I Was Going With The Title "The Beauty Of Books"
Or, possibly, "See What You Did, William Caxton?" but a pun about this time of year is, of course - obviously! - so much better.
Now, because not everybody out there has the good taste I have, Your Humble Scribe is going to lead with a picture on a completely different subject. Art!
This is the Sinister-era Proton lunar lander, as you can see only big enough for a single cosmonaut at this point, who would have been a busy bee on the regolith.
ANYWAY Conrad has been, somewhat ambitiously, re-cataloguing his collection of Military History books, which he has shockingly failed to update for ooooh months and months. Perhaps a year <hangs head in shame>. I have made considerable progress so far and because you sceptics wouldn't believe it unless there it proof, here is the work so far. Art!
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| Ignore the litter! Ignore the litter! |
I haven't actually kept a total of what's been re-indexed so far, but you can bet it's a fair few hundreds. Not only that, I've been adding stuff left off the original index, which began at something a bit over 800 total, and which is now up to 903.
The danger, obviously - of course! - is in going "Ooooh I forgot about that" and 'only glancing' at a particular work, which has happened once or twice. Dog Buns, I'm only an-alien-masquerading-as-a-human. Art!
Purchased from The Works, back when they stocked more books than miscellaneous tat. You may recognise that AFV at the top. Art!
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| Published in 2019 |
I'm not sure if you can make out the text, so let me inform you that the T-14 Armata was supposed to have been produced to the number of 2,300 by 2020.
Ooops. Hmmm, production schedules seem to have slipped a tad, wouldn't you say?
Then the contract with Uralvagonzavod, the Ruffian's biggest tank factory, was <ahem> 'modified' to merely 100 tanks .
Guess what? It was cut again, to just 32.
Guess what? It was cut again and, supposedly, 17 are in service, except no more than 8 have been seen at any one time. To quote: " - however, much of it's innovative design and advanced technology is untested, and genuine combat experience may expose teething troubles -". They certainly haven't been seen anywhere in Ukraine. Also, China tested a few and was distinctly unimpressed at how little of the 'advanced technology' worked; India expressed an interest until they, too, got into trials and said interest promptly evapourated.
What a difference 4 years makes.
ANYWAY we're not here to rubbish Ruffia in the Intro - that comes later - so let us proceed to the <takes deep breath> "Official History Of The Second World War: The War Against Japan Vol. IV". Art!
Conrad got this for 50p at a car boot sale, I seem to recall. It's the real thing, published in 1952 with proper coloured maps and fold-out ones, too. Being a completist, Conrad wondered what kind of price the rest of the volumes were retailing for, and indeed what his 50p investment was now worth. Art!
As seen on Abebooks. There are editions of Volumes I, II and III going for £125 a copy at Turner and Donovan, which I will gratefully pass on. Not that desperate/keen/interested. However - Art!
Yes yes yes, I have the Naval & Military press re-print in softback. BUT - only £35? Usually you'd need to add another £100 to the total for a T&D volume. This one, you see, will have the original colour maps, of which many are so large they have to fold up to be accommodated.
Okay, I've ordered it. Call me impulsive. I remember one day in the office when I checked the T&D website and they had the Mapset AND Appendices for the "Military Operations Official History 1917" text volumes for only £245! Yesss! Bargain!
Except when I got home to order them, they had long been bought already. It seems some people out there are as nerdy as Conrad when it comes to niche books. That was years ago and I've not seen either listed anywhere else since <sad face>.
Okay, enough about books.
For Your Information
I don't know if you want to peek inside Conrad's mental landscape - a treacherous and briar-filled garden of garbage - but here goes. When composing the words of wit, wisdom and wonder that are BOOJUM! I can't listen to or watch anything distracting. Thus, music. Currently I am playing "Akhnaten" by Philip Glass. Art!
Conrad has seen him and his Ensemble live a couple of times, yet had never heard a whisper about this album. Which is because it's from 1987. Fans refer to it as an 'Opera' although I'm not sure I'd agree with that description. It does remind me of "Atom Heart Mother" in style.
Get me, the music critic.
Blogger Mimicking A Certain Person
One whom would need to take his shoes and socks off to count beyond 10, and whom would consider anything greater than 20 as 'Bigly' and anything over 100 as 'Very bigly' and anything over 1,000 as 'Millions'.
I did think that the traffic algorithm had reverted to normal during the week. Alas, no. Art!
"City In The Sky"
The dweller aboard Arcology One and a police officer of New South Wales are getting up to speed on each other's world and worldview.
‘You didn’t think we were all dead, did you?’ asked Alex. Officer Kane shrugged.
‘Pretty much. Up until a week
ago, anyway, when the courier mail mentioned a spaceship landing north of the
coastline, way past New Eucla.’
That meant Dart One.
‘How many of you are there still up there?’
‘My sphere has about twelve thousand people aboard. With everyone from all the spheres, maybe a
hundred and twenty thousand. That’s guessing
at how many are alive in the Chinese sphere.’
Kane whistled in appreciation.
‘That’s a tidy township!’
Officer Kane confirmed the Doctor’s suspicions, that the city had been deliberately, carefully and slowly emptied of it’s populace back when the regional government still existed, a long emigration to west and east along the coastline where small, self-sufficient townships could be established. There they thrived, able to rely on the ocean for fish and seafood, as well as resurgent wildlife. Since the Doctor wanted to travel west, the policeman directed him north, keeping the River Torrens on his left, until they came to Dickson’s Crossing, the only bridge that safely crossed the river to the west bank.
‘Thank you,’ smiled the Doctor.
‘We have our own transport.’
"The War Illustrated"
The focus of this magazine in the European Theatre Of Operations is currently Italy, the publication date of issue 179 being April 28th 1944. Art!
This is the mathematics of war: casualties, and plenty of them. These are due to be evacuated off-shore to hospital ships and one can presume Allied air superiority here thanks to their lying out in the open rather than under cover. A stern corrective to those who spout guff about how wonderful war is.
Finally -
All this done before mid-day, thanks to setting my alarm for 08:30. The consequence of being motivated and energetic, and also not sleeping off a bottle of gin.
Yes, dear, it did cost £35 but that's what I've saved so far in being Sober For October and it will be around for many years to come, unlike a four-pack of Old Speckled Hen, so it's really an investment and the value will only appreciate over time -
<I think I got away with that one>
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