The Vine, Anniversary Edition: April 27, 2010
Hi Sars,
Reading the plot summary of An Education reminded me of a book I read as a youth. This would be young-adult material, which I read around the early 1990s (late junior high/high schoolish).
Like An Education, the book is set in England in the ’60s. The protagonist is a teenage girl who meets an older man. They don’t have a romance, though I think she starts to dig him, maybe wants to lose her virginity to him. I think he (mostly?) resists. I don’t think she mentions him to her parents at first, but then does. To their chagrin (yes, very much like An Education).
The only other thing I can remember is that he gives her a white turtleneck sweater, because it brings out her eyes or something. He thinks it makes her look good and she agrees. And she tells her parents this. Dumb.
I so wanted a sweater like that, but as this was in the early ’90s, we only had jackets with shoulder pads or flannel shirts to choose from… Any thoughts, anyone?
Sarah
*****
I keep hoping this book will come up in one of your “Ask The Readers” columns, since my memory of the book has more holes than Swiss cheese.
I read this book in the late ’80s, in paperback form. It was in my small-town library, so chances are that it was released in the early to mid-’80s. The story is about a young girl, maybe around 10-12 years old, who attends some type of boarding school or camp. One day, she realizes that she can make “things happen” and later discovers that she is a witch.
She then discovers that there are several other witches and warlocks in this school, but someone is trying to kill them or get them kicked out or imprison them or something else awful that bad guys do in young-adult books. I think that the witches and warlocks eventually “win” the battle, but I don’t really remember what happens in the end.
It is not the Worst Witch series. I’m also fairly certain that it was a standalone book and not a series, but I’m not positive. This is particularly hard to Google since anything that involves the term “witch” coupled with “school” brings up Harry Potter stuff.
Witching She Could Remember
*****
Hi Sars!
I know you’ve got a ton of these, so I’m sorry to add to the backlog. I am in no hurry as these have been bugging me for a while now and it only just occurred to me to ask my fellow TNers.
My aunt is a librarian and she used to send me the best YA books every Christmas. I’ve moved around a lot since I’ve been a grown up and have either misplaced these or gotten rid of them totally. Google has brought me nothing, so I turn to you!
Book 1 was about a youngish guy with a dog. He joined up with a group called the Nukismetic Humanists (you’d think such a phrase would come up on the Goog, but no!). Basically they were a religion who believe in fate, I guess, hence the “kismet” in the name. Anyway they operated some kind of factory, in which this young man worked. At one point he realizes that his job is just a cover and really the factory is full of pot! I guess that’s why it sticks out for me…hah. Any ideas?
Book 2 was kind of a mystery novel. The protagonist was a great tennis player. Her coach would make her run on the beach and swim a ton of laps. The coach ends up drowning the girl’s tennis rival. Sound familiar?
Thanks for your help, everybody!
I wish Kindles were invented way earlier so I wouldn’t have this problem
*****
Hello Sars and Readers,
I’m hoping some one who has more shopping kung-fu than I do can help me out. Which is not a far reach. Here is the deal. My boyfriend has a fancy hotel annual work party coming up. Generally boys wear suits and women wear cocktail dresses. Which would be fine and easy if I had not recently just destroyed both of the bones in my leg below my right knee.
First there’s the boot that’s getting super-dingy (why white fake fur? really?). That’s what it looked like a couple of weeks ago. Now it’s more thrashed and gray.
On top of that, my right leg looks like it spent a few weeks in a POW camp. It’s half the size of my left leg, it’s bruised, some parts are swollen, some parts are creepy. It should be kept covered at all times.
Which I guess is the longest way to get to the point that I need a long dress. I have some long dresses, but they’re all very “oh, I just threw on this breezy soft cotton thing on my way home from the beach” and not at all “I’m in a fancy hotel where no one is wearing flip-flops.”
I wear a size 10 and have small boobs. Generally empire waste dresses work out well. Halters are cool, straps are cool, but I never loved wearing strapless. I want to pull it up all night even if it’s been tailored to fit.
