David's Blague

John H. Conway's Book of Numbers is pretty, and the book is clever. Even after a second read, I still don't quite grok some of the Conway Games (e.g. Hackenbush), but I think I just need to circle back to Winning Ways for your Mathematical Plays or On Numbers and Games.

I love this book. I even love puzzling over the parts I don't immediately get. I love the pictures, tricks, colors, shapes, and games. I love the numbers.

I keep this book next to my bed.

Conway brings joy to numbers, even the weird, semi-rational, trans-real, surreal, hypothetical, imaginary ones that fill the last few chapters of this book. I still haven't learned anything about infinity from the last chapter (which is why I bought the book in the first place), but I'm confident that after puzzling through it a bit longer, I will.

I want desperately to play a game of Nim with him, which I will play optimally and lose, but it won't matter. Then we will decide to eat lunch, which I will buy, and he will ask to see pictures of my kids, and I will ask about his thrackle conjecture. Afterward, we will correspond via email periodically, and have lunch whenever he is in town, or vice versa.

And as for stars- he can have as many as he would like, arranged in whatever pattern he deems most pleasing.