Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in Balloonist of experience's LiveJournal:

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Friday, September 25th, 2009
7:41 pm	_The Pain Merchants_ by Janice Hardy I received this book as an ARC at the Diana Wynne Jones conference. I usually don't like to write book reviews, although I like to read them. If there's something I want to say about a book, it's probably not particularly evaluative - and sometimes, the only thing I want to say about books I really love is, "isn't that part so cool? Isn't that part so cool? Isn't that part amazing?," which is evaluative, but not in a useful way. This explains why, although I am often tempted to write Please Save My Earth posts, I almost never do (but the part where Gyokuran and Shion manage to have an argument despite the fact that Shion isn't actually there at all!). However, since I received this book as an ARC, which has never happened to me before, I feel like I'm obligated to say something about it. This is a young adult fantasy novel (unsurprisingly, given that it was given out at the DWJ conference) about a city-state that was recently conquered by another city-state. The protagonist and narrator is a young orphan with unusual powers (this is not a spoiler, not only because it is a young adult fantasy novel but also because this is made clear pretty quickly) who is drawn into a frightening series of events in the city. The magic system in the novel is interesting and centered entirely around pain - I was intrigued by the somewhat limited nature of the magic in this regard. I would consider this a pretty average young adult fantasy novel - which means that I liked it, since I tend to like young adult fantasy novels. It was pretty slow to start, however, and I only decided that I liked it about halfway through. Among the aspects of the novel I enjoyed were the setting (I liked the fact that it was a warm setting, with animals and a climate that might have been drawn from Janice Hardy's native Florida, which is probably still less typical in fantasy - it certainly was during the time of my life that I was reading a lot of young adult fantasy), the particular focus on the struggles of poor people (the poverty of the heroine and the city in general was kept up throughout the book, rather than her just starting out poor and ending up with a huge amount of resources - although the situation will probably be different in the sequels), and the quick pace of the second half of the novel. I think my main criticism of the novel is that, while the protagonist was well-characterized, I was much less interested in all of the other characters. I tend to prefer non-protagonists to protagonists anyway, so, while I indubitably like a book with a strong protagonist, I found the other characters disappointing. I felt that they were drawn a little too broadly and that we mainly came to know them through the narrator's perspective, rather than being able to sustain the illusion that they had lives and minds outside of what the narrator knew of them. Anyway, that's my review - feel free to ask me anything else about this book in comments. Also feel free to give me more ARCs. I will review them! On my LiveJournal! Eventually. Current Mood: exhausted Current Music: of Montreal - No Conclusion | Powered by Last.fm (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Saturday, July 25th, 2009
12:17 am	The Source of Some Signification Oh, hey, look, the story about Oscar Wilde and the musician is up on the Internet! As you may or may not have noticed, this story made some kind of impression on me when I first read it back in my freshman year of college (it may have just been the phrasing that did it). I must have read it in my English class on "Illicit Desires in Literature," since we read The Importance of Being Earnest, but I wonder what the more detailed context was - I really have no memory of reading it for the first time. Current Mood: stupid Current Music: fan (Comment on this)
Friday, July 10th, 2009
12:24 am	My Brain Is Like a Box of Keen Insight Dark City = The Unpleasant Profession of Jonathan Hoag + The Tripods trilogy I have absolutely no idea how I managed to think of this connection. Current Mood: amused Current Music: cars (Comment on this)
Wednesday, July 8th, 2009
2:42 pm	DWJ Conference Well, it was great. Many, many thanks to fjm, steepholm, and lady_schrapnell for their hard work putting everything together. ( Notes on the Conference ) Current Mood: tired Current Music: of Montreal - "Erroneous Escape into Eric Eckless" (12 Comments |Comment on this)
2:14 pm	Aquaman Needs an Anti-Depressant So I'm back from my trip to the UK (I've been back for nearly a couple of days now, but I spent a horrendous percentage of that time asleep). As usual, I have deep troubles writing up trips but enjoy having conversations about them; consequently, this will be dull, but feel free to ask me questions about anything, and I may give more interesting answers. ( Traveling ) ( London ) ( Edinburgh ) ( Somerset ) I think the DWJ conference deserves an entry of its own? But, briefly, it was awesome. Current Mood: absent Current Music: of Montreal - "My British Tour Diary" (Comment on this)
Friday, April 3rd, 2009
