New Post on ASRI

For my Wise Readers: Leaping Into the Saddle of the Horse I'd Put Out to Pasture. In which I explain why I've been so horribly out of touch with so many people, and announce the short story I'm working on.

I'll be posting that story to ye olde writing blog, which is invitation only. I know at least one of you wanted an invite a bit ago. I got the email at a time when I didn't have time to log on and send you said invite, promptly forgot to flag the email, and it got buried under a mountain of other stuff. I have no idea where it is. So please, ask again! And for anyone else who wants to become a Wise Reader, email me. Yahoo knows me as dhunterauthor.

I'll be setting aside an hour or so to do such housekeeping, and maybe even correspond with a few friends who must think my email is broken or that I'm not willing to think of them anymore. Neither is true! I can't wait for the day when we can email people with our thoughts no matter where we are. I'll be better at this whole communication thing then.

Right. Off to continue slaving for my Muse get some writing done. Labor Day indeed...

While We Wait for the Carnival to Come to Town...

Due to a breakdown, one of our sideshows is coming in late, so Ye Olde Accretionary Wedge #34 Addendum won't be up until later today or tomorrow.  It will be worth the wait.  And if you missed the first go-round but have something you'd like to submit, please do feel free!

Due to a breakdown in my mad time management skillz, I haven't got anything to fill the gap.  And I've got five hours of hard writing ahead, which means I can't whip up anything brilliant.  So I'm going to ask your input instead.

Y'see, I'm fast running low on quotes for Cantina Quote o' the Week.  And I figured, rather than scouring the intertoobz for more quotes, I'd invite you, my darlings, to submit your own favorites.  Anything you like.  I can't promise I'll use them, but I'd love to see them all.  I likes a good quote, me.

And now, 'tis time for a quote from my best friend: "I'm off - and I'm leaving, too."

See ye at the sideshow.

Los Links Will Return

Well, we can't blame Yahoo this week.  Instead of my draft email with all my lovely links presenting me with a blank slate when the time comes to put them all in order, we had Blogger going waaay down.  Well, that and the fact I'm writing me arse off at the moment and would've punked them off til Sunday anyway.

But the Readers have Spoken, and I wanted to assure you all that I will, indeed, continue on with Los Links.  Just for you.  And because there's too much awesome stuff not to highlight.  But mostly for you.

And I'm now using Yahoo Notepad instead of email, which seems less eager to delete everything I'm collecting.  We shall see.

I'm off to continue my adventures with the Muse.  Laters, my darlings!

Because I'm Busy, That's Why

So you may have noticed the glaring absence of Los Links and the confusing appearance of our Cantina Quote o' the Week a day early.  This is because I've been too busy at home to compile said links, and work had the indecency to be too busy for me to compile them there, and, well, busy is what it comes down to.

So I'll attempt to have Los Links up tomorrow night.  I said attempt.

Topics, People! I Need Topics!

I'm insane.  Right round the bend.  Gone straight for a madman.  Loco (well, in my case, loca).  I'm trying to write a month's worth of blog posts within the next four days.

Topics.  I need topics.

So, if there's anything you've been burning for me to write about, now's the time to mention it.  I don't care how crazy it sounds, or if you think it will only be interesting to a minority of circus performers, or if you think you're the only one who could possibly care.  Pitch it.  You never know when you're not the only one.

Got a question about atheism?  Ask it.  Want to know something about this life as a writer?  Inquire within.  Some aspect of Arizona or Pacific Northwest geology intrigues you?  Do tell!  Those are just a few suggestions to get your topic synapses firing.  

And if anyone's been itching to post a guest post right here on ETEV, now would be a good time to raise your hand and squeal, "Ooo, me!  ME!"  Send it along to dhunterauthor at yahoo dot com and you might just see your name in lights.

Right, then.  Fire away.  I'm off to continue preparing for the last month o' the winter writing season....

Unavoidably Detained

I'm sorry.  I haven't put together Los Links, and I won't have time to do it tonight.  Unavoidably detained, you see. 

Source

(It's his fault, actually.  He's the one what did it.  And I adore him for it.)

Anyway, those of you who know what I'm referring to should feel free to babble about how much they adore the show in comments.  For those of you not yet addicted, all I can say is that I'm terribly sorry. 

Night Off

It happens.  Busy watching Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, wasn't I?  Hadn't pre-loaded enough posts, had I?  So here we are.

