New Moon

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Before my day starts spiraling into madness, thought I’d update briefly! I’m once again behind with my book logs, so here’s a couple more:

38. All Things Made New by John Flavel. This is not a very long book, but…it is deep and rich enough that I’ve been taking my time with it. Written by Flavel (a Puritan minister from mid-17th century England), this book contains so many invigorating and encouraging and (as always necessary!) convicting words about who God is and what our response to Him of necessity must be. Honestly, there are so many different different topics in this book (mostly composed of his sermons on various occasions) and so I shan’t take the time to give a detailed summary of this book. Just know that it encouraged my soul. I need to read more Puritans.

39. Children of the Mind by Orson Scott Card. And finally my OSC re-read has drawn to a close. Last book of the Ender series here. And as I remembered, this is definitely the weakest book in the series. I still enjoyed it, as I enjoy most of OSC’s books (but not Homecoming series. Never that series!!), but this book didn’t grip me and pull me onward as most of his books do. He tries to get a bit metaphysical and well…it doesn’t quite work, in my opinion. Yes, he wants to somehow describe the mechanisms of the soul, and what distinguishes man from animals, and dabble in the meaning of our true identity. But…it’s a bit weak, and rightly so. For without a clear understanding of who God is (which I daresay OSC does not have), it is most certainly impossible to describe the true nature of man. How can man’s glory be proclaimed when the far greater and most perfect glory of God is ignored? It cannot be. And yes, I understand OSC is trying to “keep his religion out of it” as far as it goes. He’s writing a science fiction novel, not a religious treatise. Nonetheless, I would argue that his Mormon theology is a detriment to his interweaving of metaphysical ideas into what masquerades as a science fiction novel. This book is the weaker for his indulging himself with overly numerous philosophical maunderings. But! Enough of that. Now on to other books. Which I have not decided on yet.

Now, my friends – it is time that I begin to ponder on my tasks for the day as I sip on my coffee. I thank my God for this day He has made. It is from Him – the Father of light! – from whom all good things come. All my praise to my Lord, my God alone.

Redemption

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Quick update this Wednesday morn! Firstly, a few of my latest book logs…I just cannot keep up lately for some reason. My latest three:

35. Shadow Puppets by Orson Scott Card. As said a few entries ago, I sort of read the Bean series out of order. So this is the last one I read, even though it really should have come earlier. Not going to go into plot details, but yet another gripping adventure with amazing characters – I really do love Bean, Petra, Peter et. al. so much!! I think(since it’s been a few weeks since I’ve read this so I’m already forgetting) that this is also the book that Peter’s parents (and Ender & Valentine’s…but they’re not in this book) play a much larger role. They are simply hilarious and I love them much as well. Finally they get to be a bit more than just “the parents”. Fun times. And the ending to this book. I cannot talk about it without spoiling, but to this day I can remember the stunned exhilaration I had when I first realized what had happened near the end of this book. Orson Scott Card is one of my favourite authors for a reason. Speaking of…

36. Speaker for the Dead by Orson Scott Card. The OSC train continues! This is technically the sequel to Ender’s Game but it is a very very different book to that. I was trying to explain the plot of this book to John the other night and…it was a bit difficult. It’s set some 3000 years after the first book. Ender is basically grown up now? He comes to a planet where a Portuguese Catholic colony has been founded and made first contact with an alien species(the pequeninos…) and he meets a very messed up family and there’s also a deadly virus that’s trying to kill everything and I am really going to stop talking about this plot because it’s impossible to summarize for someone who isn’t going to read the book. But it is truly a remarkable book. It starts the trend of each book in the Ender series being more philosophical and “talky” than the last. It starts to get a bit wearing by the final book, but here…this book…masterpiece. And apart from the mystery that must be solved(why did the pequeninos brutally massacre the human scientists? What’s their secret??), the thing that I remember the most about this book is the thrilling human relationships and interactions that OSC describes. Again, OSC is a master at talking about interpersonal relationships and painting vivid characters. So the main family in this book…they have six children right? A lot of times when a lot of characters are described, they all run together and you don’t really remember who’s who. Not this book. I can tell you the name of each character and describe them to you in detail. (Miro, Ela, Quim/Estavao, Olhado, Quara, Grego…) So reading this book – it’s more than just a science fiction novel (although it is that). It’s reading about a family and their problems and their pain and their fears…and what shall be their hope? If you can’t tell, I much enjoyed this one.

