I'm wishing all of my readers
a most wonderful,
joyful, blessed
NEW YEAR!!!
May all of your wishes come true in 2011!!
May the most fantastic experiences
come your way!
And may you be able to read
ALL THE BOOKS
YOU'VE BEEN MEANING TO GET TO!!!!
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Friday, December 31, 2010
alternative 3 revisited
Is Alternative 3 just good sci-fi? The planning of options for a dying planet due to climate change, seem to ring true. Anomalies Network website, founded by Olav Phillips, in article, "The Most Dangerous TV Show Ever Made", draws some interesting parallels between the last Science Report program broadcast in June 1977 and our recent past. The program was intended to air as an April Fool joke a grand finale for the discontinued program. Critics find, however, the addition of Tim Brinton as presenter, a well-known host, only added to the program's apparent authenticity. The program has virtually disappeared with all masters destroyed in a fire, some time ago. The article finds puzzling how the production company allowed not only the destruction of the film but all contracts and legal documents, as syndication rights are a significant source of income?
The climate change premise, which only surfaced as a prominent issue decades later, is an eery correspondence to our current reality. Edward Teller, nuclear scientist and father of the hydrogen bomb, is credited as the source for many of these ideas. Teller warned about rising levels of carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases in a famous 1957 speech in front of American Chemical Society. The article's author believes this may have been the inspiration behind Operation Argus , one year later, to see if gases could be vented into space by blowing a hole in the upper atmosphere with a nuclear explosion, which is Alternative 1.
Teller also "surmised that global warming could be reduced or abated by jettisoning large amount of metallic debris into the upper atmosphere to reflect sun light and cool the surface of the earth. In looking into his theory, it became quickly obvious that chemtrails were the obvious result of high altitude dumping of material and could very well be the execution of that original plan." It's another stunning parallel made in the article that seems apparent and squarely blames the famous nuclear scientist.
Alternative 2 was proposed as an option to build networks of underground cities and tunnels for a select few to carry on the human race. Site R and the Svalbard Seed Vault add validity and support that these ideas have been put into effect, according to the article. The Old Greenbrier Bunker under the resort in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia needs to be included as its completion in 1962, places it near the pinnacle of the Cold War Era. The rumors of an underground rail into the Rocky Mountains underneath the Denver Airport, should be noted here.
Alternative 3 option planned on evacuating a cross section of the population to Mars via a way station on the back side of the Moon. The final Science Report: "Alternative 3" contends the missing scientists in a brain drain of the United Kingdom were, in fact, apprehended for the purpose of the third alternative. The article points out the large number of children that go missing each year in the United States as a plausible resource. Nazi anti-gravity technology of Die Glocke or The Bell makes this option feasible in the author's estimation.
2012 is the suspected date, when the usefulness of the alternatives, may become apparent to the rest of us. The author isn't certain of the end game whether it's climate change. a solar flare, or an asteroid? The article is going on intuition and gut instinct, predicting apocalypse for 2012, citing the end of the Mayan Calendar and remote viewers' reports of a hazy period around 2012. The present writer falls in the author's camp, the oligarchs are planning for something and aren't telling us! You should watch Alternative 3 on You Tube while it's still on the net!
The climate change premise, which only surfaced as a prominent issue decades later, is an eery correspondence to our current reality. Edward Teller, nuclear scientist and father of the hydrogen bomb, is credited as the source for many of these ideas. Teller warned about rising levels of carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases in a famous 1957 speech in front of American Chemical Society. The article's author believes this may have been the inspiration behind Operation Argus , one year later, to see if gases could be vented into space by blowing a hole in the upper atmosphere with a nuclear explosion, which is Alternative 1.
Teller also "surmised that global warming could be reduced or abated by jettisoning large amount of metallic debris into the upper atmosphere to reflect sun light and cool the surface of the earth. In looking into his theory, it became quickly obvious that chemtrails were the obvious result of high altitude dumping of material and could very well be the execution of that original plan." It's another stunning parallel made in the article that seems apparent and squarely blames the famous nuclear scientist.
Alternative 2 was proposed as an option to build networks of underground cities and tunnels for a select few to carry on the human race. Site R and the Svalbard Seed Vault add validity and support that these ideas have been put into effect, according to the article. The Old Greenbrier Bunker under the resort in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia needs to be included as its completion in 1962, places it near the pinnacle of the Cold War Era. The rumors of an underground rail into the Rocky Mountains underneath the Denver Airport, should be noted here.
