Friday, January 22, 2010

Good Reading (Listening) and Watching

I have a long commute (70 miles round trip) to work 4 days a week. Since this commute plus work time cuts into my time available for reading, I have come to really appreciate books on CD. You know the book is really good when I am driving slowly on the way home so that I can "finish one more chapter". Such a book is Uncommon Carriers by John McPhee. Last night I was creeping along so that I could finish the section on towing the barges on the Illinois River. I had already finished the chapters about the HazMat chemical trucker driver and the one on the school for ocean going sea captains. McPhee just puts you up there is the cab of the 18 wheeler or the pilot house of the tugboat and gives you a real appreciation for the skill of these men. How I wish my father who was a Merchant Mariner could be here with talk to about this book.

I've been waiting for Dr. Finlay to become available through NetFlix and it finally did--It was worth the wait. It is a series about a young doctor who comes home to Scotland after WW II to practice medicine in the village of Tannochbrae. Warm, touching, understated humor, and the beauty of Scotland. Enjoy.

Thought for the Day:

"Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around." Leo Buscaglia

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