37. Xenocide by Orson Scott Card. Next book in the series. Actually just finished this one last night! Shan’t write long about this as I’m very much running out of time. This book is slightly more difficult to read, firstly because of the slightly overwrought philosophical discussions. Secondly because the story of Qing-Jao and the “gods of Path” (actually just an overly aggressive and tragic form of OCD) is definitely not always fun to read. The mental illness aspect is uncomfortable in and of itself. And although OSC is a religious man (his Mormon tendencies do come out at times, as much as I wish they wouldn’t), he does love to play with the idea of religion just being a way for humanity to explain the universe…and in this book in particular, he likes to explore the idea of a character (Qing-Jao) being able to explain any situation or circumstance (whether good or bad) as just being the will of the gods expressed in the disguise of explainable human action. I know what OSC actually believes, so I respect him for having the intellectual honesty to approach this question rigorously…and for these novels, in and of themselves, to take the humanist/agnostic perspective! Nonetheless, it still is slightly irritating, for I do believe in a real God that works in this world. And I believe God is sovereign over all. Of course, Qing-Jao’s dogmatism and unshakable faith in the cruel gods of path is something that I cringe at. Yet I am aware that some others in this world would cringe at my own faith in a God whom many would see as cruel and unloving. Somehow I really did still enjoy this book though. And thinking of things in a religious light, I do long that all in this world would come to know and understand the true God of this universe, a most perfect, just, loving and sovereign God. A God whom we may call Father – if we would only believe in Him. Thus is my heart.

Now I really am running out of time. A few more words and then I shall fly. Last night got to go to a Rockets game with James – Rockets v Blazers! Firstly, the Rockets are…not great right now. So they got destroyed. They’re 1-5 now I think? 1-6? But apart from that! Was an awesome night. Me and James – great talks as always…good to catch up, especially since he is no longer part of Cameron…sad and tragic but great for him so I am happy. And apart from the good chat and good food (classic Rockets meal for me = buffalo chicken strips and fries!), it was an extra-special game night, as James met up with his ticket rep beforehand…and because of…er…how terrible the Rockets are now?…we were offered free seat upgrades to lower level (bonus!) and even more exciting, we got to stand court-side for warm-ups! Sadly the Blazers were warming up on our end, but it was still pretty cool watching the players warm up. I realized I am very small. And just standing on the actual Rockets court – so incredibly amazing for a basketball nerd like me!! And the very best part…? The Rockets starters always get announced after the lights dim, intro video plays…right? And they run onto the court when their name is called, right? Anyways – a few of us who were court-side got to make a little tunnel and high five the Rockets starters as they were announced. So yes, I got to high-five Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony, PJ Tucker, Clint Capela & Eric Gordon. Pretty sick. It was pretty amazing to be standing feet from them pre-announcements and watch them get psyched up for the game…Paul is so incredibly focused and intense, stretching, swaying back and forth…game face. No wonder he’s as good as he is. But seriously now…standing right next to these men, you do realize (even though you know this!) that they are regular humans. I may see them on TV and read about them online…but they’re as human as you or me. They are not titans (although they are very tall). They are but men. Severely flawed ones, to be sure. As am I. And so although too often our adulation and praise for sports stars can veer towards the idolatrous, let us remember that our worship belongs to only One. Our Lord, our God. And on that note…let me share a couple verses from a song that encouraged my soul this morning as I drove to work…

Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art

High King of Heaven, my victory won
May I reach Heaven’s joys, O bright Heav’n’s Sun
Heart of my own heart, whate’er befall
Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all

Reading Between the Lines of Autumnal Tendencies

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Hello friends! Been a bit too long since I’ve written…and I honestly don’t even feel much like writing now, but I suppose I should at least attempt to write something. I’m sitting here at Starbucks – not for long though as it is sunny and delightfully cool outside and I shall not waste that – and sipping on my coffee…and yeah, guess I can write a few words! I’m listening to a preliminary mix of a CD I hope to be completed sometime in the next few weeks. It’s not there yet, alas. Alas. Speaking of mixes though – why don’t I share one I made earlier this year? This must have been sometime in…July? August? I actually knocked out 3 mixes in short succession and I don’t exactly remember which I made when – and I’m not going to share all three today! But going alphabetically because why not? This one came about shortly after my Colorado trip with Robbie in which fantastic and memorable times were had. On Sunday of that trip, we had a hiking day in which we drove outside of Denver some ways, found a cool path and hiked up and back. It was beautiful and so different than the Houston I’m usually in. But as we drove there and back, we listened to the music on Robbie’s Spotify – and I realised he had some most excellent dance tunes! By dance tunes (this time), I mean more modern dance/pop music…music that’s fun to listen to, even if the content is a bit lightweight! But hey – great road trip music. And so when I returned from Colorado, decided I needed to memorialize the trip by making a mix using Robbie’s music. I messed with the flow a bit…but the content is pretty much straight Robbie. Thanks man. So now – for a fun, frothy mix…I humbly present Denver 2AM:

