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Aug. 1st, 2024 09:34 pm1. Yesterday's commute was extended by about 30 minutes due to a delay on the commuter train. Some nitwit left a stroller on the tracks at East NY, so all the trains were delayed. Police had to come and investigate, which was why it took thirty minutes. Also backed up other trains.
So, it was an hour and forty five minute commute. Did get to read.
2. Watching the Olympics still - just finished watching Katie Ledeckie take the Olympic Gold for the 1500 Meter, with France in second. (I was a swimmer as a kid. My brother and I did swim team from basically the age of seven to the age of fifteen or sixteen. We both gave up at the same time. I learned later that he joined the swim team to do it with me - so he wasn't just watching from the stands. My specialty was freestyle and breast, although I could also do butterfly. Backstroke was scary, I did it, but scary. That was my brother's main stroke - mainly because he had to deal with this one kid who could win in all the strokes and it was the only stroke that kid didn't do. I loved the endurance swims.) France is doing well in the swimming as well. Marchand is amazing.
Also watched the BMX biking - basically trick biking, the rowing final, the sychronized diving finals, the gymnastic finals, and skate boarding.
I got kind of bored watching the equesterian. But I've recorded the jumping. I like the races and the artistry/trick sports. The ball sports don't do much for me - I don't really understand them.
Oh when I was in junior high and high school - I had to do gymnastics? We couldn't get out of it and were graded. (Big mistake. If your school does this? Complain. People die doing gymnastics - it is a DANGEROUS sporting event particularly if you do not have skilled people teaching it.) They didn't understand why I couldn't do the uneven bars but could climb the rope. Which is exactly why we shouldn't have been doing gymnastics. I was six foot and over 150 pounds - that wasn't happening. I could literally touch the top bar with my fingers. I was terrified of the vault, and rightly so - I hurt myself. I have spatial issues - or no idea where objects are in space. I can't do gymnastics. Not everyone can. The gym teachers didn't know how to do it. Actually several people injured themselves on the vault, so they had to end that. Gym was a dangerous course and a law suit waiting to happen.
3. Books
* Finished Battleground by Jim Butcher on audio, as read by Marsters. Who handles the multiple voices better than some, but not as well as others. There are some readers out there - that are amazing. (See the reader of Ancillary Justice - she is amazing. So is the one who did Project Hail Mary. I felt like I was listening to multiple readers. I can tell it's Marsters pretty much throughout Battleground with some exceptions.)
The book is okay. Too many battles - I got bored. Not enough plot and character interaction/moments. Also listening to battles on audio is kind of boring, you can't just skim ahead. The books work better when Dresden is trying to figure stuff out - or the noir mystery aspect. The mystery got a bit lost in all of the battles.
( vague spoilers )
* Bluejay by Megan Stockton via Kindle Unlimited.
Don't recommend. It's about three heterosexual male idiots who are so into torture porn and gore, they decide on a whim to accept someone else's invite provided to one of them, Noah (an internet troll), to what they think is an immersive "virtual" torture porn experience - emphasis on think. But alas, it's not virtual but real. They understandably freak out in varying degrees. Much chaos ensues. It reminds me a little of the Twilight Zone/Black Mirror in the twist or how it turns out, and the overall set-up.
But I found it unreadable for the most part, and over-the-top in the gore department. I pretty much skimmed it. I actually fast-forwarded through the whole book and just got the cliff-notes version.
I'm supportive of indie authors/publishers. But this needed a good editor. It's trying to be Black Mirror, but it doesn't quite work. I didn't care about any of the characters - and I needed to - for it to work. Also, the writer fell into the trap of showing too much - it's better to imply than show, and trust the reader. The reader doesn't have to see all the gritty details. We don't need the details on how the dogs tore the man apart, just that they did.
Still reading Experimental Films - which is actually pretty good for the most part. I'm learning a great deal about Experimental Film, some of which I already knew (my brother was an experimental film-maker in college and a conceptual artist). I don't like experimental film, with few exceptions. It tends to bore me, actually it tends to bore most people. Because there's usually no story - it's just the creator playing with film.
