newnumber6 (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
newnumber6) wrote2006-12-02 05:35 pm
newnumber6) wrote2006-12-02 05:35 pm
Memes and Book Foo
First, since I was tagged by ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
tadiera...
The Random Meme
The Official Rules: Write a journal entry with 10 random facts about yourself. Then, pick 10 of your friends list and tag them. These rules should be included in your entry.
Most of these facts people probably already know from previous 'random facts' stuff or general journal comments, because I'm not very interesting and there's only so many facts to go around.
1. I don't listen to music. I don't hate music, I just don't feel any particular attachment to it. There are occasionally some songs I find myself singing to myself in my head, but I just never feel an urge to deliberately go out and try to listen to a song.
2. I wear jeans and a t-shirt year round, with only a light jacket to cover me even in the harshest Canadian winter (plus gloves and a toque, of course).
3. At work, while waiting for the truck, I climb up on the highest shelf in the back to read and occasionally scare the other employees, or help them, as the case may be.
4. If I ever become a published writer I plan to donate many of my works to the public domain upon my death.
5. I had juvenile arthritis and a cataract as a kid. The arthritis is gone, but despite surgery on my left eye I still can't see clearly through it and my mind has edited out of my perception unless I consciously try to see through it.
6. I live in my imagination probably more than is healthy, sometimes Walter Mittying through events and imagining them as more fantastic than they are, and other times just sitting and pretending I'm in some other situation.
7. I walk about 6 hours a week nowadays, and someday I'd like to walk across the country even though I know I probably never will.
8. I'm a horrible packrat. I have a hard time throwing out things even of no conceivable use.
9. The last video game console I had was the Super Nintendo. The newest computer game I've played is Civilization III (or Black and White, or Planescape Torment, whichever came out most recently). Yet I regularly watch video game news and review shows.
10. I'm a passionate believer in AI rights, although I also support other civil rights battles that are more in the public eye (gay marriage, etc).
Tagging:
I'm tagging anyone who wants to do this. But only 10.
Also fromtadiera, a survey from myspace targetted at teenage girls. But I'm humoring my inner teenage girl so I'll answer it.
1. Would you kiss the last person you kissed again?
Probably, since it was family (ha, convenient loopholes!)
2. What song describes your relationship status?
Nowhere Man
3. How much does your dog weigh?
A svelte 0 pounds. If I can get him to lose just a little more, I'll have invented antigravity!
4. Do you have hair in the middle parts of your fingers?
Yes. Except for the first finger on each hand, which is strangely smooth.
5. Ever waxed your legs?
No. It doesn't sound much like something I'd do.
6. Earrings or necklaces?
Neither.
7. Who have you talked to most today?
My brother, I guess?
8. What is the oldest message in your inbox on your phone?
Phone?
9. Friend of the opposite sex that lives closest to you?
Well, my friends of the opposite sex are all online, so I'd say that's probably eitherwoot or 80sfiend. Probably woot.
10. Color of your shirt?
At the moment, white with some black lettering and such.
11. How many years have you been taking a language?
I've been taking English all my life.
12. Whos on speed dial 5?
Speed dial?
13. What color is your background on your computer mainly?
Blueish, I suppose, since one computer has a background of Serenity hovering over a planet, and another is a tropical beach scene with blue sky.
14. Do you wish on 11:11?
No. It seems pointless.
15. Good advice if you ever go camping?
Never eat polar bear liver, it can contain lethal concentrations of vitamin A.
16. Are you a bad influence?
Nah, I'm a good influence.
I7. What color are your eyes?
Brown.
18. Would you rather have your name or your siblings name?
My siblings, probably. Never been all that fond of my name.
19. Would you do anything for people?
No. But I do a lot for people.
20. Have you ever been called a whore?
Not seriously.
21. Biggest success so far in life?
Surviving this long.
22. Do you use smiley faces on the computer a lot?
Far too often. :)
23. What song is on?
Song?
There's an episode of The Sentinel on TV, I suppose if you wanted to be really creative you could consider it a song put to no music.
