Travels with Charlie in Search of America

2006-08-11T15:44:00.000-07:00

by John Steinbeck

In the early 1960s, at age 58, John Steinbeck and his venerable standard poodle, Charley, set out on a journey across America in a camper. For three months these companions traveled from Maine to California, meeting friends, strangers, relatives and immersing themselves in the fabric of the country as it was at that time.

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Special thanks to Andy for turning me on to this wonderful book.

Tuesdays with Morrie

2006-08-11T14:44:00.000-07:00

by Mitch Albom

An Old Man, a Young Man, and Life's Greatest Lesson

from Tuesdays with Morrie:

The Curriculum
The last class of my old professor's life took place once a week in his house, by a window in the study where he could watch a small hibiscus plant shed its pink leaves. The class met on Tuesdays. It began after breakfast. The subject was The Meaning of Life. It was taught from experience.

No grades were given, but there were oral exams each week. You were expected to respond to questions, and you were expected to pose questions of your own. You were also required to perform physical tasks now and then, such as lifting the professor's head to a comfortable spot on the pillow or placing his glasses on the bridge of his nose. Kissing him good-bye earned you extra credit.

No books were required, yet many topics were covered, including love, work, community, family, aging, forgiveness, and, finally, death. The last lecture was brief, only a few words.

A funeral was held in lieu of graduation.

Although no final exam was given, you were expected to produce one long paper on what was learned. That paper is presented here.

The last class of my old professor's life had only one student.

I was the student.
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