RB1 - Cuban Isolationists

[Sirian]

I can't believe I read the whole thing....

Forty-five pages, and the tale is not yet done. You guys ever heard of Robert Jordan? Anyone?

Indeed. I stopped reading after the second book, though. Not that it was dull, but I missed the third one in hardback and that "broke" my collection, and there were so many other things to read.

I literally have a dozen stacks of unread books, each three feet high! I always seem to buy two books for every one I have time to read.

I've meant to get back around to Jordan's neverending serial, but I'm still missing book three! (Dragon Reborn?) I've got four, five and six, though. (How does that happen? Well, long story!)


Of course, if I stopped to read all four of those, the Epics might have to go on hold for a month or two! (So think twice before anybody gets the "bright idea" to buy that missing book for me for Christmas! Seriously. )


Now imagine poor Soren! I've been writing for him for a year and a half now. (I think he went bald from tearing out his own hair!)

And yet... AND YET... You're still reading, aren't you? Isn't that maddening?


My hardware is mostly together. The software is the bulk of the job, though (of course). On the other hand, I don't HAVE to install every piece of my software before using any of it, so... we shall see.


- Sirian

 

[Sullla]

Indeed. I stopped reading after the second book, though. Not that it was dull, but I missed the third one in hardback and that "broke" my collection, and there were so many other things to read.

Umm - Sirian, Jordan published "The Dragon Reborn" in like 1992. I distinctly recall getting that as a Christmas gift when I was about 10 years old. There can't have been THAT many things to read over the last 13 years!

 

[ChrTh]

Umm - Sirian, Jordan published "The Dragon Reborn" in like 1992. I distinctly recall getting that as a Christmas gift when I was about 10 years old. There can't have been THAT many things to read over the last 13 years!

It's all for the best. I couldn't get through the first book

(and no, that's no reflection on my reading abilities...I read Umberto Eco!...except Baudelaire--I think that's what it was called-- was so boring I gave up on it, and I still haven't tried the new one)

 

[Sirian]

Umm - Sirian, Jordan published "The Dragon Reborn" in like 1992. I distinctly recall getting that as a Christmas gift when I was about 10 years old. There can't have been THAT many things to read over the last 13 years!

Dagnabit. As if 1992 was all that long ago.

OK, OK. I'm getting up out of my chair, turning around to behind my desk, and pulling my copy of Shadow Rising out of one of the eleven big piles. ... OK, the jacket is slightly stuck to the jacket of the book on top of it. That's a fair indication that it is has been a couple of years. ... I gently separate them. Cool! No torn jackets. ... *blows dust off the edge* ... Wow. I should get a picture of the remaining dust. THAT would verify that I'm not BSing here. ... OK, I think I got a picture of it. I'll have to deal with processing that later. ... Let's see, now. *peeks inside the cover* ... Nope, Sulla's wrong. Wrong, I tell you. Wrong. Book Four was published in 1992. Book Three had to have been 1991, then.

Anyway, that probably means it's been fifteen years since I read, wrote, or said the words Aes Sedai.


Somebody remind me to process that "dust pic" or it may be another thirteen years before you see it.


- Sirian

 

[Sirian]

Oh One More Thing(TM)...

There can't have been THAT many things to read over the last 13 years!

I don't read my books in rotation. I've got some I bought I in 1987, the year I first moved out on my own, that I haven't read yet. Some titles seem to make their way in to the "low priority" list, and that's bad news for them, as newer and more intriguing stuff is always cutting in line ahead of them.

Also, my reading slowed down considerably. I read >100 books a year (sometimes >200) in my early adulthood, but the internet has slowed that quite a bit. Now it's more like one a month. (SHAMEFULLY PATHETIC READING COUNT, I know, but hey. I'm human. OK?)


- Sirian

 

[Kylearan]

Hi,

I read Umberto Eco!

Yay! "Foucault's Pendulum" is one of my favorite books of all time, albeit reading it and following what's going on is hard. I recommend doing it during holidays.

...except Baudelaire--I think that's what it was called-- was so boring I gave up on it

I liked Baudolino; not as good as Pendulum or Name of the Rose, but still a good book.

-Kylearan

 

[Spatzimaus]

"Foucault's Pendulum" is one of my favorite books of all time

Unfortunately, I pretty much stopped caring what happened in that book when I came across a huge math error. I know, it's silly, but it was something like that the original event happened in year A, and 666 years later was the key date, except that the numbers were off so A+666 would be decades from now, or something like that. It just didn't add up; this by itself wouldn't be such a big deal, but if you're going to spend all this time and effort plotting out a giant conspiracy theory, and then don't even double-check the basic math involved, to where it now looks like all the characters involved screwed up THEIR math... it just grated.

 

[ChrTh]

Foucault's Pendulum is probably one of the greatest works of world lit (remember, it was originally written in Italian) in the last two decades.

Yes, the beginning is tough (it took me four tries and almost six years before I was able to read it), but don't worry about it too much until you've finished the book. I've also found that I skip many of Belbo's writings when I reread it.

