Category: Blog

Adventuring for the faint of heart

Convention Business: The BaltiCon Program is now live. Word is that it’s still being tweaked. I was, for instance, double booked for Saturday evening, and have been moved from the panel discussion of how to make your characters relatable. Here’s the link. Note that you can search the schedule by day, and by person, and you can create your own list of things to do and see.

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What went before: So, that’s 636 new words on the day, along with some retrofitting of old words. The WIP Entire now weighs in at +/-39,597 words.
For a book that has quite a large cast of characters, Salvage Right is amazingly tight, and I have to keep going back and refreshing myself on what happened when and to whom, as well as what was left over.

Also, prep for BaltiCon, including the travel details, and speeches, and reservations at Corning — not to mention the stupidity with the insurance company and! something else that landed on my desk today — is all kind of borking my concentration on the story. Well. Maybe I’ll have time to write at the con.

Yeah, who am I kidding?

The rain has stopped and the wind has come up. Word is that tomorrow will be sunny and beautiful.

We’ll see, she said darkly.

In the meantime, everybody stay safe.

I’ll see you tomorrow.

Sunday In Two Parts

ONE
Oh, my gods and goddesses.

Rookie fell out of the bathroom window.

SPOILER: He’s OK; I’m — a little stressed, and so very VERY pleased that he didn’t run away, but just sat in the garden under the window and YELLED. Firefly and Tali came to get me, both looking very worried, and I had heard a cat calling, but thought it was Trooper singing the song of his people downstairs, as is his habit.

But Trooper was on the copilot’s chair. I ran to the bathroom; the screen was awry and I could hear a cat YELLING. I closed the bathroom door, ran outside — and there was Rook, staring up at the window and YELLING. I called him and he came to me, just like the spoiled kid he is, and I picked him up and told him how brave and smart he was, and brought him back into the house, where we both collapsed onto the couch. He’s only just gotten up to grab a snack.

I pushed the screen all the way out, closed and locked the window. I’ll figure out how to put it back in later.

Offerings to Bast are in order.

TWO
Sunday. Sunny and still a little chilly, though warm enough that I opened the bathroom window for the edification of coon cats.

Breakfast was … eggs scrambled with tomato and onion and rice. I guess I ate about half of it before Adventure overtook me. I hate cold eggs. I did finish my toast and jam. Lunch will be chicken tender and mashed potatoes out of a bag and, oh, peas, why not?

I have a letter to write, but mostly I want to write. I really hope that isn’t too much to ask.

I … am still a little shaky, and so glad that Firefly and Tali came to get me instead of following Rook out the window. I might’ve talked Firefly in, but Tali’d be halfway to the mall in Augusta by now. Fans of Trooper will be pleased to hear that he slept through the entire thing.

So! Who’s up for Adventure today?

Picture of Rook after the fall:

I thought that I heard you laughing

What went before: Bookmarks for Balticon just landed!
Today has been a frustrating day. As much as I declared that it would be a writing day — well. It was a writing day.

Unfortunately, it was a writing day where I realized that I had made a wrong turn, and spent hours trying to figure out (1) where I had gone wrong and (2) how to fix it. I briefly considered chucking the entire manuscript into the recycling bin and deleting all the files.

Then I realized that I was dealing with a crew of rogues and scoundrels and that Seignur Veeoni is, to put it as baldly as possible — Seignur Veeoni.

Which in the present case, is a GOOD thing.

So! 265 new words written today, but the way is clear for tomorrow.

I had salmon on a bed of salad greens for lunch, and there’s broccoli cheese soup left over for tomorrow.

The cats have just finished Happy Hour; I have some dishes to wash, and my own evening meal to forage.

Everybody stay safe; I’ll see you tomorrow.

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Saturday. Why, look; it’s raining.

I’ve taken to setting an alarm for 7am, as a compromise to getting up at 5am because I woke up, and feeling Aggrieved for the rest of the day. If I know I have an alarm set for 7, when I wake up at 5, I say, “Oh, no, you still have two hours to sleep,” and — that works. Psychology, man.

