Fear and Loathing
What I'm Reading
Finished Fat Girl by Judith Moore. Kind of a self-loathing autobiography, describing her unhappy childhood and her hatred of her fat body. Stays refreshingly free of any kind of positive message: no happy ending, no permanent weight loss, no message of fat acceptance: she regarded herself as unequivocally hideous failure. Doesn't say much about Fat Issues in general: I'm pretty sure most fat people haven't been abused that much. Suspect that even if she'd had a fast metabolism and been thin, the self-hatred and feelings of ugliness would just have come out some other way. Short, honest and lucidly written; it's worth reading if you're in the mood for something like Dave Pelzer's evil twin. Note: author seems to have died from colon cancer a few months ago. Extract, review, review, review.
Ireland Notes: Day 2 Also showcasing my lack of preparation: all the Dublin museums are closed on Mondays: didn't occur to me to check opening times. Still, cuts down on the tramping around duration National gallery was open though. Have a fair-sized collection, with a scattering of big names. Includes a portrait of Omai by Reynolds, the Polynesian with the tragic life I read about. Pretty diverse collection including Picasso, Monet, some Spanish and Low Country art: good place to get a neat tour through the history of Western art Also did the open-top bus tour which works a lot better than the Paris version: buses every 8 minutes on the city tour. Didn't do much stopping though: feeling completely knackered for no discernible reason Went to another tourist restaurant for lunch: this time had Irish stew, followed by Death by Chocolate and ice cream. Just had an apple for breakfast. (The Quays restaurant temple bar). This time the Irish stew was delicious: succulent chunks of meat, filling potato (they seem to have dumped a bunch of mash in there as well as chunks) and very creamy soup-sauce Other thoughts: I like the traffic crossing they have here: they stutter and beep like an old electronic game: every time you cross the street it's like playing Space Invaders. Did a few more things in the afternoon. Had another look in Dublin castle, but access to the inside is only by guided tour and couldn't be bothered. Only one tower is very castle-like, the rest of it is newer, more Victorian-looking Went into Christchurch cathedral which was well worth it. The cathedral is rather bijou, though with some interesting stuff scattered around, including a mummified rat they found in an organ pipe during the renovation, and a mummified cat that had been chasing it. Presumably the cat got stuck and blocked the rat's escape route: not sure who counts as having won that round. The vault has a bunch of interesting stuff as well, including a load of gold and silverware donated by William III. And some stocks, and other items Went into Trinity college which looks very impressive: jammed with tourists though: presumably they're on holiday now, but if it's like that in term time, if I was a student there I'd be permanently apoplectic with rage Had a look at the book of Kells which wasn't really worth it: had to queue for about fifteen minutes, then it's hard to get a glimpse from the mass of sweaty bodies heaving around the table. The library there looks very impressive in a J.K. Rowling kind of way though: several floors of leatherbound volumes in a long, wide hall with a vaulted wooden ceiling Met up with Merekat and Mr Merekat in the evening for a few beers: interesting conversation but classified. Supper: burger and chips at the Porterhouse. Had a couple of the hotel biscuits later too. Slept fine that night: was a lot quieter than the previous evening (seemed to be some kind of comedy club on next door).
Consumerism Absolute requirements:
Any suggestions? There doesn't seem to be much around, as everyone seems to be focussing on little flash players now. The Archos video jukeboxes are tempting, but a bit on the large side, and the 100GB version costs a fortune. Reluctant to get an iPod.
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