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I recently started reading Auster’s work. It began with The Brooklyn Follies that my Oregonian friend lent me. I flipped through the books she lent me and picked one to read with the best opening. Auster’s first line got me hooked and I couldn’t put it down. My next Auster novel, The New York Trilogy was found at a used bookstore. Little did I know that it was really a collection of 3 short novels, experimental detective fiction pieces, that launched Auster’s budding career as an author.

Coincidentally, or perhaps not so, I also found out that he was appearing at the Jewish Community Center of San Francisco. On a whim, I purchased tickets for my husband and myself. Little did I know that the event tonight was not just a conversation with Paul Auster, but was really a screening of his new movie The Inner Life of Martin Frost followed by a conversation with the author/screenwriter/director himself. The night was thoroughly enjoyable. The movie was beautiful. It reminded me a bit of Lost in Translation. (My husband didn’t see that movie, so please comment if you have seen both movies.) The dialogue or narrative, which is essential to Auster’s written work, fades into the background of this visually stunning film. Afterwards, I caught myself smiling while listening to Auster speak. He comes across…hmmm…well, as my husband noted, not pretentious. When speaking about his writing process, Auster reflected back on some lines of the film saying that he has never witnessed the birth of an idea - one moment you have a blank and the next moment it is there.

My wanderings into Auster’s work have peaked my interest to read more of his novels - and to go back and re-read the previous ones more closely, with a pen in hand. I foresee another trip the used bookstore soon. I recommend The Inner Life of Martin Frost to viewers looking for a film that you watch in silence, with hot mugs of tea or glasses of dark red wine. It is a movie to be savored, not rushed.

I keep hearing energy debates on how to tackle our dependence on oil and reduce our green house gas emissions. Today I read a report on how Spain is turning the debate into a real life test case. The article is Spain Runs Europe’s First Commercial Solar Plant. The plant is using the sun’s rays to heat water to run steam generators. If this solar energy plant works, this could be a real energy solution for sunny locales. It is exciting to see global warming move from a debate to a real world scenario.

I found this article tonight on The New York Times and found it quite lovely. The article is entitled Rain Aside, It’s Clear Skies. This piece speaks about a man who runs a bird business that basically uses hawks, falcons and owls to reduce loitering pigeons in the London area. He has gained attention for his work at Wimbledon that was a haven for pesky pigeons until the falcons showed up! I love this solution. No gadgets, no chemicals, no traps, just an innovative way to use nature to solve this fowl problem. I think San Francisco could use one of these businesses.

I found this video on New York Times. It showcases an exhibit at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum in New York entitled Design for the other 90%. The designs help people who live on less than $2/day. The featured designs include a foot irrigation pump made out of bamboo and a simple drip irrigation system to aid farmers overcome drought, grow crops for food and to sell, ultimately earning more money for their family. They also show a water drum that holds 20 gallons of water and rolls on the ground with a rope. It’s funny how such simple ideas can make such immense changes in another’s life. I hope that these designs do not just stay in an exhibit, but are able to penetrate the market and reach the people who need these designs the most.

Today I was walking back to my office from lunch when it happened. I must have known in my subconscious that it was coming. I flinched before it hit me. I didn’t feel it as much as HEARD it. A muffled splat on the top part of my head. I didn’t put my hand up to verify it - I knew. I had been hit by pigeon poop. My first inclination was to flag a taxi and come home immediately for a wash, but the reminder of my email inbox kept me putting one foot in front of the other toward my waiting cubicle. I first headed to the bathroom to perform the mocking duty of trying to remove and somehow *clean* pigeon poop from your hair in the middle of a workday. And, then laughed and reminded myself of my perspective - that today would be a good day - no matter what.