24. Last time you didn't go to school?
I've been skipping school for the last 2 years. Woohoo!
25. Are your grades good?
They were.
26. Do you have any friends with benefits?
No.
27. Have you ever dated anyone on your top friends?
No.
28. Does your best friend have a myspace?
I don't really have a 'best' friend.
29. Whose page did you last visit?
My LJ friends list.
30. Last time you went out to lunch?
To lunch? Hmmm... probably several months ago.
31. Would you rather be in a relationship that was a lie and be happy for a while or not be in it at all?
Probably not be in one at all, although at this point even a lie is sounding kinda nice.
These next two are fromfoxfire27... Five Things Meme and How Girly Are You. Since I'm a reasonable approximation of a man, I'm hoping not too girly, but then I did just do a survey for teen girls, so...
Five Things...
Five movies I could watch over and over again:
1. Serenity
2. Gattaca
3. The Princess Bride
4. X-Men 2?
5. Cube?
The last two aren't really all that good choices but they're movies I could think of.
Five songs I never get sick of:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Skipping because I don't really listen to music.
Five random things about me:
(Choose any five from the above meme)
Five items I would have a hard time living without:
1. My Tv
2. My computer
3. My VCR (since it lets me rewatch things my fading attention span has missed)
4. My books
5. My lungs
Five things I want to learn in my life:
1. Magic
2. How to write really really well.
3. Quantum physics
4. The mysteries of the universe
5. Other languages. Any of them.
Five people I tag to do this survey next:
Anyone who wants to.
How Girly Are YOu?
Answer yes or no to the following questions and then convert (if you can be bothered) the number of yesses to a percentage and that's how girly you are!
1. Do you squeal in delight when you see a friend's new hair cut? No, I'm not really a squealing type.
2. In the pub/club, do you always go to the bathroom with a friend? That sort of behaviour is generally frowned upon in my gender.
3. At home, do you need more shelf space in the bathroom? no, can't say that I do.
4. Do you try on friend's shoes/clothes/accessories when you visit them at their home? No
5. Do you know who your best friend's sister is dating? No, because I don't really have a best friend and I don't really tend to know who anyone's dating if they're not in my immediate family.
6. Do you have a GHD? A Gate Home Device? I wish!
7. Do you touch your make-up constantly? No, I don't wear makeup, so it needs very little touching up.
8. Do you like fluffy things hanging from your rear view mirror? No.
9. Do you put on a little girl voice when talking to male workers when asking them to help you? Very rarely.
10. Do you watch football because the players look nice? No. But I'm giving myself a point here anyway because I don't watch football at all and think watching sports is a pointless waste of time, and that's more traditionally a girly reaction than a male one.
11. Do you think pink is a good colour for bedrooms? No, except maybe if it's like a little girl's bedroom.
12. Would it be nice if your boyfriend was more interested in handbags? If I had a boyfriend, I suppose it would be nice if he was more interested in handbags than I was. But no, I'm not that picky.
13. Is your biggest monthly expense clothes, make-up and accessories? No
14. Do you know what the "OC" in The O.C. stands for? Yes
15. Can you text and talk at the same time? I don't have a cell phone with text messaging so probably not. However, I can type and talk at the same time, so I'm going to say yes anyway.
16. Do you know who Brad, Johnny and George refer to? I can make a guess. If they're suppose to be celebrities generally considered sexy then yes. If they're supposed to be group together (like all members of a band or something) then no. But I'll go with yes.
17. Do you know what your exact hair colour is (ie. Clairol no. 52)? Yes. Brown. That's as exact as I'm going to get. (But for points purposes, I'll probably say no, because I consider brown to be exact which I don't think is considered very girly)
18. Do you have an emergency manicure set in your handbag? No. I don't even have a handbag.
19. Have you ever been in a circle of girls jumping and squealing in delight? I wish!
20. When a friend breaks up with her boyfriend, do you go around to her place with ice cream and a movie? No. I'd probably just do a: *comforts*.
