Inkwell: Authors and Artists

    
dodge - To the best of my knowledge, the French places around where I
work are owned by French-Americans... but their business doesn't seem
to be much affected any more than all the other businesses in Union
Square have been. And read the Wake. The artwork alone is worth it
(sigh... Zulli), but the story arc kind of weaves in more story while
being an epilogue at the same time. Hrm, that doesn't really come out
the way I'm thinking it, but I'm going to leave it, because I can't
think of a better way to put it.

Oh eek, my flatmate has discovered my comics stash... so much of his
getting any sleep tonight.

Martha - Thanks for the link!

Pam - You go girl! And I totally understand your mixed emotions about
the whole thing. I think what scares me the most are (the majority of)
the people who seem to think it is all black and white, that there is
no middle ground. And I'm personally kind of disgusted that there are
people who are ready to tell me that I 'obviously made it up' when I
tell them that Hussein was helped into a place of power by the U.S.
Yeah, scary.

Mike - Thanks!  Now to actually get around to updating the web page.
Hopefully this will happen in the next couple of weeks, but as I'll be
busy moving into a new place... Oh, and I'm not sure how you've done
it, but you inadvertently made my flatmate feel like in the future,
he'll feel really old. (<-- I'm not sure what it means either, but he
seems irritated in a rather amusing manner, so it's all good by me)

squeaks, who likes it when her leopard wears her hat.
  

    
_Most_ of it wasn't a bloodsucking experience. Was born there, in
fact, in Philadelphia, 45 years ago today. And, this being the first
birthday in some years on which I can honestly say I like my life--ALL
of it--I'm really glad to be here to say it and to have y'all around to
say it to.

Sorry I didn't get back to posting any ICFA notes. I came home sicker
than I knew I was--not just the head cold but also either food
poisoning or a nasty stomach bug; the best parts of Monday and Tuesday
were the times I was asleep, and I'm gradually catching up on
everything I meant to do all this week.

My snowdrops are finally blooming! I noticed they were just starting
when we got home Sunday evening. It was _only_ past the middle of March
already; maybe we'll have Spring this year after all. Small sproutings
of eventual crocus, squill, grape hyacinths, and the early tulips,
too, at long last. (I'm used to seeing the crocus and squill as early
as late February. This has been a looong cold winter.)

Dodge, I had a web-look at the roses you noted. Reve d'Or is generally
reported as hardy only to Zone 7, and Buff Beauty and Sombreuil only
to Zone 6; I'm sufficiently wary of winter now that I've decided not to
invest in delicate roses (at least not this year).

Another discovered Joy of Homeownership: This is the year we're having
new siding on the house, and new windows as well. That whimpering
noise you hear is the savings account... but it should've been done
last year; would have, if I hadn't become thankfully jobless in late
July so Chip and I decided to hold off one more year and confirm our
financial stability and plans. This year--especially after the
I'm-not-dead-yet winter that freeze-dried the paint right off the
shingles--it just has to happen.

Maure, Pam, I can't match your eloquence but I'm glad you're saying
some of the things I'm inarticulately thinking. The only simple thought
I have is how bitterly I resent what those selfish petty powermongers
I didn't elect have done to the world's opinion of my country.

Maure, I appreciate your blog comments, too--thanks. (Btw, there's
good reason why the Men In Black rely on the Weekly World News.)
  

    
Davey,  I'm astonished that you read my blog -- I usually assume I'm
talking mostly to myself. Thank you, very much, for the compliment. And
isn't that such a great article? I loved it. I think I'm going to have
to believe in that story, just for my own delight.

It's very cool that Kelly Link has a topic now. I love her short
stories.
  

    
(And that topic is 179 in this conference, for those who are interested,
which should be everyone.)
  

    
Weeeeee!
  

    
Hey folks. I've been having an interesting week. After battling fever
all day Tuesday, i gave in and went the hospital where I found I had
104.5 fever and a kidney infection. I've been in the hospital all week
but the antibiotics have taken care of the fever and the docs did some
stuff to me that should resolve the problem.

My copy of "nights" is on it's way too, thanks to Neil and Glen for
the help. I couldn't find anything on Bookfinder or at Abebooks, but
Zubal had it! Not a bad price, either!

Neil - thanks for the Guardian article about how peace activism may be
effecting HOW this war is being fought. I found it comforting. Not as
comforting as if we had prevented the war... but the feeling of
impotence is a little less with those insights.

