The best training for fast endurance running: 2/4's (2 minutes running / 4 minutes walking or very slow jogging) > 3/4's > 4/4's > 2/2's > 3/2's > 3/1's > 3/0.5's > 3/0.1's... (And 1 minute runs are anerobic and for the most part you'd be better off just doing continous longer runs instead. Although if your rest period gets well under a minute, you may start getting some benefit from 1 minute runs beyond a finishing kick.)
Basically run just long enough that it's mainly aerobic. And rest long enough that you're as close to completely recuperated as you've got the time to get.
The whole point of intervals is to spend more time running at or faster than race pace while still running aerobically. Shorter than 2 minutes and the running becomes primarily anerobic. Longer rest periods mean more time spent running faster, (provided you have the time for a longer workout). Furthermore no matter how good a shape you're in, the aerobic system takes longer to recuperate, thus as your running intervals get longer, you really need much longer rest periods to ensure each successive run is still at a good fast pace.
Otherwise, what's the point of even bothering doing intervals? Why do them in a way where you do less fast aerobic running?
And 2/2's > 3/2's > 4/2's etc, etc because provided it's still somewhat aerobic, faster running is just better. As you slow down your stride changes such that you're not even exercising all the muscles that you would need in order to run fast.
Short very fast runs with plenty of rest in between. That's how you should actually do intervals. The limiting factors are how much time you have and how much your joints can handle. (And how tired you are from inadequate recovery from your "recovery" runs.)
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Mageborn: The Blacksmith's Son by Michael Manning
They all just run together after a while. They really REALLY do.
His parents are killed when he's just a baby. He's basically the last wizard. His love interest is a tad stupid. The book is quite short. The bad guy doesn't last very long. Seemed cut too short. There is a book two, which I might never read. Lack of setting detail. Lack of character depth. But decent. Lack of injustice.
I felt emotion when Dorian is attacking the bad guy whom just almost killed the hero.
Comparing to Daniel Abraham, it's got less character depth and setting detail. But at least the hero has an ace up his sleeve. Not enough injustice in this book. Basically except for finding out his real parents were murdered shortly after he was born and he's actually a wizard, not much really happens here. The bad guy is quite thin and thrown in. Perhaps like Rothfuss book two might be better. But moving on to other books. Now reading The Etched City which has more setting detail than I've read in a very long time, and just simply big words. Hooray for big words. Supposedly the plot wanders aimlessly. But thinking back to Gormenghast, I'd consider that a good thing right now. In fact Etched City is compared to Gormenghast, though it doesn't seem quite at that level.
Gormenghast has really improved in my memory. Interesting how I've managed to completely forget some books I've recently read, yet I didn't evn bother to read the third book of Gormenghast, and still the first two books have stuck with me (and in a "positive" way) so well.
They all just run together after a while. They really REALLY do.
His parents are killed when he's just a baby. He's basically the last wizard. His love interest is a tad stupid. The book is quite short. The bad guy doesn't last very long. Seemed cut too short. There is a book two, which I might never read. Lack of setting detail. Lack of character depth. But decent. Lack of injustice.
I felt emotion when Dorian is attacking the bad guy whom just almost killed the hero.
Comparing to Daniel Abraham, it's got less character depth and setting detail. But at least the hero has an ace up his sleeve. Not enough injustice in this book. Basically except for finding out his real parents were murdered shortly after he was born and he's actually a wizard, not much really happens here. The bad guy is quite thin and thrown in. Perhaps like Rothfuss book two might be better. But moving on to other books. Now reading The Etched City which has more setting detail than I've read in a very long time, and just simply big words. Hooray for big words. Supposedly the plot wanders aimlessly. But thinking back to Gormenghast, I'd consider that a good thing right now. In fact Etched City is compared to Gormenghast, though it doesn't seem quite at that level.
Gormenghast has really improved in my memory. Interesting how I've managed to completely forget some books I've recently read, yet I didn't evn bother to read the third book of Gormenghast, and still the first two books have stuck with me (and in a "positive" way) so well.
Monday, November 28, 2011
In part from reading that Paula Radcliffe would do 6 one mile runs spread throughout the day, I got to thinking about just what was the point of intervals anyway? Furthermore it occurred to me that it takes the aerobic system much longer to recuperate than the anerobic system. So then today, did second half of 12 mile interval run as a 4/4. Plan to do 4/4's solely for a while.
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Headache again. Must now give up cashews altogether. This is getting absurd and that's fitting.
