Kranky

Forgot to mention that I saw The Incredibles for a fourth time, this time with one of my nieces. Man, do I love that movie. Yes, I'll probably see it again, though each time I see it, I grow even more sick of seeing the trailer for Christmas With The Kranks.

Even if I had the slightest urge to see the movie (which I didn't), the urge would have been long been killed by the over-hype, not to mention the Botox scene. Now I think I'd rather be forced to listen to the space hippy song in This Way To Eden on forever repeat than spend Christmas with the Kranks.

Other than overplay, my other major beef about movie trailers is the tendency of some trailers to GIVE AWAY THE ENTIRE PLOT, leaving me with little incentive to actually pay money to go to see it in the theatre.

Speaking of movies...I loved Philip Pullman's Dark Materials trilogy, and have been both excited and filled with dread at the idea of the books being turned into a movie. It would be SO easy to do a bad job at this. For those interested, here's an interesting article about how three writers adapted Pullman's work for stage and screen.

To all you Americans about to go off and turkify...have a great Thanksgiving!

November 2004 comments: Read Blatherchat | Post in Blatherchat | Livejournal comments

slow reading

Rand performing in the Ookla The Mok concert at OVFF.
Photo by Jim Leonard.


I used to be proud of how quickly I could read fiction books.

I didn't skim or use any of the fancy shortcuts you hear about in speed-reading courses. I actually did READ and enjoy the books, and still do read some types of mass market paperbacks that way (often referred to as "beach reads") when I'm looking for pure distraction and nothing else.

But I'm starting to changing my reading style for most other types of books, particularly ones with writing styles I especially enjoy. I'm purposely slowing down, savouring the shape and flow of the words, the imagery and character dialogue. I'm taking out books I've already read and enjoyed in the past and reading them more carefully.

In a way, it's like going food shopping. There are the "get in, get out" expeditions where I know exactly what I want, pay for it, spend as little time in the store as possible. But sometimes I also go to the grocery store or local market when I don't really have anything in particular I need to buy: I go for experience itself, enjoying the colours and scents, lingering over favourite aisles, luxuriating in choice.

I approach books the same way. There are certain types of books now that I could never read quickly. Ray Bradbury's Dandelion Wine, for example. I read that book much more differently as an adult than I did as a child; it means more to me, and I appreciate Bradbury's lyrical style much more now.

I'm also enjoying poetry, something I never did when I was younger. Except for one poetry collection I read in school (I Am A Sensation), I never found poems appealing at all. Started actively disliking poetry when we studied William Carlos Williams's The Red Wheelbarrow; we analyzed and rehashed and dissected these eight lines until I felt like jumping up and screaming "IT'S JUST A STUPID WHEELBARROW, FOR PETE'S SAKE!!"

Ok, so I don't hate it quite so much now. I did experience that sort of thing quite a bit in school, by the way: enjoying something the first time I came across it but ending up loathing it by the time we were finished cutting apart and examining its entrails for the millionth time. But I'll save that rant for another Blathering.

I thank my friend Rand for getting me to enjoy poetry again. And in German, too! :-) Rand gave me his copy of Selected Poems of Rainer Maria Rilke (translated by Robert Bly) a while back, by the way, which includes an English and German translation of every poem. Bly somehow manages to translate the poems so that the line lengths end up being pretty similar to the original...something of a feat considering the German language, I'd think.

Anyway, a poll for all of you.

Are you a "slow reader" or "fast reader" or both?
Do you enjoy poetry?

November 2004 comments: Read Blatherchat | Post in Blatherchat | Livejournal comments

POLL: Your favorite Star Trek captain?

From my friend Andy, on Blatherchat:

"Kirk is way better than Picard. Picard has committee meetings, drinks Earl Grey tea and discusses his feelings with heartwarming sincerity. Kirk has sex with hot alien women, beats up Klingons and violates the Prime Directive every day before breakfast.

I will admit that Picard made a good Borg, but then he wasn't really Captain Picard then, was he?"

Ok, I admit I've always been torn. Kirk's the bad boy, the rebel, the lover. Picard is more refined, rational, has the cooler head (and not just because of the lack of hair). But I got hooked on Star Trek because of Kirk.

Between Kirk and Picard:

Captain I'd be most likely to want to...

(list will likely be expanded during the day)

Go drinking with (if I went drinking, that is): Kirk.

Hear sing: Picard.

Go on a date with: Kirk.

Let my sister go out on a date with: Picard.

Jam with on the flute: Picard.

See in a toga: Kirk.

Visit a mirror universe full of our evil twins with: Kirk.

Go book-shopping with: Picard.

Take on a camping trip: Kirk.

Marry: Picard.

Watch as a starship captain: Kirk.