So, this morning when I arose, dewy and pink, from my couch (I know, I know — terrible image, but who am I to contradict a poet?), I was starving. I was in fact So Hungry that my brain immediately said, “You’re too hungry to eat.”

Have I mentioned recently that my brain periodically tries to kill me?

Yeah, so. Breakfast was naan and hummus, and a handful of dried apricots, because it was quick and could pretend to be nutritious. For lunch, there is that bowl of broccoli cheese soup that I ordered yesterday for lunch, but didn’t want after I ate the salad.

Today is — dare I say it? Yes! flaran cha’menthi, and all like that — a writing day. Seignur Veeoni is on deck. This ought to be Fun. For those values of Fun that apply to writers who are actively writing.

I was visited, serially, at breakfast by Rook and by Tali. Firefly stopped by my chair to have her back stroked, which is Firefly’s schtick; and Trooper is already on duty in the copilot’s chair.

So! What’s the weather at your house?

Today’s blog post title brought to you by REM, “Losing my religion“

BaltiCon 59 Schedule: Sharon Lee

FRIDAY
7:30PM Opening Ceremonies, Maryland Ballroom  Duration: 1:00
Welcome our Guests of Honor and Special Guests, applaud the Compton Crook and Heinlein Awards, and honor those we’ve lost since we were last able to meet in person.

SATURDAY
8:45AM Friends of Liad Breakfast in the hotel dining room

11:30AM Interview, Maryland Ballroom Duration: 1:00
Sharon Lee, Tom Schaad

2:30PM Speculative Poetry Open Mic and Contest Winners Reading, Federal Hill Duration: 2:00
The winners of the Steve Miller BSFS Annual Poetry Contest will also read their winning poems. Sharon Lee will present the awards.  Come read your speculative poetry! Share what you’ve been working on.
Miguel O. Mitchell, PhD, Sharon Lee

7:00PM Making Readers Care About Your Characters, Gibson, Duration: 01:00
Plotting is awesome, but it’s characters, and the emotions they make the reader feel, that people remember. How do we make the reader care about our characters? How do we use plot events to evoke character feelings and reactions? Learn tips and tricks from our illustrious panel.
T. C. Weber (mod), Christiane Knight, Sebastien de Castell, Diana Peterfreund, Sharon Lee

SUNDAY
10AM Kaffeeklatsch with Sharon Lee, Club Lounge, Duration: 01:00
Spend an hour with Guest of Honor/Heinlein Award winner Sharon Lee.
Limited to 10 spaces. Sign-up sheet is at the Info Desk next to Registration.

1PM The Stakes are High, and They’re Well Done, Gibson, Duration: 01:00
Have you ever DNFed in the middle of a book? Whether as a reader or a writer, we have all encountered the treacherous canyons of the “saggy middle.” But how can authors avoid this common pitfall? Our panelists will talk about utilizing tension and raising stakes to bridge the gap between the call to action and the final showdown, and keep readers turning pages.
Charles E. Gannon (mod), J.D. Blackrose, Sarah Avery, Sebastien de Castell,
Sharon Lee

2:30PM Autographs: Sharon Lee and Jo Miles, 5th Floor Lobby Duration: 01:00

4:00PM Reading: Sharon Lee and Jean Marie Ward St. George, Duration: 01:00

MONDAY
10:00AM Basic Novel Writing Organization Gibson, Duration: 01:00
Whether you’re a plotter or panster, or somewhere in between, at some point in the process you have to make sure your pacing and story arcs all make sense. How do you organize and plan out your novel or book series so that your editor loves you? Let’s talk story structure.
Alan Smale (mod), Sharon Lee, Samantha Mills, Sebastien de Castell

 

In which dragons rule

What went before ONE: Plot twist! A folder has been opened for me at the Legal Aid for the Elderly. I am promised a call from a lawyer, perhaps today.

It is now cloudy here at the Cat Farm, though we’re not supposed to get rain until this evening. One’s duty to the cats has been dispatched; and I took a small walk. Laundry is being washed. Moving on to checking off Even More things from the to-do list.

