Inkwell: Authors and Artists

    
Your prayers, beams, encouragement and love would be appreciated, 
as I gather up the shivering little bits of my courage, 
take a great, flying leap off the cliff in front of me, 
and give notice at my job tomorrow (Friday).

I'm seeking my life.  And I know that it's not here, in this job.  And
I'm telling people so that I can't chicken out.

     *

Glen: Amber as in Zelazny?  Have fun!

Adriana: I'm so thrilled for The Endless that I can't even say it. 
Can you work out the problem with the lack of CDs with CDBaby?

Squeaks: Big, bright beams to you for the interview!  And shame on
work for scheduling you in a non-scheduling zone.

DanW: Congrats on keeping so busy with work.  I'm happy that you're
able to do what you love.  It's inspiring.

Mary: Yay!  *Which* Rowan Atkinson?
  

    
Hiho~

Second week back at school, and already I've pulled an all nighter.
^_^; Though the concept for my (visual) composition assignment came
quickly, I can only say that the execution time was *grossly*
underestimated. ^_^; I need a nap.

Davey: Woo, that's a lot you've accomplished there in too short a
space of time! Btw: are you in Boston? Man do I miss Pandemonium. :P

Michelle: Kitty be cute!  Awwwww! *^o^* Best of luck at the interview
tomorrow. (Finally leaving the old job? ^_^;)

Christy: Not a G.I. Joe fan, but talk to me about ponies and Jem any
time. :P Speaking of which, they've launched a new line of ponies. Feel
the plastic lust. :P

Adriana: Yaaaay! *^O^* Ache!  MWAAAAAA~!! I’m so excited for you. !
(So, when *is* this alleged CD release party? :P) And a very belated
happy birthday. ^_^

Pam: I got my grubby little hands on a copy of Endless Nights at the
Golden Apple. (Seriously, they have a mound of them right as you enter
the store.) The art is really phenomenal, and I love the mix of styles
and how they each match up with and add to the writing. (And of course
I *heart* the stories to bits!) Also, you hang in there girl. Many hugs
and much love your way.

Mary: "(corrupting Drama students minds with Rowan Atkinson)" *falls
over!* That's awesome. *^o^*

Dan: Congratulations, and break a leg!
  

    
Mimi: so weird, I woke up this morning and said to myself, "Where's
Mimi?  I miss her."  And now here you are.

Pam:  I also woke up thinking, "Today is Pam's big day."  I am excited
for you.  And yeah, the CDBaby thingy is all better now.
  

    
Pamela - you are brave, strong, and courageous. I believe in you. Find
your place.

Just got the schedule for Construction Cabaret... holy shit...
Lunatique Fantastique owns my ass for the next three months. 

Must keep reminding myself I love doing this....
  

    
Pam: All my support, and encouragement, and whatever else I might be
able to provide that you might need in however small or large a way.  A
lot of people are here for you.
  

    
Pam--Go, girl!  I was scared out of my mind last year when I came back
to teaching, but it's where I belong.  You can find the place you
belong, too.  Besides, what are they gonna do, fire you?  Only you own
your life.

We've been doing pantomime in class, so I showed them "It Started With
A Sneeze"  from a live show he did a few years back.  The one where
he's in church without a handkerchief and sneezes.  Serious funny.

Mary (hoarse from cheering at the pep rally, and scared of the
football fan who seems to be living in her body)
  

    
Many thanks for the words of encouragment from everybody.  I looked at
them during the day to give me strength.

The deed is done.  My boss, as usual, was absolutely lovely about it,
and said she was happy for me.  (I'm not leaving because of her.)

Nine years.  I've been here nine years.  It's a forever to say goodbye
to.  It doesn't feel quite real yet.  As though I'm watching a movie
of myself, saying and doing things that haven't sunk in yet. 

But the afternoon is glorious--a perfect, cool, glowing golden autumn
afternoon--and I'm soaking it in like a blessing.

And maybe, eventually, I'll end up where I belong, like Mary. 
  

    
Yay Pam! I had faith in you.  Besides, I get to do a little bit of the
same tomorrow. Actually, it's not the same at all, just in the sam
ball park.

Got my interview at Lee's Comics today and I start on the 30th. Now I
just have to go back to Rasputin's and tell them I need a drastic
reduction in hours. I told my boss it was coming some time ago, but I
think this is probably the worst timing I could have for it. At least
I'm not totally leaving, just mostly. Still, I didn't have the guts to
call her today, so wish me luck on Monday. 

