Animals talk a lot but they just don't read

No book hunting last weekend. I just wasn't up for it. We halfheartedly went out to a porch sale at Spring Farm Cares in New Hartford, an Interspecies Communication, Animal Sanctuary, and Adoption Center. They are the World's First Center for the Teaching of Interspecies Communication. I know! They take in dogs, cats, horses, goats, birds, jackalopes and pushmepullyous. They are very active with neutering, spaying, and talkin' to the animals. Their website is a treasure house of awesome and I suggest a visit there immediately. However, they don't have any books of merit.
Here is my favorite story from the Meet our Horses, Ponies and Donkeys page.
"Gypsy only won one race because she would always slow down as the other horses got closer to her. We figured out later that she was stopping to kick them as she didn’t like other horses coming up behind her." It sounds like Gypsy had it all figured out. Sport of Kings my sweet patoot. You go Gypsy. Stick it to the man. And all those other horses.
I am considering signing up for a workshop in animal communication to ask my female greyhound Q: why you gotta always sneak up behind me and stick your cold nose up my skirt. $300 later - A: because your butts up there. Sweet vacuous Anna.

a sampler

Ok! so I went out of town on business, workin for the man every night and day. I managed to visit some bookstores as I was toiling and I took lots of photographs. But for now here is a quick summery of last weekends roundup:
Me and the boy set out to New Hartford. The first sale had no books, but lots of stuff like so:
I didn't buy it because it qualifies as NAB (not a book). But I wanted to. Remmington Rand would be an awesome name for a suave international secret agent. I did fall for a 1957 Static Master in an original box for .99 cents. It is for cleaning records. And mastering static.
The next sale advertised books in the paper. Technically, I guess there were some books.
See them? Just under the Book Corner sign?

I have added several palsied arrows to identify the stack of almost a full set of childrens encyclopedia and one worthless potboiler. Thanks for visiting the Book Corner!
The third sale I didn't take pictures of as I was getting tired of lameness. Typically, this is where I found the most interesting book, Ordnance and Gunnery, 1907. A West Point text with lots of cool pictures of cannons and mines and stuff.
Also, a book about ice cream.
The fourth sale was all the way up in Rome and was a house sale. There were books there and fairly interesting but only a few made the cut. I passed on a set of Yale Shakespeares because they were not pretty enough. I know that makes me shallow, but sometimes you gotta judge a book by its covers, yo. Also, I would have had to write a check. Management made its feelings clear about that:


Then a stop at North Star orchards to purchase a large sticky bun for to reward the boy for his boundless patience. Five books, one record groomer and a treat is the sum up.

Last week in Utica

The Mancuso brothers asbestos fraud saga finally comes to a conclusion in federal court when a judge handed out sentences like party favors. Party's over! Everyone out of the pool! There's asbestos in there!
From the local paper, emphasis mine.
"Paul Mancuso, 45, was sentenced to 6 ½ years in federal prison as the mastermind behind an asbestos removal operation that he was prohibited from being involved in.

His father, Lester Mancuso, 71, was given 3 years in prison.

Paul Mancuso's brother, Steven Mancuso, was sentenced to 3-2/3 years in prison, or 44 months, for using his legal expertise as an attorney to conceal his brother's involvement in the operations.

Additionally, Paul Mancuso was ordered to pay a $20,000 fine for violating federal regulations by allowing asbestos to be dumped in a field and washed down a drain at a Utica school, and once again he is prohibited from engaging in any asbestos abatement business.

This is the fourth time Paul Mancuso has faced serious federal charges related to asbestos abatement"
Apparently, the sentencing was colorful with crying Italian nanas, attempted running away by defendants, and metaphorical backstabbing. I have to say metaphorical because actual backstabbing is a possibility. Both Paul and Steven tried to roll over on the third brother, Ronald, who masterminded stealing nearly $1 million in quarters from parking meters in downtown Syracuse from 2000 to 2005. Which he laundered in local businesses all over town. Including a local laundromat owned by the previous Mayor's father. “Their brother Ronnie was the rat, and he’s out,” says Joette Mancuso, wife of Paul and owner of Joettes Gifts in New Hartford, which was busted by the state police for selling counterfit designer womens accessories in 2007. Thanksgiving is gonna be kind of awkward at Casa Mancuso this year.

Speaking of Thanksgiving, the Utica police make an arrest for last year's Thanksgiving murder. Turns out the murderers were right here in the city the whole time!

The recently renovated local showcase Stanley Performing Arts Center which had over $20 million dollars of federal funds poured into it is failing to support itself by presenting programs that people want to see. Executive director exit stage left and the search is on for a new one who can convince people to spend money to come downtown after dark. Give out free cans of mace, and a police escort. Problem solved.

