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| Now that much of the family has been called or directly e-mailed, I will put this here: my grandma had an appendectomy this evening at the hospital nearest us. It went as well as "you are 77 years old and unexpectedly need your appendix out right this minute" can go, and she is resting as comfortably as the hospital staff can manage. (We loff their nurses. Truly. Also Grandma's surgeon was really excellent.) She will be in the hospital several days while they make sure all is going well in various ways.
I was down there tonight after she got out of surgery and have seen her and talked to her and reassured myself.
Dear 2009: I never thought your antics were cute and funny. Never. Not even for a day, because that first day? That was the day you took Aunt Donna. We are so over you, 2009.
My grandma appreciates prayer, but she is not averse to warm thoughts, positive wishes, etc., either. I've disabled comments because I'd much rather converse on e-mail right now. | |
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| Criminal Minds 5x10, "The Slave of Duty," written by Rick Dunkle, directed by Charles Haid. ( I'm a Girl Genius. )I would just like to say that, looking ahead, I am totally geeked that they are doing an episode entitled "The Uncanny Valley" and i really wish I knew who was writing/directing. And I am also geeked that Jim Clemente is doing another ep for them. Win. | |
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| Greetings from snailsville, where the snails are having fun with some charms, and still thinking about meteorites a lot. Here are your shinies, direct from the Lioness: ( Oooh. Shiny! ) | |
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| Kjitten just knocked over the lamp on my dresser. And then dematerialized, as kjittens can. This is his second lamp this week. ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) colomon, mandolinjen, what's that thing you say? "For pretty, not for smart?" | |
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| So I had carrot cake and milk for dinner (what? It's veggies!) and I am having bourbon and tea for dessert. Being a grownup has its advantages. I did indeed attempt that (unrated, but ptobably a 5.8) route on the skywall tonight--twice; the second time I got two holds higher than the first. But I failed to unclip the pro without pumping out and losing my grip, and once you're off this sucker you ain't getting back on. I think I can do it, though--I made it up the overhung part and started the transition to the vertical, and this particular route goes up the corner rather than across the roof, which is much, MUCH more doable. Monday we try again. As warmup for that, I did the easist 5.6 I could find (really did not want to get pumped) and then I went out back and did a moderately overhung 5.8, though not the one on the big wall (which I really need tocome back to). I finished the night on the slab, because I fell twice on the crux on that second 5.8 (turned out the trick was to stop messing around with the feet and just go big on the left foot left hand, because the right foot I was trying to step up on was useless except to balance against) and the second time I fell I almost stuck it... which is, of course, how you hurt yourself. Anyway, I tried a pink route that Jeff suggested (It's not rated yet, and I had been avoiding it because it looked sketchy and out of my price range) and I sent it. Not without falls, and I did not do the headwall with elegance, but I sent it. Then I dropped down the headwall and kept working on that move on the yellow route on the same rope that still defeats me... and was defeated by it. However, when I went over to check the "how do you rate this?" wall, it turns out that more than 50% of respondants were calling the pink one a 5.10-... which means, if the rating sticks, it will be my first 5.10. Here are some photos of the skywall, by the way, so you can see what a beast it is. This is the front room's old paint job: it's much prettier now, having been done in red rock murals some time back. That horrible thing you can see off right in the second photo (the one taken from an elevation--which is to say, the stairs up to the bouldering cave) is the barrel vault, famed in song and bitching. The part you can see in this photo, where it bulges out there, is on top of ten feet of steep overhang. The red route I have been talking about, the balancy one that's all splits and stemming, is in that back right corner there. , The route I am working on goes up the vertical wall on the right of the Sky Wall, crosses the overhang at the top (there where it's in shadow), goes up that corner alongside the roof, and then straight up the vertical. I may be figuring out this climbing thing. I am pretty pleased with me tonight.   | |
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| Last night’s event at Third Place Books was my very first solo bookstore venture,* so I confess I was nervous about it. Besides my usual What-If-Nobody-Shows-Up? insecurities, the weather was a thrilling 16 degrees by event time, which might as well be NEGATIVE A BILLION DEGREES in Seattle — where it rarely gets below freezing.
