"Polka will never die!"

And in today's grand tradition of posting links and not much else, I'd like to a) point you all to Jim Butcher's site and b) pose the following question: why isn't everyone reading his books?

Is it because of the sci-fi genre thing? The magic thing? It certainly can't be because of the funny thing. Or the really good writing thing. Because his books are awesome. Especially the Harry Dresden files. Of which I'm reading the seventh, and latest in the series, Dead Beat.

I <3 Harry!

Oh, and I <3 Bob. Bob is the shitnit! And Thomas. And Butters. "P-P-Polka will never die!" Heh. And Mouse. There's something fishy about that dog, but fishy in a good way, and I love him for it.

But Harry man, Harry kicks major bad guy ass. And manages to converse in snappy dialogue while doing it. Which endears me to a fictional character to no end!

Harry's this wizard you see (no, not the Hogwarts one - this one lives in Chicago), who has more than his share of carry-on baggage, and one of his best friends, a girl he doesn't realize he's crushing on (totally crushing - poor Harry - heh), is threatened by this big baddie who Harry has to work for or else, and in the middle of doing this work, which is to find something you don't want a big baddie to have, he runs into these other big baddies in great big wizard robes, demanding that he hand over something that's a part of the thing he has to find. At one point, one of the bad guys says something to Harry and, in grand Harry style, Harry says to him, "Touche, O dark master of evil bathrobes."

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA...haha...ha...

... ha ...

Okay. Trust me on this, it's a LOT funnier when read in context. But still, come on! Calling a bad guy a master of evil bathrobes? Pure comedy genius!

I've laughed/howled/cackled out loud (and I do mean loud) several times so far , and I'm still not done with the book yet. Damn you only-thirty-minutes-long lunch breaks!

And while I laugh at Harry and some of the other characters (esp. Bob) right now I really want to smack some sense into Harry. You know you're reading a really good book when you're so emotionally invested in the story and the characters that you scream "what the hell do you think you're doing" at a silly ol' inanimate object. Yes, I know the characters aren't real. Yes, I know the author made the character make a really stupid mistake because it gives the character more... er... character, and it makes for interesting possibilities for books to come, but... but... argghh! Why'd you do it Harry? Why?

Have I mentioned that I love these books? That'd I'd marry them if I could and have wild book orgies with them and... uh... No? I haven't mentioned that before?

I <3 the Harry Dresden files!

On a very off topic note...

Listing to Sarah Brightman renditions of Andrew Lloyd Webber songs is a VERY dangerous thing to do at work. I have this barely-controllable urge to sing out at the top of my lungs, "don't cry for me argentinaaaaaaaaaaah..." and I just can't do that. At least not here at work, where I have to appear professional and on task and busy and shit. Hopefully I've got the cassette tape* of someone else singing ALW songs in my car. (*Yes, I'm still in the stone age of automobile tunage, shaddup!) Then I can sing all I want on the way home and the only people staring and wondering if I'm sane or not will be strangers in passing cars and who cares about them.

Touuuuuch meeee! It's so eeeeeasy to leaaaaave me....