posted on June 21, 2003 09:56:16 AM new
Just drove a hundred miles one way for ours...went to pick up one pre-ordered copy and came away with three, plus the book on tape and a spiffy deluxe edition with better binding, artwork and a nice hard slipcase...guess I blew the Guinness budget until July!!
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What luck for the leaders that men do not think. - Adolph Hitler
posted on June 21, 2003 11:12:39 AM new
we'll see how much reading he actually gets done...he's on horseback 6 hours a day!
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What luck for the leaders that men do not think. - Adolph Hitler
posted on June 21, 2003 12:48:43 PM new
Prof - Any way I could talk you into adopting me and sending me to camp? I have not been riding in years.
Helen - I was watching Dateline interview with Rowlings ast night and they mentioned that the first printing on this book is 8 million. Does that make for a decent investment ? I would think that those kind of numbers would make it much to common.
Mario Andretti - “If everything seems under control, you're just not going fast enough.”
posted on June 21, 2003 01:22:13 PM new
You're probably right Neon. I was just trying to soothe the good professor after he blew his entertainment budget on Harry Potter. LOL!
posted on June 21, 2003 03:19:02 PM new
I think I'll keep the special edition in it's shrink wrap. I was thinking about that 8 million number myself and wondering if any of this installment would ever have collector value. I've decided they might, I've seen a lot of the previous ones get so thouroughly read and re-read, dog-eared and torn up that there may not be very many pristine ones left, in spite of the publication numbers. Don't forget, lots of them are going to families, almost all will get read and handed on to siblings and friends.
neon, I'm not sure you'd like this particular camp...they ride english dressage and jumping practice for three hours in the morning, have lunch, and then spend the afternoon roping calves. My daughter says her hermanito is doing fine, but he's so tired he nods off over his plate at dinner. The same thing happened to me when I went there a hundred years ago..only I didn't have a big sister to prop me up.. and the next summer I was begging to go back!
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What luck for the leaders that men do not think. - Adolph Hitler
posted on June 21, 2003 04:01:02 PM new
Prof - you may be right - I'm having flash backs to the joys of climbing stairs the day after that first day back on a horse many years ago. Add to that arm and shoulder pain from all those miscues at roping and I think the only thing I would want to ride the second day of camp would be a hot tub. I
t's hell when you realize your body is entering the age of maturity when your mind still wants to skip and play. Oh well, I can still hang with the camp pranks..... maybe I'll go to the roof and water bomb some tourists....
Mario Andretti - “If everything seems under control, you're just not going fast enough.”
[ edited by neonmania on Jun 21, 2003 04:02 PM ]
posted on June 22, 2003 02:25:10 PM new
Prof...the age of collectible books is gone. With 8.5 million copies printed, Harry Potter is is assured to never become a item. I work in the rare book industry, I know. In fact, within a few months, you will be able to buy a brand new copy for less than half of you bought it for today.
posted on June 22, 2003 09:01:35 PM new
That's ok, I didn't buy them as investments. I've always felt an unread book is sort of sad. I bought two copies for my classroom library, one for myself, the taped version for an upcoming long ride into Mexico, and one for my son. BTW, the taped versions are some of the best books on tape I think I've ever heard, next to Gary Paulsen reading his book "Woodsong".
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What luck for the leaders that men do not think. - Adolph Hitler
posted on June 23, 2003 11:15:17 AM new
I had pre-reserved a copy, but our local bookstore got things mixed up and gave away all its copies on Friday night (actually Sat. AM) even though they had promised they would allow reserved copies to be picked up later. Fortunately, my sister (not knowing I'd pre-reserved) picked up a copy for me when they went on sale, so I got it Saturday.
My impression was that it wasn't any scarier than Book 4, but it was incredibly dark. It definitely plays into the universal persecution complex of your average teen-ager.
profe51, My most painful horse-related memory is of going on a day-long trail ride in Aruba ... on a Paso Fino horse. All my riding up to that point (which was not much) had been done on a regular quarter horse, and nobody told me you weren't supposed to try to post. Finally my legs gave out from sheer exhaustion and only then did I realize I didn't have to!
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We do not see things as they are. We see them as we are.
------------The Talmud
[ edited by msincognito on Jun 23, 2003 11:22 AM ]
The last time I was on a horse I jumped on a horse I had never been on and followed the owner on a mad dash through the woods to confront and chase off some fellows who were trying to pouch on his land off season.
Along the way we jumped a downed tree. Quite a good stretch. Frankly further than I had ever accrued bonus miles before. When it was all done and we were back the fellow looked at me funny and said there's something you should know about that horse. I couldn't imagine what - he'd been a fine ride. He's never been jumped, he said.
I was extremely lucky he is a good follower and didn't set a new world record for the rider toss. Probably the only thing saved me was it was narrow and his nose was right on the other horses butt. He laughed later that this big Appelloosa got the twitchies everytime somebody saddled him for a week. Probably thought - Oh God, what today? I remember watching my first wife slowly train a horse to accept increasingly high and blind jumps and how many times it balked & refused for silly little high steps that you could see right over. Every now and then ya get a free one.
---When I reminded my wife of this story she said - I thought a couple years ago it was a paint. Are you sure it wasn't a John Deere. Now I ask you is that wifely respect???
[ edited by gravid on Jun 23, 2003 12:21 PM ]
posted on June 23, 2003 03:56:28 PM newEvery now and then ya get a free one.
It's a good thing, too. My daughter always has fun explaining how she got that 1/2 inch deep semi-circular dent in her shin, (kicked) and I've got a lump on my collarbone the size of a jumbo olive from being bucked off into a fence post, as well as other assorted dings. The fact that you didn't have time to tense up is what sent you and that horse successfully over that tree.
Are you sure it wasn't a John Deere?
My wife delights in telling people "that horse never bucked anybody off in her whole life, he fell"...you gotta love em
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What luck for the leaders that men do not think. - Adolph Hitler
