Reading

I finished The Anansi Boys, by Neil Gaiman a week or so ago.  I thought it came before American Gods, but I was mistaken.  It was a great story in and of itself, but as a Neil Gaiman fan it seemed to be riding on the coattails of American Gods a little too closely. Almost like Neil was stuck with the idea of gods living amongst us and couldn't move past it.  I like original storytelling, especially from a mind like Neil's, but this seemed like a spinoff.  It could've been a subplot to American Gods and fit in the same book. Still, I think Neil is the king.  The story was filled with surprises and cleverness that kept me turning the pages.  I finished it in a couple days (which is super fast for me).  I eagerly await another piece of work by him.  His latest effort, I believe, is an episode of "Doctor Who" for the BBC.  Great fun and all, but I'd rather read a comic book series or novel by him than watch a show.

Next came The Magic Pudding, which is a children's story written and illustrated by Norman Lindsay in 1918.  I like children's literature, and this was sitting on my nightstand for a long time before I actually read it.  Something of this sort I like to read before giving it to the kids and I'm glad I did.  It would be fine for my daughter of 12, but my son, who is 7 years old, can be a chameleon and, like me, become too much of what he perceives.  Lindsay believed, "kids prefer food and fighting," which may be true, but we are trying to keep our young man from resorting to fisticuffs in his dealings with his peers (and parents).  There was a little too much punching and pounding in this story for me to share it with him, at least in this stage.

So my next book, that I am only half way through, is Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand.  It seems to have become a manifesto for the Tea Party.  I have continually heard about it over the last few months to the point where I must have it under my belt just to know what the world is talking about.  Because Hollywood has so few original ideas they have pilfered this, too, and part one of the movie version has just premiered.  (Click here for the trailer, and here for a sampling of reviews). I'd be very interested to see the movie, but not until it is completed (the books has 3 parts - will the movie version be a trilogy?) and I can watch it all at once. In the meantime, I can only say that Tea Party comparisons to our current state of affairs in this country and this book are far-fetched to me.  We aren't quite living in the socialist version of what Rand calls the People's States of America in my opinion.  Perhaps if the government had taken control of the "too big to fail" banking industry instead of just bailing them out, then Rand and the Tea Party would have me on board.  As it stands, I still have faith in our government and President.  Capitalism is safe from the kinds of regulation that Rand uses to describe "evil" in her writing. The world she portrays is very black-and-white, very extreme, and her beliefs are very heavy-handed.  My world, at least, is more subtle than that.  Still it is a great book and a legitimate, strong warning to our society.  I dig it.

Don't blog angry

It seems lately that I'm only writing when I need to vent.  But that's not all I'm about.  I'm not just another angry writer.  I have peaceful, happy thoughts to share as well.  I do so.  How do you know?

So, here we go with my own space on the internet to prove to the world that I'm more than a grumpy old man in training.  My inspiration to write may generally come from frustration, but I'm looking to channel that through this blog's "happy" filter in order to find productive solutions to life's little disappointments.

They say to be a successful blogger you need to specialize your content.  Become an authority.  Well, I'm not much of an authority on anything except my own life, which involves being married to the most beautiful and smartest woman in the world, raising the greatest kids, playing the drums, reading comics, listening to great music and watching TV shows and movies. That means you are going to find posts about relationships, marriage, parenting, special needs, technology, songs, music, comic books, and entertainment along with politics, the environment, food, news and whatever else I feel like.  So much for specializing.  We'll see where it gets me.

Please drop by once in awhile to check out what's up in my small world, and if you are so inclined, leave a comment.  I'd love to hear from you.