Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Drinking and Anna Karenina

Tolstoy

I've been drinking more lately. I'm one of those people who has never been a drinker, despite the pleadings of some of my friends who insist that drinking a glass of wine a night would be good for me. When I took them up on the recommendation, I wanted to go to sleep at around 9:00 and therefore discovered the secret to why I am able to write and read into the wee hours of the morning, as opposed to my more "exhausted" friends. The other day, I bought a bottle of Kahlua at Trader Joe's because I remembered how good it tastes, but I haven't opened it up yet. Two nights ago, I had a pomegranate mojito before dinner, a glass of sauvignon blanc with my moules frites and a shot of vodka at my friend's house after dinner. Last night, I had a glass of wine with my dinner and contemplated a Blue Moon when I got home. I saw a movie, too, last night -- Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy. I remember reading the book in my late teens when I was totally into Robert Ludlum and John Le Carre spy novels. I don't remember being confused when I read the novels, but last night I was completely befuddled by the movie and so was my really smart friend Shannon. We laughed about it over our wine and dinner, and I even looked up a plot summary online afterward.

Oh! Now I understand!

I'm reading Jeffrey Eugenides' book The Marriage Plot, and while I was so excited to open and read it, I'm now in that exasperated slog phase when I should just give up and put it down, bored to tears, but I feel obligated to finish it. This seems to be happening more and more lately -- I feel like I haven't read a novel in years that I connect to with joy and wonder. The last really great book I read was the memoir The Boy in the Moon. A fellow bookworm told me that I should re-read Anna Karenina, so that's what I'm going to do.

Remember the famous opening lines?

Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.


Who is writing like this anymore?

Would it be too much to add a shot of Kahlua to my morning coffee? Or should I start reading Tolstoy with a shot of frozen vodka?

26 comments:

  1. Ah damn it, I'm unhappy to hear that about the Marriage Plot> if you feel that way, it's likely I will too.

    You could try, We Have Always Lived In The Castle...I came across it by chance and it looks promising.

    Cheers ;)

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  2. ps you've probably done this before (i have no address book) but can you email me your physical address please?
    beezus74@hotmail.com

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  3. The almost constant still-life framed by my neighbors' parlor window is a glass of white wine atop a stack of books.

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  4. so. i know this place.

    what the hell.

    that's the name of it.

    i love you.

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  5. Well, Elizabeth, I would do both the Khalua and the vodka...a "black Russian" which would go well with Tolstoy; wish I had the same positive feelings about Ian Brown's book, but....

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  6. How funny to read this because I was just trying to remember this Tolstoy quote. I even had to stop and ask, "Is it all unhappy families that are alike, while happy families are uniquely happy, or is it the other way around?" Unfortunately, -- and I swear to God I am not making this up -- I was talking to the refrigerator repair man, who stared at me blankly. He did a bang up job with the fridge, however.

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  7. White Russians were my very favorite back in the day. Haven't had one in years. I really should reconsider. Sounds so yummy to me.

    I told you, Anna Karenina, is my Caitlin's most favorite of all time. So she would say definitely re-read that. My old soul of a child at the tender age of 22.

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  8. I gave up on my nightly glass of wine; it made me sleepy and it became my default mode of relaxation. Not good. I'm having book angst, also. I can't seem to settle down and read one book cover to cover; I keep flitting about. Part of the problem is that I love reading book reviews, but then feel overwhelmed by the number of books I want to read. The NYT 100 Notable Books list just about pushed me over the edge. My solution has been to watch TV instead - three or four episodes of The Good Wife everyday and I barely remember what it was I wanted to read.

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  9. Slogging through a book is one of life's tortures. I love to drink, as you know, but can't stand the sweet things. Great vodka is another story. Sipping with the Russian novel sounds like a class the two of us could put together.

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  10. Have you tried a good red wine? :)
    I actually don't remember that quote, and right now it's making me feel unhappy - but then, is there really only one kind of happiness and that many different kinds of unhappiness?

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  11. My vote is for kicking off the "Anna Karenina" cure some night soon with a shot of good frozen vodka, but not falling into a nightly vodka habit. The book is good enough that it should take over after that, non?
    x0 N2

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  12. I've been following you for a while, yet, never left a message. We tend to read what speaks to us in this stage of life, in our now. More drinking may not help. I'm in a similar place in this stage of my life and it's frustrating.

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  13. Just give up reading, sit down with a shot of vodka, and watch Emmett Otter's Jug band Christmas. PS I have to share that The Artist read Anna Karenina and it took her 4 years. I'll never forget the day she phoned me to tell me she finally finished!

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  14. You know, they make new movies and modern books, ya drunkard!

    *hic*

    I'm gonna go read some comics.

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  15. Of course I should clarify, if I loved where YOU lived, I'd skip the booze and go straight for the Medical Marijuana Card.

    Those stores are, to me, what TRU is to my older son.

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  16. Did I say 'loved where you live'? Damn...I swear, I did not have any Kahlua in MY coffee this morning. I'm just really sick.

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  17. My brother is a big big fan of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, and he, apparently can follow it, but sadly, I don't think my mind is up to the twists and turns. I was drinking a glass of wine in the evenings, this past summer, and it seemed to be helping with my pain and digestion, but now it's not, and I've abandoned it. And so it goes... but I say if a good book and a glass of wine makes life a tiny bit easier for you, then go for it.

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  18. I gave up on The Marriage Plot. I don't regret doing it, I give up on any book I'm not really enjoying. My most recent favorite was The Family Fang by Kevin Wilson. It was hilarious but also meaty and just so dang good.

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  19. I agree with Phil re: Black Russian, though adding a little cream to it would be yummy. I went through a Le Carre/Ludlum phase at about the same time. It must have been "the thing". Thanks for warning me off The Marriage Plot. Though I think I will give Tinker, Tailor a try.

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  20. The Housekeeper and the Professor

    My favorite book ever .... Unfortunately it's shorter than anything Tolstoy ever wrote .... You'll read it in one sitting

    I'm all for legalizing the herbal remedy

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  21. I'm not a drinker either, but over the holidays I've had some Bailey's in my coffee which hasn't been making me unhappy. I drank a cider the other night and promptly passed out. Perhaps I'll try a grown up drink like your featured recipe.
    Also started The Marriage Plot am having a tough time ...

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  22. I've never read Anna Karenina! I think I'll make it a New Year's resolution.

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  23. So wish we lived closer as I'd love to join you in your 'cocktail phase' which for me, usually spikes during the holidays. Also glad for your insights on The Marriage Plot and on Tinker Tailor ... I told Gene that one might be better as a rental ...

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  24. I drink red wine like a fiend.

    And I'm happy about that.

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  25. I wonder whether Tolstoy would come across differently with vodka... If you try it, let me know. I love Tolstoy and Dostoevsky. And I love me a good White Russian about once a year (vodka, Kahlua and cream, not a fair-skinned person of Russian descent).

    BTW, the word verification is "fated." Wonder what that means....

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