Via DOF. Write the title to your own memoir using exactly six words. Post it on your blog. Link to the person who tagged you. Tag five other bloggers. …
Via DOF.
- Write the title to your own memoir using exactly six words.
- Post it on your blog.
- Link to the person who tagged you.
- Tag five other bloggers.
Plenty of Potential, Not Much Progress
Or, alternately,
Luckier Than I Should Have Been
I eschew tagging folks for memes. Pick it up if it floats your boat.
(Note that this is the same idea as the Six Word Memoir ongoing thing that SMITH does. Even published a book of them, Not Quite What I Was Planning, which I own.)
Here’s Steve’s Open Question(s) for February (just barely in time): Do you write in your books? Do you write reading notes, random notes, or just your name? I usually write…
Here’s Steve’s Open Question(s) for February (just barely in time):
I usually write my name in paperbacks I buy, once I finish them, along with the date finished, and, if the location I bought it is interesting, that info, too. In some cases, I update the date when I reread them. I have this dream that someone will find a book I’ve given away and tell me about it. I also like finding names/dates in old books I buy. “Who was that person,” I wonder, and “what did they find in this book?”
In books of quotations, I make tick marks next to ones that catch my eye. In books I’m studying, I don’t cavil (since my college days) to underline key passages.
Quite a number of graphic novels and trade paperbacks. It’s a nice thing, but not something I obsess over.
I’m a big believer in writing dedications in books, though I’m not always thorough about doing so. I’ve always enjoyed getting dedications in books, or finding them in books I’ve bought used. They add a human element, a connectedness to the book.
From an e-mail from my folks: Things that “If you can remember most or all of these, then you have lived!” 45 rpm spindles – I remember these — little inserts…
From an e-mail from my folks: Things that “If you can remember most or all of these, then you have lived!”
Yes, I am old.
This one was started by PZ Myers at Pharyngula as a means of demonstrating evolution in cyberspace. I am not going to tap anyone — pick it up as you…
This one was started by PZ Myers at Pharyngula as a means of demonstrating evolution in cyberspace. I am not going to tap anyone — pick it up as you will.
First, the rules:
There are a set of questions below that are all of the form, “The best [subgenre] [medium] in [genre] is…”. Copy the questions, and before answering them, you may modify them in a limited way, carrying out no more than two of these operations:
Then answer your possibly mutant set of questions. Please do include a link back to the blog you got them from, to simplify tracing the ancestry, and include these instructions.
Finally, pass it along to any number of your fellow bloggers. Remember, though, your success as a Darwinian replicator is going to be measured by the propagation of your variants, which is going to be a function of both the interest your well-honed questions generate and the number of successful attempts at reproducing them.
The lineage:
The Questions and Answers:
(via Terry — though you have to wonder about any meme where the rules are substantially longer than the substance. 🙂 )
Via Doyce: Two Names I Go By: 1. Dave 2. Three-Star Dave (on various net sites, with or without asterisks) Two Things I Am Wearing Right Now: 1. “Bring on…
Via Doyce:
Two Names I Go By:
1. Dave
2. Three-Star Dave (on various net sites, with or without asterisks)
Two Things I Am Wearing Right Now:
1. “Bring on the Bad Guys” Kirby villain t-shirt
2. Banana boxers.
Two Things I Would Want in a Relationship:
1. Margie
2. More Margie
Two of My Favorite Things to do:
1. Play games (online, offline, face-to-face, whatever)
2. Blog (duh)
Two Things I Want Very Badly At The Moment:
1. To discover it’s actually Friday.
2. To finish welcoming Margie home.
Two things I did last night:
1. Karate class.
2. Dinged Lady Zebra to 23.
Two things I ate today:
1 Some leftover Chinese from Wild Basil.
2. Some pasta.
Two people I most recently talked to:
1. Margie — she’s home, huzzah!
2. Katherine
Two things I’m doing tomorrow:
1. Going back to the office (been working from home the last couple of days).
2. Karate class.
Two longest car rides:
1. Denver to Indianapolis (with a “this was further than we thought” impromptu overnight stay somewhere most of the way there).
2. Denver to Los Angeles, non-stop, two or three times, over the holidays.
Two Favorite Holidays:
1. Thanksgiving
2. Christmas
Two Favorite Beverages:
1. A big, spicy Zinfandel.
2. White Rascal Hefeweise
Two Things you may not have known:
1. I’m on the CoX I11 Close Beta … oops, shouldn’t have said that.
2. My greatest speech success in High School was an expository speech on left-handedness.
Two jobs I have had in my life:
1. Jack-of-all-Stations at Burger King.
2. VM Systems Programmer at Pomona College.
Two places I have lived:
1. Centennial, Colorado
2. Mountain View, California
Two of my Favorite Foods:
1. Apple Crisp
2. Chili Cheese Fries
Two Places I’d rather be right now:
1. Wales
2. In bed with Margie.
Steve’s “Open Question” for this month: What magazines do you read? Do you subscribe, or pick them up at the store? Do you have favourites, or do you grab a…
Steve’s “Open Question” for this month:
What magazines do you read? Do you subscribe, or pick them up at the store? Do you have favourites, or do you grab a copy on a whim? How long do you keep the magazines? Are there magazines you flip through but would never admit to owning? (keep it clean, though [grin])
I subscribe to Smithsonian (some excellent historical and “natural history” articles) and Consumer Reports (I don’t always agree with them, and aren’t always interested in all of their subjects, but there’s almost always something I can find to read in there). Oh, and Comic Buyers Guide (all about the comic book biz, historically and present), almost forgot that one. I subscribe to them because if I waited until I remembered to pick them up at the store, I’d almost never get them.