Dan - You know you love it, so quit griping. :P

Christy - Mimi likes ponies. She even found one of the new ones for me
(I have a bit of a collection).

Adriana - I was just talking to Bill squared on the newsgroup and
mentioning to him that we were all part of a sort "Neil Gaiman
bandwidth test" club. Just have a website posted on his blog for a
demo. ;)

squeaks
will someone tell the kitten to stop drinking out of MY water glass?
  

    
At least your kitten knows how to drink. Lao-Tzu had no idea what the heck
this wet stuff was that we kept giving him. A week later, we brought home
Mina, who knew exactly what to do. She trotted right up to the water bowl
and drank her fill. You could almost see the light bulb go on over Lao-Tzu's
head.
  

    
Squeaks - dear... I'd better not put anything Neil finds interesting
on my site... I'm hosting it from home and I don't think it would take
but a fraction of Neil-related bandwidth flooding to knock my site into
London Below.

And hey, we always gripe about the things we love... they're the
things we're willing to sacrifice for.
  

    
So, I went to NYC. Oh, and maure and Mary and I did this before I
went:

http://www.loony-archivist.com/temp/blonde2.jpg

and I had the *bestest* time. 

Met Rocky and Lucy-Anne and another Lucy, saw my friend Jan Fennick,
whom I had not seen in ages and ages. Met a slew of thingies and
wellies. Managed to miss a bunch of LJ friends, because I'm just that
bright. Also managed to not sleep pretty much for 3 days running (I
shall tell you all about Friday and Saturday when I have had time to
arrange the story in something vaguely resembling a linear narrative.
But last night I went straight from wandering Union Square at 2:30am
this morning with a lovely lady named Rachel from Minneapolis who
desperately wanted to go dancing, after dinner at a Brazilian diner
chock full of ridiculously beautiful bus boys with Rocky, Lucy, davey,
and friends, back to Queens where I was staying to pack and not sleep a
bit and get a cab to La Guardia at 5am to make my 7am flight back to
Chicago because I am compulsive about getting to airports 2 hours
before my flight leaves, which I did and which did and during which I
slept not a wink [tho I did read the first 20 pages of "Kavalier and
Clay" and the remaining half of "Endless Nights"] which was then
followed by a cab ride to my office, where I am now--sleep deprived and
shockingly not blue-haired. So this may be, you know, *rambly.*).

However, much fun was had, much money was spent (NYC, if nothing else,
gave me a keen appreciation of Chicago. Particularly our transit
system, modest restaurant prices, and lack of tunnels and bridges as
well as lack of cabbies who will charge you $50 to get from La Guardia
to Queens), and I have decided that Art Spiegelman is hella keen. 

I mean, I pretty much knew that, from "Maus", but Sunday night just
confirmed it. Wow, is he keen. Sharp enough to cut things with, that's
how keen.

And of course, unca neil was spiffy as always. I feel bad for not
making it to the street faire Sunday, but I had brunch with a friend,
and then took advantage of the gloriously sunny day by walking from
30th and Lex to 92nd and Lex, where I then had a lovely lovely dinner
at a place called Cafe Lex with my friend Sharon who is very smart and
works with primates and used to have purple hair but doesn't at the
moment because she has to do something involving primates at the Zoo,
and the Zoo apparently would not appreciate her doing it while having
purple hair.

Also? Anyone in the NYC area who ever has the opportunity to see Isaac
Alderson, Irish trad. musician extraordinare, live--take advantage of
the opportunity. For he is nifty and sweet in addition to having won
all sorts of medals for his music. I need to go back to NYC some time
when I have much more time to visit with folks, and get over my
paralysing fear of being in a city where I have no idea where anything
is, or which way is East due to the absence of a giant body of water to
mark it.

Oh! and I met a wonderful fabulous Tara at the 92nd St. Y event. She
and I commiserated about how people mispronounce our name, and I am
insanely jealous of her Ben Edlund autograph in her autograph book,
amongst others. But really, the Tick one made me grin like a loon.
Also, she was just plain nifty. As was the red-haired Jen (I think she
was a Jen. Again, I'd been up for 36 hours. So I may have been a bit
punchy. But in any case, she was a lovely girl studying Religion and
full of interesting and esoteric knowledge, and it was her very first
unca neil signing) who was ahead of us in line at the Saturday event. 

