Caitlín R. Kiernan

Another very excellent day off yesterday, and I hardly ever get two very excellent days off in a row. Today it is back to the word mines, but at least I am rested. More than eight hours sleep again last night, so I'm feeling considerably less zombiefied. The warm weather helped (60sF), though it turned rather blustery yesterday, and then we had rain last night.

As for yesterday, first I spent three and a half hours editing a Dune: Apocalypse roleplay transcript from Monday night. I know that doesn't sound like the sort of thing that a writer would do on her day off, but I find editing rp transcripts oddly relaxing in their need for precision and patience. And this was just such a great scene. You can read the transcript here. Anyway, when that was done, I got dressed and we finally made it over to the Fernbank Museum of Natural History. I think we got there about 4 p.m. (CaST). I've been reading the description of a new species of Carcharodontosaurus (C. iguidensis) in the new Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, and there were some features on the Gigonotosaurus mount I wanted to see again up close (Gigonotosaurus is a close relative of Carcharodontosaurus, both part of a radiation of giant allosauroids during the Cretaceous Period). The staff was setting up for a banquet or some such, which always seems to be the case when I visit, and it hampered my access to the skeletons just a little, but not so much to have made the trip a waste. Afterwards, we just sort of wandered about the museum, visiting "old friends." There are photos behind the cut:

( Fernbank stuff )

After the museum, we got noodle bowls at our favourite Thai restaurant. Later still, we watched two more episodes from Season One of Angel ("Under Your Skin" and "Prodigal"), and then I did a little light rp on Arrakis, but nothing to match Monday night. I was actually off SL before one a.m., and in bed before two a.m. Small miracles.

Please have a look at the current eBay auctions. I really do have to find some alternative to eBay for selling my comp/PC copies, as they've just announced another hike in the cut they take, and it has become unacceptable. No, etsy won't work, as it does not permit auctions. And now I remember there was actually a little bit of work yesterday, as I had to approve the final cover layout for Tales of Pain and Wonder, and send a updated biography for the back cover flap.

Anyway. The platypus says shut up and get to work, so, here we go again...

I suppose it was entirely appropriate that UPS delivered unto me a great box of Tales from the Woeful Platypus (and "The Black Alphabet" chapbook) on February 14th. It's a gorgeous book, both editions, though I have to admit that I prefer the red leather. These are such grand little volumes, they make up for a lot of the day-to-day crap that comes with this freelance life. Has everyone who pre-ordered received hisherits copy by now?

In a fine bit of serendipity, I was just now looking back at old blog entries and discovered that yesterday was the 2nd anniversary of the day Spooky and I first visited the frog exhibit at the Fernbank Museum of Natural History. So, how fitting that yesterday we used my day off to visit the new "Lizards and Snakes: Alive!" exhibit at Fernbank? A wonderful exhibition, all in all, and I was especially pleased to see the "e"-word prominent in the exhibit text (despite this being Georgia), along with cladograms and a small number of fossil squamates (Peltosaurus [cast], Estesia [cast], Madtsoia, Megalania [cast], and Platecarpus tympaniticus). I was disappointed that there were so few snakes, only about seven species, while there must have been at least three or four times that number of lizard species. The lizards were, for the most part, surprisingly active, and I saw a number of taxa I'd never before seen in person. There are a few photos (all by Spooky) behind the cut:

( 3 lizards, 1 snake )

Otherwise, yesterday was windy and bitterly cold, and I can only look forward to next week and the return of warmer temperatures.

The platypus just gave me the 30-second warning, as there is writing to be done today, so I best cut this short before I suffer the wrath of those venomous spurs...

Clarification: I was not meaning to imply, yesterday, that one should never, ever, in any instance, paint a house pink. Or that all houses should be painted drab earthtones. I have seen, in my lifetime, any number of perfectly tasteful pink houses. However, that house on North Avenue, the one I posted photos of, is not a tasteful pink house. In truth, I've grown rather fond of pink. For example, my leather iPod case is a pale shade of pink. Pink has its place, especially when paired with black and/or grey. However, I do believe that houses should be integrated into the environment which they occupy. They should not dominate that environment. And they should not make my eyes hurt or induce nausea. I know that many Victorians painted their houses perfectly hideous colours. To some degree, as John Fowles pointed out, they can, perhaps, be forgiven their infatuation with garish colours. Aniline dyes were new, and people were a little giddy. The ability to dye clothing and paint houses such hideous colors was a novelty. However, the house in question was not built a hundred and fifty years ago. It was built last year. And now it's ugly.

It can't be good that I began June with a Lost Day. I had every intention of taking up the job of finishing "The Black Alphabet" with the letter T and making it at least as far as V. But my mood was too weighted by the morning's dreamsickness. It's one thing to write polymorphously perverse erotica, and it's quite another to try to do it in a mood like that. I sat here until three p.m., staring at the letter T, trying to start. And then I gave up. Because discretion is the better part of valour. So, I got dressed, and we spent the remainder of the afternoon at the Fernbank Museum of Natural History. I stepped into the atrium just in time to see some guy dusting the head of the Gigonotosaurus (photos below). We walked through the chocolate exhibit, undoubtedly the least interesting traveling exhibit that Fernbank has hosted since I started visiting regularly in 2004. At five, we caught Amazon in the IMax, which was beautiful and breathtaking.

( Museum photos. )

After the museum, we had an early dinner from the salad bar at Whole Foods. Back home, I finally saw The Whole Wide World (1996). It only took me ten years. And Jada giving us a one-year membership to Netflix for our birthdays. I loved the film. Vincent D'Onofrio was perfect. And this is the first time, I think, that I've seen Renée Zellweger that she hasn't annoyed me. She was superb. Which makes all that Bridget Jones nonsense later on even more inexcusable. Now, I want to track down a copy of Novalyne Price Ellis' memoirs, One Who Walked Alone, upon which the movie was based. After the film, we read Chapter 13 of The Triumph of the Moon ("The Wider Context: Hostility"), and I did more work with the Ogham. By the way, in answer to an e-mail yesterday, I do not use the Ogham or Tarot or scrying (or anything else) for divination, as I don't believe these systems are any more likely to permit divinatory revelations than a halfway educated guess. Less, actually. I use these tools purely for purposes of introspection and meditation. Oh, and I re-read the first few pages of The Silmarillion.

I wish I could say that I was in a better state of mind today than yesterday. But I'm not. The dreams were worse this morning, despite the Ambien CR which usually at least makes it almost impossible for me to remember them. So, I can't know how the writing will go today. I do know I haven't time for this foolishness.

Here's something cool. I shall consider it my silver lining. S. T. Joshi has chosen "In the Water Works (Birmingham, Alabama 1888)" for American Supernatural Tales, to be released by Penguin at Halloween 2007 (or thereabouts). I admit I'm very proud of this one. It might even make up for the way that "Bradbury Weather" was generally ignored last year. Joshi kindly allowed me to do a bit of a rewrite on the story, fixing a lot of grammatical errors and a few other problems. So, yes, very drad.

It's only 12:32. Anything could happen...