A day in the life
I decided it was time for an actual update. However, I don't have any fascinating stories to share or anything like that, so I'll just give you a series of rather inane lists, and possibly a few interesting links.
TV shows I'd like to watch, but can't due to nonfunctional TV/computer refusing to download shows/inability to find DVDs to rent:
1. Blackadder (Have seen a couple episodes. Not enough.)
2. Doctor Who
3. Star Trek (Not sure which of the series are better, but as I haven't really seen any, I'll leave that open-ended.)
Some of the books I've read recently, or am reading now (and why they're worth reading):
1. Dogsbody, Diana Wynne Jones
In which Sirius, the luminary inhabiting the star of the same name, is wrongly accused of murder and sent to Earch in the body of a dog to prove his innocence. Includes three cats named Tibbles, Romulus, and Remus; Irish mythology; and the fantastic character Sol (our sun). Nice happy young adult book.
2. Beowulf
Contains a monster, a hero, and the monster's mother. Also a dragon, some boats, and truly spectacular alliterative epic poetry. Next step: learn Old English and read it in the original. I read a few of the Old English lines out loud and, wow...
3. The Mother Tongue, Bill Bryson
The history and quirks of English, and how it relates to other languages. Did you know that Scots Gaelic has a word for "the itchiness that overcomes the upper lip just before taking a sip of whiskey"? Well, now you do.
4. The Book of Lost Tales, J.R.R. Tolkien
I absolutely love seeing how Middle-earth, both the story and the world, evolved. So far it's caused me to boggle at some of the early concepts, love Ulmo even more than I did before, and want to smack Tinuviel. And also to be extremely thankful to Christopher Tolkien for putting all this together.
As a side note, anyone know how to put in accents in a livejournal entry? Like the accent that should be in "Tinuviel"?
Fun links:
1. Mark Twain snarkiness
2. Woad Ode
3. The Silmarillion in 1000 words
Interesting news, courtesy of the ever-wonderful BBC:
1. Strange 'twin' new worlds found
2. X-rays reveal Archimedes secrets. You have no idea how happy this makes me.
3. California and UK in climate pact. Does anyone still think California's not its own country?
Insert rant on global warming here, which I won't bother to type because I'd be preaching to the choir. Although if I get annoyed enough with the world I may do so at a later date.
Really geeky things to do when you're bored:
1. Review Greek verb endings.
2. Make a pie chart of Elrond's genetic makeup.
3. Practice calligraphy with the house mottos from A Song of Ice and Fire.
Slightly less geeky things to do:
1. Memorize tunes on penny whistle.
2. Update livejournal.
Things I should be doing:
1. Finishing that story I wrote half of last week.
2. Printing all my photos from Europe.
3. Buying textbooks for next year.
4. All sorts of other things, I'm sure. Including going to bed at a reasonable hour.
Goodnight!
TV shows I'd like to watch, but can't due to nonfunctional TV/computer refusing to download shows/inability to find DVDs to rent:
1. Blackadder (Have seen a couple episodes. Not enough.)
2. Doctor Who
3. Star Trek (Not sure which of the series are better, but as I haven't really seen any, I'll leave that open-ended.)
Some of the books I've read recently, or am reading now (and why they're worth reading):
1. Dogsbody, Diana Wynne Jones
In which Sirius, the luminary inhabiting the star of the same name, is wrongly accused of murder and sent to Earch in the body of a dog to prove his innocence. Includes three cats named Tibbles, Romulus, and Remus; Irish mythology; and the fantastic character Sol (our sun). Nice happy young adult book.
2. Beowulf
Contains a monster, a hero, and the monster's mother. Also a dragon, some boats, and truly spectacular alliterative epic poetry. Next step: learn Old English and read it in the original. I read a few of the Old English lines out loud and, wow...
3. The Mother Tongue, Bill Bryson
The history and quirks of English, and how it relates to other languages. Did you know that Scots Gaelic has a word for "the itchiness that overcomes the upper lip just before taking a sip of whiskey"? Well, now you do.
4. The Book of Lost Tales, J.R.R. Tolkien
I absolutely love seeing how Middle-earth, both the story and the world, evolved. So far it's caused me to boggle at some of the early concepts, love Ulmo even more than I did before, and want to smack Tinuviel. And also to be extremely thankful to Christopher Tolkien for putting all this together.
As a side note, anyone know how to put in accents in a livejournal entry? Like the accent that should be in "Tinuviel"?
Fun links:
1. Mark Twain snarkiness
2. Woad Ode
3. The Silmarillion in 1000 words
Interesting news, courtesy of the ever-wonderful BBC:
1. Strange 'twin' new worlds found
2. X-rays reveal Archimedes secrets. You have no idea how happy this makes me.
3. California and UK in climate pact. Does anyone still think California's not its own country?
Insert rant on global warming here, which I won't bother to type because I'd be preaching to the choir. Although if I get annoyed enough with the world I may do so at a later date.
Really geeky things to do when you're bored:
1. Review Greek verb endings.
2. Make a pie chart of Elrond's genetic makeup.
3. Practice calligraphy with the house mottos from A Song of Ice and Fire.
Slightly less geeky things to do:
1. Memorize tunes on penny whistle.
2. Update livejournal.
Things I should be doing:
1. Finishing that story I wrote half of last week.
2. Printing all my photos from Europe.
3. Buying textbooks for next year.
4. All sorts of other things, I'm sure. Including going to bed at a reasonable hour.
Goodnight!