A Violet Who Would Rather Blossom Unseen...

The book signing/celebration hosted by the Weequahic HS Alumni Association was a true love-fest. There were people of all ages present (a few kids as well as WHS grads from the class of 1936, making them 91 years old).

One of my father's life-long friends, Irwin Traurig, (class of '37, making him one year ahead of Swede), was there, and after my presentation he was one of the attendees who made a comment. Irwin is one of the sweetest, most gentle people I've ever known. He had his high school yearbook, where there is a reference to Irwin "passing along" his characteristic of being "a violet who would rather blossom unseen" to Swede Masin. In other words, both seemed to go out of their way to avoid the spotlight.

Sure sounds like the Swede we knew.

Swede's Contemporaries

One of the most pleasant surprises about writing about my father is the reaction I've gotten from some of Swede's contemporaries.  I have received numerous letters and phone calls from around the country from folks who genuinely loved the book; not only because they loved my father (they clearly did), but also because they enjoyed the trip down memory lane it provides.

I got a real charge a week ago or so when two days in a row I received calls from two different men (strangers to me) who knew Swede back in the day.  I spoke with each for more than a half hour, and coincidentally, both exclaimed toward the end of our conversations "I can't believe I'm speaking to Swede Masin's son!".

I've answered every letter I've received, and I love doing so.  In communicating with these folks I feel I'm communicating a bit with my father, which is a wonderful bonus for me.  It's been remarkably gratifying.

KBOO Interview with Ed Goldberg

Today (Nov. 2nd) I was interviewed by Ed Goldberg for a future broadcast on KBOO (90.7 fm), a local Portland radio station. Ed reviews movies and books, and I really enjoyed today's session with him. It lasted approx. 20 minutes or so, and he fed me lots of questions I hadn't been asked before about the book. It was gratifying for him to say that he found the book to be a very positive one and that he got a kick out of the parts where I trash-talked my siblings. As soon as he lets me know when it will air I will pass along the info. The station's link is:

http://kboo.fm/

Book Signing 11/19 at Annie Bloom's

Annie Bloom's is hosting a book signing event for me on November 19th from 7:30 to 9PM. Would love to see you there.

Please follow this link for event information:

http://www.annieblooms.com/event/robert-g-masin-swede

Annie Bloom's address and phone number is listed below: