I just hope there's someone to love and take comfort with. If nothing else, remember, Buddha (and Jesus) loves you unconditionally.
9 hours ago
Nov 26, 2009
Holidays and rest days
Last day before the official season starts. Happy thanksgiving to everyone out there. I am thankful for having my parents I can always come and visit when I need comfort. Also that I have friends to keep me company and that I can dote on when I need to show caring. Here's the family ready for the best dinner of the year.
I just hope there's someone to love and take comfort with. If nothing else, remember, Buddha (and Jesus) loves you unconditionally.
I just hope there's someone to love and take comfort with. If nothing else, remember, Buddha (and Jesus) loves you unconditionally.
Nov 21, 2009
2 for 1 review
I started this entry about 5 days ago. And I just deleted the single sentence I had written. It's one of those days/weeks/weekends/months/etc. On the book front I am doing great though. Two more books off the list: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and The Stepford Wives. As someone who was raised on the Gene Wilder movie and (unlike most people) enjoy the Depp version, reading Charlie was a bit of a wake-up call. If you've ever read any of Dahl's works then you should know there's a deeply set belief in justice to a character based on who they are and how they act. Mr. Wonka is in no way, shape, or form malevolent. He is just a kookie old man who constantly gets befuddled when trying to deal with the children. He is a bit obstinate, still acting partially deaf but it comes out at childish. He genuinely cares for them but constantly claims that everything "will come out in the wash". What that entirely means I don't know but I do know that Wonka is no longer holds a bit of a mad scientist air and instead falls under the absent-minded professor genre of genius.
The other book, The Stepford Wives is actually written by the same author as Rosemary's Baby and if you've seen the movies you can start to guess the similarities. There's a proactive female main character, a false and a true (deeper) conspiracy. Also, there is no definite ending. Sounds great. Woo. It was a short read, 123 pages, and should only take a few hours. Definitely worth it but really, not a keeper. I do want to read the other books by Ira Levin just to see if they also follow his pattern. Also, according to the introduction by Peter Straub this is actually a satire, which I can also see. The male reaction to feminism and gender equality illuminates that deep in the mind of men women are just inconvenient lower beings good for fantasizing and servitude. The oddest part is that the main character's husband goes through the entire process from loving a real woman with, we can only assume, normal desires and regrets to idealizing and segregating the woman into an inconsequential and minor role in life. Also they never explain if they kill the women or what so maybe there is more to the story. I want to read a few critiques about the whole idea but at the moment I only know what Straub told me.
On the list coming up is Dahl's autobiography Boy: Tales of Childhood, which is a children's book as well and Primo Levi's The Periodic Table, which is a series of short stories written by a Jewish Chemist who survived Auschwitz. So far it is just as good as I suspected it would be.
I will update tomorrow if I have time about real life and my non-book projects but otherwise I expect to be detained by Retail Hell starting tomorrow and lasting until New Year's.
The other book, The Stepford Wives is actually written by the same author as Rosemary's Baby and if you've seen the movies you can start to guess the similarities. There's a proactive female main character, a false and a true (deeper) conspiracy. Also, there is no definite ending. Sounds great. Woo. It was a short read, 123 pages, and should only take a few hours. Definitely worth it but really, not a keeper. I do want to read the other books by Ira Levin just to see if they also follow his pattern. Also, according to the introduction by Peter Straub this is actually a satire, which I can also see. The male reaction to feminism and gender equality illuminates that deep in the mind of men women are just inconvenient lower beings good for fantasizing and servitude. The oddest part is that the main character's husband goes through the entire process from loving a real woman with, we can only assume, normal desires and regrets to idealizing and segregating the woman into an inconsequential and minor role in life. Also they never explain if they kill the women or what so maybe there is more to the story. I want to read a few critiques about the whole idea but at the moment I only know what Straub told me.
On the list coming up is Dahl's autobiography Boy: Tales of Childhood, which is a children's book as well and Primo Levi's The Periodic Table, which is a series of short stories written by a Jewish Chemist who survived Auschwitz. So far it is just as good as I suspected it would be.
