greygirlbeast | "Starbuck is My Copilot!" (Or is it the other way round?)

One of the things about being a freelancer – and here I mean the sort with nothing resembling a regular gig, the sort who lives hand to mouth, short story to novel to short story and so forth – is that there's a lot of waking-up time. You might have to worry about paying the bills, but you can take three hours to chase the sleep away. But now, because of The Secret, I'm another sort of writer, and I'm having to get used to rolling out of bed and hitting the floor running, frosty, eyes wide, bright and shiny, Cap'n. I'm getting very good at faking awake and articulate.

I actually slept eight and a half hours last night.

Yesterday, I worked. A lot.

I just got word of the Decemberists EP that comes out on November 1, and there's the new Tom Waits next week. Music madness!

This morning, Spooky kindly made me eggs and bacon for breakfast. These days, left to my own devices, my usual breakfast is a can of Campbell's vegetarian vegetable soup. And now I have my sugar-free Red Bull, so all is right and Ceiling Cat is in his clouds, rubbing shoulders with the Flying Spaghetti Monster.

I wish I had a good Hallowe'en party to attend this year, But, likely I shall not. Likely, we shall attend the Molten Masquerade, the annual iron pour at The Steel Yard, where over 500 pounds of liquid steel will flow beneath the night skies of Providence. It's hard to think of a better way to welcome Samhain. I mean, hard to think of a better way to welcome Samhain that doesn't involve nudity. And a sacrificial Scientologist.

A favor, please. If you've received your copy of Two Worlds and In Between: The Best of Caitlín R. Kiernan (Volume One), please leave a comment to that effect (and your location, if you don't mind). I just like watching my new books spread, like a pandemic.

Last night, after work, after Spooky went to the farmer's market, after meatloaf, we played RIFT for...a while. And then we read more of Colin Meloy and Carson Ellis' Wildwood. While Spooky read aloud, I used astronomy "apps" on Kermit to explore Mars and then the Moon. Ah, and yesterday I also managed to read four (!!!!) papers in the latest issue of the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology: "A new Barremian (Early Cretaceous) ichthyosaur from western Russia," "A Carboniferous emblomere tail with supraneural radials," "The first temnospondyl amphibian from Japan," and "New evidence of large Permo-Triassic dicynodonts (Synapsida) from Australia."

And that was the best of yesterday. And now I will leave you with five more randomly chosen "behind the scenes" photos taken by Ryan Anas during last weekend's shoot for The Drowning Girl: A Memoir trailer. However, these are so random, I think I'll add captions:

The cast and crew takes a break on the steps of the Providence Athenaeum.

More Athenaeum. Oh, those wacky librarians!

Brian and Nicola (Imp) in the Athenaeum.

Trying to frame a tricky shot at Wayland Square. That's Sara (Eva) in the red dress.

Kyle and I on the jetty at Harbor of Refuge.

All photographs Copyright © 2011 by Ryan Alas

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I honestly cannot remember the last time I saw a card catalog in real life.

Has to have been at least... fifteen years? Damn.

I honestly cannot remember the last time I saw a card catalog in real life.

As I said yesterday, the card catalogs are one of the things that make me very happy about the Athenaeum.

If you're ever in the area, you would love the Manchester city library. It's round and old and has an echo chamber and sublevels and card catalogues and aged manuscripts, it is a thing of wonder and magic. It's like right in the centre of the quintessential post-industrial city, there's this majestic, eldritch, vortex with its own labyrinthine temple.

Pretty ace, really.

I honestly cannot remember the last time I saw a card catalog in real life.

There was a card catalog in the Babylonian Collection at Yale; I liked that you could use it to look up even more antique forms of record.

I'm getting very good at faking awake and articulate.

I know the feeling.

The Molten Masquerade sounds spectacular. “Larger than life flaming masquerade masks!”

The Molten Masquerade sounds spectacular. “Larger than life flaming masquerade masks!”

It's pretty awesome.

I saw your subject line and mentally changed it to "Pilot is my Co-Pilot!"

(Random Chris is random. And has an excuse to use his Farscape comic icon.)

More coherent thoughts later...

I saw your subject line and mentally changed it to "Pilot is my Co-Pilot!"

That works, too.

Also, this made me think of you: I got to hear Colin Meloy and Carson Ellis speak about Wildwood at the Wordstock book fest (http://www.wordstockfestival.com/) a couple of weeks ago. They talked about their longtime love of books with maps (their son's picked up on that love, too) and showed the first draft of the map of Wildwood. They also talked about the 80-pages-done-so-far-but-unfinished OTHER children's book they'd started writing before they started Wildwood. They decided that that first book was wildly inappropriate as a kid's book, which is what they really wanted to do at that time. Thus, Wildwood. (Now I wonder if they'll finish the first book but not as a book for kids.)

Thank you! I know there will be at least one sequel to Wildwood

It sounds like they've started getting some thoughts down on paper (well, computer screen and paper) for the next Wildwood book. This is where the Decemberists hiatus, and Portland being about to enter a likely wet winter, will help...

Looking forward to hearing what you think of the book.

Yay for astronomy apps! I like Star Walk myself. It's deliciously fear-inducing.

I like Star Walk myself.

I've previewed it, but I'm trying hard no to go "app" crazy.

This, unfortunately, is very easy to do. When I updated the software on my device, I did an app purge. I figure if they don't get weekly use, then they have to go. That being said, I tend to look for free ones, only paying if I really have to.

I will resist!

They'll be mysteriously appearing at your P.O. box in the next 2 weeks.

Oh! Well. in that case, thank you. There's money I can spend on necessaries, like pizza.

I'm going to see Wild Flag at the 40 Watt Club tomorrow in Athens. I was wondering if you have ever been there.

I'm going to see Wild Flag at the 40 Watt Club tomorrow in Athens. I was wondering if you have ever been there.

Have I been there?!

Death's Little Sister (my former band) played shows there.

I figured that was probable. That's so cool.

Consider that icon stolen. I mean...appropriated.

Speaking of music, are you familiar with The National? Their song "Anyone's Ghost" reminds me of Imp.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2XnRl-m5QPI

Oh! This is all new to me. Wonderful. Thank you!

You're welcome. "Terrible Love" is also a gorgeous song.

In light of the week's hideousness, I have thrown my hands up and today ordered the darn book. I don't know how I will get it across the pacific ocean with me, but at this stage that is least among my concerns, and I could do with some wonder. I'll tell you when it arrives.

Doubly so because I'm not going across the pacific. I should have learned by now not to comment before coffee.

I still haven't gotten mine (in Georgia) and Amazon is saying some crap about 2-4 weeks!! Guess I should've ordered straight from Subterranean but in my foaming-at-the-mouth-ness I wasn't thinking all too clearly... :[

A favor, please. If you've received your copy of Two Worlds and In Between: The Best of Caitlín R. Kiernan (Volume One), please leave a comment to that effect (and your location, if you don't mind). I just like watching my new books spread, like a pandemic.

That is actually a very cool concept. I wonder if there will there be a map and push-pins involved.

No book yet. But I think our mail carrier hoards my parcels anyway.

"Starbuck is My Copilot!" (Or is it the other way round?)

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the new Tom Waits, and Decemberists EP

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