What I need in a dress:
- Not pink, orange or red (maroon-ish is okay)
- Long
- Fancy enough
- No floral prints
- Something I can buy online
And finally, not that expensive. Closer to 100 bucks than 300 is the general goal.
LG
*****
So, I’ve been trying to find the name of this book I read as a kid. I think it took place in either France or England in the 16th or 17th century.
The main character was a young peasant girl who gets somehow lost with the son of a lord and has to spend a winter with him in an abandoned house somewhere. He teaches her to read, and she keeps his life, as medieval wealthy children weren’t so good at self-sufficiency. It’s weird the things kids remember — I can’t remember the name of the book, but I remember that when they came back to their families and were separated, he gives her a piece of paper telling her not to forget him.
Somehow…she becomes a Robin-Hood-type figure, I think. Or maybe it was him. I think the book was called something like “Jack O’Lantern” or “Jacobite” or something like that, but I’ve Googled and Amazoned every single combination I can think of, so I’m hoping your readers can help.
It’s probably not as good as I remember, but if it is, I want to find it and give it to my niece.
Karen
*****
Okay Sars,
I’ve got one for you. I need advice on a new watch. I have had a LOT of trouble finding a watch that meets my needs.
To explain: I am an elementary-school art teacher. I am rough on watches. Especially the crystal. My current watch is so scratched up that I can’t really read the dial between 5 and 9; I have resorted to squinting and guessing.
I am kind of old-school and REALLY don’t want a digital watch.I also need the date as a part of the display. So I have come to you hoping that you or the readers have some advice on the subject.
I am willing to pay a little more if I know that the watch will be durable enough to stand up to my use. But so far I have been paying a little less and replacing it once or twice a year. Thanks for any advice you can give.
Timeless in Texas
Dear Time,
Ask your local jewelry-repair shop if they sell any watch or crystal guards, like the old Swatch guards everyone used to use (you can also get an estimate for replacing the crystal, and see if it’s less expensive than replacing the entire watch).
Many Fossil watches offer analog styling with a little date window, and you can probably get a competitive price on eBay; once you’ve picked out a watch, try wearing it face-in on your wrist at work, or fashioning a little “sleeve” for it out of fabric scraps (the watch I have on today, a big wood-“paneled” men’s model, drives me nuts with the clopping on my laptop, so I made a little sliding damper for it — it took ten minutes).
Or go nuts and get a pocket watch instead. They have covers; you can wear it as a pendant.
Readers?
*****
Hello,
We are thinking of buying a new (used) vehicle for the family. I have a large husband and two adult-sized teenagers. We are looking at 4WDs that are 2000 and newer. We have narrowed the search down to the Nissan X-Terra, the Toyota 4Runner and the Honda Pilot.
I am looking for any information that current owners would like to pass on to looky-loos. Any pros or cons…any information about roominess…we are test-driving, but a short test drive can only tell you so much. I know that The Nation is a place of strong opinions and that’s what I need.
Thanks in advance,
MP
*****
Dear Sars,
Happy Anniversary to the Vine! I had intended to write this for a while, and now I guess here’s an opportunity for a reader to win a prize, because the answer(s) should be easy enough.
You’re a fan of oral histories; I am too. Every once in a while I’ll get the urge to read one, but the only one I have in my personal library is Tom Shales’s SNL book. So I read it, and it that leads to re-reading The Late Shift and Desperate Networks and the upshot is I don’t get any new reading done for two weeks.
So I was hoping you or the readers could recommend ones you’d found particularly enjoyable, enlightening, whatever. Entertainment, history, politics or culture (no baseball please — sorry, but I wouldn’t have a clue who the people were). Oh, and if anyone has any bright ideas on where to find the late David Mills’s oral history of P-Funk, that’d be awesome, since it seems to be out of print in Canada.
