Booking My Wednesday Hodgepodge

1. It's National Read A Book Day...whatcha' reading? What's a book you want to read? 

What I'm reading: an older biography of British-Canadian painter Arthur Lismer. Slightly dated in style, as you might expect, but very interesting, especially about which artists influenced him (Constable, Van Gogh), and also his first impressions of Canada just before WWI.

Something I want to read? The Good Thief, by Leo Furey.

2. Which is better...having high expectations or low expectations? Explain why. 

Well, I suppose if you wander into an unknown restaurant, say, and the seats are worn and the menus are old-fashioned, you might not have great expectations for the meal, but they could still serve you the best bowl of soup you'd had in years, and a nice tasty BLT. But you could also have been told what a great place it was, and that's the day you get the grumpy waitress and they burn the toast. Maybe "medium expectations" are safer.

How about when it comes to books? What if people you like have told you that it's a great book, and you try several times and you either give up or you do read the book and you still hate it? I just finished one like that, and I'm having to come to terms with the fact that I am just never going to be an [insert author] reader.

3. Serenity is________________________. 

Expecting that the restaurant pie will be better than the burned sandwich.

4. What's  the most interesting thing in your purse or pocket right now? 

I just looked and found a partly-used bookstore gift card I had forgotten about. At least I think it's still only partly used. I have high expectations of this.

5. What helps you calm down? 

Familiar CDs. Bible verses. Lake water, sand and pebbles.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

I just learned a new word, habitus, from Alan Jacobs' website.

Ancora imparo. Always something to learn.

Linked from The Wednesday Hodgepodge at From This Side of the Pond..