1. The Ocean – Mike Perry feat. Shy Martin
2. Summer Air – ItaloBrothers
3. Don’t Let Me Down – The Chainsmokers feat. Daya
4. Paper Planes – M.I.A.
5. Heroes (we could be) – Alesso feat. Tove Lo
6. Alone – Marshmello
7. False Alarm – Matoma & Becky Hill
8. Havana – Camila Cabello feat. Young Thug
9. Closer – The Chainsmokers feat. Halsey
10. Faded – Alan Walker
11. Habits (Stay High) (Hippie Sabotage Remix) – Tove Lo
12. Baba Yetu (Deep Radio Edit) – Supanova
13. Tilbake (Saevik Remix) – David André Østby feat. Marie Hognestad
14. S.O.S. – Indila
15. Sugar – Robin Schulz feat. Francesco Yates
16. So Good – LZ7
17. Runaway (U & I) – Galantis
18. Reload (Vocal Version/Radio Edit) – Sebastian Ingrosso & Tommy Trash & John Martin
19. Don’t Wanna Wake Up – Capital Kings
20. Tidal Wave – Sub Focus feat. Alpines
21. Headlines – Robin Schulz feat. Ilsey

So there you go! A bit more words shall I put to page? John (Dixon! From Scotland!!) was here this past week and it was glorious. I shan’t write about all we did(honestly, we didn’t do that much! But definitely enjoyed taking him to a Dynamo game – my first too! Good times were had wandering around Houston in the grey and the rain and the cold…he picked the wrong week to come to Houston for sun and warmth that’s for sure!)…for truly the best part was just being with him again and having quiet moments talking and being together. Sitting on the couch one evening, watching the baseball(World Series – Dodgers v. Red Sox – ugh) and talking about random life thoughts. Or down the street at Christian’s, enjoying a burger, half-watching the Rockets game (but not really) and again just chatting about our past, our future, our hopes, our dreams. You know. All that good stuff. I think one night, I was texting Julie about something and once she found out I was with John – she asked, “Why are you chatting with me when your friend is there!?!” And I thought about it and see that we’re chilling in the living room, half on our phones, half paying attention to whatever was on TV and then making random comments to each other now and again and realised…this just feels like being flatmates in Aberdeen again. A normal evening together. And so having that experience this past week was…quite nice. I treasure the friendship I have with John dearly and I thank my God for that. And I pray that God continues to bless John in all things!! To Him be the glory throughout, now and forever.

Now, before I spiral off into further flights of emotion, I shall take my leave. It really is a good time to get out of this dim coffeeshop and into the glorious light.

Art Deco

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It is a most glorious day. This morning – finally! – is sitting at sub-60 temperature and it is drippy and wet and slightly cold and it is beautiful. I forget how much I love the “winter” (quotation marks most definitely required) here in Houston. And it is here at long last! So now I get to enjoy my hot coffee inside after having walked in from the (marginally) cold outside and I am happy. Another reason for happiness – I got quite a good long reading time this morning…woke up (reasonably) on time and thus was able to luxuriate in reading through sections of Psalm 119, some Proverbs, 1 Kings 19-20(1 Kings 19 – will always be one of my very favourites after preaching through it in Scotland…oh how encouraging are those words! God indeed takes care of our needs and encourages us with his presence and reminds us of the truths we ought to know…and gives us good works to do. May I remember that this day) and then finally Galatians (yes, I had time to read all of it – which truly is necessary as Galatians is such a lovely book and needs to be read straight through!). So I am ever more aware of how truly blessed I am. Might I constantly be reminded today of how I ought not boast in anything else other than the cross of my Lord Jesus Christ. Always.

