(no subject)

[wellinghall]

reading:
- Lord Emsworth Acts for the Best: The Blandings Short Stories (Penguin Modern Classics)
- Imperial Blandings: "Pigs Have Wings", "Full Moon", "Service with a Smile"
- The Ring of Words: Tolkien and the Oxford English Dictionary
- The Lord of the Rings 1954 - 2004: Scholarship in Honor of Richard E Blackwelder
- PJS support group emails.

watching:
- the last three episodes of Blackadder the Third
- Water like Chocolate, a Mexican film that came free with a weekend paper.

listening to:
- Radio 4 as background
- in a moment, a compliation tape, "Top Gear".

doing:
- having the plumber round, to tell us that he needs to order a new part for the shower, and will be round again in a few days to install it (I didn't have a shower in the house for the first 25 years of my life, and never missed it; but it's a necessity now!)
- having the builder round, to look at re-vamping our loft / study; we're looking forward to having it done, but not the disruption while it is done
- sorting out clothes, with piles for charity shop, storage, and current wardrobe / drawers
- and when I get round to it, more on Best of Amon Hen (coming soon to a bookshop near you! - well, soon-ish, anyway).

Comments

[asklepia.livejournal.com]

I didn't realise that Plum had been elevated to the giddy heights of Penguin Modern Classics - fancy that! I've always loved his books.

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

I have mixed reactions to his work. Jeeves, Blandings Castle, and the other short stories I've read (The Clicking of Cuthbert collection, Mr Mulliner) I really enjoy. His other novels leave me slightly flat.

[the-marquis.livejournal.com]

I'd appreciate your opinion of
- The Ring of Words: Tolkien and the Oxford English Dictionary
- The Lord of the Rings 1954 - 2004: Scholarship in Honor of Richard E Blackwelder

As I'm interested in both and getting copies. Incidentally did you get the Polish special collection Aiglos last summer, there's a couple of really good papers in there (the one on Good is very interetsing).

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

Ring of Words is interesting - it adds markedly to my knowledge of what Tolkien's work on the OED would have involved - how we would have spent his days, and so on. It is a little lightweight, disappointingly - prepared a little more for the general audience than the true Tolkien afficionado.

Scholarship is proving to be interesting (I'm only about 40% of the way through it so far). A mixed bag - Shippey is always worth reading, Christina writes well, Jane Chance knows her stuff (although an American writing on the British class system usually produces slightly odd results). Some of the authors I find not so readable - John Rateliff for one, although I'm still looking forward to his Hello Mr Baggins, promised afresh for this September.

Aiglos, yes I got it, but I don't think I ever actually read it! It will come off the shelf and onto the reading pile soon.

[didiusjulianus.livejournal.com]

What on earth does a "Top Gear" compilation tape comprise? (Or is that "comprise of", I forget). A mixture of different revving noises artfully mixed with some musak in the background and the odd screeching tyre? (ie. something like my OH's 20th C music compositions?)!

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

I was waiting for someone to ask that ...

Music to listen to while driving. It includes the title rack to the TV show, which is called Jessica and is by The Allman Brothers Band.

[helflaed.livejournal.com]

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm Top Gear.

I watch it just to see what the presenters will do to each other and find out if anyone will EVER beat Clarkson in one of their races. I still can't believe that he beat a light aircraft.

Mind you I still can't believe that Woburn let them in with the animals in a convertible. They might have given the lions indigestion and I'm sure one of the monkeys could have injured itself on that ropey roof.

I love it and I'm not even that interested in cars.

[bunn.livejournal.com]

I was saddened to discover that most of the races are set up.

I found this out when they raced an MX5 against a racing greyhound: this got the rescue greyhound community up in arms, and they admitted that it wasn't one greyhound, it was 10 identical ones. Though actually that makes it worse, not better.

[helflaed.livejournal.com]

Is the beautiful dog in your icon an ex-racing greyhound?

One of my friends has one. He's one of the lovliest dogs I've ever met. He is a very happy dog. My friend owns a shop and he spends all day there either sleeping or watching what is going on, as well as getting a lot of attention.

[bunn.livejournal.com]

Yes, that is my Mollydog. :-) She is an Irish ex-racer. They are lovely dogs.

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

A cousin of mine keeps ex-racers, and my aunt and uncle are always saying what lovely dogs they are.