Royal Escape from the Topic - for off topic chit chat Showing 301-350 of 2,839

[Lesley]

Karlyne wrote: " Carol ♪ Blinded by the Light ♪ GR Background wrote: "I like your new pic Hana! (if you are still reading)

I'll just thank everyone for a wonderful Georgette Heyer reading year.

I'm looking forw..."

Yeah, I keep seeing it and adding "revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night ..."
Manfred Mann wasn't it? :)

[Karlyne]

Ella's Gran wrote: "Karlyne wrote: " Carol ♪ Blinded by the Light ♪ GR Background wrote: "I like your new pic Hana! (if you are still reading)

I'll just thank everyone for a wonderful Georgette Heyer reading year.

..."

I'm laughing now, because the only words I know are "Blinded by the Light", but I think the one I'm endlessly repeating is a Billy Joel. Maybe?

[Kim]

Yes, first popular recording of it...both it and "Spirits of the Night" were written by Bruce Springsteen, who recorded them, originally, but was not well-known at the time.

[Karlyne]

Kim wrote: "Yes, first popular recording of it...both it and "Spirits of the Night" were written by Bruce Springsteen, who recorded them, originally, but was not well-known at the time."

I just looked it up and found that out, Kim! And now I'm really laughing because the tune is NOT what I'm even thinking of. I have a feeling I've mangled something....

[Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽]

Ella's Gran wrote: "Yeah, I keep seeing it and adding "revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night ..."
Manfred Mann wasn't it? :) "

Don't you mean something like: "ripped up like a douche when you're rollin’ in the night"? Just kidding, but I swear that's what I heard every time this was on the radio. o__O

P.S. This line is #3 on someone's list of "most misheard song lyrics ever."

P.P.S. Now Carol is going to have to change her name. Sorry!!

[Lesley]

All I know is that she was gonna make it through the night!

[Kim]

Mash-up perhaps? LOL. I worked at college radio station in the 70s, and my roommate lived one town over from Asbury Park, NJ, so I became aware of Springsteen early on. Saw Billy Joel at college back then, just as Piano Man came out.

[Karlyne]

I am most definitely going to have to have a listen and see what I come up with...

[Kim]

The lyrics from "Blinded by the Light" always remind me of that scene was Kevin Costner is telling Tim Robbins off for getting the lyrics wrong during Bull Durham--"young girls don't get woolly, they get weary". (Try a Little Tenderness).

[Karlyne]

So it IS the Mannfred Mann version I remember (seriously, he sounds like Billy Joel), and it DOES sound like "ripped up like a douche" even when you're reading the lyrics.

Gosh, this really made my day...

[Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂]

Karlyne wrote: " Carol, two things: Why are you Blinded by the Light (thanks, I'm singing now), and is your profile picture from your trip?!

Heh! I did I have Georgia font on my mind, but the new Merriweather font doesn't bother me (although I'm finding the san serif one hard to read if its big blocks of text) GR didn't change the background but because the new fonts are so thin the dazzling white is causing me eye strain. I've downloaded an addon to blacken the fonts & give me a nice Old Lace background colour.

We may lose Hana as the new look is causing her actual pain, Ella's Gran, Jaymie & Barbara also unhappy. British Susan who is running a new ipad with Safari is fine.

The new GR look quite obviously wasn't tested on all platforms or on anyone with vision issues. :(. My daughter, who is a Social Media Manager/Graphic Designer, was stunned at the total PR fail.

& yes that is is a picture from the Fine Arts Museum in Hanoi. I've still got to sort out my pictures. I dropped my phone while in Cambodia & the only way I could get my pictures to upload was to put them on Facebook. It's on my "to do" list to sort them out. :)

[Kim]

I know, I looked up the lyrics on one of my Springsteen compilations years before there was an Internet (came with a booklet) because I had always heard the wrong word, but knew it had to be something else that made more sense. Same thing B-52s "Love Shack", finally found out it was "tin roof rusted"--always kind of slid over that until I found the lyrics. ;-)

[Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂]

Ha! Shows what a slow typist I am! look at all the replies! & thank you Tadiana for the visual! The name is staying for a while because it took me an embarrassingly long time last night to get those musical notes (which look like hell in the new font) to stick! :D I looked up the lyrics last night.

http://www.metrolyrics.com/blinded-by...

I have no idea what a deuce is!!!

& forgot to say say there is an absolutely massive thread in GR Feedback about this. Thats how I know the above ladies are unhappy. The redoubtable Hana has even contacted the font designer!

[Kim]

I think it may refer to a deuce coupe, a car, as it is "revved up".

[Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽]

"Deuce" here is slang for a 1932 Ford “deuce coupe" (which may sound familiar to those of us here who are old enough to remember the Beach Boys "Little Deuce Coupe" song).

Here's a picture of one -- it's obviously been revved up: ;)

[Kim]

From their fourth album, very popular with my brothers when I was a kid. Also see cars from American Graffiti. ;-)

[Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂]

Tadiana ✩ Night Owl☽ wrote: ""Deuce" here is slang for a 1932 Ford “deuce coupe" (which may sound familiar to those of us here who are old enough to remember the Beach Boys "Little Deuce Coupe" song)."

I'm old enough to remember - but senile enough to have forgotten! :D

I knew deuces were something to do with gambling, so I guess that was where I got confused.

[Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂]

Tadiana ✩ Night Owl☽ wrote: ""Deuce" here is slang for a 1932 Ford “deuce coupe" (which may sound familiar to those of us here who are old enough to remember the Beach Boys "Little Deuce Coupe" song).

Here's a picture of one ..."

Now that is gorgeous! I went to the Beach Hop last year. It's a well known classic/vintage car festival. Some of them were absolute works of art!

[Karlyne]

Because I am easily hypnotized and always follow the crowd, I now realize that this new Goodreads background is dazzlingly white. Had I noticed it before? Well, actually, I think I noticed that it was different, but because this house is so full of beige anything white tends to make me happy. But, since I just now got back on Goodreads after being repeatedly bounced and being out of town, it may get wearing after a bit!

[Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽]

I hated the font at first but now I've gotten used to it. I don't notice the dazzling white background that a lot of people mention. Maybe my screen lighting is set lower?

[Karlyne]

Tadiana ✩ Night Owl☽ wrote: "I hated the font at first but now I've gotten used to it. I don't notice the dazzling white background that a lot of people mention. Maybe my screen lighting is set lower?"

My laptop is so ancient I doubt that it has a screen lighting setting... I did get a new one for Christmas, but I haven't had it changed over yet, because what I know about technology can be written on the head of a pin. With a sharpie.

[Abigail]

I rather liked the changes overall when they first happened. The font is probably more readable, but I don’t like the italics.

[Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂]

They are still tinkering & I'm sure the italics look different today. When I send private messages the lado font goes teensy tiny & I have to zoom up.

[Lesley]

I think today they must have changed the font on my bookshelves and made it a darker shade of teal. To my poor eyes it looked like I had a shelf for hislorical-liclion, but now it looks like it is meant to!

The white doesn't seem a bright but could still do with being more verging toward off-white for me.

Gotta get a new iPad. My screen shattered, and I feel like my right arm has been cut off! :) How dramatic is that?! Anyway after a week of being without, I reached the conclusion I just can't continue to survive without an iPad so ....

[Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽]

It costs an arm and a leg to replace a shattered iPad screen but it's cheaper than buying a new iPad. A few years ago I paid something like $150, but it was worth it.

ETA: You motivated me to do some price-checking, since my iPad has several cracks around the edges and one crack that has finally crossed into the main part of the screen. I found a local place that will do it for $90, same day service, so it's going there today.

[Jay-me (Janet)]

I think that the problem with the new fonts is that everyone seems to have different problems with it, depending on whether they are using ipad, phone, kindle, laptop or desktop PC - and then all the different combinations of operating systems and internet browsers.

On my ipad my immediate impression was that it was way too bright but that problem seems to have been one that was sorted quite quickly and the ipad is now fine.
It is the desktop using chrome that was still unreadable, I can't look at it for more than a couple of minutes without feeling unwell, it is too bright, too pale and blurry - there have been changes made but none of them have actually fixed it so that it is readable.

[HJ]

Has anyone from Goodreads said why they made any changes in the first place?

[Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂]

HJ wrote: "Has anyone from Goodreads said why they made any changes in the first place?"

Here's the (long) thread about it. Emily from GR started it.

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Short version: GR needed a clean up both out the front & behind the scenes. So they did it using the free early versions of some fonts without testing it on all platforms or checking if older people or people with eye sight problems could use it.

[HJ]

Thanks.

[Andrea AKA Catsos Person]

Alan Rickman has died.

[Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂]

Andrea (Catsos Person) is a Compulsive eBook Hoarder wrote: "Alan Rickman has died."

I just heard. He was a wonderful villain. :(

[Kim]

Carol, you got me started re-visiting various versions of Blinded by the Light, now it is stuck in my head. Also rocking out to Adele because I watched car pool karaoke this morning to cheer myself up after crying over Alan Rickman.

