4. - 28/08/23

Consistency was never my behavioural strong suit

Small connections

I decided a couple of months ago that I’d like to get hold of the book-essay ‘The Roots of Coincidence’ by Arthur Koestler, having never read it, despite being an enjoyer of life’s odd cosmic alignments, and other esoteric/spooky subjects. I obviously assumed that, being a book with ‘coincidence’ in the title, it would be likely to turn up on its own, though I understand that these things don’t seem to happen while you’re willing them consciously…

I ordered a second-hand paperback for £3 from World of Books, and atop the reading pile it went. A couple of weeks later I received a photo from David, with the caption ‘have you already got this?’ He was on his way home and had picked up a book for me, from off the wall outside someone’s house*. Turns out I should have been a bit more patient for this lovely hardback edition to come along:

I just finished reading the paperback copy, and the hardback has gone onto the bookshelf as a keeper. I’ll leave the paperback somewhere for the Library Angel to deliver on. (Look up the Library Angel if you can - this is the name some people give to the experience of finding the exact book, piece of writing or quote that you need, for whatever reason, at just the right time, and usually once you’ve given up looking. People tend to describe a particular book falling on its own from a shelf after they’ve been unable to locate it, or stumbling across a relevant passage in a ‘randomly’-chosen book, opened ‘at random’, in an almost-missed bookshop on a foreign continent.)

I won’t go into the content of the book here, but if you like reading about such subjects as collective consciousness, time-space relations, particle physics (uh-huh), and open-minded scientific experimentation, then you might want to wait for a copy to turn up on a garden wall / lob itself off a library trolley at you.

In other book news, I watch on in awe and pride as David adds the 71st post to his blog writersonboxing.com. He has genuinely read all of these books (and in under two years). It’s astonishing how many books we’re continuing to find and add to his reading list.

Films

I just watched the documentary ‘Brainwashed: Sex-Camera-Power’ by Nina Menkes, and it restored the old feeling that I had after I’d started doing feminist film theory classes at uni - the realisation that a lot of films I thought I loved were, with very good reason, about to be ruined for me. I remembered that taking these classes put me off watching/enjoying a lot of films for a long time, but it did also expose me to many unusual, thoughtful and generally better-considered films, and discussions. I’m not a bore about it, and I don’t boycott many things (I’m a Basic Witch, with a healthy balanced diet of world cinema and Below Deck Med), but I am really interested in the unconscious and deep-seated acceptance by all of us, of the genuine harm brought about by seemingly-minor creative decisions. What frightens me is how brazen all the down-punching is once you start to notice/re- notice it. This is mostly talking about mainstream films (not always), but I still needed to watch this documentary to get the relevant recommendations of some more groundbreaking and thought-provoking filmmakers.

Debi Mazar

At some point in the last couple of weeks I was also reminded of the true and timeless wonder that is Debi Mazar. I have loved her face, and NY lisp, ever since I watched Beethoven’s 2nd in 1993.

Making far-flung friends

David and I were fortunate to meet, in the space of a recent week, two different writers from faraway places, who we’d connected with online over books. One was Michael Winkler from Melbourne, the other was Stacie Vos from California, and both were visiting London. They’re both lovely, interesting and thoughtful people, and I was grateful for the reminder of the positive results of using social media.

Some Questions

When did you last complete a jigsaw puzzle?

Do you get along with your neighbours’ pets? Do you count them amongst your friends?

What’s your favourite kind of market?

*Fly-tipping in middle class neighbourhoods is booming.