I didn’t know much about Dick Van Dyke because listening to this audiobook. I knew he had a Dick Van Dyke show and that was it. I’m a big fan of Mary Tyler Moore and was pleasantly surprised to learn that Mary came out of his show and played his wife for so many seasons.

Like many old timers in that era, Dick had the passion for entertaining and making his audience happy. He sharpened his dancing and comedy routines while playing in all the various clubs before meeting his “savior” – Carl Reiner, who I later found is still enjoying acting and writing at his age of 90. Dick was thrusted into a leading role in the Dick Van Dyke Show bearing his name. The show was named after him because the network executive couldn’t come up with a better name. Then it was the start of a beautiful relationship with Carl Reiner and beginning of his TV career. He thrived in physical comedy, taking the cue from his heroes, Laurel and Hardy, Buster Keaton and etc. As a result of reading this book, I started watching the first season of the Dick Van Dyke Show. It was as timeless as he claimed. Laughter and humor seem to the enduring part of our culture.

Dick Van Dyke, from his own portray of his life,, appears to be a very happy person. He happens to be so talented in doing what he so enjoys doing – entertaining people. The TV/movie industry has served him well.

Going in and out of show business, the premise of the book, was because of his wife’s nagging him to retire and sail into a quiet life, which he ultimately decided wasn’t for him. He’s too outgoing/extroverted to do that, though he often enjoyed the quiet life of sailing off California coast.

He went into great details on some of his favorite episodes in the Dick Van Dyke show. A lot of the episodes came about through the actual stories of himself and others in the show.

He talked about his battle with alcohol and smoking. Instead of denying his problem, he joined AA and combated the demons – several times. He’s also very clear on which side of the civil rights movements he set his foot on, having joined the Martin Luther King’s rally and others.

Dick has outlived his first wife, the mother of his four children, and his long time partner, Michelle. In his mature age of 87, Dick is still going strong. I look forward to many more gigs from him. He seems to have his acts together. Viva Dick Van Dyke.

Until I read the book, I didn’t realize what a bum rap foods have been masqueraded by the food industries.

I like the first paragraph of the book that sets the tone for the author to argue his case: “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.” By “food” the author means the kind of food that’s close to the original form – not processed or industrialized that we’re often associate with – that our moms feed us. The author paints the history of the food or processed food to date. He pointed out what’s wrong with them and offer very sound advises on what and how to eat. Very well written and interesting and it might save or lengthen your life too.

Some key takeaways here:

The age of Nutritionism by reductionists has arrived. Reducing food down to vitamins is a sure way to nullify the symbiotic effects among the nutrients. No need to be too scientific about the vitamins contained within as the nutrition experts seem to conflict themselves every so often; just enjoy the whole foods that offer the sum that’s greater than the parts. “People don’t eat nutrients; they eat foods, and foods behave very differently from the nutrients they contain.” “If you eat a lot of one thing, you’re probably not eating a lot of something else.” It’s not that we’re eating too much of the bad things but rather we’re eating enough of the good things.

The French Paradox gives us hope that foods are to be enjoyed and savored – not to be rushed, analyzed and used merely as a fuel to maintain a healthy body. Quality of the foods trumps the quantities of the nutrients.

Western diseases follows the arrival of the Western foods – refined flour and sugar and other kinds of “store food.” Obesity followed by type 2 diabetes followed by hpertension and strock followed by heart disease. The rapid increase of dental problems could be attributed to the modern diet.

Neutriens are not as much as before due to industrialization of the agriculture business. The supermarket offers mostly processed (fake, adulterated) foods that emphasize the “nutrients” and not the variety and the symbiotic effects of various foods. The processing of foods typically robs them of nutrients, vitamins specially. The sure way to to make food more transportable (more stable and less vulnerable to pests) is to remove the nutrients from it; calories are much easier to transport.

The common denominator of good health is to eat a traditional diet consisting of fresh foods from animals and plants grown on soils that are themselves rich in nutrients. In lengthening the food chain so we could feed great cities from distant soils, we are breaking the “rules of nature” twice by robbing nutrients from the soils the foods have been grown in and then squandering those nutrients by processing the foods.

