Rutabaga
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Posts posted by Rutabaga
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I'm not trying to be critical -- you asked for feedback and that was my honest reaction. Truly, I wondered earlier on if you were going to be able to wrap things up at all, so I admire the fact that you did.
Now if only Alec and Sasha had been around . . .
R
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My only real concern, as I noted earlier, is that I thought things wrapped up rather more quickly than the preceding chapters suggested they would. For example, issues concerning his mother. It seems that Adam was being sheltered from some of those issues, but as a result so was the reader. Then they suddenly went away without any actual effort or struggle on the part of Adam or his team. I was anticipating more peril and more possibility of things going sideways in the path toward the final outcome. That's all.
R
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The one that often strikes me is the British expression along the lines of "my brother and his friends were sat in the lounge watching television." The US would not use "sat" in that manner.
I've also noticed a great reluctance to use the subjunctive. Thus in British writing I'll see "George suggested that I went with them" whereas in the US the subjunctive would be used to produce "George suggested that I go with them."
R
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I never know what to say in the balance between meaningful commentary and unwanted spoilers. SO anyone worried about spoilers should stop here.
I was pleased by the number of breaks that suddenly seemed to go Adam's way. It was certainly high time.
It was never exactly clear to me why Joe and Scott were dealt with as they were, although it's not really critical to the story. Maybe I missed something earlier about the relevant ground rules for that home.
Overall, my only reaction is that the last chapter seemed to me to telescope two or three chapters' worth of resolution into one. In other words, in the pacing of the story, it was a bit of a surprise for things to sort themselves out as quickly as they did in that last chapter, and without more struggle on Adam's part. I guess when I read the last line in chapter 9 I was expecting more peril facing Adam than there turned out to be.
Hope that makes at least a bit of sense.
R
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she didn't attempt the more extreme versions - Newcastle, the broad Geordie accent, is well known to be pretty impenetrable.
Indeed, one of the Britidh TV series I had in mind was George Gently, which is set in or near Newcastle. Martin Shaw I can generally understand but the others are often a challenge.
R
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Cool. One of my favorite stories.
R
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We could all have been so lucky as to have a grandparent with so much time and attention to spend, and so much knowledge to share, especially since the grandfather was described and warm and compassionate.
I found it interesting that Grandpa's learning and sophistication did not seem to have rubbed off on whichever of Ray's parents was his offsrping.
R
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I got a new Roku for Christmas and now can get Netflix with subtitle. Otherwise, I can't watch the Brit shows at all!
C
I'm going to have to look into that. Right now we get Netflix through the Blu-Ray player, and I have never seen any capability for subtitles.
R
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I have the same experience speaking with people in France. I learned the Parisian accent, which is also the predominant accent in the national media (radio and TV). But when I'm in the south of France I have a lot of trouble understanding the people, and they have trouble understanding me. It's worst in Montpellier or Marseille. And it can also be bad with French Canadians, because there is a ton of slang there that is independent of France. Also, the French Canadian accent seems to me to be more influenced by English, although a French Canadian will strike you down if you say that.
Netflix carries a number of British television shows that seem to be based in areas with strong regional accents, and many times it's virtually impossible for me to figure out what the characters are saying to each other.
R
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The interesting thing is that Atlanta weather can be pretty brutal in the winter as well. I got caught in a terrible ice storm there in January with my family as a youngster.
Would be glad to see Ray in further adventures. Maurice too.
R
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It's mostly him and his keyboard. He has a long history of trying to get things censored. He certainly has no official status within the Roman Catholic Church. He is simply carrying out the maxim "Never let a good crisis go to waste." In his own way he is as shocking as Charlie Hebdo.
R
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Two of the cartoonists killed are known as Cabu and Charb and were great celebrities for their work.
R
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My friend Pascal who lives in the south of France texted me this morning that he is completely desolate about this attack. 4 of the victims were cartoonists of great renown that he has followed "since forever."
"To fully appreciate what has happened," he wrote (in French), "imagine that the entire cast and creative team of Saturday Night Live in its heyday had been wiped out in a matter of minutes."
I fear for France on a number of grounds, but the demographic trends are among the most alarming. Houellebecq's novel (mentioned in another post) is not entirely far-fetched.