21. Do you have more handbags than necessary? No, I have exactly as many hnadbags as is necessary. 0
22. Do you hate wearing runners unless you're going to the gym? No
23. Do you have more than 3 lipglosses in your handbag? No.
24. Do you buy something because of its colour? Not generally. Sometimes I won't buy something because of its color, though.
25. Do you know all the characters (both male and female) in Sex and the City? No
26. Do you wear your sunglasses on the top of your head so people can see your eyes? No, but I almost never wear sunglasses at all.
27. Have you always worn make-up when going out (even in the past)? I don't suppose halloween counts (even if it is in the past!) so no.
28. Do you go to the beauticians more than twice a month? No
29. Do you watch soap operas religiously? No
30. Do you know what a pashmina is? Not exactly, no.
4/30 = 13.3333333333333333333333333% Girly
Book Foo:
Finished: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling
Some general thoughts (spoiler lite) behind the cut.
I liked this one a little better than the first, perhaps because no time needed to be spent establishing elements i'd already absorbed just due to the whole pop culturalness of the Harry Potter phenomenon. It still didn't knock my socks off, but it was mildly enjoyable and I'll read the next one.
I still have no urge to obsess about romantic pairings (the closest I came was a general feeling the Ginny's crush on Harry was kind of cute in the sense that if it were a sitcom there'd be an Awwwwwwwwwwww audience reaction sound), nor to read or write smutty slashfic. Maybe that kicks in with the third book.
Also finished: Ilium, by Dan Simmons
Minor spoilers behind the cut along with my thoughts and a quote (the quote contains some Proust spoilers)
Anyway, I actually really enjoyed this one far more than I thought I would. The Trojan War literary stuff wasn't impressive and actually made it interesting. (There was a little with some Shakespearean stuff towards the end that I didn't care for much though).
The book had three different plots going on that didn't connect at all except a little towards the very end (and presumably in the next book), but Simmons accomplished what's a rarity in books like that - all three parts held my attention and I never felt disappointed to be changing on to a plotline I didn't like very much (except of course, when one plotline was on a cliffhanger and I really wanted to see what happened).
Also in its favour is that there's one of the plot elements is among my favorite underutilized conflicts - where Men decide to tell capricious gods 'screw you' and actually face off against them.
Anyway, a quote that interested me. Some of it's actually from Proust, but one of the main characters (a robot with some organic parts and thus has to breathe, just for context) loves Proust whereas another is more interested in Shakespeare..
"Listen, here's a passage that comes after the growing wings and new lungs on Mars bit. DO you want it in French or English?"
"English," Mahnmut said quickly. This close to a terrible death from suffocation, he didn't want the added torture of listening to French.
"The only true voyage, the only Fountain of Youth," recited Orphu, "would be found not in traveling to strange lands but in having different eyes, in seeing the universe with the eyes of another person, of a hundred others, and seeing the hundred universes each of them sees, which each of them is."
Mahnmut actually forgot about their imminent asphyxiation for a minute as he thought about this. "That's Marcel's fourth and final answer to the puzzle of life, isn't it, Orphu?"
The Ionian stayed quiet.
"I mean," continued Mahnmut, "you said that the first three failed for Marcel. He tried believing in snobbery. He tried believing in friendship and love. He tried believing in art. None of it worked as a transcendent theme. So this fourth. This..." He could not find the right word or phrase.
"Consciousness escaping the limits of consciousness," Orphu said quietly. "Imagination outstripping the bounds of imagination."
Not sure why this passage stuck in my head. I guess it's because I've always been driven by two drives.. one, to sort of cement myself, center myself, know who I am and be true to it, and yet at the same time to escape the boundaries of myself, to explore other points of view even ones completely alien to me. I think it's one of the reasons my ideal afterlife includes the ability to basically temporarily become other people, at least if used properly, or to be yourself in a completely impossible universe, or a mixture of both.
Anyway, overall, really enjoyed the book and glad I bought the sequel already so I don't have to go searching for it.
Started: The Stainless Steel Rat by Harry Harrison (Wednesday)
and Olympos, by Dan Simmons (Friday and Sunday).
