Birthing

Christmas came and went -- on the radio, of course, they are already on to the New Year.  It was good...ate too much (more cardio at the gym today to not even closely make up for it) and got some nice swag, mainly books, snacks, and gym clothes...  I figure I should eat up the leftovers by the New Year, when I can get more.

Watched "Ella Cinders" today to get to 499...good, funny...silent from the 20s based on famous comic strip, basically Cinderella meets the modern times.  I was thinking about what to do after this week when I hit/surpass 500; I mean, I could slow the pace down and work on other things, or do I get as close to the now 700 ASAP?  I could split the difference on concentrate on shorts...

The reason to watch less films is of course books...I have a pile from the library and got a bunch for Xmas...now I am in the middle of Jaffa's Crisis of the House Divided, which looks in-depth at the Lincoln-Douglas debates -- a philosophical breakdown of their beliefs...interesting, and I am learning a lot more about Douglas...For instance, the idea that the US should be a beacon of democracy was a hallmark of the US during that time, with a big debate over how far that could go...not that this means anything now, of course.   :)  Or, Douglas was fairly anti-slavery...but felt that more stringent attacks on it would only egg on Southerners...and that no one wanted the free Negroes in Illinois, and any strong advocacy of their cause would have implied he wanted them there...interesting....