Apple Pie

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It’s a Friday, at long last! And though I didn’t write yesterday, let me it be known that on October 11th in the year of our Lord 2018…it finally actually felt like fall for the first time all year. Temperatures in the 60s when I walked outside? I was very – most pleasantly – surprised! And today is the same. Fall is here, y’all. FINALLY. Last night, I went to EQ to get some reading time in…and I found out that everyone else had apparently also realised fall had arrived since the porch was full of far too many people and I had trouble finding a spot! Thankfully I did. Had a nice chat with Lea on phone…then eventually Fran and Haley and John showed up and we had good times hanging out in the cool autumnal air. Now, I need to start work momentarily, but as I’m far behind on my book logging…(sorry, I just keep forgetting!), I’ll jot down my last few reads:

31. Ender’s Shadow by Orson Scott Card. Yup, I am fully in OSC re-read mode. No apologies. This book is an interesting parallel companion novel to Ender’s Game. It is definitely interesting to see most of the events from Ender’s Game from a slightly different angle! Probably not quite as good as Ender’s game, but it has some poignant moments that make it totally worth it. Following Bean – a character that definitely grows on you – this was a book that I always forget how much I love. The ending especially is incredibly emotional and a line from the end of this book is currently the front-runner for the title of my next mix CD. So there you go.

32. Shadow of the Hegemon by Orson Scott Card. The second book in the Shadow series – or the Bean series, as I like to think of it. Honestly, I usually think of Ender’s Shadow as a a book on its own – since it’s set in space! – and the following 3 books as their own trilogy. Because these next books are all set on Earth and deal mostly with the geopolitics of the world following the conclusion of the Formic Wars. Fascinating stuff. I like it because…well, it’s science fiction and set several hundred years in future…but it’s also dealing with recognizable nations and cultures. So you have weary and decrepit America, aggressive Russia, expansionist India, arrogant China…and soon(but not quite in this book), the Caliphate stretching across Africa through the Middle East (and Europe I guess, with Turkey…). I love international relations and so it’s incredibly fascinating seeing Card’s simulated future! Complete with genius children leading them to war! Anyway, this book mainly deals with most of the children getting captured and Bean having to figure out how to rescue them. Finally we get to see much more of Petra, which I love because she’s an amazingly awesome character. And of course Peter Wiggin begins to emerge onto the scene. This is a fantastic book…in my humble opinion.

33. Shadow of the Giant by Orson Scott Card. So…er…yes, this is the fourth book of the series, not the third. Why did I read this one next? Well I was in Chicago this past weekend with John and Daniel. And obviously I brought a travel book – Shadow of the Hegemon. Picked up Shadow of the Giant in a used bookstore in Chicago, because it was the one book I didn’t own and figured I’d read it when I got home. I underestimated my reading speed however, and finished my travel book a few days into trip…so obviously had to read this book since I didn’t bring a backup book. Tragedy. So yes, I’m reading this series out of order. Oops? Anyway! This book is a fitting end to this series…I won’t spoiler it, but I will say I didn’t quite remember how it ended but once I finished it…definitely satisfied. One thing interesting about this book (I suppose I could go into depth, but I will refrain) is you definitely even more so get a feel for Orson Scott’s Card worldview. His Mormon beliefs very obviously inform the themes of this book(and looking back on it, the whole series) – and most obviously, the thought that having children and a family is our main purpose on this earth. By marrying a wife and having children, you “become a part of the human race” and find true meaning. Some of this echoes with my soul – i.e., I do think God designs us with a longing in our hearts for finding a partner and having children (a legacy – as cold and hard as that word sounds). But is that the true meaning of life? I would say not. And I would say it is easy to idolize family above all else, which Card gets dangerously close to. Still – it is rare to see books these days praise marriage and families at all, so I will enjoy these aspects and yet remain wary of seeing perfect fulfillment and happiness in this earthly life. Anyway!! I do go on. This book was fantastic, and once again, I found myself emotional as I finished it.

34. Rubicon by Tom Holland. I sadly do not have time to fully describe this book. A marvelous historical narrative of the last hundred years or so (really the last fifty in greater detail) of the Roman Republic. I know many of the names and bare facts of the Republic, but reading this gave me so much more knowledge of the actual people that lived during this time!! Villainous Sulla and greedy Crassus and proud Pompey and arrogant Caesar and noble Cato and fearful Cicero and enigmatic Caesar Augustus(nee Octavian)…so many tragic moments and so much bloodshed and oh so much fierce politicking and oh the depths of depravity of humanity how we never change. I simply loved this book. The fall of the Republic is something that was bemoaned even while it was happening yet…man is evil and cruel and so the events fell out as could only be expected – in total war, chaos, fear and shell-shocked resignation. There is so much in this book I could talk about, but I much enjoyed reading this history and discovering more about the Republic that was Rome.

