Soccer and Books

Right now, Brazil and Portugal are facing off in a soccer match. I’m not much of a sports enthusiast, but this is actually mildly interesting. My cousin is on his up from RI, and he asked me to keep an eye on the game while he is in transit. The day itself has been pretty intellectually unproductive. I stopped by Hannaford to pick up the paycheck, deposited it, and got the oil changed one of my parent’s vehicles. I sent a different short story out to Instigatorzine, and I believe it has a better chance of being run then the Bear Cather piece did.

I’m reading through a Harlan Ellison anthology as well as William Gibson’s Spook Country. Both a very strong reads and incorporate mild aspects of science fiction. I’ve read most of these Ellison stories in his Alone Against Tomorrow anthology, but revisiting them is great. I want to recommend two specifically: I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream, and Repent Harlequin, said the Ticktockman. The first is a very interesting take on the end of the human race. I won’t spoil the plot, but if you’re into cyberpunk or just appreciate science fiction in general, this is one of the first stories I would recommend. Harlequin is a short four page dystopia. If you’re a writer, a lot of this story you can take as an outline, and when he’s not using subtext, Ellison isn’t afraid to say, “This is why this happens. This is why that happens.” It’s an interesting style. Also, he makes some pretty neat Orwell references. Spook Country is the second book in the ‘Bigend’ series. Zero History, being the third, is scheduled for print this fall. In this contemporary setting, Gibson is exploring the means of art and advertisements in our culture. Though, I’m only 1/3 through the book.

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Where are we now?

Why do scientific breakthroughs get so much less publicity than the daily glimpses of popular culture we so easily forget? I just read a speech by William Gibson where he noted how our studies with quantum teleportation and artificial life were casually eclipsed in the media. Why are we so caught up things that don’t actually matter? I tried check one of my email accounts a few moments ago and the first page had made sure I understood that Christina Aguilera’s new album didn’t sell too well. Then once I logged in, two articles about Charlie Sheen’s trail were posted beneath my inbox. I know that I’m not pointing out anything new, but have we gotten any more grounded in this post-patriot act world? I think as a species, one of the things we really need to do is come to terms with the fact that we only survive in captivity. Otherwise, you can’t go out and live in the woods. Unless you ‘own’ the land, it’s illegal. Our bodies just haven’t evolved into these receptive and consuming creatures we’ve become. I’m just as guilty of advocating this lifestyle as anyone. I find reading Twitter updates from people across the world more interesting than most real conversations. Is there anybody that hasn’t synced with the stream? Is there somebody who doesn’t feel that the little red alert bubble on Facebook releases the same chemicals in the brain as seeing a human smile?

If so, I would like to talk to you. I have a few questions.

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Computer Years

It’s hard to believe that my desktop is already three years old. I wonder what equivalency that is to a human’s lifespan.

I feel as if I’m about to hit one of those stasis periods of my life. I’m reading, but I feel that I constantly compare how good my life is to how much I’m writing. Tonight I plan on breaking out some prompts and just rolling with them. Something that’s handy for situations like this is The Pocket Muse, but you could just as well get some writing prompts from the internet.

I recently finished William Gibson’s Pattern Recognition; I recommend it to anybody who is interested in contemporary cyber-cultures. It’s got a very postmodern feel to it and Gibson’s poking at post 9/11 culture. The next book in this trilogy is called Spook Country, which I hope to get my hands on soon. Currently I’m reading The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky and Miss Wyoming by Douglas Coupland. Has anybody ever read The Souls of Cyberfolk or Darwin’s Bastards? Both I want to look into before the semester starts back up.

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Spring Break

I finished reading Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God for one of my literature courses. I’m pretty eager to get back into the classroom to talk about it. For those of you that have read it, I’m not 100% sure that I understand the context of Janie’s relationship with the character Tea Cake. Looking at Janie’s life and relationships as a whole, there’s a lot of feminist theory arguments there, especially if you’re reading into the tree, but I feel like when he actually hit her it left a loose end. Her second husband did it to prove something to himself, but it’s arguable that ‘Mr. Right’ did it for the same exact reason. Though he did say that he didn’t do it for power, his reasoning are almost identical. Is this intentional or am I missing something? This is a very powerful story, and I think Hurston’s study of anthropology really shows. I highly recommend this book.

I just stared reading Gibson’s Virtual Light this morning. I’m actually not enjoying it. If I’m not interested by page 100, then it’s going back on the shelf. Now I need to get back to a thesis blueprint.

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