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trinityofone1. CR and I had an awesome housewarming party on Saturday *waves to ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
akukorax, iamsab, ebrooklynw, chele74, & nenar*; I drank an entire bottle of wine, which, okay, was maybe not the best idea, but seriously, how come I STILL feel hungover and gross? That's not fair, man. Good times should lead to good feelings, I think.
2. I'm loving Doctor Who so much right now it kind of hurts.
3.![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
sgabigbang kicked my ass some more.
4. I turned down a job offer, because it paid badly and seemed degrading. Watch me regret this when I subsequently have to work at McDonald's!
5. Books:
Week 24: 11-17 June
137. The Assault on Reason, Al Gore — An excellent account of How We Are Screwed. Gore presents his case for what he thinks is wrong with America, the essence of which is that reasoned discourse has all but disappeared. Not only is the average person uneducated about the world (the statistics about the percentage of Americans who still believe that Saddam Hussein was behind the September 11th attacks are truly frightening), but our elected officials don't even debate issues anymore, instead focusing their time and efforts (and tons of money) on television campaign ads. No wonder the country sits immobile and lets the Bush Administration tromp all over the constitution.
Anyway, this was not a pleasant read—I spent most of the time gripping the binding more and more tightly and getting angrier and angrier. It is an important book to read, though—though I worry of course that most of the people who do read it will be, how shall I say, the choir? That's the real question, I think—how can we reach out to those people who don't necessarily agree with us, who are not necessarily so well informed? Gore thinks the internet might hold the key. I don't know. I just don't know.
138. The Dreyfus Affair, Peter Lefcourt — This book cheered me up immensely. It's about a Major League shortstop who suddenly realizes that he's falling in love with his second baseman. It's one of my favorite slash clichés—the slow tease of that first stirring attraction; the one guy teaching the other all he knows—and it builds really nicely. The writing's kind of slap-dash trashy, but I actually found the central romance to be rather sweet, and it's about baseball, a gay romance involving baseball, and that's just an unstoppable combination for me, really. I think you would all enjoy reading it. Especiallyhoney_babes. *g* I literally devoured it in one sitting—I don't think I even got up to use the bathroom.
139. An Abundance of Katherines, John Green — Former child prodigy Colin Singleton has two problems: one, he doesn't think he's really turned out to be a genius so much as a guy with a super-absorby brain and a passion for anagrams; and two, he's been dumped by nineteen different girls named Katherine, and the latest, Katherine XIX, has really broken his heart. To try to solve this problem, Colin's best friend Hassan decides that they should go on a road trip—which they do, though it ends abruptly in the small town of Gunshot, Tennessee, a community supported entirely by a factory that makes tampon strings and that is supposedly the final resting place of Archduke Franz Ferdinand.
I clearly want to continue describing the plot, because it is just so crazy and fun. This whole book is wonderful, everything that The Beautiful Miscellaneous should have been but wasn't: it's funny, it offers a great look at the unique way Colin thinks—including FOOTNOTES and DIAGRAMS!—and is lively and original—a book deserving of a genius. I loved it a lot.
140. The Areas of My Expertise, John Hodgman — A humorous fake almanac. I was kind of disappointed by this, actually. It's certainly bizarre and quirky, and there were definitely moments that made me smile, but all and all it was just...much less funny than I thought it was going to be. Hodgman's humor is very dry; maybe I just picked this up when I wasn't quite in the right state of mind for dry. Will possibly try again later—the hoboes will still be there, of course, planning their revolution.
141. Sarah Canary, Karen Joy Fowler — After loving The Jane Austen Book Club so much, I was really expecting to love this, too; however, I found it disappointing. It's Fowler's first novel, published more than a decade before Book Club, and I guess it shows—Sarah Canary contains a great cast of characters, including a struggling feminist and a Chinese immigrant whom I loved, and it makes evocative use of its setting, the Pacific Northwest in the early 1870s. Yet nothing really seems to come of the various bar fights, the river boat chase, the escape from the mental institution, the kidnapping, or the tiger attack. I closed the book feeling like neither the actual plot nor—worse—the emotional plot had really resolved.
I'm still very interested in reading more of Fowler's work, because I love that she's willing to genre-blend and she creates really memorable characters. This book, however, felt like the efforts of a really interesting novelist that just utterly failed to work.