Bread and Wine

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“Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord,
“when I will make a new covenant with the house
of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like
the covenant which I made with their fathers in
the day I took them by the hand to bring them
out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which
they broke, although I was a husband to them,”
declares the Lord.
“But this is the covenant which I will make
with the house of Israel after those days,”
declares the Lord,
“I will put My law within them and
on their heart I will write it;
and I will be their God,
and they shall be My people.
They will not teach again, each man
his neighbor and each man his brother, saying,
‘Know the Lord,’ for they will all know Me,
from the least of them to the greatest of them,”
declares the Lord,
“for I will forgive their iniquity,
and their sin I will remember no more.”

Snooze

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This is definitely one of those sleepy mornings, I have decided. Firstly I’m behind schedule – definitely slept a bit longer than I would have liked! – then I roll up to Starbucks and see Jake there…who is also very much behind his own schedule…then I talk to Emily & Deniz at the counter and they tell me they barely opened on time since one of them(who shall remain nameless…but his name starts with D) slept in and didn’t get to Starbucks until 15 min before open. So yeah, it’s one of those days apparently!! I am about to take my first sip of coffee all morning and it shall be glorious. Since I didn’t have much time this morning, decided not to even heat up my coffee so no – I am currently decaffeinated. I am grateful that I was granted a bare few minutes to read though – Psalm 101 & 102. Encouraging to read the Word of the Lord this morning, that I cannot deny. Now…figured I’d post a poem I’ve been working on. It’s a bit rare for me to post one that I’ve worked on for multiple days – a slow burn of a creative process on this one, to be sure. Honestly, I’m still not really happy with it, but…I may very well never be? So going to post it now, maybe I’ll tweak it later, who knows. Also posting because I did get someone else’s somewhat positive feedback. Meagan read it and enjoyed…but she also freely confessed that she doesn’t know poetry well…still though, I much appreciated her even reading it!! I asked what emotional response it provoked and her response was, “numbness and then longing that comes from a pensive evening walk.” You know what? I’ll take that. But let me stop my rambling discourse…and post this mess of a poem. Thanks for reading, friends.

What to do and what to say
Hear now grim creation’s lay
Dripping of doom and triumph both
The sneering triumph too hollow
to make up for the sure doom to follow.

And as the whirring gears
and humming motors
and all the churning, teeming
waves of faceless voices
create a most delightful dissonance,

a break in time and space does rupture
and in that moment
for a moment
the screens go black,
and red blinking lights go dim
and all the glories
of half told stories
tumble to the dust.

for I soft gasp in sorrow
as I stand atop the silent cliff,
starkly still,
and cold I shiver
but outward and upward and onward I look
and shaking I see
the singing sea
and the
star strewn skies
shock my shattered soul.

Flesh and blood and skin and bones,
now creation waits and groans
and with in-drawn breath and
widened, frightened eyes
softly, oh so softly
cries.

Dance the II

James HoganLeave a comment

I have decided it is not quite time to leave Starbucks yet. So…bonus post!! As I am still oh so far behind in posting my mix playlists…I figured I better try and catch up! This is a mix I came up with earlier this year – back in March I believe. It was one of those mixes that came together remarkably quickly. Just like my best poetry, my best mixes are the ones composed in a matter of minutes(not days!!). Anyway – this mix is a little bit country and a little bit melancholy. And I love it so. I remember listening to the last few songs the night(believe it was late on a Sunday night?) I made this mix…and feeling a tad bit emotional. But hey, let me stop talking it up…and just post the track list. Humbly I present…Never Again Sighs the Dawn:

1. Nightcall – London Grammar
2. New Partner – Ciaran Lavery
3. The Rooster Moans – Iron & Wine
4. The Stable Song – Gregory Alan Isakov
5. Abrasive – Ratatat
6. Burn – Norah Jones
7. Cherry – Ratatat
8. Roll the Bones – Shakey Graves
9. Where Rainbows Never Die – The Steeldrivers
10. You’ll Never Leave Harlan Alive – Darrell Scott
11. Ghosts of Mississippi – The Steeldrivers
12. The Snake – David Ford
13. If It Hadn’t Been for Love – The Steeldrivers
14. Skin & Bone – Stu Larsen
15. Stone Walls – Three Tall Pines
16. If I Be Wrong – Wolf Larsen