So, now I am 30 years old. And I can't think of a better way to have
spent my birthday. I honestly can't.
  

    
Man, that sounds like such a good time.  I wish I'd been able to get
there.

I just wanted to say:
I've bought many CDs in the past several years.  No, more than that. 
Keep going.  Seriously.  My brother would call it a ridiculous amount. 
I may well be up to 1,000.  If not, I'm close.  I've gotten them from
Best Buy, Barnes and Noble, concerts, used CD shops.  I've got
independent artists and oldies.  I've got seven or eight different Dave
Matthews CDs.  I bought Roger Clyne's homemade DVD from his web site,
because I like supporting people.
In all the years I've bought CDs, never once has limpbizkit, or Dave
Matthews, sent me a post card to say thanks (okay, one can understand
it from the former.  But where's the love, Dave?).
Until today.

And I just have to say, Adriana, you're a very beautiful young lady
(if, of course, that's you on the front of the postcard, with the
microphone.  I kinda doubt you would've used a stock beautiful young
lady for promotion, though).

And your CDs are Wonderful.  With a capital Wonderful.
  

    
Tara - You make such a beautiful blondie you! I can do uber-blonde
well, but my hair really doesn't like it, so I promised it I wouldn't
do it again for a long long time. I miss it. Are you enjoying it? It
looks utterly FAB on you! Sounds like you had quite the blast of a
trip. I only hope my three-oh is half as silly and eventful (tho' there
will be costumes and a funny hat of shame, so there's potential).
Eeee! Ramble on!

Will - Adriana is a beautiful young lady - and she's got one a them
purty voices. I'm not surprised in the slightest that she'd be all
postcard sendy.

Oooh, and to clarify the pseud, well, not that we didn't all know this
any way, but Maure is a goddess this week (I know she doesn't want to
be one all the time, so she'll just have to suffer this week). I'm now
only missing 2 Stardusts, and one of those is supposedly in the post to
me as I type, so YAY!

Now to go test my cousin to see how much of it he can read (snicker)

squeaks, with sleepy kitten on lap and many Friendster posts to type
  

    
Pamela - yep it was a weekend of Roleplaying using Zelazney's Amber
series as a basis for the games.

I got a post card from Adriana too!  I forgot to mention that earlier.
  

    
From Holley Nowell --


Just checking in. Still alive and ok. Still in condo. Packing. Boxes
everywhere. Things lying all over floor and every surface. Some will be
packed. Some I've left there in the open to look at. To make up my
mind if it will be given away, sold on EBay, or packed again to take. 

Landlady called. Said she really doesn't want to sell the place now
but she's signed the listing and put a really hefty price on the  unit.
Told me, as if it were a special favor she did out of respect for my
privacy and feelings (ha) that she won't let them put a lockbox on the
door (so every real estate agent in this huge town can drop by and open
up the place to show it at any time) and her agent can only go in with
her present. Like that makes a diff. So. I'm still packing and
planning to move. Yeah. It'd be nice if I didn't have to but I just
can't trust her now and don't want to suddenly have 30 days to pack and
get out. So. I'm looking. I sorta found a place I like but am still
looking about. Lots of deals right now. Big complexes going up.
Existing complexes half full. Even this condo community has several
units for sale and will have at least a couple more that I know of
soon. There are unhappy residents mad about unfair fines for noise they
didn't make. Ms. Thumper behind me who has finally had to concede the
noise she hears is the pipes and she's been annoying her neighbors (me)
for over a year banging on their walls and ceilings. Now she knows
that the condo management aren't planning to fix the problem which
causes the knocking, she is thinking of selling and moving elsewhere.
That's actually kind of funny to me. Ironic funny I mean. 

After looking about. I'm almost looking forward to this move. Seen
some really nice places. I'll have to give up cable for a while until
my budget gets back in line. Sigh.

Speaking of which - for all you Angel fans - The new Spike TV is
running Angel every day now around 5pm Central time. So if you missed
an ep...   Does anyone else get angry every time they see the new Spike
TV thing? The network for MEN! Yeah, I know, there is a network for
WOMEN also but that's an obscure cable network I don't happen to get so
I don't know if their ads are in-your-face obnoxious about it. I've
made a real effort not to buy into this gender war crap. Or the
generation war crap. Maybe it's just me & my sensibilities. Is it? 

