There was a movie made that did bits and pieces of the novel pretty well, with James Garner playing Samuel Langhorne Clemens. The novel is quite a look at the writer’s westward experiences, all the way out to Hawaii.

Was waiting for all the Picards to come out so I could binge. Now it is free for the next month! https://www.space.com/watch-star-trek-picard-free-patrick-stewart-gift.html

My brother and I were discussing your last point earlier today. (I call a sibling a day, rest on the seventh.) The internet and mass media have put a whole new wrinkle into isolation. And into how to tackle a pandemic. The 1918 Flu was full blown before people were really aware of it. I saw a discussion the other day that late-stage boomers and GenXers were raised to be alone and take care of themselves. Me, I’m on the cusp, a Camelot baby, I’ve known both the internet age and the before times.

What did Hunter Thompson say? “When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro.”

Currently struggling with William Gibson’s “The Peripheral”, first volume in a new trilogy. Blurb sounded interesting, and I’m a longtime fan; but I’m unexpectedly struggling with rocky prose and a disjointed story line. I’ve lost track of the characters, and looking for contextual clues everywhere. Not what I expected from Gibson.

Some Charles Stross “Laundry” novels, and a three-pack of Octavia Butler lined up. I think next, though, I’ll tackle Phillip Pullman’s “His Dark Materials”, a.k.a. “The Golden Compass”. It’s considered a children’s story, but we know how flexible that category can be, especially in sci-fi/fantasy. I was enthralled by HBO’s adaption of the first volume into a television show. It stars a young actress named Daphne Keen, and her performance was magnificent–four feet tall and bigger than life. Since she’s playing an 11-year old, they’ve already greenlit the remaining volumes/seasons, because the actress is at that age when her appearance changes daily. They’d need a new star if they waited too long. Remember Hermione in the later Harry Potter films?

And of course there’s lots of streaming video. I dumped Netflix and picked up HBO, and that’s been well worth it–deep catalog. Also got CBS All Access to watch the new Star Treks, and while CBS also has a deep catalog, it’s 99% drek. I’ll probably cancel when “Picard” wraps up.

Can you imagine being quarantined/self-isolated back when we were young? Mass entertainment was movie theaters–closed; three TV networks–vapid; and libraries and bookstores–closed. My god, remember daytime TV? We’re lucky to be shut in at this point in history, aren’t we?