142. A Walk in the Woods, Bill Bryson — Reread. I was just in the mood. It was interesting, because the last time I read this book I had just discovered Bill Bryson and I read a whole bunch of his books all at once; this time I got to see more clearly how this one stood out from the pack. It's definitely not my favorite—I think that would probably be Notes From a Small Island, if only because I am equally bewitched by the subject matter—but it's a solid effort all around. I think the best stuff is the stuff about Stephen Katz, who was also Bryson's traveling companion in the flashback parts of Neither Here Nor There. Katz has an actual character arc, which is unusual, I think, for a nonfiction work—I like the development of his and Bryson's prickly friendship as they hike the Appalachian Trail, and the part at the end where they get separated still sends me into a panic even knowing how it turns out. Not my favorite Bryson, but definitely a good one.
Total Books: 142
Now this week I really need to stop reading and really concentrate onsgabigbang. *is doomed*
akukorax, iamsab, ebrooklynw, chele74, & nenar*; I drank an entire bottle of wine, which, okay, was maybe not the best idea, but seriously, how come I STILL feel hungover and gross? That's not fair, man. Good times should lead to good feelings, I think.2. I'm loving Doctor Who so much right now it kind of hurts.
3.
sgabigbang kicked my ass some more.4. I turned down a job offer, because it paid badly and seemed degrading. Watch me regret this when I subsequently have to work at McDonald's!
5. Books:
Week 24: 11-17 June
137. The Assault on Reason, Al Gore — An excellent account of How We Are Screwed. Gore presents his case for what he thinks is wrong with America, the essence of which is that reasoned discourse has all but disappeared. Not only is the average person uneducated about the world (the statistics about the percentage of Americans who still believe that Saddam Hussein was behind the September 11th attacks are truly frightening), but our elected officials don't even debate issues anymore, instead focusing their time and efforts (and tons of money) on television campaign ads. No wonder the country sits immobile and lets the Bush Administration tromp all over the constitution.
Anyway, this was not a pleasant read—I spent most of the time gripping the binding more and more tightly and getting angrier and angrier. It is an important book to read, though—though I worry of course that most of the people who do read it will be, how shall I say, the choir? That's the real question, I think—how can we reach out to those people who don't necessarily agree with us, who are not necessarily so well informed? Gore thinks the internet might hold the key. I don't know. I just don't know.
138. The Dreyfus Affair, Peter Lefcourt — This book cheered me up immensely. It's about a Major League shortstop who suddenly realizes that he's falling in love with his second baseman. It's one of my favorite slash clichés—the slow tease of that first stirring attraction; the one guy teaching the other all he knows—and it builds really nicely. The writing's kind of slap-dash trashy, but I actually found the central romance to be rather sweet, and it's about baseball, a gay romance involving baseball, and that's just an unstoppable combination for me, really. I think you would all enjoy reading it. Especially
honey_babes. *g* I literally devoured it in one sitting—I don't think I even got up to use the bathroom.139. An Abundance of Katherines, John Green — Former child prodigy Colin Singleton has two problems: one, he doesn't think he's really turned out to be a genius so much as a guy with a super-absorby brain and a passion for anagrams; and two, he's been dumped by nineteen different girls named Katherine, and the latest, Katherine XIX, has really broken his heart. To try to solve this problem, Colin's best friend Hassan decides that they should go on a road trip—which they do, though it ends abruptly in the small town of Gunshot, Tennessee, a community supported entirely by a factory that makes tampon strings and that is supposedly the final resting place of Archduke Franz Ferdinand.
I clearly want to continue describing the plot, because it is just so crazy and fun. This whole book is wonderful, everything that The Beautiful Miscellaneous should have been but wasn't: it's funny, it offers a great look at the unique way Colin thinks—including FOOTNOTES and DIAGRAMS!—and is lively and original—a book deserving of a genius. I loved it a lot.
140. The Areas of My Expertise, John Hodgman — A humorous fake almanac. I was kind of disappointed by this, actually. It's certainly bizarre and quirky, and there were definitely moments that made me smile, but all and all it was just...much less funny than I thought it was going to be. Hodgman's humor is very dry; maybe I just picked this up when I wasn't quite in the right state of mind for dry. Will possibly try again later—the hoboes will still be there, of course, planning their revolution.
