There
is
much
deliciously
enjoyable
literature
circulating
about
in
the
form
of
books,
newspapers
and
magazines.
There
is
also
much
pleasantry
to
be
had
in
the
reading
of
letters
from
friends,
small
messages
or
even
from
loose
pages,
displaced
and
forgotten.
But
what
is
really
entertaining
is
the
reading
found
in
almanacs,
the
most
popular
of
all
known
data
banks.
Rich
deposits
of
well-dosed
wisdom,
within
the
reach
of
all
curious
fingers!
How
interesting
are
these
conveniently
small
books
made
of
cheap,
ordinary
paper
and
commonly
distributed
every
year
by
enterprising
laboratories
and
drugstores!
How
useful
and
inoffensive
are
teachings
and
simple
hints
found
inside,
always
spiced
and
spliced
with
lines
of
good
solid
humor
inserted
alongside
the
cough
syrup
ads!
If
the
information
is
useful
or
not
doesn’t
really
matter
to
curious
eyes…
The
reading
of
the
almanac
is
an
enjoyable
tonic
for
the
health
of
the
heart
and
cool,
soothing
shade
for
weary
eyes.
Who
knows
this
better
than
any
other
is
my
friend
and
comrade,
the
philosopher,
Antônio
Joaquim,
insatiable
and
untiring
devourer
of
all
material
that
is
considered
pastime
reading.
One
afternoon
an
old
treasure
came
to
my
hands,
during
the
annual
organization
of
my
library
drawers.
It
was
a
very
old
1983
Sadol
almanac
of
the
thirty-eighth
edition,
distributed
by
the
Almeida
Pharmacy,
of
Taiobeiras,
Sao
Paulo
state
which
belongs
to
an
old
friend
of
mine,
Antonino,
one
of
the
most
admirable
personalities
that
I
have
ever
had
the
pleasure
to
know.
What
a
deliciously
wonderful
thing,
Ms.
Lisbela,
mainly
for
yourself,
who
knows
so
well
how
to
appreciate
the
good
things
in
life!
It’s
almost
like
the
advertisement
that
the
City
Hall
invented
for
our
city,
that
“Montes
Claros
is
beautiful
and
delicious.”
Look,
Ms.
Vera
Lúcia,
wife
of
Antônio
Joaquim,
what
a
useful
culture
Greek
has
been
for
your
famous
husband
from
Grão
Mogol!
These
words
with
Greek
radicals,
for
example,
which
indicate
fears
and
manias:
Acrophobia
–
abnormal
fear
of
heights;
Claustrophobia
–
abnormal
fear
of
closed
places;
Gerontophobia
–
abnormal
fear
of
the
elderly;
Icon
mania
–
passion
for
signs
and
images;
Megalomania
–
mania
of
self-greatness;
Misogamy
–
fear
of
marriage;
Misogyny
–
fear
of
women;
Logo
mania
–
mania
of
continuous
speaking
Pyromania
–
abnormal
incendiary
mania;
It’s
not
necessary
for
Antônio
Joaquim
to
jot
these
words
down,
because
they
are
already
very
well
known
to
those
who
played…
on
the
football
team
of
the
Melo
neighborhood…
In
another
part
of
the
almanac
we
are
shown
how
dangerous
the
automobile
is!
Did
you
know
that
since
it’s
creation,
especially
after
the
invention
of
the
Ford
Model-T,
that
those
wonderful
and
astounding
machines
have
already
done
in
with
over
twenty-five
million
people,
worldwide!
A
slaughter
surpassing
all
known
wars
perpetrated
upon
the
face
of
the
earth
during
this
century.
The
fact
that
China,
the
most
populated
country
in
the
world
has
the
lowest
number
of
automobile
accidents
makes
one
think:
It’s
the
world’s
poorest
country
in
relation
to
the
number
of
cars
in
circulation.
In
China,
there
is
only
one
vehicle
for
every
11,600
inhabitants.
That
is
even
less
than
the
statistics
show
for
our
nearby
Pedras
de
Maria
da
Cruz,
a
neighboring
small
and
sleepy
hamlet.
And
how
about
this?
The
Japanese
consume
daily,
more
than
one
thousand
snakes
as
medical
remedies,
even
though
the
commercialization
of
these
reptiles
is
absolutely
forbidden
in
that
country.
There,
snakes
are
displayed
alive
in
windows
of
specialized
shops,
so
that
clients
can
handpick
their
preferred
choices.
A
cooked
snake
is
considered
an
infallible
cure
for
tuberculosis,
rheumatism
and
cancer
in
the
Far
East.
Here
in
Brazil,
in
some
remote
places
of
the
northeast,
when
