The Cantina Staring Back At You From The Abyss

We're trying out the new Thai and seafood restaurant in town tonight. Yay!

Blinkk said:

I'm also seriously wondering if my introvert side is freaking out, and investing heavily into video games is my way of shutting the world out. IDK, but my family is constantly wanting. My cousin literally bought me a plane ticket and emailed it to me saying, "I never see you enough, this is insurance to make sure you come." My family is so social. Sometimes I need to be alone for a week. That makes me able to go out and party more. I need that quiet time to do it.

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Shoeless said:

As a fellow introvert, I can get behind this. Big, huge, sprawling RPGs that you lose hundreds of hours in have been my kryptonite for years. It's the same reason I like novels. Just going off somewhere, by yourself, to experience fantastical things is one of the best ways for me to enjoy myself.

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Absolutely. Reading and writing, although writing can bring its own stresses, are my ways of escaping when I need to. I also listen to a lot of audio books so I can "be productive" while still going off to some other world. I like video games and RPGs but I'm so bad at them that I mostly stick to reading for this purpose.

Hoplite said:

Oooh! I just started that two weeks ago (also on Amazon). I agree, it's a great show an I love the mix up of detective noir, military sci-fi, political intrigue and the general thriller/mystery going on.

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Yesss! Join us! (The show just plain keeps gettin' better and better... Have you read the books yet? Different enough they're more like parallel universes than the same story, though still good.)

Religion0 said:

I don't think I should ever sleep in a tent in the future, or at least not alone, I think I feel too exposed without a locked door, I was jumping at just about any sound (of which there are many) including something that sounded awfully like sniffing ("wolf?!" suggested my overworked reptile brain) but was probably just the wind, and geese chatting.

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Reminds me of a story from someone I used to work with. She went camping in the boonies with these friends who had dogs, and in the middle of the night something warm and furry crawls into her tent for a snooze. The next morning she tells the other couple - whose dogs had been with them all night. It had been a coyote taking a nap with a nice human bed-warmer.

Later on Tuesday, and it was a very long and very warm day, owing to the Monday-Tuesday shift having an odd aversion to using fans. Then I had to shop my way home. And get gas for the car and the mower. Fortunately, we have enough leftovers to call nuke-your-own. Or at least I hope so, 'cause I already did. Need some chilling time... literally.

Away I drift. Should do logo work, but it'll have to wait until I'm not so sweaty. Sweat doesn't do great things to paper.

QuixoticQuill said:

Thanks for the recommendation! My family loves board games. We recently got really into Mysterium. A cross between Clue and .... I don't even know. Its visual though, with beautiful art, and the players work together.

Also, yes, I need that shirt too.

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You're welcome. And thanks for that recommendation, I'll be looking into it.

Brightdreamer said:

Reminds me of a story from someone I used to work with. She went camping in the boonies with these friends who had dogs, and in the middle of the night something warm and furry crawls into her tent for a snooze. The next morning she tells the other couple - whose dogs had been with them all night. It had been a coyote taking a nap with a nice human bed-warmer.

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I really don't know whether to feel second hand panic or think that's pretty cool.

Religion0 said:

Second Hand Panic

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is the name of my new band

Ah, I've managed to find a guy who could do work on the tree on such a short notice that by the time my dad returns from his trip this weekend the branches are at least off and he doesn't need to risk his life while trying to do it himself. It is now done!

The tree itself will be a different matter as it now apparently requires a permit, not unlike building. Bureaucracy ahoy. Oh well, baby steps. That also means that now half of my family can stop calling me all day asking whether the tree-guy has come yet. (I said three times already I'd call you when something changes whyyy are you calling me?)

Incredible how much this tied my life up. So much for housesitting being an easy job. Next stop: repair the busted silicone at the shower so there isn't a second shower downstairs when somebody takes up upstairs. Work is never done.

Shadowflame said:

Happy birthday EFB sorry i missed it.