Deirdre
Dear Dre,
(…Hee.) The Mills is available on U.S. Amazon and on Half.com, though I don’t know if they’ll ship to Canada. I’m not seeing bargain pricing, so you may want to start a search with a price cap on eBay.ca and see how it goes.
My favorite oral histories, the Shales excepted, are all edited by George Plimpton: Edie, about Edie Sedgwick; American Journey: The Times of Robert Kennedy; and Truman Capote. You don’t have to like, or even know anything about, the subjects going in, and the RFK book in particular has a few turns of phrase that will make you nostalgic for a time when people still spoke this way in conversation:
JOSEPH ALSOP, columnist
There was always that ludicrous mixture of heartbreak and how do you get your sandwiches? That’s always true. It always happens when people who love someone very much who’s gone are necessarily gathered together; they have to go on nourishing themselves and deciding whether to have another drink. (60)
If you liked the SNL book, you’ll probably like The Chris Farley Show. It’s a bit clanky in places, but pretty good. And you could also try Elvis Aaron Presley: Revelations from the Memphis Mafia, which I remember liking — and apparently it’s really good, because I keep lending it to people and never seeing it again and having to buy new copies.
Readers?
Tags: Ask The Readers Chris Farley David Mills Edie Sedgwick Elvis Presley George Plimpton Jean Stein Joseph Alsop popcult retail Robert F. Kennedy Tom Shales Truman Capote
In the same vein as Margaret in CO, whenever I get intrusive questions about physical injuries, my go-to answer is “Bar fight.” The reactions? Keep me entertained all day.
LG; I wear a size 10, and every dress I’ve gotten from J. Peterman that purports to be calf-length practically brushes my ankles. But I’m short (5’4″) so there’s that.
This dress is currently on sale, and it just looks…fun. You may find something else you like there.
Ha, I don’t need a good story, I did it at roller derby. I didn’t learn my lesson, I’ll be back as soon as I’m cleared to skate. :)
It’s more the like “Oh…why is your boot like that? Why are you on one crutch? Are you sure you should be putting all that weight on that foot? When will your legs be back to the same size? Does it still hurt? Why are you icing it? Why is it still swollen?”
And I love talking about injuries but please, people. I’m doing to the letter what my Dr and PT tell me to. I don’t care what your sister did or if you think it looks like I’m in pain, or this is awkward or what ever. I know when Dr House uses a cane he does it on the same side as his injury, but he’s not a real Dr. That’s not the correct way to do things. Until you’ve seen my xrays and finish your MD kindly STFU.
I imagine this is what pregnant women go through.
I’m not an SUV person, but the company car at my newspaper is a Pilot and everyone loves it. All my coworkers will jump at the chance to drive it when they go out on assignment.
Re: oral histories, I’m in the middle of Gail Collins’ “When Everything Changed: The Amazing Journey of American Women from 1960 to the Present”. It’s a bit of a hybrid, combining oral history/testimony with basic historical background, but it’s fascinating. All kinds of great untold stories about women’s lives and work in the last 50 years.
I especially recommend the section on the civil rights movement – she lays out the ways in which women, both white and black, basically started the movement and then were pushed out of the way by black male ministers once they realized this thing might actually work.
MP: here’s another vote for an Element. I had a 2007 that I just traded in a few weeks ago. Since you have adult size kids (aka, not wrangling car seats in and out), the suicide doors shouldn’t be a problem. The ONLY reasons BF and I traded in our respective cars (2007 Accord for him, 2007 Element for me) were: a) we just moved from the midwest to san francisco and b) we want to have kids in the future and kids are the only thing the E isn’t practical for.
I loved loved loved SpongeBob SquareCar – he got great gas mileage, awesome visibility, rubber FLAT floors, seats that have 87 gagillion configurations, he could fit our 100lb dog and passengers comfortably, MP3 CD player along with iPod jack, (i had a 2WD version, but) the 4WD versions come with a HUGE sunroof in the back, you can buy a tent accessory tha tgoes over the back and turns the E into a camper that fits a full size air mattress in the back, clamshell style back doors, so there is an actual tailgate to sit on, my 6’5″ brother in law was comfortable in the back, plus it does laundry.
just kidding. maybe.