What went before TWO: The credit card bill just came in and I had one of those HOLY FREAKING GHU! How much cat food did I BUY? moments.

Scrolling madly down the list —

Breathe, breathe. You bought a washer and dryer, remember? It’s OK, you planned for this…

What went before THREE: Window washer/gutter clean-and-repair guy still here. The sweet potato for lunch was good. The top rack of my dishwasher has decided to get out of alignment. Of course, it’s full of dishes. I manged to finagle it back to where it’s supposed to go, will wash the dishes tonight, empty it tomorrow and try to figure out what’s going on.

In the meantime, I have heard from the lawyer. She needs to speak with a colleague, and will call me back.

I spent an hour watching a comedy/poetry show called Biology with Alok. I’m assuming that I am, as always, late to the party, but if you haven’t seen this video, I … give it a qualified recommend. The poems are difficult, especially the segment about Alok’s grandfather, which is part of a long riff on why love is dangerous.

It seems like part of the intent of the show is to create a balance of high and low. The aside into made up words is hysterical, and I really liked the segments where the subject is straight/straight white people, where Alok is pretending that the audience are unfamiliar with the subculture. Kind of like Peter Grant, who only mentions a person’s race if they’re white.

I also liked the bit where Alok and friends are walking down the street and a guy yells, “GAYS!” “Give me something I can make poetry from, not comedy!” has got to be a classic line.

Anyhoots, for those who may be interested — it’s an hour and I spaced it out into three segments — here’s the link

What went before FOUR: One of my ASL classmates made this for me:

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Business first: Ribbon Dance mass market debuts on the Bookscan Bestseller List of new releases at Number 35!

Friday. Mizzling and chilly. sigh

Breakfast was rice crackers, cream cheese, and the last strawberries. Lunch… Yeah. I’ll think of something.

ASL class was a little chaotic last night; all of us, including the instructor, were one step off of center. Next week is my last week, by reason of Balticon, and I’ll also have to miss two fabric craft meetings. Thus! the price of fame. And of wanting to have a vacation.

Also next week — Monday, in fact — I have an appointment to get my haircut, which I have mixed feelings about. On the one hand, my hair’s grown long enough that, if we just chopped off a few points and got my bangs out of my eyes, I’d let it keep on doing its thing. On the other hand, I ought to at least look respectful. And on the gripping hand — who even looks at old scifi writers?

Is that DAVE BROMBERG on Classic Rewind? Oh. No. Ice Cream Man. Van Halen. That’s actually something of a relief.

Today, she says in a Determined Auctorial Voice, is a Writing Day. That may mean that lunch is solved by takeout.

. . . Back when I was a young writer, newly partnered and feeling completely safe for possibly the first time in my life, I could drop into story space and stay there for — hours and hours; half a day — or night. Sandwiches and glasses of ice tea would magically appear and I’d eat them without ever coming out of my fugue. I wrote several stories, start to finish, that way. Even as a older writer, I could drop into fugue for at least a few hours, knowing I had back-up. Nowadays, I have to keep one ear cocked and one eye open, and I — kinda resent that.

In other news, my dentist wants me to come to an Exclusive Event! An Invisalign Screening! And? If I sign On The Day, I can get $1100 OFF of Invisaligns.

While I’m the first person to agree that my teeth are crooked and have always been crooked, I take leave to doubt that the Invisaligns can be made to fit around the rocks in my mouth. So — recycling bin.

Spectrum Generations — aka the Senior Center(s) — have a newsletter called Wicked Aging. Make of that what you will.

And that’s what I’ve got on a gloomy Friday.

Who has weekend plans?

Oh, the new dragon is making friends.

Sunshine!

What went before, short form: So, yesterday morning I discovered a new and disturbing discoloration on the back of my calf, about the size of my palm. I spent some time thinking about that, my inclination being to Just Ignore It. Had it be Steve, now, I would have nagged him to go to the clinic, or at least call his doctor, and finally I decided that — in all fairness and in the spirit of While One Stands Both Live — I should do the same for me, so! to the clinic I went.

