My Review of Bright Young Women by Jessy Knoll on GoodReads

Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This Novel is the story of the horrible murders committed at FSU in 1978 by the first famous serial killer told through the eyes of Pamela, the president of the sorority and eye witness.

This is a book that I couldn't put down. It's written from the POV of two women, one in Seattle in 1974 and the other one Florida in 1978. I really loved the fact that the serial killer's name is never mentioned in the book, he's just referred to as "The Defendant" It calls out the fact the this guy destroyed the lives of multiple families and was rewarded by becoming a celebrity while the names of the victims are forgotten. I liked that it debunked the myth that the killer was an "evil genius" and replaced it with the reality that he was just a mediocre incel that hated women. This books shows how misogyny feels, I felt the frustration and the anger Pamela felt while reading through her ordeal.
There's a lot of depth here. I love it when a book shows me new perspective, when it changes the way I see things. This is one of those books.



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My review of Red Pill by Hari Kunzru on Good Reads

Red Pill by Hari Kunzru
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This novel was not a feel-good read. It was the opposite of that, actually. The timing for me didn't help, I started reading it right before the assassination attempt July 13th and finished reading it moments before I learned that Biden dropped out of the race.

On the surface this novel is about a writer who goes to a writing retreat in Berlin, he is trying to publish a book but he can't write. Then he becomes obssessed with this cop-show called "Blue Lives" then things get weird. The vibe of the whole book is an anxious, paranoid one. Scary, but not in a fun way, more like a depressive way.

Under the hood, there's a lot to unpack, lots of literary references to writers I had never heard about, which was cool, lots of historic facts and most of all a big message told through metaphors and hints. I enjoyed the thought-provoking one-liners that made me question my beliefs and points of views.

The themes of the book revolve around fascism, racism and political power. The author doesn't preach, is not on the nose, it's subtle, but there if you know what to look for.

I took off a star because the story, well, I just did not enjoy the last part of the book, not that it was bad, I just didn't like it. There was an attempt to tie it together, but it didn't work for me.

JV

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My Review of "Holly" by Stephen King on GoodReads

Holly by Stephen King
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book was a fun read, if you call Stephen King's brand of horror fun. I do like it, I enjoy SK's commentary on American culture. This book is set and written in the Covid era.
I don't want to spoil it, but besides the obvious opinions given in the book, I thought the real monster in the book was the process of getting old.

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Notes from our last trip to Paris

 Oh Paris, the romantic city of lights! What is not to love about this beautiful place?  Whether is the elegant architecture, their famous monuments, the food, the people, the art, the bon-vivant lifestyle, there are many good reasons to visit France. Not everything is tres bon, these are my notes of lessons learned during this trip. 

I recommend:

Cooking classes by La Cuisine Paris

We learned how to make croissants and baguettes thanks to Eline our experienced, charismatic and opinionated French chef. The classes are 3 hours long but totally worth it. I got inspired to start making bread at home again. Making croissants is a lot of work, but making baguettes is not. I have a vial of poolish fermenting as we speak. 

Getting out of the city for the day

We took a day trip to Normandy to see the history Omaha Beach, the landing zone for the Allied forces on D-day. We had a British ex-soldier as our guide. I learned a lot that day and Normandy is quite picturesque. The weather was wonderful and the local Cider was tasty and refreshing. 

We also went to Monet's gardens in Giverny.  This is a must for gardeners and art lovers alike. The trip was pleasant and we had great company and a very nice guide. 

I loved:

The hidden Paris cycling tour 

I must admit that I wasn't too thrilled at first, the thought of cycling through Paris traffic (more on that in a bit) on a hot day or worse in the rain was not high on my list to do's. I kept an open mind and went with it and oh my god I am so glad I did. There is not one thing in particular that I can say did it for me, it was a combination of all the things, our tour guide Hanna was funny and informative, the sights and the locations were hidden gems that I wouldn't not have noticed or visited unless someone says something about it. I don't know if this is something I'd recommend to everyone though, you can get seriously hurt biking in Paris. However, I totally loved getting around the city on a bike. I would bike everywhere if I lived here. 

