"It is an old, old tale, the German story of Briar Rose, the Sleeping Beauty. Now one of America's most celebrated writers tells it afresh, set this time in the forests patrolled by the German army during World War II. A tale of castles, of mists and thorns, of a beatiful sleeping princess, and an astonishing revelation of death and rebirth."
Wow. Read this one in between classes today. Short at 200 pages even, but a powerful tale. I highly recommend.
On the wire shelf I brought from home, I have: my award plaque from RLH, high school diploma and mortar board with tassle, my old baseball glove, my father's tin baby cup, a chunk of amethyst, a Jack-in-the-Box antenna ball, my Star Trek combadge, another UH mug, my high school graduation mug, a ceramic cat my mom made me, four videos of my marching band performances from high school, Galaxy Quest, Star Trek: Insurrection, 11 CDs ranging from Aaron Copland to Meatloaf, my sister's old clarinet, my collection of Star Trek reference works, my collection of music education reference works, my scores to trumpet solos I performed, and my RLH training manuals from 1999 and 2000.
On my smaller shelf, I have: 13 pictures, my phone, my copy of the RLH Desk Manual I wrote, my alarm clock, my photo album, and yearbooks from grades 5 through 12.
All of my textbooks, reference books, and other assorted books are sitting in two large boxes next to my trumpets at the side of my bed.
I have two sets of bookshelves. One is upstairs in the spare room and contains what's left of my SF novels collection. Downstairs in the lounge our main set of shelves contains more general books, large-sized books, cookbooks, a cabinet containing glasses, CDs, some videos. . . the stereo is on the shelves, as are candles, one or two ornaments, a winerack, and two cats (Frazzle likes to sit on an empty shelf with his tail dangling down, which is then attacked by Dizzy who's on the shelf below).
As for what I'm reading, which is on my bedside table/nightstand, I'm currently struggling through Volume 2 of Tad Williams' Otherland series.
The top shelf above my desk has an assortment of guide books on how to improve your writing (I'm trying to become an author) and the tri-model of the Enterprises. Oh and loads of spare space that was full of books but I've had to remove them to make space for those that are yet to come.
The shelf below that has a mixture of sci-fi books. These include some Star Trek, including the recently released Section 31 books (not read yet so please don't spoil them for me). I also own all but one of the excellent Star Trek: New Frontier books. Also the Mars trilogy by Kim Stanley Robinson, the Foundation series (excluding the latter three by different authors), "Mars", "Return to Mars" and "Moonrise" by Ben Bova. I also have some Iain Banks books and Anne McCaffrey books as well as the first three Uplift books.
The next shelf has 11 CD's for the PC and all of the Star Wars novels from "The Paradise Snare" to "Dark Tide II: Ruin". I also have "Balance Point" and "Edge of Victory II: Rebirth" with the two Agents of Chaos books and the first Edge of Victory to follow soon.
The bottom shelf house my PC speakers, my lamp, a little clock, my letter openers, a white board for doodling on and a Newton's Cradle.
The top shelf above my bed houses my eight Star Wars Models and the bottom one houses a collection of blue bottles (don't ask).
The top shelf of the bookcase near my door has a fan and a chess set on it with a pot for pens for my other white board, pins for my notice board and a few ornaments bought on holidays over the years.
The shelf below that has an assortment of books including a dictionary, thesaurus, dictionaries of idioms, abbreviations, slang, proverbs, cliches, catchphrases and synomyms and antonyms (oh and one or two novels - "The Precipice" by Ben Bova, "The Confederation Handbook" by Peter F. Hamilton and "The Collected Stories" by Arthur C Clarke).
The bottom shelf of my book case near the door has the Star Trek technical manuals, space books, Star Wars guide books, some sci-fi novels and books on genetics, cloning and such stuff.
Of those books I only have to read about 33! Oh and I have some Star Wars comics that have been stored away. Hope this all gives you a little insight to me and how I think! In case you hadn't noticed - I love and am hooked on books!
quote:
The top shelf above my desk has an assortment of guide books on how to improve your writing (I'm trying to become an author)
AKB: the best way to improve your writing is to, well, write. A lot.
Oh, and I'm studying the Worst Case Scenerio Survival Handbook very carefully, because you just never know.
Also, I'm reading some brilliant and very informative small books by Patty Wipfler, about child psychology. Presently, "Tantrums and indignation". It's great information because while the books seem at first to be mainly aimed at parents to small children and teenagers, 90% of what's in the books can be applied to everyone's "inner child".
Second shelf- novelisations. The one on the end, and the largest of all tomes is 'The Lord of The Rings', possibly the greatest book ever written. Then loads of sci-fi, fantasy and horror novels. Amongst them many Star Trek novels.
On the bottom three shelves, my esoteric collection. Maninly non-fiction on subjects ranging from paranormal phenonmenon, mysticism, anicent wisdom, spirituality, UFOs, lost civilzations, and so forth.
