I finished two [simple] books not in English

I should have posted this a while ago, because I accomplished it before my summer French and Italian classes started, and the French class is already done, and the Italian one is almost done. 

First of all, it took me a long time to finish reading Suivez La Piste. I just checked my archives, and I did a post about acquiring the book during the early months of the pandemic. I got sidelined by other stuff, but I committed to finishing it this summer because I needed to finish what I started. I was more focused on the audio version, which is fantastic. The voice actors are really good and the narrator is classic. The book has a lot more content than the audio, and the writing tends to be a bit repetitive, but maybe that's to make sure we are grasping the vocabulary.

What's interesting is that when I started reading the book, it was too difficult for me. That's probably why I didn't finish it sooner; I kept getting tripped up by the grammar and vocabulary. But after taking more French classes and translating it on Twitter/X, my French improved to the point that I didn't have to look up many words. The audio is more succinct and emotive, which gave me more motivation to continue.

The other book I finished is way easier, but was still sort of difficult for me, even though it's just A1 level: Due Amiche e un Album di Fotografie. We started reading it in Italian class, then I finished it on my own. I had to get used to the Italian syntax and had a challenging time doing the grammar and comprehension exercises at the end of each chapter. It was a struggle, but I'm proud that I got through it. Surprisingly, it had some German sentences and words in it because it takes place in South Tyrol, where they also speak German. So I had no problem with that! 

Steve Dale interview: Ask the Dog

I did an interview with Steve Dale, who is a WGN Radio host, pet journalist, and certified animal behavior consultant. His book, Ask the Dog, is about how to approach a dog we don’t know.

Why did you write the book?

Dog-bite numbers are on the rise, and I wanted to do something about that. One thing that, to my knowledge, really hadn’t been addressed in a book was paying attention to what the dog is saying, not what we think the dog is saying.

Dogs are communicating with us all the time. Even the way a dog lies beside you or behaves around you is communication. In our homes, with our own dogs, and outdoors with dogs we don’t know, they’re always telling us things. We often don’t pay attention. We pick up a dog because we want to pet it, or because we feel it’s our right, without noticing that the dog may be telling us, “Not right now.”

From the dog’s perspective, the dog is trying to tell us something. Dogs can’t talk, but they are communicating. Kids especially need to be taught to recognize those signals. If we can do a better job of understanding what dogs are telling us, I suggest dog-bite numbers will decline.

Why is the book called Ask the Dog?

Imagine you’re walking down the street and see a dog you don’t know. What do you do if you want to pet that dog? We’ve been taught that the first thing we should do is ask the person with the dog, “Can I pet your dog?” That’s still appropriate. But we also need to ask the dog.

I tell a story about walking our dog and encountering another dog that was sniffing the grass. The dog’s owner actually encouraged me to pet the dog. But when I looked at the dog, it was pulling toward the other end of the leash and wasn’t making any attempt to interact with me.

I said no. Maybe the dog was hungry and wanted to go home. Maybe it didn’t like interacting with strangers. Maybe it wasn’t feeling well. I don’t know. But the dog was clearly telling me something, and I needed to pay attention.

What is the book about?

The book follows a little girl named Morgan as she walks through a park with her mother. In a city like Chicago, or in any major metropolitan area, you’re likely to encounter lots of dogs—different sizes, colors, shapes and, importantly, different dispositions.

The question is: How do you read what the dog is saying? Sometimes the person may say, “Go ahead and pet my dog,” while the dog is saying, for whatever reason, “Not right now.”

Even with our own dogs, we often don’t recognize that. I know canine signaling and understand what dogs are communicating through their behavior. The book is an attempt to explain that in a way that children can understand.

The book has received some impressive endorsements.

Yes. Although Dr. Jane Goodall never got to see the book, I was told that she was willing to give it a blurb because she knew me and understood the premise.

