Posted by Monica Danna on Dec 4, 2009 in
Best '09,
books As part of the Best of 2009 Blog Challenge I’ll be blogging daily on the bests of 2009. Post by Post.
{December 4: Book. What book – fiction or non – touched you? Where were you when you read it? Have you bought and given away multiple copies?}
I’m actually STILL reading it, but it’s quickly becoming a topic of many of my conversations here in New York. So apparently it’s had a profound impact on me over the past week that I’ve been reading it.
Since I’ve been brainstorming, and half-ass writing, two books this year, Bird by Bird has been an excellent motivation for me to just get over all the analyzing and just WRITE.
My copy is a borrowed copy from Andrew Karnavas, and is signed by the author. He was hesitant to let it leave his hands, but I promise I’m taking great care of it!
Thanks to my writing coach, Beth Irvine, who has pretty much functioned as my therapist over the past year. Thanks, Beth for always encouraging me. And to Lucy Chambers, my partner in saving the world, for sharing with me her fascination with words.
Tags: best09, books
Posted by Monica Danna on Jan 13, 2009 in
arts + events,
books I’ve been anticipating this for a looooong time. (Almost as long as I’ve been wanting these two to reunite).
I’ve sung Jim Parsons praises since the day I met him. Arguably one of THE most knowledgeable resources on all things Houston, and one helluva inhaler of Barnaby’s Blue Cheese Fries.
Jim, along with the Greater Houston Preservation Alliance’s David Bush, has been working on a Houston Art Deco architecture book, and it’s finally time to share it with eager, Houston-adoring fans, like yours truly. 
This Thursday, January 15th, ArCH’s ArchiTypes and the Houston Public Library present:
Houston Deco: Modernistic Architecture of the Texas Coast
with authors Jim Parsons and David Bush.
“Join us on the 4th floor of the Downtown Houston Public Library at 6:00pm on Thursday, January 15th, for a presentation by authors Jim Parson and David Bush. A book signing and reception will follow immediately at the Architecture Center Houston (ArCH) at 7:00pm.”
About Houston Deco: Modernistic Architecture of the Texas Coast:
When it comes to Art Deco, Houston is rarely cited in the same breath as Miami, New York or Los Angeles, but the city boasts many gorgeous examples of this early 20th-century style, some of which are in jeopardy of being forever altered or demolished. In the 1920s, as Houston was beginning its transition from medium-sized Southern city to major American metropolis, local business and civic leaders made a conscious decision to create a new image for their community. As the Roaring Twenties gave way to the Great Depression, Art Deco zigzags and Art Moderne streamlining reshaped the city’s stores, skyscrapers, factories and apartment buildings. Through color photographs, David Bush and Jim Parsons showcase the fine detailing on Houston’s surviving Art Deco and Art Moderne structures. From downtown landmarks to east end industrial sites, Houston Deco captures the grace and beauty of these innovative designs with an eye toward the importance of conservation, restoration and preservation.
About Authors in Architecture:
Debuting in January 2009, Authors in Architecture is a new collaboration between the Houston Public Library and ArchiTypes, the inaugural membership group of ArCH. Our aim is to create a new dialogue between these two downtown cultural centers and their patrons. This monthly series is free and open to the public.
About ArchiTypes:
ArchiTypes is a membership organization of Architecture Center Houston (ArCH) dedicated to increasing appreciation of architecture, understanding our built environment and encouraging sustainable development. There are no membership requirements other than an interest in architecture including environmental responsibility, urban design, interior design, public art, and landscape architecture. To join ArchiTypes please contact nicole@aiahouston.org or call 713.520.0155 for further information.
Houston Public Library Downtown
500 McKinney, 4th Floor
Houston, TX 77002
6:00pm
Architecture Center Houston (ArCH)
315 Capitol, Suite 120
Houston, TX 77002
7:00pm
Recommended parking at the Houston Public Library parking garage or the Hobby Center parking garage.
