And I'll never have that recipe again

[austin_dern]

I'm surprised by my indifference to Dave Barry's announced yearlong writing hiatus. When I began learning how to write for pleasure his was one of the writing styles I imitated to learn from. I've gone on to imitating other people, like Robert Benchley, and it has been years since I worried about missing a column, or book.

Powell's Books had an interview with him and Ridley Pearson about their prequel to J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan. It sounds interesting, and I liked Barry's novels. I'm just not sure the world of Peter Pan needs more explanation. I liked their comment they didn't try to make their style consistent with Barrie, because nobody has read Barrie's book.

Chive Gourmet, the nearest western food stand, closed for good today. I suspected trouble -- they'd been closing early or not opening lately -- but this was the first notice they were shutting down. Too bad; they had good fish and chips. To use up stock they added a hot dog or hash brown (or, by the menu, ``hushbrown'') to meals for 20 cents.

Also Knotted Note Radio, an old-time-radio drama Internet station, is closing come November. Rats.

Trivia: The wrench and the screwdriver first appeared in Europe around 1550. Source: New York Public Library Desk Reference, Paul Fargis and Sheree Bykofsky.

Currently Reading: The Best of Edmond Hamilton, Edmond Hamilton.

Comments

[porsupah.livejournal.com]

I was very surprised to learn of his hiatus (although, one supposes, he's done well enough for himself that he can elect to do thusly), but, I've not actually been following his writing in a while, I admit. I enjoy light-hearted triviality, of course, but it seemed he was passing up more satirical comments, in favor of an easier life, despite there being so much to work with.

(Speaking of satire, if your dark humor gene is sufficiently dominant, you may like to take a look at Chris Morris' take on the WTC attacks and the aftermath.. so grimly, sublimely hilarious)

Hm. Whence the modern etymology of "Rats!", I wonder?

I can never think of "hash brown" as other than some novel checksum variant. It's too late for me; save yourself.

[austin-dern.livejournal.com]

I expect after 25 books (the article I read about it said), a good number of them bestsellers, he's got enough cash reserve to see him through a couple more Florida hurricanes and still be comfortable. (Part of the hiatus, apparently, is to finish the movie version of Dave Barry's Guide to Guys, with John Cleese.) Still, Dave Barry's been on autopilot a while -- see the most recent Mister Language Person column, which could've been any campus newspaper's new humor writer's entry.

I hadn't thought about the recent etymology of ``Rats'' ... I certainly picked it up from Charles Schulz, though where he started saying it from I don't know.

[sennard.livejournal.com]

I always thought it interesting to see mentions of telegraphs and screws in Dumas' story The Count of Monte Cristo.

"The bed had iron clamps, but they were screwed to the wood, and it would have required a screw-driver to take them off."

[austin-dern.livejournal.com]

I've never read Dumas, actually. I hadn't honestly thought about when screwdrivers and wrenches were invented until I came across the mention while looking through the book ... if you'd asked me to guess I'd have supposed they went back to Classical Ages, since they do seem like things the ancient Greeks might have developed.

Count of Monte Cristo

[sennard.livejournal.com]

Dumas' story was one of them which I rather apriciated both reading the book and seeing the new adapted movie.

One of those films where the story doesn't necessarily follow the book, rather it takes the more obvious path of the story 'a man imprisoned gets revenge by use of lots of cash' and leaves the dated portions of the story behind.

Rather like the new Well's Time Machine movie that came out a year or so ago, it took the concept of mankind's future downfall due to disparity between the workers and rulers and made it into a movie about time travel with CGI effects.

I understand that the movie adaptations are the equivalent of soy milk when presented with the real story, however in the case of Dumas' book, what the Count did never really made much sense until his scheme fell in place at the end.

Re: Count of Monte Cristo

[austin-dern.livejournal.com]

Mm ... well, I'm open to giving the story a try. One of the most startling things I've discovered about Great Fiction since I started only reading those books for pleasure is that they actually are, quite often, great fiction.

The adaptation problem's always been with us; I don't know why it's so hard to read the point of a book and adapt that to a new medium.