Reading List: November 6th, 2007

I haven't really talked about my reading in recent entries, returning to the poor-me ruminations that I try to keep contained in my Livejournal. So here's a sampling of what I've been reading lately, and what I think.

The Stand by Stephen King
There are several camps on King's work. You might love him. You might have no interest or dislike horror, or even hate him. Or, and this is the one I've encountered lately, you might hate his work on the principle that any author who is able to write such voluminous amounts must write crap, sometimes without ever reading it. Sit down and read a damn book. While I know this is an undertaking for most (speed-readers typing this being the exception), you might get a lot out of it. His writing is intelligent, evocative and above all else, believeable. The story of a plague that wipes out most of humanity is still resonant today, despite the fact that he wrote the novel in the 80s. If you do decide to check this one out, make sure you get the unabridged version.

A Dirty Job by Christopher Moore
If you haven't read Lamb yet, then stop reading this right now and go to a bookstore. I doubt you'll find a funnier, yet still respectful take on the life of Christ anywhere. If you have and enjoyed it, then you should probably follow up with Moore's take on Death. Thats personified. Big D, if you will. Following in the footsteps of Piers Anthony and On a Pale Horse (another excellent novel), Moore breaks down conventions about the ways in which souls are collected and passed from one to another, as well as working in a nice fantasy-end-of-the-world storyline. I enjoyed it, though at times it seemed slightly forced. Lamb is still the clear winner of this author, at least for what I've read so far.

And finally, in the category of books I've really been meaning to start but keep putting off because they're too heavy:

Guns, Germs and Steel by Jared Diamond
I'm not too far into this one yet for the aforementioned reason. This is really heavy, tough reading. Don't let that turn you off to it however. Diamond is an amazing writer and makes the subject matter fascinating. The reason this is such a difficult read is because of what is being discussed. We're dealing with the world and the ways and reasons societies developed differently across it. I'm heartily enjoying it, and plan on reading Collapse next, based on a recommendation from my father, the best read person I've ever met.

I think thats really all for right now. I won't say for the day, because its 12:43 am and I may very well feel like writing again when its light out. For now though, I think I'm going to get in under my blankets with a good book.

Creative Arts Forum Blues

I just got done sitting through the Creative Arts Forum here at MSU. Theoretically, we were supposed to learn things and network with people who can assist in our chosen career. I did meet a new peer reader, which is good, but overall it wasn't too large a help.

There was one session that really was helpful with regard to my writing future. It was presented by a woman from Gale publishing group and the Founder of Venuszine. The latter in particular was interesting, as she discussed how she started out self-publishing and eventually built her magazine into what it is today. I got some insight into what can be expected as well as asking a few questions about copyright in the age of the internet.

Other than that, not much to look forward to today. I kind of want to head back to my apartment and bury my head in pillows for the next few hours, since I'm running on about four and a half hours of sleep. Don't know if thats possible. I did work out three days this week and should probably work out again today. We'll see.

I haven't written anything beautiful in so long.

Berkey Bam-Bam

So on Tuesday here at MSU, we had a couple of idiots pull a Devil's Night prank. Never mind that it was Devil's Afternoon.

In any case, I was leaving class to make a trip to the restroom during my Poetry class when I saw a guy kneeling on the landing of the staircase, messing with the floor. I didn't think anything of it, figuring he was just taping a flyer to the floor like college groups are wont to do. Once I got in the restroom however, there was a series of explosions.

"What the fuck was that?", I asked to the room in general, still in transit to my stall of choice.

"Sounded like firecrackers," was the response from a urinal.

So I finished my business (blowing my nose on abrasive toilet paper), and walked back out into the hallway, which smelled unpleasantly of ozone. Once in the classroom, I realized I was a dumbass for mindlessly walking into the hallway as all my classmates were in the back of the room, no doubt shades of Virginia Tech in their minds. Scary shit overall. But I do have to commend the MSU police. They were on the scene in less than 3 minutes. I pointed out to one of them where I saw the kid kneeling and then went outside with everyone else.

In retrospect, I wish I had gotten a better look at this guy, but on a college campus, a guy kneeling in a stairwell wasn't enough of an odd sight to surprise me. I think there was someone else involved too, as I passed a guy on the ground floor, talking to the guy in the stairwell.

What kind of fucking moron pulls a prank like that now? How is it acceptable in a world that has been through 9/11, Columbine and Virginia Tech? Thats not funny. Its really pretty terrifying. And while the tone of my writing here might be a little glib, I was pretty freaked out when it was all happening. I hope they catch whoever did this and expel them, and maybe even press charges. We were all scared, and anymore, that takes a lot.