| apologies for the blurry cellphone pic |
[21 Nov 2009|07:52pm] |
Check out this awesomesauce Lord of the Flies book cover I saw at Borders today:
Piggy and a messenger from God. I already have a copy, but I almost bought this printing for the cover alone.
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| Just Finished |
[19 Nov 2009|09:23pm] |
Zombies: A Record of the Year of Infection is a graphic novel written as the journal of a bird-watcher turned zombie-watcher. Anatomical drawings, failed attempts to remain clinical, notes scribbled in the margins, etc. The book produces no new themes or ideas in zombie fiction, but it's entertaining and the artwork is good.
Isaac's Storm tells the story of a meteorologist who vastly overestimated the ability of his hometown, Galveston TX, to withstand the direct brunt of a hurricane. I'd say it's important to note that he lived in the era of the RMS Titanic. He's credited with saving thousands of lives after acknowledging his error and warning the residents, but it was too late for most - his arrogance ended the lives of thousands more.
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| Common Garter Snake |
[08 Nov 2009|03:25pm] |
mood:  sleepy
"Most widely distributed snake in North America...ill-tempered when first captured, it will bite or expel musk, but it tames quickly and will soon become docile."
Narrowly missed this one with the lawn mower while I was bagging leaves. I had just stopped to empty the bag when I heard a rustle in the leaves barely a foot in front of where I had stopped the mower. I'd have been bummed if I had chopped him up. The cheeky fellow struck at me a few times, but he did indeed settle down quickly. I let him go in the drainage ditch behind my property after his photo op. Good-looking snake, eh?
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| Just Finished |
[04 Nov 2009|11:38am] |
All the Pretty Horses was beautifully written and has some amazing historical and regional detail. The story, though, is basically just a good ol' western. The romance aspect of the novel is even a classic lonely cowboy cliche. Even so, it's a very interesting "lost era" book - I'll definitely be looking to read The Crossing.
Recorded Attacks is a graphic novel comprised of excerpts from the last chapter of Max Brooks The Zombie Survival Guide. The artwork (Ibraim Roberson) is amazing and makes the book worth owning even if it is a re-hash of old material.
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| Just Finished / Currently Reading |
[28 Oct 2009|05:12pm] |
I'm actually a few books behind on my "currently reading" list, but I reckon I'll get to them in the following days. I remember reading a review for Quarantine which indicated that the book would likely anger both atheists and Christians. I find that very unlikely, unless that particular reviewer was just talking about the readers on the furthest edge of the right and left wings. The action in Quarantine is driven by the 40-day fast Jesus spent in the desert, during which time he was tempted by the devil. It's the other pilgrims in the desert with whom Jesus is spending his time, though, that are the larger focus of the book. I think that is Crace's strength, which he also showed in The Pesthouse (post-apocalypse epic/romance) - he's able to create some remarkably vibrant characters that generate a lot of sympathy and involvement from the reader. The pilgrims in Quarantine are brutish, insane, conceited, pitiable and strong - they're one of the reasons the book is worth reading in my opinion. Quarantine also addresses spirituality in depth but preaches no religious dogma, which is the other reason.
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| luna moth |
[12 Oct 2009|11:01pm] |
Found this luna moth caterpillar on the black maple in my back yard. Some online sources say they're endangered, but I think it may vary from state to state. This is the second year I've found the larvae in my back yard - I think they like my maple because it's diseased and insects prefer to go after weakened vegetation rather than healthy plants. They're welcome to it as far as I'm concerned - they're spectacular in both stages of their life and I think it's cool to have them going through their life cycle right outside my bedroom window.
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| Just Finished / Currently Reading |
[07 Oct 2009|09:23am] |
The Plot Against America is the second Philip Roth book I've read, Indignation being the first. I enjoyed Indignation as well - it had a little more humor, in a manic, human train wreck kind of way, but it was a bit more pointless. I think Roth is better known for The Plot Against America, and it's for good reason. In this novel, America is re-imagined in the 1940s with an isolationist, Nazi-sympathiser for a president. The story is told from the point of view of a Jewish Family. Roth does an excellent job illustrating that America could just have easily fallen victim to the fear and ignorance that drove Germany insane in the late 30s. The Japanese American internment camps are not mentioned, I think because it would have belabored the point he was already making. Overall the book is not too heavily political - Roth breaks it up with the coming-of-age anecdotes for which he is famous, and the pace is maintained. This is a good one to pick up.
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| We don't even complain about the 300-pounders anymore |
[05 Oct 2009|06:08pm] |
mood:  grumpy
Earlier today ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) ianthes was discussing with me the topic of obesity in America. Everyone is familiar with this subject on some level or another, by I thought I'd relate how it's been affecting local fire departments.
One of our first purchases that was designed to assist with the treatment of these patients was the MegaMover 1500, which is basically a cross between a cargo net and a tarp. It has handles on it so that 6 men can get a grip on it. They're disposable so that when the patient soils it, the device can just be discarded.
