Quotes - Part One

 I don't remember when it started, but I began collecting quotes from books I was reading.

Insults and greetings.  Interesting turns of phrase.

These were all kept in a spiral bound notebook, and then once I had a computer, I thought, "Wouldn't it be easier to keep track of them in a text file.  This has grown into a Word doc that is over 100 pages long with over 1,300 entries.

And so, I thought i'd start sharing them here.

1.                   The word “laptop” comes from a Latin expression meaning “don’t drop this”.

--3 Dead Trolls in A Baggie

2.                   Human beings, who are almost unique in having the ability to learn from the experience of others, are also remarkable for their apparent disinclination to do so.

--Douglas Adams, Last Chance to See

3.                   I refuse to answer that question on the grounds that I don’t know the answer.

--Douglas Adams

4.                   In the beginning the Universe was created. This has made a lot of people very angry and been widely regarded as a bad move.

--Douglas Adams, The Restaurant at the End of the Universe

5.                   The big corporations are suddenly taking notice of the web, and their reactions have been slow. Even the computer industry failed to see the importance of the Internet, but that’s not saying much. Let’s face it, the computer industry failed to see that the century would end.

--Douglas Adams

6.                   The major difference between something that can go wrong and something that cannot possibly go wrong is that when something that cannot possibly go wrong goes wrong it usually turns out to be impossible to get at or repair.

--Douglas Adams, Mostly Harmless

7.                   There is a theory which states that if ever anybody discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable. There is another theory which states that this has already happened.

--Douglas Adams, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

8.                   The world’s a lot less scary when you’re carrying a rocket launcher around with you.

--Ernest Adams, The Designer’s Notebook, Gamasutra

9.                   I find that a great part of the information I have was acquired by looking up something and finding something else on the way.

--Franklin P. Adams

10.               The science of government it is my duty to study, more than all other sciences; the arts of legislation and administration and negotiation ought to take the place of, indeed exclude, in a manner, all other arts. I must study politics and war, that our sons may have liberty to study mathematics and philosophy. Our sons ought to study mathematics and philosophy, geography, natural history and naval architecture, navigation, commerce and agriculture in order to give their children a right to study painting, poetry, music, architecture, statuary, tapestry and porcelain.

   -- John Adams, Letters of John Adams, Addressed to His Wife

Happy Geek Pride Day

So, I vaguely remember reading about this earlier this week, but it must have stayed in the back of my mind, because today I wore my Darth Vader hoodie complete with black Levi's and my black boots.

Plus I have to say that it’s pretty cool that  I’m familiar with all three special dates.

On May 25, 1977, the original Star Wars (A New Hope) opened.  I remember going to see it (not on that day, but soon after it opened).  I remember going with my parents to the theater in Walnut Creek.  It was the first time I’d ever waited in line (that I remember) for a movie.  I was really too young and had sensible parents so I never waited in line all day for the sequels.  I did however wait all day for the three prequels.  At this point, I’m not sure what that says about me.

My dad introduced me to The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy back when I was in high school.  He came home one day with the original trilogy, and I burned through them pretty quickly.  And I thoroughly enjoyed the fourth book (So Long and Thanks For All the Fish), and was slightly disappointed by the end of the fifth.  I have the bible-ish tome that collects all five, and used to read it every year.

But then I found a new obsession.

Early in my time with the marching band in college I met a saxophone player (no not this one, a different one).  I was expounding on the wonders of Douglas Adams, and he told me about Terry Pratchett, who early on in his Discworld career was considered the Douglas Adams of fantasy.  Pratchett quickly grew beyond that title, and made himself a name (and a knight) for showing us the master writer that he is.  Now I read the entire Discworld series every couple of years as well as reading every new book when they come out.

Saying Good-Bye

Last night I finished I Shall Wear Midnight by Terry Pratchett. It is his latest book in the Discworld and I get the feeling he is working to say goodbye to his characters as well as his readers.