141. Sarah Canary, Karen Joy Fowler — After loving The Jane Austen Book Club so much, I was really expecting to love this, too; however, I found it disappointing. It's Fowler's first novel, published more than a decade before Book Club, and I guess it shows—Sarah Canary contains a great cast of characters, including a struggling feminist and a Chinese immigrant whom I loved, and it makes evocative use of its setting, the Pacific Northwest in the early 1870s. Yet nothing really seems to come of the various bar fights, the river boat chase, the escape from the mental institution, the kidnapping, or the tiger attack. I closed the book feeling like neither the actual plot nor—worse—the emotional plot had really resolved.
I'm still very interested in reading more of Fowler's work, because I love that she's willing to genre-blend and she creates really memorable characters. This book, however, felt like the efforts of a really interesting novelist that just utterly failed to work.
142. A Walk in the Woods, Bill Bryson — Reread. I was just in the mood. It was interesting, because the last time I read this book I had just discovered Bill Bryson and I read a whole bunch of his books all at once; this time I got to see more clearly how this one stood out from the pack. It's definitely not my favorite—I think that would probably be Notes From a Small Island, if only because I am equally bewitched by the subject matter—but it's a solid effort all around. I think the best stuff is the stuff about Stephen Katz, who was also Bryson's traveling companion in the flashback parts of Neither Here Nor There. Katz has an actual character arc, which is unusual, I think, for a nonfiction work—I like the development of his and Bryson's prickly friendship as they hike the Appalachian Trail, and the part at the end where they get separated still sends me into a panic even knowing how it turns out. Not my favorite Bryson, but definitely a good one.
Total Books: 142
Now this week I really need to stop reading and really concentrate on
sgabigbang. *is doomed*
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 06:50 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 09:46 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 09:53 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 06:51 pm (UTC)John Hodgeman's stuff is in the delivery, which makes it difficult you know, for the whole book thing.
I started reading Al Gore's book and started feeling panic attackish, and decided not to read it until the construction on my house is over, because there is just too much stress in my world right now. Maybe something light, like "An Inconvient Truth," or "The Hot Zone."
Why. Why. Why? Is he not our president. Whhhhy? Also, everytime I see him, and how portly he's become I think, "Dude, best case for stress eating, ever."
Do not reqret turning down a job that you already think is going to be soul killing. You saw the zombie and ran. You did a good thing, and something good will find you. I had to believe this when I lost my job and was going to have to move back in with my extremely overprotective parents. I got offered a job at a bank after being given the absolutely dumbest interview ever. They asked me if I was a color, what would I be? (I figured they wanted to hear green - for money - so that's what I said.)
I had the job before I made it to the subway and was aghast. "Really?" I said to my answering machine. The very next week I got offered an awesome job with Delta Air Lines that was very fulfilling, enabled me to long-distance date my now husand and well, um, give me life-long repetitive stress injuries, but hey, score!
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 10:51 pm (UTC)Oh man, isn't that joke just SO AMAZINGLY WRONG? (I mean that in a good way.)
While I was reading Areas, I did keep trying to picture Hodgeman delivering the lines. I think that would have helped—people keep talking about how amazing the audio book is.
I really wish Al Gore would run for president in 2008. I would so much rather vote for him than any of the other candidates right now!
I am feeling like I did the right thing turning down that job. I just hope I also have the experience of finding something good—and soon! *crosses various digits*
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-19 01:01 am (UTC)I wish Al Gore would run, too. Can we just cashier him or something or write him in or kidnap him and hustle him to the swearing in? Seriously. I think Tipper would back us.
He says he thinks he can do more from where he is right now, but my god, we need a leader like him. I hate to think we have the leader we deserve for the majority of this company's apathy.
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 07:01 pm (UTC)He took a book that should have been boring to listen to (charts!) and added a bunch of stuff that couldn't be done in a book in order to keep it fresh. So he had Jonathan Coulton in to sing his personal theme song, improvise state songs, and to chat with during the reading ("So you should know how much to tip for feral man turndown service in a hotel?"). Paul Rudd reads the list of jokes no one has ever laughed at, so that John can escape being cursed to never hear laughter again. Stuff like that.
