the stupid, it *burns*
Mar. 2nd, 2011 06:27 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
insanenekoI witnessed an amazing moment of group stupidity just now. I was waiting to cross a six lane street where it intersects a four lane street. Just as the light changes, I see an ambulance making its way on my side of the street. It looks like I might be in the way if I start crossing if the ambulance goes straight instead of turning to the four lane street, so I decide not to cross. Some others do the same. Many others, however, decide to cross. Some rush across. Others walk normally. Then they realize the ambulance is coming AT THEM. So what do they do? Freeze! Like about ten people, all freezing, so that they more or less completely block their side of the street. The clear side. The other side of the street is taken up by cars waiting at the stop light. The ambulance honks at them. They freeze for like a whole 30 seconds, at least. Long enough for a person standing next to me (safely out of the way on the curb) to comment, "Hello, move out of the way!" The frozen idiots finally unfreeze and scramble out of the way and the ambulance manages to keep moving.
I don't think I could ever be an ambulance driver. I might run over these kinds of people.
I've been meaning to mention Sprig Muslin, yet another Georgette Heyer book. I did end up somewhat enjoying it, but it was annoying in that the romance is not even close to the main point of the book. Also, annoying head-strong girl takes up a lot of the oxygen. The guy, Sir Gareth Ludlow, spends most of his time trying to control a wild young girl with an amazing imagination who has run away from her grandfather in order to force him to allow her to marry the guy she's in love with. Sir Gareth does ask the shy Lady Hester Theale to marry him, but she refuses. But when something happens to Gareth Lady Hester comes to help him out. When I first read the book I was tired of reading about another headstrong wild young girl with absolutely no idea of how the world actually works troubling the good adults who try to help her. There are just too many of these girls around, in my opinion. Also, not enough romance. But the book redeems itself from being complete crap mainly for two scenes.
I love how Amanda takes charge and Hildebrand faints when Hildebrand shoots Gary. And how Amanda, Hildebrand, Gary, and Hester become a family while Gary recovers from his injury. The best, though, is when Amanda makes up on the spot that Hester is Gary's "natural sister" (Gary's father's bastard child) when someone who knows Gary's family well comes to visit him and knows Hester is not Gary's sister sister. OMG SO FUNNY.
And the second combines the domesticity of the faux family scene and the ludicriousness of Amanda's ignorance of the world. Amanda's first plan, to make her grandfather give in to her demand to marry Neil, fails. So she proposes another one. What if Neil thinks she's been compromised by being alone with Uncle Gary? Won't he marry her then?
***
"...Well, if you stay all alone with a gentleman you lose your reputation at once, so if I pretended Aunt Hester and Hildebrand weren't here, wouldn't Neil feel that it was his duty to marry me, whatever Grandpapa says?"
"No, he would be more likely to feel that I must marry you, and you wouldn't like that, you know."
"No, of course I shouldn't, but you could refuse to marry me, couldn't you? That would put Neil in a fix!"
"Yes, indeed!" agreed Hester, with unruffled calm. "But I believe that he would think it his duty to challenge Uncle Gary to a duel, and although Uncle is much better, he isn't strong enough to fight a duel. You wouldn't wish him to overtax himself."
"No," Amanda said reluctantly. "Well, Hildebrand must be the one to do it. Hildebrand! Hildebrand!"
Hildebrand, lying on his stomach at some little distance from them, his fingers writhing amongs this disordered locks as he wrestled with literary composition, vouchsafed only an absent grunt.
"Hildebrand, would you be so obliging as to pretend to compromise me, and then refuse to marry me?" said Amanda cajolingly.
"No, can't you see I'm busy? Ask Uncle Gary!" said Hildebrand.
This was not encouraging, nor, when he was brought to attend to what was being said to him, did he return any more satisfactory answer. He recommended her not to be silly, and added that she didn't know what she was talking about.
"I think you are uncivil and disobliging!" said Amanda roundly.
"Oh, no, I'm sure he doesn't mean to be!" said Hester, looking round for her scissors. "I expect--oh, there they are! However did they come to get over there?--I expect he did not quite understand. Really, Hildebrand, you will only have to refuse to marry Amanda, and surely that is not much to ask?"
