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State of the Long Weekend
Sep. 3rd, 2007 10:44 amI had hoped to get some work done on a client website today, but since their VPN is down, I am stuck. Given that their site is due on Friday, I expect the next four days to be total chaos.
On the other hand, maybe this is just a sign from above that I should be slacking anyway, what with today being a holiday. It will also give me time to stop hyperventilating about the latest DW news, which manages to be wonderful, exciting, and annoyingly vague, all at the same time.
It's been a calm and pleasant weekend otherwise. I've gotten lots of cooking done (grilled buffalo burgers, homemade potato salad, and grilled summer squash on Saturday; tequila shrimp, garlicky yuca, and cabbage/carrot/jalapeño slaw last night; salads with many CSA veggies planned for tonight). I've also edited a friend's fic and spent some time working on another one of my own -- I think I need to just give up on saying "this is the last one," because every time I do that, my brain says, "Nope, here's another character you haven't tried writing, give that one a shot." And I read Warren Ellis' novel Crooked Little Vein, which I recommend unreservedly if you like Ellis' comic books, or if you enjoy wickedly funny, brutal, and vulgar prose. Here's an excerpt from the first chapter, which now holds second place on my list of "best first chapters I've ever read" (Snow Crash is still #1):
I laughed, I was horrified, I couldn't stop turning pages, I was squicked completely during one chapter, and then I laughed some more. I have William Gibson's Spook Country next on the to-be-read list, and though I know I'm going to enjoy it, I expect it will be a very, very different literary experience.
Edited to add: I can't believe I spent all this time praising Warren Ellis and forgot to use my new Nextwave icon.
On the other hand, maybe this is just a sign from above that I should be slacking anyway, what with today being a holiday. It will also give me time to stop hyperventilating about the latest DW news, which manages to be wonderful, exciting, and annoyingly vague, all at the same time.
It's been a calm and pleasant weekend otherwise. I've gotten lots of cooking done (grilled buffalo burgers, homemade potato salad, and grilled summer squash on Saturday; tequila shrimp, garlicky yuca, and cabbage/carrot/jalapeño slaw last night; salads with many CSA veggies planned for tonight). I've also edited a friend's fic and spent some time working on another one of my own -- I think I need to just give up on saying "this is the last one," because every time I do that, my brain says, "Nope, here's another character you haven't tried writing, give that one a shot." And I read Warren Ellis' novel Crooked Little Vein, which I recommend unreservedly if you like Ellis' comic books, or if you enjoy wickedly funny, brutal, and vulgar prose. Here's an excerpt from the first chapter, which now holds second place on my list of "best first chapters I've ever read" (Snow Crash is still #1):
"What I am is unlucky," I snarled. "You know I got an adultery case last year? You know what the husband turned out to be doing at night? He had formed a sex cult that broke into an ostrich farm at midnight three times a week. You know what it's like, finding eight middle-aged guys having tantric sex with ostriches?"
The chief of staff made a sympathetic noise he'd probably learned off a talk show. "I'm not even sure I can imagine how to do that."
"I had that image in my head for two months. I couldn't have sex. My girlfriend came to bed one night in a feather boa and I started crying. She left me for a woman named Bob who designs strap-ons shaped like dolphin penises."
I laughed, I was horrified, I couldn't stop turning pages, I was squicked completely during one chapter, and then I laughed some more. I have William Gibson's Spook Country next on the to-be-read list, and though I know I'm going to enjoy it, I expect it will be a very, very different literary experience.
Edited to add: I can't believe I spent all this time praising Warren Ellis and forgot to use my new Nextwave icon.