real thing.  

© AK Willett and Black Rabbit Ink

Quote of the Week

"A book is a gift you can open again and again."

Garrison Keillor

On Reading

Big J does not read books. No interest at all.

But me, I couldn’t imagine life without them. This is something I have passed on to The Princess and Mr. Smartypants. The other day I listened as they engaged in a heavy discussion on London Calling, the Percy Jackson novels, Twilight, and various other stories they had found interesting, didn’t like, or could care less about (Harry Potter, I’m sorry, they just aren’t that into you). And it made me smile, because, really, what book lover doesn’t want to raise little bookworms of her own?

Knowing that they are able to fully lose themselves  in tiny lines of neatly strung words and ideas, that they can be transported to different worlds and become anyone or anything they want any time they want to, that makes me happy.

There is a thrill that comes just after finishing a really, really good book. A rush of emotion that flushes your cheeks and leaves you wired for a few minutes, hours, maybe even days.  The natural high of having just returned from such an amazing and emotional journey, that is one of the greatest gifts I could ever give to my children. 

And the fact that they have held on to this gift and carried it with them through their lives, nurtured it and let it flourish in the garden of their minds? Well,that is the greatest gift anyone could ever give to me. 

Quote of the Week

"I get an urge, like a pregnant elephant, to go away and give birth to a book."

Stephen Fry, musicOMH Interview

Bookshelf Review: When Good Wishes Go Bad

Title: When Good Wishes Go Bad

Author: Mindy Klasky

From the back cover:

Rebecca Morris is suffering from an excess of magic!

Things that have disappeared: her boyfriend; her life savings; three-and-a-half million dollars from the theater company that pays both their salaries. (Coincidence? Um, no.) Also, the groundbreaking play she's been slaving over has vanished in a puff of copyright-colored smoke.

Other, weirder things that have appeared: a magic lamp complete with genie wishes. A fully furnished (and paid-for) Manhattan condo and fabulous designer wardrobe. (The last two courtesy of the first one, obvs.)

So Becca's putting that last wish on hold. What with discovering a mesmerizing new play, getting it onstage and falling hard for the adorably awkward guy who wrote it, Becca is swamped. And that's without factoring in the guerrilla gardener, popcorn magnate and the gender-bending genie with an agenda of his/her own.

Now Becca's hoping that her good wishes don't go oh, so wrong….

Review:

When Good Wishes Go Bad is a delightful story that will please readers looking for a different way to satisfy their supernatural reading needs without vampires or werewolves. In it, author Mindy Klasky deftly swirls a mix of magic, humor, and romance to create a lighthearted but engaging tale of genies, wishes, and that age old adage: be careful what you wish for – you just might get it.

Klasky always has a good story to tell, and When Good Wishes Go Bad does not disappoint. The great thing about her books is that her characters are always lively and unique.  Statistic quoting genie Teel has the potential to border on annoying but is instead quite entertaining. Becca, the down on her luck Dramaturg*, and Ryan, the shy playwright that just might be able to save Becca’s job and heart, are richly layered and very likable, both separately and together. Supporting characters are amusing and add unexpected oomph to the story, particularly Ryan’s rebellious mother and the egocentric Ronald.

The plot moves along swiftly, fueled by Teel’s unpredictable antics and some unusual subplots involving guerrilla gardening and increasingly horrid popcorn flavors.  The romance between Becca and Ryan is sweetly sexy, and a few surprising twists keep things interesting. One of the best parts of the story, however, is the way Klasky fully immerses her readers in the main setting – the theater – with descriptions of casting calls, set problems, blocking issues, and other everyday nuances of theater life.  

This is the second book in Mindy Klasky’s As You Wish series which, admittedly, I am not enjoying quite as much as her Jane Madison series. Maybe I just relate more to a librarian that discovers she’s a witch than to a shape/gender shifting genie with a wicked streak of sarcasm. However, I did have a lot of fun reading this book and am looking forward to finding out where Klasky takes her genie in the next one.

 
*Yes, I had to look it up too. A dramaturg is a specialist in the art or technique of dramatic composition and theatrical representation (Merriam Webster). For a more in-depth explanation, check out Mindy Klasky’s blog post, Defining the New: Dramaturgy.