Follow Jim on Twitter: @fourfive
Follow Greater Houston Preservation Alliance on Twitter: @ghpa
Tags: architecture, art deco, books, houston architecture, houston public library
Posted by Monica Danna on Jan 31, 2008 in
travel So it’s no secret that i have the best parents in the world. Seriously, no offense to yours, but I do.
So i don’t know why it even surprised me that when i arrived home from work today, I had a package waiting for me. A Travel goodie bag from mom and dad.
You can view all the items closer on Flickr here.
Inside the bag was:
The People Puzzle Book – filled with crosswords
Feb 08 Wired Mag
The latest Rolling Stone
Ambien
A book reading light
Travel books on Malaysia, Australia, and a travel journal
Bookmark Pens
Twizzlers, Sour Patch Kids, and Godiva Chocolate
and, as if that wasn’t enough….
AN IPHONE!
Yes, Dad graciously bought me (and himself) an iPhone today. (Mainly so i can show him how to use it, i’m sure)
So it looks like I’ll have plenty to do on the plane now!
I’m all packed thanks in part to the lovely organ_printer who made sure I stayed on task, and curbed my procrastination.
Soon I’m headed up to the Proletariat to say my goodbyes, since it’s closing this weekend. 
Hope to see some of you up there, if not, see ya when i return!
Tags: awesome parents, books, candy, iPhone, music, travel
Posted by Monica Danna on Jan 28, 2008 in
travel 
Raise your hand if the only reason you got into reading was in 3rd grade because you wanted to win a Pizza Hut personal pan pizza? Or you liked stickers. Pretty good chance it’s one of the two.
Come on. Yes, I read. Don’t act so surprised. How else would I know that Jessica Biel made JT fly to London where she was after rumors (ahem, rumours) of him and Miss Penny Lane playing smoochy smooch at an LA night club. What the hell, why don’t stars just hang out in Idaho like Demi and Ashton?
So when I finally decided to remind myself that I was leaving town in a mere 5 days for over 4 weeks, the natural stop was to the bookstore. Hey, I’m pretty entertaining, but 20 hours on a flight? Come on, I’ve had relationships shorter than that.
After a quick stop at one of my fav stores in the Heights, Tansu, to pick up an overpriced, oversized, cute as heck packing checklist that I had eyed there months ago, it was on to the bookstore. I also learned that on Sundays at Tansu you can fold paper in to tiny animals like rats and armadillos (some people call this origami—i call it a papercut waiting to happen). But only if you bring the owners a coke. Diet for her, regular for him.
I LOVE going to bookstores. And not in a “trying to impress you that I read books” kinda way. But I really love being at the bookstore. Mostly because people just leave you alone. Or creepily stare. Both which are fine by me. But I must confess, that 95% of my time is usually spent in one of 2 places: the paper goods section (i’m a sucker for good graphic design) or the books on brains. Yeah, I know, not exactly a lot of variety.
Truth be told, a majority of the books I read are non-fiction. History, medicine, science, psychology, etc. If I hated it in school, there’s a good chance love it now. Dude, you’re talking to a girl who once spent an entire year researching Russian history because of a damn Tori Amos song. (Creepy, super fan. That’s me.) So I usually have a hard time finding a good fiction to read, mostly for the same reason I don’t like sci-fi movies. Um, it ain’t real.
Luckily, I had a friend with me to guide me down the fiction path, and who picked out a few selections. My only rule was, “please pick something you think I will like, not something that you like.” Sorry, but the “Investigation of Surface Mechanical Environment as an Optimization Criterion for Improved Tissue Engineering Scaffolds” ain’t the kinda thing that’s gonna hold my attention across the entire Pacific Ocean.
We ending up deciding on Bret Easton Ellis’ Glamorama; and after trying to take pictures with our cell phone cameras of every page of the Kuala Lumpur section in every Malaysia guide book, we were on our way.
I’m hoping it doesn’t take me 20 hours to read this book. Of course, I’ll probably ditch the book and pick up every back issue of US weekly I can get my hands on in the overpriced airport bookstore. Wonder of Jessica and Justin will make it? I hope I do.
image: slightclutter (taken at half price book in houston, tx)
Tags: books, bookstore, travel