If it makes you feel any better, I spent time in between calls at work today researching up a storm for our next installment of Seward Park Geology.  Got so much information that my brain very nearly melted away.  So I'll have that up for you soon, and then there's a little something special Suzanne sent over that I'll present to you, and the Dojo, and - well, let's just say we shall have a very busy week.

I hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving.

And, incidentally, for the fans: feel free to share the story of how you became obsessed with Harry Potter here.  I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours.  ;-)

My Triumphant Return

Yes, I abandoned you all for three nights with the Wheel of Time.  Can you ever forgive me?

For a while, there, it looked like all was for naught, too.  I didn't think I'd finish last night.  But the time changed, giving that magical extra hour, and so we made it from page just-shy-of-500 to page 843 at just about 6 in the ay-em.

Here endeth the "I'm-still-alive-only-very-badly-eyestrained" announcement.  Regular blogging shall resume later today.

Thank you, my darlings, for understanding.

Night Off

Ye hormones are kicking me arse, there's a cat wanting to cuddle, and I've decided I need to go to the doctor.  Dr. House, of course.  Got all of 5th season I haven't even unwrapped, haven't I?

In the meantime, don't forget to congratulate Callan on his big move!  Love the new digs!

Gone, But Haven't Forgotten Ye

Whelp, my darlings, I'm off to get packed and see more outstanding Oregon geology.  Lockwood's taking us field tripping.  But just because I'm out doesn't mean the cantina's closed.  No, I've pre-loaded some posts for ye.  More precisely, other bloggers have provided content, and I've engaged in some link love, for the most part.

Due to the fact this machine's wi-fi went boom, I won't have an online presence for a few days.  If Blogger chooses this time to decide you're spam, never fear!  I'll get you out of purgatory when I return.

Shall be back online no later than Thursday.  I'll miss you, my darlings, but I'll bring you back lots of lovely photos!

Summer's Premature End

Oh, dear.  I've made a huge mistake.  Meant to get the final bits o' research done for the earthquake scarp in Seward Park, y'see, but since On Demand had The X-Files: I Want to Believe on offer for cheap, I decided to watch that over dinner.  It's threatening to bring summer to an abrupt end.

Inspired now, alas.  Inspiration was supposed to wait for the winter writing season.  And since the last few seasons of The X-Files had sucked so very badly that I stopped watching it, I didn't think the movie would do anything to prod the Muse into action.  Oh, how very wrong I was.  Everything came flooding back: the delight in storytelling, the excitement, the intrigue.  Not that this was the greatest movie I've ever seen, not that there wasn't a fair amount of eye-rolling, but right now I'm willing to forgive any inane bits, because it made me want to write.

Unfortunately for the Muse, summer's not over just yet.  We've got Flaming Geyser State Park tomorrow, Oregon over the weekend, and if all goes well, a visit from a very dear friend the weekend after.  I haven't finished even a fraction of the work that'll keep this blog up and running whilst I'm off in my fictional world.  The fact that it's an almost physical pain I feel knowing fiction has to wait a few weeks tells me I'm still a fiction writer at heart.

As a compromise, and since I've got some new readers who may not know that much about me, we're having this post, which shall serve as an introduction to what I get up to in the dreary months.  Follow me after the jump if you're curious.

Hospital Tour - What Do You All Want to See?

I've got an opportunity to tour Evergreen Hospital's facilities, this time as a visitor rather than a patient.  So, what tickles your curiosity?  Is there anything about a hospital you didn't know and were afraid to ask? Any particular departments you'd like to see featured?  Do let me know!

Excuses, Excuses

I haven't got any good ones for not coming up with some scintillating posts today.  Oh, granted, it was hot enough to sap all of the life out of me, and we haven't any air conditioning.  And there was the Rocko's Modern Life marathon I'd recorded, which demanded to be watched.  Called the parents and taught my stepmother how to troubleshoot her own phone.  Put the finishing touches on the trip to the Olympics, and whittled the itinerary down to something manageable in the time we've got.  Chased after free geology publications from the state of Washington, but didn't get any of them read.  And had to venture forth from the house before I starved to death.  That, alas, is just about it.

I took a look at the political news and yawned.  Thought about reading some science blogs and discovered my brain had melted into a homogeneous little lump.  So it goes.

For those interested in where we'll be, plans look something like this:

Day I

Hurricane Ridge, where we shall be walking along the roof of the world and seeing some lovely geology.  Oh, and flowers, too.

A trip up the Elwha River Valley for Last Dam Summer - they're taking out the dams soon, so this is our last chance to see.

