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dxmachinaAnother craptacular day in Rhody, it rained buckets all day. Despite the gloom, I had a productive day at work, getting a bunch of website improvements programmed and tested. Go me! OTOH, when I got home from work I sat down to read a bit, and fell asleep on the couch. Woke up a hour later with the usual post-nap groggies, and have basically been a zombie since.
I hate taking naps, because I'm always groggy to the point of having absolutely no clue as to who or where I am afterward. One time I was woken up by the phone call from the captain of my soccer team, and after we talked for a couple of minutes, she said, "You have know idea who I am, do you?" Because of this, I rarely take a nap unless I just can't keep my eyes open. I don't ever recall taking one after work before. I didn't feel tired at work. I've been sleeping a little better lately, although last night was strange. I fell asleep on the couch at about 9:45, and woke up at 1:30. Couldn't get back to sleep, so I tried to go on-line for a bit, but my cable connection was down. Went back to the couch, finally fell back asleep around 3:30. Got up at 7, and wasn't feeling like I was lacking for sleep. I dunno. I have a follow-up appointment with my doctor tomorrow for my asthma and cholesterol. Maybe I'll talk to him about the sleep, too.
Read some more of Master and Commander at lunch. There's a good story here somewhere, it's just that in his drive to be authentic, O'Brian has obscured it with so much other stuff that it's hard to pay attention. You want your characters to speak as if they actually were in His Majesty's navy in 1800, fine, but give me dialogue, not a transcript. Yes, I realize that when real people talk to each other they stray from the subject and include little asides and stuff, but that doesn't make it interesting to read, especially if every other word is archaic jargon. Also, a glossary would be nice.
Meanwhile, I'm already about halfway through Needle, and it's just as good as I remember it. Bob and the Hunter are back on the island, and now they have to figure out which of the other islanders is hosting the criminal. The book has aged pretty well, despite being written in 1949 and set sometime in the very near future. Commercial airplanes are still prop driven, and communication is by telegram, but otherwise there's little to remind one that it's set around fifty years ago as opposed to right now.
I hate taking naps, because I'm always groggy to the point of having absolutely no clue as to who or where I am afterward. One time I was woken up by the phone call from the captain of my soccer team, and after we talked for a couple of minutes, she said, "You have know idea who I am, do you?" Because of this, I rarely take a nap unless I just can't keep my eyes open. I don't ever recall taking one after work before. I didn't feel tired at work. I've been sleeping a little better lately, although last night was strange. I fell asleep on the couch at about 9:45, and woke up at 1:30. Couldn't get back to sleep, so I tried to go on-line for a bit, but my cable connection was down. Went back to the couch, finally fell back asleep around 3:30. Got up at 7, and wasn't feeling like I was lacking for sleep. I dunno. I have a follow-up appointment with my doctor tomorrow for my asthma and cholesterol. Maybe I'll talk to him about the sleep, too.
Read some more of Master and Commander at lunch. There's a good story here somewhere, it's just that in his drive to be authentic, O'Brian has obscured it with so much other stuff that it's hard to pay attention. You want your characters to speak as if they actually were in His Majesty's navy in 1800, fine, but give me dialogue, not a transcript. Yes, I realize that when real people talk to each other they stray from the subject and include little asides and stuff, but that doesn't make it interesting to read, especially if every other word is archaic jargon. Also, a glossary would be nice.
Meanwhile, I'm already about halfway through Needle, and it's just as good as I remember it. Bob and the Hunter are back on the island, and now they have to figure out which of the other islanders is hosting the criminal. The book has aged pretty well, despite being written in 1949 and set sometime in the very near future. Commercial airplanes are still prop driven, and communication is by telegram, but otherwise there's little to remind one that it's set around fifty years ago as opposed to right now.
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Date: 2003-04-22 10:52 pm (UTC)I get that disjointed feeling after a nap sometimes, DX. It's a very wonky feeling.
Also, a glossary would be nice.
Yes, this. I've read a number of books that I felt could benefit of a glossary, or a dramatis personae. Or, as in the case of Umberto Eco - please, sir, be kind to those of us poor unenlightened souls who don't speak seventeen different languages, and include translations!
The book has aged pretty well, despite being written in 1949 and set sometime in the very near future.
I love reading the classic scifi and seeing how well it ages. I'm always amused by the punch card computers, myself. My mom gave me a collection of early Phillip K. Dick last year, which incleded Minority Report. The computers that processed the future crimes gave their output in punch cards.
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Date: 2003-04-23 04:45 am (UTC)Actually, there is a plot point that hinges on a piece of "old" technology, a manual typewriter. If the kid had a computer, or even an electric typewriter, things might have gone somewhat differently early on, but not a lot. Of course there are a lot of people walking around today who have never used a manual typewriter who have no idea about how the tactile sensation of using one differs greatly from that of an electric. Using a manual typewriter was hard work.