(no subject)

[richardf8]

1. Total number of books I own:
Numerous as the stars in the sky? I don't know, I don't count.

2. The Last Book I Bought:
The R. Crumb Handbook.

3. The Last Book I Read:
"For The Relief of Unbearable Urges" by Nathan Englander.

4. 5 Books that mean a lot to me:
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert M. Pirsig
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
The Torah: A Modern Commentary, Revised Edition by Gunther Plaut
Complete Turbo Pascal 2nd Edition, by Jeff Duntemann
Animal Farm, by George Orwell

5. Tag 5 people and have them put this in their journal:
kevinjdog
c_eagle
level_head
athelind
gordon92151

Comments

It's an honor to be chosen, o' kitty of mew! ^v^

[c-eagle.livejournal.com]

1. I would have to agree with you in spirit on this one.. *warble*... more than enough to have out in view all at once, without my own library-devoted acreage... :9

2. A gift for a friend's birthday, depicting extraordinary locations about the world.

3. I simultaneously read recent bestsellers about Isaac Newton and Benjamin Franklin.

4. Wow... here's a toughie. I can't say that what follows will always be the same, but to the best of my recollection, these would rank quite high no matter what...
a) David and the Phoenix - Edward Ormondroyd (http://www.purplehousepress.com/Ormondroyd.htm) - a youngster's book that epitomized a fanciful fantasy years ago
b) The Celestine Prophesy - James Redfield - even though much of this book could be called fluff, it does contain a crucial concept about personality types, and offers useful information about progressing beyond our crippling natural tendencies, and rising above them proactively and permanently
c) The British TEV - One of the most memorable moments of my life was when my dad put the tev in my lap and told me to read the entire Ecclesiastes to him. It was my first encounter with it, and we both rolled with communing laughter throughout all of its the amazing, blunt concepts, ...no doubt enhanced by the British translation ^v^
d) Mac Secrets - David Pogue (http://www.davidpogue.com/books.html#mms), et. al. - This wonderful book helped kindle my interest and awareness of computers at a time when I needed it, even though I had worked with many different types of them since 1977
e) The Grateful Crane (http://www.e-hon.jp/tsurun/tsue0.htm) - (Japanese folk tale) - This was given to me years ago also,... a bittersweet fairy tale, showing the glorious benevolence of trust, magic and anonymous gratitude, ...as well as its delicate membrane that can be broken by betrayal and lack of acceptance

*wags feathers, and hopes you enjoyed the adventure* ^v^

[deckardcanine.livejournal.com]

Is Pascal actually useful anymore? I learned a bit of it in 12th grade, and it already seemed obsolete. Maybe you just have fond memories of the way it got you started with skills that persist today.

[richardf8]

Actually it wasn't the programming language per se. It was Duntemann's conversational prose and wit that made that book special. It was chuck full of anecdotes and personal wisdom in addition to code examples.

[deckardcanine.livejournal.com]

Chock full, eh? I just love it when the writing is good enough to stand out from the subject.

[locakitty.livejournal.com]

I have been contemplating tackling Zen again, I read it in high school and loved the story part of it, but the philosophy made my eyes glaze over in class.
Although, I have taken one piece from there and have kept it with me always, "The person who writes the instructions is the person with the least to do and probably not the best for the job." (that was total paraphrasing as I'm sure you know.)
I also haven't found the time to tackle animal farm. But, I have decided to take quite a few classics to the gym to read them there. Captive audience!