Saffy is 15! Today she is The Oracle and Dispenser of Books
Happy Birthday, Saffy!
Today Saffy will listen to your questions, petitions, and dilemmas and dispense her wisdom. Post your issues in Comments.
She will also give books to those who post questions, petitions and dilemmas that amuse her.
She has spoken. Incidentally Saffy speaks in the third person, unlike her human who speaks in the first person plural.
Warning: Saffy is not polite like Mat or friendly like Drogon. Saffy is close to 90 in cat years so basically she doesn’t give a crap.
Update: Saffy is through answering your questions. If you posted a question that she answered and have already disinfected your scratches, email saffron.safin@gmail.com by Sunday, 21 June 2015 to claim your book.
Answers to questions you might be asking, unless you wandered onto this site purely by accident >>>
June 15th, 2015 at 07:01
Hi Saffy. I would like to know what book series or film would you like to see adapted into a tv series next?
June 15th, 2015 at 10:15
Happy expulsion from your mother’s uterus, Saffy! And I need your wisdom.
Dilemma: I don’t know what I will do with my life. I am currently working in a hospital doing a job I don’t exactly hate but I don’t really love that much either. I only took it in college due to my parents’ insistence and a long aria on its practicality/opportunities abroad/etc. I contemplated going to law school because friends and former professors have been telling me I would make a good lawyer because I love debating and I could easily pore over thick books. Here’s the rub: I don’t think I would be a good lawyer because the job is risky and I don’t want to spend four years reading technical books and depress myself when I could just read novels and enjoy myself.
I also contemplated going back to school- as in starting over as a freshman. This time, taking either History or Political Science or Literature (which are the courses I really LIKED) but unfortunately, money is tight and that remains a dream still.
I am also working part-time as a college professor which is the only thing that keeps me happy nowadays (well, aside from reading books and binge-watching TV series) but I am really hesitant to take up Master’s because it was not the course I really wanted to take and I don’t know if I will survive. Grad school kills.
I apologize for the long message but I am so lost right now and would appreciate an advice from just anybody, feline or not. Happy birthday again, Saffy! Continue rocking.
June 15th, 2015 at 12:32
I can no longer afford to buy myself a Christmas present because I just splurged on The New Yorker’s Summer Fiction Issue (Karen Russell and Zadie Smith are in it!). And though I almost never regret any of my book and mag and paper purchases, I have got to stop, really stop, at least for a few months, ok, one month. I will, instead, hope and pray and wish for a free book from the beautiful and benign birthday girl. Happy happy birthday, Saffy :D
June 15th, 2015 at 12:59
Happy birthday!
I was so impressed with the creative control that George Miller displayed in the recent Mad Max: Fury Road that I feel that we can give him The Silmarillion (or even the recent Jason Aaron storyline of Wolverine Goes to Hell) and he will do no wrong in the movie adaptation. What do you think? What book would you want George Miller to translate to the big screen?
June 15th, 2015 at 13:10
Happy birthday Saffy!
The season 5 of Game of Thrones just aired its finale and I’m curious about what you and your human think of HBO’s deviations from the books? I hated (still hate) the fact that major changes were made to the storyline and characters but sometimes I had to admit they were brilliant. Now I don’t know how I will be able to read the remaining books without wondering how much of it was written to conform to HBO’s overhauled Westeros.
June 15th, 2015 at 13:24
Manila Beans. To expect a work of fiction to proceed exactly as it would have if you had written it is pointless and absurd. If you want something to turn out exactly as you want, WRITE IT YOURSELF. Oh right, someone else has written and is writing it. Tough. Life is full of disappointment. Only worry about things within your control. Otherwise, put together an investor group and BUY HBO AND BIG HEAD LITTLE HEAD.
June 15th, 2015 at 13:26
caltrask16. Now that George Miller has demonstrated what can happen if you leave a filmmaker the hell alone, you don’t leave him alone. You have the temerity to tell him what to do next. (“It’s only a suggestion” is passive-aggressive and annoying.) LEAVE HIM ALONE, LET HIM DO WHAT HE WANTS.
June 15th, 2015 at 13:30
UVDust. Preventing yourself from buying books is stupid and masochistic. If you want to be able to buy all the books you want, GET A PART-TIME JOB. You can freelance for magazines and websites. The pay is crap, but enough to buy books with.
June 15th, 2015 at 13:33
Happy birthday, Saffy!
When I meet a cat, I talk to and name him/her after the place where I meet him/her. Salcedo, the healthy cat fed by the opulent kids at Salcedo Park; QH, the white cat at Quezon Hall; and Adarna, the clingy cat outside Cine Adarna. The three of them sat on my lap and liked being rubbed. A month ago, I met a cat outside my house. I named her DJ (acronym for the street name where my house is). Every time I arrive home, she would come to me, and I give her food. But she doesn’t really like to be touched or carried. I want to rub her ears and tummy. How could I convince her?