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Thanks, Shadow! No worries about missing it, I'm just glad to see you back.

themindstream said:

I don't know how much satellite internet is like satellite TV but a real heavy rain will (temporarily) interrupt the reception on satellite TV. So, caveat.

You could try using the satellite company's offerings as leverage against your current ISP though. Threaten to switch unless they send people out to fix it permanently (and I'm betting, by what you describe, that it's underground cable that's frayed/corroded somewhere so that it gets FUBAR when wet so bear in mind that fixing is likely to involve digging things up).

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Yeah the sattelite does loose the signal temporarily, which is something we discussed, but we agreed that 20 minutes (at max) without internet is better than 1 week without it. But alas, my dad decided we weren't going with them at least for now, so it doesn't matter anymore.

Re the cause of the problem with current internet, our understanding from talking to one of the techs is that the issue isn't underground. There's supposed to be a box just a mile down the road and someone just has to haul buns out there and fix the darned thing. It's getting them to haul buns out there that's the issue. And they've also heen able to fix it sooner than they initially said before when my dad put pressure in them by threatening to switch to another company and write and complain to various government thingamabobs that are in charge of this kind of thing. So, anyway, he's working on putting the pressure on because this is seriously something that shouldn't be a recurring issue to the point of being predictable.

Brightdreamer said:

Reminds me of a story from someone I used to work with. She went camping in the boonies with these friends who had dogs, and in the middle of the night something warm and furry crawls into her tent for a snooze. The next morning she tells the other couple - whose dogs had been with them all night. It had been a coyote taking a nap with a nice human bed-warmer.

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Oh my... 0.o

Day 3 no local internet. This is really annoying but guess I'll be grateful I can at least acess it from my phone. I just can't do all the online things I need to do from my phone.

If two dogs had wrapped their leashes around my knees, I might have ended up on the ground in the front yard this morning and my pants might be wet from dew right now.

A little writing got done yesterday but not nearly as much as I wanted. Having turned 26 I'm legally required to come off of my parent's health insurance by the end of the month. So we had to first see if I qualified for an individual plan from the same company (I didn't because they apparently did a lot of cutbacks in the individual policies area last year and don't cover individuals in this region anymore.) So I then had to spend two hours figuring out the national healthcare website until I finally got something worked out. #Adulting stinks.

My mom has to get a crown on her teeth fixed today so wordage will happen until then.

Wednesday morning, and wishing it was Friday already... eh, well. At least I shouldn't have to shop my way home.

Got a book review posted, now I need to get shoes on and head doorward, thence carward, thence workward.

Incidentally, if anyone has a spare TV and wants to help a good show, 9 PM on SyFy - we need the ratings boost to help make something happen for the Expanse. (You can mute it and throw a towel over the screen if you don't want to see it, though we just transitioned to Book 3 so it might not be a terrible ep to come in on.)

And off I go.

*Returns scarred but triumphant* There, the raptors seem to be getting back into fighting trim.

I'm looking forward to this weekend. I'll be exhibiting at Escape Velocity in Washington D.C.. The event is sponsored by the Museum of Science Fiction and is definitely focused on the science part of science fiction. One of the cool things is my table is two down from the guys who produce "Star Power", one of my favorite web comics, so I hope we'll have time to visit before and after the show. Had to get my parking reserved for the weekend ... I'd forgotten how expensive it is to park in D.C. Ouch.

Now if I can only get this last novella wrestled into submission, things would be outstanding.

Quiet Cantina is quiet.

*Wants quiet from RL peoples and socialization from internet peeps all at the same time*

I'm trying to figure where I can go hide for a weekend to give myself a break from the responsibilities of life for a bit. I've been researching places that cabin in the woods combined with interwebs.

I'm percolating the 7th book in my 9 book series. This is the first of the third trilogy...

Basic sentence is all I have so far: A young man and his gender-bent sister must escape a cruel stepfather. The boy has a talent with moving things with his mind (from the family's legacy, a magical brooch) to aid their escape through the Fae-filled forests. But have they truly escaped? Set in 6th century Ireland.