The American Veterinary Medical Association also gave the book a blurb. To my knowledge, they had never done that before for a book. They have to decide how they draw the line and determine which books they endorse, so I was very honored that they did it for me.

Dr. Patricia McConnell, a revered veterinary behaviorist in Wisconsin, wrote the foreword. It’s only three sentences, but it’s beautiful. And Dr. Marty Becker, who I consider one of the most influential veterinarians in veterinary medicine, also gave me a blurb.

Those endorsements speak well, I hope, of the book and the message in it. I don’t believe this particular idea has really been done before.

What do you hope Ask the Dog accomplishes?

What I want to do is get the word out about the book any way I can, because I believe it can make a difference, particularly for kids. Kids account for a large percentage of dog bites. And even if someone says, “I don’t have a dog, and I don’t care about dogs,” this still affects them.

As dog-bite numbers go up, there are consequences beyond the person who is bitten. There are insurance implications, and dogs could potentially lose some of the freedoms they’ve gained in recent years, such as going to restaurants, baseball games, local stores and other places.

There is also the trauma experienced by the person who is bitten, and the effect on the dog and the human-animal bond. Dogs rarely get up in the morning thinking, “I’m going to bite someone today.” Often, they’re communicating something that we don’t notice. A dog might develop an ear infection, for example, and the family may not recognize that the dog is saying, “Don’t touch me there.”

The dog may not growl. The signaling can be subtle. Then the dog bites, and the human-animal bond is fractured. That doesn’t have to happen. It’s preventable.

What’s one of the biggest misconceptions about approaching a dog?

We’ve all been taught to put out our hand or fist in a dog’s face so the dog can smell us. I don’t understand that. It doesn’t make any sense.

If I see you and you put your fist in my face, that’s kind of rude. And it’s kind of the same for dogs. More importantly, if the dog is predisposed to bite, you’re putting your hand right in front of its face. We don’t need to do that. If you’re standing five feet away from a dog, or four feet or three feet, the dog can smell you. You don’t need to put your fist in its face.

Instead, wait for the dog to come to you. If the dog is coming toward you with its hackles up, growling and snarling, that’s obviously a very different situation. But if the dog comes toward you with its rear end up, its tail going back and forth, or rolls over or leans on you, the dog may be saying, “I want you to pet me.”

Professionals will tell you the same thing: wait for the dog to come to you.

What about hugging dogs?

That’s another problem. Dogs don’t naturally like to be hugged. They may learn to tolerate it, or they may learn that being hugged comes with something they value: attention from us. But they’re not born wanting to be hugged.

People understand what a hug means. It’s something we use to say hello or to comfort somebody. Other primates understand it, too. Dogs aren’t primates. Hugging a dog can be asking for trouble, particularly with a dog you don’t know.

Adults don’t often walk up to an unfamiliar dog and hug it. Kids do it all the time. And that’s another reason this book is important.

Cool pic of cakes

I suggested that one of my students do a presentation about her cake-making endeavors. She's been baking unique cakes for over 10 years. It started for a friend, then that friend told another, and so on and so on. She spoke English as she showed several pictures of her beautiful cakes. This is a collage that she put together of her cakes, but it's just a tiny fraction of her vast creative output.

English expression

One of my ESL students created this video. When I met him at the beginning of this year, he couldn't really understand nor speak English very well. Now he's really improved because he spends a lot of time studying English on his own. He does several things every day to learn English. This is what passion and motivation look like, and I could definitely learn from his example (though I'm juggling a handful of languages simultaneously, so it's a kind of diluted pursuit 😅).

Maybe too much

I was really excited to start studying three languages simultaneously, but it's been sort of overwhelming. I study languages every day, but it's casual and happens randomly because I've been translating posts on X/Twitter, which is super-fun and challenging. Taking a class requires finishing homework and studying the concepts that we've learned, because it's not enough to just go to class once a week, and it would be a super-human task to immediately understand everything they tell us. My schedule overall is varied because I work four gigs and take three classes and create content, but I've been feeling sort of scattered.

