AM Radio

I was listening to a news break on the AM radio (transistor, of course), which is almost always good for a laugh--and when it isn't, it's good for a big dose of despair. 

Neither this time, but there was a story about an actor who had died that gave me some food for thought. The newsman said that he had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's some time ago, but that he died of Covid.  Which immediately made me think about the people who argue that many (most?) people who die from Covid had underlying conditions that really killed them. That bullshit has always frustrated me, but I didn't really know what to say about it. But this news story gave me a thought:

If a person had a heart condition and they were crossing a street and got hit by a car and died, no one would argue that he died because of his heart condition. And that's the same thing, isn't it? Covid is that lethal car. Maybe the person with heart disease would have died in a year anyway. Maybe he would have died in a month. Or a week, or a day. But that is irrelevant. What killed him was the fucking car, man.

Thanks, AM radio. 

Jeopardy! and The Best of Manhunt

Earlier this afternoon I decided that instead of waiting until tomorrow, as I had intended to do, I would stop by the library (1) and pick up the book they were holding for me. While I was there, I picked up a couple of other things as well, one of which was The Best of Manhunt, edited by Jeff Worzimmer (2).

When I got home I put the library books on a side table and forgot about them, thinking I wouldn't get around to them for a week or so since I was trying to read Roots with a friend, and the pace he'd set was keeping me on my toes. But then I sat down to watch Jeopardy! with Jacqueline, and I pulled The Best of Manhunt off the table (3) to keep me company, because I don't like to just sit and watch tv. I saw that the Afterward was written by Barry Malzberg, for whom I have great love, so I flipped to the back of the book (4) and started reading that. I got through all but the last paragraph when I heard a woman on Jeopardy! mention the fact that when she was a teenager she'd been caught out of doors in a hailstorm...without her pants. (5)*  So I looked up. Guest Host Anderson Cooper asked the woman, "Did someone intentionally lock (6) you out of the house?" And the woman responded that no, she had taken her dog out and the door had locked behind her. That was enough for me, so I started to read the last paragraph of the Malzberg Afterward. On the second line I read

Which is (7), set, and match.

That's kind of weird, isn't it?

P.S. I got this book because it has a short story written by Harlan Ellison, "Rat Hater." I thought it was one I hadn't read, but turns out I had, as it was collected in The Deadly Streets. 

So there's that.

* Why the fuck do people go so far out of their way to make themselves look foolish on this show, I constantly wonder.

The Ghost Of A Saber Tooth Tiger: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

I don't post videos anymore...except when I do. Like now. But this one was put up by NPR, and they put a ➡️SHARE option on it, so I'm figuring that's on them, right?

ANYway...

I've listened to music from as many of the offspring of The Beatles as I know about...which means at least one per Beatle. I've spent the most time with Julian Lennon, more than a little bit with Dhani Harrison and James McCartney, a small bit with Zak Starkey, and almost no time at all with Sean Lennon. But for some reason a collaboration he did with Les Claypool popped up in my feed, and since my #1🌞 once had some fondness for Primus, I decided to give it a listen. 

And it didn't suck nearly as much as Primus, so I decided to see what else this Sean Lennon had been up to. 

Which eventually led me to The Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger, and of course when I saw that "group" (it's a duo) name I had to have a look at that, and since there was a Tiny Desk Concert available, that was my first choice. 

I sat down to watch, and...

  

Well, yes, it is quite a lovely little concert, isn't it? I am definitely going to look into this The Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger further. But first...well, let's just discuss the antelope in the room.

Sean Lennon's partner...who is also his Partner...one Charlotte Kemp Muhl...well...is it just me, or is she one of the most beautiful women you have ever seen? 

And I'm pretty sure that the NPR cameraman got caught up in that, too, since the camera spends an inordinate amount of time on Ms. Muhl's face.

And in case that's not enough, she is also a multi-instrumentalist, has a lovely voice, is a writer, actor, and director, and--big surprise--a model.

Holy shit. 

I mean...Holy Shit!

Just thought you should know.

Matthew Thompson

 I just texted a message to a friend which ended with the word "amenable."

It's a good word...and one that I use on a pretty regular basis.

And every time I use it, I hear a sentence behind it:

"Some spirits are not amenable to propitiation."

It's a line from the novel How Akira Was Restored to Life by Matthew H. Thompson. 

Don't bother Googling it, though. You won't find it. God knows I've tried many times over the past two decades or so.