Examination, measurements, conversation, and ultrasound later — nobody knows what caused the broken blood vessels, but the discoloration is not a sign of a DVT — that’s a blood clot — and that’s really all that interests me.  Oh, and the disturbed area may be treated with warm compresses, elevation, and Tylenol.

It was not a very productive day, otherwise. I rewarded myself with ice cream and going to the local Reny’s to buy socks. Because buying socks is always in order.

Thursday. Sunny! Going to be warm(ish), though not so warm as it eventually got to be, yesterday. The windows are open. For now.

Breakfast was oatmeal with cranberries (a fat free food! it says on the package) and walnuts. Lunch with be a sweet potato.

Consumers for Affordable Health Care called me back as I was at breakfast and they too! gave me the number for Legal Aid for the Elderly, which is on my list to call as soon as I have my second cup of tea to fortify me. I can’t wait to hear how they can’t help me, either.

I have more things to do than I have time to accomplish, but I’ll see what I can make happen.

Window wash/gutter cleaning scheduled for noon. ASL at 5:30. Cat bowls have been refreshed.

Rookie came up into my lap after I finished my oatmeal — we have this thing where he visits me after breakfast (and after lunch, if his schedule allow), and this morning, Tali came by, saw the lap was occupied and jumped up anyway. She snuffled Rook’s ears; he snuffled her cheek. She stood there on my knees, a little uncertain, but unwilling to get down — so Rook got down and strolled off to have a bite of cat food. Tali turned around a couple times, bumped my chin with her head, tried to eat the blood pressure cuff while it was doing its thing, then bumped me again and jumped down.

So — progress.

What’s progressing in your vicinity?

Oh — Proof of sunshine, and! How many cats are in this picture?

In which the writer is v. tired

What went before: So, sewing group was fun, though perhaps a little short. I got to meet Carty McFly, a utility cart complete with wheels and enormous googly eyes. The official start time is 5:30 and the library closes at 7, so clean up was happening 6:30ish. However! We had a good group, especially for a first time. Two crocheters, two knitters, one quilter, and yours truly on the needle and hoop.

The cats were trying to get the Northeast Committee Cat on the phone when I got home, but technically Happy Hour was not late. In point of Actual Fact, it was Exactly on Time.

Still raining. And cold. Too cold.

Everybody stay safe; I’ll see you tomorrow.

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Wednesday. Raining. In case anybody cares, I’m really tired of rain. And? I accept no responsibility; the weather gods are NOT jealous of my lovely new sun chair.

Breakfast was cottage cheese and toast. Waiting for my second cup of tea to brew. Lunch — I bought some chicken tenders which need to be baked and then parceled out into the freezer, so I’m guessing chicken and veggie will do.

I? Am a Very Tired Woman.

I have a Generated Letter from Maximus, which is charged by the Federal Government to make sure that Medicare is Following The Rules. Maximus makes it Very Clear that they are only interested in The Rules. Which means they’re ignoring the substance of my appeal, as Martin’s Point before them. So, I’ll be calling the state insurance bureau today and see about getting an advocate. If there is no advocate, then I guess it’s the papers.

<grumble>Just what I wanted to be doing with my time</grumble>

The gentleman I spoke to about painting my garage is supposed to stop by today and stare at the project under discussion.

I need to renew my library card, which if I’d known, I coulda done that yesterday.

There are three cats sleeping in my office, and one cat on the back of the couch, attempting to influence the flow of random event.

And that’s what’s happening here.

What’s happening there?

. . . the rain’s gonna wash away, I believe this

What went before ONE: Contact made with painter. Letters writ. Duty to the cats retired. Car vacuumed; mud trays removed, rinsed off, and drying in the breeze.

I may not have mentioned this before, but … I have a snow shovel hanging on a coat hook in the foyer. And Rook has decided that bumping the shovel with his cheek (which makes the shovel swing slightly and go “bump-bump-bump”) is An Announcement that Coon Cats Are OR Should Be About To Be Fed.