Spatzimus: The A+666 is immaterial. The original plan got interrupted; the culmination date is still set for the future of the current date, but it's immaterial because the plan was interrupted. After that happened, the original plan falls by the wayside and it doesn't matter anymore when things are supposed to occur. What's the interesting part is the notion that all of European history for the last five hundred years is a result of a botched meeting (reminds me almost of Sirens of Titan in that regard, although obviously the latter is even more bizarre).

Baudalino: That's it, I didn't think Baudelaire was correct. I think I just got bored with it, and unlike Island of the Day Before (which also bored me), I couldn't stick with it.

One more thing(tm): Consider the following: Foucault's Pendulum is missing one major European ethnicity among the 6 groups: the Italians. Eco is Italian. Perhaps the book isn't Fiction, and is just an effort by the spurned Italian literati to expose what is transpiring in Europe unto this day ... or an effort to get themselves involved.

EDIT: One last anecdote, and an tie-in to this thread

Umberto Eco spoke at Boston University back in 1996/7 school year, and I went. Someone asked a question about Belbo; I wish I could remember the exact question, but the answer was awesome:

I am not responsibile for the actions of any of my characters.

That, as you can imagine, got a huge laugh.

And the tie-in: All fans of RB1 should read Foucault's Pendulum. Seriously. Many of us are here playing Civ because we're history buffs. Well, FP turns history on its head and smashes it askance. And does it without resorting to anti-papist plagiarism (*kaff*DaVinci Code*kaff*).

 

[Carbon_Copy]

Anyway, that probably means it's been fifteen years since I read, wrote, or said the words Aes Sedai.

That's probably for the best. I've been hopelessly stuck on the series since picking up Eye of the World in 1997. It's such a horrible series to be attached to, since it takes Jordan 2+ years to write those things anymore. At least with the latest one, he begins to acknowledge that he may get around to finishing the story at some point in the indeterminate future.

 

[eldar]

And the tie-in: All fans of RB1 should read Foucault's Pendulum. Seriously. Many of us are here playing Civ because we're history buffs. Well, FP turns history on its head and smashes it askance. And does it without resorting to anti-papist plagiarism (*kaff*DaVinci Code*kaff*).

I'll see if my mother's copy is still knocking around when I head down for Christmas (same as I'll be hunting for my 20-odd-year-old Chronicles of Narnia too...).

 

[BotlGnomz]

Who has read the book Pastwatch: The Redemption of Christopher Columbus by Orson Scott Card?
It's an incredible blend of history, what ifs, and post-WWIII Earth.
It got me hooked on mesoamerican history.

 

[ChrTh]

Who has read the book Pastwatch: The Redemption of Christopher Columbus by Orson Scott Card?
It's an incredible blend of history, what ifs, and post-WWIII Earth.
It got me hooked on mesoamerican history.

I love Pastwatch, that's a great one as well. Have you read 1491 (non-fiction)? It ties in nicely with the mesoamerican history of Pastwatch.

 

[BeefontheBone]

That's probably for the best. I've been hopelessly stuck on the series since picking up Eye of the World in 1997. It's such a horrible series to be attached to, since it takes Jordan 2+ years to write those things anymore. At least with the latest one, he begins to acknowledge that he may get around to finishing the story at some point in the indeterminate future.

The last two are soooooo dull though - the books get longer and longer but with less and less actually happening in them, and yet I still keep buying the damn things because I want to know how it ends[/i]! Gah! The first 5 or 6 are OK, once you get past the first one, but it's a bit downhill from there.

@eldar - you wanna be careful with Narnia. I made the mistake of trying to read them again when I was at my parents' for Easter, and it completely destroyed my pleasant memories of them from when I was a kid - the ridiculous dialogue and blatant Christian dogmatism were too much for me to stomach. Besides, Dawn Treader and The Silver Chair were the only ones that were any good

 

[Sirian]

I'm about to power down the old system. May she rest in peace.

Not sure how long I'll be incommunicado. One might hope it would be measured in "hours" not "days" but you won't know until you hear from me again.


- Sirian

 

[weakciv]

just be sure to remember your password

 

[ChrTh]

I feel like I'm in the movie Apollo 13, waiting for the transmission blackout to end ...

*skritchchchchchchchchchch*

 

[Kylearan]

Hi,

Umberto Eco spoke at Boston University back in 1996/7 school year, and I went.

Now I'm envious...

Someone asked a question about Belbo; I wish I could remember the exact question, but the answer was awesome: [...]

Thanks for sharing that!

-Kylearan

 

[VoiceOfUnreason]

On the off chance that I won't feel silly for asking this: what is the tool being used to drop the colored dots (Pink Dot, White Dot, Oh My God They've Gone Plaid Dot, etc) on the screen captures? Something built in, or just your-favorite-art-studio-tm doing a bit of post editing on the capture?

 

[BotlGnomz]

I use paint for all my dotmapping needs.
Use the Circle tool, third option, holding down shift. Works like a charm.

 

[ChrTh]

One would think this is off-topic, but it really isn't ...

I got my copy of Hoyle Puzzle and Board Games today

... and on a personal note: 1 exam down, 1 to go.