I have a copy of the novel sitting on my bedroom bureau. It was sent to me by Matthew H. Thompson, who was one of the best friends I've ever had on this planet.

We met in 1977, when I joined what was then the 101st Airborne Division (Operations Security Platoon) at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. Matthew, who had trained as a Chinese linguist, was working as the supply sergeant. If that makes no sense to you, then you've obviously never been in the military. Matthew seemed very odd to me initially--a bit distant, a bit haughty, even--but it didn't take long for me to see that he was exactly the friend I needed to help me survive two and a half years in the United States Army. 

I remember the time we stayed up all night drinking ice tea and talking.

I remember the day I bought Bruce Springsteen's Darkness on the Edge of Town, and we sat in the rec room playing it over and over again until the words and music had been ground into our souls.

Speaking of Springsteen, I remember the time we drove down to Nashville to see Springsteen in concert.

And the time we listened to David JoHansen's first solo album together.

And the time he got busted for writing notes which were signed, El Lobo, and I took over, writing notes signed Le Obol.

And a lot of other times. Music and books and Lucky Strikes ("Let's smoke, cunt!"). 

We stayed in contact for a good long while after we got out of the army. I even flew to New Jersey to visit him once. And we wrote long letters and exchanged manuscripts...which is how I came into possession of How Akira Was Restored to Life...and I thought that we would be friends forever. Hell, my first son's middle name was Matthew...after my best friend.

But somehow...I lost touch. I really don't know how it happened. I lost most of my mind when my first wife divorced me, and that was probably part of it. And eight years later when my second wife divorced me I lost what little of my mind had been left after the first divorce. Still...how could I have lost touch with Matthew?

I don't know.

I've Googled and searched Facebook and written emails to likely candidates, but I have never managed to get back in touch with him. 

But every time that I use the word "amenable"...there he is. And there is the ache for the loss of him.

"You are the Spring for which I have yearned... through the long icy winter."

Sieglinde to Siegmund 

The Valkyrie

by Richard Wagner

Love.

It's a lovely idea, isn't it?

Black Science by Rick Remender & Matteo Scalera

Back in the day...November 27, 2013, to be specific...I bought the first issue of Black Science courtesy of Image Comics and The Great Escape. I liked it enough to come back and buy the second issue on December 18, 2013. And I liked that enough to come back on January 29, 2014, for issue three. But then I called it a day. Not because I was unhappy with it...just because it cost $3.50 a pop, and to me, that was a bit too pricey. (Of course, now comics are $3.99 to $4.99 per issue, so there's that.) Also, although I liked the art (by Matteo Scalera) quite a bit, it was kind of odd...and, to be honest, a little hard to follow at times. So I moved on.

But I was checking to see what e-comics were available at the Louisville Free Public Library the other day, and lo and behold, all 9 collected volumes of Black Science...comprising the complete 43 issue run...was available. 

So I got the first volume. 

Read it. 

It was pretty good. 

I went back and got the second and third volumes.

In the second volume, there was a little plot twist (no spoilers here, don't worry) and a character unexpectedly says this:

And I had to stop for a moment and let that percolate in my brain. The ability to keep a promise is the definition of one's worth. Yeah, that works for me. My father used to have a more prosaic (not to mention a more scatological) version of this statement: "A man who's not worth his word isn't worth shit." 

And after all...what is a person who doesn't keep his / her word? 

At best, a person who promises what they can't deliver. 

At worst, a person who lies, manipulates, and has no honor. 

I have to admit that I tend to think it's the latter in most cases.

Where does that leave us today? Well...I see a lot of promises that are not kept. I see a lot of promises that are broken. A lot of hot air sending a lot of empty balloons up where the air is clear.

A lot of people who aren't worth a whole hell of a lot.

Yeah, that is harsh, Dad. 

So is fucking people over because it's not convenient to keep your word, though.

Well.

That's pretty heavy thinking to come out of reading a science fiction comic book, ennit?

Pardonne-moi...going to go read some more Black Science. 

Roots

I had a Facebook message a month and ten days ago from a former student. It's always good to hear from former students, but in this case, he brought me the very unhappy news that my friend Louis had died. Long story reference how he knew this before I did, even though he lives in Colorado and Louis and I both live in Louisville, but never mind that.