Avoid oil. Avoid cheese. Certainly no fat from any meats as I haven't touched meat in 8 years. And no pistachios, peanuts or cashews as they trigger headaches. This leaves... Walnuts and seeds and flax meal as my only fat sources. (And I guess avocadoes...) And perhaps I'll increasingly end up eating diary.
Avoid oil. Avoid cheese. Certainly no fat from any meats as I haven't touched meat in 8 years. And no pistachios, peanuts or cashews as they trigger headaches. This leaves... Walnuts and seeds and flax meal as my only fat sources. (And I guess avocadoes...) And perhaps I'll increasingly end up eating diary.
The Long Price Quartet by Daniel Abraham
Books one and 65% of book two. Not quite enough world detail, although much better than most. Good detailed characters.
But, no hero with an ace up their sleeve. And the magic is a bit weak. And book two is basically a detective story. I think I will move on to something else after finishing book two.
(The magic is one single process per poet. The ability to remove the part that goes on-seedles and the ability to soften rocks are the only two bits of magic in book one and two.) Otah and Maati and main characters... Maati a poet. Otah refused to become one but might end up a king. Political intrigue from the Galts, etc.
Books one and 65% of book two. Not quite enough world detail, although much better than most. Good detailed characters.
But, no hero with an ace up their sleeve. And the magic is a bit weak. And book two is basically a detective story. I think I will move on to something else after finishing book two.
(The magic is one single process per poet. The ability to remove the part that goes on-seedles and the ability to soften rocks are the only two bits of magic in book one and two.) Otah and Maati and main characters... Maati a poet. Otah refused to become one but might end up a king. Political intrigue from the Galts, etc.
Monday, November 21, 2011
Went and saw my first opera on Saturday. Lucia Di Lammermoor with wife and S. I think I liked it but I was too tired to enjoy it very much. Got up at 5:30. Did a bunch of stuff, then ended up hurrying to the opera at 7PM. Too much stuff before opera. Got there 3 minutes late and had to sit in the very back row of the second tier till intermission. Beautiful sounding. So, so, so much better than recordings. Could have used binoculars though. And wish the subtitles would have been better.
Previously went on tour of capitol. I wasn't expecting much, but was still disappointed. Wandered around capitol mall museums. Skeletons were the best. Insect zoo was nice but way too small. Made a huge mistake concerning shoe wear.
Then took subway back to car. Which wasn't as alienating an experience as I remember.
I used to give money to the beggars. Now I don't just because I really really really don't want to hear their stories. At least no fatty tried to ask for money to get something to eat.
Then a nice dinner at Busboys and Poets. The fava bean chili was good. But 3 minutes too late for the opera. Oh well.
Had a pretty good time with S. Though she thought my 80's mix CDs were pretty gay. OMD, depeche mode.
Previously went on tour of capitol. I wasn't expecting much, but was still disappointed. Wandered around capitol mall museums. Skeletons were the best. Insect zoo was nice but way too small. Made a huge mistake concerning shoe wear.
Then took subway back to car. Which wasn't as alienating an experience as I remember.
I used to give money to the beggars. Now I don't just because I really really really don't want to hear their stories. At least no fatty tried to ask for money to get something to eat.
Then a nice dinner at Busboys and Poets. The fava bean chili was good. But 3 minutes too late for the opera. Oh well.
Had a pretty good time with S. Though she thought my 80's mix CDs were pretty gay. OMD, depeche mode.
Friday, November 18, 2011
It's better to do what you like as opposed to what you're good at. And better to be around ethical people ("nice" people) you have nothing in common with than around people you seemingly have something in common with whom aren't particularly ethical ("nice").
.....
Every moment of everything you do is an ethical decision.
.....
Ethics is the extent to which we go beyond our own short term self interest and instead start thinking with compassion, start thinking altruistically or at least with an extreme long term self interest that goes into the mystical (life after death).
.....
It's not what you say you rationally believe, it's what you show by your actions that you actually believe. The thing is, the two are rarely the same. We rarely understand what's going on in our nonconscious and how it determines our actions.
.....
If you're bothering to do anything at all, you're acting as if you believe in a life after death.
.....
If you believe in a life after death (sans christian hell absurdity or muslim, etc), why would you support capital punishment?
.....
We enjoy music to the extent that we "anthropomorphosize" the sounds. That is to say, turn those violins into ghostly angels, etc. When every bit of noise represents the expression of some sentient creature, you are truly feeling the music.
