sundries

[rm]

Patty will be headed home to Ohio on December 17 and returning on January 1. I'll be on my own for New Year's which is a bit superstitious and odd for me, but I'll get her back on the first, so it sorta solves that too! And she'll be around to keep me sane for cruise packing on the 2nd!

Our household is in the midst of a full-fledged Plants vs. Zombies addiction.

Tonight we have a bookstore date to look at some travel books to plan our cruise excursions.

What really killed Jane Austen? No, it wasn't zombies.

in Lebanon there's a high suicide rate amongst domestic workers from abroad related, it is suspected, to abuse from employers.

The price of the gamble on gay rights. I came of age as a gay person during AIDS. And man, the 80s were weird: The Berlin Wall, Tiennamen Square. And I keep thinking, through that distorted lens of teen romance and tragedy and change on the news that part of the problem must surely be that while we are fighting for our lives, we're not actually goddamn acting like it, are we? Sometimes I think we are too used to losing to know how to win.

On the push in France to require digitally altered images of people to be labeled as such.

carlanime alerts us to the fact that Canadian quarters are not secret spy devices. Apparently, at one point, the US government wasn't so sure.

The solid security gates of NYC have been banned, but business owners have until 2026 more or less to replace them. This New York is a different country than the one I grew up in.

Doctor Who: Through Time and Space is out today from IDW and has a story by _tonylee_ and Paul Grist in it. See, he's not just your favorite malevolent presence at cons, he makes stuff too!

The Book of Harry Potter Trifles, Trivias and Particularities will be back in stock on December 5 with Amazon. You can order now and have it in time for the gift-giving holiday of your choice.

bentley tells me a friend of hers, doubtful_salmon is doing a stand-up comedy show in NYC in a location that, she hears tell (yes, this is true), used to be an S&M club. This says more about the horror of the life of a stand-up comic than just about anything else could (and that's no aspersion on the BDSM scene! Just on being a comic!). Anyway, now that my own joke has fallen flat, doubtful_salmon says it's at Comix on 14th and 9th on December 12 at "about 4:30 p.m." It's a private show (that I'm being exhorted to promote on LJ, so you know, for definitions of private), so you have to call to make a reservation at 212.524.2500 (she thinks). Ask about cover or table charges when you call, as the comic was unsure if there's a cover or if you just need to buy a couple of menu items or what (whatever it is, it's pretty cheap, that's the point there). (Pro tip: when promoting your stuff know precisely when it is and how much it costs and be sure of the phone number for reservations).

My day is going to be long and crazy, but there are two other cases of People on LJ I Know Who Could Really Use Your Help, that I'll be posting later. So you've been warned or some such.

Bristol: the waiting is still driving me mad.

WHY DOES OUR HOUSE SUDDENLY HAVE NO RUNNING WATER?

Dammit, I did not get a Yuletide pinch hit I really, really wanted. I sort of want to write the story anyway, but not sure if I will.

Comments

The quarter sized spy

[newwaytowrite.livejournal.com]

"I don't think it is an issue of the Canadians being the bad guys," the Pentagon's counterintelligence chief wrote in an exchange of emails obtained this week by The Associated Press, "but then again, who knows."

That is so hilarious!

Now with regards to your book. Do you know if your problem with Amazon is the same problem happening on the Chapters website in Canada?

I thought maybe I would like to buy with some spare poppy quarters I have been spying, I mean saving?

Re: The quarter sized spy

[rm.livejournal.com]

No idea. The Amazon problem is actually because it sold out, and they are waiting for a new shipment (until then it's listed as how long it would take my publisher to send). The new Amazon shipment is due in on December 5, resolving that.

I'll drop a note to my publisher about it.