5741

Sleepy day! Sleepier than some of the past few days. Was awake a bit late last night and arose late this morning. Day has been in slo-mo.

Except when I dropped a pint of blueberries! They hit the floor and scattered everywhere. There are a lot of blueberries in a pint as I found out by having to pick every one of them up to be washed. Well that was my excitement for the day.

Reading a collection of short stories by Raymond Carver. They are printed in a nearly chronological order so I can really get a feel for how he improved over time. He died young, at 50, from lung cancer, which you can almost get by reading his stories--his characters smoke and drink to excess in many cases.

His stories and style are not "literary," but are rich with characterization of ordinary people and story twists. I know I've read some of his work in the past, and I knew how well thought of he was, but this is my first extensive exposure to his work. It's impressive! He's been compared favorably to Chekhov.

Anyway, I'm enjoying the sleepy day and look forward to evening and some more Carver. Labor Day is almost history as is the "Crocodile Hunter"--lanced by a sting ray! What a bizarre event! Sad for his family!