We have...Internet!

I posted last night, but I guess it was premature, because we were having hella time trying to get the internet to get and stay connected. Luckily, the problem seems to be fixed.

So the new apartment is good; the cat is adapting well. MOST of the boxes are unpacked, but the kitchen still looks rather like a disaster area. As Anathema has been out of town all week, I've been relying on the toaster oven and microwave for meals, so I actually haven't cooked in there yet, but I am planning on it. Not this week, of course, because the aunt and uncle are in town from CA and I'll be spending a lot of time with them.

So, book reviews.

"I Am Spock"--by Leonard Nimoy

To begin, I was never a huge fan of the original Star Trek television series. I liked the movies, yes, but not the show so much. Still, we all like Vulcans, I think, and so when handed a copy of "I Am Spock" to read, I did so, because, why not?

A very interesting read. Nimoy chronicles his experiences through the Star Treky universe, with amusing anecdotes, truthfulness, and guest appearances by his alter ego. I learned, among other things, that besides directing ST III and ST IV, he also directed Three Men and a Baby, because the original French director bowed out at the last minute. (The movie itself started as almost a word-for-word translation of a French movie with a simliar title).

I think what I like most is that Nimoy isn't FIGHTING the whole "Spock" image. In fact, on a number of occassions, he gets a little testy with various writers/directors/producers because he feels they've got Spock wrong; Nimoy admits he's protective of the character. In a way, it reminds me of Mark Hamill who, after unsucessfully trying to shed Luke Skywalker for more serious pursuits, accepted the fact that people loved what he had done and wanted to thank him for it. This is what I don't understand about some actors *coughHarrisonFordcough*. Yes, the crazy obsessed fans are a little weird, but for most of them, their hearts are in the right places--a character YOU portrayed spoke to them, made them happy, and they want to acknowledge your contribution. And for the love of pete, do remember that those roles you loathe to acknowledge you ever played often were the ones that catapulted you into the money you're enjoying now. We're not saying that EVERY character you play has to be Han Solo/Spock, but if someone asks you to autograph their t-shirt, do it, because we pay your salary, and don't think it happens any other way.

So, yeah, if you're interested in a) biographies, b) Star Trek or c) a look into the world of Hollywood, you should read "I Am Spock."


"Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" by J.K. Rowling

Oh. My. Goodness.

I almost want to read the book over again, to see what I missed. Let me just say that the death in question TOTALLY took me by surprise, but that my reaction was the same as to Sirius' departure in OotP..."wait, what?" Although this death was painfully more real than Sirius', it still left the "can't be" feeling in my stomach. Loathe was I to admit what was true.

The 'shipper in me was, of course, over joyed for various and sundry reasons as the book progressed. Harry made a rather noble, but probably foolish, choice towards the end of the novel, and I'm not so sure the female in question is really going to allow him the...er, space, that he asked for.

Harry, by the way, was MUCH more likable in this book. The broody, angsty, angry 15-year-old we all wanted to smack about the head in OotP is gone, for the most part, replaced by a much more...well, maybe not level-headed, but at least likable sixteen-year-old. He seems to be managing the mantle of manhood quite well.

I've still got some questions of the short-term variety; meaning that if I simply re-read the book, I'll probably understand that which I missed in my exhuberance to find out "wha happen?"


"Star Wars: Cloak of Deception" by James Luceno

Now, my reading of this book was slightly tainted because 1) It was written by an NJO author and 2) He put NJO/post-ROTJ characters in it. I suppose if you hadn't read a lot of the post-ROTJ stuff, you wouldn't know who they were, so we'll ignore their parts in it for a moment.

It was an okay book, although not as good as "Rogue Planet." It seemed too rushed, like he just wanted to "get to the good stuff," only the good stuff never came. Also, the vocabulary in some parts was ridonkulous...I seriously had no idea what some of the words meant, and I consider myself to be pretty savy with the larger, SAT-type words. I wouldn't recommend this book; there are much better ones out there.

I'm going to a winery for dinner tonight. Yay!