"Oh, I don't mind doing that!" he said, grinning.
"You are an unprincipled woman, Hester," Sir Gareth told her, at the earliest opportunity.
"Yes, I think I am," she agreed reflectively.
***
Yes, I had to type the entire scene out. It was brilliant! Hester really blooms away from her horrible family. I just wish...there was just a little bit more between her and Gary. *sighs* And a little less of Amanda in the first half of the book. ^^;
I don't think I could ever be an ambulance driver. I might run over these kinds of people.
I've been meaning to mention Sprig Muslin, yet another Georgette Heyer book. I did end up somewhat enjoying it, but it was annoying in that the romance is not even close to the main point of the book. Also, annoying head-strong girl takes up a lot of the oxygen. The guy, Sir Gareth Ludlow, spends most of his time trying to control a wild young girl with an amazing imagination who has run away from her grandfather in order to force him to allow her to marry the guy she's in love with. Sir Gareth does ask the shy Lady Hester Theale to marry him, but she refuses. But when something happens to Gareth Lady Hester comes to help him out. When I first read the book I was tired of reading about another headstrong wild young girl with absolutely no idea of how the world actually works troubling the good adults who try to help her. There are just too many of these girls around, in my opinion. Also, not enough romance. But the book redeems itself from being complete crap mainly for two scenes.
I love how Amanda takes charge and Hildebrand faints when Hildebrand shoots Gary. And how Amanda, Hildebrand, Gary, and Hester become a family while Gary recovers from his injury. The best, though, is when Amanda makes up on the spot that Hester is Gary's "natural sister" (Gary's father's bastard child) when someone who knows Gary's family well comes to visit him and knows Hester is not Gary's sister sister. OMG SO FUNNY.
And the second combines the domesticity of the faux family scene and the ludicriousness of Amanda's ignorance of the world. Amanda's first plan, to make her grandfather give in to her demand to marry Neil, fails. So she proposes another one. What if Neil thinks she's been compromised by being alone with Uncle Gary? Won't he marry her then?
***
"...Well, if you stay all alone with a gentleman you lose your reputation at once, so if I pretended Aunt Hester and Hildebrand weren't here, wouldn't Neil feel that it was his duty to marry me, whatever Grandpapa says?"
"No, he would be more likely to feel that I must marry you, and you wouldn't like that, you know."
"No, of course I shouldn't, but you could refuse to marry me, couldn't you? That would put Neil in a fix!"
"Yes, indeed!" agreed Hester, with unruffled calm. "But I believe that he would think it his duty to challenge Uncle Gary to a duel, and although Uncle is much better, he isn't strong enough to fight a duel. You wouldn't wish him to overtax himself."
"No," Amanda said reluctantly. "Well, Hildebrand must be the one to do it. Hildebrand! Hildebrand!"
Hildebrand, lying on his stomach at some little distance from them, his fingers writhing amongs this disordered locks as he wrestled with literary composition, vouchsafed only an absent grunt.
"Hildebrand, would you be so obliging as to pretend to compromise me, and then refuse to marry me?" said Amanda cajolingly.
"No, can't you see I'm busy? Ask Uncle Gary!" said Hildebrand.
This was not encouraging, nor, when he was brought to attend to what was being said to him, did he return any more satisfactory answer. He recommended her not to be silly, and added that she didn't know what she was talking about.
"I think you are uncivil and disobliging!" said Amanda roundly.
"Oh, no, I'm sure he doesn't mean to be!" said Hester, looking round for her scissors. "I expect--oh, there they are! However did they come to get over there?--I expect he did not quite understand. Really, Hildebrand, you will only have to refuse to marry Amanda, and surely that is not much to ask?"
"Oh, I don't mind doing that!" he said, grinning.
"You are an unprincipled woman, Hester," Sir Gareth told her, at the earliest opportunity.
"Yes, I think I am," she agreed reflectively.
***
Yes, I had to type the entire scene out. It was brilliant! Hester really blooms away from her horrible family. I just wish...there was just a little bit more between her and Gary. *sighs* And a little less of Amanda in the first half of the book. ^^;