.....
Playing the cello is a particularly mystical instrument. Which is to say that, it's so hard to make it sound good. It takes so much time, so many hours that could be instead spent on better ensuring your mere survival, such that it's living as if you're going to exist for a lot longer than a few mere decades. The same of course can be said of many hobbies. Spending a large chunk of your life on any particular thing, (that takes work on your part as opposed to watching TV), that is largely unrelated to mere survival and thus can be considered a silly waste of time, means that you're a highly mystical person. (No matter if you claim to be an atheist of whatever.)
.....
We all basically have two levels of ethics. There is the "just do the right thing" level where we're simply following the absolute ethical laws. (Kantian or whatever.) But, these ethical laws are laws that we've each made up, (hopefully) in large part based on utilitarian thinking. Most good over some time period.
The less thinking we are, the less we put into the utilitarianism and instead default to tradition to determine our "absolute" ethical laws. Relatedly, the lazier we are, the more we attempt to follow our absolute ethical system in unusual cases for which our ethical system doesn't really say what to do. (Here selfishness or masochism is often the deciding factor.)
So we're all really utilitarians to some degree, but many of us our too oblivious of our nonconsciousness to realize it. And the greatest deciding factor in the "absolute" ethical laws we decide upon using utilitarianism, is how long we expect to exist. The more mystical (life after death) you actually are (no matter your claims of atheism), the longer the term you're looking at. And the more seemingly altruistic your actions appear.
.....
If you actually defeated your nonconscious, it'd be awful. It would mean perfect nihilism. I suppose you'd quit bothering to breath and die within a few minutes.
.....
Every moment of everything you do is an ethical decision.
.....
Ethics is the extent to which we go beyond our own short term self interest and instead start thinking with compassion, start thinking altruistically or at least with an extreme long term self interest that goes into the mystical (life after death).
.....
It's not what you say you rationally believe, it's what you show by your actions that you actually believe. The thing is, the two are rarely the same. We rarely understand what's going on in our nonconscious and how it determines our actions.
.....
If you're bothering to do anything at all, you're acting as if you believe in a life after death.
.....
If you believe in a life after death (sans christian hell absurdity or muslim, etc), why would you support capital punishment?
.....
We enjoy music to the extent that we "anthropomorphosize" the sounds. That is to say, turn those violins into ghostly angels, etc. When every bit of noise represents the expression of some sentient creature, you are truly feeling the music.
.....
Playing the cello is a particularly mystical instrument. Which is to say that, it's so hard to make it sound good. It takes so much time, so many hours that could be instead spent on better ensuring your mere survival, such that it's living as if you're going to exist for a lot longer than a few mere decades. The same of course can be said of many hobbies. Spending a large chunk of your life on any particular thing, (that takes work on your part as opposed to watching TV), that is largely unrelated to mere survival and thus can be considered a silly waste of time, means that you're a highly mystical person. (No matter if you claim to be an atheist of whatever.)
.....
We all basically have two levels of ethics. There is the "just do the right thing" level where we're simply following the absolute ethical laws. (Kantian or whatever.) But, these ethical laws are laws that we've each made up, (hopefully) in large part based on utilitarian thinking. Most good over some time period.
The less thinking we are, the less we put into the utilitarianism and instead default to tradition to determine our "absolute" ethical laws. Relatedly, the lazier we are, the more we attempt to follow our absolute ethical system in unusual cases for which our ethical system doesn't really say what to do. (Here selfishness or masochism is often the deciding factor.)
So we're all really utilitarians to some degree, but many of us our too oblivious of our nonconsciousness to realize it. And the greatest deciding factor in the "absolute" ethical laws we decide upon using utilitarianism, is how long we expect to exist. The more mystical (life after death) you actually are (no matter your claims of atheism), the longer the term you're looking at. And the more seemingly altruistic your actions appear.
.....
If you actually defeated your nonconscious, it'd be awful. It would mean perfect nihilism. I suppose you'd quit bothering to breath and die within a few minutes.
The Long Price Quartet by Daniel Abraham. Only halfway into first book of this 4 part series. Just wanted to say I'm so happy to finally be reading something good. Has been too long. Finally some detail and character nuance. Finally found a new good writer, thank god.
The communicating by body positioning thing is interesting. I wonder what it adds as opposed to just describing emotion/facial expression, etc. Maybe it just makes it a bit easier for the writer. Will have to read books in other worlds by Abraham to compare.
