I’ve been reading quite a bit lately, though not a lot has left a bit enough impression for me to write about… I burned through a bunch of Terry Pratchett, and while I love him, his books are like delicious bon-bons for me.

After I finished my latest book I realized I really should take some notes on what I’ve been reading to share. 

**The Rook **- Daniel O’Malley

The book opens with our main character opening her eyes for the first time - her memory haas been wiped - surrounded by corpses, with a letter from the previous-occupant of that body in her pocket. Turns out, she worked for a supernatural spy agency, with a mole. 

I really enjoyed The Rook. The main character is likeable, and the writing is quite good. I have some qualms about the last quarter, but not nearly enough to make me question reading more, when it appears. 

**Ancillary Justice, Ancillary Sword **- Ann Leckie

I don’t want to say too much about these two; I am of the opinion that the more blank you go into the first one, the better the first book plays out. What I will say is that Leckie is building a fantastically interesting science fiction universe, and I enjoyed both books. 

I found the second book to be a smidge weaker, but I think that is because I have a feeling it is really part 1 of a larger book. 

The Golem and the Jini - Helene Wecker

The lives of two magical creatures, a Golem and a Jini, cross in turn of the (20th) century New York. A really satisfying read drawing from two different historical mythologies. I found there was a small section that dragged on too long, but the book was redeemed by the ending. 

Good Omens - Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett

I thought I had read this before, but about half-way through I was convinced I’d never seen it before. 

Unfortunately, I seem to be the outlier. I didn’t particularly enjoy this book. I have loved much that each author has done individually, but… I don’t know. It’s hard to summarize simply why this one didn’t do it for me, but, at the end of the book I was more relieved that it was over than happy I’d had the ride. Could just be me. 

So my wrists decided to chime in yesterday, informing me ‘You haven’t been taking very good care of yourself!’

Though I actually disagree, I think it’s better I listen to my ‘money-makers’. So, today I paid more attention to posture, to wrist position. I tried to move and stretch much more. 

Everything helps!

It’s hard to believe it’s late September here. I’ve been sitting out on the balcony in my pyjamas every chance I get, reading and enjoying the hell out of the warm sun. 

It’ll be terribly sad when it gets too cold or too rainy to be outside on the weekends. Working inside all the time I’ve developed quite the appreciation for any time I can get in the sun. 

This morning I got up well before sunrise – in fact, it’s not scheduled for another couple of minutes. It’s too bad, as I really enjoyed mid-August, when the sun rose just before I did. No amount of coffee can beat being woken by sunrise. 

I’m not excited for December. Most days I will be on the bus to work when the sun rises, and still in the office when the sun sets. 

Well, my one month anniversary at work went by without a hitch. I am getting stuff done, slower than I want, but probably at an OK pace. 

We are settling in, slowly but surely. We have a couch now, and the home office is setup. I haven’t really done anything in there though. 

I want to do a longer post later, but for now, let’s leave this here.  

So, I meant to write something longer, but I don’t think longer is really necessary. 

After finishing my masters, I have started a new journey, working for IBM Canada in JIT compilation. This blog continues, but, as expected thoughts are my own (though I expect rarely to speak as an IBMer). 

I’m on the bus now, headed towards my sixth day of work. Week one went well, if a little slow due to setup and catchup. I hope this week I will hit a good working speed. 

Onwards I go!  

I thought about writing a blog post about the move. But why do that, when Andrea has done it much better?

Here’s my photos though!

Boxes, lots of boxes

Boxes

Another view, more boxes. 

Pod Unloading 1

Pod Unloading 2

Pod Unloading 3

Reloading the full pod

Nervous

A nervous Andrea enroute to Toronto

North York City Centre

Mall attached to our hotel in North York.

Unbelievable paint

One of the places we saw; Gorgeous, but with a deal breaker of a paint job.

More crazy paint

More insane paint. 

First eyes

Walking into the place for the first time

Already impressed

I can’t recall, but I think Andrea had just about decided to take it already by this point. 

Laundry!

A bit of swearing, but I love this place.