We continued to message each other, and then he came up with the idea to read a book as a kind of tribute to Louis. I suggested Roots, since Louis used to show the mini-series every year to his students. I have to admit that I didn't realize how huge that book is...688 pages in the hardback edition I bought from Thrift Books ($6.13 including tax and shipping, "acceptable" condition, no dust jacket). But my new FF wanted to get going right away, suggested we do 10 chapters per week, and off we went. There are 120 chapters, so theoretically it will take us twelve weeks to finish.

That sounds a bit daunting to me, since I am, as usual, reading a lot of other books right now *, but I like reading with other people, and my FF is very committed to this challenge **, so I'm going to buckle down and get it done. 

This Friday morning I started reading Chapter 20. My goal is to get to the end of Chapter 30 by next Friday morning...a journey of 58 pages. So that seems pretty do-able. And thus far, at least, the book is pretty fascinating. For one thing, it reads like a novel. There's character development, intense description of the scene, and some pretty fucking ominous foreshadowing. In fact, even though I intend to watch the mini-series when I finish the book ***, the book is written in such a way that I feel like I am watching a movie sometimes.

There are many things which have struck me in the 76 pages I have read so far, but here's something which I found particularly noteworthy...and heartbreaking.

Omoro Kinte is talking to his son, Kunta, about the dangers of the white slave traders who have come to Africa. He says,

"The things I'm going to tell you now, you must hear with more than your ears - for not to do what I say can mean you're being stolen away forever!... Never be alone when you can help it... Never be out at night when you can help it. And day or night, when you're alone, keep away from any high weeds or bush if you can avoid it."

It hit me that this was not so different from the words that Black parents have to say to their sons and daughters today...especially with reference to interactions with the police.

That's a sad fucking thought, isn't it?

* (1) The Second World War: Volume V, Closing the Ring, (2) The Skull Measurer’s Mistake: And Other Portraits of Men and Women Who Spoke Out Against Racism, (3) Foundation's Friends, (4) Saints: A Year in Faith and Art, (5) Orthodox Study Bible, (6) The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood (Great Illustrated Classics), (7) Beautiful Bible Stories, (8) The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Great Illustrated Classics), and (9) Apache Devil.

** I have tried to read books with other people many times in the past. It has always been at their suggestion. None of them has followed through. So finding someone who is actually committed to keep reading and find time to sit and chat about what we've read is a true joy for me.

*** I'm sorry to say that I've never seen more than a few glimpses of it before, but I'm glad to say that it is available via HBOmax, which is becoming one of my bestest friends.

Exterminate All the Brutes

I was watching the first episode of the four part series Exterminate All the Brutes (on HBO Max) and had to stop about fifteen minutes before the end when it became clear that a man was about to be dismembered. My daughter was walking around the house and I didn't want her to see that image. The image of a man's hand being cut off...because he hadn't supplied a white man with a sufficient quantity of rubber for the day.

Earlier on in the program, Jacqueline had paused in her walking because there was a scene with some Swedish children celebrating the feast of St. Lucy (Sankta Lucia). There was one little girl, blonde haired and blue-eyed, who walked with a crown of lit candles atop her head. 

One year, they replaced the little White girl with a Black kid. They got vicious hate mail.

Later on, there was a scene where White soldiers were massacring Seminoles in Florida. Jacqueline wasn't in the room, so I didn't hit the stop button. But she came back as the White soldiers were walking through the scene of their carnage, and the bodies of the slain Seminoles were lying on the ground. Jacqueline stopped and said, "Look at all those Indians died. Oh, those poor Indians." Then when the camera cut to one of the soldiers, she asked, "Is that a bad guy?" 

The fact that she immediately got it...and the simplicity of her statement...catalyzed the horror. 

Jacqueline left the room, and I continued to watch. 

Most of what I saw and heard was not new to me, but it still hurt. 

Some of what I saw and heard connected with some of my recent readings, especially in Fernand Braudel (Civilization and Capitalism, 15th–18th Century and The Mediterranean and the Mediterranean World in the Age of Philip II) and a book I was inspired to read because of Braudel, This Happened in My Presence: Moriscos, Old Christians, and the Spanish Inquisition in the Town of Deza, 1569-1611. 

But those were words.

It hurt more to see the images.

The living room is about to be overtaken by Zoom therapy sessions and Day Program meetings, and I probably won't be able to get back to Exterminate All the Brutes until this evening. But I will get back to it, for certain.

Even though there is a part of me that doesn't want to see this horror show, that wants to say, "That's enough, I get it. I'm not part of the problem, I'm part of the solution."