Alternative 3 option planned on evacuating a cross section of the population to Mars via a way station on the back side of the Moon. The final Science Report: "Alternative 3" contends the missing scientists in a brain drain of the United Kingdom were, in fact, apprehended for the purpose of the third alternative. The article points out the large number of children that go missing each year in the United States as a plausible resource. Nazi anti-gravity technology of Die Glocke or The Bell makes this option feasible in the author's estimation.
2012 is the suspected date, when the usefulness of the alternatives, may become apparent to the rest of us. The author isn't certain of the end game whether it's climate change. a solar flare, or an asteroid? The article is going on intuition and gut instinct, predicting apocalypse for 2012, citing the end of the Mayan Calendar and remote viewers' reports of a hazy period around 2012. The present writer falls in the author's camp, the oligarchs are planning for something and aren't telling us! You should watch Alternative 3 on You Tube while it's still on the net!
Twilightdreamlover's Picks: Fantasy and Paranormal Releases for January, 2011
I'm starting this new year off with a list of recommendations -- my favorite new fantasy and paranormal releases for January. Unfortunately, due to my lack of time (and money), this doesn't necessarily mean that I will read every one of the books I've picked. I'm merely posting them here because the plots look very interesting!
It seems that I'm getting more and more into the YA genre. This started with The Twilight Saga. I used to look down my nose at this genre, I must confess. Well, the Twilight books changed all that! I suddenly realized that this particular reading category offers very compelling plots and fascinating characters. Also, it does deal with adult themes, although it examines those themes from the point of view of "an emerging adult", to coin a phrase. This is the case, for example, with the Harry Potter series, which becomes increasingly "adult" as one progresses through the books.
Here are the January releases I would LOVE to read:
One can't really go wrong with L.J. Smith. Her books are usually GREAT! This is an interesting reversal -- the Stefan's diaries books are based on the TV series which is based on the novels originally written by Smith. These latest books present the events in the previous books from Stefan's point of view. This one reveals the truth about how the love triangle of Stefan, Damon, and Katherine developed, back in Renaissance Italy.
My first thought on seeing this one was that once again, we have a high school being associated with teen vamps, since this is, after all, a YA novel. However, the plot does go beyond the by-now familiar stereotype. The school in the title is a vampire-slaying academy, which is a nice twist. Located in the Swiss Alps, it's the hiding place of the McDonald twins, two girls who have just discovered their Fae heritage. Then their lives become endangered, and they have no way to contact their vampire boyfriends... This is the newest installment in the series.
Here is yet another romance between a supernatural and a mortal, and yes, there's a school involved. However, the heroine, Clara, is a Quarterius, which means that she's a quarter angel. and she has visions that puzzle her. Her mother, who is a half-angel herself, helps Clara to unravel them, thereby revealing that Clara has a mision to complete on earth. Then she meets Christian, the boy in one of her visions, and befriends two very different girls. One of their brothers, Tucker, complicates the plot, which includes a surprise trip to hell....
The heroine of this novel, Quincie P. Morris, is a neophyte vampire, and, incredibly enough, owns a restaurant! As if this weren't wacky enough, her chef, Bradly Sanguini (this last name is obviously a derivative of the Latin word for "blood"), is the vampire who turned her! So far, not so good. Except that Quincie's boyfriend, Kieren, is a hybrid werewolf who has been accused of murder. Another interesting twist! Then there's the gorgeous Zachary, an angel, who brandishes a flaming sword... Smith unites the characters of her two previous novels, Tantalize and Eternal.
This is a debut novel, and I'm sure it will eventually spawn a sequel, and then a series. I will be totally thrilled when it does! The heroine, Tessa, doesn't believe in magic, but is forced to change her mind when a very unusual tapestry comes into her possession. It's a very old unicorn tapestry, and it brings strange dreams to Tessa, dreams of a past in which she herself participated. Then she accidentally pulls a thread from this tapestry, thus unleashing a terrible curse.. She also meets William De Chaucy, who is a 16th-century nobleman. Ah, romance!
This one is not in the YA genre. It still attracts me though, because I find the whole idea of angels and humans having a love relationship just as compelling as that of vampires and humans! In this novel, Elena Deveraux's boyfriend is no other than the archangel Raphael. Wow. As if that weren't enough, his irate mother -- and she's obviously no angel -- arrives on the scene to reclaim her son. Of course, she wasn't counting on Elena, who happens to be a vampire hunter, and not to be messed with!
Lilah's mind-reading powers mark her as a member of the Kyndred, a group of genetically-enhanced humans. They also make her vulnerable to a ruthless biotech company intent on stealing her superhuman DNA. Murder is not a problem for them. Meanwhile, Lilah will also have to contend with an unexpected threat from her fellow Kyndred... This is an adult novel.
