VERDICT: REDUX

I spent another seven hours today at the hospital, where I learned that I'll need two surgeries instead of just one. But that's enough about surgery. I'm tired of it already and the first one isn't until next week. I'm also tired of people telling me how "lucky" I am that it wasn't worse and/or that things "can only get better" from here. I'm staying positive, but I'm also acutely aware that life itself has no memory. Just because something bad happened last week doesn't mean something worse won't happen next week; however, next week is going to be totally awesome. I can feel it.

I read Thomas Pynchon's "Gravity's Rainbow" today in the waiting room. I made it through 71 pages in approximately four or five hours of waiting. Not a stellar pace. Especially not for a book that's nearly 800 pages. It's critically acclaimed by some, but I'm not surprised that the Pulitzer board declared the book, "unreadable, turgid, overwritten and obscene."

I'm not sure about obscene, but it is definitely unreadable. On the broken other hand, some have called it the greatest work of literature in the 20th century. To each his own, but I will not be continuing the Pynchon journey. Please let me off at the next stop.

Can you tell I'm getting better at typing with one hand?

This past weekend I read two other books, both by Robert Littell: "The Defection of A.J. Lewinter" and "The Once and Future Spy." Neither were as good as Littell's "The Company," which remains as maybe the most enjoyable book I've ever read, but each was enjoyable in its own way. Lewinter covers the cat-and-mouse disinformation of espionage whereas Future Spy focuses more on morality and patriotism. You could read either in two sittings.

Next I might read Tom Robbins. Not sure yet.