Which is cute, even though he’s pretty often wrong. However, he’s right often enough that the other cats recognize the bump-bump-bump as treats and come rushing in from wherever they were to make sure they don’t miss out.

This brought to you by, I just put my dinner on to warm, Rookie decided turkey breast smelled good to him, hit the shovel — and I was awash in coon cats. None of whom are getting my turkey, and they’ve already had treats.

What went before TWO: Got a little bit of work done — +/-840 words, bringing the WIP to +/-38,690.

Still need to sort out my sewing basket, and one of my letters has generated a couple things I need to watch, so I think I’ll do the pots ‘n pans, serve up happy hour, pour a glass of wine and watch those.

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Tuesday. Damp and grey and chill.

Trash and recycling at the curb.

Breakfast was a raisin bran muffin. Kettle on for my second cup of tea. Lunch…I think there’s leftover quiche.

Chatting a little with the gentleman who will be interviewing me at Balticon (11:30 Saturday morning in the Maryland Room, immediately after the Friends of Liad Breakfast), and he mentioned that he may talk about the Carousel books, which is very cool. But, that inspired me to go back to find when the Carousel books were published — Carousel Tides, 2010; Carousel Sun 2014; Carousel Seas 2015. So the newest was published a decade ago.  I was in Old Orchard Beach in September of 2012, the year and month that I turned 60, writing Carousel Sun. Leaving aside the obligatory How Is That Possible? — that’s eleven Liaden books ago.

I dunno. Maybe we weren’t slackers, after all.

So, today I’m going to record my adjusted reading to make sure I fall within time, sort out my sewing basket, perform one’s duty to the cats, answer a couple letters and remember to go to the library this evening.

That doesn’t seem to be too difficult a day.

What’s your day look like?

Blog post title brought to you by Matchbook 20, “3 a.m.”

Pictures: daffodils and Rook (who was helping me watch those youtube samples)

The roads must roll

What went before: Still writing, but it will only be a matter of a couple hundred words. Spent most of the day on my reading for BaltiCon. It appears — and things are still in flux, so it might change — that I will be sharing a reading hour with a colleague. My reading was just a smidge under 30 minutes, so I needed to cut it to make sure I don’t go over time. I’ll have to time it again, but I’m pretty sure it’ll be fine.

I’ve also reviewed ASL homework, spent some time with the cats, taken a walk, and eaten lunch. Still need to do dishes.

I’ve read the sample of The Glassmaker: A Novel, by Tracy Chevalier, which was interesting, especially given my own interest in glass. I do have to consider if I want to go on, because…on the one hand, it’s always interesting to see what straight people — by which I mean Mainstream Novelists — do when they decide to use science fiction in their work. OTOH, it’s occasionally more infuriating than interesting, and that’s a fine, fine line to walk. I don’t wish the author ill, but I don’t want to watch the fall (if there is one), either.
Well. It’s not like I don’t have anything else to read at the moment. This one can sit in the wishlist.

So! I’m going to break here to wash dishes and torment Maine Coon Cats, after which it will be time to set up Happy Hour and I can come back to my keyboard and type another couple paragraphs to get me to the end of this minor scene.

Everybody stay safe; I’ll check in tomorrow, but possibly not until the afternoon.

Monday. Sunny and warm.

I’ve been to Charlie’s Subaru, where Skylark the Forester was pronounced ready to travel to Baltimore and back. Tires are good, and have been rotated. Brakes declared “practically new,” all fluids topped off. A picture of the underside of the car was taken, for some reason. The undersides of cars are ugly. However! No rust, nothing broken. Ref “ready to travel.”

I jettisoned the idea of going to Lisa’s for breakfast and shopping at the cool Hannaford at Cony Circle because the entirety of Augusta is being torn up by road crews, and I dared not risk myself trying to cross town. So I went home through Sidney and Oakland, which was fine until I hit Oakland, which is also being destroyed and rebuilt by road crews.