Olympos is of course the sequel to Ilium, and TSSR is about a criminal in the future. I've only read a few pages in, but he seems to be an entertaining character so far.
tadiera...The Random Meme
The Official Rules: Write a journal entry with 10 random facts about yourself. Then, pick 10 of your friends list and tag them. These rules should be included in your entry.
Most of these facts people probably already know from previous 'random facts' stuff or general journal comments, because I'm not very interesting and there's only so many facts to go around.
1. I don't listen to music. I don't hate music, I just don't feel any particular attachment to it. There are occasionally some songs I find myself singing to myself in my head, but I just never feel an urge to deliberately go out and try to listen to a song.
2. I wear jeans and a t-shirt year round, with only a light jacket to cover me even in the harshest Canadian winter (plus gloves and a toque, of course).
3. At work, while waiting for the truck, I climb up on the highest shelf in the back to read and occasionally scare the other employees, or help them, as the case may be.
4. If I ever become a published writer I plan to donate many of my works to the public domain upon my death.
5. I had juvenile arthritis and a cataract as a kid. The arthritis is gone, but despite surgery on my left eye I still can't see clearly through it and my mind has edited out of my perception unless I consciously try to see through it.
6. I live in my imagination probably more than is healthy, sometimes Walter Mittying through events and imagining them as more fantastic than they are, and other times just sitting and pretending I'm in some other situation.
7. I walk about 6 hours a week nowadays, and someday I'd like to walk across the country even though I know I probably never will.
8. I'm a horrible packrat. I have a hard time throwing out things even of no conceivable use.
9. The last video game console I had was the Super Nintendo. The newest computer game I've played is Civilization III (or Black and White, or Planescape Torment, whichever came out most recently). Yet I regularly watch video game news and review shows.
10. I'm a passionate believer in AI rights, although I also support other civil rights battles that are more in the public eye (gay marriage, etc).
Tagging:
I'm tagging anyone who wants to do this. But only 10.
Also from
tadiera, a survey from myspace targetted at teenage girls. But I'm humoring my inner teenage girl so I'll answer it.1. Would you kiss the last person you kissed again?
Probably, since it was family (ha, convenient loopholes!)
2. What song describes your relationship status?
Nowhere Man
3. How much does your dog weigh?
A svelte 0 pounds. If I can get him to lose just a little more, I'll have invented antigravity!
4. Do you have hair in the middle parts of your fingers?
Yes. Except for the first finger on each hand, which is strangely smooth.
5. Ever waxed your legs?
No. It doesn't sound much like something I'd do.
6. Earrings or necklaces?
Neither.
7. Who have you talked to most today?
My brother, I guess?
8. What is the oldest message in your inbox on your phone?
Phone?
9. Friend of the opposite sex that lives closest to you?
Well, my friends of the opposite sex are all online, so I'd say that's probably either
woot or 80sfiend. Probably woot.10. Color of your shirt?
At the moment, white with some black lettering and such.
11. How many years have you been taking a language?
I've been taking English all my life.
12. Whos on speed dial 5?
Speed dial?
13. What color is your background on your computer mainly?
Blueish, I suppose, since one computer has a background of Serenity hovering over a planet, and another is a tropical beach scene with blue sky.
14. Do you wish on 11:11?
No. It seems pointless.
15. Good advice if you ever go camping?
Never eat polar bear liver, it can contain lethal concentrations of vitamin A.
16. Are you a bad influence?
Nah, I'm a good influence.
I7. What color are your eyes?
Brown.
18. Would you rather have your name or your siblings name?
My siblings, probably. Never been all that fond of my name.
19. Would you do anything for people?
No. But I do a lot for people.
20. Have you ever been called a whore?
Not seriously.
21. Biggest success so far in life?
Surviving this long.
22. Do you use smiley faces on the computer a lot?
Far too often. :)
23. What song is on?
Song?
There's an episode of The Sentinel on TV, I suppose if you wanted to be really creative you could consider it a song put to no music.
24. Last time you didn't go to school?
I've been skipping school for the last 2 years. Woohoo!
25. Are your grades good?
They were.