This evening is the last German class, and then I'll be doing just two language classes: Italian and French. Italian is online and French is in-person. 

I've been studying French at the excellent Alliance Française Chicago for a couple of years. I only started taking classes there because I live nearby and someone recommended it. I'd passed by it for several years but didn't think it would be so great. And I've been studying French on my own and took a couple of online classes because I'd like to go to France one day. Basically, I signed up because I can walk there, and since I had acquired extra time, I wanted to study languages more. Now that I've taken different classes at different places, it is very clear that Alliance Française has the best teachers and a pleasant environment. I feel like I'm stepping into another culture, and all the instructors are totally professional, educated, and nice.

I should write another post about work-life balance because ever since I slowed down a couple of years ago and returned to doing more of what I want, life has been way better.

Creativity can be control

After creating a lot of content for other people and places, and just working to make others shine, I broke away from such a hustle and have had more time to do my own thing. And I've realized that always following others' wishes can lead to a feeling of a lack of control. 

But life doesn't have to totally be all that. Creating something that comes from within is very satisfying, and no one can take that away or dictate what to do. We often have to follow what others say or conform to the group, but creating is just about what we want to express, and doing that gives us control.

We can post something online and may never get feedback, but at least it's what we've created. The problem is when it enters the marketplace and has to be assessed. Then the power isn't only ours anymore. The public has control, and a negative or apathetic response can mean failure, and a sense of hopelessness. But if we're just doing something that is totally unique to us, from us, we are the control; we don't need externals. 

Of course, if we get success, that's fantastic because it is validation of our efforts. But many times we don't get approval or attention, so just spending time in that independent slot within our lives is enough to break us free from dulling external effects.

I find it hard to always be motivated, but when I think about the power of creating, that can be the motivation, because "real artists ship."

p.s. the e-book version of my debut novel is still at Amazon, and the price for the print version has been reduced: buy at the Eckhartz Press site.

I will soon be studying three languages simultaneously

The language-learning lifestyle is continuing, and this month I will be taking three different language classes. I've been studying French for a couple years at the excellent Alliance Française, started studying Italian at the beginning of this year, and will be taking a German grammar class.

I'm going to have a lot of homework, though of course it won't be as rigorous as credit homework. Homework in an adult class at a language school can take a couple of hours. And that's in addition to ingesting the language in other ways; it's not enough to just do the homework, because it's just a tiny sliver of what's out there. Now I'll be doing it with three languages at the same time.

The in-person German classes are not near my place, and I don't want to commute late at night. I thought I'd give up trying to find something that fits, then I saw an A2 grammar refresh course at a convenient time. Since I reached A2 at GLS in Berlin, I've wanted to advance but haven't been able to find classes that fit my schedule. But there's a more urgent need because I'm going to Germany in October, and I need to get back to the level I achieved when I was there. I at least have to know how to put a decent sentence together again.

I'm continuing French because the teachers at Alliance Chicago are highly trained, organized, and caring. I've also considered French a friend for several years as I've treated it like a fun pursuit. Now I want to be able to know enough to travel there; I don't want to stick to just the tourist areas. 

If I were rich, I'd amp up the hours and take credit courses to be able to speak and write well. But I'm not rich, so I'm doing what I can, which is important because we all should leave space for enjoyable endeavors. 

Dead links

I was going through my old drafts and found this one from 2010:

Someone from Book drum noticed that I listed The Great Gatsby as one of my favorite books in my profile (read the entire book online here), and they suggested that I look at its multimedia profile over there. It seems like a very interesting site that makes books multi-dimensional, so if you're into books and want to express your love for them in various ways, feel free to join or just check out what's already there.

