changing of the perilous gard
Aug. 30th, 2004 10:36 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
calimacThe Olympics are over (I think). The Republican convention has started. Isn't August supposed to be the slow news month?
One piece of news today I could really have done without.![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
supergee reports that George Flynn has died. George was one of those quiet, unprepossessing people (indeed, it was hard to make out what he was saying) whose facade hid a mighty brain. Others may speak of his role in NESFA Press publications, but to me he was the dean of Hugo administrators, the person above all others whom I relied on for historical data and wise & learned advice when I took on the job myself. Once when George and I were in conclave with an upcoming Hugo administrator, I learned that he and I had made the same joke: asked on first taking the job not to repeat our predecessors' mistakes, we each promised to make only new, original mistakes.
I have no idea whether George would appreciate this or not - some people share my tastes in music, some don't - but I happened to be listening to a Schumann song called "Requiem" when I read this. I subscribe to BBC Music magazine in large part because each issue comes with a CD that often conveniently plugs a hole in my collection. This month it's a collection of miscellaneous pieces by Schumann, one of my favorite composers. I already have several recordings of the Piano Quintet (would've preferred the Quartet, which I don't have on CD), but I'd somehow missed the Papillons (one of his early "miniature suites" for piano) and these Lieder. Very nice recordings, and good music to listen to while musing on mortality.
One piece of news today I could really have done without.
supergee reports that George Flynn has died. George was one of those quiet, unprepossessing people (indeed, it was hard to make out what he was saying) whose facade hid a mighty brain. Others may speak of his role in NESFA Press publications, but to me he was the dean of Hugo administrators, the person above all others whom I relied on for historical data and wise & learned advice when I took on the job myself. Once when George and I were in conclave with an upcoming Hugo administrator, I learned that he and I had made the same joke: asked on first taking the job not to repeat our predecessors' mistakes, we each promised to make only new, original mistakes.I have no idea whether George would appreciate this or not - some people share my tastes in music, some don't - but I happened to be listening to a Schumann song called "Requiem" when I read this. I subscribe to BBC Music magazine in large part because each issue comes with a CD that often conveniently plugs a hole in my collection. This month it's a collection of miscellaneous pieces by Schumann, one of my favorite composers. I already have several recordings of the Piano Quintet (would've preferred the Quartet, which I don't have on CD), but I'd somehow missed the Papillons (one of his early "miniature suites" for piano) and these Lieder. Very nice recordings, and good music to listen to while musing on mortality.
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Date: 2004-08-31 01:10 pm (UTC)Also, thanks for the tip on BBC magazine. I'm going to check it out.
It seems that with the war in Iraq, the Olympics, the conventions for both parties, and the Presidential campaign, there's been nothing slow about this summer with regard to news. When I go away on vacation, I don't listen to the news or read newspapers so I can really get away from it all. It's harder for me to do when I have time off and I'm still in town.