This is another very, very interesting series that I really want to read! This book continues the story of Meghan and Ash after their exile. Meghan has to fight the false Iron King; she has grown as a character, relying more upon herself than on others, while Puck and Ash have also come into their own.
According to some of the Goodreads reviews, this is one of the best fantasy books yet, with lots of action, realistically-drawn characters, and a very vivid fantasy world. Sounds absolutely awesome to me!!
Dana Hathaway is a very talented girl -- she's a Faeriewalker, one who can travel unhindered from the real world into Faerie. She is a rare link between both worlds. Now the Faerie Queen wants her dead. The Erlking is after her, too, with his private, murderous army, known as The Wild Hunt. They have entered Avalon, the one place on earth where humans and Fae have long lived in peace together, thus breaking the uneasy treaty between him and the Faerie Queen. And what exactly are the Eerlking's intentions toward Dana?
Well, here they are -- the books I like the most, and would dearly love to read, from this new crop of fantasy and paranormal releases for January, 2011. I hope that at least some of you will be able to enjoy them!
mystery hexagon of saturn
In 1979, as Voyager 1 passed by Saturn, the satellite returned pictures of a hexagon on Saturn's North Pole. The Cassini spacecraft confirmed, in 2006, the hexagon is still there! A brief You Tube video, "The Mystery Hexagon of Saturn" provides a fascinating look in less than two minutes. Discovery News provides a brief article and video, "Saturn's North Pole Hexagon Mystery Solved?", where a hexagon is achieved in laboratory conditions, supporting the notion this is indeed a natural phenomenon.
12/31 defcon: high chance, top threats & the cloud
top cyber threats of 2011*
living with our heads in 'the cloud'*
paul allen tries patent megasuit again*
apple sued for app privacy violations*
man quits job to sue spammers*
with 15 minutes of fame ticking; assange signs $1.5m-worth of book deals*
smith, assange, soros & claims that assange is helping the neocons*
assange: 'high chance' i'd be killed 'jack ruby-style’ in US prison*
video: 'reality of illusion 4: julian assange, the white brotherhood & the nazis'*
living with our heads in 'the cloud'* paul allen tries patent megasuit again*
apple sued for app privacy violations*
man quits job to sue spammers*
with 15 minutes of fame ticking; assange signs $1.5m-worth of book deals*
smith, assange, soros & claims that assange is helping the neocons*
assange: 'high chance' i'd be killed 'jack ruby-style’ in US prison*
video: 'reality of illusion 4: julian assange, the white brotherhood & the nazis'*
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Fan Fiction: The Rainbow at the End of the Bridge
Chapter 3: Breakfast Time
EPOV
I could see that I had overwhelmed the poor girl. In the harsh light of reality, after a good night's rest, things could look very different. She was probably asking herself if she had acted against her better judgment in the middle of the night. But then, what she had been planning to do had most definitely not showed good judgment, either. There was no excuse for suicide. Carlisle's experience had taught me that.
With the thought of Carlisle came a wave of nostalgia. I hadn't admitted to myself how desperately I missed them all... especially Carlisle. But I also missed Alice, with her sudden, markedly urgent visions. She had seen that I would leave, and had told Carlisle. I flinched as I recalled his reaction. He had said nothing, but the pain of his sorrow had immediately struck my mind. Oh, he had tried to block his thoughts, of course. I still felt that sweeping torrent of grief that hit me like a great storm surge. I couldn't take it. So I blocked my mind, too, or at least, I tried to. I didn't quite succeed.
I had quietly slipped out into our back yard two nights later while they were entertained - or so I thought - with a game of cards. I began to run, faster and faster, until I was sure I had put enough distance between myself and the house near the woods of Forks - the house I had come to call 'home'. As I flew along, I could feel the trail of their collective sorrow following me. I screamed into the wind... it was a combination of rage as well as sorrow, for myself, for them.
I felt that I could not have done otherwise. I could not continue to live a lie. It was far better that I leave than continue to pretend something I couldn't hide. I could not bring myself to disappoint Carlisle. He had been much more of a father to me than my own biological father, whose memory had long ago begun to dim. I had not wanted to lie to Carlisle, especially when I knew that I never really could. He was never angry with me; instead, he grieved and was endlessly patient. He had been just as patient several days before my departure, even in the face of the evidence - I had killed a mountain hiker who had wandered too far off the beaten trail. After I had slaked my thirst, I felt an instant revulsion, fully understanding how Carlisle could have contemplated suicide when he was a newly-made vampire. But I could not go on trying to deny what I was. The struggle was too great. So I had given in to my monstrous nature.