The author went through the history and evolution 1) from whole foods to refined, 2) from complexity to simplicity (industrial fertilizer, same breed of chicken, Cornish cross, and etc.). 75% of the vegetable oils come from soy or 20% of our daily calories, and more than half of the sweeteners come from corn or 10% of daily calories. America’s per capita supply: 554 calories from corn, 257 calories from soy, 768 calories from wheat and 91 calories from rice. 3) from quality to quantity. Many traditional diets are nutrient rich and calorie poor. The Western diet is opposite. 4) from leaves to seeds. Seeds are easier to store and contains omega-6. Leaves provide a host of critical nutrients a body can’t get from refined seeds like antioxidants, phytochemicals, fiber, omega-3 fatty acids. 5) from food culture to food science.

Getting over nutritionism:
Some rules of thumb: 1) don’t eat anything incapable of rotting. 2) avoid food products containing ingredients that are unfamilier, unpronounceable, more than 5 in number, include high-fructose corn syrup. 3) avoid food products that make health claims, 4) shop the peripheries of the supermarket and stay out of the middle (processed foods), 5) get out of the supermarket, 6) eat mostly plants, especially leaves, 7) eat like an omnivores E. (diversity), 8) eat well-grown food from healthy soils, 9) eat wild foods when you can, 10) regard non-traditional foods with skepticism, 11) don’t look for the magic bullet in the traditional diet (it’s the sum of the nutrient parts), 12) pay more, eat less -> spend less on health care. choose quality over quantity, food experience over mere calories, 13) eat meals as a family, try not to eat alone. 14) consult your gut, 15) eat slowly, 16) cook and if you can, plant a garden.

If you get a chance, this documentary is really good and give you a essence of the book in vivid colors.

Having watched many re-run episodes of “I Dream of Jeannie” when I first immigrated to US, I was rather intrigued to find out more about Barbara Eden, who played Jeanie in the show. I remember to show to be simple and mostly no-brainer kind of show that filled my lazy summer days between schools. And as Eden has emphasized, it’s a show that play out the fantasy of the people who the audience can easily relate to, hence the appeal.

I didn’t expect that much from this book but after listening to the audiobook, I found the book or Barbara Eden’s life to be rather interesting. Her love of singing brought her to Hollywood and got her career started. Trying out every audition was her way of playing the odds and getting herself in front of the movers and shakers.

Her being cast in “I Dream of Jeanie” was mostly because her earlier Genie role in a movie. It helps to get your hands dirty and try all different roles if you want to be an actor.

I’m convinced that she was truly in love with her first husband, Michael Ansara. Unfortunately, Michael’s acting career didn’t last and caused a strain in their marriage, which resulted in a divorce after 16 years. She attributed her broken marriage partially to postpartum depression after losing her 2nd baby due to the busy working schedule. She claimed that she would have kept the marriage to preserve a better environment for her first son, who was 6 years old at that time. This in turn may have contributed to Matthew’s drug addiction.

Larry Hagman, the co-star of the “I Dream of Jeannie” was such as basket case. Indulging himself in drug and alcohol, he was a huge disruption to the show with his mood swings. He didn’t feel that he was at his best. Of course not, he turned out to be a bigger star in Dallas.

The second marriage to Charles Donald Fergert didn’t turn out well because he resented his wife to be on the limelight. Barbara blamed herself for not seeing the telltale sign of his issues before the marriage – like the desire to be looked upon as Hugh Hefner of the Playboy Magazine.

There were interesting tidbits about her working with some of the biggest stars like Lucile Ball (a huge star with professionalism), Desi Arnaz (a womanizer even in front of Lucile Ball, Tony Curtis (tried to hit on her), Jim Jones (another womanizer, “I want to show you London”), Bob Hope (a fun, respectable guy), Elvis Presley (as a co-star role, may have feeling toward Barbara, who didn’t detect it. Found all of Elvis’ cousins to be unrelated to him), Sidney Sheldon (a genius producer), Don Rickle (who wouldn’t insult her because his beloved wife is also named Barbara) and many others.

