Photo: Kindling @ Tuileries, Paris (20 Sept 2010, 24°C; couldn’t resist)

I’ve been meaning to write a post on my latest toy for a couple of months now, but it was so much more fun to read than to type up a comprehensive post. So here’s a compromise. I’ll just jot down a few of my impressions and get back to reading.

Having been sceptical about the whole electronic book affair, I started with a light version, just a Kindle application for my BlackBerry. It was an instant hit that helped me finally read the incomplete Stieg Larsson series and join the crowds that regret his never having had the chance to finish it. But while quite doable, reading on a small BB screen is less than comfortable. It does the of job keeping one calm in queues, however.

Anyhoo, a few months after my birthday I managed to decide what I wanted for a present and my auntie was her usual wonderful self. Enter Kindle.

The first book I read on it was “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” recommended by BigWhale and from then on I just couldn’t stop. Needless to say I never managed to read the manual. The gadget is fool-proof enough. A big plus. What I first discovered (gosh, I so want to type “en utilisant” right now, can you tell we’ve been brushing up on the gérondif) while using it, was that

• The screen is very kind to the eyes and dimly lit, i.e. it requires external illumination in the dark;
• It’s very lightweight;
• Makes it a whole lot easier to meet budget airline luggage weight limits;
• It comes with a dictionary; just place the cursor in front of a word and its definition will show up at the bottom of the screen (useful if reading a masterfully written book such as Hitch-22);
• You can mark text and insert your comments or just underline it;
• The selected text can be shared online with others (eg. via Twitter);
• A book can be bought pretty much anywhere, thanks to the “whispernet”
• Supports various e-book formats.

What I truly appreciated was the fact that there were no distractions. No incoming e-mail, no urge to look up a phrase on the internet and drifting away. Even to check what time it was, I had to bring up the menu screen.

Thinking about the downsides, I’d say:

• Very few books in languages other than English;
• Once read, the books cannot be given away or lent to friends, not even for a fee;
• Doesn’t come with a jacket (and I’ve been too busy or to lazy to provide it with one up until now);
• Mine doesn’t come with WiFi so it’s a bit limited as the basic browser worked in Croatia, but it is blocked in Luxembourg and in France;
• Ease of purchase – I’ve spent more on books than I intended to.

With regard to the first and the last point, I’ve only just (re)discovered the perfect site. First, thanks go to peroksid for opening my eyes to the “non-Amazon” e-books. One thing led to another and I found/remembered Project Gutenberg. It wasn’t all that interesting while I had to read the texts on my computer, but with Kindle, it’s a whole different ball game!

So this morning, I downloaded a number of French books from this wonderful website. I’ll be staying in Paris for a few weeks and reading French seems the right thing to do. I did entertain the thought of typing this post in French, but I need to accept my (current) limitations.

No worries. I’ll cross that bridge on my own terms.  

Who’ll be the first to guess which bridge is pictured above?

Romance Sonambulo
Federico García Lorca

Verde que te quiero verde.
Verde viento. Verdes ramas.
El barco sobre la mar
y el caballo en la montaña.
Con la sombra en la cintura
ella sueña en su baranda,
verde carne, pelo verde,
con ojos de fría plata.
Verde que te quiero verde.
Bajo la luna gitana,
las cosas la están mirando
y ella no puede mirarlas.
Verde que te quiero verde.
Grandes estrellas de escarcha
vienen con el pez de sombra
que abre el camino del alba.
La higuera frota su viento
con la lija de sus ramas,
y el monte, gato garduño,
eriza sus pitas agrias.
¿Pero quién vendra? ¿Y por dónde…?
Ella sigue en su baranda,
Verde came, pelo verde,
soñando en la mar amarga.
–Compadre, quiero cambiar
mi caballo por su casa,
mi montura por su espejo,
mi cuchillo per su manta.
Compadre, vengo sangrando,
desde los puertos de Cabra.
–Si yo pudiera, mocito,
este trato se cerraba.
Pero yo ya no soy yo,
ni mi casa es ya mi casa.
–Compadre, quiero morir
decentemente en mi cama.
De acero, si puede ser,
con las sábanas de holanda.
¿No ves la herida que tengo
desde el pecho a la garganta?
–Trescientas rosas morenas
lleva tu pechera blanca.
Tu sangre rezuma y huele
alrededor de tu faja.
Pero yo ya no soy yo,
ni mi casa es ya mi casa.
–Dejadme subir al menos
hasta las altas barandas;
¡dejadme subir!, dejadme,
hasta las verdes barandas.
Barandales de la luna
por donde retumba el agua.
Ya suben los dos compadres
hacia las altas barandas.
Dejando un rastro de sangre.
Dejando un rastro de lágrimas.
Temblaban en los tejados
farolillos de hojalata.
Mil panderos de cristal
herían la madrugada.
Verde que te quiero verde,
verde viento, verdes ramas.
Los dos compadres subieron.
El largo viento dejaba
en la boca un raro gusto
de hiel, de menta y de albahaca.
¡Compadre! ¿Donde está, díme?
¿Donde está tu niña amarga?
¡Cuántas veces te esperó!
¡Cuántas veces te esperara,
cara fresca, negro pelo,
en esta verde baranda!
Sobre el rostro del aljibe
se mecía la gitana.
Verde carne, pelo verde,
con ojos de fría plata.
Un carámbano de luna
la sostiene sobre el agua.
La noche se puso íntima
como una pequeña plaza.
Guardias civiles borrachos
en la puerta golpeaban.
Verde que te qinero verde.
Verde viento. Verdes ramas.
El barco sobre la mar.
Y el caballo en la montaña.

If I tell you that “tinctumutation” means “change of colour“, what is the first thing that cames to mind?

(It would be interesting to run same test just before the next general elections.)

(click here for more pics of Cindy)

Meet Grand Champion Planika Pepelka of Palmetto a.k.a. Cindy, a Black Smoke Persian born at my house that went on to become a star at beauty pageants called cat shows both in Europe and in the US and became the second best of breed in the world the year she was shown in the Cat Fanciers’ Association. She was a gift to a dear friend, Pat Lichtenberg in south Georgia. Pepelka is Slovenian for “Cinderella” as ‘pepel’ translates to ‘ash’.

Cindy’s sidekick is another cat on fire

And yes, it had to be a red dress.

Unless the keyboards were sponsored by a predominantly English-speaking country, these guys should be able to locate said letters on there someplace and when it comes to the dreaded umlaut, perhaps they should learn from my favourite moose…

Just when I thought the Government Communication Office spelling Slovenia’s President as ‘Tuerk’ was a bit of an issue, I settled a real (or cyber, anyway) life issue with an American company’s live-chat tech-support guy. Let me quote his final words before the black screen sent him to oblivion… (Or possibly back to India.)

Tech Support Guy: “Thank you for all your patients.”

Hey, anytime

Culc, please shed some light on this green stuff?