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With my new imovie, I am having some fun with video. I am a newbie. Here is my first try with the Celebration Tri video.

Celebration Triathlon on Vimeo . I was truly inspired by Ben and Devi. Devi ran her first Tri. And Ben has done and is doing several with Team Fight in honor of our dear friend Michelle Krout who had Lymphoma. He started after she received her stem cell transplant and she passed away on June 2, 2012. She will be missed.

While Ben has been urging me to do a sprint tri this year, I am not ready as yet. I have been inspired to start small with my first 5K at the end of July. So you may see that later.

Hope you enjoy my first video.

Untitled from lily bengfort on Vimeo.

This past weekend, Lala and I completed what will probably be the toughest race we do all year (and I have two marathons scheduled!), we completed the Columbia Olympic Triathlon at Lake Centennial in Columbia, MD!

The Columbia is about double the distance as the Nanticoke race- 1.5 km swimming, 40 km biking, and 10 km running — 51.5 grueling kilometers (0.93 miles swimming, 24.85 miles biking, 6.21 miles running). This qualifies the Columbia as an “Olympic” distance event, as opposed to the sprint event I did at Bivalve. There are also Ironman and Half-Ironman distances, but those are a little crazy. A full Ironman is 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, and 26.2 mile run. Half Ironman is half of that. Maybe I’ll get to those distances one day, but not this year!

This was also our first official Team Fight race, so Lala and I had to raise money for it. Thanks again to everyone who donated this go around! For those of you that didn’t, don’t worry, there are still another couple of Team Fight races coming up that you can get involved with! The next Team Fight race is the Celebration Triathlon on June 24– Devi is also competing in this race, so that should be a lot of fun.

Spectators at this race included Devi, Mom, Dad, Kylee, Jen, and Winston- so it was a pretty good crowd. It was also a gorgeous day for it- one of the first races in a long time that hasn’t been plagued with rain. Of course, Lala, Kylee, and I got there at 530 in the morning, so we didn’t really notice the weather, as we were busy being nervous and getting ready for the race!

My race started off with a hitch- namely, I lost my timing chip. So I had to get a new one, and that made me worried my time wouldn’t be official. Luckily I did end up finding my original chip! The swim was great, it felt really good to be in the water, and I swam it really well I think. The bike was also a lot of fun, if hilly. I may have taken it a little too hard, and I forgot one of my three nutritions, because at around mile 4.5 on the run, I bonked hard. My pace on the run slowed from 9:15 min/mile to about 12 min/mile. That was really disappointing, because I might have beat three hours (and my goal was 3:30, which Lala made). But still, it was a good time for a first race.

Now I feel like a real triathlete!

Race Result

There may be some video coming later, but I haven’t quite gone through it yet to see.

Some pictures from the race:

J: Our second book, a five-weeker, was Bonfire of the Vanities by Tom Wolfe. I chose it because I had read a brief passage from it during one of my writing classes and found the description of “Lemon Tarts” and “Social X-rays” amusing. I did not realize that, to roughly quote Ben, we were getting into “a cross between Wall Street and Shaq.”

B: I’m not a hundred percent sure that was my quote, but it does sound like something I’d say. The burning vanities were those of impotent, self important characters involved in a class struggle between the Bronx and Park Avenue that manifested itself in the form of a criminal trial of a bonds trader. The characters were simultaneously unlikable and uncomfortably recognizable, and so the complex plot was not the only tricky part of reading the book.

J: It was a bit of a struggle in the beginning to plow on in the book. It starts out, basically with two very different men in very different circumstances, but who are essentially the same in a few things: vanity, ambition, and a real dislike of their wives.

B: Hmm… I’m surprised that you only talk about the two men at the beginning. Towards the end there are many men all involved who are all vain, ambitious, and who really don’t like their wives. In fact, women, gays, and homosexuals don’t fair so well in this book at all- especially at the hands of powerful (or seemingly powerful) white and black straight men. Those two men are the central antagonist and protagonist, but I don’t think they were in control of their own story (they were not heroic even a little bit)

J: Toward the end, the pace picked up and I ended up finishing about ten days ahead of schedule (lucky, as I have another novel to squeeze in for a class before I start on our next book). I think Wolfe did a really good job of capturing a specific time and place and the ways of life of a specific group of people—New Yorkers c. 1980. And he wrote some really wonderful, if slightly florid, passages. Description is not a problem for this writer.