He has a blog I'll have to make sure not to read.
The communicating by body positioning thing is interesting. I wonder what it adds as opposed to just describing emotion/facial expression, etc. Maybe it just makes it a bit easier for the writer. Will have to read books in other worlds by Abraham to compare.
He has a blog I'll have to make sure not to read.
Yesterday I had a good bit of flax meal and made myself drink two beers before bed. Today knee was feeling pretty good. Decided to try to do 6/3's for this month. Just did 4 of them today. Will see about increasing volume and intensity and just simply improving. Want to get much closer to a full mile in 6 minutes.
Then 3 2/2's on the exercise bike. It was hard to do that with much intensity after running.
Back feels much better today also.
Feel physically good today.
Did notice I can watch my heart beating in the side of my ankle/foot. I wonder if that's a bad thing. I think it not so good as arteries are supposed to be deeper for a reason.
Then 3 2/2's on the exercise bike. It was hard to do that with much intensity after running.
Back feels much better today also.
Feel physically good today.
Did notice I can watch my heart beating in the side of my ankle/foot. I wonder if that's a bad thing. I think it not so good as arteries are supposed to be deeper for a reason.
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
And on monday did a 4/1 six miles in 53:39. I'm not any good at 4/1's and doubt they're very useful anyway. But with my right knee feeling bad, I have to run slower.
Back lately is consistently bothering me. Probably the one armed rows. I'm running out of exercise I can do without pain.
Figured out this headache of the last two days. Once again it's nuts. Peanut residue on the mixed nuts, or maybe the brazil nuts? Guess it wasn't the chocolate wine.
Back lately is consistently bothering me. Probably the one armed rows. I'm running out of exercise I can do without pain.
Figured out this headache of the last two days. Once again it's nuts. Peanut residue on the mixed nuts, or maybe the brazil nuts? Guess it wasn't the chocolate wine.
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
1: A Game of Thrones (George Martin)
Annoying cliffhangers. Unfinished. Can he finish it well? I really doubt it. With that said, still good stuff.
2: The Malazan Book of the Fallen (Steven Erikson)
Only read first 200 pages. Have resisted because of military feel. Maybe I'm wrong on that.
3: The Name of the Wind (Patrick Rothfuss)
Book two was extremely good. Book one was nothing special. And that's all we've got so far....
4: Lord of the Rings (J.R.R Tolkien)
Most realistic fantasy world ever.
5: The Black Company (Glen Cook)
Never heard of it before. Need to check it out.
6: Gormenghast (Mervyn Peake)
A pretty neat little thing. Bit of a trial to read at times but leaves beautiful lasting images. I did not read the third book. In part because I know he died before finishing the series and that depressed me. I should go back and give it a go.
7: The Blade Itself (Joe Abercrombie)
Will have to check it out. Think I read the sample already though....?
8: The Way of Kings (Brandon Sanderson)
Sanderson's previous series was just OK. I suppose pretty good at times but didn't leave me ultimately with much lasting impression. This is just book one of a supposedly ten part series. So no hurry on it.
9: The Farseer (Robin Hobb)
The best.
10: Lies of Locke Lamora (Scott Lynch)
I wasn't blown away by the sample. Will go back to it though.
11: The Wheel of Time (Robert Jordan)
Started out great then turned into a never-ending soap opera. I quit ten or so books in.
12: Cold Fire Trilogy (C.S. Friedman)
I already reviewed it and I don't really remember it. Must have really sucked. I guess I need to make my reviews more detailed so I don't completely forget.
13: The Long Price Quartet (Daniel Abraham)
Haven't read it. Supposedly highly detailed setting. That's what I really want so must check it out.
14: The Etched City (K.J. Bishop)
Haven't read.
15: A Sword of Shadows (J.V. Jones)
Beginning was too sadistic but finally I really got into it. Really looking forward to next book.
#16: Acacia (David Anthony Durham)
Haven't read.
#17: Elric of Melinbone (Michael Moorcock)
Character seemed 2D. Seemed like a lot of telling instead of showing. Didn't get past beginning.
18: The Darkness That Comes Before (R. Scott Bakker)
Pretty good stuff but this guy's blog I think just really turned me off. Could never quite bring myself to buy book 4. Which I think isn't remotely fair of me. Something going on there in my nonconscious that I ought to figure out.
19: Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell (Susanna Clarke)
Loved the footnotes. Made the world so rich.
