What's Up Thursday - May 8, 2008

Offered without comment.

The Book - I've had the novel If Beale Street Could Talk (by James Baldwin) on my bookshelf for a while; it was one of the many books I rescued from my parents' storeroom before they gave them all to Goodwill. I just read it this week, and it was not what I'd expected from the cover. "A masterpiece about the love between a man and a woman..." it said on the cover: not my idea of a great read, if you want to know the truth. It made it seem like a high-class romance novel. It is decidedly not. It is about love between a man and a woman, but it is also about race and family bonds in lower-class New York City. It wasn't something I really liked, per se, but it was a well-written book. While I can't speak for the book's authenticity, it really seemed like Baldwin had captured the setting rather well, and the dialogue was top-notch. A good book, but not something I'd necessarily want to read again.

The Movie - GO SEE IRON MAN. Yea, it is good. Like I said to The Ninjas (Stolz and Stan), "Wow, who would have known that all you need to do to make a good superhero movie are good actors and not taking yourself too seriously?" Take THAT, Spider-Man 3.

The Drink - The Peach and I went to the Farmer's Market last weekend, and on the suggestion of a friend of mine I checked out Catfish Coffee Roasters, a local company that (surprisingly) roasts coffee. I picked up some coffee that was roasted the day before, and it did taste very good. I couldn't necessarily say that I found it so much more delicious than coffee that had been roasted in countries farther away and longer ago, but it was delicious and I would get more. But probably not the "Way Too Dark Roast". It's a clever name, but I don't like dark roasts that much in the first place.

The Podcast - I checked out the Most People Are DJs podcast when it was mentioned on Warren Ellis's mailing list, and it's rather good. The guy has good taste in music, and I found out a few good bands that I'd like to check out more. Worth exploring if you like off-the-beaten-track rock or electronic music.

The Real Life - I got a letter in the mailbox on Monday telling me that I passed my CASLPA exam. Funnily enough, I wasn't exited. I was just "not worried" any more. I didn't jump up and down, or say "YES!", or do a little happy dance. I just let out my breath and said, "Thank god." It was anticlimactic, but it's still good news.