I keep magazines … hmmmm … I’m an awful pack rat, but I am trying to get better. All the above get round-filed after reading. Another reason I don’t subscribe to National Geographic.
Regarding magazines I’ll read when pressed — say, at a doctor’s office — I get a guilty pleasure out of flipping through the inanity in People and Us. I enjoy the news blurbiness of Time and Newsweek (but wouldn’t read them regularly enough if I subscribed to them). And, in a crunch, popular mechanics and science and even “housewife” magazines will make do. Gotta have something to read, man …
Les points to a Popular Mechanics article on 25 Skills Every Man Should Know. How many of them do I know? Let’s see. Patch a radiator hose – I’ve not…
Les points to a Popular Mechanics article on 25 Skills Every Man Should Know. How many of them do I know? Let’s see.
So that’s 21 of 25, making me 84% of a Manly Man, I guess. Much handier (or claiming to be) than I would have guessed.
You know how it works … Four Jobs I Have Had in My Life: Cooking/cleaning/sales at the local Burger King Line runner at Harwood Dining Hall at Pomona College Elementary…
You know how it works …
Four Jobs I Have Had in My Life:
Four Places I Have Lived:
Four of My Favorite Foods:
Four Places I’d Rather be Right Now:
Four Movies I Can Watch Over and Over:
Note: I always have huge problems with these sorts of questions if I’m not standing in front of my video library. I always end up leaving off something I’ll regret later.
Note 2: Having a kid is a great way to learn what movies you are willing to watch over and over (and over and over).
Four TV Shows I Like to Watch:
Note: I limited this to current/non-canceled shows only.
Four Websites I Visit Daily:
Note: I’m excluding my own pages, as well as GMail and the like. I do most of my browsing via Google Reader (but I won’t count that), which means I most often hit pages that are most often updated. There are some other sites that, when they post, I’ll go to immediately (e.g., good friends). There are many others that I tend to fall behind on then plow through several dozen posts at a time, e.g., BoingBoing.
Four Early Musical Influences:
Four Computers I’ve Owned:
Note: I’m excluding company-owned computers I’ve used.
Four people I tag:
(via Terry)
UPDATE:
Evidently this meme has metastasized around the blogosphere, with new questions being plugged in. Some that BD had that I didn’t:
Four places you’ve been on vacation:
Four albums you can’t live without:
Note: Okay, none of these I couldn’t live without — of the 7,918 songs I have loaded into iTunes — 20+ Gb, or 17.7 days of listening — these are the albums with the most 5-star songs on them that I think I would most regret not ever being able to listen to again.
Four magazines you read:
Four cars you’ve owned:
Four colors you like (not necessarily together):
Four Hollywood stars you want to have a drink with:
Note: I’m using “Hollywood stars” to mean “Show Business Notables.” Also, I tend to draw sharp lines between actors and their roles, and I’m seriously not into the Entertainment Biz world, so a list like this is tough. That said, I’m sure there are a dozen stars I’ve long said seem like they’d be fun to have a drink with — I just can’t think of any of them offhand.
Via David (who didn’t credit where he got them from). WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? I don’t think so — certainly not anyone in the family. I suspect that, given…
Via David (who didn’t credit where he got them from).
WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE?
I don’t think so — certainly not anyone in the family. I suspect that, given my birth date, “David” was inspired by the previous president (Eisenhower) as anything else. Mom, Dad, care to clarify?
WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED?
Serious soul-wrenching tears? Can’t recall. Less serious ones? Every time I see the end of Willow, fergoshsakes, and the title character’s reunion with his wife.
DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING?
I think my signature is classily illegible (someone once told me it was the most pretentious signature they’d ever seen). I don'[t handwrite (cursive) as a rule (and so am very proud of my nearly pristine handwriting); my printing scrawl is idiosyncratic, and thus something I can like except to the extent that others can’t read it when I want them to.
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT?
Hard salami. Mmmmmm.
DO YOU HAVE KIDS?
I have one. She is da bomb.
IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU?
I hope so, though I can be sort of … difficult at times.
DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT?
Not as much as it seems.
DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS?
Yup. I always vaguely regretted that (in a stupid way, along with regretting never breaking something that required a cast).
WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP?
I wouldn’t go out of my way to arrange such … but … yeah, I can see myself doing that. Though the whole blind-withoiut-glasses glasses-flying-off-face thing would need to be addressed to make it properly terrifying/thrilling.
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL?
I don’t eat a lot of cereal, but I like various granolas (especially the unhealthy ones), or oatmeal (with lots of white sugar) or cream of wheat (with lots of brown sugar).
DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF?
Not usually, no. Of course, I also prefer loafers or sandels, just for that reason.
DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG?
Surprisingly more than I think I am, if that makes any sense.
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM?
Under ordinary circumstances, a very strong vanilla. If we’re getting exotic, H-D Rum Raisin is my standard, though anything with a strong caramel, cinnamon, ginger, and/or coconut flavor will grab me. Especially if praline pecans are involved. Actually, let’s be real — as long as it’s not fruity, I adore ice cream in general.
WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE?
Their hair and their eyes. Then their voice/vocabulary/accent. If female, their figure.
RED OR PINK?
Red. Definitely.
WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF?
My laziness.
WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST?
Hard to say. I tend to take people as they appear (or disappear) in my life. I guess I miss most the people I’ve lost contact with — but it’s not something I dwell on.
WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING?
Blue denim shorts and … barefoot.
WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE?
Some posole at an Albuquerque restaurant.
WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW?
The fan humming upstairs. Margie coughing. The wind in the cottonwoods out back.
IF YOU WHERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE?
Brick Red. Maybe Royal Blue. Red-Orange (over Orange-Red). Burnt Sienna.
FAVORITE SMELLS?
Bacon. Fresh bread. Fried chicken. Jasmine.
WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE?
My daughter, who’s out in California with the grandparents (and having a faboo time).
FAVORITE SPORTS?
To watch? Football. Golf. Rally racing. To participate in? Golf. Karate. Football.
HAIR COLOR?
Very dark brown with various highlights (and increasing amounts of silver).
EYE COLOR?
Hazel.
DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS?
You want me to poke what onto my eyeballs? Are you insane? Next thing you know, you’ll be suggesting I let people taking frickin’ lasers to my corneas!
FAVORITE FOOD?
Bacon. Carrot cake (savory, not spicy). Ice cream (see above). Cottage potatoes sauteed with onions, bacon fat, garlic (or, alternately, hash browns). Steak.
SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS?
Definitely with the happy endings.
LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED?
Um … no idea.
WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING?
Brownish Hawaiian print.
SUMMER OR WINTER?
Winter. It’s always easy to warm up; it’s rarely easy to cool off.
HUGS OR KISSES?
Depends on the person. Margie? Kisses.
FAVORITE DESSERT?
See “ice cream” above. Failing that, apple-crumble, carrot cake, plain cheese-cake, snickerdoodles.
MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND?
If it’s someone I know.
LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND?
If I’m feeling stressed.
WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW?
I’m in the middle of rereading the Sten series. Revenge of the Damned. In audiobooks, I’m listening to Guns, Germs, & Steel.
WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD?
I don’t have one.
WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON T.V. LAST NIGHT?
Um … haven’t watched TV in over a week. Before that … probably something Katherine was watching.
FAVORITE SOUND?
Voices of my loved ones. Laughter. Water babbling over something. Handel’s Messiah, especially the last few pieces.
ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES?
Beatles. Definitely.
WHAT IS THE FARTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME?
The UK.
DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT?
I can read and speak in front of a crowd. People seem to think that’s pretty special. I can also whistle in three distinct ways (though not that ear-piercing get-everyone’s-attention way).
WHERE WERE YOU BORN?
Stanford Medical Center. As (ironically) was my brother-in-law.
WHOSE ANSWERS ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO GETTING BACK?
I don’t plan on sending this on to anyone. Been there, done that today.
I’m sure I’ve done this before, but since Les (the bastard) tagged me for it, I suppose I must comply. Which means I have to post the rules: We have to…
I’m sure I’ve done this before, but since Les (the bastard) tagged me for it, I suppose I must comply. Which means I have to post the rules:
- We have to post these rules before we give you the facts.
- Players start with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
- People who are tagged need to write their own blog about their eight things and post these rules.
- At the end of your blog post, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
- Don’t forget to leave them each a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.
Okay, fine. I don’t promise these are unique.
Now, of course, comes the trick of Who the Hell to tag with this. Eight? Eight?! Ye gods.
My apologies to all of you in advance.
Yikes. You know the Bible 100%! Wow! You are awesome! You are a true Biblical scholar, not just a hearer but a personal reader! The books, the characters, the…
Yikes.
Wow! You are awesome! You are a true Biblical scholar, not just a hearer but a personal reader! The books, the characters, the events, the verses – you know it all! You are fantastic!
Okay, don’t give this any more weight than it needs. Obviously I’ve got some modicum of religious knowledge, but a good chunk of the questions would be answerable by someone with a strong literary background, and many of the others aren’t exactly rocket science.
(via DOF)
It’s the meme that’s sweeping the circle of blogs I read! And write. Anyway, here are “51 (I like being odd) of my favorites” (as Kate put it) … feel…
It’s the meme that’s sweeping the circle of blogs I read!
Anyway, here are “51 (I like being odd) of my favorites” (as Kate put it) … feel free to copy and do the Booky Meme bits with them, too:
Bold the ones you’ve read,
strike-outthe ones you hated, italicize those you started but never finished and put an asterisk (*) beside the ones you loved.
For me, of course, all of the below would be bolded and starred (hence the purpose of the list). For the most part, consider these books I’ve liked enough to read multiple times (sometimes having to graduate to second or third paperbacks, or even a hardcover). They’re all fiction, and intended as stories.
It was actually a tough call — in some cases, I lump together a series under a single volume, in other cases I actually single a couple out because, in a series I like, I like them best. And, of course, I make no pretense to these being “great literature,” profound, or anything else. I find them entertaining, moving, amusing, interesting, and/or possessing of other attributes that leads me to pick them up time and again. Your mileage may (should) vary.
