Kylie
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Posts posted by Kylie
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Glad to hear you can get your computer fixed. Does that mean all of your files can be saved as well? I've missed you so much.
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The Yellow Wallpaper is a very harrowing read, isn't it? For such a short story, it has certainly stuck in my mind in the couple of years since I read it. I really want to read her autobiography.
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Glad to hear you're feeling better, Claire.
I had a cold recently, and they certainly do get you down, especially when they prevent you from sleeping! -
It's interesting how King's body of work splits readers (apart from maybe a few of his earlier works). I bought Revival for my brother for Christmas, so I hope it likes it more than you did! I think he enjoys pretty much everything King writes, so I have high hopes.
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VHS: the good old days of rewinding things really slowly.
I've been the most casual of watchers of The Good Wife since it started several years ago. I've always enjoyed watching it but have never been able to follow the overall plot because I miss too many episodes. So now I've finally gone back to season 1 and have started from the very beginning. I think Kalinda is such an interesting character.
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Not much reading today (except for work), but I went shopping tonight and bought a few books—two were christmas presents (and one was an obscure title that my brother had requested—I never thought I'd find it, but I did!) and I bought myself a book. I couldn't help it. It's a steampunk title that I drooled over in a bookshop a few months ago, but it was so expensive so I didn't buy it. Today I found it at a really cheap price, so I couldn't pass it up! Besides, it has been a really long time since I treated myself to a book (um, not counting the one I ordered off the Book Depository yesterday
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Me too.
There was a 38-year-old mother of three young children under the age of 10. She was trying to protect her pregnant friend. The other hostage victim was the 34-year-old manager of the cafe. When he saw that the gunman had dozed off, he tried to wrestle the gun off him while the others escaped. Heroes. -
I hope you enjoy it too!
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It's over! I was watching live when a group of 6 hostages ran out, followed by a 7th a few minutes later. Then all of a sudden the police stormed the cafe and there was so much gunfire. Many stun grenades were thrown in as well. I've seen more hostages being escorted out, and one or two on stretchers. Hopefully they'll be OK. There are reports that CPR was being conducted on two people, possibly one a policeman. We have no official reports yet. Safe to say the hostage taker is no longer alive.
The man's identity was released in the last couple of hours. Apparently he lived close to me a while ago and was charged as an accessory to his wife's murder (she was stabbed and set on fire). He has also been charged with sending awful letters to the families of soldiers who have died in combat overseas, and was facing 40 allegations of assault and sexual assault. Why was the man let out on bail? He should have been locked up!! He was an Iranian migrant and self-styled cleric and faith healer.
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I'm glad you enjoyed Fangirl
! I plan to read Eleanor & Park next year as that's the last book by her that I own and haven't read yet (though I will be reading Landline too once out in paperback). I hope you enjoy her other books, too!I'm planning on reading Eleanor & Park next year too.
In fact, I pulled it out today thinking I might start it, but then I thought I should focus on finishing a few other books before the year is out. -
Shhh! Don't ever speak of that monstrosity again!
Tim Burton's version of Planet of the Apes is an embarrassment!
Geez, in the very next post you spoke of the monstrosity again!
I watched Carrie last night. I've seen part of it before but finally got to see all of it, including the famed pig's blood incident. Good, creepy movie (and I had no idea John Travolta was in it!)
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Thanks for your thoughts everyone. The siege is in its thirteenth hour now. All major TV channels have had ongoing coverage since it started, and even though they're just going over the same ground over and over, and they rarely have new information or footage, I've been glued to my TV all day.
Five hostages have managed to escape. First, three men, and then two women a couple of hours later. They looked absolutely terrified as they fled from the shop.
It's now believed there are around 15 people in the building. The lights were turned out shortly after it got dark, but before that, it was observed that the hostages were being fed, and no one has been injured, so the hostage taker at least appears to be 'looking after' them.The hostage taker has been using the hostages to contact many media outlets requesting them to read out, or show footage of, his list of requests. They are all refusing on the advice of the police. But I did see one TV network list two of his requests (which they probably shouldn't have done, and they haven't mentioned them since then). He wants an IS (terrorist organisation) flag, which seems kind of pointless because he already has religious banners and we've already figured out he's an extremist, and he wants to speak to our Prime Minister.
Given that absolutely nothing has happened for around 5 hours, I guess it's going to go well into tomorrow. I'll probably be up for most of the night watching this.
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Funny you should post this, Pontalba. On the day you posted it, I had been talking to my partner about my concern about the amount of plastic junk that we are continually producing. My thoughts were of course inspired by The World without Us (I recently finished reading a big section about plastic).
I'm been reading this book on and off for ages. I find it utterly fascinating—I just don't find it an easy book to continually pick up and read in big chunks, so I've only been reading a couple of pages here and there.
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There is currently a siege situation underway at the Lindt Chocolate Cafe in Sydney. I used to work literally across the road from it and went there occasionally. The hostages have been made to stand pressed against the windows and hold up the banners of a terrorist organisation. There are conflicting reports, as one would expect early in such a situation. There are reports of 1 or 2 gunmen, and one man of apparently middle age has been shown on TV. There are between 13 and 50 hostages inside—all staff members and office workers.
I've been in contact with a couple of my old workmates. They are safe, and no one has been reported missing from the bank where I worked. They have not been evacuated but have been moved to the further end of the building and are in lockdown. A large area surrounding the cafe has been evacuated (or staff moved to higher floors). The Sydney Opera House (which is a few hundred metres down the road) and surrounding area has also been evacuated. I believe the Sydney Harbour Bridge has also been closed (it has previously been identified as a possible terrorist target).
