Hummingbird Salamander
A cryptic note leads to the discovery of a stuffed hummingbird which, in turn, serves as the first clue to a gripping mystery – and the first step in an obsessive investigation.
An unpredictable character-driven eco-thriller from author Jeff Vandermeer.
I almost gave myself a concussion yesterday. I say “almost” because I wouldn’t really know, having never had a concussion. Also, I don’t want to be presumptuous and assume concussed status given the no doubt numerous actually concussed individuals battling nausea, dizziness, and headaches. I mean, I suffered all three of the aforementioned symptoms after the heavy stairwell door slammed me in the temple, but received no official designation from a health care professional. Akemi did, however, advise me to take a couple of Tylenols which certainly helped.
Oooh, look at what I found…
I leave you with one of my favorite scenes from Dark Matter’s second season. FIVE demonstrating her entrepreneurial spirit…
Go to bed early today. Have a good rest and you’ll be fine.
See, I would never have given him that much money. I live by one rule when it comes to lending – don’t lend more than you can afford to lose. So, if someone asks me for $100…I’ll give them $20. I can afford to lose $20…but not $100. And I’ll give them the money and say, “I can’t lend you that much because I don’t have it, but I can give you $20, no need to pay it back.” If they pay it back, fine…if they don’t, fine. And if they come back for more (and I think it may become a habit), I will not lend nor give more money a second time. Break the cycle before it begins, because once it begins they’ll never stop, and they’ll start to expect it, and get angry if they don’t get it.
And about that ‘concussion’ – if one pupil is larger than the other, it might be a concussion (nausea and dizziness may occur later). My main concern wouldn’t be a concussion, but a slow brain bleed. Those suckers sneak up on you and if not caught in time, often lead to death. Not trying to scare you or anything…
das
So how do I address that possibility, doc?
You’d be dead by now. Obviously, your hard head is both a figurative thing, and a literal thing. 🙂
(My niece was in a car accident a few years back. She wasn’t wearing her seatbelt and bounced all over the inside of her car. She ended up with a bad concussion, unable to tolerate light, noise – including conversations, music, tv, texting, or anything else that involved her eyes and ears. It took her over a year to recover from it, but she still has issues at times. At least she can drive now and do other things that she couldn’t do for well over a year after the accident. I may joke a bit, but concussions are really a serious matter…nearly as serious as a deadly brain bleed.)
das
I thought when you get a concussion you are not suppose to sleep. In all the TV shows and movies that is when they are yelling… “Don’t go to sleep!” “Stay with me Joe!” “Talk to me Joe!” “Don’t fall asleep!” “Keep talking to me!” “Tell me about your favorite restaurant in Japan Joe!”
You haven’t been sleeping have you? Oh….oh my!
Fortunately, rather than sleep, I’ve merely been resting my eyes for hours at a time.
There’s an explanation for why you can get concussed over motions that seem innocuous – rotational energy. You can take a really forceful slam straight-on to the noggin’ and be okay relative to an off-center bonk that rotates your head. In the first case, the brain blobs its way through spinal fluid and bounces off the skull, which is mostly brain-shaped. In the second case of your head rotating suddenly, your brain is immediately feeling that jolt, experiencing much more damaging shear forces. This is where you get the “glass jaw” idea, someone getting “easily” knocked out, whereas the guy who lets the big roundhouse punch get through looks tougher in comparison because he doesn’t go down. I wish I understood this back when I was trying to knock people out and not get knocked out myself for sport.
Also, the temple hurts to get hit.
Speaking of concussions, I’m still reeling and walking into doors from Vandermeer’s last trilogy. Does he take it a little easier this time?
I see. Interesting explanation, DP. Thanks.
As for the new Vandermeer book – it’s surprisingly more more grounded in present reality than his previous works, a more straightforward narrative but still very much true to the thriller genre.
Glad you relied on Dr. Akemi’s advice!