The Library

Tuesday 10/17/06
2030

This morning when I wrote "Wind Sprints" I was optimistic that I'd be up and running on an Army computer in my office by around noon, and be able to post all my entries from there. I wish! Everything takes longer than you think it will.

I did manage to actually get a computer by the end of the day, but it was too late to actually get hooked into the network. So my plan was to set it up and the IMO is coming in the morning to help me get set up on the network. One problem - the brand new Dell was missing a power cord! Just bad luck - somebody at the factory made a mistake, and I got it on the downstream end. So tomorrow's plan is already blown - first I have to scrounge a power cord. But we'll manage somehow, and I'll finally be able to start getting email and posting my blog entries from there in my free time.

Meanwhile, I finally found a reasonable place to get on the internet - the post library. I knew all along they had computers, but foolishly assumed they'd have the same policies as the library in Korea. In desperation I finally came here and asked them, and surprise! I'm allowed to use my memory stick to upload text I've already typed in on my own computer. So I can compose my entries on my own laptop in my room, then bring the thumb drive to the library and upload them from here. Same with photos. It's a bit cumbersome, but it's free and it works.

Unfortunately they don't allow IM chatting, so I'm still stuck there. But the paid internet connections currently available here are just not up to speed and are a waste. So I'll have to wait for a better solution.

Meanwhile, I *finally* got all my photos loaded into the Sunday 10/15 entry. Remember to click on them for detailed descriptions that are not in the main blog entry.

Well, time to relax a little bit. I just checked out Robert A. Heinlein's "Starship Troopers" from the library and plan to read it next. My new commander sees it as a good paradigm for today's Army, and it is our assigned reading for this quarter. I've already read it at least three times, so the book is an old friend. But I'll enjoy it again, I'm sure. If you've seen the movie, it is *not* the same as the book - hardly anything at all like it. I think the movie was a travesty, and should not even have taken the title. Whereas the movie was just a typical grade B action flick set in the future, the book is much more sophisticated and thoughtful about the realities of a sustained conflict against an alien culture. Vintage Heinlein, and very high quality.

Mood: Good
Music: Nena - Fragezeichen