Actually, now that I've read all the posts thus far.. thanks to
EVERYONE for such well thought out and articulate reflections on what
is currently going on.
  

    

Oh, Dan, I hope you feel better soon. I was thinking about you earlier
today, in fact.
  

    
104.5!
  

    
Wow. No wonder your *hair* hurt; I'm surprised it didn't crisp off
entirely. It's good to hear that the antibiotics and what-all are
working; I hope you're completely well soon.
  

    

Dan, 104.5?!  Dear lord!  Sending all my best wishes, hell, I'm
pulling out the stops on my "Good Wish" box.  Thank goodness you're
feeling better.  
  

    
For a week straight I've been dreaming non-stop, starting with
nightmares after surgery, due to the “twilight sleep” and falling
asleep while the boi watched CNN. Horrible, bloody war dreams, filled
with personal loss, leaving me to awaken in tears and not want to sleep
ever again.
Since the start of those, I’ve attempted to limit my television was
coverage to the need to know basis. However, by not watching I don’t
feel informed enough to debate the issues, or even that I know enough
about anything to comment on it.  
I’m all for peace, I don’t for a moment think that we belong there or
that any death there has been for anything other then oil and power. I
cry every time that I see an updated body count and I have been afraid
to post anything anywhere, whether it is a public forum or my personal
blog. With this next statement I’m going to figuratively take a deep
breath and jump. 
I am an American, I love my country and believe that the people
running it are coincided, pompous, old men who don’t listen to their
constituents, or care for anyone out of their tax-bracket. I can say
that because I am an American. I support our troops because they serve
our country if they believe in the cause or not. Members of my family
are currently serving and people I have grown up with are there as
well. They are there because they are serving their country, not
because they ever thought that they would be W’s personal little green
army men. For them, I wear a yellow ribbon at work, I accepted a
present of an American flag purse from the boi (little side note, who
knew he could buy me a present that he didn’t ask me if I wanted 20
times, or that was pre-approved?), and I have taken both with me to
every protest I’ve been to, and I get to do that because I’m an
American.
People have died and will die to make sure I get to be an American.
It’s a pity that leaders of our country don’t appear to respect that.
That our leaders, seem to have little value on human life, human
emotion, or human kindness, and seem to be encouraging the
misinturpatation of “Speak softly and carry a big stick”
I’m afraid that if I continue this will become nothing more then angry
ramblings, so with the wise words of Mark Twain I leave you.
 “Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear--not absence of fear”
  

    
Jinxie, a big HUG and the best suggestion I have: collect your war
news online instead of via TV. I've been taking advantage of Patrick
and Teresa Nielsen Hayden's work--both of their blogs (which are on my
daily reading list) also have sidebars of links to a worthy collection
of news sources. http://nielsenhayden.com (If you start reading the
blogs, be sure to check the comments as well or you'll miss some of the
best discussion around.)
  And the present from the boi is a fine thing.
  

    
Dan, Jinxie--Get well!  I'm sorry that both of you have been sick, and
I hope you're both on your feet soon.
  

    
Thanks for all the well wishes!

I've posted a little essay about my hospital stay at my site
(http://www.danwilsonshow.com) for anyone would would like to read it.
At the moment, my temperature is hovering between 97.4 and 97.8, which
is too low, but a hell of a lot better than going the other direction.

I would post my thoughts on the war, but everyone seems to be
expressing my feelings and beliefs so well that I will simply nod my
head in agreement.

I spent yesterday relaxing... including relaxing in a nearby theatre
watching Spirited Away again. I just have to say that this is rapidly
becoming one of my all time favorite movies. This is my third time in
the theatre for this masterpiece, and I
a. Don't see that much in the theaters
b. Rarely see a film twice in the theatre (LotR being notable
exception)
c. Have never seen a non-classic-Star-Wars film more than twice in the
theatre before this.

Even Amelie I only saw twice on the big screen, I believe.

Anyway, even though we probably already have the DVD pre-ordered, I
would highly suggest going to see it again because while it is a
charming film for TV, it really belongs on a screen as large as the
imagination used in making it. 

I was pleased to see that the theatre was full of children and their
parents, which was not the case when I saw it during the first release.
When I first saw it, it was mostly hipster adults. I have to wonder
what the parents thought when 


SPOILER ALERT



Haku was bleeding all over the walls and No Face started eating
people. These are pretty major taboos in US animation. Characters can
die, but they always do it off-screen. You never see a character
disappearing down the throat of a monster, their eyes wide in terror. I
didn't hear any children crying, but I think I heard someone leaving
shortly after the blood started spattering all over the place. I forgot
how scary this movie is at points.

