Finished Burning Chrome [4/06/2010]

Gibson's writing is no less impressive in short form. I enjoyed all of the stories in this collection. Here is a line I especially liked from Johnny Mnemonic: "The sound it made was like a world ending, like the wires that hold heaven snapping and coiling across the sky." Here is another from Fragments of a Hologram Rose: "The explosion had been visible two miles away, a white sheet of heat lightening that had turned the pale branches of a bare tree against the night sky into a photographic negative of themselves: carbon branches against magnesium sky."

Convention Highlights (IMHO) [8/28/2008]

"If you hear the dogs, keep going. If you see the torches in the woods, keep going. If there's shouting after you, keep going. Don't ever stop. Keep going. If you want a taste of freedom, keep going." - Hillary Clinton

"This administration can tap our phones. They can't tap our creative spirit. They can open our mail. They can't open economic opportunities. They can track our every move. They lost track of the economy while the cost of food, gasoline and electricity skyrockets." - Dennis Kucinich

"..we are borrowing money from China to buy oil from the Persian Gulf to burn it in ways that destroy the future of human civilization. Every bit of that has to change." - Al Gore

those pesky shrooms [12/06/2007]

This is from an awesome book that I found out about because Anna has a copy. It's out of print, but I ordered a used copy. It's called Legal Daisy Spacing: The Build-A-Planet Manual of Official World Improvements by Christopher Winn and it's full of stuff like this.

quotes from fall shows, or dulling the pain of veronica mars deprivation [11/17/2007]

From House:

House: We can try and pretend we're above it, we can try and intellectualize it away. But ultimately, shiny, pretty, perky things are good, and ugly, misshapen teenage boys are repulsive.
Darnell: The question was, do you resent Dr. Cuddy's interference in your practice?
House: Oh. Well, then I guess my answer wasn't very helpful, was it?

From Dirty Sexy Money:

Nick: All right listen, this has been a massive misunderstanding, and I can assure you my client is going to be found innocent of all charges brought against him, so theres no story here. Please excuse us.
Female Reporter: Is it true you won the Yacht in a poker game, Jeremy?
Male Reporter: Jeremy, how long have you been smuggling people into the country?
Jeremy: I don't know.
Nick: Don't answer that.
Female Reporter: Is it true you were planning to harvest their organs?
Nick: You know, that is just dumb. Why say things like that?!

From Reaper:

Russ: Wait a minute. What kind of a host do I think I am? We can't just watch the movie. We need to get high first. Who wants to rip some peyote?
Sam: Ya know Russ tonight's not a good peyote night.
Russ: Oh no no no. Peyote man it makes a great platform. And then we customize with a well chosen assortment of party enhancers. We've got angel tears, horse tranqs, jelly babies, muskies, happy flakes.
Sock: Happy flakes?
Russ: Poppers.
Ben: Thanks Russ, ya know Russ. I was gonna pass.
Sock: And ya know, I took a horse tranq on the way over here so I'm good.
Russ: You guys said you came over to party right?
Sam: Of course.
Russ: Well ok then. alright. I don't want to watch this movie until we're like rolling 4 deep ok?

From Pimp My Ride:

Xizibit: Being that we could not find out what the hell to do with those bones we found. We decided to do what everybody does when they find bones. Dip 'em in gold. So you can wear 'em around your neck. Ya know what I'm sayin? Ya know what I'm sayin? Gold plated bones. Ya know what I'm sayin?

From Pushing Daisies:

Ned: I asked you not to use the word "zombie." It's disrespectful. Stumbling around squawking for brains? It's not how they do. And "undead"? Nobody wants to be "un"-anything. Why begin a statement with a negative? It's like saying "I don't disagree." Just say you agree.
Emerson: Are you comfortable with "living dead"?
Ned: You're either living or your dead. When you're living, you're alive. When you're dead, that's what you are. But when you're dead and then you're not, you're alive again. Can't we say "alive again"?

James Connolly [9/01/2007]

I'm currently reading A Tiger in the Well by Philip Pullman. Part of the story is about socialists in London in the late 19th century.

Then friday night at Rosie McCaffrey's all the booths were full and we sat a table where I was positioned to see a painting of James Connolly 1868-1916 and read this quote of his:

"If these men must die, would it not be better to die in their own country fighting for freedom for their class, and for the abolition of war, than to go forth to strange countries and die slaughtering and slaughtered by their brothers that tyrants and profiteers might live?"
-- James Connolly August 15, 1914

So, in the spirit of Labor Day I wanted to honor the prominent Laborist James Connolly. A lot of his writing is available here: James Connolly Internet Archive.