The Wisdom Found in Hen’s Teeth (Pottersfield Press)

When I read Been There, Ate That a couple of years ago, I felt like Jules and I had a lot in common. I could relate to her nostalgia to the junk food of the 80s and 90s; we share a similar sense of humour and playfulness that comes out in her writing. I wanted to read more. So, when she kindly offered to send me a copy of her newest book–Trips That Went South–I happily accepted. And, in the meantime, I checked out The Wisdom Found in Hen’s Teeth. Who wouldn’t want to read a book with a chicken on the cover?

I found myself nodding along as she questions her “weirdness”, talks about the Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon, and explores the idea that “rare” really doesn’t seem as rare as it should and coincidences can be found everywhere.

“Are you one in a million? Are you unique like everyone else?”

“If the odds are in favour of being killed by falling airplane parts, why do we never see this in the news? There’s a reason the movie Jaws was made in 1975 and not a horror film called Airplane Parts. From Papua New Guinea to Queensland, Australia, to Volusia County, Florida, swimmers have genuine concern about what lurks below, not what lurks above.”

This book was full of things I did–or would have done–as a kid. Like Jules, I looked for items to buy with my name on them. Sadly, like her siblings, my name was too rare. But I’m happy for Jules that she was able to find a pencil and eraser set on a family trip to Niagara Falls! I was also fascinated by Ripley’s Believe It Or Not – the long fingernails in particular were disturbingly mesmerizing. And how I envied the people with metal detectors as they walked up and down the beach. When my daughter turned six, a classmate gave her a metal detector for her birthday and I was so excited. On the other hand, I don’t remember ever being into taxidermy. But you can’t do everything.

Other things we have in common: a love of Dian Fossey and her gorillas (I bought a stuffed gorilla and named it Digit after reading Gorillas in the Mist), a love of “My Octopus Teacher”, picking snails and worms off the pavement, an interest in time capsules (mine was a metal toy toolbox full of bottle caps collected from campsites where my family went camping and buried in the backyard over 40 years ago – I assume it’s still there, and likely very valuable at this point!), and a birth year. If you read The Wisdom Found in Hen’s Teeth, you’ll understand how cool it is to have these things in common.

The book concludes with some lists for further enlightenment: “Weird Things to See and Do”, “Filmology”, “Books to Blow Your Mind”, “Humans Doing Rare and Monumental Things”, “Last Resort: Where to Find the Weird in the World”, and the author’s note which leaves you with: “Please don’t be shy about finding the ‘we’ in weird.”

Trips That Went South (Pottersfield Press)

Jules Torti is a world traveler–something we do not have in common. In fact, I am the opposite of a world traveler. But I enjoy reading about other people’s travels. Especially when things don’t always go as planned. Jules’s unfortunate incidents make good reading for us!

Something I admire about Jules is her willingness and courage to try just about anything while traveling. And when I say anything, I’m mostly talking about things that are considered edible (from guinea pigs to fried grasshoppers). Which, of course, is what causes much of her stomach trouble – my worst nightmare.

“I’m simply drawn to things that have been left in the sun too long and things on skewers that shouldn’t be eaten.”

One of the things I love about Torti’s writing is how she weaves childhood experiences into her essays. Like her family trips to Niagara Falls that involved staying at cheap motels with pools and cable TV. And the travel interests of each member of her family. I’m a lot like her mom who likes “moss-consumed cemeteries, Highland cattle, antique shops with a ripe root cellar whiff and bookstores where the shelves audibly groan with mystery, mildew, and anticipation.” I’m hoping for some of this when I go to Scotland at the end of the month.

At the age of 20, Jules headed into the jungles of Costa Rica on a volunteer excursion that didn’t turn out quite as she had imagined. Yet it did not deter her from more travel. “In between watching for the passing drug cartel, I looked for toucans, hidden orange trees and an epiphany. I had festering wounds, worms and emotions… When you’re stranded in a jungle with nothing but flaccid carrots, marmalade, and numb arms from anti-malaria medication (despite having malaria), it really makes you want to see the world and do it all over again.“

Jules’s partner Kim plays a big role in her stories – they’ve done a lot of traveling together and Kim is just as adventurous as Jules is (except in the food department). Most of the essays in Trips That Went South include Kim and, no matter what befalls them on their travels, they seem to suffer from “a strange, temporary short-term memory affliction,” as they keep planning excitedly for more trips.

“Like silly, relentless honey badgers paralyzed by a venomous snake, Kim and I soon forget the trying times of twelve hour buses through the desert with air conditioning at Arctic level. We forget about our dreams of nothing but spinach and oatmeal after two weeks of greasy goreng (fried food) in Bali. The inferno of mosquitoes that ate at my mental capacity on the river boat through Borneo vanished from memory just as quickly. I’d say yes to seeing the swinging orangutans and goofy-looking proboscis monkeys all over again.”

A few of Jules’s traveling experiences in the book include: a stoned bike ride in Amsterdam, a run-in with police in Uganda, discovery of an Egyptian dung beetle in her bra, a hot air balloon ride over the Nile, exploring a cave in Belize as it fills with water, high winds in Iceland, a mud bath in Columbia, an accidental attendance of a show in Thailand that featured women popping ping-pong balls out of their vaginas, and a wedding in Heart’s Content Newfoundland during Hurricane Dorian.

“Getting married in a hurricane did nothing for our hair, but everything for our hearts.”

Jules, if you’re ever in the Maritimes, let me know! I’m sure I can find something dangerous to do, or something gross to eat. Or both!