Further Musings

Beauty smote his heart, he looked up from the forsaken land & hope returned to him

Thinking on Reading

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Tonight I picked up Lords of Finance: the Bankers who Broke the World for some weekend reading.  The first page has only this written on it:

Read no history — nothing but biography, for that is life without theory – Benjamin Disraeli

Tis a pretty interesting thought.

It seems that biography forces writers to deal with topics they would prefer to ignore.  John Adams was full of death and sickness in ways that I would have skirted if I was simply trying to write a compelling tale.

Biographies also always link broader historical themes to concrete events in individual lives.  Much better from my perspective.

I think I’ll start reading more of the genre.

 

Written by furthermusings

January 13, 2012 at 9:15 pm

At Versailles

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Some photos from the day yesterday. It was our second time out. The inside was interesting but the outside was better. Summer improves the gardens but they are wonderful even in the winter.

Hover over the pictures with your cursor to see the comments.


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January 5, 2012 at 10:36 am

Posted in Pictures, Travel

She’s in Paris

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And she’s happy about it.

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January 3, 2012 at 1:15 pm

Posted in Pictures, Travel

Better than Harrods

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What’s better than Harrods?  The National Geographic store across the street.  Sheer awesomeness for the owner of one National Geographic Global Pursuit Trivia game.

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January 1, 2012 at 4:06 pm

Posted in Geeky Blogs, Travel

Kew: Wonder of the World

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Charity and I spent this very rainy afternoon wandering through the giant conservatories of Kew Gardens.

I never expected there to be so many flowers blooming in the dead of winter but they were there: deep purples, bright pinks and reds, radiant whites.

And so many amazing textures and shapes . . . rough and smooth, spiky and round, patterns of stripes and squares, giant radiating fronds and more.  Trees 60 feet tall (indoors!) or 270 years old.

Pretty much three straight hours of wow.

It’s hard to think of a more impressive display of God’s creation.  Plus it was all surrounded by the amazing Victorian greenhouses.

I could easily spend two days there every season for a year.  What a place.

Wow.

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January 1, 2012 at 3:54 pm

On the Platform

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Today we did the London Foodie walk, ate some fantastic Chinese (bonus shot), learned about the history of London, and lastly reflected on this year with a beautiful service at St. Paul.  Happy New Years.

 

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December 31, 2011 at 1:47 pm

Posted in Travel

In London

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We’re tired and we’re here.  Good first day flying about the town on buses.  Now if we can just sleep some tonight. 

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December 29, 2011 at 1:50 pm

Posted in Travel

Flying First Class

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Just got my wife a first class ticket to London!  A bump and forgoing $200 in vouchers gets us a once in a lifetime experience.  The seats are valued at $4,000 each.  Wow!

They say half the adventure is getting there right?

Of course the irony is that we’ve been pre-jetlagging so we can sleep on our 7:30pm flight.  Now we’ll have to be awake for a 11pm flight to enjoy the benefits.  I’m willing to try!

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December 27, 2011 at 3:20 pm

Posted in Travel

DPP Day 12: The Lettuce

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Our lettuce is one of my favorite things.  They are varied, robust, and survive the frost.  I love how bright green they are in the midst of a bleak winter lawn.

 

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December 18, 2011 at 2:47 pm

Posted in At the House, Pictures

DPP Day 11: One Cool Cat?

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December 17, 2011 at 4:00 pm

Posted in Politics, Travel

DPP Day 10: Coming Home

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It’s still Day 10 right?  Right?

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December 17, 2011 at 3:58 pm

Posted in Pictures, Travel

A Personal Connection

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One of my former students caught his first NFL touchdown pass over the weekend.

He’s mostly a special teams player, where the hardest hits are often delivered.  I recall him getting knocked out in a UNC game.

Lest you think that my discussion of the concussion crisis is simply me looking for an ax to grind with the general culture I do have some personal connections.

It’s pretty serious and pretty scary, especially as I look out at the two players in my course this semester and wonder how they will live at age 40 or 50.

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December 12, 2011 at 1:34 pm

Posted in General

DPP Day 10: Purple

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December in Florida is still prime farmers market season.

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December 10, 2011 at 5:50 pm

Posted in Pictures, Travel

DPP Day 9: At the Airport

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December 10, 2011 at 5:48 pm

Posted in Pictures, Travel

DPP Day 8: Last Days of Class

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I’ve almost survived my first semester as a professor.  Whew.

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December 8, 2011 at 8:05 pm

Posted in General

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