Letter meme: A

[liv]

The less geeky side of the FB crowd are discovering sharing memes just like we used to on LJ back in the early 2000s. It's very cute. But somehow, even doing a fun silly meme on FB feels unpleasant to me, a bit like trying to socialize in a skeevy noisy bar, where you can't hear conversations properly and you're always looking over your shoulder in case the aggression spills over.

So I'm pleased this list things beginning with a letter meme has shifted back to DW, where I feel like this kind of thing spiritually belongs, and anyway I feel lots more comfortable. pseudomonas gave me an A:

Something I hate: anti-semitism. I was going to say aniseed, but really I don't hate it, I just find the flavour unpleasant, and then I was casting around for stuff to actually hate. I hate the existence of a belief that I'm worthless because of who my ancestors are.

Something I love: apoptosis.

Somewhere I've been: Australia. My mother has a brother and a sister out there, and we visited them twice when I was a kid, aged 8 and 13 and had two awesomely memorable holidays. And then I went back at the end of 2005, hoping for a post-doc which fell through at the last minute. That felt like a big path-splitting moment; I suspect if I'd got that job I'd have ended up a much more career-successful scientist, probably at the expense of personal life, and I very likely wouldn't have met jack or stayed connected to my SE England social circle.

All three times I've visited Melbourne and Sydney, where the cousins are (and the job would've been in Melbourne had it happened). And I've travelled a little bit between the two cities, visited Canberra and some smaller places basically along the Great Ocean Road. I've never been to the north or west of the country, nor to the Outback at all. I was almost going to put Ayers Rock as the place beginning with A that I'd like to go, but it's been acknowledged as a religious site now and not open to random tourists.

So, somewhere I'd like to go: Athens. I feel like that's a place a European person should go once in their life, and I never have, cos I keep using up all my holiday time and money on seeing far-flung friends. I've never been to mainland Greece at all, my parents took me to Rhodes when I was three, but all I can really remember of that trip is the hotel where we had my birthday dinner.

Someone I know: Andreas, who is ghoti and cjwatson's youngest, and has invited me to his third birthday next week. Talking of, does anyone have any good suggestions of presents for three-year-olds? I am most likely going to get him a book, cos we both like books, but all the books I loved when I was his age are dated and maybe the suck fairy has got them, and also he probably owns them already.

A film I like: it's really obvious, but I've always been fond of Amélie.

Please comment if you'd like a letter. I don't promise to have a really robust randomizing method, but I don't suppose you care whether your letter is chosen at random or not.

Comments

[pseudomonas]

This isn't so much a "a three year old would like this" as "I want this but don't fit", but I'm totally envious of the preponderance of really gorgeous dinosaur onesies in small person sizes. BHS has them iirc.

[liv]

Yeah, there's always the approach to present-buying of getting things that really I want! I reckon with books it's more effective than clothes, cos if I get a book I like I might be able to read it to Andreas, so we can both enjoy it. And basically I never buy clothes for anybody else, I don't think there's anyone I know well enough.

[vatine]

Ern, sure, letter me.

[liv]

T, please

[naath]

oooh, a meme. I'll take a letter.

[liv]

You may have E.

[randomling]

Me, please!

[liv]

You get V, I hope that's not too annoying, it came up next in my not-exactly random source sequence.

[highlyeccentric]

Has he got That's Not My Monster/Dinosaur/Pirate/Etc?

A book I enjoyed with Brooke this christmas: Whizz Pop, Granny Stop. About an over-enthusiastic witchy grandma who casts havoc with 'helpful' spells. (All characters are girls, but I know the watsons are not a household who would be miffed about giiiirl books.)

When Brooke was two-and-a-bit I got her a tiny glockenspiel on wheels, from a proper percussion shop. She's five now and it's still in good nick and she's still playing it (it had to be confiscated for a while because she threw the sticks around, but she's... a bit tempestuous).

Colouring-in-books are always good: even if he has many, you can always have MORE.