And yet … much to my personal astonishment, we hit standing room only, and the crowd was great! In fact, I feel like I leveled up a bit as an author, because this was the first reading/Q&A where I knew literally no one except the folks who’d shared a ride over with me (Caitlin, Suezie, and the guy to whom I’m married). Don’t get me wrong — I am immensely grateful to my friends when they show up for these things; it’s a relief and a comfort to have familiar faces in the audience. But this definitely felt like a shift, somehow — like word is getting out, and the book is gaining traction outside the usual circles. And I hope it bodes well for the future. [:: crosses fingers ::]
The aforementioned Suezie took pictures. You can see them here on her LiveJournal, presented with commentary.
My favorite audience member of the night was the teenage girl who announced that I was now the second of two cool authors she read, who nobody else had ever heard of. The first … was Clive Barker. I nearly peed with delight! What an awesome reader :)
Many thanks to the folks at Third Place Books for hosting the event, and hosting it so marvelously; and thanks also to everyone who braved the weather in order to come join us!
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Things are kind of hectic over here still, between holiday travel plans and trying to get all my work commitments up to speed before Christmas. However, today I handed Bloodshot over to its editor; I filled out and mailed off two sets of contracts for other (shorter) projects; and I got started on the Dreadnought rewrites that need to go back by the 24th. Perhaps, by New Year’s, I’ll actually have my head above water. I might survive this season yet!
In celebration, I give you links:
- Updated Appearances Page - Because in the last couple of days I’ve agreed to do a few more events — and of course, I’ve had to cross off everything from this year. Third Place Books was my last event of 2009!
- War Rocket Ajax interview, live and loud - Click to hear us natter on about everything from New Jack Swing to barbecue, and Boneshaker, and steampunk, and everything else but the kitchen sink. Thanks again to Chris and Euge for … well … just for being so freakin’ cool.
- A sneak peak at something cool - Via John Joseph Adams, and presented with all his qualifiers. (But *cough cough* check out that cover!)
- Many thanks to Powell’s Books - For naming Boneshaker a staff selection for children and young adults. If you’ve been wondering about picking up this book for a young person, but you’re not sure if it’s appropriate — feel free to consult this FAQ over on the Clockwork Century, wherein I address the matter.
- Obama Weather - Because it amused me, okay? Plug in your city and dress up the president accordingly. [LOL!]
* The event at 15th Ave. Coffee and Tea was solo also, but it was also part of the art walk. And it wasn’t at a bookstore — so in addition to me reading there was food, beverages, party music, and prizes. So, 100% awesome, yes; but not representative of the more low-key events I do at bookstores.
[Crossposted to/from my website. If you'd like to comment, you can do so either here or there.] | |
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| http://whatever.scalzi.com/2009/12/09/a-seasonal-note-of-some-relevance-for-parents-of-children-ages-two-through-five/ http://whatever.scalzi.com/?p=9324 
You know that thing where your kid sings “Jingle BELLS, Jingle BELLS, Jingle BELLS, Jingle BELLS, Jingle BELLS, Jingle BELLS, Jingle BELLS, Jingle BELLS,” in an overexuberant yet tuneless manner for six hours straight? Yes, well, in the future it will seem more adorable in retrospect than it is right at the moment. So at least you have that to look forward to.
You’re welcome.
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| Photos of the new shinies: all taken!
Not uploaded yet, but all taken. I am optimistic about New Shinies being posted tonight.
To celebrate, I am going to go make something else. Like maybe another decant holder, or something with Roman glass. Hmm. Maybe both. | |
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| More young adults in 20s and 30s living with parents than in past 20 years. Thirtysomethings unable to get toehold on property ladder choose to stay in family home, says ONS
And, on the one hand, one thinks that twenty years is pretty much a blip in historical time and for vast swathes of even the C20th, people lived at home with their parents until they got married - and, in times of housing shortage or high rents, even after they got married.
But on the other, and coming from a different generation, things that strike me:
Presumably there is no longer the cheap rented bedsit accommodation of the 60s and 70s, basic though it was.
