Laurel’s Comments (group member since Aug 06, 2013)

Laurel’s comments from the I Read Therefore I Am group.

Here's a couple of links to reviews/articles about this book if anyone's interested. The last on is quite long and I think they all probably have some degree of spoilers in them.

http://novelinsights.wordpress.com/20...

http://www.theguardian.com/books/2001...

http://carriedarden.wordpress.com/201...

Aww that's a shame Cleo - I wish I could share kindle books so I could lend you my copy ;)

Windless, misty, sun just visible, rather chilly. Many fungi in the woods, including one which at a certain stage gets a sort of white fluffy mildew on it & smells rather like bad meat. Immense quantities of wood pigeons & large flights of starlings. Came on a field of what appeared to be weeds but think it may possibly be buckwheat, which is sometimes grown about here for the sake of the partridges. Small black three-cornered seed like a miniature beech nut. Brought home a patch of a kind of rough moss & stuck it on the rockery, hoping it will grow. Today at 3pm. Hung out a lump of fat for the tits. They had found it before 5pm.

5 eggs.

Monday, June 5
The wind has been S. all day, sky overcast and air misty with snow crystals. The temperature has gone steadily up and to-night rose to + 16°. Everything seems to threaten a blizzard which cometh not. But what is to be made of this extraordinary high temperature heaven only knows. Went for a walk over the rocks and found it very warm and muggy.

Taylor gave us a paper on the Beardmore Glacier. He has taken pains to work up available information; on the ice side he showed the very gradual gradient as compared with the Ferrar. If crevasses are as plentiful as reported, the motion of glacier must be very considerable. There seem to be three badly crevassed parts where the glacier is constricted and the fall is heavier.

Geologically he explained the rocks found and the problems unsolved. The basement rocks, as to the north, appear to be reddish and grey granites and altered slate (possibly bearing fossils). The Cloudmaker appears to be diorite; Mt. Buckley sedimentary. The suggested formation is of several layers of coal with sandstone above and below; interesting to find if it is so and investigate coal. Wood fossil conifer appears to have come from this--better to get leaves--wrap fossils up for protection.

Mt. Dawson described as pinkish limestone, with a wedge of dark rock; this very doubtful! Limestone is of great interest owing to chance of finding Cambrian fossils (Archeocyathus).

He mentioned the interest of finding here, as in Dry Valley, volcanic cones of recent date (later than the recession of the ice). As points to be looked to in Geology and Physiography:

1. Hope Island shape.

2. Character of wall facets.

3. Type of tributary glaciers, cliff or curtain, broken.

4. Do tributaries enter 'at grade'?

5. Lateral gullies pinnacled, &c., shape and size of slope.

6. Do tributaries cut out gullies--empty unoccupied cirques, hangers, &c.

7. Do upland moraines show tesselation?

8. Arrangement of strata, inclusion of.

9. Types of moraines, distance of blocks.

10. Weathering of glaciers. Types of surface. (Thrust mark? Rippled, snow stool, glass house, coral reef, honeycomb, ploughshare, bastions, piecrust.)

11. Amount of water silt bands, stratified, or irregular folded or broken.

12. Cross section, of valleys 35° slopes?

13. Weather slopes debris covered, height to which.

14. Nunataks, height of rounded, height of any angle in profile, erratics.

15. Evidence of order in glacier delta.

Debenham in discussion mentioned usefulness of small chips of rock--many chips from several places are more valuable than few larger specimens.

We had an interesting little discussion.

I must enter a protest against the use made of the word 'glaciated' by Geologists and Physiographers.

To them a 'glaciated land' is one which appears to have been shaped by former ice action.

The meaning I attach to the phrase, and one which I believe is more commonly current, is that it describes a land at present wholly or partly covered with ice and snow.

I hold the latter is the obvious meaning and the former results from a piracy committed in very recent times.

The alternative terms descriptive of the different meanings are ice covered and ice eroded.

To-day I have been helping the Soldier to design pony rugs; the great thing, I think, is to get something which will completely cover the hindquarters.