I ended up doing a post about it, so I don't know why it was in my drafts as well. What's cool is that editor Hector Macdonald left a comment on that post, and I finally thanked him 16 years later 😅

Back then, orgs and authors would ask me to check out what they were doing. I guess they did research and considered my blog popular enough to warrant such communication with moi. Now social media takes care of mentions and promotions, and I'm never hit up. Well, that's not totally true because I get respect for my Radiogirl podcast, and people still contact me or recommend people to me. But in terms of my blog, attention has shifted. But it doesn't mean I'll stop blogging; after all, I've managed to toil in obscurity here for over 20 years 😅

Also back in the day, we used to share our discoveries on our blogs because there was no social media to share on ["on which to share" for the dangling preposition opponents]. Now it's way easier to share on socials; no need to fire up the blog for a brief mention.

I looked for Book Drum, but it stopped operations in 2018. Sorry it didn't last. Good luck Hector!

p.s. the e-book version of my debut novel is still at Amazon, and the price for the print version has been reduced: buy at the Eckhartz Press site.

I miss Fluffy Bunny

In the early 21st century, a coworker was often reading Fluffy Bunny, which was a personal variety-type of site, with a diary and lists and essays and whatever else interested the guy. It was so different than what we see nowadays; people seem to be performative, competitive, boastful, and guarded online. The content has to achieve something publicly, has to have a goal for greater reach and elevation.

When I see all the stuff online and get nostalgic for the early days of the Internet, I think about Fluffy Bunny. I read it, though not as often as my coworker. It was one of many personal sites that were easy to discover. At first, there wasn't a label for people's confessionals and expressive writing. Then "weblog [web+log]," became "blog," and we had a label for what Fluffy Bunny and other early adopters were doing. I don't know if Substack and Medium would be considered blogs, but they don't have the same vibe as what existed before the algorithms took over. 

Before social media proliferated, I read various blogs for fun and communication. At one point when I was feeling isolated in a toxic job, I started reading more LiveJournal entries, which were really personal. That's the type of writing I'm trying to replicate in my own fake blog because you pretty much never see such sharing anymore. I remember working in a quiet office and reading a blog by a bored receptionist to see how our experiences compared (I don't remember the exact title, but I can't find it). There were so many corners to discover online and fresh content to follow. It was more organic back then; Google describes it as "a shift from a creator-led web to an extraction-led web, where the value generated by individual human labor is being harvested by massive systems and the people who optimize them."

Eventually Fluffy Bunny decided to call it a wrap. At the end of 2004, he said he'd had the site for more than seven years, i.e., he started in the late 20th century and finished in the early 21st. "I started this before the deluge of blogs, livejournals and the like. Now it's time to step back and let the next wave of folks crank out their material while I move on to other projects and other places."

p.s. the e-book version of my debut novel is still at Amazon, and the price for the print version has been reduced: buy at the Eckhartz Press site.

Jill Hargrave interview: documentary writer and producer

I recorded this interview with producer and writer, Jill Hargrave, whose latest documentary is "Road to Liberty: Through Their Eyes" about the American Revolution. 

What has your career basically been?