B: I agree- I wasn’t a fan of the plot so much, I felt that there was a shallowness in it due to the fact that a lot of it assumes contemporary knowledge of the characters and setting. However, the description and prose was really quite delightful.

J: He also got deeply into the heads of his two main characters (a Wall Street bonds salesmen and a Bronx District Attorney). I felt locked in step with these two preening, silly men. And in the end they really truly are silly men. Their ends are flippantly detailed in the epilogue, and really, in the end, they have only themselves and their baser desires to blame.

B: But what about the English reporter? The fat rich man? The black reverend? The financial representative of the Episcopal church? The judge? The sleezy criminal lawyer? All characters equally silly, equally preening men. It was a bonfire, after all! The thing is, sometimes the stark relief of these characters makes it all to easy to reflect on some of the shared thoughts that you have in your own head, and that is very uncomfortable.

J: It’s interesting to read something like this and realize how vastly different our (or at least my) perceptions of NYC have changed over time. Twenty years ago, it was a dark, dangerous place. Now, I think we’re all more likely to think of it as a city of possibility.

B: Huh… unless you’re on Wall Street, those dudes still think they are the “Masters of the Universe” by selling credit default swaps…

This morning I completed my first triathlon- The Nanticoke Sprint Triathlon with a pretty speedy result! I had figured that before the Columbia Triathlon (beast of the east according to today’s participants) I’d better have at least one Tri under my belt, and boy was I right! Training doesn’t really prepare you for a full blown multisport race, even with swim-bikes and bike-runs. All I could think about during the run was “yikes, I have to do double this distance in three weeks…”

Needless to say, today’s race was a pretty good experience. Chris and Dad joined me and we spent the night in Salisbury, MD preparing for the race and eating Olive Garden. Bright and early we headed down to Bivalve to rack the bike and set up the transition area. Coffee and hydration later, we watched the kids head out on their triathlon, and it was pretty cool to see them going for it. I think that my kids are going to have to participate in a few tris!

After stuffing myself into my wetsuit, I all of a sudden found myself in the water with 30 other people and the race siren going. After getting kicked in the face quite a few times (and probably kicking a few faces myself) I finally managed to get my stroke and it was no time before I was out at the first buoy.

The real race started on the Bike- the Bivalve area is flat and that means super speed on the bike. There were a group of 7 of us that kept surging and trying to get past each other. I stayed in my biggest chain for the entire ride, and in the aero position and averaged around 26 mph for most of the race! It was super fun!

The problem was that getting off the bike and into the run was pretty tough after that. I barely got into my stride, and everyone I passed on the swim and bike probably passed me again on the run- so it’s clear what I have to work on. But my time was much better than expected, and I’m totally stoked to be a triathlete!

Race Result

Pictures are up on Picasa: https://picasaweb.google.com/bbengfort/NanticokeTriathlon

Videos are currently on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/bbengfort#grid/user/9DDAABDCC51D7D7F

J: For our first book of the new while-you’re-away bookclub, Ben and I chose The Postman Always Rings Twice. Let me talk for a minute about the book-choosing process. As before, it was a difficult one, though we both (I think) did a better job picking a first round that both of us could enjoy. But this list is a much longer one than our previous, and so we found ourselves with my dad in the car driving to Norfolk two days before I was to leave, still trying to finalize the list. So, I went to Modern Library’s list of the best books of the previous century, and we started the debate.

B: I guess I wasn’t too interested in James M. Cain, or really any turn of the century who done it type fiction (I just don’t trust that gum shoes can be effective crime solvers, especially now that I’ve been taught that it requires intensely scientific forensic work to solve crimes), so this book was going to be at the top of the debate pile. Fortunately for us, Jaci ended the debate quickly by informing me that this book had been an inspiration to Albert Camus; since he was one of my favorite writers in high school, I was forced to allow the book in at spot numero uno.

J: And so it made the list as our first book. It’s a short one, but we split it into two parts since we would both be busy. And as you might expect, we both ended up finishing it early.

B: Truth be told- the book was exciting, and even with my bias towards the characters in the novel and their naiveté, so the book flew right by. Had it been what I expected, I could imagine that it would have taken the full two weeks.

J: While there were definitely a few aspects of the novel that I didn’t completely grasp (why are they suspected of a crime? what is at the heart of this central relationship?), I found myself completely engrossed. It reads like an extended conversation with the protagonist, and he’s so frank and forthcoming about his every thought and whim and dark wish that you keep reading to find out what twisted path he’ll lead you down next.

