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elspethdixon Apr. 18th, 2003 04:55 pm)
elspethdixon Apr. 18th, 2003 04:55 pm)The first draft of my history paper on the Luftwaffe and the Rise of German Airpower 1919-1939 is now complete (all 17 pages of it), and I am once more free to read and think about things other than the Nazi air force. I will spare y'all the gruesome details of my (extensive) research, as only WWII history buffs or airplane fanatics would care--anyway, the majority of my friends at Hollins have heard most of it already.
So, as I said, i am free to turn my attention once more to other things, and the things to which I am turning it are the latest Robert Jordan novel, Circle of Twilight, which I've almost finished reading (at last, a new installation of the continuing adventures of Egwene, Mat, Perrin, Rand, and Rand's numerous girlfriends) and a new (well, old, really) author whom I have discovered: Leslie Charteris, creator of The Saint. I'm sure some of y'all have seen the movie that came out a few years ago, and some of y'all probably remember (or have heard about) the TV show that used to come on way back before I was born. The books blow both out of the water. They're pure mindcandy, fun in that great caper-story way that Rex Stout or John D, MacDonald's books are fun, and Simon Templar is like the unholy love-child of Marauder!Sirius and Fanon Draco, with a little bit of Lupin III thrown in. God, they calmed him down for the movie--in the books, he's insanely hyperactive and never shuts up. If a bad guy held a gun to his temple and said "One more word an' I'll shoot," the Saint would answer with something like, "But are you sure you can hit from this range, beautiful?"
There's also a policeman, Detective Inspector Teal, who reminds me very strongly of Inspector Zenigata from Lupin III. And the Saint treats him much the way Lupin III does Zenigata. Poor man.
And now for something completely different. As today is Good Friday, I've gone to the Hollins Good Frday service at noon and shall go to another one tonight (and then to Easter Vigil Saturday night). Very intense, especially if you have a vivid imagination. There are certain Gospel reading that make me wish my rabid fondness for historical stuff hadn't left me with such an detailed knowledge of precisely what Roman capital punishment entailed. Like that bit where they break the legs of the two crucified thieves--that, in case you didn't know, made your legs unable to support you, and your weight would hang off your arms & chest in such a way as to cut off your air supply, and you'd die quicker. It's so much fun to have Classics majors for friends.
So, as I said, i am free to turn my attention once more to other things, and the things to which I am turning it are the latest Robert Jordan novel, Circle of Twilight, which I've almost finished reading (at last, a new installation of the continuing adventures of Egwene, Mat, Perrin, Rand, and Rand's numerous girlfriends) and a new (well, old, really) author whom I have discovered: Leslie Charteris, creator of The Saint. I'm sure some of y'all have seen the movie that came out a few years ago, and some of y'all probably remember (or have heard about) the TV show that used to come on way back before I was born. The books blow both out of the water. They're pure mindcandy, fun in that great caper-story way that Rex Stout or John D, MacDonald's books are fun, and Simon Templar is like the unholy love-child of Marauder!Sirius and Fanon Draco, with a little bit of Lupin III thrown in. God, they calmed him down for the movie--in the books, he's insanely hyperactive and never shuts up. If a bad guy held a gun to his temple and said "One more word an' I'll shoot," the Saint would answer with something like, "But are you sure you can hit from this range, beautiful?"
There's also a policeman, Detective Inspector Teal, who reminds me very strongly of Inspector Zenigata from Lupin III. And the Saint treats him much the way Lupin III does Zenigata. Poor man.
And now for something completely different. As today is Good Friday, I've gone to the Hollins Good Frday service at noon and shall go to another one tonight (and then to Easter Vigil Saturday night). Very intense, especially if you have a vivid imagination. There are certain Gospel reading that make me wish my rabid fondness for historical stuff hadn't left me with such an detailed knowledge of precisely what Roman capital punishment entailed. Like that bit where they break the legs of the two crucified thieves--that, in case you didn't know, made your legs unable to support you, and your weight would hang off your arms & chest in such a way as to cut off your air supply, and you'd die quicker. It's so much fun to have Classics majors for friends.