I’m in a bit of a rut at the moment. I haven’t had much desire to keep up with the news lately, thus I have little to say about the world at large. Apparently the topic du jour is … wait for it … a scandal in the White House!!! It’s been too long since we had one of those, I guess. From what my disinterested self can pick up from the web commentary that I’ve chanced to read, someone (or someones) in the Maison Blanc blew some semi-covert CIA operative’s cover, and this is a good enough reason for half the populace to proclaim the end of the Bush dynasty, and for the other half to claim that it’s all no big deal. Or something.
I’ve been having much more fun reading. Being only a part time student this semester has given me more time for leisure reading than I’ve had since high school. I’ve got started revisiting the Lord of the Rings, and just finished the Fellowship. Onwards to the Towers. The only thing I need to be careful of is to avoid getting to Return before the movie comes out in December; fantastic though the film versions of Fellowship and Towers are, re-reading the books highlights how much they left out, and underscores how different the genres of film and written word really are. I don’t want to spoil the movie of Return by having the much-richer book fresh in my mind, although the preview tends to indicate that the film will be rich enough. Shelob is freaking SCARY! (Two and a half more MONTHS!)
A couple of weekends ago, I finally discovered why Harry Potter has so bewitched pop culture. I was hanging out in the old dorm, and picked up a copy of the Sorcerer’s Stone that was lying around in someone’s room. I put it down long enough to drive home, then picked it right back up and didn’t put it down until I finished it (at about 4:30 on the Saturday morning). It’s been a long time since a book so gripped me that I couldn’t put it down. Now I’m going to have to get my hands on the rest.
The Inklings class I’m taking this semester has also precipitated much reading of C.S. Lewis. Last weekend I read the Four Loves; today I finished off Till We Have Faces. Querida and I have also started reading through Mere Christianity together. All three are magnificent works, and I’ll try and get myself to write more about at least Faces sometime soon.
This weekend I finally added a bed and a dining set to my apartment furniture. After 6 weeks sleeping on either an air mattress or a couch, spreading out on my very own queensize bed is luxury indeed. While we were in Dallas picking up the furniture, we also ordered our wedding invitations; the preparation for the Big Day is coming along. (Two and a half more MONTHS!)
Yesterday I sent off the next round of INS (or BCIS as it’s now called) paperwork. This lot is the first wave of at least two to sort out my status as a permanent resident after Q and I get married. Hopefully it’ll get processed more quickly than my work permit, which is still pending. (I submitted the paperwork for it six months ago tomorrow!)
What with one thing and another, 2003 has been for me the Year of the Wait. Hopefully I’m a more patient man as a result.
I’ve got the first four if you want to borrow any . . .
Enjoy spreading out in that queen-sized bed while you can. It’s going to get crowded in a couple of months.
Two’s company. Three’s a crowd. Ain’t gonna be no more than company in our bed.
oh, just you wait till the little ones come along and are scared then there will be a crowd.