B: I also firmly believed that they could get away with their deeds. I felt that rural California during the depression would be the perfect place to commit the perfect crime and get away with it. For some reason though, the authority characters in the book were blessed with both good sense and amazing intuition (bordering on bigotry). I knew the postman was going to ring again (I mean, Cain laid that out right on the cover of the book), but I spent the whole story firmly believing that they would be Bonnie and Clyde. I was almost relieved at the ending (which I won’t spoil here, but let’s just say fate, not Dick Tracy intervened).

J: It actually reminded me in some ways of Blue Angel, the Francine Prose novel we read last time around. The protagonist isn’t terribly admirable or likeable, but you’re somehow on his side.

B: Yeh, both the protagonist and his accomplice are gross characters whose motive appears to be simple bloodlust– or at least, Cain does such a wimpy job of their motive that you can’t help feeling that way. They’re basically like your dumb, brutish nephew– you can’t help wondering why he does the things he does, but you feel affection for him all the same.

J: I think we’ll draw it to a close here, because I don’t want us accidentally to give away spoilers. If you’re looking for something a little dark and scandalous to read, read The Postman Always Rings Twice. Just don’t let the title fool you. It’s a literary Andalusian dog.

B: Next up is Bonfire of the Vanities by Tom Wolfe, a drama about ambitious, greedy white and black people who don’t seem to like each other very much set in a very classist 1980s New York.

On Sunday Morning, the Clyde’s American 10k was the first race of the 2011 for the Bengfort family, and the first official running races for both Devi and Mike! It was a beautiful day, if a bit windy and chilly at first, and a great day for a running race!

All three Bengfort.com participants beat their goal times solidly. Devi was attempting a 54 minute 10k, Ben a 56 minute one, and Mike a 75 minute 10k. The race was a relaxed affair and everyone felt pretty good throughout the run, except perhaps during the giant hill on 108 and the final climb on Little Patuxent to the finish line.

The full race results can be found at striders.net. Our personal race results are below:

Well, part two of the School of Love Syllabus is now posted, and though we’re already one book in, the website was down until recently and we didn’t get it put up. You can download the PDF version: SoL Syllabus Redux, or check out the HTML version below. Also new, is that Ben now has a Kindle, so the Syllabus is only in terms of Kindle locations. If you need page numbers, let me know in the comments, and I’ll try to work it out!

It was a whirlwind trip- ostensibly for business, but it turned out to be more complicated than that. I made new friends, I saw incredible things, and I succeeded at something I never dreamed I would. I was also disgusted at the dishonesty of the tourist industry in Mexico, I was terrified at the prospect of presenting a paper to some of the smartest people in the world, and I almost met my death in the Caribbean. This was my trip to Cancun, Mexico for the IEEE WCNC 2011.

Arrival in Mexico

When I first departed I was pretty apprehensive. I landed and was immediately drenched in sweat from the humidity. I wasn’t eager for the trip thanks to Jaci’s recent departure, and the fact that I was already on travel and I wanted to get back to work moving forward with my code. As I finally passed through customs, I was greeted by the instistant demanding of people seeking to give me transport; luckily I had already arranged round trip transport to my hotel, and my name was on a placard as I walked into the tropical night.

I arrived in darkness. The room was average- no desk for my laptop? I realized that I was exhausted, what time zone was I in? I thought it was -6, central time here?

The next morning I awoke to a stunning panoramic of the blue, blue- washing detergent stunning blue of the Caribbean crashing into the whitest beach I’d ever seen. I realized that my room was not sparse, but modern, and the hotel soared to a stunning interior atrium that I hadn’t noticed in my sleep deprived arrival. Although it was -6 (central time), daylight savings time in Mexico wouldn’t happen for another week, so I was effectively in Mountain Time. Room service brought coffee.

I had gotten up too early and still jetlagged I went to the gym before I showed myself at the conference. I ran hard, I cycled hard. I have a triathlon to run, after all. Feeling fit, I dressed and went out into the streets of the zona hotel, searching for the Cancun Center- and after only a few wrong turns I found it.

Where was I? The place seemed empty, a few Indians and Chinese and Professor-y looking people roamed the halls; the only indication I was in the right place. I found the registration desk, and with some difficulty, the native Spanish speakers managed to locate “Bengfort”. I only had to explain that my name started with a “B” four times. Lunch, though promised, was not to be found; WiFi, though promised, was also missing in action.