Some miscellaneous items include, one box of paracetamol, a black pen, a small pile of low denomination coins, a film for my camera, several half empty packets of cigarette papers, a cigarette lighter, a misplaced Bat Out of Hell CD, A Pink Floyd CD (I'm showing my age) some Bill recepits and three small screws.
...hmm, fascinating.
Four model boxes (Terry Labonte's #5 Kelloggs stock car, Ford Probe GT, 69 Shelby Mustang, VW Street Machine)
A ceramic spaceship that I painted
A bag of various Trek action figures
A stack of Motor Trend magazines
On the second shelf:
Some Trek novels (the ones that wouldn't fit on the bottom shelf)
Two ceramic cat book-ends
The Lord of the Rings collection
Some Trek reference books (Chronology, LUG RPG guidebook)
The NF comic "Double Time"
Various magazines ranging from FHM to Star Trek: The Magazine
On the bottom shelf:
The rest of my Trek novels (most of them can be seen on my website, Exit 80)
Then I have an old microwave stand with all my intact models on it. Sadly, I don't have any Trek models. These are all cars/trucks.
And on my dresser I have a bunch of Lego stuff I made.
There's a shelf that runs along the back wall of my room that has a couple of piggy banks, my Lever 2000 air freshener, my customized Trek Micro Machines, three trophies, FC figures of Picard, LaForge, and Data, and two Lego Bionicle sets. And my clip-lamp for reading.
quote:
Originally posted by MeGotBeer:AKB: the best way to improve your writing is to, well, write. A lot.
Thanks MeGotBeer, I know. However the guide books have proved useful for structuring of my work as well as organising my notes in a more simplistic way (not to mention getting rid if all the crap in there! 
). But yes, writing more does help improve your skill - can't argue with you there!
Gateways 3&4: "Doors into Chaos" and "Demons of Air and Darkness"
"The Rise and Fall of Khan Noonien Singh, Volume 1"
"American Gods" by Neil Gaiman
"The Descent of Anansi" by larry Niven & Steven Barnes
"The Star Beast" by Robert Heinlein
"Fresh for '01... You Suckas!" by Aaron McGruder
"To Reign in Hell" by Steven Brust
"Almost America" by Steve Tally"
"A Field Guide to Demons, Fairies, Fallen Angels, and Other Subversive Spirits" by Carol and Dinah Mack
Next up to read:
"Waverley" by Sir Walter Scott
"Rob Roy" by Sir Walter Scott
"The Burning City" by Niven & Pournelle.
On my Shelves:
424 Star-Trek related Books, RPG Sourcebooks, Novels, Reference Works, and Magazines.
27 Heinlein novels
31 Asimov novels
12 Clarke Novels
17 Dilbert collections
5 Wayne Douglas Barlowe books
3 Dougal Dixon books
7 Neil gaiman books
5 Robert Forward novels
5 Saberhagen novels
6 James Morrow novels
9 Anne Rice novels
7 C.S. Lewis Novels
7 Douglas Adams novels
5 Harry Turtledove novels
17 other assorted "Alternate History" novels/collections
7 Carl Sagan books
All the Far Side, Bloom County/Outland, and Calvin & Hobbes books
And that's just the tip of the iceberg.
*must head to Coles after payday*
"Digital" shit is the main stream now!!
heeheehee...
let's see, Updike's Too Far to Go, Mailor's Armies of the Night, Toni Morrison's Jazz, Don Delillo's WHite Noise, Saul Bellow's Mr. Sammler's planet, Barth's Lost in the Funhouse, and Mamet's Glengarry Glen Ross...all for Recent american lit class. now all i have to do is write a paper on them... 
Top Shelf
=========
Oxford Dictionary of science
Bantam Thesaurus
Webster's Dictionary
I, Robot (Asimov)
Foundation (Asimov)
2001: A Space Odyssey (Clarke)
Mars Trilogy: Red Mars, Green Mars, Blue Mars (Kim Stanley Robinson)
The Martians (KSR)
Endurance: Shacklton Expedition
Seven Plays by Sam Sheperd
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead (Tom Stoppard)
Streetcar Named Desire (Williams)
My University's course catalog
Natural History of the Antarctic
Introduction to the Space Environment
Mars (the National Geographic book)
Lower Shelf
===========
Spacefaring (human factors of spaceflight book)
Bold Endeavours (likewise)
Entering Space (Zubrin)
Case for Mars ***READ THIS*** (Zubrin)
Last Man on the Moon (Cernan)
Moonshot (Slayton/Sheperd)
Dragonfly (Burrough)
Man on the Moon (Andrew Chaikin)
What I brought with me to college. 
[ September 04, 2001: Message edited by: Stingray ]
thats it..
Alas, all the dust is protecting the shelves, as they are empty.
How'd I forget that? It's the same month as mine.
BTW, your ICQ profile still says your 29. You can't live in the past forever, old boy.