subdee

Promised quixotic_sense ages ago I'd upload the course reading for a seminar I'm in this semester, US Interventions in Latin America and the World. I'm still working on that but in the meantime here are my impressions of the non-electronic reading. Note, I was in most cases completely ignorant of the events described in these books (it's why I signed up for the class in the first place). In other words this was a real learning experience for me.

( Overthrow, Steve Kinzer )
( The war of 1898, Louis Perez )
( he United States occupation of Haiti, Hans Schmit )
( In the time of the butterflies, Julia Alvarez )
( Shattered hope, Piero Gleijeses )
( I, Rigoberta Menchú, Rigoberta Menchú and Elisabeth Burgos-Debray )
( Bay of Pigs declassified, edited by Peter Kornbluh )
( The Pinochet file, Peter Kornbluh )
( A nation of enemies, Pamela Constable and Arturo Valenzuela )

[1] Okay, flash back to high school. In US History I, we've just learned that because the Maine blew up for mysterious reasons, the United States is at war with Spain in Cuba, also for mysterious reasons. Mysteriously, the war is very unpopular with a small minority of Americans, but fortunately the Spanish are defeated easily (why? who knows!), validating the majority. Finally, after the war Cuba is mysteriously never heard from again. <-- EXACTLY LIKE THAT. Meanwhile, in American Literature, we are reading On Walden Pond. This is the book Thoreau wrote while living "self-sufficiently" in the woods because he refused to pay taxes since his money was being used to support the Mexican-American War (not the same thing, but equally imperialistic and popular). I have to tell you, this aspect of Thoreau's work COMPLETELY WENT OVER MY HEAD at the time. I remember thinking, what's so bad about America that you have to childishly not pay your taxes, and run away to play woodsman, and write long rambling rants essays about whatever you feel like? And I COMPLETELY MISSED the frustrated, self-aware humor of Thoreau, who must have known he was full of shit but who did it anyway, because it was important to him and there was nothing, nothing else he could do, because the injustice he was feeling so keenly did not even register to most Americans. So, uh. My apologies to Thoreau.

Today I was overtaken by an irresistable urge to reread the classic SF I am sending to petronia, followed by an equally irresistible urge to compile themed booklists for reading_mix.

SUGGESTIONS WELCOME!!! These lists are from memory -- like last time, I'm at college, with no access to my bookshelves.

The Psychology of Science
Books with nuanced depictions of the personalities of research scientists.

1. Intuition, Allegra Goodman
2. Timescape, Gregory Benford
3. Eternal Sabbath, Fuyumi Soryo??
biggersandwich
3. Bellwether, Connie Willis
( descriptions )


Looping Stories
Short stories that reference each other in ways that make you go "Aha! I remember that!"

1. Dreams of Terror and Death, H.P. Lovecraft
2. Sideways Stories from Wayside School, Louis Sachar
3. Love Mode, Shimizu Yuki
apintrix:
4. Love Medicine, Louise Erdrich
5. Come to Me, Amy Bloom
6. J.D. Salinger's "Glass family" short stories and novel (list)
milchstrasse
7. Not the End of the World, Kate Atkinson
8. Pixel Juice, Jeff Noon??
( descriptions )


YA Building Books
YA books about building your environment, preferably including lots of cool contraptions. These are books that make you want to run away and live in the wilderness.

1. The Swiss Family Robinson, Johann David Wyss
2. Island of the Blue Dolphin, Scott O'Dell
3. Boxcar Children, Gertrude Chandler Warner*
4. Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of MIMH, Robert C. O'Brien
angrybabble
5. Hatchet, Gary Paulsen?? may be too realistic.
6. My Side of the Mountain, Jean Craighead Craighead George
meril
7. The Mad Scientists' Club, Bertrand R. Brinley?? lots of contraptions but may not include environmental engineering.

HONORABLE MENTION!!! The chapters in Jojo's Bizarre Adventure (part four) about the stand-user who lives in an abandonned electric tower and never sets foot on the ground. Remind me to upload this later when the list's finalized.

