Zoe: Jayne. This is something the Captain has to do for himself. Mal: No! No, it's not!

'War Stories'


Natter 78: I might need to watch some Buffy for inspiration

Off-topic discussion. Wanna talk about corsets, duct tape, butt kicking, or physics? This is the place. Detailed discussion of any current-season TV must be whitefonted.


smonster - May 31, 2024 10:48:00 am PDT #883 of 2753
We won’t stop until everyone is gay.

Lots of ~ma for Jen’s DH! Is this a business thing?

Wow, David. Thanks for sharing. I’m glad for the reunion and that it looks like she will have more time.

On a personal note, makes me feel better that my mom went through a round of chemo. The way my mom’s doctors handled her treatment was frustrating enough that my father wrote A Strongly Worded Email to the oncology dept. I still think it was deserved, but that info softens things a little.

Not only did I read Zen and the Art… and convinced myself I liked it, I slogged through the sequel as well. There’s a reason Bamford’s Sure, I’ll Join Your Cult was an uncomfortably resonant read.

Moving sale tomorrow. I didn’t manage the thorough prep I had hoped for, so this afternoon I’m going to wander around slapping a neon sticker on anything I’m getting rid of.


Steph L. - May 31, 2024 11:01:08 am PDT #884 of 2753
the hardest to learn / was the least complicated

I slogged through the sequel as well.

I salute you, my friend.


Jake - May 31, 2024 11:18:44 am PDT #885 of 2753

Zen and the Art was pressed upon me by a friend in high school. Even then I knew it was hot garbage. Kind of interesting though in getting an insight into disordered thinking and mistaking the superficial for the profound.

My pick for a book (without spending too much time racking my brain over it) would be Good Omens. It's fairly light and could gently get people to think about some things they wouldn't normally examine in their lives. And if liked, it leads to all sorts of delight in exploring other works by Pratchett and Gaiman.


meara - May 31, 2024 11:21:54 am PDT #886 of 2753

Ugh. I dislike having to be a hard ass and bitchy but seriously you’ve made zero progress on this task in a month and don’t seem to understand any of it, but also haven’t asked any questions or said “I don’t understand where this comes from” or “I asked my manager for training on this” just “oh was that on there before? I don’t know anything about that”.


Tom Scola - May 31, 2024 11:23:00 am PDT #887 of 2753
Mr. Scola’s wardrobe by Botany 500

CFM:

  • Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
  • The Fountainhead
  • Jonathan Livingston Seagull


Steph L. - May 31, 2024 11:26:41 am PDT #888 of 2753
the hardest to learn / was the least complicated

Damn, Scola. Why you gotta be like that?


-t - May 31, 2024 11:56:33 am PDT #889 of 2753
I am a woman of various inclinations and only some of the time are they to burn everything down in frustration

I actually like Jonathan Livingston Seagull just because at some point there's a contrast drawn between going fast/faster and being at the destination and while it's probably not the point they were trying to make it got me thinking about how well continuous functions represent the physical reality of a quantized universe and how you could use that fuzziness in SF to get around the whole speed of light business. I don't really remember anything else about the book. So I'll have to marry that one, I suppose. We'll live separate lives, it'll be fine.

I can't remember why I read Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance but I am pretty sure that somebody handed it to me after seeing I was reading Zen and the Art of Archery (for a class on buddhism, and that was actually good). I know I didn't get far into it before noping out. I think some guy tried to get me to pick it up again but not at all effectively. So I guess I did C it.

The Fountainhead I have managed to avoid almost entirely. My dad had a roommate in college who really liked it and forced all his friends to read it, so he (my dad) did and still thinks that one scene where a guy eats a burger in some diner in Colorado and is immensely impressed with the quality of the burger in some profound way is HILARIOUS. So that's what I know about that. F it, in the non-literal sense. Fuck the whole Rand oeuvre.


-t - May 31, 2024 11:57:26 am PDT #890 of 2753
I am a woman of various inclinations and only some of the time are they to burn everything down in frustration

Separately, glad to hear Lola is doing better than expected! And glad the crowd got together


erikaj - May 31, 2024 1:40:57 pm PDT #891 of 2753
I'm a fucking amazing catch!--Fiona Gallagher, Shameless(US)

Yes, this. Independent of what I think of these books, it's weird how some books totally get people obsessed with them.


smonster - May 31, 2024 3:55:56 pm PDT #892 of 2753
We won’t stop until everyone is gay.

A friend gave me The Fountainhead in middle school. He’s now an entertainment lawyer.

I remember enjoying Seagull okay but I’m not anxious to revisit it.

Flirty packing ended up in a very awkward conversation. Because I am me, and I am awkward. But it’s all good.