those zany romans

first off, I have to wrap up last year's World Book Tour.  

Thin veneer of awarenesss of global literature?     Check.

Suitable stand in for actually traveling the globe?    No.

Learned some stuff?   Check

Can regurgitate above stuff at cocktail parties to amuse and impress?   No. 

Book theme got me to venture into new genres?     Check

This year's book theme amazingly original?  Strike three

Nevertheless, I'll forge on... 

Announcing this year's theme (cue drumroll):  The Centuries!  

One hundred years, one book.  

Since I can't plough through more than twenty books a year, I'm starting in the first century and damn the 21st. 

First up:  I, Claudius.  Those zany Romans, with their plebian slaughters, and Emperors keeling over at dinner because someone poisoned the figs.  

Now, I know that reading a bunch of either history or period books may seem like nails on a chalkboard for some, 

but I'm a glutton for punishment.  The more ridiculously esoteric, the more I'm attracted to it.   I first bought Satryicon by Petronius, but I'm pretty sure I should just watch the film.  

things I've tried to convince my wife of recently:

her potentially winning trivial pursuit question:

What percentage of Corsica is made of quartz?

her, after much gear grinding: 2%???

to which I answered: eee, sorry 3%

Nevertheless, she won.

out of the frying pan, into 2009

cheers to my loyal reader, you know who you are!

lets recap the year in a stream of consciousness.

highs in no order:

babycakes (you know who you are)
Statue of Liberty Plaza completion
Obama
lots of art production
another home renovation complete, and the results are way more satisfying than I expected
new hoopdi safaris to campgrounds unknown
project published in Fine Homebuilding
Iphone

lows:

the hamster wheel of paychecks and bills has weighed me down mightily
the prospect of a long term recession breaking down my firm
our inability to get pregnant--more than anything this year, this has just killed me.

two steps forward, one step back:

I'd like to say I met my 25 book world tour goal, but the last three months, I barely turned a paper page (stranded at 18 I think). While I have a new living/dining room to point to as a cause for this lapse, I'm sure I could have squeezed some novellas in at least. Still the ride around the world was fun and pushed me out of a comfort zone of english classics. I'm mulling 2008's theme, and am open to suggestions...(sure 18 books is fine, but for super literate Seattle, it is pretty mundane. (as an aside, W. supposedly read 85 muthafukin' books--that is just laughable!))

And although I've passed all my exams now, I took 2 so long ago they've expired so I still have more studying to do. Ridiculous.

It is late, and this halcyon recollection is pretty boring--note to future self: 2008 sucked monkey balls. whenever you read this, you can do better.