Have as a starship captain if I was a member of the crew: Picard.

Despite writing this song, I must confess that Captain Kirk has been and always will be my favourite Star Trek captain.

What about the rest of you? Who's YOUR favourite starship captain? Maybe you even have the gall to prefer one of the Others, who knows.

I'll be posting your poll results below over the weekend.

Holy toledo, I'm such a nerd.

==========================

From Keris:

"Well, I don't want to go on a date with or marry either Picard or Kirk, but other than that I mostly agree with your answers. As captain of a ship on which I might serve, I'm torn, Picard is more "by the book" but Kirk has more charisma (I would serve Picard because I respect him but I would follow Kirk, if you see the difference). I'd add that I'd rather have a discussion with Picard than Kirk, but I'd rather have Kirk at my back in a brawl.

But as a TV character, Kirk (almost) every time. The 'chemistry' of the original bridge crew hasn't been beaten, in my opinion (and one person I really regret not meeting was DeForest Kelly, it seems likely that I won't get to meet James Doohan either)..."

-------

From Redax:

"Capt. Sisko. By a hair (as it were) over Picard.

Janeway has her moments. Especially after she stops being Captain Munchkin.

Kirk and Beckett Archer aren't even in the ballpark."

-------

From Amanda:

"Sisko, all the way."

-------

From Appleboy:

"I have to go with Janeway! If anything for the great quotes about coffee.

'Commander, turn the ship around! There's coffee in that nebula!'

And how could anyone ever forget that 'Bun of steel' atop her head in the first season, followed by a more sensible 'do. How she stood up to Q and the Borg Queen! I doubt Kirk could have brought Voyager home. Picard maybe."

-------

From Katy:

"I completely, entirely agree with your answers :)"

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From Sdelmonte:

"I could bollox it all up by reminding you that Spock was at the rank of captain in five of the films, and he's certainly my favorite Star Trek character. But we never got to see what he could do. (And we can leave out Mackenzie Calhoun, PAD's forgettable captain in the New Fronteir books and one-shot captains such as Pike and Jellico.)

Certainly Patrick Stewart is the best of the actors (with the possible exception of Nimoy). He was certainly hypercompetent. But he was rarely fun. When asked 'Kirk or Picard,' Joss Whedon answered, 'Patrick Stewart, yes, but Kirk.' That's a fair summary. Without Stewart's acting skills, Picard was a fairly bland character - like just about everyone on Next Gen, his character stagnated. Kirk, if only through the virtue of being allowed to grow old in the movies, changed and grappled with his failings. That Kirk was played by a limited actor seems irrelevant. I doubt that a better actor would have made Kirk a better hero.

All that said, Avery Brooks is a highly accomplished actor and Ben Sisko grew tremendously as a character while never losing his footing as commander/captain of DS9. It would be hard to call him a 'favorite' but he is the best of the breed.

Kirk would therefore be my favorite, but not by much.

Janeway? A good actor played her, but she was increasingly monomaniacal about getting home and about her command, and the presence of 7 of 9 left to Janeway becoming too much 7's mentor instead of a leader of many.

Archer? A waste of Bakula's skills. He combined many of the worst of Kirk, Janeway and Picard's aspects without their assets. Only Bakula's dedication to the part saves him at all."

-------

From Monica:

"Sisko. The character was interesting and realistic pretty much from the start. I want three-dimensional characters in my fiction. Kirk is a cowboy, but I don't see any depth in the bits of the original series I've seen.

I also like Picard for many of the same reasons, and I may be conflating my like of DS9 (as being not a utopia) with my like of Sisko. Hard to tell.

Janeway was boring and whiny, and Archer is rough and raw -- fitting for that part of the timeline maybe, but not as likable. If we see him grow, and have to answer to some of his questionable decisions, over the course of the series, I'll revise my opinion."

-------

From Blake:

"My rankings:

Picard
Sisko
Janeway (almost tie with Sisko)
Archer
Kirk
Pike (heh)

I never liked Kirk at all, and don't like TOS all that much in general. (Aaahhh heresy!) I guess I have trouble getting past the dated look of the show. My favorite characters on that show were Bones and Spock."

------

From Mary Ellen:

"Picard probably. Cisco maybe. I must admit that I never found Kirk very appealing in anyway, toga or not.

Of that old crew I'd take - hmm - Scottie most likely for overall personality. Maybe Checkov or Sulu for general appearance. I think Picard just has waaaay more charisma and for me Charisma is highly correlated to sex appeal.

Even though Earl Grey is perhaps the ONLY tea I don't like."

-------

From Luis:

"I must decline to answer that question... As i was told the first time i went to a con "There's going to be this.. you're going to see that... but whatever you do Don't Ever Say wich captain you prefer. You will lose no matter what the answer" But I am a HUGE next gen fan so ... there you go."