To be continued....

The Second World War by Winston S. Churchill (6 volumes): Volume V: Closing the Ring

And now, the penultimate volume...which is a little bit shorter than the last one. In fact, at 650 text pages, it's the shortest of all the volumes. And if I stick to the 20 pages per day, it will take me 32 1/2 days to finish this one off...May 21st. Let's see how that goes, shall we?

Day 1 (DDRD 1,265): April 19, 2021

Read to page 20. In the introduction (which, unless my memory is seriously damaged, is the same in every volume), John Keegan says of the six volumes of The Second World War: "they have their defects...." I have read several biographies in which the writer had something of similar ilk...basically a stab in the direction of "Well, he's great, but not that great." It could be taken as Honesty in a Warts And All kind of way, but it always seems like sour grapes to me. I mean...everybody's heard of Winston Churchill, right? Raise your hand if you've heard of John Keegan.

Day 2 (DDRD 1,266): April 20, 2021

Read to page 40.

It's most about getting ready to invade Italy...from Sicily and then straight up the toe. Speaking of which, did you know that it's less than 8 kilometers from Sicily to Italy proper? On a light lunch you could jump that.

There's a description of a botched mission which I found very touching...in a heart-rending way. Churchill describes how the British 1st Air Landing Brigade were going in to get things started, and the American towing aircraft cast them off too early. As a result, many of the men on those gliders drowned, and the rest were scattered over south-eastern Sicily. Only 12 of the gliders arrived at their target, a bridge, and "Out of eight officers and sixty-five men who seized and held it until help came twelve hours later only nineteen survived." (32)

Churchill doesn't really express a great deal of emotion about it, which reminds me of some of his previous Price of Doing War statements. Which is harsh, but I guess that's what happens to you when you have to make decisions on that level. Not something I could ever do, for sure.

As I was reading today...and enjoying the read, I hasten to add...I started thinking that after I finish The Second World War, I might turn to László Krasznahorkai's Baron Wenckheim's Homecoming. I'm a little hesitant to do another novel, but (1) I really want to read this before the next Krasznahorkai book comes out, which looks to be soon, (2) it was a gift from my #1🌞, and I don't want it to just sit on my shelf any longer, and (3) I think I will be needing a break from non-fiction in two months (give or take). We'll see how it goes.

Day 3 (DDRD 1,267): April 21, 2021

Read to page 60. Timed it, and it took 41:06. So there's that. This section was focused on the Fall of Mussolini...and the imminent Fall of Italy.

In other news...

I was watching Part 3 of Exterminate All the Brutes this morning ("Killing at a Distance or...How I Thoroughly Enjoyed the Outing"), and early into it there was a mention of Churchill. I immediately cringed and waited for the blow. Raoul Peck (writer, director, producer, and narrator) said something like, "Churchill was one of the most enthusiastic describers of wars," and I cringed. What followed was revolting--a description of a well-armed British militia slaughtering Sudanese soldiers from afar, inuring few casualties themselves--but I didn't get the feeling that Churchill was enjoying it, as Raoul Peck seemed to imply. Or maybe I'm just influenced by my love of The Second World War. Although I have noted several times where Churchill's acceptance of casualties bothered me...but within a context that I understood. So there's that.

Day 4 (DDRD 1,268): April 22, 2021

Read to page 80. 

Day 5 (DDRD 1,269): April 23, 2021

Read to page 100. It's about over for Italy. And Russia is still being a bitch dog.

Day 6 (DDRD 1,270): April 24, 2021

Read to page 120. More kicking of Italian asses. It's amazing how great an influence the entry of American forces had on the course of battle...even though most of the American strength is concentrated on the Pacific Battle at the moment. Also, I had no idea how long it took to plan the Normandy Invasion. Years! And the lengths that they had to go to to assemble everyone in Britain, build ports that could handle the ships, all of that. Churchill also made reference to "softening up" the French coast prior to the invasion force entering the scene, which is something I've often wondered about. (As in "How the hell did they send those guys in to be slaughtered when all they needed to do was bomb the shit out of the coast before they unloaded the troops?") Still no answer, but at least a hint that there is one somewhere down the line.

Day 7 (DDRD 1,271): April 25, 2021

Read to page 140.

I'm feeling a strong desire to dig out my copy of Saving Private Ryan. I've already located The Thin Red Line, but it hasn't made it to the dvd player yet. And I just started reading my third Sven Lindqvist book, A History of Bombing. It's amazing how much there is no know, isn't it? If I were a young man....

