The other day my family and I were at Toys R Us and I happened to notice one model kit in the entire store. The model was a snap together Tie Fighter. I asked one of the associates where the rest of their model section was and he responded that the Tie Fighter was all that remained. Over the past three years or so I noticed that WalMart and Target were seriously reducing their inventory of plastic model kits, but I had no idea that they would disappear from their shelves altogether! I can't even find model glue or paint at WalMart! My son told me that models have been replaced by Legos (at least for children). I'm only an occasional modeler, and I know that models are still available at hobby stores, but this strikes me as a very sad pattern.
Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes My rating: 5 of 5 stars A very immersive and thought-provoking story Why did I give this book 5 stars? What can I write about it? Well, I floated between 4 and 5 stars. What made me tip the scale was my immediate feeling that I was an observer in the story, not solely a reader. I found the transformation of the protagonist, Charlie Gordon - as illustrated by his writing in his progress reports - to be an especially effective narrative device. The story was so organic and straight-forward, that I felt transported to another time and place. Perhaps that result was also due to my empathy with the protagonist Charlie Gordon and my identification with the academic environment, where most of the narrative took place. Some members of my extended family are mentally challenged. I couldn't help but think of them when I read about Charlie. Also, my dad worked with mentally challenged young adults at a clinic when he was...
An interview with Syd Mead, futurist and concept artist for Blade Runner speaks about the Spinner Lego.
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