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From Julie:

"I laughed when I read Debbie's answers to 'go on a date with/allow to date my sister'. Yes. I think I agree.

One thing I'm floored by is all the people who actually liked Sisko. Avery Brooks was the reason I rarely watched DS9. I couldn't get over the fact that he seemed like a plank of wood (IMO) with two emotions: deep and meaingful or bawdy (enraged or not). Maybe it's all that stage training but 'I...can't...STAND...a.....TV.. ac...TOR...who...delivers...ALL...his...LINES... like...THIS.'"

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From Ina:

"I'll go with Sisko as well. Picard is a close second and Kirk third. Janeway was okay, but I was too bored by Voyager to watch much after the second season. And while I love Bakula, I could not bring myself to watch more of Enterprise than the pilot."

-------

From Allison:

"Picard. My favorite characters on the classic series were always McCoy and Spock, not Kirk.

If I were to date a starship captain, though, it would be Archer, 'cause I've always had a thing for Scott Bakula (though I admit I don't watch 'Enterprise' much anymore)."

-------

From Judith:

"Oh, Debbie...

I didn't know!!! Another Kirk fan!

My answers would be exactly the same as yours, except I think I'd rather marry Kirk than Picard. Think of the steamy shower scenes. Think of how much he likes kids... Think of thirty years of really hot sex.

I didn't say that! That was my evil twin Anne.

Really."

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From ScottS:

"My decision about which Captain to serve under would be determined entirely by the color of shirt they handed me upon graduation from academy. Red shirt? Picard is my man. :)

Kirk is more of a 'Man's Captain' - you're more likely to get shot, but you're also more likely to get laid. Picard is great for the career goals/personal improvement chats over tea, but not so much for the 'phasers on kill' excitement on the planet surface.

I admit that I'm a Kirk fan - he's got that wild west, pioneer outlaw thing going for him that I like. While Picard had a Maneuver named after him for being very clever under pressure, Kirk beat the Kobiashi Maru scenario by simply refusing to lose. I love the "to heck with the rules, let's get them!" freeness of the Original Trek crew."

-------

From Bryan:

"John Sheridan. Second would be John Crichton.

Ha!

Next time ask for favourite Star Trek starship captain - that'd be Sisko. DS9 had some stupid episodes, but at least it had a story arc that lasted longer than a season."

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From Christo:

"In the last TNG Bev Crusher was a captain so i would definitely give my vote to her coz she is fab.

TOS I was always a McCoy fan

Sisko couldn't act and is my biggest captain dissappointment in Trek.

Picard is very cool.
vs Kirk - I like them both in different ways
i each case tho I'd swap them for their doctors :-)

I would answer to all those questions about which captain I would etc... Janeway. She is fab - Katherine Hepburn in space.
my theory -

TOS is TOS

TNG is social workers in space - counsellors, committe meetings before every decision etc..

DS9 is Casablanca in space (Quark's bar = Ric, the Odo = Frederick March, bad aliens = nazis, Bajorans=vichy french etc...)

Voyager = African Queen in space - Janeway = Hepburn - Chakotay = Bogart guiding ship home against impossible odds"

October 2004 comments: Read Blatherchat | Post in Blatherchat | Livejournal comments

has been

So I've been listening to William Shatner's new 11-song CD, Has Been, and I'm shocked to admit that it's not as horrible as I had anticipated.

No, he doesn't sing (thank heavens). As with Shatner's previous recordings, it's all spoken word stuff, but the cheesiness factor is cut considerably by collaboration with some talented singers and musicians.

There's some very funny stuff, like in "You'll Have Time":

"Live life like you're gonna die
Because you're gonna
I hate to be the bearer of bad news
But you're gonna die."

with a gospel chorus back-up.

But the CD also includes some deeply personal pieces which which I found incredibly moving, like "That's Me Trying," a song about his attempt to build a relationship with his daughter long after it's too late, and an unaccompanied piece called "What Have You Done," about his wife's death (his wife drowned in a pool in 1999):

Whatever I might think about Shatner's performance and acting abilities (but don't forget...he's STILL MY FAVOURITE STAR TREK CAPTAIN!!), I've got to give the guy credit for guts as well as his benevolent willingness to laugh at himself.

I found the album to be remarkably honest, the songs well-suited to Shatner's unique style and personality. My favourite song on the CD is the last song, "Real," which was apparently written for Shatner by Brad Paisley:

"I have saved the world in the movies
So, naturally, there's folks who think I must know what to do
But just because you've seen me on your TV
Doesn't mean I'm any more enlightened than you."

