Tuesday - December 02, 2014

Tips And Then Bed

Arrgggh, it’s been a hard day here.

I sat down to write one of my junior opus blog posts this afternoon. Got about two hours into it, half a gazillion links opened as tabs, following down the sides and back of the story, trying to see if I could create something new or a crisp way of serving up the old. And then. BRRiitttd. Power failure. Mid afternoon on a cloudy heavy December afternoon in a room with the drapes drawn. Instant mineshaft. Dark as pitch. As is so often the case, the power comes back on again in about 20 seconds - I swear the folks at the power company are having their little joke - har har, we messed up all your digital devices and clocks and schedules etc - but then it blipped off again. And stayed off.

By 5:30 I was digging around for a flashlight for a sweater. We’re all electric here, so no power means no heat. And no oven, stove, microwave, or coffee pot.

By 7 I’d added a Polartec vest to my ensemble. And we decided we better go out to dinner. So we drove around until we found a place on a different power grid, and wound up having tortellini soup and a couple of nice calzones at the local Italian place. So that was nice. Got back here and the power came on just before 9, after I’d figured out that 8 low candles gives off a decent amount of light and provides a noticeable amount of heat. I was halfway through my playful thermodynamic back-of-napkin calculations ( result: 20 candles will keep a 10x12 room quite comfortable and bright, but you’ll smell like vanilla, bayberry, and sandalwood for a week ) when blblblbputblup, clink all the devices, telephones, and heaters came back on at once. And four hours later they’re still on. So fine.

That big post with all the research? Baah. Fuggedabowdit. Half the time those things don’t pan out anyway. Nevermind.



So. Tell me, do you read fiction, and if so, do you have a favorite author? Here’s a few of mine. Yeah, they’re all popular pulp authors. So? For me, Walmart is closer than the local library. Ok, they’re not highbrow stuff. But they all make good reading. I get the solid stuff from the library too. Hessler’s book on General Sickles, savior of Gettysburg was magnificent and very convincing. But it wasn’t a book I’d read more than twice. That rare one on Kings Arthur and Alfred I read this spring was very interesting. I gave both those books away.

These are some of my fun authors. Fun. Get it?

You know I’m a Terry Pratchett junkie. By nearly miraculous serendipity, I’ve caught his books in nearly chronological order completely by chance. I found Good Omens next to a couch at a really dull party I was made to attend in the early 90s, and it’s still one of the best reads ever. I’m proud to say I’m on my 3rd copy, the first two having been lent out knowing full well they’d never be seen again. So in a way I’ve watched him grow, from the silly early books to the really well written later stuff, and sadly, lately with the Parkinson’s, I’ve watched him grow old and be a bit past his prime. But his books are still like a visit with a cherished friend, which I return to again and again. Knowing full well he’s going to say the same stuff again as always, just as old friends and family do. “Did I ever tell you about that time I was pulled over?” “No, gosh, do tell!” (to self: Yes Dad, 50 times, we know the story by heart so well we all know where you’ll stop to draw a breath. But tell us anyway.)

Larry Niven was one of my early favorites when I lived for science fiction. Ringworld was such a big idea that it was mind blowing, but The Integral Trees and The Smoke Ring were in some ways even better. Day to day life in a civilization living in a breathable, foggy, gas torus around a star. No real land, but ethereal, arboreal ponds, oceans, woods, meadows. Semi orbital life in almost no gravity, and everyone lives on gigantic redwoods miles long.  What an imagination. What a universe builder Niven is. Amazing. You know, I haven’t had any new Niven in ages. Maybe it’s time.

Wilbur Smith is my go-to guy for adventure here on Earth. And he is prolific. His 3 or 4 part series set in ancient Egypt, River God, follows the magical life of the most wonderful (and so modest. Not) know-it-all ever. Imhotep is just put to shame compared to Taita. And then there’s the Courtneys ... can anyone even count how many books in that centuries wide story arc? But his best works are the single book tales. Empire of the Sun, Sunbirds, and so on. Complete stories that will just suck you in and keep you fascinated until the end. Sure, there are a couple flops in there, and sometimes one has more than a hint of racism in it, but he’s been writing for 50 years now and times have changed quite a lot.

Dean Koontz has been my scary story guy forever. Not that Stephen King can’t turn a spooky phrase - It was by far the most frightening book I’ve ever read, and that was ages before they turned it into a crappy film with old John-Boy there. “Down here, we all float.” I just feel King is too full of himself. And Dean is a dog person. And nobody on the planet writes a better story from the dog’s perspective, and those shaggy happy vignettes put an icing of charm on darker tales. Pity that Koontz’s publisher is out to make a quick buck, and often recycles old stories as new ones. So you have to learn to check the inside flap; if it says “first published in 1981 as some other title” put it back and find another. It’s not like he doesn’t churn out a new book every 4 months.

Anne Rice. Nobody else can be Anne Rice. And nobody can be gayer than her swished out narcissistic Vampires. Still, when I can get past that aspect, the tales are often pretty darn good. I’ve read them all, but every once in a while I pull out one of her more obscure books, like Ramses, Pandora or Taltos and have a good weekend read. Servant of the Bones I think is one of her very best and deserves a spot on your Must Read list.

James Paterson for a good detective drama. He’s readable. That’s about all I can recall right now. So maybe he’s not that great. James Rollins hatched a few amazing adventure/sci-fi novels, but I think he’s being pushed to produce, and that leads to a lesser product.

Janet Evanovich, when I need/want a quick bit of silly. Her ever growing series on Stephanie Plum - 22 books now I think? - are all great weekended novels for the beach. Stephanie is such a goofball, a total “Joisey Goil” in need of a good man and a good donut - and a good car for once! - as she nearly accidentally solves murders all over her corner of NJ’s run down capital city Trenton. You can’t help but love her, but with grandma and her .45 long barrel in tow, you’d be smart to get out of the way.

Ok, my lovely cup of PG Tips tea seems to have emptied itself while I was typing away. Guess it’s time for bed.

And tomorrow I’ve got to get up early and go have another Thanksgiving dinner that couldn’t be beat, but I have to turn around and drive back here so we can up until the next morning, but not because we have to go to court. *.

Posted by Drew458     on 12/02/2014 at 12:37 AM   
Filed Under: • Miscellaneous •  
• Comments (5) • Trackbacks(0)  Permalink •  

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