In the end, I had hurt Carlisle anyway...the man who had become my father in every sense of the word.
"What's the matter?" she asked me, and I snapped out of my reverie. How long had I been standing there, holding this delicious girl's hand, wandering through my past?
I smiled, shaking my head at her. I took a deep breath, and was instantly sorry. Her enthralling scent wrapped itself around me once more, and I felt the tug of my demonic thirst. Still, I was confident that I would be able to control myself. I hoped. I had never gone this long without feeding before, but I knew I would have to be absolutely tortured by thirst before I could bring myself to end another life... I asked myself, though, if perhaps I was playing with fire. What if the life I was forced to end was Bella's? No, no, not her! Not this sweet, kind, luscious girl!
I shook my head again, but let go of her hand, pretending not to notice her little sigh of relief. I felt an urgent need to go to the bathroom. Revulsion swept through me again. The memory of that young man whispering Karen's name with his dying breath assaulted my mind. How could I have killed him so callously? What feverish devil had driven me to commit such a horrible act? Why could I not control myself, abiding by my father's ethical lifestyle? I had to get away from this girl. I was suddenly afraid that I would do the same thing to her.
I ran to the bathroom and locked myself inside, panting. The attraction of her scent had been too much for me. I had been over-confident. I leaned over the sink, holding myself up by grabbing its sides. Please...I found myself begging a God I wanted desperately to believe still cared about me, don't let me do this to her! I would not be the instrument of her death now, when I had only last night rescued her from its gaping jaws.
She knocked softly on the door. "Are you all right?" The concern in her voice was very evident. I closed my eyes against a sudden wave of guilt, mixed with a heady feeling of joy. She had suffered much in her life, I could tell, and yet, she was still capable of putting aside her own pain to care about another's. She was a precious jewel carelessly tossed aside by people who should have loved her, of that I was totally convinced.
I decided to fake loud retching. I hoped my performance would sound authentic to her ears. I went on like that for a full minute, then stopped.
"Are you sure you're all right?" She sounded really worried now.
"I won't be long," I called out, trying to inject a reassuring tone into my voice. Then I remembered to sound just a little hoarse. After all, I had supposedly just gotten rid of the contents of my stomach. "Just a little...well, I had a few drinks last night." Sometimes I found it necessary, although never pleasant, to invent little lies by the seat of my pants.
"Oh, that's too bad."
I had not misjudged her character, by the light of the moon last night. And I could not understand why that realization touched me so deeply. She was not the first nice girl I had met. However, she was the very first one whose blood I hadn't taken. At least, not yet...
"Can I get you anything?" she now asked, and I cursed softly to myself. I should have driven her to an ER and made them admit her. I shouldn't have brought her here. But wait...I was only fooling myself. I had wanted her for my own from the moment I saw her, no... smelled her. She had to be mine. It was just that I didn't know in what way, exactly, she was to be mine. Perhaps we could, well, have a relationship, as they called it nowadays. I smiled bitterly. Yes, of course we could - until she found out my true nature. Then she would run for the hills. I promised myself, then and there, that I would not pursue her if she chose to do just that.
"No, I'll be fine," I responded. I had to take control of myself. I had to stop trembling so...
After a few more minutes, I felt that I would be able to be in her presence without feeling the consuming need to sink my teeth into her delectable throat and drink until I had emptied her completely of blood. I lifted my head, and stared at my reflection in the mirror. I had to smile wryly as I remembered the silly old legends about vampires and mirrors. We had reflections, just like humans do. Perhaps it would be much better if we didn't. Then we wouldn't be able to see what monsters we were. Suddenly, I stared at myself with a new awareness. How long would my eyes remain black?It had been too long since I had fed. I wondered how long I could hold out. Was there a vampire record about this? I was glad, though, that my eyes weren't red. Yet. I knew that, when they eventually colored, I would not be able to stop myself from killing her, ethics or no ethics.
So that meant I had to get away from her so I could feed. I just didn't know how to do that without arousing the suspicion that something was radically wrong with me.
I straightened, pasting a charming smile on my face. I prayed it would fool her. Then, I slowly opened the door.
I wasn't surprised to see her standing right outside the bathroom, an anxious expression on her face. When she saw me, she squealed, but definitely not in delight.
"Oh, you look terrible!" And I thought my smile would fool her...
I nodded, careful not to breathe. There would be no problem at all, I hoped, if I simply didn't breathe. Doing so was entirely optional for vampires, of course.
"Well, er, thanks," I said dryly as I tried to walk past her. Control, Edward. You're doing fine.
