Write Stuff: April 2011

Friday, April 29, 2011

Friday Five

Somehow I can't quite believe that April is almost over. At the same time, I'm seriously looking forward to getting it over with and beginning May. April has been one of those months that has attempted to knock me down almost every day, and on the days it's succeeded, its kicked the crud out of me. UGH. I'm ready for May. And Summer Vacation.

I officially don't have any more talks to give this year. At least, ones that are currently on my calendar. Job talks at this point would make me dance around the room in spinning circles with my arms held wide. No joke.
Despite working all day every day this week, I have accomplished next to nothing. This is yet another reason why April needs to get gone. I want my productivity back!
I didn't make it to the next round of the Amazon breakthrough novel award contest. Color me not surprised :) Yet, still a little disappointed.
I haven't had time to watch anything having to do with the Royal Wedding this morning. I'm certain to be in the minority with this. Not that I haven't wanted to, just haven't had a chance. Plus sleep=more important.
We've been talking a lot about conformity and group-think in the random Sociology class I'm TA'ing this quarter (I am not a sociologist, let it be known!) and this always makes me want to wear a white lab coat around campus, a la the Milgram studies. Maybe if I did, then people would stop cutting me off in the bike circles!

Onwards!

After Reading: A Canticle for Leibowitz

By: Meradeth Houston on 10:37 AM

by Walter M. Miller Jr

Walter M. Miller's acclaimed SF classic A Canticle for Leibowitz opens with the accidental excavation of a holy artifact: a creased, brittle memo scrawled by the hand of the blessed Saint Leibowitz, that reads: "Pound pastrami, can kraut, six bagels--bring home for Emma." To the Brothers of Saint Leibowitz, this sacred shopping list penned by an obscure, 20th-century engineer is a symbol of hope from the distant past, from before the Simplification, the fiery atomic holocaust that plunged the earth into darkness and ignorance. As 1984 cautioned against Stalinism, so 1959's A Canticle for Leibowitz warns of the threat and implications of nuclear annihilation. Following a cloister of monks in their Utah abbey over some six or seven hundred years, the funny but bleak Canticle tackles the sociological and religious implications of the cyclical rise and fall of civilization, questioning whether humanity can hope for more than repeating its own history. Divided into three sections--Fiat Homo (Let There Be Man), Fiat Lux (Let There Be Light), and Fiat Voluntas Tua (Thy Will Be Done)--Canticle is steeped in Catholicism and Latin, exploring the fascinating, seemingly capricious process of how and why a person is canonized. --Paul Hughes

I received this book for my birthday and all I can really say about it is WOW. I've been incredibly busy lately and haven't had my normal amount of reading time, but digging into this was quite an effort. It was rich, detailed, nuanced, and deeply disturbing. I've been freaked by the prospect of nuclear war ever since I was a kid and watched Terminator (dates me a little there, right?) but this pretty much just mounted that fear on itself. I'm not sure I completely agree with Miller's ideas of what would happen after a nuclear holocaust--not that humanity is smart enough to avoid its past mistakes--I totally am with him on that one--but that we would take the same course to get there. I mean, I know history repeats itself to a degree, but not in such a complete way. Anyhow, overall this is one of the foundational works in sci-fi, and rightfully so. Though, don't read it if you're looking for something light, or that isn't going to make you really start worrying about the fate of humanity.

After Reading: Nightshade

By: Meradeth Houston on 3:06 PM

by Andrea Cremer

Calla Tor has always known her destiny: After graduating from the Mountain School, she’ll be the mate of sexy alpha wolf Ren Laroche and fight with him, side by side, ruling their pack and guarding sacred sites for the Keepers. But when she violates her masters’ laws by saving a beautiful human boy out for a hike, Calla begins to question her fate, her existence, and the very essence of the world she has known. By following her heart, she might lose everything - including her own life. Is forbidden love worth the ultimate sacrifice?

What a delightfully yummy read. I mean, this book had me salivating (and in a non-hungry kind of way :). Okay, that sounds gross. But still, it was good. The pace was quick, and the characters strong. I loved the dynamic between Shay and Ren--both were so interesting that I still am not sure which I think Calla should have chosen... Anyhow, I'm seriously looking forward to the next book, Wolfsbane, and know I will enjoy it!

Birthday!!!

By: Meradeth Houston on 12:48 AM

My family has always been the kind of celebrate a whole lot on birthdays. We're very big on them. (Something my hubby doesn't quite understand, but that's okay. He's learning.) Anyhow, today's the first day of my last year in my twenties. Kinda crazy, kinda cool. Too bad I have to give a dang talk at a giant conference today (let the stomach knots begin!) and will be stuck there all day. *sigh* Onward!