And, perhaps even more, that if one left home, to go to university, for work reasons, or to travel - you left. The cord was cut. You did not have the constant presence of a mobile phone - when I went to university my parents didn't even have a phone - and you thought twice about making a long distance call. You certainly didn't have email and IM and Facebook to keep in touch. You were on your own in ways that perhaps people aren't any more, though here I'm going on anecdotal evidence like the friend who told me that she was getting a bit niggled by her daughter constantly ringing her up from university, like every day and sometimes more than once a day.
So, perhaps a generation which has not had that - and maybe also had the ongoing 'helicopter parenting' thing going on? - doesn't feel in quite the same way that it would be some kind of regression and admission of failure to go back to living in the parental home.
(Also, perhaps parental attitudes to what adult offspring can get up to while living under the family roof have changed?)
And on the prehensile tail, I'm intrigued that it is blokes who are disproportionately going home to Mum and hot meals and the washing machine. So much for evpsych and man as explorer and hunter and pathfinder... Though how far is it still all about not having to do/having no idea how to do their domestic maintenance chores if left to their own devices?
This entry was originally posted at http://oursin.dreamwidth.org/1144771.html. Please comment there using OpenID. View  comments. | |
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| The holidays I officially celebrate are Hanukkah, New Year, and (my favorite of them all) Yuletide; however, I also celebrate any holiday anyone invites me to. So, in honor of all the winter holidays, and since I saw a number of people putting up wishlists, here are some things that would make me happy (should you choose to accept this mission.) 1. Donate manga and other books to needy libraries. They are particularly strapped right now due to the bad US economy. Books must be in good condition, except for books on Native American/American Indian topics, which may be in any condition. They are still especially looking for the latter and also manga/manhua/manhwa. 2. My Book Mooch wishlist. I think this is pretty well updated by now. 3. My Yuletide letter, in case you'd like to write me a Treat! I realize that all but one of those fandoms are quite obscure. If you'd like to write me a non-Yuletide story, you can click on my Yuletide tag to see others I was considering but didn't choose. Otherwise, if you're considering writing me a story, you probably know what I like. 4. Baked goods, mix CDs, DVDs, awesomely bad books, and other gifts of a random nature are always welcome! (I need to put up a separate post to share with you all the wonder of a certain awesomely useless gift, Breadou, that I received recently.) | |
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| http://whatever.scalzi.com/2009/12/09/judge-sn-in-the-flesh-tge-review-in-realms-of-fantasy/ http://whatever.scalzi.com/?p=9321 
Subterranean Press zipped over to me a couple of early copies of the “Judge Sn Goes Golfing” chapbook so I could pet them and love them and rub my scent all over them (okay, that last bit was more than you needed to know), and I have to say I am delighted with how they’ve turned out. They look great, and by “great” I mean holy cow look at me I got a story illustrated by Gahan Wilson. In collaboration terms that’s a little like having Eddie Van Halen drop by your home studio to give song chorus you’ve been working on a little extra push. I’m so happy I could just plotz. You’ll know what I mean when you get it.
This reminds me that I’ve had a couple of questions about the length of “Judge Sn.” It’s 32 pages plus the cover, which is signed by me on the inside back. It’s the sort of thing designed specifically for fans and collectors, rather than the general public, which is why there’s a limited number of them out there. I think it’s worth the cost, but then I would. Heck, I think it’s worth it for the Gahan Wilson illustrations alone. Have I mentioned how geeked out I am about them? Well, I am.
 Moving from “Judge Sn” to The God Engines, Paul Witcover reviewed TGE in the February Realms of Fantasy magazine (out now at news stands). I won’t reprint the whole thing here — hey, go buy a copy of the magazine, man — but here’s a nice pull quote:
[G]rippingly dark and subversive… though The God Engines is indisputably a work of fantasy, it is simultaneously a brutal critique of fantasy, a searing evisceration of the valuation of blind faith and magical thinking that underlies so much of the genre, at least at its most popular and mindless.
The whole review is actually very interesting (albeit with spoilers, which I suspect are unavoidable with this particular work), so check it out if you can.