Her gaze followed me into the kitchen. Then, she followed me into that room.
"But I don't understand," she went on while I quietly cursed myself. "You seemed fine a few minutes ago, when you came into the bedroom! How could you get sick so suddenly?"
Wildly, I sought some quick explanation.
"Well, you know, sometimes a hangover has a delayed reaction," I said through my teeth.
She shrugged, then sat down in a kitchen chair. "Well, I'm not much of a drinker, so I wouldn't really know."
Thank you, great God above! I had never thought of myself as a pious sort, but it now seemed appropriate to show gratitude to the Deity.
"Well, that explains it, then," I said with great relief. I immediately changed the subject. "Now, what would you like to eat? And don't tell me you're not hungry, because I won't believe you."
As if on cue, her stomach growled and I laughed. "Well, let's see...you do like scrambled eggs, right? Or would you prefer French toast? And coffee, too, of course."
She shrugged, and gave me a wan, shy smile. "Whatever you have is fine with me," she said simply, not meeting my eyes.
My teeth were still clenched.
"Look," I replied, as I rummaged through one of the cupboards. "I have plenty of food here, but don't eat much myself. So go ahead and ask for whatever you like. Your body wants to live, even if your mind thinks it doesn't."
She turned her face away from me, and I could tell she was trying to hold back a sudden rush of emotion. I felt an urge to go to her and put my arms around her, but wasn't sure that would be a wise thing to do. Well, I had been holding my breath for a while now, so perhaps it would be all right.
I was at her side before I could change my mind. I gathered her into my arms.
"Hey, it's gonna be fine," I whispered soothingly. "But go ahead and cry. You need to let your emotions out."
She did. I held her until I knew I could do so no longer. Then I forced myself to pull away, although I wanted to hold her forever...
I went back to the stove, trying not to sigh.
"So, breakfast!" I did my best to sound cheerful. "Coming right up, a gourmet meal for Bella, who will not be jumping off any bridges any time soon!"
I dove into a cabinet under the sink, and started rattling pots and pans. It might seem strange for a vampire to have such things in his kitchen, as well as real food in his refrigerator, but I had some contact with humans, from time to time. Mostly it was fellow artists or my agent, or perhaps a gallery director. I always tried to discourage such visits, but couldn't prevent them from taking place entirely. The best I could do was to make sure they took place at night. It wouldn't do to have any of my human acquaintances - I couldn't consider them friends - see the effects of sunlight on my skin. And unfortunately, there was a lot of sunlight in the city I had chosen to live in - Miami, Florida. I figured there would be plenty of tourists here. Their sudden disappearance could always be explained away somehow.
I grimaced, running my tongue over my teeth. Anger suddenly rippled through me - anger at Carlisle, for making me what I was. I vehemently wished he had let me die. It was better than being an inhuman monster. Here I was, cheerfully anticipating my next tourist feeding. Had I forgotten that I had the grisly duty of disposing of the body afterward? That was the worst part. That was when the guilt hit, along with the revulsion, the regret...
Behind me, Bella actually laughed.
"You still haven't told me your name," she said suddenly. If I had had a heartbeat, it surely would have spiked.
I finally found a frying pan, grabbed it, and pulled it out. Then I straightened, facing her. For some strange reason, I was abruptly finding it a bit hard to smile.
"Edward. Edward Cullen."
She stared at me, an expression of abject terror on her face. Then she screamed.
I didn't have to ask her why. By now, I was incredibly hungry. My facial expression must have told her very clearly what I really was.
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
zombiesat is alive!
Intelsat's Galaxy 15 communications satellite, after drifting in orbit since last April, has been revived! The zombiesat gained notoriety for its intrusions on neighbors, after its electronic brains were supposedly fried by a solar flare, which caused several crises and interference avoidance maneuvers. The solution was to drain power from the comsat and induce a system reboot, which occurred on Dec. 23, 2010. The satellite is currently in safe mode and no longer poses a threat to the neighborhood. Intelsat has a FAQ section, which includes information on an in-orbit protection plan! Intelsat remains hopeful software can be reloaded from the ground and the satellite's functions fully restored! Or, will the zombiesat need to eat other satellite brains in order to survive?
international space station's moon transit
French Astrophotographer Theirry Legault captured image, at right, of International Space Station crossing the Moon (near center of picture). Legault took this impressive shot on December 20th from Normandy, France just a few hours before the eclipse. Please view article and more pictures at Universe Today.