Day 8 (DDRD 1,272): April 26, 2021

Read to page 160. Here are a couple of cool things:

That one's for Trump and his disciples.

And I think this is for people who lightly dismiss the concept of religion and / or belief in God.

Day 9 (DDRD 1,273): April 27, 2021

Read to page 180. 

Day 10 (DDRD 1,274): April 28, 2021

Read to page 200.

Seems to me that FDR was getting a little pissy with Winston S. over the whole Italy mop-up thing. And before this, they were usually writing from Former Naval Person to President, but for a stretch here it was Prime Minister to and from. Well, every marriage has its moments of disagreement, I suppose.

Speaking of Italy...or thereabouts...there's a couple of pages about The Battle of Leros, which turned out to be a turning point in the war in the Mediterranean. Short version: Leros is a small island (less than 21 square miles) in the Aegean Sea. The Nazis had it, and the Allies wanted it. But a big battle ensued, and the Allies got chased out. Because of that, they pretty much abandoned their plan to run up through Greece. I took a little look at Leros, and it is quite a charming place. But don't take my word for it, check out this video:

If that's not good, I don't know what is. Wish I could go for a visit.

Oh, I almost forgot: got a new word today...from a letter that a general wrote to Churchill: asseveration. According to lexico.com, it goes like this:

"The solemn or emphatic declaration or statement of something.

Origin

Mid 16th century from Latin asseveratio(n-), from the verb asseverare, from ad- ‘to’ + severus ‘serious’." 

Which also tells you something about Professor Snape, doesn't it?

Day 11 (DDRD 1,275): April 29, 2021

Read to page 220.

You know, one of the things I never appreciated was how inter-related the different war fronts were. So, for instance, the Allies couldn't send troops into northern France when Stalin was demanding that they do so because they didn't have enough troops to make a successful go of it, and because of that, extreme pressure was put on the Russians because Hitler could send lots of his troops to the east. The same thing is happening in Italy now. They don't have the troops that they really need to push the Germans out of Italy because they can't endanger the upcoming Normandy Invasion. Wheels within wheels. 

Day 12 (DDRD 1,276): 𐑴April 30, 2021𐑴 *

Read to page 246. Read a little extra today because I got caught up in the pissing contest between Stalin and Churchill. Of course we're only getting Churchill's side of it, but since he reproduces pretty long letters (maybe telegrams?) from Stalin, there must be at least a great deal of truth in his position. Basically, Stalin is making demands of the Brits vis-a-vis supplies while simultaneously denying them the personnel they need on site...and treating the British personnel already in Russia unjustly. Definitely getting the idea that Stalin was a total asshole. 

*   It's Oaks Day. 𐑴 = Shavian Letter Oak. **

** The Shavian Alphabet was named after George Bernard Shaw, who had something or other to do with its conception and funding.

 

Day 13 (DDRD 1,277): 🏇May 1, 2021🏇

Kentucky Derby Day. About which I do not care at all. Not even one gram of horseshit. 

Read to page 261. More belligerence from those pesky Russians. Wanted to keep reading, but my girl was watching Noah, and it's hard to concentrate on World War II with all that rain.

This--

"I do not accept the American argument that our metropolitan Air Forces can flatten everything out in the battle zone or on its approaches. This has not been our present experience." (254)

--is another piece of the answer to the question, "Why didn't the Allies bomb the living hell out of Normandy before they went in?"

Day 14 (DDRD 1,278): May 2, 2021

Read to page 280.

Day 15 (DDRD 1,279): May 3, 2021

Read to page 300. Which means that I finished Book 1: Italy Won, and began Book 2, Tehran to Rome. Along the way, there was an interesting description of a Thanksgiving meal with FDR, who apparently had great turkey carving skills. Who'd have thunk it?

Day 16 (DDRD 1,280): May 4, 2021

Read to page 320. The conference in Tehran with Churchill, FDR, and Stalin would make a great movie, I think. Hollywood, if you're listening....

Day 17 (DDRD 1,281): May 5, 2021

Read to page 340. (Of 640. And the text ends on page 559. So.)

Also, since the Normandy Invasion is coming up hard now, I started looking around a bit for some information on that, including pictures related to the situation. One which caught my eye was this:

Public Domain

It was captioned thusly:

A British soldier escorts an elderly lady in Caen, July 1944

Malindine E G (Capt), No 5 Army Film & Photographic Unit.