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| 2100, and virtue is satisfied mean things: politics, cultural relativism, the Eschaton tyop: elf-sacrifice MS word meter: 28200 / 100000 words. 28% done! Page count meter: 143 / 400 pages. 36% done! Time to go climb as soon as I eat something here. | |
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| Once upon a time, someone starting a new publishing house would either have a personal fortune or would seek large private investors. Crowdsourced fundraising allows the masses to chip in for projects they believe in.
Tu Publishing is one that I’m excited about. Tu Publishing is a small, independent multicultural SFF press for children and YA and they are raising money for startup costs right now. I’ve had the opportunity to correspond with Stacy Whitman in my role as SFWA secretary and she’s sharp, knows the industry and is passionate about YA and SF.
The catch is that the fundraiser only has four more days to go and they only have 40% of their total.
 Fantasy and science fiction, mystery and historical fiction–these genres draw in readers like no other. Yet it is in these genres that readers of color might feel most like an outsider, given that such a large percentage features white characters (when they feature human characters). It is the goal of Tu Publishing to publish genre books for children and young adults that fill this gap in the market–and more importantly, this gap in serving our readers. By focusing on multicultural settings and characters in fantastic stories, we also open up worlds to all readers.
Now, given my history with fundraisers, I want to let you know that Kickstarter rocks. It’s a very solid platform. I’ve talked to the developers and experimented with donations on the site. It’s beautifully done.
Please consider donating to get Tu Publishing off the ground.
Comments? -- Link. | |
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| Last night I took coraa and her boy out to one of my favorite restaurants, the izakaya (Japanese pub) Furaibo. To my delight, Furaibo has added some new items, several of which we tried: yellowtail kama (grilled "collar"), chicken with ume and shiso (chicken was a bit overcooked), and fried rice with kimchi and smoked sausage, which was delicious and of which the leftovers are in my fridge. Also devoured: the famous teba saki chicken wings, garlic sprouts with bacon, sweet potato cakes, and ochazuke (rice soup with salmon and seaweed.) Afterward, I walked them by Tomato Bank and into a shop where I bought erasers shaped like emergency equipment, like a fire hydrant and road cones, and two forks. coraa bought miniature plastic comfort food. There were some gorgeous detailed Death Note figurines, and coraa asked about the show. I said it was a lot of mindgames, frequently expressed as, "So if I know that he knows that I know that he knows that I know that he..." The saleslady, who was also familiar with the series, burst out laughing. Then we went to Beard Papa and had molten chocolate cakes. And then I gave her some light reading for the plane. She isn't sure which to tackle first, so please go over and help her decide. | |
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| It would appear that, having had barely a dusting of snow so far this year, the weather is determined to catch up on all the snow we could have had since October in the space of a day or two.
It is a good day to be working from home, save for the bit where something that might well be a floor polisher has been going on the other side of the wall to both my room and the room with the computer in for some time. | |
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| I found out yesterday that The Moonlight Mistress was nominated for a "Reviewers' Choice" award by RT Book Reviews (formerly Romantic Times), in the "Erotic Romance Historical" category.
Erotic Romance, huh?
I am very pleased. Winners aren't announced until the June issue of the magazine, so don't hold your breath to find out. Right now, it doesn't even matter to me.
It's true! It's cool just to be nominated! | |
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|  Ahh, tea. Today's tea is gunpowder green mixed with peppermint, as a cure for shoveling. Today's teacup is Paraphilias Involving Bunnies, which I have had since just before college. Today's morning temperature is 32 degrees on the dot. And now I am on the job, having been up since seven doing needful snow-related things (and making tea). It was pretty out there--white snow, black dog, grey morning. (Wasn't that a Joy Chant book back in the day? I should really reread The Grey Mane of Morning one of these years.) Here, have a holiday card image:  And here's one I took for buymeaclue, in which we can see how inconvenient a long coat can be in heavy snow:  | |
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| The Baltimore City Paper, the best newspaper in America or anyway my favourite (they're the ones that reviewed Ha'Penny with an original illustration) have Lifelode in their best ten books of 2009. My recent Tor.com posts have been all Brust all the time Orca, Dragon, Issola. AM is on her way home, and the weather, having belatedly noticed that it was very mild for November is busy catching up to the season, laying down snow and offering no temperatures above freezing. | |
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