A Serpentine Landscape

( Cut for photos, personal rambling, and a little TMI )

Finally, a request: recommendations for English (the country, not just the language) books written between 1820 and 1890. Sometime in there the word "nice" went from meaning "excessively particular" to meaning roughly what it does today, and I'm interested in reading the nuances of the change, if such a thing can be done.

Thank you, and good night!

A definition that popped into my head during a recent meeting; not at all incompatible with the uncapitalized definition:

Plutocracy:
A form of government characterized by the very specific and inhospitable birthplace origin of its principals: i.e. "Everyone who has any power around here acts like he's from another planet - this must be a Plutocracy!"

Also, a charming and devilish poem.

Finally, a phrase I should remember next time I want to spend way too much effort on buying a tiny bit of decor for my home: "bridge lamp shade."