Track listing:

1. "Common People" (with Joe Jackson)
2. "It Hasn't Happened Yet"
3. "You'll Have Time"
4. "Trying" (with Ben Folds and Aimee Mann)
5. "What Have You Done"
6. "Together" (with Lemon Jelly)
7. "Familiar Love"
8. "Ideal Woman"
9. "Has Been"
10. "I Can't Get Behind That" (with Henry Rollins, Adrian Belew on guitar)
11. "Real" (with Brad Paisley)

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Craftstuff, e-books, BIG books and an agonizing decision

Just looking at this picture makes me want to jump up
and do a Snoopy dance in my home office...


Those interested more in craftstuff than bookstuff should skip to the bottom of this longish entry.

So Jeff brought a book home as a surprise gift for me when he came home from Chapters yesterday: Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke. He said he bought it because the blurb on the back sounded so much like the kind of thing I liked to read...and hoo boy, he was absolutely right. I started salivating before I got halfway down the back cover.

And this book is HUGE: 782 pages. I don't know about the rest of you, but I adore big books. The more pages, the better, assuming it's my kind of story. I can usually tell if I'll like it within the first five pages.

For me, it's akin to visiting friends while travelling. There's an investment of oneself in the planning, the travel price and time, the unpacking and settling in, but most of all in the quality of time spent with any particular friend. If I had a choice, I'd far rather spend a week visiting with a single friend than visiting seven, hopping from one home to another each night.

In the same way, I'd far rather read a good meaty 1000-page novel than a dozen short ones simultaneously or in succession; I get enormous satisfaction settling in for the long haul. In the end, of course, length doesn't matter as long as I'm enjoying the story, but if I AM enjoying it, I'd like it to last as long as possible. :-) So I'm curious about how the rest of you feel about this. I know at least one friend whose preference is to avoid bigger books because of the effort and time investment. I can see how reading a huge book could be a frustrating experience for someone who is only able to grab bits of reading time sporadically (e.g. a parent with young children, for example). What about the rest of you? What's your preference, if any?

And this is where e-books will always fall short for me, I'm afraid, though it would seem like a boon to most people. I LIKE the feeling of a good, heavy tome in my lap, the texture and crispness of the paper, the faint whisper of each page as I lift and turn it over. The tactile experience contributes a great deal of the pleasure for me. Not to mention one of my secret vices: the joy of reading books in the bathtub (could be somewhat more awkward and definitely riskier to one's health to attempt this with an electronic reader).

I could see how shorter and more transient pieces could be better suited to an e-reader, like magazines and newspapers. How wonderful it would be to select my periodical reading material for a commute and download it into a slim, easily-read, affordable (and sadly therefore yet unavailable) e-reader, deleting and adding according to preference and whim.

Though the compactness of such a medium brings to me my current quandary: I WANT TO TAKE MY NEW BOOK TO VIENNA WITH ME to read in the airport and on the plane (and perhaps at bedtime), but it's too big to easily lug around; I can see where an e-version of the book could be handy about now. Heck, the print book wouldn't fit into the pocket on the seat in front of me, not even if I tossed the airsickness bag and emergency card. Augh. But if I start reading it now and love it, it'll kill me to leave it behind for a week. BUT HOW COULD I NOT START READING IT NOW?

(pause as I calm my hyperventilation, close my eyes and think of peaceful chocolatish thoughts, move on...)




Necklace I made at the cottage.


I was in Lewiscraft with Allison last week, and picked up a bag of loose beads ($7.99) and a package of coloured soft wire ($5.99) for a craft activity at the cottage with my nieces. The wire was soft enough that even a child can bend it without any special equipment. I love Lewiscraft.




Butterfly made from two different colours of wire.


Anyway, we had lots of fun. We didn't have any instructions or examples, so we just improvised from our own imaginations, making sculptures, necklaces, bracelets, rings. Even Jeff got in on the action, creating a miniature solar system from beads and wire. :-) Sadly, I neglected to take a photo of his masterpiece and it's still at the cottage.




Bracelet from beads and wire.


I've always found something immensely satisfying and relaxing in doing crafts like this. I don't have the patience or coordination for needlework, but I love crafts which can be completed in an hour or less.




My first creation: not exactly sure what this is, but
I hung it up from the dining room lamp anyway!


Hm. Even as I type this, I'm realizing that I could write a how-to piece for a adult handcraft or children's activity magazine about this particular craft. Yay, an excuse to buy more materials for me to play with!

'Twas fun to reading all your responses to my poll question about packing (and thanks for the cartoon, jwordsmith!). Funny to hear about incidents where some of you have gone bottomless or topless (well, almost) because of packing errors. Hm. Now I'm paranoid. Think I'll make a list after all...

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