In It For The Gravitas

by Walter Moers

Sequel to Die Stadt der Träumenden Bücher (The City of Dreaming Books), which is an AWESOME, wonderful magical book.

This one started very well, delightful, but soon I was wondering where it was going. And why there were pages and pages of blah. When I reached the end it got clear: this is a first part, a 2nd book is going to follow.
It is a first part coz Moers didn’t finish in time, but has a contract and was put under pressure by his publisher.
Looks as if he added a lot of blah to fill enough pages for 1st part to be published as a book.
He should have been left alone until he was done with telling his whole story.

For me the story is ruined.

A pity. I will not buy this one — s/o lent it to me, and after the first few pages I was excited and determined to go out and buy it asap. Not any more. I’m not sure if I’m interested in the 2nd part any more.

Curse on greed. Not Moers’, but his publishers’ who destroyed something that was going to become wonderful and magical.

by Umberto Eco.

Good read. Cruel and clear sighted.

And still, for me Eco’s best book will always be Foucault’s Pendulum.

“I can put the Great Tradition in one word,” he said calmly. “Privilege.”
_{R. A. Wilson, R. Shea: Illuminatus!}

From time to time I am looking at my goals and at the cheers I am getting for goals.

my older goals have more cheers, that’s normal.

Still, it has always irked me, right from the beginning, that certain goals get cheers all the time
eg.
“Things I am getting”

My old, now discarded
“Get a new camera” was a real burner. Everyone cheered it.

Not so cheery goals are the ones that really matter, eg. this one.

Probably takes some thought, whereas “Things I’m getting” is something everybody understands at once.

I also understand that folks, of course, will not cheer what goes against their own conviction.

Eg. me, I could never cheer any “pro life” goal; actually, I could never cheer any goal by any one who has a “pro life” message on their list.

And another thing:
it is time, HIGH TIME, to deal with things that matter. Eg. you “pro life” people: you do realize that all those poor tiny unborn will need a planet where they can grow up on?
Oh, and a community where they are loved and can learn healthy social behaviour?
And perhaps we could also start and care for the living, y’know, those that ARE on the planet already.

Just sayin.