And, if time permits, Lake Crescent, which is twelve miles long and carved by a glacier.  If not, we'll be hitting that one in the ay-em.

Then o blessed sleep wot knits the raveled sleeve of... sorry.  It's just that with the temp still at 80 degrees in the house and the fact that I normally don't go to bed until sunrise, I know I won't sleep well tonight, and then there's all the lovely exercise to contend with.

Day II

Rialto Beach, if we get a chance, where we shall see the Hole-in-the-Wall.

Hoh Rainforest, because I've not yet seen a temperate rainforest.

And, if time permits, Ruby Beach, hopefully around sunset.

Then it's hope, and to sleep, wot knits - sorry. 

If I get the opportunity, I'll be posting a few sneak-peaks from the hotel tomorrow.  If not, you can expect something quite soon.  And I did load up a little something to tide you over while I'm gone, just in case the idea of a day without Dana horrifies you. 

Whilst I'm away, you might feel the urge to tell me about the mustn't-be-missed attractions in your area.  This would be wonderful, especially if you live in Indiana or North Carolina, as it seems I may be condemned privileged to visit them both next summer chasing after various relatives and best friends.  If you've written up a favorite place, do link to it in comments.  Shameless self promotion is good. Indulge yourselves!

I'll see ye when I return from the wilderness, or at least the bits of it that can be easily reached by automobile.

Upcoming Events at the Cantina

The website for Mount Rainier says we should inform someone of our plans, so I shall inform you lot: on Tuesday, my intrepid companion and I are headed for one of the Pacific Northwest's most dangerous volcanoes  for a little fun and excitement.  Hopefully there won't be unexpected mudflows.  That would be a little too exciting.

I'm doing it all for you, my darlings.  I'm in the midst of preparing many geology and other science posts for the winter, and I figured I'd do up Mount Rainier.  Had photos from my 2007 visit, didn't I?  Well, I went through them, and a good solid post on geology they do not make.  Besides, I'm itching to get the Sony Cyber-Shot up there. 

So tonight, we hashed out our plans: we shall be starting with the Emmons Glacier, hiking along the Emmons Moraine.  Because we are out-of-shape, we'll only be doing the spur instead of the full Glacier Basin Trail.  Afterward, we're off to the Life Systems Trail at Ohanapecosh Campground, where we shall get to see hot springs (the first I'll have ever seen in my life, incidentally).  Then we plan to finish up at Paradise, where we'll hit the Nisqually Vista Trail.  The last time I was on that one, I was practically knee-deep in snow and cursing my crappy camera.  But it was one of the best experiences of my life, and I do care to repeat it.

If we have time to sneak it in, I might divert us to the Carbon River Rain Forest Nature Trail, but we shall see. 

As if that's not enough adventure, we're off the following Monday to the Olympic National Forest, where we'll be spending two days immersed in the best geology the Olympics have to offer - within easy walking distance from various parking lots, that is.  (There's a reason I didn't ever become a field geologist, and it has a lot to do with being sedentary by nature and having an innate horror of camping.  This was probably caused by that camping trip at Lake Powell where my father pitched our tent on a nice, smooth, sandy flat, which we discovered was nice, smooth and sandy because rainwater flowed copiously through it during downpours.  And don't even talk to me about dragging our soggy selves out to fish that morning, hearing a helicopter, looking around for said helicopter, and then discovering that the sound was, in fact, the largest cloud of mosquitoes we'd ever seen in our lives.  And really don't even talk to me about the bats that dove in for a feast.  I can, however, report that soggy pillows do fend off feeding bats quite well, although the mosquitoes aren't impressed.)

Anyway.  Yes.  Quite a lot of adventure coming up.  Then it's home to write up all the wonderful geology.  Eventually. 

Posting may get a bit light round here on the travel days.  But just remember, it's all for a Good Cause, i.e., giving you all some eye candy.

Ye Olde Housekeeping Post with Links to More Interesting Fare

Egads, tonight has gotten away from me.  I meant to do all sorts of fun and exciting things, and here I've only done some desultory reading on the intertoobz, written a piece that will go up on a very grim anniversary (don't worry, you won't have long to stew over the mystery before it appears), and am in the midst of a Rocko's Modern Life marathon.

Inspiration, alas, rather failed me after all that.  

Now it's time to eat and get some work done, which means kicking a brain that has no intention of Serious Thought into gear.  It wants to be fed more Rocko and put to bed.  I intend to finish some geology research for upcoming posts whether I have to take my brain to the woodshed for a beating or whether kind persuasion will work.

