reading (The Illustrated Man)

I finished my re-read of "The Illustrated Man" today. I can't remember the last time I read it, but the first time was when I was in high school or maybe junior high.

These short stories were written around 1950. Some of the assumptions in them about planets are naive from today's perspective, but the stories are solid and the themes remain relevant today for the most part. The story of the Illustrated Man tying together the other stories is well executed and Bradbury doesn't beat a dead horse by revisiting it between each story. There is variety in this collection: terror, humor, commentary, whimsy. The voice remains steadily Bradbury and illustrates his scene painting in a variety of settings.

I can't really name a favorite because there are so many good ideas well executed here. A good curry contains a lot of ingredients making many layers of flavor.

22. Ray Bradbury "The Illustrated Man"

weekend roundup

It's been a very good weekend.

On Friday I got out of work a tiny bit early, which is always nice. derien and I met littleredhead and groundctrl for a very yummy dinner at Shere Punjab in Brunswick. We followed the main course with a trip to a bookstore and finished up with ice-cream. An easy formula for happiness if there ever was one. We came home with a stack of books from groundctrl and the bookstore.

Saturday morning I woke up after exactly eight hours of sleep and felt energized. I spent most of the day cleaning the house like a madman. I scrubbed pots, swept floors, dusted, sprayed, straightened, neatened, and washed. derien washed the cloths and I put them away. The only food we had were leftovers from the previously mentioned dinner (divine) and nachos. We sat down in the evening and watched "Breakfast at Tiffany's", which I had only seen a bit of before.

Today was a more laid back. I was lower energy and picked away at getting things done with moderate success. I did manage to scrub the bathroom floor, finish scrubbing the pots, finished my book, write my review, and write a couple of emails. The only things I didn't get done that was on my list for the weekend was working on the van and converting more things to ebook, but I'm happy with what I've gotten done. Tonight I started my next book, "Seven Wives and Seven Prisons." I had planned to go to the gym after derien got home, but she reminded me that the gym is not open late on Sunday, so I'm writing this entry.