This is only rated to about 400 pounds, though, so it's use is limited but a step in the right direction. We've been forced to go even further, though.
My fire department has got a budget deficit that is so bad that we are putting fire engines out of service on a daily basis because we can't afford to pay the overtime required to staff them. Despite our budget crisis, the city has deemed it necessary to purchase a pair of "bariatric" ambulances to service the population of super-obese patients in our town of 180,000. A bariatric ambulance is basically a super-sized ambulance designed to carry patients who way in excess of 700 pounds. It has an extra wide stretcher and ramps with which to load the stretcher so we don't have to lift it. It also has an electric winch at the front of the patient compartment - the type you would see on a flatbed tow truck.
I think these developments in EMS technology are an ominous sign of how bad obesity is getting in this country. We only have 12 ambulances in this town. Purchasing one ambulance is a huge deal in terms of our EMS budget. And here we are, finding it necessary to purchase TWO specialty ambulances to serve the super-obese. I'd estimate that on a weekly basis I find myself part of a 6-person team of firefighters, struggling to move a single patient to a stretcher. At some point I always end up asking myself, 'I wonder if this person realizes how much danger they'd be in if their building were to catch fire? Considering how much difficulty we're having in these conditions, I wonder if they know how grim their chances would be.' It's happened before, and the results were always unfortunate.
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[30 Sep 2009|11:48pm] |
mood:  hungry
A friend of mine introduced me to this stuff and it has all of the sudden become the primary vegetable in my diet; I eat it almost every day. It's called "kimchi" and it's apparently really common in Korea. It's basically spicy, pickled cabbage with radish, green onion, garlic, red pepper and something called "fish sauce." Sounds kind of weird, I guess, but it's damn tasty. I had to go to 6 different stores before I found an Asian market that sold it, and even there it wasn't a commercially-produced food; it's made and packaged by the folks who own the market.
I went there this afternoon to pick up another jar ($4.19 / 21 oz) and an Asian lady waiting in line noticed I was having difficulty locating it in the cooler. She asked me what I was looking for and showed me where it was. She seemed surprised that I was looking for kimchi, then asked me if I had been to Korea, and how I came to like kimchi, and how I liked to eat it. I told her I just had it as a side with my meals and she then proceeded to tell me about all the ways I could prepare it and what to serve it with. She told me it was good with beef and pork and then started leading me around the store and showing me sauces and marinades for the meats, telling me how to cut and cook the beef or pork, sometimes asking the store owner for help locating a particular item and all the while assuring me she didn't work for the store. I think she'd have written down some recipes for me if I'd asked. Nice little show of neighborliness.
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[22 Sep 2009|04:37pm] |
mood:  giddy
The new Halo game, Halo 3: ODST has a voiceover cast that sounds like a Firefly reunion.
Nathan Fillion plays Orbital Drop Shock Trooper "Buck", Adam Baldwin is "Dutch" and Alan Tudyk is "Mickey". They even went through pains to make Buck look a lot like Nathan Fillion. Fans will be able to recognize some of the voices in the video below:
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[28 Aug 2009|10:07am] |
mood:  amused
My cell phone number is easy to misdial (it consists of only three digits) so I end up getting a lot of people calling me by accident. Text message I received last night:
"This anit one of your hores its your mommy"
Classy!
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| Library book sale |
[16 Aug 2009|10:19pm] |
mood:  geeky
I had another good day at a local used book sale and my collection has grown nicely. Thanks to zombres recent vlog for reminding me that I didn't own the Dune trilogy. I think those will have to get a re-read soon. The book on the bottom is As I Lay Dying, by William Faulkner. How can anyone NOT love poor Vardaman? I don't really know why I bought The Catcher in the Rye - I hated that book. I guess because it didn't seem right to have it absent from a "collection" and it was hard to turn down for fifty cents. Plus, my eighth-grade high school English teacher gave me a copy of it because she thought it was "my type of book" so it does have some sentimental value. I'm forced to question why she thought it was "my type of book".
I did the math and the same eleven books would have cost me $67.97, used, on Amazon.com - the next cheapest source for books that I know of. Unfortunately, I've already read all but two of these books (The Stranger and 1984), so it looks like I will still have another excuse to go out and visit yet another used book store in the near future...
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| Couple pictures from the garden |
[16 Jul 2009|04:17pm] |
mood: hungry
I didn't think three cherry tomato plants would bear this much, but it's nice to have some to give away. Still gonna plant fewer next year; they crowded out my okra :-(
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| This might look okay in the second bedroom... |
[23 Jun 2009|08:33pm] |
mood:  productive
I built a workbench in my shed today. The 4x4s were scraps leftover from building my fence, and the 2x4s and 2x6s were pieces of lumber left in my brother's garage when he moved into his house. Does that count as recycling? It oughta count as something - the whole thing cost me about five bucks.
I also used my late grandfather's circular saw, which is about as old as I am. I hadn't noticed earlier, but this thing pulls as many amps as my washing machine.
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