Diagnosed with Alzheimer's in 2010, Pratchett has curtailed a lot of his traveling and interviews. He has donated lots of money to Alzheimer's research as well the protection of orangutans (as one of his recurring characters is a man who was transformed into one).

In this fourth book in the Tiffany Aching arc, Tiffany travels to the city of Ankh-Morpork for part of the book, and meets a few other recurring characters from the Discworld. And one other character she meets has only appeared once before, and it's one that I as well as many other readers have always wondered about. What happened to her?

Now we know.

And with other things mentioned, I feel Pratchett is doing his best to wrap up loose ends, move bits of continuity along, and prepare to close the door on his universe. And I for one hope that he gets the opportunity to finish his work.

There are many authors out there who have died and left their works unfinished or open to interpretation.

The first posthumous speculation I ever read was Fuzzy Bones by William Tuning which continued the story about Fuzzies introduced by H. Beam Piper. Then I found the true lost sequel written by Piper that was found after his suicide.

I've read the Dune sequels and prequels and will read the "inter-quels" as they come out. Written based on notes and manuscripts by Frank Herbert, these books are written by Herbert's son Brian and Kevin J. Anderson. Now while I enjoy the books and knowing the rest of the story (as Paul Harvey used to say), they don't have the same gripping story as Frank Herbert would have written them.

Another person carrying on from a passed writer based on notes left behind is Brandon Sanderson working to complete Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series. I've enjoyed Sanderson's stories, mostly because he is closing the story and moving the plot along. Jordan had found a cash cow and said a few years before he dies that he intended to write until he died and for someone else to complete his story for him.

Then there is the sixth book in Douglas Adams' Hitchhikers' series ... And Another Thing by Eion Colfer. I read this one, and it was severely lacking in the Adams' touch.

And finally there are the Amber prequels written by John Gregory Betancourt. I can't even bring myself to read them. The Amber Chronicles by Roger Zelazny are some of my favorite stories, and I don't want anyone's speculations to mess with the memories I have of them.

So I thank Pratchett for his wonderful world, and wish him continued strength in his life, but hope that he has time to finish his works.

Progress

So I started peeling last night. I had major itch spasms, and could feel the loose skin starting when I reached back. So that's really great.

It looks like I'll be heading up to Eureka for a pump test on Wednesday, so I'll be mostly healed up by then.

***

Last night I finished the five part trilogy of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and started the posthumous sixth book by Eoin Colfer. I finished that today after lunch.

I don't know how much information Colfer got from notes left by Douglas Adams, as I thought we had been given all of those notes in The Salmon of Doubt, but it was a satisfying read and semi-conclusion.

It does make me long for the alternate reality where Adams not only wrote the sixth book himself, but made it the third book in the Dirk Gently series as well.

But then, that's what dreams are for.

On a roll

So I got things all squared away, and Sunday I moved my computer back into the office. I decided to be a good boy (since there'd been all kinds of links the previous week for keeping the workspace organized) and use the spool of cable keeper we'd bought over a year ago.

So armed with cable ties or varying lengths and the cable keeper, I reassembled the computer. Soon I was done and very happy with the look. Happy enough that I wish I had a before picture for comparison. It's still not great; I really should get one longer power strip. The problem is the number of converters I have to plug in.

The late Douglas Adams had a brief musing about these which he called "Dongly Things". If you haven't read it (and you should), buy The Salmon of Doubt and read it.

But then I discovered, that I couldn't see my external drive. Instead it was telling me that the printer was an external storage device. Finally, after replugging the drive in the USB slot a few more times it appeared. However, it was showing as H: instead of E:. Who knew that the USB slots kept up some sort of memory? Okay, if you did, good for you. I didn't.

So I unplugged all the USBs and plugged the drive into its old slot. It still showed as H:, so I went in and forced it to be E:. All better.

I think next post I may have to explain the following embarrassing assertion: Saturday, five other men and I played a pen and paper roleplaying game for about 10 hours.