link to tour

The upgraded suite at the Hotel Lancaster

Airbnb is my experience is always hit-or-miss. The price point is better compared to staying at a hotel, we stayed at an Airbnb but we had some issues, the place smelled weird, like a musty-sour smell, the owners really tried to make it right but we never figured out where the smell came from. I was not comfortable for other reasons the layout of the place was weird and the closet space was limited in our bedroom, I was forced to live out of my suitcase so I wasn't too happy, we felt we were not getting our money's worth. My wife (the real MVP) found us a good room at this hotel and damn, it was nice! we loved the room, the service, the ambiance, it doesn't hurt that we got a nice upgrade because of Expedia. 

link to Hotel Lancaster's website

Tired:

Too many (other) tourist

Yes, I'm aware. One tourist going to a touristy place annoyed that there are other tourists there. It usually doesn't bother me because I know what to expect. There are some things worth seeing regardless of how many other tourists are there. Other times too many people there will take away from the experience. For example, what's the point of going to a "peaceful quiet park" if there are ten thousand other visitors on the trail? That said I was annoyed by other people's BO. I don't want to smell stranger's body odors or cigarette smoke when I'm trying to eat.  The Louvre and the Orsay museums were crowded but that's to be expected. The sidewalks at Champs-Elysee is what makes shopping there especial IMO, so it's not always bad. 

Driving there

I'm married to a hard-core badass woman. She does not fear driving in foreign lands, it must be the New Yorker in her. So we rented a car the first week we were here. This made it easy to get around outside the city, we were able to go to the airport and pick up and drop off my mom (she spent a few days with us) however, driving here is not for the faint of heart. Making a left turn is a Hobessian struggle where it's every man for themselves, there are no rules, just survival of the fittest ( and quickest) cutting someone off is not rude, it's essential to getting around as no-one will help you. One time we made the mistake of parking at the Louvre and expecting to drive back to the Airbnb in the 6th district during rush hour at 5 PM. A 1.5 mile trip took 90 minutes and that's by me aggressively driving and weaving through traffic. Since it was just my mom and I in the car, I took off my rule-following model driver "hat" off and instead put on my "driving a Hummer in Iraq" mode. I drove like my life depended on it. We made it, but, at what cost? 

Dirty Subway Stations

 I mean, we've been to subways in New York, so what was I expecting? The problem is that our trip to Tokyo showed me that we don't have to live in dirty cities, but maybe I should calibrate my expectations, right? Anyway, it is what it is, the subway stations smell like urine. But at least the trains run often, the most you'd wait is 3 minutes at a station. 

Surprised:

WWII History of France. 

I was a bit dissapointed hearing the details of the Vichy regime in WWII.  The French people over-emphasize the role of the French Resistance and Charle's de Gaulle's role in it. The French Government's collaboration with the Nazis is a complex topic and it's not discussed with the same frankness as the German Gov. It could be worse, there are some places where they erect statues and monuments to racist, losing traitors and call it "heritage" 

Underated

- French bread

- French coffee

- French Comics (according to my oldest daughter)

- French bookstores. (Shakespeare Co is an exception,  I love that place but it's now too popular, too many other English-Speaking book lovers in a small place is not cozy, it's claustrophobic) 

Overrated

French Restaurants

Maybe it was bad luck, or the price of ignorance, but we ate a lot of overpriced mediocre food with bad service. Maybe we had unrealistic expectations. I mean, we had really good meals, but overall I think that the cost to quality ration was low compared to other places. (Copenhagen, Buenos Aires, Tokyo) 

Other note-worthy things to mention

Disneyland

We love Disney, so we go to the park. I liked it and had a good time, but if you've been to other Disney World parks in Orlando or Anaheim you are not missing out a lot. Some spots are exact replicas of Disney World. That said, we went and had a grand time. 

Photo Shoot

For me, this was a special treat. We had a session with a professional photographer to take family portraits. My youngest and my wife packed these gorgeous dresses. We took photos at the Eiffel Tower, Luxemborg Gardens and the Louvre. We were turning a lot of heads, specially my 17 year old daughter. People were asking her and us what was the occasion. We had lots of people saying "brava" and "tres belle" to her. It was a lovely moment. I'm glad we've taken these photos. This is a once in a lifetime thing. 

