Spring, Kiernan and History

Spring truly has arrived with yesterday being the hottest September 1st in Melbourne in recorded history. (80 degrees F.) Have just returned from a pleasant walk to the shops with Loui, and the dusk this evening has a magical atmosphere as if the good spirits of the night are waking from their day time slumbers. A beautiful cat crossesd our paths, and Loui started a conversation with her, the cat actually talking back. (In cat language, of course) It is now that short moment between day and night, where the birds stop their singing, and the Cicada's begin their nightly calls.

Finally received my Caitlan R. Kiernan's "Tales of Pain & Wonder" in the mail today from Amazon. It's a great feeling to discover something you have been waiting for, checking the mail box after work every evening to see it has at last arrived. I haven't started reading the book, but the illustrations by Richard Kirk are absolutely astounding!

I'm currently reading David McCullough's "Brave Companions - Portraits in History." It is no wonder why McCullough is the most widely read historian in the United States, his writing style flows, describing the landscapes, atmosphere and character's of his study with such realistic detail - he has to be one of the best writer's in America. I love his view of history as a subject of study:

"It is a shame that history is ever made dry and tedious, or offered as a chronicle almost exclusively of politics, war, and social issues, when, of course, it is the full sweep of human experience: politics, war, and social issues to be sure, but also music, science, religion, medicine, the way things are made, new ideas, high attainments in every field, money, the weather, love, loss, endless ambiguities and paradoxes and small towns you never heard of. History is a spacious realm. There should be no walls." (McCullough, p.xv 1991)

And this is exactly why he is so good, his writing reflects this philosophy to the letter.

Continued editing my novel this afternoon, and the story appears to flow much better.

Loui and I are having a passive night re-watching the first season of "Millennium" on DVD, one of the better television programs of the 1990's.

Emotional State: Relaxed & Happy.