Now to beef that up into a 3-page synopsis. Find character names. Narrow down a place in Ireland.

zanzjan said:

I'll be in chat tonight trying to add some werds to the WIP.

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I'll see if maybe I can drop in since I'm on vacation the rest of the week. Kidlet recognition programs tomorrow and first day of summer on Friday.

greendragon said:

I'm percolating the 7th book in my 9 book series. This is the first of the third trilogy...

Basic sentence is all I have so far: A young man and his gender-bent sister must escape a cruel stepfather. The boy has a talent with moving things with his mind (from the family's legacy, a magical brooch) to aid their escape through the Fae-filled forests. But have they truly escaped? Set in 6th century Ireland.

Now to beef that up into a 3-page synopsis. Find character names. Narrow down a place in Ireland.

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Sounds like fun. I need to sit down with one of my stories and work on it. Long overdue.

I finally found sweatpants! They were at a Dollar General. Hopefully they'll fit the way I want minus any wedgie but if they don't, well at least I didn't pay much for them. What is with none of them having pockets anymore? Well, you know what? I DON'T NEED NO STINKING POCKETS! I'll make my own and SEW THEM ON, DARN IT! Crafting, ftw!

Richard White said:

*Returns scarred but triumphant* There, the raptors seem to be getting back into fighting trim.

I'm looking forward to this weekend. I'll be exhibiting at Escape Velocity in Washington D.C.. The event is sponsored by the Museum of Science Fiction and is definitely focused on the science part of science fiction. One of the cool things is my table is two down from the guys who produce "Star Power", one of my favorite web comics, so I hope we'll have time to visit before and after the show. Had to get my parking reserved for the weekend ... I'd forgotten how expensive it is to park in D.C. Ouch.

Now if I can only get this last novella wrestled into submission, things would be outstanding.

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Why don't you sic the raptors on the novella? That would teach it...

tjwriter said:

Quiet Cantina is quiet.

*Wants quiet from RL peoples and socialization from internet peeps all at the same time*

I'm trying to figure where I can go hide for a weekend to give myself a break from the responsibilities of life for a bit. I've been researching places that cabin in the woods combined with interwebs.

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That sounds nice and relaxing. Good luck!

E.F.B. said:

I finally found sweatpants! They were at a Dollar General. Hopefully they'll fit the way I want minus any wedgie but if they don't, well at least I didn't pay much for them. What is with none of them having pockets anymore? Well, you know what? I DON'T NEED NO STINKING POCKETS! I'll make my own and SEW THEM ON, DARN IT! Crafting, ftw!

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+1 to Crafting Skills. Sweatpants now have carrying bonus.

Later on Wednesday, and I did indeed have to shop my way home. Again. 'Cause Dad can never say ahead of time when he needs stuff... ergh. But that's done. Later tonight, after dinner, I need to help drop off Mom's car at the shop. I damned well better be back by 9, is all I'm sayin'... So, anyway, not a lot is going to get done on the logo. Keep trying to design something new, keep coming back to what I have, which I still don't think is that great but it's all that's comin' out of my head at the moment. May take one more stab at it... have an idea that would require more computer work, but since I do so much cleanup on the computer anyway I don't know that it would add too much to the overall workload, and it would look cool if I could pull it off.

Away I drift. (And a reminder to anyone who won't be using their TVs tonight from 9 to 10... you can help a fandom out with the mute button and a towel over the screen. Just sayin'...)

zanzjan said:

I gotta admit, I can't figure out what this means. Help?

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Means you don't have to watch it, just turn the TV on to SyFy at 9 PM, mute it, and throw a towel over the screen so it doesn't bug you. Then turn it off at 10.

zanzjan said:

Okay, I backread (hey, end of semester is insane for me), and I'm guessing you mean the Expanse? I live in dialup internet no cable land, so I pretty much only ever get to watch stuff on DVD.

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Yep, that's it.

Though if you get the chance, it's about the best SF to come out in recent years...

