Inkwell: Authors and Artists

    
*doing her very best Tree (so you'll have to imagine an Aussie
accent)* Hippo Birdies to youuuu! to Erynn and Very Belated Hippos to
Will.  I hope your 25th years are the very best yet.

(Actually, I cried when I turned 25.  It was more traumatic for me
than the next landmark, for some reason.)

Will: digits most sincerely crossed for sending your chapters off to
an agent!  Keep us posted.

Mimi: We most certainly WILL see MirrorMask.  With Adriana and Dave
and anybody else we can gather up in our wake.  No matter *where* we
have to trek to, to see it!

Christy: Thanks so much for the NYC pics!  Those were lots of fun to
see.  Walker's such a goof.  And I hear that Davey (who looks so perky
early in the Evening of the Scotches) left her own wake of downed
single malts that night.

Holley: I steal magazines regularly from my doctor's office.  But I
always ask nicely: "Can I steal this magazine?  It's got a terrific
<insert article, recipe, whatnot here> in it."  And she says, "Sure. 
Steal away."  I'm feeling like a moral slug for not thinking of
bringing one back in in exchange, though.  What a great idea.

And I WANT that fishie bracelet, too!  But I'm saving up to join a
health club again (so as not to descend utterly into physical as well
as moral slugdom).

SQUEAKS LIVES!!!  Welcome back, sweetie.  I was just wondering this
morning when we'd get to see your playa dirt-streaked face peek back
in.  I hope you had oodles of fun.  Did y'all ever get all the repairs
done on the dome that you needed to do?

Dan W: I'll see your wombat and raise you a bandicoot!

Tara: Many congrats on your newly saged abode.  I love green more and
more as an interior color.  And how lovely to reconnect with an old
friend!

-Pam
who's lately been busy gathering up all her little courage bits to get
ready to take that Fool's leap off the cliff and quit her job
  

    
Finally got photos up of my spiffy "new" home!

http://www.loony-archivist.com/temp/camera/flat/
  

    
Sagey goodness!  Very nice, Tara.  I'll have to take a closer look at
that artwork when I have more time.

Where'd you get that _Star Wars_ poster!?
  

    
I think Friday's last Journal entry involved a higher-than-normal
percentage of people I know.  There was Jinx (where ya been, girl?),
and I think Tsippa was the girl who was next to me at the NYC signing a
month ago today.  Only I thought that one spelled her name with one
"p," so she could have been a different Tsip[p]a.  Anyhow, the one I
met was sweet and funny and possibly even shorter than me.

Wow, this year's Hugos are Special Commemorative Maple Leaf ones! 
Very cool!  And that's a good picture of you, Neil.
  

    
Oh, yeah, and from Tsippa's FAQ, regarding 1602:

"I knew while reading that I was missing a lot, but I was able to
follow things perfectly well and got to have a few 'haha, I know who
THAT is' moments."

Kind of the same experience I had with _American Gods_.
  

    
Erynn, the show is going VERY well, thanks for asking! We had a good
crowd on Thursday, and then an amazing audience on Friday. It's one of
those shows that makes all the months of grueling work worthwhile... I
we had a critic there that night, cause they could have written
something along the lines of "Lunatique Fantastique's new show gives
people orgasms".

So, while we've had very good shows on Saturday and Sunday... it all
kind of pales in comparison to Friday night. Ah well... mixed blessing,
eh?

Four more shows to go!

On the Neverwhere DVDs
I'm still watching the commentary tracks, and finding them both
delightful and frustrating. Some things I felt while watching the story
he addresses immediately (I kept wondering why they lit everything so
garishly and he hits on that right away), other things aren't mentioned
at all (why when Croup throws the razor blades at his own hand, and
they stick around his fingers, to they stick with the blunt edges in
the wood and not the sharp bits?) and others are commented on but not
explained (Croup and Vandemar in these weird quasi tranparent
overcoats, looking like they've been in the rain or something...which
Neil comments on them having, and that they're odd, but doesn't go any
further.)

Which makes me want to write him long niggling letters full of
questions...but he's got quite enough mail to go through, I think... so
I just hope more answers will be forthcoming in the next episode.
  