This of course means that when my DVD comes, I MUST share it with my
neice and nephew.
  

    
Dan -- Disney's features used to draw complaints for being Too Scary
for America's Untainted Youth; this was true of Snow White and
Pinocchio, and I can remember complaints about Jungle Book.  The set of
no-nos is very definitely there, but they've accreted gradually, and
(as such things do) have had more effect as a set of rules the studios
set for themselves, to avoid possible controversy after they've spent
money making the thing, rather than externally imposed regulations. 
This is always the most effective censorship, as if everybody here
didn't already know that.

One other element is that most series animation in the US is 30-minute
toy ads -- "He-Man" and "G.I. Joe" and "The Exquisite Adventures of
Mousqueton the Plush Rodent at the Court of the Sun King" and so on. 
(Gerald Jones said of "G.I Joe," "No, guys. -Thomas Jefferson- was 'A
Real American Hero.'")  The toymakers naturally do not want anything
that will limit the airing of their ads.

Kevin Scott's swell book on Jay Ward Productions, THE MOOSE THAT
ROARED, tells the story of how the network (I think it was NBC at the
time) was horrified by our characters being in a cannibal pot, about to
be the blue plate special.  Now, this was just your plain old kettle
on the fire, as seen in a million magazine cartoons, no actual food
prep was involved, but they were still told never to do that again.

So, being Jay Ward and Co., there was a later serial in which our
heroes are about to be burned at the stake, and Rocky notes that the
network has absolutely forbidden cannibalism on the show.  Native
reasonably answers, "We not going to eat you, just cook you."  Rocky
acknowledges that this is not against the rules, and William Conrad has
a line about "As we proceed with the network-approved execution . . ."
  

    
What Mary said.

Danw- I'm glad your temp went down. I had a fever like that when I was
10. I think I hallucinated a lot. Did you hallucinate? I suppose I
should read your journal....Anyway, I hope you continue to get better.

Jinx- Wow. Yeah, I second the advice that you should get your news
online. I hope that the people you know in the army return home safely.



I finished my play! I finished my play! And there is much rejoicing.
It is called _Northern Lights_ and is Two Acts (I think I made it to
full length, Dan, Weeee!)
Now I can begin working on some things I've had on the back burner for
a while.... 
  

    

Speaking of writing stuff, last week I wrote a very short Zelazny story. I'm
sorry, that's just what it is. I'm going to rewrite it this week and if it
turns out not to suck I'll post a link. I figured this group would be more
likely than most to be interested in seeing it. If not, no harm done.
  

    
To everyone, first Thank you, secondly, I've been making huge efforts
to not pay so much attention to current events, and have been getting
most of my news off the web. Trying to stay well rounded is almost as
difficult as not watching. As of this morning I've heard from all but
one of the people who are at war, and this helps, thanks be to the
Goddess for e-mail. 

Dan,...I wanted to let you know to be careful in the next few years.
Ever since my kidney infection, I've had some reaccuring problems with
it, that my doctor's have all said was due to poor follow-up on their
part. Besides I'm sure it's got to be tougher being male in that
sistuation. The access is limited. (Wheew didn't think I could find a
polite way to phrase that :eg:)

As my final thought,...how come I can't have serial dreams about Alan
Rickman, or Sean Connery, instead of Donald Rumsfeild?

Jinxie
  

    
Mike - *chuckle* I remember being terribly frightened of the Snow
White *ride* at Disneyland but I don't remember if I found the movie
that scary. I *did* find the Wicked Witch of the West absolutely
terrifying though. Maybe because she was "real" and not a cartoon.

Of course, the really funny thing is that the Goosebumps books really
demonstrated that if left to their own devices, kids will flock to the
scary stuff in droves. Scary and gross. I was never into them, but I
remember Garbage Pail Kids quite well... 
(Note that I've never actually read a Goosebumps book, so I don't know
how scary they really are)

Erin - Congrats! That's fabulous!
And I didn't so much hallucinate as slip in and out of twilight
dreaming. I had just finished re-reading Neverwhere, so I kept slipping
in and out of London Below. Also, my thinking was just generally
sub-par. I would try to remember monologues I've done hundreds of
times, and go over them over and over until I could remember them. It
took me a long time to get "full of sound and fury, signifying nothing"
because I couldn't for the life of me remember the word "signifying"

It's the same litmis test I use when I think I'm drunk. If I can't do
a monologue... then I'm officially hammered.