[QNPoohBear]

Carol ♪ Blinded by the Light ♪ GR Background wrote: "Andrea (Catsos Person) is a Compulsive eBook Hoarder wrote: "Alan Rickman has died."

I just heard. He was a wonderful villain. :("

I am utterly heartbroken. He sold me on Col. Brandon not being too old for Marianne. (Swoon) I adored him as Snape, of course and especially in Love Actually where he had few lines but let his face express all his emotions. He was an amazing actor and I can't believe he's gone. First "Gilbert Blythe" and now Col. Brandon! :_(

[Karlyne]

QNPoohBear wrote: " Carol ♪ Blinded by the Light ♪ GR Background wrote: "Andrea (Catsos Person) is a Compulsive eBook Hoarder wrote: "Alan Rickman has died."

I just heard. He was a wonderful villain. :("

I am utter..."

Absolutely! Every time someone says that Colonel Brandon is too old for Marianne, I think, "What! Are you crazy?! Obviously your Colonel Brandon is not my Colonel Brandon!"

[Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽]

Gilbert Blythe is gone too?? D:

[Howard]

Tadiana ✩ Night Owl☽ wrote: "It costs an arm and a leg to replace a shattered iPad screen but it's cheaper than buying a new iPad. A few years ago I paid something like $150, but it was worth it.

ETA: You motivated me to do s..."When I replace my iPad's screens locally it costs about $100. I only use it to read, but I do so everywhere I go, so both times I only waited an hour for the fix.

[QNPoohBear]

Tadiana ✩ Night Owl☽ wrote: "Gilbert Blythe is gone too?? D:"

Sadly Jonathan Crombie passed away April 15, 2015 of a brain hemorrhage.

[Kim]

Oh, that makes me sad. I like to think about that lovely series, my girls grew up with it, and my older daughter was a red-head with green eyes. She was much like Anne in many ways.

[Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂]

& I have my Koestler back! Looking a bit tragic as Chris left it out in the rain but still readable!

Chris offered to replace it but I declined.

& on the weekend, I thought I was attending my nephew & his partner's 30th - which I was, but they also got married. So cool! Some people guessed but I was completely fooled!

[Abigail]

What a lovely surprise, Carol! Always fun to find out you’re attending an unexpected wedding. Congratulations to the couple!

[HJ]

That's the way to do a wedding, I think; a good party, but none of the build up which these days seems to take months if not over a year and to me seems over the top, as well as ridiculously expensive.

[Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂]

HJ wrote: "That's the way to do a wedding, I think; a good party, but none of the build up which these days seems to take months if not over a year and to me seems over the top, as well as ridiculously expensive..."

Probably still expensive as it was an upmarket venue & they did the half price drink thing - but their friends drink like fishes!

& it's interesting that in these troubled times these young woman don't let go of their drinks - even taking them into the toilet! Not a criticism - one of my daughter's friends was slipped a date rape drug many years ago. Nothing worse than a trip to A&E (ER) happened to Becs but it was still a frightening experience.

[Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂]

Just thought I would continue here rather than the Group Reads thread... our daughter moved & into a more "hipster" part of Auckland. Not only will she be paying cheaper rent but she will be able to walk to many of the places she likes to go.

Her cat should have been moved in last night.

As a thank you they took us out to a very nice Italian restaurant. :)

[Andrea AKA Catsos Person]

Carol, that sounds like an awesome situation--to secure a place to live in walking distance of one's "haunts!"

:)

[Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂]

Andrea (Catsos Person) is a Compulsive eBook Hoarder wrote: "Carol, that sounds like an awesome situation--to secure a place to live in walking distance of one's "haunts!"

:)"

Yes & in theory she should be able to walk to & from work. I can well pictureChloe walking home to unwind if she has had a stressful day. :)

[HJ]

Carol ♪ Blinded by the Light ♪ GR Background wrote: "Just thought I would continue here rather than the Group Reads thread... our daughter moved & into a more "hipster" part of Auckland. Not only will she be paying cheaper rent but she will be able t..."

Good news! And being able to walk to work too should keep her fit.

[Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂]

For Critterbee & Kim here is the thread on Feedback where GR staff member Shaun asked members what we wanted from rereads.

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

[Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂]

& for Melanie what Goodreads has said about half stars (closed thread)
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

[Melanie]

Thanks! I've only seen people saying they want half stars so it's interesting to see there are some very much opposed. I'd quite like it myself but it's not make or break for me :)

[Kim]

Well, just because we have 1/2 stars, assuming Goodreads made that rating tweak available, does not mean everyone has to use them.