Which is fine if that's your thing? I just find it boring.
The book however isn't boring. And kind of interesting. And the writing style is for the most part - accessible.
So, it was an hour and forty five minute commute. Did get to read.
2. Watching the Olympics still - just finished watching Katie Ledeckie take the Olympic Gold for the 1500 Meter, with France in second. (I was a swimmer as a kid. My brother and I did swim team from basically the age of seven to the age of fifteen or sixteen. We both gave up at the same time. I learned later that he joined the swim team to do it with me - so he wasn't just watching from the stands. My specialty was freestyle and breast, although I could also do butterfly. Backstroke was scary, I did it, but scary. That was my brother's main stroke - mainly because he had to deal with this one kid who could win in all the strokes and it was the only stroke that kid didn't do. I loved the endurance swims.) France is doing well in the swimming as well. Marchand is amazing.
Also watched the BMX biking - basically trick biking, the rowing final, the sychronized diving finals, the gymnastic finals, and skate boarding.
I got kind of bored watching the equesterian. But I've recorded the jumping. I like the races and the artistry/trick sports. The ball sports don't do much for me - I don't really understand them.
Oh when I was in junior high and high school - I had to do gymnastics? We couldn't get out of it and were graded. (Big mistake. If your school does this? Complain. People die doing gymnastics - it is a DANGEROUS sporting event particularly if you do not have skilled people teaching it.) They didn't understand why I couldn't do the uneven bars but could climb the rope. Which is exactly why we shouldn't have been doing gymnastics. I was six foot and over 150 pounds - that wasn't happening. I could literally touch the top bar with my fingers. I was terrified of the vault, and rightly so - I hurt myself. I have spatial issues - or no idea where objects are in space. I can't do gymnastics. Not everyone can. The gym teachers didn't know how to do it. Actually several people injured themselves on the vault, so they had to end that. Gym was a dangerous course and a law suit waiting to happen.
3. Books
* Finished Battleground by Jim Butcher on audio, as read by Marsters. Who handles the multiple voices better than some, but not as well as others. There are some readers out there - that are amazing. (See the reader of Ancillary Justice - she is amazing. So is the one who did Project Hail Mary. I felt like I was listening to multiple readers. I can tell it's Marsters pretty much throughout Battleground with some exceptions.)
The book is okay. Too many battles - I got bored. Not enough plot and character interaction/moments. Also listening to battles on audio is kind of boring, you can't just skim ahead. The books work better when Dresden is trying to figure stuff out - or the noir mystery aspect. The mystery got a bit lost in all of the battles.
( vague spoilers )
* Bluejay by Megan Stockton via Kindle Unlimited.
Don't recommend. It's about three heterosexual male idiots who are so into torture porn and gore, they decide on a whim to accept someone else's invite provided to one of them, Noah (an internet troll), to what they think is an immersive "virtual" torture porn experience - emphasis on think. But alas, it's not virtual but real. They understandably freak out in varying degrees. Much chaos ensues. It reminds me a little of the Twilight Zone/Black Mirror in the twist or how it turns out, and the overall set-up.
But I found it unreadable for the most part, and over-the-top in the gore department. I pretty much skimmed it. I actually fast-forwarded through the whole book and just got the cliff-notes version.
I'm supportive of indie authors/publishers. But this needed a good editor. It's trying to be Black Mirror, but it doesn't quite work. I didn't care about any of the characters - and I needed to - for it to work. Also, the writer fell into the trap of showing too much - it's better to imply than show, and trust the reader. The reader doesn't have to see all the gritty details. We don't need the details on how the dogs tore the man apart, just that they did.
Still reading Experimental Films - which is actually pretty good for the most part. I'm learning a great deal about Experimental Film, some of which I already knew (my brother was an experimental film-maker in college and a conceptual artist). I don't like experimental film, with few exceptions. It tends to bore me, actually it tends to bore most people. Because there's usually no story - it's just the creator playing with film.
Which is fine if that's your thing? I just find it boring.
The book however isn't boring. And kind of interesting. And the writing style is for the most part - accessible.