I attended my first session- deployment of relay stations in LTE-Advanced networks- seemingly my area of expertise. It was presented by second-language English speakers. The room was sparse– it contained a good friend, though I didn’t know it yet– I worked on my paper.

Out of the Social Comfort Zone

I skipped the afternoon session (sorry boss) and returned to the gorgeous Caribbean that was doing it’s best to break through the shore and beat the cabanas senseless. I figured I could swim in it. After changing and grabbing my flippers, I went in, mindless of the red flags. Thirty minutes later I was exhausted and half drowned. The undertow had dragged me a quarter mile to sea. When I finally dragged myself out of the water onto the beach, the lifeguard merely said “[translation of what I presume to be, the weather will get better towards the end of the week]”. I went to the gym, got on the bike, and then got on the treadmill.

I am not a social person, so I contemplated skipping the welcome reception the entire time I dressed for it and as I walked to the hotel where it was being held. When I finally go there, it was a shock to see my peers and my elders drinking and eating with familiar ease. I barely kept myself moving forward with thoughts of “It’s free food and free drinks at the very least”. Fortified by my first free margarita, and plate of appetizers, I approached a seemingly sympatico peer standing by himself by the bar. It was the best choice I could have made.

Madushanka and I had much in common right off the bat- it was our first paper, our first conference, and we both had the same research area. But for some reason, Madushanka attracted people. Simply being in his presence meant that I met the group of people I would spend the rest of the week with- Sabarish, Yuvika, Charka, and Sanjeema (as well as several other professors and PhD candidates that introduced themselves to Madush, and therefore me). They were good friends and first time presenters also, and it was an honor to get to know them! I hope that our social and professional relationship continues to grow over time, they are incredible.

The next day the conference didn’t seem to be such a foreboding, lonely place– not with new friends there. I went for a swim, the waves crashed into me with the same vengeance as before, and I was ready for them. But this time the guard came out after me– he didn’t like the risks I was taking. A turn on the bike and the treadmill took me to my first tri-sport workout. I dressed for the conference, excited to meet my new friends.

They didn’t disappoint- we went to sessions together, had lunch together and a great conversation. I went to their presentations, but soon enough, I realized that the next day I had to present, and anxiety began to overwhelm me.

I still hadn’t heard from my advisor about the status on my presentation- I was alone, with my paper distilled into 22 Tactical Network Solutions branded slides. I had no idea what I was doing. The presentation was only hours away, and so after more time in the gym, I went to the bar to wait for my new friends.

The mojito was excellent, and the wind was bending palm trees at their base. The outdoor lounge was being swept away, but the hot Caribbean air seemed so… natural. I noticed Shane by himself in the corner of the lounge, and buoyed by my success the night before, I approached him, and once again made a new friend. Unfortunately, my social awkwardness prevailed in the end, and I didn’t invite him to the planned dinner with my new group, and it wouldn’t be until later in the week until I would have the chance to get to know him.

Club Cancun

Sabarish, Yuvika, Charka, Sanjeema, Madushanka, and I wandered downtown Cancun looking for a place to eat, not expecting trouble. Finally we settled on a place called Carlos Charlie’s after an hour of walking around punctuated by disagreements about the various dietary requirements of the group. Apparently, Mexico is not vegetarian or Buddhist friendly. We could have been walking into an Applebee’s for the decoration and the table layout. But only fifteen minutes after we sat down, at precisely nine o’clock, a club materialized around us.

The margaritas were 32 ounces and three feet tall. They went down quickly, and we hadn’t eaten yet. A girl with tequila shots walked around, pouring the tequila down our throats and shaking our heads while tweaking our nipples. The waiters were more entertainment than food servers, inciting their diners to dance in conga lines that went out into the street and onto the bar. It didn’t take long for our entire table to find ourselves rhythmically and unceasingly moving to the heartskipping thud of the bass. We ate finally, only to have the drink Sex on the Beach poured directly into our throats while a waiter held a towel around us, and didn’t stop until we choked. Yuvika managed the impressive feat of almost a minute of straight drinking! They challenged us to beer chugging races, they asked us to buy them drinks, it was a club, it was dinner, it was Cancun!

