Wednesday, November 23, 2005

Where Are My Elastic Pants?

Do you know where yours are? Are you ready to feast tomorrow? We do not celebrate a traditional Thanksgiving in the So Many Books household. Tofurkey just seems so wrong. I mean, I am vegan because I don't want to eat animals, why would I want to eat tofu roughly moulded into the shape of a turkey? So for the past eleven or twelve years my dearest and I have our own "traditional" meal of vegetarian enchiladas with rice and beans. After the dinner settles a bit, we enjoy a slice of fresh pumpkin pie made from real pumpkins. Personally, the enchiladas are great and all, but it's all about the pumpkin pie. As you take a break from your holiday prepartions, or in case you live in a part of the world that does not celebrate Thanksgiving, here are a couple of links:

  • Memoirs of a Geisha, the movie, reviewed. It sounds like it will be a beautiful movie to watch, but if you loved the book, be prepared for disappointment.
  • Since I started reading the completely geek novel Cryptonomicon, I found a list of top 20 Geek Novels. I've bolded the ones I have read:
    1. The HitchHiker's Guide to the Galaxy -- Douglas Adams (I've read the entire series)
    2. Nineteen Eighty-Four -- George Orwell (read this twice, the first time was in 1984)
    3. Brave New World -- Aldous Huxley
    4. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? -- Philip Dick (I plan on reading this "someday")
    5. Neuromancer -- William Gibson (planning on reading this too)
    6. Dune -- Frank Herbert (I read the entire series in college. I have not read the ones his son is writing)
    7. I, Robot -- Isaac Asimov
    8. Foundation -- Isaac Asimov
    9. The Colour of Magic -- Terry Pratchett (haven't read this one, but have read several other of his books)
    10. Microserfs -- Douglas Coupland
    11. Snow Crash -- Neal Stephenson
    12. Watchmen -- Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons
    13. Cryptonomicon -- Neal Stephenson (I just started it and have a long way to the last page)
    14. Consider Phlebas -- Iain M Banks
    15. Stranger in a Strange Land -- Robert Heinlein (I've been thinking lately that I should read this again sometime)
    16. The Man in the High Castle -- Philip K Dick 34%
    17. American Gods -- Neil Gaiman (excellent book)
    18. The Diamond Age -- Neal Stephenson
    19. The Illuminatus! Trilogy -- Robert Shea & Robert Anton Wilson
    20. Trouble with Lichen - John Wyndham
    While not a card carrying geek, I clearly have geek tendencies.