20: Chronicles of Thomas Covenant (Stephen R. Donaldson)
The "hero" was such a whiny bastard that I didn't read far.
21: American Gods (Neil Gaiman)
Read other Gaiman. OK. Overrated. Hated his blog.
22: Abhorsen Trilogy (Garth Nix)
Haven't read.
23: Memory, Sorrow, Thorn (Tad Williams)
Characters seemed very 2D. Didn't get far.
24: Magician: Apprentice and Magician (Raymond E. Feist)
Heard such bad things about Feist but should try it.
25: Dresden Files (Jim Butcher)
Such a stereotypical detective story. Haven't gotten far into it.
So I guess I could still read Erikson's Malazan. Book 3 of Gormenghast. Glen Cook's The Black Company. Joe Abercrombie's The Blade Itself. Scott Lynch's Lies of Locke Lamora I guess... The Etched City (K.J. Bishop), Acacia (David Anthony Durham), Abhorsen Trilogy (Garth Nix), Magician: Apprentice and Magician (Raymond E. Feist) and I could give Elric of Melinbone (Michael Moorcock) another try.
First will look at The Long Price Quartet (Daniel Abraham).
Annoying cliffhangers. Unfinished. Can he finish it well? I really doubt it. With that said, still good stuff.
2: The Malazan Book of the Fallen (Steven Erikson)
Only read first 200 pages. Have resisted because of military feel. Maybe I'm wrong on that.
3: The Name of the Wind (Patrick Rothfuss)
Book two was extremely good. Book one was nothing special. And that's all we've got so far....
4: Lord of the Rings (J.R.R Tolkien)
Most realistic fantasy world ever.
5: The Black Company (Glen Cook)
Never heard of it before. Need to check it out.
6: Gormenghast (Mervyn Peake)
A pretty neat little thing. Bit of a trial to read at times but leaves beautiful lasting images. I did not read the third book. In part because I know he died before finishing the series and that depressed me. I should go back and give it a go.
7: The Blade Itself (Joe Abercrombie)
Will have to check it out. Think I read the sample already though....?
8: The Way of Kings (Brandon Sanderson)
Sanderson's previous series was just OK. I suppose pretty good at times but didn't leave me ultimately with much lasting impression. This is just book one of a supposedly ten part series. So no hurry on it.
9: The Farseer (Robin Hobb)
The best.
10: Lies of Locke Lamora (Scott Lynch)
I wasn't blown away by the sample. Will go back to it though.
11: The Wheel of Time (Robert Jordan)
Started out great then turned into a never-ending soap opera. I quit ten or so books in.
12: Cold Fire Trilogy (C.S. Friedman)
I already reviewed it and I don't really remember it. Must have really sucked. I guess I need to make my reviews more detailed so I don't completely forget.
13: The Long Price Quartet (Daniel Abraham)
Haven't read it. Supposedly highly detailed setting. That's what I really want so must check it out.
14: The Etched City (K.J. Bishop)
Haven't read.
15: A Sword of Shadows (J.V. Jones)
Beginning was too sadistic but finally I really got into it. Really looking forward to next book.
#16: Acacia (David Anthony Durham)
Haven't read.
#17: Elric of Melinbone (Michael Moorcock)
Character seemed 2D. Seemed like a lot of telling instead of showing. Didn't get past beginning.
18: The Darkness That Comes Before (R. Scott Bakker)
Pretty good stuff but this guy's blog I think just really turned me off. Could never quite bring myself to buy book 4. Which I think isn't remotely fair of me. Something going on there in my nonconscious that I ought to figure out.
19: Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell (Susanna Clarke)
Loved the footnotes. Made the world so rich.
20: Chronicles of Thomas Covenant (Stephen R. Donaldson)
The "hero" was such a whiny bastard that I didn't read far.
21: American Gods (Neil Gaiman)
Read other Gaiman. OK. Overrated. Hated his blog.
22: Abhorsen Trilogy (Garth Nix)
Haven't read.
23: Memory, Sorrow, Thorn (Tad Williams)
Characters seemed very 2D. Didn't get far.
24: Magician: Apprentice and Magician (Raymond E. Feist)
Heard such bad things about Feist but should try it.
25: Dresden Files (Jim Butcher)
Such a stereotypical detective story. Haven't gotten far into it.