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
2010: the year the internet went to war
from threat level: It was a year without parallel. Threat Level’s bread-and-butter themes of censorship, hacking, security, privacy, copyright and cyberwar were all represented in tug-of-war struggles with unprecedented outcomes.Google defeated China’s censors, but caved to corporate censorship in the United States. The largest computer-crime case ever prosecuted ended in the nation’s longest prison term. A small-time Xbox modder who advertised his services online beat the federal rap. And a mysterious computer virus called Stuxnet finally put proof to decades of warnings that malware will eventually be used to kinetic effect in the real world.
A myriad of court decisions seemed to be a boon for online rights, while others clearly were a step backward. The year 2010 saw the rise of the newspaper copyright troll, and judges pushed back on absurd jury verdicts for music file sharing and outdated electronic spying rules.
And a secret-spilling website flirting with insolvency and dissolution suddenly burst onto the world stage. WikiLeaks was without a doubt the biggest 2010 development in Threat Level’s world.
related: cyber-warfare centre coming, germany says
Feliz 2011 !!!!!
Desejo a todos que por aqui passam um fantástico 2011 recheado de coisinhas boas.
Que seja no minimo igual ao ano que agora termina, mas que vos traga muita saúde, paz e muito trabalho...
Vejo-vos a todos no próximo ano!!!
Beijinhos gordos....
Monday, December 27, 2010
My Book Collection: Partial Views!
Since I'm still on vacation from one of my two jobs ( the part-time ), I have some free time available at night! So tonight I started doing some blog browsing. I checked out Hale & Salvatore's Supernatural Must Reads, and saw a post on bookshelves. The pictured shelves are truly awesome!! I especially like the one that encloses a reader in a cozy, little space in which books fully surround a comfortable chair! It's Bookworm Heaven!! The other bookshelf looks like it could be aboard the Starship "Enterprise". It's cool, too, but I do prefer the cozy one. It comes pretty close to my ideal living conditions. Books all around me! Ah, bliss! I'm reminded of the Jorge Luis Borges quote: "I cannot sleep unless I am surrounded by books." Oh, absolutely!! Borges, for those not familiar with him, was a great Argentine writer and Nobel Prize winner. (For more Borges quotes, click here.) I've been meaning to start reading his books, but well...as another quote goes: "So many books, so little time..." That one comes from Frank Zappa, incredibly enough! (For more FZ quotes, click here.)
You can check out Hale & Salvatore's favorite shelves here. A link to Hale's personal bookshelf can also be found on that page.
Now here's a look at part of my own shelves.
These books are in our bedroom. The first picture shows part of two shelves that take up one wall, from floor to ceiling. The second one shows stacks of books on the dresser, and the third shows more stacks on the night table right next to my side of the bed.
It's more than obvious that I'm seriously addicted to books.... I've been collecting for years and years! I buy them mostly online now, but I still buy at good ol' Barnes & Noble from time to time, as well as Borders. I've gotten a LOT of used books at both eBay and Amazon; however, if I buy a used book, it had better be in "like new" condition! Otherwise, I'll return it.
Here's a partial list of the books on the shelves. I'm hoping and praying I'll be able to get to all of them, or at least most of them, someday!
Here we have the following:
1. Creativity - Eric Maisel
2. Silence, Simplicity, and Solitude - David A. Cooper
3. Diamond Heart, Book Three - A.H. Almaas
4. The Complete Works of W.H. Auden: Prose - W.H. Auden
5. The Kabbalah Tree - Rachel Pollack
6. The Hidden Face of God - Gerald L. Schroeder
This group consists of the following:
7. The Republic and Other Works - Plato
8. Dialogues: Cratylus, Phaedo, Timaeus, Critias - Plato, with commentary by Thomas Taylor
9. The Wisdom of The Enneagram - Don Richard Riso and Russ Hudson
8. Christmas In My Heart - Joe Wheeler
9. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight - Anonymous
Well....I have to be honest here. This is not one of my bookshelves; I got this picture from Goodreads. I do have some of these books, though; it's just that they're not all in one place. The ones I don't yet have, I intend to acquire, with the possible exception of the Anne Rice book pictured here. Of course, I did want to show off my paranormals! They are as follows:
10. City of Bones - Cassandra Clare (owned)
11. Dead In The Family - Charlaine Harris (wish list)
12. Spirit Bound - Richelle Mead (wish list)
13. Tempted - P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast (wish list)
14. Evernight - Claudia Gray (wish list)
15. Twilight - Stephenie Meyer (happily owned!!)
16. Night World, Vol. 1 - L.J. Smith (omnibus edition, owned)
17. Vampire Diaries, Vol. 1 - L.J. Smith (omnibus edition, owned)
18. Queen of The Damned - Anne Rice (maybe wish list)
All right, so I don't own all of them. They all look so nice together, I decided to post the picture!