2:33 pm	Huge Sigh of Relief Oh, thank God. All is well with the world, and Robert Jordan's posthumous memory is not only not being desecrated but is in fact being honored in the most fitting way imaginable - there are now three more books left in the series. Just as has been the case ever since I started reading it back in what was probably actually 1991, not 1992 after all. Furthermore, even if Brandon Sanderson is being completely sincere and honest in his explanation of the reasons for the split and promise that the final book will be out by November 2011 at the latest, that leaves him plenty of time to realize that the series (and his own finances) would be better served by dragging it out for another three books. . . and another three. . . and another three. . . so I think we're okay. I just have to hope that who kills Asmodean (WoT spoiler) doesn't get revealed in The Gathering Storm, so that I can still find out what Jacob is (Lost mention that probably barely counts as a spoiler but which I am putting in spoiler space for the sake of consistency) first. Because the alternative would be kind of depressing otherwise even if WoT isn't over yet. Anyway, to celebrate, here is a link to the "My Lovely Horse" video. Current Mood: genuinely relieved Current Music: like a train in the night, yeah, like a train in the night (8 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, February 23rd, 2009
2:39 pm	The Nature of Hope So, I'm going to the DWJ Conference. In fact, I'll be presenting there (my paper is entitled "Little Sister is Watching You," and so far, while procrastinating on the research, I've managed to write up notes on a completely different DWJ-centered topic and re-read Uncle Tom's Cabin in order to fangirl St. Clare. And those are only (some of) the paper-related procrastinatory activities!), which means that, teaching job or no teaching job, I'm at least achieving something this year. I'm somewhat terrified, because, despite fjm's assurance that it is perfectly fine for me to go and present there, I'm afraid that it will be a professional conference full of extremely professional people, and I will stick out like an amateurish thumb. Nonetheless, I'm also very happy, because when you consider things I want to do, talking for about twenty minutes about DWJ is pretty high on the list, and talking for about twenty minutes about DWJ and maybe even having people listen to me talk and then ask me questions about it afterwards seems even better. Plus, even if people don't actually bother to listen to me talk, going and listening to other people talk about DWJ and then asking them questions is also pretty darn good, as long as I can work up the courage to overcome my anxiety that my questions will be too amateurish. So, hey, this seems like a very good thing :). If you are the kind of person who might consider going to a DWJ Conference, even though it's in Bristol, you should consider going (obviously, the people on my friend's list who I already know/assume are going are exempt from this exhortation). Reference forms are available at the link above. If everything works out as I desire, I will probably be in Britain for about a week before the conference. I strongly intend to spend a few days in Edinburgh, but I'm not sure what to do for the other three or four days. Options include London (Con: I have already been to London several times, including once as an adult; Pro: I am not yet tired of life), Wales (Con: Will I know what touristy things to do in Wales? Will Wales be disappointing compared to all the children's books that made me want to go to Wales?; Pro: Close to Bristol. Have been there, but so long ago that it was actually before I read all the children's books that made me want to go to Wales), and other things (Con: What other things? A Romantic poetry tour sounds kind of enticing, but I am not sure what it would entail, especially if I'd prefer it to be only sparingly Wordsworth-focused. Are there Henry James tourism sites in Sussex these days?; Pro: Could be interesting and would allow me to have new experiences). So if you have any British tourism suggestions, they are welcome. If anyone is curious, this would be the reason I am not going on SWIL Vacation. Current Mood: pleased Current Music: Franz Ferdinand - "No You Girls" (5 Comments |Comment on this)
Thursday, February 19th, 2009
4:33 pm	Overwhelmingly Alarming Thought of the Moment You know, it just occurred to me that it is actually entirely possible that The Wheel of Time will be completed before Lost. Even if A Memory of Light ends up getting split into two books. I think it has taken this long for me to realize this because I only barely find it conceivable. Current Mood: feverish Current Music: Passion Pit - "Better Things" (38 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, January 7th, 2009
4:10 pm	Loose and Lengthy Notes on That Topic About Which I Am NOT Writing An Essay for the DWJ Conference I feel my grasp of 1984 is almost infinitely superior to my grasp of Shelley's entire oeuvre. Presumably hence my inability to form coherent thoughts about the latter. ( Spoilers! For _The Homeward Bounders_. And 'The Triumph of Life.' Also absurdly lengthy. Also I have now added some random jokes about Plotinus, because making fun of Plotinus is the kind of Life that deserves a Triumph. ) This is my edition of THB. For Shelley's poems, I used the web - just Google any of them, take the first hit, and you'll get the text I used. Current Mood: ashamed Current Music: of Montreal - "Wicked Wisdom" (Comment on this)
Thursday, January 1st, 2009
4:48 pm	2008 - The Year in Art Book of the Year - The Wings of the Dove - Henry James Film of the Year - The Prestige - Christopher Nolan Music of the Year - "Wraith Pinned to the Mist and Other Games" - Of Montreal TV Show of the Year - Lost - Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse Current Mood: anticipatory Current Music: my parents' classical on the radio (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, October 27th, 2008
7:43 pm	Extremely Self-Indulgent Post So. . . mmmmm. . . has anyone who reads this actually ever heard of The Delays? Right, no, didn't think so. But that is okay, because it is actually a really good idea to like extremely obscure bands, because then: ( Very large, screen-filling proof! ) Current Mood: overwhelmed Current Music: Delays - You and Me | Powered by Last.fm (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Thursday, October 9th, 2008
2:01 pm	OMG It Actually IS Going to Be the Best Concert EVER! The ninjas quite literally prove it: Right. Current Mood: excited Current Music: of Montreal - "Id Engager" (Comment on this)