Tuesday 16 July 1661
[Once again, Sam had a few days away from his diary. He returns on 19th July.]

Hi there, just a quick msg to say hello! Hope everyone is alright and had a good weekend. Scotland was great and I saw some great bands at T in the Park festival but now it's back to work and reality ;)

@Ellie - how was Penzance?

Sunday, June 4
A calm and beautiful day. The account of this, a typical Sunday, would run as follows: Breakfast. A half-hour or so selecting hymns and preparing for Service whilst the hut is being cleared up. The Service: a hymn; Morning prayer to the Psalms; another hymn; prayers from Communion Service and Litany; a final hymn and our special prayer. Wilson strikes the note on which the hymn is to start and I try to hit it after with doubtful success! After church the men go out with their ponies.

To-day Wilson, Bowers, Cherry-Garrard, Lashly, and I went to start the building of our first 'igloo.' There is a good deal of difference of opinion as to the best implement with which to cut snow blocks. Cherry-Garrard had a knife which I designed and Lashly made, Wilson a saw, and Bowers a large trowel. I'm inclined to think the knife will prove most effective, but the others don't acknowledge it yet . As far as one can see at present this knife should have a longer handle and much coarser teeth in the saw edge--perhaps also the blade should be thinner.

We must go on with this hut building till we get good at it. I'm sure it's going to be a useful art.

We only did three courses of blocks when tea-time arrived, and light was not good enough to proceed after tea.

Sunday afternoon for the men means a 'stretch of the land.'

I went over the floe on ski. The best possible surface after the late winds as far as Inaccessible Island. Here, and doubtless in most places along the shore, this, the first week of June, may be noted as the date by which the wet, sticky salt crystals become covered and the surface possible for wood runners. Beyond the island the snow is still very thin, barely covering the ice flowers, and the surface is still bad.

There has been quite a small landslide on the S. side of the Island; seven or eight blocks of rock, one or two tons in weight, have dropped on to the floe, an interesting instance of the possibility of transport by sea ice.

Ponting has been out to the bergs photographing by flashlight. As I passed south of the Island with its whole mass between myself and the photographer I saw the flashes of magnesium light, having all the appearance of lightning. The light illuminated the sky and apparently objects at a great distance from the camera. It is evident that there may be very great possibilities in the use of this light for signalling purposes and I propose to have some experiments.

N.B
Magnesium flashlight as signalling apparatus in the summer.

Another crab-eater seal was secured to-day; he had come up by the bergs.

11.11.39

Very fine weather, as yesterday. Birds all singing almost as though it were spring. Notice that horse dung of some mares & their foals out in the fields is extremely dark, almost black, presumably for being out at grass with no corn. Added another sackful of leaves. [Total on facing page: 6.]

5 eggs. Sold 1 score @ 4/4. Total this week 45.

Monday 15 July 1661
Up by three o’clock this morning, and rode to Cambridge, and was there by seven o’clock, where, after I was trimmed, I went to Christ College, and found my brother John at eight o’clock in bed, which vexed me. Then to King’s College chappell, where I found the scholars in their surplices at the service with the organs, which is a strange sight to what it used in my time to be here. Then with Dr. Fairbrother (whom I met there) to the Rose tavern, and called for some wine, and there met fortunately with Mr. Turner of our office, and sent for his wife, and were very merry (they being come to settle their son here), and sent also for Mr. Sanchy, of Magdalen, with whom and other gentlemen, friends of his, we were very merry, and I treated them as well as I could, and so at noon took horse again, having taken leave of my cozen Angier, and rode to Impington, where I found my old uncle sitting all alone, like a man out of the world: he can hardly see; but all things else he do pretty livelyly. Then with Dr. John Pepys and him, I read over the will, and had their advice therein, who, as to the sufficiency thereof confirmed me, and advised me as to the other parts thereof.

Having done there, I rode to Gravely with much ado to inquire for a surrender of my uncle’s in some of the copyholders’ hands there, but I can hear of none, which puts me into very great trouble of mind, and so with a sad heart rode home to Brampton, but made myself as cheerful as I could to my father, and so to bed.