I'm going to try to think about this picture every time that I start thinking that the human race sucks.

Day 18 (DDRD 1,282): May 6, 2021

Read to page 360. D-Day is still a half year away, but the Allies are talking about how they're going to divide Germany up after the war. Pretty optimistic at this point.

Public Domain 

Day 19 (DDRD 1,283): May 7, 2021

Read to page 380.

You know, it's funny. Some days I feel like pushing hard and reading forty, fifty, one hundred pages. But I don't, because I don't have that much time, for one thing, and it's not an effortless read, for another, and I have other books I also want to read, for yet another. But some days I don't feel like reading in it at all, and I push myself to do at least ten pages, and once I have that down I think, "Well, I might as well do twenty, then." And there are other days when I think, "I'm just going to stop reading this book, at least for awhile. I've been living every day with Winston Churchill for the past five and a half months, and although I am fond of him, I'm ready to start seeing other people." But then I think, "Hell, I've got five and a half months without missing a beat...why fuck that up now when the end is in sight?" I guess that 's the thing about the whole Daily Devotional Reading approach. It's challenging, but not too challenging, certainly not daunting. And when you look back and think, "Fuck...I've read about 6,000 pages on this Program!"...it inclines you to keep on keeping on. 

So I do.

Day 20 (DDRD 1,284): May 8, 2021

Read to page 400.

Day 21 (DDRD 1,285): May 9, 2021

Read to page 420. I had the (admittedly vague) impression that Marshal Tito was a bad guy. From what I've read about him here, that doesn't seem to be the case. Actually, I had the same thing going on with Charles de Gaulle. News as it happens.

Also, there was this bit of funny: Churchill had a meeting with General de Gaulle and some other French people. He said that de Gaulle was speaking in English, so "to make things equal" Churchill decided to  speak French (!). At one point in the meeting Churchill leaned over and stage-whispered to one of his companions (in English), "I'm doing rather well, aren't I? Now that the General speaks English so well he understands my French perfectly."

Day 22 (DDRD 1,286): May 10, 2021

Read to page 440.

Stop me if this sounds familiar: 

"All those leaders of the old Fascist régime who had voted against him in July and who could be caught in German-occupied Italy were brought to trial at the end of 1943, in the medieval fortress at Verona. Among them was Ciano. Without exception they received the death sentence." (439)

"Him" in this case was Mussolini...a two bit dictator who ended up being executed himself...and then his body was abused by Italian citizens.

Hmmm.

Day 23 (DDRD 1,287): May 11, 2021

Read to page 460.

Day 24 (DDRD 1,288): May 12, 2021

Read to page 480.

Day 25 (DDRD 1,289): May 13, 2021

Read to page 500. 

Day 26 (DDRD 1,290): May 14, 2021

Read to page 520. Al...most...D...Day....

More references to bombing the shit out of the beach before the invasion. I wonder what the hell happened there? How could so many German troops have survived a massive beach bombing before the invasion? Read on and find out, I guess.

Day 27 (DDRD 1,291): May 15, 2021

Read to page 541...which means I finish the text proper (and begin the Appendices) tomorrow. And presumably it will be X-Ray time.

Day 28 (DDRD 1,292): May 16, 2021

Read to page 565...a little extra, and yes, into the Appendices. A and B were short ones...Abbreviations and Code names, respectively, so on into C. And a mere 75 pages to go, so barring The Unforeseen, I should be finishing up before my predicted finish date of 5/21 by at least a little bit.

Day 29 (DDRD 1,293): May 17, 2021

Read to page 587. Was aiming for 590, but I was kind of busy and really tired. I''ll try to even it up tomorrow.

In a letter dating from July of 1943, Churchill referred to General  Oliver Leese as a man who was fit for a position in part because he was "in the prime of life." I looked up General Leese and saw that he was born on the 27th of October, 1894. Making him 48 years old at the time of Churchill's letter. So 48 years old is still in the prime of life? Hmmm. I'm thinking that only an old man would say that.

Day 30 (DDRD 1,294): May 18, 2021

Read to page 610. 

As I've noted previously, it is astonishing at how Churchill gets invovled in the smallest details relating to the war. In a couple of memos he addresses the need to produce more playing cards for the troops. In another he asks why there is a leaky sandbag on a piece of property opposite one of the government buildings. And so on.