I could keep going, but I’m gonna shut up now because I miss my E.
I’m hard on watches, too. The last one I bought was a big old, plain men’s Timex. It’s big enough for me to see the face without my reading glasses, has “Indiglo” and it’s held up better than any women’s watch I’ve ever owned. And it cost me $32.
@ Time,
I second Sars’ suggestion for Fossil watches. I work in what’s basically a workshop type of environment (lots of banging up my hands, working with hand tools, saws, vises, chemicals, creating tons of sawdust…you get the gist). After going through several watches in a short time, I finally got a stainless steel Fossil watch. I don’t believe it was that expensive–maybe $80-$90 (though once you find a style you like, check on eBay to see if you can find it for less). They have lots of traditional face (dial) watches with the date feature (something I HAD to have for work).
The one I have looks nice enough to wear to nice places but it’s sturdy enough to take the beatings I dish out. And I’ve had it for about 3 or 4 years now (which is much longer than any other watch I’ve had). Plus most of them are water-resistant so I can dunk it in the sink and scrub all that sawdust out with a toothbrush.
Definitely the way to go in my book.
Timeless – you know what works on scratched watch crystals? Brasso! It’s a metal polish you find in the supermarket next to the silver polish. It has directions on the can. Rub it on, rub it off, and no more scratches! It’s like a little miracle.
Possibly other metal polishes would work, as well, but I’m loyal to Brasso because they told me it was even possible to fix a scratched crystal yourself. I never would have known if they hadn’t put it on the tin.
Timeless, like @whitney, my watch repair guy recommended a new crystal when I dropped it off for a repair. Mine was also cheap—only $10, although my watch face is tiny, so yours could be a few dollars more—even though it’s not a cheap repair place by any standard.
Deidre,
If you can stomach it (heh) I really loved The Other Hollywood: An Uncensored Oral History of the Porn Industry also by Legs McNeil and Jennifer Osbourne. It’s not crazy graphic in terms of the sex stuff, although if you are in anyway skeezed out by drug use DO NOT READ THIS BOOK. Those people made Jim Bellushi look like a girl scout.
Also, fun to read on the bus!
@Timeless–
I really recommend the Timex Expedition watches. I work in a very hands-on environment and I’ve had the current one for 2+ years without a scratch (and only got a new one because I lost my previous one). I’ve had to replace the band once, but that’s not a big deal.
It’s analog with a date function and Indiglo. I think I paid about $35. Love.
At TashiAnn,
Positive as I read the book in the 90s and the article you link to was written in 2009.
I love the Julian Thompson books – I thought I was the only one. I recently read an oral history of the Replacements, All Over But the Shouting, and highly recommend both it and Please Kill Me. Please Kill Me made me actually kind of like the Ramones.
Oral histories: When I was in junior high, one of the assigned books was a selection of oral histories from a 1930s WPA writers project in which they took down accounts from former slaves. It was a tough read at 13 (and probably would be at any age really), but it was enlightening. I’m not sure of the title, but based on the cover art on Amazon, I think it may have been an earlier edition of “When I Was a Slave: Memoirs from the Slave Narrative Collection” by Norman R. Yetman. It also appears the entire collection is online here: http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/snhtml/.
To LG: Have you tried Victoria’s Secret’s website?
@ Timeless
I want to second the suggestion that you wear your watch on the inside of your wrist. We instinctively protect the tender parts with the pretty veins. I started doing this in art school 17 years ago and haven’t scratched a crystal since.
@LG, when I went over my bicycle handlebars in the peloton, I just started to say “cut myself shaving” to explain the bandage on my chin. It’d take them a few seconds to process that a girl was apparently shaving her chin.
One thing I have learned: if you are rough on watch crystals, the best way to remove scuff marks is with a little toothpaste and a soft cloth. I know it sounds weird, but it works.