Going through my book shelves to make this list, I realized (a) I have quite a few books I will likely never read again, and so should clear off of my shelves, and (b) I have quite a few books I’ve not read in some time and really should.
There may be other books I love as much, or even more — but these are the ones that leapt out at me from the book shelf (figuratively speaking).
The same as the Booky Meme, but with a list from Kate (via Doyce): Bold the ones you’ve read, strike-out the ones you hated, italicize those you started but never…
The same as the Booky Meme, but with a list from Kate (via Doyce):
Bold the ones you’ve read,
strike-outthe ones you hated, italicize those you started but never finished and put an asterisk (*) beside the ones you loved.
1. Adventures in the Screen Trade, William Goldman * [All his screen trade books are fun.]
2. And Then There Were None, Agatha Christie [Not my favorite, but a gripping yarn.]
3. Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl, Anne Frank
4. Anne of Green Gables, L.M. Montgomery *
5. Black Beauty, Anna Sewell
6. Charlotte’s Web, E.B. White *
7. The Club Dumas, Arturo Perez-Reverte
8. Confessions of An Ugly Stepsister, Gregory Maguire
9. The Count of Monte Cristo, Alexandre Dumas [No, but I’ve watched a good dozen adaptations to film.]
10. Dracula, Bram Stoker
11. The Eight, Katherine Neville
12. Emma, Jane Austen
13. The Eyes of the Dragon, Stephen King
14. The Eyre Affair, Jasper Fforde
15. Fatherland, Robert Harris
16. The Fionavar Tapestry, Guy Gavriel Kay
17. The Forever King, Molly Cochran & Warren Murphy
18. Frankenstein, Mary Shelley
19. From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, E.L. Konigsburg
20. Girl With A Pearl Earring, Tracy Chevalier
21. The Good Master, Kate Seredy
22. Good Omens, Nel Gaiman & Terry Pratchett *
23. The Gypsy, Megan Lindholm & Steven Brust [Just didn’t look interesting.]
24. The Hero and The Crown, Robin McKinley
25. In a Sunburned Country, Bill Bryson
26. Intimations of Immortality, Piers Anthony [Just never warmed to Anthony.]
27. Island of the Blue Dolphins, Scott O’Dell * [Many years ago …]
28. James and The Giant Peach, Roald Dahl
29. King of the Wind, Marguerite Henry
30. Kissing in Manhattan, David Schickler
31. Little Women, Louisa May Alcott [No, but I played Laurie in a stage adaptation of it in high school … “Is Beth … very … ill?”]
32. The Man Who Was Thursday, G.K. Chesterton
33. The Moonstone, Wilkie Collins
34. Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck [I barely survived Grapes of Wrath.]
35. The Once and Future King, T.H. White
36. The Phantom of the Opera, Gaston Leroux
37. The Princess Bride, William Goldman * [Better than the movie, which is itself faboo.]
38. The Quality of Mercy, Faye Kellerman
39. A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens
40. The Tao of Pooh, Benjamin Hoff
41. The Thief Lord, Cornelia Funke
42. Time And Again, Jack Finney
43. Tomorrow, When the War Began, James Marsden
44. Sabriel, Garth Nix
45. Sandman, Neil Gaiman *
46. The Scarlet Pimpernel, Baroness Orczy
47. The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett
48. Whose Body?, Dorothy L. Sayers
49. Winter’s Tale, Mark Helprin
50. The Witch of Blackbird Pond, Elizabeth George Speare
51. A Wrinkle in Time, Madeleine L’Engle * [I like nearly all of her “juveniles.”]
I suppose this means I need to find some time (some time) to come up with my “Nifty Fifty.”
Bold the ones you’ve read, strike-out the ones you hated, italicize those you started but never finished and put an asterisk (*) beside the ones you loved. 1. The Lord…
Bold the ones you’ve read,
strike-outthe ones you hated, italicize those you started but never finished and put an asterisk (*) beside the ones you loved.
1. The Lord of the Rings, J.R.R. Tolkien *[Sine qua non]
2. The Foundation Trilogy, Isaac Asimov [A bit creaky these days and diluted by endless ill-conceived sequels, but still a seminal work]
3. Dune, Frank Herbert [The only one of the series I read; I liked the movies (either of them) better]
4. Stranger in a Strange Land, Robert A. Heinlein * [Many re-reads. not my favorite Heinlein, but still an excellent work]
5. A Wizard of Earthsea, Ursula K. Le Guin [I should reread these some day. I read them post-Tolkien and was disappointed by the significant differences]
6. Neuromancer, William Gibson
7. Childhood’s End, Arthur C. Clarke [A classic]
8. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Philip K. Dick
9. The Mists of Avalon, Marion Zimmer Bradley * [I was smitten by this book — which was ruined for me when I had to rush through the last five pages as a plane was landing from a business trip and people were waiting for me at the gate]
10. Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury [I’d choose The Martian Chronicles over this.]
11. The Book of the New Sun, Gene Wolfe
12. A Canticle for Leibowitz, Walter M. Miller, Jr.
13. The Caves of Steel, Isaac Asimov * [Still love this book.]
14. Children of the Atom, Wilmar Shiras
15. Cities in Flight, James Blish
16. The Colour of Magic, Terry Pratchett
17. Dangerous Visions, edited by Harlan Ellison [Just never got into the New Age SF]
18. Deathbird Stories, Harlan Ellison
19. The Demolished Man, Alfred Bester
20. Dhalgren, Samuel R. Delany
21. Dragonflight, Anne McCaffrey * [Another series exhausted by going back to the well too often. The first two or three, though, are excellent.]
