Why this title? Our son, Caleb, has been reluctant to read anything that his school library offers, or anything else that has been “suggested” to him. That is, until now. He has discovered the Goosebumps series of books and he will read one for quite a stretch of time now. So, our eight year old is reading books for as much as an hour or more at a time. This is a refreshing change from his obsession with video games, as the write ups on the RPGs and FPSs that he plays were the only things that he would devote his attention to. This was not all bad, of course, as he learned some big words like “disembarkation” from these games.
I read this book several months ago and have been meaning to mention it for quite a long time. Today seems to be the day to resurrect the “draft” that I’ve had started since then. The US Library of Congress description of this book goes like this “Two centuries after an atomic war on earth, a silver-haired mutant sets out on a dangerous search for a lost city of the ruined civilization.”
That would be a good start, I guess. By the way, you can get this book pretty cheap on sites like Amazon.com and likely in many local used book stores. I’ve not read all of the late Andre Norton’s books, but I plan to before I finish my term on this rock.
Now, Star Man’s Son was first published in 1952, so one might think that a futuristic novel might not seem to be so futuristic after all, seeing how far technology has come since then. But, this is an entertaining read that had kept me enthralled from beginning to end. There are some interesting insights presented in the weaving of this story that I found to be within the realm of “believability”. The idea that people went down the wrong path and nearly destroyed themselves completely is not so far fetched, considering the number of national disagreements that we still have today in our world. The idea of what some “innocents” might think several generations after a completely destructive war is well conveyed in this book. I especially liked the parts that described the fears and feelings about the “burned out” areas that our main character, Fors, had. This novel, although a sci-fi, will likely appeal to those who like authors like Louis L’Amour as well.
I liked it. I hope that you do too.
I’m sure that if Caleb knew the words to the Alice Cooper song, he’d be singing them this afternoon. School’s officially out for the summer today, so I doubt that the little guy will have a hard day at all. They have already sent home his homework and workbooks that have gathered up for the year. Interestingly, today may be a crappy weather day, though. The report is for thunderstorms this afternoon. Of course, that was the report for yesterday as well, so who knows! I was planning to be out and about in it, too, though.
Its getting darker out instead of lighter right now (6:30am), so maybe that storm will arrive sooner rather than later. Who knows.
There’s something fishy going on, I am sure. I got a letter from “Service Canada”, which seems to be a new PC spin on the Employment Insurance/ Revenue Canada office, or whatever (I’ll investigate later). I’m sure that its supposed to read DISservice Canada, but anyways.
The letter states that I reported less earnings than they reported that I made for A TIME BEFORE I EVEN WORKED FOR THEM! This was out of the blue and I’m supposed to be the one who proves this is wrong, How am I supposed to do that? There’s something wrong with this whole scene!
First, I was stolen from by Revenue Canada for GST that I suppsoedly claimed for but wasn’t entitled to, due to the way that the employer before that shut down instantly and compensated those who were still there, for which I was not part of. I let that slide, but now I think that its time I settled up. This is getting ridiculous!
So, have you ever been behind a transport truck doing 85mph on a wet road hovering near the freezing mark? I was (and, perhaps keeping up, but I’ll never really admit it, or will I?). Its a slightly scary thing to witness, since you’re the one behind which will plough into it if it jacknifes. Its not the easiest feeling that you’ll have as you watch the trailer weave back and forth on the road.
So, I am borrowing a book from a co-worker who just can’t get into reading it right now. Its the new John Grisham book, “The Broker“. I must say, that after 31 pages, I’m already hooked. This book is shaping up to be a great read. I’ve noticed that as the books get written, Grisham is taking a tack away from the “lawyer” stuff and going more towards the “international intrigue” direction. Perhaps I’m daft, but that’s what I see.
In his final hours in the Oval Office, the outgoing President grants a controversial last-minute pardon to Joel Backman, a notorious Washington power broker who has spent the last six years hidden away in a federal prison. What no one knows is that the President issues the pardon only after receiving enormous pressure from the CIA. It seems Backman, in his power broker heyday, may have obtained secrets that compromise the world’s most sophisticated satellite surveillance system.
Backman is quietly smuggled out of the country in a military cargo plane, given a new name, a new identity, and a new home in Italy. Eventually, after he has settled into his new life, the CIA will leak his whereabouts to the Israelis, the Russians, the Chinese, and the Saudis. Then the CIA will do what it does best: sit back and watch. The question is not whether Backman will survive—there is no chance of that. The question the CIA needs answered is, who will kill him?
The above synopsis was taken from the back cover (or the website). Its still early, but I’m going to recommend this read so far, based on only 31 pages.
Yes, John, I’ve borrowed a book at work…to read at work! And, I picked up the book late in my shift…
Sorry for not leaving a track or two showing signs I was still here for the last few days. I’ve been feeling tired and under the weather this past week. By the time I get on the computer (around 8pm), I don’t feel like doing anything, so I’ve been checking my mail and flopping on the couch. Of course, this gave me a chance to watch the Jim Carey marathon on TBS the other day. And of course, I’ve stayed up for the dissapointingly boring Americal Idoo-doo . Well, at least the right choice was made in the elimination. Its a shame that she had to go, but her singing was intended for other material, I think. I still don’t think that Constantine should be there, but, considering that he’s not alone in the stinky singing category, perhaps it was hard for Americans to choose. I have faith in them, though. They will keep the goods, right?
I’m learning a lot of the little details of my job this past week, too, though. Its been a good “hands on” type of class. Kudos to Chris for the approach he’s decided to take. I feel confident, that this second phase of the training is a good move and I will be able to do a lot of the things that I’ve had to transfer to other centers for. And, that’s the goal, of course, a one call solution center. I’m all for that. If I was on the other end of the phone, I’d wanna be treated that way as well. Being transferred to a new agent is worse than being put on hold for extended periods, IMO. Of course, I may be looking at that position that opened up…
I watched “The Pacifier” a few days ago. This movie is a recommend, in my books. Go see it, or rent it when it comes to video (or watch it by other means…). I’ll admit, I’m a Vin Deisel fan, but that doesn’t reallycloud my judgement about the movie. He certainly brings it up a notch, of course, but it carries itself admirably. I wasn’t sure about it at first, as the acting seemed a bit forced in the beginning. But, as the movie progressed, the “forced” feeling went away. I think its because the intro (as in why he was watching someone’s kids) was almost a bit too far fetched. Luckily, the director kept it real enough that I believed the story, which was good, as I watched the whole thing. I’m still debating whether I’d let my 5 year old watch it though. The violence level is just on that “line” where a parent needs to decide if its too much or not.
Thanks to John, I have a slew of new digital photos of the kids, etc. I’m gonna crop some of them and adjust the brightness level of others, so they’re more like reality and less like a bad photographer’s rendition (as in me). Then, I’ll post them. I may redo the whole image gallery at that time so that its more uniform and relavent. Until then, take care and watch out for the other guy.
Out.
