VLVL2(3): Van Meter

[David Morris]

--- Otto <ottosell at yahoo.de> wrote:
> 
> David, I think the first trilogy (_The Eye in the Pyramid, The Golden Apple,
Leviathan_) is well worth reading. Read it back in '79 lying naked on the
French Atlantic beaches, and it's at least funny and *entertaining* (had to
turn from the back to the belly every once in a while), and according to
Pynchon this is enough reason to read a book. I like it more than Umberto Eco's
"Foucault's Pendulum."

I read "The Illuminatus Trilogy," and consider it "light" reading.  Lots of
build-up culminating in disappointing ending.  I guess I would agree that it's
more fun than "Foucault's Pendulum," which wasn't great either.  Eco's not a
great writer, despite his reputation to the contrary.  Both of these books
explore overarching conspiracies, and reach opposite conclusions.  RAW reads
like Sci-Fi, and Eco reads like a know-it-all.
 

> He uses SNAFU* a lot which he took from _GR_:
> "A SNAFU FOR ROCKETMAN (...)." (377.35)
> 
> *Situation Normal All Fucked Up

Pynchon (and RAW) got SNAFU from US Army acronyms.  Here are some others:

http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_US_Army_acronyms

FIGMO - Fuck it, I've got my orders 
FUBAR - Fucked up beyond all recognition or Fucked up beyond all repair 
FUGAZI - Fucked Up, Got Ambushed, Zipped In 
FUMTU - (Things are) fucked up more than usual 
JANFU - Joint Army-Navy fuck-up 
REMF - Rear echelon mother fucker (i.e: a micromanaging, interfering back room
commander) 
RTFM - Read the fucking manual 
SNAFU - Situation normal, all fucked up 
SUSFU - Situation unchanged, still fucked up 
TARFU - Things are really fucked up 
WOFTAM - Waste of fucking time and money 


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