I will update tomorrow if I have time about real life and my non-book projects but otherwise I expect to be detained by Retail Hell starting tomorrow and lasting until New Year's.
Nov 17, 2009
Finally another off the list
Well, finally finished with one of the books I'm reading. Unfortunately, it is not Age of Cathedrals which is getting nearer and nearer to the end but instead Out of the Silent Planet. This, as a quick reminder, is the C. S. Lewis sci-fi book written with Christianity built in. I think it can be described as Narnia for adults. Where the whole Narnia series was an indirect Christian allegory Silent Planet is instead an argument with a de facto Christianity. Actually, there was no Christ in this instead just an argument for the existence of god. Hmm.. I wonder if the other books in the series (of which there are in total 3) go on to argue the other tenets of Christianity.
Ok, I cheated and read Wiki about it. It seems it is a bit of an argument against space travel as, we being a fallen species, will only bring destruction and evil on the good, untouched Edens of God's universe. The next book has something about Venus I guess. I dunno.
I did find out that the reason books like this one, the Barsoomian Series by Edgar Rice Burroughs, H. G. Well's War of the Worlds, etc have a dying Mars is because Lewell, some astronomer, misinterpreted results he got while looking at Mars' surface and said there were huge canals. Obviously that means they were intelligently created and that Mars had these canals to drain water from the ice caps. He was wrong on about all accounts but oh well, at least it was an attempt.
Well besides finishing this off and barely continuing anything else not too much has happened. Worked more on my quilt but not much. Did laundry and still haven't returned it to the closet. Bought some dress patterns but want to lose some weight before I make anything. Worked. Worked. Worked.
Worst is that even after sleeping a full night I wake up exhausted. I was trying to finish Silent Planet last night but I decided I was definitely too tired when my eyes closed and I was only woken up by the book dropping out of my hand. Oops.
Weather is still balmy and warm, highs in the lower 80s and lows in the 70s. Nice for Florida but not cold. Dammit. Oh well, maybe for Thanksgiving. Which should consist of my parents, me and maybe my niece. She is two. Not the greatest company.
Gonna work on some HW tonight before it is due tomorrow morning. Then going to work on homework during the day which is due by 6. Damn, physics sucks sometimes.
Ok, I cheated and read Wiki about it. It seems it is a bit of an argument against space travel as, we being a fallen species, will only bring destruction and evil on the good, untouched Edens of God's universe. The next book has something about Venus I guess. I dunno.
I did find out that the reason books like this one, the Barsoomian Series by Edgar Rice Burroughs, H. G. Well's War of the Worlds, etc have a dying Mars is because Lewell, some astronomer, misinterpreted results he got while looking at Mars' surface and said there were huge canals. Obviously that means they were intelligently created and that Mars had these canals to drain water from the ice caps. He was wrong on about all accounts but oh well, at least it was an attempt.
Well besides finishing this off and barely continuing anything else not too much has happened. Worked more on my quilt but not much. Did laundry and still haven't returned it to the closet. Bought some dress patterns but want to lose some weight before I make anything. Worked. Worked. Worked.
Worst is that even after sleeping a full night I wake up exhausted. I was trying to finish Silent Planet last night but I decided I was definitely too tired when my eyes closed and I was only woken up by the book dropping out of my hand. Oops.
Weather is still balmy and warm, highs in the lower 80s and lows in the 70s. Nice for Florida but not cold. Dammit. Oh well, maybe for Thanksgiving. Which should consist of my parents, me and maybe my niece. She is two. Not the greatest company.
Gonna work on some HW tonight before it is due tomorrow morning. Then going to work on homework during the day which is due by 6. Damn, physics sucks sometimes.
Nov 12, 2009
Nov 8, 2009
An Embarrased Admittance
Ok. I admit. I have now joined every 15 year old girl and read Twilight. I can even see why they like it. My biggest complaint is that it is written like an actual 15 year old wrote it. The relationship is not real. The main girl, Bella, is a Mary-Sue. She comes to a town and everybody likes her and she doesn't see anyone. She seems so self-centered and unrealistic. She doesn't get moody or upset but and this still leaves me completely in disbelief, sacrifices her world so her mom can hang out more with a guy? She was a freaking saint half the time. The other half of the time she was an insipid, vapid moron. I don't think she had a bad thought in her mind, geez.