SO many boxes. It's amazing. It took 5 boxes just to empty one
sideboard. I haven't even started on that big cabinet. And then there's
the other china cabinet. Not quite so many because it's more display
and things aren't packed tightly in but it will account for at least 5
or 6 boxes when all's told. The not-every-day dishes in the kitchen is
packed. All the doll collection except for the ones on display in the
dining room are packed & they took 3 big boxes. Most of my collection
books out of the main bookshelves are packed but the ones in the office
are not (4 bookcases in there). 

Am experimenting with papier machet cat box. Take a lid off one of
those paper boxes you get a lot of in offices, use a blender to turn
all your junk mail into mush. Line the inside of said lid with it
liberally (1/2 inch). Let it dry (takes a little less than a week) and
pour sand in. At changing time, just take box and all and toss it.
Ta-da. Free disposable cat box. I guess if you want a pretty one, you
could always papier machet the outside with wrapping paper scraps or
spray paint it but that would sort of defeat the free part unless you
happen to have such colorful paper scraps around all the time. The
paper actually dries rather hard and resists cat scratching rather
well. 
  

    
Bought Eddie Izzard's new DVD yesterday.  It's not as funny as Dress
to Kill, but it's funny.  It's called Circle.  I saw the show in
Chicago about 3 months before they taped it, and so far none of it
rings a bell.  Strange.

Tara's hair is so keen.

Mary (back to grading papers, now)
  

    
Heh.  My favorite part of *Circle* is when he's talking about
Ireland's peace talks, stops in the middle of the bit, and addresses
the Manhattan audience:
"You *do* know there are other countries, don't you?"

My countdown to Eddie continues.... a little more than a month from
now, I'll see him opening and closing night in Philly.  Wooo!
  

    

Bought Circle today, but it's a gift for a housemate and she hasn't been
home yet, so it's still sitting here, wrapped, unwatched...
  

    
Oh, man, I hope that wasn't really a spoiler.  My fault, if it was. 
It's only a single line, though, in an hour-and-a-half show.

Hope you enjoy it when you watch it, madman.
  

    
Y'know, I should really get off my butt and by some Izzard tickets for
Philadelphia.
  

    
Holley Nowell, again:


Oops! I was wrong. Angel is every night 5pm Central on TNT.
  

    
*We* see Eddie next Wednesday.  Neener-neener!  I cannot wait.

Yes, Will, that bit is one of my faves so far as well.  We haven't
watched the whole thing yet.  Hoping to get all the Unusuals together
Saturday to do it.

Mary (who must go be a football fan again this afternoon--last
Saturday's score was 56-14!  We rock!)
  

    
I'm now embarking into the strangeness that is liminality: being
neither quite here nor gone at my job, which I'll finish on 10/31, and
sort of in my life, as well.  It's all very odd, and I never quite know
who I'm going to wake up being.

Of course, that last part's not really anything new.  Just... sort of
exacerbated.

     *

Michelle: Congrats on your new job!  Of *course* they'd want to hire
you!  And your kitty is just tasting your water to make sure it's okay
for you.  Really, it's a very sweet thing to do.

Tara: *Fabulous* hair!  It looks fantastic on you.  Major chutzpah
points to you.  And thanks ever so much for the trip write-up.  Sounds
like you packed a whole lotta fun into a compact trip.  Someday when I
grow up and go to New York, too, I'd be thrilled to meet Rocky.  I
wonder why they won't let your friend have purple hair... do they think
it would bother the *animals*?  And I hope it's the bestest, happiest
year ever.

Holley: So sorry for the continuing saga of moving problems.  I hope
you find something just perfect, and can leave all this behind you
soon.

Will: I think it was more of a "teaser" than a spoiler.  No worries on
my account.  And I'm betting he was really asking if they realized
that there were countries other than *Manhattan*.
  

    
And Mimi's in the journal!  The Wellie star turn continues!
  

    
Yeah, my DVD is waiting to be watched as well. My Izzard-convert
friend is going to come by this weekend and we're going to watch it
together... so hard to leave it unopened though. 

Circle was my first Izzard experience, when I got taken by friends oh
so many years ago. I still remember the stuff he did on Jesus and the
Eucharist.... 

not a spoiler there, because I said so and didn't quote any of the
jokes and he does stuff on Jeezy Creezy all the time. So there.