    
Neverwhere DVDs - I watched them all without and with commentary this
weekend.  I enjoyed listening to Neil, but like many DVD commentaries I
felt like yelling "watch it on your own time, talk now!" - except for
the fact that I couldn't picture myself actually yelling at Neil.

I had something else unrelated to say, but I don't remember what it
was...
  

    
Neverwhere DVDs - I watched them all without and with commentary this
weekend.  I enjoyed listening to Neil, but like many DVD commentaries I
felt like yelling "watch it on your own time, talk now!" - except for
the fact that I couldn't picture myself actually yelling at Neil.

I had something else unrelated to say, but I don't remember what it
was...
  

    <scribbled>
  

    
I remembered!

Has anyone used http://neilgaiman.meetup.com to actually meet people?
  

    
Thanks for reminding me, Glen.  I used to look at the page, but the
venues were always too far away.  Now that I'm working in No. VA, I may
be able to make some of them (if I'm still here next month, which I
kinda hope not).  I hadn't even thought of that until just now.

Eerily enough, though, the other night I thought about the meetups for
the first time in MONTHS and wondered if anyone had had any luck with
them.

-Christy wants to meet DanGuy (and maybe hold some babies!)
  

    



Holley Nowell writes:



I signed up for the Gaiman & the Pratchett meetups and every month I go in
and agree to meet anywhere anyone else wants to and every month I get a
message saying not enough people in my area signed up. Sigh. So, Houston area
people interested in Gaiman and Pratchett need to sign up so we can get
together.

Just thought I'd mention for the lucky people in Florida. Sometime late
September Neil is doing a signing there. He mentions it in today's journal.
Hang on -  Copy of text he posted below.

"There's an at-short-notice SANDMAN: ENDLESS NIGHTS signing happening. It'll
be on Monday the 22nd of September 2003 -- two weeks from now -- in Fort
Lauderdale, Florida, at the Barnes and Noble 2051 N. Federal Hwy Ft
Lauderdale, FL --
<http://www.barnesandnoble.com/frames/storeLocator/storeLocator_zip.asp?ZIP=333
04&userid=2T0X6C9C2Y&linkto=shop>--
the link is to the store locator, which doesn't yet show me signing there, as
it's been put together, as I said, at pretty short notice. (I have to go to
Florida and say hello to a throng -- or whatever the collecting noun is -- of
Barnes and Noble store managers.) The signing is going to start at 6.00pm,

I know it's not much notice, but I would hate to spend the next couple of
years apologising to people in the Florida/Georgia/SouthEast area for not
letting them know I was going to be there and signing.

So if anyone can help spread the word, I'd be very grateful. Right now, the
Ft Lauderdale and the two short New York is Book Country signings are the
only Endless Nights signings in the US. I wanted to do a San Francisco or an
LA one, but time is pretty tight towards the end of the year, and even though
I want to do them, I doubt very much they'll happen at this point.

So it's B&N, Fort Lauderdale, Monday the 22nd of Sept at 6.00pm."
  

    
Thanks, Dodge.  I was wondering if someone should post that here.

Neil -- So you'll be in D.C. that Thursday (just as I'm leaving for
NYC), up to New York that weekend into Sunday night, then down to
Florida the very next day!  Whew!  Hope you like airline peanuts.

I can definitely see why you'd want to stay home from WFC.  As much as
I'd love to see you (and so close to your birthday, too), there's
certainly a strong case for grabbing some family time when it's
practically handed to you.  (Speaking as someone who rarely has a
chance to see the inside of her apartment without being on the way to
bed or out the door....)

-Christy, who just got an email from Benja-CoolPerson.
  

    
I see that not only *am* I Death, but I also should invite myself to
dinner*:

"You should invite Death to dinner. Why? She's cool, mellow, fun to
talk to, and she'll teach you a thing or two about life. Remember
though, she is Death, so if she shows up uninvited....well, it was nice
knowing you."