Very, very scary stuff. Since 9/11, I have always thought that if an attack was to take place in Australia, in would most logically occur around the Martin Place area because this is the financial hub of Sydney (Sydney being the country's largest city), similar to the World Trade Center. I was right, but I'm not happy to be right.
I'm so glad I work from home now (way, way on the other side of the city: 50+km away).I suspect the siege will be going for quite a while yet. Here's hoping for a positive outcome.
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I love your collection, Janet.
I finished reading Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot's Christmas and I've started an ebook called Hyperbole and a Half, which is based on a humorous blog.
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Speaking of Newt in The Death Cure:
I'm sorry but I thought his death scene pretty annoying. I liked Newt but the whole thing was so drawn out. How many times did he have to beg Thomas to kill him before Thomas finally did it? I was just thinking 'geez, get it over with already!' Not very sympathetic, am I?
Bobblybear, it's just as well you stopped reading. I'm certain that your opinion wouldn't have changed over the next couple of books. I kind of wish I had stopped at the first book, but my curiosity got the better of me. Definitely the most disappointing books I've read in quite a while.
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And far better than the newer version!
Shhh! Don't ever speak of that monstrosity again!
I love the original 'Planet of the Apes'
Me too.
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I started the short story by Hugh Howey, Peace in Amber: The World of Kurt Vonnegut.
Ooh, that sounds interesting!
In other book / writing related news, my grandfather has copied, in writing, the diary of my greatgrandfather (grandma's father I believe). I have been given the copy so I can type it on the computer so my grandparents can give multiple family members a copy. The diary starts in 1944, during the second World War. My greatgrandfather was taken by the Germans to Germany. It should be interesting to read what he wrote in his diary.
EDIT: Wow.. it's quite touching. The poor man and his family
. I have never known him, he died way before I was born. I did however know my greatgrandmother and I know my grandmother. It's one thing reading a fictional war story but it's a whole other thing to read a true account of someone in your family.That sounds like a really interesting read, Gaia, but also very harrowing and sad.
I can't imagine what it would be like to read a first-hand account of such a terrible time by my own family member. 
I've been really busy with work but have still managed to read two-thirds of Hercule Poirot's Christmas. Agatha Christie's writing is so easy that the pages simply fly by.
Maybe I should book myself a cabin down in the snow next winter and hole up with a huge bunch of Agatha Christie novels (goodness knows that I've got enough to keep me going for a while, even considering how fast I read them).I've also been busy editing a very interesting paper on feminism. Power to women, yeah! Now that I'm feeling all feminist-like, maybe I should read Germaine Greer's The Female Eunuch next...
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There are a lot of interesting titles in the list..I never read Catch 22 because it scared me, it will be a great chance to read books I always avoid.
I love love love Catch-22! It's very funny, but darkly so. I really hope you enjoy it.
With Christmas coming soon, and inspired by Emelee's Agatha Christie thread, I started reading Hercule Poirot's Christmas today.
I also read Quentin Blake's The Life of Birds today. I'm not sure if 'read' is the right word, because there are about 4 pages of text and the rest is illustrations. It was lovely though.
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Anna, I noticed The Stand on the bookshelf too.
I was trying desperately to read the book titles but I don't remember being able to make out most of them. -
Off out today but read The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman this morning. Not sure what to pick up next.
Ooh, I thought that was an intriguing read! I look forward to your thoughts on it.
I will start on Matt Haig's To Be a Cat today. I'm in the mood for children's fiction at the moment, so I might re-read Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's The Little Prince at some time during the weekend too.
I'd like to read To Be a Cat one day.
The Little Prince is one of my favourite books! It's so good, isn't it? (I assume you think so, otherwise I don't think you'd be re-reading it?)I cannot believe it. I had 30 pages left to go and I forgot my book at home! I do have two others with me that I can start, but I really wanted to know how it ended.
Oh no! I hate it when that happens.
I'm afraid I won't be able to join in this weekend. Some work came through, so I have no time for reading.
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Oh and we had another storm this morning, started around 5am. Woke up to Ruby crying at our bedroom door. Two flashes a couple of seconds later and I get up to open the door. Never seen her move so fast in my life
! Slept under the bed till about 9. Storm had been over since 7 though.p.s. thanks Kylie for forwarding on that storm!
*modestly* I do what I can.
Poor Ruby. My cat is generally pretty good in storms but I did find him hiding under the bed this afternoon when we had another storm. Aw, our poor pets. I wish we could communicate with them properly to tell them there's nothing to be scared of.
Sorry to hear you're having more health problems.
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That makes perfect sense! I can totally see how it made you think that, sorry for creating an ambiguous title
! I shall rename it .Oh, don't rename it on my account! It's my fault for misinterpreting it.
That'd be great! A 'History of the World's Libraries', complete with photographs and text.
Yes! Although I should admit that I pinched the idea from someone else: my partner bought me this book for Christmas last year (it was on my wish list, but I had never told him about it, so it was quite a surprise). I think I would focus more on the unique bookshops around the world, and perhaps I would write it as a travel memoir-type thing.
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It is fascinating. Below that layer of letters, I found letters dating back to the American Civil War, Now, if only I can decipher the handwriting!
Wow, that's quite a historical find!
Not much reading done for me lately—busy with work and stuff.
The last film you saw - 2014
in Music / TV / Films
Posted
Cool! I didn't know that. I'm not usually into audiobooks, but it might be worth it to hear Spacek reading it.
Thanks for the info.