Wow, how long has it been?
Not bothering to check in with my last entry, I'd assume it's been a while. Things are starting to look up somewhat - I'm cutting back on using the walker whenever possible (changed the tennis balls today) - it appears, or rather feels as if I'm starting to regain the feeling in my feet, though that may be wishful thinking. Back to the health club, using the treadmill and stationary cycle on Mondays and Fridays, and doing a dignified promenade in the pool on Wednesdays (up to 12 lengths) - the pool's heating apparatus went down a while back so the water's quite brisk, thus guaranteeing that I take more care to remain upright as I stroll lest I have a chilly baptism. Meanwhile my innate bibliophilia has developed at a fairly steady rate.
The Book of Rifles: An Encyclopedic Reference Book, by WHB Smith and Joseph E Smith, Stackpole Co., Harrisburg PA, 1963. This is the third edition, the first being in 1948, and I already have the 1979 version (edition # not given); a cursory examination doesn't show much difference. Arranged by country, it has a variable amount of information, giving quite a good account of the German, Russian and Czech experimental semi-auto rifles from between the wars.
Complete Book of Rifles and Shotguns; with a Seven-Lesson Rifle Shooting Course, by Jack O'Connor, Outdoor Life/Harper & Brothers, NY, 1961. Haven't done much more than glance through it, but it seems to be a fairly thorough overview on the subject; the emphasis seems to be more towards hunting than target shooting. The Seven-Lesson Course looks interesting, but ... "An excellent way to develop your aim for shooting game is to place a target inside an automobile tire and have a partner roll it down a hill" (page 293). Actually, that sounds like fun.
The Chinese Art of T'ai Chi Ch'uan, by Chee Soo, Aquarian Press, Wellingborough UK, 1984. Somewhat interesting, illustrated with numerous small murky greyscale photos; at times it seems to be an ad for a Tai Chi studio in London. Not as good, in my opinion as:
The Tai Chi Directory, by Kim Davies, Metro Books, NY, 2009. Like the above, this book was originally British, but doesn't show it so much. Large colorful photos, wire-bound so that it lies flat for easy reference, etc.
Reflections on the Revolution in France, by Edmund Burke, Penguin Books, Harmondsworth, UK, 1981 (orig publ 1790). What is often overlooked about the French Revolution is that it came about chiefly due Louis XVI's attempt at reforming the tax system of France, by calling together tax lawyers from all parts of the kingdom, who in turn decided that they constituted a representational parliament of some sort and staged a coup. The book's Introduction, all 70 pages of it, could easily have been reduced by 2/3rds without loss, and is further irritating by its continually dragging in Karl Marx. Why not Groucho? Burke's writing was in the standard 18th century style, with run-on sentences and a restrained use of paragraph breaks. What he had to say on the subject could best be summed by this quote from the Classics (note 183):
Naevius: How did you manage to ruin your country so quickly?
Cicero: New orators coming forward, foolish young men.
Not a new addition, I've had this book since 2005 but never got around to reading it all until recently. There will be others.
Until later. Tootles.
The Book of Rifles: An Encyclopedic Reference Book, by WHB Smith and Joseph E Smith, Stackpole Co., Harrisburg PA, 1963. This is the third edition, the first being in 1948, and I already have the 1979 version (edition # not given); a cursory examination doesn't show much difference. Arranged by country, it has a variable amount of information, giving quite a good account of the German, Russian and Czech experimental semi-auto rifles from between the wars.
Complete Book of Rifles and Shotguns; with a Seven-Lesson Rifle Shooting Course, by Jack O'Connor, Outdoor Life/Harper & Brothers, NY, 1961. Haven't done much more than glance through it, but it seems to be a fairly thorough overview on the subject; the emphasis seems to be more towards hunting than target shooting. The Seven-Lesson Course looks interesting, but ... "An excellent way to develop your aim for shooting game is to place a target inside an automobile tire and have a partner roll it down a hill" (page 293). Actually, that sounds like fun.
The Chinese Art of T'ai Chi Ch'uan, by Chee Soo, Aquarian Press, Wellingborough UK, 1984. Somewhat interesting, illustrated with numerous small murky greyscale photos; at times it seems to be an ad for a Tai Chi studio in London. Not as good, in my opinion as:
The Tai Chi Directory, by Kim Davies, Metro Books, NY, 2009. Like the above, this book was originally British, but doesn't show it so much. Large colorful photos, wire-bound so that it lies flat for easy reference, etc.
Reflections on the Revolution in France, by Edmund Burke, Penguin Books, Harmondsworth, UK, 1981 (orig publ 1790). What is often overlooked about the French Revolution is that it came about chiefly due Louis XVI's attempt at reforming the tax system of France, by calling together tax lawyers from all parts of the kingdom, who in turn decided that they constituted a representational parliament of some sort and staged a coup. The book's Introduction, all 70 pages of it, could easily have been reduced by 2/3rds without loss, and is further irritating by its continually dragging in Karl Marx. Why not Groucho? Burke's writing was in the standard 18th century style, with run-on sentences and a restrained use of paragraph breaks. What he had to say on the subject could best be summed by this quote from the Classics (note 183):
Naevius: How did you manage to ruin your country so quickly?
Cicero: New orators coming forward, foolish young men.
Not a new addition, I've had this book since 2005 but never got around to reading it all until recently. There will be others.
Until later. Tootles.