October 27, 2017 THANK GOD IT'S FRIDAY

 THIS WEEK DRAGGED ON AND ON--at a snail's pace.  Couldn't wait to get home and relax in a comfy pair of sweats. NO PLANS--what a RELIEF. Friday night plans are getting harder and harder. I just want to SCHLEP around the house because I've got NOTHING left. Can't make anymore idle chit chat--DON'T WANT TO think--manage or pretend to care. I NEED A BREAK. By Friday afternoon -- I'M TALKED OUT--THUNK OUT-- and can barely MANAGE to find my way home. The CARING thing is another can of worms though. I really DO care--even though I pretend otherwise. HAVE TO KEEP THEM GUESSING. I tease my students relentlessly. I also listen and laugh at their jokes--AND-- let them poke fun at me from time to time. I let them know how proud I am when they're working hard--Conversely--I make no bones about letting them know when they're slacking off. I tell them when they're being idiots and reward them when they change their tune. Once in a while, I even call their parents--BECAUSE I CARE. Helene Hanoff was an author who treasured books and the friendships she forged searching for them.

 If you've ever had a pen pal, this is the book for you. 84, Charing Cross Road is a collection of letters between Helen Hanff and Frank Doel, the chief buyer for Marks & Co., antiquarian booksellers in London, England. Hanff originally contacted the book company in search of an esoteric novel she couldn't locate in Manhattan. Over the next twenty years, their correspondence turned into a long distance friendship that extended to other staff members as well as Doel's wife. The friends exchanged  birthday presents,  Christmas gifts and even food during World War II. Over the years, the letters became about so much more than books as Hanff even planned several trips to visit her friends. Did Hanff ever get to London? Did she  get to see her friends in person? Did she get to browse the shelves at Marks & Co.? Find out for yourself when you read this heartwarming little book. It's only 112 pages --or a 2 mile run--the left me wondering about the lost art of letter writing.