Doesn't Stephanie Meyers remember being 15? I do. There's a lot of drama shit going on everywhere with everyone and hormone changes. The relationship is also a little creepy. Edward, the vampire, is aggressive and controlling. Also, there is no actual lust in the relationship. I remember always thinking about kissing and Tad and all those things. I feel like a virgin 15 year old with no real relationships wrote this. She doesn't even make any real friends besides the vampires. She also has no character besides her clumsiness. She's intelligent, then not, she's brave, then not. Nothing is definite about her. It really cheezed me off. I'd read it if I was in high school but I don't think it's a must-read new classic.
Really, has anyone who has read the book had a real relationship like Bella and Edward? I mean Tad and I were chaste until marriage and even we were never as pathetic as them. And yes, I think they were very very pathetic.
On another note, I'm feeling better although still sniffly and all. Just a head cold now and I'm doing my best to get past that. Work is finally hitting the worst stage, fourth quarter. New employees and everyone rushing everywhere. If you aren't ready for the seasonal changes I'm afraid to tell you that they are already here. I need to start thinking of presents for everyone. Ah!
Doesn't Stephanie Meyers remember being 15? I do. There's a lot of drama shit going on everywhere with everyone and hormone changes. The relationship is also a little creepy. Edward, the vampire, is aggressive and controlling. Also, there is no actual lust in the relationship. I remember always thinking about kissing and Tad and all those things. I feel like a virgin 15 year old with no real relationships wrote this. She doesn't even make any real friends besides the vampires. She also has no character besides her clumsiness. She's intelligent, then not, she's brave, then not. Nothing is definite about her. It really cheezed me off. I'd read it if I was in high school but I don't think it's a must-read new classic.
Really, has anyone who has read the book had a real relationship like Bella and Edward? I mean Tad and I were chaste until marriage and even we were never as pathetic as them. And yes, I think they were very very pathetic.
On another note, I'm feeling better although still sniffly and all. Just a head cold now and I'm doing my best to get past that. Work is finally hitting the worst stage, fourth quarter. New employees and everyone rushing everywhere. If you aren't ready for the seasonal changes I'm afraid to tell you that they are already here. I need to start thinking of presents for everyone. Ah!
Nov 6, 2009
Weather Changes and Their Corresponding Sicknesses
I have been out and about these last few days for more hours than I have been at home, making my days long and painful. Tuesday was a normal day but Wednesday I had a quantum test! Woo! It was so bad that a good third of the class went straight to the only place on campus serving alcohol and started drinking. Yea, so there goes my chance of a good grade. After classes went out with Chris to dinner and then worked for an hour or so on PDE HW. I still don't get how to find the zeros on a sine and cosine function.
Today I went to PDE and then Chris and I drove to Gainesville to visit Hannah-chan. I haven't seen my good friend in forever. She now knits a lot more than she used to. In fact, she can make socks. I congratulate her on socks. I can barely work on my quilt. It seems Math grad level is more demanding than Tad's stuff as she has no time. Or maybe it's the teaching thing. In return, she didn't have to take out loans. So, more time or more money, which is better.
After a protracted lunch that was mostly waiting we returned to Orlando I headed off to work. I have decided that I am getting ill. My throat aches and I feel stuffy-headed and off-balanced. Hopefully this will turn out coherent as I am not entirely willing to proofread this. I get back the quantum test tomorrow but I do not want to.
Thanksgiving is coming up faster than I'd like as is the return dates on a few of my books. I still haven't been able to finish Age of Cathedrals and can barely make headway when I have time. Twilight is due back soon as well but I don't worry about that.
On a side note my jade isn't doing well. The leaves are slowly blackening and falling off. I think it's a lack of light. I'm going to move it as soon as the entry is finished to the table where my sewing machine ends up at the window. Don't die on me jade! I love you!