22. Ender’s Game, Orson Scott Card
23. The First Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever, Stephen R. Donaldson [If I were trapped on a desert island, I’d rather be bookless than have this with me to read.]
24. The Forever War, Joe Haldeman * [Excellent book.]
25. Gateway, Frederik Pohl
26. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, J.K. Rowling [Do I get extra credit for reading the edition that has this actual title (vs. the Americanized version)?]
27. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams * [Faboo.]
28. I Am Legend, Richard Matheson [And I’ve seen both the movie versions.]
29. Interview with the Vampire, Anne Rice [Just never got into A.R.]
30. The Left Hand of Darkness, Ursula K. Le Guin [Do I get any credit for having read “Catwings” and “Lathe of Heaven” and “Rocannon’s World”?]
31. Little, Big, John Crowley
32. Lord of Light, Roger Zelazny * [Brilliantly imaginative. Not my fave of his, but a great read.]
33. The Man in the High Castle, Philip K. Dick [On my list to read some time.]
34. Mission of Gravity, Hal Clement
35. More Than Human, Theodore Sturgeon
36. The Rediscovery of Man, Cordwainer Smith
37. On the Beach, Nevil Shute
38. Rendezvous with Rama, Arthur C. Clarke [A solid, but not spectacular, first contact mystery tale.]
39. Ringworld, Larry Niven * [A great exemplar of LN’s school of speculative fiction.]
40. Rogue Moon, Algis Budrys
41. The Silmarillion, J.R.R. Tolkien [I do have, however, a first edition.]
42. Slaughterhouse-5, Kurt Vonnegut
43. Snow Crash, Neal Stephenson
44. Stand on Zanzibar, John Brunner
45. The Stars My Destination, Alfred Bester
46. Starship Troopers, Robert A. Heinlein * [It probably says something about me that I find this book as fascinating as #24, even though you’d think they’re diametrically opposed.]
47. Stormbringer, Michael Moorcock [Read the series. Never felt a great need to go back to it.]
48. The Sword of Shannara, Terry Brooks [Read it when it first came out. Um, just read LotR, you’ll sleep better at night.]
49. Timescape, Gregory Benford
50. To Your Scattered Bodies Go, Philip Jose Farmer [I enjoyed the first of these, but the series quickly grew stale to me.]
Allow me to express my dissatisfaction at a list like this with nothing by Norton or L’Engle — or R. Adams or Howard or Leiber or Orwell or Huxley.
(via Doyce)
I did this last time in … hmm, almost three years ago. Top 5 things wrong in my field of vision right now: Desk sure is a mess. Hmmm ……
I did this last time in … hmm, almost three years ago.
Top 5 things wrong in my field of vision right now:
Name four things you wished you had:
Name four smells you love:
Name four things you are thinking about:
Name four things you did today:
Top 5 songs of the right now:
(Determined by sorting iTunes by ratings and looking for some of the most recent plays)
Last thing you:
Who do you want to:
Last time:
Albums playing on the regular right now:
Various things flagged as “Holiday.”
Yet another new meme … 1. Is your second toe bigger than your first? It sticks out further, if that’s what you mean. 2. Do you have a favorite type…
Yet another new meme …
1. Is your second toe bigger than your first? It sticks out further, if that’s what you mean.
2. Do you have a favorite type of pen? I used to love fountain pens in college, but nowadays I’ve acknowledged that I Lose Pens, so anything out of the ordinary is a waste of money. The office stocks Uniball Micros, and I find them quite pleasant to write with.
3. Look at your planner for November 9, anything planned? Um … that’s today. Yes. Meetings, work tasks, Kitten’s karate class.
4. What color are your toenails usually? Au naturale.
5. What is the last thing you highlighted? A folder listing of e-mail that I needed to migrate.
6. What color are your bedroom curtains? Wooden blinds, maple-colored, I think. The valences are sort of a tan-gold.
7. What color are the seats in your car? Black.
8. Have you ever had a black and white cat? I think so. Can’t remember her name, but it started with an M.
9. What is the last thing you put a stamp on? Car registration renewal.
10. Do you know anyone who lives in Wyoming? Probably, on teh Internets.
11. Why did you withdraw cash from the ATM the last time? Like to carry at least some cash on me.
12. Who is the last baby that you held? Kaylee.
13. Do you know of any twins with rhyming names? Mercifully, no. Don’t know too many twins that I can think of.
14. Do you like Cinnamon toothpaste? I prefer it, in fact.
15. What kind of car were you driving 2 years ago? What I have now, a 2004 Subaru Impreza WRX (hatchback).
16. Pick one: Miami Hurricanes or Florida Gators? Um … anyone got a coin to flip?
17. Last time you went to Six Flags? Margie’s company picnic, about a month or so ago.
18. Do you have any wallpaper in your house? Hmmmm … no.
19. Closest thing to you that is yellow: Tigger, on my coffee mug.
20. Last person to give you a business card? Yikes. Can’t think of it. Probably a vendor of some sort. Yeah, a couple of trips to Pasadena ago.