When we finally stumbled into the street, our wallets significantly lighter (we were charged for every drop that we, and the waiters imbibed), and thoroughly partied out, I realized I had to do a podcast in only four hours. Thank goodness Will understood and we rescheduled for Thursday. But that didn’t change the fact that I had to present that afternoon.

Slides and Sliding

The morning meant more workouts, if only to reduce my anxiety- it didn’t work. I ate nothing at the conference luncheon for fear of spilling on my shirt… or puking. My new friends, only slightly hung over (bottled water works miracles) tried to encourage me, but they were planning on attending my presentation, and that didn’t help.

It went like a dream. I didn’t read from my slides, I was confident, I was asked important questions that I could answer. Why was I nervous? Of course, I was the only author presenting in my session of five papers. Everyone else was assigned the task of presenting another person’s research. Still, I convinced important professors in my community that my work was important; and this when my own advisors didn’t think my paper was worth much! Still, that night when we went out to dinner, I took it easy, and we didn’t leave the hotel for fear of Cancun outside.

The next morning I managed the podcast successfully from the hotel, and my new friends and I departed for Chitchen Itza afterwards.

Chitchen Itza

Tour groups are weird things. They keep you on schedule, but you don’t get enough time to do the things you want to do.

We stopped by a cenote (pronounced keh-note-ey), a sinkhole in the middle of the jungle, first. Of course, I wanted to swim. After changing we walked down 30m of steps, then dived the final 10m into the clear blue water filled with fish. I went deep on my cliff dive, but surfaced with exhilaration. Waterfalls surrounded the sinkhole, the jungle was all around, stretching to the water below, and the sun was a distant memory. I dived. I went 10, then 15 meters, but still the water was bright blue. I dived again, I made 20 meters- 10 times the length of my body, but still no bottom. I choked as I surfaced, and had trouble treading water. I grabbed for a nearby vine to hold myself above water, and it was then that the conservation officer blew his whistle wildly at me (apparently nature is more important than humans breathing above water). We managed pictures before we had to run off to catch the bus.

A a brief stop at a restaurant, and then Chitchen Itza. It appeared out of the jungle like the sun appearing behind a cloud. It was magnificent, the most perfectly preserved ruins that I had ever seen. We explored for hours, and at every turn we found something amazing to discover. The echoes were sublime. In one place, on the ball court (original lacrosse!), echoes were repeated 9, then 11 times. In another, a certain type of clap would create echoes as though it were a bird sound! We were harassed by multitudes of Mexicans trying to sell cheap souvenirs, and we bargained for a few. I was ripped off for one, and Sanjeema successfully negotiated for another. More preserved than Cairo or Athens, it was though we were transported in time, brought back to reality only for the need for the air conditioning of the bus. We were exhausted and amazed by the time we finally reached Cancun again.

The Final Tally

The week ended too quickly, in fact, it was a surprise to wake up to find it was the last day of the conference. I quickly packed, but when I checked out I was dismayed to find many hidden charges on my bill. It is one thing when craftsmen and con artists in tourist areas selling cheap replicas on blankets try to cheat you, it’s quite another when the Hyatt Regency in Cancun, an American company, does the same thing for close to USD $250! Everything in Mexico has a fuzzy relationship with the American dollar, and they know how to suck the money out of you, whether you are selling beads for dix pesos, or you run a TGIF/Club, or even a five star hotel; in fact, it is simple as this: when you are in Mexico, be prepared to be lied to about how much things cost, and not escape without paying a tourist surcharge of approximately 24%.

Returning home was no easy task either. Federales were a conspicuous presence on the way out, whereas they were an invisible presence on the way in. American immigration treats everyone of brown skin with a cold, suspicious courtesy that borders on hostility, and the Delta baggage handlers managed to utterly and completely destroy the contents of my checked luggage. Dogs patrol the bags with armed handlers who look at you suspiciously if you look at them or their K9s, and I had to try to control the desperate fear that someone has slipped something in my luggage making me an unwitting mule.

However, as I sit here in Atlanta, drinking beer in an airport bar and contemplating my first real trip to Mexico- I try to figure out the differences between there and here. As in Cancun, everything in Atlanta is bilingual, English first. Most of the staff here speaks Spanish, and aside from the southern drawl noticeable in the airport, and the distinct lack of salt-fortified humid air, nothing seems that different; they are the same restaurants, the same people, and the same frenetic moving in all directions. Only here, they don’t heckle you to come to their restaurant.

