May Day underway

[rolanni]

There are a couple of announcements before we get May Day underway.

First, there's a brand-new, never-before-published Guest Story at Splinter Universe:  "Leaving Via Callia" by Alma Alexander.  Here's your link to the story.  Please note:  The donation button at the bottom of the story goes directly to the author's PayPal account.  If you want to show your appreciation for her work by donating, make sure you use that button.

Second Announcement: Baen Books is proud to announce the inaugural Baen Fantasy Adventure Award, to be given at this year’s Gen Con to the best piece of original short fiction that captures the spirit and tradition of such great storytellers as Larry Correia, Robert E. Howard, Mercedes Lackey, Elizabeth Moon, Andre Norton, J.R.R. Tolkien, David Weber and Marion Zimmer Bradley.

You can get more information, including deadline for submissions, by clicking this link.  The award will be given at GenCon

In Cat Farm and Confusion Factory news:

Steve has an appointment with the vampires today; I have an appointment with the Road Boss on Surebleak.

Sprite has decided to become Vastly Silly, and be Afraid of her string.  This is at once amusing and frustrating, since, before yesterday, her string was her Treasure, her Precious, the Best. Toy. Ever.  I don't know what it did to her when I wasn't looking, but when I pick up the string to play with it, she runs and "hides" on the top cellar stair.  I do realize that she's only 21 months old, and the Silly Goo hasn't completely left her system, but I hope this phase passes quickly.

Also, she now occasionally answers to "Boopsie."  Guess I better cut back. . .  OTOH, we do like them to answer to something.

And that's all the news that's fit to print from Central Maine, where it's raining very gently.

All you folks who got Weather yesterday (including my friends in Maryland, who lost part of 26th Street in Charles Village to a massive sinkhole/landslide.  The pictures I saw showed a street-full of cars down on the railroad tracks.  I hope CSX has another way outta town, 'cause it didn't look like that was going to get cleared out soon.) -- how're you doing?  Safe and dry?

* * *

Progress on One of Five
58,701/100,000
OR
59% completed

He shook his head. "Who names a planet Surebleak?"
She laughed.
"It was descriptive, surely?"
"Oh, surely; and still is. Until Mr. Brunner gets those weather satellites up and tuned, and even then, I fear we'll only have graduated to Halfbleak."

Comments

[drammar.livejournal.com]

Yes, Maryland sure did get wet yesterday.
Our property's north-most border is a dam that holds back the overflow from the blight that is called a "development," which was built a few years before we bought our place. The dam was designed to direct overflow water into a culvert that runs through our wooded area behind the house. The dam broke yesterday. The wooded area has about 2 feet of standing water because the outlet for the culvert is plugged up with who knows what; the detached garage is flooded up to what would be mid-hubcap on the car if we hadn't moved it. So we have a Big Mess. Fortunately, the house itself is dry.

[martianmooncrab.livejournal.com]

All felines respond to Damn Cat!

Maine...

[jwadams.livejournal.com]

Just arrived in Maine (SFO->BOS) last night; staying in York for a friend's wedding. It was raining hard for the drive up at 11pm, but it's gorgeous (if a little choppy) on the coast. The preparations for the season are well underway, and the local ice cream shop opens tomorrow, so that's good. And I saw a couple sun beams through the clouds not an hour ago.

Seeing all of the preparations brings to mind the Carousel series...

Anyway, it's lovely to get a break, and to visit Maine again.

Princess Sprite

[catherine ives (from livejournal.com)]

Really weird about Princess Sprite and her string. I wonder if she'll ever change back to liking the string again. Of course I am not a cat person and think that cats are very mysterious anyway. Let us know.

We are high and dry here in UT. We did get some rain recently which was great. Not too much rain around here. They are having a real heat wave out in L.A. So far not too bad here.

Snippets and quote :) :) :)

[gareth griffiths (from livejournal.com)]

Many thanks for the return of the snippets/quotes intakes out-takes or whatever.

Re: Snippets and quote :) :) :)

[elbales]

Yes! They are always appreciated.

[adina-atl.livejournal.com]

Regarding "Boopsie": Many, many years ago my Tantras (who passed away at that age of 16 a few years back) was a very tiny, very sick kitten, who required "candy" four or five times a day. His candy was a nutritional supplement containing molasses and cod liver oil, among other things, and he adored it. I was so pleased when I discovered that he would come to his name--I called "Tantras!" and he'd come running. Then I realized that the only time I called him was when it was time for candy, and that he would in fact come running to 1) the other cat's name, 2) the word Candy, and 3) the name Darth Vader. Oh well.

From his tiny, sick beginnings he turned into a 14-pound (ideal weight, just big) healthy ox of a cat.