The Utica police bought an old armored Brinks truck for $10 and have been working with the welding department of the local community college to vandal proof it and fit it out with surveillance cameras. Then it will be parked in high crime areas. "The goal is not necessarily to make an arrest, but to alert the suspects that police are onto them." Police Chief Williams says. You hear that crims? The popo are on to your shenanigans.

ok, I'm done. For now.

I compare and contrast part two

Here's what happened at the second estate sale last Friday. We roll up in our hoopty to a modest looking home in a nice neighborhood. There is a sold sign on the lawn of the house and the garage door is up, tables full of small items placed around the small space. I see a lot of boxes on a pallet in the back and they are chock full of books. They don't smell, aren't damp and clearly haven't been living in the garage for a long time so that's good. It's kinda dark in the garage though, and I don't see anyone who looks like they are working the sale. The boxes turn out to have some good stuff and I'm intently focused on sorting and choosing. The more I look the more I am interested the the people who owned them. There are cool vintage booklets about curling, a popular Utica sport. Lots of literature and history. Some ephemera and old yearbooks. Foreign language novels and dictionaries. Lots of Modern Library editions with nice jackets. A few flower and plant guides. A catalog of the works of Charles Burchfield, one of my favorite artists. While I'm occupied I am vaguely aware of people wandering in looking at the small stuff and wandering out but when I get like this its hard to shake my book trance. Finally, I have sorted out what I can afford and I'm thinking about my bargaining strategy. Ok, who's in charge here?

There's another guy who has some smalls in his hand and he's looking around for someone to give his money to as well. I knock on the door in the garage into the house. Nothing. I go around to the front and knock and ring the bell. The guy's wife calls from the car. "it doesn't start until noon". It's 10:45. Huh. I guess I should have read the ad a little more carefully. The guy makes a disgusted remark and leaves. Suddenly, a though occurs to me. What if some early bird forced the garage door open, took stuff and left? Then what if the sale organizers show up and find me, a stranger standing in the open, dark garage holding a box of books? Ohhhkay. Stash the box under a table and we move quickly to the car. More cars are pulling up as we drive away. At noon, I'm back! Garage door is shut and the front door is open. The first thing I do is bee line to my box which is still there. There's no crime scene tape anywhere and no one seems agitated so I decide it's just best not to ask.

At least now I get to go through the place and it's a really nice house. Every now and then, I go though a home and I feel totally comfortable in it, like I'm in sync with the place. The family room is large and airy and I spot the built in bookcases that held the books that the sale people threw in boxes in the garage. Books are for nerds, right? Shelves are for displaying your toys. Dang, didn't you know?
The decor is a little dated, but tasteful and all the furniture is of quality and well made. Classic and pleasing. You get the sense that a family of many interests was lived here. There's no overriding scheme like Kuntry Krafts or Pwecious Bears. No pink or lavender and no horrible dolls. The weird thing is I know I took a lot of pictures, but they aren't on my phone now. There's only two. This mid century dining room table and set of chairs made me hold my breath:

You don't see the likes of this too much around here. It's like some shy forest creature. Shhhhh! Don't scare it! I pulled the chair out so that you can see the angular seat. It was priced at $950.00. That probably won't even get you a footstool at the local cardboard and particle board furniture rip off stores. I hope it went to a good home.
Here's the other photo:

Someone was in the service during wartime. I'm not good at telling what branch and this photo is terrible. The main bedroom was filled with ladies hats, shoes and clothes from the 5o's through the 60's. Almost all the awesome hats had labels from bygone Utica shops. There were several fur hoods that I enjoyed trying on. There was a great fur purse. You know the kind with the snap shut mouth and no handle? A clutch I think they are called. I KNOW I took a picture of it, but it's gone. The ladies running the sale tells me that there is not much market on ebay for vintage clothing and accessories that don't have designer labels. I think all dealers are inherently pessimistic. It comes from constantly shifting through the chaff to find the one golden kernel of wheat. If I had a nickel for every copy of Profiles in Courage....

I compare and contrast, part one

First of all, here is my haul for the weekend:

It's an interesting mixed bag of cookbooks, Modern Library editions in jackets, Utica Curling Club ephemera and some early atlases.
House number one was Friday. It was one of the really nice places on the parkway. The kind that you drive by and wonder what kind of treasures are inside. None. That is the correct answer. Just lots and lots of dolls, tchotchke and kitsch horribleness. I guess kitch has its place but this house was stuffed in every room. How does this happen to an adult?

one of the many hundreds of dolls

These people were clearly wealthy and were part of Utica's social elite. They lived in one of the best areas of the city, conspicuously on the Parkway. I don't know anything about them but the evidence of their lives that they left behind. Was there art? A wine cellar? A photography studio? A library full of bookcases? Ask this guy:

Besides the hundreds of porcelain and glass figurines, there were also a lot of vintage dollhouses and toys. Not for kids. The kind older women collect to place carefully around the house next to bouquets of fake and dried flowers. Lots of general household goods as well. There were some other dealers there and they didn't seem to happy with the prices. I overheard one guy disgustedly remarking that he wouldn't be able to make a return on the resale. He had a few things in his hands though.
The house just went on and on. It was one of those places bigger on the inside that it appears from the outside because of the furnished basement and attic. Room after room of this stuff.

