2011 Book Challenge

 1.         1. Ukrainian

         1.

                         2. Theory/Philosophy

           1.

           2.

3.   Tomes

      1. War and Peace

      2. Don Quixote

      3. Drood

4.   Books from the Family

      1. Decolonizing the Mind

      2. Wizard of the Crow

      3. Parlor Politics

      4. Planning the Past or the Invasion Within

5.   Left Behind

      1. The Brothers Karamazov

      2. Dead Souls

      3.The Windup Girl

      4. Landscape Painted with Tea

      5.

6.   Listed

      1. Iron Council

      2. Ash

      3. Life of Pi

      4. Gulag Archipelago

      5. Beloved, Morrison

      6.

7.   South

      1. Sound of Building Coffins

      2. One Hundred Years of Solitude

      3. North and South, Gaskell

      4. A Confederacy of Dunces

      5. Antarctica, Robinson

      6. Zeitoun, Dave Eggers

      7.

8.   Its New to Me

      1.

      2.

      3.

      4.

      5.

      6.

      7.

      8.

9.   Science Fiction/Fantasy

      1. Vivia, Tanith Lee

      2.

      3.

      4.

      5.

      6.

      7.

      8.

      9.

10.  You Tell Me

      1. The Yawning Heights

      2. Pastel City, Harrison

      3.The Fool's Progress by Edward Abbey

      4. The Book Thief

      5. World War Z

      6. The Unbearable Lightness of Being, Kundera

      7. 2666, Bolano

      8. Detective Story by Imre Kertesz

      9. Lady Oracle, Atwood

      10.

11. Ongoing Faulkner Challenge

      1. Pylon

      2. Absalom Absalom

      3. The Unvanquished

      4. If I forget Thee Jerusalem

      5. The Hamlet

      6. Go Down Moses

      7. Intruder in the Dust

      8. Requim for a Nun

      9. A Fable

      10. The Town

      11. The Mansion

Explanations:

1. Ukrainian: Read a book in Ukrainian, this will take me all year

2. Theory/Philosophy: General Philosophy or some Anthropology theorist I should have already read

3. Tomes: Is it huge? I'm gonna read it! (But only three).

4. Book from the Family: Actually just books from my brother, I am embarrassed by the number of books he has bought me that I have not read.

5. Left Behind: Books I started, but never finished.

6. Listed: If its on a list -- of any kind -- it goes here.

7. South: Everywhere is south of somewhere, right? But really focused on the U.S. South and South America.

8. Its New to Me: New in 2011, or new author.

9. Science Fiction/Fantasy:

10. You Tell Me: Recommendations? I'll just pick books to read for this category based on any sort of recommendation - personal, Amazon, LT, blog, etc.

11. Ongoing Faulkner Challenge: Once upon a time I was supposed to read 8 Faulkner novels for 2008. That didn't happen, so now I'm just going to read all of them.

NOLA - In Pictures

Just a few tidbits for now, will post more later.  Had a great time, saw some great and not-so-great presentations, ate a lot of food, and hung out with some locals -- but the last is definitely a story for when I have more time.
(p.s. below slideshow seems to work better when you click on the pictures and move them, rather than using the arrows at bottom)

The conference that was a vacation

Today is the big day.  In other words, off to N.O. for the AAA!! Panel is done tomorrow around 4pm, and then time for awesome food, music, and well free time.  At some point, I suppose I will actually attend the conference that I paid a ridiculous amount of money to go to (just talking about fees here,  if you include airfare, food, hotels...actually I don't want to think about it).

But isn't the point of the AAA that students are supposed to mingle and make professional connections? Well yeah, but I know I told you about the time that some grad student tried to talk to Maurice Bloch....

I will just take lots of pictures, especially of the sunshine.  B/c down South they have this thing called "the sun."  It is really hard to see up here in the tundra, especially when it is dark at 4pm.

Mostly I am happy to be finished with grants, turned in the last one yesterday! And to not be teaching for a few days, or worrying about school.  Though of course, when I get back I will have tons of catching up to do.  Like transcribing 2 hours of interviews!

Prisencolinensinainciusol

Prisencolinensinainciusol (watch video)

In de col men seivuan
Prisencolinensinainciusol ol rait

...Uis de seim cius nau op de seim
Ol uait men in de colobos dai
Trrr - ciak is e maind beghin de col
Bebi stei ye push yo oh

Uis de seim cius nau op de seim
Ol uoit men in de colobos dai
Not s de seim laikiu de promisdin
Iu nau in trabol lovgiai ciu gen

In do camo not cius no bai for lov so
Op op giast cam lau ue cam lov ai
Oping tu stei laik cius go mo men
Iu bicos tue men cold dobrei goris
Oh sandei

Ai ai smai sesler
Eni els so co uil piso ai
In de col men seivuan
Prisencolinensinainciusol ol rait

Ai ai smai senflecs
Eni go for doing peso ai
Prisencolinensinainciusol ol rait

Uel ai sint no ai giv de sint
Laik de cius nobodi oh gud taim lev feis go
Uis de seim et seim cius go no ben
Let de cius end kai for not de gai giast stei

Ai ai smai senflecs
Eni go for doing peso ai
In de col mein seivuan
Prisencolinensinainciusol ol rait

Lu nei si not sicidor
Ah es la bebi la dai big iour

Ai aismai senflecs
Eni go for doing peso ai
In de col mein seivuan
Prisencolinensinainciusol ol rait

Lu nei si not sicodor
Ah es la bebi la dai big iour

October Roundup

Not sure what happened to this month.  I can't believe it is Week 10 of the semester.  I have been busy reading, and writing, and revising.  OH, and I made Halloween costumes.  Pictures forthcoming as soon as I find my camera and upload pictures onto my computer.  It was EPIC.  Especially when one of your friends is willing to dress up as the Labyrinth.

No, not a Labyrinth, but the one and only David Bowie/Goblin King Labyrinth.

I would like to point out that this year I did, in fact, complete the RIP challenge.  You just don't know it b/c I didn't post that fourth review.  And I ain't gonna.  No time, no time.  Besides, how am I supposed to review the first gothic novel ever written - The Castle of Otranto?  However, I like to have completed some goals in life, even if in the grand scheme of things they aren't important.

I also importantly submitted not one but two grant applications.  Neither are very good, but at least I turned them in.  Another due on Wednesday, a paper due on Friday.... and then a small breather as we all gear up for the big AAA conference in the Big Easy (New Orleans that is).  Maybe this year will inspire me to write another poem.  The AAA in S.F created an ode to Talal Asad (which I won't dredge up as it was awful).  He is my academic anti-hero. 

Much love and happiness to you all, and happy November.