R
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I thought I had better provide an explanation for the DVD.
The problem with these screeners is that every few minutes there will be an obnoxious legend crawling across the bottom of the screen saying "Property of XYZ Studio. For awards consideration only. Not for sale." It tends to break the mood.
R
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Very cool.
R
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Just finished watching a DVD of "The Imitation Game" which opened in theaters on December 25. The film is about Alan Turing, the extraordinarily gifted mathematician and pioneer of what we now know as computer science, whose many accomplishments included spearheading the effort to break the German "Enigma" code during World War II. The film details his efforts at Bletchley Park, the location near London of the Enigma decryption effort in the 40s, from the perspective of a flashback from his arrest for the crime of homosexuality in the early 1950s.
To the eternal shame of the British people, Turing was prosecuted (successfully) for homosexuality, and offered a choice of two years in prison or a course of hormonal "chemical castration," supposedly to protect society by quelling his homosexual urges. Turing chose the latter, but his life became so unbearable that he committed suicide at the age of 41 after one year of the treatments.
Thus, British homophobia basically killed one of the leading intellects of the 20th century. He certainly did not deserve to die. And although in very recent years steps of atonement have been taken, such as a posthumous pardon for his conviction, it all seems way too little and way too late. The shame will not go away.
Anyway, it's a terrific film and worth seeing.
R
(Note, by the way, that the DVD I refer to above is a legal "awards screener" that is sent at this time of year to people involved in the entertainment industry who vote in connection with the various awards programs in early 2015.)
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One of the best lines is Aunt Gabriella looking at the flasher and saying, "Oh, that reminds me -- We need some baby carrots."
R
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I remember when this story was first being posted, there was vigorous debate on the GA forum centering on the initials "ITE" which stood for "In The End." A sizable contingent advocated for "RLITE" which stood for Rory and Luke In The End. Others had their own favorites for Rory.
There's no question that this would have been no more than a short story rather than a long novel if Grandma Alice had played a number of things differently.
R
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"Wayward Son" would have to be in the contender lineup.
R
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I'm just wondering whether there is a Theme (or whatever it may be called) for the mobile version that can be tweaked.
R
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I see Fatburger stands all around southern California but have never been tempted to go in -- the name is kind of off-putting to me.
A lot of people seem to be quite enthusiastic about a place that originally was called Hamburger Habit but now is called merely The Habit. Haven't been there either, however.
When I saw Flubberbuster I couldn't help thinking of the old Disney movies with Fred MacMurray.
R
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I have no problem accessing the forums or the stories from my Android smartphone and tablet. They default to white on black or the color chosen by the poster.
Colin
It sounds as though your Android is accessing the full site rather than the mobile version.
R
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Here's what happens when the poster sets white for the font color.
I had this exact same problem on my Blackberry Bold 9900 so it seems that Blackberries and iPhones both have issues with the mobile settings.
R
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Alarm clock going off, first day of school, first day at a new school, new kid transferring into school, first day of summer vacation . . .
There's no reason any of these things can't be employed if the author brings a new twist to them. it's trudging down the same well-worn paths that becomes tiresome. Similarly tiresome is the second-by-second description of activity that has nothing really to do with the story. "I went to the refrigerator, got out the carton of milk, closed the refrigerator door, then grabbed a box of cereal and carried them to the table. Then I got out a bowl and a spoon, took them to the table. I put some cereal in the bowl, added milk, and started eating."
In some ways it's tougher to stay away from the school-related cliches if you're writing about teens, because school is an important factor in their lives. It's probably easier to plow fresh ground in college or adult settings, just because there's a somewhat wider world to work in. Which is by no means to take away from those who write about junior or senior high school teens.
I think Cole is on the right track. I remember reading writing advice that counseled each time a story choice is made, to ask oneself whether that choice was just the "easy" or "path of least resistance" choice. The warning was that the first thing to pop into one's head might be the cliche. The solution was to step back and think about different twists on that choice to see if something more interesting (and original) could be used. In other words, take the road less traveled.
R
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Transatlantic Translation
in The Raccoon's Den
Posted
Another expression that is strictly British is the reference to getting "stuck into" a task or project. I actually think it would be useful to us on this side of the Atlantic.
R