@LG
My favorite fancy dress site is Unique Vintage. They have a huge range of dresses in vintage and modern styles, and at reasonable prices. I own two dresses from them, and their customer service is excellent.
For the oral history question: Gonzo: The Life of Hunter S. Thompson was pretty good. The title is pretty self-explanatory.
JB: You can also repair scratched CDs/DVDs with toothpaste that way.
LG, first, sorry about the leg, glad it’s getting better. Second, I had a similar footwear problem: I broke my toes (all of them) a bunch of times (separately), and What To Wear On My Feet was a problem, especially for work. I’ve always worn dark tights; I started wearing my boots ALL the time, instead of just some of the time – yes, even in the summer. I could get my (flat/low-heeled) boots on when toes/ankles/feet/legs were swollen, sore, and unsteady. I now wear boots with my suits. I wear boots with cocktail dresses! I’ve even worn boots with long formal dresses (velvet boots, embroidered with gold beads). If you don’t find a long dress that suits your taste and budget, you might find a cocktail dress that would work with flat boots you already have. I’ve seen flat boots in metallics that I would wear with a cocktail dress (YMMV).
Just a thought! (And even if it doesn’t work for your gala occasion, you may be more comfortable during the day in boots, since all kinds of comfy padding/socks will also fit inside boots.)
Awesome, LG. May I borrow your real story for my next injury? LOL
Karen, I just turned my watch around, that’s a GREAT idea!
Trick for fixing crystal scratches yourself: take a small amount of toothpaste (it has to be paste, not gel) and rub it very gently over the scratch. Remove with a well wrung out damp paper towel, being careful not to get water under the crystal. (If you do, though, you can evaporate it out with a hairdryer on low.) I used to play ultimate frisbee, and we regularly scratched our crystals – we all fixed watches this way. The abrasives in the toothpaste buff out the scratch.
Thank you! You guys are wonderful! We are still in the process of test driving and now I have a new round of vehicles to test (WHEE!!). You guys have brought up some great points. I really appreciate everything I’ve read so far and I thank you very kindly!
@Toni That’s where I got my wedding dress! So many compliments.
Holy crap! I’ve been so busy at work I didn’t even realize my question got answered until today. Thanks, Sars, and thanks to the Nation for all their suggestions – some of these look fab. Time for a trip to a Chapters, methinks.
Witch Week by Diana Wynne Jones!!! Part of the Chrestomanci chronicles, and a book I have read at least twenty times. LOVE.
… Okay, and at least four people have already answered this question. HELLO WITCH WEEK FANS. DEAR HARRY POTTER: WE WERE HERE FIRST.
I’m a former Honda Pilot driver who now has an Element, and I love, love, love both of them. I do wish that I had stuck with the Pilot, only because the Element isn’t as friendly to getting car seats and babies in and out of the back. I’ve never been disappointed with a Honda.
I do second the person who suggested trying to rent your choices for a weekend or so, because when you’re driving it on your own and doing your own thing, you definitely get a different perspective than from just test driving.
LG, even though the party already happened, contact the folks at this website and see if their cast covers will fit over the walking boot. If their stock items aren’t the right size, they can make a custom cover (I just got a sling from them to wear to a black tie event). Good luck!
http://slingcouture.com/category/castcovers/legcastcover/
My parents own a late 90s 4Runner, and they love it! They have a farm and so they use it for a lot of stuff. (All Toyotas in the driveway except for my sister’s Honda which is almost just like mine.)
A friend of mine at work has a Pilot, and he has hauled at least 6 tall grown men in his to and from lunch before. I also liked riding in it, but I’ve never driven one.
Yay, When No One Was Looking!! I loved that book.
And it wasn’t the coach in the end…
[…] on LBJ’s movements during those few days. Did you like that article; the oral history of RFK’s funeral train; or Manchester’s other work? Pick it up. It’s been allowed to go out of print, but you […]