Spring Break

I know we went around the room before SB and told of where we were going and what we were going to do...how bout what actually happened..any stanger things happening? or American god worshiped? how bout any Viae Ferae?

My trip to GA was pretty boring, relaxing though...I went to this huge peach orchar, to bring back some peach cider (THE best stuff!), then went to Hunstville and got a job offer there! nothing too out of ordinary, someone got to have better stuff than I.

Aickman's movie parallel

Please tell me that someone has seen the movie Identity? SPOILER FOLLOWS (in case you plan to see the movie) Does this not strike you as something along those lines? You have several characters interrelated by a common thread, but you don't find out what that is until the end. Could these four all be the the same person like the serial killer in Identity?? You see, they are all interconnected by a collective conscience/memory... Naturally, the four are brought together to common location to discover why they have convened throughout the series of events that reveal a greater connection. I don't know, maybe I'm just making something out of nothing here. What do y'all think?

Questions for Peter Straub?

I'm pretty sure the mysterious dead woman is Virginia Woolf. Bill says something about how he read everything by her and she appears wet and smelling of a river. I know that she drowned herself, so I am just operatating under the notion that this woman is her.

If it is, why would she leave a book "by" Traynor? Is she also the mysterious British woman that Traynor appears to be having a tryst with? How did he get so lucky?

Were all the men dead when they got to this special hospital wing?

What did Max see outside of the window? Was it Traynor?

How does this all tie in with the boy in the cabin? Is the boy Traynor?

Tonight's class canceled

Alas, folks, I don't feel at all well this afternoon, so I'm going to cancel our class, rather than expose you all to the whatever-it-is. So we'll discuss tonight's stories online this week. Please post your thoughts on the Straub, Lynn and Lee stories, as some of you already have begun to do, and when we reconvene next week, we'll start our three-week discussion of Susanna Clarke's novel. Be thinking about your next paper topic, too; presentations are four weeks away. Hope everyone had a great spring break, and I'll see you soon.

Mr. Aickman's Air Rifle

Along with what seems like the majority of the class, this one was my favorite of the three short stories for this week. It was easy to get into and I really enjoyed how the four men made fun of each other relentlessly. I'm curious to know who Traynor's companion really was. This story was nothing like I expected after reading "Lapland, or Film Noir". I guess that just shows Straub's versatility as a writer. This story was weird, but in a good way as it had me intrigued from the beginning.

Why?? Why??

Andy, oh why must you leave us??? And for Maryland??? Why? Oh the agony. But seriously, I want to find out what you're doing, and I don't want to make us waste any class time by discussing that for an hour, so I thought I'd give you a chance here.

In defence of Jonathan

I have enjoyed reading this book entirely. I am at the beginning of the third section and things are really gearing up... I can't wait to find out who the gentleman with the thistle-down hair is and see if the Raven King makes and appearance!

Perhaps I like it so much becuase I am a ginormous Anglophile. I am wild about all things British, especially nineteenth century British history, so this book is my cup of tea and then some. I was laughing like an idiot on the plane and appreicate Clarkson's historical references and droll writing style. She is like a modern Jane Austen with her witty social commentary and characterizations.

Besides, Jonathan Strange is a hottie!

Mr. Aickaman's Air Rifle

Mr. Aickman's Air Rifle was my favorite of the trio for this week. I thought it was interesting, hilarious, and definitely different than many of the other stories we've read this semester. Because the plot concerned potentially real men with real lives, I had an easier time getting into the story and believing it.

I loved the way the men all had the same scary expereince as children with the various guns and abandoned houses. I wonder if their bad relationships with their parents were reflected in these houses, which could represent their barren and lonely childhoods. And who is the mysterious woman that they all know and possibly had affairs with? Talk about a real thriller!

And can you believe Straub also wrote Lapland, or Film Noir??!!

Howl's Moving Castle

I saw Howl's Moving Castle a couple of weeks ago and wanted to let you know my thoughts. I thought the animation was amqzing and even more complex and advanced that that of Spirited Away, but that the story of the former was better. If you liked Spirited Away, you will like Howl's, but I maintain that Chihiro's story is more interesting and heartwarming.

Speir-Bhan

I have to say that I was not a fan of this story. I am not really sure why. I thought at the start of it that I would be into it. However, it quickly lost my attention. I had a hard time getting through this even though it was not that long. It just got really strange in a way that seemed pretty pointless and I still can't decide iF the narrator is a boy or a girl. Also, when s/he finally got rid of the fox/girl-things did that do it for good so that his/her family won't have to do it anymore?