There are only thirty more pages to read...and at least seven of those pages are lists of things. I'm thinking that I might be able to finish it up tomorrow.

Very exciting.

Day 31 (DDRD 1,295): May 19, 2021

Read to page 673...in other words, finito. And two whole days before the anticipated date.

There were some primo Churchill things in these last pages. One of my favorites was this bit, from a letter to the Director of Military Intelligence, dated 19 March 1944: 

"Why must you write 'intensive' here? 'Intense' is the right word. You should read Fowler's Modern English Usage on the use of the two words." (615 )

Talk about attention to detail. With a side dish of sass. Said Director of Military Intelligence would seem to be (according to my Wikipedia search) one Major General Francis Henry Norman Davidson, though he wasn't identified in the text.

Also, there was this:

And with that...it's on to the final volume. 

DDR Day 1000 to Day 2000:

(1) Leviathan 63 days, 729 pages
(2) Stalingrad 27 days, 982 pages
(3) Life and Fate 26 days, 880 pages
(4) The Second World War 34 + 32 + 40 +  43 + 31 + ___ days, 4,379 pages  Total: 6,970 pages...more than 1/2 of my first 1,000 DDR days

The Amazon Penis

 

It's probably naive of me to ask, but that's never stopped me before, so here goes: Do you think Amazon intentionally made their arrow look like a penis?

I mean...there are arrows...

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and there are arrows made to look like penises:

(Albeit penises which lean towards Peyronie's disease.)

The FedEx arrow doesn't look like a penis:

And Cialis and Viagra don't even have arrows or penises in their logos...which seems a bit short-sighted to me:

[Free suggestions for Cialis and Viagra: Try these on for size. No pun intended.

 

Please remit your generous payment to Brother K Enterprises, care of this blog.]

It's all 'bout that arrow, 'bout that arrow, no tremble.

So why would Amazon want to shove a penis in your face?

Well, some people like that kind of thing, of course. So there's that. * But often advertising seems to work on the premise that if they can catch your attention, it doesn't matter if you like it or not. Your attention is caught, an impression is made, and all of a sudden there's an arrow sinking into your O every time you turn around. And since (for the moment at least, but I think the North Wall is starting to show some damage from the Barbarian Catapult Attack) there are limits on what an advertiser can do vis-à-vis penises), the Amazon folks decided to go for the stylized arrow...which also gives them some plausible deniability...not to mention the "You have a dirty mind!" defense.

Well. I am still shunning Amazon. No purchases since late December 2020. I buy my used books from Better World Books, Thrift Books, and eBay. I buy other stuff from Walmart, which lets you use PayPal at checkout. There are some things I miss which I could easily buy from Amazon, and it may come to that some day, but I'm going to hold out as long as I can. And if I do give in, I'm going to try to do it without giving them my credit card information. They've proven to me that they don't give a shit about my security, so they don't get the thousands of dollars I used to spend every year on their shit. 

I don't want their gonorrhea. **

* Not that there's anything wrong with that.

** Lil Wayne, in case you missed that. 

The Book I Read to Pieces: Foundation and Earth by Isaac Asimov

 Well...I only paid a buck fifty for it, and it was 33 years old, so it's not exactly a surprise that this book disintegrated as I read it. But it's still a bit of a shame, isn't it? On the other hand, I am certain I'll never read this book again, so I guess I'm not really out anything.

Because?

Well, mostly because I am moving on, moving on--but not because it's getting phony. Because I have a lot of books left to read, and not that many years left to read them in. But to tell you the truth...this book was more than a bit of a disappointment for me. I am loathe to spoil anything, but I must just say this: The final chapters of this book actually undermine the entire Foundation series. They also link it up to another Asimov series, so that's nice, but really...why would Asimov blow up the series that is considered by many (most?) science fiction readers to be his finest achievement? (1966 Best All-Time Series Hugo Award: Foundation series by Isaac Asimov.) 

Well. Let's just say that it made the "final" book in The Foundation Series (quotation marks courtesy of the fact that later on Asimov wrote two prequels and three other guys wrote another trilogy that fit in between those Asimov prequels and Foundation, so it's final in some senses, but not in others) more than a bit of a letdown. Unfortunately, if you want to read the series, you really have to read this book, as skipping it would just leave everything set up in Foundation's Edge dangling from that edge. So basically you're screwed either way, but maybe knowing that there's going to be some bad shit at the end will help to soften the blow and allow you to enjoy it more than I did?