21. Who is the last person you wrote a check to? Arapahoe County (see #9).
22. Closest framed picture to you? Shelf on my wall — Katherine, about 3 years back.
23. Last time you did homework? Depends on the definition, I suppose, I work from home more than occasionally. So, maybe, last Friday?
24. Have you ever applied for welfare? Nope.
25. How many emails do you have? Personal e-mail, about 900Mb (incl. attachments). Office, about 1.2Gb.
26. Last time you received flowers? Hmmm. Personally? No idea.
27. Who is the governor of your state? Bill Owens (Bill Ritter governor elect).
28. Do you think the sanctity of marriage is meant for only a man & woman? Nope.
29. Where do you get your myspace layouts from? DNC
30. What is the smallest key on your key ring for? Huh. You know, I have no idea what that key is for. Maybe means it’s time to take it off my key ring. Huh. That one, either.
31. Do you have any Willow Tree figurines? I do not believe so.
32. What is your high school’s rival mascot? I never went to any games, so I have no idea who our rivals actually were. We were the Spartans, the Lambkins, or the Tartans, depending on the school in question.
33. Last person you spoke to from high school? Probably Tracy.
34. Last time you used hand sanitizer? Hmmm. Few weeks back, probably.
35. Have you ever worn camoflauge? Not formally, no.
36. What color are the blinds in your living room? Off-white. Maybe white. Need to replace them.
37. What is in your inbox at work? Return receipts. A few years back, I had a problem with the Inbox getting corrupted, so I stopped storing messages and folders there. I keep them in folders parallel to the Inbox.
38. Last thing you read in the newspaper? Coverr stories of some sort. Don’t recall. Don’t often have the chance to read the (real) paper..
39. What was the last pageant you attended? Don’t know as I ever have. Nor desire to.
40. What is the last place you bought pizza from? Papa Murphy on Broadway and Littleton. Last night, in fact.
41. Have you ever worn a crown? Not that wasn’t made of paper or cardboard.
42. What is the last thing you stapled? A copy of a capital expenditure request, this morning
43. Did you ever drink Crystal Pepsi? Think so. Wasn’t impressed.
44. Ever had an ingrown toenail? No.
45. Last time you saw fireworks? From a distance, last 7/4.
46. Last time you had a Krispy Kreme doughnut? Hrm. Several months ago. Not a huge fan of Krispy Kreme (and don’t eat many donuts these days).
47. Who is the last person that left you a message? Insurance company, I think.
48. Last time you parked under a carport? It’s been a while, I think. I want to say at Margie’s place in Pasadena, but I’m sure something more recent than that.
49. Do you have a black dog? No. Nor a white one, nor one of any color.
50. Do you have any gourds? We have some little decorative pumpkins in the entry hall.
51. Are you an Aunt or Uncle? I am *the* “Crazy Onkle Dave.”
52. Who has the prettiest eyes that you know of? Margie. At least I love looking at them.
53. Last time you saw a semi truck? Driving to work this morning.
54. Do you remember Ugly Kid Joe? Apparently not.
55. Do you have a little black dress? Nope. Not my color.
(via BD)
Kate suggests a new meme: Five places in history you’d like to visit. All of her suggestions are good, but let me throw in (and assuming no future travel allowed…
Kate suggests a new meme: Five places in history you’d like to visit.
All of her suggestions are good, but let me throw in (and assuming no future travel allowed …):
In 2005, Time magazine picked the 100 best English-language novels (1923-present). Mark the selections you have read in bold. If you liked it, add a star (*) in front of…
In 2005, Time magazine picked the 100 best English-language novels (1923-present). Mark the selections you have read in bold. If you liked it, add a star (*) in front of the title, if you didn’t, give it a minus (-). [I’ve added, if you feel totally indifferent or just can’t remember, mark it with a question mark (?).] Then, put the total number of books you’ve read in the subject line.
