Day 17 Observations (deferred) and Miscellanea + 3 Book Reviews

J, DB, C May 25, 2026

 OBSERVATIONS of Bucharest to Budapest and Vienna

(deferred)

• This was the first river cruise by THB and DB
• This was the first Tauck tour by THB and DB
• This was the first time THB and DB had been to E. Europe

THB thinks this must be too many "firsts" to make a decent stab at comparisons. 

HAH! Like that has ever stopped THB from making ill-judged Observations before.

Well, this time it did stop THB! On other hand, you all saw how much great contemporary art we saw...tons! THB will produce Observations after the July Tauck trip to Ireland.

In the meantime, here in CA there were some quirky things to update for the followers: 

like a pelican at the window with a broken wing (b dylan)

from the fringe of the slough, now at MD

pool finally re-opens

our water is back to normal, the source of the leak into the main water line remains a mystery

the dunes are ablaze with colors

this bulldozer is slowly moving north along the beach 

maybe this is a clue

two guys out rock fishing capsized in strong winds, their boat looks unseaworthy 

it is a long sad tale: the sensors imply the tires are not set a right pressure. A tire place in Castroville gives the tires and electronics a very thorough stress test. No problems can be found. PHEW!!

gale force winds buffet E-ville

a crew is out early to clean up the damage

tree trimming completed

Berkeley wall art

Bean Finneran ceramics

sunset in E-ville

peonies in Kevin Snipes vase

peonies in Kevin Snipes vase at the beach

set up for C&S's wedding behind Cellpa and Alta; not sure why THB and DB weren't invited....maybe because we don't know the couple?

Book Reviews Highly Recommended

Non-Fiction

London Falling, a Mysterious Death in a Gilded City and a Family’s Search for Truth, Patrick Radden Keefe (read by the author): First pub’d as an article in the NY’er, this expanded version took a long time to get to the essence: if the rock hits the pitcher or the pitcher hits the rock, it is bad news for the pitcher. When a 19 year-old fabricates a story of his status in life (son of an oligarch), it attracts dangerous men wanting some of his wealth. It doesn’t end well for the kid. And, the British police are not keen to go after this level of criminals, for good reason.

The World Of Yesterday, Memoirs of a European**, Stefan Zweig (read by David Horovitch, translated by Anthea Bell, pub date in English 1943): An accomplished intellectual, Zweig’s 62 years (1881 - 1942) spanned many countries, many literature forms, and an unbelievable number of famous acquaintances. Austrian and Jewish by birth, he traveled extensively. His conclusion: if you give a crazy man like Hitler total power, your life can easily end in tragedy. By the end  of the book (1940), the similarity to DJT is overwhelming. Zerig (and his second wife, never mentioned in the book) committed joint suicide in 1942.

Fiction

The Hill**, Harriet Clark (read by Maggie Thompson): Clark has written an exceptional coming of age story, based on her upbringing. It is fictional (per the author), and even more intriguing in that the story is told through the interactions of three women (daughter, mom - in prison - and grandma who raises the daughter) and very lightly on events.