Photographer: Rachel Calvo

My mom

My wife suggested we invite my mom to come with us. I called my mom and invited her literally 3 weeks before the trip. This was a dream come true to her. I am glad we were able to do that for her. 

My family

This was a good time for all four of us to do a trip like this. I know that pretty soon we are going to have an empty nest. We are making an effort to create good memories for the girls. 

My wife.

My lovely wife turned 40. This was a special trip for us. This was good. I'm glad we did this. I'm very grateful and lucky for this trip

My Review of "Wondering Starts" by Tommy Orange on Goodreads

Wandering Stars by Tommy Orange
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book is both a sequel and prequel to Tommy Orange's last novel before this one "There, there"

Just like "there, there" the story is not always in chronological order and it's narrated by different characters. At first it's hard to know how each character is connected to one another or the story. I was a little lost at times because of that. This book throws bits and pieces of history and insights about the lives of Native Americans in small chunks. I learned about the Sandy Creek Massacre and was a little disturbed to learn that the same unit that killed women and children in Colorado in the 19th Century was there in Iraq fighting with us in Ramadi, the good ol'd 3rd Calvary Division "brave rifles" from Fort Carlson Colorado. It made me think about how we all grew up idolizing and playing cowboys and Indians.

I could not help to think about my ancestors in Venezuela, like most people from Latin America we are a mixture of European and Native America blood ( as well as African) I personally am 1/3 Native and 2/3 European. Yet I know nothing about my Native heritage. I grew up thinking that my people are the sons and daughters of Spain. All traces of what was there before the Spanish colonized us is gone, totally erased, like it happened in the past and whatever happened has nothing to do with the present. Tommy Orange says nah, screw that, the past is not gone, we're still here, we are often ignored but this is our land and our people still live.

I did not feel good reading all this, it was not entertainment, it was not a happy read, it was something that calls for reflection and meditation. My thing is, so we read this, then what, what can we do? Learn from our history so it doesn't repeat? I wish. Maybe I'm jaded, but we Americans are pretty damn good at ignoring the parts of our history that don't feel good, that blemishes the idealized myths of the birth of our nations. We built our country on stolen land stained with the blood of their first occupants then we write the history to make it look like we were heroes.

Maybe there's another less depressing way to bring this up? like, I enjoyed reading "The Only Good Indians" by Stephen Graham Jones. You can get a lot of knowledge that way, this book doesn't sugar coat anything. If that's how you like it, please do read it.

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My Review of "You like it Darker" by Stephen King on Goodreads

You Like It Darker by Stephen King
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This collection of short stories by Stephen King consists of tales of "regular people" (American, middle-class, straight white males, mostly) placed into highly unusual situations. In these stories the main character finds himself figuring out a dark, crazy and scary "things". This book contains stories about invading aliens, exploring aliens, immortal vampires, gangsters, dumb criminals, psycho-killers, ghosts, mad scientists, violent animals and of course: Florida.

When it comes to telling a good story Stephen King is the GOAT. I forgot how much I enjoy reading his works. He will put you in the dark corners of his imagination and you will like it. Why because you like it darker of course.

10/10 Recommend it for a good time.


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My Review of "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy on GoodReads

The Road by Cormac McCarthy
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A man is on the road with his boy. The world ended long ago.
This novel hits you with raw power. Brilliantly narrated with amazing prose and dialogue that shows you a whole world with just a few words. This is not a feel-good, wholesome happy book, but it's worth reading. Glad I picked it up.

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Takeways from our trip to Japan

 

As I'm sitting in our hotel room passing time before heading out to the airport, I started thinking, what's my takeway from this trip? How do I feel? Do I recommend Japan as a place to visit?

Well, I feel rested, energized and ready to get back to the daily grind of work and daily home life. Not that I am complaining but it's nice to have a break. 

If I were to sum up the last 2 weeks in one word I would say: Impressed. 

