by AnnSheybani | Jun 27, 2017 | Life, Reading
Like a junkie with a 14-gauge needle, my mother used books to blot out reality. Curled up in her chair, immersed in a novel, she ceased to be aware of anyone or anything around her. When she put her book down, exposed herself to the rage and tension that contaminated...
by AnnSheybani | Jun 12, 2017 | Reading
A blast from the past. Being an introvert, I need a lot of time to myself. I spend most mornings happily surrounded by a pack of dogs and the quiet. I read, think, and write. Even with Walt present, I can be alone. He has similar rhythms. We can lose entire days to...
by AnnSheybani | May 28, 2017 | Life, Reading
I’m learning to drive all over again in Ireland. This doesn’t sound like a big deal, I know, but it feels death defying. Most of the time, I pretty much want to scream and cry, or blame my misery on horrible Walt. Smug Walt. Gasp-y Walt. The Irish, for whatever...
by AnnSheybani | Mar 26, 2017 | Life, Reading
A post I wrote 7 years ago. When I was eleven, my mother signed me up for a weight loss class. Having battled the bulge for years on end, she was alarmed when, at that awkward age, I, too, started piling on the pounds. So, every week we drove out to the local...
by AnnSheybani | Mar 21, 2017 | guest post, Life, Reading
This is a guest post by Walt Hampton. A beautiful example of how one book can alter the course of a life. It had been a warm summer day in August of 1972. My father had purchased the book for me that morning in a Nantucket bookshop, the book that would change and...
by AnnSheybani | Mar 6, 2017 | Reading
An older post I thought to bring out of mothballs. Too many clients obsessively worrying about the path ahead. I just got back from climbing Mt. McKinley (Denali) in Alaska. Twenty days hauling an 80-lbs pack up steep traverses interspersed with hours on end...