Of course, that's no guarentee that you'd like it any better than the physical book. But I though I'd share anyway. :)
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 10:53 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 07:08 pm (UTC)And I think you were wise to pass down the job. You wouldn't have been happy at all.
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 10:57 pm (UTC)I hope you're right about the job. I think you are. How is your job/tuition situation going?
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 11:03 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 11:09 pm (UTC)I'm glad AIB would give you the loan, though. You WILL totally make it work. And hey, maybe they'll randomly just drop some extra money in your account. I've heard they do that sometimes. Um. Second-hand, of course...
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 11:16 pm (UTC)I think maybe that you should pass on your, uh, second-hand information to me, because I'd sure like to know how to get AIB to be that nice to me.
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-19 04:00 am (UTC)I'm not sure why AIB took a fancy to me. Maybe they like Americans? (Though God knows why.) Or people who are frightened of their ATMs?
I admire your brother's dedication to Being Tall.
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-19 10:16 am (UTC)I do not think we question why AIB did what they did. I think from various banking scandals over the years that AIB don't really know why they do what they do. I think you just take the money and run.1
It is K's one real talent, I feel he should cultivate it.
1 Note: I originally wrote 'take the monkey and run.' Different thing entirely.
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 08:19 pm (UTC)I'd be curious to hear your review of God is not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0446579807/ref=reg_hu-wl_mrai-recs/103-4088716-5630248) by Christopher Hitchens. I won't spoil it, but I am curious what your take is (if/when you read it).
Also,
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 10:16 pm (UTC)I really wish there were a dating service for Americans who want to marry Canadians, don't you? Maybe we could set that up...
I've been going back and forth on whether I actually want to read God Is Not Great. I'll see if/when it turns up at the library. Though now I'm curious what you thought!
WHAT DO YOU MEAN A WEEK LEFT? BY MY COUNT IT'S MORE LIKE THREE. *SPAZZES*
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 11:55 pm (UTC)I'm all for setting up a Canadian-American underground marriage company. *rubs hands eagerly*
Ah ah! Don't want to imprint my impressions before you've gotten the chance to form your own. (Personally, it's not one for my forever books, but it was a good way to whittle the hours on night-audit; some food for thought, too).
Er...sorry! It is three weeks, but I gave myself an artificial deadline so that a beta would be able to read through. ...I hope.
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-21 02:21 am (UTC)There sort of are such things already, only they're called minor league hockey team booster clubs.
The Dreyfuss Affair is coincidentally the book on my nightstand right now. For some reason I was looking up Emile Zola's J'accuse! essay on Wikipedia the other night and it made me nostalgic to reread the Lefcourt.
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 08:50 pm (UTC)You deserve more.
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 11:00 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 09:27 pm (UTC)Also, man, hungover still! D: I didn't get hungover really, but I didn't drink a whole bottle of wine (which also I did not realize until the next day! WHOA a whole bottle! @_@)
Also you will not work at McDonalds! I will get Robert to hire you before that happens. :(
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 11:03 pm (UTC)Er...I'm a little afraid of Robert, I have to say. My feet are my own, dammit!
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 10:22 pm (UTC)'The Areas of My Expertise''s humor was a bit drier than I thought, but the audiobook is still awesome.
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 11:07 pm (UTC)DOCTOR WHO! My love is BOUNDLESS! (If only there were more good fic!)
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-18 11:12 pm (UTC)Nah, I get it. I'm used to reading pretty fast as well (and yet, I still managed to get through the 'American Gods' audiobook - I think I eventually came up with 17 discs of about 1:15h each.)
(The fic has been quite disappointing, I agree. But this is a show I'm not so fannish about, so I'm not all that heartbroken about it. I just want more new episodes. *g*)
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-19 04:05 am (UTC)Wow! Did Gaiman read American Gods himself? He does have a rather bewitching voice.
I am suddenly feeling very fannish toward Doctor Who. But it will not provide me with satisfaction! I can't even find the long, meaty gen fic I want. *pouts*
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-19 01:03 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-19 04:03 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-07-03 04:32 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-25 04:56 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-29 03:28 am (UTC)