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Arbitrary Stupid Goal
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin
22 posts | 13 read | 20 to read
Arbitrary Stupid Goal is a completely riveting worldwhen I looked up from its pages regular life seemed boring and safe and modern like one big iPhone. This book captures not just a lost New York but a whole lost way of life. Miranda July In Arbitrary Stupid Goal, Tamara Shopsin takes the reader on a pointillist time-travel trip to the Greenwich Village of her bohemian 1970s childhood, a funky, tight-knit small town in the big city, long before Sex and the City tours and luxury condos. The center of Tamaras universe is Shopsins, her familys legendary greasy spoon, aka The Store, run by her inimitable dad, Kennya loquacious, contrary, huge-hearted man who, aside from dishing up New Yorks best egg salad on rye, is Village sheriff, philosopher, and fixer all at once. All comers find a place at Shopsins table and feast on Kennys tall tales and trenchant advice along with the incomparable chili con carne. Filled with clever illustrations and witty, nostalgic photographs and graphics, and told in a sly, elliptical narrative that is both hilarious and endearing, Arbitrary Stupid Goal is an offbeat memory-book mosaic about the secrets of living an unconventional life, which is becoming a forgotten art.
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IndoorDame
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin
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Clwojick Great match!! 2y
47 likes1 comment
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IndoorDame
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin
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Mehso-so

Maybe I wasn‘t in the right frame of mind when I read this, but it took me until the last few chapters to get into the choppy flow of this memoir & start to really enjoy the slice of life recollections of the author‘s NYC Village childhood. Usually I love books that capture the NYC vibe since I grew up there & get nostalgic for it, but most of this described a NY that was too far removed from what I know to get that feeling.👇🏼

IndoorDame This in itself fascinates me since I usually recognize New Yorker‘s signature attitudes even in historical fiction and other situations far removed from my actual life… #NewYearWhoDis #Nonfiction2022 #ImUnplanned @monalyisha @jen_the_scribe @Riveted_Reader_Melissa 2y
jen_the_scribe I can definitely understand why you felt far removed from her rendition of NY. And the writing style is a bit odd, definitely unlike anything I ever read before. 2y
67 likes2 comments
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jen_the_scribe
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin
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Pickpick

I couldn‘t put this one down. It‘s funny, wonderfully weird, shocking at times, and super entertaining. A deeply honest example of how human people are, that no one is inherently bad, or good, for that matter. It also served as a reminder to enjoy the simple things, and to have arbitrary stupid goals and take the pressure off.

18 likes3 stack adds
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jen_the_scribe
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin
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I just hit submit on my final project for my current course, and now it‘s time to enjoy my weekend 😁

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jen_the_scribe
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin

“In the limits of a situation there is humor, there is grace, and everything else.”

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jen_the_scribe
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin

“…this might be the root of our problems as a nation, that we don‘t feel enough sympathy for people who are not like us.”

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jen_the_scribe
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin
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In the mood for some creative nonfiction, and this one‘s been on my shelf for ages.

15 likes1 stack add
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Hooked_on_books
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin
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Pickpick

This book is a total delight! In it, Shopsin paints a picture of her family‘s general store turned restaurant and their little corner of Greenwich Village. It‘s filled with great characters and little gems and there‘s a lovely buoyancy to the writing. I just loved it. What a great start for me with #Literati!

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Hooked_on_books
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin
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The origin of crossword puzzles. Who knew? I especially love them feared to be the “gateway drug to comics.” 😂

JackOBotts Amazing…and a tad ironic considering how central the NYT crossword is to puzzlers! 😆 This sounds like such a fun read! 3y
Hooked_on_books @JackOBotts Yes, exactly! They had to eat a little crow on that one! 😂 This is a really charming book. I‘m enjoying it! 3y
38 likes2 comments
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Hooked_on_books
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin
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This is page 1. I just love this idea of traveling to places with your name. Or perhaps sharing some other attribute. I think it would completely alter your expectations.

TheKidUpstairs Love this 3y
40 likes1 comment
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Hooked_on_books
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin
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Now that I‘ve jumped ship on #BOTM, I‘ve been looking around for something else to scratch my book box itch and I‘ve decided to try #Literati. Here‘s my first box! I‘m happy that there are 12 books to choose between each month plus an online discussion. I‘m looking forward to starting and excited to see how this works out!