Adam - Post it! Post it!

Jinxie - Thanks. I'll keep on the docs to make sure that things don't
go wonky. I'm scheduling an appointment tomorrow for the next surgery,
actually.
And Alan and Sean are booked months in advance for dream appearances.
It's hard enough getting them for one-shots or even cameos.
  

    
Sorry 'bout that.  Battle fatigue.

Old news first:

Dodge -- Good to hear that Houston's finally getting its mass transit
into shape.  'Course, I'm an New Yorker/Washingtonian, so I'm spoiled
now, but still.  :)

Erynn -- I'm so glad to hear your dad's doing so much better.  Love
his sense of humor, and his determination.  Yay for your dad!  :D 
(Incidentally, my mom just had a medical procedure done, and when she
woke up and was starting to talk, but was still pretty drugged, she
said, "Oh, no, I'm talking like Ozzy Osbourne!"  I laughed my butt off!
 Heh.  Poor Ozzy.)

Yes, LOVING springtime weather!  Cherry blossom time is coming soon! 
Wheeeee!  :D

Michelle -- Thanks for passing along the message.  The two IS songs I
knew were "I Want to Know" and "Walking Away."  I heard them ca.
'88-89, which probably is around the time you were staring at that
poster.  (Dangit... why couldn't I have ended up dating Tom Bailey or
Bruce Springsteen?  It's no fair.)  The one I remember most fondly is
"I Want to Know," which I made a point of taping off the radio.  (Never
did get the other one on tape.  Oh well.)  It was one of the songs
that marked my first semester of college, which was hands-down one of
the most wonderful periods of my life.  Plus, I really liked that
percussion part in the background, the one that sounded like someone
was hitting glasses or something.  (Maybe that was done by keyboard,
considering the era.)  Your boy wasn't in any way responsible for that
part, was he?  If so, I do believe kudos are in order.  :)

Neil (<431>) -- Thanks for the tip, and (as I sit here typing this in
Notepad and saving after every change) I definitely understand about
working on a post that gets swallowed by a crash.  (I wasn't
complaining or anything; just curious.  I'm glad you blog at all!)

> Gull and Druitt were both Jack the Ripper suspects.

Ahh, THAT explains it.  Thanks.

Pamela -- Yowch!  I had to have my alternator replaced a few years
ago.  Sorry you did, too, especially after last fall's car expenses. 
Hope you make it to SF soon.
  

    
Very important:

Dan, Jinx, and Davey -- So sorry you guys have been so sick!  Please
get better soon, and enjoy lots of good reading material in the
meantime.  Huge hugs to all of you!  (Dan, I noted that you were sick
before I went AWOL, and had been thinking about you this past week. 
I'll check out your blog.  And did you say "surgery"?  Yikes!)

And Davey -- Friday was your birthday??  Happy Belated!!!  And ICFA in
Ft. Lauderdale sounds like a nice way to spend it.  So glad your b-day
found you in good spirits this year, too.  :D

On a similar note, Neil -- I hope you caught my "happy anniversary"
note a couple of weeks ago.  (I've got this weird ability for
remembering dates.  Most of my friends think it's sweet, but I always
feel the need to explain myself to the semi-famous ones, for fear
they'll think it's creepy!  Honest, I'm not a stalker... or at least,
I'm too busy stalking Steve Taylor to take on you, too.  ;)     )

Madman -- Yes yes yes, please post a link!  Wow, you're a musician AND
a writer.  You folks are just too talented!

Erynn -- Congratulations on finishing _Northern Lights_!  And it's
good to read that there's more stuff in the works!  :D

Gotta go answer some other people.  T.T.F.N.!

Take Care,
Christy
  

    
Alan Rickman....<<sigh>>

OK, I'm back now.  Davey, did I say Happy Birthday?  If not, I suck. 
And I hope it was wonderful, recent illness aside.

Erynn--Congrats!

madman--please post the link!

Buggering off to bed now.  This getting up at 5:00 a.m. thing is for
the birds.  Literally  ;-)
  

    
heya everybody--just wantd to post and say I'm alive. Barely :) Just
put me down in the so not fired (there was fear) category, and suddenly
single (alas, those fears realised) category.

Just wanted to *wave* and apologise for my Invisible Girl routine. But
the finances are almost entirely under control, and I should be back
amongst you all come September!

*hugs*

t
  

    
Hi, Tara!!!  *waves*
  

    
Hey Tara.  We'll see ya later.