26. Do you have any friends with benefits?
No.
27. Have you ever dated anyone on your top friends?
No.
28. Does your best friend have a myspace?
I don't really have a 'best' friend.
29. Whose page did you last visit?
My LJ friends list.
30. Last time you went out to lunch?
To lunch? Hmmm... probably several months ago.
31. Would you rather be in a relationship that was a lie and be happy for a while or not be in it at all?
Probably not be in one at all, although at this point even a lie is sounding kinda nice.
These next two are from
foxfire27... Five Things Meme and How Girly Are You. Since I'm a reasonable approximation of a man, I'm hoping not too girly, but then I did just do a survey for teen girls, so...Five Things...
Five movies I could watch over and over again:
1. Serenity
2. Gattaca
3. The Princess Bride
4. X-Men 2?
5. Cube?
The last two aren't really all that good choices but they're movies I could think of.
Five songs I never get sick of:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Skipping because I don't really listen to music.
Five random things about me:
(Choose any five from the above meme)
Five items I would have a hard time living without:
1. My Tv
2. My computer
3. My VCR (since it lets me rewatch things my fading attention span has missed)
4. My books
5. My lungs
Five things I want to learn in my life:
1. Magic
2. How to write really really well.
3. Quantum physics
4. The mysteries of the universe
5. Other languages. Any of them.
Five people I tag to do this survey next:
Anyone who wants to.
How Girly Are YOu?
Answer yes or no to the following questions and then convert (if you can be bothered) the number of yesses to a percentage and that's how girly you are!
1. Do you squeal in delight when you see a friend's new hair cut? No, I'm not really a squealing type.
2. In the pub/club, do you always go to the bathroom with a friend? That sort of behaviour is generally frowned upon in my gender.
3. At home, do you need more shelf space in the bathroom? no, can't say that I do.
4. Do you try on friend's shoes/clothes/accessories when you visit them at their home? No
5. Do you know who your best friend's sister is dating? No, because I don't really have a best friend and I don't really tend to know who anyone's dating if they're not in my immediate family.
6. Do you have a GHD? A Gate Home Device? I wish!
7. Do you touch your make-up constantly? No, I don't wear makeup, so it needs very little touching up.
8. Do you like fluffy things hanging from your rear view mirror? No.
9. Do you put on a little girl voice when talking to male workers when asking them to help you? Very rarely.
10. Do you watch football because the players look nice? No. But I'm giving myself a point here anyway because I don't watch football at all and think watching sports is a pointless waste of time, and that's more traditionally a girly reaction than a male one.
11. Do you think pink is a good colour for bedrooms? No, except maybe if it's like a little girl's bedroom.
12. Would it be nice if your boyfriend was more interested in handbags? If I had a boyfriend, I suppose it would be nice if he was more interested in handbags than I was. But no, I'm not that picky.
13. Is your biggest monthly expense clothes, make-up and accessories? No
14. Do you know what the "OC" in The O.C. stands for? Yes
15. Can you text and talk at the same time? I don't have a cell phone with text messaging so probably not. However, I can type and talk at the same time, so I'm going to say yes anyway.
16. Do you know who Brad, Johnny and George refer to? I can make a guess. If they're suppose to be celebrities generally considered sexy then yes. If they're supposed to be group together (like all members of a band or something) then no. But I'll go with yes.
17. Do you know what your exact hair colour is (ie. Clairol no. 52)? Yes. Brown. That's as exact as I'm going to get. (But for points purposes, I'll probably say no, because I consider brown to be exact which I don't think is considered very girly)
18. Do you have an emergency manicure set in your handbag? No. I don't even have a handbag.
19. Have you ever been in a circle of girls jumping and squealing in delight? I wish!
20. When a friend breaks up with her boyfriend, do you go around to her place with ice cream and a movie? No. I'd probably just do a: *comforts*.
21. Do you have more handbags than necessary? No, I have exactly as many hnadbags as is necessary. 0
22. Do you hate wearing runners unless you're going to the gym? No
23. Do you have more than 3 lipglosses in your handbag? No.
24. Do you buy something because of its colour? Not generally. Sometimes I won't buy something because of its color, though.
