Book Reviews: "Derrida" and "Leven Thumps"

If one must be awake at this time of night, then a hot drink without caffeine offers both the comfort of sipping and the possibility of slumber to follow. In this case, the beverage is Celestial Seasonings' "Mandarin Orange" - not that you are really interested in my liquid intake, but here it is for the record. Help yourself, the water is still hot.

Introducing Derrida (Collins and Mayblin, Totem Books, 1996) looked like a comprehensible introduction to this philosopher (or anti-philosopher, take your pick), so I picked it up used for $4. It's part of a series by Totem Books, heavily illustrated, and not quite 200 pages. If you can imagine a comic book that focuses on philosophic disputes, you have a pretty good idea of the approach this book takes. Other topics in the Introducing series include Kant, Wagner, Quantum Theory, and Astrology.

Derrida is associated with the development of post-modernism and especially "deconstruction" in literary criticism and philosophy. The biggest idea behind all of it seemed to be that writing can always be misunderstood, be it ever so carefully couched in clear diction and specific context. Surely that is a grotesque oversimplification that would make Derrida cringe, but that was the impression it made on me. But then, it was only writing, and I may have misunderstood it.

Leven Thumps and the Gateway to Foo (Obert Skye, Simon & Schuster, 2005) was much lighter, but it had better pictures and a faster story line. Skye probably won't make the impression on modern literature and criticism that Derrida has, but he's more accessible. It's not a great book. Although the author occasionally uses some very funny wit ("And the flags that only days before had hung majestically on the top of local flagpoles no longer looked majestic, they looked like multicolored pieces of cloth that had climbed up and tragically hung themselves."), even there the wording could be tighter. The disasters are a bit overdone, the bad guys are often two-dimensional, and I'm not sure if the repeated expressions of confidence in "fate" to provide what the good guys need are merely vacuous or intended to be funny. I gave the author the benefit of the doubt and took it for humor. I still didn't see quite enough development of the central characters to make them deeply likeable, but they're nice enough kids and they have potential.

T&T

Product Review

Put down the glass of whatever you're drinking, unless you want it spewing out your nose, when you read this review of Tuscan Milk.

H/T Sharp As A Marble

T&T

Religious Irony

A friend of mine who pastors a church suggested the following as a gift to first-time visitors:


This illustrates the irony in which his mind usually lurks. Yes, he affirms that God created the world (and specifically that creation is in Christ, through him, and for him), but the current debate between creationists and evolutionists can use a bit of humor and self-deprecation.

Movie review: "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels"

"English Breakfast" may sound inappropriate for late evening, but I opened a fresh tin of loose tea this morning, so I'm celebrating it. You can have some toast with cream cheese and fresh tomato slices with it.

The bathroom walls still need a bit of patching. The first application of joint compound has helped smooth some of the rough spots, but there is plenty of work to be done.

I just finished watching "Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels" (1998) (rated R), a crime comedy of errors, written and directed by Guy Ritchie. Good entertainment value, good balance of tension and comedy, very tightly knit. It has a very similar style to "Snatch" (2000), also w&d by GR, and some of the cast is in both movies, notably Jason Statham, Alan Ford, and Vinnie Jones. No Brad Pitt in this one. Both have good entertainment value, balance of tension and comedy, and a story so tightly knit it could be a bullet-proof jumper.

So, does the tea have too much caffeine for this time of night?

Tire-d

Sorry I'm late. Let me go put the water on.

There, that shouldn't take too long. Today's brew is Celestial Seasonings' (R) "Perfectly Pear" white tea. Yeah, yeah, "If it's white, how can you see it?" Once it's ready, you can tell for yourself.

On my way to the river yesterday, I noticed that a tire on my car was almost flat. It must have been flatter than I thought, because driving it about 6 blocks to a service station to inflate it chewed up the inside of the tire so much that it couldn't be repaired. The new one took about 2 hours to put on and it cost about $ 120.

The paint on my bathroom walls is mostly in the same bad shape that the ceiling paint was. About 70% came off easily, and the other 30% sticks like glue. I think the best approach will be to leave the paint that wants to stick, and use joint compound or spackling to smooth out the edges.

The new shut-off valve to the toilet also has a slow leak at the join to the cast iron intake line. I forgot to brush the rust off the old pipe threads before putting the Teflon tape and new valve on.

Just a minute, the kettle is whistling.

Ahh, that's better. As you can see, the "white" tea has a very pale amber tint. According to "About.com", it's called white because "the leaves are picked and harvested before the leaves open fully, when the buds are still covered by fine white hair." Also, "White tea is similar to green tea, in that it's undergone very little processing and no fermentation. But there is a noticable difference in taste. Most green teas have a distinctive 'grassy' taste to them, but white tea does not. The flavour is described as light, and sweet." The light and sweet flavor go well with the vanilla and pear flavorings that Celestial Seasonings (R) has added to their mixture.

The Triscuits (TM) are gone, so we will have to make do with stale saltines and soft cheese.

T&T

Boat Repair and House Repair

Come in, the water has just boiled, and this afternoon's tea is Ceylon Black with a bit of mango flavoring. I also have Tricuits(TM) and Laughing Cow(TM) cheese, so help yourself.

The washer is running because I got wet in the river today, helping a friend get his sailboat onto a trailer. The drive train on his outboard had seized up, so he sailed it to the boat ramp, where a mechanic removed the old drive train and installed a new one. The afternoon was pleasant enough - the temperature hovering in the mid-90s, but low enough humidity that a breeze and shade kept us cool.

You will notice that most of the floor has been removed from the bathroom. Some friends helped me tear out the old tongue-and-groove flooring, because it had some rotten spots in it. The subflooring is good, and some friends will help me put down a new floor later this week. That will involve laying down plywood, backer board, and ceramic tile. Have you ever tried to match 50 year old almond ceramic tile with what's available today? On my budget there isn't much choice but to buy off-the-shelf and hope no one notices the shade difference. I'm putting down a black border along the edges, so maybe that will help.

The paint was peeling off the ceiling, and once I started scraping, it came off in sheets. Some of the wall paint is like that, too. The local home supplies store sold me something called "Gripper" that goes on as a primer, and some paint to go over that.

I may come up with a theological question to ponder later, but I'm sapped just now. What's up with you?

T&T