Buttercupchappati Chronicles

what did I read/watch/listen to?

A few people have asked what I read while away, (I am taking them at their word as my irony filter is out of practice) so here is a little list for those who want to know.

I read - all in electronic format on Darth the mini-tablet-e-reader-thingy:

A Tiny Bit Marvellous, Dawn French

Mrs Fry's Diary, Mrs Stephen Fry

A Dance with Dragons, George Martin

The Stephen Fry Chronicles, Stephen Fry

These Old Shades, Georgette Heyer

Devils Cub, Georgette Heyer

Wolf Hall, Hilary Mantel

The Mists of Avalon, Marion Zimmer Bradley

The Game of Kings, Dorothy Dunnett

Kolymsky Heights, Lionel Davidson

Queens Play, Dorothy Dunnett

Vacant Possession, Hilary Mantel

Old Path White Clouds, Thich Naht Hahn

Disorderly Knights, Dorothy Dunnett

The Manicurist, Phyllis Scheiber

Pawn In Frankinsence, Dorothy Dunnett

The Ringed Castle, Dorothy Dunnett

What Makes You Not A Budhhist, Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse

Checkmate, Dorothy Dunnett

The Hare With Amber Eyes, Edmund de Waal - just finishing this one now.

I listened to recorded books:

Bleak House

The Journey of Crazy Horse

Rebel Buddha

And I watched, with great pleasure as always, Out of Africa, even on my ipod a marvellous film. (And really, how gorgeous, rugged and perfectly handsome was Robert Redford then, sigh.)

Music? Many many things at different times and on different days. There was one morning driving to Xining from Mahlo, the sun was coming up over the mountains to the sounds of Deva Premal and the Gyuto Monks chanting, a perfect moment in all times and all directions. My lift your spirits, get going girl, you can do this, songs were essential many days. I may share that list, another time...

Of course this is just the recreational stuff, I dipped in and out of my study texts the whole time I was away, it was great to have them just to hand to refer to, thank you Darth!

So now you know.

lock and load

Hmmm, less than two weeks before I leave and I am fairly sure I have my digital entertainment options covered. (What is this fear of boredom!) Now may have to stop distracting self with electronics and look at more mundane packing requirements like knickers and shampoo...

So - actual books in hand? Two: Modern Oral Amdo Tibetan and Tibetan-English-Chinese Dialogue In The Hospital, winners both.

On Darth the mini-tab/e-reader thingy? This is where it gets seriously fun:

All 6 books of the Lymond Chronicles by Dorothy Dunnett -
    Game Of Kings
    Queens Play
    The Disorderly Knights
    Pawn in Frankincense
    The Ringed Castle
    Checkmate
Anna Karenina*
Jane Eyre*
Pride and Prejudice*
Japanese Fairy Tales*
The Wind In The Willows
War and Peace*
Siddhartha*
The Three Musketeers*
These Old Shades
Devils Cub
The Heart Of Understanding - commentary on the Heart Sutra
What Makes You Not A Buddhist
Niccolo Rising
The Spring Of The Ram
The Mists Of Avalon
The Hare With Amber Eyes
A Tiny Bit Marvellous
Mrs Frys Diary
Old Path White Clouds
Wolf Hall
A Clash Of Kings
A Dance With Dragons
A Feast For Crows
A Game Of Thrones
A Storm of Swords
*free to download from a benevolent internet deity

Now the ipod, here is the stuff to listen to, the spoken books, (oh and The Lord Of The Rings e-book)

Is the list too long? Should I run it together like Rat does when describing his picnic hamper to Mole when they have their first adventure together?

"What's inside it?" asked the Mole, wriggling with curiosty.
"There's cold chicken inside it," replied the Rat briefly; "coldtonguecoldhamcoldbeefpickledgherkinssaladfrenchrollscresssandwichespottedmeat
gingerbeerlemonadesodawater -"
"O stop, stop." cried the Mole in ecstasies: "This is too much!"
"Do you really think so?" inquired the Rat seriously. "It's only what I always take on these little excursions;"

Or should I just say lots.

Lots.  (Twenty six, but don't tell anyone)

Hundreds of hours of listening pleasure, in my own language.

And music, again, lots.

And things to watch - may all the Gods bless you Mr Jobs, I love my Apple stuff! I have the last two episodes of Sex and the City, Rear Window, Out Of Africa, an episode of Dr Who - The Waters Of Mars, and four episodes of Invader Zim, because I can.

Think I'm good to go.

p.s.
there is quite a lot of poetry too, I'd forgotten about because its stored in a different location, and of course all my text books and manuals!

p.p.s.
The Wind In The Willows is one of my most loved books forever and I always take it with me if I can. I even took it on our honeymoon - a truth!

p.p.p.s.
TWITW actually has two perfect picnics:
      "Rat hurried off home. There he got out the luncheon basket and packed a simple meal, in which, remembering the stranger's origin and preferences, he took care to include a yard of long French bread, a sausage out of which the garlic sang, some cheese which lay down and cried, and a long-necked straw-covered flask containing bottled sunshine shed and garnered on far Southern slopes."

 

Help me Luke Skywalker!

I have gone over to the dark side!

Everyone knows I am a book girl. Real books that you can hold in your hand, read, look at, lend to a friend, put on the shelf until the next time you need to visit the world between those particular covers.

In theory I have admired the idea of ebook readers, but wasn't wanting one for myself. If I commuted to work, maybe, in one year I could probably read my way through a small forest. I think the printed word is one of our great acheivements on this blue planet. All you need to read is a book (and adequate light, yes I know). One book can be read by many many people. Anyway that is a rant for another time.

But here's the thing. My upcoming travels have sedced me over to ownership of this previously scoffed at item.

Looks innocent enough, doesn't it?

Being the resident Hermione Grainger of my TTM class means I was planning on taking all my texts and notes with me for the three months I'll be away, good revision time I thought.

That's a big chunk of my luggage allowance right there.

So there was the perfect rationalisation! (Plus I love a new toy.)

But the other big thing that has been worrying me is the lack of reading material. You cannot buy english language books where I go; and I cannot carry three months worth of reading, not without much excess luggage and a small troupe of muscular boys to carry it for me.

That was enough to make it a "necesary purchase", next is the fun part! Yes, yes, loaded up the pdf files of all the texts and notes for my TTM studies. Now filling up the clever little device with pleasure reading.

I am a comfort reader. I love to re-visit favourites over and over. So that's what I am taking with me, my library of favourites.

A much bigger pile!

 
That's not all of them, its the ones I could find easily this morning. And I have discovered something wonderful, lots of these books are available for free, and the others are a fraction of the cost of a hard copy. I have pre-ordered the new George R. R. Martin, due out in a couple of weeks, and it will be delivered directly to my device! So I can see myself a happy resident in the electronic reading camp and the actual book in hand camp.

This is my favourite picture: everything, and the wee black case that has it all and more.

 
Think I'll name it Darth.

Mind you, I still love a big pile of books, that says happiness to me!