I had a very different life in England. I was a pop singer in the 1960s on the Parlophone label (the same as the Beatles). I was only 16 when it happened. I stayed in show business for about three and a half years, then became a blackjack dealer. Through that work I got the chance to work on the QE2, where I met Americans who told me I’d fit in well in the United States. They sponsored me, and I arrived in 1972.
I went back to college in America and majored in journalism, graduating around age 30. An internship at WCBS led me into documentaries. I’ve been producing, writing, and directing them ever since, eventually forming my own company, Eagle Vision Productions, in 1997. I work because I love it; I don’t consider myself retired.
How did you manage to stay consistently employed in such a tough industry?
I could do everything: raise the money, write the scripts, shoot, and edit. I learned linear editing, then taught myself Avid. I became a one-woman band while still collaborating with strong team members. Being reliable and willing to learn new skills helped me keep getting work.
How do you raise funds for a documentary?
I use the Foundation Directory (free for nonprofits) to match my project with foundations and corporations whose interests align. For "Road to Liberty: Through Their Eyes," I combined small grants, a successful Kickstarter campaign, and support from longtime contacts and family foundations. You have to be persistent, unafraid of rejection, and good at selling your passion.
Tell us about your current documentary, Road to Liberty: Through Their Eyes
It focuses on the formative years of the American Revolution, especially the often-overlooked 1776 New York–New Jersey campaign. It includes the African American experience from 1775 onward and uses many contemporary quotes from Washington and others. The film is now complete and will be distributed via public television stations and other channels.
You’re British. Has anyone given you a hard time for making a film about the American Revolution?
Not really. After 52 years here, I tell people that if I had been in America in 1776, I would have been a rebel. I tried to show both sides fairly; it was in many ways a civil war.
How do you write a documentary script?
I start with a detailed blueprint/outline. Then I interview historians, transcribe the interviews, pull the best soundbites, and build the script in short segments: narration, quotes, and visuals. I lay down the full audio track first (narration + interviews + quotes), time it, cut it to length (max 58 minutes for PBS), and only then add the images and B-roll.
You were a pop singer as a teenager. How did that start?
My brother wrote songs and my sister originally sang them. One night I sang along in the car and a producer liked our voices together, turning us into the sister act “Jackie and Jill.” We signed with Northern Songs (the Beatles’ publisher) and recorded for Parlophone/EMI. We worked clubs in northern England and entertained American troops in Europe. It was an amazing experience at 16 and 17.
What were some of the challenges of being a teenage girl in the music business in the 1960s?
The main challenges were the expectations from men in the business and suddenly having a lot of freedom. My sister and I were very different personalities, which eventually led us to part ways professionally.
You also write screenplays. What advice do you have for writers?
Keep writing and find or form a supportive writers’ group. I joined Stage 32 during COVID and built a wonderful ongoing writers’ room that still meets regularly. Writing doesn’t have to be lonely. Enter good festivals strategically (Austin Film Festival is excellent for screenwriters) and just keep practicing.
Any final advice for people who want to produce documentaries?
Have real passion for creating. Be willing to learn every aspect of the process and be ready to troubleshoot constantly. Build relationships, network, and never be afraid to ask for support. Most of all, enjoy what you do — the money comes second.

Chuck Swirsky interview

I recorded this interview with Bulls broadcaster Chuck Swirsky, He wrote a book, Always a Pleasure, about his sports broadcasting career.

Why did you write the book?

I wrote it because even if I can help one person, whether it’s encouragement, inspiration, or just the basic staples of our industry, then it was worth it. I’ve been very, very blessed. I’ve experienced challenges, introspective moments, and a lot of joy in this business. I don’t believe in luck, I don’t believe in breaks. I believe in hard work. I believe there’s a journey laid out for us, and along that journey you’re going to go through different things—some good, some difficult—and you have to stay with it. That’s really the foundation of why I wrote the book.

 

You talk about your faith publicly, but the book itself isn’t very religious. Was that a decision?

Yes, that was intentional. Not because I don’t profess my faith (I do, many times) but I wanted to stay within the parameters of my career and how I got into the business. When people read something like this, I think they’re more interested in the path—how you moved from place to place, why you made certain decisions, what you experienced along the way. So I stayed with that. The stories, the movement, the work. Maybe down the road there will be another book that gets more into my personal life and faith, but for this one I wanted it to be about the career.

 

You emphasize hard work a lot. Where does that come from?

That comes from my parents. My mom was an educator; she taught high school and then grade school, and she loved her students. She was a tremendous communicator. My dad was a United States Naval officer, very decorated, very disciplined. So I grew up in that kind of environment. But discipline doesn’t mean what people think it means. It’s not punishment. It’s what I call “freedom within boundaries.” You’re allowed to have freedom, but there are lines. If you go outside those lines, you’re going to pay the price. If you stay within them, there are opportunities there. People go through life sometimes as the constant victim; blaming this, blaming that. Everybody has issues. Life is not a straight line. The competition isn’t with the person next to you; it’s within. And if you understand that, you’re going to be better off.