It was a wonderful trip, and I met wonderful new friends. I saw the wonders of the ancient Maya, and I dived in the beauty of the Yucatan jungle and the Caribbean sea. I achieved a professional accomplishment– publication in the premier IEEE Communications Society Conference, and I made many excellent professional and research contacts. At the same time, I was lied to, cheated, and generally sapped for my cash by con artists, hawkers, and professional drink slingers. I had to overcome social and professional anxiety, and I almost drowned… three times. It was exactly the kind of trip that I wanted.

Jaci: For our final bookclub book until I next depart, we returned to A Game of Thrones. Or, I returned to A Game of Thrones. One of the benefits of a paper book–it can’t be accidentally archived mid-read. Ben finished it back when we started it.

Ben: So just a note, this was published on January 31, but due to some issues with the website, it only just showed up now. But hey- perfect timing- the HBO miniseries Game of Thrones is coming out on April 17, and there has been a lot of buzz about that!

Jaci: This books is a pretty straight-stick high fantasy, a genre that I enjoy on occasion. My favorite examples of the genre are the His Dark Materials, Chronicles of Narnia and Harry Potter series. By comparison, this seemed a bit…hokey. And yet, at sea, it was impossible to stop reading. The themes of separation from loved ones and decisions almost made for you, in particular, rang true for me.

Ben: Oh come now, hokey? George R.R. Martin is considered a king of this genre (and he even looks like a part of it, if you’ve seen his interviews). Now a big miniseries is coming out, this has to be more than just hokey! I think the issue was that once you dive into a fantasy world, you have to stay in that world, coming in than out of it causes fantasy-reality lapse issues.

Jaci: Once I finally reloaded the book to my Kindle in Rome, I had a much harder time getting back into it. Because, at that point, I was only ten hours away from reuniting with Ben. It was as though I was the King’s Hand and my time in the Red Keep was drawing to a close at last, allowing me to return to Winterfell and my family. (Is that too much? And is it any wonder that I’m a big fan of Arya?)

Ben: Ok, or that- maybe I am just better than fantasy!

Jaci: Ben’s response to my complaints on the length of the book: stop bitching and read it.

Ben: I devoured this book pretty quickly, and the next one too, but I didn’t quite make it into the third one. Length isn’t really a problem for me, and now that I have a new Kindle also, it goes so quickly. There are so many varied story lines- Jon, Arya, the various houses and kings that are all in conflict, and even politics on the other side of the world, and they never seem to intersect! In fact, the lack of intersection kind of drives you, you push forward hoping that you aren’t reading 8 different stories and that they’ll all come together in one giant climax.

Jaci: Toward the end I got back into the flow of the story, and the last 20% or so flew by. I was actually thinking about adding the rest of the series to our refreshed bookclub list come summer, but Ben’s already ordered the rest of the series, and I don’t know if we’ll be able to wait that long!

Ben: I think we can put the rest of them on, you just have one book of catch up to do, and the rate we’re going, you mind as well!

Jaci: So, at this point I would like to comment on the utility of the bookclub in general. In my opinion, it really helped. Couples that live together all the time don’t have to try as hard–they have a shorthand language of shared experiences. We were able to mimic that effect to a certain degree by reading the same books. If I blurt out, apropos of nothing, “I don’t want our children to be like Sansa!” Ben immediately gets that I don’t want them to be idiotic spoiled brats with nothing but fantasies and fairy dust between the ears. And, even though we were apart, the bookclub was a way to spend some time on our marriage every week. It helped us put in the work.

Ben: I can’t agree more. I’ll bottom line it for everyone- the book club saved our marriage from the Navy, period.

Jaci: And with that, the bookclub is officially on pause. Look for us to resume Summer 2011!

Note: this post is very, very late.  But, as ever, a good excuse: Jaci got home earlier than expected!  While in the long run this is not positive news (she’s leaving again soon, for longer), it was wonderful to have her home for Ben’s graduation and Christmases in North Dakota and Maryland.

Jaci: For our most recent books, the contrast could not have been more extreme. First, due to my Kindle fat-fingering, we had to skip forward to Blue Angel by Francine Prose (which, oddly enough, got us back on schedule), a two-week read that took me more like six days due to the pairing of addictive writing and a new assignment as the “Ship’s Lady” (i.e. the officer so close to transfer that she has no job to speak of).  Then, for a complete change of pace, we moved on to Simone de Beauvoir’s The Ethics of Ambiguity, a dense philosophical defense of the ethical grounding of existentialism.  I think.  It turns out that being away from this kind of reading for over two years made it harder than ever it was for me completely to follow the intricate explanations by which she differentiates a humanistic existentialism from a dark, hopeless nihilism.

