Chess, Revisited

So I picked up Yasser Seirawan's book on Chess Tactics, and I just can't get into it. I'm trying to wrap my head around X-Rays and Windmills, but man, I'm just not getting it. Forks and Pins, sure, no problem. Discovered Attacks and Skewers, okay, sure, in theory. But X-Rays? I don't get it.

So I think I'm going to stick with Planetary tonight.  I'm 25/27 of the way to the end, so with a little luck, I may finish it tonight. Sure, it's not the first time I've read it. But it is the first time I've read it lately. And it is pretty satisfying to see Elijah Snow stick it to Randall Dowling. More of that later though, when I can do a proper review.

+++++

"And so it was that I studied with the world's greatest detective for five years, until he finally died of old age. To his disgust, I never got rid of the accent in his lifetime. It took another ten years of walking across the world to do that. But I never lost my love of the secrets. And I don't think I ever will."

Elijah Snow
Planetary by Warren Ellis

+++++

That's it for tonight. Now go read something already!
rr

Thunderblizzard 2011

Hello, fellow readers.

Thunderblizzard 2011 really set my blogging back. I'm still reading Ender's Shadow by Orson Scott Card and Warren Ellis' Planetary (regular Volume 4, or Absolute Volume 2, take your pick). I'm also still reading The Stand by Uncle Stevie - man I miss his Entertainment Weekly column - but haven't picked it up this month yet. Which is OK, since I'm ahead of my pace.

I meant to write something while I was snowbound, but chose to indulge in (the demon) television instead, watching episodes of Invasion (episode 9) and Battlestar Galactica ("Scar") instead. I was going to watch Sherlock from the BBC, but my copy of the dvd seems to be all screwey. I suppose I could have read one of Doyle's originals instead, but I was dozing and fell asleep early anyway.

Watch this space for new posts. I may write something as early as tonight. The worst case scenario is that I post something new this weekend.

Now go read something today already...

Quote of the Week

"These are the moments I live for. I put up with all the other crap just to get seconds like this. The moments when you know the world is a better place than advertised."

-Jakita Wagner in Planetary #4 by Warren Ellis and John Cassaday

PS - "Quote of the Week" just indicates a favorite literary quote of mine that I decided to post online that week. It doesn't necessarily mean it was a phrase used in lit that actual week.