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asher553I started this calendar year with a burst of journaling and writing activity; then I had a bit of a lull for the past two weeks. Now I'm back at it, so let's roll!
The weather in this area typically goes into an unsettled period from around Valentine's Day to Saint Patrick's Day, and this year was no exception: we've had warm and cool, sun and cloud, rain and even a few flakes of snow. I'm looking forward to the weather getting consistently nice, so I can get back to walking and jogging around the Tanasbourne neighborhood, and maybe hike the Rock Creek Trail. Meanwhile I'm keeping up with my daily gym commitment.
The day job has been going well, and as I approach 9 months at the gig I'm feeling more confident. The IT shop had been down one person since the senior guy left for another position in the company at the beginning of the year, so it was just me and one other tech. The new guy started last week, so we're back to full staffing, and I think he's going to work out well.
Goings-on in the conservative community continue apace. I've re-started the meetups, now at a venue that's both convenient and comfortable, and happening every two weeks; we're building some momentum with a gang of regulars and an assortment of new faces. The county Party chapter is having its next general committee meeting next month, and our Chair made a point of scheduling it on a weekday evening (rather than a Saturday) so I'll be able to attend. Meanwhile I'm staying busy connecting with new members, scheduling voter registration drives, and reserving our booth at the County Fair and other local events.
I finished 'King of the Vagabonds' (Book 2 in the series, or the middle third of the first volume of the trilogy, in Neal Stephenson's Baroque Cycle). I've been listening to the audiobook while following along in the print edition. The audiobook is very good; the narrator, Simon Prebble, reads beautifully, and with a tongue-in-cheek pompousness that fits the style of the book perfectly. The story is now up to the year 1685, with James II (the openly Catholic brother of Charles II) on the throne of England; Jack and Eliza, whose affecting courtship carried the storyline through 'King of the Vagabonds', have now parted ways. I'm enjoying the story and the characters, and learning some history as I go along. (The book includes some very useful historical genealogies, a map of Europe of the period, and a map of London circa the Great Fire of 1666.)
One thing Stephenson does spectacularly well in this book is to put you, the reader, in the middle of the setting. He doesn't just describe the scene as if it were a picture; he gives you the sounds, the smells, the sensations, the activities going on at the edges of the scene, so that you feel as if he's really been there and is telling you about it.
So that's a picture of my life and world since I last posted here. And now, onward!
The weather in this area typically goes into an unsettled period from around Valentine's Day to Saint Patrick's Day, and this year was no exception: we've had warm and cool, sun and cloud, rain and even a few flakes of snow. I'm looking forward to the weather getting consistently nice, so I can get back to walking and jogging around the Tanasbourne neighborhood, and maybe hike the Rock Creek Trail. Meanwhile I'm keeping up with my daily gym commitment.
The day job has been going well, and as I approach 9 months at the gig I'm feeling more confident. The IT shop had been down one person since the senior guy left for another position in the company at the beginning of the year, so it was just me and one other tech. The new guy started last week, so we're back to full staffing, and I think he's going to work out well.
Goings-on in the conservative community continue apace. I've re-started the meetups, now at a venue that's both convenient and comfortable, and happening every two weeks; we're building some momentum with a gang of regulars and an assortment of new faces. The county Party chapter is having its next general committee meeting next month, and our Chair made a point of scheduling it on a weekday evening (rather than a Saturday) so I'll be able to attend. Meanwhile I'm staying busy connecting with new members, scheduling voter registration drives, and reserving our booth at the County Fair and other local events.
I finished 'King of the Vagabonds' (Book 2 in the series, or the middle third of the first volume of the trilogy, in Neal Stephenson's Baroque Cycle). I've been listening to the audiobook while following along in the print edition. The audiobook is very good; the narrator, Simon Prebble, reads beautifully, and with a tongue-in-cheek pompousness that fits the style of the book perfectly. The story is now up to the year 1685, with James II (the openly Catholic brother of Charles II) on the throne of England; Jack and Eliza, whose affecting courtship carried the storyline through 'King of the Vagabonds', have now parted ways. I'm enjoying the story and the characters, and learning some history as I go along. (The book includes some very useful historical genealogies, a map of Europe of the period, and a map of London circa the Great Fire of 1666.)
One thing Stephenson does spectacularly well in this book is to put you, the reader, in the middle of the setting. He doesn't just describe the scene as if it were a picture; he gives you the sounds, the smells, the sensations, the activities going on at the edges of the scene, so that you feel as if he's really been there and is telling you about it.
So that's a picture of my life and world since I last posted here. And now, onward!
