Lily is in the Newspaper [Jim]

In case you are not a regular reader of Dilbert, then a) you should be, and b) you do not want to miss reading the strip for October 2. You can find it at www.dilbert.com under comic archives. This strip is noteworthy because it is, as far as we know, the first time that Lily has ever appeared as a character in a major comic strip. Of course, the author kindly altered Lily’s appearance in the comic, but don’t let that fool you—Lily is obviously the one talking in that strip.

In other news:

1. Durga Puja is at an end. Pictures and commentary coming soon.

2. The fantasy baseball championship game has ended. I won 7-6. Boy, was it close. How close? Well, if over the whole two weeks my batters had one less hit or one more out, Craig would have won. Similarly, if Craig’s batters had one more hit or one fewer out, he would have won. On the pitching side, Craig would have won if I had had one fewer, or Craig had one more, win, save or hold.

3. The promised World Series prediction: Yankees win. The NL is a mess; oddly I can imagine any one of the 4 being the sacrificial lamb for the Yankees at this point. I guess I’ll stick with the Mets as my favorite, though without Pedro they are going to have a rough time. The Padres may be able to take them if they pitch well enough; the Dodgers could win if they get lucky and the Cardinals…well, who knows what is up with them. I’m afraid it is going to be a sad year for the NL. Alas.

4. I am *not* talking about it. I am in complete denial.

5. Book Reports:

1. Forster, A Passage to India

I figured it was about time I read this book. It is good, but not quite Great. He does a good job catching many of the nuances of Indian culture; I have no idea whether his portrayal of the British is accurate or not—there aren’t many Britishers (as they are called here) left.

2. Bond, A Bear Called Paddington

I picked this up for Clara to read, and decided to reread it. I haven’t read one of his books since I was a kid. I love Paddington Bear. I think I am going to reread the rest of the series.

3. LeCarre, The Secret Pilgrim

LeCarre is a lot like Graham Greene, but long since he got pegged as a Genre Writer and thus gets lumped with Ludlum, Clancy and the like. This book was rather good; it is more a series of short stories strung together, but it works very well. His style is actually well-suited to the shorter form. George Smiley gets a fair amount of time in the book too. Smiley is a truly great literary character.