I was delighted to experience this place, for real it was amazing. These are the 3 categories

Things I learned

Japanese Culture and History

The first thing I noticed about Japan is how clean, and orderly everything is. Their Airport, Train Stations, and Public Spaces are thought out and organized. The train station and subway stations are clearly marked so that you know where to stand when boarding and onboarding the train. People here follow the rules and it's the opposite of chaos. People are totally silent in the train, the only people making noise are the foreigners (mostly Americans) who apparently don't have the ability to read the room and be quiet. There are tons of customs and social protocols, which I got a pass for most of them since I am also a clueless American. I did make the effort to learn and respect their rules, I am a visitor after all. Whether I want to or not, I represent America to the people who see me. I was a bit peeved when I learned that tattoos are a big no-no for public pools and baths, thankfully you're fine if you are able to cover up. I had to hide my ooorah marine corp tat. 

The Japanese have an refined taste for beauty. This was the thing I enjoyed the most about this trip. The architecture, food, visual art, music they all show a deep appreciation about things beautiful. It's freaking amazing. 

World War II is somewhat taboo to bring up. The museums do mention it and their stance is to learn from the past and not deny it or hide it. 

The people here are mostly isolated, most people in Japan have never left the country, and if they did, they travel in big groups, as a result, most people (outside of Tokyo and Kyoto) have never seen foreigners. This is a double edge sword, the people here love their country and do not want outsiders to come "ruin it" for them. At the same time, declining birth rates creates a labor vacuum that gets filled with laborers from outside Japan. This is a dilemma for the country. 

Overall, I am impressed with the way things are done here, great results but the group thinking ('We' comes before 'me') has a price. Japan has one of the highest suicide rates in the world. 

The biggest take away from me is a deeper appreciation of the Japanese Art and their way of life. 

Food, Food, Food

Sushi, good fancy sushi, and cheap ordinary sushi from chain restaurants, all really good. Rice, all kinds of rice, with vinegar, spicy, aromatic, sticky. 

I did not have a bad meal here. lol

Shopping: Things I am bringing back

Snacks. So. Many. Snacks. Kit Kats all flavors, gummies, weird flavored chips, and other snacks that I don't even know what they are. 

Thanks to the USD being strong against the JP Yen, electronics are so much cheaper here. This reason alone makes the trip worth it. 

Memories to Cherish

This trip was supposed to be about our oldest daughter, she had a senior trip here a week before we arrived and this is the last time we hang out before she heads out to college. I was glad to see her go ga-ga at the Nintendo Super Mario World at Universal Studios Osaka.  I will remember walking with my wife, holding hands in Tokyo Disneyland. I will remember all the dinners and tasty snacks we enjoyed. All the majestic architecture and the subtle beauty of the forest around Mt. Fuji. The cherry blossoms, the clear streams burbling on the smooth rocks. The old shrines, the quiet walks up the mountains. The busy Tsukiji Market with their fresh fish, meat and fruit smells. The shiny, loud and bustling shopping district in Shibuya. I'm taking all those memories with me. 

What would I do differently

Our youngest daughter had to stay because she didn't want to miss important school activities. Next time she is coming, We really missed her.  Learn how things work ahead of time. We didn't know how the Disney passes work. Other than that it was pretty painless. 

Conclusion

This was an amazing trip, I have to thank my wife M for putting it together. I promise I'll be more helpful next time, but she did an awesome job coming up with ideas for things that everyone will love.  Japan was a lovely trip. 

Hiroshima Peace Memorial

 

On August 6 1945 an atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. I am writing these words less than a mile away from the center of the blast. It hard for me to believe that this bustling is standing on the site of a freaking nuclear blast. This morning we all went to the Memorial museum and it was an intense experience. The history books in the US don't show you the actual carnage. In fact, I thought that the whole city was pretty much vaporized and that the people that were killed didn't know what hit them. While that might be true for some of the victims. That wasn't the case at all for a lot of people. The victims of the bomb died slow, agonizing deaths. A lot of "survivors" died of cancer years later. This was hard to see. I felt...sad is not the word, it's something hard to describe. For me, this brought back memories of things I rather not think about. I never liked to see civilians getting hurt in Iraq and it was hard to see pictures of children burnt by the bomb. 

I like that Japan has embraced the Peace mentality and it's dedicated to nuclear disarmament. I like their statement on their museum basically saying that they will face the truth of their history and learn from it so that they don't make the same mistakes again. 

I'm glad I was able to come here. I am very impressed with the honesty in which Japan chooses to remember this chapter in history. 

JV