What are you reading?

I read all the time.It's what writers do.

So when I was asked recently about favorite authors, I was chagrined to completely blank out on names.

After a beat, I was able to recall several of my must-read contributors to The New Yorker: Atul Gawande, Malcolm Gladwell, Jonathan Franzen.

Even as I was explaining that I have no favorite genre or writer, that I read broadly and across cultures, I could not retrieve the author's name of the book I was currently reading.

Then the reason for my lapse hit me.

I have been reading on my Kindle.

If I had been reading a hardcover book, I would see the title and author's name on a boldly designed cover every time I passed it by.

My Kindle is like a TV. When it's off, the screen is blank.

Even when I turn it on, it opens to the page where I left off.

The title of the book appears at the top of the page -- that is, most of the title. With the popular Elizabeth Gilbert book, I just see Eat, Pray, Love: One Woma...

The author's name never appears, except on the Home screen.

So even though I am now deep into Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese, I doubt I could instantly recall his name tomorrow.

I still love my Kindle for its convenience when traveling, the ability to download trial chapters before buying, ease of searching for and buying new books. But I also love physical books for a whole bunch of reasons (see a previous post, More books please).

I guess what I really love is the content, not the format, even if I have trouble remembering the author's name.

Modern family nests Philly style

It was one big happy family in spring 2012. Mom and dad. Offspring. Living large in Philadelphia.

Then dad dies in a truck accident, leaving single mom with three small mouths to feed.

Enter new suitor, who immediately begins to feed and raise the offspring as his own.

Fast forward to spring 2013. Mom and new dad have feathered their nest quite comfortably, and now three eggs have appeared and are expected to hatch in about a month.

It’s an unusual tale for Red-tailed Hawks (Buteo jamaicensis) with all the pluck of a Philly style rise-to-the-challenge story.

What’s even more unusual is that the story is played out in real time, and watched by avid fans, via live streaming video from The Franklin Institute.  

Today's Inquirer reported the appearance of the third egg on Easter, while filling in the hawk family history over the past four springs. The blog Hawkwatch at the Franklin Institute posts regular updates and photos, with an archive dating back to the first appearance of the nest in 2009.  

I’ve never been much of a birder, but I look forward to checking in with the hawks every spring. It’s like watching Big Brother or other reality TV show, but without all the bombast. This is just day-to-day living in the heart of the city for a growing family, and I find it fascinating.

So I was thrilled recently to have a meeting at The Franklin Institute and find myself in the same room with the infamous nesting ledge. I did see Papa Hawk fly in to drop off some building supplies – twigs and leaves – but it was a little early for much else.

Now I can check in anytime during daylight hours to see domestic life in action. It’s not always exciting, and there’s a lot of sitting around waiting…and waiting...and waiting.

But that’s the reality of life.

Hey, what's going on?

Meals become street art in Paris.

Whether I'm home in Philadelphia or on vacation around the country or overseas, I'm always looking for new things to do or see.

Concerts. Exhibits. Restaurants. Festivals. Trails. Parks.

There are, of course, a gazillion places on the Internet to find this information.

There are also a few gems.

In Philadelphia, I often turn to Uwishunu, a blog that touts what's happening in the city. It also features a video series of 101 Philadelphians sharing what they wish you knew about Philly. Its Twitter account, @uwishunu, billed as "Philly from the inside out," is equally worthwhile.

An old favorite on my travels has always been Where magazine, left in hotel rooms and tourist bureaus. I would quickly scan upcoming events, note restaurant suggestions, and tear out maps to stuff into my pockets. The online version offers "Local guides. Worldwide." -- with a newsletter, travel blog, and stories that feature wherever it is you want to go.

You can also subscribe to weekly Where email to get "insider knowledge on what to do in your favorite cities."

Me? I usually resist subscribing to email lists, but I had to try two from Where: for my favorite city, Philadelphia; and for my other favorite city, Paris, which I'll be visiting soon.

It doesn't even matter if I don't get to any of the things listed. At least I'll know what's going on.

Job security for translation professionals

"We posted a story that I picked up"

That's the name of the website?

"Living with human"

That's a subhead on the website? Well, what does the body copy say?

"In my parents have a dog. Golden Retriever dog breed is. Born in the house of his relatives seven years ago, I came to my home...The name of the dog in my house is such a ram. Seems to have dated a girl like that come out in comic guys because my father sold. But what my father would have been wondering. Lamb is a male. Family life and lamb we began all told.

Ok. The punchline here is computer translation, as if you hadn't already guessed.

This all started when I typed in an old URL for my running club. Instead of using the .com suffix, I used the original .org. It seems that in the last few years, the abandoned URL was bought by a Japanese firm in order to publish nonsensical stories.At least that's my take from the translated copy.

I used Google Translate to make some sense of the Japanese characters. I got similar results from Bing Translator. I'm sure other online tools would have been the same.

And so this experience has taught me two things:

1. There's no substitute for a professional human translator.
2. There's value in keeping old domain names, because you never know who will snatch them up...or why.