Vacation Miscellany
Dec. 27th, 2011 05:34 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
stoutfellowWell, my vacation is about half over, and I thought I'd check in.
We've had several family get-togethers already: the gift exchange at O's on the 17th, Christmas Eve dinner at E's, and a - rather time-displaced - birthday party at C's yesterday. The best-attended was the gift exchange, with all four generations of the clan present. (I got a copy of Pratchett's Snuff, about which more later, as my gift.) Christmas Eve was delicious, as usual; E's husband D is quite a good cook. (I found, to my surprise, that he's never tried to bake apple pie, and with the zeal of the recent convert I offered to send him a recipe.) I hadn't seen C's new place - she and her husband moved twice in the last twelve months - and the visit there was nice and relaxing. (She had picked up a couple of pairs of pants for me; finding pants in my size is a bit on the difficult side.)
I paid a quick visit to Barnes & Noble on the 18th. I didn't buy a whole lot, but did get half-price hardcover copies of Ghost Story and The Children of the Sky, as well as Charles Mann's 1493, David McCullough's book on the Johnstown flood, and some more F/SF by Charles Stross, Jack McDevitt, Peter Hamilton, Greg Bear, and Poul Anderson.
Snuff is, I think, mid-range Pratchett - not his best work, but good enough. Ghost Story was a good ripsnorter; it was nice to see the supporting cast, especially Molly, strut their stuff. (The main villain's last lethal error reminded me of a recent storyline in "Schlock Mercenary" involving Ensign Ventura....) I'm working my way through The Children of the Sky now, but haven't gotten far enough to have much of an opinion yet. Vinge's usual themes of treachery and child prodigies have already made their appearances.
My brother and I went to see the second Sherlock Holmes movie last week. I realized which story they were going for as soon as Mycroft mentioned the meeting in Switzerland, but it was fun seeing how it developed - and the final clash between Holmes and his opponent was worth the price of admission.
Research is proceeding well; I've gained several useful insights, but the overall picture remains elusive. I hope to give an overview of what I'm doing sometime in the new year.
No word from the dogsitter. I'll take no news as good news, but I am starting to look forward to seeing Buster and Gracie again. (Of course, that will also be the point at which I'll have to respond to queries and complaints about last semester's grades, which I've fobbed off so far on the grounds that I don't have access to the data from 2000 miles away.)
And I guess this year I'll be rooting for New Orleans again, after the Chargers' dismal performance against Detroit on Sunday. :le sigh:
We've had several family get-togethers already: the gift exchange at O's on the 17th, Christmas Eve dinner at E's, and a - rather time-displaced - birthday party at C's yesterday. The best-attended was the gift exchange, with all four generations of the clan present. (I got a copy of Pratchett's Snuff, about which more later, as my gift.) Christmas Eve was delicious, as usual; E's husband D is quite a good cook. (I found, to my surprise, that he's never tried to bake apple pie, and with the zeal of the recent convert I offered to send him a recipe.) I hadn't seen C's new place - she and her husband moved twice in the last twelve months - and the visit there was nice and relaxing. (She had picked up a couple of pairs of pants for me; finding pants in my size is a bit on the difficult side.)
I paid a quick visit to Barnes & Noble on the 18th. I didn't buy a whole lot, but did get half-price hardcover copies of Ghost Story and The Children of the Sky, as well as Charles Mann's 1493, David McCullough's book on the Johnstown flood, and some more F/SF by Charles Stross, Jack McDevitt, Peter Hamilton, Greg Bear, and Poul Anderson.
Snuff is, I think, mid-range Pratchett - not his best work, but good enough. Ghost Story was a good ripsnorter; it was nice to see the supporting cast, especially Molly, strut their stuff. (The main villain's last lethal error reminded me of a recent storyline in "Schlock Mercenary" involving Ensign Ventura....) I'm working my way through The Children of the Sky now, but haven't gotten far enough to have much of an opinion yet. Vinge's usual themes of treachery and child prodigies have already made their appearances.
My brother and I went to see the second Sherlock Holmes movie last week. I realized which story they were going for as soon as Mycroft mentioned the meeting in Switzerland, but it was fun seeing how it developed - and the final clash between Holmes and his opponent was worth the price of admission.
Research is proceeding well; I've gained several useful insights, but the overall picture remains elusive. I hope to give an overview of what I'm doing sometime in the new year.
No word from the dogsitter. I'll take no news as good news, but I am starting to look forward to seeing Buster and Gracie again. (Of course, that will also be the point at which I'll have to respond to queries and complaints about last semester's grades, which I've fobbed off so far on the grounds that I don't have access to the data from 2000 miles away.)
And I guess this year I'll be rooting for New Orleans again, after the Chargers' dismal performance against Detroit on Sunday. :le sigh:
no subject
Date: 2011-12-28 06:37 am (UTC)I read the McCullough book on the Johnstown flood decades ago, and I still remember how good a book it was.
no subject
Date: 2011-12-29 04:15 pm (UTC)