The Adventures of Augie March – Saul Bellow
All the King’s Men – Robert Penn Warren
American Pastoral – Philip Roth
An American Tragedy – Theodore Dreiser
* Animal Farm – George Orwell
Appointment in Samarra – John O’Hara
Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret – Judy Blume
The Assistant – Bernard Malamud
At Swim-Two-Birds – Flann O’Brien
Atonement – Ian McEwan
Beloved – Toni Morrison
The Berlin Stories – Christopher Isherwood
* The Big Sleep – Raymond Chandler
The Blind Assassin – Margaret Atwood
Blood Meridian – Cormac McCarthy
Brideshead Revisited – Evelyn Waugh
The Bridge of San Luis Rey – Thornton Wilder
Call It Sleep – Henry Roth
Catch-22 – Joseph Heller
The Catcher in the Rye – J.D. Salinger
A Clockwork Orange – Anthony Burgess
The Confessions of Nat Turner – William Styron
The Corrections – Jonathan Franzen
The Crying of Lot 49 – Thomas Pynchon
A Dance to the Music of Time – Anthony Powell
The Day of the Locust – Nathanael West
Death Comes for the Archbishop – Willa Cather
A Death in the Family – James Agee
The Death of the Heart – Elizabeth Bowen
Deliverance – James Dickey
Dog Soldiers – Robert Stone
Falconer – John Cheever
The French Lieutenant’s Woman – John Fowles
The Golden Notebook – Doris Lessing
Go Tell it on the Mountain – James Baldwin
Gone With the Wind – Margaret Mitchell
* The Grapes of Wrath – John Steinbeck
Gravity’s Rainbow – Thomas Pynchon
– The Great Gatsby – F. Scott Fitzgerald
A Handful of Dust – Evelyn Waugh
The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter – Carson McCullers
The Heart of the Matter – Graham Greene
Herzog – Saul Bellow
Housekeeping – Marilynne Robinson
A House for Mr. Biswas – V.S. Naipaul
* I, Claudius – Robert Graves
Infinite Jest – David Foster Wallace
Invisible Man – Ralph Ellison
Light in August – William Faulkner
* The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe – C.S. Lewis
Lolita – Vladimir Nabokov
– Lord of the Flies – William Golding
* The Lord of the Rings – J.R.R. Tolkien
Loving – Henry Green
Lucky Jim – Kingsley Amis
The Man Who Loved Children – Christina Stead
Midnight’s Children – Salman Rushdie
Money – Martin Amis
The Moviegoer – Walker Percy
Mrs. Dalloway – Virginia Woolf
Naked Lunch – William Burroughs
Native Son – Richard Wright
Neuromancer – William Gibson
Never Let Me Go – Kazuo Ishiguro
* 1984 – George Orwell
On the Road – Jack Kerouac
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest – Ken Kesey
The Painted Bird – Jerzy Kosinski
Pale Fire – Vladimir Nabokov
A Passage to India – E.M. Forster
Play It As It Lays – Joan Didion
Portnoy’s Complaint – Philip Roth
Possession – A.S. Byatt
The Power and the Glory – Graham Greene
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie – Muriel Spark
Rabbit, Run – John Updike
Ragtime – E.L. Doctorow
The Recognitions – William Gaddis
Red Harvest – Dashiell Hammett
Revolutionary Road – Richard Yates
The Sheltering Sky – Paul Bowles
Slaughterhouse-Five – Kurt Vonnegut
Snow Crash – Neal Stephenson
The Sot-Weed Factor – John Barth
The Sound and the Fury – William Faulkner
The Sportswriter – Richard Ford
The Spy Who Came in From the Cold – John le Carré
The Sun Also Rises – Ernest Hemingway
Their Eyes Were Watching God – Zora Neale Hurston
Things Fall Apart – Chinua Achebe
To Kill a Mockingbird – Harper Lee
To the Lighthouse – Virginia Woolf
Tropic of Cancer – Henry Miller
Ubik – Philip K. Dick
Under the Net – Iris Murdoch
Under the Volcano – Malcolm Lowry
* Watchmen – Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons
White Noise – Don DeLillo
White Teeth – Zadie Smith
Wide Sargasso Sea – Jean Rhys
I read a lot of books. Just not a lot of Literatti-approved books.
Actually, I don’t even recognize the titles of half of the above.
(via Twenty Sided)
IF YOUR LIFE WAS A MOVIE, WHAT WOULD THE SOUNDTRACK BE? So, here’s how it works: 1. Open your library (iTunes, Winamp, Media Player, iPod, etc) 2. Put it…
IF YOUR LIFE WAS A MOVIE, WHAT WOULD THE SOUNDTRACK BE?
So, here’s how it works:
1. Open your library (iTunes, Winamp, Media Player, iPod, etc)
2. Put it on shuffle/Random
3. Press play
4. For every question, type the song that’s playing
5. When you go to a new question, press the next button
Opening Credits:
“7 O’Clock News/Silent Night” – Simon & Garfunkel – Parsley, Sage, Rosemary & Thyme
Faith and tranquility juxtaposed against reality and horror. Nice.
Waking Up:
“7 Chakras of the Body – Chakra 1” – Mannheim Steamroller – Fresh Aire 7
Arrhythmic and incoherent, which is just about right for my waking up.
First Day At School:
“Newhart (Arrangement A)” – Henry Mancini – MyThemes.tv
That’s the “Vermont Hotel” series, and deceptively calm for such events.
Falling In Love:
“Chrysalis (3)” – Christopher Franke – Babylon 5
This varies from mysterious and disturbing to tense to exultant and back and around. Hmmmm …
Breaking Up:
“The Threat to the Governor of Harfleur – Katherine of France – The March to Calis” – Patrick Doyle – Henry V
Big dramatic sections interspersed with quiet but ominous elements along with lots of minor keys. Yeah …
Prom:
“Lifted” – Eurhythmics – Peace
Well, at least it’s a nice slow song. And kind of encouraging …
Life’s OK:
“Poor Unfortunate Souls” – The Little Mermaid
Hmmmmmm …doesn’t sound particularly okay to me …
Mental Breakdown:
“The Yew Tree” – Battlefield Band – Anthem for the Common Mans
Well, I guess talking to a tree isn’t terribly healthy … especially if you expect an answer. Great song, though. If I do have a breakdown, I’ll probably start speaking in a Scots brogue.
Driving:
“Piano Concerto No. 2 in F Min” – Chopin
Oh, this truly sounds like a marvelous drive.
Flashback:
“Night Ride Across the Caucasus” – Loreena McKennitt – Book of Secrets
Yeah, I could see a sequence of flashbacks under this. Lots of flashbacks. Fairly dramatic ones, at that.