MicheleinPhilly Ooooh, I may have to look into this. 12 choices??? 3y
Hooked_on_books @MicheleinPhilly Yeah, take a look at their site and you‘ll see all the August choices. Some are new releases, many are not. I picked this one because it sounded interesting and I couldn‘t find anywhere else that I could get it, and I love finding books like that. The one downside is there doesn‘t seem to be an option to skip a month. But I figure with 12 options my odds are good. 3y
TheBookHippie I was looking at them as well. Now I really want to try! 3y
Hooked_on_books @TheBookHippie I‘m glad I took the plunge! I really liked this one and you can join in on any of the books/discussions each month, so I‘m going to dive into another while I keep track of what readers are saying about this book. I‘m liking the community focus of the club. 3y
46 likes1 stack add4 comments
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jen_the_scribe
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin
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I saw the writer/artist Austin Kleon recommend this book in his stories on IG, and upon looking it up I was intrigued. It was only available through a third party seller on Amazon, and it looks like a library book (but I like that fact) and it took several weeks to arrive. That's okay too, everything's moving slowly these days and that's necessary, I think. I had plenty to read while I waited, but this was a welcome sight on my doorstep today.

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steffakish
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin
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Pickpick

Shopsin‘s memoir was so charming and makes you want to have a family legacy like hers. Overall 4/5

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Well-ReadNeck
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin
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Pickpick

I adored this memoir. I bought it two years ago while in NYC and it is the best love letter to growing up on the city. 💕 #MountTBR

squirrelbrain Sounds great because.... NYC! Stacked... 5y
tapgurl Ditto! 5y
94 likes4 stack adds2 comments
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Well-ReadNeck
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin
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Here‘s my book haul from my recent trip to NYC
🍎📚🍎📚🍎📚🍎📚🍎📚🍎📚🍎📚🍎📚

#BookHaul

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CocoReads
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin
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My main reading goals are to read as much as I can! Not a surprise really but to expand my horizons a bit, I‘m going to try to read more poetry. I‘m doing some challenges but I‘m fairly laid back about them. I‘d also like to develop the habit of writing every day, even if it‘s just for 5 minutes. I‘m working on something right now but I‘d like to not fall out of the habit when this project is done.

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RedbagReadbooks
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin
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Pickpick

3/5🏈. I enjoyed the book, but since I have never been to New York I feel some of the nuance my be lost on me. Still very enjoyable

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Lindy
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin
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Pickpick

A quirky memoir of a childhood in an unconventional family in a lost time and place—1970s Greenwich Village, NYC. I really wanted to eat at The Store, the Shopsin family‘s diner, both for the food, and to watch everything going on in the place. This #audiobook, narrated by the author, is so much fun, even without the images that are in the illustrated print edition.

Spiderfelt Yesss! The menu sounds outrageous. Shopsin painted a vivid picture of the neighborhood and the characters. I loved this book. 6y
Lindy @Spiderfelt Soups made to order from scratch! Chowder not possible without bacon! No reviews or else you are banned! 6y
Spiderfelt It actually changed the way I think about making soup. Perhaps not every soup has to simmer for hours in a unique pot. 6y
Lindy @Spiderfelt Any book that changes the way you see things is a blessing. I can get all mushy when I start thinking about why I love to read. 6y
Spiderfelt Indeed. 6y
35 likes2 stack adds5 comments
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Lindy
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin
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Arbitrary Stupid Goal: A goal that isn‘t too important makes you live in the moment and still gives you a driving force. This driving force is to get around the fact that we will all die and there‘s no real point to life.

Spiderfelt It's a valid operating philosophy. 6y
Lindy @Spiderfelt Yep. 👍 6y
35 likes2 comments
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Lindy
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin
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The only foreign word besides ‘puta‘ my dad taught me was anchovy. Anchovy is Italian for shitty little fish.

mjdowens 😂👏😂👏😂 6y
BookMaven407 😂😂😂 6y
37 likes1 stack add2 comments
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Spiderfelt
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin
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Pickpick

There is something so heartwarming about this quirky memoir describing the author's unconventional childhood in Greenwich Village. Really more of a story about a place, Shopsin describes the characters who were part of her larger than life familyu, owners of an oddball corner grocery turned diner. It's a love letter to a bygone time.

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goodbyefrancie
Arbitrary Stupid Goal | Tamara Shopsin
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Almost completed my #goodreads challenge. It's low, but it's cool to see it!

Sweettartlaura Yay!!! 7y
Birdsong28 Mine was 30 last year and 35 this year but have read 45 books so far! So its what suits you and your life as you have other things going on work etc so don't put yourself down that its 40 just keep building on it each year. 📖📚 7y
needleminding My number is high, but it's because I read a lot of children's picture books to my daughter, which obviously don't take long to read. I agree with @Birdsong28 - whatever suits you! 7y
goodbyefrancie @Birdsong28 @jaimeisbionic I set it low because I work a LOT. It isn't always easy to find time to read. I've gotten more creative about squeezing in a chapter or two here and there. 📚📚📚 7y
54 likes4 comments