I'm going to try to read a book a week in 2016, ok, round it down to 50 books. Emil and the Detectives was actually an Xmas gift to my ten-year-old son, but I read it first. It was charming. Did have some disturbing pre-visions of Nazi youth (book written in 1929 ... four short years to 1933). Favorite line: "Four million people lived in Berlin, and not one of them was interested in Emil Tischbein."
Specialists with Hands on Their Bald Heads
From today's USA Today, a variation on the classic Tumblr: THE BROKERS WITH HANDS ON THEIR FACES
Photograph: Richard Drew, AP
Shake Off Your Lowly-born Tags
From my Spotify Weekly Discover list ... people, places, things name-checked in this song: Marlene Dietrich, Zizi Jeanmaire, Balmain, St. Michel Boulevard, the Rolling Stones, Sacha Distel, the Sorbonne, Picasso, Juan-les-Pins, St. Moritz, Napoléon brandy, Aga Khan, Naples. Sarstedt bemoaning social mobility? Sung from vantage point of sibling who didn't make it?
Note white people rocking listlessly in foreground (1969).
Maybe I Could Sell Kisses
One of the several Camera Obscura songs that I like ... no good live version of it on Youtube so I must link to this:
ETF Trading Portfolio Update -- January 4, 2016
No changes this week.
ETF Trading Portfolio Update -- December 28, 2015
No changes this week.
Relegation Zone
The Arctic Monkeys are no longer kids ... I like a lot of their songs, even recent ones ... another lost love song ... you'd have a lot of them too if Alexa Chung were your ex ... the absurdity of the tractor pull is inspired.
New Sandbox Additions
Santa brought the kids some earth moving equipment and a sandbox. He placed the latter in the basement and filled it with 700 pounds of sand, which strained his old back.
The sacred rule of only buying automobiles from the Axis powers also applies to toys. I love the Siku 1:50 stuff. Daddy has his own corner of the sandbox and is known to make rumbling sounds while improving the site.
Movies Watched -- The Tale of the Princess Kaguya
Quit after 20 minutes .. didn't like the style of animation ... story didn't immediately grab me ... at 2 hours 17 minutes, at least 40 to 50 minutes too long. Next!
Movies Watched -- Mr. Turner
Quit after 15 minutes ... period piece ... would have had to turn on subtitles to understand anything ... wasn't in the mood for this one ... plus 2 hours and 30 minutes, meaning at least an hour too long. No thanks.