I'm a very eclectic reader. Most of the ones shown in the closeups are non-fiction. I'm glad I photographed them, even if the pics look darker here than they do on my cell phone, because this will serve as a reminder that I do have these very fascinating books that I really need to sink my teeth into! (I suppose the pun is intended.)
By the way, there is one writer whose books I will never read or buy: Stephen King. There are some others, like H.P. Lovecraft, for instance, whom I also refuse to read or collect. Any writer in the hard-core horror genre (I do not consider books like those in The Twilight Saga part of this genre) is a writer that will not make money from me!
why the moon appears grey from earth
Cary Martynuik, a moon researcher with a part in movie, "Moon Rising", asks good questions about the Moon's appearance as seen from Earth. Martynuik contends our atmosphere and its light diffusion and scattering properties, only makes the moon appear colorless. Our eyes simply do not receive the color information before it's deflected? Is there color info not reaching the earth's surface? It's a good question! Here's a link to an eight minute video, "Why the Moon Appears Grey From Earth".
your solarcast: dalton minimum repeat
The lack of sunspot activity seems to support predictions of cold temperatures? Anthony Watts, in an article at Watts Up With That?, predicts a repeat of a Dalton Minimum. Watts recaps solar cycle expert David Archibald's graphs. What is a Dalton Minimum and its weather implications? "The Dalton Minimum was a period of low solar activity, named after the English meteorologist John Dalton, lasting from about 1790 to 1830. Like the Maunder Minimum and Spörer Minimum, the Dalton Minimum coincided with a period of lower-than-average global temperatures. The Oberlach Station in Germany, for example, experienced a 2.0°C decline over 20 years. The Year Without a Summer, in 1816, also occurred during the Dalton Minimum," writes Watts. Archibald also examines interplanetary magnetic field strength. A weaker interplanetary magnetic field means more cosmic rays reach our planet. The measure is taken by a neutron count and it is higher than the previous solar minimum. It seems, yet, another blow delivered to the global warming agenda. This is your solarcast for late 2010.
Sunday, December 26, 2010
mark david chapman: programmed cia hitman?
Phil Strongman writes a new book, "John Lennon--Life, Times and Assassination" and revisits agency involvement in the murder. The most convincing argument is to follow the money. "Money never seemed to be a problem for Chapman, but no one has ever explained where it came from. The distinct possibility remains, in Strongman’s opinion, that the secret service was his paymaster." A young man without visible means, Chapman was able to travel around the world to Japan, the UK, India, Nepal, Korea, Vietnam and China in 1975. The portrayed of the 25 year old as a "lone nut" has fallen away as more facts have become known. Strongman believes more than one shooter had to be involved, it's often cited the number of bullets add up to more than one gun. The author harbors doubts whether Chapman fired at all? Outside doorman Jose Perdomo's involvement in the Bay of Pigs, revealed in recent years seems a strong possibility as a participant?
Mark David Chapman, as a Manchurian Candidate or programmed assassin, is not new however. "Who Killed John Lennon" written by Fenton Bresler, twenty years ago, did an admirable job revealing the mind control aspects of the murder. The unaccounted for layover by Chapman at Chicago O'Hare airport just prior to Lennon's shooting leaves open possibilities. Bresler suspected that time was used to reassert control over Chapman's mind as he was acting erratically? Strongman concludes Chapman was likely a stooge and Lennon was assassinated at the behest of right wing fanatics in the political establishment. Phil Spector feels John Lennon's assassination "was certainly a probability" in very brief interview excerpt on You Tube.
Book Review: A Christmas Kiss
Author: Elizabeth Mansfield
Mass Market Paperback, 263 pages
Published December, 1990 by Jove Books (first published April, 1978, by Dell)
Reading genre: Christmas Regency romance
I love romance novels of all kinds, but my favorites are the paranormal, Christmas, and Regency sub-genres. This one has two out of three; it is certainly not a paranormal. It's also a wonderful, very sweet, feel-good comedy of errors, reminiscent of Shakespeare's own comedies, that had me glued to the page, so I breezed right through it, even chuckling aloud in some places as I read.
The characters are certainly unforgettable, so real that, once the book is closed for the last time, the reader feels bereft, wishing that the story could go on and on... At least, this reader did. I shall have to re-read it at some time in the near future. And here I thought I wouldn't find anyone to compare with Mary Balogh! Next I'll have to investigate Georgette Heyer, because, the more I read this type of romance, especially at Christmastime, the more I LOVE it!