June 15th, 2015 at 13:36
BitchPlease. When surrounded by noise in the form of other people’s opinions, shut out the noise. Decide what you want for yourself. It takes 30 seconds. You bring up what you don’t want, but WHAT DO YOU WANT? Make a decision and live with it, and everyone can go fuck themselves. It is easier than you think.
June 15th, 2015 at 13:38
humdinger_mayo. It would be interesting to see Kate Atkinson’s Life After Life. For the second season they can do A God In Ruins.
The life of Christopher Lee is teeming with adaptation possibilities, but who would play him? Benedict Cumberbatch is too short, Tom Hiddleston is too nice, Eddie Redmayne is too pretty.
June 15th, 2015 at 13:47
dennislbvergara. Some cats do not like to be touched by humans. Eventually she may warm to you. Just keep on feeding her and making her feel comfortable. Eventually she may initiate contact, but be aware that cats do not change their behavior to please humans. Ewww. If she really likes you, she will bring you the corpse of a small animal she killed, like a mouse or a cockroach. Say thank you.
June 15th, 2015 at 14:01
happy birthday, saffy. more to come.
which 3 are the best in your walls, backrest, seat rest, or seat sides of nyrb books? masarap ba talaga matulog katabi ang mga yan?
June 15th, 2015 at 14:12
turmukoy. This shelf is not comfortable. Saffy sits on it because she zeroes in on the stuff the human loves most, so the human will know that if she displeases Saffy, her favorite things will be attacked.
If you are buying NYRB Books:
A Time of Gifts by Patrick Leigh Fermor
Paris Stories by Mavis Gallant
Rogue Male by Geoffrey Household
June 15th, 2015 at 17:48
Hahahaha. Hostages pala. Thanks for the recommendations. Will buy the last one (thin). Very first NYRB was Stoner. Was read just on a kindle, but what a
a great, lingering book! This is brave for me to say here, but I thought it was better than Gatsby! (on first reading, at least).
Happy Birthday again to Saffy.
June 15th, 2015 at 18:07
Many happy returns, o tricolored one.
My dillema is this: My SO and I have been together for too long to be constantly arguing (pardon the idiom) like cats and dogs over the most trivial matters. We call each other the ugliest names whenever we fight and it worries me when I imagine spending the rest of our lives together like that. When it’s good it’s good, but when it’s bad it’s really bad. Is it worth it to go on like this? How do we break the cycle?
June 15th, 2015 at 18:57
leavemealone. Take a vacation from each other before you bore Saffy and she puts you on vacation permanently. Two months, no communications, then see what you want to do.
June 15th, 2015 at 20:23
Happy Birthday Saffy! You are aging beautifully.
June 15th, 2015 at 22:47
Greetings Your Grace and Happy Birthday to Saffy!
Hopefully, Star Wars 7 will surpass virtually all expectations, hopefully, Your Grace.
June 16th, 2015 at 00:45
CaitlynsMomma. Thank you. Saffy notices you did not ask the question you ask every year so she assumes the issue has been resolved to your advantage.
June 16th, 2015 at 00:57
wangbumaximus21. Hahahahahaha. Best to expect the worst. Better surprise than crushing disappointment.
June 16th, 2015 at 14:46
Happy birthday Saffy! 15 is the new 10, or so I’ve heard. :)
Question: I realized last year that I was not happy with what I am doing anymore. I know I want to go to school again. Learn a new language. Read. Or write fiction. Or work in movies. But mainly write. My confidence in writing has waned over the years. Sometimes I get jolts of inspiration but I cannot seem to manage work, being a boyfriend, being a dad, and writing all at the same time. I obviously won’t cut off my girl and my kids to pursue writing. I adore and love them so much. Giving up work is off the table too, because, my family and I need to eat. I find myself envious of my single friends who goes off on vacations whenever they want, quits work if they are simply tired of it, and just being free of responsibility. I am jealous of the TIME they get to spend with abandon. Heck, my weekends are already booked with check-ups and school meetings from now to eternity! So there, given all these parameters, do you have any recommendations on how I can start with my writing ambition? Thanks! Your sagely advice is warranted. Happy birthday!!!
June 16th, 2015 at 19:37
aspiringwriter29. Saffy does not understand why you need her permission. If you want to write, write. If you are serious, you will find the time. Don’t quit your day job because making a living from writing is tough. The pay for newspaper and magazine work is pathetic.
June 18th, 2015 at 06:32
ms jessica: baby daddy and i are on “good” terms now after all the court drama with child support, custody and restraining order. he’s grown up (a little) and finally realized that he needs to put her needs before his anger issues. my little girl is growing up happy and as normal as possible with a “broken” family.
I wanted to ask if i will EVER win the lotto.. but i didnt want to risk incurring Saffy’s ire =) (and yes, i do play once in a while). Thank you.
July 21st, 2015 at 15:25
Hi. I got my book last Sunday. I love the edition. Thanks, again.