*The sequels are mysteries but the first one is about four siblings who make a home out of an abandoned boxcart. See also: From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler?? About a brother and sister who make a home out of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. I dunno, should Boxcar Children count? I count a distinct absence of cool contraptions.


Oh god, it's nearly 2:00am and I still have three essays to write. *sob*

ONCE AGAIN: SUGGESTIONS WELCOME!

EDIT:

YA Puzzle-Narratives with Answers in the Back
1. Sideways Arithmetic from Wayside School, Louis Sachar
2. Clue Series - Who Killed Mr. Boddy?, Eric Weiner
3. Encyclopedia Brown, Boy Detective, Donald J. Sobol
murinae
4. The Westing Game, Ellen Raskin
meril
5. Hawkeye Collins & Amy Adams series by M. Masters

It's obvious where my mind is tonight, -_-;

I'm gonna break with tradition and make this a public post on the off chance that certain people I suspect are reading this journal, really are reading this journal. Hi Mom. For anyone else who wants to know, here's my address (and last year's list).

WISHLIST '06

• Sign from God RE: what to do after I graduate.
  
• Nintendo DS
  
• Brain Age, Phoenix Wright, Kanji Dictionary, blah blah I am a sheep.
  
• Jojo icon! Bonus points if it's Josuke <3<3<3.
  
• Jojo fic: what everyone was doing just before the part 6 reset.
  
• Mooch from me. (More here in January after I've been home to raid my bookshelves.)
  
• Avatar season two burned to CD or DVD and mailed to me because I am lazy.
  
• Someone who will write the next fic at chain_of_fics
  
• Someone who will sponsor a month at fanthology**
  
• JOIN WHATWASTHATFIC.
  
• Digital camera with a zoom and actual battery life.
  
  BONUS:
  AMV recs, lj user recs, lj community recs.

**The way this would work is, you agree to sponsor a month, you get to declare the themes for that month (or if you want, just one theme for the entire month). In exchange, you promise to rec at least two fics for each theme you propose. Starting January.

I don't want to write this paper.

No, you don't understand, I really don't want to write this paper. And since one of my favorite methods of procrastination is to dig up old fandom projects...

whatwasthatfic: a community for reuniting people with the fics they've lost. (Format shamelessly ripped off from whatwasthatbook.) YOU WANT TO JOIN, RIGHT? It won't work if there aren't enough people :o! Also, I know I'm always saying this, but please spread the word.

52author_pickup: Oddly enough this was "conceived" nine months ago so I guess you could say it's my baby. Old pet project, write about authors in the authors' own styles. If that sounds like something you'd enjoy doing -- or at least trying once -- please join the community. There aren't any other requirements right now, but in the future I was thinking maybe a monthly challenge of some kind? WE'LL SEE.

Linkblogging!

• Ouran High School Host Club Interview translated by insaneneko. Also: Hikaru no Go Heien-era doujinshi. (SO CUTE OMG.)
  
• Got these youtube links from silent_and_calm**: 3D desktop (VERY COOL) and Where is Matt.
  
• deadmentalking

** Russian LJ user I suspect is running a robot that will eventually inform every single person on livejournal that he has added them as a friend
EDIT A big THUMBS UP on the new spellchecker.

Courtesy of wheezambu:

Perfect Girl Evolution

episode 01
episode 02
episode 03
episode 04
episode 05

Four pretty boys must turn Sunako "Horror Fanatic" Nakahara into a proper lady, or her aunt will make them pay rent XD. I've heard the anime is pretty horrible, but what the heck, in the spirit of the season right?

***

Going through files deciding what I wanted to keep and what I could toss, I found all these things I don't remember writing. o_O; I don't suppose anyone is interested in half-hearted fic commentary?

( Just in case. )

Also found, the most Engrishy improvised poem ever XD.

Improvisation #1

A left-field nostalgia trip
Looking downwards into previous
Nothing to do but leaving behind

A face-down take-off
Looking upwards into blindness
Nothing to do but moving past

A deep-fried lung-hack
Looking inward into unhealth
Nothing to do but settling for

A no-ambition dice-roll
Looking outward to uncertainty
Nothing to do but going forward.

Written in under a minute over IM XD.