The Reading Goes Ever On and On

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29. They Were Found Wanting by Miklós Bánffy. Book number 2 of the Transylvanian Trilogy (or the Hungarian trilogy – as I call it to my friends!) has been conquered. This one took me a little while to complete, but I did truly want to enjoy it…so not attempting to rush through it. I wrote a pretty decent summary of this trilogy when I talked about book 1, so shan’t repeat that. But this book(as I guess middle books of trilogies are wont to do?) got even more depressing…and the characters are not exactly in the best of places. Will things get better? I’m slightly worried that they may not, especially as the Great War looms even closer now. There was definitely a lot more focus on the European political atmosphere in this book…oh so tragic with hindsight. Oh so blind were oh so many. I am hoping that the characters somehow get to a better place in the third book though. We shall see? Balint, Adrienne, Laszlo…surely things can’t get much worse. But I could most definitely be wrong. After I closed this book on a wonderfully emotional note, I wrote in my little notebook (for I knew I wouldn’t log this for a few days, so wanted to jot my thoughts down while they were hot) the following: “What a wistful, melancholy end. Beautiful. Yet oh so sad.” And there you go. Book 3 awaits. I may not read it for a bit though – want to savour this trilogy. I can only read a book for the first time once.

30. Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card. Ok so yes. This is definitely a re-read. I first Ender’s Game…freshman year of high school, I believe? I had to pick a book for a English I reading project and I grabbed this off the shelf in the media center. It was a most fortuitous choice, for it began my love affair with OSC’s work. All through high school and beyond, I named him as one of my all-time favourite authors. I don’t know if he would rank quite as highly now (simply because I’ve read many more authors since that time!). But I still own multiple of his books (10 or so?) and after reading this, I remembered why I loved him so much. His characters are just amazingly well realized. Almost no author does better in writing full, breathing characters than Card. And it gets even better with the next book in this series – “Speaker for the Dead”. But anyway – I’m talking about Ender’s Game! I’ve read this a few times before, so the plot is a known quantity. But I did forget how imaginative it is. It’s good solid sci-fi…with fun innovations and incredibly cool concepts. And the drama flows hot and heavy. I first read this in high school, so I guess this escaped me then, but I did forget how crude and crass some of the dialog is. I guess kids talk that way sometimes? So I didn’t enjoy those parts quite as much, but once I got past that…I really just fell in love with the book and with Card all over again. This book is quite philosophically sophisticated as well…it’s not just a “good humans defeat evil aliens!” sci-fi novel. Oh no, there’s so much more to it than that…I don’t really want to write out the whole plot here, but I will say that as I finished the book last night – sitting in EQ – I was incredibly satisfied. The whole sequence at the end…with Ender visiting the land of his dreams on a far-away planet…and his subsequent communion with the queen of the race that he destroyed…beautiful and tragic. As the queen communicated to Ender, “They didn’t forgive us – we shall surely die,” my heart nearly broke. And on that note, I’ll end this overly long review. But any book that summons forth such emotions surely deserves my praise.

Now…back to sipping on my coffee here at Starbucks. This Saturday rolls ever on.

A Postal Service

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Hello friends and happy Saturday!! I did intend to write a nice, long entry today, but I fear it is not to be. I’ve dawdled here in Starbucks long enough and I really must go grab something for lunch soon as well. But must log my latest read(about 4 days late, shocker!):

28. The Mote in God’s Eye by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle. Now this is proper sci-fi. Apparently I just need to read older classic sci-fi, because I greatly loved this book published in 1974. Written in “humanity’s future”, it had a great sweeping history (which I love) and also fun characters (despite the somewhat caricatured Scottish chief engineer!), great hulking battleships, fantastic technological wonders, copious amounts of coffee drinking, actual references to Christianity (which is somewhat rare in science fiction these days…)…and truly alien aliens. It even ended with a wedding (which is also somewhat rare in modern sci-fi!). And of course, the hallmark of all great sci-fi…the exploration of the unknown expanse…while at the same time, the examination of humanity’s psyche. What will man do to preserve his place in the universe? I don’t think I can properly do the plot of this book justice – but just know that I enjoyed it (I think that’s already obvious, no?). It was a fun adventurous romp while at the same time being at least mildly intellectual in nature. The descriptions of space were a wonder to behold and almost gave me the urge to go off gallivanting in space myself. Almost.