So I guess I could still read Erikson's Malazan. Book 3 of Gormenghast. Glen Cook's The Black Company. Joe Abercrombie's The Blade Itself. Scott Lynch's Lies of Locke Lamora I guess... The Etched City (K.J. Bishop), Acacia (David Anthony Durham), Abhorsen Trilogy (Garth Nix), Magician: Apprentice and Magician (Raymond E. Feist) and I could give Elric of Melinbone (Michael Moorcock) another try.
First will look at The Long Price Quartet (Daniel Abraham).
Hurt/tweaked knee last week. Also hurt back. Both I guess from taking an elongated stride and/or + carelessness. Has left me demoralized though. And shall attempt to do 4/1's and 3/2's for the next month instead of 2/2's. Also trying to add in 20 minutes on the exercise bike afterwards. Was able to do a 4/1 yesterday although my knee is still tender. Should get it checked out...
Also wife won a chocolate basket. The chocolate wine has given me a headache. And when I get these headaches, they stay for at least 24 hours. Drank the wine yesterday at 3pm. Also didn't sleep well from the caffeine. Hadn't had headache in a while. Was hoping they were permanently gone. Then got one after eating old cashews. Hoping this is just really the result of having consumed caffiene which I normally never do. But still quite demoralized about this also.
Can hardly think with my head like this. Shall lay around and feel miserable probably rest of day and accomplish nothing.
Also wife won a chocolate basket. The chocolate wine has given me a headache. And when I get these headaches, they stay for at least 24 hours. Drank the wine yesterday at 3pm. Also didn't sleep well from the caffeine. Hadn't had headache in a while. Was hoping they were permanently gone. Then got one after eating old cashews. Hoping this is just really the result of having consumed caffiene which I normally never do. But still quite demoralized about this also.
Can hardly think with my head like this. Shall lay around and feel miserable probably rest of day and accomplish nothing.
Blackberry, blueberry, pear, and cherry seeds. All properly cooled in the refrigerator. Blackberry seeds soaked in vinegar for 4 hours previous. And all planted. One pear seed immediately sprouted. Nothing else yet. Will be annoyed if that's all I get.
Tomato sprouts seem to be dying/not thriving. Don't know why. Worry the light is too strong. Yet supposedly I'm supposed to be putting it closer to the sprouts than I am. I think not enough water getting down into the roots. Wife thinks I'm watering too much.
The 4 blueberry sprouts are growing so, so slowly. At this rate I'll have some blueberry bushes in 5 years. Only the lemon seeds came up nice. Although now, they don't seem to be growing anymore, just in stasis...
Dug up bamboo from a house up the road. Was very hard to do. Called a place in Alabama about ordering more as it's just too hard to dig up. They said it's too late to plant. Hoping it's just the suddeness of going from Alabama weather to WV weather. Hopefully these transplanted ones will do OK.
Tomato sprouts seem to be dying/not thriving. Don't know why. Worry the light is too strong. Yet supposedly I'm supposed to be putting it closer to the sprouts than I am. I think not enough water getting down into the roots. Wife thinks I'm watering too much.
The 4 blueberry sprouts are growing so, so slowly. At this rate I'll have some blueberry bushes in 5 years. Only the lemon seeds came up nice. Although now, they don't seem to be growing anymore, just in stasis...
Dug up bamboo from a house up the road. Was very hard to do. Called a place in Alabama about ordering more as it's just too hard to dig up. They said it's too late to plant. Hoping it's just the suddeness of going from Alabama weather to WV weather. Hopefully these transplanted ones will do OK.
Shade of the Tree by Piers Anthony
Thought it was going to be sci-fi or fantasy but it's not actually. More typical standard fiction for larger audiences. And really a stupid waste of time. A haunted tree/area. Father and children just moving in. He's too dense to realize he needs to get the hell out and so we slowly have strange things happen which he dismisses in between him trying to fix up the have finished house.
I imagine the writer sat down and randomly came up with just a bunch of stuff and just threw it in there. One thing after another, each disconnected from the previous. Maybe he needed the money I guess and held his nose why he wrote it. Trying to comprehend why he bothered writing is what I was mainly thinking about and stopped two thirds in.
I'm sure I must have read something decent by Piers Anthony somewhere in the past. I think.
Thought it was going to be sci-fi or fantasy but it's not actually. More typical standard fiction for larger audiences. And really a stupid waste of time. A haunted tree/area. Father and children just moving in. He's too dense to realize he needs to get the hell out and so we slowly have strange things happen which he dismisses in between him trying to fix up the have finished house.