This is my dream.

As for me...I'm still going to read Foundation's Friends, which is a collection of stories and essays written as a paean to Asimov's great series. I'll admit that I'm not expecting much, but hey, who knows... maybe I'll be surprised. 

The Book I'm Reading to Joe: Apache Devil by Edgar Rice Burroughs

I had been reading Edgar Rice Burroughs books for 9 1/2 years when I pulled Forgotten Tales of Love and Murder off of my bookshelf and commenced to tear through it (even though it was more than a few yards away from good). And for some reason, this set me off on an ERB jag, and even though Joe and I had not yet finished the Carson of Venus Pentalogy, I finished off all of the other ERB books we hadn't yet read (about 40) on my own...and even read the last Carson of Venus story (The Wizard of Venus) ahead of reading it with Joe. (And had no problem re-reading it venisoon after. I really liked that series.) 

Of all the ERB books that I've read, though, the two Apache novels--The War Chief and Apache Devil--stand out as truly excellent. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that I think they qualify as Must Read books. So I was more than happy to re-read The War Chief with Joe, and my admiration for the book only increased as we read. It took us almost two months...which is a little more that it usually takes us, so it might be a bit longer than the usual Burroughs book. But it is worth it. The sensitivity Burroughs shows for the plight of the Native Americans...and the understanding he displays of their culture...are not just impressive, they're astounding for an American White Man of 1927.   And ERB had honed his sarcastic tone to a razor's edge by this time, so there were many slashes at the pride White European culture had for its "superior status."

When I'd gone on my ERB binge, I got quite a few of the novels via Kindle packages which were cheap...and rife with typographical errors. (Some of them had over a hundred errors. And yes, I did count, as a matter of fact.) And Joe and I had read some ERBs via Kindle previously...the hard to acquire Tarzan Twins novels, for instance...but it hadn't been as enjoyable for either of us as reading an actual book, so when we neared the end of The War Chief 1, I decided to buy a paper copy of Apache Devil, which I had read in the The Edgar Rice Burroughs Western MEGAPACK ®. And Better World Books (one of my two favorite online bookstores 2) was happy to supply me with the copy pictured above...a lovely former library copy which had been published in 1978 (so not a first edition, obviously)...for a mere $6.49 + tax.

Former library books tend to be a bit haggard, and they have lots of annoying stamps and stickers and all of that, but sometimes, if they're of a certain age, they have one thing which more than makes up for those defects: a Due Date Slips...or, if you're REALLY lucky, a Pocket and a Checkout Card. In this case, there was a pocket, but no card, but there were two Slips.

And this made me very happy, because, as you can see, this book had been checked out more than a few times. So there were some folks in Nevada who appreciated this largely forgotten Burroughs book, at least. And the book wasn't in great shape, so it's possible that it was pulled out of circulation because of its condition rather than because nobody wanted it anymore. Evidence of this:

Yep. There's still an Apache Devil out there in Reno. (Alas, the same thing can't be said of Louisville, which has no Apache Devils at all.)

So...we're off you know. And here's just one of those scathing wit phrases from ERB for you...which, hopefully, will make you want more:

"...how can one expect overworked Christian congressman to neglect their electorate in the interests of benighted savages who have no votes?" (page 36)

1  I'm excited to add that the copy I read to Joe was 93 years old...and a First Edition (though not in good enough shape to be worth The Big Bucks.) And in case you were wondering, here are the "FIRST EDITION IDENTIFIERS," courtesy of http://erbfirsts.com/Other-html/o11.asp: "A.C. McClurg & Co. published the first edition of this book on Sep. 15, 1927. They did not reprint this title so any book with their name on the spine is a first edition. The only illustration is to the title page. The artist of the illustration is unknown. The illustration on the dust jacket is identical to the magazine cover art which was done by Paul Stahr. A total of 6,000 copies were printed."

2  The second being Thrift Books. Both it and Better World Books have great selections, low prices, free or low-cost shipping, and don't fuck people over the way Amazon does. I saw an interview with the Better World Books guy who said that he has to list his books with Amazon, since they control so much of the market, but that his share of a sale is $1 there, whereas it would be $4 on his own site. And the kicker here is that Better World isn't just a cute name--they actually do lots of things to try to make the world better via literacy programs. So I choose them. (I don't know much about Thrift Books, but Wikipedia says that they do partner with libraries to acquire unsorted books, and share the profits from selling those books with said libraries.)