Today I went to PDE and then Chris and I drove to Gainesville to visit Hannah-chan. I haven't seen my good friend in forever. She now knits a lot more than she used to. In fact, she can make socks. I congratulate her on socks. I can barely work on my quilt. It seems Math grad level is more demanding than Tad's stuff as she has no time. Or maybe it's the teaching thing. In return, she didn't have to take out loans. So, more time or more money, which is better.
After a protracted lunch that was mostly waiting we returned to Orlando I headed off to work. I have decided that I am getting ill. My throat aches and I feel stuffy-headed and off-balanced. Hopefully this will turn out coherent as I am not entirely willing to proofread this. I get back the quantum test tomorrow but I do not want to.
Thanksgiving is coming up faster than I'd like as is the return dates on a few of my books. I still haven't been able to finish Age of Cathedrals and can barely make headway when I have time. Twilight is due back soon as well but I don't worry about that.
On a side note my jade isn't doing well. The leaves are slowly blackening and falling off. I think it's a lack of light. I'm going to move it as soon as the entry is finished to the table where my sewing machine ends up at the window. Don't die on me jade! I love you!
Nov 1, 2009
Halloween
Well it's been a few days since the last update but not too much has happened on major fronts. Tad's home to visit for the weekend. It's been hard, as usual, to get used to each other the first couple days and we had a bit of a fight this morning. We're OK now I think but it's hard sometimes to readjust yourself back into your old habits. I was making Tuscan eggs this morning but we misunderstood each other and I turned the "scrambled eggs" into more of a quiche. Costumes were pretty good, OK, they weren't amazing but at least we had fun. Tad was Dr. McNinja and I was Wendy from Peter Pan. Laura was Dorothy and she made her own ruby slippers.
Besides the quiche I made a caramel apple pie and two caramel apple tarts from the remains of the pie. I didn't have some but everyone at the party did and they enjoyed it. We had it pie a la mode style, vanilla ice cream! Made Welsh Rarebit last night, very tasty as always and bought Newcastle beer to go in it. Newcastle is one of the few I can drink and I blame the English as any type of beer on that island chain is just amazing to me. Give me a Guinness any day! Also watched Blade II which Tad pointed out (a lot) that in this movie the director realized the full point of Blade: to kill vampires in the most stylish way possible. He constantly ignores the surest and quickest way to victory in order to have a more stylish moment in the film. Plot holes abound and in the end nothing new was determined or discovered.
I don't know if I mentioned in the last post, as I'm far too sleepy now to go look, but I am in fact working my way through a quilt for either myself or Tad. I haven't quite decided. I will add pictures next entry which should hopefully be tomorrow.
Still plodding my way through Age of Cathedrals although I've gotten at least half way now. Also took out Twilight to see what all this huge fuss is about. I may just read the whole thing in one straight shot so I can get through it as fast as possible. The best descriptor of it seems to be that it is a Twinkie. Well, give me a few days and I should have an answer to that assertion,. Going to bed though as I've worn myself out with my crazy fun day.
Besides the quiche I made a caramel apple pie and two caramel apple tarts from the remains of the pie. I didn't have some but everyone at the party did and they enjoyed it. We had it pie a la mode style, vanilla ice cream! Made Welsh Rarebit last night, very tasty as always and bought Newcastle beer to go in it. Newcastle is one of the few I can drink and I blame the English as any type of beer on that island chain is just amazing to me. Give me a Guinness any day! Also watched Blade II which Tad pointed out (a lot) that in this movie the director realized the full point of Blade: to kill vampires in the most stylish way possible. He constantly ignores the surest and quickest way to victory in order to have a more stylish moment in the film. Plot holes abound and in the end nothing new was determined or discovered.
I don't know if I mentioned in the last post, as I'm far too sleepy now to go look, but I am in fact working my way through a quilt for either myself or Tad. I haven't quite decided. I will add pictures next entry which should hopefully be tomorrow.
Still plodding my way through Age of Cathedrals although I've gotten at least half way now. Also took out Twilight to see what all this huge fuss is about. I may just read the whole thing in one straight shot so I can get through it as fast as possible. The best descriptor of it seems to be that it is a Twinkie. Well, give me a few days and I should have an answer to that assertion,. Going to bed though as I've worn myself out with my crazy fun day.
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