I imagine the writer sat down and randomly came up with just a bunch of stuff and just threw it in there. One thing after another, each disconnected from the previous. Maybe he needed the money I guess and held his nose why he wrote it. Trying to comprehend why he bothered writing is what I was mainly thinking about and stopped two thirds in.
I'm sure I must have read something decent by Piers Anthony somewhere in the past. I think.
A Dance of Cloaks by David Daglish
Blah. Aaron Fellhorn and his crappy dad Thren Felhorn. Blah, blah, blah. Ninja like thief assasins. I guess like Brent Weeks except not as good. Will not read anything by Daglish in the future. Medieval setting, yet without any of the flavor of medieval times, just not adequately described at all. Blah.
What makes someone even bother writing such stuff?
Blah. Aaron Fellhorn and his crappy dad Thren Felhorn. Blah, blah, blah. Ninja like thief assasins. I guess like Brent Weeks except not as good. Will not read anything by Daglish in the future. Medieval setting, yet without any of the flavor of medieval times, just not adequately described at all. Blah.
What makes someone even bother writing such stuff?
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Ragtime by E.L. Doctorow
Decent bit of historial detail. Bit more distance from the characters than I like. Told in third person. Didn't quite pull me in such that I want to run out and read another by him. Mainly just had good historical detail.
Yes, dances around a bit. From the Coalhouse to JP Morgan to Tateh. Everyone a tad light. I like historial fiction though. Will search for more.
Favorite era being the middle ages. That done with a great level of detail, with a good bit of fantasy thrown in...
Decent bit of historial detail. Bit more distance from the characters than I like. Told in third person. Didn't quite pull me in such that I want to run out and read another by him. Mainly just had good historical detail.
Yes, dances around a bit. From the Coalhouse to JP Morgan to Tateh. Everyone a tad light. I like historial fiction though. Will search for more.
Favorite era being the middle ages. That done with a great level of detail, with a good bit of fantasy thrown in...
3 mile time trail: 22:24. Last time did 23:08. Had done 2/2's slowly working up to 2 hours twice a week for almost the last month. Maybe 3 weeks. Previous run on Thursday. The last 40 minutes I started using an exaggeratedly long stride. Felt good at first. But then my right knee started hurting and my back. It's taken a few days for my back to feel better. Knee still not feeling so great.
But still, nice PR today. Afterwards immediately switched to 3/1's but didn't have much. Did 9 miles in 79:50 and taking my knee into account, quit instead of going up to 12 miles.
But still, nice PR today. Afterwards immediately switched to 3/1's but didn't have much. Did 9 miles in 79:50 and taking my knee into account, quit instead of going up to 12 miles.
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Think of the modern Saudi Arabian woman, never allowed to leave her house unless escorted by a male relative, not allowed to drive a car or vote and so on. It's easy enough to imagine a woman there being miserable. At the same time there are women there who are perfectly happy.
What's the difference between the two?
The miserable Saudi Arabian woman has an imagination. She can imagine a better life. While the happy Saudi Arabian woman does not. She instead just accepts things as they are and finds what little things there are to be happy about in her particular reality.
Excuse the analogy as I don't mean to make little of the horrendous plight of Muslim women but the same applies in America. If you have sufficient imagination you can be utterly miserable here. You can look around and see that although things certainly aren't as bad as in Saudi Arabia, we're still a bunch of pitiful barbarians.
If you have sufficient imagination anyway, you can see this.
The miserable Saudi Arabian woman might get killed if she dared say what she actually thought about her situation. In the US the situation certainly isn't as bad, but all the happy Americans also would respond negatively and anyway, speaking out doesn't do any good.
What's the difference between the two?
The miserable Saudi Arabian woman has an imagination. She can imagine a better life. While the happy Saudi Arabian woman does not. She instead just accepts things as they are and finds what little things there are to be happy about in her particular reality.
Excuse the analogy as I don't mean to make little of the horrendous plight of Muslim women but the same applies in America. If you have sufficient imagination you can be utterly miserable here. You can look around and see that although things certainly aren't as bad as in Saudi Arabia, we're still a bunch of pitiful barbarians.
If you have sufficient imagination anyway, you can see this.
The miserable Saudi Arabian woman might get killed if she dared say what she actually thought about her situation. In the US the situation certainly isn't as bad, but all the happy Americans also would respond negatively and anyway, speaking out doesn't do any good.
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