Hmm, where could the books be? I know there must be some around here somewhere. Oh, here they are, thrown in a pile in the basement.

They had been there a good long time too. Most were completely ruined by mildew. Actually, I think I didn't check well enough and may have to throw away a few of the ones I salvaged.
Overall, this was a lovely home and well maintained. Owned by wealthy people with completely different values than I hold dear. They had no time for books or reading. Every room was pink or lavender or covered with lace and filled with infantile baby shaped decorations. The older I get, the less patience I have for this. What makes an adult obsessively collect this kind of thing? The world is full of so much of value and I plan to spend the rest of my life searching it out, not regressing into a second childhood.
I know for a fact that a man had lived there but there was no evidence of such. Except for the man cave in the basement. Dark wood, an ugly comfortable looking recliner, old tv and several complete sets of untouched 1980's encyclopedias dustily stored on a bookcase. It was a Brady Bunch era retreat from the saccharine froth upstairs.
I grew up in a house that valued reading and education. Dad was an academic and Mom loved to read. Both had post graduate degrees and were interested in a variety of subjects. We traveled and we kids were encouraged to stretch our minds. They bought art, took us to the opera and cooked exotic foods. We were not wealthy. I was so lucky.

I have an interesting weekend

I did lots this weekend and even remembered to take pictures. Which I won't get around to posting until tomorrow.
In the meantime, here is a Utica update. There was a gangsta style shooting in the parking lot of the Wallgreens not far from my home at a popular commercial intersection at two in the afternoon on Sunday. Apparently there were witnesses, and the lucky sonofabitch they were shooting at got away. At least he was seen running away, and someone was observant enough to note that the car had out of state plates. The police have no leads on the shooters or the shootee and no real hope of catching anyone. There was an indifferent quote in the paper from the police chief that said: “It isn’t too uncommon to see these parking lots used as drug deals”. Oh well, that's alright then.
I browsed the online comments on the story and even went to the odious Topix Utica forum and amongst the natives there is a general feeling of outrage regarding this latest civic enhancer. Not that crime happened, heck no. Crime happens here all the time. It's where it happened and when. This is not an approved activity for South Utica. The misunderstanding seems to lie in the fact that there is an ever increasing population of what most locals here call 'downstaters'. Downstaters are not the flannel wearing, pipe smoking hipsters that you would expect. They are talking about the unfortunate poverty level NYC refugees who are looking for cheap housing, proximity to the many local prisons and easy access to social services, Utica's main export.

It's ok newcomers. You just don't know our ways. It's simple. Here is the Utica code of conduct for crime. If you are going to set a fire in a home or business, it should be one that you actually own. That way, you get the insurance money and can open a new and better business in a better location. If you are going to steal, it should be white collar embezzlement to pay off your Indian casino credit card debt, or goombah related moneymaking activities. And please, if you are going to be so gauche as to shoot or stab someone, please do it in the dead of night, preferably in Corn Hill, our designated ghetto area. Thank you.

The Dark Fields

The Dark Fields by Alan Glynn, 1st American Edition, 2002
I picked this up during my weekly troll of the thrift store. I almost never buy hypermodern fiction as I am so bad at selling it. I always miss the mark, that high point when a book reaches it zenith in profitability before thudding back to earth. I sold a copy of Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking right before the movie Julie/Julia came out. My copy went for $12.00. During the frenzy I saw them going for up to $50.00, same edition, same condition. It's hitting a moving target and I always freeze up. Plus, I'm conflicted because I kinda want to keep it. It's so pretty with the blue silk bookmark and glossy jacket and I really want to read it but every time a book like this gets read it gets a little more worn. Still, a dark techno thriller is right up my alley. Ima try to sell it anyway and if it doesn't go then I keep it. I win!
Here's an editorial review from Amazon:
"Imagine a drug that makes your brain function with perfect efficiency, tapping into your most fundamental resources of intelligence and drive, releasing all the passive knowledge you'd ever accumulated. A drug that made you focused, charming, fast, even attractive. Eddie Spinola is on such a drug. It's called MDT-48, and it's Viagra for the brain-a designer drug that's redesigning his life. But while MDT is helping Eddie achieve the kind of success he's only dreamed about, it's also chipping away at his sanity-splitting headaches, spontaneous blackouts, violent outbursts. And now that he's hooked and his supply is running low, Eddie must venture into the drug's dark past to feed his habit. What he discovers proves that MDT, once a dream come true, has become his worst nightmare."
There's a movie coming out next spring too. Robert De Niro and Elizabeth Banks.