I’ve had the good fortune over the last couple of years to preview and comment on bits of James Bovard’s funny and politically astute memoir (so far untitled and still in progress).
Bovard, OTOH, has had the misfortune to be on the receiving end of my perpetual whine, “So when are you finally going to publish the darned thing, Jim? Huh? Huh? When?”
Well, it looks as if the first “leak” is out. The Wall Street Journal (of all unexpected pubs) has run Jim’s account of his slacker summer on a slacker road crew.
Claire, your feedback on the drafts of those memoir essays has been invaluable. You have opened my eyes to a heap of flaws I had missed. I greatly appreciate the time you have taken on this – and to help me benefit from your superb knack for graceful narrative.
I spent ten years of my life doing road construction in the eleven western states. He captures well the life of house cat state employees who always amazed me with their ability to do nothing for hours at a time.
Jim, I love ya. But you’re a base and shameless flatterer. “Heap of flaws,” ha. You were well on your way to your own “graceful narratives” long before my eyes set … er, eyeball on those drafts. Any problems were the standard ones of first drafts and you’d have found them on your own without me. Still, I’m glad I got the chance to play critic; the pleasure was all mine.
Claire, your specific comments split the bullseye of many problems in the text. You have a good ear for ‘voice’ — and your comments helped me know when I was on the right path, and when I needed to shift tone (or at least to leave out the reference to that highway worker bragging about having the tart in the bright orange government truck).
No!! Bashing down your doors is not enough! We want the keys to your places, so we can come, and snoop, and stuff!
http://breakthematrix.com/politics/city-government-demands-keys-properties-belonging-cedar-falls-residents/
Cedar Falls should be a ghost town by Fall, in my not so humble opinion.
Wow. I can believe it. I was graced with an NIH job years ago. We, at the National Institutes of Health, were contracted to study Native Americans and diabetes. The indians, and I’m registered Choctaw so stop crying, rarely showed up for their appointments. We spent an hour driving to the Reservation, several hours sitting around calling our appointments asking why they didn’t show and rescheduling, and an hour driving back to our office.
It was a seven year study. I, however, lasted only one year and went back to school.
I chuckled constantly at Jim’s “leak” at the WSJ.