*Don't mind if I do.  I did make a really interesting salad late last
night, but after an hour and a half of chopping, washing, sampling and
tossing, I lost my appetite and skipped directly to the wine.
  

    
1. Yay to Neil for winning another Hugo!

2. re: 1121 - Christie, tell us something we don't already know!

3. Pam - Dome was up with no casualties (though due to a
seeming-shortage of long bolts, one of our guys fell about 15 feet,
thankfully unharmed). The guy who built the sign that goes on top of
the dome actually got to see it in all its glory for the first time
ever and he cried (last year he ran over himself rather messily and
missed all of Burning Man, including the raising of his sign). Still
tons of dust on everything I took out there that isn't clothing, but
that's all sitting on the back porch - out of sight, out of mind and
all that. 

4. (and this is the mot important part) My home is now blessed with
kitten goodness. Kurt and I brought her home this morning and I've
already managed to wear myself out playing with her and just responding
to her mewling (she's a bit needy, but it's also just her first day
and it's kind of scary for her). We decided (being the twisted and
somewhat nerdy people we are) to name her Thing e. You know, like Thing
One and Thing Two from Cat in the Hat. Only we were discussing
alternate numbers and Pi seemed too obvious. So now my kitty is used in
calculating interest (hmmm... to pseud or not to pseud?). She's a
fuzzy little calico thing and I'll post pictures just as soon as I find
the damned cable that connects the computer to the camera for
downloading.

-squeaks
who has managed to wear down Thing e to a little ball of sleeping
tri-coloured fuzz under the tv.
  

    

Just got back from the Izzard show, at which I ran into <stagewalker>.
It was good. I'm going to go get some food now.
  

    
Michelle -- Oh, she sounds WONDERFUL!  Please do post pictures!  Yay
kitties!  (She must LOVE watching the forbidden ratties.)

The official best cat of all time was also calico, with tabby stripes
to boot.  So Thingie-cat is in good company.  ;)

<Christie, tell us something we don't already know!>

Like how to spell my name?

-Christy is evil  >;)
  

    
Regarding the percussionist I was seducing? Married. Oh well. It was
fun while it lasted. And he was really quite sweet about it, and said
he felt like an asshole for not telling me sooner. I figure, no, an
asshole would have *not* told me *and* slept with me. Now he's just yet
another undateable male friend in my collection. Because apparently, a
girl can never have too many...

Regarding the librarian action figure...

My friend Avril, who works in a university library, collects librarian
action figures. I got her Clay Moore's Giles for her birthday 2 years
ago. She has several Barbara Gordons/Batgirls (tho technically, I think
some of those may be oracle figures, which post-date Barbara's career
as a librarian). I think she might even have Evie, from "The Mummy."

Of course, she also has a playmobile pirate ship at her desk as well,
and I think several other sets scattered about work and home. She has
the *best* desk toys. At my desk, I just have Giles in a sombrero and
poncho, chatting with John Constantine (because in my own little Buffy
universe inside my head, Giles has Mucus Membrane albums. On vinyl.
That Oz covets. Because he *would.*) Li Mu Ban is being all steely and
fierce and ignoring the two of them, while Lex Luthor is chatting up
three Wonder Women over by my HTML and JavaScript books. Batman and
Catwoman are hugging on top the monitor, next to Samurai Jack and my
Not!Chloe and Not!Lana dolls (the Bratz Cloe figure, if given a
haircut, is a ringer for Smallville's Chloe--as is Jade for Lana when
you string a green bead on a bit of clear necklace wire around her
neck, for the Bit of Parent Squishing Meteor Keepsake Necklace of Doom.
So yeah. They're my girls. They have little plastic adventures when
I'm not looking.) And I have a squishy bean-bag Totoro chibi that makes
a great projectile.
  

    
Tara, I shall have to beat some sense into you. It's not disappointing
at all that you're not me. It's very gratifying to know that you are
you, and not someone else. Musicians. Pfft. Never trust them. I'm very
sorry to hear about that though. We should go get green tea gelato,
because it makes everything better.

Squeaks, Yay!! for new kittens. And I need your new address, because I
have something for you. It starts with Star -- and ends with --dust,
and is entirely (I suspect) in Hebrew . . .
  