Ben: I’m more to blame for the delay of this post rather than delay of reading books. I finished all of these books (well, most of Ethics) by the deadline, including Game of Thrones, but was hard pressed to find the time to write this post. And to be honest, these two books inspired such a wide array of emotions and criticism that I may have been subconsciously avoiding the post in my “angst of the now”.

Jaci: I had read one book by Francine Prose earlier–a nonfiction piece about how to read like a writer.  By the end I knew I wanted to read one of her many fictional works, and I always like a good campus novel, so I chose Blue Angel for the bookclub.

Ben: So I heavily resisted adding Blue Angel to the reading list. I imagined that this was a book Jaci was putting on the list to punish me- some sort of pseudo-feminist, anti-man, coming of age story about girl students and their evil male professors. It turned out I was right, but what was unexpected was how much I enjoyed the book- and I flew through it. It’s a credit to Prose that her writing is so fluid and engaging, that even while you’re being beaten by a seriously uncomfortable plot, you just keep hoping that things will end well. (Spoiler: they did not.) And yes, for those of you critiquing my critique, it was a coming of age story — just because the male professor, who was the protagonist (pseudo-feminist), was upper middle aged doesn’t mean it wasn’t coming of age for him.

Jaci: Reading Blue Angel was a strange experience: I wasn’t certain I wanted to know how it would end (the ending is clear from the beginning, and I think she planned it that way).  But despite not really liking or respecting the main character, a has-been novelist working as a writer-in-residence at a small liberal arts college, I found myself in some way on his side.

Ben: I dreaded every paragraph that I devoured- it was like watching a train wreck, fascinating in that you can’t look away, but you desperately hope that superman will show up and pick one of the trains up! I was actually kind of empty at the end, just from shear hope exhaustion. Most of this was because Francine Prose (a woman) managed to tap into a deep-seated male fear and insecurity in such a spectacular way (sorry to reveal secrets) that it became less about the surrounding characters in the book, and really just the reader (of any gender) identifying completely with the protagonist.

Jaci: In short: the tone of the book was fresh despite the well-used subject matter; the writing is addictive; the reader’s emotional response is marvelous.  Read it!

Ben: And then it was time for Mademoiselle de Beauvoir.

Jaci: Ben claims I snuck this book onto the list without his knowledge during the bargaining phase; I claim I added it after he added Heaven so that we would have a nice pair of nonfiction books on the list, and if he didn’t know I had added it, well, then, he needs to pay attention when I’m babbling along!  In the end, though, I think he ended up enjoying it more than I did.

Ben: Luckily I do have some philosophical education, as well as a background in existentialism (like most teenagers), so I was ok with the ideas in the book. It’s just unfortunate that the prose was so dense. As I was reading (on a flight from Seattle to North Dakota), it kept putting me to sleep! I wondered out loud (on the plane) if this was due to the heavy material, or if perhaps there was a better way to communicate these particular ideas (they are mind-bendy), but authors choose to present it a certain way (Descartian drama paragraphs) just to give weight to their ideas.

Jaci: While it was a challenge to hold my greatly-shortened attention span in check, I found that I did learn things from this book.  Reading actual philosophy (as opposed to second-hand descriptions of the positions of a philosophical camp) is always illuminating, and there were some amazing things written.  Most of my notes from this book are simply direct quotes.  And I was glad to find that despite difficulties I could still draw something from a challenging (and long) argument.

Ben: And she definitely reinforced my postion as a Kierkegaardian existentialist. I had never considered her definition of ambiguity before — (although exactly what was ambiguous led to a rather ambiguous debate between Jaci and I!) — and I was interested to contemplate my current philosophical outlook from this new perspective. I highly recommend this book along with some sort of stimulant!

Jaci: So there it is: morals and ethics, all in the space of three weeks’ reading.  Skipping forward in our own story, I was able to restore Game of Thrones to my Kindle in Rome.  And now, for once, we’re waiting on me to finish a book.  It turns out that a fantasy of this type goes easier for me when I’m someplace I’d really rather not be–reading it during my extended vacation has been difficult.  Once I finish it, we’ll be temporarily closing shop and updating the inventory in preparation for my next long time away.  Until then…