If it wasn’t for the fact that the black and white kitten in this little video has four legs and can make jumps he can only dream of, I would’ve thought my Hector was moonlighting. Just look:
(Video via Michel.)
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Books read January
So we start the sixth year of doing these monthly Wot I Done Read Last Month reports. Back in 2008 I started doing them to at least record something about the books I’d read, as I felt guilty about falling behind with my booklog; something which hasn’t been solved yet. Oh well.
In the meantime, I’ve read five books this month, somewhat below par.
Soul Music, Interesting Times — Terry Pratchett
Two Pratchett novels, of which the latter shows the return of Rincewind and the former stars Susan the first time. Decent but not the best of the Discworld series.
Exit Music — Ian Rankin
The last Rebus novel, as he’s finally retiring. Some loose ends are cleaned up, some aren’t. Even more melancholy and sombre than usual.
The Dark Reign of Gothic Rock — Dave Thompson
A decent chronological history of a sometimes deservedly, much maligned genre, that is smart enough to limit itself to a specific period and grouping of bands, the original English gothic bands like Bauhaus, the Cure and the Cult.
Maskerade — Terry Pratchett
Another Discworld novel, starring the Lancre witches. Doing opera this time.
What I did this weekend
So this weekend was spent in the beautiful old town of Gent, with a couple of friends, as we went to pick up a supply of what’s supposedly the best beer in the world: Westvleteren 12. The results you can see above.
For those who are not beer geeks, Westvleteren is a socalled Trappist beer: beer brewed by Trappist monks within the monastry itself to pay for the upkeep of the monastry, with any remaining profit going to charitable works. What makes Westvleteren unique amongst the eight existing Trappist breweries is that it’s only sold at the abbey itself and brewed in limited quantities. To get it, you first need to make an appointment a couple of weeks in advance, then show up by car to pick up your two crates of 24 bottles. You can’t choose the beer they’re selling and you have to wait at least two months before you can buy them again.
All of which has imparted a certain mystique to the beer, as most beer geeks, especially those outside Europe, will have had little to no chance to drink it. Personally I quite like both the 12 and the 8 as I sampled them this weekend, sitting in the restaurant across the monastry, but I’m not sure how much its reputation reflects its own intrinsic qualities and how much it has to do with its rarity.
But getting it was a good excuse for a trip to a beautiful city and spent a couple of days boozing in its bars with friends who appreciate good beer. Not to mention that it also gave me the opportunity to visit an old friend for the first time and admire his beautiful, well kept house and perfect family…
Up
Up was actually the last movie Sandra and I saw together in the cinema, back in 2009, for her birthday. Even then this sequence was moving; more so now. What with the barely past Christmas season, I saw parts of it several times in the past few weeks, as various channels broadcast the movie again. Which may be why I was dreaming about Sandra last night. One of those dreams where you know she’s dead, but you accept that she got better for some reason and just do mundane stuff. It’s one of those dreams that you wake up from both happy and sad.
Books read December
And so we’ve reached December and the year’s total: ninetyone books read in total, the first time since 2006 that I’ve read less than a hundred books — and even this number is somewhat inflated by my reread of the entire Discworld series. I blame my obsession with Football Manager — as well as other videogames — this past year for this, for keeping sitting behind the pc for much longer and hence reading less. I also seemed to have less energy for reading and in general 2012 was somewhat of a year of recuperation for me, for obvious reasons.
Terminal World — Alastair Reynolds
Alastair Reynolds does steampunk in a far future world where Vingean zones make high technology possible in some parts of the planet, but limits technology in others.
Outies — J. R. Pournelle
A sequel to a sequel which itself had not been half as good as the original novel, written by the daughter of one of the original writers, decades after the first sequel had come out. Nine out of ten of the books you can describe this way are godawful crap (ten out of ten if Kevin J. Anderson is the cowriter), but this is the exception. It helps that J. R. (Jennifer) Pournelle is an archaeologist and anthropologist and takes her experience into the novel. As a writer, she’s at least as good a craft person as her father, if not better.
Imperial Women in Byzantium 1025 — 1204 — Barbara Hill
An interesting look at a period of Byzantine history that saw a remarkable number of powerful women entering imperial politics. This book not just tells their story, but examines their limits and powers and the ways in which they could and could not exercise their power and how this was represented in contemporary sources.
Moving Pictures, Reaper Man, Witches Abroad, — Terry Pratchett
The first batch of Pratchett Discworld novels read in December in my ongoing reread of the entire series.
As They Were — M. F. K. Fisher
Sandra always loved M. F. K. Fisher’s writing, which is why I read this collection of essays about food, traveling and the people she met.
Small Gods, Lords and Ladies, Men at Arms — Terry Pratchett
The second batch.