Thursday morning, and my body thinks it's Friday because of Tuesday's overtime. Stupid body... still got one day to go, dang it. In any event, brain woke up too early. Wish it would stop doing that.

Last night's ep was, again, excellent. Major transition to Book 3, new directions, shuffling dynamics.

Now I'm going to wander around in circles for over an hour until it's time to leave for work. (See, brain? This is what happens when you won't let me sleep! You get to wander in boring effing circles!)

My mom tried to watch Expanse at one point and while it seemed like a quality show she felt like it was one of those you neeeded to have watched from the beginning to understand because she couldn't follow it.

Day 4 no internet. We thought it was back briefly yesterday, but it was super slow. By the tine we got home from our errands it was gone again. My dad called the internet people and they think we need a new modem. Problem is, we've done this dance once before and a new modem didn't work. Well, we have another company coming out today to see if we can get their signal and switch to them. That's IF they get here. Apparently they sent a second confirmation text last night and my mom didn't see it till this morning. She's called the number to check and see if they're still coming so fingers crossed they are and we can get internet again.

ETA: Oh look they're here. Meli is trying to do a big girl guard dog bark. What a good puppy. XD


ETA2: I HAZ INTERNET!!!

EFB - we had a similar problem (and similar dance of no-repairs) with Frontier when we lived in Nowhere Amish country in PA. Finally they sent a tech out to physically look at the junction box. It had almost completely rotted to nothing. They replaced it, and internet improved greatly after that.

Taking my mom to zine fest this weekend. Supposed to be for her birthday, though neither of us planned it that way. My GF does it every year, I've attended enough of them that I was gonna sit this one out. But me and mom were going to get together anyways, and when I presented the opportunity she was really excited about it.

Thoughts cascading through my mind of her wandering through the event space, bemused and scandalized at all the the young people with their brightly-colored hair and 'new ways'. Truthfully tho, that's actually the exact opposite of how I expect her to respond to it. Zine fests are panoplies of weirdness and self-expression, so it should be fun.

So, I started a new short story! Yay! But now I'm 1600 words in - and I don't know where to go from here. It's a post-apocalyptic native American tribe searching for another tribe to bring them ancient wealth - books, those rare antiquities that contain such esoteric knowledge and tales. They stumble across a library, a treasure trove beyond their wildest dreams! And... now what?

greendragon said:

So, I started a new short story! Yay! But now I'm 1600 words in - and I don't know where to go from here. It's a post-apocalyptic native American tribe searching for another tribe to bring them ancient wealth - books, those rare antiquities that contain such esoteric knowledge and tales. They stumble across a library, a treasure trove beyond their wildest dreams! And... now what?

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Do they know how to read, or are they trying to teach themselves? (Lots of knowledge gets lost in an apocalpyse... even just knowing the letters, if the language has shifted it may not be a great deal of help in figuring out what's in the books, let alone sorting fiction from nonfiction.)

Are there different factions who believe or want different things (say, one that believes the books themselves contain magic and must be hoarded by the tribal elites vs another that aims to become library evangelicals to spread the words through the land as a new cult religion...)?

Is there a threat, from within or without? Has something/someone been protecting the library and comes back to find the tribe raiding its stash?

Do they find something in the library that makes them reconsider everything about their origins or the apocalypse or something else?

Spitballing...

Later on Thursday, and chilling after work. Need to get to work on that frellin' logo, but first I need to post a book review. (What's with some Kindle books being so weirdly coded that it says you're 55% through or so, then all the sudden you're at the afterword notes and it's 100% done?)

Away I go.

rocures a sample issue of the Magazine of F&SF from its mailing envelope:

Wow, I've never actually seen a hard copy of these before. And it's thick, practically the size of a paperback novel. I feel very old school. But market research!

Also, I finally got to the writers group in Corning for the first time. (Waves at GD. I did ok? Nervous part of my brain is often unsure. Sorry about confusing cows and sheep. Also, parking in downtown is hard! But it was fun and I plan to be back.)