I've just come back from a few days away so haven't got to this yet but will hopefully post a bit more info tomorrow/friday when I've got a bit more time.

Our current Boxall's read is July's People by Nadine Gordimer.

Cool - I'm planning to get to it soon(ish). The Night Circus is great isn't it - I loved the imagery.

Saturday, June 3
The wind dropped last night, but at 4 A.M. suddenly sprang up from a dead calm to 30 miles an hour. Almost instantaneously, certainly within the space of one minute, there was a temperature rise of nine degrees. It is the most extraordinary and interesting example of a rise of temperature with a southerly wind that I can remember. It is certainly difficult to account for unless we imagine that during the calm the surface layer of cold air is extremely thin and that there is a steep inverted gradient. When the wind arose the sky overhead was clearer than I ever remember to have seen it, the constellations brilliant, and the Milky Way like a bright auroral streamer.

The wind has continued all day, making it unpleasant out of doors. I went for a walk over the land; it was dark, the rock very black, very little snow lying; old footprints in the soft, sandy soil were filled with snow, showing quite white on a black ground. Have been digging away at food statistics.

Simpson has just given us a discourse, in the ordinary lecture series, on his instruments. Having already described these instruments, there is little to comment upon; he is excellently lucid in his explanations.

As an analogy to the attempt to make a scientific observation when the condition under consideration is affected by the means employed, he rather quaintly cited the impossibility of discovering the length of trousers by bending over to see!

The following are the instruments described:

Features

The outside (bimetallic) thermograph.

The inside thermograph (alcohol) Alcohol in spiral, small lead pipe--float vessel.

The electrically recording anemometer Cam device with contact on wheel; slowing arrangement, inertia of wheel.

The Dynes anemometer Parabola on immersed float.

The recording wind vane Metallic pen.

The magnetometer Horizontal force measured in two directions--vertical force in one--timing arrangement.

The high and low potential apparatus of the balloon thermograph Spotting arrangement and difference, see ante .

Simpson is admirable as a worker, admirable as a scientist, and admirable as a lecturer.

10.11.39

Very fine, sunny, still weather. Dug the first trench of the new patch, planted shallots (not quite enough to make up the first 2 rows), transplanted 3 rambler rose cuttings, 1 albertine, 1 of the yellowy-white kind, the other I don’t know what kind. Made up path as far as trellis. Titley says in storing dahlia bulbs the important this is to suspend them for a while stalk downwards, as the reason they rot is that the moisture runs down the hole in the stalk into the roots. Bought some more apples (Blenheims) still 11/2lb. T. says he’s getting 4/6 score for eggs.

9 eggs.

Sunday 14th July 1661
(Lord’s day). At home, and Robert Barnwell with us, and dined, and in the evening my father and I walked round Portholme and viewed all the fields, which was very pleasant. Thence to Hinchingbroke, which is now all in dirt, because of my Lord’s building, which will make it very magnificent. Back to Brampton, and to supper and to bed.

Good to hear the yoga teacher training is going well- maybe you'll be able to teach me as I keep trying then giving up!

Guys, I'll be out of touch over the weekend so hope you all have an amazing one! :)
see ya Monday

Sound's cool, I'll keep my eyes out for it!

@Angela- I loved the night circus, glad you're enjoying it.

The Big Sleep is a very good adaptation of that book so if you enjoyed Chandler's novel you will probably like it.

Mysteries looks really good Lee - how's it going?

Ursula le Guin has sent me on a full scale fantasy binge so I have abandoned everything else I was reading/planning to read to re-read Robin Hobb's Farseer Trilogy as she has a new book about Fitz and Fool coming out next month. Am about halfway through Assassin's Apprentice and had forgotten how much I loved it! It's been about 10 years since I read these and I absolutely can't put it down!

I'm deliberating between 4 and 5 stars - I wouldn't even need to think about it but the only problem I had was the characters weren't very fully developed. But then the flip side of that is the way it's written which is easily worth a top rating so....