The plot immediately starts off on a humorous note. Two young aristocrats, Reginald Windle, who has the title of Viscount Farnham, and his friend, James Everard, the future Earl of Gyllford, are quietly having a drink in the library at Carbery Hall, where they are guests, when they hear a body rolling down a nearby staircase. It's Geoffrey Carbery, who has just been hit on the head with an Atlas! The two friends arrive on the scene just in time to see the governess, one Miss Evalyn Pennington, still holding the book in one hand, come calmly down the stairs to make sure that Geoff, who had been accosting her, is all right.
When Geoff's tyrannical mother discovers what has happened, she promptly dismisses Evalyn, even refusing to give her a letter of recommendation. James and Reginald -- who has a lisp and is affectionately known as "Reggie" -- come to the rescue. They manage to get Evalyn invited to the Christmas festivities at Gyllford Manor. Their plan is to allow Clarissa, Jamie's aunt, to get to know Evalyn, and thus recommend her for another position.
The comedy of errors begins when Philip, Jamie's father, misunderstands his son's explanation for the invitation, believing instead that Jamie, as he calls him, intends to marry the hapless young girl. Thus, he feels honor-bound to deny his growing feelings for Evalyn.
Among the guests at Gyllford Manor is Sally Trevelyan, a scheming, self-centered social butterfly, who has been trying for quite some time to trap Philip into marriage. This cannot happen, however, since Philip not only actively dislikes her, but is well aware of her intent, and is very adept at avoiding her.
Sally takes an instant dislike to Evalyn, naturally. Through her, Mansfield criticizes the class discrimination of the time. Sally simply cannot understand why Evalyn, whom she holds in contempt, is obviously taking up Philip's attention, although that gentleman does his best to make it seem that he is only being kind to the young governess.
Philip himself reflects the author's modern concerns with class discrimination. He writes political books under a pseudonym, and has such radical -- for the time -- notions as the enfranchisement of all social classes. He refuses to consider Evalyn beneath him just because she's a governess. He sees her true worth, her inner spirit, irrevocably falling in love with her without any thought for the class difference between them.
Humorously complicating the plot are the love stories of four minor characters -- Reggie, Marianne, Joseph, and Annette, who happens to be Sally's personal maid. These stories, too, are resolved by the end of the book, and, as I pointed out above, are related to that of the main characters.
In short, this book, while seemingly "just" a romance, is also a comedy and a critical review of the social customs of the time. The author's skillful storytelling makes all these elements fit together seamlessly, while the tale unfolds without a hitch, amidst the vividly depicted merriment of the season.
This is my first Mansfield romance, which I recently acquired on eBay as part of a used Regency book lot. It most definitely won't be my last. This novel not only provided a good dose of the holiday spirit, but was a delightfully entertaining read, as well!
kubrick's odyssey: a11 faked moon landing?
Jay Weidner does a masterful job in his essay, "How Stanley Kubrick Faked the Moon Landings: ... ", exposing Hollywood trickery evident in the dated Front Screen Projection effect, and contended, used in the sixties on the Apollo 11 Moon shots. "All I am trying to do, with the following evidence, is show that the Apollo landings were a hoax. And that Stanley Kubrick, using the Front Screen Projection system, directed them," says Weidner. The author believes the United States traveled to the moon, but not by means of conventional rocket science. This third position occupied by Weidner views the NASA Space Program as a cover for the anti-gravity propulsion secrets, our government wanted to keep from their Cold War nemesis, the USSR. The author follows up with a shocking interpretation of Kubrick's symbolism in "Secrets of the Shining". Weidner believes the liberties Kubrick took with Stephen King's novel, "The Shining," were intentional attempts to communicate his personal plight.
Weidner lays it out for the reader. "The Manager tells Jack that his main job is to prevent the Overlook Hotel (America) from appearing like it is decaying. The Manager reiterates that this is Jack's primary responsibility." Son Danny's vision of the "Gemini" twins (killed by the previous caretaker) on their very first day. The Apollo sweatshirt worn by Danny. Jack's deterioration during the course of the movie, a parallel to Kubrick's personal decline while making "2001: A Space Odyssey". The damaging effect making the movie had on Kubrick's marriage. Weidner goes so far as to suggest, "...the nickname, or the code name, for the faking of the Apollo Moon Missions was A11?" "All" for Apollo 11 was the first word Jack is typing over and over in the movie.
Kubrick has been communicating far earlier than recent insights into his last film, "Eyes Wide Shut," which some believe resulted in his death? Weidner makes a compelling case and believes the errors in the faked Moon shots were intentional attempts by Stanley Kubrick to reveal the truth. It's a good read.
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