Sunday, November 3, 2024

Three Beautiful Things 11-02-2024: Reading in Wallace, *Underground* is an Oral History, Turkey Soup on a Chilly Day

1. Early this afternoon, I wanted to leave the house and go to a coffee shop, drink a foamy cappucino, and read, without interruption. At first, I thought I'd drive to CdA, but then I thought ---hmmmm -- I could create this experience in Wallace. 

And I was right. 

I strolled into Todd's Bookstore and Coffee. It was quiet with great music from the 70s and 80s playing at a low volume. I ordered a cappuccino (perfectly made) and a delicious blueberry muffin, settled myself at a table, and just read for an hour or so. 

I didn't see anyone I knew. I read without interruption. I found the environment at Todd's to be just right for reading and drinking coffee. 

2. I'm reading another book from the list Leah Sottile published back in July. 

The renowned Japanese writer Haru Murakami, who usually writes novels and short stories, decided to undertake an ambitious project and write a book about the 1995 Tokyo subway sarin gas attack carried out by members of Aum, a religious cult. 

If you are familiar with any of the oral histories written by Studs Terkel, then you now know the approach Murakami took in writing this book, entitled Underground,  

The book is a series of interviews. I don't know if interviews with any of the perpetrators are yet to come. So far, all the interviews are with people who were gassed or who witnessed the gassing. 

As many of you know, I survived being accidentally gassed at the Bunker Hill Zinc Plant in 1973. 

Sulfur dioxide is a very different gas from sarin, but there's enough similarity that reading these accounts brings back memories of the July day I was nearly killed and the weeks of recovery that followed.

3.  Tonight, Debbie and I enjoyed the turkey soup Debbie started to make last night. When I went to the pot to ladle out my serving, I'd forgotten that Debbie was going to top the soup with dumplings. The dumplings enhanced an already delicious soup and this was the perfect meal on this chilly and wet November evening. 

 

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