Getting Back Together:
“Mhorag’s na horo Gheallaidh” – Clannad – Fuaim
Not sure about the mostly a capella chant in an unintelligible language. Or maybe that’s fitting. Tight harmony works, and rhythmic, and fun to listen to.
Wedding:
“Take Me in Your Lifeboat” – Nitty Gritty Dirt Band – Will the Circle Be Unbroken
Nice, given that Margie’s mine. Certainly a great pick-me-up tune.
Birth of Child:
“Water Music St 2 – XVIII” – Handel
Fast and exciting, a well-meshed combination of themes and players. But way too short.
Final Battle:
“Card Sharks (arrangement A) – MyThemes.tv
Ended up with a lot of TV themes in here. Interesting. That said — a darned odd choice.
Death Scene:
“For Your Own Good” – Pet Shop Boys – Nightlife
An ominous start and a typically grim undertone to the bouncy tune. Yow.
Funeral Song:
“Police Squad” – Ira Newborn – MyThemes.tv
Laughs and laughs and laughs …
Sex Scene:
“Star Trek: Nemesis – Suite” – Jerry Goldsmith – Forty Years of Film Music
Good Lord — I hope sex with me isn’t quite this … highly dramatic and action-oriented. Well, maybe action-oriented. And there is this big urgent driving beat, striving toward a climax, followed by quiet, contemplative bits, finally wrapping up with a rousingly optimistic thematic send-off to the future.
Dance Sequence:
“Nutcracker – March” – Tchaikovsky
Far too rhythmic and spritely to apply to my dancing.
End Credits:
“Otoko to Megami no Love Song” – Aa! Megami-sama – Complete Vocal Collection
Perky, poppy, not quite understandable but fun. Why the hell not?
(via BD)
1. Taken a picture completely naked? No.. 2. Danced in front of a mirror naked? Not that I recall. 3. Told a lie? Yeah. 4. Had feelings for someone…
1. Taken a picture completely naked? No..
2. Danced in front of a mirror naked? Not that I recall.
3. Told a lie? Yeah.
4. Had feelings for someone who didn’t have them back? Yes.
5. Been arrested? No.
6. Seen someone die? No.
7. Kissed a picture? Yes. Usually on business trips..
8. Slept in until 5pm? Almost certainly — probably after a Blogathon or something.
9. Had sex at work (on the clock)? Not at work, no. At home, some time, when I was officially on duty? Don’t think so.
10. Fallen asleep at work/school? Alas, yes. Not at work, but at school. Some of those 8 a.m. classes were brutal. And poor Dr. Carroll — I really liked him and his History of Rome, but the nodding off was almost impossible to avoid …
11. Held a snake? Sure. No sweat.
12. Ran a red light? Not intentionally.
13. Been suspended from school? Nope.
14. Pole danced? Nope.
15. Been fired from a job? No.
16. Sang karaoke? Yes. Been a while. “Secret Agent Man” is my standard.
17. Done something you told yourself you wouldn’t? All too often.
18. Laughed until something you were drinking came out your nose? Nope.
19. Laughed until you peed? Nope.
20. Caught a snowflake on your tongue? Yes. 🙂
21. Kissed in the rain? Yes.
22. Had sex in the rain? No, alas.
23. Sang in the shower? Too often for anyone’s comfort. Do it a lot less these days, largely because on the weekdays I shower at 5 a.m., and don’t want to wake anyone up.
24. Gave your private parts a nickname? No, but there was some really amusing standard eliptical reference that Margie and I came up with that I cannot for the life of me recall right now. I mean, it wasn’t one of those personification talking-to-your-private-parts-so-gotta-call-them-something sort of thing. Hmmmm.
25. Ever gone to school/work without underwear? Not that I can recall. Sort of a comfort thing.
26. Sat on a roof top? Yes.
27. Played chicken? No.
28. Been pushed into a pool with all your clothes on? Aaah … can’t think of a circumstance.
29. Broken a bone? I might have broke/fractured a toe once. Never had it X-rayed. But no broken arms/legs/ribs sorts of things.
30. Flashed someone? Not really (nobody other than Margie that I can recall).
31. Mooned someone? Nope.
32. Shaved your head? Well, my haircuts can come close, but no — seems like a lot of work.
33. Slept naked? Yes. Though a lot less as Kitten has gotten older.
34. Blacked out from drinking? No, but I’ve gotten really, really, really sleepy …
35. Played a prank on someone? Yeah, but not often. They usually go badly.
36. Had a gym membership? No.
37. Felt like killing someone? Not seriously, no. Well, nobody I knew.
38. Cried over someone you were in love with? Yuppers.
39. Had Mexican jumping beans for pets? No.
40. Been in a band? Been in a choir. Been in a musical. Been in an orchestra. Not a band.
41. Shot a gun? A couple of times.
42. Shot a bow and arrow? Tried to take archery in college. First day, someone broke into and stole the equipment.
43. Played strip poker? Nope.
44. Donated Blood? Yes, fairly regularly at times. Make it convenient for me, and I’ll do it, no matter how much I hate needles.
45. Ever jump out of an airplane? No, alas.
46. Been to more than 10 countries? Mmmm .. US, Canada, Mexico, UK, Ireland … nope, though I’d love to. Unless you count hopping onto embassy grounds in Washington DC, in which case, yes.
(via BD)