25. Do you know all the characters (both male and female) in Sex and the City? No
26. Do you wear your sunglasses on the top of your head so people can see your eyes? No, but I almost never wear sunglasses at all.
27. Have you always worn make-up when going out (even in the past)? I don't suppose halloween counts (even if it is in the past!) so no.
28. Do you go to the beauticians more than twice a month? No
29. Do you watch soap operas religiously? No
30. Do you know what a pashmina is? Not exactly, no.
4/30 = 13.3333333333333333333333333% Girly
Book Foo:
Finished: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling
Some general thoughts (spoiler lite) behind the cut.
I liked this one a little better than the first, perhaps because no time needed to be spent establishing elements i'd already absorbed just due to the whole pop culturalness of the Harry Potter phenomenon. It still didn't knock my socks off, but it was mildly enjoyable and I'll read the next one.
I still have no urge to obsess about romantic pairings (the closest I came was a general feeling the Ginny's crush on Harry was kind of cute in the sense that if it were a sitcom there'd be an Awwwwwwwwwwww audience reaction sound), nor to read or write smutty slashfic. Maybe that kicks in with the third book.
Also finished: Ilium, by Dan Simmons
Minor spoilers behind the cut along with my thoughts and a quote (the quote contains some Proust spoilers)
Anyway, I actually really enjoyed this one far more than I thought I would. The Trojan War literary stuff wasn't impressive and actually made it interesting. (There was a little with some Shakespearean stuff towards the end that I didn't care for much though).
The book had three different plots going on that didn't connect at all except a little towards the very end (and presumably in the next book), but Simmons accomplished what's a rarity in books like that - all three parts held my attention and I never felt disappointed to be changing on to a plotline I didn't like very much (except of course, when one plotline was on a cliffhanger and I really wanted to see what happened).
Also in its favour is that there's one of the plot elements is among my favorite underutilized conflicts - where Men decide to tell capricious gods 'screw you' and actually face off against them.
Anyway, a quote that interested me. Some of it's actually from Proust, but one of the main characters (a robot with some organic parts and thus has to breathe, just for context) loves Proust whereas another is more interested in Shakespeare..
"Listen, here's a passage that comes after the growing wings and new lungs on Mars bit. DO you want it in French or English?"
"English," Mahnmut said quickly. This close to a terrible death from suffocation, he didn't want the added torture of listening to French.
"The only true voyage, the only Fountain of Youth," recited Orphu, "would be found not in traveling to strange lands but in having different eyes, in seeing the universe with the eyes of another person, of a hundred others, and seeing the hundred universes each of them sees, which each of them is."
Mahnmut actually forgot about their imminent asphyxiation for a minute as he thought about this. "That's Marcel's fourth and final answer to the puzzle of life, isn't it, Orphu?"
The Ionian stayed quiet.
"I mean," continued Mahnmut, "you said that the first three failed for Marcel. He tried believing in snobbery. He tried believing in friendship and love. He tried believing in art. None of it worked as a transcendent theme. So this fourth. This..." He could not find the right word or phrase.
"Consciousness escaping the limits of consciousness," Orphu said quietly. "Imagination outstripping the bounds of imagination."
Not sure why this passage stuck in my head. I guess it's because I've always been driven by two drives.. one, to sort of cement myself, center myself, know who I am and be true to it, and yet at the same time to escape the boundaries of myself, to explore other points of view even ones completely alien to me. I think it's one of the reasons my ideal afterlife includes the ability to basically temporarily become other people, at least if used properly, or to be yourself in a completely impossible universe, or a mixture of both.
Anyway, overall, really enjoyed the book and glad I bought the sequel already so I don't have to go searching for it.
Started: The Stainless Steel Rat by Harry Harrison (Wednesday)
and Olympos, by Dan Simmons (Friday and Sunday).
Olympos is of course the sequel to Ilium, and TSSR is about a criminal in the future. I've only read a few pages in, but he seems to be an entertaining character so far.