Not hitting Lisa’s meant breakfast was a KIND bar at Charlies, with the tea I had packed in, and cottage cheese when I got home from foraging at the KMD Hannaford.

Lunch will be a premade and now-defrosted chicken breast and butter beans.

I have a phone call to make and some outstanding correspondence to answer. I need to dump the lees of winter out of the car, and also poke around in my sewing box in anticipating of going to the sewing circle at the library tomorrow evening. Otherwise, and aside one’s duty to the cats, I will be trying to concentrate on writing.

Speaking of writing, I did misreport a couple days ago — I thought I’d appended a scene to the master document that I had not yet appended to the master document. So!

As of last night, total wordcount for WIP is +/-37,850. Which isn’t to bad, I guess, and it would be nice if a title suggested itself. Just sayin’.

The cats got up when I came home, and made a case for gooshy food. They have since gone back to their Usual Rounds, disappointed.

And that’s the Start of Monday at the Confusion Factory.

How’s Monday starting out for you?

when the world is puddle-wonderful

What went before: 707 new words today, bringing the WIP total word count to 35,147.

I printed out Blays and Majel’s Excellent Adventure, and will now have to time it.

Trooper is insisting that it is Coon Cat Happy Hour neeOW!, and he is, alas, wrong. I will therefore torment him by straightening up my desk and staring into the abyss of next week, which starts off with a bang! — a 7am appointment at the car dealership to get the Subaru ready for hitting the road. And! I need to remember to take the backway, because the ramp off the expressway to the dealership is closed (again) for repairs.

Sixteen people have committed to the Friends of Liad Breakfast at BaltiCon, which is certainly enough to warrant making a reservation.

It’s started to rain again; apparently, this is expected to continue through tomorrow night.

And Firefly has just come by to remind me about watching Dr. Who tonight…

Everybody stay safe; I’ll see you tomorrow.

Sunday. Raining. I’m chilly, but I don’t think it’s actually chilly. Anyhoot, sweatshirt on, and the dishwasher is doing its thing.

Breakfast was a cup of cottage cheese with a spoon of blueberry/ginger jam stirred in, this being the compromise after I informed myself that “I’ll just skip breakfast” was Not Acceptable. Lunch is easier. I have some tomato soup left over from the other day, into which I shall place a meatball or two and maybe some lentils, and, hey-presto! — rainy day soup.

<aside>I managed last year by riding the wave of Habit. But the wave has struck, and broken, and it’s becoming noticeably harder for me to keep on track. I haven’t lived by myself for nearly 50 years, and I’m finding I’m not very good at it. OTOH, I don’t really want to live with anybody else. Honestly, there’s no pleasing the woman.</aside>

So, last night, we watched Dr. Who. Firefly watched most of the Space Babies from the top of the cat tree, with Tali, but she came down when the bogeyman almost got Eric, and cuddled up with me, so we went on and watched the Music Thief, which I quite liked. (Apologies for not recalling the official titles of these episodes.)

Today, I need to time my (proposed) reading, and do some writing. Also, I need to make rice to have against need; it seems I’ve been eating a lot of rice, somehow, and remember to set the alarm for Omighod so I can be in Augusta (going the back way) by 7 am. I may grab breakfast at Lisa’s, after, and forage on the way home.

Looking out over the Long Back Yard — it’s amazing how quickly the leaves and flowers get on with it, once they’ve decided the time is right. I swear that two weeks ago, I had skeleton trees…

How’s everybody doing today?

Today’s blog post title brought to you by e.e. cummings, “In Just-“

In which the writer is not a cinephile

First things first:  This is for the purposes of planning the Friends of Liad Breakfast on Saturday morning of  Balticon at 8:45 am

If you are planning to attend the breakfast (you do not need to be a member of the con to come to breakfast): say “Yes” in comments.

Things you need to know about the Friends of Liad Breakfast:  (1) This is a family gathering to catch up with each other and news. Everybody pays for their own breakfast.  (2) It is not a con event.

Go!