For those pining for a bit o' science, here be some links:

Brian Switek can assure you that Triceratops isn't going anywhere, and give you a prehistoric anatomy lesson to boot.

Silver Fox has reported on her* Oregon Trip Day 3, and this is the place to go if you're looking for ale and ashfalls, this is the place.

Erik Klemetti reports on a dome collapse in Indonesia.  If you immediately realized I wasn't talking about architecture, you might just be a geologist.

Orac unleashes some patented Respectful Insolence on those who think basic science is an obstacle to potential med students.  At least now I have another question in the "determining my doctor's potential competence" checklist.

And this isn't science, but our own John Pieret is going through Judge Walker's Prop8 opinion, with hysterical results. Catch the first two installments here and here.  Have bandages ready, as your sides will likely split.

With that, my darlings, I bid you adieu until tomorrow night.

*Sorry!  

What You Can Do While I'm Indisposed

Once every month, I ponder whether to hate my biology or my anatomy more.  This is that time.  Aunty Flow arrived early, so at the moment all I'm interested in is sitting very still in one position going "Ow."  This is not conducive to the kind of thought necessary for blogging.  The spanking I planned to administer to a certain NYT Magazine writer shall have to wait.  In the meantime, you can head over to Bora's, where you'll find links to quite a few other spankings, together with at least one blogger who earned my wrath this afternoon.  If you're not sure which one, just peruse the comments at each post - I refuse to dignify him with a link, but I did make my displeasure known.

I particularly recommend Mike the Mad Biologist's take on the whole affair.  'Tis a thing of beauty.  Mike also gets props for having the post title that made me LOL: "Why We Need to Vaccinate Germ Dispersal Units Children: The Whooping Cough Edition."  Whooping cough, of course, is far from a laughing matter, but that title is an instant classic.  And all too true in so many ways!

If clueless gits and the evisceration thereof don't tickle your fancy, Brian Switek's got an intriguing piece on running primates.  You know a writer's good when he can make limb posture interesting.

In the mood for some woo-bashing?  Orac's Friday Dose of Woo will have you snorting your apparently-dead water all over the keyboard.  And this time, read the comments - the readers really outdid themselves, reaching a pinnacle of hilarity with this one.

Those of you who are passionate about proper English usage can productively waste your afternoon with Ophelia Benson's and Jerry Coyne's posts on "verbal infelicities" - or possibly solecisms.  Do not get me started on the difference between "phase" and "faze."  We'll be here all night, cramps be damned.  And when you're done policing language, do hang about their places a bit - Jerry's got lynx kittens to die for and Ophelia found an accommodationist she can tolerate, which may in fact be evidence that miracles exist.

That should be enough to keep you in trouble for a bit.  If you need more, the blog roll's recently updated.  Have at!

I shall return once my uterus stops trying to kill me.

*Uno mas, via Mike: "On the lessons Joseph Goebbels taught us: The Right Wing, The Big Lie, and the American Spectator’s latest on the Sherrod Case…"  No Godwin here, just cold hard truth.

Ask and Ye Shall (Sometimes) Receive

Chris wanted more pirate and zombie stuff on ye olde blog.  Well, he asked for it.

Remodeling

I've made a few changes to the old place.  Let me know if you hate them.  Not that I can put it back the way it was, mind, but adjustments can be made if things are hideous.

No, I Won't Join in Any Facebook Games

But you can be my friend anyway.  Don't expect much.

Follow Me!

I've been dabbling my toeses in this Twitter thing, and you now have a prime opportunity to push me into the deep end.  Look to the left.  Look under "Alternate Dana."  You see that little "Follow Me" thingy?  Click there, and you, too, can become a follower!  But you'll also be a leader, because I'll probably end up following you, too.  See how awesome that is?

If all has gone well, FeedBurner should soon be posting updates to this blog on Twitter.  You'll know it's a new post because it'll say "Nuevo Verdad" and display a link.  That's if I've managed to figure out this new-fangled technology stuff.  Considering how addled my mind is after several days of cold medicine and severely reduced breathing ability, I may not have managed.

I'm also debating joining FaceBook because two or three friends are on my arse about it.  However, I'm not sure how I could do that and avoid having coworkers suck me into playing Mafia Wars with them.  FaceBook denizens with suggestions as to how to avoid that horrid fate, please share said suggestions in comments.

And I think that's quite enough babbling about social media for now.