    
> It starts with Star -- and ends with --dust,
> and is entirely (I suspect) in Hebrew . . .

*big eyes*

Wow.  Somebody's been learning magic tricks.
  

    
Oh, my reach is wide, wide...

I figured it was about time I learned some magic of my own. I can't go
accepting everyone else's forever, you know.

But, to be truthful, I did have some major help with this one. 
  

    
Maure, you are, officially the coolest.
And it's not even for me.

But did you know your website is down?  I can't load it.  Do you have
an update?

I am, officially, very happy today.  You see, I was at work, browsing
the Internet, like you do, and someone pointed me in the direction of
CDBaby.com (which, on its own, would've been enough to make me
extremely happy.  But no wait, it gets better).  So I'm looking up
artists I enjoy.  Roger Clyne.  Howie Day.  Piano-based electronica
(who knew?).  And then I thought of Lili Haydn.
I saw Lili Haydn open for matchbox twenty in 1997.  She was, simply,
amazing.  mb20 rocked the house, but Ms. Haydn dropped my jaw (and not
only because she's lung-collapsingly beautiful, and took to the stage
wearing black velvet pants and a purple velvet halter top, though, yes,
I was a sophomore in college, and that might have been part of it). 
No, Ms. Haydn is a singer-songwriter with a violin, and I'm telling
you, she can work some magic.  She's played with everyone from Jimmy
Page and Robert Plant to Hootie and the Blowfish.  She's one of the
most sought-after session violinists in the music industry (according
to RollingStone.com).
She is, quite simply, sublime.
But not many people know of her, and I wasn't sure she had a major
label release.  I have the one from years ago, but, well, six years is
a long time.  So I ran her through the CDBaby search thingy.
They told me they couldn't find anything.
So, on a whim, I googled her.
And found www.lilihaydn.com.  She has a new CD that just came out a
few weeks ago.  She's touring with George Clinton and Parliament
Funkadelic, and she's playing Princeton, just an hour away from me, in
October.  I would've gone *wherever* she was playing, of course (I
recently flew to Chicago to bring my best friend to a Roger Clyne
show), but it's nice to know I'm not traveling far now.

I am *so* happy.

And to top it off, seventy pages from a final draft of my novel. 
WOoo!
  

    
So, is 8 weeks too late for a kitten to be teething, 'cause if it is,
I think mine has developed a taste for flesh... ouch... Then again,
it's very possible she's just part vampire. (Nocturnal, fangs,
completely remorseless about killing innocent feathers - and fingers)

Christie - Part of the deal with the kitten was to wait until all the
other quadripeds were gone. Billie (the last rat) had to be put down a
few weeks before Burning Man. Preparing for the burn kept me pretty
busy and helped with the whole grieving thing, but once it was all
over, I was spending plenty of time in the back yard talking to some
buried boxes with rodent parts in them. It was time for me to have
another pet. So, twitchy kitten of doom it is (though I suspect she'll
eventually be a very docile lap cat).

Tara - Don't listen to Maure. She may be a goddess, but the simple
truth of it is that there are musicians you can trust... just not very
many of them are drummers. ;P 

madman - So... how was it?

Maure - Will email you the address. And have I mentioned that you're a
goddess lately? 'Cause you are. (aside: good grief, she's fallen
asleep on me, mid-attack) Goddess! Whatever you need sent your way in
return (except the kitten) shall be posted as immediately as I can make
it go be posted.

Will - I've heard Lili Haydn before. She is rather amazing isn't she?

And I STILL can't find the damned camera-computer cable. If I can't
find it tomorrow, I'm buying a new one!

squeaks
with a twitching kitten in her lap, no doubt dreaming of the cats and
humans trading places again...
  

    

Jeez. I knew Lili Haydn's *Mom*. 
  

    

Lotus Weinstock!! (Lili Haydn's mom, that is)

Oh, man, I am just so tragically smitten with Lili Haydn.

I will stop whatever I am doing whenever her Folger's coffee commercial
comes on the tube. That's how bad I've got it.