[highlyeccentric]

Oh and I think I remember discussing possum books with Ghoti, and they have Possum Magic, but perhaps not Possum in the House: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1577252.Possum_in_the_House

That is an excellent book, Possum in the House.

[liv]

I have to admit, I'm not that fond of the That's not my... books (though I really like The story of little mole who knew it was none of his business, which is similar only more scatological.) Whizz pop, Granny stop sounds cute, I like witchy books.

A tiny but real glockenspiel sounds like a really clever present, well done for thinking of that. I think I've left it too late to source something like that, though, I probably need to default to something I can order from the internet.

And yes, more colouring in books or sticker books or activity books, always good. I remember as a child just wanting more of those and not quite being able to articulate why I liked them. Thank you for lots of good suggestions!

[ghoti]

I am fond of _Press Here_ as a book for small humans. It's artsy and interactive and infinitely re-readable.

[liv]

Thank you, that sounds like it could be really interesting, and quite different from the obvious options. He's a kid who thinks a lot about art, he might well get on with that.

[woodpijn.livejournal.com]

Yay, that's a fun one. I bought it for my goddaughter.

[ceb]

_Press Here_ is so lovely! I almost bought a copy for my nephew last time I got caught by Heffers but went with _Peck, Peck, Peck_ instead.

[merrythebard]

I would love a letter. :-)

[liv]

See what you can do with R. Yay memes!

[oursin]

Oooh, letter please?

[liv]

How about a C?

[woodpijn.livejournal.com]

I'm also wondering what to get for Andreas (going to the party as parent of a guest, rather than in my own right...)

Julia Donaldson is very good for books for this age group (but I don't know which of her books they already have). You might have heard of The Gruffalo, her most famous one. Ones I'd particularly recommend include Zog, her subversion of dragon/princess/knight tropes; Tiddler, about the power of story; and Charlie Cook's Favourite Book, which is about books and is delightfully meta and loop-y. We have the first two of those if you want to pop in and read them quickly before deciding if you want to buy a copy.

[liv]

I know, I feel most complimented to be invited as a guest, rather than a chauffeur of a child! I like Julia Donaldson, and thank you for offering to show me some of her stuff to help me decide. I assume everybody who's had kids in the last 20 years already has The Gruffalo, but I should check.

[owlfish]

I'd like a letter, please.

Books for the younger crowd which I am currently particularly pleased with:
Mini Myths: Be Patient Pandora!
The Day Louis Got Eaten
Snow (Uri Shulevitz)

Also, if to your tastes, anything in the Cozy Classics series. http://www.mycozyclassics.com
(BabyLit is also pretty good, if better as primers than as stories to tell.)

Especially for children in this country, Sandra Boyton is a good choice - she's less well known here than in the US, so her books are more likely to be a pleasant surprise. Perhaps ones of the three-volume gift collections for variety.

[liv]

Your letter is P.

Thank you for the recs; a child friendly version of Pandora's box could be a lot of fun to read aloud. And yes, international children's books are less likely to be duplicates than stuff I liked when I was Andreas' age, that's really helpful.

I have mixed feelings about those Cozy Classics, really. I have the idea that they're the kind of thing that parents find way more endearing than kids do. But they are really cool in their own way!

[damerell]

Don't give me X, but give me a tricky one.

[liv]

I deliberately chose a pseudo-random source that leaves out most of the tricky letters! Have an H.

[rysmiel]

I'll take a letter if you don't mind me doing it on lj.

[liv]

LJ is entirely fine, memes can easily cross over! You get another E.

[lomedet]

Three, you say? In our house, we like 'Don't Let the Pigeon Drive The Bus' and it's sequels/companions. Mo Willems is an evil genius.

And, letter me! I need more excuses/things to post.

[liv]

Your letter is R. I've come across Don't let the pigeon drive the bus but I'm not really familiar with it, will check it out, thank you!

[khalinche]

Hello, letter please!

[liv]

Yay, I do like how infectious this meme is. You are assigned a C, which should be fun for the purposes of picking a place you've been, at least :-)

[nanila]

Yes please, I'll take a letter!

[liv]

You picked a good time to ask, because you get S.