The last act of the book was about her son’s drug overdose. It was very courageous for Barbara to describe in details of her son’s addiction and on that dreadful final day when she was told of his death. It’s very hard for any parent to accept that. Her quivering voice throughout this part of story reveals the heartache that she had to endure since then.

It is a good book if you want to know a little of the TV history and the early pioneers of the era. Barbara Eden practically grew up with the TV industry and benefited from its growing popularity. It pays to a pioneer in a new industry and she paid dearly and brought lots of joy to the audience.

Betty White is long recognized as the quintessential comedy actress. I like her part in the Golden Girls. The book reminded me of her Homemaker role in Mary Tylor Moore’s show. Of course, this book also introduces me to her new “Hot in Cleveland” show, which I wasn’t aware of. I watched a few Season 1 episodes. Not bad. It’s like the Golden Girls show except the girls are washed-out Hollywood actresses and Betty plays the old caretaker lady that comes with the house. 3 women and 1 older woman – same formula.

I learned a few things about her life. I admire her longevity in the show business. May she live long and continue her happy and fulfilled life.

Key takeaways:
– She really likes pets. It’s good to have a passion or course. It makes life interesting – a key ingredient to happiness.
– She is modest in attributing her success to luck in pursuing her passion of the TV/movie industry, which practically grew up with her.
– Her fan club leaders are all retired – it goes to tell you how long she has been in this industry.
– Getting nominated is a reward in itself. Winning it makes it all that much sweeter.
– She hasn’t been sick for over 20 years, thanks to taking vitamin C. Wow, that’s a testimony!
– She enjoys crossword puzzle and writing. They both go well with the craft of acting while keeping her mind sharp at her age: 91 years old now.
– Timing is very critical in comedy. She has to continue tuning her timing. But she’s a pro.
– Having consistent stories for reporters are important. She admires Warren Betty.
– Integrity is especially important in her line of work. Coming from her really makes it more pronounced.
– Her monologue in the SNL is hilarious.

Lisa See, the author of “Shanghai Girls” picked up where she left off on that novel This time, Joy, the daughter of the “Shanghai Girls” – two sisters – Pearl and May (birth mother), ran away to China just 8 years after People Republic of China was formed. The author goes through a great deal of research in finding the condition of early years of People’s Republic of China, the inner working of the Communist Party, the Great Leap Forward and the resulted famine throughout China. This novel gives the readers a glimpse of what is like to be living in China at that time. The novel was interesting and probably more mesmerizing than the previous novel – Shanghai Girls. I highly recommend it.

Below is a quick plot description:

Blinded by youthful idealism, confusion about who she was because of the shroud of lies her family put around her, and her desire to find her true father (Z.G.), Joy went to Hongkong and traveled across to China and eventually got to Shanghai.

After meeting her birth father, who was struggled against (public criticism) and had to travel to a village to re-educate himself, Joy traveled to the Green Dragon Village and met Tao, later became her husband. In the mean time, Joy’s mother, Pearl, traveled to Shanghai and stayed in her old Shanghai home working as a paper collector to wait for her daughter to come back.

When the mother and daughter finally met, they had a fight and the mother continued to wait for Joy’s change of heart. In the mean time, Pearl fell in love with Don, a boarder in her home before she left Shanghai 20 years before.

The next time they traveled back to Green Dragon Village, Joy and Tao decided to get married. Little did she realize, she was stepping into a nightmare – joining a family of 7 in a small hut. After Pearl and Z.G. left for Shanghai, Joy got pregnant then the famine hit the village with the onset of the Great Leap Forward. Throughout the ordeal, she was struggled against by her own husband, family members and even her friends. To survive, she put up with all the false beliefs, and bureaucracy. Near death, she was saved by her own wit in notifying her mom and Z.G. of her dire situation.

After being rescued back to Shanghai, Joy and Pearl plotted the exit out of China to return to USA. It was through some scheme and luck that they were able to get out with Z.G., Don, the little orphan boy, Tongming, Joy and her baby, thanks to Pearl’s final reunion with her father, who abandoned the family 20 years before.

The final scene was when Z.G. finally met May for the first time since her departure from Shanghai.

I think there could be more novel coming next after Joy, if Lisa See chooses to turn these stories into a “Root” in the Chinese way.