Saturday, September 27th, 2008
11:47 pm	_Skeletal Lamping_ - Second Impressions On Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer, in the song "She's a Rejector," there's a lyric that goes, "the girl of my dreams is probably God." On Skeletal Lamping, so far I have caught three lyrical references to this concept of the beloved one as God. I TOTALLY approve of this direction and hope that the band continues to emphasize the theme as much as possible. For example, what if Kevin Barnes makes out with God at my Of Montreal show in less than two weeks? That would be AWESOME! Although I also like anti-God songs like "The Repudiated Immortals" on Sunlandic Twins. That bears mentioning. I am listening to Skeletal Lamping now because my Of Montreal show is in less than two weeks. I ordered the CD and the horse poster. Current Mood: nervous Current Music: Of Montreal - "Death is Not a Parallel Move" (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, January 1st, 2008
12:52 pm	2007 - The Year in Art Book of the Year - Natural Supernaturalism: Tradition and Revolution in Romantic Literature - M. H. Abrams Film of the Year - Badlands - Terence Malick (umm, my apologies for watching my second-favorite movie ever once each in two consecutive years) Music of the Year - Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? - Of Montreal TV Show of the Year - House, M.D. - David Shore Current Mood: expectant Current Music: Of Montreal - "Sink the Seine" (in head) (Comment on this)
Monday, October 15th, 2007
2:16 pm	One More Thing Okay, I did it. I cleaned out my SCCS account inbox. So now please feel free to e-mail me there again. But remember, any e-mails you sent me since August probably haven't gotten to me, so you'd need to send them again. I passed up watching House tonight to do this. So I hope you appreciate it ;-). Current Mood: ambivalent (Comment on this)
Monday, August 27th, 2007
12:51 pm	IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT! I've barely been able to check the Internet for a long time. What that means is that my inbox is full of spam. I intend to delete all of it (hopefully tonight, but we'll see) so that people can e-mail me again. But, in the meantime, don't e-mail me. I will put up another post announcing when it's okay to e-mail me again. If you e-mailed me at any time in the past week or so, your e-mail probably bounced, so you know there's a problem. Please just e-mail me again when I make the announcement. Thanks! Current Mood: anxious Current Music: The Delays - "Stay Where You Are" (Comment on this)
Tuesday, July 3rd, 2007
4:59 pm	_Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer_ - Fourth or Fifth Impressions Go listen to it yourself here! Now that I think about it, it's odd how any band I become interested in, even if they show no signs of being interested in dance music in the songs of theirs in which I first become interested, inevitably turns out to eventually make music that can be described as involving disco elements. Is this because all indie bands inevitably gravitate towards disco, or is it just that the subset of indie bands that attract my attention do? I don't listen to enough music obsessively to know. I am totally in love with this album just now. I really do have to buy it. Current Mood: love! Current Music: Of Montreal - "The Past is a Grotesque Animal" (9 Comments |Comment on this)
Saturday, May 19th, 2007
6:12 pm	The Internet Is a Slowternet I have now returned to. . . umm. . . I can't say "the NYC metro area," can I? I have now returned to that part of the NYC metro area whence it is actually extremely easy to commute into NYC. Yeah. So now you know. I'll be here (mostly) until the beginning of August. Current Mood: neutral Current Music: The Magnetic Fields - "A Pretty Girl Is Like. . ." (in head) (Comment on this)
Tuesday, May 8th, 2007
12:56 pm	I Don't Know How They Got In I just had a dream involving my best friend from middle school, Alberto Gonzalez, a vast number of Barbie dolls, and a talking ferret. I will politely leave the rest to your fruitful imaginations. Current Mood: amused Current Music: Helen Schinske and Philip Belben - "The Nine Ferrets Song" (4 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, May 1st, 2007
5:01 pm	You Already Know That I'm an Inveterately Allusive Titler I was thinking recently about just how easy it tends to be to sum up the emotional impact of my summers. Obviously, if I do this, it leaves a lot of stuff out, but it's very easy to think of, say, the summer I was 23 and think, that was that really good summer when I had those really profound reading experiences that have affected me ever since but also the mysterious inexplicable food allergy - and that more or less sums up what I mean when I refer in my head to that summer. So I decided to give them titles, to convey the simplicity of that summing up. Originally I was going to do just from graduating college on, but it turned out to be too easy to do starting from the summer after I graduated high school, so that's what I did. And why am I posting it? Maybe it's because I just found out that Jarvis Cocker was in NYC a couple of weeks ago, and I totally would have gone had I known, and I am now pissed off, and making public allusions to things I like (including Pulp songs and requiring a certain amount of qualification with respect to Pam Dean, although "like" isn't a completely inaccurate word) slightly cheers me up. 1999 - I've got no reason, I've got no reason at all. 2000 - Delivered me from his 'n' hers 2001 - Juniper, Gentian, and Rosemary 2002 - I know, I know I've let you down. 2003 - I might make it through the summer, and I guess that ain't too bad. 2004 - The balloonist of experience 2005 - Why can't I fix you? 2006 - I have to learn how to live, or I'll die. Current Mood: tired Current Music: Shiro Sagisu - "Thanatos ~If I Can't Be Yours~" (4 Comments |Comment on this)