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What went before ONE: Old/new snippet: “Was that too long?” Theo snapped, worry sublimating into temper by a process he understood intimately. “You smashed the rack-and-tile array with a starbar. The doc had to do repairs at the cellular level! You should be dead, except you got lucky.”

Lucky. Of course, he had gotten lucky.

What went before TWO: So, lost +/-230 words on the day, bringing the total WIP to 34,440, more or less. And! I have a follow to a new scene that did not appear in Salvage Right, and which will address something that we glossed over in Salvage Right because deadline and if we kept on going we’d have written a 200,000 word book and, just — no.

There are already /1/0 15 people who say they’ll be attending the Saturday morning Friends of Liad breakfast at BaltiCon. Hoping the in-house restaurant is more amenable to reservations than the Boskone hotel, which, the last time Steve and I hosted a FOL breakfast, adamantly refused to take a reservation, and therefore doomed themselves to constantly rearranging the room for two hours, as folks kept arriving.

I am scheduled to be interviewed at 11:30 on Saturday at the con, according to the Less Drafty Schedule, so that’s something else to bear in mind.

Trooper was unfortunately messily ill this morning, which means that there will be no Happy Hour this evening. Because explaining to cats that they need to not gorge on gooshy food because it will make them sick isn’t exactly an Easy Sell, I think I will be on the couch watching Dr. Who and ignoring the protests of felines whose throats have been cut, rather than trying to read, or write, or do ASL homework.

And that’s all I’ve got on the day.

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Saturday. The ‘beans claim it’s raining. The weather over the Long Back Yard is mostly sunny and a trifle cool. I’ve set the Awesome Chair up on the deck.

Breakfast was a ham and cheese sandwich (which finishes the ham, which I am now tired of, so it will be easier — for a while, anyway — to resist temptation) and veggie chips. Yes, that does sound like lunch. Actual lunch will be quiche and salad.

Thanks to everyone who pitched in on the name of the movie. Kill Bill it was. Nasty piece of work. Bearing in mind that I also did not think Thelma and Louise was “funny.” I think I may have mentioned that I am not the person they make movies for.

Speaking of movies, I watched The Church on Ruby Road, and the difference between now and 1997 is … wow. The cats all joined me, and we had a lovely viewing. Firefly has already asked that we do it again this evening, so I’ve got that inked in.

I stayed up a bit late last night, to finish The Teller of Small Fortunes. I also made the executive decision not to finish the book club book. This is slightly awkward, because I’m going to listen to the author read from this book in a week or two. OTOH, there always exists the possibility that I’m reading it wrong — reading protocols are A Thing, after all — and that the author’s performance will inform me.

Having gone to bed late, I slept late, and woke up to the realization that I need to start Making Lists for my upcoming perambulations, and for my duties to the con. Since I will apparently not be doing itinerant readings, I think I will read Blays and Majel’s Excellent Adventure officially, and perhaps carry with me “The Last Train to Clarkesville,” in case there’s another opportunity to just sit and read for an hour (it’s a long story).

This still leaves me with packing (1) the big suitcase full of con stuff and (2) the duffel bag, for my mini-vacay on the way home. I have engaged one of those apartmenty things, with a kitchen, and there’s a Wegman’s somewhere in Corning which I’ll try to hit before I check in. I have my tickets for two days at the museum, and two classes booked — one at the museum, and one at a studio in-town.

I still need to come to terms with how to get out of Baltimore. I’m thinking that Steve and I left BaltiCon 50 at, like, 4 o’clock in the morning and just shot out the Jones Falls well ahead of rush hour. That may be my best plan.

Today, I intend, mostly, to write. I have a few chores, as per usual, and one’s duty to the cats, and I will honor Firefly’s request for Moar Dr. Who. Oh, and I have to find something to read. I think I have the most recent Sebastian St. Cyr in the electronic TBR pile, the second Bad Heirs, a couple of cozies, and a Celia Lake to test drive. Yeah, I won’t starve.

What’s everybody reading today?

Oh. There are four cats in my office.