 

You’ve seen that play out in sports too?

Yes. I talked to a professional athlete years after he left the sport, five or ten years later, and he told me something that really stuck with me. He said in the last couple of years of his career, he went on cruise control. He didn’t work as hard as he should have. He should have trained more, should have pushed himself more. And he said it still bothers him. That’s the thing: we’re only given a certain amount of time. Whether you’re an athlete, whether you’re in broadcasting, whether you’re doing anything else. You have to make the most of that opportunity. Tomorrow is promised to no one. I’ll never forget that.

 

You tell that story about the jazz club; what happened there?

I was 24 years old, working in Columbus, Ohio, right before I came to Chicago. I went to a jazz club with a friend. It was packed, loud, people everywhere; just one of those nights. During a break, the lead singer came over. He knew someone in our group, introduced himself, and started talking with us. At some point he asked me what I did. I told him I was a sports talk show host. And he said, “I’m going to give you some advice.” And I’m thinking, okay, here we go. But then he looked right at me and said, “You better take care of your homework, because if you don’t, somebody will.” And he repeated it. And I don’t know why, but everything just went quiet for me in that moment. I tuned everything out. Because what he was really saying was: if you don’t prepare, if you don’t bring it every day, somebody else will. There are always people behind you who want your job. That stayed with me. It reinforced what my parents had taught me, but it hit me in a different way right then and there.

 

What was it like when you first got to Chicago?

I came from Columbus to Chicago, WCF L, and I did get a raise, but I was way over my head. I was not ready for that market. But the station itself was struggling, and because of that I was afforded the opportunity to make mistakes. We didn’t have a producer. It was just me and an engineer. Every day was a challenge. You’d do an interview and think, okay, I should have done that better. Or how do I connect better? What do I need to change? And you just keep adjusting, inch by inch. It wasn’t polished. It wasn’t easy. But it was a place where you could grow because you had to.

 

How did you move from there into bigger roles?

A big part of it was exposure. There was a radio-TV critic in Chicago, Gary Deeb, and his column carried a lot of weight. Everybody read it: program directors, general managers, people making decisions. He wrote some very flattering things about my work, and that led to opportunities. One of those was the Loop, which at that time was the number one rock station in North America. They had major personalities, they really owned the city along with WGN. They wanted to push the envelope and bring in a sports voice, and I ended up doing both morning and afternoon drive there. That was a big step. From there, I moved around and worked at WGN, WJR in Detroit, University of Michigan, the Raptors, eventually the Bulls. Sometimes I took pay cuts along the way. But I was always looking at opportunity, not just salary.

 

So you weren’t making decisions based on money?

No. Money has never dictated a job for me. I’ve taken pay cuts at different points, to go to Detroit, to do Michigan, to go to the Raptors. But I can’t tell someone else what to do. Everyone has different responsibilities, different situations. What I do believe is that if it’s feasible to chase your dream, you should. Because you don’t want to look back and say, “If only.” And whatever you do, you go to work with energy, enthusiasm, and as a team player. Leave your ego at the door. Ego can be healthy, but if it gets out of control, it can hurt you and the people around you.

 

How do you deal with egos in the business?

There are a lot of them. And I’ll be honest; sometimes I didn’t handle them well. I wasn’t mature enough in certain situations. You have to go through those moments. You go through the fire, and that’s how you become better, as a person, as a leader. If you don’t learn from your mistakes, something’s wrong. I can tell you I was a much better sports director later in my career than I was earlier. When I was younger, especially in Chicago, I was under a lot of pressure and surrounded by very experienced people. You’re learning in real time. And over time, you get better at handling those situations.