Break

I have been reading some intensive political documents which I have been finding confusing and annoying. I hate it when people's own sentences contradict each other, but there you go.

As a relief to that, I have also been reading a bunch of Babylon 5 novels. Now, I came late to the show (like, ten years), and enjoyed it immensly. The novels are another thing. I like some, I loathe some, I ambival some (yes, it's a word. Well, no, actually, it isn't. But it will be).

What I do like about the Babylon 5 world, if you will, is that there is not black and white going on, and sometimes there are no win situations in which no one wins. Unlike Star Trek, or a number of other sci-fi universes, failure is an option in Bab5. Technology and magic do not solve everything. You make a bad decision, and the consequences are there for you and everyone to try to clean up.

Anyhoo- I'm still alive.

Another book I read was The Latke Who Couldn't Stop Screaming, by Lemony Snicket. Darned good, really. It's the tale of a misunderstood and scalded potato pancake who is so frustrated he cannot stop screaming. Even as the various christmas creatures he meets try to tell him what he "really" is, he clarifies patiently but with obvious annoyance what he actually is, why, and the symbolism he represents. It's heartwarming, charming, and also has a somewhat happy ending (not fot the latke, though).

If you MUST read a holiday book, make it this one.